INTERVIEW: Johnny Depp Calls RANGO Set Ludicrous

Johnny Depp at RANGO movie premiere

Johnny Depp is no stranger to voicing animated characters in a recording booth but in RANGO, his latest voice over role as a lizard, his Pirates of the Caribbean and RANGO director Gore Verbinski took his actors out of the booth and into a regional theater-style set to act out scenes together which Johnny Depp called "ludicrous" and "ridiculous."

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Robert Rodriguez Back To El Mariachi-Style Action With Machete

robert-rodriguez

Director Robert Rodriguez's self-financed action film El Mariachi put Rodriguez on the Hollywood map but his success hasn't compromised his film-making sensibilities. While the Texan native has polished his signature style through the years directing and producing more than 15 films including the successful Spy Kids franchise and El Mariachi trilogy (Desperado, Once Upon A Time in Mexico), he has managed to remain true to his roots but more so with his latest film, MACHETE.

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INTERVIEWS

CineMovie sits down with some of the biggest movie stars, directors, and behind the scenes talent from Hollywood's A-List.
INTERVIEW: Robert Pattinson
 
Helen Mirren stars in LOVE RANCH
   Kristen Stewart stars in TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE
 Robert Pattinson Not Twilight Fan?
   Helen Mirren On Actor Chemistry   Kristen Stewart On Marriage, Best Kiss
         
Megan Fox in Jonah Hex
 
CYRUS Directors Mark and Jay Duplass
   The A-Team movie with Bradley Cooper
 Megan Fox On Pleasing Fans   5 Co-Directing Tips with Cyrus Directors
   A-Team Challenge: Boxers or Briefs
         
Eddie Murphy stars in Shrek Forever After
 
Mexican actress Barbara Mori stars in KITES
  Suzanne and Jennifer Todd on producing Alice in Wonderland
 Eddie Murphy A Movie Critic?    Barbara Mori Takes On Bollywood   Tips On Producing From Team Todd
         
 Jackie Earle Haley is the new Freddy Krueger  
Zoe Saldana Interview
  Aaron Johnson and Christopher Mintz-Plassse Interview
 No Funny Business For New Freddy    Zoe Saldana's Spanish Potty-Mouth
   Kick Ass Interview
         
Benjamin Bratt Interview
  America Ferrera Interview  
VIDEO: How To Train Your Dragon Premiere
 Benjamin Bratt's Mission
    Premiere: How To Train Your Dragon
         
Andy Garcia Dispenses Acting Advice
 
Cheech and Chong On Stage
 
Tim Burton Directs
 Acting 101 with Andy Garcia
   Cheech & Chong Go Digital
   Tim Burton Is No James Cameron

 More Interviews & Features

Carlos Mencia On Tiger Woods
Cop Out Star Kisses & Tells
Action Star's Life Span
Oscar Race: In It To Win
WOLFMAN: Visual Effects vs. Acting
Julia Roberts' Valentine Crush
Golden Globes: What U Didn't See
Jeff Bridges On Hollywood
Sexy Vs. Action Scenes
Susan Sarandon's Acting Tips
Paul Rodriguez (P-Rod)
Cast of The Lovely Bones
Disney's New Princess
Rain on Megan Fox
Shooting A Ninja Movie
Jessica Biel Fears The Unknown
John Cusack: Favorite Disaster Films
Jason Schwartzman Is A Fox
Motion Capturing Scrooge
Fantastic Mr. Wes Anderson
Jim Carrey Grinches It Up
Robert Zemeckis On Horror
This Is It: What You Didnt' See
Mastering A Horror Scream
Jared Hess, Mike White
SAW VI: Playing A Movie Villain
Latino Star Kuno Becker
Star Trek Sequel Secrets
Zombies Invade Hollywood
Cloudy With A Chance of Success
Voicing Animated Characters
Quentin Tarantino Breaks Record
Screenwriting/Directing Advice
Acting During The Recession
Death In 3D
Quentin Tarantino
Rob Zombie's Fav Horror Movies
Making A Sci-Fi Film
Channing Tatum vs. Marlon Wayans
On Red Carpet: GI JOE
Adam Sandler / Judd Apatow
Directing Children
Megan Fox, Michael Bay
Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds
Director Sam Mendes
Miley Cyrus Interview
Wes Craven Interview
One Screenwriter's Meth
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Hall Pass Star Shocked By Farrelly Brothers Gag

hall_pass_movie_jason_sudeikis_owen_wilson-image

When you work on a Farrelly Brothers movie, actors can expect to be put in awkward and often raunchy situations on screen. Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, and Jenna Fischer were ready Peter and Bobby Farrelly's brand of humor in HALL PASS but Jason didn't expect one scene to go beyond what he imagined, he told CineMovie at a recent press conference with the HALL PASS stars and directors.

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The Family Film Hollywood Didn't Want To Make

The Perfect Game

True stories about underdogs overcoming all odds are concepts Hollywood has made into movies many times. The Blind Side is a recent example of a true story adaptation which won Sandra Bullock her first Academy Award as a leading actress and topped the box office for weeks.

A new film THE PERFECT GAME has many similar elements to The Blind Side except the sport is baseball, the story originates in Mexico and moves to the United States, the leads play Mexicans, and no A-List stars. Hollywood passed up THE PERFECT GAME perhaps because of these elements but the filmmakers continued to play ball and eventually hit a home run after six years.  THE PERFECT GAME hits movie theaters starting April 16 but the trip from first base to the home plate was a rough run.

 Watch Movie Trailer

In 1957, a rag–tag group of boys formed a baseball team under the guidance of Cesar, an aspiring Major League Coach thwarted by discrimination. Armed with the dream of playing a real Little League game, the young players defy a lack of resources, disapproving parents, and widespread prejudices of the time to score a major victory at the Little League World Series.
Cheech Marin, Clifton Collins Jr star in THE PERFECT GAME
Surprisingly the story had never been told on celluloid except for a 1960 Mexican documentary, Los pequeños gigantes (The Little Giants). Cheech Marin plays the warm-hearted priest helping the kids achieve their dreams in THE PERFECT GAME and he told CineMovie he was in Little League himself when he saw the documentary and felt inspired by the film.  "They were like the Beatles for us." 

MOVIE CLIP:  Cheech Marin's Priest Helps The Boys Recruit

Writer and producer William Winokur also felt the inspiration after watching Los pequeños gigantes in 2004 and decided to bring the story to life. He wrote a book based on the true events and screenplay to shop around Hollywood.  

"We wanted to make a commercially viable film for kids. The reality is, unfortunately, that Mexicans in movies are stereotyped as drug dealers, gang members, and maids. We wanted to show that culture in a heroic light not a stereotypical way," said Winokur.  

In addition, Winokur and Dear decided to shoot the true story in English for universal appeal.  Despite it's marketable value, the filmmaking team struck out with the studio system and THE PERFECT GAME was financed outside the Hollywood system.  

Actor Benjamin Bratt (Blood In, Blood Out, Miss Congeniality) has his own experience with Hollywood rejection.  His new filmBenjamin Bratt stars in La MISSION project La Mission directed by his brother Peter Bratt tells the story of hard-core Chicano played by Benjamin struggling to accept his son's homosexuality.  La MISSION is in limited theaters in New York and Los Angeles with expansion to more cities throughout April but like THE PERFECT GAME, the journey to the big screen was a struggle.

"It's a question of commerce.  The number one thing that dictates what gets made in this town IS money", said the Piñero star. "Large studios and very large independent companies won't take on the subject matter if they can't see a market.  Surprisingly when we first took the story [La MISSION] out to what are considered traditional forms of funding, they didn't get where they could market it. If they can't understand where and how to market it, they are not interested because they can't make money." 

While La MISSION'S subject matter is quite different than THE PERFECT GAME, THE PERFECT GAME'S family-friendly and baseball-themed premise should have been a shoe in for pick up from a studio or indie labels but the answer kept coming back 'no.'
  

In 2007, the independently-financed production began on THE PERFECT GAME in Monterrey, Mexico - the real location of the story but four weeks into shooting, the "money stopped" according to Cheech Marin who jokes that he felt "broke" when it happened. However, the producers assured Cheech they would resume immediately.   "'So we're going to regroup and back in two weeks in L.A.' they told me."  Eight months later, I thought the movie was gone but they called me and told me the film has been revived and we're gonna start all over." The Perfect Game movie poster

When funding resumed, they started from scratch with new cast members and a new location -- Santa Clarita, CA but the adult cast was worried the boy's puberty might have set in.

"That was my fear when we came back eight months later. But when they came back, they were a little bit bigger but they all grew in proportion to each other so they kind of looked the same and they're voices hadn't changed."

Moises Arias (Disney's Hannah Montana), Jake Austin (Wizards of Waverly Place), Ryan Ochoa (iCarly), and Heroes' Hayden Panettiere's little brother Jansen play some of the team members. In our recent sit down with the boys, the three year lapse since production is evident in their physical appearances. They are almost  unrecognizable with braces, deeper voices, and 2 to 3 inches of added height.

While shooting the film, their characters and story had special meaning for the boys. Ryan Ochoa felt an added "pressure to play the character as best you can." And Miley Cyrus'
sidekick in Hannah Montana Moises Arias knew it meant something positive for Latinos. "To show the world that Latinos aren't in movies about gangsters or stuff like that. They're actually doing something that changes the world. They achieved the impossible."

Once the film wrapped, everyone waited for news regarding the release but after some false hope in 2008 and 2009, the film failed to open after Lionsgate backed out of releasing the film for reasons not made public.  

The cast had lost faith the movie would ever see the light of day. "Once every 6 months, one faction of the producers would call me and tell me they had the picture," revealed Cheech. "So when they said we're going to release the film, I said, 'well send the car first and then I'll believe you.'"
Ryan Ochoa, Louis Gossett Jr. in THE PERFECT GAME
Ryan Ochoa texted to his on screen coach played by Clifton Collins, Jr (Star Trek) news about a possible release but Clifton also weary of the news texted back, "Dude by time that movie comes out, you guys will be in college or getting married," according to Ryan.   

According to Clifton,  he did tease the tweens about being in college before seeing the release of the film, Cheech interjected. "I thought they'd have kids by now." Clifton added, "Some of them do. They're just not allowed to talk about that."

Eventually the film found a distributor with Vancouver based IndustryWorks and a release date set for 2010.  After many years and a lot of work, THE PERFECT GAME finally reaches home plate without the Hollywood hoopla on April 16 but positive word of mouth will hopefully carry this little inspiring film out of the ballpark.  

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Cheech & Chong 2.0: Tamer, Wiser, and Digital

Cheech Marin & Tommy Chong in their new movie Hey Watch This
The original slacker duo Cheech & Chong make their comeback in the digital age on April 20th.  Cheech & Chong's Hey Watch This marks their return to the big screen in limited theatres across the country as well as on DVD/Blu-Ray, Video On Demand service, and available to stream through PS3 and Xbox360 Networks. Add a comment

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Director Taylor Hackford Says Hollywood Ignores Latinos

Director Taylor Hackford  (photo by Alberto Rodriguez)Out of a handful of successful films about Latinos, two of them involved filmmaker Taylor Hackford.

La Bamba (1987) is the highest grossing Latino film in the United States and Blood In, Blood Out (1987) starring Benjamin Bratt remains a cult favorite among urban Latinos.  Since producing La Bamba (Esai Morales, Lou Diamond Phillips) and directing Blood In, Blood Out, Taylor Hackford has always set out to capture the real America through his films.

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New Website Launches For Filmmakers

Sneak On The Lot.com
Facebook, Twitter, Myspace and other social networking sites have made it easier for self-promotion especially for struggling filmmakers.  A new website targets filmmakers to showcase their talents through social networking and interactive gaming. 

Launched in April 2010, SneakOnTheLot.com™  players compete throughout the year for their shot at producing a $20,000 short film in Los Angeles in a studio-lot environment with filmmaking tools, a screening room, access to a music and sound effects library, script library, virtual chat rooms and much more.

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Jack Black Belt

Kung Fu Master
 
  panda_pic1

"Kung Fu Panda" opens nationwide this weekend starring Jack Black as Po, the cuddly bumbling Panda obsessed with being a Kung Fu hero like the Furious Five.  Cine Movie sat down with Jack Black at a recent publicity event in Beverly Hills. 

Q:  Seth Rogen said you were perfect for the role of a panda because you have panda-eque qualities.  Do you agree?


Jack:   Yeah!  I feel like I'm panda-eque.  We are both rolley polley, cuddly, furry AND my beard has black and white in it now that I'm getting older.  So I'm like a panda in that way.

Q:  Was this role a way to live out your kung fu fantasies?


Jack:  In a way, it was my living out my kung fu fantasy.  When I was a child, I took one year of obligatory karate and I believe I graduated to a yellow belt and then I quit.  Don't know why I quit.  Then I did some judo and believe I made it to the green belt but never kung fu and I always wanted to do kung fu. 

I had seen the movies with Bruce Lee and the great television series with Mr. Carradine.  I've always been really interested in the mystical art of kung fu, the most wise of martial arts.  So this was my chance to explore that world.

Q:  Could you break a board?

Jack:  With my mind.  I don't have to use my hands.  It's the highest level of kung fu.
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Q:   Po the Panda has a catch phrase of "skadoosh" which you came up with.  How much were you allowed to improve?

Jack:  I was allowed to go crazy.  I would do what's on the page as written but they encouraged me to explore all the different things, which I did.  I don't know how much they used but they did use "skadoosh".  So I have to take some credit... some writing credit!

Q:  What was it like not being able to use your entire body like you did in Nacho Libre?
 
Black:  I did use my bjackblackpanda_r1_c1ody an awful lot, actually.  They're filming us during our vocal recordings and they use it for reference.  And to get the proper sounds, I would really do the things that I was supposed to be doing.   Like if I was supposed to be tired from running, I would run around.... it was very method acting that way.

Q: During the development of the story, one of the film's directors was influenced by your Tenacious D song ,"Cosmic Shame."

Jack:  That's what he said to me too.  I suspect he said that to get me to do the movie.

Producer Melissa Cobb intercedes and confirms that the crew did listen to his song very early on.

Melissa:  He wanted the crew to understand the essential dilemma of Po, which is really explained well in that song.

Jack:  The idea in the song is about following your heart.  Sometimes you'll follow your heart and it wont lead to anything BUT you have to try.  You have to try because if you don't, you'll always regret not chasing your dreams.  It's a theme that I was exploring before this movie. 

Q:   Kung Pu Panda's dilemma mirrors Jack Black's real life problem early on in his career.

Jack: Po becomes the Dragon Warrior when he realizes he doesn't have to imitate his heroes.  He just has to be himself and be the best he can be and that would make him a master of his craft.   For me...Jack Black...I didn't really have a real career going on until I found my own voice because for many years I imitated other actors and comedians that I loved.  It wasn't until I started writing my own scenes and music and finding my own voice that I became a Master (jokingly) of my craft. 

Q:  You've played a shark in "Shark's Tale" and now a panda, what's next?

Jack:  I'd like to be a winged creature like an eagle although I kind of was an eagle in Nacho Libre or I had eagle powers.  So maybe next I'd like to be a chee-TAH.   It's always been my favorite animal because of it's speed.  The fastest of all creatures.  My favorite superhero is Flash because he's the fastest.  He runs the speed of light.  I don't know why I like the fastest of all things because I'm certainly not the fastest.

Q:  What films will you be shooting next?

Jack:  There's an impending strike so I don't want to mess around. 

Q; Think it'll happen?

Jack:  I hope not. 

No cheetah or Flash roles are in the near future for Jack but catch him in "Kung Fu Panda" this Friday and later this summer in Ben Stiller directed comedy, "Tropic Thunder".




 
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