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New York, I Love You: A Jigsaw Puzzle That Doesn't Quite Fit

BuzzSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 07:30:00 -0700

As a city with so much personality and penchant for possibility, it's no surprise that the follow-up to Paris, Je t'aime heads to New York. New York, I Love You is a tale of the connections and personal missteps that occur every single day in the city that never sleeps. It plays out like a movie version of a song mash-up: some story lines are linear and independent of the rest while other characters wander in and out of each other's lives. Throw an all-star cast in there, and you could possibly have a recipe for perfection.

Unfortunately, the ingredients don't blend together as well as I had hoped, and instead we're left with an engaging but bland look at a handful of trials and tribulations in relationships. To see what I mean, just read more.

Made up of a series of short films, New York, I Love You is an homage to the city as well as the residents who hold it near and dear to their hearts. The "anything can happen" theme is alive and well, as strangers become acquaintances and friends, putting so much emphasis on each and every interaction that we take part in on a regular basis.

You meet a few characters that represent New York well enough; Bradley Cooper is the guy who's constantly jumping into a cab the same time as someone else, Orlando Bloom is the struggling musician who turns to Central Park for inspiration, Hayden Christensen is the pick-pocket who's as sexy as he is dangerous. But sometimes it feels just a little too forced; like the film is primarily concerned with proving that New York is a melting pot. Rather than seeing a few love stories shine through stereotypes, I was more distracted by the fake accents.

As with Paris Je t'aime, some of the stories shine brighter than others. Natalie Portman directs a sweet piece about a relationship between a father and daughter; Olivia Thirlby and Anton Yelchin are refreshing as a younger pair who makes the prom a night to remember. The lighter films are breaths of fresh air amongst others that are trying too hard to be hip and stylized.

The ensemble cast certainly gives the movie a boost; even when it's not provoking the deepest of emotions, the film always had my attention. There are solid performances all-around, particularly from Chloris Leachman and Eli Wallach as an aging couple who are still bickering when they aren't helping each other cross the street. It is the most hopeful of the scenarios, and by far the sweetest and most touching.

The film provides plenty of the standard money shots of Manhattan: a typical day in Grand Central Station in fast forward, subway rides, hours of people watching in a coffee shop. The encounters feel authentic and realistic, but the failure lies in the inability to make us feel something on a deeper level. Sometimes you can relate to the characters, and sometimes you feel sorry for them, but it doesn't squeeze your heart nearly enough - and with a title like New York, I Love You, this a disappointment.

What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday

BuzzSugar — Tue, 28 Apr 2009 07:30:17 -0700

All of the new DVD releases hit stores (and Netflix) on Tuesdays. So each week in What to Netflix: New DVD Tuesday, I sort through the best of the batch and tell you what to add to your queue. In addition to my selections below, you can also catch Jean-Claude Van Damme in JCVD on DVD.

Nothing But the Truth
I didn't get to see this in the theaters, so I'm curious to check out this political thriller starring Kate Beckinsale, Matt Dillon, Angela Bassett, Vera Farmiga, David Schwimmer, and Alan Alda.

The movie's plot is described as "ripped from the headlines" and centers on a journalist (Beckinsale) who outs an acquaintance of hers as a CIA agent. Things get interesting when the government's prosecutor (Dillon) sends the journalist to jail for contempt. The movie was written and directed by Rod Lurie, the guy behind one of my favorite political movies, The Contender.

Special features include commentary from the director, deleted scenes, and a making-of featurette.

76%

Read about three more movies out this week when you read more.

Bride Wars
Hey, speaking of wedding tips we can learn from movies: Don't . . . destroy a life long friendship over a conflict in wedding scheduling! Which is to say, Bride Wars is out on DVD.

The movie stars Anne Hathaway and Kate Hudson as best friends who spend their lives dreaming of weddings together, and part of that dream is getting married at the Plaza Hotel. After both women get engaged, though, things get nasty when the Plaza books both their weddings on the same day. Instead of graciously working it out as two intelligent, grown women might do, the brides-to-be turn against each other, with each trying to sabotage the other's wedding. Needless to say, their friendship suffers.

Special features include three deleted scenes, including an alternate opening, and a featurette titled - wait for it - "The Perfect White Dress."

12%

What Doesn't Kill You
Here's another movie I am excited to bring home to watch. Netflix has a good description of the plot: "Partners in crime Paulie (Ethan Hawke) and Brian (Mark Ruffalo) find themselves at odds after years of pulling dangerous jobs, surviving turf wars and evading a determined detective (Donnie Wahlberg) in this gritty crime drama set in South Boston. The childhood buddies have gone through the wringer together, but when Brian's relationship with his wife (Amanda Peet) begins to fall apart, their loyal friendship is tested."

The New York Times called it a "a no-nonsense, few-frills crime drama about two losers hustling their way into an early grave" that "says a little something about what it means to look at the American dream from the bottom up." Sounds awesome.

Special features include commentary with writer/director Brian Goodman and writer Donnie Wahlberg; deleted and alternate scenes; and "Makes You Stronger: The Making Of What Doesn't Kill You."

68%

The Uninvited
Elizabeth Banks had a good year in '08 and has been popping up in movies left and right well into '09. The Uninvited was one of them, and it looks pretty darn scary.

Netflix's description of this remake of a Korean film is super-creepy: "Committed to a mental hospital after her mother's tragic death, teenager Anna (Emily Browning) discovers upon her release that her father (David Strathairn) plans to marry his deceased wife's former nurse, Rachael (Elizabeth Banks), a woman who may not have the best intentions. Foreboding warnings from her mother's ghost only cement Anna's suspicions." Yikes! I'm such a wimp about scary movies that I will definitely be recruiting people to watch this with me.

Special features include a behind-the-scenes featurette called "Unlocking the Uninvited," deleted scenes, and an alternate ending.

33%

2009 Sundance Spotlight: Brooklyn's Finest, The Informers, 500 Days of Summer

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 16:30:39 -0800

While I won't be heading down to the 2009 Sundance Film Festival this year, I will be sorting through the humongous pile of festival entries to share with you some of the films I think look most promising. From quirky documentaries to talented young filmmaker debuts to a potential runaway hit, Sundance is filled with entertainment possibilities. Here are today's selections:

Brooklyn's Finest
Directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day), Brooklyn's Finest just became this year's first sale at Sundance. Apparently "Senator Distribution nabbed North American rights . . . on Saturday night, 24 hours after its world premiere at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. . . Senator says it will release the film in the fourth quarter for awards consideration." According to Senator president Mark Urman, the company "went into aggressive pursuit right after Friday's screening." Wow! All of this spells good things for the cop drama which features a stellar cast (Richard Gere, Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, Wesley Snipes, Ellen Barkin). The plot is described as: "Three unconnected Brooklyn cops wind up at the same deadly location after enduring vastly different career paths." The guy responsible for the screenplay has a unique and intriguing story himself (you can read about it here). No clips available just yet, but now that it's been purchased I'm sure we'll hear and see much more about this film in the future.

Two more great-looking movies, with talented folks like Zooey Deschanel, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, and Mickey Rourke, if you read more.

The Informers
Well, the long-awaited movie adaptation of Bret Easton Ellis's collection of short stories is upon us. The movie, starring a whole lot of people from the '80s and early '90s (most notably Mickey Rourke, continuing his amazing career comeback) is about LA in the '80s in all its beautiful, indulgent, moral-decaying glory. The Informers also includes Kim Basinger, Winona Ryder, Billy Bob Thornton, Chris Isaak, and the late Brad Renfro (his final role). I have mixed feelings about this movie, but then again, any trailer that includes a song by A Flock of Seagulls deserves a chance in my book.

FYI: The trailer for The Informers below is not suitable for work due to some topless ladies. Proceed with caution:

500 Days of Summer
Oh, man. Could these two be cuter together? I think not. I was so excited when this casting news first came out and I'm even more thrilled that the movie's premiering at Sundance (to not-bad reviews so far) and has a release date (July 24) and now has a super cute teaser trailer (see below!). At first glance, the movie's description sounds like a little tale of unrequited love (boy loves girl, girl doesn't believe in love) but here's the part that got me really curious: "energized by dance numbers, split screens, and two dynamic performances from Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel." Dance numbers? Why not?! Check out the trailer below and for additional clips, click here.

Photos courtesy of Sundance

Recast Reality Bites and Win a Prize!

BuzzSugar — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 15:30:07 -0800

Every 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 week's recast challenge, let's tap into the angst of Generation X and find a new group of actors for Reality Bites, Ben Stiller's 1994 directorial debut. There's the pouty Lelaina, scruffball Troy, square Michael, promiscuous Gap employee Vickie and commitmentphobe Sammy. What new actors could dredge up some mid-1990s anguish for a new Reality Bites?

Leave your entry in the comment section below, and I'll pick one winner to feature Tuesday, December 4, 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:
Lelaina Pierce (Winona Ryder)
Troy Dyer (Ethan Hawke)
Vickie Miner (Janeane Garofalo)
Michael Grates (Ben Stiller)
Sammy Gray (Steve Zahn)

The BuzzSugar t-shirt

The Hottest State: Unoriginal, But Not Too Bad

BuzzSugar — Mon, 03 Sep 2007 15:30:00 -0700

I should admit that I assumed The Hottest State, a movie based on Ethan Hawke's first semi-autobiographical novel, would be pretentious. Thus, keeping that in mind, I found the movie to be better than expected. I daresay I almost enjoyed it.

Just almost, though. For having nothing new or original to present to us, the movie is way too long at 117 minutes - and it feels much longer than that. The actors in the lead roles (Mark Webber playing William and Catalina Sandino Moreno as Sarah) do their damndest to keep us interested, but that's a hugely tall order. Few actors can handle carrying an entire movie, and as engrossing as they are - Moreno most of all - it's too much responsibility for these two.

It might have been helpful if the script were slightly more interesting. Boy meets girl, boy loves girl, girl breaks up with boy. Boy indulges in whiny self-destruction and seeks out his father (with whom he has Major Issues) to, I guess, unearth some additional pain while he's already riding the Agony Train. Hawke, too old and gross to play William (who he undoubtedly molded in his own image back in 1996) shows up as William's elusive Texan dad who tells his son to "never stray too far from Texas in your heart." Keep that in mind as you read more

The movie is overflowing with little gems like those - trite, tired lines rehashed for a hipster generation. More often than not these sentiments are quickly undercut by another hipster's cynical retort, showing that Hawke (did I mention he adapted the story for film and directed it, too?) puts stock in these poeticized cliches while at the same time fancying himself too cool for them.

Here are the best things about the movie: the music, Catalina Sandino Moreno, and Laura Linney, who makes dazzling appearances as William's mother. If nothing else, Hawke's great with music and his indie-heavy soundtrack is truly superb. Moreno (Maria Full of Grace) is simply mesmerizing onscreen - sensual, confident, spiritual. The moments that focus on William alone are boring in comparison. And Linney, as always, waltzes into a movie bursting with wisdom, human fallibility and grace.

Like getting Linney to be in his movie, Hawke did some things very well with The Hottest State. It is pretentious, no doubt about that. But there are bits of truthfulness in there, too. You just have to sit through all the posturing and tired dialogue to get to them.

Photos courtesy of THINKFilm

Movie Preview: The Hottest State

BuzzSugar — Thu, 02 Aug 2007 09:00:00 -0700

"I don't seem to have the first idea about how men are supposed to behave. There's something wrong with me. What do you think it is?" muses William Harding (Mark Webber), the young man experiencing what looks to be a kind of Gen-X suspended adolescence in The Hottest State. Based on his first novel, The Hottest State is Ethan Hawke's latest project which he adapted for screen, directed and also stars in. From the trailer it seems to have quite a dose of the angst and self-deprecating humor one might expect from Hawke.

William is an actor from Texas who journeys to New York City in search of a career. There, of course, he falls for a singer/songwriter and appears to then score with another woman after the singer crushes his heart. Maria Full of Grace's Catalina Sandino Moreno, Michelle Williams and Laura Linney also star. To check out the trailer before the movie opens August 24, read more

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Link Time! 7/3

BuzzSugar — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 14:32:56 -0700

Want to see what those Kwik-E-Mart 7-11s look like? YumSugar's got the pictures of The Simpsons Movie stunt.
The Movie Blog has the scoop on Ethan Hawke's movie Daybreakers in which he plays a vampire researcher (a vampire by nature and a researcher by trade, apparently), and which he describes as "low art."
I'm echoing BestWeekEver's sentiments on Maria Menounous' short film.
I Guess I'm Floating finds the new Art Brut video too weird to post.
The TV Addict really doesn't want Nathan Fillion to join "Desperate Housewives."
Popwatch is pleading with readers to define the word "geek" as it is understood in this day and age.
Cool! Biodegradable guitar picks will make an appearance at Live Earth, says Idolator.
Give Me My Remote has the scoop on Kylie Minogue's upcoming guest appearance on "Doctor Who"
The Film Experience asks you to complete this sentence: Daniel Craig is to 2007 as ______ is to ______.
Stereogum gets a sneak peek at five new REM tunes from a Dublin show.
After watching Isaiah Washington on "Larry King Live," Tube Talk wonders if ABC might owe the actor an apology.

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Buzz News Roundup, 5/23

BuzzSugar — Wed, 23 May 2007 14:46:40 -0700

VarietyAsiaOnline is reporting from Cannes that "Lost"'s Naveen Andrews and Parminder Nagra from "ER" and Bend it Like Beckham will star together in Fallen Hero, a movie about an Indian soldier.
NME has the rundown of the first Smashing Pumpkins show since 2000.
Reuters brings us news that Mike Meyers will star in the remake of the 1947 Danny Kaye film The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.
USA Today has the story of the guys who wrote that cheeseball "Idol" single.
Andrea Bowen, better known as Julie on "Desperate Housewives," is starring in a Lifetime Original Movie about a teen girl with HIV, writes the Futon Critic.
Ethan Hawke's next film Hottest State already has an awesome soundtrack, with songs by Norah Jones, Feist and Bright Eyes, among others, reports Billboard.
Bob Barker's final episode of "The Price is Right" will air June 15, both during the day and in prime time, Zap2it reports.
Variety says indie films are doing better than ever at the box office.
Hugh Laurie is now a member of the Order of the British Empire, the Associated Press reports.

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What to Netflix: Valentine's Day Edition, Newfound Love

BuzzSugar — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 14:38:27 -0800

The theme for today's Valentine's Day Playlist is "newfound love," which got me thinking about movies that truly capture that mushy, fluttery feeling of brand-new love. In my opinion, no movie addresses this theme better than Before Sunrise.

Ethan Hawke plays Jesse, an American backpacker traveling in Europe. He befriends a fellow traveler, the lovely Celine (Julie Delpy), on a train bound for Vienna, and they spend the last 14 hours of his vacation together. Essentially just two hours of conversation - every minute of them compelling - the film follows their wanderings throughout the night as they delve into each other's histories, beliefs, and musings on relationships. The fleeting nature of their time together - Jesse is leaving Europe in the morning - causes them to be carefree, blatantly honest, and vulnerable, making you wish every love affair could start that way.