It was announced earlier this week that HBO has already optioned the forthcoming book Double Down, by Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, for a made-for-TV movie. Double Down is the sequel to the duo’s 2009 book, Game Change, which, of course, HBO previously optioned into an award-winning film starring Julianne Moore as Sarah Palin. Game…
I was back in The Atlantic yesterday with a thinkpiece on the politics of Star Trek Into Darkness. Here’s an excerpt: “Kirk’s bravado stands out because we were supposed to have left this type of leadership behind. President Bush traded on the cowboy archetype in the days after 9/11—promising to capture Bin Laden “dead or…
Earlier this week, Jason Bailey of Flavorwire published a piece documenting the drop in speaking roles for women in successful Hollywood movies. He makes an important point: despite the attention paid to movies like Bridesmaids and The Hunger Games, the percentage of female speaking roles in the top 100 grossing movies of 2012 is a…
Here is an interesting twist in the complex relationship between government, gun violence, and Hollywood. There is a new approach to gun control – and it is inspired by the movies. All sensible people , even 90 percent of Americans, agree that individuals who suffer from mental illness should not be allowed to buy guns.…
Earlier this week, Fox announced that 24 will return next summer with a 12 episode run entitled 24: Live Another Day. Little is known about the show’s return, except that Kiefer Sutherland will be back, of course, as Jack Bauer. The storyline is still under wraps. But the timing of this announcement is interesting, as…
The trailer for The Butler is out. Having criticized the casting on several occasions already, I thought I should weigh in. First, watch the trailer: So this is one of those “Magical Negro” stories, huh? For the uninitiated, the Magical Negro is a stock black American character in film who exists only to help out…
Studio execs call it “counterprogramming.” Summer blockbusters typically dominate ticket sales on the weekend they are released, so when a highly-anticipated movie is being released, other big movies stay out of their way and find their own weekend to dominate. Instead, you’ll often find a smaller movie with a niche demographic opening against the biggest…
Before we embark upon the unvarnished hero-worship of Man of Steel, let us take a long, perhaps last look at Tony Stark, the apotheosis of an era of superheroes who are defined as much by their faults as their virtues. Like all superheroes, Stark represents the best of humanity – courage, cunning, and physical fortitude…
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