blind date Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Indie Spotlight: New Releases for Sept. 25
Filed under: Comedy », Documentary », Drama », Foreign Language », Horror », Independent », New Releases », Columns », Indie Spotlight »
Here's a quick look at what's opening in limited release this weekend. If they're not playing where you live, keep an eye out as they make the rounds. And if all else fails, there's always DVD....Paranormal Activity (pictured) is finally coming to theaters after premiering two years ago at Screamfest. It's a simple horror concept: married couple believes their house is haunted; sets up camera to film the things that go bump in the night; pants-wetting ensues. Cinematical's Kim Voynar was terrified by it when she caught it at Slamdance 2008, and our Eugene Novikov was similarly enthralled at Telluride this year. At Rotten Tomatoes, all but one of the reviews are similarly positive. Hooray for low-budget indie thrillers! Now playing in Seattle, Boulder, Tucson, Baton Rouge, Columbus, Orlando, Ann Arbor, Madison, Wis., and Santa Cruz, Calif.
The Boys Are Back stars Clive Owen as a newly widowed father of two boys. It's directed by Scott Hicks, who made Shine and Hearts in Atlantis. Cinematical's Monika Bartyzel had praise for the film when it premiered at Toronto, saying it's occasionally great and often very sweet. At Rotten Tomatoes, 64% of the reviews are positive -- not a smash, but very solid. Playing in New York and L.A.
I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell is based on douchebag-and-proud-of-it Tucker Max's memoirs detailing his escapades as a carousing womanizer and general tool. Matt Czuchry plays Max in the film, which takes the form of a road-trip buddy comedy. Now playing in about 120 theaters nationwide. Only 22% of the reviews so far are positive, with most critics calling it juvenile, derivative, and unfunny.
Cinematical Seven: Worst First Dates on Film
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », Cinematical Seven », Lists »
If you've ever had a bad first date -- and in the age of internet match-ups, it's all the more likely you've had at least a disappointing one -- you're not alone. Thanks to the awkwardness of getting to know somebody, and the nervousness that comes with that, it's a wonder any of us ever have good first dates. But as much as we end up fixating on the failure of a single bad date, we must remember that it's a part of life and has been since the dawn of man, when Adam had to deal with Eve ordering the forbidden item on the menu. Also, we must realize that it's all relative and there's always a worse date out there than the worst we've ever had. Often (and especially because it's Valentine's Day this Thursday), it's a good idea to look to the movies, and compare our worst first date to the worst first dates in cinema:
License to Drive (1988)
Imagine you're all set to get your driver's license, and the hottest girl in school has agreed to go out with you the night you pass the exam. But you don't pass the exam. Then you steal your grandpa's car. Then your date drinks too much and passes out for the rest of the night. Oh, and it only gets worse from there. License to Drive is just one of many films that shows us that a first date can be a crazy mix of Murphy's Law and the snowball effect. Also, like many comedies, it teaches us that an automobile can be destroyed many times over, and that it might be best if our first time driving, as well as our first time dating, be with a car that has little value.
Sundance Review: Blind Date
Filed under: Drama », Sundance », Theatrical Reviews », Remakes and Sequels »
If you're a big fan of Stanley Tucci and Patricia Clarkson, then I have some potentially good news: the actors' latest film consists of little more than the two of them ... sitting in a bar ... talking ... for about 80 minutes. And since these are a pair of exceedingly fine actors, the experience of Blind Date is not what you'd call unpleasant -- but it sure isn't all that exciting.
Based on the 1996 Theo Van Gogh film of the same name, Blind Date is about an estranged married couple who, despite clearly loving one another, have all sorts of painful problems to work through. To that end, the couple stage a series of "blind dates" at the husband's seedy lounge -- most of which don't go off all that well. Toss in a clueless bartender who pops up every once in a while, and that's the long and short of Blind Date -- two great actors trying to breathe some life into a premise that begins as simplistically "symbolic," and gets progressively less subtle as the film moves forward.
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