Friday, February 26, 2010

Which Is Hotter?

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Sam Worthington or this pitbull puppy?

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Guy With Wood

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Some casting news on Todd Haynes' miniseries adaptation of Mildred Pierce with Kate Winslet (previous post) coming via here:


"Guy Pearce & Evan Rachel Wood will join Kate Winslet in the HBO miniseries "Mildred Pierce," filming in NY from April 12 thru June 1."

Been a long ass time since I've seen MP (and I've never read the book; should I?), but I assume Evan's playing the daughter and Guy's playing the husband? As for the former, I hope Miss Wood doesn't carry over that terrible dame-in-a-Tex-Avery-cartoon routine she worked in True Blood. I usually like her pretty well in things but man she was awful there.
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"Say, Lou."

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"Didya hear the one about the guy who couldn't
afford personalized plates, so he went and
changed his name to J3L2404?"
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Happy Birthday, Dante Ferretti

.Famed production designer Dante Ferretti turns 67 today. His work's most recently been on display in Scorsese's Shutter Island (definitely an aspect of the film that I couldn't find fault with); he's been working with Scorsese since The Age of Innocence in 1993. He's done so much that's so lovely. Let's take a look with a small scattered sampling of imagery...

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And Speaking Of...

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... the things I've been speaking of this week, including just a minute ago, here is some interesting news. In my "Five Frames From ?" series this week I did posts on both 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later. Little did I know that this would be a thing! Via Slash:

"Danny Boyle is about to embark on the filming of 127 Hours, the story of mountain climber Aron Ralston, who was forced to amputate his own arm with a penknife after being pinned under a boulder. There have been a lot of questions about how the film would play, as most of the story involves Ralston (played by James Franco) trapped and alone. There’s no chance for Franco to interact with other characters, or even to move, during much of the story. How does this become a movie that can hold the interest of an audience?

One idea Boyle has is to use two cinematographers. And they’re both from a film series that Boyle started.

Empire talked to Danny Boyle, who said:

We’ve got this idea that because there are so few characters in it, we’ll use two cinematographers: Anthony Dod Mantle, who did 28 Days Later, and Enrique Chediak, who did 28 Weeks Later. One is from Northern Europe and the other is South American. They’ll bring different things to it. Like in a conventional film you’d have a comic character and a villain."
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He obviously got this idea from me, and I expect at the very least a producing credit on this film. If that doesn't work, James Franco will probably need a fluffer of some sort, at least for personal use, and I am available for that as well. I'm waiting, Danny!
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Five Frames From ?

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What movie is this?
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Things I Didn't Know Still Existed:


A shirtless picture of Thomas Jane
that I'd never seen before.

Rarer than freckled unicorns!
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A Thom Yorke Trio

Thom Yorke played a solo show in Cambridge last evening and debuted several new songs. Over at atease they've got even more videos of the performances, but here are three videos for three brand new songs. Because we care. First up, something called "Give Up The Ghost":

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Next we have "The Daily Mail":

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And finally, "Mouse Dog Bird":

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And Then There Was Anna

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I know that Anna Faris has had a few projects bouncing around for a bit - none of them that Linda Lovelace biopic though, grumble grumble - but I'm too lazy to look up what she's been attaching herself to and I can't recall squat right now. Anyway, here's something new! Via here:

"Jennifer Garner and Anna Faris are teaming for the romantic comedy "The Bachelorette Party" reports Pajiba.

Based on the novel by Karen McCullah Lutz and described as a "female version of 'The Hangover'", the story follows a high-school teacher who must throw her uptight and soon to-be-wed cousin a huge bachelorette party.

There's a few catches though - the bride's fiance is the teacher's best male friend, the teacher herself was once left at the alter, and the bride gets caught in a drunken indiscretion by the teacher who must work out to whom she is most loyal.

Lutz, who penned such films as "Legally Blonde," "10 Things I Hate About You," "The Ugly Truth" and "She's the Man", will adapt the script. No director is presently attached."

Lutz also wrote The House Bunny for Faris, so I'm guessing these two like working together. And I like the pairing of Faris with Garner. I miss Jen, for one, she's always a delight. It'll be nice to see her do something broad - she made 13 Going On 30 completely rewatchable.
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A Real Good Morning Sorta Story

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Oh sure I nearly died stumbling through the snow-clogged streets to get to work this morning, but to happen upon news of a new Alfonso Cuarón movie once I got here, well it almost makes that alright. Via Vulture:

"Universal craved a sequel to Angelina Jolie’s assassination tango/loom tutorial Wanted. Unfortunately for the studio, Jolie is leaving them…wanting. We’ve just heard the actress has pulled out of the planned Timur Bekmambetov-directed sequel at Universal, and the studio has pulled the plug rather than recast the film. As for Jolie, we hear she is now intent on starring in Warner Bros.’ Gravity, a space thriller to be directed by Children of Men’s Alfonso Cuarón from a script he wrote with his 28-year-old son, Jonás.

Like Wanted 2, Gravity had previously been set up at Universal, with Jolie set to star. But a few weeks ago, the studio put Gravity into turnaround, possibly because it’s such an artistically challenging project: Jolie would be alone on-screen for much of the movie, playing the sole surviving human member of a space mission, desperately trying to return home to Earth and her daughter. (In that way it’s reminiscent of the brilliant, little-seen Moon with Sam Rockwell. Seriously, why won't you see it?) Now Warners has snapped it up, and it will be produced by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows producer David Heyman and Legendary Pictures."

Ha ha fuck you, Universal, you dummies. And good on ya, Angie, for putting your heft behind the actually interesting project here (Thomas Kretschmann died in the first Wanted film so I am done with that series. Although so did Angelina and that apparently wasn't stopping her from returning. Hrm.) (Oh, also, spoiler!)

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Thursday, February 25, 2010

I Miss Heath

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He was gone two years as of this past January 22nd. I just stumbled upon that picture above and the sadness hit me anew. I mean, I didn't know the man, I have no claim on the loss. But he did move me deeply with Ennis Del Mar. I can't watch Brokeback very often - I haven't watched it in well over a year - but it's a performance that's etched inside of my head, and is never gonna let go. I hope you're RIP'ing up a fucking storm, Mr. Ledger.
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Kevin Zegers Two Times

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(via) I might not have liked Frozen, but I thought Kevin Zegers was actually fairly good in it. He didn't reinvent screen-acting or anything, but he took the little he had to work with and made a likable enough dude out of it. It would've helped if he might've maybe snagged his snowsuit on the ski-lift and had it all torn off at some point, but you can't have everything. Until I start making movies, that is! Just you wait! If you think David DeCoteau is ridiculous, you have no idea.

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Five Frames From ?

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What movie is this?
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Hands Up, Alexis Denisof!

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It's your birthday!

The man who brought Wesley Wyndam-Pryce to delightful neurotic life turns 44 today. I hope he and Aly are together and being as adorable today as I suspect them to always be.
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"You know what happens to nosy fellows?"

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Once You Pop You Can't Stop (Eating Brains)

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Roger Ebert's review of The Crazies is mostly positive but is laced with a seemingly complete exhaustion towards the undead genre itself. I found this bit especially amusing:

"Is there an agreed definition of what is a zombie and how they get that way? Not that I know of. I think zombies are defined by behavior and can be "explained" by many handy shortcuts: the supernatural, radiation, a virus, space visitors, secret weapons, a Harvard education and so on. I suppose it would be a "spoiler" if I revealed why the Crazies are on the lurch, but come on, does it matter? What if I revealed they got that way because of, oh, say, eating Pringles? Would that spoil things for you? What difference does it make? All that matters is that they got to be zombies somehow. Before that, they were your friends and neighbors. Then they started in on the damn Pringles."
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Wait Just A Cotton Pickin' Minute!

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Did I really just read what I think I just read? Via the LA Times' blog:

"When it comes to "Paranormal Activity," nothing should surprise us anymore. This was a movie that was shot for $10,000 and became a $100-million-plus box-office powerhouse. And it did all that with no stars and no brand pedigree -- just a brilliant "America demanded it" marketing campaign.

So the fact that a number of emerging genre directors are being considered to direct the second picture in the haunted-house franchise (tentatively titled "Paranormal Activity 2" but probably soon to be renamed) makes perfect sense.

More eerie, though, is that the studio is now seriously considering a trio of more experienced directors. And one of them is a person who'll really get your weird-o-meter spinning: Brian De Palma.

Yes, that Brian De Palma."

The LA Times did fuck up their "Wes Craven's directing Scream 4!" scoop last week, so who knows what sort of truth there is to this. But... the mind reels. And the mind fucking spins off the track after that, because the other two directors they're considering are fucking awesome!

"As for the [other two] young genre directors, they include a more Peli-ish group of freshmen and sophomores: Brad Anderson (director of a Woody Harrelson-Emily Mortimer thriller a few years back called "Transsiberian") and Greg McLean (a writer and director on an Australian horror movie called "Wolf Creek" -- another low-budget title that made a nice multiple, $16 million in U.S. box office)."

Greg McLean! Brad Anderson!


Brad Anderson!!! Greg McLean!!

JESUS CHRIST! No Jesus Christ isn't in the line-up, but he might as well be. Nobody ever gives Wolf Creek the attention it deserves - that it's one of the greatest horror films of the previous decade - so I'm annoyed but not surprised they were dismissive there, and similarly they don't mention Anderson's fantastic Session 9 or The Machinist for that matter beside his name. But I do, and I go nuts with enthusiasm here. My expectations for this movie just went from zero point zero-zero to infinity, yo.
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Let's Do The Thom Warp Again

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When I first moved to New York City, I got to see Radiohead perform at the Roseland Ballroom. Roseland is a smallish venue, I was ten feet from the stage, and it was the greatest concert I've ever experienced, and probably ever will experience. And now Thom Yorke is bringing his not-Radiohead band to play there. My fingertips are numb. Via Radiohead's website:

"hey everyone

ok so in April the other band.. that i got together to do the eraser and other stuff u know .. Mauro, Flea, Me, Joey and Nigel is going back out to do some shows in the US.. ending with playing with Coachella. we had too much fun to just leave it there...

it has been decided that we call ourselves Atoms For Peace. hope you like the name.. it seemed bleedin' obvious.

these are the shows & Flying Lotus is opening for us -
New York Roseland Ballroom 5th & 6th
Boston Citi Wang Theatre 8th
Chicago Aragon Ballroom 10th & 11th
Oakland Fox Theatre 14th & 15th
Santa Barbara Bowl 17th

for further details follow this link

all warmth
Thom"

I don't know how I scored tickets to the show back in 2000, but that has got to must happen again for this show. HAS TO. HAS TO.
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Today's Fanboy Delusion

Today I'd rather be...


... working blue with Matthew Davis.

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Good grief, I see he's on Vampire Diaries too?
Who the hell's the casting director over there,
a Lost-esque Sideways version of me, or what?
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Hugh Dancy Five Times

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