Coming Attraction: 'Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens'

Here it is!! The long awaited 2nd movie trailer for 'Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens' is finally here for our eager eyes, and it looks SO good! Lots of exciting things take place within. Go ahead, take a look... You know you want to.

Movie Moments: The Artist

My husband, Tommy, and I took my mom to see 'The Artist' for her birthday and, boy, were we ALL glad that we did. It was such a fun, up-beat (except for a portion near the second half), "feel good" movie that you almost want to see it again as soon as it ends. Yep, it was that good!

Being that it is a silent film, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from the audience behavior wise. For example, I didn't know if people eating snacks would be too noisy, or whether people would be rude and talk? Fortunately, we didn't experience ANY of that. Although, I must say that the accompanying musical score probably did help a bit in that department... Speaking of the music, wow! It was absolutely beautiful, and I will definitely be acquiring the soundtrack soon.

Jean Dujardin as the always dapper
and incredibly charming, George Valentin.

Berenice Bejo as a very peppy, Peppy Miller.

The basic plot summary is as follows:
It's 1927. Arguably Hollywood's most admired movie screen idol, George Valentin, is enjoying the success of his latest picture, The Russian Affair. He enjoys his work and the adulation he receives by being a movie star immensely, as witnessed by how he hogs the spotlight during The Russian Affair's post-premiere bows. Peppy Miller is an aspiring young actress, who literally runs into Valentin at the premiere, which ends up being the launching pad to her Hollywood acting career. The advent of talking pictures brings a reversal to their fortunes as Kinograph, the movie studio where Valentin is under contract, is looking for fresh faces such as Peppy Miller to star in their talking pictures, while Valentin resists the entire notion of talking pictures. Peppy, who appreciates everything that Valentin did for her career, tries to help him as much as she can, but Valentin may have to decide on his own where and if he fits into the Hollywood machine, one where he doesn't think people want to hear him speak.


Now, like I said, that really is a very basic summary. It doesn't even make mention of "the dog", and he alone is so adorable he practically steals the show. One good thing, though. I just read online somewhere that the doggy actor (Uggie) who played the part actually won an award (like a Golden Globe, or something) for Best Canine Performance. How cool is that?! I can't help wondering if an Academy Award might also be in his near future? He certainly deserves it, in my book!

Adorable Uggie plays the role
of George's canine sidekick. 

These two are practically
inseparable throughout the movie.

John Goodman as the head studio
executive at Kinograph Pictures.

A young new starlet on the rise to fame and fortune...

In conclusion, let me just say that, "You NEED to see this picture!" It's a fun, light-hearted romantic comedy that I think even people who don't like romantic comedies would still end up liking. It's also fresh and different for these times. I mean, "feel good" movies of this magnitude and quality don't come along very often, so catch it on the BIG SCREEN while you can. You'll be glad you did!

The End

Attack of the "B" movie posters!

I don't know about you, but I really love a good, bad "B" movie! And I love 'em even better the worse they are... Yes, I'm one of "those" people. I can't help it. I enjoy over-the-top schlock, bad acting, and low-budget special effects. I find all of it quite humorous and entertaining. My husband... not so much. He only sometimes sees the humor, and even then his patience wears thin way quicker than I'd prefer. Oh, well. He's such an awesome man and husband in countless other ways, I guess I shouldn't complain. Instead, I'll share with you some of my favorite "B" movie posters I found pictures of in one of my neat, old books! Sound like fun? Oh, good!

'Youth Runs Wild', 1944

Tires + youngsters = TROUBLE!

'I Was a Shoplifter', 1950

Might I suggest casting Winona Ryder and
Lindsay Lohan in a modern-day remake?

'The She-

Creature', 1957

I've known one or two of

these in my time...

'The Man From

Planet X', 1951

I like this poster SOOO much!

The dude from Planet X is

quite spooky, no?



'Terror From the

Year 5,000', 1958

Note to self: Need not worry.

You will be long since dead

come the year 5,000...

Everyone else can suck it!



'The Brain

Eaters', 1958

Yummm!

'Ghoulies', 1985

Get it?!

Well, I had fun with these, and I hope you did, too. Do YOU have any favorite "B" movies that you enjoy watching again, and again? My all-time fave "B" movie to watch would easily be 'This Island Earth' from 1955. Check it out if you've never seen it. It's got an awesome space monster... Bye, bye!

"I'm sooo going to see that!": 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus'

Did any of you know that it was in theatres already?! I knew it was coming out soon, but somehow I totally spaced on the release date. And that's kind of surprising since I'm almost as excited about this flick as I am about 'Alice in Wonderland'! Almost.

I've always liked Terry Gilliam's directing. In fact, his movie 'The Adventures of Baron Munchausen' is one of my Top 5 favorites! And who didn't like 'Time Bandits'? Or what about 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'? That one was a trip, for sure! '12 Monkeys' was pretty good, as well. But somehow or another, I never did manage to see his 1985 classic 'Brazil'. I guess I should add that one to my Netflix queue, huh?






I'm not real sure what the Doctor's doing here...
It looks as though he's meditating and
floating in mid-air (see above), but that may
only be what he wants us to think.






This is odd... Looks like Heath is taking a trip
through some gigantic lady's underwater wardrobe,
hopping to and fro amongst high heel
shoes, pearls and perfume...




I love how bizarre and surreal Gilliam's movies usually are. I just eat all of that up! If I were making movies, I know I'd want to make 'em like Gilliam and Burton do. Not that I have anywhere near the amount of talent those two genius's have! I just meant that I would want to make the same kind of fantastical cinematic features. But if I did prove myself good enough to be considered in their same league, well then...

Oh, sorry about that! I was daydreaming, a bit.

Anywaaay, Gilliam's latest film, 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus', both looks and sounds like it just might be his best one yet! Here's the official synopsis from Terry Gilliam's fanzine, Dreams:

'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus' is a morality tale set in the present day. It tells the story of Dr. Parnassus and his extraordinary 'Imaginarium', a traveling show where members of the audience get an irresistible opportunity to choose between light and joy or darkness and gloom. Blessed with the extraordinary gift of guiding the imaginations of others, Dr. Parnassus is cursed with a dark secret. Long ago he made a bet with the devil, Mr. Nick, in which he won immortality. Many centuries later, upon meeting his one true love, Dr. Parnassus made another deal with the devil, trading his immortality for youth, on condition that when his first-born reached its 16th birthday he or she would become the property of Mr. Nick. Valentina is now rapidly approaching this "coming of age" milestone and Dr. Parnassus is desperate to protect her from her impending fate. Mr. Nick arrives to collect but, always keen to make a bet, renegotiates the wager. Now the winner of Valentina will be determined by whoever seduces the first five souls. Enlisting a series of wild, comical and compelling characters in his journey, Dr. Parnassus promises his daughter's hand in marriage to the man that helps him win. In this captivating, explosive and wonderfully imaginative race against time, Dr. Parnassus must fight to save his daughter in a never-ending landscape of surreal obstacles. And undo the mistakes of his past once and for all...

Sounds a bit complicated, huh? But I have a feeling it's the good kind of "complicated" that makes for a great story. Also, the kind that warrants multiple viewings, if one so desires to try and fully comprehend said "complicated story". That's one of the reasons owning a movie on DVD is so nice!






Get a load of that mirror! Looks like a secret
passage or a gateway to another
dimension, perhaps...






Something tells me Jude Law found one of
those other dimensions... But just where
is that ladder leading to?






And here she is, the lovely Valentina.
She is quite pretty, but is she worth all of the
chaos and grief?






Looks as though Johnny Depp has now fallen
into the same gigantic lady's underwater
wardrobe as Heath did... and found a lady?!




As I'm sure you know, Heath Ledger died before all of the filming was done for his part. And the way Gilliam resolved that little "issue" was to bring in a few other well-known actors to portray Heath's character at different points in the story. Enter Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell. I'd be interested to know how different the original story was before parts of it had to be totally re-written, just so they could "make it work". No matter what, it seems as though the end result was worth all of the extra work it took to get there. I don't know about you, but I'm checking show times at my local cineplex A.S.A.P., so I can go see for myself!


In the meantime, if you'd like to watch the movie trailer, be my guest...





~All movie photos via Google Images~

Looking a little bit farther down the rabbit hole...

I'm so curious about 'Alice in Wonderland', I think I could BURST! Yes, we've all seen the trailer (You have seen it, right?), but that's just a teaser... Like only peeping through a keyhole. I'm more than ready to fall down that rabbit hole with Alice to explore all the wondrous things our delightfully twisted Tim Burton has dreamed into cinematic reality! But, sadly, we must continue waiting for that "very important date": 3/5/10. And when it does finally get here, you can bet I won't be late!

In the mean time, I want to share a few more Alice-related goodies that I've come across lately. The first three images are new movie posters that were recently released. The images that follow those are from a photo shoot that was featured in Vanity Fair magazine, back in August of this year. So you might have already seen the magazine shots, but maybe not.

Please, enjoy...




~ MOVIE POSTERS ~





This is so very pleasing!
It's total eye-candy! Notice, if you
will, the Mad Hatter sitting at the
head of his table, waaaay in the
background (left).






Why, here comes Hatter, now!
Such a dapper fellow, that one...
Love the giant mushrooms, too!
Did you happen to notice Caterpillar
sitting on one (upper right), having
a smoke on his hookah?







Cheshire Cat, Red Queen, White
Queen and the Tweedle's. Don't
even ask which one is Dum or Dee
'cuz I have no clue!
I'm liking Carter's huge-headed
Red Queen. What do you think?




~ VANITY FAIR PHOTOS ~




Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark

Mia Wasikowska, in character as a
teen-aged 'Alice'.







Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark

Johnny Depp, in character as the
very colorful 'Mad Hatter'.






Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark

Anne Hathaway, in character as the
beautiful 'White Queen'.






Photograph by Mary Ellen Mark

Helena Bonham Carter, in character
as the short-tempered and somewhat
clownish 'Red Queen'.




That's about all I can see for now. The rabbit hole is pretty deep, and very dark... Of course, I would willingly jump right in if it weren't for the invisible barrier keeping out riffraff like us from the real world! I just hope that the next 3 months go by quickly, and I'll bet Mr. Burton feels just as anxious. He probably can't wait to grant us access into his Wonderland, so we may all see the fantastic, mind-bending vision he has conjured from Lewis Carroll's original story.

Until then, I'll just keep peering over the edge trying to see whatever I can. Maybe, if I got a really BIG searchlight and aimed it at just the right angle... Hmm.



*All 'Alice in Wonderland' movie images, other than Vanity Fair photos, are Copyright Walt Disney Pictures.
**Photographs of Wasikowska, Depp, Hathaway and Carter taken by Mary Ellen Mark for Vanity Fair magazine.

My very first art film, 'The Red Balloon'

I must begin by clarifying that my post title is not intended to infer any involvement on my part with the creation of this wonderful film. That credit goes to the Academy Award winning writer/director of 'The Red Balloon', Albert Lamorisse. Besides, I wasn't even around when it came out in 1956! But 21 years later, sitting in a darkened 2nd-grade classroom, I had my first experience viewing this memorable piece of foreign cinema and it made a real impression on me.

Even at the tender age of 7, I realized on some level that this film was special. Or, at least, it was special to me. It really struck a chord, deep within...

I received the newest, restored and digitally transferred edition of the film on DVD as a gift a while ago, but hadn't actually sat down to watch it until yesterday. Boy, I was so glad I finally did because it was even better than I had remembered it! I mean, I was grinning ear-to-ear from the very start. It certainly took me to my "happy place".

I found it interesting that the film was brighter and more colorful than I remembered. I guess that could be directly due to the restoration and high-definition transfer, but all these years I had thought of it as having much darker tones in both mood and color. Except for that BIG red balloon, of course! In fact, Tommy told me I'd have to watch the DVD without him because he hated watching the film back in elementary school. "It was too depressing", he said. And I was like, "Are you freakin' kidding me?! You're completely missing the entire point of the film, dude!" Well, I might be paraphrasing a bit, but that was the gist of our differing opinions on the matter.

I do feel passionate about this little french film. And I think that anyone who watches it can see the amount of passion that Albert Lamorisse must have felt for the project, as it plays like a cinematic love letter to the city of Paris. The shooting location couldn't have been better, either. It was in the Menilmontant section of Paris, a labyrinth of narrow alleys, cobblestones and steep streets. Since this was my first impression of Paris, I know that if I ever do travel there I will want and expect to see all of the key scenic backgrounds featured or I won't be satisfied... NOTE TO SELF: Prepare for disappointment.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the simple story of this precious gem, here's the brief synopsis right off of the DVD:

"Pascal, a young Parisian boy, retrieves a balloon tied to a lamppost, only to discover that it seems to have a mind and personality of its own. At times the balloon follows him around like a loyal dog, at others like a teasing best friend. The two form an almost inseparable bond, one that only an uncaring world would dare untether."

I couldn't help giggling as I typed that description because I kept hearing Mr. Deep-Voiced-Movie-Trailer-Announcer-Guy saying it! Then I had to actually try doing the voice! Good thing I'm alone, right now... By the way, does anyone know what that guy's name is? Oh, wait. I think I heard somewhere that he died. Oops, here I am making fun of him. Do you think that whoever gave the eulogy at his memorial service delivered it with a similar deep voice, like it was also a movie trailer? That would've actually been pretty damn cool, huh? Some might think it was in poor taste, but not really, if you think about it. Of course, it would sort of depend on whether the guy had a sense of humor...

Sorry, about that! It's getting late, and the A.D.D. is kicking into high gear. Where was I before all of that? Oh, yes. I was going to share a gallery of production stills.


So here's the gallery...





On his way to school, Pascal (played
by 5 1/2 y.o. Pascal Lamorisse, the
director's son) discovers something...







The temptation is just too great. Aaaand since no
one's around to stop him, he shimmies on up the
lamppost to take down that shiny, red floaty-thing.







Pascal and his new "friend", running late for school!







Street corner shenanigans...







"Now, don't go anywhere! I'll be right back."

While passing a boulangerie (bakery) shop window,
Pascal sees something he'd like to have. So he leaves
his balloon outside the shop for only a moment...
Just long enough for some bratty kid to sneak up
and take off with it!







I don't have a picture, but Pascal manages to get his
balloon back. Here, he's desperately running down a
narrow alley to escape the gang of mean bullies that
took it from him! Oh, what now? A fat, old woman
carrying groceries?! Come on, give the kid a break!







Sadly, they do catch up to Pascal. They completely
outnumber him (the gang of bullies is much larger
than pictured), too, which is totally unfair!
But, then... so is life.







After much bullying ensues, a real nasty boy pulls
out a slingshot! Then, as you can clearly see, he turns
'The Red Balloon' into... the dead balloon.







Do not despair! Yes, Pascal just lost his best
"friend", but somehow, magically, all of the
other balloons in Paris start floating right to
him! So many, they're overwhelming. Then...








It's up, up and away!



If you've never seen this award-winning film, you should check it out. Even if you have, but it's been many years since (like about 30, in my case), I highly recommend watching it again! Especially this latest restored, high-def print on DVD. I'm gonna try talking Tommy into watching it with me because I really don't think it's as depressing as he remembers it being, but that might be fruitless effort on my part. He'll probably just shoot me down like that poor balloon...


~All photos via Google Images~

Curiouser and Curiouser...

LOOK!
It's the first official Disney movie trailer for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland!

Actually, it came out a few weeks ago, but YouTube (or Disney) wasn't allowing any linking to it until now. You're not going to believe how "wonderful" it looks!

I can't wait, I can't wait... for its very important release date! The adventure will begin on March 5th, 2010.



Enjoy it, and try not to hit your head on the way down!

What's Down the Rabbit Hole?

Tim Burton is about to "wow" us, again. This time, with his unique vision of Alice in Wonderland. We'll have to wait until March of 2010, but I have a feeling that it will be well worth the wait! I'm extra excited about it because I've always loved Alice, and I had even said many times early in Burton's career that his version of a Wonderland would be an incredible one.

The actress who was cast in the title role is somewhat unknown. And by that, I mean she hasn't really made it BIG, yet. The 20-year-old actress is Mia Wasikowska, and she is probably best known for her role as a patient named Sophie on the 1st season of HBO's In Treatment. That is a great show, by the way. If you like watching drama, I highly recommend it. I haven't seen any of Mia's Sophie episodes, though. I'll have to find and watch those, soon...

Mia Wasikowska is Alice.

Anyway, in Burton's version of Wonderland, Alice is now much older than in Lewis Carroll's original book. Here, she is a 17-year-old revisiting a Wonderland she has completely forgotten. Burton has said that he thinks other versions have suffered because they were basically "just one weird event after another". He says he's "trying to ground it a little bit" while also making a story that uses the Alice mythology and characters in a way that's "true to the spirit of what Alice is about."

The official movie title logo.

(Looks quite Burton-esque, huh?)

Another part of his retelling, is a Mad Hatter with a much bigger role in the story. "With him we are always trying to find a subtext and layer to it, so it's rooted in humanity to some degree - something deeper than just being nuts", Burton said. I'm sure that you must have heard by now that Johnny Depp will be the one inhabiting that character. His talent, combined with Burton's, almost assures an excellent film all by itself!

Johnny Depp is the

Mad Hatter.

Adding to the challenge of concocting such a different take on Alice, is the filming process. The film will be presented using a mix of animation, live-action and motion-capture. And according to Burton, it has proved to be a "mysterious puzzle that's frightening and exciting at the same time."

Anne Hathaway is the

White Queen.

Helena Bonham Carter is

the Red Queen. (Her head was

enlarged to 3x the normal size.)

Matt Lucas is both

Tweedledee & Tweedledum.

Now, the following images are just conceptual, but if the film comes anywhere close to these... we're gonna be treated to some great eye-candy!

Could this be when Alice first enters

Wonderland and encounters the

White Rabbit?

Alice, in a garden of live flowers, and

approaching what looks like a gateway

into a forest of giant mushrooms.

Some other cast members (whose character images have not yet been released) include Alan Rickman as the Caterpillar, Crispin Glover as the Knave of Hearts, Michael Sheen as the White Rabbit, Stephen Fry as the Cheshire Cat and Christopher Lee as the Jabberwock.

I tell ya, with a cast like that, this movie is going to be awesome! Or, at the very least, interesting. And quite colorful! I like color.

All images copyright Walt Disney Pictures