Category: Movies

New Teaser Trailer for “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies”

It looks like viewers should expect a war in The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies (2014). Warner Brothers Pictures has released a new teaser trailer for the final Hobbit film.  In the trailer, Thorin (Richard Armitage) asks his colleagues but he might as well be asking us, “Will you follow me one last time?”

If the song sounds familiar, we first heard hobbit Pippin (Billy Boyd) singing it in Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003). The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies hits theaters on December 17, 2014.

Are you excited about another trip to Middle Earth?  Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” (Short Review)

    Dawn Apes In 2011, Director Rupert Wyatt rebooted the Planet of the Apes franchise with the excellent Rise of the Planet of the Apes, featuring wonderful performances by James Franco, Andy Serkis, and John Lithgow. In Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, Franco and Lithgow are gone, and the movie suffers a bit from their absence. But the new film, directed by Matt Reeves, is full of action and Serkis again is outstanding as the leader of the apes, Caesar.

    Most critics and fans like the action-packed Dawn, and I did too, although I do not think it matched the first in the new series. The film picks up ten years after Rise, when most humans have died from a virus. Some of the remaining humans struggle to survive, while the apes, still led by Caesar, work to build their own civilization. Not surprisingly, the two groups come in contact. Both the humans and the apes have individuals who want war and individuals who want peace. The film builds to a dramatic and action-filled conclusion that I will not ruin here. In light of current debates about violence among countries, the film also is a gentle reminder about how difficult it is to protect a fragile peace.

    Serkis gives an excellent emotional performance in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Judy Greer does a great job as Caesar’s wife, Cornelia, whose name is likely a reference to the original series (making me wonder if their son “Blue Eyes” — played by Nick Thurston — has the real name of Cornelius?). This time around, the human characters are less interesting, although Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, and Keri Russell do a good job with the roles they have.

    Dawn of the Planet of the Apes     is a dark movie in more than one way. Besides the storyline, the action takes place on cloudy days and at night. While the CGI effects were fantastic, because 3D glasses make movies even darker and I was not blown away by the 3D effects, I would have preferred to see the film in regular 2D so I would not have had to squint to make out the action in the dark. But I will leave it to you to determine how important 3D is to you.

    Finally, the original movie franchise began by landing Charlton Heston in the middle of the established ape world (as the Tim Burton reboot similarly did with Mark Wahlberg) and then later films took us back to the origin stories. But this new franchise opts for more of a chronological version in the way the films are being produced, starting at the beginning of the timeline. Thus, Rise of the Planet of the Apes was comparable to Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972) of the original series, while the new Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is comparable to Battle for the Planet of the Apes (1973), which was the last one made in the original series and is generally seen as the weakest. Thus, considering the new very good movie is a reinterpretation of the weakest of the original franchise, I am especially looking forward to seeing how this new franchise develops with future movies. For a look at how the movies fit into a timeline, check out the io9 website.

    Conclusion? Dawn of the Planet of the Apes is an action-packed sequel and a worthy continuation of the story that began in Rise of the Planet of the Apes. If you liked the first film, you will want to see this sequel. If you have not yet seen Rise of the Planet of the Apes, you can still start with Dawn of the Planet of the Apes without being lost, but you might want to watch the superior first film first.

    What did you think of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    The Lost Bill Murray Film: “Nothing Lasts Forever”

    bill murray nothing lasts forever
    The year 1984 was a busy one for actor Bill Murray. Columbia Pictures released the major hit Ghostbusters in June and the less-successful but interesting Razor’s Edge in October. That same year, MGM planned in September to release another movie in which Bill Murray appeared in a much smaller role, Nothing Lasts Forever. But MGM postponed the release of the film, ultimately deciding not to release it. But you may watch it below.

    Saturday Night Live writer Tom Schiller wrote and directed the unusual movie, which stars Lauren Tom and Zach Galligan, the latter who like Murray starred in another 1984 blockbuster, Gremlins. In addition to Murray, the film also features Sam Jaffe, Imogene Coca, and Dan Aykroyd.

    You will notice right away that the film features the classic look of early black and white Hollywood movies from the 1940s and 1950s (although some scenes are in color). The film begins with Galligan performing as a concert pianist, and the movie follows his return to a New York City under the control of the Port Authority.

    The film then takes some odd turns into futuristic science fiction territory. Murray appears later in the film as a conductor on a bus to the moon. Eddie Fisher shows up on the bus to the moon to sing his 1954 hit “Oh My Papa.” On the moon, you also will see Calvert DeForest, i.e., David Letterman’s Larry “Bud” Melman. It’s that kind of a movie.

    So check out the lost film Nothing Lasts Forever here (available here through YouTube for now at least). The video is not movie-theater quality, but it is watchable and I made it through. The movie itself is interesting as it seems to aim for some kind of Wizard of Oz magic. But you also might understand why the unusual film was never released. See what you think. [September 2014 Update: The whole movie is no longer on YouTube, but you can check out the trailer below.]

    The making of Nothing Lasts Forever is recounted in the book, Nothing Lost Forever: The Films of Tom Schiller.

    What do you think of Nothing Lasts Forever? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick

    This 20-minuted documentary Lost Kubrick: The Unfinished Films of Stanley Kubrick, narrated by Malcolm McDowell, provides an overview of some of the film projects that director Stanley Kubrick did not complete before his death. Some of the projects may be familiar to film fans — like A.I. Artificial Intelligence and Napoleon — but some of the other ones are more obscure projects, like The German Lieutenant. The documentary features Jack Nicholson, Sydney Pollack, Kubrick’s producer Jan Harlan, and others. Check it out.

    Steven Spielberg, who completed AI, will be bringing a version of Napoleon as a miniseries to HBO. For more on Kubrick’s unfinished works, head over to The Playlist for “The Lost & Unmade Projects Of Stanley Kubrick.”

    What is your favorite Stanley Kubrick project? Leave your two cents in the comments.

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    Little Big Horn and “Little Big Man”

    Little Big Horn

    On June 25, 1876, Sioux, Arapahoe, and Cheyenne warriors led by Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse wiped out Lt. Colonel George Custer and a large part of his 7th Cavalry at the Battle of Little Big Horn. Almost 100 years later, the event would provide a key moment in a great American film.

    Custer’s Last Stand

    In 1876, the 7th Calvary was scouting on behalf of two columns of U.S. soldiers.  The soldiers were trying to force the Native Americans onto reservations.  Another column had already lost a battle, unbeknownst to the other two groups.

    Custer’s scouts warned him about a large Native American village nearby.  But Custer thought the numbers were exaggerated and forged ahead instead of waiting for reinforcements.

    Custer divided his regiment and proceeded with around 215 men.  They were soon cut off by thousands of braves. All of the soldiers, including Custer, were killed at Little Big Horn in what became known as “Custer’s Last Stand.”

    “Little Big Man”

    My favorite movie with a fictionalized account of the incident is Little Big Man (1970).  The movie has a 96% critics rating and 86% audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

    The movie is based on a revisionist comic Western novel by Thomas Berger.  In the film, Dustin Hoffman gives one of his greatest performances as Jack Crabb.

    The film follows Crabb, who recounts his life of adventure.  He was raised by Native Americans, and he later served as a scout for an inept and somewhat crazy Custer, played brilliantly by Richard Mulligan.

    This scene from the film captures Crabb simultaneously warning and daring Custer about what awaits.

    Arthur Penn directed Little Big Man, which also starred Faye Dunaway, Martin Balsam, and Chief Dan George. The movie is fictional satire that has moments of great humor.  But it also realistically reflects the victory and the tragedy of Little Big Horn and the plight of the Native Americans. If you have never seen the movie, you should.

    Although the Native Americans won the day, “Little Big Horn” became a rallying cry for the whites as more soldiers came to eventually track down Crazy Horse, Sitting Bull, and the other Native Americans. In less than fifteen years in 1889, the area around Little Big Horn became part of the new state of Montana.

    “The Custer Fight” painting by Charles Marion Russell via public domain.
    Leave your two cents in the comments.

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