double feature Tagged Articles at Cinematical

Opinion was divided last week in response to my suggestion that theater hopping be made legal. Most of the commenters thought I was an idiot, while the rest thought I was a Communist. In retrospect, I regret any disturbance I caused to the patrons in the three auditoriums that I visited briefly and illicitly; my apologies to those folks. I see nothing wrong or contradictory, however, with seeking ways to both improve the moviegoing experience and making it a better value for consumers. OK, wandering gangs of cheap, rude theater hoppers is not a popular (or even a good) idea. What, then? Why not bring back double features?

Of all the studios, it's Disney/Pixar that has released the first true double feature in ages: one ticket buys you admission to Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3-D during its limited engagement. Of course, these films already made hundreds of millions of dollars during their original theatrical engagements, plus untold millions from home video releases. Tickets for 3-D movies are also sold at a premium (an extra $3.00 in my area), so making them available for a few weeks as a double feature doesn't present as much of a financial risk for the studio.

Still, it's the thought that counts. Granted, the last time two films were released as a double bill, it didn't turn out so well on the financial side of things.

They don't make double bills like they used to. I got in on the tail end of the double feature, which was a routine practice at second-run theaters until (at least) the early 80s. As a child my parents only took me to see one or two movies per year, so when I got to my teens and realized I could see two movies for the price of one, I became an addict (my all-time favorite double bill: Excalibur and The Howling). Nowadays you have to create your own double feature, and be willing to pay separate admission fees for each movie. Add in the cost of concessions, which is hard to avoid if you're at a theater for more than four hours, and the price can get out of hand.

Multiplexes don't make it easy to watch movies back-to-back, either, staggering their showtimes to maximize the number of screenings per day, accommodate the sharing of film prints in more than one auditorium, and so forth. All that is understandable from their standpoint, and doesn't present a problem if you're only seeing one movie at a time. But when I'm trying to catch up with several releases that I've missed, it gets to be a big challenge. Let me give you an example.

To varying degrees, I wanted to see all three movies that opened in wide release on Friday (G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, Julie & Julia, and A Perfect Getaway), ideally one after the one at the first available opportunity, which, for me, was during the day on Saturday.

Aside from Star Trek, I've been rather unimpressed with the summer of '09 thus far, which is why this weekend couldn't pop up at a better time. Today marks the arrival of two (very different) wide releases, and each one of 'em is better than Wolverine, Angels & Demons, and Terminator 4 combined.

The first flick is, of course, Up, which comes from the stunningly reliable Pixar crew and was just reviewed by our own Jette K. right here. I won't steal her thunder, as her review is quite good, but I will say this: Up is one of the strangest, sweetest, warmest, and funniest animated films I've ever seen. The kiddies will lap up every single frame, obviously, but I suspect the film will strike its strongest chord with the grown-ups of the audience. About as close to perfect as a family film can get, Up is (easily) one of the best movies of the year.

And you just know an animated flick is good if I focus on it before I even get into a new horror movie! From Sam Raimi no less! Yes, after you're done flying high from Up, you're going to adore that sinking feeling once Raimi starts dragging you through his old stomping grounds. Drag Me to Hell is a straightforward but deliciously twisted morality play in which a frantic young woman tries desperately to rid herself of a gypsy curse. It's like a campfire tale combined with one of the better Tales from the Crypt episodes. (Check out the review by Peter M.)

So yeah: For the first weekend in many a month, I offer one simple suggestion: the double feature. Most theater chains offer cheaper tickets for the pre-noon screenings. Start movie one right there and you'll still have plenty of day left with which to go home and watch DVDs. Like a Pixar classic or Evil Dead 2.

Long ago, before the problems with drugs and fights at strip clubs, Jean Claude Van Damme ripped himself out of the fighting world, oiled up his flesh, and became America's Muscles from Brussels. At first, the process was slow and simple -- breaking into the world of film as "Gay Karate Man" in Monaco Forever, being a background performer in Rue barbare, and then getting some uncredited English work as a spectator in that 1984 classic, Breakin'.

But then came No Retreat, No Surrender, where he played a Russian baddie opposite General Hospital and Guiding Light star Kurt McKinney, and the rest was history. He did all he could do in the action realm -- kickboxing revenge, jail, video game flicks, soldier, and even cracking walnuts with his butt.

These days, he's whipped up an insane amount of positive buzz with JCVD and reinvigorated his career. But it all had to start somewhere. As a well-oiled, good-guy ode to that sexy, muscled Belgian, I give you: Bloodsport and Kickboxer.

*Note: In the interest of good matches, I'm leaving off my all-time favorite Van Damme flick, Cyborg, to get its love another day. Gibson will have his moment to shine!

When you live in downtown Toronto, you quickly become accustomed to the people calendar -- when the streets will be silent, and when they'll be buzzing. It starts when school lets out -- young kids hit the playgrounds while the college kids head home and free up the late-night sidewalks. Every third person is now a tourist, stopping every few feet for pictures or to look at a map. On the weekends, the city often becomes a ghost town, as hordes head up north to cottages. But then it's back to school, often marked by the eager new engineers running around the city painted purple.

And just a few days later, they're joined by slick stars and a million press badges as the Toronto International Film Festival gears up. The stars are out, as are the press, the movie lovers, and the eager onlookers. Teeny boppers buzz like packs of bees around the Four Seasons and other Yorkville haunts for a peek at someone famous. It's movies and fans everywhere.

But reviews don't give you a taste of the city, nor do quick glimpses in films like Chicago and Urban Legend. You can see it retro-style with SCTV, but that city is in the past. The best way to get a taste of Toronto without being here is through Canadian filmmaker Don McKellar. Between the films he's directed and those he's acted in, you can get many tastes of this town, from exotic women to last nights on Earth. In honor of the fest, and of the wonderful T-Dot, I offer you: Childstar and Monkey Warfare.

Buddy films. They're an interesting breed of cinema. Instead of finding success in a niche, they appeal to the masses. With buddy flicks, you're served a variety of time periods, races, genres, laughs, and scenarios. If one doesn't appeal, the next is sure to come -- all tapping into the goodness of friendship and camaraderie.

And snuggled nicely into that sector of cinema are the buddy cops. They've made the careers of a few big stars, like Mel Gibson and Eddie Murphy. But I don't want to give you something quite so obvious as Beverly Hills Cop or Leathal Weapon. Since this is all due to my recent purchase of Hot Fuzz, I give you that plus an ol' '80s classic -- Running Scared.

I have a confession to make. I used to be a rabid fangirl of Quentin Tarantino -- so much so that I went all sorts of nuts when introduced to my first college poster sale. My poor roommate ... she had to deal with one half of a room adorned with posters of John Travolta, Tim Roth, Samuel L. Jackson, and more. My guns and bad guys were balanced by her posters of funky black and white photos and art prints.

It wasn't that I was a huge fan of ultra-violent films; I just couldn't get enough of a film laden with insanely catchy conversations and even catchier music. I especially loved Pumpkin, and Honey Bunny. So, in honor of bad girls and guys who love each other while wreaking havoc on the world, I give you two Tarantino flicks from 1994 -- Pulp Fiction and Natural Born Killers. (Well, to be fair -- he disowned the latter, but he's still a part of it.)

This is Tarantino we're talking about, so these clips might not be suitable for wee young things and work environments.

This is the perfect time for a road trip -- the sun is high in the sky, the weather is warm, and the roads are clear. But alas, the responsibilities of adulthood and busy scheduling don't always make the open road a viable option. Luckily, however, there's always the movies -- a million different cinematic road adventures to explore.

For this double feature, I'm giving you a little taste of the '90s and then a little taste of the '80s. One is a feature that helped start the careers of two notable actors, and spawned a terrible copy-cat film with Tom Green. The other made soft, warm pillows seem like more than just a wonderfully relaxing safe haven. Sit back and enjoy Overnight Delivery and Planes, Trains, and Automobiles.

I discovered Eric Roberts through Nobody's Fool. He played Riley, a stage technician who falls for the wacky but lovable Cassie (Rosanna Arquette). It's one of those flawed movies that's perfectly enjoyable when watched with the comfortable eyes of nostalgia -- it's not the greatest feat of filmmaking by far, but it's a movie of memories and awkward '80s charm. Watching that, Mr. Roberts became my movie hero.

Yesterday, the world belonged to sister Julia, and today it belongs to daughter Emma, but for some of us, it's always been Eric's world. Over the many years of acting, he's amassed controversy, critical feats, and brow-raising stinkers, bringing us a long selection of roles that should always stay on the radar. Tonight, I want to give you a taste of his accomplishments, as well as a little bit of heroics, because these days, he's like the wonderful Christopher Walken -- mostly pigeon-holed into the tough, meanie, or jerky roles. Without further ado, I give you: The Pope of Greenwich Village and The Best of the Best.

Right off the bat, I must say: While I love music in film, I don't like most of the musicals out there. Try as I might, most just inspire me to daydream through the musical numbers. But those that capture me, I adore. I never get tired of the rapid wordplay from Pirates of Penzance. I love most of the music in Moulin Rouge -- especially the inclusions of Lamb's "Gorecki." If it's done right, I'm a fan forever (Evil Dead: The Musical).

Surprisingly enough, there are two films that came out in the last year that I really dug, even though they really didn't hit the mark with fans. They came, they danced, they crooned, and they fell flat. I sat down to watch both of these expecting disappointment, and in one case, I was digging it from the first minute, and the other, I just couldn't stop giggling. In a very brief journey back in time, I give you: Across the Universe and Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story.