tagged w/ The Coen Brothers
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In Date Night, Tina Fey and Steve Carell head into New York for a romantic dinner and wind up dealing with some of the city's less-savory elements. If you believed the movies, every other Manhattanite is either a paranoid, homicidal cabdriver or a megalomaniacal crime king. But NYC's not alone in this treatment by Hollywood. Don't believe us? Grab your pepper spray and have a look.In Date Night, Tina Fey and Steve Carell head into New York for a romantic dinner and... more
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Pointed out to me months ago by a friend of mine, the Coen Brothers short, World Cinema.
It is hilarious. And, according to him, is even more hilarious when considering the sex scene from Climates.
[h/t: lauren simpson]
-John Lichman
Pointed out to me months ago by a friend of mine, the Coen Brothers short, World... more
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[ A Serious Man is one of the three films we're reviewing this Thursday on The Rotten Tomatoes Show. It is currently in limited release with new cities being added weekly.]
The premise of A Serious Man appears to be up for much debate around critical circles. Is it a nihilistic take on Judiasm? Is it the Story of Job planted in the Midwest? Is it merely a continuation of the age old Coen ethos: "if at first you don't succeed, give up before something worse happens." All three seem to be visible when we first peek into the life of no-name university physics Professor Larry Gopnik (Michael Stuhlbarg) and his son Danny (Aaron Wolff).
As their day-to-day occurrences are cut up (Larry getting a physical, Danny listening to Jefferson Airplane in Torah class), it's impossible to forget about the nearly ten-minute prologue of a husband and wife being visited by a spirit, or else the effect of putting too much belief into one's faith. But these are the dualities that the Coens force us to confront, no matter how noble our desires or how petty our thoughts.
It gets worse for Larry as his monosolobic student Clive (David Kang) may or may not be attempting to bribe him, his wife (Sari Lennick) wants a traditional Jewish divorce ("I want a Get." "Ok." Pause. "A what?") so she can remarry their neighbor Sy (Fred Melamed), a verbose and cultured-on-the-outside widower.
A Serious Man represents the Coens' structure, at best, with the opening prologue/tale of a husband and wife who aren't sure what they invite into their home. On one hand, the wife argues with belief and religion, as well as second and third hand stories she's heard. The husband believes in reason and is "a rational man." Despite the eventual, yet subtle, violent conclusion, the husband begs, "What have we done?"
"We had evil. Evil is gone," and shut the door.
This sums up what Man, in theory, is about: the quest for acceptance on a level that can't be understood whether by religion or tales, such as "The Goy's Teeth," but nor can basic rationality make sense of them, using the Coens' final shot as definite proof. Instead, it is all up to how one takes on these feats--even if it means just keeping one ear constantly tuned into Jefferson Airplane.
-John Lichman
[ A Serious Man is one of the three films we're reviewing this Thursday on... more
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Aren’t people going to say this film is way ‘too Jewish’?
Joel (Coen): (rubs sleep from his eyes)
Of course, there's more to Sharon Waxman's interview with the Coen Brothers at The Wrap. The problem is, it sounds like she either spoke to them at five in the morning or she was unable to get them truly worked up about anything. She even asked the question about Job, which (surprised) Ethan Coen:
That’s a natural association to make. Job is a man whose faith is being tested. But this is not that. As for being autobiographical, it’s very much so in terms of the setting -- the Jewish community in the suburban Midwest. But the story has nothing to do with our domestic situation. Ours was boring, normal.
Unfortunately, by then, the Coens appeared to have mentally checked out and were probably waiting around for the next set of questions about Judism, personal flair and dybbuks.
[TheWrap]
-John LIchman
Aren’t people going to say this film is way ‘too Jewish’?... more
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The Rotten Tomatoes Show takes on the Original Screenplay category for this 90 Second Oscar Pick with the nominees including:
-"The Hurt Locker" Written by Mark Boal
-"Inglourious Basterds" Written by Quentin Tarantino
-"The Messenger" Written by Alessandro Camon & Oren Moverman
-"A Serious Man" Written by Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
-"Up" Screenplay by Bob Peterson, Pete Docter, Story by Pete Docter, Bob Peterson, Tom McCarthy
The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a movie review show that airs on Thursday nights at 10:30 e/p on Current TV. From reviews of the newest releases to commentary on cult favorites and movie trends, each episode of The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a fast-paced, comedic journey through the week in cinema.
For more from the Rotten Tomatoes Show: http://rottentomatoesshow.com
For more about movies from Current: http://current.com/moviesThe Rotten Tomatoes Show takes on the Original Screenplay category for this 90 Second... more
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According to director Jacques Audiard's stunning new movie, A Prophet (Un Prophète), no one would wish to be in the shoes of Malik El Djebena (newcomer Tahar Rahim).
A low-level criminal serving a six-year prison sentence, he is at the mercy of the Darwinesque nightmare that is society behind bars, most particularly when he becomes the unwilling pawn of the jailed, Corsican mob boss, César Luciani (Niels Arestrup). As much as Malik tries to stay ahead of his situation -- using the paroles César has orchestrated as an opportunity to start his own drug-running operation, for instance -- fate, rival crooks, and the very smart César seek to intervene at every step.
It's a basic tenet of good storytelling that whatever plans your characters put into action, it can't hurt if things don't go quite as smoothly as anticipated. Sometimes, though, the brilliant, foolproof, fail-safe scheme that goes utterly and (oh boy!) horribly wrong is a story in itself. Moviemakers have taken good advantage of the irony, suspense, and drama to be had when a best-laid plan seriously "gangs agley," especially in these 10 gripping, and entertaining, examples:
http://www.reelzchannel.com/article/1001/top-10-uh-that-didnt-go-as-planned-moviesAccording to director Jacques Audiard's stunning new movie, A Prophet (Un... more
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Ellen Fox counts down the Top Five movie stoners.
The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a movie review show that airs on Thursday nights at 10:30/9:30c on Current TV. From reviews of the newest releases to commentary on cult favorites and movie trends, each episode of The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a fast-paced, comedic journey through the week in cinema.
For more from the Rotten Tomatoes Show: http://rottentomatoesshow.com
The Big Lebowski premieres on Current TV Thursday, November 4th at 9 pm ET/6 pm PT.
For more about movies from Current: http://current.com/moviesEllen Fox counts down the Top Five movie stoners.
The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a... more
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Jorge Carreon blogs on Examiner.com how Joel and Ethan Coen are looking for Josh Brolin and Matt Damon to reveal their "True Grit." Also, a "Short Circuit" reboot is about to be hardwired.Jorge Carreon blogs on Examiner.com how Joel and Ethan Coen are looking for Josh... more
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"A Serious Man is the Coen Brothers' 14th film in 25 years, and it appears to be the first time they have really pulled experiences from their own lives to build the story. This is not a suggestion that the Coens' actual lives (or the lives of anyone they actually knew) are being put on display, but considering that they are from a Jewish family that grew up in a late 1960's suburb in Minnesota and the film is about a Jewish community in a late 1960's suburb in Minnesota, this is definitely their most personal and intimate film to date."
read the rest at the link ->
http://www.examiner.com/x-7322-Orlando-Movie-Examiner~y2009m10d26-Review-A-Serious-Man-wants-you-to-accept-the-mystery"A Serious Man is the Coen Brothers' 14th film in 25 years, and it appears... more
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Brett and Ellen pay tribute to the upcoming Oscar season.
The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a movie review show that airs on Thursday nights at 10:30 e/p on Current TV. From reviews of the newest releases to commentary on cult favorites and movie trends, each episode of The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a fast-paced, comedic journey through the week in cinema.
For more from the Rotten Tomatoes movie show: http://current.com/the-rotten-tomatoes-show
For more about movies from Current: http://current.com/moviesBrett and Ellen pay tribute to the upcoming Oscar season.
The Rotten Tomatoes Show... more
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Brett Erlich and Ellen Fox join forces with bloggers, comedians, students and citizen critics to review "A Serious Man."
The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a movie review show that airs on Thursday nights at 10:30 e/p on Current TV. From reviews of the newest releases to commentary on cult favorites and movie trends, each episode of The Rotten Tomatoes Show is a fast-paced, comedic journey through the week in cinema.
For more from the Rotten Tomatoes movie show: http://current.com/the-rotten-tomatoes-show
For more about movies from Current: http://current.com/moviesBrett Erlich and Ellen Fox join forces with bloggers, comedians, students and citizen... more
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The Coen brothers are at it again. They’ve already sicced existential hit men, lunkheaded convicts, and over-ambitious hula hoop manufacturers on the populace, now they’ve gone and recruited God as chief tormentor. The target this time: Some poor, midwestern schlub who isn’t gonna know what hit him.
A SERIOUS MAN is a comedy, but a comedy in the Coen tradition, which means humble, Jewish physics professor Larry Gopnik (Broadway actor Michael Stuhlbarg) is going to go through royal Hell for our amusement, and maybe enrichment. Set in 1967, the film plagues Larry with the turmoils of the time, including but not limited to sex, drugs, rock ‘n’ roll, moral relativism, and an unemployed brother (Richard Kind). This all could be very painful… aw, hell, it is painful. But it’s pain in the laughing-through-tears tradition that the Coens — once nice, midwestern Jewish boys themselves — know all too well.
This episode of MMP features a roundtable interview with Joel and Ethan Coen. There are two versions of this show, one with spoilers, the other spoiler-free. Clicking on the link above will take you to the ep with the spoilers (don't worry, you won't be exposed to any just by clicking through). From there, you'll find another link that'll take you to the spoiler-free version. Enjoy!The Coen brothers are at it again. They’ve already sicced existential hit men,... more
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They just don't stop! The Coen Brothers are already back again with yet another black comedy, titled A Serious Man, following up their CIA black comedy Burn After Reading last year. Out of nowhere comes the first trailer for A Serious Man straight from Apple. Up-and-coming actor Michael Stuhlbarg stars in the lead role as well as funny man Richard Kind as his brother. You probably won't recognize too many people in this, which is probably a good thing. Considering it's the Coen Brothers, they've got some crazy, twisted, dark comedy up their sleeves, so why not let some incredibly talented unknown actors take center stage.They just don't stop! The Coen Brothers are already back again with yet another... more
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