Michael Imperioli

Michael Imperioli is keen for hit US drama The Sopranos to make its way onto the big screen.

The actor, who played Christopher Moltisanti in the hugely successful Mafia TV series, hopes creator David Chase will give the green light for the movie.

He said: “Everyone wants a Sopranos film to happen but it hasn’t officially come from David, and until it does…”

The 43-year-old’s character was killed by mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), but he would still be keen to appear in a movie version of the show.

Asked if he’d like a role, he said: “My character’s dead so I don’t know if I would be, but if there is [a movie], sure!”

Michael will soon be seen in The Lovely Bones, Peter Jackson’s movie adaptation of Alice Sebold’s hit novel.

The Taking of Pelham 123 2009

Director: Tony Scott

Writer: Brian Hegeland

Starring Denzel Washington, John Travolta, Luis Guzman, Victor Gojcaj, John Turturro, James Gandolfini and Michael Rispoli

    Tony Scott is one of the best modern action film directors today, so whenever he has a new film I always see it.  I had heard of the original version of this film but had never seen it.  I will definitely seek it out after seeing this version.  This was a solid action film with some very tense scenes in it and a great interplay between Washington and Travolta.  I always have liked Travolta more when he plays the heavy, such as his great performances in John Woo’s Face Off and Broken Arrow.  This is a fast paced and expertly executed crime film and all the lead actors do an excellent job.  The only fault I have with the film is that it doesn’t bring anything new or exciting to the action film genre.  But it is still a enjoyable and gripping film to watch.

    The plot basics are this, four amred men hijack a subway train one afternoon in Manhattan.  They stop and decouple the first car and then begin their plan too blackmail money out of the city by holding the people on the train hostage.  The leader of the terrorists is Ryder (Travolta) and he gets in contact with dispatcher, Walter Garber (Washington), who has been recently demoted due to being investigated for taking a bribe.  He makes aconnection with Ryder and he refuses to deal with anyone but Garber.  Ryder demands ten million within a hour or for every minute the payoff is late he will eliminate a hostage.  The Mayor (Gandolfini) okays the deal, but it seems the payoff is putting the stock market through the wringer and the negotiator in charge (Turturro) is wondering if Ryder only wants the money or is making a stock broking gambit with it too make himself obscenely rich.  As the time limit comes and goes Garber has to meet Ryder with the money and what follows is a tense face off and a game of cat and mouse, and who knows who will come out on top in this gambit?

    This is a good film.  Scott’s direction is great as always.  His style of fast cutting and quick edits is not for everyone, but I always enjoys what he does with the camera.  The film is violent too and never skirts away from showing it.  The way he sets up the SWAT sniper’s attacks is tense and when everything goes wrong it comes together perfectly.  Hegeland’s script is tightly woven and he really breathes life into both Ryder and Garber’s characters.  The cast is good too, Washington and Travolta have great chemistry together and as usual Travolta hams it up and it suits the film well.  Turturro is also good as the negotiator trying to get to the bottom of what is happening here.  I also really enjoyed Gandolfini as the mayor, he brought a much needed comedic element to the film and with all the tense face offs in the film it is much needed for the viewer to catch his breath from time to time.  The action sequences in the film are very good, I especially liked the sniper attack, that was the most memorable one in my book.  This was a tense and exciting film, but in my final estimation it does not add anything great to this type of crime film.  I think the thing that makes this film the most enjoyable was Travolta’s performance.

This one gets 3 out of 5

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This is part 3 of the Cheltenham Screenwriters’ Festival series.

Writer-director Armando Iannucci and producer/Festival Chairman Kevin Loader talk about the script development and filming process of In the Loop.

In the Loop is written by:
Armando Iannucci
Jesse Armstrong
Simon Blackwell
Tony Roche
Ian Martin (the swearing consultant)

“Well, his briefing notes were written in alphabetti spaghetti. When I left, I nearly tripped up over his fucking umbilical cord.”  (Malcolm Tucker)

The story was born out of the real-life dysfunction that haunts politicians and government offices on both sides of the pond. The middle-management type of life behind the scenes where everything is done in silence and without questions, the serious flaws in internal communication, or the incident with Jack Straw who said in an interview that the invasion of Iran is “inconceivable”, or how politicians return from a big international meeting to deal with something trivial (like a wall). Iannucci spent time in Washington and in the White House, where he sneaked in with a random ID card pretending to attend a meeting. He met politicians and journalists, asking “boring” questions like what hours they worked, what they think about their colleagues, etc. He wanted to create a realistic image of Washington, not a glamorous one. Those nice-looking buildings all hold hundreds of people sitting at desks and not communicating with each other. He saw young people in their 20s with degrees in terrorism studies, and there was a 22-year-old who had written the constitution of Iran.There are people hanging behind doors in case some big shot might invite them to a meeting. Secret meetings have boring names and everyone who wants to be important shows up. And whatever happens – you don’t leave a meeting – when you leave a meeting you’re leaving power. It’s also braver to do the wrong thing (braver not to resign after a blunder) because everyone expects you to do the right thing (and resign). There are parallels with British film-makers visiting Hollywood – where everyone smiles and praises you, but nothing ever happens, and you leave feeling used and soiled.

“The script gives safety, improvisation is liberating.”
(Iannucci)

The feature film was develop in a similar method as the TV comedy series The Thick of It. Although the film was to be improvised, a storyline had to be written down on paper for development purposes – for locations, casting, etc.  Also, the American actors wanted to see what they were committing themselves to. There had to be a physical document that people could work with, not just an abstract conversation. Iannucci and three other writers came up with a storyline between 20-30 pages, followed by a process of adding and cutting back, adding and cutting back, followed by defining the character by going over each character’s story. After casting had been completed they started adding details to the script and characters. There were constant rewrites – constant building and cutting back, and trying to nail the lines. There were workshops with the British actors in order to make the dialogue more realistic, the discussion feel more chaotic and not carefully thought through, to create three-dimensional characters, and perform the whole story without the script. This would help see the relationships between the characters, not just the words on the paper, and come up with new ideas. Scenes would get rewritten based on the improvisations.

They shot around 25 pages a day. There was a lot of dialogue and little time to learn it by heart, but when the camera was rolling the actors had to say something. They would film a take using the script and another one improvised. Some actors felt uncomfortable but they always had a script to fall back on. Through improvisation some trivial element in the story would become bigger – like using the toy calculator in the scene where Lt. Gen. Miller (James Gandolfini) and Karem Clark (Mimi Kennedy) discussed war in some kid’s bedroom. The story would be clarified during editing and they would go back to film what looked interesting and engaging.

There were a lot of scenes that were left out, come of them because they were too self-contained – they stop the story and the rhythm and make the story less funny. They had set out to make a fast, dialogue-driven screwball comedy with lots of characters and an immediate, messy urgency that won’t let go till the end. They didn’t want to tell the audience what to think but let them judge it by themselves.

Follow Armando Iannucci on Twitter.

Jeff Goldsmith interviews co-writer/director Armando Iannucci and co-stars Peter Capaldi and Mimi Kennedy about In The Loop in the Creative Screenwriting Magazine podcast

Good evening!

It truly has been a good day, afternoon, and evening as I was in the company of people I absolutely j’adore for the bulk of today. This morning, despite having only attained four to five hours of sleep (3:30AM bedtime, so unlike me), and waking up against my will at 9:30AM, I couldn’t fall back asleep and decided to make a light breakfast and a giant pot of super strong coffee for Jodi and myself:

Peanut and Pumpkin Butter Whole Grain Toast

We then gabbed and caught up on old Simpson’s episodes and geared up for a nice, easy 45 min. run/walk in Central Park. We planned the buddy run a week ago, and I had been anticipating it all week. Jodi just quit smoking (I am SO proud of you, Joben!) and is interested in taking up running. We warmed up with a 5 min. jog to Central Park, stretched, and then hit the Reservoir. I didn’t really pay much attention to the stats of the run this time around, because I was busy enjoying the experience of having a running partner for the first time. I loved it! At some points, we went our separate ways, since Jodi is easing into running (which is the smart way to take up the sport, in my opinion.) I ran the first lap (1.58 miles) of the reservoir and we rejoined to run/walk the Birdle Path loop.

Upon returning I had some red delicious apple slices and cheddar cheese cubes for post-run fuel:

With some much needed coffee and soymilk (I find that if I have coffee in the afternoon, I need milk with it for some unidentifiable reason):

We then went over to this grand health food deli/cafe called Powerbowl across the street from my place. I can’t believe I’ve lived across the street from this joint for nearly a year and yet tried it for the first time today. It was great, they have plenty of grab-to-go healthy meals, a wonderful salad bar, and great well, power bowls. Their health bowls certainly live up to the establishment’s title in that they are power packed with nutrient-rich ingredients such as black beans, brown rice, tofu, organic chicken and turkey, sauteed veggies, whole wheat noodles, etc. I recommend it if you want a quick, healthy eat that will keep you very well fueled!

Here’s what I ended up eating:

Turkey Burger Salad With Honey Mustard Dressing (AH-MA-ZING)

Plus, more much needed caffeine (I was running on empty at that point):

And a dessert to split with Jodes:

Every single bite of every single thing hit the spot.

We then subwayed it down to the West Village, during which, I saw this unfortunate picture of Tina Turner on a subway ad:

I Love Tina Turner and Think She's Beautiful, But This Is A "Yikes" Picture.

The Tina Turner subway car took us to meet up with some friends:

With whom I grabbed a drink:

Glass of Red Wine From A Bottle Called "Red Truck." Catchy.

While yukking it up and having hilariously ridiculous conversations, I happened to see James Gandolfini walk his dog past the bar we were stationed at. At first I saw the dog, then I saw the giant man walking it and realized it was Tony Soprano. Mind you, this is just about the fourth or fifth time I’ve seen James Gandolfini in the city. He’s had his dog with him each and every time. What can I say? The man loves his mutt. How sweet!

Jason and I hung out some more after our little crew broke up and went their separate ways for the night. When the dinner hour struck , we wandered into a Natural Health store for a bite. I got some curried seitan from the hot bar:

As well as a very refreshing side salad involving kale, tomatoes, cucumbers, sprouts, onions, cabbage, and some other ingredients I’m currently unable to recall:

Plus, some refreshing Kombucha:

It’s worth mentioning that Jason took a sample swig from my Kombucha, immediately said it was disgusting and tasted like carbonated vinegar. After proclaiming that, he proceeded to swipe random swigs of it and ultimately ended up drinking half of it. Oh, Jason, you’re such a goof.

After parting ways with Jason, I came home to have a long phone talk with my Papa, followed by a chat with my hilarious and wonderful friend, Eric.

While laughing with Eric I ate this:

There Are No Words To Describe How Rich and Tasty This Bar Is. To Their Credit, Though, "Rich" and "Tasty" Are Legitimate Words.

As soon as I hit publish, I’m going read a bit of this and drink a sip a that:

"And Here's The Kicker" With a Splendid Cup of Chamomile Tea and Soymilk

And call it a (great) night!

Have you ever tried Kombucha? What are your thoughts on the drink? If you’re a fan, what’s your favorite flavor/brand? I’ve been drinking kombucha for years, I think it’s so revitalizing and delicious. My favorite is easily “GT’s Guava Goodness.”

This is amazing!, MySpace users  around Australia will be treated to a special pre-release Black Curtain screening of ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ on November 30th for FREE (YES YOU READ CORRECTLY…FOR FREE!). All this 4 days before its official national release on December 3rd the ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ Black Curtain screening will give MySpace fans around the country the opportunity to be some of the first in Australia to see this iconic tale of childhood  and self discovery translated  to the screen.

How you can get the tickets?…IS VERY SIMPLE!:
The only way MySpace users can attend an exclusive preview screening of Where the Wild Things Are is by befriending the Black Curtain profile (www.myspace.com/blackcurtainau) where from 4pm on Tuesday November 24^th, they will find a code to SMS in order to be sent a unique ticket to their mobile. This preview screenings will taking place in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

Based on one of the most beloved books of all time, “Where the wild things are” tells the story of Max, a rambunctious and sensitive boy who feels misunderstood at home and escapes to where the Wild Things are.  Max lands on an island where he meets mysterious and strange creatures whose emotions are as wild and unpredictable as their actions.  The Wild Things desperately long for a leader to guide them, just as Max longs for a kingdom to rule.  When Max is crowned king, he promises to create a place where everyone will be happy. Max soon finds, though, that ruling his kingdom is not so easy and his relationships there prove to be more complicated than he originally thought.

Starring Max Records, Catherine Keener, Mark Ruffalo, Lauren Ambrose, Chris Cooper, James Gandolfini, Catherine O’Hara and Forest Whitaker, “Where the Wild Things Are” is directed by Spike Jonze from a screenplay by Spike Jonze & Dave Eggers, based on the book by Maurice Sendak.

So, what are you waiting for?…be ready for the final countdown on Black Curtain and be ready to msn the code. Be the first to watch this big blockbuster!.

If you are not a myspace member, just go to www.myspace.com and create an account, is really simple! and start to enjoy the benefits!, and of course become a friend of Black Curtain to have the chance of be part of this screenings and the future ones!

Wanna see more about this movie?…just watch the trailers here!

GOOD ONE MYSPACE!

It’s probably been five years or more since I saw the original Taking of Pelham 123, which I rented back when I was going through a massive Walter Matthau phase.  And now that I’ve seen this film, the recent remake starring Denzel Washington and John Travolta, I’m eager to see the original again because I can’t remember what the original bad guy’s motives were, and I have a feeling they weren’t the same as they were in this version (this version’s motives being somewhat timely).

I figured this would be an entertaining, but not brilliant, movie, and I was right.  It’s not flawless, but it’s definitely a lot of fun to watch, especially if you’re a Denzel or/and Travolta fan, which I obviously am (hubba hubba x 2).  The story opens on a regular day in New York City’s MTA offices, with Washington playing Walter Garber, a former bigwig in the MTA who has recently been demoted to dispatcher following a scandal involving a bribe.  Unfortunately for Walter, he’s on duty the day a group of recent parolees, led by a man named Ryder (Travolta), hijack the Pelham 123 train.

It quickly becomes clear to Walter that the group knows a lot about the MTA subway system.  They stop the train in exactly the most advantageous spot in one of the tunnels, and quickly release most of the cars and passengers to make it easier for them to handle the set of hostages, which they then announce they are holding for $10 million in ransom.  But as the day goes on, it also becomes increasingly clear that Ryder has ulterior motives — that the ransom may not be his end game.  Can Walter, the mayor (played by James Gandolfini), or the lieutenant in charge of the hostage negotiation team (played by John Turturro) figure out what’s really going on before Ryder kills the hostages and/or absconds with the $10 million?

You can probably guess the answer to that question.  Go ahead, guess.  Yep, you’re right!

As I said, this movie isn’t perfect.  For one thing, I had the “ulterior motive” thing figured out way earlier than I should have and it was because of some heavy-handed hint dropping that could have been a lot more subtle.  Despite that, though, I found the whole ulterior motive thing pretty clever, all things considered, and it was fun waiting to find out if my theory about it was going to be proven right.

I also thought Denzel was great in this — I completely believed his character and, what’s more, I was really rooting for him as well.  Less convincing was Travolta, but only because I still think of him as more snuggly than bad-ass, even if the make-up department does kick down with a sinister goatee and neck tatt.

Overall, though, this is a pretty entertaining flick with some good acting, authentic suspense, and a fairly satisfying, if unbelievable, ending.  Definitely recommended to anybody looking for a good thriller.  And hey, gentlemen in the audience, they even somehow managed to throw in a couple of spectacular car wrecks for you, even though 95% of this movie takes place in an office and a tunnel.  Now THAT’S movie-making magic, my friends.

Recommended!

[Netflix me | Buy me]

Genre:  Thriller
Cast:  Denzel Washington, John Travolta, John Turturro, Luis Guzman, Michael Rispoli, James Gandolfini

Hi. How are you? My name’s Elliot, and I’m with the Cub Scouts of America. We’re… we’re selling uncut cocaine to get to the jamboree.

– Elliot

Quentin Tarantino penned the script for True Romance for director Tony Scott. I heard about this movie, because when I saw the IMDb page of Inglourious Basterds. He made one of the characters “Bear Jew” Donowitz the grandfather of one of the character in this movie. I thought I might check it out. I think this was Tarantino’s attempt to have a bloodily romantic movie, but it fails.

Taking place in Detroit, a comic book store worker, Clarence Worley (Christian Slater) goes to a Sonny Chiba “Street Fighter” triple feature. A beautiful young woman, Alabama Whitman (Patricia Arquette) intentionally bumps into him there. They take a liking to each other and meet each other for pie. He tries to get to know her more, but she is coy.

They quickly fall in love and have sex. Afterwards, Alabama confesses to him that she is a call girl that was hired by his boss to get him laid on his birthday. They promise to be with each other always and get married the next day. She tells him about her fucked up life and how needed to get her stuff back from her pimp

When shit is about to go down the spirit of Elvis (Val Kilmer) gives Clarence a quick pep talk in the bathroom. Clarence wants to retrieve Alabama’s stuff from her former pimp, a Rasta man named Drexl (Gary Oldman). Going over there, things go wrong when he kills Drexl and takes a suitcase. It turns out that suitcase is filled with a million dollars worth of cocaine from a drug lord, Blue Lou Boyle.

The duo doesn’t know this. When Clarence comes back to the apartment bloody and bruised, Alabama is turned on by doing anything for her. They go over to a trailer house to meet his father, Clifford (Dennis Hooper), who is a police officer. They haven’t seen each other in three years. He wanted to know if the cops are after the twosome. Clifford tells them that they are in the clear.

They take a road trip Clarence’s best friend in Hollywood, Dick Ritchie (Michael Rappaport), an actor with his stoner roommate, Floyd (Brad Pitt). After the duo leaves, Vincenzo Coccotti (Chirstopher Walken), the local counsel for Boyle, pays Clifford a visit. The thugs interrogate him when Clarence dropped his license at the crime scene. They want to get their score back.

The movie is supposed to be a modern version of Bonnie and Clyde, but the movie felt false. You know you hear Tarantino dialogue when the characters ramble on about movies and minute trivia. The movie as whole laid flat. There was no oomph. I didn’t care if the characters lived or died. It was disappointing.

Judgment: Words cannot describe how terrible this movie is.

Rating: **1/2

Max, the hero of Where The Wild Things Are, is having fun early in the film in a snowball fight. It’s a freewheeling, wonderful action scene, where his sister’s friends attempt to pelt him back as hard as they can, and Max giggles with glee– this is what winter fun is about as a child. Then, one of his sister’s friends caves in his snowbase where he was hiding, and on a dime, Max is terrified, cold, and betrayed. What Spike Jonze gets about childhood throughout the film, and what makes Where The Wild Things Are such a beautiful, melancholy experience, is that while we remember it as this magical carefree time, the opposite is true– children care more strongly than we jaded adults do. We trust completely, we love completely, we give ourselves over to our feelings and our experiences with total abandon, and thus our strong emotions switch quickly.  My emotions weren’t switching while watching the film– I was enraptured the entire time.

The story, adapted from a book which contains only ten sentences, centers in on Max (Max Records), a kid who feels his sister and mom don’t pay him enough attention, and after a bratty confrontation with his mom where he bites her, he runs away, hops on a boat, and sails to the land of the Wild Things. He meets Carol (voiced by James Gandolfini), the leader of the pack, an impulsive frustrated monster. Along with him are his friends, Ira (Forest Whitaker), Judith (Catherine O’Hara), Alexander (Paul Dano), Douglas (Chris Cooper), and the silent Bull. Finally, there’s K.W. (Lauren Ambrose), a loner who takes long ventures out to meet other creatures, which angers Carol, who is focused on trying to keep the whole group together as best friends forever.

Roger Ebert said in his review of The Polar Express, “”The Polar Express” has the quality of a lot of lasting children’s entertainment: It’s a little creepy. Not creepy in an unpleasant way, but in that sneaky, teasing way that lets you know eerie things could happen. There’s a deeper, shivery tone…a world of its own, like “The Wizard of Oz” or “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory,” in which the wise child does not feel too complacent.” Spike Jonze achieves the exact same effect here. When Max first arrives, the monsters threaten to eat him. We as trained audience members feel this is an empty threat– after all, little boys don’t die in movies like this. A few minutes later, we see a pile of bones, unmistakably made up of their previous leaders who displeased them. Complacency is immediately tossed out the window. These monsters aren’t just nice friends, they’re real threats who could turn on Max if things go awry. The label of “wild thing” isn’t handled with kiddie gloves.

Yet the film never loses its realistic depiction of childishness. Max, like real children, can be a brat if he feels neglected or scorned. He bites his mother and stomps around– it’d be easy to judge this character at this point in the film if we totally lost the ability to look back at our own younger days, to the stories our parents told us about things we did as children that we would be horrified to see nowadays. When he encounters the monsters, all he wants to do with them are the same things he would do at home– run around, jump, dig holes, build makeshift “homes” outdoors. He wants everyone to sleep together in a real pile, because let’s be honest, if you saw a bunch of big fuzzy monsters like that, you’d darn sure want to hug them. The monsters exhibit this childishness as well. Carol is temperamental, Judith is pouty and doubtful, Ira is a pushover, Alexander seeks attention, and Douglas is trustworthy and reliable. When Carol introduces Max to Douglas and says, “I count on him for everything,” there was a simple beauty and childish honesty to the delivery that made my eyes well up.

Perhaps I’m the wrong person to review this, since I found the book so perfect as a kid, so there’s a sense of sentimentality that I immediately place on the material. However, I think this is the rare movie that should fully please fans of the book. Usually, fans of a book whine about things left out of the film adaptation, and I write a review insisting that we must remove our devotion to the core material’s particulars in order to see if the movie captured the essence of the book the best way that it could– simply put, is it a good movie, book be damned? Here is the exact opposite scenario: a book has had tons of material added to its ten-sentence story, and I think that every single bit added captures the essence flawlessly. The script, by Jonze and Dave Eggers, can also be interpreted to give the monsters various symbolic meanings and interpretations, though for me such additional scholarly endeavors are unnecessary; the characters stand on their own without any added symbolism.

Jonze’s effects work (a combination of real puppet bodies and some CGI face work) is a revelation in a time when CGI is thrown haphazardly around– here is a director who wanted the child actor to be able to touch, hug, and interact with real wild things, and the decision absolutely paid off. Max Records is a natural, lacking the put-on precociousness most child actors have. The production design and cinematography are easily among the best of the year. This is simply one of those films where every element is combined with such unity of vision that it does more than create a new world… it creates a new reality. There’s not a moment of the film that fails to ring true. And if when Max sets out to leave the Land of the Wild Things, you don’t tear up at his goodbyes with his magical wild friends, you need to thaw out your ice-cold heart. Instead of manipulating your emotions, this fantasy earns them. This is one of the best movies of the year.

So, it’s been longer than I had planned, but here it is.  I want to talk about other things, but feel I can’t without getting through this first, so here we go and keep a look out for more soon!

We shall start with my favorite of the collection:

Weapon Of Choice by Fatboy Slim featuring the ever amazingly fabulous Christopher Walken

Spike Jonez is a great fan of the Beastie Boys and was all too happy to collaborate with them on their Sabotage single video from the album “Ill Communication”

According to the Wikipedia entry,  Sabotage was “played extensively on MTV. As an homage to (and parody of) 1970s crime drama television series like Hawaii Five-0, The Streets of San Francisco,S.W.A.T., Baretta, and Starsky and Hutch, the video is presented as the opening credits of a fictional 1970s-style police show called Sabotage, with the band members appearing as the show characters. Each band member is introduced as a fictional actor, and the names of the characters are also given.”

Bjork’s “It’s Oh So Quiet” – again according to the Wikipedia entry – “remains her biggest hit…Fueled by the Spike Jonze-directed music video clip, the single also shot Björk into the spotlight in the United States, peaking at #9 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot Singles Chart (#109 on the Hot 100). In the United Kingdom the single has been certified as Gold, having sold upwards of 400,000 copies. [1]“

And finally we have Weezer’s “Buddy Holly.”  I am feeling a bit lazy this evening, so I’m going to stick with Wikipedia since they have served me so well for the above videos.  ”The video portrayed Weezer performing at the original Arnold’s Drive-In diner from the popular ’70s television show Happy Days. The video combined contemporary footage of the band with clips from the show. Happy Days cast member Al Molinaro made a cameo appearance in the video.”

So, as I mentioned, Spike likes to bring the element of surprise and unknown to his media.  Lots of the Sabotage footage was filmed without a license (according to a New York Times article). “Weapon of Choice” is just surprise after surprise, and “…So Quiet” is filmed in the same vein of altered dancing/flying reality.  In “Buddy Holly” Jonze has taken us back to the time (though, of course, Happy Days is a throwback in itself) to the time of Buddy Holly’s popularity playing music that is inspired by, but is so beyond, that time and place.

I’m not going to go off about the film.  I really enjoyed it; I laughed and James Gandolfini, as a muppet, made me cry. I think it was genius, but I would like to see it again and see if it holds up.  Also I can’t speak for children, but I think that film is now trying to take them seriously, and rightly so.  See this article from A.O. Scott in the New York Times.

16/10/09 – 07h19 – Atualizado em 16/10/09 – 08h23

Spike Jonze desperta emoções em ‘Where the wild things are’

Filme é baseado no livro ‘Onde vivem os monstros’, de Maurice Sendak.
Max Records, de 12 anos, é o protagonista; trilha é de Karen O.

Da EFE

Spike Jonze, um dos cineastas mais inovadores da atualidade de Hollywood, retorna à direção sete anos depois do último trabalho com “Where the wild things are”, uma fantasia sobre a infância que aflora emoções.

Cena de ”Where the wild things are”, filme de Spinke Jonze que estreia nos Estados Unidos (Foto: Divulgação)

O filme, que estreia nesta sexta-feira (16) nos Estados Unidos, é baseado no livro “Onde vivem os monstros”, um clássico da literatura infantil criado por Maurice Sendak em 1963 sobre Max, um menino perspicaz que se sente incompreendido e que, após uma discussão com sua mãe, foge em busca de um lugar mágico criado em sua imaginação.

“Ali é onde vivem os monstros referidos no título, que na realidade são umas criaturas que representam as emoções, selvagens e imprevisíveis, que todos temos em nosso interior”, segundo explicou Jonze em um encontro com a imprensa em Los Angeles, na Califórnia.

As criaturas buscam um líder que os guie e proclamam Max seu rei, que promete criar um ambiente para que todos sejam felizes, embora em breve descubra que seu trabalho não será fácil e que as relações com os demais habitantes tornam-se mais complicadas do que imaginava.

“Maurice (Sendak) me disse que não me preocupasse porque cada um pode opinar sobre a adaptação, me encorajou para que fizesse o filme que eu queria, minha visão sobre a história, e para isso só me pediu que fosse honesto com o livro”, lembrou Jonze, de 40 anos, co-roteirista do filme junto com Dave Eggers.

O universo literário de “Onde vivem os monstros” encerra ao fim de 50 páginas, mas a imaginação que despertam os desenhos de Sendak são as grandes vertentes do livro, que integra a lista dos mais vendidos de todos os tempos.

“Não quis acrescentar nada que não estivesse no livro, mas tentei descobrir quem é Max e quem são as criaturas selvagens, para mim são as emoções e isso cedeu espaço para que começasse a escrever os personagens”, manifestou Jonze, autor de títulos como “Being John Malkovich” (Quero ser John Malkovich, 1999) e “Adaptation” (Adaptação, 2002), seu longa-metragem anterior.

Divulgação

Filme estreia nesta sexta-feira nos cinemas dos Estados Unidos (Foto: Divulgação)

Elenco

Na versão original do filme é possível escutar as vozes de James Gandolfini, Catherine O’Hara, Paul Dano e Forest Whitaker, que dublaram as criaturas, feitas artesanalmente -”ficou rude, real”, apontou Jonze – com a incorporação de efeitos digitais para dar expressão aos rostos.

O estúdio Warner Bros que esperava um produto final mais conciso acabou atrasando a estreia do filme em mais de um ano para polir os detalhes da produção, cujo orçamento foi de US$ 80 milhões.

“No princípio, o estúdio se surpreendeu com o material recebido. Eles esperavam algo mais mágico e fantasioso, mas este não é um conto tradicional”, afirmou o cineasta, quem considera ter realizado um filme sobre a infância contada de forma realista.

Segundo Jonze não foi preciso mudar nada – “fiz o que eu queria” – e Warner Bros deu o sinal verde ao trabalho do diretor de célebres vídeos musicais protagonizados por R.E.M. e Chemical Brothers.

Uma das decisões mais complicadas foi a escolha do protagonista, papel dado a Max Records, de 12 anos. “Ele é o grande trunfo do filme”, disse Jonze, quem se mostrou orgulhoso também com a trilha sonora, obra de Karen O, líder da banda Yeah Yeah Yeahs.

“Ela é uma de minhas artistas favoritas”, admitiu o diretor americano. “É como uma menina que luta pela liberdade e expressa seus sentimentos e considero que sua música é o coração do filme”, acrescentou Jonze, um apaixonado da música pop desde criança.

“Queria uma música que lembrasse a de Brian Wilson, John Lennon, Paul McCartney e David Bowie”, comentou o cineasta. “Quando criança conectava intuitivamente com meus amigos e sentia que podia identificar-me 100% com suas canções”, acrescentou.

Catherine Keener, a única atriz protagonista de carne e osso no filme, certificou o duro trabalho que teve que enfrentar Jonze para adaptar a obra literária e defendeu suas decisões.

“Tem muitíssimas ideias e uma criatividade inesgotável, portanto leva tempo articular todo isso”, elogiou a intérprete. “O que faz com que este filme vá muito além do que o estúdio esperava”, concluiu.

http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/PopArte/0,,MUL1343286-7084,00-SPIKE+JONZE+DESPERTA+EMOCOES+EM+WHERE+THE+WILD+THINGS+ARE.html

14/10/09 – 16h56 – Atualizado em 14/10/09 – 17h22

Filme ‘Onde vivem os monstros’ ganha bênção do autor do livro

Dirigido por Spike Jonze, longa estreia nos EUA na próxima sexta (16).
James Gandolfini e Forest Whitaker emprestam vozes a personagens.

Jil Sergeant Da Reuters

Cena de “Onde vivem os monstros”, dirigido por Spike Jonze (Foto: Divulgação)

Transpor para o cinema de Hollywood um livro que é um clássico da literatura infantil requer coragem. Quando o livro em questão é o sombrio mas amado “Onde vivem os monstros”, de Maurice Sendak, e quando o original ilustrado contém apenas nove sentenças escritas, ajuda se você conta com a bênção do autor.

O diretor Spike Jonze tinha as duas coisas quando começou a levar para a tela grande o livro premiado de 1963, em versão que é ao mesmo tempo diferente do original e uma homenagem a este, feita para agradar não apenas às crianças mas também aos adultos.

A versão de Jonze de “Onde vivem os monstros” (“Where the wild things are”) — que levou cinco anos para ser feita e funde ação ao vivo, fantoches e animação computadorizada — chega aos cinemas norte-americanos na próxima sexta-feira (16) em meio a resenhas altamente positivas, mas também muitas reservas.

O mundo visto por uma criança

O livro é uma história com pouquíssimo texto, mas muitas ilustrações, sobre um menino travesso que veste fantasia de lobo e sai em busca de aventuras, mas, ao ser mandado de volta a seu quarto, acaba recorrendo à sua imaginação. Desde os anos 1970, é um dos dez livros infantis mais vendidos nos Estados Unidos.

Mas Jonze, responsável pelo excêntrico “Quero ser John Malkovich”, de 1999, disse que não pretendeu fazer um filme tradicional para crianças.

“Eu me propus a fazer um filme sobre a infância”, disse Jonze, co-autor do roteiro, juntamente com o romancista Dave Eggers.

“O filme trata de como é ter 8 ou 9 anos de identidade e tentar entender o mundo, as pessoas à sua volta e as emoções, que às vezes são previsíveis ou causam perplexidade”.

“Ele (Sendak) sentiu orgulho do filme”, disse Jonze, que também fez um documentário com o escritor de 81 anos, que será exibido pelo canal a cabo americano HBO.

Dunas em vez de florestas

Na maior diferença em relação ao livro, o solitário mas brincalhão Max (o novato Max Records) foge de casa e veleja até um deserto habitado por monstros peludos e com presas, que procuram o tipo de líder que Max quer ser.

O filme foi rodado perto de Melbourne, na Austrália, e, em vez da floresta verde que cresce magicamente no quarto de Max, no original, tem dunas de areia, praias e bosques devastados por incêndios. Tem um clima de filme de arte, algo raramente visto nos filmes infantis de Hollywood.

Os monstros são dublados por atores, entre eles James Gandolfini (“The Sopranos”) e o premiado com o Oscar Forest Whitaker, e ganham substância física com a ajuda de outros atores usando figurinos criados pela Creature Shop, de Jim Henson.

http://g1.globo.com/Noticias/Cinema/0,,MUL1341124-7086,00-FILME+ONDE+VIVEM+OS+MONSTROS+GANHA+BENCAO+DO+AUTOR+DO+LIVRO.html

James Gandolfini rescató a su personaje de Tony Soprano para arremeter contra este paparazzi,tan solo faltaban Paulie y Christopher.Vale,lo sé,Los Sopranos ya acabaron y debo buscarme otra serie pero es que……

Jazz2nite

Substitute “wild” for “mild”…

Starring Max Records, Catherine Keener, Mark Ruffalo and the voices of James Gandolfini, Paul Dano, Catherine O’Hara, Forest Whitaker, Chris Cooper, and Lauren Ambrose. Directed by Spike Jonze. Based on the childrens book by Maurice Sendak

Wow. They kinda sucked the fun out of this one.

It’s been forever since I’ve read Maurice Sendak’s book. My dad read it to me and my brother when we were younger and I vaguely remember enjoying it (as well as the “Reading Rainbow” segment on it). It’s this childhood fondness that drove my want to see Jonze’s movie adaptation of the 1963 classic.

No offense, but I’ll take my “childhood memory” over the movie.

Max is one lonely kid: his older sister Claire is more interested in her friends than paying any attention to him. His mother (Keener) is a stressed-out single mom trying to deal with her job and life as well as the lives of her kids. One night while having a dinner date (with Mark Ruffalo) Max acts up: he screams, climbs the table, stomps on it, fights and eventually bites his mom before running out the door, down the street, and disappearing from sight.

Max finds his way to the water and climbs into a small boat where he heads out into the water and ventures for parts unknown. From the ocean he spots a light in the forest. Might as well check it out…

Scaling up a cliff he wanders into the forest toward the light where he hides, watching the “Things.” One of them, Carol (Gandolfini), is walking around destroying all their huts. Max jumps out into the open and convinces them not to eat him and that he’s a king who conquered vikings. Lacking any real leadership they make him their king. He promises a new world, new adventures, etc., and they take him for his word.

And let me discuss the “Things” for a moment: they’re morose. It would be like a party of severely depressed people trying to “out Eeyore” Eeyore (the melancholic donkey from “Winnie the Pooh”). Yeah, that fun. There’s the headstrong Carol (Gandolfini), the whining Judith (O’Hara), her bore-holes-in-trees partner Ira (Whitaker), low-esteem goat Alexander(Dano), Douglas the chicken (Cooper), and K W (Ambrose) a woman who seeks advice from owls Bob and Terry.

Max proposes an idea to bring everyone together: build a fort that only they can get into. It’ll have a secret underground entrance and a machine that will scoop out the brains of anyone who dares to enter without their consent. Happily they all come together and begin working on fortress.

As a “team-building” exercise, Max declares dirt-clod war, dividing the group into two. They all begin to have fun until someone gets hurt and Max’s position comes into question and his power falters. Max must come to terms and grow up or face the threat of being eaten by Carol.

Maybe in hoping for something great I faulted myself on this one. I wanted something more uplifting, something to remember being a kid and enjoying the book. I didn’t get that from this movie. The
“Things” and Max were stunted in his age-mentality. Maybe that’s what Jonze was going for.

The movie isn’t entirely depressing. There were happy moments but for the most part it’s a depressing movie. Not bittersweet but humbly sad.

If I can say anything good about the film, it’s technically amazing. With CG blending in with animatronics from the Jim Henson company (creators of “The Muppets”), the “Things” are incredible to watch. Jonze went above and beyond in creating characters, nay, a world all to itself. Maybe he gave us all a bit more to chew on then we wanted.

I find this movie tough to suggest. It’s well-made but if you’re looking for sweet, charming, whimsical,
uplifting, and overall warm-fuzziness, it’s not to be had in this one. I’m just sayin’.

My grade: B- (with points for technical achievement)

I first came across the ‘Inside The Actors Studio’ series while I was sick in bed in Delhi back in June. While the presenter can seem a bit dry at times, I don’t think I’ve ever come across a more in depth interview of an actor before, the show has a real knack of covering every angle of an actors career. I’m a huge fan of the HBO show ‘Sopranos’ so I thought I might share this video I found of James Gandolfini inside the actors studio.

The incident occurred on , but wasn’t told until now. A cameraman for “Guest of a Guest” was out on the street to film the Halloween parade. When he saw James with his son and several other people, decided to make a video with the actor, taking advantage of the fact that his son had entered a shop.

But being a paparazzo is tough and this man convinced himself about that. James saw him, approached him and began to push him. He then took his camera and smash it. Meanwhile, the actor’s former wife screamed to let his son go, and one James mates followed the paparazzi in the street, trying to steal his camera.

The photographer escaped with a torn jacket and a few punches and fled to his hotel room.

Former Sopranos star James Gandolfini reportedly channeled a bit too much of his old character on the show when he assaulted a paparazzi photographer on Halloween.

>> Read more at GossipandGab.com now…

Max (Max Records) er uterlig over for sin mor (Catherine Keener) da middagen skal serveres

Where The Wild Things Are er en fabel om drengen Max som har det svært i den virkelige verden med en teenage søster som han holder utrolig meget af men som ikke ænser ham, en fraskilt mor som forsøger at forstå ham, men som ikke tager sig tid til ham. Max flygter til en en anden verden – en fantasi verden, hvor han møder nogle fantastiske skabninger som han bliver venner med og som interesserer sig i ham.

Max stirrer vildyret Carol (stemme: James Gandolfini) ind i øjene og siger at han er en konge

Den meget længe ventede film instrueret af Spike Jonze som fik sit instruktør gennembrud med filmen Being John Malkovich fra 1999, gør en rigtig godt stykke arbejde. Max bliver fortryllende spillet af Max Records, og hans mor spilles af Catherine Keener. Også vildyrene som bl.a. har stemmer af James Gandolfini, Chris Cooper, Forest Whitaker og Lauren Ambrose er utrolig nærværende og nutidige. Lauren Ambrose lægger stemme til KW som er det vildyr som er mest menneskelig, og hendes kælne stemme bliver nogen gange helt flirtende. Den meget nutidige dialog virker til tider nærmest konverserende.

Max og Carol walk and talk i ørkenen

Filmen er rigtig flot lavet. Vildyrene og scenografien er fantastisk og samspillet mellem Max og vildyrene er meget troværdig. Det er egentlig spøjst hvor livagtige og hvor meget personlighed disse vildyr formår at have. Stor Kudos til Spike Jonze.

Max nyder udsigten fra Carol's hoved

Selvom selve historien er noget simpel, fænger den og man er underholdt. Men filmens arkileshæl er at filmen ikke entydigt har lavet en børne film til børn, eller en voksen film til voksne. Men istedet lavet en familie film til alle. Det betyder at filmen kommer til at sætte sig imellem 2 stole. Jeg tror børn som bliver ledsaget af forældre vil være underholdt, men ikke nok til at sige til deres venner at de skal tage ind og se filmen. Og ligeledes med voksne som går alene i biografen, så tror jeg at de vil få en fin oplevelse, men nok ikke stor nok til at sige til venner at de skal se den. Nej, jeg tror at det er en film som er lavet til de kæmpe publikum som er vokset op med bogen om Where The Wild Things Are af Maurice Sendak som udkom i 1963 og har solgt over 19 milioner kopier på verdens plan. Og disse folk vil blive rigtig godt underholdt!

Max trøstes af KW (stemme: Lauren Ambrose)

Og som med mange fabler så bliver de hængene længe efter man har set filmen eller læst bogen. Hvem har ikke lyst til at sove i en kæmpe klynge med disse sjove monstre?

8

Di Spike Jonze

Il piccolo Max, dopo un feroce litigio con la madre, si ritrova letteralmente in un altro mondo, popolato da strane e selvagge creature.

Non è un film per bambini ma un film sui bambini e in particolar modo su quell’età complicatissima e contraddittoria che è l’infanzia. Occhio a portarci i ragazzini: non lo capirebbero e ne uscirebbero scornati, anche più dei genitori. Tratto da una fiaba di  Maurice Sendak che non vediamo l’ora di leggere, il film del geniale Spike Jonze (Essere John  Malkovich, L’inventore di favole) è un capolavoro delicato sul difficile mondo dei ragazzini. Il punto di vista è tutto di Max, ennesimo figlio senza padre e affettivamente combattuto tra l’amore per la madre e la sorella che nella vita sembrano avere altri interessi. Scappa, il ragazzino, dopo l’ennesimo, violento litigio culminato con un morso alla madre e si ritrova in un altro mondo, popolato da creature brutte, pelose e goffissime alle quali si presenta come re e dalle quali, dopo i primi giustificati timori, si ritroverà accolto. E’ chiaro che dietro la psicologia delle creature selvagge si nascondo tanti tasselli dell’universo affettivo del ragazzino. C’è Carol, il mostro goffo che fa a pezzi la propria casa e quella degli altri per mancanza d’amore; c’è una coppia di mostri, con una lei particolarmente acida e diffidente; c’è un mostro femmina dolcissimo e materno che in uno dei momenti più commoventi del film addirittura arriverà  a “partorire” il ragazzino. Strano e bizzarro, segnato dalle continue contraddizioni di quell’età di passaggio che è l’infanzia, Jonze descrive con un realismo unico l’universo anarchico e però desideroso di regole e di abbracci dei bambini: il gioco selvaggio, la furia distruttiva, i sensi di colpa, la gelosia bruciante, la vergogna nei confronti del proprio limite. Lo fa attraverso un stile visionario e per nulla sentimentale o bamboleggiante, ricordando un altro grande film sui bambini sempre più dimenticato, Il ragazzo selvaggio di François Truffaut con il cui protagonista Max condivide lo stesso bisogno di figure adulte che possano arginare e dare ordine a quella tempesta di sentimenti spesso discordi che è il cuore di un bambino. Antidisneyano (almeno fino all’arrivo della Pixar) nel senso che nulla è censurato o annacquato nel sentimento ma tutto è profondamente realistico: il ragazzino, facendo significativamente un percorso opposto a quello di Peter Pan, torna a casa. Il mostro caldo e goffo e incompreso che sono, l’istintività anarchica che sembra definirmi non basta. Serve una casa. E serve una mamma, che ti aspetta, magari ad occhi chiusi, esausta dopo una notte alla tua ricerca. Ma che è lì ad attenderti e che non puoi fare a meno di contemplare stupito e, finalmente, in pace, come suggerisce uno dei finali più commoventi degli ultimi anni.