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The Playlist
The obsessives' guide to contemporary cinema via film discussion, news, reviews, features, nostalgia, movie music, soundtracks, DVDs and more.Interviews
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Greta Gerwig Talks 'Frances Ha' & Working With Noah Baumbach -
Joel Edgerton On 'Wish You Were Here,' 'Jane' Drama & More -
James Gray On 'The Immigrant,' 'The Gray Man,' 'The Lost City Of Z' And More -
Brit Marling Talks 'The East' & Espionage Thrillers -
Nicolas Winding Refn Discusses 'Only God Forgives -
Justin Lin Talks 'Fast Furious 6' & The Influence Of Altman -
Interview: Noah Baumbach Talks 'Frances Ha' -
Ben Wheatley Talks 'Sightseers,' Violence & More -
Mark Romanek On 'One Hour Photo' & Leaving 'Cinderella'
The Playlist
Cannes Review: Lee Daniels' 'The Paperboy' With Matthew McConaughey & Nicole Kidman Is A Disastrous Flop
- By James Rocchi
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- May 24, 2012 8:08 AM
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- 37 Comments
Many people will tell you that "The Paperboy" -- based on Pete Dexter's novel, brought to the screen by "Precious" director Lee Daniels -- is a trash masterpiece, an instant camp classic, so bad it's good. These people, these critics, are simply not to be trusted about any question of judgment for a long time based on that half-hearted ironic "endorsement" of one of the worst films of the year, never mind at Cannes. Like the patina on a bronze roof, there are two ways to acquire trashterpiece/camp/so-bad-it's-good status. One is through time, and patience, as entropy and erosion bring down the bright gleam to a more interesting set of colors and nuanced shades; the other is to spray it on artificially with a hose, with plenty of spillage and waste, toxic and cheap and jumped-up and unconvincing.
First Look: John Cusack, Nicolas Cage and Vanessa Hudgens In Serial Killer Pic 'Frozen Ground'
- By Ryan Gowland
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- May 17, 2012 10:19 AM
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- 3 Comments
Nicolas Cage has appeared in a seemingly endless stream of action-thrillers over the past several years, including treasures like "Bangkok Dangerous," "Seeking Justice" and "Trespass," — all done, we assume, to help pay down that mountain of debt Cage has accrued — but we're particularly intrigued by one of Cage's upcoming thrillers: "Frozen Ground," produced by co-star Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson.
John Cusack In Talks To Join Elijah Wood In 'Speed'-Esque Thriller 'Grand Piano'
- By Oliver Lyttelton
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- May 16, 2012 9:04 PM
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- 1 Comment
As far as ludicrous movie pitches go, the "'Speed' with a piano' logline for "Grand Piano" is up there with "Snakes On A Plane" and "Burning Bright" (don't remember "Burning Bright?" That was the one where the girl from "Step Up 2" and her autistic brother are trapped in their house by a hurricane, only to be stalked by an escaped tiger. Seriously). The film, announced a week or two back, is set to star Elijah Wood as a concert pianist with stagefright forced to play the concert of his life in order to save his life, and his wife, after finding a threat on his sheet music. Again, we're not making this up.
Watch: First Clip Of John Cusack & Matthew McConaughey In Lee Daniels' 'The Paperboy'
- By Oliver Lyttelton
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- May 10, 2012 8:02 AM
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- 17 Comments
Of all the movies that start to unspool at the Cannes Film Festival next week, perhaps the biggest question mark for us is "The Paperboy." Based on the novel by Pete Dexter, it seems to be, on the surface at least, a crime procedural that might make a decent amount of money, but wouldn't necessarily be the kind of fare that traditionally ends up in the Official Selection at Cannes. The cast is led by a number of actors -- Matthew McConaughey, John Cusack, Zac Efron -- who in recent years have found critical acclaim elusive, along with a lead actress, Nicole Kidman, who's done great work of late, but also some pretty terrible work too. And director Lee Daniels made his debut with the laughable "Shadowboxer," and his directorial excesses came close to unbalancing his breakthrough "Precious."
Review: Dim-Witted Edgar Allan Poe Thriller 'The Raven' Is Too Boring To Be A Guilty Pleasure
- By Oliver Lyttelton
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- April 26, 2012 5:20 PM
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- 3 Comments
About ten minutes into James McTeigue's "The Raven," a large, hairy man -- a writer and a critic, as it turns out -- is strapped to a table by a mysterious figure. A mighty blade, inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's "The Pit And The Pendulum," hangs forbodingly above him. And to his unseen captor, he screams "I'm just a critic! Why? Why would you do this to me?" After sitting through a further hundred minutes of McTeigue's inept, idiotic period thriller, we knew exactly how he felt.
Over 20 New Images From 'The Paperboy' With Matthew McConaughey, Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron & John Cusack
- By Kevin Jagernauth
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- April 23, 2012 9:33 AM
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- 6 Comments
Eyepatches, bloody knives, a white trash channeling Nicole Kidman and a "Sling Blade"-esque John Cusack....suddenly Lee Daniels' '60s set thriller "The Paperboy" is looking a lot more interesting, and with the Cannes Film Festival stamp of approval, not only will this one of the starries entries this year, it could be a left field surprise.
5 Things You Might Not Know About 'Say Anything,' 23 Years After The Release Of Cameron Crowe's Classic Rom-Com
- By Oliver Lyttelton
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- April 13, 2012 10:03 AM
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- 4 Comments
"Say Anything" was not particularly successful on its release. John Cusack was an established star of films like "The Sure Thing," but co-star Ione Skye was basically unknown, and director Cameron Crowe was, despite his writing credit on "Fast Times At Ridgemont High" eight years earlier, not a known quantity. As such, despite rave reviews, it only took $20 million at the domestic box office, and a meagre $733,000 internationally -- indeed, in many territories, like the U.K, it went straight to video.
New Pics From 'Prometheus,' 'The Raven' & 'Dark Shadows'
- By Kevin Jagernauth
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- March 7, 2012 11:52 AM
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- 3 Comments
So, what does Ridley Scott have in store for us with his 3D sorta "Alien"-related "Prometheus"? Aside from the teaser trailer and pep talk by Guy Pearce, the mysteries are being kept close to the chest for the film. And this latest viral image, uncovered on the Weyland Industries viral site is, uh, interesting. It looks more like concept art than an actual still, but if you click that link and look at the super high res version, way way in the back is a character who we figure is either Michael Fassbender or Noomi Rapace. Whoever it is, they're standing in the middle of some kind of spherical vortex thingy and we're not even gonna guess what this is all about. But speculate away below if you want. "Prometheus" hits on June 8th.
John Cusack, Evan Peters & Shannon Woodward Join Emma Roberts In 'Adult World'
- By Kevin Jagernauth
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- February 22, 2012 3:06 PM
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- 3 Comments
With production now underway, the cast members joining Emma Roberts for "Adult World" have been rounded up and it's not a bad bunch at all, mixing up a solid veteran with a bunch of rising talent.
Oprah Winfrey, Hugh Jackman, Mila Kunis, John Cusack & David Oyelowo Sought For Lee Daniels' 'The Butler'
- By Kevin Jagernauth
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- February 15, 2012 11:17 PM
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- 0 Comments
Lee Daniels certainly knows how to draw in the stars. After breaking through with his low budget indie "Precious," which found people like Lenny Kravitz, Mariah Carey and Mo'Nique appearing, the director (after a highly publicized stalled project in "Selma" -- which we'll get to in a moment) put together "The Paperboy" with Nicole Kidman, Matthew McConaughey, Zac Efron, John Cusack, David Oyelowo and more. And now, a project Daniels became involved with nearly two years ago is bubbling back to life, and it seems like he's slowly building a roster of regular players.
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Recent Comments
because of Michael Chabon?
DavidGoyer blah blah blah, I would not tell you to get your head out of your *ss because I'm
Simples, yes. Because the 12th villain (or tease/hint of a villain) is more important than a
Stop telling people how they should feel about excessive destruction and violence.
julia roberts & steven spielberg
This looks like a train wreck. the only way i see this working if that for their next film if it
Looks really great- and I agree with Steve- many kudos to Brad Pitt for consistently working to make
Her part has been cut as there are far too many characters in TAS2 already and they simply
One of my favorite films out of Sundance, and the cast were a pleasure to interview. Hope it does
Oh, I expected someone to say that the Frank/Northup comparison was just about their writings.