#stephen soderbergh

[amityvilleplanet]

[sloshed-cinema]

Presence (2024)

David Koepp is perhaps the greatest WMD in the Hollywood Industrial Complex’s arsenal at present. Certainly, he can create shock and awe in impactful screenplays like Jurassic Park or War of the Worlds when he collaborates. But he is also capable of annihilating stalwart franchises as with Indiana Jones, or even destroying multi-film projects before they can even get off the ground: no one has heard from the Dark Universe since 2017. But it’s not just the big-budget blockbusters that are unsafe in his hands. With this latest Soderbergh project, Koepp sets his sights on the high-concept microbudget indie film. The conceit is simple enough: a family are haunted by some sort of presence in the house they recently bought. Already at wit’s end as a group due to a daughter wracked by grief, a mother consumed by tax fraud or something (it really doesn’t matter, it goes away mid-film and is never commented upon again), a son in the throes of jocky adolescent douchedom, and a husband trying and failing to be the anchor point for everyone else, this spirit proves to be just too much. But this isn’t a conventional ghost movie. No, it is shot entirely from the perspective of this (mostly) unseen presence. Excellent. Do the people really even need to speak, or could this be told in some sort of dialogue-free manner, with the excuse being ghosts can’t perceive sound on the mortal plane or something, who cares? The answer is, yes it could. But the version provided here sadly contains dialogue. So much of it. So, so much terrible dialogue. This is a man who doesn’t even know that Gen Z exists trying to write teen speech, though perhaps it’s a blessing there are no Skibidi Toilet references to be found. This is a man who has never encountered another human being trying to depict marital strife and instead makes both raging alcoholics as lazy shorthand. This is a man completely lacking subtlety trying to create a poignant exploration of grief. Isn’t there a Star War you could be ruining somewhere instead, David?

Could this have been an interesting formal exercise? Perhaps. The opening minutes are an indictment of the DoP, as the introduction of the camera’s movements are obscured by poorly sculpted darkness as the entity begins to wander about the home, though I concede that could have been the projection in the theatre. Ultimately, there is a curiosity to the camera as this spirit tries to understand what is going on and when (David Koepp dropping time loops into his supernatural story casually ruins it halfway through), a confusion about the space. Anger occasionally breaks through, erupting into frenetic camerawork and flying objects. It’s this latter portion that causes the film to fall off its tightrope now and again: the manipulation of objects is introduced far too early into the film and every time something like that happens, the tone shifts into one of unintentional corniness. All the same, if left on mute, there is enough to go off in a story that blends natural and supernatural angst. Also maybe let’s leave the final reveal out in such a literal sense. It’s just kinda silly as-is.

THE RULES

SIP

Chloe is in her bed

Fist-pump dad line

Bashful ghost cam

The Presence causes something to move

BIG DRINK

Every line Julia Fox says

Ryan drugs a drink

The “punching the membrane” vibrating camera effect happens

[rookie-critic]

Rookie-Critic's Film Review Weekend Wrap-Up - Week of 2/20-2/26/2023

-Navalny (2022, dir. Daniel Roher) An incredible documentary covering the assassination attempt on Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and the subsequent investigation done into the Russian state's involvement in it. This was a fantastic and very real look into just how far the Russian government is willing to go to make sure that people currently holding the power stay right where they are, which is probably something we all already knew, but now there is undeniable proof of it. Score: 10/10 Currently streaming on HBO Max.

-Magic Mike (2012, dir. Steven Soderbergh) I was really expecting this one to be way more fun than it was, which was a huge bummer. A lot of the acting was fantastic, from Channing Tatum and Alex Pettyfer specifically, but I thought Cody Horn, who plays Tatum's main love interest in the film, was incredibly wooden. Where the film really gets a lot of points is that this does look and feel like a Soderbergh film, which really makes for a visually intriguing experience. The scenes where the strip-dances happen are fun and it was interesting to see the objectification of the male body for a change, but all of the film's actual drama and plot fell pretty flat. For a movie about male strippers, it just seemed to take itself too seriously. Score: 6/10 Currently streaming on HBO Max.

-Magic Mike XXL (2015, dir. Gregory Jacobs) This was everything the first one should have been; just an absolute blast from beginning to end. The side characters from the first film (Joe Manganiello, Matt Bomer, Kevin Nash, Adam Rodriguez) get to take center stage, and they add an infinite amount of charm that was severely missing from MM1. Their camaraderie is so endearing, and cameos from the likes of Donald Glover, Michael Strahan, Andie MacDowell, Elizabeth Banks, and Stephen "tWitch" Boss (R.I.P.) are all welcome and so much fun. The only unnecessary part of the whole film was the Zoe character played by Amber Heard. It was a just a way to shove a new lover interest into the film and it wasn't needed in the slightest. The scene in which Manganiello's character performs a strip-dance, high on molly, to the tune of the Backstreet Boys' "I Want It That Way" in a convenience store to try and get the clerk to smile while the other guys, also stoned out of their minds on molly, cheer him on from outside was worth the entire runtime of the film alone. Score: 8/10 Currently streaming on HBO Max.

-Linoleum (2023, dir. Colin West) This is the first truly phenomenal film of the year. Jim Gaffigan, Rhea Seehorn, Katelyn Nacon, and Gabriel Rush all deliver near perfect performances in this Gondry/Kaufman-esque comedy/drama. I wasn't really sure what to expect going into this one, and it managed to blow my socks off in the best possible way, with a beautiful ending and many wonderful messages and moments throughout. I could consider this a 2022 film, as it premiered at SXSW almost a year ago, and I'm pretty sure it would make my Top 10, but as it didn't see a non-festival limited theatrical release until almost three months into the new year, I'm going to go ahead and consider it for 2023. The bar has been set, and it has been set high. Score: 10/10 Only in theaters on a limited release. Check your local listings to see if there any showtimes near you. FULL REVIEW FOR THIS ONE COMING SOMETIME TOMORROW.

-Old School (2003, dir. Todd Phillips) Before The Hangover, Todd Phillips delivered unto the world Old School, a film which has mostly been remembered for Will Ferrel's ass accompanied with the line "We're going streaking!" Which, to be honest, isn't even kind of the funniest thing in the film and it happens less than 30 minutes in. As is the case with most Todd Phillips films, as well as most comedies in general from the early aughts, there are large aspects of it that have not aged well at all. However, a good chunk of the film is still incredibly funny and reminiscent of the humor that would later make The Hangover such a beloved classic. I admit I had a lot of fun watching this one, and while it wouldn't ever be my first choice for a comedy film recommendation, it is one worth checking out should you be interested in watching it. Score: 7/10 Currently available for rent/purchase on digital (iTunes, Amazon, Vudu, etc.) and on DVD & Blu-ray through Paramount Pictures.

[comicweek]

Stephen Soderbergh on Superhero Movies

Nick Schager: Do you get approached to make franchise blockbusters? Is that ever on your radar?

Stephen Soderbergh: Not really, and I’m not a snob; it’s not that I feel it’s some lower tier in any way. It really becomes about what universe you occupy as a storyteller. I’m just too earthbound to really release myself to a universe in which Newtonian physics don’t exist [laughs]. I just have a lack of imagination in that regard, which is why the one foray I had into pure science-fiction [2002’s Solaris] was essentially a character drama that happened to be set on a spaceship. Also, for a lot of these, for me to understand the world and how to write or supervise the writing of the story and the characters—apart from the fact that I can bend time and defy gravity and shoot beams out of my fingers—there’s no fucking. Nobody’s fucking! Like, I don’t know how to tell people how to behave in a world in which that is not a thing.

NS: These universes are pretty conspicuously sexless.

Soderbergh: The fantasy-spectacle universe, as far as I can tell, typically doesn’t involve a lot of fucking, and also things like—who’s paying these people? Who do they work for? How does this job come to be?

[thishadoscarbuzz]

PODCAST: 090 - Magic Mike

Based loosely on star Channing Tatum's experience as an exotic dancer, 2012's Magic Mike lured director Steven Soderbergh out of his ongoing "retirement" and became a summer smash. Women loved it, men loved, the critics loved it - except the Academy did not. Though released during the full swing of the McConnaissance, it would take another year for Oscar to honor Matthew McConaughey, overlooking his charming, thong-clad villain performance here, despite love from some major precursors. 

This episode, we fire up the Ginuwine to discuss Tatum's rising movie star career from beefcake to surprising comedic talent to his current downshift in visibility. We also look at Soderbergh's career post-Oscar, including his reticence to play the Oscar game that might leave films like this (and Contagion) out of the running. 

Topics also include the 2012 Best Supporting Actor field of all previous nominees (and who we think might have had sixth place), the forgotten Alex Pettyfer, and the multiple onscreen appearances of Channing Tatum's bumbum.

Links:

The 2012 Oscar nominations

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[merylstreepingx]

Steven Soderbergh, Gary Oldman, Meryl Streep, and Antonio Banderas attend "The Laundromat" premiere during the 2019 Toronto International Film Festival.

[sundancearchives]

Happy National Trivia Day!

Back in 1989 when the Sundance Film Festival was called the United States Film Festival, the very first Audience Award was given to Steven Soderbergh for what movie?

Answer: sex, lies, and videotape

The screenplay to the 1998 Sundance Film Festival film Smoke Signals was based on what collection of short stories by Sherman Alexie?

Answer:  The Lone Ranger and Tonto Fistfight in Heaven

What filmmaker workshopped her film Mi Vida Loca at the 1992 Directors Lab, then screened the completed film at the 1994 Sundance Film Festival?

Answer: Allison Anders

How many people were on staff of the 1985 Sundance Film Festival?

Answer: 15

© 1989 Sandria Miller ;  © 1998 Trish Empey ;  © 1994 Sandria Miller ; © 1985 Sandria Miller for Sundance Institute

[merylstreepingx]

Director Steven Soderbergh, Meryl Streep and Gary Oldman attend "The Laundromat" photocall during the 76th Venice Film Festival.