Movies

ICE CUBES: Muscling In
POSTED: Friday, October 22, 2010, 8:53 PM
Filed Under: Critical Mass | Ice Cubes | Movies Film Fest
Darren Finizio
You saw it here first, now here's the rest: In his time behind the mic, Darren Finizio has been a Marc Bolan-like starchild folksinger, a weight lifting Muscle Factory man, a host of his own YouTube show (Darren's Basement), and the Hoppy from Hoppy The Frog. He's been at the center of the porn-metal Ass Bandits/Sperminator axis, a Paraplegic, the Well-Hung Man, and the subject of Marc Brodzik's first documentary, My Name Is Darren. To this date, he has yet to have become a part of the Pepsi generation that fills the Piazza at Schmidts – until now, until 3 p.m. this Sat., Oct. 23. "I'm still singing folk songs and need to play for people flesh to flesh like the old days," says the ultimate outside artist before sending me his newest "perverse" YouTube enterprises. Along with talking about his eternally burning desire to become a rock star ("where's all the good stuff that Satan promised me?"), Finizio lays out Muscle Factory's plans for shock and awe at the Piazza — kinda. "Muscle Factory will only perform new material and there will be no musical content in the newer material. People may hate me for it. So be it. You have to evolve or you become another relic." No fly will ever land on Finizio, that's for sure. Darren — one of them — has upcoming November shows at the Troc's Balcony following this Piazza gig. But make sure you catch Muscle Factory outdoors to see and hear what the future of Finizio might be. WHOWHATWHENWHERE: Never before did Philadelphia natives/celebutantes Jamie Kennedy and M. Night Shyamalan figure they'd be sharing a stage. But there they were, one right after the other at the Prince Music Theater when the 19th Philadelphia Film Festival debuted the locally shot Café with a Q&A starring its producer J. Andrew Greenblatt (the PFF's boss too), director/writer Marc Earlbaum and star Kennedy — followed by the 10th anniversary celebration and screening of Unbreakable with M. Night. "No one ever thought to cast me as a drug dealer, so that was a first," says Kennedy of his diabolical role in the tragicomic Café. "Plus this was my first kosher movie." Lacheim. For Shyamalan's part, he hold me that he missed the innocence of his pre-Sixth Sense days. "I had been around for two films that nobody saw by the time of Sixth Sense so I definitely lost a lot of my initial innocence. That's something I'd actually love to get back, that feeling of filmmaking and writing when it wasn't so much of a job, without so many expectations."
Scott Weiner 2010
Andrew Greenblatt, M. Night Shyamalan, Bhavna Vaswani & Sharon Pinkenson
Scott Weiner 2010
Marc Earlbaum and Jamie Kennedy
Posted by A.D. Amorosi @ 8:53 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

Q&A with Tony Goldwyn: "Life is gray, and relationships are, too"
POSTED: Thursday, October 21, 2010, 5:30 PM
Filed Under: Interview | Movies Film Fest
Tony Goldwyn may be most recognizable to audiences as an actor who appeared in films like Ghost and From the Earth to the Moon, or as the voice of Tarzan in the 1999 film. But Goldwyn, the grandson of famed producer Samuel Goldwyn, has slowly been making his mark behind the camera. His directorial debut, A Walk on the Moon, written by Pamela Gray, was a terrific romance. Between features, he has directed episodes of Justified, Damages and Dexter for TV. Now he's has helmed his most ambitious project yet — the true story of Betty Anne Waters (Hillary Swank), a single mother of two who puts herself through law school to exonerate her brother Kenny (Sam Rockwell) for a crime he didn't commit. In this Q&A, Goldwyn talks about his career and his new film, Conviction. City Paper: Why did you shift your career from acting to directing? Tony Goldwyn: I never had any desire to direct at all, but 10 years into my career I felt limited, and so I started planning ahead and looking to be more proactive and take control of my career. I looked into producing, and thought I could develop projects. I got [Pamela] Grey's script, A Walk on the Moon, and I couldn't act in it, but I had a strong point of view about how it should be done, and [making it] I realized I loved directing. CP: Do you want to keep taking roles in front of or just behind the camera? TG: Acting is a good way to earn a living, but directing has become my primary focus. Directing feature films is the most challenging and interesting, and the fullest use of my skills as an artist. GK: Do you feel being in a famous film family destined you for a career in film? TG: The pressure I felt was that I better be successful if I was going to get into this, since the bar was set high. As I kid, I wanted nothing to do with it, but I started acting in high school and the bug bit me. In my 20s it was tough — a big name to live up to — but once I got the ball rolling, I feel lucky to be a part of the legacy and make a small contribution to it. CP: You've directed a dozen shows for TV, but only a few feature films. What stamps Conviction a Tony Goldwyn film? Is there a hallmark to your work? TG: I've made four films in 10 years, and directing for TV is fast — so film is a bigger undertaking. I think that [my work] is about exploring relationships — I'm interested in that theme — in Conviction between a brother and a sister or in Moon, a husband and wife with a marriage in crisis, or Last Kiss, turning 30 and facing a lifetime of commitment — so I'm relationship based. In taking on a story, I try to look at things as honestly as I can — showing all sides of an issue, not bad/good guys. Life is gray, and relationships are, too. I try to find the light in the dark, and not find anything too idealized or glossy. CP: Where did you first learn about Betty Anne's story and why did appeal to you? TG: I found Betty Anne and secured the rights nine years ago. My wife saw a piece on 60 Minutes about it, and I said I was too busy to watch. But I agreed that it's a natural story for a movie. What got my interest was the brother/sister story — there aren't a lot of them to be told. She spent 18 years of her life on her brother. What if she was wrong or unsuccessful? Would that have validated her faith? In this context, her struggle was gripping. CP: Because you are an actor, you know how to work with actors. What guidelines did you give the cast — Hillary has a great moment when she drops to her knees outside her house after a huge setback, and Juliette Lewis chews the scenery with relish in her two scenes. TG: I spend a lot of time talking to the actors. I cast very carefully, and make sure that they have the essence of what I need for the character. Casting is more than half of it. I communicate to them what I need, and we get clear on what we are trying to achieve. I give them freedom to explore the material and make them feel they can do anything they want — even if I guide them in a different direction. I try not to limit them as actors, or have them fight for their point of view. As a director, I'm only as good as the actors I work with, even if I don't agree with them. They can express themselves and surprise me, and things are usually better when they do that. CP: Conviction reunites you with Pamela Grey, who wrote A Walk on the Moon. Why are you both drawn to telling strong female-centric stories? TG: I'm very self-destructive! I don't really know the answer to that. Women fascinate me. I was close to my mother; she was an interesting, complicated woman. Women mystify me. Kenny, the man in this story, is a fascinating story. I'm impressed by women. I like strong women in my life. I'm drawn to them — the ones I'm friends with, and fall in love with ... my two daughters. I want them to be strong. They face adversity, which is good food for drama. CP: Can you describe how you approached the material — e.g., braiding the story as three interwoven strands around a single theme? TG: There was 40 years of story. The hazard of the story was the Movie of the Week version — we wanted to avoid that and find a compelling, original, organic way of telling it. We came up with the idea of the three time periods to tell it: her law school, 1995-2001; the moment of the crime 1980; and then the flashbacks to the characters as children. I thought it would be elegant and go back/forth in time from Betty Anne's point of view. I didn't want flashback devices to tell us where we were in time, or use film stock to indicate transition, but there was emotional logic to the transitions, but that audiences would have to work to know where we were. A lot was conceived in script, but we changed in the cutting room. We found that by chopping those [scenes] up and making them more impressionistic and using them as triggers and touchstones they were very effective. CP: One of the perils of telling a true story like this is that the outcome may be known in advance. How did you keep the story interesting so audiences are getting goosebumps, or welling up in tears? TG: It really is about creating a sense of doubt. People are pretty sure how it's going to turn out, or that she might be wrong, and then what? That does two things for me, it creates great dramatic tension — maybe you don't know where it's going — but the bigger issue is that when people do extraordinary heroic things in life, they don't seem heroic, but insane, or that people think she's illogical or unreasonable. She was a woman obsessed. I want the audience to doubt her, or feel that opposition and confusion and chaos and doubt her, so that when someone who made this kind of commitment and this act of faith that it's emotionally impactful and [you] experience viscerally what she believes in, when all logic and reason says the opposite. You try to tell the truth. That's what life is like. To do otherwise is not honest. I hate when things are glossed over or softened up. I don't like things gratuitously grim or gritty. We could have made it relentlessly grim or dark. But Betty Anne is a passionate, positive person. To watch her suffer would not be accurate to her character. CP: As Betty Anne asks her kids — would you go that far for your brother? TG: Well, I don't know. You never know until you're in that situation. I have five siblings and I'm close and devoted to all of them. When I was a little kid, I felt that the one person I couldn't live without was my brother, and that used to cause me anxiety. I don't know if I have what Betty Anne does, but I hope I do. In my life now, I ask, "How am I actively loving the people in my life who I say I love?" I hope people come away from this film asking that question. We have become self-focused and take a lot for granted.
Posted by Gary M. Kramer @ 5:30 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

MOVIE REVIEW: Rats in the City from the FirstGlance Film Fest
POSTED: Wednesday, October 13, 2010, 10:13 PM
Filed Under: Critical Mass | Movies | Film Fest Movie Review
In this week's Agenda section, Eric Schuman writes about the FirstGlance Film Festival. Below is my review of fest entry Rats in the City.
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and that's exactly what the punk lead in Temple grad John Wolfe's short Rats in the City is faced with. After the death of his affluent father, he begins to reexamine his life, which actually resembles something of a rats nest. At 25-years old, he lives in a messy, cramped apartment in Philly, he spends countless nights in loud bars listening to bands like Philly rockers Common Alliance, and, well, his hair looks like something the porcupine brought home. He does have a few things going for him, though — a tight-knit group of buds and a passion for the culinary arts. Yea, that's right. In one scene he whips up a mad lasagna for his friends. Wolfe does a refreshing job bringing life to this pivotal moment in the character's life. Clocking in at a short and snappy 19 minutes, each scene is thoughtful and well utilized. It's easy to become involved in the character's self-propelled decision between a drastic change or a more comfortable variation on life as is. I recommend it.

Shown with Switch Hit Resistor, Love Me Tender and Baseline, Sun., Oct. 17, 7 p.m., Franklin Theater, 222 N. 20th St., firstglancefilms.com.

Posted by Josh Middleton @ 10:13 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

GIVEAWAYS: Win FirstGlance Film Fest tickets
POSTED: Wednesday, October 13, 2010, 7:39 PM
Filed Under: Movies | Win Film Fest
theromanticmovie.com
Michael Heneghan's The Romantic screens on Friday
The 13th annual FirstGlance Film Festival kicks off tomorrow night at The Franklin Institute. As we mentioned before, this year's fest is offering up more screenings than ever before — everything from full length features, shorts and documentaries. And we have a pair of tickets to give away for each of the following showtimes (click on the links to see what's playing): To win tickets, all you have to do is be the first six to comment on this post, indicating which showtimes you prefer. It's first come, first serve, so be sure to indicate a second and third choice, too. From there I'll contact you with all the information you need to snatch your tickets at the events. Easy, breezy, beautiful: FirstGlance. Also, be sure to check our issue tomorrow for extra coverage and Critical Mass all week for film reviews.
KIM KELLY
Posted 2010-10-13 15:46:04
I'd prefer the Friday at 8pm to see The Romantic
2nd choice Sunday 7:00 (was on site but not in your list?)
3rd choice Saturday 7:45 for Midlife and Consent

Thank you :)
Ben
Posted 2010-10-13 15:53:18
Oh shoot, I just missed it. The only screening I can go to is the 8 pm Friday one, but it seems Kim got there first...
Sam Calhoun
Posted 2010-10-13 17:01:17
First Choice: Saturday at 3:30 Jesus Comes to Town
Second Choice: Saturday at 5
Third choice: Saturday at 7:45
Joshua Maxwell
Posted 2010-10-13 17:10:53
1st choice- Saturday 7:45
2nd choice- Friday @ 8pm
sue s.
Posted 2010-10-13 19:15:26
Love a contest I could win.

1. Sunday @ 3:30
2. Sunday @ 5
miss lilacs
Posted 2010-10-13 22:29:35
would love to go!  whenever!
miss lilacs
Posted 2010-10-13 22:32:46
me again! i would like to see the mountain movie! on sunday if possible :) thank you!
Jeff
Posted 2010-10-14 00:40:22
Anything on Sunday I would LOVE to attend!
Posted by Josh Middleton @ 7:39 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

FILM FEST FOCUS: Famous people watching movies!
POSTED: Tuesday, October 12, 2010, 2:00 PM
We just got word that a whole slew of actors, writers, producers and directors involved with the 19th annual Philadelphia Film Festival (Oct. 14-24) will be in attendance for this week's fest. Hottest ticket, of course, is M. Night Shyamalan, who'll be on hand for the 10th-anniversary screening of Unbreakable. But there are a ton of other variously famous folks — Amy Sedaris and John Hodgman (The Best and the Brightest) among them — on the list, so prepare yourself for a few Philly celebrity sightings/seat partners. Check out the full list below, find more information about the fest at the Philadelphia Film Society's website, and be sure to pick up Thursday's City Paper for extensive fest coverage. Jeff Deutchman, Director – "11/4/08" Natalie Difford, Producer – "11/4/08" Pete Rose – "4192: The Crowning of the Hit King" Gavin Bellour, Actor – "A Buddy Story" Declan Baldwin, Producer – "The Best and the Brightest" Jonathan Gray, Producer – "The Best and the Brightest" John Hodgman, Actor (Baby Mama, Coraline) – "The Best and the Brightest" Christopher McDonald, Actor (Requiem for a Dream, Happy Gilmore) – "The Best and the Brightest" Bridget Regan, Actor (Legend of the Seeker) – "The Best and the Brightest" Amy Sedaris, Actor (Bewitched, Jennifer's Body) – "The Best and the Brightest" Peter Serafinowicz, Actor (Couples Retreat) – "The Best and the Brightest" Jenna Stern, Actor (Hitch, 16 Blocks) – "The Best and the Brightest" Bonnie Somerville, Actor (The Ugly Truth) – "The Best and the Brightest" Daniel Eric Gold, Actor (Charlie Wilson's War, Definitely, Maybe) – "Café" Richard Short, Writer – "Café" Mridu Chandra, Producer – "The Canal Street Madam" Brendan McFadden, Actor - "Cold Weather" Trieste Kelly Dunn, Actor (United 93) - "Cold Weather" Geoff Edgers, Producer – "Do It Again" Rebecca Schanberg, Director – "Do No Harm" Skyler Fortgang, Actor (American Gangster)– "Every Day" Ezra Miller, Actor (City Island) – "Every Day" Richard Levine, Director (Nip/Tuck) – "Every Day" Miranda Bailey, Producer (The Squid and the Whale) – "Every Day" Jeff Reichert, Director – "Gerrymandering" Spencer Susser, Director – "Hesher" Stephen Susco, Writer (The Grudge, Red) - "High School" Simon Barrett, Producer - "A Horrible Way to Die" Petra Epperlein, Director - "How to Fold a Flag" Michael Tucker, Director - "How to Fold a Flag" Ben Hickernell, Director – "Lebanon, PA" Greg Jacobs, Director – "Louder Than a Bomb" Steven Klein, Producer - "Make Believe" Brett Haley, Director – "The New Year" Linda Lee McBride, Actor – "The New Year" Glenn Holsten, Director – "OC87" Bud Clayman, Director/Writer – "OC87" Scott Johnston, Director/Writer – "OC87" Barry Blaustein, Director – "Peep World" Mike Woolf, Director – "Richard Garriott: Man on a Mission" Jonathan Schell, Director – "Sex Magic, Manifesting Maya" Eric Liebman, Director – "Sex Magic, Manifesting Maya" M. Night Shyamalan, Director (The Sixth Sense, Signs)– "Unbreakable" Lucy Walker, Director (Countdown to Zero, Blindsight) – "Waste Land" Laurel Nakadate, Director – "The Wolf Knife" Scott Willis, Director – "The Woodmans"
Joan
Posted 2010-10-21 18:31:12
I saw "Every Day" in New York City at the Tribeca Film Festival and loved it. You're in for a treat!!!
Josh Middleton
Posted 2010-10-22 16:41:29
Thanks, Joan!
Posted by Carolyn Huckabay @ 2:00 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

DOC WATCH: William Kentridge Bio on PBS
POSTED: Tuesday, October 5, 2010, 9:00 PM
Filed Under: Movies
About six years ago, a buddy and I went museum hopping in NYC. While getting lost in the Met, I stumbled upon an exhibit by William Kentridge and was blown away. Kentridge, a South African-born artist, predominantly does charcoal sketches, animation, and films — much of which is inspired by apartheid. The animations are particularly impressive because in many of them he uses only one canvas per scene, erasing and redrawing every moving part in each frame. Here's a piece called Monument from 1990:
After not hearing much from Kentridge for awhile, I was pleased to see that PBS is premiering a bio-doc called William Kentridge: Anything is Possible on Oct. 21 at 10 p.m. It will feature interviews with the artist along with footage of him working on his static, animated and live works. Check out the trailer below: http://vimeo.com/14544412
javari
Posted 2010-10-06 19:38:21
For more on William Kentridge,
see THE APP on javari
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Posted by Sean Kearney @ 9:00 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

ARTSFLASH: Philadelpha Film Festival Announces Line-Up
POSTED: Friday, September 24, 2010, 9:02 PM
Filed Under: Critical Mass | Movies Film Fest
Photo | Magnolia Pictures
Screenshot from Philadelphia director Tanya Hamilton's Night Catches Us

Well, your fall film festival planning just got all sorts of wonky. The Philadelphia Film Festival recently announced their 2010 schedule and it just so happens to coincide with the FirstGlance Film Festival. And if that isn't enough to get your calendar in a tizzy, throw in the Asian American Film Festival. It's running during the last four days of PFF. Good luck figuring that one out.

The bright side to this whole shenanigan, of course, is that each festival offers up it's own unique flavor. For its 19th go-round, PFF comes into the mix with a monstrous line-up of 216 screenings of domestic and international short films, documentaries and features. The festival will run from Oct. 14-24 in six venues around Philadelphia and at the Bryn Mawr Film Institute. You can find a complete list of selections after the jump, with East Coast premieres in bold. Galas:
  • 127 Hours — Danny Boyle
  • Black Swan — Darren Aronofsky
  • Night Catches Us — Tanya Hamilton
  • Blue Valentine - Derek Cianfrance
Special Events Screenings:
  • The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo — Niels Arden Oplev
  • The Girl Who Played with Fire — Niels Arden Oplev
  • The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest — Niels Arden Oplev
  • Carlos — Oliver Assayas
  • Rasberry Magic — Leena Pendharkar
  • The Page of Madness — Teinosuke Kinugasa
  • 11/4/08 — Jeff Deutchman
  • Unbreakable — M. Night Shyamalan
From the Vaults:
  • For Your Height Only —Eddie Nicart
  • The Housemaid (1960) — Ki-Young Kim
  • The Room — Tommy Wiseau, U.S.
  • Secret Sunshine — Lee Chang-Dong
Spotlights:
  • Conviction — Tony Goldwyn
  • Everyday — Richard Levine
  • Fair Game — Doug Liman
  • Hesher — Spencer Susser
  • High School — John Stalberg, Jr.
  • I Love You Philip Morris — Glen Ficarra & John Requa
  • Peep World — Barry Blaustein
  • Trust — David Schwimmer
  • Welcome to the Rileys — Jake Scott
Masters of Cinema:
  • Certified Copy — Abbas Kiarostami
  • Film Socialism — Jean-Luc Goddard
  • Housemaid — Im Sang-Soo
  • Poetry — Lee Chang-Dong
  • Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives — Apichatpong Weerasethakul
  • White Material — Claire Denis
World Narratives:
  • The Actresses — Lee Je-Yong
  • Alamar — Pedro González-Rubio
  • Bailbo — Robert Connolly
  • Besouro — Joāo Daniel Tikhomiroff
  • Bo — Hans Herbots
  • Carancho — Pablo Trapero
  • Dog Pound — Kim Chapiron
  • Easy Money — Daniel Espinosa
  • Four Lions — Christ Morris
  • The Four Times — Michaelangelo Frammartino
  • Heartbeats — Xavier Dolan
  • How I Ended This Summer — Alexei Popogrebsky
  • If I Want to Whistle, I'll Whistle — Florin Serban
  • Kawasaki's Rose — Jan Hrebejk
  • La Nostra Vita — Daniele Luchetti
  • London River — Rachio Bouchareb
  • The Man Next Door — Mariano Cohn & Gastón Duprat
  • The Man Who Will Come — Giorgio Diritti
  • Me Too — Alvaro Pastor & Antonia Naharro
  • My Brothers — Paul Fraser
  • Old Cats — Sebastian Silva & Pedro Peirano
  • Parade — Isao Yukisada
  • Puzzle — Natalia Smirnoff
  • Revolución — Rodrigo Pla
  • A Screaming Man — Mahamet-Saleh Haroun
  • Tender Son — Kornél Mundruczó
  • We Are What We Are — Jorge Michel Grau
New French Film:
  • Copacabana — Marc Fitoussi
  • Largo Winch — Jerome Salle
  • Leaving — Catherine Corsini
  • The Princess of Pontpensier — Bertrand Tavernier
  • Silent Voice — Lea Fehner
American Independents:
  • Cold Weather — Aaron Katz
  • The Happy Poet — Paul Gordon
  • A Horrible Way to Die — Adam Wingard
  • The New Year — Brett Haley
  • Tiny Furniture — Lena Dunham
  • The Wolf Knife — Laurel Nakadate
Greater Filmadelphia:
  • Café — Marc Erlbaum
  • The Best and the Brightest — Josh Shelov
  • Lebanon, PA — Ben Hickernell
  • OC87: The Obsessive Compulsive, Major Depression, Bipolar, Asperger's Movie — Bud Clayman, et al.
Documentary Showcase:
  • Boxing Gym — Frederick Wiseman
  • The Canal Street Madam — Cameron Yates
  • Do No Harm — Rebecca Schanberg
  • Garbo — Edmon Roch
  • Gerrymandering — Jeff Reichert
  • How to Fold a Flag — Michael Tucker & Petra Epperlein
  • Kings of Pasty — Chris Hegedus & D.A. Pennebaker
  • Life 2.0 — Jason Spingarn-Koff
  • Louder Than a Bomb — Greg Jacobs & Jon Siskel
  • Make Believe — J. Clay Tweel
  • Marwencal — Jeff Malmberg
  • The Red Chapel — Mads Brûgger
  • Richard Garriot: Man on a Mission — Mike Woolf
  • Waste Land — Lucy Walker
  • The Woodmans — C. Scott Willis
Sight & Soundtrack:
  • A Buddy Story — Marc Erlbaum
  • Do It Again — Robert Patton-Spruill
  • LennonNYC — Michael Epstein
  • Sound of Noise — Ola Simonsson & Johannes Stjare Nilsson
The Graveyard Shift:
  • The Last Circus — Alex De La Iglesia
  • Machete Maidens Unleashed — Mark Hartley
  • Mandrill — Ernesto Diaz Espinoza
  • Mutant Girls Squad — Noburu Iguchi, et al.
  • Outcast — Colm McCarthy
  • Outrage — Takeshi Kitano
  • Red Hill — Patrick Hughes
  • Rubber — Quentin Dupieux
  • The Serbian Film — Srdjan Spasojevic
  • True Legend — Yuen Woo Ping
Cinema of Sex:
  • Leap Year — Michael Rowe
  • The Orgasm Diaries — Ashley Horner
  • Room in Rome — Julio Medem
  • Sex Magic — Jonathan Schell & Eric Liebman
Joe H
Posted 2011-01-08 20:08:34
looking for "if i want to wistle" playing in the phila area in january or february 2011.
Posted by Josh Middleton @ 9:02 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

JUST DO IT: Catfish directors to answer all your burning questions
POSTED: Thursday, September 23, 2010, 6:30 PM
We just got word that the directors of Catfish, that movie that's been kept such a secret that even Sam Adams' review is chock-full of spoilers, will be attending four Saturday screenings of their film at Ritz East and answering questions after the lights go up. Speaking of Sam, here's a clip from his review, which appears in today's paper:
Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman's documentary isn't exactly bombshell city, but there are enough hairpin turns in its narrative to make the surprises worth preserving. It starts innocently enough, with Schulman's brother Nev striking up an online relationship with a girl who admires his dance photography. But things get weird when her mother and sister move into the mix, and Nev's relationship with the latter grows romantic. Before long, he's involved in a passionate but largely virtual love affair, conducted by e-mail, IM and text as well as the occasional phone call. ... The movie itself is an invasion of privacy, as the constant sparring between the filmmakers and their increasingly reluctant subject reminds us.
Watch the (totally ambiguous, WTF) trailer below, and head to the Ritz this weekend to ask Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman what made them follow this social networking cautionary tale.
Screenings and directors Q&A, Sat., Sept. 25, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45 and 10 p.m., Ritz East, 125 S. Second St., landmarktheatres.com.
Posted by Carolyn Huckabay @ 6:30 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

INTERVIEW with CHARLIE DAY: "I threw Chase Utley a knuckleball that blew his mind."
POSTED: Friday, September 3, 2010, 7:00 PM
Filed Under: Interview | Movies | TV
Courtesy of Warner Bros.
Charlie Day as Dan in Going the Distance
The main goal of Going the Distance (in area theaters today) is to be anything but the typical romantic comedy: The lovelorn leads (Drew Barrymore and Justin Long), stuck in long distance relationship, speak in expletive-laced sentences rather than amorous cliche. Many thanks are due to Charlie Day, who plays Long's roommate Dan, and steals every scene he's in — whether it's giving heartfelt relationship advice while taking a dump or soundtracking Long and Barrymore's first tryst with "Take My Breath Away." But, of course Day is a scene-stealer; you've watched him do the exact same thing for six seasons as Charlie Kelly on It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia. We called up Day to chat about Going the Distance, the new season of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia (Thu., Sept. 16, FX, 10 p.m.) and why the ladies love Charlie Kelly. City Paper: I think a lot of romantic comedies live or die on the role you play in Going the Distance — this quirky best friend to the bland romantic lead. It can be the best part of the movie... Charlie Day: Or the worst. CP: Like Bruno Kirby in When Harry Met Sally... CD: I definitely wasn't thinking about being the next Bruno Kirby. I thought about the part the I was doing and just thought about doing the best that I could. But I also thought about making him real, and making him a guy you like so he wasn't just some stereotypical sidekick. I thought it was good that Jason Sudeikis was there too, so it was the two of us and not just about one guy who is always there to be the shoulder to cry on. CP: You're working with Jason Sudeikis again in your next movie, Horrible Bosses. CD: So far so good, obviously I haven't seen anything cut together but what we're shooting is certainly really, really funny. Boy, I hate to see how they mess that up. CP: Did you just fall in love with Sudeikis' Tom Selleck mustache? Was that it? You just couldn't get enough of it? CD: That was it. And I had him on the set of It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia this year this will be third Sudeikis-Day joint you can see. CP: As a Philadelphian and representative of our illustrious ilk, I do have to ask about the next season. Can you give me any hints? What can we expect? CD: There's a lot of good stuff, we've got some great guest stars: Dave Foley from Kids in the Hall, he comes on and he's super great; Tom Sizemore did a funny little thing. We did some really good episodes. Put it this way, Charlie and Dennis actually make it out of Philly for a little bit of an adventure. CP: You're leaving us?! CD: We're not leaving! We're just going on a little bit of a jaunt to Atlantic City and it makes a really great episode. CP: If there's one place that you could make look worse than Philadelphia, it's Atlantic City. Did you guys go there? CD: We actually shot it in Philly, in the Harrahs Casino in Port Charles [Port Charles is where General Hospital is set, so we think he meant Chester]. CP: Did you get to gamble? CD: I did not, I did a lot of acting. It was a long day. Chase Utley and Ryan Howard were in that episode, and they're really funny. CP: I've read that you were a baseball player in college. How strong was your desire to just play catch with them all day? CD: We did get to. In the scene, Dennis has a catch with Chase Utley and I asked if I could get in it for a sec and I threw him a knuckleball that blew his mind. CP: So we should we expect you batting in Howard's spot soon? CD: I could come in for a few relief innings but I don't think I could get a bat on the ball. CP: One of the similarities you see between your Going the Distance character and Charlie Kelly is this certain sweetness. It's kind of like you've both been dropped on your heads a couple times but it only served to make you a nicer guy. What makes you gravitate toward these sweet-dunce roles? CD: It's definitely like that in Horrible Bosses too. The simple answer is that's part of the reason I got cast in that role. But also the sweetness comes out to make him real, and not a total cartoon character. You have to believe in the person as a real person and what helps me as a performer is knowing what the character is in love with or cares about. With Charlie Kelly, it's the Waitress and with Dan it was Garrett [Justin Long]. CP: The male bonding you get in this movie is so much more than in most romantic comedies, and director Nanette Burstein lingers on you more than she has to. CD: Yeah, I think that was in an effort to not be a totally stereotypical rom-com. And also in an effort to make it funny for both the girls and guys, and it's not just following that love story for the entire time. You're flushing out the world so they're not just these cartoon characters that you go for a joke or two but you get to live their world for a minute or two and see that, for lack of a better term, they're real people. CP: I've met an inordinate amount of girls who say they would sleep with Charlie Kelly. Not you, not Charlie Day. CD: I think it's a fine line. CP: You say it's a fine line. But I don't think you're sleeping in your long underwear with Danny DeVito every night. CD: I've noticed a change in the last couple of years. I don't know whether it's sympathy or there's just a sheer animal attraction to a man in long johns.
Posted by Molly Eichel @ 7:00 PM  Permalink | Post a comment

HAIKU CONTEST: Win tickets to the Louis CK movie! [NSFW]
POSTED: Thursday, September 2, 2010, 7:00 PM
Filed Under: Comedy | Movies | Stand-up screening
from louisck.com
Yesterday, stand-up comedian/FX TV star Louis CK was drunk tweeting from an airplane. "people think that sarah Paalin is really mean but she has a family of chinese poor people living in her cunt hole. sorry," he said. "@SarahPalinUSA kudos to your dirty hole, you fucking jackoff cunt-face jazzy wondergirl." he added. Anyway, yes, let's give away some tickets to Hilarious starring Louis CK. The screening is Wednesday, Sept. 8, 7:30 p.m. at Prince Music Theater, 1412 Chestnut St., 215-569-9700, princemusictheater.org. THE CONTEST: In the comments below, write a haiku to or about Sarah Palin. I've got five pairs of tickets to give away. Lots of chances to win. We'll accept entries all weekend long. Have fun out there.
kyle crayton
Posted 2010-09-02 14:04:18
Sarah Palin, smiles. looks like a deer in headlights.smiles like a bobblehead. weeble wobble.
Shayne
Posted 2010-09-02 14:49:08
An anagram for
Sarah Palin's name could be
"attention whore." wait...
Crane Kick
Posted 2010-09-02 14:50:45
You are a moron.
You're accent is annoying.
I would still hit it.
Joseph Rose
Posted 2010-09-02 14:56:30
I love you Louis,
Sarah said with a smile.
I love that shiny red dome.
Ben
Posted 2010-09-02 15:26:59
I'm from Wasilla,
in middle America!
It's right near Russia.
James
Posted 2010-09-02 16:56:39
MILF,Politician,Dope,
our next President?
one can only HOPE....NOT.
GARY LIME
Posted 2010-09-03 12:16:16
Abstinence only?
Your knocked up kid is single
Some Sex Ed. plan, huh?
Phil Jackson
Posted 2010-09-03 14:48:24
Sarah, you hairy cunt,
I can only pray,
you are not in the presidential hunt....unless it's a moose hunt
Sam Calhoun
Posted 2010-09-03 16:23:45
I'm from Wasilla
You are my embarrasment
Sarah Palin sucks
MJM
Posted 2010-09-03 19:48:09
beware of palin  
dangerous as ignorant 
dumb teabagging slut
CPJ
Posted 2010-09-04 17:42:12
How oh how I ask,
Did a boob get such limelight?
Stop the attention!
CD
Posted 2010-09-04 21:23:43
THE BLUE MOON CHANTS A LULLABYE TO SARAH PALIN BUTTERFLY NOW GONE
Sandra
Posted 2010-09-05 12:42:14
Sad, silly Sarah
You are the worst example
of us four eyed girls
Jay Gambit
Posted 2010-09-05 17:59:21
To Sarah Palin:
Nobody likes you. No one.
Shut your whore mouth now.
Tashamaria Tromer
Posted 2010-09-06 09:52:50
Sarah, capture your
wonderfulness (in) 17 
syllables? Silence.
Al
Posted 2010-09-06 10:27:08
When you winked at us
It made my vagina hurt.
Less sense than an egg.
Posted by Patrick Rapa @ 7:00 PM  Permalink | Post a comment
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Featuring everything from event roundups to concert reviews and sex talk, City Paper's Critical Mass is a space for off-the-wall coverage of Philly's A&E scene.

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