Oct 27 2013

Jennifer Jostyn: From Dancing to Acting

by Jason Harris

Jennifer Jostyn. Photo by Jason Harris.

Jennifer Jostyn started out dancing before becoming an actress in movies like The Brothers McMullen, Deep Impact, and House of 1000 Corpses.

“I thought I wanted to be a ballet dancer.”

Jostyn studied ballet from a young age up until she was 22 or 23. She stopped when The Brothers McMullen won at the Sundance Film Festival and her career shifted from dancing to acting.

“I tried to sort of follow where I thought I was going to get work,” Jostyn said about changing careers.

There are moments that make her feel sad. These happen when she is watching live musical theater. This is when she misses ballet.

“I will see a show and I’ll think I would have loved to have done that. I like to try to never use the word regret in my life.”

She is appreciative of the work she has gotten and for working with two directors,

Edward Burns and Rob Zombie, both of whom she considers great directors and enjoys working with them.

She first met Burns through Michael McGlone, who was a co-worker at the restaurant where she was waitressing when she was 20 years old. McGlone told her one night when it was slow that he was working on a movie with “a cool guy who lives down in the West Village.”

McGlone also told her that Burns had no money, but was going to make something interesting. She received the role of Leslie 20 minutes after meeting with Burns. She spent the next couple of weekends going out to Burns parents’ house to shoot the movie.

She worked with Rob Zombie on House of 1000 Corpses. She didn’t realize at the time of her audition how big a deal it was being in a Rob Zombie movie.

Jostyn has also worked in television. She prefers movies, though, since she gets a little more time and freedom to play around with the role.

“Television shows usually happen pretty quickly, and there’s a lot of pressure to get it done quickly. You’re on a different kind of schedule.”

Her first starring role was in Milo, which she received two days before the film started shooting. She was first scheduled to play a much smaller role until she received the lead after being called into the director’s office. This happened on the day she had come to the production offices for a wardrobe fitting.

“I really loved that role and was excited to be able to go through the whole course of a 90 minute film. I’d never done that before.”

Jostyn is drawn to acting because she likes everything about it and being around creative people.

“I find it very exciting to watch great minds like Rob [Zombie] and Eddie [Burns] and other people I have had the pleasure to work with. I think they’re so smart and interesting and unique … I just wanted to be near it. I really don’t care in what capacity. It’s exciting to me to get to pretend to be different people. I can’t imagine who wouldn’t want to do that.”

Along with acting, Jostyn has also written and produced a movie, The Life Coach, back in 2005. She describes it as a mockumentary in the vein of a Christopher Guest movie, and it’s about a Hollywood life coach to the stars.

Oct 10 2013

‘War of the Worlds’ Live on Stage

A DIFFERENT KIND OF HALLOWEEN

Infamous Radio Broadcast Recreated on October 31 at The Arlington Regent Theatre
Event benefits new documentary about the Orson Welles Cinema.

On October 30, 1938, The Orson Welles Mercury Theatre broadcast H.G. Wells’ classic tale of interplanetary battle with War of the Worlds and stunned the nation as many who heard it were convinced that a real invasion was taking place. It was one of the first times that the power of radio was on full display, and it resulted in new regulations about what and how news could be presented on the public airwaves. On October 31, 2013, the Regent Theatre in Arlington, MA, will commemorate the 75th anniversary with a live theatre event recreating one of the most famous radio plays ever produced.

This new War of the Worlds theatre recreation will use classic Foley audio techniques (where sound effects are produced mechanically where possible) and will feature a cast of local media celebrities, including Christopher Lydon from WGBH; cultural reporter Joyce Kulhawik; RadioBDC on-air personality Henry Santoro; Cha-Chi LoPrette from 100.7 WZLX, and others to be announced. The production will be directed by Nerissa Williams with Foley direction by Austen Wright and Hal Wagner.

The live event will raise funds for The Orson Welles Complex, a new documentary produced and directed by Garen Daly about the legendary Cambridge art house. As one of the Cinema’s managers during its heyday, Daly is chronicling the unique story of the Welles with cinematographer Austin de Besche, noted for his work with John Sayles, among others.

“What more fitting tribute than to recreate War of the Worlds, the broadcast that launched Orson Welles’ career in the movies, as we embark on preserving the memory of the Orson Welles Cinema in a documentary film,” said Daly. “We thought it would be a lot of fun and a great way to commemorate the anniversary on Halloween night.”

For those living in the Cambridge area in the 1970s and 1980s, the Orson Welles Cinema figures prominently in their memories. Patrons enthusiastically relished the innovative programming that included midnight movies, revivals, and European films. Viewers discovered Fassbinder, Werner Herzog, and many others at the Welles. Tommy Lee Jones was the Cinema’s first manager, and Stephen King included the Welles in three of his stories. Through the years, the Cinema added a film school and a restaurant, and it spawned a generation of people dedicated to the arts who influenced the industry.

Daly’s documentary, The Orson Welles Complex, is scheduled to release in 2015. Follow news and updates at www.facebook.com/OrsonWellesCinema.

War of the Worlds live theatre event will take place Thursday, October 31, 2013 at 7:30 p.m. at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, MA. Tickets are $20.00 in advance and $25.00 at the door. Purchase at the Regent Theatre box office or online at www.BostonSci-Fi.com/WaroftheWorlds.

The Regent Theatre is located at 7 Medford Street, Arlington, MA. (781) 646-4849 www.regentheatre.com

Oct 10 2013

Celebrate the Holidays Minion Style with the #1 Comedy of the Year!

DESPICABLE ME 2

BE THE FIRST TO OWN IT ON DIGITAL HD NOVEMBER 26, 2013

BRING HOME THE BLU-RAY™ COMBO PACK DECEMBER 10, 2013

INCLUDING BLU-RAY™, DVD & DIGITAL HD WITH ULTRAVIOLET

GET THREE ALL-NEW MINION MINI MOVIES NOT SEEN IN THEATERS WHEN YOU BUY THE BLU-RAY

The holiday season just got even brighter with the news that Despicable Me 2, the $872 million worldwide box office phenomenon and the year’s #1 comedy, arrives onBlu-ray™ and Blu-ray 3D™ Combo Packs, DVD and Digital HD including UltraViolet™ on December 10, 2013, from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. The film will also be available on Digital HD November 26, 2013, just in time for families to watch on the go as they gear up for holiday travel. In addition to more than 45 minutes of hilarious and insightful bonus features, Blu-ray Combo Packs will include, from the makers of Despicable Me, three all-new mini-movies starring the film series’ breakout stars, the mischievous but lovable Minions. For a sneak peek of these mini-movies, and other great weekly offers from Despicable Me 2, call Gru at **DM2 (**362) from your mobile phone.*

“Despicable Me 2 is the top box-office comedy of the year and is poised for spectacular success on home entertainment this holiday season,” said Craig Kornblau, president of Universal Studios Home Entertainment. “This adored franchise, with its iconic lovable Minions, stands apart from all others and is sure to be at the top of everyone’s wish list this December.”

In this follow-up to the 2010worldwide blockbuster, Steve Carell (The Office, The 40-Year-Old Virgin) returns to play Gru, the newly reformed master criminal now trying to live life as a normal dad to his three adopted daughters. Carell leads a voice cast of comedic powerhouses that includes Kristin Wiig (Bridesmaids,Saturday Night Live), Benjamin Bratt (Miss Congeniality, Snitch), Miranda Cosgrove (iCarly, Despicable Me), Russell Brand (Get Him to the Greek, Hop), Steve Coogan (Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief,Tropic Thunder), Ken Jeong (The Hangover, Turbo), Elsie Fisher (Despicable Me, Raising Hope), Dana Gaier (Despicable Me) and Moisés Arias (Ender’s Game, Hannah Montana). Despicable Me 2 is hailed as “Brilliant! One of the funniest, laugh-out-loud, most enjoyable movies ever” by MovieGuide.

This Thanksgiving, Manhattan will share a memorable moment of Minion Madness with the world whena brand new Despicable Me 2 float joins the 87^th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in celebration of the home entertainment release. Despicable Me 2 will roll out a deliciously decorated cupcake parlor inspired by the hilarious and heartwarming film and featuring Gru, the reformed master criminal turned devoted dad, and a gaggle of his unpredictable helpers, the Minions — including a surprise new character — to keep things lively and entertaining for the film’s millions of fans, both young and old. The 86^th Annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade airs nationwide on NBC-TV, on Thursday, November 28, 2013 from 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM in all time zones.

The Blu-ray Combo Pack and Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack include a Blu-ray, DVD and Digital HD with UltraViolet.

· Blu-ray unleashes the power of your HDTV and is the best way to watch movies at home, featuring 6x the picture resolution of DVD, exclusive extras and theater-quality surround sound.
· DVDoffers the flexibility and convenience of playing movies in more places, both at home and away.
· DIGITAL HDwith UltraViolet™lets you watch movies anywhere, on any device. Users can instantly stream or download movies to watch on iPad®, iPhone®, Android, smart TVs, connected Blu-ray players, game consoles and more.

Bonus Features Exclusive to Blu-ray Combo Pack & Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack.

· Three All-New Mini-Movies Starring the Minions—Introduced by Gru

o Puppy

o Panic in the Mailroom

o Training Wheels

· The Making of the Mini-Movies—A fun-filled take on the making of the mini-movies through the eyes of the artists who made them.
· Deleted Scene
· The Minions—A visit to Illumination Entertainment in Paris and Los Angeles to hear what it’s really like to work with the Minions.
· Evil Minions—Bigger, badder and more purple than ever, the newest and fiercest addition to the Minion species can chew through metal and swallow a car. Find out more about the process that led to their creation and design.
· A Gru-Some Transformation—A sit-down with Steve Carell as he discusses the transformation of Gru from the ultimate super-villain to super-dad and international spy.
· El Hombre Malo: The Villainy Of El Macho—Every great story needs a good villain, andDespicable Me 2 brings on the diabolico in the form of El Macho! Learn about the creation of this character and the actor who brought him to life—Benjamin Bratt.

Bonus Features on Blu-ray & DVD

· Gru’s Girls—Miranda Cosgrove, Elsie Kate Fisher and Dana Gaier weigh in on working with Steve Carell and playing the daughters of a world-famous super-villain!
· Gadgets Galore—Lipstick tasers, magnet ships, foam dart dispensers and jelly guns—these are the nifty gadgets of Despicable Me 2. Illumination Entertainment pulls back the curtain on what it takes to build a world that would leave even James Bond envious.
· Feature Commentary With Directors Chris Renaud & Pierre Coffin

SYNOPSIS

Gru, his adorable girls, and the mischievous Minions are back with a cast of unforgettable new characters in the blockbuster sequel to the worldwide phenomenon. Just as Gru has given up being super-bad to be a super-dad, the Anti-Villain League recruits him to track down a new criminal mastermind and save the world. Partnered with secret agent Lucy Wilde, Gru, along with the wildly unpredictable Minions, must figure out how to keep his cover while also keeping up with his duties as a father. Assemble the Minions for laugh-out-loud comedy in “one of the funniest, most enjoyable movies ever!” (MovieGuide®)

CAST AND FILMMAKERS:

Cast: Steve Carell, Kristin Wiig,Benjamin Bratt, Miranda Cosgrove, Russell Brand, Steve Coogan, Ken Jeong, Elsie Fisher, Dana Gaier, Moisés Arias

Directed by: Chris Renaud and Pierre Coffin

Screenplay by: Cinco Paul and Ken Daurio

Character Designers: Carter Goodrich, Eric Guillon

Producers: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy

Production Designer: Yarrow Cheney, Eric Guillon

Editor: Gregory Perler, A.C.E.

Original Songs and Themes by: Pharrell Williams

TECHNICAL INFORMATION –BLU-RAY 3D

Street Date: December 10, 2013

Selection Numbers:61127723 (U.S.) 61128861 (CDN)

Running Time: 1 hour 38 minutes

Layers: BD-50

Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 1.85:1

Rating: PG for “Rude Humor and Mild Action.”

Technical Info: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1/DVS DD 2.0 (English); DTS Digital Surround 5.1 (Spanish and French)

Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish

TECHNICAL INFORMATION – BLU-RAY

Street Date: December 10, 2013

Selection Numbers: 61120670 (U.S.), 61125036 (CDN)

Running Time: 1 hour 38 minutes

Layers: BD-50

Aspect Ratio: Widescreen 1.85:1

Rating: PG for “Rude Humor and Mild Action”

Technical Info: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1/DVS DD 2.0 (English); DTS Digital Surround 5.1 (Spanish and French)

Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish

TECHNICAL INFORMATION – DVD

Street Date: December 10, 2013

Selection Numbers:61120669 (U.S.), 61125037 (CDN)

Running Time: 1 hour 38 minutes

Layers: Dual Layer

Aspect Ratio: Anamorphic Widescreen 1:85:1

Rating: PG for “Rude Humor and Mild Action”

Technical Info: Dolby Digital 5.1/DVS DD 2.0 (English); Dolby Digital 5.1 (Spanish and French)

Subtitles: English SDH, French and Spanish

Oct 8 2013

Films that do more than bump in the night!

Horror Fest at the Somerville

Starting Oct 12 and running through Oct 31, the Somerville Theatre and Garen Daly present a collection of new, old, and even schlocky horror films all designed to evoke fear and perhaps laughter.

Starting on Saturday October 12th with a mini-marathon of horror and sci-fi, the festival has films from 1920 to 2013. The 1920 film, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari, will be shown with live musical accompaniment by Jeff Rapsis. The festival will wrap on Halloween with two of the best modern horror films, William Friedkin’s THE EXORCIST and Kathryn Bigelow’s ground breaking NEAR DARK.

Tickets are $10 for individual shows and are available at the Somerville Theatre box office or on line at the theatre’s website.

Below are the films and their scheduled times. For additional information please contact Ian Judge at the Somerville Theatre 617-625-4088 or Garen Daly at 603-593-3610.

JOURNEY THROUGH TIME & SPACE: A Film Marathon
Saturday October 12 Noon to Midnight! 9 Films! One Price – $35!
Westworld • Planet of the Apes • Cabinet of Dr Caligari
(w/live music) • Tremors • Forbidden Planet • Dr Cyclops • The Invisible Man • Forbidden Planet • Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai
ALL 35 mm! ARCHIVAL PRINTS!

BAD MILO Sun 10/13 @ 8 pm
(2013) In this allegorical gore romp, Duncan’s stress manifests itself as a demon who pops out of his butt. Embrace your inner demon. Oh, yeah, pretty good cast too. Directed by Jacob Vaughan.

NIGHT MONSTER Mon 10/14 @ 8 pm & Wed 10/16 @ 10 pm
(2013) Premiere A dimension traveling Civil War slave lives by sucking the energy out of serial killers. When he saves an 18-year-old, a new, perilous journey begins. Director: Edgar Michael Bravo

LAST WILL & TESTAMENT of ROSALIND LEIGH 10/15 @ 8 pm
(2012) Estranged antiques collector inherits a house with lingering spirit Directed by Rodrigo Gudiño of Rue Morgue fame.

APPARITIONAL Wed 10/16@ 8 pm
(2013) East Coast Premiere A reality TV show on ghosts gets more than they bargained for. Great cast includes Dee Wallace. Directed by Andrew P. Jones

THE CHANGLING Thu 10/17 @ 8 pm
(1980) Award winner! George C Scott is staying at a secluded historical mansion when he finds his life being haunted by the presence of something sinister. Crisp! Intelligent! Chilling!.

GINGER SNAPS Thu 10/17 @ 10 pm
(2000) Award Winner! Two death-obsessed sisters, outcasts in their suburban neighborhood, must deal with the tragic consequences when one of them is bitten by a deadly werewolf.

HAUNTER Sun 10/27 8:00 pm
(2013) Boston Premiere. Abigail Breslin stars in this moody chiller from the director of Splice & The Cube. A teenaged ghost reaches out from the grave to save an innocent from suffering her fate

Argento’s DRACULA in 3D Mon-Wed 10/28 – 30 @ 8 pm
(2012) Boston Theatrical Premiere. Dario Argento, the master of Italian horror, returns with a classic retelling of a dentrified gentleman with a hemocentric diet and a taste for comely women. Shot in & shown in 3D. Rutger Hauer (Blade Runner) is Van Helsing.

NEAR DARK Thu 10/31 @ 10 pm
(1987) Kathryn Bigelow’s ‘finger lickin’ good’ vampire flick about a small town boy, a roving band of vampires and one nasty ass bar scene.

THE EXORCIST Thu 10/31 @ 8 pm
(1973) William Friedkin’s take on Blatty’s book is THE definitive horror film. Everything else is compared to it. See it w few hundred of your closest friends.

Sep 24 2013

‘Sharknado’ Scheduled to Hit the East Coast during Rock & Shock 2013

The national weather service is predicting that a category 4 Sharknado will hit

Worcester, Massachusetts on Friday, October 18 and Saturday, October 19. Meteorologists can confirm that Sharknado‘s director Anthony C. Ferrante (Sharknado, Boo, Hansel & Gretel, Headless Horseman) and star Jason Simmons – (Sharknado, Bloody Mary, Nowhere, Baywatch) will be making landfall directly inside the DCU Center as part of Rock & Shock 2013. All residents are advised to take proper precautions by purchasing their tickets at rockandshock.com.

It’s the movie that caused a social media sensation like no other, and now you have the chance to meet the men behind this contemporary classic; director Anthony C. Ferrante and actor Jason Simmons. Making their first convention appearance ever and hot off the tails of the Sharknado sequel announcement, Ferrante and Simmons will be signing autographs and meeting with fans as part of the 10th annual convention.

Also joining Ferrante and Simmons will be Robert Englund (Nightmare on Elm Street, Hatchet), Robert Patrick (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, The X-Files), The Walking Dead’s Michael Rooker and Scott Wilson and many more. Live performances include, Kevin Smith and Jason Mewes (Jay and Silent Bob’s Super Groovy Cartoon Movie and Podcast Q&A), Danzig with special guest Doyle and Twiztid.

For a complete list of attendees and up-to-the-minute announcements, please visit http://www.rockandshock.com.

—

Sep 11 2013

‘The Walking Dead’s’ Scott Wilson Coming to Rock & Shock

He has protected his friends from The Walking Dead, murdered In Cold Blood and fallen victim to Charlize Theron’s Monster, but this October actor Scott Wilson will be safe, sound and signing autographs at the 10^th annual Rock & Shock convention in Worcester, MA.

Wilson began his career with back-to-back roles in the 1967 classics In the Heat of the Night, opposite screen legends Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger, and in the film adaptation of Truman Capote’s famed docu-novel In Cold Blood. Since then, Wilson’s incredible acting talents have earned him countless film and television roles as well as a Golden Globe nomination for his role in 1980’s The Ninth Configuration.

Since 2011, Wilson has been winning the hearts of TV audiences as Hershel Greene on the acclaimed AMC series The Walking Dead. Greene is a farmer, veterinarian, father and recovering alcoholic who must fight to protect his fellow survivors after a zombie apocalypse while simultaneously serving as the group’s moral compass. Wilson will also be joined at Rock & Shock by his The Walking Dead co-stars Michael Rooker (Merle Dixon), Lew Temple (Axel) and IronE Singleton (T-Dog)

Please check Rock and Shock’s website here for the other guests appearing during the weekend.

Sep 10 2013

David Lowery Talks about His Western Influences and Writing

By Jason Harris

David Lowery, the writer and director of Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, a movie about an outlaw portrayed by Casey Affleck, who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met. He wanted to do something that dealt with the archetypes of the western and outlaw genres. The westerns he finds himself loving are ones that have a different perspective.

“One of the first westerns that I loved was Lonesome Dove. It gave me a great appreciation of the genre and how rich it could be and how characters like this could live on the landscape.”

The western that showed him a deconstruction of the genre was Dead Man by Jim Jarmusch, he said.

Along with movies, even literature had an effect on Lowery. Cormac McCarthy is one writer in particular that affected him.

“When I read The Crossing when I was 19, it had a profound effect on me and pretty much changed the way I view not just literature, but storytelling in general.”

Lowery considers everything that McCarthy has ever written in the western genre some of his favorite literature, he said.

Lowery doesn’t have a writing process, but he does think that whatever his process is, it’s him just being lazy. He considers himself very lazy, which is what he thinks most writers are.

“I always put it off as long as I can and find other things to do, eventually the ideas I have in my head sticks around long enough that I just have to finally write it.”

He forces every idea through a trial by fire in his own mind before writing them down. If the idea is forgotten then it wasn’t worth writing down to begin with and the ones that stick around tend to get bigger and bigger, he said.

His choice of Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo), Affleck (Gone Baby Gone) and Ben Foster (X-men: The Last Stand) to star in his movie were his top choices for Ain’t Them Bodies Saints.

“It was a dream come true,” Lowery said about getting his three stars. “It was pretty remarkable.”

It felt to him that he and his three stars were friends and that they wanted to make the movie together, he said.

“I consider myself very lucky not only that they wanted to do the movie, but they brought that attitude.”

This is only Lowery’s second feature. His first feature was St. Nick, which was released in 2009. Along with these two movies, he has created “a lot of short films.”

He learned a sense of confidence from his first film.

“I need to stick to my guns and do what I feel is right for the project.”

Lowery would like to work with his stars again. He would also like to work with Brad Pitt.

“There are so many great actors. I admire so many different people. It really depends on what the project is,” he said about who he would want to work with and place in a movie.

Aug 29 2013

Writer Talks about His New Movie, ‘Ain’t Them Bodies Saints’

By Jason Harris

Writer and director David Lowery has been a fan of westerns since he was seven when he moved to Texas, where he thought all the streets were going to be dusty and guys would be wearing big hats.

When he wrote Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, a movie about an outlaw portrayed by Casey Affleck who escapes from prison and sets out across the Texas hills to reunite with his wife and the daughter he has never met, he wanted to do something that dealt with the archetypes of the western and outlaw genres.

“I wanted to pay homage to those archetypes. I didn’t want to do anything too complex. I didn’t want to reinvent the wheel. I wanted to let them be what they have always been throughout the history of this type of storytelling.”

The movie’s title came from some misheard song lyric to an old song. They just spun around in his head, he said.

“I thought they make a good title for a movie,” Lowery said. “When it came to writing the script, I very quickly remembered that title and thought that this movie would be a fine movie for that title.”

Lowery wanted the movie to feel like an old folk song with that quality, resilience, and mentality to it. He also thinks it is very thematic since a person will not find that phrasing in any other language.

He thinks titles can prepare people for what they are going to see, which he believes his title does.

The movie is set in the 70s because it wouldn’t work in the 80s, 90s or now because of technology. It also allows it to take on grandeur tones and have a mythological and timeless feel to it, he said.

“I don’t think the story would work as well or worked at all if there were such things as cellphones or the Internet.”

He chose the outlaw genre because he wanted to play around in a genre he really liked. He wanted to do something that dealt with the archetypes of the western and outlaw genres.

This type of storytelling goes beyond the movie and goes all the way back to folk songs, American folklore, and history itself, he said.

“It was a really wonderful process to write it because I felt like I was participating in the tradition of storytelling.”

Lowery didn’t do a lot of research for Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, but relied on other movies and how they used these tropes and ideas, he said. He trusted what other people have done on film in the past.

“I didn’t feel the need to tie this movie down to reality.”

That being said, Lowery did mention he had a police advisor on the film set to explain how the police would approach a farmhouse. What the advisor told him is exactly what he expected since he had seen it in other movies so many times, he said.

Even though Lowery didn’t do a lot of research for the movie. He did ask Ben Foster, one of the three main stars in the movie, to do research about how sheriff’s in Texas go about their jobs and performing their duties. Foster got to know what it was like to have that job and what that job meant.

“He brought a lot of that to the table and a lot of information I didn’t know so that was really helpful as well,” Lowery said. “He brought a lot of realism to that part that wouldn’t have otherwise been there.”

Ain’t Them Bodies Saints opens in theaters Friday, Aug. 30.

Jul 19 2013

‘Red 2’ Keeps the Action Going and The Laughs Coming

By Jason Harris

I didn’t care for Red when it was first released almost three years ago. I’m not sure why. I recently watched it again in anticipation of seeing Red 2, and this time around I enjoyed it and would like to own it. It is now a favorite action movie of mine, as is Red 2.

Red 2 opens up with Frank (Bruce Willis) and Sarah (Mary-Louise Parker) shopping at a Costco. Frank doesn’t seem any worse for wear after running from the Moldovan Army at the end of Red. He excitedly comes up to Sarah with bulk bargain items. The look on Sarah’s face seethes with boredom. She wants action. This is shown by her enthusiasm when Marvin (John Malkovich) shows up to tell him that Interpol is after him because of Nightshade, a Cold War project to sneak a nuclear weapon into Russia. Frank wants nothing to do with Marvin or his information so he sends him away, much to the chagrin of Sarah.

Even after Marvin’s car explodes and he is presumably dead, Frank still wants to play things safe. With the Red movies, you can never be sure what to expect. Frank isn’t sure Marvin’s dead, and he tests his theory a few times at Marvin’s funeral. These moments are funny and cringe-worthy since you and Frank are thinking the same thing. Is Marvin really dead? I won’t spoil it for you.

It’s not long after the funeral that Frank is living up to his RED (retired, extremely dangerous) designation.

Helen Mirren’s Victoria is back. She’s given a contract by MI6 to kill Frank. There is a moment where it looks like she will fulfill that contract, but before long they are all together trying to stop world destruction.

Anthony Hopkins portrays baddie Bailey. It’s not Hopkins’ best performance since it didn’t seem to be even. This problem could lie in the writing, though. One moment, he’s crazy or just acting like a loon. The next minute he’s fine then he starts to slip back towards crazy. It was an off-putting performance.

The movie’s writers, Jon Hoeber and Erich Hoeber, took a page from The Fast and the Furious movies with the character of Han Cho Bai (Byung-hun Lee). The audience is introduced to Han before he is contracted to kill Frank. Han is a cool character whom you want to survive and be in Red 3. This can’t happen if Frank and Han remain enemies. By the end of the movie, Frank and Han are working together. Hopefully there will be a third movie where we see more of Han.

The Red series could be considered Bruce Willis’ Expendables series (which he is in, but not in a starring role). Red is high on action and excitement, and there is definitely enough gas in the tank for a third movie.

Jul 17 2013

Director Talks about ‘Dirty Wars’: Part II

by Jason Harris

According to the movie’s website, Dirty Wars “begins as a report into a U.S. night raid gone terribly wrong in a remote corner of Afghanistan, and quickly turns into a global investigation of the secretive and powerful Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC).

As Jeremy Scahill digs deeper into the activities of JSOC, he is pulled into a world of covert operations, unknown to the public and carried out across the globe by men who do not exist on paper and will never appear before Congress. In military jargon, JSOC teams ‘find, fix, and finish’ their targets, who are selected through a secret process. No target is off limits for the ‘kill list,’ including U.S. citizens.

Drawn into the stories and lives of the people he meets along the way, Scahill is forced to confront the painful consequences of a war spinning out of control, as well as his own role as a journalist.

We encounter two parallel casts of characters.

The CIA agents, Special Forces operators, military generals, and U.S.-backed warlords who populate the dark side of American wars go on camera and on the record, some for the first time.

We also see and hear directly from survivors of night raids and drone strikes, including the family of the first American citizen marked for death and being hunted by his own government.”

The world has changed so much since director Rick Rowley and writer Jeremy Scahill began Dirty Wars. When they started the film, there was no public discussion on the war on terror, Rowley said. No one was talking about drones, targeted killing, assassinations or any of that. There may have been some talk on the fringes, but nothing like there is now, Rowley said. It eventually moved from the fringes to the editorial pages of the Washington Post.

Rowley doesn’t know why it is being talked about now when it wasn’t when they started the film. He thinks this discussion should have happened a decade ago so people would know why the war is being waged, what it’s doing to the world, and doing to us as a people. “It’s wonderful that it is, but the rhythms where they take us are difficult to explain.”

He’s not sure how these things happen, but after Sept. 11 it was bound to take some time before we could soberly look at what was going on, Rowley said. He thinks it could be happening now that President Barack Obama has been re-elected and he won’t be facing a challenge from a Republican contender.

“I think its safe for them to come forward and begin to talk about issues that they would feel differently talking about if you were about to go up against [Mitt] Romney.”

Rowley hopes his film is a part of the conversation that is going on at the moment. There are more than a dozen wars going on in the world at this time.

“There are a dozen of those countries where wars are being fought in our name, but without our knowledge and without our consent. And at home, they have assumed the right to execute American citizens without formal charges and without a trial.”

Rowley believes fundamentally important decisions have been made about who we are as a country and how we operate in the world, and it has all been made over the last decade in secret without a national debate. These wars have been orchestrated by the secretive and powerful JSOC, which Scahill is about to sue, he said. The lawsuit is coming about because of all the freedom of information requests that have not been answered by JSOC.

Scahill was also pressured not to publish certain articles, Rowley said. Scahill was threatened and his computer was hacked. Some of these instances are chronicled in the film. The film also delves deeper into JSOC’s activities.

You can find out where Dirty Wars is showing on its website, http://dirtywars.org/.

Jason Harris Promotions

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