Charlie Rose: John Williams

Charlie Rose: Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez

Quentin Tarantino on Today Show and Brief Guide to "Basterds"

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EXCERPT:

Let’s assume that you paid just enough attention in history class and that you know how Adolf Hitler eventually died, and you’re aware that it had nothing to do with crazy interconnected assassination plots staged by French Resistance cinephiles or a team of swaggering, American, bloodlust-crazed, working class Jews.

Then you can walk right into Quentin Tarantino’s sprawling, gory, tense, hilariously strutting vision of fact-implosion and skull-carving called “Inglourious Basterds” and not really worry too much about the million other bytes of movie-nerd information he’s machine-gun spraying all over you. You’ll understand that this is one man’s fantasy of how the Greatest Generation’s war could have ended and leave the theater afterward both grossed out and thoroughly entertained.

But that’s not all you get when you watch one of Tarantino’s movies...

More at the link below!

A Brief Guide to Inglourious Basterds (MSNBC)

Charlie Rose: Quentin Tarantino

Damn You, Batman

Artist on Artist: Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez

Artist on Artist: Quentin Tarantino & Robert Rodriguez

Charlie Rose: George Lucas

Charlie Rose: JJ Abrams

TRAILER: Christopher Nolan's "Inception"

Inception @ Yahoo! Video

TRAILER: Black Dynamite

TRAILER: Tim Burton's Alice In Wonderland

Sam Raimi on Financing the Evil Dead

LOL IRL: Josh Brolin and Eli Roth

Artist on Artist: Josh Brolin & Eli Roth

Liars

The Dark Knight: In Five Seconds.

Impressive! Empire Magazine Contestant: Alien in 60 Seconds.

Empire Magazine: The Empire Strikes Back in 60 Seconds.

Impressive.

AGGHHHHHHHHH

Artist on Artist: Quentin Tarantino and Eli Roth

Artist on Artist with Quentin Tarantino and Eli Roth

TRAILER: Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones

'Lovely Bones' Theatrical Trailer @ Yahoo! Video

Hey Warrenton theater:

man, you guys suck for not getting Inglourious Basterds.

I gotta blame it on that guy with the Elvis glasses.

just because he deserves to be blamed.

I need to get my license so I can see movies out of town.

Film scores and themes

I'm a sucker for a good soundtrack.

If you ever get bored one late night (like I am) or are in the need of a bit of an uplifting soundtrack, or just something for the background of whatever you're doing, be sure to give these a listen.

A Clockwork Orange

La gazza ladra (The Thieving Magpie) Composed by Gioacchino Rossini.



Sweeney Todd

"Green Finch and and Linnet Bird" by Stephen Sondheim



"Johanna" by Stephen Sondheim



"My Friends" by Stephen Sondheim



The Return of the King

Howard Shore:





Revenge of the Sith by John Williams

"Anakin's Dark Deeds"



"Battle of the Heroes"



"Birth of the Twins"



Star Wars A New Hope

"Throne Room" by John Williams




The Phantom Menace

"Duel of the Fates" by John Williams



Batman Begins

"Barbastella and Main Theme" by Hans Zimmer James Newton Howard





The Village

by James Newton Howard



The Elephant Man

by John Morris



Ravenous

by Damon Albarn



AND, last but not least, though not from a film, but from the television show LOST. A great episode ending for one of the most sympathetic characters from the show, composed beautifully by Michael Giacchino.

LOST -" Locke'd Out Again"

by Michael Giacchino

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by Patrick

Fuck that movie was sad.


That's it, that's my review.

2008 in Music: The best albums.

The best albums of 2008:

Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Magnetic Morning - A.M.
Kings of Leon - Only by the Night
Deerhunter- Microcastle
The Dresden Dolls - No, Virginia
Crystal Castles - Crystal Castles
Abe Vigoda - Skeleton
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - Dig, Lazarus, Dig
Bloc Party - Intimacy

Mister Lonely by Patrick

If you are familiar with director Harmony Korine then you already know it's a strange movie.

The film is about a struggling Michael Jackson immitator who is invited to live in a commune of other celebrity immitators including Abe Lincoln, Marilyn Monroe, James Dean, The Pope, Sammy Davis Jr, Madonna, among others. It's absolutely hilarious and at times somewhat moving. All in all, a nice dreamy dramedy but it may take a few sittings.

Zodiac by Patrick

I stumbled upon this film by chance by looking through the $5 DVD bin at Wal-Mart. After seeing that is was directed by David Fincher (Benjamin Button, Fight Club, Seven), and after looking at the cast, I just had to buy it at that price.

The film is about the unsolved case of a criminal in the late sixties and early seventies and is based on the book by writer/cartoonist Robert Graysmith, who incidentally was working at the San Francisco Chronicle, the paper which received the letters from the killer. Jake Ghyllenhaal portrays Graysmith, Robert Downey, Jr as reporter Paul Avery, and Mark Ruffalo as the detective who is assigned to the case. The film accomplishes at being a tense, well-acted and directed thriller, without the need of being overly graphic, but those who are looking for pure chills and thrills be advised to look elsewhere - this is more about putting the puzzle together than showing needless violence over and over.

8/10

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button by Patrick

"Did I ever tell you I was struck by lightning seven times?"

Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett star in David Fincher's (Fight Club, Zodiac) adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story about a man that is born in the form of an old man and as he ages - he gets younger. It's a very emotional story told in a Forrest Gump esque fashion (probably because the writer also wrote Forrest Gump!) but with a few different dtwists of course. Great acting, beautiful cinematography, and music abound. I loved it, even though it's a bit long, but if I may quote Roger Ebert...."No good movie is too long, and no bad movie is too short." I'd love to see it pick up a few Oscars.

9/10

Control (short review) by Patrick

Anton Corbijn's biopic about Joy Division's late lead singer Ian Curtis is a beautifully shot, superbly acted directorial debut and acting debut for Sam Riley.

A lot of the footage is spot on to what Ian Curtis did. From the spastic dancing to the camera angles.

8/10

The Dark Knight by Patrick

The sequel to the critically praies Batman Begins, continues and expands from the formula that has changed what has been considered a campy yet archetypal superhero character into something else that no other film based on a comic has ever accomplished - turned it into a fine peice of cinema and more toward an art form.

"Begins", starring Christian Bale, Gary Oldman and Cillian Murphy, was a rare treat for moviegoers who were tired of the same cheesey, CGI infested cliche' comic book films. It even ended with a great cliffhanger: Gordon (Gary Oldman) meeting with vigilante Batman (now not so much supervillain nemesis, but now a detective determined to stop a corrupt mob from destroying the city from the ground up). The film ends with Gordon handing him something that would prove to change the course of Gotham: a "Calling card" from a new criminal with a taste of the theatrical.

Then came news of Heath Ledger playing the Joker. I was surprised and excited, because I'd known he was a great actor. Hell, the guy's been nominated for an Academy Award and praised for his performances. Anyway, I stuck to my guns about that issue ever since that was announced, and then came the trailer. I was convinced. I saw this film three times. It's riveting. Hell, there were scenes that frightened me the first time I saw it. It really is something of a great cinematic experience (though I may just be saying that now - we'll have to wait and see how it stands the test of time). It's a good modern day noir piece created by smart filmmakers with bright ideas.



You know how every review is going on about how it's supposedly his greatest performance and deserves an Oscar nod, etc etc? Hell, they're right. Heath Ledger was amazing. This is the closest Joker to the comic form that we've ever seen on screen - and probably the best we'll ever get, but also a great addition to film history and will likely fall into the category with the likes of other movie madmen such as Darth Vader, Daniel Plainview, Norman Bates... He's a pure anarchic character who has no motive but that of chaos. "I am an agent of chaos" he tells Harvey Two-Face. Now keep in mind, this isn't a campy, funny Joker (though there are a few hilarious moments). This man is a complete psycho who loves to kill and torture, except for the Batman, who he admits he won't kill because he's "just too much fun". Don't go in expecting a huge climactic showdown between the two (though they do fight), this film's climax didn't even have too much to do with him. Joker is basically a secondary villain in this film, but he's just way creepier that way, being in the shadows. His character is set up in a way that we know Batman will fight him again in the future film. "I think we're destined to do this forever." But we probably won't get that. And that's fine, because the film is nearly perfect. It's earned it's spot among sequel greats The Empire Strikes Back, The Godfather Part II, you name it.



One of the creepiest and best acted (and directed moments) is the interrogation scene. Joker laughs his head off while Batman beats the crap out of him along with that eerie feedback noise in the background that accompanies him whenever he is near. I was on the edge of my seat.



Another great aspect of this film is Gary Oldman's performance as Commissioner Gordon. A pitch-perfect rendition of the ally of the Caped Crusader, rather than the bumbling bafoon in Burton and Schumacher's series. Not to mention, it is quite an emotional performance, which brings me to Aaron Eckhart's Two-Face. He was the only actor I wasn't too sure of, just because I hadn't seen much of him, but he didn't disappoint.

A great ensemble cast with an interesting and provocative morality play. 10/10

Iron Man Review by Jimmy

Ah can you feel it? It's warming up outside, healthy doses of barbeque's, ballgames, and all other types of summer activities. And one of my favorite summer tradition is the summer blockbuster. And what a way to start it off with Iron Man. This movie brings great visuals and a very good story to the table. When a billion dollar playboy/inventor/business tycoon or the Howard Hughes of the Marvel universe is nearly killed and captured only to be kept alive by an electromagnet in his heart just simply to build a missile for a group of well lets just say middle east bad guys. The story really does keep you involved with no really slow parts in the movie, very quick paced with a healthy dose of one liners and quick witted jabs. Now the fast pace of the movie is a plus for keeping you involved it is also its main draw back. By the end of the film you realize you don't really see a lot of Iron Man, but the few times you do see him the visual effects are second to none. Robert Downey Jr. pulled this role of amazingly well and I don't think anyone one else would have done this role justice. But with the character of Tony Stark being somewhat of an alcoholic and narcissist he might not have been that big of a stretch for Downey Jr. with his real life problems being highly publicized. John Favreau who has directed such films as Swingers, Made, and Elf to name a few really steps out of his mold to prove he really can direct an action movie. He didn't make this time piece but he did keep it modern, and the flight scenes were extremely intricate with several angles, looks, and effects. So to start of the summer with a bang I highly recommend you go see Iron Man. I give it an 8/10.

Top 5 Actors by Jimmy

1. Daniel-Day Lewis

2. Ewan McGregor

3. Sam Rockwell

4. John C. Riley

5. Leonardo DiCaprio (Aviator and after, not Titanic Leo)

My DVD picks week of 5/5 by Jimmy

1. My Left Foot

2. Sweeney Todd

3. There Will Be Blood

4. Batman Begins

5. Superman II: The Richard Donner Cut

Star Wars Saga Movie Review by Jimmy

Okay, I know what you're gonna say: Star Wars was released over 30 years ago.
As true as this may be, I ask myself, how would I describe Star Wars to someone who has never seen it? Would I simply say, watch A New Hope, or would I just pick one at random and say go for it. So I tell you my friends I have the answer. Not everyone was privileged enough to grow up on the original trilogy, some passed it by as a stupid space movie comparing it to other sub par movies of the genre. While others maybe just aren't movie lovers or felt simply that it wasn't there cup of tea. So in today's age I say to you if you haven't seen them now is the time. There are three very different ways you can view the Star Wars saga. The original trilogy, the prequels, and the saga. So if you have never seen Star Wars I am at least sure you have heard the famous line "No, I am your father", or heard of the infamous Luke and Leia kiss. So that being said watching the originals first for a first timer isn't going to give you any big surprises that it would have before the prequels were released. So my recommendation is to start with episode one. This starts the saga as the story of Anakin as the prequels were intended to tell and the original trilogy telling the story of Luke. But after seeing the sag in it's whole you will quickly learn or at least in my opinion just simply the rise and fall of Anakin, from a certain point of view. The saga does truly take you to a place few movies will ever or hope to take you. With immense visual as well as musically based story telling, this film not a movie is a must see for anyone any age. You may ask how can you use music to tell a story, well my friends once you have seen the saga then you will understand. This is one of the few films where you may see a scene from the movie, maybe a poster, or even a t-shirt and 9 out of 10 times the first thing to pop in your mind will be the music. And with ILM heading the visual department it's not hard to see why it is so visually great. So go out rent buy or borrow but watch these films. And to finish I will rate my favorite films of the saga.

1. Revenge of the Sith 9/10- Looking at it there in my opinion is nothing wrong with this installment of the film. I would only would have like to have seen more of Anakin's descent into the dark side.


2. The Empire Strikes Back 9/10- Again very few things wrong with this film if anything at all. Oh wait more LANDO!!!


3. Return of the Jedi 8/10- Ok, honestly I gave it an 8 just simply because of the Ewoks


4. The Phantom Menace 7/10- Jar Jar and Jake Lloyd's acting. Other than that great way to start the saga


5. A new Hope 7/10- The first, ground breaking on every level, in some spots the story did feel rushed or not explained.


6. Attack of the Clones 5/10- Ok, the first of the films to be shot entirely in digital, might have wanted to use a smaller film to be the "experiment " with digital filming, and the whole love story just felt kind of forced and creepy at moments.