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Interviews

Zach Braff Joins 'Oz The Great And Powerful'

By Kevin Jagernauth
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May 27, 2011 3:26 AM
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2 Comments

It looks like the indie kid that could is getting ready to make his leap into the tentpole world.

By Christopher Bell
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May 12, 2011 9:35 AM
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0 Comments

This review originally ran during the 2010 Tribeca Film Festival.

By Christopher Bell
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April 29, 2011 7:33 AM
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1 Comment

After making a name for himself as the lead in the hit TV show "Scrubs" in 2001, Zach Braff stepped behind the camera in 2004 and unleashed "Garden State" on the world. You might have heard of it. This little indie that could earned over $35 million worldwide on a $2.5 million budget, had a best-selling soundtrack and resonated with a huge audience. Braff rode the rocket up, scoring lead roles in the comedy "The Ex" with Jason Bateman and Amanda Peet and, more notably, in a remake of the Italian film "The Last Kiss" with an adapted screenplay written by "Million Dollar Baby" and "Crash" writer/director Paul Haggis.

By Christopher Bell
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April 28, 2011 2:16 AM
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3 Comments

Just how out of touch are some filmmakers? There's a small trend of plots in which the main character commits a truly horrible crime of violent nature (which may even go as far as murder), usually by mistake, and their ultimate next move is to spy on the victim, befriend them, and pretend like nothing ever happened. This premise isn't just borderline offensive (a character tricking their victim for some weird personal catharsis? A writer composing such an artificial scenario just to tug viciously at our hearts?), its banality and self-righteousness basically paints the writer/director as someone who has never had anything remotely similar happened to them. Of course we all have our imaginations and we're all entitled to use them, but this kind of overdramatic falseness is rearing its head a bit too often (see Sundance hit "Another Earth," there's a slight variation in Andrea Arnold's "Red Road") to be given a pass. Deborah Chow's debut feature "The High Cost of Living" commits the same crime, banking on the misery of one person and the unbelievably low intellect of another.

By Kevin Jagernauth
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April 21, 2011 8:03 AM
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3 Comments

You might not remember this, but way, way back in the day -- and not too long after "Garden State" hit it big -- Zach Braff had an ambitious plan to do a remake of Susanne Bier's grim drama "Open Hearts." The story follows an engaged couple who deal with the aftermath of a car crash that leaves the man paralyzed from the waist down, and to make matters more complicated, the woman falls in love with the husband of the person who caused the accident. Fun times! Braff said he was drawn to the material because it managed to be about "lust, love, loneliness and so many things and dealt with them in a way an American movie typically wouldn't." And while that film obviously never happened, we'll always be left wondering what could have been because the actor/director reveals he had some top-shelf talent lined up for it.

By Kevin Jagernauth
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April 21, 2011 5:26 AM
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1 Comment

Planning To Adapt Stage Play 'All New People' Into A Feature FilmFor a moment there, the world seemed be his oyster for Zach Braff. The "Scrubs" star wrote and directed the mega indie hit "Garden State" which not only did gangbusters at the box office, but also spawned a best-selling soundtrack that suddenly had music supervisors everywhere looking at independent labels to find the music for their films. And then...Braff seemed to fade into the background a bit. He returned to his hit show and outside of "The Last Kiss" didn't do too much film work and found his sophomore directorial effort tough to get off the ground. But it looks like this year, Braff is going to be coming back in a big way. He stars in "The High Cost Of Living" which is now available on VOD and he's lining up a couple of more films, both of which are news to us.