When I went into Role Models, I was assuming that it would be a trailer fake (a movie whose trailer is awesome, but the movie well…isn’t). After a few months of let downs (read The Rocker) no one would fault me for thinking that. Let me make this official, I was wrong. Role Models is about two underachievers who find themselves in a situation where to avoid jail, they agree to volunteer for 150 hours at a Big Brothers Big Sisters type organization. Neither wants to be there, but Sean William Scott’s character provides some convincing reasons for going through with it. Danny (Rudd) gets paired with Augie Farks, played by Christopher Mintz-Plasse who almost breaks out of the role he set for himself in Superbad, a geek obsessed with a real life Medieval role playing game called LAIRE. Wheeler (Scott) is unfortunate enough to get paired with Ronnie (played very convincingly by Bobb’e J. Thompson), whose goal it is to never keep a “Big” for longer then 24 hours. A goal he has had great success achieving before Wheeler.
To say that Role Models was a pleasant surprise would be an understatement. It comes during a time where the big wigs seem to think that a movie has to be horribly raunchy to be funny, but no surprise, the movie comes out as raunchy, and not…well, funny. That’s not to say that Role Models isn’t without its raunchy moments, but they are far outweighed by truly funny moments, the kind that are becoming more and more of a rarity.
The performances are solid, but with the exception of Bobb’e J. Thompson, they aren’t anything special. He delivers his lines with such force and confidence that for a moment you forget your horror that those words are coming out of a ten year-old’s mouth, then the horror returns, but you are left with a sense that if he keeps acting, he’s going to become a comedy staple in the coming years.
We all know that guys secretly like chick flicks, ok we like the ending, the part where it all comes together and everyone ends up getting together, and they ride off into the sunset. Role Models leaves you with that feeling, but you don’t have to sneak into the movie, an R-rated comedy with Stifler, no one will ever suspect you. So go, enjoy this movie, and admit it. Role Models is a good film.
Ok, so this has absolutely nothing to do with the news about Nolan signing on for a sequel to The Dark Knight, this is just an awesome fan made poster “advertising” the sequel. Whoever made this needs to be hired by Nolan and Co. immediately.
Usually we don’t post speculative images or fan made posters, but this one was too good to pass up. My question is, do you think Nolan would consider using the storyline from Frank Miller’s eponymous graphic novel? Should he?
Busted Tees‘ newest offering imagines an alternate universe (better?) where E.T. bike jacks Elliot, and drives off into the sunset. Awesome, right? You can pick it up for $19 on their site.
Ok, it’s no secret that I am totally in love with Wall-E. And you should be too. You would be interested in winning a 3 Disc Special Edition copy right? Good, you’re at the right place. Ok here are the rules, what you have to do to be considered, is prove your devotion to Wall-E in the comments. A “Hi, can I have the DVD” isn’t going to work. No way José, not going to happen. This is the virtual version of getting down on your knees, and begging. Get to it.
(Also, tell your friends, because there need to be 30 comments before a copy will be given away)
The contest ends Saturday November 15th. Good luck.
Ok, so get this, the latest edition of industry pub, Production Weekly, has a sequel to The Dark Knight listed, and Chris Nolan is listed as director. It has February 2009 listed as the beginning of pre-production.
So while we are about 94% sure of this information, keep in mind that things can change, especially since this is coming from a third party, not Warner Bros. themselves. So until we get more solid information, send all of your good energy at Chris…ok, go.
Hot Toys has just announced their latest piece of joy. a 1/6th scale figure of the Joker from the first scene of The Dark Knight. It stands 12 inches tall, and features 32 points of articulation. It comes with two different heads, a removable clown mask, fragmentation and smoke grenades, a duffel bag, playing cards (Jokers of course) a hand gun, a machine gun, and more.
I would imagine this is going to go fast, probably faster then the $10 dollar one that sold out a month before the film was released despite the much higher price. Enjoy the rest of the pictures and your dreams of the fun you two could share.
Poor, poor Dubya. With only half-a-year of his presidency left, Oliver Stone has him in the cross hairs and is ready to fire October 29th.
Two months since we have gotten the all-type Bushism poster, now here is the trailers that have official hit:
Trailer #1:
Trailer #2:
Looks like we’re going to see Dubya as all too human here. Much like how Stone saw Nixon in his excellent 1995 feature as a tragic figure worthy of Hamlet.
Hamlet: A man may fish with the Bush that hath eat of a king, and eat of the fish that hath fed of that Bush.
Just don’t skimp on the flaws, Oliver!
Switching faces from tragedy to comedy, here is the new trailer for Mike Leigh’s upcoming Happy-Go-Lucky. This one is made for the North American audiences so be sure to take a shot of Insulin Glargine.
Now this trailer is just dying to make this bittersweet British comedy come across as a sweet-and-low Julia Roberts vehicle. A desperate attempt turning indie gold look like mainstream schmaltz. It has the banal Disneyesque-pop music cues, the kid-friendly editing wipes (swooshing sound effects are not optional), the garishly bubblegum-polished graphics, and the voice-over narration of Don LaFontaine in syrupy mode. Is Miramax really stooping this low for a Best Picture nom?
News Flash: a dozen years ago Mike Leigh’s Secrets and Lies (1996) got the coveted nomination, so have a little faith!
The international trailer that I wrote about 3 months ago is far superior and actually feels like it has the fingerprints of Mike Leigh on it. The sophisticated animated graphics with the cute and gritty edge - check! An editing aesthetic that does not condescend - check! The quirky yet somber soundtrack by Gary Yershon - check!
Question: Am I the only one waiting for the melancholy soundtracks of composer and Mike Leigh regular Andrew Dickson (High Hopes - 1988, Naked - 1993, All or Nothing - 2002, Vera Drake - 2004) to be released?
Happy-Go-Lucky will speak for itself (in limited release) on October 10th.
This sumptuously lurid play, by Peter Greenaway, on depravity, sexual oblivion, and revenge remains the most accessible and compelling of his filmography. It is also one of the few films I hold closest to my heart. The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, And Her Lover is simultaneously simple and deceptive with the film’s title. The main characters could stand for an angry allegory about greedy Thatcher-inspired bullies exploiting the working class citizens of Britain. Then again, perhaps this tale of excess, rape, and cannibalism is a heightened account about deeply wounded souls.
Le Hollandaise is a grotesquely bourgeois restaurant where the thief Albert Spica (Michael Gambon - Gosford Park, 2001), his wife Georgina (the indispensable Helen Mirren - Gosford Park and Last Orders, 2001), and his goons (Tim Roth and Ciarán Hinds) dine every night. We are introduced to Albert as he force-feeds a lowly member of the kitchen staff owing money his excrement, and elaborating on its value: “I eat the very best and that’s expensive!”
The cook, Richard Borst (Richard Bohringer - Rembrant, 1999) stands up to the thief’s boorish threats concerning his offered “protection” with a collected reserve that masks deep rage - “If you button your expensive jacket, Mister Spica, you feel less…empty inside, Mister Spica.” Seated in the center of the operatic dining room, Albert’s hostility extends toward everyone around him, including the patrons. Georgina, who Albert crudely dubs, “Georgie”, often berated and beaten by her husband, is quietly defiant. She makes eye contact with Michael, a quiet intellectual (Alan Howard - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, 2003) as he eats and reads in the corner. Their infatuation leads to many excuses for a rendezvous in the opulent lavatory, where she and tender, love-handled Michael make desperate, explicit love as a means of escape.
Their sexual escapades take them behind closed doors in the kitchen, a secret quietly kept by the restaurant’s workers. Albert, obvious to being a cuckold, continues displaying his virtuoso nastiness with loud, arrogant (albeit darkly hilarious) commentary punctuated by violence: “I think Ethiopians like starving!” “Human milk should be considered a delicacy.” Everyone around him is reduced to frightened submission. One night, he invites Michael to his table where he picks on his reading habits, “Does this stuff make money?” After having badly-bruised Georgina dictate how wonderful her life is (“Tell Michael you live in a big house and you spend a thousand pounds a week on clothes!”), she retaliates with news about her gynecology appointments (“Being infertile makes me a safe bet for a good screw.”) Albert drags her across the parking lot for that one.
The thief eventually discovers his wife’s deception is consumed by jealous rage. Searching for them, he invades the ladies’ lavatory and trashes the kitchen while screaming under satanic lighting, “I’ll kill him and then I’ll eat him!” Georgina, having been pushed beyond all measure, is transformed from tragic victim to arresting seducer, to tortured lunatic, and finally to avenging mastermind. There’s much to savor when the cook offers to prepare Georgina’s proposed meal for her husband. Albert’s comeuppance is satisfying and extreme, though perhaps not excruciating enough.
Every actor performs excellently with their given roles. In particular, Michael Gambon’s portrayal of the thief remains one of the most criminally overlooked performances of a great villain. He could stand alongside the likes of Hannibal Lector; after all, they have some things in common. Helen Mirren and Alan Howard exhibit astonishing bravery and tact in playing nude and suggesting real human depth with roles that might not initially suggest.
Sacha Vierny’s fantastical and painterly cinematography captures a surreal and heighten reality. The nightmarish sets include a large dining space saturated with blood red walls, furnishings and dominating curtains along with the towering, sickly-green industrial kitchen. The panoramic widescreen capitalizes on the vast stage-like compositions, panning from the parking lot, the kitchen, and the dining room in one deceptively continuous take. The color of the characters’ clothing changes to match the given settings. Costume designer Jean-Paul Gaultier fuses seventeenth century sensibilities along with warped contemporary ones. The unreality of the film’s look utilizes the melodramatic and farcical elements of the story. There are visual quotations of the painting “The Banquet of the Officers of the St. George Militia of Haarlem” (1616) by Frans Hals as though the oily aristocracy are staring at their more uncouth counterparts centuries later.
Michael Nyman’s thunderous music suggests decadence and savagery. Hellish chorus howls, shrieking violins, and saxophones dominate the exceptional soundtrack. Rarely have saxophones sounded like they have slobbery, wet tongues inside.
When released in 1990, the film was given the NC-17 rating that rallied a demand for a working adults-only rating reserved for more serious and sophisticated films. Helen Mirren spoke up against the ludicrousness of the MPAA ratings system. After eighteen years, it is still an uphill battle against maddeningly vague, studio-influenced hypocrites who keep films like this from the mainstream cinema. Peter Greenaway, who began his career as a serious painter and a student of anatomy, is uninhibited about regarding the naked human form of both sexes before the camera. Written with exacting intelligence and perversion, Greenaway’s portrayal of violence and sexuality is a conscious indictment of it. The extremity of the film is not without merit or thought, as it is not for the faint of heart. Order wisely from the menu, this is uncompromised satire of the highest order.
