Monthly Wallpaper - August 2010: 80's Hunks

It's hot outside, so this month's Movie Dearest Calendar Wallpaper has gone back in time to a certain totally awesome decade to bring you a sizzling collection of cinematic 80's Hunks!

From dirty dancers to bulging barbarians, American gigolos to international adventurers, these are the men of August.

All you have to do is click on the picture above to enlarge it, then simply right click your mouse and select "Set as Background". (You can also save it to your computer and set it up from there if you prefer.) The size is 1024 x 768, but you can modify it if needed in your own photo-editing program.

Film Fan Fridays for Friday July 30, 2010

Hello Film Fans and Fanatics!

Welcome to Film Fan Fridays for Friday July 30, 2010! This may truly be the first week of the year where I'm not wanting to race out the door to see a particular film! Well, it took us more than half of the year to get to that... but that's where I'm at this week! Although I'm not super hyped for the releases this week there is still lots of news kicking around and I'm thrilled to share my news of the debut of the Movie Moxie Podcast! A 100% spoiler free film podcast! Episode 1 is up here and I talk about Salt, The Sorcerer's Apprentice and The Kids Are All Right. You can subscribe to the podcast through RSS feed here and through iTunes here. Have a listen & I really hope you enjoy it!

In limited release this week we have just one release and that is Countdown to Zero, a documentary on the nuclear arms race from award winning director Lucy Walker (Waste Land, Blindsight).

In wide release this week we have four releases including the latest 3D film, Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore and it's the feature film directorial debut from Brad Peyton, who directed the fantastically morbid short Evelyn: The Cutest Evil Dead Girl. We also have the drama Charlie St. Cloud starring Zac Efron and from 17 Again director Burr Steers. The comedy entry of the week is Dinner for Schmucks, a remake of the 1998 French film The Dinner Game, with a premise similar to Dogfight, but in this case it's who can bring the craziest loser to the dinner party. Last entry of the week is the Bollywood film Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai, which is 70's set retro chic and has taglines like "In the Age of Chocolate Boys - Rewind to the Era of Real Men", which cracked me up and might just bump it up to the most interesting release of the week.

Although I'm not over the moon about the film releases this week we are warming up to festival fever here in Toronto with announcements of the Toronto After Dark 2010 Line Up and the first big list of titles for the Toronto International Film Festival.

Have a great weekend!

Shannon

Festival Watch

Caribbean Tales Film Festival
July 30 - August 2, 2010, at Harbourfront in Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Friday July 30, 2010 Releases

Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Dir: Brad Peyton - feature film directorial debut
Voices: Chris O’Donnell, Paul Rodriguez, Christina Applegate, James Marsden, Leslie Mann, Ray Liotta, Katt Williams
USA/Australia
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer

Charlie St. Cloud
Dir: Burr Steers (17 Again, Igby Goes Down)
Cast: Zac Efron, Amanda Crew, Donal Logue, Charlie Tahan, Kim Basinger, Ray Liotta
USA/Canada
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer

Countdown to Zero
Dir: Lucy Walker (Waste Land, Blindsight)
Documentary
USA
Limited Release
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer

Dinner for Schmucks
Dir: Jay Roach (Meet the Fockers, Meet the Parents, Mystery, Alaska)
Cast: Paul Rudd, Steve Carell, Zach Galifianakis, Stephanie Szostak, Bruce Greenwood
USA
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer

Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai
Dir: Milan Luthria (Hattrick, Chori Chori)
Cast: Ajay Devgan, Emraan Hashmi, Kangana Ranaut
India
Official Film Site, IMDb Page, Trailer

**please note this list of releases reflects first run film released in Toronto, Ontario, Canada as of July 30, 2010**

Reverend's Reviews: Frankenschtick

I will always remember fondly the day in 1975 when my mother picked my brother and I up after school and unexpectedly took us to see Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein. The now classic spoof of old Universal horror movies made us giggle uncontrollably then, and continues to make me and many other people laugh at the mere mention of it.

Brooks, in the wake of his huge success with turning The Producers into a stage musical, has done the same with Young Frankenstein. Though not as well received as its predecessor on Broadway, its current US tour seems off to a good start. The production just made its Los Angeles debut at the Pantages Theatre on Tuesday night.

The LA run features several performers from the original New York production, most notably two Tony Award winners: the always enjoyable Roger Bart (The Producers, TV's Desperate Housewives) as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein, the role Gene Wilder made famous in the film, and the physically imposing Shuler Hensley (Broadway's Tarzan and Jud Fry in the most recent revival of Oklahoma!) as his Monster. Both are thoroughly entertaining, and no less so than when they are recreating the movie's famous Master-Monster duet on Irving Berlin's "Puttin' on the Ritz."

Other effective, crowd-pleasing performances in the tour include those of Broadway regular Brad Oscar in the dual roles of Inspector Kemp and the Blind Hermit; Cory English as Frankenstein's devoted assistant, Igor; Joanna Glushak as Frau Blucher; and Anne Horak as Inga, the local Transylvania girl brought to life in the original film by Teri Garr. Unfortunately, the role of Elizabeth, Dr. Frankenstein's high society fiancée originally played by Madeline Kahn, wasn't as well-played or -sung by Beth Curry as the others (it may be worth noting that Megan Mullally also had difficulty with the part in New York).

It is equally to the show's benefit and its detriment that the book (co-penned by Brooks and Thomas Meehan) was adapted nearly verbatim from the original screenplay. The film's plot and best jokes — which are essentially all of them — have been retained and remain fresh, ensuring often-riotous audience laughter throughout; on the other hand, there is little in the show apart from the song score and a Starbucks reference that anyone who has viewed the Young Frankenstein movie hasn't seen or heard before. The horses still whinny in terror whenever Frau Blucher's name (which is synonymous with "glue factory") is pronounced, Castle Von Frankenstein's doors continue to sport their notable "knockers," and the Blind Hermit predictably sets the Monster's thumb on fire instead of his cigar. The musical is carried along more by familiarity with Brooks' schtick and nostalgia than anything original.

The songs, however, are a happy exception to this. The musically-gifted Brooks has actually improved on his score for The Producers with Young Frankenstein's more complex, beautifully orchestrated and (most importantly) very funny tunes. Highlights during the performance I attended included "Roll in the Hay," convincingly staged in a "horse"-drawn wagon; "Join the Family Business," a rousing chorus number that culminates in the on-stage assembly of a gigantic Frankenstein monster; and Frau Blucher's hilarious, S&M-tinged "He Vas My Boyfriend."

Young Frankenstein boasts more set changes than I can recall in a recent musical, especially for a touring company. Longtime designer Robin Wagner has done a masterful job, especially with Frankenstein's lab. The soaring, elaborate set includes working pullies and electric gadgetry as well as an operating table that rises to the rafters with the lead actors on it! Peter Kaczorowski's lighting effects and Jonathan Deans' sound design provide great support.

Susan Stroman, a double Tony-winner for her direction and choreography of The Producers, repeats those duties here but without as much success, especially in the dance department. Her dances are serviceable but not noteworthy, although a Russian-inspired segment during "Join the Family Business" and a "Puttin' on the Ritz" chorus line featuring oversized, taps-laden monster boots are impressive.

Brooks is reportedly working now on a musical version of Blazing Saddles. He's a brave man. Young Frankenstein has already shown that it is difficult to capture the same magic twice, let alone three times. If one is yearning, though, for an unquestionably entertaining evening of music and laughs, it's hard to beat Young Frankenstein.

Review by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and the Orange County and Long Beach Blade.

Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2010: Schedule & Line Up Announced!

Toronto After Dark is one of the big highlights of the festival year here in Toronto, where all the cult, genre, zombie and horror fans come out of the woodwork and are treated to a cinematic buffet of epic proportions. It has grown over the years and always has an exciting line up films along with fantastically enthusiastic audiences filled with great people. With the festival just over 2 weeks away, we finally have the film line up and schedule in our hot little hands... or rather viewed from our wide eyed... eyes.

I'm over the moon excited to see Centurion listed in the line up. It's directed by Neil Marshall (The Descent), a Roman epic, ensemble cast including Michael Fassbender (Hunger, Fish Tank), few-against-many-ness and a woman kicking butt. This is a yes, yes, yes! Actually Centurion was on my wishful thinking 2010 Most Anticipated Releases list, but I had a feeling that it wouldn't make it to regular theatres, and it still might - but I know that I'll be seeing it here! Continuing the epicness, we also Black Death starring Sean Bean in medieval/horror flick which a dash of witchcraft, but more of the witch hunting variety. Switching gears to the outer layer, one film that looks freaking fantastic is from Switzerland and set out even further than that: Cargo is set during a long term space flight hauling cargo with a medic attending the flight and I'm sure it must 'all go wrong' at some point, but it looks freaking beautiful and has a female protagonist - yay!

Getting a little scarier we keep trekking across the globe to Thailand for Phobia 2, a sequel from the directors 4bia / Phobia / See Prang, and I'm all for crazy scary Thai horror omnibuses! Bring 'em on! I've also heard fantastic things about the French film Rubber, which is literally about Robert, the sentient, killer tire. It looks hilarious from the trailer. Keeping it dark, we also have Heartless, which although I'm not a big 'darkness within' fan, I am a big fan of Jim Sturgess and this one looks like it's got a very interesting premise and very polished look although the trailer a little spoilery.

If you'd rather giggle your way through some films there certainly is a fair amount of comedy to choose from, whether it be in the form of a gorefest with Robogeisha, or ode to horror filsm with All About Evil. I'm not the first person to go for the drug comedy-ish selection, but HIGH School looks hilarious, and I love that the trailer doesn't give away too much and it has cast including Michael Chiklis, Adrien Brody & Colin Hanks.

Comedy continues with zombie films which included Zombie comedy Doghouse which has a new spin a la men are from England and women are from Venus - if Venus was covered in zombies! Completing the zombie double bill of the festival is Evil in the Time of Heroes, from Greece.

There is usually one film per year that gets me a bit leery, and often due to the films sexual content. In 2008, it was Donkey Punch, which actually ended up being one of the best films I've seen at the festival through the years. In 2009, it was Embodiment of Evil / Encarnação do Demônio which was completely messed up but 100% consensual so I just file that under 'not for me', and leave it at that. This year, I'm sure I won't be the only one decided on whether or not to see I Spit On Your Grave (2010), a remake of the 1978 film of the same name and both are brutal rape/revenge tales. My initial reaction was to have it be my miss this year, as I'm not a fan of any sexual violence nor revenge and I have no clue why this film would be remake. But, then I read that director Steven R. Monroe will be in attendance at the screening which flips my decision back to being curious as to what he has to say about the film, and I don't think that is a Q&A that I can miss.

I do have to say that I love a festival where the CLOSING GALA is The Human Centipede, which is literally one of the ickyest sounding films I've heard of in years. I'll admit that I didn't watch the trailer for because I don't want to deter myself from seeing it and considering the grossness of the premise (read the TADFF Page if you want to know the specifics of the surgical creation grossness). I have a feeling knowing any more might put me off seeing it, and I hate not seeing everything.

And this is just the feature films! There is also a fantastic looking shorts programs of Canadian and International magnitude which I'll chat in more detail before the festival.

16 Day and counting! See you there :)

Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2010 Feature Film Line Up

Alien vs Ninja
Writer/Dir: Seiji Chiba
Cast: Mika Hijii, Ben Hiura, Shuuji Kashiwabara, Masanori Mimoto, Yûki Ogoe, Donpei Tsuchihira
Japan
TADFF Page, IMDb Page, Trailer

All About Evil
Dir: Joshua Grannell
Cast: Natasha Lyonne, Thomas Dekkar, Noah Segan, Mink Stole, Cassandra Peterson
USA

TADFF Page, Official Website & Trailer, IMDb Page

Black Death
Dir: Christopher Smith (Severance)
Cast: Sean Bean, Eddie Redmayne, Carice van Houten
UK
TADFF Page, Official Website & Trailer, IMDb Page

Cargo
Dir: Ivan Engler
Cast: Anna-Katharina Schwabroh
Switzerland
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Centurion
Dir: Neil Marshall (Dog Soldiers, The Descent, Doomsday)
Cast: Michael Fassbender, Olga Kyrylenko, Dominic West
UK
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Doghouse
Dir: Jake West (Evil Aliens)
Cast: Stephen Graham, Danny Dyer, Noel Clarke, Christina Cole
UK
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Evil in The Time of Heroes / To kako - Stin epohi ton iroon
Dir: Yorgos Noussias (Evil)
Cast: Billy Zane, Dinos Avgoustidis, Orfeas Avgoustidis
Greece
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Heartless
Writer/Dir: Philip Ridley
Cast: Jim Sturgess, Clémence Poésy, Noel Clarke, Luke Treadaway
UK
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

HIGH School
Dir: John Stalberg
Cast: Michael Chiklis, Adrien Brody, Colin Hanks, Matt Bush, Sean Marquette, Adhir Kalyan, Mykelti Williamson
USA
TADFF Page, IMDb Page, Trailer

The Human Centipede ** Closing Gala Film **
Dir: Tom Six
Cast: Dieter Laser, Ashley C. Williams, Ashlynn Yennie, Akihiro Kitamura
The Netherlands
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

The Last Exorcism
Dir: Daniel Stamm (A Necessary Death)
Cast: Patrick Fabian, Ashley Bell, Louis Herthum, Iris Bahr, Caleb Landry Jones, Tony Bentley
USA
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

The Last Lovecraft: Relic of Cthulhu ** Opening Gala Film **
Dir: Henry Saine
Cast: Kyle Davis, Devin McGinn, Gregg Lawrence
USA
TADFF Page, Official Website & Trailer, IMDb Page

I Spit on Your Grave (2010)
Dir: Steven R. Monroe
Cast: Sarah Butler, Chad Lindberg, Tracey Walter, Daniel Franzese, Jeff Branson, Rodney Eastman, Andrew Howard
USA
TADFF Page, Official Website & Trailer, IMDb Page

Phobia 2 / Ha phraeng
Dirs: Banjong Pisanthanakun, Paween Purikitpanya, Songyos Sugmakanan, Parkpoom Wongpoom
Thailand
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Robogeisha
Writer/Dir: Noboru Iguchi (Machine Girl)
Cast: Aya Kiguchi, Naoto Takenaka, Takumi Saitô, Suzuki Matsuo, Yoshihiro Nishimura
Japan
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

Rubber
Writer/Dir: Quentin Dupieux
Cast: Thomas F. Duffy
France
TADFF Page, Official Website, IMDb Page, Trailer

The Toronto After Dark Film Festival 2010 runs from August 13 - 20,2010 at the Bloor Cinema, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Inception Digs to a Deeper Level: Canadian, North American, UK & Australian Box Office July 23, 2010 Weekend

Inception stays at top of the box office in both North America and Canada in it's second week and soars to the #1 spot in Australia on it's opening weekend there. New releases this week include Salt opening at #2 in both Canada & North America and Ramona and Beezus opening at #8 in Canada #6 in North America. But, what really nailed it out of the park was Toy Story 3 which opened in the UK at £21M, which easily puts it as the #1 gross of 2010 leaving The Twilight Saga: Eclipse in the dust with it's just newly set record at £13. Heck it's even more than the 2009 record of £19 of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince ! I can't believe it!

Top 20 Movies in Canada for the July 23, 2010 weekend
1. Inception
2. Salt *
3. Despicable Me
4. Toy Story 3
5. The Sorcerer's Apprentice
6. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
7. Grown Ups
8. Ramona and Beezus *
9. The Last Airbender
10. Predators
11. Piché : Entre ciel et terre
12. The Kids Are All Right
13. Knight and Day
14. Mel Karade Rabba
15. The Karate Kid
16. Cabotins *
17. IMAX: Hubble 3D
18. Khatta Meetha *
19. The Girl Who Played With Fire
20. I Am Love

Top 20 Movies in North America for the July 23, 2010 weekend
1. Inception
2. Salt *
3. Despicable Me
4. The Sorcerer's Apprentice
5. Toy Story 3
6. Ramona and Beezus *
7. Grown Ups
8. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
9. The Last Airbender
10. Predators
11. The Kids Are All Right
12. Knight and Day
13. The Karate Kid
14. Cyrus
15. The Girl Who Played With Fire
16. Iron Man 2
17. Winter's Bone
18. IMAX: Hubble 3D
19. Khatta Meetha *
20. The A-Team

Top 10 Movies in the UK for the July 23, 2010 weekend
1. Toy Story 3 *
2. Inception
3. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
4. Shrek Forever After
5. The Rebound *
6. Predators
7. Khatta Meetha *
8. Get Him to the Greek
9. Splice *
10. Leaving

Top 20 Movies in Australia for the July 22 - 25, 2010 weekend
1. Inception *
2. Knight & Day
3. Toy Story 3
4. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
5. The Karate Kid
6. Shrek Forever After
7. Predators
8. Grown Ups
9. Marmaduke
10. Animal Kingdom
11. Get Him to the Greek
12. The Waiting City
13. I Am Love
14. Creation
15. The Runaways
16. Mel Karade Rabba
17. Greenberg *
18. Khatta Meetha *
19. The Hedgehog
20. Sex and the City 2

* indicates opening weekend in noted location

Source: Canada & North America info, UK info, Australia Info

TIFF 2010: First Big List of Titles Announced!

The first big slew of titles has been announced for TIFF 2010 from the Gala, Special Presentations and Master programmes and there are so many films to get excited about but the one that literally made me jump for joy is Never Let Me Go, directed by Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo) and starring Carey Mulligan (An Education), Andrew Garfield (Boy A, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus), Keira Knightly, Sally Hawkins and Charlotte Rampling, and is based on the book by Kazuo Ishiguro (see book review here). I highly recommend reading the book as soon as you can, not only because it's one of the best books I've read in years but also because it's such a great story that the less you know the better and the film trailer show way to much. The writing style of the book takes a bit getting used to, but it's well worth it reading.

Some of the other titles that jumped off the screen at me were In A Better World directed by Susanne Bier (After the Wedding / Efter brylluppet) and starring Ulrich Thomsen (Fear Me Not / Den du frygter), Buried from directed Rodrigo Cortés and starring Ryan Reynolds and L'Amour Fou a documentary on Yves Saint Laurent from director Pierre Thoretton.

The Gala announced have some heavy hitters with Black Swan from director Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler, The Fountain, Pi) and starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey & Winona Ryder and Philip Seymour Hoffman's feature film directorial debut Jack Goes Boating starrring John Ortiz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Amy Ryan & Philip Seymour Hoffman.

Acclaimed directors that are hitting the festival this year include Woody Allen with You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger, Stephen Frears with Tamara Drewe, Michael Winterbottom with The Trip, Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel) with Biutiful and Mike Leigh with Another Year, all a part of the Special Presentations program.

Several actors with multiple titles in the line up including Catherine Deneuve (Potiche, The Big Picture) and Rachelle Lefevre (Casino Jack and Barney's Visions) and Twi-fans will know Barney's Vision as the film that was the source of the schedulling issues and therefore led to her role of Victoria in Twilight and New Moon being recast as Bryce Dallas Howard for Eclipse.

I know we are all getting excited about the titles and want to get into planning mode, and although it really will all come down to the schedule there are a few things to consider when making your choices. Remember that the new premium screenings status is in are in effect this year and may apply to World or North American Premieres and to jog your memory, premium screenings are described as follows: "We have refined our definition of a premium screening around the experience you will have. These are screenings that are World or North American premieres and offer a premium experience including a red carpet event." Another consideration is that several titles have release dates for during the festival including Easy A, The Town, Jack Goes Boating which are currently slated to be released Friday September 17, 2010.

Here is a list of the most recently released titles:

Galas

The Bang Bang Club
Dir: Steven Silver
Cast: Ryan Phillippe, Malin Akerman, Taylor Kitsch, Neels Van Jaarsveld, Frank Rautenbach
Canada/South Africa
World Premiere

Barney's Version
Dir: Richard J. Lewis
Cast: Paul Giamatti, Dustin Hoffman, Rosamund Pike, Minnie Driver, Rachelle Lefevre, Scott Speedman
Canada/Italy
North American Premiere

Black Swan
Dir: Darren Aronofsky (The Wrestler, The Fountain, Pi)
Cast: Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder
USA
North American Premiere

Casino Jack
Dir: George Hickenlooper
Cast: Kevin Spacey, Barry Pepper, Kelly Preston, Rachelle Lefevre, Jon Lovitz
Canada
World Premiere

The Conspirator
Dir: Robert Redford
Cast: James McAvoy, Robin Wright, Kevin Kline, Evan Rachel Wood, Tom Wilkinson
USA
World Premiere

The Debt
Dir: John Madden
Cast: Helen Mirren, Jessica Chastain, Sam Worthington
USA
North American Premiere

The Housemaid
Dir: Im Sang-Soo
South Korea
North American Premiere

Janie Jones
Dir: David M. Rosenthal
USA
World Premiere

The King's Speech
Dir: Tom Hooper
Cast: Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush
United Kingdom/Australia
North American Premiere

Little White Lies
Dir: Guillaume Canet (Tell No One)
Cast: François Cluzet, Marion Cotillard, Benoît Magimel, Gilles Lellouche, Jean Dujardin, Laurent Lafitte, Valérie Bonneton, Pascale Arbillot
France
World Premiere

Peep World
Dir: Barry Blaustein
USA
World Premiere

Potiche
Dir: François Ozon,
Cast: Catherine Deneuve, Gerard Depardieu
France
North American Premiere

The Town
Dir: Ben Affleck
Cast: Ben Affleck, Rebecca Hall, Jeremy Renner, Chris Cooper
USA
North American Premiere

The Way
Dir: Emilio Estevez
Cast: Martin Sheen
USA
World Premiere

West is West
Dir: Andy De Emmony
United Kingdom
World Premiere

Special Presentations

Another Year
Dir: Mike Leigh
Cast: Jim Broadbent, Lesley Manville, Ruth Sheen, Peter Wight, Oliver Maltman, David Bradley, Karina Fernandez, Martin Savage
United Kingdom
North American Premiere

Beginners
Dir: Mike Mills (Thumbsucker)
Cast: Christopher Plummer, Ewan McGregor
USA
World Premiere

The Big Picture
Dir: Eric Lartigau
Cast: Romain Duris, Marina Foïs, Niels Arestrup, Catherine Deneuve
France
World Premiere

Biutiful
Dir: Alejandro González Iñárritu (Amores Perros, 21 Grams, Babel)
Cast: Javier Bardem
Spain/Mexico
North American Premiere

Blue Valentine
Dir: Derek Cianfrance
Cast: Michelle Williams, Ryan Gosling
USA
Canadian Premiere

Brighton Rock
Dri: Rowan Joffe
United Kingdom
World Premiere

Buried
Dir: Rodrigo Cortés
Cast: Ryan Reynolds
Spain/USA
Canadian Premiere

Conviction
Dir: Tony Goldwyn
Cast: Hilary Swank, Sam Rockwell
USA
World Premiere

Cirkus Columbia
Dir: Danis Tanovic
Bosnia and Herzegovina
International Premiere

Dhobi Ghat
Dir: Kiran Rao
India
World Premiere

Easy A
Dir: Will Gluck
Cast: Emma Stone
USA
World Premiere

Henry's Crime
Dir: Malcolm Venville
Cast: Keanu Reeves, Vera Farmiga, James Caan, Fisher Stevens, Peter Stormare, Danny Hoch, Bill Duke
USA
World Premiere

The Illusionist
Dir: Sylvain Chomet (The Triplets of Belleville)
United Kingdom
North American Premiere

In A Better World
Dir: Susanne Bier (After the Wedding / Efter brylluppet, Open Hearts)
Cast: Ulrich Thomsen, Mikael Persbrandt
Denmark/Sweden
International Premiere

I Saw the Devil
Dir: Kim Jee-woon (A Tale of Two Sisters, The Good, The Bad, The Weird)
South Korea
North American Premiere

It's Kind of a Funny Story
Dirs: Ryan Fleck, Anna Boden,
Cast: Keir Gilchrist, Emma Roberts, Zach Galifianakis
USA
World Premiere

Jack Goes Boating
Dir: Philip Seymour Hoffman,
Cast: John Ortiz, Daphne Rubin-Vega, Amy Ryan, Philip Seymour Hoffman
USA
International Premiere

L'Amour Fou
Dir: Pierre Thoretton
Documentary on Yves Saint Laurent
France
World Premiere

The Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen
Dir: Andrew Lau
Hong Kong
North American Premiere

Lope
Dir: Andrucha Waddington
Brazil/Spain
World Premiere

Love Crime
Dir: Alain Corneau
Cast: Kristin Scott Thomas, Ludivine Sagnier
France
International Premiere

Made in Dagenham
Dir: Nigel Cole
Cast: Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Miranda Richardson, Geraldine James, Rosamund Pike United Kingdom
World Premiere

Miral
Dir: Julian Schnabel (The Diving Bell and the Butterfly)
United Kingdom/Israel/France
North American Premiere

Never Let Me Go
Dir: Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo)
Cast: Carey Mulligan, Andrew Garfield, Keira Knightly, Sally Hawkins, Charlotte Rampling
United Kingdom
World Premiere

Norwegian Wood
Dir: Tran Anh Hung
Cast: Kenichi Matsuyama, Rinko Kikuchi, Kiko Mizuhara
Japan
North American Premiere

Outside the Law
Dir: Rachid Bouchareb
France/Algeria/Tunisia/Italy/Belgium
North American Premiere

Rabbit Hole
Dir: John Cameron Mitchell
Cast: David Lindsay-Abaire. Nicole Kidman, Aaron Eckhart
USA
World Premiere

A Screaming Man
Dir: Mahamat-Saleh Haroun
France/Belgium/Chad
North American Premiere

Stone
Dir: John Curran
Cast: Robert De Niro, Edward Norton, Milla Jovovich, Frances Conroy
USA
World Premiere

Submarine
Dir: Richard Ayoade
United Kingdom
World Premiere

That Girl in Yellow Boots
Dir: Anurag Kashyap
India
North American Premiere

Tamara Drewe
Dir: Stephen Frears
United Kingdom
North American Premiere

The Trip
Dir: Michael Winterbottom
Cat: Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon
United Kingdom
World Premiere

Trust
Dir: David Schwimmer
Cast: Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, Tom McCarthy
USA
World Premiere

You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger
Dir: Woody Allen
Cast: Antonio Banderas, Josh Brolin, Anthony Hopkins, Gemma Jones, Lucy Punch, Naomi Watts
United Kingdom/USA/Spain
North American Premiere

Masters

Mysteries of Lisbon
Dir: Raul Ruiz
Portugal/France
World Premiere

See Press Release: Celebrated Actors And Filmmakers Take Centre Stage As TIFF Announces Stellar Lineup Of Galas And Special Presentations

The Toronto International Film Festival 2010 runs from September 9 - 19, 2010 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Reverend's Reviews: Paid in Pleasure

A middle-aged, male escort and his younger, cross-dressing protégé are the unusual central characters in The Extra Man. Based on the novel by Jonathan Ames, the film opens this Friday in New York and on Friday, August 6 in the Los Angeles and San Francisco vicinities.

As the movie begins, Louis Ives (Paul Dano, of Little Miss Sunshine and There Will Be Blood) is being fired from his teaching position. Ives, who is devoted to 1920's literature and fears himself "unlovable," takes advantage of his unexpected freedom and moves to Manhattan to pursue a writing career. Fortunately, he not only finds a job quickly but also discovers a bevy of "tranny" bars wherein he hopes to indulge his fondness for wearing women's clothing.

Ives also secures himself a room in the residence of Henry Harrison (the irrepressible Kevin Kline), a failed playwright turned companion to wealthy, older women. To call Harrison "eccentric" would be an understatement. He proudly — and loudly — boasts of his disdain for sex, kissing, recycling, homeless people and feminism, while cherishing dancing and his Christmas ornament collection. After imposing a "no fornication" rule on Ives upon moving in, Harrison begins introducing the young man to his clients. Harrison insists he is not a gigolo but rather "an extra man" or "walker" for lonely women who don't return his attentions with money. Rather, he is "paid in pleasure" via dinners in high-end restaurants, nights at the opera and the use of beachfront vacation homes.

Some of the women become suspicious of Harrison's interest in Ives. As one of them, played by the always welcome Celia Weston, tells Ives: "People suspect Henry is a homosexual. He was in the theatre. Theatre types need to be a little homosexual so they can feel things more deeply." Also, Ives' age-appropriate co-worker, Mary (a nice, light turn by Katie Holmes), on whom he is crushing notes "Maybe he's in love with you" when Ives tells her of Harrison's kindness toward him. Meanwhile, Ives undertakes his own sexual exploration with the help of a spank-happy dominatrix (Patti D'Arbanville) and a women's makeover artist.

Chief among The Extra Man's numerous attributes is its excellent cast. Kline, harking back to his wackier characterizations in such offbeat 80's movies as The Pirates of Penzance and A Fish Called Wanda, is a delight. Dano more than holds his own against Kline as the hopelessly romantic Ives, who would have been more at-home in his skin during the 1920's. In addition to Weston and D'Arbanville, stage icon Marian Seldes appears as another of Harrison's lady friends and gives a lovely, more comical-than-usual performance. Only John C. Reilly, as a former roommate of Harrison's, seems off-key, which is amplified (literally) by his decision to speak in a higher octave.

Adapted from the book and co-directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini, who previously made The Nanny Diaries and the excellent American Splendor, The Extra Man has its more outré moments but is in general an enjoyable, pitch-perfect celebration of non-conformity.

Reverend's Rating: B+

UPDATE: The Extra Man is now available on DVD and Blu-ray from Amazon.com.

Review by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and the Orange County and Long Beach Blade.

Movie Moxie Podcast: Episode 1

I've been talking about, hoping for and waxing poetically about having my very own film podcast for a very long time and the day has finally come! On this first episode of the Movie Moxie Podcast I stick to my spoiler-free guns as I review current theatrical releases of Salt, The Sorcerer's Apprentice (2010) and The Kids Are All Right as well as reviewing new to DVD release of Espion(s). I hope you enjoy this first episode!

Time Details:
0:00 – 1:30 - Introduction
1:30 –10:10 - Salt
10:10 – 17:10 - The Sorcerer’s Apprentice
17:10 – 21:40 - The Kids Are All Right
21:40 – 23:30 - A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Theatre
23:30 – 26:25 - Trailers: The Expendables & Red
26:25 – 27:35 - DVD Releases July 27, 2010
27:35 – 29:50 - DVD Review: Espion(s)
29:50 – 31:15 - Coming Up Next Week
31:15 – 31:52 - Outro

Show notes

• Trailers Mentioned: The Expendables (trailer) & Red (trailer)
• Espion(s) review
• DVD Releases for Tuesday July 27, 2010
• Remember to Vote on the Poll for What August Release You Are Most Looking Forward To ------------->

Podcast should be up on iTunes shortly.
You can also subscribe to the Movie Moxie Podcast here:

Questions & comments on the podcast are welcome, feel free to comment on this post or contact me directly by email

DVD Releases for July 27, 2010

It's Tuesday which means it's DVD release day! Let's see what July 27, 2010 has for DVD releases.

The biggies of the week is Clash of the Titans (2010), which is being released on DVD as well as with a BluRay/DVD Combo which has an alternate ending (but only on the BluRay). That might the first time I've actually wished I had a BluRay player! Next up is the romantically charged French spy thriller Espion(s) / Spy(ies), we also have Helen which played at Sundance and stars Ashley Judd. Also have 2 Asian historical films out this week with The Warlords / Tau ming chong starring Jet Li, Andy Lau & Takeshi Kaneshiro and IP Man starring Donnie Yen.

Also have a set of different kind of geekdar films including Don't Look Up directed by Fruit Chan and starring Eli Roth and Henry Thomas, Batman: Under the Red Hood, Metropolis (1927) which DVD release has an accompanying T-Shirt. That's a new one! We also have the documentary Fuel. A couple Criterion releases includes The Red Shoes and Black Narcissus.

Lots of TV on DVD this week including lots of Season 2's. Weird! We have Life After People Season 2, Red vs Blue: Reconstruction Season 6, Paranormal State Season 2 and Durham County Season 2.

We also have the comedy Acceptance and pregnancy romantic comedy The Back-Up Plan starring Jennifer Lopez and Alex O'Loughlin.

Titles on Amazon.ca(Canada):


Titles on Amazon.com (US):

• Espion(s) / Spy(ies) & Durham Country Season 2 are not currently available on Amazon.com
• Helen will be released on Amazon.com on August 10, 2010

Espion(s) / Spy(ies) - DVD Review

Courtesy of E1 Entertainment

Writer/Dir: Nicolas Saada - feature film directorial debut
Cast: Guillaume Canet, Géraldine Pailhas, Stephen Rea, Vincent Regan, Alexander Siddig, Vincent Regan, Hippolyte Girardot, Hiam Abbass, Jamie Harding
France/UK, 2009

Reason to see: DVD cover image completely piqued my curiosity

Espion(s) was a real treat to watch. As the titles infers, and also known as Spy(ies), we head into the land of espionage. But, it's from a completely fresh perspective because we follow Vincent, played beautifully by Guillaume Canet, who one day works in airport security and then gets pulled into larger picture of international espionage.

Now, he isn't all of a sudden tearing down helicopters with a pocket knife, but rather using a softer touch and being a part of one piece in larger whole. It's a very interesting choice to hone in on a smaller scale here, and it really works because it stays firmly centred in the human factor and honest reactions to being placed in a heightened scenario. Vincent is actually a caring and very accessible character, so we certainly feel for him being but in an odd situations. Then factor in a romantic element with the character Claire (played by Géraldine Pailhas), we have something very different that what you would normally see in a spy film.

The emotional journey of the characters in Espion(s) are just as if not more important that the actual plot of the film, which is why I loved it. It really kept the humanness of the situations present and acknowledged throughout the film. The chemistry between Vincent & Claire was fantastic and their actions and reactions very believable. I felt for them every step of the way. I really enjoyed this different take on a spy film and would love to see more films like it.

DVD Extras: English Subtitles, French Closed Captioning

Espion(s) is available on DVD as of July 27, 2010. Check it out over at Amazon.ca

Shannon's Overall View:
I enjoyed it
I've already watched it again
I'd recommend it as fans of dramas, thriller and darker set romance

Return to Film Reviews

© Shannon Ridler, 2010

Reel Thoughts: The Cult of Showgirls

Few movies inspire such love and hate as Paul Verhoeven’s 1995 “morality tale”-slash-camp classic, Showgirls. Now you can recreate the fun in your own home with the brand new 15th Anniversary "Sinsational" Blu-ray, featuring hilarious extras like pole dancing lessons and a commentary by superfan David Schmader entitled "The Greatest Movie Ever Made".

Showgirls is the story of Nomi Malone, played by Elizabeth Berkley in a manner that can best be summed up as “petulant slut”. Nomi hitches a ride to Las Vegas packing a switchblade and a dream. “I’m a dancer,” she tells the first of many men who’ll use and abuse her on her rise to the top; or rather, the sort of sad, middling pinnacle that is headlining a Vegas topless review at a casino that has since been demolished.

Faster than you can lose at the craps table, Nomi is robbed and left with nowhere to go, until she meets and nearly vomits on sweet Molly Abrams (Gina Ravera), a costumer for Goddess, the “hit” show at the Stardust. Molly lets her crash at her trailer, where the two bond over their love of chips and tacky nails, and soon Molly introduces Nomi to the reigning Queen of Vegas, predatory lesbian Cristal Conners (played deliciously by Gina Gershon, who is the only actor who knows what kind of movie she’s in).

Like a naked All About Eve, Nomi uses her inexplicable irresistibility to become Cristal’s understudy and then her replacement. You haven’t lived until you’ve watched Berkley and Gershon spar at Spago over who’s a whore and which of them liked eating Doggie Chow more.

The film’s cynical take on the highs and lows of fame could be viewed as a sublime satire of women behaving the way men who know nothing about women think they do, if not for a truly awful and vicious rape scene toward the end. Shmader wisely advises you to fast forward through it, like he does when he presents his cinematic master classes on Showgirls across the country. Despite all the degradations Nomi endures (including her uproariously awful stint as a lap dancer at the Cheetah, a “Gentleman’s Club”), she leaves Las Vegas with her dignity, switchblade and a newfound self-awareness. Los Angeles, look out!

Why has Showgirls cast such a rhinestone-studded spell over lovers of camp and others? I asked numerous notable people for their opinions as to why Showgirls has become the Citizen Kane of trash cinema, and also asked them to share their favorite Showgirls moments or lines.

“Gosh, Showgirls,” replied Charles Busch, celebrated star and playwright of Die Mommie Die! and Vampire Lesbians of Sodom. “You know, I've never actually seen it. Isn't that wild? I'm better versed on Lady of Burlesque with Barbara Stanwyck.”

Ron May, talented actor/director of numerous Arizona stage hits admitted, “Oh My God, Showgirls. It's ridiculous how much I love that movie. It's so deliciously awful. I think the only movie I laugh at as hard as I do that movie is Congo ... with Tim Curry and the talking monkeys.” He also divulged that he’s desperately tried to snag the rights to a “Sock Puppet Showgirls” that happened in New York a few years back. “Even though I have no idea if it's even any good or not.” He also highly recommends the blog Nomi Malone Can Read.

Joshua Grannell, the inspired filmmaker who hosts Midnight Mass screenings in San Francisco as his alter ego Peaches Christ, took time from promoting the cross-country tour for his outrageous new horror comedy, All About Evil (co-starring Natasha Lyonne, Mink Stole and Cassandra “Elvira” Peterson) to say: “My favorite thing about Showgirls is how totally committed the movie and everyone in it was to making it so extreme,” Grannell explained. “It's an extreme movie in every way, and I love it for that. I think it succeeds because it's so relentless and so much fun. It's colorful, outrageous, bizarre, hilarious, depraved, and provides for a wonderful group viewing.

Grannell, who is hosting a giant Showgirls event on August 7 in San Francisco, continues: "I think my favorite part of our Midnight Mass show is always the "Free Lap-dances With Every Large Popcorn". It's just so appalling and wrong watching an audience full of Showgirls fanatics get grinded on by drag freaks, monsters and lap-dancing mutants. And I also love bursting out of that volcano naked! That's a tradition at our show, and there's something so liberating about erupting onto stage that way.”

Zachary Jackson, host of Zack Attack Camp Cinema at the MADCAP Theaters, is a more sincere lover of Nomi and her pals. His favorite moment? “Nomi is sitting on the hood of her car above the flashing Flamingo sign — eating a hamburger nonetheless — overlooking the Las Vegas strip during sunset,” he explained, “The scene lasts less than a minute, but I don’t know …there’s something beautiful about it.”

Actress Angelica Howland wasn’t so enamored of Berkley’s mastication prowess. “My favorite part is when Elizabeth Berkley can't even eat a hamburger like a believable human being and then she throws the hamburger wrapper into the alley like she is tossing flowers into the air ... cuz, well you know ... littering is über-beautiful and outrageously sexy. My second favorite part is when she is thrashing around on Kyle McLaughlin's junk in the pool and he's barely able to hold on to her. The look on his face is hilarious — like, 'What the hell?! This gigantic, naked, Saved by the Bell psycho is gonna freakin' break my back and drown me!'”

The pool scene, complete with neon palm trees and spitting dolphin fountains was the stand-out scene for most people I interviewed, but the grand, gaudy grotesquery of the faux show Goddess ranks right behind. Many a backstage tale has made it to the screen, but none other feature exploding volcanoes, garlic-eating monkeys flinging poop on stage and a sassy showgirl berating the costumer with bon mots like “Molly, they're going to see a smiling snatch if you don't fix this g-string.”

Hard to believe, but Showgirls was primed to be a huge, groundbreaking event. Madonna was sought for Gershon’s role, and Drew Barrymore was the first pick for Nomi. Charlize Theron, Angelina Jolie, Jenny McCarthy, Pamela Anderson and Finola Hughes all auditioned. Joe Eszterhas received an unheard-of two million dollars for his script.

“Showgirls was the first big budget NC-17 film — and a highly anticipated release,” Jackson explained. “When it opened in theaters in 1995, it tanked. The reviews were beyond harsh and it practically destroyed Berkley’s career. The idea of paving the way for a new line of controversial adult filmmaking was brilliant; however the execution of Showgirls put a swift end to that concept.”

Monique Parent, the gorgeous redheaded actress best known for roles in erotic films like The Witches of Breastwick and Blood Scarab, as well as the new horror film, The Perfect House, related her disappointment. “I only saw Showgirls once, when it first came out. I really, really expected it to be a good film and wanted it to be a good film. As an actor who has appeared in many films with little or no clothing, I hate the fact that most people seem to believe that nudity in a film means it's bad or that only bad movies have nudity. I really wanted Showgirls to be the movie that proved that theory wrong. To be a film that showed beautiful women fully nude and still had strong writing and strong acting.

"But frankly, I hated it. I felt that Elizabeth Berkeley's character ran the gamut of acting emotions from A to B. Not even her fault. That's how the movie was written, as best I can remember.  I still believe a film can feature beautiful people fully nude and be a really good movie at the same time. But Showgirls is not it.”

What really sends Showgirls into the stratosphere of camp, though, is the dialogue, the glorious, mind-bendingly vulgar lines that people can’t stop quoting, from Cristal’s signature “Hi darlin’” and Nomi’s thudding endorsement “It doesn’t suck” to the aggressively unfunny stand-up comedy of Henrietta “Mamma” Bazoom (Lin Tucci). Here are the lines that inspire these notable Showgirls fans. Feel free to add your own.

Phillip Fazio (New York actor and director): Cristal: "I'm gettin' a little too old for that whorey look... "

Kirby Holt (writer/creator of Movie Dearest and The QuOD - The Queer Online Database) Al (Robert Davi) to former lap-dancer Nomi: "It must be weird, not having anybody cum on you."

Matthew Harris (actor and drag performer Rhianna Matthews): Cristal: "I want my nipples to press, but I don’t want them to look like they’re levitatin'."

Scott Pierce (actor and Snatch creator Pandora LeStange) Cristal: "We're all whores, honey."

Jimmy Asimenios (actor): Henrietta Bazoom: "Goddamn it! You're the only one who could get my tits poppin' right!"

Buddy Early (performer/former editor, Echo Magazine): Nomi, showing off her new dress: "I bought it at Ver-sayce!"

Review by Neil Cohen, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and Phoenix's Echo Magazine.

Poll Results: Inception Impression....

I'm not that suprized to see that 50% Saw & Loved Inception! I wonder if it will be the film of the summer? Next most popular vote is actually a tie at 18% which goes to both Saw it & Enjoyed it and Still Planning on Seeing It. Very low % goes to Not Planning on Seeing it (9%) and Saw It & Didn't Love It (4%).

50% - Saw It. Loved It.
18% - Tie: Saw It. Enjoyed It. & Still Planning on Seeing It.
9% - Not Planning on Seeing It.
4% - Saw It. Didn't Love It.

Thanks for voting!

Before the Dawn - Episode 61: News to July 23, 2010

Before the Dawn: A Twilight Podcast - Episode 61 is up!

This week at Before the Dawn: A Twilight Podcast, and we are oddly without much news on the recent release of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, but Marina & I still have lots to chat about from Breaking Dawn news and speculation, cast & crew film updates and upcoming appearances.

Check it out over at Before the Dawn.

Reverend’s Interview: Puttin’ on the Ritz with Young Frankenstein

After the Broadway musical of his Oscar-winning movie The Producers won a record number of Tony Awards, comedy legend Mel Brooks naturally turned to another of his beloved films for adaptation. Young Frankenstein, though not as successful as its predecessor, is now on tour and making its southern California premiere. It will run at the Pantages Theatre in Hollywood from July 27-August 8 before moving to the Orange County Performing Arts Center September 12-25.

The 1974 movie and 2007 musical both owe their inspiration to Mary Shelley’s classic horror novel, Frankenstein. However, there is little that is serious or scary in Brooks’ version. Young Frankenstein finds the mad scientist’s grandson, an esteemed New York brain surgeon, comically trying to live down his family’s reputation. He famously goes so far as to pronounce his name “Fraunkensteen.” Alas, he unwittingly finds himself in Transylvania and soon resumes the traditional family business of re-animating corpses.

I recently spoke with Stephen Carrasco, an out member of the touring company’s ensemble, about the production.

“I’m having a blast,” Carrasco said of his stint with the tour, which began in August of 2009. “It’s such a great show, and I love making people laugh every night.” He mentioned how much he is looking forward to spending time in southern California.

A “triple threat” who acts, sings and dances, the 26-year old Carrasco grew up outside Lansing, Michigan. He moved to New York in 2006, shortly after his college graduation, and soon found himself on Broadway in Irving Berlin’s White Christmas.

“I love to work and love being in the ensemble; that’s what I do well,” Carrasco said. “I’d like to do a couple more Broadway shows and would then love to assistant-choreograph a show.”

Young Frankenstein did not receive a warm welcome upon its New York opening despite the involvement of the creative team behind The Producers: songwriter Brooks, director-choreographer Susan Stroman, and co-writer Thomas Meehan. It was an enormously expensive production that became the first Broadway show to raise ticket prices to $125.

I asked Carrasco about the musical’s less-than-stellar reputation. “If you look at Broadway critics’ reviews over the last two years, they are really harsh” he replied. “They expect every show to be a Pulitzer Prize-winner. This isn’t a show to think about, but just to sit back and enjoy and have fun.”

Having listened to the original cast recording repeatedly over the last two years, I can attest that Young Frankenstein has much to recommend it musically. The songs are both funnier and more accomplished than those in The Producers, with such movie-inspired titles as “Roll in the Hay,” “Transylvania Mania” and “Please Don’t Touch Me.” The creepy house servant Frau Blucher, immortalized in the film by Cloris Leachman, sings “He Vas My Boyfriend,” and the Irving Berlin classic “Puttin’ on the Ritz” is naturally included in the stage version.

What’s more, contemporary Broadway stars Roger Bart, Shuler Hensley and Brad Oscar are headlining the tour. Bart and Hensley are re-creating their roles from the original production as, respectively, Frederick Frankenstein and the Monster. Bart is also well known for playing numerous gay roles over the years, including the flamboyant Carmen Ghia in The Producers (both on stage and in the 2005 movie version) and one-half of the gay couple in the 2004 remake of The Stepford Wives. Oscar, who succeeded Nathan Lane as Max Bialystock in The Producers on Broadway, plays the wacky, one-armed Inspector Kemp.

As Carrasco noted, “It goes to show who Mel Brooks and Susan Stroman are; they can really bring out the pros.”

Carrasco also believes Young Frankenstein holds special appeal for GLBT theatergoers. “Ok, I’m going to go along with some stereotypes here, but there’s a lot of T&A in the show. It’s also a huge, lavish musical. I’m gay and I love that!”

“Also,” he continued, “gay and lesbian people are more liberal and know better than most how to sit back and enjoy life.”

On that note, Carrasco shared that he is “very single, and I love being single on tour.” If you hang around the stage door after a performance of Young Frankenstein, you may get the chance to meet this talented and attractive young performer.

For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit the official website of Young Frankenstein.

Interview by Rev. Chris Carpenter, resident film critic of Movie Dearest and the Orange County and Long Beach Blade.