I’ll use the arbitrated and agreed on title for Lee Daniels’ film about a servant (Forest Whitaker) who serves under a string of presidents at the White House and sees the vast changes in America with respect to race over the course of those years. John Cusack is Nixon. Pretty good trailer, and Daniels needs to prove that “Precious” wasn’t a fluke. Especially after “The Paperboy.”
It’s Friday AM, time for me to prep for a chat with Mike Bianchi, Brandon Kravitz and the team over at 740 The Game on the “Open Mike” radio show.
We’ll talk chemistry as it regards the Denzel/Mark Wahlberg action comedy “2 Guns.” Too bloody to be an action comedy? Almost.
We’ll dump a load of Smurf on listeners and mock Neil Patrick Harris for doing these piles of Smurf.
We may get around to “The Canyons,” which is the highest profile VOD-then-theatrical release to date, thanks to Lindsay Lohan and director Paul Schrader.
And we’ll chat about the “original” “Sharknado,” “The Deep Blue Sea,” which features smart sharks getting after Rosamund Pike and Samuel L. JAckson. That’s the Wednesday night “Pitcher Show” at the Enzian.
All this at 745 AM on 740 AM. Tune in on your way to work.
Dress up Johnny Knoxville as his old man Irving character, pair him up with a cute grandson and send him on the road to prank unsuspecting bystanders across the country.
“Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa” has maybe five big laughs just in the trailer.
Punking Lil’Miss beauty pageants, Senior shoplifting, weddings. Spike Jonze scripted the scripted bits.
October.
Paramount Animation wants to get into the animated toys department. Like Disney/Pixar, of “Cars” and the upcoming “Planes.”
And take a page out of Sony’s “Smurfs” playbook, blending live action and animation.
And do something along the lines of Paramount’s “Transformers” franchise.
Kill me now.
Fans familiar with the Korean original will recognize some of the scenes and props from the Spike Lee/James Brolin-Rooney Mara-Samuel L. Jackson remake of “Oldboy.”
Especially the hammer.
It looks like Lee and Co. took a few liberties with the first film’s sucker-punch script. But not many.
“Oldboy” opens in October. Let’s hope FilmDistrict opens it wide.
Denzel Washington teams up with that King of Chemistry, Mark Wahlberg, in “2 Guns,” a jokey-bloody action comedy that could use more jokes and less blood.
It’s an age of ABSCAM (wiki it) hustle-hoodwink thriller with Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Amy Adams, Jennifer Lawrence and Jeremy Renner. And a lot of ’70s music, fashions and facial hair.
Sex, drugs and Led Zep? In December.
Jolie collected a big check for a movie that hasn’t come out yet. She pulled in $33, June 2012 to June 2013.
Jennifer Lawrence has two franchises in play (“X-Men” prequels, “Hunger Games” sequels), an Oscar (like Jolie) and is much in demand — the hottest of the hot list actresses, these days — she earned avout $26 million.
Julia Roberts is between paydays, and past her payday peak and out of the Forbes top five.
The “other” Jennifer, Aniston, still cracks the top five. Over $20. Which is a couple of million behind Kristen “Post Twilight” Stewart, $22.
Emma Stone has broken into the top five, thanks to big up-front money for “Amazing Spider-Man.”
Jennifer Aniston joins Jason Sudeikis in another raunchy post-“Hangover” comedy about a pot smuggler who hires a stripper, a runaway and a teen boy whose description (“the virgin”) is probably as sophisticated as this farce gets.
Four credited screenwriters, an unknown director, Aniston and Sudeikis. What do we make of that brew, team?
His “The Canyons” hits a limited number of theaters next week. It has buzz — notoriety — if not great advance reviews.
The Lindsay Lohan casting coup was obviously pretty polarizing, pairing her up with a young porn actor was controversial, and teaming with Bret Easton Ellis for the script ensured a certain decadent, ’80s ethos and vibe that you either go with, or don’t. I did.
I have never talked to the great Paul Schrader, screenwriter of “Taxi Driver” and more than a few seminal scripts of the 70s-80s, director of such influential films as “Cat People,” “American Gigolo,” “Light Sleeper” and “Affliction.” I figure we’ll talk about where HE goes from here, since so many stories are focusing on his advice to Lohan, what his film will do for Lohan, etc.
Questions for the maestro? Comment below, and thanks for the help.
