Arclight Films’ BRANDED with Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor & Max von Sydow Makes Cannes Market Premiere

Arclight Films Announces the Market World Premiere of
BRANDED
This May in Cannes

Mind-Bending Sci Fi Thriller Stars Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor
& Oscar Nominated Max von Sydow

LOS ANGELES (May 11, 2012) – Arclight Films, one of the world’s premiere independent film sales companies, with offices in Los Angeles, Sydney, Hong Kong and Toronto announces the world premiere of the mind bending, sci fi thriller BRANDED starring Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor and Max von Sydow who was nominated for an Oscar for his role in INCREDIBLY LOUD AND EXTREMELY CLOSE. Roadside Attractions has acquired all North American distribution rights. The film rounds off Arclight Films’ Darclight label.

BRANDED is a dark and mind-bending journey into a surreal, dystopian society where corporate brands have unleashed a monstrous global conspiracy to get inside our minds and keep the population disillusioned, dependent and passive.  One man’s (Misha, played by Ed Stoppard) passion to unlock the truth behind the conspiracy will lead to an epic battle with the hidden forces that really control our world.

“The most powerful weapon on earth today is not a gun or a disease, nor is it even visible to many. It is marketing,” said the film’s director, Jamie Bradshaw. “Marketing is the power to control your desires and change your mind, and if you look closer there is something about it that is not of this earth.”

BRANDED is the vision of two widely respected marketing executives:  Jamie Bradshaw and Alexander Doulerain.  Bradshaw co-founded Ignition Creative, one of the leading creative advertising agencies in Hollywood.  Doulerain is Chief Creative Officer of one of Russia’s most popular TV Networks TNT.  Bradshaw and Doulerain co-wrote, produced and directed.  Ed Stoppard, Leelee Sobieski, Jeffrey Tambor, Ingeborga Dabkunaite and Max Von Sydow star.

“BRANDED is a thrilling project from all angles and a very special addition to the Darclight label,” said Gary Hamilton, Managing Director of Arclight Films. “We couldn’t be more enthusiastic about working with Jamie Bradshaw, Alexander Doulerain and an extremely talented team of players. The special f/x and commercial value of this film are particularly exciting.”

BRANDED was picked up by Roadside Attractions who’ve acquired all North American rights for the film. The studio plans a nationwide theatrical release this September and Lionsgate has home entertainment, VOD and other ancillary rights through their output deal.

The market world premiere takes place this May in Cannes.

About Arclight Films
Arclight Films is one of the world’s leading international sales companies for theatrical, television and home video and is celebrating its tenth year in business. Arclight Films has sold over 130 motion pictures including the 2004 Best Picture Oscar® winner CRASH, and 2007 Golden Globe® Best Picture Nominee BOBBY.

Arclight Films additionally encompasses subsidiary labels Darclight Films, the edgy genre-driven division of the company whose films include the worldwide horror hit WOLF CREEK (2005) and the current slate that includes 3D shark action thriller BAIT and Easternlight, a specialty arm showcasing Asian cinema with the largest film library of any non Asian-based indie film label. Films sold under the Easternlight banner include the worldwide blockbuster FORBIDDEN KINGDOM (2008) starring Jackie Chan and Jet Li, 14 BLADES (2010) starring Donnie Yen, legendary auteur Chen Kaige’s SACRIFICE (2011) and a live action adaptation of the world-renowned legend MULAN, now in pre-production. The latest additions to Easternlight’s slate include 2012 Cannes Film Festival “Directors Fortnight” official selection DANGEROUS LIASIONS and THE ASSASSINS starring Chow Yun Fat.

Arclight Films maintains a presence at all major motion picture and television festivals and markets with offices in Los Angeles, Sydney, Hong Kong and Toronto.

Win Win (a J!-ENT Blu-ray Disc Review)

“Win Win” is a film that captures you with its sincere filmmaking and heartfelt situations.  Well-acted, well-written and overall, a Blu-ray release worth checking out!

Images courtesy of © 2011 Twentieth Century Fox Corporation.  All Rights Reserved.

TITLE: Win Win

FILM RELEASE DATE: 1966

DURATION: 95 minutes

BLU-RAY DISC INFORMATION: 1080p High Definition (widescreen 2:35:1), English 5.1 DTS-HD MA, Subtitles: English SDH, Spanish, French

RATED: NOT RATED

COMPANY: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Twentieth Century Fox

RELEASE DATE: August 23, 2011

Directed by Thomas McCarthy

Screenplay by Thomas McCarthy

Story by Thomas McCarthy and Joe Tiboni

Produced by Lisa Maria Falcone, Michael London, Mary Jane Skalski

Executive Producer: Lori Keith Douglas, Tom Heller

Co-Producer: Jacqueline Brogan

Associate Producer: Erica Tuchman

Music by Lyle Workman

Cinematography by Oliver Bokelberg

Edited by Tom McArdle

Casting by Kerry Barden, Paul Schnee

Production Design by John Paino

Art Direction by Scott Anderson

Set Decoration by Amanda Carroll

Costume Design by Melissa Toth

Starring:

Paul Giamatti as Mike Flaherty

Amy Ryan as Jackie Flaherty

Bobby Cannavale as Terry Delfino

Jeffrey Tambor as Stephen Vigman

Burt Young as Leo Poplar

Melanie Lynskey as Cindy

Alex Shaffer as Kyle

Margo Martindale as Eleanor

David W. Thompson as Stemler

Mike Dielielo as Jimmy Reed

Nina Arianda as Shelly

Marcia Haufrecht as Gina Flaherty

Sharon Wilkins as Judge Lee

Clare Foley as Abby

Penelope Kindred as Stella

Sophia Kindred as Stella

Tim Ransom as Stuart Thatcher

Academy Award Nominee Paul Giamatti stars as a lovable yet long-suffering lawyer and high-school wrestling coach who takes us on a brilliantly heartfelt journey through the game of life…where you can’t lose ’em all. When Mike Flaherty (Giamatti) comes across a teenage runaway who also happens to be a champion wrestler, Mike’s luck turns around in spectacular fashion. But his win-win situation soon becomes more complicated than he ever imagined when the boy’s family affairs come into play. Co-starring Oscar Nominee Amy Ryan and directed by Oscar Nominee Tom McCarthy, this touching and funny comedy will leave you cheering.

Actor Thomas McCarthy is known for his film roles on “Meet the Parents”, “2012″, “Michael Clayton”, “Good Night, and Good Luck” and TV roles on “The Wire” and “Law & Order”, but the actor is also a writer and filmmaker.

But back in high school, he and his good friend Joe Tiboni were also wrestlers and felt that there has not been a wrestling movie created in a very long time.

So, the two friends decided to go back to their old neighborhood in Providence, Rhode Island and create a wrestling film.  And sure enough, “Win Win” was born.

McCarthy got together with another friend, actor Paul Giamatti and in March 2010, “Win Win” received a limited release and received positive reviews from film critics nationwide.

The film revolves around New Jersey attorney Mike Flaherty (played by Paul Giamatti, “Sideways”, “Saving Private Ryan”, “Planet of the Apes”).  With the sagging economy, his law practice has taken a hit and also other law practices around the area and he worries how he is going to support his family which include his wife Jackie (played by Amy Ryan, “Gone Baby Gone”, “War of the Worlds”) and his two daughters.

To keep his sanity, Mike also coaches the New Providence High School wrestling team which has been on a losing streak as of late.  Both he and his assistant coach Vigman (played by Jeffrey Tambor, “The Larry Sanders Show”, “The Hangover”) really want the team to live up to the school’s motto “The Home of the Champions” but the team is not that good.

One day, he is able to represent a client named Leo Poplar (played by Burt Young, “Rocky” films), who is a wealthy man but now has dementia.  Knowing that he needs the money for his family, Mike makes an ethical choice to become his guardian while getting paid $1,500 for Leo’s care.  But instead of taking Leo to his home for care, Mike decides to put him in a home for assisted living.  So, he’s taking Leo’s money but not taking care of him at his house as originally intended.

One day, while visiting Leo’s home, he finds a boy named Kyle Timmons (played by Alex Shaffer), a troubled teenager who has ran away from home to live with his grandfather.  But Mike lies to him that his Uncle Leo is forced by the courts to stay at an assisted living home and can’t move back to his house.  As for Kyle, Kyle could stay with his family for a short time.

But on the day that Kyle is supposed to go back home to his mother, he doesn’t want to and learns that his mother doesn’t care too much about Kyle and was beaten by her boyfriend while she is in rehab.

Worried about Kyle, both Mike and Jackie take Kyle in temporarily.  And as Kyle sits and watches Mike teach wrestling, Kyle requests if he can take part in wrestling practice and sure enough, Kyle does a wonderful job.  Mike and his good friend and former wrestling partner Terry Delfino (played by Bobby Cannavale, “The Other Guys”, “Station Agent”) learn from Kyle that he was a former wrestler but also, his talent has led him to the state championship.

So, now Mike feels that Kyle may be the key to making New Providence High School’s wrestling team champions by having a champion wrestler on the team.  And sure enough, Mike and the family have a great relationship with Kyle and Kyle enjoys being in a family with stability.

But things start to go awry when his mother Cindy (played by Melanie Lynskey, “Up In the Air”, “Heavenly Creatures”) shows up from rehab and wants to raise her father (in order to get the money) but also bring Kyle back home.

What will Mike do?

 

VIDEO:

“Win Win” is presented in 1080p High Definition (widescreen 1:85:1).  This independent film is shot on film and thus grain is present and for the most part, picture quality is very clear.  Noticed a more cool color overall, I didn’t notice any edge enhancement, artifacts or banding.  Good enough detail especially on closeups of the actors faces and black levels are nice and deep.

Overall, picture quality for “Win Win” looked very good!

AUDIO & SUBTITLES:

“Win Win” is presented in English 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio, Spanish and French 5.1 Dolby Digital.  Because the film is primarily a dialogue-driven film, it’s center and front channel driven.  I didn’t notice any major use of surround sound (possibly during the more musical sequences) but dialogue is crisp and clear.

Subtitles are in English SDH, Spanish and French.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

“Win Win” comes with the following special features:

• Deleted Scenes – (1:54) Featuring two deleted scenes.
• Tom McCarthy and Joe Tiboni Discuss Win Win – (8:29) Tom McCarthy (director/writer) and Joe Tiboni (writer) talk about how they came up with the concept for the film, the local community support and the casting of the talent.
• Dave Thompson at Sundance 2011 – (2:27) Dave Thompson (who plays the character of “Stemler”) is interviewed about his experience at Sundance.
• In Conversation with Tom McCarthy & Paul Giamatti at Sundance 2011 – (2:26) Tom McCarthy and Paul Giamatti talk about working together after being friends for over a decade and also discussion about the film.
• Family – (2:24) A film preview of “Win Win” and interviews with the director and cast of the film.
• “Think You Can Wait” Music Video – (4:55) Music video by The National.
• Theatrical Trailer – (2:22) Theatrical trailer for “Win Win”.

“Win Win” is a heartfelt film and definitely one of the better wrestling films to come out since “Vision Quest”.

“Win Win” is a very good film as it captures the reality of many Americans who are struggling during the tough economy. In the case of Mike Flaherty, not all lawyers are doing well financially.  No clients equals no income and he is definitely feeling the financial pinch that he makes a questionable decision as an attorney.

But what makes the film work is that both director Thomas McCarthy and Joe Tiboni wanted to do a wrestling film but also pulled in some of their real-life situations for this film.  From the look and feel of Mike Flaherty’s home, to the office of where he works, the film tries to showcase the reality of the economy hurting a family but also the life of a normal, working man having to make tough decisions, which includes taking in a troubled kid.

There is no sugar coating, McCarthy and Tiboni made the film’s characters seem real and the situations real as well.  Also, as an independent film, it helps to have the support of your local community, especially when making the wrestling seem interesting, realistic and also showcasing the competition amongst the high school teams.

As a former high school wrestler, I can easily remember as a teenager, having to watch “Vision Quest” (which our coach made us do) but both McCarthy and Tiboni are right, in the fact that there hasn’t been a good film that showcased high school wrestling until “Win Win”.

Everything is captured from the rock n’ roll entrance, the coach to wrestler pep talk and also the wrestling on the ground.

But most of all, it helps when you have a new actor, especially like Alex Shaffer who plays Kyle.  It’s not overacted, everything seems just right.  And both Paul Giamatti and Amy Ryan compliment and also enhance Shaffer’s acting.

As for the Blu-ray release, picture quality is good, audio quality is dialogue-driven but also very clear and the special features, while it seems that there are many, they are a bit short.  It would have been nice to have an audio commentary by McCarth and Tiboni.

Overall, “Win Win” is a film that captures you with its sincere filmmaking and heartfelt situations.  Well-acted, well-written and overall, a Blu-ray release worth checking out!

SUPERHERO MOVIE (a J!-ENT DVD Review)

“When you see the ‘from the guys who brought you SCARY MOVIE and THE NAKED GUN, you pretty much know what kind of film you’re going to get.  So, it’s all about watching these movies with an open mind.  Fortunately, among the similar-related movies by these creators, ‘SUPERHERO MOVIE’ is probably the most entertaining of the lot.”

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FILM:  SUPERHERO MOVIE

COMPANY: DIMENSION HOME ENTERTAINMENT

DVD INFORMATION: Color, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC

RATED: PG 13

DURATION: 82 minutes

PRODUCED BY Robert K. Weiss, David Zucker, Craig Mazin

WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Craig Mazin

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Bob Weinstein, Harvey Weinstein and Mathew Stein

STARRING: Drake Bell, Christopher McDonald, Sara Paxton, Kevin Hart, Brent Spiner, Jeffrey Tambor, Robert Joy, Reginal Hall, Pamela Anderson, Leslie Nielsen, Tracy Morgan and Marion Ross.

THE TRAILER:

Spider-Man, X-Men and the Fantastic Four will never be the same after this outrageously funny spoof of your favorite comic book movies!  Drake Bell (Drake & Josh) stars as a nerdy high school student bitten by a genetically-altered dragonfly.  He stumbles hilariously through the process of becoming a crime-fighter and as his new powers grow, so do the laughs.  Sara Paxton (Aquamarine) and Christopher McDonald (Spy Kids 2) costar as the clueless damsel in distress and the comically intense super villain, along with Pamela Anderson and Leslie Nielsen.  Going from superzero to superhero has never been this much fun!

For the week of Halloween 2008, I decided that there will be no horror movie marathon.  This week, I will watch the various comedy films that typically feature on the front of the DVD “from the guys who brought you SCARY MOVIE and the NAKED GUN”.

I pretty much know what I’m getting into with these films and know you have to have an open mind because although many scenes will have its funny moments, you can expect your share of really idiotic moments as well.

I know people who can just laugh and know what to expect with these films but some who have never seen these type of films and just feel the wasted their time watching it.  So, with that being said, enjoyment of this film depends on your take of these type of movies.

“SUPERHERO MOVIE” is a film that parodies the first “Spider-Man” film, “Fantastic Four”, “X-Men” and “Batman”.

The film revolves around Rick Riker, a nerdy high school teenager who loves his classmate but bullied quite a bit in his school.  Things go from bad at worse at a school trip when he accidentally spills a chemical which attracts animals to him and somehow he ends up being bit by a radioactive dragonfly.

Riker develops special powers and next thing you know, the Dragonfly is born.

Marion Ross and Leslie Nielsen play the aunt and uncle of Rick Riker.  In true Leslie Nielsen fashion, if you watched the “Naked Gun” films, you know what to expect for his role.  Marion Ross of “Happy Days” fame was quite interesting as the aunt who has a major flatulence problem and just can’t stop farting.

Tracy Morgan plays a Professor X type of role, trying to help Riker learn his new powers and show him the school of teens who have powers.  Pamela Anderson plays the role of Invisible Woman who has been caught messing around with Professor X by Mrs. Professor X.

One of the highlight scenes is when Riker and the girl of his dreams, Jill Johnson are about to share a kiss but his aunt Lucille (Marion Ross) sleeping right next to them leashes continuous farts that just sound so horrible.  Fart jokes can be funny and the manage to include a hilarious gassy scenes in which Jill who really wants to kiss Riker, uses her tampons to put up her nose to avoid smelling the fart. Fart jokes are gross but when done well, you can’t hep but laugh.

Of course, probably the coldest jokes are the ones on physicist Stephen Hawking.  The gags on his character featured getting his head accidentally stuck in a beehive and not able to get out of it because of his disability.  And of course, using his vocoder device to simulate Hawking screaming profanities. For a film to really make fun of his disability to get some cheap laughs is just very cold.

There are so many gags in this film with those type of gags, some quite funny and some that are just idiotic but I found this film more to the funny side fortunately.  But with jokes such as the Stephen Hawking (which there are numerous scenes with this character), I can see many finding it tasteless and some to find it so funny knowing it’s so wrong.

AUDIO & VIDEO:

Truthfully, I wasn’t paying too much attention towards the quality of the film and as for the audio, the film is strictly dialogue.  Not much need for special audio effects.

SPECIAL FEATURES:

The extended version features the alternate ending, deleted scenes, two featurettes and a theatrical trailer plus a commentary.  The regular version only features the alternate ending (which was so dumb, I’m glad they didn’t use it), deleted scenes and the theatrical trailer.

There are three versions of this film on DVD in the US.  The regular version which is only 74 minutes long and has only the alternate ending, deleted scenes and theatrical trailer, while the extended version which is 82 minutes long and has the additional commentary track and featurettes.  The third version is a Blockbuster exclusive which features additional deleted scenes.

So, far of the movies within this genre and created by the same creators of “SCARY MOVIE” and “NAKED GUN”, of the more recent films, “SUPERHERO MOVIE” was probably the funniest compared to the others. Again, this is comparing to the other related films by the same creators.

There is a lot of funny jokes throughout the film but there are also a good number of idiotic jokes as well.

I enjoyed the superhero film parodies on this film and although there are a few well-known talent who made cameos on this film, I’m just glad many of their segments were quite short.  In fact, I’m glad that the film was quite short.

In the end, I definitely didn’t find myself disliking it.  I suppose it’s because I enjoyed the superhero parodies on the film and I haven’t seen a film go so far to do a parody based on superhero films in this magnitude.

All in all, a fun film if you come watching with an open mind.

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