Previews and Reviews that are Z's Views
I like the looks of the poster and trailer for The Secrets That We Keep. Hope you do as well.
In post-WWII America, a woman (Noomi Rapace), rebuilding her life in the suburbs with her husband (Chris Messina), kidnaps her neighbor (Joel Kinnaman) and seeks vengeance for the heinous war crimes she believes he committed against her. Directed by Yuval Adler from a script by Ryan Covington and Yuval Adler.
Bilge Ebiri at Vulture recently interviewed James Mangold about his experience directing Cop Land for Miramax. Mangold details the behind-the-scenes action to get the script sold and the film made.
It’s interesting to note that Cop Land went from being a script that didn’t sell to one of the hotest scripts on the market. Companies wanted just the script, actors wanted to star in it and Mangold wasn’t about to sell it without him at the helm.
The amazing cast – Stallone, DeNiro, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta, Michael Rappaport, Annabella Sciorra, Robert Patrick, and Janeane Garofalo – also may have actually overscaled the film. Also, despite the amazing performance by Stallone, his Rocky/Rambo fans didn’t get what they were used to and non-Stallone fans thought it would be another typical Sly action film so they avoided it!
Check out what Mangold has to say in Behind the Fantasy of the 1997 Movie Cop Land.
Here’s a new Unhinged poster and the final trailer. Cool idea to make the trailer a public service announcement. Unhinged should be a fun ride.
Starring: Russell Crowe, Caren Pistorius Directed By: Derrick Borte Synopsis: A woman becomes embroiled in a violent case of road rage after honking at the wrong guy.
If there ever wondered what a classic drive-in movie looked like, then check out the poster and trailer for Attack of the Unknown. It has everything you’d expect, B-level stars, questionable effects and monsters. I just might like this one. You know I love me a good drive-in movie.
Synopsis: A SWAT team transporting a vicious crime syndicate boss find themselves trapped inside a county detention center as the world burns around them. They have no communication with the outside world and must band together to escape the bloodthirsty alien forces attacking them. Attack of the Unknown stars Richard Grieco (21 Jump Street, Night at the Roxbury, If looks could Kill) Tara Reid (American Pie) and Robert LaSardo (Nip/Tuck, General Hospital, CSI Miami, Gang Related, NYPD Blue).
Cast: Richard Grieco, Tara Reid, Robert LaSardo
Arkansas (2020)
Director: Clark Duke
Screenplay: Clark Duke and Andrew Boonkrong (based on the novel by John Brandon)
Stars: Liam Hemsworth, Clark Duke, Michael Kenneth Williams, Vivica A. Fox, Eden Brolin, Chandler Duke, John Malkovich and Vince Vaughn.
The Pitch: “Clark Duke wants to turn Arkansas the book into Arkansas the movie!”
Tagline: Kyle and Swin are working their way to the top…but the top has other plans.
The Overview: Beware of Spoilers…
Kyle (Hemsworth), a low level drug courier, finds himself working with Swin (Clark) on a delivery. Neither would have never chosen the other to be a partner, but it’s what the boss wants. And the boss is a ruthless, mysterious Arkansas drug kingpin known only as Froggy.
Things go smoothly for Kyle and Swin until they don’t… and then the deadly retribution spiral begins.
I loved Arkansas. Great cast – Hemsworth has never been better – and Duke impressed me with his acting/directorial debut. Malkovich and Vaughn make everything better and this is no exception. I also enjoyed seeing Michael Kenneth Williams and Vivica Fox in supporting roles. Eden Brolin (Josh Brolin’s daughter) is an actress I hadn’t seen before and she was excellent. Brad William Henke and Jeff Chase have small but impressive, important roles. Arkansas has the right mix of tension and humor.
Arkansas may be too quirky for some, but I loved it.
The Stunt Double is a short film shot entirely on an iPhone by Academy Award® winner Damien Chazelle. This is a really well done short with a nice surprise ending.
A journey through cinema history is reimagined for the vertical screen in Damien Chazelle’s “The Stunt Double,” a short film Shot on iPhone 11 Pro.
Watch as classic genres are flipped on their side, from action movies to silent films, spy flicks to westerns, reframing and modernizing the movie magic we know and love.
If you’re of a particular age, it is almost a certainty that you dined ate at a Burger Chef. If you’re younger, then you may not have ever heard of the one-time fast food giant.
Back in the 1970s, Burger Chef was second only to McDonalds as far as fast food franchises went. Burger Chef was a hit and as a result their investors were earning returns where 50% wasn’t unheard of.
Burger Chef’s popularity was because they served a comparable (some would say even better) meal than other fast food joints and Burger Chef was making innovative moves. Burger Chef was the first with…
I worked at a Burger Chef when I was in college. I’ve shared this story before but if you missed it or would just like to revisit it, check out Star Wars, Burger Chef, Mike Kott and Me.
I have good memories of the folks I worked with and the food we served at Burger Chef. It’s too bad the chain didn’t survive. MeTV posted What ever happened to the Burger Chef chain? that explains their rise and fall. Since you’ve read this far, you’d probably enjoy it.
The poster and trailer for Measure for Measure are here. I’m always ready for a good crime story and this one mixes in a forbidden love as well. I’m in.
A contemporary re-telling of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure. An unlikely romance ignites between a young immigrant Muslim girl and a young musician, set against Melbourne’s notorious commission flats, where a world of crime, drugs, and racial disharmony reign….
Henry Winkler co-starred with Sly Stallone in Lords of Flatbush before he rocketed to fame as Fonzie on Happy Days. Most fans know that Winkler credits Stallone with his take on the Fonz. Winkler has a real admiration for Sly. Check out this section of Winkler’s interview with the Archive of American Television and you’ll see, but first a quote from the interview…
“I studied Sly, Sly Stallone. He was big, beefy… what Sly really was inside was funny, witty, unbelievably articulate and a brilliant writer… the tenderness inside… just a fabulous human being… The shame of Sly is you’ve never witnessed his wit. You’ve never seen him play that kind of humor. He is so fast and so funny!
Source: MeTV – Henry Winkler once explained how Sylvester Stallone inspired Fonzie’s voice.
Nick Murray Willis presents the 100 Greatest Movie Lines of All Time Animated! There are a lot of smiles in the video.
My favorite is from Gladiator. You’ll also get a kick out of “You Shall Not Pass!” And, of course, we have “Yo! Adrian! I did it!” Check out the video below for all 100…
Reni Santoni, 81, died on August 1, 2020, at hospice after a long illness. Sanotni appeared in over 100 film and television roles. Most folks probably know Santoni best from his role as Poppie on Seinfeld. My favorite Santoni performances were in Dirty Harry and Cobra but it was always a pleasure when Santoni appeared on any show or movie.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family, friends and fans.
Check out this sweet Rocky / Apollo poster created by Jarrod The Yardsale Artist Alberich and Mark Hatherley. Jarrod took on Rocky and Mark brought his talents to Apollo.
What makes this even cooler is that the created the art during one of their weekly Livestream sessions. They were joined by John Beatty (creating a commission for one of his fans). I also provided some color commentary for the video. I’ve embedded the video below, if you’re so inclined.
Also if you’re interested, Jarrod has made the Rocky / Apollo print available for fans!
Here we have the poster and trailer for The Silencing. Looks pretty good!
A reformed hunter and a female sheriff get caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse when they set out to track a killer who may have kidnapped his daughter five years earlier.
The poster and trailer for Seized are here. Glad to see Mario Peebles in this Scott Adkins action movie. Hopefully it will be a fun couple of hours.
Hiding out with his son Taylor on the Mexican coast, Nero (Scott Adkins, Doctor Strange) hopes to put his violent Special Forces career behind him. But after Nero’s home is attacked and Taylor is abducted, the mysterious Mzamo (Mario Van Peebles, Heartbreak Ridge) orders Nero to slaughter the members of three rival crime syndicates. If he fails, Taylor will die. With bullets flying and bodies dropping, Nero must now complete his mission ― and find Mzamoʼs hideout, to exact his revenge.
Director: Isaac Florentine
I saw Airplane in a packed theater when it was initially released. The laughter was non-stop. Airplane is a film that benefits from a crowd. I’ve watched it several times since and the bigger the crowd the bigger the laughs. Airplane is still worth a watch either alone or with others.
Rob Hunter and Film School Rejects present 31 Things We Learned from the ‘Airplane!’ Commentary. Before you click over, here are three of my favorite comments…
These early drafts (of the script) were initially titled The Late Show as they intended to include their commercial gags as well with the spoof movie itself being filler. They brought it to Lloyd Schwartz who suggested that the airplane story was “funnier and more interesting” than the commercial spoofs.
(I think that they were wise to drop the commercial gags. Playing it straight made for a much funnier film. – Craig)
Lloyd Bridges had a lot of questions trying to understand his character, his motivation, and his dialogue, and Robert Stack pointed out that the visual gags were so frequent and nonsensical that no one in the audience was going to care. “Lloyd, we are the joke,” said Stack to Lloyd.
(Can you imagine you’re the director prepping the scene and Bridges wants to discuss background and motivation for his, “I picked the wrong week to quit sniffing glue” line? – Craig)
Stack was apparently offered a percentage of the film or an extra $20k, and he chose poorly.
($20K in the hand or a percentage on a risky film with Hollywood bookkeeping? Not an easy choice. – Craig)
