The Muppets (C+)If watching actor/writer Jason Segel reluctantly trying to impress Mila Kunis by performing a song from his Dracula puppet rock opera in the 2008 comedy “Forgetting Sarah Marshall” made you wish all love was as eternal as a vampire’s, then you must’ve also been as intrigued as I was when news that Segel and Sarah Marshall director Nicholas Stoller would continue playing puppet show by penning the script for a reboot to the famed Muppet film franchise.
Read more...Interview: Pepe the King Prawn (The Muppets)"I am very proud to be the first Spanish-speaking Muppet, okay. But in truth, I only speak a little Spanish, okay. I can say “hola” and I can say “adios.” What more do you need? You see, my mama, she never taught me to speak Spanish. We were too busy dodging the fishing nets off Majorca."
Read more...Interview: Kermit the Frog & Miss Piggy (The Muppets)"As for anyone calling us “Permit” or “Pigmie” – no, that’s never happened. At least not more than once."
Read more...The Descendants (A-)While the final act of the film is just a touch predictable, it carries extreme power. Anchored by a stellar performance from one of the most consistent actors in Hollywood, “The Descendants” is a fantastic and sometimes heartbreaking portrayal of a father struggling with responsibilities he’s not prepared for and trying to confront and make peace with the past.
Read more...Breaking Dawn – Part 1 (D-)It’s tough to accomplish, but “Breaking Dawn Part 1” manages to make truly crazy things like life-sucking demon fetuses, arguing wolves (!), and vampire C-sections completely and totally boring.
Read more...Interview: Mia Maestro (Breaking Dawn Part 1)“I was not a ‘Twilight’ fan,” Maestro, 33, admitted during an interview with me to talk about her role as Carmen Denali, a vampire who is a cousin to Edward Cullen (Rob Pattinson) and his family. “But you do your research and you just do it.”
Read more...Like Crazy (B-)“Like Crazy” is an independent film in its truest sense. The characters bond over their love for Paul Simon, create quirky gifts for each other and many of their scenes are put together in montages reminiscent of a movie trailer or music video.
Read more...The Skin I Live In (B+)With unsettling subject matter and overt sexual tones, “The Skin I Live In” is not for everyone. However, it is an unrelentingly dark and wholly unique story that, on the strength of superb direction, is far from the torture-laden gimmick that it could have become in lesser hands.
Read more...Martha Marcy May Marlene (A-)Directed and written by first-time feature filmmaker Sean Durkin, Martha is relentless with its unsettling tone, which is always at a feverish level. Durkin makes bold choices in the nonlinear way he decides to tell his story, but each scene is crafted with such precision, the extra work spent on experimenting with timelines seems effortless.
Read more...Interview: Elizabeth Olsen (Martha Marcy May Marlene)“We’ve been in nine different cities and in every single one someone has come up to us saying the movie reminded them of either their story or someone in their family or one of their closest friends,” Olsen, 22, told me during an exclusive interview. “I didn’t realize how ubiquitous it was in our country.”
Read more...Interview: Ving Rhames (Zombie Apocalypse)During my interview with the Julliard-trained actor last week, we talked about why he doesn’t think he could actually survive a zombie attack, what the difference is between an actor and a movie star, and his thoughts on criticism of director Tyler Perry.
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