Contrary to the belief of film execs, not everyone hitting the cinemas at Christmastime wants to see Reese Witherspoon in a romantic comedy or Jack Black being tied up by little people. For those seeking a decidedly different, off-off-Hollywood experience, you’ll get it — and then some — in “Zenith.” The self-described “retro-futuristic steampunk thriller” […]
film
Posted inArts & Culture
True Grit
When you dare open your film with a biblical quote about revenge, as “True Grit” does, you better deliver a story about revenge, and it better be epic. Rest assured, writing/directing siblings Joel and Ethan Coen (“No Country for Old Men”) have done that with their latest foray into the sinister side of the American […]
Posted inArts & Culture
My Dog Tulip
It may be only coincidence that the animated feature “My Dog Tulip” is distributed by New Yorker Films, but Paul and Sandra Fierlinger’s film looks like cartoons torn from the pages of The New Yorker: erudite and engaging, but hardly realistic-looking, and likely not to be understood by the average person. The brisk film plays […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Not of This Earth
<iframe marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" style="width: 120px; height: 240px;" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=oklahgazet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B003XL6EIA&fc1=000000&IS2=1 You can tell from the start that the 1988 remake of “Not of This Earth” is going to be a blast, because the credits are compiled using scenes from entirely different films, with their only point of commonality being owned by Roger Corman. Full of goopy monsters […]
Posted inArts & Culture
The Goonies: 25th Anniversary Collector’s Edition
<iframe marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" style="width: 120px; height: 240px;" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=oklahgazet-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=B000QFW7UA&fc1=000000&IS2=1 Two warnings about the new, quarter-century anniversary Blu-ray set of “The Goonies“: 1. It will make you feel really old. 2. That damn Cyndi Lauper tie-in song will lodge in your brain for hours, if not days. The Steven Spielberg-produced, Chris Columbus-penned, Richard Donner-directed spectacle holds up […]
Posted inMusic
After a month of sweltering shoots and perspiring celebs, filming for ‘Bringing Up Bobby’ wraps in Oklahoma City
Umbrellas and frequent shade breaks offered temporary relief to a busy crew and celebrity cast during the final day of filming on “Bringing Up Bobby.” The shoot wrapped on Aug. 13 in Oklahoma City, said Sofia Sondervan-Bild (“Cadillac Records”), one of the film’s producers. Many of the movie’s stars had scenes during the final day […]
Posted inMusic
On the set: Final day of filming for ‘Bringing Up Bobby’
Umbrellas and frequent shade-breaks offered temporary relief to a busy crew and celebrity cast during the final day of filming on “Bringing Up Bobby.” The film shoot wraps Friday night in Oklahoma City, said Sofia Sondervan-Bild, one of the film’s producers. Many of the movie’s stars had scenes during the final day of filming, including […]
Posted inMusic
‘The Killer Inside Me’ returns to Oklahoma as an on-demand movie carried by an effectively sadistic Casey Affleck
In John Carpenter’s short film “Cigarette Burns,” a movie critic points out that we have an implied agreement with filmmakers: We will sit in the dark under their control, and they will remember that and not go too far. Director Michael Winterbottom (“A Mighty Heart”) has been accused of deal-breaking in “The Killer Inside Me” […]
Posted inMusic
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work’ is an extraordinary, bittersweet documentary about comedy, career and insecurity
It would have been easy for the makers of “Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work” to take a by-the-numbers approach to their subject. Among the pioneers of edgy stand-up comedy ” she joked about “putting out” and abortions long before such topics became fodder for female comedians ” Rivers was instrumental in paving the way […]
Posted inMusic
A standard story questioning the root of passions within a wealthy family is upgraded with quiet execution in ‘I Am Love’
As humans, we’re wired for order and chaos, discipline and disorder, reason and passion. This fundamental dichotomy is a major source of conflict in our lives and in the fictions we create. One permutation of this theme ” the individual caught between duty and desire ” has been retold a thousand times in a thousand […]