Indiana Jones: Expectedly Over-the-Top, but Still Fun

I caught Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull this afternoon and there's a lot to talk about. If you're a fan of action movies at all, there's really not a reason not to see it. I haven't seen the previous three in ages and to my knowledge have only seen one from start to finish, but had no problem enjoying it. So I'm just going to talk about it as if it was just a straight-up action flick and the movie completely fills that role.

Before I go on, if you're from the area take a close look at the campus scene in the movie. If you forgot the buzz this summer, it was shot in Yale and there are definitely plenty of spots you can pick out even if you're only vaguely familiar with the campus like myself.

Anyways, so yeah, some people may complain that the movie was a tad over the top and I will agree with that in just one case and partly in another. There's a certain scene (not trying to give it away completely) involving monkeys that I just know had to be one of the last to make it into the film. It's very brief and doesn't do too much damage to the overall film, but I was just shocked that even for an Indiana Jones movie that it made it from the cutting room floor to the big screen. If you've seen the movie, you'll know exactly what I'm talking about.

Other than that and a storyline dwelling a bit too much in the sci-fi territory that could have easily been adapted for a more Indiana Jones feel, I had no issues with the movie and the $8 I spent to watch it. The action scenes are what you will expect. Harrison Ford getting himself into and out of trouble with Shia LaBeouf (Transformers) and Karen Allen (who you may remember from Raiders of the Lost Ark).

Ford is obviously great. I couldn't stop thinking about 2006's Rocky Balboa and the most recent Star Wars films. Rocky because I felt that Ford could have easily done Indiana like Stallone did Rocky -- a sad and desperate attempt to reprise a role he could no longer play. Ford took it in stride and while he's very much involved in the action, he accepts that he is not the Indiana Jones of old. It was refreshing.

And Star Wars because it made me realize that a movie can be made so many years after the originals and still keep that same feeling. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull felt right at home with the previous movies. It didn't feel at all like I was watching a bastardized version of the originals and that is something the diehards can appreciate.

If I was forced to give it a letter grade, I would give it a solid B. A few small tweaks and it could have easily been a B+ or even an A-. Oh yeah, and LaBeouf is not too shabby.

Keeping with the Comics: Two New Trailers

I believe I mentioned this during my short review on Iron Man on the post below, but before that movie showed two new trailers for The Dark Knight and The Incredible Hulk. I'm not 100% sure how new the Hulk one is, but I know the Batman one debuted in theaters this weekend.


The Dark Knight

The Incredible Hulk

So How Was Iron Man?

One word: Good.

The long version: Batman now has a very tough act to follow. Anyone with any interest in this comic book turned movie knows most of the details (Robert Downey Jr. stars as Iron Man, etc) and perhaps if you even have that much interest you may have already seen it. In case you haven't, do yourself a favor and dish out the $8-10 and catch it in theaters.

The cast is great. Downey revives his career with this movie. (Quick side note: Just checked his IMDB and he's listed as Tony Stark aka Iron Man in the credits for the new Hulk movie...interesting). Jeff Bridges is fantastic. This may be his best performance since The Big Lebowski, but then again I didn't see Seabiscut (that was supposed to be good, right?). Terrence Howard and Gwyneth Paltrow round out a pretty solid cast.

Howard as you may know plays Jim Rhodes aka War Machine. For those who saw the movie or the newer television trailer will see the scene alluding to War Machine. This is definitely one of the better new comic book movies we've seen in a while. I say new as in not a sequel. Sin City and V for Vendetta excluded.

If you have any interest in this at all from the trailers definitely go out and see it. For what it's worth, my girlfriend who doesn't know a thing about the whole Iron Man world throughly enjoyed it. So yeah, it's just a good film.

It's doing great in the box office too. The AP reported that "Iron Man was the 10th biggest opening of all time and the fourth biggest for a superhero movie. Among nonsequels, it came in behind only the first Spider-Man, which premiered with $114.8 million."

PS: If you haven't heard yet that you need to stay through the end of the credits, make sure you do so.

Edit: Marvel has just announced that Iron Man 2 will be released on April 30, 2010. I know I'll be there. - Ed

The Onion Inspires Me To Take a Look At This Year's Comic Book Movies

I was originally planning on just reposting the Onion News Network video below and talking about how much I love watching trailers. Halfway through the segment, however, I started to realize there are a lot of comic book films this summer. Let's get to the Onion video first though.

Wildly Popular 'Iron Man' Trailer To Be Adapted Into Full-Length Film


Now we already talked about Hellboy II and The Dark Knight, but Iron Man will be here before both of them. May 2nd to be exact, which is two weeks from Friday. I know they are running a ton of TV spots now, but I just dug up a newer/longer trailer that I've never seen before.

There's another movie that seems to get lost in the discussion, which I haven't seen a hell of a lot of information for...The Incredible Hulk. Stan Lee and Jack Kirby wanted a mulligan on their 2003 Hulk. I didn't think the first try was that bad, but they definitely upped the acting here with Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and Tim Roth so I can't complain. Although Eric Bana isn't/wasn't awful. A trailer for the new Hulk was posted last month and the movie will hit theaters on June 13.

Hellboy II and The Dark Knight will follow with July 11 and July 18 releases, respectively.

First WALL-E Trailer

After a couple teaser trailers we're finally given a real one. Like Duncan always says, Disney/Pixar/etc love to pimp out their movies years before it actually releases. WALL-E doesn't hit theaters until June 27th, but let the anticipation begin.

The Incredibles and Cars didn't really do anything for me. I didn't see them, of course, but just the premise of both was lacking. Ratatouille was amazing though, so I may give this one a shot.

Oops! Almost Missed This. Academy-Nominated Live Shorts and Other Upcoming Goodies

I know I said I would post about this last month, but it totally slipped my mind. Real Art Ways in Hartford is currently running the 2007 Academy Award Nominated Live Action Shorts until tomorrow. So you can check them out both tonight and tomorrow at 7:15 p.m.

The shorts include:
At Night (Om natten)
"Three young women share their problems while spending the holidays in a hospital cancer ward."

Academy-Award winner The Mozart of Pickpockets (Le Mozart des Picketpockets)
"A pair of unlucky thieves find their fortunes have changed when they take in a deaf homeless boy."

Tanghi Argentini
"A man who must learn to dance the tango in two weeks asks an office colleague for help."

The Substitute (Il Supplente)
"The arrival of an unusual newcomer galvanizes the students in a high school classroom."

The Tonto Woman
"A cattle rustler meets a woman who is living in isolation after being held prisoner for 11 years by the Mojave Indians."

Links go to the trailers at IMDb. Sorry for the lack of easily-accessible YouTube clips, but there just weren't any.

There's also two other movies of note that I've been interested and slightly interested in seeing. The first one is Once.

"The Irish romance Once may be a musical, but it is miles away from the traditional Hollywood idea of people bursting into song. Glen Hansard (frontman for indie rock band The Frames) plays the guy, a street musician who is playing for change when he meets the girl (Marketa Irglova), an immigrant from the Czech Republic. The pair immediately bond over their shared love of music (he is a guitarist, and she plays the piano), and the film chronicles their tentative relationship." - synopsis from Rotten Tomatoes, which by the way has the film at a 97% fresh rating.

I almost rented/bought this movie a few times. I've seen the trailer (above, obviously) a handful of times and it looks like a solid movie. Definitely one worth taking your significant other/date out to as it doesn't seem like an obvious chick flick, but it certainly looks to have some of those qualities. Once begins playing on Friday at 5:30 and 9:30 p.m. and runs until next Wednesday, March 19.

The second movie on Real Art Way's calendar that I know we've talked about here, probably on a podcast, is Teeth. I don't know if I actually want to see this movie or what. It's...scary, weird, etc.

Also from Rotten Tomatoes, "Writer-director Mitchell Lichtenstein’s feature debut is a horror comedy combining elements of atom-age 1950s horror films with mythology and feminist theory. The result is a smart, sassy B-movie satire--funny, gross, and with a high squirm factor."

The movie is 80% fresh on the site, so it must have something going for it. The movie doesn't open up at Real Art Ways until March 28, but I figured I'd give you a heads up.

Will Ferrell Got Game

I know Bill Walton is old and all, but he did play in the NBA before, right? In an effort to further promote Will Ferrell's new comedy Semi-Pro, the actor took on Hall of Famer and NBA commentator Bill Walton in a game of Horse.



I think I'm a bit more surprised by how good Ferrell is (although he's probably been practicing on and off the set since the movie began filming) then how bad Walton is. Semi-Pro will hit theaters this Friday and if you happened to miss the trailer you can find it here.

Edit: Just popped over to the A.V. Club and saw they did an interview with Ferrell that was posted today.

It's the Weekend!

So, wow, it's the weekend and a quick look at the calendar we dug up shows that there's really nothing to do Saturday. By now I assume you drank your Friday evening away due to the snow storm. I know I should have.

Sunday has some promise with Wilco and Geoff Mullen in New Haven. One (Mullen) is free, so that is an easy choice. So what to do Saturday? All the major movies that opened this weekend (Be Kind Rewind, Charlie Bartlett and Vantage Point) got less than stellar reviews (68, 54 and 34% on Rotten Tomatoes, respectively). The Spiderwick Chronicles seems to be the only movie in theaters that doesn't look awful.

So I say, find a bar, maybe one that features karaoke, or roll the dice on one of these movies. I'm going to provide the trailers for and suggest either Be Kind Rewind or The Spiderwick Chronicles. It's probably quite obviously what you're going to be getting out of either of those. A Jack Black comedy that I personally thought looked great a couple months ago when I first saw the trailer featuring Mos Def, who was awesome in 16 Blocks. Or a PG, fantasy-film similar to The Golden Compass where the main character was actually one of the main voices from The Golden Compass. You'll know what you'd lean towards, but either way here's the trailers.

Be Kind Rewind


The Spiderwick Chronicles

See All the Academy Award Nominated Short Animations in Hartford!

I mentioned this briefly in a comment in the below post, but this deserves it's own spot with the Academy Awards coming up. Plus, you only have two more days (today included) to check these out.

Real Art Ways on Arbor Street in Hartford is showing all of the nominations for best short animation at 5:40 p.m. today and Thursday. Those nominations are:

I Met the Walrus

In 1969, fourteen-year-old Jerry Levitan snuck into John Lennon's hotel room with his tape recorder and persuaded him to do an interview.

Madame Tutli Putli

A timid woman boards a mysterious night train and has a series of frightening experiences.

Meme Les Pigeons Vont Au Paradis (Even Pigeons Go to Heaven)
Note: The video below seems to be the full 9-minute short and not the trailer.

A priest tries to sell an old man a machine that he promises will transport him to heaven.

Moya Lyubov (My Love)
A link to the trailer. Sorry, no YouTube.
In nineteenth-century Russia, a teenage boy in search of love is drawn to two very different women.

Pete and the Wolf
Just seems to be a short clip and not a trailer.

A young boy and his animal friends face a hungry wolf in Prokofiev's classic musical piece.

Starting the 29th, Real Art Ways will begin showing the Academy Award nominated live action short films. You can expect a similar post as that date approaches.

New James Bond Title Revealed

BBC News reported that the next James Bond film will be titled Quantum of Solace. The title may not scream action-packed spy film like From Russia with Love or even Casino Royale, but Quantum of Solace takes it's name from the Ian Fleming short story, however, it is said to be unrelated as far as plot goes. That of course is a good thing for anyone who has read Quantum and is looking for another action flick. From what I've read the original story is much more low key. Promises are already being made to stray from such a story. Producer Michael Wilson told BBC that this film would have twice as much action as 2006's Casino Royale.

Daniel Craig will be returning for his second try at James Bond. His first was well received by critics. The expected release date for the film is November 7. Below you can see BBC's Six O'Clock News, which provides some quick shots of the set and filming of Quantum of Solace.

Insane 'Church' Plans to Protest Ledger's Funeral

I can't even call the Phelps family a church because they are a complete joke. And I feel like I'm just adding to the fire by even blogging about this despite how few people this reaches compared to say a radio show or MSNBC, but I need to say something: Wow.

I say "wow" once in a while when there's some really great music coming out, but this is a whole new level of wow. This is a I'm completely shocked that such people in this world can actually exist wow. And I can blame myself a bit for giving them the time a day, but it is really the aforementioned media that need to stop kicking this should-be dead horse. We know they do not make sense to the sane. We know they are completely off the wall with their "God Hates Fags" and "righteous" bullshit. So why bother?

There's already a documentary floating around somewhere about these completely out-of-touch individuals, so do we really need to give them the limelight with this one? No, we do not. Because in all seriousness, I do not believe they would go away if we stopped giving them the attention they so desperately need, but they would no longer matter. If you do not make the news and you are not popping up in our Web browsers than you are unimportant.

So in case you have not heard or did not get it from the headline, the Westboro Baptist Church plans to protest Heath Ledger's memorial service, funeral and for some reason the Oscar's. I actually remember seeing them or at least people with similar idiotic viewpoints in L.A. at the Oscar's a couple years ago. It's getting old.

Shirley Phelps-Roper, one of the main, loud-mouth players for the 'church,' was interviewed yesterday on the Kane morning show on 99.5 in Washington, D.C. It is a rather upsetting interview, to be honest. The host tries to lighten it up and play Elton John music in the background while she tries to talk, but there's really too much bullshit coming out of her mouth to find any of it really funny. When the person who is being played doesn't get it, then it sort of misses the point. Either way, the podcast of the interview can be found here. They do try to call her out on her illegitimate child during the interview, which causes her to produce a loophole for herself that somehow gets her out of hell.

In short: the Phelps are far from sane, but the media needs to stop thinking they can have reasonable conversations with them and needs to get them out of the headlines. It's only giving them what they want.

Cloverfield Review: A Six-Foot Meh

Just got back from Cloverfield and I have to say it was a bit underwhelming. Of course the hype meter was slowly rising throughout the week as my friend Nick went and saw it three times (almost saw it a fourth with me tonight). It is awful to go into a movie with high expectations, but I did and I was a bit let down.

First of all the camera takes some getting used to. If you are susceptible to motion sickness either skip it, wait till it's on DVD or sit way in the back. I had to sit back as far as I could in my seat in order to bare it. I should note that the theater I went to actually had a sign warning viewers of this, so I'm not the only one. Eventually I got used to it, but during the non-chaos scenes (i.e. the first 15 minutes or so of the movie) why was it shaky? What 20-something can't hold a camera straight for over three seconds? I thought we (20-somethings) grew up in an age where handheld cameras were second nature to us. I could be inebriated on a unicycle and come up with steadier tape.

My other complaint is the lack of epic-ness. The most epic thing about Cloverfield was the music in the closing credits. How can you not have a thing attacking Manhattan and it not have some epic feeling to it? Some of this had to do with the length of the movie, which clocked in at 85 minutes. I feel for $10 and a promises of a thing (trying not to give it away) attacking the city should at least take a whole two hours, maybe more.

All in all, it was still fine. However, if you have a problem with the camera work it will ruin the film for you. There is no way around it. If I had to give it a letter grade I would give it a C+/B-. The positives are obviously the fun action and thrills along the way in any movie like this. There are definitely some tense parts that will have you holding your breath to see what is going to happen next. Extra points for the unique point of view. Despite it being a negative for some it actually serves a solid purpose and allows for more suspense since the viewer is not allowed to be all-seeing.

A quick side story: FOX 61 News completely spoiled the main selling point of the movie, which is "what the hell is that thing?" They actually told viewers during a news segment what the thing was. This was also on either a Saturday or Sunday, so only a couple days after the film came out. The Internet is pretty big on a thing called spoiler alerts, but I figured television caught onto this idea long ago. I guess that's what I get for watching FOX News.

Here's the Cloverfield trailer if you happened to somehow miss it over the last few months or need a refresher.

One last thing: There was a teaser trailer for another J.J. Abrams' (producer of Cloverfield) project, which is being filmed now -- a new Star Trek. The scheduled release date is for Christmas of this year. The teaser can be found here.

Health Ledger Found Dead In Manhattan Apartment

Well, I doubt you're hearing this for the first time today, but in case you missed the news - Heath Ledger, age 28, was found dead this afternoon. Right now they are assuming that it was an overdose, as pills were found near the body, but still do not know if it was an accident or not.

Ledger last wrapped up filming of The Dark Knight, the sequel to the most recent Batman movie. Ed posted the trailer last month. He planned to go to Vancouver after his stay in New York to wrap up his latest movie, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.

The actor is probably best known for his work in Brokeback Mountain and A Knight's Tale. I have personally only seen him in A Knight's Tale, but thought he looked like an absolutely fantastic Joker in the trailer for Dark Knight. Regardless of how little I knew his work or cared for him as an actor, it is certainly sad to hear of another young talent with a near limitless future have their life come crashing down. R.I.P. Mr. Ledger.

Batman Has Some Competition (Hellboy II Trailer)

I just stumbled upon this and thought I should share it. Although Ed (so far) is right when he said that the new Batman flick will probably be next summer's blockbuster movie, Hellboy II: The Golden Army is looking to give it some competition - at least in the realm of early trailers.

To be honest I'm sort of surprised there is a second Hellboy. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the first but it just didn't seem like a box office hit ($100 million worldwide compared to - if we want to keep these comparisons goings - the $371 million Batman Begins brought in). Either way, looks just as much fun as the first.


PS: My favorite part about these movies? Selma Blair. I still have a crush on her from her Zoe, Duncan, Jack & Jane days.

I Am Legend Falls Short of Legendary, Still Amazing

When I first heard Will Smith was playing Robert Neville in the newest movie version of the novel I Am Legend, I cringed a little bit with the though of the classic story being turning into another Independence Day or Men in Black.

Thankfully, Smith does an amazing job in I Am Legend and has brought himself up a few rungs on the ladder of present-day actors.

While the movie starts off in a decrepit New York City (instead of Los Angeles, like the book) with Neville flying through the empty streets on Manhattan in a brand new Mustang GT500, with his dog Sam riding shotgun, it doesn't take long for the audience to grasp what is going on. The scene quickly turns into a view of Neville's lonely life as the only person left on Earth. The movie quickly describes the event of three years prior when a cure for cancer, turns into the Krippin Virus which effects 90% of the Earth's population and subsequently turns the victims into blood thirsty vampires.

The movie's hour and 40-minute run time flies by as Neville fights off night-seekers (vampires), haunting memories and dark depression in order to continue living. Saying too much more would kind of ruin it for you though.

Expect a mixture of well-shot scenes, heart-stopping drama, explosions, violence and one of the best stories in theaters this year.

For a quick glimpse of what to expect, check out this short trailer.

Juno Hits Connecticut on Friday!

Hooray! I discussed Juno earlier this month and posted the trailer to go along side it, but still haven't had a chance to see it. Finally it is here! I planned on seeing it Monday at a free early screening in Hartford, but I ended up missing out (sold out). Although this time around I'll have to pay for it, this is good news.

Some places in Connecticut it will be playing on Friday: Plainville, Manchester, New Haven, West Hartford, Fairfield...pretty much all the major locations. Check your local listings and what not, and be sure to see it this weekend.

Since I already posted the trailer I leave you with a short conversation between Ellen Page (Juno) and Diablo Cody (screenwriter) about acting and writing about being pregnant despite never experiencing it.

Dark Knight Trailer Finally Released

While I am not the biggest fan of comic book-based movies, the new Batman movie looks amazing. Christian Bale comes back as Bruce Wayne and it looks like it's going to be another great performance from him. The best role in the movie though, is Heath Ledger as The Joker and he looks pretty damn creepy.

While the movie doesn't come to theaters until July of 2008, you can expect to see a ton of new trailers as the movie grows nearer and I'm sure this will be the summer's biggest blockbuster.

I Am Legend Makes Millions, I Can't Find a Ticket

Well the numbers are out and this winter's blockbuster hit I Am Legend made well over 75 million in its first weekend at the box office. While it isn't hard to see why Will Smith's newest flick is bringing in all the cash, it surprised me when I couldn't get a ticket to a 9:30 p.m. showing on opening night, even though I was trying to buy the ticket seven hours in advance.

Apparently, I Am Legend sold out both iMax showings in Manchester on opening night and most other showings around the state. I know I wasn't the only one who had problems scoring these tickets. I guess I'll have to wait till later this week and go to a $5 matinée.

Expect my actual review in the next couple days.

This Week's Turkey Trailers

Well, we are back at it again, this time plus Melissa.
We touch upon six different movies, four nationwide releases and two
from the local area in Hartford.

Here you go folks, hope you enjoy and please leave messages.

Golden Globes Nominations Annouced This Morning + Juno

The nominations for the Globes were announced this morning. You can find the whole list here.

It is good to see Pushing Daisies getting some respect on here. Nominated under the "Best Television Series - Musical or Comedy." I don't know how much of a comedy the show is, especially when you compare it to some of its competition like 30 Rock and even Entourage. I was really surprised to see The Office or even Scrubs (in it's last season) missing from this list. Steve Carell is nominated for Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Musical Or Comedy, but still the show is only getting better.

I don't see anyone giving Grey's Anatomy much competition in the field of Best TV Drama, although House could surprise. I imagine the same sort of thing happening in the Best Animated Feature Film category and Ratatouille.

I actually haven't seen any of the nominations for best drama or best comedy. Some of these films aren't even out yet and I'm sort of surprised how top-heavy the list is with latecomers. What I can say about this is that it is good to see Juno in the Best Comedy or Musical category. Ellen Page, who plays the main character in the film, is also nominated for Best Performance.

The film has been getting great reviews so far with its limited release. Expect it to start expanding in the Connecticut area within the next week or two. I'm actually going to a screening of it on Monday so I'll let you know if it is worth the hype. The film is directed by Jason Rietman, who also did the film Thank You For Smoking (also good) and written by Diablo Cody. Cody is a bit of a newcomer, as this is her first film. So far, so good though. A lot of people are assuming Judd Apatow actually wrote Juno, due to the moniker I've often heard as Knocked Up from the female perspective. Superbad comparisons will also be bound to happen with Michael Cera in the mix. Without further ado I present to you the trailer.



The Golden Globes will air on NBC on Jan. 13 at 8 p.m.