Johnny Manic's Mood Swing Movies & More

Final Indy 4 One Sheet

2008-03-20T10:15:00.001-05:00

This makes me feel like a kid again!

First Look At The Wolf Man

2008-03-20T10:02:00.006-05:00

If you've been keeping up with horror movie news at all, you probably already know about "The Wolf Man" remake that's currently in production. The film stars Anthony Hopkins and Benicio Del Toro and is being directed by Joe Johnston. The fine folks over at ew.com have unleashed the first pics of Del Toro in full Wolf Man makeup courtesy of make-up god Rick Baker. Check them out and then go over to http://www.ew.com/ for an interview with Baker. BAD PUN WARNING!-I am positively howling-at-the-moon excited about seeing this after looking at the pics!

Crack That Whip!!!!!

2008-02-15T13:33:00.002-06:00

BEHOLD! The new Indiana Jones trailer! Can't wait til May 22nd!

Snake Oil

2008-02-01T10:46:00.000-06:00

"I look at people and I see nothing worth liking."

Those are words spoken by Daniel Plainview about halfway through Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood", one of the darkest, most brutal films I've seen. It is also a masterpiece.

Some people, I'm sure will find fault with the film.

"It's too long!"

"The ending doesn't make sense!"

"Why make a movie about a totally dispicable character?"

Allow me too address those complaints one by one:

It's only "too long" if you also consider "The Godfather" or "Gone With The Wind" to be too long. As Roger Ebert has said, "Good movies are never too long, bad movies are always too long." This is a GREAT movie.

The ending doesn't make sense only if you haven't been paying attention. The whole film has been driving toward this insane, violent showdown. Complete and utterly batshit madness is the only possible conclusion.

Some of the greatest films of all time have been about detestable human beings( not to mention books, songs, plays, etc. ). Bad guys are, after all, human just like the rest of us. "Citzen Kane", "The Godfather", "The Treasure Of The Sierra Madre", "Raging Bull", are all classics and are all about cruel and hateful men. Films that show the dark side of humanity and don't flinch away from those people we should avoid in our real lives have very important things to say about the world we live in. Real life doesn't always have a happy ending. Why should we always expect a happy ending from art?

The film begins with Daniel Plainview( Daniel Day-Lewis, in one of the great performances of all time...seriously...not saying that lightly, people ) alone, mining for silver. The first ten or so minutes of the film contain no dialogue. We simply see how driven and relentless this man is. A fall down his mine shaft breaks his leg and he pulls himself up, hand over hand. The next scene shows him laying on the floor of the establishment where he has cashed in his silver. He is broken, but he accomplished his goal.

Eventually, he discovers oil in one of his mines. Next, he has hired some men to help him drill. When one of those men, who has an infant son, dies in the well, Plainview decides to raise the boy as his own. He will not, however, win any "Father of the Year" awards. His first attempt to calm the crying child is to add whiskey to the little 'un's milk bottle.

Fast-forward nine years and Plainview is a slick oil man traveling with his "son", H.W.(Dillon Freasier), anywhere there is crude to be found and trying to cheat the local residents out of their land so he can drill it. His speech to a town meeting is full of fake humbleness and promises that will never be kept, because Plainview is only out for one person and that person is Plainview. H.W. is simply a prop he keeps with him, because people are more likely to trust a "family man".

The heart of the movie begins when Plainview meets Paul Sunday(Paul Dano). He tells Plainview that his family's ranch in California has oil seeping up through the ground. He will tell Plainview the location for cash. Plainview gives him the cash and he and H.W. camp on the ranch, where they meet Mr. Sunday and Paul's twin brother Eli(also played by Dano), who is an evangelist. Is Eli really Paul's twin, or are they one and the same? We're never sure. Eli and Plainview form a relationship of hatred for one another the instant they meet. It's this hatred that drives the movie to it's conclusion.

Eli will only allow Plainview to drill on the Sunday ranch if Plainview will make a $5,000 donation to his church. Plainview agrees, even though he sees that Eli is just as much a con man as himself. Here we have what is so fascinating about this story. Two men, both conning the same people, one with promises of riches, the other with promises of heaven. It is a potrait of what America has become.

Although the film is set in the early 1900's, it's message is as current ads today's paper. The focus of the film may be Plainview and Eli, but if you look closely, you'll see it's about the people destroyed by men like this. The film is about an America where the common people, the backbone of the society, are constantly preyed upon by snake oil salesmen, whether corporate or spiritual. These are men who see the masses as nothing more than sheep to be used to thier advantage. It doesn't matter if they promise money or eternal life, they'll promise anything to get your money.

Totally and completely inhabiting that selfishness and greed, Daniel Day-Lewis gives a performance that...there are no words. There exists in the English language no words to describe this performance. Monumental doesn't even come close. It is simply remarkable and will no doubt become historic.

Technically, the movie is about as perfect as movies get. Robert Elswit's cinematography?

Gorgeous. Dylan Tichenor's editing? Perfect. Jonny Greenwood's(of Radiohead) music? One of the most original and exciting scores I've ever heard for a film. Last but not least, P.T. Anderson's direction? Flawless.

Go see this movie! It is a classic. Ten or twenty years from now when it starts showing up on the all-time great movie lists, you'll be kicking yourself in the ass for not seeing it in the theatre. Go...watch...let it swallow you up. Not many of today's movies allow the the chance to get lost in them. This one does. Get lost.

Harrison Ford Was In E.T.?

2008-01-15T10:47:00.000-06:00

Well, fellow geeks, this is a new one on me! I am a huge fan of "E.T." and a huge fan of Harrison Ford. Apparently, Ford appears in a deleted scene from the film. He plays Elliot's principal. The scene hasn't been included on any of the DVD releases of E.T. You can check it out at http://tinyurl.com/ypgufc

Scorsese Does Hitchcock

2007-12-18T11:00:00.000-06:00

Hola fellow geeks! Most of you may have already seen this, but in case you haven't, you might want to check it out. Martin Scorsese has made a commercial for Freixenet. The premise is that Scorsese has a few script pages from an Alfred Hitchcock movie that were never filmed. Scorsese is undertaking the task of filming those few pages in Hitchcock's style. Mucho entertaining! Check it out at: http://www.scorsesefilmfreixenet.com/video_eng.htm

Movies To Watch At Christmas That Won't Raise Your Blood Sugar

2007-12-12T11:44:00.000-06:00

It's A Wonderful Life. Miracle On 34th Street. A Christmas Story. White Christmas. Die Hard.

Exsqueeze me? Baking powder?Die Hard? Really?

Yes fellow geeks, the holidays are here! And not all of us want to watch the same old Christmas classics that are trotted out this time of year to put everyone in the holiday spirit. Please understand, I'm not trying to be The Grinch. I like (in some cases, love) every one of the acknowledged Christmas movies mentioned above, I just thought I would come up with a list of films that, while not Christmas movies in the strictest sense, still feature a Christmas setting. Here we go! Yippee ki-yay mother...

DIE HARD: One of the greatest action films ever is actually set at a Christmas party. I don't know about you but Bruce Willis' John McClane single-handedly whipping Eurotrash ass makes me feel all warm and cozy inside, just like a hot cup of coffee by the Christmas tree.
LETHAL WEAPON: Another all time great action film. Mel Gibson's Martin Riggs going apeshit (who can forget his "talk down" with the suicidal ledge jumper) is just you need to bring you out of Christmas special induced insulin shock. And it also takes place during the holiday season. The song over the opening credits is "Jingle Bell Rock!" That, of course, immediately segues to a drugged out prostitute jumping out a window and crashing stories below onto a car. Happy Holidays!!
TRADING PLACES: You say you want to laugh during this stressed out time of the year? This is one of my favorite comedies. Eddie Murphy and Dan Ackroyd are perfect in this John Landis directed take on the old "what happens when the poor guy trades places with the rich guy" scenario. Set not only at Christmas but also New Year's Eve. Merry New Year! Ah ha ha!
THE NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS: Some kids are naturally drawn to the cutesy and the sweet. I was not one of those kids. If this had been released when I was a young'un, I would have gone completely ga-ga over it. As it is, it was released when I was an adult and I still went ga-ga over it. This one is usually shown at Halloween, but don't let the Disney mind control police let that be the only time of year you watch it. The scenes where children over the world open Jack Skellington's Christmas presents makes me Ho-Ho-Ho every time I see it.
GREMLINS: Joe Dante's film starts out like any other awwwwwww-inducing Christmas tale and then...WHAMMO! Adorable little Gizmo is the victim of carelessness on the part of his new owner, Billy, and soon, what was cute and cuddly turns into evil little sumbitches. When this was originally in theaters, kids were running screaming up the aisles after their parents mistakenly thought this was just another harmless "kid's movie." That all changed when Mom blew a gremlin up in the microwave. Disturbing for some. Hilarious to the rest of us.
CHILD'S PLAY: What kid wouldn't want a doll that talks and is possessed by the soul of a serial killer for Christmas?
GOODFELLAS: This movie has nothing whatsoever to do with Christmas, except that a couple of scenes take place around the holidays. Who cares?! Any excuse to watch the best gangster film ever made!

CLASSIC HORROR TRAILERS RARE

2007-12-07T13:03:00.001-06:00

Top Ten Films Of All Time(this week, anyway)

2007-12-05T15:40:00.000-06:00

10. Citizen Kane
I know, I know..."Geez, Johnny, how predictable! I'll bet Sgt. Pepper is in your top ten albums list, too!" What can I say? Anyone who has a serious love of film has to love Citizen Kane. Orson Welles' masterpiece is balls-out genius filmmaking. We may never see such a risky and innovative piece of pure cinema again. And for those of you who simply love movies for their entertainment value and not as an art form, it will entertain your pants off. Even if it's older than your grandfather.
9. Clerks
The first time I saw this was on video. I have to admit, I was intrigued by the fact that it had recieved an X rating for dialogue alone. No violence. No nudity. Just talking? Gotta check this shit out! I went home and popped it in my VCR and proceeded to laugh so hard that I was still feeling the effects of it days afterward. I immediately began showing it to everyone I knew. It became a sort of litmus test. If you couldn't laugh at "Clerks", your sense of humor was as dead as the old guy in the bathroom.
8. Taxi Driver
Martin Scorsese is the greatest living American director, maybe of all time. "Taxi Driver" is the most intense character study ever committed to film. Scorsese, star Robert DeNiro, and writer-Paul Schrader are firing on all cylinders in this disturbingly realistic look at the madness that lonliness and failure to connect can breed. Everything from Scorsese's restless camera to Bernard Hermann's brooding score make for one of the most profound, creepy, and, yes, ultimately sad movie experiences of my life.
7. The Empire Strikes Back
"Star Wars" had a bigger impact on my life and the movie world in general, but "The Empire Strikes Back" is the better film. Better story. Better special effects. Better writing. Better characterization. Better ending. Better light saber duel. Better. Period. Even if the jackass kid in front of me at the movie theater did ruin the big secret that Darth Vader was Luke's father only moments before it was revealed in the film. What a douche nozzle!
6. The Godfather I & II
I list these together because if watched back to back it's like watching one movie. What can I say about "The Godfather" that hasn't already been said? If you're reading this, you probably can quote all the famous lines and know the characters like they were members of your own family. I think that is what ultimately sets these films apart:It's not the camera angles or specific shots, it's the characters and the world that Francis Ford Coppola created for them to inhabit. They stay with you. You never forget them.
5. Magnolia
Paul Thomas Anderson's epic film has it's share of detractors. Since this film is number 5 on my list, I'm sure you have shrewdly oberved that I am not one of them. Everything about "Magnolia" is big and operatic. The emotion! The acting! The length! Few films I've seen, though, have sliced directly to my very soul like this one. Every character is deeply damaged in some way. They all live with various degrees of regret and resentment. The (heaven sent?) disaster that ends the film provides forgiveness and grace to some, damnation to others. This is one of the most moving experiences of my movie going life.
4. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre
I have been to Texas in the dead of summer. The heat is biblical. I mention that because the heat had to play a part in making Tobe Hooper's "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" the absolutely insane classic that it is. The film is so damn flat-out crazy and scary that you might actually be convinced that the people who made it were backwoods Texas lunatics. However, there is a method to the madness. It's so in your face that on your intial viewing you may miss all the dark (uh...jet black) humor that permeates the film. The movie is so intense that it has been cited as the inspiration for countless gore films that followed; even though the film is almost ( I said "almost" ) completely blood free.
3. City Lights
In my opinion, the greatest silent film ever made. Charlie Chaplin's masterpiece. The Little Tramp was never funnier or more touching. If you can watch the last few minutes of this film and not get all misty-eyed, then it's time for an oil change you souless, unfeeling android.
2. Blue Velvet
In the film dictionary under the word "mindf*ck" it says, "see Blue Velvet." David Lynch is one of my favorite directors and I think this is his best. Ever wonder what would happen if you crossed "Leave It To Beaver" with the surrealism of Bunuel? Here you go, America! Lynch's film does a brilliant job of showing the demons and dark things that hide just below the surface of the sitcom "perfection" of Small Town, USA. Plus, add a few scenes that rival Hitchcock for suspense and Dennis Hopper going batshit crazy and you have a modern day classic. Freakin' brilliant!
1. Halloween
My favorite film for a number of reasons: I saw it for the first time when I was ten years old. I saw it on network television. It was edited. And it still scared the holy crap out of me! It was the first time I wanted to see how a film was made so I could figure out how John Carpenter had created something that kept me awake at nights for weeks. That's right...weeks. When we got our first VCR, I watched it over and over. In the process, I learned about composition, camera movement, the effective use of music, and so much more. When DVD's were unleashed, I was finally able to watch my favorite movie in widescreen. It was like a totally new experience. My favorite things about the film itself: the opening tracking shot, the music, Donald Pleasence, the fact that no motivation whatsoever is given as to why Michael Myers is psychotic, the way Myers tilts his head as he admires his handywork after nailing Bob to the wall, that damn mask, the last scene and the montage that follows as we hear Michael Myers breathing on the sound track, etc. I could go on and on.