In recent weeks, we've covered our fair share of festivals. This Father's Day, make room for the daddy of them all: the Los Angeles Film Festival. It's an epic reminder that LA is the best movie city in the world, as Hollywood industry, independent film makers & reel fans come together for a ten day celebration of all things cinema. more ›

Summer blockbuster season is officially in full force! Memorial Day weekend is traditionally Hollywood's highest-grossing (long) weekend. This year brings two highly anticipated sequels, one for the family & one for the frat-house. Even snobs will delight at the big names appearing at the arthouse. more ›

My only frames of reference for Christmas movies are Gremlins, A Nightmare Before Christmas and Bing Crosby. But it's after midnight (in Helsinki) and I'm not 14 any more, so it's back to Bing. Here we go a-caroling! more ›

The TV Junkie Plan: "Community", "Parks and Recreation", "30 Rock" x 2, "Archer", "The Daily Show" (Tom Brokaw), Conan, Fallon. more ›

The Pixies with Flea on bass instead of Kim Deal?! Followed by The Pixies with Weird Al singing instead of Black Francis? No, it’s not a horrible nightmare followed by the greatest dream ever - It’s two of the “surprises” promised at tonight’s Winston Calling benefit at the Echo. more ›

FILM To anyone who has ever had a dream and seen that dream gone unfulfilled, I implore you to see Anvil!: The Story of Anvil and perhaps re-discover the inspiration to continue pursuing that elusive prize. Some have described Sacha Gervasi's hilarious doc as a real-life version of Spinal Tap, but the reality goes much deeper. So many would-be artists pursue success only to give up after a few years of failure. The boys of Anvil demonstrate how a true love of your craft compels you to never quit. Oh, and did I mention it was also fucking funny? more ›

As LAist noted earlier today, tonight is National Night Out, uh, night. If you live in Northridge, you can catch a free outdoor screening of Kung Fu Panda at Northridge Park this evening. As noted in the press release from the office of Councilman Greig Smith (Greig? Really?): more ›

After mostly being given up for dead as a legitimate box-office attraction, Sandra Bullock roared back to prominence this weekend as she carried The Proposal to a surprising box-office triumph ($34.1M). Last week's champ The Hangover had yet another powerhouse weekend ($26.8M/$152.9M) as did Pixar's wonderful Up ($21.3M/$224.1M). Sony probably had high hopes for Year One several months ago, but the pic disappointed in its debut ($20.2M). Lack of "funny-ness" and an abundance of "shitty-ness" seemed to be the culprits there. more ›

I thought Sandra Bullock was done doing romantic comedies. Oh wait, The Proposal probably isn't very funny. Speaking of not funny, Year One is getting savaged. Is it really possible that the extraordinary Michael Cera has finally given us a true dud? Say it ain't so! Woody Allen has enjoyed a resurgence since the beyond awful Hollywood Ending (okay, Scoop sucked, too). Looks like that trend continues with Whatever Works. What a great hook Woody has for older, male actors -- make a movie with me and you'll kiss pretty, young actresses! more ›

Bound to happen, right? Nevertheless, it's pretty funny. more ›

Pixar continues its phenomenal string of delivering fantastic films with would have benefited from more Blake Lively and changing the setting to a Swiss nudist colony. Werner Herzog may not be the best director around, but he's on the short list of most interesting. How can anyone not already own all of these Monty Python masterpieces? more ›

It ain't Pixar, but . more ›

Raymond Pettibon's name may forever be linked to SST Records, especially the Minutemen and his brother Greg's band, Black Flag. Pettibon got his start drawing up flyers and album covers for 1980s South Bay punk bands. The collection currently showing at Regen Projects is drawn from this era, when Pettibon's work was particularly raw and intense. more ›

After four weeks at the top of the box-office world, had a less than stellar debut ($15.5M) as fans continue to reject George Lucas' new vision of the historic saga. more ›

Racism has never been so hilarious! | Photo courtesy of DreamWorks more ›

Michel Gondry is one of the few major directors who still relies on almost entirely visual humor in his films. presumably mandated extensive shirtlessness. Kate Hudson's contract, sadly, did not. more ›

Large crowds of children propelled finished a distant fifth ($9.2M/$37.6M). more ›

I understand the appeal of Steven Seagal far more than I ever will that of Adam Sandler. I've hated him in his comedies just as much as I have in his dramas. In fact, I've yet to make it through the entirety of even though Paul Thomas Anderson is high on my list of favorite directors. Considering all that, there's obviously no chance that I'll be seeing You Don't Mess with the Zohan. more ›

One of the great things about living in Los Angeles is that there are countless opportunities to see movies in advance for free. Spend any afternoon at the Burbank Town Center or the Third Street Promenade and you'll see people hanging around movie theaters with clipboards and flyers for upcoming screenings. Next week, as part of MTV's Sneak Peak Week, five of the summer's biggest comedies will be screening around town. All you have to do is show up early (real early!) with a ticket and get in line. Bring a book and an iPod. Details below: more ›

A few weeks ago we ran a story called "Irksome and Insufferable: The Ten Most Annoying Singers". Given that actors are just as capable of being annoying as musicians, I thought it would be worthwhile to throw out 10 names for public review. I avoided the easy ones (Jessica Simpson, Lindsay Lohan, etc.) and tried to cobble together a list of actors who--for whatever reason--are actually considered to be pretty good by the masses. But not by me! In their own ways, each one of these actors makes me anxious whenever I watch them. more ›

The Actors' Gang 25th Anniversary Season will feature a revival of the Gang's 1992 hit "Klub". The production opens April 12 and reunites the company with director Michael Schlitt, songwriter David Arnott, and writer Mitch Watson. LAist asked Mitch Watson about his years in 'The Gang", his work in animation, and the existential world of Klub. more ›

Mediocre political thriller ($5.1M/$21.7M). more ›

Hollywood's latest exercise in Justin Chang providing some choice barbs. more ›

If you think you know what is a film about filmmaking and, more specifically, it's a film about the tight communities that form around the making of a film. It's a daffy ode to the hard work, compromise and wild invention that making a movie inevitably requires. Anyone who's ever made a low-budget film will love it. more ›

Wow! Most weeks I'm happy if there are a couple of new DVDs worth picking up. Today, I count at least eight that would be solid editions to any library. even though it inexplicably got better critical attention. Has Ang Lee ever made the same movie twice? Is he the most under-appreciated major director working today? Can you say the same thing about Paul Haggis--only in reverse? Having seen the Don Rickles special several times on HBO, let me tell you something--go buy it, you schmuck.
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Even on the best days, the Sundance Film Festival is an extremely hectic place to be. Screenings and events often overlap and are spread all over town, and even though the public transportation is good (and free!), it can still be a nightmare to get someplace quickly. Cabs can be hard to come by and parking (when available) is expensive. Furthermore, there are always going to be lines waiting for you so you have to plan to get everywhere fairly early. Sometimes, you get bit in the ass like I did (twice) yesterday. more ›

About 500 support and production workers marched down Hollywood Boulevard to urge an end to the strike that has paralyzed the movie and television industry. The "Strike a Deal" march brought together workers who are not on strike themselves but who have been laid off or are losing business as a result of the WGA strike, which appears far from over as it enters its sixth week. Today's rally and march -- from Grauman's... more ›

The buzz on ? more ›

Let's face it, 2007 was a mediocre year for movies. Although there are still a couple months left for 2007 to prove it's cinema value, overall it was a disappointing year. Sure Hollywood gave us "300", "Zodiac", and "Once", but we also got "The Number 23", "Norbit", and "Code Name: The Cleaner". So I have my eyes set on 2008, which seems to have a wonderful slate of features for us to see at... more ›

From singing a Pussycat Dolls song in "Wild Hogs" to playing a hobo on "Friends", Kyle Gass is always ready to jump into character. (He and Jack Black have a little band called Tenacious D too.) Since 2002, Kyle's country-rock band has played over 150 gigs across the country. Trainwreck features lead vocals by J.R Reed and Kyle conducting the craziness with his trusty guitar. If you are looking for a honky tonk party... more ›