Monday, September 28, 2009

'Nightmare on Elm Street' Remake

As much as I really don't think it's necessary for remaking every single movie from the 80's that I grew up with, this doesn't look that bad.

I said it doesn't LOOK that bad, I didn't say it wouldn't BE bad. Chances are it will be awful; I did watch that Jason remake, and while it wasn't terrible it was by no means good. It did have a Padalecki in it and I like that.

This remake has a Jackie Earle Haley and a John Connor. I don't know what it is about Thomas Dekker (besides his name reminding me of Rick Deckard [Blade Runner]). I mean in person he seems really odd and weird but I just think he is mesmerizing on screen. Anyway...he's in it too.

One thing I don't understand about all of these remakes is why do they think people need to know the origin stories? Can't we just be like...oh he's a nutcase who kills people for revenge (which seems to be the case usually). Like Jason, I don't care WHY he does what he does. That's like remaking Alien (please don't) and giving us an origin story as to why the aliens hate humans and want to kill them (in the case of aliens, though I would imagine the above taking place in a remake, I think the aliens more or less just kill whatever is food...no need to EVER make an origin story out of Alien).

Trailer!

Sunday, September 27, 2009

'The Book of Eli' NEW trailer! Now with more GARY OLDMAN!

This is the second trailer for 'The Book of Eli' and holy crap it looks freakin' awesome! I know I've mentioned before that I have a soft spot for post-apocalyptic stuff, and this is just taking the cake!

I can just picture Barnaby (my Fallout 3 character) walking around the Wasteland with his G.E.C.K., a pack on his back, some cool shades...and I can also picture him kicking some ass a-la Denzel Washington!

Plus, Gary Oldman is in it. Who doesn't like Gary Oldman (if you say "me" I'll come and punch you!)?

The trailer is below and some Gary Oldman treats have also been included!




-Oh! Commissioner Gordon! It drips of Tony Scott crazy.




-If you haven't seen this movie, run out and get it NOW!


-Beautiful movie as well.

Thursday, September 24, 2009

'Stan Helsing' "movie"

If you watch this trailer and do anything akin to laughing, I might have to track you down and kick you in the coccyx, seriously. If possible, this "spoof" has become the dumbest piece of shit to grace a DVD. It's kind of like when that one stupid "spoof" made fun of Paris Hilton being a dumb, slutty moron; it's not funny when we all know it's true. It's not clever or ironic...or funny. Look! Pinhead has giant pins sticking out of his head, just like regular Pinhead...but they're BIGGER! Now let's laugh? Freddy Krueger has a Hamburger Helper hand that he slaps people, all standing in a row, with! And he says "bitchslap", SO 1996 and relevant. Oh my god, oh my god, let's take Van Helsing and make it Stan Helsing! It's genius (no, it isn't!).

Why? Why would someone finance this? Seriously? Someone pitched this idea to someone and that someone gave the other someone MONEY to make this...thing.



Thanks IWatchStuff ?

Saturday, September 19, 2009

'Changeling'

'Changeling' was one of the best movies from last year, at least in my opinion. It made me fall in love with Clint Eastwood and Angelina Jolie (who should have won an Oscar for her performance and who I've sort-of liked over the years).

The movie is heart-breaking and beautifully shot and it set in the time period I live for. Check out the movie (on DVD, OnDemand, NetFlix, Blockbuster, etc) and if your heart doesn't break, you sir may be dead.

Based on the true story of Christine Collins who came home from work to find her son, Walter Collins, missing. Eventually she finds out that he was probably kidnapped by Gordon S. Northcott (the movie doesn't include the fact that his mother also was involved in the kidnap, torture and murder of at least 4 boys. His mother was convicted of killing Walter Collins and was sentenced to life in prison)and, though he won't admit once way or another, was killed.

*on another note: I want ALL her clothes and hats and her house*

Trailer:



Introduced to Son:


I Want My Son Back:



Dr. Steele Questions Christine:



Captain Jones Insists:

Thursday, September 17, 2009

What To Watch Tonight: Thursday

What's on TV tonight? There is a lot on, but what should you watch? Let me tell you!

8:00 p.m.: This week, there is nothing on at 8, but next week 'Flash Forward' starts and THAT is what you should be watching at 8.

Here's a promo:



On ABC.

9:00 p.m.:
This is bound to happen, two shows on at the same time that are both awesome. Tonight it's 'Fringe' and 'Supernatural'. Which to watch? Well, both is the answer, but that might not be possible. So either DVR one and watch the other, or DVR both, or since FOX has the far superior online viewer, watch 'Supernatural' and then tomorrow go watch 'Fringe' online (FOX actually has a great online viewer with crystal-clear display while The CW has a crappy little player that pixellates regularly and they only have around 3 episodes at a time, so if you miss the first one and week four rolls around you are out of luck).

'Fringe' Promo


On FOX
'Supernatural' Promo
I'm including the first episode promo of the season too, I'm behind so I don't know what's going on. Have to catch up this afternoon. On The CW




10:00 p.m.
I've already posted about what you should watch at 10, and that would be 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'. This show is fantastic and funny beyond belief, so watch it. It's on FX.

'It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia' Season 5 promos

Dee shops for a wedding dress


Want Some?


Wait


Rope Trick


Roast
Yes, I too want to know why Dennis is wearing dark red lipstick!


Questions?


Kitten


Here Again


Green Trash

Old timey trailers=brilliant

I don't know who did these, mainly because I'm too lazy to go look at their YouTube profile, but I would like to marry them. These are fantastic!

First is the 1954 version of 'Raiders of the Lost Ark' starring Charleton Heston:



Next is Forrest Gump 1949 trailer starring Jimmy Stewart:



And Ghostbuster's if it were 1954 and starred Dean Martin, Jerry Lee Lewis and Bob Hope...clever, very clever.

'Vampire Diaries' Pilot

Alright, I was really hesitant to watch this show for the obvious reasons, there is a large amount of vampire stuff around, and it's on The CW. That doesn't exactly scream, "It's gonna be good!" I thought the same thing about 'Supernatural' and eventually started watching that show and fell in love with it. I don't think that is going to happen with this show and here is why:

While 'Supernatural' is also on The CW, it has charm and wit that goes along with some really creepy and messed up stuff. Plus Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles are adorable and have chemistry (not sexual, just regular chemistry). Chemistry is essential in a cast, without it you just have a bunch of people spouting lines as characters that you don't really care about. I don't find chemistry among anyone in the cast of 'The Vampire Diaries', let alone the two "main" leads. I just watched it for an hour and without going to IMDB I can't tell you what their names (or any characters name, for that matter) are. They were called Elena and Stefen, if you care. This is bad, this is something I should know. Within 3 seconds of 'True Blood' I knew everyone drinking in Merlotte's by name.

Music. Oh the overuse of music in this show. It's one of the things that kept nagging at me the entire episode. I know the target demo is those that watch 'The Hills' (is that still on?), but they didn't need to make the scripted drama like an episode of 'The Hills' complete with "current" songs in every scene; sometimes more than once a scene including Placebo's remake of 'Running Up That Hill' which is a great remake, but it's already being used on the 'Daybreakers' trailer, which is a vampire movie. It was annoying. You see, in 'Supernatural' the music makes sense, it's used for dramatic effect or humor. On 'True Blood' the music is also used this way, mostly in the background on a radio or because someone is dancing or it's playing on the jukebox at Merlotte's. And most importantly on 'True Blood' is the end titles, which always have an interesting song choice (each episode is named by a song that is played at some point in the episode, but NOT loudly covering up the scene). It's the work of a great director and music supervisor. Without that you get what I watched tonight, a mish-mash of whatever someone thought "the kids" would want to hear and then run out and buy.

Unless you've never read anything I've ever posted on this blog, I absolutely LOVE True Blood. I love every little "Sooookeh" Bill makes, every stupid thing Sookie does, every dumb line Jason speaks, every left eyebrow raise and Swedish accented word (this goes for every day Skarsgård really) Eric makes, every lovely move Lafayette makes...I even (though I loathed him) liked the uselessness that was Eggs. I love the show. I love the books. Yet, I can take or leave Twilight and now 'Vampire Diaries'. Why is this? Is it because I am clearly not the target demo? I'm too old? I don't think so, you see, I love to watch 'Attack of the Show' and I KNOW I am not the target demo. What I think is the case here is that 'Twilight' and 'Vampire Diaries' are too "safe". In fact, they are almost the same damn thing. And it would seem, at first glance, that so is 'True Blood', but that isn't the case. When I watch 'True Blood' I know I'm gonna get at least one of the following: nudity, swearing, blood, something offensive to someone, and Lafayette or Eric. And that's great! I want that, that is why I am watching and paying for HBO. I am an adult damn it, I want an adult show to watch. A show that requires me to pay attention and catch the nuances that fill an Alan Ball show. I know there is camp, and smut, and cheese smothered ALL over 'True Blood', but I crave it. I don't want to watch a movie/show where vampires "shimmer" and "glimmer" in the sun; I want those bastards to burn if they hit the sun's rays. I don't want a show where they have to wear little rings to keep from burning; I want 'Anubis Air' to be their mode of travelling by the light of day. I want the typical "vampire-comes-to-town-meets-the-girl story with a twist, and that's what 'True Blood' gives me.

Now I know I might seem a little harsh on 'Vampire Diaries' and maybe even 'Twilight', but truth be told I'd rather watch either of these two items over the abysmal 90210/Melrose Place/Gossip Girl/Whatever-the-hell-that-Mischa-Barton-Show-Is. Those suck ass on a level that cannot be met even by the WORST Sci-Fi Channel Original Movie. I even enjoyed 'Twilight', even with Kristin Stewart's non-existant expressions and emotions and the glimmering. And since, at least by first episode impressions, 'Vampire Diaries' (VD?) is the same thing I don't know why it was needed other than to fill this desire to make vampire-related everything. That said, the acting isn't bad (I did mention 90210/Gossip Girl, right?) and I can't lie and say that Ian Somerhalder isn't lovely to look at in any situation (although he needs a different hairstyle on this show). However, I did prefer him as Boone on LOST and think there was SO much more to his characters' storyline than was covered. Anyway...almost everyone was good at the acting, barring a few people who were good enough not to lump them in with the above mentioned crap-shows on The CW.

So what's my final verdict? If you are over the age of, say, 25 go watch True Blood and just soak it all in. As a treat, here are some scenes from 'True Blood'.

In these scene's you get several of the things I love about TB: Blood, Lafayette, Eric, swearing, the eye-brow raise and a little cheese sprinkled with a cheeky song choice for the end: (Possible SPOILERS for TB.)





You are welcome and thanks for noticing how my rant on 'Vampire Diaries' turned into a praise for 'True Blood'.

Monday, September 14, 2009

True Blood "Beyond Here Lies Nothing" Season 2 Finale! **SPOILERS**

Now that I have my precious computer back, covered in Cheetos, I can give you little lovely screen-shots of the best moments from last night. If you play your cards right and are nice to me I might even manage to wander over to YouTube and get those Eric scenes (all ONE of them). I know how everyone loves their Eric!

What the hell can I say about this episode/finale? It was bat-shit insane on so many levels and set us up for next season in a great way. It also closed the door on everyone's favorite annoying-as-fuck, worthless character. More on that later.

I'm trying to find a format that works for me while I do these little recaps, because I plan on doing it for most, if not all, of the shows I love. Admittedly, I enjoy this show WAYYYY too much. So bear with me if they aren't really set up the same every week.

* Lafayette (filled up with crazy) tells Tara and ...Eggs that Maryann wants them downstairs with the egg. This is probably a face this guy should never. ever make again. EVER! I might not be able to sleep now. I already don't like this character.


* Big deal Lafayette, Sookie has 1000 year old vampire blood in her too, why should she take her clothes off? Oh, right...time for this gorgeous dress. Where did this dress come from, by the way?


* "What the hell are you doing in my Grandmother's wedding dress?" And not a pause from Maryann as she welcomes ol' Sook to the "party". Oh wonderful, she's the Maid of Honor. Best thing so far? Lafayette's little lady-clap there on the right.


*Credits! *Sob* Last time until next summer. Is it next summer yet? Not only will I be almost finished with school and ready to move back to L.A., but it will be time for more True Blood! "I wanna do bad things with you!" Guitar solo...

* Arlene asking which of the Old, New and Blue she is. Classic dumb Arlene. And, there in the back once again is Lafayette stealing the scene. Besides Skarsgård, no one quite steals a scene like Nelsan Ellis.


* Maryann asking Sookie to "shock" her again. Sookie doesn't know why/how she did it...but I do! "I'm a waitress...what the fuck are you?"

* I love how Mrs. Fortenberry is tied to Hoyt with string and she tries to escape with her Snicker/chips/Tabasco casserole. Om nom nom!

* Maryann tells Sookie there was something watching out for her. Flashback to the Rattrays. Allusions to there being someone "helping" her. Again, I know I know! Oh yeah, Maryann is sacrificing Sam to her soon-to-be husband because he came to her naked and a virgin. Right...that's because he broke into your house after shifting. No connection lady, sorry!

* Hallaloojah's! It's time for Eric! And he's playing Yahtzee with the Queen. Apparently they play to 5 million, or something.


* Yeah...I know, right?


* He must have been tired, I hear that accent quite heavily in this scene. And I like it! Anyway...the Queen seems a bit scatter-brained and keeps interrupting everyone. She mentions the Maenad and Eric says that's why he's there, she says don't get involved.

* The Queen mentions that Bill is in love with Sooookeh and that Eric probably is too. He sheepishly says he doesn't love humans (liar!).

* Rut-Roh! The Queen knows that Bill knows that Eric is selling her blood...for her? "The guards here hear everything" I like this quick change in the Queen. And everyone was so mean to ERW last week (She still looks gorgeous!).


* I don't know about ERW...but this would have been the worst day at work. EVER!


* It's "-uh, you-a turn to make da Yahtzee" and I love that look on his face! He's going to take care of Bill Compton...personally.


* By-the-by, this is all incredibly important and all, since it's setting up next season, but I really just wanted an excuse to slap some Skarsgård up.

* Jason and Andy going to battle and Jason says the line, "I love the smell of nail polish in the morning." Jason you are SO stupid and I love you for it!

* The orgy party is STILL on! And Andy and Jason get captured too soon. They had a plan. And Jason has Kid Glock on his side.

* "It's time's like this that the town needs a good man, and that man is us"

* Damn it! Now they both are black-eyed freaks. NOOOOO!

* Sam and Bill talk and Bill is too pale. Lay off the makeup on Moyer. "You must come with me. I declare you have no choice"

* There are FAR too many awesome lines tonight. "Ok...what is with the egg? Did you lay it?" She didn't, it's an ostrich egg. Why there needs to be a giant egg involved with the orgy party, I don't know. I don't think anyone, including the writers know. Is Eggs dead yet? Damn it, no.

* Eww...


* At least they aren't naked in this orgy. The band of morons who can't play violin, playing violin, is a lovely touch. Chuckle-worthy, if you will.

* Bill hands Sam over to Maryann. And the idiots start chanting to the God Who Never Comes.

* Sam gets stabbed in the heart. Oh crap!

* Sam tells Sookie to knock the meat-tower down and smash the egg. She does and Maryann starts shrieking and breaking everyone's ears. Again.

* Maryann gets pissed. I would too. She put a lot of work into that meat tower and all those orgies and along comes Betty Sue to mess it all up.


* Wait...what's that? That is one huge motha'ucker of a bull/oxe. Oh and it's not your husband dumbass. It's a giant bull. Yuck!


* And...it's Sam. Ding-dong-the Maenads dead! Storyline wrapped up a little too quickly. Everyone's all, "WTF are we doing in Sookies yard? Without clothes?" Bill's all weak and shit.

* Tara apologizes for how stupid she acted last week. And she should, she was terrible.

* Maxine Fortenberry gets all nasty, without the black eyes, about Jessica and Hoyt's pappy. She's a nasty bitch! I like Hoyt, stop being a nasty bitch to him! Jim Parrack is so adorable (even though I thought he was the killer last year!)

* All the former black-eyed morons are meandering around Sookehs house and Jane Bodehouse finds her finger in the meat tower. Andy can have his badge back because he wearing pants, that seems like a valid reason to let a drunk back on the force.

* Sam's all sad because he doesn't have useless-what's-her-tits around anymore. Um...Sam? She tried to give you to Maryann to sacrifice, forget her. And she was a pig/deer.
See...he's sad.

* Sam and Bill have a heart to heart and kiss.

* Eggs want to know what happened to him and why he can't remember things. Eggs, it's because you are annoying and NO ONE, but Tara, likes you. Go away!

* You go on to bed? Um...Sookie? Yeah, there is meat and orgy and Eggs everywhere! Go sleep at Vampire Bills. Then he can say, "Sooookeh, I declare it would be most convenient if you retired at my abode for the evening", because that's how he talks.

* CHARLAINE HARRIS!

* Sam opened the bar and Arlenes kids are smarter than her. And the locals are gossiping again. Apparently Maryann was an alien and that's why you should drink Mountain Dew. "God bless who made those jeans. I'd wear him like a scrunchie." I concur random town-nut.

* Everyone thinks Andy is still a drunk. "It's Diet Coke with LIME!" Bubba? Bubba? Jason, I love you! Ryan Kwanten is seriously an underrated actor. Jason thinks they saved the town even though they have NO clue what happened. "If a tree falls in the woods, it's still a tree ain't it?"
Bubba makes sense after this face.

* Sam asks Sookie to look after Merlotte's. He wants a break, but really he wants to go wander to see his family and ask about his REAL parents. They are apparently bad people.

* Sookie gets a dress from Bill. I hoped it was the red coat, but I can't remember which book that's from. She gets a lovely purple dress and a "promise for a lovely evening out, which I declare I owe." I'm going to start talking like Vampire Bill, complete with the southern aristocrat accent.

* Crap, that dumb-shit Eggs hasn't spontaneously died YET! Now he wants Sookie to help him figure out what he can't remember. Should I care what "bad things" in his past he did? Because I don't. Please.die. 10 episodes ago.

* Oh yeah, Eggs killed all those people we already knew he killed. Now he knows what he did and he pretty much goes bat-shit crazy. Ugh...

* Jessica says she's leaving to see Hoyt...maybe? Then she tells Bill that they had a fight. Bill's being nice to her. "I do declare he would be a fool not to accept your apology for being angry to each other a fortnight ago"

* Sam Trammell is hot. There is a whole scene relating to what I mentioned above with Sam's family. Next season set-up. I don't know where this is going next year.

* Hoyt goes to see Jessica, but she's at a truck stop eating a dude.


* Sookie and Bill dance while Eggs pretty much attacks Andy to turn himself in. And then this happened:

Eggs was FINALLY killed via Jason and his baby-tees! If you wish and hope and dream, little boys and girls, good things will come to you. Oh Tara is upset because he's the nicest man she's ever met. Sure he beat her and ate heart souffle with her, but whatever, he was a dream!

* Bill proposes to Sookeh and she runs off to the bathroom to cry, at least she didn't get anyone in trouble on the way...oh, wait...this happened:
DAMN IT, Sooookeh! Why can't you stop getting people in trouble? That's silver!

* Sookie's all, "LALALALA I'm gonna marry Bill Compton!" And then she comes out and BLAMO! He's gone! Who took him? I know who from the books, but we all know the show doesn't always follow the books. Is it next summer yet?

Here is THE SINGLE Eric scene of the evening, since you were so nice:

Saturday, September 12, 2009

'Youth Without Youth' Review

Last night I watched this movie. I spent 2+ hours watching it. I don't know what I watched. I know Tim Roth was in it and Francis Ford Coppola wrote, produced and directed it. I also know that I am not really a fan of Coppola and this movie didn't really sway me toward becoming a fan. I didn't hate it, but I certainly did not like it either.

Before I get to the how and why and describe just what the movie is about (I think), let me show the two trailers that were released.




They show two completely different movies. The first trailer makes it seem like the movie is about a man who gets struck by lightning, lives and something happens to him making him become a person everyone wants a piece of. Then Matt Damon offers him protection and new identities. It looks interesting, and seems like an international sci-fi, espionage, thriller.

The second trailer kind of makes less sense. It's also more like the actual movie. What I mean by that is: It doesn't make any sense. It covers basically the first trailers content then adds stuff about this woman who keeps going further and further back in time. I'll explain that later. Either way, it makes little to no sense.

Here's what the movie is about: Dominic Matei, a student who has a life-long dream to figure out the origins of language, is dumped by his love Laura. Laura tells him that he is, in essence, married to his work and he'd be better off without her. He later finds out that she got married and died a year later in childbirth. Now he is a 70 year old man and has spent, I assume, the last 50 years or so alone. He ends up in a Bucharest, a city where no one knows him and he is wandering the streets with a blue envelope filled with poison to kill himself. He is then struck by lightning and survives, though badly burned. At the hospital the doctors are astounded when he begins to heal and grow younger. He leaves the hospital after he is healed and writes about his experiences, gaining the attention of many people, including The Nazi's. Oh, after he was struck by lightning he seemed to have developed some kind of double personality that appears in mirrors and later in the flesh.

Later he flees to Switzerland and encounters a woman named Veronica, who looks exactly like Laura, and her friend heading up a mountain road. Later he goes to look for them afraid they have met harm and he finds the car and Veronica's friend dead and Veronica in a cave. She seems to be in shock and thinks she is a woman named Rupini. She says the last thing she remembers is meditating in a cave and then there was a cave-in. This is really where the movie starts to get really WTF. Veronica starts getting "possessed" by Rupini and heading farther and farther back in time, linguistically. She also starts to age and finally Dominic tells her that he needs to leave her in order to save her. He says that if in 6 months she hasn't returned back to her youth he'll come back. A few years go by and he sees her leaving a train, youthful and with a child. She passes him without noticing him and he returns to his home town. In the hotel where he is staying he begins to have an argument with his other self and he ends up smashing a mirror causing the other self to scream, "What have you done?" and then turning to another, foreign language.

After this altercation he goes to the cafe he used to frequent as a younger man and there he meets some old men who he knew in the past. As he talks about things he's seen and done they start to ask what he is talking about and at some point he is old again. He then grasps his mouth, stumbles out the door, spits up blood and stumbles away. In the morning a man finds him, greatly aged, frozen to death at the bottom of the stairs. In his pocket is a passport with the name of a different man, an alias from the "past/future". Did all this happen? Was it a dream? Does it matter because this movie really makes no sense when you watch it?

I think there is something in this movie, but the execution really failed. It goes from being a movie about a man who gains his youth back in an accident and comes under the attention of a bunch of people to a movie about a woman who gets possessed by something and starts babbling in ancient languages. I don't know what the point is supposed to be. Is it supposed to be a giant paradox? Because for that to happen there should be, you know, a paradox and something that clearly shows that there is a paradox. Otherwise, it's just a movie that makes no damn sense. I read somewhere that people compare it to David Lynch movies and 'Mulholland Drive' in particular. I don't see this. I love David Lynch and I am totally clueless about his movies, but I don't care.

What I loved was that this movie had Tim Roth and some killer cinematography. Some of the shots used were beautiful and the production design was great too. Really everything was fine except for the story because I don't know what I was supposed to be gaining from it.

'Pandorum' clips

Not being a fan of "torture-porn" as the internets call it, but being a fan of sci-fi and movies where stuff is inexplicably deserted (Event Horizon anyone?), I can't wait to actually see this movie. Good or bad, it looks fun. Plus Ben Foster is awesome-sauce to the extreme!





I don't know about you, but if I was Ben Foster in these clips it would definitely be a brown-shorts day!

Friday, September 11, 2009

'The Legend of 1900 (La leggenda del pianista sull'oceano)' Review

A few months ago my Dad was flipping through channels and came across this movie about a piano player who was born on a luxury ocean liner, lived his life aboard the ship and never left.

Let me point one thing out: I absolutely LOVE luxury ocean liners. I love them so much that if I could marry one, I would. I would marry it and have it's little ocean liner babies; it would be awkward, for sure, but I'd do it. I'm not talking about new ocean liners. I'm talking about the old ones: RMS Queen Mary, Lusitania, Queen Elizabeth, Normandie, Titanic; the ships that evoke a different time. A time of leaving your old life and starting a new one, in a new world. A time of luxury, for some, when you paid a fare, boarded a beautiful ship full of brass, wood and glorious luxury around every corner and travelled across the ocean.

Getting back to the movie...at the time, I was busy doing something and the movie was almost over, so I didn't want to start watching it at that time. I added it to my Netflix and about 3 weeks ago I had it delivered to me. I just never found the right moment to watch it until last night. Let me preface my gushing about this movie with this: It isn't perfect, but it is really entertaining and moving and the production design and cinematography is fantastic. The movie came out in 1998, but when I watched it I didn't really notice other than some green screen being a little off.

So what is the movie about? I already mentioned it's about a man who was born on the ship and lived his whole life aboard. That's the general story. The movie opens with a man, Max (Pruitt Taylor Vince, a simply under-rated actor in my opinion) entering a music shop just as the owner is closing up shop. He's down on his luck and wants to sell his trumpet. The owner offers him way less than he knows it's worth, but he takes it anyway. As he leaves he requests to play the trumpet one last time. While he's playing the shopkeeper recognizes the song and asks what it's called. He has a recording of the same song that he found broken into pieces inside a piano he recently bought from a liner that was being dismantled. He plays the recording and asks who the song is by. Max tells him it shouldn't exist and tells the story of 1900.

Danny Boodman T.D. Lemon 1900 (the fabulous Tim Roth), or just 1900, was found on the ship by his "father" Danny while he was searching the ballroom for leftover rich people things. He takes 1900 down to the boiler room and raises him until he is killed by a chain that hits him in the head. After Danny's death when 1900 is 8, 1900 wanders onto the first class deck and sees a party through the a stained glass window. Later at night he wanders in and starts to play the piano. He is a wiz at the piano and shortly has the entire 1st class gathering to hear the music being played. He grows up and eventually becomes the ships piano player in the orchestra which is where he meets Max.

The movie periodically flashes back to the present to cover how Max is trying to get aboard the ship to find 1900 and get him to leave before the ship is destroyed. Something he has never done, though he meant to one time to go start a new life with a woman he writes the mysterious song for. He just couldn't leave because there was no end to anything out there. On the ship there is always an end, a piano has 88 keys and there is always a limit from bow to stern.

His fame goes off ship though and a man named Jelly Roll Morton, who claims to have invented Jazz comes aboard to challenge 1900 to a duel. 1900 plays with him for awhile before completely blowing him out of the water. The scene is a little long, but is not only entertaining in content but the cinematography and some of the shots used, particularly one right near the end where the camera sweeps from one side of the piano up and over to the other side, are wonderful.

The movie was very delightful for the most part and the production design, as I mentioned above was to die for. Both the ship as it was and as it is now (which is sometime in the 1940's) is beautiful. And at times when the movie goes from shots of the rusted out dome in the ballroom to the beauty of what it once was, I was blown away. As I mentioned I love luxury ocean liners, but I also love abandoned things too, so those parts of the movie appealed to me as well. As I said, it isn't a perfect movie. I really wondered how 1900 was so clean and fit after supposedly never leaving the ship that has been left alone to rust so heavily. I mean, where did he was his clothes/self and find food? But overall the movie was wonderful and I highly recommend it. I'm going to try throwing some clips in below, one will probably be the last scene, so don't watch it if you don't want to see the end.

Piano Duel




*The shot I mentioned above occurs at 6:59 in part 1*

The End


*That anchor that flew at the camera would have been removed before detonation...*



*Just look at that set, and the cinematography and the camera angles! Gorgeous!*

Playing Love


*This song is beautiful!*

Trailer



YouTube User darksumiregusa has the entire movie on their channel.

I honestly do not understand how this movie didn't get more attention and awards...

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

FULL Depeche Mode 'Corrupt' music video

Yesterday I gave you the True Blood season finale promo with Depeche Mode's 'Corrupt'. Well, today I give you the music video. Awesome!

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

True Blood Season 2 Finale Promo

Dave Gahan's voice mesmerizes as the locals of Bon Temps, LA flit about the screen!

While watching the horribleness that is the remake of 90210 (seriously, how can they have an entire show where everyone is off-putting in some way? One is way too skinny, one girl flares her nostrils and purses her lips, one guy plays 17, looks 40 and is 31...it's just awful!), I stumbled upon this little promo for one of the best shows on television right now (yes, it's campy. But while it's campy it's also incredibly fun and has some amazing characters). Oh, and on True Blood even the most unattractive people are good looking, kind of like on Battlestar.

Another plus? Depeche Mode. I don't have this song (Corrupt) but I will now!



**And no, I was not choosing to watch 90210. Someone requested to watch it and there isn't anything else on**

Sunday, September 6, 2009

'Amreeka' Trailer

This looks good. It's a nice simple story about a woman who comes to the U.S. with her family from Palestine for a chance to start anew.

'The Men Who Stare At Goats' Trailer

A Coen Brothers movie without the Coen Brothers. 'The Men Who Stare At Goats' stars Ewan McGregor, George Clooney and Jeff Bridges and appears to be about a reporter (McGregor) who runs into a government agent (Clooney) on some kind of secret mission. It's also based on a true story. So that's weird.

Friday, September 4, 2009

New 'The Road' clips

If you've read the book, you know what happens and that, like most of his books, it isn't that happy of a story. After struggling to get released the movie is finally coming out sometime this month. I think.

'The Road' tells the story of a man and his son who are struggling to survive and make it to the coast after an unknown disaster has devastated at least the United States. Check out the five new clips, they cover the feel of the book pretty well and the movie also includes Guy Pearce. I don't know who he plays exactly, but I'm glad he's in the movie. Garett Dillahunt plays one of the cannibalistic hillbillies and he is seriously underrated as an actor.









Tuesday, September 1, 2009

'Leviathan' Book Trailer

Are you saying, "What's a book trailer?" Well, it's a wonderful little tool that publishers are beginning to use to get their books out there to the public.

I saw the ones for Guillermo del Toro and Chuck Hogan's "The Strain" and I was convinced to get the book (plus, it had del Toro's name attached so I would have bought it anyway). This time it's for Scott Westerfield's "Leviathan" and it looks awesome!

Set in 1914 and Archduke Franz Ferdinand has been assassinated and Europe is just about to go to war. But this is a different timeline, an alternate history filled with two warring sides: The Clankers who use machinery to do their bidding and Darwinists who evolve living creatures to do their bidding. At the center of it all there is Alec who is running from those who killed his father (the Archduke) and Darrin Sharpe (not sure if that's the name...it was hard to tell what the name really is) who is a girl living as a boy who wants to serve in the Royal Air Navy. They are on opposing sides and one is hiding a secret.

I love Steampunk and Sci-Fi, so I'm all over this book. As long as it isn't written for too young an audience.

Carlton Draught 'Flashbeer'

Since I didn't have anything to do today, I spent the time watching funny commercials. This had to be one of the funniest.

It's for an Australian beer called Carlton Draught and is a parody of Flashdance. The best part is around 1:13 or so.



This IKEA ad was banned by the home office. It's for IKEA Germany and is making fun of the Swedish holiday called midsummer where they all dance around a maypole and get drunk. This is of course, highly exaggerated, but it's funny none-the-less. Not sure if it was banned because of the content or because it's kind of long for an ad...