Weekly movie trailer roundup: THE RUM DIARY vs. FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS
Thirteen years ago, Terry Gilliam teamed up with Johnny Depp and Benicio Del Toro to make a film based on Hunter S. Thompson’s acid trip of a book, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. Now, Depp stars in yet another adaptation of an uncontrolled substance-induced Thompson binge, THE RUM DIARY. Depp plays a journalist out on assignment (sound familiar?), but instead of Del Toro as his sidekick, Depp’s swarthy drinking buddy is played by Michael Rispolo, who gets bonus points for a nicely grown-in beard and what appears to be excellent comic timing. He’s in Puerto Rico this time, back before the U.S. planted a Starbucks and a McDonald’s along the main plaza. As far as I can tell from the trailer (I have not read the book), the plot line is somewhat more coherent than Gilliam’s 1998 Thompson adaptation, which is not to say it looks better. It goes like this: Depp drinks the hotel mini-bar dry, has a few laughs with a comely blonde (Amber Heard) and tries to expose Aaron Eckhart and his cohorts for a corrupt, possibly government-related scheme that receives little elucidation in favor of the more colorful, rum-soaked scenes they’re using the to sell the movie.
Read More »Up close and fantastical: An interview with director Terry Gilliam on THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS
For 35 years, critically acclaimed director Terry Gilliam has introduced audiences to the fantastic and the bizarre with films such as BRAZIL, THE ADVENTURES OF BARON MUNCHAUSEN, THE FISHER KING, and 12 MONKEYS. His latest film, THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS, follows its characters through a new world of dreams and desire, but was not [...]
Read More »Monty Python turns 40
This Sunday night IFC kicks off Python Week with the first of six hour-long episodes of the new documentary MONTY PYTHON: ALMOST THE TRUTH (THE LAWYER’S CUT). They’ll be airing all the classics too, HOLY GRAIL, LIFE OF BRIAN, LIVE AT THE HOLLYWOOD BOWL along with some of the more memorable “Flying Circus” episodes. I expect [...]
Read More »Terry Gilliam’s THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS
Terry Gilliam next fantastical foray comes in the form of THE IMAGINARIUM OF DOCTOR PARNASSUS starring Heath Ledger, Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell, and Christopher Plummer as the titular character. Doctor Parnassus, the leader of a traveling theater troupe that offers audience members a chance to go beyond reality through a magical mirror in [...]
Read More »Rob Tate
Rob Tate was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He graduated from Yale with a degree in music. While he never pursued music as a career, it plays an important role in his film and editorial work. On ARCHITECTURE SCHOOL [www.sundancechannel.com] Tate served in three key roles: senior producer, director of photography and lead editor. As [...]
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