"Life isn't like the movies, where something happens and 10 seconds later you have a realisation."
- Lowell (Gene Hackman) POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE (1990)
So many movies...today we tackle a few new films in theaters and a stack o' new DVD releases plus more lists and other fun. First up :
I HEART HUCKABEES (Dir. David O. Russell, 2004) This is the ultimate "what the Hell was that?!!?" movie. It's been a few days since I've seen it and I'm still trying to process. Many critics don't even try to describe the plot or premise I'd just say it's about a poet activist (Jason Schartzman) who hires a married couple played by Dustin Hoffman and Lily Tomlin who bill themselves as 'existential detectives' to sort out problems with his soul. Oh yeah there's an overly slick spokesperson (Jude Law) for a Target/Wal Mart type chain and his flighty model wife (Naomi Watts) as well as Mark Wahlberg as a fireman who hates petroleum - going to the lengths to ride his bike to fight fires. That's as good as I can do.
The characters all run aroung spouting lines like "There's no such thing as nothing"and "Nobody sits like this rock sits. You rock rock. The rock just sits and is. You show us how to just sit here and that's what we need." Some of this is fun, some of it is strained, some of it is just purely baffling. I mean at the end I was more confused than I was by the MATRIX sequels. I mean - now what's reality? It also doesn't help that HUCKABEES seems stiched together from other movie's styles. The soundtrack by Jon Brion and the color scheme recall the work of P.T. Anderson (MAGNOLIA, PUNCH DRUNK LOVE). The other Anderson - Wes Anderson comes to mind of course from the casting of Schwartzman (RUSHMORE). The screenplay seems suggested by the work of Charlie Kaufman (ADAPTATION, ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND). So did I like it? I didn't hate it. That's the best I can do.
- D C J
For no other reason than that election day is 5 days away and these movies will lose their relevance here’s
10 ELECTION YEAR POLI-DOCS
1. FAHRENHEIT 9/11 Dir. Michael Moore. The leader of the pack. Newly released on DVD this powerful if uneven call for the ousting of George W. Bush from the White House sure makes a convincing case.
2. GOING UPRIVER : THE LONG WAR OF JOHN KERRY Dir. George Butler. A moving portrait of Kerry’s Vietnam tour of duty and his activism to ending that war. One sided to be sure but what a side it is!
3. OUTFOXED : RUPERT MURDOCH’S WAR ON JOURNALISM Dir. Robert Greenwald. Compelling and funny but in an unnerving way. Part of Greenwald’s series of “UN-“ poli-docs (either as Director or Producer) – the others being :
4. UNPRECEDENTED : THE 2000 PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION
5. UNCONSTITUTIONAL : THE WAR ON OUR CIVIL LIBERTIES
6. UNCOVERED : THE WHOLE TRUTH ABOUT THE WAR IN IRAQ
Other less heralded Bush must go shows :
7. BUSH’S BRAIN
8. BUSH FAMILY FORTUNES
9. HORNS AND HALOS
10. THE CORPORATION
I for one hope they work.
- D C J
And now here's some :
DVDS IN CURRENT RELEASE
GRAND THEFT PARSONS (Dir. Davis Caffrey, 2003) This road comedy set in the early 70's about a couple of shifty guys who steal a corpse of a recently deceased country singer looks and feels like a lot of low budget indie movies except for the fact that it's based on the true story about what happened to Gram Parson's body because of a pact he had made with his road manager. Johnny Knoxville (JACKASS) plays Phillip Kaufman who promised Parsons that he would set fire to his body at Joshua Tree - Parsons to do the same if Kaufman dies first, Christina Applegate plays Gram's greedy ex-girlfriend who is after the body for her own financial gain, Robert Forster puts in another sturdy understated performance as Gram's father, and Michael Shannon is the oblivious hippy whose yellow flower power herse is commandered by Kaufman. Knoxville does a credible acting job, the music is of course great - several Parson's standards are used well, and the movie moves at a good breezy pace. Not a great film but an amusing one and although not completely accurate it's a fine side note to Gram Parson's short but great legacy.
- Anderson Moran
SOME NON-MOVIE DVDS WE THOUGHT WE'D BABBLE 'BOUT :
BILL HICKS - SATIRIST, SOCIAL CRITIC, STAND-UP COMEDIAN LIVE (Ryko DVD 2004) - It's about time one of the great comedians ever got a proper DVD release! If you don't know who I'm talking about you're in for a treat - 3 different stand-up specials from 1991 - ONE NIGHT STAND - OLD VIC THEATRE, CHICAGO, RELENTLESS - MONTREAL, & REVELATIONS - London plus the documentary IT'S JUST A RIDE which despite it's brevity gives those not in the know a nice overview of this comic genius. Over 3 hours of hilarious biting ground breaking comedy - essential.
- D C J
DEVO LIVE IN THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN - JAPAN 2003. A recent live show in front of thousands of young adoring Japanese fans which is much better than it has a right to be! The Mothersbaugh and Casale brothers plus drummer David Kendrick really kick out the robotic jams here. They actually sound tighter and more powerful than 25 years ago - if you don't believe me check out the special feature extra Target Video Ultra Rare1980 live (whatever that means) performance "Gut Feeling" - the guitar work and group interplay is surprisingly way off when compared to the old fat DEVO of now. This is a fun as Hell concert DVD. If you have any interest in the spud boys from Ohio at all you should dig it.
- Bertie Shafer
Criterion just released a couple of great but overlooked for years Robert Altman projects -
the tortured Nixon one man play on film SECRET HONOR (1984) with Phillip Baker Hall (MAGNOLIA, & TANNER '88 the 12 episode Showtime mockumentary series with Michael Murphy (MANHATTAN) as a Presidential candidate and Cynthia Nixon (Sex & The City) as his ambitious daughter. Both are well worth checking out.
Because of the above mentioned Nixon SECRET HONOR we decided it would be a good time to list :
10 LITTLE NIXONS
1. Anthony Hopkins -NIXON (1995)
2. Phillip Baker Hall - SECRET HONOR (1984)
3. Beau Bridges – KISSINGER AND NIXON (1995)
4. Dan Hedaya – DICK (1999)
5. Bob Gunton - ELVIS MEETS NIXON (1997)
6. Dan Aykroyd – SNL (1975-1978)
7. Brian Cummins – WHERE THE BUFFALO ROAM (1980)
8. Rip Torn – BLIND AMBITION (1979 TV MINI SERIES)
9. Harry Shearer – THE SIMPSONS (1989-present)
10. Rich Little – Various awful TV specials, talk show appearances, phone calls, and bar room banter fill-ins.
Did anyone catch James Spader on Conan not too long ago? He talked about how much he liked eggs. It was awesome.
Be sure to check out other CookieCo blogs:
http://home.sprynet.com/~cookieco/ : This is a music review blog which starting this week will post about a different CD everyday til the end of this year! Please take a look.
http://31songblog.blogspot.com/ : This is an ongoing project to compile different people's favorite 31 song-lists. Inspired by the Nick Hornby tome Songbook.
http://cookiequotecity.blogspot.com/ : Just random quotes. Mostly Simpsons lines. No big whoop.
More later...
is the Green Art Nail
Thursday, October 28, 2004
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
5 Classic Movies That Roger Ebert Hated & Other Lists
"We've lost Intelligence! Repeat - we have no Intelligence!"
- Sarah (TEAM AMERICA)
It really is a telling indicator of the times we live in that in the 2 weeks before the Presidential election this silly and gloriously stupid marionette movie would cause any controversy at all. Sean Penn wrote an angry letter to Trey Parker and Matt Stone about his depiction - check it out here :
http://www.drudgereport.com/penn.htm
Also FOX News (yeah - I know, I know) reports that GLAAD ( Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) is protesting the flick but what's most interesting to me is that one of the most respected and well known film critics ever - Roger Ebert * - felt the urge to chastise Parker and Stone by concluding in his review :
I wasn't offended by the movie's content so much as by its nihilism. At a time when the world is in crisis and the country faces an important election, the response of Parker, Stone and company is to sneer at both sides -- indeed, at anyone who takes the current world situation seriously. They may be right that some of us are puppets, but they're wrong that all of us are fools, and dead wrong that it doesn't matter.
Point well taken Roger but as your partner in criticism crime (Richard Roeper) responded to you on your weekly syndicated show this is ultimately a parody of gung ho action movies and not a political statement. Anyone who is truly offended by this overblown puppet festival of cheap shots hasn't been watching South Park and is oblivious that this isn't like underdog artists giving the "man" the finger - it's more like a couple of clever kids sticking their tongues out as the corporate chief's car rolls by. None of this really matters in the end as SHARK TALE and FRIDAY NIGHT TALES beat this out at the box office the last week. Oh well.
* Most of us at film babble like and respect the writings of film critic legend Roger Ebert. Even when we disagree his well thought out and cleverly crafted reviews still make a powerful point. However there a number of times when we feel Mr. Ebert tragically missed the point so here goes :
TOP FIVE CLASSIC MOVIES THAT ROGER EBERT HATED :
1. HAROLD AND MAUDE (1971) Dir. Hal Ashby. Can this be right? Can Ebert truly be among the out-of-it straight laced critics that horribly misjudged this undeniably influential beyond words cult classic? Yep - he only rewards a movie that many friends, collegues, and family have considered one of the best movies ever with one and a half stars. Shame.
2. FIGHT CLUB (1999) Dir. Peter Fincher. 2 stars. Roger loves the first 2 acts but hates the concluding act - this from a guy who wouldn't know the Pixies if they were stuck on the same elevator. Whatever Ebert, watch it again and tell me how what is set up in the first third would work done another way and you and me will be square.
3. BEETLEJUICE (1988) Again 2 stars. Where's the love for Tim Burton's maniacal masterpiece? Just remember this is the guy who gave COP AND A HALF and HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE rave reviews.
4. HEATHERS (1989) 2 and a half stars. I mean COME ON! This is a bonafide classic and Ebert's baffled review is painful to read. He writes "Is this a black comedy about murder or just a cynical morality play?" Jesus Roger - if you have to ask...
5. DON'T LOOK BACK (1967) - Okay so he gave this rock doc 3 stars but don't let that fool you. He so disses Dylan that it's hard to take - I mean read this sample :
What a jerk Bob Dylan was in 1965. What an immature, self-important, inflated, cruel, shallow little creature, lacking in empathy and contemptuous of anyone who was not himself or his lackey. Did we actually once take this twirp as our folk god?
Can you believe that? Is Ebert who wrote 2 different reviews of this flick - first in '68 on the movie's original run and then again in '98 on it's re-release - that out of touch? I thought it was pretty much accepted that Dylan was putting on those who were asking him square questions and having fun with the media juggernaut. I mean just a couple years previous Newsweek wrongly accused him of plagarising "Blowing In The Wind" and countless bandwagon jumpers had co-opted Bob's simple plaintive messages. I can't imagine anyone at that age and time reacting any other way but to Ebert he's a self serving twirp. Can't quite process this misjudgement. To Ebert's credit he nailed Bob's self indulgent MASKED AND ANONYMOUS monstrosity last year in a scathing review but that doesn't quite make right his insulting remarks about one of the most influential film portraits of an artist at his prime in existence. But I'm just saying.
- DCJ
(Other contributors to this Ebert Ain't Right list include Anderson Moran, Sarah Weber, Trina Herman, Bertie Shafer, and Christina Kessler)
NEW MOVIE LISTOMANIA
People have emailed asking where our lists went - ourTOP 5 & 10 lists that we used to end each babble blog with. Well wait no longer -
10 MOVIES THAT END WITH THE PROTAGONIST WRITTING OR HAVEN WRITTEN OR MADE A BOOK OR MOVIE ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THE MOVIE
(whew, long list title!)
1. THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN
2. ROMANCING THE STONE
3. THE PLAYER
4. DUPLEX - Hmmm, Danny Devito's involvement with 3 of these pictures on this list makes us think - "Louie - pick a different ending next time!"
5. COLD CREEK MANOR
6. CHASING AMY - Okay, so it was a comic book.
7. LOVE ON THE RUN - Francois Truffaut actually sums up his 5 film series about his alter ego with Antoine Doinel (Jean Pierre Leaud) writing a thick tome.
8. SECRET WINDOW
9. STAND BY ME
10. THE MUPPET MOVIE
5 MOVIES THAT END WITH THE PROTAGONIST (S) CELEBRATING BY LOUNGING ON A TROPICAL BEACH
1. TRADING PLACES
2. SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
3. OFFICE SPACE
4. FLETCH
5. THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN - Again Devito! He had his cake and ate it too by having a movie that used both endings! Fine - just don't do it again.
More later...
- Sarah (TEAM AMERICA)
It really is a telling indicator of the times we live in that in the 2 weeks before the Presidential election this silly and gloriously stupid marionette movie would cause any controversy at all. Sean Penn wrote an angry letter to Trey Parker and Matt Stone about his depiction - check it out here :
http://www.drudgereport.com/penn.htm
Also FOX News (yeah - I know, I know) reports that GLAAD ( Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) is protesting the flick but what's most interesting to me is that one of the most respected and well known film critics ever - Roger Ebert * - felt the urge to chastise Parker and Stone by concluding in his review :
I wasn't offended by the movie's content so much as by its nihilism. At a time when the world is in crisis and the country faces an important election, the response of Parker, Stone and company is to sneer at both sides -- indeed, at anyone who takes the current world situation seriously. They may be right that some of us are puppets, but they're wrong that all of us are fools, and dead wrong that it doesn't matter.
Point well taken Roger but as your partner in criticism crime (Richard Roeper) responded to you on your weekly syndicated show this is ultimately a parody of gung ho action movies and not a political statement. Anyone who is truly offended by this overblown puppet festival of cheap shots hasn't been watching South Park and is oblivious that this isn't like underdog artists giving the "man" the finger - it's more like a couple of clever kids sticking their tongues out as the corporate chief's car rolls by. None of this really matters in the end as SHARK TALE and FRIDAY NIGHT TALES beat this out at the box office the last week. Oh well.
* Most of us at film babble like and respect the writings of film critic legend Roger Ebert. Even when we disagree his well thought out and cleverly crafted reviews still make a powerful point. However there a number of times when we feel Mr. Ebert tragically missed the point so here goes :
TOP FIVE CLASSIC MOVIES THAT ROGER EBERT HATED :
1. HAROLD AND MAUDE (1971) Dir. Hal Ashby. Can this be right? Can Ebert truly be among the out-of-it straight laced critics that horribly misjudged this undeniably influential beyond words cult classic? Yep - he only rewards a movie that many friends, collegues, and family have considered one of the best movies ever with one and a half stars. Shame.
2. FIGHT CLUB (1999) Dir. Peter Fincher. 2 stars. Roger loves the first 2 acts but hates the concluding act - this from a guy who wouldn't know the Pixies if they were stuck on the same elevator. Whatever Ebert, watch it again and tell me how what is set up in the first third would work done another way and you and me will be square.
3. BEETLEJUICE (1988) Again 2 stars. Where's the love for Tim Burton's maniacal masterpiece? Just remember this is the guy who gave COP AND A HALF and HOLLYWOOD HOMICIDE rave reviews.
4. HEATHERS (1989) 2 and a half stars. I mean COME ON! This is a bonafide classic and Ebert's baffled review is painful to read. He writes "Is this a black comedy about murder or just a cynical morality play?" Jesus Roger - if you have to ask...
5. DON'T LOOK BACK (1967) - Okay so he gave this rock doc 3 stars but don't let that fool you. He so disses Dylan that it's hard to take - I mean read this sample :
What a jerk Bob Dylan was in 1965. What an immature, self-important, inflated, cruel, shallow little creature, lacking in empathy and contemptuous of anyone who was not himself or his lackey. Did we actually once take this twirp as our folk god?
Can you believe that? Is Ebert who wrote 2 different reviews of this flick - first in '68 on the movie's original run and then again in '98 on it's re-release - that out of touch? I thought it was pretty much accepted that Dylan was putting on those who were asking him square questions and having fun with the media juggernaut. I mean just a couple years previous Newsweek wrongly accused him of plagarising "Blowing In The Wind" and countless bandwagon jumpers had co-opted Bob's simple plaintive messages. I can't imagine anyone at that age and time reacting any other way but to Ebert he's a self serving twirp. Can't quite process this misjudgement. To Ebert's credit he nailed Bob's self indulgent MASKED AND ANONYMOUS monstrosity last year in a scathing review but that doesn't quite make right his insulting remarks about one of the most influential film portraits of an artist at his prime in existence. But I'm just saying.
- DCJ
(Other contributors to this Ebert Ain't Right list include Anderson Moran, Sarah Weber, Trina Herman, Bertie Shafer, and Christina Kessler)
NEW MOVIE LISTOMANIA
People have emailed asking where our lists went - ourTOP 5 & 10 lists that we used to end each babble blog with. Well wait no longer -
10 MOVIES THAT END WITH THE PROTAGONIST WRITTING OR HAVEN WRITTEN OR MADE A BOOK OR MOVIE ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED IN THE MOVIE
(whew, long list title!)
1. THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN
2. ROMANCING THE STONE
3. THE PLAYER
4. DUPLEX - Hmmm, Danny Devito's involvement with 3 of these pictures on this list makes us think - "Louie - pick a different ending next time!"
5. COLD CREEK MANOR
6. CHASING AMY - Okay, so it was a comic book.
7. LOVE ON THE RUN - Francois Truffaut actually sums up his 5 film series about his alter ego with Antoine Doinel (Jean Pierre Leaud) writing a thick tome.
8. SECRET WINDOW
9. STAND BY ME
10. THE MUPPET MOVIE
5 MOVIES THAT END WITH THE PROTAGONIST (S) CELEBRATING BY LOUNGING ON A TROPICAL BEACH
1. TRADING PLACES
2. SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
3. OFFICE SPACE
4. FLETCH
5. THROW MOMMA FROM THE TRAIN - Again Devito! He had his cake and ate it too by having a movie that used both endings! Fine - just don't do it again.
More later...
Wednesday, October 13, 2004
RIP Rodney Dangerfield, Christopher Reeve, & Janet Leigh
"I was stuck playing the sidekick in a sick and twisted buddy movie."
- James St. James (Seth Green) PARTY MONSTER (2003)
Today film babble salutes Rodney Dangerfield, Janet Leigh, and Christopher Reeve. We've got some lists we've all contributed to below.
We review some new movies in the theater and on DVD as usual, give you some cool links, and just basically babble on like usual. Enjoy!
Most of the film babble bloggers made it to the sneak preview last Saturday night of TEAM AMERICA : WORLD POLICE - Trey Parker and Matt Stone's (South Park of course) new preposterous marionettes fight terriorism epic spectacular. It's funnier than it has a right to be we seem to all agree. Such a dedicated parody of the tried and true Jerry Bruckheimer formula with a great soundtrack (including hilarious songs like "Freedom Is Not Free" and "(You've Got To Have A) Montage") can not be easily dismissed. The basic Parker/Stone sensibility - i.e. cheap scatalogical humor in place of cheap sentiment and that there are too many useless self important celebrities is carried through to the bitter. Just be sure to remember "there is no 'I' in Team America!" - D C J
We are all highly anticipating the release of :
I HEART HUCKABEES - David O'Russell's first movie since THREE KINGS in 1999. With Dustin Hoffman sporting a Beatle haircut, a hipster Jason Schwartzman, an overly exuburent Jude Law, a smuggily mugging Lily Tomlin, and some cheesecake served up by Naomi Watts (this is all going by the trailer and ad campaign not by the actual film) how can this miss? One film babble blogger (who will go nameless) has said that if this movie isn't good they will kill themselves. "It bills itself as an "existential comedy" so if it doesn't hit the spiritual spot - I'm outta here!" We here are all pulling for this flick to make good. One life in particular is at stake.
- Anderson Moran
RECENT RELEASE DVDS :
GODSEND Dir. Nick Hamm. Greg Kinnear, Rebecca Romijn Stamos, and Robert Deniro. This has one of the lowest ratings on the Rotten Tomato site I've ever seen. A user comment on the imdb says "worst movie of the year". Just about every review said "Godawful". Well this melodrama/suspense thriller about the grieving parents (Kinnear and Stamos) of their recently deceased 8 year old son (Cameron Bright) who decide to go with the mysterious Dr. Richard Wells proposal to clone their child and start again in a new community under constant monitoring and blah blah blah!
Anyway this laughable hammy (couldn't resist the pun) creeper even goes as far to make the great Robert Deniro spout such lines as "You think you can just open Pandora's box and close it again?" Consider yerself warned!
- Bertie Shafer
TOP FIVE BEST CHRISTOPHER REEVE MOVIES
1. SUPERMAN : THE MOVIE
2. SUPERMAN 2
3. DEATHTRAP
4. SOMEWHERE IN TIME
5. THE REMAINS OF THE DAY
TOP FIVE RODNEY DANGERFIELD MOVIES
1. BACK TO SCHOOL
2. CADDYSHACK
3. EASY MONEY
4. NATURAL BORN KILLERS
5. MEET WALLY SPARKS
More later...
- James St. James (Seth Green) PARTY MONSTER (2003)
Today film babble salutes Rodney Dangerfield, Janet Leigh, and Christopher Reeve. We've got some lists we've all contributed to below.
We review some new movies in the theater and on DVD as usual, give you some cool links, and just basically babble on like usual. Enjoy!
Most of the film babble bloggers made it to the sneak preview last Saturday night of TEAM AMERICA : WORLD POLICE - Trey Parker and Matt Stone's (South Park of course) new preposterous marionettes fight terriorism epic spectacular. It's funnier than it has a right to be we seem to all agree. Such a dedicated parody of the tried and true Jerry Bruckheimer formula with a great soundtrack (including hilarious songs like "Freedom Is Not Free" and "(You've Got To Have A) Montage") can not be easily dismissed. The basic Parker/Stone sensibility - i.e. cheap scatalogical humor in place of cheap sentiment and that there are too many useless self important celebrities is carried through to the bitter. Just be sure to remember "there is no 'I' in Team America!" - D C J
We are all highly anticipating the release of :
I HEART HUCKABEES - David O'Russell's first movie since THREE KINGS in 1999. With Dustin Hoffman sporting a Beatle haircut, a hipster Jason Schwartzman, an overly exuburent Jude Law, a smuggily mugging Lily Tomlin, and some cheesecake served up by Naomi Watts (this is all going by the trailer and ad campaign not by the actual film) how can this miss? One film babble blogger (who will go nameless) has said that if this movie isn't good they will kill themselves. "It bills itself as an "existential comedy" so if it doesn't hit the spiritual spot - I'm outta here!" We here are all pulling for this flick to make good. One life in particular is at stake.
- Anderson Moran
RECENT RELEASE DVDS :
GODSEND Dir. Nick Hamm. Greg Kinnear, Rebecca Romijn Stamos, and Robert Deniro. This has one of the lowest ratings on the Rotten Tomato site I've ever seen. A user comment on the imdb says "worst movie of the year". Just about every review said "Godawful". Well this melodrama/suspense thriller about the grieving parents (Kinnear and Stamos) of their recently deceased 8 year old son (Cameron Bright) who decide to go with the mysterious Dr. Richard Wells proposal to clone their child and start again in a new community under constant monitoring and blah blah blah!
Anyway this laughable hammy (couldn't resist the pun) creeper even goes as far to make the great Robert Deniro spout such lines as "You think you can just open Pandora's box and close it again?" Consider yerself warned!
- Bertie Shafer
TOP FIVE BEST CHRISTOPHER REEVE MOVIES
1. SUPERMAN : THE MOVIE
2. SUPERMAN 2
3. DEATHTRAP
4. SOMEWHERE IN TIME
5. THE REMAINS OF THE DAY
TOP FIVE RODNEY DANGERFIELD MOVIES
1. BACK TO SCHOOL
2. CADDYSHACK
3. EASY MONEY
4. NATURAL BORN KILLERS
5. MEET WALLY SPARKS
More later...
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