Month: May 2010

Hollywood Round-up, 5/21

Can't get any love from Hezbollah.

By Jason Apuzzo.

• Poor Miss USA.  Fox News is convinced she beat out the blonde from Oklahoma because of a left-wing conspiracy, and now she isn’t getting any love from Hezbollah. What’s a girl to do?   Triangulate.  Savvy move here might be to have herself photographed in a hijab while endorsing J.D. Hayworth.

• New Valerie Plame flick (just premiered at Cannes) blames the UK for the Iraq war.  Sean Penn gives an ‘unhinged’ performance, and the film is otherwise getting mixed reactions (see here and here).  I’m unhinged at Sean Penn for ruining my memories of Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

• Don Cheadle says Obama hasn’t called him yet.  He hasn’t called me either, even though I left 3 voice messages with him about the Van Jones thing.

• Planet of the Apes prequel coming, set in present day San Francisco, starring James Franco. Wow – summer 2011 is absolutely set! Book me in for adventure!

• Another Shrek film opens this weekend.  Was somebody clamoring for this?

• New Eco-horror thriller coming featuring … global coolling. This is getting confusing.  I though Gore told us … never mind.

• 2 famous country music/Christian music stars announce that they’re lesbians. Tiger calls to console.

• Robert Rodriguez says Machete is not a race-war picture. That’s a relief, because race war pictures never open well in June.

• And here’s an interview with the star of the new Carlos the Jackal film, which recently debuted at Cannes.  Apparently he’s being fought-over for dueling Hugo Chavez biopics.

And that’s what’s happening today in the wonderful world of Hollywood …

Classic Cinema Obsession: SCANDAL SHEET (Phil Karlson, 1952)

[Editor’s note: this is the first of a new LFM series of ‘visual essays’ for classic movie fans, called “Classic Cinema Obsession” by Jennifer Baldwin.]

By Jennifer Baldwin.

This Week’s Classic Cinema Obsession: SCANDAL SHEET (Phil Karlson, 1952)

Why do so many old movie obsessives (myself included) love Film Noir? Maybe it’s because so many films noir feature characters who are also, one way or another, obsessives themselves. Obsessed with money, with power, with justice, with a member of the opposite sex. The old movie obsessive can identify with these characters; we know what it’s like to have a passion that is all-consuming, which takes over our lives.

But classic film buffs like me love Noir for another reason too: Film Noir satisfies our obsessions. Beneath the surface of these B-movie programmers with their tightly woven plots and genre thrills, old movie obsessives can find complex, multi-layered themes and characters; hidden, coded messages about society and the human psyche; and a wealth of stylistic touches that make these films an endless source of study and analysis for the dedicated cinephile. In less than 90 minutes, your average film noir can provide an old movie obsessive with hours, days, years of film geek fun.


That’s what we’ve got with SCANDAL SHEET, a well-written, gritty and cynical little crime flick from director Phil Karlson, starring Broderick Crawford, John Derek, and Donna Reed, and based on a novel by Samuel Fuller (yeah, that Sam Fuller). It aired on TCM May 19, 2010 (2:00 AM EST) as part of their Star of the Month tribute to Ms. Reed and it’s my Classic Cinema Obsession of the Week. Continue reading Classic Cinema Obsession: SCANDAL SHEET (Phil Karlson, 1952)

Letters to God in Theaters Now

Just a quick reminder to our Christian and/or conservative readers that a heartwarming little movie called Letters to God is currently out now in theaters. You can check for local listings here.

Even several months after its opening the film hasn’t received a great deal of media attention, but it appears to still be packing in audiences and doing good business – no small feat for any indie filmmaker … The movie is obviously getting good word-of-mouth.

The trailer for Letters to God is available on You Tube here.

Patrol Base Jaker Coming this Summer


Patrol Base Jaker is a feature-length documentary film about the US Marine Corps and the practice of counter-insurgency in Afghanistan.  The film apparently covers of the history of Afghanistan from the Soviet invasion to the current U.S. war against the Taliban and Al Qaeda.

We haven’t had the chance to see it yet, but Patrol Base Jaker recently unspooled at the GI Film Festival in Washington, and will apparently be released in theaters this summer (check the film’s website for further details).  The trailer certainly makes the film look interesting, so check it out …

Indie Film Round-up, 5/20

By Jason Apuzzo.

• This charming-looking film above, Racing Dreams, just opened and is playing in select theaters nationwide. Racing Dreams follows three kids on the Go-Kart circuit who each have big dreams of making it to the Big Show, NASCAR. The film hasn’t hit LA yet, so we haven’t seen it – but the reviews have been good and it won the Best Documentary prize at Tribeca.

• The Autobiography Of Nicolae Ceausescu, a new documentary about the Romanian communist tyrant, is currently making some waves at Cannes. You can check out the film’s drily amusing trailer here.

• Another new indie film, After the Cup, begins hitting New York and Los Angeles theaters this week and next. This sports film, that’s gotten fantastic reviews, is about an Arab-Jewish soccer team that’s been simultaneously winning titles and unifying Israel. Very heartening, humanistic stuff. You can check out the trailer below.

Hollywood Round-up, 5/20

By Jason Apuzzo. Today in Hollywood news:

Gone.

• Michael Bay fires Megan Fox from Transformers 3, likely because she’s insane. Tiger calls to console.

• With firing of Megan, Hollywood wonders whether Shia’s next to be fired after Shia trashes Indy 4 at Cannes (see here and here).  Shia initiating new quality-control measures in his work, along with a special 1-800 complaint line.

• Valerie Plame movie getting rave reviews at Cannes (see here and here).  Director says its not really a political movie, which sort of begs the question.

• Eliot Spitzer documentary picked up for distribution, part of a package deal to include a reality TV series on ethics starring David Paterson. Just kidding.

• Robert Redford appears on Olberman show, Sean Penn lectures Capitol Hill. Nothing new here, move along.

• Captain America to be filmed in London.  No really, they’re shooting the film in London.  Not kidding.

• 5 and 1/2 hour movie on left-wing terrorist ‘Carlos the Jackal’ praised at Cannes. Oliver Stone seen napping in lobby.

• Anti-war doc Armadillo gets critics prize at Cannes. Oliver Stone seen napping in lobby.

• 30th Anniversary screening of The Empire Strikes Back in LA reunites Han with Chewie. Actually this looked like a lot of fun.

• Bernard Henri-Levy defends Polanski … again. Very hard to do at this point.

And that’s what’s happening today in the wonderful world of Hollywood …