Here's our first look at scenes from the upcoming flick "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," due to hit theaters Nov. 21, 2008. No doubt this one will wind up in the top 25 movie openings of all time.
Click on the pic for a larger view.
Is it me or does the little robot in the new Pixar movie "Wall-E" remind you of the robot from "Short Circuit?" I remember back in the 80s when I first saw "Short Circuit," I really thought robots would take over the world. Humph! So much for that!
Ally Sheedy and Steve Guttenburg starred in this action/comedy/adventure. As you know, the 80s was full of sequels, so "Short Circuit 2" came along and there was a TV series. Talk about milking it for all it's worth!
Check out these old movie trailers for "Short Circuit" and one for "Wall-E."
Photo credit: AP
The Jonas Brothers rule the teen/tween world these days. Their new Disney movie "Camp Rock" debuts at 8 p.m. Friday, June 20 on the Disney Channel.
While I'm not knowledgeable about the Jonas Brothers' music, I can predict (along with the rest of America) that this movie will be this summer's "High School Musical" in terms of success and placement in the pop culture pantheon.
Have a look at the trailer below. Then help Mitchie save the next Campfire jam. It's more fun than the trailer. And you get to rescue a cowbell (sorry, no Christopher Walken sightings in this game, as far as I can tell.)
In Monday's copy of ExploreLI, Newsday movie critic Rafer Guzman does a Q&A with Nina Davenport, the documentary filmmaker who worked on 'Operation Filmmaker.'
The Q&A reveals little -- the film's subject, Iraqi student Murthana Mohmed, clashed with American benefactors, including Liev Shcreiber, who helped him secure an internship on a movie set.
The trailer and clips from the doc, below, tell a bit more.
He says he loves George Bush. He laughs at a Vegan diet. He balks when asked about his experiences in Baghdad during the war. He says he received a death threat. And there's a lot more that is much deeper and more telling.
This all pique your interest? Davenport is showing the film and speaking at Cinema Arts Centre Tuesday night, 7:30 p.m.
There was a time when the Internet was invented strictly for e-mail, sports scores and unmentionable material.
That time has passed. The fourth reason for the Internet came through my e-mail this morning. It's the ability for me to disseminate this information and the chance for you to do some e-shopping.
It's the Frank Vincent 'Mobblehead' doll. Yes, folks, that's correct. It's a bobblehead doll of Frank Vincent as Billy Batts from "Goodfellas." And it speaks, including the world reknown "Go home and get your shine box."
Click the pick below to learn more.
"Sex and the City" finally opens in theaters tomorrow after much hoopla and media attention. Whew! As much as I love the fab four, I've been updating our SATC online guide constantly and now I'm relieved to be free to focus on something else. For instance, a site dedicated to showcasing Sarah Jessica Parker's horse-like features!!
"Sadly, since the HBO series came to an end, Sarah has not aged well. In fact, recently Sarah Jessica Parker was voted 'The Unsexiest Woman Alive' by Maxim magazine. And we agree. Dare we say, her horse-face appearance is so unappealing it now totally cancels out any redeeming 'hotness' she once had. Pity," whinnied "Wilber" the site's Stable Master.
It's so wrong, but ridiculously funny! So, what do you think? Does Sarah Jessica Parker look like a horse? See for yourself: sarahjessicaparkerlookslikeahorse.com
And while you're in the mood, stop by Newsday's Guide to "Sex and the City: The Movie" for the movie trailer, sneak peeks, photos, and an interactive map of hotspots made famous by the show.
Photo credit: SJPLLAH
I don't know a lick of French, but when I saw this clip from a French TV show I had to share it. Brad Pitt and a very pregnant Angelina Jolie are in Cannes promoting "Kung Fu Panda" and the paparazzi got very (ahem) up close and personal with the lovey-dovey duo.
OK, it's time for where in the world is Brad's hand ... watch this clip very closely ... there's some major ass-grabbing going on. Talk about language of love! Ooh-la-lah! I think Brad is a rump man. What do you think?
"Iron Man" raked in about $100 million in its opening weekend earlier this month. And now "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" is poised to do the same this week. Next weekend, "Sex and the City" could creep near the magical three-digit mark, too.
That got me thinking. What are the biggest opening weekends for movies? With the Spider-Mans challenging the Shreks, then getting usurped by some Caribbean pirates only to return fire again with sequels and threequels and prequels and then watching jedis and wizards assume power, it's next to impossible to keep up with it all.
Until now.
Click our boy Johnny Depp below to see 25 Large: The biggest movie opening weekends at the U.S. box office. Where will "Indy 4" wind up on this list?
- La Monica
When a random movie from the 1980s comes up in two different conversations on a Monday, I begin to wonder if the world is trying to influence my mind for Old School Tuesday.
After a few seconds, I stop wondering and scour YouTube for the clip. This week, it's "Midnight Madness," an '80s classic scavenger hunt movie set in L.A. It ruled Saturday mornings on HBO, usually preceded by or proceeded by "Star Wars." This was back when HBO had one channel and there was an actual cable box with buttons to push for each channel.
Yeah, it's that old, and it has a young Michael J. Fox. This clip, however, is one of the, um, uh, "musical numbers" from this classic. Enjoy Old School Tuesday.
- La Monica
There once was a time when puppets ruled the world. If you were a kid growing up in the 80s, you know what I mean ...
We learned several life lessons from watching Sesame Street and the Muppets, including how to count to 100 (The Count), share cookies (Cookie Monster), how to stay positive and enjoy rainbows (Kermit the Frog).
But it was Fraggle Rock that reached out to young viewers on a deeper level, offering amusing yet educational episodes on prejudice, social conflict and other complex issues in a happy place known as Fraggle Rock.
Just this week, Variety reported that the series will be turned into a live-action musical film with a mix of human characters and Fraggle Rock puppets. I can't wait to see it!
In the meantime, check out the intro to my fave childhood show:
The Googlers out there -- you know who you are -- went goo-goo gah-gah in looking for info from the London premiere of "Sex and the City" the other day.
Well, here's one more thing to find online: red-carpet video from the aforementioned London premiere of "Sex and the City" the other day.
Peep the trailer for "Star Wars: The Clone Wars," a new animated movie from Warner Bros set for release on Aug. 15, 2008.
The old "Anchorman" change the script on the teleprompter never gets old. We do it all the time when filming green screen stuff in the office.
Ernie Jones, one third of TNT's "Inside the NBA" show, did to Charles Barkley recently. And the clip is all over YouTube. Here it is for your enjoyment.
- La Monica
"Superbad" cleaned up at the MTV Movie Award nominations Tuesday morning, earning five nominations including Best Movie and Best Comedic Performance (Jonah Hill).
The Golden Popcorn statues get handed out June 1 in Universal City, Calif., and on your television set. More important, after seeing this story online, I got to thinking. And thinking more often than not leads to Googling. And Googling leads to remembering a link Sammy Search Engines once sent me: The "Superbad" McLovin ID maker.
Click the pic and make your own McLovin ID. Then come back and post the link in the comments field. Show us your McLovin!
Fans waiting for a taste of "Sex and the City: The Movie" can check out your local Steve & Barry's for the official merchandise slated to hit stores today. Be sure to enter for your chance to win a shopping spree or free movie passes too. Click here for more details.
I've been struggling with this list for the past two weeks, ever since I found out the April 18 release date of Al Pacino's new movie, "88 Minutes."
We all know Pacino is among the best actors of the past two generations, perhaps even three. And the old Pacino-DeNiro debate usually ends in whichever actor's movie you've seen last. So, if you watched "Goodfellas" this week and "Scarface" two weeks ago, you're more likely to say DeNiro is better, and vice versa.
But here in Top 5 Thursday, we don't have that luxury. Here in Top 5 Thursday, we have to rank Pacino's five best characters. Yes, that's impossible. So, for one week only, we're going to Top 8 Thursday, partially because Pacino is that good, and partially to play off the "88 Minutes" movie title.
Before I countdown what I believe to be Pacino's eight best characters, please understand that we're talking about just that: Pacino's characters, not the movie overall. And also understand that with a resume such as his, some characters may jump out at you but are not listed here. In that case, ask yourself this question: Which character would you replace with your choice? Feel free to post your comments.
Usually, I throw a little comment after each item the lists, but if you don't know these characters, then you should stop reading now.
And now for the top 8 Al Pacino characters:
8) Lefty Ruggiero in "Donnie Brasco"
7) Lowell Bergman in "The Insider"
6) Ricky Roma in "Glengarry Glen Ross"
5) Tony Montana in "Scarface"
4) Lt. Col. Frank Slade in "Scent of a Woman"
3) Frank Serpico in "Serpico"
2) Sonny in "Dog Day Afternoon"
1) Michael Corleone in "The Godfather Part II"
- La Monica
And now for some video clips of Pacino on Inside the Actor's Studio.
For all those ladies who can't wait to see this movie (and for all the fellas who want to know what they're in for this summer).
Caught a press screening of "The Hammer" starring Adam Carolla last week. It hits theaters this Friday.
Carolla plays a career underachiever who upon turning 40 rekindles his passion for boxing and tries to qualify for the Olympics. If you're thinking this sounds like "Dodgeball" meets "Rocky," you'd be right.
This movie is definitely a step up from his work on "Dancing With the Stars," which got hammered by the judges.
There are some really funny scenes with great dialogue, as you might expect from the witty, acerbic Carolla. If you're a Carolla fan, Pet Rock wouldn't be mad if you saw it in the theater. If you're not a huge Carolla fan, wait for the DVD.
- Mark La Monica
Really, what’s the difference between a movie that gets two stars and one that gets two-and-a-half stars? Is that extra half-star going to force you off the couch and into a theater seat?
We doubt it.
Movie trailers are accessible on hundreds of Web sites, as is the ability for readers to rate and review movies. By the time a movie review runs in the newspaper on opening weekend, there has already been tons of information digested online. The question we pose is whether or not the four-star rating system is still valid for readers, regardless of medium.
With sites such as rottentomatoes.com which aggregates movie reviews from across the country, a reader can read dozens of reviews on each movie. Google and other search engines provide a similar service.
So how is a reader to really know how good a movie is when a New York newspaper gives it three stars, a Florida paper gives it two stars, a Texas paper two-and-a-half stars and a California paper gives it one star? Does a reader trust its local reviewer or the one closest to Hollywood and presumably more plugged in to the industry?
Instead of stars, what if movie reviews advised people on what they should do for each movie? It would certainly increase the utility of movie reviews. The guess here is that traditional media outlets will never do this. Magazines such as Entertainment Weekly use a grading system, but again, what’s the real difference between a B and B+? (In this country, C students can become president of a country and A students can’t even find a job.) But here in Pet Rock, we thrive on challenging the norm.
As such, we present the Pet Rock Movie Rating System. Right now, you may scoff at this idea, but one day in the future, we’ll be looked at brilliant visionaries. We'll base all our movie opinions here using this system, starting Wednesday afternoon with "The Hammer."
See in theatersTranslation: It’s worth spending money, be it yours or someone else’s, to sit in a dark room with strangers and be entertained by the moving pictures on the big screen. It’s up to you whether or not that means a matinee or prime-time showing.
Wait for the DVD
Translation: This movie is worth seeing but don’t rush to a theater to for it. If you can’t make it to a showing during its theatrical run, just add it to your Netflix list or rent it from Blockbuster. There’s no harm in being in this category aside from financial for the studio and production company.
Wait for cable
Translation: A simple push of the REC button on your DVR or TiVo remote is all the effort you should put forth to watch this movie. Basically, if you watch this movie, you won’t be mad at yourself, but if you spend drop any amount of Benjamins besides the cost of electricity in your house, you will be mad at yourself.
Don’t waste your time
Translation: Keep your money in your pocket. Cancel your Netflix account if this movie shows up on their recommendation list. Boycott the cable or broadcast network that airs this thing they called a movie.
- Mark La Monica
Ever watch a movie in the theaters and think to yourself, "I can't wait to go buy this on DVD?"
That was the case this past Friday as I finally got around to seeing "Juno."
Brilliant work by actress Ellen Page and screenwriter Diablo Cody. Hence all the awards and nominations, I suppose.
But this "Juno" movie was fantastic. Original storyline, unique script, solid acting. With each passing scene, I wanted to watch it again. I was screaming (on the inside because I have good movie theater etiquette) for my DVR remote control so I could rewind and watch again.
If you haven't seen it yet, please go. You won't be disappointed. I'll make it easier: Here's a link to Juno movie showtimes in the tri-state area.
"Semi-Pro" hits theaters this Friday. It stars Will Ferrell, which pretty much means we've seen this movie already. Lemme guess: He plays an over-the-top character and does outrageous and ridiculous things for a laugh.
This time, however, he does it as 1970s ABA player instead of a 1970s news anchor or a modern-day race car driver.
Like I said, we've seen this movie before. We'll hate it at first, then after 5-6 more viewings, we won't delete it from the DVR.
Top 5 Thursday counts down the only thing that deciphers one Will Ferrell movie from another: his sidekicks.
5) Bernard 'Beanie' Campbell (Vince Vaughn) in "Old School"
It stops right there and continues right here because what I think Beanie's friend Mitch is trying to say is that true love is blind. As strong as Frank the Tank was, where would Will Ferrell be if Vaughn didn't finish the wedding toast? This was Vaughn's finest work since "Swingers." Vince Vaughn is so good when he plays Vince Vaughn.
4) Cal Naughton (John C. Reilly) in "Talladega Nights"
Shake 'n bake. Mike Honcho. Because I like to party. Thank the cinematic heavens for brilliant character actor John C. Reilly.
3) Pearl in "The Landlord"
Ferrell's 2-year-old daughter played his landlord in this skit that helped make Funnyordie.com a household name (in those households that appreciate comedy and viral videos watched more than 50 million times).
2) Jean Girard (Sacha Baron Cohen) in "Talladega Nights"
Perhaps the best character in terms of well-thought-out and subtle comedy. The French race car driver in a Perrier-sponsored car is pure brilliance. Sipping a macchiato in the car -- hilarious. The game of "Uncle" using crepes. Genius. Cohen/Borat/Ali G nailed the role.
1) Brian Fantana (Paul Rudd) in "Anchorman"
Maybe it was the mustache. Maybe it was the Sex Panther. Maybe it was "James Westphal and Dr. Kenneth Noisewater." Maybe it was "Panda Watch!" Whatever it was, there's no denying the sidekick star power of Brian Fantana.
It's 11:06 p.m. Sunday and the dead people montage at the Academy Awards just concluded.
I'm such a sucker for the dead people montage. Don't care if it's the Oscars, the Grammys, the Emmys or even the Quills (awards for books). Gimme a video list of those in the particular industry who died since the last award show and I will watch it. I won't get up to get a drink, or go to the bathroom, or answer a phone call or check an email. I want to see dead people!
I can't explain why. It's not like I'm macabre. But I love the dead people montage. So much so, that my new goal in life is to perform at such a high level in my career that 63 years from now, I will wind up in the dead people montage at the awards show for bloggers and journalists.
And yes, the campaigning starts now.
- Mark La Monica
Every now and again, Pet Rock gets an email that we need to share with the masses. Lucky for us, this email arrived on Friday. Even luckier for us, it's a YouTube video.
You've probably (hopefully!) heard the recent "Barack Obama is jacking for speeches" news about his public speaking being eerily similar to that of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.
Well, this enterprising YouTuber named 395v0538527 -- a Hillary alias, perhaps? -- shows the power of editing and political influence in today's world. And if you can't laugh at the usage of the second greatest interview of all time, then go away and read something else.
Props to Blastmaster friend Scurvy Scurv for doing my job for me.
- Mark La Monica
Many an actor will feel embarassed Saturday morning and many of us regular folks will laugh as the Razzie winners are announced. For those not hip to what the Razzies are, they salute the worst in the movies for the past year.
"Norbit" by Eddie Murphy, a favorite son of Long Island, earned eight Razzie nominations, including a record five individual selections for Murphy.
Ouch!
Murphy's been in the movie for than 25 years and he's gone more of the family route of late -- see the Shrek and Dr. Doolittle franchises. It's easy to forget just how brilliant Murphy was as a comedian and comedic actor.
So, Pet Rock begins its new feature - Top 5 Thursday - will a list of Eddie's top roles:
5) Gumby on "Saturday Night Live"
Murphy was 19 years old when he landed a spot on "SNL" in 1980. He gave us Buckwheat sings the hits, James Brown in a hot tub and Mr. Robinson's Neighborhood, but nothing can top Murphy in a green nerf suit playing an angry Gumby.
4) Prince Akeem in "Coming to America"
"Yes! In the face!"
3) Reggie Hammond in "48 Hours"
"There's a new sheriff in town, and his name is Reggie Hammond."
2) Axel Foley in "Beverly Hills Cop I and II"
Banana. Tailpipe. 'Nuff said.
1) Billy Ray Valentine in "Trading Places"
Eddie's second feature film and his finest work. Any time someone corners the market on Frozen Concentrate Orange Juice, that's worth a mention.
- Mark La Monica
Get out those whips and hats, it's time to watch the trailer for "Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull"
It just hit the 'net this morning.
Roger Clemens sat on Capitol Hill today and said, among other things, that he never took steroids or HGH.
Brian McNamee sat on Capitol Hill today and said, among other things, that Clemens took steroids and HGH.
One of them is lying. Who is it? Who knows!
The real question Pet Rock has is this: How is it possible to both hold and televise congressional hearings of this magnitude with Frank Pentangeli's brother sitting quietly in the front row of the audience?
- Mark La Monica
Movies friend Pat just walked upstairs here at the Pet Rock offices and dropped this link on me!
It's so outrageous, it can't wait until YouTube Friday. Watch and enjoy as the voices of Spongebob Square Pants dub scenes from classic movies such as "Casablanca" and "The Godfather."
This is nearly as good as that video circulating the Web about Hitler being a Cowboys fan.
- Mark La Monica
When "Rocky Balboa" hit movie theaters in December 2006, I made sure to get a ticket on that opening Wednesday night (and again two nights later).
I felt I owed it to myself after growing up with Stallone's Rocky character, one of those moral imperatives I suppose. Even after "Rocky V."
I felt the same about "Rambo," the fourth installment of Sly's Vietnam hero turned American mercenary and righter of all the world's wrongs. I didn't make it to opening weekend, though. Had to wait until Monday night.
And now I'd do anything to have waited 60 years to see it. "Rambo" may indeed be the worst movie ever made. (Congrats to John Travolta of "Battlefield Earth" who can now surrender his title to Sly.) It stings to say that. Seriously. I feel like the good guy wrestler who just turned on his tag-team partner and joined the bad guys.
But this "movie" is just plain awful. Painful, even. If I weren't there with Jitsu friend Jitsu, I'd have walked out 30 minutes into the 1:33-long movie. If this movie doesn't earn at least five Razzie nominations next year, then I'm launching a campaign to get the Razzie committee in front of Henry Waxman and the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.
How bad is it? So bad that I will not embed the trailer in this blog. So bad that I apologize to the public for posting the trailer in the past. So bad that I apologize for the Sylvester Stallone trivia quiz I put up on the site last Friday. So bad, I went all "Hollywood Shuffle" and gave the movie the finger when it ended.
The only redeeming quality of "Rambo" is that the female lead, Julie Benz, looks way too much like Journalista friend Lauren that I really thought it was her. And she's a sweet gal, so between the deaths and deathly dialogue, I could at least find some inner peace.
Well, it was either that, or pay attention to all the exploding bodies, unnecessary gore, brutal violence and murdered children.
Maybe that's what it's really like in Burma (Myanmar) these days or in the recent past, I have no clue. Nor do I have an idea of what real combat is like. I'm not pretending that I do.
Nor am I against violence and bloodshed in movies. There's nothing wrong with a good shoot 'em up movie. But "Rambo" was just way too over the top and beyond gratuitous. It was worse than watching bad porn. Don't act like you don't know what I'm talking about.
The violence was intense and in your face. The best comparison I can think of is the opening sequence of "Saving Private Ryan" when they storm Normandy Beach.
Even if you're into violence in film, you'll need to check yourself at the door. And don't eat too much beforehand. You might wind up booting all over the seat in front of you when you watch hear bullets pierce through the 100th child's body. The gutting of some bad guys, the ripping out of voiceboxes, the shredding of bodies from mines and bullets don't help matters either. Oh wait, I forgot one thing: the implied sexual assault and gangrape of a few women by a gaggle of Burmese army men.
Keep your money in your pockets this time, folks. And don't even waste any space in your Netflix queue in a few months when this movie becomes available in the summer.
I realize some folks out there may think I should cancel my GQ subscription and return my Y chromosome for bashing "Rambo" like this. And to those folks, I say "Good job wasting $10, schmucko! Smarten' up. "
- Mark La Monica
Hooray, hooray! The SAG Awards went off as scheduled. After that Golden Globe debacle, we finally get to see famous people accept statues and say thank you!
The real appeal of these award shows, however, are seeing the insane presenter pairings put together by the show's producers. They're meant to illicit a reaction from the people watching at home, and the sought-after reaction is "Wow! What kind of drugs were they doing in that planning meeting when they paired those two together?"
Well, here we go with Pet Rock's 12 presenter pairings we'd like to see at the Oscars (or at any other upcoming award show):
1) Tony Sirico and Miley Cyrus
2) Zac Efron and Busta Rhymes
3) America Ferrara and Diddy
4) Stephen Colbert and Dame Judi Dench
5) Perez Hilton and Danny DeVito
6) Denzel Washington and Ashley Olsen
7) Kevin Dillon and Russell Crowe
8) Alec Baldwin and Lindsay Lohan
9) Eva Longoria and Terry Bradshaw
10) Britney Spears and Barack Obama
11) Kevin Bacon and Andrew "Dice" Clay
12) Amanda Bynes and Burt Reynolds
- Mark La Monica
"Michael Clayton" received five Oscar nods on Tuesday, including Best Picture and a first Best Actor nomination for George Clooney. Pretty good stuff.
It would be safe now to call this movie a success, critically. Financially, it made a nice profit, which in the movie business, deems it a huge success. According to boxofficemojo.com, "Clayton" raked in $39,343,460 since its Oct. 5 opening. (Warner Brothers is re-releasing it Jan. 25 on 1,000 screens nationwide.)
Made for a reported $21.4 million, that's a nifty profit in the WB coffers.
Deemed a critical and financial success, what does this mean in terms of humans? Based on an average ticket price of $10, it means that 3,934,346 people saw the movie. Or, roughly, 1.3 percent of the U.S. population (using 300 million as the population figure).
So when a movie hits that magical $100 million domestic gross, that means 3 percent of America saw it. That's a pretty crazy way to think about movie success, huh?
OK, well, maybe it's more like Paris Hilton is in this movie that has a script and a budget and more than camera and other people acting in it.
We'll have to wait until the Feb. 8 release, unless you can score premiere tickets to "The Hottie and the Nottie."
In the meantime, enjoy the trailer below.
- Mark La Monica
Will Ferrell made some good movies. Same goes for Vince Vaughn.
Note the past tense used in that sentence.
Now, it seems that most movies they make are the exact same except for the title. So when Print friend Clarke told me to watch the trailer for "Semi-Pro," I snarled a bit. It's a Will Ferrell movie, so it's the same thing. Right?
Wrong, provided you watch the age-restricted version of the trailer. That one gives us hope that this new movie isn't just "Semi-Pro: The Legend of Ron Burgundy, aka Ricky Bobby, aka '70s Basketball Star."
Of course, we can't show you that one here, just the all age-range trailer below. But if you're over 18, you can find it here.
- Mark La Monica
That's right ladies, get jealous. Here I am with Mr. Patrick "McDreamy" Dempsey himself on the day of our lovely nuptials. He's carrying the bouquet and making that sexy smirk, I'm looking dazed and slightly annoyed. Sounds about right.
Psych! We totally didn't get married. Want a similar pic for yourself, or better yet, a co-worker? Just click HERE and enjoy.
And watch the 'Made of Honor' trailer, premiering this summer, below.
- Anne Machalinski
Over the weekend, somewhere in between the DayQuil / NyQuil Cycle of Doom, I caught an airing of "Lethal Weapon" on one of the 47 HBO channels.
There's a scene in there that had me laughing at the old school technology. Danny Glover is on a bridge talking to the police psychologist about his new partner, Martin Riggs, played by Mel Gibson. To do this, he's using the world's largest cell phone. It's a giant box, with a real-size phone connected to it with a an actual cord. And then there's that monster antenna!
It's just funny to see movies now, where villians can control the entire world from a phone the size of an iPod shuffle. But back in the day, 1987 to be precise, this was considered bad-ass technology.
Watch the original trailer and pay attention around the :53 mark. You'll see the phone. You'll laugh.
- Mark La Monica
By Mark La Monica
The war may have belong to Charlie Wilson, as the title of the movie indicates, but the actual movie "Charlie Wilson's War" belongs entirely to Philip Seymour Hoffman.
From all the trailers and press, this is a Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts movie, but Hoffman walks right up to them, holds them at mustache-point and straight steals the movie from them.
He's brilliant as Gust Avrakotos, the CIA operative who helps organize and run the war to help Afghans defend themselves against the Soviet Union. His comedic lines are delivered with impeccable skill and timing, which isn't surprising considering how ridiculously good he is as an actor.
So, if "Christmas Day and a Movie" is your thing, consider dropping your 10 bones on "Charlie Wilson's War." Watch the trailer below for a tiny sample of Hoffman's work (and mustache!). Granted, the trailer skews heavily toward Hanks, since he's the lead actor. Just remember, it's Hoffman who owns this movie.
By Mark La Monica
John Cusack is pretty much an acting legend for anyone ages 27-40. He's played just about every type of character and always manages to leave an impression.
He's catching plenty of pub right now for his latest movie, "Grace is Gone," where he plays an ex-military man who has to tell his children that their mother died in Iraq. Saturday's Chicago Tribune ran a good piece on Cusack. The Dec. 14 issue of Entertainment Weekly ran a good interview with him, too. Here's the video portion of it.
In reading those stories and in researching his filmography on IMDB.com, you forget just how many memorable movies Cusack has been a part of the last 25 years.
So, in the spirit of his character in "High Fidelity," here we go with our top five John Cusack movies. We're not saying these are his best roles, just the movies we'd order for a Cusack marathon if we had the unlimited plan on Netflix.
1) "Better Off Dead"
He skied the K-12, hung out with Booger from "Revenge of the Nerds," beat the Asian Howard Cosell in a drag race, beat up Ricky Smith and landed the French girl, played by Diane Franklin.
2) "High Fidelity"
He ran a record shop, pre-hooked up with Catherine Zeta-Jones, stalked Tim Robbins in hopes of getting his girl back, understood how to put together a mixtape, and re-landed the girl, played by Iben Hjejle.
3) "Runaway Jury"
He delivered this gem of a line in the morning to describe his night before: "I woke up on my stove," manipulated Gene Hackman and Dustin Hoffman, rigged a jury, and landed the girl, played by Rachel Weisz.
4) "Say Anything"
He was the eternal optimist, Lloyd Dobler, the guy who pined over a girl for all the right reasons, the guy women of the 80s fell in love with (and still love), and then landed the smart girl played by Ione Skye.
5) "Eight Men Out"
In one of the most underrated baseball movies, he played the honest ballplayer amongst a group of crooked White Sox who threw the 1919 World Series, gave honor to America's pasttime, and surprisingly, didn't land the girl. Of course, in the movie based on a true story, he was already married to Helen Weaver, played by Barbara Garrick.
Honorable mention: "One Crazy Summer," "Must Love Dogs," "America's Sweethearts."
Here are a few clips from some of these movies above and the trailers for his two latest films.
By Mark La Monica
OK, fellas, you can sit this one out. Don't hate, though. We gave you the new "Rambo" trailer earlier this week. This one's for the ladies.
It's the "Sex and the City" trailer. For the same reasons men love "Entourage," women love "Sex and the City." Just sit back and relax, fellas. And save your money because we get the feeling you're going to be buying tickets more than once.
Don't get too close to the screen, though. That flower might eat your face!
By Mark La Monica
Stallone is at it again, digging into his past to come up with viable box-office draws.
Full disclosure: I saw "Rocky Balboa" on opening night last year and again two nights later. I'm not the only nutjob who did things like that.
Nor will I be the only lunatic who sees the fourth installment of his Vietnam War vet John Rambo saga, aptly titled "Rambo." I'm comforted by knowing this.
The movie comes out Jan. 25, 2008, but I've been fired up since this past weekend when I saw the posters plastered across walls on the streets of Williamsburg. So, I just had to go download the trailer, watch several dozen times, then share it with you here.
To paraphrase Col. Trautman in "First Blood," the first Rambo movie, "God didn't blog about Rambo. I did."
By Mark La Monica
I walked into a new bank the other day. Well, new to me, at least. I approached the ATM, stuck my card in, pushed some buttons. Really nothing exciting to report there.
But, upon withdrawal of $100 and declining any additional transactions, the touch screen popped up this message:
"Thanks for stopping by."
OK, really? Seriously? Did I just get Veronica Corningstone'd? I had to take out another hundy just to be sure.
"Thanks for stopping by."
Yep, I did. I just got Veronica Corningstone'd.
Then I had to take out yet another hundy just to see if the ATM would tell me to stay classy. It didn't. Now I got three bones in my pocket. Meet me at the bar.
You stay classy, Washington Mutual.
In the November issue of GQ, Francis Ford Coppola takes some shots at Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and Jack Nicholson, saying they're "apathetic" and don't seem to have the passion for acting anymore at a collective age of
I posted this Coppola story on Newsday.com's entertainment section, as is my job when such things arise in the world of news.
Then, I heard Boss friend Luda Jon's voice from up above saying "Make it interactive!" Fair enough. Time for a poll question. So, I asked: Of the three, who do you feel is the best actor?
It seemed an innocuous question at the time. Then, I actually looked at the poll online and said, "Wow, who would I vote for?"
It's a tough call with the three most brilliant actors of the past two generations.
Pacino is Michael Corleone, Tony Montana, Frank Serpico, Tony D'Amato, Lefty Ruggiero. But he was also Walter Abrams ("Two for the Money") and Sharkman ("Gigli").
De Niro is Vito Corleone, Jimmy Conway, Sam Rothstein, Lorenzo Anello, Moe Tilden, Michael Vronsky, Jake La Motta, Travis Bickle. But he's also Fearless Leader ("Rocky and Bullwinkle") and Ned ("We're No Angels").
Nicholson is Col. Nathan Jessup, Jimmy Hoffa, The Joker, Jack Torrance, Charley Partanna, Randle Patrick McMurphy, Frank Costello. But he's also President James Dale/Art Land ("Mars Attacks!") and Will Randall ("Wolf").
This is going to be a tough decision.
