Christian Slater to get TV show - 3.14.2008.2

Well television may just get a bit more interesting soon. It’s not because American Idol is about to get canceled (I can only dream of that day so far). The reason is that there may be a new television program starring Christian Slater.

Now I am a fan of Slater. His work in Heathers and Broken Arrow were good. He has done many roles with a Nicolson-eque flair and a dark demeanor. It works, on the big screen and small. Similar qualities were brought to his work on The West Wing, a show I really enjoyed and virtually the last network television program I followed.

The new program is described as a Bourne Identity meets Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde. Now I’m not exactly sure how that can work. From what I understand the main character has an alter-ego that is a spy, and that he is unaware of. From what I can gather he is not playing a comical role but more in line with a 24 style.

I’m not sure this can work. But I want to give Mr. Slater the benefit of doubt. I look forward to seeing what this program might be like. Look for this in the fall.

Not much else to say about that.

But I know many people are hearing a lot of different things about Rev. Jeremiah Wright, the former pastor of Senator Obama. For those that don’t normally follow politics but want to know my review of one of the speeches of Rev. Wright as opposed to the 5 and 10 second soundbites in the major news media you can go to www.mvass.com

The movies of 2007 in retrospect - 12.12.2007.1

As 2007 is coming to a close I looked back on the films of the year, and the actors that made them what they were. It’s quite the mixed bag, with far too many massively overpaid for underperformance. Quite a few are, in my opinion, without the ability to justify the pay they receive, while others are a bit surprising in the modest pay they receive, relative to Hollywood payouts. Thankfully there are many that are worth the money that are a bit long in the tooth, making ‘older’ folks like myself feel a bit better I suppose.

In terms of the films that were hits, that lived up to the hype we all seemed to have. Included in that list The Bourne Ultimatum, Live Free or Die Hard, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Saw IV, Harry Potter, 300, Spiderman 3, I Am Legend [I include this because the storyline has been good enough to make this the 4th version of the film, and I have that much confidence in the ability and choices made by Will Smith] and to a lesser amount Hitman.

There were several films that failed, and most were no surprise to me. That would include Underdog, Fred Claus, The Mist, The Comebacks, Halloween, Code Name: The Cleaner, Alpha Dog, Hannibal Rising, The Hoax, Rush Hour 3, The Brothers Solomon, Lars And The Real Girl, 30 Days Of Night, The Invaders and a few others.

And then there are the special mentions like Aqua Teen Movie, Red Line, Georgia Rule, Ocean’s 13, Talk To Me, Bratz Movie, Rendition, Darfur Now, Lions For Lambs, Redacted, This Christmas, and American Ganster.

The leading films all boasted great casts with some of the best in the industry. It’s no surprise that Johnny Depp made a reputed $92 million this year. The same can be said of the $32 million for Matt Damon, the $23 million paid to the top 3 in Harry Potter and the unknown amounts for Bruce Willis and Will Smith (I would guess in the range of $20 million a piece). As for 300 or Spiderman, every dollar spent on the effects was worth it as that was the real stars. And Saw is just what you expect so it did its gore fest above par.

The worst films, which the list is hardly complete for, were all bloated poorly written refuse that amazed me someone greenlighted. Underdog proved that not every show or cartoon from the past needs to be remade or done live action. Stephen King continued his long streak of failing to convert his quality and success from books to film. Rush Hour, and Hannibal show that making sequels just for the money doesn’t always make money, and Cedric may be an entertainer, but he’s not an actor. Didn’t anyone get the clue from the horrendous Honeymooners movie? They just need to stop making him the lead in movies. The rest were just really bad ideas that turned into really bad movies.

The list of movies that qualify under that last sentence is too long to write. I’m sure we all could think of a couple of those movies, if we wanted the torture of thinking about that. The good news is that 2007 is over and they can only be reseen on DVD, if you get bored burning $20 bills. (The bad news is that 2008 will probably have at least as many gruesome failures – at $20 million a film Nicole Kidman is burning buildings full of them)

As for the last category of films, well they are special. Aqua Teen Hunger Force is a special interest – mostly targeting college kids up late watching cartoons that are distracting and meaningless (which is why we like them). Georgia Rule deserved to fail because of 2 things Lindsey Lohan and Hanoi Jane. I cannot fathom any film that contains the America hating Hanoi Jane that deserves to make a single dime. I dislike her and revel in her failures, personal and professional. [And I don’t care if anyone likes her for any reason, I despise her.] Equally fathomless is the concept that a film based on anorexic dolls could work. Seriously, anorexic dolls with attitudes?

I equally reveled in the failure of equally America hating films Rendition, Lions For Lambs, and Redacted. The abject failure of these films to garner any interest is a testament to the good taste of everyone except the people who greenlighted them. I can only hope that the actors in these films were doing them for the paychecks and not their political views. I would also say that if the producers and writers of these films feel that strongly (especially Mark Cuban) give up your citizenship and move to Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan or any other nation that will take you. I will not mourn your loss or the money you have.

But there are also films that should have gotten real attention and distribution. Talk To Me and Darfur Now were thrown to the wayside, the corporate execs sleeping well at night because they got them into theaters. In fact both were solid films deserving of recognition for what they had to say and the performances. Luckily both have Don Cheadle in them, though he is only acting in one. I have to wonder, considering the wide release of Cedric’s movie, that execs fear promoting a film with a Black actor that makes any serious political and social statement. You can’t pay a major media company to acknowledge Darfur has been going on, least of all for 4 years, and America has yet to do ANYTHING about it. We can run around the world and help fix everyone’s problems, but forbid we even distribute a movie about a genocide we can do something about.

Lastly there is American Gangster and Ocean’s 13. Denzel Washington is a solid, brilliant actor. The film is quite good (even with 3 rappers in it). But I have a problem with the promotion of a negative style of life for African Americans. Far too many will see this as a vindication or motivation. The mindless find inspiration in odd places, thus the film upset me. And Ocean’s 13 just proved that sometimes you can make a sequel just for the money and it’s ok.

So there are my thoughts on the films of 2007. Get the DVD’s of those you like, target shoot the ones you hate and get as a gift. And gird yourself for 2008, because Carrotman (it’s an old obscure comic book character) the movie hasn’t been greenlighted, yet.

[Again I say, Iron Man will be the massive big winner of the year.]

Review - The Bourne Ultimatum - 8.4.2007.1

The Borne Ultimatum. It is almost enough to say that alone, and still explain with clarity the fact that it is a full-throttle adrenaline rush. The movie is about as non-stop as any movie can claim to be. And when you are on this ride you are bewildered, careening and intensely absorbed in everything around you. It’s about the best description for how the movie will make you feel.

Honestly the movie is a rush. From the first 5 minutes to the last 5 you are kept moving at a pace that is breathe-taking. The pace is moving at the speed of Bourne, and for once we get to glimpse the world from his eyes. To appreciate how quickly Bourne can evaluate and implement a plan based on his surroundings is astounding.

This film starts from just before the end of the 2nd movie, and continues in time from there. By late in the film we connect to the last scenes of the Supremacy. The context changes everything. And the trailers for the movie are not quite what you will get in the film.

The movie provides several scenes where we get to see exactly how Bourne makes his disappearances, and he even imparts this to another person. Effectively he takes a regular man and cloaks him in invisibility to the eyes of the operatives searching for him, in one of the most video surveillanced and agent filled places in England.

This lives up to the hype, and expectations. More fights, more locations, more secrets revealed. As Bourne unravels his past, the levels of deception and danger unfold at higher levels. The willingness of some to do whatever it takes to keep the shadows dark is equal to the grey of what is right and wrong in their world.

The quest of Bourne to understand who made him what he is takes us full circle through the entire movie series. We begin in water, and end there as well. We get questions and answers in a diner. We learn what is similar in all the women of Bourne’s life.

Mr. Matt Damon picks up his titular role and doesn’t miss a beat. He gives us exactly what we’ve come to love about Bourne. Taciturn, economical and lightning sharp. Quite a few of the stunts are done by Mr. Damon, adding to the connection and authenticity. Watching him take out various bad guys with nothing more deadly than a book or just bare handed is impressive.

Unlike most films, except the Ocean 11 series, all the major characters we’ve come to enjoy make an appearance at least. The one’s that have survived to this point at least. And more than in the other films we get a bit of politics infused as well. Both the pro and con of various issues, like tapping cell phones. To see the keyword program in action, with the ability to tap conversations, overseas shows the potential good and the ease of misuse of such a policy. Much like the various operatives and the shadow programs everything in this film details the fine line between the good of the nation and the evil power can bring.

Perhaps that is the real attraction of the series. Watching the battle, not of good and bad, but the struggle of being in the gray. Either way, the journey is worth the price.

Movies coming to theaters after the summer - 7.31.2007.4

As the countdown before the highly anticipated Bourne Ultimatum ticks lower I wanted to take a look at some of the films that are a bit farther off in the horizon. Sadly the end of summer this year seems to portend the end of what little originality we have seen. Along with the loss of uniqueness we get only a glance at the glimmer of interesting theatrical movie magic.

Let’s start with the remakes. As most readers know well, I hate the recent trend of ‘revisioning’. I liken it to say revisioning a prime rib done medium-rare (which is just perfect) with a slab of warm tofu. It may keep you alive, but it’s not the same experience. That is how I would equate some of the better recent re-makes. In the worst cases I would say it’s like have my brain grated with a cheese grater while listening to a duet of William Hung and Biz Mark E.

So having said that, joy of joys there is a remake of Halloween coming up. I’m sure it will be no less interesting than the (yawn) Texas Chainsaw Massacre. I’m filled with giddy anticipation as we will most likely get either a scene for scene copy (minus the original interest or intensity), or a gore fest that can’t live up to the scares a bloodless original created. What a thrill ride there.

Also running the remake game is the 3rd version of the Invasion of the Body Snatchers. This time out of the gate the producers and movie execs have decided to cut the name to simply The Invasion so that younger viewers will not notice the connection to any other version. In yet another attempt of Hollywood to assume that the public is as dense as a twinkie, we see them saving money on original ideas to re-tread movies that were done well the first time only. While I doubt this film will have any real interest, I would be willing to bet that this time there will be an even more feminist twist to the storyline than the 2nd version. I’m sure this will work with movie-goers about as well as the re-visioned Hitcher movie did. Can you feel the blood just draining from your brain?

But wait, there is a movie approaching that is almost original. Yes, a movie that is not some new director’s wet-dream of a ticket to everlasting fame having bested a master filmmaker. Before you get too giddy, its another global-warming film. The 11th Hour. Buzzkill I know. But if you feel that the world is ending in a ball of flame and smoke by next Tuesday, you will probably flock to this film. The only thing I can say is I hope they sell broccoli sticks instead of popcorn at the theater. It will leave less of a carbon footprint.

You may ask is there any film that I might be looking forward to in the near term? One so far is, War, which will be starring Mr. Jet Li and Mr. Jason Statham. Both are proven action movie actors. While the storyline might not be the most original, action movies are not really known about plot. I would imagine that this will be a very fast paced movie that will live up to at least one aspect of expectations, a lot of people will get beat up. I can accept that, and considering the moves both men have shown in the past the film should not disappoint on that level.

If there is a fight scene between the 2 men, I’m guessing that Mr. Statham will win or at least that the leading edge. His star is still rising, and Mr. Li is moving away from fighting in his films, or so it has been reported as they violate is buhddist (as I recall) views.

Well there you have it. Enjoy the Bourne Ultimatum, there isn’t much else that seems to be a big draw. If I’m wrong I will let you know. So far, in terms of remakes at least, I don’t recall missing yet.

This is what I think, what do you think?