jemaine clement Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Exclusive 'Gentlemen Broncos' Behind the Scenes Clip
Filed under: Action », Comedy », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Fandom », Fox Searchlight », Fantastic Fest », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Trailers and Clips »
Those lucky ducks at Fantastic Fest got to peep many weird and fabulous films, not the least of which is Gentlemen Broncos. The movie, which is directed by Jared Hess of Napoleon Dynamite fame, stars the always-dreamy Jemaine Clement from Flight of the Concords as an utterly ludicrous author who steals a book manuscript from a dorky teen, played by Michael Angarano. Sam Rockwell has two parts in Broncos -- one as a super-hairy superhero with a bald ladylove and one as a sort of, uh, tranny Captain Kangaroo. In this exclusive clip, Sam, in all his hairy glory, tries to explain why you can't look tough while drinking a smoothie. It's also really hard to drink a smoothie with a giant beard, as you'll see after the jump.
As Peter Hall wrote in his Fantastic Fest review of Broncos, "there is no denying, though, that seeing Sam Rockwell ride a fake deer shooting rockets out of all its orifices is the answer to a dream I never realized I had."
Me too, Peter. Me too.
Watch the video after the jump.
Fantastic Fest Interview: Jemaine Clement from 'Gentlemen Broncos'
Filed under: Comedy », Fantastic Fest », Interviews »
Jemaine Clement is probably best known to people as half of Flight of the Conchords, the "4th most popular digi-folk paradists in New Zealand." They founded the group back in 1998, but came to worldwide fame recently when it was turned into an HBO television series. Or, if you're an indie film buff, you might have seen him in Eagle vs. Shark from Sundance back in 2007. Or barring that, maybe you're a couch television surfer and caught him in his series of Outback Steakhouse commercials.
He'll be seen again in Jared Hess' followup to Nacho Libre and Napoleon Dynamite, Gentlemen Broncos. In it, he plays the pretentious and self-centered science fiction writer Dr. Ronald Chevalier, and honestly, he's the best thing about the movie. If they make a feature-length documentary following Chevalier on a book tour around the nation for as a DVD extra, I'll buy it. You can catch some of his magic online, where he's done a series of viral videos in character as Chevalier, and they are hilarious.
We caught up with Clement after Gentlemen Broncos screened at Fantastic Fest, and you can read the full interview beyond the break.
Live from Fantastic Fest: Opening Night Red Carpet
Filed under: Comedy », Fox Searchlight », Fantastic Fest »
Last night, Fantastic Fest got underway in Austin with the world premiere screening of Gentlemen Broncos, the latest comedy from director Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite). Although most of the movies at this genre film festival screen at the Alamo Drafthouse, the festival has expanded to bring premieres to the larger Paramount Theatre downtown, which could hold all the fest attendees plus just about anyone who wanted to buy a ticket. Judging from the crowds outside and in the theater, it was a fairly full house.
Cast and crew from Gentlemen Broncos arrived in Austin for a red carpet event before the film, and a Q&A afterwards. Not only that, but Jemaine Clement (The Flight of the Conchords) appeared onstage before the film started, in character as renowned science-fiction author Dr. Ronald Chevalier, to read some science-fiction haikus.
I was lucky enough to take the above photo on the red carpet when the Gentlemen Broncos actors and filmmakers were all in one spot. From left to right: Sam Rockwell, co-writer Jerusha Hess, director/co-writer Jared Hess, Mike White, Jemaine Clement and Michael Angarano. Check out Peter Hall's review of the film..
Fantastic Fest Review: Gentlemen Broncos
Filed under: Comedy », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Theatrical Reviews », Fox Searchlight », Fantastic Fest », Comic/Superhero/Geek »
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Quirkiness only carries so far. Napoleon Dynamite, the film that ushered in the career of Gentlemen Broncos director Jared Hess, is enjoyable because it cherishes the nervous twitches of puberty, identity crisis, and the weird kind of people who worship at Walmart strip malls. The director embraced his small-town roots to assemble a film in love with those who don't have any station in life, who have no big conflict in their mundane lives, and who have no particularly interesting story to tell, either. Hess' latest film, on the other hand, does have an interesting story to tell and it does have a three-act conventional conflict, but it barrels past being quirky into the weird-for-weird's-sake hinterland of comedy where subtlety is abolished in favor of broad, hit-and-miss gags.
Gentlemen Broncos could have been great. It's about a teenage boy (Michael Angarano) whose fantasy novel featuring an underdog hero on a nonsensical planet (Sam Rockwell) is stolen by not only his washed-up hero author (Jemaine Clement) at a crash-course writing camp, but two insufferable "friends" who want to turn the story into their cinematic gateway to Hollywood. The film often wanders out of the real-world of poor Benjamin's unenviable life and into the entertaining fantasy world of his childish writings, but for the most part it feels as directionless as the confused boy we're supposed to be rooting for.
Get Gun Practice With 'Gentlemen Broncos'
Filed under: Comedy », Independent », Fandom », 20th Century Fox », DIY/Filmmaking », Movie Marketing », Fantastic Fest », Trailers and Clips »
I've only been following Gentlemen Broncos from afar, and by that I mean it was on my "Sam Rockwell is in that so I'll see it sometime" list. Until today, I'm ashamed to say I didn't even know what it was about, or that it also features the sexy Kiwi known as Jemaine Clement. But Gordon and the Whale landed an exclusive behind-the-scenes video from Broncos, and it's so random and funny that I'm now going to obsess about this film for the rest of October. Especially because of Clement. I'm not over the loss of Flight of the Conchords just yet.
If you're as behind as I am, here's the official synopsis: "Benjamin, home-schooled by his eccentric mother, is a lovable loner whose passion for writing leads him on an offbeat and hilarious journey as his story gets ripped off by the legendary novelist Ronald Chevalier and then is adapted into a disastrous movie by the small town's most prolific homespun filmmaker." Sounds good, doesn't it?
This is video #7, and videos 1 through 6 are available on the film's official site. I don't know if they're all this funny, but I do know that you will find no better way to spend five minutes today. Watching Rockwell do anything is a blast, but toss in a ridiculous wig and a dubious activity known as "ray gun practice," and you can thank your lucky stars that the Internet was invented so we could while away our time with such footage. Gentlemen Broncos hits theaters on October 30. Those lucky punks going to Fantastic Fest this year will see it sooner. The video is below the jump. Be sure to visit Gordon and the Whale and say something nice, because they're good people.
First Wave of Fantastic Fest Films Announced
Filed under: Action », Comedy », Horror », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Fantastic Fest », Comic/Superhero/Geek »
If you're one of the people who reads reports coming out of film festivals like Sundance and Berlin and thinks "Gee, those movies all sound like a bunch of high-falutin' talking head pieces that'll bore me to tears," then you really need to get your self to Austin, Texas this September for Fantastic Fest. If you're a film lover who enjoys the weird, the esoteric, and the bizarre, then this festival was made for you. They've just announced the first wave of features that will be screening and if you're not a believer yet, just check out this description of Robo Geisha:
"This geisha army can transform into tanks, their nipples can squirt acid or propel rapid-fire bullets, their mouths can contain chainsaws or frog-tongue samurai swords and they are aided by a giant shinto temple robot. The war of the Geishas is beginning, and I'm getting a front row seat!"
Need more proof? Director Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite) is opening the festival with his film Gentlemen Broncos, starring Jemaine Clement of Flight of the Conchords fame. Still need more? Head beyond the jump for the full list, and check out even more on their website. Badges are still available for you brave ones out there.
Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Kristen Wiig & More are 'Despicable'
Filed under: Animation », Casting », Family Films »
If you rue the era that canned voice actors for big celebrities, you might not like this bit of news, but if you love big, star-calibre cast lists, you might like this:Variety reports that Steve Carell has signed on for a new 3D CG-animated film called Despicable Me, from Horton Hears a Who scribes Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio. But he's just the tip of the iceberg. The rest of the voice cast includes: Jason Segel, Kristen Wiig, Will Arnett, Danny McBride, Russell Brand, Jemaine Clement, Jack McBrayer, and Julie Andrews.
Carell will voice the title character, a "deplorable man" named Groo who "masterminds the mother of all heists when he plots to steal the moon." Since his evil mother (Andrews without a spoon full of sugar) is egging him on, there's only one obstacle between him and the big cheese chunk in the sky -- three orhpaned girls who he has to temporarily take care of, who won't leave. I guess he never read Papa, please get the moon for me.
There's no word on how the other names will come into play, nor who will voice the three moon-saving girls. Nevertheless, this sounds like it could be an incredibly cute film. Unfortunately, we have a while to wait for this -- the film is currently scheduled for release in 2010.
'Gentlemen Broncos' Begins Its Viral Campaign
Filed under: Comedy », 20th Century Fox », Movie Marketing »
Although it doesn't open until next year, it appears that the viral marketing machine is already cranking away in the name of Gentlemen Broncos, with the appearance of this thorough website for the film's antagonist, Cluster Award-winning author Dr. Ronald Chevalier (Jemaine Clement, perhaps better known as one-half of New Zealand's fourth most popular folk parody duo, Flight of the Conchords).
In the provided videos and audio snippets, Clement portrays Chevalier as a third-rate Orson Scott Card with the voice of Orson Welles, and I've little trouble believing that he would both fit into the eccentric world of filmmaker Jared Hess (Napoleon Dynamite, Nacho Libre) and lift a story from a young fan (Michael Angarano) out of desperation.
Also starring Sam Rockwell and Jennifer Coolidge, Broncos is currently in post-production, but given the rough timetable and unique pedigree at play, I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if we finally find out what the title means come Sundance next January ...
[Thanks to Matt Dentler for the heads-up.]
Sam Rockwell is a 'Gentleman Bronco'
Filed under: Comedy », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Casting »
Things certainly seem to be moving quickly for Gentlemen Broncos. Five days ago, Patrick had first broke the news on the follow-up project for Napoleon Dynamite and Nacho Libre creator Jared Hess. Now, The Hollywood Reporter has already announced that Sam Rockwell has signed to star along side Flight of the Conchords creator Jermaine Clement for the teen comedy. The story centers on a teen fantasy novelist who has his story ripped off by his idol at a writer's camp. Michael Angarano (Lords of Dogtown) will play the teen that comes up with the fantasy story with the unfortunate title of Yeast Lords.Rockwell will play the fictional character in the story and there will be some "book-come-to-life sequences under two guises: one in the teen's story and one in the author's story". Well, if anybody can pull it off, it would be Rockwell -- the man has a knack for playing some of the most diverse characters without breaking a sweat. If you don't believe me, take an afternoon and watch The Green Mile and then Confessions of a Dangerous Mind and tell me those are two pretty impressive ends of the spectrum.
The script was written by the husband and wife team of Jared and Jerusha Hess, and will be produced Mike White and Ben LeClair. Both White and LeClair worked with Hess before on Nacho Libre. So it looks like Patrick's prediction came true and the cast is going to be an 'indie' affair, but with the addition of Rockwell and Clement there's just a smidgen more of 'hipster' cred. Gentlemen Broncos is scheduled to start production this March and arrive in theaters some time in 2009.
Sundance Review: Eagle vs. Shark
Filed under: Comedy », Independent », Romance », Sundance », Theatrical Reviews », Miramax », Cinematical Indie »
If I described a film as "Napoleon Dynamite meets When Harry Met Sally," would that be enough to pique your interest? How about if I added that it was an oddball and off-kilter little indie from the fine folks down in New Zealand; would that make the idea seem more palatable? Well, to be honest, if you threw those descriptions at me as I was sitting down to watch Eagle vs. Shark, I'd probably roll my eyes, stifle a sigh and prepare myself for a film as familiar as it is unnecessary.
But like I always say: That's why we watch the movies. Because despite some over-quirky trappings and a fairly familiar sense of weird humor, Eagle vs. Shark is (in some ways) even better than Napoleon Dynamite -- the film which Eagle vs. Shark will be compared with most frequently. (I definitely enjoyed Napoleon, but it seemed to harbor a mild contempt for its characters, whereas Eagle most definitely does not.) Both films are set in exotically bland locales that are populated by humorously askew denizens who spew some seriously arcane conversations at one another. But there's a real sense of sweetness to this Kiwi import that elevates it beyond many of its ilk -- and the actors are really good.
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