New Blog

Hey everyone! As of Sunday, August 1st, we will be relocated to the Pan and Tilt Film Blog. Check us out at panandtilt.blogspot.com!

DVD Releases!

Legion - As most of you know, this is definitely my top guilty pleasure of the year so far. I found this movie to be quite entertaining, even though it has absolutely no redeeming value whatsoever. It features Lucas Black, the retarted redneck quarterback from Friday Night Lights (the movie) as a character named "Jeep", who is supposed to be the savior of humanity (and which allows for some great lines of inspirational dialogue). Dennis Quaid, AKA one of the worst actors ever (see: Vantage Point), plays Jeep's father, which results in the worst family of actors ever portrayed on film. Add to that the infamous scene with the demonic grandma, this movie is a must-see for those who enjoy fun, terrible movies.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Daybreakers - This Ethan Hawke vampire flick looked like another great candidate for my guilty pleasure of the year, so I am a bit interested.

Rating: 3 out of 5

Edge of Darkness -  This seemed like an interesting choice for Mel Gibson's first film since Signs in 2002, and from what I can tell from the trailer, if you enjoyed Taken, this seems like pretty much the same movie.

Rating: 2 out of 5

So, any of these interest you?

Box Office Report!

The full report can be found here, but Iron Man 2 was successful, but not as much as the studio might have hoped. The film opened up at #1 with $133.6 million domestically, which is the fifth highest opening weekend of all time. While this may not sound dissapointing, Paramount was hoping for and even predicting this film to be the highest opening of all time, which is a goal the film was far from reaching. In second was last week's winner A Nightmare on Elm Street with $9.1 million in its second week, and in third was the continually impressive How to Train Your Dragon with $6.7 million in its seventh week of release. The other new release this week was the documentary Babies, which debuted at #10 with $1.5 million in 534 theaters. Some experts believe a film like Babies could stay strong since it is different from the summer films the studios have to offer.

So, what do you think? Surprised by Iron Man 2's showing?

New Releases!

Iron Man 2 - This is one I'm not terribly excited about. First of all, the first installment didn't really do much for me. I thought it was one of the better made superhero films, but I just was not too impressed. Secondly, I'm only a fan of sequels under special circumstances, and I don't believe this is one of them. Early reviews have said this is decent, but nowhere near as inventive or as good as the first. I do like Robert Downey, Jr. and Mickey Rourke (even though this seems like a paycheck role for him), I'm just not thrilled about seeing this one. I probably will eventually, though (honestly, it would be pretty tough to avoid it).
Rating: 3 out of 5

Babies - this film already inspired one of the better discussions on this blog (which can be found here), so by reading that you can get a sense of my feelings toward this movie. First, the film is supposed to be very minimalistic (some may say "boring"), and it seems to just follow these babies around with little to no narration. Second, this movie just creeps me out.
Rating: 0 out of 5

So, what do you want to see this weekend?

Hidden Gem of the Week!

Phantasm (1979)

Written and Directed by: Don Coscarelli

Starring: A. Michael Baldwin, Bill Thornbury,

and Angus Scrimm

Trailer 

After losing their parents, Mike and Jody notice some strange happenings at the local cemetery and funeral home, where they are forced to deal with supernatural forces controlled by the Tall Man.

This film is one of the staples of low-budget horror cinema. It is well shot, and the special effects are very effective, especially given the time period and the budget. This also features one of the most famous effects in horror film history, which deals with a sphere that attaches to your face and drills a hole right through your head. I encourage everyone to watch this, it is definitely very  fun and very memorable.

So, what do you think? Does this appeal to you?

DVD Releases!

Tetro - This is the latest from director Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather, Apocalypse Now), and is said to be his most personal film to date. While I've heard this film has its fair share of problems, it also seems to be beautifully shot in black-and-white, and very interesting as well.
Rating: 4 out of 5

Leap Year - This Amy Adams romantic comedy seems to be lacking on originality and quality. Definitely not for me.
Rating: 1 out of 5

Nine - Like many critics, I was not very impressed with this film when i saw it in theaters. While I found some of the musical numbers to be impressive, along with great performances from (the always great) Daniel Day-Lewis and (recently impressive) Marion Cotillard, I thought the overall film was convoluted. If its your thing, you might enjoy it, otherwise I would advise you to avoid this one.
Rating: 2 out of 5

Tooth Fairy - This one falls in the category of "I can't believe this movie actually exists". But, it does feature the long awaited screen debut of Ryan Sheckler (OMG!!!!) In all seriousness, I don't want to see this.
Rating: 0 out of 5

So, what will you be renting this weekend?

Box Office Report!

Hey guys! Again, this is a day late, but once the semester is over, which will be on Saturday, I will be back up to speed on the blog.

The full report can be found here, but it seems as if, after a few weeks of close finishes at the box office, we finally have a clear cut winner. A Nightmare on Elm Street ran away with the top spot this week, pulling in $32.2 million over the weekend. In second this week was How To Train Your Dragon, which continues to impress by pulling in $10.8 million in its sixth week of release. The only other release this week was Brendan Fraser's Furry Vengeance, which came in fifth with a dismal $6.5 million.

So what do you think? Were you surprised by the winner this week?

Guilty Pleasure of the Week!

Hey guys! Since I missed this feature last week, I have decided to have two guilty pleasures this week! Hope you enjoy!

Get Over It (2001)

Directed by: Tommy O'Haver

Written by: R. Lee Fleming Jr.

Starring: Ben Foster, Kirsten Dunst,

Shane West, Colin Hanks,

and Sisqo

Trailer

In order to win back the affections of his ex-girlfriend, Berke Landers joins the school production of A Midsummer Night's Dream. While being coached by his best friend's little sister, he develops feelings for her and must decide who he wants to be with.

This movie is purely entertaining on many levels. First, it stars Ben Foster, one of my favorite actors, in about the best performance one could give with this material. It is also a (not really that) clever high school version of A Midsummer Night's Dream, and it stars Sisqo, what more could you ask for?!

The Happening (2008)

Written and Directed by: M. Night Shyamalan

Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Zooey Deschanel,

and John Leguizamo

Trailer 

When an unexplained terror comes to New York City that causes people to inexplicably kill themselves, A high-school teacher, his wife, and a young girl must figure out what is happening, all the while trying to run from it.

Now, I have taken much heat for supporting this movie. Yes, I realize the script if terrible, which in turn causes the acting to be atrocious, and there are serious problems with the story. However, I have two points I would like to use to defend myself. First, I thought the scenes of suspense and those of violence were very well done, showing that Shyamalan does have talent as a director, just not a screenwriter. Second, I heard this idea on a podcast and I would like to run with it. The plot of the movie, as well as the twist, seems to be much like a Sci-Fi horror film that would have been made back in the 1950s, much like Invasion of the Body Snatchers. That being the case, had Shyamalan realized this and made this more of an homage to those films, mainly by shooting it in black and white and in the same style as those, creating characters to fit that time period, but keeping the gore at the same level, I think he could have had a very interesting film on his hands. However, he took the source material way too seriously and the film suffered for it.

So what do you think? Do you like any of these movies as well? 

New Releases!

A Nightmare on Elm Street - While this is getting terrible reviews, everyone knows I am a fan of horror movies, however terrible they may be, and I still believe they did about as good of a job casting Freddy Kreuger as you can do. Needless to say, I am a bit intrigued.
Rating: 3 out of 5

Furry Vengeance - If you want a good laugh, I encourage you to check out the rotten tomatoes page on this movie. This is sure to be a shoo-in for the Razzie for Worst Picture, and when a movie is this bad, it's fun to read the creative ways critics get across that feeling. As for the movie itself, I'll pass.
Rating: 1 out of 5

So what do you want to see this weekend?

Hidden Gem of the Week!

Hey everyone! Sorry about not only this being late, but also for the lack of updates recently. School has been pretty crazy this week. Nevertheless, here is your hidden gem!

Special (2006)

Written and Directed by: Hal Haberman and Jeremy Passmore

Starring: Michael Rapaport,Jack Kehler,

and Josh Peck

Trailer 

Special follows Les, a man down on his luck and needing money. In order to obtain funds, Les begins taking an experimental drug, which affects him in a way that makes him think he has super powers, when in reality he does not.

I found this film to be quite inventive and creative. This film plays with perspective in an interesting way. Not only do you see the action through Les' eyes, but also through reality so you can see both perspectives on what is happening. The plot is also very unique, and Michael Rapaport gives a performance to remember.

So, does this look interesting to you?

DVD Releases!

The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus - This is a film that had much buzz surrounding its release because, not only was it Heath Ledger's last film, but also because Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Ferrell all stepped in to take over the role after his death. All that being said, I was not too terribly impressed with this film. It seemed to drag on through the first half of the film, and while it got better in the second half, the plot just did not seem to make a whole lot of sense. The visuals were very compelling, though, and I am open to the idea of seeing it again.
Rating: 3 out of 5

Five Minutes of Heaven - This is a decently reviewed film starring Liam Neeson that is apparently about the potato famine in Ireland. The film is said to be a very good actor's showcase, which gives me some interest even though the plot doesn't appeal to me.
Rating: 3 out of 5

It's Complicated - This romantic comedy would normally have no appeal for me, but I am a huge fan of Steve Martin and I like Alec Baldwin's recent acting. I have heard some good things about this film, so I may have to see it eventually.
Rating: 2 out of 5

Transylmania - This parody of recent tween vampire flicks just looked incredibly dumb. I'll pass.
Rating: 1 out of 5

The Descent: Part 2 - This direct-to-DVD film is one I would like to pretend doesn't exist. As some of you may know, this film has two endings(SPOILERS for The Descent). The one shown in theaters in the states ended with the idea that the main character possibly escaped the cave, but it seemed open for interpretation. The other ending, however, makes it clear that the main character died in the cave, which is the ending that made the film very smart and enjoyable for me. This film has the main character returning to the caves, which makes my interpretation completely obselete. The best thing for me to do is to pretend this film does not exist.
Rating: 0 out of 5

So what do you plan on renting this week?

Box Office Report!

Hey everyone! Sorry for this being late, along with the lack of updates this weekend, I was very busy. Anyway, we continue on, starting with the box office report!

The full report can be found here, but it seems as if How to Train Your Dragon has prevailed once again, pulling in $15 million in its fifth week of release, bringing its total to $178 million domestically. In second was The Back-up Plan, the new Jennifer Lopez comedy, which made a weak $12.3 million, and Date Night finished in third with $10.6 million. The other two new releases this week were The Losers, which came in fourth with $9.6 million, and Oceans, which impressively came in eighth with $6 million, taking into account the facts that it had a smaller release than the others and it is a documentary.

So, what do you think of all this?

New Releases!

This is a rather slow week with theatrical releases, nevertheless, I bring you my opinions, starting with my pick of the week.

The Losers - While I'm not particularly excited about this one (there seems to be a ton of movies just like it), it is by far the best this week has to offer. To add to that, the reviews have been poor, so there's not too much appeal there. However, it does feature a cast of many actors I have my eye on, especially Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Columbus Short, and your future Captain America, Chris Evans. I'll see it eventually, but not anytime soon.
Rating: 2 out of 5

Oceans - This is another installment in Disney's series of nature documentaries. While this is getting positive reviews, I'm just not entirely interested in nature docs. If you are, though, this might be one to check out.
Rating: 2 out of 5

The Back-up Plan - A romantic comedy starring J-Lo getting terrible reviews? I'll pass.
Rating: 1 out of 5

So what do you want to see this weekend?

The Green Hornet delayed again!

This is a terribly sad day for me and anyone else anticipating the release of The Green Hornet. The article can be found here, but Sony has made the decision to delay the superhero movie starring Seth Rogen and directed by Michel Gondry to January 14, 2011 in order to release it in 3D. A move like this is usually a statement on the lack of quality in the film, but Sony insists its merely just to release it in 3D, due to the fact that Tron: Legacy and Yogi Bear would occupy 3D screens at that time.

This news is especially sad for me, because I have said on the blog that this is the most anticipated film for me this year. What do you think? Also, did you guys know there was going to be a Yogi Bear movie?

South Park Controversy

As you may know, I am sort of a new fan of "South Park". What I have been reading today has been rather shocking and interesting. The first part of this story can be found here, but apparently Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the show's creators, received more-or-less "death threats" from a radical muslim website based on the episode "200". In the episode, they are once again satirizing the fact they are unable to safely depict the prophet Muhammad, even having the prophet show up in a mascot bear costume at one point. The website had this to say:

"We have to warn Matt and Trey that what they are doing is stupid and they will probably wind up like Theo Van Gogh for airing this show. This is not a threat, but a warning of the reality of what will likely happen to them."

Theo Van Gogh was a Dutch filmmaker who was murdered for making a film that was a statement against the way women are treated in Islamic society.

The other aspect of this story can be found here, but basically when airing the latest episode, "201", Comedy Central bleeped out much of the audio, more so than the creators intended. This has caused Parker and Stone  to be upset in the way the episode was presented, even to the point that, as of all day, the episode is not accessible on the website southparkstudios.com. On said website, Parker and Stone left this statement:

In the 14 years we've been doing South Park we have never done a show that we couldn't stand behind. We delivered our version of the show to Comedy Central and they made a determination to alter the episode. It wasn't some meta-joke on our part. Comedy Central added the bleeps. In fact, Kyle's customary final speech was about intimidation and fear. It didn't mention Muhammad at all but it got bleeped too. We'll be back next week with a whole new show about something completely different and we'll see what happens to it."

So what do you guys make of all this controversy?