Sci-Fi Rod Lott
One of the hotter tickets at last fall's Fantastic Fest was Extraterrestrial. I couldn't get in. I understood why at the time: It's the new film from Timecrimes director Nacho Vigalondo! Now that I've seen it, I wonder how many who did get in wish they hadn't. It's a huge disappointment.
Drama Rod Lott
Whereas the 2010 documentary Inside Job gave a big-picture view at how Wall Street nearly eroded the American economy, the HBO telefilm Too Big to Fail dramatizes the behind-the-scenes dealings.
Does 457 minutes of Batman sound like a good Bat-time to you?
Sleep? Who needs it?
Certainly not debonair billionaire Bruce Wayne. Because if he took time to catch some Zs, who would keep Gotham City in check? That dude dons cowl and cape every night, busting his ass to keep it clean of jokers.
I speak of Batman, of course. I’ve been a huge Batman fan since Adam West and Burt Ward camped it up in reruns of their Pop Art-inspired series. The caped crusader was the first Halloween costume I remember having — and homemade by my loving mother, even!
Therefore, more than any other movie this year, I look forward to The Dark Knight Rises, the final chapter in director Christopher Nolan’s defining trilogy that began in 2005 with Batman Begins and hit unexpected creative heights three years later with the double Oscar-winning, billion-buck grosser, The Dark Knight, putting the misdeeds of Joel Schumacher and his nipple suits far in the past.
Which goes back to the issue of nocturnal slumber: Beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, Harkins Bricktown Cinemas, 150 E. Reno, hosts The Ultimate Dark Knight Marathon, screening Nolan’s first two Batman films before Rises, well, rises at midnight.
For $20, you can catch all three movies, plus get a commemorative lanyard and some refreshments. Better make the drink something with a serious dose of caffeine. For more information, call 231-4747 or visit harkinstheatres.com. —Rod Lott
It details Smithsonian Folkways’ efforts at compiling the new, three-disc box set,Woody at 100, which: • came out yesterday; • features 57 songs in total, 21 of them previously unreleased performances and six never-before-heard; and • includes a 154-page book with essays and art galore.
Take a gander at the label’s restoration process and behind-the-scenes work:
Rachel Weisz commits the vice of adultery in a drama so pedestrian-paced, it makes sex look boring.
Drama Rod Lott
Don’t confuse last year’s drama The Deep Blue Sea with Deep Blue Sea, the 1999 action movie about sharks. Based on a stage play, this is the one that could use some sharks.
Drama Rod Lott
Composer Jack McKenzie (David Arquette, Scream 4)
is not at his best. His career has tanked due to sobriety issues
stemming from an auto accident that killed one of his two children with
his now ex-wife. To clear his mind and pay the bills, he takes a gig as a
limo driver.
A nice place to visit, but you wouldn't want to live there.
Thriller Rod Lott
It's both a blessing and a shame that Zoom In: Sex Apartments
carries such an exploitative title: a blessing because it may trick
some horny guys into watching a better movie than they'd expect, and a
shame because, well, Sex Apartments. (Hey, it could be worse: The original subtitle was Rape Apartments.)
Western Rod Lott
Is there a title more intriguing yet baffling than the punctuation-heavy Django, Kill! (If You Live Shoot!)?
Don't answer that. The important thing is just that the 1967 Italian
cult favorite now has been unleashed uncensored on Blu-ray from Blue
Underground.