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MOV049: “This Is Our Once A Year Day”

In the 49th reel, the boys go back in time to check out the musical about working in a 1950’s pajama factory.  Yes, that’s correct..working in a 1950’s pajama factory!  Does “The Pajama Game” still fit today?  (Ba-dum-dum)  In current film, they FINALLY check out the ILM animated feature “Rango”.  Did they find any redeeming qualities in the random cast of desert animals searching for water or should they have just died of thirst?  Lastly, the boys check out the trailer for the upcoming “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides”.  Is Jack Sparrow still relevant or should he just down with the ship?  All of this and movie news about remakes of “Texas Chainsaw Massacre” and “The Crow” (yeah, that’s what we thought too!), along with updates on the sequels to the not yet released “Thor” and “Captain America”, and what’s going on with George Takei (rhymes with gay).  Don’t pass up this “jammy” packed episode!

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News:

The Past: The Pajama Game (1957)
Rotten Tomatoes: 90% Fresh / 66% Audience

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Director: George Abbott, Stanley Donen

Starring: Doris Day, John Raitt, Carol Haney, Eddie Foy Jr., Reta Shaw, Jack Straw, Ralph Dunn, Barbara Nichols, Thelma Pelish

Trivia:

  • 39% of the cast is from the original Broadway production.
  • The soundtrack LP, released by Columbia Records, vaulted to ninth position among “Billboard”‘s popular albums.
  • A song written specifically for Doris Day, “The Man Who Invented Love” (music and lyrics by Richard Adler), wound up on the cutting-room floor. Currently, the recording can be listened to on the soundtrack CD from Collectables, and the footage can be watched on the DVD from Warner Home Video.
  • The original Broadway production of “The Pajama Game” opened at the St. James Theater in New York on May 13, 1954, ran for 1,063 performances and won the 1955 Tony Award for the Best Musical. Shirley MacLaine was in the ensemble and was an understudy to Carol Haney. Miss MacLaine did go on for Miss Haney at least once during the Broadway run, allowing her to perform the popular songs “Steam Heat” and “Hernando’s Hideaway”. John Raitt, Carol Haney, Eddie Foy Jr., Reta Shaw, Thelma Pelish, Ralph Dunn, Ralph W. Chambers, Mary Stanton and Buzz Miller were in the original cast and recreated their roles in the movie version.
  • Frank Sinatra turned down the lead role in The Pajama Game (1957), which would have paired him up with Janis Paige, who played the role on Broadway. As a result, Paige lost out on playing the part to Doris Day, who was considered a bigger box-office draw

Talking Points:

  • What does this say about the state of society at the time it was made?
  • Undertones of Romeo and Juliet?

What We’ve Learned:

  • The second hand doesn’t understand that your back may break and your fingers ache and your constitution isn’t made of rock
  • 7½ cents doesn’t buy a heck of a lot
  • Its not ok to hit employees, but its ok to shove them
  • Not only is free beer at a company picnic acceptable its encouraged!
  • Just knock 3 times and whisper low that you and I were sent by Joe

Trailer:

Recommendations:
Jeff: There’s a special place in my heart for this movie as I had an amazing time being in the play in High School. Best shape I’ve ever been in.
Ray:I dig musicals, but this one was a no go for me.. I kept falling asleep
Steve: I am a huge fan of musicals…especially many classics in film. However, it was difficult for me to get into this one, despite knowing it was highly successful.

The Present: Rango
Rotten Tomatoes: 89% Fresh / 72% Audience

Director: Gore Verbinski

Starring: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Stephen Root

Trivia:

  • This is the first animated feature produced by special effects company Industrial Light & Magic.
  • Rattlesnake Jake was modeled after Lee Van Cleef.
  • Ned Beatty based his performance on that of John Huston’s in Chinatown (1974).:
  • Johnny Depp character Rango was modeled after Don Knotts character Barney Fife from “The Andy Griffith Show” (1960).
  • The first cat that Beans talks to in Dirt is an obvious vocal impression of staple western actor Pat Buttram.
  • Spirit of the West was modeled after Clint Eastwood.
  • The wanted posters in the sheriff’s office offer rewards for “Lockjaw Smith” and “Disco Lovejoy.”

Talking Points:

  • Anyone catch the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas reference?
  • Lots of facial close ups.
  • Does knowing how this movie was filmed make you appreciate it any more or less?
  • What do you think about the animation itself?
  • Did you have a favorite character?

What We Learned:

  • If you want to find water you must find Dirt
  • The desert and death are the closest of friends
  • Cactus root is a natural laxative

Trailer:

Recommendations:
Jeff: A couple of funny reference moment, but the movie overall was just okay. Amazing animation though.
Ray: Kudos to ILM for amazing visuals… Story was ok, but I felt it went on way too long.
Steve: I thought it looked great, although some of the characters were creepy looking (Dark Crystal). Not sure that I feel it’s a kid’s movie – kind of in the vein of Nightmare Before Christmas – but I overall liked it. The voice acting was very good.

The Future: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Starring: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane

Trivia:

  • The title was revealed by Johnny Depp in character as Jack Sparrow, at Disney’s D23 Expo on September 11, 2009.
  • Disney’s Head of Production Oren Aviv said that this would “hopefully be the first of another trilogy.”
  • Johnny Depp said he agreed to star in this, before “there was a script or anything”.
  • This film is loosely based on the 1988 pirate novel ‘On Stranger Tides’, by Tim Powers. The novel’s protagonist is a pirate named Jack, but his character is significantly different from Jack Sparrow
  • In May 2010, Disney announced that this movie will be filmed using 3-D cameras. The special effects, however, will be rendered in 2-D then converted to 3-D to keep the budget lower.
  • This is the only “Pirates” film to not be directed by Gore Verbinski.
  • Penélope Cruz was pregnant during the filming of the movie

Talking Points:

  • Penelope Cruz – draw or detraction?
  • Is this franchise worth our time or has it “jumped the shark”?

Summary:

When Captain Jack Sparrow crosses paths with the enigmatic Angelica, he’s not sure if it’s love — or if she’s a ruthless con artist who’s using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. When she forces him aboard the “Queen Anne’s Revenge,” the ship of the legendary pirate Blackbeard, Jack finds himself on an unexpected adventure in which he doesn’t know whom to fear more: Blackbeard or Angelica, with whom he shares a mysterious past.

Trailer:

Excitement:
Jeff: Yes, we do need another Pirates Movie. I like the idea of just making each one an individual story.
Ray: I have really no interest in this series anymore, it’s hard to get excited about it.
Steve: I am not particularly interested in the franchise anymore…but I do admit that this one looks better than any of the previous to me.

Coming Attractions

The Past
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The Present

The Future

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MOV011: “You Musn’t Be Afraid To Dream A Little Bigger, Darling!”

Tron reveals too much, Comic-con in review, Beauty and The Beast in 3D, Is “The Kid’s All Right” All Right, Quentin Tarantino shows us True Romance, We find out if it’s all just a dream, and Jeff yawns at Johnny Depp’s lizard.

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News:

The Past: True Romance (1993)

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Director: Tony Scott (Written By Quintin Tarantino)

Staring: Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, Michael Rappaport, Bronson Pinchot, Saul Rubinek, Dennis Hopper, James Gandolfini, Gary Oldman, Christopher Walken, Chris Penn, Tom Sizemore, Brad Pitt, Val Kilmer, Samuel L. Jackson

Trivia:

  • Bronson Pinchot Ad-Libbed the scene when he was caught with the cocaine
  • The screenplay of True Romance (1993) was originally part of a very long screenplay written by Quentin Tarantino and Roger Avary. The other half of it was used for the film Natural Born Killers (1994). In both films Tom Sizemore plays a cop.
  • The word “fuck” and its derivatives are said 225 times
  • There are 21 on-screen deaths, all male, all from death by gunshot
  • Dennis Hopper was concerned about being “shot” by Christoper Walken in the eggplant scene with the gun so close to his head and the possibility of being burned, Director Tony Scott had the propmaster use the same gun to fire it against his own head. Apon Firing the gun barrel extended about a third of an inch, and scott ended up on the floor with blood pouring from the wound.
  • Michael Rappaport has a fear of roller coasters, and suffers from accute motion sickness.. the scene was filmed over 2 days, and if you look closely you can tell which scenes were shot on the first day (he looks apprehensive and nauseous) and the second day (he looks calm and oblivious to his surroundings) due to the crew giving him “something” to calm his nerves
  • Tarantino’s original ending had Clarence dying in the gun battle, leaving Alabama a widow. Tarantino said that he intended Alabama to turn to crime and join with Mr. White, a character from Reservoir Dogs (1992) (which he wrote and directed). In a flashback scene in Reservoir Dogs (1992), Mr. White is asked about “Alabama”
  • Director Tony Scott is brother to other famous Director Ridley Scott

Talking Points:

  • Lots of cameos/actors before they were big.
  • Impressive how Alabama gets beat up and survives a fire fight, yet has perfect teeth!
  • Had some “Heathers-ish” vibes to it (gun toating Christian Slater, righting wrongs, music)

What We’ve Learned:

  • It aint white boy day.
  • If your going to accidentally steal cocaine from the mob, its best not to leave your drivers license in the hand of your wife’s dead pimp.
  • Theres a difference between a Whore and a Call-Girl
  • Its better to have a gun and not need it, then to need a gun and not have it.
  • If you’re going to have an imaginary friend, it may as well be Elvis!

Trailer:

Recommendations:

Jeff: Meh, good enough Rental.
Ray: Love it, I can watch this movie over and over and over again.
Steve: Enjoyed it! Had no idea this movie existed, but liked it a lot.

The Present: Inception

Director: Christopher Nolan

Staring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphey, Tom Berenger, Michael Cain, Marion Cotillard

Trivia:

Talking Points:

  • Basically we saw all the special effects set pieces in the trailer.. was anyone surprised by anything in the movie?
  • Was this movie overly complicated?
  • This movie had a unrelenting pace.. did you find it hard to keep up with it?
  • Did anyone else feel some of the music sounded like Mortal Kombat?
  • Would 3-D have enhanced this movie?

What We’ve Learned:

  • Don’t trust reality…it could all just be a dream.

Trailer:

Recommendations:

Jeff: Avatar-ish in that it’s just another heist movie but done differently in a very good way.
Ray: While I enjoyed it, I found the whole thing rather cold and uninspired.
Steve: Enjoyed it, especially Tom Hardy! (who by the way is the new Mad Max) 🙂

The Future: Rango

Starring: Voices of Johnny Depp, Timothy Olyphant, Ned Beatty, Ray Winstone, Stephen Root, Harry Dean Stanton, Bill Nighy

Trivia:

  • Director Gore Verbinski was the creator of the Budweiser Frogs
  • This is Industrial Light and Magic’s first full length animated film.

Talking Points:

  • Anyone see the original teaser trailer? Bizzare.
  • Supposedly this is using motion capture tech to capture Johnny’s performance, does it look mo-capped to you?
  • At 1:47 in the trailer, is it just me or does the guy driving the car look very much like Johnny Depp’s version of Hunter S. Thompson from Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas?

Trailer:

Excitement:

Jeff: Another animated movie to roll my eyes at.
Ray: I think it looks fun, I’m interested to see what Johnny Does in an animated movie not directed by Tim Burton.
Steve: Next… 🙂

Coming Attractions: Steve

The Past: The Pirate Movie
The Present: Salt
The Future: Paranormal Activity 2

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MOV007: “Can I do this, Or Do I look Like some sort of Gay Superhero?”

Steve is in studio with Jeff, Tron Legacy and Comiccon, Peter Jackson directing the Hobbit?, A Dark Crystal sequel, Jeffrey, Toy Story 3, and the Smurfs Teaser Trailer.

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News:

The Past: Jeffrey

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Director: Christopher Ashley

Staring: Steven Webber, Michael T Weiss, Patrick Stewart

Trivia:

  • Bryan Batt was in the Broadway musical “Cats”, which is an in-joke during the movie (his character is also in the musical as well.)
  • When the priest (Nathan Lane) goes into the confessional and shows Jeffrey his theatre posters, there is a poster for the 1992 revival of “Guys and Dolls” featured prominently on the wall. Nathan Lane actually starred in that production.
  • Patrick Stewart was reading the script for this film while Star Trek: Generations (1994) was in production. He found it so sad that he used it to produce the appropriate feelings necessary for weeping during the scene where he finds out that his family back on earth has perished in a fire.
  • This movie is based on a play of the same name that was produced off-Broadway in 1993 at the WPA Theater. The film’s director, Christopher Ashley, had also directed the play. The play’s cast was: John Michael Higgins (Jeffrey), Edward Hibbert (Sterling), Bryan Batt (Darius), Tom Hewitt (Steve), Harriet Harris, Patrick Kerr, Richard Poe and Darryl Theirse.
  • The movie features cameos by Olympia Dukakis, Victor Garber, Gregory Jbara, Robert Klein, Nathan Lane, Camryn Manheim, Kathy Najimy, Kevin Nealon, Ethan Phillips, and Sigourney Weaver. Christine Baranski has a small but memorable role as the socialite hostess of a fundraiser that (in Jeffrey’s imagination) turns into a cater-waiter hoedown orgy. It co-stars Patrick Stewart as Sterling, an older gay decorator whose partner (Bryan Batt) dies of AIDS complications.

Talking Points:

  • Hiv Positive men are the hottest? wait..what?
  • This is the third “Play into movie” movie we have seen, did it work?

What We’ve Learned:

  • Neelix has a constant erection, and a 14″ penis
  • Working out can apparently replace sex
  • AIDS is scary
  • Cuddling is safer.
  • The reason to have sex with Yoko Ono is to see the apartment
  • Florescent Lighting is fatel during sex.
  • Mother Teresa on the Piano can gaurantee you a second date.
  • The Refusal of Joy is the only true blasphemy

Trailer:

Recommendations:

Jeff: Seriously, Patrick Stewart as a Flaming Homo Interier Designer. You can’t go Wrong!
Ray: Hated the Comedy. loved the serious parts..

The Present: Toy Story 3

Director: Lee Unkrich

Staring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Ned Beatty, Don Rickels, Michael Keaton, among others

Trivia:

  • Lee Unkrich who edited the previous films and co-directed the second, was selected to take over the position of director from John Lasseter.
  • Blake Clark became the new voice of Slinky Dog, replacing Jim Varney, who died in 2000. Clark was good friends with Varney prior to his death
  • The first Pixar film to be released in IMAX.
  • Originally, a sequel was planned when it seemed that Disney and PIXAR would split over creative differences in 2004-2005. Disney started up an animation division titled ‘Circle 7,’ which would have been in charge of churning out sequels for PIXAR films that would not involve the original creators at PIXAR. Entertainment Weekly published an article that said the original plot for Toy Story 3 was going to be about Buzz Lightyear having a defect. Buzz would then be shipped to Taiwan to be fixed, but the other toys find out that the toy company is just replacing the broken Buzz toys with new ones, so they ship themselves to Taiwan to rescue him. This script had to be canned when PIXAR and Disney made amends. Part of their agreement was not to further develop projects that had been planned during their fallout.
  • The A113 logo thats pops up in most of the Pixar films makes an appearance on a license plate on the back of Andy’s Mom’s car.
  • The Ken doll in Toy Story 3 is modeled after “Animal Lovin” Ken from 1988.
  • Lee Unkrich and the animation team agreed to shave their heads before working on the film.
  • All the returning characters were re-developed from scratch.
  • The plot of the movie is loosely based on the original treatment for Toy Story (1995), which had Tinny (from Tin Toy (1988)) getting lost at a rest stop and being found by a junk man, who throws him into back of his truck. Tinny meets a ventriloquist dummy and they both decide to stick together. But in the end they end up in a preschool where they’ll never get lost or outgrown.
  • In terms of negative reviews, Armond White panned the film in a New York Press review, stating “the Toy Story franchise isn’t for children and adults, it’s for non-thinking children and adults. When a movie is this formulaic, it’s no longer a toy because it does all the work for you. It’s a sap’s story.” This review caused much controversy among fans of both Pixar and Toy Story, particularly for how White’s critique broke the film’s previously held 100% “Fresh” rating on Rotten Tomatoes

Talking Points:

What We’ve Learned:

  • Pixar on a bad day.. is better then most studios achieve, and this one is knocked right out of the park.
  • Teddy bears that smell like strawberries are evil!
  • Mr Potato Head is about the parts, not the potato
  • Mr Cucumber head is more . . . (clears throat) . . . prominent then Mr. Potato Head

Trailer:

Recommendations:

Jeff: I almost cried, almost.
Ray: Awesome, My favorite movie of the year so far! And ill admit it.. i cried!
Steve: Loved it! Be ready to get a tear in your eye

The Future: The Smurfs

Starring: Jayma Mays, Neil Patrick Harris, Katie Perry, Sofia Vergara, Hank Azaria, Anton Yelchin, Hank Azaria, Alan Cumming, BJ Novak, Paul Reubens, George Lopez, Jonathan Winters, Fred Armisen, Keenan Thompson, Jeff Foxworthy – and Tim Gunn (don’t think he’s starring…but sounds like he’s making a cameo)

Trivia:

  • This is the second Raja Gosnell film that is a live-action adaptation of an animated series. The first was Scooby-Doo (2002).
  • This is the second adaptation of a William Hanna-Joseph Barbara animated series to be directed by Raja Gosnell.The first was Scooby-Doo (2002).
  • Quentin Tarantino was approached to voice Brainy Smurf, but turned it down.
  • After pursuing the film rights for half of a decade, producer Jordan Kerner finally secured the rights to The Smurfs property in 2002 and soon began developing the 3-D CGI feature film with Paramount Pictures and Nickelodeon Movies
  • In 2006, Kerner said it was planned to be a trilogy and would explain more of Gargamel’s back-story. He stated, “We’ll learn [more] about Gargamel and Smurf Soup and how all that began and what really goes on in that castle. What his backstory really was. There’s an all-powerful wizard… there’s all sorts of things that get revealed as we go along”

Summary:
When the evil wizard Gargamel chases the tiny blue Smurfs out of their village, they tumble from their magical world and into ours — in fact, smack dab in the middle of Central Park. Just three apples high and stuck in the Big Apple, the Smurfs must find a way to get back to their village before Gargamel tracks them down.

Trailer:

Excitement:

Jeff: I’m going to be seeing it, but sometimes I’m a glutton for punishment.
Ray: I think the smurfs.. look awful.. i would consider this another raping of my childhood. I dont think even NPH could pull this one out for me.
Steve: Eh. Not excited. Glad it will bring the Smurfs to a new generation though.

Coming Attractions: (Ray)

The Past:The Deer Hunter
The Present: The Last Airbender
The Future: The Green Hornet

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