Category: Geeks on Movies

‘Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts’

Please bare with me as I’m about to reveal a new level of my own movie geekness … Philip Glass, in my opinion, is our greatest living composer. Having written scores of mesmerizing minimalist music for films, theatre, opera and symphony, Glass is someone I consider genius. From acclaimed director Scott Hicks (Shine, No Reservations) comes Glass: A Portrait of Philip in Twelve Parts (2007) a documentary about the legendary composer to commemorate his 70th birthday. Scott follows Glass through one year of his life and career, documenting his work and his personality. The DVD has not yet been released, but I assure you this is one I will be checking out. While I imagine some of you have heard of him, I would assume most have not. So, here is just a short list of his work to further illustrate my fascination with Philip Glass:

Dracula (1931) — Philip Glass rescored the classic Universal film for its 1999 DVD release.

Koyaanisqatsi (1982), Powaqqatsi (1988), Naqoyqatsi (2002) — Glass scored this experimental trilogy from film-maker Godfrey Reggio, a must see. These films are tremendously beautiful both visually and musically.

The Thin Blue Line (1988), A Brief History of Time (1991), The Fog of War (2003) — Glass scores all three of the intriguing documentaries by Errol Morris.

Hamburger Hill (1987)
Demons 3 (1989)
Candyman (1992)
Candyman: Farewell to the Flesh (1995)		 ………. Kundun (1997)
The Hours (2002)
Secret Window (2004)
Undertow (2004)		 ………. The Illusionist (2006)
Notes on a Scandal (2006)
Cassandra’s Dream (2007)
No Reservations (2007)

Google Street View of the Viper Room …

Ahh … Google street view … how freakin’ awesome it this! The fun things you can do with it. For example, The above picture is of the Viper Room which was previously owned by Johnny Depp until 2004. On the other side of this white beater of a car is where River Phoenix overdosed and died on Halloween morning in 1993. Adam Duritz was a bartender here right before, and during the Counting Crows rise to fame. This is also the site of many many gangster(old school gangster, not rapping gangster) brawls, shoot outs, and sit downs. Go check out street view for yourself.

Check out ‘Tetris: The Movie’ … [fake] trailer webisode

From Black20.com comes a new [fake] movie trailer they developed themselves … check it out. Its actually kinda cool in its own cheesy way. These guys have an entire website devoted to webisodes of their own short movies, fake trailers and parodies. I always like seeing this kind of creativity out there … and I can enjoy it from the comfort of my computer chair.

Carrot Top … seriously?

What the heck happened to Carrot Top? Was Chairman of the Board so awful that it put him over the edge and made him start body building?

I don’t know about that, but he is HUGE, and Chairman of the Board was AWFUL. Carrot Top AKA Scott Thompson is actually that big now. I know what you are thinking..”No Way, that has to be someone else, or Photoshopped” Well..its not.

I went to his Myspace and looked a recent pictures of him and its true. Check it out

As for what he is up to now, you all know! He is the epitome of an out of work actor. However, he does have a headlining comedy gig in Vegas at the Luxor Hotel.

So, there you have it faithful readers …

Shyamalan’s ‘Avatar: The Last Airbender’ is next …

I admit, I’m not the most loyal follower of anime. In fact, if you were to throw a title or character out there, odds would be greatly in your favor that I would go … “huh?” I do, however, enjoy anime movies and series … and I am gradually making a slow effort to build on my repertoire of anime-watching experience, thanks in part to a good friend of mine who is a sort of guide at times.

OK, back to the point … Avatar: The Last Airbender is officially going to be M. Night Shyamalan’s next project, which he apparently has already started pre-prod work on. His current movie, The Happening, releases June 13, 2008. Being the surprisingly big fan of Shyamalan that I am, I am confident that The Happening will get more than its fair-share of publicity … before, during and after its run in theatres. As I’ve mentioned before, Shyamalan is a master at capturing the audience’s curiosity and holding it firmly in his grasp until the end credits role on the screen. So, its curious to me why he has chosen Avatar as his next project. Perhaps he’s wanting to move away from his signature style films, or … maybe its another project he wishes to do for his kids? After all, Lady in the Water was made for his kids, based off a children’s story he wrote. Unfortunately, I think I’m the only person on the planet that really liked it.

Anyway, Empire has a great article with an interview with Shyamalan about Avatar. If you wish to read it, go to: empireonline.com

10 Cool Movies … in Development Hell

One of the cool things about movies is you can literally take any story, from any genre and it can be made into a movie. With this said, it does not guarantee the movie will succeed or even be watchable. I enjoy finding out about projects long before they are even firmly grounded in production. I guess it gives me something to look forward to, but it can also be a let down if a particular movie falls into the dark and endless abyss of development Hell. Here’s some of my favorite projects currently in the early, early … early stages of “potentially” becoming actual movies. [Note: I’ve included none of the endless superhero projects in this list. An entire list of lists could be made from that pool of projects alone.]

  • Flicker – This would be based on the Theodore Roszak novel of the same name and has Darron Aronofsky attached to direct. There is actually a finished script ready, but Aronofsky has put this project on the back-burner for now, in favor of others. The story follows a film student who determines that B-movies are part of a plan to obliterate all life on Earth.
  • Ranger Danger and the Danger Rangers – Who doesn’t like Kevin Smith? [Word of advice, if you find yourself responding “I don’t” you should be careful … you’re behind enemy lines.] Long rumored to be his “special” tenth film, it would be a campy sci-fi action/adventure movie along the same vein as Flash Gordon and Barbarella, but Smith-style. Very little is known, but we need only know of its potential existence to be excited.
  • Priest – This one got away from me. Based on the graphic novel by Min-Woo Hyung, this movie tells the tale of a priest who defies church law, then must track down the vampires who have taken his niece. Andrew Douglas is directing this project that is apparently now in production. Sam Raimi and Mitchell Peck produce and is expected to release in 2009.
  • Frank Miller’s Ronin – This one is currently in development as an optioned property. Based on Frank Miler’s graphic novel of the same name, it follows an ancient samurai who is reborn in the future. It takes place in New York City and he must face an ancient demon reincarnated from the past. Sylvain White is attached to direct.
  • Ender’s Game – Director Wolfgang Peterson holds the rights, but the project has only recently entered pre-production. Based on the popular sci-fi novel by Orsen Scott Card, the story takes place 70 years after a war with aliens and follows a boy who is destined to be a great and gifted leader to free this future Earth from the continued alien threat.
  • Parasyte – Based on the Japanese manga series by Hitoshi Iwaaki, it is unclear where in development this project is. The story follows a man whose left arm is infected with a parasite, giving it a mind all its own. The man must work with the parasite to save mankind from an invasion of alien spores. Takashi Shimizu is attached to direct.
  • Tortured Souls: Animae Damnatae – With a script written by Clive Barker and based on his own novella, written specifically for Todd McFarlane’s line of gnarly action figures, the current word is the project is undergoing script re-writes. One thing is for sure, even if the film flops it should be interesting to watch … if not down-right disturbing.
  • Neuromancer – Based on the cult/sci-fi classic novel by William Gibson, this project is in pre-production. Joseph Kahn is attached to direct and they have apparently signed Hayden Christensen to star as Case, a young computer genius who jacks his consciousness into cyberspace, running cons for cash until he crosses the wrong people.
  • Deadman – Guillermo del Toro currently holds the rights to this project, which means I am thrilled. Based on the classic DC comic book series, the story follows the ghost of former circus acrobat Boston Brand, who was murdered while performing. His spirit was given special powers by a Hindu goddess so that he may avenge his own death.
  • Hannibal the Conqueror – Vin Diesel is slated to produce, direct and star in this story of the Carthage general who led an elephant-backed army against Rome in the third century B.C., based on the novel by Ross Lekkie. The movie sounds cool, but how will Diesel hold up under the pressure of handling the three most important jobs in the process. We’ve seen what its done to Mel Gibson.

A Bit of Trivia …

Thought I’d throw this out there, just for fun. Some of you may find this easy. If so, try not post the answer too quickly. There’s no prize … so, challenge yourself. See if you can figure it out before jumping over to IMDB and looking it up.

Q. In what movie can you find all of the following actors: Elijah Wood, Billy Zane, Jason Scott Lee and Crispin Glover.

Hint: If you get stumped, I have hidden an additional clue below. Just highlight the area between the arrows to reveal.

>>> Flea, the bassist for Red Hot Chili Peppers, also appears in this movie. <<<

B-Movie Icons: Joe Bob Briggs

While I was trudging my way through high school, I was primarily an art student. Back then, I did my homework and got decent grades, but didn’t take school all that seriously. Not yet the movie geek I am today, I did thoroughly enjoy watching movies … especially horror and science-fiction movies, and if they had really cool monsters … even better. Not being a beer-drinking party drone, I spent many Saturday night’s during the school year staying up late watching TNT’s Monstervision, hosted by Joe Bob Briggs.

You may be thinking, “What a nerd.” No, I was a geek … get it right! Truth is, Joe Bob had a fairly big influence on me. It wasn’t until I had developed a habit of watching his sarcastic commentary on the movies, that I began reading other film critics and writers. Joe Bob, whose real name is John Irving Bloom, would host Monstervision in his Joe Bob Briggs persona … a redneck living out of a trailer, usually with beer in hand. His approach to the featured movies was typically a balanced combination of appreciation and mockery. Perfect, considering the movies were mostly B-movie horror and/or sci-fi genre flicks. Before the movie started, Joe Bob would briefly explain what the movie was about, then he would give us his Drive-In totals … things such as how many severed heads/limbs, how many explosions, etc. He also had his sidekick Rusty the mail girl, who would bring him the fan mail. During each commercial break, Joe Bob would return to give us some more trademark banter and to update us on where we were in the movie.

Alas, Monstervision is gone, but Joe Bob Briggs survives. He has written two books … Profoundly Disturbing: The Shocking Movies that Changed History and Profoundly Erotic: Sexy Movies that Changed History. You can also still get your regular dose of Joe Bob’s prose at his website The Joe Bob Report.

Please, please … give me ‘Barbarella’

If there’s one example of a remake that I will gladly pay $10 to go see, and quite possibly multiple times, it would be a remake of the 1968 classic Barbarella that is directed by Robert Rodriguez. Seriously, bring it on! This project has been in development Hell for so many years … at one point raising eyebrows as Drew Barrymore was considering taking on the title role, but eventually the rumors and hype died out again. That is, of course, until word got out that Robert Rodriguez would be directing the movie. BAM! How’s that for a rumor. As it turns out, the hype has again died down … but, Rodriguez hasn’t pulled out of the idea. The project is still technically slated for a very loose 2009 release, although Universal Pictures doesn’t seem to be in any kind of hurry, as of yet.

Hold On!!! This film isn’t dead yet. In a blog article by Shawn Adler on MTV Movies Blog, Rose McGowan spills some interesting and very encouraging beans regarding the status of the Barbarella remake in her interview. After rumors of who would be playing the title character, from Jessica Alba to Nicole Kidman, it turns out Rose McGowan will be the lucky actress to dawn the iconic persona. Clearly, Barbarella is a favorite of mine and it may seem blasphemous for me to be excited about a remake, but with Rodriguez attached I feel confident about its outcome.

Why not Rutger Hauer …

Rutger Hauer in \'Blade Runner\'

I was cruising along the Internet this morning and somewhere in the back of my mind I started hearing this voice, asking me … “Why not Rutger Hauer?” I thought, yeah … why not? I mean, no one can claim Hauer hasn’t been in his fair share of films. According to IMDB.com, Hauer has been in well over 80 movies, with six more on the way. No, the question is more a matter of why doesn’t he get bigger roles in bigger movies? Granted, for all we know, he may be selecting the films he does intentionally. That list of films consists mainly of smaller low-budget and/or direct-to-video titles.

I can’t help but think of Blade Runner and wonder why that role alone didn’t set his career on fire, permanently. Hauer played the replicant Roy Batty in the 1982 sci-fi classic and it was his first major Hollywood role after establishing a place as a Dutch actor back home. As much as I love Blade Runner, I truly feel Hauer was a major factor in the movie being as good as it is. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that the studios hated the movie at first and it was actually a box office flop when it first released. Only later did the film become the sci-fi/cult classic it is today.

Despite what I’ve said, I am glad Hauer has chosen some of the movies he’s done. Even without the stigma of becoming a massive Hollywood star, Hauer has created some great performances, even in the smaller stuff. A few of my favorites include The Osterman Weekend (1983), Ladyhawke (1985), The Hitcher (1986), Blind Fury as Nick Parker, a blind Vietnam vet who is a skillful samurai who returns to America to rescue a friend, and Split Second where he plays Harley Stone, a cop tracking an alien creature in a futuristic Earth. There are many more Hauer films to check out, but in my opinion, these are the better ones from his early hay-days in the 80’s and early 90’s.