Film School Rejects » Movie Theater Experience

Thomas Jane Shoots Gritty Noir On Your Ass In New Trailer For ‘Give em Hell Malone’

Rob Hunter — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 19:02:32 +0000

Thomas Jane deserves more respect. He’s always a fun and interesting actor to watch. He’s charming and funny in person, and he always has a slightly dangerous glint in his eyes, no matter the role. He’s played both the bad guy in Under Suspicion and the hero in Deep Blue Sea, he’s double-dipped into Stephen King with the crappy Dreamcatcher and excellent The Mist, he made a valiant attempt at comedy in the atrocious Sweetest Thing, and will soon present his directorial debut (I’m not counting Johnni Nitro since no one has ever seen the damn thing…) with the balls to the wall, 3-D horror film, The Dark Country. And yet he still manages to find his way into movies that never quite make it to theaters… The Mutant Chronicles… Killshot…

Which brings me to the upcoming film Give ‘em Hell Malone. Jane apparently wanted to do a hardcore, retro action film, and from the looks of the trailer below he got his wish. Russell Mulcahy directs from a script by Mark Hosack, and the plot revolves around a private detective named Malone who’s tasked with protecting a valuable secret from a multitude of thugs, gangsters, henchmen, and ruffians. Add in a hot dame or two, gritty and bloody action, and characters names like Boulder, Matchstick, and Frankie the Crooner, and you have the makings of a wild ride. Ving Rhames and French Stewart costar.

But also from the looks of the trailer I’d guess the movie probably won’t be screening in a theater near you anytime soon. It looks like a potentially awesome piece of 70’s style action, but it also looks to be lacking a bit of polish (and the budget to support a worthwhile marketing campaign.) I’ll chalk that up to the suckiness of the director as Mulcahy hasn’t had made a truly entertaining film since 1984’s classic Razorback which featured a giant boar on a killing spree. Personally speaking, the title and Jane’s involvement already had my interest piqued, but the hot Asian chick sucking on the lollipop sealed it for me. The fact that the hot Asian is Chris Yen means she’ll probably be kicking ass and sucking her lollipop, which is doubly awesome.

What do you think of the trailer? What do you think of Thomas Jane? What do you think of hot Asian chicks kicking ass and sucking on lollipops?

Twilight Fanatics Begin to Line Up in Large Numbers

Joe Ngo — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 14:32:56 +0000

One of the most anticipated films of the Holiday movie season, Twilight, opens up this Friday, and the fanatics are already beginning to line up for the premiere on Tuesday. A crowd of about 300 has gathered outside of Mann’s Village Theatre, hoping to catch a glimpse of the stars as they head into the premiere. One of the signs outside even reads “Not moving until Twilight“. Similar crowds braved the elements in downtown Toronto, San Fransisco and Chicago for meets and greets with the stars. Chaos ensued when the event in San Francisco only had enough bracelets for 1000 (3000 showed up).

With the hype that this film is bringing comes wild uncertainty at the Box Office. Will these large crowds translate into box office gold? Predictions for the opening weekend range from $35-60 Million (Personally, I think it will do better than that, somewhere in the 70+ Million range). The stars are starting to align for the movie well in advance, with MovieTickets.com reporting that 389 shows are already sold out as of 12 pm today, with 140 of those happening in the past weekend alone. (85% of the movie ticketing site’s sales have been for Twilight) It’s already hit #20 on the list for the most pre-sales for a movie ever, and that number will only continue to grow.

The numbers are staggering in terms of what anticipation for this film has brought. The official website has recorded over 11 million views since October, the trailer has been viewed over 12 million times on Myspace. Even the stars of the film, Robert Pattinson and Kristen Steward, are ranking high on the Star Meter over at IMDB, higher than Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie respectively. The servers at MTV.com crashed when the initial casting photos were released… that’s just incredible.

Entertainment Weekly is releasing an additional cover featuring the film, a rare occurrence, as the first cover was the best selling one for the magazine so far this year.

Suffice to say that Twilight has drawn a following that no one could have imagined. The four novels by Stephanie Meyer have been flying off the bookshelves, and it looks to translate to the theaters as the crowds are lining up in droves. Having worked in theaters for a long time, I can equate the type of sales this is generating to Harry Potter and Star Wars. That’s an impressive feat for a film that is appealing to a younger, mainly female crowd. If you braved the theaters for Sex and the City opening weekend, be prepared for that… on a much younger scale. I don’t envy the parents of the girls who head to the theaters to find the shows to be all sold out.

Hundreds of thousands of people are giving in to the Twilight hype, will you join them?

Sources: Deadline Hollywood Daily; MovieTickets.com

Boiling Point: You Have 1 Unread Message

Robert Fure — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 16:27:05 +0000

Message: You’re a douchebag.

Seriously. Quit checking your e-mail in the movie theater. Technology is awesome. I get it. Your iPhone has pictures of your last trip out to the bar, sweet. Your BlackBerry just alerted you to that new Profile Comment on MySpace. Better click it and find out what SxyMamacita4242 said about your new pics, bro!

It was bad enough when all you had to worry about in a theater was some asshole with his cellphone. Quick note – even if its just on vibrate, we still hear it jingling your keys, buddy. Pull it out to see who sent it and you bathe the immediate area in light. Not cool. What the hell is so important that it can’t wait? I refuse to believe I’m seeing a movie with 26 doctors in attendance.

Worried about missing your next big appointment too? What is up with the cell phone time check? You went into the movie at X and you will leave Y minutes later at Z. Does it matter at any point in between? Nope. You’re still leaving the theater at the same time so take a freaking 2 hour break and forget your cell phone. Get a damn watch instead of pulling out your flashlight phone just to check how long you’ve been sitting in the movie theater. Seriously.

I wish I was important enough to have to check my email 132 times a day, no matter where I am. What kind of emails are these people getting? Can I get some? Actually, never mind, I don’t check my email while trying to enjoy a movie. When you watch a flick, it should be like you’re sitting in a black box with nothing going on except what’s on the screen. Every time someone pops open a phone or flips on a Smart gadget, it’s like a torch going off, distracting just about anyone sitting behind the light.

What I’m really trying to say is turn your phones off. Don’t vibrate it. Don’t check the time. Don’t read your emails. Relax. Escape. Let it all go. It’ll be better for you because then you won’t have to ask what’s going on. And it’ll be better for the rest of us because we don’t get that annoying white glow erupting at various spots in the theaters.

Maybe I’m the only one really bothered by this, maybe you’ve got some important business going on or maybe everyone should just be allowed to do whatever they want, but me, I’m sick of cell phones and smart phones and glowing gadgets in theaters. I want to sit in a dark theater and watch what’s on the screen, not see little blips of lights dotting up around the room as people check emails and texts and get time updates. Whether or not I’m justified in hating you for whipping your cell out four times during the movie, I’m definitely passed my boiling point.

What bothers you in theaters? Do cell phones drive you nuts at the movies?

Beware: The 6 Worst Things to Eat at the Movies

Neil Miller — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:00:32 +0000

One of my newly acquired obsessions, aside from watching movies of course, is watching what I eat. In conjunction with the Biggest Reject Loser challenge, I have also come to the realization that if I am going to be a rich and famous cinematic pundit, I will have to look like more than just another web geek (no offense to the standard web geeks in the room, you are all hot to me).

With this new obsession, I have begun researching what to eat and what not to eat. Appropriately, I have become an avid reader of the Mens Health blog Eat This, Not That by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding. I have even gone as far as to pick up the book by the same name. A recent article on the blog though, titled 6 Worst Things to Eat at the Movies, stuck out to me, tapping into my two favored interests: movies and eating. As you will see from the list below, they have identified some really interesting facts about the foods that we all over-pay for and scarf down as we take in our cinematic adventures:

Large Soft Pretzel with 3 oz. Nacho Cheese
643 calories
14.5 g fat (3 g saturated, 4 g trans)
3,068 mg sodium

44 oz. Cherry Coke
572 calories
0 g fat
154 g sugars

Whoppers (5 oz. box)
676 calories
24 g fat (20.3 g saturated)
88 g sugars

Snickers Popables (5 oz., 46 pieces)
692 calories
33 g fat (14.6 g saturated)
73 g sugars

Large Nachos with Cheese (40 chips, 4 oz.)
1,101 calories
59 g fat (18.5 g saturated)
1,580 mg sodium

Large Popcorn
1,283 calories
78 g fat (49 g saturated)
1,850 mg sodium

Yikes! That large popcorn is almost as bad as a Big Mac. Based on these stats, it is almost enough to say that the “it’s only a quarter more” upgrade strategy engaged upon by just about every theater chain is grounds for murder charges — they are aggressively upgrading you to obesity. Then again, we can’t blame the theaters, they are just trying to get theirs by giving you the calories. And we take it, America, we take it all and shovel it in, often finishing our highly caloric snacks before the seven trailers are over. That prompts a second run to the concession stand, forcing you to miss the opening moments of You Don’t Mess With the Zohan – which, now that I think about it, isn’t much of a loss.

So if you are one of those people who spends $35 dollars on yourself at the movie theater concession stand, you may want to take note — this is why you are fat. As well, if you are one of those people who likes to crunch your wrapper through the entire movie or chew with your big horse-faced mouth open the whole time, you may also want to take note — because I am going to snap one of these days.

As for the rest of you, get out there this weekend and take in a flick. I would recommend seeing The Incredible Hulk, just don’t eat like him.

What is Your Ultimate Movie Theater Experience?

Neil Miller — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:02:23 +0000

By now, since we can only imagine that since you are an astute fan of film who ravages the halls of the interwebs daily to find the most interesting movie news and tidbits, that you have heard of this new “luxury” movie theater chain that plans to charge upwards of $35 per ticket in exchange for some world-class amenities.

Beginning in South Barrington, a suburb of Chicago, Village Roadshow Ltd. will begin their march to build 50 Village Roadshow Gold Class Cinemas to the United States. The venture, which will cost over $200 million dollars, will bring Americans a theater experience so lavish, we may just never leave. The theaters will feature 40 reclining armchair seats with footrests, digital projection and the capability to screen 2D and 3D movies, as well as a lounge and bar serving cocktails and appetizers, a concierge service and valet parking.

On top of that, the chain will also feature its made-to-order meals like sushi and other theater-friendly foods from chefs on-site, similar to any Movie Tavern or Alamo Drafthouse, just with higher prices and fancier food. The chain will be geared toward “affluent and upscale” moviegoers, and will be placed near high-end shopping centers.

So this brings us to the question of the day: Is this your ultimate movie theater experience? One of luxury and fine foods? If not, what is your ultimate movie theater experience?

Personally, I am a big fan of unique theaters, ones that do not conform to the big chains that have been popping up all over the place. Places like the Arena Grand theater here in Columbus, Ohio, the Arclight in Hollywood or the Alamo Drafthouse in Austin, Texas.

The Arena Grand, my favorite hometown theater, is what I would consider to be the “luxury” cinema experience. With comfy leather seats in the balcony, a full bar and a wider array of food selection (like the Village Roadshow theaters, they serve sushi), this is a scaled down version of what Village Roadshow will be trying to accomplish. The only problem is that people in Columbus (which is a fairly affluent city), are often reluctant to lay down $12 to see a film at the Grand, so I can imagine they wouldn’t give a passing waive to the $35 price tag at the Roadshow theater as they head over to the local AMC to see a film.

What it comes down to, at least for me, is being comfortable but also remembering that it is a movie theater. You are not going there to lean back in dad’s leather recliner and eat Filet Mignon while you watch Saw V — you are going there to sit uncomfortably close to your neighbor, stuff your face with popcorn and be delivered into another world via the silver screen. My favorite theater experiences, had at places like The Eccles Center in Park City (which is a converted auditorium that uncomfortably seats 1,200 people during Sundance), is more about seeing a film with a huge crowd and feeling the energy generated by a great work of cinema. Sure, it is nice to sit in some wider, more comfortable seats once in a while (mostly because I have a fat ass), but I would take the experience of seeing a Tarantino flick on opening night at the Alamo Drafthouse any day.

Finally, as a professional movie patron, I will say this. The mainstream American public is looking for better movie theater experiences — digital projection, slightly more comfortable seating and maybe a few quirky and fun amenities — but we are not looking for Chez Louise to be delivered to our seat by some chap named Gaston.

But then again, that is just my opinion — what’s yours?

Film School Rejects » Movie Theater Experience

Thomas Jane Shoots Gritty Noir On Your Ass In New Trailer For ‘Give em Hell Malone’

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