In this weekend’s wildly reckless financial risk fantasy We Bought a Zoo, moneyed-but-totes-normal Benjamin Mee (Matt Damon), a recently widowed father of two, experiences a fit of Jerry Maguire insanity and moves his family into a zoo. Director Cameron Crowe and co-written by Aline Brosh McKenna (27 Dresses) would have you think this is a good idea, since (spoiler!) Mee’s selfish, shortsighted, and borderline negligent decisions result in an uplifting, golden-hued ending, not to mention the love of a certain crunchy-but-smokin’ hot lady zookeeper. But Movieline knows better. Study the litany of ill-advised risks and bad judgment calls Benjamin Mee makes for himself and his two young children. In these trying times, let his story not be a lesson.
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This week brings film buffs and comedy devotees alike the pleasure of Marty Feldman: The Biography of a Comedy Legend, author Robert Ross's revelatory new chronicle of the turbulent life and premature death of the titular British TV and film comic. An aspiring jazz musician-turned-comedian known predominantly for the pop-eyed visage he brought to his acting, writing and directing projects, Feldman's broad influence on British comedy of the '60s receives a close look from interview subjects including Michael Palin, Terry Jones and, from tapes recorded for his unfinished memoir, even Feldman himself. But his impact hardly ended there -- as anyone who's seen Young Frankenstein knows.
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If you were one of the curious few who caught Twilight star Taylor Lautner's abysmally-reviewed action star debut, Abduction, then you know how insanely, wonderfully ridiculous it is. Like, Razzie shoo-in, I-can't-believe-I'm-seeing-this-shit awfulsome good times. It's a film with dialogue so inane, Lautner actually asks, "Are you my mother??" And he's serious. I had such a good time "WTF"-ing at Abduction, I compiled all of my screening notes within for your perusal. Needless to say, major spoiler alert!
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As delightful as it is to watch Audrey Hepburn flitting about New York in Breakfast at Tiffany's, gazing adoringly at jewels and pretty things and falling in love as party girl Holly Golightly -- the original Carrie Bradshaw -- a shadow has loomed over that film for decades: Namely, Mickey Rooney's cartoonish turn as Mr. Yunioshi, the buck-toothed, bespectacled and slightly pervy Japanese man who lives upstairs. The good news, circa 2011, is that after years of not knowing exactly how to address that ugly, embarrassing moment in classic Hollywood cinema -- hindsight and all that -- Paramount Pictures, releasing the 50th Anniversary Blu-ray this week, offers a concerted effort to make amends.
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Earlier today, various trades reported that Chris Tucker is circling two big Hollywood roles -- one in David O. Russell's The Silver Linings Playbook and the other in Neighborhood Watch opposite Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn and Jonah Hill. Nearly all reports also noted that Tucker has been curiously absent from the box office since 2007's Rush Hour 3, which is strange considering that the actor was in the middle of a career upswing that started with Friday, continued with his Jackie Chan franchise and could have ended with the actor becoming one of the most marketable movie stars this decade. But after some careful math, Movieline HQ can tell you exactly why Tucker was free to retreat from the box office...
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According to Variety, Christian Bale's got a big decision coming up once he completes filming on Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight Rises: What to do next? With no fewer than five juicy options to pick from -- each with a notable director and vastly different material -- Bale might need a little help choosing. So let's help him out!
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Happy Valentine's Day! It's time to get together with that special someone in your life and spend money you don't have on garish rituals that would probably be much more romantic if you didn't feel compelled to commit them out of obligation to a calendar and/or greeting-card manufacturer. I mean! It's time to get together for a nice dinner and a movie -- hopefully one with some intimate, even sexy moments between the characters onscreen. If you can find one. Which might be difficult. Thank goodness.
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