Negromancer News Bits and Bites from December 18th to 24th, 2016 - Update #31

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STAR WARS - From Deadline:  Carrie Fisher is stable and out of emergency after having a heart attack on an airplane.

From ETCanada:  According to Carrie's brother, Todd Fisher, Carrie is not in "stable condition."

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MOVIES - From THR:  There is supposed to be a teaser released today in anticipation of the release of the first trailer for "Alien: Covenant," on Christmas Day.

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CELEBRITY - From YahooStyle:  Kristen Stewart (Twilight) is dating Stella Maxwell.

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SPORTS - YahooSports:  The NFL's Cleveland Browns will NOT become the second team to go winless in a 16-game NFL regular season.  The Detroit were 0 and 16 in 2008.  Several NFL teams have had seasons with no victories or ties.

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TELEVISION - From Deadline:  The "Cruel Intentions" reboot TV series is officially dead, but could rise again.

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TELEVISION - From IndieWire:  A&E's "Generation KKK" may get a name change.

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ANIMATION - From Variety:  Fox Searchlight has purchased worldwide rights to Wes Anderson's next film, the animated "Isle of Dogs."

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POLITICS - From YahooMusic:  Celine Dion says no to performing at the Trump inauguration.

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MOVIES - From Variety:  After "Blade Runner 2049," Dennis Villeneuve may move onto Legendary Entertainment's "Dune" reboot.

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MOVIES - From IndieWire:  Martin Scorsese offers an update on his upcoming film with Leonardo DiCaprio, "Devil in the White City."  A script is being worked on.

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TELEVISION - From TheWrap:  Michael Stuhlbarg added to "Fargo" Season 3.

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TELEVISION - From THR:  Starz cancels "Blunt Talk" with Patrick Stewart.

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BOX OFFICE - From YahooMovies:  Disney becomes the first movie studio to earn $7 billion in global box office.

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MOVIES - From YahooMovies:  Yahoo's 10 worst movies of the year.

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CELEBRITY - From ETCanada:  Margot Robbie secretly married in Australia.

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POLITICS - From YahooMovies:  Comedian/actor Tom Arnold claims he has outtakes of President-elect Donald Trump making racists comments.  It's too late to tell us that now - not that it would have changed the results of the election anyway...

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MUSIC - YahooMusic:  The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame has announced the 2017 inductees into the hall:  Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur, Journey, Yes, Electric Light Orchestra, and Joan Baez. Chic's Nile Rodgers will be given the Award For Musical Excellence.  The induction ceremony will be held at Brooklyn's Barclays Center on April 7th, 2017.

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CELEBRITY - From YahooCelebrity:   There was a star-studded memorial for Alan Thicke, which included appearances by Leonardo DiCaprio, anti-gay advocate Kirk Cameron, and Alan's son Grammy-nominated son, Robin Thicke.

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ECO - From RSN:  Leonardo DiCaprio says the truth about climate change has spread like "wildfire."

From EW - DiCaprio remembers his co-star from his "Growing Pains" days, Alan Thicke.

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BOX OFFICE - BoxOfficeMojo:  "Rogue One" wins the 12/16 to 12/18/2016 weekend box office with an estimated haul of $155 million.

From Variety:  "Rogue One" has second largest December opening ever.

From TheWrap:   Denzel Washington's "Fences" makes sturdy indie box office debut.

From YahooMovies: With an estimated $7 million take for the weekend, "Collateral Beauty" is a career low for Will Smith.

From Variety:  In China, director Zhang Yimou's "The Great Wall" debuts with a $66 million box office.

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MOVIES - From IndieWire:  Michael Sheen is not quitting acting to be an activist.

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OBIT - From YahooMovies:  Zsa Zsa Gabor, Hollywood socialite and actress, has died at the age of 99, Sunday, December 18, 2016.

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BLACK LIVES MATTER - From Heavy:   The subject of the "Google Doodle" for Sunday, December 18, 2016 is Steve Biko.  Biko would have been 70-years-old today if he had not died while in police custody, essentially murdered by the White racist government of South Africa.  Heavy has 5 facts you need to know about him.

From YahooNews:  RE - Dylann Roof - don't be so quick to forgive.

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TRAILERS:

From YouTube:  This is the first official teaser trailer for "Blade Runner 2019," which is due October 2017.

From YouTube:  "xXx: Return of Xander Cage" first official trailer, which was released in early November 2016.

Review: "Inside Out" is Outta Sight

TRASH IN MY EYE No. 17 (of 2016) by Leroy Douresseaux

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

Inside Out (2015)
Running time:  95 minutes (1 hour, 35 minutes)
MPAA – PG
DIRECTOR:  Pete Docter
WRITERS:  Pete Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley; based on an original story by Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen
PRODUCER:  Jonas Rivera
EDITOR:  Kevin Nolting
COMPOSER:  Michael Giacchino
Academy Award winner

ANIMATION/ADVENTURE/DRAMA/COMEDY/FAMILY

Starring:  (voices) Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Kaitlyn Dais, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan, Paula Poundstone, Bobby Moynihan, Frank Oz, Dani Dare, Dara Iruka, Dawnn Lewis, and Rashida Jones

Inside Out is a 2015 computer-animated feature film from Pixar Animation Studios.  The film is directed by Pete Docter and is based on a story written by Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen (who also co-directed this film).  Inside Out focuses on a 'tween girl who struggles with the move to a new home and on her animated emotions who get carried away by her stress.  Inside Out was executive produced by John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton.

Riley Anderson (Kaitlyn Dais) has within her mind, five personifications of her basic emotions:  Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), and Sadness (Phyllis Smith).  This quintet influences Riley's actions by using a console in her mind's Headquarters.  The emotions' biggest challenge comes when Riley is 11-years-old.

Riley and her parents, Bill Andersen (Kyle MacLachlan) and Jill O'Riley-Andersen (Diane Lane), move from her birthplace in Minnesota to San Francisco for Bill's new business.  Joy, who is the leader of the emotions, is determined to keep Riley happy during this transition.  However, an accident sends Joy and Sadness far away from Headquarters, leaving Anger, Disgust, and Fear in charge.  Chaos ensues, and Joy is determined to get back in order to take charge and fix the problems.  But can she get back in time before a great disaster occurs, and does she know what the problem with Riley really is?

Sometimes, it seems pointless to review Pixar movies, especially when they are as exceptionally good as Inside Out most certainly is.  Of course, this film is gorgeously animated.  Of course, it is both inventive in its conception and powerfully moving in its drama.  Inside Out is the best non-sequel Pixar film since 2009's Up.  So instead of heaping more praise on a movie upon which much praise (and an Oscar) has already been heaped, I will talk about a few things I liked about Inside Out.

I liked how the film emphasized that it is okay for people not to be happy all the time, that it is okay to sometimes be sad.  Joy and sadness go hand in hand, and sometimes they are connected in ways we never realize.  Obviously, Inside Out seems to be a movie made by filmmakers who are parents and who wish that their children would never grow up, but realize that of course they will.  Inside Out is about change, and sometimes change is painful for the things that we lose that we cannot get back.  Sometimes, we should not even want to get back things that are recoverable.

The voice performances are, all around, quite good.  I particularly liked Richard Kind as Riley's former imaginary friend, Bing Bong.  Amy Poehler's turn as Joy is full of shifts in character, mood, timbre, and color that not only define Joy, but also shape and define the narrative.  Lewis Black is surprisingly nimble as Anger, and Bill Hader manages to make his character, Fear, stand out when he could easily disappear into the pack.  I have to admit that I find Kaitlyn Dias exceptionally good as Riley; her performance makes the character seem genuine and goes a long way in making Inside Out work.

I won't say that this film is perfect.  I think the first 25 minutes are problematic because the story struggles.  It is as if the storytellers cannot hide the fact that they are bored with the obligatory set-ups and cannot wait to get to the part where the story really begins.

I have often heard it said or read that Pixar is like classic Walt Disney animated film in that Pixar movies have heart.  I think that Pixar's storytellers are willing to grapple with the bittersweet nature of life.  Like true artists, they find beauty in life:  the good, the bad, and even the mundane.  Pixar sells hope and embraces the fight for survival... or at least for something better.  Some might think of this as American middle class values.  I think Pixar's films are timeless and universal.  Woody and Buzz Lightyear's race to catch up to the car at the end of Toy Story will always be compelling.  And now, Inside Out has Joy and Riley's journey, and I don't think that story will ever grow old.

9 of 10
A+

Friday, April 22, 2016


NOTES:
2016 Academy Awards, USA:  1 win: “Best Animated Feature Film of the Year” (Pete Docter and Jonas Rivera); 1 nomination: “Best Writing, Original Screenplay” (Pete Docter-screenplay/story, Meg LeFauve-screenplay, Josh Cooley-screenplay, and Ronnie Del Carmen-story)

2016 Golden Globes, USA:  1 win: “Best Motion Picture – Animated”

2016 BAFTA Awards:  1 win:  “Best Animated Film” (Pete Docter); 1 nomination: “Best Original Screenplay (Josh Cooley, Pete Docter, and Meg LeFauve)


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this site for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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St. Louis Film Critics Name "La La Land" Best Film of 2016

The St. Louis Film Critics is an association of professional film critics operating in metropolitan St. Louis and adjoining areas of Missouri and Illinois.  Founded in late 2004, the group’s goals (according to the website) are to serve the interests of local film critics, and to promote an appreciation for cinema both as an art form and for its societal, cultural and historical context and impact.

The eligibility requirements for a SLFC Award, according to the group’s website:  a film must have been shown in the greater St. Louis area in a theater or at a film festival or series, or made available to SLFC members by screening or screener during the past year. Films opening in limited run elsewhere for Oscar qualification but which will open in the St. Louis area early in the next year are eligible.

2016 StLFCA Annual Award winners:

BEST FILM
Winner: La La Land
Runners-up: Hell or High Water and Manchester by the Sea (tie)

BEST DIRECTOR
Winner: Damien Chazelle – La La Land
Runners-up: Kenneth Lonergan – Manchester by the Sea andDenis Villeneuve – Arrival (tie)

BEST ACTOR
Winner: Casey Affleck – Manchester by the Sea
Runner-up: Joel Edgerton – Loving

BEST ACTRESS
Winner: Isabelle Huppert – Elle
Runner-up: Natalie Portman – Jackie

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Winner: Mahershala Ali – Moonlight
Runner-up: Lucas Hedges – Manchester by the Sea

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Winner: Viola Davis – Fences
Runner-up: Michelle Williams – Manchester by the Sea

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Winner: Hell or High Water – Taylor Sheridan
Runner-up: Manchester by the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Winner: Love and Friendship – Whit Stillman (Screenplay); Jane Austen (Novel)
Runner-up: Arrival – Eric Heisserer (Screenplay); Ted Chiang (Short Story)

BEST EDITING
Winner: Jackie – Sebastián Sepúlveda
Runners-up: Hacksaw Ridge – John Gilbert and La La Land – Tom Cross

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Winner: La La Land – Linus Sandgren
Runner-up: Moonlight – James Laxton

BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Winner: The Handmaiden – Seong-hie Ryu
Runners-up: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them – Stuart Craig and James Hambidge; Jackie – Jean Rabasse and La La Land – David Wasco (three-way tie)

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Winner: The Jungle Book
Runner-up: Doctor Strange

BEST MUSIC SCORE
Winner: La La Land – Justin Herwitz
Runner-up: Jackie – Mica Levi

BEST SOUNDTRACK
Winner: Sing Street
Runner-up: La La Land

BEST SONG
Winner: “Audition (The Fools Who Dream)” – La La Land
Runner-up: “City of Stars” – La La Land

BEST ACTION FILM
Winner: Captain America: Civil War
Runner-up: Doctor Strange

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Winner: Zootopia
Runner-up: Kubo and the Two Strings

BEST COMEDY
Winner: Hail, Caesar!
Runner-up: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Winner: I Am Not Your Negro
Runner-up: Weiner

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Winner: Elle
Runner-up: The Handmaiden

BEST HORROR / SCIENCE-FICTION FILM
Winner: The Witch
Runner-up: Arrival

BEST SCENE
Winner: La La Land – Opening dance number, “Another Day of Sun”
Runner-up: Hail, Caesar! – “Would that it were so simple.”

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7 Films Remain in Race for 3 2016 Makeup and Hairstyling Oscar Nominations

7 FEATURES ADVANCE IN RACE FOR MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING OSCAR

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that seven films remain in competition in the Makeup and Hairstyling category for the 89th Academy Awards®.

The films are listed below in alphabetical order:

“Deadpool”

“The Dressmaker”

“Florence Foster Jenkins”

“Hail, Caesar!”

“A Man Called Ove”

“Star Trek Beyond”

“Suicide Squad”

On Saturday, January 7, 2017, all members of the Academy’s Makeup Artists and Hairstylists Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films.  Following the screenings, members will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.

Nominations for the 89th Oscars® will be announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2017.

The 89th Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.  The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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Review: THE PRINCESS BRIDE: A Storybook to Color

THE PRINCESS BRIDE: A STORYBOOK TO COLOR
IDW PUBLISHING – @IDWPublishing

ARTIST: Rachel Curtis
ISBN: 978-1631407734; paperback (November 2016)
80pp, B&W, $16.99 U.S., $21.99 CAN

The Princess Bride is a 1987 fantasy and romantic film from director Rob Reiner.  William Goldman wrote the film's screenplay, basing it upon his 1973 fantasy novel, also entitled The Princess Bride.

The film uses as its framing sequence a grandfather reading a book, entitled “The Princess Bride,” to his ailing grandson.  The book's story concerns a beautiful farmgirl, Buttercup, and the love of her life, the farmhand-turned-pirate, Wesley, and their struggle against the arrogant Prince Humperdinck of Florin who is determined that Buttercup marry him.

The film will celebrate its 30th anniversary in 2017; it was originally released to U.S. theaters in October 1987.  Oscar-nominated, The Princess Bride has a loyal following that seems to continue to grow, and among movie fans, it is one of the most beloved American films of all time.

Adult coloring books have been all the rage the last few years.  Of course, it is conceivable that The Princess Bride would be perfect for adaptation into a coloring book, adult or otherwise.  It should only be done, however, if it can be done right.  An artist and her publisher, in fact, did it right.

IDW Publishing presents The Princess Bride: A Storybook to Color, a new adult coloring book with illustrations black and white illustrations created by Rachel Curtis.  Curtis provides more than 70 illustrations based on The Princess Bride for you, dear reader, to color as you wish.  These illustrations are printed on high quality paper that won't let colors bleed through.

I love The Princess Bride, and so does Rachel Curtis.  She turns practically every key moment in the film into double-page illustrated spreads for readers to color.  There are even pages that take as a theme objects that are key to the film, including swords, ropes, items of clothing, eyeglasses, implements, and crowns, to name a few.

The spreads that I like the most include recreations of some of my favorite scenes in The Princess Bride.  Curtis offers a stylish take on the scene in which Buttercup faces giant eels that menace her as she tries to swim to safety; it looks like a stain glass illustration.  Curtis perfectly captures the poison-wine duel sequence between Wesley and Vizzini, the Sicilian crime boss who holds a knife on Buttercup.  I can't resist the two-page spread of decorative R.O.U.S. (rats of unusual size), and her wide screen interpretation of Count Rugen's torture experimentation chamber is impressive.

I love Curtis' take on the sequence of the heroes riding off into forever after their victory at Humperdinck's castle.  If you want to draw your own version of that scene or any other, Curtis crafted a few pages with decorative borders and space for you to illustrate.  Rachel Curtis' detailed, decorative, and emotive illustrations are a love letter to both The Princess Bride and to its fans.  That makes The Princess Bride: A Storybook to Color a superb gift for The Princess Bride fan.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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2016 EDA Award for Best Film of 2016 Goes to "Moonlight" - Complete Winners List

According the organization’s website, The Alliance of Women Film Journalists, Inc. (AWFJ), was founded in 2006. The membership is made up of “highly qualified professional female movie critics, reporters and feature writers working in print, broadcast and online media.” Its state purpose is to “support work by and about women - both in front of and behind the cameras - through intra-group promotional activities, outreach programs and by presenting the annual EDA Awards in recognition of outstanding accomplishments (the best and worst) by and about women in the movies.”

EDA Award winners were announced on Wednesday, December 21, 2016.

2016 / 10th EDA Awards winners:

AWFJ EDA BEST OF AWARDS: These awards are presented to women and/or men without gender consideration.

Best Film: Moonlight

Best Director: Barry Jenkins – Moonlight

Best Screenplay, Original: Manchester by the Sea – Kenneth Lonergan

Best Screenplay, Adapted: Moonlight – Barry Jenkins

Best Documentary: 13th – Ava DuVernay

Best Animated Film: Zootopia – Byron Howard, Rich Moore, Jared Bush

Best Actress: Ruth Negga – Loving

Best Actress in a Supporting Role: Viola Davis – Fences

Best Actor: Casey Affleck – Manchester By The Sea

Best Actor in a Supporting Role: Mahershala Ali – Moonlight

Best Ensemble Cast – Casting Director: Moonlight – Yesi Ramirez

Best Cinematography: Moonlight – James Laxton

Best Editing: Moonlight – Joi McMillon and Nat Sanders

Best Non-English-Language Film: The Handmaiden – Park Chan-Wook, South Korea

EDA FEMALE FOCUS AWARDS: These awards honor WOMEN only.

Best Woman Director: Ava DuVernay – 13th

Best Woman Screenwriter: Kelly Reichardt – Certain Women

Best Animated Female (tie):

Judy in Zootopia – Ginnifer Goodwin

Moana in Moana – Auli’i Cravalho

Best Breakthrough Performance: Ruth Negga – Loving

Outstanding Achievement by A Woman in The Film Industry:

Ava DuVernay – For 13th and raising awareness about the need for diversity and gender equality in Hollywood

EDA SPECIAL MENTION AWARDS

Actress Defying Age and Ageism (tie):

Annette Bening – 20th Century Women

Isabelle Huppert – Elle and Things to Come

Most Egregious Age Difference Between The Lead and The Love Interest Award:
Rules Don’t Apply – Warren Beatty (b. 1937) and Lily Collins (b. 1989)

Actress Most in Need Of A New Agent: Jennifer Aniston – Mother’s Day and Office Christmas Party

Bravest Performance: Isabelle Huppert – Elle

Remake or Sequel That Shouldn’t have been Made: Ben Hur

AWFJ Hall of Shame Award: Sharon Maguire and Renee Zellwegger for Bridget Jones’s Baby

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2016 Best Visual Effects Oscar Nominations Down to 10 Hopefuls

10 CONTENDERS REMAIN IN VFX OSCAR RACE

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences today announced that 10 films remain in the running in the Visual Effects category for the 89th Academy Awards®.

The films are listed below in alphabetical order:

“Arrival”

“The BFG”

“Captain America: Civil War”

“Deepwater Horizon”

“Doctor Strange”

“Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”

“The Jungle Book”

“Kubo and the Two Strings”

“Passengers”

“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”

The Academy’s Visual Effects Branch Executive Committee determined the shortlist.  All members of the Visual Effects Branch will now be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the shortlisted films on Saturday, January 7, 2017.  Following the screenings, the members will vote to nominate five films for final Oscar® consideration.

Nominations for the 89th Oscars® will be announced on Tuesday, January 24, 2017.

The 89th Oscars will be held on Sunday, February 26, 2017, at the Dolby Theatre® at Hollywood & Highland Center® in Hollywood, and will be televised live on the ABC Television Network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.  The Oscars also will be televised live in more than 225 countries and territories worldwide.

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