The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button

Potentially one of the most interesting movies due out this Christmas (well, early bird and all that) is the adaption of F. Scott Fitzgerald's fantastical, humourous and ultimately melancholic short story, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button.

Director David Fincher's generally impressive track history includes Zodiac, Fight Club, Se7en, Panic Room, Alien 3 and The Game.

Rather like a Burton / Depp collaboration spells a particular style, I'm hoping that this Fincher / Pitt pairing will mean similar veins of dark humour, melancholy and intelligence, as with their previous collaborations, Fight Club and Se7en.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button tells the tale of a baby, born as an elderly man - much to the shock and dismay of his parents - who then proceeds to age in reverse. Gradually reaching middle age, youth, and eventually childhood, his life is always unusual, often painful, affirming, tragic and humourous. Ultimately lonely, Benjamin's condition pulls those that share his life, (and their view of him) in and out of focus.

While the rest of the population ages and experiences together, he is doomed to fleeting moments of acceptance, normality, and love.

Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett and Tilda Swinton star.

The only trailer available so far is in Spanish, but an English language version is sure to surface soon...

A dark and unusual tale, with the changing relationships between the beguiling leads likely to make us all appreciate the aging process in a whole new way, The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button looks to be a well crafted, textured, cinema treat.

Current release date: Christmas Day, 2008.

~ The title of this post will teleport you to the official Benjamin Button website, though be warned there isn't much there (yet) accept for the occasional tumbleweed ~

Missing In Action

Some of you, my lovely, tiny group of readers, may have noticed that I've fallen rather silent over the last week.

My apologies for disappearing... all I can really say at this stage is that I received some pretty crazy, life changing news on Saturday.

It's taken me this long to get my head round it.

I can't say any more than that, for now. If things go well, all will become clear in about four weeks. And in the meantime, things should carry on as normal.

Spring is most definitely sprung.

L x

The Men Who Stare At Goats (Really)

There I was, innocently mooching across the net earlier when I discovered a future film project that'll be right at home in the 'oddest name' family. Oh, that and it actually sounds pretty interesting.

"The Men Who Stare At Goats" is a novel by British journalist Jon Ronson, telling the tale of the U.S. Army's First Earth Battalion.

Ok, fine, so where exactly do the goats come in, I hear you cry? (Er, very quietly...)

Well, the battalion was reported to use paranormal powers - sufficient to kill a goat just by staring at it.

Anyway, the novel was adapted into a script by the man responsible for the upcoming How to Lose Friends and Alienate People.

Smoke House director Grant Heslov will direct, while his friend, (the continuously interesting) George Clooney, will star.

Night Night.

Christian Bale signed into new Terminator trilogy

As I'm sure you will have heard by now, Christian Bale will star as John Connor in the next batch of Terminator films, with a trilogy apparently in the pipeline.

The team linked to the agreement is The Halcyon Company, headed up by co-CEOs Derek Anderson and Victor Kubicek, a previously unknown force within the industry who have certainly decided to dive in, all guns blazing.

Back in May 2007, Halcyon secured the rights to the entire Terminator franchise, including all merchandising - and even some revenues still being gathered from Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Adding even more kudos to their relatively unknown currency, Halcyon have recently secured the highly-coveted first-look rights to the works of science fiction legend, the novelist Philip K. Dick.

Through this unprecedented agreement, Halcyon will have the first option to
develop in conjunction with Electric Shepherd for film adaptations, as well as
television and other media projects, based on Dick's vast body of works.

The first of the films will be distributed by Warner Bros, in 2009, under the title Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins.

Click on the post title above to check out The Halcyon Company website; just watch out for those rather artistically polished power shots of Derek and Victor.

Arian Sudbury - Baldy's Blog

A few moments ago, I discovered Adrian Sudbury, appearing on a Breakfast News feature on BBC 1.



Adrian is a journalist who, in November 2006, felt a bit rough, and decided to call in sick.

What Adrian didn't realise at the time was that he had developed not one, but two types of leukaemia, running at the same time, which according to medical literature is the only known case of this type of condition. This means that no known prognosis is available for Adrian, and he has recently decided to stop with his treatments.

I can't pass on to you the speed with which seeing this confident, funny, sure footed guy discuss his disease with such dignity has moved me.

Adrian writes a brilliant blog - please, if you do just one thing today, check it out: http://www.baldyblog.freshblogs.co.uk/ Here, Baldy shares his experiences of the disease and his treatments. I've added a permanent link to his blog under the 'brown paper bags...' section to the right.

The point is, and this is aimed at myself as much as any one else reading this - if I'm honest, I don't even consider the possibility of being a bone marrow donor. Many of us, myself included, struggle just with the idea of blood donation - so bone marrow sounds like a step too far; invasive and scary. But lets face it - it probably feels this way to people like me because we have no realistic understanding of the processes involved; and rarely come face to face with the situations facing leukaemia sufferers such as Adrian.

Tonight, I'll be reading Adrian's blog. I encourage you to too.

Chin up Adrian, (and Poppy) and thank you raising this issue up as well as you have; you're an example to us all.

Flash Bang Wallop

Being into photography, my breath was completely taken away by this surreal shot of a 'dirty storm' eruption in Chile.


Caught by Carlos Gutierrez, and released by Reuters, this fantastic image shows an electrical storm feeding into an eruption - an event which is apparently not as rare as one might think.

"After 9,000 years of silence, Chile's Chaitén volcano (pictured on May 3) is erupting with lava, ash—and lightning"

The post title'll whisk you off to National Geographic, if you feel like learning more.

Blindness

The film chosen to open Cannes this year is, at first glance, a rather surprising choice.

Blindness tells the story of a mysterious plague sweeping through modern America, rapidly resulting in mass loss of sight. Sufferers experience no warning signs of infection or physical trauma, until it is too late and sight is lost.

Seen from the eyes of a woman who is immune to the effects of the disease, watching helplessly as her husband, and community, fall into darkness; Blindness considers humanity, and loss of civilisation, as we lose the ability to visually perceive each other and our behaviour.

The poster seems to hint at the many 'slightly horror, possibly sci-fi, but not much between the ears' offerings that seem to have been quickly splattered across our screens in the last couple of years.

With Julianne Moore in the lead, all I could think of was Forgotten, and the fact that with the exception of Far From Heaven, she doesn't seem to have done particularly well with her film choices for a number of years. But, to be fair, she's capable - she just needs to the right kind of material to get her teeth into.

So, what is a film like this doing opening the 2008 Cannes film festival (apart from the probable business deals which went on behind the scenes, to secure the considerable status and benefit of being the opening film)...?

Well, on closer inspection, the signs are actually rather good:

Firstly, Blindness was directed by Fernando Meirelles, the Academy Award Nominee responsible for passionate, sincere, intelligent projects such as City Of God and The Constant Gardener. Add to this the fact that the film is adapted from a novel by Nobel Prize winning author Jose Saramago, ('Essay On Blindness') and things start to seem very good indeed.

The cast includes Julianne "oh-no-don't-let-this-be-another-mediocre-project" Moore, Mark Ruffalo, Sandra Oh, and the brilliant Gael Garcia Bernal, which should be a good sign.

While the official UK release date is yet to be announced, across the pond US cinemas will start to screen Blindness from the 16th September 2008.

I'm holding my judgement until I've seen it, but, considering the excellent track record of Meirelles, I for one am looking forward to it.

To help you make up your own mind, click on the title of this post to go to the official Blindness website, where you can watch the trailer. (There seems to have been a few gremlins with the embedding code offered on their site unfortunately, otherwise I'd have it showing here) - Enjoy.

Brains Perform Best, When They're Hydrated!

Have you seen the new ad with Brains from Thunderbirds yet? Yes, that's right - remember Rhythm Is The Dancer, by Snap...!? Check it out.



Again, the post title takes you somewhere... Parker's Lament.

L x

New films, ahoy!

Wow.

There are so many films being made and released at the moment; and it doesn't look likely to slow down much between now and Christmas. Which for movie lovers like us, means a whole lot to look forward to.

To give you an idea, below are just some of the titles due out tomorrow, 16th May, together with some of the more general big releases to look forward to throughout 2008...

Caramel
16th May 2008

Charlie Bartlett
16th May 2008

Heatbeat Detector
16th May 2008

La Antena
16th May 2008

RFK Must Die: The Assassination of Bobby Kennedy
16th May 2008

Smart People
16th May 2008

Shutter
16th May 2008

The Air I Breathe
16th May 2008

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
22nd May 2008

Sex And The City
28th May 2008

Gone Baby Gone
6th June 2008

Wanted
27th June 2008

The Dark Knight
25th July 2008

Tropic Thunder
8th August 2008

Valkyrie
8th August 2008

How To Lose Friends And Alienate People
3rd October 2008

Quantum Of Solace
31st October 2008

Harry Potter 6
21st November 2008

Angels and Demons
19th December 2008

Hurray. Night night.

(Oh and by the way the Post Title takes you somewhere as usual; this time it's the Indiana Jones website.)

Friendship, bacon butties and champagne

Isn't friendship great. Real, true, tell it like it is, stick through thick and thin, jump around in your pants, friendship.

One of my best friends is getting married this summer, on the second of August to be exact; the day after we share the day we were both born, same day, same year, and I'm loving the realisation that I'll be sharing one of the most important days of her life with her, and with our other very best friend - she used to be known, lovingly, as Wookie, (er, imagine a wookie that looks a little bit like julia roberts, well, had julia robert's family descended from an exotic land surrounded by beautiful clear lagoons... for a hint: 20°5, 57.5E) and occasionally still is. But for now, let's refer to her as Mrs B.

We've all known each other since we were about 17, but those barely two years together in six form where defining. And although for a while, (say, about 3 years) we didn't see or hear a hair from each other - and this was not with out the keen, and kind, efforts of Mrs B to get things back together (see, a true mate) - when you finally get back in the loop with your nearest and dearest, it's like one of you just popped to the shops.

Mrs B and I have begun planning the hen weekend for our fabulous friend.

Isn't it ironic that our best friend was once one of the wildest childs we knew, a proper, bonefide, devil may care, watch me while I sizzle, rebel. But she's always had a heart of gold - and was, and is, the best kind of fun imaginable.

Now, she's still got all that fire inside of her, but she turned out to be the most ladylike of all of us - cultured, smart, and one of those lucky people who can make an entire room light up with one easy, dry remark. She's also turned out to be somewhat of an authority figure, which I personally think is fantastic, (and hilarious, considering what we used to get up to at 18) and makes me smile from ear to ear. Let's refer to her as Audrey.

So we're in the middle of hen weekend planning, trying to come up with something unique and classy, without forgetting the cheeky streak of fun. And it's surprising - when you get away from the L plates, pink cowboy hats and condoms that so many people seem to feel have to go hand in hand with British hen nights, it's amazing what you can do.

And Mrs B totally excels as suporama matron of honour; she's come up trumps with simple, glam yet personal ideas, that'll make a weekend for us to remember and laugh about for a long, long time to come. (Til we're old and slightly smelly, I'm hopin'.)

Now I'm afraid I can't share any more details than this, (and maybe the clues in the title...) as the last thing I'd want is for her to realise what our plans are.

And it's on this note that I realise just how much I'm looking forward to seeing the new Sex and the City movie - it surprises me as I can normally take it or leave it with this kind of thing, but having caught up with most of series 3 and 4 again on Paramount Comedy recently, I'm chomping at the bit for sharp frocks, and even sharper lines.

Just wish I had the girls in the neighbourhood to enjoy it with... (Why can't we all live in the same county, just for a change!)

So yes, friendship, the truest variety, is definitely the best.

Night night.

(P.S. click on the title of this blog post to be whisked directly to the Sex And The City official movie site - a great site design which reveals some rather intriguing photos of the girls - mind the cheesy/trite music choice though, what were they thinking when they signed that deal; must have been money involved somewhere...)

Introducing rssHugger - free web optimisation

Having only recently started blogging, I'm interested in learning how best to optimise Film Mundo on the web. This week I discovered rssHugger, a site which specialises in just that; allowing publishers to increase traffic to their (individually rssHugger vetted) blog, and visitors the chance to find blogs specifically tailored to their interests.

"rssHugger aims to provide blog owners with a unique easy-to-use way to promote their blogs by sending them traffic, building backlinks for search engine optimization, as well as attracting new rss subscribers if the content is interesting to the reader"

Using the site has been intuitive, though there is an approval process whereby any blog sites wishing to make use of the benefits of rssHugger must be ok'd before listing will begin. This element ensures a certain level of quality to the database - so fingers crossed that Film Mundo will be accepted into the rssHugger family.

To find out more, simply click on this post's title above to be taken directly to the rssHugger website.

It'll certainly be interesting to experience the potential benefits of a dedicated site aiming to bring the needs of publisher and reader together, under one friendly roof.

Well it's the weekend, and I for one am relieved, and looking forward to bed.

Night night.

Iron Man part 2

Some pictures for you - I think you can see how badly wrong this film could have been, but what a relief, it was great. If like me you also have an inner seven year old boy (or not) go see this sometime. ....Now, I really am off to bed!

Iron Man, American Gods and my inner 7 year old boy

For anyone who hasn't yet read a book by Neil Gaiman, (you know, the bloke responsible for comic book series Sandman, and Stardust among other things) then I highly recommend that you pop out and purchase the fantastic American Gods.

Man, what a fascinating and pleasurable read this chunky number is. Have to admit, I was pretty shocked when I realised, (about page 30...) that this was a little more twisted and decidedly adult than the sugar coated style of Stardust - and that's why I'm loving it.

I keep thinking how fantastic it would be on the big screen, but... I suspect this would require either a very brave studio (!) and director, or so many cuts to the details of key scenes that American Gods would lose much of it's twisted, alluring flavour.


As a little girl, I always preferred transformers, nintendo, etch-a-sketch, danger mouse and boys to pink, dollies, and handbags. In fact the pink on this blog is the closest you're ever likely to get me to the colour. I'm really just a seven year old boy.

So, I was secretly looking forward to seeing Iron Man, with Nog, (my man, Noggin the Nog) this weekend.

The first twenty minutes were pretty borderline: any super hero movie attempting to locate itself in the setting of real life trauma (Afghanistan) is going to feel awful - particularly during a scene where a dying man, amidst the gun toting, cave dwelling fighters, is seen lying on a big sack of USA aid.

Just about ready to position my head on my hand, and this despite the definite charms of aloof, sharply humoured Robert Downey Jnr, it (thankfully) started to unfold into something more unusual and hip than the classic 'red white and blue blow away the baddies!'.

The film knows it's (poor) potential, and in hindsight the first 20 minutes were playing up to this - so when things shift more cynically and the characters kick in, things start to get interesting.

Downey Jnr plays Tony Starks, a billionaire bachelor, inheriter of his fathers arms legacy, fortune and engineering genius. His character is so ridiculously cliched and egotistical, (think of the drinks cabinet in the Pimms ad popping up during a weapons demonstration in front of US generals) that it takes all of Downey's appeal to make him humourously bad rather than just shallow and annoying, but again this turns out to be point.

His abduction during transport by Afghan fighters - determined to force Starks into building his leathal Jericho missile for their own use, from materials provided in the cave they keep him in for three months - fundamentally changes his approach to the arms business, having witnessed the autrocity caused against both sides, by US arms sold for profit.

Upon his escape, he returns to his business and home in Malibu, and sets about announcing that his billion dollar arms firm will no longer be producing weapons for use in war... well I think you can imagine the reaction of his partner, played by Jeff (look I've got no hair!) Bridges.

The role of Virginia 'Pepper' Potts could so easily have been a bland, two dimensional character - but Gwyneth Paltrow was brilliantly chosen for this role; she's got a maturity and sweetness, which with the sharp delivery of her lines and general loveliness, adds a genuinely warm, appealing feeling to the film. This is complimented with Downey Jnr in the central role - he is perfect for the film, and it's good that his flaws are not lost once the action paces up and his suit comes to life. He's looking older, his eyes tell a whole other story, and Downey is such an engaging and likable actor that the two of them - with the help of some great visual comedy and impressive, not too over the top special effects, these factors combine, (cue brilliant soundtrack... I bet Marvel and Favreau were grinning from ear to ear knowing that Black Sabbath's incredible song was out there, just waiting to fit) and steal the show.

And you should have seen the look on my face when I realised that Swinger's Jon Favreau directed... hehehe... I'd have never guessed.

I'll spare the rest of the plot details to save completely spoiling the it for those of you who haven't seen it, but just know that Iron Man was great. Two hours, or there abouts, actually felt a little two short. Nog and I were both wanting more, so we gladly await the sequel. I'd love to think that Favreau can stick around for the next one.

Night Night.

Let's get one thing straight...

Ok, as you may have guessed, film is going to be a rather big theme here. But I'd like this place to be a little more personal than that.

Because of this, I'd like to apologise in advance for personal musing, should it become pretentious, or Loving-The-Sound-Of-My-Own-Voice-Enough-To-Make-You-Want-To-Poke-Me-In-The-Eye. (That would be difficult though, have you seen my bottle four eyes?)

So, film, chat, and a salty slice of life.

And, feel free to chip in.

Lulu M

There Will Be Blog

It's far too late for me to be writing this, but this is my first blog entry and well, I'm too excited (and easily pleased). Rather than wait til tomorrow when I could be composing something a little more meaningful for my first ever entry, I'm sat here watching The Death of Mr Lazarescu on film four - damn this film is dark, and amusing - with a grin on my face, all the time painfully aware that I need to be tucked up in bed right now getting some shut eye.

So much for my going into work extra early tomorrow... I'm off.

Night night.