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TV Today: The Independent Spirit Awards, Twice
Can't wait till the Oscars for your awards fix this weekend? Well today, you can get a quirky take on the red carpet and awards show fun with Film Independent's Spirit Awards live at 5 p.m. Eastern/2 p.m.
Are You More Likely to Watch an Indie Film On-Demand?
Those of you with a cable on-demand service might notice an influx of independent movies in your menu options. That's because the folks behind the distribution of these movies are thinking of new ways to get them to folks beyond those in the few cities that release them theatrically.
The New York Times reports that video-on-demand services "are beginning to transform the independent film market."
Rachel Getting Married Leads 2009 Independent Spirit Noms
After all the acclaim heaped on Rachel Getting Married, the family drama starring Anne Hathaway, it makes sense that the movie would lead (along with two other films that also received six nominations each: Sundance favorites Ballast and Frozen River) the year's batch of nominations for the Independent Spirit Awards.
Other titles in the Best Feature category include the heartbreaking Wendy and Lucy, starring Michelle Williams, and the Mickey Rourke drama The Wrestler. Woody Allen's Vicky Cristina Barcelona is getting some love, with acting nominations for Javier Bardem and Penélope Cruz and a Best Screenplay nomination for Allen.
Sundance Review: Henry Poole Is Here
Note: I posted this review soon after I saw this movie at Sundance, and today it's out in theaters, so I thought I'd share my thoughts again. It has some flaws, but overall I really like this movie.
Henry Poole Is Here was one of the first non-documentary feature films to be snatched up by a studio at this year's Sundance, and I can easily see why.
An Interview With American Teen Director Nanette Burstein
When I saw the documentary American Teen at Sundance this year, I was totally wowed, and I knew I was watching something special. It's truly one of the most insightful documentaries on American life to come out in years. The film is in select theaters now, and I highly recommend you check it out.
Summer Reading: Is Independent Film Dying?
One of the more interesting entertainment-related stories I came across this past week is a Salon "Beyond the Multiplex" column about a subject near and dear to my heart: independent film. In the story, writer Andrew O'Hehir looks at the signs that indie films — so hot just a few years ago — are undergoing a pretty serious slide at the box office. Among the evidence:
- Several "independent" divisions of major studios are slashing their workforce or shutting their doors.
- Though Juno was a success last year, none of this year's indie films have broken through in a big way at the box office.
- The "digital revolution" has led to more films being produced than the market can hold, and many of them aren't great quality.
- Despite all that, more people than ever are saying they'd rather see independent films than studio fare.
Movie Preview: Diminished Capacity
Another day, another trailer for a movie from this year's Sundance Film Festival. Today's features Matthew Broderick and Alan Alda as an uncle-nephew duo in Diminished Capacity. The plot is this: "A man (Broderick) suffering from memory [trouble] takes a trip to a memorabilia expo with his Alzheimer's-impaired relative (Alda) and his high school flame (Virginia Madsen), where the trio plans to.
Tribeca Review: Lioness
I was compelled to see the documentary Lioness at the Tribeca Film Festival because the basis is so intriguing. In the press notes for the film, this is the description: "Despite written policy banning women from direct ground combat, military commanders have been using women in direct ground warfare as an essential part of their operations since 2003. Though official policy forbids this operation and publicly denies its existence, this initiative and company of women have a name: they are called Team Lioness.
Tribeca Review: Gotta Dance
OK, that's it. I think I'm tapped out on the ridiculously heartwarming documentaries about elderly folks doing things like singing Coldplay songs or learning hip-hop to perform during basketball games. It's not that I'm sick of them, it's that they reduce me to an overemotional puddle on the floor.
Tribeca Review: Savage Grace
As is the case with many movies, you can kinda tell how you'll feel about Savage Grace from how you feel watching the trailer. For me, I thought the trailer was tense, dark and disturbing. Julianne Moore looked powerfully off-kilter, exhibiting that magnificent control she utilizes with every role she takes on, but ultimately the trailer left me with a bleakly ominous feeling.
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