Big Screen Entries for June, 2011

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Played Out: A Final Thought on Super 8 Director J.J. Abrams

Presented by some of his characters. Dear J.J. - sooner or later, you're going to have to figure out what's ...

Played Out: MST3K Takes On The Tree of Life [UPDATED]

[UPDATE: Now slightly funnier!] Well, it seems like a good idea at the time...but let us leave this joke on ...

What's the Matter(horn) with Disney's lack of Originality?

When it comes to being green, no studio recycles their own garbage with more aplomb than the Walt Disney Company. ...

Speaking of stealing...

A while back, I wrote a story with Reader film critic David Elliott about Dennis Hopper. Elliott selected nine films ...

In Space, No One Can Hear You Steal

So here's the brand-new trailer for Apollo 18: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-82qd_rCzOs Check out right around 1:05. "It's inside my suit." Hmmmm... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-J8mOOtS7XI ...

Reviews!

Reader critic David Elliott stays strong and resists the bright shiny thing that is Transformers: Dark of the Moon, opting ...

To Zoom Or Not to Zoom?

The zoom lens is the most useless gadget in a lazy cinematographer's toolbox. Why hand crank a lens when you ...

War Horse

Filmdrunk had the quickness of mind to run this gag comparing Spielberg's upcoming War Horse with Stiller's Simple Jack, and ...

Why Porn Movies Deserve To Die Out

Modern day porn movies are notorious for their ridiculous and idiotic titles. Looking at a porn star's list of film ...

Sunday Dinner And a Movie From Big!Lots

On alternate Sunday evenings for the past 10-years, it’s been my pleasure to dine with friends, both of whom I ...

Oh, dear, Megan, Part 3

Wrapping up our coverage of Megan Fox's photobombing of her replacement Rosie Huntington-Whitely at the Transformers: Dark of the Moon ...

Oh, dear, Megan, Part 2

Continuing our coverage of Megan Fox's photobombing of Rosie Huntington-Whitely at the Transformers: Dark of the Moon screening at the ...

Oh, dear, Megan, Part 1

So as I'm sure everybody in the free world knows, Rosie Huntington-Whitely replaced Megan Fox as Shia LaBeouf's arm candy ...

10 Ways for Michele Bachmann to Tell the Difference Between John Wayne and John Wayne Gacy

While out stumping in Waterloo, Iowa, Republican presidential wannabe Michele Bachmann compared her character to that of legendary right-wing movie ...

Anatomy of a Press Photo: Transformers: Dark of the Moon VIP Screening at the IMAX Waterloo in London

Look, I know Rosie Huntington-Whitely is a former(?) Victoria's Secret lingerie model, but seriously... And you'll have to pardon me ...

Anatomy of an Ad Campaign: James Whale's Frankenstein

Long before I knew the difference between Will Hays and Gabby Hayes, there were certain moments where the heavy hand ...

Oh, NOW I get it...

Ever since I first saw the trailer, I've been trying and trying to figure out how anyone thought it was ...

Toy-Pitchman Michael Bay Writes Letter to Theatre Projectionists

Following hot on the heels of The Tree of Life director Terrence Malick’s letter to projectionists, popcorn salesman/babysitter Michael Bay ...

Will Brian Wilson Film Depict 1978 Balboa Park Vagrancy Bust?

An upcoming big-screen dramatization of the life of Beach Boys mastermind Brian Wilson is in the works from producer Bill ...

DVD Documentary Features Local Cult Star Gary Wilson

"You don't remember who I am, do you?" Gary Wilson asked me via e-mail. I'd been interviewing the indie-rock pioneer ...

Jerry Lewis Rushed to Hospital Moments Before Australian Concert

Funnyman Jerry Lewis had to be rushed to a hospital on Friday just moments before he was scheduled to perform ...

Dig A Hole: Peter Falk

Just last night I thought of Peter Falk. A stop at Big!Lots was in order following the re-opening night gala ...

Review: Bad Teacher

Cameron Diaz has always been a game actress, the pretty girl who still played along with the boys when things ...

So, What Are You Doing Tonight?

If you answered anything besides, "Going to see The Big Sleep at Cinema Under the Stars," well, then I guess ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Footloose II

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtjI6OHVk00 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jRNJluKik2s&feature=related Goonies are good enough for me!

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Footloose

Hey, you guys? How come no one told me the Footloose remake was a Michael Bay film? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gtjI6OHVk00

The Dirty Dozen: Twelve Ways Not to Behave in a Movie Theatre

1.) DON’T BE LATE. It takes years to get a film from script to screen; the least you can do ...

(More) Reviews!

Whoops! Somehow, we forgot to mention David Elliott's take on Submarine, 3 Backyards, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer, ...

Picture Story: Grand Opening of the Newly Refurbished Coronado Village Theater

We'll have text on this later today, but for now, here are some (hopefully) pretty pictures to look at: The ...

Your "Extremely Tenuously Connected to the Cars 2 Premiere" Post of the Day

So, Sacha Baron Cohen is all set to tempt the critical fates with The Dictator, a film which, thanks to ...

So, What Are You Doing Tonight?

If you somehow never manage to find yourself wandering the sunshiney Prado in Balboa Park, hearing the sweet strains of ...

Reviews!

Slow week. I should have a little something on Bad Teacher up tomorrow, and in the meantime, you can check ...

Charlie Kaufman, Ante Up

New York had the right idea when it ran a comparison of the recently uncovered (by the Feds!) Celebrity Poker ...

Free Outdoor Movies All Summer at Liberty Station

Let me begin on a note of disclosure and shameless self-promotion. The following Summer Movie Mania screenings at Liberty Station ...

OK, Mr. Abrams, Super 8’s a Hit — Back to Star Trek Now?

Supposedly, J.J. Abrams’ sequel to his Star Trek reboot has been written and in “pre-production” for over a year now. ...

Aaaaaaand Part 4

Last one, I swear. All apologies to Office Space. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNJxxRi7AeE

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Zookeeper, Part 3

Birds do it... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNJxxRi7AeE

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Zookeeper, Part 2

The good times, they just roll on and on. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNJxxRi7AeE

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Zookeeper, Part 1

Trailer for Zookeeper: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNJxxRi7AeE&feature=related

Summer Means 35mm Midnight Movies at The Ken!

Pink Flamingos was my Rocky Horror Picture Show, one of the few times when audience participation made perfect sense. Instead ...

Dept. of Cinematic Muses

Like Mr. Marks, I am excited to see Martin Scorsese's Hugo Cabret, in part because of its source material, in ...

MST3K takes on The Tree of Life - Part II!

In which we meet Brad Pitt, playing the part of frustrated father figure...

Oh, come on.

Look, I'm not the one who suggested that Michael Fassbender should officially change his name to Michael F. Assbender. That ...

So what are you doing tonight?

If you've got just a little bit less than four hours to kill, you might consider taking in The Empire ...

Horse Whisperer Buck Brannaman Speaks Up

Buck Brannaman is more at home in a horse corral than in a poolside cabana at a trendy hotel in ...

MST3K takes on The Tree of Life!

Well, no, not really. But wouldn't that be awesome? Just to be clear. I liked Terrence Malick's latest a bit ...

Dig A Hole: Jackass Ryan Dunn

What is more shocking: the fact that one of the Jackass cast members has died or that it took this ...

It had to happen...

You loved Stellan Skarsgard in Thor... And you couldn't get enough of Peter Sarsgaard in Green Lantern... Now, see them ...

Anatomy of a Press Photo: Return of The Muppets

Look, he said it, not me. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ay5skbka9Yk

"No Talk, No Text" Policy Should Become Theater Standard

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1L3eeC2lJZs The Alamo Draft House prides itself on a strict, "No text, no talk" policy. The theater stands firm on ...

Review: The Last Godfather

The Last Godfather (aka The Dumb Mafia) is an American/South Korean co-production determined to acquaint Western audiences with South Korean ...

Dig A Hole: Clarence Clemons

The news that a new member has been added to Rock 'n' Roll Heaven's helluva' band just hit my desk. ...

Director Jill Godmilow Reads The Big Screen!

Despite the fact that I originally goofed and referred to her as "Joan," Jill Godmilow, film professor at Notre Dame ...

Review: Mr. Popper's Penguins

Like Night at the Museum, Mr. Popper’s Penguins is an ostensible children’s movie starring a well-known comic actor (Jim Carrey) ...

Warner Bros. Uses Military Families to Hype Green Lantern

Warner Bros. decided to send Ryan Reynolds to the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar to use active-duty service members and ...

Roundup: Look Out, Peter Sarsgaard in Green Lantern

I dunno, Pete. Something about mustaches, high foreheads, and scraggly hair... Warnings given by Pete Hornberger from 30 Rock, Tobias ...

American Artifact Documentary Celebrates Concert Poster Art

American Artifact chronicles the rise of American rock poster art since its birth in the '60s. Director Merle Becker crossed ...

Jeff Lipsky, Writer-Director of Twelve Thirty

Photo at left: Jeff Lipsky Jeff Lipsky was there at the dawn of the independent film distribution movement. John Cassavetes' ...

A Tender Moment

Okay, when I said that this was a parting shot? I lied. This is a parting shot. All stills taken ...

Parting Shot

LEST YOU THINK that the preceding review of Green Lantern was merely the rantings of a fusty critic who gets ...

Review: Green Lantern

[UPDATE: Upgraded from black spot to one star on the basis of the bad guy and the big finish.] Four! ...

Uh-oh.

So before last night's Green Lantern screening, a representative from ComicsOnline.com came out with a little bag full of Flash ...

Resistance Is Futile

Sigh. Just in case you still had hopes that the relationship between the Kiddie-Borg - er, Disney - and Pixar ...

Reviews!

This week, Reader critic David Elliott takes a ride with Buck, Korkoro, The Art of Getting By, and Bride Flight. ...

Roundup: Girls with Swords, a Cautionary Tale

Our Big Cheese Editor went to the movies and was treated to the trailer for the upcoming Three Musketeers 3D: ...

2011: A Year So Nice, Scorsese Will Gift Us Twice!

With all of his ex-wives to support, it stands to reason that director Martin Scorsese should be cranking 'em out ...

Reckless

Photo on left: Bob Greenblat Yeah, it's small-screen news, but it does touch on the larger theme of the relation ...

Your Summer of Superheroes, Part III-a

Earlier, we fretted over the fate of the Avengers in the poster for their upcoming movie. In an effort to ...

Because you're never really enshrined in the Pantheon of Artistic Immortals until you've been parodied in a children's cartoon...

...we give you Animaniacs doing Ingmar Bergman (and by extension, the late Mr. Fischer). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBn3utR_lgY&NR=1 Of course, if this were ...

Looks like we've found our Grouchy Smurf...

...and his name is Mr. Marks! Seriously, all you need to do is take a gander at the image below ...

Your Summer of Superheroes, Part III

Uh-oh. We knew that handing the reins for the upcoming superduper-crossover-megafranchise Avengers movie to ubernerd Joss Whedon was risky, but ...

On Munchkins and Smurfs at the San Diego County Fair

Raja Gosnell's credits read like a critic's death wish. The director of Home Alone 3, Scooby Doo, and Beverly Hills ...

Dig A Hole: Bergman's Cinematographer Gunnar Fischer

Ingmar Bergman set the tone, Gunnar Fischer lit the mood. The Swedish cinematographer responsible for some of the most recognizable ...

Madonna as Auteur

I'll have more to say about comedians who fancy themselves rock singers in my upcoming review of Conan O'Brien Can't ...

Perry Chen Interviews Judy Moody's Star and Creator

The call came in that Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer author Megan McDonald and lead actress Jordana Beatty ...

Sandra Schulberg, Producer of Nuremberg: Its Lesson for Today

The Nuremberg Trials were the first to be extensively documented and the first to make major use of film as ...

What's Your Favorite Twilight Zone?

It was first announced way back in 2008 that Leonardo DiCaprio's company Appian Way would be bringing us a new ...

Mel Blanc: T-h-h-hat's Not All, Folks!

When Heckle told Jeckle (or was it Jeckle doing the talking?), "We're cartoon characters! We can do whatever we want," ...

Super 8 Run-Up: Steven Spielberg Checks Out His Protégé's Latest

Captain Kirk's disturbing experience yesterday was apparently enough to get Spielberg curious about the way J.J. Abrams would handle the ...

An Open Letter to Gerry Lopez, CEO and President AMC Entertainment

Photo at left: AMC in Fashion Valley June 8, 2011 Mr. Gerardo “Gerry” I. Lopez, CEO and President AMC Entertainment, ...

Super 8 Run-Up: You Just Don't Get It, Do You?

I'm not saying that Super 8 falls prey to this unfortunate bit of Screenwriting 101. I'm just saying. http://vimeo.com/24669583 via ...

Super 8 Run-Up: Twitterer II: The Retweeting, or, free popcorn and an early release date for media-savvy social media mavens Just Like You!

Go here for more.

J.J. Abrams, miner for a heart of cinematic gold.

My review of J.J. Abrams' latest, Super 8, is still bubbling away on the stove. While we wait, how's about ...

And here is the Super 8 App!

Given Mr. Marks's astonishing recollection of the glories of Super 8, I can't think of a better time to mention ...

Here Is - Super 8

If the trailer for the new Spielberg-backed production is any indication, there are more shots of little kids staring skyward ...

Coronado's Village Theatre Set to Re-Open After Renovation

By the time I landed in San Diego in January 2000, Coronado's Village Theatre was just months away from quietly ...

Cult Movie Review: Forbidden Zone

FORBIDDEN ZONE, 1982: Forbidden Zone was an early ‘80s freakfest by the Brothers Elfman, then of the performance art musical ...

Your Summer of Superheroes, Part II

Iron Man has a question for Wolverine, Batman, Thor, and Captain America.

Will Reese Witherspoon Succumb to the Generation-Award Curse?

Look, we all loved Reese Witherspoon as a man-stealing slut in Walk the Line. (Yes, yes, Johnny Cash is the ...

Your Summer of Superheroes

X-Men: First Class has had its moment. Looking ahead to July, we have Captain America: The First Avenger. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sff8gNloRRs Um. ...

This Commercial Parody of The Exorcist Really Sucks!

The scariest movie of all time has returned, in the version you've never seen before. Somewhere between science and superstition, ...

Documentarian Mark Wexler Shows Us How to Live Forever

Documentary filmmaker Mark Wexler set out on a four-year journey through the aging process and what it may be like ...

Review: Meet Monica Velour

It’s generally not a good sign when a film about an underage virgin who falls in love with an over-the-hill ...

Twilight: Breaking Dawn: First image of Edward in a Tuxedo!

Goin' to the chapel and we're/gonna get married... Related.

Review: X-Men: First Class

Reader, please bear with me for a bit of F. Scott Fitzgerald. “Now the standard cure for one who is ...

The Projectionist Has Final Cut — Ask Terrence Malick

A hand-written sign hung in every projection booth that has been my privilege to man: THE PROJECTIONIST HAS FINAL CUT! ...

Casting Liz

Mr. Marks thinks that "the raging romance between [Elizabeth] Taylor and [Richard] Burton is best left for some stargazing television ...

Final note on Midnight in Paris [SPOILER!]

You probably don't remember way back a few days ago when I said that Midnight in Paris was Woody Allen's ...

Scorsese to Direct Big-Screen Biopic of Liz and Dick?

It didn‘t take long for Elizabeth Taylor‘s body to cool. Hollywood Deadline reports that Paramount Pictures has optioned the rights ...

Reviews!

Apparently, I managed to pull out of my Hangover-inspired bender long enough to actually write a review. While I was ...

Nosy

Besides both being released in July, Captain America and the final Harry Potter movie both feature villains who are, well...

X-Men — Xavier busts out the memory wipe

Yeah, I cropped the text a little there. My first time and all. But it does illustrate the importance of ...

X-Men = Stars Lite

Vulture has already mentioned the practice of avoiding A-list stars when casting summer blockbusters. Long story short: they're expensive, and ...

Steve Martin Duped by German Art Forgers

Banjo playing funnyman and art accumulator Steve Martin must be getting pretty small right about now. According to The Hollywood ...

Former Local Co-Creating Newest Star Trek Adventures

“I don't know how long the story will last,” emailed Patrick McCray awhile back, “but the show on which I'm ...

Projectionists Take Cues From Marks

True films lovers have no use for watches; who needs Cartier when you can count cue marks? Laraine Day & ...