The Scorecard Review

Movie of the WEAK?! Pride and Glory Plot: One family has a long history of New York City Police officers. The family’s moral codes are tested when Ray (Edward Norton), investigates a case that reveals an incendiary police corruption scandal involving his own brother-in-law (Colin Farrell). Buzz: Norton is on the short list for top American actor and Farrell can do it (In Bruges) so we’ll see what director Gavin O’Connor (Tumbleweeds, Miracle) can do with this gritty cop drama.

Also Opening: Saw V High School Musical 3: Senior Year The Nightmare Before Christmas in 3D (re-release) Changeling - In Chicago Happy-Go-Lucky

I am happy and confident to report that Saw V will not win the box office this weekend. But the fact that it will be taken over by HSM 3 ... should I really feel good about any

Oct 21
Oct 21 W.

CLICK HERE to read De Salvo's full Scorecard Review

Quickcard Review W. Directed by: Oliver Stone Cast: Josh Brolin, James Cromwell, Richard Dreyfuss, Elizabeth Banks Time: 2 hrs 9 mins Rating: PG-13

Plot: The life and time of George W. Bush (Brolin) -- from the time he was in college to his current position as President of the United States.

Who's it For? Liberal minded folks with flock to this film for a chance to laugh at our current President. But I am vastly more interested in people who still respect/admire/follow our current Commander-in-Chief, what will they make us this? The focus is not as mean as I was prepared for, I think there are only two f-bombs and it doesn't talk about George W. Bush's cocaine use.

OVERALL It's always good, never great. It's an amazing time

Oct 20
Oct 20 Box Office Review - October 19, 2008

Weekend Box Office Results: 1 Max Payne - $18,000,000 2 Beverly Hills Chihuahua - $11,200,000 3 The Secret Life of Bees - $11,050,000 4 W. - $10,550,000 5 Eagle Eye - $7,343,000

Queen Latifah beats the President. Max Payne kills the chihuahua.

The Secret Life of Bees has the highest per screen average at $6,945.

I haven't figured out how, but I'm going to change up the box office preview/review. Until I figure out the perfect system, TSR's Box Office Challenge will be on a slight hold. I'll still be attempting to predict the order of the top 5, and for the record, I won again ...

Jeff Bayer = 9 points

1. Max Payne 2. Beverly Hills Chihuahua 3. W. 4. Sex Drive 5. Body of Lies

Oct 19
Oct 19 Hunger

Chris De Salvo

HungerDirected by: Steven McQueen Cast: Michael Fassbender, Liam Cunningham, Stuart Graham, Liam McMahon, Time: 1 hr 36 mins Rating:

Plot: An urgently told story about prisoners confined in Northern Ireland’s H-Blocks in the early 1980s. Despite having had happened a quarter century ago, these infamous tales of torture hit alarmingly close to home in the wake of recent events related to the world-wide war on terror. This story is about young men of a different era, led by Bobby Sands, who undergo a 1981 Hunger Strike in the fight for their human rights amidst an era of nearly unimaginable tyrannical rule.

Who’s It For? Anyone who is a self-proffesed history buff, but who also requires strong authenticity in the retellings. This film cuts close to the bone, and is not for adolescent-laden history classrooms

Oct 19
Oct 19 The Class

Thomas Pardee

The ClassDirected by: Laurent Cantet Cast: François Bégaudeau Time: 2 hrs 8 mins Rating: Not yet rated

Plot: A middle school teacher (Bégaudeau), in a multi-ethnic public school outside of Paris ,spends a year struggling with a crop of resistant students. As he tries to do his job - which is to teach his pupils how to read, write and speak proper French - he finds himself constantly at odds with their rebelliousness, their sharpening intellect and the surprising things he doesn't know about them that makes each one an individual. As he works to find the balance between teaching and preaching, he lets his temper get the better of him. Consequences, both for himself and for his students, aren't far behind.

Who’s It For? Though it's award-winning, the film is not for those expecting

Oct 18
Oct 18 Max Payne

Morrow McLaughlin

Max PayneDirected by: John Moore Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Beau Bridges, Chris O'Donnell, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges Time: 1 hr 50 mins Rating: PG-13

Plot: Based on the popular shoot-em-up video game comes the story of DEA agent Max Payne ( Mark Wahlberg) who now works the cold cases in an attempt to solve (and avenge) his wife and daughter's murder. Max begins to piece together a conspiracy with the help of an assassin (Mila Kunis).

Who’s It For? Max Payne gamers and fans of Mark Wahlberg. Wahlberg is always fun to watch and he unfailingly respects the role and his audience, even if Hollywood does not.

Expectations: I am a gamer. One of those rabid gamers. Actually, I'm about three inches from dressing up as Lara Croft and heading off to the nearest convention. Therefore

Oct 16
Oct 16 W.

Chris De Salvo

W. Directed by: Oliver Stone

Cast: Josh Brolin, James Cromwell, Richard Dreyfuss, Elizabeth Banks

Time: 2 hrs 9 mins

Rating: PG-13

Plot: The story of President George W. Bush (Brolin). This is a touching story of how our present President came to be, and why he may still be unsure about how he actually got here.

Who’s It For? Not for everyone. In fact, about 24 percent (Bush’s approval rating at press time) of you will absolutely hate the methods Stone uses to present a faux-biopic where no amount of fiction could possibly paint a more honest portrait of the most troubled President in recent memory. Many (you know who you are) will engage in spurts of laughter not often heard in joint cinematic experiences.

Expectations: Stone likes to tackle heated issues, particularly in the political vein

Oct 16
Oct 16 Max Payne

Quickcard Review Max Payne Directed by: John Moore Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Beau Bridges, Chris O'Donnell, Chris 'Ludacris' Bridges Time: 1 hr 50 mins Rating: PG-13

Plot: Based on the popular, violent video game comes the story of DEA agent Max Payne (Wahlberg). He now works the cold cases trying to avenge his wife and daughter's murder. Max begins to piece together a conspiracy with the help of an assassin (Kunis) that involves devils and drugs.

Who’s It For? I hope gamers like it. But I heard it was originally an R-rated film, then changed to a PG-13, less violent version. That's not going to make die-hards happy. And if you aren't familiar with this world, I wouldn't bother checking it out. Check out McLaughlin's full Scorecard Review--which will be up later this weekend--for the

Oct 16
Oct 16 Sex Drive

Thomas Pardee

Sex DriveDirected by: Sean Anders Cast: Josh Zuckerman, Amanda Crew, Clark Duke, James Marsden Time: 1 hr 45 mins Rating: R

Plot: Clumsy high school senior Ian (Zuckerman) steals his older brother's prized '69 Judge across the country to lose his virginity to online hottie Ms. Tasty (Katrina Bowden).

Who's It For? Not a far cry from last year's Superbad, Sex Drive is intended for a more mature teenage to young adult audience. Definitely leave the kids at home on this one to avoid a slew of uncomfortable moments.

Expectations: It's billed as the next teen gross-out flick, so it's easy to imagine that excessive profanity, over-the-top nudity and lots of sex jokes will be part of the equation. With all that debauchery, any actual storytelling would be a pleasant surprise.

SCORECARD (0-10)

Actors: Josh Zuckerman as Ian: Though

Oct 16
Oct 16 The Secret Life of Bees

The Secret Life of BeesDirected by: Gina Prince-Bythewood Cast: Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Sophie Okonedo, Paul Bettany Time: 1 hr 50 mins Rating: PG-13

Plot: Based on the novel by Sue Monk Kidd, Lilly (Fanning) is haunted by her past and at the age of 14, and she set's off with her nanny Rosaleen (Hudson) to look for a better life and finds a honey maker (Latifah) who opens her home.

Who’s It For? Fans of the book, and people who need to learn how to love themselves will appreciate this film. It is set in 1964 during the civil rights movement. There is racial tension throughout the film and occasional violence.

Expectations: It's a great cast and a very popular book, though I had not read it. The previews didn't give me much faith that this film would have an emotional impact on me.

SCORECARD (0-10)

Actors: Dakota Fanning as Lily Owens: Wow, Lily has baggage. Tons of it.

Oct 16
Oct 16 Sex Drive

Morrow McLaughlin

Sex Drive Directed by: Sean Anders Cast: Josh Zuckerman, Amanda Crew, Clark Duke, James Marsden Time: 1 hr 45 min Rating: R

Plot: A sweet, virginal nerd (Josh Zuckerman) and his silver-tongued best friend (Clark Duke) steals his brother’s (James Marsden) 1969 GTO to meet a girl he met on the internet, and (hopefully) get some tail.

Who’s It For? Primarily, teenagers. The film won’t have mass appeal for an older crowd, unless the older crowd in question has absolutely nothing else to do and unusually low expectations.

Expectations: Based solely on the charm of the previews, I thought this film could be a little comedic gem, which is why you don’t base your judgment on previews. I promise to get help before I start slavishly believing all commercials and everything I read. That being said, I’m off to buy some Clearasil, so I don’t die alone.

Oct 16
Oct 16 What Just Happened?

Chris De Salvo

What Just Happened?Directed by: Barry Levinson Cast: Robert De Niro, John Turturro, Bruce Willis, Stanley Tucci Time: 1 hr 53 mins Rating: R

Plot: Robert De Niro stars as a once prominent Hollywood producer whose life is spiraling out of control while his career similarly falls from grace. We spend two weeks with him as things go from bad to worse, to better… one too many times.

Who’s It For? Those of you with a sweet tooth for ironic Hollywood satire, made by the same people their particular film is poking fun at, will love the punches What Just Happened? lands throughout.

Expectations: While De Niro’s career has been on a much-talked-about downslide, it seems to be the perfect vehicle to resurrect his own recent shortcomings. Perhaps a film as self aware as this one can

Oct 15
Oct 15 Box Office Preview - October 17, 2008

OPENING THIS WEEK -- Movie of the Week: W. Plot: Oliver Stone directs a film about the life and times of George Walker Bush (he’s the president). Buzz: All signs point to Josh Brolin’s characterization of the president to be spot on. With Stone, it’s always about the buttons he’s attempting to push, not just the story.

Also Opening: Max Payne Sex Drive The Secret Life of Bees What Just Happened?

And we will have reviews of all the major movies this week. Max Payne - McLaughlin (the gamer) and Bayer (the wanna-be gamer, but has never actually played the game) Sex Drive - both him (Pardee) and her (McLaughlin) perspectivies The Secret Life of Bees - Bayer What Just Happened? - De Salvo W. - De Salvo (it just made sense since he was already seeing one movie that started with a 'w.'

And now

Oct 14
Oct 14 Body of Lies

Quickcard Review Body of Lies Directed by: Ridley Scott Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, Mark Strong, Golshifteh Farahani Time: 2 hrs 10 mins Rating: R

Plot: Ed Hoffman (Crowe) pulls the strings from afar, as Roger Ferris (DiCaprio) conducts high-risk missions in the Middle East in an attempt to take down terrorists. Things get complicated with Roger falls for Aisha (Golshifteh Farahani) and must make difficult decisions about who his friends and allies truly are.

Overall: There is definitely enough to keep you interested, but as soon as the film ends, its purpose instantly disappears. What's the point? The fact that Roger could have turned to Ed and said, "I got to go see about a girl," (stolen of course from Good Will Hunting), comes close to negating the impact this film should have. The story is the downfall here. DiCaprio's accent fits better than it did in Blood Diamond, along with Crowe and his method-acting weight gain ... both are very good.

Oct 12
Oct 12 Crawford on Hulu.com for free

I saw Crawford in the Spring at SXSW (South by Southwest) in Austin, Texas. It's a film all about the tiny little town of Crawford, TX and the man that moved there. It's a good documentary that gives yet another angle to President George W. Bush and his political machine. An independent film can be a tough sell and Crawford is the first film to make it's debut on Hulu.com--a Web site completely worth checking out, if nothing else for it's "Saturday Night Live" collection.

And here's an email from the Crawford team ... I recommend checking out the film on hulu.com. After 3 years of filmmaking, we're thrilled to say: CRAWFORD is yours!

On our new website you'll find a beautiful double-disc DVD, replete with some truly incredible extras

Oct 12
Oct 12 Clark Duke from Sex Drive

Thomas Pardee

Interviews

If Clark Duke isn't on your radar yet, just wait a year or so. The up-and-coming actor/writer, who helped launch his career with the self-produced web series "Clark and Michael" with best friend Michael Cera, is starring in the new teen road trip flick Sex Drive. He's also set to star in A Thousand Words next year alongside Eddie Murphy. In fact, at just 23, Duke has a long list of TV credits behind him and shows no signs of slowing down.

But when I got a a chance to speak with the actor about his new film and his plans for the future, he led me to believe his career may be headed in a different direction in the years to come.

Which kind of work do you prefer, Clark and Michael

Oct 12
Oct 12 One Minute: An Interview with Leonardo DiCaprio from Body of Lies

Can we ignore the fact that Body of Lies failed to hit the top two at the box office this weekend? Instead let's focus on the positive, like this Reuters article. And by the way ... this opening will kill chances for Body of Lies to get any notice come awards season. Unless this is a very poor year for Best Supporting Actor, and then maybe Russell Crowe and his 45 extra pounds will get a nomination.

By Bob Tourtellotte

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Born of Hollywood, acting as a teenager, Oscar-nominated by age 19, Leonardo DiCaprio is a product of the film studio's star-making machine.

He made young women swoon in the biggest box office hit of all-time, 1997's "Titanic," but his youthful looks meant the transition to strong, leading man

Oct 12
Oct 12 TOP 7 Video Games into Big Screen Movies

Morrow McLaughlin

Top 7

We start the Top 7. You finish the Top 10. Movie producers still have no idea how to make a quality movie out of a video game. They tried for decades to figure out how to make a decent movie out of comic books and it looks like they have comic books figured out (Ironman, Spiderman, Hulk -- 2008). There are some hopeful little glimmers on the horizon with Max Payne opening October 17, and Prince of Persia: Sands of Time (2009).

So, here it is: the Top 7 Movies Inspired By Video Games. Quality can’t be a necessity, because then there would be no list at all. Instead, I’m going to concentrate on the movies that came close (under the circumstances) to represent their namesake.

7. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider/Lara Croft: Cradle of Life

Recap:The

Oct 12
Oct 12 Box Office Review - October 12, 2008