August 2008

08/26/08

Midnight movies this weekend at the Clay and the Chabot

I love midnight movies and there's a whole bunch of good ones this weekend at the Clay Theatre in San Francisco and the Chabot Cinema in Castro Valley. Check it out:

At the Clay: Friday, August 29 at midnight: HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH
Adapted from John Cameron Mitchell's critically acclaimed off-Broadway rock theatre hit, this dazzling film tells the story of Hedwig, an "internationally ignored" rock and roll songstress hailing from Communist East Germany. Born a boy named Hansel, whose life dream is to find his other half, he...

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08/20/08

THE ROCKER offers laughs and good vibes

August has featured an onslaught of broad comedy, and today's new release, THE ROCKER offers enough laughs and good natured spirit to recommmend. The movie has a fun premise—back in the big-hair metal days of the 1980s, drummer Robert Fishman (well played by Rainn Wilson, aka Dwight on NBC's The Office) gets kicked out of his bar band, Vesuvius, when the rest of the band gets a big deal from a record label.

Fast forward 20 years and Vesuvius is a huge Motley Crue meets Metallica band, and Fishman is working at a dead end job and hating his life. When his girlfriend kicks him out of the house, Fishman moves in with his sister, and, due to complications of the comdy screenplay varity, joins his nephew's band for a one-time gig at the prom. Fishman realizes that...

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08/15/08

Funniest film of 2008: TROPIC THUNDER

I haven't laughed as hard at a film as I did at Ben Stiller's killer new comedy TROPIC THUNGER in a long, long time. I caught a matinee at the gorgeous Orinda Theater the other day and laughed for two hours straight. That's great, of course, for a comedy, but Tropic Thunder surprised me as something more than just plain funny. The film, a satire of war epic movies and Hollywood egos, feels fresh the way the disaster spoof Airplane! did when it came out in 1980—a new kind comedy subgenre that unfolds right in front of you.

The gist of the film is that a cast of pretentious actors and filmmakers are on loation in Asia (actually Kauai) filming an Apocalypse Now/Platoon type for Vietnam war film. Anyone who has seen the brilliant...

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08/13/08

Elvis D-Day shindig in El Cerrito

I recently visited Graceland, that fascinating tourist trap in Memphis, TN, where Elvis Presley enjoyed many a peanut-butter-prescription pill-and-banana sandwich. As gaudy as it was, the visit really made me fall in love with the Elvis phenomenon again. The guy wasn't just a rock star, he was the pop culture icon of the 20th century. So I'm getting all shook up when I think about the annual Elvis D-Day Luau this Thursday at the Cerrito Speakeasy in El Cerrito, where my pals will Viharo and his partner, Monica the Tiki Goddess are throwing the ultimate shindig to appreciate the King. They'll be showing a beautiful print of Blue Hawaii, and the Wigglin' Wahinis hula troupe will perform on stage. Info

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08/11/08

The buzzkill that is the Pineapple Express

I'm the last guy I expected to be down on the new stoner-buddy-action comedy, Pineapple Express. After all, I've thus far been wowed by (almost) all things producer Judd Apatow touches, from the Larry Sanders Show to Freaks and Geeks to the 40 Year Old Virgin-Knocked-Up-Superbad trifecta. And this year's best comedy, by far, Forgetting Sarah Marshall. I harbor no ill-will toward stoner-slackers—Jeffs Lebowski and Spicoli rank among my favorite all time film characters. So it's with a harsh cough and a logy head that I have to admit—Pineapple Express just didn't make me laugh very much.

I checked out a weekend matinee at the Rheem Theater the other day, entering this neighborhood gem of a cinema with high hopes...

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08/08/08

Brand new print of PLANET OF THE APES at the Cerrito

One of the real treats for East Bay film geeks is the ongoing Cerrito Classics series at the wonderful Cerrito Speakeasy theater in El Cerrito. This weekend they have a brand spankin' new print of Planet of the Apes, for that classic film's 40th anniversary. Tickets are only $7, more information here.

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08/07/08

David Goodis crime films at PFA

Berkeley's Pacific Film Archive is running a FANTASTIC series of crime movies, all based on stories by crime fiction master David Goodis. Tonight's double feature of Nightfall and The Burglar will feature introductions by the East Bay's own czar of noir, Eddie Muller. More information here.

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08/06/08

Dolly Parton blows the roof off the Greek

I've decided who I would like to vote for for President this year—Dolly Parton. The country legend stormed through the East Bay last night on her "Backwoods Barbie" tour, offering up one of the most entertaining concerts I've seen in a long, long time. Parton was warm, self-deprecating, hilarious and in outstanding vocal form in a two hour show that started right at 8 p.m. (I found out that the Greek Theatre has a 10 p.m. sound curfew on weeknights, which answered my longstnding question about why they don't book more weeknight shows.) Opening with "Two Doors Down", Parton tore through a set of new tracks (a highlight was her rambunctious cover of Fine Young Cannibals' late 80s dance track "Drives MeCrazy") as well as classics like "Coat of...

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