I won't do an Irish pun.

I'm not Irish, but you don't have to be to get into the St. Patrick's day spirit. Everywhere I go today, people are wearing green, drinking green beer and passing out in alleys. It's a wonderful holiday. Check out some of the blogs that have chosen to acknowledge in their own film-related way:

(Image from The Film Experience)

• Nathaniel over at the Film Experience gives us Irish actresses we should know, as well as a "Kiss Him, He's Irish," a guessing game of actors, and a top 10 list of "Green Skinned Wonders."
• The Mad Hatter over at The Dark of the Matinee tells us "5 Irish films we should check out," including one of my favs, Once.
• Erin Stevensen over at EW also gives a St. Patrick's toast with "17 Celtic Classics"
• The Nerdy Bird at Has Boobs, Reads Comics, cheers Irish girly Evanna Lynch, aka HP's Luna Lovegood
• Finally, James White over at Total Film tells us "11 Cool Movie Bars," we need to hit up
  

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Eisenberg Kills Your Darlings 

Upcoming star of Adventureland, and current fav, Jesse Eisenberg has now been added to the cast roster for Kill Your Darlings, where he'll be playing famed poet, Allen Ginsberg. Kill Your Darlings will follow a murder, and how it triggered the "beat" generation.Chris Evans (Sunshine, Fantastic Four) will star as Jack Kerouac, and Ben Whishaw (Perfume, Brideshead Revisited) will play Lucien Carr, the Columbia student who brings them all together, and is charged for the murder. With all the Ginsbergs and Kerouacs flying around, "beat" seems to be back. I never thought I'd say that. 

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Franco Gets Into Character

Ginsburg appears to be popular these days! Now on top of the news about Kill Your Darlings, we have the first images of James Franco also playing Allen Ginsberg in the upcoming Howl. The film will follow the obscenity trial of Ginsberg after his most famous poem, Howl, was published. They have an all star cast aboard (Paul Rudd, Mary Louise Parker, Jeff Daniels, Alan Alda and more), so Howl looks like it has a shot at greatness, but we won't know till 2010. Franco's look will differ greatly from Eisenberg's I'm sure.

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David The Director 

David Hayter couldn't get you to see his movie when he wrote it, so now he'll take a stab at it from the Director's seat. Hayter, writer of the Watchmen script, and the first 2 X-Men movies, is forming a company called "Dark Hero Studios" with producer Benedict Carver, where they'll work on projects in the action, sci-fi and horror genres. The duo's first project will be a werewolf thriller called Slaughter's Road (bad title). Thomas Dekker (John Connor in TSCC) is in talks to star. Sounds like either all the pieces will finally fall into place for Hayter, or it'll be giant tornado of wrong for the guy.

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Bombs Away (but good ones)

Away We Go Trailer I love John Krasinski. That is all. 

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Tuesday DVD Rundown

• Elegy
• Punisher 2: War Zone
• Goal 2: Living The Dream
• Wuthering Heights
• Dodes’ka-den: Criterion Edition
• Mr. Belvedere: Seasons 1 & 2
  
• Twilight (will release this Friday, March 21st)

Go here for the complete list

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A Plug for Film The Blanks

I have to thank Mattson Tomlin for his recommendation today to check out this awesome little website, Film The Blanks. I really like little brainteasers like this so the site was right up my alley, plus some of the posters are actually really beautiful. Check it out! (Thanks Mattson!)

ps- Watch With Kristin's report on the dual kissing photos that leaked from the Gossip Girl set, if you're interested.

Short and Sweet: Oscar Edition

I'm getting the feeling from what I've been reading, that a lot of people enjoyed last night's Academy Awards show...

WHY?

It was boring to the max, and almost completely without surprises or standout memorable moments. But what's not surprising, is that a year lacking in great jaw dropping cinema, produced a less than amazing Oscar night. After all the glorified talk of making drastic changes and reinventing the very broken wheel that is the Academy Awards, all that was left were a few awkward musical numbers, one kind of funny video directed by Judd Apatow, and a failed stab at reviving "old hollywood." Maybe there is a generational gap in enjoyment level? I have found that people a little older really enjoyed the ceremony, and found it classier and more entertaining than it's been in years. But with younger people (like me) it felt was more boring and lacking in originality than ever. You can check out SpoutBlog Oscar's Twittered here, which is pretty hilarious. I won't go into too much more detail about the winners or the ceremony, cause it's been done ad-nausea already, but I will say that, 1. I got 12 out of my 15 predictions right (woot!), and 2. Despite my general upset with the show, below are a few of my fav moments. As you can see, there aren't many.

Anne Hathaway Singing with Hugh Jackman
I appreciated the opening musical number for what it tried to accomplish, and for the true earnestness of Jackman's (who was clearly nervous) performance, but that doesn't change the fact that the musical numbers felt awkward and a little uncomfortable. However, when Jackman literally swept Anne Hathaway off her chair and brought her up to sing, that was a great moment. Who'd have thought she'd get her big singing break as Richard Nixon?



Tina Fey and Steve Martin
Tina Fey and Steve Martin have already proven their hilarity to the world, but if there was anyone still out there questioning their comedic chops, the Oscars proved their humor once again. Check out some of their dialogue below:

Tina Fey: "It has been said that to write is to live forever."
Steve Martin: "The man who said that is dead."
TF: "Yet, we all know the importance of writing, because every great movie begins with a great screenplay."
SM: "Or, a very good idea for the poster. But usually, with a screenplay."
TF: "And every writer starts with a blank page."
SM: "And every blank page was once a tree."
TF: "And every tree was once a tiny seed."
SM: "And every tiny seed on Earth was placed here by the alien king Rondelay, to foster our titrates and fuel our positive transfers!"
TF: "But no one wants to hear about our religion Steve."

SM: "Don't fall in love with me."

Ben Stiller (as Joaquin Phoenix) and Natalie Portman
While it's not hard to do a Joaquin Phoenix impression these days, Ben Stiller still excelled at the task. From sticking his gum on the podium, to walking aimlessly around stage (reminiscent of John McCain), he got big laughs and it worked. Definitely one of the few memorable moments of the night.


Marion Cottilard Introducing Kate Winslet
I wasn't a fan of the whole "5 actors introducing the 5 nominees" thing. Not only did I miss seeing clips of the actor's performances, but it took them forever to give out the damn award! However, seeing Marion Cotillard's heartfelt introduction of Kate Winslet was sweet, and it melted some of my bitterness away. Plus I loved her dress! lots of sparkle this year.

Seth Rogen and James Franco reprising Pineapple Express
As they sit on the couch, watching this year's list of contenders, I'm reminded why I love these guys so much, and am saddened that their movie will never get more critical props. Whether they're chuckling manically at Kate Winslet's accent in The Reader, or stapling dollar bills to each other's heads, they're having a good time. I guess I just wish there had been more of that feeling throughout the show. But bringing in the Pineapple boys showed some growth on Oscar's part.



So there you have it, my 5 fav moments from this year's Academy Awards. It was a bummer year, there's a whole new year ahead of us, full of possibility and recession-ized movies, so who knows what the future will bring. Maybe next year we'll see Joaquin performing "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp."

Movie Review: Drink Up

I loved Emile Hirsch in Milk. This may not be a traditional way to start a review about a film starring Sean Penn, but despite excellent performances elicited from Penn and good ones from James Franco and Josh Brolin, I loved Hirsch the best. Of course, I love Emile in almost everything, and have made it a life-goal to become the next Mrs. Hirsch, but please, don't let that color my review. From his mop of curly brown hair, to his coke bottle glasses, I adored seeing Emile go gay. Now, that I've gotten my praise for Hirsch out of the way, lets get down to brass tacks. Sean Penn's done it again. He literally becomes Harvey Milk, assassinated gay rights activist, from head to toe. If I had to pick one actor in Hollywood who is a true chameleon, it would have to be Penn, hands down. We've seen him play everything from a grief-stricken mafia boss, to a mentally challenged single father, and even a pizza-loving surfer dude. As Harvey, Penn gives a much more joyful performance than I have seen him do in a long time. His last few characters (21 Grams and Mystic River) have been solemn men with hard exteriors, but in Milk, he glides over the audience like a cool, refreshing beverage. You drink up Milk, but before you say "can I have some more please," the joyful presence that lights up the screen, is extinguished. Penn is able to showcase different sides to Harvey throughout the film. You can see him flamboyantly emerging in San Francisco gay culture, but also retreating to his kitchen, contemplating thoughts of his own assassination. Some may find themselves feeling more attached to the character of Milk than others, but I think it would be difficult for anyone to not feel emotional at his tragic death. 

A big reason Milk resonates so much with audiences is the reality which the characters are based in. I don't mean that they're just based on real people, but that the performances feel relatively un-jaded by film. These are people you know, minus the seventies clothing. The fight they fought then, is one we're still fighting now. With the recent voting of Prop 8, it appears that little has changed from Harvey's "recruiting" days to now. Gay people may be entitled to privacy regarding their orientation in relation to their jobs or health care, but they're still not allowed the same rights I have as a heterosexual. Who knows how much the film will ultimately do in changing anyone's perspective, but it does reiterate the importance of never giving up on the issues that matter. I can only hope that the people who most need to see the film, will, but my skeptical side thinks probably not. Beyond its political message, Milk is also a love story. It's about the love affair that people had with Harvey, and how that enabled him to have short-lived, yet successful, effect on real lives. He saved people, and all of it might never have happened if not for a chance meeting with a handsome boy named Scott.

Scott is played by James Franco, and while it's nice to see Franco show us yet another side to himself, I wouldn't say he stands out in this film (for a better example of Franco's versatility see Pineapple Express). However, I can see why Gus Van Sant cast him. He's a likable, good looking guy, who emanates real warmth throughout the entire movie. You can appreciate the relationship he develops with Harvey, but it never quite sweeps you off your feet. As an alternative to the warmth shown by Franco, Josh Brolin plays his cards close to the vest. It's been a good couple of years for Brolin, hitting the big time with No Country for Old Men, and recently starring in Oliver Stone's W. As San Francisco City Supervisor, he keeps you at a distance, but lets you in just enough to know he'll explode any minute. Again, Brolin's performance fits in the film, but was not a particular stand out. Side bar characters played by Alison Pill and Diego Luna end up generating more original and memorable performances, even if featured in only a handful of scenes. Lesser known Jospeh Cross is also great, as well as Denis O'Hare, who plays Senator John Briggs (aka devil spawn of Anita Bryant).  

With Milk representing Van Sant's return to mainstream cinema, I wondered how indie it would end up feeling. The man has already proved himself capable of helming a bigger budget production, but the last few years he's spent doing films like Elephant and Last Days (both disturbing and unbelievably quiet), so I had to wonder if he would turn Milk into a dramatically paced 24 hours leading up to the murder. Luckily, Van Sant revisited his roots, and gave us a joyous yet still calamitous retelling of a man's life, who deserves to be remembered. Milk draws you in to a world of the past, but frequently reminds you that history has a way of repeating itself. 

Short and Sweet

Larger than life man collides with gay rights movement, and suddenly what was happening on Castro Street exploded over the rest of the country. The end of his story is not the reason worth telling it. Harvey Milk's life makes for a great story because of the people that surrounded him, and the things that he accomplished while still alive. He was inspiration for so many from the past, and maybe this movie can help him become an inspiration for people now. Sean Penn once again lights up the screen along with protege Emile Hirsch. See the film and experience warmth and heart that radiates from the entire cast (except Josh Brolin). 

Fav Quotes

"Can two men reproduce?"   

"No, but God knows we keep trying."  - Dan White and Harvey Milk

"Are you on uppers or something?"

"No, this is just plain old me."  - Scott Smith and Harvey Milk