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THE TAKING OF PELHAM 123 – a SOLID adult oriented ENTERAINMENT that’s a RIDE well worth taking

pelham 2Being a really big fan of the 1974 Joseph Sargent original “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three” I must admit I had serious reservations about this remake, but I was pleasantly surprised and thought it was actually really good. While I consider the original to be one of the very best films of its decade, this new version is a shot in the arm for R-rated adult entertainment at the movies. Directed by Tony Scott (Crimson Tide) this rendition of the John Godey potboiler novel is much more of a re-imagining than a flat out remake, and that was a smart move from a creative point of view.

Like the ‘74 version, the story revolves around the takeover of the lead car of a NYC subway train by a handful of armed gunman, lead in this update by a character who calls himself Ryder, (John Travolta). He plays an insane but intelligent loose cannon whose motives aren’t as transparent as they initially seem. While Travolta is technically playing the Robert Shaw role here, the characterization is almost completely different. Travolta seems to relish the role and I had a blast watching him do his thing. Denzel Washington plays Walter Garber (the Walter Matthau character in the original but here he has a very different personality and back-story). He’s the train dispatcher who takes the initial call from Ryder that Pelham has been seized, along with the demand of a ransom of 10 million dollars in one hour, or a hostage will be killed every minute it arrives late. Garber and Ryder then begin a game of radio cat and mouse as the city races to get the cash while a hostage negotiator (John Turturro) ups the anti, and the city’s Mayor (James Gandolfini – very good in the role) worries about his image.

Washington and Travolta are really at the top of their game and the interplay is compelling and very entertaining to watch. Screenwriter Brian Helgeland (LA Confidential) adds a few nice wrinkles (a lot of it pretty inventive and well thought out) to both the Garber and Ryder characters that help build and maintain interest as the story unfolds.

In my eyes Denzel Washington can do no wrong and he once again proves that he is the most likeable leading man in film today. While the movie overall doesn’t deliver on some of the smaller nuances of the original, including better characterizations of the train passengers and Ryder’s three henchmen (in many ways they’re wasted), it is a suspenseful, very well acted thriller that takes the story into our modern setting and entertains throughout. My one other bit of criticism would be that even though this version also takes place in NYC, Sargent’s version of NYC was more authentic. Also while the last act of the ‘74 version is superior and in most ways classic, this film’s last act is a bit over the top and slightly rushed but still satisfying. While I was a naysayer when the project was first announced, I’m happy to report that Scott does the property a solid job (other than the annoying freeze frame minutes countdown). If you’re a fan of R-rated suspense thrillers with top notch star appeal, this is a train well worth taking. I give it 4 out of 5 Zombies. Take the ride!

June 15, 2009 Posted by | Reviews | | Leave a Comment

THE TIME TRAVELER’S WIFE Trailer

timetravelers wifeBased on a best selling novel, The Time Traveler’s Wife, as I see it from this trailer, is sort of a mix between “The Notebook” and “Back to the Future”. That’s fine with me as I’m a fan of both films. It stars Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana.

While I doubt this will have much appeal with the fan boy crowd it should attract the legions of “Notebook” fans which made McAdams (I’m a big fan) a hot property in the industry. Bana plays Henry, a librarian who has a gene which causes him to time travel. He has no control over it at all, and disappears and reappears without notice. Despite this obsticle he manages to fall in love with Clare, played by McAdams. They try and have a normal life, against the backdrop of Henry’s bizarre existence. Look for “The Time Travelers Wife” from New Line Cinema to land in theaters August 14th giving summer moviegoers a little something different from giant robots and superheros. Have a Look

June 14, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | Leave a Comment

SHUTTER ISLAND TRAILER

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Synopsis (Courtesy Apple) – From Oscar winning director Martin Scorsese, “Shutter Island” is the story of two U.S Marshals, Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), who are summoned to a remote and barren island off the coast of Massachusetts to investigate the mysterious disapperance of a murderess from the island’s fortress-like hospital for the criminally insane.

Before I watched this trailer to Scorsese’s newest endeavor, I really didn’t know exactly what to expect, but I will say it surprised me. This is one of our greatest directors doing something quite different. It really has the feeling of a horror film or at least a Twilight Zone feel going for it. Take a LOOK and let me know what you think…

June 14, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , | Leave a Comment

TEASER TRAILER to MICHEAL MOORE’S YET UNTITLED NEW FILM ABOUT GOVERMENT BAILOUTS AND WALL STREET CORRUPTION

This is a teaser to Michael Moore’s upcoming documentary about our government bailouts, the recession and the ongoing corruption that permeates Wall Street. Say what you want about Moore, (I’m a fan) his films (Roger and Me, Fahrenheit 911, Sicko) open debate for things that should matter to all of us. Moore’s new film opens in October. I know I’ll be there. What do you think? Have a LOOK

June 14, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | | Leave a Comment

BEST 100 MOVIE LINES IN 200 SECONDS

After watching this really cool video titled 100 best movie lines in 200 seconds on You Tube, I thought I’d list some of my favorite movie lines with the last one being the most profound. What are some of your favorites? Here are my top twenty in no particular order.

“It’s out of control and its coming your way” Steve McQueen to Paul Newman in 1974’s The Towering Inferno.

“When there’s no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth” Ken Foree in 1978’s “Dawn of the Dead”.

“In the water, I’m a very skinny lady” Shelly Winters in 1972’s “The Poseidon Adventure”.

“He’s not blind as long as he’s with me, and he’s going with me” James Garner in 1963’s “The Great Escape”.

“Gesundheit”- Classic last word Walter Mathhau says when Martin Balsam sneezes in the 1974 film “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three”.

“This is reality Greg” Henry Thomas’s Elliot in 1982’s E.T.

“I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse” Al Pacino in 1972’s “The Godfather”.

“Was that the boogeyman”- Jamie Lee Curtis in 1978’s “Halloween”.

“Where does he get all those wonderful toys” Jack Nicholson in 1989’s “Batman”.

“Show Me the Money”-Tom Cruise in 1996’s “Jerry Maguire”.

“But that’s not what I’m gonna do…OK” Sam Neill in 1993’s “Jurassic Park”.

“You believe in Jesus, Well you’re going to meet him” Charles Bronson in 1982’s Death Wish 2.

“Soylent Green is people” Charlton Heston in 1973’s “Soylent Green”.

“I’m shot” James Brolin in 1973’s “Westworld”.

“Murdoch, I’m coming to get you. Sylvester Stallone in 1984’s Rambo: First Blood part 2.

“I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass… and I’m all out of bubblegum” Roddy Piper in 1988’s “They Live”.

“Get busy living or get busy dying” Morgan Freeman in 1994’s “The Shawshank Redemption“.

“Somebody’s life’s about to change” Leonardo Dicaprio in 1997’s“Titanic”.

“”You wanna have a catch?” Kevin Costner in 1989’s“Field of Dreams”.

“Societies are ultimately judged on how they treat the least among their people” Michael Moore- 2008’s “Sicko”.

June 11, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | 3 Comments

Showtime Orders Season Two of NURSE JACKIE After Record Ratings for Debut

nurse_jackie_poster“Nurse Jackie” scored in the ratings for Showtime Monday, so much so that the network has already ordered a second season of the Edie Falco series.

“Jackie” earned the best premiere ratings for any Showtime debut since 2004, when Nielsen changed the way it computed premium cable averages. The Falco comedy attracted 1.35 million viewers in its two combined Monday runs according to the ratings company. That number is better than the premiere ratings for most everything currently on Showtime’s lineup, including “Weeds,” “Dexter,” “The Tudors” and “Californication”.

Falco stars in the program as a New York City nurse who struggles to find a balance between the demands of her frenetic job at a city hospital and an array of personal dramas. It’s pretty evident that this is not a show that will appeal to everyone, but I do believe it will have a following as Falco’s Nurse Jackie is a stunningly flawed, but highly interesting, character that is worth tuning into on a weekly basis. Reportedly the nursing community is up in arms as the character who works in an understaffed NYC hospital is a pill head. While she also cheats on her husband, her character does have a Robin Hood like quality as she aggresively looks to do the right thing by her patients. While she is certainly imperfect, she is a terrific nurse – although some might see her forging a deceased patient’s name on the organ donor section of his drivers licence as a tad unprofessional. Sure it is, but it also gives the viewer a rooting interest in her kind-hearted but ballsy actions.

The show, with its mix of dark comedy and drama, had me laughing out loud a few times. The biggest laugh came when she punctured the tire of a bike rider who insulted her after she offered him a sound bit of advice on a street corner. Her character is unpredictable – a good thing for the edgy nature of this show. There was little doubt that the pilot episode had flaws, I believe there’s a ton of potential here. It was more than enough for me to keep watching. I’ll give Nurse Jackie 3.75 Zombies out of 5.

June 11, 2009 Posted by | Reviews | , | Leave a Comment

BRADLEY COOPER AND LIAM NEESON in negotiations to STAR in A-TEAM feature film

A-team 1According to Variety, Bradley Cooper (The Hangover) may star as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Peck and Liam Neeson (Taken) as Col. John “Hannibal” Smith in 20th Century Fox’s long planned feature film version of the popular 80’s action series, The A-Team. Facemen is the role originally played by Dirk Benedict while Hannibal is the character played by George Peppard. It’s actually nice to see the studio thinking out of the box as I would have thought they might have gone with the no-brainer casting of Bruce Willis as Hannibal. I think Neeson will be great in the part.

Joe Carnahan (Smokin Aces) is set to the direct the project with production to get underway in August for a June 2010 release. The script will retain the same basic premise of four war vets wrongly convicted of armed robbery who escape from a military prison and carry out Robin Hood like missions. It will be interesting to see who is cast in the B.A. Baracus role played by Mr. T and Capt “Howling Mad” Murdock played by Dwight Schultz on the NBC program. If a hit, this could easily turn into a long running franchise for the studio.

June 10, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , , | Leave a Comment

LAND OF THE LOST crashes and burns and other box-office news of interest

land of the lost 1Universal has to be pretty shell shocked after the disastrous $18,837,350 opening for its $100 million dollar comedy version of “Land of the Lost” which stars Will Ferrell. Considering the marketing budget was reportedly $40 million, the studio is pretty much guaranteed to take a bath on the film. I believe this is the worst opening for a high profile summer film with a budget of $100 mill or more since Warner Bros Poseidon remake sunk in its opening frame with $22.1 million in 2006. By the way Warner Bros, will you please release an extended cut version on DVD. Everyone knows Poseidon was test screened with a running time of 150 minutes, an infinitely better version. It was released into theaters at 90 minutes after Wolfgang Peterson knobbed off an hour, deciding to make it a non-stop action film. Enough venting on that subject… Anyway Land of the Lost is proof that big budget filmmaking is a risky form of high stakes gambling. This is an example when it didn’t pay off with audience rejection before viewing. The people josh_lucas17who did see it will not be spreading great word of mouth. Chalk this one under sizable tax write-off.

As for The Hangover’s $44,979,319 opening, it’s proof that people do read reviews and follow a film’s buzz weeks before release. How else do you explain a film that features a cast of relatively unknowns scoring this big? It’s also proof that audiences are clamoring for new things which is always a refreshing sign. One has to wonder if Judd Apatow’s “Funny People” will be embraced this well when it opens July 31.

I’m really curious about Tony Scott’s remake of Taking of Pelham 123 when it hits theaters this weekend. R-rated action thrillers used to be commonplace in the 80’s and 90’s with the Lethal Weapon and Die Hard series, but Hollywood now has cold feet. 2007’s Live Free or Die Hard and this summer’s Terminator Salvation were both released with PG-13 ratings in an effort to open up the film’s potential audience. Denzel Washington is still a draw so I fully expect a solid weekend of business.

Overseas, Terminator Salvation dominated in its major foreign rollout. Playing in 70 markets, the sci-fi action picture drew $65.2 million (including previews), lifting its total to $99.1 million and out-pacing Terminator 3 in comparable markets by close to 20 percent through the same point. The Night of the Museum sequel was second with $27.9 million ($149.6 million total), followed by Angels & Demons, which mustered $22.1 million and stands as 2009′s top-grossing picture internationally at $291 million.

June 9, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , | Leave a Comment

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