A perky fall season comedy from JJ Abrams' Bad Robot? I thought they only made sci-fi and action flicks? If Morning Glory feels familiar in it's plucky heroine tackling the industry mode, it may have something to do with screenwriter Aline McKenna, who gave us The Devil Wears Prada just a couple of years ago. Rachel McAdams stars as a producer on the worst daytime morning talk show on TV, and her efforts to turn around the ratings aren't being helped by the show's egotistical anchors, played by Harrison Ford and Diane Keaton. It's really good to see Ford making fun movies again, and McAdams as always is a real charmer. It's been out since Wednesday, but in case you missed it you can read my review
here.
People forget that Denzel actually dropped out of this film not too long ago, mainly because the studio wanted to slash his hefty $20M price tag. They were wise to do whatever it took to get him back because Unstoppable would be Unwatchable without him. The fifth(!!) collaboration between Washington and his bff director, Tony Scott, Chris Pine sheds his Star Trek uniform to help shut down a half mile long train filled with toxic chemicals before it derails. Before you even ask, this is a million times better than The Taking of Pelham 123. You can read my review of Unstoppable
here.
Too much time has been spent focusing on the attention grabbing amputation scene, in which James Franco(as Aron Ralston) slices off his own arm in order to free himself from a collapsed boulder. It takes away from a film that is about so much more than that. A true triumph of the human spirit, and what we are truly capable of when our lives are threatened. It should go without saying that Danny Boyle shoots it gorgeously, similar in a lot of ways to Slumdog Millionaire but in a much more personal, isolated way. As for Franco, I think it's safe to say he has finally given the performance he can hang his hat on for awhile. My review of 127 Hours is now up right
here.
Early reports have not been kind to the latest flick from the Brothers Strause. I don't know why I expected much more. These are the same guys behind the last
Aliens vs. Predator flick. The studio wouldn't let us screen it, obviously afraid we'd kill it. And the cast contains not only Donald Faison but Eric Balfour. So why did I let myself think this alien invasion film would be better than the signs indicate? The trailer is hella slick, especially the millions of people being transported up into the massive spaceships against their will. I'm so easily swayed.
I consider Bjorn Lomborg to be little more than an environmentalist bomb thrower. His ideas on climate change are mostly half truths, and some of it is downright mean spirited in targeting specific individuals. But I do want to see how this film, which follows Lomborg after the release of his controversial book, attempts to make his theories seems reasonable. If anybody can do it, it's director Ondi Timoner(We Live in Public).
Former governor of New York Eliot Spitzer's story should never have been as big as it was. At least not in my opinion. They can sleep with all the hookers they want as far as I'm concerned, especially when you do as much good as Spitzer was doing. But I understand that watching the powerful fall from grace will always be in demand, and so Spitzer has gone from up 'n coming superstar politician to a talking head on CNN. In a lot of ways it might be a forward move! Alex Gibney, who gave us the penetrating documentary Taxi to the Dark Side, turns his camera to the fallen governor and hopefully gets his insights into the scandal that wrecked his career.
How does a Brit comedy starring Bill Nighy, Emily Blunt, and Rupert Grint slip by me? Must be losing my touch. Wild Target stars Nighy as a hitman who falls for one of his intended targets(Blunt), and picks up an unwanted apprentice in the process(Grint). If the cast isn't enough to hook you, consider that it's directed by Jonathan Lynn, who gave us the board game adaptation
Clue back in 1985 and
My Cousin Vinny a few years later. I thought this guy had disappeared, only to find out that he directed
The Fighting Temptations(Urrghh!!) and
The Whole Nine Yards(Ugghh!!) within the last few years. Here's hoping Wild Target is more like his earlier stuff.
