I just stumbled across the trailer for the new Coen Brothers film - Burn After Reading - and I am mighty excited. It's a comedy spy movie starring Brad Pitt and George Clooney amongst others, and it even has an Elbow song on the trailer. What more could you want? Oh. You want more? OK, how about Frances Dormand and John Malkovitch then. Good enough for you now? Well OK then!

Labels: movies

A new documentary, Man on Wire, has just been released that describes how tightrope walker Phillipe Petit carried out his audacious high wire act between the twin towers of the World Trade Center back in 1974. You can see another interview with Petit and director James Marsh over at the BBC, where there are also a few clips of the movie. It looks stunning, and for me certainly very emotional to see down from the views that we used to have looking out of the 96th floor.

Labels: movies, new york

To help pre-celebrate tomorrow's Canada day, we went along to see Wall-E, the latest masterpiece from Pixar. I don't know how Pixar always make me think their movies will be a bit crap from the trailers, but they do. Thankfully the movie is wonderful. The story follows a garbage collecting robot as he scurries around a trash covered planet Earth sometime in the future. An inquisitive chap, Wall-E collects trinkets, repairs himself with parts from his fallen colleagues and has a pet cockroach. Yes, that's right. Pixar are so damn good these days they can make you emotionally connect not only with robots, but cockroaches. In fact for the first half of the film you hardly see a human at all and there is very little spoken - the epic scenes of abandoned cities full of garbage, with a futuristic sound track just fill you with wonder and sadness at the same time.

Wall-E is an ecological love story between two robots - one the red-headed step child of Number Five from Short Circuit, the other the evolved pinnacle of iPod style design. The film tells us the ultimate end point of our consumerist obsessions, but never preaches and offers a hopeful ending as the credits roll. It's a heart achingly beautiful movie, yet fun to watch. What more could you want?

Labels: movies

Following on from Heath Ledger's unfortunate, accidental death the filming of Terry Gilliam's latest epic was put on hold. With one of his lead actors dead, Gilliam and the rest of The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus team were faced with an awkward and probably uncomfortable decision - stop the film entirely, or find some other way to do it without Ledger, perhaps using computer animation or a new actor.

Well, according to the BBC they've decided to push on with a typically Gilliamesque solution. Ledger's character will be played by not one, but three of the most outstanding actors in film today - Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law! Depp comes as no surprise, as he and Gilliam work together regularly, but the other two are somewhat from left field. As a Gilliam fan I'll be waiting to see how he pulls this together, and as a fan of Heath Ledger's work it's great to know that his final legacy will make it to the screen with such a 'supporting' cast paying tribute to him along the way.

Labels: Colin Farrell, Genius, Hollywood, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, movies, Terry Gilliam

Molière is a French period movie set in the 17th Century and starring the wonderful Romain Duris, puppy eyed lead from The Spanish Apartment (L'Auberge Espagnol). The story follows the life of the French actor and playwright Molière through a period of his life that historians don't know much about, imagining what happened based on his own plays. So Molière gets thrown in debtor's gaol in Paris, only to be rescued by a rich benefactor, Monsieur Jourdain, who wants to learn the fine art of acting in order to impress a woman he's fallen in love with. Taken out to the country we meet the other players in this act, Jourdain's wife and daughters, and members of the French royal court - nicely setting off the beauty of the sets with their internal ugliness.

Molière is a great movie, deep, visually stunning, yet hugely funny and moving. Romain is at times dark and brooding, then generous and funny, and all fully fleshed out by his highly talented portrayal of a complex character. Definately a must see, even if you're not a great fan of sub-titles. Read my full review of Molière here.

Labels: film reviews, france, History, movies

A movie night last night, starting with Darren Aronofsky's 'The Fountain', filmed here in Montreal three years ago, and Mighty Wind.

The Fountain got mixed reviews which stopped me seeing it in the cinema, and after Requiem for a Dream Aronofsky had a lot to live up to, and having watched it I can see why - it's not easy going, and not a cheerful, Hollywood movie that's for sure - but then when are Aronofsky's movies ever like that? Cut to the chase - the movie is stunning in places, dramatically wrenching and beautiful with some great acting. So I highly recommend it to everyone.

Onto Mighty Wind, another ensemble comedy piece from the team behind Best in Show and the folks from Spinal Tap. With those credentials you would expect some laugh out loud faux documentary moments and it doesn't disappoint there, however overall the film left me un-satisfied. Mighty Wind seems to lack any real drama and just meanders along like a folk Spinal Tap that only goes to 6, not 11. There is some standout acting in there but don't expect too much.

You can read my more detailed reviews here: Mighty Wind and The Fountain.

Labels: epinions, film reviews, movies

After many years of wishing everyone would hurry up and put Neil Gaiman's excellent Sandman books out there as a movie, I've now decided that it would probably just upset me and most other folks who have their own Sandman vision in their heads. It's funny how with books you'd expect this concern, but with Sandman being a comic you might think they'd be no issues - but having seen a few comic conversions recently I've realised how much editing they'd have to do and the story is the thing. So I'm happy not to hear of any Sandman movie news. Ever.

That said I'm always happy to hear of more Gaiman related movie news when I'm not so emotionally invested in the books. I loved Stardust, I'm much more tempted to go see Beowulf now I've found out Gaiman worked on the script and soon we can see Coraline - an adaptation of one of his wonderful children's books.

What I'd really love to see out of Sandman is a stand-alone movie, penned by Gaiman and using the characters without impacting the main storyline. That would be awesome.

Labels: books, comics, Genius, movies

As part of the extreme moviefest I'm in at the moment I just saw possibly the most cringe-making scene ever. Let me just saw that if you thought Indiana Jones was bad for insect scenes then don't watch King Kong. No way. Or at least stop watching about 2 hours 45 minutes in for about 15 minutes. Ick.

I guess my disgust stands as testament to the talented folks over at the Weta Workshop, responsible for this movie's special effects along with those from most of Peter Jackson's movies. Amazing stuff indeed - if it didn't make me cringe so hard I could hardly watch it. Thanks for that.

Labels: movies

It's been a few years since genius film-maker Wes Anderson's last film, The Life Aquatic, so it was with great pleasure that tonight we went to see his latest, The Darjeeling Limited. Unsurprisingly we weren't disappointed, Anderson's trademark visual style has been transposed effortlessly onto an Indian continent backdrop and the story, written by Anderson, Roman Coppola and Jason Schwartzman, is wonderfully uplifting and melancholic at the same time.

The movie centers around three estranged brothers on a journey across India on the Darjeeling Limited line. Each brother has his own character flaws, and the inter-play between them all is wonderfully engaging. As their journey progresses across the country other colourful characters are introduced, each with varying impact on the brothers and their life trajectories. Family relations, trust, spirituality and escapism are all investigated as the brothers continue their journey, and by the end of the film they are all changed - but for how long is the question given the embedded character flaws that have kept them going up till now.

Darjeeling Limited is a another great film from Anderson, perhaps not his best but it's hard to tell these things on first watching. The dynamic nature of Life Aquatic is missing somewhat, being replaced more by emotional tones than melodies. If you love Anderson, you'll love this - and if you've never seen his films then this is a great place to start.

Oh, and as a bonus before the main feature there's a short - Hotel Chevalier - which fills out a sub-plot of the main movie, plus gives you a chance to how short both Natalie Portman and Jason Schwartzman are. Amongst other things.

Labels: film reviews, Genius, movies

Just saw Michael Moore's latest expose on the American health system - Sicko. A great film from Mr Moore, incisive, emotional and as usual he manages to bring up 9/11 as often as a Republican Presidential candidate, hopefully to more positive ends. The subject of the film is America's singularly unique approach to healthcare - privatization to an extreme degree. Every US citizen has to pay for their healthcare in monthly payments to private organisations, although more normally this is through their employer. Should the inevitable happen and they need to go to the doctor, their HMO (Health Maintenance Organization) has to pre-approve any charges raised, from the consultation, ambulance trips, x-rays and everything. This all sounds a great win for private industry and free choice (the positive view on HMOs) until it goes wrong and the company's bottom line becomes more important than saving lives - the situation Moore says now exists.

I've had to go through US medical treatment a few times now, with varying levels of medical cover. The first time was due to an icey slip into a puddle which resulted in a sprained tendon that took an age to heal but no major operation thankfully. The slip also resulted in about $5,000 in medical bills from a few hours of emergency room checkups (that weren't even that quick). Luckily this was all covered, but it would have been an unwelcome cost should my HMO have decided not to pay out. In Moore's movie the many ways that HMO's avoid payouts and the impact on peoples' lives is gone into in detail, often heart wrenching detail as death is regularly involved. Unsurprisingly the government's link with big business is singled out as a driving factor by Moore, and his old pal George W comes in for the usual treatment.

Having revealed the warts of the US system, Moore then proceeds to wax lyrical about overseas systems based on 'socialist' practices - ie, taxes pay for everyone's health cover however poor, all are equal. Canada, Britain, France and Cuba are examined and Moore acts out his country's amazement on how well these systems work. As a Brit I know the British system isn't as wonderful as Moore makes out, but I'm glad we have that rather than the US system. Equal healthcare for all is a wonderful thing, as none of us know who will be unlucky in the good health lottery.

Sicko is a great film, more emotionally wrenching than his previous offerings and a lot more human while staying political as only Moore can. Generally the US doesn't get much sympathy these days due to its oil driven global policies, but this film reminds us that the citizens of the US are often the ones who suffer. Hopefully this movie will help drive positive change for all.

Disclaimer: Many years ago I did some work for Humana, one of the HMO's mentioned in the film. In fact when you watch the film and see the ridiculously huge and be-marbled Humana offices in Louisville, look at the small brick building to the right - that's where we were working.

Labels: america, film reviews, movies, Politics

Last night we went to see Stardust, the film adaptation of Neil Gaiman & Charles Vess' same titled graphic novel. Gaiman's last foray into movies, MirrorMask, was interesting but somehow un-engaging, but Stardust is an absolute delight all the way through. A fairy-tale love story, set in a world alongside England - reached through a hole in the wall next to the town of Wall (near Ipswich). Once the protagonist, Tristran Thorne, sets off on his quest to find a fallen star the action comes thick and fast, with twists and amazing characters on the way that keep you constantly engaged and smiling.

My personal highlights are the ghostly chorus of the dead princes, all named based on their order of birth, from Primus to Septimus, and all vying to be the next king by dint of being the last one alive. The already dead brothers includes David Walliams and Rupert Everett, and en masse they inject a wonderful note of humour into a Shakespearean tradition. The special effects are also fully integrated, never too showy just there in subserviance to the story as they should. Plus you have Robert deNiro as a flying ship captain with a hidden secret, Ricky Gervais with a brief cameo as a salesman plus a panoply of other famous actors from both sides of the pond - thankfully a lot are British given that's the general accent. Even Claire Danes' accent is reasonable, if a little too plumy in places.

You know this movie would never have gotten made were it for the success of Harry Potter, so for that we owe J K Rowling another thanks. Gaiman is an amazing author and explorer of the imagination, but his popular success is still limited even after the oustanding Sandman graphic novels and a selection of successful novels. Indeed, rumours of Sandman's movie debut have been around for many years now, but it has yet to appear. Fingers crossed that Stardust has enough box office success to put some steam behind other Gaiman adaptations. So go see it!

Labels: film reviews, Genius, movies

Another usual morning in the Old Port, Montreal. While waiting for our usual morning coffees at the splendid Olive et Gourmando, Miette noticed John Hannah checking her out from the corner. His hair was pretty long so we weren't 100% sure at first, but it turns out he's in town for the filming of The Mummy 3, along with Brandon Fraser, Jet Li & Michelle Yoeh, but unfortunately not with the ever stunning Rachel Weisz. Ah well.

And no, yet again I did not take a photo, but suspect John Hannah pics ain't quite as valuable as one of Brad. Sorry John, I prefer you to Brad but somehow I don't think posters of you adorn as many walls as his do.

Oh, and Rowan Atkinson is floating around town somewhere today prior to presenting his latest Mr Bean flick this evening. Not to mention the other assorted global comedy stars for this years Just for Laughs festival.

Labels: celeb spot, Montreal Life, movies

Well there's been no sign of Brad Pitt or the film crew of 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button' over the last few days, but that doesn't mean the fun is over. Oh no. Today's random Old Port film set is for 'Get Smart', a remake of the classic TV series starring Steve Carrell. Looks like they're shooting over night (till 5am tomorrow morning) so hopefully they're not shooting any gun fights or car chases! Still, can't be any more noisy than the usual drunken shouting/throwing things at shop windows we get on the weekend.

Labels: Montreal, movies

Yep, Brad Pitt is now officially in Montreal, as I just watched him film a scene in an Old Port alley way for his latest movie - Benjamin Button. No pics this time I'm afraid, as it was a very dark alley way and there was an over-anxious security guard who made grumpy faces and used pointy finger tactics every time someone reached for a camera. Plus he had a scary beard.

Labels: celeb spot, Montreal, movies

Benjamin Button Shoot: Clearing the Roof
Originally uploaded by ultrahi.

Brad Pitt's latest movie "Benjamin Button" is being shot in Montreal just down the road from us in Montreal. I was watching them shoot the scene when about 50 minutes ago there was an almighty crash. Part of the roof from a building alongside the shoot had just fallen down! Luckily it appears that no-one was hurt. The police and fire brigade were along quickly and cordoned off the road. Thankfully the roof was just off the road where they were shooting.

"Benjamin Button" is directed by David Fincher, he of Fight Club fame, and stars Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett, as well as Tilda Swanton. I've no idea if any of them were on the set for this shoot as I've not seen any of them.

See more photos here.

Labels: Breaking News, celeb spot, movies

Well I'm now up in Montreal and it turns out that Brad Pitt & Cate Blanchett are filming in the Old Port this week. In fact, not only are they filming in our neighbourhood, they're actually filming about half a block away from us opposite our regular dep (that's short for 'depanneur' which is long for 'deli' which is short for 'newsagent'). So from 5am tomorrow, till 11pm at night, we can expect fun & games in a movie stylee. I'll try and get some pics from our balcony if anything exciting happens, but we don't have a great angle onto where they are as they're on a side street.

Labels: celeb spot, Montreal, movies

Last night we finally got to see Hot Fuzz, the latest comedy masterpiece from the geniuses behind Shaun of the Dead, and it was hilariously good. Where Shaun focussed on zombie movies (with a dash of romantic comedy), Hot Fuzz focuses on cop buddy movies to great effect - lampooning classic English thrillers such as The Wicker Man and modern high octane offerings such as Bad Boys II. This blend of small town hidden cult, buddy movie and loud explosions is executed with the usual brilliance from Simon Pegg in the lead, Nick Frost as his buddy and Edgar Wright behind the cameras.

I won't go into the plot, but my highlights include the roles from many great British actors; including Edward Woodward (the good guy in the original Wicker Man) as one of the bad guys, Timothy Dalton as the apparently too evil supermarket owner and Jim Broadbent as the friendly Superintendent. The humour is subtle but laugh out loud funny, and the interaction between Pegg and Frost is outstanding. Plus you will jump with fright at some points. An amazing blend.

One thing... If you don't like gory deaths, don't go see this film! No CGI effect was spared to make the deaths as bloody and shocking as possible, with the highlight being the death by falling church masonry - hilariously disgusting.

Go see it now!

Labels: Brit Stuff, movies

There's a new movie coming out in a few weeks based on Philip K Dick's 'The Golden Man', one of his longer short stories. Of course the big question is: is this another Blade Runner, or is it more of a Paycheck?

We'll have to wait and see whether Next is any good. It has the potential to be interesting, with Nicholas Cage playing a Las Vegas magician who can see the future and hence change it, but it's definately more 'based on' the original story than faithful to it. In the original, the Golden Man was the next stage of human evolution - unable to communicate, but with the ability to see the future and a huge threat to mankind due to his extreme fertility and attractiveness to human females. Oh, and he was gold. Dick wrote a story that discussed the possibility of mankind being replaced by a species better suited to the world, but less intelligent - an animal in human form. The movie takes just one of this mix of ideas and puts together a pre-summer epic involving terrorism plots and lots of running away. So it won't be considered a 'Dick' film by anyone other than the marketing folks who get more attention through using his name, but if you want mindless action I'm sure it'll be just perfect.

Labels: film reviews, movies, philip k dick

Just finished re-watching Groundhog Day. Wow. I remembered it as being good, but didn't realise quite how amazing it actually is. For a romantic comedy, not the most subtle of vehicles at the best of times, it addresses some pretty deep issues in a complex framework, while managing to be laugh out loud funny all the way.

For those of you who haven't seen the movie, it centers around a self-centered, cantankerous weatherman played by the ever amazing Bill Murray who goes to cover the groundhog day festival. All goes well for him, and badly for everyone else, until the next morning when, for some never explained reason, Murray wakes up on Groundhog day again. Everything is the same as the day before, and noone else seems to realise what he's going through. This happens the next day, and the next, and so on..

The framework is based around an old Greek fable of an eternal idiot who never learns, and can't die, but Harold Ramis (of Ghostbusters fame) does an amazing job of re-writing the story in a modern way. Murray is of course amazing, and is totally believable as he goes through the roller coaster emotions of happiness, despair and then acceptance. Along the way he learns many important life lessons and, of course, ends the film a better person. In the hands of these two masters, and a great supporting cast, the film never seems trite or preachy as it shares Murray's learnings with us about how to best live your life. Plus it has a cute groundhog! So go watch it today. It's perfect winter watching, and Groundhog Day is only a few days off now on February 2nd.

Labels: life lessons, movies

Sadly Sacha Baron Cohen didn't get a Best Actor Oscar nomination for the wonderful Borat movie, however they did get a nod for Best Adapted Screenplay. Hmm. Guess the Academy would have found it hard to put a mix of real people's reactions and scripted segments into any other category.

Labels: movies

Well it's a grey, wet day in London so thought I'd bring you a few movie reviews from the last few days of lounging around chez t'other Matt (thanks Matt!)

First up, Serenity, the movie spinoff from the cancelled Firefly series from genius Buffy creator Joss Whedon. This highly entertaining, action packed science fiction movie is actually a western in disguise - filled with wise cracking dialogue, a shady governing empire and a martial arts expert psychic with a hidden secret. All good stuff, and it's definately made me want to go check out the original series as well.

Next, Transporter 2. Jason Stratham reprises his role as the calm, quiet, expressionless martial arts expert driver - this time in his new job picking up a kid from school in Miami. Of course, it turns out this kid is a target for the 'bad guys' (including a semi naked supermodel with a penchant for shooting things and the requisite European accents) and the usual chase/fight mayhem ensues. Definately not a brain strain, and not as good as the original, but it has a few good moments.

Finally, Peep Show, a UK comedy show in three short series about two housemates with confused social skills. What makes this series so amazing is that it's shot from 'behind the eyes' of the protaganists, and you also get to hear their, often bizarre, mental ramblings. Failed dates, housemates tiffs and just day to day work are all amplified into wonderful comedy fuel under this model and the talents of the two actor/writers Mitchell and Webb. Go check it out - it's also currently on BBC America.

Labels: movies

"The Greeks never wrote obituaries. When a man died, they asked only one question, 'Did he have a passion?"' - Dean, at the end of Serendipity

Labels: movies, quotes

Went to see Amelie last night. This is a truly wonderful movie and unlike anything I've ever seen before. It's done by the same guy who did Delicatessen and The City of Lost Children, so it's visually stunning and very much a modern fable. So wonderful indeed that I didn't hold the fact that Pam had not bought cup cakes for Ann and myself against her for very long... honest, Pam. Anyway, the colours were amazing, the shots beautiful and the story was captivating - go see it now.

Labels: movies

Succumbed to the dark side (of George Lucas' bank balance) and bought the Star Wars I DVD set.. Sat and watched the movie with Andy and Sarah, this being the second time since I saw it about 12 hours after it was first released. Seemed a lot better this time, more sensible - but it still needed to cut back on the cartoonish pod race shite (which Lucas added more into) and also that frikkin' pointless underwater sequence. The 'making of' bits were quite amusing - watching Ewan get all enthusiastic about his Jedi role. Ah, bless.

Lunch: Japanese place on the corner of 9th Avenue and 43rd. Quite nice.

Labels: movies

Had a classic New York night. Was planning to go see Zoolander, a piece of movie fluff involving Ben Stiller. Instead ended up going and seeing Mulholland Drive - the new David Lynch movie and the movie equivalent of a pan galactic gargle blaster.. Whoa! It's two hours long and like Memento but different and more arty - very bizarre but some good random lesbian sex scenes. Still not quite sure what the movie was about.

Anyways - we all went to Von after the movie for a drink (which turned into many, for a change) when this guy leans over the bar to get his bike helmet. He seems vaguely familiar and progressively more so as he walked around the bar to get his helmet. He looked almost exactly like one of the guys in the film, the director (played by Justin Theroux). So he wanders out and I ask the barmaid if he works there, she says no, he's an actor, just in the David Lynch movie... Bee-fuckin'-tsar! The fact that the movie was so surreal and disjointed just meant that we felt we'd become part of it. New York, eh.

So anyways I'm now dealing with a massive hangover as a consequence...

Labels: celeb spot, englishman in new york, movies