[jumble_form]

1. The set from 1933's King Kong was used in the burning of the Atlanta Depot scene.
2. Was the first color film to win the Best Picture Oscar.
3. Contains the arguably most well known use of the word "damn" ever.

• Features a performance that resulted in the first African-American to win an Academy Award.

Don't give away the answer in the comments, but help me out... What did you think of this one? Clues too easy? Which one gave it away for you?]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/christmas-carol-takes-top-spot-while-the-box-misses-the-top-five-at-friday-box-office http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/christmas-carol-takes-top-spot-while-the-box-misses-the-top-five-at-friday-box-office Sat, 7 Nov 2009 12:33:14 -0700 Brad Brevet delivers the top six at this weekend's Friday box-office and I don't think there is any big surprises here. As a matter of fact, I will be more interested in seeing how films such as The Men Who Stare at Goats, The Fourth Kind and The Box do in their second weekends. But let's take this in order shall we?

Finke reports Disney's A Christmas Carol took in a modest $9 million on Friday, which Finke suspects will ultimately result in $35-40 million for the weekend. Laremy Legel, our Box-Office Oracle, was bullish in predicting a $44.2 million weekend and is probably kicking himself, but you can't blame him after taking theater counts and added 3-D revenue. I have heard the budget on this flick was $185 million, which is A TON, and now that Zemeckis has gone from Warner Bros., to Paramount/DreamWorks and now to Disney, I wonder who will be the next one to allow him to spend a bunch of money on a technology James Cameron appears to have perfected in his first try. I know he's supposed lining up a few projects, including a remake of the Beatles's The Yellow Submarine at Disney, but are studios going to continue to see this as a big budget viable option?

Coming in at #2 is the first of a group of thrillers this weekend as Universal's The Fourth Kind leads the way with an estimated $5 million. Laremy had it in fourth (oh, you see what he did there?), and while his placement is off, his $12.6 million prediction will likely be close.

Third is the George Clooney and Ewan McGregor harmless psychic war skit The Men Who Stare at Goats, which I presume is likely to enjoy a solid opening weekend due to what Laremy refers to as "an interesting trailer," but I bet it will only be enough for one go around. The film mustered $4.6 million on Friday and will likely settle in around $14 million for the weekend.

The other major wide release is Richard Kelly's The Box, which is far too involved for a one-time viewing and should really come with a Cliff's Notes handout prior to walking in. The film has some interesting things going on, but there are far too many of them for one sit down and considering there is enough of a story to make for what appears to be a simple tale on the surface it is likely to turn off opening weekend viewers to the point word-of-mouth will be dismal. The film managed a fifth place finish on Friday with only $2.85 million and will likely end up just shy of $8 million for the weekend. Not an impressive number for a studio effort, but this is hardly a film that should be made at a major. Kelly should stick with indie distribution where he can continue to let his imagination run wild as opposed to trying to satisfy the Hollywood fat cats.

Finally, the best film of the year so far is in limited release in 18 theaters and it's doing quite well. Precious: Based On The Novel "Push" By Sapphire managed $585,000 on Friday with a per theater average of $32,500, and a predicted $1.7 million weekend. As I pointed out in my weekend preview, the film will be expanding throughout the month so check the official site to see when it hits your city and read my review as a primer.

All of Finke's numbers for Friday are listed below. Come back tomorrow when Laremy will have the full weekend recap.

1. A Christmas Carol - $9 million
2. The Fourth Kind - $5 million
3. The Men Who Star At Goats - $4.6 million
4. Michael Jackson's This Is It - $4.1 million
5. The Box - $2.85 million
6. Paranormal Activity - $2.8 million

• Precious: Based On The Novel "Push" By Sapphire - $585,000

The rules for this one are simple. I have washed away all the credit details from the poster snippet above leaving only the cast names. Your job is to guess the title of the movie. Be sure to spell correctly, misspelled titles are wrong answers.

[poster_form]

	Is it real? No. Is it any good? It's not bad and will likely be better for people going in knowing wholeheartedly it is fake, but then again, the filmmaker's attempts to convince you it's real may grate on you even more under those circumstances. It's hard to figure which side the general public will come down on this one and user comments should prove entertaining reads. This film is rated PG-13 for violent/disturbing images, some terror, thematic elements and brief sexuality. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 24 PICTURES
	My Review / Get More Info

	I'm not sure if I will ever truly come around to Robert Zemeckis's vision when it comes to motion capture CGI animation. Perhaps that's my loss, but this one did very little for me even though it does paint some very pretty pictures. This film is rated PG for scary sequences and images. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 15 PICTURES
	My Review / Get More Info

	Warner Bros. did themselves and writer/director Richard Kelly a major disservice by screening this film so late in the game. I have posted my review of this film already, but it comes only hours after seeing the film at a 7:30 PM screening on Thursday night. It isn't fair to post a review for a high concept film such as this only four hours after seeing it, but sometimes that's the way things go. As far as this film goes, I would say an open mind and an excitement for puzzles could make you the perfect audience for this film. Each scene holds a clue and I have a feeling truly dedicated viewers will study this thing once it is on DVD in an attempt to extract every last bit of information it holds. It's a much better film than I expected considering the ill-treatment it's received from the studio, but it's a bit too muddled to call it anything more than a potential cult classic a few years down the line. This film is rated PG-13 for thematic elements, some violence and disturbing images. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 29 PICTURES
	My Review / Get More Info

	My absolute favorite drama of the year so far and you're going to be hard-pressed to find it this weekend as it is only opening in 18 theaters in Georgia, Illinois, California and New York this weekend. But definitely keep an eye out for it over the next few weeks or check the official site and see when it's hitting your town. This one is not to be missed despite how bleak and unrelenting the trailer looks. This film is rated R for child abuse including sexual assault, and pervasive language. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 7 PICTURES
	My Review / Get More Info

	My suggestion is to wait for this one on DVD, it's not an awful film, but I am convinced it will play much, much better in the comfort of your own home rather than if you spend money at the theater. This film is rated R for language, some drug content and brief nudity. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 9 PICTURES
	My Review / Get More Info

	William Hurt, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Mark Strong in a Pete Travis (Vantage Point) directed action-thriller and Monterey Media is shuffling it into only few Carmike theaters this week. Must not be any good, but certainly sounds like a film I wouldn't mind watching one day on DVD. This film is rated PG-13 for violence/disturbing images and some strong language. CLICK HERE FOR THE GALLERY OF 3 PICTURES
	Get More Info

	This one was tipped early to be a potential Oscar vehicle for 84-year-old lead Hal Holbrook whom many thought may be able to snag an Oscar when he was nominated for Into the Wild in 2008, but Javier Bardem and No Country were just too tough. I don't see much hope for this one unless Freestyle decides to go with more than one theater over the next few weeks and try to generate some actual buzz. Nevertheless, Oscar or not, it could be good. This film is rated PG-13 for brief strong language, some violence, sexual content and thematic elements.
	Get More Info

]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/movie-review-the-box-2009 http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/movie-review-the-box-2009 Fri, 6 Nov 2009 03:32:09 -0700 Brad Brevet

Cameron Diaz and James Marsden as Norma and Arthur Lewis are presented with an interesting proposition when Frank Langella playing the mysterious Arlington Steward shows up on their doorstep. His face, disfigured due to an initially unknown accident, is a source of unease as he offers the couple a button unit with the promise that should they push the button someone they don't know will die and in return they will be given one million dollars. The proposition sounds like a no brainer and we even joked about it earlier this week, but as presented in the film I can understand why the Lewis family may be a bit hesitant to condemn someone to death in favor of a major pay day. Consequences can be a bitch.

They, of course, do end up pushing the button which sends things on a wild roller coaster that I won't even begin to spoil here. However, I will say I stared at the screen in bewilderment for the majority of the film's duration wondering just what the hell was going on. By the time it was all over I was asking myself Why? What was the point of it all?

Lessons of free will versus destiny ring loudly in the film's final moments resulting in a couple of possible scenarios running through my head. Unfortunately, excited about the prospect of all the time I had spent actually going somewhere, I was eventually let down by the way things turned out. Kelly reached for the stars in this adaptation of Richard Matheson's "Button, Button" and it's nice to see Warner Bros. doesn't appear to have gotten too hands-on with a film that never for an instant feels like a major studio piece, but in the end I felt Kelly pulled back, realizing his reach extended too far.

I will applaud Richard Kelly for continuing to push the boundaries and somehow manage to do it inside the studio system. However, the fact he was able to get a non-Hollywood film made in Hollywood is only the front line battle, the true test is the content. While the concept behind The Box is fascinating, it really could have used a little tightening up. Kelly was right not to dig too deep into some aspects of his outlandish story, but his attempts to build tension ultimately cause the film to become something it's not all while leaving the more intriguing story details a mystery to be solved with only scant pieces of evidence as you head home from the theater.

NOTE: Warner Bros. screened this film at 7:30 PM the night before opening leaving me with very little time to digest it before publishing this review. I have a feeling my opinion of this film may improve over the coming weeks and suggest anyone that sees it to be sure to bring a friend and keep an open mind. There seems to be a lot to this story and it's unfortunate the studio didn't have the confidence to give film reviewers a proper chance to absorb the film fully.

Starring as the title character is Gabourey Sidibe as she opens herself up to a well of emotion unlike any I have seen all year. Living in Harlem in 1987, Precious is 16-years-old and pregnant for the second time by her absent father. She's incredibly overweight, illiterate, at times makes believe she is a blonde white girl and is forced to wait hand and foot on her welfare addicted and abusive mother played with devilish menace by comedian Mo'Nique as if she has been tackling dramatic roles all her life.

The news in Precious's life rarely improves and will only get worse, and yet there is a shimmer of hope. The hope, however, doesn't come out in favor of Precious, per se, as much as it comes as a result of those around her. By this I am talking about a particularly moving performance by Paula Patton (Deja Vu) playing Precious's teacher Ms. Rain as well as an opinion altering performance by Mariah Carey as a social worker handling Precious's case.

Both women care for Precious's predicament as much as we do as audience members, but whereas most of us turn a blind eye in the face of such adversity, these two women stand up and do what is right. They do it out of sheer compassion and without thought of reciprocation, outside of the knowledge they did the right thing and lived up to their own sense of responsibility.

This is not to say Precious doesn't play the game of stereotypes or cliched plot devices. As a matter of fact this film plays it to the hilt. We are talking about dealing with people that are overweight, poor, lesbian, lacking in self-esteem, have been raped and are under-age and pregnant. To top it off, the inclusion of a Down syndrome child may be just enough for naysayers to check out. It's a lot for one film and the only reason it works is thanks to the cast that director Lee Daniels brought together to tell the story.

Sidibe as Precious gives the best performance I have seen all year. Knowing she is ten years older than her character and after seeing her in a pair of interviews recently I am all the more convinced she has the best female performance of the year to this point. Mo'Nique delivers a performance you would never in a million years expect, but Daniels saw something in her and he was spot on.

Mariah Carey will most likely never live down her attempt at acting stardom in Glitter, but her performance here is transformative and she never skips a beat. And Paula Patton breathes life, caring and compassion into Ms. Rain that projects itself throughout the film.

A lot of negative things have been written about Precious recently, some have been downright hateful and even judgmental of anyone that likes it. The phrase "poverty porn" has emanated from some circles and while I can understand where some of the more level-headed arguments come from, many of the other naysayers simply seem to be so unhappy and contrarian it's not even worth the time to read any further into their statements.

For all the darkness seen in this film it's astonishing the amount of light that is seen at the end, even though the unsettling nature of it all was still with me as the credits began to roll. Sidibe created a character so believable, she not only manages to earn the compassion of the characters in the film, but also those in the audience. It's a truly masterful performance in a film I won't soon forget.

The Fourth Kind is attempting to pull-off the Blair Witch Project "is it really real?" stunt and I'm not sure how it will play with most viewers, but with me it was a distraction overused to the point of annoyance. Making use of the word "actual" along with split-screens, audio readings, Sumerian translations and a pesky snowy owl that keeps showing up at 3:33 AM the film has a hard time actually telling a story as much as it tries convincing us it has a story. And don't ask me if 3:33 AM is a global constant or if daylight saving and time zones are taken into account, because when it comes to "actual" facts this film is fleeting at best.

Milla Jovovich plays the purportedly real-life character Dr. Abigail Tyler, a psychologist that not only videotaped her patients having seizures while under hypnosis, but has apparently agreed to release them for the purpose of making a dramatized horror film. Tyler is/was/never was a psychologist in Nome, Alaska and the story is something of a 98-minute episode of "Unsolved Mysteries" only without the supposed facts and without the mystery.

To corroborate what is seen on screen the film oftentimes goes to split-screen showing on one side what is said to be the "actual" recording and on the other the dramatization. Also included is a faux interview segment peppered throughout the film with what is said to be the "real" Dr. Tyler being interviewed by the film's writer/director Olatunde Osunsanmi.

To be fair, the supposed archived footage looks incredibly authentic and like any "alien sighting" videos you see it isn't at all conclusive as it frequently gives in to electronic interference. As a matter of fact, the convincing nature of this footage had me staying in my seat with a couple of other critics, watching the credits and looking for any admission the footage was fake. It never came and as a result The Fourth Kind ends up nothing more than a gimmick whereas I could have walked away with some measure of respect and intrigue.

Admittedly, it does offer a couple of scares and a few creepy moments thanks to a some good sound work, but the split screen technique and the continuing attempts to convince the audience what they were watching was real became an awful nuisance. Perhaps they were trying to play it up to the point you would walk away thinking it was simply too over the top to be real, but when you end the film with a disclaimer similar to the one you started it with you are trying to maintain your poker face, which is ultimately undone thanks to not knowing when to say when.

The Fourth Kind is fine as a mild diversion, and may give you a creep or two with the lights out on DVD, but overall it's just a tolerable diversion.

If you've seen any incarnation of Charles Dickens's "A Christmas Carol" the best way to describe this latest attempt is to call it a stripped down non-inventive take on the classic Christmas story that wears on too long and is just plain dull. By the time I hit the Ghost of Christmases Yet To Come I was ready to check out, I knew what was coming and wasn't expecting any deviation. I won't say I was ever bored beyond reproach, but I was never moved and certainly never felt a kinship with any of the characters whose dull and lifeless eyes and facial features are far from inviting. The putty-like facial issues and non-responsive eyes have flummoxed Zemeckis since The Polar Express in 2004 and there is very little sign of improvement here. Considering the eyes are the gateway to the soul, a lot is missing when the spark isn't there.

Where the film does knock it out of the park is in its visuals beyond human attributes. The atmosphere, the set design, the lighting and the overall appearance of A Christmas Carol is absolutely perfect. The golden flicker of candlelight glowing in the darkness is perfectly complimented by the frigid and foggy winter nights of the Dickensian mid-1800s. Of course, the mood of the film is never indicative of its appealing settings.

The characters seem to walk through the world oblivious to their surroundings, as if one is not a part of the other. Being a motion capture feature that is entirely true as actors act out their scenes, have their performances captured in a computer, which are then inserted into these photo realistic environments. While this doesn't take away from the visual appeal, it does hit a snag when it comes to connecting to the audience and convincing them they are watching a fully fleshed out feature.

Jim Carrey brought as much as he could to the character of Ebenezer Scrooge, but in the end it felt like you could cast anyone in the role, which Zemeckis proves with Robin Wright Penn as Scrooge's young love, Belle. Zemeckis can change the appearance of any actor to match the look he wants and as a result Penn is unrecognizable and Carrey takes on Scrooge at five different ages as well as plays all three ghosts. Considering Zemeckis did very little with Carrey's natural talents for physical performance, and there was very little in the way of comedy, he could have snatched up anyone off the street to dryly humbug their way through this story.

In all honesty, everything seems secondary to the attempted leaps in technology in this film. Zemeckis has made statements as to his intentions with the story such as how the three ghosts are alter egos of Scrooge, the importance in accuracy of Scrooge's appearance and the overall hyper-reality of it all. If the ghosts are alter-egos of Scrooge they only go as far as to mirror his appearance (outside of the Ghost of Christmas Future who is just a pointing shadow) and, like I said, the film is extraordinary visually, but it takes more than good looks to make a good movie.

From the inexplicable hissing of the Ghost of Christmas Past to the annoying and boisterous laugh of the Ghost of Christmas Present, Disney's A Christmas Carol has no understood reason to exist. The only thing unique about it was the way in which it was made and the fact it manages to be so boring. Neither of which appeals to me too greatly despite being a fan of Dickens's story.

Directed by Grant Heslov, the Oscar-nominated co-writer and producer of Good Night, and Good Luck., The Men Who Stare at Goats is an adaptation of Jon Ronson's book of the same name. I have since been told it's only loosely based, which the film would also like us to believe as it opens saying, "More of this is true than you would believe." Just what part is true? Who knows? How much do I believe? Perhaps the proper question there would be How much do I want to believe? The answer to that would be "very little," which is to say the truth of the matter actually frightens me.

The film follows down-on-his-luck journalist Bob Wilton (Ewan McGregor) who heads to Iraq looking for a story and finds Lyn Cassady (George Clooney) who claims to have been part of a top secret government project to create an army of soldiers with super powers, or what he calls "Jedi warriors". Lyn says he's on a mission and Bob jumps at the opportunity to follow him having briefly heard of the secret unit in the past. From there we head back and forth in time learning about the origins of the program and where it is today, and ultimately ending up nowhere. Perhaps that's the joke. It's a subtle one if it is, and while this movie isn't terrible it just doesn't really get the motor running as much as it feels like a series of "Saturday Night Live" skits on the same subject packed into one 95-minute feature.

Both McGregor and Clooney are in top form and a lot of fun as a pair, in roles that suit both of them perfectly. Kevin Spacey plays a rival psychic soldier who is actually more of a parody of a parody than anything else, but good for a laugh or two along the way. And Jeff Bridges plays Bill Django, the founder of the psychic soldier program, and the man Lyn still receives his orders from.

If we were to use The Men Who Stare at Goats to judge how far director Grant Heslov could go as a director I'd say we should anticipate his next feature with some enthusiasm. Considering this is his first major feature film and he is working hand-in-hand with Clooney at Smoke House there is likely to be a lot to look forward to. This just happens to be a bit of a one trick pony that will likely play far better at home on DVD than it does in theaters.

It seems Dan Aykroyd is in negotiations to voice the CG-animated Yogi while Justin Timberlake is in talks to voice Boo-Boo while Anna Faris will voice Rachel, a nature documentary filmmaker shooting Yogi and Boo-Boo for her next project.

The film is set to begin filming in Auckland, New Zealand next month from a script by Brad Copeland (Wild Hogs).

Yogi Bear is already slated for a December 17, 2010 release.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/a-complicated-new-poster-and-trailer-with-streep-and-baldwin http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/a-complicated-new-poster-and-trailer-with-streep-and-baldwin Thu, 5 Nov 2009 18:59:06 -0700 Brad Brevet

Jane (Streep) is the mother of three grown kids, owns a thriving Santa Barbara bakery/restaurant and has -- after a decade of divorce -- an amicable relationship with her ex-husband, attorney Jake (Baldwin). But when Jane and Jake find themselves out of town for their son's college graduation, things start to get complicated. An innocent meal together turns into the unimaginable -- an affair. With Jake remarried to the much younger Agness (Lake Bell), Jane is now, of all things, the other woman. Caught in the middle of their renewed romance is Adam (Martin), an architect hired to remodel Jane's kitchen. Healing from a divorce of his own, Adam starts to fall for Jane, but soon realizes he's become part of a love triangle.

Along with the trailer and the poster you see above, you can also check out Entertainment Weekly's feature with Streep and Baldwin right here. For a larger look at the poster teased above click here and for the trailer just scroll down just below the screen capture of Alec Baldwin.

Alec Baldwin in flesh colored skivvies in It's Complicated
Photo: Universal Pictures

You can watch the trailer in high definition at Apple.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/box-office-oracle-nov-6-nov-8-2009 http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/box-office-oracle-nov-6-nov-8-2009 Thu, 5 Nov 2009 16:29:22 -0700 Laremy Legel

Watching the trailer it looked like we are pretty much talking about a simplified Lord of the Rings as Jake Gyllenhaal must protect a time-turning dagger. Instead of taking it to a fiery death, Jake must return it to a "secret guardian temple" so it doesn't fall into Sauron's Nizam's (Ben Kingsley) hands. Instead of the curious relationship between Frodo and Sam, Jake takes along the gorgeous Gemma Arterton for the ride. And who could really argue with that?

It looks like they are trying to continue the Pirates of the Caribbean vibe in terms of music and comedy, as the relationship portrayed in the trailer easily mashes up Johnny Depp and Orlando Bloom into Gyllenhaal's character with Arterton playing the headstrong Keira Knightley role. Warner Bros. and Guy Ritchie appear to be taking a similar tact with Sherlock Holmes and I expect both films to appeal nicely to the masses. However, this appears to be quite the turnaround for the video game genre, which has seemed to largely try to seduce teen boys into theaters and hope for a small amount of crossover. Prince of Persia, which has already been rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, should appeal to a wide range of audiences and should it prove to be any good who's to tell how big it could get?

Towards the end of IGN's part two of the commentary, Mechner discusses the size and the scope of the production and looking back that is really something that's been missing when it comes to recent video game adaptations. Even beyond having the Oscar-nominated Gyllenhaal, Oscar-winning Kingsley, BAFTA award winning director Mike Newell and (hopefully soon-to-be Oscar-nominated) Alfred Molina, we are talking about a large production that appears to be trying to make an entertaining blockbuster as opposed to half-assed recent attempts including Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, Max Payne, Hitman, DOA: Dead or Alive, BloodRayne, Doom and Alone in the Dark. Even as a mild fan of the Resident Evil franchise, they have never been able to move beyond what I felt was a solid jump start. I know some of you in this audience like Silent Hill, but the ending of that one really stunk in my opinion.

As a fan of the first Pirates of the Caribbean and someone that can watch the sequels and not get too upset, I am now looking forward to this film. It's obviously not going for anything too grand and focusing more on entertaining through character quirks and grandioso action set pieces. I can get down with that, and not being a gamer I don't really have any kind of real expectations. I just wonder, if this one succeeds will filmmakers and studios begin looking at video game adaptations more seriously? Will the idea of Gore Verbinski's failed attempt to bring a big budget version of "BioShock" to theaters seem more plausible? Will the even more dramatically failed attempt to bring "Halo" to the big screen look like a missed opportunity worth revisiting?

Having recently finished "Uncharted 2" and enjoying the fun I had playing both it and its predecessor, games are doing most of the work for screenwriters and filmmakers already. It's going to become just a matter of properly adapting and adjusting for the big screen that will become the big hurdle, a hurdle it sounds like "Sands of Time's" Mechner has already considered. We now just have to wait to see how it turned out.

Watch the second part of IGN's commentary with Mechner below and I added 13 screen captures from the trailer to our Prince of Persia gallery, which you can check out right here.

Thompson, as many of you may already know co-wrote Stanley Kubrick's killer heist flick The Killing, which was part of my list of top ten heist films back in early 2008. This also isn't the first time "The Killer Inside Me" has been adapted for a feature film as Burt Kennedy directed a version in 1976 starring Stacy Keach and Susan Tyrrell.

The story centers on a West Texas sheriff (Affleck) and his downward spiral from a boring small-town cop into a ruthless, sociopathic murderer. The cast also includes Jessica Alba as a prostitute and Kate Hudson as the sheriff's schoolteacher girlfriend. Baker plays a county attorney looking to expose the sheriff as the killer.

The film does not yet have a distributor.

The film, directed by Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin, centers on the villainous Gru and his plan for the biggest heist in the history of the world. He is going to steal the moon. Gru's plan will, however, have to survive the likes of three little orphaned girls who look at him and see something that no one else has ever seen: a potential Dad.

How it all works out is your best guess, but we have nine new images from the film which you can see here and the trailer, which is directly below.

Despicable Me is set to hit theaters on July 9, 2010.

You can also watch the trailer in high definition at Apple.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/the-tourist-now-looks-to-team-up-jolie-and-depp http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/the-tourist-now-looks-to-team-up-jolie-and-depp Wed, 4 Nov 2009 18:50:20 -0700 Brad Brevet The Tourist is quite the bumpy ride as recently announced director Florian von Donnersmarck and Tom Cruise replacement and Avatar star, Sam Worthington, have both left the production citing creative differences leaving Angelina Jolie all on her own... at least for a brief moment as Variety is now reporting Johnny Depp is in talks to fill in for Worthington and star alongside Jolie in the now director-less thriller.

Should things work out, Depp would play an American tourist drawn into a web of intrigue and danger by a female Interpol agent (Jolie) as she attempts to locate a criminal who was once her lover.

With the director's chair wide open, Variety's Mike Fleming reports there are names already circling the project, including Children of Men helmer Alfonso Cuaron.

At one point this was a film with Bharat Nalluri directing Tom Cruise and Charlize Theron, which then had Cruise being replaced by Worthington, Nalluri dropped off, followed by Jolie replacing Theron, which is when von Donnersmarck filled in for the vacated director's chair.

The film is slated to begin production in February for Graham King's GK Films. If Depp signs on I can only wonder what this means for films such as Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, The Lone Ranger and the proposed team-up with Tim Burton for Dark Shadows. I guess time will only tell.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/ten-things-wed-push-the-boxs-button-for http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/ten-things-wed-push-the-boxs-button-for Wed, 4 Nov 2009 16:03:16 -0700 Brad Brevet

Now imagine Frank Langella tells you that by pushing it you will receive $1 million! There is, of course, the one caveat, someone you don't know, somewhere in the world will die as a result of your button mashing, which could potentially open the possibility that the next person that pushes it will ultimately end up killing you and so forth...

However, if you follow that logic down the line that would mean you died without $1 million should you have decided not to push the button. This would leave you with one massive regret as you fade down the drain. Soooooooo... Boom! You push that button! And...

$1 million!
Photo: Warner Bros.

Taking this idea a bit further, I took a hypothetical button box idea to our very own Box-Office Oracle, Laremy Legel, to see just how low he would actually go if offered the chance to get something for free just by pushing a cool as sh*t shiny red button. Here's how he responded with a few explanations as to why...

	My car gets dirty. One push of the button, and BAM!, I'm ready for profiling. And at a discount no less!

	Back when I had troll dolls I feel like I took them for granted. I wouldn't this time.

	Forever. Think of the implications of that. If I wanted to mail something in 20 years I just slap a "forever" stamp on there and I'm golden.

	I would get a meatball sub. And it would be glorious. And free! That's a bingo!

	Because far too often my kisses end with a grimace and a frown. Not this time! Box. Button. Pushed!

	Seriously. They are the same color. Don't even try it.

	It's like dry cleaning roulette, at least one of 'em is gonna be an item I like, right?

	If there's a better pastry out there I've not met it. Oh bear claw, how I love thee.

	From Emmylou Harris to Dinah Washington -- this one has something for everybody!

	Trust me, there's a button in there... This time you push it!

Now that you've experienced our stupid list, enjoy what the folks at Funny or Die put together.

In the film directed by Phillip Noyce (Clear and Present Danger, Dead Calm) Jolie plays CIA officer, Evelyn Salt swore an oath to duty, honor, and country. She will prove loyal to these when a defector accuses her of being a Russian sleeper spy. Salt goes on the run, using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative to elude capture, protect her husband, and stay one step ahead of her colleagues at the CIA.

You can 13 images from the film right here and watch the trailer directly below. Salt is due in theaters on July 23, 2010.

You can also watch it in high definition at Yahoo. ]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/is-the-fourth-kind-real-or-another-blair-witch-fake-out http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/is-the-fourth-kind-real-or-another-blair-witch-fake-out Wed, 4 Nov 2009 12:41:06 -0700 Brad Brevet

The film is set in Nome, Alaska in the year 2000 and points to several real-life disappearances and attempts to provide evidence to convince you they are as a result of alien abduction. But is the evidence real?

Prior to writing this article I emailed a pair of Universal publicists asking for production notes for The Fourth Kind seeing how none were available online that I could find at either of my official Universal publicity asset locations. Unfortunately neither one of them even bothered to reply. All that is available is something of a one-page fact sheet giving me the following information:

In October 2004, filmmaker Olatunde Osunsanmi had wrapped principal photography on his thriller The Cavern and traveled to North Carolina for postproduction. While there, a chance dinner conversation sparked an interest that would be the genesis of The Fourth Kind.

A colleague told him of a psychologist living in the Carolinas who relocated from a remote town along the Bering Sea. In Alaska, she had conducted a sleep disorder study that revealed terrifying data. What Osunsanmi heard fascinated him...all the more because it was heavily documented. Through his contact, he tracked her down. After some reluctance, she shared her story.

In Fall 2000, the therapist's patients, under hypnosis, exhibited behaviors that suggested encounters with non humans. Before sleep, every person recalled a white owl outside his or her window. They woke up paralyzed, hearing horrific noises from beyond their doors just before an unknown assailant pulled them screaming from their rooms. Subsequent memories went dark.

As the doctor investigated the phenomenon, she discovered a history of missing people and bizarre activity from the region, dating back to the 1960s. The more she dug, the more she believed the unbelievable: Her patients' stories were not false memories, but comprehensive evidence of alien abductions.

The 2005 article comes as a result of the disappearance of Eric Apatiki, 21, and quotes from Delbert Pungowiyi, a tribal council member from Savoonga who had been pushing for an investigation since 1998, and believes more than one person is preying on Natives in Nome.

"People disappear over there and where are the bodies going? Where are the remains going?" Pungowiyi said before calling Nome "a bone yard for the region because there are so many remains there that have never been found. We're in 2004, 2005 -- and it's still happening."

As a result of the Apatiki disappearance a prominent Native organization in Nome released a list of 20 such suspicious cases in 2005, along with offers of a reward, in an effort to get help from the public. However, this list has also bubbled back to the surface with the pending release of The Fourth Kind as mentioned at All Business:

No one has heard of the psychologist [Dr. Abigail Tyler], including the state licensing board and president of the state psychologists association. And while there have indeed been disappearances in Nome -- mainly people traveling to the hub city from smaller surrounding Inupiat and Siberian Yupik villages -- blaming a real-life tragedy on alien abduction is not sitting well with the nonprofit that pushed the cases into the open.

"The movie looks ridiculous," said Kawerak Inc. Vice President Melanie Edwards, who watched the trailer online Monday. "It's insensitive to family members of people who have gone missing in Nome over the years."

Photo: Universal Pictures

There does seem to be the scantest of evidence to support the story despite the fact All Business sources state licensing examiner Jan Mays saying she can't find records of an Abigail Tyler. A website, which appears to have not paid for its domain name, can still be viewed via Google's caching services citing an article announcing the death of Dr. William Tyler, Abigail's husband and one of the catalysts for the story behind The Fourth Kind.

Of course, like the fuzzy "archived" video in the film, the fact this article is actually no longer officially available at a now defunct website paints a pretty sketchy picture, along with a presumed bio for Abigail Tyler at the Alaska Psychiatry Journal whose homepage now reads the following: "This webpage is currently unavailable." Isn't it always the way when alien abductions or ghost stories are talked about that something has to go wrong pretty much ruining the entire story?

However, The Fourth Kind isn't trying to tell you it's true as much as it's asking whether you believe. The film's tagline is their way out reading "It's Up to You to Decide." This makes it no different than any ghost story or unexplained phenomenon you may see on The History or Discovery Channels, and how often do you walk away from those believing they're real?

The Fourth Kind hits theaters this Friday, November 6 and I will have a review early that morning. For now, you can get more on the feature by clicking here.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/latest-mpaa-ratings-bulletin-no-2094 http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/latest-mpaa-ratings-bulletin-no-2094 Wed, 4 Nov 2009 12:39:52 -0700 Brad Brevet
Here are the new MPAA ratings from BULLETIN NO: 2094.

The film is due in theaters on March 12, 2010 and is set set in the early days of the Iraqi War when no one could be trusted and every decision could detonate unforeseen consequences. Damon leads a team of Army inspectors, dispatched to find weapons of mass destruction believed to be stockpiled in the Iraqi desert. Moving from one booby-trapped and treacherous site to the next, the men search for deadly chemical agents but stumble instead upon an elaborate cover-up that inverts the purpose of their mission.

I have added the trailer just above and the poster just below. For more information you can click here where we have a gallery of three additional images.

Photo: Universal Pictures via Empire

Oscar telecast producers Bill Mechanic and Adam Shankman were quoted in a joint statement saying, "We think the team of Steve and Alec are the perfect pair of hosts for the Oscars. Steve will bring the experience of having hosted the show in the past and Alec will be a completely fresh personality for this event."

This will be the first time for Baldwin on the big stage while this marks Martin's third time hosting the event after hosting in 2001 when Gladiator took home Best Picture and again in 2003 for Chicago's big win. Martin was nominated for an Emmy for his first stint as host.

The 2010 Oscars will be presented on Sunday, March 7, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood and#038; Highland Center, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

To keep up with all of my Oscar coverage and predictions click here.]]> http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/russian-trailer-for-jolies-action-thriller-salt http://www.ropeofsilicon.com/article/russian-trailer-for-jolies-action-thriller-salt Tue, 3 Nov 2009 13:13:42 -0700 Brad Brevet UPDATE: The Russian trailer was removed, but the official trailer is available now RIGHT HERE.

The arrival of this Russian trailer for Angelina Jolie's Salt directed by Phillip Noyce tells me we should expect a high definition domestic version very shortly as Trailer Addict is the first with the video.

In the film, that was once set to star Tom Cruise until they pulled a gender bender, Jolie stars as Evelyn Salt, a CIA officer who swore an oath to duty, honor, and country. When she is accused by a defector of being a Russian sleeper spy, Salt goes on the run to clear her name and ultimately prove she is a patriot. Using all her skills and years of experience as a covert operative, she must elude capture and protect her husband or the world's most powerful forces will erase any trace of her existence.

Columbia Pictures will release the film on July 23, 2010. Liev Schreiber and Chiwetel Ejiofor co-star.

Now that I have added 20 more images I would say anyone that has already read the book can pretty much piece together the entire film using what you already know and the images and you are pretty much squared away. However, these images are going to be something fun to look at if your number one concern is making sure the film is a faithful adaptation of Cormac McCarthy's wonderful book.

I have added my favorite image from the lot directly below, just click here to be whisked away to the gallery which is now up to 39 images.

Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee in The Road
Photo: Dimension Films

Before we get into this week's releases I thought I would alert you to an upcoming 50% off Criterion Collection titles at Barnes and Nobles beginning on November 10 and running for two weeks. The full details, and a $5 off coupon, can be found in the DVD Talk forums.

Wings of Desire (Criterion Collection)
	This is a huge week for major title releases on Blu-ray as Criterion's release of Wim Wenders's Wings of Desire is just the first of three titles I reviewed and most likely blew my word count for the next two weeks trying to get all of my thoughts squared away. As for this title specifically, it was my first time seeing it and as it played on and on I began to enjoy it more and more. However, if you read my lengthy review, you will see I sort of made up additional meanings for the film that started to intrigue me and keep me guessing as Wenders slow plays this one from the start. It's not a film for everyone, that's for sure, but should you already like this film, Criterion does not disappoint. And if you haven't seen it yet, check out my review and if it piques your interest give it a rent and see if it's one you think you would return to.

North by Northwest (50th Anniversary Edition)
	The second major title I reviewed this week is the first Alfred Hitchcock film to hit Blu-ray here in the States and Warner Home Video has set the bar impressively high for Hitch's high-def debut. I have detailed much of the specifics in my review, but suffice to say, this is a must buy for damn near any film fan.

Howards End (Criterion Collection)
	And finally, major title number three is the second Criterion Blu-ray release of the week and another title I just published my review of. This was my first time seeing this film and I went in with plenty of caution considering my only previous experience with Merchant/Ivory was A Room with a View and it did very little to excite me. Luckily, Howards End is both a visual marvel as much as it is an entertaining period piece taking a look at class divisions in Edwardian England.

Columbia Pictures Film Noir Classics, Vol. 1 The Big Heat / 5 Against the House / The Lineup / Murder by Contract / The Sniper
	For anyone that reads my Sunday morning What I Watched pieces you have already read up on my thoughts on this collection as I commented on two of the film's a week ago and three more this past Sunday. Of the collection, I would say it's got three bona fide winners (The Big Heat, The Lineup, The Sniper), one decent film (Murder by Contract) and one I didn't particularly like (5 Against the House). The collection runs $45 at Amazon and includes brief interviews with Martin Scorsese, Michael Mann and Christopher Nolan as well as a commentary on The Lineup by James Ellroy and Eddie Mueller and another on The Sniper by Mueller alone. It's a solid collection of films and if noir is your thing you really can't go wrong.

Love Actually
	Oh man, I can't even begin to tell you how much I love this film and to finally have it on Blu-ray is a blessing. Love Actually is, without a doubt, my personal favorite when it comes to romantic comedies. Outside of the Laura Linney storyline in this film I think it nails it up and down and recommend you buy this Blu-ray immediately.

Forrest Gump
	After seeing Peter Sellers's Being There I don't have any desire to ever see Forrest Gump again. Being There did it first and it did it much better. On top of that, you can buy the Blu-ray of Being There for $13 cheaper.

It's a Wonderful Life
	I already own the DVD version of this and don't really see the huge benefit in a Blu-ray copy, although I am going to take a peek around and see if there are any reviews of this one to change my mind.

G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
	I saw a website out there championing this as a "HUGE" and "MAJOR" release this week. I can only laugh at such a notion. Ha!

The Taking of Pelham 123
	I planned on getting a review of this one up this week as well, but the three other reviews I wrote dominated my entire weekend of movie watching. Many apologies. I came down on this one sort of hard in my theatrical review and I am anxious to see if I came down too hard as I suspect this one will play nicely at home.

Aliens in the Attic
	It's always weird when I am putting these round-ups together and a title such as this pops up. It was released just over three months ago and I think I forgot about it almost six months ago and after today I don't expect I will ever mention it again.

I Love You, Beth Cooper
	Ugh, never watch this film. Here are all my reasons why.

Food, Inc.
	I was interested in seeing this, but I was also told by watching it I would never want to eat food again. I can't figure out if I want to remain blissfully unaware or fully aware and terrified, although I have my leanings.

The Shield - The Complete Series
	Fantastic television series although I have still yet to see the final season. I need to get on that.

Heat / The Negotiator / Logan's Run Warner Home Video Blu-ray
	I received these three Blu-rays only last Friday and have not yet had a chance to watch any of them. I have never seen Logan's Run so I am interested in checking that out and Michael Mann has tweaked Heat a bit cutting it down by two minutes if I am understanding things correctly. And I don't know about you, but I think The Negotiator is a great film, even if it is a little on the longish side of things.

Rocky - The Undisputed Collection (Blu-ray)
	The complete Rocky collection goes Blu and Amazon has it for $54.99. You biting?

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (Ultimate Collector's Edition)
	What a classic holiday comedy, not sure if I need a big ol' tin to remind me of how much I liked it, but I guess that's what Christmas wish lists are for.

• Star Wars The Clone Wars: The Complete Season One
• The Rockford Files: Movie Collection, Vol. 1
• A Christmas Carol [Blu-ray] (1951)
• Fraggle Rock: The Complete Final Season
• The Dead
• White Christmas (Anniversary Edition)
• Edge of Darkness: The Complete BBC Series (Source of Mel Gibson's new movie)
• Terminator Salvation: The Machinima Series
• Spin City: Season Three
• The Claudette Colbert Collection
• Say Anything [Blu-ray]

• The Hurt Locker
  Releasing on January 12, 2010
• Extract (buy now)
  Releasing on December 22, 2009
• The Time Traveler's Wife
  Releasing on February 9, 2010
• Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball (buy now)
  Releasing on January 19, 2010
• Ballast (buy now)
  Releasing on November 10, 2009
• A Perfect Getaway (buy now)
  Releasing on December 29, 2009
• 9
  Releasing on December 29, 2009
• Surrogates
  Releasing on January 19, 2010

• The Hurt Locker
  Releasing on January 12, 2010
• Extract (buy now)
  Releasing on December 22, 2009
• The Time Traveler's Wife
  Releasing on February 9, 2010
• Smokin' Aces 2: Assassins' Ball (buy now)
  Releasing on January 19, 2010
• Ballast (buy now)
  Releasing on November 10, 2009
• A Perfect Getaway (buy now)
  Releasing on December 29, 2009
• 9
  Releasing on December 29, 2009
• Surrogates
  Releasing on January 19, 2010
• GoodFellas (20th Anniversary Edition) (buy now)
  Releasing on February 16, 2010

Described as the quintessential chase film, North by Northwest follows Cary Grant as a smug Manhattan advertising executive suffering from a case of mistaken identity that will have him chasing down answers from Grand Central Station to a Midwest cornfield and finally culminating on the nose of Abraham Lincoln at Mount Rushmore. Grant co-stars with the traditional Hitchcock blonde bombshell, this time played by Eva Marie Saint, as well as James Mason as the suave villain Philip Vandamm with Martin Landau playing his henchman Leonard.

I will admit I wasn't an instant fan of North by Northwest when I first watched it a few years ago, but that has a lot to do with my upbringing in film, which has always looked at action films with the idea that we need plenty of explosions, car chases and gun fights to get the heart racing. Instead, Hitchcock's NXNW is dedicated to timing, editing and subtlety for its thrills not to mention absolute outlandish moments such as a crop duster chasing down Grant in a cornfield and a tense battle on the faces of Mount Rushmore. Outlandish or not, it's Hitchcock's ability to make you look beyond the absurd and get caught up in the moment that turns this one into so much fun.

Fortunately, time is a film watcher's best friend. The more films you see the easier it is to separate the greats from the rest. Since my first viewing of NXNW I have now seen the majority of Hitchcock's feature films as well as seen several more Cary Grant films, and the mystery as to why this film is a celebrated favorite is no longer and Warner Home Video has pieced together a highly impressive package marking the film's 50th anniversary.

First off, the transfer was created from the original VistaVision negative in 8K resolution and has been cleaned up to perfection. In an excellent explanation offered up by Moises Chiullan at Hollywood Elsewhere, he explains the reasoning behind the difference in the contrast levels with this Blu-ray edition and the previously released special edition DVD saying, "Since DVD works with such limited resolution compared to Blu-ray, a lot of weird adjustments would be made for the sake of it looking right on much lower quality, smaller, and non-HD screens... If they didn't over-do the brightness on the DVD, you wouldn't have been able to see Cary Grant in the long shot where's he's standing across the road from the guy who gets off the bus. They'd both just be silhouettes." A visual comparison is available here.

Of course, the picture is the major upgrade here, but Warner has spared no expense in the package's presentation. Offered in digi-book packaging (a personal favorite) the disc comes with a 43-page booklet including two brief essays, biographical information on Grant, Saint, Mason and, of course, Hitchcock, additional film details and a wealth of artwork and production photos. It's a slick package to be sure.

The special features are largely all ported over from the previous DVD release including an audio commentary by screenwriter Ernest Lehman, a 39-minute doc on Hitchcock, followed by a stills gallery and three trailers.

New content begins with an excellent 87-minute Turner Classic Movies 2004 documentary on Cary Grant that goes into considerable detail including interviews with a couple of Grant's ex-wives and a choice quote from Betsy Drake.*

Next comes the 57 minute Hitchcock lovefest titled "The Master's Touch: Hitchcock's Signature Style" which features a wealth of information on the master of suspense, but does pour it on a bit thick. Of course, it's nice to hear the likes of Martin Scorsese commenting on Hitchcock, but when it's nothing but a smattering of hyperbole it gets a little old. The other new feature, "North by Northwest: One for the Ages" is much more entertaining as Curtis Hanson (L.A. Confidential), Guillermo del Toro (Pan's Labyrinth), William Friedkin (French Connection), Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend) and Christopher McQuarrie (writer of The Usual Suspects) discuss the film specifically and its impact on the industry.

For my money, I see this as a no-brainer purchase and only hope Warner and other studios follow suit in releasing the rest of Hitch's catalog on Blu-ray high definition. Then again, I am quite happy with my current collection of Hitchcock titles as the only major omission is last year's collection from Fox, which just so happens to contain one of my favorites, and no, I'm not talking about Notorious, I'm talking about this one.

* The Cary Grant doc has been available on DVD in the past, but was not part of the previous release of North by Northwest, which is why I mention it as a new feature on this release.

As they walk the streets, an often visited library and ride the trains we listen in on the thoughts of others as those Damiel and Cassiel encounter can be heard. However, their thoughts don't come across as a string of cohesive sentences as much as they are fragments of ideas, occasionally offering something of substance, but most often an example of the mundane. To that effect you could say Wings of Desire is about just that, an appreciation for the simpler things in life, the often under-appreciated things we as humans take for granted, but Damiel and Cassiel look at as pleasures they cannot share in.

Wings of Desire is about several things, a couple that come to mind for me are love, humanity, the innocence of children, destiny, dedication and, of course, desire. But beyond all this, I got something else out of it.

I am going to assume that at one time or another, in all of our lives, each of us has said, "If only I knew then what I know now." This was a phrase that stuck with me early on and throughout the entire film. Wings of Desire is primarily told from the viewpoint of Damiel and his interest in human life after walking the earth for eternity has come to the point where he wants to "take the plunge" and become human himself. I could only imagine what it would be like to take your first steps as a human being with a head full of an eternity of knowledge. Taking that into consideration, I began wondering, if given the choice, would you want to come into this world at an older age with such knowledge or would you prefer to start from scratch? This thought process went even further as the film's obvious religious themes took on a new meaning, or more accurately a tangent meaning.

Peter Falk ("Columbo") plays himself in the film and one of the many humans Damiel watches over and I think one can look at the actions of Falk's character as an embodiment of evil. He somehow, knowingly tempts the angels to reveal themselves and abandon their duty due to God. Under this interpretation the object of Damiel's desires, Marion, and the red dress she is wearing at the end of the film would symbolize the forbidden fruit as she and Damiel search to find their own personal Eden. The two give in to temptation, eat of the fruit and fulfill their desires. It's at this moment Damiel realizes his full transformation to becoming a human being, falling out of grace with God and no longer serving in His name.

Is this proposed interpretation too far off? In terms of the film's overall celebration of humanity, I would say it definitely doesn't fit. However, I think it helps in giving the film's detractors an explanation as to why the first 75-percent of the film is more important than they may have perceived. Without the film's opening three-quarters there is no reason to think Falk's character isn't the devil (or one of his followers) tempting angels to abandon their godly duties, encouraging them to smoke and drink coffee and leaving them to their own devices with a wink and a smile before moving on to his next victim.

As much as my theory interests me, it loses weight thanks to the film's finale, which I won't spoil completely for those that haven't seen it, but that isn't to say I wasn't happy the film opened my mind to so many varying ideas. Then again, Criterion's Blu-ray release makes a first time viewing that much more pleasurable.

Jurgen Knieper's excellent score makes spectacular use of the rear surround speakers all while his choral tunes reminded me a lot of Erik Nordgren's score for Ingmar Bergman's The Seventh Seal. The crisp high-definition transfer is enhanced by the spectacular cinematography of Henri Alken, a man referred to in the special features by Wenders himself as "the great master of black and white." How true.

The supplemental features begin with an audio commentary edited by independent DVD producer Mark Rance, making use of over six hours of archived interviews from September 1996 to March 1997. As a result it is more of an audio essay, professionally edited to the film's narrative as Wenders and Falk discuss the film, its origins and its meaning.

There are over 40-minutes of deleted and extended scenes, neither of which contain any recorded dialogue, but the 32 minutes of deleted scenes are accompanied by newly recorded commentary from Wenders while the nine minutes of outtakes are presented with music only.

"The Angels Among Us" serves as the disc's making-of featurette. Created in 2003, it includes comments from Wenders, Ganz, Falk, Sander, Knieper and others, explaining all aspects of the film and it leads nicely into a pair of excerpted features on cinematographer Henri Alekan, the first called "Alekan '85" which is made up of pieces of an unfinished documentary on Alekan and the other is Alekan La Lumiere, 27-minutes of excerpts from a 1895 documentary on Alekan.

A short, nine-minute excerpt from France's Cinema cinemas from 1987 is a look at one particular scene from the film including Peter Falk and Remembrance is 29 minutes from a documentary co-directed by Ganz and Sander about actor Curt Bois. Ganz and Sander showed Wenders this documentary, earning Bois the role of Homer in Wings of Desire. Bois was in his nineties when he shot the film and came out of retirement to do so.

The supplements are capped off by a photo gallery and a German theatrical trailer and a promo trailer for a Wenders retrospective titled Wen Wunderts featuring Wenders and Bois.

Overall, as this film began I wasn't sure I would ever recommend it, but I found it hitting on more and more of my favorite themes, especially when I began piecing together the alternative interpretation I offered earlier in this review. Admittedly, Wings of Desire isn't an instantly accessible film, and as such is a film you may want to rent before opening up your wallet.

Based on the novel by E.M. Forster, Howards End takes a look at class divisions in Edwardian England and the inheritance of England by the working/lower class. The film centers on the well-to-do Wilcox family and the relationship that results with the middle-class Schlegel family, particularly the relationship between Henry Wilcox (Anthony Hopkins) and Margaret Schlegel (Emma Thompson).

The title for the film comes from the name of the Wilcox's country getaway, which serves the story as the physical representation of England. Possession of Howards End comes into play following the death of Ruth Wilcox as played by Vanessa Redgrave who attempts to transfer ownership to Margaret. Margaret's would-be inheritance is ignored as it arrives much to the dismay of the Wilcox family and ultimate disapproval. A third element of the story is introduced in the form of Leonard Bast (Simon West) who comes to embody the lower class and ultimately serves as the film's linchpin with Margaret's sister Helen (Helena Bonham Carter) taking a philanthropic (and then some) interest in Leonard and his wife's plight.

On top of excellent performances and spectacular storytelling, I was most taken aback by the beauty this film offers in terms of Tony Pierce-Roberts's cinematography and Richard Robbins's score (serving as two of the film's nine Oscar nominations). In fact, if I had any form of musical education, I believe I would have an even greater appreciation for Howards End, and yet I am still able to find enjoyment as the piano plays amongst the wind in the trees and the pounding of the train tracks blend into the film's score.

As for the cinematography, scenes from this film are so beautiful, many could be captured and framed. Admirers would never even think to guess they were meant for anything other than a wall hanging. This is where Criterion's processing from the original 35mm interpositive shines through with brilliance. The presentation of color is imperative to enhanced viewing of this film and Criterion delivers, even if there are moments where the brilliance is momentarily lost.

Like I said earlier, the only new supplemental feature is James Ivory's 12-minute video appreciation of Ismail Merchant, recorded in 2009 special for Criterion's Blu-ray edition. In it, Ivory discusses his first introduction to Merchant and tells a few stories of their relationship. From here we have a handful of features carried over from the DVD release.

First is the 42-minute 2005 documentary titled "Building Howards End" led primarily by Merchant and Ivory while including interview additions with the likes of production designer Luciana Arrighi, costume designer Jenny Beavan and actress Helena Bonham Carter. It's an extensive and interesting look at the production, and it can at times become humorous, such as when Merchant goes off on America's judicial system, particularly the filing of Chapter 11, which led to a legal entanglement involving Howards End and Orion classics. All the while Ivory can only roll his eyes.

The nine-minute 2005 featurette titled "The Design of Howards End" is rather self-explanatory as Arrighi and Beavan lead us through their decisions for the design of the film, which also includes plenty of concept art and talk of their attempts to remain authentic to the period.

"The Wandering Company" is a 49-minute documentary from 1984 looking at the history of Merchant Ivory productions, and also included is a five-minute featurette from 1992 that accompanied the film's release and the theatrical trailer.

Perhaps the most glaring omissions include the obvious absence of any kind of a commentary track and after watching all the featurettes and documentaries, I am a bit surprised there are no included deleted scenes considering there is plenty of talk about scenes that were filmed, but never made the final cut.

While I still have more Merchant/Ivory films to watch (with The Remains of the Day next on the list), I must say the enjoyment I got out of watching Howards End has me far more interested in continuing the adventure than I was after A Room with a View. This isn't to say this film is an instant recommendation, but for anyone interested in gorgeous period pieces, acted to excellence you may want to give it some consideration.

Prince of Persia stars Jake Gyllenhaal, Gemma Arterton, Alfred Molina and Ben Kingsley with Mike Newell (Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) directing. It is due in theaters on May 28, 2010.

Check out the trailer below and for more on the film, including eight pictures, click here.

I didn't watch the trailer, so I have to ask, does it look like this will be a successful video game-to-film adaptation or will the lackluster trend of failed attempts continue?

Rounding out the cast is Richard Jenkins (The Visitor) playing Abby's guardian, Elias Koteas (Shutter Island) as the policeman, Cara Buono ("The Sopranos") as Owen's mother and Sasha Barrese (The Hangover) as Virginia. The filmmakers note that while the new film will pay respect to the original Swedish version, they intend to forge a unique identity for Let Me In, placing it firmly in an American context.

Simon Oakes, President and CEO of Hammer Films, was quoted in today's press release saying, "This project is very personal to Matt as it is to the many passionate fans of the original story. The brilliance of that story deserves to be seen by audiences on a wide scale and we are excited that the pieces are in place to make that a reality."

Principal photography began today in Albuquerque, New Mexico with the film scheduled for a 2010 release in the U.S. by Overture Films. Exclusive Film Distribution is handling worldwide sales and distribution of the film.]]>