my week at the movies: ‘Over Her Dead Body,’ ‘Sputnik Mania,’ ‘In Bruges,’ ‘George Romero’s Diary of the Dead,’ ‘The Band’s Visit,’ ‘Chicago 10,’ ‘The Eye’
Eva Longoria Parker is dead, but don’t think that will stop her from trying to ruin her the life of Paul Rudd, her still-living boyfriend, particularly when he gets a new girlfriend. Over Her Dead Body [opens wide February 1] is the directorial debut of TV guy Jeff Lowell (a vet of Sports Night and Spin City), which doesn’t help dispel the terrible premonition I have that this is gonna feel like a sitcom. Nor does the working title: How I Met My Boyfriend’s Dead Fiancée. Ugh.
Sputnik Mania [opens limited March 14] is a History Channel documentary (one set for a theatrical release) about the panic that gripped America after the Soviet launch of the first artificial satellite, and how it set off the space race. Space stuff is always good by me.
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Irish playwright Martin McDonagh makes his debut as a screenwriter and film director with the hitman comedy In Bruges [opens limited February 8], which just debuted at Sundance. Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson are, I gather, not the brightest criminals the streets ever produced, and now they’re stuck in the titular Belgian city while they wait for their next assignment. I not a particular fan of McDonagh’s stage plays, but he did win an Oscar last year for his short film, “Six Shooter.” And I do like Colin Farrell. I’m keeping my fingers crossed for this one.
George Romero’s Diary of the Dead [opens limited February 15] also made its debut at this year’s Sundance. This one’s about a group of young filmmakers shooting a horror movie in the woods when -- yup -- they run into some zombie troubles. Romero’s last zombie flick, Land of the Dead, was great -- I’d love to think this one will be, too.
An Arab military band arrives in Israel for a concert. Apparently, comedy ensues in The Band’s Visit [opens limited February 8]. I guess worst things could have happened.
Chicago 10 [opens limited February 29] is a partially animated documentary about the eight anti-war protestors who were prosecuted for their actions at the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Neat.
It’s another remake from Asian horror, and it stars Jessica Alba. There’s a reason why The Eye [opens wide February 1] won’t screen for critics before it opens. But Lionsgate is holding a courtesy screening on Friday morning, and I’ll be there. *sigh*
(Technorati tags: Over Her Dead Body, Sputnik Mania, In Bruges, George Romero’s Diary of the Dead, Band’s Visit, Chicago 10, Eye)
comments
posted by Hdj (January 28, 2008 5:08 PM)
This could be a good year for zombies, first Diary of the Dead, then.... Day of the Dead =) the sequel of 2004's Mall Zombie flick Dawn of the dead and Ving Rhames returns in it.
So yeah if this is Romeros last then hopefully he goes out with a good note,
posted by Jurgan (January 28, 2008 9:05 PM)
I confess myself slightly disappointed that Romero seems to be taking a step backwards. I loved Land of the Dead because, while the old movies were great, I was happy to see them get beyond the small group of people and tell a story with a more epic scope (something that should have happened with Day- I didn't know it was getting remade). Diary might be interesting, but it might also be a cash-in on the shakycam craze. And first Cloverfield, now Diary? What's with the pseudo-documentary horrors? I expected a whole slew of these after Blair Witch, but never saw them, yet now they seem to have hit all of a sudden. Odd.
posted by Hdj (January 28, 2008 9:42 PM)
Well Romero hardly cashes in on anything. And most of all he's probably got a message to deliver like the rest of his movies. His Antiwar stuff and the mindlessness of shopping. Recently I watched "Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon".
That was a good pseudo-documentary horror. It was like a slasher documentary. So genre wise I think , every genre is being tested with this documentary style. Witches, ghost, monsters,slashers, and Zombies.
But Romero's looking a little frail and I don't think he'd want to be a on big set, so I'm not surprised he's staying low key as usual.
posted by MaryAnn (January 29, 2008 12:34 AM)
It's not odd at all. It's a reaction to the fact that we are suddenly innundated by amateur video, particularly after the 7/7 terrorist attacks in London, when most of the video we had of that day came from cell phones. Plus there's now YouTube, which has made it easy for amateur filmmakers to distribute their homemade movies. That's a new development since *Blair Witch,* and it has changed the visual medium far more than cheap camcorders did... or, at least, it extended the change that camcorders started.