Longtime readers know I love to blog the LA Film Fest each year. You can see my first two posts HERE and HERE; stay tuned all week for more, which will show up, among other things, at this here page.
But before you dive into that, let’s get you caught up with my other stuff from around the web. There’s an article I wrote about THE A-TEAM movie:
In one notable scene, Murdock (Sharlto Copley), confined to a mental institution, shows his fellow inmates an action movie on DVD. The audience will recognize that the movie’s theme song is that of the A-Team TV series. But what you might not catch is that its opening credits list an actor named “Reg Barclay.” This was the name of the character played by original Murdock actor Dwight Schultz on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
If you thought the casting of Neeson presupposed a more serious team, think again: Whether parachuting a tank from a plane, or playing three-card monte using a trio of metal cargo containers and a crane, this team not only gets an A for action, but for absurdity as well. Director Joe Carnahan, who failed to hit the right balance between taut action and goofy camp in Smokin’ Aces, has nailed it this time around.
Comic-book characters like Hex, Ghost Rider, and the Punisher would seem to be a more natural fit for Hollywood than your typical caped crusaders, given that the dark avenger archetype has long been a staple on the big screen. But it seems like every time one of them finally makes it, some moronic executive hears the phrase “comic” and decides to cartoon everything up.
