|
|
|
DECEMBER MOVIE MADNESS
Ah, December. The month when nearly all
Oscar-worthy films make their box office debut, if only for a few short days at
the end of the month to qualify for a 2008 release.
Too many movies, too little time. In an
effort to help cut through the box office clutter, here’s the first edition of TAR’s
Don’t Miss List:
- Defiance: The riveting true (but little-known) WWII story
of a band of bad-ass brothers who hide out from the Nazis in the forests
of Belarus, (between Poland and Russia) creating a posse of well-armed resistance
fighters, some of whom join forces with the Russian Army. All the while, they’re rescuing Jews
destined for death and building movable-on-a-moment’s notice communities
in the woods, which totter on internecine fighting between factions. Daniel Craig stars as Tuvia
Bielski, the charismatic leader, and he is absolutely riveting, as he
fights alongside and sometimes against his revenge-driven brother, played
by Liev Shrieber. Action,
romance, drama: it’s all here. Directed by Ed Zwick.
Bottom Line: This year’s
Schindler’s List. A
- The Visitor: released
earlier in the year, this small film is being re-released for awards
consideration, and it deserves it. What happens when a lifeless, bored,
depressed professor arrives at his little-used NYC apartment and finds an
illegal immigrant couple living there?
Absolutely not what you expect. You’ve seen character actor Richard Jenkins in a ton of
things, but probably didn’t know his name. You will now. The supporting
cast is wonderful.
Bottom Line: A “small” film
with international resonance. A-
- Last
Chance Harvey: Dustin Hoffman
plays a seen-better-days composer of jingles--struggling to keep his
job--who travels to London for his daughter’s wedding. He’s apparently been a pathetic
father, and much family awkwardness ensues. So does an unexpected romance
with the blithe and lovely Londoner Emma
Thompson. Some are already calling this film a baby boomer’s Before
Sunrise, but it’s more than that. A
star vehicle for both leading actors.
Bottom Line: Hoffman’s
heartbreaking struggles are underscored with laughter. A-
MOST CREATIVE MOVIE MARKETING
CAMPAIGN
A couple of thick postcards
with no return address came TAR’s way, with a schedule of events in DC,
Milan, Sydney, Prague and LA, all in the same day. Turns out the website,
anywhereispossible.com,
links to a trailer for a movie called Jumper, opening next February. That’s
some advance campaign, Fox! In order to enter a contest for a trip for
two anywhere in the world, people must link the trailer to their own website.
Talk about seeded viral marketing. Very clever. |
 BRUCE
WILLIS: WITH A VENGEANCE
Hard to believe it’s been
12 years since he last tore up the screen in DH3, officially known as Die
Hard: With a Vengeance. (The original Die Hard—one of the best actioners
ever--came out in 1988.) And now Det. John McClane is back, and almost
better than ever. Yes, even packing on more extra pounds than you might
expect and with his stubbly visage sporting deep lines—accentuated by dried
blood for much of Live Free or Die Hard--Willis still has it goin’ on.
The tense plotline of a former DoD consultant gone bad and taking down
America’s technology infrastructure with a team of eager hackers in a scheme
called a “fire sale” boasts some incredible action/explosion sequences,
like McClane’s squad car taking out a chopper--along with a load of laughs
from his one-liners, even with the PG-13 rating. Yippee-ki-yay! |
DEPARTED, BUT NOT FORGOTTEN
It’s all over but the huge
DVD sales for The Departed. Oscar Week 2007. Let out sigh of relief here.
After the hands-off non-campaign that paid off big time for Marty Scorsese
(finally, after six nominations!) and screenwriter William (“Valium does
work!) Monahan, Brad Grey can still tell everyone he produced the film.
Was Jack Nicholson taking
a page from the Britney Spears songbook? His riveting turn in the film
as Irish mob boss Frank Costello didn’t rate with the Academy this time,
but it turns out his new ‘do is actually for another role--in Rob Reiner’s
The Bucket List, in which he plans a cancer patient livin’ life to the
fullest before the inevitable end. We should all do that.
Ellen Degeneres’ line, “Without
blacks, Jews and gays, there would be no Oscars—or anyone named Oscar,”
will go down in Academy Awards lore. Take that, red states, along with
almost-president Al Gore’s anointment as the biggest politico turned huge
movie star since….never. Sacha Baron Cohen turned down a presenter’s gig,
leaving his Golden Globes acceptance speech to evoke the warm fuzzy memories
of Borat this awards season.
Speaking of, co-star Ken
Davitian, fresh off a glowing Los Angeles Times feature that revealed
him to be an American-born restaurant owner (The Dip in Hollywood and in
Sherman Oaks) spent Oscar night greeting well-wishers at the fabulous AIDS
Project LA bash at the Abbey. Hosted by Jennifer Love Hewitt, the SBE Entertainment
Group created a magnificent viewing dinner atmosphere under a see-through
tent with sparkly lights and stunning floral arrangements by Gabriel Pacheco
for the 650 invited guests. Fresh off the stage of the Kodak theater, the
Pilobolus dance troupe made a surprise entrance to perform for the crowd. |
| < |
CATCH THE SPIRIT
With AMPAS blowing off its
celebrated $100k gift bag because the tax man cometh, there wasn’t exactly
a shortage of swag around town. Backstage at the Independent Spirit Awards
Saturday in a tent at the beach, On 3 Productions hosted a presenter gifting
lounge that attracted the likes of Sharon Stone, Robert Downey, Jr., Matt
Dillon, Minnie Driver, James Franco, Rachel Bilson, Lucy Liu, John Waters,
Zach Braff, Rosario Dawson and Sally Kellerman. Each was given a red or
black rolling Kipling bag to load up with goodies including two nights
in an executive suite at a Thompson hotel, a $5,000 gift certificate for
Lasik, a Dior Beauty flight kit with a killer white leather-encased mini-makeup
palette (Stone loved it), stunning Melamed Italian leather belts (Dawson
grabbed two), Ugg sheepskin thongs (sandals, folks, they haven’t ventured
into lingerie yet) Invicta rose gold diamond-encrusted watches and round
cufflinks made of moving parts, which Dillon wore on stage. Oh, and
a Palm Treo smartphone and organic body products from Desert Essence.
Alterna’s TEN Shampoo and
Conditioner Collection, made with VOSS® Artesian Water,
given to Spirit presenters, along with $25,000 to the WaterAid Foundation |
|
|
