Sunday, January 30

Henry Cavill cast as the new Man of Steel


Deadline broke news today that British actor Henry Cavill landed the title role in Warner Bros. upcoming Superman reboot.  Cavill, a relative unknown, has had some supporting parts in several recent movies (Stardust, Whatever Works) and a TV show (Showtime's The Tudors).  I was holding out hope that Armie Hammer (The Social Network) would land the role, but think that Cavill is a decent choice.  The next question is who should play Lois Lane? 

Friday, January 28

Van Halen recording new album with Roth

Rolling Stone recently reported that the Van Halen's and David Lee Roth have begun recording a new album -- their first in 27 years.  I'm not sure what I'm surprised by more -- if Eddie and Dave don't claw eachother's eyes out in the studio and this album actually gets made or that it has been 15 years since their Greatest Hits album (where Roth last recorded Van Halen material w/ 2 new tracks).

Thursday, January 27

"Don't let yourself get attached to anything you are not willing to walk out on in 30 seconds flat if you feel the heat around the corner."


Roger Ebert recently posted an article that dissected the crime classic HEAT on his blog.  It has become sort of cliche in recent years to cite this movie as the best heist movie of all-time.  While well-deserving of such accolades, the article offers sound analysis on how rich and multi-layered this cat-and-mouse epic truly is.

Wednesday, January 26

Trading Cards I didn't collect (but wished I had)

Retrospace has posted a collection of some hilarious trading cards.  Would these packs still come with a stick of gum or, um, something else?

Tuesday, January 25

Hard Case Crime update 1/21

 

The latest from Mr. Ardai...

Friends,

Bit by bit, we're getting closer to the re-launch of Hard Case Crime with our new publisher, Titan Books. Our backlist titles are already available for pre-order from bookstores and online booksellers such as Amazon.com and BN.com; copies will start shipping in February.  And we've got new books on the way, too -- if you go to our Web site, www.HardCaseCrime.com, you'll find cover art and sample chapters for four upcoming titles, all of them brand new:

Sunday, January 23

$ (Dollars)

I have fond memories of seeking out obscure (for me at least, at the time) 70s movies on VHS at my local video store when in high school.  The promotion was called "2 for Tuesday" and it offered two rentals for the price of one (new releases were $2.99 and catalog titles were $.99).  There was a limit of 3 (or 6 total rentals depending on how you look at it) and you could keep them for 7 days.

I remember renting two specific titles on no particular Tuesday -- both starred Warren Beatty (The Parallax View, and ($) Dollars).  I re-watched ($) Dollars over the weekend in glorious HD on the Sony Movie Channel.
 This is a heist movie and the set-up is a good one.  Beatty plays a financial security expert at a German bank (i.e., he knows a lot about installing security systems) and a very young Goldie Hawn plays a hooker (with a special knack for dressing up in fireman's garb).  Germany happens to have a law in place such that the authorities are not allowed to search safety deposit boxes (unlike, say, in the U.S. where they do have said permission given probable cause).  Beatty and Hawn use this as a driver to charm their way into executing a rather clever and exciting bank heist.

In addition to both Beatty and Hawn, the filmmakers make good use of the filming locations.  Among other Western European cities, there are some beautiful German locations and set pieces throughout this picture.  Additionally, it boasts one of the longer chase scenes (on foot) ever filmed that I am aware of.  I can't help but wonder if it was, in part, an homage to RIFIFI -- an excellent European heist movie from the 50s that made effective use of long periods of silence.

($) Dollars is a charming picture that holds up reasonably well.  It is fun to watch Beatty in his prime and Hawn early in her career.  The chase climax, while lasting nearly 1/3 of the movie(!) is exciting throughout.  Also of note, is the colorful score by Quincy Jones. I recommend seeking out this overlooked gem.