2008 March | Coosa Creek Cinema

There Goes Another One …

By Rick, on March 31st, 2008 |

Dave Kehr reports (via Radar) that after 30 years, David Ansen (below right) is leaving Newsweek, taking a handsome buy-out offered to him by the magazine. Hard times have befallen the newsweeklies, with cost-cutting moves common. Ansen told Anne Thompson that “It was a good deal . . . They didn’t want me to leave, [...]

Coosa Creek Times, 3-29-2008

By Rick, on March 29th, 2008 |

You know him as the guy from the original Office, you love him as he hapless wannabe actor in Extras and soon, now he’s blogging on the new film he’s directing. This Side of the Truth is Ricky Gervais’ blog about the process of making his new film of the same name. It [...]

Director Spotlight: Hou Hsiao-hsien

By Rick, on March 27th, 2008 |

I’m convinced that Asian films are where it’s at these days, and that directors like Ang Lee, Tsai Ming-Liang and Wong Kar Wai are the cutting edge of world cinema. Here in the states, unless you live in a major market, it’s hard to see some of these artists on the big screen; it’s [...]

Chemistry Set

By Rick, on March 25th, 2008 |

As I noted in a previous post, I think that Laura Linney and Paul Giamatti are two of the finest film actors working today. How they have avoided winning an Oscar, especially 3-times-nominated Linney, is a mystery to me (well, not exactly a mystery, given the Academy’s predilection for flashy “big acting” and box-office [...]

Bad Movie Mojo

By Rick, on March 23rd, 2008 |

Most folks put a lot of thought into picking their top movies. You see endless top-ten lists, especially in January, but the lists of a viewer’s least favorite flicks — although they do exist — are fewer and further between. Could it be that it’s tougher to pick the worst movies? After [...]

Coosa Creek Times, 3-21-2008

By Rick, on March 21st, 2008 |

Ever wonder what your favorite slacker comedy whiz is up to these days? I haven’t . . . but if you have, does Ted Zee at Big Screen Little Screen have a feature for you. It’s the first edition of “What Did Judd Apatow Do Today?, and it details all the hilarious antics [...]

Linney & Giamatti Fight the Revolution Again

By Rick, on March 19th, 2008 |

Been watching HBO’s John Adams? You should be, if only for the magnificent performances of Laura Linney and Paul Giamatti. They give what could have been a standard revolutionary soaper weight, dignity, gravitas. As Abigail and John Adams, they are most believable as a couple who are committed to one another, despite [...]

The Endless Blogathon & Other Delicacies

By Rick, on March 17th, 2008 |

Hooray! Directorama is back! If you haven’t cottoned onto Peet Gelderblom’s comic strip yet, now would be a great time — it’s back after a brief hiatus. This week, Bergman and Hitchcock discuss the dearth — or is that the death? — of female directors. Peet says

We’re starting [...]

Coosa Creek Times, 3-16-2008

By Rick, on March 16th, 2008 |

If I had a top-ten list, near the top would be Andrei Rublev (above), the 1969 masterpiece by Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky. Creative Review blog says this about him:

Over a 25 year period, Russian filmmaker Andrei Tarkovsky made just seven feature films and three student shorts, yet his cinematic work stands out [...]

Square-Jaws and Twitchies: Superheroes in the Post-Modern Age

By Rick, on March 15th, 2008 |

When I first heard who was playing Iron Man in the latest Marvel franchise-quest, my head spun around like a bad Linda Blair imitation. Quirky, twitchy, just-a-step-away-from-rehab Robert Downey, Jr. as Tony Stark, man of steel? Come on now . . . and then I saw this second trailer for the movie and I said: [...]