Che fine hanno fatto i Morgan? è un film di Marc Lawrence del 2009

Leggi altre notizie su: | Hugh Grant | Sarah Jessica Parker | Sam Elliott | Mary Steenburgen |

Romantic-comedy regulars Hugh Grant and Sarah Jessica Parker finally unite in this fish-out-of-water laugher. The actors play Paul and Meryl Morgan, a Manhattan couple whose marriage is in danger. But it turns out all they may need is a change of scenery: when the Morgans witness a murder and are sent by the government to small-town Wyoming to hide from the killers, their marriage shows signs of recovery. DID YOU HEAR ABOUT THE MORGANS? also stars Sam Elliott, Mary Steenburgen, and Elisabeth Moss.

Starring: Hugh Grant, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sam Elliott, Mary Steenburgen, Elizabeth Moss, Michael Kelly, Wilford Brimley
Director: Marc Lawrence
Screenwriter: Marc Lawrence
Producer: Martin Shafer, Liz Glotzer
Studio: Sony Pictures Entertainment

MOVIE TRAILER :

Elliot? Elliott? Eliot? It’s a harder name to spell than you think. After all, who remembers if there’s one L or two? One T or two? And I never know where to look to find out how to spell Sam Elliott and Elliott Gould. I just know not to trust Yahoo! Movies:

and Yahoo! TV:

Young Lyra (Dakota Blue Richards) finds an unlikely bodyguard -- Lorek the Ice Bear (Sir Ian McKellan) -- in "The Golden Compass."

Peter Jackson, listen up: Just because a film details an epic adventure doesn’t mean it has to last three hours. That’s right, J.R.R. Tolkien fans “The Golden Compass,” a likable, visually impressive adaptation of Philip Pullman’s 1995 bestseller, has all the intrigue of Jackson’s “Lord of the Rings” trilogy but none of the yawn-inducing running times. If anything, “The Golden Compass,” which clocks in at just under two hours, ends too soon, leaving viewers eager, right then and there, for more. (Call me batty, but this reviewer can’t remember a single person leaving a “LOTR” film and remarking, “Gee, that movie ended way, way too soon.”)

“The Golden Compass,” though, does weave a fairly complex plot which requires some explanation. At the heart of the film is Lyra Belacqua (Dakota Blue Richards), a spritely young girl and prankster who spends her days scaling the rooftops of the university where her uncle, Lord Asriel (Daniel Craig), teaches. Her carefree days come to an abrupt end, though, when she meets icy Marisa Coulter (Nicole Kidman), agrees to travel with her to the North and discovers Coulter is part of a sinister underground organization that kidnaps and experiments on young children including Lyra’s best friend Roger (Ben Williams). Lyra makes it her mission to rescue Roger, and she gathers a unique assortment of helpers along the way. There’s Lee Scoresby (the always watchable, husky-voiced Sam Elliott), a tough-as-nails pilot; Iorek Byrnison (Ian McKellen), a gruff “polar bear for hire” of sorts; and Serafina Pekkala (Eva Green), a mysterious but good-hearted witch. Helpful, too, is Lyra’s alethiometer, or golden compass, which reveals the true answer to any question … and only Lyra possesses the power to use it.

Like any book-to-film adaptation, some things in “The Golden Compass” get lost in translation. There are potentially intriguing, rich characters (like Scoresby and Pekkala in particular) about whom we know very little; they feel like collateral damage in the effort to pare down length. The most controversial element of Pullman’s book — the figurative “death of God” in society — gets watered down, perhaps to increase the film’s marketability. As reimagined by director Chris Weitz, “The Golden Compass” is a film about the quest for truth and knowledge (called “dust”), a quest the ruling body (dubbed the Magisterium) would kill to stop. This concept works swimmingly in a coming-of-age movie like this, but the blunting of the book’s sharpness is disappointing nonetheless.

However, these are minor quibbles with a movie that’s as thought-provoking as it is thrilling to watch. The animation is well-done and occasionally inspired, particularly the scene where two polar bears battle for rights to a kingdom — perhaps the tensest moment in “The Golden Compass.” The acting is solid as well, with Kidman perfectly cast as the frigidly menacing Coulter and Elliott sinking his teeth into what might have been a throwaway bit part. Roberts is a major find, a plucky young talent with an expressive, open face and a Tom Sawyer-like curiosity about the world. She’s one to watch.

There’s little doubt that there will be people (aren’t there always?) who won’t see “The Golden Compass” because they believe it’s a dangerous work of heresy. What a shame that is, for this stunningly beautiful, intelligent adaptation is meant to be experienced. The film is not some bitter, topsy-turvy argument in favor of atheism. No, “The Golden Compass” is a grand journey, a film that reminds us, gently and quietly, that the quest for knowledge, for truth and purpose, must be an individual pursuit. And ultimately, the idea explored in “The Golden Compass” is a familiar, timeless one: Is the unexamined life really worth living? Plato knew that, but viewers will have to decide for themselves. There are no pat answers to be found here. Still, that’s not bad for a film where nothing gets pitched into a volcano (sorry, Tolkienites).

Grade: B+

Goddamn you Walter! You fuckin’ asshole! Everything’s a fuckin’ travesty with you, man! And what was all that shit about Vietnam? What the FUCK, has anything got to do with Vietnam? What the fuck are you talking about?

– The Dude

The #158 Movie of All Time on IMDb: The Big Lebowski has been a divisive film since its release in 1998. Some people have since it and dismissed as garbage, upon a second viewing they loved it. This is the first time that I have seen it. I am tittering between it being pure genius and pretentious bullshit.

The unemployed bum simply known as “The Dude” (Jeff Bridges) becomes the anti-hero of this story. Being mistaken for a millionaire that share his real name Jeff Lebowski (David Huddleston), a pair of thugs rough him up. During the encounter, one of the thugs pees on his “prized” rug.

The Dude seeks out the other Lebowski to get him to pay for the rug. This action leads to chain of events that spiral out of control. Lebowski and his manservant, Brandt (Philip Seymour Hoffman) want to get Lebowski’s young wife, Bunny (Tara Reid) back who has been kidnapped.

The Dude is mixed up with a trio of nihilists (Peter Stormare, Flea, Torsten Voges), a pornographer, Jackie Treehorn (Ben Gazzara), Lebowski’s feminist daughter, Maude (Julianne Moore) who all want something from him. There is also his bowling buddies, Walter (John Goodman) and Donny (Steve Buscemi) that want to occupy his time.

This movie is a mind fuck. You wonder when the ending credits start; did the Coens take LSD when they conceived of the movie? In the beginning, the characters carried on some inane conversations that go around in circles. It infuriated me. “We get it! Move on.”

The sequences go from dark to slapstick to tripped out. I had no idea what I was watching. I tried to make some sense out of it. I concluded with this.

At the core of this movie, you have to understand that every character is living in their own universe. They are self-absorbed, needy, and selfish. The only way the monotonous conversations make any sense is that nobody is listening to each other. Perhaps for a split second before they launch into their polemics about urine soaked rugs, mistaken identity and bowling etiquette.

My mind needs time to digest what I seen.

Judgment: This movie should be watched more than once to understand it fully.

Rating: ***1/2 (with wiggle room)

Sam and Tom venture into the world of Surrogates for no good reason, but emerge stronger for the experience fails to kill us. We move on talk of justice and Roman Polanski, to David Cronenberg remaking himself and to drawing a new career path for Tarantino. Next, the boys all convene to talk about a multitude of documentaries and the pilots of FlashForward and Bored to Death. The conclusion comes in tribute to Patrick Swayze, celebrating him in Road House and Point Break.

Download The Movie Overdose Episode 36

Show notes will follow in a later post.

Well folks, it’s been a while since my last post and frankly I have to say that that’s a cosmic shame.  It’s been a busy month and I’d like to start this post with a quick recap of what’s going on in my little universe.

Editor’s Note: Those of you afflicted with a strong case of “I DON’T GIVE A FUCK!”, please feel free to scroll down to a more ‘appealing’ area of the page.

First off, I’m back in Toronto and all settled in at my new base of operations and temporary Brough-Cave for the time being. Film school has already begun its draining of my spirit and soul as I am currently burried in projects( although, one is pretty badass but I’ll save the details of that for a later day) and praying for death. This urge is only slightly accelerated by the fact that I just can’t seem to stay remotely in “good” health for more than a day since I arrived in this berg. Blame it on Captain Trips I guess.

That’s another thing, this damn H1N1, Swine Flu, SuperFlu, whatever you call it is, is ridiculous. I can’t go anywhere without someone coughing or sneezing and I feel like in the last month I’ve had every varriation of the common cold with a differing symptoms reigning supreme over each day. I feel like I can’t even break wind without contracting something( cue the gay STD joke!). I knew things were really bad when a program who makes it specificly clear that for every day we miss we lose 5% of our final mark and if we miss 6 days of class we can be ejected from the course, tells us to just stay home if we’re feeling unwell. You have to understand that this is the same course wanted me to produce a doctors note when I was late for scriptwriting because I knocked myself near unconsciouness and didn’t feel I was up to attending class. How did that happen you ask? Well, let me let you in on a perfect recipe for catastrophe:

1. Set your alarm clock as far away from your bed as possible the night before.

2. Have one of your legs go into an excruciatingly painful muscle spasm 1 hour before the alarm time.

3. Jump out of bed ON TO said spasmed leg in a hurry to shut off alarm once it goes off.

4. Have leg give out in pain, causing you to plummet head first into the corner of a mini fridge before the rest of your body collapses to the floor.

You really think a doctor would take time to write that shit out? So as you can see, it became fairly obvious that they needed to keep the spread of disease as low key as possible, even if it meant they’d have to go back on their own crazy rules. Hurray for Hipocrasy and Health teaming together for the greater good!

Now that I’ve exhausted my ‘me’ complex, or for the time being at least, let’s get back to the usual pop culture bullshit these blogs usually center around. To get the ball rolling, here are some quick reviews of films I’ve had time to get around to watching lately.

Inglorious Basterds 5/5 Maybe it was the spaghetti western style or Pitt’s sexy stache, either way it was beyond awesome

District 9  4/5 Amazing special effects, human combustion, and a full aresenal of weaponary that, even though comparable to Turok and Doom, ends up STILL being bested by the almighty .50 Cal

Extract 3/5   It was nice watching a smart comedy without the usual easy laughs of an Apatow film.

The Informant 4.5/5 A great character study that keeps you going “Are you fucking KIDDING ME?!” near the end.

Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 3.5/5   It’s funny, it’s visually appealing, and I pray to God it will mean that Phil Lord and Christopher Miller will have made enough money to bring back Clone High.

The Haunted World of El Superbeasto 3/5  This movie is insane. Finally, a dirty cartoon feature for our generation. Taking a page from Ralph Bakshi, Rob Zombie here makes crisp toon adventure filled with sex and violence and possibly the greatest soundtrack I’ve heard in a while.

While we’re still on the topic of film, I want to bring up a serious topic that I’m sure everyone has been discussing lately.  As we all know, somebody finally put baby in the corner when Patrick Swayze passed away this month. In memory the late great Swayzemeister I watched Roadhouse, the film that qualified him to be called a certifiable ‘badass’. But you know who the real badass of that movie? Sam “Greatest Mustache of All-Time” Elliott. There is no other voice more iconic than that of Sam Elliott nor one that shares the same ability of being able bring all attention to it. You could be running down the street screaming in agony, your body engulfed in flame, and the INSTANT Sam Elliott would open his mouth and begin to speak you would go silent, stop dead in tracks, sit down, and stare intently listening to his every word. The man eminates an aura of respectability and wisdom that is unmatched.

On the topic of badassery, here’s a crazy co-winky-dink! I’m currently watching John Wayne’s “True Grit” , which the Coen Brothers are supposedly going to remake, which they want Jeff Bridges to play Rooster Cogburn in, making this is second film with the Coen Brothers since Big Lebowski… that also featued Sam Elliott! WHOOOOOAAAAAAA!!!! Neat.

To wrap this up quick I have update on the beard situation. As of right now, the polls are still open to vote on what furry facial express I should rock for the time being. Infact, they will be open till December 1st as I will be exterminating any facial hair on November 1st in support of NoSHAVEmber. Yes, yes, it will be heart breaking but it will all be for a good cause and will leave many options to work with once the month has come to its end.

So leave some comments and keep reading as I will be posting more gibberish in the future,

Your Brother In Arms

-The B

According to Variety, Leonardo DiCaprio will be starring in The Deep Blue Goodbye for 20th Century Fox. The film will be an adaptation of the John D. MacDonald mystery novel series. Apparantly Robert Downey Jr was once circling the project but he then got wrapped up in Sherlock Holmes.

Producing the project are Peter Chernin, Appian Way’s DiCaprio and Jennifer Davisson Killoran. The script was written by Dana Stevens. No director is yet attached.

DiCaprio will play Travis McGee. McGee is a self-described beach bum who won his houseboat in a card game. He’s also a knight errant who’s wary of credit cards, retirement benefits, political parties, mortgages, and television. He only works when his cash runs out and his rule is simple: he’ll help you find whatever was taken from you, as long as he can keep half. McGee doesn’t even declare himself a detective, but rather a “salvage expert.”

The Deep Blue Goodbye is the first in the 21-volume bestselling Travis McGee series. It originally came out in 1964. Previously the character has been played by Sam Elliott and Rod Taylor (The Birds, The Time Machine and he was also Winston Churchill in Inglourious Basterds).

The character sounds really good and nothing like a bit of noir set in the sunshine. I’ve not read any of the books but I think I may well pick one up.

A man puts a gun in yer face, you got two choices- stand there ‘n die or kill the m*th*rf*ck*r! – Wade Garrett

My wife sent me an email from Cleveland on Monday night to tell me that Patrick Swayze had died.  I read it and then did the only thing a GonzoGeeker could possibly do with that news.  I got out my copy of “Road House” and watched it in its entirety.

It was probably the first time I’d done that since the first time I saw it on video in 89 or 90.

How is that possible you might ask?  Don’t you have a Road House quote as a guiding life philosopy on your GG page?

Yes I do.  And just because I haven’t watched it start to finish  in 20 years doesn’t mean I haven’t watched Road House in its entirety in that time.  I’ve just done it in chunks.

You see, Road House belongs to that group of movies I like to call “Inadvertant Classics.”  You know the ones.  The movies you watch 15 to 30 minutes at a time on cable.  The ones you can pick up from any point and not miss a beat.  The ones you and your friends quote in any situation ad nauseum.

Movies like Road House.  And Point Break.  And The Replacements.  And Predator.  And Escape From New York.

Yeah.  Those movies.

So, as I watched the perennial bar based movie house band, Tito & Tarantula blasting away through the opening credits I prepared myself to watch Road House with new reverence.

Yes, I used Road House and reverence in the same sentence.

So we watch Frank Tilghman hire legendary “cooler,” Dalton to come to his Kansas nightclub, the Double Deuce, to clean things up.  Dalton takes the job and shows up in Jasper, Kansas to see exactly what he’s gotten himself into.

He starts by cleaning up the staff, dismissing dealers, thieves and other ne’er do wells.  Then he lays down his three simple rules.

1.  Never underestimate your opponent

2.  Take it outside.

3.  Be nice.

Set to a bluesy soundtrack featuring the Jeff Healey Band, Dalton begins the process of cleaning up the Double Deuce.  In doing so he befriends several of the locals and runs afoul of the local “boss,” Brad Wesley.

He also meets Doc, the comely emergency room physician who staples him up after a knife wound.

As things escalate, Dalton’s mentor, Wade Garrett shows up for back up.

Of course, this all leads to the ultimate confrontation between Wesley and Dalton for the soul of Jasper and the Double Deuce.

What makes this movie so great is, in large part, the supporting cast.

Kelly Lynch is Doc.  She patches Dalton up and then shows up at his barn loft for some sexual healing.

Sam Elliott is Garrett.  His grizzled demeanor and whiskey soaked voice are perfect for the career tough guy.  His long gray hair and beard scream tough guy.

Ben Gazzarra is Wesley.  He doesn’t look dangerous at first, but he’s the typical Napoleon.  He hires thugs and has them do his dirty work for him.

Add to this mix pro wrestling legend Terry Funk, Red West of Elvis’ Memphis Mafia and X’s frontman John Doe and you are looking at an interesting and eclectic mix.

Of course, none of this would have worked without Patrick Swayze as Dalton.  He brings a likeability to the NYU educated zen bouncer that would have looked dopey played by Jean Claude Van Damme and just flat out creepy played by Steven Seagal.

One of the joys of watching this movie again for the first time in 20 years was the realization that it is, at its very heart, just a western.  The stranger rides into town to clean things up.  Gets crossed with local bad guy.  Beats his thugs down.  Loses someone close to him and seeks ultimate revenge before ending up with the girl.

Its basically a John Wayne movie, if John Wayne had known tai chi and ballet.

A movie like Road House owes its enduring success to its timing.  A modest hit at the box office. Road House took on a life of its own when it was released on home video.  You could watch this ridiculous modern American western in the comfort of your own home without having to really admit to liking a Patrick Swayze movie.

Then it hit cable and went into perpetual rotation.  The fact that Road House plays on AMC (American Movie Classics) give me pause to smile each time I stumble upon it.  In fact, in the most recent issue of Rolling Stone, they listed “The Next Showing of Road House” as #35 on their list of 50 reasons to watch television now.

You know you’ve hit a collective nerve when your “B” movie is turned into an off off off Broadway play.

They eventually gave in and made a direct-to-DVD sequel in 2006 which I have avoided like a plague.  I read in a review that Dalton is killed off screen.  If Dalton is dead then so is Road House as a franchise.  Because, let’s be honest, Jimmy from the Wonders is no Dalton, no matter how much stubble he has.

So, with this post I officially kick of my “Inadvertant Classics” series and dedicate them to the patron saint of the subgenre, Patrick Swayze.

 Patrick Swayze has gone to the big Road House in the sky, but I just know that tonight he’s standing at the bar drinking a cup of coffee with John Wayne and listening to Jeff Healey wail on his guitar.

RIP Mijo.

And remember kids, be nice until its time to not be nice.

The Hulk

Directed by Ang Lee.
With Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott.

Se preguntaran por que pongo esta película entre mis favoritas? Porque cada vez que la dan en algún canal la tengo que ver, porque me divierto como chancho viendo al gigante verde repartiendo piñas a tanques, aviones, helicópteros, perros y alguno que otro pelotudo que se le cruce en su camino.

Todos los que se pusieron en contra de esta película tienen caca en la cabeza
Esta bien, reconozco que el final es medio tirado de los pelos, pero sale Jennifer Connelly. (punto)

The Hulk

Directed by Ang Lee.
With Eric Bana, Jennifer Connelly, Sam Elliott.

Se preguntaran por que pongo esta película entre mis favoritas? Porque cada vez que la dan en algún canal la tengo que ver, porque me divierto como chancho viendo al gigante verde repartiendo piñas a tanques, aviones, helicópteros, perros y alguno que otro pelotudo que se le cruce en su camino.

Todos los que se pusieron en contra de esta película tienen caca en la cabeza
Esta bien, reconozco que el final es medio tirado de los pelos, pero sale Jennifer Connelly. (punto)

Early show so the sound isn’t great – but give it a go.

Strip Poker – Fannie Grace

Oily Bohunk of the Week- Wanda Ray’s choice

Oily Bohunk - Sam Elliott

Main Topic: Who Are These People? Women Who Have Affairs With Married Men

Javier Bardem, reprising his role as the mysterious and deadly Anton Chigurh in "No Country for Old Men," surprises Kelly MacDonald while she questions her fate in the draw of the cards.

JEFF BRIDGES, a k a the Dude from "The Big Lebowski," loses his way (again) as he tries to grasp the unfolding

Waiting for a sign, HOLLY HUNTER studies the landscape as she did in "Raising Arizona." The police might be on their way, or it might be her husband with their stolen baby. Either way, she's ready.

There's always a heavy, and JON POLITO, who plays some version of a tough guy in many Coen brothers films, is puzzled by the terrorizing nihilism of AIMEE MANN and DAVID THEWLIS in "The Big Lebowski." Like many of California's cultists, their philosophy has gone from dogma to vengeance.

Even bimbos need a place to hide, and TARA REID, better known as Bunny Lebowski, seeks refuge in TIM BLAKE NELSON'S roadside motel. True to her luck, she has picked an inopportune moment to check in.

The West is the land of outcasts, iconoclasts and lost souls, and JOHN TURTURRO as Barton Fink, the man-of-the-people playwright turned blocked screenwriter, is constantly looking for inspiration. Until meeting SAM ELLIOTT, swigging a white Russian as the Dude did in "The Big Lebowski," Fink had never considered writing a cowboy movie. He wonders: Is there any way to mix social realism with the West?

JULIANNE MOORE, the artistic Maude Lebowski, is restless. Like many a rebel, she finds the East Coast stultifying and is heading on the Greyhound west. In California, she hopes, they will comprehend her particular greatness. There, she will be championed!

Sadly, sometimes things just don't work out. STEVE BUSCEMI, who has died over and over in Coen brothers films, meets that bad end once again. Even in the West, dreams do not always come true. If you lie and cheat and steal, you may end up in the trunk of a car. Or you might get lucky. That's the chance you're looking for; it's a risk worth taking.

Nota: Ensaio que saiu no New York Times há uns dois anos atrás. O que me fez lembrar disso foi o título dessa notícia: The Dude Meets The Duke in Coens’ ‘True Grit’. Finalmente alguém dará um tapa-olho ao Sr Bridges, só para ficar ainda mais evidente o quão foda ele é.

File under: skateboard tricks

When the untamed New Jerseyan, slam poet and personal brand that is Mike Vallely parked his black novelty sportscar outside the Berrics’ hallowed walls, we should have known something was up. Inviting the streetplanting hockey blogger to a technical flip-trick contest for which he was ill-suited was silly enough, and while Vallely kept a lid on his famously flaring temper throughout what looked like a pretty lighthearted affair, it stands to reason that he/his people wanted a little sugar to go with the tough flatground medicine that Chris Cole was dishing out. And so it swung onto the interwebs this weekend, the Mike Vallely “Battle Commander” section, crushing preconceived notions of skateboarding and reality itself. Sort of exactly like the iconic monster truck scene from “Road House.”

These little parts have been used by marquee pros to tease “legit” video parts and test-drive new tricks, but for me at least they’re generally snoozers, seeings’ how it is a part filmed entirely in one skatepark (dramatic light notwithstanding). For Vallely though this is kind of the ultimate environment. It’s a park for one, and the dude has filmed entire documentaries and TV miniseries in parks. Their legal nature provides him plenty of tries for the type of big jumps that get the kids on their feet, and the Berrics’ malleable format gives Vallely’s inner elephant plenty of room to swing its tattooed trunk and plant its broad feet here and there, as the whims of Vallely dictate. At one point they even show him drilling down a board that I thought was going to facilitate an even more huger boneless, but in a typical Mike V twist, he uses it for a drop-in (!) and leaves me confounded once more.

There are all types of amazing tricks in this part though, set off with that somersault/cartwheel into the Chris Cole-approved streetplant transfer thing. Vallely shits upon naysayers, breaking out his legendary no-handed 360 flip along with a couple other flip tricks that incorporate grabs and/or walking up a hubba ledge. Proving that he pays more attention to “new school” skating than he likes to let on, he throws in an up-the-stairs move, along with an up-rail trick with a launch-ramp assist, an obvious reference to “Storm”-era T-bone. Also he wears a vest.

Mike Vallely has been many things to many people. For instance he was once a vegetarian, a lifestyle he left behind in order to chew scenery in the Paul Blart movie.* He’s been called more politician than skateboarder, but what I think Mike V is, is a showman. And he figured out a while ago that he tends to perform best in controlled environments, with the possible exception of Warp Tours, where it seems like just about anything goes. Revolution Mutha music included, this really was the most entertaining Berrics segment I’ve watched in a long time. A few tricks over that hot rod and two solid minutes of purposeful pushing and it would’ve been easily the best part Mike V has filmed in the last 20 years I bet.

*oh, we went there

Any person that is into military history or the civil war should see this film. Although it has a whopping running time of roughly 4 hours and 21 minutes. Even at that length there are still lots of details about the battle of Gettysburg and the days preceding it that were omitted. Still, a very in depth look at Gettysburg and seeing the battle unfold in the end takes about an hour in itself. The final battle was massive in scale as far as soldiers, yet probably did not come close as to how large of scale it really was. Over the three day period, more men were lost at Gettysburg than the entire Vietnam War.

This film has many characters, but only a few really hold together well as characters in the film itself. I would have loved to have seen more about General George Pickett played by Stephen Lang. That is just a personal preference though. In my opinion Jeff Daniels (Speed) gives the best performance. He also had the most “moving” material to work with, with having a brother under his command and the the key figure in the battle at Little Round Top. Tom Berringer (The Gingerbread Man) also gives a nice performance as General Longstreet, who stays true to character in his beliefs of taking a defensive strategy and is even remorseful about giving the command at Gettysburg, knowing it will be an ill fated attempt. Martin Sheen (The Departed) makes a good General Lee and others have notable performances….Richard Jordan, Sam Elliot and Kevin Conway to name a few.

A salute needs to go out to Ted Turner for making this film happen. From What I remember, it was originally going to be made for TV until they realized they had something special. It is truely a specticle to see. Even if it takes two nights to take this film in, it is well worth it.

John Milius tentou, sem sucesso, que seu roteiro para King Conan ganhasse sinal verde para ser realizado. Entretanto, a reeleição de Arnold Schwarzenneger para o posto de governador da Califórnia colocou um ponto final em suas pretensões. Sem dirigir um filme há 12 anos, é bem provável que Bravos Guerreiros, uma produção do canal TNT, seja mesmo o testamento fílmico desse polêmico e sempre interessante cineasta. Desta vez ele volta a atenção para um conflito que encerrou o século XIX e definiu a conduta americana até hoje. A guerra entre Eua e Espanha marcou o início das intervenções militares por parte dos ianques. Serviu ainda para unir o país, ainda sentindo as marcas da Guerra Civil, e erguer a moral de toda a nação. Tom Berenger, naquele que possa ser o grande papel de sua carreira, é o Coronel Theodore Roosevelt que antes mesmo de se tornar um dos mais famosos presidentes americanos da história, já era conhecido pela sua personalidade forte. Brian Keith que havia interpretado Roosevelt em O Vento e o Leão, faz aqui a parte do presidente William McKinley. Outros nomes presentes são de Brad Johnson, Sam Elliott, Geoffrey Lewis, Gary Busey, R. Lee Ermey e George Hamilton como o magnata da imprensa William Randolph Hearst – “Você arranja as imagens e eu arranjo a guerra.”. John Milius não tem medo de ser feliz e constrói o cenário perfeito para mostrar a glória dos Rough Riders, o regimento de recrutas voluntários (brancos, negros, índios, mexicanos) que foi essencial na campanha em território cubano. Com o fim do conflito, o Império Espanhol entrou em declínio irreversível e os Estados Unidos anexaram os antigos territórios, sendo que Porto Rico e Guantánamo continuam em seu poder até os os dias atuais. Passado mais de uma década após Bravos Guerreiros, Milius ainda se mantém ativo em Hollywood (foi produtor e consultor do seriado Roma) e esperemos que o restante de sua história ainda seja contada no futuro.

Leandro Caraça

Great novels that are due and overdue for a leap to the big screen.

Ignatius Reilly, the poster child for Development Hell

Books, as we’ve said before, are like movies that play in your head. Good books are movies you don’t mind watching over and over again on the screen in your mind. The film industry has appropriated all kinds of books virtually since its inception, taking material from the best fiction and nonfiction as well as from the lowest genre potboilers. There’s just no way of predicting how a book will translate: Hollywood has made masterpieces out of humble paperbacks but also made garbage of bona fide classics. Films and movies aren’t exactly alike, but they’re close enough in structure and pacing that it’s sometimes hard to believe filmmakers could screw up excellent source material. But they manage.

We were excited by recent news announcing that Joe Haldeman’s The Forever War and Edgar Rice Burroughs’ John Carter of Mars novels are headed for filming soon, at last bringing two classics of science fiction into cinema. The following is five additional examples of worthy books we’d like to see on the screen, if only so that cinema’s much wider audience can take notice of their superb stories. Just for the sake of variety, we’ve tried to include samples of literature of many different styles and periods.

Life During Wartime, by Lucius Shepard (1987) Shepard’s Cold War thriller is part horror tale, part allegory and part military war epic, forming a mosaic of genres typical of his strange genius. Set amid a U.S.-led guerrilla war in Central America, the story follows infantryman David Mingolla as he joins an elite cadre of psychic tacticians but finds his fledgling abilities much much vaster than he realized, allowing him to bend reality to his will and challenge the other psychics manipulating world events. Suggested cast: We imagine Jeremy Renner (The Unusuals) playing Mingolla, with Vinessa Shaw (Two Lovers) as his adversary and kindred spirit Deborah. Imagine the film as: A cross between Scanners, Apocalypse Now, and The Matrix. Ideal director: David Cronenberg.

The Big Nowhere, by James Ellroy (1988) A homophobic sheriff’s deputy, a mafia thug and an anguished investigator desperately pursue a brutal serial killer through McCarthy-era Los Angeles while communists, gangsters and politicians jockey for power. The second and arguably the darkest of Ellroy’s “L.A. Quartet” cycle of novels, it’s similar in tone and structure to L.A. Confidential but even bleaker and more cynical. And its ending, for better or worse, is anything but “Hollywood.” Suggested cast: Ryan Gosling (Fracture) stars as the self-loathing Deputy Danny Upshaw, alongside Michael Hogan (Battlestar Galactica) as repentant enforcer Buzz Meeks and Dean Winters (Oz) as weary crusader Mal Considine. No one on Earth should be allowed to play the monumentally evil Dudley Smith except James Cromwell, who nailed the same role in L.A. Confidential. Imagine the film as: Chinatown, Body Double and Manhunter combined. Ideal director: James Gray.

Five Skies, by Ron Carlson (2007) Three men – a petty criminal, a recent widower, and a Hollywood construction foreman – work at building a stunt ramp beside a gorge in the Idaho wilderness, all so that a female stunt driver (think Danica Patrick) can jump the ravine on Pay Per View. The three men confront their past as the ramp slowly takes shape and form. Suggested cast: Damian Lewis (Life) stars as the guilt-ridden foreman Arthur Key, alongside Chris Pine (Star Trek) as thief Ronnie Panelli and Sam Elliott as the heartbroken Darwin Gallegos. Imagine the film as: The Wages of Fear and Tender Mercies merged with Days of Heaven. Ideal director: Terrence Malick.

The Good Soldier, by Ford Madox Ford  (1927) Easy to visualize as a costume drama with an edgy anger to it - an antidote to the huffing and puffing Oscarbait of recent years – Ford’s Victorian Era novel swirls around two married couples spending weeks together over twenty years at a German spa. The titular good soldier, Edward Ashburnham, is a perfect English gentleman except for his almost compulsive need to seduce women – including his friend’s wife. Long praised as an influential work both for its structure and style, the book was previously a 1981 telepic, so its time has easily come round again. Suggested cast: Liev Shreiber (Defiance) and Cate Blanchett (Bandits) play Ashburnham and his lover Florence Dowell; Robert Downey, Jr. costars as the cuckolded John Dowell alongside Maggie Gyllenhaal (The Dark Knight) as Leonora Ashurnham. Imagine the film as: A mix of Last Year At Marienbad, The Ice Storm, and The English Patient. Ideal director: Michael Winterbottom.

Night Train, by Martin Amis (1997) Amis’ critically-lauded 1997 fling with the hardboiled detective genre features an alcoholic, emotionally crippled police detective trying to solve the apparent suicide of a beautiful scientist with every reason to live. The investigation takes a turn for the darkly existential, and Amis twists conventions further by making the troubled detective a woman, too. The novel’s abrupt ending is like two fingers joliting out of the page, poking you in the eyes. Suggested cast: Laura Linney (Breach) plays the self-destructive Detective Mike Hoolihan, Amy Adams (Enchanted) plays the deceased Jennifer Rockwell, and Paul Schneider (Away We Go) co-stars as Rockwell’s lover and suspected killer Trader Faulkner. Imagine the film as: The Pledge, Prime Suspect and Laura compressed into a brainy whodunnit. Ideal director: John Dahl.

- Michael Kabel
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Igår innan jag åkte ut och tränade råkade jag höra på radio P4 och Kalle Selander intrevjua Thomas Nordahl. Thomas är för tillfället i Italien, hans andra hemland. Idag står Roma mot Catania på programmet, och att han ska ut och köpa en cykeltröja till sin fru Gittan, som jag läst att hon är från Karlskoga. Han så något i stil med att cykeltröjorna är ju så snygga och färggranna och att de brukar cykla tillsammans. Så nu är det la Maglia Rosa som gäller för Giro d’Italia är ju i full gång. Jag brukar ofta skoja med Berg och Per, mera känd som Berra, om kändisars stora cykelintresse. Då hittar jag på det just för att skoja men det här är faktiskt helt sant. Thomas som debuterade i Degerfors IF som 17-åring och son till Gunnar, den femfaldige skyttekungen i Serie A, har ett stort cykelintresse. Vad kan man annars förvänta sig av en intelligent man med ena benet i Italien?

Senare på kvällen råkade jag göra en sak till. Se filmen Mask. Den gamla från 1985 alltså, med Cher, Sam Elliott och Eric Stoltz som Rocky Dennis. Jag hade glömt hur mycket jag tycker om den filmen. Fantastisk är rätta ordet. Och en sak till jag inte visste om, eller glömt att jag visste är att det är en sannskildring. Det gör filmen ännu starkare. Filmens soundtrack är The Promised Land av Bruce Springsteen som är en av mina absoluta favoritlåtar men låten som spelas när filmen är slut är väldigt bra och framförallt passande den me. Roll me away med Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band. Innan ni lyssnar på den, kolla en Sam Elliotts grymma mustasch här.

Fatal Beauty – Added to Collection Archive
Rita Rizzoli is a narcotics cop with a plethora of disguises. When a drug shipment is hijacked, the thieves don’t know that the drug is unusually pure and packs of ‘Fatal Beauty’ begin turning up next to too many dead bodies. Mike works for the original owner of the drugs and tries to tell himself that since he does not handle the drugs, he is ‘clean’. Mike becomes Rita’s constant companion as the drug hijackers (who are nearly psychotic and very well armed) are hunted, while more and more bodies continue to turn up.

Soundtrack Listing:
“Sin City” (WMG Pulled)
Performed by War

“Criminal” (Wmg Pulled)
Performed by Shannon

“On The Edge Of Love” (WMG Pulled)
Performed by Miki Howard

“Make It My Night“
Performed by Donna Allen

“Casanova” (WMG Pulled)
Performed by Marc Gordon (as Levert)

“Red Hot” (WMG Pulled)
Written and Performed by Deborah Gibson (as Debbie Gibson)

“Didn’t I Blow Your Mind” (WMG Pulled)
Performed by The System

“Just That Type Of Girl“
Performed by Rekha (as Madame X)