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April 2008
‘Iron Man’ invading early and packing a CGI punch
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Officially, the summer movie season begins on Friday, but Paramount’s “Iron Man” will invade early with thousands of Thursday night screenings nationwide.
Already there are more than 130 screenings beginning at 8 p.m. Thursday and on into the night in metro Atlanta theaters. That’s a change from the usual 11:59 p.m. or 12:01 a.m. sneak previews Hollywood has generally used in the past to launch potential blockbusters.
While the early salvo looks like it could reduce the official “Iron Man” three-day opening weekend box office tally, the Hollywood Reporter speculates that Paramount is counting on word-of-mouth buzz from so many early screenings to increase audiences on Saturday.
The move is also likely due to summer’s lineup. With big projects coming each Friday (“Speed Racer” opens May 9; “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” debuts May 16; “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” arrives May 22), some studios are looking more to bolstering opening week box office than opening weekend box office.
Predictions have been that “Iron Man” will earn $60 million to $70 million or more its first weekend. But buzz has been building. In early reviews, “Iron Man” has earned a 92 percent approval rating at Rottentomatoes.com. Associated Press movie critic Christy Lemire calls it “a blockbuster with a brain.”
The film has the expected explosions and eye-popping CGI, but the screenplay also has input from two of the writers involved with 2006’s heady drama “Children of Men.”
Paramount screened the film Tuesday night in some Atlanta theaters. Several scenes have also been available on Youtube.com for weeks.
At just over two hours, the film, based on the Marvel comic, involves billionaire weapons manufacturer Tony Stark who invents a remarkable metallic suit enabling him to single-handedly fight terrorist forces.
Here’s what fans will likely be talking about as “Iron Man” opens:
The first firefight: The initial bomb can jolt you out of your seat — even though you know it’s coming. In an attack on a military motorcade there are large explosions and intense sprays of bullets.
Robert Downey Jr.: Always a reliable, interesting actor, he plays Stark with the same wit, arrogance and charm he brought to TV’s “Ally McBeal.” He lets the jokes fly (as the consummate partyboy he orders military man Terrence Howard to ride “in the Humdrumvee”). Expect “Iron Man” to seriously raise his status in Hollywood.
The gadgets: Stark drives a sleek, cool Audi R8. His garage wheels include a Shelby Cobra, a Saleen S7 and a Tesla Roadster. Oh, and his private jet comes with a stripper pole.
The co-stars: Jeff Bridges, in bald head and beard, is a standout as executive Obadiah Stane. So is Gwyneth Paltrow, who thankfully drops her usual fake English accent, to play Stark’s assistant Pepper Potts.
The “futurism”: The schematics, the metalworks, the CGI and the sleek, roadster-red tinged titanium alloy suit all meld to give the film the feel of “The Terminator” meets “Spider-Man.”
Are you looking forward to “Iron Man”? Will you see it this weekend?
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These guys have mad driving skills
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I drive just like this, you know.
How about you?
This video has some of the coolest driving maneuvers you will ever see.
Enjoy.
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Is Del Toro the right choice for ‘The Hobbit’?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“The Hobbit” has jumped back on my “of interest” list now that New Line and MGM have announced that Guillermo del Toro will direct.
Del Toro can certainly deliver fantasy — if you’ve never seen the Oscar-winning “Pan’s Labyrinth,” do so now. And he adds depth to his stories with dark shadings and clear-eyed looks at whatever danger lurks around corners.
The director will be in New Zealand for four years, working with Peter Jackson (he’s producing) and filming back-to-back “The Hobbit” for 2010 and “The Hobbit 2” for 2011.
Are you excited about Del Toro helming the “Hobbit” films? Who do you want to play Bilbo Baggins?
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Fox summer films: Rolling Stones, ‘Casablanca,’ ‘Ben-Hur’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Rolling Stones’ concert film “Shine A Light” will start this year’s Coca-Cola Summer Film Festival at the Fox Theatre.
The Fox has set the series’ first seven films, including showings of the classics “Casablanca” and “Ben-Hur.” Seven films for August will be selected later.
The schedule:
“Shine A Light” — 7:30 p.m. June 5.
“Dr. Seuss’ Horton Hears a Who!” — 2 p.m. June 8.
“Atonement” — 7 p.m. June 8.
“Casablanca” — 7:30 p.m. June 17.
“No Country for Old Men” — 7:30 p.m. June 18.
“Enchanted” — 2 p.m. July 13.
“Ben-Hur” — 7 p.m. July 13.
Tickets will go on sale May 19. Individual tickets will be $7 (12-ticket packs are $60). The pre-show with Larry Douglas Embury performing on the “Mighty Mo” organ and a sing-along and classic cartoon will all be returning.
What do you think of the lineup so far?
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‘Pastor Brown’ filming here with Rockmond Dunbar
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Fresh off of co-starring in “Tyler Perry’s The Family That Preys,” actor Rockmond Dunbar is now directing and co-starring in another film being shot in metro Atlanta, “Pastor Brown.”
Written by Marietta’s Rhonda Freeman-Baraka, “Pastor Brown” is about a preacher’s daughter returning home to help care for her sick father and to try and make peace with an older sister.
The cast includes Salli Richardson Whitfield (“I Am Legend”), Nicole Ari Parker (TV’s “Soul Food”), Keith David, Michael Beach, Michael B. Jordan, Tisha Campbell-Martin, Tasha Smith, Dondre T. Whitfield and Ernie Hudson. Making cameos in the film are recording stars Monica, Angie Stone and India.Arie and retired NBA player Charles Oakley.
Filming began in mid-April and is expected to continue through May 7.
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So what if they dropped their Winkie swords?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Sage of Cine,
Don’t you think that the Lion, Scarecrow and Tin Man should have been able to wreak more havoc and rescue Dorothy faster than they were able?
They did have a monkey wrench, a gun, an axe, a bug sprayer, a butterfly net and three Winkie swords! (Does Winkie need to be capitalized?)
ROBERT NEWMAN, Professor of Tautology, Fredonia State University
Dear Chipmunks Genuflect to Me,
I don’t know what movie you were watching, but my “Wizard of Oz” deals with individuals — be they four-pawed or straw-laden — who are packed with personal issues. Like exhibiting an entire lack of courage.
What good is a bug sprayer and butterfly net if you don’t have the gumption to properly employ the devices?
It’s not till near the end of the movie that the Scarecrow receives his doctorate in thinkology. So it’s no wonder that when this trio arrives inside the witch’s lair one of the first things they do is drop their Winkie swords. (And, yes, the W is capitalized because a Winkie is a race of hook-nosed individuals with a knack for chanting “O-Ee-Yoh!”)
The point is everyone needs time to mature and grow into one’s own promise of wonderfulness and competency. One must face one’s inner self and inner fears.
Maybe it is nice to have Legolas, who can be counted upon to perform great deeds at will. But what made “The Lord of the Rings” really great was the growing ingenuity and bravery of the wee Hobbits. It’s great to hear Aragorn’s rallying cry, but greater to see the formerly meek Merry and Pippin lead the dead-run charge “for Frodo” at the Gates of Mordor.
So, yes, Lion, Scarecrow and Tin Man should have been able to wreak more John Rambo havoc. They could have turned the production into an action film.
But they didn’t. And their way made “Wizard of Oz” more wonderful.
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Son of Rambow” T-shirt and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
I want to pay you a compliment, take you to task, and ask a question.
First, you clearly know more than anyone about movies.
Second, a director does not ask for an Alan Smithee credit if a movie is a turkey; he asks for it when he has lost artistic control. The resulting movie might not be that bad; it’s just not his movie.
Third, what do you think of my theory that a movie is good because of the writing, directing and acting, but a movie is great because of the writing, directing, acting and editing?
DEBORAH D. FITE, Atlanta
Dear Presumptuous,
Per your first statement: Truer words were never spoken or, in this case, typed.
Per your second statement: Trust me, if a director won’t put his own name on what was supposed to be his movie, that director thinks what the studio has done now makes the movie stink.
Per your third statement: Editing is certainly vital and more important than so many moviegoers even realize. Cloris Leachman ought to have considered sharing her Oscar for “The Last Picture Show” with the film’s editor, Donn Cambern.
But a movie really becomes great because of the writing, directing, acting, editing, cinematography, art direction, sound, score, etc.
ALAN
P.S. You get an “Indiana Jones” handbook and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Mr. Know-It-All, Sir,
I live in a DeKalb County subdivision called “Diamond Head.” It was built in 1964, and is some 4,000 miles from the formation so named in Hawaii.
As newsletter editor, I tried to figure out why this subdivision got that name. I learned that around the time the builders broke ground here, a movie called “Diamond Head” was released. It starred the late Charlton Heston. But it sounds like a dumb, forgettable movie.
What does your instinct tell you: Was our subdivision named for a box office flop?
DOUG RICHARDS, Decatur
Dear Dan-O,
Yeah. Pretty much.
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Tropic Thunder” cap and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Answer man Alan Smithee resolves all sorts of reader movie questions every Friday in Movies & More. Is there really an Alan Smithee? That’s one he won’t answer. But he does allow that it’s a name used for crediting purposes when directors want to disassociate themselves from a movie that, well, stinks.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR MR. SMITHEE?
E-mail him at alansmithee@ajc.com or go to accessAtlanta.com and click on Movies. Please include your name, city and daytime phone number. Mr. Smithee can’t reply to every request, but inquiries chosen for publication will receive movie-related prizes.
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Atlanta Film Fest crowd of 13,798 tops 2007 total
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The recently concluded Atlanta Film Festival is claiming a total attendance figure of 13,798, which is only slightly higher than the count of 13,000 for last year’s event.
A few years ago, the fest was held during the summer and attendees numbered above 20,000, though those figures were inflated by including crowd estimates from one of Turner Classic Movie’s Screen on the Green showings.
In an e-mail message, Atlanta Film Festival 365 executive director Gabe Wardell noted that while this year’s fest demonstrated “only slight growth over last year’s tally … it should be remembered that with 122 programs, we hosted fewer shows than last year’s 151.”
The fest had 10 sold-out screenings, including the opening night drama “The Lena Baker Story,” “The Animation Extravaganza,” “Son of Rambow” and the closing night feature “The Visitor.” Three separate showings of the made-in-Georgia zombie movie “Dance of the Dead” were sellouts as was two showings of the documentary “What Are We Doing Here?”
Among the fest’s prize winners: “At The Death House Door” for documentary, “Make-Out With Violence” for narrative feature, “Aquarium” for narrative short, “But Some Are Brave” for animated short and “Africa’s Daughter” for documentary short. Special jury prizes were awarded to “My Effortless Brilliance” for direction, “Land of Confusion” for first documentary and “Spine Tingler! The William Castle Story” for pure documentary entertainment.
Earlier this year, the annual Atlanta Jewish Festival claimed a record attendance of 15,000, making it the second-largest Jewish film fest in the nation and the largest film fest in metro Atlanta. The Jewish fest also now lasts 12 days, while the Atlanta Film Festival runs for 10 days.
Did you go to the Atlanta Film Festival? What did you think of the event?
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Dutch director challenges Jesus story
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
How do you stir up interest in your project? If you are Paul Verhoeven, it appears you dream up the most outlandish thing you can say.
According to Reuters, Verhoeven is posing in a biography of Jesus that perhaps his father was a Roman soldier who sexually assaulted Mary. Verhoeven’s book is expected to be published in September.
The Dutch filmmaker has made very good movies (“Starship Troopers”) and very bad ones (“Showgirls”). He was also the director of “Basic Instinct.”
Verhoeven is now developing a film on Jesus.
From a recent interview conducted by Richard von Busack before an appearance by Verhoeven in Santa Rosa, Calif.: “The message of Jesus is the way he lived. That he ultimately was killed was something that just happened. By seeing it as a sacrifice we diminish the importance of what he’s thinking. Putting the cross and the resurrection at the heart of the story has diminished the importance of Jesus’ message.”
Are you interested in Verhoeven’s interpretation of the story of Jesus? Will you read his book or see his film?
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When is there going to be a good movie? Soon.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
When a co-worker and then a friend and then a neighbor end up asking you the same question, then something is definitely up.
The question? “When is there going to be a good movie?”
They’ve all been right to ask. The 2008 movies have been a pitiful bunch. It’s been like asking when will Emeril Lagasse start making something worth eating at his Buckhead restaurant. (In this case the answer was always, “Never.”).
“Mad Money.” Stupid. “Jumper.” Lame. “Semi-Pro.” Amateur. “Penelope.” Putrid. “My Blueberry Nights.” Aggravating.
“Leatherheads.” This one’s the worst of the lot and the most shameless with lots of advertising and in-your-face marketing for a film everyone involved with knows is bad.
The summer season is primed to do what it always does — deluge us with action and big-name stars.
But there are little movies coming. And I know they are good, in some cases even exceptionally good, because I’ve seen them. All of them played at the Atlanta Film Festival and will soon have theatrical runs.
Here are four that should help cure the 2008 bad movie blues:
“Young@Heart.” A lively, fun documentary about a senior citizen chorus that belts out rock songs. Don’t miss it. Opens Friday.
“Priceless.” A thoroughly enjoyable comedy from France (Yes, that means the language is French and you will have to read subtitles) with Audrey Tautou as a likable golddigger. Opens Friday.
“Son of Rambow.” A British comedy that’s been a smash hit at festivals about two young boys making their own movie after seeing a pirated copy of Sylvester Stallone’s “First Blood.” Opens May 16.
“American Teen.” An entirely watchable and sometimes involving documentary centering on four kids from various cliques in high school. Opens Aug. 8.
Have you heard good things about these movies? Did you see them at the Atlanta Film Festival?
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An owl as ‘robot in disguise’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Trust me on this: you don’t need to speak or understand the language.
All you need to do with this video (aptly titled “Hooter Transformer”) is watch and be amazed at the owl’s defensive mechanism that reshapes its body into something completely different.
Enjoy.
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Herschel Walker and DID movies
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia football legend Herschel Walker’s book “Breaking Free” debuted last week and is shining new light on dissociative identity disorder, an ages-old subject in movies.
Having multiple personalities may not be as simple as “Psycho” (you know, Norman Bates being himself and, in his mind, his aggressive mother), but Hollywood has used the disorder not only for horror, but for comedy, fantasy and for depicting real life.
A few examples:
“X-Men: The Last Stand” (2006) — Famke Janssen’s character can be either the telepathic Jean Grey or the overly aggressive, cosmic Phoenix.
“The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” (2002) — A double-personality oddity, the remarkable, humanesque Gollum performs a head-spinning soliloquy that’s a riveting argument between his good and evil sides.
“Me, Myself & Irene” (2000) — The pliable Jim Carrey is either mild-mannered Charlie or wild-mannered Hank in the Farrelly brothers’ bawdy comedy.
“The Nutty Professor” (1996) — When Eddie Murphy’s overweight professor takes a certain chemical, he becomes the tres slim and tres obnoxious Buddy Love.
“The Three Faces of Eve” (1957) — Georgia-born Joanne Woodward won an Oscar portraying Eve White, who developed two other personalities. The movie is loosely based on the true story of Chris Costner-Sizemore.
“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” (1931) — Fredric March won his first of two Oscars playing the classic dissociative identity disorder sufferer, his problems tied to a potion, from Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel.
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How many ‘Terminator’ movies do we need?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Christian Bale is about to start filming “Terminator 4” (aka “Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins”) in New Mexico for summer 2009 and I’m sitting here in Georgia wondering why.
I’m the last person to speculate (ha!) on something unseen, much less even made yet. (Well, to start with: just like “3” director Jonathan Mostow, “4” director McG ain’t no James Cameron). But how can there be a “Terminator” movie without Arnold Schwarzenegger?
I still remember sitting in the theater when the virtually unknown “The Terminator” debuted in 1984 and being amazed at the film’s power. The movie (along with that year’s “Conan the Barbarian”) raised Schwarzenegger from big-screen oddity to A-list actor.
In “4,” Bale will play John Connor. Notice how in the series the role of John has mushroomed from capable kid (Edward Furlong in “2”) to meek young adult (Nick Stahl in “3”) to formidable Christian Bale.
Without Schwarzenegger, they have to have a caped crusader.
Are you looking forward to another “Terminator” movie? And which “Terminator” movie was best? (I’d say the original is best; then close behind is “Judgment Day.” “Rise of the Machines” hardly deserves a second look).
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Definitely not the right crowd for ‘Cuckoo’s Nest’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Mr. Smithee,
I’m looking ahead to our Mental Health Week activities next January. We would like to include at least a couple of movies in our public events.
I would really like to show some positive and upbeat films that deal with mental health. That is a difficult criteria to meet.
This past year we showed “Away From Her” and “Rocket Science.”
Any suggestions for 2009?
EDDIE WHITLOCK, Mental Health America of Northeast Georgia
Dear Mindful,
Let me understand you. You want to watch a movie that digs deep into mental health issues and problems and disturbances, but you want it to be all happy and sweet.
Well, I guess “Frances” is out of the question. “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest,” too.
There’s something about a lobotomy that fails to put a spring in anyone’s step.
Trust me, Eddie, if you had grown up under the watchful eyes of Mother Smithee, you would have been a firsthand witness to the depths of disturbia.
We liked to call her Mommie Dearest.
I have pondered long and hard about your needs and have come up with a baker’s dozen for your consideration and divided into three categories:
1. Do you have the guts to show these? Two compelling films are “The Idiots” (1998), Lars von Trier’s remarkable Dogma drama about a colony of Danes committed to bringing out their “inner idiot” (there’s nudity, sex and plenty of other reasons why you won’t show it), and “Tarnation” (2003), Jonathan Caouette’s knockout documentary of growing up with a schizophrenic mother. With its throbbing, nightmarish visions, it’s the closest thing I’ve ever seen to cinema as a scab (which explains right there why you won’t show it).
2. Show these if you want, but don’t waste your time inviting me: If you want to really ring the happy bell and bang the sentimental gong, then show “The Other Sister” (1999) —- shudder —- “Radio” (2003) or “I Am Sam” (2001), which is referred to in my house as “I Am Ham.”
3. The list of seven you should pick from: Jimmy Stewart’s “Harvey” (1950) is certainly happier than that other movie with a mysterious rabbit, “Donnie Darko.” Other possibilities include “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” (1993), which is still Leo DiCaprio’s best performance; the Oscar-winning “Shine” (1996); the often funny “As Good As It Gets” (1997); the certainly less funny but memorable “Awakenings” (1990); and the interesting “Six Degrees of Separation” (1993).
I did say seven, didn’t I? But I’ve only listed six. That’s because I’ve saved the best for last.
You should screen Ryan Gosling’s “Lars and the Real Girl” (2007), which landed a screenplay Oscar nomination and is the most charming movie about mental health I’ve seen in years.
It is sweet, affecting and extremely funny.
And lucky you. “Lars” arrived on DVD this week.
ALAN
P.S. You get a stuffed polar bear from “The Golden Compass” (which really has nothing to do with mental health other than that New Line was nuts to make it and sell off foreign box-office rights) and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
My father took me to my first movie when I was 12. It was “Unchained (or Unclaimed) Boundaries,” I think. It starred Mel Ferrer as a minister in a small New England town. It seems someone discovered he was of mixed race. Do you know of that film? Its correct title?
ALICE HERBER, Punta Gorda, Fla.
Dear Late Starter,
A movie at 12? I was taken to a double bill at age 6: “Pollyanna” and “Psycho” (see Mother Smithee reference above).
Your movie is 1949’s “Lost Boundaries.” Ferrer plays a light-skinned African-American doctor (not a minister), who for a while passes for white (it’s how he’s able to get a job).
The film won the screenplay award at the Cannes Film Festival.
You can find VHS copies of the film at Amazon.com.
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Cloverfield” camera and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR MR. SMITHEE?
E-mail him at alansmithee@ajc.com or go to accessAtlanta.com and click on Movies. Please include your name, city and daytime phone number. Mr. Smithee can’t reply to every request, but inquiries chosen for publication will receive movie-related prizes.
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Keisha Knight Pulliam to star in ‘Madea Goes To Jail’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The cast is set for “Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes To Jail,” which is expected to start filming in Atlanta in the middle of May.
“The Cosby Show’s” all-grown-up Keisha Knight Pulliam (she was Rudy Huxtable) will play a hooker, according to the Hollywood Reporter. Other stars include Derek Luke (“Friday Night Lights,” “Antwone Fisher”), Tamela Mann (“House of Payne”), David Mann (“Meet the Browns,” “House of Payne”) and, of course, Tyler Perry.
“Madea,” based on Perry’s stage play, comes on the heels of the prolific filmmaker’s “The Family That Preys” starring Kathy Bates, Alfre Woodard and Taraji P. Henson.
Are you looking forward to “Madea Goes to Jail”? Is Madea your favorite Tyler Perry character?
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Name the best Meryl Streep films
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Each year the Film Society of Lincoln Center chooses a film legend to honor at its annual gala. This year’s pick? Meryl Streep.
Good choice. Has this woman ever acted badly in a movie? No.
Now, she’s been in some bad movies (hopefully you didn’t, like me, have to suffer through “Falling in Love” with Streep and Robert De Niro). But her acting wasn’t the painful part.
Streep was celebrated by the Film Society earlier this week. And I know it was a classy, fun affair with great film clips and worthy speeches.
I know because I attended the Society’s gala a few years ago when Atlanta’s own Jane Fonda was honored. And that was a classy, fun affair with great film clips. I remember asking Fonda if she was prepared to see some clips from “Barbarella.” Part of her reply: “Bring them on.”
If I’d been in charge of this week’s Film Society event, I would have made sure clips were shown from my five favorite Meryl Streep movies:
1. “Sophie’s Choice” (1982) — Her silent scream (the sounds you actually hear are the cries of her child) after a Nazi has forced her to make her “choice” is one of the most powerful moments on film.
2. “The Hours” (2002) — I thought all the acting in this movie was amazing, but the best of the lot was Streep.
3. “Heartburn” (1986) — Not a knockout movie, but every time I chance upon it when the television’s on I will invariably stop and watch to watch Streep in it.
4. “Silkwood” (1983) — I grew up in this part of the country and can attest that Streep’s accent and manners are authentic.
5. “Adaptation” (2002) — A fascinating, ever-twisting film and I love watching Streep skirt the line between comedy and drama.
What are your favorite Meryl Streep movies? “The Devil Wears Prada”? “Out of Africa”? “The Bridges of Madison County”? “Postcards From the Edge”?
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If only I could break dance like this
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
What I love about this break dance video is that the first guy is good — and you know that he thinks he’s great — and then, later, after some guy comes out and interrupts the performance, a third guy performs and blows everybody away.
The third guy is like rubber. He’s got mad skills.
Enjoy.
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Mark David Chapman movie coming to Atlanta
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Chapter 27,” which stars Jared Leto as Mark David Chapman and is about the three days leading up to the shooting death of John Lennon, will begin a theatrical run at the Plaza on May 9.
Chapman was a former student at Decatur’s Columbia High School when he gunned down the Beatles legend in December 1980 in New York City.
The title “Chapter 27” refers to “Catcher in the Rye,” which has 26 chapters and was the book Chapman carried when he was arrested for Lennon’s murder.
The R-rated film, co-starring Lindsay Lohan as a Beatles fan, debuted last year at Sundance and went into limited release in March. Some reviews have been far from stellar. The New York Times slammed “Chapter 27,” saying none of its elements “are integrated coherently enough to seem like more than postmodern noodling” and that most of the performances are “vague and dull.”
A second film — “The Killing of John Lennon” with Jonas Ball as Chapman — went into limited release in January, playing in one theater for three weeks. No word on when or if it will ever screen in Atlanta.
I recall that I first heard Lennon was murdered from Howard Cosell, who announced the news while I was watching a “Monday Night Football” game on TV.
Here’s what Cosell said: “This, we have to say it, remember this is just a football game, no matter who wins or loses. An unspeakable tragedy, confirmed to us by ABC News in New York City: John Lennon, outside of his apartment building on the West Side of New York City, the most famous perhaps of all the Beatles, shot twice in the back, rushed to Roosevelt Hospital, dead … on … arrival.”
Do you plan on seeing “Chapter 27”? Where were you when you heard John Lennon was killed?
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Is being witty and quippy all that Ellen Page can do?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Did you see “Smart People”? If not, surely you’ve seen the trailer at the theater or on television.
Want to know what I noticed?
There’s our little “Juno” girl and Oscar best actress nominee Ellen Page in “Smart People” playing almost exactly the same character. You know — witty, quippy, out-of-the-box and completely sarcastic.
Can this young woman play anything else?
I wonder. She has pretty much the same delivery in “Hard Candy,” her film that preceded “Juno.” (By the way, “Juno” arrives on DVD on Tuesday).
Do you think Ellen Page a one-note actress?
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Who should star in Will Packer’s film on Kemba Smith?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Will Packer is lining up yet another film project. The prolific Atlanta-based producer has obtained the rights for a planned biopic on Kemba Smith, the African-American woman granted clemency by President Clinton after spending years in prison on a crack cocaine case.
Smith had no criminal record and had led a stellar life before she began studying at Hampton University where she met a man who ended up being the head of a multimillion-dollar crack cocaine empire. Authorities pressed conspiracy charges against her and she received a 24-year prison sentence.
Packer is about to begin filming “Obsessed” in Los Angeles with Beyonce Knowles and plans to follow that up with the heist drama “Bone Deep” with Idris Elba, Matt Dillon and likely Atlanta rapper T.I.
The untitled Kemba Smith film could start in 2009.
Smith is now in her 30s. I can think of several actresses who could play her: Taraji P. Henson, Rosario Dawson, Meagan Good and Jurnee Smollett just to name a few.
Who would you select to star in a film about Smith?
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An amazing subway video from Japan
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’ve seen many things in my life, but nothing seems to compare to this simple yet startling video from Japan.
It’s called “Pack Them In” and involves a subway train and people. Too many people. This is real life. And it makes me queasy because I suffer from mild claustrophobia.
I can’t say, “Enjoy.” I can only say, “Watch.”
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Please, no boos or whines if your opinion differs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Readers,
What is it with you people?
Every week I give and give and give. I work long hours laboring over my special prose, all in the feeble hope of dragging the lot of you into the bright light of knowledge where whispers of happiness become reality.
And what do I get in return?
Hellish snarls and cries of foul. “You did not include” … “You omitted” … “I think you missed” … “You forgot.”
Well, I say you will not weaken my resolve.
The ruckus involves my recent column in which a kind reader asked me to list my favorite alcohol-themed films.
I dutifully wrote about “Barfly,” “The Thin Man,” “The Verdict,” “Leaving Las Vegas” and “Long Days Journey Into Night.”
Here’s what I got in return:
From Dave Shafarow in Florida: “I was quite surprised that you did not include ‘The Lost Weekend’ with Ray Milland or ‘Come Fill the Cup’ with James Cagney. Do you not consider these excellent alcohol-themed movies?”
From a reader identified as TwoDuzies: “Surprised to find that you never saw, nor heard of ‘Days of Wine and Roses.’ Even though almost 50 years old you can still get it on DVD. Suggest you do.”
From Joel Ripley of Maple Plain, Minn.: “Kept reading wondering when you were going to list ‘Days of Wine and Roses’ and came to the end of your response disappointed. Did you leave it out in error?”
From Yvonne Syler: “I think you missed the all-time best alcoholic movie ever, ‘Days of Wine and Roses.’”
There’s more. Much more. But you catch their drift.
My response:
Ahem,
What might cause any individual in his or her right mind to fathom that I might have either not seen or actually had forgotten about any of the aforementioned movies is well beyond my grasp of possibility.
Do I look or dispense knowledge like someone who might not be aware of three of Hollywood’s major films from the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s?
If my favorite is not your favorite, then that would suggest to me that such truth is something you will have to live with.
Your films — especially “Days of Wine and Roses” — are just a jigger too much melodrama for my palate.
Notice I also didn’t say a word about “Arthur” or “Ironweed” or even “Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?” which happens to be one of my all-time favorite dramas. I didn’t mention “Animal House” or “My Favorite Year” or even “The Legend of Drunken Master,” an alcohol film I would have no trouble listing ahead of “Lost Weekend,” “Fill the Cup” and “Days of Wine and Roses.”
That’s not to say the three films listed by my dear readers are not good movies.
They’re just not my favorites. I didn’t forget them. Honest. I ignored them.
ALAN
P.S. You get my heartfelt thanks for your kind missives, and I get a Hendrick’s gin and tonic, which I will sip while wearing an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
It’s rare for Hollywood to set up production in my neck of the woods, so when cameras do roll, I’d like to see how well those films did at the box office. Is there a way to find out how well movies prospered theatrically in each state, specifically mine of Minnesota?
CORY NELSON, Plymouth, Minn.
Dear Ya, Sure, You Betcha,
If Minnesota and most states are anything like Georgia, then your government has a film board of some sort.
Like the Minnesota Film and TV Board in St. Paul, which you will find online at www.mnfilmtv.org.
On that site you can download a filmography that lists more than 120 films made in Minnesota, including “A Prairie Home Companion,” “Fargo,” “North Country” and “Jingle All the Way.”
Now go to www.boxofficemojo.com and plug a film title — such as “Fargo” — in the search. You will be rewarded with both domestic (North American) and worldwide box office figures.
For “Fargo” that’s $24.6 million domestic and $60.6 million worldwide.
ALAN
P.S. You get a large “Iron Man” figure and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR MR. SMITHEE?
E-mail him at alansmithee@ajc.com or go to accessAtlanta.com and click on Movies. Please include your name, city and daytime phone number. Mr. Smithee can’t reply to every request, but inquiries chosen for publication will receive movie-related prizes.
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‘Lena Baker’ opens Atlanta fest, will soon hit Cannes Market
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
At Thursday’s sold-out Atlanta Film Festival opener “The Lena Baker Story,” writer-director Ralph Wilcox wasted no time dropping news on the red carpet. He’s signed a deal with Los Angeles-based distributor American World Pictures and his film will screen at May’s Cannes Market for potential worldwide distribution.
Made in Colquitt, Ga. and set mostly in the 1940s, “Lena Baker” is the real-life story of the only woman ever to be executed in the state’s electric chair. She was later posthumously pardoned.
Tichina Arnold, who stars in the title role, arrived at Atlantic Station for the film’s world premiere in a bright purple short dress and a showstopping pair of tan Yves Saint Laurent boots.
“I love wearing boots but it’s hot as hell here,” Arnold said with a big laugh. She’s been taping episodes of her TV sitcom “Everybody Hates Chris” in Los Angeles and thought it would be a bit colder in Georgia.
Baker’s sad, affecting story involved mistreatment by her white employer (played by Atlanta actor Chris Burns), who beat her, and his father (played by Peter Coyote), who held her captive as a sex slave. After Coyote’s character is killed in a struggle with Baker over a gun, she was quickly convicted and later executed.
“Lena’s legacy has been to inspire and that all her trials and tribulations did not go in vain.” Arnold said. “What attracted me to this story is that it is so parallel to what a lot of women live right now — being abused by their counterparts or their husbands. Lena was always stuck between that rock and a hard place. She wasn’t afforded many opportunities.”
Wilcox, clad in a sleek black tuxedo, reveled in the joy of a world premiere screening of the first full-length feature to emerge from his 22,000-square-foot production studio in southwest Georgia.
He remembered arriving in the area with big ideas about making movies and being greeted with raised eyebrows.
“When I came down there they were looking at me, talking about how, you know, ‘He’s got to be hiding from somebody. We do peanuts and cotton here and you’re talking about the movie business. Who you runnin’ from?’” Wilcox said with a laugh.
“But there is something to be said about competence and faith and commitment to your beliefs,” he said. “I have gone down where there is nothing and by God’s grace I’ve been able to galvanize a real force of excitement. Sometimes that’s all it takes — a spirit of excitement and all of a sudden everybody feeds into that vision.”
He also said he hoped “Lena Baker” would make moviegoers think deeply about themselves and relationships.
“We need to get a real dialog going on who we are and what we mean and represent to one another,” he said. “Because while we can see visible change (in treatment over the years), what about the fabric of our soul? That is what is the final moment of how we ultimately define ourselves as a people and a species.”
The Cannes Market, where “Lena Baker” will be screened on May 16, is an annual companion to the Cannes Film Festival.
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Which summer movie do you want to see most?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Summer movies are just around the corner. “Iron Man” opens May 2 and “Speed Racer” follows on May 9.
Here are the summer movies I’m looking forward to seeing most:
1. “The Dark Knight” (July 18). Heath Ledger was a good actor. And in the trailers his Joker looks awesome.
2. “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” (May 22). I am nervous, however, that the action sequences might have too much CG.
3. “Hancock” (July 2). I like Charlize Theron and Jason Bateman. And if Will Smith is in a movie, I’m automatically there.
4. “Kung Fu Panda” (June 6). The trailer makes it look very funny. And the animation looks great.
5. “HB II” (July 11). After “Pan’s Labyrinth,” I became a huge fan of Guillermo del Toro and rediscovered “Hell Boy.”
Which summer movies are you anticipating? “Sex and the City” (May 30)? “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” (May 16)?
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Full lineup for Screen on the Green includes ‘Jaws’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Turner Broadcasting’s free Screen on the Green will kick off May 29 with an outdoor showing of Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-winning “Jaws” (1975).
And new this year, fans will get to vote for the five-week series’ final film which will be either “Back to the Future” (1985), “Rocky” (1976) or “Footloose” (1984).
Turner plans to officially announce Thursday or Friday the lineup for this year’s Screen on the Green, which due to the drought will be temporarily held this year at downtown’s Centennial Olympic Park. Screen on the Green is being presented by Turner’s Peachtree TV.
The schedule:
May 29 — “Jaws” (1975).
June 5 — “Big Momma’s House” (2000).
June 12 — “Chicago” (2002).
June 19 — “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” (1982).
June 26 — Fans’ choice between “Back to the Future” (1985), “Rocky” (1976) or “Footloose” (1984). Moviegoers can vote by going to Peachtreetv.com from April 14-27. The winning film will be announced in May.
Moviegoers are advised that no glass containers or alcoholic beverages can be carried into the park. No grills are allowed (food and beverage vendors will be present). Attendees are asked to leave pets at home and umbrellas and high-backed chairs are discouraged.
Screen on the Green is expected to return to Piedmont Park in future years.
Are you excited by this year’s lineup of films? Which movie do you most want to see?
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Image becomes Atlanta Film Festival 365
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Starting now, Atlanta’s Image Film and Video Center will be known as Atlanta Film Festival 365.
Image has been presenting the Atlanta Film Festival for more than 30 years and now hopes metro Atlantans will think of the organization in that context all year round.
“It’s a branding issue,” says the nonprofit group’s executive director Gabe Wardell, who made the announcement at Tuesday’s fundraising gala at the Fox Theatre’s Egyptian ballroom.
The 32nd annual Atlanta Film Festival starts Thursday with a sold-out screening of the made-in-Georgia “The Lena Baker Story” at Atlantic Station. Some 160 films will then be shown through April 19 at Landmark Midtown Art Cinema.
Tuesday’s gala included honors given to Tyler Perry Studios; filmmakers Peter Gilbert and Steve James (“Hoop Dreams”) whose latest documentary, “At The Death House Door,” is part of this year’s fest; Emory film professor Matthew Bernstein and Metro Arts & Culture Coalition board chair Virginia Hepner.
For full details on all the films in the fest go here.
Do you plan to see any of the films at the festival?
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Disney and Pixar: To 3-D and beyond
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I hope you and your kids like 3-D.
Disney and Pixar have announced that all their computer animated films will now be in digital 3-D. First up is Disney’s “Bolt,” debuting at Thanksgiving and about a dog from a TV action show who believes he has superpowers.
DreamWorks computer-animated films will begin being all in 3-D next year. By May 2009, upwards of 4,000 screens across the country will be capable of exhibiting in digital 3-D. So it seems the trend is cemented. And as home viewing increases, 3-D seems like one of the best options to lure fans into theaters.
Pixar’s future 3-D films include “Cars 2” (2012), “Rapunzel” (2010) and “Toy Story 3” (2010). Also planned are re-releases oy Story” and “Toy Story 2” in 3-D.
Do you and your kids like watching ‘toons in 3-D?
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‘Leatherheads’ fumbles in final box office figures
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Oops. “Leatherheads” is worse than we first thought.
George Clooney’s made-in-the-South football comedy was not No. 2 at the box office as estimates indicated Sunday. On Monday, real figures came in and “Leatherheads” fell to No. 3 with $12.7 million. “Leatherheads” now trails not only No. 1 “21,” but No. 2 “Nim’s Island,” which swapped places with Clooney’s film.
I’m not really surprised that “Leatherheads” couldn’t even make its own box office estimate. The movie is often strained and painfully boring. I expect now it will just fade into failed obscurity.
Did you happen to see “Leatherheads”? If so, what did you think of it? Any chance you’ll see the movie now?
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‘Start Me Up’ like you’ve never heard or seen it before
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Rolling Stones’ concert film “Shine a Light” is in theaters and Gerry Phillips is on his couch in Troy, Mich., playing along to “Start Me Up” by making musical sounds with his hands.
And, no, nobody’s making this up — Mr. Philllips is what we would call a manualist.
And he’s very good at it.
Enjoy!
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TCM sets Heston movie marathon for Friday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Turner Classic Movies will remember Charlton Heston in a big way on Friday and early Saturday with a 15-hour marathon of his movies.
The hour special “Private Screenings: Charlton Heston” will kick things off at 2:30 p.m. and will be followed by five of Heston’s classic films, including “Ben-Hur.”
Friday’s full schedule:
2:30 p.m. — “Private Screenings: Charlton Heston.”
3:30 p.m. — “The Buccaneer” (1958), co-starring Yul Brynner and Claire Bloom.
5:30 p.m. — “The Hawaiians” (1970, co-starring Geraldine Chaplin.
8 p.m. — “Private Screenings: Charlton Heston.”
9 p.m. — “Ben-Hur” (1959), co-starring Stephen Boyd.
1 a.m. — “Khartoum” (1966), co-starring Laurence Olivier.
3:30 .m. — “Major Dundee” (1965), co-starring Richard Harris and James Coburn.
Which Heston movie is your favorite? Will you watch any of these films?
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Is T.I. headed back to the big screen?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlanta rapper T.I. is in final negotiations to possibly co-star in Screen Gems’ upcoming heist drama “Bone Deep,” according to the film’s Atlanta-based producer.
Will Packer, who soon will begin filming “Obsessed” in Los Angeles with Beyonce Knowles, says he is in “final stages” of a deal to have T.I. join his “Bone Deep” cast. The film, which will star Matt Dillon and Idris Elba, involves a planned robbery that Packer has described as a kind of cross between “Heat” and “Ocean’s Eleven.”
“Bone Deep,” tentatively set for 2009 release, could be filmed this fall. Atlanta is under consideration as a location, Packer says.
T.I., the multimillion-selling Grammy winner born Clifford Harris Jr., has recently been fulfilling obligations of at least 1,000 hours of community service following his guilty plea to three federal firearm violations charges. (Watch the video here.)
T.I.’s last film was the Oscar-nominated “American Gangster” with Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.
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In his day, Charlton Heston was The Man
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In the survivalist, nuclear-waste world of 1971’s “The Omega Man,” a little girl looks up at Charlton Heston and asks, “Are you God?”
Well, of course he wasn’t. But in Hollywood terms, he was about as close to that as any Hollywood actor could get.
In the 1950s and most of the 1960s, the guy ruled movies. Think of Russell Crowe, Denzel Washington, Will Smith and Harrison Ford. Now smush them all together and remold them into one charismatic actor.
Heston was our adventure king, our go-to guy when the world hit fourth down and 20 to go.
Here are my five favorite Charlton Heston movies. In order.
1. “Touch of Evil” (1958). Moody and perfectly rendered film noir from master Orson Welles, with Heston as a narcotics official in a viper-like Mexican border town.
2. “Planet of the Apes” (1968). He’s cynical, cocky and gritty as a space explorer who lands in a simian world.
3. “Ben-Hur” (1959). I could watch the chariot race over and over all day long. It’s probably the greatest action sequence ever filmed.
4. “The Omega Man” (1971). Very 1970s. And sort of a sci-fiploitation film with that little girl asking Heston, “Are you God?”
5. “The War Lord” (1965). The aura of a Heston film was usually so epic, so big (think “The Ten Commandments,” “El Cid,” “Khartoum”). I think I like the Medieval “War Lord” because it’s smaller, its story more compact. Heston, of course, is as big and over-the-top as ever.
What are your favorite Charlton Heston movies? Do you watch “The Ten Commandments” or “Ben-Hur” every year?
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Video tribute to Charlton Heston
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
This Youtube video tribute honors Charlton Heston with clips from “The Omega Man,” “Planet of the Apes” and “Touch of Evil.”
In his day, Heston, who died Saturday, was Hollywood’s top mainstream actor.
Enjoy … and remember.
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Follow me to make yourself a better you
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Dear Mr. Smithee,
Since recently signing a contract with one of the DVD rental companies, I have been using it to better myself and my film knowledge. Lately I have been concentrating on one actor, Sigourney Weaver.
How can one of her movies which I had not heard of (“Snow Cake”) be so charming as well as unknown?
And can you recommend a few actors who you think have a wonderful catalog along with some picks for me to try?
DUSTY HAVERTY, Marietta
Dear A Better You,
Good choice.
Soliciting my advice is always preferred over stumbling about in the dark and fumbling through stacks of DVDs with no clear mission and, worse, unrefined tastes.
I, too, am a Sigourney Weaver fan. Here’s hoping you have seen these: “Alien,” “Eyewitness,” “The Year of Living Dangerously,” “Aliens,” “Gorillas in the Mist,” “Working Girl,” “Death and the Maiden” and “The Ice Storm,” Maybe “Tadpole,” too.
I firmly believe you never heard of “Snow Cake” because you, kind sir, failed to pay attention. It played in Atlanta last year. Perhaps, if one wanted to better one’s self regarding films, one would make a habit of looking a little bit harder at local movie information.
And, as so many of us are aware, one must be diligent because Hollywood is most interested in creating, promoting, advertising and inundating the public with what could be called junk.
I believe “Snow Cake” had too much thought in it to be appropriate for the masses.
As for your kind request for other actors and their works you might want to explore to further your well-being, I might suggest these, for starters:
Ryan Gosling: “The Believer,” “The United States of Leland,” “Stay,” “Half Nelson,” “Lars and the Real Girl.”
Delroy Lindo: “Clockers,” “Get Shorty,” “Wondrous Oblivion,” “This Christmas.”
Chris Cooper: “Matewan,” “This Boy’s Life,” “Lone Star,” “October Sky,” “American Beauty,” “The Bourne Identity,” “Adaptation,” “Capote,” “Syriana.”
Shia LaBeouf: “A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints,” “Disturbia,” “Transformers.”
Lindsay Crouse: “The Verdict,” “Places in the Heart,” “House of Games.”
Taraji P. Henson: “Hustle & Flow,” “Four Brothers,” “Talk to Me.”
Don Cheadle: “Devil in a Blue Dress,” “Rosewood,” “Boogie Nights,” “Out of Sight,” “Traffic,” “The United States of Leland,” “Crash,” “Hotel Rwanda, “Talk to Me.”
ALAN
P.S. You get a “Fool’s Gold” hat and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
Dear Mr. Smithee,
Would you know the name of a movie starring Fred MacMurray and in it is a phrase in an alternate language: “On a horse there are flies, in a comb there are bees, on a chest there are knobs, in the knobs there are keys.”?
LORI FLEMING, St. Paul, Minn.
Dear Glowing Gravy,
I believe the comedy film you are looking for is 1945’s “Murder, He Says.”
MacMurray is a pollster who finds himself trapped amongst rather odd murderous hillbillies.
Research indicates the lyrics you refer to are “On horse flies is; In comb bees is. On chest knob is; In knob keys is.”
ALAN
P.S. You get a “The Bucket List” jacket and an “Ask Alan Smithee” T-shirt.
DEAR READERS: On some occasions I receive anonymous requests. Normally, I don’t use them. But the following query is just too good to pass up:
“I was surprised to read that John Travolta wears a rug. Which other stars might we be surprised to know wear toupees?”
The Internet, as some of you must realize already, is a wonderful place. In it exists www.celebrity-toupee.com.
There you will learn that Ben Affleck is suspected of having some sort of hair addition atop his noggin.
Among others the site says appear to be hair-challenged: Charlton Heston, Jimmy Kimmel, Chuck Norris, William Shatner, Al Pacino, your aforementioned John Travolta, Jeremy Piven, Bob Costas and Vince Vaughn.
The site also includes a rare photo of Humphrey Bogart without his toupee.
It’s probably no secret that Sean Connery has worn a rug.
HAVE A QUESTION FOR MR. SMITHEE?
E-mail him at alansmithee@ajc.com or go to accessatlanta.com and click on Movies. Please include your name, city and daytime phone number. Mr. Smithee can’t reply to every request, but inquiries chosen for publication will receive movie-related prizes.
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2007’s most amazing eyewitness video
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Battle at Kruger” is one of my favorite Youtube videos of all time. It recently won one of the website’s top awards.
It’s nature in all its fury with lions vs. water buffaloes vs. crocodiles in South Africa.
Watch and be amazed.
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Tichina Arnold is solid in Atlanta Film Fest opener
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The made-in-Georgia “The Lena Baker Story” has at least one memorable element: a solid, gut-wrenching performance from lead actress Tichina Arnold.
“Lena Baker,” based on the true story of the only woman ever put to death in Georgia’s electric chair and filmed in south Georgia by Ralph Wilcox, is the opening night feature for the Atlanta Film Festival, which will run from Thursday to April 19.
Arnold commits herself to the role of an African-American woman, who in the 1940s was held as a sex slave by the white father of her employer. A late-night fight ends in death and Baker is convicted of murder and executed. She was posthumously pardoned 60 years later.
It’s a strong, dramatic performance, showing off Arnold’s edgier side and stands in stark contrast to the comedic roles she often does for television.
The supporting cast is equally solid and includes Beverly Todd (“The Bucket List,” “Crash”), Peter Coyote, Michael Rooker and Chris Burns.
“Lena Baker” will screen at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Atlantic Station. For tickets and full details go here
Are you interested in seeing “The Lena Baker Story”? Do you like Tichina Arnold’s work on television?
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Clooney and his ‘Leatherheads’ fumble
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s my indubitable list of what matters most among new movies this weekend:
1. “Leatherheads.” George Clooney did a media blitz in smaller cities to sell his football comedy out of desperation. Why? See the movie and be as bored as I was.
2. “Shine a Light.” It’s ultra-fun to see Mick Jagger do his prance thing up close. It’s ultra-scary at times to see living-dead Keith Richards.
3. “The Counterfeiters.” Oscar-winning foreign-language Holocaust film that’s more serviceable than memorable.
4. “Nim’s Island.” Abigail Breslin’s adventure film probably works for young kids, especially pre-teen girls. But it’s no “Swiss Family Robinson.”
5. “Shelter.” A gay surfing-and-loving-in-California story built on romance and sensitivity.
6. “The Grand.” Let me be crystal clear. I’m a poker fanatic and I barely made it through this mea-lukewarm Texas Hold ‘Em comedy.
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Official ‘B-Boy’ trailer shows some hot moves
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The breakdancing documentary “Planet B-Boy” is expected to arrive in Atlanta later this month.
The film is about how performers exist all over the world and involves a major dance-off contest.
Here’s the trailer to clue you in.
Enjoy.
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‘Chipmunks’ sells 2.6 million DVDs in 1 day
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It took three furry little creatures just one day to amass 2.6 million DVD sales for last year’s holiday hit “Alvin and the Chipmunks.”
The DVD of the film went on sale Tuesday and immediately surpassed opening disc sales for bigger-named projects like “I Am Legend” and “Enchanted.” The sales figure is also the most in one day for any DVD this year.
In theaters worldwide, the PG-rated “Chipmunks” has already gathered more than $355 million and change.
And they aren’t done promoting themselves.
Fox’s “Get Munk’d” mall tour, which features performers in large Chipmunk suits, will arrive at Alpharetta’s North Point Mall on April 13. Showtime: noon to 4 p.m.
Alvin, Simon and Theodore characters perform several songs from their film’s CD, including “Funkytown,” “How We Roll” and “Witch Doctor.” There will also be dance lessons and video game stations.
Are your kids or grandkids fans of the Chipmunks? Did you buy one of those 2.6 million DVDs?
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Count the dominoes as they fall
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Can you count the dominoes as they fall?
Know that there are more than 4 million here as this Dutch program exhibits one heck of an elaborate domino show.
Enjoy!
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Can Tyler Perry’s piece of the pie get bigger?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Can Tyler Perry grow his audience?
That’s the question posed today in the Hollywood Reporter, which while acknowledging the Atlanta filmmaker’s box office power and fan base, wonders if his material can be tweaked to attract the mainstream.
“Perry finds himself at a good news-bad news crossroads,” the Hollywood Reporter story says.
He can be counted on to bring in black audiences and millions of dollars. To date, his latest comedy “Tyler Perry’s Meet the Browns” has earned more than $33 million. But mainstream audiences have yet to really embrace Perry’s films.
The movie he’s making now in Atlanta — “The Family That Preys” — has Oscar winner Kathy Bates in the cast and is an original screenplay.
I think much of Perry’s audience might wonder — what’s the problem?
Perry serves an audience that Hollywood couldn’t or wouldn’t. He makes millions of dollars. And his films are as successful or more successful than movies directed by, say, George Clooney.
Do you think Tyler Perry should seek a wider audience? Does he need to change his material?
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Hollywood’s biggest fools
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Maybe it’s April 1, but this is no joke.
Hollywood is bursting with fools — people so full of themselves they couldn’t find and see reality clearly if you drew them a map.
I know. I watch these people 24/7. It’s my job. I’m paid to be a witness to vanity, self-deception and the sheer unwillingness to connect with the consumer.
The fools in Hollywood are countless. Here are a few that I’ve seen bubble to the surface:
— Cuba Gooding Jr. There’s no question the man has talent. In “Jerry Maguire,” he didn’t just steal every scene he was in, he ran over Tom Cruise. Cuba turned Tom into roadkill. But Mr. Gooding Jr. also has no sense of his own media image and an inability to properly manage his own celebrity. He’s a diva. He consistently mistreats the press. In other words: Will Smith will get every major role Cuba Gooding Jr. wants and thinks he deserves. Cuba should learn to be likeable offscreen.
— Paul Haggis (“In the Valley of Elah”), Gavin Hood (“Rendition”) and Robert Redford (“Lions for Lambs”). As we sit and watch Kimberly Peirce’s “Stop-Loss” flounder at the box office, we wonder how long it will take for Hollywood to realize that the American public not only is depressed over the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, but simply does not want to see left-leaning diatribes that try to make us feel worse. Here’s a clue to Hollywood: the war-on-terrorism film that the public liked was Jamie Foxx’s kick-some-butt “The Kingdom.” Please re-watch “Air Force One” and figure it all out.
— M. Knight Shyamalamadingdong. Yes, I saw “The Sixth Sense.” I loved it. It was wonderful. It fooled me. But try to fool me twice, thrice, ad nauseum, shame on you. We all saw the secrets of “Unbreakable,” “Signs,” “The Village” and especially “Lady in the Water” coming. Shyamalan needs a new gimmick. Now.
— Kevin Costner. Do I really have to spell this one out? One of Hollywood’s top stars starts to believe his own celebrity and, thus, begins a long, slow slide into unfathomable junk like “Rumour Has It” (an embarrassing sequel to “The Graduate”) and “Mr. Brooks” (a serial killer with a heart of gold? Give me a break).
— Lindsay Lohan. Sure, we all know her name. We’ve all watched the train wreck. A young woman with talent goes off the deep end and wrecks her career. Now she’s stuck making tripe like “I Know Who Killed Me,” in which she plays a disfigured stripper. Her next planned film: “Dare to Love Me.” The title may well speak for itself.
Do you disagree with my choices? Care to add a few of your own favorite Hollywood fools to the list?
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