February 2007 Archives

I'm not sure how great all of these films may be - and I wonder how much of this is an act of love on Quentin's part and how much it's a publicity stunt to drum up interest for his own "Grindhouse" movie, opening April 6 - but Quentin Tarantino is curating a unique opportunity to see dozens of rare exploitation movies at the New Beverly Cinema, starting Sunday and continuing through April 30.
Many of these sleaze-and-shock classics are unavailable on DVD, and most of the prints will come from Tarantino's personal collection. No one knows or appreciates this stuff more than he does, so if you're into any of this, I recommend multiple pilgrimages to L.A.'s last true revival theater over the next two months.

For show times, visit the New Beverly Cinema website at www.newbevcinema.com or call for program information (323) 938-4038.

Here's a partial programming list to get you started:

3/4-3/6 - The Mack, directed by Michael Campus; The Chinese Mack, directed by Lai Chien.

3/7-3/8 – “Italian ‘70s Crime Films.” Machine Gun McCain, directed by Giuliano Montaldo; Wipeout!, directed by Fernando Di Leo.

3/9-3/10 – Triple Feature of The Van, directed by Sam Grossman; Pick-up Summer, directed by George Mihalka; Summer Camp, directed by Chuck Vincent.

3/11-3/13 –Rolling Thunder, directed by John Flynn; The Town That Dreaded Sundown, directed by Charles B. Pierce.

3/14-3/15 –Chinese Hercules, directed by Choy Tak; Black Dragon, directed by Chin-Ku Lu.

3/16-3/17 – "Euro Sex Comedies Triple Feature.” Sex With A Smile, directed by Sergio Martino; Sex on the Run, directed by Franz Antel; The Oldest Profession, directed by Claude Autant-Lara and Mauro Bolognini.

3/18-3/20 –Brotherhood of Death, directed by Bill Berry; Johnny Tough, directed by Horace Jackson.

3/21-3/22 –Autopsy, directed by Jose Maria Forque; Eyeball, directed by Umberto Lenzi.

3/23-3/24 – Triple Feature of Coonskin, directed by Ralph Bakshi; Shame of the Jungle, directed by Picha Boris Szulzinger; Tunnel Vision, directed by Neal Israel and Bradley R. Swirnoff.

3/25-3/27 –Pretty Maids All in a Row, directed by Roger Vadim; Revenge of the Cheerleaders, directed by Richard Lerner.

3/28-3/29 – “Kung Fu Double Bill.” Fearless Fighters, directed by Man-Hung Mo; Super Man Chu, directed by Yang Hsiang.

3/30-3/31 – "All Blood Triple Feature." The Blood Spattered Bride, directed by Vicente Aranda; Asylum of Blood, directed by Fernando Di Leo; Mary, Mary, Bloody Mary, directed by Juan Lopez Moctezuma.

4/1-4/3 –The Lady in Red, directed by Lewis Teague; Bare Knuckles, directed by Don Edmonds.

4/4-4/5 –The Female Bunch, directed by Al Adamson; Wonder Women, directed by Robert Vincent O’Neill.

4/6-4/7 –White Line Fever, directed by Jonathan Kaplan; Return to Macon County, directed by Richard Compton.

4/8-4/10 – “Sexploitation Night.” The Girl From Starship Venus, directed by Derek Ford; The Legend of the Wolf Woman, directed by Rino Di Silvestro.

4/11-4/12 – “70's Low Budget Horror Combo.” Slithis, directed by Stephen Traxler; Screams of a Winter Night, directed by James L. Wilson.

4/13-4/14 – “Regional Double Feature.” Hot Summer in Barefoot County, directed by Will Zens; Redneck Miller, directed by John Clayton.

4/15-4/17 –The Muthers, directed by Cirio H. Santiago; Fight For Your Life, directed by Robert A. Endelson.

4/18-4/19 – Dragon’s Vengeance, directed by Ng Loo; Kung Fu: The Punch of Death, directed by Chai Yang-Min.

4/20-4/21 – Triple Feature of The Swinging Barmaids, directed by Gus Trikonis; The Swingin’ Pussycats, directed by Alexis Neve; The Swinging Cheerleaders, directed by Jack Hill.

4/22-4/24 – “John Hayes Double Bill.” Grave of the Vampire and Jailbait Babysitter, both directed by John Hayes.

4/25-4/26 – "Back-To-Back Angela Mao." Return of The Tiger, directed by Jimmy Shaw; Stoner, directed by Feng Huang.

4/27-4/28 – “Barbara Bouchet Double Feature.” Death Rage, directed by Antonio Margheriti; Cry of the Prostitute, directed by Adelchi Bianchi.

4/29-4/30 – The Real Bruce Lee, directed by Larry Dolgin and Jim Markovic; Lee Lives Within, directed by Tam Kai.

Excerpts from a Paramount Pictures press release:

Academy Award winning director Martin Scorsese will team up with Rock and Roll icon Mick Jagger to direct “THE LONG PLAY,” a film set in the world of the music business spanning over three decades. Project will re-team Scorsese with Academy Award winning writer for ‘The Departed,” Bill Monahan.
Martin Scorsese will direct. Scorsese, Mick Jagger and Victoria Pearman will produce. Film is based on an original idea of Mick Jagger’s which he and Pearman’s Jagged Films took to Scorsese several years ago. Together they developed the project and brought it to Paramount.
Scorsese recently entered into a four-year, first-look deal with Paramount Pictures to direct and produce entertainment across all platforms including feature films, made-for-DVD, digital content and television for Paramount Pictures and Paramount Vantage. His latest film, ‘The Departed,” was nominated for five Academy Awards® and won Best Picture.

Jagger and Scorsese recently collaborated on a Rolling Stones feature length concert documentary shot at The Beacon theater in New York to be released in the Fall.

Well, it's been great spouting off about the high art of cinema - and "Little Miss Sunshine" too - this Oscar night.
And on Monday, I see "Wild Hogs." Those who want to start their "Oscar's too elitist" editorial campaigns early are welcome to join me.

Well, that was sweet.
Even a confirmed Oscar cynic like me adored everything about the Martin Scorsese lovefest at the end of the 79th Academy Awards.
Spielberg, Coppola and Lucas' goofy little presentation routine.
Marty's recollection of everybody who'se told him he should have won through all the years that, well, he should have won.
And it just felt wonderful that it wasn't a split victory, as has happened so often in recent years, between best picture and director. If the academy dopes are going to take so long to recognize America's greatest living filmmaker, they at least owe him more than half the Monty.
In the final analysis, though, Marty was one of this year's most predictable choices (Helen Mirren, Forest Whitaker and the screenplays were others). And the best picture award, though considered throughout the season to be totally up for grabs, went to the nominee that sold the most tickets, had the most and biggest stars in it and ultimately might have had the least illuminating things to say about the human condition (even the contrived, anything-for-a-laugh "Little Miss Sunshine" took some sharp swipes at the inequities and idiocies of the American success syndrome).
But "The Departed" was also unmitigated indefensible fun, fantastically presented with energy and filmmaking panache to burn, and filled with characters who spoke my language (abjectly vulgar, if you must know).
And it was no "Raging Bull," "GoodFellas" or "Taxi Driver," all better pictures that were genuinely the best of their given years. So what? The academy just did what I've been saying all night it's best at now, which is bestowing the mark of achievement on someone whose overall body of work has advanced the cinematic artform and brought deep pleasure to intelligent filmgoers for decades.
Does any of this mean anything else, Oscarly historically wise? Probably not, except that the voters want to do some things unexpected but still think too conventionally to go all the way with that.
Otherwise, don't know and don't care. Which reminds me of one more thing: Scorsese didn't pimp himself out during this year's awards race, as he did the last two times he ran and lost. Hope that's a lesson to all fools who drop trou again and again for recognition during awards season. And if you can't learn that lesson from former altar boy Scorsese, I refer you to my post earlier tonight from the Book of Leviticus.

OK. The only other woman on Earth who may be as perfect as Beyonce.
But we certainly didn't need the Academy Awards to tell us that.

Since Scorsese's favorite editor, Thelma Schoonmaker, won film editing. But then, "Little Miss Sunshine" wasn't nominated in this category. And Thelma's won before, while we all know none of Marty's movies ever have.

Presented very late in the show this year. That must be because everybody believes that there's some voodoo about the editing winner also getting best picture most of the time, and since that contest is the least predictable this year, delaying editing will up the broadcast's suspense or something.
Wow, how about giving the award to the most artistically accomplished movie?
Just a thought. Putting it out there.

For dissing "Dreamgirls" AGAIN in the one category it should've won, Original Song. They all still hate
David Geffen, though.
Congratulations Melissa Etheridge. Terrific song, by the way - and I'm usually not a fan.

OK, the Oscars just justified their existence for the first time in my adult life.
On with the show.

And Clint had just made another movie on the SAME SUBJECT!

So the academy goofed and forgot to include the word "Least" in the official category designation. "Little Miss Sunshine" still won; the voter's weren't fooled! (Unless, of course, the academy didn't make a mistake on the ballots, and the voters really thought this "National Lampoon's Vacation" goes to a beauty pageant comedy was original. Jokes on their credibility, then.)

For, well, score. Richly deserved, composer Gustavo Santaolallo, for creating music that actually tied together the film's disparate stories while remaining distinctive to each culture depicted's indigenous sounds.
Hope this isn't the first of this exquisitely made but critically unappreciated masterwork's nods. I liked "the Queen" better. But really, anyone who compares this to "Crash" - and these reactionaries' names are legion - just isn't exerting any discernment.
We are the world, whether we like it or not. Accept it, even if you don't want to live like it.

That even Celine Dion can't ruin one of his songs. This honorary award is what the Academy Awards really do best anymore, recognizing great service to the advancement of art and entertainment values in the movies over a long career.

That's the ticket! Al and Jerry in '08! They'd have the funniest White House ever.
Even funnier than the current one. And funnier for better, intentional reasons.

About everything he says about movie concessions. I know he's richer than anybody and doesn't have to work. But man, I wish he'd make movies. He's still funnier than Borat.

Forgot to thank God for not letting her win "American Idol."
But I'll thank whatever deity is responsible for the fact that, unlike that even more witless mediocrity competition, the Academy Awards are only on one night of the year.

Of course, I predicted that Germany's formulaic "The Lives of Others" would win the foreign language Oscar, but it still seems a little strange that this should be the thing to stop the (better, and certainly more original) "Pan's Labyrinth's" sweep.
I know "Others" has its critical champions. But let's see:
Big fat German bureaucrat abuses his power for his sexual pleasure? Check
Party loyalist without a life is humanized by exposure to art and beauty? Check
"Ve haf vays of making you talk?" Check
Seen it all before. But that makes it easy for academy voters to digest, I guess.

Absolutely no discernment in film and scene choices. Emblematic of how the academy's usually deaf to true cinematic art that ain't in English.

At last, my beloved "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" wins its (totally predictable and well-earned) visual effects Oscar. Me, and America, can go home happy now.

Nice as that "Pan's Labyrinth" is - and satisfyingly hilarious as this very good but not genius adult fairy tale still being the only multiple winner halfway through the big contest also may be - giving it cinematography over the truly phenomenal (as in never seen that before) "Children of Men"?
Yeah, I know, Oscar voters wanna be different from all the other awards bestowers. But in order to do that, a lot of the time, they make themselves look foolish.
A good cinematographer can help remedy that, by the way.

Those French pastry outfits from "Marie Antoinette" were not only the wittiest costumes seen onscreen in a dog's age. Plus, they were the best things about a movie that had many other virtues which many viewers - and, shamefully, too manic critics - couldn't appreciate.
This may be the only time i say it tonight, but: Oscar voters, you did a good thing which no other group has.

Best audience shots 'til now

Most predictable major award so far is adapted screenplay for "The Departed." Iit's been about half and half upsets and obvious choices - which is to say, fairly typical Oscar ceremony - up to now.
I'd be getting bored if it wasn't for the sheer pleasure of hearing Helen Mirren mellifluously recite the 11 most unnecessarily repeated words of the last nine months: "Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan." And, in her own inimitable way, making them sound HOT for the first time since Halloween.

Although there was something pandering about the whole dancing cartoon penguins concept, at least "Happy Feet" had some energy and wit that the technically beautiful but dully formulaic "Cars" did not. So, even though it's the race I cared least about this year, good for the Oscar voters.
Now, just try to restrain yourselves from giving it to the surfing cartoon penguins next year.

But damn if he ain't a great actor. That comic doubletake at the end of his "important announcement" was perfect.
And I thought the only other funny real president we've ever had was George W.

Like many pundits preditced, Murphy's bad reputation in the industry, and maybe those "Norbit" billboards, cost him the sure bet supporting actor prize.
Not that Alan Arkin wasn't the most tolerable thing in "Little Miss Sunshine" and, hey, I think the Oscars are more accurate now as nice commemorations of admirable Hollywood careers, which Arkin sure has had.
But y'know, however many worthless movies Murphy's made, and he's been a stuck-up pill every time I've met him, I don't care. There will always be the first "48 HRS" amd "Beverly Hills Cop," "Bowfinger," both "Nutty Professors" and years and years of single-handedly making Saturday Night Live watchable. That deserves an Oscar just as much. If you don't take 'em as seriously as they want you to, anyway.

Not that I have anything against the Motown musical, and from what I know of sound mixing (which is zilch) it's was pretty good. But it just would've been fun to read all of the Hollywood's racist/homophobic/furious at the very fact tha producer David Geffen still breathes post-mortems if "Dreamgirls" got blanked.

Leviticus 19:4 (King James Version)

Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am
the LORD your God.

Just thought it might be worth mentioning before we get back to obsessing about little golden men.

Man. gotta love this: "Pan's Labyrinth" sweep! Won't last, but thanks to whoever the genius was who scheduled these Pan-friendly categories ahead of some self-deluding supporting actor or other - who are usually up first and whose careers subsequently tank for the next five years.

It's like those cheesy song parodies they have at the Independent Spirit Awards. Or whatever it is they call them now. They're turning into Oscars on the Beach anyway. And they all went for "Little Miss Sunshine" yesterday - so the Oscars still have a chance to actually be cooler this year.
And I guess this Will Ferrell-Jack Black song is kinda clever in its way. See, they are breaking precedents this year.

"Pan's Labyrinth's" deserving art direction Oscar already upsets the creaky "Dreamgirls" applecart - not only was the most nominated film not given a best picture birth, but now it won't sweep the six categories it logically should have been leading.
Couldn't lose to a more worthy opponent than the grittily magical "Labyrinth," though. But I still think that Flying Dutchman ship in "POTC" was awesome.

We should know pretty soon if the academy voters are going to go for the obvious winners or, in following their precedent this year of not following precedents, will surprise us with a bunch of upsets in categories other than the impossible-to-call best picture race.
Which is going to upset 80 percent of all viewers, no matter who wins.
Frankly, I only expect to get a little snitty if "Little Miss Sunshine" wins BP. But probably not all that much. I'll try to think of some good jokes, just in case.

OK, I'm going to try to act somewhat excited about this ceremony I don't care much about for the rest of the night.
Much as I like a lot of the work nominated for the 79th Annual Academy Awards, it feels like most of it's been talked to death and over-honored for the past four months or so - oh yeah, that's because IT HAS - and the Oscars are just kinda anticlimactic as a result.
Plus, y'know, what shred of respect I ever had for the over-campaigned, Hollywood-insider process of choosing the Oscars was sheared off last year when the academy decided that "Crash" was a better movie than "Brokeback Mountain."
Then again, the current non-debate among media pundits as to whether the Oscars have become "too elitist" - i.e., nominating films more for their artisitc worthiness than their popularity among 12-year-olds and the grownups whose taste stopped developing at that age, thereby endangering the cerejmony's all-important TV ratings - is a non-starter with me, too.
For one thing, it's called the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, for Pete's sake. It's SUPPOSED to be elitist. Second, while I wouldn't mind an Oscar or two going to the last X-Men or Pirates of the Caribbean movie (I enjoyed both thoroughly), who really wants to see popular junk like "The Da Vinci Code" declared best of anything? Not even most of the people who mildly enjoyed it, I'd bet.
I'm not cutting Oscar voters slack for pretending to be aesthetes or anything. But glad they're recognizing some of the great work that we critics were telling you was really worth seeing back in December.
I'll be commenting on various race results as the evening plods along. Hopefully, we'll have a little more fun than just staring at the show will be.

Upon reflection, perhaps it's a bit too hasty to attribute Britney Spear's alluring new baby's bottom uptop look to crass, careerist Sinead Envy.
Isn't it more logical that she just saw Ghost Rider and wanted to be the first on her Malibu block to get that cool flaming skull look? (And who says her peeps aren't looking out for Brit? At least they prevented her from lighting the gasoline necklace).
It makes sense. The songstress and the movie share the same garish, trailer trash aesthetic and absolutely equal levels of artistic accomplishment. Plus, Ghost Rider's a hit, and if anyone needs to hitch a ride on something popular, it's her.
Even if it's going to crash and burn in a week. And when you think about it, that places it right in the middle of Spears' comfort zone, too.
Man, this is the most fun I've had since awards season started.

Keep your hair. Keep it red! Somebody has to maintain standards in this town. And as the only one with any real talent in this group of party girls, that responsibilitiy, sadly, rests on your freckled, rehabed shoulders.
It may not seem like fun, but some day you'll thank me for this advice. Someday soon, if we get another cold snap.

Last year by this time, I don't think I'd seen any new movies worth sitting through, let alone remembering. And, except for the occasional barely distributed foreign production, this state of affairs went on pretty much from January through May.
Encouragingly, though, by mid-February of 2007, I've seen at least four thoughtful, artistically accomplished and thoroughly grown-up American productions that are all scheduled to hit theaters by the first week of April. "Breach," which opened today, contains best-ever acting work from Chris Cooper (and that's saying something) and Ryan Phillippe (which isn't saying as much; but still, it's his best) in the true story of traitorous FBI agent Robert Hanssen.
March 3 will see the release of "Zodiac," David Fincher's surprisingly down-to-earth procedural about the hunt for San Francisco's Zodiac Killer, and "Black Snake Moan," an astoundingly provocative take on backwoods Southern blues, sex and redemption, starring a no-limits Christina Ricci and Samuel L. Jackson and written and directed by "Hustle & Flow's" Craig Brewer.
And in early April look for "The Hoax." Richard Gere, an incredibly smart man who's had a tough time getting that quality across onscreen, finally does it playing Clifford Irving, who infamously wrote a fraudulent autobiography of Howard Hughes in the 1970s. Perhaps even more impressive than Gere finally stepping up to the plate with everything he's got is that this penetrating, psychologically knotty take on ambition and deception is directed by Lasse Hallstrom, who's usually guilty of leeching complexity out of adult topics and characters ("Cider House Rules," "Chocolat") rather than illuminating it.
While they vary in quality and success at achieving their ambitious goals, all four of these films outshine the bulk of the self-serious awards hopefuls that came out in the latter months of 2006. Perhaps the fact that most of those titles didn't get very far has convinced distributors that the fall isn't the only season for quality work - like they sure seemed to have felt was the case for I don't know how many years now.
I just hope the new films get some kind of traction. It sure makes my job easier when I see a couple of worthwhile movies each month, instead of going for seven or eight with hardly anything decent, and then too much crammed into autumn to really have the time to savor their finely wrought pleasures.