Opening in Dallas, 06/02
by Brian
Slow week:
An Inconvenient Truth (trailer): I doubt it will come as any surprise to anyone that this is on my must-see list. I've never liked the title, though; it seems a little bit smart-assy, and I suspect it will turn a few skeptical folks off. Ditto the tagline: "By far the most terrifying film you will ever see." I know what they're going for, but it doesn't work. And this poster is just a travesty. So, I think the marketing has been pretty silly, for a movie that seems ... not silly.
The Break-Up (trailer): I don't know about you, but I'm preparing to be extremely underwhelmed. Here's a question: why is the movie PG-13, when the trailer plays up the nude Jennifer Aniston thing so much? How committed are the filmmakers to the material when they're obviously trying to have it both ways - playing up the sex angle, while still being all things to everyone enough to be PG-13?
Free Zone (trailer at New Yorker site): As the trailer makes clear, Hana Laszlo won Best Actress at Cannes last year for her role in this film, about three Jewish women traveling in Jordan's Free Zone. Very little publicity for a movie with Natalie Portman, even by indie standards. Reviews have generally been less than glowing.
District B13 (trailer): French action movie from 2004 now getting a US release. Nick did a mini-review last week. I have little interest.
An Inconvenient Truth (trailer): I doubt it will come as any surprise to anyone that this is on my must-see list. I've never liked the title, though; it seems a little bit smart-assy, and I suspect it will turn a few skeptical folks off. Ditto the tagline: "By far the most terrifying film you will ever see." I know what they're going for, but it doesn't work. And this poster is just a travesty. So, I think the marketing has been pretty silly, for a movie that seems ... not silly.
The Break-Up (trailer): I don't know about you, but I'm preparing to be extremely underwhelmed. Here's a question: why is the movie PG-13, when the trailer plays up the nude Jennifer Aniston thing so much? How committed are the filmmakers to the material when they're obviously trying to have it both ways - playing up the sex angle, while still being all things to everyone enough to be PG-13?
Free Zone (trailer at New Yorker site): As the trailer makes clear, Hana Laszlo won Best Actress at Cannes last year for her role in this film, about three Jewish women traveling in Jordan's Free Zone. Very little publicity for a movie with Natalie Portman, even by indie standards. Reviews have generally been less than glowing.
District B13 (trailer): French action movie from 2004 now getting a US release. Nick did a mini-review last week. I have little interest.
|Link|12:39 PM
6 Comments:
An Inconvenient Truth is still about two weeks away from a local release. I want to see it, yet I can't escape the feeling that I'm going to ditch seeing it theatrically. The "homework" analogy is dead-on.
District B13 looks great (as far as trashy Luc Besson-produced films go). It will surely tank, however.
I feel bad for Magnolia because they great taste in product, but absolutely clueless marketing and release strategies.
I'm getting dragged to "The Break-up" tonight, despite my best efforts to convince my wife that it's a downer.
It will be my first Aniston theatrical experience since "Office Space" (and I'm certain far less rewarding).
I saw An Inconvenient Truth on Saturday. Cinematically, it is not all that interesting, and the criticisms that is simply a filmed lecture are accurate (there is some documentary flourishes detailing Gore's background). But what it lacks in razzle-dazzle it makes up for in content. How do we judge a documentary? By entertainment value, or by communicating information? If it's by the latter, then this film hits a home run. It answered questions I had about the subject, and convinced me that we're in deep shit.
For those who think it's a bunch of baloney, all I ask is this: if we simply humor those who think this is a crisis, what is the harm? We are asked to: look for altnerative energy sources, use mass transit more often, try to buy hybrid cars if possible, recycle, plant trees. The only objections to these remedies would come from big oil. And that, of course, is the problem.
I could care less about The Break-Up, except that I'm heartened to see that Peyton Reed was allowed to helm such a high-profile film after the bust that was Down With Love, which is one of my all-time favorite films in a What's Up, Doc? kind of way. I was afraid they'd never let him do another movie after that.
As for what Jackrabbit asks: I don't believe global warming is all baloney, though I am skeptical about how complete our understanding of climate is. The problem with humoring those who think this is a crisis is that it could be a waste of resources--just like there are reasonable people who believe that recycling is a colossal waste of resources even though it would seem to be conserving. Now, I personally think it's kinda cool to humor the crisis-mongers in this case, and I'm an avid recycler.
I thought 'Down with Love' was a pretty amusing and enjoyable film, especially if you had some knowledge about what it was spoofing/paying homage to.
It fell apart once one of the central characters revealed their true identity but it could've been a hell of a lot worse then it actually was.
I thought An Inconvenient Truth was very good. I've never thought Gore was as boring as he's so often caricatured, but even still I was surprised by how well the film held my attention. I figured that there would be a few times when it would seem slow or overly technical but it never happened at all. It's also very well put together, with the personal vignettes well chosen and edited.
It's not the kind of thing that will make these guys change their minds, but I think it would have (is having?) a big effect on the kinds of people that have never given the issue much thought. It's quite forceful, and Gore has a knack for explaining complicated things in a clear way without dumbing them down.
I was also quite impressed by An Inconvenient Truth. Gore is quite passionate about the issue, and it shows. I think it's a great way to reach those people who may not have an opportunity to see his slide show in person. I know that I'm thinking more about the issue, to the point that my plans for a new car in the future are starting to include the possiblity of a hybrid. The film answered some of my questions about global warming, and convinced me of our ability to have an impact.
A local meteorologist did a review of the film in his blog, and he was amazed by the accuracy of the science in the film. I find that encouraging for the film, a bit scary for all of us...
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