Rachel Cohn's playlist

More stills of "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist"

plus this musical video featuring some stills from "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" and the song "Twilight" by The Raveonettes:

Batman 3 by 2011?

" With The Dark Knight not only the biggest hit of 2008 but also one the highest grossing movies of all time, Warner Bros. is understandably eager to bring director Christopher Nolan and star Christian Bale back to the Batcave as soon as possible.

"According to The Wall Street Journal, "The studio is set to announce its plans for future DC movies in the next month. For now, though, it is focused on releasing four comic-book films in the next three years, including a third Batman film, a new film reintroducing Superman, and two movies focusing on other DC Comics characters."

Given the success of the grim and gritty Dark Knight, Warner Bros. Pictures Group President Jeff Robinov says the studio's upcoming DC movie slate is "going to try to go dark to the extent that the characters allow it."

It was recently reported that Warners has an offer out to Nolan to direct Batman 3 but that the director had yet to commit to it. Studio boss Alan Horn told Variety at the time, "We have no idea where Chris is going with this. ... We haven't had any conversations with him about it."

Source: movies.ign.com

Rumors of Depp on Batman

"Rampant rumors of Depp taking on the Riddler in the next Batman feature have plagued the net recently. Depp addressed the rumor for the first time on a Florida radio show promoting his reuninion gig for his band The Kids.

Host: Hey Johnny, a listener called in earlier said you have to ask about the rumors on the internet of you doing the Riddler.
Depp: Oh yeah I heard about that. Not that I know of.
Host: You'd be a good choice.
Depp: It seems like it'd be a fun gig for a while, yeah.
Is Depp a good choice for the Riddler?
Source: comiccynic.blogspot.com

Happy birthday, Joe Swanberg!

"what these films understand all too well is that the tentative drift of the in-between years masks quietly seismic shifts that are apparent only in hindsight. Mumblecore narratives hinge less on plot points than on the tipping points in interpersonal relationships. A favorite setting is the party that goes subtly but disastrously astray. Events are often set in motion by an impulsive, ill-judged act of intimacy.

Artists who mine life’s minutiae are by no means new, but mumblecore bespeaks a true 21st-century sensibility, reflective of MySpace-like social networks and the voyeurism and intimacy of YouTube. It also signals a paradigm shift in how movies are made and how they find an audience. “This is the first time, mostly because of technology, that someone like me can go out and make a film with no money and no connections,” said Aaron Katz, whose movies “Dance Party USA” and “Quiet City” will be shown as part of a 10-film mumblecore series at the IFC Center that begins Wednesday and continues through Sept. 4.

“It was an obnoxious name nobody liked and it was meant to be a joke,” said the director Joe Swanberg, who was at the festival that year with his first feature, “Kissing on the Mouth.” “But we haven’t been able to get rid of it.”

It was Mr. Bujalski who first publicly uttered the term in an interview with Indiewire.com. “I should apologize for that,” he said recently.

It’s only fitting that the etymology should be a point of contention, since the films in question often deal with the fraught process of identity formation. Journalists and bloggers have floated other tags, including the self-explanatory “bedhead cinema” and “Slackavettes,” in homage to the patron saint of American indie auteurs, John Cassavetes. The IFC Center series, despite using “mumblecore” in its publicity materials, is officially called “The New Talkies: Generation D.I.Y.”Mr. Swanberg, 25, is the most prolific and the most committed to improvisation. His new film, “Hannah Takes the Stairs,” which will have a weeklong run during the series, was shot without a script; he shares writing credit with the actors. As in most artistic movements, there is cross-pollination and tacit one-upmanship. Mr. Swanberg said he made “Kissing on the Mouth” partly in response to Mr. Bujalski’s “Funny Ha Ha,” whose characters he found passive-aggressive.

But the prevailing spirit is of friendly collaboration. Two of the three male leads in Mr. Swanberg’s “Hannah” are played by Mr. Bujalski and Mark Duplass. Mr. Katz edited the film’s trailer. Mr. Swanberg appears in Mr. Katz’s “Quiet City” and Mr. Ross’s “Hohokam.” Source: www.nytimes.com

"The NY Times points out a fundamental connection between the Mumblecore movement and technology:

Mumblecore bespeaks a true 21st-century sensibility, reflective of MySpace-like social networks and the voyeurism and intimacy of YouTube. It also signals a paradigm shift in how movies are made and how they find an audience. “This is the first time, mostly because of technology, that someone like me can go out and make a film with no money and no connections,” said Aaron Katz

Technology has clearly changed not only the way movies are being made, but their distribution as well. The Mumblecore movement is a great example of filmmakers taking more of a DIY approach. This is just the beginning".
Source: www.randomculture.com

Visit Joe Swanberg's Official Website.

Highschool lovers (2nd version) video

Michael Cera on "Nick & Norah"

"Only the bashful Michael Cera would hesitate to label his return to the Toronto International Film Festival a triumphant one. Last year, the Brampton, Ont., native was making the rounds for the Oscar-bound Juno. This year, he's back as a headliner in the romantic comedy Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, which will be showcased as the festival's Special Presentation on Sept. 6 before it opens theatrically on Oct. 3.

But please hold off on the celebratory applause. Cera, 20, isn't even sure he can embrace the homecoming theme, since he still lives in Brampton and Los Angeles when he isn't filming on location.

"I don't really feel awkward or comfortable about it", Cera says of his return to TIFF. "Downtown Toronto feels like just as foreign a place to me as any other big city."

What he is overwhelmingly enthusiastic about is Nick and Norah, which plays to the strengths of all those involved, including director Peter Sollett, who made his debut with Raising Victor Vargas, and Kat Dennings (as Norah), best remembered as Catherine Keener's emotionally distraught teenaged daughter in The 40-Year-Old Virgin.

In the film, Cera portrays Nick, an anxious teen member of a band called the Jerk Offs. When he gets unceremoniously dumped by his girlfriend, he heads out into the New York club world with his new-found friend Norah, searching for something to heal his heartbreak.

The droll dialogue and the pop music scene-setting seem like a good fit for Cera. After all, he managed to define the ultimate awkward teenager playing roles in Arrested Development, Juno and last summer's big hit, Superbad.

But there was more behind his interest than the dialogue and the rock 'n' roll backdrop. Director Sollett was the main attraction.
"I was a big fan of his movie", Cera says of Raising Victor Vargas. "It was so authentic capturing the lives of kids in the Lower East Side of New York. And I thought he could bring that to Nick and Norah."The actor's bond with Dennings turned out to be a bonus, but they worked hard to make the relationship seem as relaxed as it does onscreen.

"It was pretty easy the whole way," Cera says of the New York shoot. "We rehearsed a lot before doing the filming, so we felt pretty good going into it. And I knew Pete [Sollett] would rectify any of my bad acting choices in the editing."

Talk about modesty. Cera's been acclaimed since his high-profile introduction as the painfully hesitant George Michael Bluth in Arrested Development. That role led to a string of well-received portrayals.

Instead of embracing his inner movie star, Cera merely shrugs off his string of successes and good reviews. "I think it's more about me spotting things I know I wouldn't be good in," he says.

Cera is taking a well-earned break this autumn and winter after his promotional duties at the filmfest and for Nick and Norah's theatrical opening in October.

Then fans will have to wait until next year for more of his patented comedy. He's the co-star in a trailer trash farce called "Youth in Revolt", which is set for a spring release, and he teams up with Jack Black in the Harold Ramis "period piece" comedy "Year One", which will be ready for a summer, 2009, release. "Jack is Zed who goes on his journey to find an answer to life", Cera says, "and my character follows him."His next film will keep him closer to home cooking. He's scheduled to start filming the Edgar Wright fantasy comedy Scott Pilgrim vs. the World in Toronto early next year.

What he won't be doing any time soon is a movie version of a certain quirky TV show. He hasn't heard of any plans for an Arrested Development film.

"I don't think I would want to see a movie of the series if I was a fan, anyway," Cera says. "And I don't really see a need for it if you can get the three seasons on DVD."
Source: www.nationalpost.com/arts