Posts tagged as Flicked Off
Flicked Off: "Jackass 3D" is the Most Important Documentary of Our Era
In the history of serious documentary film, there are two strains, it seems fair to say. One has been on the recent upswing: the advocacy documentary, propelled along by Michael Moore and that Al Gore-with-a-deadly-PowerPoint movie, which, TL;DW. (Really, I remember thinking when that came out: The planet's going bad? Just send me a position paper, and if I want to watch Al Gore I'll turn on C-Span 2 or whatever, and, no I probably won't, I'm just being polite.) The advocacy documentary is probably good for the world, as with all kinds of advocacy projects, whether they be litigation or burning cop cars on Rue d'Whatever in favor of not having to work for two more years into one's 60s. But at some point-that point likely being "about six years ago"-I joined my fellow Americans in not being willing to sit through another film that reminds me about how chickens in America grow up neck-deep in their own shit. I know that! I don't eat the shit-raised cannibal chickens! I'm not stupid. And if you are stupid enough to eat American commercially raised chickens, well you're probably not watching documentaries about food, are you now. So then there is the other, more noble strain of documentary. READ MORE
Product Placement: 'Wall Street 2': Money Actually Sleeps Quite Well
"The main thing about money, Bud, is that it makes you do things you don't want to do." READ MORE
Flicked Off: "Please Give," or, Pity Is Different Than Affection
Julie Klausner: I am under the impression that you loved the new Nicole Hosen-feffer Incorporated movie, "Please Give." READ MORE
Flicked Off: "Green Zone"
I have seen the last four Paul Greengrass movies and the latest, "Green Zone," which I've finally watched, made me want to give up consuming fiction entirely. This is a story that in its key points intentionally sticks close up front to some very real, very serious issues-the great political lie of the invasion of Iraq, the falsification or at least very extreme inaccuracy of military intelligence regarding the Hussein regime's weapons and also the outrageously damaging involvement of major newspapers in spreading that misinformation. One of the most important topics of our time, right? And Paul Greengrass took those facts and made a lone hero cowboy shoot-em-up. READ MORE
Flicked Off: 'Greenberg,' or, Mean is the New Sad
Now that he is tasked for real with directing the adaptation of The Emperor's Children, we must take Noah Baumbach for serious again. And so.... READ MORE
Flicked Off: 'Alice in Wonderland' and Some Patriarchal Norms and Stuff
Now I'm not a huge Tim Burton stan, but I thought that Alice In Wonderland was pretty good! The strengths were exactly what you would probably think them to be: visually it was very nice to look at-the landscape design was done by Robert Stromberg, the same guy who did Avatar's. The characters were all very charming and amiable with all of their British accents (and what not!), especially the lead girl Mia Wasikowska who was very crushable by the end. And while the plot/story seemed simple, I was okay with that because it's supposed to be palatable for children, but also because it was really positive and uplifting and supportive of young girls being confident in themselves and believing that they can do things that they set their minds to-which seems like a good thing to convey to today's youth. Considering these takeaways I had from the movie, you can imagine my surprise when I went on Rotten Tomatoes and saw that the movie had a composite review of 67% (coincidentally the same as Shutter Island, which I also thought was a really enjoyable movie-less of an emphasis on girl power, sure, but still fun to watch nonetheless) which seemed a little unfair. READ MORE
Flicked Off: 'When In Rome'
Somehow, we ended up at this movie over the weekend, just us and some girls who were really lonely. And a few really angry boyfriends. You guys. Little Kristin Bell, barely there. Josh Duhamel, a lunk with a nice brow. A plot (magic love fountains!) that not even Annie Hathaway could paste together with her face. And, what's more, a ghostly drive-by from Judith Malina. Born in the 20s, the daughter of German rabbi who emigrated to America in 1929, the twice-widowed avant-garde theater superstar has not had a film or TV role since the 69th episode of The Sopranos, broadcast in April of 200-as Paulie's nun-aunt who reveals that she is actually his mother, causing him to flip out. (Then she dies.) READ MORE
Flicked Off, with Mary HK Choi: 'Avatar'
This movie makes me emo. Thinking about it makes my nose do that chloriney thing you get right before you start crying. I am SO GAY for this movie that I can't stand it. And you know what? Having finally seen it, I don't even care what the haters have to say. I am a happy meniscus that your spite sauce slides off of. I'm lifted. READ MORE
Flicked Off, with Mary HK Choi and Alex Balk: 'Nine'
Nine, directed by Rob Marshall, opens in limited release tomorrow. It stars Daniel Day-Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Penélope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Judi Dench, Kate Hudson, Sophia Loren, and Stacy Ferguson. READ MORE
Flicked Off, with Kia Matthews and Natasha Vargas-Cooper: 'Precious,' or, Can a Movie be a Social Act?
'Precious' has been in theaters for a week now, but since it's Mo'Nique's birthday today, we feel it is now time to finally get to it! READ MORE
