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First, he gets a mainstream comic actor to act in a contemplative art house narrative with Punch-Drunk Love. Now, he's putting two of them on a stage. According to cigarettes and red vines, Paul Thomas Anderson has written and directed a play in Los Angeles with Saturday Night Live stars Maya Rudolph (Anderson's partner) and Fred Armisen. It premieres at the Largo on August 5, but specific details about plot remain unrevealed. Still, the prospects of seeing Anderson's eerily detached style in a live performance are intriguing, to say the least. As Slashfilm points out, the production has a few logical attachments to the filmmaker's past: Anderson directed a short film for SNL back in 2000, and Rudolph starred in Robert Altman's A Prairie Home Companion, which Anderson may or may not have ghost-directed in parts.

Now that Anderson has proven he can craft epic period pieces of the raunchy (Boogie Nights) and morose (There Will Be Blood) kind, he's reached a point where audiences will basically allow him to take them wherever he wants to go. The dynamics of the stage, however, differ greatly from those of the cinema. Since the name and subject matter are a mystery, there's a lot left to the imagination. Will Anderson allow Rudolph and Armisen to unleash their comic potential? Or is that a milkshake I hear brewing?

When it comes to sifting through all actors responsible for portraying the most powerful man on the planet, there's no shortage of options. John Travolta did a great Bill Clinton impersonation in Primary Colors and Timothy Bottoms delivered a near-perfect imitation of George W. Bush in both D.C. 9/11: Time of Crisis and That's My Bush! Neither one comes across as particularly flattering, so presidential nominee Barack Obama has chosen a safer bet: At a recent party in Los Angeles, Obama revealed that he prefers Jeff Bridges' conflicted commander-in-chief in The Contender. Granted, he may have said this simply to keep his audience happy -- in this case, Contender director Rod Lurie, one of the attendees who was willing to plop down $28,000 for the event. "'I just plugged your movie," Obama told Lurie, according to a report the director sent to Hollywood Elsewhere's Jeffrey Wells.

Still, when you're under the kind of intense scrutiny that Obama currently endures, Bridges actually seems like a pretty safe choice. Choose Anthony Hopkins in Nixon and it sounds like you're endorsing the bad guy. Choose Kevin Kline in Dave and you come across as disingenuous. Choose Peter Sellers in Dr. Strangelove and somebody will call you incompetent. Bridges, on the other hand, plays a fierce leader bound to his moral convictions. Of course, Obama also expressed sympathy over Lurie's short-lived television show Commander-in-Chief, which featured Geena Davis as the first woman president. Perhaps it's no coincidence that he and Hillary have publicly made amends.

Starting tonight and running through December 17th, Edgar Wright is taking control of the New Beverly Cinema in Los Angeles. Wright, director of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz, is programming a festival of his favorite movies, and it's a wonderful and eclectic bunch. He's calling the fest "The Wright Stuff," (also the name of a universally beloved screenwriting column on this very site), and he will be on hand to introduce several screenings with special guests. As always at the New Beverly, one of Los Angeles' absolute treasures, every screening is a double feature.

I'll just tell you about the screenings with special guests, all of which start at 7:30. But don't forget to check the website for all show dates and times. Tonight, Edgar and songwriter Paul Williams will kick off the event with two musicals -- Bugsy Malone and Brian DePalma's Phantom of the Paradise. December 5th, the first feature is Flash Gordon, with special guest (and ex-Bond) Timothy Dalton. The second feature is Mario Bava's Danger Diabolik, introduced by Edgar and the great Joe Dante. On December 7th, Edgar will introduce The Last Boy Scout and Kiss Kiss Bang Bang with one of the finest action screenplay writers of our time -- Shane Black. December 10 is John Landis' An American Werewolf in London and Tremors (which I spouted my love for here). Landis will help Wright introduce his film. December 12th is Top Secret! (almost as funny as Airplane and The Naked Gun, in my opinion) and Woody Allen's Bananas, with David Zucker on hand. December 14th is the Roger Ebert - penned Beyond the Valley of the Dolls, and Head, hosted by Wright and Micky Dolenz of The Monkees. And on December 16th, Wright will introduce Evil Dead 2 and an all time favorite of mine -- the Coen Brothers' Raising Arizona.

Here is a press release from Edgar with his thoughts on the included films. If you live in the Los Angeles area, there's really no excuse to miss this. See you there!

Michael Bay's Transformers hits DVD today (check out our review), and Paramount is celebrating by turning one of the film's stars loose in Los Angeles. No, unfortunately it's not Megan Fox. Standing at the West Hollywood Gateway shopping center (at the intersection of Santa Monica Boulevard and La Brea), surrounded by shops like Target and Jamba Juice, stands Bumblebee. It's an actual prop from the film, it stands 18 feet tall, and it weighs 8,200 pounds. The robot had to be assembled and set up by a forklift and a ten-ton crane. Bumblebee will be standing guard there through this Sunday, October 21st.

I went over this morning to snap some pictures. As I rounded the corner, I was expecting a madhouse -- people pointing to the skies and screaming, running in terror, etc. Or at least, y'know, looking in its general direction! But then I remembered I was in West Hollywood. You need more than an 18 foot-tall robot to stand out in West Hollywood. I could have strolled through the shopping center buck naked and juggling infants, and still wouldn't have been given a second look. Transvestites, Transsexuals, Transformers, it's just another day in Hollywood. Still, I thought the display was pretty sweet, and snapped some photographs for those of you who can't make it to L.A. Check 'em out, won't you?

Side note -- while picking up the new Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers DVD at the Best Buy there, I bumped into none other than actor Peter Weller! Was he just picking up some headphones...or was he there to pitch a Robocop Vs. Transformers flick to Bumblebee? I report, you decide.

I live a ten minute walk from the Arclight Cinema in Los Angeles, easily one of the best movie theaters in the country. The American Film Institute hosts awesome screenings of new and classic films there weekly, and I try to see as many as I can. Just last week, I enjoyed the new Michael Douglas flick King of California, which was followed by an enlightening talk with the movie's writer and director -- Mike Cahill. Neat, right? But nothing could prepare me for the event that hit my inbox just now. Had I been a cartoon character, my bow tie would have spun around rapidly and smoke would have blasted out of my ears. Readers, if you live in Los Angeles -- KEEP OCTOBER 3RD FREE!

The AFI is celebrating its 40th anniversary with an almost unbelievably cool event. On October 3rd, they will screen eleven classic movies at the Arclight, all at the same time. But what truly sets this event apart are the people they've booked to host the screenings. Check this lineup out, and try to keep your jaw attached to your face: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, presented by Jack Nicholson. Spartacus, presented by Kirk Douglas. The Birds, presented by Tippi Hedren. The Sound of Music, presented by Julie Andrews. Bonnie and Clyde, presented by Warren Beatty. Rocky, presented by Sylvester Stallone. Star Wars, presented by George Lucas (settle down!). When Harry Met Sally, presented by Rob Reiner and Billy Crystal. Beauty and the Beast, presented by Angela Lansbury. The Shawshank Redemption, presented by Morgan Freeman. And Unforgiven, presented by Clint Eastwood. Um...wow. Just wow.

Here is the official site for the event. Tickets go on sale September 19th. which is this Wednesday. Tickets are $25, and include popcorn and soda. The first 100 people to show up for each screening get a 40th Anniversary AFI Book. Dress is "festive attire," all screenings begin at 7PM, and doors are at 5:30. For you non-Angelinos, which screening would you choose if you could go? And if you plan on attending, which one are you going to? I'll be at either Unforgiven or One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest for sure. Both movies are in my personal top ten, and where else am I going to be up close and personal with Jack Freaking Nicholson or Clint Freaking Eastwood? This is going to be a tough choice! See you there?

Welcome to The (Mostly) Indie Film Calendar. Each week, we'll give you a round-up of what's going on in indie film (and sometimes just cool film news and screenings) in cities near you. If you know of cool stuff happening that's related to film -- a local fest, a series of classic restored films, lectures, workshops, open calls for casting of an indie film -- send your tips to me at kim(at)cinematical(dot)com and we'll add them to the calendar.

Here are this week's happenings in film from New York to LA and points in between ...

New York City: This weekend brings New Yorks the Independent Features Film Festival at Tribeca Cinemas. The fest, whose 21 selections were chosen by viewers who watched the films over the internet, runs July 27-29, starting with tonight's red carpet premiere of audience pick alleyball.

At Film Forum, you can still check out Live-In Maid (showing through July 31). Starting today, there's also a fest going on at Film Forum: the NYC Noir Fest, a spectacular five week, 46-film exploration of the dark side. You can check out the full schedule right here -- I have to note that it includes one of my fave bad movies ever, Cat People, which I used to revel in watching every time it showed on the late-night movies on the local UHF channel when I was a kid (UHF? Yeah, that was pre-cable, thanks for noticing and making me feel old). You can also catch films like Midnight Cowboy, Taxi Driver, Panic in Needle Park, Rope, and Rear Window, if Cat People isn't your thing. As a part of the fest, Film Forum also has a series called "The Silent City: New York in the Movies, 1898-1928."

As if a fest full of noir wasn't enough to make your cinepheliac heart go all a-flutter, Film Forum also has screenings of the very excellent No End in Sight this weekend, with director Charles Ferguson on hand for Q&As following the 8PM screenings. I saw No End in Sight at Sundance, and attended a pretty impressive panel discussion of the film as well. The film rocks -- don't miss it. You can get more insight into the film as well with James Rocchi's interview with Ferguson, which we just posted today.

Over at the Walter Reade Theater, we have yet another film fest: Scanners: The New York Video Festival. You can see the full fest program right here.

Los Angeles: If you didn't make the trip down south to San Diego to hang out with all things geekerific at Comic-Con, never fear, there are plenty of things to do in that other southern Cal city. As usual, American Cinematheque's got you indie film fans covered. Mods and Rockers is still going on there, and on Sunday you can get all classic with a screening of For Whom the Bell Tolls. Coming up August 2 (and running through August 27), it's the Sci-Fi, Fantasy and Horror Fest, just in time to get you past those post-Comic Con blues.


Seattle: Seattleites can get their film fest jones satisfied at NW Film Forum: starting this weekend, NWFF brings you "From the Tsars to the Stars: A Journey Through Russian Fantastik Cinema." Tonight through August 2, you can catch a screening of fest fave The Trials of Darryl Hunt, which won best doc at the 2006 Seattle International Film Festival.

The Seattle International Film Festival may be long over, but the SIFF group is still bringing Seattleites great films all summer long with their SIFF Cinema Summer Series. Through August 2, they're showing Apachatpong Weerasethakul's Syndromes and a Century, Mahamat-Saleh Haroun's Daratt, Bahman Ghobadi's Half Moon, and Tsai Ming-Liang's I Don't Want to Sleep Alone.

Also this weekend in Seattle: On July 28, The Film School brings Oscar-nommed director Alex Gibney (Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room) into town to sneak-preview his latest doc, Taxi to the Dark Side, which played at the Tribeca Film Festival. Taxi is about torture practices used by the United States in Iraq, Afghanistan and Guantanamo Bay, told through the story of an innocent taxi driver who was tortured and killed in 2002. Gibney's a sharp guy and a solid filmmaker -- that one's a must-see for you Seattle film buffs. Tix available at Warren Etheredge's website, The Warren Report.

Toronto: Heading north of the border, Toronto film fans can head over to Yonge-Dundas Square on Tuesday, July 31 to catch Terry Gilliam's Brazil.

Austin: This weekend at The Alamo Drafthouse at Lake Creek brings you a screening for the kids (or those of us who haven't quite grown up yet, Dark Crystal. Coming up August 3 and 4 -- midnight screenings of Jackie Chan's Drunken Master! At the South Lamar location, bring the kids to free screenings through August at Kids Summer Movie Camp. Films will include Nanny McPhee, Holes, and one of my own faves, Howl's Moving Castle. Plus: The Village location has Rocky Horror Saturday night at 11:55 PM, so break out your corsets and fishnet stockings!

Dallas: Coming up in Dallas, the Dallas Video Fest runs July 31- August 5. The fest is surprisingly affordable -- all-day passes range from $10 weeknights to $25 weekends. Check out the full schedule and start making your plans now.

Oklahoma City: This weekend at the Oklahoma CIty Museum of Art: Ten Canoes and Susan Hayward in Tulsa (one screening only on Sunday). Upcoming in August: Summercamp!, Bound for Glory, La Vie en Rose, and The Outsiders. And mark your calendars NOW for Sarah Polley's remarkable Away From Her, screening starting August 16.

Want your city covered? Send your film news and links to me at kim(at)cinematical(dot)com ...

Since Paramount and producer J.J. Abrams refuse to unleash any further details regarding Cloverfield, all we're left with are these weird promotional websites and this brand new spy report from the set. Since I take everything with a grain of salt, I'll advise you to do the same -- although the spy (most likely a production assistant of sorts) seems to know what he/she is talking about. Turns out we're not the only ones who don't know what the hell this movie is; according to the spy: "I'm working on this shoot, and even we don't know what it is." Nice. However, they do go on to reveal certain details that you may or may not be interested in. Beware of possible spoilers below ...

First, the spy does confirm that the film is currently being shot in downtown Los Angeles under the name "Slusho." And about that name, the spy says: "The ID tags for the shoot on the trucks say "Slusho: You can't eat more than 6" and a drawing of a slurpee-like drink." I'm not sure whether that has something to do with the film, or if it's there to throw people off, but it is one of the stranger taglines I've ever seen. Additionally, the spy points out a few interesting tidbits regarding the trailer we all watched prior to Transformers and the Godzilla rumor everyone keeps talking up. "On a take in the scene you all saw (the trailer) at + 30 seconds after impact movie time, just a couple of us were told by Mr Reeves that we are seeing a giant foot stomp down (this is at the point where the tower explodes). Not Godzilla, but it is interesting..." I wish they would've further explained how they know it's not Godzilla (he had feet, right?), but if this person is to be believed, then we can cross off all Godzilla talk for the time being.

Another peculiar note has to do with all this Ethan Haas nonsense. Who is Ethan Haas, and why is he so important to the film? Well, the spy doesn't seem to know either, but they do say it all "kinda makes sense (to me at least) from some of the dialogue I've heard." Kinda makes sense? Not a lot to go on there. So, to recap: Look for Slusho, no Godzilla and all this Ethan Haas stuff "kinda makes sense." Well, to me, it sure as hell doesn't. Here's hoping we get some more info before all the conspiracy theorists lose their sh*t.

UPDATE: The official trailer has finally been released via Apple. So for those who missed it and/or suffered through one of those grainy leaked versions, you can check it out now. Enjoy!

The documentary Young @ Heart won an Audience Award for international features this weekend at Los Angeles Film Festival (LAFF) and now it's just locked up a North American theatrical distribution deal with Fox Searchlight. The deal, which was finalized Sunday night, is estimated to be worth about $2 million. Young @ Heart is a documentary about a choral group of senior citizens who cover an eclectic mix of popular songs. (Apparently their repertoire includes The Ramones' "I Wanna Be Sedated.") Although the choral group is located in Massachusetts, the film is actually a British production, directed by Stephen Walker. As Monika Bartyzel noted last month, Working Title Films has already picked up the rights to remake the movie as a feature film. Perhaps if they age Bill Nighy a bit ...

Fox Searchlight reported that Young @ Heart is the distribution company's first documentary in more than ten years -- my guess is that the previous doc was Al Pacino's Looking for Richard from 1996. However, even though the indie-film arm of Fox isn't accustomed to handling documentaries, it seems capable of bringing box-office success to the film. As Anne Thompson noted on her Variety blog, Fox Searchlight has been doing quite well lately -- Waitress (which you should all go see if you haven't) has earned $16 million thus far in release, for example. The studio is also behind the upcoming Wes Anderson release, The Darjeeling Limited. And then there's that Little Miss Sunshine movie they released last year, which I believe is considered a hit. Young @ Heart is tentatively scheduled for a Spring 2008 release.

In an effort to reduce what many consider a very real economic threat to the continued prosperity of Los Angeles, and California as a whole, The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that the State Assembly has sent a new bill aimed at curbing runaway production to the State Senate for consideration. The latest measure, dubbed AB-1969, was sent to the Senate after a 51-17 vote by the State Assembly and a rousing floor debate led by Democrat Paul Krekorian of Burbank. If approved at the Senate level, the as-yet unfunded measure would provide financial and other incentives to halt runaway production of film, television and commercials by creating a grant program through the California Film Commission.

This grant program, in order to receive funding, would either have to become part of Gov. Schwarzenegger's next budget or receive a separate funding influx from additional legislation. Unfortunately for those impacted by runaway production and for the Governor, this is not the first time a measure such as this has been proposed. In fact, we even brought you info about it before right here at Cinematical. At that time the measure did not pass and, according to the article, the Governor regrets its failure and vows this time it will be different -- although he provides no details on how this difference will be realized. Hopefully the measure will pass this time and we can keep production right here where it belongs -- in Los Angeles. After all, this is where it all started so it makes perfect sense that this is where it should stay.

Now that Borat caused a sh*tstorm of publicity for Sacha Baron Cohen, it's going to make the filming of his follow-up (in which he takes on the character of Bruno; the homosexual Austrian youth-oriented news reporter) much more interesting. After all, a lot more people know who he is now; they know his game. Is there any town in this country where its citizens are so out-of-touch and self-absorbed that they won't recognize the comedic actor in uniform performing his usual shtick? Well, it seems there is such a place -- Los Angeles. La La Land. Defamer reports (via a spy) that Cohen (as Bruno) and his ten-person crew were spotted at the Omni Hotel in downtown Los Angeles attending a luncheon hosted by the Foreign Trade Association. Yup, it appears Bruno is officially underway.

According to the spy, Baron Cohen has ditched the Bruno mohawk for something a tad more low key. "He's dressed in leather pants, black vest and a black t-shirt. The hair is kinduva flock of seagulls/sad boy from the cure look - rusty brown hair mopped over to one side and the tips are a frosty blonde." Apparently, the crew is telling the people who sign releases that they are filming a documentary about American culture and the World Trade. And, with the exception of our spy, "99% of the people had no idea who he was." The best part of the whole thing was that when the spy realized it was Baron Cohen and tried to get a picture, the crew were all over him like white on rice; following him around, blocking his view. Since Los Angeles is hosting a World Trade Week, I'm sure Cohen and his crew will be all over the place -- assuming people don't blow up his spot (ahem, no comment). If anyone manages to snap a photo of Bruno doing his thing, feel free to hook up your good friends at Cinematical. We're here to serve ...