The actor James Franco has generously decided to show us how on earth he does it. Having caught him in that James Dean movie and those Spider-Man films -- not to mention in Nicolas Cage's deeply inexplicable "Sonny" -- I've frequently wondered how, indeed, does Franco do it. The tears, the rage, the hair. He's quite something. Here he explains, with endearing self-satire, his secrets. Franco's little brother Dave plays his pupil. And here James teaches Dave how to give a green-screen performance. And here the Francos attempt a scene from "Rebel without a Cause." Afflecks, can you top this?
That pretty much explains what type of shenanigans Cohen is up to for this stealthilyfilmed outing, and I believe that it comes across as a remarkable vote of confidence from Universal that they're willing to face off against the likes of a DaVinci Code prequel (which, if the first film is any indication, might be worth a couple of laughs itself).
Sure, Borat did well enough to justify such a prominent spot, but that came out in early November, not the week before Memorial Day. Maybe I'm too adjusted to having my summer comedies laced with special effects or Judd Apatow; who knows, maybe we'll get a blockbuster comedy that gets by on actual ... laughs.
"The Incredible Hulk" debuted with a romping, stomping $55 million opening weekend, further proof that the current Marvel formula -- cast the lead smartly, keep production in-house, don't get too artsy-fartsy -- is paying dividends. Despite worries that the film followed too closely on the big green heels of Ang Lee's "The Hulk," which made $62 million its opening weekend almost exactly five years ago, the new movie benefited from good buzz and benevolent spillover from "Iron Man." (I still say the only time "Incredible Hulk" gets a lift is when Downey Jr's Tony Stark turns up at the end).
"The Happening" knocked out a much higher than expected $31 million in advance of terrible reviews and (I'm guessing) seriously burned audiences. There's perverse appeal in the idea of a quiet end-of-the-world movie -- one that sticks it to moviegoers by showing us going out with a whimper instead of a bang -- but the problem is that M. Night Shyamalan hasn't given us a good one. So brickbats all around, except from Roger Ebert, God bless him.
"Kung Fu Panda" retained water, dropping a mere 45% from its opening weekend. This thing's going to be with us a long time, and you know they're already thinking sequel. "You Don't Mess with the Zohan" dropped off more sharply -- 57% -- as the parents of America suddenly realized that not all PG-13 movies are the same and that this one carries serious raunch. (Or, as the 11-year-old daughter of a friend of mine told her mom as the end credits rolled: "That was so inappropriate!" I think she meant it as a compliment.)
Now in its 11th year, the CineVegas Film Festival is still trying to establish its identity in the festival world. Should it be glitzy and glamorous (and gaudy and tacky) like Vegas? Or should it be a champion of up-and-coming indie films with no stars and no Hollywood connections? Either way, CineVegas has already settled on one point: Its parties are every bit as dazzling and boozy -- and numerous -- as you'd expect from a Las Vegas-based fest.
Cast in point: Friday night's official 10th anniversary party, held poolside on the roof of one of the Palms Resort Casino's buildings. The DJ-facilitated music was thumpin', the bars were giving out complimentary vodka drinks courtesy of sponsor Grey Goose (they stopped just short of filling the pool with the stuff), and there were plenty of tasty snacks and desserts. Everyone was there, including the film critics and reporters (who tended to be under-dressed), the filmmakers, and the CineVegas pass-holders (who tended to be over-dressed, which is the general rule in Vegas).
Over at Thompson on Hollywood, the ever-astute Anne Thompson has a great analysis of what really happened with Edward Norton's involvement in writing the script for The Incredible Hulk, what ended up on the cutting room floor during post-production, thanks to Marvel's final cut rights, and why the WGA didn't end up granting him script credit. It's an interesting look at the behind-the-scenes details of how these things work in Hollywood. Thompson says, in part:
Norton mostly changed dialogue, filled in gaps of motivation and developed character. For example, the scenes in Brazil about finding a serum in the Amazon to cure him, and Banner's emails with Tim Blake Nelson, were Norton adds. Marvel agreed to shoot Norton's script.
When we last left our heroic green giant back in the 2003 film, Bruce Banner (Eric Bana) was on the run somewhere in South America and hiding away from Thunderbolt Ross and the U.S. Army. Five years later, a lot has changed. For starters, the Ang Lee film has nothing to do with the new one. Oddly, the new film opens with…huh, guess what? Bruce Banner (now Ed Norton) on the lam somewhere in Portugal, (South America), hiding away from General George ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross and the U.S. Army. In any case, aside from Lou Ferrigno’s cameo as another security guard, that’s where any and all likeness to the previous film ends. I loved the 2003 film’s cerebral/internal character study.
I loved this film, directed by Transporter 2’s Louis Leterrier even better. (more…)
Might a screening of "Celtic Pride" be in order? Might be, if that 1996 comedy wasn't so painfully bad. But hold on to the title for a bit; maybe we can repurpose it on Sunday.
The multiplex offerings this weekend are pretty slim. "The Incredible Hulk" is a perfectly okay superhero movie that turns pale green in comparison to "Iron Man". Yes, Edward Norton is a fine actor, but all he has to do here is mope, and Liv Tyler is such a limp noodle as his biologist girlfriend that I got the giggles. (Thank goodness for the juicy overacting provided by Tim Blake Nelson and William Hurt's eyebrows.) The CGI effects are impressive but I never forgot they were CGI effects: The fight scenes look like the Rock-Em Sock-Em Robots videogame we've all been waiting for.
"The Happening" doesn't. My review pretty much says all I have to say on the subject of M. Night Shyamalan's new thriller, but I should underscore how shocked I am at just how poor the writing and filmmaking is here. The underlying idea -- don't mess with Mother Nature -- is solid, especially if the honeybee die-off is already freaking you out. The script, though, should have gone back to rewrite at least twice. And those people hanging from trees in the trailers? That's the cast, left twisting in the wind by M. Night. The scariest apocalypse-now vision remains Michael Haneke's "Time of the Wolf," or, if you're looking for something closer to the classical model, Hitchcock's "The Birds," an obvious influence on "The Happening" and a movie whose innate craft makes this one look like a bad student video.
The art-houses try to pick up the slack with "Savage Grace" (true crime story of decadent jetsetters, but it's no "Reversal of Fortune"), "When Did You Last See Your Father?" (tepid British male sobfest about dying fathers and emotionally constipated sons), "War, Inc." (a splattery political-satire mess from John Cusack, long on justified outrage, short on coherence or laughs; almost worth seeing for Hilary Duff as a sexed-up Central Asian pop tart, tho -- that's her in the photo above, and you don't want to know what she's about to do with that scorpion).
If you haven’t discovered the pure hilariousness of Italian Spiderman yet, then now’s the time to start.
Quick Background: Italian Spiderman started when a group of Australian film students made a spoof trailer for an Italian take on the Spiderman franchise from the 70s. The trailer was so popular - and unbelievably hilarious, that they decided to actually go ahead and make the film, which is being released in parts. Check out the trailer and the first three episodes here and watch the latest episode here.
MTV snagged an exclusive photo from the mysterious Where the Wild Things Are, which they spotted at the New York Licensing Expo. Click on the tantalizing photo on the right to see the whole thing over on MTV. It isn't very big, but it is one of those evocative images that makes you absolutely crazy to see this movie. It really is perfect -- from the wolf suit down to those mysterious monster paws.
The rumors still abound about it. The fact that it is appearing at the Licensing Expo gives one hope that we will see it, and that they won't actually recast a child they have featured on the advertising. To catch you up, Kim talked to Tom Noonan at Cannes. He thought the film would be released as Spike Jonze and Dave Eggers had intended it to be.
Yet, as Monika reported at the beginning of June, Warner Bros is prepping a month of reshoots. It was unclear how much was being changed, but new casting calls went out for various stand-in roles. That suggests that it is more than a few pick-up shots, and that all the whispers of unhappiness and drastic alterations are true. The silence from all involved (with the exception Noonan and Forrest Whitaker) doesn't help. At least we can enjoy the picture and wonder.
Early this week, we reported some ugly Iron Man 2 gossip, brought to us via IESB -- rumors that Marvel might not sign Jon Favreau to helm IM2 because they don't think he deserves whatever amount of money he's supposedly asking for the sequel.
As expected, IESB received a great deal of attention over this bombshell. Ain't It Cool News' Harry Knowles confirmed the story, while Devin Faraci of CHUD expressed skepticism that financial negotiations could be that far when Favreau himself had confirmed that he had only heard from Marvel once. But we all agreed that something was rotten at the studio of Marvel. It seems a bit presumptive to name a release date, but avoid talking to or signing your director, yes?
Universal Studios appears to have claimed next May the 15th on which to release Sacha Baron Cohen's 
Now in its 11th year, the CineVegas Film Festival is still trying to establish its identity in the festival world. Should it be glitzy and glamorous (and gaudy and tacky) like Vegas? Or should it be a champion of up-and-coming indie films with no stars and no Hollywood connections? Either way, CineVegas has already settled on one point: Its parties are every bit as dazzling and boozy -- and numerous -- as you'd expect from a Las Vegas-based fest. 
Over at Thompson on Hollywood, the ever-astute Anne Thompson has a great analysis of 
When we last left our heroic green giant back in the 2003 
Early this week, 
