Pledge Support for "Out of Print"

Going to the cinema means the world to me. It is a place for me to escape, a place to be thrilled, shocked, and fall in love. It is a place to introduce me to new ideas and concepts I'd never fathomed. It is my sanctuary. No matter how bad things are, I can always find solace in a darkened theater. One theater in particular that has been a constant source of joy is now in jeopardy. The New Beverly Cinema is a revival theater that exclusively shows 35mm prints, but as you may be aware, studios are heavily pushing to rid the theaters of 35mm entirely. Julia Marchese, an employee of the New Beverly Cinema, has decided to generate awareness of how scarce 35mm could become (if we don't stand up to the studios) and how this digital conversion will hurt revival theater houses across the country. How will she generate this awareness you ask, in the form of a documentary titled "Out of Print" that is currently in the kickstart phase and she needs your help to get this vital documentary made. See how you can help below...

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Nostalgia Patrol - Triplets

Last week we found out that Dan Aykroyd and Chevy Chase were getting back together in some form and today news comes down the pike that Arnold Schwarzenegger and Danny DeVito will re-team for a sequel to Twins titled "Triplets" with Eddie Murphy being the third brother. Let that soak in for a minute and then read on...

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Nostalgia Patrol - Aykroyd & Chase Re-Team

Dan Aykroyd revealed on his Facebook page that he and Chevy Chase will re-team. Exactly how they will re-team is shrouded in a bit of mystery but the fact is that these two once great comedians will try to re-kindle some of the laughter they once produced in some capacity. The news initially had me excited but as commonsense started to rear its ugly face, I realized how high the stakes are stacked against these two that this reunion will be a caliber project.

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Superhero Stakes High in 2012

Last summer we saw a bit of a dip in ticket sales for superhero movies at the box office. Whether you want to blame the economy or the characters themselves, audiences didn't flock out to see X-Men: First Class or Captain America quite the way they have previously for Batman, Spider-Man, and more recently Iron Man. This summer has some of comic book's biggest stars hitting the screen and I wonder how receptive general audiences will be. Are this year's superhero movies going to rival last year's numbers or are these superstar superheroes going to bring in the big tickets sales once again?

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'Prometheus' Still Stirs Questions

Over the weekend Amy Kaufman from the L.A. Times Hero Complex released an engaging interview with screenwriter Damon Lindelof on the promise of "Prometheus" being epic. Along with the interview was a brand new image of Noomi Rapace in some sort of corridor look at something off camera. The new image ended up stirring up more questions in me than the interview, because this new image clearly features not one but two space jockeys. The Space Jockey has been the one definite link we can all make between 'Prometheus' and 'Alien' but it also has become a constant source of discussion and intrigue. We want to know how and why the Space Jockey links 'Alien' to 'Prometheus'. Below I've put together a few things I have noticed pertaining to the Space Jockeys and how they might play into Ridley Scott's latest scifi.

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Paranormal Wave in 2012

Hollywood is a predictable wave of reactionary studio film making. One studio hits it big with a successful franchise or genre idea so the other studios follow suit trying to steal a piece of that particular demographic. Like how Pixar and "Toy Story" created a surge of new CGI animation in late 90's, the success's of "Superman II" and Tim Burton's "Batman" spawned the superhero genre, horror movies like James Wan's "Saw" and Eli Roth's "Hostel" generated a bunch of torture horror titles, "The Blair Witch" created an entire genre of found-footage films. Take vampire movies, they have been around forever but a film like "Twilight" is a success and it brings on a whole new wave of romantically spun fantasy-genre titles. This is a perpetual cycle in Hollywood that can create both good and bad titles. Looking ahead at 2012 calendar it appears the next wave is ready to hit, one based off the box office success of the "Paranormal Activity" films, unfortunately this wave doesn't look like too fun to ride.

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Fight for 35mm

Going to the movies is one of my favorite pass times. Its something I've loved since being a wee lad. The excitement of seeing a movie I've longed to see, the act of arriving at the cinema and seeing the movie's title on the marquee along with its poster, the smell of popcorn, the rush of sitting with a crowd of people who are also excited to see the movie, and the dimming of the lights, all play into my life long love for the cinema experience. Studios (specifically 20th Century Fox) are now vying to alter that experience, they want to stop distributing archival 35mm prints. The notion is to shift to only digital projection. Reasons for doing this are plain and simple, cost. Storage, shipping, and sustaining the 35mm film print is more expensive than digital. While I can understand the dollar and cents mentality the studios have, my appreciation for 35mm film and the people who operate and care for these prints outweigh the financial reasoning. There is a human element, a sense of pride and real care projectionists put into screening a film print for an audience, something that could eventually vanish with this digital transition. One place that takes pride in the fact they only screen 35mm film prints is the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles California and they have decided to start a petition urging studios to continue producing and distributing 35mm film prints. Guess what, you can help! Take a look below to see how you can help the New Bev and other revival theaters around the country continue to showcase cinema that makes up the fabric of film history from around the globe.

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Don't Talk, We Mean It!

The Alamo Drafthouse has made a name for itself by setting a high precedent in cinema going. It is (from what I hear) the premiere theatrical experience in the United States. Today in an effort to illustrate how dedicated the good folks at the Alamo Drafthouse are in presenting the best cinematic experience possible they will begin running the following advertisement in front of "R" rated feature films. Beware the content within this bumper does contain offensive language. Proceed with caution...

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The Wright Stuff II Rundown

Back in January at my favorite revival movie theater in Los Angeles, the New Beverly Cinema, director Edgar Wright hosted eighteen nights of awesome movie programming titled The Wright Stuff II. The event kicked off with a triple feature of Edgar's three most current titles Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. Over the course of nearly three weeks of programming Edgar Wright hosted one midnight feature and eight double features that were influential to him as a filmmaker. Each evening included tons of special guests and Q&A's along with a barrel of classic trailers that coincided with the films being presented. I had the pleasure of attending the opening night triple feature and three of the double features. Below you can read my thoughts on those spectacular evenings...

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Short Film: The Black Mamba

Movies and advertising have gone hand in hand for quite some time. Product placement helps to add financing to a movie's budget and recently Nike while promoting Kobe Bryant's latest basketball shoe has brought in director Robert Rodriguez to make a short film as an advertisement for the new shoe. The result is "The Black Mamba." Take a look at the short film below...

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Super Bowl Ad Reactions

Yesterday was Super Bowl XLV and while plenty of us were watching the game, a big number were also tuned in just for the commercials. Its a tradition. The latest cars, beers and food are heavily pitched to us. Also which is more important to myself, all of the latest movie advertising. New trailers and teasers and sometimes our first look at a highly anticipated movie. This year was no different and below you can read my reactions to some of the biggest trailers that played during Super Bowl XLV.

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Best 3D Glasses for Your Buck

Let's face it, 3D is here to stay. Whether it is in theaters, on television or playing video games everyone is scrambling to the latest gimmick. I say gimmick because we went through this before. 3-D has been around since the 50's the first being Bwana Devil. Most of you will remember the 70's and 80's push to 3D. Movies like Amityville 3-D, Jaws 3-D, Friday the 13th 3-D. Back then, the format was 80% awful and as a direct result never really caught on. Now days however, 3D seems to be here to stay and I've struggled to fully endorse the medium for a couple reasons. I'm writing this not to trash 3D, but more to make a request that we the consumers get the best 3D available. Checkout the full post below...

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New Beverly's 3rd Horrorthon

Regardless of what month it is I love watching horror movies. Horror is probably my favorite genre of film. I say probably because I hate choosing. I love all genres of film, but horror just seems to stick the most, so instead of choosing one specific genre over the rest why don't I say its one of my favorite genres. Anyways, this last weekend my favorite Los Angeles based revival theaters hosted their 3rd Annual All Night Horror Show. 7 movies over a span of 12 hours. Sound daunting? Well maybe for some people it is, but for me and the rest of the sold out crowd it was a spooktacular evening. Check out the full rundown below...

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Standing Ovation at the Beverly

Last weekend I attended a midnight showing of this year's "Standing Ovation" at the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles. Although I had been told ahead of time what a real treat I was in for, nothing could have prepared me for the evening I was about endure. A evening where the New Bev crowd was pushed to dance, sing and most of all dream. Take a look at my breakdown of the evening below...

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A Letter to Lucasfilm

Earlier today I posted my thoughts on Lucasfilm re-releasing the Star Wars saga in stereoscopic 3D. The article was penned in anger out of the fact it felt like a jab in the stomach. I've loved Star Wars since seeing the movie as a kid. I was one of the franchises most loyal customers (well truthfully my parents were because they paid for everything) owning and desiring anything and everything I could get my hands on with the words "Star Wars" on it. Blankets, light switches, toys, magazines, t-shirts, lunch pails, etc, etc. I've purchased every version of the VHS and DVD's that have released. I plan on buying the Blu-Ray's too. Actually I'm really looking forward to them. Star Wars is a commodity, I get that, Star Wars and the money that can be made from it are far bigger than George Lucas.

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An Evening with Bill & Ted

The New Beverly Cinema is labeled as the premier revival movie theater in Los Angeles and it deservesngly earns that title as it continues to host special events like they did on August 29th with a double bill of Bill & Ted's. Not only did the quaint theater host a double feature of "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" and "Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey," but Bill S. Preston Esquire himself, Mr. Alex Winter was in attendance to introduce both films and do a Q&A in between the double bill. Read the full rundown below...

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Rolling Roadshow Reflections

Last night was the kick off to the Alamo Drafthouse's Rolling Roadshow 2010 traveling tour dubbed "We Are All Workers." The tour is set up to screen 12 movies in 9 locations across the United States where the specific movies were actually filmed. Last night was Quentin Tarantino's 1997 love song to the South Bay, "Jackie Brown" and it was screened at the Proud Bird restaurant adjacent to LAX. Being a huge fan of Tarantino's work and hearing nothing but amazing things about the Alamo Drafthouse and their Rolling Roadshow experiences I just had to attend. Checkout my thoughts below on the outstanding evening put on by Tim League and the Alamo Drafthouse Rolling Roadshow.

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