michael douglas Tagged Articles at Cinematical

I bet you never thought in a million years that you would see the words Scenes We Love and Basic Instinct in the same headline, did you? But here we are, so before you swear off this feature for ever more, keep in mind that this particular edition of Scenes We Love is going to be for the music (because, frankly, if we're talking about quality filmmaking we need to look elsewhere). Basic Instinct is a guilty pleasure of mine and there is plenty of cheese to choose from. You've got the laughable sex, ridiculous plot and dialog, and really, when did you ever think you would see Michael Douglas try and get down ... in a V-neck no less?

Now for most audiences, we were supposed to be titillated and shocked by the sight of Sharon Stone getting it on with Roxy (played by Leilani Sarelle), and even though it was pretty risqué at the time, it's almost quaint if you think about it now. But I wasn't that shocked or titillated by what I was watching, so I was left listening to that kick-ass song: Blue, by Latour.

I've been known to have a bit of an obsessive personality when it comes to tracking down a song used in a movie, and music is a big part of my life ... really, I can't help myself. So, for a long time, Blue was my 'White Whale', and even Napster (remember, this was the 90's) couldn't help me out. That is until one night in a Quebec City nightclub when I'd had a few too many cocktails and that tune began to pump out of the sound system. So I ran (OK...stumbled) to the DJ booth, and begged him to tell me what he was playing, and he handed me a mix tape. So thanks to that kindly Francophone, this track has been in my nostalgia play list ever since.

After the jump: Girl-on-girl action, 90's style...

In the category of "too good to be true" comes news that blows my tiny little mind. Michael Douglas and Matt Damon will play lovers in director Steven Soderbergh's upcoming Liberace, based on the life of the famous pianist. (That's pianist, not ... oh, forget it.) I'm describing this as "news" because it was published online by People, and they wouldn't fib, would they? Actually, Jessica Barnes already covered this for us, briefly, so we know it's true. Still, it's Douglas and Damon paired as romantic partners, and that deserves a story of its own.

A French newspaper is cited as the source for People's item, and there are a few choice new quotes. Soderbergh is attending the Deauville Film Festival -- that's in France -- and said that costume and wardrobe tests have already been done on Douglas: "I swear to you, Michael amazed me. He crushed it." The director also says that Damon has agreed to play Scott Thorsen, the longtime assistant / boyfriend of the flamboyant entertainer. "Matt accepted the challenge," Soderbergh claims. Is it the challenge of kissing Michael Douglas, or pretending to be in love with him?

Soderbergh also said that the budget will allow for reenactments of Liberace's "spectacular stage act, which "often involved elaborate stunts such as flying or driving to his piano bench in a Rolls-Royce." If this all pans out to be true, and the movie actually gets made, I will be lining up to see flying pianos and the love story of the new century. How about you? Are you itching to see Liberace now that Douglas and Damon are on board?

The acclaimed director Steven Soderbergh may be one of the most respected men in the business, but even he seems to have trouble finding a little extra cash these days. Now we all know what happened with is true-life sports tale, Moneyball, but by all accounts that isn't the only film that he is having trouble securing funding for. But on the bright side, it turns out it was much easier to sell studios a sexy spy thriller than it was a tale of number-crunchers. According to Variety, Lionsgate has snapped up Soderbergh's next slated flick, Knockout and secured financing for the action drama with Relativity Media offering to foot the bill.

The film is being described as in the "vein of La Femme Nikita" and will star Gina Carano. Soderbergh will be working with Lem Dobbs, who also worked on The Limey to write the script. Now Carano might be a household name for fans of Mixed Martial Arts, but for the world at large, a lead role in a Soderbergh film will probably be a much better introduction for the famed fighter. The director seems to be continuing to hire 'non-traditional' actors in his films, and if Soderbergh is looking to save some cash, luckily Carano will be able to do her own stunts.

As strange as a 'Soderbergh action film' may sound, it's hardly the wackiest idea he's had lately. After the jump; status reports on two of Soderbergh's other films...

Oliver Stone's sequel to his classic '80s tale of slick, money-hungry stockbrokers, Wall Street, is racking up quite the cast. Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps already has Shia LaBeouf, Susan Sarandon, Frank Langella, Michael Douglas, and arthouse It Girl Carey Mulligan (An Education) signed up for a 21st century take on greed on whether or not it's good (answer: probs not). But the big rumor all summer has been that Josh Brolin will take over the role of the villain after Javier Bardem turned down the role.

Well, as our buddies over at the esteemed website The Playlist point out, in this weekend's New York Times Oliver Stone casually confirms the rumors that Josh Brolin will indeed be playing the villain, and Charlie Sheen will be popping up in a cameo as his character from the original, Bud Fox.

Now that the real Wall Street and its counterparts around the world have felt the collective shudder of the past year's financial implosion, Stone is hoping to show some hope for redemption for Gekko.

"In his first run at Wall Street, Mr. Stone produced characters and a portrayal that lived longer than he ever expected and with unintended consequences. But he never would have made a second version if it didn't appear that the system, and high finance, had finally been brought to its knees.

'We wouldn't have done this movie in 2006,' he said. "'Things were too loose. I didn't want to glorify pigs.'"

Sometimes the unlikeliest movies attract the strongest casts. Is it the coincidence of schedules, the attraction of a high-quality director, or a dynamite script? Maybe it's all three in the case of Oliver Stone's Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps, which is drawing quality actors like the proverbial flies to honey.

A couple of months ago, we heard that Javier Bardem was the top pick for the role of a villainous hedge fund manager. Now Variety says that Josh Brolin is "reportedly circling a part," though it doesn't specify which one, and other rumors are circulating that actress Carey Mulligan (An Education) may be up for the role of Winnie, the estranged daughter of Gordon Gecko (Michael Douglas, reprising his role). Variety also reports that Frank Langella is "in talks" to play the old-time broker / mentor to up-and-coming trader Shia LaBeouf, whose character is engaged to Gecko's daughter. The latter bit of news sounds more solid than the other casting rumors.

Douglas won an Academy Award for the original Wall Street, and Langella was nominated for last year's Frost/Nixon, so the caliber of the cast is definitely trending upwards -- I'd love to see those two argue with each other! Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps is already a strong contender for the unofficial title of "Best Cast of 2010," and if they keep adding high-quality actors, it won't even be a contest. Of course, the quality of the film itself depends on the well-modulated execution of a good script, and that remains to be seen.

You can't turn around in a movie without bumping into a professor. If it's not Nicolas Cage as the unlikeliest astrophysicist to be granted tenure at M.I.T. in Knowing, just released on DVD, it's the passel of professors that will undoubtedly be presented in Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, due out in theaters next Wednesday. Which kind of professor do you prefer?

My early impressions were formed by seeing the distinguished, imposing Harvard law professor John Houseman dress down Timothy Bottoms in James Bridges' The Paper Chase: "Here is a dime. Take it, call your mother, and tell her there is serious doubt about you ever becoming a lawyer." My impressions changed dramatically when I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark. Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones may have been more of a thrill-seeker than an academic, but he was driven by his love for archeology -- and a desire to share his knowledge with his students, no matter how distracted they were by his dreamy looks.

Movies have produced so many memorable professors that it's hard to narrow down the list, but here are my other favorites, and why:

• Gary Cooper, Ball of Fire (Good-hearted and modest).
• Orson Welles, The Stranger (Cold-hearted and scary; an alluring phony).
• Jerry Lewis, The Nutty Professor (Makes you feel better about yourself).
• Peter O'Toole, Creator (Zestful and enthusiastic; encourages free thinking).
• Robin Williams, Dead Poets Society (Funny, if a bit too manic and pushy).
• Michael Douglas, Wonder Boys (Wounded, but can still teach life lessons).

Who are your favorite movie professors?

Now we're talking! Javier Bardem will bring Anton Chigurh, his character from No Country for Old Men, roaring back to life in the sequel to Oliver Stone's Wall Street. The hired assassin with the funny haircut will stalk financial company executives, using a fire extinguisher to put the fear of God into those heartless suits who stole America's money and refuse to give an accounting for their actions.

Unfortunately -- at least to my way of thinking -- that's not quite how the Wall Street sequel will play out, but it's not that far from the truth, either. Instead of playing a bad guy who sets things straight, Bardem will, in fact, play "a stock-shorting worldwide hedge fund manager," according to Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywood Daily. He is the villain of the piece, held responsible for the suicide of the hero's mentor.

UPDATE: Nikki Finke clarifies today (via Fox) that Bardem is not onboard ... yet ... though that's who they want for the role.

I apparently loved Ghosts of Girlfriends Past.

See, according to the logic doled out by the monogamy-hating, scotch-addled mind of one Connor Mead (Matthew McConaughey), the power of any relationship falls to whoever cares less, and my friends, I really could not care less about whether or not his boozing, cruising lothario was going to learn any magical lesson lifted straight out of Dickens. Ergo, the further I slumped in my seat while watching this mawkish, obvious, and not very funny film, the more powerful I grew in this particular relationship, and let me tell you right now: that and two bucks will get you a cup of coffee, with no need for any more artificial sweetener...

Gordon Gekko has been planning his comeback since 2007, when word hit that the man was getting out of jail and getting a new Wall Street movie called Money Never Sleeps, with Michael Douglas returning to his role. At that time Oliver Stone, the co-writer and director of the original, was not being swayed by Douglas' begging, and had given a big fat NO to the idea. When the movie was fast-tracked last October, he still wasn't interested, and that wasn't really surprising ... but something seems to have changed.

MSNBC reports that not only is Douglas reprising his role, but that 20th Century Fox spokesman Gregg Brilliant says that Stone is on-board. He went on to say: "We need to keep the story line under wraps, but it's literally ripped from today's headlines. It's going to be very big and very cool." Apparently, big and cool enough to lure back Mr. Stone. In addition to Stone, Entertainment Weekly tells us Shia LaBeouf is in negotiations to play a young stock trader in the film.

Does the filmmaker's inclusion help your interest in the film? What about LaBeouf? I must say, for me, it's not so much the fact that Stone's involved, but the why -- is he simply getting a sweet paycheck, or was he lured in by a story we'd actually want to see? Could this be a sequel project that's actually worthy? It'd be a nice change.