Friday Mornin' Comin' Down
Yes… it’s going to be a slow day and a slow week or two to come (thank God), so if you want to start a fire and cozy up to one another (put DOWN that machete!), here’s some space…
May 15, 2024
The Hot Blog
amit on: Review: Frozen 2 (spoiler-free)
movieman on: BYOB Fall Back, Film Forward
Christian on: BYOB Fall Back, Film Forward
movieman on: Review: Marriage Story (spoilers only in the broadest sense)
movieman on: BYOB Fall Back, Film Forward
movieman on: Review: Frozen 2 (spoiler-free)
YancySkancy on: Review: Little Women (no spoilers)
Hcat on: Why You Should Be Afraid Of The End Of The Paramount Decree
movieman on: BYOB Fall Back, Film Forward
movieman on: I Should Be Doing Box Office
Review: Little Women (no spoilers)
Why You Should Be Afraid Of The End Of The Paramount Decree
Review: Frozen 2 (spoiler-free)
Review: Marriage Story (spoilers only in the broadest sense)
see all »
[twitter-widget username="DavidPoland" hiderss="true" hidereplies="true" hidefrom="true" items="3" showts="60" title=" " targetBlank="true"][twitter-widget username="MCNTweets" hiderss="true" hidereplies="true" hidefrom="true" items="3" showts="60" title=" " targetBlank="true"]
Quote Unquotesee all »
It shows how out of it I was in trying to be in it, acknowledging that I was out of it to myself, and then thinking, “Okay, how do I stop being out of it? Well, I get some legitimate illogical narrative ideas” — some novel, you know?
So I decided on three writers that I might be able to option their material and get some producer, or myself as producer, and then get some writer to do a screenplay on it, and maybe make a movie.
And so the three projects were “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep,” “Naked Lunch” and a collection of Bukowski. Which, in 1975, forget it — I mean, that was nuts. Hollywood would not touch any of that, but I was looking for something commercial, and I thought that all of these things were coming.
There would be no Blade Runner if there was no Ray Bradbury. I couldn’t find Philip K. Dick. His agent didn’t even know where he was. And so I gave up.
I was walking down the street and I ran into Bradbury — he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” — and I’d forgot who he was.
So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging — I was with her at that moment — she said, “Talk to him! That guy really wants to talk to you,” and I said “No, fuck him,” and keep walking.
But then I did, and then I realized who it was, and I thought, “Wait, he’s in that realm, maybe he knows Philip K. Dick.” I said, “You know a guy named—” “Yeah, sure — you want his phone number?”
My friend paid my rent for a year while I wrote, because it turned out we couldn’t get a writer. My friends kept on me about, well, if you can’t get a writer, then you write.”
~ Hampton Fancher
“That was the most disappointing thing to me in how this thing was played. Is that I’m on the phone with you now, after all that’s been said, and the fundamental distinction between what James is dealing with in these other cases is not actually brought to the fore. The fundamental difference is that James Franco didn’t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. There’s not a case of that. He wasn’t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had — if that were what the accusation involved — the show would not have gone on. We would have folded up shop and we would have not completed the show. Because then it would have been the same as Harvey Weinstein, or Les Moonves, or any of these cases that are fundamental to this new paradigm. Did you not notice that? Why did you not notice that? Is that not something notable to say, journalistically? Because nobody could find the voice to say it. I’m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, “You know, it’s not this, it’s that”? Because — let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. Times piece, that’s what it lacked. That’s what they were not able to deliver. The one example in the five that involved an issue of a sexual act was between James and a woman he was dating, who he was not working with. There was no professional dynamic in any capacity.
~ David Simon
What the hell’s coming out this weekend? There are so many movies, but they’re all so boring looking that I can’t remember any of them.
Sorry for the double post.
All I know is … FIVE FREAKIN’ DAYS to “Rocky Balboa.” And yes, I actually am this excited about it. (I was born in ’76 – I was raised on the Italian Stallion).
Well Harry Knowles loved it and masturbates to thoughts of it, so it must be good.
Damn. Sorry for double post.
For some reason (BielBielBiel), I am actually excited about HOME OF THE BRAVE, though it’s pretty risible that this nonstarter is being given a ONE-WEEK OSCAR QUALIFYING RUN– ha! Isn’t it kind of just this year’s FREEDOMLAND– a middling Jackson vehicle whose early awards aspirations were immediately shut down upon delivery of the final product? I guess the studio (MGM) is eager to try ANYTHING at Oscar time, but they might’ve taken a cue from FREEDOMLAND’s last-minute December withdrawal and just dumped it in February– which I assume is what they’re gonna do with it other than L.A. and N.Y.
Also opening this weekend, least here in L.A.– GOOD GERMAN (at the Grove only!!!! Grr!), PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS (guess what everyone’s NON-industry female friends/gf’s will want to see), DREAMGIRLS at the Dome only in L.A. (ugh– I much prefer the black-box theaters at the Arclight with better seats and better presentation.)*
I love the Arclight, but the reserved seating doesn’t do it for me. Everyone touts this as a GOOD thing, but I dunno. I’d kind of rather CHOOSE who I have to sit by for three hours. Can’t tell you how many times I’ve blindly said “Row C” or “the middle” or “off to the side,” and no matter what or where, I end up ASSIGNED-SEATING next to some chatty Yentas or Restless Leg cases.
Based on the trailer and James Berardinelli’s review, I’m guessing Home of the Brave is pretty awful.
Just a quick story I thought was interesting…
I went to see Volver a few Saturdays ago at my fave theatre (Varsity VIP in Toronto…screening room type theatres with 30 seats max.) The movie started and it was just slightly out of focus. I asked my friend if he noticed it and he said no. As I was sitting in the first row, I waited for someone in the back to tell an usher about the focus. Ten minutes later, I finally had to leave the theatre and inform an usher. After a few minutes (10) the screen became clear.
I was just quite surprised that no-one even noticed or were willing to do anything about it. For $15 I would expect others complaining but…
On the rare occasions where a movie is projected or framed improperly, you are correct, usually NO ONE steps out to tell an usher. In a sense, I don’t blame them, because it entails leaving and missing some of the movie, which at least for me is sacrilige. (On the rare times I’ve had to use the men’s or something, I consider the movie ruined and have to go see it a second time.)
But more than likely, I think most of the audience just doesn’t notice or cares. A few weeks back, at “Turistas,” the trailers were distorted due to the wrong lens (should’ve been 2.35 for the movie, they had a stretchy-tall 1.85 only of the screen filled.) NO ONE did anything until during the studio logos, I stepped out and complained, effectively missing the movie’s prologue.
And earlier in the year, Woody’s “Scoop” was mis-projected with way too much room at the top and things cut off at the bottom; You’d think the tipoff would by the traditional trademark Woodman credits showing up three-quarters of the way down the screen near the bottom of frame instead of dead center, but of course NO ONE COMPLAINED.
I never complain about masking and framing, because the fix is usually worse than the initial problem. The last thing you want is some 18 year old popcord slinger trying to adjust framing on the fly.
But focus and especially aspect ratio are two problems that are quickly and easily fixed and no one should be willing to sit by and watch a film out of focus.
Another reason to go to the ArcLight. These problems rarely crop up. As for assigned seating in the ArcLight: I love it. I always get the exact seat I want. I haven’t had a problem with a bad audience at the ArcLight since I saw the original Spider-Man in 2002. All the other times I’ve been there everyone’s been respectful and perfect audience members. Guess I’m lucky.
I agree that the Dome is the worst house there. My favorite auditorium in the complex is Screen 10. It’s the best public theater in L.A., I believe.
Wrecktum, I envy your Arclight track record. Don’t get me wrong, it IS the best theater in L.A., hands down (though I have usual good luck at the Vista audience-wise, IF you can take the thrift-store scent.)
More times than not, the Arclight audience is pretty well-behaved, but if you go on a Friday or Saturday night, it can be like any other L.A. multiplex theater in terms of audience behavior. And that’s fine, it’s not like it’s some exclusive club. But where it used to be a bit of a niche thing for film geeks, now everyone goes there, and seeing something like “Spider-Man” or “National Treasure” or “Day After Tomorrow” there, you get the same yahoos you would anywhere else, only YOU CAN’T GET UP AND MOVE.
You know how when you go to Burbank or Pasadena, and the low-rent family of 5 slips and plops down behind you? You know how you can get up and move elsewhere? At the Arclight, you’re stuck next to them for the next two hours. That’s my beef with the assigned thing– unless, again, you go during the day when you can spread out. In general, I just hate being elbow-to-elbow with strangers, and at the Arclight, that’s usually unavoidable. I’d much rather sit five seats and two rows away from my fellow moviegoer; Distance is more important to me than a dead-center view of the screen.
I see about 20 or so movies a year there, and while I’ve had some swell audiences, I’ve also had a dumb date-night couple restate every line of dialogue during IN GOOD COMPANY, to the point where we walked out and demanded a refund; Some Yenta texting next to me all through MIAMI VICE; A crew of ditsy bimbos hootin’ and hollerin’ thru DAY AFTER TOMORROW; A guy next to me TAKING NOTES during HISTORY OF VIOLENCE; More texting during UNLEASHED; A Latino couple bored and bickering during MATCH POINT, leading the gal to leave the movie for 45 minutes, only to distractingly stumble back in during the finale; A guy shaking his leg next to me for THREE HOURS during THE AVIATOR; Pretty much the same guy during MUNICH; etc. etc. etc.
So consider yourself lucky, but it DOES happen there from time to time.
I normally go to the ArcLight on a weekend afternoon several weeks into a movie’s run, so maybe that’s why the audiences are more behaved: they’re older.
But, to be fair, people hootin’ and hollerin’ through The Day After Tomorrow sounds like an enhancement to the enjoyment of that dreck instead of a liability.
Forget masking, framing, slightly out of focus … I’ve been in movies where the sound went out completely, and no one budged! The passivity of humans is sometimes beyond comprehension (at least for us control freaks) …
I’m with you, Wrecktum. I hardly ever see a movie during its initial two or three weeks, and while it puts me at a disadvantage here on the Blog, the trade-off of mostly peaceful screenings is well worth it.
My out-of-focus story: I went to the now-defunct Century Plaza to see APOCALYPSE NOW REDUX. It seemed slightly out of focus, but Joel Schumacher was several rows ahead of me, and I figured, well, hell, if HE isn’t getting up to complain, it must be me. It wasn’t.
Did anyone complain?
“so if you want to start a fire and cozy up to one another…”
depends on who it is.
or we could take the path of least resistance and cozy up to someone and start him/her on fire.
I went to a movie house…but the queue was long and boisterous and I hate noisy audiences…so ended up in a dive bar eating a steak sandwich and vodka with a good friend, then watching crime TV on a nice plasma screen.
Crime Tv shows make me think there’s too many scary people on the lam in California, Nevada and Kentucky, I swear.
“The last thing you want is some 18 year old popcord slinger trying to adjust framing on the fly.”
Sheriff I. M. A. Wrectum, this here is the line of the weekend.
Do you live in Dodge City? Are your spurs a-janglin?
Yes, but I meant “popcorn.”