“NFL Notebook: Tillman movie set to open - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette” plus 3 more |
- NFL Notebook: Tillman movie set to open - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
- Movie Review: 'Animal Kingdom' - Los Angeles Times
- MOVIE REVIEW: 'Eat Pray Love' - a predictable itinerary - Star-Press
- Movie review: 'Scott Pilgrim vs. the World' - Los Angeles Times
| NFL Notebook: Tillman movie set to open - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Posted: 12 Aug 2010 09:35 PM PDT Mary Tillman doesn't want any more congressional hearings or official inquiries. She still doesn't believe she has been given anything close to satisfactory answers as to how her son died, or why the circumstances of his death were reported incorrectly for so long. But she knows it's unhealthy to keep pushing, and Pat Tillman wouldn't have wanted that for his family. Of course, if new information were to come out because of the documentary being released this month, the Tillmans would take up the cause again. Yet that's not why they agreed to cooperate with the making of "The Tillman Story," which opens in limited release Aug. 20. The film chronicles how the Arizona Cardinals safety abandoned NFL riches in 2002 to join the Army Rangers. He was killed in Afghanistan in April 2004 -- in an enemy ambush, the military told the world. It wasn't until five weeks later the truth was revealed that he was a victim of friendly fire. His mother sees the story as far bigger than that of one very famous solider. "It's happening to other soldiers," Mary Tillman said Thursday in a phone interview with The Associated Press. "It's a systemic problem." Vikings Brett Favre's decision should be near. The quarterback traveled from Hattiesburg, Miss., to Pensacola, Fla., to have his surgically repaired left ankle examined by Dr. James Andrews, according to NFL sources. Dolphins Miami Dolphins receiver Brandon Marshall said he has a fallback plan if NFL teams lock out players next year: He'll try out for the NBA. Marshall said he would audition for the Miami Heat or Denver Nuggets as a shooting guard. The 6-foot-4 Marshall lettered in basketball three times at Lake Howell High School in Winter Park, Fla. Titans Tennessee signed former Indianapolis defensive lineman Raheem Brock. Browns A person familiar with D'Qwell Jackson's injury says the Cleveland linebacker has been told he does not need surgery and could be back on the field in less than one month. Broncos The Denver Broncos have signed free agent linebacker Johnny Williams and waived linebacker Nick Greisen. Williams spent last season on the Steelers' practice squad. Greisen joined the Broncos last year but a knee injury in training camp sidelined him for the season. 49ers San Francisco defensive lineman Kentwan Balmer missed his fourth consecutive day of training camp and his absence is still considered unexcused. Giants Starting cornerback Terrell Thomas, safety Michael Johnson and free agent receiver Tim Brown all did not practice. Thomas had a minor leg injury. Johnson had back spasms and Brown had groin and hamstring injuries. Receiver Derek Hagan spent about a minute or two on the ground after being hit in the head by safety Michael Greco on a pass play. Seahawks Seattle linebacker Leroy Hill is likely to be out until at least September with a sprained knee. Bears Chicago placed rookie running back Harvey Unga on injured reserve, meaning he won't play this season. First published on August 13, 2010 at 12:33 am This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Movie Review: 'Animal Kingdom' - Los Angeles Times Posted: 12 Aug 2010 07:41 PM PDT "Animal Kingdom" is an art house crime saga that will put your heart in your mouth, a moody, brooding, modern-day film noir that marks the impressive debut of an Australian writer-director who knows how to make a film that is, in his own words, "dark and violent yet beautiful and poetic at the same time." That would be David Michod, a compelling creator of story and atmosphere whose assured film, which took the highly competitive world cinema jury prize at Sundance, manages to be both laconic and operatic. Faultlessly acted by top Australian talent, including Guy Pearce, Ben Mendelsohn and Jacki Weaver, "Animal Kingdom" marries heightened emotionality with cool contemporary style to illustrate one of the oldest of genre truths: "Crooks always come undone, always, one way or another." That speaker is 17-year-old Joshua, or J (newcomer James Frecheville), cast adrift when his mother overdoses on heroine and who ends up living with his grandmother and his trio of desperate, outside-the-law uncles. Coldblooded crime is their business, their only business, and much against his will J becomes a pawn between the only family he has left and the deadly, unapologetically immoral pressure put on everyone by the lawless Melbourne police. What's especially impressive about "Animal Kingdom" is how carefully made it is, how Michod and his team use all the tools at a filmmaker's disposal, including cinematography, lighting and sound design, to create a disturbing, malignant atmosphere in which every pause is pregnant with menace and every word could cost you your life. A key element in this tapestry is the critical role given to Antony Partos' part-acoustic and part-electronic score, which completely achieves what the composer calls "a sense of the epic within the film without being melodramatic." Michod so trusted the score he periodically uses it instead of dialogue over key dramatic moments. This rich music smoothly counterpoints "Animal Kingdom's" unadorned script and naturalistic acting, the sense that all its performers convey that everything they experience, no matter how shocking, surprising or malevolent, is happening in deadly earnest. J, of course, knows nothing of what is in store for him when he comes to live with his grandmother, a tiny blond woman, upbeat and bubbly, whom everyone calls Smurf (Weaver). He remembers, he says in voice-over, that "Mom kept me away from our family because she was scared," but he has yet to find out what she was scared of. Armed robbery, it turns out, is the family trade, but J arrives at a time when the trade is falling apart. As family friend and criminal partner Barry ( Joel Edgerton) says, "Our game is over, it's getting too hard." J's edgy, tattooed Uncle Craig (Sullivan Stapleton) is moving into drug dealing, while Uncle Darren ( Luke Ford) can't seem to find his footing anywhere. We don't meet the group's alpha male, older brother Pope, right away. He's in hiding because the police have promised to kill him on sight. Pope, however, makes up for lost time once he shows. Indelibly played by Mendelsohn, one of Australia's top actors, Pope is a complete terror, relentlessly threatening everyone he runs into both physically and psychologically. Equally impressive is the way the veteran Weaver, the first person Michod cast and an acting icon in Australia, manages all the different layers of Smurf, a woman whose good cheer fights for airtime with an undercurrent of ruthlessness. When she kisses her sons on the lips for a second too long, when she smiles and says, "I've been around a long time, sweetie," it's enough to make anyone's blood run cold. As Smurf and her sons endeavor to meet force with force, J and his high school girlfriend, Nicky (Laura Wheelwright), find themselves at the mercy of forces who are indifferent to their survival. Young actor Frecheville is bigger than most adults, and Michod said at Sundance that he initially had a completely different physical type in mind, but the filmmaker was understandably persuaded by Frecheville's ability to play the role as an unformed man-child, unaware of what he is up against. Guy Pearce, "Animal Kingdom's" biggest name, is exactly as he should be as a tough, capable Melbourne detective sergeant who's this unscrupulous world's only moral presence. Though his character doesn't enter the narrative until its second half, Pearce, like every actor here, is perfectly cast to advance the story, yet another essential element in a debut film to wonder at and admire. kenneth.turan@latimes.com This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| MOVIE REVIEW: 'Eat Pray Love' - a predictable itinerary - Star-Press Posted: 13 Aug 2010 12:13 AM PDT In her mega-popular memoir Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert emerged as self-absorbed, spoiled and emotionally reckless. She wasn't terribly likable, but she was oddly compelling. Now that the book has become a movie with the perpetually endearing Julia Roberts playing the author, the emphasis has shifted a bit. Now you've got a character that is a lot more likable, but she's also a lot less interesting. It's not merely the leading lady's star quality that makes the character feel different. The screenplay by Jennifer Salt and director Ryan Murphy tidies up Gilbert. Unlike the book, there's no big emotional breakdown; instead, this is a postcard-pretty case of midlife soul-searching. In the film, a dissatisfied Gilbert suddenly ends her marriage without warning, shattering her husband (Billy Crudup). He is shocked, but so is the audience: She gives little notice, and the whole thing comes out of left field. After a quickie romance with an actor (played by James Franco as if he's vaguely stoned), Gilbert decides to reassess her life. She plans a yearlong trip that encompasses Italy, India and Bali; oh, to be an angst-filled writer with a hefty bank account. In Italy, Gilbert eats a lot, makes friends and learns about letting yourself go. It all seems a bit trite, and it's not helped by the predictable stereotypes (all Italians speak with their hands) or the soundtrack blaring accordion music, as if you're dining at the Olive Garden. The general dippiness isn't helped by the dialogue: "Every word in Italian is like a truffle!" Gilbert exclaims as she learns the language. Equally annoying is the gauzy lighting, which gives Roberts a sweetly angelic glow most of the time. After such a dreary beginning, things pick up when Gilbert goes to India. At an ashram, she bonds with a fellow American (Richard Jenkins), and you actually start to buy into Gilbert as a character. The writing gets sharper and Jenkins and Roberts seem emotionally plugged into each other, particularly during a scene in which he tells her about the end of his marriage. (2 of 2) It's almost like someone else took over as director for the India scenes. Suddenly you're not watching a movie star traipse around the world; instead you start believing this is a woman in emotional distress. Unfortunately, the movie descends into dewy rom-com territory for the final act. In Bali, Gilbert meets a charming Brazilian named Felipe, played by Javier Bardem as a macho softie who oozes sex appeal. Felipe might as well walk around in a T-shirt that says "World's Most Perfect Man." There's not much doubt that they'll end up together, because Gilbert would be crazy to let him slip away. Of course, the movie climaxes with a will-she-find-him-in-time search that is utter Hollywood cliché. At least she doesn't run after him at an airport. It's moments like that when you really question what Murphy is doing with Gilbert's book. When he gets it right -- as in the sequences with Jenkins -- he creates something genuinely affecting. When he gets it wrong, all you've got is Roberts' toothy smile to carry the load. The result is a disconnected film that doesn't hang together as a whole. One of Murphy's oddest choices is a scene in which Roberts cutely tries on outfits while the soundtrack blasts an oldie; shades of both Pretty Woman and Sleeping with the Enemy. It's like some kind of Julia Roberts greatest moments collection, though one guesses that probably wouldn't include this film. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Movie review: 'Scott Pilgrim vs. the World' - Los Angeles Times Posted: 12 Aug 2010 07:41 PM PDT In "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World," the inventive, free-floating ode to nerdville, the comic-book geek stays in the picture. Whether it's Scott's everyday loser life or his ninja-fighting, super-powered imaginary one, it's all played with a sort of Michael Cera-styled sweet, nebbishy sensibility that works well since the real Michael Cera actually got the role. Go figure. Actually, there was a lot of figuring to be done to convert Bryan Lee O'Malley's distinctive artistic, and loosely autobiographical, musings about a 22-year-old Toronto native whose life is framed by his total lack of ambition until he's in a fight to the death to woo the girl of his dreams. Whew. Which is why Edgar Wright of "Shaun of the Dead," with all its slacker-zombie nonsense, seemed like such a good choice to direct. He was. Scott's life is loosely envisioned as a video game, with Cera channeling his Cera-ness perfectly, which is tougher than it looks. Be prepared for a lot of free-associating inside this fantastical world where the ordinary rules of gravity, coolness and linear storytelling do not necessarily apply. There are various gaming and social networking conceits — among them snarky comments on screen to help the older-or-other-generationals among you keep things straight, and provide those in the know with a laugh. Example: As each character enters the picture, they get a Facebook-style voice-over intro — name, age, relationship status — accompanied by pop-up captions with the same details scrawled out, repetition that will either annoy you or amuse you. But it's not a bad idea since the filmmakers pile on a lot of details in a very short time. Meanwhile that dream girl's name is Ramona ( Mary Elizabeth Winstead), and she has seven deadly exes, as opposed to seven deadly sins, which is more the norm for chicks in fanboy films. Scott must fight each "to the death," with a death earning high scores and a rainstorm of coins, while kisses (with the girl, not the exes) burst into fireworks of floating hearts. You kind of have to be there. That is the genius and difficulty of "Scott Pilgrim"; it both defies and, at its lower moments, meets expectations for this sort of film. The screenplay, written by the director and Michael Bacall ("Manic"), remains true to O'Malley's six-volume Scott Pilgrim graphic novel series. Director of photography Bill Pope, who's no stranger to the conversion of graphic concepts to the big screen, having done "Darkman" and the last two "Spider-Mans," among others, keeps Scott's world on the ethereal, hyper-realized side whether or not he's in superhero mode. Absurdity is in every corner as Scott finds himself in one pickle after another; it's a mix of sweet and sour bites, but bracing regardless. All the action swirls around Scott's love life, which by all accounts he shouldn't even have. Nevertheless, being true to the dreams of the awkward everywhere, Scott has managed to land one hot chick after another. His latest flicker (flame would just be overstating the case) is a 17-year-old high-schooler named Knives Chau (Ellen Wong). Don't worry about the age thing, though Scott's savvy younger sister, the consistently excellent Anna Kendrick (best known as the uptight young exec in "Up in the Air"), does. The young lovers mainly hold hands and giggle — until Ramona rollerblades into Scott's dreams, then turns up at a party a few hours later. Ramona is an intriguing character, handled in intriguing ways by the very promising Winstead. She's thrift store-chic, blue-streaked hair. But mainly, she's got the enigmatic honesty of a twentysomething trying to figure out who she is. Winstead gives Ramona the right dash of moxie and a splash of sexy. The exes that Scott must dispense with are tangy little slices of genre satires. It would spoil the fun to say more beyond that each has its own charm and the final one, thanks to a very funny Jason Schwartzman, might be the best. Scott has a few exes of his own to deal with too, and all the exes, both his and hers, do smart turns, in part because of the many smart actors you'll remember from other projects that drop by: Alison Pill, of "Milk" and "In Treatment," as a former sweetheart working through her issues as Sex Bob-Omb's drummer and "Fantastic Four's" Chris Evans as skateboard superstar Ramona-ex, among others. There are pop culture references galore thrown into the mix — sitcom laugh tracks, noir references, the "Seinfeld" theme song and so on. Things do go on too long, and repeat themselves, as the film toggles between the fights and Scott trying to figure out if Ramona is the one. Though the fun is not so much in who wins or loses the girl — it's the playing that matters, and "Scott Pilgrim vs. the World" definitely has game. betsy.sharkey@latimes.com This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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