Category: Movies
April 29 2005
So Long But We Could Have Done with More Fish
As a fan of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy I should be excited by the fact its film adaptation has finally opened. But as I’ve said before, I’m so familiar with the radio shows, the books, and even the TV show that I doubt I’ll be able to enjoy the movie. So let’s not talk about it. Instead, let’s remember its creator, Douglas Adams. IGN has a great article on remembering Adams. And, as a bonus, here Slashdot’s interview with Adams. (And of course there’s always his own official site.)
Posted by Mickey at 03:24 PM in Books, Movies | Comments (0) | Email this entry
March 21 2005
HHGTTG:TM
I’ve been hearing a lot about the new Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy movie lately. I’m too partial to Simon Jones and the cast of the original radio shows to get too excited about the movie—and an old draft I read, purportedly written by Douglas Adams himself, left me less than inspired—but I know many of my friends are really looking forward to it. I have to admit though that the latest trailer, viewable at the new official site, finally has me thinking the movie might not be that bad after all.
Posted by Mickey at 02:48 PM in Movies | Comments (0) | Email this entry
March 11 2005
Episode III: The Trailer of the Sith
I suppose I should start becoming interested. Fox aired the new Episode III trailer tonight. I was able to see it in its high-def (though window-boxed) glory. Hayden Christensen has some red marker on his face, Samuel L Jackson is worried about some “very dangerous pudding”, CGI Yoda is ready for his close-up, some stuff blows up real good, and, according to Slashdot, Star Wars might get its first PG-13 rating.
Hey, look, a giant screen grab...
Posted by Mickey at 08:46 AM in Movies | Comments (1) | Email this entry
February 28 2005
Oscars 2005
5:56 PM: I wasn’t sure if I was going to live-blog tonight since I’d exhausted my movie-talk yesterday. But I’ve got nothing else to do. It’s this or just talk back to my TV screen.
I’ve been prepping for the Oscars by listening to a lot of movie soundtracks. Last night was Star Wars and Close Encounters. I’ve played these a lot, of course, but I really gave them a thorough listen last night, and I was reminded how truly great they are. The finale to Close Encouters is breathtakingly gorgeous and the battle music in Star Wars heartpoundingly exciting. I listened to Prisoner of Azkaban earlier, I just finished E.T., and now I’m listening to A.I..
6:33 PM: seriously, TV Guide Channel is bleeping the word “boobs”?! How tight-assed a country have we become?
7:28 PM: soundtracks update: now listening to Napoleon Dyanmite (because Pedro is with Melissa Rivers).
8:28 PM: oops, I forgot ABC might want to do a pre-show too. At least Billy Bush didn’t make a complete ass of himself. (Sentence bleeped by TV Guide Channel.)
8:46 PM: Catwoman 2?
First prediction is wrong. I was about to change my mind and root for Finding Neverland, but I would’ve been wrong either way.
8:48 PM: I got one right. I didn’t go out on much of a limb though. Even fellow nominee Alan Alda said, on Joan & Melissa’s preshow, that Morgan Freeman was going to win.
8:52 PM: Pepsi bastardizes a classis movie moment. I am not amused. I would boycott, but Vanilla Pepsi is so tasty.
8:54 PM: soundtracks update: now listening to Jerry Goldsmith’s Legend.
8:56 PM: Robin Williams has monologue envy.
9:02 PM: another Pixar victory. As it should be. And now, for no known reason, the first best song performance. Time for a Double break.
9:13 PM: aaahhh!!! Actors have taken over the theater! They’re everywhere! Cate Blanchett has invaded the main floor. Scarlett Johanson has taken up a position in the balcony. Nowhere is safe!
9:22 PM: got another prediction right with Cate Blanchett’s win, but I was almost ready to pick Virginia Madsen just now.
9:30 PM: please don’t insult documentaries by likening them to reality TV shit.
10:10 PM: no, I didn’t stop watching. I’ve been taking my popcorn break and didn’t want to get fake butter all over my PowerBook keyboard. I had some incredibly witty stuff to say, but it’s all lost now. You’re just stuck with this. Did I miss anything? I thought that was Colin Mochrie in those Snack Fairy commercials. Jake Gyllenhaal, presenting the special effects award, has a weird-shaped Silly Putty head and an extremely wide Muppet mouth. In fact…
 |
| Separated at Birth |
10:13 PM: a woman says “dog’s bollocks”. Good thing the TV Guide channel stopped its Oscar coverage.
10:23 PM: The Aviator gets Cinematography too. I’m too lazy to check the nominees list: is this a Return of the King sweep yet? Will we be reading articles about the Academy can only focus on one blockbuster now and can’t evenly distribute its awards any more?
10:27 PM: nope. Beat out by Ray for sound recording. So much for the maxim that a movie needs helicopters, machine guns, and explosions to sound good. (Note: maxim still stands for home theater demonstrations.)
10:39: original score. And a surprise write-in win for Sky Captain! Actually, Finding Neverland wins, for handily capturing many styles. But—soundtracks update—I’m now listening to Edward Shearmur’s Sky Captain. So there.
11:00 PM: oh yes, refresh my memory on the Best Song nominees. Let’s spend even more time on this useless category.
11:03 PM: Hilary Swank knocks out Annette Bening, goes tomorrow’s inevitable headline. She might even get best back, but that award actually goes to Melanie Griffith. I was half-hoping Imelda Staunton would win for Vera Full of Drake—not that I’ve seen it, but just because it would upset the predictions and piss off the red states.
11:10 PM: maybe The Sea Inside’s win will piss off the red states instead (the ones upset by Million Dollar Baby, that is). ‘Cept they don’t watch those movies you gotta read.
11:29 PM: no surprises with Best Actor. Jamie Foxx wins…and makes a teary acceptance speech that would make me feel bad to make fun of.
11:31 PM: soundtracks update: I am now listening to Eric von Korngold’s Adventures of Robin Hood. Maybe some Max Steiner’s King Kong and Michael Kamen’s Baron Munchausen on deck.
11:36 PM: Martin Scorsese has once again struck out. At least Clint Eastwood is not undeserving.
11:40 PM: wow. The E! guys were right. They said The Aviator was the initial frontrunner but of late there has been a groundswell for Million Dollar Baby. Did Martin Scorsese do such a bad job that he can assemble award-winning ingredients but can’t pull off an award-winning movie from them? So I’m told, but I didn’t get that feeling when I was actually watching his film. If anything, Million Dollar Baby was the one that seemed flawed to me, since its big plot twist makes it feel so much like two movies. Obviously the Academy doesn’t have a problem with it. But then again, it’s my blog.
P.S.: producer Albert Ruddy looks like a cross between Frank Langella and Brad Garrett. Not that that matters. I’m just still feeling snippy. I have to say something nice about the production though. I liked the way the technical nominees were grouped together, either in he seats or on stage. It’s like the producers are staging this like a show more than just covering it like a live event. It’ll probably get an Emmy next year. The monitors embedded in the stage and swooping across the ceiling were cool too. And I’m glad to see the big Chris Rock contoversy turned out to be a big nothing, as I expected.
Anyway, off to E!’s post-show, more soundtracks off my iPod, some Double, and, maybe, if I’m still awake, a movie. Possibly…SKY CAPTAIN!!!
Posted by Mickey at 05:53 AM in Movies | Comments (0) | Email this entry
February 26 2005
Oscars 2005 Pre-Show
My favorite weekend is upon us. Sure, the Super Bowl might have bigger parties and better food, but at least Oscar weekend leads up to a TV show I actually watch for its content and not for the commercials (and I can barely muster even that these last couple years).
For the second year in a row (maybe the third—I can’t remember) I have managed to see all five Best Picture nominees, and then some. I feel quite the informed Oscars viewer—at least in that final category—which leads me this year to hazard making some actual predictions…plus a lot of guesses in all the other categories. I copied this list of nominees from the Oscars.com page. I’ll skip the documentary and foreign film categories since in those instances I definitely won’t know what I’m talking about. Sorry about the length, but I love talking about film.
Lights, camera, blockquote, as they say in biz…
MAKEUP
LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE SEA INSIDE
I have to confess the only movie I saw in this category was The Passion of the Christ, thus it gets my pick if only for the poor guy who had to paint the intricate webwork of bloody lashes on Jesus’s back every day.
COSTUME DESIGN
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
RAY
TROY
This category always bothers me. Too often they just give it to the person who had to make the most costumes. And too often they award movies whose design is based on the historical record of photographs and catelog ads. That hardly sounds like “design” to me. That’s why I was so pleased when Ngila Dickson won the award last year for her inventive costumes for The Lord of the Rings, where she and Richard Taylor had to invent the look of everyting themselves and, pun intend, create it out of the whole cloth. That said, I suppose I should be picking A Series of Unfortunate Events, but I bet it goes to Aviator.
VISUAL EFFECTS
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN
I, ROBOT
SPIDER-MAN 2
I can’t decide whether the Academy will go for Azkaban or the flashier though cartoonish effects of Spider-Man 2. I didn’t see I, Robot because the effects looked so crappy, but I’m told they came off well after all. However, the effects in Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow are so superior that I am very upset it was ignored in this category.
ART DIRECTION
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT
A Series of Unfortunate Events had the most inventive look, but maybe it’s too reminiscent of old Tim Burton movies. I have a hunch they’ll give it to Phantom of the Opera.
FILM EDITING
THE AVIATOR
COLLATERAL
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
I found it interesting that my dad made a point to comment on the editing in Finding Neverland. That said, I still feel Thelma Schoonmaker will win for Aviator, if only because she’s so well respected.
CINEMATOGRAPHY
THE AVIATOR
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT
Maybe the Academy will be impressed with how the makes of The Aviator used the art of cinematography to set the time and tell their story (hence the blue golf course), but I have a feeling The Passion will get it.
MUSIC (SONG)
“Accidentally In Love” - SHREK 2
“Al Otro Lado Del R��Ωo” - THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES
“Believe” - THE POLAR EXPRESS
“Learn To Be Lonely” - THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
“Look To Your Path (Vois Sur Ton Chemin)” - THE CHORUS
Seriously, who gives a shit?
Give the award out before the telecast and announce it during a commercial bump like a Grammy award. The East Coast will thank you.
MUSIC (SCORE)
FINDING NEVERLAND
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN
LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF UNFORTUNATE EVENTS
THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST
THE VILLAGE
I find it difficult to care since Edward Shearmur’s score for Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow was inexplicably slighted. I have a feeling the award will go to John Debney for The Passion...which is a shame since I’ve always thought it’s a rip-off of Peter Gabriel’s score for The Last Temptation of [the] Christ.
WRITING (ADAPTED SCREENPLAY)
BEFORE SUNSET
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES
SIDEWAYS
My money’s on Sideways. The movie is so rich with dialogue that it would be a shame if it does not win.
WRITING (ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY)
THE AVIATOR
ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
HOTEL RWANDA
THE INCREDIBLES
VERA DRAKE
One of those categories where I wouldn’t mind which wins; but I have a hunch Charlie Kaufman’s inventive Spotless Mind will win
ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
THE INCREDIBLES
SHARK TALE
SHREK 2
I am a card-carrying Pixar disciple. That Dreamworks crap is for poseurs.
ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Cate Blanchett - THE AVIATOR
Laura Linney - KINSEY
Virginia Madsen - SIDEWAYS
Sophie Okonedo - HOTEL RWANDA
Natalie Portman - CLOSER
I’d vote for a belated honorary Oscar for Virginia Madsen’s shower scene in Creator, but the big award goes to Cate Blanchett’s vibrant turn as Katharine Hepburn.
ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Annette Bening - BEING JULIA
Catalina Sandino Moreno - MARIA FULL OF GRACE
Imelda Staunton - VERA DRAKE
Hilary Swank - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Kate Winslet - ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND
I know there are some who think Hilary Swank is too young to be getting two Best Actress Oscars but I thought she was excellent in Million Dollar Baby. She played every scene perfectly and she can throw a mean punch.
ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Alan Alda - THE AVIATOR
Thomas Haden Church - SIDEWAYS
Jamie Foxx - COLLATERAL
Morgan Freeman - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Clive Owen - CLOSER
I’m really not sure about this one. My money’s on Morgan Freeman though, just for being Morgan Freeman.
ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Don Cheadle - HOTEL RWANDA
Johnny Depp - FINDING NEVERLAND
Leonardo DiCaprio - THE AVIATOR
Clint Eastwood - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Jamie Foxx - RAY
Jamie Foxx does an amazing job of playing Ray Charles, but halfway through the movie I got the feeling I was watching a really long SNL skit. Is it really worth getting an award for doing a prolonged impersonation? I’d like to see Don Cheadle win this one. His performance in Hotel Rwanda is more subdued, granted, but an Oscar win would bring more attention to this important movie—and Don Cheadle is always good and worth the recognition. Still, Jamie Foxx will win.
DIRECTING
Martin Scorsese - THE AVIATOR
Clint Eastwood - MILLION DOLLAR BABY
Taylor Hackford - RAY
Alexander Payne - SIDEWAYS
Mike Leigh - VERA DRAKE
At long last Martin Scorsese should get the Oscar he deserves. However, Clint Eastwood shows up and spoils everything. The Academy will want to honor both men, so I’m predicting Clint will get the directing award while…
BEST PICTURE
THE AVIATOR
FINDING NEVERLAND
MILLION DOLLAR BABY
RAY
SIDEWAYS
...Mr Scorsese will have to settle for watching his producers accept the grand prize.
Having seen all five nominees I have to reassess my complaint about this being a lackluster year. True, there was no huge movie to rally behind and breathlessly await its DVD release, but all five pictures were well-done and interesting and watchable. Unlike some years, they are all worthy. My dad and my friend Schmoe both love Finding Neverland. My boss was very impressed with Million Dollar Baby. Sideways has great dialogue but it seems too slight (and, having said that, too long) to muscle its way past the others to the podium. Ray is most noted for Jamie Foxx’s performance, and the movie is not helped by too much of a resemblance to the almost clichéd Behind the Music arc. I think The Aviator will get it. It was the first of the nominees I saw and I’m sticking with it. It’s the kind of prestigious biopic that the Academy loves to reward, it’s directed by the lauded Martin Scorsese, and the movie even celebrates old Hollywood. Seems like a natural. And it doesn’t hurt that it’s a great movie.
Posted by Mickey at 09:22 PM in Movies | Comments (0) | Email this entry
February 2 2005
They’re a Couple of Black Bars—Get Over It!
I’m still not sure what to make of this letterboxing lawsuit against MGM. I don’t have fullscreen and widescreen copies with which to compare, but my rudimentary knowledge of film projection suggests that the plaintiffs are a bunch of whining idiots who don’t seem to grasp that most 1.85:1 movies are shot with an open-matte. And if they’d study the widescreen versions more carefully they’d see that the picture information being masked on the top and bottom is just dead space to begin with; along with the fact that there more picture information on the sides too, which seems to have escaped them. The fact that MGM is reportedly settling the lawsuit, probably because it is cheaper in the long run, will only reinforce the plantiffs’ ignorance. These two sites, DVD File and The Digital Bits, have better write-ups on the lawsuit, complete with screen grabs to compare.
Speaking of ignorance, I’ve been reading a lot about how people should get the new Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind 2-disc special edition just because it’s so rare to have a Charlie Kaufman commentary track. This may be true, but it’s too bad these DVD reviewers are too lazy to do any research and see that the commentary track was already available on the single-disc release of the movie.
Posted by Mickey at 04:48 PM in Movies | Comments (0) | Email this entry
November 6 2004
First Look: Revenge of the Sith
The new Star Wars: Episode III teaser trailer will premiere in theaters tomorrow, preceding Pixar’s The Incredibles. But it debuted online today, minutes ago, for subscribers of AOL and Star Wars.com.
It didn’t take long for it to spread across the net and show up elsewhere, in more accessible locations. Check it out here.
Posted by Mickey at 09:11 PM in Movies | Comments (1) | Email this entry
October 18 2004
Music of Middle-earth
I had the pleasure of seeing The Detroit Symphony Orchestra perform Howard Shore‘s The Lord of the Rings Symphony on Saturday. It was a special one-night-only peformance, conducted by Markus Huber, with the Ford Motor Company Chorus and the Christ Church Grosse Pointe Choir of Boys and Girls. Guest soloist was Susan Egan, handling the elven songs; a young boy sang “In Dreams” but I did not catch his name.
The chorus work was a bit shaky, but that’s forgivable considering the small amount of rehearsal time the full ensemble had (so I’m told). The chorus was also smaller than I would have expected. Curiously, although the songs from The Two Towers and The Return of the King were retained (sung by Susan Egan), the Enya material was absent.
A large video screen showed artwork from the Peter Jackson movie. Sketches and drawings from John Howe and Alan Lee were displayed. I’d heard that film clips would be shown but I thought these sketches worked much better, setting the tone without upstaging the music.
I thought I had a great seat, in the third row, but in fact I was much too close. All I could see and hear were strings. The horns were quite often just a rumor. This is less a problem with our orchestra than with the Fox Theater’s acoustics. It might be a great gem of a movie palace but every concert I’ve seen there has sounded terrible. Still, when the music was louder, everything got clearer and it was great pleasure to hear the orchestra surging across the Pelennor.
By the way, if you’d like to recreate the Symphony in the comfort of your home, put the following tracks in your playlist. (It would only be a rough approximation however since you would be missing some bridging material.) And if you’d like to recreate my concert-going experience, sit right next to the left speaker.
Posted by Mickey at 03:55 AM in Movies, LOTR, Music | Comments (0) | Email this entry
Page 3 of 21 pages < 1 2 3 4 5 > Last »
