Stars in Rewind »
Their Best Role: Milla Jovovich
Filed under: New Releases, Fandom, Columns, Stars in Rewind, Their Best Role
Hardcore Milla Jovovich fans can already guess where I'm going to pinpoint the greatest role in the Ukraine-born beauty's long and eclectic career, a career that's taken her into the worlds of fashion, music, and film, into tropical paradise and 15th century France and zombie-infested worlds and beyond. Really, it only takes one perfect little word to explain, delivered with just the right inflection.
Say it with me, folks.
"Mul-TI-pass!"
Stars in Rewind: Zach Galifianakis Does Stand-Up for Pre-Schoolers
Filed under: Comedy, Trailers and Clips, Stars in Rewind
Sure Zach Galifianakis is a big star now -- thanks to appearances in films like last year's The Hangover -- but it wasn't always A-list parties for the funny man from North Carolina. Before he hit the bigtime. Galifianakis was a struggling comic who hosted a really hilarious and short lived show on VH1 entitled Late World with Zach.
Late World opened up with Galifianakis performing a monologue that sometimes included musical numbers. From there, the show went on to feature skits and musical guests. It was funny, but unfortunately it never got the chance to really catch on with audiences. Next thing you know, Zach was doing episodes of Tru Calling ...
As proof of how funny the comedian could be, we found this old clip from Late World with Zach. In this one, Galifianakis performs his stand up monologue in front of a group of preschool children. He's a little less beardy, but the comedy stylings are still the same. He has a genuine rapport with the kids, who clearly don't understand half of what he's saying, but do crack up when he makes a joke about pooping on a kid's head. One of the funniest moments comes when he asks the pre-schoolers if they have any jokes for him. One kid comes up and simply says, "You're poop," to which Galifianakis responds with, "Guys, don't work blue on me -- let's work it clean, okay?"
Check out the full clip after the jump.
Stars in Rewind: Pee-Wee Herman Fights Crack Cocaine
Filed under: Fandom, Trailers and Clips, Stars in Rewind
One of the strangest Public Service Announcements ever filmed has been making the rounds on the Internet over the course of the past few weeks, and we couldn't resist the urge to share it with you.
Pee-Wee Herman (Paul Reubens) stars in this 1992 PSA warning viewers against the dangers of crack cocaine while explaining exactly what crack is and how no one knows how much it takes to kill you. Pee-Wee then reminds everyone that it's okay to want to be cool, but doing it with crack isn't just wrong -- it could be dead wrong!
The clip is bizarre because Herman is a comedian who appealed to young children (who probably weren't quite ready to start smoking crack yet) and stoners (who'd already found their drug of choice) -- plus how hard is it to take Pee-Wee seriously about anything? I spent the whole time waiting for him to bust out his iconic laugh or start shouting, "I know you are but what am I?" when someone called him a crackhead.
Clearly, videos like this demonstrate why we pretty much lost the war on drugs -- the government guys authorizing these ads obviously had no idea who would get through to their target audience. In Herman's defense, he made the video as part of his plea deal after his arrest for indecent exposure inside a Florida porn theater. Under those circumstances, it seems unlikely that Pee-Wee got to make any suggestions or offer up any potential rewrites to punch up the dialogue a bit.
Check out the video after the jump -- then let us know what you thought of one the lesser films in Pee-Wee's filmography in the comments section below.
Fun Facts Abound in this 1980 'Empire Strikes Back' Interview
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, George Lucas, Trailers and Clips, Stars in Rewind
If there's one thing we love here at Cinematical, it's Star Wars. When it comes to Lucas' original trilogy, we can't get enough. With that in mind, we bring you another cool piece of Star Wars history, a 1980 Today interview featuring Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford talking about The Empire Strikes Back just prior to it appearing in theaters. This is no ordinary chat though -- we learn a lot of interesting things in this short clip. Allow me to share some of the highlights.
The most prominent thing is Ford and Hamill mentioning the prequels. If you're one of those cynics who thinks Lucas only came up with the prequels as cash grab in the 1990's, here's proof that you're wrong. The actors even mention how they wouldn't be in those films because they'd be dealing with a young Obi-Wan and the like. So, Lucas was thinking about those films -- for better or worse -- even way back then.
It's interesting how the background image in the interview is from one of Empire's biggest scenes and could be considered a spoiler, but since there was no Internet in every home, no one complained. Imagine that shot turning up today -- the 'net would explode with nerd-rage.
Hit the jump for more '80s flashbacks.
Their Best Role: Winona Ryder
Filed under: Best/Worst, Stars in Rewind, Their Best Role
It's hard to believe that Winona Ryder is 38-years-old. It seems like just a short time ago that she was playing a high school girl in Heathers or Edward Scissorhands. From there, Ryder's career seemed to take off -- she landed memorable parts as Mina Harker in Francis Ford Coppola's lush but narratively flawed Dracula, won a Golden Globe for another costume drama in The Age of Innocence, and got a Best Actress nod for her work in Little Women. Ryder's resume is filled with memorable roles, but unfortunately it was overshadowed at least to some degree by her arrest in 2001 for shoplifting over $5,000 worth of items from a Beverly Hills Saks Fifth Avenue. After that public humiliation, the actress essentially disappeared for four years. We're hearing more from her now, though -- with roles in several upcoming films including Ron Howard's comedy The Dilemma and Darren Aronofsky's highly anticipated thriller Black Swan. With that in mind, it seemed like a perfect time to take a look back at Ryder's body of work and choose her best role to date.
The easy and obvious choices would be The Age of Innocence or Little Women. Ryder received critical acclaim and prestigious award nominations for both portrayals. However, neither is a part I think of when the actress is mentioned. For me, Winona will always be synonymous with some of her early roles -- rebellious Veronica in Heathers, Kim Boggs in Edward Scissorhands, and Lydia Deetz in Beetlejuice. Of the three roles, I think her turn as the gothy teenager in Burton's Beetlejuice is her finest.
Actors We Miss: Boris Karloff
Filed under: Columns, Stars in Rewind
I've been on a real Boris Karloff kick lately (see my recent triple-feature review over on Horror Squad), which started with back-to-back viewings of The Black Cat ('34) and The Raven ('35). Both films were made when Karloff was the premiere name in horror, but the roles were so strikingly different from each other, that I wondered how audiences perceived him during the glory days of Universal Studios' horror films. Was his box office appeal based on him being "the creepy guy" or was it due to his versatility in a film genre that was just beginning to find its legs?
I'd argue that without Karloff's versatility, the genre would've evolved in a completely different way. With such a fantastic character actor in generally unsavory roles, Karloff elevated horror films into perfectly acceptable entertainment. There's art in Karloff's finest performances, and how can horror be all bad if it's artful? We don't have anyone like him today, and without anyone to add that touch of class to horror, the films released now are widely considered base, lowbrow entertainment.
Stallone-a-Thon: Get Carter (2000)
Filed under: Action, New Releases, Fandom, Best/Worst, Stars in Rewind
In honor of the recent release of The Expendables, we're taking a week-long look at the action films of Sir Sylvester Stallone -- which is to say we're skipping his comedies. Out of respect.
Title: Get Carter (2000)
Setting: Seattle -- and you know it's Seattle not because you see landmarks, but because it rains constantly.
Our hero: Vegas Mob enforcer Jack Carter -- a leg-breaker re-evaluating his life.
Our villain/s: There's a conspiracy running through the film, but Mickey Rourke handles the main bad guy duties as Jack's old nemesis Cyrus Paice. 'Roid rage simmers just beneath the surface of every scene they share.
The stakes: Jack's life as he digs deeper into a mystery he should leave alone and alienates his boss in Vegas too.
How long until our first confrontation? Our first confrontation comes mere moments after the Robert Browning quote that opens Get Carter and features Stallone and his partner (played by John C. McGinley) having a debate while Carter beats the crap out of some deadbeat.
Dig in on more J.C. after the jump ...
Where Do You Think James Cameron is Spending His Birthday?
Filed under: Fandom, Newsstand, Stars in Rewind
Director James Cameron sure knows how to celebrate a birthday. The director, who turns 56 today (happy birthday!) plans to spend his big day deep underwater. Cameron's plans involve taking a submersible to a depth of 5200 feet at Russia's Lake Baikal -- the world's deepest freshwater lake.
The director clearly loves being beneath the waves -- as The Abyss proved back in 1989 -- and has other oceanic projects in the works. When not working on breaking his own box office records, the filmmaker is building a submarine that will take him 36,000 feet below the ocean's surface -- that's nearly seven miles down! Meanwhile, he's developing a new underwater 3D camera that he intends to use on a new feature film. Cameron states that this undisclosed new project might be the film he makes before starting on the sequel to his record-breaking Avatar. Let's just hope it doesn't take as long to make as Avatar did, otherwise we'll all be old before we take another trip to Pandora.
And what happens today if the weather in Russia isn't good enough for a trip of nearly a mile below the surface of Lake Baikal? Cameron says he has a contingency plan -- one that involves getting drunk with his Russian crew while staying in port. Sounds like a great way to mark the passing of another year in either case.
[via Associated Press]
Stars in Rewind: Bruce Willis' "Respect Yourself" Music Video
Filed under: Fandom, Tech Stuff, Stars in Rewind
Ah, the 80's -- what a bizarre decade that was. I admit to having a special fondness for that time, but even nostalgia isn't blinding enough to ignore some of the decade's more dubious moments and trends. Bo Jackson proved he knew both baseball and football, but he was hardly the first guy who wanted to be a "double threat." Actors Eddie Murphy and Bruce Willis traversed this ground earlier, when both tried to make the jump from acting to music. In Murphy's case, this was a disaster, but Willis was at least sort of tolerable.In 1987, while Moonlighting was still big and before Die Hard hit, Willis released The Return of Bruno on Motown. An "eclectic gathering of R&B music sung by Willis." The album was filled with covers (only one song was an original) that highlighted Willis' "white boy soul" stylings. Things looked good for Bruno, when Willis' cover of The Staple Singers' Respect Yourself peaked at #5 on the charts. Follow up singles, Young Blood and Under the Boardwalk, didn't fare nearly as well. Undeterred, Willis did release a second album in 1989 and a classic Bruce Willis album in 2001.
The actor shot a video for Respect Yourself, which features Willis once again tending bar and breaking out into an impromptu song and dance number after his boss tells him the place is dead and to lock up before he leaves. It's pretty kitschy -- right down to the appearance of one of The Pointer Sisters.
In the gallery of iconic Bruce Willis characters, let's just say Bruno is no John McClane. But, if you forgot what the actor looked like when he had hair, hit the jump and check out the video.
Stallone-a-Thon: Rambo (2008)
Filed under: Action, New Releases, Fandom, Trailers and Clips, Stars in Rewind
In honor of Friday's release of The Expendables, we're taking a week-long look at the action films of Sir Sylvester Stallone -- which is to say we're skipping his comedies. Out of respect.
Title: Rambo
Setting: Thailand and Burma
Our hero: John Rambo -- just like the title says.
Our villain/s: The Burmese Tatmadaw in general, Major Pa Tee Tint in particular.
The stakes: Life or death. If Rambo can't save the missionaries, they're as good as dead.
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