Missisipi – Anni ‘30. Tre galeotti strampalati evadono dal carcere alla ricerca di un tesoro che non esiste. Lungo il loro viaggio, che è un libero omaggio all’Odissea di Omero, incontreranno una galleria di personaggi a dir poco stravaganti e vivranno una serie di avventure surreali quanto grottesche.

PER CHI

Per chi ama la commedia.. ma anche l’avventura, il western, il gangster movie, il musical, lo slapstick e il cinema muto.

Per chi crede in Dio.
Per chi crede nel Fato.
Per chi non crede né a Dio né al Fato.

Per chi difende la leggerezza, l’intelligenza e l’ironia.

Per chi ha voglia di farsi un viaggio nei miti, quelli cosmogonici dell’antica Grecia, quelli patinati del cinema Hollywoodiano e quelli “falsi” del sogno americano.

Per chi non resiste alle citazioni. Fratello dove sei? è una dichiarazione d’amore al il cinema classico Hollywoodiano, dai generi (ad esempio il gangster movie) alle scene (come quella esplicitamente ripresa da I dimenticati di Preston Sturges), ai personaggi (George Clooney, impomatato e con quell’aria da simpatica canaglia, fa l’occhiolino a Clark Gable). E gli omaggi non finiscono qui: dalla letteratura al cinema, dal mito alle leggende popolari, Fratello dove sei? è un crogiuolo di citazioni e giochi intertestuali, un vero spasso per chi voglia divertirsi a scovarli. Ad esempio: chi sarà mai Tommy Johnson, il chitarrista venuto dal nulla?

Per chi crede ancora agli eroi di un tempo. Quando Ulisse era “pio”, le sirene mezze donne e mezze pesce, Polifemo un gigante tonto con un occhio solo e Penelope stava a casa a fare la maglia.
In Fratello dove sei? Ulisse è un chiacchierone senza fede, astuto e vanitoso, le sirene donne in carne e ossa (soprattutto carne), Polifemo un ladro venditore di Bibbie violento e xenofobo e Penelope una fedifraga emancipata che dà non poco filo da torcere al di lei succube Ulysses.

Per chi vuole farsi un bagno nel profondo Missisipi della canzone popolare americana. La colonna sonora è un’enciclopedia di brani tradizionali e di successo americani, che vanno dal soul (es. Po Lazarus), al gospel (es. Down to the river to pray), al folk, al country (es. Man of Costant sorrow, Big Rock Candy Mountain, You are my sunshine), al blues.

Per (solo per) veri uomini Dapper Dan!

Arachnophobia

Arachnophobia (1990) has the tagline, “Eight legs, two fangs and an attitude,” although it’s safe to say that really doesn’t sum up the sheer terror this film creates.

Deep in the Venezuelan rainforest, a group of researchers discover a breed of spider never seen before.

One of the arachnids decides to tag along back to the researchers’ camp and kills photographer Jerry Manley (Mark L. Taylor) with a toxic bite.

Hitch-hiking in the make-shift coffin of the dead photographer, the spider arrives in small village Canaima, in California.

Mating with a normal house spider, the two create a deadly batch of killer arachnids that start terrorising Canaima’s inhabitants.

It takes new doctor in town, Ross Jennings (Jeff Daniels) – who suffers from severe arachnophobia – and resident insect terminator Delbert McClintock (John Goodman) to annihilate the creatures before they kill everybody and take over the town.

Directed by Frank Marshall, this film will make you itch and jump even if you aren’t afraid of spiders.

A bit of an oldie, but the special effects and the acting doesn’t date the film at all, and with the infusion of comedy consistent throughout, Arachnophobia is a classic thriller that feels so real it’s almost too close to home.

Holy shit man. That was my reaction after seeing this movie. Damn this was a darkass movie but shit, who am I kidding, it’s a Coen Brothers movie. Duh!

Idealistic playwright Barton Fink (John Turturro) believes writing should reveal the hopes, dreams and tragedies of the common man. When Hollywood taps him to write a movie, Fink develops severe writer’s block and soon falls victim to a strange sequence of events. Unable to combine his deep-seated ethics with Tinseltown’s frivolity, the disillusioned and desperate Fink winds up involved in a murder investigation.

The Coen Bros. know how to tell a story and as in life, stories are not all pretty and happy. All of their movies are basically all different genres rolled into one film but this one is the strangest of all: it combines film noir, really dark comedy, and a little bit of horror. This is probably one of the strangest films about Hollywood that I’ve ever seen, and mostly all films about Hollywood are strange.

The film is basically taken inside the mind of Barton Fink and you see everything and how it is for him. He gains writer’s block and that’s when things start to gay hay-wire. I liked how it was stylized with symbolism that I usually didn’t get, but I think that the Coens could have made it a little more clearer. I found myself fighting what was real and what was fiction, rather than actually watching the movie and understanding the hidden messages.

But the problem is that as the film gets stranger and stranger, I started to get more and more confused with the movie itself. There have been plenty of films with how Hollywood looks, but this is one of how it is a state of mind. The movie tries to be more mysterious than actually making sense, and although most of its main messages are brought up, I think the central message of Hollywood itself wasn’t brought up so well.

Despite the confusion, The Coen Brothers are what makes this film its best. They use lighting and a gritty setting to create the mood for the film, even without really getting deeper into the plot. I liked this and I did feel like I was some place that wasn’t safe and very psychological. It looks like it was literally filmed in the 40s, with some areas of the world and how beautifully real they actually look.

Now this cast is what will surely blow you away. John Tuturro probably plays one of his greatest roles yet as a struggling writer who gains writer’s block and just cannot get out of it, he fully captures this man and becomes enraveled in Barton Fink. The best out of the whole supporting cast is definetly John Goodman. At first he plays this lovable, sweet, kind-hearted guy that really does bring some heart to the film, but by the end that all changes and he shows that magnificentially.

One last thing about this film is that almost every minute you just have got to watch for the symbolism, cause by the end your going start wondering what was ever solved in the first place.

Consensus: Barton Fink is a very confusing and strange piece of work from The Coens, but features effective mood changes with some beautiful set designs, and two amazing lead performances from Goodman and Tuturro.

8/10=Matinee!!!

- por Bernardo Brum

A era hippie acabou e agora todos estão trabalhando. Mas você sabe, às vezes tem um homem que pode mudar tudo isso.  Sem comunistas, agora no máximo podemos acreditar no discurso deste republicano ou daquele democrata. Mas às vezes existe um homem para provar como nós todos estávamos enganados. Tudo agora é baseado no dinheiro para a caridade, para as artes plásticas ou para fortalecer a máfia da pornografia em videotape, que não sabem mais o que é cinema. Só que as vezes tem um homem que não liga, chega e destrambelha tudo.  E esse homem que eu não conheço não é ninguém importante, mas você sabe que às vezes tem um homem que… Hum, perdi o fio da meada.

Eis Jeffrey Lebowski, O Cara, exímio jogador de boliche que junto de seus incapazes amigos – o cardíaco Donny e o psicótico ex-combatente do Vietnã Walter – é tirado do seu mundo de baseados, white russians e calorosos debates nos clubes onde bolas rolam e pinos caem para fazer as vezes de Sam Spade. Ou de Philip Marlowe. Para aqueles sombrios anos pós-depressão,  o homem era Bogart, gel no cabelo, terno impecável, cigarrinho no canto da boca e frases ferinas. Nesses anos de incrível ressaca moral, nós temos que deixar isso pra lá e buscar compensação por nossos carpetes mijados e nossas fitas do Creedence.

Esse é o dilema moral do Cara. Tomado por um milionário homônimo, tendo seu carpete mijado e tendo que sair por aí atrás de uma ex-atriz pornô casada com o tal Grande Lebowski – que, segundo o próprio foi raptada por uma gangue de… niilistas? E, claro, no meio do caminho tendo que aguentar moleques arrogantes, a filha excêntrica do milionário, o síndico afetado, o pederasta mothafucka’, agiotas do mundo pornô, a polícia, um taxista que é fã do Eagles, os ataques de Walter, e lá vamos nós.

Predileção dos Coen, O Grande Lebowski é um grande filme sobre o nada, a desinformação, a estupidez e a fragilidade da vida. Só O Cara que não parece ligar sobre isso, e em momento algum ele reina soberano – o mundo faz gato e sapato de um pobre vagabundo metido em uma conspiração digna de um O Falcão Maltês ou À Beira do Abismo que, no final das contas, surgiu apenas por causa do caos que faz de nossas vidas grandes campanhas em nome de coisa alguma e que só foram empreendidas, afinal, porque nós somos estúpidos demais para fazer qualquer coisa útil. Ou preguiçosos, talvez.

Aí, uma bola de feno sendo empurrada por aí pelo vento logo transforma-se em sonhos psicodélicos envolvendo garotas gostosas vestidas de viking em uma pista de boliche, ou cinzas de um defunto sendo jogadas em nosso rosto. É tudo muito frágil, ridiculamente frágil. E é tudo muito estúpido, hilariamente estúpido. O planeta é tão rico em oxigênio quanto em burrice, e assim segue o balaio das grandes epopéias dos inúteis, por gerações. Por que, às vezes, tem um Cara para nos mostrar tudo isso. Às vezes, tem um cara para acender uns baseados e ouvir uns rockzinhos safados antes de terem a cabeça afundada na privada. Às vezes, tem… um Cara.

5/5

Ficha técnica: O Grande Lebowski (The Big Lebowski) – 1998, EUA. Dir.: Joel e Ethan Coen. Elenco: Jeff Bridges, Julianne Moore, Philip Seymour Hoffman, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi, Tara Reid, John Turturro, Flea

Walt Disney Animation Studios presents the musical THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG, an animated comedy set in the great city of New Orleans. From the creators of “The Little Mermaid” and “Aladdin” comes a modern twist on a classic tale, featuring a beautiful girl named Tiana (ANIKA NONI ROSE), a frog prince who desperately wants to be human again, and a fateful kiss that leads them both on a hilarious adventure through the mystical bayous of Louisiana.

THE PRINCESS AND THE FROG marks the return to hand-drawn animation from the revered team of John Musker and Ron Clements, with music by Oscar®-winning composer Randy Newman

Starring: Anika Noni Rose, John Goodman, Keith David, Jim Cummings, Jenifer Lewis
Director: John Musker, Ron Clements
Producer: Peter Del Vecho
Composer: Randy Newman
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures

MOVIE TRAILER :

I was sad to read today that Edward Woodward died – he of the famous quizzical expression is no more.

No one could do this face quite like him

He has a special place in my heart because watching re-runs of Callan with my older brother was a big treat each week when I was a tiddler – I could never follow what was going on and he would patiently explain. I remember thinking that he knew and understood everything about everything in the world although with hindsight I guess being 9 years older probably made it easy to give that impression to a silly little sister.

By the time The Equalizer came along I was older (but not much wiser) and I could watch without his help. Somehow it just wasn’t the same, although it was a great series and Woodward was perfect as Robert McCall, the oh-so-mysterious man of few words and all round good guy.

Robert McCall, putting right yet another wrong in atonement for his past sins

What I didn’t really catch on to at the time was the number of now famous people who starred in the series – Kevin Spacey, Adam Ant, Christian Slater, Lawrence Fishburne and John Goodman to name but a few. As if that isn’t enough the very cool and memorable theme tune was the work of Stuart Copeland, he of Police fame, alas always overshadowed by the much less cool Sting, but super-talented in my humble opinion.

Sexier than Sting and we don't have to listen to him playing the lute.

Anyway Edward Woodward is a great loss to British telly and all I can hope is that eventually some programmer will see sense and run Callan again so that I can see if I get it now without my brother’s help.

Pois já é hora de Dom Sebastião retornar e acabar com a lei do cão.

*Rei Por Acaso (King Ralph, David S. Ward, 1991)

When I reviewed Up I spoke about the fact that I’m never really all that excited to see a Pixar movie, yet when I do see them I always love them.  As that was the case with Up, it was also the case with Monsters, Inc.

While Monsters, Inc. isn’t my favorite Pixar movie, I do think it might be the one I find the funniest.  The voice acting of John Goodman and Billy Crystal really takes the cake and leaves me rolling on the floor it’s so funny.  They come across as a modern-day Laurel and Hardy.  Someone should have put these two in a movie a long time ago.

Of course being a Pixar/Disney release the Blu-Ray version of Monsters, Inc. is awesome.  The set has 4-discs.  The first two include the movie and all the great extras that always go into a Pixar release, while the third and fourth discs are the regular DVD copy of the movie and the digital copy respectively.

As expected the Blu-Ray transfer of the movie looks and sounds wonderful.  The extras included really are great.  I’m not normally one who thinks much about the extras that come on a DVD, because normally they are so disappointing.  This is not the case with Monsters, Inc. Pixar and Disney always seem to go above and beyond with the extras they pack into their Blu-Ray releases.  The two best features in my mind were the two short animated features, For The Birds, and Mike’s New Car.  Both were very funny, and almost worth paying for themselves. There is some great behind the scenes stuff as well that really lets the viewer see what goes into the making of a Pixar film.  I even enjoyed the whole behind the scenes feature on the creation of the Monsters, Inc. ride at Tokyo Disneyland.

I’m always happy anytime a Blu-Ray comes with a regular DVD or a digital copy of the movie as well.  I think it’s a very nice touch, and all Blu-Ray movies should do it.

The new 4-disc Bu-Ray collection of Monsters, Inc. is a must own for any fan of the movie of Pixar fan.

MONSTERS, INC.
Disney/Pixar’s Animated Classic Available
For the First Time in Blu-ray High Definition!
On 2-Disc Disney Blu-ray Hi Def + DisneyFile Digital Copy November 10, 2009,
Available for the SRP of $45.99

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, a recognized leader in the home entertainment industry, is the
marketing, sales and distribution company for Walt Disney, Touchstone, Hollywood Pictures, Miramax
and Buena Vista product, which includes DVD, Blu-ray Disc™ and electronic distribution. Walt Disney
Studios Home Entertainment is a division of The Walt Disney Studios

Dirección: Matt Aselton.
País: USA.
Año: 2008.
Duración: 98 min.
Género: Comedia romántica.
Interpretación: Paul Dano (Brian Weathersby), Zooey Deschanel (Harriet Lolly), Ed Asner (Sr. Weathersby), Jane Alexander (Sra. Weathersby), John Goodman (Al Lolly), Sean Dugan (Gary Wynkoop), Brain Avers (Larry Arbogast), Louis Ozawa Chang Chien (Matsubara), Frank Harts (Kenyatta Folds), Tatsuo Ichikawa (Nagata), Ilana Levine (Ducky).
Guión: Adam Nagata y Matt Aselton.
Producción: Christine Vachon y Mindy Goldberg.
Música: Roddy Bottum.
Fotografía: Peter Donahue.
Montaje: Beatrice Sisul.
Diseño de producción: Rick Butler.
Vestuario: Paola Weintraub.
Estreno en USA: 3 Abril 2009.

El argumento de “Gigantic” se centra en un vendedor de colchones (Paul Dano) que conoce a una joven mujer en su tienda (Zooey Deschanel).

Y siguiendo el ciclo comentado en el post anterior de Zooey Deschanel me tope con esta “Gigantic” del año 2008, co-protagonizada junto a Paul Dano.

La película versa en un chico de 28 años, vendedor de colchones de lujos que quiere adoptar a un niño/a chino. Siempre ha sido su sueño, su padre dice que desde pequeño.

Por otra parte, un día vendiendo colchones, le vende uno a un pez gordo y este le comenta que posteriormente pasaría su hija a acordar los plazos de pago y mensualidades. Casualmente esa hija es Zooey Deschanel, la cual se queda dormida probando la cama. Y así, empieza una relación de amistad/amor donde él se convierte en un vasallo del padre de ella y el obtiene un beneficio amoroso por parte de ella.

Los dos completos desconocidos del amor, se enganchan el uno al otro, pero el tema del niño/a chino asusta mucho a la chica que se evade de la relación hasta que un día…. (y ahí lo dejo)

PD: Lo que no entiendo de la película, es el puto vagabundo, ¿Qué cojones es?, ¿Por qué sale?
PD2: El amigo de las ratas, ¿Qué pinta?, ¿es el enlace con la escena de la piscina o simple relleno?
PD3: Verla en V.O. como digo siempre es un punto a favor hasta de la película más mala, y las buenas, aunque raras, las hace mejores.

[The National Center for Policy Analysis (www.ncpa.org) has a plethora of resources, but the healthcare issue is one of their strongest.  Please consider requesting their newsletter (this is a copy of an update) and  please also ponder equally how much your donation is needed at this time in the fight against government intrusion.]

Want to hear a little good news? Thanks to the efforts of Policy Patriots just like you, we’ve sent more than 210,000 letters to Congress in the last three weeks against government run health care. In this public policy war of attrition, a sustained campaign – in the form of hundreds of thousands of letters and a petition supported by 1.34 million Americans – is what will ultimately win the fight against government-run health care. Thanks for your continued support and let’s keep up the fight!

Poll Deaf. If you feel ignored by the House of Representatives, you’re not alone. A Rasmussen Reports poll this week reaffirmed that more Americans oppose (52%) health care legislation than favor (45%) it. Nevertheless, as last Saturday’s legislative spectacle attests, Speaker Pelosi is still singing the health care tune.

Go Directly to Jail.  As you know, in the 1,990-page bill that squeaked (220-215) out of the House on Saturday there’s plenty of bad policy to fill this letter (and several more). What you may not know is that failing to comply with the new requirements in this legislation could land you in jail – for up to five years!

The most appalling effect of the Affordable Health Care for America Act is the extent of control which the federal government would exercise over individual health care decisions. The legislation requires you to purchase health insurance, whether you need it or want it, and dictates the parameters of your policy. What’s more, failure to purchase insurance would result in a slew of fines and, as this letter from the Joint Committee on Taxation makes clear, failure to pay the fines would result in criminal penalties including “a fine of up to $250,000 and/or imprisonment of up to five years.”

AARP: Abandoning Seniors, Advancing AARP. In apparent disregard for the interests of senior citizens, the AARP supported the House health care bill, including the following provisions:

• $500 billion in overall budget cuts for Medicare.
• $170 billion in budget cuts for Medicare Advantage-the program’s entire budget-leaving 12 million American seniors with fewer health care options.
• A 20% cut in doctor’s pay, forcing doctors to take on more patients and spend less time with each person in their care.

Why would the AARP endorse legislation which so clearly hurts the interests of senior citizens? You decide! For facts on how you will be affected by this legislation, click on this link to get the facts.

FIGHT BACK! The next stop on the runaway train known as ObamaCare is the floor of the United States Senate. Help us derail Ms. Pelosi’s health care legislation by writing your Senators. The American people deserve better than what’s coming down the tracks and you can help put a stop to it. Click on the link below and send a letter to Congress telling them to JUST SAY NO to health care legislation.

http://www.capitolconnect.com/freeourhealthcarenow/

Already sent a letter? No problem – a new letter is on the website, ready for your signature!

The NCPA maintains a wealth of educational and resource material including better alternatives to government-run health care:

John Goodman’s Health Care Plan:
http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/health_plan112007.pdf

Health Care Solutions:
http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/Health_Care_Solutions_072909.pdf

Five Steps to a Better Health Care System:
http://www.ncpa.org/pdfs/Five_Steps_to_a_Better_Health_Care_System_Web.pdf

Dr. John Goodman’s Blog – Current, up-to date information on the debate:
www.john-goodman-blog.com

Heartland Institute’s Health Care Solutions:
http://www.chcchoices.org

Thank you again for your support of the “Free Our Health Care NOW!” and for fighting against government-run health care. This is a fight worth fighting and a fight we can win!

Jeanette Nordstrom
National Center for Policy Analysis
www.ncpa.org

[Be sure to at least take a look at the letter from the JCT, because this WILL affect YOU: http://republicans.waysandmeans.house.gov/UploadedFiles/JCTletter110509.pdf]

More:

http://healthcare.ncpa.org/

Big Lebowski, The (1998)
★★★ / ★★★★

I usually don’t like screwball comedies because the characters are stupid without any sort of redeeming qualities, the jokes are rude and sometimes mean-spirited, the story has no idea where to go, and I quickly get bored watching them because they fail to get me to think. Strangely enough, I enjoyed “The Big Lebowski,” written and directed by the Coen brothers, because of such qualities except for the fact that it is far from mean-spirited. Jeff Bridges stars as The Dude, whose real name was Jeffrey Lebowski, a guy who was mistaken by two miscreants as the millionaire Lebowski. Since the two didn’t get what they wanted from The Dude, one of them decided to pee on his carpet. What started off as a story about a slacker who wanted compensation for his carpet ended up being about a lot of things: a kidnapped woman (Tara Reid), an artist who had intentions of her own (Julianne Moore), nihilists who craved money, and the dynamics among bowling buddies (Steve Buscemi and John Goodman). All of such disparate elements came to together in a way that didn’t necessarily make sense–in fact, sometimes I had no idea what was going on–but it was very funny because each character was driven by well-defined motivations (no matter how strange they might have been). I did not expect this kind of movie from the Coen brothers because I’m more familiar with their thrillers (“No Country for Old Men,” “Blood Simple”) and dark comedies (“Intolerable Cruelty,” “Fargo”), but after watching the film I was glad that I got a taste of their lighter side. The only real complaint I had with this picture was it had no reason to run for almost two hours long. Somewhere after the half-way point, I began to wonder when it was going to be over because at that point it still did not try to put the pieces of the puzzle together. The characters were still too busy running around like children and it made me restless. Nevertheless, despite its flaws, I still enjoyed watching this movie because of the characters’ funny fixations and interesting mistaken identities. And considering I detest stoner comedies, I think it’s a solid accomplishment.

Un film del 2009, regia di Ron Clements, con John Goodman / Keith David / Jenifer Lewis / Anika Noni Rose. Prodotto da Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Italia ()

Animazione / Commedia / Musicale / Ragazzi / Romantico

Tiana è una giovane ragazza afroamericana che vive nel quartiere francese di New Orleans. La ragazza si troverà a vivere un’avventura fuori del comune sulle rive del Mississippi, circondata da divertenti personaggi tra cui un coccodrillo canterino.

♥ “Mammoth”

In this indie movie, Gael Garcia Bernal (“Y Tu Mama Tambien”) and Michelle Williams (“Brokeback Mountain”) play a couple whose lives start unraveling when Bernal flirts with infidelity on a business trip in Thailand.

The story also focuses on their live-in Filipino nanny, which is exciting since very few Filipino actors breakthrough in Hollywood. “Mammoth” even features subtitles for the actors speaking the Tagalog language. With more than 1,000 votes on IMDb.com, the film has received a 7 out of 10 rating.

♥ “Salt”

This espionage thriller was originally set to have a male lead, but when Tom Cruise (“Collateral”) dropped out of the project, the role was re-written for Angelina Jolie (“Girl, Interrupted”), naturally. Jolie is Evelyn Salt, a CIA agent, who is framed for a plot to murder the president. She must prove her innocence while on the run from authorities. Leaps unto buses ensue.

♥ “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time”

Jake Gyllenhaal (“Jarhead”) stars in this adaptation of a video game where he, along with a princess (Gemma Arterton from “Quantum of Solace”), must stop a villain from unleashing a sandstorm that could destroy the world.

It sounds lame when you put it like that, but from the trailers, it looks like the film has a good dose of comedy. It’s even produced by powerhouse Jerry Bruckheimer (“Pirates of the Carribean”). Sir Ben Kingsley (“Gandhi”) and Alfred Molina (“Spider-man 2″) also star. Catch the domestic and international trailers after the jump:

♥ “Brothers”

Lionsgate and Relativity Media previously released a trailer for “Brothers,” which I posted here. This is the second trailer of the drama, which stars Tobey Maguire (“Spider-man”), Natalie Portman (“Closer”) and Gyllenhaal.  It’s better if you view it without reading a synopsis first, so take a look:

♥ “The Road”

It’s based on Cormac McCarthy’s novel which tells of the end of the world. Hardly anyone is left but Viggo Mortensen (“A History of Violence”), Charlize Theron (“North Country”) and their son, newcomer Kodi Smit-McPhee. Guy Pearce (“Memento”) and Robert Duvall co-star. Dimension Films has also released two trailers for this Oscar contender. They are distinctly different as one is more dreary than the other. See for yourself:

♥ “The Princess and the Frog”

Disney is going back to its roots with this animated movie. Beating the likes of singers Jennifer Hudson and Alicia Keys, Anika Rose (“Dreamgirls”) as well as Terrence Howard (“Hustle and Flow”) and John Goodman (“Coyote Ugly”) voice the characters. A teaser trailer and full trailer below:

♥ ”The Wolfman”

Check out a horror film that boasts of Emily Blunt (“The Devil Wears Prada”), Benicio del Toro (“Traffic”), Anthony Hopkins (“Silence of the Lambs”) and Hugo Weaving (“Lord of the Rings”):

♥ “Inception”

Here’s a film that’s been kept under wraps so much so that all IMDb.com states is this: “Corporations have developed a technology to enter dreams to extract information from certain people’s heads. A CEO (Leonardo DiCaprio) enters dreams and things begin to escalate, taking a turn for the worst.”

The buzz surrounding “Inception” is mostly due to its director, Christopher Nolan, who also did “The Dark Knight” and “Memento.” However, I’m watching it for one of my favorite actresses, Ellen Page (“Juno”). Marion Cotillard (“The Diving Bell and the Butterfly”), Michael Caine (Miss Congeniality”), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (“Brick”) and Cillian Murphy (“Batman Begins”) are in it as well.

♥ “Green Zone”

Although it’s by the same people who brought us “The Bourne” movies, I think some would hesitate to watch it since it’s another war movie. Still, Matt Damon gives it some star power.

♥ “Invictus”

Damon is one hot commodity as he also stars in this Clint Eastwood film, otherwise known as an Oscar contender. Based on a true story, Damon plays the captain of a rugby team who is enlisted by Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) to win, thus, uniting the country. Prepare to hear Damon speak with a South African accent …

♥ “Gentlemen Broncos”

Some have have predicted that “Broncos” will be a cult hit, perhaps in the same vein as “Napoleon Dynamite.” (They have the same director.) “Broncos” is a comedy about a science fiction author who steals the idea of a student (Michael Angarano from “Will and Grace”) for his next book. Jennifer Coolidge (“Legally Blonde”) is also in the movie, playing Angarano’s mom.

♥ “A Single Man”

Colin Firth (“Bridget Jones’s Diary”) plays a gay man who tries to carry on after the death of his partner. Julianne Moore (“Children of Men”) joins Firth, who is a potential Oscar nominee. Based on Christopher Isherwood’s novel, I must say the trailer is pretty original. It eerily plays on with no words the entire time. The film itself received an 8.6 rating on IMDb.com.

♥ “New Moon”

As the second part in the “Twilight” saga, we find  Bella (Kristen Stewart) left to gather the pieces with Jacob (Taylor Lautner) since the vampire Edward (Robert Pattinson) left her. This time around, Stewart finds herself among werewolves and vampire royalty, the Volturi.

♥ “The Book of Eli”

Denzel Washington (“Man on Fire”) stars in this action movie set in yet another future depicting the end of the world. To salvage what’s left, Washington has to protect a sacred book. Mila Kunis (“That ’70s Show”) co-stars.

♥ “Nowhere Boy”

I don’t know why, but this feels like the most refreshing trailer out of the bunch. ”Nowhere Boy” is John Lennon (newcomer Aaron Johnson) of The Beatles. It chronicles the band’s beginnings and Lennon’s life. Kristin Scott Thomas (“Life as a House”) is part of the supporting cast.

♥ “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus”

Perhaps better known as Heath Ledger’s (“The Dark Knight”) last film, Dr. Parnassus (Christopher Plummer) strikes a deal with the devil, trading in his daughter at the age of 16. Parnassus tries to rectify his mistake by offering his daughter’s hand in marriage to whoever can help him. Jude Law (“Closer”), Colin Farrell (“Minority Report”) and Johnny Depp (“Blow”) all stepped in to finish Ledger’s role.

♥ “When in Rome”

In this romantic comedy, Kristen Bell (“Forgetting Sarah Marshall”) takes some coins out of a fountain only to have the men who threw them in fall for her. The lovesick puppies include Josh Duhamel (“Transformers”), Will Arnett (“Blades of Glory”), Jon Heder (“Napoleon Dynamite”) and Bell’s real-life beau, Dax Shepard (“Baby Mama”).

♥ “Dear John”

Another Nicholas Sparks’s book, another movie adaptation. By now, I should know better than to fall for Sparks’s sap, but the trailer was enchanting. Channing Tatum (“Stop Loss”) and Amanda Seyfried (“Nine Lives”) fall in love, but Tatum, a soldier, has to return to war. *Tear*

♥ “Pirate Radio” (aka “The Boat that Rocked”)

Richard Curtis, the man behind the darling “Love Actually,” brings a new movie to the big screen. The film already has more than 11,000 voters rating it 7.6 out of 10 stars. “Radio” is a comedy about DJs who air their show on the high seas. Oscar winner Philip Seymour Hoffman (“Doubt”) joins the ensemble cast.

♥ “The Messenger”

IMDb users give this movie 8.6 stars. “Messenger” centers on the soldiers, Woody Harrelson (“Zombieland”) and Ben Foster (“Alpha Dog”), who are tasked with notifying the loved ones of their fallen comrades. Things are complicated when Foster gets involved with a soldier’s widow. Acclaimed actresses, Samantha Morton (“Minority Report”) and Jena Malone (“Stepmom”), round out the cast.

♥ “Alice in Wonderland”

This Tim Burton film hasn’t been released yet, but it’s already won an award. “Alice” was proclaimed the Most Anticipated Fantasy Film at the 2009 Scream Awards. If that still doesn’t convince you to see it, Oscar nominees Anne Hathaway (“Rachel Getting Married”) and Depp are in the movie.

A Volta do Todo Poderoso

Vocês se lembram de “Todo Poderoso”, aquele filme onde o Jim Carrey ganhava poderes de Deus, vivido por Morgan Freeman? Bem, nem todos se lembram que Steve Carell era coadjuvante naquele filme. E Carell volta ao mesmo papel, ao lado do mesmo Morgan Freeman, neste “A Volta do Todo Poderoso”.

Evan (Steve Carell) recebe de Deus (Freeman) a tarefa de construir uma arca, como a de Noé. A partir daí, animais, sempre em dupla, passam a seguí-lo e bagunçar a sua vida.

Dirigido pelo mesmo Tom Shadyac do primeiro filme, “A Volta do Todo Poderoso” não é lá grandes coisas, principalemente por se tratar de uma continuação sem o ator principal do filme original. Mesmo assim não chega a ser um filme ruim, algumas cenas são até engraçadas – heu gostei da dancinha que Evan faz! No elenco, além dos já citados, ainda temos  Lauren Graham e John Goodman.

Ainda fazem filmes com cara de sessão da tarde…

Movie of the Month:

Confessions of a Shopaholic

Okay, so this movie is not particularly new. We never specified that it was going to be NEW stuff. Besides, our local movie theater just shut down, so…. We are going to be doing a trip along memory lane for awhile until we gather enough courage (and gas money) to go 45 minutes away just to see a movie.

Anyway, Confessions of a Shopaholic is about a struggling journalist with an addiction to shopping. She has not come to terms with this addiction, but it definitely exists as her room continues to be filled from floor to ceiling with unneeded things. Of course, she has maxed out all 12 of her credit cards, and is being chased by a debt collector by the name of Derek Smeath. To top this all off, she was fired from her job, rejected a position she had been wanting her entire life, and hired to write for a magazine about finance and saving. Of course, as all chick flicks go, she falls head-over-heels (Gucci Platform heels, that is) for her boss and gains fame by writing a genius article about getting tricked into buying low-quality items. She goes by the Pen name “The Girl in the Green Scarf” but, you’ll have to watch the movie yourself to find out the rest of the details.

This is a very fun movie, and it gets a Jack Rating of 4/5 just because the main character annoys me in the slightest way and I feel like tough grading today. The movie is filled with one-liners which are perfect for a few inside jokes with your friends for at least a few weeks. It goes highly recommended by us here at Top Hat Press. Besides, if you don’t see it, then… I’m not sure that your life will be as complete.

-JackAttacksMoviesLikeGrandmaAttacksRibbonCandy(THP)

Halloween movie night, part 1 of 2

Data
Title: Monsters, Inc.
Year: 2001
Length: 92 minutes
Directors: Pete Docter, David Silverman & Lee Unkrich
Writers: Andrew Stanton & Daniel Gerson, with Robert L. Baird, Rhett Reese & Jonathan Roberts, story by Pete Docter, Jill Culton, Jeff Pidgeon & Ralph Eggleston
Starring: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Mary Gibbs, Steve Buscemi, James Coburn
Music: Randy Newman
Distinctions: Oscar for Best Song (“If I Didn’t Have You”); currently #242 on IMDb’s Top 250

My reaction
Synopsis: a human toddler sneaks through her closet into the monster world
How I saw it: in the theater, 2001; on video many times (have on DVD), most recently yesterday
Concept: Indifferent.
Story: Great.
Characters: Great.
Dialog: Great.
Pacing: Great.
Cinematography: Great.
Special effects/design: Great.
Acting: Good. Okay from the voices, great from the animators.
Music: Good.
Subjective Rating: 9/10 (One of my favorites). It’s remarkable how re-watchable this remains after all these years.
Objective Rating: 9/10 (Very good).

Dragonfly Boatworks has a friend in the film business who has just
released a very cool movie called Alabama Moon starring John Goodman with an
exceptional cast.

Alabama Moon is a journey of discovery.   A journey that brings a young boy into contact with people his own age for the first time in his life.  A journey that quickly leads a young boy into trouble with the outside world.  Alabama Moon is something of a “throw-back” film.  It’s refreshingly free of helicopter searches, infrared scopes and night vision.

Anyone who has ever wandered into the woods or wet a line can get the revised spirit of discovery.

Go to the website  www.alabamamoonthemovie.net/en/home.php to watch the trailer.

If you like what you see and want to see more,

sign the petition www.petitiononline.com/almoon98/petition.html to bring it to where you live.

]]> http://politicaldoc.wordpress.com/2009/10/29/coulter-and-goodman-agree-the-opt-out-plan-sucks/ Thu, 29 Oct 2009 15:44:46 +0000 politicaldoc http://politicaldoc.wordpress.com/2009/10/29/coulter-and-goodman-agree-the-opt-out-plan-sucks/

Ann Coulter simply states the case:  a state can only opt out of the benefits of Obamacare;  every citizen will have to pay the costs of the opt-out healthcare plan for everyone else.

http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=34179

For a more scholarly, academic but excellent evalution of the crapulous  opt out plan from economist John Goodman:   http://www.john-goodman-blog.com/the-baucus-bill-explained/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=emai

Heritage Foundation:

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FEATURED VIDEO Heritage senior fellow in national security affairs Peter Brookes discusses Afghanistan and Iraq. More videos October 28, 2009 | By Amanda Reinecker ‘Gigantic, unintelligible, unaffordable, over-regulatory, federal legislation’ After 13 days of secret, closed-door negotiations on health care legislation, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) announced Monday that he had reached an agreement with Senators Chris Dodd (D-MT) and Max Baucus (D-CT), and three top administration officials. Unfortunately, Senator Reid did not tell the American people much else. Even many lawmakers remain in the dark regarding the outcome of this “secret deal that Senator Reid wants to get passed and signed into law ‘this year,’” writes Heritage Senate Relations expert Brian Darling. Mitch McConnell, the Senate minority leader, summed it up: “It will be a thousand-page, trillion-dollar bill that raises premiums, raises taxes and slashes Medicare for our seniors to create new government spending programs. That’s not reform.” Even as some of the final details of the bill do go public, it is likely that lawmakers won’t know in advance entirely what it is they are voting on. This is because the legislation the Senate Finance Committee “agreed” to — all 1,502 pages of it — is the most massive piece of legislation ever introduced by Congress. But length isn’t the only record the “America’s Healthy Future Act of 2009″ claims, as Heritage health policy analyst Ed Haislmaier notes. “For the first time in fifteen years, [Congress] has set a new all-time division record for gigantic, unintelligible, unaffordable, over-regulatory, federal legislation.” What we do know about Reid’s ’secret deal’ Although Senator Reid did not go into great detail about the health care “reform” legislation, he did mention that bill includes a government-run health insurance “option” that would “compete” against private health plans. In an attempt to gain much-needed support from skeptical moderates in both parties, liberals have added a new twist to the “public option”: a provision allowing states to opt out of the program. This would require states to pass legislation by 2014 rejecting participation in the federal government run plan. But this new wrinkle is really more of the same, warns Heritage health policy analyst Nina Owcharenko. “This latest Senate ploy creates the illusion of an ‘option’ rather than making any fundamental changes to the controversial proposal.” Owcharenko explains why this “opt-out” model is just another government-run plan that is guaranteed to fail: States can only opt-out of the government-run plan, not the entire bill. But the rest of the bill contains hundreds of provisions, such as the expansion of Medicaid, which will place major financial burdens on the states. It is still a government-run plan because the government will require non-participating states to meet federal conditions. These government-determined conditions could include the creation of state-level public options that mirror the federal plan. States will likely select the public “option” because of the bureaucracy and enormous administrative complexity required for a state opt-out. Federal conditions will limit states’ ability to create alternatives. State innovation will suffer under the massive health care proposal’s employer and individual mandates, and government micromanagement of an industry that represents one-sixth of our economy. So even though the states would be able to “opt out” of the government-run health insurance program, the federal government will make it very difficult to do so. And for the few states that do succeed in withdrawing, the government will still dominate their health care systems. A true state “opt-out” provision would allow states to opt out of the bill in its entirety, argues Owcharenko. “Any other opt-out is just another shell game that is intended to appear as a concession but in reality provides for greater federal control and blocks much needed structural changes.” > Other Heritage work of note “If Congress wanted to make real progress” on immigration reform, Heritage President Ed Feulner advises, “it should embrace the KISS principle: Keep it Simple, Stupid.” For example, rather than trying to completely overhaul immigration policy all at once, lawmakers should gradually introduce policies that would achieve real reform and advance America’s interests. Feulner recommends that Congress work to strengthen the E-Verify program, a cost-effective and proven way for employers to ensure that they are operating within the law by hiring only legal residents. And he urges lawmakers to consider a genuine temporary worker program — not just another form of amnesty — that would allow foreign workers to reside in the United States for a short period. President Obama’s “plans for the Pentagon are awfully reminiscent of Carter’s defense program,” writes Heritage national security expert James Carafano. Unfortunately, many of Carter’s policies of soft diplomacy and military cutbacks made the U.S. a vulnerable target in the eyes of her enemies — and the danger is that we could face these dangers again today. “Unless the nation seems firmly committed to backing [rhetoric] with some hard muscle,” argues Carafano, “those with no love of America will interpret the rhetoric as the vapid mooings of a nation in retreat.” “Because Fox dares to report news critical of the administration, President Obama has instituted a White House boycott of the network,” writes Heritage expert Brian Darling. And while the White House heaps abuse on its critics, the administration its heaping taxpayer money on its allies. For example, $250,000 from the so-called “stimulus” package has been assigned to a National Resource Center for Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders. The Obama administration’s plan to send a $250 check to every senior — nominally to offset the lack of a cost-of-living increase — would cost future generations about $13 billion. “With [Social Security] already facing massive unfunded deficits in the decades ahead, the proposed giveaway is exactly the wrong approach,” writes Heritage President Ed Feulner. > In other news The United Nations is looking into pricey housing markets, such as those in New York City, and investigating whether such expensive locations violate the “right to affordable housing.” A Los Angeles man has been arrested on “suspicious circumstances of a miscarriage” of a 13-week-old fetus believed to be his. If he is charged with murder, the case could reignite the controversy over when human life begins. Two suicide bombers struck Baghdad over the weekend, killing 155 people in the worst bombing in two years. Meanwhile, President Obama recently reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to withdrawing its troops from the country. The U.S. dollar continues to slip as the Euro and Chinese Yen increase in value. Conservatives still outnumber liberals and moderates, according to a Gallup poll. The most recent poll found that 40 percent of Americans identified themselves as conservative while only 20 percent said they were liberal. Amanda Reinecker is a writer for MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation. Nathaniel Ward, the Editor of MyHeritage.org, contributed to this report.

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My foot did NOT go over the line! It counts as a strike!

(Jimmie Dale Gilmore, Steve Buscemi, Jeff Bridges and John Goodman)

Picture by: dunno source Caption by: Darklion via Our LOL Builder

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Un film del 2009, regia di Ron Clements, con John Goodman / Keith David / Jenifer Lewis / Anika Noni Rose. Prodotto da Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Italia ()

Animazione / Commedia / Musicale / Ragazzi / Romantico

Tiana è una giovane ragazza afroamericana che vive nel quartiere francese di New Orleans. La ragazza si troverà a vivere un’avventura fuori del comune sulle rive del Mississippi, circondata da divertenti personaggi tra cui un coccodrillo canterino.