Pics of the Day

Some glorious official stills of Trevnte Rhodes playing Mike Tyson have arrived this morning (via) -- a few weeks back I shared with y'all the teaser trailer for Mike, the limited series for Hulu that's kicking off in late August from the folks behind I Tonya and Pam & Tommy, and if ya missed that... don't. I promise you. It's worth the click. This show is gonna be a lot to take in! As is the bit of casting I just noticed on this thing's IMDb page -- Mike's trainer (named the too good to be true trainer name of "Cus D'Amato") is being played by Harvey Keitel, that we already knew. But that trainer's wife Connie? Is being played by our beloved Grace Zabriskie! Harvey Keitel and Grace Zabriskie as an old married couple named Cus & Connie D'Amato! Have I died and gone to heaven? If I have I am glad these images of Trevante are with me. Hit the jump for more...

All Creatures Great & Small & WTF

Lots of news about Sundance movies today! I just mentioned Franz Kranz's film Mass in my previous post and now here is the first poster and trailer for the animated-WTF-ery of Cryptozoo from filmmaker Dash Snow, which I also saw at the fest back in February. 

The movie I have found popping into my head the most from this past Sundance has been Dash Shaw's Cryptozoo? Just checked and last I heard it's out August 20th -- very much want to watch again! pic.twitter.com/vkE0gRzKEJ

— Jason Adams (@JAMNPP) June 4, 2021

This is hitting theaters on August 20th, and here's how they're describing it (better to use their words than my own, which would involve a lot of stunned "ums" and "errs" and "ooh la las"...

"Visionary comic book writer/artist/filmmaker Dash Shaw’s vibrant, fantastical animated feature follows cryptozookeepers through a richly-drawn hallucinatory world as they struggle to capture a baku (a legendary dream-eating hybrid creature) and begin to wonder if they should display these rare beasts in the confines of a zoo, or if these mythical creatures should remain hidden and unknown. Featuring the voice talents of Lake Bell, Zoe Kazan, Michael Cera, Louisa Krause, Peter Stormare, Thomas Jay Ryan, Grace Zabriskie and Angeliki Papoulia, CRYPTOZOO is written and directed by Shaw, with Jane Samborski directing the stunning animation."

And now for that trailer:

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life...

... you can learn from:

Wild at Heart (1990)

Sailor: Too bad he couldn't visit that old
Wizard of Oz, and get some good advice.
Lula: Too bad we all can't baby.

It's the 30th anniversary of David Lynch's nuttiest road romance Wild at Heart, which continues to be hotter than Georgia Asphalt and real weird on top a full three decades on. I just re-watched this movie a month or so ago and ooh golly does she peel your face off on that pavement, at times anyway. 

I have to admit that WAH always feels more like a series of moments and characters to me than it does a Finished Statement, though -- I mean, oh what scenes and characters! For sure. And perhaps the sketchiness is just part of the Dream Logic... but that's letting it off the hook, a little bit? Inland Empire is four hours of just Dream Logic and that felt complete to me in a way WAH never does, even after a dozen watches.

Maybe it's that this film feels in some ways like an echo of Blue Velvet more than it's own thing? It's the first time Lynch felt tied to a thing he did before -- you get the sense he knew he'd righted the ship after Dune with Blue Velvet and he is clinging to what he did there, this time. I mean I can't knock what he lets my beloved Grace Zabriskie do in this movie...

... and yet at the same time the character of "Juana" feels like Dennis Hooper's "Frank Booth" redux in too many ways not to at least notice and acknowledge that. I guess WAH feels transitional to me. Blue Velvet was the punch through the sky -- WAH is him finding his footing on the crazy new landscape he'd made for himself. But there's so much to love.

That scene in particular is one for Lynch's Greatest Hits.

.

Good Morning, World

.

I feel as if I am going to have a lot to say about this movie at a point in the future when I've had more time to think about it, but last night I was introduced to the 1995 film The Passion of Darkly Noon from the director Philip Ridley (who also directed 1990's terrific and also singularly strange The Reflecting Skin, a movie I have had words about here on the site before and which also got a nice blu-ray release recently) and starring Brendan Fraser, Ashley Judd, and Viggo Mortensen... oh and also Grace Zabriskie! We can't...

.

Dear lord in heaven where has this insane movie been all my life??? GOD BLESS GRACE ZABRISKIE AND KEEP HER SAFE #NowWatching #ThePassionofDarklyNoon @ArrowFilmsVideo pic.twitter.com/01mw9u3U6D

— Jason Adams (@JAMNPP) March 5, 2020

.

... forget her. Anyway I was introduced to Darkly Noon (lol that is Brendan's character's name, because of course it is) thanks to the brand new 2K restored blu-ray that Arrow Films is putting out at the end of this month, and I can't imagine this movie ever looked this vivid and crisp and frankly (I say this as a compliment) psychotic as it does on this disc in the 25 years it's been available...

... so I recommend, if you're curious or if you've been struck by the Darkly Noon bat to the face before, well I recommend you pick up a copy. And maybe then, when it comes out, I'll have gathered my thoughts. For now let's just enjoy the simple pleasures of watching 1995 Brendan Fraser climb naked out of a bed after the jump...

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life.

... you can learn from:

My Son My Son What Have Ye Done (2009)

Brad: What do you mean by birds?
They're my eagles in drag!

One of my absolute favorite Werner Herzog movies came out ten years ago today, and I feel like nobody but me ever talks about this flick anymore. We cannot let that happen! I mean this thing could coast on its cast alone, which might just be my favorite batch of weirdos ever assembled in one place -- Michael Shannon, Grace Zabriskie, Udo Kier, Chloë Sevigny, Irma P. Hall, Willem Dafoe, Michael Peña, Lorette Devine, Brad Dourif... oh and apparently (I don't remember this, I'll have to check my disc later) Dave Bautista has a cameo as a SWAT member???

But it's not just a tremendous group of freaks... excuse me, risk takers... all gathered up in one place and let loose. Herzog and Shannon and all the rest manage to make an operatic new American Myth out of a random tabloid story they snatched from oblivion. Here's my original review of the film, and here's what I wrote up when I called it my 5th favorite movie of 2009. I recommend you see this if you haven't, or watch it again if you have!
.

Today's Fanboy Delusion

Today I'd rather be...

... getting the rub-down from Luke Evans.

Luke posted this video of him getting handsy with his Alienist co-star Daniel Brühl earlier today, and I have to say I do like these two's interplay. (See also here.) The Alienist premieres next week and I've already seen the first two episodes and I will say more on them shortly (aka not now, but shortly) but you should set your DVRs. Or watch it live? Do people still watch things live? Anyway it premieres Monday night on TNT. Oh and if you need one more reason to watch I learned something that ought to push it right over the edge...

.

Wait what GRACE ZABRISKIE is on THE ALIENIST??????? #TheAlienist pic.twitter.com/oLv8GZNAwc

— Jason Adams (@JAMNPP) January 18, 2018

Today's Mood

.

Oh what fun.

.

It's Grace Zabriskie's Birthday!

.

Bow down!

Bow down!

I've avoided all of the promotional materials for Twin Peaks - all the trailers, posters, photographs... except for the pictures of Grace back as Sarah Palmer, continually tormented mother of the doomed Laura and wife to the doomed Leland. And I didn't even go looking for them either - they just found me, like home.

Twin Peaks returns this weekend!!! 

I assume you'll all be there with me?

Quote of the Day

.

“Just look at my face. Do these features look like they’re built for romantic comedy? Which is fine because they’re not really my thing. I know many other actors have turned their hand to it later in life, like De Niro, so who knows? Maybe it could happen. But it would feel very alien to me. I don’t think I’m genetically built for a ‘boy meets girl, laughter ensues’, but we’ll see.”

That's Cillian Murphy in a new interview. He's right of course, but he really should go on to say that rom-coms are a half-dead genre because of how routine and close-minded they've become, without enough imagination to cast interesting people over dull ones. I mean how long have I been screaming into the void for my "Udo Kier and Grace Zabriskie meet cute" movie?

I Am Link

.

--- Hoggin' Heroes - Did any of you see Keanu Reeves in John Wick? I saw lots of critics talking about how fun it was but I don't think I know one person in "the real world" who even knew it existed. Anyway apparently Keanu's now talking with Tarsem Singh, director of The Cell, Immortals et cetera, about starring in Panopticon, which is about the one (excuse me, The One) man who can solve a puzzle to stop the world from ending. I'd love to hear what Keanu's psychiatrist has to say about his obsession with being The One.

--- Widows Peek - Yesterday I told you about that cool-sounding 80s British series Widows that director Steve McQueen is probably remaking for a feature film - today The Playlist has shared the entire first season of the show via YouTube. I have already downloaded it and got it raring to go, with an eye towards every part Michael Fassbender could possibly play natch.
.

--- Life After Wartime - So somebody's giving Mel Gibson the money to direct another movie it looks like, and THR is saying it might star Andrew Garfield. I don't know. Listen, if Mel Gibson were actually a talented man I could probably say let's move on past his gratuitously awful misdeeds; I don't have to like an artist in order to appreciate their art. But I just don't think Gibson's talented enough to make that leap so I'd rather he just went away, rolled around in his old millions somewhere, and not drag Andy down into the mire with him. I'd prefer just remembering Mel as a hot piece in leather pants once upon a time.

--- Stupid-pocalypse - I hated the book Robopocalypse, hated it, it's nothing but a title, so the news that the book's author Daniel H. Wilson is eaming up with Brad Pitt to write a "sci-fi take on the works of Jack London" called Alpha doesn't really fill me with the sort of glee hearing Brad Pitt wants to make a "sci-fi take on the works of Jack London" usually would. I wonder what happened to Robopocalypse being turned into a movie though? Wasn't Steven Spielberg supposed to be making it with Chris Hemsworth or something?

--- The World's End - News broke last night that Josh Boone, the director of The Fault in Our Stars, who's been attached to making the film version of Stephen King's The Stand probably longer than any other sorry fellow who's come and went over the years, is going to make an entire series of movies, four probably, from the book. You know what, I haven't read The Stand in maybe 15 years, I really should give it a whirl again.

--- Slasher: A Love Story - Since I'm me I think this sounds like a super-fun idea: Cheap Thrills director EL Katz is set to make You'll Be the Death of Me, which sounds like it's half rom-com half slasher - it's described thus: "The comedy thriller follows two single New Yorkers as their budding romance is complicated by a masked knife-wielding psychopath." I thought Cheap Thrills was pretty fun too, for, you know an exercise in gleeful sadism.

--- Ballyhooed Blonde - Oh the happy happy joy joy that goosed my every fiber seeing my beloved Laura Dern front and center for The Hollywood Reporter's annual Actress Roundtable issue - I haven't seen Wild yet, but if it's giving that good lady a chance at recognition of the golden statue sort, it's got my ear. Over at TFE Nathaniel's dissecting the cover in minute and hysterical detail; so much shade thrown at Amy Adams! It really is ridiculous that she's on there again though. I'd say I hope she wins just so they'll stop putting her on the cover but she's going against Julianne Moore Best Actress-wise right? Ha good luck. (knock on wood, of course.)

--- Do Look Now - I forgot to mention this but it's worth mentioning even a few days late - Criterion's releasing Nicholas Roeg's glorious midget porn Don't Look Now on blu-ray in February! They're 4K-ing it up so expect eye-bugging gorgeousness from all the parts that aren't Donald Sutherland's ass. The extras, per usual with Criterion, do sound smashing though.

--- Return To Twin Peaks - Agenda Magazine interviewed David Lynch regarding his photography exhibit that's on display in Brussels right now, but they managed to get some non-quotes out of him on the Twin Peaks revival he's set to make for HBO. Even beyond that though Lynch is always worth listening to talk about anything. Oh and did you see that my best girlfriend (I wish) Grace Zabriskie pretty much said she'll definitely be returning? YESSSSSS.

Everything You Ever Need To Know About Life...

... you can learn from:

Inland Empire (2006)

Neighbor: Is there a murder in your film? 

Nikki: Uh, no. It's not part of the story. 

Neighbor: No, I think you are wrong about that. 

Nikki: No. 

Neighbor: Brutal fucking murder! 

Nikki: I don't like this kind of talk; 

the things you've been saying. 

I think you should go now. 

Neighbor: Yes. Me, I... I can't seem to remember 

if it's today, two days from now, or yesterday. 

I suppose if it was 9:45, I'd think it was after midnight! 

For instance, if today was tomorrow, you wouldn't 

even remember that you owed on an unpaid bill. 

Actions do have consequences. And yet, 

there is the magic. If it was tomorrow, 

you would be sitting over there. Do you see?

Happy 72, Grace Zabriskie!

.

I Am Link

.

--- Double Oh Daniel - You can see the first teaser trailer for Sam Mendes' James Bond movie Skyfall over here. It looks good - it shouldn't be surprising since Sam Mendes movies always look great, but man this thing's got some pretty shots on display already. But you should just assume I'm a little flummoxed about the lack of Daniel Craig skin being showcased here. There is one shot (shown to the left) that hints at shirtlessness (and I lightened it some to make it clearer) but come on, throw us a bone, man. It's been too long.

--- Speaking of James Bond, Moon and Source Code director Duncan Jones is going to make a bio-pic of Bond's creator the author Ian Fleming his next movie. How much Fleming put from his own experiences in the Royal Navy Fleming used in his 007 books has always been a curiosity so it'll be interesting to see.

--- The Goodbye Wiig - Right around the time Kristen slow-danced with Bill Hader I started crying, and it just got worse from there.

--- Must Watch - Ooh look it's a minute and a half plus ten seconds of footage from Paul Thomas Anderson's next movie The Master, the is it aint it Scientology-ish movie with Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Joaquin Phoenix. It involves good looking vintage men in shorts wrestling on a beach. Well that cinches it, I'm calling it right now - PTA for Best Director of the World!

--- Couples Therapy - I haven't gotten around to reading Stephen King's 2009 collection of short stories called Full Dark No Stars, have any of y'all? I heard it's not bad. His short stories tend to work better for me than his longer books, as a general rule. Anyway one of the stories called "A Bad Marriage" and it's going to be made into a movie.

--- Space Jockies - I don't know this book so I have no idea why DH refers to it as "controversial" but a film adaptation of the sci-fi novel by Berry Malzberg called Beyond Apollo is being made - anybody read that book? It's about a two man flight to Venus that ends up with nobody making it to Venus and only one man making it home. The film will star Scott Speedman, which is why I care. The book's cover is total wackiness.

--- Lady Fuzz -  Bridesmaids director Paul Feig is making a buddy cop movie starring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy next. I should just repeat that sentence, because perhaps then I can decide if that sounds like a good thing or a disaster. I think it's a good thing? But Sandy made Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, so you'll forgive me for being scarred with regards to her and cop movies.

--- It Bites - There's a Cannes review at AICN of Dario Argento's Dracula 3D and it sounds pretty much like the total epic ugly disaster that first trailer implied it was going to be. This part deserves to be quoted, because for real, yo:

"Thomas Kretschmann is still a good actor, but he’s not at all protected by Argento here, with some really oddly cut dialogue scenes and line-readings… if I were him I’d be furious. I have a feeling Argento cut one of the worst possible versions of his performance in the film."

Poor Thomas. I hate myself for knowing I'm still going to watch this movie the first chance I get no matter what, but there's no helping it. Here I wave a preemptive goodbye to those two hours of my life, already wasted before I've even gotten them.

--- Evil Awaits - STYD shares some whispers that director Pascal Laugier's follow-up to the horror masterpiece Martyrs called The Tall Man is going to be released at the end of August. I want it, please. Even though it stars Jessica Biel, I still want it. And that's a lot of "even though"!

--- And finally, Craig took on my favorite devil-eyed crazy-pants Grace Zabriskie for this week's "Take Three" at The Film Experience, go forth and wonder why she isn't cast in everything ever made, just to even have her walk by, bug her eyes at the camera, and move along. Movies would be 5000% better if that happened.

What A Son We Weave...

.

The banality of psychosis rendered in the in-betweens, where the pink flamingos on the front lawn have come to life and been given silly multi-syllabic names. There is no there here - nobody notices that your mask of sanity has slipped because their faces have already gone insane. Dull contempt greets manic depravity, and vice versa. No action has an equal and opposite reaction, except nonsense. Forever, nonsense. The intellectual stability and consistency of brown Jell-O.

Alright, so this movie brings out the nonsense in me as well. And a semi-pretentious sort at that! Imagine that! But this film... this film tapped into my crazy place like a sweet molasses syrup tree. Spigot the riddle out in short, controlled bursts! Ahh there I go again. I don't know that I can write a coherent review of this movie right now because it got into a bizarre place in my brain in a way frankly not enough films do. I loved every heaping ounce of it. I went skimming through the reviews afterward and I don't really get the laziness with which its been received. Does no one adore nonsense anymore?

I do the film a disservice by labeling it as just nonsense - it's precision-controlled nonsense, all angles working from a central base, exposing the whole. The whole might be made of invisible things in the end, but that's not Werner's fault! Sanity's inverse doesn't take kindly to photograph-taking, after all. Ask vampires.

As a portrait of the art-less artist, there is art here.

Michael Shannon finds new ways of being Michael Shannon, razzle-dazzling us in the process. I half expected a musical number in the middle, although the scene with the tuxedo-clad dwarf came close. Chloe Sevigny wears shorts and a sweater and a flat narcotic effect with grace. Speaking of, Grace Zabriskie twitches herself right off the screen and into the dark recesses of the audience's brain. Get out, Mother; get out.

All the time, a sword and a basketball, a baseball bat, a container of oatmeal wearing the face of God, they swirl across the screen. Mount a production of a faggy Greek play, and murder your Mom for the sake of her own soul. For our soulless souls, our river-trips to Doom disguised as Enlightenment.

"I'm not going to take your vitamin pills. I'm not going to drink your herbal tea. I'm not going to the sweat lodge with an 108-year-old Native American who reads Hustler magazine and smokes Kool cigarettes. I'm not going to discover my boundaries. I am going to stunt my inner growth. I think I shall I become a Muslim. Call me Faruk."

Now everybody stare.
.

Michael Shannon In Da House

Earlier this week I posted my excitement at noticing on the marquee of the IFC Center here in NYC that Werner Herzog would be attending some of the Friday (that is today) screenings of his new film My Son My Son What Have Ye Done.

Well today as I went to grab lunch I noticed the marquee now states that both Herzog and his star Michael Shannon will be there! Whee! Shannon's become one of my favorite actors since Bug in 2006. Most recently I loved him in Revolutionary Road last year, and he worked magic in Shotgun Stories as well.

I swear to god if I look over tonight and see that Chloë Sevigny or Grace Zabriskie are around, I will lose my shit.

.

I Am Link

.

--- Doctor Darko - I'm sure there will be tons of interviews and articles on Richard Kelly today since The Box is now open for business so I'll surely miss plenty. But here are a couple that grabbed my eye this morning. There's a good-sized chat with him over at AICN and a brief one at io9 that touches on some interesting stuff (including whether he's seen S. Darko or not), and also at io9 there's a run-through of what they're calling the "Darko Mythos," which supposedly runs through all three of his films so far. Worm-holes and what-not. Interesting stuff.

--- Bear With Faris - Oh God, Anna Faris, you are really testing my dedication right now. This dumb-kid trilogy of yours - first there was Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, next up you're a voice in the Chipmunks "Squeakuel" (shudder at that word), and now you've signed on to presumably be the live-action portion of a partially animated Yogi Bear movie? Come on, lady! I demand that you use the cash you make from this to make a raunchy lady-comedy where you're not showing off your tits, please. Oh and Justin Timberlake is voicing Boo-Boo in this Yogi movie. Him, I expect this from.

--- And Then There Was Jake - Haven't watched this myself yet but Slash has the second trailer for Brothers, the Jim Sheridan movie starring Jake and Tobey and Natalie. There was a first trailer? I don't think I even watched a first trailer. Hrm.

--- Come To Me, My Son - Now this is the sort of great news I hunger for today: BD has word on Werner Herzog's other movie this year, the one that doesn't star Nicolas Cage and make my mind spin, the one called My Son My Son What Have Ye Done? that stars Michael Shannon, Willem Dafoe, Chloe Sevigny, Grace effin' Zabriskie, and a bunch more awesome people. It's opening here in NYC on December 11th! Whee! If I'd known this was getting a release this soon it would've made my Five Most Anticipated Movies list that I made yesterday; I'd been assuming we'd be waiting until next year for it. It's opening at IFC Center so I would hazard a guess that it might play on their VOD channel around that time too maybe. Unless they're doing this for an Oscar run - playing on VOD complicates that, doesn't it? Man the Oscars have got to catch up with the real world. That's also the poster there to the right, and BD has the trailer as well.

--- Freud V Jung - Slash has also got word on another possibility for David Cronenberg's next movie - here's how they sell the source material:

"Talking Cure, a 2002 play by Christopher Hampton. (Ralph Fiennes, Cronenberg’s star in Spider, appeared in one of the primary productions of the play.) The story’s arc concerns the founding fathers of psychoanalysis, Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud, and their parallel relationships with a beautiful patient, Sabina Spielrein."

They rightly reference Dead Ringers being brought to mind by that description. But Slash seems unsure whether this is merely one of the many possibilities floating out there for DC to make next or if there's any reality to it. I guess we'll see.

--- I'll See That - Doesn't this description (via) sound like the sorta movie you might enjoy:

"...the film focuses on "a high school tramp who runs away with the school's gay, fat kid in his homophobic dad's stolen car."

Add to that the fact that the current cast-list includes Lisa Kudrow (as the gay kid's "mousy repressed mother" in shades of her Opposite of Sex character, natch) and Sally Hawkins and you kinda got yourself a no-brainer here.

--- And finally, Joe has seen the Hannah Montana movie two times. Two times! Hours of his life have been spent therein. So you owe him a glance at the hysterical fruit of that monumental effort. Plus, gay twink handling cock!
.

What Have Ye Done, Werner Herzog?

Hey, a good morning to everyone. I'm trying to pull my brain together here for a proper return to the world and what-not after a full four straight days of laying around not doing much if anything at all. I watched a ton of movies though. So perhaps I'll get to talking about all them sometime. If my brain starts working. I woke up in the middle of the night last night and had this extended Yellow Wallpaper moment where the air conditioner was making this buzzing noise and I couldn't get it to stop and I thought I was gonna lose my mind. So not a good night's sleep for me. But we deal! We deal with a large cup of chocolately-flavored coffee and the first batch of pictures from Werner Herzog's next movie (the one after that insane-looking "Nic Cage is a Bad Lieutenant" thing, that is), called My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? (via)

There's one more at that link if you're curious. I wrote up some on what this flick's about previously right here. I am so very excited for this film and these stills have only made that thrill more palpable. I am firmly on-board the Michael Shannon appreciation-train for one. And god Grace Zabriskie creeps me the hell out! Ugh! And I say that with total affection of course. Son is premiering at Toronto next month (as is Herzog's Bad Lieutenant movie... Herzog everywhere!)... still no word when it'll actually be released.
.

Herzog's Son

.

The more that I hear about it, the higher my expectations for Werner Herzog's next flick - called My Son, My Son, What Have Ye Done? - raise. Which, if you already know of my affections for Mr. Herzog, means ya know they were already astronomical as soon as I heard it was him making a movie, period. That's all it takes. But this thing sounds proper righteous.

STYD has a synopsis of the film, which stars the really really great Michael Shannon (seen above right), and co-stars Udo Kier, Grace Zabriskie, Willem Dafoe, Chloë Sevigny and Brad Dourif. (How's that for a fucking ensemble? Every single one of them makes my skin crawl in the most awesome fashion.)

And STYD also linked over to here where the first bit of (very very tiny) promo art for the film, there to the left, first appeared.

They also link to a report from the set in San Diego, with pictures, that also describe in pretty full detail the true-story off of which the film is based.

I'll be paying a whole lot of attention to this one too, so stay tuned. You know what I'd find refreshing? If one of the world's greatest living film-makers maybe got some credit this go-around. Maybe? Ya think?
.