With the current, ongoing success of Kriv Stenders' Red Dog, there certainly feels like there's a buzz back in the Australian film landscape. After half a year of dud after dud - only Sanctum 3D and the UK co-production Oranges & Sunshine seemed to make any dent whatsoever at the ticket booth - Dog has become quite a hit and now we look towards the rest of the year hoping for a few more. One of the most likely contenders is The Cup, a dramatic retelling of Damien Oliver's ride of his life to win the Melbourne Cup after a tragic accident befalls his brother.
The newly released trailer for Simon Wincer's The Cup features a title card that says "FROM THE DIRECTOR OF PHAR LAP", which just seems a little bit too much like pandering. But, then again, they couldn't have put down "from the director of Harlequin", could they? Still, at least Phar Lap is a good movie! As for the trailer itself (below) it all looks like suitably rousing stuff and photographed gorgeously as all horse racing movies seem to be. Alas, also like any horse racing movies it can't eliminate the fact that it is, without fail, about horse racing. It amuses me greatly that Secretariat still hasn't received a release of any kind in Australia! Colour me impressed by Daniel McPherson though, and it will be sad to see Bill Hunter in his final role.
Earlier today I posted another film trailer on Facebook as a part of the "30 Day Film Challenge" - a project that, like every other project I partake in, has taken far longer than I had originally anticipated. For Day 29 I had to list my favourite movie as a child and, without even so much as a second thought, I selected Flight of the Navigator. A Disney movie that was released in 1986, but which I remember most fondly from years of VHS repeats. I loved that movie growing up, and I still do!
Nevertheless, I was saddened to see that there is a remake in the works. Thankfully, that news apparently came through the pipeline all the way back in 2009 and there hasn't been a peep about it since so hopefully they've ditched the idea. I can see how easy it would be to remake, but... ugh. I hate being one of those people who holds their childhood memories ransom to a new generation of moviegoers, but Flight of the Navigator just wouldn't quite feel the same without the endearing dated futuristic visuals, Paul Reubens' voice work as the spaceship and Sarah Jessica Parker's adorableness as a frizzy-haired NASA employee (?!) It's just not right, I tellsya!
Perhaps my continued fondness for Sarah Jessica Parker stems from how ingrained she was in my childhood. No matter how many Did You Hear About the Morgans?', Failure to Launch's or I Don't Know How She Does It's she makes with her Sex and the City residual rom-com fame I'll always fondly remember the '80s movies, which were followed by films like LA Story, Ed Wood, Mars Attacks and The First Wive's Club. And, of course, the brilliance that is Sex and the City (the television series, at least).
It's not just Flight of the Navigator from Parker's youth that Hollywood wants to remake! Her seminal '80s dance movie Girls Just Want to Have Fun (co-starring Helen Hunt, Shannon Doherty and Lee Montgomery - *sigh* Lee Montgomery...) has also been put into the big machine. It seems particularly pointless to remake that one since it's plot has already been recycled so many times to the point of redundancy.
And, seriously, who would want Girls Just Want to Have Fun with this?
Not me!
Anyway, despite all the talk about remakes of Flight of the Navigator and Girls Just Want to Have Fun, the one Sarah Jessica Park teen flick that has indeed made its way down the remake pipeline is, of course, Footloose. Far more famous for it's classic soundtrack and being one of Kevin Bacon's breakthrough movies (alongside Friday the 13th) than for anything Sarah Jessica Parker did, it's still a vital part of her early career. Let's take a look at the poster for Footloose circa 2011 first, shall we?
"This Is Our Time" you say? Wasn't that 1984 when this movie was actually new and original? Hmmm. I like the typeface, but that's about it. Also: No walkman. Disappointing! No matter how average the poster is - and that's all it is: average - nothing could have quite prepared me for how bad the trailer makes this movie look. You truly have to see it to believe it.
Oh boy. This looks like a lame direct-to-DVD sequel cash-in, doesn't it? It's been a while since I saw the original and I'm sure it was made with very intentions, but there's no denying that if it continues to have a life in this day and age then it is as a culty comedy of incredibly '80s-ness. To see the material treated with such seriousness is quite off putting. Dennis Quaid laying down the law over crunk dancing? Oy... The film's star is some dancer/actor named Kenny Wormald who is exactly as famous as you would expect from that name. He, sadly, looks like the typically bland male lead these movies all get nowadays. Kevin Bacon was never the most attractive man, but there was a time when teen movies featured actors that didn't all look perfect. Not that they're not in the same pretty boy file, but I wish Zac Efron or Chase Crawford had ended up making this film like originally rumoured. They would at least give it a bit of pizazz. As it is, it just looks lame.
I think the tweet I made last night says it all:
Have you actually watchedFootloose lately? It is not a good movie (apart from the soundtrack.) I can spot several visual cues within this remake's trailer that begs comparison to the original and, sadly, those are the best bits! Sadly, no mention of gymnastics and uneven bars. Nostalgia has a lot to answer for!
The one aspect of the trailer that makes me genuinely curious is the inclusion of Miles Teller. He was so good in Rabbit Hole, opposite Nicole Kidman, and seeing his face pop up here in the Chris Penn role was cause for a double take. If he's having fun and getting a decent pay check then good for him. As for Footloose though? Well, I'll be there with bells on like I am to virtually any dance movie, but I just don't see how it's possible that Footloose will be anything other than one of the worst movies of the year. I would, however, love to be proven wrong!
I have nothing to say about this trailer for The Muppets other than "OMG IT LOOKS SO GOOD!" I don't care if it's overly hipster of me to adore the Muppets and to be excited about this movie, but I am.
Okay, I do have some more things to say. I'd be interested to now how much John Lasseter and the Pixar crew love the Muppets, because don't you think all the emotional pathos that they have in their films - culminating most gloriously in last year's Toy Story 3 - feel indebted to the Muppets? I'm feeling teary just listening to Kermit's speech here and Toy Story 3 was one of the few narrative titles recently to wring tears out of my shallow tear ducts.
There are many moments found within the trailer - and this is indeed an actual proper trailer unlike the last one - that inspire oohs and aahs, there is a moment (captured there to the right) of Chris Cooper that, for some reason, I find absolutely stunning. Perhaps it just reminds me of Chicago? Perhaps. Looking dapper in a three piece suit surrounded by chorus girls and confetti falling from the ceiling? I'm so there! As if I wasn't going to be there anyway, what with it starring the Muppets, Amy Adams singing and Miss Piggy looking like Fergie. Gah! This is going to be so good, you guys!
I was surprised to learn that Leon Ford's bittersweet superhero movie Griff the Invisible had been acquired for an American release. Surprised because it's no longer 1995 when this probably would have done gangbusters over there. Instead, it's 2011 where Animal Kingdom can barely gross $1million and where foreign films (in a "foreign language" or not) take a lot of time and effort to reach half of that.
Still, released it will be on 19 August. In to how many cinemas and in what cities I am not sure, but I really liked it so I'd suggest going to see it. And that's even if you are burnt out on superhero movies like X-Men: Born This Way, The Green Lantern, Thor and Captain America. Plus, it's got Ryan Kwanten being adorable so, ya know, there's that.
I always find it curious to note how differently movies are marketed in America compared to Australia, whether they're Australian films or American films. The American poster to the left there has gone for an obvious mass-quirk concept with the hand-drawn images that are such commonplace these days amongst independent dramadies like Griff. It does, however, get the superhero message across better than the local poster, although the very first, Cannes festival poster by Jeremy Saunders is still my favourite. I'm not sure why that one was never used in any official release capacity.
The trailers, on the other hand, are very different and yet essentially the same. Although the US trailer doesn't include the image to your right, which is probably my single favourite shot from a movie so far this year. And for a year that has had Meek's Cutoff, Jane Eyre and The Tree of Life amongst its visual splendours that's quite a big call.
Australian vs American
So, do tell American, will you be seeing Griff the Invisible when you get the chance?
Two movies with similar make-ups being released within such close proximity is not a rare thing, as we all know. Earlier this year we saw David Traucki's shark-stalking-pretty-people-in-Queensland movie The Reef and later in the year we get shark-stalking-pretty-people-in-Queensland(-in-3D!) movie Bait. The latter is obviously going for the bigger, more mainstream horror thrills with its $25mil budget (a co-production with Singapore funnily enough) and populist 3D upgrade.
However, it's not The Reef and Bait (or, Bait 3D as it is occasionally known) that we're here to talk about. No, instead we're here to look at the trailers for Bait and Shark Night 3D. This American movie from director David R Ellis appears to be borrowing quite heavily from the model of the recent 3D Piranha remake, what with its liberal flashes of nudity and leaning towards a camp/comedic take. Still, two 3D shark movies bear comparing so that's what we're here to do!
First, the trailer for Bait.
While I love the start - the use of Queensland's tourism calling card of "Beautiful one day, perfect the next" is particularly inspired - and, hey, who am I to deny the sight of Xavier Samuel in lifesavers gear? After that however, I'm not quite sure what happens. While it's perfectly acceptable, something about it feels slightly off, don't you think? As if this trailer isn't entire complete. The pacing is all off, some of the footage used looks like it hasn't been properly colour-graded yet, the big close-up of the shark money shot is less than thrilling and the lack of dialogue feels worryingly like they're attempting to mask Sanctum levels of silliness.
Still, it looks far more promising than this:
Do you see what I mean with that Piranha reference? But, see, Piranha 3D had that wonderful cast being oh so very serious in the face of mutant piranhas (something Piranha 3DD seems to have forgotten about by casting nobodies and Z-grade celebrities like David Hasselhoff). Shark Night 3D has... well, the only name I recognise is Chris Zylka from Kaboom. Oh and that dude from Avatar, apparently. Ouch. That line about it being a salt water lake is particularly almost LOL worthy though so perhaps it belongs in the Asylum wheelhouse alongside Mega Piranha and Giant Shark vs Mega Octopus. Still, if they're going to keep trying to make 3D happen I'd much rather they utilise it on movies like these than, say, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, you know?
If I had Photoshop on the laptop I am using I would most definitely take a screengrab of my absolute tip-top favourite moment in the trailer. It's not of anything in the movie, but is instead the title card that appears at 1:08. Take a look, it's good for a laugh.
FROM THE PRODUCERS OF HOSTEL
AND ONE OF THE PRODUCERS OF THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE
The shit producer or the good producer? I guess we'll never know...
About a year ago I had a light bulb moment that someone should make a documentary on John Waters' immortal, immaculate, iconic muse Divine and call it Shit-Eating Grin! You know, after her famous final scene in Pink Flamingos?!??! Well now someone has come along and made a documentary on Divine and, in sad news to report, it is not titled Shit-Eating Grin. No, it's title is I Am Divine; a simple if fittingly diva defiant title for such a personality.
I Am Divine is directed by Jeffrey Schwartz and I am 100% positive that it will be huge on the festival scene. I do love the poster they released (up there at the top) and below is the new trailer. From the looks of it, it appears the film will be a lot of clips, which can be great fun, but I hope it's more than just a few old video tapes and John Waters' saying what he's been saying for decades. I wonder if they will include this fabulous video that it's important to note aired in prime time on Australian TV. Wow.
Take a look at these two posters for upcoming friends-with-benefits comedy, er, Friends with Benefits. One is the American poster and the other is the Australian poster. It's quite obvious which is which, isn't it?
I continue to find America's relationship with sex so bizarre. Movies with titles like Friends with Benefits or Zack and Miri Make a Porno, which are obviously about sex, aren't allowed to advertise that fact on their poster and yet movies like Saw are allowed to feature dismembered, sawed off limbs? Hmm. Sure, Zack and Miri's use of a visual gag (oh har dee har har) about oral sex was perhaps a bit too risque, but the American poster for Friends with Benefits on the left is so puritanical. It's not like adults aren't going to know what the deal is with a film called Friends with Benefits - and those who are offended by that title would probably be offended by anything - which means somebody cried "won't somebody think of the children!" and they had to send out this poster instead. It's going to be awkward to parents and their children no matter they ask about: "what does benefits mean?" or "why is he pointing at her like that?" if they ask anything at all, so I guess I don't quite see the problem.
On a completely separate issue, it's annoying that Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis were obviously photographed separately and grafted together with errant limbs attached to each of them. And you can tell they're the same photo of each by simply looking at them, and yet the rest of their bodies are doing entirely different poses. You're trying to sell these two as a sexy pair who find each other sexy so that you want to see them have sex (isn't that the whole point of this movie?) and yet in both posters they look as steamy as a cold dinner.
These two, as evidenced by the trailer (below), are in a lot of scenes together. Surely they could've taken a few photographs for a movie poster in between takes, right? Perhaps I'm just deluding myself into imagining scenarios in which famous movie couples somehow stumble across a poster that is as iconic and memorable as this improvised poster for Desperately Seeking Susan featuring Madonna and Rosanna Arquette (click the link if you don't remember what I'm talking about). So many missed opportunities there. Although, at least they didn't attempt it and still bollocks it up like No Strings Attached (NATALIE PORTMAN'S MAGIC DISAPPEARING WASTE!!!AAAGGH!!)
Today is IDAHO - International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, don't ask me why they changed T and O in the acronym, okay? - and it's such a valuable day that will sadly no unrecognised in mainstream media. Tell that gay man or woman in your life, or the transgendered friend or family member, that they're important and valued.
Living in Australia right now can be quite sad for GLBT people since we have a Prime Minister and an opposition leader who seem to be battling each other to make the most homophobic statements possible. Hell, our PM is an athiest who "lives in sin" with her boyfriend, and yet she comes out saying that she doesn't believe in gay marriage because Australia has deep Christian roots. To Prime Minister Gillard I say "fuck off!"
I don't really have much to say on the matter because, well, I talk about gay issues quite a lot. Instead of making you read a whole lot of blather about what it means to be gay, I have collected a bunch of film trailers for films that deal with GLBT issues and that have personally affected me in some way. Some of these movies are tough and tragic, others are sweet and magic. So, just like the real world, I suppose. I recommend all of them and if you haven't sought out much in the way of gay cinema then I suggest you avoid the lame comedies that fill the "specialty interest" section of your local DVD retailer (Another Gay Movie, The Fluffer, Eating Out 7), but instead look at some of the daring, groundbreaking, thrilling, funny, touching and wonderfully made movies that have been made by some fabulous talent. The films below aren't necessarily my favourites, but they are great films, some of which don't get discussed enough in this world where A Single Man is the new go-to movie for gay cinema watchers.
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert | Bear Cub
I'm not usually one to obsess on movie trailers. Oh sure, I love watching them before a movie and even on DVD, but I will rarely wait with bated breath for the latest trailer to be released for any given movie. It's the reason I rarely discuss them on here; by the time I usually get around to seeing them there's not much to be said. Occasionally a trailer comes along that is so superbly put together or so exciting that I can't not mention it, but I more or less abstain from trailer talk here at the blog.
I did, however, catch the trailer for Mike Cahill's upcoming debut flick Another Earth and found some interesting things to note. Firstly, let's take a look:
Basically, watching this made me a little sad because a very, very similar idea had been percolating around my mind for a couple of years now and while some of the details are quite different, there's no way I could ever hope to develop my idea into anything now lest I be called a "rip-off". Still, at least the movie looks good! I'd be majorly miffed if the movie used an idea I had and yet turned out to be dud.
Secondly, Quickflix says it reminds them of Andrei Tarkovski's Solaris and that it looks like a kin to Lars von Trier's upcoming Melancholia. And while I agree with both of these statements, the movie it reminds me of most is actually Gareth Edwards' Monsters.
It's as if there's this burgeoning "lo-fi-sci-fi" subgenre that includes Monsters, Another Earth, Melancholia (from the looks of it) and even Never Let Me Go. Rolf de Heer's Epsilon (aka Alien Visitor) from back in in 1997 would also easily fit into the category. They are more or less straight forward dramas (curiously, focusing on two or three prime characters) that are predominantly not about the science fiction aspects of their plots. People dealing with human issues in the midst of something (alien invasion, medical organ harvesting, giant planets, etc) far greater than them. On a larger scale you have films like Contact, Deep Impact and (ahem) The Happening, but their bigger budgets require more common resolutions and prerequisite action set-pieces to appease multiplex audiences. They're like the lo-fi-sci-fi's wealthy uncles.
As you may remember, I hailed Monsters as the best film I had seen in the last five years so, naturally, any film that feels akin to that will garner my immediate interest. Are films like Monsters and Another Earth just excuses for their respective directors to show off what they can do? Perhaps. Gareth Edwards is now making a Godzilla movie, so... well, that's disappointing. But, even if it is the case, I like how science fiction is becoming more popular with less mainstream filmmakers (most likely due to the decreasing costs of the software needed to make them). It's like how many directors used low budget horror movies as their stepping stone into "the business", it's now becoming more common to use minuscule funds to create a work of science fiction. And, hey, that's a-okay by me. We need a counterpoint to works like Battle: Los Angeles.
Lastly, the trailer for Another Earth uses Cinematic Orchestra's "To Build a Home". A wonderful song that, coincidentally, reminds me The Tree, another of another of my absolute favourite films from 2010. Time will tell whether Another Earth manages to emerge out of the massive shadow that Monsters cast.
Here's a trailer for a new Aussie film called Swerve. Now that I think about it, I do believe I'd heard of it before, but can't for the life of me remember where. Never mind, the trailer actually looks quite promising, but let's just hope this doesn't end up like another Cactus, which is almost sorta kinda resembles. At least it looks like it'll have some nice car chases, and if there's one thing Australians know how to film it's a car chase!
I will be making an effort to see this at MIFF, how about you?
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise is a peculiar one in the history of the horror genre in that every almost addition seems to follow a completely different mission statement. Tobe Hooper's 1974 original is a visceral home movie affair that is grungy, cheap and nasty; the 1986 sequel is a much different beast with its focus on comedy and absurdism that reaches its apex in a finale that, well, reaches an absurd apex; the fourth from 1997 is a another cheap and grungy affair, but this time plays like a camp 1980s slasher flick as it focuses on characters who get lost on their way to prom getting chased by Leatherface in drag.
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) | The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Part 2 (1986)
Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1997)
The films can't even get continuity in the titles let alone tone! The original is spelt Chain Saw, the second is Part 2, the third is given roman numerals and adds "Leatherface" before the classic title. And then there's the fourth which ditches any number at all, uses a subtitle and curiously deletes the "The" from the classic title.
The two most recent incarnations are in fact the only ones amongst the entire six-part (so far) series to feel connected. Marcus Nispel's 2003 "remake" (it's more of a direct sequel to Hooper's 1974 original than any of the other so-called sequels) and its 2006 prequel both wallow in a dirty, sun-bleached nihilism that works for some (like myself) and completely repels others. Even then, The Beginning was more of a lazy retread of its predecessor, which - in a meta sort of way - makes it completely unlike any of the other films in the series, so I guess that fits the pattern. Right? Yikes. I'm confusing myself!
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) | The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
Last night I sat down to watch Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III, the final film in the franchise that I had yet to see. I was curious to see where it would sit within the films; would it carry yet another completely different personality or would it be a stylistic companion? Turns out a bit of both. While it and The Next Generation certainly appear to be attempting a modern day redo of the original aesthetic, Leatherface is yet again another Chainsaw film that has its own beats and rhythm. And yet, by saying it has it's own personality is to also say it has no personality at all. It's the least invested of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre films, that's for sure, seemingly made by somebody who doesn't seem to particularly care what movie he's making. Director Jeff Burr seems unable to rouse even the most basic of scares that should come organically from a film in which A MAN WEARING A MASK MADE OF SKIN ATTACKING PEOPLE WITH A CHAINSAW! He seems to be aiming for the original's uneasy force, but the sloppy attempts at humour and lifeless chase-sequences put a kibosh to that.
Perhaps it's due to lead actress - the "final girl" if you wanna use the noted horror phrase - Kate Hodge being so frustratingly passive for the majority of the (brief 80 minute) running time. Burr's direction features none of the gut-churning reality and surprise of the original, nor the finely-tuned parade of grotesquery that made Nispel's retooling so effective and allowed it to stand apart from the mythic 1974 version. Similarly, the Sawyer clan were never the smartest members of the Texan gene pool, but here they seem particularly dim and like poor facsimiles of the earlier film.
And what of Viggo Mortensen you ask? He plays the role of insane, psycho serial killer with all the subtlety that you would expect from a film with "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" in the title. I did like the inclusion of Miriam Byrd-Nethery as "Mama Sawyer" with her throat cancer vocal thingamajig to the ever-expanding wheelhouse of bizarre Leatherface family members. The film's writer, David Schow, has attempted several "only in a Texas Chainsaw movie" things, many of which fall flat, but some do work and feel right at home (the little girl with blonde pigtails pulling what can only be described as a "mallet lever" is particularly noteworthy).
Still, nothing can disguise the fact that this is a rather docile addition to the series, and for a film that hails itself as "the most controversial horror film ever" is curiously gutless (literally and figuratively speaking). Plus it gets progressively sillier as it goes along, and not in the affectionately hilarious way that The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 did. No, I mean ridiculous like during the finale when the chainsaw - the actual chainsaw - takes on the life of "Bruce the Shark" as it cuts through a backwoods swamp like the fin in the opening credits of Jaws. And then there's the obviously tacked on happy ending that negates what came immediately before.
Still, at least it gave us this amazing and insane teaser trailer and isn't that something to be thankful for? C-
Thank you to Jason at My New Plaid Pants for these two images, lifted from the trailers for Crazy Stupid Love and Warrior respectively. If these films are merely excuses to get the likes of Ryan Gosling and Joel Edgerton undressed for extended periods of time then so be it. I'm really fine with that.
In this project I attempt to review the entire Scream trilogy scene by scene in chronological order. Heavy spoilers and gore throughout!
SCENE 12 of Scream 2 Length: 2min 44secs Primary Characters: Sidney Prescott, Ghostface, Derek and Dewey Riley Pop Culture References:
None
Going back to the idea of Scream 2 following in the near exact blueprint of Scream - scene for scene, as it were - this is, quite obviously, the sister of the moment in Scream where Sidney gets attacked in her home. Up to and including the suspicious, if convenient, boyfriend and last minute arrival of Dewey.
I get Sidney's curiosity about who's behind the new killings and why they're doing it, but gurrrl, what you doing pickin' up that phone? Get the fuck outta there!
Okay, now this part annoys me. Derek is standing outside - ya know, keeping Sidney safe? - and turns around to ask "you about ready?" And instead of waiting for an answer he just turns back around and walks down the steps. Ignoring the fact that Sidney wasn't only going inside to get her jacket, which he could clearly see she was now wearing. AAAGH!
"Hello Sidney. Remember me?"
See, now the trailer for Scream 2 features Ghostface saying "it's time, girlfriend", but that appears to have been changed to "it's showtime." I prefer it the other way since it does link into Derek as a suspect and Billy from the first film. However, watching the trailer just now (below) you can tell that the voice of Ghostface that appears at the start has been rerecorded specifically. The line "don't you know history repeats itself" is said entirely differently by Mickey during the big climax.
Oops.
Derek: The Great Protector!
I had literally never noticed - which is surprising since I've seen this film so many times - that there's still Cici's blood on the knife. I always thought this was Mrs Loomis attacking Sidney since she only seems to care about getting even with the original Woodsboro clan and we saw Mickey running towards the Omega Beta Zeta house alongside Hallie... so, I guess they're using the same knife? Or Mickey scampered away during the stampede? Hmmm.
Ghostface stabs the front door, breaks a vase, knocks over a chair and tips over several lamps. It's like how they make all the suspect characters where similar black boots, ya know? Except they must make all suspects wearing clothes have cover the majority of their body since the killer must obviously have bruises and scratches all over. Must. Yeah, okay, probably not.
I almost expect Derek to stupidly drop his mobile phone at this moment. I know that Derek ended up not being the killer like originally planned, so I'm glad there's not a lot of stuff that points to him like there is with Billy in the original.
Oh hai Dewey!
The expression of his face here is quite humourous, no? Was Dewey ever legitimately suspected as the killer here? I don't think so. Sure, he could have faked the limp, but... although, yet again, someone trying to protect Sidney ends up deserting her and leaving her by herself to be attacked. We'll discuss this more when it comes to Scream 3, but isn't that just silly?
Silly men. No wonder they each end up maimed. Silliest of all is when Dewey yells out "Sidney, he's in here!" What's she supposed to do with that information? And it's not like Ghostface isn't known to be sneaky and, like ya know, disappear and appear somewhere else with no regard to space or time logic.
!!! I love these two, don't you?
I love that if you look at the wound the blood is just flowing out of it! lulzomg, right? Juicy.
I like to imagine Sidney is saying to herself "Oh crap."
A poster and trailer for Jim Loach's - he's the son of Ken - UK/Australian co-production, Oranges and Sunshine. The film is released here in April and stars Emily Watson, Hugo Weaving and David Wenham and tells the story of the forced relocations of children from England to Australia and Canada, a government policy that wasn't fully ceased until the 1960s. The trailer, scored oh-so-tearjerkily (?) to the music of Lisa Gerrard, basically scream "WATCH THIS MOVIE AND CRY!"
Have you seen the newly released teaser trailer for DreamWorks' Kung Fu Panda 2? I wasn't a fan of the first one so I doubt I'll bother with another serving, but as I watched the teaser (below) I couldn't help but be reminded of one of the strangest aspects of 1980s music. Did people not find it terribly inappropriate for so many songs to utilise Asian culture in a comedic way? There's only so many mandolins and gongs that can be inserted into a song before it becomes apparent they're just taking the piss, right?
The trailer for Kung Fu Panda 2 uses a catchphrase of "We Will Wok You" and, well, is that any worse of a pillage from Asian culture than any of the songs I've included below (at least one of which is actually very incredible, the rest not so much) in its use of Asian culture for yuk yuks? Some of these videos truly have to be seen to be believed. The Aneka ones are just WOW, aren't they? Your eyes are guaranteed to bug out of your skull at the sheer audacity of it.
The Flirts, "Oriental Boy" | Donna Summer, "Tokyo"
Aneka, "Japanese Boy" | Aneka, "Little Lady"
Meanwhile, does anybody see this and just think of Geena Riley doing an amazing sketch on Fast Forward? The entire video plays like one big gag as it is!
Cyndi Lauper, "Hole in My Heart (All the Way to China)" | Nancy Nova, "Made in Japan"
Alphaville, "Big in Japan" | The Vapors, "Turning Japanese"
Is there a story as to why "turning Japanese" was deemed an appropriate metaphor for masturbation? It's but another confusing aspect of this whole mini-phenomenon. And then there were bands named Wang Chung and Big in Japan, plus Melbourne band Geisha who even had a song called "Kabuki"! I can't quite explain why Asia became so popular, especially with dance outfits, in the 1980s, but I'd rather listen to them than watch Kung Fu Panda 2! Who's with me?
Let's end this little foray by jumping forward a decade and a half from when Cyndi Lauper had a hole in her heart that went all to China, to when Madonna finally caught up and started to use Japanese iconography. Most notably, of course, was her "Nothing Really Matters" video, which is a great clip for a great song. Oh sure, I don't know why Madonna's wearing a rubber kimono why cradling a baby, but why question it?
Before I write anything, I just want to point out that this movie instantly reminds me of that awful Patrick Dempsey pun romcom Made of Honor, and that's never a good thing. It instantly loses points for that, don't you think?
Bridesmaids' marketing has jumped into full force this week first with a poster and today a trailer. I really actually like the poster. Perhaps it's that they've done something with the entirety of the space - even if it is just a pattern and text - but I also think they've done well with striking use of colour and a fabulous assortment of actress poses.
Plus, I always like when a poster so blatantly disregards the male demographic. This poster is like a big "fuck you!" to people who say women can't be funny and that men won't go see a female-centric movie. Having now watched the trailer though I can say that they have either shrunk Melissa McCarthy down from the trailer or she's wearing padding throughout the movie. I think we can all take a guess at the correct option there.
Sidebar: How awful does Mike & Molly look? Has it been axed yet? I so hope it gets axed soon!
Best part of the trailer?
Jon Hamm (mmmHamm) is slowly making his way through the entire female roster of Saturday Night Live alum isn't he? Sarah Silverman, Tin Fey and now Kristen Wiig! Lucky women, all of them!
In this project I attempt to review the entire Scream trilogy scene by scene in chronological order. Heavy spoilers and gore throughout!
SCENE 5 of Scream 2 Length: 4mins 57secs Primary Characters: Gale Weathers, Joel the Cameraman (Duane Martin), Debbie Salt (Laurie Metcalf), Chief Hartley (Lewis Arquette), Sidney Prescott, Randy Meeks, Derek, Mickey, Hallie, Sorority Sister Lois (Rebecca Gayheart), Sorority Sister Murphy (Portia de Rossi), Portia de Rossi's Eyebrows (Themselves) Pop Culture References:
Kevin Bacon ("Six degrees of Kevin Bacon" is mentioned)
Wow! Awesome crane shot! Wow! So cinematic!
Okay, seriously, let's get to that recently released Canadian trailer for Scream 4 before we get carried away with this scene. I haven't blogged about it yet because a) I've had minimal time and b) it keeps getting taken down, but "Steve" left a link in the comments of an entry so now we have one! yeehaw!
We won't talk about it too much, but needless to say I am excited. Reveals more of the characters (both in terms of number and in terms of their actual character traits and so forth) than the last teaser, which I like. My favourite bit is the "do you like scary movies?" gag that Emma Roberts and Hayden Panattiere share in the bedroom. It reminds me of this bit between Sidney and Randy where it really felt like they were a group of friends who had existed before scene 1.
Some of the scares look very good, such as the Adam Brody one at the end and Sidney's rooftop chase looks intriguing. Could she be getting chased by two Ghostface-clad killers at the same time? It's certainly something the franchise has never done before. Or, not done obviously so with two physical Ghostface beings in the same shot. Should be interesting to see. I like that they include a replication of a shot from the opening scene of Scream 2 and, hello, Kirby's (Panattiere) reciting of remakes of "groundbreaking" horror movies. Well, apart from the use of the word "groundbreaking", which just sounds silly. Nevertheless, we'll go with it, okay?
So, in the end, I like the trailer and it just made me even more excited. A new HD version has been released to the Apple website and it's the US version. There are a couple of shots that are different, but other than that it's all the same. Less than four months to go, you guys! Can we wait? No we can't, but we'll have to. Back to "Scream to Scream", okay?
Oh hai Gale! So glad to have you back and looking as bitchy as ever. She looks so feline-like; can you imagine 1997 era Courteney Cox as Catwoman? Now that would be a re-interpretation that I'd be on board for (ahem Mr Nolan!) Of the three hairstyles Gale had throughout the trilogy, this one is by far the best. As Dewey would say, "nice streaks!"
Love the look on Gale's face when her new cameraman, Joel, tells her he "almost won an award" for shooting the local bingo championships. The character of Derek is an interesting one though since he's the only black character in the entire trilogy who does not die (albeit, from a very small number of black characters - what's that about? A point so chin-stroke worthy that they put Deon Richmond on the poster for Scream 3 despite being in all of 3 minutes of the film!) We'll discuss this more later on.
Look at "Debbie Salt" hanging around there in the background. Whosoever idea it was (that'd be Lisa Beach) to cast Laurie freakin' Metcalf in a slasher horror movie deserves a medal. Yet again, one of this series' biggest assets is its ability to cast actors that we all know in unexpected parts. Not just mere cameos, but actual parts. I mean, Roseanne's sister Jackie as the killer in Scream 2 just sounds ridiculous and yet utterly amazing.
"Excuse me, Ms Weathers, could I have a minute? Just one second. I know you must get this all the time, but I just wanna say I am such a big fan of your work. I just finished your book, I couldn't put it down. Insightful, probing, I just really, really loved your book."
"Thank you, thanks."
"Sure. I'm a writer myself, I just write for the local paper. I'm Debbie Salt. I took your seminar in Chicago last year, I was the one in the front row asking all the questions."
"Right, I thought you looked familiar."
"Aw, thank you. Can't wait to see the movie! You know, you must be getting a lot of flak on that, right? What with all the violence in cinema issues. What is your position going to be?" "No comment."
"Mr Weathers, it would be such an honour for me if I could just get a quote from you for my story."
"Okay. Begin quote." "Great!" "Your flattering remarks are both obvious and desperate. End quote."
(from the background) "Ouch!"
This entire bit is gold, from Gale's so-couldn't-care-less almost monotone replies of "thank you" and "Right, I thought you looked familiar", but my favourite bit is the "ouch!" from the press gallery after Gale's big line at the end. It's so sassy talk show host, I love it! Plus, knowing in retrospect that "Debbie Salt" (aka Mrs Loomis, Billy's mother) is the mastermind behind the killings makes you realise how much she must be full of rage at this moment and plotting her revenge.
That would be David Arquette's father - and Courteney Cox's future father-in-law - Lewis Arquette. It really was a family affair on set!
You remember how I said Scream 2 followed a very set structure, almost identical to the original, for the first half an hour or so? Well I guess this is Scream 2's version of the fountain scene where we get to see all of Sidney's crew in one place and suss out the likely suspects. No jokes about gutting, livers in mailboxes and Sharon Stone, unfortunately.
"Sidney, look, it's Gale Weathers. Star of the Gale Weathers press conference, based on the book by Gale Weathers, soon to be a major motion picture starring... Gale Weathers." "Be kind, she saved our lives."
I like that Randy makes a joke about Gale having calf implants. Who has calf implants? Gale Weathers, that's who!
We already discussed the history of Sarah Michelle Gellar's Cici character and how she was originally meant to be in this scene with Rebecca Gayheart, Portia de Rossi and Portia de Rossi's eyebrows. Every time I remember this scene I remember it with Gellar purely of the image found on this page since it was, for some reason, widely used and circulated. It always confuses me because Cici is "Omega Beta Zeta" in her death scene and Gayheart/de Rossi/de Rossi's Eyebrows are not OBZ. Thinking its all one giant plot hole I then remember all the kerfuffle about her character reshuffle and then I go calm again. Although, if you look carefully in the background you can see Cici standing there in her purple top and blonde hair right where she would be saying "Starfuckers" per the original script.
But, really folks, are you read for the big entrance of Portia de Rossi's eyebrows??
"This must be flat out hell for you?!"
Amazing!
"It's really weird, isn't it? To think this fuss is all because of you! I mean, not directly, but in some 'six degrees of Kevin Bacon' way!"
EVEN MORE AMAZING OMG!!!!
Hah. That look of a stunned mullet on the faces of Derek and Mickey always continues my chuckle from Portia de Rossi's supreme comedic prowess.
*explodes* I'm sorry, I have to give myself a minute to pull myself up off the floor from the pits of laughter that Portia de Rossi's cocked eyebrow sends me into. I fuckin' love it!
Of course, how can I get that snobby-looking uptight sorority girl to the right of frame. She's not credited so I don't know who the actress is, but my god would you look at her face. You just know she grew up to be Julie Cooper-Nichol.
"Who's that?" Derek asks... why it's Dewey, of course! Yay! We all love Deputy Dewey, don't we? DON'T WE?
With the current, ongoing success of Kriv Stenders' Red Dog, there certainly feels like there's a buzz back in the Australian film landscape. After half a year of dud after dud - only Sanctum 3D and the UK co-production Oranges & Sunshine seemed to make any dent whatsoever at the ticket booth - Dog has become quite a hit and now we look towards the rest of the year hoping for a few more. One of the most likely contenders is The Cup, a dramatic retelling of Damien Oliver's ride of his life to win the Melbourne Cup after a tragic accident befalls his brother.
The newly released trailer for Simon Wincer's The Cup features a title card that says "FROM THE DIRECTOR OF PHAR LAP", which just seems a little bit too much like pandering. But, then again, they couldn't have put down "from the director of Harlequin", could they? Still, at least Phar Lap is a good movie! As for the trailer itself (below) it all looks like suitably rousing stuff and photographed gorgeously as all horse racing movies seem to be. Alas, also like any horse racing movies it can't eliminate the fact that it is, without fail, about horse racing. It amuses me greatly that Secretariat still hasn't received a release of any kind in Australia! Colour me impressed by Daniel McPherson though, and it will be sad to see Bill Hunter in his final role. 
