Entertainment Today and Beyond

Never Met a Zombi I Didn’t Like…

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Chuck and Michael take a look at Australia, Gran Torino, Seven Pounds, Milk and the Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Plus their Top 5 War Movies of all time. LISTEN HERE

Movies in the news: Twilight vs Harry Potter, Star Trek and Tom Cruise in Valkyrie. Chuck and Michael’s Top 5 Westerns. LISTEN HERE and let us know what you want to hear about. email Chuck
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November 30, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | Radio Shows | , , , , , , | No Comments

AUSTRALIA review

aust-2Baz Lurhmann’s AUSTRALIA is an old fashioned epic; one that harkens back to the days of Gone with the Wind and Lawrence of Arabia. Part western, part war film, part love story, and one big time risk, this is a film I really enjoyed. One has to admire the director’s tenacity making this ’from the heart’ story. This type of film is not easy to pull off yet, despite its flaws, Australia is well worth seeing… as long as your attention span is more than ten minutes.

The story begins at the brink of World War 2 where we are introduced to Lady Sarah Ashley (Nicole Kidman), a prime and uptight English aristocrat, who travels to the outback of northern Australia in order to deal with her  husband’s supposed infidelity. Once there, she discovers he has died under suspicious circumstances and his ranch, Far Away Downs, is under siege by a rival cattle company. In a bind, she enlists the help of a rugged cattleman, known simply as the Drover (Hugh Jackman) to help keep the ranch going.

The story also quickly establishes one of its main and most powerful themes, the mistreatment of Aborigines. This is told mostly through the eyes of an adorable little boy, a half-caste kid named Nullah (played with a calm charisma by newcomer Brandon Walters). He’s been living on the ranch in fear of being taken away and sent to a government institution; the fate of many now known as ‘the stolen generation’. He’s been fathered by the film’s nasty, somewhat over the top, villain (David Wenham) who will stop at nothing to acquire wealth.

While Jackman and Kidman’s chemistry isn’t the best (probably the film’s biggest weakness) the banter between the two is fun to watch. The first half of the story is highlighted by an effects-laden cattle drive where Lady Ashley and the Drover try and move 1500 cattle to Darwin so they can be sold. It’s a glorious throwback sequence that we don’t see much in movies anymore. The film’s second half deals with the Japanese bombing of Darwin, and Lady Ashley’s unshakable bond with Nullah which becomes the heart of the story.

In what I consider a ballsy move, director Lurmann’s heavily interjects “The Wizard of Oz” into the story, with Kidman singing “Over the Rainbow” along with the tune being played throughout the latter half of the story. While some might find this interjection hokey, I loved it and its one of my favorite things about the movie. It gives the proceedings a somewhat surreal effect and made me realize that Lurhmann has the guts to be different in a very good way. While Australia is all over the map, and the film’s tone is decidedly different from its first half to the second, I was captivated by the experience. Kidman might be an acquired taste for some, but I’m a big fan. I could enjoy watching her for two and half hours any day of the week. One of the joys of long epic films is that characters change and this is the case with Kidman’s Lady Ashley becoming a very different person by the end of the story. I liked that aspect a lot. I give Australia 4 out of 5 zombies. See it!

December 3, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | Reviews | | No Comments

COOL new video pumping THE DARK KNIGHT for a best picture Oscar

dark-knight-7This is a really good video I caught on YouTube cut by a website called Darkcampaign.com. It’s their way of promoting The Dark Knight for BEST picture. A must see for fans of the film, which is just about everyone! VIEW HERE

December 2, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | Reviews | | No Comments

ROB ZOMBIE to RETURN for another HALLOWEEN

halloween-big-posterAlthough there hasn’t been an official announcement, shocktilyoudrop is reporting that ROB ZOMBIE will return to direct a sequel to his remake of HALLOWEEN. French directors, Alexander Bustilio and Julien Muary, apparently were involved with the sequel but recently left the project. While Zombie’s re-imagining was financially successful, I’m still surprised that Dimension films and producer Malek Akkad would want him back.

Although Zombie’s Halloween has its supporters, many including myself feel that his version of John Carpenter’s classic original was a misfire considering the source material. Beside his usual interjection of trailer trash characters, the film was way too lopsided as the Michael Myers character received way too much screen time. I also feel Zombies brutally violent style, especially involving female characters, is also a bit much for this specific franchise. It will be interesting to see where he goes with a follow-up as his version left little wiggle room for moving things forward, especially with the Dr. Loomis character played by Malcolm McDowell. Like Michael Myers, this appears to be one franchise that will never die!

December 2, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | And Beyond | | No Comments

New PLANET OF THE APES film gets DIRECTOR

conquest_of_the_planet_of_the_apesThere is more news on the PLANET OF THE APES front. According to Cinemablend.com, 20th century Fox has hired writer/ director Frank Scott (The Lookout) to develop their new Planet of the Apes film, a re-imagining of the fourth movie in the original series, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes. The project will go under the working title “Caesar” and focus on the primate’s ultimate uprising on a contemporary Earth in 2009. As I stated before, I’m not a fan of any new ape films as I don’t think they can really add anything that the original franchise didn’t give us.

After watching the original 1968 film starring Charlton Heston the other day during the Fox Apes marathon, I must say the film’s director, Franklin J. Schaffner, (Patton) was a tremendous talent. That movie is a perfect example of what great filmmaking is all about.
I would argue that 90% of the directors working today can’t hold a candle to Schaffner’s abilities behind the camera.

December 2, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | And Beyond | , , , | No Comments

FOUR CHRISTMASES gets early holiday PRESENT

fourchristmases_gallerypostWarner Bros holiday comedy FOUR CHRISTMASES, starring Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon, pulled in the masses. Although the film opened to mediocre reviews, it scored with $31.7 million over the weekend and $46.7 since its debut on Wednesday. I would expect this critic-proof film to perform well throughout December.

bolt3Disney’s animated, BOLT, has a great weekend at number 2 with a 101% increase in ticket-sales. Benefiting greatly from kiddie-matine showings, the film grossed $26.5 over the weekend to give it a solid ten day total of $86.2 mil.

TWILIGHT placed third, grossing $26.3 mil. The film proved to have a front-loaded audience, dropping off 61% in ticket-sales from its $70 mil opening. Still, with a 10 day total of $119.7 million, production company, Summit Entertainment, has to be mighty australia-1happy. Word has it that the sequel titled, “New Moon,” might start filming by March.

The newest James Bond film, QUANTUM OF SOLACE, placed fourth, pulling in another $19.5 mil to give it a three week total of $142.3.

milk_galleryposter1Baz Lurmann’s epic, AUSTRALIA, placed fifth, grossing $14.8 mil over the weekend and $20 mil since it hit theaters on Wednesday. While reaction among critics is split, I believe the general public will like this film. Despite its flaws, I really enjoyed it and will probably watch it again. It achieved my number one criteria for liking a movie in that I found it to be very moving.  

A few other box-office items of interest: TRANSPORTER 3 opened in seventh place, grossing $12.3 over the weekend and $18.5 since Wednesday. Its star, Jason Statham, appears to stuck in a trading range when it comes to an audience. Whether he’ll ever break out and become a big time attraction is still suspect at this point.

Gus Van Sant’s, MILK, opened to very positive reviews and the film pulled in a terrific $1.4 mil on just 35 screens in 19 major cities. The film, which stars Sean Penn, should be a major player come award season. Here’s the weekend’s complete TOP TEN

December 1, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | And Beyond | | No Comments

TRAILER to WHAT DOESN’T KILL YOU

what_doesn_t_kill_you-stillWhat looks to be a compelling crime drama set in the streets of Boston’s southie neighborhood opens Dec 12 in a limited release. Mark Ruffalo (Zodiac) and Ethan Hawke (Training Day) star as two friends on the wrong side of the law. Take a LOOK

November 29, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | Reviews | , , | No Comments

Gran Torino BUZZ, What’s up with Benjamin Button’s marketing CAMPAIGN and an UPDATE on another Planet of Apes film over at FOX

grantorinoposter-405x600Reactions in early press screenings to Clint Eastwood’s GRAN TORINO have been very positive. The reviewers have put the spotlight on Eastwood’s performance, which could result in a Best Actor nomination come Oscar time. While Clint has won Two Oscars for directing and two for producing, the legendary icon has never taken one home for acting. So far, two of the early frontrunners for acting nods are Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler and Sean Penn for Milk. Considering Eastwood has been acting for 53 years this certainly would be a great ‘icing on the cake’ story if he wins. If Eastwood, Rourke and Heath Ledger all get Oscar nominations the Academy Award telecast could be something very special indeed.

I find it interesting that Paramount keeps changing things up with their marketing campaign for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. The film, which has received a lot of Oscar buzz, has a different feel every time I see a new trailer. There have been at least 5 different trailers cut, with a few of those having totally different music. It feels like the studio is nervous on how to sell it best. Brad Pitt stars as a man that ages backwards and David Fincher (Zodiac) directs but, going by the trailers, it feels like a Tim Burton movie.

planet-of-apes-1Fox production executive, Tom Rothman, confirmed during the PLANET OF THE APES movie marathon this Thanksgiving that the studio is developing a script for a new Apes film that will be set on earth in 2009. This would back up reports last month that some sort of re-imagining of the 4th apes film, Conquest of the Planet of the Apes, is planned. Personally I think the studio should leave well enough alone. The reason the original franchise worked so well was the element of surprise. Like all great sci-fi, the viewer needs to experience something they haven’t seen before. A few terrific twist and turns thrown in for good measure can’t hurt either. Since the original series did this in spades, it’s hard to justify remaking the same ideas because the audience will know what’s coming. While Tim Burton’s remake was watchable, it couldn’t hold a candle to the Charlton Heston classic as there was nothing new for the viewer to discover. The original 1968 film’s script, direction and star were also superior in every way to what Burton delivered to a new generation. It’s safe to say the same fate would fall on any new Apes film. Fans of the original movies will see what’s coming a mile a way and it’s doubtful it can be presented any better.

November 28, 2008 Posted by chuckcurry | And Beyond | | No Comments

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