mary lambert Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Trailers From Hell Gets Help from Names Like Landis, Dante and Wright
Filed under: Classics », Independent », Fandom », Trailer Trash », Cinematical Indie »
While surfing the movie web ether today, I came across a gem that you guys might enjoy. There's a website out there called Trailers From Hell, and the kicker -- it isn't some out-of-nowhere fan web space -- it comes from Joe Dante's Metaluna Productions. Yes, the Dante responsible for Gremlins, Explorers and Innerspace. According to the director himself: "The bromide about these old trailers is that they were better than the movies they promoted. That's only true in some cases, but they did deliver in-your-face excitement and breathless hyperbole at a pace the movies never could." Covering everything from music done "Electronovision" style to horror films, the trailers display what Dante calls "shameless cinematic hucksterism."What's especially cool -- the site doesn't just have trailers, but well-known names doing commentaries on them. Dante offers two -- The Terror and The Unearthly, while Shaun of the Dead's Edgar Wright chats about the low-budget greatness of Danger: Diabolik, Hocus Pocus helmer Mick Garris tackles House on Haunted Hill and Animal House header John Landis talks about seeing The T.A.M.I. Show live, in his youth. With a well-known name behind the site, I imagine that this is only the beginning as he gets more names involved. There are already 5 more that are coming soon -- Dante on The Incredible Petrified World, Garris on X - The Man with the X-Ray Eyes, Landis on The Fall of the Roman Empire, Wright on Dr. Terror's House of Horrors and a new name -- Pet Sematary director Mary Lambert on Village of the Damned. I'm hoping that they sweeten the pot with some Mystery Science Theater sort of voice-overs in the future, but either way, it's a great way to uncover some old, and sometimes forgotten pulpy goodness.
[via Cartoon Brew]
SilverDocs: Religion, Politics, Women and Other Controversial Topics
Filed under: Documentary », Foreign Language », Independent », Music & Musicals », Other Festivals », Religious », Cinematical Indie »
With plans to screen 100 documentaries in just six days, SilverDocs 2007 gets under way Tuesday, June 12 with Pete Seeger: The Power of Song, directed by Jim Brown (no, not that one; this one), which promises to interweave folk music, social upheaval and Seeger's life and music. Among the six films competing for the Music Documentary Award will be Hip Hop Revolution (history of hip hop in South Africa), Kurt Cobain About a Son (the late musician narrating his own journey) and Nomadak Tx (from Spain, about two musicians and a "magical instrument"). The Beyond Belief program explores "faith, fanaticism, spirituality and ethics in civil society," according to the press notes, and includes the world premieres of Living Goddess (a young girl worshipped as the incarnation of a Hindu goddess lives peacefully in traumatic times) and Orthodox Stance (love that title: a young immigrant in New York City must balance his Hasidic beliefs with his rising career as a boxer).Politically-charged movies are certainly on the agenda. Just three higher-profile titles that caught my eye: 14 Women (Mary Lambert examines the lives of female US Senators), Lake of Fire (Tony Kaye on abortion; the press notes say it's "carefully balanced," but this is Tony Kaye, whose insane career Erik just wrote about) and State Legislature (Frederick Wiseman spends 217 minutes on "the inner workings of the democratic process," specifically in Idaho). And then there's the latest by Liz Garbus (Coma relates the stories of four victims), Mike Mills (Does Your Soul Have a Cold?, in which Japanese marketers tackle antidepressants), Helvetica (which James reviewed at South by Southwest) and the local premiere of the controversial Nanking (which Kim reviewed at Sundance). Artic Tale is the closing night presentation. My head is swimming with the possibilities. Even if you aren't planning to attend, the film guide is well worth checking out to see the wide range of material that's screening this week in and around Silver Spring, Maryland.
Jeremy Renner Wants To Be An Avenger
Directors We Love: Jim Jarmusch
Indie Roundup: 'Sweetgrass,' 'Clarkworld,' 'Broken Embraces'
Shelf Life: Fight Club_thumbnail.jpg)
Watch: Famous 'Matrix' Scene Re-Created with LEGOs
_thumbnail.jpg)
