Neuigkeiten

When people think of VHS-era scream queens three names come to mind: Linnea Quigley, Michelle Bauer and Brinke Stevens – the threesome of fear that sliced and seduced a generation of gorehounds and whose greatest hits can finally be seen in HD in this set, The Best of 80s Scream Queens, which comes from the schlock-lovers at 88 Films. This charming and chilling collection, perfect for addicts of excessive violence, gratuitous nudity and breathtaking bloodshed, all stem from the hand (and mind) of legendary director David DeCoteau and each nostalgic pot-boiler is packed with an enthusiastic fondness for breast-baring babes and skull-bashing set pieces!

Nightmare Sisters

Stars: Linnea Quigley, Brinke Stevens, Michelle Bauer, Richard Gabai, Marcus Vaughter, William Dristas, Jim Culver | Written by Kenneth J. Hall | Directed by David DeCoteau

Melody (Quigley), Marci (Stevens) and Mickey (Bauer) are your typical geeky college girls who just can’t seem to find a man.

Murder Weapon

Stars: Linnea Quigley, Karen Russell, Lyle Waggoner, Lenny Rose, Stephen Steward, Michael Jacobs Jr, Allen First, Richard J. Sebastian, Eric Freeman, Rodger Burt, Allen Tombello | Written by Ross A. Perron | Directed by David DeCoteau

When mobster daughters Dawn (Linnea Quigley, Creepozoids) and Amy (Karen Russell, Vice Academy) by chance meet in an insane asylum, the pair hatch a plan to free themselves. They do this by manipulating and downright blackmailing their psychiatrists Dr. Randolph (Lyle Waggoner, Wonder Woman) and Dr. Gram (Lenny Rose, Beach Babes From Beyond). Once successfully free, the pair decide to celebrate their freedom by holding a little get together. They decide to invite their ex-boyfriends Kevin (Stephen Steward), Eric (Michael Jacobs Jr), Cary (Allen First), Billy (Richard J. Sebastian), Jeff (Eric “Garbage Day!” Freeman), Bart (Rodger Burt) and Al (Allen Tombello) to celebrate their release and hopefully get a little of welcome home action.

In his most substantial and satisfying feature since 1999's Sweet and Lowdown, Woody Allen revisits favorite themes: storytelling, love and duplicity, the neuroses of hyperarticulate but emotionally lost Manhattanites. Using a simple hook that intertwines two versions of the same story, he's created a memorable ensemble piece with Radha Mitchell especially compelling in the dual roles that drive Melinda and Melinda. Allen First's film for Fox Searchlight should draw the best reviews and business the writer-director has seen in a while.

Across a restaurant table, friends debate whether life is essentially comic or tragic. The writer of successful comedies, Sy (Wallace Shawn), believes people seek laughter to escape pain; Max (Larry Pine), who trusts in the power of tragedy, argues that life is absurd. By way of example, each spins a tale based on an anecdote about an uninvited guest. From here, the film alternates between Sy's romantic comedy and Max's tragic saga of a lonely soul, returning occasionally to the storytellers themselves.

As the twin stories play out, echoing each other and at times almost blending together (it takes a little work to stay oriented), the line between comedy and tragedy feels increasingly arbitrary, more a matter of style than dramatic ingredients. Melinda's moral edge recalls Husbands and Wives and Crimes and Misdemeanors, and the comedy keeps the film from tipping into unrelieved dark territory, even if Allen's script lacks for-the-ages one-liners.

In both tellings, the uninvited guest is Melinda (Radha Mitchell), a woman at loose ends. In the dramatic version, she's got a wavy bob and subsists on pills, white wine and cigarettes, traumatized by a difficult divorce in which she lost custody of her children. After being hospitalized for a suicide attempt, she arrives at the downtown loft of old friend Laurel (Chloe Sevigny) and Laurel's peevish actor husband, Lee Jonny Lee Miller), who isn't thrilled about sharing their pad with someone who's "nuts." Laurel welcomes the break in routine as respite from a troubled marriage.

Uptown, the smooth-coiffed Melinda interrupts her neighbors' dinner party after ingesting 28 sleeping pills. Out-of-work actor and neglected husband Hobie (Will Ferrell, taking a while to warm up as the Allen surrogate) finds himself enchanted by the lovely would-be suicide. His filmmaker wife, Susan (Amanda Peet), barely notices his crush as she pursues a financier for her new project, The Castration Sonata -- a film that, she promises, will put "male sexuality in perspective."

Susan fixes up Melinda with handsome dentist Greg (Josh Brolin), prompting a jealousy-fueled barrage of put-downs from Hobie, which Ferrell puts across with Allenesque inflection. (He also delivers one of the all-time funniest movie reactions to spousal infidelity.) The other Melinda, whom friend Cassie (Brooke Smith) sets up with a widowed dentist, instead falls for the dangerously charming musician Ellis (Chiwetel Ejiofor).

Mitchell's nuanced intensity as the vulnerable Melinda, especially in her more high-strung incarnation, is key to the film's success. Another standout is Sevigny, whose Park Avenue-bred Laurel is a beautifully restrained, complex portrait of unhappiness.

Tech contributions are aces, led by Santo Loquasto's elegant production design and veteran cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond's striking ocher palette with noirish touches. From the swing of Take the 'A' Train to the emotional depths of Bartok, the jazz and classical selections are perfect enhancements.

MELINDA AND MELINDA

Fox Searchlight

A Gravier production

Credits:

Director-screenwriter: Woody Allen

Producer: Letty Aronson

Executive producer: Steven Tenenbaum

Co-executive producers: Jack Rollins, Charles H. Joffe

Director of photography: Vilmos Zsigmond

Production designer: Santo Loquasto

Co-producer: Helen Robin

Costume designer: Judy Ruskin Howell

Editor: Alisa Lepselter

Cast:

Melinda: Radha Mitchell

Hobie: Will Ferrell

Laurel: Chloe Sevigny

Ellis: Chiwetel Ejiofor

Lee: Jonny Lee Miller

Cassie: Brooke Smith

Susan: Amanda Peet

Sy: Wallace Shawn

Max: Larry Pine

Greg: Josh Brolin

Stacey: Vinessa Shaw

MPAA rating PG-13

Running time -- 99 minutes...

In his most substantial and satisfying feature since 1999's Sweet and Lowdown, Woody Allen revisits favorite themes: storytelling, love and duplicity, the neuroses of hyperarticulate but emotionally lost Manhattanites. Using a simple hook that intertwines two versions of the same story, he's created a memorable ensemble piece with Radha Mitchell especially compelling in the dual roles that drive Melinda and Melinda. Allen First's film for Fox Searchlight should draw the best reviews and business the writer-director has seen in a while.

Across a restaurant table, friends debate whether life is essentially comic or tragic. The writer of successful comedies, Sy (Wallace Shawn), believes people seek laughter to escape pain; Max (Larry Pine), who trusts in the power of tragedy, argues that life is absurd. By way of example, each spins a tale based on an anecdote about an uninvited guest. From here, the film alternates between Sy's romantic comedy and Max's tragic saga of a lonely soul, returning occasionally to the storytellers themselves.

As the twin stories play out, echoing each other and at times almost blending together (it takes a little work to stay oriented), the line between comedy and tragedy feels increasingly arbitrary, more a matter of style than dramatic ingredients. Melinda's moral edge recalls Husbands and Wives and Crimes and Misdemeanors, and the comedy keeps the film from tipping into unrelieved dark territory, even if Allen's script lacks for-the-ages one-liners.

In both tellings, the uninvited guest is Melinda (Radha Mitchell), a woman at loose ends. In the dramatic version, she's got a wavy bob and subsists on pills, white wine and cigarettes, traumatized by a difficult divorce in which she lost custody of her children. After being hospitalized for a suicide attempt, she arrives at the downtown loft of old friend Laurel (Chloe Sevigny) and Laurel's peevish actor husband, Lee Jonny Lee Miller), who isn't thrilled about sharing their pad with someone who's "nuts." Laurel welcomes the break in routine as respite from a troubled marriage.

Uptown, the smooth-coiffed Melinda interrupts her neighbors' dinner party after ingesting 28 sleeping pills. Out-of-work actor and neglected husband Hobie (Will Ferrell, taking a while to warm up as the Allen surrogate) finds himself enchanted by the lovely would-be suicide. His filmmaker wife, Susan (Amanda Peet), barely notices his crush as she pursues a financier for her new project, The Castration Sonata -- a film that, she promises, will put "male sexuality in perspective."

Susan fixes up Melinda with handsome dentist Greg (Josh Brolin), prompting a jealousy-fueled barrage of put-downs from Hobie, which Ferrell puts across with Allenesque inflection. (He also delivers one of the all-time funniest movie reactions to spousal infidelity.) The other Melinda, whom friend Cassie (Brooke Smith) sets up with a widowed dentist, instead falls for the dangerously charming musician Ellis (Chiwetel Ejiofor).

Mitchell's nuanced intensity as the vulnerable Melinda, especially in her more high-strung incarnation, is key to the film's success. Another standout is Sevigny, whose Park Avenue-bred Laurel is a beautifully restrained, complex portrait of unhappiness.

Tech contributions are aces, led by Santo Loquasto's elegant production design and veteran cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond's striking ocher palette with noirish touches. From the swing of Take the 'A' Train to the emotional depths of Bartok, the jazz and classical selections are perfect enhancements.

MELINDA AND MELINDA

Fox Searchlight

A Gravier production

Credits:

Director-screenwriter: Woody Allen

Producer: Letty Aronson

Executive producer: Steven Tenenbaum

Co-executive producers: Jack Rollins, Charles H. Joffe

Director of photography: Vilmos Zsigmond

Production designer: Santo Loquasto

Co-producer: Helen Robin

Costume designer: Judy Ruskin Howell

Editor: Alisa Lepselter

Cast:

Melinda: Radha Mitchell

Hobie: Will Ferrell

Laurel: Chloe Sevigny

Ellis: Chiwetel Ejiofor

Lee: Jonny Lee Miller

Cassie: Brooke Smith

Susan: Amanda Peet

Sy: Wallace Shawn

Max: Larry Pine

Greg: Josh Brolin

Stacey: Vinessa Shaw

MPAA rating PG-13

Running time -- 99 minutes...

Woody Allen's "Sweet and Lowdown" is crisply directed, beautifully acted and sharply written. But disappointment begins seeping in about halfway through by the accumulated failure to gather any momentum or clarity. By its abrupt, deeply unsatisfying ending, the colorful, buoyant work can't escape the impression of turning inconsequential.

It is without the punishing self-importance and subtextual ugliness that has marred some of Allen's recent works, but it doesn't have the flair and command of form that distinguished "Everybody Says I Love You" or "Deconstructing Harry". Premiering outside of competition here and then moving to Toronto before being launched as a late fall release, this film should unfortunately echo the commercial fate of Allen late '90s work.

Allen's astonishing productivity is unmatched, although it has become equally clear that making a new film every year has ostensibly exhausted the full complement of his ideas. The formal structure of "Sweet and Lowdown" is taken from Allen's far superior 1983 "Zelig", the brilliant juxtaposition of documentary interviews with fictional material to recount the story of a brilliant though enigmatic figure. Binding parts of other works, including "Broadway Danny Rose" and "Bullets Over Broadway", Allen opens the movie with the camera on himself, introducing the story of the sad, brilliant, neglected 1930s jazz guitarist Emmet Ray (Sean Penn), whom the opening title cards announce recorded for RCA Victor such standards as "I'll See You in My Dreams", "My Melancholy Baby" and "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles".

Vividly brought to life by the excellent Penn, Ray is pitched between extremes, a solipsist and "artist," combination con man, pimp and virtuoso jazz player whose reputation for genius is matched only by his wildly irresponsible streak and multiple addictions to vice. But he is burdened by one horrible realization, the knowledge that his work as a jazz guitarist has been usurped by a "gypsy from France," Django Reinhardt, an artist in whose presence Ray has fainted twice and who bursts in tears listening to the master's recordings. In the sketch format that Allen's talent thrives on, the filmmaker creates a succession of funny, telling vignettes -- including a hilarious account of Ray's attempt to make a daring entrance at one gig, his affinity for trains and shooting at rats.

That proves transitional and diversionary because the film's best moments are devoted to the relationship that develops between Ray and Hattie, a beautiful, emotionally sharp mute woman (Samantha Morton, giving the film's best performance). What the dreamy-eyed, deeply expressive Morton accomplishes through inflection, body movement and reactions is beautifully played off Penn's stylized movements. Unbelievably, Allen drops Morton from the movie virtually without explanation, and the movie dies in her absence. Making a late entrance, almost an hour in, Uma Thurman plays an aspiring writer whom Ray impulsively marries. In the film's weakest sections, Thurman is seduced by a contract killer (Anthony LaPaglia), precipitating a flat conclusion that Allen seems grasping to find an effective resolution.

The is Allen First's film since he reorganized his frequent technical collaborators. The first Allen movie in two decades not shot by Gordon Willis, Sven Nykvst or Carlo DiPalma, "Sweet and Lowdown" was photographed by the superb Chinese cinematographer Zhao Fei (Tiang Zhuangzhuang's "The Horse Thief"). Zhao lights some beautifully color-coded sequences, especially the use of soft blue light during Ray's bedroom admission to Hattie about the difficulties of his past. Santo Loquasto's production design convincingly evokes the period.

But Allen's use of commentators signals the absence of a shaping or organizing structure. Allen can't sustain a flow or build a scene that carries some insight into character or behavior. The movie whirs by, the separate parts never coalescing into either a sharply etched portrait of the times or addressing the conflicts arising from the artist's need to create against the larger social conformity. All that technique can't disguise its essential hollowness.

SWEET AND LOWDOWN

Sony Pictures Classics

Sweetland Films

A Jean Doumanian production

Credits: Producer: Jean Doumanian; Director/writer: Woody Allen; Executive producer:J.E. Beaucaire; Co-executive producers: Jack Rollins, Charles H. Joffe, Letty Aronson; Co-producer: Richard Brick; Director of photography: Zhao Fei; Production design: Santo Loquasto; Editor: Alisa Lepselter; Costume designer:Laura Cunningham Bauer. Cast: Emmet Ray: Sean Penn; Hattie: Samantha Morton; Blanche: Uma Thurman; Harry: James Urbaniak; Al Torrio: Anthony LaPaglia; Ellie: Gretchen Mol; Woody Allen: Himself. No MPAA rating. Running time -- 95 minutes...