Thompson on Hollywood

Sherlock Holmes vs. Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus

One is slick, the other isn't.

By Anne Thompson
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December 30, 2009 12:57 AM
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John Waters' Ten Best List of 2009

When John Waters submitted his Guilty Pleasures list to Film Comment, he included movies like Woody Allen's Interiors and Ingmar Bergman's Wild Strawberries. So it's not entirely surprising that his 2009 Ten Best list, published in Art Forum, includes Lars von Trier's Antichrist and Pedro Almodovar's Broken Embraces. Waters knows what he likes. Here's his top five:1 Import Export (Ulrich Seidl) The most sorrowful movie of the year is also the best. The miserable lives of Ukrainian immigrants in Vienna make this agonizing but brilliantly directed opus the cinematic equivalent of slitting your wrists. A new genre? Depression porn? Hey, I got off.

By Anne Thompson
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December 27, 2009 8:01 AM
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LA Weekly Hires NY's Karina Longworth as Film Critic

LA Weekly editor Drex Heikes didn't waste any time choosing a replacement for Scott Foundas, who is repairing to NYC to take over Kent Jones' spot as programmer at the Film Society of Lincoln Center and New York Film Festival. Karina Longworth, grad of NYU, Cinematical, Netscape and Spoutblog, has landed the gig, which is a powerful national Voice Media podium. Congrats. She will do a great job and I look forward to her criticism. Yes, the avocation is alive and well--if under severe duress.

By Anne Thompson
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December 24, 2009 9:33 AM
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Things I Learned at the Avatar Premiere

James Cameron basked in the glow as Avatar, his latest industry-changing event-film, earned a standing ovation at the Mann Chinese Wednesday night. At the after party Cameron beamed as he stood between two tall women, wife Suzy Amis and ex-wife Kathryn Bigelow. "You're on a roll!" he said to the Hurt Locker director. "You raised the bar," she said to Cameron.

By Anne Thompson
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December 17, 2009 4:49 AM
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Sherlock Holmes: Early Reviews

Yet again, a London premiere sparked early London reviews of a big movie, which in turn released the trades and others to post their reviews. While Sherlock Holmes, starring Robert Downey, Jr. as the pipe-smoking detective and Jude Law as his sidekick Dr. Watson, won't open stateside until December 25, as of Tuesday, Rotten Tomatoes was counting six reviews at 83%.

By Anne Thompson
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December 16, 2009 12:30 AM
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Leonard Maltin Joins IndieWIRE

Critic/historian/ author and Reelz Channel host Leonard Maltin's new IndieWIRE blog is finally up. He's posting classic and current reviews, as well as video from such interviews as this one on E.T. with Invictus director Clint Eastwood:

By Anne Thompson
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December 15, 2009 12:16 AM
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Avatar: Cameron Delivers Joyous Cinema

James Cameron's Avatar takes you to an exotic world, Pandora, seen through the sad eyes of paraplegic marine Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) as he falls in love with tribal princess Neyteri (Zoe Saldana) and her people, the Na'vi.

By Anne Thompson
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December 11, 2009 3:22 AM
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Avatar Early Reviews: Geni is Out of the Bottle

While Fox tried to cap the reviews on Avatar with an embargo, London's Guardian reviewed from the premiere (where MTV's Josh Horowitz tweeted the red carpet) and The Hollywood Reporter posted an early review, then Variety. (The rest will follow: the Avatar embargo has been lifted by Fox.) Tweets have been ongoing since the screenings began on the East Coast. On my Twitterfeed at least, the response has been overwhelmingly positive. Holding the embargo on this one was a fantasy.

By Anne Thompson
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December 11, 2009 12:03 AM
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Critics Watch: Paying for Opinions

It's not news that film critics are under assault as print publishing struggles to survive. (Here's Sean Means' updated list of 60 "departed" critics since January 2006.) When faced with the harsh reality of future prospects, heavy workload or the low wages of freelance journalism, some are getting out of the profession altogether.

By Anne Thompson
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December 9, 2009 5:22 AM
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Must -Sees: The Last Station, Up in the Air, Bright Star

Must-Sees:Jason Reitman's Up in the Air has been deemed a too-dark marketing challenge. But the movie's strength is the way it skips past conventional genre cliches while deftly taking its characters through romantic escape and isolation--and the tough economy. Paramount Pictures is one of the few studios that can market both big and little movies. Up in the Air may be on its way to some Oscar nominations: it won four awards from the National Board of Review, including best picture of the year. It's tied with Precious for number one on the Gurus 'O Gold. Reviews are stellar: Tomatometer: 84%. Metascore: 81.