The Family Film Hollywood Didn't Want To Make

The Perfect Game

True stories about underdogs overcoming all odds are concepts Hollywood has made into movies many times. The Blind Side is a recent example of a true story adaptation which won Sandra Bullock her first Academy Award as a leading actress and topped the box office for weeks.

A new film THE PERFECT GAME has many similar elements to The Blind Side except the sport is baseball, the story originates in Mexico and moves to the United States, the leads play Mexicans, and no A-List stars. Hollywood passed up THE PERFECT GAME perhaps because of these elements but the filmmakers continued to play ball and eventually hit a home run after six years.  THE PERFECT GAME hits movie theaters starting April 16 but the trip from first base to the home plate was a rough run.

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In 1957, a rag–tag group of boys formed a baseball team under the guidance of Cesar, an aspiring Major League Coach thwarted by discrimination. Armed with the dream of playing a real Little League game, the young players defy a lack of resources, disapproving parents, and widespread prejudices of the time to score a major victory at the Little League World Series.
Cheech Marin, Clifton Collins Jr star in THE PERFECT GAME
Surprisingly the story had never been told on celluloid except for a 1960 Mexican documentary, Los pequeños gigantes (The Little Giants). Cheech Marin plays the warm-hearted priest helping the kids achieve their dreams in THE PERFECT GAME and he told CineMovie he was in Little League himself when he saw the documentary and felt inspired by the film.  "They were like the Beatles for us." 

MOVIE CLIP:  Cheech Marin's Priest Helps The Boys Recruit

Writer and producer William Winokur also felt the inspiration after watching Los pequeños gigantes in 2004 and decided to bring the story to life. He wrote a book based on the true events and screenplay to shop around Hollywood.  

"We wanted to make a commercially viable film for kids. The reality is, unfortunately, that Mexicans in movies are stereotyped as drug dealers, gang members, and maids. We wanted to show that culture in a heroic light not a stereotypical way," said Winokur.  

In addition, Winokur and Dear decided to shoot the true story in English for universal appeal.  Despite it's marketable value, the filmmaking team struck out with the studio system and THE PERFECT GAME was financed outside the Hollywood system.  

Actor Benjamin Bratt (Blood In, Blood Out, Miss Congeniality) has his own experience with Hollywood rejection.  His new filmBenjamin Bratt stars in La MISSION project La Mission directed by his brother Peter Bratt tells the story of hard-core Chicano played by Benjamin struggling to accept his son's homosexuality.  La MISSION is in limited theaters in New York and Los Angeles with expansion to more cities throughout April but like THE PERFECT GAME, the journey to the big screen was a struggle.

"It's a question of commerce.  The number one thing that dictates what gets made in this town IS money", said the Piñero star. "Large studios and very large independent companies won't take on the subject matter if they can't see a market.  Surprisingly when we first took the story [La MISSION] out to what are considered traditional forms of funding, they didn't get where they could market it. If they can't understand where and how to market it, they are not interested because they can't make money." 

While La MISSION'S subject matter is quite different than THE PERFECT GAME, THE PERFECT GAME'S family-friendly and baseball-themed premise should have been a shoe in for pick up from a studio or indie labels but the answer kept coming back 'no.'
  

In 2007, the independently-financed production began on THE PERFECT GAME in Monterrey, Mexico - the real location of the story but four weeks into shooting, the "money stopped" according to Cheech Marin who jokes that he felt "broke" when it happened. However, the producers assured Cheech they would resume immediately.   "'So we're going to regroup and back in two weeks in L.A.' they told me."  Eight months later, I thought the movie was gone but they called me and told me the film has been revived and we're gonna start all over." The Perfect Game movie poster

When funding resumed, they started from scratch with new cast members and a new location -- Santa Clarita, CA but the adult cast was worried the boy's puberty might have set in.

"That was my fear when we came back eight months later. But when they came back, they were a little bit bigger but they all grew in proportion to each other so they kind of looked the same and they're voices hadn't changed."

Moises Arias (Disney's Hannah Montana), Jake Austin (Wizards of Waverly Place), Ryan Ochoa (iCarly), and Heroes' Hayden Panettiere's little brother Jansen play some of the team members. In our recent sit down with the boys, the three year lapse since production is evident in their physical appearances. They are almost  unrecognizable with braces, deeper voices, and 2 to 3 inches of added height.

While shooting the film, their characters and story had special meaning for the boys. Ryan Ochoa felt an added "pressure to play the character as best you can." And Miley Cyrus'
sidekick in Hannah Montana Moises Arias knew it meant something positive for Latinos. "To show the world that Latinos aren't in movies about gangsters or stuff like that. They're actually doing something that changes the world. They achieved the impossible."

Once the film wrapped, everyone waited for news regarding the release but after some false hope in 2008 and 2009, the film failed to open after Lionsgate backed out of releasing the film for reasons not made public.  

The cast had lost faith the movie would ever see the light of day. "Once every 6 months, one faction of the producers would call me and tell me they had the picture," revealed Cheech. "So when they said we're going to release the film, I said, 'well send the car first and then I'll believe you.'"
Ryan Ochoa, Louis Gossett Jr. in THE PERFECT GAME
Ryan Ochoa texted to his on screen coach played by Clifton Collins, Jr (Star Trek) news about a possible release but Clifton also weary of the news texted back, "Dude by time that movie comes out, you guys will be in college or getting married," according to Ryan.   

According to Clifton,  he did tease the tweens about being in college before seeing the release of the film, Cheech interjected. "I thought they'd have kids by now." Clifton added, "Some of them do. They're just not allowed to talk about that."

Eventually the film found a distributor with Vancouver based IndustryWorks and a release date set for 2010.  After many years and a lot of work, THE PERFECT GAME finally reaches home plate without the Hollywood hoopla on April 16 but positive word of mouth will hopefully carry this little inspiring film out of the ballpark.  

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Cheech & Chong 2.0: Tamer, Wiser, and Digital

Cheech Marin & Tommy Chong in their new movie Hey Watch This
The original slacker duo Cheech & Chong make their comeback in the digital age on April 20th.  Cheech & Chong's Hey Watch This marks their return to the big screen in limited theatres across the country as well as on DVD/Blu-Ray, Video On Demand service, and available to stream through PS3 and Xbox360 Networks. Add a comment

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Director Taylor Hackford Says Hollywood Ignores Latinos

Director Taylor Hackford  (photo by Alberto Rodriguez)Out of a handful of successful films about Latinos, two of them involved filmmaker Taylor Hackford.

La Bamba (1987) is the highest grossing Latino film in the United States and Blood In, Blood Out (1987) starring Benjamin Bratt remains a cult favorite among urban Latinos.  Since producing La Bamba (Esai Morales, Lou Diamond Phillips) and directing Blood In, Blood Out, Taylor Hackford has always set out to capture the real America through his films.

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New Website Launches For Filmmakers

Sneak On The Lot.com
Facebook, Twitter, Myspace and other social networking sites have made it easier for self-promotion especially for struggling filmmakers.  A new website targets filmmakers to showcase their talents through social networking and interactive gaming. 

Launched in April 2010, SneakOnTheLot.com™  players compete throughout the year for their shot at producing a $20,000 short film in Los Angeles in a studio-lot environment with filmmaking tools, a screening room, access to a music and sound effects library, script library, virtual chat rooms and much more.

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Jack Black Belt

Kung Fu Master
 
  panda_pic1

"Kung Fu Panda" opens nationwide this weekend starring Jack Black as Po, the cuddly bumbling Panda obsessed with being a Kung Fu hero like the Furious Five.  Cine Movie sat down with Jack Black at a recent publicity event in Beverly Hills. 

Q:  Seth Rogen said you were perfect for the role of a panda because you have panda-eque qualities.  Do you agree?


Jack:   Yeah!  I feel like I'm panda-eque.  We are both rolley polley, cuddly, furry AND my beard has black and white in it now that I'm getting older.  So I'm like a panda in that way.

Q:  Was this role a way to live out your kung fu fantasies?


Jack:  In a way, it was my living out my kung fu fantasy.  When I was a child, I took one year of obligatory karate and I believe I graduated to a yellow belt and then I quit.  Don't know why I quit.  Then I did some judo and believe I made it to the green belt but never kung fu and I always wanted to do kung fu. 

I had seen the movies with Bruce Lee and the great television series with Mr. Carradine.  I've always been really interested in the mystical art of kung fu, the most wise of martial arts.  So this was my chance to explore that world.

Q:  Could you break a board?

Jack:  With my mind.  I don't have to use my hands.  It's the highest level of kung fu.
panda_pic2
Q:   Po the Panda has a catch phrase of "skadoosh" which you came up with.  How much were you allowed to improve?

Jack:  I was allowed to go crazy.  I would do what's on the page as written but they encouraged me to explore all the different things, which I did.  I don't know how much they used but they did use "skadoosh".  So I have to take some credit... some writing credit!

Q:  What was it like not being able to use your entire body like you did in Nacho Libre?
 
Black:  I did use my bjackblackpanda_r1_c1ody an awful lot, actually.  They're filming us during our vocal recordings and they use it for reference.  And to get the proper sounds, I would really do the things that I was supposed to be doing.   Like if I was supposed to be tired from running, I would run around.... it was very method acting that way.

Q: During the development of the story, one of the film's directors was influenced by your Tenacious D song ,"Cosmic Shame."

Jack:  That's what he said to me too.  I suspect he said that to get me to do the movie.

Producer Melissa Cobb intercedes and confirms that the crew did listen to his song very early on.

Melissa:  He wanted the crew to understand the essential dilemma of Po, which is really explained well in that song.

Jack:  The idea in the song is about following your heart.  Sometimes you'll follow your heart and it wont lead to anything BUT you have to try.  You have to try because if you don't, you'll always regret not chasing your dreams.  It's a theme that I was exploring before this movie. 

Q:   Kung Pu Panda's dilemma mirrors Jack Black's real life problem early on in his career.

Jack: Po becomes the Dragon Warrior when he realizes he doesn't have to imitate his heroes.  He just has to be himself and be the best he can be and that would make him a master of his craft.   For me...Jack Black...I didn't really have a real career going on until I found my own voice because for many years I imitated other actors and comedians that I loved.  It wasn't until I started writing my own scenes and music and finding my own voice that I became a Master (jokingly) of my craft. 

Q:  You've played a shark in "Shark's Tale" and now a panda, what's next?

Jack:  I'd like to be a winged creature like an eagle although I kind of was an eagle in Nacho Libre or I had eagle powers.  So maybe next I'd like to be a chee-TAH.   It's always been my favorite animal because of it's speed.  The fastest of all creatures.  My favorite superhero is Flash because he's the fastest.  He runs the speed of light.  I don't know why I like the fastest of all things because I'm certainly not the fastest.

Q:  What films will you be shooting next?

Jack:  There's an impending strike so I don't want to mess around. 

Q; Think it'll happen?

Jack:  I hope not. 

No cheetah or Flash roles are in the near future for Jack but catch him in "Kung Fu Panda" this Friday and later this summer in Ben Stiller directed comedy, "Tropic Thunder".




 
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Rob Zombie's Top 5 Horror Films

Rocker and writer/director Rob Zombie has made a career of incorporating the horror Rob Zombieelement into his music, art, and films.  With his second Halloween movie set for release August 28th, CineMovie sat down with him for his views on the Twilight craze, remakes and we thought it befitting to ask the Halloween II helmer to name his top five horror films of all time. 

 

Q:  What do you think about this whole 'teeny bopperizing' as we like to call it, of the vampire genre with the Twilight mania and now a tv series (Vampire Diaries).

Zombie:  I don't know.  Truthfully, I was sort of oblivious to it.  I saw Twilight two days ago for the first time out of curiosity and True Blood I watched once on a plane.  Everything goes in waves.  I guess people always lean towards vampires because they are the easiest to make cool and marketable.  Whereas if you make people werewolves they always look goofy.

Q:  That would explain why the Benicio del Toro werewolf movie is being delayed again.

Zombie:  Maybe. But it's an easier thing to keep vampires since they exist through time, it's easier to update them than other monsters.

Q:  So it doesn't bother you that they're turning it into a tween thing and moving away from the horror aspect?

Zombie:  I could care less.  It's like the Lost Boys again.

Q:  What do you think about people boycotting the new Nightmare on Elm Street movie?

Zombie:  It's fine.  I used to be like that ten years ago when I would say, 'why are they remaking these movies?'  It seemed so stupid to me.  Now I'm so numb to it that I don't even care.  I look at it this way now  - there are so many movies that I love that are remakes of other movies.  Christopher Lee's Horror of Dracula is a remake of Dracula which is a remake of Nosferatu.  And I love all those movies so why do you get all close-minded about remakes.  To me, if it's a really good movie - great!  If not, whatever!

Q:  Speaking of good movies, what are your five all-time favorite horror movies?

Zombie: I like classic stuff mixed in with 70's stuff. Stanley Kubrick Movie Collection DVD Some of my favorites are the original Frankenstein movie, Todd Browning's Freaks, the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the original Dawn of the Dead.  And then something like The Shining even though it's maybe not a horror but I love Stanley Kubrick so much.  I love the fact the he decided to make the ultimate science fiction movie, the ultimate horror movie and the ultimate war movie.  I just find that incredibly awesome.

Boris Karloff as Frankenstein on DVD
 Todd Browning's Freaks The Texas Chainsaw Massacre on DVD
George A. Romero's Dawn Of The Dead
Stanley Kubrick's The Shining DVD

Zombie's re-imagining of another popular horror movie Halloween has it's latest incarnation in Halloween II  in theaters August 28.  In October, look for Rob Zombie the rocker on the road in concert to promote his latest solo music project. 

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Will Ferrell and Land of the Lost Interviews

Will Ferrell, Danny Boyle, Anna Friel star in Land of the Lost movie

Will Ferrell Rules This Land

Will Ferrell, his "Land of the Lost" co-stars Danny Boyle, Anna Friel, and director Brad Silberling recently sat down with CineMovie  to discuss their big screen adaptation of the popular 70’s tv show which has transformed into a Will Ferrell comedy.

This modern take on "Land of the Lost" is not the family adventure everyone remembers.  The family is replaced with adults, sexual tension, and references sure to go over kids heads.   Watch Trailer


CM:  As a fan of the original show Will, why make those changes?


Will:  We didn’t want my character saddled with two kids.  We thought it would be a better platform for comedy to have a love interest and a funny man like Danny Boyle.  We didn’t want it to be a Disney film in a way.  The humor had to be cool and pushing that PG-13 rating.  This is the first family I’ve done in a while but the jokes are original and sophisticated which you’re not going to find in a movie in the same vain.


CM:  Were any of original actors approached for a cameo in this film?

Will: The kids from the original tv show did have a cameo at the end of the movie but they were cut out.  I’m not sure why.

CM:  Will we be seeing it on the DVD?

Will:   Yes.

CM:  Chaka, the half man, half ape character has evolved from naïve child-like character to a bit of a pervert as seen in the funny scene with Chaka grabbing
Chaka from Land of the Lost movieHolly’s chest played by Anna Friel.  Was that in the script all along or was it taken further through improvisation on set? Watch hilarious Land Of The Lost movie clip

Will:  That was always in the script. Chaka quickly figured out that the way to communicate with women is to grab their breasts.  He’s kind of sly and a little bit, touchy feely.  We just that would be a funny place for Chaka to go. Jorma (Taccone) did such a great job and he added stuff like touching me all over the place when we first meet Chaka and he steals my wallet.  It was really funny to play off of.

WILL:  Originally the script called for a panel with Al Gore, Stephen Hawkins and Rick Marshall.  Hawkins goes after me to debunk my theories and I lunge at him.  It was funny on paper and then you start making the phone calls and they’re like ‘No, no we’re unavailable.’  So then it became the "Today Show" and they were really up for it.  Matt was totally game and that became plan B which worked beautifully so much so that we went back to reshoot a scene for the end of the movie.

CM:  Will Ferrell and Brad Siberling tell us Matt Lauer did his own improvising during that last scene when Ferrell’s Rick Marshall returns to promote my book “Matt Lauer Can Suck It.”

Will:  Matt said “lets do one more take’ and then he just tackled me which was great. And I’m trying not to laugh because I’m so surprised that he tackling me.  That was brilliant.

Brad:
  Matt tricked me into a second take and then he improvised the tackle.  It was hilarious.

CM:  Perhaps Matt Lauer was channeling what he would have liked to have done to Tom Cruise once upon a time.  

Sid and Marty Krofft, owned the children’s airways with their numerous tv shows (H.R. Pufnstuf, Sigmund and the Sea Monsters, The Bugaloos, Dr. Shrinker, Donny and Marie Show) during the 1970’s.

CM:  What do the creators of the classic tv show think about converting Land of the Lost to an irreverent Will Ferrell comedy? 

Marty: We would not have done it without Will Ferrell.

The original Land of the Lost was a lot more serious than Will Ferrell’s take.

Marty:  We’re okay with that.

Sid:  Our shows were always on the cutting edge.

CM:  Do you think there will be a sequel to Land of the Lost?

Marty:  I hope so but we have to see after it opens June 5th.

The Kroffts have a lot riding on this movie - another of their classic tv shows H.R. Pufnstuf is headed to the big screen.  Fans of the show and Will Ferrell fans are sure to make this tv adaptation a success at the box office this weekend setting the stage for more 70's shows coming to the movies.  


 

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Interview: John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph

John Krasinski (TV's The Office, Leatherheads) and Maya Rudolph (Saturday Night Live) star as Bert and Verona in AWAY WE GO, directed by Sam Mendes (Revolutionary Road, American Beauty. In AWAY WE GO, the hippie go lucky couple travel to find a new home to give birth to their first child. 

CineMovie's Viviana Vigil sat down with the charismatic actors to discuss their new film.  Watch as Viviana makes John Krasinski blush on the topic of lactacting nurses.

                                                    Sam Mendes Interview

Movie Synopsis:  

Exploring the comedic twists and emotional turns in one couple’s journey across contemporary America, Away We Go is the new movie from Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes, from the first original screenplay by novelists Dave Eggers & Vendela Vida, and featuring music by singer/songwriter Alexi Murdoch.

Longtime (and now thirtysomething) couple Burt (John Krasinski) and Verona (Maya Rudolph) are going to have a baby. The pregnancy progresses smoothly, but six months in, the pair is put off and put out by the cavalierly delivered news from Burt’s parents Jerry and Gloria (Jeff Daniels and Catherine O’Hara) that the eccentric elder Farlanders are moving out of Colorado – thereby eliminating the expectant couple’s main reason for living there.

So, where, and among whom of those closest to them, might Burt and Verona best put down roots to raise their impending bundle of joy? The couple embarks on an ambitious itinerary to visit friends and family, and to evaluate cities. The first stop on the grand tour is Phoenix, where the duo spends a day at the (dog) races with Verona’s irrepressible (and frequently inappropriate) former colleague Lily (Allison Janney) and her repressible family, including husband Lowell (Jim Gaffigan); then it’s Tucson, and a visit to the lovely Grace (Carmen Ejogo), Verona’s sister.

An intimate conversation with her sister, who is her lone living relative, gives Verona a refreshed perspective – which she will sorely need in Wisconsin, where Burt’s childhood “cousin” Ellen, now known as LN (Maggie Gyllenhaal), and her partner Roderick (Josh Hamilton) have Burt and Verona over to their home. After LN and Roderick elaborate on their intractable ideas for raising children and running a household, Burt and Verona bolt for Montreal and a warmer welcome from their former college classmates Tom (Chris Messina) and Munch (Melanie Lynskey).

Even though the latter’s house is full of children, comfort and joy, a night out for the four old friends provides a bracing reminder of how much it takes to sustain a relationship and a family. When an emergency phone call forces Burt and Verona into an unanticipated Miami detour to visit Burt’s brother Courtney (Paul Schneider), they realize that they must define home on their own terms.

A Focus Features presentation in association with Big Beach of an Edward Saxon/Big Beach production in association with Neal Street Productions. A Sam Mendes Film. Away We Go. John Krasinski, Maya Rudolph, Jeff Daniels, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Allison Janney, Chris Messina, Catherine O’Hara, Paul Schneider. Casting by Ellen Lewis and Debra Zane, C.S.A. Music by Alexi Murdoch. Music Supervisor, Randall Poster. Costume Designer, John Dunn. Film Editor, Sarah Flack, A.C.E. Production Designer, Jess Gonchor. Director of Photography, Ellen Kuras, ASC. Executive Producers, Mari Jo Winkler-Iofredda, Pippa Harris. Produced by Edward Saxon, Marc Turtletaub, Peter Saraf. Written by Dave Eggers & Vendela Vida. Directed by Sam Mendes. A Focus Features Release.

 

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