Ditto what New Yorker writer Hannah Goldfield says of Disney’s 1992 flop-turned- Broadway hit Newsies , though I loathed the tepid romance between Christian Bale ‘s Jack and that useless Sarah girl. Ahem : “A movie is fixed, eternal. Your perception of it may change slightly each time you watch it, but nothing else, not the tiniest of details, will. It’s a precise memory you can return to, over and over—I know I’ve found a movie I’ll love forever if I have the feeling of wanting to watch it again immediately after it ends…” [ New Yorker ]
After riding train after train and whatnot , Denzel Washington is back navigating giant hunks of careening metal in Robert Zemeckis ‘s Flight , which marks the director’s return to live-action filmmaking after a decade spent trying (in vain, IMO) to conquer the uncanny valley. So how well do director and star succeed in piquing your interest in a movie about an airline pilot (Washington) who saves a plane full of passengers only to have his heroism — and drinking habits — come under scrutiny in the aftermath? Below, watch the first trailer for Flight , which boasts a stellar cast surrounding Washington that includes Bruce Greenwood, Don Cheadle, Kelly Reilly, John Goodman, and Melissa Leo. It’s not all that revealing, which is a good thing in this age of spoiler-happy marketing, though there’s potential for some big unknown twist to rock us to our core in the last act. So what’s there to look forward to? Washington as a normal dude trying to figure it out, I suppose — or as a hero hiding some dark secret, which would be more interesting — and, of course, the sight of Denzel rolling a freaking airplane on top of some houses , or whatever. That should be enough for me. And yet… I’m just lukewarm on Flight . Is there any reason to see it besides the fact that it’s Denzel being Denzel and Zemeckis maybe-recapturing the knack for storytelling on display in his best live-action hits? Head to Apple for the trailer premiere. Then again, I am about to get on a flight tomorrow morning, so forgive me if I’m not too juiced for a movie about the one airplane that falls apart in the sky for no good reason. Flight synopsis: In this action-packed mystery thriller, Academy Award winner Denzel Washington stars as Whip Whitaker, a seasoned airline pilot who miraculously crash-lands his plane after a mid-air catastrophe, saving nearly every soul on board. After the crash, Whip is hailed as a hero, but as more is learned, more questions than answers arise as to who or what was really at fault, and what really happened on that plane? Flight is in theaters November 2. [via Apple ]
Also in Wednesday morning’s news round up, Warner Bros. is taking a cue from Marvel’s Avengers with its own superhero lineup, a J.D. Salinger adaptation is in the make for the big screen, a Frozen thriller pick up for North America and the rising fortunes of non-U.S. actors as big budget films target international markets. ARC Picks The Frozen for North America Psychological thriller The Frozen has been picked up by ARC Entertainment. The directorial debut of Andrew Hyatt and starring Brit Morgan, the film centers on two people who take an ill-advised winter camping trip. “After a snowmobile accident, the couple is left stranded in the woods where they are forced to survive the elements while waiting for help to arrive. In a twist of fate, Mike disappears and Emma is left on her own not only to battle the weather, but also to elude a mysterious man (Segan) who has been tracking her through the forest.” Around the ‘net… Dark Knight Rises Ticket Sales Set for Monday The Batman movie still has 45 days before it hits screens, but for those wanting to make extra sure they’re in a theater opening night for the final Christopher Nolan epic can get reserve their tickets via the internet at noon June 11th, EW reports . Hot Writer Pushing Justice League at Warner Bros. The Avengers is a punch out for Disney and Marvel, but Warner Bros is stealthily getting its own superhero brass, with Will Beall set to write Justice League based on the WB-held series of DC Comics, Variety reports . My Salinger Year Set for Adaptation River Road Entertainment has optioned screen rights to Joanna Smith Rakoff’s My Salinger Year and Emma Forrest will adapt the novel. The story centers on the author’s own experience when she took a clerical job at an agency that represented The Catcher in the Rye author J.D. Salinger and their unexpected relationship, Deadline reports . Journey 2 Director Ponders Disaster Movie San Andreas 3D Brad Peyton is in talks to direct New Line’s San Andreas 3D . The plot is secret, but San Andreas is the name of California’s biggest fault lines, so let your imagination go wild… The budget is said to be in the $100 million range (now it can go really wild), THR reports . A Brave New World for non-U.S. Film Stars Noomi Rapace, Idris Elba, Gael García Bernal. Those are some of stars who could capitalize as big-budget filmmaking increasingly targets new markets, The Guardian reports .
Current “It-Girl” Greta Gerwig, Joel Kinnaman and Zoe Lister Jones were among the cast who turned up for the New York premiere Tuesday night of director Daryl Wein’s Lola Versus , hosted by the Cinema Society. A bumper crop of other actors and socialites also joined in on the fun at the screening in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood, including Zachary Quinto, Noah Baumbach, Olivia Munn, Parker Posey, Russell Simmons, Eve Plumb, Jesse Peretz, Gaby Hoffman, Ed Droste (lead singer of Grizzly Bear) for the screening and after-party at the Boom Boom Room atop the Standard Hotel in the Meatpacking District. In the film, Gerwig plays Lola who is suddenly dumped by her fiance only weeks before their wedding. Her life slowly tailspins as she seeks out close friends for solace and sexual mishaps as she faces turning 30 and being suddenly single. “Zoe [Lister Jones] and I were both single and interested in stories that were honest about break-ups and not just glorified versions of them,” Wein told ML at the Standard Tuesday night. He co-wrote the film along with Lister Jones who co-stars in the film with Gerwig. “Greta is great for the part because she is not an overly-polished lead. She’s vulnerable, likable but still at times unlikable,” he added. Wein said the idea for Lola Versus came to him and Lister-Jones though in the interim other films that deal with being single have cropped up. “There are stories with a feminist [bent] that have come up since then, and we’re all for it. We want more realistic depictions of break-ups and being single to be out there.” Not quite so single in real-life, Gerwig danced with her current beau Noah Baumbach at the party, which was co-hosted Brooks Brothers and Grey Goose along with Cinema Society and its founder Andrew Saffir. Of course there were signature vodka cocktails and the champagne and spectacular Manhattan views kept the soiree going well passed midnight. Fox Searchlight will open Lola Versus in limited release beginning this Friday. [ Photo Credit: Nick Hunt/Patrick McMullan Co. ]
Acclaimed, Pulitzer-honored science fiction/fantasy author Ray Bradbury has died at the age of 91 in Los Angeles, following one of the most fruitful creative writing careers of the 20th century. The man behind such genre classics as Fahrenheit 451 , The Martian Chronicles , Something Wicked This Way Comes leaves behind a stunning legacy spanning works adapted for television, film, and the stage. It’s difficult to quantify the impact that Bradbury had on the worlds of science fiction, literature, and the numerous film and television adaptations that sprang from his seven decades of writing, not to mention the generations of sci-fi and fantasy lovers weaned on his tales. The man had an asteroid and a moon crater named in his honor, for goodness sake, had dozens of his stories adapted for stage, film, and television, and never went to college. For a child growing up with Bradbury’s stories, the world was filled much more with wonder. For an adult, his tales prompted deeper introspection. It Came From Outer Space : Icarus Montgolfier Wright : Something Wicked This Way Comes : Bradbury on his Fahrenheit 451 : Folks will have their own cherished Bradbury moments, but I’ll leave you with one of my favorite of his real life stories. Writing in 2001, Bradbury shared the childhood incident that inspired him to become a writer in the first place: A chance meeting with a carnival magician named Mr. Electrico in 1932 following the death of Bradbury’s uncle. Mr. Electrico was a fantastic creator of marvels. He sat in his electric chair every night and was electrocuted in front of all the people, young and old, of Waukegan, Illinois. When the electricity surged through his body he raised a sword and knighted all the kids sitting in the front row below his platform. I had been to see Mr. Electrico the night before. When he reached me, he pointed his sword at my head and touched my brow. The electricity rushed down the sword, inside my skull, made my hair stand up and sparks fly out of my ears. He then shouted at me, “Live forever!” I thought that was a wonderful idea, but how did you do it? The next day, being driven home by my father, fresh from the funeral, I looked down at those carnival tents and thought to myself, “The answer is there. He said ‘Live forever,’ and I must go find out how to do that.” I told my father to stop the car. He didn’t want to, but I insisted. He stopped the car and let me out, furious with me for not returning home to partake in the wake being held for my uncle. With the car gone, and my father in a rage, I ran down the hill. What was I doing? I was running away from death, running toward life. When I reached the carnival grounds, by God, sitting there, almost as if he were waiting for me, was Mr. Electrico. I grew, suddenly, very shy. I couldn’t possibly ask, How do you live forever? But luckily I had a magic trick in my pocket. I pulled it out, held it toward Mr. Electrico and asked him if he’d show me how to do the trick. He showed me how and then looked into my face and said, “Would you like to see some of those peculiar people in that tent over there?” I said, “Yes.” He took me over to the sideshow tent and hit it with his cane and shouted, “Clean up your language!” at whoever was inside. Then, he pulled up the tent flap and took me in to meet the Illustrated Man, the Fat Lady, the Skeleton Man, the acrobats, and all the strange people in the sideshows. He then walked me down by the shore and we sat on a sand dune. He talked about his small philosophies and let me talk about my large ones. At a certain point he finally leaned forward and said, “You know, we’ve met before.” I replied, “No, sir, I’ve never met you before.” He said, “Yes, you were my best friend in the great war in France in 1918 and you were wounded and died in my arms at the battle of the Ardennes Forrest. But now, here today, I see his soul shining out of your eyes. Here you are, with a new face, a new name, but the soul shining from your face is the soul of my dear dead friend. Welcome back to the world.” Why did he say that? I don’t know. Was there something in my eagerness, my passion for life, my being ready for some sort of new activity? I don’t know the answer to that. All I know is that he said, “Live forever” and gave me a future and in doing so, gave me a past many years before, when his friend died in France. Leaving the carnival grounds that day I stood by the carousel and watched the horses go round and round to the music of “Beautiful Ohio.” Standing there, the tears poured down my face, for I felt that something strange and wonderful had happened to me because of my encounter with Mr. Electrico. I went home and the next day traveled to Arizona with my folks. When we arrived there a few days later I began to write, full-time. I have written every single day of my life since that day 69 years ago. I have long since lost track of Mr. Electrico, but I wish that he existed somewhere in the world so that I could run to him, embrace him, and thank him for changing my life and helping me become a writer. Live forever, indeed! Read the full entry here and leave your own Bradbury celebrations below.
At long last — since Quentin Tarantino fans have been dying for a glimpse since the first peek at that hand-scrawled script suggested that yes, this was really happening — comes the first trailer for Django Unchained , Tarantino’s December 2012 spaghetti western about a freed slave (Jamie Foxx) shooting his way across the South. Because nothing says Christmas like slavery and vengeance! UPDATE: Sorry folks, the trailer is set to officially debut on Fandango later today. Check back for updated video… Foxx plays Django, a slave taken under the wing of a German bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz, looking delightful). Together they journey from plantation to plantation shooting bad guys on their way to rescuing Django’s wife (Kerry Washington) from the evil, oily Leonardo DiCaprio. Between the contained ferocity in Foxx’s eyes, the character actors that line the cast, Tarantino’s use of classic genre zooms and camera moves, that swaggering sense of humor, and the promise of seeing Django get the ultimate historical-revisionist retribution in his quest for “life, love, and the pursuit of vengeance,” the trailer packs quite a punch. And that’s even before Foxx’s Django sidles up to the OG Django , Franco Nero, and explains to him how his name is pronounced. Oh, references! Verdict: Might be a bit too genre for mainstream audiences, but my inner exploitation nerd can’t wait. Django Unchained hits theaters December 25.
It looks like Kim Kardashian is not the only one to somehow pick up the pieces from her 72-day marriage and move on. Despite a denial from Kris Humphries himself – after photos leaked of him and a woman on a beach in Miami and he claimed she was someone he only met that day – TMZ confirms the power forward DOES have a new girlfriend . Her name is Myla Sinanaj . Sinanaj and Humphries have reportedly been dating since January, with the latter providing courtside seats for his new woman and her family to watch him play basketball. Sources say she the pair met at the fancy New York City hotel where Sinanaj works. We can only assume this hotel does not ever get Internet access. Or newspaper delivery. Or cable. Or any medium that would identity Humphries as the immature bonehead he has proven himself to be. No comment so far from anyone in either side of the couple’s camp.
After watching a man blast himself out of a cannon and then witnessing an overweight pole dancer on America’s Got Talent , one thing became painfully evident last night: A high level of strange was featured throughout day two in Austin. Read through our previous AGT recap for all the acts from opening night here and then get caught up with the latest below… Andrew De Leon America’s Got Talent Audition Mind-Blowing Aurora light Painting – First a sand artist, now light artists? The leader claimed to live in a commune which probably was the first question mark popping up in my head, his hair was the second. The performance was interesting, but it reminded me of the Disney Channel promotions where the actors would wave the mouse ear shape with their magic wand. The obvious point was that this really seems like a really artistic telestrator. Eric & Olivia – The non-daters from the University of Texas had a cute vibe together but it really was Olivia’s voice that was the winner. She had great jazz-soul diction. Once in a while it got a bit too froggy, but I think with the right arrangements the duo would be great. I’m shocked that Howie said no because there’s a lot of potential in this act. Eric Diddleman – Eric claimed to be a “professional mind reader” but I think the better part was him wrapping duct tape around his eyes. His guesses were great considering that Sharon was the only one to draw something hard (Howard and Howie basically drew themselves). I’d love to see this trick a second time with a few more bells and whistles. Summer Lacey – We only saw a few seconds of her but she chose to use chains instead of silks as she did some creative acrobatics. According to Sharon, Summer was also a lot higher than we must have seen as she dropped for one trick. She should join several of the acts this season as a more Punk/Accessible version of Cirque. Andrew De Leon (Above) – The closet-opera singer wasn’t bad. The biggest problem is that now he doesn’t have that surprise factor in future performances. Let’s hope that he has a stronger repertoire of songs and a bit more confidence in the future. I hope he wears prescription contacts because those contacts could scar his eyes if he’s not careful. Mind-Boggling Doppelganger Circus Sideshow – Take one part geeky/goth couple, one chainsaw and apple, and a small jaw and you get a silly performance. The girlfriend got a dislocated jaw because she didn’t listen to him when he said, “Do you have a preference for apple size?” Jada – While we only saw this group of women for a few seconds, it must have been for the mercy of the audience’s ears. It’s called synchronization; Jada didn’t have that. Also, four girls singing “Only Girl in the World” makes no sense. Which one was the only girl? Richard Grossman – The opera singer from New York, who sub-sings as practice was ahead of his song and choked. It was kind of embarrassing. That’s someone’s delusional uncle who called Howard rude. The fact that Andrew followed him with a great opera performance made him seem even sourer.
You may look at this first photo from the set of Iron Man 3 and think, “Gee, Tony Stark has a lot of toys.” I look at it — a shot of Robert Downey Jr. as Stark, gazing at his wall of Iron Man suits in a lab/Hall of Ego scattered with gadgets and gizmos aplenty — and remember I need to do laundry. Also, I need a bigger closet. Why does Tony Stark have so many wardrobe options? On the flip side, you could go way into depth surmising what all this hardware means, as EW’s Anthony Breznican does: It’s a big responsibility for whomever — we presume Stark’s automated butler JARVIS — to guard this stuff. Although Marvel Studios hasn’t released details of the plot, if you couple this official image with paparazzi shots last week revealing the Iron Patriot, a character using stolen Stark tech who literally wraps his armor in the flag to justify his actions, we may be seeing the issue of proliferation rising again for ol’ Tony. Sure, sure. But wait… what could this one face-obscured behind-the-scenes shot mean for the meaning of Iron Man 3 ? What comes next could be too powerful even for Stark to control. If rumors are true that Iron Man 3 filmmaker Shane Black ( Kiss Kiss Bang Bang ) is taking his cues from the Iron Man comic series Extremis , which deals with nanotechnology injected directly into human beings to make them more powerful, then it’s no longer a matter of who is inside the weapon than what kind of weapon is inside the person. And that next case on the wall, which looks eerily like a row of coffins now, would have to contain Tony Stark himself . WHOA. Way existential, man. Who agrees? Who’s excited? Who’s wondering if we’re really butt-gazing at RDJ’s stand-in while the real RDJ is over snacking at craft services? [ EW ]
A swarm of celebs including cast members turned out Monday night for the New York premiere of Jane Fonda and Catherine Keener starrer, Peace, Love & Misunderstanding at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA). The event, which benefited The Women’s Media Center, held its post-screening bash at the Royalton Hotel in Midtown. The party didn’t take a cue from the film’s hippie-vibe, but who needs bohemian when there’s champagne and sliders to guzzle! Along with Fonda and Keener, fellow cast members Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chace Crawford, NatWolff, Marissa O’Donnell and Maddie Corman joined in for the party hosted by Forevermark and The Wall Street Journal. Directed by Driving Miss Daisy director Bruce Beresford, the film, which had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last fall (followed by a U.S. debut at the Woodstock Film Festival – natch!) follows Manhattan lawyer Diane (Keener) who drives her teenage son Jake (Nat Wolff) and adult daughter Zoe (Elizabeth Olsen) to visit their Woodstock-bound hippie grandmother Grace (Fonda), who the kids have never met. Grace stages protests, smokes and sells dope, but their weekend getaway morphs into a summer adventure of romance, music and more. “It was amazing to have such veteran actors like Jane Fonda and Catherine Keener working alongside newcomers [at the time] Nat Wolff and Elizabeth Olsen,” Peace producer Claude Dal Farra told ML. “This was actually the first movie-set for Elizabeth and Nat.” Others at the party Monday included Robin Morgan, GloriaSteinem, Carol Alt, Ashleigh Banfield, Joshua Bell, Jewelle Bickford, Sandy Brant, Julie Burton, Ron Claiborne, Jamie Colby, Alan Cox ( The Dictator ), Rebecca Dayan ( Celeste & Jesse Forever ), Aleksa Palladino ( Boardwalk Empire ), Savanna Wise ( Smash ) and Casper Zafer ( The Vampire Diaries ). IFC Films will open Peace, Love & Misunderstanding beginning this Friday. [Photo credit: Amanda Schwab/Starpix]
