Starring: Christian Bale, Zoe Saldana, Woody Harrelson, Willem Defoe, Casey Affleck, Forest Whitaker, Sam Shepherd,
Synopsis (courtesy of IMDb): Russell Baze and his younger brother Rodney live in the economically-depressed Rust Belt, and have always dreamed of escaping and finding better lives. But when a cruel twist of fate lands Russell in prison, his brother is lured into one of the most violent and ruthless crime rings in the Northeast – a mistake that will almost cost him everything. Once released, Russell must choose between his own freedom, or risk it all to seek justice for his brother.
Directed by: David O. Russell Written by: Eric Singer
Cast: Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Jennifer Lawrence, Louis C.K., Robert De Niro, Michael Pena, Jack Huston, Alessandro Nivola, Elisabeth Rohm, Dawn Olivieri, and others…
Synopsis (courtesy of IMDb): The 1970s-set true story of a con artist and his partner in crime, who were forced to work with a federal agent to turn the tables on other cons, mobsters, and politicians – namely, the volatile mayor of impoverished Camden, New Jersey. (formerly the Untitled David O. Russell Abscam Project)
While Oscar always has their eyes on anything produced by the Weinstein Company, other studios are showing up with an impressive slate of films for the 2013 awards season. Relativity Media, who haven’t had their fair share of award-worthy projects has announced their upcoming films for the rest of the year.
Last year, the company managed an Oscar nomination in Costume Design for the posthumous work of Eiko Ishioka for Mirror Mirror (2012). They also had the indie hit Haywire (2012) with Gina Carano which many, including our own Joseph Braverman, really loved. But for every good film, there’s a bad one in their midst. So far in 2013, the company handled the abysmal Movie 43, Lasse Hallstrom’s Safe Haven, and the comedy 21 & Over. The rest of the year looks rather promising for the studio. Not looking so much like an awards player, in August they’ll release the thriller Paranoia with Liam Hemsowrth and Oscar-nominee Gary Oldman. Read more on Relativity Media Announces 2013 Releases!…
It’s March! We get started right away and over the past few weeks after the Oscar ceremony, I took some brief stabs at some categories. Those have been tinkered with and will be reflected on the actual Oscar Prediction pages in the next couple of days. The full listing of predicted nominees is on the sidebar with the list of contenders on the Oscar Prediction pages for Picture, Director, Lead Actor, Lead Actress, Supporting Actor, Supporting Actress, Original Screenplay, Adapted Screenplay, and Animated Feature.
Obviously categories like Original Song are merely speculation because we don’t know what film will have an eligible song attached. Disney and Pixar films are good for a song or two so that’s always a good place to start. Read more on Oscar Circuit – 2014 Films and Minority Contenders…
Two-time Oscar nominee, Jennifer Lawrence, is the latest star to join David O. Russell’s next project, a film about the 1970s FBI sting operation Abscam, which brought down several corrupt U.S. congressman, marking her second effort with the acclaimed director. Written by Eric Singer and Russell, the picture formerly titled American Bullshit already has Christian Bale and Lawrence’s Silver Linings Playbook co-star, Bradley Cooper, attached.
Just when The Awards Circuit thought Argo would put the brakes on its steamrolling of the competition, it shocks us again with key victories at SAG and DGA. It’s now abundantly clear that Ben Affleck’s third directorial outing is the frontrunner heading into the Oscar ceremony. Read more on Circuit Round-Up (Week Ending 2/3)…
Christian Charles Philip Bale was born in Wales on January 30th, 1974. As a child, Bale starred in television commercials before making a few made-for-television films, including Anastasia: The Mystery of Anna (1986). His first big screen performance came in Empire of the Sun, for which he won the “Best Performance by a Juvenile Actor” award from The National Board of Review.
Winners to be announced live on the CW Television Network from the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica on January 10, 2013.
BEST PICTURE Argo Beasts of the Southern Wild Django Unchained Les Miserables Life of Pi Lincoln The Master Moonrise Kingdom Silver Linings Playbook Zero Dark Thirty
With the upcoming DVD/Blu-ray release of Sarah Polley’s second directorial feature, Take This Waltz, the Canadian-born writer/director builds upon the promising foundation of her filmmaking career.
Polley follows up her acclaimed and Oscar-nominated debut, Away from Her (2006), with a simply honest portrayal of a woman’s struggle to fill the gaps in her seemingly happy marriage. Boasting crisp cinematography, good writing, and believable character depictions, the effort mostly succeeds in coming across as composed and genuine. While Michelle Williams predictably delivers a solid performance, it’s difficult at times to understand or empathize with her predicament and decisions, due to their impulsive and somewhat erratic nature. Seth Rogen as the naively loving, slightly disconnected husband and Sarah Silverman as the strangely wise alcoholic sister-in-law both fill their supporting roles effectively. It’s worth a look if you’re curious.
OK, I am the studio head and have access to two hundred million dollars. I have been asked to remake ten classics made before 1970, and attach actors to the projects to speed up the casting process. In some cases, I see more than one actor or actress in a role, and I say that. Here are the ten films I choose to remake along with the casting hopefuls. Each film can cost no more than twenty million dollars so much will be said to the actors about being involved in something very special.
Welcome back to the top 100 horror film countdown! We got things kicked off in earnest earlier in the week with #100-51. But now it’s time to get serious and delve into what I believe are the top 50 horror films of all time. To recount, I used a three prong ranking system (historical significance, scare factor and enjoyability) to try to corral the films into some semblance of a list. So without further ado, here are films #50-41. Read more on Top 100 Horror Films: #50-41…
Sunday is always a very bust at TIFF largely because the studios are here with junkets and getting around is a tad more difficult than other days. Cabs are scare, the Bell Lightbox buzzes with people and the theaters are jammed. Case in point the first screening this morning was packed to capacity, good news for The Weinstein Company as the company enjoys what could be their most impressive year yet.
The breakthrough performance of the festival could be Michael Shannon in The Iceman, a film which came in with very little buzz but will leave with Shannon a potential Oscar nominee for Best Actor. I know the next time I change my picks he will leap onto the prediction page for me as a nominee. Anyone who has seen the film is talking about Shannon, and only Shannon, good news the difficult little film about a real life hit man for the mob who was also a serial killer. Read more on TIFF: Lawrence owns “Playbook,” Visuals Stun “Atlas,” and Over-Saturation Hurts “Watch”…
The great and the good films of the eighties were often box office failures, re-discovered within a few years by audiences and critics on video, as home entertainment brought a whole new world to audiences and the movies. Suddenly audiences could watch the films at home, on their TV by renting a video, which became a huge success, and video rental stores popped up all over North America. Within a year of release a film was on video, sometimes longer, and there were holdouts from directors and studios who believed films should be seen on the big screen, though eventually they gave in to the new toy that would help save the business. Suddenly it was possible for a film that initially failed to be found within a year and celebrated for the work of art it was, rather than waiting years, which had been the case for Citizen Kane (1941) and The Wizard of Oz (1939). An example might be Blow Out (1981), celebrated by critics, but audiences stayed away in droves, only to find the film on video, making it something of a cult classic. The new medium would allow audiences of the next generation and beyond to be the best educated film audience in history, simply because of the sheer availability of the films. I remember coming home for the weekend from college, and Dad having been among the first in our area to buy a VCR would stop at the video store and I would rent ten movies. It was like John’s wet dream, movies at my fingertips. Suddenly I could see films I had wanted to see again, films I had not seen, and foreign language work that had not made it to the theaters in my area. It was incredible. Read more on Best of the Decades: 1980s…
Todd Field has only made two movies to date, but they’ve both been so good that already he’s looked at somewhat as a master of the craft. He’s easily two for two with ‘In The Bedroom’ and ‘Little Children’, and he’s looking to go even darker with his third film. He’s planning another adaptation, this time the novel ‘Creed of Violence’, and Variety is reporting here that he’s talking heavily with Christian Bale for the lead role, which is a pretty ideal teaming in my eyes. After the jump you can see what the film is going to be about, but for me, anything Field and/or Bale (though more so Field than Bale, honestly) get involved with has my undivided attention. Read on for more…
Before I even begin diving into my review of the closing chapter of Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy, it should be made clear to everyone reading that I liked The Dark Knight Riseswell enough for a qualified endorsement. It’s a mostly fun, even rousing action spectacle that contains some truly breathtaking visuals (IMAX is really the only format to experience this in) and builds to a fairly satisfying conclusion; in other words, a good movie.
But it is most definitely not a great one, and I have to admit being astonished at the level of gushingenthusiasmfrommycolleagues. The film suffers from serious story structure and pacing problems, an honorably attempted but ultimately dull main villain, and tries to bring up a number of topical observations of contemporary events that end up being threadbare at best and disturbingly reactionary at worst.* None of these flaws outright sink the movie, but they do bring it down below the level of Batman Begins, far below the level of The Dark Knight and, perhaps most disappointingly, ends up with Nolan ultimately failing to live up to his promise of staking out a truly new form of superhero epic.
Completing his Batman trilogy in extraordinary fashion, Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises concludes what is, without question, one of the finest trilogies ever created. Nolan pulls off a near impossible feat, one he created for himself of course, by providing an emotionally satisfying and triumphant finale; essentially raising the bar extremely high for all other superhero stories and reinventions going forward. Fans of Nolan’s films will be again amazed at his incredible skillset as a filmmaker and storyteller, while those who have embraced this particular Batman relaunch, from 2005’s Batman Begins to 2008’s The Dark Knight, will fall back in their chairs, spent and smiling, relieved that this Dark Knight does indeed rise and deliver.
Through each and every project, Christopher Nolan’s vision, scope, and limitless imagination makes each task he sets out to accomplish all the more daunting and impressive. Many of those waiting for Rises have been counting down the days since the credits starting rolling at the end of The Dark Knight and that pressure on Nolan had to have felt insurmountable at times. And yet, Nolan is unrelenting. Mixing aggressiveness with confidence, risk with bravery, Nolan adds more layers to his Batman mythology, before a stunning final act leaves you breathless. For those who have complained that Christopher Nolan cannot close out his films and/or screenplays, those critical voices best be silent for awhile. The Dark Knight Rises is, in many ways, an unforgettable experience.
Taking a break from all this Bat-talk. Trekking through the year 2000 was a daunting task. There were many films I hadn’t seen in years, while others I’ve never feasted my eyes on before. Naturally this brings on a dilemma. A 15-year-old Clayton watching movies is very different from a now, 28-year-old Clayton. I like to think there is a maturity there that lacked before. I realized that after re-watching Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. In 2000, I found the film immensely overrated and couldn’t understand what people were so mesmerized by. Naturally, I’ve never officially appreciated it or thought it to be among Ang Lee’s best. Enter last weekend. Talk about being fantastic a second-time around, the film was nearly hypnotic in its style and approach. Do I consider it the best of the year? Not really. One of the best? Definitely so.
With our ACCA 2000 closing up on Friday, and winners being announced on Sunday’s podcast, I have to let you in on my favorites of the new millennium. Please include yours in the comment section and let’s see what commonalities or differences we have. Bold denotes winner. Enjoy after the jump: Read more on Davis Awards 2000 Announced!…
Against almost impossible hype, anticipation, and expectations, Christopher Nolan has managed to deliver not just the best Batman film to date, but also the best superhero film of all time with ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ (while also once again elevating the playing field for what the genre can be at its pinnacle). In fact, I’d go so far as to argue it’s the best 3rd film of any series, and solidifies this franchise as the best of all time, in terms of pure filmmaking and quality. Both epic and intimate in scale, Nolan is working on a level I’ve never seen from him before. Everything before this for him has been leading up to ‘The Dark Knight Rises’. The same goes for all the returning members of his cast, notably Christian Bale, who I feel gives us the definitive version of Bruce Wayne here, not to mention Batman. This is a brutal film about war, redemption, sacrifice, and a reflection of our current political climate, while still being a rousing and entertaining heroic adventure. It’s damn near perfect, and even more so than ‘The Dark Knight’, this is the film that the Academy should be nominating for Best Picture. Nolan deserves nods for his directing and screenplay duties (the way he uses the city of New York to stand in for Gotham City is stupendous, but I’ll get more into that triumphant decision in a bit) as well, and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Quite simply, this is the best film of the year so far, and a surefire awards contender. Nominations obviously have more to do with just quality, but in that regard, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ has that in spades. I had tears in my eyes during the final minutes, and I never expected that. Bravo Mr. Nolan…
Those were my exact thoughts and tweet after the screening of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight Rises. A little over twelve hours have passed, allowing what was seen to officially settle in. The Dark Knight Rises, dare I say it, is better than its predecessor. With all my qualms and things that I found wrong in The Dark Knight (2008), Nolan goes back, corrects, and elevates everything in the superhero genre, frame by frame. If there were ever doubts about Christopher Nolan and his ability as a filmmaker, he puts all things to rest and declares himself one of the most innovative and visionary directors working today. He analyzes and interprets Batman in a way, I’ve never known possible. Nolan wants to make more than a “Batman” film or just another “superhero” movie. He reinvented the genre and quite possibly creates the best superhero film of all-time. Read more on The Dark Knight Rises (***½)…
The extraordinary burden placed on director Christopher Nolan to deliver a great film, a good one would disappoint, seems to have fuelled the gifted director to create something simply astounding. Though the film lacks the complex, nightmarish villain of The Dark Knight (2008), Heath Ledger’s Oscar winning turn as The Joker, The Dark Knight Rises is an epic and lifts the comic book film, as the previous picture did to an art form. It is without question the year’s finest film thus far and could land in the Best Picture race. Frankly, Nolan shows everyone associated with The Avengers (2012), a good film, how things are done, by making another masterpiece that finishes his trilogy about the Dark Knight. Nolan has accomplished what George Lucas could not with Return of the Jedi (1983), making a third film that matches the previous two, that takes us further into the characters and the story. Read more on The Dark Knight Rises (****)…
I’ll be seeing ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ tomorrow, but late last night (3AM here on the East Coast, though it was midnight over in Hollywood when the embargo came down) the first critical response to Christopher Nolan’s conclusion to the Batman trilogy came in, and they’re about as enthusiastic as you’d expect. There are some mentions of small flaws, but for the most part just about everyone is raving about this flick. I wasn’t sure the anticipation level could rise (no pun intended) any higher than it’s already been at for what feels like months now, but this first batch of reviews has seemingly done that. I’ll be chiming in on Wednesday with my take on the film, as will Clayton, but for now you can see what some of my fellow critics are saying after the jump, and yes, I’ve made sure not to include any spoilers, so fear not. Behold the initial reactions below and let the countdown continue…
Much like Mark Johnson felt about the directors who have helmed Batman flicks, this list of the best actors in the role of Batman really sort itself out quite easily. Playing Batman is treacherous territory for an actor, not only do you have to corral the entitled billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne side, but you have to be up for the physical and anti-hero aspects of the Batman side. There is also an added issue of serving the director’s vision for the character, regardless of how bad it might be. So without further ado, here are the rankings of the Best and Worst actors to play the Caped Crusader.
Even without having seen ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ at the time of writing this piece (another week or so for me), I can safely say that the upcoming version of Bane that filmmaker Christopher Nolan has in store for us will be far different from any we’ve seen before…and that’s likely a good thing in my eyes. You see, Bane isn’t exactly a part of the A list when it comes to Batman’s gallery of villains (though his back story isn’t terrible or anything), so Nolan has the opportunity to play with the character known to have broken the Bat’s back in any number of ways. My guess is that the changes he’s almost certainly made are all but exclusively for the better. In fact, when the movie comes out, I think we’ll see almost none of the upcoming history of the character shown in ‘The Dark Knight Rises’, excluding a certain attachment that I’ll get into soon. Much like we dove into the history of the Caped Crusader in the last article for the 30 Days of Batman series, let us now dive into the man they call Bane. I’ll be looking at all the different versions of the character, but we don’t we start where it all began?
Directed by: David O. Russell
