Thursday, November 20, 2008

What, When, Where this Weekend - Twilight, Bolt, Special, Lake City

What, When, Where is a weekly guide to select screenings, discussions and events in the NYC-area of interest to screenwriters.

Opening this weekend...

TWILIGHT, written by Melissa Rosenberg, dir. by Catherine Hardwicke


Premise: A teenage girl risks everything when she falls in love with a vampire.

Playing at: Everywhere.

The summary for the film reads just like a screenplay logline. It helps that it's based on a wildly popular YA novel (that's what I read - I'm not really "hip" with the "kiddos" these days) but the premise is one of those ones that you read and immediately see dollar signs.

BOLT, written by Dan Fogelman and Chris Williams, dir. by Byron Howard and Chris Williams


Premise: The canine star of a fictional sci-fi/action show that believes his powers are real embarks on a cross country trek to save his co-star from a threat he believes is just as real.

Playing: All over.

This looks like Pixar... but it's not. I won't be tricked.

SPECIAL, written and directed by Hal Haberman and Jeremy Passmore


Premise: A lonely metermaid has a psychotic reaction to his medication and becomes convinced he's a superhero. A very select group of people in life are truly gifted. Special is a movie about everyone else.

Playing at: Landmark Sunshine

I love seeing so many writing teams this week. The description above is a little misleading - the movie sounds like it's a bit of a downer. However, if the film is taking the superhero idea seriously, that makes me more interested. And I like Michael Rapaport.

LAKE CITY, written and directed by Hunter Hill and Perry Moore


Premise: In this searing Southern drama, a mother and son reunite under desperate circumstances years after a family tragedy drove them far apart.

Playing at: Quad Cinemas

From the Time Out New York review:
Most independent movies model themselves on a Sundance-approved template: the rural miserablist parable, the heal-thyselves family tragedy, the gritty crime flick. Hunter Hill and Perry Moore’s drama, however, shoots for the moon; the directors have seemingly crammed the festival’s annual lineup into 92 minutes. For those viewers who don’t have two weeks to spare in Park City, the mix-and-match sensibility might seem like a valuable time-saver. Anyone who wants a little quality with their quantity, however, will curse the fact that an hour and a half of their lives is gone for good.
Ouch.

What are you doing/seeing this weekend?

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

From what I've heard, Twilight breaks all the rules of a love story on a literary basis ... and not in such a great way ... very young teen type of material, and some of the special effects are "cheesy." The latter was provided by two uber-ridiculous fans of the book, Edward, and the Twilight universe who attended the premiere.

Also, I have a friend who worked on Special! He raved about it's humor. Keep an eye for some pretty shocking stunts ... ouch.

Onyx said...

I've got a few co-workers who are prattling on about Twilight like a couple of school girls. Now I'm intrigued.

DOA said...

Ok, I'll admit I read Twilight. I even read the second book. Some people smoke pot. I read mind-numbing young adult fantasy best sellers. I'll even admit that I liked Twilight. Having said that, I groaned when I saw that it was being made. Like Girl with A Pearl Earring, the book was driving by (realistic) inner female monologue/ranting that’s easy to relate. The conflict is almost all just dilemmas inside the main character’s head. Plot wise, not too much happens until the very end. I really hope they’ve fixed that up…

Also, I know that Robert Pattinson is supposed to be a teenage heartthrob, and the paleness is just so he looks like a vampire, but honestly, am I the only one who thinks he looks like a junkie?