Indiana University CinemaEstablishing Shot

Double Trouble: How Michael Mann Used L.A. Takedown (1989) to Make Heat (1995)

Posted on by Jesse Pasternack

Poster for L.A. Takedown
Poster for Heat (1995)

This July, Establishing Shot presents It’s Revived!, a miniseries celebrating some of our favorite (or at least some of the more fascinating) movie remakes out there in anticipation of IU Cinema’s fall film series Re:Made. Up first, Jesse Pasternack discusses how Michael Mann turned a TV movie into a stone-cold cinematic classic.

Every cinema enthusiast encounters certain popular ideas about movies at some point in their life. They range from the belief that sequels pale in comparison to the original film in the franchise to the certainty that some genres (especially horror and musical) only have niche appeal to the types of folks you wouldn’t want to talk with for too long. As a cinephile continues their journey into the wonderful world of movies, they decide which of these ideas they like and which ones don’t hold true for them.

One of these ideas relates to the topic of remakes. Many people often deride the idea of remaking classic movies like King Kong (1933) or Halloween (1978). The fact that there have been remakes of both films shows that this idea doesn’t hold much weight with development executives. But there is a flip side to this which I actually like quite a bit. This point-of-view holds that, instead of remaking good movies, filmmakers should create remakes of bad movies. Said remakes would be a do-over and a way for a talented filmmaker to take an interesting premise and reconfigure it to reach its full potential. It is telling that some of the best remakes to come out of the American film industry — namely Martin Scorsese’s morally murky Cape Fear (1991) and Steven Soderbergh’s well-plotted and ultra-cool Ocean’s Eleven (2001) — are strikingly different from what came before them. They serve as compelling evidence for the argument that the best remakes are the ones which take a bold and different direction from their source material. (more…)

Physical Media Isn’t Dead, It Just Smells Funny: Criterion Collection, Kino Lorber, and Arrow Video Blu-ray Reviews for June 2022

Posted on by Aja Essex

Artwork by Nile James Arena
Artwork by Nile James Arena

Full transparency: all Blu-rays reviewed were provided by Criterion Collection, Kino Lorber, and Arrow Video.

Welcome to the second half of this month’s reviews for “Physical Media Isn’t Dead…” Generally I try to find a throughline to tie these films together in some way, but honestly the only throughline I can find this time is that all of these films whip tuchus in their own special way. Criterion has finally re-released one of my last two remaining formerly out-of-print “white whales” (the other being The Third Man) in the form of a beautiful HD disc of Powell and Pressburger’s sumptuous The Tales of Hoffmann. Kino Lorber blesses us with a film I never knew I wanted so badly called quite simply Stunt Rock. And in an unexpected turn of events, Arrow Video delivers my pick of the month with the absolutely buckwild 1998 erotic neo-noir Wild Things.

Usually I say “take a read and take a chance” or some such variation, but no chances to be taken here — only sure shots in the back end of June. (more…)

Monthly Movie Round-Up: June

Posted on by Establishing Shot

A woman sits in a tub with a pensive look on her face
Girl Crazy
Le tempestaire
Disclosure

 

Every month, Establishing Shot brings you a selection of films from our group of regular bloggers. Even though these films aren’t currently being screened at the IU Cinema, this series reflects the varied programming that can be found at the Cinema and demonstrates the eclectic tastes of the bloggers. Each contributor has picked one film that they saw this month that they couldn’t wait to share with others. Keep reading to find out what discoveries these cinephiles have made, as well as some of the old friends they’ve revisited. (more…)

Two Weeks Notice and the Merits of the Romantic Comedy

Posted on by Michaela Owens

Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant in Two Weeks Notice
Sandra Bullock and Hugh Grant in Two Weeks Notice

This June, Establishing Shot will feature a miniseries we’re calling Here’s Looking at You, 2002 as we take a look back at films celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. Today, Michaela Owens is starry-eyed for Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock as she dives into their rom-com personas and their sole cinematic collaboration.

For years, I have been preaching about the unending joys of “fluff,” movies that are written off as inconsequential because they feature fizzy romance or sunny musical numbers or just a general breezy atmosphere that has nothing to do with doom-and-gloom superheroism, existential dramas, and creaky “ripped-from-the-headlines” miniseries. Fluff is, to be frank, my lifeblood — nothing makes my eyes light up more than a piece of escapism like an Esther Williams aquamusical, Wayne’s World, Anchorman, the films of Astaire and Rogers, Something’s Gotta Give, or Music and Lyrics. And yet we’re somehow deluded into believing that cozy, crowd-pleasing fare is less legitimate than a three-hour biopic no one asked for that will still somehow win multiple Oscars. The romantic comedy, for instance, is a soufflé of a genre, a delicate balancing act that must present two people falling in love with enough charm and laughs to pierce through the cynicism of the average audience, but still we’ll dismiss its existence because it’s not “serious cinema” — it’s silly movies for (mainly) silly women who are too busy swooning to realize what mindless entertainment they’re consuming.

Which is, of course, ridiculous. (more…)

Eight Legged Freaks and the Good Rental

Posted on by Laura Ivins

DVD cover for Eight Legged Freaks showing a tarantula hover over David Arquette's head
DVD cover for the widescreen edition of Eight Legged Freaks

This June, Establishing Shot will feature a miniseries we’re calling Here’s Looking at You, 2002 as we take a look back at films celebrating their 20th anniversary this year. Today, Laura Ivins makes us nostalgic as she reminisces about the rise of the DVD and the charms of the video store.

In 2002, the DVD format overtook VHS. DVDs had been introduced five years earlier and experienced rapid adoption among the home-viewing market. Outlets like Wal-Mart, Blockbuster, and independent video stores were phasing out their VHS stock and shifting fully to DVDs. Even though about 60 million more U.S. homes had VCRs than DVD players at this point, DVD sales far outpaced VHS in all categories except children’s entertainment.

In 2002, my boyfriend and I lived in an apartment complex that was next door to a Blockbuster. This was Blockbuster’s peak, with over 5,000 stores in operation in the U.S. and Netflix streaming still five years away. (more…)

Physical Media Isn’t Dead, It Just Smells Funny: Imprint Films, Fun City Editions, and Criterion Collection Blu-ray Reviews for June 2022

Posted on by Aja Essex

Artwork by Nile James Arena

Full transparency: all Blu-rays reviewed were provided by Imprint Films, Fun City Editions, and the Criterion Collection.

Back after a hiatus to get the blog rebranded and re-URL’d, and to give your usually vibrant and passionate reviewer some much needed time off, I am once again here to bring the hottest and most interesting titles from some of my favorite big Blu boutiques. Back again this month are our pals at Fun City Editions with one of the most uniquely toned films that they have put out to date, the 1985 film Coca-Cola Kid. Criterion has the welcome release of Tampopo director Junzo Itami’s The Funeral.  And finally from Imprint Films, we have a psychological and ambiguously supernatural double feature of sorts featuring detectives maybe a little bit over their heads with the releases of Man on a Swing and The Wicker Man.

It’s summer and it’s too hot to go outside, so give these releases a gander and maybe you’ll want to sit inside with a cold cola and bask in something cinematic and special. (more…)

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