Jon Shapiro Movies
- 2007
- G
Hollywood A-list director Mark Pellington (The Mothman Prophecies, Arlington Road) and newcomer Catherine Owens team up to break new cinematic ground by co-helming U2 3D -- the first three-dimensional concert film in movie history. The effort intercuts footage culled from several U2 shows on their 2005-2006 Vertigo tour in Mexico City and Buenos Aires, Argentina, with Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton, and Larry Mullen Jr. performing before rapt audiences. The picture opens with several thematically light rock songs, such as "Beautiful Day" and "Vertigo," but soon segues into more politically conscious material at the hands of social-change advocate Bono and his bandmates, such as the numbers "Bullet the Blue Sky," "Love and Peace or Else," and "Sunday Bloody Sunday"; at one critical point, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is projected high above the audience. Pellington, Owens, and cinematographers Tom Krueger and Peter Anderson make frequent use of a roving camera and multi-layered 3-D effects; they also step away from the approach utilized in the band's previous concert film U2: Rattle and Hum by omitting interviews and focusing exclusively on concert footage. The full version of U2 3D runs 80 minutes; a 56-minute "preview" version ran out of competition at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival. ~ Nathan Southern, All Movie Guide
- 2006
Inspired by the series of popular children's books created by H.A. Rey and Margret Rey in 1941, the daily, half-hour Curious George was the second animated TV version of the venerable property. Narrated by actor William H. Macy, the two short cartoon segments per half-hour episode found mischievous "four-handed" monkey Curious George going through his time-honored paces, all the while gleaning valuable insights about science, math, and design-engineering concepts. Generally George had to have his enthusiasm curbed by the ubiquitous Man in the Yellow Hat, but he always managed to absorb an educational concept that could be easily grasped by the series' two- to six-year-old target audience. The end of each episode featured live-action segments showing children applying whatever they'd learned during the animated segments. Produced by Universal Home Entertainment, Imagine Entertainment, and WGBH-Boston, Curious George made its PBS debut on September 4, 2006, not long after a CGI-animated feature-film version of the same property was released theatrically. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- William H. Macy
The naughty little monkey from Margret Rey and H.A. Rey's beloved children's stories makes the leap to the big screen in this animated adaptation. Ted (voice of Will Ferrell) is an explorer with a large yellow hat who is good friends with Bloomsberry (voice of Dick Van Dyke), who runs a natural history museum. Bloomsberry's greedy son, Bloomsberry Junior (voice of David Cross), wants to tear down his dad's museum and put a parking ramp in its place, but the elder Bloomsberry is convinced that a spectacular new exhibit could save the museum from the wrecking ball. Ted heads to Africa on an expedition to find some special artifacts that will keep his friend in business, but while he's there he befriends a playful monkey he calls George (voice of Frank Welker). While George is friendly, he has a taste for mischief and seems to always get Ted in hot water; Ted thinks he's seen the last of his simian friend when his ship heads back to America, until he discovers that George managed to hide aboard the boat before it set sail. Ted's search for a eye-catching exhibit proved to be a failure, and Ted and his good friend Maggie (voice of Drew Barrymore), a schoolteacher who's sweet on him, struggle to find of a way to save Bloomsberry's museum. But time becomes precious for Ted when George has an entire new city to explore. Curious George features a handful of original songs composed for the film by surfer-turned-singer/songwriter Jack Johnson. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Will Ferrell, Drew Barrymore, (more)
- 2005
Debuting September 19, 2005, the weekly, hour-long WB courtroom drama Just Legal starred Don Johnson as Grant Cooper, a once-prominent and well-connected attorney who, after bungling a high-profile case and losing his client to death row, quickly went on the skids, ending up in a seedy law office in Venice, CA. Only able to get work as a court-appointed attorney, Cooper had grown sour and dispirited about his life and work. Things brightened considerably when David "Skip" Ross (Jay Baruchel), a 19-year-old legal prodigy, became Cooper's junior partner. Brilliant and idealistic, Skip had been unable to secure a position with any of the top legal firms because of his age, so he came calling upon his idol, Grant Cooper. At first taking Skip on because the lad worked cheap and was willing to do all the "grunt" work, Cooper eventually found that himself revitalized by his partner's youthful enthusiasm and dedication. Together, our mismatched heroes dedicated themselves to taking on "hopeless" cases and defending the losers and outcasts of the world. The office's only other employee was secretary Dulcinea "Dee" Real (Jaime Lee Kirchner), a recent parolee (she still wore her electronic ankle bracelet!) who was working off her legal fees to Cooper. Taking no guff from anyone, Dee had a cute habit of terrifying her nominal bosses when she was feeling out of sorts, but she proved to be an invaluable member of the team. Just Legal was assembled by the same Jerry Bruckheimer team responsible for CSI, Cold Case, and Without a Trace. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Don Johnson, Jay Baruchel, (more)
One of the biggest artists of the oldies era, Dion performs over a dozen songs in this release from Image Entertainment. Shot in Atlantic City, Dion: Live includes such classics as "I Let My Baby Do That," "A Teenager in Love," "The Truth Will Set You Free," "Abraham, Martin, and John," "Donna the Prima Donna," "Runaround Sue," and "The Wanderer." ~ Matthew Tobey, All Movie Guide
- 2001
This concert documentary, originally shown in the big-definition, giant-screen IMAX process, offers a glimpse of some of pop music's biggest stars working their magic on stage and discussing their craft behind the scenes. The Dave Matthews Band teams up with soul music legend Al Green for a version of Green's classic "Take Me to the River". George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic roar through a medley of their ground-breaking funk hits "Flashlight" and "One Nation Under a Groove", with hip-hop diva Mary J. Blige sitting in on vocals. Blues legend B.B. King and jam-rock kingpin Trey Anastasio (of the group Phish) bring their guitars together as they join up with the Roots for a unique version of "Rock Me Baby". Rob Thomas of Matchbox Twenty and veteran guitar virtuoso Carlos Santana take their Grammy-award winning number "Smooth" to the stage. Sting and Algerian superstar Cheb Mami sing together on "Desert Moon". Sheryl Crow turns in a stripped-down acoustic performance of "If It Makes You Happy". And Macy Gray, Kid Rock, and Moby also turn in performances of their hits. All Access: Front Row. Backstage. Live! was directed by famed rock photographer Martyn Atkins. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
A purposely outlandish cartoon created in 1953, Harvey Comics hero Richie Rich finally came to the big screen in 1994, when a boy billionaire was not quite as fanciful an idea. Richie Rich (Macaulay Culkin) is the wealthiest boy in the world, but even though he loves his doting parents, Richard (Edward Herrmann) and Regina (Christine Ebersole), he's not happy. Richie wants to play baseball with some neighborhood kids, but his parents instead hire Reggie Jackson to coach him. He wants to go out and play, but instead he gets aerobics training from Claudia Schiffer. When his parents disappear in the Bermuda Triangle, Richie suspects that Laurence Van Dogh (John Larroquette), an employee of Rich Industries, of plotting to take over the company by killing his mom and dad. With trusty butler Cadbury (Jonathan Hyde), eccentric inventor Prof. Keenbean (Michael McShane) and some new friends his own age, Richie puts a plan together to foil Van Dogh's wicked scheme and rescue his parents. Having grown to the point where he was no longer believable in the little kid parts that once made him America's top child star, Culkin took an extended break from acting after the filming of Richie Rich. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Macaulay Culkin, John Larroquette, (more)
