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May 11, 2008

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Christina Ricci Goes Hollywood with Speed Racer

A seasoned moviemaker at the age of 28, Christina Ricci has never been one to play by the rules. Ricci is surprising Hollywood again by starring in Speed Racer, her first big summer blockbuster, nearly two decades into her career. (No comments yet)


Dennis Farina Reveals What Happens in Vegas

He’s been a part of some of the most critically acclaimed movies (Saving Private Ryan) and popular television shows (“Miami Vice,” “Law & Order”) of the past 30 years. But for Dennis Farina, the notion of making a living as an actor was not the first one that occurred to this son of blue-collar Chicago; his first career was as a beat cop in the City of Broad Shoulders. It was only after meeting director Michael Mann through a mutual friend that the actor best known for his wiseguy roles (Midnight Run, Get Shorty) and the occasional unorthodox ladies’ man (Sidewalks of New York, “Empire Falls”) landed his first role in the 1981 thriller, Thief. While Mann helped launch his career, Farina has gone on to work with a number of other strong auteur directors, including Steven Soderbergh (Out of Sight), Guy Ritchie (Snatch) and John Frankenheimer (Reindeer Games).

(No comments yet)


Harry Potter’s World Comes to a City Near You

Emma Watson, Daniel Radcliffe and Rupert Grint reunite for <i>Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince</i>, in theaters in November. Photo: Jaap Buitendijk/Warner Bros.<br />
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It’s really impossible to hear something like “sorting hat” or “invisibility cloak” and not feel at least a little of the allure of Harry Potter's universe. When the films brought the J.K. Rowling books to life, it was through the costuming, set design and props. In 2009, “Harry Potter: The Exhibition” will bring 10,000 square feet of artifacts from the enchanting films to 10 or more cities around the world over a five-year period. (1 comment)


Iron Man Comes Out Fighting in London


As U.S. audiences start counting down the days until Iron Man, one of this spring's most anticipated movies, is released in theaters on May 2nd, film fans across the pond got a sneak peek at hero in action when the film premiered yesterday at the Odean in London's Leicester Square. (No comments yet)


She’s The Boss

The rise of the actress-director

Two of last year’s more critically acclaimed films—Sarah Polley’s Away from Her and Julie Delpy’s 2 Days in Paris—were directed by women who first gained renown for their on-screen performances. Now, a new pair of films—Helen Hunt's Then She Found Me and Jada Pinkett Smith's The Human Contract—also happen to be made by actress-turned-directors.
(1 comment)


The Dark Knight Wins MovieTickets.com Challenge

Christian Bale stars in The Dark Knight. Photo: Stephen Vaughan/TM & © DC Comics

This summer is unusually packed full of comic book and graphic novel adaptations, starring old favorites and some fresh faces. In light of this trend, MovieTickets.com ran a poll asking which superhero will win the summer's number one spot. Here’s what the online community had to say:
(1 comment)


Jason Segel Takes the Lead in Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Jason Segel isn’t a typical Hollywood leading man—especially not for a romantic comedy. But then again Forgetting Sarah Marshall, the movie in which the 28-year-old has his first leading role, is not your typical romantic comedy. Inspired by the likes of Albert Brooks and Woody Allen before him, Segel wrote a script that turns convention on its head. (No comments yet)


Tanna Frederick Lives the Hollywood Dream

It seems appropriate that actress Tanna Frederick's breakthrough came in a film called Hollywood Dreams, Henry Jaglom's tale of an aspiring actress who takes Hollywood by storm. With absolutely no connection to the movie business, the Iowa native has proven herself a force to be reckoned with—"determined" would be an understatement—and has found a kindred spirit in Jaglom, who can't say enough kind things about his new muse. (No comments yet)


Independent Spirit

Independent moviemakers explain the inspirations behind their most recent films.

Six independent moviemakers talk of the state of independent moviemaking today and explain the inspirations behind their most recent films. (No comments yet)


Remembering Charlton Heston

Back in the early 1980s, at the time when he and Ed Asner were very publicly clashing over matters concerning the Screen Actors Guild (and, yes, their diametrically opposed political leanings), Charlton Heston visited Houston to promote a new movie—Mother Lode (1982), I think—so, naturally, I agreed to interview him. But here’s the thing: Even though this wasn’t our first professional encounter, and even though he was the epitome of graciousness, I nonetheless felt slightly intimidated while in his formidable presence. So it was more than a little awkward for me to politely phrase a question about... well, about certain incendiary language Asner recently had used… (No comments yet)


Jared Leto Throws His Weight Behind Chapter 27

Jared Leto as Mark David Chapman in Jarrett Schaefer's <i>Chapter 27</i>.

For all the girls wondering how to get the key to Jared Leto's heart, here's part of the answer: Write an intriguing screenplay that allows him to spread his wings. That's all it took for writer-director Jarrett Schaefer to persuade Leto to star in his independent drama, Chapter 27, and throw his weight behind the film (quite literally) as an executive producer as well. (No comments yet)


Football Hits and Misses—Hollywood Style

Ah, springtime. That special time of year that can mean only one thing to all of you inveterate sports fans out there in movieland... Football season? Okay, so maybe spring is usually reserved for a sport of a more bucolic and placid nature, but so what? We here at MM rarely conform to the demands of the calendar—and neither does George Clooney, whose latest directorial effort, Leatherheads, hits theaters today. In honor of this latest entry into the football movie genre, we're revisiting some of the genre’s hits, misses and fumbles.
(No comments yet)


Paul Giamatti Takes 10

Sooner or later, when cruising late-night television, you’re going to catch a glimpse of a no-name character actor who looks an awful lot like the famous thespian, Paul Giamatti. That’s because before he became famous, Giamatti made his living playing parts like “Heckler #2” and “Kissing Man.” Characters with no names. But along came a romp through California’s wine country in Sideways and the Sundance hit American Splendor and suddenly the one-time bit player was a leading man and Oscar nominee. (No comments yet)


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Kodak at Cannes

Since 1987 Kodak has been the official partner of the Cannes Film Festival, sponsoring the Camera d’Or prize that is awarded yearly to the best feature film by a first-time director. The tradition continues in 2008 when, for the fifth consecutive year, the festival will also hand out the Kodak Discovery Prize for Best Short Film.

“Cannes draws a huge number of filmmakers from all over the world every year, which gives Kodak a great opportunity to host our customers and show them how committed we are to the industry and to motion picture innovation,” says Kim Snyder, Kodak’s president and general manager of the Entertainment Imaging Division.

Posted 05.8.08 | News/Commentary | No comments yet...

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