steve zahn Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Review: A Perfect Getaway
Filed under: Thrillers », Mystery & Suspense », Theatrical Reviews », Summer Movies »
Agatha Christie had it figured out. Ten victims, one killer. Set it up, knock 'em down.
And while there's something to be said for simplicity -- writer-director David Twohy opts for three couples with two killers among them -- A Perfect Getaway can hardly sustain itself until the suspense can kick in. Unable to cut to the chase, Twohy takes his time and decides to get coy, and as it turns out, the only thing deadlier than a killer in a thriller is a screenwriter.
'A Perfect Getaway' Could Make for Pulpy Thrills
Filed under: Action », Thrillers », Mystery & Suspense », Summer Movies », Trailers and Clips »
I didn't realize it until now, but it's probably a safe bet that everyone either likes Steve Zahn or Milla Jovovich. So someone was finally smart enough to stick them in the same movie as newlyweds being hunted down in David Twohy's A Perfect Getaway.From the looks of things, I do hope that their Hawaiian honeymoon from hell skews closer to The Most Dangerous Game than Turistas, as the couple juggles suspicion between fellow travelers Timothy Olyphant (well, duh) and Chris Hemsworth (Kirk's pop from J.J. Trek, and a Josh-Brolin-in-No-Country doppelganger here).
Twohy demonstrated a knack with B-grade thrills with Below, Pitch Black, and The Arrival, so let's hope he keeps the streak alive and defies the shrug-worthy placement of any film on an August release date (and this after much previous shuffling to boot).
Getaway currently opens August 14th opposite roughly a gajillion movies -- Taking Woodstock, Ponyo, The Time Traveler's Wife, Bandslam, District 9, and others -- so if it (or Wife) flinches and gets put off, don't act so surprised. My suggestion? Counter-program against constant comedies on July 10th or Harry Potter on July 17th. We could use something tropical there...
Review: Management
Filed under: New Releases », Theatrical Reviews »
In a very minor way, Management attempts to freshen up the moribund romantic comedy genre, toning down the gleeful bounciness and upping the wry strangeness. Unfortunately, the weirdness employed by Stephen Belber's amorous fairy tale is of a decidedly limp, half-hearted sort, as the writer/director seems torn between wanting to make his film legitimately idiosyncratic, and fearing that going too far out on a limb will interfere with his rather traditional meet-cute tale – and alienate said material's formula-craving target audience. The result is a very mildly peculiar take on a stale opposites-attract premise, which in this case centers on Mike (Steve Zahn), a schlub who works as night manager at his parents' Arizona motel, and Sue (Jennifer Aniston), a chilly traveling saleswoman of corporate artwork who stays two nights at Mike's establishment and quickly catches his eye. Though Mike is a loser, he's an adorably earnest one, and though Sue is a cold fish, she's actually a caring, understanding one, and thus when Mike begins his courtship, it's already been made patently clear by Belber's contrived script that the two are destined to make googly-eyes at each other.
Exclusive Clip: Jennifer Aniston's 'Management'
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Fandom », Movie Marketing », Toronto International Film Festival », Trailers and Clips »
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Cinematical has just received this exclusive clip from the new film Management, starring Jennifer Aniston, Steve Zahn and Woody Harrelson. Written and directed by Stephen Belber (this is his feature debut), Management follows the quirky relationship between a traveling art saleswoman (Aniston) and the motel worker (Zahn) who crushes on her. In the clip below, watch as Aniston asks Zahn whether he'd like to touch her butt (that should be enough to tease you in). I actually really enjoy Aniston when she lets her hair down and takes on a quieter indie, and, well, who doesn't love the antics of Steve Zahn? Together this duo should certainly do a good job of managing our attention for a coupla hours on the big screen. Don't ya think?
Management is set to premiere during the 2008 Toronto International Film Festival this month, and you bet we'll be back here with an early review real soon. Additionally, check out another photo and the film's official synopsis after the jump.
Milla Jovovich Joins Zahn & Olyphant on 'A Perfect Getaway'
Filed under: Horror », Thrillers », MGM »
Not very long ago, Jessica told you that Steve Zahn and Timothy Olyphant had signed up to play in David Twohy's A Perfect Getaway, but it seems like the writer / director was scouting for actresses over the weekend. Looks like Milla Jovovich will be paired up with Zahn (the lucky dog) and Ms. Kiele Sanchez will be hanging with Mr. Olyphant. (Genre fans will remember David Twohy from flicks like The Arrival, Pitch Black, Below, and ... The Chronicles of Riddick.)According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Jovovich and Sanchez join Timothy Olyphant and Steve Zahn in the thriller, which revolves around a newlywed couple on their honeymoon in Hawaii who run into two hikers who turn out to be vicious killers." Call me psychic, but I'm betting it's the Olyphant / Sanchez couple who do the stalking and the Zahn / Jovovich duo who do the running ... although it'd probably be more interesting the other way around.
The whole gang will begin shooting A Perfect Getaway next week in Puerto Rico and Hawaii. Tough gig. As far as the flick is concerned, I'm just a bit skeptical. Haven't we had enough of the Americans Terrorized Overseas thrillers yet? Then again (Chronicles notwithstanding) I'm a big fan of the Twohy, so I suppose one more dose of Passport Purgatory won't be all that bad.
Steve Zahn Will Make 'A Perfect Getaway'
Filed under: Thrillers », Casting », MGM »
To be honest, I'm always a little surprised that Steve Zahn managed to carve out a dramatic acting career. I can't help but think 'Studs' whenever I look at him, but since Rescue Dawn I'm not the only one who discovered that Zahn can handle the 'grittier' side of life. The Hollywood Reporter announced that Zahn has signed to star alongside Timothy Olyphant (Hitman) in the psychological thriller, A Perfect Getaway.David Twohy will direct from his own script about a honeymooning couple who become the targets for a pair of killers. Zahn will play the husband and Olyphant (true to form) will play one of the violent psychos. There is no word yet on the partners for each of our leading men, but it's not like its going to be all that difficult to fill the parts of 'Frightened Wife" and "Psycho Killer". Twohy made his name as a screenwriter and has made some good and some not so-good movies. Twohy has directed in the past, but with the exception of Pitch Black, there isn't much to recommend some of his previous endeavors.
Zahn already has three other films in various stages of production. First up will be two comedies, a baseball flick titled Calvin Marshall and then a romantic comedy with the very unfunny title of Management. A Perfect Getaway is set to start filming on location in Puerto Rico and Hawaii starting at the end of this month, but there is no word of a release date. Stay tuned to Cinematical for any news that comes our way.
Interviews with 'Strange Wilderness' Stars Kevin Heffernan & Allen Covert
Filed under: Comedy », Casting », New Releases », Paramount », Scripts », Fox Searchlight », NSFW », Movie Marketing », Interviews »
Strange Wilderness is a new comedy starring Steve Zahn as the host of a wilderness television show with plummeting ratings. To increase viewership, he assembles a motley crew and sets out on an expedition to find Bigfoot. The cast includes Jonah Hill, Justin Long, Ashley Scott, Peter Dante, Jeff Garlin, and -- believe it or not -- Ernest Borgnine! The red band trailer for Wilderness just hit the internet. (Need a little incentive to check it out? There's nudity. You're welcome.) Cinematical spoke with two of the film's stars -- Kevin Heffernan (of Broken Lizard fame) and Allen Covert (pretty much every Adam Sandler movie, Grandma's Boy) -- about this film and their careers. First up is Kevin Heffernan...
Cinematical: Who do you play in the film?
Kevin Heffernan: I play a character named Whitaker. When they go out on this trip, they need to hire an animal wrangler. I'm a car mechanic and I have no animal wrangling experience. Basically, I'm just looking for a job. So I go and interview with them and I win the job but I have no knowledge of animals. I don't even like them that much really! It's got this great ensemble cast and some great cameos...
Cinematical: It does have such a great comedy cast, was improvisation encouraged on the set?
KH: Yeah man. The script was so good, I mean it was written by Fred Wolf and Peter Gaulke who have a lot of comedy writing experience, but it was just one of those kind of movies where there's always like six or seven people on the screen. And they left it free for us to do the improv stuff that we all love to do. So there were a lot of people going off, and they had to kind of pull you back to the script a little bit.
Woody Harrelson: The Yogurt Mogul
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Casting », Newsstand »
Just this morning our wonderful Editor-in-Chief Erik Davis blogged about Woody Harrelson joining that upcoming fantasy adventure called The Other Side. He's going to play both the father and son who fund a scholarship for the character that Katie Holmes is in talks to play. (I imagine she'll take it -- with the Jason Lee Scientology camaraderie and all, Cruise has got to approve!) But that's not the only role(s) that Woody is adding to his diverse repertoire. Variety reports that he's joined Tape scribe Stephen Belber's upcoming romcom Management, which Steve Zahn and Jennifer Aniston already joined this past summer.The pic is about a traveling art saleswoman (Aniston), who has a brief fling with an assistant motel manager (Zahn). This romantic interlude inspires the guy to follow her on her travels across the US. Now, if you're like me, you were thinking that the movie needed a yogurt mogul, right? Well have no fear -- Woody has signed on to make that happen. He's going to play Aniston's ex boyfriend, who is also, as I stated above, a yogurt mogul. How Belber came up with that profession, above all others, is beyond me, but I have this feeling Harrelson can pull it off. How he fits into the story, well, that's what confuses me. I could see if she was a traveling yogurt saleswoman, but she deals in art. I guess every great stalker just needs to be balanced by the man who gives you yogurt.
Leelee Sobieski Boards Thriller 'Night Train'
Filed under: Independent », Thrillers », Casting »
I once saw Leelee Sobieski in person after an awards show. I was dazzled by how young, slender and beautiful she looked, and at how tall she was -- she towered over Jack Valenti. Of course, even short little me was taller than the late, diminutive Mr. Valenti, but Sobieski stands over six feel in heels. Yet the thing that impressed me most when I first saw her act was not her physical appearance but her calm maturity. She was just 14 or 15 when she did James Ivory's A Solider's Daughter Never Cries. She was poised, independent and radiated intelligence, not an easy thing to do. Ever since then, I've been hoping that she'd have a chance to give another breakout performance. She kept busy until she headed off to Brown University, but her recent work has been mostly unseen -- I don't think Lying, Heavens Fall or The Elder Son have received US theatrical distribution yet, In a Dark Place went straight to DVD, and the less said about the dreadful Wicker Man remake, the better, though Scott Weinberg liked it more than I did. Ever an optimist, a brief casting note caught my eye. Variety reports that Sobieski will star in the independent thriller Night Train. Evidently already in production, the film also stars Danny Glover and Steve Zahn. Tthe plot "concerns three strangers competing for a mysterious object on a train on Christmas Eve. Sobieski plays a seemingly sedate med student." Glover is always reliable and I usually enjoy whatever Steve Zahn does, so adding Sobieski to the mix sounds very promising. Debuting director Brian King also wrote the script; he previously penned Cypher. Sobieski has three other films waiting for release: as a fledging dominatrix in the comedy/thriller Walk All Over Me, 88 Minutes (with Al Pacino) and In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale.
Jennifer Aniston to Star in 'Management' RomCom
Filed under: Comedy », Romance », Casting », Deals », Scripts »
I'm a complete fence-sitter when it comes to Jennifer Aniston. I'm no big fan of her mainstream films, and could do without them, but I happen to like some of her indie work, like Mike White's dysfunctional flick, The Good Girl. (Although man, I know I'm not the only one who thinks we could do without Derailed...what were they thinking!?) Now she's got a new romcom on the way called Management. She will play a traveling saleswoman who sells cheap art to small companies and motels. When she has a fling with an assistant motel manager (played by Steve Zahn), things get tricky because he starts to follow her around the U.S. (What's with the stalking-across-the-country films lately?) Now, before you groan -- this might, just might, actually be good. Or, at least, decent.The film will be playwright/screenwriter Stephen Belber's directorial debut, and he wrote the script. He has not only worked on The Laramie Project, but he's the pen behind Tape. Did you ever catch that flick? It is a simple, and intriguing Richard Linklater indie movie starring Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman and Robert Sean Leonard as three old friends in a motel room who rehash past traumas. It's got a hell of a lot more depth than a romcom, so I can only hope that some of it will carry over, making this more than just the next kiss-kiss, laugh-laugh movie.
Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
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Exclusive 'Nine' Poster Premiere!
Exclusive: Title Track for 'The Road' Soundtrack
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