Cinematical

Team Picture trailer


Just last week I received the latest release from the critic-led Benten Films -- Kentucker Audley's mumblecore film Team Picture, which comes out on DVD today. Imagine a Slacker sort of world with everyday life and a collection of varied people, but without the rolling conversation of UFOs and Like a Virgin pap smears.

Audley's style is to show a more realistic life without the allure of stars or irresistably charismatic actors. He leads the film as a slacker musician who really encapsulates the ideas of slackerdom in every area of life -- indifferent to his girlfriend's unhappiness, the need for a future path, and even the quirks of his roommate. While not for moviegoers looking for a fast-paced, tightly written story, Team Picture does have some charm as a sort of dead-pan voyeuristic look into modern slackers. Check out the video above to see what I mean.

The DVD has a commentary, a new epilogue, a short film, music performances, deleted scenes, trailer, and an essay by Nick Dawson.

The dog days of summer hit the indie box office this weekend, as the top earner was a film in its third week of release. Elegy, directed by Isabel Coixet and starring Ben Kingsley and Penélope Cruz, expanded from six to 92 theaters and grossed $5,546 per screen, according to estimates compiled by Box Office Mojo. The adaptation of a novel by Philip Roth has not been universally praised, but maintains a strong 74% positive rating at Rotten Tomatoes. I can't help but conclude that Penélope Cruz is the art house crowd's answer to Megan Fox, because . . .

. . . Cruz also stars in Vicky Christina Barcelona (pictured), which made $4,339 per screen in its fairly wide (692 theaters) second week. Woody Allen's latest features other pretty people such as Javier Bardem and Scarlett Johansson, of course, and has very good reviews behind it, yet it's silly to ignore the current Cruz heat factor.

As Eugene has already noted, Andrew Fleming's Hamlet 2 got a jump start on its wide release by opening on 103 screens, but its average of $4,223 "doesn't inspire confidence for the expansion." Will this slow down star Steve Coogan?

Suspense drama Transsiberian ($4,157 per screen, 38 theaters, 6th week), tense drama Frozen River ($4,048 per screen, 41 theaters, 4th week), and mystery thriller Tell No One ($3,643 per screen, 101 theaters, 8th week, $3.8 million total) continued to draw well, while debuting debt doc I.O.U.S.A. made $3,461 per screen at 18 locations.

Do you really want to get an IRA mole mad? British spy drama Fifty Dead Men Walking has stirred the ire of Martin McGartland, its real-life inspiration, according to The Hollywood Reporter. McGartland "threatened legal action against the Canadian-British co-production ... on grounds that the feature infringes his moral rights." On the same day that McGartland made his threat, a scheduled press screening was canceled by Canadian distributor TVA Films, which claimed "a print problem."

The film is scheduled to have its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) on September 10 -- a splashy, red carpet Gala Presentation. But McGartland says that the film "is an entirely false and distorted account of what took place." He is also "reserving all [his] legal rights and remedies in this matter." But one has to wonder -- didn't he already sign off by selling the film rights? Or was that out of his hands and up to his publisher (Hastings House)?

McGartland infiltrated the IRA for the British police in the 1980s and then had to go on the run when his true identity was uncovered. Kari Skogland (Chicks with Sticks, The Stone Angel) adapted McGartland's 1998 book for the screen and also directed. Ben Kingsley, Rose McGowan, Jim Sturgess (21) star. The prospect of Kingsley (in a bad hair piece) and Sturgess facing off somehow -- is Kingsley his police "control"? a member of the IRA? -- sounds very enticing, as does the prospect of Sturgess tackling a serious subject, so let's hope this gets resolved quickly.

The Asian Film Festival of Dallas wrapped up last week with actor/action choreographer Tak Sakaguchi (Versus) in attendance to screen his directing debut, Be a Man! Samurai School. Unfortunately, I missed that night, but two films that screened earlier in the fest stood out for their unique visions.

Indonesian movies are hard to come by in the US, so I confess my total ignorance about the country and its cinema. Is Kala (AKA Dead Time) representative in any way? I don't know, but I very much liked its mix of dramatic mystery and supernatural lore. Director Joko Anwar has a great eye for composition -- he's really good with looming shadows -- and harbors no fear of traveling down well-trodden paths before adding his own odd twists. The film doesn't completely hang together in the narrative sense, and the ending is probably too apocalyptic for its own good, but any movie that features a narcoleptic journalist, a world-weary cop, and a serial-killing spirit deserves attention.

When I describe Muay Thai Chaiya as "insane," it is with all due respect for a movie that begins as a straightforward tale of three ambitious boxing buddies before nearly drowning in soapy melodramatics. What rescues it from terminal dampness is writer / director Kongkiat Khomsiri's complete embrace of a go-for-broke, everything-but-the-kitchen-sink aesthetic that's reminiscent of trashily enjoyable, "C"-level, late 80s Hong Kong action pictures. Toss in sincere regret, romantic betrayal, and more self-sacrifice than you can shake a stick at, and Muay Thai Chaiya edges into "very watchable, never boring" territory.

Unfortunately, neither film is available right now on Region 1 DVD. Muay Thai Chaiya will be playing at Fantastic Fest next month. Both Kala and Muay Thai Chaiya also have official sites.

These are the times (i.e., late August) that try movie-lovers' souls. But if this week's multiplex offerings are lackluster, don't forget about the art houses! The Indie Spotlight is here every Friday to let you know what's opening in "select cities," keeping you informed so you know which titles to look out for when you're in the mood for something different.

This week's indie releases, in alphabetical order, are: Cthulhu, I.O.U.S.A., Momma's Man, and Trouble the Water. Here's the scoop on each of them:

I.O.U.S.A.
What it is: A documentary about America's debt crisis, from the director of the crossword puzzle documentary Wordplay.
What they're saying: All the reviews at Rotten Tomatoes so far are positive, praising it for making a dull subject lively and for getting its point across effectively.
Where it's playing: About 20 theaters in and around New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas, Miami, Kansas City, Omaha, Chicago, and Washington D.C.
Official site: You owe it to yourself.

With all due respect to my esteemed colleague Elisabeth Rappe, geeks are not the only ones who learned important lessons from watching movies this summer. Herewith is my personal, arthouse summer school summary.

Werner Herzog cast a disapproving eye on the ugliness he discovered at Antarctica's McMurdo Station ("they even have a yoga studio and an ATM!") and was skeptical about the sanity of some of the real-life characters he met, which is partly why Encounters at the End of the World was so entrancing. What I learned: Evidence for gay penguins is skimpy, but they have been known to have threesomes.

The Wackness (pictured) didn't became the breakout hit that some had hoped for, but it did showcase the talents of rising star Olivia Thirlby and director Jonathan Levine. What I learned: Never kiss Ben Kingsley in a telephone booth.

Nanette Burstein's filmmaking techniques were much more off-putting than her ultimately winning subjects in American Teen, another would-be smash that didn't live up to box office expectations. What I learned: Never break up with your girlfriend via text message, especially when a documentary filmmaker is interviewing her.

Unexpectedly, Tell No One became the breakout limited-release mystery thrill ride of the summer, and Man on Wire proved that impassioned high wire walkers can make dreams come true and enthrall audiences to boot. What I learned: It's good to be French.

Now it's your turn, all you indie-loving, doc-devoted, world cinema aficionados: what did you learn from the movies this summer?

Once you get a taste of Smart People, deal with Eddie Murphy's Nowhereland, take on a stalkerific Sandra Bullock, and then steal Kate Hudson's work, it's time to get into some dark drama.

Variety reports that Thomas Haden Church has signed on to star in a new indie film called Don McKay, with the likes of Elisabeth Shue, Melissa Leo, M. Emmet Walsh, and Keith David. Coming from writer/director Jake Goldberger and shielded by a Screen Actors Guild waiver, the $5 million project just started production in Boston. The film focuses on a man who leaves his hometown after a tragedy forces him to do so. Twenty-five years later, he comes back when he hears that "his long-lost love is dying." Not surprisingly, his return spins "a web of confusion, deceit, and murder." Old secrets never die in the movie world.

Church says that it's a passion project that he's been trying to develop with Goldberger since Sideways. Aside from the confusion that it should evoke from those into Canadian poetry, this sounds like an interesting project -- especially with this cast.

My heart goes pitter-pat with a mix of both anticipation and dread whenever a classic sci-fi book is optioned. Even when I haven't read the book in question (and believe me, I know I need to read more Robert A. Heinlein), I know the bookshelves of the world are lined with great movie material. But I also know how devastating it is when the studio mangles a beloved book.

And here's one that could go either way. The Hollywood Reporter says that Alex Proyas and Phoenix Pictures have optioned Heinlein's The Unpleasant Profession of Jonathan Hoag. It's the story of a man who, when asked what he does for a living one evening, realizes he has no memory of any of his daytime activities. He hires a private detective agency, run by a husband and wife team, and their investigation becomes a rather terrifying one. (Having not read this book, I'm trying to skim through descriptions without spoiling it -- but it sounds scary.)

The novella has been one of Proyas' favorites since childhood. "I read this story as a kid, and it really stayed with me. It's part of my creative DNA." (It had to have inspired Dark City.) From what I've gleaned of the story, it's right up his alley -- and he's penning the script, so there will be no wild departures like we saw with I, Robot. And it's about time Heinlein had his name on the big screen again. I know there has to be some Jonathan Hoag fans out there, so chime in with your thoughts.

That's no typo -- in Antony Johnson's graphic novel Julius, the classic William Shakespeare play gets rewritten into modern, Guy Ritchie London where Julius is shot down by Brett, Cassidy, Dennis, Steve, Lee, and Kostas. And according to The Hollywood Reporter, it's just been optioned by Mandalay Pictures.

Julius is the story of a London crime king named Julius, who is worshipped by the public as if he's royalty. His closest fellow gangsters conspire against him and eventually shoot him up. Oops, too late to add a spoiler alert. I imagine that instead of Roman civil war, Julius' death leads to open gang war.

The movie already has its director in F. Gary Gray, and Oni Press, who is becoming ever more omnipotent, will be executive producing via their entertainment shingle, Closed on Mondays.

Oni Press has a five-page preview of the book up for your enjoyment. Reviews praise the dialogue as a mix of Shakespeare and modern British slang, but I can't say that a lot of this shows up in the preview. A "guv'nor" here and there just doesn't sell that to me, and Mark Antony still sounds more like a Shakespearean actor than a London criminal. Perhaps it gets better on page six, but I think I would rather see the real Julius Caesar remade, Master Will's lines intact, by Guy Ritchie or Martin McDonagh. What about you?

How do you follow-up a broad comedy starring the biggest names in Hollywood, George Clooney and Brad Pitt? If you're the Coen brothers, you apparently hit the car in reverse and make your next effort a darker story and cast relative unknowns. Variety reports that the newly minted Oscar winning directors Joel and Ethan Coen have cast Tony-nominated stage actor Michael Stuhlbarg (The Pillowman) and TV's Richard Kind (Mad About You; Spin City) for the two lead roles in A Serious Man, their next film after this fall's Burn After Reading. The actors will play brothers in the 1967-set black comedy, which returns the Coens to Fargo territory by placing the story in their home turf of Minneapolis.

In fact, when we first learned of A Serious Man, more than a year ago (and almost a year before the Coens each won 3 Academy Awards, for writing, directing and producing No Country for Old Men), the script was described as being "in the vein of Fargo." Now we get a little inkling more about the plot of Serious: Stuhlberg will play a professor named Larry Gopnik, whose wife is leaving him and whose "socially inept" brother (Kind) won't leave the house. Hopefully, to further repeat the analogy to their double-Oscar-winning 1996 film, the Coens can cast Frances McDormand as the wife, she can then win another Academy Award and Kind (pictured above) can, like William H. Macy before him, finally go from near-obscurity to well-known, well-respected supporting actor within the next decade.

Suffering from the Hollywood blockbuster blues? Have I got some indies for you! All three are newly available this week on DVD.

Kim Voynar called Vadim Perelman's The Life Before Her Eyes "a lovely, nuanced film packed with imagery, and bracketed by an intriguing storyline." The story revolves around the survivor of a school shooting; Uma Thurman plays her as an adult and Evan Rachel Wood as a teenager. Kim wrote in part: "I'd expect the director's commentary on the DVD to be intriguing." The DVD does indeed feature an audio commentary by the director, joined by production designer Maia Javan. Also included are deleted scenes, an alternate ending, and several other mini-features. A Blu-ray edition is also available.

Kim also reviewed Tommy O'Haver's An American Crime when it debuted at Sundance last year. Based on the true tragedy of teenage Sylvia Likens (Ellen Page) who was "brutally beaten, burned, starved and tortured to death" in 1965 Indiana, Kim said the film was difficult to watch. "The real question ... is not just how the Sylvia Likens case could have happened, but why situations like this happen at all -- and still do." Catherine Keener and James Franco also star. The DVD doesn't appear to have any supplemental material.

On the lighter side, Bharat Nalluri's Miss Pettigrew Lives For a Day "is a nearly perfect piece of entertainment for grownups," according to James Rocchi. Frances McDormand plays a down-on-her-luck British governess and Amy Adams essays her employer, an American singer / actress in late 1930s London. The DVD includes a "making of," deleted scenes, and "Miss Pettigrew's Long Trip to Hollywood."

You can't accuse this movie of false advertising. Tokyo Gore Police, which screened this weekend as part of the seventh annual Asian Film Festival of Dallas (AFFD), bursts at the seams with severed limbs, oceans of bodily fluids, and enough intestines to choke a horse. More sensitive souls will run screaming from the room during the first scene, in which a man's head explodes in a cloudburst of blood, but that sets the tone of the movie as a live-action adult cartoon. Just keep repeating to yourself: "It's only latex and corn syrup, it's only latex and corn syrup ..."

Structured very much like a sick and twisted variety show, Tokyo Gore Police is all about the set pieces, which are mighty impressive indeed for fans of "hardcore mega-splatter," as our own Scott Weinberg described a clip he saw a few months ago. In the future, the Tokyo police force has become privatized for the protection of its citizens. That gives them license to execute all criminals with, let us say, extreme prejudice. One strain of bad guys remain a problem, however. Whenever so-called "engineers" lose a body part, the missing limb mutates into a bizarre weapon.

I thought Noburu Iguchi's The Machine Girl was insanely over-the-top, but Tokyo Gore Police ups the ante by mixing in generous nods to Paul Verhoeven, especially RoboCop and Starship Troopers.

Week after week, I focus on the good and/or bad concerning moviegoing and the movie theatre industry. But as passionate as I am about the subjects of this column, I've never really felt strongly enough to label any one person either a hero or a villain to moviegoers. Perhaps the closest I've come to calling someone a hero was when I finally had my first experience with an Alamo Drafthouse cinema. On the other hand, I've certainly wanted to call a lot of people villains, including whoever was responsible for my worst moviegoing experience in years and whoever came up with the awful idea to produce scented pre-show ads.

So, it was by some sort of coincidence that last week actually brought news of both a remarkably heroic moviegoer and a terribly villainous theatre owner. Of course, you're welcome to disagree with me as I celebrate the former and castigate the latter. The interesting thing about these two individuals is that some of you may see my hero as a villain, and vice versa. In fact the law has deemed the former a criminal, and meanwhile tons of moviegoers in the UK are championing the actions of the latter. No wonder film exhibition is in such dire straits when there's such disagreement about how to improve the moviegoing experience.

In a marketplace of increasingly generic titles and often disingenuous marketing, the horror genre tends to bring a certain honesty to the table. Think about it: the words 'The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2' can simply never paint as vivid a mental picture as, say, 'Zombie Strippers'. These offerings may be comparatively lower in brow and budget, and no, not for all tastes, but with a film like that -- a title like that -- or Evil Aliens, or Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer, for that matter, what-you-see-is-what-you-get chutzpah is on their side, and while that quality might not alone do the trick when it comes to their ultimate entertainment value, it certainly doesn't do any harm.

That said, like those films (well, okay, maybe not that Pants one), Jack Brooks may not quite be the cult classic in the making that it so clearly sets out to be, but at least its influences and intent are always worn plainly upon its blood-stained sleeve.

A few news bites for the end of the week:

• Gregory Smith, who played one of the Stantons in The Seeker: The Dark is Rising, has picked up a starring gig, according to Variety. He will lead the indie drama In My Pocket, which will be the directorial debut of David Lisle Johnson III from a script he co-wrote with Joseph Ferrugio. The film will follow the travails of addiction and focus on two young men -- one is the good guy set for med school who fails out because of his addiction, while the other is a guitarist for a rock band who gets replaced. And for you Empire Records fans out there, Brendan Sexton III (Warren) also has a role.
• Meanwhile... Kenneth Lonergan, scribe of Analyze That and Gangs of New York, is getting ready for a celebration. The Hollywood Reporter posts that he has signed on to pen the screenplay for Father's Day -- that flick that Ashton Kutcher is producing. The plan is to make the film "a multigenerational look at fatherhood, centering around a father and son who have never gotten along but who coincidentally have baby sons at the same time." It's certainly not the most original premise out there, but we'll see if this can become this generation's Parenthood.