Homepage Archives: 2009

by Brian Eggert

September 3rd, 2009: Thoughs on Marvel's future under Disney...

(Note: Guest writer Lee Vanden Busch shares some thoughts on the recent purchase of Marvel Entertainment by The Walt Disney Company. Enjoy...)

So as most of you are aware by now, the House of Mouse has bought the House that Stan Built, and the numbers are unsurprisingly huge.  Here’s a few for you. 5,000: a rough estimate of how many super hero rights Disney just got. 4,000,000,000: The amount, in dollars was paid for Marvel Entertainment. Finally, 3: ok that last one is actually pretty small, but that’s the time in seconds it took me to get excited about this deal.

Now some of the more “hardcore” fans have already started their vociferous hate for this purchase, decrying the fate of their beloved Marvel properties.  Some are convinced that Disney will swoop into the Marvel shop and rewrite the canon of Spider-Man to include a radioactive Donald Duck.  Unless I’m extremely wrong, I can say with confidence that these fears are baseless.

Disney has already made it clear that all current licensing deals Marvel has in place will remain the same for the foreseeable future.  X-Men will stay at Fox, Spider-Man with Sony, and Iron Man with Paramount. Disney has no plans to take any direct control over Marvel’s print division, and current video game licensing will stay the same as well.  You get the picture.

So why am I excited about this deal? First Because Disney has money, and money makes things happen. Disney, through its myriad of other holdings, has plenty of sway within the industry to make projects happen. 

Second, Pixar. Let’s go back to a number I mentioned at the beginning, 5,000.  If you sat down and made a list of every Marvel property you could name, I doubt you’d ever get everyone.  For every Wolverine there is a Balder the Brave, whom I didn’t even know existed until I was writing this article and was specifically looking for an obscure hero. (He’s real, read about it HERE). There are definitely stories that just would not work as live action, case in point WALL•E.  Pixar has a knack for creating worlds that would otherwise not be possible to realize and put on screen.  Now imagine a Marvel property, anything, Pixar directed… Awesome, right?

Third, I’m excited to see the mashups that could come from this.  A quick example would be the Kingdom Hearts video game series.  For you non gamers, Kingdom Hearts is a Disney Square-Enix joint where classic characters from each universe collide in a totally unique, original story that works much better than you could ever imagine. As a fan of that series, I can say that part of the fun is never knowing which characters, from which canon you’ll run into next.  I would be shocked if the next installment of the series didn’t include some sort of Marvel characters, and I am eagerly waiting for that day.

The bottom line though, besides my prognostication here, is that this was a business deal, plain and simple. Marvel is and will be a very profitable asset for Disney.  It also gives Disney a much needed fanboy product, something the company has lacked in recent years.  This deal is not going to change the Marvel you know and love; it simply means that your favorite heroes have a new, cheerier home that also happens to bring with it a number of fringe benefits.

--Lee Vanden Busch

 

 

May 16th, 2009: Terry Gilliam finally gets some good news...

Terry Gilliam’s next film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus hasn’t even found a distributor yet, though it likely will at the Cannes Film Festival in the coming week, but already there’s news of his next next film. Gilliam will try once more to launch The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, the picture that he began filming but scrapped in 2000 when his production went under after a number of nightmarish disasters. His second go-round is slated to commence shooting in early 2010 for Recorded Picture Company (The Last Emperor), and Johnny Depp, who worked on the previous incarnation, is hoped to return as the star.

Taking a cue from A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court, Gilliam’s take on Cervantes’ 17-century novel combines themes from the original text with 21st century commentary. In the screen story involving time travel and extraordinary dream imagery, the romantic Spanish knight Quixote charms a young modern filmmaker with his idealism, and the two are lost in fantasy in the process. The script was rewritten recently by Gilliam and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas scribe Tony Grisoni, changed and improved from the version they previously wrote, and re-layered with autobiographical sensibilities for Gilliam.

Detailed in the documentary Lost in La Mancha, the initial production of Quixote was halted after a seemingly impossible string of bad luck circumstances. Flash floods ruined sets, Gilliam’s Quixote developed a herniated disc, jets from a nearby airbase flew overhead and ruined audio recordings, and backers backed out. Insurance could only cover so much of this debacle, so they assumed the rights over the script. Gilliam has spent the last several years reacquiring those rights and polishing the rewrite. Keith Fulton and Louis Pepe’s 2002 doc tells the tragic story of a true visionary halted by inestimable forces. If you haven’t seen it, do.

But this wasn’t Gilliam’s first encounter with a troubled production, and indeed it was not his last. While filming Brazil, Gilliam fought distributors at Universal Studios for final cut, and with the media backing his play, won his artistic freedom and released the Citizen Kane of the last half-century in the form in which he wanted. Later productions, such as The Adventures of Baron Munchausen, were not so lucky. And after his Quixote fiasco, Gilliam walked away from The Brothers Grimm when the Weinstein Brothers refused his artistic freedom; begrudgingly, he returned to finish the product under less-than-ideal conditions. Some have accused Gilliam of creating chaos on-set, most notably on 12 Monkeys, in such a way that he’s blamed for his own misery. But no unconscious self-deprecation could cause his extensive record of misfortune.

The director’s woeful history of film productions gone awry have labeled him “cursed,” and that couldn’t be more apparent than with his latest, Doctor Parnassus. During the middle of shooting in January 2008, the film’s star Heath Ledger died of an accidental drug overdose. How does a film production recover when the actor playing the main character dies? Since the film is a fantasy involving alternate personas within the mind, distinct portions of Ledger’s character could be represented by other actors—namely Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, and Jude Law, who signed-on and donated their fees to Ledger’s daughter—to fill the gaps. Boasting the last Heath Ledger appearance onscreen, the film, debuting at Cannes this year, will undoubtedly receive distribution given the roster of stars involved. Particularly after Ledger’s post-The Dark Knight popularity. And given the early images from the film, not to mention the way Gilliam has once again triumphed in the face of possible failure, perhaps the result will end up a wild masterpiece like Brazil.

That Gilliam gets to revisit The Man Who Killed Don Quixote presents something no one thought possible. Whether or not filming actually begins, and then whether or not filming actually finishes, remains to be seen. Keep your fingers crossed both for Doctor Parnassus and Don Quixote, as both are apt to be unlike anything you’ve ever seen, which can be said, and often is, for any Terry Gilliam film.

 

 

May 6th, 2009: Who were Kirk and Spock before the revamp?

If you’ve been following Sunday’s “Memory Lane” column, wherein older films are revisited mostly for the sake of completism, you’ve noticed that over the last several weeks I’ve reviewed the original crew Star Trek films in sequence. Well, the original crew’s entire catalog is now completed, waiting to get you, the reader, into Trek-mode. This is both in celebration of J.J. Abrams’ new Star Trek film, opening today at 7 p.m., and of the Blu-ray boxed set of these films hitting stores on May 12th. (Fans of The Next Generation will have to wait for those four films’ reviews until later this year, when they’re released on Blu-ray.) Until then, please enjoy the first six entries in the franchise, and be sure to see the unanimously-acclaimed Star Trek revamp this weekend!

Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979)

Star Trek: The Motion Picture arrives with an interesting scenario and clever twist in the finale, but the entire film is mishandled while trying to differentiate between television and cinema. Here is a film reliant entirely on special effects and the reaction shots to them. Dialogue is sparse, forgoing character introductions for those unfamiliar with the television series. Indeed, even those devoted to the show might not recognize the thin descriptions of the beloved characters, whose dynamic was the key feature of the show... More

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

Widely regarded as the best of the entire franchise, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan happily revitalizes Star Trek formula established by Gene Roddenberry’s pivotal television series, emphasizing the undertonal space-buccaneer themes to create a full-fledged swashbuckler in the stars. Incorporating adventure and humor and stressing the character dynamics that would accompany future films, for loyalists of the Enterprise’s original crew, this sequel is the bible against which all later Trek films would be judged... More

Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984)

Trekkies adhere to the bogus theory that only the even-numbered Star Trek films are good, whereas the odd-numbered are not. Upon closer examination this truism falls apart. Granted, everyone’s favorites The Wrath of Khan and First Contact are even, whereas everyone’s least favorite The Final Frontier is odd. It’s not that the odd-numbered films are poor, though indeed one or two are, but rather they contain less actionized plots, and thus are less likely to serve up a blustering crowd-pleaser... More

Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)

Imagine a Star Trek film that considers elaborate space battles, photon torpedoes, phaser blasts, and your typical despotic villain role inconsequential to the narrative, and so doesn’t include any of them. Left are the characters that propel the franchise and a conflict that allows those characters to reestablish their charm over the audience. Diverting far from standardization, the result even purports a swell of social relevancy flawlessly engrained into the story, though it never sacrifices entertainment value by shouting its message on a cinematic soapbox... More   

 

Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989)

Following in the footsteps of Leonard Nimoy, who directed The Search for Spock and The Voyage Home with surprising depth and narrative finesse, William Shatner placed his bid on the fifth film in the Star Trek franchise, insisting on a story of his own just as his costar had done. Beyond some episodes of his hero cop series T.J. Hooker, Shatner was entirely inexperienced behind the camera, and production reports claim he played the “appease the star” card to earn his director’s chair. Working from his own scenario, Shatner captained the worst film in the ongoing series... More

 

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991)

Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country launches the last cinematic voyage for the original crewmembers, gathered together for the final time onscreen, and reformats their traditional narrative climate canonized by three television seasons, five movies, and countless followers around the world. It’s a darker film than the others, strewn with political commentaries and fatalistic notes about the end of an era, uncharacteristically burying any idealistic architecture the Trek-verse was built upon... More

 

April 15th, 2009: About that Shadow of the Colossus movie...

(Note: Concerning the recent announcement that Sony plans to move ahead with a videogame-to-film adaptation of the Playstation 2 game Shadow of the Colossus, Deep Focus Review received this reaction piece from Lee Vanden Busch. Please enjoy.) 


To: Sony Pictures Entertainment
From: A concerned videogame player

Dear Sony Entertainment,

I write this plea to you today in hopes you might reconsider your decision to option Shadow of the Colossus. While I applaud your eagerness to produce the film after recently hiring Justin Marks (Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li) to pen your script, I’d like you to know that I know that you know this has no chance of working. Ever. 

Your Friend,
Lee Vanden Busch

Ok, so while that may be a bit flippant, any movie fan knows that most videogame movies need to be avoided like the plague. When we’re little, most of us have that moment when we get really excited by the thought of seeing our favorite game characters in a movie. You think, there’s no way they could screw up a Mario Bros. movie. And then you see it, and you walk away feeling empty because not only were you eye-raped for an hour and half, but your childhood memories were destroyed as well. So why do the studios continue to produce this dreck? 

Here are three big reasons:

1.) What better way to make a quick buck then to option a video game license?  From a business standpoint I get it, I really do. In the case of Shadow of the Colossus, here’s a property that stopped making money years ago, but you still have it just sitting there.  Why not turn it in to a movie? Keep the budget down, and an average opening weekend box-office should turn a quick profit. My rational mind gets it, but as a person who plays games it makes my heart cry.

2.) Name one well made video game adaptation. You can’t, can you? And again we know why. Game movies are made because they come with built in brand recognition. Hey you, random teenager. You love Doom right? Well you’ll love this movie about it. And guess what, The Rock is in it! And just like that, the studio’s marketing budget got cut in half.

3.) Finally, for the most part, games don’t have very complicated stories, and that lends them for easy adaptation. Take the above example, Super Mario Bros. Two Italian guys fight lizards and turtles to save a princess. And there are mushrooms. See what I did there? I just wrote the whole story in two sentences. Queue an awful Dennis Hopper performance and you end up with crap about a meteorite and de-evolution rays.

So there are some of the reasons why videogame movies are made, but here’s why Shadow of the Colossus should be left alone: When the question of whether or not games are art comes up, Colossus is the game that proves they can be. Here’s a game where story exposition is nonexistent. That’s not to say there is no story, it’s just done in a way where it unfolds slowly as you play. For all intensive purposes, there are two main characters: the nameless hero and his horse, Argo. There is no dialogue. You don’t talk to anyone; you simply inhabit an empty world attacking colossi in hopes of saving another nameless character, a woman, who seems to be in trouble.

If the game sounds like it’s a bit sparse, you’re right, it is. The game, more than most, is a solo experience that can only really be had through playing the game. To turn something like that into a movie just means that everything that makes that experience special has to be changed. Colossus is a great example of a product that works great in its specific medium, just like how some comics just work better on the written page. To make a movie of a game like this is to lose everything the game is trying to achieve.

I love movies, and I love video games, however I know that they just don’t mix. But, that won’t stop Sony, or any other studio from continuing the practice. My only hope for this movie is that they find a director who can do it justice; but it’s just that, a hope. I don’t know if a game can ever really be made into a great movie, but I do know that this will not be the one to do it.  Here’s hoping that I can be proven wrong.  I’m looking at you BioShock.

--Lee Vanden Busch

 

 

 

March 8th, 2009: Coming Soon to Memory Lane

For every sequel Hollywood turns out (and there are a lot of them), I make it my duty to review the films that came before it. Recent examples include The Fast and the Furious trilogy and The Descent, both of which have sequels set for 2009. Given the approaching summer blockbuster season, Memory Lane will be busy over the next few months, as the completist in me fills the gaps. Below are some of the featured titles you can expect to see. Check back starting next Sunday for the first in the X-Men series…  

                       

                       

                       

                                  

      

 

 

February 18th, 2009: May brings Criterions aplenty!

If nothing else, The Criterion Collection’s May lineup won’t be accused of underselling the many facets of their home video output. With another Blu-ray disc, three standard releases, and an Eclipse boxed set, the entire gamut of possibilities is accounted for. American, British, and Japanese filmmakers are showcased this May, comprising a list of important releases for art film aficionados. For their full calendar of releases, visit The Criterion Store.

 

Ran (1985, Blu-ray)

Criterion continues their experiments with their Blu-ray line, this time expanding it to include Kurosawa’s color masterpiece Ran. Thus far, I haven’t explored the Criterion Blu-rays in total, just their edition of The Third Man, which admittedly didn’t wow me in its difference from the standard edition. Having been awed by Warner Bros. Blu-ray disc of Casablanca recently, I realize the resulting transfer on Carol Reed’s classic could have been much better. Nevertheless, Kurosawa’s sweeping epic bursts with color and begs for a pristine transfer like only high definition can offer. The content of this double-disc set is the same as Criterion’s standard edition released a few years back. Preorder this release, available May 12th, from The Criterion Store for $31.93.

Wise Blood (1979)

Legendary filmmaker John Huston of The Maltese Falcon and The Treasure of Sierra Madre acclaim made Wise Blood with jealous devotion to the 1952 novel by Southern writer Flannery O'Connor. Criterion has already released one Huston film on DVD, namely Under the Volcano, with vast appreciation for its director. And Wise Blood takes a look at American evangelicalism with unrivaled peculiarity in star Brad Dourif’s performance. Given these facts, how can you lose? Among the features on this single-disc edition is a 28-minute interview from 1982 with television personality Bill Moyers about Huston’s career. Preorder this disc, available May 12th, from The Criterion Store for $31.96.

 

The Friends of Eddie Coyle (1974)

Familiar as the story told in The Friends of Eddie Cole may be, Peter Yates’ treatment of the material and the tour de force performance by acting icon Robert Mitchum make the film worth your time and admiration. Mitchum plays a gunrunner for the Irish mob who’s forced into snitching, and then must contend with the repercussions. Peter Boyle plays Mitchum’s mob friend assigned to kill him for ratting on his friends. This director-approved edition includes commentary by Yates, as well as a booklet with essays and a vintage photo gallery. Preorder this disc, available May 19th, from The Criterion Store for $23.96.

 

Pigs, Pimps & Prostitutes: 3 Films by Shohei Imamura

Celebrating controversial Japanese director Shohei Imamura, Criterion will release this 3-disc boxed set containing three of his most distinguished films. Pigs and Battleships (1962) centers on criminality in postwar Japan. The Insect Woman (1963) concentrates on a woman that finds her life is driven by her affairs with various men. And Intentions of Murder (1964) follows a housewife that struggles to make sense of her life after she is raped by a home intruder. Each a potent example of the Japanese New Wave, the discs include various interviews with the director, and several essays by assorted film critics. Preorder this set, available May 19th, from The Criterion Store for $63.96.

Eclipse Series 16:
Alexander Korda's Private Lives

Motion picture do-it-all Alexander Korda produced and directed some of the most important films ever to grace cinemas. Among his efforts are The Thief of Bagdad and The Third Man. Criterion’s Eclipse line brings four of his releases to DVD, three with his name as director, and another where he served as producer. The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933) stars Korda favorite Charles Laughton as the raw and power-mad king. The Rise of Catherine the Great (1934) was helmed by Hungarian director Paul Czinner and stars Elisabeth Bergner and Douglas Fairbanks Jr. The Private Life of Don Juan (1934) stars Fairbanks Jr. again, playing ever the scampish womanizer. And Rembrandt (1936) features Laughton in a rare portrayal of the renowned Dutch painter. Per Eclipse set standards, the features are nil, but the sensible price and excellent films included make up for that. Preorder this set, available May 12th, from The Criterion Store for $47.96.

 

 

 

 

January 18th, 2009: Criterion's April DVDs present some challenges

This April marks the first month of 2009 where The Criterion Collection avoids offering a surefire commercial hit. Of course, their mission is to release important contemporary and classic films, which sometimes means distributing a film or two the general public would shy away from, but usually they offer a particular title each month even non-art film aficionados are sure to buy. Their recent announcement of discs instead presents four challenging releases that, although they may not guarantee hefty sales, they reconfirm Criterion’s place as the prime dispenser of rare and vital cinema on home video.

 

Science Is Fiction: 23 Films by Jean Painlevé

With this assemblage of Jean Painlevé’s short films on the pseudo-scientific poetry of nature, Criterion assembles some of the most unique art ever put to film. Painlevé shot underwater biological specimens in comic and personified ways, transcending the limitations of the scientific and dramatic in a uniquely entertaining and informative manner. Criterion offers twenty-three of Painlevé’s pieces over three discs. The set includes hours of interviews with Painlevé, director’s notes on all the shorts, and more. Preorder this boxed-set, available April 21st, from The Criterion Store for $35.96.

The Hit (1984)

Stephen Frears (The Queen) directed this offbeat potboiler about a criminal-turned-informer (Terrence Stamp) in hiding, who is caught by two ruthless henchmen (John Hurt and Tim Roth) and prepared for a death sentence by the criminal underworld. The Hit features a somewhat standard setup for crime cinema, but Frears takes it to philosophic and surprising extremes. This single-disc edition features a commentary track with Frears, Hurt, and Roth, a rare vintage interview with Stamp, and an essay by Graham Fuller. Preorder this disc, available April 28th, from The Criterion Store for $23.96.

 

In the Realm of the Senses (1976)

Questioning the border between pornography and political commentary, Japanese director Nagisa Oshima’s In the Realm of the Senses centers on a couple rapt with sexual desire in a shocking escalation that leads to experimentation and eventually death. Banned in Japan and controversial for its exploitative scenes of ecstasy, the film is actually based on a real life account, which makes it all the more outrageous. Criterion’s single-disc release includes a 1976 interview with Oshima and his two leads, deleted footage, and a new essay by Japanese film scholar Donald Richie. Preorder this disc, available April 28th, from The Criterion Store for $31.96. (Also available on Blu-ray.)

 

Empire of Passion (1978)

With another controversial effort by Japanese director Nagisa Oshima, Criterion’s release of Empire of Passion may be more accessible than In the Realm of the Senses, but that doesn’t mean the film is any less shocking. It simply accomplishes this task without pervasive sex. In this ghost story, a woman and her lover are haunted by the spirit of her husband, who they killed and dropped into a well. The single-disc release offers a video essay by film historian and critic Catherine Russell, interviews with the cast and crew, and much more. Preorder this disc, available April 28th, from The Criterion Store for $23.96.

 

 

 

January 11th, 2009: 66th Annual Golden Globe Winners

The 66th Annual Golden Globes will give a rough outline of what we can expect from the Oscars, whose nominations will be announced later in January. The nominated films are highbrow prestige pictures meant to earn awards and incredibly successful blockbusters made with impressive artistry, both categories worthy of recognition. Certainly there are no shoe-ins, which should make the evening interesting viewing.  

Below are the film-related winners highlighted in RED. For a complete list including television winners, click HERE.

BEST MOTION PICTURE - DRAMA
- The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- Frost/Nixon
- The Reader
- Revolutionary Road
- Slumdog Millionaire Winner

BEST ACTRESS - DRAMA
- Anne Hathaway, Rachel Getting Married
- Angelina Jolie, Changeling
- Meryl Streep, Doubt
- Kristin Scott Thomas, I've Loved You So Long
- Kate Winslet, Revolutionary Road Winner

BEST ACTOR - DRAMA
- Leonarod DiCaprio, Revolutionary Road
- Frank Langella, Frost/Nixon
- Sean Penn, Milk
- Brad Pitt, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- Mickey Rourke, The Wrestler Winner

BEST MOTION PICTURE - COMEDY OR MUSICAL
- Burn After Reading
- Happy-Go-Lucky
- In Bruges
- Mamma Mia!
- Vicky Cristina Barcelona Winner

BEST ACTRESS - COMEDY OR MUSICAL
- Rebecca Hall, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
- Sally Hawkins, Happy-Go-Lucky Winner
- Frances McDorman, Burn After Reading
- Meryl Streep, Mamma Mia!
- Emma Thompson, Last Chance Harvey

BEST ACTOR - COMEDY OR MUSICAL
- Javier Bardem, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
- Colin Farrell, In Bruges Winner
- James Franco, Pineapple Express
- Brendan Gleeson, In Bruges
- Dustin Hoffman, Last Chance Harvey

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM
- Bolt
- Kung Fu Panda
- WALL•E Winner

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
- The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany)
- Everlasting Moments (Sweden/Denmark)
- Gomorrah (Italy)
- I've Loved You So Long (France)
- Waltz with Bashir (Israel) Winner

BEST ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
- Amy Adams, Doubt
- Penelope Cruz, Vicky Cristina Barcelona
- Viola Davis, Doubt
- Marisa Tomei, The Wrestler
- Kate Winslet, The Reader Winner

BEST ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
- Tom Cruise, Tropic Thunder
- Robert Downey Jr, Tropic Thunder
- Ralph Fiennes, The Duchess
- Philip Seymour Hoffman, Doubt
- Heath Ledger, The Dark Knight Winner

BEST DIRECTOR - MOTION PICTURE
- Danny Boyle, Slumdog Millionaire Winner
- Stephen Daldry, The Reader
- David Fincher, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- Ron Howard, Frost/Nixon
- Sam Mendes, Revolutionary Road

BEST SCREENPLAY - MOTION PICTURE
- Simon Beaufoy, Slumdog Millionaire Winner
- David Hare, The Reader
- Peter Morgan, Frost/Nixon
- Eric Roth, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- John Patrick Shanley, Doubt

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - MOTION PICTURE
- Alexandre Desplate, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
- Clint Eastwood, Changeling
- James Newton Howard, Defiance
- A.R. Rahman, Slumdog Millionaire Winner
- Hans Zimmer, Frost/Nixon

BEST ORIGINAL SONG - MOTION PICTURE
- "Down to Earth" - WALL•E
Music by: Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman
Lyrics by: Peter Gabriel
- "Gran Torino" - Gran Torino
Music by: Clint Eastwood, Jamie Cullum, Kyle Eastwood, Michael Stevens
Lyrics by: Kyle Eastwood, Michael Stevens
- "I Thought I Lost You" - Bolt
Music & Lyrics by: Miley Cyrus, Jeffrey Steele
- "Once in a Lifetime" - Cadillac Records
- "The Wrestler" - The Wrestler, Music & Lyrics by: Bruce Springsteen Winner