Big Screen Entries for September, 2011

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Short Takes: Courageous

Having taken on Being a Good Husband (and the importance of Jesus in such an endeavor) with Fireproof, the good ...

What Are You Doing Here?

I mean, besides gracing the Reader with the gift of your visit? Thank you for that. Still, there's something to ...

The Crazy Credits, Crawls, and Cautionary Warnings Quiz

All these quizzes and I can't even get past the credits! Here is a collection of crazy characters culled from ...

"Hitchcocktober" Returns to Reading's Gaslamp and Town Square Cinemas

We're coming up on Halloween, so that means it's once again time for Reading Cinemas to turn a couple of ...

Puss In Boots Makes a Personal Appearance in San Diego

While visiting Disneyland earlier this year, the nice folks at Critter Country told me I could get my picture taken ...

Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher Headed for Splitsville?

Is Hollywood's favorite May/December romance on its last calendar page? After a six-year marriage made in tabloid heaven, rumors abound ...

So what are you doing tonight?

If you answered, "Heading downtown to the San Diego Film Festival to see Ralph Fiennes' directorial debut as he takes ...

Reviews!

Working with Mr. Marks must be rubbing off on me — I was more taken with the gutbucket charm of ...

A Message from the Semper Fi Fund: Dolphin Tale Drawing Deadline is Tonight

In honor of the release of Dolphin Tale (three stars from David Elliott!), the Semper Fi Fund is sponsoring a ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for New Year's Eve

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k1Y2uXjsKjs So many stars! How exciting for them all to be together like this! [Full disclosure: some of these images ...

Steaks & Classic Cinema in Greystone's Historic Rivoli Theatre Building

The classic movie component will probably amount to little more than the cinematic equivalent of background music, but who cares ...

The Existential Crisis in Footloose

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwBbMXYDsXw Many years ago, my older brother Mark and I were hanging out at home, bored and restive, when one ...

Free Advance Screening of Footloose Friday at Edwards Mira Mesa

If it's true that Hollywood should only remake bad movies, there aren't too many musicals that reach the level of ...

The Met’s Live in HD Scales San Diego Movie Screens

Superstar soprano Anna Netrebko in Manon. These days, going to the opera is as easy as going to the movies. ...

The Origins of Catwoman's Costume: REVEALED!

Still no word as to whether Joseph Gordon-Levitt will get to play Robin in the new Batman movie, but hey, ...

The Movie Studio Logo Quiz: The Final Confrontation

My hunt for "logoriginality" has taken me through over half my video collection. This is it. The well has run ...

Picture Story: Anne Hathaway Has a Bad Day on the Set of Dark Knight Rises

File under: the dangers of filming in public.

Short Takes: Abduction

A young man finds his baby photo plastered across a missing persons website. A solid foundation for a thriller wasted ...

Morgan Freeman: Obama Made Racism Worse in America

Oscar-winning actor Morgan Freeman has accused President Obama of helping to further drive a shiv between the races. When asked ...

Free Outdoor Screening of Toy Story 3 Tonight

The good news is, there's a free screening of Toy Story 3 at Liberty Station tonight. The bad new is, ...

Latino Film Festival Looking for Entries

Have you completed a prize-worthy movie that would make a snug fit in a Latino film festival? If so, one ...

Review: Killer Elite

Sunglass-off! Dear Killer Elite director Gary McKendry, You just don't get it, do you? I'm sure you'll forgive the cliche, ...

Cinematographer's Notebook: Framing

The upcoming release of the Jonah Hill comedy The Sitter has inspired the folks over at Pajiba to note The ...

Review: Restless

First sign of trouble: the poster for Restless -- which features an adorable shot of our lovers flat on their ...

Reviews!

Did somebody slip Reader critic David Elliott a dopamine cocktail? The man is in a good mood: four stars for ...

Punk Rock Dads Docu: Blink, Red Hot Chili, Pennywise, more

What happens when a generation's ultimate anti-authoritarians, punk rockers, become society’s ultimate authorities: dads? The Other F Word tackles this ...

Best Sex Scene Dialogue Ever?

Okay, so the news that Nicholas Sparks has gone and sold The Watchers, yet another retelling of the, um, classic ...

Disney Announces Avatar: The Ride!

Years ago, a pair of side-by-side billboards sat overlooking Lankershim Blvd. where it dead-ends at Cahuenga. The one on the ...

BREAKING! Director Todd Phillips Announces Plan to Scrub Mike Tyson from Hangover 2 After Racist Tirade

[File under: No, not really.] In what some are calling "the boldest post-release edit since George Lucas inserted Vader's "No!" ...

Dig A Hole: Dolores Hope

The song of Hope has ended. While there is a strong connection, I'd be hard-pressed to explain my fascination -- ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for J. Edgar

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XULIO67YIRA So the trailer for Clint Eastwood's J. Edgar is out. Eastwood is an amazing director in his own right, ...

When Marty Met Heather...

Much has been made about the red-carpet meeting at the Emmys between noted television director Martin Scorsese and Glee actress ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for The Artist

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8K9AZcSQJE Okay, pause the snark for minute, and just bask in the loveliness of that trailer. They had faces then, ...

The Movie Studio Logo Quiz: The Adventure Continues

Since last week's logo quiz met with such little opposition, why not throw another set of even more brain-ratting studio ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for The Big Year

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMiCLWK20Ww You might not know it to look at us, but we here at The Big Screen are under strict ...

Short Takes: Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame

Something is making the wrong people burst into flame prior to the Empress’ inauguration, and Detective Dee is summoned to ...

Short Takes: Straw Dogs

Writer, director Rod Lurie basically traces Sam Peckinpah’s misogynistic tale of revenge as macho-baptismal. The location shifts from England to ...

Give Albert Brooks a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Drive!

The funniest man in America — and, hands down, the sharpest, most visually adept comic auteur this side of Joe ...

Gérard Depardieu Talks "Pee" With Anderson Cooper

Last month, People Magazine broke the story that former French heartthrob Gérard Depardieu urinated while aboard a plane waiting to ...

James Earl Jones Calls for Straw Dogs Boycott in Light of Its Portrayal of His Home State

[File under: No, Not Really] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vzjQrHaouo First came director Ron Howard's refusal to edit out a scene from The Dilemma ...

Reviews!

Drive star Ryan Gosling. I'm still processing Drive's extraordinarily bold use of whatever this font is (can we just call ...

Time for a New Vision Plan?

Okay, this guy has no idea what happened, but as for me, all I know is that if you go ...

More Fun with Studio Logos!

Mr. Marks may have stumped the chumps with his Movie Logo Quiz (seriously, go give it a try), but his ...

Scottish Rite Event Center to Screen Spiritual Documentary Wake Up

We drive past it on the I-8 every day, but who knew the Scottish Rite Event Hall had a 500-seat ...

The Movie Studio Logo Quiz

These studio logos are all one-shots associated with a single movie. It's up to you to match the logo with ...

Maybe Let Mel Make Maccabee's Movie

A long time ago, I wrote a profile on New Yorker writer/crime novelist/screenwriter/Del Mar resident William Murray. It included this ...

'Batmanning' is Latest College Craze

With no phone booths left to cram themselves into and PETA cracking down on goldfish swallowing, what's left for contemporary ...

Dig a Hole: Cliff Robertson

Cliff Robertson is my hero. In 1977, an IRS statement for unreported funds brought the actor's attention to a $10,000 ...

Avengers Having Fun, Part Three: Hawkeye Makes It Easy

Easy for UD Replicas to manufacture their Avengers-themed motorcycle outfit, that is. Related.

Avengers Having Fun, Part Two: Further Tinkering with Norse Mythology?

We don't remember Mamba, Goddess of Serpents, but hey, it's been a while. We do love her hair. Related.

Avengers Having Fun, Part One: Marvel FTW

Chris Evans, aka Captain America, decides to photobomb a DC cosplay shoot at Comic-Con. Related.

Get the Look: I Don't Know How She Does It

Word has just come in that the accompanying app for the Sarah Jessica Parker Career Mom flick I Don't Know ...

Review: Bucky Larson: Born to Be a Star

From Adam Sandler (he co-wrote) and the dicks at Happy Madison Productions comes a comedy for compulsive masturbators who suffer ...

Interview: Warrior director Gavin O'Connor

The Mixed Martial Arts drama Warrior opens today, and a lot of the critics seem to agree with our own ...

Who You Calling Self-Congratulatory, LA?

Aw, lookit us, all growed up. Fishbowl LA's treatment of ArcLight's arrival in San Diego is, shall we say, not ...

Lars Von Trier: You Can't Keep a Good Nazi Down!

At least Mel Gibson had booze as part of his defense. Let's recap. At this year's Cannes Film Festival, Reichsführer ...

Arclight Cinemas Coming to UTC in 2012

Arclight Cinemas has announced plans to open a 14-screen multiplex, their first outside of L.A., at the Westfield UTC Shopping ...

So, What Are You Doing Tonight?

Well, if you haven't ever seen Casablanca, I guess you're going to that. Right? You remember Casablanca, don't you? It's ...

Reviews!

This week, John Rubio takes on Warrior, and finds some heart under all that muscle. But he doesn't have much ...

OscarWatch 2012: Eddie and Mel begin hashing things out.

When we get right down to it, we have to admit that Eddie Murphy will probably not be teamed with ...

Give Eddie A Chance!

A reader from Studio City, California writes: "Scott, if you ever interview (Eddie Murphy), please ask him how Brett Ratner's ...

Oh please oh please oh please...

Well, it's official: Eddie Murphy is hosting the Oscars. You remember Eddie Murphy. He's the star of Daddy Day Care, ...

A Closer Look at the Trailer for Bucky Larson: Born to be a Star: Boogie Nights Gets the Happy Madison Makeover

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phlX5CE72d8 The high concept: Boogie Nights was a surprisingly heartfelt drama set in the world of '70s porn, starring a ...

The Jerry Lewis Telethon That Never Was

The catch-phrase for this year’s Not So Extra Special Special was “Make a Muscle for MDA!” This after the organization ...

They’re Rebooting the Crow?! 4 Remakes Good as (or Better) Than the Originals

So they’re remaking the Crow. =sigh= What, terrible sequels with the likes of David “Bones” Borneanaz, Iggy “Grampa” Pop, and ...

DVD Kill or Cure!

I have no one to blame but myself. It was hot, my throat was scratchy, and takeout for dinner made ...

Eddie Murphy to Host Academy Awards?

Well, that's the rumor. Personally, I'm a little surprised that Hollywood is ready to bestow such an honor on a ...

Today in Movie Poster Trends: the Split-Face

Honorable mention to A Dangerous Method, which seems to be attempting the rare triple: And while we're on the subject, ...

Meet the New Hollywood, Same as the Old Hollywood

Shark Night 3D wasn't any kind of a good movie, but it was chock full of new (or newish) talent, ...

Short Takes: Shark Night 3D

Here's what the capsule will say: Hilarious: this is a film in which the bad guys plan to capitalize on ...

Short Takes: Bellflower

A pair of novice car and end-of-the-world enthusiasts bone up for Armageddon by spending their days and nights in search ...

Video Tyme: Butterfly: A Love Story

File under: sympathy for the cameraman. Filming butterflies is hard, dude. Even slowed down, the action can be a little ...

Reviews!

This week, David Elliott takes up The Debt, a movie that involves Nazis and gynecological exams while thankfully avoiding Ilsa, ...

So you want to make a movie?

This image is here because Mr. Harris served as an executive producer on Piranha 3D. Also because it's a fine ...

Short Takes: Anita

Films have previously depicted the plight of an individual in the wake of a terrorist bombing, but never a character ...