Larry Ratliff

Publicize me: Spurlock on selling out, cashing in

 

Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock, the human billboard.   (Courtesy:  Sony Pictures Classics)

I'm looking forward to seeing "Pom Wonderful Presents:  The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" tonight.

Morgan Spurlock, the crusading-yet-funloving documentary maker of "Super Size Me," "Where in the World is Osama Bin Laden?" and others, serves up his exposé on product-placement to general movie audiences beginning Friday.

We only have to go as far as the title, prefaced by "Pom Wonderful Presents," to get a strong hint that Spurlock is pulling out all the stops to take the cinematic sell-out to new heights.

Or lows.

To my knowledge, which should never be considered all-inclusive, this is the first time words thrown into a movie title due to raging egos (Tyler Perry) or bottom-line, money-grubbing economics (Tyler Perry) have anything to do with promoting the sale of pomegranates.  

Come on, we all know that product placement exists.  Some filmmakers and TV directors are just more subtle about it than others.

The CNN Web site has a revealing article posted today titled "Morgan Spurlock:  Why I sold out."

In it, Spurlock reveals the shock he felt a few years ago when a season premiere episode of "Heroes" on TV seemed to include a car manufacturer as one of the title characters.

"In it, a cheerleader, played by Hayden Panettiere, meets her father as she walks out of her new school and heads toward the parking lot.

"'The camera dollies past the car and you see the Nissan logo go through the frame,' Spurlock recalled. And then her father surprises her by giving her the keys to the family's sparkling Nissan Rogue SUV. 'Oh my God, the Rogue!' she screams. 'You're the best dad in the world!'" the CNN article states.

"The Greatest Movie Ever Sold" (Sorry about that, pomegranate folks) claims to be "a film that was fully financed through product placement from various brands, all of which are integrated transparently into the film."

In other words, it's about business as usual in Hollywood.

If you're still with me, I'd like to thank you for visiting Bernie's Used Tires and Semi-Rust-Free Dented Hubcaps presents:  Larry Ratliff Movies & More featuring Larry's Aisle Seat.

(Morgan Spurlock image from "Super Size Me" courtesy:  Roadside Attractions)

Addiction, soccer or 'Pelada' is thy name

 

Dedicated players kick up dust and love of the game in Buenos Aires, Argentina.  (Courtesy:  "Pelada" Documentary)

Attention all current, former or future couch potatoes:

You must remember the love of playing a game instead of just watching one on TV.

I was thinking about this Tuesday afternoon, just before my wife Suellen and I spent a cheerful evening on the couch cheering on the Texas Rangers as they broke thousands of hearts in Yankee Stadium and probably millions around the globe with a crushing 10-3 win over New York in the American League Championship Series.

Before that, however, I connected to the love and lust for pick-up soccer via the documentary "Pelada."  Brilliant in its film-making naïveté, "Pelada" is about the ultimate road trip for former American college soccer stars not quite good enough to dazzle as pros, but also not nearly ready to give up the game.

Luke Boughen, a former Notre Dame center midfielder, and his girlfriend Gwendolyn Oxenham, a former soccer captain at Duke, are out front as a couple of die-hard soccer geeks traveling the world for about a year looking for pick-up soccer games. 

And boy do they find them.  They bribe their way into a prison and a game behind bars in Bolivia, share a court with Arabs and Jews in Jerusalem a day after a terrorist attack and are summoned to report to Iranian authorities after someone snitches on Gwendolyn for joining a game with males in Tehran.

Filmmakers Ryan White and Rebekah Fergusson document the adventure that might just slowly capture your heart, as it did mine.  That surprised me because I'm not a soccer fan.  I am, however, a fan of intriguing movies and any human experience that enlightens and broadens the mind.

If you want to catch "Pelada," though.  You have to act fast.  It screens Thursday at 7 p.m. at the Santikos Bijou Cinema Bistro in San Antonio and repeats at noon Friday through Sunday.  Click here to find out when the "Pelada" road show might roll into your town.

Full disclosure:  The fact that I have recently gotten off the couch to re-embrace my long-lost love for tennis ("Feets, knees, elbow, shoulder don't quit on me now!") may have something to do with it. 

And there's this.  My step-daughter Lisa and son-in-law Johnny developed a passion for Ultimate Frisbee in college. That's what I call the challenging sport the players simply refer to as Ultimate.

It's also the sport (which became a siren's call to both and continued to beckon years after college) that got Lisa all the way to Prague in the Czech Republic to compete in the Ultimate world championship tournament over the summer.

That, my friends, is what I call getting off the couch. 

 

Some, many kids left behind

Davis Guggenheim, director of the Oscar-winning global warming documentary "Inconvenient Truth" and last year's guitar jam documentary "It Might Get Loud," decided to make a followup documentary on education driving his kids to private school.

Guggenheim (shown right), who loves music and looks like he could play in a band (and might just wish he did), first looked at the plight of teachers in the 2001 documentary "The First Year."

"Waiting for 'Superman,'" opening Oct. 1 at Dallas theaters, takes a hard look at students; many of whom might just dream the American dream without knowing an inspiring or even decent education may not be a reality in their neighborhood or economic situation.

After a slight delay while Guggenheim was shepherded off to a television interview up North Central Expressway, the filmmaker sat down with a handful of film journalists to field questions about his latest film. 

QUESTION: It's depressing to walk out of this film.  Are there any answers?

ANSWER:  I think it's an exciting time for education.  I really do.  The stakes are really high and we're failing too many kids.  But the examples I give of the KIPP schools, you have one here in Dallas, Geoffrey Canada's schools and there's successful schools all across the country that have broken the code.  Ten years ago, when I made my first documentary about public schools, it felt like the code was impossible.  Now they've found the ingredients for successful schools.

I'm very hopeful.  The question is is the country going to wake up to it.  That's why I made the movie.  Are they going to pay attention.  I made this movie more for moms and dads to let them know that the stakes are really high.

Q: So, 10 years after your first documentary on education, are you encouraged or discouraged about what you see?

A:  Ten years ago it felt like the teachers I followed were passionate and idealistic, but the system was going to crush them.  Many of them have left and some of them have formed their own charters (schools), but now I feel like it's impossible.

Q:  If reformers are coming to light, is that due to government stepping up or parents who are concerned stepping up?

A:  I think schools get changed locally.  At the best, they get changed at the state (level).  Most of the money comes from the state.  But I think schools change when moms and dads step up and demand that they be changed, or students demands that their schools be better.  Federal government doesn't give much money so it doesn't have that much influence.

Q:  You make the point that the current system is both morally wrong and economically unsustainable.

A:  Geoffrey Canada (former teacher and creator of Harlem Children's Zone) says the way our school are is an abomination.  You see it (in homes and students he features in the film).  You say, "These are good kids.  They've got the same potential as my kids.  They've got the same hopes and dreams as my kids and that the school let them down."  It's un-American.  In America, everyone has a chance to succeed, right?

Q:  How did you choose these particular children?

A:  I knew I wanted to highlight the lottery.  I felt like that was an amazing metaphor for what happens to every kid.  That there's this sort of arbitrary thing that determines whether you're going to have a good education and a chance at a dream.  So I found schools that had lotteries and I found families that were about to go into a lottery.

Q:  Have you picked a great issue for your next film?

A:  No.  I'm currently out of work and I'm happy about it.

(Photos courtesy:  Paramount Pictures) 

'Return to Giant,' support Texas Theater

James Dean on the "Giant" set in 1955.

(Courtesy:  Kirby Warnock)

"Giant," an epic film that has proved true to its title for over 50 years, is the kind of larger-than-life classic film with interest and fascination that will likely be around as long as movies light up the end wall of a dark room.

Filmmaker Kirby Warnock knew that in 1996 when he took his camera to Marfa, where "Giant" was shot in the summer of 1955 and where the West Texas city was celebrating the Academy Award winner's (best director, George Stevens) 40th anniversary.

"Return to Giant," Warnock's documentary narrated by Don Henley, a native Texan and lead singer for The Eagles," screens Thursday (July 29) at 7 p.m.  The locale is almost as noteworthy as the film itself.

The one-time-only screening will held at Oak Cliff's historic Texas Theater, located at 231 W. Jefferson Blvd. For more info, check out the Texas Theater's Web site at http://www.oakclifffoundation.org/ or call 214.942.4905.

Tickets are $5 with proceeds going to the Oak Cliff Foundation, the charitable organization that owns and operates the Texas Theater.

In addition to offering a behind-the-scenes look at the classic film starring Rock Hudson, Elizabeth Taylor, James Dean, Dennis Hopper and others, "Return to Giant" will be followed by a question-and-answer session featuring filmmaker Warnock.

"It’s what they like to refer to as ‘the director’s cut,’" Warnock said in the screening's press release. "George Stevens Jr. thought we had too many interviews with the local Marfa folks, so he asked that we edit them from the final DVD version.

"I understand where he’s coming from, but at the same time I believe that the locals had better stories and they were just more entertaining. Come on out and judge for yourself." 

It's on; Oscar race comes out of 'Hurt Locker'

Jeremy Renner keeps the audience on-edge in "The Hurt Locker."  (Summit Entertainment)

Ready or not, the 2009 Academy Awards season is upon us.

Kathryn Bigelow's explosive Iraq war drama "The Hurt Locker" is out of the chute first, picking up wins for top feature and ensemble cast at the Gotham Independent Film Awards Monday night in New York.

Remember, though, the Oscar race is a marathon, not a sprint.  Many (and I don't use that word lightly) awards shows loom ahead before the actual golden statuettes are handed out Sunday, March 7 at Hollywood's Kodak Theater.

(Courtesy:  Abramorama)

Monday was also a big night for one of my favorite documentaries of the year. "Anvil!  The Story of Anvil" was named the best music documentary of 2009 by the International Documentary Association, which announced its winners in advance of ceremonies Friday in Los Angeles.

The award will be especially sweet for "Anvil!" because the little heavy metal band that couldn't for decades but finally can was left off Oscar's short list in the documentary category.  The heart-felt documentary hit DVD and video shelves last month.

Too bad.  Click here to read the Hollywood Reporter Web story about Anvil's well-deserved latest honor.

The Gotham Indie Awards cast trophy for "Hurt Locker" went to Jeremy Renner, Anthony Mackie, Brian Geraghty, Ralph Fiennes, Guy Pearce, David Morse and Evangeline Lilly.

Renner heads the strong ensemble cast as Sgt. William James, a fearless, edgy  Army bomb squad device de-activator.  Don't look for "The Hurt Locker" on DVD shelves until Jan. 12 

Click here to read Variety's full report on the Gotham Indie Film Awards.

Guerrilla filmmaking; no, not 'King Kong'

 

Werner Herzog, left, and Christian Bale on location for "Rescue Dawn." (Courtesy:  MGM)

If I had a little over 1400 bucks to spare and a free weekend, I'd sign up right now for Werner Herzog's Rogue Film School.

According to a story by Dave McNary posted on the Variety Web site, Herzog, whose recent credits include "Grizzly Man" and "Rescue Dawn," will teach guerrilla filmmaking Jan. 8-10 in Los Angeles.  The cost:  $1,450.  No laptops, please.

In fact, the German-born filmmaker is cautioning the faint-of-heart to not even bother to sign up.

"'Censorship will be enforced,'" he says. 'There will be no talk of shamans, of yoga classes, nutritional values, herbal teas, discovering your Boundaries, and Inner Growth,'" the article states.

Herzog does have a soft side, however, even if he won't be showing it during his Rogue Film School weekend.  He wept on the telephone when I interviewed the versatile filmmaker about the chilling documentary "Grizzly Man" in 2005.

He had footage of the savage bear attack on grizzly bear activists Timothy Treadwell and Amie Huguenard.  Herzog refused to include it in his film, however, and had trouble even speaking of the horrific footage.

His film school weekend is designed, according to the Variety Web post, "for those who are willing to learn about lock-picking or forging shooting permits in countries not favoring their projects."

He's inviting "those who have a fire burning within.  For those who have a dream."

Any takers?

Taming the wild stallion within

 

(Courtesy:  Zeitgeist Films)

We've all seen a parent struggling with an unruly child throwing an ear-piercing tantrum out in public.

If you see the engrossing, nothing-held-back documentary "The Horse Boy," however, you might just react a little differently next time.

"The Horse Boy," opening Friday in San Antonio at the Santikos Bijou @ Crossroads Theater, is the heart-moving true story of Rowan, a little Elgin, TX boy diagnosed with autism.

Rowan's parents, journalist and former horse trainer Rupert Isaacson and psychology professor Kristin Neff, don't stop with a diagnosis and traditional therapies, however.  Rowan developed a soothing bond with a mare named Betsy next door.

"The Horse Boy," directed and shot by Michel Orion Scott, chronicles an odyssey to a foreign land to soothe the savage beast within a deeply troubled young boy.

Isaacson, who authored the book "The Horse Boy" and narrates the film, will answer questions following the 7 p.m. screening of the documentary Sunday (Sept. 20) at San Antonio's Santikos Bijou Theater.  He'll also sign copies of the book beginning at 6 p.m.  The question and answer session is scheduled to begin about 8:30.

Copies of "The Horse Boy" book will be available for purchase ($24.99) at the theater.  Also, you must purchase a ticket to the 7 p.m. screening to attend the Q&A session.  

Isaacson, who's been traveling the U.S. to talk about his personal family saga, will also appear in Austin Friday and Saturday (Sept. 18-19) at the Regal Arbor Cinemas @ Great Hills 8.  Click here for info.

Mr. Controversy, O. Stone, heads 'South'

Oliver Stone on the set of "Alexander" (Courtesy:  Warner Bros.)

Brace yourselves.  It looks like filmmaker Oliver Stone is about to release a -- gasp! -- controversial film.

Make that another controversial film.  Stone, a double best director Academy Award winner for war-related dramas "Platoon" in 1986 and "Born on the Fourth of July" in 1989, has been stirring the political pot lately.

"W.," a sometimes goofy political-drama, took on the life and presidency of former president George W. Bush last year.

Stone's latest effort, a documentary titled "South of the Border," zooms in on Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez.

Showing off his latest at the Venice Film Festival this week, Stone is stoking the "Buy my documentary" fire a bit by hinting around that "South of the Border" might struggle to find a distributor back in the States.

According to a Reuters article posted on the Yahoo! Web site:

"South of the Border" "portrays Chavez as a champion of the poor, and includes interviews with the leaders of Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina, Paraguay, Ecuador and Cuba.

"(Stone) focuses on how a generation of leftist leaders is seeking increasing independence from the International Monetary Fund and, by extension, U.S. economic policy, which Stone criticizes in the movie.

"South of the Border also seeks to demonstrate how Chavez has been unfairly demonized by the U.S. media which has cast him as a dangerous maverick who is a threat to security," the Yahoo! Web post states.

Yeah, but let's get to the nitty-gritty.  Does "South of the Border" feature an absurd sequence (say Chavez wandering around dreamily in a bullfight ring) like Mr. Bush shagging fly balls in the Texas Rangers outfield?

Stay tuned.  More to come on this one, I'm sure.

Make it 'Loud,' 'Soul,' 'Dad' or 'Extract'

 

(Courtesy:  Miramax Films)

The long Labor Day weekend makes for ample movie-viewing time.  Question is, what's worth seeing?

My top choice is "Extract," Mike Judge's witty bundle of blue collar, working man comedy.  Jason Bateman, Mila Kunis, Kristen Wiig and Ben Affleck share the screen in a comedy that'll sneak up on you.

Click here to read the review, or click on the Movie Reviews link. 

I haven't gotten around to the futuristic action-thriller "Gamer," since it wasn't screened in advance for critics.  Gerard Butler ("300") plays a guy named Kable.  That's about all I know so far.  But on a scale of, let's say, 1 to "300," I'm guessing it's about a . . .

That's not fair.  Go see it if you must and report back to this Web site's Citizen Critic page.   First one to weigh in gets a four-jalapeño salute.

As much as I enjoy seeing Sandra Bullock on screen, though, I highly recommend passing on "All About Steve."  It's lame comedy at its best, and tough to take most of the time. 

If you feel like you simply must see it anyway, do yourself a favor and check my "All About Steve" review.

Click here, or navigate over to the Movie Reviews page.

Check your local listings for:

"Soul Power" -- The late James Brown opens and closes this documentary about the 1974 three-day-showcase of African and U.S. R&B talent in Zaire.  Click here for the review, or hop over to the Movie Reviews page.

"World's Greatest Dad" stars Robin Williams as a distraught single dad trying to connect with his lout of a son and hoping against hope that he'll finally be a published author someday.  This one's very bleak and strong, and written/directed by former comedian Bobcat Goldthwait.  Click here for the review, or cruise over to the Movie Reviews page.

"It Might Get Loud" does get loud.  And the documentary from "An Inconvenient Truth" producer/director Davis Guggenheim gets very close to brilliance as it brings together guitar virtuosos Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin), The Edge (U2) and Jack White (The White Stripes) to talk about their love of music and guitars.

Also, if you're in or near San Antonio, "Lemon Tree," an import from Israel, lights up a screen at the Santikos Bijou Theater.  Click here for the review, or head on over to the Movie Reviews page.

Hard-luck Gilliam saves Ledger's final film

 

Terry Gilliam in "Lost in La Mancha."  (IFC Films)

A few years back (2002 to be exact), when I was watching Terry Gilliam's bad-luck experiences on the set of "The Man Who Killed Don Quixote" in the documentary "Lost in La Mancha," I thought things couldn't get much worse for the former member of the brilliant comedy troupe "Monty Python's Flying Circus."

Something did, of course.  When Heath Ledger died in January 2008 in New York, the "Dark Knight" future Oscar winner was in the middle of filming Gilliam's fantasy "The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus."

Mairi Mackay has written an extremely interiesting piece about Gilliam's misfortune as a filmmaker and what he did to pull "Doctor Parnassus" from the brink of destruction.  It's posted on the CNN Web site:

"He saved 'Parnassus' by enlisting the help of Ledger's friends, among them Johnny Depp. He has even resurrected 'Don Quixote,' which will start shooting next year," the article states.

Click here to read the entire article.