"New Moon" brings rise to Lautner

When -- not if -- "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" takes the expected huge bite out of box office receipts this weekend, then a new wolf in town likely can be credited with part of its success.

That would be Jacob Black -- as played by Taylor Lautner -- whose plenty of time on screen comes at the expense of Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson), mostly separated from love Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) for most of the sequel.

Buff, popular and leaving behind all that months-ago talk about not returning to his now firmly established Native American role, Lautner certainly deserves to be all smiles.

"I start laughing so hard every time I see that (sure-to-become fan friendly) scene (between Jacob and Bella): 'Oh, you're bleeding? OK, let me fix it.'

"It's so embarrassing. Yeah, I mean, here's the thing: There's a reason that (Jacob's) not wearing clothes all the time. One, when he transforms, all his clothes get shredded; he can't help it. And, when he goes into the woods to get something to put on so he's not naked, it's just a ripped pair of jean shorts.

"Of course, he's also hot -- he's 108 degrees. So, that's another reason.

"The thing is," Lautner concluded during a recent press conference, "I love this character, I love this story and putting on the weight, and not wearing much clothing was simply required by the role. A year from now, if I love a story and I love a character that requires me to lose 40 pounds, I'm ready to do that, too."

Not very likely, my boy, especially with the third and fourth chapters of the "Saga" ready and eager to unspool on screens for fan hordes of the Stephanie Meyers books during the next few years. Even co-star Stewart seems impressed.
"I think that controversy has probably been like made bigger than it was," she said. "We needed to be sure that whoever played Jacob was going to be Jacob in 'New Moon.' He's such a different person. He becomes a man. There's an entire (thing). It's not just a physical transformation. He really becomes an adult.
"I mean, I always knew that Taylor could do that, but we just needed to make sure because it was so important. So, once he actually proved himself -- which wasn't hard to do -- even seeing him walk around on set was like a different experience. He's literally become a different person.
"He's just grown up," Stewart added. "Taylor is so confident and the nicest guy that I've ever met. I know that I'm using this grammatically incorrect, but he's the funnest guy I've ever hung

out with. So, he's great. I'm so proud of him."

For more on what "New Moon" players have to say, look for my piece now at Sun News, where you also can read my review of the film. While browsing there, be sure to check out my review of "The Blind Side," as well as a chat with star Sandra Bullock.

The end is nigh; see it all at the movies

Quite fittingly, "2012" begins on Friday, the 13th. What a lovely day to end the world.

Seriously, folks, the disaster movie about what could be in store for us all in a couple of years does debut this week, but a few of the film's princicpal messengers don't seem very concerned about the message.

"I can’t remember how to say the last word, ‘Return of Quetzalcoatl,’ but that book, I think, is probably more in line with what I think (about the Mayan prophecy for 2012)," explained headliner John Cusack. "I’ve actually read that book -- not all the way I have to admit -- thought it seemed more like I thought was going to happen, rather than the actual End of Days.

"I just think it taps into the paranoia all over the world about how out of control the world feels. It’s definitely all designed that way. Everybody sort of knows what all the problems are, with global warming and all of those things in the zeitgeist. This smartly doesn’t get into the politics of it. It just gets into the fact of what’s important to you, what matters, and that feeling you have (that) if something bad happens you try to cut through all the BS."

"It’s just something more to worry about," Chiwetel Ejifor piped in. "I will spend the year all kind of quietly I think, with family and friends, and hope for the best.

"No, I don’t have a real opinion about 2012," he added with a chuckle. "Like John says, maybe (there will be) a shift in consciousness or something like that; it feels like things are converging and something has to change. Maybe it will start around that time."

Even Amanda Peet, the self-proclaimed "hypochondriac" in the group, mostly brushed aside all possibilities.

"I worry a lot about a lot of things," she said, "but I’m going to try not to worry about it too much. That’s sort of my philosophy and that was my philosophy for the new millennium and everything else."

Of course, if the Apocalypse isn't big enough to handle, "Twlight" crazies are already dying to find out if werewolves can beat up vampires. Be sure to check out what some key members of the "New Moon" cast said about the second part of their screen "Saga" at Sun News. That's where you also can read my review of "Pirate Radio," as well as Stan Urankar's review of "2012."

It's a press jest fest for men in "Goats"

Journalists covering the 34th annual Toronto International Film Festival stared and giggled -- a lot -- when George Clooney, Jeff Bridges and Ewan McGregor led a large contingent of cast and crew members talking about "The Men Who Stare at Goats."

The funny film, directed by Clooney pal Grant Heslov, finally goes into wide release this week, but laughs also flew freely during the TIFF press conference a few months back.

The banter began when someone asked Clooney about his bandaged hand (from a fling with a car door). "Well, I didn't really want to tell you the true story because Ewan and I got into a fight and I hurt my hand punching him in the face."

OK, then why, by George, did you make another military satire?

"I have done a couple of war satire films," Clooney answered, " 'Batman and Robin' obviously being the first. That was just wearing a rubber suit with nipples on it. That was a battle. It was a choice. I made that choice. I've done a couple of them over the years. I think that satire is a pretty fun world to work in and you get a chance to work with really smart people when you do it. Unfortunately, this is not the group of smart people.
"We thought this would be a slam-dunk, right up there with 'Transformers II' because it's big things with goats," the legitimate movie star continued. "Anytime you've got the word goat in it, you just think money.

"Honestly, there's a huge market for that. Obviously if you look at our careers in the last few years, we haven't focused too much on the economics of it. We try to make sure that one way or another (movies) make their money back so that we can keep making those same kinds of films. They loved it when we said we wanted to do 'Good Night, and Good Luck' in black and white. So, the next film is silent."
Bridges, meanwhile, in discussing a role very reminiscent of "The Dude" he played in "The Big Lebowski," kept the chuckles coming when someone asked if he believed in any of the paranormal elements that "Goats" chews on.
"What does paranormal mean again?" Bridges joked, right before Clooney chimed in with, "I knew he was going to say that."

McGregor got into the act, too, following some Bridges remarks about dolphin research.
"You were involved in the dolphin communication? How?" McGregor asked.
"Well, I actually am a dolphin," Brides responded, also throwing out a dolphin squeal that sounded pretty much like the real thing.
Added McGrevor: "Well, I went in an isolation tank once and I got a drip from the condensation in my eye and it burned like fuck. I panicked and I couldn't find the door. I got out the door and I slipped and really hurt my back. That was my only tranquil experience in an isolation tank."
"He made the same sound as a dolphin," butted in Clooney, naturally getting in the last word.

Who knows if "Goats" will squeal or whimper at the box office, but you can check out my review of the film right now at Sun News.

It took two to keep "Amelia" airborne

You expect a biography of Amelia Earhart to take flight, for sure, but there’s more of a grounding by design in the story to “Amelia” being told on screens nationwide.

“It’s a challenge for all of us to keep our relationships as strong as they can be while at the same time indulging the passion to achieve what you want from life,” director Mira Nair (“Monsoon Wedding,” “Salaam Bombay!”) tells JMuvies.com correspondent Stan Urankar. “As much as this is a real adventure, a real journey of someone who wants to step into the cockpit and fly around the world, it’s also about Amelia negotiating her life and her love.”
That would specifically be with George P. Putnam, the publicist and soon-to-be book publisher who met Earhart in 1928, when recruiting her to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. When they wed three years later, it was with the understanding, in Earhart’s words, that they enter into a “partnership – one clearly with dual control.”
“George Putnam marketed Amelia better than anyone could have,” acknowledges two-time Oscar winner Hilary Swank, who plays Earhart to Richard Gere’s Putnam. “She was one of the first celebrities seriously to become involved with endorsing products and giving lectures.
“But, that was an integral part of her union with George,” Swank adds. “He would handle the promotional end, the business end, while Amelia would do what was necessary with the personal appearances. Ultimately, they found love through all of those things working to ensure she could continue to fly for the rest of her life.”

Find more on "Amelia," including Stan's review, at Sun News, where you also can read my reviews of "Michael Jackson's This Is It" and "Coco Before Chanel."

Coens look for "True Grit," seriously

With "A Serious Man" gathering some equally serious critical momentum during an ongoing platform release, filmmaking brothers Joel (far left) and Ethan Coen admit to setting their sights on a surprising remake sometime down their extremely busy career roads.
JMuvies.com correspondent Ed Symkus reports that the unpredictable siblings will take on "True Grit," the film that earned (very) Big John Wayne his first and only Best Actor Oscar.
And, how will they make anyone forget "the Duke" in his rootin'-tootin' 1969 western? "Well, we managed to forget it," Ethan Coen answered with a rare twinkle during a recent press confab at the 34th annual Toronto International Film Festival.
Added Joel Coen: "It’s really not a very good movie. The Charles Portis novel is great, fantastic. I think (the original) is a pretty mediocre movie from a great book. So we’re gonna go and, who knows, fuck it up again, maybe."
Certainly that seems a highly unlikely proposition, especially since the Coens have a way of mastering almost everything they touch.
In fact, even their totally Yiddish prologue to "A Serious Man" brilliantly sets the stage for what, uh . . . well, brilliantly follows.
"We were reading a lot of (Isaac Bashevis) Singer, and he is from Poland," Joel Coen explained. "So, it’s probably more influenced by that Polish-Yiddish literary tradition. But, just getting the translation in that segment was a nightmare, in terms of all the different opinions and all the different Yiddishes.
"We don’t speak it ourselves," Ethan piped in, "and every single person we talked to said, 'This (translation) is bullshit. You got it wrong. This is horrible.' ”
"So," Joel continued, "we’d show it to someone else and say, 'Well, you do a translation.' Then we’d show it to the next guy, and he’d say, 'This is bullshit.'
"It was like that every time we asked someone to do a translation of the script. And finally, the one we used was translated by the younger actor (Allen Lewis Ricman) in the segment. We figured, “You’ve got to say it, so you translate it.” He’s a fluent Yiddish speaker, and that’s the translation we ended up going with.' "
"The actress in that scene (Elena Shmulenson) is actually his wife," Ethan Coen concluded. "and Fyvush Finkel – the Dybbuk – is his friend, and they all agreed, 'OK, this is fine, we’ll do this.' "
By the way, my review of "A Serious Man" is up now at Sun News, where you also can find my review of Chris Rock' s "Good Hair."

Going to the Max where the "Wild Things" are

It’s no understatement to suggest that Max Records dove into his portrayal of Max, the feisty little boy who goes “Where the Wild Things Are.” The leading role for the 12-year-old newcomer in Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s timeless book entailed getting inside the character — literally.
A climactic moment necessitates Max hiding within one of the Wild Things, the rational KW, life-animated by Alice Parkinson and voiced by Lauren Ambrose, late of cable HBO’s “Six Feet Under.” That’s right, within — as in Max scurrying into KW’s mouth and taking temporary refuge in her gooey insides.
Once safe, Max is pulled free by KW, covered head to toe in some less-than-desirable type of slop. “It was disgusting,” Records tells JMuvies.com correspondent Stan Urankar. “I had this awful gel spread all over me. It felt like . . . well, you don’t want to know.”
Then, once was enough, right? Not quite. “We did film it once,” Jonze says, barely holding in a chuckle, “but something was not right in the shot. I told him, ‘We’re going to have to go again.’
“At first, Max wouldn’t do it, simply said, ‘No,’ and that was that. It was only after I promised that he could spread the goop all over me afterward that he relented.”
True to his word, the almost-40 but eternally childlike Jonze made for Records’s room to pay up. “He was so happy and I was so miserable,” Jonze says, no longer suppressing laughter. “It was good retribution.”

Read more from Stan about "Wild Things, including his review, right now at Sun News, where also you can also read my review of "Law Abiding Citizen."

Drew gamely tries to "Whip It" into a hit

Drew Barrymore hosts "Saturday Night Live" this week, looking to lure fans of the 35-year-old show into theaters still showing "Whip It," her directorial debut.

The former childhood star must have thought it would be easier than all this, since her well-reviewed film (a 79 rating from the Broadcast Film Critics Assn. and 82 from Rotten Tomatoes) looked like a cinch to be a huge hit after its buzz-inducing showings last month at the 34th annual Toronto International Film Festival.

Canadian press easily boasted photos and talk of festival exploits from happy-go-lucky Barrymore and a cast that includes Ellen Page, Eve, Juliette Lewis, "SNL" player Kristen Wiig and Oscar-winner Marcia Gay Harden. Then their roller derby movie opened last weekend to less than $5 million on a little more than 1,700 screens.

"I think that life is about love and laughter and your friends and, hopefully, trying to gain acceptance and support from your family along the way," Barrymore said during a TIFF press conference. "This (movie) was the perfect blueprint for me to put all of that into. It was just a magical sort of aligning of the stars, that these were all the things important to me and here's this story that I can put it on and have roller derby, which is such an interesting and unique backdrop, and so perfectly metaphorical to all those scenes.

Added Page, the film's legitimate star as a young lady-turned derby queen: "This script came along and just with the idea of it, before I got it, I was excited about the prospect of doing a film about a girl who's not being viciously forced into beauty pageants by any means but is doing something because it's very much her mother's interest. She wants to please her mother and have this connection with her.

"Then she finds this new world of roller derby that she falls in love with. Then I got the screenplay and it was incredibly sincere, and the relationships were real and wholehearted, and it didn't treat the teenager like a teenager in a patronizing way. She was a (real) person.

"Every time someone answers a question about the film," Page concluded, "I can't stop smiling because I just love everybody. I'm crazy about everybody."

But will "everybody" start showing up at theaters this weekend? Barrymore might still think so.

"I just tried to make a film that was really for so many people," the director/star said. "It's a mother/daughter love story and it's about family. I feel like my goal was to make this film from my heart, my personal experiences but (also) make it for everybody because, like derby, it's a very sort of welcoming environment whatever your ethnicity or economic background or age or personal experience."

Just roll, baby, roll!