Posts Tagged ‘Mark Wahlberg’

Trailering The Fighter

Thursday, September 16th, 2010

“Did that go the way you thought it was gonna go? Nope.”

Saturday, August 21st, 2010

The Other Guys is way better than I thought it would be.  It’s not that I haven’t admired and enjoyed the films that Will Ferrell and Adam McKay have made together, it’s that I have lost my faith in Ferrell as a consistent comedic presence.  For every Step Brothers (one of the more underrated comedies in recent years), there’s a handful of films like Land of the Lost, Semi-Pro, and Blades of Glory.  And as much as I enjoy the show Eastbound & Down, I didn’t find Ferrell’s slimy car salesman particularly funny or original.  Basically, I was starting to tire of the standard Will Ferrell shtick.

So color me surprised that The Other Guys turned out to be a fairly interesting send-up of cop flicks.  Ferrell is at his best here because he’s not as loud; he’s often been at his funniest when he’s subtle and quiet.  Here, it’s Mark Wahlberg that plays the more temperamental role and it’s much funnier to see Wahlberg lose it.  Of course, because Ferrell is reserved for much of the film, when he does blow up, it’s delightful.

Unlikely heroes

A rehashing of the plot is completely unnecessary because it’s all just a vehicle for Ferrell and Wahlberg to play off each other and they have great chemistry that nearly rivals what Ferrell shares with John C. Reilly or Paul Rudd.  I thought this film succeeded where Edgar Wright’s Hot Fuzz failed because Adam McKay doesn’t seem to have the same reverence for action films that Wright clearly did.  So, rather than lovingly mocking the outlandishness of these types of films as Wright did, this is a film that knows the plot should come secondary.

The one part of the film that really threw me off, however, was the end credit animated sequence that explains what a Ponzi scheme is and how it works.  It goes to some pretty heavy places, which is not how I wanted to leave a film that I just had a good time with.  It seems pretentious and heavy-handed, which is not what I expect to find when I sign up for a Will Ferrell comedy.

However, I fully enjoyed my time with The Other Guys.  It’s not high art and it’s not the funniest film ever, but it’s a good time and should offer everyone at least a few chuckles.

Countdown to Boogie Nights Day 2

Wednesday, October 29th, 1997

Boogie Nights makes porn stars look far too pathetic according to ’70s artistes du penetration Bobby Astyr and Candida Royalle, as quoted in the New York Daily News. However, they say, the slick producers, bad dialogue and poor production values are right on target. So, the 19-year-old from Iowa who’s getting paid $1,000 by a guy with leather pants and a gold chain to have sex with three men while saying “Oh baby!” six or seven hundred times in front of cheap wood paneling isn’t pathetic. The lighting of the scene is what’s pathetic. OK. Warning: Objectification may appear closer in real life than in the rear-view mirror.
Boogie Nights star Mark Wahlberg’s price is going up. Way up. Sources say Wahlberg will pull down almost $2 million to team up with Hong Kong superstar Chow Yun-Fat (star of The Killer and the upcoming The Replacement Killers) in The Corrupter, for Boogie studio New Line Cinema. In the thriller, Walberg plays the good-guy partner to Chow’s rogue cop. Then the two have sex on screen with a family of … Oops. Wrong movie.
Boogie Nights’ home studio, New Line, also has the next Mike Figgis movie, One Night Stand, coming to screens soon. At the recent junket for the film, Stand star Wesley Snipes edged around some inside info without giving too much away. First, he made funny noises while talking about his upcoming Blade, which he produced and stars in, which those of us in the room assumed were sounds of excitement. Little did we know that the night before, Snipes had suffered through a disastrous screening of the film, as related by a screening attendee who wrote into the Ain’t It Cool Web site. Then, he said that the film he’d really like to do is the Miles Davis story. Two days later, producer Marvin Worth (Malcolm X, Lenny) announces that he’s acquired the rights to make Davis’ life story for Sony. I wonder who’ll be playing Miles. Hmmm.
Tomorrow, Boogie Nights TV. Talk about your prime time!
Connect with email, read The Whole Picture, or carve a pumpkin. It’s up to you!

Don't Call Me John Travolta

Tuesday, October 21st, 1997

No, it’s not a personal thing. It’s the title of a new film out of Singapore about a guy who wants a motorcycle that he can’t afford. Inevitably, he turns to polyester and floors with colored lights. Isn’t that what you’d do? Well, in Ah Hocks case, he is after $6,500 from the local dance contest. It’s kind of The Full Monty in Singapore instead of England: both countries are suffering financial troubles and both films have men looking for innovative financing. Will Ah Hock win the dance contest? Will he end up sad on the subway? Will Sylvester Stallone make him wear a headband in a sequel? Get out your Chinese-to-English dictionary and watch for the film sometime next year.
Mira Nair has had to cut her film, Kama Sutra, repeatedly in order to have it seen in her native India. The English-language version may or may not have finally opened in Bombay last Friday after six months of wrestling with censors over nudity. The Indian-language versions of the film (in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu) are still awaiting clearance. The problem? Nudity! Here’s a clue. It’s the Kama Sutra, guys! You wrote it! You sold it to the world! There’s stuff in there that can’t be accomplished by circus performers! Who has time to worry about nudity when they’re trying to do a half-gainer while tying their tongue into a bow? Making Kama Sutra without nudity would be like making Gone With The Wind without fire, Little Women without crinoline or The Bible without sheep. Can’t do it.
Sometimes, DeNiro isn’t enough. Out On My Feet lived up to its name on Friday by shutting down despite big-name Bobby D. and Boogie Nights sensation Mark Wahlberg. The boxing project had been running on fumes for weeks with paychecks for everyone from painters and set dressers to office staff going unsigned for about a month already. The culprit? Apparently, first-time producer David B. Pritchard who was “privately financing” the $9 million movie. That is, until his primary financier fell out. Hmmm. Better not write anymore about this if I want to keep my fingers.
Don’t hesitate to email for tips on the art of good lovin’ (no, not really!) or anything else that touches your hot button (yes, really).

Jodie Foster is set to direct and produce Flora Plum

Wednesday, September 17th, 1997

Jodie Foster is set to direct and produce Flora Plum. Disney describes the picture as All About Eve set in a circus atmosphere. Some sample dialogue: Flora: “Fasten your seat belts, it’s going to be a bumpy night!” Ringmaster: “That isn’t the night. The elephants just walked through here!” OR Flora to the elephants: “I’m still not to be had for the price of a salted peanut!”
READER HOT BUTTON DU JOUR:
From Amy Taylor of the Northwest: One “Hot Button” I personally have, is spec scripts such as Cowboys and Aliens, or Earth Dick (no, not soft porn!), being purchased for six figures. I bet my 8-year-old could come up with a better idea than those, or at least a better title! In all honesty, however, I am certain if they were my clients, I would have laughed all the way to the bank!
Thanks for your thoughts, Amy. You’ll be thrilled to read the next item.
The Thunderbirds is being prepped as a live-action film based on the hit 1960s U.K. TV series that featured marionettes as 21st century space heroes. The Hot Button‘s wooden casting suggestions: Jason Patric as Anyone Who Has To Talk, Shaquille O’Neal as Anyone Who’s Not A Freak, Matthew McConaughey as Anyone Smart and Marky Mark Wahlberg‘s prosthetic device from Boogie Nights as The Ultimate Force Of Nature.
E-Mail Dave with the issues that get your button hot!