film criticism by maryann johanson | “tinged with the pungent liquor of cynicism“
Now there’s a scenario for horror: Quentin Tarantino nipping at your heels: 1. The Final Destination: $15.295 million (2nd week; drops 44%) 2. Inglourious Basterds: $14.950 million (3rd week; drops 23%) 3. All About Steve: $14.1 million (NEW) 4. Gamer: $11.2 million (NEW) 5. District 9: $9.1 million (4th week; drops 11%) actual numbers, not … more…
Last week, over at Film.com, I wrote a piece pondering the weird fate of Mike Judge, that his movies end up being brilliant and being dismissed, only to end up as cult favorites of subversion and sedition on DVD. I dismissed out of hand the possibility that Extract, his new film, would be anything other … more…
We know how it is: You’d like to go to the movies this weekend, but it’s the last weekend of the summer and the last chance to burn dead animals on the barbecue — yum! — before the cool weather sets in. But you can have a multiplex-like experience at home with a collection of … more…
UPDATED: It’s turning out to be a much busier screening week than I expected. I’ve added two movies: The Boys Are Back (opens in the U.S. on September 25, and in the U.K. on January 15, 2010), starring Clive Owen as an Australian single dad, and Broken Embraces (opened in the U.K. on August 28; … more…
Mike Judge doesn’t do anything for no reason, but there’s a depressing sense of aimlessness, or not-knowing-what-he-wants-to-say-ishness to *Extract8 that is extra disappointing coming from this filmmaker, who has been so pointed and so clever up till now.
As of this writing, 15 movies will open wide in North America in the month of September. Which means that even if you’re an active moviegoer and see a movie each week, you’ve still gotta pick and choose (and it’s even worse if you’re in a city on the arthouse circuit, but let’s not make … more…
