An R-Rated Anchorman 2 is Coming to Theaters

Posted on February 21, 2014 at 11:27 pm

“Anchorman 2” was released as a just-barely PG-13. It’s now being re-released, with 763 new jokes, as a hard R.

“When my editor told me we had a whole different version of the movie that was more than two hours long with nearly 800 new jokes, I was shocked. But when Paramount said they were actually going to put it in theaters, I did an 1950’s spit take. If you’re a hardcore Anchorman fan go see this. If you’re not, stay very far away,” said writer/director Adam McKay.

Different-rated or unrated versions of theatrical releases are often available on DVD, but the last movie I can remember being re-released in theaters with a different rating was “Saturday Night Fever,” which came out with a PG-13 version to sell tickets to a younger audience. If this new version out-does the lukewarm box office of the first version of “Anchorman 2,” we can expect to see more of this in the future.

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Understanding Media and Pop Culture

Should Faith Audiences Like the New “Noah” Movie?

Posted on February 19, 2014 at 3:59 pm

Russell Crowe plays Noah in a new movie from director Darren Aronofsky (“The Wrestler,” “Requiem for a Dream”) and co-starring “Harry Potter’s” Emma Watson and Oscar-winner Jennifer Connelly.

Variety reports that a group called “Faith Driven Consumers” conducted a poll finding that 98 percent of their tiny, self-selected group were not “satisfied” with the movie. However, none of those polled (or those conducting the polling) had actually seen the movie, which is still in post-production. Furthermore, the members of the Faith Driven Consumer group may not be representative of the faith community or even those who do not so identify but will be interested in the movie because it is a big, effects-driven historical epic with an exciting story and two Oscar-winning stars. Most important, the poll is severely flawed because of the way the question was posed: “As a Faith Driven Consumer, are you satisfied with a Biblically themed movie – designed to appeal to you – which replaces the Bible’s core message with one created by Hollywood?” Even assuming that they are correct about the Bible’s core message, since they have not seen the movie it is close to bearing false witness for them to frame the question this way. And it is highly disrespectful for the commenters on this bogus story to ignore the fact that it is not just Christians, much less some subset of Christians, who have an interest in the story of Noah, who is an important figure in Jewish and Muslim texts as well.

It is likely that the movie will be very respectful of the faith-based audience and present the story of the man who followed God’s direction in a way that will be meaningful to believers and inspiring for those who are open to it. But I will not judge it until I see it, and I will report back then.

Evolution of the Dolly Zoom — the “Spielberg Shot”

Posted on January 25, 2014 at 3:33 pm

Most associated with Steven Spielberg, the “dolly zoom” shot is the vertiginous technique that has the camera moving backward as the lens zooms in. Here’s a terrific compilation — hold on tight!

Tarantino’s Producer Says It’s Time to Cut Back on Movie Violence

Posted on January 23, 2014 at 8:00 am

Producer Harvey Weinstein, producer of some of Quentin Tarantino’s ultra-violent films like “Django Unchained,” told Piers Morgan he is not going to make movies like that anymore.

“You have to look in the mirror, too. I have to choose movies that aren’t violent or as violent as they used to be. I know for me personally, you know, I can’t continue to do that. The change starts here. It has already. For me, I can’t do it. I can’t make one movie and say this is what I want for my kids and then just go out and be a hypocrite.” He added that he would make a movie like Lone Survivor, “a tribute to the United States special forces,” but “I’m not going to make some crazy action movie just to blow up people and exploit people just for the sake of making it.”

In addition, he is producing an anti-NRA film called “The Senator’s Wife,” starring Meryl Streep. He is also getting ready to film a project he has wanted to do for many years, “Mila 18,” based on the Leon Uris book about the Warsaw uprising, the Jews who took up arms against the Nazis.

I do not think there will be any fewer “crazy action movies” or any less violence on screen. But it is good to hear someone in Hollywood think seriously about the value of the films they produce.

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Understanding Media and Pop Culture

Can A Movie Change Your Mind About Politics?

Posted on January 19, 2014 at 8:00 am

A provocative new study measured the effects of movies on the viewers’ thoughts about political/public policy issues like the environment, abortion, and health care, even the viewers’ overall faith in the political system. Mother Jones explains some of the findings about the influence of particular movies. This makes sense — after all, there is a multi-billion dollar industry devoted to the belief that an ad of thirty seconds or less can persuade us to think we need their products. And media like “Will and Grace,” “Queer Eye for the Straight Guy,” and “Brokeback Mountain” did not just reflect a broader comfort level with openly gay characters in real life as well as on screen; they actually increased it. It is interesting that it does not have to be an especially good movie to have an impact. But part of any form of art, especially a narrative like a novel or a movie or a play, is enlarging our perspective by giving us a different point of view or experience. I would be more surprised by a study showing that movies did not change the audience’s mind very frequently.

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Understanding Media and Pop Culture