Skip to main content

Posts

Showing posts from August, 2012

My Interview with Clint

Never Mind Pop Film  has scored a major coup. Due to pure luck and circumstance, I was in the Tampa Bay area and able to score an interview with The Man with No Name himself, Clint Eastwood. The legend from such classics as High Plains Drifter, The Outlaw Josey Wales , Fistful of Dollars, Escape from Alcatraz, Dirty Harry, and  Unforgiven . It was an incredible honor to sit down with the man and have a cinematic conversation. Below is the chat as transcribed. Me: Thank you, sir, for taking the time out of your busy schedule promoting Trouble with the Curve  to sit down with me. I cannot begin to express how lucky I feel right now. CE: "--" Well, let's get down to business, shall we? You had stated publicly that Gran Torino  would be your last acting performance. What made you change your mind? Did you find semi-retirement too dull? CE: "--" Erm... speaking of acting, how did you enjoy working with Justin Timberlake? Were you tempted to cut a rug wi

Review: Brother Knows Best (Lawless)

When times are increasingly desperate, men of violence rule. The Bondurant brothers are such men. Forrest (Tom Hardy) and Howard (Jason Clarke) are chief bootleggers in the wettest county in the union. Practically everyone in Franklin is on the take from the moonshine trade: sheriffs, owners, and church-going folk alike. From churches to nightclubs these outlaws go untouched. The boys are legend and believed to be immortal, worse, they believe the tales about themselves. Jack (Shia LaBeouf) is the black sheep of this backwoods flock. He does not possess the size of his brothers, nor the brutality. When a spiffy, special agent from Chicago comes down to enforce a new law, the Bondurants are forced to make up for their brother's inefficiencies. Brutality is not new to the Bondurants, but what Special Agent Rakes (a deranged Guy Pearce) presents is remarkable cruelty. He is a gloved poke right in the center of Forrest's chest. The Bondurants can be touched, he implies, and t

Will Smith Punches Ticket for Bible, Vampire Film

For hardcore fans of christian tales and vampires (the world's smallest venn diagram intersection) there is good news. Will Smith, former ambassador to alien invaders and Man in Black, will possibly direct a script by brother-in-law, Caleb Pinkett featuring the chronicles of Cain and Abel with a twist. He is reportedly also considering starring in other such concepts as:  The Hangover  with vampires, Hope Springs with vampires and a  Jaws remake with Bruce Dern. Keep on rolling, Big Willie.

My Favorite Scenes: Alien 3 (1992)

A much maligned opening, but a distinctly bold one as well. David Fincher's Alien 3  was a tonal shift from Aliens  and this brief sequence conveys that immediately. The death of Newt and Hicks has angered many, most famously, Simon Pegg. Yes, Ripley did go through a lot to rescue the Aliens  crew, but this film is going in a different direction and there is no cleaner break (and more effective way to set the mood) than to kill Newt and Hicks.

Re-Release Review: Jaws

Thirty-seven years ago a film about a small, resort town shock the entire world. Jaws  grossed nearly five hundred million dollars worldwide at the time of its release. Its impact has been a lasting one to say in the least. Numerous directors, actors, writers and critics site it as one of the best films in history. Out-of-town sheriff, Martin Brody, (Roy Scheider) is spending his first summer in Amity. He has seen everything during his tenure in New York: murder, robberies, vandalism, you name it, but he has never seen anything like a shark attack. His instincts push him toward closing the beach after a teenage girl is killed, but the Mayor is uneasy, Amity depends on summer revenue. Against his wishes, Brody keeps the beach open and soon the beast attacks again, taking the life of another child. Brody bucks the local leadership and enlists the aid of Oceanographer Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) to find this shark. He doesn't disappoint: Hooper identifies the shark as a Grea

Directors Pick The Greatest Films Ever

Update:  BFI   has added several top-name directors top ten list to the fray. Edgar Wright, Guillermo Del Toro and Bong Joon-ho. When it comes to excellent films and ranking them, who better to ask than some of the most highly regarded directors of all-time? Sight and Sound has created a great deal of controversy recently by leaving off such films as Casablanca and  The Godfather off of their top-ten of all-time list . To add some perspective on the issue are titans of the film industry like Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen, and Francis Ford Coppola. Edgar Wright "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968, Stanley Kubrick) "An American Werewolf in London" (1981, John Landis) "Carrie" (1976, Brian de Palma) "Dames" (1934, Busby Berkeley) "Don't Look Now" (1973, Nicolas Roeg) "Duck Soup" (1933, Leo McCarey) "Psycho" (1960, Alfred Hitchcock) "Raising Arizona" (1987, Coen Bros.) "Taxi Driver" (1976, M

Essential Performances of the 90s: Jeff Bridges

Andrew over at Encore Entertainment is currently hosting a tourney for the best performances of the 90s. In recognizing some of the best portrayals of the time, Jeff Bridges' stoned, bowling aficionado had to make the list. The Dude is a mosaic of hazy memories, recollected facts and ninety-seven cent milk. If Bridges breezes through a character like this, everyone will sense a note of insincerity. Instead, Bridges roots himself in the terrycloth robe and Ray Ban shades.  Any actor that could take a character that — for the most part — does nothing but bowl and get high, and make him compelling? That’s art, man. Comedies are rarely appreciated in what they accomplish, even less so the actors in the films. So won't you head on over to Andrew's blog and reward a man for a great performance?

'Lincoln' Poster Is as Stoic as the Man

In case anyone forgot, Steven Spielberg is making a very serious movie about a serious president in a serious time. If "for your consideration" were slapped on there now, Dreamworks could save costs on ads in Variety later. In all seriousness, Daniel Day-Lewis resemblance to the deceased is remarkable. One of the major question marks I had going into production of this was Day-Lewis' ability to look like the man. No questions about that now.

'Seven Psychopaths' Reunites Farrell with McDonagh

Such eccentricities, such violence, such a twisted sense of humor. Gotta love Martin McDonagh. This time Colin Farrell plays a screenwriter who, with a little help from his friends, finds himself entangled in the criminal underworld thanks to a dog. Yeah, it's from the guy who made In Bruges , go figure.

Review: Take the Money and Run (The Campaign)

The Democratic process has thrived for the United States for a long time. The gloss of years passed and the legacy of our fore fathers helping preserve those ideals. That image of the American political system in action has been immortalized on film by such depictions as Mr. Smith Goes to Washington  and  The American President . Enter 2012. The legacy is still present, but audiences have turned the channel to the latest sex-scandal. Three-term Representative Cam Brady (Will Ferrell) has all the makings of a political superstar: the hair, the family, the hair... it really is that impressive. His popularity is so unprecedented that he has no opponent in the upcoming election. All he has to do is sit on his laurels and he's re-elected. That's it. In the course of sitting out, Brady leaves a message on a stranger's answering machine and fouls all of that up. Still, even with Brady's declining poll numbers, no one will bite. This frustrates the Motch Brothers (John

First Official 'Lincoln' Image

One can't help but think that Daniel Day-Lewis is considering which shelf to place his next Best Actor Oscar on. Either that, or Mr. Lewis has mastered the art of acting whilst asleep. Lincoln opens November 16, 2012. (Courtesy: EW)

Second 'Master' Poster Dazzling

No two things look similar to any one person and this new poster for Paul Thomas Anderson's The Master seems to be playing on that. Controversial figures, in particular, are most divisive. However Anderson's film is received (and it has been receiving high praise as of late from 70mm screenings) this will be one of the hottest film topics come Winter.