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Janie Jones: Movie Review

Laura Aguirre — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 23:00:23 +0000

No, Janie Jones isn’t a movie about the insane life of 60s pop singer Marion Mitchell, as the title would have you Clash fans believe. Rather, ’tis a tale about an estranged father and his daughter meeting for the first time. The film is written and directed by David M. Rosenthal, and stars Alessandro Nivola, and one of the youngest actresses to earn an Oscar nomination, Abigail Breslin. This film is dedicated to Rosenthal’s daughter Julia, who inspired him to write Janie Jones on account of meeting her for the first time when he was 30 and she was 11.

The film is a lot like Sofia Coppola‘s Somewhere in that the child acts like the parent and the parent acts like the child. Janie Jones feels like portrait, a window into the lives of two strangers who get to know each other. And believe it or not, “Janie Jones,” the song, and Janie Jones, the movie, do share some common ground – both are rooted in that rock environment, except here, the lead singer is a washed up indie rock star.

The Players:

Directed by: David M. Rosenthal
Written by: David M. Rosenthal
Cast: Abigail Breslin, Alessandro Nivola, Elisabeth Shue
Cinematography by: Anastas N. Michos
Original Music by: Gemma Hayes

The Plot:

Janie Jones is a 13 year old girl who is dropped off with her estranged rocker father when her mother checks into rehab. At first, her father denies that the child is his, but when she reveals her musical gifts, their connection is far deeper than they realized.

The Good:

Abigail Breslin: Janie Jones isn’t your typical teenager. She’s suffered through life with a junkie mother and an absent father, and as a result has had to grow up a lot faster. This is foreign territory for Breslin, but being the fantastic talent that she is, she gives a convincing and moving performance. She really captures that feeling of growing up too quickly, and having to act like the parent. Breslin proves she’s not only an excellent actress, but also a good singer and guitar player. She’s so young yet so hard-working and that’s worthy of admiration and praise.
Alessandro Nivola: Ethan is a hard-drinking, fading rock star who’s too stuck in his own ways. He’s the kind of person that drives people away. Nivola embodied that narcissistic indie rock star all too well. He was so infuriating and hateful, but all of those things are evidence that Nivola portrayed the character right.
Documentary Style: A lot of the film is spent on the road or inside dingy bars. The hand-held camera works well in the scenes when the band is performing because it adds a feeling of chaos that’s proper when you’re trying to showcase Ethan’s world. His life is in shambles and you can really get a feel for that because of the shaky camera.
The Opening: The introduction is a series of images that switch between Janie Jones and her mother traveling down an open road, and Ethan getting ready to go onstage at a small venue. The cross-cutting between both settings is really effective and serves as an entry into the rest of the movie.
A Portrait: Like Somewhere, Janie Jones felt like a portrait of a relationship between a father and his daughter. There are no flashbacks in this movie. Anything from the past is mentioned through dialogue. It’s no necessary to see Ethan’s life before Janie because everything is right there. The focus of this movie is in the present, not in the past.
Music As A Trigger: The story here is about a father and his daughter meeting for the first time and then connecting through music. And this is exactly what happens. Each time that the relationship between Janie and Ethan progresses, there’s music involved. The music acts like a trigger, and each time their bond grows stronger and stronger. It was a nice touch.
Supporting Cast: From Elisabeth Shue, who plays Janie’s junkie mother, to Peter Stormare, who plays Ethan’s manager, the supporting cast does a great job whenever they are onscreen. They play their roles well and add authenticity to this tragic story.

The Bad:

Ethan’s Purpose: Ethan’s music career appears to be fading away. He’s too much of a drunk to have any real ambition. First and foremost, Janie Jones is the story about a father getting to know his daughter for the first time. Ethan’s band called it quits early in the movie, and Ethan decides to go on the road alone, with Janie, because he wants to be able to play at SXSW. Ethan says that his goal is to play at SXSW, but he never shows any true ambition. This leaves us to question his love for music. Even though the music was a nice touch to the growth of the father/daughter relationship, Ethan, himself, doesn’t seem to respect music. Three times he gets into brawls, and all while he’s playing guitar, onstage. It got to the point where it felt like he only went onstage to pick a fight.

Overall:

This is a simple story told in a simple way. The focus is clear throughout the story, which is to show the bond between an estranged father and his daughter. The film isn’t too ambitious, but it’s told in a pleasant and nice way.

Rating: 8/10

Janie Jones hits theaters October 28.

Photos:

Trailer:

Abigail Breslin Wants Justin Bieber for Zombieland 2

Krystal Clark — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 16:05:09 +0000

Are you one of the many people waiting for a follow up to the horror comedy Zombieland? Get in line with the rest of us, because aren’t we all? One of the film’s stars Abigail Breslin recently spoke about the pending sequel, while out promoting her latest film Rango. She said she’d love to do a sequel to the movie, and it would be awesome if there was another hidden cameo tucked away for fans. What would you say if you saw a zombielicious Justin Bieber?

Spoilers for Zombieland:

In the first movie, Bill Murray made a secret cameo in the film as one of the members of the “undead.” It was a pleasant surprise that everyone enjoyed. The 14 year old Breslin thinks that Bieber could have the same affect.

“That was just a really fun, hysterical scene,” Breslin said of Bill Murray’s surprise appearance in the original Zombieland. “They would have to get something really, really unexpected [to top it]… Maybe Justin Bieber zombiefied!”

We’re sure tween and teens everywhere would enjoy that but no one over the age of 25 would care. And for the sequel as a whole, Breslin’s not sure if it will even happen but she remains optimistic.

“I don’t really know what’s going on with it at the moment but if it came around I’d love to play Little Rock again,” she said.

To be honest, Zombieland isn’t a film that needs a sequel. You could make one but it’s not really necessary. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

Do you want to see a Zombieland sequel? Do you think Justin Bieber should make a cameo?

Source: Showbiz Spy

Rango: Movie Review

Mali Elfman — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 00:00:51 +0000

This week Johnny Depp and Gore Verbinski team up again for another wild ride — only this time they’re tackling an animated world with their latest creation Rango. This is one of those films that takes a number of wild risks along the way but succeeds in almost all of them. It’s safe to say that their was no lack of imagination or attention to detail that went into this film, despite its few problems…

The Players:

Director: Gore Verbinski
Screenplay: John Logan
Story: John Logan, Gore Verbinski, James Ward Byrkit
Actors: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy
Animation Director: Hal T. Hickel
Original Music by: Hans Zimmer

The Plot:

A very Johnny Depp like chameleon finds himself trapped in the desert and before he knows it he is playing the role of the unexpected hero of a nearby town giving him a new sense of purpose in live — the only problem is can he keep up the act long enough to save his fellow critters from bandits, corrupt politicians and more? Is playing the part enough? Or will he have to become it?

The Good:

The Beginning: The film starts off with a band as ww are immediately thrown into Rango’s unique world. We’ve got ourselves some action, plenty of comedy, even some self-deprecation from the filmmakers, and then a metaphorical conundrum to get us pondering — success! After the first 20 minutes of this film I was sold, I’d seen enough to leave me satisfied, or so I thought… More on that later. Let’s concentrate on the good.
The Look: It so nice to see an animation that’s like no other. Much in the way that Tim Burton broke boundaries with Nightmare Before Christmas, this film takes an equally large step but in a very different way. This film is dry, dirty, sometimes almost color-less, our lead character has tiny eyes instead of big round ones — honestly I’ve never seen an animation quite like this and it was so much fun to sit there and take it all in. It gives new life to this genre and shows us that not being perfect is sometimes the best thing you can do! Which conveniently goes quite well with the moral of the story.
The References: Much in the way Quentin Tarantino references a number of movies he loves within his own, Gore squeezes in as many references as he can from Chinatown to Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (turns out it wasn’t bats Depp was swatting it was his future lizard self!). The thing about Tarantino is that he’s one of the only directors that can reference a movie and yet still have it be his own thing — this film was very much pointing out other films, not quite incorporating them the way that Tarantino does BUT I have to say I love that those kind of references are being made in an animation that kids will see.
The Little Moments: From the amazing Mariachi band to the way Rango’s eyes dart around and his broken neck, there are a number of small details in this film that make it worth seeing. There was so much time and effort put into all of these characters it’s hard not to love them.

The Bad:

The Length: The biggest problem of this film is its length. I’m not sure if Gore just LIKES lengthy films, but the runtime much like in his last Pirates film — the length just begins to weigh down everything you see in front of you and it begins to feel like you’re just moving from one set piece to another for now real reason…
Too Much: At the end of the second act you realize that the mission that they’re on doesn’t actually push the story forward and it begins to feel like they’re just throwing everything into the fire. I guess it’s nice to have a big action sequence at that stage of the film, but when it doesn’t really the story forward and in fact, gives us a whole new obstacle to over-come, the story ends up taking away from the charm that made the film so great in the beginning.

Overall:

Less is more in a film like this. The small moments, the intricate style choices, the texture of the clothing, the colors of the scenes, the well thought out one-liners, the characters development and the abstract metaphorical ideas are what make this an amazing film despite the fact that they story runs away with itself and doesn’t do justice to all the work put into this film.

This film begins by taking a huge risk and widely succeeds, but then regresses and becomes another action, adventure tale. If they just could have tightened up the story and been able to stick with the original concept, this film would have been one of the greatest films I’ve ever seen. Instead, it was good. Maybe this is because they felt it needed to “appeal to broader audiences” or maybe it’s what they meant to make.

But! I’ll take a film that touches on greatness over one that never tries to do so any day. So my recommendation — go for it.

Rating: 7/10

Rango hits theaters on March 4, 2011.

Photo Gallery:

Trailer:

Rango Interview with Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin and Gore Verbinski

Mali Elfman — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 00:17:02 +0000

This week in theaters, Gore Verbinski‘s latest extravaganza, Rango hits theaters. This film takes of number of interesting, artistic risks and is able to do so because of the powerhouses behind it. Gore has just come off the successful Pirates franchise and if you’ve seen any of the posters for this film you should know that “Johnny Depp is Rango.” Normally I don’t like such blatant advertising but because I support this film and always applaud a metaphorical head trip with many fine cinematic references, I’ll back that up — Johnny Depp is Rango along with the lovely and hysterical Isla Fisher as the rough, tough and sometimes frozen Beans and the adorable and witty Abigail Breslin as the sweetly sinister Priscilla — and you should see it.

We sat down with the crew to talk about the film, find out what they had to say below…

Gore and Johnny, together again…

You guys have obviously worked together a few times now, and I was just wondering if you could each comment on what you like so much about working with the other.

GORE VERBINSKI: I like the way he smells. [LAUGHTER]

JOHNNY DEPP: I’ve been told I smell good; I mean, I don’t look like I smell good. [LAUGHTER]

GORE VERBINSKI: I don’t know – because we have shorthand, talking and sound effects and unfinished sentences and -

JOHNNY DEPP: Yeah.

GORE VERBINSKI: He seems to understand exactly what that means, and I get it back. And you know, a very – very complex direction, like more fuzz -

JOHNNY DEPP: More fuzz, yeah.

GORE VERBINSKI: More stink on this line, you know. Really, that’s about as intellectual as it gets.

JOHNNY DEPP: And it really is that, exactly, you know. “Ah, let’s make – you know – maybe some more fuzz. Let’s put some more fuzz on it.” “Okay. Gotcha.” No, he’s a very – I mean, working with Gore, you know, in three “Pirates” films and Rango certainly, there are no limits to what you could – to the possibilities, I mean, you know, he allows you to try all kinds of things, you know, that sometimes fail miserably.

GORE VERBINSKI: Yes, please.

JOHNNY DEPP: And other times, you know, goes into this kind of weird – you’ve just arrived at some place that you know no one’s ever been to before, you know. And he welcomes it and he creates an atmosphere that allows you to just, you know, go essentially ape. And yeah, and it’s a blast, you know – that’s really a fun part of the process.

GORE VERBINSKI: That’s really – what’s great about Johnny is, you know, the trust that – you know, neither of us are going to make the other one look like an ass, you know. I have to – he has to trust that at the end of the day, we’re not going to use that stuff -

JOHNNY DEPP: Um-hmm.

GORE VERBINSKI: Where we’ve tried something that didn’t work, but we’re going to try it because anomaly and you know, we’ve got this sort of pursuit of finding the truly awkward moment, you know, which is – you’re only going to get there by not knowing, and sort of venturing into the unknown. And so, you know, I just think he’s incredibly brave, you know, on top of being incredibly talented. It’s like you’ve got to kind of cross that threshold.

Acting in an Animated-Gore World:

For Johnny, you’re a very physical actor, and I just wondered with this process, it’s different than the other animated films you’ve done, where you were in a booth. You actually acted this out. And I wondered if that helped you. And maybe the actresses, as well, could talk a little about doing that. It’s different than most animated pictures.

JOHNNY DEPP: Well, yeah. I mean, ultimately, it was everything; though, you know, there were times when you didn’t feel that, when you were doing it – you’d rather have been – because you know, well, we’re lazy. [LAUGHTER]

JOHNNY DEPP: At least I am. And I’d sort of rather just sit in front of a microphone and do the thing. However -

GORE VERBINSKI: That’s exactly the point.

JOHNNY DEPP: The process that we did, that Gore created this sort of atmosphere that was really, truly ludicrous; I mean, just ridiculous. It was like just regional theater at its worst.

[LAUGHTER]

JOHNNY DEPP: And somehow, because of – not the idea of motion capture, but emotion capture, you know; certain gestures, body language, movement, something you might have done, you know, with your eyes – all those guys, you know, these animators took it and put it in there. So, I mean, it was very strange. I mean, for Harry Dean Stanton to walk up to me one afternoon – because I’ve known him for a million years – and he walks up to me and says, “This is a weird gig, man.” [LAUGHTER] And I went, “Oh, yeah. You’ve just started. You just wait.” You know. But ultimately, it was the right thing to do. And that was his vision, and we saw it through.

What did you think, Isla and Abigail?

ISLA FISHER: I think the characters had humanity because we were interacting with each other, and more chemistry; and so it felt more organic and real. What do you think, Abigail?

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: You know, it was – you know, when you’re in just like a booth, by yourself, it’s like very isolating, and like you don’t really, like, have anything to sort of play off of except like one take of like one line, and then like a beep, and then – so this was, this was – I think that it was, well, for me, at least, a lot more fun. Although I did wear a wig, like a black wig and I got a really bad rash on my neck from it, and so that was a little unfortunate, but -

ISLA FISHER: And you were carrying a gun.

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: I was.

ISLA FISHER: Which was weird, to see Abigail with a massive gun.

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: It was so bizarre, because like there was actually guns going, and like you don’t think that there are like firearms in an animated movie.

[LAUGHTER]

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: And it’s like live. That’s all I thought about it.

JOHNNY DEPP: Gore always travels with guns.

GORE VERBINSKI: Absolutely. Keep people from going to sleep.

JOHNNY DEPP: Yeah.

To do 3D or to NOT do 3D — that is the struggle:

I’ve heard in previous reports that you kind of fought tooth and nail in order to make sure that Rango isn’t going to be in 3D. Are you for or against 3D in general? Is Rango not being in 3D like the only time when you’re going to be like, no to 3D? And how do you all feel about just kind of like 3D being like the big trend in general?

JOHNNY DEPP: I’m waiting for 5D. [LAUGHTER] That’s what I want.

GORE VERBINKSI: I don’t know – I just don’t feel – I watched the movie; I don’t think there’s a dimension missing. I don’t feel like, I don’t watch it and go, you know, “It’s flat,” or it’s, you know, missing anything. So you know, we talked about it early on and it just didn’t seem like we needed to go there.

ISLA FISHER: I think the glasses are really uncomfortable. [LAUGHTER]

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: Like, it actually looks like, it looks so like lifelike anyway, like I think that it looks like 3D; it looked like the animals were there anyway. It looked really cool, I thought. And 3D makes me dizzy.

Is There a Chance of a Rango Sequel??

This is for Johnny and Gore. I noticed, looking through the Rango movie storybook, that he has a continuing adventure and goes to another town. Can we hope that there might be a Rango 2?

GORE VERBINSKI: [INDISCERNIBLE]

JOHNNY DEPP: I think that means yes.

GORE VERBINSKI: I don’t know. Let’s see if, you know, people like Rango – Rango. I’m not even going to call it Rango I.

JOHNNY DEPP: [LAUGHTER] Rango 1.

PRESS: So there’s a possibility?

GORE VERBINSKI: Currently, not talking about it. I mean, it felt like, you know – I mean, if you just had a kid, would people say, you want – “How about twins?” [LAUGHTER] “We’re just – we’re still recovering.”

Finding A Voice:

This question is for Isla. Can you tell us a little bit about creating the voice of Beans, and if you feel like having to cover your accent so frequently in films made it easier to do the characterization? And then I have a follow-up for Johnny.

ISLA FISHER: I kind of imagine Beans, if Clint Eastwood and Holly Hunter would have a love child, that would be Beans. And Gore, obviously-

JOHNNY DEPP: I’d like to watch that.

GORE VERBINSKI: Yes. [LAUGHTER]

ISLA FISHER: If you were around. No, and then I just – the physicality of the character had already been created; I’d already seen – Gore presented me with 20 minutes of the movie, just linear drawings. So I knew, you know, how she moved. And then I was able to – you know, Gore was with me every step of the way vocally, and he was very specific about what he wanted. And no one ever wants to hire an Australian, so I’m just used to never doing my own voice, ever. [LAUGHTER]

ISLA FISHER: I mean, they do want to hire – oh, that came out wrong. They do want to hire Australians, obviously, but not with the accent. [LAUGHTER]

PRESS: But I was just wondering, for all the actors – how much of your characters did you get to see in terms of the artwork, before you started playing with them?

ABIGAIL BRESLIN: I saw a picture of Priscilla. And I would have done it based on like how – I mean, let’s face it, she’s a glamour girl. So she’s kind of gorgeous. You know, but I thought she was adorable. So I would have done it based on that. But yeah, I thought all the characters were pretty cute – but in a strange way, odd, but you know, cute. They’re not like cuddly, you know – it’s not like, you don’t want to like hold them, but – yeah.

The Stunt….

[Justin Bieber walks into the room right before they end. A surprise? Perhaps! Or perhaps it's just cross-promotion since they are both being released by the same studio...]

JOHNNY DEPP: Hey, Man. [APPLAUSE]

JOHNNY DEPP: We just established that I’m a Belieber.

JUSTIN BIEBER: You know, and I’m a big fan of you so I had to come support you.

JOHNNY DEPP: Bless you, man.

JUSTIN BIEBER: I had to come say hi – I heard you were in the building. You’re a Belieber and I’m a big fan of him. [LAUGHTER]

JOHNNY DEPP: By the way, Justin Bieber. [APPLAUSE as Bieber waves to everyone]

JOHNNY DEPP: Well done, Man, thank you. Okay, now, who’s not a Belieber now? [LAUGHTER] You know what I mean? Aren’t we all Beliebers? Bless him. Yeah. I know – how am I going to explain this to my daughter?

GORE VERBINSKI: Who was that?

JOHNNY DEPP: That was the Beatles.

Check back soon for our “Johnny Depp Fucks with Journalists” piece and a 1-1 with Gore!

Rango is scheduled to hit theaters on March 4, 2011.

First Look at Rango – Best When Intoxicated

Mali Elfman — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 19:09:27 +0000

This is a rather interesting first look at Rango. We don’t know too much about the film other than it’s a “story of a chameleon with an identity crisis.” Vague, but lets run with it! The ad is definitely intriguing and probably even more so if you’re in anyway intoxicated. It’s extremely simple and quite effective and makes you NEED to know more.

What we also know about the film is that it’s directed by The Ring and Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and 3 director Gore Verbinski. The teaser below is reminiscent be of that crazy crab scene in the second Pirates movie, only this time, that insanity seems to be the main premise for the film or at least this clip….

Verbinski has teamed up once again with Johnny Depp as well as the impressive cast of Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Bill Nighy, Stephen Root, Ray Winstone, Beth Grant, Ned Beatty, Harry Dean Stanton and Alfred Molina – none of which you’ll hear in the clip..

AICN took a photo of the interesting artwork on the first poster earlier this month at a licensing show in Vegas, which is also rather intriguing. It appears as if they’re really come up with some interesting material for the film.

We can expect Rango in theaters in March of 2011. Until then, let the mystery continue! Go fishy!

What do you think of the first teaser? Are you intrigued or confused?

Abigail Breslin’s Latest Role Upsets the Blind and Deaf Community

Laura Aguirre — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 02:41:46 +0000

Abigail Breslin has landed a role in the Broadway play The Miracle Worker. Breslin will take the role of blind and deaf hero Helen Keller, and some people are pissed! There are those who feel that the role of Keller should have gone to someone from the deaf and blind community and not the 13-year-old Oscar nominated actress.

According to the New York Times, groups who represent blind and deaf actors have stated…

“We do not think it’s OK for reputable producers to cast this lead role without seriously considering an actress from out community. I understand how difficult it is to capitalize a new production on Broadway, but that to me is not the issue. There are other, larger human and artistic issues at stake here,” said Sharon Jensen, executive director of the Alliance for the Inclusion in the Arts.

However lead producer David Richenthal said in an interview that he wanted a star (and who better than Breslin) because it’s the only way to make money and that excludes any actress who are deaf or blind.

“It’s simply naive to think that in this day and age, you’ll be able to sell tickets to a play revival solely on the potential of the production to be a great show or on the potential for an unknown actress to give a breakthrough performance. I would consider it financially irresponsible to approach a major revival without making a serious effort to get a star,” said Richenthal.

Seems to make sense sadly. It all comes down to time and money. Chances are that working with Breslin, a seasoned performer, will be easier than a new-comer and she’ll sell more tickets at the same time. Isn’t it a shame all us viewers are so vain?

The Miracle Worker debuted in 1959 with actress Patty Duke as Helen Keller, and went on to the big screen and television, in which the lead was played Duke, Melissa Gilbert, and Mare Winningham — and let me point out that none of those actresses were deaf nor blind.

Who do you think is right to play the Helen Keller role? Breslin or a deaf and/or blind actress?

Zombieland Sequel in the Future?

Krystal Clark — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 16:38:03 +0000

This past weekend the Ruben Fleischer horror-comedy Zombieland dominated the box office with a cool 25 million dollar opening, which isn’t bad for an R-rated movie. Many positive reviews have come in from both fans and critics, so it’s no surprise that sequel rumors are starting to circulate. Over at MTV, they spoke to the film’s screenwriter Paul Wernick who seems to be more than happy to work on a follow up.

According to Wernick, “We would love it, and everyone involved creatively wants to do another one. Woody came up to us after the final cut of the last scene and gave us a hug and said, ‘I’ve never wanted to do a sequel in the previous movies I’ve done until this one.’ “

That’s a huge vote of confidence coming from someone like Harrelson, who’s been in the acting game for almost 30 years. The entire Zombieland creation process started years ago as a failed TV spec, but ended up transforming into a feature film phenomenon.

“It has lived in our heads for four-and-a-half years,” Wernick said. “We developed it and wrote it as a spec TV pilot in the summer of 2005. We’ve got a long brainstorming document that still to this day gets updated on a near-weekly basis with ideas. We’ve got tons of new ideas swimming in our head.”

Since the history of the film is so rich, there are plenty of new stories to tell, so a sequel isn’t a far-fetched idea. If and when it happens, the returning crew would include Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, Abigail Breslin and Fleischer. I for one enjoy watching films that feature speeding zombies, as opposed to the old school slow motion versions. When you take that element and add a dose of comedy, what’s not to love?

Do you want to see a Zombieland sequel?

Zombieland: Movie Review

Mali Elfman — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 01:00:18 +0000

Grab the nearest thing to you that could be considered a weapon and come on down to Zombieland, where you get points for the most creative way to kill a zombie! Actually, leave the weapons at home, Ruben Fleischer’s film will supply you with all the comedic violence you’ll need. If you loved Drag Me to Hell you’ll be glad to see that there is another movie out there for you to laugh at cringe all at the same time.

Check out the review below…

The Players:

Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
Written by: Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg

The Plot:

In a world overrun by zombie, few remain. In order to survive the zombie-apocolypse you must have a special trait. Columbus (Eisenberg) is scared of everything, and his shut in behavior has allowed him to avoid zombies much like he used to avoid humans. Thanks to his list of rules, he’s managed to stay alive and keep a normal regime. Tallahassee (Harrelson) has survived by simply being the best damn, gun-totting, banjo wheeling, zombie-killer alive who is on a mission for a Twinkie. On their way to find Columbus’ family, they are joined by two sneaky sisters, Wichita and Little Rock, who have their own ways of getting that they want.

The Good:

The Rules: Finally, they come up with an idea that makes sense and use it to their advantage throughout the entire film. Columbus’ rules start off the film, and set the tone for what we’re about to see, and then every time they pop up in the film, it’s like a cherry on top of a perfect sundae.
Fresh Take on an Old Idea: Everyone seems to be coming out with a vampire, zombie, or apocalyptic movie, and somehow they all seem to mush together in your head to form one pointless vampire-ridden-zombie-wave that crashes over the earth. Nothing about this film felt forced or recycled. Everything from the way the film was shot to their jovial tone gave the film a much needed edge that allows it stand out in a the sea of post-apocalyptic nonsense.
The Comedic Violence: I can’t watch violent slasher films, but I love some good good ol’ fashioned violence that makes you laugh and this film capitalizes on that. Not only did they come up with a new way to show the violence (super slow-mo, with voice-over) but it’s done in a way that is absolutely hilarious so that you will be laughing and repulsed all at the same time
Acting: Although I don’t think any of the actors had to push themselves too far, every single one of them put in a great performance. All four seemed to have different approaches to comedy and yet they all worked together brilliantly.
The References: From Russel Crowe to Twinkies, every time they throw out a reference it lands hard. Which leads me to…
The SECRET CAMEO: No I won’t reveal it. They’ve kept it hidden and for good reason, it’s amazing and if you’re not laughing your ass off your heart must me made of stone.
FUN: The bottom line is that this film is a blast to watch. Much like how I felt after Drag Me to Hell, this is a film that was made for an audience to enjoy.

The Bad:

Honestly I got nothing… This is not the type of movie you pick apart, it’s the type where you buy yourself some popcorn, lean back and enjoy the ride.

Overall:

Great film! Fun to watch, well put together, overall one of the best comedies I’ve seen all year.

Rating: 9.5/10

Check out the film in theaters October 2nd!

Gallery:

Check out more Zombieland photos from on and off the set of the film.

New Zombieland Photos of the Cast on Set

Mali Elfman — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 17:33:55 +0000

Last night I was able to attend a screening of Zombieland and although I can’t say anything about it just yet (damn embargo!), I will say it was EXACTLY what I was hoping for from a crazy horror, action, comedy. Check out photos from the film and of cast members Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone, Jesse Eisenberg and director Ruben Fleischeron hanging around on set below.

The film is filled with as many different types of zombies as you could possibly imagine, below is just a taste of some of the insane zombies Fleischeron came up with for his film…

Click the any of the photos below for full sized image and then use the arrows to browse the gallery...

Zombieland centers on a group of survivors as they try to make their way through the continental U.S. without getting eaten by the undead.

Check out the film, in theaters on October 8th!

Which zombie is your favorite?

International Zombieland Trailer

Krystal Clark — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 00:10:40 +0000

Another trailer for the upcoming film, Zombieland has hit the net. This latest release is an international version to follow up the red band cut from earlier this month. From the looks of it, this movie is going to be the perfect Halloween movie companion. The film has horror, action, comedy, and Woody Harrelson. What more could you ask for? Check out the latest trailer below.

Zombieland centers on a group of survivors as they try to make their way through the continental U.S. without getting eaten by the undead. The film co-stars Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin. This film looks hilarious. I really can’t wait for it’s release this fall. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen a zombie film that I actually enjoyed.

Zombieland will hit theaters on October 9th.

What do you think of the latest trailer for Zombieland?

New Zombieland Poster

Krystal Clark — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:45:36 +0000

A new theatrical poster has been released for the upcoming horror comedy, Zombieland. It features the main cast which includes Woody Harrelson, Abigail Breslin, Emma Stone, and Jesse Eisenberg. I feel kind of old because you can tell Abigail is turning into a little teenager. At least in this movie she plays a young teen, who happens to be a zombie killing bad ass.

Check out the full length poster after the jump…

Image courtesy of ComingSoon.

I love this poster! Zombieland hits theaters this fall on October 9th. If you haven’t checked out the trailer for this film, I highly recommend you do, this movie is going to be awesome!

What do you think about the latest trailer for Zombieland?

Zombieland Red Band Trailer

Krystal Clark — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 20:15:21 +0000

It’s about time we got a zombie movie that was truly amazing! The upcoming Ruben Fleischer film Zombieland has a new trailer and it’s in red band baby! The film stars Woody Harrelson and Jesse Eisenberg as two of the few survivors left in a land overtaken by the undead. The film also stars Emma Stone and Little Miss Sunshine alum Abigail Breslin. The following footage was shown to audiences at this year’s Comic-Con, but now it’s online for all to see!

Check out the trailer after the jump!

What do you think of the Red Band trailer for Zombieland?

ScreenCrave.com » Abigail Breslin

Janie Jones: Movie Review

The Players:

The Plot:

The Good:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 8/10

Photos:

Trailer:

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