‘God Bless’ Bobcat Goldthwait for making this savage satire.
Comedy Rod Lott
With God Bless America,
writer/director Bobcat Goldthwait slices a wound on our country's
collective stupidity, then wrings a lemon wedge into its opening. Too
bad his targets aren't likely to watch it on purpose. And if they did,
they're less likely to get the joke. Their loss.
Comedy Rod Lott
To enjoy 21 Jump Street, one need not have been a fan of the 1987-91 Fox TV series of the same name. You might even enjoy the film more
if you hated the show, notable only for making Johnny Depp a star.
While not an outright parody per se, the action comedy does poke fun at
how ridiculous the series' premise was.
Thriller Phil Bacharach
Oliver Stone might be best-known for making movies filled with political and cultural bomb-throwing (JFK, Natural Born Killers), but
what makes his best works so eminently watchable is their visceral
punch. He might claim he’s out to edify, but the guy can exploit with
the best of ’em.
Sci-Fi Rod Lott
One of the hotter tickets at last fall's Fantastic Fest was Extraterrestrial. I couldn't get in. I understood why at the time: It's the new film from Timecrimes director Nacho Vigalondo! Now that I've seen it, I wonder how many who did get in wish they hadn't. It's a huge disappointment.
Does 457 minutes of Batman sound like a good Bat-time to you?
Sleep? Who needs it?
Certainly not debonair billionaire Bruce Wayne. Because if he took time to catch some Zs, who would keep Gotham City in check? That dude dons cowl and cape every night, busting his ass to keep it clean of jokers.
I speak of Batman, of course. I’ve been a huge Batman fan since Adam West and Burt Ward camped it up in reruns of their Pop Art-inspired series. The caped crusader was the first Halloween costume I remember having — and homemade by my loving mother, even!
Therefore, more than any other movie this year, I look forward to The Dark Knight Rises, the final chapter in director Christopher Nolan’s defining trilogy that began in 2005 with Batman Begins and hit unexpected creative heights three years later with the double Oscar-winning, billion-buck grosser, The Dark Knight, putting the misdeeds of Joel Schumacher and his nipple suits far in the past.
Which goes back to the issue of nocturnal slumber: Beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, Harkins Bricktown Cinemas, 150 E. Reno, hosts The Ultimate Dark Knight Marathon, screening Nolan’s first two Batman films before Rises, well, rises at midnight.
For $20, you can catch all three movies, plus get a commemorative lanyard and some refreshments. Better make the drink something with a serious dose of caffeine. For more information, call 231-4747 or visit harkinstheatres.com. —Rod Lott
It details Smithsonian Folkways’ efforts at compiling the new, three-disc box set,Woody at 100, which: • came out yesterday; • features 57 songs in total, 21 of them previously unreleased performances and six never-before-heard; and • includes a 154-page book with essays and art galore.
Take a gander at the label’s restoration process and behind-the-scenes work: