In this morning’s roundup of movie news ‘n’ notes from around the web, “Alice” reaches a milestone, while Carrie and Samantha and crew prompt a whole lot of critical scorn.
Reviewers weren’t terribly kind, but most reviews don’t matter much when it comes to Tim Burton’s “Alice in Wonderland,” which will pass the $1 billion mark at the worldwide boxoffice on Thursday. It’ll be only the sixth movie to do so, and the second Disney film after “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.” The rest of the $1 billion club: “Avatar,” “Titanic,” “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” and “The Dark Knight.” A Disney VP tells Carl DiOrio that the film “reinvented the culture of cinema-going in a big way,” which seems like a fairly ridiculous overstatement for a movie that came out a couple of months after “Avatar,” another 3D fantasy that did everything “Alice” did and then some. (The Hollywood Reporter)
And speaking of reviewers, the makers of “Sex and the City 2” had better hope that they don’t matter for that movie, either. The film opened on Wednesday to some of the most savage pans in recent memory. Because it’s just too irresistible, here are a few choice quotes.
A.O. Scott, the New York Times: “Your watch will tell you that a shade less than two and a half hours have elapsed, but you may be shocked at just how much older you feel when the whole thing is over.”
Jeffrey Gantz, the Boston Phoenix: “For a franchise that was supposed to be adventurous about sex, this film (directed by Michael Patrick King, the series’s executive producer) is about as cutting-edge as ‘The Love Boat.’”
Andrew O’Hehir, Salon: “It relies on stupid stereotypes because it’s a stupid movie that’s offensive to virtually everyone.”
Ella Taylor, the Village Voice: “Sarah Jessica Parker is now 45 years old, and, frankly, I cannot stomach another moment of the simpering, mincing, hair-tossing, eyelash-batting little-girl shtick she’s been pulling ever since she emerged, with considerably more verve and charm, as a high-colonic Malibu Barbie opposite Steve Martin in ‘L.A. Story.’”
Claudia Puig, USA Today: “Let us count the ways in which this film offends: Crotch-cams, awful puns, leaden karaoke and suggestive writhing in a Middle Eastern marketplace top the tasteless list.”
Michael Phillips, the Chicago Tribune: “Why have these women, photographed drearily and insanely costumed, become full-on drag queens? They’re barely human anymore …. ”
It’s too exhausting to go on any longer, but I can’t resist Roger Ebert’s line about the wardrobe sported by our heroines in the Abu Dhabi section of the film: “This sequence is an exercise in obscenely conspicuous consumption, in which the girls appear in so many different outfits they must have been followed to the Middle East by a luggage plane.”
On the subject of more respectable films, Anne Thompson compares a pair of very different directors whose latest films played at Cannes. Her headline pretty much gives away her point of view: “Woody Allen vs. Mike Leigh: One Hires Stars, Other Makes Them.” In Allen’s movies, she says, “the actors bring fresh life to Allen’s worn ideas,” while Leigh “is at the height of his powers … He’s like Pixar. Each new movie is original, entertaining, masterful and emotionally moving.” (Thompson on Hollywood)
“No single f/x house has lent more reality to make-believe than George Lucas’ Industrial Light & Magic,” says Eric Malinowski, who celebrates 35 years of ILM with a video slide show of special effects. Films include the original “Star Wars,” “Terminator 2,” “Jurassic Park,” “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” and others. Not much info, but cool pictures. (Wired)
They handed out something called the UK National Movie Awards in London on Wednesday, but the crucial thing to know is that the winners are chosen by the public. Hence the winners are: “Twlight Saga: New Moon” in the Fantasy category, “Sherlock Holmes” for action/thriller, “Twilight Saga: Eclipse” for Most Anticipated Movie of the Summer, “The Time Traveller’s Wife” for Breakthrough Movie, Robert Pattinson for Performance of the Year, Tom Cruise for Screen Icon, and Harry Potter (they do know he’s a fictional character, right?) for Special Recognition. Martyn Conterio says Pattinson was booed because he was making another movie and couldn’t attend. (Film Shaft)
