Obsessed With Film

Powerful chemistry

Matt Holmes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 11:04:53 +0000

As Vanilla Sky is one of my absolute favourite movies of all time (depending on what mood you'll catch me in, it either takes second or third. It inter-changes with Vertigo), I've been looking forward to the Tom Cruise/Cameron Diaz reunion pic Knight & Day (previously titled Wichita) more than the average movie-blogger, of that I have no doubt. There's something powerful about the chemistry between Cruise & Diaz. They share the spotlight the same way Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman used to. Rarely do you get chemistry so magnetic these days. Not even Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, in the midst of two of God's perfect creatures falling in love with each other, could they conjure up the same kind of atmosphere. Their opening romantic exchange in Vanilla Sky, which Cameron Crowe directed like a Howard Hawks comedy, was classic old Hollywood playful. I could have seen these two work a string of rom-com's together this decade. A beautiful still from Vanilla Sky, just moments before David Aames (Cruise) is to be tested by Julie Gianni (Diaz) on his new found life changing ideals, picked up from a "night where true love seeemed possible". If you listen to the DVD commentary track on Vanilla Sky, ...

Project mayhem

Matt Holmes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 09:22:13 +0000

I attempted to track down the Monday released 10th anniversary U.K. edition of Fight Club on Blu-Ray yesterday and as of right now, I would rate my chances of this title arriving at my door on/or before the start of next week as lying between 63-67%. I know the name of the P.R. lady dealing with the request (Nina) but as sometimes happens when it comes to the crunch time of getting hold of releases, it has gone a little quiet. The Playlist, lucky buggers, have had their copy for a whole week. It was released in the States last Tuesday. Fight Club Blu-Ray is available to buy from Amazon UK at £14.98 Director David Fincher, always a huge supporter of the DVD industry, has provided some new material for the release, one of which is a hilarious prank... Fincher was heavily involved in the 10th Anniversary BD and as you may know, is a bit of a prankster. As a fun gag for the Fight Club fans, Fincher wanted the Fight Club Blu-ray Disc to begin with "a fake menu" of a romantic comedy from the same year as Fight Club, as a trick on the audience. "Never Been Kissed" was his top choice and ...

GREMLINS nostalgia

Matt Holmes — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 08:27:03 +0000

There was a time last summer and I don't even remember how this came about but OWF's Chief Film Critic Mike Edwards decided to take it upon himself to mention the 1984 comedy/horror movie Gremlins in every interview, with every star, we were invited to spend five minutes with. It kind of... became our... thing New Gremlins poster, as part of the new addition to the Mondo Tees catalogue. You can see his art prints and cool t-shirts at a new exhibition in L.A. Funnily enough, I never did actually ask Mike why he was doing it but it always made me chuckle because he would plug it in there at the most unusual places. I just imagine him sweating at every question, nervous because he just had to get Gremlins in there somewhere. The idea that he ended up ignoring the interviewee's responses because he was too busy worrying about getting a Gremlins reference in there, amuses me greatly. So for a while, Gremlins was the official OWF movie. You knew you were being interviewed by us when Gremlins was mentioned completely out of the blue. I actually miss those days a little. The past 12 months have been particularly hard on me with trying to juggle ...

Forbes say Will Ferrell is Hollywood’s most overpaid actor

Matt Holmes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:23:45 +0000

A study in Forbes makes a great case for one-note, high salary comedy actor Will Ferrell being Hollywood's most overpaid thesp after two years of underperforming hits and flops. Their study suggests "for every dollar Ferrell was paid, his films earned an average $3.29" which compares to Shia LaBeouf's "$160 return per dollar"... though on that scale the study is slightly flawed as no-one saw Indy IV and Transformers 2 because LaBeouf was in it. Land of the Lost is a movie that is at least $35 million in the red for Universal. This summer's Land of the Lost was one of those epic Hollywood disasters that...ended up costing an estimated $100 million and earned only $65 million at the worldwide box office. Universal studio heads Marc Shmuger and David Linde were subsequently fired. Land of the Lost's dismal box office helped land star Will Ferrell at the top of our annual list of Hollywood's Most Overpaid Stars. Ferrell is no longer the sure bet he seemed after hits like Elf ($220 million worldwide box office) and Talladega Nights ($162 million box office). Ferrell's 2008 film Semi-Pro earned only $43 million. Step Brothers did better with $128 million, but it wasn't enough to help Ferrell--mainly because ...

GET SMART guys. Anne Hathaway is square peg, round hole for SPIDER-MAN 4!

Matt Holmes — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 09:17:36 +0000

Anne Hathaway is a tremendous actress. Oscar nominated last year for her brave and transparent performance in Rachel Getting Married, and the huge exposure her brief Oscar stint with Hugh Jackman helped her win two massive musical projects that are being written for her right now (Judy Garland biopic & a one with Jackman), leave her on the verge of mega A-list stardom, if she isn't already there. But I tell you folks... she's a bad fit for Spider-Man 4. She doesn't need this gig at this stage of her career and Sony are barking up the wrong tree by allegedly approaching her a part in the movie, according to Nikki Finke. Sometimes an incredible, top-notch actress can simply be wrong for a part. She's an amazing presence on screen. But hey, sometimes an actor just doesn't work in some environments. And that's the case here with the role of Black Cat and Spider-Man 4. Hathaway won't be able to do the mainstream comic book shtick. She barely got through the parody blockbuster Get Smart with her career in tact and yeah she could pull it off physically, but it's different when you have to play that role for serious. Can you imagine if Audrey Hepburn ...

Emergency editors called in for THE WOLF MAN!

Matt Holmes — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 09:23:59 +0000

The Wolf Man is a lost cause. I've been saying it for over two years now and today's news that emergency editors Mark Goldblatt and Walter Murch have been brought on board to fix the meandering mess of a movie is the final nail in the coffin for Universal's tentpole. Actually, the final nail was when the project was delayed for a third time. This latest news, which has happened after several expensive re-shoots, re-cut trailers and the letting go of a high-wage composer who had provided a whole complete score and paying for a completely new one from another guy, well it feels like it's an afterthought at the wake. The Wolf Man was buried long ago and it's incredible to me how many millions Universal have wasted on trying to fix it. Goldblatt (Terminator 2) and Murch (Apoclaypse Now) are fine, fine editors, two of the best in the business and won't have been cheap. Benicio Del Toro's dream of playing The Wolf Man, his favourite movie as a child, has been ruined by Universal's complete mis-handling of the project. They should have given up on this ghost a long time ago, and maybe it shows just how much they have riding on this ...

Carl Erik Rinsch to direct Keanu Reeves in his Samurai movie 47 RONIN!

Matt Holmes — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:53:09 +0000

If you're wondering this morning how commercials director Carl Erik Rinsch won the gig of directing Keanu Reeves in the big budget actioner 47 Ronin, one of the biggest tentpole potentials on Universal's slate right now, then allow me to explain. In Hollywood it's all about three things. Timing, Buzz & Who You Know. A combination of all three will usually win you the gig (Zack Snyder on Watchmen is a great example of this). Rinsch, you see... got some buzz across the internet a few months back when Ridley Scott handpicked him to resurrect the Alien franchise for 20th Century Fox (Rinsch is banging Scott's daugther Jordan - so that's the "who you know" part), but presumably inbetween games of Monopoly, Sir. Ridley got nostalgic and kicked Rinsch off the prequel film because he wanted to make it himself. This left Rinsch without a movie (timing) but with a career helping CV boost and a name recognition with internet fanboys that he was the man nearly entrusted with such a massive franchise movie at a major Hollywood studio (buzz). So I guess it's not difficult to imagine Universal execs sitting around thinking, "hey if they thought he was good enough, then why don't ...

Ne-Yo’s New Video Shows Off Footage Of Disney’s THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG

Simon Gallagher — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 23:14:55 +0000

I wouldn't usually offer the release of a new music video from a pop sensation as newsworthy, but Ne-Yo's latest "heart-felt ballad" Never Knew I Needed is also the theme to Disney's forthcoming The Princess and The Frog, which for me is a welcome return for the toon giants to a more classical narrative paradigm. The reason it's even more newsworthy in this case is that the new video in question also features footage from the film, and it looks a lot better than the last 2D offering- 2004's Home on the Range, which was unfortunately forgettable at best, and for some, including myself, looked like the beginnings of an ominous black cloud for the future of Disney's 2D projects. So, without further ado, here's the video... I'm a major fan of Disney's works (that's not to mention the new stable of work put out as a result of the Disney/Pixar marriage), and have always preferred those films which take their origins from recognisable folklore (a particular favourite has always been The Sword in the Stone), as they tend to lend themselves to a richer narrative. So I heartily welcome the decision to base the newest offering (albeit loosely) upon E.D. Baker's novel The Frog Princess and ...

If Jack Kirby had drawn INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS as a Marvel comic in the 70s…

Matt Holmes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:44:44 +0000

Then it might have looked something like this... (thanks CHUD for the link)....

ALICE IN WONDERLAND posters!

Matt Holmes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 09:28:30 +0000

My guess is that Disney have modeled the new Johnny Depp poster for Tim Burtons' Alice in Wonderland on the theme park itself, the castle in the background and the colour scheme, very reminiscent of what it's like looking at the Cinderella castle from a distance. Two further posters released this week for the movie, which I found at /film... Put them all together and it will look something like this... Fabulous imagery, great concept for a poster and is anyone of the impression that this money ain't gonna make a ton of cash next May? It's gonna be one of next year's biggest hits. This won't have that Christmas Carol syndrome. This one will be huge!

McG’s 20,000 LEAGUES UNDER THE SEA sinks!!!

Matt Holmes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:57:43 +0000

The exit of Disney chairman Dick Cook two months ago had left McG's ambitious re-telling of the Jules Verne classic tale 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea in dangerous, stormy waters and it's now hit an iceberg, and it's sinking according to Variety. McG was set to steer the ship in February but Cook, who had previously championed Bill Marsilli's (Deja Vu) origin script based around Nemo constructed his warship, the Nautilus, lost it's trust at Disney once he departed. New chairman Rich Ross didn't like the idea of an McG re-telling and he abandoned ship before it got any further. McG chased Will Smith to play Nemo at the turn of the year and when he said no, he turned to The Rock who was likely to star in the picture when filming was to begin in February. If Ross is smart, he will know that there's big money to be made in a 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea tentpole someday, if they find the right writer/director partnership. McG was never the right man for this but a Jon Turtletaub, a Gore Verbinski or even a Stephen Sommers comes on board, and you have a ready made tentpole that could easily become a ...

The Warriors Three cast for THOR!

Matt Holmes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 08:15:42 +0000

Three more have joined the impressive, and ever-growing cast of Marvel's Thor, which begins shooting in January under the helmsmanship of Kenneth Branagh, and it may well be the case this announcement wasn't supposed to happen today as Variety's news link has mysteriously gone AWOL since I began writing this post! Ray Stevenson (Punisher: War Zone, Rome) is cast as Volstagg the Valiant, a grossly large character that Stan Lee based on Shakespeare's Falstaff. A little bit annoying because he is the current Thomas Jane and I absolutely hate conflicting universe casting, but oh well. I guess the Punisher franchise is done anyways. Tadanobu Asano (Ichi the Killer, Mongol) is cast as Hogun the Grim, a character based on the great Charles Bronson. For Asano it's his English language film debut, though world cinema fans will know an awful lot about him already for the classic roles already on his CV. I love this casting. He's gonna be a fresh face to must and those who do know all about him will see another side of him in this environment. Massive Kudos to Branagh on this one. Stuart Townsend (Queen of the Damned, League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) will play "Fandral the Dashing”, based on ...

Matt does what Neil Armstrong didn’t… he makes a return trip to MOON!

Matt Holmes — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 00:39:00 +0000

Moon, which I saw during it's limited U.K. run in the Summer and for the second time this morning with the newly released Blu-Ray transfer, is the best isolation movie I've seen in a long, long while, and possibly the best movie of 2009 to deal with the human condition. At least that I've seen so far. It's rival in that regard is Up but Moon is more consistent with the theme, more gut-wrenching at it's big pay-off moments. It's a certain future classic. The movie that all those who reacted favourably to Sunshine two years ago thought Danny Boyle's movie would end up being until it's third act crippled the greatness of the first two. No such foul up's here. A Criterion collection style cover design from Sony Pictures Classic. Great job! I didn't review Moon when I saw it during my July screening. I think I mentioned a few times in passing how much I enjoyed it, but Moon is a tough sci-fi drama to review because you can't really talk an awful lot about the main body of it for fear of spoilers. I've noticed that a lot of my blogging peers decided to take exactly the same position as I ...

Mike has met with THE INFORMANT!, and here’s the intel…

Michael Edwards — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:44:13 +0000

Steven Soderbergh, ever the unpredictable filmmaker, has this time drafted in Matt Damon for a bizarre comedic take on corporate whistleblower Mark Whitacre's take-down of agri-industry conglomerate Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) over its international price-fixing of lysine (an essential amino acid synthesised from grain). From The Informant's opening credits, Soderbergh sets out to play off the espionage thriller element against its comically ill-suited participants in the lysine business. Opening shots of surveillance equipment form montage shots reminiscent of Coppola classic The Converstion, as we are instantly primed for crime capering. The Informant bucks the trend by being a good movie with an exclamation mark in it's title! Then, suddenly, in pops Matt Damon's voice rambling about all sorts of inconsequential, corn-related musings before we're thrown into the ultra-90s world of big round hair cuts, bright ties and facial hair. This comic incongruity provides the groundwork on which most of the amiable elements of this film are based. But the premise is pushed much deeper, and when the FBI are called to ADM, ostensibly to investigate blackmail threats from a Japanese competitor, Whitacre reveals the company's price fixing activities and officially turns whilstleblower. From here on in, we are treated to a first class examination of ...

Sgt. Howie won’t ever be forgotten

Matt Holmes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:08:35 +0000

Has there ever been a more virtuous protagonist in the history of film that has suffered such an atheistic-valued, appallingly gut-wrenching and disturbingly sick exit as Sgt. Tom Howie, played by Edward Woodward in the 1973 low-budget British horror classic The Wicker Man? Woodward's performance was so intense, so memorable and so effective... everytime I saw him outside of this film, I had to double take. I forgot he was only an actor, and wasn't really dead. I would guess not. I certainly can't think of any, not any leading or scratch that, any major character in any film that has succumbed so horribly. Woodward played the part with so much honesty and righteousness, playing a deep man of religious faith who is tested at every corner, by ever person, with the forbidden fruits of life. SPOILER TAG: THE FOLLOWING VIDEO IS THE END OF THE ORIGINAL WICKER MAN... Woodward's performance in The Wicker Man is without question, one of the best ever given by a leading man in this genre. Edward Woodward has died, aged 79 according to the BBC. Thanks for the memories.

CRAZY HEART poster & Oscar buzz

Matt Holmes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 12:36:35 +0000

A poster is out for Crazy Heart, the redemptive country/western music drama that many critics have laid eyes on over the last few weeks and the momentum is building that it could be Oscar worthy material for Jeff Bridges. Originally planned for a spring 2010 release from Fox Searchlight, the movie has been thrust into a Dec. 16th limited U.S. run and Crazy Heart is well and truly in the Oscar race after Amelia crashed and burned and isn't the awards banker the studio had hoped. Panic set in as Little Miss Sunshine (06), Juno (07) and Slumdog Millionaire (08) had set an awards expectation at Searchlight. They scrambled to see what they had on their slate for next year that was ready to go and found this little talked about and likely to be quietly released Jeff Bridges movie, took a chance with it and gave a few critics a screening and BAM, the movie is in contention and out next month. Quite incredible, really. And it's the kind of unlikely awards story that only helps it's cause. Gyllenhaal (right), is also getting a fair bit of buzz for a Supporting Actress Nod. She turned 32 today, and it would be her first. Crazy Heart, ...

Race row over COUPLES RETREAT U.K. poster

Matt Holmes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:59:39 +0000

Much ado about nothing. From The Daily Mail... The makers of a hit Hollywood film are at the centre of a race controversy after removing two black actors from a poster being used to promote it in Britain. The American advert for Couples Retreat, a comedy starring Vince Vaughn and Kristin Davis, show all eight principal actors – six of whom are white and two black. Hollywood Elsewhere, who directed me to this piece, have posted an image of the two posters side by side, with a big arrow showing Faizon Love and Kali Hawk, the two black actors in the picture. Oh and before that... hands up anyone in the U.K. who know who Faizon Love and/or Kali Hawk are without having to check IMDB (or I bet in some cases, even after checking IMDB)? I thought not. U.K. poster on the left with Love & Hawk no where to be seen. U.S. poster on the right, with them deep in the background. Yes that is them, honest! You just might need the old magnifying glass to see them but there they are, on the right hand side... way, way, way in the background. The deep in the ocean image of the pair from the U.S. poster is almost ...

Criterion February 2010

Matt Holmes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:21:50 +0000

I'm a little late on writing up details of the latest set of Criterion Blu-Ray/DVD upcoming titles, mainly because Brian Carmody, the guy who deals with the CC press release, didn't wish to send out a newsletter to me this month. Maybe he thought we had shut down when we went quiet for a month or so. Anyway, for now I've had to go off what The Playlist tell me. The big release that really caught my eye for February was Steve McQueen's debut film, the 2008 British Cannes selection Hunger, starring Inglourious Basterds actor Michael Fassbender which gets a Blu-Ray and DVD release. Set in the Thatcherite Britain of 1981, the movie tells the final 66 days of Provisional IRA member Bobby Sands' life, when he starved himself to death in a media frenzied hunger strike, protesting against the prison conditions he was being kept under at HM Prison Maze. He died aged 27. Hunger was released on DVD earlier this year in the U.K, a film I actually own but haven't gotten around to watching yet. The Region 2 release was pretty bog standard stuff, with only a making of featurette, a couple of interviews and the theatrical trailer. One hopes Criterion ...

2012 destroys

Matt Holmes — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 02:08:38 +0000

$65 million for Emmerich's latest end of the world blockbuster as 2012 takes the biggest opening U.S. weekend since July's Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. 2012 is actually the second highest opening for a totally original 2009 film after Up (so not including sequels, adaptations, etc). It was a gigantic hit worldwide too with a 3-day hauling of $225 million from a $200 million budget. Reviews have generally been so-so but word of mouth is overwhelmingly terrific and the buzz around my town is that seeing the movie was this weekend's hottest ticket. 2012 would have made just as much money with virtually any actor in the leading role. Sorry John, but it's true. They didn't pay to see you in this. One friend of mine, who is a regular reader of this site, saw it mid-Saturday afternoon with a full to the rafters crowd at his local. He was eager to point out he didn't pay to see it mind you but was taken along on a free pass or something, but anyway the consensus I got was that he enjoyed it for it was. Namely, a special effects thrill ride that doesn't care about anything other than visually stimulating your eyeballs. I'm paraphrasing ...

Why I’m not seeing 2012, and INDEPENDENCE DAY sequel moves closer

Matt Holmes — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 11:13:45 +0000

Opening worldwide today is Roland Emmerich's latest disaster porn movie 2012 and the word is, it's his most loony, over-the-top, self-indulgent and hollow piece of film-making yet but which Jeff Wells claims is " certifiably insane and must be seen because of this fearless wackazoid quality". Every single critic that has seen it claim it to be the most ridiculous movie they've ever seen, with the kind of special effects for the sake of special effects that will blow your mind. Roger Ebert, with the kind of review that Columbia Pictures will be gushing over this weekend, calls 2012 "the mother of all disaster movies (and the father, and the extended family)" and that Emmerich "unleashes two hours of cataclysmic special events hammering the Earth relentlessly... ends the world, stomps on it, grinds it up and spits it out". 2012 looks to be on course to be the biggest crowd pleaser of 2010 and may just well be on course for a $50 million plus opening. One day soon, we will see a disaster film from Emmerich which doesn't even bother to include human characters at all. For anyone with a penchant for actual characters in their movie soup, I have a feeling this is going to ...