BuzzSugar

Fantastic Mr. Fox: Lives Up to Its Title

BuzzSugar — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:30:00 -0800

For the past five years, Wes Anderson's wide fan base has been waiting for his first fully animated film. Would his adaption of Roald Dahl's children's book, Fantastic Mr. Fox appease the same crowd that holds Bottle Rocket and The Royal Tenenbaums near and dear to their hearts? The answer is an emphatic yes, and the best news is that you don't even have to enjoy Anderson's other work to fall in love with this film.

The story follows the wily Mr. Fox, a professional robber turned family man (er, fox) who just isn't satisfied with his quiet life working as a newspaper columnist. Even a move to prime real estate isn't enough to satiate his appetite for a little trouble making, and Mr. Fox (or "Foxy" as his friends call him) decides to take on the biggest adventure of his life. That's just the tip of the iceberg though, so read more.

Mr. Fox isn't your average wild animal; in fact he's just the opposite. He lives a civilized life with his wife Felicity (Meryl Streep) and 12-year-old son, Ash, making an honest living as a newspaper columnist. Like a kid who can't sit still, Mr. Fox has trouble curbing his desires to rebel and go back to his life stealing squab and running into trouble. Against his wife's wishes, Mr. Fox convinces his dim-witted but trusty sidekick Kylie (Wally Wolodarski) to take on one last hurrah. The crime? Ripping off the three biggest (and meanest) farmers around - Boggis, Bunce and Bean. When Mr. Fox starts an all-out war, he is forced to join forces with his family, friends, and neighbors - and that's where the fun begins.

The film's brilliance lies in the fact that Fantastic Mr. Fox is a movie for grown-ups disguised as a kiddie flick. Even with Anderson's name stamped all over it, there's no denying the furry animals dressed as humans. The animation makes the plot play out like a story book come to life; we're taken deep into the fox hole and beyond in a world that looks like a dollhouse made for fuzzy creatures. Kids will love the adventure and the colors, but the witty dialogue and quirky characters are made for the grown-ups.

The movie features a crew of lovable characters who deliver hilarious one-liners when they aren't breaking into impromptu dances. There's nothing new about a movie featuring animals acting like humans, but the actors make the movie the gem that it is. Jason Schwartzman playing a crabby 12-year-old but using his regular deep voice is genius. Clooney and Bill Murray (as badger, Mr. Fox's lawyer) bantering back and forth but replacing swears with the word "cuss" never gets old (as in "This place is a cluster cuss" and "What the cuss is wrong with you?").

Rare is the animated film with this much wit, cleverness, and chemistry between characters, but Fantastic Mr. Fox hits it right on the head. Score one more for Mr. Anderson.

(Don't forget that if you see a movie that you'd like to review, you can post your write-up in the Movie Review Group in Community - I may even post it here on the site!)

Movie Preview: The Limits of Control

BuzzSugar — Sun, 03 May 2009 07:30:54 -0700

Director Jim Jarmusch comes from a fruitful era of independent film in the '80s, when directors including Spike Lee, Steven Soderbergh and Gus Van Sant were young filmmakers just beginning to make their mark in cinema. Where the others have gone on to enjoy some variation of mainstream success, Jarmusch has continued on with business as usual, making art-house films that often attract a cult following.

His newest film, The Limits of Control, is out now in limited release and stars Tilda Swinton, Isaach De Bankolé, Gael García Bernal, and Bill Murray. It's not getting the greatest reviews, but even when Jarmusch goes wrong, it's wrong in an interesting way. This film is described as essentially plot-less and simply follows a lone hit man. Visually, it looks gorgeous. To take a look for yourself, read more.

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Bill Murray Joins Movie About Funeral-Staging

BuzzSugar — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 11:31:49 -0800

The premise for this movie is actually kind of funny (I mean, if you ignore the emotional toll this would take on your loved ones): In 1938 a Tennessee recluse named Felix "Bush" Breazeale staged his own funeral so he could be around to enjoy it.

Now the story will be adapted for the big screen, with Bill Murray and Lucas Black signed on to play partners at the funeral home. Robert Duvall and Sissy Spacek are also starring in the film which has the title Get Low. But here's the super weird part: Variety claims the movie will be a "period dramatic thriller." A thriller? Really? I figured this would have more of a Waking Ned Devine-esque feel to it - dark and funny with adorable elderly guys.

It's pretty morbid stuff but then again, many people wonder what their funerals will be like. . . Right? Maybe it's just me. Of course I would never stage the thing (can you imagine?!), but I'm very curious to see a movie about someone who actually did.

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Recast Ghostbusters and Win a Prize!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 15:29:52 -0700

Every other Wednesday on BuzzSugar, I post a Recast challenge, where I ask you to choose new actors for a classic TV show or movie. The reader who submits the best cast wins a BuzzSugar t-shirt!

For this recast I challenge, I wanted to revisit the '80's hit movie Ghostbusters - the first one - directed by Ivan Reitman (father of Juno director Jason Reitman) and starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Harold Ramis, Ernie Hudson, and Sigourney Weaver.

If you could cast the movie for a remake (and let's face it, it's kinda likely these days) who would you pick to fill Bill Murray's shoes as the wisecracking leader of the bunch? Which popular nerdy actor could play the geeky Dr. Egon Spengler? Then there's Dan Aykroyd's Dr. Raymond Stantz (or, as his fellow 'busters call him, Ray), who is passionate but bumbling. Who would you cast as the fourth and most even-tempered of the gang, Winston Zeddmore, originally played by Ernie Hudson? And finally, there's the love interest: the beautiful and urbane Dana Barrett played by the great Ms. Weaver.

Leave your entry in the comment section below, and I'll pick one winner to feature Tuesday, April 15, complete with a "new" cast photo.

To see a list of characters to recast and a photo of the BuzzSugar t-shirt, read more

Characters to Recast:
Dr. Peter Venkman (Bill Murray)
Dr. Raymond Stantz (Dan Aykroyd)
Dr. Egon Spengler (Harold Ramis)
Winston Zeddmore (Ernie Hudson)
Dana Barrett (Sigourney Weaver)

The BuzzSugar t-shirt

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Who You Gonna Call? Ghostbusters Video Game

BuzzSugar — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 12:26:30 -0800

Motivated by the success of other classic movies-turned-video games (Scarface, The Godfather), Sony has inked a deal to make the campy Ghostbusters franchise into a video game. What's more, not only will all four of the main movie guys (Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis) and some of the supporting actors (William Atherton, Annie Potts) be lending their voices and likeness to the game, but Akroyd and Ramis will also be writing a story for it.

Aykroyd and Ramis' story will take place in the early '90s, after Ghostbusters II, "during a new ghoul invasion of New York City."

What other beloved '80s movies would make good video games? Personally, I'd love to see one for Adventures in Babysitting. What about you?

Bill Murray Enters the City of Ember

BuzzSugar — Mon, 11 Jun 2007 15:35:40 -0700

What the Deal Is:
One of my favorite comedic actors ever, Bill Murray will star in an adaptation of the young adult novel The City of Ember.

Why This Might Be Awesome:
The film adaptation is being done by Caroline Thompson who co-wrote the scripts for Edward Scissorhands and The Nightmare Before Christmas. Plus, the plot description is as follows:

The script [is] about an insular, dark place where the only light comes from street lamps. As the power source begins to fail, two teenagers search for clues that will unlock ancient mysteries about the city but they are thwarted by a corrupt mayor.

Why I'm Ever-So-Slightly Afraid:
Murray's last few projects (Garfield: A Tale of Two Kitties, Broken Flowers) have left much (and I mean much) to be desired. Here's hoping his City of Ember is cooler and more successful.

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TV Tonight: Letterman's 25th Anniversary

BuzzSugar — Thu, 01 Feb 2007 14:55:00 -0800

David Letterman celebrates 25 years in late-night television tonight, and whether you love the man or loathe him, you have to admit he's had some pretty great moments over the years. Quite a few have involved Bill Murray, who was Letterman's first guest on his old NBC show in 1982 and quickly became a regular, getting heckled by a rowdy production assistant in the Groundhog Day era and talking about moisturizer pre-Ghostbusters II.

Murray will be back tonight to help Letterman mark his silver anniversary. To watch their first interview, in which a slightly mulletted Murray visits what looks like Letterman's living room, read more

Photo courtesy of CBS

What to TiVo: Monday

BuzzSugar — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 23:50:49 -0800

ABC is new with Dancing With the Stars and Castle
CBS is new with How I Met Your Mother, Accidentally on Purpose, Two and a Half Men, The Big Bang Theory, and CSI: Miami
FOX is new with House and Lie to Me
NBC is new with Heroes and Trauma
The CW is new with One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl
ABC Family is new with Lincoln Heights
E! has Keeping Up With the Kardashians and is new with The Soup Presents: The Best Talk Show Moments
Bravo is new with Million Dollar Listing
Comedy Central is new with The Daily Show With Jon Stewart and The Colbert Report
FX has 13 Going on 30
TLC is new with Jon & Kate Plus 8
VH1 is new with For the Love of Ray Jay 2
MTV is new with World's Strictest Parents
Late-night highlights include Ellen DeGeneres, Eva Longoria Parker, Kobe Bryant and Carlos Santana on Lopez Tonight on TBS; Jamie Foxx and Toby Keith on a repeat of Jimmy Kimmel Live on ABC; Bill Murray and Gabourey Sidibe on The Late Show With David Letterman on CBS; Carla Gugino on The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson on CBS; Howie Mandel and Diablo Cody on The Jay Leno Show on NBC; Kelsey Grammer and David Gray on The Tonight Show With Conan O'Brien on NBC; Laurence Fishburne on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on NBC; and Emmanuelle Chriqui on Last Call With Carson Daly on NBC

Zombieland: The Feel-Good Zombie Flick of the Year

TresSugar — Fri, 02 Oct 2009 11:30:23 -0700

A Note From Buzz: With so many new movies this week, my friend Très was nice enough to apply her scary-movie expertise to review the box office's newest zombie flick.

In the United States of Zombieland, zombies outnumber people. A mad-cow tainted burger tipped the population in favor of the drooling, limping, and grunting set, and now zombies roam a crashed-car littered, empty-minimall-blighted zombiescape.

Columbus (Adventureland's Jesse Eisenberg), the virginal antihero of horror-comedy Zombieland, has learned to survive this zombie apocalypse by keeping a list of necessary survival skills. Rule #1? Cardio. If you don't want zombies gnawing on you like an hors d'oeuvre, you'd better be fast and limber. In addition, beware of bathrooms, practice the "double tap" (make sure your zombie's actually dead after you kill him), and don't be a hero. (Regarding this last rule - some rules were made to be broken.)

When Columbus meets up with Tallahassee (Woody Harrelson), a swaggering cowboy type with a penchant for tank-like cars, shotguns, and Twinkies, and the spitfire sister duo of Wichita (Emma Stone) and Arkansas (Little Miss Sunshine's Abigail Breslin), Zombieland takes off like a scary/fun amusement park ride. To find out what happens on this motley crew's wild road trip from hell, read more

There's something funny about zombies and the zombie genre, and in his first feature film, director Ruben Fleischer plays their comic possibilities to the hilt. Zombies don't have what you'd call well-rounded personalities; they're pretty predictable. They have bad attitudes, come out of nowhere, grunt, and see all nonzombies as food to feast on. They're the perfect foil (or straight men, even) to a cast of characters with more than enough personality to make up for the zombies' boorish one dimensionality.

Take nebbishy Columbus. The world changed for him, he tells us in an early voice-over, when a pretty neighbor he calls #406, asks to stay over because a crazed homeless man tries to bite her. Sadly, although she falls asleep on Columbus's shoulder, she wakes up as a rabid zombie and begins chasing him around his apartment, forcing him to repeatedly knock her over the head with a toilet lid. "The first time I let a girl in my life," deadpans Columbus, "and she tries to eat me."

This kind of witty dialogue abounds in Zombieland, and although fans of gore and violence against zombies will be more than satisfied (Tallahassee's scenes of zombie-killing, especially, have a Tarantinoesque choreography to them), it's really the mismatched goofball characters and how they bond and evolve, surprisingly, that hold the film together. A hilarious cameo from Bill Murray in the Beverly Hills sequence of Zombieland, also, is practically worth the price of admission.

Harrelson chews the scenery as Tallahassee, but as we find out, part of the reason he's hell-bent on killing zombies is because they took away his baby boy. As for the sisters, tough-girl Wichita just wants to take care of her little sister Arkansas (who, as a good shot, doesn't seem to need much help), but a beautiful girl has needs, too, and before long she develops feelings for Columbus. Will he or won't he finally be able to live out his nerd-boy fantasy of brushing the hair over a girl's ear?

You probably know the answer to that question, but just because Zombieland adheres to certain formulas doesn't mean that it doesn't revive them in witty ways. Although the zombie-killing gore fest may not be for everyone, Zombieland's amazing visuals, charming characters, and witty dialogue may leave a goofy grin on your face as you leave the theater.

Photos courtesy of Sony Pictures

Movie Preview: The Fantastic Mr. Fox

BuzzSugar — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 14:30:31 -0700

Some of my favorite directors are just rollin' out the trailers today - first the Coen brothers with A Serious Man, now Wes Anderson with his forthcoming project The Fantastic Mr. Fox. This animated film is based on the Roald Dahl book of the same name and follows a family of foxes and their animal associates as they struggle against the farmers who want to dig out their neighborhood.

I'm not sure whether the first word to describe this trailer should be "bizarre" or "hilarious" - but either way, I know I want to see this movie. George Clooney as Mr. Fox and Bill Murray as the "demolitions expert" badger seem like particularly inspired bits of casting, and Meryl Streep as Mrs. Fox isn't far behind. The trailer really won me over about halfway through, when the foxes start doing things like making bandit masks out of spare tube socks and drugging beagles with blueberries. Not unlike Where the Wild Things Are, it looks like a cross between a children's classic and a film hipsters will adore.

The movie - which Anderson co-wrote with The Squid and the Whale's Noah Baumbach - will be opening the London Film Festival in October and then hitting US theaters on Nov. 13. To check out the trailer, just read more.