Archive for the ‘Music & Musicals’ Category
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Awards, Fandom, Newsstand, Oscar Watch, Stars in Rewind
If you’ve been paying attention to the bold new changes the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences will be implementing for the 82nd annual Academy Awards held today, you know that director-slash-our fave “So You Think You Can Dance” judge, Adam Shankman, is attempting to revitalize the telecast along with show co-producer Bill Mechanic. How exactly will they freshen up a traditionally super-serious awards show – and draw in those elusive viewers who don’t traditionally watch the Oscars? Why, with the power of dance!
Of course, the Oscars will still (mostly) be about honoring some of the best cinematic achievements of the year (and seeing which A-listers dazzle and disappoint on the red carpet, naturally). But this year it shall also be about tweens watching for the likes of Miley Cyrus, Channing Tatum, and Zac Efron, all of whom have been in films Shankman either directed or produced and have prior dancing experience, leading us to wonder if they’ll bust a move or two themselves during the show. Dance fans will get an extra treat as various former SYTYCDers are set to appear along with Step Up 3 director Jon Chu’s dance group The LXD, or The League of Extraordinary Dancers. (Watch this teaser of robotics expert Madd Chadd in his undies and spray painted like an Oscar statuette for a taste of what the LXD has planned.)
If you only know Shankman through the films he directed (The Wedding Planner, A Walk to Remember, Bringing Down the House, The Pacifier, Cheaper By the Dozen 2, Hairspray, Bedtime Stories) or for his emotional television dance contest judging, get a feel for his dance sensibilities by revisiting five of his best works as a film choreographer. And make sure you come back after the show tonight and tell us what you thought of the Oscars’ dance-tastic telecast.
Continue reading Oscars Producer Adam Shankman’s Best Dance Moments
Filed under: Music & Musicals
I’ll always be a fan of music groups making movies. And it’s not just a love for wacky classics like Help!, Head and The Spencer Davis Group’s The Ghost Goes Gear. I saw Spice World in the theater twice, and continue to showcase it as a guilty pleasure. But not enough bands and artists follow in the Beatles’ tradition, despite how perfect the concept could have been given the rise of the music video director as auteur back in the ’90s. Why couldn’t Spike Jonze’s first film been a movie starring — as themselves — Weezer, Ween or The Beastie Boys?
Well, now I at least propose that OK Go should hit the big screen. The biggest thing on the internet yesterday was the band’s latest video, a Rube Goldberg-inspired spot for the song “This Too Shall Pass” that’s blowing minds all over the place. (I’ve embedded it after the jump, in case you somehow missed it.) To call it either ambitious or impressive would be an understatement. Those words couldn’t even describe the band’s prior web sensation, a video for “Here It Goes Again,” better known perhaps as ‘the treadmill video’ for it’s ingeniously choreographed stunt involving exercise machines. And this new spot makes that thing look as simple as “Star Wars Kid” as far as YouTube hits go.
Filed under: Comedy, Music & Musicals
The news first hit two years ago that comedy legend John Cleese was adapting his 1988 comedy, A Fish Called Wanda into a Broadway musical, and whether he was looking to cash in on some easy money or truly felt that the comedy classic was destined for a song and dance treatment, we’ll never know. But, what we do know is that whether we like it or not, the musical is going full steam ahead. Over at Chortle, the UK Comedy Guide, it was announced that Bill Bailey, a stand-up comedian and musician has signed on to help Cleese and his daughter write the music for the movie musical, and even though I’ll admit that a Wanda musical isn’t exactly at the top of my wish list (after all it isn’t easy to sing and stutter at the same time), it’s certainly a better proposition than a remake.
So in typical Cleesian fashion, the comedian announced that they would “…start to work on the songs for the show with Bill Bailey, who, among his many achievements, is an honorary member of the Society of Crematorium Organists. This musical is destined to be a hit amongst funeral directors,” and according to Bailey, the plan is to premiere the show in San Diego before moving on to Broadway and London’s The West End (also known as ‘the big time’). Considering the success of another ‘Python’s’ success on the Great White Way, you can’t blame Cleese for looking to get in on the action, and while money probably isn’t his only motivation, keep in mind, this is the same man who named his comedy tour How To Finance Your Divorce.
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Filed under: Music & Musicals, Fandom, Home Entertainment, Shelf Life
As much as I consider myself a 360 degree cinephile, musicals really aren’t my thing. Some of the ones I like are conventional classics (The Sound of Music) and some are left field groundbreakers (Hedwig and the Angry Inch), but generally speaking I don’t go out of my way to watch them, and don’t necessarily enjoy them enough to even go back and check out the ones I’ve missed. All of which is why I naturally leaped at the chance to cover The Music Man when it was released on Blu-ray earlier this month.
Warner Home Video has done a really amazing job over the last few years reissuing all different kinds of movies, but primary-color Technirama films like this one seem to shine more brightly than most, especially under their care, and this one is no exception. But is the film genuinely good, or just gloriously colorful? Two and a half hours after sitting down in front of my television, that remains the question to be answered in this week’s “Shelf Life.”
The Facts:
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Fandom, Home Entertainment, Trailers and Clips
Last month there were rumors of a mouthwatering collection of musical talent coming together to perform a cover of Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You” for the on-going effort in Haiti. Why should you movie fiendish Cinematical readers care?
It’s got a lot of cinematic talent inside, baby. Alongside Shane MacGowan, who has appeared in flicks and offered music to films like Grosse Pointe Blank, the participants include Chrissy Hynde (Michelle in Happy Feet), Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie, Mick Jones of The Clash (and Socrates in Hell W10), composer, screenwriter, everythingman Nick Cave (The Proposition), and *drumroll* Johnny Depp. This is my “We Are the World.” The talent in this cover was meant to go together, and I really dig Depp just chilling with the guitar as the rest of the folks belt out the lyrics.
Listening to the tune (which you can see after the jump), I can’t help but think of Wings of Desire and wish/wonder if we’ll ever get that sort of powerful Cave rock scene again — but this time with his voice battling the likes of Chrissy Hynde. Hmm… Maybe The Death of Bunny Munro?
Have yourself a great, gritty-voiced weekend, folks.
Continue reading Watch This: Johnny Depp, Nick Cave & More ‘Put a Spell on You’
Filed under: Drama, Music & Musicals, Deals
Although it’s faded from the memory, it has not disappeared: It’s been two and a half years since word hit that David Benioff was penning a Kurt Cobain biopic, and now the project is gaining some steam. THR’s Risky Business Blog reports that Oren Moverman, writer and director of the double Oscar-nominated The Messenger, is in talks to spruce up Benioff’s screenplay and then direct it.
The biopic is based partially on the Charles R. Cross’ Heavier Than Heaven: A Biography of Kurt Cobain, which Courtney Love had already optioned. That, of course, brings up the warning bells since she’s far from a beloved widow, and has had — no surprise — a crappy post-suicide relationship with Krist Novoselic and Dave Grohl. On the plus side, Benioff is said to have gone to Cobain’s old friends in Seattle and Aberdeen to help paint the proper picture of him.
Eh, maybe that’s not a huge plus. There’s definitely new promise with Moverman in the mix, and it seems that Universal wants to take this seriously, but that Love… and Kurt… It looks to be no Guitar Hero fluff, but the cynic in me imagines a future where Nirvana regains steam (like Queen a la Wayne’s World), but in a totally merchandise-ridden, Disney co-opt sort of way, where the ability to make Cobain sing Rick Springfield would be the least of the old Nirvana fan’s worries.
Filed under: Documentary, Music & Musicals, Sony, Remakes and Sequels
With the resurgence of development on Universal’s Kurt Cobain biopic, I’m back to pondering how many different ways such a film could go. Well, not this particular film, which is likely being confined to certain stipulations by executive producers Courtney Love and her lawyer, Howard Weitzman. But what if someone else, say Oliver Stone or Kurt & Courtney director Nick Broomfield, wanted to go in a more speculative, potentially anti-Courtney direction? Or, given that I’m Not There co-writer Oren Moverman is now set to helm the thing, I’m imagining something more experimental than Universal is really apt to go for. It all reminds me of the controversy of…
The Doors
Now, I’m a lover of Stone’s movie, but many fans of the band disagree with its portrayal of Jim Morrison and the rest, as well as it’s manipulation of facts and chronology. Actually, moreso than the fans, the surviving members of The Doors and others associated with Morrison still aren’t too happy with the 1991 film based on their lives. Many years ago I directly asked Ray Manzarek to quit bitching and make his own damn Doors movie (well, not in those words). The keyboardist’s response was that he’s more interested in making some other film he’d scripted. The result of that was clearly 2000’s Love Her Madly (based on a story by Morrison), which apparently wasn’t worth the effort.
Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Music & Musicals, Romance, Scenes We Love
Given my first choice of movies, I’ll almost always opt for something with scares, bangs, or giggles — but here’s something you may not know about Mr. Genre-boy: I’m a small quivering mass of wussiness whenever Moulin Rouge! comes on. I absolutely love the movie, and I’m not even that big of a Baz Luhrmann aficionado. Probably the fact that Moulin Rouge! is just so freakin’ different than what we normally expect from a period piece romance musical flick. (Plus I love the two leads, but that’s just icing on the cake.)
Of course Moulin Rouge! treads some pretty familiar ground with its “poor boy, fancy girl, unrequited love that ends tragically” narrative, but it’s also loaded with all sorts of clever songs, beautiful sights, and gorgeous women. But one of the film’s very best sequences comes when our lovestruck hero (Ewan McGregor) must sit and wait while his beloved (Nicole Kidman) spends the night with a sleazy Duke (Richard Roxburgh). The boy’s jealousy, fury, and frustration are then brought to cinematic life by way of a stellar musical number set to the classic pop song “Roxanne.”
Anyone who’s ever known the bitter sting of jealousy can see what Luhrmann is doing with this enjoyably powerful sequence. With every note from Jacke Koman’s supremely gravelly voice and with every stomp of the dancers’ feet … our young hero is falling deeper into the abyss of ravenous jealousy. It’s a great marriage of cinematic technique and sincere, painful emotion — and it’s very, very romantic. Albeit in a pretty sad way.
Continue reading Our Favorite Romantic Scenes: Moulin Rouge!
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Sports, Fandom, Trailers and Clips, Scenes We Love
We’ve had some time to get used to the truly terrible idea of a 3D Stretch Armstrong flick with Taylor (Team Jacob) Lautner as the flexible hero in question. But on the upside, at least now I can hold out hope that maybe if Lautner’s busy getting all bendy, he won’t have time to ruin the memory of Louden Swain in a remake of the sports/teen drama Vision Quest — which brings me to today’s Scenes (Songs) We Love, and while most people focus on Madonna’s Crazy for You as the musical highlight of the flick, I thought I would offer up a pretty viable alternative: Lunatic Fringe from Red Rider.
Vision Quest was based on the novel by Terry Davis and centered on a high-school wrestler (played by Matthew Modine) who decides to take on the top dog in a fight to do something meaningful with his life — which I guess means rolling around on the floor with other guys. But, in the pursuit of his dream, he sacrifices his health and his love life with an older woman (played by Linda Fiorentino).
The song was written by the Tom Cochrane (and I’m sure my fellow Canadians know that name), and was originally released in 1981 before making its way onto the soundtrack, and even though the song is actually about the rise of anti-Semitism in the 1970’s, when I hear this tune I just think of Matthew Modine in a spot-lit gym.
After the jump: a slice of Canadiana…
Continue reading Scenes (Songs) We Love: “Lunatic Fringe” from ‘Vision Quest’
Filed under: Music & Musicals, Fandom, Trailers and Clips
For the love of God please make that new Muppet movie a rock opera!!!! Arrrrrrgh!
Okay, now that that’s out of my system, it’s time to explain why I just had that little outburst. See, MuppetsStudio has released another classic rock song with a Muppets edge. Oh, yes! First it was the brilliance of “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and now — “Beaker’s Ballad.” No, it’s not some random original song, but rather the ol’ meeemer sharing his rendition of “Dust in the Wind” — Kansas’ 1977 hit. Unfortunately, Beaker’s memeing is no match for Lynn Meredith’s vocals, and the harsh, cruel internet world is ready to pounce. It seems that they only like silent (pun alert!) memes.
If we can’t get Jason Segel to switch his upcoming movie to a Muppet rock opera, maybe we can at least get a faux concert documentary from the MuppetsStudio? It could be the fan event to challenge Rocky Horror! I imagine I’m not the only one who would stand in line to hear these guys go through all the classic greats.
Meanwhile, in related news, The Playlist managed to nab a description of the new Muppet movie based on a script that’s dated October 2009 that their source calls a “solid attempt at recapturing what made “The Muppet Show” and the first two Muppet movies so great” Check out the film description from The Playlist and the hilarious video after the jump.
Continue reading Watch This: Beaker is Just “Dust in the Wind”
