The Informant!

The Academy invites 134 new members to the voting club!

Check out the entire list here, but here's a quick sampling of some of the more interesting actors, writers, directors, etc who got in this year: John August, Michael Cera, Anne Hathaway, Emile Hirsch, Rod Lurie, Clint Mansell, Claudio Miranda, Tyler Perry, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, and Paula Wagner.

-Thoughts on the full list?

Podcast #4 comes your way today!

We at The Awards Circuit happily bring you the 4th Awards Circuit Podcast this week, Myles and myself preview 16 Best Picture contenders, everything from The Hurt Locker to Funny People to The Lovely Bones, with plenty in between. Take a listen here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast4.html
-Definitely continue to leave us feedback by commenting on the Poscast page, by commenting here, by leaving general feedback on the site, or by contacting us on Facebook or Twitter. Thanks again for the continued support and happy listening!

One of the best movies of the first half of the year comes to DVD this week!

Indeed, one of the films that I listed as being one of the 5 best of the year so far in the inagural Podcast (and a new one is coming later today!) is on DVD today and is my obvious PICK OF THE WEEK. It's:
Two Lovers
I absolutely loved this grown up romantic drama, which features one of Mr. Phoenix's best performances (and hopefully not his last). It has a lot in common with a low key Woody Allen film, just without the comedy. I absolutely adored this film and imagine you will as well.
-Also out this week we have the dumb John Cena action flick 12 Rounds, Fred Durst's directorial debut (even though it's his second to come out) The Education of Charlie Banks, which is flawed, but not bad at all, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li, which is a legend I'd like to forget, The Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience, which is what it is, and Uwe Boll's Tunnel Rats, which is an Uwe Boll movie, enough said.
-My Vintage pick this week is the classic comedy Real Genius. Val Kilmer absolutely cracks me up everytime as a slacker with a brilliant mind. It's a movie that never fails to pick me up when I'm feeling down, so it should do the same for you! (It's also one of my favorite movies to quote)
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Today's News: Cuts to Bruno, more on the bigger Best Picture field, an IMAX record for Transformers 2, Jason Lee joins Kevin Smith's latest, and more

In the news:

-Do we have some MJ related cuts to the upcoming Bruno?

-Check out Variety's take on the expansion of the Best Picture field to 10.

-Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen sets an IMAX record.

-Speaking of Transformers (and be on the lookout for my review soon), The Hollywood Reporter has a story on the divide on the film between audiences and critics.

-Add Jason Lee to the promising cast of A Couple of Dicks, the new film from Kevin Smith.

-The results of the L.A. Film Festival come out.

-A remake of An American Werewolf in London?

-Add Amy Adams to the cast of the potential Oscar vehicle The Fighter.

Today's Posters: Spread, Shrink, and Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself

It's indie movie poster day apparently, and we start off with Spread:

Followed by Shrink:

And lastly Tyler Perry's latest:

I don't particularly love any of the posters (especially not a fan of the overused flower poster design) that much...do you?

Some awards "shine" down on Duncan Jones and 'Moon' at the Edinburgh Film Fest

For all the details on the award winners, click here. Moon is shaping up to be one of the indie flicks that make a play for wider acclaim this year, and we shall see just how far smart science fiction can go in 2009...

ACCA 2005 voting has begun!

Indeed, let your voice be heard in the 2005 edition of the Awards Circuit Community Awards! Your favorites are all there, so vote here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/CircuitCommunityAwards.html
-Feel free to talk about who you're backing in the comments section...

Today's Trailers: Shrink, Sorority Row, and It Might Get Loud

First up we have the Kevin Spacey dramedy Shrink:

Next we have the slasher film Sorority Row:

And finally we have the musical documentary It Might Get Loud:

-Thoughts?

Acting Categories Fixed!

Sorry we were experiencing some technical difficulties throughout the night but it's taken care of. Enjoy the updates on the MainSite. If you see the problem when you click on them, just refresh your pages.

The Honorary Oscars get seperated from the Main Show?

It appears, according to this press release from the Academy and President Sid Ganis that there will now be a seperate ceremony for these honorary awards:

The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has voted to establish a new annual event at which it will present its testimonial awards – the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and the Honorary Award. Honorees will be selected and announced in September and presented their awards at a celebratory dinner event in November. They will also be acknowledged at the year’s Academy Awards ceremony.
“For some years now, the Board has struggled to balance the desire to truly honor worthy individuals with the time limitations that the Oscar® telecast imposes on these honors,” said Academy President Sid Ganis. “By creating a separate event for recognizing these outstanding people in the movie industry, we’re insuring that each honoree will be given his or her full due, without compromise.”
The Academy’s Board will hold a special meeting in September for the sole purpose of selecting the year’s honorees. There will not be more than one Hersholt nor more than one Thalberg Award voted in any given year. No more than four testimonial awards will be given in a single year.
“We wanted to achieve more flexibility with these awards,” explained Ganis. “But we also need to maintain the integrity of them. By setting the limits that we have, the members of the Board feel they have achieved the appropriate balance.”
A black-tie dinner event for about 500 invitees will include film clips as well as remarks from the honorees’ colleagues and admirers.
Previously, these awards were voted at the Board’s December meeting.

-This will probably allow the show to run a little smoother, especially if they are planning to devote segments of the show to all 10 nominees....

Today's Posters: Alice in Wonderland, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and The September Issue

First, a familiar picture becomes Burton's first official poster for Alice in Wonderland:

Next, Cloudy with a chance of Meat Balls rains on the animated parade:

And finally, the documentary The September Issue:

-Thoughts on these posters?

An Inglorious Basterds Prequel coming our way?

Tarantino has basically been keen to make follow ups to any film of his not named Jackie Brown, and it seems that his upcoming WWII opus is no exception. It's too early to know if this is a good idea or not, but if the flick catches on with audiences (and voters), I think Harvey Weinstein will make it happen... -Thoughts?

New Rules for Academy Awards

Rules Approved for
82nd Academy Awards®

Beverly Hills, CA — The governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences approved the rules for the 82nd Academy Awards at their meeting earlier this week (6/23). In addition to the previously announced change in the Best Picture category, a significant change was made in the Music – Original Song category.

The governors approved the Music Branch Executive Committee recommendation that if no song achieves a minimum average score of 8.25 in the nominations voting, there be no original song nominees and thus no Oscar presented for the category. If only one song achieves the required minimum, it and the song with the next highest score will be deemed the nominees. If two or more songs achieve the minimum score, they will be the nominees though no more than five nominees can be selected. Previously, the rules dictated that there be no more than five but no fewer than three nominees in the category.

In addition and as previously announced, the Best Picture category will have ten nominees instead of five.

Other modifications of the rules include normal date changes and minor “housekeeping” changes.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees. The Awards Rules Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Academy’s Board of Governors for approval.

Academy Award® nominations in all categories will be announced on February 2, 2010. The 82nd Academy Awards presentation will be telecast live by the ABC Television Network on Sunday, March 7, 2010.

Michael Jackson, Our very Own Charles Foster Kane?

"No Trespassing"

Has there ever been a cultural icon as enigmatic as Michael Jackson? His life was largely shaped by the media and public, yet no one really knew anything about him. For a person known around the world as the "King of Pop", he was a mystery, and his death only adds to that lore . . . I overheard someone describing his death, and they mentioned that he died alone. How can a person with so much fortune and fame die alone?

Importantly, despite his iconic status, he became entangled with scandals, and lost much of the mystique that surrounded him for decades. His followers abandoned him, and he was left in an expensive oddly named mansion, collecting things until his untimely death. Sounds familiar right? Michael Jackson's life and tragic death are eerily familiar to Charles Foster Kane's. They both dominated a particular avenue of culture (music/media). They were both larger than life figures, who at the height of their celebrity, fell to scandals. Moreover, they both tried to seclude themselves into fantasy mansions. They collected a ton of items around the world, and eventually died alone.

All of the fame and the fortune did nothing to keep their demons away. For two guys who had it all, it seemed like they had nothing. Both realized that their childhood memories provided the most comfort (Michael before he was a celebrity at 10 ). Just like Rosebud is the greatest mystery in cinema history, Michael Jackson will forever be remembered for his music, but a mystery to most of us.

My apologies for it being so late, but finally this week's DVD article arrives!

Again, apologies for it not being on Tuesday, but this coming Tuesday all will be fixed again. Jumping right in, only one film this week is of any quality at all, so it's an easy choice for my PICK OF THE WEEK. It's:
Waltz with Bashir
This is a very interesting film, one that I liked more on a second viewing than I did on a first. It's an animated documentary about one man's experience with the Lebanon War. Give this film a shot and behold what it has to offer.
-Also out this week we have the mediocre fantasy drama Phoebe in Wonderland, the boring Brendan Fraser family adventure Inkheart, the stupid sequel The Pink Panther 2, and the unfortunately themed Confessions of a Shopaholic. None of these films are particularly worth your time, so just skip them.
-To make up for the lateness of this article and the lack of much on DVD this week, I'll offer a handful of options on DVD for my Vintage pick. There is Peter Jackson's version of King Kong, Steve McQueen's Bullitt, The Wackness, There Will Be Blood, Collateral, and/or Million Dollar Baby. All are unique films, and all are rather brilliant in my eyes, so check them out if you haven't already.
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Today's Trailers: Ricky Gervais' The Invention of Lying, Richard Kelly's The Box, Spread, and Daybreakers

First, the aforementioned comic gives us a world where only one man knows how to lie in The Invention of Lying:

Then, the mad genius behind Donnie Darko and Southland Tales has a proposition for us with his latest film called The Box:

Next, Ashton Kutcher pretends to be Matthew McConaughey in the indie flick Spread:

And finally, we have the futuristic vampire action movie Daybreakers:

-Thoughts on these pieces of genre fare?

Today's News: Anitchrist is coming, so is a leaner Boat that Rocked, as well as the Watchmen Director's Cut, Ryan Reynolds gets buried, and more

Yes, for starters, the controversial Antichrist has gotten a release date of October 23rd.
I for one, can't wait...

-The Boat That Rocked is being edited so it doesn't flop like it did overseas.
I like Richard Curtis, so I'm hopeful Focus Features can find an entertaining movie there...

-The Director's Cut of Watchmen will have a one week theatrical engagement.
I'm curious enough to check it out...

-Ryan Reynolds signs up for a film called "Buried".
The plot is listed as follows: Reynolds will star in "Buried," playing a civilian contractor who's kidnapped in Iraq and awakens buried in a coffin in the desert, armed only with a cell phone, a candle and a knife. Count me in...

-For better or worse, Hitman 2 is coming to big screens...
I'm sure it'll suck, but you never know...

-And finally, the SAW franchise takes over Universal Studios?
Very cool...

-Thoughts?

The 'Amelia' Trailer absolutely screams "Oscar Bait"!

Take a gander for yourself:

-I think this trailer just boosted not only the chances of the film and of Swank, but mainly that of Richard Gere, but that's just my gut instinct...what do you think?

Michael Jackson Dies!

TMZ Reports!
http://www.tmz.com/2009/06/25/michael-jackson-dies-death-dead-cardiac-arrest/

R.I.P.

Today's News: RIP Farrah Fawcett

Sad news today, but Farrah Fawcett lost her courageous battle to

breast anal cancer. Thankfully, she does not have to suffer anymore, and hopefully her passing was peaceful. RIP.

Some new reviews at The Awards Circuit!

Yes indeed, we added some new reviews to the site recently, including 2 positive reviews of the upcoming film The Hurt Locker (with my own take on the film to be added in a few days time), along with my reviews of The Great Buck Howard, The Brothers Bloom, Easy Virtue (all of them are average to good), The Taking of Pelham 123 (slightly below average), and Land of the Lost (horrible, just horrible). Check them all out here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/reviews

-Be on the lookout for some new reviews and a new Podcast in the next few days! *Also, my DVD article will be up in a few hours, all this craziness plus some personal issues put it off from its normal Tuesday slot, but it'll be back normally there next week...*

-What do you think of the reviews?

The Hurt Locker Q & A this Weekend!

If you are in NYC or LA this weekend, you'll have a chance to check out the Hurt Locker with a special bonus: The creators of the Hurt Locker will be in attendance. They will also engage in a Q & A afterward. Trust me, you don't want to miss the movie and this opportunity. Read our reviews if you don't believe me.

Below are the dates:

NEW YORK (Kathryn Bigelow-Director & Mark Boal-Writer)
7:10 - Landmark Sunshine (6.26) - Ed Douglas/COMINGSOON
9:00 - Landmark Sunshine (6.26) - Karina Longworth/SPOUT
7:10 - Landmark Sunshine (6.27) - Jeffrey Wells/HOLLYWOOD-ELSEWHERE
9:00 - Landmark Sunshine (6.27) - Alison Wilmore/IFC
1:45 - AMC Loews Lincoln Square (6.28) - tbd/TIME OUT
4:55 - AMC Loews Lincoln Square (6.28)

LOS ANGELES
7:40 - Arclight Hollywood (6.26) - Jeremy Renner (Lead Actor)
7:30 - Landmark West Los Angeles (6.27) - Jeremy Renner
1:50 - Landmark West Los Angeles (6.28) - Brian Geraghty (Lead Actor)
4:20 - Arclight Hollywood (6.28) - Brian Geraghty

My take on the Best Picture Nomination Field expanding to 10 films...

Right now, I am as shocked as everyone else is about this announcement, as we really didn't see it coming (much as we might have been hoping for some kind of reform, to some degree) or expect this big a change. The question now is the quality of the change. I for one think it could go either way. It's the proverbial double edged sword.

-On the one hand, the Academy now has the opportunity to recognize and nominate (and potentially award) films that are far more diverse, daring, and frankly...better. The days of mediocre dramas that fit the bill of being Best Picture nominees but aren't actually good enough getting nominated might be over. We could see action films, comedies, cartoon, documentaries, and any other out of the norm film grab a nomination.

-On the other hand though, there are no promises that this will happen. The Academy only has the opportunity to make better choices. We don't know that they will. They could pick 10 mediocre movies instead of 5 just as easily as they could shake things up.

-Look at it this way, if last year we had 10 nominees, the extra five could have been:

The Dark Knight

WALL-E

The Wrestler

Iron Man

Rachel Getting Married

-However, the other five could have easily been:

Changeling

Gran Torino

Doubt

The Dutchess

Defiance

-One equals change, one doesn't. This makes for a very interesting Oscar year, but we won't know yet if it's a better one or not. What do you think?

Breaking News: Oscar Expands Best Pic Category to 10!

Would like to thank David S. for pointing this out. This changes a lot. A LOT! (We have more movies to debate about! More movies get an opportunity for oscar recognition! the months between march-august become more relevant!) ---> Will comedies, foreign, animation, and action flicks get more love? I don't see 10 dramas getting nods.

On the down side, 10 might be too much. Will the academy have to reach for the 9th and 10th spots (8th?)? In a given year, how often do we get 10 movies that are Oscar worthy? Some years we do, many years we don't.

Today's New: Toronto Announces 26 Titles

Here's a partial list of what to expect at Toronto this year. They are going to release more films every Tuesday up until the festival.

Today's Posters: Shutter Island, Up in the Air, From Paris with Love, The Last Airbender, and Daybreakers

First, Shutter Island:


Up in the Air:

From Paris with Love:

The Last Airbender:

Daybreakers:

Thoughts on these? (Again, this is the new format for putting up new posters...yay or nay?)

David Fincher to direct the Facebook movie Aaron Sorkin wrote?

Perhaps, according to this post in Variety:
Columbia Pictures is in advanced talks with David Fincher to direct "The Social Network," the Aaron Sorkin-scripted film for Columbia Pictures about the formation of Facebook.
The film will focus on the evolution of Facebook from its 2004 creation on the Harvard campus by sophomore Mark Zuckerberg to a juggernaut with more than 200 million members.
Scott Rudin and Michael De Luca are producing with Trigger Street's Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti.
The aim is to begin production later this year.
Fincher last directed "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."
-An odd choice, but I trust in Fincher...what do you think?

Rest in Peace Ed McMahon

You will be missed...

Today's Trailers: A Teaser for M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender, a Trailer for Miyazaki's Ponyo, and a Promo for HBO's The Pacific

The Last Airbender:

-A decent teaser, though Night's been in a freefall as of late...

Ponyo:

-Miyazaki being Miyazaki...

The Pacific:

-I just hope it reaches Band of Brothers quality...

-Thoughts on these trailers?

Today's news: The Zookeeper gets some animal voices, a new Grisham book is being adapted to film, Macbeth rises again, and Cher returns to screens...

*Just a quick heads up that this is how the majority of posts will go now, provided it goes over well*

-First off, Kevin James' upcoming film The Zookeeper got a high profile cast (mostly voices of animals), including Adam Sandler, Cher (returning to movies after a long time away), Jon -Favreau, Sylvester Stallone and Judd Apatow. For the whole cast and more, check out the article here.

-Author John Grisham has set up his novel "The Testament" to be yet another film adaptation of his work. Details are here.

-A modern take on Macbeth gets rolling. Read about it here.

-And finally Cher returns to the silver screen with a new project (besides voice work in The Zookeeper), details on which can be found here.

-Thoughts on the new format and/or any of the articles?

A Proper Defense of Minority Report

A lot of readers are busting my chops for stating that Minority Report ("MR") is the best Spielberg film. To clarify, I wasn’t trying to bad mouth the Color Purple or Schindler’s List or any of his other classics (the “Spielberg Classics”). I love a lot of Spielberg’s movie, so that’s not an issue. Also, the "best" is a term of art. My definition will probably differ from yours, but I consider a film to be the "best" when it's technically flawless and substantively engaging (a dope plot).

From a technical standpoint, Spielberg is operating at the highest level. I don’t think anyone has a problem with the editing, cinematography, or direction of MR. It moves like a fast paced novel, and he doesn’t waste any frames. It’s fluid, succinct, and visually stunning. (Note: Spielberg generally works with the same production team).

Perhaps MR is not culturally “important” as the Spielberg Classics. Maybe, but I think that response is weak. Who determines what films are “important”? Is it solely contingent on the substance of the plot? The impact? Box office numbers? There is no set standard in determining what films are more important. It isn't objective. If this criticism had any weight, there would need to be an objective standard in determining the "cultural importance" of a film. I don't think that standard exist, hence I'm convinced by this line of reasoning.

Someone might interject, and argue that MR did not deal with a substantive historical issue like some of the Spielberg Classics, and I’d disagree with that too. MR attempted to tackle an important philosophical issue. The freewill/determinism debate has gone on for centuries, so it’s erroneous to play down the magnitude of its importance. I might also add that it's one of the key reasons people decide to dismiss religion, which has led to much strife between the believers and non-believers. Yes, race issues and the Holocaust are important issues, but they aren’t by default the most important. Moreover, the significance of an issue will change depending on the person. So, if you are more interested with philosophy in film, then a movie like MR will resonate more with you.

Maybe one will argue that the acting in MR wasn’t on par with the Spielberg Classics. Maybe. Who determines that? Is there some sort of scale that we can place performances on to determine the best one? Personally, I thought the acting in MR was brilliant. Tom Cruise was at his best (probably gave a better performance in Magnolia). Colin Farrell also gave one of his better performances. Max Von Sydow was the true gem of the film. (and Samantha Morton is brilliant as Agatha - Thanks Fred).

What arguments are left? Realistically, the burden of proof is not on me. Unless there is some objective way to determine what films are the best, then most arguments don’t hold weight. I’m not saying The Mask 2 is better than The Spielberg Classics. I’m arguing that MR is his best film because it appeals to me more so than any of his other films. I’m not arguing that MR is of a better production quality (It’s the same group of dudes), but that philosophically it was more interesting.

Some people like Amnesiac more than OK Computer. I'm one of those people . . .

A quick programming note for The Awards Circuit and the Blog

Just giving a quick heads up that in the next day or so we'll be adding some new reviews and articles to the Main Page, along with a mild change in format to the blog. It's nothing too startling, just organizing things a little better. I don't think it'll be a big deal, mainly just having all the news stories for each day in one post, all the posters in another, and all the trailers in another, so there are less individual posts, but still the same amount of comment...more or less, it lets you guys not have to scroll down as much. Hopefully it cleans things up a bit...stay tuned!

Montreal to get some Funny People a week early

Variety has the story on the impending debut of the latest Judd Apatow film/Oscar hopeful:
Judd Apatow's "Funny People," starring Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen, will unspool at Montreal's 13th Just for Laughs Film Festival a week before its U.S. release.
Co-stars Aziz Ansari and Aubrey Plaza will attend the screening July 25; the comedy goes wide Stateside July 31.
The fest, which unveiled part of its program Monday, opens July 10 with Gallic star Jean Dujardin at the screening of his "OSS 117: Lost in Rio" -- one of a slew of French pics at the event.
Broken Lizard members Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter and Erik Stolhanske will be on hand July 22 to introduce "Broken Lizard's the Slammin' Salmon," which stars the troupe and Michael Clarke Duncan, at its Canadian preem.
Helmer Bobcat Goldthwait will be at the fest for the screening of "World's Greatest Dad," starring Robin Williams as a teacher who wants to become a professional writer.
Thesp Joshua Leonard will tubthump "Humpday," which also stars Mark Duplass. Writer-thesp Charlyne Yi will be on hand to introduce her pic, "Paper Heart."
The 18-day fest is the film component of the Montreal Just for Laughs comedy festival.
-It's no secret that I'm a champion of the script and think that it has some real potential in this year's Oscar race...in about a month we'll all have a better idea though...

One more Trailer for today...this time for a downer of a movie called Death in Love

This has a good cast, but looks like it'll be the most depressing movie I've seen since Downloading Nancy, which says something...

Can Kathryn Bigelow Become the First Woman to Win Best Director?

. . . I'm not sure, but the Hurt Locker is a film that can make this year's Oscar ceremony historic. Here's an interview from Ropes of Silicon with Kathryn Bigelow. She deserves some recongnition for what she achieved with the Hurt Locker. It's a brilliant piece of film making.

More from Burton's Alice in Wonderland

Here are two more pics from Burton's Wonderland.

While we're at it, a new Trailer for Inglorious Basterds for ya!

-Seriously, this needs to just come out today, it's not even fair...

A new Trailer for Halloween 2

Looking just as insane (for better or worse) as you'd expect:

-Thoughts?

Tim Burton's Wonderland . . .

looks awesome.

Poster for Thirst

Thoughts?

Columbia Pictures/Sony drops 'Moneyball'?

Looks like Columbia Pictures have signed off to distribute and produce 'Moneyball' (Soderbergh). Apparently Amy Pascal (Columbia's head honcho) reread Soderbergh's edited script, and thought it deviated too much from the original script they championed. So, unless Soderbergh is willing to revert back to the original script, Columbia is probably out. Of course, they can just axe Soderbergh, but that might come at the expense of losing Pitt. It's a delicate situation, so we'll see how it plays out.

Biggest Snubs of the 2000s (Podcast)/ Upcoming Reviews

Clayton and the rest of the staff thought it would be interesting to chat about some of the best of the 2000s not nominated for Best Picture. We're going to try to get you a podcast every week discussing some of the biggest snubs of the 2000s in each category leading up to the 2009 Academy Awards . . . There are a slew of reviews going up by tomorrow, so be on the look out. I finished up a review on the Hurt Locker, and Joey and Myles wrote up a few. Please feel free to e-mail suggestions, concerns, or criticisms. We definitely appreciate your support, and we will continue to bring you reviews, news, and podcasts. Thanks guys!

Link to biggest snubs' podcast: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast3.html

Ranking Woody Allen's Films

In honor of Woody Allen directing his 40th film in Whatever Works (which I will have a review for soon), Entertainment Weekly ranked all of his films from best to worst, with the result being this list:

1. Manhattan (1979)

2. Annie Hall (1977)

3. Bananas (1971)

4. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

5. Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* But Were Afraid to Ask (1972)

6. Match Point (2005)

7. What’s Up, Tiger Lily? (1966)

8. Zelig (1983)

9. Sleeper (1973)

10. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)

11. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

12. Love and Death (1975)

13. Take the Money and Run (1969)

14. Stardust Memories (1980)

15. Small Time Crooks (2000)

16. Deconstructing Harry (1997)

17. Bullets Over Broadway (1994)

18. Sweet and Lowdown (1999)

19. Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

20. Cassandra’s Dream (2007)

21. Husbands and Wives (1992)

22. Broadway Danny Rose (1984)

23. Interiors (1978)

24. Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

25. Oedipus Wrecks from New York Stories (1989)

26. A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy (1982)

27. Radio Days (1987)

28. Whatever Works (2009)

29. Everyone Says I Love You (1996)

30. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)

31. Scoop (2006)

32. Alice (1990)

33. The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001)

34. Another Woman (1988)

35. Melinda and Melinda (2004)

36. Shadows and Fog (1991)

37. Hollywood Ending (2002)

38. Celebrity (1998)

39. Anything Else (2003)

40. September (1987)

-I think it's a pretty good list overall, though I'd definitely move the list around a lot (and will put my own ranking in the blog at some point in the next day or so, depending on if I can see the last Woody Allen movie or two I still need to see)...what would your top 10 Woody Allen movies be?

Reese Witherspoon heads back to work

The Hollywood Reporter has the story:
Universal and Reese Witherspoon are going into the pharmaceutical business.The studio is developing "Pharm Girl," an aspirational comedy centering on one woman's odyssey through the drug industry. "Bad Santa" scribes Glenn Ficarra and John Requa are writing the screenplay and in talks to direct. Witherspoon is producing via her Type A banner and attached to the lead role. The project centers on a woman (Witherspoon) who gets a job at a pharma powerhouse but begins to see the underbelly of the industry as she rises through the company's ranks. Tracy Falco and Maradith Frenkel are overseeing for the studio.The modern pharmaceutical industry has played a villainous role in Hollywood pics dating to "The Fugitive," and several years ago it was at the center of a conspiracy in the Focus Features thriller "The Constant Gardener."The CAA- and Management 360-repped Witherspoon, who came to prominence in comedies like "Election" and "Legally Blonde," segued to a more dramatic role with her Oscar-winning turn in "Walk the Line." But she has recently kept the focus on comedies, starring opposite Vince Vaughn in "Four Christmases" and signing on to a new comedy from James Brooks at Columbia; she's also considering starring in Fox's sci-fi comedy "Used Guys."As a producer, she has been ramping up her slate: In addition to "Christmases," which she produced, she and Type A are attached to produce thriller "Bell Witch" and romantic comedy "Around the World in 80 Dates," both at Universal.Ficarra and Requa, repped by WME and BenderSpink, most recently helmed and wrote "I Love You Phillip Morris," the Jim Carrey-Ewan McGregor dramedy about the romance between a con artist and a man he meets in prison.
-Doesn't sound bad at all...thoughts?

Teaser Trailer for the Short Film "Patterson"

It seems that my last short, Lack of Imagination, struck well with some of our readers, so here's the teaser for my current venture, Patterson:

-Filming is currently on hold while my lead actor is on vacation, but once he returns we'll continue filming

through mid-July, in time for a mid-August premiere, after which it'll be online for a brief spell.

What do you guys think so far?

P.S. I know a while ago Joey was pimping his Twitter account, so I figured I'd do the same. For updates on

my filmmaking, the site, and other things,you can follow me here at: http://twitter.com/MylesPerHour

The new Trailer for G.I. Joe only confirms my earlier doubts...

...that there's no way that this film is any good:


-It actually makes me anxious for Transformers 2 (which I probably won't be reviewing, for obvious reasons, unless it surprises me, of course), if you can believe that...

Poster for Youth in Revolt

The Youth in Revolt books are some of my favorite guilty pleasures of all time...they're just low class, dirty fun, and I loved every minute of all 5 books (well, 3-5, depending on how you seperate Youth in Revolt, which is technically 3 books, but that's for the movie to figure out)...I'd never have assumed Michael Cera for the role, but until we see a trailer that makes me doubt it, I'll trust in him...

Trailer for World's Greatest Dad

-I like the look of this (mainly, it doesn't give away a big plot point), and hope that Robin Williams is as good in it as people say...thoughts?

A new Poster for Halloween 2

Nothing says family love like a good stabbing apparently...

Kevin Smith brought down Carnegie Hall on Wednesday...and I was there!

I was there and had the time of my life, and this article in Entertainment Weekly explains why:
Last night, at around 8:10 pm, a little girl of maybe 9 walked out onto the stage of the house that Carnegie built, her mother standing in the wings, watchng. When she got to the mic, she introduced herself: "My name is Harley Quinn Smith. My dad wanted me to say some curse words, but instead, I'll leave it to the master." And for the next three hours, Kevin Smith held court in Carnegie Hall.
If you've never been to one of the hundreds of Q&As Smith has done around the world -- or seen any of the Evening With Kevin Smith DVDs -- the format is simple: The writer-director gets on stage, does about 20 minutes of warm-up, and then fields questions from the audience. And the stories that get woven into the answers are what draws people to these Q&As by the thousands (the Carnegie Hall show was sold out). Smith is a born raconteur, able to spin the barest of questions (like, "Will you ever act again?") into 30-minute seminars on how his Catch and Release costar Jennifer Garner has the sense of humor of C-3PO ("Goodness gracious me!") despite being married to Ben Affleck, who tells tales that make Smith sound like a choir boy.
On stage at Carnegie Hall, he spoke of being overruled by Bruce Willis on the set of A Couple of Dicks ("When Bruce talks, you listen...especially when you're making a movie with a cop or a gun in it"), the late George Carlin's dream role ("I wanna play a clergyman who strangles six children -- I think I can pull that off"), and his legacy ("Longevity kills specialness: If I'd made Clerks, rode that for five years, then disappeared, they'd have built monuments to me"). Provided you don't mind torrents of foul language, sex described in pornographic detail, and arcane pop-culture references -- he even dropped a Doug Henning joke last night -- it's a good time had by all.
The thing that struck me the most, however, was not how funny his Q&As are, but rather how honest they are. Kevin Smith is, by all accounts, a big dude. He's the first one to admit it: "I sweat when I f---in' breathe!" Someone asked him a nothing of a question -- I can't even remember what it was, it was so inconsequential -- and Smith used it to tell of when he hit rock-bottom, weight-wise. It was a 45-minute odyssey of his adventures with a public toilet -- complete with hilariously, sadly graphic details -- that ended with him breaking said toilet, snapping it free from the wall, with his ass. It's a mortifying story but, at the end of the day, an empowering one.
Honesty has power, precisely because we hardly ever see it. When Smith gets on a stage, he strips himself bare for all to see (metaphorically; at Carnegie Hall, he was wearing a bathrobe). He uses humor not to deflect attention away from his self-image issues, but to bring attention to them -- the heat of that attention functioning like a crucible, burning away the inessential and almost purifying himself in the process. No subject is off-limits, no topic is verboten. That kind of honesty is rare, especially in our public figures, and those unaccustomed to it have problems with Smith and what he does. A young female reporter for Time Out New York, armed with a slightly holier-than-thou attitude, got up to the mic and asked him for dating advice. Without missing a beat, Smith explained to her that because he looks the way he looks, he needed to bring something else to the relationship table. So he -- how can I put this? -- spent long hours mastering the ancient marital art pioneered by Colonel Angus (say it fast). Withered by the polite candor of his response, this young woman sat down, and Smith moved on to the next question. Check and mate.
-Like I said, I was there and had an amazing time. All these stories are even better in context, and on a side note, both his wife and daughter, whom I briefly met, are as nice as can be...