Review: Netflix's "BEVERLY HILLS COP: AXEL F" is a Delightful Surprise

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 29 of 2024 (No. 1973) by Leroy Douresseaux

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F (2024)

Running time:  118 minutes (1 hour, 58 minutes)

MPA – R for language throughout, violence and brief drug use

DIRECTOR: Mark Molloy

WRITERS:  Will Beall and Tom Gormican & Kevin Etten; from a story by Will Beall (based on characters created by Daniel Petrie, Jr. and Danilo Bach)

PRODUCERS:  Jerry Bruckheimer, Eddie Murphy, and Chad Oman

CINEMATOGRAPHER:  Eduard Grau (D.o.P.)

EDITOR:  Dan Lebental

COMPOSER:  Lorne Balfe

COMEDY/ACTION/CRIME

Starring:  Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, Paul Reiser, Bronson Pinchot, Damien Diaz, Kyle S. More, Luiz Guzman, and Kevin Bacon

SUMMARY OF THE REVIEW:

--Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is probably the closest in spirit and tone to the 1984 original film.  It is one of Eddie Murphy's better recent efforts.

--The members of the original cast that manage a return in this new film work quite well and don't seem to be hear for nostalgic purposes.

--The new characters are quite good and are worthy of returning

--Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is surprisingly really good and certainly worth a original fan's time and viewers new to franchise may end up wanting to go back and discover the original after this film.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is a 2024 American buddy-cop film and action-comedy directed by Mark Molloy and starring Eddie Murphy.  It is the fourth entry in the Beverly Hills Cop film franchise, and it began streaming July 3, 2024 on Netflix as a “Netflix Original.”  Axel F finds Axel Foley returning to Beverly Hills after his estranged daughter's life is threatened.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F opens in Detroit, Michigan.  After more than four decades on the job, Detective Axel Foley (Eddie Murphy) of the Detroit Police Department is still wrecking cars and tearing up the city via his maniacal car chases in his bid to capture criminals.  He has managed to remain on the job under the supervision of his friend, Deputy Chief Jeffrey Friedman (Paul Reiser).  Axel's latest antics, however, leads to Jeffrey's retirement.

As Axel contemplates this situation, he gets a call from his old friend, Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold), former Beverly Hills Police Department detective turned private investigator.  Axel has a daughter, Jane Saunders (Taylour Paige), from whom he is estranged.  She has taken on the case of a young drug dealer, Samuel Enriquez (Damien Diaz), who has been accused of murdering an undercover cop.  Billy informs Axel that Jane is in grave danger

Axel flies to Beverly Hills, but he quickly discovers that Jane doesn't want to have anything to do with him.  He also learns that the young policeman, Detective Bobby Abbott (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), investigating the Enriquez case, also has a complicated relationship with Jane.  Although Axel's other old BHPD buddy, former detective and now, Chief John Taggart (John Ashton), is happy to see him, Taggart is reluctant to take on the Enriquez case.  He seems to have deferred most of it to Captain Cade Grant (Kevin Bacon), a well-dressed cop who acts mighty suspiciously.  It will take a mix of old pals and new friends to help Axel Foley unravel a dangerous conspiracy, but will Axel do more harm than good?

This year (2024) is the 40th anniversary of the original theatrical release of Beverly Hills Cop (1984), which I recently watched for the first time in over thirty years.  Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F succeeds where the other sequels came up short, but it successfully replicates the best moments from the original film.  There are four spectacular car chases that hold the viewer's attention and don't at all seem contrived or desperate to capture the spirit of what came before it.  Plus, the “Axel F” theme (composed by Harold Faltermeyer) dominates the film's soundtrack in so many different ways that I could not help but think of the original film, which usually makes me feel good.

Director Mark Molloy gets the best out of the supporting cast, even the old guys, who look really old forty years after their debut in the original film.  Still, the script gives the classic characters much to do so that they don't seem extraneous.  Kevin Bacon is Kevin Bacon, and that usually means something quite good, as it does here.  The new characters – Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Bobby Abbott and Taylour Paige's Jane Saunders – are good enough to carry a fifth film – if that becomes a necessity.

Of course, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is about Axel Foley, and that means Eddie Murphy, who doesn't need a director to tell him how to be him.  Still, I think Mark Molly helps.  Eddie was Eddie in the Coming to America (1988) sequel, 2021's Coming 2 America (which originally streamed on Amazon Prime Video), and that time, Eddie being Eddie yielded tepid comedic results.  So I'm giving credit to the director and the screenwriters, Will Beall, Tom Gormican, and Kevin Etten, for making Axel F something more than just another nostalgic sequel.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F is surprisingly entertaining and delightful.  It is way better than I thought it would be, and I must say that I won't wait thirty years to watch it again.  I have never attempted to watch Beverly Hills Cop III (1984), of which I've heard bad things, but Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F makes this third shot at a sequel a charm.

B+

7 of 10

★★★½ out of 4 stars

Sunday, July 7, 2024

The text is copyright © 2024 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved.  Contact this blog or site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Negromancer's "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" Link-O-Rama - Update #98

Posted by Leroy Doureseaux - on Patreon.

From Negromancer:  My review of "The Last Jedi."

From Patreon:  My review of "The Last Jedi."

From YouTube:  "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" first official teaser trailer.

From YouTube:  "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" second official trailer.

From YouTube:  "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" -- "Awake" teaser.

From YouTube:  The Last Jedi - TV Spot #4

From YouTube:  The Last Jedi - "Tempt" TV spot

From WeGotThisCovered:  Here are two sneak previews of "The Last Jedi" trailer that will debut during the halftime show of ESPN's "Monday Night Football," Oct. 9th, 2017.

From YahooMovies:  A "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" behind-the-scenes reel, presents at D23 Expo 2017.

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From Variety:  "The Last Jedi" tops $1 billion in worldwide box office.

From Variety:  "The Last Jedi" approaches $1 billion in worldwide box office.

From ComicBook:  The Last Jedi's "Force Tree" explained.

From YahooHuffPost:  Mark Hamill is not exactly happy with the Luke Skywalker of "The Last Jedi."

From Deadline:  "The Last Jedi's" worldwide box office has now crossed $600 million.

From Movieweb:  Rian Johnson explains why he did not include Obi-Wan Kenobi in "The Last Jedi."

From THR:  Toy shipments for "The Last Jedi" are down from "The Force Awakens."

From TheWrap:  See Kelly Marie Tran's (Rose) audition with John Boyega (Finn).

From TheWrap:  In a commentary, Phil Hornshaw says that the Luke Skywalker in "The Last Jedi" does not feel like Luke Skywalker.

From Inverse:  Mark Hamill had a second secret role in "The Last Jedi,"which will be revealed in the Blu-ray release.

From BoxOfficeMojo:  "The Last Jedi" opens with the second largest weekend box office at $220 million, behind "The Force Awakens" at #1 with $247.9.

From YahooGMA:  SPOILER - Explaining that shock ending, involving Luke Skywalker.

From Variety:  "The Last Jedi" has the second largest Thursday preview night with an estimated haul of $45 million.  Of course, "The Force Awakens" has the record for the biggest Thursday preview night.

From the NYT:  The "Times" reviews "The Last Jedi."

From TheVerge:  The site offers what it claims is a spoiler free review of "The Last Jedi."

From Variety:  There are early reactions to "The Last Jedi," although full reviews are embargoes until Tuesday morning, Dec. 12th.

From YahooEntertainment:  Elaborate premiere for "The Last Jedi" celebrates Carrie Fisher.

From TheVerge:  Some begs, "Please don't let The Last Jedi be another remake of The Empire Strikes Back.

From ScreenRant:  There is a new TV spot for "The Last Jedi" which teases plenty of action.

From Yahoo:  Mark  Hamill reveals Luke Skywalker's relationship to the Dark Side.

From Yahoo:  New "Star Wars" teaser has Luke Skywalker moment fans have been waiting for.

From WeGotThisCovered:  New detailed character bios of key characters in "The Last Jedi."

From io9:  The latest poster for "The Last Jedi" puts General Organa/Princess Leia front and center.

From THR:  The new trailer for "The Last Jedi" will debut during the halftime show of Monday, Oct. 9th's telecast of "Monday Night Football" on ESPN.  The game will feature the Minnesota Vikings vs. the Chicago Bears in Chicago.

From WeGotThisCovered:  The next "Last Jedi" trailer arrives Monday, Oct. 9th.

From WeGotThisCovered:  Tickets for "The Last Jedi" go on sale next week, possibly as early as Monday, Oct. 9th.

From WeGotThisCovered:  "The Last Jedi" officially wraps production.

From THR:  Mark Hamill is begging fans not to read Star Wars #49 of the original Star Wars comics run by Marvel Comics.  It is also entitled "The Last Jedi."  Or is he just teasing...

From ThePlaylist:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt apparently has a cameo in "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMovies:  Rian Johnson explains the title, "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMoviesUK:  The name of Benecio del Toro's "Last Jedi" character is "D.J." What does that mean?

From YahooMoviesUK:  Laura Dern's "Last Jedi" character, Admiral Amilyn Holdo, may be the first openly LGBTQ character in the Star Wars universe.

From YahooNews:  SPOILERS!! - A checklist of collectible cards from Topps may have spoiled the plot breakdown of "The Last Jedi."

From YahooNews:  There will be an evil goth version of BB-8, named BB-9E, in "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMovies - A look at the cool new "Last Jedi" toys in a slideshow of 81 images.

From YahooNews:  AT-ATs will operate differently in "The Last Jedi."

From Variety:  John Boyega hints that the rumors are true that Great Britain's Prince William and Prince Harry will have secret cameos in "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMovies:  New "Last Jedi" photos with some already released in this photo suite.

From CinemaBlend:  "The Last Jedi" dominates social media.

From CinemaBlend:  Maz Kanata's role in "The Last Jedi" will be smaller than it was in "The Force Awakens."

From EntertainmentWeekly:  The magazine has exclusive photos from the set of "The Last Jedi."

From BleedingCool:  John Boyega talks about Finn going undercover in "The Last Jedi."

From YahooNews:  John Boyega says "The Last Jedi" sends Princess Leia off in an amazing way.

From ExpressUK:  Supreme Commander Snoke may be revealed to be more fearsome than Emperor Palpatine in "The Last Jedi."

From ScreenRant: A new image brings Rey, Finn, and new character, "Rose," together.

From YahooMovies:  The 2017 San Diego Comic-Con began today.  At the previews last night, a new character for "The Last Jedi" was revealed.  "C'ai Threnalli" is a pilot and is Poe Dameron's wingman.

From ScreenRant:  "Last Jedi" director Rian Johnson compares his film to other Star Wars movies.

From io9:  See Kylo Ren's deadly new ship, the "TIE Silence."

From ScreenRant:  The "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" character posters are beautiful.

From ScreenRant:  Check out the first wave of LEGO sets from "The Last Jedi."

From ScreenRant:   Fans at the Disney fan convention, D23 2017, may see some behind-the-scenes footage from "The Last Jedi."

From SlashFilm:  Adam Driver says "The Last Jedi" creates new rules for franchise.

From TheDailyExpress:  Information on a purported scene between Supreme Commander Snoke and General Hux.

From Gamespot:  See "alien sea-creature" art from "The Last Jedi."

From ScreenRant:  Leaked action figure information may suggest that there will be a showdown between Luke Skywalker and Kylo Ren.

From ScreenRant:  Mark Hamill and John Boyega tease "Last Jedi" spoilers.

From ScreenRant:  "Last Jedi" director Rian Johnson takes to Twitter to answer concerns that his film may be recycling ideas and such from previous Star Wars.

From BleedingCool:  John Boyega shows off Finn's blaster for "The Last Jedi."

From FlickeringMyth:  A peek at LEGO toys for "The Last Jedi" may reveal Supreme Commander Snoke's costume.

From SideshowToys:  A selection of the striking "Last Jedi" images from Vanity Fair magazine's recent story.

From BleedingCool:  Vanity Fair articles reveal the identities of Benecio del Toro and Laura Dern's characters in "The Last Jedi."

From YahooNews:  Perhaps, "The Last Jedi" will end with a huge twist.

From Nerdist:  A "Force Ghost" to appear in "The Last Jedi?"

From ScreenRant:  First look at Kylo Ren's TIE fighter from "The Last Jedi."

From THR:  "Last Jedi" set photos reveal Carrie Fisher as General Leia Organa.

From io9:  There may be details of one of two key scenes featuring General Leia Organa in "The Last Jedi."

From SideshowToys:  "Last Jedi" director, Rian Johnson, is ready for your nitpicky Star Wars questions.

From CinemaBlend:  According to director Rian Johnson, "The Last Jedi" refers to Luke Skywalker.

From YahooMovies:  Meet "Rose" the biggest newcomer in "The Last Jedi."


From ScreenRant:  Rumors about the character Benicio del Toro will play in "The Last Jedi."

From TheHuffingtonPost:  Laura Dern talks a little about being "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMovies:  Disney shareholders were treated to some secret "Last Jedi" footage.  Lucky bitches.

From YahooMovies:  John Boyega said that "The Last Jedi" will carry on the tradition of awkward dialogue in a Star Wars movie.

From ScreenRant:  J.J. Abrams thinks Mark Hamill will win an Oscar for "The Last Jedi."

From the Express:  An official new image has fans questioning if Rey really is a Skywalker.

From CBR:  The Spanish and French versions of the title, "The Last Jedi," apparently affirm a key fan theory, "Jedi" is plural.

From THR:  "Star Wars Force Friday II" is moved to September 1 when products related to "The Last Jedi" will be revealed.

From Polygon:  Still hearing "maybe" on a trailer for "The Last Jedi" at Star Wars Celebration.

From EntertainmentWeekly:  "The Last Jedi" to get a prime spot upcoming "Star Wars Celebration."

From TheHollywoodReporter:  Jimmy Vee will take over as the iconic droid, R2-D2 in the wake of the Kenny Baker, who had played the droid since the original Star Wars film in 1977.

From CinemaBlend:  Benecio del Toro will reportedly appear in "The Last Jedi."  Could he be playing an adult version of "Ezra Bridger," a teen character in the animated series, "Star Wars Rebels."

From YahooStyle:  Here is an intriguing theory about who or what is "The Last Jedi."

From Wired:  The site has a bad feeling about that "Sith-colored" logo.

From CinemaBlend:  What does Mark Hamill think of "The Last Jedi" title?

From CinemaBlend:  What does "The Last Jedi" mean.

From CinemaBlend:  Rian Johnson shares a photo from the working process of "The Last Jedi."

From YahooNews:  Fans happy and confused by the title, "The Last Jedi."

From YahooMovies:  Star Wars Episode VIII now has an official title, "Star Wars: The Last Jedi."

From Wired:  Rumors say that Episode 8 will have its own goofy aliens a la Ewoks and Gungans.

From THR:  Tom Hardy being coy (or a dick) when it comes to rumors that he might be in Episode 8.

From THR:  "Star Wars" brain trust sets a meeting to discuss the future of Princess Leia in Episodes 8 and 9 in the wake of Carrie Fisher's death.

Amazon Studios Announces "Comrade Detective" for August 4th

Amazon Studios and A24 to Premiere New Half-Hour Series Comrade Detective August 4 on Amazon Prime Video

Romanian-filmed live action half hour action series features an all-star cast of unique voice over performances including Channing Tatum and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in the series’ leading roles

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ: AMZN)—Amazon Studios announced Comrade Detective, a new half-hour live action series that will premiere August 4, 2017 exclusively on Amazon Prime Video in the US, UK, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. A co-production with A24, Comrade Detective comes from creators and executive producers Brian Gatewood (The Sitter) and Alex Tanaka (The Sitter) with Rhys Thomas (Documentary Now!) directing and executive producing. Free Association’s Tatum, Reid Carolin (Logan Lucky), Peter Kiernan (Mad Love) and Andrew Schneider are executive producers along with A24’s Ravi Nandan (The Carmichael Show) and John Hodges (Safety Not Guaranteed).

    “As passionate fans of cinema and television, we have long heard about this genre defining show and are thrilled to work with Free Association and Amazon to bring it to audiences”

Comrade Detective is a one-of-a-kind cop show and comedy set in 1980’s Romania. True to its nostalgic inspiration, the series is presented in Romanian and dubbed in English—as a Romanian show of that time would have been. Channing Tatum (Logan Lucky) and Joseph Gordon-Levitt (Looper) provide voice over dubbing performances for the series’ two leading roles, Detectives Gregor Anghel and Iosef Baciu—both characters played on screen by leading Romanian actors, Florin Piersic Jr. (Killing Time) and Corneliu Ulici (The Devil Inside).

In addition to Tatum and Gordon-Levitt, the illustrious roster of talent dubbing other roles includes Jenny Slate (Obvious Child), Chloë Sevigny (Bloodline), Jake Johnson (New Girl), Jason Mantzoukas (The House), Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation), Fred Armisen (Documentary Now!), Kim Basinger (LA Confidential), Mahershala Ali (Moonlight), Tracey Letts (The Lovers), Bobby Cannavale (Boardwalk Empire), Richard Jenkins (The Visitor), Debra Winger (The Lovers), Mark Duplass (Safety Not Guaranteed), Katie Aselton Duplass (Legion), Jerrod Carmichael (The Carmichael Show), Bo Burnham (The Big Sick) and John Early (Search Party).

“In a world of global television it was inevitable that the best comedy of the year would come from Romania. Well that day has come,“ said Joe Lewis, Head of Comedy, Drama and VR at Amazon Studios. “Comrade Detective is unbelievably compelling, visually brilliant, and Gregor and Iosef are the heroes we need. Thanks to A24, Channing Tatum, Rhys Thomas, Brian Gatewood, Alex Tanaka, as well as the incredibly creative team behind this wild new series.”

"As passionate fans of cinema and television, we have long heard about this genre defining show and are thrilled to work with Free Association and Amazon to bring it to audiences," said A24.


About Comrade Detective
In the thick of 1980's Cold War hysteria, the Romanian government created the country’s most popular and longest-running series, Comrade Detective, a sleek and gritty police show that not only entertained its citizens but also promoted Communist ideals and inspired a deep nationalism. The action-packed and blood-soaked first season finds Detectives Gregor Anghel (played by Piersic) and Iosef Baciu (played by Ulici) investigating the murder of fellow officer Nikita Ionesco and, in the process, unraveling a subversive plot to destroy their country that is fueled by—what else—but the greatest enemy: Capitalism. Though the beloved show was sadly forgotten about after the fall of the Berlin Wall, it has been rediscovered and digitally remastered now with its main heroes voiced by Tatum and Gordon-Levitt. Comrade Detective is a true portal into a time and place and a powerful reminder of what art can be—and it is now ready to be seen by the modern world on a larger scale than ever before.

About Amazon Video
Amazon Video is a premium on-demand entertainment service that offers customers the greatest choice in what to watch, and how to watch it. Amazon Video is the only service that provides all of the following:

    Prime Video: Thousands of movies and TV shows, including popular licensed content plus critically-acclaimed and award-winning Amazon Original Series and Movies from Amazon Studios like Transparent, The Man in the High Castle, Love & Friendship and kids series Tumble Leaf, available for unlimited streaming as part of an Amazon Prime membership. Prime Video is also now available to customers in more than 200 countries and territories around the globe at www.primevideo.com.

•     Amazon Channels: Over 100 channel subscriptions that Prime members can add to their membership, including HBO, SHOWTIME, STARZ, Cinemax, PBS KIDS, Acorn TV and more, plus Anime Strike – the first curated on-demand subscription by Amazon Channels. To view the full list of channels available, visit www.amazon.com/channels
•     Rent or Own: Hundreds of thousands of titles, including new-release movies and current TV shows available for on-demand rental or purchase for all Amazon customers
•     Instant Access: Instantly watch anytime, anywhere through the Amazon Video app on TVs, mobile devices, Amazon Fire TV, Fire TV Stick, and Fire tablets, or online. For a list of all compatible devices visit www.amazon.com/howtostream
•     Premium Features: Top features like 4K Ultra HD, High Dynamic Range (HDR) and mobile downloads for offline viewing of select content

In addition to Prime Video, the Prime membership includes unlimited fast free shipping options across all categories available on Amazon, more than two million songs and thousands of playlists and stations with Prime Music, secure photo storage with Prime Photos, unlimited reading with Prime Reading, unlimited access to a digital audiobook catalogue with Audible Channels for Prime, a rotating selection of free digital games and in-game loot with Twitch Prime, early access to select Lightning Deals, exclusive access and discounts to select items, and more. To sign-up for Prime or to find out more visit: www.amazon.com/prime.

About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, and Alexa are some of the products and services pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit www.amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.

About A24
Launched in the summer of 2012, A24 is a New York-based media company focused on the distribution, financing, development and production of feature films and television projects. Recent TV series include the wildly original buddy cop action-comedy Comrade Detective, produced with Channing Tatum’s Free Association; the critically acclaimed and culturally groundbreaking The Carmichael Show, currently in its third season on NBC; USA's Playing House, also in its third season; and the hilarious standup comedy special Jerrod Carmichael: 8, which premiered this past Spring on HBO.

On the film side, the company recently released Barry Jenkins’ Moonlight, which won 3 Academy Awards® at the 2017 Oscars - Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actor. Other film releases include Yorgos Lanthimos' critical and commercial hit The Lobster, a 2017 Oscar® nominee for Best Original Screenplay starring Colin Farrell and Rachel Weisz; Robert Eggers’ horror smash The Witch; Room, winner of the 2016 Academy Award® for Best Actress for Brie Larson; Amy, Asif Kapadia’s Oscar® winning portrait of Amy Winehouse; Alex Garland’s sci-fi smash Ex Machina; Jonathan Glazer’s singular Scarlett Johansson sci-fi thriller Under the Skin; and Harmony Korine’s record-breaking Spring Breakers.

About Free Association
Free Association, with principals Channing Tatum, Reid Carolin and Peter Kiernan, is currently producing Magic Mike Live Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Hotel. The company also produced Steven Soderbergh's Logan Lucky which will be released by Bleecker Street on August 18, 2017. Free Association has produced films including 22 Jump Street and the Magic Mike franchise, among others. On the television side, Free Association is in production on Step Up, the series for YouTube Red.

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Oliver Stone Interviews Edward Snowden in "Snowden Live"

Get Access to the Most Classified Event of the Year with an Early Premiere of Snowden, Featuring an Exclusive Live Interview with Edward Snowden by Filmmaker Oliver Stone, in Cinemas Nationwide

Fathom Events and Open Road Films Premiere the Real Life Account of Snowden’s Unbelievable Story, Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Shailene Woodley, September 14 Only

DENVER--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Get full security clearance for Snowden, one of the most anticipated upcoming releases, ahead of the thriller’s wide release. Fathom Events and Open Road Films are taking an exclusive look into the world of former CIA employee Edward Snowden through the eyes of Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Oliver Stone for a one-night event on Wednesday, September 14, 2016 live at 7:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. CT and tape-delayed to 7:30 p.m. MT/PT. “Snowden Live” gives audiences the opportunity to be the first to see Snowden on the big screen and hear directly from the man who inspired it all and the filmmaker who brought his story to life during an exclusive live interview between Snowden (via satellite in Moscow) and Stone (live from NYC).

    .@FathomEvents News: Get access to the most classified event of the year w/ an early premiere of Snowden + live Q&A

Tickets for “Snowden Live” can be purchased beginning Friday, August 5, 2016, online by visiting www.FathomEvents.com or at participating theater box offices. Fans throughout the U.S. will be able to enjoy the event in select movie theaters through Fathom’s Digital Broadcast Network. For a complete list of theater locations visit the Fathom Events website (theaters and participants are subject to change).

In this biographical political thriller, Joseph Gordon-Levitt is cast in the title role as the one-time former CIA employee who famously leaked classified information to the media. The film also stars Shailene Woodley, Melissa Leo, Zachary Quinto, Tom Wilkinson, Scott Eastwood, Logan Marshall-Green, Timothy Olyphant, Ben Schnetzer, LaKeith Lee Stanfield, Rhys Ifans and Nicolas Cage. Snowden is directed by Oliver Stone and written by Stone and Kieran Fitzgerald. It is based on the books “The Snowden Files” by Luke Harding and “Time of the Octopus” by Anatoly Kucherena.

“This is a very special event for a number of reasons,” Fathom Events CEO John Rubey said. “The cast is incredible, audiences nationwide get the opportunity to see this feature before anyone else, and Edward Snowden is going to be participating in an exclusive live interview. This is truly a can’t-miss event and Fathom is honored to help bring this to big screens nationwide.”


About Fathom Events
Fathom Events is recognized as the leading domestic distributor of event cinema, and ranks as one of the largest overall distributors of content to movie theaters. Owned by AMC Entertainment Inc. (NYSE: AMC), Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK) and Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) (known collectively as AC JV, LLC), Fathom Events offers a variety of one-of-a-kind entertainment events that include live, high-definition performances of the Metropolitan Opera, dance and theatre productions such as the Bolshoi Ballet and National Theatre Live’s Hamlet, sporting events like FS1 Presents USA v Mexico, concerts with Roger Waters and One Direction, the TCM Presents classic film series and faith-based events such as The Drop Box and Four Blood Moons. Fathom Events takes audiences behind the scenes and offers unique extras including audience Q&As, backstage footage and interviews with cast and crew, creating the ultimate VIP experience. Fathom Events’ live digital broadcast network (“DBN”) is the largest cinema broadcast network in North America, bringing live and pre-recorded events to 885 locations and 1,348 screens in 181 Designated Market Areas® (including all of the top 50). For more information, visit www.fathomevents.com.

Open Road Films
Open Road Films is a leading, independent, theatrical motion picture company, releasing a diverse slate of star-driven films, which has included multiple #1 releases and enormous critical response. The company was founded in 2011 by AMC Entertainment Inc. (AMC) and Regal Entertainment Group (Regal), the two largest theatrical exhibition companies in the United States. The uniquely formed company is widely known as a filmmaker-focused distributor that supports both box office hits and top prestige titles.

Open Road Films led the 2016 critically acclaimed film, Spotlight, to win the Oscar® for Best Picture, becoming the youngest studio in history win the big prize. The film, which earned almost $45 million at the U.S. box-office, stars Michael Keaton, Mark Ruffalo, Rachel McAdams, Liev Schreiber, Brian d’Arcy James, Stanley Tucci and Billy Crudup was directed by Tom McCarthy, who also won the Oscar® for Best Original Screenplay, with his co-writer (and executive producer) Josh Singer. Spotlight has won numerous high profile critics and guild awards, including the Screen Actors Guild Best Ensemble Award and the Film Independent Spirit Award for Best Feature Film. Spotlight also appeared on over 250 critics’ Top Ten lists for 2016.

The company, led by industry veteran CEO Tom Ortenberg, is based in Los Angeles.

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Negromancer News Bits and Bites from March 6th to 12th, 2016 - Update #37

Support Leroy on Patreon.

POLITICS - From WashPost:  See video of Trump supporter sucker-punch a Black protester.

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POLITICS - From RSN: Donald Trump backed out of a debate with Sen. Bernie Sanders.

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POLITICS - From RSN:  Elizabeth Warren says "Senate Republicans, do your job."

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COMICS - From Cinelinx: Marvel/Netflix's "Luke Cage" debuts September 30th, 2016.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  Harry Styles of the pop group, One Direction, has bee cast in Christopher Nolan's 2017 film, "Dunkirk."

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WEBCOMICS - From CBB:  New Johnny Bullet (#64).

From CBB:  Johnny Bullet #64 in French.

From CBB:  The Slip #28 (formerly known as "Constant").

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MOVIES - From Deadline:  Director Atom Egoyan talks about his new film, "Remember," in which two men, played by Christopher Plummer and Martin Landau, seek revenge against Nazis.

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COMICS - From Deadline:  Halle Berry in talks to appear in the sequel to "Kingman: The Secret Service."

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MOVIES - From ThePlaylist:  Daisy Ridley is apparently being considered for the "Tomb Raider" reboot.

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COMICS - From YahooTV:  Spider-Man appears in new "Captain America: Civil War" trailer.

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CRIME - From VICENews: Nancy Reagan, high priestess of the War on Drugs,

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OBIT - From RollingStone:  Beatles' producer, Sir George Martin, died at the age of 90, Tuesday, March 8, 2016.

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CULTURE - From BuzzFlash:  The consequences of the world's meat addiction.

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OBIT - From Variety:  The actor Richard Davalos died at the age of 85 on Tuesday, March 8, 2016.  He is best known for playing alongside James Dean in "East of Eden."

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COMICS - From Variety:  Michael Keaton to headline film adaptation of "American Assassin" graphic novel series.

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LGBT - From Variety: The Wachowski Bros. are now the Wachowski Sisters, as Andy is now a transgender woman named "Lilly."  Larry became "Lana" several years ago.

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COMICS - From the NYTimes:  President Barack Obama has written the introduction to Fantagraphics Books' final volume of The Complete Peanuts 1999-2000 (Volume 25).  The book is due in May.

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BLACK LIVES MATTER - From RSN:  Police terrify residents and raid their home based on scant evidence.

BLACK LIVES MATTER - From OccupyDemocrats:  Trump's campaign ordered police to escort police African-American students from a rally at Valdosta State University.

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SPORTS - From CollegeSpun:  Spike Lee is directing a documentary about the Missouri football team's threat to boycott unless the university's president resign.

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POLITICS - From RSN: Can black voters disobey the Democratic Party?  - Or “A black person voting for a Republican is like a chicken voting for Colonel Sanders.”

---------------
MOVIES - From Deadline:  Amanda Seyfried is rejoining Andrew Niccol for his new sci-fi thriller, "Anon," which will also feature Clive Owen.  Sefriend was in Niccol's "In Time," with Justin Timberlake.

---------------
MOVIES - From YahooNews:  A Vanity Fair photo of actor Michael B. Jordan and director Ryan Coogler causes a lot of Black people to show how super-stupid they are.

---------------
TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  Geena Davis cast in FOX's pilot based on "The Exorcist," the novel, apparently.

---------------
AWARDS - From Variety:  Jimmy Kimmel will host the 2016 Emmy Awards ceremony.

---------------
COMICS - From Deadline:  Disney Channel Star Zendaya has landed a major role in Sony/Marvel's "Spider-Man" reboot.

---------------
DISNEY - CBR:  See first look at "Duck Tales" reboot.

---------------
OBITS - CBR:  Long time comic book artist, Paul Ryan, died at the age of 66 on Sunday, March 6, 2016

---------------
BOX OFFICE - BoxOfficeMojo:  The winner of the 3/4 to 3/6/2016 weekend box office is "Zootopia" with an estimated take of  $73.7 million.  This is the largest opening weekend for a film from Walt Disney Animation Studios (excluding Pixar, of course).

---------------
SPORTS - From SBNation:  The Los Angeles Lakers get historical on the world champion Golden State Warriors.

---------------
BLACK LIVES MATTER - From RSN:  So many Black people in jail that it has warped our sense of reality.

---------------
MOVIES - From TheGuardian:  Tom Hiddleston teases that he could replace Daniel Craig as the next James Bond.  Personally, I wouldn't mind Idras Elba, Tom Hardy, and Henry Cavill.

---------------
MOVIES - From SlashFilm:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt is working on a film for Amazon.  It reportedly involves an Army unit that fought the Ku Klux Klan after the Civil War.

---------------
OBITS - YahooPolitics:  Nancy Reagan, the widow of the late President Ronald Reagan, has died at the age of 94, Sunday, March 6, 2016.

From YahooStyle:  Why Nancy liked read.

From YahooNews:  Nancy Reagan, a life in photos.

---------------
BLACK LIVES MATTER - From YahooMusic:  Man films his interaction with an aggressive police officer, who has previously killed a Black man.

---------------
COMICS - From BleedingCool:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt is off "The Sandman" film project.

---------------
MOVIES - From Deadline:  An article about Idris Elba cast in "The Dark Tower" series based on Stephen King's series.

---------------
MOVIES - From Deadline:  Sony Pictures has stockpiled franchises for 2017.

---------------
STAR WARS - From WeGotThisCovered:  Is this footage from a "Rogue One" teaser?

--------------
BLACK LIVES MATTER - From TexasTribune:  One of the lead conspirators in the death of Sandra Bland, police officer Brian Encinia has been fired.  Trump is looking for brown shirts, Brian.

---------------
POLITICS - From BuzzFlash:  ...Christianity for millions of white evangelicals in America is simply white supremacy in disguise.

POLITICS - From BuzzFlash:  Donald Trump summons his inner Jefferson Davis.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites for the Week of March 15th to 21st, 2015 - Update #19

NEWS:

From Variety:  Joseph Gordon-Levitt to headline a live-action "Fraggle Rock" movie.

--------------
From YahooMovies:  First Spectre poster reveals new-look James Bond, but in a retro way.

--------------
From YahooMovies: First Furious 7 review.

--------------
From YahooMovies:  Alex Winter at SXSW on "Bill & Ted 3."

---------------
From RollingStone:  The time Matt Taibbi saw American Sniper.

----------------
From NYT:  The much ado about nothing article about "The View."

-----------------
From Variety:  The winner of the 3/13 to 3/15/2015 box office is Walt Disney's live-action Cinderella with an estimated take of $70.1 million.

-----------------
From RollingStone:  Kevin Smith confirms a sequel to his early film, Mallrats.

-----------------
From YahooMovies:  Classic heartthrob and actor, Tab Hunter, talks about his life and his SXSW doc.

-------------------
From YahooCelebrity:  The Justin Bieber roast - one joke had him thinking "That shit ain't funny."


COMIC BOOKS - Movies and Comics:

From SlashFilm:  Mark Millar's just-released comic book, Chrononauts, is currently being developed for feature film by Universal Pictures.  I couldn't get a copy of the first issue because it was already sold out by the time I got to the store.

-----------------
From SlashFilm:  Future flop, Deadpool, is supposedly actually filming right now, and is due in theaters, Feb. 12, 2016.  Ryan Reynolds is back as Deadpool... unfortunately.

------------------
From YahooMovies:  New Avengers: Age of Ultron spot.

------------------
From YahooMovies:  Joss Whedon teases even more characters in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

-------------------
From NerdReactor:  Don't say "F***, Marvel, Jason.  Help Warner Bros. get like Marvel with their DC movies.


STAR WARS:

From ThePlaylist:  J.J. Abrams may return to direct "Star Wars 9."

-----------------
From RopesofSilicon:  Recent Oscar winner, Alexandre Desplat will reportedly score "Star Wars: Rogue One."

------------------
From YahooMovies:  Alan Dean Foster talks about his superb Star Wars novel, Splinter of the Mind's Eye."


TRAILERS:

From 20th Century Fox:  Paper Towns trailer. The movie is based on a book by the author of The Fault in Our Stars.

Negromancer News Bits and Bites for the Week of February 15th to 21st, 2015 - Update #17

NEWS:

From Variety:  Oliver Stone's film, "Snowden," with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Shailene Woodley is due for Christmas.

-------------------
From TheWrap:  Lena Dunham, the star and creator of HBO's "Girls," will guest star on ABC's "Scandal," or which she is reportedly a super-fan.

--------------------
From Variety:  District 9's Neill Blomkamp is working on an Alien movie for 20th Century Fox.

---------------------
From YahooMovies:  The quiet furor over the blood profits of American Sniper.

-------------------
From TheHollywoodReporter:  An anonymous Oscar voter shares her hilarious views on her voting process with THR.  For the record, Missy Anonymous, if a 60-year-old white man had directed Selma, he would have been nominated for "Best Director."

------------------
From TheHollywoodReporter:  Roman Polanski to attend extradition hearing in Poland.

-------------------
From BlackAmericaWeb:  Don Lemon "Hates" FOX's "Empire."

--------------------
From TheVerge:  Alejandro Jodorowsky tries Kickstarter to finance his next film project.

--------------------
From HitFix:  The winner of the Feb. 13th to 15th, 2015 weekend box office is Fifty Shades of Grey with an estimated take of $81.6 million.


COMIC BOOKS:

From TheVerge:  First image of Jason Momoa as "Aquaman" for "Batman Vs. Superman: Dawn of Justice."

---------------------
From YahooMovies:  Marvel and Netflix's "Jessica Jones" adds three new cast members.


STAR WARS:

From TheDailyBeast:  Huge Star Wars spoiler - another reason this movie needs to be released at an earlier date.

----------------------
From IBT:  Rumors about Han Solo and Princess Leia's children.

-----------------------
From HitFix:  Rumors about a son of Luke Skywalker.


OBITS:

From YahooMovies:  The French actor, Louis Jourdan, died at the age of 93 on Saturday, February 14, 2015.  Many remember him for his role in Gigi, but many others best remember Jourdan as the villain, Kamal Khan (an exiled Afghan prince), in the 1983 James Bond movie, Octopussy.

--------------------
From Variety:  Gary Owens, the original voice of Hanna-Barbera character, Space Ghost, died Thursday, February 12, 2015.  He was either 78 or 80.  Recently, Owens was the voice of the over-the-air digital network, Antenna TV.  He is a fond remembrance of my childhood.  I send my condolences to his family.


MISC:

From TheVox:  It's a Black thing... or is it?

-----------------------
From YahooSports:  Bobby Knight should have been run out of "polite" society a long time ago.

-----------------------
From YahooParenting:  A great birthday story.

Review: "The Wind Rises" and Lifts Miyazaki's Ode to Artists

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 9 (of 2015) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Wind Rises (2013)
Kaze tachinu – original Japanese title
Running time:  126 minutes (2 hours, 6 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for some disturbing images and smoking
DIRECTOR:  Hayao Miyazaki
WRITER:  Hayao Miyazaki (based upon the manga by Hayao Miyazaki); English screenplay adaptation by Mike Jones
PRODUCERS:  Toshio Suzuki and Geoffrey Wexler (English version)
COMPOSER:  Joe Hisaishi
Academy Award nominee

ANIMATION/BIOPIC/DRAMA

Starring:  (English voices) Joseph Gordon-Levitt, John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Martin Short, Stanley Tucci, Mandy Patinkin, Mae Whitman, Werner Herzog, Jennifer Grey, William H. Macy, Elijah Wood, and Ronan Farrow; (Japanese voices) Hideaki Anno, Jirô Horikoshi, Hidetoshi Nishijima, Miori Takimoto, Masahiko Nishimura, Mansai Nomura, Jun Kunimura, Mirai Shida, Shinobu Ôtake, Morio Kazama, and Keiko Takeshita

The Wind Rises is a 2013 Japanese animated film (anime) biopic and drama from director Hayao Miyazaki.  The film's original title is Kaze tachinu, and it is adapted from Miyazaki's manga (comics), Kaze tachinu, which was published in Model Graphix magazine from 2009 to 2010.  The manga in turn is loosely based on the novel, The Wind Has Risen (1936-37), by author Tatsuo Hori.

The Wind Rises is a fictionalized account of the life of Jiro Horikoshi (1903–1982).  Hirokoshi was a designer of fighter aircraft for Japan, in particular the Mitsubishi A6M Zero (or simple, the Zero), which was used by the Empire of Japan during World War II.

Walt Disney Studios released the film in English back in February 2014 through its Touchstone Pictures division.  Frank Marshall acted as the English version's executive producer.  The Wind Rises was the final film directed by Miyazaki before his retirement in September 2013.

The Wind Rises opens in Japan in 1916.  Young Jiro Horikoshi longs to become a pilot, but cannot because of his poor eyesight.  Jiro even dreams of meeting famous Italian aircraft designer, Giovanni Battista Caproni (Stanley Tucci), a figure that will often haunt Jiro's dreams over the years.  Seven years later, two important things happen.  Jiro begins studying aeronautical engineering, and he also meets a girl, Nahoko Satomi.

After he graduates, adult Jiro (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) starts working for an aircraft manufacturer (Mitsubishi).  Jiro begins a quest to built a fighter aircraft for Japan that will match the best that any other country has to offer, especially that of Japan's ally, Germany.  Jiro reunites with the adult Nahoko (Emily Blunt) and begins a romance with her.  However, Nahoko's illness and his professional setbacks threaten Jiro's dreams.

The Wind Rises was somewhat controversial in Japan because of Jiro Horikoshi's aircraft inventions and how they were used by imperial Japan during the second World War.  However, The Wind Rises is not a biographical drama in the conventional sense, which is why I call it a “biopic.”  It is a movie with both biographical elements and fictional attachments.  For instance, the Jiro-Nahoko Satomi romance is fictional, and Nahoko is a character from Tatsuo Hori's novel, The Wind Has Risen.

The Wind Rises not only takes a look at the life of Jiro Horikoshi, the man who designed Japanese fighter planes during World War II, but it is mainly inspired by his quest to create fighter aircraft for Japan that would match the best aircraft created in Europe and the United States.

The Wind Rises is an impressionistic spectacle.  Miyazaki deliberately deviates from fact in order to examine the artistic process, revealing Jiro Horikoshi as an artist in full bloom.  The “wind” in this film is a metaphor for the imagination that soars.  The wind is also a vehicle by which the artist travels to meet the man who inspired him,  Giovanni Caproni, in the realm of daydream and imagination – first as a pupil and then, as an equal.  In this film, Miyazaki does not make “wind” ethereal; rather, it is beauty that is fragile and even corruptible.

The Wind Rises is a bittersweet goodbye from Miyazaki to his admirers and fans.  This retirement had to happen eventually, but our sadness need no be overwhelming.  The wind still rises, and the beauty of Hayao Miyazaki's art will live on.

8 of 10
A

Friday, January 2, 2014


NOTES:
2014 Academy Awards, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Animated Feature Film of the Year” (Hayao Miyazaki and Toshio Suzuki)

2014 Golden Globes, USA:  1 nomination: “Best Foreign Language Film” (Japan)

The text is copyright © 2015 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.

Robert Zemeckis' "The Walk" Due October 2015

TRISTAR ANNOUNCES TITLE AND WRAP OF PRODUCTION FOR "THE WALK"

3D / IMAX 3D CAPER FILM DIRECTED BY ROBERT ZEMECKIS STARRING JOSEPH GORDON-LEVITT BASED ON PHILIPPE PETIT’S BOOK "TO REACH THE CLOUDS"

This is the 40th Anniversary of Petit’s August 7, 1974 Walk Between the Twin Towers

MONTRÉAL, Canada, Principal photography has wrapped on the inaugural film from Tom Rothman’s TriStar Productions, now officially titled The Walk. Directed by Robert Zemeckis, the film is a true story based on Philippe Petit’s book "To Reach the Clouds," starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the young dreamer who dared the impossible: an illegal wire walk between the World Trade Center towers. Zemeckis wrote the screenplay with Christopher Browne. Producers are Steve Starkey, Robert Zemeckis, and Jack Rapke. The film will be released on October 2, 2015.

August 7 was the 40th anniversary of the astounding event, now being brought back to vivid life in the third act climax of the film.

Twelve people have walked on the moon, but only one man has ever, or will ever, walk in the immense void between the World Trade Center towers. Guided by his real-life mentor, Papa Rudy (Ben Kingsley), and aided by an unlikely band of international recruits, Petit and his gang overcome long odds, betrayals, dissension and countless close calls to conceive and execute their mad plan. Robert Zemeckis, the director of such marvels as Forrest Gump, Cast Away, Back to the Future, Polar Express, and Flight, again uses cutting edge technology in the service of an emotional, character-driven story. With innovative photorealistic techniques and IMAX 3D wizardry, The Walk is true big-screen cinema, a chance for moviegoers to viscerally experience the feeling of reaching the clouds. The film is a love letter to Paris and New York City in the 1970s, but most of all, to the Towers of the World Trade Center.

Also starring in the film are James Badge Dale, Ben Schwartz, Charlotte Le Bon, Clément Sibony and César Domboy.

The production’s creative team includes director of photography Dariusz Wolski, production designer Naomi Shohan, editor Jeremiah O’Driscoll, and costume designer Suttirat Larlarb. The composer is Alan Silvestri.

Moviegoers can follow the film on the official movie site at www.thewalkmovie.com, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/TheWalkMovie or on Twitter @TheWalkMovie.

Photos from the film were made available at www.sonypicturespublicity.com on Thursday, August 7th at 9AM Pacific time.

About Sony Pictures Entertainment
Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) is a subsidiary of Sony Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Tokyo-based Sony Corporation. SPE’s global operations encompass motion picture production, acquisition and distribution; television production, acquisition and distribution; television networks; digital content creation and distribution; operation of studio facilities; and development of new entertainment products, services and technologies. For additional information, go to http://www.sonypictures.com.

----------------------

Review: "Looper" the Coop-o-Loop of Time Travel Films

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 6 (of 2013) by Leroy Douresseaux


Looper (2012)
Running time: 119 minutes (1 hour, 59 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong violence, language, some sexuality/nudity and drug content
WRITER/DIRECTOR: Rian Johnson
PRODUCERS: Ram Bergman and James D. Stern
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Steve Yedlin (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Bob Ducsay
COMPOSER: Nathan Johnson

SCI-FI/DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano, Noah Segan, Piper Perabo, Jeff Daniels, Pierce Gagnon, Summer Qing, Tracie Thoms, Garret Dillahunt, Frank Brennan, and Nick Gomez

Looper is a 2012 science fiction-thriller from writer-director, Rian Johnson. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who was also the lead in Johnson’s debut feature film, Brick (2005).

Looper opens in the year 2044, in a Kansas cornfield. We watch 25-year-old Joseph “Joe” Simmons (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) shoot a man who suddenly appears in front of him. In the year 2074, when the mob wants to get rid of someone, it sends the target 30 years into the past, where a hired gun, called a “looper,” awaits to do the killing. When the crime bosses want to end a looper’s contract, they send him back so that his younger self can do the killing. It’s called “closing the loop.”

One day, “Young Joe” (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) learns that it is time to close his loop when “Old Joe” (Bruce Willis) suddenly appears in front of him. After Old Joe escapes, Young Joe becomes the target of his boss, Abe (Jeff Daniels), leader of a Kansas City mafia company.

When I first saw Rian Johnson’s Brick several years ago, I was impressed. The film was basically a classic detective movie set in a modern, suburban high school with dysfunctional kids and juvenile delinquents playing the roles of the detective, the femme fatale, and the criminals. Looper is more than just a clever time travel story. For one thing, it is probably the most imaginative time travel film since 12 Monkeys (in which Bruce Willis played the lead).

I don’t want to give away any more of Looper’s delightful surprises, shocking twists, and stunning turns. I will say that Looper is not just about the affect of time travel on the characters. It is also about what time, chance, and opportunity mean to the lives of the characters. Thus, Looper is a character drama as much as it is a science fiction film. Of course, there is action; after all, this is a movie in which Bruce Willis plays a major part. His character, “Old Joe,” is so desperate, however, that he is despicable, and that allows Willis to show a range of emotions and to suggest the complicated thought processes going on behind his eyes in ways that Willis rarely gets to do.

Besides Willis, there are good performances all around. Joseph Gordon-Levitt proves himself (once again) as a leading man, and Noah Segan shines (and steals a few scenes) as the anxious-to-prove-himself, Kid Blue. My only complaints about Looper are that it is a bit too long, and it stumbles in places because of that. Still, Looper is thought-provoking and thrilling, and it is something rare, a truly imaginative time travel movie.

8 of 10
A

Sunday, January 20, 2013

Oklahoma Film Critics Name "Argo" Best Film of 2012

The Oklahoma Film Critics Circle (OFCC) is the statewide group of professional film critics. OFCC members are Oklahoma-based movie critics who write for print, broadcast and online outlets that publish or post reviews of current film releases.

OFCC 2012 Film Awards:

Top 10 Films
1. “Argo.”

2. “Zero Dark Thirty.”

3. “Moonrise Kingdom.”

4. “Django Unchained.”

5. “Silver Linings Playbook.”

6. “Beasts of the Southern Wild.”

7. “The Master.”

8. “Lincoln.”

9. “Looper.”

10. “Les Miserables.”


Best Film: “Argo.”

Best Director: Ben Affleck, “Argo.”

Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis, “Lincoln.”

Best Actress: Jessica Chastain, “Zero Dark Thirty.”

Best Supporting Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman, “The Master.”

Best Supporting Actress: Anne Hathaway, “Les Miserables.”

Best Original Screenplay: Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola, “Moonrise Kingdom.”

Best Adapted Screenplay: Chris Terrio, “Argo.”

Best Animated Film: “Wreck-It Ralph.”

Best Body of Work: Joseph Gordon-Levitt (“Looper,” “The Dark Knight Rises,” “Lincoln”)

Best Documentary: “Searching for Sugar Man.”

Best First Feature: “Beasts of the Southern Wild,” Benh Zeitlin.

Best Foreign Language Film: “Amour.” (from Austria)

Best Guilty Pleasure: “21 Jump Street.”

Not-So-Obviously Worst Movie: “Prometheus.”

Obviously Worst Movie: “That’s My Boy.”

Review: "Halloween H20" is a Standout in the Franchise

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 82 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998)
Running time: 86 minutes (1 hour, 26 minutes)
MPAA – R for terror violence/gore and language
DIRECTOR: Steve Miner
WRITERS: Robert Zappia and Matt Greenberg; from a story by Robert Zappia (based on the characters created by John Carpenter and Debra Hill)
PRODUCER: Paul Freeman
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Daryn Okada
EDITOR: Patrick Lussier
COMPOSER: John Ottman with Marco Beltrami and Jeremy Sweet

HORROR/THRILLER

Starring: Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Hartnett, Adam Arkin, Michelle Williams, LL Cool J, Adam Hann-Byrd, Jodi Lyn O’Keefe, Janet Leigh, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Nancy Stephens, and Chris Durand

The subject of this movie review is Halloween H20: 20 Years Later, a 1998 slasher film from director Steve Miner. Although he is only credited as one of the executive producers, Kevin Williamson, the screenwriter of the hit horror movie, Scream, contributed as a writer on Halloween H20.

Halloween H20 is also the seventh film in the Halloween horror film franchise that began in 1978 with the highly influential John Carpenter film, Halloween. Halloween H20 takes place 20 years after the events depicted in Halloween and its sequel, Halloween II (1981). Once again, the cursed brother-sister duo of Michael Myers and Laurie Strode must struggle against one another. Halloween H20 ignores the third (which did not involve Michael Myers) through the sixth installments of the franchise.

Halloween H20: 20 Years Later opens in 1998. As Halloween approaches, Michael Myers (Chris Durand) reappears. Meanwhile, Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) is living in Summer Glen, Northern California under the assumed name, “Keri Tate.” She is the headmistress at the posh, secluded, private boarding school, Hillcrest Academy High School. Laurie also has a boyfriend, Will Brennan (Adam Arkin), but her life isn’t quite perfect. She is a functioning alcoholic, forever fearful that Michael will come coming looking for her. Her son, 17-year-old John Tate (Josh Hartnett), is tired of dealing with his mother’s paranoia. On Halloween night, however, John will discover that his mother has to face her fears one more time.

I have to keep it real. I really like Halloween H20: 20 Years Later. I have seen it in its entirety three times, and I still watch bit and pieces of it whenever it is shown on television. It never fails to thrill me, and it is easily the best Halloween film since the first two. I give a lot of the credit for this movie’s quality to director Steve Miner and the various screenwriters.

Miner is a veteran film director, having helmed several horror films, including House (1986), Lake Placid (1999), and two installments of the Friday the 13th franchise. Miner uses some of the techniques that Carpenter used in the original film. He builds intensity with musical cues, eschews gore in scenes of violent death, uses darkness and shadow to create an atmosphere that suggests fear and mystery, and turns every setting into a place of danger, regardless of the time of day. Halloween H20 is quiet and ominous rather than frantic and clumsy, which some of the Halloween films are.

I don’t know which writers contributed what to the screenplay, but clearly (to me at least) the respect for the original films comes first for Kevin Williamson. Halloween H20 is smooth and also stripped down to its raw essence: Michael Myers’ relentless drive to kill his sister and Laurie’s naked fear of Michael finding her and killing both her and her son.

Without John Carpenter and actress Jamie Lee Curtis, the Myers character had not been able to carry this franchise. With Myers alone, each Halloween was simply another bad slasher flick – a movie that was little more than product turned out, like a cheap fast food hamburger, to separate a sucker from his money. With Miner doing his best work, Curtis returns and makes Halloween H20: 20 Years Later one of the best horror movies of the 1990s. It is scary, thrilling, a little funny, and sometimes a nail-biter. The people that control this franchise should have stopped here.

8 of 10
A

Thursday, November 01, 2012

----------------------------

Google Play and Steven Spielberg Host "Lincoln" Sept. 13th

You’re Invited to a Google Play Hosted Hangout with Director Steven Spielberg and Joseph Gordon-Levitt for the World Premiere of the “Lincoln” Trailer on September 13th

First-Time-Ever Event Will Be Broadcast Live in Times Square

BURBANK, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DreamWorks Pictures and Google Play announced today that they will debut the theatrical trailer for “Lincoln” during a Google+ Hangout on Thursday, September 13, 2012, at 4 p.m. PT.

The event will also feature a live conversation with Spielberg and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who portrays Robert Todd Lincoln in the highly anticipated film slated for release in November.

The “Lincoln” trailer will be the first film trailer to launch during a Google+ Hangout, which allows people to connect face-to-face-to-face via group video chat. In another first, the Hangout will also be broadcast live on the ABC SuperSign in the heart of New York City’s Times Square.

The Hangout is being hosted by Google Play, which boasts the world’s largest collection of ebooks and is home to millions of songs, thousands of movies and TV shows, and a growing selection of magazines. Not to mention over 600,000 apps and games.

Fans interested in participating are asked to upload a short video to their own YouTube channel with the #LincolnHangout tag explaining who they are, why they are interested in “Lincoln” and what they would like to ask Spielberg and Gordon-Levitt about the film.

To learn more about the submission process and about how to tune in to this live Hangout, visit www.lincolnmoviehangout.com.


ABOUT THE MOVIE
Steven Spielberg directs two-time Academy Award® winner Daniel Day-Lewis in “Lincoln,” a revealing drama that focuses on the 16th President’s tumultuous final months in office. In a nation divided by war and the strong winds of change, Lincoln pursues a course of action designed to end the war, unite the country and abolish slavery. With the moral courage and fierce determination to succeed, his choices during this critical moment will change the fate of generations to come.

Starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field, David Strathairn, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, James Spader, Hal Holbrook and Tommy Lee Jones, “Lincoln” is produced by Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy, with a screenplay by Tony Kushner, based in part on the book, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, by Doris Kearns Goodwin. The DreamWorks Pictures/Twentieth Century Fox film, in association with Participant Media, releases in U.S. theaters exclusive on November 9, 2012, with expansion on November 16, 2012.

Review: "Shadowboxer" is Bat-Shit-Crazy (Happy B'day, Helen Mirren)

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 253 (of 2006) by Leroy Douresseaux


Shadowboxer (2005)
Opening date: July 21, 2006
Running time: 94 minutes (1 hour, 34 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong graphic violence and sexuality, nudity, language, and some drug use
DIRECTOR: Lee Daniels
WRITER: William Lipz
PRODUCERS: Lisa Cortes, Lee Daniels, Damon Dash, Brook Lenfest, and Dave Robinson
CINEMATOGRAPHER: M. David Mullen
EDITOR: William Chang and Brian A. Kates

CRIME/DRAMA/THRILLER

Starring: Cuba Gooding, Jr., Helen Mirren, Stephen Dorff, Vanessa Ferlito, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Macy Gray, Cullen Flynn Clancy, Tomy Dunster, and Mo’Nique

The subject of this movie review is Shadowboxer, a 2005 crime thriller directed by Lee Daniels. After the film’s theatrical release in the summer of 2006, two of its stars would go on to win Academy Awards, Helen Mirren and Mo’Nique, and one had already won an Oscar, Cuba Gooding, Jr.

Clayton (Stephen Dorff), a nasty crime lord, hires the assassin Rose (Helen Mirren) and her stepson/partner/longtime lover, Mikey (Cuba Gooding, Jr.), to kill his wife, Vickie (Vanessa Ferlito), whom he believes is cheating on him. However, during the hit, Rose, suffering from cancer and on her last job, discovers that Vickie is pregnant and hesitates. Vickie immediately goes into labor and delivers a son. Rose takes mother and newborn and flees with Mikey to a new life in a pastoral suburb. Soon, the baby is seven-year old Anthony (Cullen Flynn Clancy), and the past is about to catch up with this unconventional family.

Shadowboxer is an audacious, unconventional thriller. Director Lee Daniels and writer William Lipz create a crime thriller than can masquerade as a family melodrama. This flick, however, has an awkward pace. Sometimes it is slow, and other times it is a meditative tale that shadowboxes with being philosophical – philosophy that it delivers either through imagery or dialogue. (Mikey religiously practices shadow boxing.) Shadowboxer’s overarching plot is a crime thriller tale full of cold, ruthless murderers, thugs, criminals, and assorted lowlifes, but it often comes across as low budget thriller with most of the actors merely posing rather than acting. The bad guys and badasses come across as stock characters, or maybe the direction they received for their performances was too artsy.

Shadowboxer doesn’t have any great or even really good performances, but this strange off-kilter flick spends the second half builds into a story of an unconventional family coming to grips with itself. The fact that the family members can be a workable nuclear family (even though this merger wasn’t meant to be) only makes seeing things work out that much more desirable. Rooting for this desperate, but loving family makes Shadowboxer’s narrative, pacing, and structural problems all less important.

6 of 10
B

Wednesday, December 20, 2006

Review: "The Dark Knight Rises," But the Movie is Bloated

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 58 (of 2012) by Leroy Douresseaux

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Running time: 164 minutes (2 hours, 44 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some sensuality and language
DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan
WRITERS: Jonathan Nolan and Christopher Nolan; from a story by David S. Goyer and Christopher Nolan (based upon the characters created by Bob Kane and Bill Finger)
PRODUCERS: Christopher Nolan, Charles Roven, and Emma Thomas
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Wally Pfister (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Lee Smith
COMPOSER: Hans Zimmer

SUPERHERO/ACTION/DRAMA

Starring: Christian Bale, Tom Hardy, Anne Hathaway, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Morgan Freeman, Marion Cotillard, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Matthew Modine, Cillian Murphy, Ben Mendelsohn, Burn Gorman, Tom Conti, and Liam Neeson

The subject of this movie review is The Dark Knight Rises, a film directed by Christopher Nolan. It is a sequel to The Dark Knight and is also the third film in Nolan’s “The Dark Knight trilogy,” which began with 2005’s Batman Begins. The Dark Knight Rises is a highly-anticipated film, and I have been anxious to see it for some time.

Now, that I’ve seen The Dark Knight Rises, I must admit that I did not like it. In fact, not long into the movie, I was bored with it and, three times I considered walking out of the theatre. The Dark Knight Rises has some interesting ideas, characters, and subplots, but they don’t really come together to form a complete movies. The story elements feel like they are building up to something big; the film is like a constant upsurge of anticipation that never delivers. Too often, scenes ultimately deliver an anti-climax.

The Dark Knight Rises opens eight years after the events that closed The Dark Knight, which saw Batman (Christian Bale) vanishing into the night after he made it seem as if he (Batman) had killed District Attorney Harvey Dent. By assuming the blame for Dent’s demise, Batman sacrificed everything for what he and Commissioner James Gordon (Gary Oldman) both hoped was the greater good. In a sense, that worked. As the film begins, organized crime in Gotham City is dead.

Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) has given up being Batman and lives in seclusion, but his meeting with Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway), a cunning cat burglar gets him interested in what is currently happening in the city. Meanwhile, a masked terrorist called Bane (Tom Hardy) has come to Gotham to tear the city down in the name of revolution. Bane’s acts of destruction and terror drive Bruce out of his self-imposed exile, but Batman may be no match for Bane

Although the film runs at nearly 2¾ hours, The Dark Knight Rises did not seem too long to me. It did seem bloated. The film does have some good action set pieces, but they combine to form a movie that is too damned loud and obnoxious. Talk about full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Speaking of loud: Hans Zimmer’s score is comically overdone, even farcical. Every time something momentous is about to be said or done, Zimmer unleashes ear-drum pounding brass and Ragnorok synth. The music makes the movie seem either pretentious or a joke.

The new characters are interesting, but they’re equally pompous and hollow. Anne Hathaway has a great moment as Selina Kyle when the character first meets Bruce Wayne that is deliciously cool. After that, the character comes across as tacked-on. Nolan is too coy about her; is she villainess or anti-hero? Please, make up your mind, Mr. Director. Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s John Blake is a good character lost in the excesses of this movie. Tom Hardy’s Bane is scary, but his frightfulness is mitigated by this story’s murky intentions. Utterly underutilized are two supporting characters: Bruce Wayne’s business rival, John Daggett (Ben Mendelsohn), and his assistant, Stryver (Burn Gorman). The actors give this film’s best performances, and the characters are this movie’s dynamic duo. I was sad when they “left” the story.

All of The Dark Knight Rises’ characters, settings, sub-plots, and action don’t lead from point A to point B – beginning, middle, and end. They come together as one huge rambling wreck that eventually crashes, which we can call the end of the movie. The story is a good idea, but the screenplay is overkill. This is Christopher Nolan’s worst major film to date. If I did not know better, I would think that Joel Schumacher had directed The Dark Knight Rises, but this movie’s self-importance reminds me that this is a Chris Nolan flick.

4 of 10
C

Saturday, July 21, 2012

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