Weekend Forecast: 6/20/08
By Craig Kennedy - June 19th, 2008; 12:01 am
You could do worse than watching Singin’ in the Rain this weekend
I’m just saying…
I thank the movie gods that the LA Film Festival starts tonight because this is truly an awful weekend for new movies. My suggestion? Go rent an armload of Cyd Charisse musicals instead.
Nevertheless, because we must, here are the wide releases:
- Get Smart. Get bent.
- The Love Guru. For about 3 months now I’ve been getting press release-like emails from a gentleman named Rajan Zed keeping me up to date on the Hindu boycott of Mike Myers’ new film, The Love Guru. Mr. Zed is a Hindu chaplain in Reno Nevada and, though he hasn’t actually seen the movie (I asked him), he’s awfully worried that it makes fun of Hindus. The funny thing is, he seems to be about the only person I know who has any interest in the film whatsoever. I find censorship as offensive as intolerance so I can’t join Mr. Zed’s boycott, but since the movie looks 97% laugh free, I’ll gladly skip it anyway. Now is the time on Sprockets when we stay home from the cineplex.
Limited releases:
- Brick Lane. A 17-year-old Bangladeshi girl is sent off from her village to bustling London in an arranged marriage. Mr. Nick Plowman liked this one, though he says it doesn’t quite hold up to Monica Ali’s novel. Giving it 3.5 stars (out of 5), he concludes: “A resonant effort of high quality and distinguishing beauty indeed, Brick Lane falters one to many times to be considered great.”‘ Well, they can’t all be winners.
- Expired. Possibly the most reviled human beings in any city are meter maids. This is a comedy romance about two of them falling in love. Samantha Morton is a good person who hates having to uphold the law. Jason Patric is a miserable person who thrives on it. Teri Garr and Illeana Douglas also star which honestly is enough to get me interested, regardless of whatever else it’s about.
- Kit Kittredge: An American Girl. (goes wide 7/2) Apparently, American Girl is some kind of lifestyle brand aimed at little girls that features books, magazines, dolls and probably just about anything else you can stick a price tag on. That’s all well and good. There are things worse than girl power they could be selling to little kids…black tar heroin or grenades for example…but I’m going to go ahead and assume this movie starring Abigail Breslin, based on the 7th book of the American Girl series, isn’t for me. Fair enough? In case you’re interested, she plays a resourceful little girl growing up during the Great Depression. Joan Cusack, Julia Ormond and Stanley Tucci also star. In all seriousness, there’s a greater chance I’d see (and probably enjoy) this movie than either of the wide releases. Alas, I’m 63% less likely to look like some kind of smelly old pervert at a screening of Get Smart.
Expanding:
- Mongol. Think of it as the first two hours of a longer, better movie. You could do much worse than this, but I’d suggest waiting for the inevitable sequels to come out and watch them all together. As it is, Mongol doesn’t quite stand on it’s own.
Filed under: Upcoming
Related Posts: - Weekend Forecast: 7/27/07
- Zed Kicks ‘Guru’ When It’s Already Down
- The Watercooler: 6/23/08
- Weekend Forecast: 11/2/07
- Weekend Forecast: 11/16/07
Summertime blockbuster season is becoming tiring at this point. This summer’s big blockbuster fare has been all over the map at this point in terms of quality (no masterpieces yet, though, one can hope we’re in store for one or two between now and mid-August). This weekend… yeesh… Apparently, The Love Guru is even worse than it looks, which is very bad already.
I’ll be checking out Mongol. I was surprised to learn a while back that it was only two hours long. Looks… epic and I’m interested.
Nick’s review of Brick Lane was very good, and helped persuade me to see it soon.
Are any of the Los Angeles people here planning on going to the Cinematic Titanic screening at the LA Film Festival?
What a sad weekend….
Not that it’s any better here, with Drillbit Taylor as one of the few big released.
I will be getting into a car and driving 5+ hours each way to Southern Oregon and back this weekend for family time with my girlfriend’s relatives. As potentially unappealing as THAT sounds, it seems like a better option than viewing pretty much any of these movies.
Mongol opens here for a two-week run and I might check that out. I’m a little disappointed I missed the single week runs for Surfwise and To the Limit, two docs that looked really interesting but there’s always Netflix.
“Get Smart. Get Bent.”
LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Teri. Garr. Ho. Lee.
I’m tempted Jeff, but there are a bunch of other things I want to see.
For those wondering what he’s talking about:
http://www.calendarlive.com/movies/la-gd-movies19-2008jun19,0,1731404.story
I suspect anybody with a blog has been getting flooded with Love Guru promotions. I told my guy that I really didn’t think it looked good - at all. He’s a fellow BU alum so I didn’t want to be too harsh. Told me yesterday he went into it with really low expectations and said it was much funnier than you’d think and that I should trust him. Mmm…yeah, I really have a hard time believing that.
My #1 for the weekend is Surfwise. Mongol arrives but I’m getting less and less interested in it based on lukewarm reviews here and there. The effects look pretty cool, though - the little I’ve seen.
I’m in two minds about When Did You Last See Your Father?, which also arrives. I know Matthew liked it, and I like Colin Firth and Jim Broadbent, but something’s not grabbing me about it. I really don’t like the title, either, but that may come from the book.
I’m looking forward to Brick Lane in 3 weeks here.
Get Smart…well, maybe if I’m really hard up. I might see KFP again with my family instead.
Maybe I should just come out and say that we’re all going to be living through you at LAFF, Craig. Great timing on their part. The MSPIFF was right in the middle of a bunch of great new releases.
So far, Get Smart is actually getting middling reviews, for the most part, with some unexpected positives. It seems like the few panning it are the types that think the film critic is the protagonist in Lady in the Water.
Still even from those reviews, it doesn’t look like you’re missing anything life changing.
Wow, I haven’t seen Teri Garr in anything in ages. Last time was in those awful Lite FM commercials that aired in NY. It has me interested as well, as I always did enjoy her film performances.
I may check out the American Girl one because that period of history interests me and it’s a good cast. But it’s not at the top of my list. I want to catch up on Roman de Gare and The Fall first. And Wall-E of course. But that’s for next week’s Weekend Forecast. :-)
Oh and, Craig, I doubt you look like an old pervert. You’re not that old yet. ;-)
Where is ROMAN DE GARE playing Alison? I missed them one myself, and Lucille and I haven’t firmed up our weekend plans. I bet it is a holdover at some Village-area theatre, I must check. But I must see STUCK as well.
Joel, that 5 hour trip through Oregon is only something us city dwellers can dream of!!
I’m not sure if it is still playing, Sam. I missed it up to now and may have to catch it on DVD too.
But thanks for reminding me about Stuck! I definitely want to see that.
You’ll be seeing RDG in a future DVD column…if there is one. It’s definitely recommended. Another reason to do the column is I can cover movies I neglected to review for some reason.
Get Smart. The thing about a comedy, if it makes you laugh, it goes a long way toward satisfying. Because I like the cast, I can imagine a scenario where the movie doesn’t make me want to scratch my eyeballs out. On the other hand, even in the best case it seems skippable to me. Unlike Love Guru which even gives bad trailer. I know, I know, never judge a movie by its trailer…
Alison, 10-1 I’m older than the parents of the little girls watching Kit Kitteridge. Besides, it doesn’t take much to make me look like a smelly old pervert these days.
Daniel, did you (or anyone) get emails from the guy boycotting Guru?
Also, Mongol isn’t bad at all, I was just hoping for a little more excitement. It looked good and it wasn’t boring, but like I said it felt like the build up to a longer better movie.
“This movie didn’t make me want to scratch my eyeballs out.”
–Craig Kennedy
Yes! Your name is going to be on more movie ads than Peter Travers very soon, Craig.
It’s too bad Mongol isn’t better than it is. I’ll go in with an open mind. Seems like there’s a core group of critics who just madly love it, though I’m not sure how big their number is.
Definitely recommend The Fall and Roman de Gare, Alison. :)
the only thing hitting this week i have abit of interest in is week is ‘jellyfish’ and that’s it…
I did not get the Guru boycott emails, but I was aware of that situation. It’s kind of funny - as you say, they’re bringing attention to a movie that most people are trying they’re hardest to avoid thinking about.
I’ll second/third the Fall and RdG recommendations, for what it’s worth.
I saw Jellyfish the other day and am having a really hard time processing it. Like a really hard time. The acting is terrific, I can say that much without thinking too hard. Go for it, glim.
ok daniel… guess i will…. :)
sam…for uh me… ’stuck’ was a missed chance ala ‘teeth’. was ok (sort of) should have been alot better.it was the wrong turn now….
i think craig/jeff are bit ‘higher’ on their views on ’stuck’ than i am/was….
so 2008 is gonna be the year in which a film with a ’something different’ in that what it’s about category is all gonna fall.(and someone take back ‘the fall’ too…) and we get 7,000 documentaries. awesome… :(
Yes, I’d agree Glimmer that there may be too many documentaries coming out these days, although as long as the level of quality remains high and the subject matter original and interesting, I’m OK with it. But it’s telling when our main arthouse theater here in Portland is predominantly showing docs during most of the year.
I’d also agree on Stuck and The Fall. Both were interesting but my opinion was a little lower of each than others here. Didn’t care for Teeth much at all.
Glim. What was Stuck a missed chance at? I’m not arguing, I’m asking out of curiousity.
Teeth was definitely a missed opportunity at being something terrific. I give it a half pass because of the last act, but it’s too bad the first hour wasn’t better.
Hey! There’s nothing wrong with a good documentary now and then…:-P
But I totally get you two, and, truth be told, I can’t say that about the majority of doc years. ‘08 seems to be one of the strongest in a long time.
craig.. remember how be both said something similiar to ‘teeth’ should have better/with it’s concept it should have been better.
so i’m adding ’stuck’ to that list.
’stuck’ was a lost chance to set the record straight.
or at least show a movie that even if told tradtionally could have a main idea/plot thing or however i should phrase it that’s at least 3% away from the norm/generica cliche cliche/beyond cliche genre movies/same plots that are everywhere/you’ll find it evrywhere ‘indie’/mainstream movies evryone eats up with the cake.
(yep that crap is the real ‘i drink your milkshake’ it’s blacking out life.it’s blacking out even thinking any different gonna come around. and the biggest joke/lie is that no one gives danm/ just give us wall-e. well you know what i mean.yep i’m repeating myself again. it’s like glimmer top 40… )
and at least get something beyond middling/bad reviews.oh maybe even be considered good.(and no need to mention the non box iffice factor…)
means even less a chance of anything not fitting the trad molds being made ???? so yeah the missed chances *hurt* because they’re so few things in the ‘chance’ category to start with ha ha..
but i guess it doesn’t matter as long as david lynch does a film every 3/4 years or so. that’s all that counts.(yep, sacrasm the lowest from of humor)
who cares if nothing else breaks through/or is even gonna get made….
hey joel seems were in sync on this ‘issue’. you better get out of town to save yourself/the embarrassment. ;)
ok so if 2007 was the year of the music film/doc
2008 is the year of the documentary/ 7,000 in 2008 and counting…
ok yes i’ll admit i’m not a ‘doc’ person…
but a big problem i have with ‘docs’ is/ more focus on docs seems there will be less a focus on ‘creative’ stuff ??? hmm….
Glim, if you and I are in sync then I fear for you, not me.
there’s nothing to fear aside from turning into joel… *just kidding*
craig…you do know i loved the ‘who is she ??’ scene in ’stuck’ and when things went frying pannish(sp?) and into the hall way we go.
i wonder if that’s gonna be on the short list for ‘female empowerment’ scene of the year ???? ;)
…the big drug dealer/boyfriend/ didn’t even try to help/save his on the side female from the smack down. ha ha…
“Mongol” is good, but I agree about it feeling like the first part of a longer, better movie. The ending is very weak, almost like they had some arbitrary two hour deadline and suddenly realized they were running out of time. But it certainly looks great and the battle sequences are some of the best in the recent history of the genre.
Daniel, I definitely think “When Did You Last See Your Father” is worth it. It really sneaks up on you. It may seem like a conventional feel good nostalgic thing, but in some ways it is. But it doesn’t go in the direction one would necessarily expect. It pulled more tears out of me than any other film this year, except for maybe “Young @ Heart.” It would be a close race.
As for “Brick Lane,” I’ll be posting my review sometime tomorrow.
In the tear department, I would put THE VISITOR at the top of the list.
Last night, on it’s final showing at the Angelika after a two-week run, I saw STUCK. While I didn’t quite like it as much as Craig (I’m more in line with Joel here) I still was surprised (Craig’s position notwithstanding of course) that there were elements I did enjoy, like that bizarre black humor throughout. One did get wound up in the grisly story, (SPOILER) and after the two cretins were properly dispatched at the finale, you felt rightly avenged. (END SPOILER) Mr. Rea was chillingly effective.
Matthew, I look forward to reading your review of BRICK LANE—hope to see it very soon.
Get Smart, which I just saw, is so pointless - but it does have one or two good laughs, and is not as bad I thought it would be.
Oh, and Matty, I hope to see “When Did You Last See Your Father” next Wednesday, I haven’t cried in ages.
Well Sam, I’m glad you didn’t hate it. I really feared you might. Hopefully you don’t think I’m too bent for loving it.
Also, I’m adding a teeny spoiler warning to your comment for those who may not have seen the movie yet. A rare editorial moment from yours truly.
Glim. It sounds like a case where it just wasn’t the movie you wanted it to be…like Teeth wasn’t the movie I wanted it to be. All I can say is that I wasn’t sure what I wanted, but I was really happy with what I got. Expectations are a bitch though, huh?
Craig, STUCK received generally solid reviews, so your opinion lies with the majority, and I can surely see that this was no ordinary genre piece. I probably would have liked it more if it were just a bit less disturbing and mean-spirited. True, that’s what it examines in its inimitable tongue-in-cheek way, but it is a difficult view. Yet, despite the grisly proceedings, I can’t deny the film was somehow engrossing, the result of tight direction in large part.
And that spoiler alert is very much in order. I wrote as if everyone had seen the film, and this is surely not the case.
sam, but what did you think of mena suvari’s hair in the film ???? ;)
I finally saw Stuck last night (I think I can claim that I was the last person in southern CA to see it in a theater) and I enjoyed it well enough (any movie with that many people being hit in the head by doors is aces with me). Its primary flaw was Suvari’s character, who was kind of all summed up by her hair, she felt a little lacking in depth and motivation. I kind of wish they had gone the route of making her a modern Annie Wilkes and made her truly awful, oh well.
Glimmer: Yes you make a very good point there in regards to Ms. Suvari’s hair, as Jeffmcm just elaborated on. LOL!
Oh and thanks for the “Brick Lane” plug Craig, that was cool of you. GreenCine Daily did it to - but you did it first ;)