Chris Rock: “That was the greatest night in the history of television.”

 

Well, certainly in the Top Ten.

Men in Black are back

I know Men in Black 3 has met with mixed reviews, but I must admit: I really enjoyed this richly comical and cleverly plotted threequel when I caught up with it today. It was a hoot seeing Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones back in action -- especially since their reteaming brought back happy memories of interviewing both guys during the L.A. junket for the original Men in Black..

 
It's a little spooky to watch this and realize that, 15 years ago, Tommy Lee Jones and I already were talking about the decline of newspapers. On a happier note: He certainly enjoyed working with Will Smith, didn't he? And yes, at the very end, I am shamelessly cadging an autograph for my son. 


Here's Will Smith during the first incandescent burst of his superstardom -- fresh from the smash success of Independence Day, and revved up for the impending release of Men in Black. And there I am, with my starstruck son hovering just off-camera and hoping I'll remember to get the autograph for him. Which, of course, I do. Let me tell you: I earned some major Daddy Points for this one.

Blast from the past: Will Smith talks about Men in Black

Here's Will Smith during the first incandescent burst of his superstardom -- fresh from the smash success of Independence Day, and revved up for the impending release of Men in Black. And there I am, with my starstruck son hovering just off-camera and hoping I'll remember to get the autograph for him. Which, of course, I do. Let me tell you: I earned some major Daddy Points for this one.

Blast from the past: Tommy Lee Jones talks about Men in Black

I have to admit: It's a little spooky to watch this and realize that, 12 years ago, Tommy Lee Jones and I already were talking about the decline of newspapers. On a happier note: He certainly enjoyed working with Will Smith, didn't he? And yes, at the very end, I am shamelessly cadging an autograph for my son.

Hancock rocks the house

The vertiginous mood swings and abrupt tonal shifts of Hancock may too jarring, too unsettling, for moviegoers who prefer movies that are more smoothly consistent – and who may feel this apologetically all-over-the-map opus is as zig-zaggedly sloppy as one of the title character's flight patterns. But if you find yourself thinking, as I do, that this is some kind of terrific entertainment, chances are good that you'll feel that way because of, not despite, its free-wheeling, risk-taking untidiness.

Of course, lead player Will Smith deserves a fistful of kudos for his fearless performance as Hancock, a surly superhero who drinks himself into super stupors, passes out on bus-stop benches, and only reluctantly rouses himself to take flight in pursuit of bad guys. (Before you ask: No, he doesn’t wear a costume. And if you asked him about that, you’d probably wish you hadn’t.) Maybe he’s killed too many brain cells to think clearly. Or maybe he’s so bored with being bulletproof and super-strong that he must go to extremes to amuse himself. Either way, Hancock makes it very clear very early that he does whatever he damn well pleases, and to hell with the consequences, while pursuing fugitives, dousing burning buildings or, in one especially memorable scene, rescuing beached whales. If Smith weren’t around to generate at least a modicum of rooting interest in this mighty malcontent – well, it would be ridiculously easy to join Hancock's ever-expanding on-screen chorus of disapprovers.

Off-screen: Larry Ratliff has the eyes to see, the mind to discern and the heart to understand. So does Sean Axmaker, and David Denby. You can read my Houston Chronicle review here.

Hey, Will Smith really is legend

The Box-Office King's latest effort rules the Top Ten chart this weekend. And Alvin and the Chipmunks looks pretty damn impressive in the No. 2 position. Looks like I'm not the only one who was feeling nostalgic about Alvin and the gang.

He is legend

A provocative piece in today's L.A. Times suggests that Will Smith has become "Hollywood's biggest post-racial movie star." Money quote: "At a time when the world is growing more multicultural by the minute, movie studios cling to the notion that black performers cannot sell as many overseas movie tickets as their white counterparts. But Smith is shattering that perception..." Which doubtless will make the producers of I am Legend -- opening Friday at theaters and drive-ins everywhere -- very, very happy

Macho love

David Poland has an interesting thread on his blog tied to his provocative Friday column about machismo – or, more specifically, the lack thereof – in this summer’s movies. To quote Poland: “The top five movies of this year are [movies with] male leads [played] by Tobey Maguire, Mike Myers, Johnny Depp, Shia LeBeouf, and Daniel Radcliffe. There might be plenty to love or lust at for any of these men, but machismo is not a part of the equation. They might outthink you, but don't expect to see a fist from a-one of them.”

Poland may have a point (though I would dispute his take on Maguire, if only on the strength of the actor's performance in Ride with the Devil.). But if he does, I would argue that the status quo Poland describes stems from a phenomenon that’s bigger than mere machismo, or the ability to look comfortable (and, more important, effortlessly authoritative) while handling guns. Rather, I would argue that there’s a dearth of contemporary actors in their 20s and 30s who have sufficient gravitas to be taken altogether seriously as…. well, adult males. Even when -- no, make that especially when -- it comes to something as seemingly simple as conveying sufficient self-assured virility to be believable as a grown-up romantic comedy lead.

It reminds me of a conversation I had with producer Lynda Obst just before the release of her How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days. She noted that, as odd as it might sound, it was extremely difficult to cast the lead role in her movie, and that Matthew McConaughey – OK, go ahead and laugh if you insist – is one of only a handful of his contemporaries who could make the part work.

Now, remember, we’re not talking about a role of tremendous depth and complexity here. We’re talking about a part that, in his heyday as a rom-com lead, Rock Hudson could have played in his sleep. (Please spare me the closeted-gay jokes – go back and look at Pillow Talk and you’ll see what I mean.) As Obst said: “These days, the hardest thing about making romantic comedies is casting the guy. Casting the woman? Easy. But you always have the same scripts chasing the same six guys – most of whom can’t do it, won’t do it, are afraid to do it [my emphasis added], or can’t get hired by the studio.”

Don’t get me wrong: I think there are plenty of young guys out there right now who can kick ass as efficiently as Humphrey Bogart and John Wayne did in their respective primes. And I've been told by women whose opinion that I respect that Seth Rogan comes across as a cuddly teddy bear. But who among The New Breed is ready to play rakish charmers like Cary Grant or Clark Gable or even James Garner in modern-day rom-coms? Who could do sensitive-yet-substantial like James Stewart? What the hell, who’s got the chops to tackle the Rock Hudson roles? Keanu Reeves made a tentative move in that direction with the unfortunate Sweet November, but he’s over 40. So are George Clooney and John Cusack, two guys who can, when the spirit moves them, do light comedy with Old Hollywood flair. But as for those guys 39 or younger? Well, there’s Will Smith (though, age-wise, he just makes the cut). And maybe (no kidding) LL Cool J, yes, Matthew McConaughey. And…. ?

The Price of Poe

Roy Rogers isn’t the only luminary who’s getting a day-long tribute this month on Turner Classic Movies. This Friday, Aug. 10, Vincent Price will be remembered with a mini-retrospective that includes five – count ‘em, five! – of the stylish, small-budget Edgar Allan Poe adaptations Price famously filmed in the ‘60s with director Roger Corman: House of Usher (6:30 pm EDT), The Pit and the Pendulum (8 pm EDT), Tales of Terror (9:30 pm EDT), Masque of the Red Death (11:15 pm EDT) and the Tomb of Ligeia (1 am EDT).

Pit arguably is the spookiest of the lot, but I must confess to my preference for Masque, if only because it features the va-va-voom Hazel Court, whose heaving decolletage loomed large in my adolescent fantasies. Tales of Terror, a three-part anthology, contains an episode that's a splendidly seriocomic gem, a tongue-in-cheeky mash-up of Poe’s The Black Cat and The Cask of Amontillado featuring a roly-poly Peter Lorre as an alcoholic ne’er-do-well who gets medieval on a wine connoisseur (a self-parodying Price) when the latter makes moves on the ne’er-do-well’s improbably voluptuous wife (Joyce Jameson).

Also worth TiVoing: The Last Man on Earth (3:30 pm EDT), a budget-challenged version of the Richard Matheson story that recently inspired a rather more lavish sci-fi flick starring Will Smith.

Weekend b.o. blues?

From the Associated Press, good news and bad news about the weekend b.o. figures:

"Overall business was off, with the top 12 movies taking in $112.3 million, down 8.3 percent compared to the same weekend last year, when two blockbusters — King Kong and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe — were Nos. 1 and 2.

"This weekend's holdover films retained strong audiences, though, a sign that many current movies may have a long shelf life, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of box-office tracker Media By Numbers.

"'It's hard to say this is a positive thing that this is a down weekend. But the strength of this weekend has been the holdovers,' Dergarabedian said. 'There is a lot of depth to the marketplace. It's a direct reflection of audience satisfaction. That's more important I think than beating last year's competition.'"

Well, maybe. One thing is certain: As Leonard Klady notes, it was another great weekend for Will Smith.