DreamWorks Studios Acquires the Film Rights to Pulitzer-Prize Winning Author Doris Kearns Goodwin’s Highly Anticipated Book, "The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism"
LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--DreamWorks Studios has closed a preemptive deal to acquire the film rights to Pulitzer Prize-winning author Doris Kearns Goodwin’s soon-to-be-released book, The Bully Pulpit: Theodore Roosevelt, William Howard Taft, and the Golden Age of Journalism, it was announced today by Stacey Snider, Partner and Co-Chair at DreamWorks Studios. Goodwin previously collaborated with the studio on the critically acclaimed and award-winning Lincoln, based in part on Goodwin’s #1 New York Times bestselling Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln.
Goodwin’s The Bully Pulpit will be released November 5, 2013 by Simon & Schuster. The book, seven years in the making, tells the riveting story of two longtime friends who become bitter political opponents. Roosevelt’s fighting spirit and impulsive temperament stood in counterpoint to Taft’s deliberative, conciliatory disposition. Yet, their opposing qualities proved complementary, allowing them to create a rare camaraderie and productive collaboration until their brutal fight for the presidential nomination in 1912 divided them, their families, their colleagues, and their friends. It split the Republican Party in two, and altered the course of American history.
“Doris has once again given us the best seats in the house where we can watch two dynamic American personalities in a battle for power and friendship,” said Steven Spielberg.
Spielberg and Goodwin previously worked together on Lincoln, based in part on Goodwin’s Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln, with a script by Academy Award®-nominated writer Tony Kushner. This new project expands upon that winning combination. Lincoln earned 12 Academy Award® nominations, including an Academy Award for actor Daniel Day-Lewis for his portrayal of President Abraham Lincoln, and box office grosses of over $270 million.
“Working with Steven Spielberg and DreamWorks on Lincoln seemed a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” said Doris Kearns Goodwin. “I cannot imagine anything better than the prospect of working with them again, this time to bring Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft to life.”
Goodwin, who was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in history for No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II, is also the author of the bestsellers Wait Till Next Year, Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream and The Fitzgeralds and the Kennedys, which was adapted into an award-winning five-part TV miniseries.
Doris Kearns Goodwin was represented in the deal by ICM.
About DreamWorks Studios
DreamWorks Studios is a motion picture company formed in 2009 and led by Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider in partnership with The Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group. The company’s recent releases include Spielberg's Lincoln, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, Sally Field and Tommy Lee Jones. The film has grossed over $180 million at the U.S. box office and was nominated for twelve Academy Awards® with Daniel Day-Lewis winning for Best Actor. Other releases include Real Steel, starring Hugh Jackman and directed by Shawn Levy, Steven Spielberg’s War Horse, based on Michael Morpurgo’s award-winning book and nominated for six Academy Awards® including Best Picture, and The Help, which resonated with audiences around the country and earned over $200 million at the box office and received four Academy Award® nominations with Octavia Spencer winning for Best Supporting Actress. Upcoming films include the comedy Delivery Man, starring Vince Vaughn, car racing actioner Need for Speed, starring Aaron Paul, and the drama The Hundred-Foot Journey, starring Helen Mirren.
DreamWorks Studios can be found on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/DreamWorksStudios and on Twitter at http://twitter.com/dw_studios.
Thursday, October 31, 2013
Review: "The Covenant" a Poorly Cast Spell
The Covenant (2006)
Running time: 97 minutes (1 hour, 37 minutes)
MPAA – PG-13 for intense action sequences of violence and action, some disturbing images, sexual content, partial nudity, and language
DIRECTOR: Renny Harlin
WRITER: J.S. Cardone
PRODUCERS: Gary Lucchesi and Tom Rosenberg
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Pierre Gill (D.o.P.)
EDITOR: Nicolas De Toth
COMPOSER: tomandandy
HORROR/FANTASY/MYSTERY/THRILLER
Starring: Steven Strait, Laura Ramsey, Sebastian Stan, Taylor Kitsch, Toby Hemingway, Chace Crawford, Matt Austin, Wendy Crewson, Robert Crooks, Steven Crowder, Larry Day, and Jessica Lucas
The subject of this movie review is The Covenant, a 2006 supernatural horror and action-fantasy film from director Renny Harlin. The film follows four young men who belong to a supernatural legacy and are forced to battle a fifth power long thought to have died out. The young men must also contend with is their jealousy and suspicion of one another, which threatens to tear their union apart.
In 1692, four families of the Ipswich Colony of Massachusetts formed a covenant of silence to hide that they wielded The Power – what their fellow colonists identified as witchcraft. Cut to the present: Caleb Danvers (Steven Strait), Pogue Parry (Taylor Kitsch), Reid Garwin (Toby Hemingway), and Tyler Sims (Chace Crawford) are the Sons of Ipswich, the heirs to the bloodline of those four families. They are bound by their sacred ancestry, and Caleb, as the oldest, is their de facto leader. As minors, they possess only a fraction of The Power they will have as adults, but Caleb is just a few days from his 18th birthday when he will “ascend” and receive his full powers.
Caleb and the other sons are students at the elite Spencer Academy. There are two new students. The attractive blond, Sarah Wenham (Laura Ramsey), catches Caleb’s eye. The raffish Chace Collins (Sebastian Stan) becomes a rival for the affections of Pogue’s girlfriend, Kate Tunney (Jessica Lucas). High school puppy love and rivalries are put on hold when the body of a dead student is found in the local woods after an outdoor party (rave?). Caleb and Pogue sense that one of their own is abusing his power, threatening to break the covenant of silence that has protected their families for hundreds of years. And this mystery user is very powerful and also hunting Caleb and Sarah.
The Covenant is kind of like the 1987 film, The Lost Boys, jammed into The WB’s (now The CW’s) TV series, “One Tree Hill.” Director Renny Harlin (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, Exorcist: The Beginning) is no stranger to cheesy horror flicks that have a few scary moments, and The Covenant is a cheesy horror flick with some genuine atmosphere, a few scary movie thrills, and an obnoxiously loud soundtrack and score. The main problem with The Covenant is that it’s all surface – lots of pretty visuals. In fact, Harlin focuses so much on how the film looks – with its bevy of sexy male leads and haunting Québec, Canada filming locations – that he never gets into the meat of the story.
I will grant that co-producer/writer J.S. Cardone’s script is top heavy with backstory, pre-history, and mythology, so Harlin has a lot of text and subtext to transform into a movie that holds the short attention spans of its intended audience. (This probably would work better as a novel, or hey, even a television series on The CW.). There is so much intriguing stuff left in the air, and Harlin only brushes on the characters enough to give the audience a nebulous idea about what’s going on. Still, The Covenant is a faintly entertaining, half-assed popcorn flick. It’s the kind of horror movie that will live a half-life in the limbo of video rentals – lucky to be an afterthought behind the good horror movies.
4 of 10
C
Saturday, September 9, 2006
Updated: Thursday, October 31, 2013
The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
76 Nations Compete for Five 2013 Foreign Film Oscar Nominations
76 Countries In Competition For 2013 Foreign Language Film Oscar®
BEVERLY HILLS, CA – A record 76 countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 86th Academy Awards®. Moldova and Saudi Arabia are first-time entrants; Montenegro is submitting for the first time as an independent country.
The 2013 submissions are:
Afghanistan, "Wajma – An Afghan Love Story," Barmak Akram, director;
Albania, "Agon," Robert Budina, director;
Argentina, "The German Doctor," Lucía Puenzo, director;
Australia, "The Rocket," Kim Mordaunt, director;
Austria, "The Wall," Julian Pölsler, director;
Azerbaijan, "Steppe Man," Shamil Aliyev, director;
Bangladesh, "Television," Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, director;
Belgium, "The Broken Circle Breakdown," Felix van Groeningen, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker," Danis Tanovic, director;
Brazil, "Neighboring Sounds," Kleber Mendonça Filho, director;
Bulgaria, "The Color of the Chameleon," Emil Hristov, director;
Cambodia, "The Missing Picture," Rithy Panh, director;
Canada, "Gabrielle," Louise Archambault, director;
Chad, "GriGris," Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, director;
Chile, "Gloria," Sebastián Lelio, director;
China, "Back to 1942," Feng Xiaogang, director;
Colombia, "La Playa DC," Juan Andrés Arango, director;
Croatia, "Halima’s Path," Arsen Anton Ostojic, director;
Czech Republic, "The Don Juans," Jiri Menzel, director;
Denmark, "The Hunt," Thomas Vinterberg, director;
Dominican Republic, "Quien Manda?" Ronni Castillo, director;
Ecuador, "The Porcelain Horse," Javier Andrade, director;
Egypt, "Winter of Discontent," Ibrahim El Batout, director;
Estonia, "Free Range," Veiko Ounpuu, director;
Finland, "Disciple," Ulrika Bengts, director;
France, "Renoir," Gilles Bourdos, director;
Georgia, "In Bloom," Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Gross, directors;
Germany, "Two Lives," Georg Maas, director;
Greece, "Boy Eating the Bird’s Food," Ektoras Lygizos, director;
Hong Kong, "The Grandmaster," Wong Kar-wai, director;
Hungary, "The Notebook," Janos Szasz, director;
Iceland, "Of Horses and Men," Benedikt Erlingsson, director;
India, "The Good Road," Gyan Correa, director;
Indonesia, "Sang Kiai," Rako Prijanto, director;
Iran, "The Past," Asghar Farhadi, director;
Israel, "Bethlehem," Yuval Adler, director;
Italy, "The Great Beauty," Paolo Sorrentino, director;
Japan, "The Great Passage," Ishii Yuya, director;
Kazakhstan, "Shal," Yermek Tursunov, director;
Latvia, "Mother, I Love You," Janis Nords, director;
Lebanon, "Blind Intersections," Lara Saba, director;
Lithuania, "Conversations on Serious Topics," Giedre Beinoriute, director;
Luxembourg, "Blind Spot," Christophe Wagner, director;
Mexico, "Heli," Amat Escalante, director;
Moldova, "All God’s Children," Adrian Popovici, director;
Montenegro, "Ace of Spades - Bad Destiny," Drasko Djurovic, director;
Morocco, "Horses of God," Nabil Ayouch, director;
Nepal, "Soongava: Dance of the Orchids," Subarna Thapa, director;
Netherlands, "Borgman," Alex van Warmerdam, director;
New Zealand, "White Lies," Dana Rotberg, director;
Norway, "I Am Yours," Iram Haq, director;
Pakistan, "Zinda Bhaag," Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi, directors;
Palestine, "Omar," Hany Abu-Assad, director;
Peru, "The Cleaner," Adrian Saba, director;
Philippines, "Transit," Hannah Espia, director;
Poland, "Walesa. Man of Hope," Andrzej Wajda, director;
Portugal, "Lines of Wellington," Valeria Sarmiento, director;
Romania, "Child’s Pose," Calin Peter Netzer, director;
Russia, "Stalingrad," Fedor Bondarchuk, director;
Saudi Arabia, "Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour, director;
Serbia, "Circles," Srdan Golubovic, director;
Singapore, "Ilo Ilo," Anthony Chen, director;
Slovak Republic, "My Dog Killer," Mira Fornay, director;
Slovenia, "Class Enemy," Rok Bicek, director;
South Africa, "Four Corners," Ian Gabriel, director;
South Korea, "Juvenile Offender," Kang Yi-kwan, director;
Spain, "15 Years Plus a Day," Gracia Querejeta, director;
Sweden, "Eat Sleep Die," Gabriela Pichler, director;
Switzerland, "More than Honey," Markus Imhoof, director;
Taiwan, "Soul," Chung Mong-Hong, director;
Thailand, "Countdown," Nattawut Poonpiriya, director;
Turkey, "The Butterfly’s Dream," Yilmaz Erdogan, director;
Ukraine, "Paradjanov," Serge Avedikian and Olena Fetisova, directors;
United Kingdom, "Metro Manila," Sean Ellis, director;
Uruguay, "Anina," Alfredo Soderguit, director;
Venezuela, "Breach in the Silence," Luis Alejandro Rodríguez and Andrés Eduardo Rodríguez, directors.
The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® and televised live on the ABC Television Network. The presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
BEVERLY HILLS, CA – A record 76 countries have submitted films for consideration in the Foreign Language Film category for the 86th Academy Awards®. Moldova and Saudi Arabia are first-time entrants; Montenegro is submitting for the first time as an independent country.
The 2013 submissions are:
Afghanistan, "Wajma – An Afghan Love Story," Barmak Akram, director;
Albania, "Agon," Robert Budina, director;
Argentina, "The German Doctor," Lucía Puenzo, director;
Australia, "The Rocket," Kim Mordaunt, director;
Austria, "The Wall," Julian Pölsler, director;
Azerbaijan, "Steppe Man," Shamil Aliyev, director;
Bangladesh, "Television," Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, director;
Belgium, "The Broken Circle Breakdown," Felix van Groeningen, director;
Bosnia and Herzegovina, "An Episode in the Life of an Iron Picker," Danis Tanovic, director;
Brazil, "Neighboring Sounds," Kleber Mendonça Filho, director;
Bulgaria, "The Color of the Chameleon," Emil Hristov, director;
Cambodia, "The Missing Picture," Rithy Panh, director;
Canada, "Gabrielle," Louise Archambault, director;
Chad, "GriGris," Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, director;
Chile, "Gloria," Sebastián Lelio, director;
China, "Back to 1942," Feng Xiaogang, director;
Colombia, "La Playa DC," Juan Andrés Arango, director;
Croatia, "Halima’s Path," Arsen Anton Ostojic, director;
Czech Republic, "The Don Juans," Jiri Menzel, director;
Denmark, "The Hunt," Thomas Vinterberg, director;
Dominican Republic, "Quien Manda?" Ronni Castillo, director;
Ecuador, "The Porcelain Horse," Javier Andrade, director;
Egypt, "Winter of Discontent," Ibrahim El Batout, director;
Estonia, "Free Range," Veiko Ounpuu, director;
Finland, "Disciple," Ulrika Bengts, director;
France, "Renoir," Gilles Bourdos, director;
Georgia, "In Bloom," Nana Ekvtimishvili and Simon Gross, directors;
Germany, "Two Lives," Georg Maas, director;
Greece, "Boy Eating the Bird’s Food," Ektoras Lygizos, director;
Hong Kong, "The Grandmaster," Wong Kar-wai, director;
Hungary, "The Notebook," Janos Szasz, director;
Iceland, "Of Horses and Men," Benedikt Erlingsson, director;
India, "The Good Road," Gyan Correa, director;
Indonesia, "Sang Kiai," Rako Prijanto, director;
Iran, "The Past," Asghar Farhadi, director;
Israel, "Bethlehem," Yuval Adler, director;
Italy, "The Great Beauty," Paolo Sorrentino, director;
Japan, "The Great Passage," Ishii Yuya, director;
Kazakhstan, "Shal," Yermek Tursunov, director;
Latvia, "Mother, I Love You," Janis Nords, director;
Lebanon, "Blind Intersections," Lara Saba, director;
Lithuania, "Conversations on Serious Topics," Giedre Beinoriute, director;
Luxembourg, "Blind Spot," Christophe Wagner, director;
Mexico, "Heli," Amat Escalante, director;
Moldova, "All God’s Children," Adrian Popovici, director;
Montenegro, "Ace of Spades - Bad Destiny," Drasko Djurovic, director;
Morocco, "Horses of God," Nabil Ayouch, director;
Nepal, "Soongava: Dance of the Orchids," Subarna Thapa, director;
Netherlands, "Borgman," Alex van Warmerdam, director;
New Zealand, "White Lies," Dana Rotberg, director;
Norway, "I Am Yours," Iram Haq, director;
Pakistan, "Zinda Bhaag," Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi, directors;
Palestine, "Omar," Hany Abu-Assad, director;
Peru, "The Cleaner," Adrian Saba, director;
Philippines, "Transit," Hannah Espia, director;
Poland, "Walesa. Man of Hope," Andrzej Wajda, director;
Portugal, "Lines of Wellington," Valeria Sarmiento, director;
Romania, "Child’s Pose," Calin Peter Netzer, director;
Russia, "Stalingrad," Fedor Bondarchuk, director;
Saudi Arabia, "Wadjda," Haifaa Al Mansour, director;
Serbia, "Circles," Srdan Golubovic, director;
Singapore, "Ilo Ilo," Anthony Chen, director;
Slovak Republic, "My Dog Killer," Mira Fornay, director;
Slovenia, "Class Enemy," Rok Bicek, director;
South Africa, "Four Corners," Ian Gabriel, director;
South Korea, "Juvenile Offender," Kang Yi-kwan, director;
Spain, "15 Years Plus a Day," Gracia Querejeta, director;
Sweden, "Eat Sleep Die," Gabriela Pichler, director;
Switzerland, "More than Honey," Markus Imhoof, director;
Taiwan, "Soul," Chung Mong-Hong, director;
Thailand, "Countdown," Nattawut Poonpiriya, director;
Turkey, "The Butterfly’s Dream," Yilmaz Erdogan, director;
Ukraine, "Paradjanov," Serge Avedikian and Olena Fetisova, directors;
United Kingdom, "Metro Manila," Sean Ellis, director;
Uruguay, "Anina," Alfredo Soderguit, director;
Venezuela, "Breach in the Silence," Luis Alejandro Rodríguez and Andrés Eduardo Rodríguez, directors.
The 86th Academy Awards nominations will be announced live on Thursday, January 16, 2014, at 5:30 a.m. PT in the Academy’s Samuel Goldwyn Theater.
Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2013 will be presented on Oscar Sunday, March 2, 2014, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® and televised live on the ABC Television Network. The presentation also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.
Review: "Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure" Goes to Disneyland
Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure (2013) – straight-to-video
Running time: 57 minutes
PRODUCERS/DIRECTORS: Spike Brandt and Tony Cervone
WRITER: Paul Dini
EDITOR: Kyle Stafford
COMPOSER: Michael Tavera
ANIMATION STUDIO: Yearim Productions Co. Ltd.
ANIMATION/FANTASY/COMEDY and ADVENTURE/FAMILY/MUSICAL
Starring: (voices) Jacob Bertrand, Grey DeLisle, Garrison Keillor, Paul Reubens, Tom Wilson, Kath Soucie, Joe Alaskey, John DiMaggio, Phil LaMarr, and Richard McGonagle
Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure is a 2013 animated direct-to-video film starring the famous cartoon cat and mouse duo, Tom and Jerry. Produced by Warner Bros. Animation, this film offers a Tom and Jerry spin on the fairy tale, Jack and the Beanstalk. In Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure, the cat and mouse duo help a boy try to save his family’s theme park.
Once upon a time, Joe Bradley opened Storybook Town, a fairy tale-inspired theme park. “Where dreams come true if you believe” became Bradley’s motto for the park. He shared his dream with his wife, Violet (Grey DeLisle), and eventually with their son, Jack (Jacob Bertrand). After Joe died, however, Storybook Town fell on hard times.
Now, Tom and Jerry are the last animals living in Storybook Town, but they are faithful servants of Jack. The boy and his mother are desperate to save the park from the machinations of Mr. Bigley (Tom Wilson), a greedy billionaire and owner of Bigley’s Super Strip Malls. Bigley wants to demolish Storybook Town and turn the property into a strip mall (what else?).
Jack believes some mysterious magical beans will help him save the park, but all they do is take him and Tom and Jerry to Fairyland. There, the trio discovers that its denizens are also under the boot of a greedy bully, a giant named Mr. Ginormous (Tom Wilson). Can Tom and Jerry stop their feuding long enough to join Jack in his bid to help the people of Fairyland and to maybe save Storybook Town?
Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure starts off a bit melancholy, with its themes of death, decay, and poverty. Plus, the story’s allusions to Walt Disney and Disneyland are a little off-putting – to me, at least. Is this an homage or sly dig? However, once the story gains a clear sense of purpose and the heroes have a goal (or goals), the movie becomes a bright adventure that radiates with hope.
As for as the production values, the animation is on par with recent Tom and Jerry films, but the art direction is not special. The character animation on Mr. Ginormous is the standout in this movie.
A number of Tom and Jerry’s fellow MGM animated characters make their usual appearances: Droopy Dog (Joe Alaskey), Barney Bear (Richard McGonagle), Screwy Squirrel (Paul Reubens), Spyke and Tyke (Phil LaMarr), etc. I must say that these are not the best versions of the characters, and they have been put to better use in other Tom and Jerry flicks. The classic MGM sexpot character, “Red,” appears in this movie as Red Fairy (Grey DeLisle), but she is a tepid version of her red-hot self, but still manages to be a little risqué. Radio legend and spoken word artist, Garrison Keillor, gives voice to the character, Farmer O’Dell. I can’t say that his performance does anything particularly special for this film, but Keillor’s presence does strike an odd note.
Strangely, the thing that really appeals to me is this film’s sense of hope and perseverance. In Tom and Jerry’s Giant Adventure, there is the sparkle of magic to go with the movie’s spark of hope. I found myself really believing in miracles, and for me, that makes what could have been an average movie a little special.
6 of 10
B
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
The text is copyright © 2013 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for syndication rights and fees.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
2013 Gotham Award Nominations Announced
by Amos Semien and Editor
The 2013-14 American movie award season has been kicked off with the announcement of nominations for The Gotham Awards - the 23rd edition of the awards. The Gotham Awards is an annual film awards ceremony that honors independent films. The Gotham Awards are part of The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers. The Gotham Awards also signal the kick-off to the film awards season.
Nominees are selected by groups of distinguished film critics, journalists, festival programmers, and film curators. Separate juries of writers, directors, actors, producers, editors and others directly involved in making films determine the final Gotham Award recipients.
The 2013 Gotham Awards nominees were announced Thursday, October 24, 2013. The winners will be announced live at the 2013 Gotham Independent Film Awards™ on Monday, December 2, 2013.
23rd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards nominees:
Best Feature:
12 Years a Slave
Steve McQueen, director; Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Bill Pohlad, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan, Anthony Katagas, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
David Lowery, director; Tony Halbrooks, James M. Johnston, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Amy Kaufman, Cassian Elwes, producers (IFC Films)
Before Midnight
Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Sara Woodhatch, producers (Sony Pictures Classics)
Inside Llewyn Davis
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, directors; Scott Rudin, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, producers (CBS Films)
Upstream Color
Shane Carruth, director; Shane Carruth, Casey Gooden, Ben LeClair, producers. (erbp)
Best Documentary:
The Act of Killing
Joshua Oppenheimer, director; Signe Byrge, Joshua Oppenheimer, producers (Drafthouse Films)
The Crash Reel
Lucy Walker, director; Julian Cautherly, Lucy Walker, producers (HBO Documentary Films)
First Cousin Once Removed
Alan Berliner, director and producer (HBO Documentary Films)
Let the Fire Burn
Jason Osder, director and producer (Zeitgeist Films)
Our Nixon
Penny Lane, director; Brian L. Frye, Penny Lane, producers (Cinedigm and CNN Films)
Best Actor:
• Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
• Oscar Isaac in Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS Films)
• Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)
• Robert Redford in All Is Lost (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)
• Isaiah Washington in Blue Caprice (Sundance Selects)
Best Actress:
• Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Scarlett Johansson in Don Jon (Relativity Media)
• Brie Larson in Short Term 12 (Cinedigm)
• Amy Seimetz in Upstream Color (erbp)
• Shailene Woodley in The Spectacular Now (A24)
Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director:
• Ryan Coogler for Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
• Adam Leon for Gimme the Loot (Sundance Selects)
• Alexandre Moors for Blue Caprice (Sundance Selects)
• Stacie Passon for Concussion (RADiUS-TWC)
• Amy Seimetz for Sun Don’t Shine (Factory 25)
Breakthrough Actor:
• Dane DeHaan in Kill Your Darlings (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Kathryn Hahn in Afternoon Delight (The Film Arcade and Cinedigm)
• Michael B. Jordan in Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
• Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
• Robin Weigert in Concussion (RADiUS-TWC)
euphoria CK Spotlight on Women Filmmakers ‘Live the Dream’ grant:
• Afia Nathaniel, director, Dukhthar
• Gita Pullapilly, director, Beneath the Harvest Sky
• Deb Shoval, director, AWOl
Audience Award powered by Festival Genius
COMING SOON
Voted on by an independent film community of 230,000 film fans worldwide. To be eligible, a U.S. film must have won an audience award at one of the top 50 U.S. or Canadian film festivals from November 2012 through October 2012. Voting on the nominees closes November 24th, and the winner revealed at the Gotham Awards ceremony.
http://gotham.ifp.org
The 2013-14 American movie award season has been kicked off with the announcement of nominations for The Gotham Awards - the 23rd edition of the awards. The Gotham Awards is an annual film awards ceremony that honors independent films. The Gotham Awards are part of The Independent Filmmaker Project (IFP), the nation’s oldest and largest organization of independent filmmakers. The Gotham Awards also signal the kick-off to the film awards season.
Nominees are selected by groups of distinguished film critics, journalists, festival programmers, and film curators. Separate juries of writers, directors, actors, producers, editors and others directly involved in making films determine the final Gotham Award recipients.
The 2013 Gotham Awards nominees were announced Thursday, October 24, 2013. The winners will be announced live at the 2013 Gotham Independent Film Awards™ on Monday, December 2, 2013.
23rd Annual Gotham Independent Film Awards nominees:
Best Feature:
12 Years a Slave
Steve McQueen, director; Brad Pitt, Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Bill Pohlad, Steve McQueen, Arnon Milchan, Anthony Katagas, producers (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Ain’t Them Bodies Saints
David Lowery, director; Tony Halbrooks, James M. Johnston, Jay Van Hoy, Lars Knudsen, Amy Kaufman, Cassian Elwes, producers (IFC Films)
Before Midnight
Richard Linklater, director; Richard Linklater, Christos V. Konstantakopoulos, Sara Woodhatch, producers (Sony Pictures Classics)
Inside Llewyn Davis
Joel Coen and Ethan Coen, directors; Scott Rudin, Joel Coen, Ethan Coen, producers (CBS Films)
Upstream Color
Shane Carruth, director; Shane Carruth, Casey Gooden, Ben LeClair, producers. (erbp)
Best Documentary:
The Act of Killing
Joshua Oppenheimer, director; Signe Byrge, Joshua Oppenheimer, producers (Drafthouse Films)
The Crash Reel
Lucy Walker, director; Julian Cautherly, Lucy Walker, producers (HBO Documentary Films)
First Cousin Once Removed
Alan Berliner, director and producer (HBO Documentary Films)
Let the Fire Burn
Jason Osder, director and producer (Zeitgeist Films)
Our Nixon
Penny Lane, director; Brian L. Frye, Penny Lane, producers (Cinedigm and CNN Films)
Best Actor:
• Chiwetel Ejiofor in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
• Oscar Isaac in Inside Llewyn Davis (CBS Films)
• Matthew McConaughey in Dallas Buyers Club (Focus Features)
• Robert Redford in All Is Lost (Lionsgate and Roadside Attractions)
• Isaiah Washington in Blue Caprice (Sundance Selects)
Best Actress:
• Cate Blanchett in Blue Jasmine (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Scarlett Johansson in Don Jon (Relativity Media)
• Brie Larson in Short Term 12 (Cinedigm)
• Amy Seimetz in Upstream Color (erbp)
• Shailene Woodley in The Spectacular Now (A24)
Bingham Ray Breakthrough Director:
• Ryan Coogler for Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
• Adam Leon for Gimme the Loot (Sundance Selects)
• Alexandre Moors for Blue Caprice (Sundance Selects)
• Stacie Passon for Concussion (RADiUS-TWC)
• Amy Seimetz for Sun Don’t Shine (Factory 25)
Breakthrough Actor:
• Dane DeHaan in Kill Your Darlings (Sony Pictures Classics)
• Kathryn Hahn in Afternoon Delight (The Film Arcade and Cinedigm)
• Michael B. Jordan in Fruitvale Station (The Weinstein Company)
• Lupita Nyong’o in 12 Years a Slave (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
• Robin Weigert in Concussion (RADiUS-TWC)
euphoria CK Spotlight on Women Filmmakers ‘Live the Dream’ grant:
• Afia Nathaniel, director, Dukhthar
• Gita Pullapilly, director, Beneath the Harvest Sky
• Deb Shoval, director, AWOl
Audience Award powered by Festival Genius
COMING SOON
Voted on by an independent film community of 230,000 film fans worldwide. To be eligible, a U.S. film must have won an audience award at one of the top 50 U.S. or Canadian film festivals from November 2012 through October 2012. Voting on the nominees closes November 24th, and the winner revealed at the Gotham Awards ceremony.
http://gotham.ifp.org
The 2013-14 Movie Award Season - It's On!
By Editor
With the announcement last Thursday (October 24, 2013) of the nominations for the 2013 Gotham Awards, the awards season for American films kicked off it's 2013-14 edition. It all culminates at the 86th Academy Awards on Sunday, March 2, 2013, where Oscars get handed out.
I hear lots of commentary and buzz about 12 Years a Slave (a Gotham Awards nominee) being the early favorite to win "Best Picture." Like Miss Melody used to say, "I ain't buyin' it!" Seriously, I don't see a film about American slavery winning the "Best Picture" Oscar. It would be great, but... it would be even greater to be realistic.
Monday, October 28, 2013
Review: "Brother Bear" is Sweet (Happy B'day, Joaquin Phoenix)
Brother Bear (2003) – animated
Running time: 85 minutes (1 hour, 25 minutes)
MPAA – G
DIRECTORS: Aaron Blaise and Robert Walker
WRITERS: Tab Murphy, Steven Bencich, Lorne Cameron, Ron J. Friedman, David Hoselton, and Broose Johnson, from a story by multiple contributors
PRODUCER: Chuck Williams
EDITOR: Tim Mertens
COMPOSERS: Phil Collins and Mark Mancina
Academy Award nominee
ANIMATION/FAMILY/FANTASY with elements of adventure
Starring: (voices) Joaquin Phoenix, Jeremy Suarez, Jason Raize, Rick Moranis, Dave Thomas, D.B. Sweeney, Joan Copeland, Michael Clarke Duncan, Harold Gould, and Estelle Harris
The subject of this movie review is Brother Bear, a 2003 animated drama and fantasy-adventure film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. This Oscar-nominated film tells the story of a young Inuit hunter who needlessly kills a bear, and is magically changed into a bear himself as punishment and forced to play big brother to a talkative cub.
As it stands in late 2003, Brother Bear is the next to last 2D animated (or hand animated) feature from Walt Disney Studios, as they announced their plans to focus on 3D or computer generated films like Finding Nemo and Dinosaur. With next year’s Home on the Range already looking kinda tepid, the greatest studio of 2D animated films seems to be limping out the exit.
Brother Bear, apparently set sometime in Ice Age North America, is the story of Kenai (Joaquin Phoenix), a young Native American hunter, who seeks vengeance on a bear that caused the death of his older brother Sitka (D.B. Sweeney). Deep down, Kenai blames himself for his brother’s death, and he hopes killing the bear will help to alleviate his guilt. After he kills the bear, Kenai causes some kind of unbalance in the supernatural forces that guard the earth. Sitka’s spirit transforms Kenai into a bear who needs the help of a young cub, Koda (Jeremy Suarez), for redemption. Meanwhile, Kenai’s other brother, Denahi (Jason Raize), hunts the transformed Kenai, believing him to be the bear that killed both his brothers.
As usual for Disney feature length animation, Brother Bear has beautiful animation dressed up in a sumptuous feast of dazzling colors. At times, the viewer might think he’s taking a virtual tour of a museum full of lavishly painted landscapes. BB’s animation isn’t as good as the great ones like Pinocchio and Fantasia, but it is better than Little Mermaid or Oliver and Company. BB’s character animators do some excellent work, especially on the human characters and the moose voiced by Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas, who are virtually reprising their “SCTV” characters Bob and Doug McKenzie.
BB has two major weaknesses – Phil Collins’ song score and the script. Collins’ work, while by know means bad, ranges from tiresome to tolerably functional. The script manages to capture the essence of a very nice fable. The mixture of Native American spiritualism, pacifism, and interspecies friendship, however, feels strained and, at times, phony. The animals live together in happiness as if the forest was a nice suburban, multicultural neighborhood, and there’s barely a hint that some of these creatures dine on the other creatures. The Indian spiritualism and ancestor worship is, in a strangely subtle way, actually over the top.
The film direction ranges from mediocre to fairly good. Brother Bear strains and struggles to feel like an epic film, but most of the time it falls on its face like a goofy and gangly bear cub. The cornball humor doesn’t help matters and isn’t all that funny; even Moranis and Thomas are, at best, mildly amusing. On some levels, the film succeeds in being feel good. It captures the sense of what it means to be obligated to another being and to be responsible for what happens when one’s actions create havoc in another’s life. In the end, Brother Bear is nice, but overreaches itself to end up a bit syrupy, not at all grand, classic and heroic like the two films it obviously mimics – Bambi and The Lion King.
6 of 10
B
NOTES:
2004 Academy Awards, USA: 1 nomination: “Best Animated Feature” (Aaron Blaise and Robert Walker)
Updated: Monday, October 28, 2013
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