More in-store news: We have taken another step in the re-organization of the library. The Independent film section is now in the back room with the new releases, as is the Criterion section. Do you ever peruse the Criterion section? It is simply amazing, filled with stupendous films of every genre from ever corner of the earth. Where the Indie section used to be is now the New Classics section on one side and the Classics and Noir section on the other. We are building a low, semi-enclosed Kids section in the window at the front of the store, which is not yet in place. If you are looking for kids movies this week, there are a bunch available in the front of the store where the Criterion section used to be, and the Kids new release section is still in the back for now. There will be more changes over the next week, and we will keep you informed here, but also, please ask us to help you find anything if you are at the store and it seems chaotic. We hope as the plan continues to emerge that you will be as excited about the changes as we are.
In other non-film news, did you notice our new monitors? Very sleek, huh? (I wrote this on Friday, before two of them broke…ah, Craigslist...).
Meanwhile back at the ranch, good stuff from TV land: the final chapter of the SOPRANOS series, which actually came out last week, but took us a few extra days to stock. I think this was the best show to ever play on television, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a feature film come our way in the not too far off future. Until then, it may be time to start at episode one of season one and start the whole bloody mess again. When you are finished watching this second part of season 6, tell us what you think. The end was a polarizing experience for the faithful. Count me as one of the totally satisfied viewers.
Lots of other good stuff here, scroll down to read about it.
Until then,
Ken
Ps .Do you read the Onion? Not only is it free, a brilliantly funny, it is also a fantastic source of film knowledge. They have insightful reviews about great new films each issue. I highly recommend it.
............//NEW TITLES//............
IN THE LAND OF WOMEN.
Comedy/Romance.
Adam Brody/Kristen Stewart/Meg Ryan.
Directed by John Kasdan.
* Brody plays a writer who is devastated by the break-up with his actress girlfriend in Los Angeles. He head to Michigan to care for his grandmother and meets the Hardwickes (I love the names Hollywood comes up with!), mother Sarah (Ryan) and sisters Paige (Makenzie Vega) and Lucy (Stewart). As he gets drawn into their lives, the love bonds that form create a place of healing for them all.
KRZYZACY.
Adventure/War/Foreign (Polish).
Urszula Modrzynska.
Directed by Aleksander Ford.
* War film from 1960 just getting to DVD. This film features scenes with up to 35,000 extras and evidently a couple people died during the making of the film.
LICENSE TO WED.
Comedy/Romance.
Robin Williams/Mandy Moore/John Krasinski.
Directed by.
* The only way to say it? Reverend Frank (Williams) is a psycho! He forces Ben (Krasinski) and Sadie (Moore) through demented classes and coursework before he will bless their union. Yikes! Hey Ben and Sadie, for five bucks you could get a friend to be sanctified by the state of California to marry you through the Universal Life Church.
ROSES SONGS.
Foreign (Hungarian).
Directed by Andor Szilagyi.
* 2003 Hungarian film about the ghettos of Budapest during 1944. It is the story of a people in hiding, a secretive opera star and a boy who is making the transition to manhood during this terrible and frightening time.
SPIDERMAN 3.
Action/Superhero/Sequel.
Tobey Maguire/Kirsten Dunst/James Franco/Topher Grace.
Directed by Sam Raimi.
* Spiderdude has a whole array of enemies in this one…including himself! When his suit turns black, his inner demons come out to play. The critics panned this third movie in the popular series, but lovers of Spidey and superhero comic films in general will have to see this film. Maybe by the fourth Spiderman we’ll have an actually black Spiderman, and a black president!
TALK TO ME.
Drama
Chiweteil Ejiofor/Don Cheadle/Mike Epps/Martin Sheen.
Directed by Kasi Lemmons.
* Ejiofor and Cheadle are awesome as Dewey Hughes and Ralph Waldo “Petey” Greene, radio celebrities in the late 60’s and 70’s in Washington DC. Petey is an ex-con who is a tell-it-like-it-is prison DJ looking to get a radio gig on the outside. Hughes is a programming director at WOL, trying to keep his station on the top of the ratings, and feeling like they are losing touch with the people. Convincing the owner of the station (Sheen) to put Petey on the air is not easy, even as Petey explains “I am the people”. However, once on the air, his honesty and passion connects him to his audience and his career flourishes. Eventually, his inner demons begin to surface, complicating things for Hughes, who dreams of making him a national media success. Although slightly sentimental and schmaltzy, TALK TO ME is a terrific film; funny, touching and poignant, taking perfect aim on the time and place it represents.
THINK TANK.
Comedy.
Eric Artell/Steve Fogel.
Directed by Brian Peterson.
* From the production team of NAPOLEAN DYNAMITE comes this comedy about a group of slackers who are trying to save town from an evil “pool celebrity”. What the hells a pool celebrity? The movies tagline is something about a fine line between genius and stupid, which really pissed me off, because it is almost a direct theft of the brilliant line in SPINAL TAP when the band is defending the cover of their new album on which they chained and greased a mostly nude woman who is being forced by a leather bound hand to smell a glove. Their record company is nixing the cover as sexist (“what’s wrong with being sexy”) and in response they ask about another band’s record cover which features the whole band in chains being whipped. It is pointed out that in that cover, it is the band that is the victim, which is truly a revelation to TAP and out pops the wonderful line “there’s such a fine line between clever and stupid.” Now that I have rambled about that for a while, I will also mention that I hear this film is “better than it sounds” and “not so bad”, so it you are looking for something “not totally sucky” to “watch” than “this one might be for you!”
THE WENDELL BAKER STORY.
Comedy/Drama.
Luke Wilson/Owen Wilson/Eva Mendes/Kris Kristofferson/Seymour Cassel/Other Wilsons.
Directed by Andrew Wilson and Luke Wilson.
* How many Wilsons does it take to make a feature film? As many as are available I guess. In this one, I think there are four, but I may be wrong. Either way, Baker (Wilson)(that’s kind of a joke)(Luke Wilson), is a good-hearted con man, who’s scamming ways finally catch up to him and eventually land him, post-jail, in a retirement community where he joins together with some funny old farts to form a rebellion and right his ship.
............//TELEVISION//............
MY SO-CALLED LIFE: THE COMPLETE SERIES.
Television.
Claire Danes/Jared Leto.
* This was a very realistic mid-nineties show about the painful and beautiful life of a 15-year old trying to keep it real. Although it didn’t last long (19 episodes), it has lived on in the memory of it’s viewers for the last decade.
THE SOPRANOS: SEASON 6 PART 2.
Television.
James Gandolfini/.
Directed by.
* Somehow it took us a couple extra days to get this last week, but it has been on the floor since Wednesday. This is the last 10 episodes of what I consider the best television series to ever have been made. At this point, the world of Tony Soprano is crumbling. He is bumbling through his life, unsure of whom his enemies are, and unsure of whom his friends are. The showdown with NY aka Phil Leotardo is eminent, and the cards are pretty open. Christopher’s series long struggle with substance abuse is revisited. Anthony Junior is heading down some dark paths, and Pauly Walnuts is like an outsider in his own family. The whole season is pretty much leading up to the big questions of who’s gonna get capped and who’s gonna survive. And the explosive last two episodes will deliver the answers you’ve been waiting for. Personally, I see a feature film in this franchise’s future, and frankly, it couldn’t come soon enough.
VERONICA MARS: COMPLETE 3rd SEASON.
Television.
Kristen Bell.
Created by Rob Thomas.
* I don’t know if this show is spacey, but her name is Mars and she lives in Neptune. She fights crimes Scooby-style and she even has a dog. This is the 3rd season, and although I’ve never seen it, I hear it’s pretty fun.
............//DOCUMENTARY//............
O AMOR NATURAL.
Documentary/Foreign (Portugese).
Directed by Heddy Honigman.
* Very absorbing doc about the erotic poetry of Brazilian, Carlos Drummond de Andrade. Interviews are conducted with Brazilians who read his poems and talk about their sexuality. This film was made by a Dutch director.
............//RECENT ACQUISITIONS//............
BREATHLESS.
New Criterion release.
HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS.
Gearing up copies for the next release.
HARRY POTTER AND THE SORCERER’S STONE.
Gearing up copies for the next release.
HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN.
Gearing up copies for the next release.
HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE.
Gearing up copies for the next release.
****
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