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Podcast

MOV110: “Gunter glieben glauben globen”

It’s the 3rd week into our annual pride month extravaganza, and this week we are double fisting it! First we take a double jump into the past, examining the life and times of 1970’s activist and first openly gay politician Harvey Milk in Gus Van Sant’s 2008 film “Milk” Next up we jump back to the present by examining the film version of the Broadway musical “Rock of Ages”. Was this film truly Built on Rock and Roll? or will it have us heading for a heartbreak? Finally we take a look at yet another remake as we strap ourselves into the memory blender of “Total Recall” Is this a total retelling or a total ripoff? Rob Zombie is finally making something other than a Horror film, Paul Verhoeven is gearing up to make a film about Christ, and Angelina Jolie gets in on the fairy tale action all this plus more on the 110th reel of COL Movies, ““Gunter glieben glauben globen”

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News:

The Past: Milk
Rotten Tomatoes: 94% Fresh; 84% Audience

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Director: Gus Van Sant

Featuring: Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch, James Franco,

Trivia:

  • Matt Damon was originally cast as Dan White, but had to back out due to scheduling conflicts with Green Zone.
  • Thousands of people agreed to take part in the film as extras for free.
  • The filming location for Harvey Milk’s business, Castro Camera, was the real storefront where the actual business had once been. At the time of filming (mid-2008), it was a gift shop called “Given”; the film crew worked with the owner of the gift shop to recreate the look of Milk’s camera store inside the space and restored it to its 2008 appearance after filming.
  • During a July 2008 interview with the Orange County Register about Pineapple Express, the interviewer told Seth Rogen and James Franco that he prepared for the interview by watching the classic stoner comedy Fast Times at Ridgemont High the night before. When he asked Rogen and Franco if they prepared likewise before making Pineapple Express, Franco said he prepared by making out with Spicoli (a reference to his having shot Milk, in which he and Sean Penn play lovers).
  • It was widely reported that while filming a scene at the old Castro Camera, some of the actors claimed that they saw a man come in and sit on a couch. After the scene was filmed, nobody else claimed to have seen the man, and the actors themselves went on to claim that it was perhaps the ghost of Harvey Milk.
  • Director Gus Van Sant has been involved with the making of Harvey Milk projects for over fifteen years. For his unsuccessful attempt to film The Mayor of Castro Street (2011) in the early 1990s, many actors were under consideration for the role of Harvey Milk including Robin Williams, Richard Gere, Daniel Day-Lewis, and James Woods.
  • Veteran police officer and actor Brian Danker, seen in this movie in his first speaking role in the homicide scene, actually served in Vietnam from 1970 to 1971 in the same unit as Dan White – the 173rd Airborne.
  • During the filming of the scene in which Dan White’s son Charles is christened, the real Charles White was on the set.
  • On Roger Ebert’s year-end list of the 20 best movies of 2008. Ebert did not rank his picks this year, opting instead for an alphabetical list. (He later said that Milk was the most deserving of all the Best Picture Oscar nominees.)
  • On the American Film Institute’s year-end list of the 10 best movies of 2008 (this list is decided by a group of film scholars, journalists, and professionals, including Jeanine Basinger, Mark Harris, Elvis Mitchell, Daniel Petrie Jr., Richard Schickel, Robert Towne, and Leonard Maltin).
  • Number 2 on Lisa Schwarzbaum’s Entertainment Weekly Magazine list of the 10 best movies of 2008.
  • Number 9 on Owen Gleiberman’s Entertainment Weekly Magazine list of the 10 best movies of 2008.
  • Sean Penn’s cosmetic transformation in the film included a prosthetic nose and teeth, contact lenses and a redesigned hairline. His makeup was done by Academy Award winner Stephan Dupuis.
  • Actor Denis O’Hare who plays anti-gay Senator John Briggs in the film is in reality openly gay.
  • The real Cleve Jones has a cameo in the film as Don Amador.
  • The apartment that was used in the film is the real apartment Harvey Milk lived in on the Lower Haight in San Francisco.
  • Scott Smith’s last name is never mentioned until the epilogue, and Jack Lira’s last name is only given in the credits.
  • When Gus Van Sant was planning a biopic of Milk in the early 90’s he offered the part of Cleve Jones to River Phoenix, who he had just worked with on My Own Private Idaho.
  • Sean Penn became only the ninth actor to win two Academy Awards for Best Actor after winning for this movie.
  • Josh Brolin doesn’t appear until 45 minutes into the movie.
  • The last public appearance of Harvey Milk’s life, two days before he was killed, was attending a San Francisco Opera performance of Puccini’s opera “Tosca” featuring the legendary Italian soprano Magda Olivero. Not only is this event depicted in the movie, but it was in honor of that appearance that the filmmakers chose to use “Tosca” for all the operatic music heard in the film.
  • After his first kissing scene with James Franco, Sean Penn texted his ex-wife Madonna saying, “I just broke my cherry kissing a guy.” (Her texted response: “Congratulations.”)
  • Bradley Cooper auditioned for the role of Scott Smith.
  • Chris Evans auditioned for the role of Scott Smith, but lost out to James Franco.
  • The movie starts out with Harvey talking into a tape recorder on November 18, 1978; that is the day that the Jonestown Massacre happened.
  • During the sequence dealing with Proposition 6, one of Milk’s friends says “Even Reagan doesn’t support it.” Former Governor Ronald Reagan was so opposed to the measure that he publicly went against the Republican Party on the issue, even though he had been mentioned as a serious candidate for the Presidential election in 1980 and risked alienating his conservative support base. His support was given a great deal of credit for Proposition 6’s defeat and contributed to his growing national profile ahead of his two elections as President of the United States.
  • Josh Brolin, who played Dan White, was welcomed by the gay community and given praise for portraying “The most hated man in San Francisco’s history”.
  • Carol Ruth Silver: The real Carol Ruth Silver has a cameo in the film as Thelma.
  • Dustin Lance Black: The screenwriter appears as one half of the couple that walks by the Castro camera shop after it’s closed, when Harvey Milk is inside and one of the men asks if Harvey was going to win this time.
  • Tom Ammiano: The California Assemblyman and former San Francisco Supervisor plays himself. He was a founder in the No On 6 Campaign.
  • At the end of the film, images of the actors costumed as their characters are replaced by photographs of the real people the actors portrayed. Many of these photos were taken by Daniel Nicoletta, who is the photographer played by Lucas Grabeel in the movie.
  • Daniel Nicoletta: The real Danny Nicoletta has a cameo in the film as the person in Harvey Milk’s office before Milk gets assassinated by Dan White. In real life, Nicoletta was the last person to speak to Harvey Milk in his office at San Francisco City Hall, just before his assassination.

Talking Points:

  • Do we need a Harvey these days?
  • Franco’s performance
  • The “we are going to pull you out of the closet” agenda
  • The Times of Harvey Milk

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Critic Notes

  • Positives: Penn and the ensemble cast are amazing; A passionate history lesson; A master class in how a biopic should be done; The first solid film to discuss the gay rights movement
  • Negatives: Undersells the importance of the title character; How dare Hollywood take 30 years to show this important figure in history

What We Learned:

  • You can’t be both a political activist and a republican
  • If your gonna get elected in San Francisco you need the Old Queen vote
  • You have to give people a reason for optimism
  • You cannot live on hope alone, but without hope life is not worth living.

Trailer:

Recommendations:
Jeff: An extremely well done docudrama by Gus Van Sant with excellent performances all around. Definitely a must see for anyone.
Ray: I’m a bad gay for not really knowing the story of Harvey Milk prior to watching this film, but it is definitely a good film with some outstanding performances especially by Penn and Franco. I recommend everyone should watch this at least once.
Steve: While good, it dragged for me. I though Penn was awesome and I really felt for the struggle the whole group went through as they tried to make headway. I may not agree with all of Milk’s politics, but I appreciate that someone took a stand to try and make change.

The Present: Rock of Ages

Rotten Tomatoes: 41% Rotten; 64% Audience

Director: Adam Shankman

Starring: Julianne Hough, Diego Boneta, Russel Brand, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Paul Giamatti, Tom Cruise, Mary J Blige

Trivia:

  • Will Ferrell and Steve Carrell were considered to play Dennis Dupree.
  • Taylor Swift was considered to play Sherrie, but Julianne Hough was cast.
  • Anne Hathaway and Amy Adams were offered the role of Constance, but both declined due conflicting schedule for a superhero film. Hathaway was busy shooting The Dark Knight Rises and Adams was shooting Man of Steel. Malin Akerman, who appeared in Watchmen, was ultimately cast.
  • Gwyneth Paltrow and Olivia Wilde were considered for the role of Constance Sack before Malin Akerman was cast.
  • Constantine Maroulis plays a record executive in this film. He originated the role of Drew Boley in the Broadway production and was nominated for the 2009 Tony Award for Best Leading Actor in a Musical for his performance.
  • The scene set under the Hollywood sign was actually shot on a garbage dump landfill in Pompano Beach, Florida.
  • In the “song duel” outside the club, the anti-rock protesters, who are obviously modeled on the Parents’ Music Resource Center (the group who imposed the “Parental Advisory” warning stickers on recordings), sing Twisted Sister’s “We’re Not Gonna Take It.” In real life, Dee Snider of Twisted Sister was one of the PMRC’s most outspoken critics and testified against their proposals in the September 1985 Senate hearings.
  • Cameos
  • Eli Roth: the music video director for the Z Boyeezz’s music video.
  • Kevin Cronin: lead singer of the band REO Speedwagon, singing “We Built This City” with the people supporting The Bourbon Room.
  • Nuno Bettencourt: former guitarist/vocalist for the band Extreme (Who’s song “More Than Words” is featured in the film.), singing “We Built This City” with the supporters of The Bourbon Room.
  • Debbie Gibson: in the crowd of Bourbon Room supporters singing “We Built This City”.

Talking Points:

  • Did it feel like they were cramming as much music in there just to do it?
  • Emotional connections, or lack there of.

Critic Notes

  • Positives: Cruise has the outstanding performance of the movie; It’s just fun – don’t take it too seriously; The actors seem to be having a good time; The production value of the songs and situations is very good
  • Negatives: Nothing more than movie star karaoke; Only keeps your toes tapping rather than bringing the audience to its feet; Takes itself too seriously when it should be poking fun at the cheesy excess of the 80s rocker lifestyle

What We Learned:

  • Taxes are so un-rock and roll.
  • You can’t trap a fire phoenix
  • The devil’s not qualified to close vaginas.
  • Concrete balls are very heavy
  • Z is a very popular letter among 14 to 21 year olds
  • No matter who’s singing it or why… Jefferson Starship is NOT ROCK AND ROLL.

Trailer:

Recommendations :
Jeff: An extremely mediocre movie that is just fun to see reminiscing about the rock of the 1980s. Probably worth seeing for anyone who lived through the era and exposed to it via personally or through older siblings. Well done, but not good enough to say you have to see it at the theater.
Ray: Goes to show that no matter how hard your try (or don’t) good music (I’m a child of the 80’s) cannot save a horrible horrible movie. Mostly Hollow performances from the leads with the exception of Tom Cruise and a monkey. I would say avoid at all costs unless you watch it on netflix.
Steve: I think I would have preferred to see the play than the movie. It was cute, but I can see it more like a Rocky Horror sing-a-long type movie than a serious film. Baldwin should never be allowed to sing again. If you want to see it, just wait until it’s on video and sing along at your home.

The Future: Total Recall

Release: August 3rd, 2012

Director: Len Wiseman

Starring: Colin Farrell, Bokeem Woodbine, Bryan Cranston

Summary:

As the nation states Euromerica and New Shanghai vie for supremacy, a factory worker begins to suspect that he’s a spy, though he is unaware which side of the fight he’s on

Talking Points

Trailer:

Excitement:
Jeff: It looks kinda cool but not really thrilled to see it. I’d be okay to see it though, could be a nice comparison to the Arny version.
Ray: It’s starting to get some bad word of mouth on the net mainly due to the comparison trailer above, but I’m still pretty excited for this. I love Verhoeven though.. even cheesy horrible Verhoeven hopefully this film will do something to surprise me and keep me from comparing it to the original.
Steve: I just don’t know yet. I am very happy with the original and it’s cheesiness. Add in some bullet time and updated technology and that’s all I think that will be improved on the original.

The Past:

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The Present:

The Future:

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Podcast

MOV095: “Hut Hut Hut!”

In this reel of COL Movies, Carlos Joins us again as we journey back into the past to take a look at the 1962 movie that put the Epic in EPIC! Lawrence of Arabia. Does the Majesty of the film translate through the years. Or is the grandeur lost on today’s smaller screens and modern audiences. Next we take a slightly convoluted journey into the present by looking at Disney’s re-release of the Studio Ghibli film The Secret World of Arriety. Do the boys all fall under the warm and fuzzy spell of Mitazaki San? Finally the boys jump into the undefined future for a look at the bizzare crazy and chaotic John Dies at the End. Does this trailer grab us despite the chaos or does it intrigue us? All that plus news about Prometheus, Johnny Depp with a bird on his head, an Avengers sequel and more on this the 95th Reel of COL:Movies “Hut Hut Hut”

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News:

The Past: Lawrence of Arabia
Rotten Tomatoes: 98% Fresh, 91% Audience

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Director: David Lean

Starring: Peter O’Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn

Trivia:

  • Although 227 minutes long, this film has no women in speaking roles. It is reportedly the longest film not to have any dialog spoken by a woman.
  • Almost all movement in the film goes from left to right. David Lean said he did this to emphasize that the film was a journey
  • While filming, Peter O’Toole referred to co-star Omar Sharif as “Fred,” stating that “no one in the world is called Omar Sharif. Your name must be Fred.”
  • To film Omar Sharif’s entrance through a mirage, Freddie Young used a special 482mm lens from Panavision. Panavision still has this lens, and it is known among cinematographers as the “David Lean lens”. It was created specifically for this shot and has not been used since.
  • During an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in the 1970s, Peter O’Toole was describing just how long the movie took to make by referring to the scene when T.E. Lawrence and Gen. Allenby, after their meeting, continue talking while walking down a staircase. According to O’Toole, part of the scene had to be reshot much later, “so in the final print, when I get to the bottom of the stairs, I’m a year older than I was when I started walking down them.”
  • Peter O’Toole claims he never viewed the completed film until nearly two decades after its original release, by which time he was highly impressed.
  • Alec Guinness had a life-long interest in T.E. Lawrence, and had played him in a production of Terence Rattigan’s play “Ross” on stage. Guinness wanted very much to play Lawrence, but David Lean and Sam Spiegel both told him he was too old. Laurence Olivier was the original choice for Prince Feisal, and Guinness was shifted to that role when Olivier turned it down.
  • In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #7 Greatest Movie of All Time.
  • June 2008 Ranked #1 on the American Film Institute’s list of the 10 greatest films in the genre “Epic”.
  • In an appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Peter O’Toole confessed quite proudly that, out of fear of falling off during a big camel riding scene, he and Omar Sharif decided to get absolutely hammered and then tied themselves down on the camels before shooting. By his own admission, he was so drunk he had no idea where he was or what he was doing for the entire scene (attack on Akaba)
  • Peter O’Toole was nearly killed during the first take of the Aqaba scene. A gun (used to signal the beginning of the scene) went off prematurely, and O’Toole’s camel panicked, throwing him to the ground, while the extras on horseback began charging. Fortunately for O’Toole, his camel stayed still and stood over O’Toole, saving him from being trampled.
  • The film took longer to make than it did for the real T.E. Lawrence to go from lieutenant to colonel, to see the desert tribes united and tip the balance in the Allies’ favor against the Turks in World War I.
  • Steven Spielberg estimated that to make the film today would cost in the region of $285 million
  • When first telecast (by ABC-TV), the film was shown in two parts on two successive nights because of its four-hour length. Even so, it was edited so that Lawrence’s rape by the Turks was even less explicit (and less comprehensible) than in the original film.

Talking Points:

  • What do you think was T.E. Lawrence’s motivation?
  • The no image over music disclaimer (and Ray’s confusing iPad rip)
  • The big gay gorilla in the corner of the room
  • First Person Camel!
  • Is it possible to truly enjoy this film at home on a normal sized television?
  • Omar Sharif Quote: ”If you are the man with the money and somebody comes to you and says he wants to make a film that’s four hours long, with no stars, and no women, and no love story, and not much action either, and he wants to spend a huge amount of money to go film it in the desert–what would you say?”

What We’ve Learned:

  • Motorcycle = WEAR A HELMET
  • The Trick is not minding that it hurts!
  • Big things have small beginnings
  • Only two types of creatures have fun in the desert, Bedouins and Gods.
  • Dreaming won’t get you to Damascus
  • Young people must say their say, but wise people must decide.
  • Nothing is written.
  • Life’s a vale of troubles.
  • There may be honor among thieves, but none among politicians.

Trailer

Recommendations:
Jeff: And another long epic movie. This movie suffers alot from lag with the intent to inspire the feeling of the long journeys through the desert and such. When it gets to the point, we have some good stuff. Although at times I swear I had flashbacks to Priscilla.
Ray: So, yes it’s a long movie, and probably one of the strangest long movies I’ve ever watched. If you have an opportunity to watch this on some sort of large format screen and have the time and patience for the film.. go for it. I actually want to re-watch this again once the Blu-ray comes out in June.
Carlos: This is the protypical David Lean movie: long, intelligent, beautiful, male, well acted, long, long, long. It’s kind of a British thing. Only they will make a film about a controversial historical figure, show it all it’s depth and beauty, and then bore you to tears if you don’t buy it. Watch it when you have time, when you have a big beautiful screen and when the Blu-Ray comes out. Also, Peter O’Toole is beautiful.

The Present: The Secret World of Arrietty
Rotten Tomatoes: 94% Fresh; 88% Audience

Director: Hiromasa Yonebayashi

Starring: Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett

Trivia:

  • Directorial debut of animator Hiromasa Yonebayashi.
  • Hayao Miyazaki began the development stages in July of 2008. His original plans included a run time of 80 minutes and the film to be titled “Chiisana Arrietty” (Little Arrietty).
  • Hayao Miyazaki and Isao Takahata had considered adapting the novel for the past 40 years.
  • The story takes place in 2010 in Western Tokyo’s neighborhood of Koganei. Koganei is also where Studio Ghibli is located.
  • At 36 years old Hiromasa Yonebayashi, was the youngest person to direct a film for Studio Ghibli.
  • 7.5 million people saw the film in theaters, an all-time record in Japan for a movie with a first time director.
  • The fourth feature film from Studio Ghibli to not be directed by Hayao Miyazaki or studio co-founder Isao Takahata.
  • French singer Cécile Corbel, a big fan of Studio Ghibli’s films, had sent the studio her second album as a gift back in 2009. Toshio Suzuki listened to it, was seduced and thus decided to hire her to compose the film’s score.
  • Nervous at the idea of directing the film himself, Hiromasa Yonebayashi would initially always seek Hayao Miyazaki advice and opinions. He eventually realized he was on a journey he should face alone when the time came to draw the storyboard, and Miyazaki congratulated him for it.
  • In the U.S. version, Bridgit Mendler and David Henrie play the lead characters who become best of friends. Prior, the two played boyfriend and girlfriend on the show Wizards of Waverly Place.
  • In the Borrowers’ home, they have three cups with playing card symbols (heart, diamond, and club). The only symbol they do not have is the spade, which in many cultures is considered to be bad luck.

Talking Points:

  • The Whimsical vs the sad
  • Sort of Japanese / Celtic hybrid music.
  • Why do you think we do not see films like this directly from Disney anymore?
  • The Great Anime Collapse

What We Learned:

  • Children are more vicious than grown ups
  • Borrowers only take what they need
  • You can’t live a life built on nothing but wishes.

Trailer:

Recommendations :
Jeff: What can I say? All these type of movies have such a charm to them. I can’t help myself but to enjoy the movie. Go see it in the theaters. This is the type of storytelling we need to support.
Ray: What can I say, it’s a Studio Ghibli / Miyazaki film. Miyazaki is able to take stories and breathe so much life, whimsy and emotion into the world he creates. It’s like the man ejaculates color right onto the film. It warms my heart to see animation like this in American theaters so I can do nothing but recommend that you go.
Carlos: Some folks just love Studio Ghibli no matter what they do, but it’s deserved. Unlike previous films, this one is less about a glorious wonderful world and more about the intimacies of family and friends. What does work is the beauty of the painted backgrounds, the voice acting and the idea of friendship between very different, but not so different beings.

The Future: John Dies At The End

Release: Not Announced (see it at SXSW)

Director: Don Coscarelli

Starring: Chase Williamson, Rob Mayes, Paul Giamatti

Summary:

It’s a drug that promises an out-of-body experience with each hit. On the street they call it Soy Sauce, and users drift across time and dimensions. But some who come back are no longer human. Suddenly a silent otherworldly invasion is underway, and mankind needs a hero. What it gets instead is John and David, a pair of college dropouts who can barely hold down jobs. Can these two stop the oncoming horror in time to save humanity? No. No, they can’t.

Talking Points

  • Somehow getting a “Fear and Loathing In Las Vegas” Meets a Horror flick vibe

Trailer:

Excitement:
Jeff: Wait, what just happened? Umm, okay. Well, it could be good, with Paul Giamatti and all, but seriously, I felt like I must have been on some of this “Soy Sauce” or something. I’ll just give it a Meh.
Ray: To be honest.. It had me at Paul Giamatti and from the Creators of Phantasm and Bubba-Ho-Tep
Carlos: I love that it’s crazy and wacky, and a cracked.com writer is involved. I love the Giamatti is in it. I love the opening shot with the snow and the field and the hammer. I may hate this movie but I loved trailer.

Coming Attractions

The Past:

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The Present:

The Future:

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