How far would you go to protect your family?
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures has just released a new trailer and poster for Death Wish! Director Eli Roth’s reimagining of the classic 1974 revenge thriller stars Bruce Willis, Vincent D’Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Camila Morrone, Dean Norris and Kimberly Elise.
Death Wish is in theaters everywhere on March 2, 2018!
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures presents director Eli Roth’s reimagining of the 1974 revenge thriller Death Wish. Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of his city’s violence when it is rushed into his ER – until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes, Paul, burning for revenge, hunts his family’s assailants to deliver justice. As the anonymous slayings of criminals grabs the media’s attention, the city wonders if this deadly avenger is a guardian angel or a grim reaper.
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures has just released a new trailer and poster for Death Wish! Director Eli Roth’s reimagining of the classic 1974 revenge thriller stars Bruce Willis, Vincent D’Onofrio, Elisabeth Shue, Camila Morrone, Dean Norris and Kimberly Elise.
Death Wish is in theaters everywhere on March 2, 2018!
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures presents director Eli Roth’s reimagining of the 1974 revenge thriller Death Wish. Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of his city’s violence when it is rushed into his ER – until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes, Paul, burning for revenge, hunts his family’s assailants to deliver justice. As the anonymous slayings of criminals grabs the media’s attention, the city wonders if this deadly avenger is a guardian angel or a grim reaper.
- 1/3/2018
- by Tom Stockman
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
For many film fans, the name Paul Kersey is synonymous with Charles Bronson, but Bruce Willis is breathing new life into the role in Eli Roth's reimagining of Death Wish, which is teased in a new trailer packed with bullet-riddled vengeance and plenty of AC/DC.
MGM will release the new Death Wish film in theaters on November 22nd. Stay tuned to Daily Dead for more details and check out the official trailer and poster below. Are you looking forward to a new take on Death Wish?
"Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures presents director Eli Roth's reimagining of the classic 1974 revenge thriller Death Wish. Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of Chicago violence when it is rushed into his ER - until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes,...
MGM will release the new Death Wish film in theaters on November 22nd. Stay tuned to Daily Dead for more details and check out the official trailer and poster below. Are you looking forward to a new take on Death Wish?
"Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures presents director Eli Roth's reimagining of the classic 1974 revenge thriller Death Wish. Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of Chicago violence when it is rushed into his ER - until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes,...
- 8/3/2017
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures have released the first trailer for director Eli Roth’s reimagining of the classic 1974 revenge thriller Death Wish.
The original film starred Charles Bronson and it became his most famous role when he was age 52. He played Paul Kersey, a successful New York architect who turns into a crime-fighting vigilante after his wife is murdered and his daughter sexually assaulted. This successful movie spawned various sequels over the next two decades, all starring Bronson. (Trailer)
Updated from the original novel by Brian Garfield, director Eli Roth and screenwriter Joe Carnahan’s (The Grey, Narc) bring the latest version:
Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of Chicago violence when it is rushed into his ER – until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes, Paul, burning for revenge,...
The original film starred Charles Bronson and it became his most famous role when he was age 52. He played Paul Kersey, a successful New York architect who turns into a crime-fighting vigilante after his wife is murdered and his daughter sexually assaulted. This successful movie spawned various sequels over the next two decades, all starring Bronson. (Trailer)
Updated from the original novel by Brian Garfield, director Eli Roth and screenwriter Joe Carnahan’s (The Grey, Narc) bring the latest version:
Dr. Paul Kersey (Bruce Willis) is a surgeon who only sees the aftermath of Chicago violence when it is rushed into his ER – until his wife (Elisabeth Shue) and college-age daughter (Camila Morrone) are viciously attacked in their suburban home. With the police overloaded with crimes, Paul, burning for revenge,...
- 8/3/2017
- by Michelle Hannett
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Laine would do anything to get one more chance to talk with Debbie. But her best friend is dead, and it looks like they will never communicate again… until Laine finds the Ouija board in Debbie’s room. From Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, Ouija stars Bates Motel’s Olivia Cooke and hits home media on February 3rd, and we’ve been provided with two Blu-ray copies to give away.
“After Debbie (Shelley Hennig, “Teen Wolf”) suddenly dies, her best friend Laine (Olivia Cooke, “Bates Motel,”) attempts to contact her using an antique Ouija board she finds in Debbie’s room. When the curious teen begins asking the board questions and stumbles upon the mystery of her friend’s death, Laine discovers a resident spirit calling itself Dz, and eerie, inexplicable events begin to follow her. The group of friends digs deeper into the history of Debbie’s house and are...
“After Debbie (Shelley Hennig, “Teen Wolf”) suddenly dies, her best friend Laine (Olivia Cooke, “Bates Motel,”) attempts to contact her using an antique Ouija board she finds in Debbie’s room. When the curious teen begins asking the board questions and stumbles upon the mystery of her friend’s death, Laine discovers a resident spirit calling itself Dz, and eerie, inexplicable events begin to follow her. The group of friends digs deeper into the history of Debbie’s house and are...
- 1/28/2015
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Two weeks of costume stories.
Sheena Napier
Dtsft cover this prolific costume designer’s chat at the V&A. And if you’ve not heard of Ms Napier we’ll just say: Backbeat, Poirot, Enchanted April.
Sandy Powell
Nice rundown of Ms. Powell’s Young Victoria event at the Getty Center. Lauren Fonville guest posts for Frocktalk.
Wendy Benstead
The costumer for stage and screen talks to Guise about her career so far, from sewing on her old Bernina to dressing Paloma Faith. We’ve met Wendy and she’s lovely.
Debbie Reynolds Auction
The Finale. Still time to sell your car, house, spouse.
14 Worst Movie Trainers
Actually like most of these.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Costume notes from the frankly obsessed mind of Hello Tailor.
Mean Girls
Mary Jane Fort on what a Plastics reunion might look like today.
Ghandi
Oscar winning costume designer Bhanu Athaiya turns 85. And...
Sheena Napier
Dtsft cover this prolific costume designer’s chat at the V&A. And if you’ve not heard of Ms Napier we’ll just say: Backbeat, Poirot, Enchanted April.
Sandy Powell
Nice rundown of Ms. Powell’s Young Victoria event at the Getty Center. Lauren Fonville guest posts for Frocktalk.
Wendy Benstead
The costumer for stage and screen talks to Guise about her career so far, from sewing on her old Bernina to dressing Paloma Faith. We’ve met Wendy and she’s lovely.
Debbie Reynolds Auction
The Finale. Still time to sell your car, house, spouse.
14 Worst Movie Trainers
Actually like most of these.
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Costume notes from the frankly obsessed mind of Hello Tailor.
Mean Girls
Mary Jane Fort on what a Plastics reunion might look like today.
Ghandi
Oscar winning costume designer Bhanu Athaiya turns 85. And...
- 5/10/2014
- by Lord Christopher Laverty
- Clothes on Film
In 2000, the world first met Judy Moody, the amusingly mercurial heroine of Megan McDonald.s bestselling book series. Since then, the adventurous tyke has inspired eight additional books and the series has sold a phenomenal 14 million copies in 23 languages. Now Judy is poised to make her big screen debut in Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer. Have a listen as director John Schultz, producer Sarah Siegel-Magness, executive producer Bobbi Sue Luthor, author Megan McDonald and the actors talk about the film in this new Behind-the-Scenes Featurette.
Synopsis:
When her best-laid plans for a summer full of fun go comically awry, an imaginative young girl creates her own vacation adventures in Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer. Based on the beloved, bestselling book series by Megan McDonald, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer is an irresistible and delightfully funny treat for adventure-loving kids and adults.
This summer, Judy...
Synopsis:
When her best-laid plans for a summer full of fun go comically awry, an imaginative young girl creates her own vacation adventures in Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer. Based on the beloved, bestselling book series by Megan McDonald, Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer is an irresistible and delightfully funny treat for adventure-loving kids and adults.
This summer, Judy...
- 6/6/2011
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
First of, have I told you how much I love this film? It's Super-funny! But, the greatest comedies have underlying tones of despair, and the characters in "The Goods" certainly have lots of those, hence, the funnies :happy
Make it the super funnies!
From the folks who gave us "Talladega Nights" and "Stepbrothers," "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard" is one of the best comedies of the summer, perhaps the year!
Directed by Neil Brennan from the script by Andy Stock and Rick Stempson, this film ain't a clunker! Paramount has great timing with the whole Cash for Clunkers program.
You'll find a new, perhaps, respect for used car salesman! "The Goods" opens this Friday, Aug. 14th, so don't miss it!
So I attended the press junket for "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard" and sat down with the cast. Here they are (click on pictures to see video):...
Make it the super funnies!
From the folks who gave us "Talladega Nights" and "Stepbrothers," "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard" is one of the best comedies of the summer, perhaps the year!
Directed by Neil Brennan from the script by Andy Stock and Rick Stempson, this film ain't a clunker! Paramount has great timing with the whole Cash for Clunkers program.
You'll find a new, perhaps, respect for used car salesman! "The Goods" opens this Friday, Aug. 14th, so don't miss it!
So I attended the press junket for "The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard" and sat down with the cast. Here they are (click on pictures to see video):...
- 8/12/2009
- by Manny
- Manny the Movie Guy
Opens
Friday, April 30
"Mean Girls" wants to have it both ways and, surprisingly, just about manages that trick. The first way, of course, is what Paramount is currently marketing: a teen comedy about high school girls battling for guys and social prestige. The other way is much trickier. Debuting screenwriter Tina Fey, a head writer on "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of the show's popular "Weekend Update" segment, lays a serious theme behind the high school high jinks.
Her script is based on Rosalind Wiseman's best seller "Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence," a book that explores the power of school cliques and the role of girls within them. This duality results in an edgy comedy, where laughs stem at times from uncomfortable situations. In other words, "Mean Girls" lives up to its title.
All that attitude plus a subtle turn by young star Lindsay Lohan, who successfully reteams here with her "Freaky Friday" director Mark Waters, should help "Mean Girls" draw well from its target audience of teenage females.
Fey fashions her story around the role-playing in high school identified by Wiseman's book: the Queen Bee, her Sidekicks, the Torn Bystander, Messenger and Target, among others. Refreshingly, none of these types turn into stereotypes. The geeks among the Mathletes are allowed a surprisingly cool, unself-conscious hipness. And, sure, the Plastics -- the three girls at the center of all the social climbing and psychological warfare -- are plastic as hell. Yet Fey's screenplay insists on viewing them not as caricatures but as young girls confronting very real issues of image, self-worth and fear of failure.
Lohan plays Cady Heron, a young girl who is a social blank: She joins a Chicago-area high school directly from Africa, where her zoologist parents home-schooled their daughter. This allows Cady -- and the film -- to compare behavior in the animal kingdom and on campus, each a jungle in its own way. In occasional fantasy sequences, the kids' behavior apes -- pun intended -- animal comportment in the bush.
As a lonely newcomer, Cady is initially adopted by the social outcasts Janis (Lizzy Caplan) and Damian Daniel Franzese). These two are into art and treat all cliques with undisguised disdain. However, Cady's smashing looks and unusual innocence soon attract the attention of Queen Bee Regina (Rachel McAdams) and her sycophantic Sidekicks Gretchen (Lacey Chabert) and Karen (Amanda Seyfried).
The outcasts seize Regina's ambivalent flirtation with Cady as an opportunity to dethrone the Queen Bee: They persuade Cady to pretend to like the Plastics and hang out with them until she gathers enough information to use when it is most beneficial. Gradually, Cady gets a little too good at this espionage and, without realizing it, becomes a queen of mean herself.
One of the movie's achievements is persuading the audience to stay firmly in Cady's camp during her odyssey of self-discovery. As she gets savvy about game-playing and much, much meaner, you must still believe that the goodness of her heart has only temporarily been eclipsed. Lohan manages this transition as things unravel comically and the whole school comes apart at the seams over a prank.
The climax is somewhat forced and a little disjointed. All the girls are forced to assemble in the gym for a lecture and group therapy session from teacher Ms. Norbury (Fey). The movie may drive home its message without much subtlety, but the comedy remains sharp, and believability is never sacrificed.
For the second film in a row, Waters achieves striking comic results from a mix of young actors and veterans. The film's polish extends into tech areas from cinematographer Daryn Okada's energetic lensing to the revealing decor in Cary White's bedroom sets. Mary Jane Fort's costumes overemphasize her star's bust line, but that too is not uncommon among social-climbing high school girls.
MEAN GIRLS
Paramount Pictures
A Lorne Michaels production
Credits:
Director: Mark Waters
Screenwriter: Tina Fey
Based on the book by: Rosalind Wiseman
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Executive producer: Jill Messick
Director of photography: Daryn Okada
Production designer: Cary White
Music: Rolfe Kent
Co-producer: Louise Rosner
Costume designer: Mary Jane Fort
Editor: Wendy Greene Bricmont
Cast:
Cady: Lindsay Lohan
Regina: Rachel McAdams
Ms. Norbury: Tina Fey
Mr. Duvall: Tim Meadows
Mrs. George: Amy Poehler
Betsy: Ana Gasteyer
Gretchen: Lacey Chabert
Janis Ian: Lizzy Caplan
Damian: Daniel Franzese
Chip: Neil Flynn
Aaron: Jonathan Bennett
Running time -- 96 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Friday, April 30
"Mean Girls" wants to have it both ways and, surprisingly, just about manages that trick. The first way, of course, is what Paramount is currently marketing: a teen comedy about high school girls battling for guys and social prestige. The other way is much trickier. Debuting screenwriter Tina Fey, a head writer on "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of the show's popular "Weekend Update" segment, lays a serious theme behind the high school high jinks.
Her script is based on Rosalind Wiseman's best seller "Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence," a book that explores the power of school cliques and the role of girls within them. This duality results in an edgy comedy, where laughs stem at times from uncomfortable situations. In other words, "Mean Girls" lives up to its title.
All that attitude plus a subtle turn by young star Lindsay Lohan, who successfully reteams here with her "Freaky Friday" director Mark Waters, should help "Mean Girls" draw well from its target audience of teenage females.
Fey fashions her story around the role-playing in high school identified by Wiseman's book: the Queen Bee, her Sidekicks, the Torn Bystander, Messenger and Target, among others. Refreshingly, none of these types turn into stereotypes. The geeks among the Mathletes are allowed a surprisingly cool, unself-conscious hipness. And, sure, the Plastics -- the three girls at the center of all the social climbing and psychological warfare -- are plastic as hell. Yet Fey's screenplay insists on viewing them not as caricatures but as young girls confronting very real issues of image, self-worth and fear of failure.
Lohan plays Cady Heron, a young girl who is a social blank: She joins a Chicago-area high school directly from Africa, where her zoologist parents home-schooled their daughter. This allows Cady -- and the film -- to compare behavior in the animal kingdom and on campus, each a jungle in its own way. In occasional fantasy sequences, the kids' behavior apes -- pun intended -- animal comportment in the bush.
As a lonely newcomer, Cady is initially adopted by the social outcasts Janis (Lizzy Caplan) and Damian Daniel Franzese). These two are into art and treat all cliques with undisguised disdain. However, Cady's smashing looks and unusual innocence soon attract the attention of Queen Bee Regina (Rachel McAdams) and her sycophantic Sidekicks Gretchen (Lacey Chabert) and Karen (Amanda Seyfried).
The outcasts seize Regina's ambivalent flirtation with Cady as an opportunity to dethrone the Queen Bee: They persuade Cady to pretend to like the Plastics and hang out with them until she gathers enough information to use when it is most beneficial. Gradually, Cady gets a little too good at this espionage and, without realizing it, becomes a queen of mean herself.
One of the movie's achievements is persuading the audience to stay firmly in Cady's camp during her odyssey of self-discovery. As she gets savvy about game-playing and much, much meaner, you must still believe that the goodness of her heart has only temporarily been eclipsed. Lohan manages this transition as things unravel comically and the whole school comes apart at the seams over a prank.
The climax is somewhat forced and a little disjointed. All the girls are forced to assemble in the gym for a lecture and group therapy session from teacher Ms. Norbury (Fey). The movie may drive home its message without much subtlety, but the comedy remains sharp, and believability is never sacrificed.
For the second film in a row, Waters achieves striking comic results from a mix of young actors and veterans. The film's polish extends into tech areas from cinematographer Daryn Okada's energetic lensing to the revealing decor in Cary White's bedroom sets. Mary Jane Fort's costumes overemphasize her star's bust line, but that too is not uncommon among social-climbing high school girls.
MEAN GIRLS
Paramount Pictures
A Lorne Michaels production
Credits:
Director: Mark Waters
Screenwriter: Tina Fey
Based on the book by: Rosalind Wiseman
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Executive producer: Jill Messick
Director of photography: Daryn Okada
Production designer: Cary White
Music: Rolfe Kent
Co-producer: Louise Rosner
Costume designer: Mary Jane Fort
Editor: Wendy Greene Bricmont
Cast:
Cady: Lindsay Lohan
Regina: Rachel McAdams
Ms. Norbury: Tina Fey
Mr. Duvall: Tim Meadows
Mrs. George: Amy Poehler
Betsy: Ana Gasteyer
Gretchen: Lacey Chabert
Janis Ian: Lizzy Caplan
Damian: Daniel Franzese
Chip: Neil Flynn
Aaron: Jonathan Bennett
Running time -- 96 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Opens
Friday, April 30
"Mean Girls" wants to have it both ways and, surprisingly, just about manages that trick. The first way, of course, is what Paramount is currently marketing: a teen comedy about high school girls battling for guys and social prestige. The other way is much trickier. Debuting screenwriter Tina Fey, a head writer on "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of the show's popular "Weekend Update" segment, lays a serious theme behind the high school high jinks.
Her script is based on Rosalind Wiseman's best seller "Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence," a book that explores the power of school cliques and the role of girls within them. This duality results in an edgy comedy, where laughs stem at times from uncomfortable situations. In other words, "Mean Girls" lives up to its title.
All that attitude plus a subtle turn by young star Lindsay Lohan, who successfully reteams here with her "Freaky Friday" director Mark Waters, should help "Mean Girls" draw well from its target audience of teenage females.
Fey fashions her story around the role-playing in high school identified by Wiseman's book: the Queen Bee, her Sidekicks, the Torn Bystander, Messenger and Target, among others. Refreshingly, none of these types turn into stereotypes. The geeks among the Mathletes are allowed a surprisingly cool, unself-conscious hipness. And, sure, the Plastics -- the three girls at the center of all the social climbing and psychological warfare -- are plastic as hell. Yet Fey's screenplay insists on viewing them not as caricatures but as young girls confronting very real issues of image, self-worth and fear of failure.
Lohan plays Cady Heron, a young girl who is a social blank: She joins a Chicago-area high school directly from Africa, where her zoologist parents home-schooled their daughter. This allows Cady -- and the film -- to compare behavior in the animal kingdom and on campus, each a jungle in its own way. In occasional fantasy sequences, the kids' behavior apes -- pun intended -- animal comportment in the bush.
As a lonely newcomer, Cady is initially adopted by the social outcasts Janis (Lizzy Caplan) and Damian Daniel Franzese). These two are into art and treat all cliques with undisguised disdain. However, Cady's smashing looks and unusual innocence soon attract the attention of Queen Bee Regina (Rachel McAdams) and her sycophantic Sidekicks Gretchen (Lacey Chabert) and Karen (Amanda Seyfried).
The outcasts seize Regina's ambivalent flirtation with Cady as an opportunity to dethrone the Queen Bee: They persuade Cady to pretend to like the Plastics and hang out with them until she gathers enough information to use when it is most beneficial. Gradually, Cady gets a little too good at this espionage and, without realizing it, becomes a queen of mean herself.
One of the movie's achievements is persuading the audience to stay firmly in Cady's camp during her odyssey of self-discovery. As she gets savvy about game-playing and much, much meaner, you must still believe that the goodness of her heart has only temporarily been eclipsed. Lohan manages this transition as things unravel comically and the whole school comes apart at the seams over a prank.
The climax is somewhat forced and a little disjointed. All the girls are forced to assemble in the gym for a lecture and group therapy session from teacher Ms. Norbury (Fey). The movie may drive home its message without much subtlety, but the comedy remains sharp, and believability is never sacrificed.
For the second film in a row, Waters achieves striking comic results from a mix of young actors and veterans. The film's polish extends into tech areas from cinematographer Daryn Okada's energetic lensing to the revealing decor in Cary White's bedroom sets. Mary Jane Fort's costumes overemphasize her star's bust line, but that too is not uncommon among social-climbing high school girls.
MEAN GIRLS
Paramount Pictures
A Lorne Michaels production
Credits:
Director: Mark Waters
Screenwriter: Tina Fey
Based on the book by: Rosalind Wiseman
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Executive producer: Jill Messick
Director of photography: Daryn Okada
Production designer: Cary White
Music: Rolfe Kent
Co-producer: Louise Rosner
Costume designer: Mary Jane Fort
Editor: Wendy Greene Bricmont
Cast:
Cady: Lindsay Lohan
Regina: Rachel McAdams
Ms. Norbury: Tina Fey
Mr. Duvall: Tim Meadows
Mrs. George: Amy Poehler
Betsy: Ana Gasteyer
Gretchen: Lacey Chabert
Janis Ian: Lizzy Caplan
Damian: Daniel Franzese
Chip: Neil Flynn
Aaron: Jonathan Bennett
Running time -- 96 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Friday, April 30
"Mean Girls" wants to have it both ways and, surprisingly, just about manages that trick. The first way, of course, is what Paramount is currently marketing: a teen comedy about high school girls battling for guys and social prestige. The other way is much trickier. Debuting screenwriter Tina Fey, a head writer on "Saturday Night Live" and co-anchor of the show's popular "Weekend Update" segment, lays a serious theme behind the high school high jinks.
Her script is based on Rosalind Wiseman's best seller "Queen Bees and Wannabes: Helping Your Daughter Survive Cliques, Gossip, Boyfriends and Other Realities of Adolescence," a book that explores the power of school cliques and the role of girls within them. This duality results in an edgy comedy, where laughs stem at times from uncomfortable situations. In other words, "Mean Girls" lives up to its title.
All that attitude plus a subtle turn by young star Lindsay Lohan, who successfully reteams here with her "Freaky Friday" director Mark Waters, should help "Mean Girls" draw well from its target audience of teenage females.
Fey fashions her story around the role-playing in high school identified by Wiseman's book: the Queen Bee, her Sidekicks, the Torn Bystander, Messenger and Target, among others. Refreshingly, none of these types turn into stereotypes. The geeks among the Mathletes are allowed a surprisingly cool, unself-conscious hipness. And, sure, the Plastics -- the three girls at the center of all the social climbing and psychological warfare -- are plastic as hell. Yet Fey's screenplay insists on viewing them not as caricatures but as young girls confronting very real issues of image, self-worth and fear of failure.
Lohan plays Cady Heron, a young girl who is a social blank: She joins a Chicago-area high school directly from Africa, where her zoologist parents home-schooled their daughter. This allows Cady -- and the film -- to compare behavior in the animal kingdom and on campus, each a jungle in its own way. In occasional fantasy sequences, the kids' behavior apes -- pun intended -- animal comportment in the bush.
As a lonely newcomer, Cady is initially adopted by the social outcasts Janis (Lizzy Caplan) and Damian Daniel Franzese). These two are into art and treat all cliques with undisguised disdain. However, Cady's smashing looks and unusual innocence soon attract the attention of Queen Bee Regina (Rachel McAdams) and her sycophantic Sidekicks Gretchen (Lacey Chabert) and Karen (Amanda Seyfried).
The outcasts seize Regina's ambivalent flirtation with Cady as an opportunity to dethrone the Queen Bee: They persuade Cady to pretend to like the Plastics and hang out with them until she gathers enough information to use when it is most beneficial. Gradually, Cady gets a little too good at this espionage and, without realizing it, becomes a queen of mean herself.
One of the movie's achievements is persuading the audience to stay firmly in Cady's camp during her odyssey of self-discovery. As she gets savvy about game-playing and much, much meaner, you must still believe that the goodness of her heart has only temporarily been eclipsed. Lohan manages this transition as things unravel comically and the whole school comes apart at the seams over a prank.
The climax is somewhat forced and a little disjointed. All the girls are forced to assemble in the gym for a lecture and group therapy session from teacher Ms. Norbury (Fey). The movie may drive home its message without much subtlety, but the comedy remains sharp, and believability is never sacrificed.
For the second film in a row, Waters achieves striking comic results from a mix of young actors and veterans. The film's polish extends into tech areas from cinematographer Daryn Okada's energetic lensing to the revealing decor in Cary White's bedroom sets. Mary Jane Fort's costumes overemphasize her star's bust line, but that too is not uncommon among social-climbing high school girls.
MEAN GIRLS
Paramount Pictures
A Lorne Michaels production
Credits:
Director: Mark Waters
Screenwriter: Tina Fey
Based on the book by: Rosalind Wiseman
Producer: Lorne Michaels
Executive producer: Jill Messick
Director of photography: Daryn Okada
Production designer: Cary White
Music: Rolfe Kent
Co-producer: Louise Rosner
Costume designer: Mary Jane Fort
Editor: Wendy Greene Bricmont
Cast:
Cady: Lindsay Lohan
Regina: Rachel McAdams
Ms. Norbury: Tina Fey
Mr. Duvall: Tim Meadows
Mrs. George: Amy Poehler
Betsy: Ana Gasteyer
Gretchen: Lacey Chabert
Janis Ian: Lizzy Caplan
Damian: Daniel Franzese
Chip: Neil Flynn
Aaron: Jonathan Bennett
Running time -- 96 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 4/26/2004
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Opens
Friday, Sept. 19
Director Jonathan Lynn plants the spotlight firmly on the singing in "The Fighting Temptations". It would be a waste to do otherwise, with such powerhouses of R&B, gospel and hip-hop on board as Beyonce Knowles, the O'Jays, Melba Moore, Faith Evans, the Rev. Shirley Caesar, Montell Jordan and T-Bone. Exuberant musical numbers and comic characters bolster the film's time-honored premise: Small-town native reconnects with his roots after a spell in the big, cold city.
This culture-clash romantic comedy, scripted by Elizabeth Hunter and Saladin K. Patterson, goes exactly where you'd expect, but helmer Lynn, a comedy vet, gets it there with such infectious energy that you don't much mind the story's predictability. The pairing of Cuba Gooding Jr. and Knowles, who is natural and confident in a more down-to-earth role than her screen debut as Foxxy Cleopatra in "Austin Powers in Goldmember", generates a believable friction/attraction. Gooding makes a credible linchpin to the shenanigans -- and his dance moves are a joy to behold. His marquee clout and the draw of the many musicians on hand will ensure harmonious, if not chart-busting, boxoffice returns for Paramount.
Gooding plays Darrin, an up-and-coming New York ad exec saddled with credit card bills. His rise through the corporate ranks has rested in part on a loose way with the facts. Yes, he attended Yale -- but he was kicked out for faking an Andover diploma. And yes, he grew up in Monte Carlo -- that being the name of the Georgia town where he spent the first five years of his life. He and his mother (Evans) hit the road when she was forced out of the church choir for her "secular" R&B singing.
Darrin finds himself on the train back to the Southern burg and that very same Beulah Baptist Church. At loose ends after being fired for his fabrications ("We're in advertising!" he responds with deadpan amazement), he's summoned back for the funeral of his Aunt Sally, his only relative since his mother died.
After a rousing musical tribute at the funeral, led by Caesar, Darrin learns that he'll inherit his great-aunt's stock holdings, worth $150,000, if he assumes her work as director of the Beulah choir and leads it to a victory in the regional Gospel Explosion. Debt-strapped Darrin has all the motivation he needs. And the Rev. Lewis (Wendell Pierce) could sure use the $10,000 contest prize to make desperately needed repairs on the church.
Challenging Darrin every step of the way is the bossy, universally despised Paulina (LaTanya Richardson), the woman who instigated Darrin's mother's ejection from the church back in 1980. Now she has turned her jealous attention to Lilly (Knowles), single mother, soulful singer and, in Paulina's eyes, an "unrepentant sinner." Lilly's a woman of strong inner resources, and she's on to Darrin every step of the way as he woos her to join the choir and rekindle their childhood romance.
It turns out the choir that raised the roof at Sally's funeral was just visiting, and Darrin, who's passing himself off as a record producer but doesn't know an upbeat from a downbeat, has six weeks to shape the town's singers into a competition-worthy gospel group. Auditions produce a string of astoundingly bad performers, and eventually the call goes out even to atheists. The final lineup includes a trio of prison inmates, among them the falsetto-voiced Jordan and the speed-rapping T-Bone, and the town's barbers (the O'Jays, who perform a swinging version of "Loves Me Like a Rock").
Among the many colorful residents of Monte Carlo, Mike Epps and Steve Harvey deliver standout comic turns. Production and costume design capture the feel of a real community while underscoring the spirited playfulness of the material. It will surprise no one that comeuppance and reward are delivered to the appropriate parties or that Darrin learns the errors of his deceptive ways and find true happiness -- that is "The Great Gatsby" he's reading in an early scene.
THE FIGHTING TEMPTATIONS
Paramount Pictures
MTV Films
Credits:
Director: Jonathan Lynn
Screenwriters: Elizabeth Hunter, Saladin K. Patterson
Producers: David Gale, Loretha Jones, Jeff Pollack
Executive producers: Van Toffler, Benny Medina
Director of photography: Affonso Beato
Production designer: Victoria Paul
Music: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, James "Big Jim" Wright
Executive music producers: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, James "Big Jim" Wright, Loretha Jones
Co-producers: Susan Lewis, Momita Sengupta
Costume designers: Mary Jane Fort, Tracey A. White
Editor: Paul Hirsch
Cast:
Darrin Hill: Cuba Gooding Jr.
Lilly: Beyonce Knowles
Lucius: Mike Epps
Maryann Hill: Faith Evans
Miles Smoke: Steve Harvey
the Rev. Lewis: Wendell Pierce
Paulina: LaTanya Richardson
Bill: Dave Sheridan
Alma: Angie Stone
Nancy: Rue McClanahan
Bessie: Melba Moore
Aunt Sally: Ann Nesby
Homer: Lou Myers
Scooter: Mickey Jones
Johnson: Montell Jordan
Bee-Z Briggs: T-Bone
Lightfoot: Chris Cole
Rosa: Lourdes Benedicto
Mr. Fairchild: Dakin Matthews
Frank: Walter Williams Sr.
Samuel: Eric Nolan Grant
As Themselves: the Rev. Shirley Caesar, the Blind Boys of Alabama
Running time -- 123 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
Friday, Sept. 19
Director Jonathan Lynn plants the spotlight firmly on the singing in "The Fighting Temptations". It would be a waste to do otherwise, with such powerhouses of R&B, gospel and hip-hop on board as Beyonce Knowles, the O'Jays, Melba Moore, Faith Evans, the Rev. Shirley Caesar, Montell Jordan and T-Bone. Exuberant musical numbers and comic characters bolster the film's time-honored premise: Small-town native reconnects with his roots after a spell in the big, cold city.
This culture-clash romantic comedy, scripted by Elizabeth Hunter and Saladin K. Patterson, goes exactly where you'd expect, but helmer Lynn, a comedy vet, gets it there with such infectious energy that you don't much mind the story's predictability. The pairing of Cuba Gooding Jr. and Knowles, who is natural and confident in a more down-to-earth role than her screen debut as Foxxy Cleopatra in "Austin Powers in Goldmember", generates a believable friction/attraction. Gooding makes a credible linchpin to the shenanigans -- and his dance moves are a joy to behold. His marquee clout and the draw of the many musicians on hand will ensure harmonious, if not chart-busting, boxoffice returns for Paramount.
Gooding plays Darrin, an up-and-coming New York ad exec saddled with credit card bills. His rise through the corporate ranks has rested in part on a loose way with the facts. Yes, he attended Yale -- but he was kicked out for faking an Andover diploma. And yes, he grew up in Monte Carlo -- that being the name of the Georgia town where he spent the first five years of his life. He and his mother (Evans) hit the road when she was forced out of the church choir for her "secular" R&B singing.
Darrin finds himself on the train back to the Southern burg and that very same Beulah Baptist Church. At loose ends after being fired for his fabrications ("We're in advertising!" he responds with deadpan amazement), he's summoned back for the funeral of his Aunt Sally, his only relative since his mother died.
After a rousing musical tribute at the funeral, led by Caesar, Darrin learns that he'll inherit his great-aunt's stock holdings, worth $150,000, if he assumes her work as director of the Beulah choir and leads it to a victory in the regional Gospel Explosion. Debt-strapped Darrin has all the motivation he needs. And the Rev. Lewis (Wendell Pierce) could sure use the $10,000 contest prize to make desperately needed repairs on the church.
Challenging Darrin every step of the way is the bossy, universally despised Paulina (LaTanya Richardson), the woman who instigated Darrin's mother's ejection from the church back in 1980. Now she has turned her jealous attention to Lilly (Knowles), single mother, soulful singer and, in Paulina's eyes, an "unrepentant sinner." Lilly's a woman of strong inner resources, and she's on to Darrin every step of the way as he woos her to join the choir and rekindle their childhood romance.
It turns out the choir that raised the roof at Sally's funeral was just visiting, and Darrin, who's passing himself off as a record producer but doesn't know an upbeat from a downbeat, has six weeks to shape the town's singers into a competition-worthy gospel group. Auditions produce a string of astoundingly bad performers, and eventually the call goes out even to atheists. The final lineup includes a trio of prison inmates, among them the falsetto-voiced Jordan and the speed-rapping T-Bone, and the town's barbers (the O'Jays, who perform a swinging version of "Loves Me Like a Rock").
Among the many colorful residents of Monte Carlo, Mike Epps and Steve Harvey deliver standout comic turns. Production and costume design capture the feel of a real community while underscoring the spirited playfulness of the material. It will surprise no one that comeuppance and reward are delivered to the appropriate parties or that Darrin learns the errors of his deceptive ways and find true happiness -- that is "The Great Gatsby" he's reading in an early scene.
THE FIGHTING TEMPTATIONS
Paramount Pictures
MTV Films
Credits:
Director: Jonathan Lynn
Screenwriters: Elizabeth Hunter, Saladin K. Patterson
Producers: David Gale, Loretha Jones, Jeff Pollack
Executive producers: Van Toffler, Benny Medina
Director of photography: Affonso Beato
Production designer: Victoria Paul
Music: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, James "Big Jim" Wright
Executive music producers: Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, James "Big Jim" Wright, Loretha Jones
Co-producers: Susan Lewis, Momita Sengupta
Costume designers: Mary Jane Fort, Tracey A. White
Editor: Paul Hirsch
Cast:
Darrin Hill: Cuba Gooding Jr.
Lilly: Beyonce Knowles
Lucius: Mike Epps
Maryann Hill: Faith Evans
Miles Smoke: Steve Harvey
the Rev. Lewis: Wendell Pierce
Paulina: LaTanya Richardson
Bill: Dave Sheridan
Alma: Angie Stone
Nancy: Rue McClanahan
Bessie: Melba Moore
Aunt Sally: Ann Nesby
Homer: Lou Myers
Scooter: Mickey Jones
Johnson: Montell Jordan
Bee-Z Briggs: T-Bone
Lightfoot: Chris Cole
Rosa: Lourdes Benedicto
Mr. Fairchild: Dakin Matthews
Frank: Walter Williams Sr.
Samuel: Eric Nolan Grant
As Themselves: the Rev. Shirley Caesar, the Blind Boys of Alabama
Running time -- 123 minutes
MPAA rating: PG-13...
- 9/29/2003
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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