In the U.K., Ricky Gervais is a big deal. In the U.S., while not many may know his name, almost everyone is familiar with his creation. Gervais is the 47-year-old co-creator/writer and star of the hit BBC shows The Office, which spawned an American imitation with Steve Carell playing his part, and Extras, which HBO distributed domestically.
If you’ve driven north on I-15 recently, you’ve probably noticed Open Air Cinema, a fairly new business located to the west in Lindon, and thought to yourself, “How is that a surviving business in Utah?” While Open Air Cinema is based in Utah, it’s a worldwide company that we’re privileged to have here.
Oftentimes I’ll be given the chance to screen the smallest of indie flicks with an opportunity to interview the filmmakers or stars. Usually, after seeing the movie, I want nothing to do with it ever again. Such was not the case with Take. The first thing that drew me into Take was its cast: I’d loved Minnie Driver since Grosse Pointe Blank and Good Will Hunting and had recognized Jeremy Renner from Swat, North Country and 28 Weeks Later.
On Tuesday, Sept. 9, local comedian and Last Comic Standing finalist Marcus will be taping a new live stand-up DVD titled Second to None. Where else would this special occasion take place other than his own stomping ground here in Utah? The Second to None show will be a two-hour extravaganza including lots of laughs.
The makers of the new indie flick Take, starring Minnie Driver (Grosse Pointe Blank, Good Will Hunting) and Jeremy Renner (The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, 28 Weeks Later), will be speaking in the new library from 3-5 PM this Wednesday on how to write, cast, shoot, finance and distribute a film. They will not only be talking about the technical aspect, but the creative as well.
Back in 1998, I was an 18-year-old movie aficionado with a job that paid far too much. I wanted to upgrade from VHS tapes to one of the newer digital formats. There was DVD format, which was fairly costly and there was DIVX (Digital Video Express), a cheaper, CD-based format, but which required one to go online and pay per movie view — like renting. Not knowing which format would catch on, I decided to take a risk by investing in the DVD format. Thank heaven I did. DIVX didn’t last one year.
Picked up by Focus Features at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival, Hamlet 2 is one of the funniest inappropriate indie comedies of the year.
The summer of R-rated comedies is coming to a close with what could be the funniest of them all: Tropic Thunder. By blowing the top off political correctness through constant comedic jabs at race, sexual preference and physical handicaps, it’s also likely to be one of the most shunned.
Actor/writer Seth Rogen must be on cloud nine right now. After starring in such hits as The 40-Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up and writing the uber-successful super naughty comedy Superbad, it’s going to be hard to keep his momentum moving forward.
