The Debut of ‘Django Unchained’ Trailer Brings Guns, Humor and The Wild, Wild West

“Kill white folks and they pay you for it? What’s not to like?” -Django, “Bounty Hunter”

Here is the debut of Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained movie trailer. The film easily ranks among our most anticipated movies here at the Nest. The trailer features all of the stars, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington and Jamie Foxx (as the slave turned Bounty Hunter Django). “Django is off the chain” is the tagline.The trailer blends a vintage western look with modern (enough) funk jams. There is also plenty of sly humor. We’ve already seen the first movie pics…and now this. The movie is set to debut this Christmas. We’ll be among the first in line. What do you think?

Director F. Gary Gray, with all of his mustered machismo brutality and combustible set pieces, is back and he has the judicial system in his sights with Law Abiding Citizen. Swooping flyover shots of the William Penn bronze statue sitting atop Philadelphia’s City Hall are filmed with a seemingly discerning eye while judges and prosecutors alike are depicted as flamboyantly assertive and dishonest.

This is an oppressive film, with its industrial color palette, clanging shackles and flood of legal terminology. If you could smell a film, Law Abiding Citizen would smell like a musty wrought-iron fence. But wait until the slimy politicians and self-preserving district attorneys start roaming the halls of steel-caged thugs who aren’t any more animalistic and unlawful than the prosecutors who put them there. As they speak, you can even see their corruptness and indecency through the cold, wintry air – that is until they receive a new inmate, Clyde Shelton.

Clyde (Gerard Butler) is a father and a husband who is the victim of a random break-in, which brings about the death of his wife and daughter at the hands of two brutes. The prosecutor in this case, Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx), in an effort to guarantee a conviction, makes a deal with one of the two murderers who is now a cooperating witness and will testify in court against the other. So we have two murderers – one gets the death penalty, one gets off in three years.

The police escort Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) to a squad car, just a minor step in Clyde's grand scheme.

Outside the courthouse, in front of a sea of photographers, Nick shakes the witness’ hand in the view of a sheepish and bewildered Clyde, who has just witnessed the injustice of the legal system first-hand. The fact that Nick was unwilling to go to court and get a conviction for both men because of insubstantial evidence, despite it being the absolute truth, makes it all the more difficult for Clyde to swallow. Fast-forwarding ten years, the film quickly becomes an amoral revenge-kick before switching gears completely (to its credit) into a somewhat rational undressing of the American judicial system through the mind games of the now imprisoned, yet still mystifyingly dangerous, Clyde Shelton. “I’ll bring the whole system down on your head”, he says to the wide-eyed and frustrated Nick, “it’s gonna be biblical.”

The fundamental problem with “Citizen” is that it’s a film that wants to toe the morality line and do it under the guise of a slick package, but it simply doesn’t have what it takes under the hood. Our two protagonists are given bland, lifeless dialogue to just throw back-and-forth while the filmmaking is far too routine to overcome the lack of viable substance and certainty. Compounding matters are the surprisingly flat and underwhelming performances of not only the supporting cast but also the two main stars.

Cell phones are actually really dangerous in this movie. They can be used to make deals with criminals and apparently be rigged to...you know.

Gerard Butler (300, The Ugly Truth) is just plainly miscast here as an unbelievable portrait of a grieving father/husband-turned-vigilante. He’s too rough and prickly with his lisp and toned-physique – the fact that I never bought him as this “wounded soul” could not be compensated for by button-down shirts and raincoats, much to the filmmakers’ surprise. Jamie Foxx, on the other hand, looks like he needed a warm cup of coffee to the face. Supporting players and familiar faces like Colm Meaney and Bruce McGill are almost too ideal for their roles while female counterparts like Leslie Bibb (Iron Man) as an understudy lawyer to the district attorney and Viola Davis (Doubt) as the no-nonsense Mayor are hopelessly derivative.

I do appreciate what the film is trying to do here, but it’s often too non-committal, meandering and preposterous. When Clyde’s secret, or rather how he does what he does, is revealed, it’s both a letdown and a shot to the film’s already crumbling credibility. When it’s over, we get the feeling that Clyde’s goal could have been obtained through simpler means and spared us the lecture.

For a guy that truly hasn’t had a career for years, Mike Tyson somehow makes his name heard loudly in the media and lately he’s been taking over Hollywood. He played a role in two films earlier this year. He starred in the James Toback documentary about his life in his words, Tyson, and had an extended cameo in this summer’s comedic hit, The Hangover. Not willing to “fade into bolivian,” Tyson may be filmic subject matter again, as Jamie Foxx would like to portray the former mauler in a biopic.

When out promoting the upcoming Law Abiding Citizen, MTV Movies Blog quizzed Foxx on the potential of a Tyson biopic, which he seemed very happy to want to make happen. He would even like to bring along his Ray director, Taylor Hackford, who of course guided him to his Best Actor Oscar.

Do I think Foxx would be great in this role? Probably so. He was already in a boxing biopic in Michael Mann’s Ali, but didn’t portray a fighter. I just think I’m dwindling on the biopic craze, though. Plus, do we really need to see a fictionalized series of events when we already saw the real events put to Tyson’s own words? That’d be like doing a Tupac biopic, even though we already have Tupac: Resurrection. Foxx is a talented actor, but I’d rather he do something else. Would you like to see a Tyson biopic come to fruition?

See the interview, with quick Tyson impression, below:

A film that already has the acting talents of Robert Downey Jr. and up and coming funny man Zack Galifianakis (The Hangover), will add a real comedian in the form of Jamie Foxx.  That film is the road trip comedy Due Date.  Todd Phillips is helming the pic for Warner Bros. and Legendary Pictures. THR says the movie is about:

…a high-strung father-to-be (Downey) forced to hitch a ride with a college slacker (Galifianakis) to make it to the birth on time.
Foxx will play Downey’s longtime pal, who once dated his wife (Michelle Monaghan) and secretly keeps in touch with her.

Foxx whose real name is Eric Bishop, is known for his work as Wanda in TV’s “In Living Colour” as well as movies such as Ray, where he played the titular Ray Charles in his Oscar winning role.  Foxx has previously worked with Robert Downey in this year’s drama The Soloist.  I like Foxx, while he has been called a ‘dick’ for situations like one in the video below (which I actually think is both selfish and funny).  I like the idea of him in a comedic role, as he has been so heavy with the serious roles of late, including the upcoming F.Gary Gray pic, Law Abiding Citizen.  I welcome his addition to the film and think that this elevates the movie from a ‘possible’ see to a ‘probable’ see for me.  Do you agree or what? Tell us.  If not, I will just blame it on the al-al-al-co-alcohol.

One of the most popular styles of film has been, and will always be, the revenge movie. When these films are done right, they can elicit an emotional response from the audience that few films can match. There have been countless movies made on the subject to date.  The most widely acknowledged film in the revenge sub genre of action films would have to be the 1974 film, Death Wish. The film starred movie tough guy Charles Bronson (not to confused with the Charles Bronson of Nicolas Winding Refn’s new film) as a man who seeks revenge for the murder of his wife and assault of his young daughter.

From the looks of these released stills, you could deduce two things...

In the past couple years there have been many revenge movies released such as Tarantino’s Kill Bill, The Brave One starring Jodie Foster, and Death Sentence with Kevin Bacon (this film was based on the follow up novel to “Death Wish”).  The revenge movie however has become a cliché, so when I heard about director F. Gary Gray’s new film Law Abiding Citizen, I was less than enthused about the film. That was my reaction prior to seeing the film’s trailer, now I am eagerly awaiting Citizen’s release.

Law Abiding Citizen tells the story of Clyde Shelton, played by Gerard Butler (300) whose wife and daughter are killed by two men after their home was broken into. After the men are captured, one is put on death row while the other makes a deal with the District attorney’s office, to avoid the charges. Shelton can’t fathom that the men responsible are getting off so easy, and seeks revenge not only on his family’s killers, but also on the entire justice system that let this occur. Clyde is captured soon, but the DA who got the killers off, Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx, Ray), comes to realize that prison isn’t going to stop Shelton from getting his revenge on those responsible. Nick is the only one who can stop Clyde before he kills again.

The film is directed by F. Gary Gray, who hasn’t directed since 2005’s Be Cool, but he looks to be coming back in fine form with Citizen. The cast for this one includes Butler and Foxx as I already mentioned, but the supporting players include Regina Hall (Scary Movie), Colm Meaney (Intermission), Leslie Bibb (Iron Man) and Michael Gambon (the Harry Potter films).

1: Gerard Butler is hardly in the film. 2: A lot of action takes place off screen. Hopefully neither is the case.

Law looks to be a very tense action thriller that will please fans of smart action films. The cast is great and the twist for the film, I can tell will be a doozy. In the film’s trailer it’s revealed that Butler’s character is not the ordinary man he appears to be, but a Jason Bourne type government agent. This plot point alone, as well as the thought of one man righting the wrongs of our legal system is all I need to know. I’m in. I can only hope I’m not disappointed with the execution, as everything else looks to be on the right track.

Law Abiding Citizen opens October 16th

As “Michael Mann Week” comes to an end here at The Film Nest, we want to bring you one last look at what might now be considered his last “great” movie. Earlier, we brought you the classic shootout in downtown L.A. from 1995′s Heat. It’s probably the most famous scene from Mann’s ouevre. Today, I wanted to go a little less mainstream for you. It’s a short scene from one of Mann’s most underrated films, 2004′s Collateral. At the moment, it’s one of the least loved films in our sidebar poll, so I figured I’d spread a little love on it.

Tom Cruise plays Vincent, a contract killer assigned to dispose of five people in the Los Angeles area who played witness to a crime committed by his employer. He hops into a cab driven by Max (Jamie Foxx), just on the job “temporarily.” Vincent asks Max to be his personal chauffeur for the night, and when the prospect of doubling Max’s pay is offered, Max reluctantly accepts. Little does he know, he has been hired to drive Vincent around to the homes of each of the witnesses while Vincent does his business and kills them. Immediately reluctant to have any role in this, Max tries to back out, much to Vincent’s dismay.

In this short, but sweet scene, Vincent has been dropped out off at the house of victim number two and ties Max’s hands to the steering wheel so he won’t drive away. Max honks the horn loudly, trying to garner a passerby’s attention to help him. He doesn’t get the help he desires. Enjoy.

Since that scene was so short and this is the last Mann-related post of the week, I’m leaving you with a little bonus. This is the club scene from the film where Vincent performs his special brand of magic, played out in front of Paul Oakenfold’s “Ready, Set, Go.”

I could’ve also chosen Javier Bardem’s small, but pivotal scene. “Pedro del Negro!” However at this point, you should just see the movie. It’s great.

As it is “Michael Mann Week” here at The Film Nest (our first official “person week”), one of the keys to making the whole week fly skyward is the Career Retrospective piece.  Mann has been the perfect subject to take a closer look at, as he has a long history of success in film, he has been an innovator, he has a distinct style, and he is renowned for his directorial and writing prowess.  He has brought together big name stars, and subsequently made even bigger stars of them.  He is a marksman that crafts what are simply some of the most beautiful and tense environments around.  He is known for directing realistic action in particular, reaching a plane that few others are on.  He is the anti-Michael Bay in that regard, yet can easily go toe-to-toe with him in the action department.

Mann went to London Film School in the 1960′s and after cutting his teeth in various forms of entertainment media, he eventually directed his first feature for cinema with 1981′s Thief.  We won’t look at that project here, as it was discussed at length earlier this week in a First Features piece.  We wanted to take a brief look at several of the director’s other films though, both home runs and missteps, and perhaps give you some anecdotal information on them along the way.  As for Public Enemies, released into theaters this week and in large part the reason for our celebration of Michael’s works at this time, you can get our full review on the film later this week.

Manhunter (1986)

The original prequel to the Silence of the Lambs, based on the Thomas Harris novel, this film showed hints of the Mann that we would come to know over the next two decades.  An underrated film, better than its reinterpretation in 2002′s Red Dragon by Brett Ratner, Manhunter had little known Brian Cox as Hannibal Lecter and William Peterson of “CSI” fame as the FBI agent tracking him.  I wasn’t expecting this to be the treat it was when I saw it, but Mann racheted up the tension and scored solid acting from the leads involved.

Neon light in the dark room for "Manhunter."

The vivid color palette that Mann has become recognized for was present here, as he began to develop the artistic camera angles that I love seeing in his films.  The emotional struggle that grips Peterson’s character is one of the films highlights as this is far less about Lecter than Demme’s brilliant “Silence” is, but the intensity of a man tracking that serial killer is embodied thoroughly with a director clearly growing into his craft, understanding how to helm a thriller on a ground, realistic, and intense level.  Recommended for those that are interested in Mann’s works and also those who have followed Hopkins signature role of Lecter, to see what another capable actor did with the role, long before Hopkins set his face into the half leather mask.

The Last of the Mohicans (1992)

A decade before Tom Cruise was The Last Samurai, Daniel Day-Lewis was The Last of the Mohicans. DDL is Hawkeye, formerly Nathanial, the adopted white son of Chingachgook and honorary Mohican. The film takes place in 1757, during the French and Indian War as the British and French struggle for control of North America. Cora and Alice, daughters of British Colonel Munro, are escorted from Albany, New York to Fort William Henry, some sixty miles north. Their escort troops are betrayed by a supposed Mohican, Magua, who is actually a member of the Huron tribe, allied with the French. The bloodshed is stopped just short of 100% as Hawkeye and company save the women and their primary escort, Major Heyward from death. Cora grows infatuated with Hawkeye as he does likewise, while politics and war play out around them.

Day-Lewis on the move in "Mohicans."

Michael Mann adapted the film from a 1936 movie of the same name, itself an adaptation of a novel authored by James Fenimore Cooper. Mann flexed his attention-to-detail muscle in a true period piece. The film is renowned mainly for its lush cinematography by Dante Spinotti (their second team-up after Manhunter) and the hauntingly beautiful score by Randy Edelman and Trevor Jones. It probably wasn’t too difficult to elicit a strong performance from method actor Day-Lewis, but it proved to be a worthy departure from the criminal tales Mann would become known for. Not the masterpiece its name in hindsight seems to evoke, but a strong entry nonetheless.

Heat (1995)

The film that catapulted Mann into the consciousness of most.  This is a stellar cops and robbers tale featuring a multitude of performers you may not have known by name but rather recognized at the time by face, like Danny Trejo, Tom Sizemore, Dennis Haysbert and Amy Brenneman; or a young Ashley Judd opposite Val Kilmer.  While it is perhaps most revered as the film that brought Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino together for a film and a special scene of layered dialogue (shot at Kate Mantillini’s on Wilshire Blvd. here in LA), it is equally memorable for Mann’s filming of the intense shootout that we showed in our Classic Scenes earlier this week.

Mann working the cool blue color palette in "Heat."

His filming at dusk, which in my opinion, is one of the most identifiable shot traits he has is ubiquitous here.  He will often frame actors in a soft glow that makes them appear to be floating against an atmospheric backdrop.  This film defines who Mann is to most more than any other and showed that he could work with the best around, garnering him legions of fans both within and outside of the movie industry.  Perhaps strangely, it really didn’t become a mega-hit until video via word of mouth.

The Insider (1999)

I mentioned Mann’s ability to take an actor and catapult their careers forward, well, his partnership with Russell Crowe as a notorious whistle-blower whose life is vastly altered over the course of several years, is almost the thing of legend.  Al Pacino plays real-life journalist Lowell Bergman in the semi-biographical piece (that played as a thriller), a film type that Mann would explore more deeply in his next film as well.  This is Mann’s finest work to date in my eyes, although that is like splitting hairs when a man has the filmography that Mann has.

A hotel room background comes to life in "The Insider."

Mann ultimately knows that actors are his greatest weapons and he unleashes Crowe, letting him transform from a stable man to one on the brink of collapse.  A masterpiece of understated acting bravado, Crowe was recognized with an Oscar nomination (the year he should have won), and Mann a directing nomination, just two of 7, including one for Best Picture that the film would earn.  It is not the crowd-pleasing work that fans might have wanted after Heat, but Mann shows a dedication to taking on new challenges and risks, reverting back to simply creating an intensity that few films can rival.  Must see cinema.

Ali (2001)

Mann again shows his skill as a director getting an action hero and former rapper, named Will Smith to morph himself into an acting powerhouse, as he became boxing great Muhammed Ali for this film, both physically and emotionally.  Both Smith and Jon Voight, as the charismatic announcer Howard Cosell, would earn Oscar nominations for the film, and a former comedian named Jamie Foxx gave a noteworthy performance as the troubled Bundini Brown, proving he could do drama, something he capitalized on in another biography Ray.

Taking an angle on a 'roided up Smith in "Ali."

This is a film where Mann’s notorious attention to detail actually worked against his audiences wishes.  It is very flowing and poetic, as well as a bit long, something that most audiences weren’t looking for, and it was a letdown in that regard marking it as a significant box office misfire, given the star and subject.  People usually prefer a more literal biographical translation on screen, and for one with a person as iconic as Ali, the film achieved mixed results.  It probably deserves a second chance but is not likely to ever reach the status of some of his earlier works.

Collateral (2004)

This is the film that reset Mann in his “comfort” zone, with superstar Tom Cruise acting opposite Foxx in a pulsating film about the transformation of one man’s life when juxtaposed against the near certainty of death.  Cruise locks into his character as Vincent, a hitman out to ice five important members in a trial in a single night.  He gives just enough humanity to a hired assassin to make you long to see more of him in these types of roles.  Foxx slowly transforms from a wayward, shy cab driver into a confident man with nothing to lose.  This is another film featuring lush photography and great music, with Mann balancing the pace of the film with thrilling moments and softer, quieter ones.

Cruise and Foxx playing hide and seek in "Collateral."

Following Mann’s shots, you can tell the seasoning he has had at the helm, not merely shooting a cab driving, where a large portion of the film takes place, but shooting shots of its reflection on buildings, or overhead shots that break up the monotony of the claustrophobic cab space.  Upon its theatrical run, this was seen as a slight misfire at the box office, never really taking off (although it trickled to $100 million domestic) as audiences adjusted to seeing a hero turned bad guy in Cruise.  Still it warrants repeat viewings to continue to gain appreciation for the work put in by all involved.

Miami Vice (2006)

His most recent effort, save for Public Enemies, was the one that was supposed to rocket the new Crockett and Tubbs to new heights with (a surprisingly portly) Colin Farrell (Tigerland) and Foxx as the iconic duo who were once TV staples.  Mann had a role in creating the show for TV in the 80′s; a show that some claimed finally got the full use of color out of television, with the searing heat of Miami etched on celluloid displaying the pastels and neons of the era ever so vibrantly.  The film unfortunately, missed for the most part, as it wasn’t as fun as say, Bad Boys, which I think is what people were looking for.  It lacked the cool, quirky dialogue from the series and took a rather serious tone, with a plot that was a bit too predictable as it played out on screen.

Mann still had beautiful shots like this in "Vice."

This had a troubled production and the leads never really displayed the sort of chemistry you would expect.  Surprisingly, it wasn’t cast as well as most of his other films were without the recognizable faces you saw in nearly all of the aforementioned films.  “Vice” was lacking in character development and plot, even though it is by no means a throwaway film.  Mann still displays a flair for action, with some exciting boat/water sequences and his signature dusk shots are still present with a notable one of Farrell on a boat in the water near the Miami harbor.  Not as bad as it seemed overall, but it crashed hard at the box office and I believe the studio pressured him to finish the film before he was ready, resulting in a misfire nevertheless.

Overall, Mann has had a stellar career; a very nice run.  He is not perfect, but taking a closer look at his works has only further heightened the anticipation to see what he does with John Dillinger’s tale, featuring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale, in this week’s Public Enemies.  Want to know more?  Check back this week as we review the film.

The Gerard Butler and Jamie Foxx led Law Abiding Citizen from director F.Gary Gray (Friday) is rounding into form for it’s 2010 release.  I am kind of feeling the plot from the film’s IMDB page:

An everyday guy decides to take justice into his own hands after a plea bargain sets his family’s killers free. His target: The district attorney who orchestrated the deal.

It almost sounds like it has elements of one of the 10 Movies “The ‘Hood” Loves The Most, New Jack City, in it or at least aspects of HBO’s “The Wire” mixed in.  Gray released the following statement via twitter keeping us abreast of his progress:

Hey Tweeps! I’ve been really busy editing “Law Abiding Citizen”. Hitting deadlines, cutting music, sound FX etc.

This has kind of been an under the radar film, but with a cast that includes two big names as well as screenplay credits from David Ayer (Training Day) and Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption), this one should have a considerably raised profile by the time it is drops next year on March 26th, coincidentally the month where Butler had so much success in 300 a few years back.  FYI, I’ve included two posters below, not sure which is current at this point.

Just doing our part to push things along and keep you informed with the latest.  Of course, for all you tweet heads, you can now follow us on twitter (just click on the sidebar to join or follow the link above) to stay informed with us in new ways as well.

When I first saw the trailer for The Soloist late last fall, I thought it looked like a good film. It was slated for a late release to nab possible Oscar bids, since it had two A-list actors in Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Foxx. After a couple of months of not hearing anything about it and no Oscar mentions, I was wondered what had happened. I found out later that it had been delayed twice, once in November of last year and again this March.  This typically is not a good thing for a movie. For example, All the King’s Men with Sean Penn was delayed a year and that movie ended up being an abysmal failure. The trailer still makes this movie look good, but after being delayed twice, one might wonder. Of course, Zodiac was delayed as well and that one ended being a terrific film.

"Yeah, that's worth about two nickels."

The film stars Robert Downey Jr. as Steve Lopez, a Los Angeles Times columnist who comes across a homeless man playing a broken violin in a park. He finds out the man playing is Nathaniel Anthony Ayers, a cello sensation who developed extreme schizophrenia.  His illness ended up affecting his attendance at New York’s premiere performing arts school, Juilliard School.  During his time at the school, he suffered a mental breakdown and was institutionalized. Steve researches about Nathaniel’s life and discovers that he was one of the top musicians at the school. He decides to write a column about Nathaniel and also purchases a new cello for him to perform with. Nathaniel, reluctant at first about Steve’s gift, accepts it and begins an improbable friendship with him. While trying to get Nathaniel noticed as a musician, Steve must also help him deal with his erratic schizophrenia.

The movie is based on the true story of Steve Lopez association with Nathaniel Ayers. Lopez first met Ayers in 2005 and he began to write a series of articles about his friendship with him. He later wrote a book in 2008 titled The Soloist: A Lost Dream, An Unlikely Friendship, And The Redemptive Power of Music, which chronicled his events with Ayers. The story was later adapted into a screenplay by Oscar nominee Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich). Joe Wright, who directed the Oscar winning Atonement (Best Music), will helm the project.  Catherine Keener (40-year Old Virgin, Capote) will also co-star as Lopez’s editor at the LA Times.

"If you touch me with that thing, I'm gonna wipe it off on my vest."

The Soloist, despite its delays, still looks promising. I read some of the actual columns Lopez wrote about Ayers and have to say his story is very moving. I will be rather surprised if this one doesn’t come out well.  This one features a great cast and crew and it should be a good one to see.

The Soloist opens April 24^th.