The Popcorn Kids

posted by dariane on Thu Aug 20, 2009 at 07:32pm FILM REVIEW: ‘Inglorious Basterds’ Screening at SDCC 2009

‘Inglourious Basterds’ had been in development by Quentin Tarantino for nearly 15 years.

Given the event at which I saw the film, the anticipation from the audience was through the roof. The secret screening at the Gaslamp district during Comic-Con included fans waiting in line for tickets as early as 4am.

The screening kicked off with an announcement, that we were the first public audience in the United States to see the final theatrical cut of the film (shorter than what was screened at Cannes). Eli Roth introduced the film and watched with us.

In short, ‘Inglourious Basterds’ is a story about an alternate history of World War II in which a brutal military group collects Nazi scalps.

There are two main plots of the film. The first follows the infamous ‘Inglourious Basterds’ led by Lt. Aldo Raine (played by Brad Pitt). The conquests of the basterds are the stuff of folklore and legends, stylized as bad-assery by Quentin Tarantino.
The second plot follows the story of Shoshanna (played by Melanie Laurent), a young Jewish woman who escaped death and capture by Nazis in her childhood and later became the successful owner of a French movie theater.
Met with a unique opportunity to end the war once and for all, Shoshanna and the Basterds strategize on two very different and dangerous fronts to defeat the Nazis.

The film is headlined by Brad Pitt and features familiar faces such as Eli Roth, Mike Myers (Austin Powers), BJ Novak (‘The Office’) and Samm Levine (‘Freaks and Geeks’). Melanie Laurent as Shoshanna and Diane Kruger as Bridget make extraordinary performances in their roles as empowered women.

However, my favorite performance is most definitely by Christoph Waltz as Colonel Hans Landa. His commanding presence onscreen makes his character all the more frightening.

Since I’ve seen the film, the most common question I’ve encountered has been how this film compares to Tarantino’s others. ‘Inglourious Basterds’ is divided by act with title pages—a signature Tarantino style. It has the gore and violence of ‘Kill Bill,’ however where ‘Kill Bill”s action sequences were slick and graceful, IB’s sequences are rough and unforgiving. IB has the potential to become a Quentin Tarantino classic on par with ‘Pulp Fiction.’

Verdict: Popped! Like a bustin’ a cap in those Nazis!

Other highlights:

How I was able to watch this screening… following @TheRealBasterds on Twitter and responding first to a Twitpic contest!
Screening tickets in the form of a dog tag = sick. Still a long standby line at the door.
Who else was in the crowd: Elvis Mitchell, Dominic Monaghan, Elijah Wood, and Eli Roth
Free poster autographed by Eli Roth

Tagged: film review film review dariane sdcc comic-con quentin tarantino inglourious basterds

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posted by dariane on Thu Aug 20, 2009 at 11:08am FILM REVIEW: Park-Chan Wook’s ‘Thirst’

This is the first film I’ve seen by Park-Chan wook.

It is a story of a priest who becomes a vampire through a blood transfusion. This transformation makes him question his values and beliefs, leading him to an immoral immortal life.

What intrigued me most about the film was the way the different themes were interwoven to tell a compelling story. Faith, morality, love, family and mortality—Park-chan wook masterfully brings these themes to elevate the ‘vampire genre’ to a new level.

Walking out of the theater, we summed up this film in three words:

Awkward Vampire Sex.

There’s a lot of it in this movie. It’s really awkward and uncomfortably long.

But one of my biggest gripes about the film was how excruciatingly long it felt and was. There were several moments in the film that felt like the end. Then after a half-second fade-to-black, the screen would light up again and proceed with the next act.

Overall: This film is not for your average movie go-er. If you’re into foreign arthouse type films, then this is for you. If not, go and watch GI-Joe or something.

Tagged: film review film review dariane

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posted by dariane on Fri Jul 31, 2009 at 08:00am FILM REVIEW: Funny People

This is my lazy attempt at a movie review post-Comic-con. I got to see this film a couple weeks ago at a screening. The trailers and ads don’t tell you too much about the film; it’s obvious they had somewhat of a hard time marketing for it. Here’s how I sum it up:

- Funny? Yes! Especially the self-deprecating jokes that nudge at their real-life selves. It’s the Apatow flavor of humor you’re used to, only this time more tongue-in-cheek.

- Serious. Although this film has some of the penis humor you’re used to from Apatow, the plot overall is a serious one. This may be off-putting to most viewers used to the loser-nerd statements from the likes of Seth Rogen. But if you’re familiar at all with Judd Apatow’s work on Freaks and Geeks, you’ll know that he has the talent to balance belly-laughter and emotion. This film is a great example of this balance.

- Seth Rogen delivers a heartfelt performance—his most serious to date. Without his facial hair and some pounds (he looks much thinner), we are reminded that Rogen is still very much a newcomer on the comedy stage at the ripe age of 27.

- Adam Sandler plays the veteran comedian diagnosed with a terminal illness, George Simmons. Although this role is different from the regular family man character he normally plays, his performance lacked the bright-shiny acting chops we’ve seen from him in such flicks as Punch Drunk Love and Spanglish.

- Leslie Mann was fantastic in her role as George Simmon’s old flame. Her performance was outstanding; it was probably the meatiest role I’ve seen her play.

- Cameos. Both good and bad. Good because when you’re watching you get excited and think “Oooh look! There’s whats-his-face-famous-comedian!” But it’s bad because there’s a lot of cameos. You begin to think that this may be the highest form of ‘name-dropping’ someone could do. We get it, Apatow. You’re mainstream now. Get over it.

- Damn it felt long. Like, I wonder what’s on TV right now, long.

Tagged: film review film review dariane

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posted by catmanabat on Fri Jun 26, 2009 at 01:42am Film Review: Away We Go

Away We Go is exactly what you think it is: an indie-ish flick tied together by a quirky premise and a slew of names. A sort of Garden State, if you will. I was curious to see if they put together the right roster— the “names” that are names for a reason, you know?

Considering director Sam Mendes’ other notable work (American Beauty, Revolutionary Road), I didn’t immediately see how he could connect me to this story about a bedraggled couple searching for a place to call home. His other films marinate in the internal emotion of transition shots, the turns that jolt your heart out of your chest.

Written by husband-wife team Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida, I also wondered how much pretense would be infused in Away We Go. Judging by their literary work, both are absolutely talented… yet I speculated that their post-modern verbosity might get tired after ten minutes on-screen.

These three creators came together and did exactly what I expected them to do, yet that somehow worked in this film. Their professionalism shone through, but they left the story well enough alone to let their amazing cast do the job of telling the story of this couple’s misadventures.

Burt Farlander (John Krasinski) and Verona De Tessant (Maya Rudolph) are in their early thirties. By most accounts, they aren’t the most successful of people, but they definitely love each other. Now they’re having a baby and embark on a journey to find the right place to raise their child. Burt is a little flighty, while Verona keeps them grounded. They are both emboldened and humbled by the prospect of starting a family.

Rudolph and Krasinski have a very quiet, comfortable chemistry in this film. I’m used to Rudolph as this over-the-top character on Saturday Night Live. She breaks out of how we’re used to seeing her, and I’m now very impressed by her range. Krasinski didn’t go too far down the road from his role on The Office (playing the hopelessly lovelorn guy); yet it was nice to see him play oddball catch Burt, a fellow a lot less sure of himself than Jim is. The supporting cast members, such as Allison Janney and Maggie Gyllenhaal, were also solid.

There was a wrong way to do this movie: throwing in dramatic (yet hackneyed) twists or infusing the dialogue with more witticisms than any one cares to hear. I think the simplicity of the story, as well as the way it unfurls so naturally is the most refreshing aspect of this film.

I’m not straying from the critics/audiences on this one— there’s a reason Away We Go is getting rave reviews. It’s a sweet little reminder of the lovelier things in life we take for granted, and the idea that letting go of what you can’t control can bring you closer to home than you thought. Verdict: Popped!

Tagged: Away We Go Sam Mendes catmanabat film review film

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posted by whosdamike on Thu Jun 11, 2009 at 01:00am FILM REVIEW: The Hangover

Last week, a few of us - hopped up on popcorn and doing tokes of butter off discarded theater cartons - cavorted into the AMC Century City Fifteen. Through a combination of conspiracy and consumerism, we stumbled upon The Hangover.

What happens when Old School director Todd Phillips tackles that most ineffable of undeniably deniable assault-rites of manhood: the bachelor party? You get the greatest Vegas trip ever, remixed like a Memento record clawed up from the grime and piss of a strip club’s backalley.

The instant I saw Zach Galifianakis’s gorgeous visage, like Michelangelo chiseled from marble and hairball, I was hooked on this film. That was months ago, when I first caught wind of it via printed advertizz-ment, also known as a “post-or.”

The reviews you may have heard or read about (or watched or dreamed or concocted) are all correct, insofar as they all agree that this is the funniest movie of the year. This is the sort of film that makes it unfair for all the other comedy flicks in the world - nay, the UNIVERSE.

Is it vile? Naturally. Is it gratuitious? Hell yes. Is it vulgar beyond your wildest imaginings? I doubt it. You look like one sick son of a beachball.

You can think of it as one long, continuous commercial for look how awesome Vegas is, and if that sounds like something you don’t want to watch, then you, my friend, need to pick up three vices and call me when you’re in Barstow, because it’s Vegas time, baby.

Swingers was the perfect flick to capture the wild, shallow insanity of a town run on spitshine and silicone. This is not at all like The Hangover, except that Heather Graham proves she’s a banging hottie in both flicks.

What The Hangover accomplishes, however, is a seamless one-hundred-minutes of distilled grain neutral hilarity. It’s like the producers deadbolted half a dozen of Hollywood’s funniest jackasses into a room with nothing but booze, pornography, and a five-foot-high stack of National Lampoon DVDs.

The beauty of The Hangover is in its stitch-perfect weaving of every bullshit tall tale to ever come out of Vegas. That time your buddy’s cousin jacked a cop car. The story about your old roommate’s sister’s boyfriend getting kidnapped by the mafia. Or remember when your neighbor’s kid’s great uncle got shitfaced and had a 24-hour neon chapel wedding?

The Hangover remembers, even if its cast doesn’t. And what a fucking cast: Ed Helms is flawless as a yuppie locked down in a life he doesn’t want. Zach Snuffleupagus deadpans awkward, natural as a three-legged dog crashing a Greyhound race. Bradley Cooper holds his motley crew together, but Ed and Zach steal the show - they consistently and effortlessly hit their marks, knocking out punchlines like pianists (heheh) tapping to a metronome.

If you’re looking for heart, check out Up. For action-packed nostalgia there’s Star Trek. Or if you want to take a hatchet to your brain for an hour and change, there’s McG’s Terminator.

But if you want to see the funniest film of 2009, the movie that will barrel its hijacked baby-on-board police cruiser off the screen and into your hearts, then plop that ten bucks down at the box office and settle in for a fully unforgettable Hangover.

Verdict: Popped. Like bubblies in the champagne room.

Tagged: The Hangover film film review whosdamike review

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