kristen wiig Tagged Articles at Cinematical

It's no Citizen Kane. It's not meant to win awards. I watch movies to enjoy them. These standbys are frequently trotted out before us fuddy-duddy critics whenever we decide that a movie ostensibly meant to be two hours of pure mindless fun simply isn't very good at doing just that. More often than not, it seems that films are championed for their laziness, their relentless adherence to formula, and rarely do these formulas serve a story that's worth more than the sum of its beats. School of Rock managed to work wonders with its wholly predictable plot; I'd vouch for Fever Pitch in much the same way. And joining their ranks of surprisingly satisfying comedies is Drew Barrymore's directorial debut, Whip It, a coming-of-age tale fused with an underdog sports story that hits all the expected developments with unexpected personality and grace.

The above is not much, but it's enough to start the impatient and eager anticipation for Paul. You know, the alien comedy that's reuniting Simon Pegg and Nick Frost; the one that will hopefully be a cross between the brilliance of Spaced and the comedic awesomeness of Hot Fuzz. The image, which you can see in all shapes and sizes over at Collider, is a photo of a poster hanging up on Stage 41 at Hollywood's Universal Studios.

From left to right, we've got Blythe Danner screaming in a granny dress, Pegg rockin' an Empire Strikes Back t-shirt, Frost with the boom stick, and Kristen Wiig running to catch up. One can only guess that they're facing an alien or government invasion. As we already know, the comedy centers on Pegg and Frost's science fiction geeks who, after going to a comic-con, decide to make a pilgrimage to Area 51 -- the notorious alien hotspot in Nevada. On their journey, the end up running into a real alien named Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen).

Does the image whet your scifi comedy tastebuds, and make you want to go back and rewatch all of Spaced until the movie hits in 2010? (If, of course, you're not already doing just that in honor of the show's tenth anniversary.)

The latest comedy from Mike Judge, Extract, seems at first to be more conventional than his previous films, Office Space and Idiocracy. However, as the story becomes more complicated, its characters show hidden depths and the plot provides the type of bizarrely comic situations we've come to expect from the writer-director of Beavis and Butt-Head and King of the Hill.

The movie focuses on Joel (Jason Bateman), who owns a small extract factory in southern California. He and his wife Suzie (Kristen Wiig) are having trouble maintaining interest in one another, and he's considering the possibility of an affair. His potential lover is the mysterious Cindy (Mila Kunis), who has just arrived to work at the plant as a temp, but who is really a seasoned con artist with some other payoffs in mind. Joel confides in his bartender friend Dean (Ben Affleck), who tends to recommend medication for everything, legal or not. However, his suggestion about what Joel can do to not feel guilty about having an affair involves not pot or pills, but a trap for Suzie.

Following a packed advance screening of Extract, the new comedy by Mike Judge, in Dallas, Texas last night, the writer / filmmaker / animator was asked about his previous effort, Idiocracy. He admitted his disappointment that the film was so little publicized for its limited theatrical release three years ago: "When it opened in, like eight cities, someone told me that you couldn't look it up on Moviefone under its title," he related. "[The studio] didn't even want to pay the eight bucks or whatever to get a listing, so you had to search for 'Untitled Mike Judge Film' to find out where it was playing." Our own Jette Kernion wrote about the lack of publicity at the time.

Fortunately, Judge noted that Idiocracy has sold well on DVD, and Extract should be much easier to find when it opens on Friday, September 4. If I describe it as Judge's best work so far, it's not because he's "grown up" or "become more mature"; the film features some of his darkest comedy yet. Extract is very much a part of the Mike Judge Universe, where decent men enjoy working for a living but dream of escaping some day (Jason Bateman), where good women sometimes go bad (Kristen Wiig, Mila Kunis), and where most everyone is good-hearted but dumber than a pet rock (Ben Affleck, J.K. Simmons, Clifton Collins, Jr.). In other words, Extract is another funny, unpredictable comedy featuring recognizable, everyday people, like the guy who's sleeping on your couch right now, drinking two-liter bottles of Pepsi and watching TV all day.

More tidbits from the Q&A after the jump.

Above: An exclusive image from Mike Judge's upcoming comedy Extract

Everyone loves a free movie ticket, right? Well what about a free ticket to a red carpet premiere in Los Angeles? We here at Cinematical are hella excited to be a part of this particular contest, because not only are we big Mike Judge fans, we're also really looking forward to seeing his new film, Extract, which officially hits theaters on September 4th. But why wait in line on September 4th with all the other weird, smelly locals when you can attend the red carpet premiere of the film alongside its stars on August 24th at the famed Arclight Theater in LA.

That's right, Cinematical has 10 pairs of tickets to give away for the Los Angeles premiere of Mike Judge's (Office Space) new comedy Extract, starring Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, Ben Affleck, Kristen Wiig and J.K. Simmons, and, like with all our ticket contests, all you have to do is leave a comment letting us know why you'd like to attend the Extract premiere on August 24th and we'll randomly pick 10 winners to attend along with a guest of their choice.

Now, you must leave your comment by Monday, August 17th at 12pm EST, and Cinematical will not be responsible for transportation to and from the theater -- which also means you need to live in or around the Los Angeles area in order to attend.

Head after the jump to watch the film's trailer and read the official rules for this contest ... then sound off below.

Cinematical has just received these exclusive stills from Mike Judge's upcoming comedy Extract, starring Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, Ben Affleck, Clifton Collins Jr., J.K. Simmons and Kristen Wiig. Similar to what Judge did with Office Space, Extract once again plops us right in the middle of the workplace; this time at an Extract plant where its owner, Joel (Bateman), is trying to balance a whole bunch of personal and professional problems, including an unfaithful wife (Wiig) and strange employees. I love Judge's random sense of humor, the first trailer for the film was pretty hilarious and it's nice to see the writer-director back on the big screen making us laugh with a studio counterpart who's willing to promote the heck out of his new flick.

Those of you heading out to Comic Con next week can get a more advanced look at some of the film at the official Extract panel on Saturday at 1:30pm in Hall H, with Mike Judge, Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis (mmmm, Mila ...) and Kristen Wiig all in attendance. The rest of you will have to wait until the film hits theaters on September 4.

Check out the four exclusive images below.

Call it Juno on Wheels. The first image of Ellen Page in the upcoming roller derby flick Whip It has been released, showing her strapped into a girl scout uniform as she skates around a track with Drew Barrymore and Kristen Wiig. The photo above, and several others, can be viewed at USA Today (additionally, check out two extra images below)

The film represents Barrymore's directorial debut. Page stars as 17-year-old Bliss Cavendar, who is tired of competing in beauty pageants at the insistence of her mother (Marcia Gay Harden). She rebels by joining the Hurl Scouts, a women's roller derby team in Austin, Texas, and finds her true calling -- or, at least, a good place to unleash some pent-up aggression. Barrymore skates with the Scouts, as does Saturday Night Live's Wiig and the great Zoe Bell (Death Proof). Juliette Lewis is described as the villain of the piece, an opposing player determined to defeat Page and the Scouts, and the players all have cool nicknames: Smashley Simpson, Maggie Mayhem, Bloody Holly, and so forth.

As Jenni Miller advised, Fox Searchlight will distribute the film, which is set for release on October 9. Roller derby vet Shauna Cross (AKA Maggie Mayhem) wrote the screenplay, based on her own novel, Derby Girl. A very good doc about the Austin roller derby scene, Hell on Wheels, is available to view at SnagFilms (we also embedded it after the jump), and if Whip It can approach that real-life excitement, it could break out of the fall pack. Since nicknames are de rigeur for roller derby players, what nickname will you choose if you decide to see Ellen Page Whip It?

Yeah, Mark Wahlberg has come a long way since his Marky Mark days. In fact, if there is anyone that the young and cherubic pop icons should try to emulate, it's him. Wrenching your way out of your niche is one thing. Moving from a good, vibrating, spunky underwear model to notable big-screen name -- that takes talent. But these days, that's talent has been squeezed into the serious with no room left for laughs.

Until now. Five years after his Huckabees angst, The Hollywood Reporter posts that Wahlberg is signing on to 20th Century Fox's upcoming comedy, Date Night. In fact, this will be his first all-out mainstream comedy, setting aside existential detectives and Middle-East action laughs. Date Night follows a couple who go out for dinner and a movie, and then get mistaken as other people -- that leads to, one would assume, comic moments.

As Eric pointed out when the news first hit last year that Steve Carell and Tina Fey joined the project -- it's getting directed by Cheaper by the Dozen helmer Shawn Levy, which doesn't bode well. But the cast certainly does. Fey and Carell are the couple, while Wahlberg will play a black ops man in private security who offers to help them. But there's more. James Franco somehow found time in his schedule to sign on and play a "dim con man," the Oscar-nominated Taraji P. Henson will play a cop who doesn't take things at face value, Common and Jimmi Simpson will play detectives on the take, Leighton Meester will play the couple's babysitter, and Kristen Wiig will play Fey's best friend.

Could all of these names have signed on if this was going to be like other Levy features? Maybe he's ready to surprise us.

Cinematical is absolutely, positively pumped up to be bringing you the debut teaser trailer for Mike Judge's Extract, starring Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, Ben Affleck, Kristen Wiig and J.K. Simmons. I'm a huge Judge fan; been following the dude since way back during his Beavis and Butthead days, and haven't really disliked anything he's put out. Folks have told me that Extract finds the writer-director returning to his Office Space-ish humor, and this teaser definitely shows some signs of that -- from the workplace mishaps to our hero's random romantic woes, classic Judge hilarity is watermarked all over this sucker.

Extract follows the personal and professional problems endured by the owner (Bateman) of a flower-extract plant, including a wife who won't sleep with him, a new hottie temp and ... Ben Affleck as a major stoner? Believe it. I think it's safe to say Judd Apatow's Funny People now has some serious competition when it comes to funniest film of the summer because this little sucker just shot up to numero uno on my anticipation list. What about you? Check out the trailer below and let us know what you think. Extract hits theaters on September 4.