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Cloverfield [BLU-RAY] (Paramount Home Entertainment, 6.3.2008) Disguised under deliberately goofy, yet deliciously edible-sounding, aliases such as Cheese and Slusho, Matt Reeves' Cloverfield was produced and rushed into theaters under an equally appetizing shroud of secrecy. From last year's incredibly elusive Super Bowl ad to the film's viral marketing campaign, Cloverfield had everybody scratching their heads and drooling in anticipation. Aside from the as-yet untitled title and the Blair Witch-ian visual style, the film's biggest appeal was the enigmatic creature who was last (un)seen hurling the decapitated head of the Statue of Liberty onto the crowded streets of New York City. All we knew about the mysterious beast was that it was big and angry. Now that the highy-anticipated project has come and gone, one question has fortunately been answered: Cloverfield was a major success. (continued)

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Other responses to "Sweeney Todd"

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There was supposed to be an embargo on Sweeney Todd reactions until Monday, but then Envelope guy Tom O'Neil posted last night and then N.Y. Times Oscar columnist David Carr (a.k.a. "the Bagger"), let go. So I called my Paramount guy this morning and begged for a release from bondage, and he said okay.

Then David Poland posted this morning, mentioning also the embargo and being careful to point out that the film "plays a lot better on multiple viewings." (Mutliple viewings because, you know, Poland is so important and well-connected.) The only guy who's unmoved so far is Red Carpet District's Kris Tapley.

"Sweeny Todd" review<< previous | next >>Emily Gould's lament

Posted by Jeffrey Wells on November 30, 2007 at 10:28 AM

comment #1

snoop says ...

Off topic:

I've been thinking about how this is being called this best year in film since 1999, and so I thought i'd post something here.

I don't know how to feel about 2007 yet, having not seen several of the major films. However, I do think this year has found some perfect cohesion, especially because it's the first time since 1999 that Wes Anderson, Paul Thomas Anderson and David Fincher have all had films out in the same year (I know there may not be Darjeeling love on this board, but I loved it).

That being said, there've been some pretty solid years since 1999, specifically 2002.

2002's best were Road to Perdition, Adaptation, Minority Report, Narc, About Schmidt, The Quiet American, About a Boy, Insomnia, Punch Drunk Love, Far From Heaven, Gangs of New York, Catch Me if You Can, and The Bourne Identity, but there were many other good films (Two Towers, The Hours, Solaris, Changing Lanes, etc).

While I agree this year has been very good (and i haven't seen Sweeney Todd, Atonement, Before The Devil Knows You're Dead, Once, There Will Be Blood, I'm Not There, Control, In The Valley of Elah, Juno or The Savages), 2002 had a pretty good bunch.

Thoughts?

Posted by snoop at November 30, 2007 11:39 AM

comment #2

Zimmergirl says ...

David Carr wasn't exactly blown away - he said it wasn't an Oscar movie.

Posted by Zimmergirl at November 30, 2007 11:52 AM

comment #3

snoop says ...

2002 also had the Pianist, which i absentmindedly had left off before, making that an even more impressive year.

Posted by snoop at November 30, 2007 12:00 PM

comment #4

Josh Massey says ...

"(Mutliple viewings because, you know, Poland is so important and well-connected.)"

I'm too lazy to look it up, but haven't you said this exact sort of thing about There Will Be Blood?

Posted by Josh Massey at November 30, 2007 12:32 PM

comment #5

jesse says ...

snoop, I think the "which recent movie years have been really good?" thread has turned up over a few times at The Hot Blog, but I don't really get tired of it, especially towards the end of the year when those comparisons are natural. I agree that all of this "best since '99" talk has sort of glossed over some good years between now and then. '99 was great, but after nixing some of your picks (Quiet American, About a Boy, Far From Heaven, The Hours) and elevating some others (Lilo & Stitch, 25th Hour, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Episode II! Yeah, that's right, suck it LOTR), I would absolutely agree that '02 was a strong one -- really sort of an echo of '99 in that back then, a lot of those world-class filmmakers were still on a regular schedule of delivering something new every 2-3 years. I know this hasn't always been their fault, but the ridiculous gaps between movies for P.T. Anderson, Spike Jonze, David O. Russell, and now (it looks like, since Sideways) Alexander Payne can hurt the overall picture. The new class could learn from guys like Spielberg, Soderbergh, Woody Allen and Spike Lee (though I guess they all, save Woody, can command greater studio trust on occasion).

I also thought '04 was pretty strong: Eternal Sunshine, the second half of Kill Bill, The Incredibles, Life Aquatic, strong work from Eastwood, Scorsese, and David Gordon Green, some very good comedies in different flavors (Anchorman, Napoleon Dynamite, Garden State, Starsky & Hutch, Mean Girls), and popcorn movies that actually worked (Spider-Man 2, Cuaron's take on Harry Potter, Sky Captain)... plus some solid movies I like but others around here love, like Sideways and Collateral. Not quite '99 or '02, but a good showing that sticks out to me.

That said, '07 is shaping up really nicely, on par with '02 if not quite '99 (that was really an amazing year; there were a good 30 ten-best-quality movies). Right now, I could put together a perfectly strong 2007 ten-best list; hell, I could've done one a month ago (and only using movies that had actually been released).

Posted by jesse at November 30, 2007 1:46 PM

comment #6

PastePotPete says ...

Wells did say that but from what I understand nobody but long lead critics had seen Sweeney Todd before yesterday. If Wells had said it about There Will Be Blood when it showed up at Fantastic Fest then it would be the same thing.

Posted by PastePotPete at November 30, 2007 1:48 PM

comment #7

George Prager says ...

Evel Knievel R.I.P.

Posted by George Prager at November 30, 2007 2:02 PM

comment #8

insidah says ...

Burton's masterpiece is Beetlejuice. And I'm a little tired of Depp-as-muse and freakin' Bonham Carter as nepotism-player.

Posted by insidah at November 30, 2007 2:38 PM

comment #9

BurmaShave says ...

Burton's masterpiece is ED WOOD, as has been discussed on other threads. And there is no nixing ABOUT A BOY, perhaps the most perfect Britcom of the modern era, certainly the best film of Hugh Grant's career.

Posted by BurmaShave at November 30, 2007 3:45 PM

comment #10

The Pope says ...

Re: Sweeney Todd.
Specifically, Johnny Depp and his accent. Is it not beginning to get on your nerves. He has been rolling out ever since he unleased Capt. Jack Sparrow. He did the same thing in The Libertine. I am not saying it is inaccurate (certainly not anything like Dick Van Dyke doing his Cor-blimey Cockney nonsense in Mary Poppins), but it is rather one note... a bit like Timmy's films.

Posted by The Pope at November 30, 2007 4:27 PM

comment #11

cjKennedy says ...

First of all Snoop, I second your admiration of Darjeeling and I never get tired of saying that. People are free to disagree, but for them I know of a pair of balls that need kissing.

As for this or that year being better than another. I don't know. Every year to me brings its own set of wonders. It's what keeps me going back to the movies year after year, despite the large amounts of time filler that comes out.

I will say, I can't remember seeing so many good movies in so short of a period of time as I have in the last month. Even going back as far as September.

There's an intensity at this moment I don't quite remember feeling. I hope it continues with Sweeney Todd.

Posted by cjKennedy at November 30, 2007 4:38 PM

comment #12

jjgittes says ...

On the 2002 thing - I hated "Road to Perdition" and "GONY" (except for Day-Lewis), so go figure.

Posted by jjgittes at November 30, 2007 5:02 PM

comment #13

Hopscotch says ...

2002 and 2003 were great movie years in my opinion.

GONY, though should be omitted.
Road to Perdition is a solid movie, I enjoyed it. But I doubt it'll be considered great anytime soon.
I HATE Punch Drunk Love...but.
Adaptation, The Two Towers, Pianist, Bowling for Columbine, Spellbound, Minority Report, Catch Me, Narc. All great films.

Still so much to see this year.

Posted by Hopscotch at November 30, 2007 5:11 PM

comment #14

berg says ...

1941 was a great year for films so much better than 2002 and 1939, take Citizen Kane or Sullivan's Travels ... 2007 is up there somewhere

Posted by berg at November 30, 2007 5:40 PM

comment #15

D.Z. says ...

The Two Towers is weak, because it's a transitional film where nothing happens. The only thing I liked from 2002 was Millennium Actress.

ThePope: He's used that accent since at least Sleepy Hollow.

Posted by D.Z. at November 30, 2007 6:01 PM

comment #16

jeffmcm says ...

Good morning.

Can I just get you to verify this statement: "The only thing I liked from 2002 was Millennium Actress."

Not 'my favorite movie from 2002 was..." or "the only thing I loved was...", but the only thing you liked, out of an entire year of movies, and everything else you hated? Just to clarify? Out of how many movies seen?

Posted by jeffmcm at November 30, 2007 6:06 PM

comment #17

cjKennedy says ...

You'll have to forgive DZ, Jeff. In 2002, besides watching Millenium Actress 43 times, he spent the bulk of his time masturbating to Nova in the 2nd StarBlazers series on DVD.

Posted by cjKennedy at November 30, 2007 6:44 PM

comment #18

Josh Massey says ...

Funny, I've always looked at 2002 as a particularly weak year. Outside of the two Spielberg films, I can't think of a film I'll be watching again. I mean, hell, my favorite movie of that year may have been Signs, which I'm sure most of you hated.

Oh right, City of God. But Signs is probably #2.

Posted by Josh Massey at November 30, 2007 7:01 PM

comment #19

D.Z. says ...

Oh, I did love the film; but I'm using the term "like" to make a comment about how uninspiring most of the line-up was that year.

CJ: Um, no, I saw Spirited Away and Spiderman, and Minority Report, and didn't really feel the excitement of any of them to see anything else.
Anyway, it's funny you think I'm the guy who gets off on that show, when you're the one who knows the characters more than me...

Josh: City of God was better when it was called "Boys N the Hood".

Posted by D.Z. at November 30, 2007 7:13 PM

comment #20

jeffmcm says ...

This is a good example of the snideness and condescension I was telling you about the other day. You mention one movie that you liked from that year and proceed to get your hate on for another five or so.

Are you familiar, DZ, with the phrase "agree to disagree"?

Posted by jeffmcm at November 30, 2007 7:36 PM

comment #21

D.Z. says ...

I just didn't dig City of God. It was like every other urban gangster flick, except that it's in Brazil.

Posted by D.Z. at November 30, 2007 7:40 PM

comment #22

jeffmcm says ...

Now that most recent comment is actually constructive and useful. The first one (City of God was better...) is meaningless.

Posted by jeffmcm at November 30, 2007 7:44 PM

comment #23

cjKennedy says ...

Yes DZ, I loved StarBlazers. We never 'went all the way', but I still carry a torch.

All snarkiness aside, it's fair to say you dislike more movies than you like, right? Or at least you dislike 90% of the movies that are discussed on these pages?

What joy do you get from coming here exactly? Humor me. I'm just curious.

Posted by cjKennedy at November 30, 2007 8:08 PM

comment #24

BurmaShave says ...

"The Two Towers is weak, because it's a transitional film where nothing happens."

That's why I consider it the best in the series. It's not saddled with exposition or weighed down by 10 endings. Plus it contains the best music Howard Shore ever wrote.

Posted by BurmaShave at November 30, 2007 8:18 PM

comment #25

jeffmcm says ...

DZ, if you had your own blog, you could probably live off the advertising revenue. Look at how many posts in response you're able to generate simply by making odd, unexplainable statements.

Posted by jeffmcm at November 30, 2007 8:21 PM

comment #26

BurmaShave says ...

I liked GONE WITH THE WIND better when it was called BIRTH OF A NATION. I also liked KIDS better when it was called STAR WARS.

Posted by BurmaShave at November 30, 2007 8:38 PM

comment #27

K. Bowen says ...

I'm not sure about the depth, but the cream of the 2000 crop still strikes me as the best in a long while. In the Mood for Love. Amores Perros. George Washington. Requiem for a Dream. Ratcatcher. Memento. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Traffic(not my favorite, but whatever). Dancer in the Dark. The Wind Will Carry Us (I think). To my mind, Unbreakable.

Posted by K. Bowen at November 30, 2007 8:57 PM

comment #28

BurmaShave says ...

I would consider MEMENTO and AMORES PERROS 2001 films, which is why 2001 is my pick for the best film year of this decade.

Posted by BurmaShave at November 30, 2007 10:01 PM

comment #29

Rosebudsthesled says ...

2002 was a pretty damn fine year; the best in some time. But 2004 was not to be looked over either. Sideways, Million Dollar Baby, Finding Neverland, The Sea Inside, Kinsey, Friday Night Lights, Ray, The Aviator, The Blind Swordsman: Zatoichi, Fahrenheit 9/11, Mean Girls, Hotel Rwanda, Eternal Sunshine and The Motorcycle Diaries.
And let's not forget The Incredibles, which even though it's a cartoon, is my favorite of all those films.

Posted by Rosebudsthesled at November 30, 2007 11:05 PM

comment #30

Mgmax says ...

The Two Towers is weak, because it's a transitional film where nothing happens.

Madness. The defense of Helm's Deep is the human high point of the whole trilogy.

Posted by Mgmax at December 1, 2007 6:11 AM

comment #31

Hash says ...

How do we see 2008 ending up with the upcoming releases? In The Name of the King should get 2008 off to a great start.

Posted by Hash at December 1, 2007 6:22 AM

comment #32

Mgmax says ...

Best movie year ever? Try this and see if anything else can compare:

Ride the High Country. Lolita. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance. The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner. The Longest Day.

The Manchurian Candidate. To Kill a Mockingbird.

Jules and Jim. Viridiana. An Actor's Revenge.

Lawrence of Arabia.

1962.

Posted by Mgmax at December 1, 2007 6:25 AM

comment #33

movieirv says ...

how about 1974:
Coversation
Godfather II
Chinatown
blazing saddles
Alice Doesnt Live Here anymore
The Gambler
Hearts and Minds
Lenny
The Paralax View
taking of Pelham 1, 2, 3
Harry and Tonto
flesh Gordon/The Groove tube: midnight miovie perennials
grindhouse classics: caged heat/truck turner
and texas chainsaw massacre

Posted by movieirv at December 1, 2007 6:53 AM

comment #34

romeoisbleeding says ...

Good thread. Love the lists from other movie years. Great one above me here. ok...the Pope here mentioned Depps accent in recent movies which to me is annoying. What I don't understand is why does he have this accent when he does interviews too?? If you listen to an interview he does now with one he did 10 years ago, he sounds now like he sort of became British over the years? sort of. Why?????? I think he was born in the states. It is kind of what bugs me about Burton movies. A tad too prentitious. A tad too contrived.

Posted by romeoisbleeding at December 1, 2007 6:59 AM

comment #35

K. Bowen says ...

In looking at it a bit last night, 1999 has tremendous depth, but I don't personally love its best films. Look at 98 right before it.

The Thin Red Line.
Taste of Cherry.
Flowers of Shanghai.
Fallen Angels.
The Big Lebowski.
Saving Private Ryan.
Elizabeth.
Rushmore.
There's Something About Mary.
Out of Sight.
A Simple Plan.
Shakespeare in Love.
Ronin.
The Celebration.
The Idiots.
Fireworks.
Dark City.
Buffalo '66.
Love and Death on Long Island.
Pi.
Henry Fool.
Happiness.
THe Truman Show.
The Last Days of Disco.
Ringu.

SO that list has two of the great war films (SPR, TTRL). One of the performances of the ages (Blanchett in Elizabeth). Three of the most influential and outstanding recent comedies, with one already a cult classic (TBL, Rushmore, TSAM). One of the great car chases (Ronin). A first rank film from the three foreign masters of the time - Wong Kar-Wai, Hao Hsao-Hsien, Abbas Kiaorastami. The best of the Elmore Leonard craze that launched two stars and resurrected Steven Soderbergh. Two of the big Dogma films. The touchstone of J-Horror (Ringu).

That's a good year.

Posted by K. Bowen at December 1, 2007 8:50 AM

comment #36

berg says ...

add to 1998 the film Pleasantville, okay go ahead and add Wild Things too

Posted by berg at December 1, 2007 9:22 AM

comment #37

JB Moore says ...

And don't forget Babe: Pig In The City. The Godfather Part Two of talking pig movies.

Posted by JB Moore at December 1, 2007 9:32 AM

comment #38

jeffmcm says ...

Oh God, I hate Babe: Pig in the City. That was one of my worst moviegoing experiences of all time.

I'm sure others had a different experience.

Posted by jeffmcm at December 1, 2007 9:35 AM

comment #39

George Prager says ...

If someone is going to make a case for 2002 (most of those movies are good, but...) I'm going to make a case for 1986:

Cobra
Soul Man
Aliens
Platoon
Stand by Me
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Blue Velvet
The Fly
Color of Money
Manhunter
A Room With a View
Hannah and Her Sisters
She's Gotta Have It
Hoosiers
Peggy Sue Got Married
Down by Law
The Mosquito Coast
Ruthless People
Round Midnight
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Down and Out in Beverly Hills
Salvador
Betty Blue
Children of a Lesser God
Something Wild
River's Edge
Mona Lisa
Lucas
52 Pick-Up
From Beyond
Nine 1/2 Weeks

Posted by George Prager at December 1, 2007 11:00 AM

comment #40

K. Bowen says ...

For the 2002 Brigade, I don't agree with you. But at least put in some of my favorite films of the year ... All the Real Girls, Solaris, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and 24 Hour Party People.

Posted by K. Bowen at December 1, 2007 1:02 PM

comment #41