HenryPooleIsHere Tagged Articles at Cinematical

City of Ember
This is the film that our Jette Kernion said is "one of the most gorgeous-looking films I've seen this year" (2008). It's the tale of a city in darkness -- a community that houses the likes of Saoirse Ronan, Tim Robbins, and Martin Landau, and is led by none other than Bill Murray. If thoughts of the future and rousing family fare are your cup of tea: Buy It on DVD. Sadly, there's no Blu-ray at this time.

Repo! The Genetic Opera
Unfortunately, this rock opera didn't live up to some expectations. But nevertheless, we're talking about a flick that had the cojones to cast Paris Hilton, and gave many rabid Buffy fans the opportunity to see Anthony Head belt out lyrics once again. Rent it, on DVD or Blu-ray, if you can handle a little blood and rock beats.

Max Payne
It came, it screened, it died. Max Payne was the action movie without action, the video game adaptation with serious plot changes. Perhaps in the right hands this still could have meant something amazing, but as it is, Payne fizzled. Skip it on DVD and Blu-ray. Elisabeth Rappe has a review of the DVD right here.

Clockwise from top left: Get Smart, Transsiberian, Kung Fu Panda, Budd Boetticher Box Set, Planet of the Apes 40th Anniversary Collection.

Welcome to this week's edition of Spin-ematical, chock full of alternatives to election coverage!

Kung Fu Panda
Though some of the celebrity voices were useless, Jack Black is great, and the film itself is pleasant, good-natured, and respectful of Asian culture. Available in at least seven editions, including widescreen, full-screen, Spanish, a Christmas gift set, with and without Secrets of the Furious Five (a 20-minute short), and on Blu-ray; oddly, this doesn't release until Sunday. Buy it.

Transsiberian
Traveling by train in the dead of winter from Beijing to Moscow should be much more restful than what happens to Woody Harrelson and Emily Mortimer in this adventure / suspense / thriller; Ben Kingsley plays a menacing Russian detective. I'm recommending this one sight unseen because Brad Anderson (Session 9, The Machinist) directed. Includes a 34-minute "making of"; also available on Blu-ray. Replays are inevitable. Buy it.

Get Smart
The bumbling Maxwell Smart as a generic action hero? (*sigh*) Steve Carell makes the character his own by repeating the old catchphrases without enthusiasm and proving to be far too adept for his own -- or the movie's -- good. Anne Hathaway is a very sexy spy, but Dwayne Johnson is miscast and even Alan Arkin struggles. The TV series never took itself too seriously; if only the movie had done the same. Available in widescreen and full-screen editions, as well as a two-disk version and on Blu-ray; a plethora of bonus scenes are included, notably a 5-minute "vomit reel." Ugh. Skip it.

After the jump ... Indies on DVD, more Blu-ray debuts, and Collector's Corner.

It's too bad that more movies don't have the courage to explore faith and spirituality in a direct way; studios are usually too worried about appealing to all religions -- and all pocketbooks -- to be very specific about the subject. The other reason is that it's difficult for Hollywood movies to wrap up their neat, bow-tie happy endings with everything resolved, since the idea of faith is based on lack of proof, lack of finality. One of my favorite movies is Dreyer's The Passion of Joan of Arc, which uses an unconventional, off-kilter visual scheme to document some exciting, endlessly fascinating arguments: which side is God on and what does He really want with us? The new Henry Poole Is Here bucks the trend with the appearance of a "miracle" in the life of its ordinary, everyday character. Does it raise any interesting, life-changing questions? Sadly, no. The film is too bored and lackadaisical with its subject to change much of anything. It's too uninspired to be inspirational.

Henry Poole (Luke Wilson) is a man with "movie disease." This means that he's going to die, and he'll have absolutely no symptoms until he does. Sometimes "movie disease" comes with a cough, but not this time. Sometimes "movie disease" has a name, like "brain cloud," but not this time. In preparation for the dark day, Henry buys a house in his old neighborhood, loads up on booze, doughnuts and pizza and waits. Meanwhile, his nosy neighbor Esperanza (Oscar nominee Adriana Barraza, from Babel) brings him tamales and pokes around his backyard. (Her late boyfriend used to live in the same house.) She notices that a badly done stucco job has produced a water stain, and that the water stain looks a bit like a familiar guy with a beard. The picture even produces a drop of blood.

A few bright spots aside, the August calendar of wide releases is generally pretty grim. (Do not speak to me of Clone Wars.) Luckily, there are always a few worthwhile flicks playing at the art houses, and the Indie Spotlight is here to tell you about them. We have the lowdown on what's opening "in select cities" this weekend, and if your city wasn't selected, at least you can file a mental note and keep an eye out for the film later.

Alphabetically, this week's new indie releases are: Anita O'Day: The Life of a Jazz Singer, Bachna Ae Haseeno, A Girl Cut in Two, Henry Poole Is Here, and Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer. Note that all of those titles fit in the first half of the alphabet, and three of the five contain people's full names. Fascinating! My OCD is fascinating! Here's the scoop on each of them.

Henry Poole Is Here
What it is: A gentle drama (with comedic elements) about a forlorn man (Luke Wilson) whose house develops a water stain that some people think is a sign from Jesus.
What they're saying: It's always noteworthy when a movie takes a pro-religion, pro-faith-in-God point of view -- and even rarer that such a film debuts at Sundance -- but this one doesn't seem to have done it very well. The critics are split down the middle at Rotten Tomatoes, while Cinematical's Jeffrey M. Anderson calls it "lackadaisical" and "too uninspired to be inspirational." (I've seen it, and I say amen to that.)
Where it's playing: Pretty much everywhere -- it's opening on 500 screens. So keep the faith, indie filmmakers! It could happen to you!
Official site: OMG you guys, it has a MySpace page!

Henry Poole Is Here Trailer


When Pearl Jam's video for "Jeremy" came out, I think I watched it a billion times -- one, because it was damn good, and two, because I was young enough to crush on the cute, doomed, floppy-haired star. Now Mark Pellington, who directed the video, is bringing us the Luke Wilson-starring Henry Poole is Here, and you can check out the trailer above.

Not surprisingly, there is great music, but I'm not so sure on this whole premise -- it's too "Jesus on toast" for me. Nevertheless, Wilson stars as Poole, a guy who finds out he has 6 months to live, retreats from his life, and sets on a course to die in suburbia with junk food and booze. But then his neighbor notices a heavenly face on his house's stucco. Miracles ensue, love with Radha Mitchell grows, and Henry finds a purpose in life.

Now the question becomes: Will Henry Poole find his own miracle, or will he end up like Jeremy?

The film hits theaters July 25.

The logjam may have been broken at Sundance. Just as I finished writing something about the slow selling conditions over the usually busy first weekend, Variety broke the news that Choke and Henry Poole is Here have both been sold.

Fox Searchlight acquired Choke in a deal valued at $5 million, for which the distributor receives "world rights, less several international territories," according to Variety. Erik Davis told us the film's world premiere on Monday night was a hot ticket and that it received shouts and cheers at the conclusion of the screening.

As a fan of the source material -- the novel comes from Fight Club author Chuck Palahnuik -- Erik said he had some issues with it. His review explains: "First-time director Clark Gregg (who also penned the script) decided to turn this adaptation into a straight-up laugher that really works ... some of the time." Erik was mighty impressed with Sam Rockwell's performance as a scheming sexual addict, though he wonders if "casual moviegoers and non-Palahniuk fanboys" will be care. Fox Searchlight now has five million reasons to make them care.

In the other big deal of the moment, Overture Films acquired US rights to comedy/drama Henry Poole is Here for about $3.5 million. Mark Pellington directed; he previously made Arlington Road, The Mothman Prophecies, and a whole bunch of music videos. Henry Poole stars Luke Wilson as a man who believes that he is dying, so he leaves his fiancee and family business to spend his final days alone -- but no one will leave him alone! To repeat an old joke, Overture Films now has three and a half million reasons to hope moviegoers will not, in fact, leave him alone.

There's lots of small casting announcements popping up over the last few days -- some of which might make you oooo, ahhh or possibly convulse in repulsion:

• Back in May, I told you that John Turturro was going to be the Evil Mouse King in the upcoming film, Nutcracker: The Untold Story. Since then, it seems that the name has been changed to Nutcracker: The True Story (I guess they weren't getting enough cred with the untold version), Variety reports that Odyssey Entertainment will take care of international sales and the cast has been completed. When word first came out, Turturro was joined by Nathan Lane and Elle Fanning. Now the list includes the wonderful Richard E. Grant added as Father, and Frances de la Tour added as the Rat Mother/Fraulein Eva.

The Hollywood Reporter also has a slew of casting updates up, check these out:

• Autumn Reeser, Taylor from The OC, has been added to the cast of the much-feared Lost Boys 2: The Tribe. If you remember, this film is going to deal with vampire surfers, and rumor was that both of the Coreys were going to be in it. In a bit of unoriginality, she'll play a girl who moves with her brother to Trinidad, California and is seduced by the leader of the vamp surfers. Can she live up to the likes of Jason Patric and Jami Gertz?
• Jessica Walter, who you might remember as Lucille Bluth* on Arrested Development, is going to play Luke Wilson's mother in the upcoming Henry Poole is Here. The film is about a depressed and terminally-ill man whose life is changed by a miracle -- seeing a stain on the wall that looks like the face of Christ. Jesus shows up in the strangest of places.. I imagine Lucille making the poor guy's life hell, but it seems that this mom is more focused on Wilson's lack of ambition and interest in other people. Anyhow, you can check out more info on the film in our posts here, here and here.
• Rounding things out -- Mark Feuerstein, Mia Wasikowska and Ravil Isyanov have joined Defiance, the Holocaust drama, Lindsey Kraft has signed on to See You in September and Melissa Keller is joining Brian Austin Green in an indie thriller called Breaking Point. (How exciting is that?)

* Good lord, I have no idea how or why my fingers typed "Booth!" Thanks for the catch, dear readers! -MB

To be honest, I can probably count the amount of romantic comedies I've enjoyed on one hand, so, I am probably not the best audience for news on the latest in a what seems like a long line of romcoms starring Luke Wilson. Variety reports that Cheryl Hines -- famous for her turn as the wife of the neurotic Larry David on Curb Your Enthusiasm -- has joined Wilson for Henry Poole is Here. Directed by Mark Pellington, the story centers on "a man who retreats into a life of debauchery, feasting on liquor and fast food, after learning he has only six weeks to live. But his plans go awry thanks to his oddball neighbors." I'll take a wild guess and presume that Hines is on board for a wacky neighbor role -- especially in the wake of positive reviews for her work as a supportive sidekick in the indie film Waitress.

For the most part, Henry Poole sounds like a dark comedy, which is not that far off from Pellington's other upcoming projects; a war drama with Chris Evans, and a story about a violent misanthrope starring Nicholas Cage. The script for Poole was written by Albert Torres, a first time writer, and the cast also includes Radha Mitchell (Melinda and Melinda), which will probably be where the romance comes in, and Adriana Barraza (Babel). Despite Hines' skill with comedy, she has had more than her share of roles in films that really didn't do her justice. I hope Poole, and the upcoming Zak Penn mockumentary The Grand are going to be a better use of her talents.

I apparently like Luke Wilson more than Erik, who recently told us about the actor's role in Henry Poole is Here, but I have to agree that the Vacancy star is at his best when surrounded by a good ensemble. Well, some of the other cast members of Henry Poole have just been announced, and so far it looks like Wilson will be supported well. The first, Radha Mitchell, is actually signed on, while the second, Oscar nominee Adriana Barraza, is still in talks ("advanced" talks). Though neither actress is who I would initially have in mind for a comedy, even one actually described as a dramedy, they are each talented enough for me to have faith in their capability for humorous performances.

Not much is really known about the plot of Henry Poole, which was written by Albert Torres, but a good guess for Mitchell's role is the love interest for Wilson's character. This part could be the fiancee that he breaks up with when he discovers he has six weeks to die, or it could be a new romantic pursuit, possibly one of the neighbors who disrupt his plan to wallow in seclusion for the rest of his short life. Hopefully Barraza will not ruin her Oscar-nominated reputation by appearing as a Mexican stereotype. So far, Henry Poole, which director Mark Pellington says is about a hopeless man who finds hope, makes me think of Joe Vesus the Volcano meets The 'burbs. As great as that combo sounds, though, Wilson is not quite the next Tom Hanks (even if you think Old School is Wilson's Bachelor Party and My Super Ex-Girlfriend is his Splash). Not even I like Wilson enough to give him that much credit.

I've given up trying to understand why Luke Wilson continues to land big starring roles. Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against the guy -- I just don't get him the way others do. That said, we're in luck -- he only has six more months to live. Oh wait, or is it his character that only has six months to live? Yes, Wilson has signed on to star in the dramedy (ooh, perhaps we'll finally see some emotion out of the guy??) Henry Poole Is Here, for Lakeshore Entertainment. Mark Pellington (who you old schoolers might know as the guy that helmed the classic Pearl Jam music video for Jeremy) has been tapped to direct.

Pic, which is based on an original script by Albert Torres, tells of a man (Wilson) who learns he only has six months left to live. Utterly depressed, he leaves his job, his fiancee and his overbearing mother and retreats into suburban isolation, where he finds comfort in pizza, twinkies and vodka -- a fine combination if I may say so myself. That is, until a "so-called miracle transforms his life." And, with help from his quirky neighbors, I imagine the dude has some sort of spiritual awakening. When Wilson is at his best, he usually has a multi-talented ensemble cast surrounding him; thus, allowing his dry, wooden shtick to bounce off someone else's humor. Based on the description here, it appears he'll have plenty of support. Henry Poole Is Here also marks the fourth film that Pellington has teamed with Lakeshore on; The Mothman Prophecies, Arlington Road and Going All the Way (which, actually, was the only other film for Pellington in which comedic elements were present) being the other three.