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Showing posts with label bedtime stories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bedtime stories. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

Matt Adcock meets Russell Brand (and Adam Sandler)


Matt Adcock Meets Russell Brand (and Adam Sandler too)

As the new Disney magical fantasy adventure / comedy Bedtime Stories hits the screens I got to meet up with two of the stars of this fun family film.

Matt: I liked the ideas behind the stories your character tells the kids in this film coming to life. It must have been fun playing out the fantasy sections?

Adam: I looked great in a cowboy hat, so the Wild West scene was fun and I think I looked fantastic in leather pants in the space scene. I really looked good in the gladiator costume too. At least I am guessing I looked good judging by the reaction I got from my co-star Keri Russell.

Russell: I get to play a robot called ‘Lieutenant Mike’ in the Outer Space chapter and they were very diligent and assiduous in their make up job, painting even the inside of my mouth golden, in spite of what we learned from the film Goldfinger that being covered in gold paint can lead to death. There was one area of skin that didn’t get painted gold though… and when I went for a wee my genitals looked ridiculous, this pink organic object emerging from C-3PO’s robotic torso!

Matt: And so how did you pick Russell for the part?

Adam: We had a great part in the film for this room service guy at the hotel who was my best friend and kind of loose and great with the kids. First of all we imagined Russell doing it; we got excited just thinking about the possibility and then Russell was cool enough to say yes. I thought he would be good. He was more comfortable with the children than me in fact. Then we completed the movie and we screened it for the first time. When they ask audiences who is their favorite character, I got a score of 91 which is very high and I thought, ‘great’. But then I looked at Russell’s score and he got 96. I thought to myself: how dare he? The children of America have embraced the long and lean and handsome Russell Brand.

Russell: Thank you Adam and I look forward to in about 15 year’s time that will really start paying dividends!

Matt: What was it like making your first Disney film?

Adam: I always loved Disney movies growing up with my own family. Every Sunday we would watch a Disney movie with Kurt Russell. I was a very big Kurt Russell fan as a child and in fact I wanted to be the modern day Kurt Russell.

Russell: What I’d do is think ‘there are children here’. But it’s not mentally hard because, obviously in my life, I have friends who have got kids and hang out with kids. With them, I don’t think ‘right, now for some X-rated filth’ to pass the time. I use the usual methods I’d use socially and it’s nice to see myself doing something in a film and like it’s not all rude.

Matt: I’ve heard you’re both big sport fans – did you get to watch much whilst filming?

Russell: Sandler is obsessed with sport and, in fact, it seems to be prioritised over making the film. There were screens everywhere showing basketball, football and stuff like that next to the monitor that I’m trying my hardest to be doing my acting on. I’d say, what about that bit of acting? Was it all right?’ and someone would shout ‘they’ve just scored a touchdown’.
At least they understood the significance of West Ham United in my life. Sport was one of the things that made me feel very comfortable in that environment and enhanced my masculinity. It was like: ‘sport, hey? I like sport too. We’re not so different, are we?’


You can see Adam and Russell in Bedtime Stories from 26th December.

Read our review here and enter our competition here

Bedtime Stories - Christmas Competition


"be careful what you wish for..."

BEDTIME STORIES COMPETITION...

To celebrate the release of the new Disney film Bedtime Stories - Darkmatters have some cool prizes that you can win (if you live in the UK).

There are 4 runners up and one jackpot winner (umbrella, nightlight, book to write your own bedtime stories in...)

To be in with a chance of winning - just finish this sentence in less than 20 words and email it to:
darkmatters@another.com

My ulitmate bedtime story is the tale of......(your 20 words go here)


Editor's choice is final - winners picked by 12 Jan so get going!!

GOOD LUCK - and enjoy the film

Darkmatters review here: Bedtime Stories Review

Did it make our 'top ten films of the year'? find out here: matt's top ten films 2008

Film Review - Bedtime Stories


Bedtime Stories (PG)

Dir. Adam Shankman

Reviewed by Matt Adcock

2008 ends with a bang as the year’s most all round family pleasing fantasy effort rocks up to cinemas making far fetched children’s bedtime stories come to life.
In a brave move by Disney they have teamed up comedy goofball Adam Sandler with Brit shock comedian Russell Brand for their big Christmas movie. It might sound like a recipe for disaster but against all odds Bedtime Stories really works and director Adam ‘Cheaper By The Dozen 2’ Shankman manages to somewhat redeem his previous crimes against cinema with this genuinely good fun romp. So we have Skeeter Bronson (Adam Sandler) the immature but hardworking handyman at a swanky hotel that used to be run by his dad. Due to a twist of fate he is saddled with looking after his niece Bobbi and nephew Patrick (Laura Ann Kesling and Jonathan Morgan Heit) and all sorts of fun ensues when the crazy bedtime stories he tells them begin to come true in real life.Sure there is a predictable romantic subplot and lots of the comedy moments are telegraphed miles in advance but Sandler goes about his slapstick role with gusto and real heart. Russell Brand is surprisingly good as Mickey – Bronson’s best pal who also works at the hotel and suffers from a comedic sleep panic disorder but even he is upstaged by a goggle eyed guinea pig named Bugsy.
Bedtime Stories makes good use of it’s ‘anything can happen and you’re only limited by your imagination’ idea taking fantasy spins through the Wild West, a medieval castle and a messy outer space showdown. The kids are suitably adorable, the supporting cast are effective, especially Keri Russell as Jill ‘the love interest’ and the lovely Teresa Palmer as the spoilt babe daughter of the hotel owner Violet Nottingham. Of course there are baddies on offer in the form of underhand work rival Kendall (Guy Pearce) and his devious sidekick Aspen (Lucy Lawless). There are some lovely throw away touches such as a bright red Ferrari horse and Russell popping up as mermaid but pick of the bunch is Band’s robot alter ego – he could be C3PO’s long lost brother!
Hardened sceptics and Sandler haters might balk at such a machine tooled Disney feel good production but when it is done this well, there really isn’t any reason not to enjoy some fantasy kids dream wish fulfillment.

Happy Christmas!
Arbitrary final rating: öööööööö (8)

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Matt's top ten films 2008

Matt’s Top Ten Films of 2008

2008 had some fantastic films in just about every genre – there was high camp in Mama Mia (even if it was a bit like watching actors play SingStar on a Greek holiday), future art in Wall-E (unique and lovely)and more shoes than you can count in Sex and The City (I didn't like this but I know some women who did) but for me here’s the top ten of films that are worthy of special note:

"no one was supposed to get hurt..."

10. Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (15)
An awesome slow burning, nerve grinding tour de force that will make you squirm as you see characters making very bad decisions and then try to deal with the consequences. Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke have never been better.

"What if the stories you told came to life?"

9. Bedtime Stories (PG)
You want ultimate kids dream wish fulfillment, genuinely funny slapstick, a romantic central plot and some great special effects… Disney deliver the goods this Christmas with the unlikely but winning team of Russell Brand and Adam Sandler bringing the feel good fun of making bedtime stories come to life. Adults need not apply.

"Never Forget. Never Forgive."

8. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (18)
Johnny Depp cuts a dashing swathe as the demon barber of Fleet Street, singing whilst he delivers this biting black comedy with a very sharp edge. A full blooded musical horror show driven by homicidal tendencies and cannibalistic appetites – it isn’t for the faint of heart.

"Shoot first. Sightsee later."

7. In Bruges (18)
You might not expect a foul mouthed, crunchingly violent and darkly comic oddball film about hitmen to make you stop and consider life, honour and the nature of Purgatory but that’s exactly what In Bruges achieves… Colin Farrell is on top form as a newbie contract killer hiding out in the quiet fairytale like Belgium town of Bruges.

"A comedy about growing up... and the bumps along the way."

6. Juno (15)
Teenage pregnancy is certainly no laughing matter but cool indie film Juno manages to deliver plenty of sharp comedy as well as a refreshing edginess in tackling a difficult subject head on. Juno has so much going for it, a fantastic cast, a rich and kookily left field comic vein and even a cool soundtrack. This compulsive watching and Ellen Page is going to be a massive star!

"When Ambition Meets Faith."

5. There Will Be Blood
Paul Thomas Anderson's epic sees Daniel Day-Lewis go completely over the top in a screen eating performance that burns into the retina. This is larger than life melodrama that doesn’t know when to stop. Mesmerising but uncomfortable – this is a must see, even if it’s only once.

"They took his daughter. He'll take their lives."

4. Taken (15)
“I will look for you, I will find you. And I will kill you…” People traffickers nab the wrong girl as her CIA trained dad (Neeson) goes on a rampage to save her. The plot might be wafer thin but that hardly matters when the action is this crunching and high octane. More exciting than the latest Bourne and Bond put together.

"Fully Charged."

3. Iron Man (12)
“Is it better to be feared or respected? I'd say is it too much to ask for both?” is the mantra of Tony Stark, multi-billionaire playboy and maverick high tech weapons dealer. Stark (a never better Robert Downey Jr.) becomes the titular metal clad super hero and unlike the multitude of tortured soul reluctant world saviours we’ve had recently, he relishes the opportunity.

"You can't stop what's coming."

2. No Country For Old Men (15)
In the land of the free they say that ‘there are no clean getaways’, and No Country for Old Men takes that notion and splatters it large across the screen in a stunning, violent modern classic. No Country for Old Men is an awesome experience - a perfect storm of a talented cast, quality source material and stunning direction, mixed with jaw dropping cinematography.

"Why So Serious?"

1. The Dark Knight (12)
The stakes are raised for Batman / Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) when he has to figure out how to fight The Joker (Heath Ledger RIP) an enemy with an irrational lust for chaos. Dark and dangerous, fast and furious, a superhero film that is far more graphic novel than comic book. The Dark Knight is gorgeous, stylish and exciting - this is 2008’s defining film.



check out last year's list here:

matts-top-10-films-of-2007