Episode 54: Up in the Air and Sherlock Holmes

Hello there and welcome to the 54th episode of the Cinema Cafe Podcast, the bi-weekly, twice monthly film podcast by the fans, for the fans. Join us each week as we review new movies releases, look at some dvd's, talk some film news and share our general love for all things cinema. The main goal is to have some fun and hopefully provide the listener with some helpful insight. We are back and the podcasting world is alight once again.

This week we have a treat: it's our 54th episode, which means we've been bringing you "bi-weekly" content for over a year now. This week we take a look at 2 movies that have been recently released or are on dvd. With that said here's a look at what we discuss on this weeks podcast:

* Up in the Air
* Sherlock Holmes
* Top 10 List: Best Movies of 2009
* Upcoming movie releases for the weekend of 1.15.10 and 1.22.10

Also, film news and more, only on the Cinema Cafe Podcast. We hope you enjoy and happy movie watching.

Thanks as always to all our loyal listeners for sharing the ride with us as we've reached this milestone for the show. It's all due to your support that we have kept things going and we hope you continue to share the ride with us in the coming months.

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Movie Talkback - Sebastian's Voodoo (animated short)

Who would have thought, a touching anmation about Voodoo Dolls. Here's a 4-minute animated short called Sebastian's Voodoo from director Joaquin Baldwin about "a voodoo doll who must find the courage to save his friends from being pinned to death." I had never heard of Joaquin until this animated short, but evidently he's an award winning animator and director from Paraguay.

Sebastian's Voodoo was shown at last years National Film Board of Canada competition. No idea how it fared, but after watching this short, I feel it reasonable to say that we can expect great things from Mr. Joaquin Baldwin in the future. Also of note: he's not one of the Baldwin brothers.

Leftovers - Michael Cera Plays the Peanuts Theme

While evidently a bore of an interview, Michael Cera can be quite funny when called upon and I'm a big fan of his. Hell, I went to see Year One (at the theater!! And I payed for it!!) and I can tell you it wasn't because of Jack Black. And yes I know he plays the same damn character in every movie. I evidently love Nic Cage too and well, he just screams a lot.

Anyway, the Cartoon Network interviewed Cera for his new movie Youth in Revolt, and rather than ask him the generic questions I'm sure he's heard a million times during the press junkets, the fine folks at CN asked him to play the Peanuts theme song. It's great, it's fun, it's Michael Cera, so sit back and enjoy the 30 second clip.

Movie Talkback - New Dune Adaptation Finds Director

Looks like the upcoming Dune film has found itself a director in the guise of Pierre Morel, the fantastic director of the off the wall minimalistic action films, Taken and Banlieue 13 (District 13).

I've been a lifelong fan of the original 1965 novel by Frank Herbert (worshipping at the alter that is the Muad'Dib) and have always thought that the novel was unfilmable as a movie. You need look no further than the 1984 David Lynch adaptation that is over 3 hours in length and nearly unwatchable. Honestly, I enjoy the movie quite a bit, but it's slow, prodding, confusing, pretentious and has Sting as one of the major bad guys... like I said nearly unwatchable unless you're a huge fan of the series.





Still, I do have some hope for the upcoming film adaptation by Morel even if many fans may not. Sure an action director may seem an odd choice to direct a film which is basically an allegory on our over dependence as a culture on religion and commodities, but I welcome a more updated and non-literal translation of a work I so dearly hold close to my heart. Like I said before, I think that the Dune series is unfulfillable as a movie, and one that tries to be to faithful will end up like Lynch's Dune. Anyway, look for Morel's Dune hopefully in 2011.

Also, if you want to see a good adaptation of Dune, check out sci-fi channels original Dune and Children of Dune miniseries. These two mini-series are very faithful and entertaining adaptations of the original source materiel.

Movie Talkback - Avatar continues to soar!!

Well here's something that I can honestly say I was a bit surprised to read about. When Avatar was first announced I thought, "man that movie costs a lot of money. I wonder if they'll make at least their production costs back." Then when I heard that Twentieth Century Fox had found a way to distribute costs across the board in case the movie flopped I wondered aloud even more. Well looks like we were all fools, well everyone except James Cameron.

Avatar has officially made 1 billion worldwide in 17 days, surpassing Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight to become the 4th highest grossing film of all time. That's right, 1 billion with a 'b' in 17 days. Looks like it will soon pass Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King to become the #2 worldwide release of all time. The only man who's film James Cameron may not be able to surpass with Avatar is himself, as Titanic sits alone on it's thrown. People can bemoan that the gross is inflated due to the fact that the movie cost more money to see since it was in 3D. None of that detracts from how much ungodly money it made in such a short time. Is it deserving of such lofty aspirations? To that I say, is Titanic or Dead Man's Chest any worthier?

However the films destruction of the box office and the mind doesn't just stop there. James Cameron is now the only director to have two films that have earned 1 billion dollars. Also, Avatar has grossed an estimated 68.3 million in it's third week of release, destroying the previous record of 45 million set by Spiderman 3. Man, just seeing which movies make so much money makes me sad. The love doesn't stop there. The 68.3 million made is 30 million dollars more than any January opening release ever, and the film is in it's third week of release!

Lastly, this past year's highest grossing film was Transformers 2: Revenge of Michael Bay which took in 402 million in 114 days domestically. Avatar will pass that domestic mark in an estimated 20 days.

What do all these facts and numbers mean? Besides the fact that Avatar is truly setting out to do what Cameron always wanted (to revolutionize films), not a whole lot. However it's such an incredible feat in cinematic history that I felt it was worth mentioning. Now if only I could buy James Cameron stock on the NY Stock Exchange.

Movie Review - Love Happens (2009)

This 2009 romantic drama is written and directed by Brandon Camp (of tv show John Doe fame) and stars Aaron Eckhart as Burke Ryan, a successful self-help book author who tours speaking at sold out venues, doling out advice on coping with the loss of loved ones a la Tony Robbins style. Still coping with the loss of his own wife, Burke travels to Seattle and meets Eloise (Jennifer Aniston), a free spirit who works as a flourist. However, Burke, never having taken his own advice is unable to fully open up to Eloise even though she may be the one person who can save him.

So yeah, Love Happens is a by-the-numbers romantic drama, with twists and turns that the viewer will see coming from every corner. There's no new ground explored, or perceptions challenged. However, what you will find with this movie is an engaging look at a man who once lost everything, and now successful, can't move on or be happy. Burke and Eloise feel like real breathing people, real adults with real sets of problems that everyone can relate to. Sure the movie can be bit of a downer since it deals with coping and loss, and sure the payoff may want you to call for a refund, but Love Happens deserved to have done better than it did at the Box Office (Universal gave this movie with big stars a small indie release, or as many in the industry know it as "dumping").

However I will say this, if it was not for the standout performances and charm of the two leads (Eckhart and Aniston) there would be no reason to see this movie and it would have been a total mess. However because Eckhart and Aniston work so well together, you become invested in their charcater's lives and root for them to finally find happiness. The best recommendation I can say for this move is, "if you go in with low expectations you might be midly surprised", which is something I wish I could say for a lot of movies. Can a world exist where Two-Face finds happiness? Well in the world of Love Happens, hell, you root for heads all the way.

What I Think of: Up in the Air (2009)

This 2009 dramedy starring George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Anna Kendrick, and Jason Bateman is about a man named Ryan Bingham (Clooney), who travels around the U.S. to various companies to lay people off on behalf of said companies. Bingham is good at his job, he is business-like in his delivery but provides sensitivity and advice fit for each individual (though real or fake, you can never quite decide).

Along the way, he trains a new college graduate, Natalie (Kendrick) who lacks the understanding of what his job entitles, meets a woman named Alex (Farmiga) who he has a "casual" relationship with, and gets ready for his sister's wedding. You soon learn that Bingham loves to travel and has mastered it to an art form, travels over 300 days out of 365 days of the year, and is out of touch with life at home (his physical home and his metaphorical home known as family). He lives a lonely life surrounded by strangers and slowly he learns the type of things he's missing out in life. At first you think Bingham is a jerk and a bit too egotistical for his own good but then you start having a soft spot for him. This truly shows the transition in the film, and in Bingham's life.

This is a smart comedy that also takes a deeper look into someone's psyche. After leaving the movie theater, the more I thought about it, the more I was convinced that it was a perfect film. The story had a good message, it was not predictable; great acting; good pacing and direction. I highly recommend this film so bring your lunch from home because you do not want to miss this. This is an "advanced" review but please check out next week's podcast for our full review. Yes, I did say next week, I don't think we'll be able to record this week. Hope everyone had a great new year's and enjoy the Up in the Air trailer.