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New DVD Releases: True Grit, Just Go With It, Sanctum

Andrew Payne — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 19:29:34 +0000

The DVD picks are back after a Memorial Day holiday and what a week to return! Not only are we loaded down with a Best Picture nominee and a comedy semi-smash, but TV on DVD is out in full force as well.

That’s right, we’re on both ends of the movie spectrum here as the prestigious True Grit becomes the final 2010 Best Picture nominee to make its journey to DVD on the same day that Adam Sandler’s Just Go With It is available to buy. Talk about counter-programming.

All that, plus just about every single cable show you’d ever want to watch and a movie that features Gordon Ramsay acting.

Check it out below…

Feature Films

True Grit

Hollywood can really learn a lesson from this remake. The lesson doesn’t have anything to do with the actual end product of the remake, but rather the type of film that was remade and how remaking it was handled.

The lesson is simple: Don’t mess with perfection. If you’re going to remake a film you shouldn’t choose one that’s brilliant to begin with. Instead, you should take a look at a film with a solid premise with a fundamental flow in its execution that is easy to correct.

Take Ocean’s 11 as an example. The original Frank Sinatra version is as cheese-tastic as it gets with Sammy Davis, Jr. singing while driving a truck in front of a green screen and the rest of the film looking as if it was filmed during The Rat Pack’s downtime.

But the premise was good: A bunch of slick crooks robbing a casino. Gussy it up with some great dialogue and excellent production values and you have a modern classic.

True Grit follows a similar path. The first movie was horribly flawed. Glen Campbell did his best to torpedo it and it couldn’t overcome the Western trappings of the day. But it had something going for it: a great book as its source material.

So the Coen Brothers grab the rights to that book, base their film more heavily on the source material and voila, a massive hit that’s as brilliant as it was popular.

So here’s the remake lesson: Grab a flawed film with some name recognition with problems that are easily fixed. That’s how you make a great remake. And NOT by casting Taylor Lautner in a remake of The Godfather. (Don’t worry, that’s just a joke).

And if you love this particular remake you can buy True Grit on DVD.

Just Go With It

Take a look at that picture to the right. Look at it. Study it. Drink it in. Realize that the scene showed in that picture appeared on about 187,000 TV spots for this movie. And that the commercials for this film drove enough people to the theater that this film made over $100 million at the box office.

And my only question is: why? Why are people going to see this movie. Why are people going to see an Adam Sandler film with a trailer that includes five awful jokes, a ridiculous premise that gives away the ending at the outset, and the aforepictured (new word, kids!) crotch hit.

Please. Somebody has to tell me what type of person sees all that and says to themselves, “Hey! That looks great. I can’t wait to see that!” I just want to meet one of these people if only to see what they look like.

I imagine they’re wearing a striped shirt and a beanie with a propeller on their head, but that’s just me.

Of course you, dear reader, may be one of these people. And if that’s the case, you can buy Just Go With It on DVD.

Also:

American: The Bill Hicks Story – Buy Now
The Company Men – Buy Now
Sanctum – Buy Now

TV on DVD

“Breaking Bad″: Season 3

I was waiting for so long for this season to come out on DVD just because I wanted to write a capsule about whether or not “Mad Men” was my least favorite show on AMC.

I was all set to write about the fact that “Breaking Bad” is the clear standout on the channel. That its deep examination of what drives a person to evil and its showcase of the best acting you’ll see anywhere, including features, make it not only the best show on AMC, but the best drama on television, period.

I was so ready to talk about how “The Walking Dead” had a visual style unlike anything else on the small screen, and that its ability to create a completely unique world in just a few episodes while maintaining a focus on grand entertainment was both more difficult and more well-executed than anything “Mad Men” has done with its insistence on deliberate pacing.

I couldn’t wait to lament the demise of “Rubicon” and discuss how its patience and ability to create compelling characters without a need to make them flashy was a cut above “Mad Men”.

I was also ready to talk about “The Killing”. How, after four episodes its bleak and staid depiction of a teenager’s murder and how it impacts everybody associated with her was some of the most heart rending and compelling television I’d come across in a while.

But then, “The Killing” went so far off the rails with weird bottle episodes, circular plots and just being too long that I could no longer begin to make a case that “Mad Men” was my least favorite show on the network. And I was so upset – nothing would do me more pleasure than to dispel the common notion that every other show on television should grovel at the feet of “Mad Men”. But, alas, I can’t quite do it.

So breathe easy, hipsters. The one TV show you watch isn’t getting lapped by its entire network’s roster…yet.

Still, “Breaking Bad” is a superior show to “Mad Men” on every level and you should really buy Season 3 of “Breaking Bad” on DVD.

Also:

“The Big C”: Season 1 – Buy Now
“Burn Notice”: Season 4 – Buy Now
“Hawthorne”: Season 2 – Buy Now
“Leverage”: Season 3 – Buy Now
“Pretty Little Liars”: Season 1 – Buy Now
“White Collar”: Season 2 – Buy Now

And Just So You Know, This DVD Exists…

Box Office Predictions: I Am Number Four To Be Number One Film This Weekend

scottschachter — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 17:34:02 +0000

Justin Bieber, Adam Sandler, and a Gnome will compete with a slew of new releases all opening this President Day’s Weekend. New releases ranging from the Big Momma’s sequel Big Momma’s: Like Father, Like Son, starring Martin Lawrence,to Glee’s Dianna Argon in the Twilight-esque I AM NUMBER FOUR, and the action packed thriller Unknown starring Liam Neeson.

And now for our predictions…

# 1 I Am Number Four

Opening this weekend with no real major stars is I AM NUMBER FOUR. The first release of the upcoming swarm of Twilight rip-offs should find itself opening in the number #1 as Bieber Fever and Valentines Day have all passed. Teen audiences are suckers for romantic thrillers and I AM NUMBER FOUR certainly fills the void as there is no real direct competition . Look for a solid #1 opening and fast and quick drop.

Our Prediction:$ 26-30M 4Day Opening Weekend Box Office

#2 Gnomeo and Juliet

Gnome & Juliet surprised everyone last weekend with a larger then expected opening weekend. With no competition at all, a four day weekend with kids off from school, should help Gnomeo & Juliet hold steady this weekend to come in at # 2.

Our Predictions: $23-26M 4Day Weekend Box Office

#3 Unknown

Two years ago Liam Neeson had a surprise hit with Taken — adult moviegoers were craving an adult thriller. This weekend should be no different as adult audiences have been with out a solid movie going option for weeks. Add in no direct competition, entertaining trailers and Unknown should land at the #3 spot this weekend.

Our Prediction : $20-22M 4 Day Opening Weekend Box Office

#4 Just Go With It

Adam Sandlers Just Go With It opened last weekend on the lower end of debuts for an Adam Sandler film. Competition is fierce this weekend with a slate of new releases including Martin Lawrence Big Momma’s House Sequel. Just Go With It’s only saving grace is a four day weekend with kids/students off from class. With that said, look for Just Go With It to come in at #4 this President’s Day Weekend.

Our Prediction: # $18-19M 4 Day Weekend

# 5 Big Momma’s House: Like Father, Like Son

Like The Whole 10 Yards before it, the new Big Momma’s House is a sequel that no one really asked for. 11 years ago, Martin Lawrence scored a major, unexpected hit with Big Momma’s House. However, the sequel that followed was a modest success at best as there is not much demand for a third movie in the series, and Lawrence has seen his star power drop in large proportions since the first film was released. Those looking for a cheap laugh, Martin Lawrence fans, will be the only ones showing up this weekend and will help propel the film to a # 5 debut

Our Prediction : $16M 4Day Opening Weekend Box Office

# 6 Never Say Never

Our Prediction:$12-13M 4Day Weekend Box Office

#7 The King’s Speech

Our Prediction: $7.5-8M Weekend Box Office

#8 No Strings Attached

Our Prediction: $4.5M 4Day Weekend Box Office

9 The Roommate

Our Prediction: $4M 4Day Weekend Box Office

#10. True Grit

Our Prediction: $3M 4Day Weekend Box Office

The Weekend Box Office – Our Take

scottschachter — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 16:21:47 +0000

This weekend, Natalie Portman was able to capitalize on the buzz generated from her Golden Globe win as her new film No Strings Attached opened at number 1 as we predicted .The Green Hornet showed a decent hold coming in at number 2, also as we predicted, dropping less then 50% ,while the The Dilemma fell to number 3.

And now for the rest of the top 10…

With a Golden Globe win for Best Actor (Colin Firth) The King’s Speech climbed to the number 4 spot this weekend, while the Golden Globe shutout True Grit slid to number 5 witnessing a larger then normal weekend decline. With No Strings Attached debuting at number 1, Portman’s other film Black Swan dropped to number 6, coming in slightly below our predictions.

The rest of the top 10 sees a neck to neck finish with Little Fockers coming at number 7, and Golden Globe winner The Fighter at number 8, while Yogi Bear and Tron Legacy finished slightly off from our predictions in regards to final gross and placement.

All in all, it was an interesting weekend at the box office! Stay tuned for this upcoming weeks box office predictions.

No Strings Attached To Win Weekend Box Office

scottschachter — Thu, 20 Jan 2011 19:40:47 +0000

Last weekend’s box office winner The Green Hornet will find itself sliding to the number two spot because Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman’s No Strings Attached should have enough steam to plow the competition. Moviegoers will find themselves catching up with last weekend’s Golden Globe winners as well as leftover holiday fare such as Little Fockers and Tron Legacy. All in all it should be an interesting weekend at the theater.

And now on to our predictions…..

# 1 No Strings Attached

Riding the wave of her Golden Globe win and future Oscar Nomination, arrives Portman and Kutcher’s No Strings Attached, which should land itself at the top spot this weekend. Portman is untested when it comes to romantic comedies, as most of the box office weight will rely heavily on Kutcher whose forays into the genre have seen varied success with first weekend openings as high as $22.5M for Guess Who? to a low of $ 7.5M for A Lot Like Love. Add in an uneven marketing campaign with trailers that consistently changed from week to week and No Strings Attached should find itself with a modest yet successful opening.

Our Prediction: $16-17M Opening Weekend Box Office.

#2 The Green Hornet

With a solid opening weekend, good audience feedback via Cinemascore, and a lack of any real direct competition The Green Hornet should come in second place this weekend. The real big question is whether Hornet will hold up well in the upcoming weeks to become a true blockbuster OR perform like the ill-fated Daredevil. Only time will tell.

Our Prediction: 15M Weekend Box Office.

# 3. True Grit

Continued word of mouth, small week to week declines and probable Oscar nominations will help keep True Grit sitting at the number three spot this weekend. The Coen Brother’s latest has seen its box office soar to new heights and has now opened the possibility of True Grit becoming the first ever $200M grossing film for the directors.

Our Prediction- 9-9.5M Weekend Box Office.

# 4. Black Swan

With a Portman’s Golden Globe win for best actress, possible Oscar nominations, and an ever increasing box office take, look for Black Swan to land at number four this weekend as it moves closer to becoming the first $100 million grosser Darren Aronofsky’s career.

Our Prediction: $8.5-9M Weekend Box Office.

# 5. The Kings Speech

With a Golden Globe win for Best Actor with Colin Firth, likely Oscar nominations, and a successful expansion last weekend look for The King’s Speech to hold steady at number five.

Our Prediction: $8.5M Weekend Box Office Take.

# 6. The Dilemma

With a weak debut opening, moviegoers catching up on recent award season films, The Dilemma should see its gross cut in half to land at number six.

Our Prediction: $8-8.5M Weekend Box Office.

# 7. The Fighter

The Fighter is riding high on awards momentum with wins for both Melissa Leo and Christian Bale from this past weekend’s Golden Globes. Factor in likely Oscar nominations, and strong weekend-weekend holds, The Fighter should land itself at the number seven spot.

Our Prediction: $5-5M Weekend Box Office

The Rest Of The Top Ten….

# 8. Yogi Bear

Our Prediction: $4M Weekend Box Office.

# 9 Little Fockers

Our Prediction- $3.8-4M Weekend Box Office.

#10. Tron

Our Prediction:$3M Weekend Box Office

Who do you think will dominate this weekend?

The Weekend Box Office Results-Our Take

scottschachter — Tue, 18 Jan 2011 00:53:51 +0000

After it was all said and done The Green Hornet opened slightly below my prediction to open at #1 with $33.7M, while The Dilemma bombed with $17.8M, and True Grit held strong at #3 with $10.9M.

Now on to the rest of the top 10…

The enormous theater expansions for both The Black Swan & The King’s Speech helped both films respective box office takes soar pushing them past my box office predictions and moving The Fighter down two spots. A slew of holiday leftovers were able to post modest declines as Yogi Bear held strong with a small decline as it was the only real option for adults to take their children to, while Little Fockers/Tron continued to under-perform.

I believed Country Strong would have held a little better at the box office due to Gwyneth Paltrow’s appearance on SNL as well as her rumored duet with Cee-Lo(which did not occur) of his song “Forget You,” but in this case it did not.

Rounding out the rest was Nicolas Cage’s The Season Of The Witch which tumbled in its second weekend but was still able to manage to finish inside the top 10 . This was above my prediction that it would it would fall out of the top ten completely, showing that people still want to see Cage in films ,and hopefully his upcoming Drive Angry will perform somewhat better.

Well, that’s all for now folks! Stay tuned for this week’s Box Office Predictions.

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Weekend Box Office: True Grit Tops On Its Third Week

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 15:21:41 +0000

After two whole weeks at the top, Little Fockers (movie review) have surrendered the No. 1 spot to the charms of Hailee Steinfeld of True Grit (movie review) — oh yeah, and the amazing Jeff Bridges (interview), Matt Damon, Barry Pepper and Josh Brolin. The Coen brothers western grossed a successful, yet humble $15 million. Unfortunately the new Nicolas Cage movie, Season of the Witch (review roundup) failed to bring in audiences (could that have to do with the fact that it seems like they forgot to market it?) came in at No. 3, bringing in a bit over $10 million.

Check out this weekends box office numbers to see…

True Grit | Last Week #2 | Paramount | Weekend Gross $15,000,000 | Average Per Theater $4,802 | Total Gross $110,430,000 | Film’s Budget – $38 | Week 3
Little Fockers | Last Week #1 | Universal | Weekend Gross $13,781,000 | Average Per Theater $3,750 | Total Gross $123,982,000 | Film’s Budget – $100 | Week 3
Season of the Witch | NEW | Relativity Media | Weekend Gross $10,726,000 | Average Per Theater $3,809 | Total Gross $10,726,000 | Film’s Budget – $40 | Week 1
Tron Legacy | Last Week #3 | Disney | Weekend Gross $9,803,000 | Average Per Theater $3,254 | Total Gross $147,925,000 | Film’s Budget – $170 | Week 4
Black Swan | Last Week #9 | Fox | Weekend Gross $8,350,000 | Average Per Theater $5,271| Total Gross $61,455,000 | Film’s Budget – $13 | Week 6
Country Strong | Last Week #43 | Screen Gems | Weekend Gross $7,300,000 | Average Per Theater $5,126 | Total Gross $7,437,000 | Film’s Budget – $15 | Week 3
The Fighter | Last Week #6 | Paramount | Weekend Gross $7,000,000| Average Per Theater $2,769 | Total Gross $57,844,000 | Film’s Budget – $25 | Week 5
The King’s Speech | Last Week #10 | Weinstein | Weekend Gross $6,811,000 | Average Per Theater $8,985 | Total Gross $33,293,000 | Film’s Budget – $15 | Week 7
Yogi Bear | Last Week #4 | WB | Weekend Gross $6,810,000 | Average Per Theater $2,071 | Total Gross $75,606,000 | Film’s Budget – $80 | Week
Tangled | Last Week #7 | Disney | Weekend Gross $5,200,000 | Average Per Theater $2,182 | Total Gross $175,898,000 | Film’s Budget – $260 | Week 7

Country Song (movie review) joins the top ten after being No. 43 last week. The much-talked about The King’s Speech (movie review) keeps climbing up the latter as does Black Swan (movie review). Looks like Award Season is finally here!

What movie did you watch this weekend?

Weekend Box Office: Little Fockers Top Charts, Tron Legacy Goes Down

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 27 Dec 2010 16:19:31 +0000

Many thought Little Fockers (movie review) would be a huge mistake, and that it may have been for the critics but not the piggy bank. The third movie in the Meet the Parents franchise brought in over $34 million this Christmas weekend. The Ben Stiller and Robert De Niro movie was followed by the new Coen’s western True Grit (movie review). Unfortunately Tron Legacy wasn’t intriguing enough to keep up it’s number one spot even before it made back half its money, people must be a bit disappointed.

Check out this weekends box office numbers to see…

Little Fockers | NEW | Uni. | Weekend Gross $34,016,000 | Average Per Theater $9,620 | Total Gross $48,302,000 | Film’s Budget – $100 | Week 1
True Grit | NEW | Par. | Weekend Gross $25,600,000 | Average Per Theater $8,402 | Total Gross $36,818,000 | Film’s Budget – $38 | Week 1
Tron Legacy | Last Week #1 | BV | Weekend Gross $20,107,000 | Average Per Theater $5,826 | Total Gross $88,296,000 | Film’s Budget – $170 | Week 2
The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader | Last Week #3 | Fox | Weekend Gross $10,800,000 | Average Per Theater $3,224 | Total Gross $63,929,000 | Film’s Budget – $155 | Week 3
Yogi Bear | Last Week #2 | WB | Weekend Gross $8,800,000 | Average Per Theater $2,504 | Total Gross $36,785,000 | Film’s Budget – $80 | Week 2
The Fighter | Last Week #4 | Par | Weekend Gross $8,500,000 | Average Per Theater $3,385 | Total Gross $27,574,000 | Film’s Budget – $25 | Week 3
Gulliver’s Travels | NEW | Fox | Weekend Gross $7,200,000 | Average Per Theater $2,828 | Total Gross $7,200,000 | Film’s Budget – N/A | Week 1
Black Swan | Last Week #7 | FoxS | Weekend Gross $6,600,000 | Average Per Theater $4,502 | Total Gross $29,031,000 | Film’s Budget – $13 | Week 4
Tangled | Last Week #5 | BV | Weekend Gross $6,519,000 | Average Per Theater $2,525 | Total Gross $143,779,000 | Film’s Budget – $260 | Week 5
The Tourist | Last Week #6 | Sony | Weekend Gross $5,700,000 | Average Per Theater $2,068 | Total Gross $41,178,000 | Film’s Budget – $100 | Week 3

Also new this week were Jack Black‘s Gulliver’s Travels (review roundup) which brought in a modest $7.2 million. And the mega-duo movie The Tourist toppled to No. 10 after only 3 weeks.

What did you see this weekend?

Interview: Jeff Bridges Talks True Grit

Mali Elfman — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 23:43:30 +0000

Jeff Bridges has two movies in theaters this month, Tron Legacy and True Grit. They’re very different in every sense of the word. One is a rusty and tough Western and the other is a sleek and polished fantasy flick. The one thing they have in common is Bridges and the talent and feeling that only he can bring. While out promoting his latest film with the Coen Brothers ( he also worked with them on The Big Lebowski) he spoke about making the jump from Crazy Heart to Tron to True Grit, and the preparation he went through to make the transition. He also revealed how nervous he was to take on a role previously played by John Wayne and what the Coen’s had to do to convince him to star in the film.

What’s fun about starring in a dirty Western verses something like Tron which is clean?

Jeff Bridges: Well, that’s the fun of my job that I get to play all different kinds of guys. We did a  reshoot for Tron about a week after we completed True Grit. I had the same makeup guy,  Thomas Nellen, who was on both. So going from Rooster with all the dust and the grime and  the dirty teeth, a few days later back in the chair, him putting 100 little black dots on my face, motion capture darts. It’s bizarre but that’s the gig. That’s the fun of it.

Did you have any hesitation about taking on a role that was made famous by The Duke?

JB: Well, I was curious why these guys wanted to make that movie again. I think it  was Ethan who I talked to first and he corrected me. He said, ‘No, we’re not making that  movie. We’re making the book, as if there was no other movie ever made kind of. We’re  just referring to the book.’ And I wasn’t familiar with the book and he said, ‘Well, check  that out, tell me what you think.’ I read the book and then I saw what they were talking about because it’s such a wonderful book. It suited them so well I thought and God, what  a great character. Most Westerns have that strong, silent type and here’s this boorish rah, ra h, rah type, so that could be a lot of fun I thought.

When we talked to you while you were promoting Crazy Heart, you were far away from Rooster Cogburn. At what point did  you nail the character?

JB: Gosh, each scene is an opportunity to show a different facet of the person you’re  portraying. I begin developing a character pretty much the same way every time. You’re  looking at the script or if you’re lucky enough to have a book you’re looking at that  material and seeing what other characters say about your character, what you say about  yourself, what the author says about you. That tells you quite a bit and then one of the  first things you do when you’re hired on to make a film is you work with a costume  designer. In this case, it was Mary Zophres who was also the costume designer on The  Big Lebowski. That’s one of the cool things about making movies, there’s a collaborative  art form so you have all these other artists who are concerned about just specific areas  that might be the room your character lives in, what it looks like, and what the  clothes look like.

So how do the clothes and the costume designer help?

JB: The first people you meet is the costumer because they have to make  all those clothes. So Mary has these wonderful books that she brings out and so you look at here’s a hat like this, like this, and your character starts to fall in place. You dress as  you’re looking in the mirror there comes a time when the character starts to tell you  what it wants and you might prefer ‘oh, this scarf’ looks nice and the character [spits], it  won’t stick. You say ‘oh, okay.’

Probably the same thing happens when you’re making a  movie too. Sometimes you want to do something, it’s not what the movie wants. There’s  a wonderful time when that happens. I’m not sure there’s one particular time it happens.  It’s kind of a slow process coming into focus. As far as the models, I used to love it when  my dad [Lloyd Bridges] would play in a Western. When he appeared at my door all dressed up in his cowboy  clothes, it was a thrill to me so I guess there’s some of my dad in there.

Speaking of clothing and accessories of the character, we have to talk about the infamous patch. Did it switch around from eye to eye?

JB: No, we put it on the right eye, it felt good. Put it on the left eye, not so good. Put  it on the right eye, this feels right. ‘What do you think ,guys?’ We went back and forth like  that. Sometimes I would forget to put it down for the scene. So I would be very pleased  with a take and I’d say, ‘What do you think, guys?’ They’d just go [point to the eye patch.]

What qualities from Rooster Cogburn  should men aspire to? What does it really mean to have “true grit?”

JB: Well, true grit I believe, this is my definition of it, is seeing one thing through to the  end. That’s a good thing. I aspire to that.

True Grit opens in theaters everywhere on December 22nd. Go See It!

Interview: Taking on True Grit For 2010

Mali Elfman — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 20:00:09 +0000

It’s been close to 42 years since we last saw the escapades of Rooster Cogburn and Mattie Ross on the big screen in True Grit. The original 1969 film was directed by Henry Hathaway and featured John Wayne in his only Oscar winning role. So when the acclaimed directing team of Joel and Ethan Coen decided to adapt the Charles Portis novel of the same name, they had their work cut out for them. When we attended the press conference for this month’s True Grit, we discovered that the directors didn’t look at their film as a remake but a retelling of the book. Find out what the Coens, actos Jeff Bridges and Barry Pepper, and cinematographer Roger Deakins had to say about their journey from the page to the screen…

This is Based on the Book, Not the Film:

You’ve done many genre films: screwball comedy, film noir, detective, what is it about  the Western genre that you want to convey or refute?

Ethan Coen: I don’t think we thought about it as a genre movie so much as you might think. It was  an interest in the novel and the story. It is a Western unarguably. There  are guys with six guns on horses but it’s not a Zane Gray story. It’s not a Western in that  sense. Really we were thinking about the novel more than doing a Western per se.

Why did you mimic the iconic scene with the reigns in Cogburn’s mouth on the horse? Did  you consider doing it differently?

Jeff Bridges: I remember that day well. Right at the beginning of the day, Joel coming over  to me and saying, ‘What do you think about really trying this deal?’ I said, ‘Oh, all right,  that’s kind of interesting.’ A little anxious, a little fear, I’m going to ride myself, do it  in my teeth so we did it that way. It wasn’t as tough as I thought actually. It was kind of  cool. We had a horse that kept the rhythm well. That’s basically it from my point of view.

Did you ever consider doing it differently or leaving it out?

Joel Coen: Leaving the scene out? No, no, we never considered leaving the scene out, no. It’s the big action climax of the movie in a certain respect. It’s very difficult to do. You have to be a  really, really good rider to do that and even if you are a good rider, you have to have the  right terrain, the right horse, and all the rest of it. It was not a simple thing which is why I  don’t think they did that in the original. You didn’t actually see it that way in the original  movie so there were things that Jeff had to do that were really difficult to accomplish.

EC: I don’t think any of us thought about it with reference to the first movie or thought  about much of anything in this with reference to the first movie as Jeff was saying. So no,  we didn’t think about changing it to distinguish ourselves from that. I don’t know about  the other actors. Did you think about that at all?

Barry Pepper: Well, it’s such an intrinsic part of the novel. I think in order to have a faithful  adaptation, you couldn’t righteously avoid it. It’s beat for beat in the novel that way.  Rooster’s character describes how he did it in a previous shootout and he emulates it  again in the final shootout.

JC: I honestly don’t remember in the  original what it was or how it’s even described in the books.

BP: I just thought it would be such an interesting visual to be galloping without your  reigns and having to fire a rifle would be quite a challenge and would show  the horsemanship of men of that period. You guys didn’t change it that way.

Cheating the Book and The Original Film:

Can you talk about the importance of Western landscapes?

EC: You know what? That’s one thing that’s not faithful to the novel. The landscape is a  total cheat but we kind of thought people will think it’s a Western and they’re going to —  some things you just can’t mess with. People want that.

JC: The whole pictorial idea of the movie would have been much different in a place like  Arkansas.

Roger Deakins: It’s also really a film about characters. I’m not sure that it’s a landscape Western in  the traditional sense of the word.

JC: That’s true. It’s about the characters. It kind of becomes this mish mash of different considerations that go into where you’re  shooting and how you want to treat the landscape. They’re a little hard to sort out after  the fact but everywhere from the practical to just, what does the movie actually want to be  about?

Making it Their Own:

Is it less a Western and more a dark comedy? And how was it for the actors to perform the  stylized dialogue?

JC: Less a Western than a dark comedy. There’s certainly a lot of comedy, there’s  a lot of humor in the Charles Portis novel. It was one of the things that attracted us to the novel and the idea of adapting it. We wanted what was funny about the  book, what was the humor of the book to come through in the movie. That was important.

EC: The dialogue too. the formality of it and the floweriness of it also is just from the  book. Again, that might be a question for the actors. Jeff noticed. That was the first thing  Jeff mentioned, noticed, and liked. The kind of foreign sounding nature of the dialogue and  lack of contractions. It wasn’t a problem for us. We just lifted it from the book. I don’t  know how the actors feel about it.

Morality Tale [Spoilers]:

Was falling into a pit of snakes a consequence for killing a man?

JC: No, that’s certainly not the reading we were giving to  it. We were talking just a little bit about the western genre,  and how conscious that was. As we mentioned in other context a couple of times, one of  the things that struck us about the novel just generically was that what we took away  from it more than a Western was the sense of it almost being this youthful adventure  story, kind of fitting into the genre of what you might call young adult adventure fiction  or something like that. Frequently in those kind of stories, it was something that was  really interesting to us just in terms of how the story worked. In connection  with that. You often have this kind of Perils of Pauline acceleration of action at a certain  point where one thing just leads to another, leads to another, leads to another. That’s the  way the ending of the novel felt to us. There’s a big shootout in a field, she almost gets  strangled, then she shoots a guy and then she falls into a pit of snakes, then she rides. That’s I think closer to the way we were looking at it.

So it’s not a morality tale?

JC: That’s certainly an element of the story and the novel but I wouldn’t associate it with  her killing a guy and then falling into a pit with snakes. I don’t think that’s where it comes  in.

Homage:

Were there things about the original film you admired and wanted to pay homage to?

EC: Not for us, not the negative either. We’d seen the movie, I think as Joel said, when  it came out but we were kids then. We hadn’t seen it since and only really vaguely  remember it.

True Grit opens in theaters November 22nd. Go See it!

True Grit: Movie Review

Mali Elfman — Wed, 22 Dec 2010 17:21:02 +0000

It’s time for some horseback riding, gun shootin’, mumbling bad-asses in the Coen Brothers most un-Coen Brothers-like film True Grit starring Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, and Barry Pepper. One thing is for sure, if you can understand what they’re saying in this film, you’ll be a fan — but that won’t be easy for ya now, ya hear? Check out our review…

The Players:

Directors/Writers: Joel Coen and Ethan Coen
Novel By: Charles Portis
Actors: Jeff Bridges, Hailee Steinfeld, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper
Score By: Carter Burwell
Cinematography by: Roger Deakins

The Plot:

Based on the Charles Portis novel of the same name, True Grit follows a tough U.S. Marshal as he helps a stubborn young girl track down her father’s murderer.

The Good:

The Writing: Even though this is not one of my favorite scripts from the Coens, it’s still miles beyond the majority of screenplays today. Not only are they good at writing amazing one liners, but they’re also able to apply them to the screen extremely well. It’s a good thing they direct their own screenplays because it takes a very interesting mind to understand the complexities and depths of their writing.
Moments of Quiet: The Coen’s biggest strength lies is in what they let go unsaid. This film is extremely sparse, and aside from a few drunken rants and a sassy young girl, the only time the characters really talk is when they have something to say. Though this sounds like an obvious thing, a lot of films have so much unneeded dialogue, it’s nice to see one where every line has its place.
The Writing AGAIN: What is also amazing about their writing is how they create a new language for every film they make. Whether it’s Fargo, No Country for Old Men, Burn After Reading or True Grit, all their characters have a very distinct way of speaking which transports you into a different world and forces you to pay attention so you can be a part of it.
The Acting: Another reason why the dialogue sounds so good is because of the performances in this film. Though Jeff and Hailee are the stars of the show and rightly so, Matt Damon, Josh Brolin, Barry Pepper and the rest of the cast all put in amazing performances. There literally are no small parts in a Coen Brothers movie and much like their text, every actor has a right to be there.
The Mumbling: You won’t be able to understand every line in this film, so don’t bother leaning over to your significant other and ruining the movie with “what did he just say?” The mumbling is part of it and you’ll come around to it and their way of speaking in time.
The Richness/The Silence: This is not a cliched Hollywood film in ANY way. They’re going to make you wait for the pay off and then change it up on you. They’re going to leave you in silence and they’re going to force you to watch a film that though it is entertaining was not created for entertainment’s sake. It’s a bold move, but well executed.
The Humor: You have many directors trying to make comedies, but despite what genre the Coen’s play in, their films always have a sense of humor that is undeniably funny and more realistic than any comedy routine. This film is no exception, and despite it’s serious tone it will most definitely have you laughing — and sometimes you won’t even know why. They don’t even need a punch line, their timing is so good that it does the work for them.

The Bad:

Horse Violence: I get that it goes with the story, it’s accurate to the character, but damn is it hard to watch.
The Snakes: Though I loved the scene and how it began, without giving anything away, the truth of the matter is that it was a rather inaccurate way for snakes to behave.

Overall:

Not necessarily the brother’s finest work, but for me they always deliver something far superior than almost everything else in theaters. Don’t miss this bad boy.

Rating: 8.5/10

True Grit hits theaters December 22nd.

Photo Gallery:

Trailer:

Will you be seeing True Grit over the holiday weekend?

True Grit, Black Swan, The Fighter, Kids Are All Right Scores Ineligible For Oscar

Krystal Clark — Tue, 21 Dec 2010 16:54:07 +0000

Bad news for those of you who loved the music in The Fighter, Black Swan, The Kids Are All Right, and True Grit. All four films have been disqualified for next year’s Academy Awards. According to Variety, the scores are victims of a little technicality that deems them slightly unoriginal, and when it comes to the Oscars a little can mean a lot.

The trade reports that True Grit and Black Swan have been disqualified because they have “scores diluted by the use of tracked themes or other pre-existing music.” The scores for The Kids Are All Right and The Fighter are “diminished in impact by the predominant use of songs.” Damn those clever tunes!

A good portion of Black Swan features a score, that’s largely adapted from Tchaikovsky’s “Swan Lake,” while True Grit’s is “mostly based on 19th century hymns, are not sufficiently “original.”

We can understand the ruling for Black Swan and True Grit. Those two do have overt elements that we’ve heard before but The Kids Are All Right was a shocker. In the end, we guess popular music can really overshadow the score.

What do you think of the Academy’s decision to disqualify these films? Is their ruling justified?

7 Best Blu-Ray and DVD’s of 2010 for Christmas Presents!

Joseph Oliveto — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 19:30:16 +0000

The holiday season is upon us, and apparently Santa Claus doesn’t know the meaning of the word “recession.” There are no lay-offs at the North Pole (unless you’ve just watched “Family Guy’s” Road to the North Pole episode)! With that in mind, we’re sure you’ve got some films fans on your shopping list, so we’ll lend a hand with our list of the best DVD and Blu-Ray discs that were released this year.

Whether they’re jam-packed with some of our favorite films of the year and some simple must-have films to satisfy the film fan on your list…

7. Toy Story 3

Admit it, you teared up a little bit when you saw this one. If you can handle weeping like a child in front of family and friends again, it’s a good idea to pick this one up. Your best bet is to grab the Blu-Ray-/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack. The price is steeper, but it’s perfect if Santa/Best Buy delivers that HDTV you were hoping for.

Noteworthy Features: Day and Night theatrical short with commentary, a look at the toys featured in the film, “The Science of Adventure” NASA featurette, and many more!

Get it on Amazon.com for $22.99!

6. Avatar Three-Disc Edition

We all knew the bare-bones edition of this movie that was released a few months back would soon be replaced by a more expensive, feature-filled collector’s version (and we all knew we’d curse ourselves for buying the first one). Luckily, this is the kind of movie that can justify that type of treatment. For any fan of movies in general, it’s great to see how one of the most impressive cinematic achievements in recent history was brought to the screen. We suggest purchasing the Blu-Ray version if you have the equipment for it; no other format captures the glory of Pandora as well.

Noteworthy Features: Three versions of the film (Theatrical, Special Edition Re-Release, and Collector’s Extended Cut), deleted scenes, Capturing Avatar documentary, screen tests, deconstructing a scene feature and many more!

Get it on Amazon.com for $23.99!

5. Alien Anthology Blu-Ray

For a fan of the Alien franchise, this set is a must have. Collecting all the films together for the first time on Blu-Ray and boasting plenty of special features, this one will provide hours of entertainment. Or, you know, at least the first two films will. Can’t promise you’ll enjoy parts three and four…

Noteworthy Features: Extensive making-of documentaries for each film, productions material, scripts, commentary…everything you could want!

Buy it on Amazon.com for $69.99!

4. True Grit

To coincide with the release of the upcoming Coen Brothers remake, we get a Blu-Ray edition of this classic Western. Although we suspect that Joel and Ethan will deliver a remarkable movie, this purchase is great for the disgruntled film enthusiast who is sure nothing can compare to the original. By “disgruntled film enthusiast,” we mean your grandpa.

Noteworth Features: None, save for the film (unless you consider subtitles noteworthy), but for most fans of this type of movie, that will be just fine.

Get it on Amazon.com for $17.99!

3. The Town Extended Cut

It wasn’t in theaters too long ago but it looks like Ben Affleck’s sophomore directorial effort is being rushed to DVD and Blu-Ray for the holiday season. While it may not exactly be this generation’s GoodFellas, it does feature some of the best heist scenes since Heat. It’s just what you need to forget about Gigli. Pick up this combo pack that features DVD, Blu-Ray and Digital Copy versions of the film.

Noteworthy Features: Commentary by actor/director Ben Affleck on extended and theatrical cuts of the film, “Ben’s Boston” featurette, “Pulling Off the Perfect Heist” featurette, and more.

Get in on Amazon.com for $22.99!

2. Inception Blu-Ray

Inception wasn’t just one of the best films of the year, it was one of the most impressive science-fiction films of all time. Featuring heart-stopping action and genuine emotion, this is what going to the movies is all about (a good-looking cast didn’t hurt, either.) Your home theater probably can’t recreate the real theater experience, but this Blu-Ray copy comes as close as possible. With special features that take you inside the world of dreams and show you how the imagination of director Christopher Nolan was translated to screen, this is a must-have for film buffs.

Noteworthy Features: Dreams: Cinema of the Subconscious documentary, extraction mode which takes you inside the movie

Get it on Amazon for $17.99!

1. The Complete Metropolis

The name of this disc is something of a misnomer, seeing as most film historians agree that there will never be a “complete” version of this film. Too much of it has been lost but this DVD release is the best one fans have seen so far. Not only is it the fullest version of the film available but it also features remarkable picture quality for a film of this age. It’s the perfect gift for the die-hard film fan on your list.

Noteworthy Features: This is pretty bare-bones, but it wasn’t like we could resurrect Fritz Lang for an audio commentary track.

Buy it on Amazon.com for $21.49!

What did we miss? Tell us in the comments!

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New DVD Releases: True Grit, Just Go With It, Sanctum

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This is Based on the Book, Not the Film:

Cheating the Book and The Original Film:

Making it Their Own:

Morality Tale [Spoilers]:

Homage:

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True Grit: Movie Review

The Players:

The Plot:

The Good:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 8.5/10

Photo Gallery:

Trailer:

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1. The Complete Metropolis

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