WEEKEND PREVIEW

After just a in day in release, Final Fantasy is already looking like a disappointment for Sony… how big or small remains to be seen.  The Wednesday opening of $5 million has already sent some analysts slinking away from the original tracking that had this weekend estimated at $21 million - $24 million towards estimates in the high teens. 

All the “David Manning” hullabaloo has distracted most of us in the media from the real story at Sony.  They not only haven’t had a single film pass the $61 million mark in domestic this year, but their only real summer shot at $100 million, America’s Sweethearts, has near disastrous buzz amongst the media that has seen the movie.  The only two other legitimate nine-figure possibilities are Penny Marshall’s Drew Barry more starrer Riding in Cars with Boys in October and Ali in December. 

The fact is, the three majors that have lots of negative buzz around their marketing departments, Sony, Warner Bros, and Fox, are not coincidentally the three studios that haven’t broken $100 million yet this year.  Of course, Fox has Planet of the Apes coming, which should break $100 million in 10 days or less, Star Wars: Episode II coming next summer and Jim Cameron setting up tentpoles for 2003 and 2004 before Star Wars: Episode 3 comes to town in 2005.  The Warner Bros. pipeline, for all the turmoil of the moment, is loaded, with Cast & Dogs a possible $100 million film and Harry Potter, Ocean’s Eleven and The Majestic on the way before year’s end. 

You may remember that My Best friend’s Wedding and  Air Force One and The Mask of Zorro and, yes, Godzilla marked a blockbuster period at the beginning of John Calley’s Sony tenure… all films developed and mostly greenlit under Mark Canton, who was forced out because of a couple of bad summers.  Can you say Joe Roth and Spider-Man and déjà vu’?  

THE GOOD:  It was heartening to read that Rachel Griffiths is working on a short film of her own.  Turns out, it’s her second.  Her first short, Tulip, starring the great Bud Tingwell, actually won awards at three of the festivals at which it appeared.  It dealt with a late-life crisis, the loss of a spouse in a world of tradition.  The new short, Roundabout, is about a man having a mid—life crisis... she’s working her way backwards, I guess.  She’s shooting the film in Melbourne, Australia, her home town, where she is also shooting a film with Guy Pearce… who is no longer working his way backwards. 

THE BAD:  Still down under, I was reading about the “great” year they’ve had in Australian cinema and I recognized the big name flicks, The Dish and Moulin Rouge.  But then, a dozen other titles flashed by… and I didn’t recognize one.  That sucks.  There is something really, really wrong with that.  The titles are  Mullet, Lantana, Risk, He Died with a Felafel in his Hand, Let's Get Skase, La Spagnola, Serenades, Silent Partner, The Bank, The Goddess of 1967, The Monkey's Mask, and Yolngu Boy.  The whole story is here.

THE UGLY:  People have been waiting for the other shoe to drop after the “True Friends of Warner Bros.” memo hit on Tuesday.  Word from inside the studio is that everyone is anxious to figure out the culprits and taking the whole thing quite seriously… but that no one really wants to be caught naming names at the water cooler.  Look for someone’s body to come floating to the surface by the end of next week. 

BAD AD WATCH:  It wouldn’t be accurate to say that the pull quotes from Roger Ebert on Lost and Delirious (“Erotic! Gorgeous!) aren’t real.  But man, they are so out of context!  They came from a very interesting column that Roger did from Sundance this year.  It was about what this film made him feel versus the cold appraisal that often passes for criticism these days… or at least, that’s how I read it. 

Anyway, his comments on the film were:  “You're absorbed from beginning to end because the characters are enormously interesting and likable. And because they are gorgeous.  And because you could hear a pin drop in the 1,400-seat Eccles Center during the sex scenes, which are not explicit, but are erotic.”  “Gorgeous!  Erotic!” indeed.

I haven’t really reviewed this film because, for me, it fell into a kind of middle place.  The performances were very strong.  It was erotic.  Jessica Pare is a physical absurdity.  And Piper Perabo delivers the raw sensuality that she teased with in Coyote Ugly.  And while I hold Lea Pool’s effort in far higher esteem and with almost none of the disgust with which I hold Larry Clark and Bully, there is still a real element here of the viewer as exploiter of young flesh.  I bought the love story.  I had no problem with that.  But somehow, I just wasn’t all that satisfied with a film that was earnest and loving and original… but just not… I don’t know… important?  In the end, the person who had to change the most was the young girl, Misha Barton, who does not get into the sex play.  And while her life was changed by being a witness, in the end, it just didn’t take me anywhere that I really cared about… except, I guess, into Piper Perabo’s pain.  It is an excellent performance.

READER OF THE DAY:  Not Run DMC writes:  “Let me stand up and say that I thought Aki Ross did look vaguely Asian. What seems to have escaped the hype about Final Fantasy is that even with its "attempt" at photo-realism, these characters almost all have anime designs.  Aki looks as Asian as a character from Starblazers or Ghost in the Machine, and still has the proportions of one of those characters, too. It took me about halfway through the movie to key into that; up until then, I was just bugged by Aki, Grey, and everyone other than Dr. Sid. (It's why General Hein dresses in a long black coat -- just fulfilling an anime design stereotype.)”

And this from Not Peggy or Mama:  “Thursday, July 12, 2001 - Dear Dave: This letter is in direct response to the individual who did not care for "Legally Blonde", stating that it reinforced all stereotypes and was "horrendous" and claimed your commentary was affected because of the peroxide fumes.

My husband and I go to at least 1-2 movies per week, so I can honestly say what the trash is.  I usually let people's different opinions of movies slide, but the individual who wrote to you - well, I cannot simply let his/her harsh words fly.  Maybe they did not find it cute or funny, but I cannot have this person say Legally Blonde was HORRENDOUS.  Now Jury Duty - THAT was horrendous.  Simply stated, there really hasn't been one "funny" movie out so far this year, let alone that I would want to see again.  Legally Blonde was the ONE movie I was dying to see all year, since it was acclaimed to be the "Clueless Goes to Law School."  I was happy to report I was not disappointed - in fact, this movie is my favorite so far this year (right ahead of Memento and Crazy/Beautiful).  And before this viewer thinks that I only see the "fluff" movies, I see just as many art-house and foreign-language films as I do the big Hollywood movies. 

I think when you go to a movie, you shouldn't always go thinking that the movie is going to be politically correct.  Some movies are meant just to go to for - GASP - FUN!  Imagine that!!!   When my husband and I went to this screening, we met the PR person for the distribution company of the film.  They had done a screening the night before to RAVE reviews, and the night that my husband and I saw it - people were clapping at the end and cheering.  Reese Witherspoon can pull off any role - I think she is a major talent and will do great things with her career.  And, sad to say, I think some of the "stereotypes" were quite accurate.  You know, if this reader had actually gone to law school, they would know that the professors ARE that arrogant, that they DO put you in front of the class and humiliate you, and the students who attend ARE that varied in dress and personality.  My husband went to law school, and the part where they are all sitting around introducing themselves?  My husband leaned over to me and said "MAN - do they have law school pegged with the people that go there!" 

What made you think the lesbian was Jewish?  I didn't get that from the movie.  Or are you just ASSUMING that based on what she looked like - mmmmm - that would be STEREOTYPE.  You DO have strong feminists who attend law school.  And as far as the "blonde" being hot and the "brunette" being scholarly - well, I'm a brunette and I get tired of the blonde stereotypes, but that didn't stop me from enjoying this movie. 

I think that you, Viewer, needed to just check your politically correct card at the door and just leaned back and taken this movie for what it was, what it was commercialized to be, and what I got out of it: a bubble-gum, summer popcorn movie that you just sit back and enjoy.  This movie wasn't meant to be socially analyzed or to get your check-list out to make sure it covered all of its politically-correct bases.  And come on!  You cannot NOT like Reese in this movie.  She is just a doll.  And yes, I totally think that a smart person can wear those kinds of clothes and have a clothes-matching dog.  I went to college with a girl who was absolutely brilliant academic-wise and was on a full-ride scholarship, but common sense the girl had NONE.  There REALLY are people like that out in the world. 

While I do think that Dave can sometimes go on a rampage about boobs (and Neve Campbell), I still think Dave is one of the most honest reviewers out there.  Dave didn't think Legally Blonde should be up for an academy award, but he DID say it was fun.  I can see all kinds of girls enjoying this movie - it's fun, it has no nudity, it has hardly any swearing, and I would totally feel comfortable bringing my niece to it.   Do you know how many women I work with DREAM of a movie like this that is decent for their daughters to go to?

Viewer, next time you want to enjoy a movie, apparently you need to go to the drama section.  You should stay away from comedies, since you obviously don't know what one is.”

E ME:  Tell me what you think of the weekend movies!!!