Pineapple Express It might seem like your everyday stoner comedy, but Pineapple Express is a strange comedic beast. It was helmed by dramatic indie filmmaker David Gordon Green, it brought Huey Lewis and the News back to the world of cinema songwriting, and, of course, it gave us an excellent duo to get high with -- Seth Rogen and James Franco. Buy iton DVD or Blu-ray.
Righteous Kill Righteous Kill is right, but not in the way that makes the eyes blaze with excitement, but the way that makes you groan in disappointment. While joining heavy weights Robert De Niro and Al Pacino was a big to-do, that was the only noteworthy piece of this police v. serial killer story. Still, it's Rob and Al, so if you're curious: Rent iton DVD or Blu-ray.
Disaster Movie Oh, if only we could be back in the days of Airplane. Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer show no signs of stopping their terrible spoof addiction, and this time it's all about disasters. Need I say more? Skip it on DVD or Blu-ray.
During the Chargers vs. Colts playoff game yesterday, NBC was airing commercials advertising a 3D trailer for the movie Monsters vs. Aliens (first of its kind?), which will also coincide with the airing of a full episode of the TV show Chuck in 3D. The trailer will arrive at the end of the 2nd quarter of the Superbowl, and yes -- you'll have to pick up a pair of 3D glasses to watch it. Apparently, these 3D glasses -- which will be just like the ones you wore growing up, with one side red and the other blue, will be available at select Pepsi and Sobe kiosks leading up to the big game. No word on where these special kiosks are located, but I'm sure there will be a formal announcement and/or a website with exact details coming very soon.
Is it a fun gimmick that'll give folks something to look forward to during the Superbowl? Yes, definitely. People like little things like this, especially the ones who have kids and host big game day parties. But does it show the world how far we've come in the advancement of 3D technology? Not really. These will probably be the same glasses I wore to watch 1991's Nightmare on Elm Street 6. Then again, maybe it's about getting people used to the idea of 3D again -- bringing it into their homes, seeing how far they'll go to buy the glasses on their own, etc ... What do you think? Is this something we should be excited about?
Yes, folks, from time to time we're going to promote a book on Cinematical -- which means you'd actually have to read something -- but trust us when we say it's good for ya, like eating vegetables or running naked through Banana Republic. Cinematical reader (and author) Clive Young pointed us toward his new book Homemade Hollywood: Fans Behind the Camera, which is all about you crazy movie geeks out there who spend tons of money on your own fan films, from what they looked like back in the 1920s all the way up to the current YouTube generation.
From the press release: "Who would swing off a six-story building for a homemade Spider-Man movie? Why would newlyweds with a baby spend $20,000 on a Star Wars film from which they can never profit? How did three nobodies blow Steven Spielberg's mind with an Indiana Jones flick they made as teens in the Eighties? They're all part of the Fan Film revolution--an underground movement where amateur filmmakers are creating illegal movies starring world-famous characters, from Batman to Captain Kirk to Harry Potter.
Homemade Hollywood: Fans Behind The Camera follows their stories and more as it traces fan films from the 1920s – when con men made fake Little Rascals movies – to the YouTube videos of today. Regular people are using camcorders, computers and classic characters to make movies that fans want to see – and which lawyers, copyrights and common sense would never allow."
(We're reposting our SXSW review of The Lost Coast to coincide with the film's release via Amazon VOD)
By: Eric D. Snider
As Jasper, the narrator and protagonist of The Lost Coast, begins to describe the events of Halloween night, he says, "We found a dead body -- but more on that later." You know it's an eventful night when discovering a corpse isn't even the lead story.
In this moody, occasionally dreamlike drama, it's not what happens to Jasper and his friends that's important, so much as what happens within Jasper's soul. Yes, most of the drama here is internal, and while writer/director Gabriel Fleming falls prey to some of the missteps typical of new filmmakers, he gets a lot right, too, with a lot of emotional insight.
The film is constructed around an e-mail that twentysomething Jasper (Ian Scott McGregor) is writing to his fiancee overseas, in which he explains what happened the previous night. We gather from his tone that the events were of some importance, and the fact that it was Halloween in San Francisco -- one of the most raucous nights in a raucous city -- suggests there may have been shenanigans (if you know what I mean).
Scott Weinberg and I are the Cinematical night owls. You're probably reading this at a very sensible time of the day, enjoying something called "sunshine" and a "blue sky," and we're probably sleeping. That's how dedicated the folks at Cinematical are -- we work around the clock!
I tell you this because you might be wondering why one Cinematical writer is posting about another. That's because Mr. Weinberg likes to shyly send me links to prove he never actually does sleep, and instead works 24/7 watching, reviewing, and compiling the best and worst in horror films all year long. He's gone and done it again over at GreenCine, compiling the Top 50 Horror DVDs of 2008. I've seen maybe three of these, because I actually do require sleep.
So heck -- I decided to be the Pepper Potts to his Tony Stark and write up a little something, since he was too modest to do it himself. Plus, the real reason Weinberg sent me the link was to show me GreenCine, which I'm itching to explore further. This place is like an indie-Netflix, with the added benefit of being able to access a community of lists, reviews, and recommendations. You can rent, download, and buy movies here -- it's going to be a lot of fun to watch this place grow. Between this and Netflix, movie fans may be leaving their houses less and less. I know you and I will -- we've got to beat Weinberg at his own movie watching game!
What are you renting this week? Let us know in the comments! To get you started, here's our look at more than a dozen new releases.
Serenity Joss Whedon's TV series Firefly inspired a rabid fan base, myself included. The sci-fi Western featured good-looking, likable characters, witty dialogue, and a breezy pace. The 2005 movie was a thrilling, fitting capstone for a series that ended far too soon, but stands on its own just fine. Previously released on DVD and HD-DVD, the Blu-ray version adds several new features (detailed by Peter Bracke at High-Def Digest). Serenity is buoyant entertainment and rewards repeat viewings. Buy it.
Woman on the Beach A sublime tale, Woman is a leisurely, dramatic battle of the sexes that's funny and insightful. J. Hoberman of the Village Voice described it as "a rueful tale of karmic irony, self-deceived desire, squandered second chances, and unforeseen abandonment." He noted director Hong Sang-soo's affinities with Eric Rohmer and Albert Brooks "in his deadpan presentation of absurd antics." In Korean with English subtitles. The DVD includes a "making of," interviews, and a trailer. Woman on the Beach is an ideal choice for date night. Rent it.
Towelhead Directed by Alan Ball (American Beauty, Six Feet Under), this "controversial and polarizing" drama relates what happens to "a 13-year-old Lebanese-American girl living in Texas during the first Gulf War," per our own Eric D. Snider, who was writing in response to an Islamic group's call for a title change. The DVD includes a two-part featurette, "Towelhead: A Community Discussion." Sight unseen (by me), it sounds like a sure cure for a New Year's Day hangover. Rent it.
Luckily my neighbors are quiet and keep to themselves, but TV neighbors tend to cause a bit more trouble. Check out this list of the most annoying TV neighbors.
Have you always wanted to create your own t-shirt and also happen to be a big fan of NBC's The Office? Well how about entering this contest where the winner will have their shirts sold in the NBC store. Cool.
The online premiere of the cult HBO show Flight of the Conchords scored 250,000 viewers. This begs the question: Should more TV shows premiere online? (And speaking of, watch the pilot episode of Showtime's The United States of Tara -- which was written by Diablo Cody -- over here using the password, 'tara'.)
With all the different holidays in December, I'm sure a good majority of you received at least one gift at some point in the last week or so. And seeing as most of the folks who read this blog are serious movie nerds, we're guessing your gift(s) were related to movies in some way, shape or form. Perhaps you took our advice and purchased something from our should-be-award-winning Holiday Movie Junk series (which, due to its popularity, will continue into the new year under the title Movie Junk), or maybe you did your own research and smoked out a tasty little movie-related treat so random and so absurd that you're just dying to share it with someone else.
Me? I didn't get much. The only movie-related thing I really asked for was A Christmas Story on Blu-ray, which I received, but haven't watched yet. Like most of you, we kept our spending to a minimum this year. But I'm curious to hear what cool movie-related gear you all received. Let us know in the comments section below -- and try to tell us where it's from if it isn't obvious.
You may have noticed there was no release list this past Tuesday, as the big releases are all hitting shelves today (or yesterday or tomorrow -- it' seriously varies depending on store), and we're fully in the Christmas lull. Read on for today's handful of Hollywood films and 12/23 releases.
The Duchess Ah, another film with Keira Knightley in period clothing. This time around, she's Georgiana, the Duchess of Devonshire, and she's a powerful woman reduced to love in secret under the reign of a rigid and mean husband (Ralph Fiennes). However, while Mr. Fiennes pulls off a chilling performance as the Duke of Devonshire, this period offers little of Georgiana's triumphs, much of her romantic turmoil, and not enough compelling cohesiveness to give her story a chance. Skip it.
Eagle Eye First, DJ Caruso brought us Shia LaBeouf under house arrest in Disturbia. Now he's let Shia run around maniacally with Michelle Monaghan for Eagle Eye, as two innocent strangers become at the whim of a powerful phone caller who turns them into fugitives. This is one of those action flicks that did well in the box office, but didn't get a lot of critical love. Nevertheless, it's action to break up the holiday monotony, so Rent it.
Well, it's the day after Christmas -- Santa has packed up his sh*t and ditched town for another whole year -- and we're left with some stuff we want, some stuff we don't want and some stuff we haven't yet figured out. Like me, most of you will probably head on back to the mall today or over the weekend to do some returning, and with that extra cash in your pocket you might be looking for something film-related to pick up. Well, those new and old Blu-ray costumers should seriously run on over to Amazon.com, who have put roughly 200 titles on sale for 50% off.
The Sci-Fi Channel plays a lot of really crappy new genre movies. We know it, they know it ... and yet still the assembly line of cinematic detritus continues unabated, peppered with titles like Anaconda 3, Monster Ark, and Kraken: Tentacles of the Deep. Most of the "Sci-Fi Originals" are films that they bought or bankrolled at a low price -- and yeah, they're generally perfect for bored Saturday night viewing, provided you have a beer or a bong close by.
But according to Fango, the network just signed a deal to air three (slightly) more well-known properties. The first will be Simon Hunter's The Mutant Chronicles, which stars Thomas Jane and Ron Perlman. (I've seen this one. It's ... not great.) Then we'll get a nifty little gimmick thriller called 100 Feet, in which Famke Janssen is harassed by an evil spirit while she spends time on house arrest. Lastly, Magnolia's slick monster movie Splinter, which got a cursory theatrical release last month, will also play on Sci-Fi. Looks like we're holding until about June of next year though...
...which kinda stinks because I want to add Splinter to my DVD collection.
Warning: This might be PG, but it might also be NSFW with its sex faces and raunchy treatment of cartoon characters.
Yes, it's time for Troma icon James Gunn's latest PG Porn, and this time he asks a question I'm sure we all wonder: What would've happened to the Peanuts gang if they grew up? However, rather than just adult content, we get the Peanuts "Peanus"-style, with Smallville's Michael Rosenbaum as Charlie and Belladonna as Lucy Van Pelt.
As per usual, there is no sex, but there is the classic Lucy viciousness. Charlie invites Lucy in, things start to get frisky while Schroeder plays the piano, and then Lucy reverts to her classic jerky self. Seeing Belladonna in action, I'm thinking that Carla Gugino is playing the wrong porn star. But wait -- there's more. If you'd rather have your Peanus in special Christmas doses, Gunn's blog says that A Very Peanus Special will air on IGN sometime today.
This episode has got me thinking -- instead of all the damn remakes lately, maybe someone can focus on some smart and biting twists on where our icons are now -- kids grown up, heroes after they retire, etc. -- a Galaxy Quest to stretch beyond the sci-fi crowd!
Movie fanatics are a tough bunch to shop for because we own everything. The moment it goes on sale, it's in our hot little hands, leaving our families and friends high and dry when it comes to DVDs and box sets. How many people will try to buy you The Dark Knight this Christmas? (Thank goodness for store credit and gift receipts.)
Still, with budgets being tightened all across the country, there's probably a lot of you that have put The Dark Knight on your Christmas list to be purchased by those generous people in your circle. Or maybe there's some movies such as Tropic Thunder or Wall-E that you caught as a rental, and are now desperate to own.
Of course, we aren't all about the new and shiny here. With the format war being decided in favor of Blu-ray, older movies are being reissued every day. Plus, there are always box sets and anthologies making us drool -- the Ultimate Collector's Casablanca or that ridiculously huge Dirty Harry Ultimate Collector's Edition. (It seems the height of arrogance that I Am Legend has a similar release this year, doesn't it?)
So, why not share the DVD you hope to find under your tree this Christmas? While you're at it, why not tell us which DVD releases you think were the best of the year? The Tropic Thunder DVD was a universal favorite here at Cinematical, but The Dark Knight's bare bones release left us disappointed. Enough responses, and we'll put together a poll to decide the question once and for all.
Hey, girls! Get out your biggest, purplest Magic Marker and circle Feb. 17 on your 2009 Zac Efron calendar! That's the day High School Musical 3: Senior Year will be released on DVD and Blu-Ray, thus satiating the squeal-producing needs of the tween set at least until Twilight comes out.
DVD Active has some of the details on the three different ways you can buy the film. The single-disc DVD, for people who call themselves fans but obviously aren't real fans, will have the movie and a featurette of cast members saying goodbye to the trilogy. I don't know why you'd even want that. You might as well throw your money in the bushes and spit on Corbin Bleu. On the other hand, the 2-disc DVD will have an extended cut of the film, more featurettes, deleted scenes, outtakes, a sing-along feature, and a digital copy of the film that you can transfer to your computer or your iPod or your toaster or whatever you kids are putting your movies on nowadays.
But you might want to harass your parents into buying a Blu-Ray player, because the 3-disc Blu-Ray edition is where the real action is. You get all the stuff already mentioned, plus cast profiles, a Senior Awards feature, a BD Live Experience, and a regular ol' DVD copy of the extended version of the movie. The 3-disc edition is the most expensive one, so obviously that's the one you should support.
We have the cover artwork after the jump. You'll note that they were nice enough to include Taylor in the picture even though she's hardly in the movie. Good for her!
In today's technology-obsessed entertainment world, most of the animated fare is done with computers. That's not to say it's any less legit than hand-drawn animation -- because if you're working on a CG feature, you BETTER know how to animate in "traditional" fashion -- but I'm just explaining why the sweat behind the Wallace & Gromit films is just a little extra-special. Plus, with three award-winning shorts and a fantastic feature behind them, W & G have more than proven their worth by now.
So YAY! Aardman Animation has a new one to show us! A Matter of Loaf and Death will premiere on BBC1 come Christmas Day, so I might have to wait a few extra weeks, but boy am I psyched to see it. (I've watched The Wrong Trousers, A Grand Day Out, and A Close Shave more times than I care to mention -- and I say The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is just awesome.) According to the official site, the 30-minute Loaf and Death is a mystery about missing bakers -- but you can (can't) check out the trailer right here!
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Yes, folks, from time to time we're going to promote a book on Cinematical -- which means you'd actually have to read something -- but trust us when we say it's good for ya, like eating vegetables or running naked through Banana Republic. Cinematical reader (and author) 
Scott Weinberg and I are the Cinematical night owls. You're probably reading this at a very sensible time of the day, enjoying something called "sunshine" and a "blue sky," and we're probably sleeping. That's how dedicated the folks at Cinematical are -- we work around the clock!
Our brothers and sisters over at -(2).jpg)
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The Sci-Fi Channel plays a lot of really crappy new genre movies. We know it, they know it ... and yet still the assembly line of cinematic detritus continues unabated, peppered with titles like Anaconda 3, Monster Ark, and Kraken: Tentacles of the Deep. Most of the "Sci-Fi Originals" are films that they bought or bankrolled at a low price -- and yeah, they're generally perfect for bored Saturday night viewing, provided you have a beer or a bong close by.
Movie fanatics are a tough bunch to shop for because we own everything. The moment it goes on sale, it's in our hot little hands, leaving our families and friends high and dry when it comes to DVDs and box sets. How many people will try to buy you The Dark Knight this Christmas? (Thank goodness for store credit and gift receipts.)
Hey, girls! Get out your biggest, purplest Magic Marker and circle Feb. 17 on your 2009 
In today's technology-obsessed entertainment world, most of the animated fare is done with computers. That's not to say it's any less legit than hand-drawn animation -- because if you're working on a CG feature, you BETTER know how to animate in "traditional" fashion -- but I'm just explaining why the sweat behind the 
