Results tagged “jasonbateman”

       

Up in the Air is a comedy-drama directed by Jason Reitman (Thank You for Smoking and Juno.) It is an adaptation of the 2001 novel of the same name, written by Walter Kirn. According to Reitman, “The movie is about the examination of a philosophy -- what if you decided to live hub to hub, with nothing, with nobody?” Well, what if the “you” was George Clooney? In that case, you would be dressed as dapper as could be, wantonly leaving women in your wake as you fly on to your next destination.

Despite middling reviews, America warmed up to Couples Retreat this weekend as it easily topped the box office chart with a haul of $35.3M. Last week's champ, Zombieland finished a distant second with $15M ($47.8M) but managed to top the sturdy Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs ($12M | $96.2M). The Toy Story 1 & 2 double-feature continued to do good business ($7.6M | $22.6M) while sleeper Paranormal Activity did huge business in its first weekend of wide release ($7M | $8.2M).

              

I was excited when Couples Retreat first popped on my radar a few months ago. I mean, coupling the Vaughn | Favreau | Billingsley team with Demiurge Jason Bateman seemed like a match made in mainstream comedy heaven, right? Nope. Michael Sheen has quietly become a top-notch, see-everything-he-does actor. I know more about the Bible than I do about soccer, but I'll queue up for The Damned United just to see Sheen. It's already being written: An Education will produce one of the next great stars and that star is Carey Mulligan.

LAist recently sat down with Malin Akerman, one of the stars of the upcoming comedy Couples Retreat. She opened up to us about the other half of her real life couple and shared one of the ways she keeps her marriage strong even when she can’t find the time to retreat to a tropical paradise.

       

The Labor Day weekend is typically a slow time for the movie business as everyone makes one final attempt to catch some elusive summer magic (e.g. sleep with unattainable lust object). As such, The Final Destination was the best of a weak bunch as it nabbed $12.4M ($47.5M) to top the weekend box office. Terrible newcomer All About Steve finished a reasonably close second ($11.2M) just ahead of the steady Inglourious Basterds ($10.8M | $91M). Gamer disappointed in its debut ($9M) as audiences showed a rare flash of sound judgment.

                     

Is it just me or is there a surprising lack of public excitement about the release of Extract? I mean, Mike Judge and Jason Bateman working together on a film? Either one of these guys pulls me into a theater, but both together-- that's nirvana. On the other hand, is anyone looking forward to Gamer? Gerard Butler is rapidly squandering the capital he earned back when he was just a working actor. If you don't know what I mean, watch how great he was in Dear Frankie. Hell, he was even good in Timeline and that movie blew!

Okay, Ben. This is how you act. | Photo courtesy of Universal

. Never have. Never will. I mean, don't people realize that it's Kiefer Sutherland up there on the screen. Anyone really scared of facing down Kiefer in a bar fight? Does anyone still think Jon Stewart is funnier than Stephen Colbert? David Lynch's films don't always work for me, but I love that he exists.

In a pathetic display of media-generated conformity, audiences rewarded the witless finished a distant third, as Jolie's hot, naked ass only managed to garner $20.6M ($90.7M) in its second frame.

If you don't want to deal with the crowds that will invariably shuffle mindlessly into , but here he shines as a petty drug dealer pursuing the transcendent Olivia Thirlby.

In ten years, we'll remember this movie for introducing Olivia Thirlby | Photo courtesy of Fox Searchlight

Although critics have raved about Juno, including myself, I have occasionally heard that it made a few people gag, and I've definitely heard mixed responses to the decidedly twee soundtrack. (I love that word. Twee! ...Not related, sorry.) Chicago Sun-Times critic Jim DeRogatis's rant about both the movie and the soundtrack is already making the blog rounds and iliciting quite a few responses.

Today in major LA Fire Department events: an early morning structure fire in North Hills sending smoke into the flight path of Van Nuys Airport, a big rig with a trailer overturned on the Southbound Harbor freeway causing a Sig Alert, and a medical emergency in the Hilton Hotel at Universal City where staff mixed ammonia & bleach solutions creating hydrochloric acid (oops!). Is it the second Thursday of the month? Ah, it is!...

Yeah, yeah, I know. . If you must have it, steal it. Oh, and does R. Kelly have no concept of irony?