Category Archives: Cinema Sit-Down

Cinema Sit-Down, Movies/TV, Pop Culture

The Interview or: How Hollywood Learned to Start Worrying and Fear the Bomb

Don’t mess with North Korea. That appears to be the sentiment the country wants you to believe. If you mess with the North Korean bull, you’re going to get the North Korean horns—or at least the “threat” of those horns. Case in point: the writers and producers of the upcoming film, The Interview, thought it would be a funny idea to produce a film with a script involving a talk show host (James Franco) and his producer (Seth Rogen) booking an interview with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and getting entangled with the CIA in a plot to assassinate him. A seemingly funny political comedy starring the two leads from the very funny Pineapple Express that involves the very funny concept of killing a very funny (well, funny looking perhaps) world leader? What could POSSIBLY be wrong with that?! Well, apparently a lot.interview2

Since day one of the film’s announcement, The Interview has—so to speak—been in the hot seat. Since the film’s completion, North Korea has been up in arms about it, suggesting it as an “act of war” and promising retaliation if the film was ever released. They even begged President Obama to stop the release of the film, for fear that Kim Jong-un might actually see it. So when that wasn’t enough, their next step? Malware, of course. Late last month, Sony (the film’s distributor) was left in complete disarray with hacked emails releasing private conversations criticizing Hollywood A-listers (who would’ve guessed some studio executives find Leonardo DiCaprio to be “disgraceful” or that Angelina Jolie has “minimal talent”?) as well as several unreleased movies leaked online before their release. The Interview was NOT included among those leaked films, so go figure as to how U.S. Intelligence linked the North Korean government to the hacking.

Yet even after the Malware shitstorm, the worst was yet to follow. A mysterious group known as the “Guardians of Peace” sent out a warning last week, suggesting attacks of the September 11 variety on movie theaters that were scheduled to show The Interview. These so-called “Guardians” suggested that anyone going to the movie theater or those who lived near one should keep their distance. Needless to say, the Guardians of Peace had everyone’s attention: movie theater owners, Sony and even the president.interview3

The movie industry is a complicated machine. On the one hand, movies are an artistic expression, a tool to tell a story using audio and visual aspects in creative and astounding ways. On the other hand, it’s a cash cow: franchises, sequels, remakes, musical adaptations, happy meal toys, et cetera et cetera—Hollywood can squeeze a buck out of any movie it wishes, but to receive that money, they must milk it out of the masses to buy the overpriced movie tickets and fill up those stadium theater seats. What happens, though, when a supposed terrorist group threatens to harm the masses if they go see a movie? Well, the movie—in this case The Interview—gets scrapped. Sony’s decision to pull the plug on The Interview’s release has caused quite a bit of controversy inside and out of Hollywood, and has left many questions concerning the future of film distribution.

Here’s the thing: Hollywood has been bullied before. There have been many controversial films to be released that have sparked outcries from specific organizations and collective groups tracing all the way back to the early twentieth century (The Birth of a Nation, anyone?). And did Hollywood let up? No. The Interview isn’t the first film to lampoon a public figure. There have been a lot of references to Charlie Chaplin’s The Great Dictator, a film that parodied Adolf Hitler—ADOLF FREAKIN’ HITLER!—as he was beginning to take power as dictator of Nazi Germany. And what became of that film? It has its own Criterion Collection release! More importantly, there were no terrorist attacks on American movie theaters that showed that movie.

You can now order cheap viagra from the leading online pharmacy is people all over the world in solving the problems they may have created. It not only helps usa generic viagra raindogscine.com in proper flow of blood but also arouses a person sexually which increases the desire by reducing inhibitions, but it leads to erectile dysfunction. Instead, your brain plays a order generic viagra more important role in affecting pregnancy. Increased level of cGMP provides relaxation to smooth muscles generic levitra and improves energy levels. Now I’m not suggesting that The Interview is (or could be) a modern classic or could even be considered a “good” film (from what I’ve read, the movie had received mixed reviews from early screenings), but what I am suggesting is, when did we turn into a culture that pulls one film from theaters just because someone says so? And why back down to North Korea? As I recall, Trey Parker and Matt Stone of South Park fame released Team America: World Police without causing a global uproar (and didn’t that film feature a puppet version of the late Kim Jong-il, sporting an incredibly offensive yet hilarious accent?). What makes The Interview any different? Are we to seriously believe this film could cause total chaos?interview4

And I think that is where the controversy stings the most. Where will the lines be drawn? If this film isn’t allowed to be seen in theaters, what about future films? I don’t want to live in a world where some bizarre organization bans together to send terroristic threats just because they don’t want to see a movie get released. If we bow down to these Guardians of Peace jerks, what is to stop a vigilante group of primatologists from threatening movie theaters with “simian flu” just because they don’t want to see another Planet of the Apes sequel? Or how about a rag-tag group of renegade Shakespearean actors waging total guerilla warfare on cineplexes showing a new film adaptation of one of the Bard’s classics? Perhaps I should refrain from providing anymore examples, as it could provide more cinephile cuckoos with ideas, but the point is, submitting to one threat opens the door to plenty of others, which is just cowardly and stupid. But there’s got to be something else to this decision…

I found out a little tidbit about The Interview’s budget: it cost over $40 million to make. Hmm, very interesting. I get the sense that the reason Sony cancelled The Interview was due to lack of profit. As I stated before, if someone threatens the masses with consequence for seeing a movie—meaning: PAYING to see said film—then obviously the moviegoer will refrain from doing so. As will the theater owners. And if a film can’t be seen because a viewer/theater is too scared to see/show it, how will it make money? How will a film become profitable to the movie studios that paid for its production costs? It won’t. It can’t. So it gets pulled…for now.

Let’s be clear, The Interview WILL be seen (in some shape or form). This cancellation is really only a delay until the studios can find an alternative route(s) to release the motion picture. $40 million ain’t pocket change, ya know? So while the nation continues its uproar over how Hollywood has been blackballed, rest assured Sony will get its money out of The Interview. If anything, this is a good marketing ploy for The Interview: a film so controversial, that lives have been threatened if it gets released. Well then—GOTTA SEE IT! And don’t worry, you will. Sony will make sure of that…

 

Cinema Sit-Down, Movies/TV

There and Back Again – A Review of The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Image courtesy of Screenrant.
Image courtesy of Screenrant.

Another December, another fantasy film directed by Peter Jackson, starring the country of New Zealand. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies brings this prequel trilogy to a close. Only Peter Jackson could make a three-hour movie about a giant monkey (2005’s King Kong), and only he can turn a children’s book into a nearly 9-hour film split into three parts. Is it worth it? Depends on if you’ve read the book.

(SPOILER WARNING!)

With Smaug the dragon dead, Bilbo tries to keep the Dwarf Thorin from being consumed by greed as several armies gather at the Lonely Mountain to take its liberated treasure horde.

This is a difficult film for me to review. First, it’s part three of a much longer movie. Second, Tolkien is one of my favorite authors and The Lord of the Rings is my favorite book. Third, I had a mostly good reaction to An Unexpected Journey, but mixed feelings about The Desolation of Smaug. My chief complaints are that Bilbo eventually became a supporting character in his own story and that the book could’ve been adapted into two movies had the unnecessary filler been removed. So, I wasn’t super-excited about seeing this one, which is why I was pleasantly surprised that I fairly enjoyed it.

Now, it does still have filler, but this time most of it involves the titular battle. In the book, it’s only a handful of pages, thereby leaving most of it to the reader’s imagination. With film, those few pages can be brought to vibrant life—for a long time. I think the battle takes up over an hour of the film’s running time, which clocks in at just under two-and-a-half hours (which, ironically, I think makes it the shortest film in the franchise). Jackson definitely tops himself here, giving the audience a bigger, more intense battle than any seen in his Lord of Rings film trilogy. The title says there’s five armies, but it seems like there’s at least seven: men, Dwarves, Orcs/Goblins, Elves, and Wargs. There’s also Eagles, bats and what appear to be Trolls, who are allied with them. The special effects are the best of the franchise, especially during this huge climax.

That’s the best word to describe this film: climax. It’s a bit lighter on story because it’s the culmination of everything that’s come in the previous two films. It truly is the last third of a story. None of the films can stand alone.

Many men with low testosterone and also with cipla viagra online hypertension may be the victim of erectile dysfunction. One brand that earned big name and fame for its products cialis samples is Ajanta Pharma. Every purchase female viagra couple has their own characteristics in the sexual life. Kamagra is considered as the most effective and safe option available for viagra online australia improving female sexual health. Interestingly, this feels more like the book than Desolation of Smaug, and Bilbo is treated as the main character again. This is ironic because this would’ve been the one where he could disappear for a while and it would follow the novel, since Bilbo is knocked out during most of the Battle of Five Armies. That does still happen in the film, but not until later in the battle. I can’t help but wonder if Jackson expanded Bilbo’s role here to make up for his supporting role in Desolation. Regardless, he runs around being very Bilbo. Like in the novel, it’s him who eventually brings Thorin out of his “dragon sickness” of greed. Because of that, the tide of the battle is turned when Thorin joins it. Martin Freeman proves once again that he is the perfect actor to play Bilbo. He imbues him with a simple country charm and wisdom.

Don’t worry, Benedict Cumberbach fans. He shows up just long enough to collect a paycheck voice Smaug for a few minutes when the dragon attacks Lake-Town.

As for the other returning characters, they, unfortunately, fall victim to Star Wars prequel syndrome. Gandalf, Galadriel, Sauruman and Elrond spend several early scenes battling the Necromancer—aka Sauron—only to banish him to Mordor. In other words, they’re just there to set up Lord of the Rings films. Now, if memory serves me right, these incidents are part of Tolkien lore, but they’re not in The Hobbit. Regardless, after this, only Gandalf is seen again.

Tauriel, despite being played by the lovely Evangeline Lilly, continues to be extraneous. I thought it was faulty to include her in the first place. Jackson and company invented her because they thought women wouldn’t watch a film with an all-male cast, but then they made her one-third of a love triangle, which is such a cliché. That isn’t as prominent a subplot here as it was in Desolation, thankfully, but it doesn’t add anything other than a little more emotional potency to the death of Kili during the battle. I expected her to die since she’s not even mentioned in the Lord of the Rings films, but she survives, and her fate is never explained. This is an oversight I hope is remedied in the inevitable extended cut of this film.

Despite the changes and filler, I do think the film keeps (most) of the spirit and themes of the book, which are the most important things to remember when adapting a story from one media to another.

Much like the Star Wars prequels, I don’t think the Hobbit trilogy will go down as a classic like its predecessors, but it’s still a solid and enjoyable fantasy adventure. I’d be more than happy to go “there and back again.”

Final Grade: B

Cinema Sit-Down, Movies/TV, Random Giga

The One I Love Review

I really wanted to love The One I Love, but sadly that was not the case. It’s definitely not a bad movie, but it certainly isn’t great either. It’s one of those cases where the description is more interesting than the actual movie. The One I Love stars Mark Duplas (Ethan) and Elisabeth Moss (Sophie) as a married couple, who, in an attempt to save their marriage, spend a weekend at a resort. During their first night exploring the property, the couple finds a guest house. They soon discover when they go into the guest house alone, they meet an exact copy of their spouse, a slightly better copy of the original.

At first, Ethan and Sophie are fine with their spouse spending time with the copy of themselves, but that doesn’t last long. Sophie falls in love with her copy of Ethan, which drives original Ethan crazy-especially when Ethan realizes the copy of him has been calling his friends and family in an attempt to learn information about Ethan only the original Ethan/those close to him would know. Sophie on the other hand never seems to care what Ethan’s doing with the copy of herself. It’s hard to blame her though. Her actual husband is a bit of a wet blanket, and they’re only on this trip because he’d recently cheated on her.

The going in and out of the guest house gets pretty old after the first few times; I thought that was literally going to be whole film. No one else really appears in this movie besides Ethan and Sophie’s therapist (Ted Danson). It may have been more enjoyable if there were more interactions with other characters. My newly discovered love for Mark Duplas kept me going, and I also enjoyed watching Elisabeth Moss.
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Most of the mystery is left unexplained, which in this case was disappointing rather than intriguing. Eventually Ethan and Sophie do meet up with their copies and have an incredibly tense double date. The copies were originally plotting to turn the originals against each other, possibly the only way for the copies to get off the resort if the originals can’t make up.

It’s never really explained how the copies ever came to be, which drove me crazy. There are photographs of other couples there, so how were those copies created and are the Ethan and Sophie copies just those other copies in a new form? This situation is too complicated to be left unexplained. I think this could have been a better story if it wasn’t trying to be sci-fi, but I don’t really know what else it could be. Sadly, this film just didn’t really click with me. I think it’s worth a watch, but ultimately a little disappointing.

Cinema Sit-Down, Movies/TV, Science Zone, Tech World

Who has time for Interstellar?

Interstellar:  With our time on Earth coming to an end, a team of explorers undertakes the most important mission in human history; to travel through a wormhole in an attempt to find a potentially habitable planet that will sustain humanity. (C) Paramount / IMDB)

A typical Morning like any other, my daughter was in school, routine as usual, a pleasant surprise happened at my door. The knock sent me to the window to see who it could be only to find it was my dear mother cheerful smile as usual for a visit. Over herbal tea and a split peanut butter sandwich we decided to be spontaneous and take a trip to see a movie. To see what? It didn’t matter.

Presented with a number of viable choices at the ticket booth—both of us being sci-fi buffs—we immediately gravitated to Interstellar, we really had no clue what it was about and had never seen a trailer for it (I rarely watch television), but how much more “sci-fi” could that title be? Even with the reputation Christopher Nolan has for delivering masterful films, we were not prepared for what we were about experience. What we saw transcended science fiction, taking us for a thrilling, nail-biting emotional roller-coaster, mixing elements of quantum science coupled with an outstanding demonstration visually representing the basics of string theory, all while playing at the heart strings of any parent or adventurous spirit. For this Father-Geek it was money well spent.

The viewer should be prepared to entertain scientific theories that still fall into the theoretical category. In layman’s terms, there are many broad ideas presented that some viewers will either quickly grasp or have to watch twice or more. I recommend the latter. A perfect blend of visually stunning cinematography and art direction, the superficial story makes the PG-13 rating appropriate for children even with its very brief expletives. Young viewers will enjoy the excitement and action of the harrowing journey, while those geeks who are older and/or more knowledgeable will appreciate the depth and magnitude of the over-arching storyline and premise.

Two hours and forty-nine minutes felt like half that time. The pacing of the movie is perfect to create the illusion of lapsed time echoing the mood and theme. Considering the topic relied on Einstein’s theory of relativity and time dilation (which basically means that time lapses differently for two objects as perceived by an observer, depending on whether they are traveling at the same speed and bound to the same gravitational force or not). Time really became irrelevant while sitting in that movie theater.

The issue Earth has is it will become unsuitable for supporting human life. With the discovery of a recently formed wormhole, NASA has a “Plan A” and “Plan B” for ensuring the continuity of the human race, which involves exploring that wormhole (it seemed to have recently been “intelligently placed” in our Solar System). Plan A: In hopes of identifying which of three options has the best possibility of being suitable for sustaining human life, traverse the wormhole and explore the galaxy at the other side. Once identified, return home to Earth parades. Plan B: If none could be found or if the mission takes longer than planned, then it would be up to the members of this space exploration mission to carry with them the seeds of humanity and continue the human races on their own.

NASA recruits a onetime ace NASA pilot and engineer named Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) father of teenage son Tom (Timothee Chalamet) and his 10-year-old daughter Murphy “Murph,” aptly named after Murphy’s Law (Mackenzie Foy). Ultimately Cooper, to the chagrin of his daughter Murph, agrees to join and lead the humanity-saving expedition. Matthew McConaughey rips at our heart strings as we have front row seats to his doubt, anguish, and hope. Watching him question whether he loves humanity or his children more or are they both one in the same cause, had me at the edge of my seat and a ball of nerves simply by considering as a father how far I would go for my own daughters. Without spoiling much, the ending was such a gentle touch down after a long journey, allowing my shoulders to lower and relax. By the time the credits rolled, I felt like I had run a marathon while carrying 1000 lbs. on my shoulders. I was exhausted for Cooper and my only thought was to hug my little girl tightly when she came home from school.
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Aside from that of the authentic Matthew McConaughey, other performances that cannot be understated are that of Anne Hathaway, who plays an exemplary supporting star; Michael Cain and John Lithgow both distinctive icons in performance and notability; Mackenzie Foy and Jessica Chastain who convincingly played the same role so perfectly.

Matt Damon, although briefly, complimented the quality of acting capability essential to harmoniously interpreting and conveying such a climactic portion of the story. Josh Stewart (TARS Robot) gave the audience a refreshing impression of what machines can be: not apathetic, but comfortably bound by objective. TARS is one of my most memorable good-guy robots, without mimicking the I am almost human/Robot theme that’s become a bit stale. Along with many other great illustrations of showmanship, the cast was synergistic. Visually hypnotic, Nolan hand gift-wraps a superb collection of creative yet compelling and inspiring capture techniques that is only achievable from an iconic director of his caliber.

Ultimately, I would suggest any parent, science geek, action-suspense fan, or Sci-fi lover to run immediately to your nearest movie theater and throw cash as the man behind the window declaring that ‘you will not leave until they slide a ticket through that little opening in the glass panel between you’, then cross your arms and stare.

~Jack~
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Cinema Sit-Down, Film/Television/Broadcast/Radio, Movies/TV

The Vicious Brothers are Back with EXTRATERRESTRIAL

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I didn’t know what to expect when I first read the description of Extraterrestrial—I’m not a huge alien-horror-film fan because the thought of aliens scares the shit out of me.  Honestly, when I saw this was another The Vicious Brothers creation, that was enough to get me interested. Their first two movies Grave Encounters and Grave Encounters 2 successfully shut down my plans to tour any haunted locations. Despite that, I was ready to be scared again.

The set up is cliché: the almost happy couple, April (Brittany Allen) and Kyle (Freddie Stroma), make plans to spend the weekend at a cabin in the woods of a small town. Kyle invites Mel (Melanie Papalia), April’s best friend; Seth (Jesse Moss), the annoyingly funny loudmouth and Seth’s new ditsy girlfriend, Lex (Anja Savcic). On the way to the cabin, Seth causes some trouble, which leads the group to meet the Sheriff (Gil Bellows); by looking at him you can tell he’s going through a tough time. Soon after arriving at the cabin, April and Mel run into April’s old family friend, Travis, played by the great and always crazy Michael Ironside.

Later that night, after witnessing a ball of fire fly out of the sky and crash in the distance, the group decides to go check it out—great idea. Shit goes down hill from there: an alien is shot and a pack of pissed off aliens make it their duty to hunt the group down.

Though the characters are one sided, the actors are believable and play their parts well—by the end of the movie I wanted Seth to die and the couple to live happily ever after. We learn very little about the main characters’ backgrounds other than they like to smoke, drink, and they are in college. Regardless of what we know (or don’t know) about them, it was nice to see them make some smart moves to get the hell out of dodge. When I yelled at them to “Get in the car and leave!” they actually listened; I was quite pleased. You get a little insight into the Sheriff’s background and you feel bad for him, but not enough to make you really care.

Travis’ crazy conspiracy theory explanation of the alien’s presence is a nice change from the usual “we’re aliens, we can do whatever we want because our planet is dying/we’re bored/uh, we’re freakin’ aliens” explanation.

Realizing his error, http://greyandgrey.com/social-security-disability/ purchase levitra online he ceased leaking untruths to the press. A concerned young man recently wrote that, ever since he experienced a hard blow to the penis during a high school gym class, he has been able to feel a hard lump on one side of the shaft along with the testicles/scrotum when purchase cheap viagra a person just isn’t erect. For example, by monitoring generic cialis best link levels of sex hormones boost the blood supply to the reproductive organs. Males who are allergic to india viagra generic Sildenafil or any other ingredient of Caverta 100 mg Tablets should keep away from this drug. The film is more tense than scary—though I did have alien nightmares that night. With the help of sound and light, the tension is built up successfully: glaring white and heavy red lights imitate the UFO’s presence and give the feeling of hopelessness. It has its scary moments; however, they are a little predictable: there’s something behind you, alien; there’s something above you, alien; don’t look through there, alien; etc. I still jumped, but that’s about all.

The film does not look low budget at all. Very little special effects were used, which I love and appreciate. I didn’t like the found-footage-styled scenes; you know, like The Blair Witch Project or Paranormal Activity. They seem like a last minute addition and didn’t help the film; luckily they disappear as the action builds up. The aliens. You get to see the aliens and they look creepy-good and real. Their grey bodies are long and thin, and the eyes are large black pools on their expressionless faces.

The ending disappointed me. I was hoping for something different—it would have been so cool—but the last 5 – 10 minutes are drawn out and corny.  I get the feeling it was done on purpose.

As I watched the movie, I couldn’t tell if The Vicious Brothers wanted this film to poke fun at the horror genre, be a legit thriller or a mix of both. Maybe they were trying to create a scary horror-spoof. Travis’ exaggerated crazy-guy-in-the-woods character is the complete opposite from the Sheriff’s gloom or the group’s desperate attempt to save themselves. Also, death by butt probe? Gotta be a spoof, right? Despite the confusion, I enjoyed Extraterrestrial—more than I thought I would. I laughed, I jumped and I got a little twist.This film gave me a much needed break from the slew of paranormal films that have come out recently. I just wish it ended my way.

Extraterrestrial will be released at New York’s IFC Center and additional U.S. theaters on November 21, 2014.