maya rudolph Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Watch This: 'Away We Go' Clip
Filed under: Comedy », Universal », Trailers and Clips »
In Sam Mendes' Away We Go, Verona (Maya Rudolph) and Burt (John Krasinski) touch down in a number of spots around North America in search of a new home after Burt's flighty parents decide to go live in Antwerp. Thanks to a script from Dave Eggers and his wife Vendela Vida, Away We Go is far less wrist-slittingly depressing than Mendes' last outing, Revolutionary Road, if quite a bit more twee.The clip below is from a scene where three concerned airline attendants don't want to let Verona board the plane because she looks more than eight months pregnant, even though she assures them she's not. This goes out to all the mommies and daddies (and expecting mommies and daddies) out there who have to deal with anyone eyeballing and/or touching your belly when it's not welcome. Hands off! (Unless you're John Krasinski armed with a stethoscope, of course.)
Watch the clip after the jump
Review: Away We Go
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », Independent », Romance », Theatrical Reviews », Focus Features », Summer Movies »
Burt and Verona (John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph) don't quite have things figured out yet. I mean, they pretty much have each other pegged, enjoying a marriage-less relationship, keeping each other warm on those cold Colorado nights, and they know that they want to bring a kid into this world -- well, want to or not, the baby's coming, and so they'll keep it warm as well.
Their parents won't be of much help. After all, his (Catherine O'Hara and Jeff Daniels) are making plans to take off for Europe just before the baby's due, a trip years in the making and selfish as all get out, while hers passed away some time back. So Burt and Verona decide to visit other family and friends, looking for people they can depend on in places they could grow up in, let alone grow old in -- looking for a place that might help them figure out together the whys and hows of keeping it all together.
Salma Hayek Leads New Trio Headed for Sandler's Reunion Comedy
Filed under: Comedy », Casting »
I love movies about reunions. The comedy and underlying drama of The Big Chill warms me, and every once in a while, I get an urge to delight in summer camp with Mike Binder's Indian Summer. Films like these outline, so wonderfully, the ways we change and stay the same, and just how hard it can be to relate to those we've known forever in a way that's entertaining rather than sickeningly sappy.But I'm getting the sense that this won't happen with Adam Sandler's reunion comedy. Last month, Erik shared news that director Dennis Dugan (Zohan) was going to lead Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider, and David Spade in the story of five best friends from high school who reunite after 30 years on the Fourth of July weekend. Now Variety reports that Salma Hayek, Maya Rudolph, and Colin Quinn are joining the reunion.
So far, this flick is sneaky. It's got all the signs of bad comedy with the small glimmer of hope that the results could surprise us. If this is the typical fare Sandler puts his friends in, I'll be running the other way, even with Hayek's inclusion. But what if... What if the reunion of all these SNL alums becomes something else? A comedy where these comedians can tap into their old days and reminisce for our entertainment? All of these actors have their strengths, and if Sandler and Dugan tap into that, rather than the goof factor, this could be good.
Or is there no way? Is this reunion doomed before it even starts?
Sam Mendes' 'Away We Go' Gets a Trailer
Filed under: Comedy », Drama », Fandom », Movie Marketing », Trailers and Clips »
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Part of me completely forgot we were getting a double bill from director Sam Mendes this year (though, technically, it's last year and this year, but regardless it feels like we're getting two films from the man during a very short period of time). Once again Mendes returns to themes of family with Away We Go, however unlike Revolutionary Road, you probably won't have a desire to off yourself when the credits begin to roll.
What intrigues me most about Away We Go is its cast. Mendes went from Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet to a bearded John Krasinski and a pregnant Maya Rudolph. Not that that's a bad thing, mind you, it's just an odd pairing. The chemistry looks to be there, though, and the supporting cast is pretty fantastic with three power women leading the way in Maggie Gyllenhaal, Allison Janney and Catherine O'Hara. Oh, and Jeff Daniels squeezes himself in there too.
Watching the trailer, this doesn't feel like a Mendes film. It sorta gives me this ultra indie, hippie-ish Noah Baumbach funny (yet tender) dysfunctional family vibe (it was written by Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida, so maybe that's where it's coming from). Yes, I dig it ... though I'm hoping its charm turns out to be unique, and not just another piece off the Little Miss Sunshine gravy train. Watch it below and let us know what you think. Does it have potential? Away We Go hits theaters in limited release on June 5.
Paul Thomas Anderson Directs Play With 'SNL' Members
Filed under: Casting », New Releases », RumorMonger », Celebrities and Controversy »
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?
Sam Mendes' Comedy Has a Title and John Krasinski Has a Beard!
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Focus Features », Movie Marketing »
Update: Cinematical was informed that the film still does not have a title, though we imagine one will be announced soon. See full (and accurate) press release after the jump. Since news first broke about Sam Mendes making the leap to comedy with John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph, I've become awfully curious to see if the man famous for heavy subject matter can pull off a straight rom-com. Coming Soon has received a press announcement from the JW Marriott Starr Pass Resort & Spa in Tuscon, Arizona, and according to them, the spa has been chosen as one of the locations for the road flick. More importantly, we now know that the film is going by the slightly awkward title of Farlanders.
McSweeney's founder Dave Eggers co-wrote the script with his wife, Vendela Vida, and the story centers on an expectant couple played by Krasinski (sporting some much-maligned facial hair) and Rudolph as they travel the US looking for the perfect place to start their family. The film has a big ensemble cast to play the various 'characters' our couple will meet along the way -- including some very funny women like Catherine O'Hara, Cheryl Hines, and Allison Janney.
Production began back in April, and according to the release, the Arizona shoot will begin in June. Some of the other locations include Colorado, Connecticut, and Florida. There is no official release date, so I guess I'll have plenty of time to get used to that title.
Farlanders The Untitled Sam Mendes Comedy is due to arrive in theaters in 2009.
Cinematical Seven: Recent 'SNL' Triumphs
Filed under: Comedy », New Releases », Cinematical Seven », Lists »
When I told a friend of mine that I was heading to a screening of Baby Mama, he immediately replied: "Oh, the Saturday Night Live movie?" Hmm -- well, sort of. The comedy -- which premiered at Tribeca and goes wide this weekend -- was produced by SNL honcho Lorne Michaels, and stars show veterans Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. On the other hand, it's not based on an SNL sketch, and doesn't feature any characters from the show.
Baby Mama's pre-release reputation as a "Saturday Night Live movie" probably isn't helpful: movies falling into that category don't have the best track record in the minds of people who pay attention. At the same time, the show has contributed a lot to the movies, mostly in its capacity as a breeding ground for comedic talent. This installment of Cinematical Seven collects films with an SNL connection that have actually been good, or in some way significant. I limited the pool to the last ten years; we all know that The Blues Brothers and Wayne's World are classics that started out as SNL sketches, but what has the show done for us lately?
Toni Collette Joins Sam Mendes Film
Filed under: Comedy », Independent », Casting », Focus Features », Newsstand »
Toni Collette has joined the cast of the still-untitled Sam Mendes relationship film -- you know, the one starring John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph, and being penned by Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Collette will be playing a college professor and close friend of the young couple -- two folks who are scouring the country for a place to settle and raise their child, and Collette's character feels that it'll be dysfunctional no matter where they end up. Smart lady!
The movie pairs Collette up again with Big Beach producers Marc Turtletaub and Peter Saraf, who produced Little Miss Sunshine. Focus is hoping to capture a bit of that magic, since they gave up their claim on that enormous indie hit.
John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph are in Love
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Casting », Scripts », Focus Features »
John Krasinski has had a bit of a rough start transitioning his TV career into a movie career. For starters, have you seen License to Wed? Luckily for my favorite office drone, his upcoming projects look a lot more promising. Variety reports that Krasinski, SNL's Maya Rudolph, and Cheryl Hines have signed to star in Sam Mendes' new untitled comedy. News of the film first appeared back in January, and just over a month later, three top-notch comedians have signed on for the film. That has got to be a good sign, right?Celebrity novelist Dave Eggers and Vendela Vida (author of Girls of the Verge and Egger's wife) wrote the script for the romantic comedy. Eggers made his name with his memoir, Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, but is still relatively new to the screenwriting trade. In the film, Krasinski and Rudolph will play an expectant couple traveling around the country looking for a place to settle down and start a family.
If you have ever read anything written by Eggers or the McSweeney's 'brand' then you know that this slight premise is just the kind of story you would expect. Knowing Egger's penchant for personal touches, I'm sure some of the details of his life with his own family found their way into the script. The production is expected to start shooting this April in Connecticut, and the film is set for release in 2009.
New Trailer Drops For Shrek the Third
Filed under: Action », Animation », Comedy », Sci-Fi & Fantasy », Paramount », Trailer Trash », Family Films », Dreamworks », Comic/Superhero/Geek », Remakes and Sequels »
There seem to be two distinct camps where the Shrek movies are concerned: The people who unabashedly love these sweetly silly revisionist fairy tales -- and the people who consider Shrek and Shrek 2 astonishingly overrated pieces of CGI goofiness that certainly didn't deserve their massive payouts. ($484 million and $920 million worldwide, respectively, and that doesn't include DVD sales.) Me, I fall firmly in the former camp: I'm a big fan of both Shrek flicks. I think they're light, witty, clever and stunningly animated family-style adventures -- but they're not over-scrubbed and ultra-sanitized like most of Disney's weaker attempts.So obviously I'm pretty pumped to see Shrek the Third, and if this brand-new trailer is any indication, I'll probably be chuckling like a stoned monkey throughout most of this second sequel. The kids will go for the comedy, the characters and the colorful little adventures, but folks like me go for the cast: Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz have done some fine voice-work in the first two flicks, but I'm most fond of Eddie Murphy as Donkey, Antonio Banderas and Puss-in-Boots, and (of course) the immortal John Cleese as King Harold. (OK, so it's a small part, but just the sound of Cleese's voice makes me laugh.)
What I find most intriguing about Shrek the Third is its big list of newcomers: Ian McShane as Captain Hook? Eric Idle as Merlin the Wizard? John Krasinski as Sir Lancelot? Very cool! And get this line-up of prickly princesses: Cheri Oteri (Sleeping Beauty), Maya Rudolph (Rapunzel), Amy Poehler (Snow White) and Amy Sedaris (Cinderella)! How cool is that?! (Oh yeah, and Justin Timberlake as the young Prince Arthur, the only misstep that casting directors actually
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