Christopher Rosen | The New York Observer

Opening This Weekend: Zombies! Roller Derbies! Ricky Gervais! Plus, The Coen Brothers Get Serious

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 14:20:46 -0400

How do we know fall is officially here? Because not only are the temperatures dropping—we needed to pull out shirts with long sleeves this week, people!—but the movies are finally getting good. Four potential gems hit theaters today, and as usual, there is something for everyone. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Zombieland

What’s the story: Think

Whip It Good: Welcome Back Alia Shawkat!

Wed, 30 Sep 2009 08:51:59 -0400

With the Arrested Development movie firmly ensconced as the Sasquatch of film projects, forever-taunting fans with glimpses and false positives—get excited: apparently the script is being worked on right this second!—thank goodness for small favors like Whip It. Drew Barrymore’s sunny grrlpower romp, which easily qualifies as one of the best movies we’ve seen in nearly two months, might feature Ellen Page, Drew Barrymore, Kristin Wiig, Ari Graynor and a host...

The Week in DVR: Peter Berg's Trauma Premieres and Sam Rockwell's Genius (and Other Things) are on Display in Choke

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 09:40:47 -0400

Monday: Trauma
Not to be confused with Mercy, here comes Trauma. This new NBC series—which has the snazziest ad campaign of the fall (non-Man Men edition)—eschews whiny nurses for tough-as-nails EMT workers and hopes to give action junkies a boost of adrenaline. Of course, that all sounds perfectly generic, but remember: Peter Berg is an executive producer, and, in addition to shepherding Friday Night Lights,...

Box Office Breakdown: Cloudy Continues to Shine, Bruce Willis Does Not

Mon, 28 Sep 2009 08:58:53 -0400

The sun is still shining on Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs! For a second straight week the animated film dominated what was a sluggish session at the multiplex, grossing an estimated $24.6 million and setting itself up as one of the sleeper hits of the fall (not to mention giving us the opportunity to make more weather related puns). Storm clouds did, however, circle around the latest batch of new...

Opening This Weekend: Thank Goodness September is Over!

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 09:06:05 -0400

The final weekend of September is upon and dare we say: not a moment too soon. Once October hits, real movies will start opening, but in the meantime we’re left with the rest of these September dregs. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Fame

What’s the story: Maybe the denizens of Fame actually will live forever. Based...

Brief Interviews with Hideous Men: The John Krasinski Show

Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:15:25 -0400

Despite having the most appropriate title of the fall—indeed the interviews are brief, the men hideous—Brief Interviews with Hideous Men will not be remembered all that fondly. Even at 80 minutes, the film feels too long by twenty, and never actually reaches a conclusive point beyond that all men are created equally awful. Even during its best moments—most of which occur in the early going—Hideous Men is ugly and...

Box Office Breakdown: Meatballs Anything But Cloudy, Jennifer's Body Goes to the Morgue

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:59:03 -0400

It was all sunshine and rainbows for Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs at the box office over the weekend. The 3-D animated jaunt topped the charts with an estimated $30.1 million, a number that nearly tripled second place finisher—and fellow newcomer—The Informant! Sadly, it was stormy weather for the other freshman entries: Love Happens landed in fourth place with $8.4 million, while Jennifer’s Body...

The Week in DVR: More Neil Patrick Harris! Plus, Hitchock, Gangs of New York, and Grey's Anatomy Returns

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 08:49:21 -0400

Monday: How I Met Your Mother
Is Monday night the new Thursday night? Tonight brings the season premiere of House, a new Gossip Girl, a two-hour Heroes (yep, that show is still on the air) and the launching of the CBS Monday night comedy block, which includes the series premiere of Jenna Elfman’s Accidentally on Purpose. Phew! Us? We’ll be watching Gossip...

Opening This Weekend: Movies You May Actually Want to See!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 09:15:19 -0400

Don’t be confused by what you see on Fandango: there are actually a bunch of movies possibly worth seeing this weekend. September starts to come out of the doldrums today with four films hitting theaters, and, as usual, there is something for everyone. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Jennifer’s Body

What’s the story: Here’s a...

Three Fearless Predictions for Emmy Night!

Fri, 18 Sep 2009 09:06:08 -0400

It seems fitting that on Emmy night—a night that ostensibly is supposed to celebrate the greatness of television—there is plenty of great television available to divert your attention away from the glitz and glam of the award ceremony itself. Despite the presence of host Neil Patrick Harris—and who doesn’t love themselves some NPH!—the Emmy Awards are set to battle a new episode of Mad Men (which despite 16 nominations will not...

Plenty of Soup For You: Joel McHale Makes Community a Winner

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 08:57:44 -0400

It might only be the middle of September, but we still feel confident in calling Joel McHale the breakout star of the fall television season. The snarky host of The Soup is so perfectly on-point in Community—premiering tonight at 9:30 on NBC, before moving to 8:30 when 30 Rock returns on October 15—so comfortable and engaging, that it seems impossible to envision a scenario wherein he

Gossip Girl Returns on Horseback!

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 11:25:20 -0400

For most teen shows, the transition between high school and college is the beginning of the end—the death rattle before inevitable cancelation. For Gossip Girl, however, it appears nothing will change at all. Think about it: has a show about high schoolers-turned-undergrads ever cared less about featuring its characters in class? We can count on one hand the amount of school-based subplots on Gossip Girl over the past two...

Box Office Breakdown: It's Tyler Perry's World

Mon, 14 Sep 2009 08:36:51 -0400

Faced with the start of the NFL season, the VMA’s (like everyone else, we’re on Team Taylor Swift), and, perhaps, a bit of moviegoer ennui, it was another slow weekend at the multiplex. Tyler Perry’s latest film, I Can Do Bad All By Myself, topped all comers with an impressive $24 million, but otherwise it was a mixed bag for the remaining new releases. The “visionary” animated flick 9...

Opening This Weekend: Tyler Perry And a Bunch of Other Movies You Won't See!

Fri, 11 Sep 2009 09:10:07 -0400

Ah, the second weekend in September: A time for crappy horror movies and, apparently, Tyler Perry (though, truth be told, those two things might not be mutually exclusive). Four movies hit theaters today, and if you don’t like genre stuff, you’re out of luck! As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself

On Second Thought, Glee is Pretty Awesome

Thu, 10 Sep 2009 09:19:49 -0400

We found ourselves kinda stunned by what happened on television last night. No, not that Republican congressman Joe Wilson heckled the president of the United States during his address to the joint session on Congress—seriously? “You lie?” This isn’t a town hall meeting in South Carolina, buddy!—but that we really found ourselves falling in love with Glee. If you would have told us in May that we’d be legitimately excited to...

Box Office Breakdown: Even Blockbusters Get Labor Day Off

Tue, 08 Sep 2009 09:25:40 -0400

This is how the summer ends: not with a bang, but with a whimper. The combined totals of the top five films over the four-day holiday weekend could only manage to gross 75 percent of what X-Men Origins: Wolverine pulled down during its opening weekend back on May 1. The Final Destination claimed the top spot for the second weekend in a row, barely edging out Inglourious...

The Week in DVR: A Golden Girls marathon, Glee returns, sharks, and Jay-Z!

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 08:43:06 -0400

Monday: The Golden Girls
Thank you for being a friend! If it’s Labor Day Monday, that means it’s time for television marathons, and we’ll certainly take a pass by WE to catch a bit of The Golden Girls. Starting at 1 p.m., you can catch dozens of episodes back-to-back (hence the title “marathon”) and remind yourself that Betty White was funny way before she stole every scene in The...

Opening This Weekend: Summer Ends With Some Studio Dumps!

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 09:38:38 -0400

And so Labor Day is finally upon us. What a long strange trip this summer movie season has been! What began all the way back in May with X-Men Origins: Wolverine, officially draws to a close over the holiday with three moderately high-profile films finding home on the dumping ground. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

All About Steve

...

Fall TV Preview: The CW Loves Models, Vampires and Melrose Place

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 09:28:11 -0400

If there is a silver lining to be found in the end of the summertime—not counting the ever-increasing likelihood that we’ll all get the swine flu—it’s that we are on the precipice of the fall television season. Thank goodness. In an effort to get you and your DVR prepared, here’s The Observer’s fall TV preview. We’ve already covered CBS, NBC, Fox and ABC. Finally, here’st CW!

Fall TV Preview: ABC Loads Up on Laughs and... Christian Slater?

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 09:26:22 -0400

If there is a silver lining to be found in the end of the summertime—besides the fact that we’ll never have to hear Drake’s ubiquitous “Best I Ever Had” ever again—it’s that we are on the precipice of the fall television season. Thank goodness. In an effort to get you and your DVR prepared, here’s the Observer’s fall TV preview. We’ve already covered CBS, NBC and Fox. Now it’s time for ABC!

Fall TV Preview: Fox Has Glee ... But Not Much Else

Wed, 02 Sep 2009 12:53:47 -0400

If there's a silver lining to be found in the end of the summertime—besides the opportunity to retire our flip-flops!—it’s that we are on the precipice of the fall television season. Thank goodness. In an effort to get you and your DVR prepared, here’s the Observer’s fall TV preview. We’ve already covered CBS and NBC. Now onto Fox!

Glee (Wednesdays at 9 p.m., premieres September 9)

Fall TV Preview: NBC Sure Loves One Word Titles and Jay Leno!

Tue, 01 Sep 2009 09:31:55 -0400

If there is a silver lining to be found in the end of the summertime—besides these seasonable temperatures!—it’s that we are on the precipice of the fall television season. Thank goodness. In an effort to get you and your DVR prepared, here’s the Observer’s fall TV preview. Yesterday, we talked about CBS. Next up, the big peacock NBC!

The Jay Leno Show (Weeknights at 10...

Fall TV Preview: CBS Goes Old School (As Usual)

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 12:01:18 -0400

If there is a silver lining to be found in the end of the summertime—besides our soon-to-be declining electric bill!—it’s that we are on the precipice of the fall television season. Thank goodness. In an effort to get you and your DVR prepared, here’s the Observer’s fall TV previews. First up, CBS!

Accidentally On Purpose (Mondays at 8:30 p.m., premieres September 21)

What CBS...

Box Office Breakdown: Hollywood Gets Restricted For the Final Weekend of August!

Mon, 31 Aug 2009 09:16:29 -0400

If you’re under 17 and reading this, we have to ask: What on earth did you do this weekend? The top four movies at the box office were all rated R, with the field paced by The Final Destination; the 3-D horror sequel opened in the top spot with $28.3 million. Also debuting was Rob Zombie’s Halloween 2, slashing into third place with $17.4 million. Unfortunately, it wasn’t all...

Opening This Weekend: Ang Lee Goes to Woodstock, Patton Oswalt Gets Serious and Two Stupid Horror Movies

Fri, 28 Aug 2009 09:17:32 -0400

If you head to movie theaters on this, the last weekend of August, be on the lookout for some film critics. Once again, the week’s major releases went unscreened for reviewers, meaning if A. O. Scott wants to see Halloween 2, he’ll have to wait in line just like everyone else. Welcome to the summer death rattle: Four movies hit theaters today, and if you don’t like getting scared, you should...

It's Time For Some Summer Oscars!

Thu, 27 Aug 2009 09:11:01 -0400

Unless the idea of watching people get murdered at an alarming rate appeals to you—no, we will not be seeing Halloween 2 or Final Destination: 3-D—the summer movie season is officially kaput. Where has the time gone? At least with the book closed we can now look back fondly on the joys Hollywood had to offer. There are usually no Oscars given to summer movies, but maybe there should...

Box Office Breakdown: America Loves Brad Pitt and Killing Nazis!

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 08:58:49 -0400

Thanks to Quentin Tarantino, business was a-boomin’ at the box office over the weekend. Inglourious Basterds scalped the rest of the field, pulling down a very impressive $37.6 million, good for not only first place, but also the biggest opening of the acclaimed director’s career. For Mr. Tarantino’s brother-in-arms, Robert Rodriguez, the news wasn’t as celebratory: His kids film, Shorts, landed in sixth place with just $6.6 million. It...

Opening This Weekend: Brad Pitt Is a Basterd! Plus, Some Stuff You Won't See!

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 09:15:35 -0400

The most talked about movie of the weekend won’t actually be coming out for another four months. Between the teaser trailer and the special free IMAX screenings happening tonight, James Cameron’s Avatar has captured everyone’s imagination this week. This is the future, people! Still, if giant blue aliens and computer graphics don’t float your boat, three actual movies hit theaters today. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to...

Hey ABC, Are You Out Of Ideas? We Can Help!

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:29:32 -0400

It certainly didn’t take long for ABC entertainment president Stephen McPherson to fill the void left by Ben Silverman in the “what is he thinking?” department. Case in point: The news earlier this week that ABC is teaming with Friends creator Marta Kauffman for an adaptation of The Time Traveler’s Wife. On the surface, this seems like a good idea, especially in light of the feature film...

James Cameron's Avatar: Shockingly Not for Your PS3!

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:29:30 -0400

If James Cameron’s Avatar is the most important movie of our time, shouldn’t it look a whole lot better than your typical cut scene from the latest edition of Final Fantasy? That was the first thought running through our heads as we watched the disappointing teaser trailer this morning. (We were forced to watch it over at the French version of MSN, since the “exclusive premiere” at Apple totally crashed their servers. Whoops!)...

Single Person's Movie: Mallrats

Thu, 20 Aug 2009 09:28:29 -0400

It's 2 a.m. and you awake with a jerk, alone in your fully lit apartment and still on the couch. On TV, the credits of some movie you've already seen a billion times are scrolling by. It feels like rock bottom. And we know, because we're just like you: single.

Need a movie to keep you company until you literally can't keep your eyes open? Join us tonight...

XOXO: Prepare for Season Three of Gossip Girl With These Episodes From Season Two!

Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:24:49 -0400

Don’t be fooled by the increasing temperatures and out of control humidity: Summer is almost over. However, while Labor Day is less than three weeks away, there is a silver lining: We’re that much closer to our favorite Upper Eastsiders from Gossip Girl returning from summer break! The second season hits DVD today, complete with a host of unnecessary special features (yes, we would like to watch the Chasing...

Box Office Breakdown: District 9 "Surprises" to the Delight of Film Critics Everywhere

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 08:56:02 -0400

Being “for humans only” didn’t really hurt District 9 at all. The Peter Jackson–produced film was the “surprise winner” at the box office this weekend—really, though, did anyone expect anything else?—grossing an estimated $37 million to lead a busy frame that saw three other new releases enter the top 10: The Time Traveler’s Wife jumped into third place with $19.2 million; The Goods: Live Hard, Sell...

The Week in DVR: Project Runway (Finally) Returns! Plus, Michael Cera Acts Adorable, Lindsay Lohan Was A Mean Girl

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 08:45:04 -0400

Monday: Glenn Martin, DDS
Once upon a time, Michael Eisner was the chief executive at the Walt Disney Company and one of the most powerful men in the world. Now, he’s executive-producing a cartoon for Nick at Nite. What a world! At least the cartoon in question, Glenn Martin, DDS, looks like it could be pretty funny. Starring the vocal talents of Kevin Nealon and Catherine O’Hara (why hasn't anyone thought of hooking...

Opening This Weekend: The Best Movie of the Summer? Plus, Eric Bana and Rachel McAdams Will Make You Cry

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 08:58:00 -0400

File this under: Where did the time go? With August reaching the halfway mark, there are precious few weekends left in the summer. Sigh! While we’re busy bemoaning our lack of beach time this year, Hollywood is set for one final hurrah; don’t expect a whole lot from here on out. Five movies hit theaters this weekend, and as usual there is something for everyone. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy...

Get Ready to Go Mad: The Season Premiere of Mad Men Delivers

Fri, 14 Aug 2009 07:50:11 -0400

The final season of Lost isn’t starting for another five months, but just this week we found out the apparent title of the premiere, thanks to a viral video made with the help of creators Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse (the episode is titled “LA X;” the space is deliberate). And that’s already on top of knowing that at some point during the season Dominic Monaghan, Ian Somerhalder, Jeremy Davies and...

Single Person's Movie: Varsity Blues

Thu, 13 Aug 2009 09:31:47 -0400

It's 2 AM and you awake with a jerk, alone in your fully-lit apartment and still on the couch. On TV, the credits of some movie you've already seen a billion times are scrolling by. It feels like rock bottom. And we know, because we're just like you: single.

Need a movie to keep you company until you literally can't keep your eyes open? Join us tonight when...

Thumbs Down: The Great Divide Between Critics and Audiences Keeps Growing

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 09:42:52 -0400

Reason No. 68 why the disconnect between film critics and moviegoers is bigger than ever: The elitism of the old guard. Over the course of the past week, well known and nominally intelligent film critics Roger Ebert and A.O. Scott both wrote that the decline of the film industry is in direct proportion to the increasing stupidity of the audience. (Jeffrey Wells, hysterical blogger and all around curmudgeon, had written the same thing...

Box Office Breakdown: G.I. Joe Is a Real American Hit! Plus, Julie & Julia's Opening Slightly Half Baked

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 09:51:57 -0400

It turns out that people in the flyover states like movies, too! At least that’ll be the meme running through the blogosphere today as G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra exploded into the No. 1 slot this weekend, grossing an estimated $56.2 million to pace the field. Landing in second was the cooking comedy Julie & Julia, which whipped up an estimated $20.1 million, meaning this could be the...

The Week in DVR: Mad Men Marathon! Plus, an Anniversary with Regis and Spike Lee's Summer of Sam

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 09:37:47 -0400

Monday: Mad Men
The comedy stylings of Jimmy Barrett. The sexy manipulation of Bobbie Barrett. Freddy Rumson’s retirement party. Joan’s shocking rape. Roger’s new wife. Betty’s marital infidelity. Peggy’s flirtation with Father Gill. Don’s sojourn to Los Angeles. If you have a spare 13 hours lying around today, we can’t think of a better way to spend it than by watching the gloriously perfect second season of Mad Men, which AMC...

Opening this Weekend: Meryl Streep Cooks Up Another Great Performance, Steve Zahn Becomes a Leading Man, and G.I. Joe Explodes!

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 08:33:04 -0400

After a week of slightly disappointing returns at the box office, Hollywood braces for a rebound with two major genre releases: One for the 10-year-old inside all of us and one for all of our mothers. Five movies hit theaters today, as August gets started in earnest. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Julie & Julia

What’s the...

The Definition of Critic Proof: G.I. Joe

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:49:18 -0400

The most ingenious part of the marketing campaign for G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra—on which Paramount has spent an ungodly $150 million—ended up costing nothing at all: That would be the decision to not screen the bloated and sure-to-be eviscerated film for critics before its release tomorrow. Naturally this slap in the face to critical entitlement has ruffled some feathers, but in the process, it has helped Paramount get loads of...

Single Person's Movie: Three Kings

Thu, 06 Aug 2009 09:17:01 -0400

Need a movie to keep you company until you literally can't keep your eyes open? Join us tonight when we pass...

Ben Silverman, the Consummate TV Executive

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 19:10:03 -0400

"I plan to stay at NBC as part of the NBC family. I’m happy there. I’m committed.” So said Ben Silverman, the much-maligned former NBC Universal Entertainment co-chairman, in an interview with The New York Times published this past May. Now, just three months later, he has parted ways with what was his dream job (the story goes that, as a child, Mr. Silverman only wanted to become president of NBC, eschewing such conventional...

The Funniest person in Funny People is ...Eric Bana? Yes!

Tue, 04 Aug 2009 09:17:51 -0400

We found ourselves plenty surprised by Judd Apatow’s Funny People. Apologies to our own Rex Reed—whose vitriol over the film was epic in its proportions—but it wasn’t nearly as bad as we had anticipated. Quite the opposite, in fact: We sneaky loved it! Funny People was vicious, biting, messy and altogether human. And that prohibitive and much debated length wasn’t all that prohibitive at all. (Though, truth be told,...

Box Office Breakdown: The Opening of Funny People Only Amounts to One Small Ha

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 09:20:47 -0400

Perhaps Judd Apatow is smirking all the way to the bank. Funny People, the hirsute director’s third film, opened in the No. 1 position at the box office this weekend, scoring an estimated $23.4 million in ticket sales. Unfortunately, that makes Funny People the lowest-grossing film to reach No. 1 this summer, an honor we’re not quite sure everyone at Universal was hoping for back when the season started....

The Week in DVR: A Documentary That'll Make You Cry, Movies to Make You Laugh, and Dylan McDermott Suits up for Dark Blue

Mon, 03 Aug 2009 08:23:25 -0400

Monday: Boy Interrupted
As part of their summer-long documentary film series—which airs every Monday at 9—HBO is premiering Dana Perry’s Boy Interrupted, a harrowing look at the life and death of her 15-year-old son, Ryan, who committed suicide after a battle with bipolar disorder. We haven’t seen the 2009 Sundance Grand Jury prize nominee just yet, but considering we got choked up watching the 50-second trailer, it’s safe to say we're...

Katherine Heigl Is Not as Bad as You Think (Seriously!)

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 11:06:38 -0400

We weren’t planning on becoming a big Katherine Heigl defender. After all, our hatred for her character Izzie Stevens on Grey’s Anatomy reaches such apoplectic proportions that we’re surprised we haven’t thrown a glass through our television screen by now. (Oh the horror of seeing Heigl-as-Izzie in cancer patient makeup and a bald cap last season!) But the abuse the outspoken starlet has gotten in recent weeks is just too much for us...

Opening this Weekend: Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen are Seriously Funny! Plus, Hugh Dancy Joins the List of Breakout Stars

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 08:56:35 -0400

We sure hope you had a good summer at the movies: With Aug. 1 falling on Saturday, we’re looking at five whole weeks of middling-to-crappy Hollywood genre fare that wasn’t strong enough to open during the big-boy months of May, June and July. As we do every Friday, here’s a handy guide to the new releases.

Funny People

What’s the story: Pretentiously promoted as “the...

Could Jon Hamm Hurt Don Draper?

Fri, 31 Jul 2009 08:23:25 -0400

It's not exactly groundbreaking to say that the the future of Hollywood leading men goes by the name of Jon Hamm, but it’s certainly a point that comes more into focus with each passing day. Earlier this week, it was announced that the handsome star would be playing opposite Ben Affleck and Rebecca Hall in the perfectly acceptable sounding The Town, about a bank robber (Mr. Affleck), the F.B.I. agent chasing...