"Bridge to Terabithia" and "The Spiderwick Chronicles"
Since Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings films, fantasy has become (predictably) a disappointing genre at the movies.
It's becoming all too familiar... a director borrows Jackson's techniques for dazzling audiences, but demonstrates ignorance when it comes to good scripts and character development. Or the filmmakers get so excited about editing their film for maximum excitement that they make mincemeat of their actors' performances. Pan's Labyrinth is the most impressive exception, but for the most part, Peter Jackson's achievements look better and better all the time.
That's why I'm delighted to discover (rather late, I'm afraid) that Walden Media's Bridge to Terabithia is one of the better post-Jackson fantasy efforts, and it's an unexpected delight from a studio that has been consistently disappointing.Read more
Colbert Explains Hell
Did you see Stephen Colbert's rather memorable interview with Dr. Philip Zombardo?
When the misguided doctor begins to explain that Lucifer was justified in rebelling against God, Colbert takes him to school. Sunday school. And he does so in his own fearless fashion, mixing truth with his own brand of irony.
But viewer discretion is advised: There is a crass, but bleeped, exclamation in this clip. (And yet, who can blame him for having strong feelings on this subject?)
Thanks to Opus for alerting me to this at ArtsandFaith.
Mill Creek, WA: Here Comes Auralia
When I was a kid, my idea of a great Friday night on the town involved going to the library and assembling a stack of storybooks so immense that my mom had to help me carry them to the counter.
So it's a thrill to be invited again to read at a public library.Read more
The Browser 2/14: Derrickson on U23D. Patrice Leconte. Hobbit. Pics.
Scott Derrickson on U23D
Filmmaker Scott Derrickson found some time in the middle of his hard work on The Day the Earth Stood Still to comment on my euphoric reaction to U23D. He writes:
I had a very similar experience Jeffrey. The new Technology is astounding, and I now understand why Cameron is obsessed with it. It's a new kind of cinema. There is no frame. It's not something you watch, it's something you're IN. And like you, I'm so glad the experience of the technology was matched by the performance of my favorite band. Truly amazing, on many levels.
You'll Believe a Moviegoer Can Fly.
Once in a great while, I have a dream in which I can fly like Superman. When it happens, it's extremely vivid. I feel wind, gravity, and a fearless thrill of soaring high over the city and then swooping down to tease the rooftops or the treetops or the surface of the ocean.
Nothing in my waking life creates quite the same feeling.
Well... it hasn't until now.Read more
Congrats to Colleen Lindsay!
Several months ago, I received some encouraging words regarding Auralia's Colors from fantasy-lit enthusiast Colleen Lindsay, otherwise known as La Gringa, who blogs at The Swivet.
That prompted me to contact her, and I've enjoyed our correspondence ever since. Previously, she was director of publicity at Del Rey. Working at Doubleday, she contributed to the success of the book Mother Teresa: Come Be My Light.
I bring this up because Lindsay's just taken an exciting step in her career, and deserves big congratulations. She's become a literary agent! If you're writing mainstream fantasy, take note! She'll be focusing on science fiction, fantasy, and graphic novels. (Her blog announcement is here, and the news is reported at MediaBistro here.)
Best wishes, Colleen!
A Mike Leigh Joint
Just spotted another must-see title for my 2008 moviegoing calendar.
Mike Leigh's Secrets and Lies remains one of my all-time favorite films. Naked, while it is unrelentingly dark and disturbing, contains my favorite big screen performance by an actor (David Thewlis, although Daniel Day-Lewis may give him a run for his money, the more I think about There Will Be Blood.) Topsy-Turvy was a hoot, and a high point in Jim Broadbent's colorful career. And Vera Drake was sorely mistreated by Christian moviegoers who either misunderstood it as an abortion propaganda piece, or who didn't see the movie at all and still condemned it as an abortion propaganda piece.Read more
Most Underrated Franchise Entry?
Okay, after thinking that I was the only one on earth to hold this opinion, I've met two smart, thoughtful moviegoers in the last 24 hours who count The Matrix Revolutions as their favorite movie in the Matrix series. So since I'm coming out at a Revolutions fan, this is your big chance:
What franchise film do you consider the most underrated and overlooked?
What Will the Coen Brothers Direct Next?
It's common knowledge that the Coen Brothers' next feature is Burn After Reading, starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt, and Frances Macdormand. The synopsis from IMDB: "A disk containing the memoirs of a CIA agent ends up in the hands of two unscrupulous gym employees who attempt to sell it."
And then comes Hail Caesar, about a 1920's theater troupe staging a production of Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. That stars Tim Blake Nelson.
But what's this breaking news? The Coens will then jump into another adaptation of a celebrated novel! They're going to direct...Read more
Specials: CT Readers Choose Best of '07. The Passion of the Screenwriter. Is Juno Overrated?
Where does Evan Almighty rate higher than No Country for Old Men and There Will Be Blood?
In the Readers' Choice Awards at Christianity Today Movies!
(Earlier, the CT Movies Critics Choice awards.)
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The Passion of the Screenwriter
A screenwriter sued Mel Gibson and his production company on Monday, claiming he was misled by the actor-director into accepting a small payment for writing "The Passion of the Christ," and was refused extra money when the film became a blockbuster.
More at Peter Chattaway's FilmChat.
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Juno needs to know that it's possible for two people to agree on her Oscar chances...
Juno continues to win praise in this article by A.G. Harmon on the (newly redesigned!) site for Image journal.
...what Knocked Up begins, director Jason Reitman's Juno perfects. The latter is a comedy in the way Flannery O'Connor meant comedy: as the best vehicle for the most profound of things. For the dialogue alone, Juno would be a triumph.
But the reviewer at Louisiana State University is not so dazzled.
"Juno" is a harmless delight, but in retrospect, it is a scantily sketched picture. On closer inspection, it fails to say anything significant about the travails of a pregnant 16-year-old, the effect of the pregnancy on her family or the difficulties in securing an adoption. Its success lies in keeping audiences entertained for 90 minutes; after that time, its hold on the mind wanes.