Film is Truth 24 Times a Second

Here is a collection of what the covers to children’s novelizations of movies might look like if they were published in the 1950s. It is pretty great.

New Releases:

• A Dirty Carnival
• Finn’s Girl
• Lakeview Terrace
• The Lucky Ones
• Pride and Glory
• PTU: Police Tactical Unit
• RocknRolla
• The Rocker
• Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
• 2012: Science or Superstition
• Up the Yangtze
• Vicky Cristina Barcelona

New Arrivals:

• Adam Clayton Powell
• Beach Party / Bikini Beach (Double Feature)
• Budd Boetticher Collection (The Tall T / Decision at Sundown / Buchanan Rides Alone / Ride Lonesome / Comanche Station)
• Cannery Row
• Cool Runnings
• Death on the Nile (1978/Agatha Christie Collection)
• The Dogs of War
• Evil Under the Sun (1982/Agatha Christie Collection)
• Far From the Madding Crowd
• Gerald McBoing Boing Vol. 1: Adventures
• Gerald McBoing Boing Vol. 2: Fairytales
• Goodbye, Mr. Chips (1969)
• Gospel According to Al Green
• A Hero Ain’t Nothin’ but a Sandwich
• Mask
• The Mirror Crack’d (1980/Agatha Christie Collection)
• Royal Tramp & Royal Tramp II (Double Feature)
• Westward Ho / The Fighting Kentuckian (Double Feature)
• You’re a Good Sport, Charlie Brown

- Remember when Rain Man won Best Picture in 1988?

- Remember when Ghost and Goodfellas lost to Dances with Wolves in 1990?

- Bummed that Wall-E wasn’t up for Best Picture this year because animated movies never get the chance? 1991 - Beauty and the Beast lost to Silence of the Lambs.

- Gangs of New York. 2002. Nominated for Best Picture? Yeah, thankfully it didn’t win.

- The coup de grace - Shakespeare in Love won in 1998.

Please contribute and discuss…

Best Picture Nominees are The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Frost/Nixon, Milk, The Reader (not even on my radar!), and Slumdog Millionaire. Check out the whole list here.

Being new to Bellingham, my trip to see Creature from the Black Lagoon in 3D was only my second time at the Pickford. My first was to see a showing of Slumdog Millionaire which -I’m sure I don’t have to tell you- was excellent (or, to put it more appropriately, the most wonderful, uplifting film I’ve seen in a long time). I’d already heard about the showing of Creature in the newsletter, but the manager made mention of it before Slumdog started, warning people to come early. I shrugged it off, to be honest.

Then I showed up fifteen minutes early on the day of the showing to find a large line and heard the people in front of me saying that the theater was already full. I thought I’d missed my chance, but luckily snagged one of the five tickets left for the two o’clock showing later in the day.

Several cool things about seeing Creature in 3D: It was the first 3D film I’ve ever seen; I’d been meaning to see the film ever since I took the MGM ride when I was about five or six and can only remember (fondly) the moment Gillman pops up out of the lagoon and scares everyone on the barge, including me; and I now own a pair of 3D glasses.

Now, I mostly enjoy horror films and have never extended my knowledge into much Sci-Fi, but to start exploring the genre, I couldn’t have picked a better film. The gentlemen who sponsored the showing had a little trivia quiz for the audience beforehand, which gave me endearing knowledge of the film. Like how when Gillman is on land, he’s wearing some glass eyes over his own, not allowing the actor to really see (I jokingly like to say this is the reason for Gillman’s hesitant shuffling and outreached arms when out of the water). And I now know one of the taglines for the movie, which entertains me to no end: “Centuries of passion, pent up in his savage heart.” Who couldn’t feel sympathy for Gillman, after a tagline like that?

The experience was more intimate than any theater I’ve ever been in. I liked seeing a face that introduced the film to the audience (other than the sponsor, the Pickford always gives intros). It gave me the familiar feeling of hanging out with a friend who just wants to share a unique film with me. He checked to make sure everyone’s glasses were in order, then dimmed the lights and left us all eager to see the film.

From the first shots of the creation of the planet, with debris and explosions flying out of the screen, to the climatic final chase sequence complete with spear guns in my face, I enjoyed myself the whole time. Even the points in the movie that weren’t wildly 3-3-D were stimulating because it almost felt like seeing a play; the characters looked so much more tangible.

There was such an atmosphere of shared entertainment that it was invigorating. Any time in which people gather together for a common purpose, it’s hard to not enjoy yourself. When it ended, everyone clapped, myself included. The sun was still out when I exited the theater, but even if it hadn’t been I would still have felt the same elation. I think I had forgotten the joy of going out to see a movie. I don’t know how I could have. But seeing Creature From the Black Lagoon in 3D, at the Pickford, reminded me strongly.

In case you weren’t aware, these Sci-Fi matinees occur once a month at The Pickford. Next month’s feature is It Came From Outer Space. Although it won’t be shown in 3D, I am just as excited to see it, if only to get out to the Pickford again. Sci-Fi is promising so far, and I plan on making the monthly showings from now on. I would recommend them to anyone. If you can, check out their website or newsletter for show times. And be sure to get there early.

Here are the 25 best-renting titles for all of 2008.

1. The Darjeeling Limited
2. No Country for Old Men
3. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
4. Eagle vs. Shark
5. Juno
6. Into the Wild
7. There Will be Blood
8. Once
9. 3:10 to Yuma
10. Atonement
11. Michael Clayton
12. Margot at the Wedding
13. I am Legend
14. Be Kind Rewind
15. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
16. American Gangster
17. Lars and the Real Girl
18. I’m Not There
19. Across the Universe
20. Ratatouille
21. Charlie Wilson’s War
22. Eastern Promises
23. The Golden Compass
24. The Savages
25. La Vie en Rose

How many have you seen? What was your favorite?

Around this time last year, I was notably irritated by the slow trickle or complete lack of films available for viewing in our humble town of Bellingham. There Will Be Blood and No Country For Old Men were the two films I wanted to see the most, and it seemed like months until after their releases that we were finally able to see them here. I figured after all was said and done, lesson learned…right? I’m sorry to find myself even more irritated by this year’s handling of the alleged Oscar-worthy picks as we find ourselves once more twiddling our thumbs in anticipation for the next wave of cinematic gems.

So what films are getting the buzz and still not available? Darren Arronofsky’s The Wrestler is supposed to be amazing, with Mickey Rourke getting a lot of buzz for his seeming return to “acting”. Nowhere to be seen. Milk is getting a lot of attention but is still M.I.A. Slumdog Millionaire finally came to the Pickford, and has been jam-packed at every viewing. If you thought Frost/Nixon would surely be out by now, you thought wrong.

This is one of the first and few times I have been tempted to illegally download movies it’s that bad. I can only hope that we all wise up and get these films in town so people can actually see them.

Reprise is one of the those film’s that I’ve put off watching for a long time. I had really high expectations for it with no real reason, just that it’s cover appealed to me and it looked like it would match my mood. After watching it, I was both relieved and overwhelmed with satisfaction that I was happy I’d put off seeing it for so long, as it’s easily the best film I’ve seen all year.

Within the first 5 minutes, tried to do something that hearkens back to other techniques and genres while breathing new life into them as well. The story focuses on two friends, Erik and Phillip, both aspiring authors who face success and failure. Both actors playing the leads are fresh faces, sure to turn heads. The story itself reminds me of a little lighter, little less disparate Bret Easton Ellis novel, and as a young (not as young as I used to be) person still trying to figure things out, Reprise had much appeal to me.

The point when I knew this was my favorite movie of the year was when I said out loud “This shot is amazing!” and “That scene was perfect” multiple times. There was an energy that captured disillusionment and the fragility of confidence without coming off as too pretentious that I really appreciated. The fact that this is a debut film on so many levels adds to my delight (Keep an eye on director Joachim Trier). I wish the best for everyone involved, this would be an absolute shame to miss.

New Releases:

• AmericanEast
• The Children of Huang Shi
• Chris Rock: Kill the Messenger
• City of Ember
• Cold Prey
• Frontrunners
• The Go-Getter
• The Great Polar Bear Adventure
• Igor
• Max Payne
• On a Wing and a Prayer
• Repo! The Genetic Opera
• Save Me
• Tokyo Gore Police
• Triage: Dr. James Orbinski’s Humanitarian Dilemma

New Releases (TV Series):

• The American Future: A History
• Project Runway: Season 4

New Arrivals:

• El Norte (Criterion)
• Magnificent Obsession (Criterion)

New Releases:

• Absolutely Safe
• Appaloosa
• Blindsight
• Brick Lane
• Bustin’ Down the Door
• Cyrano de Bergerac (2008/Kevin Kline)
• George Carlin: It’s Bad for Ya
• My Best Friend’s Girl
• Order of Myths
• Patti Smith: Dream of Life
• Swing Vote

New Releases (TV Series):

• Little Britain USA
• Saxondale: Seasons 1 & 2

New Arrivals:

• The Age of the Medici (Rossellini’s History Films Collection)
• Blaise Pascal (Rossellini’s History Films Collection)
• Cartesius (Rossellini’s History Films Collection)
• The Cutting Edge
• Honeymoon in Vegas
• Lie With Me
• The Lizard
• Lovejoy: Season 4
• Moonstruck
• Taxi Blues
• The Taking of Power by Louis XIV (Criterion)