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Tuesday Threes: The Answer

Whew, in the whirlwind of end-of-year polls, lists, holiday cooking, etc., the poor Threes almost got lost in the shuffle.

But not for Julie, who was first with the correct answer to yesterday's Threes. Julie joins the hallowed halls of past winners and owners of the coveted homemade construction-paper medallion. Audrey, E, and Jen also chimed in with the right film. To see for yourself, toss back the Inviso-Text!

It was Spielberg's Catch Me if You Can from 2002, one of those pleasant, likeable, or otherwise interesting films from The Beard's "wandering" period between Saving Private Ryan and War of the Worlds. (Others from the era include A.I. and The Terminal. That's right, The Terminal. Anyone remember that one?) Amy Adams--currently appearing in Doubt--was the girlfriend of Leo DiCaprio's con artist character, Frank. James Brolin  had an affair with Frank's mom, and a pre-Alias Jennifer Garner played a call girl. Ellen Grays Anatomy Pompeo and Elizabeth Zach & Miri Banks also have small roles.

e's Best and Worst of 2008

What is December 31 for, if not to look back on the other 364 days of our planet's latest journey around the sun?  James has weighed in on his favorite films of the year and Locke will be doing so as well in the coming weeks, so I'll take a slightly different approach and give you my take on some different, but still cinematically-related, highlights and low points of 2008. 

Most Disappointing News
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince moves from November 2008 to July 2009

Misery loves company, so at least the millions of J.K. Rowling fans around the world could take solace in the fact that they all were crushed by Warner Brother's decision to delay the release of the sixth HP movie.  I was definitely among those who wanted to organize some sort of protest.  At least the traveling exhibition will arrive in my home city a few months before the next installment's premiere.  Sneak peeks galore for me!

Most Frustrating News
Footloose and The Karate Kid will be remade.

Zac Efron is no Kevin Bacon, and Jaden Smith is no Ralph Macchio.  And there will never be another Mr. Miyagi!  I'm still in denial that these films are going to happen.  Wax OFF, evil Hollywood studios!

Craziest Pop Culture Phenomenon
Twilight 

Duh!

I read all of Stephenie Meyer's books within six weeks this summer, saw the adaptation of the first novel three times, and then bought its soundtrack.  And I'm well into my thirties.  Sad?  You be the judge.  But whether you love them or hate them, those "vegetarian" vampires aren't going anywhere... for years.

Good vs. Evil

As I mentioned yesterday, three films that debuted over the past week deal with the atrocities of World War II.  Valkyrie stars Tom Cruise as a German Colonel secretly planning to take down Hitler and Defiance boasts Daniel Craig as a resistance leader who helps hundreds escape the Nazis, but Good... well, Good isn't about someone fighting the bad guys.  It's about someone -- a professor played by Viggo Mortensen -- who goes against his better judgment and joins them.

Though I thought the "Hilter's a jerk" line seemed kind of out of place and lame, overall I'm much more interested in Good than I am in its competition.  We all understand why anyone would choose to fight against the Third Reich -- but it's nearly impossible to comprehend how so many people bought into the Nazi's philosophy and supported their horrendous crimes.  While Good is not based on a true story per se, it's clear that it attempts to provide a realistic depiction of how easy it was for many ordinary German citizens to join in on the mob mentality.  I don't know about you, but the last spoken words in the trailer gave me the chills: "Not you, too, Johnny."

Funny "Ha-Ha"! The Redblog 2008 Favorite Films Poll: Comedies

Welcome to the Chuckle Hut and the third day of our favorite films of '08 poll!

-- The four genre polls are Drama Monday, Family Tuesday, Comedy/Musical today, and Action/Thriller on Thursday. All the polls are still open, so feel free to hop back and vote in the others. Then on Friday we'll take the top two winners of each genre and pour them into a final Best of the Year poll.

-- The nominees were assembled fairly un-scientifically,  based mostly on box-office and DVD sales and rental charts, but with some consideration given to critically acclaimed titles. Still, feel free to let us know in the comments what beloved stuff we left off.

-- Vote for as many titles as you like in each poll.

Laugh and the world laughs with you. Fail to vote and Semi-Pro could win. And let's hear it in the comments what you think of these choices or the ones we left off.

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Another Pie is Baking...

At the end of October, reports surfaced that a third big-screen sequel to American Pie (as opposed to another direct-to-DVD sequel, of which there are already three) was in the works.  For a while I thought that my wishing, hoping and praying that this idea would never come to fruition had actually worked, because no one spoke of it again.  But last night, a ton of entertainment outlets starting discussing its plot and postulating about which cast members might return.  Was it just a slow news day, or is there actually a reason that people are recirculating this rumor two months after it first hit the Internet?

It appears to be the former... no one has any new information on the film, which will supposedly focus on Jason Biggs and Alyson Hannigan's characters as they start a family of their own.  The sad thing is, I must admit that I actually saw American Wedding, the third installment in the franchise in which those two got married.  But I have a good excuse -- my husband and I were traveling and it was torrentially raining and it was one of the only movies our rented apartment had available.  We had no choice!  It was either watch American Wedding, or stare at each other for hours while being depressed about a rained-out vacation.  What would you have done?!?

Anyway, even though I'm not a big fan of the goofy, randy humor these films are known for, I do see why the original was successful.  Unfortunately, Hollywood just couldn't leave well enough alone.  The question is, would Alyson Hannigan -- who's now on the relatively successful How I Met Your Mother -- actually consider reprising her role if asked to do so?  How much money would they have to pay her to make it worth facing a resurgence of band camp jokes... and is there enough money in the world to justify that scenario?

The Rocchi Files -- The Top Ten Movies of 2008!

As 2008 draws to a close, movie writers everywhere scratch and puzzle over their lists -- to a degree that you can find collected lists of lists out on the internet, as everyone from your local paper's film critic to your friendly neighborhood web writer chimes in. I keep a Top Ten, contributing the same list to all the people who ask me, with some perspective -- I don't think I'm walking down from the top of any mountain with this list carved on two tablets, and these are the films that I really enjoyed -- but, then again, if it inspires you to check out one of the films on this list you haven't heard of (some of which are on DVD and some of which aren't even in theaters yet), then I'm doing my job. I tend to use the same rule for consideration as the Academy does for the Oscars and make my lists for any given year out of films that have played theatrically in L.A. and New York for at least a week in 2008; with that said, and in no particular order leading up to #1, here's my Top Ten Movies of 2008. ...

10) Waltz with Bashir

An animated documentary -- with artists creating visions and visuals based on interviews with real people -- about war, youth, memory and loss, with brilliant, bizarre images and human, heartfelt emotions.

9) Funny Games

Full of cruel tricks and grim treats, this horror-thriller is almost a kind of magic trick -- director Michael Haneke warns you that he's going to trick you and then does it anyway, leaving you not just scared by a movie but thinking about all scary movies.

8) Man on Wire

The year's best documentary showing how Phillip Petit, a French tightrope walker, managed to break into the World Trade Center in 1974, string a wire between the two buildings and step out between them with the city -- and the world -- looking up in awe. Exhilarating, exciting, and more than a little sad -- 9/11's never mentioned, but it hangs over the film's wonder and joy -- Man on Wire's a great story of inspiration, celebration and gutsy glory.

Defiance WILL Be Considered, Dammit!

There are not one, not two, but three Nazi-themed films that will be in theaters by the time the curtain closes on 2008.  You're already aware of Valkyrie, you might have seen posters for Defiance at the movie theater as its release date has been jerked around for months, and I'll cover the lesser-known of the trio, Good, tomorrow. 

For now, let's take a look at the trailer for Daniel Craig, Liev Schreiber and Jamie Bell's Defiance, which, like Valkyrie, is based on a true story. 

Defiance will be released tomorrow in a handful of theaters in order to be considered for an Academy Award; it won't expand across the nation, however, for a few more weeks.  Quite frankly, I am not sure this one looks like Oscar material in the first place.  I always have a hard time with actors feigning accents that aren't their own -- and in Daniel Craig's case, I connect him too strongly with Agent 007 and therefore I'm just not feeling his Polishness.  In addition, I think it's infinitely harder to get excited about a film that shares so many similar themes and aspects with another major release that's out at the exact same time.  I'm not saying that I don't think Defiance will be a good movie, I simply think that at this late stage in the game, it might be tough for anyone to get very excited about it.  I know I'm not.   Timing is everything, guys!

Team Jolie Wins... Again.

Have you seen USA Today's Celebrity Heat Index?  It's one of those totally useless, pointless and ridiculous widgets... yet I find myself drawn to messing around with it.  It tracks -- in what I'm sure is a staid, scientific matter that involves obsessing over tabloid covers and talk show guests -- the "hotness" of celebrities.  This is critically important stuff, folks!

This year, singer, dancer and sometimes-actress (Crossroads counts!) Britney Spears topped the index, with Changeling's Angelina Jolie coming in second place.  A number one movie at the end of the year wasn't enough to push Jennifer Aniston ahead of her longtime rival -- the Marley & Me star came in a distant third, with her ex (and Jolie's baby daddy) Mr. Benjamin Button close on her heels.

I'm here to console all of the Hollywood players who are way, way down on the list -- like Twilight's Nikki Reed (tied for last place at #484) -- by reminding everyone of just how fickle the entertainment industry and the public at large is.  Katie Holmes skyrocketed to the top of this week's heat tracker simply because she wore some ugly jean shorts, for Pete's sake. 

With January 1 only two days away, attention now turns toward 2009.  Who are we going to be the most sick of by this time next year?  My bets are on Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart from Twilight.  They both have multiple films coming out in addition to the monster that will be New Moon, and he's already making headlines for simply getting a haircut.  Yeah, he's easy on the eyes, but there definitely can be too much of a good thing sometimes.  Prepare for Edward Overload!

We're Gonna Have Some Quality Family Time Whether You Kids Like it or Not! The Redblog 2008 Favorite Films Poll: Family Movies

Welcome to Day Two of our end-of-year favorite films of '08 poll!

-- The four genre polls are Drama Monday, Family today, Comedy/Musical on Wednesday, and Action/Thriller on Thursday. Then on Friday we'll take the top two winners of each genre and pour them into a final Best of the Year poll. And yes, we're putting HSM3 in here with Family today--tweeners, you're still part of this family!

-- The nominees were assembled fairly un-scientifically,  based mostly on box-office and DVD sales and rental charts, but with some consideration given to critically acclaimed titles. Still, feel free to let us know in the comments what beloved stuff we left off.

-- Two films get a bye round. The Dark Knight and Wall-E were too big, too acclaimed--they'd swamp all competition in the genre round. But they'll be there Friday for the final round.

-- Vote for as many titles as you like in each poll.

Now let those fingers do the clicking, and be sure to sound off in the comments on everything cinematic you loved and hated in 2008!

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Surfer, Dude

It's a familiar thought: If there were a link between how much fun it is to make a film and how much fun it is to watch it, then Cannonball Run II would be the greatest movie ever made. This comes to mind watching Matthew McConaughey's Surfer, Dude, which looks like it was plenty of fun to make, but may, on-screen, test your patience for the Citizen Kane of surfer-stoner-sunshine comedies. It's not that Surfer, Dude is a bad movie; it's just a very small movie.

Producer and star Matthew McConaughey stars as "soul-surfer" Steve Addington, who's returned from his world travels in pursuit of the perfect wave to his stomping grounds of Malibu to rest, recharge, re-connect with his bros. But, as Jack's unmanaged manager Jack (Woody Harrelson) explains, the game changed while Steve was away; his old sponsors sold out to suit-wearing smoothie Eddie Zarno (Jeffery Nordling). Steve's still under contract, but Eddie wants Steve to be part of his new surfing virtual reality video game, his new surfing reality show and more; Steve's more of a fan of actual reality: "I'm not some ass-clown in a green room; I'm a surfer, dude." Steve is cast out from the world of surfing, and the oceans of SoCal go flat along with Steve's hopes. ...