Robert De Niro

Blu-Ray Review: Barry Levinson Wastes Great Ensemble in ‘What Just Happened’

BrianTT — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 12:02:59 -0700

Blu-Ray Rating: 2.0/5.0

CHICAGO – They made a movie about Bruce Willis’ beard. “What Just Happened” is yet another head-scratcher from one of the more acclaimed directors of the ’80s and ’90s, Barry Levinson. Like “Envy” and “Man of the Year” before it, Levinson has spit out yet another inert comedy with a great ensemble but no passion, creativity or life to it. A mediocre Blu-Ray presentation does nothing to enhance the film.

Art Linson is one of the most successful and notorious producers in Hollywood. His name is on “Into the Wild,” “Spartan,” “Fight Club,” “Heat,” “Fast Times at Ridgemont High,” and more. He wrote a memoir about his complicated times in Hollywood and adapted his own book into the screenplay for “What Just Happened”.

What Just Happened was released on Blu-Ray on February 24th, 2009.
Photo credit: Magnolia

Linson has been turned into Ben (Robert De Niro), a producer trying to keep two troubled projects together while juggling a problematic personal life at the same time. One of his projects, “Fiercely,” stars Sean Penn (playing himself) in a dark drama with a downbeat ending that the financiers (headed by the great Catherine Keener) want radically changed. Ben has to convince the hothead director (Michael Wincott) to play along or see their movie shelved forever.

Meanwhile, Ben has to convince Bruce Willis (playing himself) that his weight gain and bushy beard could completely derail his about-to-shoot project. Willis was hired for his looks and Ben has to work with him and his agent (John Turturro) to keep the film from shutting down before it even begins. Robin Wright Penn, Kristen Stewart, and Stanley Tucci co-star.

What Just Happened was released on Blu-Ray on February 24th, 2009.
Photo credit: Magnolia

In one of the few interesting special features on “What Just Happened,” Levinson speaks about giving a rather anecdotal book without much action “pace” and how “you have to work it out”. The funny thing is that they didn’t. We never get to know anyone in “Happened” and the “insight” into Hollywood feels a few years behind the times.

The problem with making a movie about tinseltown is that it’s been done SO well before. It’s impossible not to think of “The Player” or “Entourage” when you’re watching “What Just Happened” and the script by Linson simply isn’t sharp enough to be in the same satirical knife drawer as those great behind-the-scenes looks at Hollywood. “Happened” wants to be a “bitingly sharp comedy” but we’ve seen all these personalities before. It’s going behind-the-scenes on something that has become the scene itself.

To be fair, there are elements of “What Just Happened” that works. The hilariously simple quote on the front of the case that advertises “priceless, laugh-out loud lines” isn’t that far off. Yes, there are a few funny lines, and De Niro looks more awake than in recent junk like “Righteous Kill”. It’s also impossible to be completely bored by an ensemble that includes both Penns, Tucci, Turturro, and Wincott. They’re all having fun. The problem is that they’re having more fun than you probably will.

The Blu-Ray release from Magnolia is average to mediocre. The 1080P High Definition 16x9 (2.40:1) picture is surprisingly flat. The colors are distinct and there’s not an excessive amount of grain or visual noise, but the picture looks about the same as an average upconverted standard DVD. The audio in 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio is similarly never distractingly bad but also unimpressive.

The special features continue the mediocrity of “What Just Happened”. The commentary with Levinson and Linson is shockingly dull. The two take long, regular pauses and spend way too much time describing the action. There needs to be a class or a book to guide commentary participants away from simply talking about what we’re watching. The deleted scenes are the most interesting special feature, especially a nauseating epilogue in which each character gets a happy ending that was very thankfully cut.

What’s most annoying about the special features for “What Just Happened” are mini-docs that run about 2 minutes long. There really needs to be a law that anything that throws you back to a menu after two minutes can not legally be called a “special feature”. The only featurette with anything interesting (and the only one that should have been included) is the roughly 23 minute “Making of What Just Happened: From Book to Screen”.

A few years ago, a Barry Levinson movie with Robert De Niro, Catherine Keener, John Turturro, Sean Penn, and Bruce Willis would have been a major, major event. Perhaps the most insightful thing that “What Just Happened” has to say about the ups and downs of Hollywood is that the movie so clearly was not.

‘What Just Happened’ is released by Magnolia Home Video and stars Robert De Niro, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener, John Turturro, Robin Wright penn, Stanley Tucci, Kristen Stewart, Michael Wincott, and Bruce Willis. It was written by Art Linson and directed by Barry Levinson. It was released on February 24th, 2009. It is rated R.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Blu-Ray Review: ‘Righteous Kill’ Represents New Low For Talented Actors

BrianTT — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 11:05:47 -0700

CHICAGO – “Is it killing time or is he just killing time?” If you don’t groan at a line of dialogue that shockingly horrendous then we’ve got a Blu-Ray release for you. Marking a new low in a baffling series of career decisions for two of the best actors of all time, “Righteous Kill” is as much an unqualified disaster on Blu-Ray as it was when critics ridiculed it and audiences ignored it in theaters.

Rarely has a film seemed less a part of the New York scene, but Detectives “Turk” (Robert De Niro) and “Rooster” (Al Pacino) have allegedly been partners for 30 years in the NYPD. They’re nearly ready for retirement when one last serial killer arrives on the scene. The bad guy in question is killing people who got off due to glitches in the system that let them go without jail time. In other words, they kind of deserve it, forcing Turk and Rooster to question whether or not he should really be caught.

Righteous Kill is released by Anchor Bay Home Video on January 6th, 2009.
Photo credit: Anchor Bay Home Video

The whole film is framed with the confession of one of the two men admitting that he was the serial killer, but, of course, there’s a predictable twist to the entire film that nearly everyone will see coming a mile away. Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson co-stars as drug dealer, John Leguizamo and Donnie Wahlberg play detectives, Brian Dennehy the Lieutenant, and Carla Gugino a woman caught in the middle of the whole ugly affair. And I mean ugly.

Righteous Kill is released by Anchor Bay Home Video on January 6th, 2009.
Photo credit: Anchor Bay Home Video

Shouldn’t the actors in a film at least stay awake while the cameras are rolling? You won’t see many more half-asleep performances than Robert De Niro’s mumbling, awful work in “Righteous Kill”. It’s as if director Jon Avnet purposefully plays up the worst habits of his two legendary stars. De Niro’s always mumbled a bit and had trouble displaying too much energy in the second half of his career and he literally looks half-asleep during the majority of “Righteous Kill”.

Pacino, on the other hand, well, we all know Pacino’s weaknesses. They’re the over-the-top tics that have made him so easy to parody. Think “Hoo-Ah!” from “Scent of a Woman”. Pacino has a monologue near the end of “Righteous Kill” that feels like an impersonator doing an impression of this once-great actor. It’s honestly sad to watch.

Pacino and De Niro definitely phone it in, but they’re too talented to take all the blame for “Righteous Kill”. That should be laid at the feet of Jon Avnet, a director who could politely be called uninteresting. After unleashing “88 Minutes” and “Righteous Kill” on the public in one year, it’s clear that he no longer knows how to effectively tell a story, if he ever did. How often can one director not named Uwe Boll take credit for two of the worst movies of one year?

Al Pacino and Robert De Niro sharing the screen again since their magical teaming in “Heat” would have been a dream come true even just a few years ago. The sad fact of the matter is that neither of the best actors of the last thirty years are what they used to be and teaming them with one of the worst directors working today is only a recipe for disaster.

RELATED READING
Read Dustin Levell’s theatrical review of “Righteous Kill”.

The situation is not helped by Overture/Anchor Bay’s lackluster Blu-Ray release. The video in 1080p is no better than it should be and sometimes a little flatter than you would expect on Blu-Ray. The Dolby True HD 5.1 track is good but not great, more than can be said for the movie it accompanies.

And the special features merit nothing more than a shoulder shrug. The behind-the-scenes featurette, “The Investigation,” is dull and “The Thin Blue Line: An Exploration of Cops and Criminals” is about as insightful as a middle school term paper on the subject. Kids who are more testosterone-driven are more likely to become cops? You don’t say. As for the commentary by Avnet, I’ll admit it, I couldn’t bring myself to listen to it. Not only is there no excuse for a movie as bad as “Righteous Kill,” but I couldn’t sit through watching these two great actors demean themselves another time. Once made me sad enough.

‘Righteous Kill’ is released by Anchor Bay Entertainment and stars Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Carla Gugino, Curtis Jackson, John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, and Brian Dennehy. It was written by Russell Gerwitz and directed by Jon Avnet. It was released on January 6th, 2009.

By BRIAN TALLERICO
Content Director
HollywoodChicago.com
brian@hollywoodchicago.com

Robert De Niro, Director Barry Levinson Wade Through Hollywood’s Mud in ‘What Just Happened?’

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 11:57:58 -0600

CHICAGO – In his long and distinguished career, Robert De Niro has probably seen it all when it comes to Hollywood excesses and quagmires. Given that experience, he seems the perfect choice to portray an aging film producer and power broker whose influence is on the decline.

“What Just Happened?” teams De Niro with veteran director Barry Levinson (“Rain Man,” “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “The Natural”) in a provocative inside look at the current film business. De Niro is a producer named Ben whose latest film (starring Sean Penn) is in major trouble.

Rating: 4.0/5.0

His director (Michael Wincott) refuses to cut a scene that makes preview audiences squeamish.

Meanwhile, Ben’s other film (which is about to go into production) is also experiencing problems because star Bruce Willis (playing himself) is rejecting all the physical requirements necessary for the leading male role.

Read Patrick McDonald’s full review of “What Just Happened?” in our reviews section.

View our full “What Just Happened?” image gallery.

Ben is now a producer on the brink.

The drug-addled director requires constant reassurance, the studio executives are depending on his delivery of the latest Bruce Willis film and his estranged wife wants him in therapy so they can learn to live apart.

As an answer to the question of the movie’s title, it seems that everything can collapse to nothing in Tinseltown.

The film is based on a memoir by producer Art Linson (who also wrote the screenplay). Proving that truth is stranger than fiction, the farcical narrative delves into how egos essentially run Hollywood and how those egos are largely attached to dysfunctional human beings.

“What Just Happened?,” which is directed by Barry Levinson and features Robert De Niro, Stanley Tucci, John Turturro, Catherine Keener, Sean Penn, Robin Wright Penn, Michael Wincott and Bruce Willis, opened on Oct. 17, 2008.

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full “What Just Happened?” review.

Bruce Willis in “What Just Happened?”.
Photo credit: Magnolia Pictures

Robert De Niro in “What Just Happened?”.
Photo credit: Magnolia Pictures

Continue reading for Patrick McDonald’s full “What Just Happened?” review.

Like a Bad ‘Law & Order,’ ‘Righteous Kill’ With Al Pacino, Robert De Niro Lacks ‘Heat’

HollywoodChicago.com — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 14:37:07 -0600

CHICAGO – Last fall, Francis Ford Coppola made the comment that Al Pacino and Robert De Niro (along with Jack Nicholson) had lost their ambition. Coppola essentially said they have been phoning in their performances and picking safer movies. “Righteous Kill” could be the case study to that argument.

Rating: 2.0/5.0

You have Pacino and De Niro together again. They’re both playing a cop, which is a role they’ve both done time and time again. You give them a script from Russell Gewirtz (who scribed the amazing film “Inside Man”). What could go wrong? As “Righteous Kill” proves, apparently many things.

Read Dustin Levell’s full review of “Righteous Kill” in our reviews section.

View our full, high-resolution “Righteous Kill” image gallery.

Officers “Turk” (Robert De Niro) and “Rooster” (Al Pacino) are partners who have each been with the New York Police Department for 30 years. Their latest case is to catch a serial killer offing the criminals the justice system has let slip through the cracks.

Each serial murder is accompanied with a poem detailing the offenses committed by these lowlifes and why their murder is (sigh) “righteous”. Fellow detectives played by John Leguizamo and Donnie Wahlberg (yes, the older brother of Mark Wahlberg) are also on the case along with Carla Gugino.

She portrays a sexy and sassy officer who’s sleeping with Turk. The story is told as a flashback that’s narrated by video confession by Robert De Niro’s character.

“Righteous Kill,” which stars Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, John Leguizamo, Donnie Wahlberg, Brian Dennehy, Trilby Glover, Carla Gugino and 50 Cent, opened everywhere on Sept. 12, 2008.

Continuing reading for Dustin Levell’s full “Righteous Kill” review.

Left to right: Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in “Righteous Kill”.
Photo credit: Righteous Productions, Inc.

Carla Gugino in “Righteous Kill”.
Photo credit: Righteous Productions, Inc.

Continuing reading for Dustin Levell’s full “Righteous Kill” review.

Considering Sore Subject Matter of ‘Chapter 27,’ ‘Why?’ is Only Plausible Reaction

HollywoodChicago.com — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 21:07:14 -0600

CHICAGO – As a contemporary of the John Lennon assassination in 1980 and an ardent admirer of the late Beatle, I had a hard time figuring out the reasons for making the film “Chapter 27”.

Over the years, it has been difficult if not impossible to forgive Mark David Chapman for his wasteful act of murdering Lennon. So why relive the agony through an oblique film exercise and reference to “The Catcher in the Rye,” which is the novel Chapman was reading when captured by police after the shooting?

Read Patrick McDonald’s full review of “Chapter 27” in our reviews section.

View our full, high-resolution “Chapter 27” image gallery.

Chapman is portrayed by Jared Leto. The film begins with the journey from his home in Hawaii to New York City. He’s there because he harbors a delusion that he is John Lennon and the real individual has no business still roaming the Earth.

He seems a man without a country or a functioning brain cell. He sets himself up outside The Dakota, which is a famously gothic and upscale residence complex where John Lennon and Yoko Ono live.

There are several groupies and hanger-ons milling about including Jude (Lindsay Lohan). For some ungodly reason, Jude takes a shine to Chapman and together they wait for Lennon to make an appearance.

This goes on into the next day after Chapman changes hotels and hires a prostitute on the premise that he will be “going away” for what he’s about to do. He also purchases Lennon’s new album, “Double Fantasy,” and the paperback of “The Catcher in the Rye”.

Jared Leto in “Chapter 27”.
Photo credit: Peace Arch Entertainment

Lindsay Lohan in “Chapter 27”.
Photo credit: Peace Arch Entertainment

Read Patrick McDonald’s full “Chapter 27” review.

News You Need: ‘Frankie Machine,’ ‘The Love Guru,’ ‘The Da Vinci Code’ Sequel, ‘Untitled’

HollywoodChicago.com — Thu, 25 Oct 2007 11:11:13 -0600

Michael Mann has inked a deal with Paramount Pictures to develop “Frankie Machine” as a star vehicle for Robert de Niro.

The drama is an adaptation of the Don Winslow novel “The Winter of Frankie Machine” and De Niro will play a mob hitman who has retired to run a bait shop.

The first photo has been released for “The Love Guru,” which stars Mike Myers and Jessica Alba. Myers plays an American who was left at the gates of an ashram in India as a child and raised by gurus.

Mike Myers and Jessica Alba in “The Love Guru”.
Photo courtesy of Paramount Pictures
Columbia has made official a Feb. 2007 fast-tracked European start to “Angels & Demons,” which is Ron Howard’s sequel to “The Da Vinci Code”. The film is slated for release in Dec. 2008.

Jamie Foxx has signed on for “The Zebra Murders: A Season of Killing, Racial Madness and Civil Rights” for DreamWorks.

Based on a 2006 book, the story chronicles the series of racially motivated, black-on-white serial killings from 1973 to 1974 in San Francisco.

Celtic Rose Entertainment has optioned the rights to young-adult fantasy book series “Leven Thumps” by Obert Skye.

As a 14-year-old boy, the fate by Leven Thumps is to save the ailing Foo, which is a world that allows mankind to dream and imagine.

Adam Goldberg (from “2 Days in Paris” with Julie Delpy; our Delpy interview on that film can be found here) and Marley Shelton will star in the indie feature “Untitled”.

The film is centered around a tortured musician at odds with his successful brother.

Adam Goldberg
Photo by Jeff Vespa, WireImage.com
Paramount Pictures has begun casting for a G.I. Joe film and plans to begin filming in the middle of Feb. 2008 in Prague and Los Angeles.

Stephen Sommers (“Van Helsing,” “The Mummy Returns,” “The Mummy”) will direct the film from a script by Stuart Beattie. Paramount is currently calling the film the “Untitled Stephen Sommers Project”.

Jim Caviezel (Jesus in “The Passion of the Christ”) and Claudia Karvan will star in the suspense thriller “Long Weekend” for Arclight Films.

The Everett de Roche story centers around a young couple on a camping trip who remorselessly disregard the local environment by shooting guns and wounding wildlife. The animals fight back.

The 11-year-old Kodi Smit-McPhee will play young Logan in “X-Men Origins: Wolverine” from 20th Century Fox. Smit-McPhee, who starred in “Romulus, My Father,” will start filming for the “X-Men” spin-off in Dec. 2007.

Kodi Smit-McPhee
Photo courtesy of Superhero! Hype
Freestyle Releasing has scored domestic theatrical rights to Rick Yune’s (“Die Another Day”) martial arts film “The Fifth Commandment” with plans to launch it into 1,000 U.S. theaters in March 2007.

Yune stars as a trained assassin who declines an assignment to off a pop singer because her bodyguard is his half brother.