Movie Clerks

Filed under: Drama, Independent, Romance, Cannes, Theatrical Reviews, Festival Reports, Cinematical Indie

I’ve said before that a new film from Woody Allen is something like getting a Christmas gift from your eccentric aunt; you never know if you’ll get a crocheted toilet paper cozy, or a piece of priceless heirloom jewelry. Fortunately, Allen’s newest film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, turns out to be more like the latter. The story opens with Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), two best friends heading to Barcelona for eight weeks of fun.
Vicky’s distant relations Judy (Patricia Clarkson) and Mark (Kevin Dunn) live in Barcelona, and have invited the girls to spend the summer there, where Vicky will do research for her Masters and Cristina will soak up the local culture. Vicky is engaged to be married to Doug (Chris Messina), a stalwart, likable, but rather boring young man, and Cristina is recovering from her […]

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Filed under: Drama, Independent, Romance, Cannes, Theatrical Reviews, Festival Reports, Cinematical Indie

I’ve said before that a new film from Woody Allen is something like getting a Christmas gift from your eccentric aunt; you never know if you’ll get a crocheted toilet paper cozy, or a piece of priceless heirloom jewelry. Fortunately, Allen’s newest film, Vicky Cristina Barcelona, turns out to be more like the latter. The story opens with Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson), two best friends heading to Barcelona for eight weeks of fun.
Vicky’s distant relations Judy (Patricia Clarkson) and Mark (Kevin Dunn) live in Barcelona, and have invited the girls to spend the summer there, where Vicky will do research for her Masters and Cristina will soak up the local culture. Vicky is engaged to be married to Doug (Chris Messina), a stalwart, likable, but rather boring young man, and Cristina is recovering from her […]

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Filed under: Comedy, Music & Musicals, Deals, Scripts
In a natural progression from amateur porn of the Zack and Miri variety, Elizabeth Banks has taken on some a cappella-themed production work. The Hollywood Reporter posts that the actress is going to produce a new film called Pitch Perfect, through her shingle, Brownstone Productions. Kay Cannon (30 Rock) is going to adapt the film from Mickey Rapkin’s nonfiction book.
An editor at GQ, Rapkin spent some time covering a cappella college competitions, focusing on teams from the University of Virginia, Tuft University, and the University of Oregon. Oh, but this isn’t just a bunch of goofy nerd singers competing. Apparently, it’s a world full of “singing, groupies, partying, and rivalries.”
A cappella groupies? I just can’t wrap my head around this notion. Do the girls put on skimpy outfits and try to sleep with the singers? Do the performers sign breasts and keep score […]

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Filed under: Drama, Independent, Thrillers, Deals, Mystery & Suspense, Newsstand
According to Screen Daily, Law Abiding Citizen now has a director in Frank Darabont. Citizen is the first movie to be produced under Gerard Butler’s production shingle; you can read all about Evil Twins and its upcoming slate here (I am gently encouraging you to be interested in this fledgling company).
Production is set to begin on August 18th in Detroit, which I hear is becoming the new Shreveport. It’s being filmed on a shoestring budget of $40 million, and the screenplay has been penned by Kurt Wimmer.
The plot has been changed quite drastically since it was first tossed around. Originally, Butler was an assistant D.A. who finds himself at the center of a traumatized victim’s vigilante plot. Now, it has been revamped into the story of a criminal mastermind who controls a city from the confines of his prison cell. […]

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Filed under: Horror, Deals, Cannes, Distribution, The Weinstein Co.
The Weinstein Co. has added a British horror thriller to their upcoming slate of releases. According to indieWIRE, all North American rights to James Watkins’ Eden Lake have been acquired by the Weinsteins at Cannes. Evidently, it’s been months in the making: Fangoria noted in November 2007 that the Weinsteins were “reportedly finalizing” a deal.
Putting business aside, it sounds like writer/director Watkins, who also co-wrote My Little Eye, knows how to appeal to horror fans, telling Fangoria: “We show people’s heads on fire, neck-stabbing with glass, stomach-slashing revealing intestines and kidneys and metal spikes through feet. Gritty realism in moments of ramped-up tension.” (!!!!) The story follows a couple “on a romantic weekend getaway being terrorized by dysfunctional teenagers with no ethical boundaries.”
Lest you think that this picture might appeal solely to horror fans, the actors who play the romantic couple […]

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Filed under: Action, Comedy, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips

And when I say ridiculous, I mean “WTF is going on in this flick!?” I’m not sure when this new red band trailer for Tropic Thunder went off the deep end: Was it when Ben Stiller took a young child who was stabbing him in the back (literally) and threw him off a bridge, or was it when Stiller was holding up the decapitated head of a soldier and sticking his tongue up to its guts. Oh, I’m totally not kidding about any of that, either — this one looks completely out of control. Kudos to Stiller; for awhile there, it looked like he was way past his prime. With Tropic Thunder, something tells me the entire crew downed a case of “something real good” and said, “Screw it, let’s just go absolutely nuts with this one and really freak people […]

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Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Romance, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips

I first heard about this film from my friend Aaron, who, honestly, hasn’t stopped talking about it for over a year. He caught a screening of it at last year’s Tribeca Film Festival, and absolutely fell in love. Another friend of mine was at the same screening and he loved it. Lots of people are loving it. I’m dying to love it. Will you love it, too? Moviefone has debuted the trailer for In Search of a Midnight Kiss (watch above or over on Moviefone), directed by Alex Holdridge. The film, which was shot guerrilla-style in Los Angeles after something like a two-week prep period, tells of a man who’s just suffered through one of the most miserable years of his life. When his friend convinces him to post a personal ad on Craigslist (in order to avoid being alone […]

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Filed under: Distribution
Uwe Boll’s latest “masterpiece” Postal was scheduled to open next weekend in 1500 theaters, deliberately going up against Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. But, according to a story at Cinema Blend, Boll’s people issued a release this morning claiming that U.S. distributors have dropped the film and that it will only be released on four screens. An additional source says the film will open in five cities: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Denver and Tucson. Boll claims that he has even tried to rent additional screens, but to no avail.
Typically, the outspoken, outrageous director is calling it a conspiracy, the latest example of everyone being out to get him. He also says, “Theatrical distributors are boycotting ‘Postal’ because of its political content. We were prepared to open on 1500 screens all across America on May 23rd. Any multiplex in the U.S. should have […]

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Filed under: Action, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Posters

Man, I am absolutely loving the posters they’re creating for The Dark Knight. Sure, there’s been like 9, 10, 357 of them, but each one packs a solid punch. Batman On Film have debuted the latest of the batch, which, obviously, showcases the film’s big villain: The Joker. Only thing I don’t get about this poster is why they would put the words ‘Coming Soon’ underneath? Why not show off the film’s July 18th release date?
For those who haven’t stopped in to hang out here for awhile, The Dark Knight has been a subject of debate lately. First, Elisabeth wrote a Fan Rant on the selling of that Joker toy, and how some folks are cleaning out the supply, jacking up the prices and selling it on eBay — profiting off Ledger’s death and the increased demand for a […]

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Filed under: Action, Fandom, Family Films, Movie Marketing, Contests, Insert Caption, Hold the ‘Fone
Welcome back to another edition of Insert Caption — the game everyone in Narnia was talking about a thousand years from now! Last week we asked you to dust off that pimpin’ fedora and come up with a caption for a photo from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull – which, for those who’ve been counting down the seconds (looks away in shame!), hits theaters in less than one week! Congrats to Anthony T. (who won the first three Indiana Jones films on DVD) for a caption that was, well, a real hidden treasure.
1. “We’ve finally made it to the tomb of the … Goddammit Nicolas Cage!!!! What are you doing here?!!” — Anthony T.
2. “Unbeknownst to the two adventurers, the shadowy figure behind them had just enough silly string left to seal their […]

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