The Screening Room

If you're heading to the 20th annual Dallas Video Festival tonight, take a shot with the Whole Shooting Match, a restored version of Eagle Pennell's 1978 Lone Star cult film about a pair of losers run amok. Bonus factoid: Legend is this the film that inspired Robert Redford to start the Sundance Film Festival. Catch the match at 9:15 p.m. at the Dallas Angelika.

Antonioni with Jack Nicholson on the set of 1975's The Passenger (Sony Pictures Classics)

Antonioni was best known in the States for 1975's The Passenger (at left), starring Jack Nicholson as a journalist who assumes the identity of a dead man. It was re-released by Sony Pictures Classics in 2005; check out our review here. He also gained a degree of fame for Blowup (1966), about a hedonistic photographer searching for the truth - and meaning - behind a dead body in the background of a photo. Read our DVD review here.

Antonioni suffered a stroke in 1985, but he contributed a chapter to the trilogy Eros, also featuring the work of Steven Soderbergh and Wong Kar Wai, in 2004. He received a lifetime achievement Oscar in 1995.

Perhaps he saw Bergman go and decided it was time. In any case, we've lost another giant.

Yes, the Dallas Video Festival is almost of legal drinking age. Big D's home for underground and underexposed vidiocy kicks off at 7:30 tonight at the Angelika. Prepare for inspired weirdness, starting at 7:35 with Bodacious Boots, Laura Neitzel and Tim Wylie's look at bootware, boot makers, and all things boot. Yee-ha. And check out Michael Granberry's profile of video fest ringmaster Bart Weiss at guidelive.com. The festival runs through Sunday. Go git your video on.

Set your DVRs for tonight at 10 if you want to see one of the best docs of the year. In Following Sean, presented by the stellar doc series POV on KERA (Channel 13), filmmaker Ralph Arlyck goes in search of Sean Farrell, the subject of a short film Arlyck made in 1969. Back then, Sean was a precocious San Francisco four-year-old who looked into Arlyck's camera and talked about smoking pot. Outrage ensued. In the new film, Arlyck catches up with Sean. But he also does much more. Following Sean is a model of the personal-essay-as-film format, and a clear-eyed, unsentimental look at the legacy of an era. It neither scorns nor celebrates in assessing a time and place so often reduced to a cultural stereotype.

"I don’t romanticize it, which is not to say there are not a lot of things that I love about it," says Arlyck in a phone interview. "But I don’t feel particularly nostalgic about it, and I didn’t want to make a nostalgic movie. I feel ambivalent about the period, and that expressed itself in the film."

Look for more from Arlyck as we look at facts, myths and marketing of the Summer of Love this Sunday at dallasnews.com.

Movie Critic Chris Vognar reflects: Bergman was often copied and parodied, but rarely matched

Slideshow: View photos of the legendary Swedish filmmaker
Survey: What's your favorite Ingmar Bergman film?
Obituary: Film Icon Ingmar Bergman dies at 89

Gordon-Levitt reveals the awful truth to Corbet in Mysterious Skin (Tartan)

This weekend was another long, movie-filled weekend. There's a lot to talk about, so bear with me:

The Simpsons Movie: I can't remember the last time I heard such consistent, uproarious laughter in a movie theater. And really, could it have been done any other way than making it one long episode? I'd love to see "Spider-Pig" nominated for Best Song, just because it's so, you know, not like other movie songs. And while some people don't believe it, I'm pretty sure this movie will be nominated for Best Animated Feature.

Volver: Heartbreaking and beautiful. The magnificent use of color and framing of shots makes up for the rather slow pace. And only Almodovar could make a fart joke classy and touching. And this wasn't nominated for Best Foreign Film why?

Zodiac: Yep, it's still 2007's best movie.

which leads me to the movie I can't stop thinking about...

Mysterious Skin: Wow. What a knockout of a movie. Without giving too much away: Neil (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and Brian (Brady Corbet) are connected by a tragic event that occured one August evening when they were eight. Since then, their lives have gone in completely opposite directions and both are searching for answers. Their quests for truth (Neil through decadence, Corbet through paranormal research), lead them to heartbreaking and earth-shattering discoveries. But be forewarned: this movie definitely earns its NC-17 rating. Now, I've said it before and I'll say it again: Gordon-Levitt is the best actor of my generation. He's a fearless performer, and he's stellar here as teen hustler Neil. This movie has so much going on, but it's all pulled off terrifically. At the heart of everything is one amazing story. The film's characters evoke all sorts of emotions: hatred for the coach (Bill Sage) and Neil's mother (Elizabeth Shue, surely the worst on-screen parent since Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest), genuine concern for Brian (Corbet, who's so haunted by what happened he may never be able to cope), and, despite being so detached ("there's a black hole where his heart should be," Michelle Trachtenberg says), we fear for Neil, who's so incredibly self-destructive and doesn't even seem to care. It's evidence of a top-notch performance and story.

Finally, it looks as if no one went to go see Interview this weekend, which is a real shame. I think it's great. It's sharply written, nicely directed, and perfectly acted. I just hate all the negative "this movie isn't steeped in reality" reviews. Seriously, I can't recommend this movie enough. It's terrific.

As promised, my take on the The Simpsons Movie's $72 million haul:

I'm not surprised at all, and that's not just 20/20 hindsight. It opened on 5,500 screens. Even those who aren't fans - and let's face it, a lot of people are big, big fans - caught the hype bug during the build-up. This is an event movie, the kind of water cooler stuff that people want to talk about around, well, the water cooler (or wherever people talk about such things these days).

And, by the way, it's really funny. If ya haven't read our review yet, what are you waiting for?

Bergman in action, 1957 (AP)

Bergman is too often seen as passe in today's hyper-ironic movie environment, a product of the bygone Euro art house days of the '50s and '60s. Don't believe the hype. As a college student in the early '90s, I walked into a repertory house to see Persona, Bergman's 1966 film about a self-assured nurse caring for a mute actress. I left the theater with my wig peeled back, in a trance and transported to a place only cinema can bring you. I've seen just about all of his films since, and I've rarely been less than amazed at his command of the medium and his ability to penetrate the human soul.

As luck would have it, The Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art will present a pair of opportunities to see Bergman classics on the big screen in August. The Magnolia at the Modern series Essential Art House: 50 Years of Janus Films will show The Seventh Seal 7 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 14; and a rare Bergman comedy, Smiles of a Summer Night 2 p.m. Sun., Aug. 19.

Went to see The Simpsons on Saturday night at the Inwood. It was about what I expected -- sort of like one really long episode. But what I found to be really fun was watching it with an audience. For the past 18 years, watching The Simpsons has been primarily a solitary experience -- just me, the TV and the couch. I laughed at what I thought was funny -- sometimes harder, sometimes not as much. So it was interesting to see what other people thought were the big jokes and how hard they laughed. And I was comforted walking out of the theater to hear more than one person singing (as I was under my breath) "Spider Pig! Spider Pig! Does whatever a Spider Pig does. Can he swing from a net. No he can't, he's just a pig..."

As part of a promotion for The Simpsons Movie, you can model a Simpsons character after yourself here. All you have to have is a photo of your head (and some time, it took a while for mine to work).

Time to start planning your cinematic weekend, kiddos. Did you catch the midnight Simpsons screening? Planning an extra-long lunch to catch the glorious deliciousness that is Aaron Eckhart in No Reservations? (I think I just gave away my plans. Blast!) Does not screening in advance spell disaster for I Know Who Killed Me and Who's My Caddy? - or can they just blame Lindsay Lohan and an 'are-you-seriously-kidding-me?' plot for their imminent failure?

Here's the lineup; what's the game plan? (And whether Bridgette knows it or not, she's seeing Sunshine or the Simpsons this weekend.)

• The Simpsons Movie (B+)

• No Reservations (B-)

• Sunshine (B+)

• Interview (C+)

• Brooklyn Rules (D+)

• I Know Who Killed Me

• Who's Your Caddy?

And now we play the waiting game... (Warner Bros.)

If you've been to the multiplex lately, you've probably seen the Get Smart trailer that's currently running with Harry Potter, among others. You may or not be excited depending on your tolerance level for TV adaptations and Steve Carell. Either way, it doesn't come out for an entire year. Does that make any kind of sense? It's the same with
this trailer for Vantage Point. According to IMDb, the movie's not coming out until next February. I'm thinking there should be a rule: No Trailers for Movies Coming Out More than Six Months from Now. Anyone agree?

In other movie news...
Michel Gondry, the man behind the awe-inspiring Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind and the eh-inspiring Science of Sleep is up to his lo-fi tricks again. His latest is Be Kind Rewind, which will be released just in time for Oscar consideration. It stars Jack Black as a man who accidentally erases a bunch of videos and sets out to recreate them all, including The Lion King and RoboCop. If nothing else, it's bound to be interesting and dazzling. Look for it at your Angelikas and Inwood this winter.

So, after years of putting it off, saying I'd eventually get around to it, I finally buckled down and watched the incredible Sunset Blvd. last night. It wasn't at all what I had expected. I expected some noirish touches and have a lot to do with lost fame, but I had no idea it would be a pitch-black comedy, a May-December romance (sort of), and a deep, rich study of delusional behavior. It's got to be one of the most original, fascinating and downright bizarre movies I've ever seen. And Gloria Swanson's performance has got to be one of the all-time greats. I think my favorite Wilder picture will always be Double Indemnity, but he's got so many great works. Having said that, and given all the love for the recent DVD release of Ace in the Hole (which I'm still dying to see), I'd like to make a bid that, for his body of work, Billy Wilder is the greatest director of all time. Would anyone like to refute this? I'd love to hear your answers.

Ok, so The Simpsons Movie is out, and it's highly possible that I'm the only person in the world who's just not that into Bart and the fam. But that's me.

Chris Vognar's sneak peek review gave the flick a B+.

What did you think? Discuss.

I had a nice e-mail conversation with Taylor Parks' mother, Theresa. She came across my blog post from the other day about the Mesquite-raised star of Hairspray. (In case you missed my story on her in Wednesday's GuideLive, here it is for your reading pleasure.) Anyway, she passed along the motherly note that she can confirm that Taylor, at age 13, "most certainly was goo-goo eyed over Zac Efron," and that "she still can't mention his name without that huge grin on her face."
Isn't puppy love cute?

What's up blogger people. I will be away from my post for a few days - please act like you notice - hanging with some homies in Milwaukee (a damn fine city that gets slept on by most people. Gotta love any place that has cool, breezy summers and a bar on every corner). My fellow Screening Roomers will be working hard to keep the cinenuggets coming. Right? Fellow Screening Roomers? McFly?

Funny, that's the same expression I had when I saw the trailer. (MGM)

There's not one but two sure-fire misses this week:

Who's Your Caddy?, a shameless Caddyshack rip-off that pits milquetoast Jeffrey Jones (wait, he's not in prison?) against Big Boi (the Oates to Andre 3000's Hall in Outkast) in a golf tournament, complete with a flatulant Faizon Love (left). The director of the Steven Seagal classic Half Past Dead is helming this one.

But wait, there's more...

Train Wreck of the Week Lindsay Lohan stars in I Know Who Killed Me. LiLo plays an exotic dancer who may or may not be dead. It sounds oddly similar to The Invisible, which also didn't screen in advance. Sure to be more frightening than the film itself, is IMDb's Similar Movies feature on the page, which also recommends...Kindergarten Cop (dun dun dun!). Yikes.

See you in the bargain bin...

All hail Sandler
The reviewers mostly said “no,” but Adam Sandler fans responded with a resounding “YES” to I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry. The one-joke comedy lead the weekend with $34 million, edging out last week’s champ, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, by less than $2 million.

Yo, where's the sunblock? (Fox Searchlight)

"There isn’t a star field in space, especially if you’re flying into the sun," Boyle said in a recent telephone interview. "You wouldn’t see anything. It’s just black with the one source of light. But if you did that - and we did at first - your ship doesn’t look like it’s moving and the audience thinks, why has the ship stopped? So stars are the only way of showing motion in a vacuum."

Look for more on Sunshine and Mr. Boyle in Friday's Dallas Morning News and on the movies page at guidelive.com

I loved, loved, loved Hairspray.

But, seeing John Travolta as Edna Turnbladt also made me question why her characters is always played by a man. For the first time I wondered why Edna couldn't have been played by a woman. Nancy's theory on the gay pride aspect seems probable, but at the same, I think the story about respecting yourself regardless of your weight could still have been told if Edna had been played by a woman.

Quality time with Billy and Reggie (AP)

I'm also amused by those little "behind the scenes" snippets airing after each episode, which basically give the real Jackson the chance to tell his side of the story. Mr. October, a former ESPN analyst, was not pleased with the way he's portrayed in the series. Think the four-letter network might be trying to placate him with these postscripts?

Salsa music, that incendiary tropical Latin style that blends brassy horns, syncopated percussion, passionate vocals and the engulfing sound of a live orquesta, could very well be the star of El Cantante, the Hector Lavoe biopic anchored by Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez. The late Lavoe ruled during the glory days of the genre. We're talking from the late '60s through the '70s. In the movie, the music is real. Anthony recorded a batch of Lavoe songs, including the titular "El Cantante" and the explosive "Mi Gente," that he sings in the film. His voice is an incredibly propulsive instrument. No surprise. When Anthony made his salsa debut with 1993's Otra Nota, he was immediately heralded as the next Hector Lavoe. Check out my review of El Cantante on opening day, Aug. 1.

Hansard sings his heart out (Fox Searchlight)

With the continual chat about and love for Once on this blog, I got to thinking: for those that have seen the movie, what's your favorite song? I'd have to go with "Say It to Me Now," Glen Hansard's heartbreaking soundtrack finale (which I just read got an inexplicable 2 stars from Rolling Stone). What say you? And don't forget to check out Chris Vognar's original review.