Shorts, 11/17.

With Quantum of Solace, which just saw the biggest opening weekend ever for a Bond movie in the US and is still doing very well indeed internationally, director Marc Forster "presents us with a new phenomenon in the James Bond films, a Bond at odds with the United States, who risks his career to save Evo Morales's leftist regime in Bolivia from being overthrown by a General Medrano, who is helped by the CIA and a private mercenary organization called Quantum," notes Juan Cole. "In short, this Bond is more Michael Moore than Roger Moore." Via Movie City News.

For Gabriel Shanks, "Quantum is a quintessential chapter in the Bond franchise, marvelously mixing style, action, sex, and dramatic tension in fantastical proportions."

"Guillermo del Toro's developing with the Jim Henson Co a darker version of the Pinocchio fairy tale as a stop-motion feature." And Variety's Dave McNary traces the history of Pinocchios past.

Film Threat presents this year's edition of "The Frigid 50: The Coldest People in Hollywood. Unlike those other lists that brown-nose their way into some pampered celebrity's good graces, the Frigid 50 is a written declaration of who or what in Hollywood needs a reality check, detailing the least-powerful, least-inspiring, least-intriguing people in all of Tinseltown."

"Killer Films partners Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler have sold 50% of the company to VC fund GC Corporation." IndieWIRE sums up what's known so far. Related: Vachon is one of several people quoted in iW editor Eugene Hernandez's reflection on the "Battle for Marriage Equality and the Intersection with Indie Film."

"Valkyrie has turned into a test not only of [Tom] Cruise's career durability, but of MGM's determination - with new ownership, and under the chairmanship of Harry E Sloan since 2005 - to be taken seriously as a producer and distributor of the kind of risky event films that define a major studio," report Brook Barnes and Michael Cieply in the New York Times.

Catherine Grant presents "links to out of copyright or otherwise legally scannable books that have been collected and archived" by the Internet Archive.

Kevin Lee on We All Loved Each Other So Much: "There's about as much - or rather, little - insight into the historical period covered here as there is in Robert Zemeckis's Forrest Gump (TSPDT rank #577) - both films share the trait of interpreting historical developments in terms of moral shortcomings among individuals caused by their selfishness and ignorance. Fortunately [Ettore] Scola and company infuse their simplistic overview with enough witty, knowing dialogue to keep the proceedings engaging."

Nick Davis hosts another round of Best Pictures: From the Outside In, this time featuring a discussion of Gone With the Wind and The English Patient.

"I just gave a lecture on Lawrence of Arabia, and it is David Lean's centenary," notes Robert Horton. "That's my excuse for reprinting this article, published in Film Comment (editor: Richard T Jameson) Sep/Oct 1991. Just one caveat from today: the political stuff in Lawrence is much stronger than I give Lean credit for in this piece."

"Aryan Kaganof's SMS Sugar Man has either the dubious or celebratory distinction - depending on your point of view of these kinds of things - of being the first feature film shot entirely on a cell phone, specifically the Sony Ericsson W900i," writes Mike Everleth. "Given the film's strong sexual content, Sony probably won't be championing the film any time soon. But, in their absence, I will."

"With Salim Baba, Tim Sternberg crystallizes what makes cinema such a paradoxically beautiful thing (and in only 14 minutes, at that, adding to the film's refreshment)," writes Michael Tully at Hammer to Nail.

Chuck Tryon offers his first impressions of Sujewa Ekanayake's Indie Film Blogger Road Trip.

"The good news is that, despite delivering the expected frosty alienation of its namesake, Antarctica features enough sweat-laden sex scenes to thaw three meandering romantic dramedies," writes Joseph Jon Lanthier in Slant.

"40 years later, the impact of the Beatles' self-titled 'return to rock' stands as a statement of a disenchanted group trying to have fun while slowly fracturing. The PopMatters staff celebrates this undeniable achievement with a five day, song-by-song, side-by-LP side breakdown of the entire White Album."

"Baird Bryant, 80, a documentary filmmaker and cinematographer who made his name on edgy films such as Easy Rider and the Rolling Stones' Gimme Shelter, died Thursday from complications after surgery at Hemet Valley Medical Center in Hemet," reports the Los Angeles Times.

Online browsing tip. Carabaas's collection of vintage photos of Hollywood stars, via Coudal Partners.

Online listening tip #1. Nathaniel R talks with Sally Hawkins about Happy-Go-Lucky.

Online listening tip #2. Vinyl Is Podcast #6: Waltz With Bashir.

Online viewing tip. At Twitch, Kurt Halfyard has the trailer for Stingray Sam, which "looks to be a serialized project that is shaping up to a full feature for Sundance 2009" from Cory McAbee (The American Astronaut).

Online viewing tips. David Byrne and Philip Glass in 1986 at the DVblog.

Posted by dwhudson at November 17, 2008 9:30 AM