Chris Hardwick's Blog, page 2138

How INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS Ratchets Tension

The first time I saw Quentin Tarantino‘s Inglourious Basterds, I wasn’t sure what to make of it. It wasn’t what I was expecting at all, which is not a bad thing. But the second through 20th time I watched it, because I already knew what to expect, it became my favorite QT movie of the bunch, and a lot of that has to do with the Hitchcockian degree of tension that gets ratcheted up and stretched to the breaking point in just about every scene. It’s this tension that the YouTube channel Lessons from the Screenplay tackles in their latest video.

The channel’s Michael Tucker uses one scene in particular—the opening 17-minute farmhouse chapter—to illustrate how, even in the writing stage, Tarantino uses polite conversation to build the tension. While Sergio Leone used silence as a build up to violence, Tarantino uses chitchat. Col. Hans Landa (Christoph Waltz) pays a visit to the French farmhouse of Perrier LaPadite (Denis Menochet), ostensibly to dot the I’s and cross the T’s on his report about escaped Jews…however, he knows more than he lets on, and LaPadite knows more than he wants to share. And all of this seeming pleasantry is turned to horrifying tension by the reveal that there’s a family of Jewish refugees hiding under the floor.

It’s something so simple and yet it works beautifully. As Hitchcock himself said, tension comes when the audience knows something’s about to happen but aren’t sure when. His classic example is when a five minute scene of banal conversation ends in an explosion, people get a rush for a few seconds, but when people are shown there’s a bomb under the table that will go off in five minutes, suddenly the same banal conversation becomes wrought with fear and anticipation.

Inglourious Basterds is full of scenes and moments like this–the Bear Jew walking out of the tunnel with the bat, Shoshanna having to have dessert with Landa, the brilliant and masterful scene in the basement bar in Lucerne–but perhaps none is as effective as the scene that pretty much single-handedly won Waltz the Best Supporting Actor Oscar.

What are your thoughts about Inglourious Basterds? Do you love it as much as I do? Let’s talk about it in them there comments down yonder.

Image: Universal/The Weinstein Company

Kyle Anderson is the Associate Editor for Nerdist. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Twitter!

Let’s talk about movies we’re stoked to see this year!

THE MATRIX Reboot Talks Have Begun…

One of the distinctive traits of The Matrix trilogy, as opposed to others similarly conceived, is that it ended not with a victory, but an uneasy truce. Rather than take on the preordained role of a false savior, Neo (Keanu Reeves) made a genuine sacrifice in order to also cancel out Agent Smith, the evil side of the equation he was balancing out. The Architect, on the machines’ side, and the Oracle, on humanity’s side, ended up walking away together wondering how long the truce could last. And since there were talks of a multiplayer online game immediately afterward, we all assumed “not forever.”

The Hollywood Reporter is writing tonight that the time may be coming for more, describing a “relaunch” rather than a direct sequel or complete reboot. Either direction is possible, especially since they’re looking at Michael B. Jordan to star, and Neo was at one point going to be African-American before Keanu Reeves was cast. But there’s speculation that WB could be looking at a larger cinematic universe property here, as The Matrix was really ahead of its time on that front originally, telling a series of one-off stories in The Animatrix, and an original Rogue One-ish “in-between” tale with the video game Enter the Matrix that included new film footage.

X-Men scribe Zak Penn is said to be working on a draft, but Lana and Lilly Wachowski, who originally created the franchise, are not apparently attached at present. Reaction to their Matrix sequels was mixed, to say the least, but some of us remain unashamed of our love for them, and wouldn’t want to see the series go totally out of their hands.

Nerdist has reached out to sources at Warner Bros., who declined to comment. So we’d like to hear from you now–would you want more Matrix, and if so, would you prefer a totally new take, or an exploration into other corners of the existing universe? When you’re done saying “Whoa!”, comment below with your thoughts.

Image: Warner Bros.

MAYHEM Reveals the Gorier Side of Office Politics (SXSW Review)

The worst part about working in an office has to be the people. Not all of them, of course. Thankfully there are usually some pretty cool people at the office — but then there are the weirdos, the jerks, and the troublemakers. In daydreams you could see yourself dropping a brick on the foot of Phyllis from accounting; on good afternoons you’d fantasize about shoving office manager Pete out of a nearby window. You choose your friends, but you rarely get to choose your co-workers, and when it comes right down to it, you could probably beat the heck out of a few co-workers if you had to.

That’s sort of what the certifiably insane action/horror/comedy mash-up called Mayhem is all about: a bunch of (mostly awful) office drones who, thanks to a horrific virus and an amusing legal loophole, find themselves morally (and somehow legally) compelled to beat the living snot out of every co-worker within punching distance. Picture a slightly more rational version of the 28 Days Later plague victims and that’s what the unafflicted are dealing with here. And since there’s already been a court case involving an incident of virally-induced assault–the attacker was found not guilty–that means all bets are off.  The building is quarantined, half the office staff is rabid, and the other half is just looking for an excuse to kick someone’s butt.

So yeah, Mayhem is a pretty appropriate title for this sort of twisted genre concoction. The screenplay (by Matias Caruso) is quite a bit cleverer than what one might expect from an over-the-top, violence-laden action thriller, and it’s a welcome example of how to incorporate various types of humor into what is essentially a collection of exceedingly brutal altercations. After a slightly conventional set-up in which we get to know the location, the characters, and the premise, Mayhem switches from a droll comedy about office politics to a fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek, and appreciably gruesome piece of B-movie mania that will certainly strike a chord with anyone who’s ever spent time as an unappreciated office worker.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that Mayhem boasts a pair of leads that not only get the tone of the piece, but jump into its lunacy quite enthusiastically. Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) and Samara Weaving (Ash vs. Evil Dead) make for an unlikely pair of heroes, but they do a fantastic job of keeping the movie cooking while director Joe Lynch (Everly) concocts the next nutty action sequence. Mayhem may be a simple, straightforward genre mash-up in many respects, but it also offers more than a few well-earned chuckles and it rockets forward with such reckless enthusiasm that it’s hard to not get caught up in the ultra-violent insanity. If you take it too seriously, for even a few minutes, you’ll ruin the whole experience.

Mayhem also looks like it will one day work as a great double feature with the upcoming (and similarly-plotted) The Belko Experiment. Clearly there’s just something about working in an office that inspires people to write comedically violent screenplays about the experience.

Rating: 3.5 quarantine rage burritos out of 5

Disclosure: I do know Mayhem director Joe Lynch personally. He has given me express permission to dislike his movies. The problem is that he just keeps making fun movies. I even dug Knights of Badassdom, and HE doesn’t even like that one!

Team Nerdist conducts their own version of The Belko Experiment

Reddit Sleuth Spots SPIDER-MAN 3 Footage in the LIFE Trailer

No one would argue that making movies isn’t hard work, but it’s sometimes hard to fathom exactly how much effort goes into them. What we see in theaters is the result of hundreds of people working countless hours and the filming itself is a just a small fraction of time nestled between months and sometimes years of pre and post production. But what happens when filming has been completed and you still need a certain shot to make something work? Well, sometimes editors can dig into older projects, re-use some footage, and no one’s the wiser. Well, maybe that was the case before the internet.

A certain eagle-eyed Redditor spotted one such re-used shot in a trailer for the new sci-fi horror flick, Life. They pointed out there’s a reaction shot in the trailer showing a line of people that is almost identical to a moment in 2007’s Spider-Man 3. Some may think this is some sort of uber-fan with 100% recall of every movie they’ve seen, but we’re calling shenanigans on spotting this organically. Our guess is they know someone who worked on the film and heard an anecdote of an editor’s day because this is just far too random to spot. 

Now, the angle and color have been shifted slightly, but it’s still very much the same line-up of people—seemingly innocuous enough until you realize there’s a guy using a flip phone. Since both films are owned by Columbia Pictures there’s no doubt an editing team needed a shot and dug into the archives looking for something that would work.

Funnily enough, the practice is actually more common than you may think. Older animated Disney films are notorious for re-using animated sequences in an effort to save time or—more likely—money. And then there are action scenes too good to use just once like with Michael Bay’s The Island and Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

And while Redditors continue to call this practice lazy or cheap, we see it as using all the parts of the animal. Sometimes (maybe not with Michael Bay’s films) you need to make ends meet and do what you have to do to get things done. And in this case, using a shot from Spider-Man 3 in Life still makes the trailer work.

Wait a minute. Life is about an rapidly growing alien evil blob thing and Spider-Man 3 is about the Symbiote! Are we seeing some sort of Spider-Man 2.5 here?! Let’s discuss in the comments below!

Images: Columbia Pictures

5 Things You Missed in the New DOCTOR WHO Trailer!

After taking a year off, Doctor Who is coming back for the tenth season of the revival series; and it’s the last ride not only for Peter Capaldi‘s Twelfth Doctor, but also for long-time showrunner, Steven Moffat. Earlier this week, BBC released a new trailer and then shamelessly explained almost all of the Easter Eggs by themselves. However, today’s Nerdist News has unleashed our resident Whovians to find the details that even BBC missed!

Join senior editor—and the man nearing his next regeneration cycle—Dan Casey, as he enlists the help of associate editor Kyle Anderson to explore five critical clues that you may have missed in the Doctor Who new trailer. Perhaps the most exciting detail is the appearance of the Fourth Doctor’s sonic screwdriver, which gets tossed to Nardole early in the trailer. We’re so happy to see it that we don’t even care that the Fourth Doctor’s sonic was actually destroyed onscreen during the Fifth Doctor story, “The Visitation.” Perhaps Moffat and company have found a way to get around that by placing the current Doctor in the path of his previous regenerations?

The Ice Warriors are also making a comeback this season, and their queen appears to make her debut at the 47-second mark. Considering we’ve never even seen an Ice Warrior female before, that’s a pretty big deal. And we can’t help but think that the woman who is made out of wood may somehow be related to the Weeping Angels. Even the emoji-faced robot may be linked to a threat from the past, and we’ve also spotted David Suchet’s new character, the Landlord. But is he a friend or a foe?

What did you think about the hidden details of the new Doctor Who trailer? Let’s discuss in the comment section below!

Watch This David Bowie Stamp Get Blasted into Space

David Bowie was a beloved singer, actor, and pop culture icon before his untimely death last January. Now, he’s posthumously added two new successful items to his credentials: he’s also a stamp, and an astronaut.

The UK Royal Mail is producing a new set of ten stamps featuring popular album covers and live tour images from Bowie’s long and illustrious career.  To mark the occasion, Royal Mail sent 52 of their stamp sets up into the sky on balloons, and then filmed their descent back to the ground once the balloons burst in the atmosphere.

If you’re able to successfully chart the stamps’ path and mark where it landed on the Royal Mail’s website (and if you’re a UK resident, because the rules are pretty specific) you’ll be entered to win a set yourself; plus, Royal Mail will also be providing clues as to the stamps’ location on Facebook and Twitter. You have until March 26 to submit your entry, and the winners will be announced in April. And if you don’t live in the United Kingdom and still want to add these gorgeous stamps to your collection, you can also just buy them. Either way, you’re a winner!

Obviously the project is inspired by Bowie’s 1976 movie, The Man Who Fell To Earth (get it? Get iiiit)?, but if you ask me it’s not elaborate enough to properly honor the artist’s legacy. In addition to sending Bowie stamps careening towards the ground, they should have put at least one into a tin can and launched it into actual orbit as “Space Oddity” played in the background. Also, they should send another stamp to live on Mars. It’s what he would have wanted.

What would you have done if you’d gotten to plan an elaborate David Bowie-themed stunt? Tell us all your awesome ideas in the comments below, and let us know if you enter this contest and win, because we are gonna be so jealous.

Image: Royal Mail

Netflix Will Stream the GODZILLA Anime Film Later This Year

When it comes to giant monsters, Godzilla is in a class by himself. While we eagerly await Godzilla: King of Monsters and Big G’s cinematic rematch with King Kong, fans still have a Godzilla anime film to look forward to later this year. And you won’t have to go very far to enjoy it!

Via Anime News Network, Netflix has picked up the global streaming rights for the Godzilla anime film, and it will become available on Netflix after the Japanese theatrical run has concluded. The anime is being produced by Toho, with Kobun Shizuno (Detective Conan) and Hiroyuki Seshita (Knights of Sidonia) as co-directors, and Gen Urobuchi (Psycho-Pass: The Movie) as the screenwriter.

While there have been previous animated adaptations of Godzilla, this is the King of the Monsters’ first anime. Story details about the Godzilla anime have not been fully revealed, but the previously released concept art appears to depict a team of explorers making their way through a lush alien landscape. Or perhaps it’s some undiscovered realm on Earth itself, but that wouldn’t explain why the explorers are wearing environmental suits.

【AJ2017まであと20日】「AnimeJapan 2017」REDステージ（3/26）に『GODZILLA』は登場！ 本日は初期イメージラフスケッチをお見せします。数々の名作で美術監督を務めてきた本作のプロダクションデザイナーが企画初期に描いたものです。#anigodzi pic.twitter.com/ufLhU67Sbe

— アニメーション映画『GODZILLA』 (@GODZILLA_ANIME) March 6, 2017

We have no idea what it all means, but that is some seriously gorgeous concept art. The Godzilla anime will be featured at a panel during AnimeJapan 2017 on Sunday, March 26; and we’re hoping to discover more details about it at that time.

Are you eager to see Godzilla get a serious anime film? Unleash your atomic breath and share your thoughts in the comment section below!

Image: Toho

Wanna see some of filmdom’s weirdest monsters? GOOD!

The Writers Panel #322: Simon Rich, Dave Holstein, Richard Keith & Erin Cardillo

Simon Rich (creator, Man Seeking Woman); Richard Keith & Erin Cardillo (creators, Significant Mother, Life Sentence), Dave Holstein (I’m Dying Up Here; Weeds).

Follow @BenBlacker and Like the show on Facebook!

Say Bonjour to Target’s BEAUTY AND THE BEAST Kid’s Collection

Beauty and the Beast hype is at an all time high, with the new live-action movie debut just days away. The original animated movie was released a whopping 26 years ago. My how time flies when you don’t have an enchanted rose to tell time for you. Fans of the original movie have since grown up and some of them have kids just the right age to appreciate this new tale as old as time along with their own nostalgia.

These little fans now have access to an entire Belle-inspired wardrobe thanks to Target’s newest Disney Beauty and the Beast collection. Like everyday cosplay and Disneybounding which is growing in popularity, these designs are inspired by the costumes from the movie.

For this exclusive collection, Target partnered with Academy Award™-winning costume designer, Jacqueline Durran. The British designer is known for her work on period pieces like Pride & Prejudice and Anna Karenina.

Her dress designs are inspired by themes and scenes in the new movie. Belle’s small town life in the French countryside is represented with beautiful florals, eyelet dresses, and distinctly French toile patterns that incorporate characters from the movie.

Of course roses play a major part and our used in fabrics for dresses, shorts and skirts. There’s even an adorable book purse for all the kids that love to read just like Belle.

It wouldn’t be a Beauty and the Beast collection without a nod to Belle’s iconic yellow and gold ball gown. Light and airy, these dresses are fanciful enough for an imaginary tea party or playtime in the wilds of your own backyard.

All of these Beauty and the Beast inspired outfits are fun and adventurous just like Belle herself. See more of the designs in the gallery below and check out the entire collection online at Target.

Let us know your favorite of these Beauty and the Beast inspired kid outfits in the comments and if your little one is inspired to dress like Belle, tag @nerdist and @justjenn to show us on twitter!

Images: Target

Did you know she was Belle and Boujee?

A BABY DRIVER/DRIVE Mash-Up Trailer Works Too Well

Edgar Wright’s upcoming Baby Driver just might be the most talked about thing to come out of this year’s SXSW. The first trailers dropped this weekend and the internet has been abuzz with excitement over Wright’s return to the writing and directing chair following 2013’s The World’s End. But even though it seems the internet collectively can’t wait to see the action/comedy crime film centered around a talented getaway driver, it hasn’t stopped some from drawing some obvious parallels to similar films.

YouTube editor and mash-up artist extraordinaire thatmattcaronguy certainly noticed the skilled, quiet, and ever so cool guy getaway driver similarities between Wright’s new film and 2011’s Drive. So, what’s a guy with video editing software to do? Well, he set out to splice the two together by taking the Baby Driver trailer and replacing all footage of Ansel Elgort’s “Baby” with Ryan Gosling’s unnamed driver character resulting in… well… pretty much the same trailer.

When framed in this manner, the similarities between the two films do seem a bit damning but driving crime films all have some identical qualities across the board. We’re certain similar scenes could be spliced in for The Transporter, any of the Fast and Furious, or even Smokey and the Bandit. Oh Man! We definitely need to see Smokey and the Baby Driver! Get on that right away, Caron!

What other films could be cut into the Baby Driver trailer? We’re thinking it’s got to be possible to throw in some Baby parallels with Dirty Dancing. Let’s discuss in the comments below!

Image: thatmattcaronguy