Join us for another edition of the adventures of Armond White! Watch as he makes a spectacle of himself and gets kicked out of the New York Film Critics Circle. See how TJ and Chad shed not one single tear! Seriously guys, he brought this on himself and he deserved it. Who’s crying. TJ and Chad certainly aren’t. In other news, ‘Catching Fire’ topped ‘Iron Man 3’ in the 2013 box office. That’s a fairly impressive feat. And oh yes, we have ‘Star Wars’ news and rumors (it’s such a very long way to 2015, sigh). You see, Disney is appointing a committee to oversee what official fits into the ‘Star Wars’ canon, and how. Plus, rumor has it that Episode VII will focus on Luke, Han, and Leia. And finally on the news front, ‘Gravity’ is returning to theaters so if you are a bad human being and did not see it the first time, you may crawl in shame to the nearest theater. And the primary review this week is ‘Saving Mr. Banks’.
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This morning, the members of the New York Film Critics Circle, including me, voted to expel Armond White, the former critic of the now-defunct New York Press (and currently the editor and movie critic of CityArts), from the group. To me, it was a sad moment — pathetic, really, though Armond brought it on himself.
Iron Man 3 had the year’s biggest opening weekend and dominated the summer box office, but when the dust eventually settles on 2013, Catching Fire will go down as the year’s biggest smash. The second film in the Hunger Games franchise, based on Suzanne Collins’ book trilogy, inched past Marvel’s superhero movie on Jan. 9 and now holds the top spot with $409.4 million.
The complicated Star Wars canon can be separated into two groups. The official, main Star Wars canon is composed of the (currently) six feature films and the animated Clone Wars series, while the expanded universe is composed of everything else — every weird book you see in the sci-fi section of Amazon, every video game, and every comic.
The Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision has tried to make sense of all the new Star Wars rumors. The latest of which include thatMichael Fassbender, Girls star Adam Driver, and Hugo Weaving are now being considered for roles. Yet that isn’t all the rumors.
After winning a Golden Globe for Best Director, Alfonso Cuarón’s Gravity will be returning to theaters this weekend. In case you missed the buzz-worthy sci-fi thriller, you’ll now be able to experience it on the big screen. It’s no coincidence that the 86th Annual Academy Awards’ nominations list will be unveiled this Thursday either.
Read more at http://collider.com/gravity-re-release/#RyiKV2yLHeogXd5P.99
Let me be clear from the outset, I enjoyed this film quite a bit. That said, I feel like I would have enjoyed it better if I actually liked Disney’s Mary Poppins. As it is I really do not like Disney’s classic film that much. While P.L. Travers’ concerns and complaints about the film may be too far reaching and come from a bit too dour of an attitude, I tend to agree with her underlying issues regarding Disney’s version of the film.
It seems that biographical films are often more dramatic and heavy than they are light-hearted and fun, and even rarer are they both at the same time, but Saving Mr. Banks manages to pull it off quite well without seeming forced or bipolar.
Author P.L. Travers reflects on her difficult childhood while meeting with filmmaker Walt Disney during production for the adaptation of her novel, Mary Poppins (1964).
Two-time Academy Award (R)-winner Emma Thompson and fellow double Oscar (R)-winner Tom Hanks topline Disney's "Saving Mr. Banks," inspired by the extraordinary, untold backstory of how Disney's classic "Mary Poppins" made it to the screen. When Walt Disney's daughters begged him to make a movie of their favorite book, P.L. Travers' "Mary Poppins," he made them a promise-one that he didn't realize would take 20 years to keep.
Domestic Total as of Jan. 13, 2014: $69,436,293
Distributor: Buena Vista Release Date: December 13, 2013
Genre: Drama Runtime: 2 hrs. 0 min.
MPAA Rating: PG-13 Production Budget: $35 million
Published on Dec 31, 2013
P.L. Travers reads through the Mary Poppins script with screenwriter Don DaGradi and the Sherman Brothers, the duo behind the film's music. The meetings took place at the Disney Studios in L.A. in 1961.
Walt Disney takes us through his kingdom from the time he was alive, to the magic kingdom of today.
Containing very old and rare footage of Disneyland from 1956 to 2007.
Walt: The Man Behind the Myth is a biographical documentary on Walt Disney. It was narrated by Dick Van Dyke and directed by Jean-Pierre Isbouts.
To preview a song, mouse over the title and click Play. Open iTunes to buy and download music.
To preview a song, mouse over the title and click Play. Open iTunes to buy and download music.