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Entertainment Weekly's 100 New Movie Classics (50-26)
by Armchair Commentary at 12:27 PM PDT, June 19, 2008
Continuing Entertainment Weekly's 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Numbers 50-26 are below.
50. THE PIANO (1993) More to be revealed tomorrow... —Ellen
In topics: Action, Animation, Box Office, Comedy, Controversial, Drama, Family Room, Fantasy, Film Vault, List Fever, Remakes, Science Fiction, Subtitles, Supernatural
Entertainment Weekly's 100 New Movie Classics (75-51)
by Armchair Commentary at 12:44 PM PDT, June 18, 2008
Continuing Entertainment Weekly's 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Numbers 75-51 are below.
75. OUT OF AFRICA (1985) More to be revealed tomorrow... —Ellen
In topics: Action, Animation, Box Office, Comedy, Controversial, Drama, Family Room, Fantasy, Film Vault, List Fever, News Junkies, Remakes
Entertainment Weekly's 100 New Movie Classics (100-76)
by Armchair Commentary at 11:39 AM PDT, June 17, 2008
Another fun list from Entertainment Weekly: They're counting down the 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Nos. 100-76 are revealed today, with the rest coming over the next few days. (It's also fun to see a list that doesn't include the same stuff over and over again.)
In topics: Action, Animation, Avant-garde, Comedy, Controversial, Cult Films, Documentaries, Drama, Fantasy, Film Vault, List Fever, Remakes, Science Fiction, Subtitles, Supernatural
Everything old is new again: Celtics vs. Lakers
by Armchair Commentary at 1:35 PM PDT, June 1, 2008
When the Boston Celtics eliminated the Detroit Pistons on Friday, they fulfilled the dreams of basketball fans and network executives by setting up an NBA Finals with the Los Angeles Lakers, their longtime rivals from the Bird-Magic days of the 1980s. The two most storied franchises in hoop history (the Celtics have 16 NBA titles, the Lakers 14) squared off back in the Finals of 1984, 1985, and 1987. Now as fans of the old-school game and short shorts are pulling out their memories of those classic matchups, it's good to remember that they weren't the glory days of game-watching. While now we have streaming, on-demand, YouTube, DVRs, DVDs, and whatever else, back then it was network broadcasts and maybe a few VHS highlights. (I remember back in 1986 I was watching the Houston Rockets trying to eliminate the powerhouse Lakers in a broadcast that had been tape-delayed till after the local news. Someone walked into the dorm's TV room and said "I know who won." I said, "Don't tell me; I don't want to know." The Lakers fan who was also watching said, "Yeah, I don't want to know either." Then he changed his mind, and out of respect to me, the third guy whispered the result in the ear of the Lakers fan, who promptly cursed and stomped out of the room. Well, it was pretty darn suspenseful watching for me after that. Too bad, because [spoiler alert!] the Rockets won on a last-second Ralph Sampson turnaround. Anyway, I digress....) A number of those old Celtics-Lakers games are available on DVD, including two 1984 games in Boston Celtics: The Complete History, the complete 1985 series in Los Angeles Lakers 1985 NBA Champions: Return to Glory, and Magic Johnson's "baby sky hook" game in Los Angeles Lakers: The Complete History . There's also the Lakerless Boston Celtics 1985-86 Champions, Magic Johnson: Always Showtime, and Larry Bird: A Basketball Legend, which includes Bird's duel with Dominique Wilkins that was frequently evoked when the Celtics' Paul Pierce and the Cavaliers' LeBron James dueled earlier in the playoffs. There's a lot of stuff on YouTube as well (see below). We'll have to wait till Thursday to see if the 2008 version of Celtics-Lakers lives up to the old one. --David What's a Good Movie Trilogy? (As In, They're ALL Good)
by Armchair Commentary at 1:23 PM PDT, April 4, 2008
 The question was posed by a friend of mine who'd just finished The Bourne Ultimatum and was surprised how a threequel could be just as good (if not better) than the first two. If you think about it, it's a rare feat: To film a movie not knowing if its success would warrant a sequel, then regroup a production, carve out a new story, and deal with comparison--then do it again?Typically, this results in at least one dog: Godfather? Godfather III. Ocean's? Ocean's Twelve. The Matrix? Uh, everything after the first one. Aliens? Alien3. Superman? Superman III. Indiana Jones? Temple of Doom (this is debatable). Rush Hour? Rush Hour 3. El Mariachi? Not if you count Once upon a Time in Mexico. Shrek? erm..... Here are the few who appear to qualify: (We are disqualifying Lord of the Rings, as all three films were made simultaneously and gives it an unfair advantage. But yes, they were all good.) Star Wars Trilogy (Episodes IV-VI): There are the Ewok haters, yes, but you can't say Return of the Jedi was soooo far behind the other two that it wrecked the series. (Or maybe you can; discuss!) The Bourne trilogy: There isn't a weak link. OK, maybe Julia Stiles, but we mean as far as the movie goes.  Three Colors Trilogy (Blue / White / Red): Krzysztof Kieslowski's French-language films were planned in advance but filmed separately, with fleeting crossover between the film's characters. White is the lightest of the other two, but that doesn't make it the worst. OK, there is no worst (though my favorite is Blue).The Infernal Affairs Trilogy: The Hong Kong film that was remade into The Departed actually came with two follow-ups; one a prequel and the third a sequel. The third one, as in many cases, is not up to caliber of the first two. Still, not the stinker other trilogies have suffered. The Man with No Name Trilogy (A Fistful of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More, The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly) Because a lotta Clint is always better than just one Clint. Samurai Trilogy - Toshiro Mifune as a samurai. Though not quite on the level as a whole to the Kurosawa movies, each film creates an elegant act for the epic novel on which it's based. Up for debate: Terminator Blade Back to the Future Spider-Man X-Men Rocky Any others? Do you agree or disagree with what's on the list? -- Ellen Directions in DVD: Will turns Blu
by Armchair Commentary at 11:21 AM PDT, March 23, 2008
 Last week's top releases were no surprise: I Am Legend, Enchanted, and Battlestar Galactica season 3. What was the surprise was that the #1-ranked seller was the I Am Legend Blu-ray, not the two-disc special edition DVD (ranked in the top 10, which is good but still below the Blu-ray). There could be a number of factors: a movie that appeals directly to the tech-savvy audience, a big-screen blockbuster that looks great in high definition, a competitive price, and the recent settling of matters on the high-definition-format front. (Will the combo HD DVD, which is also selling well, become the Last HD DVD on Earth?) I'm not ready to jump to any conclusions on how people buy high definition vs. standard definition, but I do notice the sales rankings of the new Rambo movie: Blu-ray #482, Blu-ray three-pack #403, two-disc DVD #1711. --David
Appleseed the Third
by Armchair Commentary at 10:00 AM PST, March 2, 2008
First there was Appleseed , a 1988 anime feature based on the futuristic post-war manga series by Masamune Shirow (Ghost in the Shell). Then in 2004 came a motion-capture CG remake. New for 2008 is Appleseed Ex Machina, which our Amazon reviewer describes as "the most elaborate, stylish, and violent of the three adaptations." Below you can watch a clip with bits from the movie as well as some info on the history of the anime genre. Appleseed Ex Machina was produced by action master John Woo, so I can't wait to see if the characters will be diving sideways with guns blazing. --David
In topics: Action, Graphic Novels, Recently Reviewed, Science Fiction, Remakes, Animation, Watch this!
“The Women” Is Coming!
by Armchair Commentary at 6:30 PM PST, February 26, 2008
George Cukor’s The Women is one of the seminal films of the late '30s. With an A+ all-star female cast including Joan Crawford, Norma Shearer, Rosalind Russell, Joan Fontaine, and several other fabulous players, the movie was a big hit featuring terrifically bitchy performances and a dynamite script. Updated adaptations have been tossed around Hollywood since the ‘70s and finally after a very long wait, it looks as though a new version will see the light of day, and soon. Diane English’s remake brings together some of the biggest actors in Hollywood including Bette Midler, Meg Ryan, and Annette Bening to name just a few. The film is projected to hit theaters in October 08. Check out this great Patrick Demarchilier photo from this month’s Vanity Fair. Like Cukor’s film, this has a virtual dream cast; I’m cautiously optimistic. --World Of Wold
Seth Rogen is Cary Grant... and More Cool Stuff From Vanity Fair
by Armchair Commentary at 10:07 AM PST, February 8, 2008
As a Hollywood and photography fan, I own all 14 of Vanity Fair's Hollywood Issues, which always feature a cover--always shot by Annie Liebovitz--of the current starlets, legends, or in one bizarre case, just Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson naked with Tom Ford. Following on last year's film noir theme, this year's issue features a number of re-creations of Hitchcock films starring notable actors of the year. I kinda miss the old Hollywood Issues' single shots by various photographers with cool Hall-of-fame monikers like The Thoroughbred (Nicole Kidman) and The Swan (Gwyneth Paltrow). Still, this is so cool we had to share with you (before I run out and buy my copy).
(image scans courtesy of slashfilm)  Seth Rogen in North By Northwest  Charlize Theron in Dial M for Murder  Scarlett Johansson and Javier Bardem in Rear Window  Naomi Watts in Marnie  Keira Knightley and Jennifer Jason Leigh in Rebecca  Emile Hirsch and James McAvoy in Strangers on a Train  Renee Zellweger in Vertigo  Gwyneth Paltrow and Robert Downey Jr. in To Catch a Thief  Tang Wei, Josh Brolin, Casey Affleck, Eva Marie Saint, Ben Foster, Omar Metwally, and Julie Christie in Lifeboat  Jodie Foster in The Birds --Ellen Oscar Forecast: Razzie Nominations
by Armchair Commentary at 3:07 PM PST, January 21, 2008
 If you didn't know, Lindsay Lohan film a movie called I Know Who Killed Me, in which she played a small-town girl who may also have been a stripper named Dakota. That film led the Golden Raspberry Award nominations, which (dis)honor the worst flicks of the year. Eddie Murphy set a new record with five nominations in a single year (for all the characters he played in Norbit. Here's the complete list of nominees:Worst Picture Bratz Daddy Day Camp I Know Who Killed Me I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry Norbit Worst Actor Nicolas Cage (Ghost Rider, National Treasure: Book of Secrets and Next) Jim Carrey (The Number 23) Cuba Gooding, Jr. (Daddy Day Camp and Norbit) Eddie Murphy (Norbit) Adam Sandler (I Now Pronounce You Chuck & Larry) Worst Actress Jessica Alba (Awake, Fantastic Four - Rise of the Silver Surfer and Good Luck Chuck) Logan Browning, Janel Parrish, Nathalia Ramos & Skyler Shaye (Bratz) Elisha Cuthbert ( |
