The Dame is Eva!

Eva Green is the dame to kill for. Before you go ahead imagining all the things you would do for Eva Green, come back to reality. I did not mean my first line in a very literal sense, even though that might be true. What I meant was that Sin City: A Dame to Kill For has finally discovered the actor to play the titular character with the casting of Eva Green as Lord Ava or the Dame. It finally ends a long running casting saga which had seen most notably Angelina Jolie rumoured to play this role. While few can match the screen presence of Jolie, I find the casting of Eva Green as intriguing and charming and it gives me another reason to look forward to this Frank Miller / Robert Rodriguez directed movie. Intriguing enough that I blog about it on a day when the makers of The Wolverine released this epic cool picture...

... and Marvel Studios released a free-falling poster for Iron Man 3...

... and yet Eva Green captures my attention. Eva Green really burst into the limelight with her role as Vesper in Casino Royale, a role I find that remains heavily underrated as Daniel Craig stole the limelight with the rusty Bond style. But Eva Green captured the screen effectively, being coy and charming, seductive and scheming, the only one maybe who ever won Bond's heart. A role that deserved applause for showcasing a very different Bond Girl as the Bond series itself took a different direction. I eagerly looked forward to Eva Green's future projects but the next highly anticipated movie The Golden Compass turned out to be mixture of disappointments. Few more mediocre movies followed and then Tim Burton's Dark Shadows last year also failed to turn into something noteworthy. Interestingly, Eva Green played a witch in both The Golden Compass and Dark Shadows. My mind is racing to find out another actress who has played a witch more than once... aarggh... stop the trivia hunt! 

Well, here is the chance to set things right again for Eva Green. She joins a sterling cast including Bruce Willis, Mickey Rourke, Josh Brolin, Jessica Alba, and new joinee Joseph Gordon-Levitt. As Frank Miller says that Eva Green's character is "every man's most glorious dreams come true, she's also every man's darkest nightmares." You could so well see Eva doing justice to this kind of role. An October 2013 release is on the cards, and I hope things proceed in time with the major casting seems to have been completed. Sin City: A Dame to Kill For is now all set to be a movie to kill for!

Rhino to attack Spidey! Too much?

How many villains do you want to see in an action oriented superhero movie? It's an interesting question to ponder upon. But maybe there's a simple answer too, the one that flashes immediately after you read the question. One! Why one? Because that is how we have perceived these grand tales of good versus evil. You got your representative of good and your representative of bad. They go head to head. Representative of good wins. Happy ending. Moral learnt. And that is how it has worked most of the times. So while the comic worlds have created multitude villains for the superhero to deal with, there is still a quintessential villain who the good guy always hunting. Like Joker for Batman or Lex Luthor for Superman. So is there any need to put in space for more than one villain in a superhero movie?

This question I raise after reading accounts of Paul Giamatti being cast as Rhino in The Amazing Spider-Man 2. Rhino will be battling the web-slinger alongside Electro with Jamie Foxx already cast for that role. Now how much of screen time will Rhino get is for the screen writers to decide. But the Spiderman franchise has already got this ‘multiple villain’ scenario wrong before. In Spider-Man 3. That particular movie, considered the weakest in Sam Raimi’s trilogy of Spider-Man films, began with Green Goblin’s son looking to avenge his father’s death. Then it went on to showcase Spiderman hunting Sandman before eventually brining on Venom as well joining forces with Sandman to blah blah… too much for a single movie!

Villains, in great Hollywood movies, play a pivotal part in bringing more meaning to the heroics of the good guy. And so developing the character of the villain is as essential as demonstrating the greatness of the hero. Multiple villains ruined two of the old Batman movies (in addition to a lot of other stuff that went wrong for them), when Two-Face and Riddler came together in Batman Forever and then it was Poison Ivy and Mr. Freeze in Batman & Robin. Their stories crisscrossed, there was a complete lack of chemistry between the main characters and eventually this just hurts the story building, apart from hurting your head as well. The initial Spider-Man movies had got it perfectly right in this department, Green Goblin in the first, Doc Ock in the second and our Spidey knows what to catch! The X-Men series puts across numerous good and bad guys but in the midst of it all the focus remained on Magneto as the guy to beat. But if you are looking for getting a ‘multiple villain’ scenario right, then no need to look further than Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy. Ra’s al Ghul and Scarecrow troubled Batman in the first movie and then he had to deal with Joker and Two-Face in the second. But the plot was so tightly written that things intertwined beautifully and one never felt that the movies are loaded with a bit too many characters. In fact Two-Face being effectively created by Joker was a masterpiece to pull off! I hope that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 writers would work on the same lines to interconnect the story lines of the various villains somehow together and not have poor Spidey swinging after one bad guy and then another. Too much task for the little guy, when already you consider that the movie would have both his love interests, Gwen Stacy and Mary Jane Watson. Heart issues and city problems to deal with! Go Spiderman…

Batm-e-n of the old

It is never too old to talk about Batman. While the character itself has evolved over a much longer period, Batman has been surfacing in feature films since the late 90's on a much regular basis (though there was a feature film made in '66 as well). It was Tim Burton who really showed the potential of the character to attract big crowds to theatres with his 1989 flick Batman. He had a sequel released in 1992 before Joel Schumacher took it upon him to destroy the character with two Batman movies that came in the mid and late 90's. The 1997 Batman & Robin received such a terrible reception that it created a hiatus of eight years before Christopher Nolan released the beginning of his epic The Dark Knight trilogy in 2005 and made the world wonderful again! 

In the last 24 years, seven Batman feature films have been released and the iconic caped crusader has been played by five actors - Michael Keaton in the first two films, Val Kilmer in the next, George Clooney in the fourth and Christian Bale in the latest three films. With this thought in my mind, I looked up on the photos of the old and new Batmans and pieced them together. 

That's Keaton to Bale going clockwise from top left side. Minor alterations in the suit is what I noticed first, with Bale's costume standing out for its lesser cartoonish feel. But apart from that, when you look at the still images, the others do not seem to make a bad Batman, eh? They did lack the hoarse voice that Batman carries which Bruce Wayne does not, that Bale perfected in Nolan's trilogy and was something I specifically enjoyed in the animated series of Batman. And of course, the previous movies lacked a good script, good performances, daylight when they could have reflected on the wrongs they were committing, live bats, and a few other minor details. 

And while we are talking about the older Batman movies, though I'm now wondering why, no harm in looking back at the characters of the older times prior to when they lit up Nolan's Batman series. 

This one is Bane from Batman & Robin, too beefed up and acting like a dumb brute rather than a master mind of any sorts. 

Here's Jack Nicholson playing Joker from Batman, a role which was quite acclaimed then but would no doubt pale in comparison to the levels Heath Ledger took it to. 

And this is Michelle Pfeiffer as Catwoman from Batman Returns, probably the best portrayal of Catwoman on the big screen until Anne Hathaway made it her own.

Now, awaiting the next one to don the famous Batman suit...

The Dance: Act 2

While reading this post if you come across the words Sin City which makes you look around with a frown and a quizzical look, then simply stop reading and go back to bed. In fact feel a little sorry for yourself. And if you are still reading this, at least do the right thing now and get your hands on this movie and watch it before the world ends! Sin City. Sigh. Based on he graphic novels of Frank Miller, Sin City was one of the coolest movies to hit theatres in the previous decade. Released in 2005, it managed to create something special in movie making, where brash was fun, background narrations became a heartbeat, and black & white was the new vibrant colour. The theme song by The Servant gave me goosebumps. Mickey Rourke left me with haunting and yet awe-striking images. And shades of red never looked that striking to my dazed eyes!

And with so much to talk on Sin City, for some reason one particular shot manages to stand  out in the movie; one particular image which is the first to wrap my brain whenever the words Sin City pop up. I am certain it must be true for many. The image of Jessica Alba in a cowboy hat and scanty clothes, gyrating to music in a bar twirling a rope above and around her. What made that scene so distinct? Apart from the sensuality of the dance, of course. More likely, its contrast to the violence and the gore in the movie. It brings a breather to the overall pace, a sight for sore eyes. And also because it is not what the viewer expected. Just as Bruce Willis is left perplexed in the scene, so would have been the audience. "Skinny little Nancy Callahan. She grew up. She filled out." These are the words Willis or rather his character thinks over as he watches Alba do her dance. The flowing hair (of Alba, not Willis!) would not have done much harm to the scene either. 

So with the next movie of the series, Sin City: A Dame to Kill For finally getting a release date this year, the question remained would Jessica Alba bring back her moves. And the answer has been confirmed lately to the delight of many a fans, that indeed Alba is returning as Nancy Callahan and would be 'doing a lot more dancing in this one'. Alba's been quoted as saying that it required her to train three months for this. More dancing can never be a problem, eh! Am looking forward to see the likes of Mickey Rourke and Bruce Willis reprise their roles... aahh, who am I kidding, looking forward to see Jessica Alba reprising her dance moves in this one! 

The Image. 

A wide release for Before Midnight pls...

A young woman got intrigued by a complete stranger on a train in Europe and decided to boldly step out with him and roam the streets of Vienna for one day. This was in 1995. The premise of Before Sunrise. A movie that can be called brazen, unthinkable, and difficult to ever recapture. What that small step by the young woman led to is, as many describe it, pure magic. It marked the beginning of a unique trilogy, each movie spanning about a decade after the other -- Before Sunrise, Before Sunset and the most recent Before Midnight. 

What makes this series so different? Because it is beyond one's imagination to conceive a full feature length film where more than 90% of the screen time is taken away by the two lead actors talking. Yep, that's right, just talking! It was the streets of Vienna in Before Sunrise, Paris in Before Sunset and now Greece in Before Midnight. In each of the movies, the conversations between the lead pair reflect the stage of their lives they are in, the values they have been ingrained with, their rebelliousness towards certain aspects of the society and yet their acceptance towards some. The first two movies are filed with lovely to and fro jabs between the lead pair, wonderfully enacted by Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, making it some kind of a match in a boxing ring, but less brutal. And from the rave reviews I am reading about Before Midnight, the same tenacity seems to continue in the verbal duels in the latest movie as well. 

Before Midnight has been showcased in the Sundance Film Festival where it has been one of the highlights. The recent story about Sony Pictures Classics acquiring distribution rights for North America and UK would further help this movie reach a larger audience. For there most definitely is a cult following of this movie franchise, no matter what age group you fall in. If you have tuned in to the first, it catches onto you so quick that within minutes you would be throwing in your opinions along with Jesse and Celine, the protagonists of this series. Alfred Hitchcock could pull off such movies with limited characters and in singular places, but then he relied on the mystery to keep the audience hooked. 12 Angry Men is another remarkable movie that I can think of which was enacted entirely in one room as 12 members of the jury debated on a young man's crime. In more recent times, Phone Booth  managed to create an intriguing story about a guy in a phone booth who cannot keep the phone down. But again there was much mystery and suspense to keep the story moving forward. Or else you have the horror flicks like Paranormal Activity where the script allows for minimal locations and characters. But to keep the audience riveted to the banter between the lead pair for an hour and a half, to the varied topics of discussions floated around!? It is something truly unique, and special. 

I am eagerly waiting for a wide release of Before Midnight this year. The talented Richard Linklater, director of the series, has not ruled out a fourth edition as well. Though if that were to happen, would we be looking at a 2023 release? Can't wait! Wine after all becomes better in taste with age.

Too many Mutants do not spoil the broth

X-Men: Days of Future Past is most definitely one of the eagerly awaited movies of 2014. The fact that it is the sequel to X-Men: First Class, which brought forth the journey of a younger Charles Xavier and Magneto, is what would get you excited enough. Follow that up with Bryan Singer, director of the first two X-Men movies, coming on board and things are really getting heated up. But the excitement does not end there. This movie is not going to act simply as a sequel to the previous movie, which itself could be considered as a prequel to the previous X-Men franchise, but might also act as a link between the two separate X-Men series given the time travel storyline it is going to be based upon. Cleverly thought! 

X-Men: Days of Future Past is about the X-Men of the present warning the X-Men of the old about an event that would put the mutants in jeopardy. So if you are still with me, the X-Men of the present are infact the older X-Men of the previous trilogy and the X-Men of the old are the younger ones from X-Men: First Class. Not confusing at all! The link between the two X-Men series is being achieved not only by the storyline, but also by the re-introduction of Bryan Singer. Having helmed the highly popular X-Men and X2 of the original franchise, Bryan Singer would have the right equation with the actors of that series to manage to snare them back in. Not that they wouldn't be wanting to!

So the buzz really started taking shape once it was announced that Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen would be reprising their roles of Professor X and Magneto, respectively. With James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender having played their younger versions so perfectly in X-Men: First Class, it is really a treat to see them pitted this time with their senior contemporaries. Though it is unlikely the young and the old would be sharing screen space together, but if somehow that were to happen... we would be having a Looper moment here! Then we got Hugh Jackman back as Wolverine. His cameo itself of a few seconds in X-Men: First Class had gotten the audience in an ecstatic uproar (the shrieks in the theatre were so loud that I could hardly make out the brief words he mouthed!) and he's now promised a bigger role in this movie. If the stories of who's returning weren't enough, now the stories are also turning on who's not going to. January Jones aka Emma Frost has revealed that she is yet to receive a call for the new movie, despite Magneto making it clear that Frost was welcome aboard towards the end of X-Men: First Class. While this omission is surprising, Famke Janssen aka Jean Grey aka Phoenix is also looking forward to a call-up, though it remains to be seen how many of the original characters will be reprised since this movie would after all be more about the younger generation of the X-Men. Return of Jean Grey remains possible though as X-Men: Days of Future Past would essentially place the events of the current X-Men generation to happen before the final movie of the original trilogy X-Men: The Last Stand, since we already know that Charles Xavier who was 'disintegrated' in X-Men: The Last Stand, is returning. Unless Bryan Singer is not worrying too much about such nitty gritty to tie-up the movie timelines. Aarghh, this thing is blowing up my mind! Can't wait for X-Men: Days of Future Past. Never has casting of each character so closely been pondered upon...

PS: Plenty news articles revealing J.J. Abrams is almost certainly the director for the next Star Wars movie. Which finally brings an end to this saga and can get things moving for Disney to see a 2015 release. But what the heck? Abrams himself gave some longish speech on why he would not do a Star Wars film. Being a fan and something like that. But am I complaining? Not really! Strange though it is that the same guy would be part of Star Trek and Star Wars movies, one thing is for sure, Abrams knows his sci-fi movies very well. And if his name is officially announced, then it would give many Star Wars fans like me hope that the franchise is in safe hands.

Neil Gaiman for the big screen!

Neil Gaiman is by no stretch of imagination an unknown figure in the world of literature. More popular because of his work on the famous Sandman graphic novel series, Neil Gaiman is a figure established in the movie world as well. He has been involved in script writing for a few films, such as the animated Beowulf, but most notably two of his literary works have been translated into movies in the previous decade, the first being Stardust and the other being Coraline. Gaiman fans would be glad to hear that another one of his popular book, The Graveyard Book, published in 2008 is being considered for an adaptation for the big screen. I have read The Graveyard Book and hence am excited by this news. 

The Graveyard Book is about a young kid who wanders into a graveyard as a toddler after a tragedy strikes his family and is then raised by ghosts and spirits until the time comes for him to step back into society. A story not different than the famous tale of Mowgli in The Jungle Book though with a different setting. But Gaiman makes it sufficiently creepy and yet gripping with his free flowing narrative style that pushes you to keep turning the pages. Now the idea of converting the premise of this book into a movie has been toyed for quite a few years, but the exciting bit this time around is that Ron Howard is being linked to the director's seat. Ron Howard is of course the one who executed his directorial duties with aplomb in the past making the likes of A Beautiful Mind and Cinderella Man. And The Graveyard Book has got enough potential for a quality director to work with. It has a supernatural eerie feel to it right till the end, after all much of the characters are living in the graveyard. But amidst this, it has themes of compassion, revenge, gratitude and young love, while a murder/thriller background keeps the tension tight and the reader on tenterhooks. I would be thrilled if someone of Howard's stature takes up this project and showcases this fine piece of work by Neil Gaiman in the artistic manner it deserves. Hope to start hearing about casting soon...

Day of Nothingness

Wedding receptions can be tiring even though all you do is eat and drink and then smile with the bride and groom. Maybe it's the strenuous task of smiling that puts all the pressure on the body muscles. Imagine the newly wed couple having to do it so after every few seconds! Coming back to the less stressful world of movies, I looked around for some interesting stories from Hollywood but there seems nothing much for the day. No news on Selena Gomez and Justin Bieber getting back together (or are they already together again?). Still no new Twilight movie news, so maybe the last one was really the last. No director yet for Star Wars: Episode VII. No director yet for the Justice League flick. Nothing further stolen by Lindsay Lohan though she has reportedly declined being part of Dancing with the Stars show, maybe because she wasn't happy with the star she was to be paired with. Such has been the day. 

There are some stories though worth mentioning. Jurassic Park IV has been given a July 2014 release date, though with Spielberg not in the director's seat I look at it with a bit of trepidation. There's a new trailer released for this year's flick Olympus has Fallen starring Gerard Butler and Aaron Eckhart. A watchable trailer which made me get interested and lose interest in a cyclical manner every 15 seconds. Such is my mood! Or such was the trailer! To bring joy to the otherwise drab heart, a lovely Rachael McAdams adorns this post with yet another one of her dazzling smiles and twinkling eyes... (this one is probably from her last year's movie The Vow)

Willis Willis Willis

The old stars are really not giving up, are they? Stallone has been thick in the movie business in the past decade and not just churning out straight to DVD stuff but creating new movie franchises like The Expendables. Schwarznegger has made his comeback attempt with The Last Stand this year and has a few more action flicks lined up. But when it comes to sheer numbers, Bruce Willis is outdoing them all, fair and square. I ain't used to seeing Hollywood stars surfacing and re-surfacing every few months on the theatre screens. One is a good figure for an year, probably two. Oh, but wait, Bruce Willis cares not! In 2012, he decided to keep sleep for another time and went ahead and delivered six films in the year. Yep, freaking six! He doesn't necessarily carry the burden of the whole movie on his shoulders anymore, but still, six!? This includes a real rainbow of movies - from the unheard and direct-to-video Fire with Fire to the rather acclaimed and gripping sci-fi Looper. I haven't seen all his flicks  of the year but I am betting the furrowed brow and the bald head would have been a constant across them all. 

So it would be fair to guess 2013 would have been an year of rest, right? Wrong. There are three already slated for the year. The fifth edition of the never ending Die Hard franchise that brings back good old grumpy John McClane (ahh, a role that will never get old enough!), the 'why did they make a sequel?' G.I. Joe: Retaliation and then Red 2, the sequel to the surprise hit of 2010. When it comes to numbers, he probably would have only Nicholas Cage to compete with who has some 7-8 films lined up in 2013. But then Cage has got his tax issues and would star in anything that is anymore offered to him (why oh why, you don't do a National Treasure 3?). Willis also got money problems? I doubt it. Maybe the guy just wants to keep his guns blazing. Pushing himself. Testing himself in the current times. Whatever, the reasons maybe, I bet it would do him no harm if he started being a bit more choosy and not drown the old McClane name amidst a plethora of mediocre films which even Nicolas Cage might reject! Eh, maybe the latter part might never happen. But I still like Bruce Willis and so here's one to the bald guy, hoping that people will still remember him for the body of work he has gifted us with. So till February, when it shall be A Good Day to Die Hard. Aarghh, you better turn out to be a good flick! 

The Last Stand: Arnie's truly back!

The guy was huge in his time. His name is huge, his forearms are huge, and his action films used to be huge. Then he became a Governor, and when he returned he was older, maybe slower, and he never managed to get rid off the thick accent. So the question was: Will Arnold Schwarznegger at the age of 65 still be worthy of being called an action hero? For me, the answer is a very simple 'Yes'. 

Arnie along with the likes of Stallone and Bruce Willis defined what action films should be like in the 80s and the 90s. Once Arnie was elected as Governor of California and the other action heroes became older, you wondered who would put their feet in the boots of these guys and fill this space in Hollywood. When you think of it, no one really did it with much distinction. Jason Statham is the one who probably came the closest but his movies are tending to repeat themselves a bit too often. There have been the likes of Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson, but these guys do not really market themselves as action heroes. In fact some of the best action of the last decade would have been from the Bourne series or Bond series and again Matt Damon and Daniel Craig are not your typical action heroes. So it is in fact no surprise, when Stallone actually found a market to launch a movie each in the Rocky and Rambo series, both of which did well commercially. And then as a homage to the years gone by, he rounded up all the ones who ever acted in true action movies and pulled off Expendables and its sequel, which again brought in good money to the studio. So in such a world, it is good to see Schwarznegger coming back. Call it nostalgia, call it the love for the way action heroes used to do stuff when there were gun fights, car chases, fist fights, lots of running, all wrapped in one package, where your hero was the typical hero and not the modern day version of a 'deeper character with complexities', call it whatever you may, I am glad that "he is back"!  

The Last Stand stands up to the trial. Arnold Schwarznegger plays an old sheriff, probably close to retirement, who lives in a peaceful town bordering Mexico. Cometh the drug lord who has escaped the clutches of the FBI and is racing a Corvette ZR1 (the car has its moments throughout the movie!) from LA to Arnie's town to jump across to Mexico. The old sheriff is required to stand his ground and take on the drug lord, while at the same time worrying about his inexperienced deputies. Arnie still has an unmatched screen presence and while no one would gung-ho about his acting skills, he remains an imposing figure on the screen from whom you cannot take your eyes off. The best move for the movie was probably keeping it R-rated which allowed for some real gritty shooting scenes which makes the whole drama more life-like. 

I liked Jee-woon Kim's direction in this film and looking on his profile on imdb.com, noticed that some of his previous works are also well rated. What Kim did best here, he seems to have structured the script around an ageing Schwarznegger while not forgetting what made him click in his prime days. There are the one-liners at the most opportune times "I am the sheriff!", the fist fight that would make you feel sorry for the guy coming across that huge bulging hand, the different arsenal of guns that Schwarznegger uses with ease. The tension built up towards the end is worthy of any Schwarznegger movie and a special mention of the car chase / slamming scene in the climax across maize fields, which was fantastic. The Last Stand is a thoroughly enjoyable ride, not only meant for Arnie fans, but fans of action  movies itself. Made on a modest budget, I hope that Arnie still carries around the star appeal especially in foreign markets to bring in good numbers to the studio. This is pure unadulterated action, people. Enjoy!

And for the real die-hard ones. Yep, he still uses his favourite line in the flick though with a moderation -- "I'll be right back". Keep your ears open to catch this one! 

Broken City: Leaves much to be desired

The few things that get me interested in a movie are either one of these points or a combination: a) Stellar cast of actors, b) Acclaimed director, c) Part of a hit movie franchise, d) Riveting trailer, e) Created from some known book/novel... well alright, it appears a lot of things get me interested in a movie. What got Broken City to my attention was definitely the casting. Now January is a tricky month to watch movies for it seems like a testing phase for studios to kick off the year, with usually lower budget movies hitting the theatres and earnings of $100 million rare. But Mark Whalberg had seen success in January of last year with Contraband which was another action / crime thriller, and Broken City falling in a similar kind of genre, I was up for it. Add the presence of Russell Crowe and Catherine Zeta-Jones (am seeing her after such a long time, having not watched the duds she was a part of in 2012), and there was a twinkle in my eyes when I took the seat to watch this flick. 

The twinkle however disappeared soon enough. Broken City starts off with an interesting first shot -- a bearded Wahlberg with a gun in his hand standing atop a dead guy. The initial pace of the film seems fine, giving the impression that things would heat up soon. Alas, the increase in intensity of the film comes in bits and pieces and leaves much to be desired. As the plot tried to 'thicken' with Wahlberg pursuing the reason why Russell Crowe, the mayor of New York city, wanted his wife, the ever so remarkable Catherine Zeta-Jones, to be followed and investigated, I was by then left a bit dulled out already, so that the key 'ooohhh' moments barely caused me to twitch. The reason you still watch it from the beginning to the end is largely because of Wahlberg who is perfect in his role, as an ex-cop turned private eye. He is best in such roles demanding him to keep a furrowed forehead and this was another example. Catherine Zeta-Jones sadly has limited screen time, though a fine and graceful actress she is.

Russell Crowe plays the tough mayor, keen on winning the re-election, and his performance kind of let me down. Now Crowe is a class act on his day and I could keep you all night talking about the range of amazing performances he has displayed throughout his career. Broken City would however not be discussed in the same breath; it better be forgotten soon. The screenplay also seemed too straight forward and underdeveloped at times that probably limited what Crowe could have done with his role. And if you were to compare his role with that of George Clooney's somewhat similar tough politician act in The Ides of March, you will understand my disappointment with Crowe. Amidst all this, some of the best moments of the movie surprisingly stemmed whenever Wahlberg's character's assistant, Katy Bradshaw played by Alona Tal, came onto the screen. The fans of Supernatural series would remember her as the demon hunter, Jo Harvelle, and as I looked up her profile, she appears to have been involved with number of TV series, the latest being Cult. Alona had some of the snappiest lines in Broken City and she seemed to energise what was otherwise a rather tepid movie. A silver lining was found after all...

Up next, The Last Stand. 

A Date with the Pirates

"Now bring me that horizon!" says Captain Jack Sparrow as the screen fades into darkness and marks the end of Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, while also ensuring the start of a spectacular movie series filled with fun, adventure, humour, love and above all, Jack Sparrow. Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise has seen four movies released across 8 years and in the process grossing $3.7 billion in worldwide revenues. Not enough... no? So here we go again! Disney has announced the release date for Pirates of the Caribbean 5 -- July 10, 2015 -- with Johnny Depp reprising the legendary character once again. 

I hear the skeptics moaning. "No, it will never be as good as the first one!" "Oh, they are going to ruin the franchise!" "How long can Depp pull it off?" To all those with frowns, I say, zip it! This is one of the most exciting bit of news I have come across in recent times. What it means essentially is, we get to see more of witty Jack. So what if it ain't gonna be as good as the first one, or the second one. My heart not yearns for a classic movie each time I step into the theatre. But a movie as fun-filled and adventurous as I am sure a Pirates of the Caribbean movie would be, is what I am willing to grab on to. I could personally do with watching Jack Sparrow sprinting around deftly while escaping the guards on his heels, chattering incessantly through his crooked teeth, each summer. And so when they get it out after a four-year period, heck no, I ain't complaining!  

And why wouldn't Disney tilt towards another movie in this franchise? The last instalment was the one I heard most grumble about. And while it had the lowest collections of the series in US, it had the highest collections across the world. About $800 million collections from non-US market is a huge amount! Timing one movie after every three to four year period seems like a sound strategy for the period lifts your enthusiasm to see the ale drinking pirates once again. And in the interim period, I fail to recollect any movie of a similar nature that has created much of a ripple with only The Hobbit coming to my mind that can be termed as a larger-than-life adventure packed movie. The key has always been Johnny Depp  for this series, even though he is matched every step by a talented cast, not least of all Geoffrey Rush aka Captain Barbossa. But one cannot imagine Pirates of the Caribbean without Johnny and without Jack!  So Johnny Depp was 40 when the first movie released and would be 52 when the fifth instalment hits the theatres, and I would gladly wager that  he would  still have the spring in his stride to pull off a couple more before Disney mulls over the ideas of spin-offs around the plethora of characters the tales have carried. The fate of the series though shall be seen when time calls upon us to ponder. For now I ask you what Tia Dalma asked the others: Would you sail to the ends of the earth and back to fetch back witty Jack, and him precious Pearl? 

Oh yeah!!

The British Voice

Well, I put forth my discovery for today. It may not be a discovery at all. You may not agree with the hypothesis itself, you may come up with other 'data points' to disprove what I seek to prove here. Nonetheless, the connections I have noticed today seem too remarkable for there not to be an underlying pattern beneath it all. That it cannot be a mere coincidence. That the hand of God has played a part somewhere. Ok, ok... I am getting carried away. So here it is. My discovery. All the best sounding actors in Hollywood come from the United Kingdom. 

Before you jump off your seat in a state of incredulity and yell about this impudent statement, I urge you to think again. Though here I must confess my love for the British accent. But even keeping that aside, some of the most masculine sounding voices mixed with eloquence befitting that of one with royal blood oozes from UK bred actors. Daniel Day-Lewis is there top on my list, who it seems knows not how to talk like a common man. This is what he said on the screenwriter of Lincoln, Tony Kushner, while accepting his Golden Globe: "Everyday I have to live without the immeasurable wealth of your language, which reminds me everyday of the impoverishment of my own."

Sir Ian McKellan has left us riveting innumerable times with the enunciation of his dialogues, either be it as Gandalf or as Magneto. Liam Neeson, an Irish man, has a depth in his voice which makes the screen his own. And he definitely made a few hearts stop when he uttered those memorable lines: "I will look for you, I will find you, and I will kill you." Clive Owen may not be one of those 'royal lineage' actors, but his gruff sounding voice does add a further dimension to his acting that makes him perfect for characters like Dwight in Sin City. then we have the likes of Alan Rickman, Jeremy Irons, Gary Oldman... hmm, I'm surely forgetting a few more. Oh and the perfectly charming Hugh Grant simply drives the British accent home! And if you got something for the Scottish touch, the original Bond, Sir Sean Connery, is the start and end of it all. This may not be a comprehensive list for sure. But hey, it's a thought, Maybe like Sparta gave you the perfect warriors, United Kingdom does give you the perfect sounding men!

Clinton at Golden Globes! OMG!

One of the highlights of the 2013 Golden Globes was of course the arrival of former US President Bill Clinton to introduce Spielberg's Lincoln. Clinton has an aura that keeps many spell bound, the standing ovation that he received at the Golden Globes a testament to this. And then of course is his mesmerizing talking style, the deft movement of the eyes, the right amount of hand gestures, filled with pauses at the appropriate moments. Here is what he said on stage at the Golden Globes:

A tough fight [pause] to push a bill through a bitterly (emphasis) divided House of Representatives. [pause] Winning it required the President to make a lot of unsavoury deals (hand gesture) [pause] that had nothing to do with the big issue. I wouldn’t know anything about that. [laughter] President Lincoln struggled to abolish slavery [pause] reminds us that enduring progress is forged in a cauldron of both (emphasis) principle and compromise . [pause] This brilliant film shows he did it and gives us hope that we can do it again. [pause] In Lincoln we see a man more interesting than the legend and a far better guide for future Presidents. Every hard fought effort to protect our Union [pause] has demanded the same same (emphasis) combination [pause] of steely resolve and necessary compromises that Lincoln mastered [pause] to preserve the Union and end slavery. We’re all here tonight (hand gesture) [pause] because he did.

Youtube video below if you want to practice this art in front of a mirror. 

Golden Globes: The Fun Award Show

Watching the repeat telecast of The Golden Globes. And Arnie and Sly are to come up together to present an award later on! That's what the announcer just said. Interesting. Already seen Will Ferrell and Kirsten Wiig present an award in a wacky manner, acting all clueless about the nominees. Then there was big Bill, uh,  sorry, Bill Clinton introducing Lincoln movie in his mesmerizing style. Later on came Robert Pattinson who seemed genuinely lost (no awards for Twilight movies, whaaat!?) on stage. Jason Statham and JLo looked like they did not wish to leave the stage. Quentin Tarantino was going all 'Damn!' and 'Damn!' on winning his Golden Globe. Jennifer Lawrence was in a 'I beat Meryl!' mood. Anne Hathway seemed to be reading from her Oscar speech. 

All in all sounds like another fun night. And that is what Golden Globes tries to be. Successfully, I must add. With actors sitting around tables close to another, rather than in a line ready to be shot one after another, Golden Globes is said to be the 'chilled out' version of the Oscars. The award nominees are more relaxed, maybe less envy around, less of the 'Oh my god!' crying (though it still remains in abundance) with the organizers not pushing people off the stage if your 'thank the world' speech isn't completed in the prescribed time. It still carries the classy touch nonetheless. Some people like Daniel Day Lewis still look like lords of another era, in whatever kind of atmosphere they be put in. Also, the winners of the Golden Globes become one of the favourites to hold aloft the Oscars that would fall about a month later. In one category at least, that is not going to hold true this time. Ben Affleck who won the Best Director Award at the Golden Globes does not even feature in the Oscars nominees. 'Damn' - Tarantino style! Affleck is worthy of his award, and I feel good for this guy who's started getting things finally right in his career. And the way his career is moving, the Oscar may not be too far off. 

For the list of winners of the Golden Globes, follow this link.

http://www.imdb.com/oscars/nominations/golden-globes

And let's hear it once more for Ben!

Gangster Squad: And the year begins

For me, 2013 has officially begun now. My first movie of the year... done! Gangster Squad.

This movie was in my watchlist for 2012 but with re-shooting done for certain parts, the movie was shifted to early 2013. And it's been a nice classy way to start off movie watching for another year. Gangster Squad takes us to the late 40's, in a mob run Los Angeles where to entrap one of the big bosses, Mickey Cohen, the LAPD decides there is only one way to stop him - go on a war path and shatter him. The movie attracted my attention for the ensemble cast that has been put together. While the main stage is taken by Josh Brolin, Sean Penn and Ryan Gosling with Emma Stone playing the femme fatale, the supporting cast also stands out, especially Nick Nolte and Robert Patrick (loved the scene where he hits the beer can repeatedly in the air). The movie's style is slick, the dialogues are crisply written, and what stands out is the production art with the feel of an older LA distinctly standing out. 

There are some lines such as 'Say hello to Santa Claus' (if I do remember it correctly) which Sean Penn shouts out before going berserk with the gun in his hand shooting through a Christmas tree, that may have been as well remembered as 'Say hello to my little friend' screamed by Al Pacino in Scarfacre, if Gangster Squad could have achieved the fame of the latter. But sadly Gangster Squad does not manage to interweave everything perfectly well to achieve such recognition. There are some characters that lack in enough back story - poor character development, as some call it. The background score does not add enough to the mood of the film. The movie entertains, keeps you hooked, makes you scream and squirmish, and root for the good guys, but it falls short of giving you the goosebumps. Falls short of making you reflect back once you leave the dimly lighted theatre. 

Nonetheless, it's a gritty movie, something that has enough in it to make the year begin on a good note. Watch it for the wonderful cast and the class they bring to the table. Ryan Gosling would make his female fans swoon once again as he plays the charmer to perfection, the one who has lost heart from the city and then regains it. Emma Stone comes across again as an actress who has enough mettle about her to take on varying roles, though a bit more depth in her character should have been added by the writers. The other support cast in the police squad are wonderful too in their bit part roles, adding credibility to the whole task at hand. But the movie finally boils down to Josh Brolin versus Sean Penn. Josh Brolin as the 'hero cop' who seeks justice, and delivers it at any cost, fighting against the system that is going against the very course it was meant to take, excels. His gruffy voice and enigmatic personality makes him a perfect fit for the incorruptible cop and the leader of the Gangster Squad. But Sean Penn, it has to be said, steals the show. I'm watching this guy after a long time. And his representation of Micky Cohen as a mean, aggressive gangster, madly driven to rise to the top of the crime world is superlative. It reminded me once again of the old Sean Penn, the one from Mystic River, or the one from Dead Man Walking. While his role in Gangster Squad would not be outrightly comparable with those award worthy performances, it's still good to see the big guy stepping in his big boots and delivering a chilling performance. Entertaining overall as I wait further for what the year has to offer! 

Book Series -> Movie Franchise -> Success?

I'm currently into my fourth book of the Percy Jackson series. For those not familiar with Rick Riordan's work, this book series follows the adventures of a demi-god - son of Greek God Poseidon and a human lady - as he embarks on various quests in the US of today. It's a fun filled series with lots of characters and stories from Greek mythology though told with a more humorous and less ferocious tone. Now when you read the book you can see the makings of a movie franchise here. And given the popularity of the Harry Potter series which was about to come to a close, Percy Jackson was supposed to take over the mantle of meeting the aspirations of the young crowd to be part of quests in magical worlds where the young hero evades one danger after another, along with loyal friends and blossoming young love. 

In case you missed it, the first movie titled after the book Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief was released in early 2010. It was a dud! While it did earn $226 million in worldwide ticket sales, this comes no way near the mark set by Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the first of the Harry Potter series - $975 million! The studios haven't given up on the series - the first one would have made some profit after all - and the second movie Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters is set for a release in the second half of this year. I am hopeful that they will get it right this time around so that this too does not go down the drain as many such movie adaptions of popular books have. Maybe the mistakes have been understood. Or maybe in the most bizarre of circumstances someone from the movie sets would end up reading this blog and understand how such movies need to be made. 

a) Get your casting right. That's what I think Harry Potter movies got bang on. You are bringing to life what so many readers have created in their heads and cannot see them any other way. So let the big guy in the book be big, let the blonde be blonde, the charmer be the charmer. Let not Tom Cruise play Jack Reacher.

b) Make it on a larger scale. Like the Harry Potter and The Lord of the Rings series. The ones with the franchise potential are largely fantasy based books like was the case with Eragon and Inkheart. But if you don't create this grand larger-than-life feel around it, it ain't gonna bring second-time viewers.

c) Create it with a heart. Famous books aren't only about narration of a story. They have an underlying theme. They talk about strength and character many times without explicitly stating it. That needs to get showcased in the script that is written. You really need a fan somewhere in the writing team or production house to understand what the story is actually all about.

d) Dig in for the right director. This isn't just another movie. The way a J.J. Abrams can bring back Star Trek, you need the right man to care enough about the movie to build on what the books have already created.

e) Advertise. You already have a fan base ready, thanks to the books. Seek them out and get them interested. Get your trailers right so that it gets them talking. And then they'll drag in the non-book fans too. It's a shame how some of these movies just came and disappeared, hardly creating a buzz amongst even the fans of the books. 

It's sad the way some mediocre movie making has led to the demise of potential movie franchises that could have been generated from these books - Eragon, Inkheart, Golden Compass, The Spiderwick Chronicles,  Alex Cross, possibly now even Jack Reacher. Maybe there will be reboots and improved efforts somewhere in time, to bring these movies back on the big screens in the manner which they deserve. Until then, the talks of bringing life into a book series by creating a movie franchise around it will be listened to with some joy and some trepidation.

And the Oscar Nomination goes to...

The quest for the Golden Lady begins once again! The Oscar nominations have been released today. No surprises in seeing Lincoln garner 12 nominations, a movie rooted around the life of Abraham Lincoln during the civil war period. It is one of the few movies of 2012 that I missed and really want to catch hold of. Lincoln is followed by Life of Pi with 11 nominations, Les Miserables with 8 and Argo with 7 nominations. A complete list of nominations is available here -- http://www.imdb.com/oscars/nominations/

As with every Oscar there are the usual 'oohh they missed him / her out' and 'when did this release?' apart from the 'where is the after-party?'! Well, the most noticeable miss-out seems to be Ben Affleck for his directorial brilliance in Argo -- a movie that would be one of the few ones along with Lincoln that has enjoyed critical and commercial success, two segments that do not necessarily go hand in hand. Former winner Kathryn Bigelow does not get a look-in for Best Director this time for Zero Dark Thirty, though the movie itself has gathered 5 nominations. 

It's good to see some old-timers in the list for Best Supporting Actor, especially Robert De Niro who has been nominated for the Oscars after a gap of 21 years! Along side him are the likes of Tommy Lee Jones and Alan Arkin with a combined age here of probably 1000 years. Or more. Good to always see veterans on board though! Same goes for Daniel Day Lewis, who probably decides after 5 years that it is time to collect an Academy, Sally Field and Helen Hunt. I am specially pleased for Hugh Jackman for his first nomination this time, even though he's unlikely to win the Oscar, but the big guy deserved this moment. He's already hosted the show, maybe soon he shall win this award too. And Beasts of the Southern Wild, a Russian film, is likely to fall in the category of 'never heard before but now I want to see it' with its 4 nominations. Time for a re-release to catch on the Oscar buzz!

So here we are... Feb 24, 2013 is when the winners shall be announced and the golden statues be distributed. If not for that, then at least tune in to hear Adele sing the title track of Skyfall, nominated in the Best Achievement in Music Written category. 

Let the sky fall, when it crumbles.. We will stand tall... And face it all... together

Some casting news... if you care

I am in no mood to write anything. And yet I do. I do not know why. Maybe it's just the innate need to complete the task that I assign myself. Or maybe I desperately want to voice my cluttered thoughts. Or maybe I got nothing better to do. Or maybe movies are the last source of happiness I cling on to. On a day that I feel I may have the symptoms of 'blunted affect'. Maybe, maybe not! Grrrr... I am just not in the mood to write. 

So with that state of mind all I will do is pass on information. Such as the casting of Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Sin City 2. The kid is becoming popular with each day and it seems time to get rid of such a long name and come up with something cooler. JG Levitt? Sounds like an old man's name. Well, JGL has come a long way from the young charming boy I recall in 10 Things I Hate About You, a teenage rom-com movie which I had then felt was filled with talented cast members (a certain Heath Ledger was in the mix too). He's grown in sizeable proportions since then such that his name will now add as much value to the Sin City franchise as much as the movie would add value to his name. On the other hand, a newcomer  has been cast in Transformers 4 along side Mark Wahlberg and Michael Bay is going gung-ho about how the young chosen one arrived from Ireland to USA with just 30 bucks. Well, maybe his pocket was picked on the way. Or maybe he did not care, as I do not care right now. Let it be an interesting story once he becomes an A-list Hollywood actor rather than ruining it now. And for all those who still scream that Transformers series is not a classic, well boo hoo to you, just live with it. If Bay's recent statements are anything to go by, this is likely to be another trilogy, so get ready to listen to the word Transformers a bit too often!

Anything else to say? Uhh... no. Maybe there must be some more important news told somewhere. But with the state I am in right now, I really couldn't care less (not entirely true!). To better days... 

PS: In case you wondering why the image of clouds amidst all this, the answer is simple: I just felt like it!

Star Wars Episode VII: Missing Director

Ever since Disney created quite a stir with its purchase of Lucas Films for a whooping $4 billion and announced its intention of launching the next trilogy of the epic Star Wars series, the buzz on the internet has not seen any respite.  Will we see the return of Luke Skywalker? Will Harrison Ford reprise his role of Hans Solo? Where does Darth Vader now feature in all this? The actors of the previous two trilogies have expressed their desires to feature in the new series. The fans have not been far behind in voicing their opinions on where the franchise should move. And with all this buzz, including a writing team being put in place to release the seventh installment for a 2015 release, the most iimportant question still remains unanswered. Who will direct the next episode of this saga? Surprisingly, we do not know yet.

Names have been floated by whosoeverer has an opinion. And in all this drama we have been led to is a long list of famous directors who will not be filling the director's seat for Star Wars: Episode VII. Guillermo del Toro is the latest name who has mentioned about a telephone call enquiring on his availability which he politely refused. Brad Bird has ruled himself out. So has Quentin Tarantino, though I am not sure if he was asked for such a movie in the first place (Star Wars with a cowboy theme, maybe?). J.J. Abrams has opted out calling himself too big a fan and wanting to only savour watching the movie. Steven Spielberg has dropped out. George Lucas is of course been made too rich by Disney to need any sort of job.  

So what's causing this dilemma? What is stopping the best of the lot from taking up one of the most talked about movies of this decade? I was given an opinion that this movie is too big a deal already, too hot to touch. But that made me wonder, wouldn't the best in the business be up for the challenge? A great director would hardly fret over living upto the duel that the series brings with it. Over managing to satisfy fans of three and a half decades. The reasons could lie somewhere else. Maybe the timelines are too tight. Disney is looking for a summer 2015 release and it is still working on the framework of the story. These directors are likely to have projects for the next one - two years available with them that leaves lesser time for a Star Wars flick. With Star Wars being a not-so-ordinary movie, the effort and the time to be put in by the director would also have to be not-so-ordinary. The deterrent for some could also be the fact that all said and done, this would be the 7th instalment of a movie series which they did not create. Most of these great directors are known for building their own projects, not continuing someone else's work Or maybe, in some weird way, it is not challenging enough. Knowing that it is likely to rake in the dollars with such a large fan base, it might not be the legacy that these directors are looking out.

There are still a few well-known directors whose names have not been thrown in the hat yet, or else it might just be the destiny of some lesser known one to take up the mantle that others have so far refused. Whichever way it goes, this is a story worth keeping eye on. And to whoever dons this much-talked about role, May the Force be with You! 

Total Recall: Arnold's Autobiography

This is what I completed today.

Total Recall - the autobiography of Arnold Schwarzenegger published in 2012. Took me about a month to read it. Got more than 600 pages after all. But the man's story could not be told in fewer. Born in a village in Austria, Schwarzenegger eventually grew up to become the Governor of California in USA and along this journey also became one of the most prominent bodybuilders, evolved into an action hero in Hollywood who delivered multiple box office hits and married one from the Kennedy clan. This book highlights the the competitive spirit in the man, his attitude of choosing big goals and then chasing them with single-mindedness. A determination that is inspiring. 

As a young kid, Schwarzenegger was one of my favourite movie actors. My early images of him are of course the ones that will always remain, wearing a black jacket with a gun in his hand as he rides the Harley chasing the T-1000 in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. But if you look at his movie roster, the guy hardly got anything wrong in the 80's and 90's. Right from Conan the Barbarian, which was his first box-office hit, Schwarzenegger truly invented the glass smashing and gun yielding modern action hero with a slew of hits spanning two decades.  

Total Recall however covers so much more, his achievements in other avenues – his bodybuilding days, his construction business, his foray in real estate, his political stand – apart from also capturing Schwarzenegger, the family man. It is a book written with a warm heart, a man’s thoughts about himself, a man who strived for a lot and achieved most of his goals. So whichever way you see him, like him or hate him, what you cannot deny is that Arnold Schwarzenegger has been at the top of his game, in whichever field he was, for a long long time. A story worth reading about...