my week at the movies: ‘Slumdog Millionaire,’ ‘Role Models,’ ‘Milk,’ ‘Soul Men’
Kind of a slow week for me. Only four movies? Lots of DVDs piled up here that I should be going through, though, so it’s not like I’m getting any kind of break... Hooray, Danny Boyle has a new movie! The Sunshine/28 Days Later director this time takes on a story that combines the instant-celebrity fantasies provided by game shows like Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? -- which apparently figures heavily into the plot and structure of the film -- with the realities of urban slum living that huge portions of the world’s populations contend with on a daily basis. Slumdog Millionaire (opens limited in the U.S. on November 12; opens in the U.K. on January 23, 2009). The script is by Simon Beaufoy, who wrote the wonderful Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, so, there’s another reason to hooray. Can Role Models (opens wide in the U.S. on November 7; opens in the U.K. on January 23, 2009) possibly be anything more than exactly what it looks like? A gal can hope...
Whether the anti-gay-marriage Prop 8 fails or wins in California tomorrow, Gus Van Sant’s biopic of groundbreaking San Francisico politician Harvey Milk should be fascinating. It’s got one of the most intriguing trailers I’ve ever seen, at least, plus an awesome cast: Sean Penn as Milk, plus Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin, James Franco, and Diego Luna. Cool. Milk (opens limited in the U.S. on November 26; opens in the U.K. on January 16, 2009). I’m not sure what to expect from Soul Men (opens wide in the U.S. on November 7; no U.K. release has been announced yet). Samuel L. Jackson is almost always a treat. On the other hand, director Malcolm D. Lee is responsible for Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins, and I use the word responsible in a legal sense, and by that I mean, Can someone be held criminally responsible for the abysmal badness of a movie? Because I’d be deeply interested in exploring that... support
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posted:
Mon Nov 03 08, 4:35PM categories: movie buzz permalink 8 pre-Disqus comments Disqus comments tip jarshare
read morerelated· new on DVD (Region 1 and Region 2): week of February 9 · Soul Men (review) · North American box office: ‘Twilight’ doesn’t suck · new DVD releases in Region 1 and Region 2, week of March 9, 2009 · U.K. box office: ‘Slumdog Millionaire’ lives up to its name · U.K. box office: ‘Role Models’ sets an excellent example · North American box office: ‘Quantum of Solace’ nothing to grieve over · North American box office: the lion is king as ‘Madagascar 2’ wins big · Role Models (review) · North American box office: ‘Taken’ takes the Super Bowl weekend top spot bloggyprevious post: U.K. box office special: ‘Quantum of Solace’ breaks British records next post: trailer break: ‘JCVD’ |
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pre-Disqus comments
posted by JoshDM (Mon Nov 03 08, 4:58PM)
As long a "Soul Men" doesn't involve multiple experimental tanning pill overdoses, we're probably safe.
posted by Anne-Kari (Mon Nov 03 08, 5:26PM)
MAJ - I did a quick look around your recent entries and didn't see "Let the Right One In" anywhere - is that one on your radar?
posted by blake (Mon Nov 03 08, 7:22PM)
Am I the only person who thinks that Sean Penn is a American Jude Law? Y'know in the sense that they are both a charisma black hole.
posted by MaryAnn (Tue Nov 04 08, 3:08PM)
I haven't seen it, and probably won't.
posted by Chris Beaubien (Thu Nov 06 08, 9:28PM)
Flick!
"Let The Right One In" is the best and most sincere horror-drama I have seen since "The Descent". It is the one vampire film that belongs with the ranks of "Shadow of the Vampire" and "Near Dark". If you don't see it in theaters, I hope you check it out on video. It is so thoughtfully chilling.
posted by Anne-Kari (Fri Nov 07 08, 11:14AM)
Chris B - I haven't seen "Let the Right One In" yet, but I've been impressed by the reviews I seen so far.
I think it would be interesting to see both LTROI and Twilight as a compare-n-contrast on different types of vampire lore cinema. I'd to see MaryAnn do that but I've got a feeling she's got more than enough on her plate!
posted by Dan (Fri Nov 21 08, 1:22AM)
Goodness yes, I hope you do actually see Let The Right One In. I liked it better than The Visitor or Frozen River, even. It'll be a classic.
posted by MaryAnn (Fri Nov 21 08, 3:29AM)
Well, I have, in fact, now seen LTROI (it came in a for-your-consideration package of screeners I got from Magnolia Films), and I'll post a short review on Friday.