Category Archives: Ephemera

No End in Sight Screens for Free on YouTube

Ephemera, Politics, Screenings

In what amounts to an unprecedented giveaway and show of public-interest goodwill, Charles Ferguson’s No End in Sight, an Academy Award nominee for Best Documentary Feature and winner of the Documentary Special Jury Prize at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, will be the first widely released feature film to screen in its
entirety on YouTube, starting on September 1 and continuing through the
2008 presidential election on Tuesday, November 4.

A clear-eyed, devastating, non-partisan look at the American policies and decision-making blunders that followed the launch of the Iraq War, No End in Sight is being made available free to the public, according to a statement from Ferguson and Representational Pictures, “to reveal the facts about the Bush administration’s invasion and occupation of Iraq to voters concerned with the issues of national security and the adverse economic impact of the war when making decisions in this crucial election.” The film will be featured on its own YouTube channel
and available to anyone with a computer and high-speed internet
connection, as well as via the YouTube service on broadband-connected
TiVo Series3™ or TiVo HD DVRs, which enables subscribers to watch the
myriad content of YouTube on their televisions. For more information, click here.

Fake Tropic Thunder Documentary Hits iTunes

Amusements, Ephemera

Beginning today, DreamWorks and Paramount are offering up Rain of Madness for exclusive download at iTunes. A companion piece to the hit comedy Tropic Thunder, the movie — shot on location in Hawaii during principal production — serves as a documentary of the making of the feature film… sort of. “We wanted to do a fake documentary about the making of the movie within the movie — which is called Tropic Thunder, not the actual movie Tropic Thunder. The fake documentary focuses on the real movie’s fake director, and what happens to the fake cast before they go into the real jungle. It’s pretty straightforward,” explains Ben Stiller.

Ariel’s Beginning Comes to DVD

Ephemera

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment invites you to dive deep into the secrets of the early years of one of Disney’s most beloved princesses when The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s Beginning comes exclusively to DVD today. A music-filled prequel to one of the most beloved Disney Classics of all time, the film reveals an all-new, spellbinding
chapter of the fun-loving and mischievous mermaid’s amazing oceanic
adventures. More of the dazzling animation and memorable music that
made The Little Mermaid one of the most celebrated films of its kind
will transport viewers into the magical kingdom of Atlantica at the
start of “the greatest undersea story ever told.”

Imagine a time long before Ariel met Prince Eric and walked on land — a time when music was banned from the underwater kingdom of Atlantica. Torn between family duty and her love of music, Ariel must make the most difficult choice of her life. With the help of her friends Sebastian and Flounder, as well as her six amusing sisters, will the young mermaid be able to restore music, friendship and love to the kingdom? The
film pits a wonderfully wicked new villainess, Marina Del Rey, against
Ariel and her plucky pals, and again features the voice talents of Jodi Benson and Samuel E.
Wright, reprising their legendary roles as Ariel and Sebastian, respectively.

Presented in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen and packed with a treasure trove
of never-before-scene bonus features — including two deleted scenes, cast and crew interviews, quick links to four of the movie’s musical scenes, a 10-minute look at the original film’s Broadway adaptation and more — The Little Mermaid: Ariel’s
Beginning continues the legacy of the film that launched an
extraordinary new era in animation, and won over multiple generations of
filmgoers with grace, charm and catchy choruses.

Criterion Answers Blu-ray Questions

Ephemera

Ever since it announced its intentions to start giving some of its new titles the region 1 Blu-ray treatment, high-end DVD distributor Criterion has been inundated with questions, naturally. Their recently updated FAQ page addresses the most common, and also announces the particulars of an upgrade program, where the company will be offering a $20 Blu-ray switch-over for customers who have already bought the equivalent edition on DVD.

Meghan McCain’s Blog Shows Behind-the-Scenes of Campaign

Ephemera, Politics

If it’s behind-the-scenes stuff to which you spark, in all aspects of life, and you’ve already watched all the bonus features on all of your DVDs, check out the campaign trail blog of Meghan McCain, the 23-year-old daughter of John McCain. Sure, a few Facebook/sorority-type pictures slip the groove, but there are some good photos included, particularly the very cinematic first shot from this recent stop in Pennsylvania. Actually, I just noticed that the bulk of the pictures are credited to professional photographer Heather Brand, which explains the acute eye for composition. Interestingly, too, the younger McCain seems to have interned at Newsweek and Saturday Night Live, the latter of which might explain Lorne Michaels’ contributions.

Sony Continues to Crank Out DVD Sequels

Ephemera, Musings

Over on FilmStew, Richard Horgan has a fairly polite take-down of the forthcoming Anaconda 3 (which has apparently already debuted on Sci-Fi Channel, and hits DVD in October) and, more generally, the pipeline-product mindset that in particular Sony has employed in mining “franchise opportunities” (see Starship Troopers 3, I’ll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, a couple Wild Things sequels, etcetera). As outside venture capital dries up and film companies seek to further mitigate risk, look for this trend to spread. There will be a day, in the not-too-distant future, when two-thirds to three-quarters of all studio films will spawn these sorts of spin-offs, and the hushed, shameful release campaigns that accompany them.

David Lynch Goes Lime Green for New DVD Box Set

Ephemera

David Lynch will release a nine-disc, one-CD deluxe box set this November, dubbed David Lynch: The Lime Green Set, according to the fine folks at Dugpa. Included will be a remastered version of Eraserhead; an Eraserhead soundtrack; the DVD collection of Lynch’s short films; The Elephant Man, with a new collection of extra material; Wild at Heart; the dvd debut of Industrial Symphony No. 1; Blue Velvet, with a new, Lynch-approved 5.1 sound mix; Dumbland; a special booklet featuring rare Lynch imagery; and a special mystery disc that Lynch is thus far keeping under wraps. The set will be distributed by Ryko, and available at most stores and online retailers, streeting on November 18.

Vulture Wrong About Tom Cruise’s Tropic Thunder Cameo

Ephemera, Musings

Vulture takes issue with the generally promulgated notion that Tom Cruise’s cameo turn in the forthcoming Tropic Thunder is funny, but they’re on the wrong side of the fence on this one. Their main beef seems to be with the fact that Cruise — playing a foul-mouthed studio boss prone to breaking out a hip-hop hit to help underscore a point — is “yet another middle-aged actor milking yuks out of how white guys don’t know how to shake their flabby white rumps.” Yet that’s entirely not the point of his rump-shaking.

His character, Les Grossman, can dance; he does. Yes, it’s jarring, but it’s meant to be — it’s a visual counterpoint to the obscenity that he spews and crushed spirits he leaves in his wake. The subtext: here’s a guy who’s in control about being out of control. And it works. It makes him more calculated, shades and completes the portrait of shrewdness.

For Cruise, it’s also a career game-changer. Just as John Travolta, who decades earlier had memorably catapulted to fame on the strength of his Saturday Night Fever moves, reconnected with audiences in Pulp Fiction (partly) via dance, so too does Tropic Thunder help take audiences back to a time of unburdened affection for the guy — when he was just that sock-clad kid sliding across a bare wooden floor singing along to “Old Time Rock and Roll.” It’s more wild supporting turns like this one, and Magnolia, that will eventually yield Cruise his Best Supporting Actor Oscar, not any square-jawed dramatic leads in the vein of The Last Samurai.

Fox Doesn’t Offer Transparency for Mirrors

Ephemera, Irritations, Musings

For those who like to read between the lines and be informed about such matters, in keeping with recently established end-around tradition for both much of its in-house product and horror movies in general, no matter the rating, 20th Century Fox will not screen Alexandre Aja’s Mirrors for critics.

Disappointing, but no big shock, really. What’s notable is that this tack of cloak-and-dagger anti-publicity didn’t at all help The X-Files: I Want to Believe, which grossed one-third of the opening weekend haul of its 1998 predecessor, or Eddie Murphy’s Meet Dave, which bombed to the tune of a $5.3 million bow. Each of those films screened in highly selective, opt-in fashion, just like The Happening. Yet despite the clearly demonstrated lack of success in prying first-weekend filmgoer dollars out of wallets merely by airwave promotional carpet-bombing, 20th Century Fox seems intent on pursuing this strategy. The dirty truth is that while things are changing, yes, and there is a “wild west” element to film criticism on the Internet, you still have to get down and do the dirty work — all the foot-soldier stuff that publicity involves. An air war alone (or trying to “message manage” through a couple corruptible sites) won’t win out for a full year’s slate.

Iron Man Sets DVD Date

Ephemera

After a hugely successful theatrical run, Iron Man is set to bow on DVD on September 30, with two-disc sets on both DVD and Blu-ray formats. Special features will include deleted and extended scenes, Robert Downey, Jr.’s screen test, cast rehearsals, mad production featurettes and much, much more.

Paris Hilton Responds to McCain Campaign Ad

Amusements, Ephemera

After having been dragged into the fray by “that wrinkly, white-haired guy,” Paris Hilton responds to John McCain’s bizarre use of her in his presidential advertising with her own campaign ad. A bit begrudgingly, I have to admit it’s kind of awesome. This sense of humor is what will keep cameras on her, and help give her a leg up on other vacuous, fame-whore starlets in a play for longevity.

Alice Upside Down Hits DVD

Ephemera

Alyson Stoner, already a Disney Channel staple from five years on Mike’s Super Short Show, as well as a recurring bit on The Suite Life of Zack & Cody and guest-starring roles on That’s So Raven and Nickelodeon’s Drake & Josh, headlines her first movie in Alice Upside Down, a sweet and poignant flick aimed squarely at tween females.

Based on the popular best-selling Alice McKinley books by Newbery
medalist Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, and directed by Sandy Tung (Saving Shiloh), the movie tells the story of
11-year-old Alice, who has recently moved to a new town with her
widowed dad Ben (Luke Perry) and teenage brother Lester (Lucas Grabeel), leaving her the only
girl in an all male household. Alice imagines herself cool, confident
and popular, but in reality her life is full of anxiety, awkward
moments and overwhelming challenges. Missing her mom more than
ever during these confusing pre-teen years, Alice feels like she
can’t do anything right. Can Alice survive the embarrassments of being “the new girl” at school, as well as the
miseries inflicted by her stern sixth grade teacher, Mrs. Plotkin (Penny Marshall), and the dramas of her school musical?

Housed in a regular Amray case with a cardboard slipcover, and presented in widescreen enhanced for 16×9 televisions with Dolby surround 5.1 and Dolby surround 2.0 audio mixes, Alice Upside Down includes interviews with Stoner and Grabeel, as well as a brief featurette on the movie’s costumes. To purchase the film via DVD Planet, click here.

Amy Smart’s Breasts Are Drunk

Amusements, Ephemera

The ass-baring candid shots of Amy Smart bitch-tossing Corey Haim into cars, from the Los Angeles production of Crank 2, were but the first wave of awesome set shots unleashed by the Jason Statham-starring action sequel. There’s also this between-takes shot of Smart currently making the rounds.

I can’t tell if Smart is drying her nail polish or just keeping it real while listening to Jay-Z, but there’s something deliciously hilarious and kind of mesmerizing about the clash of managed and unmanaged accoutrement and expression in this shot that renders it more than just titillating, and thus keeps me from making any sort of “X marks the spot” joke.

Dinosaur King DVD Set for September

Ephemera

Colossal fantasy adventure series Dinosaur King, one of the hottest new kids’ franchises, is scheduled to make its Stateside DVD debut on September 23. Shout! Factory, in association with 4Kids Entertainment, will release Dinosaur King: The Adventure Begins, on a set that will feature the first five episodes of the series, a special edition trading card and what are being touted as “dino-sized bonus extras.” Based on the internationally renowned arcade and collectible card game, Dinosaur King centers around three young dinosaur enthusiasts whose discovery of some mystifying
artifacts pull them into an incredible world of adventure, danger and
dinosaurs. For the Dinosaur King fan that enjoys videogames, SEGA also intends to release a tie-in Dinosaur King role-playing-game for the Nintendo DS in September. For more information on the series, click here.

VIZ Media Launches Film Company

Ephemera

Per a release announcement today, VIZ Media is launching a Hollywood-based film company to license and produce live-action feature films based on popular graphic novel properties. Bucking the trend of recent boutique rollbacks, this new, wholly-owned company, named VIZ Productions, will also serve as liaison between Japanese creative licensors and Hollywood production houses, and plans to produce or license live action films from a wide range of graphic novel genres. Jason Hoffs will serve as head of production.

Arnold Schwarzenegger as National Energy Czar?

Ephemera, Politics

So, his endorsement of John McCain notwithstanding, Arnold Schwarzenegger has indicated he would consider a position as energy czar in an administration of Barack Obama. When George Stephanopoulous asked Schwarzenegger about the idea on ABC’s This Week, and whether he would take Obama’s call, the California governor replied, “I would take his call now, I will take his
call when he’s president — any time. Remember, no matter who is
president, I don’t see this as a political thing. I see this as we
always have to help, no matter what the administration is.” Presumably his coronation would not involve a massive chain of fireballs… but maybe it would, I don’t know. For the full read, from Politico, click here.

David Lynch Talks Transcendental Meditation

Ephemera

Filmmaker David Lynch — whose interest in transcendental meditation is well chronicled, and the subject of a documentary film he’s working up — talks about his experience with the technique in a first-person piece penned for The Guardian, writing, “I sat down, closed my eyes, started this mantra, and it was like I was
in an elevator and they cut the cable. Boom! I fell into bliss, pure
bliss. And I was just in there. …It takes you to an ocean of pure consciousness, pure knowingness. But
it’s familiar, it’s you. And, right away, a sense of happiness emerges — not a goofball happiness but a thick beauty.” That was 1973, and he hasn’t missed a meditation in 34 years, says Lynch, which in its own way is easy to believe, given his love of rituals. For the full read, click here.

Lost Footage of 1927’s Metropolis Found

Ephemera

Holy crap — footage presumed lost from 1927’s Metropolis, from German director Fritz Lang, has been found in Argentina, in the vault of the Buenos Aires Film Museum. The director’s cut of Lang’s stunning, stylish sci-fi classic, containing an extra 30 minutes, was believed to have vanished forever
after it was trimmed by Paramount bosses because of bad reviews. Great news for film history, any way you slice it, after a string of recent setbacks and bad news.

Will Smith on The Colbert Report

Ephemera

Long week, so I just put a bullet in the June 24 episode of The Colbert Report, with Will Smith guesting to promote Hancock, a rarity for Stephen Colbert’s show. After an inspired opening segment bit in which he took Smith to task for being at the forefront of Hollywood’s “glorification of face violence” (his latest cause du jour, after a mysterious injury last week that left him with a couple stitches between his eyebrows), Colbert mostly stuck to genial set-ups instead of jabs, asking Smith if his support of Barack Obama was part of a conspiracy to eventually play him in a movie.

Smith, for his part, kept things equally light, laughing a lot and dipping back into his Muhammad Ali accent for effect. Some self-effacing jokes about ears led to a shared fist bump, which was then mocked as a terrorist fist jab. After a clip from the film, Colbert did seem to catch Smith on his heels a bit when he asked him if the movie, about “a superhero using his power and the world getting mad at him for it,” was a veiled metaphor about the United States and the events of the past half-dozen years.