Tag Archives: Steven Spielberg

Blog Posts, Movies

Trailer Talk: Jurassic World

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Our relationship with new iterations and evolutions of our premier pop cultural staples of childhood can face upward battles of acceptance. There is an inevitable increase of cynicism laced with an “it’s never going to be as good as the original” negativity, but we often forget that it was our wide-eyed wonderment and open-hearted imagination that allowed the youthful connection to be made in the first place. As my experience with the 3D rerelease a few years ago can attest, the world of Jurassic holds one of the most special places in my heart of fandom. Today’s first theatrical trailer unveiling (first sent to me by fellow brother of Isla Nublar nation, Nik Walker) for next summer’s franchise reboot, Jurassic World, brings me such an uninhibited joy. On June 12 of next year it will have been fourteen years since the last ill-advised and chaotic exploration (and mostly forgettable) of this Jurassic mega-franchise, and it feels like this fourth theatrical release is hatching at just the right time.

Here are some of my major takeaways in trailer chronological order:

  • Note to kids being sent on a trip by your parents: If your parents are David Wallace from The Office and Kitty from Arrested Development and they remind you to remember to “run” if something chases you, don’t go on the trip.

  • Universal’s opening logo animation has an emotional linkage to Jurassic Park and its subsidiaries in an MGM Wizard of Oz or 20th Century Fox Star Wars kind of way. Legendary Pictures makes me think of Christopher Nolan’s motion pictures. So far, so great.

  • Yes, the Jurassic World gates may be a bit too CGIed, but this is a much appreciated iconic allusion. If only the late Richard Attenborough could narrate a “Welcome to Jurassic World” voiceover and we would be in transcendent anticipation territory.

  • “The Park Is Open.” And what a park it is! Key features include: Disney Park crowds, Disney Park commercialism (Oakley apparently opened up a shop), Gallimimus safaris, a decked out Gyrosphere through Brachiosaurus fields, a monorail, and a water theater with sharks used as dino-Shamu bait and water-splashing used as a way to promote LifeProof cases for iPhones.

  • Nothing reduces potential fan anxiety more than the declaration that Jurassic World is “from executive producer Steven Spielberg.” In Sir Steven we trust.

  • “We have our first genetically modified hybrid.” Ok, Bryce Dallas Howard’s bangs. This is not going to end well.

  • It took 1:34 seconds to introduce Chris Pratt, but he was worth the wait (and the weight loss). Part Star-Lord, part Robert Muldoon action figure, all awesome, Pratt’s star couldn’t shine any brighter. Great casting, Universal team.

  • Setting the escalating theorized dinosaur chaos to a stripped down and tempo-deficient Jurassic Park Theme from the great John Williams is a little stroke of genius. Well played.

  • “Run!” Poor Bryce Dallas Howard and her bangs.

  • If the final images of Chris Pratt biking through a Endorian velociraptor speeder chase don’t mark June 12 on your calendar, I am not sure your capacity for cinematic awesomeness is up to standards.

Blog Posts, Movies

Steven Spielberg directing “The BFG”

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Steven Spielberg’s next directing gig has been announced as Roald Dahl’s children’s novel, The BFG. This story about a “Big, Friendly Giant” was one of the few Roald Dahl stories that did not espouse immediate nightmares (the 1971 Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory remains the scariest movie I have ever seen). Steven Spielberg directing a beloved children’s novel? Yes, please.

Let's Get A Few Things Off My Chest, Movies, Music, NBA, Television

Let’s Get a Few Links Off My Chest: The Challenge Hibernation Edition

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To my few loyal readers who may not be as interested in the minutia and the “inside the competitor’s studio” unrelenting coverage of all things The Challenge, do not fear: my pop culture and sports identity has not lost its mojo (a fair presumption). The reality of covering the “Fifth Major American Professional Sport” (that also happens to be a TV show) full-time is that other writing takes a little bit of a backseat. With so much going on (NBA Playoffs! Game of Thrones! Colbert taking over Late Night! The remarkable cultural ascendancy of Billy on the Street!), I thought I could at least send you to the right places.

Without further ado, let us get a few links off my chest…

I am not sure I would call this the “greatest shot in playoff history” as some have suggested…

(greatness demands higher stakes than Game 2 of a first round series), but I would be hard pressed to find a more incredible basketball play and the replays only make it look better.

Beno Udrih’s reaction non-reaction (at 0:18) says everything.

For the record, this remains my favorite playoff basketball play that I ever seen (you are really watching what greatness is all about)…

Speaking of Larry Legend, Jalen and Bill have an interesting chat about LeBron’s place in the “greatest forward of all-time conversation…

They both reluctantly argue (and subsequently mourn) that if LeBron wins his third championship this season, he passes Bird on the all-time forward list. I may not be there yet, but this is not an erroneous argument by any means. LeBron, beginning the playoffs in his eleventh season, is already right there. Incredible.

While were still in the land of Larry, somebody finally got into a fistfight with Lance Stephenson, and, not so surprisingly, it was Evan Turner (not exactly anyone’s favorite teammate). Despite a decisive game 2 victory against the Hawks, Pacers championship aspirations are in a whole lot of trouble. At least Roy Hibbert isn’t for sale on Amazon.Roy-Hibbert-Cover

I had the pleasure of watching the epic game 1 showdown between Houston and Portland. Is there a more fun glue guy/crowd pleaser/enforcer in the league right now than Patrick Beverley? This is his response to being hit with a Mo Williams flagrant foul.

Thunder fans may object, but you have to love what this guys brings to the table.

If Patrick Beverley had played in 1980s, he would have been a perfect insertion to the Pistons. I certainly loathed the “yellow, gutless way” they did things, but it is hard not have some respect for the Bad Boys of Detroit as a compelling and dynamic basketball team (I had forgotten how eloquent Isiah Thomas is and how bizarre Adrian Dantley seems to be).

There have been many great 30 for 30 documentaries, but I am not sure one resonated (or provided a greater opportunity to relive and reminisce) more than this one.

Thank goodness for Robert Parish’s revenge enactment (start at 0:17). Amazingly, he was not ejected. Respect.

That’s what you do, Paul Pierce. That’s why the Celtics miss you so much.

On to the other spectrum popular culture, Season 4 of Game of Thrones has already been responsible for its share of reactions (SPOILER ALERT!) and has further proved why Westeros is apparently the worst place to have a wedding. This week brought out some mixed opinions about the transfer of a book scene to television. I am still ruminating on the ramifications of the scene in question and as a television viewer first and foremost (I have only read the first book and aim to stay at least two books behind because I enjoy watching the television show too much), I will wait to see where Mr. Weiss and Benioff take me, but for now, if you are watching, read Andy Greenwald because he writes amazing things about an amazing television show.

My feeling after watching this video: I think we may be witnessing the birth of a political star…

The future of late night is bright with these two. John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight debuts Sunday night on HBO. I remember his final The Daily Show with a nostalgic fondness.

Speaking of Late Night television, I admittedly have never been a Letterman guy. This is entirely a byproduct of my age (too young), my sensibility (I appreciate a different type of comedic irreverence), and my late night habits during formative late night habit-forming years (I have been a loyal follower of The Daily Show, an affinity that first awakened to the brilliant laughter and learning combination in college). Notwithstanding, I get it. I get why and how Letterman inspired a generation and why he is justifiably a comedic and television legend. Bill Simmons carves out a beautiful piece of prose to put all in perspective. Stephen Colbert (a Daily Show disciple on his own right) is the worthiest of replacements and will add to the already thriving renaissance of the medium.

Yes, they may not be the most incredible pre-publicity images I have seen, but they are still images from Jurassic World!Jurassic World

Bryce-Dallas-Howard Director-Chair

While on the subject of Steven Spielberg properties…will a collaboration with Tony Kushner be his next project or will it be a collaboration with Tom Hanks? I will gladly take both.

Coldplay is making me very excited for their new album, Ghost Stories, out May 19-20. Every song they have put out thus far simultaneously sounds entirely unique and yet eerily connected to one another as if from some carefully constructed masterwork. The latest release (as a live BBC performance) of “Oceans” furthers this trend:

I have tried and failed to read J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter follow up, The Casual Vacancy, four times now. The “right timing” stars have never aligned. Maybe this just announced HBO miniseries will quell the trend.

The Leftovers debuts this summer on HBO and has Damon Lindelof’s stamp written all over it. The long awaited return to television by The Lost showrunner presents something extraordinary.

Finally, two games in, and LaMarcus Aldridge’s 2014 postseason is OUT OF CONTROL. Whether the Blazers win the series or not (Houston is heading back to Portland down 2-0), Aldridge’s rise to one of the game’s elite players (and mid-range jumper master) has already happened.

5 Things, Features, Movies

5 THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW: JURASSIC PARK 3D

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When I see a movie in theaters, I will write the five things you need to know about it.

5 Things You Need to Know About… 

JURASSIC PARK 3D

1) Jurassic Park 3D is a movie that you must see in theaters.  I would be remiss not to provide some relevant background information about my JP history.  Although it is not my favorite movie (albeit solidly in my forever top ten), Jurassic Park is the most significant movie (and the experience that comes with it) of my cinematic lifetime.  In the summer of 1993, fresh off a dozen (I wish I were kidding) readings of Michael Crichton’s brilliant original work, I was a full-fledged devotee of the Jurassic Park phenomenon.  I intimately remember all four of my in theater viewings, especially the last one in September of 1994, a full year and a half after the original release, with my Dad at the Capitol Theatre in Arlington, a local throwback cinema that prides itself on its second and third run movie screening longevity (Back in 1994, it was not unusual for a movie like Jurassic Park to last in theaters for eighteen months.  In today’s “get it now on demand” viewing culture, this would be unheard of.)  During these beautiful and innocent few years, playing “live” Jurassic Park (with human raptors) was a near nightly occurrence in my “hearkening back to a simpler time” neighborhood.  I still know a preponderance of the dialogue (especially all of Ian Malcolm’s lines – “Must go faster!”) and cannot meet an Ian without immediately hearing “Ian, freeze!” or a Tim without immediately hearing “Tim, no Tim!” in my head, often to the bewilderment of the new person I have met suspicious of my noticeably distracted state of mind.  Action figure reenactments (Kenner: well done on dinosaurs, but questionable original work on the people characters) would span several yards outdoors or inhabit entire houses indoors.  October 4, 1994, the day of the original VHS release, was coined “Jurassic Park Day” by me and my neighborhood compadres and featured a formal agenda of several interactive JP iterations (action figures, live action, video games) topped off with a group viewing in the comfort (or in retrospect, it was quite uncomfortable on that scratchy rug we used to have) of my basement.  In later years, raptor voice and physical impersonations were standard fair during rehearsal breaks for my musical directing ventures in which I found new JP devotee people connections.  Clearly, Jurassic Park holds a special (a gross understatement) place in the younger version of myself’s heart (Who am I kidding?  This has not changed at all.)  Today’s viewing at the IMAX at Jordan’s Furniture in Natick was a special experience (when the “buttkickers” first kicked in with the opening score’s pounding moans, the butterflies of nostalgia went on high alert) that completely delivered.

2) Jurassic Park (3D) has aged well.  Steven Spielberg’s summer blockbuster, a pioneer picture for today’s now commonplace CGI laden movie, does not look like it was made in 1993 and rather appears much more real than your average CGI-infested wannabe of today.  The integration of CGI with the late great Stan Winston’s creature shop (a wise move, Master Spielberg) creates dinosaurs that live and breath as we imagine the real thing would have.  Yes, some of the dialogue and usage of computers (Lex’s pride about being a “hacker” or excitement over an interactive CD-ROM, Grant’s fear of computers, the entirety of Dennis Nedry’s workspace and Chicago font filled monitors – “Ah Ah Ah, you didn’t say the magic word!”) and the high rise on the female pants and shorts are more retro Real World than Real World: Portland, but this two decade distance does not detract from the viewing experience.  Jurassic Park’s suspenseful potency and visual mastery remain ever much the thrill ride it always was.

3) John Williams breathtaking score is such a massive strand of the DNA of this fantastic movie.  Several times during the viewing experience, the memorable score induced a pit of my stomach release or a plethora of goosebumps up and down my arm.  It is the best kind of movie score – the kind that does not leave you after the running time of the movie reaches its conclusion, but rather stays humming in your consciousness forever.  John Williams is the deliver of several such scores, but none creates the kind of raw emotional kinship as this one.

4) The 3D of Jurassic Park 3D really works, never feels forced or disparate with the intent of the original release, and enhances the picture to a whole new level of awesome.  Some of the movie’s most iconic visuals (the Brachiosaurus reveal, the helicopter flying over Isla Nublar main theme money shot, the T-Rex foot stomp) are that much better in 3D.  It speaks to Steven Spielberg’s original cinematography and his ability to give each shot such wonderful contrast and juxtaposition.

5) Once a movie (and one of the preeminent works in the history of the modern summer blockbuster), Jurassic Park must now be considered one of the best motion pictures of the last thirty years of cinema.  If you have never seen it, the loss has been yours, but you must see it in theaters now.  If you are like me and have such meaningful and lasting childhood memories of the world of Jurassic Park, don’t be so preoccupied with whether or not you could (go see it again), you need to stop and think because you should.

5 Things, Movies

My Year in Movies 2012 (Finally!)

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Right before I saw The Muppets in November of 2011, I commented to my closest movie allies that starting with this Kermit and friends’ return to cinematic form from Disney, the next 12-14 months could be the best year (or a little over a year) of cinema that I have ever experienced.  After The Muppets, there was a new Mission Impossible opening in December of 2011 (Ghost Protocol ended up as my favorite movie of 2011), and then 2012 was to feature a new historical drama from Steven Spielberg starring the great Daniel Day-Lewis, a new Bond, two new Marvel movies, a new Bourne, lots of Joseph Gordon-Levitt, a prequel to Alien from Ridley Scott, a movie version of one of my all-time favorite musicals, a promising new Pixar outing, Peter Jackson’s return to Middle-Earth, and of course, the final installment in Christopher Nolan’s groundbreaking Batman series.  Now, on the eve (or for many, morning) of the Oscars and the unofficial culmination of the 2012 year in cinema, despite some unfortunate disappointments (Middle-Earth did not feel so good in 2012), 2012 was as close to movie heaven as I could ask for.

What follows are my rankings, my designations, my Oscar votes (if I had them) in the six major categories, and some new awards that I have cooked up for 2012, an epic year of cinema:

2012 motion pictures: Lincoln

2012 movies that could have been motion pictures: The Dark Knight Rises, Zero Dark Thirty, The Master

The best acting performance of 2012: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln

Marvel movie that is probably a little bit overrated: The Avengers

Marvel movie that is probably a little bit underrated: The Amazing Spider-Man

5 most memorable sequences/scenes: The opening of The Dark Knight Rises, Silva’s single shot first scene in Skyfall, the hood scene from Django Unchained, the tsunami attack in The Impossible, Georges’ pigeon pursuit in Amour

Best footage to be used in an acting master class: The entire performance of Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln, Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s interview scene with Joaquin Phoenix in The Master

Most unexpected narrative turn of events: The use of bears in The Brave

Ranking the Joseph Gordon-Levitt performances: 1. John Blake in The Dark Knight Rises  2. Playing a young Bruce Willis in Looper  3. Bike messenger in Premium Rush  4. A forgettable Robert Lincoln in Lincoln

Best performance by an animal: Richard Parker in Life of Pi

Worst performance by an animal: The wolves in The Grey

The movies that made me think the most after viewing: The Master, Looper, Zero Dark Thirty, Django Unchained, The Dark Knight Rises

The movies that made me think the least after viewing: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Flight, Savages

The most emotional movie experiences: The Impossible, Lincoln

The least emotional movie experiences: The Grey, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

I just don’t get why people liked it: The Hunger Games, The Grey, Deep Blue Sea, 21 Jump Street

I just don’t get why people don’t like it more: The Bourne Legacy, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Impossible

Movies that could have been longer: The Dark Knight Rises, Lincoln, The Impossible

Movies that should have been shorter: The Master, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Django Unchained

Performances that needed to be longer to make more sense: Gloria Reuben in Lincoln, Marion Cotillard in The Dark Knight Rises

Best use of television actors from favorite TV shows in movies: Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) in Argo, Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) in Argo, Jared Harris (Mad Men) in Lincoln, Victor Garber (Alias) in Argo, Bradley Cooper (Alias) in Silver Linings Playbook, Martin Freeman (Sherlock, The Office) in The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, Aidan Gillen (The Wire, Game of Thrones) in The Dark Knight Rises

Most distracting use of television actors from favorite TV shows in movies: Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation) in Zero Dark Thirty, James Gandolfini (The Sopranos) in Zero Dark Thirty, Harold Perrineau (Lost) in Zero Dark Thirty

Movies that I saw because I like the actor, but the movie was not very good: Deep Blue Sea (Rachel Weisz), The Grey (Liam Neeson), Premium Rush (Joseph Gordon-Levitt)

Best use of Jeremy Renner: The Bourne Legacy

Worst use of Jeremy Renner: The Avengers

Nominees for the “welcome back to the cinema” award: Daniel Day-Lewis in Lincoln, after the challenge that was War Horse – Steven Spielberg, Batman, James Bond, a Pixar movie not featuring cars

Movies where death is a struggle to watch: The Impossible, Amour

Movies where death seems too easy to watch: Django Unchained, Skyfall

Accents that worked the best: Tom Hardy as Bane in The Dark Knight Rises, John Hawkes in The Sessions

Accents that struggled the most: Helen Hunt in The Sessions, Halle Berry in Cloud Atlas

Best adaptation of a book into a movie: Lincoln (Team of Rivals by Doris Kearns Goodwin)

Worst adaptation of a book into a movie: Cloud Atlas, The Hunger Games

Directors I am interested to see more from: Rian Johnson (Looper), Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

Directors I have seen enough from: Tom Hooper (Les Miserables)

When AFI picks the best movies of the 21st Century, the likely nominees from 2012 are: Lincoln, Argo

Best use of a one word title: Brave, Argo, Amour

Worst use of a one word title: Flight, Savages

The “I want to see that again” award: The Dark Knight Rises, Looper, Argo

The No Country For Old Men “I liked it, but I never want to see that movie again” award: The Impossible, Amour

The “a great movie to take a nap in” award: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, The Grey

My biggest disappointment: The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

My most pleasant surprise: The Bourne Legacy, Django Unchained

Movies with the greatest number of moments that I had to turn away or close my eyes because it was so difficult to watch: Django Unchained, Amour, Prometheus

Movies with the greatest number of moments that I did turn away because I didn’t care and looking up IMDB facts on my phone was more interesting: Flight, The Grey, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

After 2012, actors that I want to see more of: Jessica Chastain, Christoph Waltz, Quevenzhané Wallis, Daniel Day-Lewis

After 2012, actors I want to see less of: Halle Berry, Helen Hunt, Wes Bentley

The award for “highest quality funeral guest list”: Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Gary Oldman, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt in The Dark Knight Rises

Movie that would have been great on stage: Lincoln

Movie that should have remained on stage: Les Misérables

My 5 least favorite movies of 2012: Deep Blue Sea, Savages, The Grey, 21 Jump Street, The Hunger Games

My 5 favorite movies 2012: The Dark Knight Rises, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, Argo, The Bourne Legacy

My favorite movie of 2012: The Dark Knight Rises

The best movie of 2012: Lincoln

 

Finally, if I had an Oscar vote, here are my selections in the six major categories (in order of voting):

BEST PICTURE:

Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, Argo, Django Unchained, Amour, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Silver Linings Playbook, Les Misérables, Life of Pi

BEST ACTOR:

Daniel Day-Lewis (Lincoln), Joaquin Phoenix (The Master), Bradley Cooper (Silver Linings Playbook), Hugh Jackman (Les Misérables), Denzel Washington (Flight)

BEST ACTRESS:

Jessica Chastain (Zero Dark Thirty), Naomi Watts (The Impossible), Emmanuelle Riva (Amour), Jennifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook), Quvenzhané Wallis (Beasts of the Southern Wild)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR:

Philip Seymour Hoffman (The Master), Christoph Waltz (Django Unchained), Tommy Lee Jones (Lincoln), Robert De Niro (Silver Linings Playbook), Alan Arkin (Argo)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS:

Anne Hathaway (Les Misérables), Amy Adams (The Master), Sally Field (Lincoln), Helen Hunt (The Sessions), Jacki Weaver (Silver Linings Playbook)

BEST DIRECTOR:

Steven Spielberg (Lincoln), Michael Haneke (Amour), Ang Lee (Life of Pi), Benh Zeitlin (Beasts of the Southern Wild), David O. Russell (Silver Linings Playbook)

ENJOY THE OSCARS!

David J. Bloom can be reached on twitter @davidbloom7 and writes about pop culture and the NBA for Bishop and Company.  For more in depth opinions on movies, check out the “5 Things You Need To Know” page.

 

 

5 Things, Blog Posts, Movies

5 Things You Need to Know: LINCOLN

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When I see a movie in theaters, I will write the five things you need to know about it.

5 Things You Need to Know About… 

LINCOLN

1. Steven Spielberg’s transformative and triumphant Lincoln is a film that depicts the innermost inner workings of our nation’s government at perhaps the foremost of historical crossroads.  The question of slavery abolition legislation in January of 1865 (as proposed through the 13th Amendment) is the two hours and twenty nine minutes traffic of our stage.  Despite its essential historical record and human condition exploration, the traffic is slow-moving, dense, and not ready-made for the average filmgoer, but like the challenges faced by President Lincoln and the great legislative and citizen abolitionist pioneers, Lincoln could not be more well worth the struggle.

2. Daniel Day-Lewis’s portrayal of the sixteenth United States President is simply the best performance in the career of the world’s best living film actor.  His full immersion commitment (staying in character throughout filming – on and off set, signing things “A” for Abraham) yields a revelatory cinematic experience.  From his first scene on a Virginia battlefield to his last moments at the White House before his fateful trip to the Ford’s theater on an April night in 1865, Day-Lewis is so believably this behemoth of a man and American icon that he creates the most personal relationship I have ever had with a real-life person on screen.  In one of the surest predictions I have ever had to make, Daniel Day-Lewis will win his third Best Actor Oscar at the 2013 Academy Awards.

3. In a brilliant career that has no equal in the medium, Steven Spielberg has never made a picture like Lincoln before.  Its subtlety, its delicacy, its courageous devotion to the processes that surround its subject as much as the subject itself, its commitment to the human detail in a mosaic of recognizable actors portraying historical figures and legislative players, and its ability to rely on words more than images stand out amongst his pantheon of great works.  This is the achievement of a director who has nothing left to prove, yet Mr. Spielberg has created another incredible journey to assert why he is the greatest living storyteller.

4. Tommy Lee Jones, triumphantly playing abolitionist congressmen Thaddeus Stevens of Pennsylvania, is at the centre of the most moving and inspiring moment of the picture (you will know it when you see it).  It reaffirms how big picture monumental changes and concepts (like the 13th Amendment) yield the most personal of consequences.

5. Lincoln is a motion picture (Spielberg’s first since Saving Private Ryan) that, like its subject matter, will be remembered as an all-time great.

David J. Bloom can be reached on twitter @davidbloom7 and writes about pop culture and the NBA for Bishop and Company.  His weekly X Factor column appears on Afterbuzztv.com and his weekly THE CHALLENGE: BATTLE OF THE SEASONS Power Rankings can be read on Derek Kosinski’s ultimatechallengeradio.com.

Blog Posts, Movies

New LINCOLN TV spot is simply incredible

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My mind has been officially blown. I am not sure I have seen a more glorious two minutes of movie footage in some time.  The juxtaposition of historical figures (Gandhi, MLK, Mandela) and historical touchstones (Women’s suffrage, World War II) with the profundity of Lincoln’s (the person, the time, and the presidency) radical and momentous historic achievements is work of brilliance.  Mr. Spielberg seems to have created another indelible cinematic achievement and his first since Saving Private Ryan.

Let the countdown to November 16 officially begin…