MCN Blogs
David Poland

By David Poland poland@moviecitynews.com

BYOB – A New Week (7-7-8)

Be Sociable, Share!

43 Responses to “BYOB – A New Week (7-7-8)”

  1. Aladdin Sane says:

    So I’m thinking I want to buy a Blu Ray player before the fall. I have the HD add on for 360 (bought on the cheap), but I should get the winning format sooner or later.
    I don’t really want a PS3, given the fact that my 360 doesn’t get used as much as it should…so what Blu Ray player is the best bang for my buck?

  2. PS3 is still the best BluRay player. Even if it wasn’t a game system, it’d still be the best, fastest, and most likely to be adaptable to whatever comes next. It also up converts very nicely for standard DVDs although I don’t have the comparison available on that note. For work-related reasons, I was able to sample all of the BluRay players for BluRay discs and, if I had a choice, I always worked on the PS3.

  3. adorian says:

    I just reread Edward Albee’s Tiny Alice. Why hasn’t someone turned this play into a movie yet? It’s got a great role for an older actress. Meryl Streep? Glenn Close?

  4. scooterzz says:

    how about kathleen turner since she seems to be albee’s latest actress of choice…..

  5. LexG says:

    Can someone, anyone please tell me what the current indie trailer has the NERVE to use the song from “Once”?????
    I saw it before THE VISITOR last week, and even though I’m drawing a blank as to what film it is, that melancholy, downbeat song has been DRILLED INTO MY HEAD for days on end; Nothing against the song or ONCE itself, but I thought I’d heard the last of it for a while. And I feel doubly ear-assaulted that some trailer jockey had the nerve to use such a unique, film-specific song to pimp some new indie quirk-fest.

  6. LexG says:

    Oh yeah.
    As long as we have free BYOB space, it cannot be said enough:
    OLIVIA THIRLBY OWNS YOUR ASS.
    GO SEE THE WACKNESS AND SUPPORT AWESOME ACTRESSES.

  7. jeffmcm says:

    Can I ask you again to please stop screaming at us?

  8. jeffmcm says:

    On the plus side, thank you for removing ‘boner’, ‘boneriffic’ and the rare ‘bonertastic’ from your vocabulary here.

  9. IOIOIOI says:

    HE’S NOT SCREAMING AT US! IT’S ALL IN YOUR MIND! Do you not remember what Love and Rockets taught us?

  10. LexG says:

    In his own way, I actually think Jeff is starting to find some bemusement in my nonsense.
    But, yeah, IO is spot-on… I never, ever get the “Stop shouting” nonsense when someone types in caps. It’s, like, not real and stuff. It’s just letters. No one’s shouting at you. And anyway, SHOUTING OWNS.
    Back to my initial point: OLIVIA THIRLBY OWNS.

  11. LexG says:

    Wait, I had one more thought.
    Oh, yeah, I know…
    THIRLBY.

  12. jeffmcm says:

    Okay, you’re not literally shouting. Can I call it “Text pollution”? “Visual clutter?” “Loud discourse”?
    Same basic effect: to demand attention and to be annoying.

  13. jeffmcm says:

    Back to movies…
    Saw Zohan tonight, really liked it. Sandler’s silliest and most satisfying, least ‘serious’ movie (Click turns into an It’s a Wonderful Life nightmare, Chuck & Larry into a tedious courtroom melodrama) in too long.

  14. IOIOIOI says:

    Jeff: how fucking whack are you? I want to know. Can someone judge this motherfuckers whackness? Can we place his large ass on a fucking whackness meter?
    Jesus H. Christ and his invisible brother, IT’S TEXT ON A SCREEN! If you use opera. You can shrink it down to 20% and everything is tiny. It’s all make believe.
    The fact that you have concocted this imaginary world, where typing “THIRLBY OWNS” effects you in such away. DEMONSTRATES HOW MUCH OF A WHACK-ASS MOTHERFUCKER YOU HAVE ALWAYS BEEN! WHACKNESS MCMAHON!

  15. LexG says:

    HA! IO is RUNNING SHIT today. Awesome.
    On the other hand, I am pleased (and surprised) that McM recognizes the goofy, winning, go-for-broke silliness of ZOHAN, which breaks down all defenses with its amazing good cheer.
    And EMMANUELLE CHRIQUI IS SO UNBELIEVABLY HOT.

  16. jeffmcm says:

    I don’t know how to measure my whackness quotient, IOI.
    Caps = losers.

  17. IOIOIOI says:

    Caps = losers? I have no idea what to do with you man. Absolutely no clue. Word up to you Lex. Word up.

  18. jeffmcm says:

    You could ignore me…?

  19. christian says:

    I fear LexG and IO are having a Gollum-like dialogue on the web…

  20. IOIOIOI says:

    Ignore you? Yes, let us not act adults, but ignore one another. Jeffery: you are an odd one. A very very odd man indeed.
    Christian: Gollum? Fuck that shit. We are GOLLUMS! WE ARE THE POWER OF JUDAISM! PUT IN THE INSTRUCTIONS AND SMASHIN WE WILL GO!

  21. frankbooth says:

    Lex only digs chicks with impossible to pronounce names. Thirlby? Rhymes with…with…shit, I give up. And the other one is even worse.
    Ok, anyone who answers this will OWN. I just saw Brainstorm on a double bill with TRON. Yes, that Brainstorm. And that TRON.
    Everyone who’s seen the former remembers the “sex loop” scene, even if they’ve forgotten the rest of the movie (which is not a bad idea.) Who was the actress? I swear it was P.J. Soles, but I can’t find anything on imdb, or anywhere else. HOW CAN YOU NOT GIVE RIFF RANDALL A CREDIT?
    Riff Randall OWNS your asses! She owns ALL these anemic bimbos who pass for actresses these days! BOW BEFORE RIFF!!!!

  22. frankbooth says:

    Ps
    Gollum is not a golem. GAH – lum. Tolkien. GOE – lem. Jewish myth.
    Respect the Jews and get it right, or they will sic Eric Bana, Daniel Craig and the Zohan on you.

  23. Aladdin Sane says:

    Golem reminds me of Kavalier and Clay. I need to read that book again.

  24. TMJ says:

    After four weeks, Louis Leterrier

  25. Joe Leydon says:

    TMJ: A higher-grossing movie?

  26. LexG says:

    HOUSE BUNNY IS GOING TO OWN YOUR ASS.
    ANNA FARIS = COMPLETE AND TOTAL OWNAGE.
    KNOW.
    The poster = BONER.

  27. Off movie topic buuuuut…
    The band I manage is playing in LA tomorrow night at Molly Malones on Fairfax. Early show…7:30 and a mere $6 gets you in. ALSO…FREE DRINKS AND FREE FOOD from 7:15-8:45. (The caps were for you, Jeff…but I do hope you come down). I should be there as well.
    The band is five a.m.: http://www.fiveam.com
    and Molly’s is: http://www.mollymalonesla.com/
    It would be neat to meet some of you in person…Lex, we ought to do shots….

  28. christian says:

    Frankbooth, I recall a still of that very sex scene from the CINEFANTASTIQUE story on BRAINSTORM back in the day. It doth look like Soles, but I doubt it was her.

  29. LexG says:

    Don…
    Shots OWN but I won’t be able to make it out of the Valley in time, plus I’d fear that McMahon would show up throwing haymakers. I did check out your band’s video and if they’re on THE SPACE I’ll give ’em an ADD.

  30. jeffmcm says:

    No, no Lex, what I said in the past was that if you ever told us where you were performing stand-up, I’d either heckle you or throw a beer bottle. Other social outings don’t come with that restriction.

  31. David Poland says:

    I think you know this, TMJ, but the argument is that The Incredible Hulk is a franchise starter and that Hulk was not. But they will end up with very similar grosses and TIH cost more. And I don’t buy the franchise thing at all. But pople have to make that call for themselves. No objective data to use, other than a profit and loss statement on the films, at this point.
    My argument remains that there is a significant, but limited audience for most of these films. Price tag needs to come down.
    The perfect analogy, to me, is Charlie’s Angels and Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. Box office was nearly identical worldwide. But Amy Pascal ended up acknowledging that the second film was a mistake.
    But the big difference here is that Universal didn’t take the hit this time, Marvel did.

  32. frankbooth says:

    Thanks, C. Figured if anyone knew, it would be you.
    Ah, Cinefantastique. They used to print the best stills. I remember this amazing issue devoted to Alien. Wish I still had that one.
    I’m still not 100 percent convinced on the PJ thing, though. It even SOUNDED like her. Same laugh and everything.

  33. You sissies….talking a big game on the anonymous internets and when I offer an olive branch, you all quietly slip into your seats. I’m saddened and dissapointed in you Lex and jeff. I hope Don Murphy and THX show up so they can condescend me in person šŸ˜‰

  34. jeffmcm says:

    ? I never said I wouldn’t be there, but the thrill of throwing something at Lex will not be an option.

  35. Lota says:

    No Jeff. You don’t want to throw something, thrilling though it may be. Little tip for ya. Get some brass knuckles and do a kidney punch during a rowdy number. Kind of like slam dancing and OOPS! Don’t hit a rib…leaves a mark.
    I’d lend you my Pop’s dusters but I never know when the old man might need ’em.
    Come to think of it. I think this is a good evening for you to review LA Confidential Jeff, and learn from it.
    [Just kidding Lex. I neither use violence nor do I promote the use of violence except as a last resort. But brass knuckles do OWWWWWN]

  36. Lota says:

    Watching the old Lou Ferrigno/bill bixby hulks revealed my inner child wish that I would LOVE the hulk to be a good franchise, but alas, it’s too upmarket in all ways (showing up in the final pricetag). It has to become a blue-collar show to succeed. With clothes from Sears. And people with bad teeth and less polish.
    Instead TIH gave me vibes of fantastic four and boy i didn’t want to feel that vibe again.
    Hulk was such a good TV show. A green Gentle Ben.
    “You wouldn’t like me when I’m angry”

  37. christian says:

    I live down the street from Molly’s and just might show up, Don.
    And frankbooth, I still have all my CFQ’s including that great ALIEN issue. That was a time of real interviews that would never be given today.

  38. LexG says:

    IMPORTANT NEWS UPDATE:
    OLIVIA THIRLBY OWNS YOUR ASS.
    KNOW.
    MAKE THIS CHICK WONDER WOMAN AND WATCH THAT SHIT MAKE 100 TRILLION DOLLARS.
    THIRLBY.

  39. yancyskancy says:

    Lex: Is it safe to assume that you saw the Entertainment Weekly issue from a couple weeks back that had not one, but two full-page close-ups of Thirlby’s face? Near-actual size Thirlby heads. Perfect for you to practice, um, kissing.

  40. jeffmcm says:

    I think Wonder Woman should be played by someone who can conceivably fight, or lift heavy grocery bags. I like Thirlby fine (she was very good in Snow Angels) but she’s unproven commercially and just plain too young.

  41. David Poland says:

    I believe in Thirlby’s upside, but a major studio movie on her shoulders alone would be very dangerous for her. She is still very much her age… charmingly so.
    She needs some time in the emotional movie weight room before carrying that load, which is about so much more than acting and looking good.

  42. Joe Leydon says:

    LexG: I’m going to be in L.A. next week. Wanna go to a strip club or two? I’ll be staying near LAX.

  43. I was recently chatting with a friend on MSN when I accidentally hit the caps lock key and typed “I DON’T LIKE [our “friend”] CHRIS. HE’S AN ARSEHOLE” and I was like “oh dear, caps!” and so i retyped it in normal text “I don’t like Chris. He’s an arsehole” and my friend responded “Okay then. I thought you were shouting at me like I was Chris.”
    We laughed and laughed.
    {fin}

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” ā€” 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 ā€” 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 ā€” he directed a play that I was going to do as an actor, so we know each other, but he yelled “hi” ā€” and I’d forgot who he was.

So at my girlfriend Barbara Hershey’s urging ā€” I was with her at that moment ā€” 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 namedā€”” “Yeah, sure ā€” 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 Iā€™m on the phone with you now, after all thatā€™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 didnā€™t seek to use his position to have sex with anyone. Thereā€™s not a case of that. He wasnā€™t using his position or status to try to solicit a sexual favor from anyone. If he had ā€” if that were what the accusation involved ā€” 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. Iā€™m not just being rhetorical. Why is it that you and the other critics, none of you could find the voice to say, ā€œYou know, itā€™s not this, itā€™s thatā€? Because ā€” let me go on and speak further to this. If you go back to the L.A. TimesĀ piece, thatā€™s what it lacked. Thatā€™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