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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Traitor
from Revver - review Videos
August 29, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 29 Aug 2008 18:54:29 -0800 Duration: 222IC Places Instant Movie Review of Traitor. Steve Samblis gives you his thoughts on Traitor. When strait arrow FBI agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer, Samir Horn (Don Cheadle). A mysterious figure with a web of connections to terrorist organizations, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down. The task force links Horn to a prison break in Yemen, a bombing in Nice and a raid in London, but a tangle of contradictory evidence emerges, forcing Clayton to question whether his quarry is a disaffected former military operative - or something far more complicated. Obsessed with discovering the truth, Clayton tracks Horn across the globe as the elusive ex-soldier burrows deeper and deeper into a world of shadows and intrigue.
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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Traitor
from MoviesandTelevision - recent posts - blip.tv (beta)
August 29, 2008
IC Places Instant Movie Review of Traitor. Steve Samblis gives you his thoughts on Traitor. When strait arrow FBI agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer, Samir Horn (Don Cheadle). A mysterious figure with a web of connections to terrorist organizations, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down. The task force links Horn to a prison break in Yemen, a bombing in Nice and a raid in London, but a tangle of contradictory evidence emerges, forcing Clayton to question whether his quarry is a disaffected former military operative - or something far more complicated. Obsessed with discovering the truth, Clayton tracks Horn across the globe as the elusive ex-soldier burrows deeper and deeper into a world of shadows and intrigue.
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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race
from Revver - review Videos
August 22, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:55:02 -0800 Duration: 398IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race. In 2012, the United States economy collapses and life for everyone is not the same. Once a NASCAR champion, Jensen Ames, (Jason Statham) wife is brutally murdered, and he is framed for her murder.
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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race
from Extreme Entertainment
August 22, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:55:02 -0800 Duration: 398IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race. In 2012, the United States economy collapses and life for everyone is not the same. Once a NASCAR champion, Jensen Ames, (Jason Statham) wife is brutally murdered, and he is framed for her murder.
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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race
from Most Recent
August 22, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 22 Aug 2008 02:55:02 -0800 Duration: 398IC Places Instant Movie Review - Death Race. In 2012, the United States economy collapses and life for everyone is not the same. Once a NASCAR champion, Jensen Ames, (Jason Statham) wife is brutally murdered, and he is framed for her murder.
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 IC Places Instant Movie Review - Tropic Thunder
from Movie & DVD Talk!
August 15, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 15 Aug 2008 17:54:31 -0800 Duration: 155IC Places Instant Movie Review of Tropic Thunder. Steven Samblis and Brad Daymond give you their thoughts on the movie. See more reviews and win free movie tickets and free DVDs of new release movies at http://www.icplaces.com
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 iC Places Instant- Movie Sex and the City
from Revver - sex Videos
June 02, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Sun, 01 Jun 2008 21:49:33 -0800 Duration: 328Steve Samblis gives you his Instant Movie Review right after leaving the screening. He also invites fun and interesting people to put in their two cents.
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 Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama
from Revver - mike Videos
May 14, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Wed, 14 May 2008 11:16:18 -0800 Duration: 722Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama havingto stave off a secret society of vampires at Harvard when he was inducted into presidency at the Harvard Law Review in 1990. Obama(Justin Sherman) finds that he must convince the vampire society that opposing political philosophies can coexist or else the society may transform Obama to the dark side. Reminiscent to Michael Jacksons Thriller and a slight infusion of Jesus Christ Superstar, the film solely depicts Obamas strengths, merits and genuineness while being quietly respectful towards the other presidential candidates. This short musical is highly entertaining with dancing Harvard student vampires, fantastic choreography by Victor Tang and Shermans physical likeness to Obama is remarkable. Shot on the new RED ONE camera, the quality of the film itself is stunning. Produced by Justin Sherman,Gavin Leighton, Brooke Shirey and Mike Lawson
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 Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama
from Revver - dance Videos
May 14, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Wed, 14 May 2008 11:16:18 -0800 Duration: 722Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama havingto stave off a secret society of vampires at Harvard when he was inducted into presidency at the Harvard Law Review in 1990. Obama(Justin Sherman) finds that he must convince the vampire society that opposing political philosophies can coexist or else the society may transform Obama to the dark side. Reminiscent to Michael Jacksons Thriller and a slight infusion of Jesus Christ Superstar, the film solely depicts Obamas strengths, merits and genuineness while being quietly respectful towards the other presidential candidates. This short musical is highly entertaining with dancing Harvard student vampires, fantastic choreography by Victor Tang and Shermans physical likeness to Obama is remarkable. Shot on the new RED ONE camera, the quality of the film itself is stunning. Produced by Justin Sherman,Gavin Leighton, Brooke Shirey and Mike Lawson
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 Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama
from my videos
May 14, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Wed, 14 May 2008 11:16:18 -0800 Duration: 722Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama havingto stave off a secret society of vampires at Harvard when he was inducted into presidency at the Harvard Law Review in 1990. Obama(Justin Sherman) finds that he must convince the vampire society that opposing political philosophies can coexist or else the society may transform Obama to the dark side. Reminiscent to Michael Jacksons Thriller and a slight infusion of Jesus Christ Superstar, the film solely depicts Obamas strengths, merits and genuineness while being quietly respectful towards the other presidential candidates. This short musical is highly entertaining with dancing Harvard student vampires, fantastic choreography by Victor Tang and Shermans physical likeness to Obama is remarkable. Shot on the new RED ONE camera, the quality of the film itself is stunning. Produced by Justin Sherman,Gavin Leighton, Brooke Shirey and Mike Lawson
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 Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama
from Revver - dance Videos
May 13, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Tue, 13 May 2008 16:19:34 -0800 Duration: 722Barackula is a short political horror rock musical about young Barack Obama havingto stave off a secret society of vampires at Harvard when he was inducted into presidency at the Harvard Law Review in 1990. Obama(Justin Sherman) finds that he must convince the vampire society that opposing political philosophies can coexist or else the society may transform Obama to the dark side. Reminiscent to Michael Jacksons Thriller and a slight infusion of Jesus Christ Superstar, the film solely depicts Obamas strengths, merits and genuineness while being quietly respectful towards the other presidential candidates. This short musical is highly entertaining with dancing Harvard student vampires, fantastic choreography by Victor Tang and Shermans physical likeness to Obama is remarkable. Shot on the new RED ONE camera, the quality of the film itself is stunning. Produced by Justin Sherman,Gavin Leighton, Brooke Shirey and Mike Lawson
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 IC Places ... First Look.. The Strangers
from Revver - house Videos
May 08, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Thu, 08 May 2008 14:52:34 -0800 Duration: 75Lock the doors. Assume youre safe. The horrifying events that took place in the Hoyt familys vacation home at 1801 Clark Road on February 11, 2005, are still not entirely known. Champagne. Rose petals. Candlelight. It was supposed to be a night of celebration for Kristen McKay (Liv Tyler) and James Hoyt (Scott Speedman). But after leaving a friends wedding reception and returning to the house, everything had collapsed for the happy couple. Then came a 4 a.m. knock on the door and a haunting voice. Is Tamara here? Writer/director Bryan Bertino explores our most universal fears in The Strangers, a terrifying suspense thriller about a couple whose remote getaway becomes a place of terror when masked strangers invade. The confrontation forces Kristen and James to go far beyond what they thought themselves capable of if they hope to survive.
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 Iron Man... IC Places 1st Look
from Most Recent
April 27, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Sun, 27 Apr 2008 10:49:33 -0800 Duration: 150When wealthy industrialist Tony Stark is forced to build an armored suit after a life-threatening incident, he ultimately decides to use its technology to fight against evil.
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 IC Places 1st look... The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
from Most Recent
April 18, 2008
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 18 Apr 2008 18:49:33 -0800 Duration: 166A year after their first adventure in Narnia, Peter, Susan, Edmund, and Lucy are pulled back in by Susan's magic horn. They find that hundreds of years have passed, and Narnia is now ruled by the bloodthirsty General Miraz, uncle to the true heir, Prince Caspian, now in exile. Now the children must find Caspian and help him depose Miraz...but how will they get home after it's done?
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 Interview with Ken Navarro
from Most Watched
October 06, 2007
Author: icPlaces Added: Sat, 06 Oct 2007 19:54:42 -0800 Duration: 446Anthony Ricardi: The first thing I want to ask you is about this gig you are going to be doing in Orlando on November 3. Ken Navarro: I am going to be playing at an event that’s sponsored by the contemporary jazz station, WLOQ. I’ve had a very, very long and nice relationship with that station that dates back all the way to 1992. I think the very first show I ever did in Orlando was an event that they put on, so I’ve been just doing things with them…I’ve lost track of how many different events that I’ve done that have been either put on by WLOQ or sponsored by them or happen because of their endorsement. This particular one is a special one because it’s a benefit and it’s to raise money for kids without homes. It’s something that’s being done through Mercedes of Orlando as well, and when they asked me if I would be available to do it, at the time, it was kind of a stand-alone thing, but now I’m playing some other shows around it in other parts of Florida. I immediately jumped at the opportunity to be aligned with such a good cause and also with WLOQ again. It’s always been a good thing for me to do and in this case it made it that much easier with the purpose of the event being what it was. AR: It is a terrific cause – The Children’s Home Society. KN: Fortunately, that’s one of the great things about it for me, doing what I do, is having that opportunity to contribute what I do to causes like that. And the station, one of the great things about the smooth jazz stations around the country, is, not all of them are as proactive as WLOQ, but the ones that are, when you put an event like this together, its always first rate. The presentation of the music, the presentation of the evening, the experience for me as a musician is always really good, too. AR: Speaking of being proactive, did they have anything to do with your live album, Ablaze in Orlando? KN: You’re going to laugh when you hear this… I decided to record it in Orlando, the live CD, this is back in 1998, and we recorded it, I think it was the beginning of May of 1998. It didn’t come out until some time in the late summer but, unfortunately, I don’t know if you recall, but back in the summer of 1998, there were some terrible fires through that part of Florida. There were so many people from Florida that were fans that had been at the recordings and we also did a video of the event as well and people said, why did you call it Ablaze in Orlando? We’re having fires now! It was just total coincidence. One of the things that made me choose to record it in Orlando was because I always had such energetic, interactive audiences when I played in Orlando and Florida in general. The title “Ablaze in Orlando” was meant to say, this is a hot record, exciting, it reflects what it means for me to perform there… AR: As far as your upcoming concert, do you have a venue set yet? KN: Yes, the Trovillion in Winter Park. It will be a fairly intimate thing; about 300 tickets available. AR: Let’s talk about your most recent CD, The Meeting Place. It’s just so uplifting. KN: I get that a lot. It’s interesting because, I certainly write in a way that I think reflects how I feel or how I want to feel. I kind of laugh when I hear an artist say this is my most honest CD and I always think to myself boy, I wish I was as good as my music. What I mean by that is that I think that if you do it right, the music tends to reflect the best of what you have to offer and so when people say that, I’m really pleased by it and I’m glad that I’m creating something that can be a mood improver. But I think that’s just how it comes out for me, it’s not really a conscious thing. I’m not trying to write something that’s uplifting; in fact I think that’s probably where it crosses the line of going from uplifting to being kind of sugary. The new album definitely has some of those feelings in it. I’ve had some interesting e-mails …this kind of music, the fan base, they feel like they know you, which I guess is a good thing, that the music invites them in to that degree and I got an e-mail from one fan and it was just amazing because she figured out what this one song was about completely just from the way the music felt, and I was shocked - it isn’t one of the more uplifting songs. It’s a song called “No Other Way” which if I remember right is the third or fourth song – this is my seventeenth CD – its hard for me to remember all the details. But it is somehow – I wouldn’t say dark - but its definitely a mysterious thing and it’s a song that really has some deep spiritual connotations and searching connotations and this fan just picked that up, just kind of knew that from hearing it. So while I definitely do get a lot of comments that I put your music on and it makes me feel so much better, I do get other ones where people say deeper things and sometimes they are really very accurate. AR: Certain artists are like friends, aren’t they? Certain friends either bum you out or you really look forward to seeing this person again. KN: Sometimes you feel like they’re telling you really more than you need to know. For me, and I’m a listener of music too, I’m going through a pretty intense time of listening to music now that I’ve begun the process of composing the music for the next CD. As a listener, I’m attracted to things that make me feel like I’m being invited in to somebody else’s world, and within that world I look for a whole range of emotions, but there has to be some sort of a humanistic element in there that just is warm and inviting, and to whatever extent my music achieves that then I feel like I’m successful. AR: How much can you share with us about the new CD, that’s in the process right now? KN: It’s very early on. I’m going through a process now where I’m trying very hard to go in musical places that I haven’t gone in before, not so much stylistically but a depth in the composition …and more what I would call linear song forms where rather than it being verse/chorus/bridge kind of thing – its more about ABCDEFG – in other words it’s linear. This is a very challenging thing to do – to write that way and to get into certain areas that I haven’t explored before. It’s kind of part of the learning process. A part of what’s happening with the writing is that I’m actually setting myself out lessons to learn and then the process of writing a song is figuring out the solution to some questions - musical questions - that I’m trying to solve, and even though I’m in my 50’s now, I feel like when I stop doing that, that’s when I shouldn’t be recording any more. So that’s part of what’s happening. I’m also working on collaborating with a new writer musician friend I met this year in Detroit who’s of a like mind and we’re hoping that some of what we do will certainly interact and intersect with each other …in order to take the music to this next level I have in mind. I wish I could be more specific but it’s so early on at this point, the main thing I can say is that I’m really wanting to take a number of steps further into exploring some other areas than I ever have before, not so much stylistically but the tools and the palette, making the palette much broader and much deeper. AR: Discovering new sounds…? KN: New sounds, new rhythms, I’m working on a song that’s in 14/8 time, which means there’s a bar of 4, a bar of 3, and a bar of 3 and a bar of 2 and a bar of 2, when you add that up, that’s 14. So its like a rhythmic thing that has a flow to it that the listener, if I do it right, won’t think about, but it’s going to create a feeling and a flow to a rhythm that’s different than anything I’ve ever done before and so the challenge is to write with a rhythm like that and to make it work and to make it seamless and not to have it come across like anything’s really happening - except that the overall impact is that you’re hearing something that sounds fresh and less easy to pin down than something that you’ve heard from me before. AR: Sometimes, instead of starting out with a template like you’ve just described, do you illustrate a thought? KN: Absolutely, yeah. What I’m doing now is kind of contrary to my usual process; however I will say that what happens for me with writing is that when I’m first getting rolling and I’m really in the first stages, it’s work. Every day I sit down in my studio and say I’m gonna write and there are many days where I would just like to go see a movie, or take a walk or do anything but do that, so what happens is - there’s no way around it, you just have to do the work - and so I do it, and after a couple weeks of this, certainly after a month, something else entirely different begins to happen and I don’t need the tools, the kind of structure I was describing. Instead, sometimes I’ll sit down and a whole song will pour out in 25 minutes. It’ll just all be there because I’m warmed up as a writer. Right now, I’m not that warmed up. I’m getting there, you know? And so whatever I need to get that process to keep moving, whatever it takes to rub the sticks together and have some sparks start to occur, whether its to give myself a structure or whether its to give myself a challenge, can you write something in this odd time signature, or to tune the guitar differently, and what comes out when I do that - these are all things that are valid tools, especially in the early stages. AR: Once you gotten the sparks going, like so many great artists in the past, do you then just stay with it; do you say I’m in the groove, do you go for a couple of days? KN: Yeah, then its easy, that’s when the flow is happening. Instead of waking up in the morning and going o.k., shave, take a shower, go in the studio, keep at it, it’s like I just want to go right into the studio the minute I wake up; I’m inspired, I’m excited, I can see the painting, so to speak, taking shape and I can’t wait to make it better. When you’re pulling stuff out of thin air, which is how it feels in the beginning stages, that for me, takes a lot of discipline and stick-to-it-iveness and so, at this stage , you happened to catch me when I’m at the beginning stage of the process where I’ve been working at it for about seven or eight days now which is actually kind of early for me to start thinking about a new record - usually I wouldn’t start this process till next year sometime. It won’t come out until the end of next year or the beginning of 2009. The Meeting Place is still very much on my plate; the whole business side and promoting the record and making sure that people know about it. AR: The title – does the title for the entire album come to you and I will ask you specifically about The Meeting Place – what significance does that hold and why the bench on the cover and what was that beautiful body of water? KN: Thanks for asking about that. The Meeting Place for me meant a couple of things – primarily for me it meant the position I find myself in with this type of music, where it is very much a coming together of different cultures, different types of people who are pulled together by this type of music. There are a lot of styles of music in America that are really designed for one specific group. I took my daughter to see Justin Timberlake a few months ago and, I mean, that is not designed for me, although I enjoyed it. But, I mean, it is 18 to 24 year old girls – 85 percent. And there’s a lot of music that way – very geared for a specific demographic. But the thing about contemporary jazz seems to me, at least, when I’m doing a show in Philadelphia or D.C. or San Francisco I look out at the audience – it’s like half black, half white, half men, half women, I see people that are in their 60’s and 70’s, I see people that are in their 20’s and 30’s – its such a broad group of people who connect to this music and that is really where The Meeting Place title came from. For me as a musician, the other thing that attracted me to this type of music, the type of music that I’ve chosen to do, is that it allows me to put together my rock and pop influences, my songwriting, my love of Brian Wilson, the Beatles, and all that, with all of my jazz sensibilities and my sense of improvisation and surprises happening in the music, plus the classical influences I have. I actually graduated with a degree in classical voice from the University of Wisconsin in Madison so I studied classical music for quite a few years. The Meeting Place is also referring to being able to blend all of these different things into something that hopefully is my identity. AR: Each song has a flavor all its own. KN: Hopefully there’s something there that ties them together, that makes them sound like me. But at the same time you hear that diversity of influences musically. As far as the cover, every summer my family goes to a little island off of the coast of Ohio called Kelly’s Island – its an island 3 miles by 2 miles – it’s a little oasis; we love going there. It’s a getaway, but it almost feels as though you’ve gone back in time 80 years. When we were there, the one place where you could get internet access we would go to at the end of every day just to check our e-mail and the guy who was our art director chose that week to send us a bunch of different cover ideas that he had based on the title, The Meeting Place. And so one day, one of the things he sent was the final cover on the album, and it looked exactly like what we were looking at every day on this island. In fact, the picture on the back of me is a bench that we found on the upper west northern corner of Kelly’s Island – somebody had propped a bench on a rock that hung out over the water and I sat there and my wife took a picture of me. That photo just made perfect sense to us somehow….somehow, it just gave birth to the idea that The Meeting Place could be this friendly bench rather than some sort of urban type setting which is how I initially conceived it… AR: It’s a very peaceful, soothing image, to go along with a lot of the songs actually. KN: I was a little afraid that it might make people think the album is more sedate than it is, because it certainly has its energetic and up moments; a lot of them actually. But I love the feeling of that photo so much. AR: So speaking of the songs on the album, My Beautiful Girls, you were just mentioning your family. KN: Yeah, that was written for my daughter, Melissa who’s a senior in high school – we’re in that last year with her where we start to really value every moment because it all changes next year – and my wife. My son is away in college; he’s graduating this year and so for the last three years while he’s been at school, it’s just been the three of us. I just felt like writing a tune for the two of them. AR: In terms of the early events of your life, I understand that you were a session musician in L.A. and did everything from TV music to film music. Do you remember any of the movies that you did music for? KN: There were a lot of different ones. I still get residual checks for them. ..When you’re recording for movies, sometimes they won’t even have a final title for it. .. Sometimes the composer has everything written out and sometimes I’d be there almost as a co-writer to bounce ideas off the picture we were looking at. A lot of the work I did was jingle work; I did a lot of commercials. I remember doing some TV shows; I worked for Nell Carter…I played on Family Ties. I had a chance to play with quite a few people; unexpected stuff. I remember playing a backyard party in Beverly Hills; just another gig, or so I thought. But it turned out it was a fundraiser for Gary Hart, and who should show up but Cheech Marin to sing with us. At that time, his big hit was Born in East L.A. To me that was worth going there – I would have paid them! Almost everybody in L.A., no matter what they did, would play a wedding on a Saturday night or Saturday day; its part of how you made your living... I played with a lot of really great people… I met a lot of people doing that… AR: So you went from being at the behest of a lot of different people to being the owner of your own record label, Positive Music Records. How does it feel to be the man in charge? KN: Obviously, it’s a desirable place to be, and I don’t want to sound like I’m complaining, but since you’re the one responsible for all the business decisions – how you’re going to promote a release, how you’re going to get it on the radio, what you’re going to do when technology changes – you have to deal with all that stuff and it can pull you away from being the musician. Early on, when I first started doing it back in 1990 and I founded Positive Music Records, and I had all these hats on, I found I had to forcibly take one off and put the other on, and now it comes much easier to me to go back and forth. I have the priority very firmly in my mind now - musician first, the business is a necessity that has to be handled, but I’ve learned how to do it. The other part that’s a challenge is you are responsible every day for figuring out what you are going to do…sometimes situations dictate those priorities. But you’ve got to be self-disciplined to do what I do and stick with it. It’s a challenge sometimes, and something I resent a little bit, because I would rather just focus on the music. AR: When you get done with the planning, and you finally get to step up on stage and play the instrument, I bet it’s just a relief at that point. KN: Yeah, that I don’t let anything interfere with if at all possible. That’s like…for me it’s an analogy to sports. When it comes time to play the game, all the practice, all the preparation, has to give way to trying to be in the zone. Especially with what I do, where there is quite a bit of improvisation involved. You’ve really got to be in a place where you’re not conscious, even about the music itself, you have to let that flow out on its own; there’s really no room in that situation to be going back and forth with hats… AR: It was a pure pleasure speaking to you. I look forward to seeing you when you get to town. KN: Thank you, I enjoyed it.
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 "Nodding Off With Nicole" The Samblis/Ricardi Instant Movie Review of "The Invasion"
from Revver - pharmacy Videos
August 27, 2007
Author: icPlaces Added: Sun, 26 Aug 2007 20:58:07 -0800 Duration: 354In a nutshell: A psychiatrist becomes caught up in an alien epidemic and struggles to protect her son from those that have been infected and collectivized. Tagline for this film (thanks, IMDB)... Do not trust anyone. Do not show emotion. Do not fall asleep. In terms of trusting anyone involved in the making of this snooze-fest (besides Daniel Craig), never again. Showing emotion? Not a problem, as the movie gives the viewer little to no reason to react to anything in it. Ah, not falling asleep... that's a toughie. Even with some obvious "Hey, wake up!!!" scenes cobbled on, this thing makes a better sedative than warm milk and barbiturates. Like the sleep-deprived, the filmmakers seem to wander about, stumbling into things and making generally poor decisions, the first of which is a pre-title sequence that includes (for no apparent reason) a chopped up scene in a pharmacy from the end of the film. Editing is a powerful tool, and should not be used while under the influence (of producer Joel Silver) or when not completely under control of one's faculties (which no one, even Daniel Craig, seemed to be in this instance - the man is given practically nothing of worth to do, and yet still comes across as the most sympathetic person in the film)... Post-title, we journey into space, where we see a particularly tasteless and insensitive scene involving a space shuttle that disintegrates upon re-entry. This would be a troubling enough reference to the Challenger disaster, were it simply a special effects excuse... but integrated into the sequence is actual news footage from the day of (the smoking remnants of Challenger falling) and after the tragedy, wherein real folks on video describe what they saw. Heartless... and for what? Nicole Kidman plays Dr. Carol Bennell (a "tribute" to Kevin McCarthy's character in the original, Dr. Miles J. Bennell), a shrink once married to Tucker Kaufman (Jeremy Northam), a big deal scientist for the CDC. They have a son, Oliver (Jackson Bond) who could easily pass for AnnaSophia Robb's little brother. Wouldn't you know it, but Tucker appears to be the first person on the planet to be infected with the alien virus, when a passerby casually hands him a piece of shuttle debris (and it cuts him)! Wasn't he ever taught never to accept space debris from strangers? Tucker has a new squeeze and she is unfortunate enough to wake up next to him the next morning, finding him covered with a coating of intergalactic mucus. You see, once you fall asleep the virus copies your DNA and takes over... Once past the yuck stage, one becomes a true member of the hive mind, and can seemingly communicate with everyone else infected, as each person becomes essentially an individual cell in an immense single organism. Kind of like fans of "Lost..." This is the FOURTH go-round for this material, all based on Jack Finney's 1955 novel "The Body Snatchers," which was far and away best served by its initial screen incarnation "Invasion of the Body Snatchers"(1956). The haunting scene of Kevin McCarthy dodging through traffic, helplessly attempting to stop someone, anyone, and make them listen to his warnings ("They're here! They're here!!! You're next!!!) is one of the most famous in the history of science fiction cinema. In that original cult classic, director Don Siegel created a stark black and white world, not only in terms of cinematography, but of civilizations and species. The emotionless, conformist plant-based aliens grew replicas of the happy, independent humans they replaced, as they rapidly spread across the globe.The aliens were symbols of lock-step conformity and could be seen to represent either Communism or McCarthyism (Senator Joe, not Kevin-based), depending on your world view. It is a shame that an effective allegory for our times couldn't have been made in this modern version of the film, with the emotionless victims of the alien menace (this time come in the form of an outer space virus) possibly representing still existing totalitarian concepts (hello, China) or that even more immediate threat to free thought, political correctness. No, there is very little suggested by this current iteration of invaders other than the horror of a world dominated by those with the mass-mind personalities of billions of bored waiting room inhabitants. Who have reread every magazine... The writers of the flick actually attempt to back-handedly berate humanity for not going along with the aliens, for not desiring the peaceful world that derives from a monolithic mindset. The tranquility of the trees in a forest is mentioned as a vision of the alien ideal, while TV images of we fractious humans and those conflicts that derive from our differences play repeatedly throughout the piece. There is, as opposed to real horror, near envy expressed in this film for the alien spores group-think goal... and that's actually scarier than anything else in the whole movie. The virus (and it is one tough sucker, as it easily seems to have weathered both the deep freeze of space and fires of reentry) is spread by the oh-so-subtle means of barfing, once it gets into the first humans. We're talking projectile barfing, close range directly into the victim's face (or into their pots of coffee, which will be certain to give you pause next time you drop in to the old IHOP). Forget the eerie visage of pods slowly growing copies of the neighbors down in dimly-lit noir-ish basements... no, this is the new millennia, and we can't waste time on all that suspense stuff. It's blast 'em with bile, and move on... And speaking of upchucking, you might just get that urge upon experiencing Nicole Kidman overload, which begins to set in just about midway through this viral vanity project. The fact that she is not a credited producer on this picture is amazing, as she is in almost every scene, ad nauseum. When you have seen her in close-up enough to have formulated a list of probable facial enhancements (rhinoplasty - check, lip collagen - check, cheek implants - check, brow lift - check, Botox - double check...) you will know she has been on screen too darned long. Fact is, the woman doesn't so much look like Nicole Kidman these days as she looks like a hybrid Barbie doll version of Nicole Kidman (special Tinseltown limited edition). In less time than it takes a copy of the original "Invasion..." to arrive at your home from your online DVD source, the world has almost completely succumbed, and only small groups and individuals remain "unaffiliated." Carol, with the aid of friend and future Bond (this thing was shot two years ago) Ben Driscoll (Daniel Craig) find themselves on a quest to find little Oliver (who seems mysteriously immune to the cosmic crud), last heard from texting (endlessly) from his dad's house. They must battle not only their fellow citizens, but the ever-present desire to sleep... sleep... Mountain Dew, away! By the way, Nicole, the last thing you want to tell and show an audience, repeatedly, in an often stultifyingly dull film such as this, is how tired you are, how all you want to do is sleep. They get it, oh, how they get it... The driving theme of the last half of the film becomes twofold: for Carol to retrieve Oliver before he is absorbed, and for the filmmakers to inject some sort of life into this somnambulistic turkey. Pertaining to the secondary goal, producer Silver enlisted the assistance of James McTeigue ("V for Vendetta") in an attempt to retrofit the version initial director Oliver Hirschbiegel wrought. Also brought onboard for reshoots were the Wachowski Brothers ("The Matrix"). The result? Some of the most jarringly juxtaposed imagery in the history of feature films... Pensive scenes of blue-lit angst featuring mother and child hiding in silence and terror (or what passes for terror on the nearly immobile face of Kidman) are slapped up against crunching multi-car crashes that were obviously filmed far away in time and space. "Fantastic Voyage"-like views of floating CGI cells fill the screen, instead of less intricate readouts. Flaming cars appear just for the heck of it, and hoards of formerly passive-aggressive viral zombies suddenly begin attacking en mass. Mood alterations occur mid-scene, almost with the frequency of Kidman's changeable American accent. And the ending - talk about short, sweet and completely at odds with everything the picture had been building towards - reeks of multiple test screenings. Too many, and too many changes... Editorially, plain and simple, this thing is a mess. And yet even with all the desperate additions and deletions, this "Invasion" is defeated at the water's edge by its own incompetent generalship. Better to have just released Hirschbiegel's cut, and to have gone down with dignity. As it stands, this film will still die, but it will die covered in the ugly gunk with which only panicked post-production can infect a flick. Inhumanly incompetent producers/directors/writers... "They're here! They're here!!!" Critic's rating: D (For Drowsy) Rated R- For language
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 "The Bourne Ultimatum" The Samblis - Ricardi Instant Movie Review 2
from Revver - car, crash Videos
August 16, 2007
Author: icPlaces Added: Thu, 16 Aug 2007 10:25:12 -0800 Duration: 484In a nutshell: An amnesiac ex-CIA assassin seeks to avoid capture by his former employer, while seeking out the secrets behind his lost identity. Here is a film that answers the question what would you get if you combined Ben Afflecks old writing partner, Jack Bauer, and Wolverine? Answer: Jason "If you cut me, why dont I bleed" Bourne (Matt Damon). Director Paul Greengrass ("United 93" "The Bourne Supremacy") gets up close (some would say too close) and personal once again to all sorts of bashing, smashing and crashing action in this third and supposedly last of the incredibly successful Bourne series of thrillers. As threequels go this summer, this one ranks as the best, but only by default. The only problem is that this picture was supposed to answer all the questions posed by the enigma that is sometimes sensitive snuffer Bourne. In this critics estimation, it only partially pays off, in terms of revealing all... Instead of dropping spoiling info of just what we finally do find out, lets talk about what we dont... Just how the heck can Bourne be blown up by a car bomb, fall in his car from the roof of a parking garage, be beaten mercilessly, get shot, and take a pie to the face (just threw that in) and yet come away with a few tiny scratches? It is quite obvious that this guy is a level above human, having been augmented either cybernetically or by some other means, and yet nothing is mentioned along those lines. Heck, Bruce Willis, as detective John McClane, took just about the same amount of damage in "Live Free or Die Hard," but at least by the end of that (more entertaining) flick Bruce looked like he had been through the grinder, bloody mess that he was. By the end of this film, Matt Damons Bourne appears to have suffered nothing worse than an ugly encounter with a cat that was reluctant to be taken to the vet. We also never find out about Bournes background, despite what you might hear. There is a name (his "real" one?) mentioned, and a former profession hinted at, but there is nothing locked down, very little detail given. This feels like a cheat in a film billed as containing all the answers. These nebulous facts, the only partially opened doors, and a final murky scene almost certainly assure that there will be a fourth installment. We still need that Dr. Frankenstein scene, the "motivation" for Bourne turning killing drone in this one coming away as sorely lacking in veracity. There is more to all this... just has to be, folks. Now, lets get into what makes this film work as well as it does. Two words: meticulous mayhem. It isnt so much that the film is a nonstop series of chase scenes (interspersed with just a bit of conspiratorial anti-CIA hokum), it is that when the violence occurs, it is at a pace fast and frantic enough to make an audience member feel as if they had actually been in one of the many car gags featured, and suffered whiplash in the process. The best scene in the film is a mano-a-mano battle between Bourne and another assassin in Tangiers that ends up resolved in a shower stall (dont go there). This fight seems to go on fifteen minutes with each punch and kick having a visceral quality to it, an almost documentarian take on the myriad variations two highly trained "assets"(agents) can come up with to inflict injury upon one another. This battle isnt just hand to hand, but involves a number of improvised weapons found in the apartment which the two men trash. It will take a DVD release and freeze frame to accurately discern exactly how many different ways violence is wrought, but boy howdy, is it. This scene is so effective that when the end of the film finally occurs, it feels as if it is a slight letdown, because that great fight took place so much earlier in the film. With all the quick cutting, pulse-pounding music and ubiquitous high-tech gadgetry (more cell phones than a mall full of teenagers could wield) one could be forgiven for thinking that large parts of this film seem very, very familiar. Not only have we seen this on TV, but many other movies are also extremely computer screen/handheld laden - and it will be up to you to determine if this is a good trend or not. There is more than a bit of irony in the fact that a kid down on the first row of the screening this critic attended was escorted out for firing up his cell phone, while more than one was up on the screen. Pacing, surprisingly, is a bit of a problem at the films start, when there was a tad too much "suspense," which in this film means talking on cell phones while rapidly traveling from point A to point B, because a moving target is always harder to hit (which should be put on Bournes tombstone, should he ever require one). There are, in addition, some blessedly brief interludes with a former agent/associate of Bournes, Nicky Parsons, played by the blank-faced Julia Stiles, which have all the chemistry of a meeting with your accountant. In between the various chases, we must follow the running (often, in fact) subplot of the vendetta launched against Bourn by his former supervisors Ezra Kramer (Scott Glen) and Noah Vosen (David Strathairn), now rogues (yawn, again?) who think getting the OK to have people killed is just an unnecessary formality. Another personage, and former foe of Bournes, Pamela Landy (Joan Allen) from the previous film, doesnt think that this is quite what she signed up for, and has a well-timed (for Bourne) change of heart, and ends up seeking some hard copy verifying the dirty deeds of her boss. The above, of course, is just the hanger on which the perforated, bloodstained, bomb-singed raiment of Bourne couture hangs. For action fans, the fit couldnt be better, even if, at times the outfit seems handed down from the "24" wardrobe department Critics rating: B (For Breakage)
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 The New Simpson's Attraction at Universal Studios
from my videos
July 27, 2007
Author: icPlaces Added: Fri, 27 Jul 2007 00:04:08 -0800 Duration: 46I've learned that plans are in the works for a new The Simpsons attraction at Universal Studios Florida. The 'toon ride will "probably" physically replace the recently closed Back To The Future ride there, I'm told. From the few facts I could glean, the new "travel with Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie" attraction will be announced sometime before Fox's The Simpsons movie release on July 27th, and perhaps as soon as this month. I hear the new ride's opening should be Summer 2008. I'm predicting The Simpsons' pic will be this summer's biggest non-sequel/prequel blockbuster at the box office. Then again, The Simpsons TV show is huge around the globe. I can't believe how everything connected with this new Simpsons attraction is very hush-hush. (Banter that there's a gallows at Uni studios if anybody dares talk about it.) I hear it will "probably" be situated in the area where the Back To The Future simulator ride used to be located at the Orlando theme park. Opened May 2, 1991, at Universal Studios Florida, the attraction soon migrated to Universal Studios in Hollywood, California and Osaka, Japan. It officially closed on March 30 of this year in Orlando. Press reports say the Hollywood ride will be shutting down in the summer of 2007, possibly before Labor Day. News reports say Universal Orlando Resort plans to spend as much as $120 million this year on the design and construction of new attractions, as well as on other capital improvements, to offset declining attendance. That's about three times what it spent in 2006 and about four times what it spent in 2005 for capital improvements, according to information contained in a report Universal Orlando's parent company filed this week with the SEC. The purpose is to better compete within the theme park industry.
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