Couch Time with Sheldon

Welcome to COUCH TIME WITH SHELDON, a brand new feature on Black Sheep Reviews. Well, it's mostly brand new. Essentially, this feature will replace BLU-TUESDAY. Rather than simply focus on the releases of the day, Black Sheep will take a look at a handful of titles each week, ranging from brand new releases to catalog titles, based on what Sheldon has actually watched recently. In case you don't know it, Sheldon is that little sheep you see everywhere on the site. He would also be my alter-ego I guess but that's not something I'm ready to deal with just yet.

We will continue to highlight what has come out on DVD and Blu-ray each week, as well as continue to look at what has been announced but the focus will be more on what Sheldon has seen rather than what he intends to.

Speaking of announcements, check these out ... Warner Bros. brings out two 1970's classics, ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN and NETWORK on February 15, 2011. Alliance will release the George Clooney film, THE AMERICAN, on December 28th of this year. 20th Century Fox has THE A-TEAM cashing in on the holidays on December 14th and the indie comedy, CYRUS (click for review) hits the week before. And here's the exciting news ... Disney will be releasing their superhero hit, THE INCREDIBLES, in the spring of 2011.

And now, I invite you to spend a little couch time with Sheldon ... Here's what everybody's favorite sheep saw in the last little bit.

FROZEN

I love indie films like this one, that get picked up (in this case by Anchor Bay Films) and manage to find an audience they would never have found, and actually deserve it. Horror director, Adam Green, has created a truly horrifying experience with FROZEN. Three college-aged skiers decide that they need to get one last run in before the end of their day. There is a lesson to be learned about being greedy though because the chair lift stops on their way up and before it gets going again, all the lights go out and everyone else goes home. There are no scary monsters or psycho killers with hooks for hands here. No, the only enemy here is nature itself and that level of reality is what had me freaking out for about a good hour straight. If you're looking for something offbeat to both scare and impress your Halloween guests, check out FROZEN. Be warned though, you might not go skiing for a little while afterward.

PLEASE GIVE

Don't let this atrocious cover art fool you. PLEASE GIVE is an excellent indie comedy that Sony Pictures is now just trying to push to as wide an audience as possible by capitalizing on the film's stars. This Nicole Holofcener film features Catherine Keener and Oliver Platt as a married New York City couple who run a trendy Soho furniture store. Keener's character has some issues with how they run their show though, as the majority of their pieces come from the misfortune of others. They buy pieces from people who have recently passed away and then resell them for exorbitant prices. They are also waiting for the elderly lady next door to pass away so they can take over her place and expand on their own. This fascinating exploration of white upper-class guilt is refreshingly honest and surprisingly funny. With the cast rounded out by Amanda Peet and Rebecca Hall, you can't go wrong.

LES AMOURS IMAGINAIRES (HEARTBEATS)

There has been a lot of talk recently on Black Sheep for Xavier Dolan's second feature, LES AMOURS IMAGINAIRES. After having the chance to interview him at TIFF (click here for interview), I feel like I have an all new approach to his work. Just from sitting across from him for 20 minutes, you can tell that Dolan is an insightful person who feels a great deal. Those personality traits are abundant in LES AMOURS IMAGINAIRES, now available to rent or own on DVD only from Alliance Films (with English subtitles). Fans of the French new wave and Wong Kar-Wai will love Dolan's latest work. Two great friends, Marie and Francis (Monia Chokri and Dolan) both fall for the same guy (Niels Schneider) and Dolan the director explores the highs and lows of falling in love, or more specifically, of falling in love with the idea of being in love. The results are honest, enlightening and will be understood by anyone who has ever chased after someone without really knowing why. (Click title in body for original review.)

Thank you for checking out the first COUCH TIME WITH SHELDON feature. The feature will run regularly on Tuesday's from here on in. In the meantime, here is a list of other titles available this week to rent or own ...

BACK TO THE FUTURE TRILOGY (Blu-ray)

ALIEN ANTHOLOGY (Blu-ray)

SEX AND THE CITY 2

(click title for review)

THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE

(click title for review)

WINTER'S BONE

(click title for review)

Source: blu-ray.com

readmore »»  

Black Sheep @ The Box Office

Box office experts were estimating a total weekend haul of somewhere between $50 and $60 million for Christopher Nolan's INCEPTION before the weekend started.  It came in at the high end of that estimate but I'm frankly surprised it didn't pull in more considering how everyone how everyone has seemingly been looking forward to this film all summer.  Good word of mouth, and it does have that, should ensure scant declines in the weeks to follow.  It may not have broken any records but Nolan will certainly see INCEPTION go on to become his biggest non-caped crusader earner.  And there is certainly credit due for proving that intelligent blockbusters can find a place in a season where we're all supposed to leave our brains at home.  Be sure to read the Black Sheep INCEPTION review now that you've certainly all seen it.

I know what none of you did see this weekend, THE SORCERER'S APPRENTICE.  Thank goodness for Pixar's TOY STORY 3 picking up the weight this summer because, after coming up short last month with PRINCE OF PERSIA, Disney has done it again.  This Jerry Bruckheimer (read: supposedly easy summer sell) production is one of the lowest bows of his career.  It was pretty clear THE SORCERER'S APPRENTICE was in trouble when Disney announced on the day of release that tickets would be 2 for 1 through opening weekend.  Anything to get them into the seats, I guess.  Imagine how low the figures would be if they didn't.

A few hot indie titles continued to claw at the Top 10, just barely missing out on the glory.  This week's big success in the touching, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT.  The Lisa Cholodenko modern family crowd pleaser added 31 screens and saw its gross increase by 108%, pulling in a stellar $27K per screen average in its second week.  The hilarious indie comedy, CYRUS, is losing a little traction as it expands wider but still pulled in close to $1.1 million, dropping off just 16%.  And THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE slipped by 27% in its second week, after adding 38 screens.  I guess no matter how popular the books are in North America, it is still a stretch to get an audience to a Swedish film.

NEXT WEEK: What is apparently supposed to be the best family film of all time, or so the trailers playing on TV tell me incessantly, RAMONA AND BEEZUS hits 2700 screens.  Am I supposed to know who these people are?  No matter really because I don't have a family to bring to the movies.  I will be taking my weekend with a little SALT instead.  The Angelina Jolie action flick will debut on over 3400 screens.

Source: Box Office Mojo

readmore »»  

Black Sheep @ The Box Office

After I almost killed myself watching the last Twilight movie, I vowed never to see another one unless someone paid me to review it.  As that wasn't the case this time, I did not and will not catch THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE.  (I almost went to make a boy happy but fortunately he changed his mind and I narrowly avoided disaster.)  Plenty of other people did go out to catch the latest Edward-Bella-Jacob love triangle tale.  It busted out of the gate with $30 million in midnight screening receipts, beating the record the second installment previously held.  By the end of its first five days though, it was trailing the NEW MOON by a few million.  That's hardly a set back though so it seems like the summer finally has a another tentpole that actually delivered.

M. Night Shyamalan's THE LAST AIRBENDER actually surprised most industry insiders with a very strong $40 million weekend and $57 million opening.  Reviews were horrible, as seems to be the case with most of Shyamalan's later releases, but that did not stop fans from coming out and giving Shyamalan a $10 million increase on the debut of his last film, THE HAPPENING.  Perhaps more impressive though is the Top 10 showing of the Duplass brothers indie hit, CYRUS.  On just 77 screens, the John C. Reilly / Jonah Hill starrer amassed a $10K per screen average for a 155% increase.  I guess all my talking the film up is actually working.  Finally, outside the Top 10, the Taylor Hackford prostitution dramedy, LOVE RANCH, pulled in a tepid $4.5K average amidst abysmal reviews.

NEXT WEEK: Steve Carrell tries tot take down TOY STORY 3 with DESPICABLE ME on 3200+ screens.  Adrien Brody tries for a second summer hit but will likely end up with another flop with PREDATORS on 2700+ screens.  Lisa Cholodenko's Sundance favorite, THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT, starts out on just 7 screens before expanding.  The second installment from the popular book series, THE GIRL WHO PLAYED WITH FIRE, hits a handful of theatres.  And the GREASE SING-A-LONG starts its run on 12 screens.

Source: Box Office Mojo

readmore »»  

Black Sheep @ The Box Office

It is of no surprise to me or no one else I'm sure that TOY STORY 3 held on to the top spot at the Box Office with nothing but mediocre challengers for the crown.  The $59 million haul is a reasonable 46.5% drop off considering sequels tend to drop steeply in their second weeks.  At $226.5 million, it has amassed almost as much in two weeks as SHREK FOREVER AFTER has in its entire six week run.  The Adam Sandler ensemble comedy, GROWN UPS, did solid business in second place.  This opening is on par with previous Sandler summer comedies like CLICK or YOU DON'T MESS WITH THE ZOHAN and $10 million shy of the entire domestic take of his last film, FUNNY PEOPLE.  Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz managed some mild returns for the action-comedy, KNIGHT AND DAY.  The response is certainly not overwhelming and could throw the MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE franchise into serious question going forward.

Outside the Top 10, two Black Sheep favorites continue to perform well.  The $2 million drama, WINTER'S BONE, has now hauled in over half its budget with another solid week of expansion.  The week's big indie success again though is CYRUS, from the Duplass brothers.  It pulled in over $17K per screen on just 17 screens for a 65% increase over last week.  This weekend I caught COCO CHANEL AND IGOR STRAVINSKY.  The review is coming later this week but the film itself may not make it there, pulling in only modest returns, $4K per screen on 20 screens.  Another review coming later this week is for Alain Resnais's festival hit, WILD GRASS.  The French film, which drove me insane while I watched it, only earned about $7K on five screens limiting its expansion plans.

NEXT WEEK: Those pouty little vampires are back as THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE roars into 4000+ screens on Wednesday for what will certainly be one of the biggest hauls of the year.  M. Night Shyamalan's THE LAST AIRBENDER opens on 3000+ screens, including some 3D screens to help boost what I think will be a pretty mild gross.  And Taylor Hackford, LOVE RANCH opens on the art house front.

Source: Box Office Mojo

readmore »»  

CYRUS

Written and Directed by Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass

Starring John C. Reilly, Jonah Hill, Marisa Tomei and Catherine Keener

John: I know you’re not supposed to say this but I really like you.  Is it crazy for me to say I want it to work out?

Love is tricky to figure out, to piece together so that it actually works out for all parties involved.  Love is particularly tricky when you’re middle-aged, have been single for seven years, you’re not really so impressive on paper or in person and the object of your affections is in something of an unhealthy relationship with her 22-year-old-son.  Yes, this is what makes love tricky in our modern existence but it is also what makes love oh so rewarding if you manage to get through it.  Furthermore, in this particular case, it makes for the perfect comedic setup for the new Duplass brothers comedy, CYRUS, the summer’s first great indie-comedy.

John C. Reilly makes a fine return to the screen in a more complex, character-based role than he has played in recent memory.  John, which is his name in the film and not a casual form of address for the actor, is seven years divorced and still hanging on to that relationship.  As a result, he doesn’t do much outside of the house and dating is about as foreign a concept to him as a single sit-up must be given the state of his physique.  Without wasting any time on showing us scene after scene to prove what a lonely loser John really is, writers/directors, Mark Duplass and Jay Duplass, introduce John to Molly (Marisa Tomei) at a party his soon-to-be-remarried ex-wife (Catherine Keener) drags him to.  They hit it off instantly which begs the question, what’s wrong with this girl?

As it turns out, she is quite lovely and she and John fall for each just like that.  Just because she’s lovely though doesn’t mean she isn’t hiding plenty of ugly behind your back.  The ugly I’m talking about here is Jonah Hill.  I’m kidding; the actual ugly is the unhealthily close relationship she has with her son, Cyrus, played by the also lovely, Hill.  Seriously, I actually think he’s hilarious.  I’m not sure I wanted to see Hill or Reilly in so many high definition close-ups but it does help you see that they are not so dissimilar.  This might be one good explanation why Cyrus makes it his personal mission to ensure John and Molly do not succeed as a couple despite the fact that they are both so much happier now that they’ve met.

The beauty of CYRUS, and there is a lot of it, is the natural way in which the Duplass brothers bring everything together perfectly.  A sharp, subtle script, in which Cyrus and John battle intelligently instead of declaring war on each other in some farcical sense, is embodied seamlessly by a pitch perfect cast.  Safe for a fairly conventional conclusion, the Dulplass brothers prove that real situations can be shown for the difficult messes they are and still be incredibly funny at the same time.

readmore »»