The Man and His Dream: A Francis Ford Coppola Profile (Part 5)

Trevor Hogg profiles the career of legendary filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola in the fifth of a five-part feature... read parts one, two, three and four.

Shot over a course of eighty-six days, Youth Without Youth (2007) is a cinematic adaptation of the novella by Mircea Eliade. Struck by lightning, a timid seventy year old academic (Tim Roth) finds himself growing younger in 1938 Romania. “My and Tim’s interpretation was that he was this gentle, older professor who had never even had the courage to take the woman he loved because he was so bookish and sweet,” revealed filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola. “I made the style very deliberately classical; it allowed me to do what I’ve always wanted to do [which] is to make a movie without any [camera] movement.”

Chosen to be the romantic love interest in the $19 million production was Alexandra Maria Lara (Control). “I thought Alexandra was an actress who had a wonderful ability to [let you] know what she’s feeling just by looking at her face, and that’s a big thing in a movie.” Other performers in the picture include Bruno Ganz (Downfall), André Hennicke (Pandorum), Marcel Iures (Mission: Impossible), Andrian Pintea (Vlad) and Alexandra Pirici (The Wind in the Willows). “I tried to make a movie you don’t have to think about and you can enjoy it as a work,” stated Coppola. “But later on if you want to see it again or you want to think about it, you’ll get more.” Youth Without Youth grossed $3 million worldwide and earned a Independent Spirit Awards nomination for Best Cinematography.

Tetro (2009) marked the first time since The Conversation (1974) that Francis Ford Coppola had written an original screenplay. While on a stopover in Argentina, Bennie (Alden Ehrenreich) seeks out his older brother Tetro (Vincent Gallo) whom he has not seen for years. “I knew Argentina had a great cultural, artistic, literary, musical, and cinema tradition,” said the director who conducted the principle photography in Buenos Aires. “I like those kinds of atmospheres very much because you usually find creative people to work with.” Life was not so easy for Coppola in the South American country as rumours circulated that the production had been shut down temporarily by a labour dispute. The picture was shot in the same way as Rumble Fish (1983) which made use of black and white images combine with the occasional use of colour.

“I know choosing Vincent Gallo to star in my film will raise a few eyebrows, but I’m betting that seeing him in the role will open some eyes,” remarked Coppola who also decided to change the gender of Tetro’s mentor and literary critic; the role initially intended for Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men) was filled by Carmen Maura (Volver). “As I read and reread [the script], I felt that the interaction between the two characters would be far more intriguing if they were of the opposite sex.” As for casting Alden Ehrenrich, the moviemaker said, “As of the moment he read the Catcher in the Rye paragraph [for me], I felt he was the right one.” The $15 million dollar project which earned $3 million worldwide stars Maribel Verdú (Pan’s Labyrinth), Silvia Pérez (Encarnacion), Rodrigo De la Serna (The Tango Singer) and Erica Rivas (Night Runner). “I’m not trying to return to form,” declared the Detroit native. “I am trying to follow my heart and do more personal films.” Todd McCarthy of Variety wrote when “Coppola finds creative nirvana, he frequently has trouble delivering the full goods.” “A complex mediation on family dynamics, Tetro’s arresting visuals and emotional core compensate for its uneven narrative.” was the consensus from the movie review website Rotten Tomatoes. The movie received nominations from the Cinema Writers Circle Awards and Goya Awards for Best Actress (Maribel Verdú).

“Obviously to write stories and scripts that are not of an immediate commercial nature, you need to make them less expensively,” observed Francis Ford Coppola who has found financial stability with his profitable and successful California winery. “I finally accepted that the bigger the budget, the stupider the movie had to be…The smaller the budget, the more ambitious you can be.” The director is not impressed with the current Hollywood studio mentality. “The film industry doesn’t even want to finance drama now; they want to make films about superheroes…It has to be a product more like Coca-Cola, something that everyone is familiar with.” Coppola has no interest in giving up his independence. “People like myself, who decide that it’s necessary to work within a system in order to be able either to change it or eventually go off on their own to subsidize the kind of work they believe in, inevitably become changed by the process, if they go along with it.” The movemaker added, “I dream of being part of a really scintillating world cinema; it would be nice for movies to again become special events…If I ever got the money that, say George Lucas got from Star Wars [1977], I’d put every penny into changing the rules.”

There have been a couple of failed projects such as Pinocchio which resulted in a 1998 court verdict where Warner Bros. had to pay Francis Ford Coppola $80 million for reneging on their deal, and an untimely historical tragedy that occurred during the production of his original screenplay Megalopolis. “It was about an uber-architect who was going to build [a sort of utopia] right in New York City,” stated Coppola. “We were shooting second unit on it when we had the tragedy of the Twin Towers. So it was very hard to write a script about contemporary New York that didn’t deal with that phenomenal event and all of the aftermath of it.”

Getting movies made is still difficult for the director even after helming twenty-two features. “The great frustration of my career is that nobody really wants me to do my own work,” declared Francis Ford Coppola. “[I] never took on anything with the attitude that it was going to be terrible. It may of turned out that way, but I thought it was great while I was doing it.” The director’s cinematic efforts over the past five decades have not gone unnoticed; in 1992 he received the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival as a Lifetime Achievement Award. The Directors Guild of America also lauded the filmmaker with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998. A 2002 gala tribute was held in his honour by the Film Society of Lincoln Centre (New York City) and, at the 2011 Oscars Coppola will be the recipient of the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award.

“The high point of my career is The Conversation,” reflected Francis Ford Coppola, “because it was a film that I really wrote from scratch and I got to make the way I wanted to make. But, I acknowledge that The Godfather is the event that made me, that put me on the map in a way so that I was able to make The Conversation and Apocalypse Now [1979].” Summarizing his philosophy towards filmmaking, Coppola remarked, “It’s so silly in life not to pursue the highest possible thing you can imagine, even if you run the risk of losing it all, because if don’t pursue it you’ve lost it anyway. You can’t be an artist and be safe.”

For more on Francis Ford Coppola and his body of work visit the online home of American Zoetrope.

Movies... For Free! Dementia 13 (1963)

Trevor Hogg is a freelance video editor and writer who currently resides in Canada.

Thoughts on... No Impact Man (2009)

No Impact Man, 2009.

Directed by Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein.
Starring Colin Beavan and Michelle Conlin.


SYNOPSIS:

Documentary following Colin Beavan, his wife Michelle and their two year old daughter Isabella as they attempt to live environmentally friendly for a year in New York.


It only took about twenty minutes into 'No Impact Man' to realise that I was, completely unwittingly, actually learning. I know that's partly the point of documentaries, to actually teach, inform or put across a certain opinion, but it's rare to encounter one that has you so engaged from the start that you're almost unaware that you're learning because you're enjoying it so much. No Impact Man manages, almost seamlessly, to pull off that very trick.

It begins with the family – Colin, Michelle and daughter Isabella, preparing for their year living as environmentally friendly as possible – Colin planning excitedly, Michelle apprehensive about the sacrifices she'll have to make, namely giving up coffee and television. There's no obvious introductions, we just start naturally enough at the beginning of their documented year, which stops any of the film feeling forced or unnatural. The two key characters of Colin and Michelle are established easily, setting the cinematic tone of the feature – honest and practically unobserved, in that the characters are rarely influenced by the presence of the cameras.

Colin, the idealist of the family, the positive-thinking, natural leader, is arguably the 'star' of the film, (after all, he is the 'No Impact Man' of the title) and he's presented favourably (of course) but not invincibly. He occasionally gets bouts of self doubt, particularly when they cut off their electricity about midway through the year-long project, leaving him wondering whether this particular action is too far and going to undermine the whole exercise. The other danger is also that Colin may have ended up being portrayed as some kind of foolhardy dreamer, dragging his family along behind him, but despite Michelle's objections and complaints, he never comes across as uncaring.

Michelle frequently acts as the voice of reason to Colin's optimist, but she doesn't cross over to become unsupportive. She understands why Colin has embarked on this project and is behind him all the way, even if she occasionally allows herself a break once in a while (the odd sneaky coffee, electricity in her workplace).

The main question that I suppose will spring to mind, and the question the film (and the project) sets out to answer is, why do this? Why live in a completely impact free manner and what will it prove? Colin begins by stating, “The fact of the matter is that if only I change, it's not going to make a difference, but the hope is that if each of us as individuals change, it's going to inspire everybody to change.” However as the film progresses and the media get wind of their project, several journalists take a negative approach to the family's decision, claiming that they've merely attention seeking and not actually making a difference at all. Colin remains good natured about this though, appearing on TV and radio chat-shows, more than willing to soak up the criticisms and laugh along with some presenters who, it seems, have more interest in ridicule than reporting. In fact one journalist who had previously written negatively about them, who had questioned Colin's sincerity in a piece she had written, invites them to brunch and confesses that she has changed her mind about them. This conversation between her and Michelle is particularly illuminating, in that it reveals some of the reasons for the media backlash the family experienced, such as their project making the public feel guilty, or for suggesting that people 'do without'.

As part of becoming a 'no-impact family', many changes are made to their lifestyles, and these are shown unbiasedly as having varying degrees of success, from the completely successful (cycling, vegetable plot) to the failures (stone pot fridge). Most positive of these changes, especially for the family themselves, is the home-made laundry detergent, which works to bring Colin and Michelle back together during a particularly rough time. In a very sweet scene Colin and Isabella are washing their clothes in the bath filled with detergent by walking around on them, with Michelle eventually joining them, the whole family splashing around and re-bonding after Michelle has been questioning the validity of the project.

Ultimately, this is the key to the documentary's success, in that the family issues are every bit as vital to the narrative as the environmental issues being addressed. They go through various ups and downs, including a possible second pregnancy, all during the pursuit of the project, and it's these genuine family moments that get the viewer completely attached to the characters. When you finish watching No Impact Man, you realise that while you were wrapped up in the story of one family's year pursuing an ideal, you were also quietly being equipped with the knowledge, statistics and desire to take on board and put into action a couple or maybe even many of their ideas. So in that respect, No Impact Man is an unequivocal success, and an informative, warm, engrossing one at that.

Roger Holland

Movie Review Archive

Sneak Peek into Visionquest by Laura Tolomei

Shapeshifting never sounded better!

Visionquest

By Laura Tolomei

GENRE: GLBT (m/m), Horror, Shapeshifter, Dark Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, m/m/m, m/m/m/m

ISBN: 978-1-55487-724-9

HEAT LEVEL: 4 flames

RELEASE DATE: November 15^th, 2010

PUBLISHER: eXtasy Books

COVER: Angela Water

Read more on Laura's Website HERE

Buy at Extasy Books HERE 

BLURB

It wasn’t till he took me to his bed and made love to me, for the first time—no competition between us, no unspoken challenge, no master-slave, no blood, no death, nothing but intense emotions overwhelming me with the sheer power of his feelings, a sea so deep, a tide so strong I thought I’d drown as he took me face up, raising my legs above his shoulders and plunging deep before preying on my mouth, too, in a never-ending kiss that took my breath, not to mention my resolve, away—that in spite of everything, I gave him what he wanted most, my soul in its entirety, for I knew right there and then I was sealing my destiny forever.

M/M/M HOT EROTICA

Compliant as always, I dropped to my knees, already burying my face in his crotch to breathe deeply of his musky scent before freeing what had already hardened considerably. As I opened my mouth to engulf it entirely, gagging immediately in the haste of my hunger, Alexiander circled us—running his hand now on my hair, now on Lord Brahany’s, fascinated by both, or maybe trying to decide which he liked best—while his own erection grew noticeably, straining against the tight cloth holding it prisoner. Busy with the huge cock plunging almost to my throat, having to block it with my tongue brushing its sturdy length in repeated laps, I wondered briefly whether I should take the other one, too—

No, I’ll handle him! The master’s imperious voice boomed in my head. Just suck mine for now.

So I renewed my pampering, drawing the bulging head deeper with each sensual lick of the soft, bumpy skin crossed by thick veins that enlarged it even more. Following the same rhythm, my hands slid to accompany the bobbing head to increase his pleasure.

“You certainly trained him well.” Alexiander’s voice caught me off guard, intent as I was in swallowing the entire cock, almost to its balls, before a choking convulsion made me cough and draw back.

“Oh, he can do better than this.” Pushing my face against his crotch and holding it still with an iron grip, the Seigneuros shoved his thick equipment straight down to my throat, packing to get it all inside while I couldn’t breathe, pulling away only before I asphyxiated. Then without giving me time to recover, he thrust again hard and deep, repeating the same dangerous sequence as if he wanted to prove to Lord Bharton I could actually swallow it whole. “But you ought to try it yourself.”

Yeah, especially if he wants to see me dead. I couldn’t help the sarcastic comment, half teasing and half serious at the way he was treating me.

Again, I didn’t request your opinion. But he couldn’t hide a faint grin before pushing my head back on the demanding shat, making it slide all the way down to his balls and blocking it on the position. But I’ll spare your life. Knowing what a good swimmer I was, he had calculated down to the last second how much air I could hold, so released his hold just in time. Now if you get over yourself, I’ll let you suck on your own.

Too gracious, Master.

But situations changed rapidly with him, so with his usual imperious style, he called me back to my duties, so I hurried to their side, noiselessly, as he freed the cock straining to the point I thought it would burst even before I had the chance to wet it. But I wasn’t supposed to touch it, I realized immediately, simply to suck what the Seigneuros controlled as if it were his. He held it for me to wrap my mouth around, then shoved it to make me swallow it, pushing Alexiander’s ass forward with his own crotch, so the young man had only to stay still while we did all the work.

With his usual imperious style, he called me back to my duties, so I hurried to their side, noiselessly, as he freed the cock straining to the point I thought it would burst even before I had the chance to wet it. But I wasn’t supposed to touch it, I realized immediately, simply to suck what the Seigneuros controlled as if it were his. He held it for me to wrap my mouth around, then shoved it to make me swallow it, pushing Alexiander’s ass forward with his own crotch, so the young man had only to stay still while we did all the work.

“Then we don’t need him.” And yet, Alexiander pushed his hips forward to drown in my wet cavity, which only made me feel sadder to think I’d be sent away while all I wanted was for someone to stick a hard cock in my ass and hammer it long and hard.

“Oh, no, he’s my present to you and that’s why we need him.”

Puzzled at his answer, I raised my gaze, but the only answer I received was that he grabbed me and brought me to a couch, removing my pants on the way. Then he made me kneel facing the wall, propping my ass out and briefly sticking a couple of moist fingers to check if a cock could slide inside without too much friction. Unsurprisingly, the hole gave in immediately to his pressure, sucking him effortlessly, proving once again that my treacherous flesh didn’t give a damn about feelings, wanting only to be used by a powerful shaft—the bigger, the better—capable of hammering whatever sense it lacked deep into it.

And the master must’ve reached the same conclusion for he slapped the round buns, to him a sign of satisfaction with my doings, before returning to Lord Bharton’s side. “And his ass is definitely something you don’t want to miss.”

“But I want you to take me.”

“One doesn’t exclude the other.” Taking a firm hold of Alexiander’s hand, he pulled him to me, then nudged the tip of the erection against my butt’s entrance. “And this is just the first step.” Having taken complete charge of both of us, neither of us opposed him as he spread my buns wide apart and thrust the shaft through the tender opening, hard, maybe a bit too much at first, to get it fast inside.

A puppet in his hands, Alexiander groaned the deeper his cock reached, cramming my rear rhythmically in obeisance to Lord Brahany’s commands, though only after the Seigneuros aimed his erection at Alexiander’s ass did I feel him really twitch in pleasurable anticipation. Then his weight crashed on me, pushed over by my master’s forceful entry, the moan of pleasure escaping young Bharton’s lips unmistakable, and the real ramming began, starting from the Seigneuros’s powerful shoves that seemed to end directly in my ass as if there wasn’t another body between us. In my frenzied state, it all seemed one single movement, not two separate ones, yet with the strength of both, pushing inside me and penetrating so deep I thought they’d come out of my mouth. Slamming frantically, they rubbed the flesh to a scorching point, not just the tight walls squeezing the demanding shaft to keep it satisfied, but also my stomach, my balls, every muscle I could count enflamed by the possessive friction until it all whirled together and I literally burst like a balloon with too much pressure, flooding couch and hand with gallons of fluid.

Harry Potter stops Unstoppable in its tracks as it holds onto the UK box office crown

UK box office top ten and analysis for the weekend of Friday 26th - Sunday 28th November 2010.

The UK box office is once again dominated by Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1 as it easily retains its grip of the chart in first place with £8.3m. Having banked in excess of £33m in just over a week, The Deathly Hallows has overtaken Shrek Forever After to become the fourth highest grossing film of 2010 and could put up a strong challenge against Toy Story 3 for top spot by the time it finishes its run.

Unlike Harry Potter, the rest of the films in the top ten weren't so safe with five new releases debuting in the chart this week. Pick of the bunch is the Tony Scott / Denzel Washington action thriller Unstoppable, which leads the way in second place with £1.7m, while crime drama London Boulevard pulls in just a fraction of that figure but its £577k return is enough claim third. Elsewhere George Clooney thriller The American takes fifth position, with The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest and Machete landing in seventh and tenth respectively.

Turning to the familiar faces, road movie comedy Due Date falls two places to fourth and CG-animated comedy Despicable Me finally drops out of the top three in its seventh weekend, slipping three spots to sixth. Also down three is Jackass 3D in eighth, while sci-fi thriller Skyline suffers the steepest decline as it plunges five places to ninth.

Number one this time last year: The Twilight Saga: New Moon

Pos.	Film	Weekend Gross	Week	Total UK Gross
1	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1	£8,344,776	2	£33,257,880
2	Unstoppable	£1,714,871	1	£1,714,871
3	London Boulevard	£577,224	1	£577,224
4	Due Date	£560,179	4	£9,208,287
5	The American	£411,707	1	£411,707
6	Despicable Me	£241,944	7	£19,394,633
7	The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest	£219,259	1	£219,259
8	Jackass 3D	£119,369	4	£5,437,656
9	Skyline	£92,931	3	£2,645,267
10	Machete	£90,423	1	£90,423

Incoming...

With Harry Potter settling for a 2D release and The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader yet to hit screens for another week, DreamWorks will look to capture some of the lucrative 3D market this coming weekend with animated superhero comedy Megamind (cert. PG), which hits screens on Friday.

Also released are a duo of British efforts: comedy The Be All and End All (cert. 15) [review] and alien invasion road movie Monsters (cert. 12A) [review], along with the Finnish fantasy Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (cert. 15) and horseracing drama Secretariat (cert. U).

U.K. Box Office Archive

Georgia Bulldogs: Mark Richt Should Rethink His "No Staff Changes" Stance

2011 will be coach Richt's last season if he has another even close to this one. A 6-6 team is not what Georgia fans like to see, especially in what was supposed to be a "down" year in the SEC East.

At worst, most fans were hoping to see 9-3, but losses to Mississippi State, Colorado, and Florida have not set well with the fanbase and many are calling for blood.

So, when one glances a news article where their much-maligned leader is saying that he's not planning any staff changes, it has to leave you scratching your head a little bit.

First, let's get this bit of discourse out of the way, no one at this site is claiming to be an expert. No coaching experience has been had, and there is no reason for you, the reader, to believe that the opinion espoused here is any better or worse than that of the common, rational, fan.

That said, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see that there are some gross issues lurking in the ranks of Georgia's football program. First, and most importantly, the strength and conditioning program is sub-par. The defensive line was sucking wind on Saturday night against Tech—by halftime.

If the team had to play in overtime, how many of you have faith the defense could have held? Even more, how many of you were actually worried when you saw Washaun Ealey go in for the score with time left on the clock?

Just saying.

Even more, everyone in the SEC knows Georgia's defensive and offensive lines are a joke. Just check this little bit of commentary offered by Florida's players following their overtime win in jacksonville. :

Florida's offensive players really enjoyed installing the no-huddle up-tempo offense during the bye week because they knew if they ran it correctly that the Georgia defense would be overwhelmed. 

And they really, really enjoyed watching the Bulldogs struggling in the fourth quarter.

"It's fun seeing 300-pound linemen wheezing for air and you're fine," offensive lineman Carl Johnson said. "The D-line, they're wheezing and you're like, 'He's tired. He's tired.'"

Johnson took particular pleasure in talking some trash during the game.

"When 31 [defensive end Demarcus Dobbs] got hurt, I was pointing [and saying], 'He's tired. He's not really hurt.' He was just tired and faked an injury to get out of there, stop the clock. If he didn't, we were on the ball, ready to go again, they were gassed."

It's one of the few times that an offensive lineman can get in some digs about being in better shape, and Johnson said he savored that feeling.

"You feel like you own them a little bit," Johnson said. "'You're blown, you're tired, you're gasping. I'm fine.' It's fun."

Freshman H-back Trey Burton said he could tell pretty quickly the defense was going to be gasping in the fourth quarter.

"The first quarter, they were done," Burton said. "They were about to tap out after a while."

Wow...talk about embarrassing.

Coach Dave Van Halanger might be a phenomenal man of character, and he might be one of coach Richt's closest friends, but he's done a poor job of making these players into athletes. They're soft, badly conditioned, and incapable of playing a full 60 minutes at game speed.
 
It's time for him to go and Richt needs to make that happen.

As for a second guy, look no further than Bryan McClendon.

Take a look at these stats posted by EC Dawg of The Leather Helmet Blog (another site all Bulldog fans should have bookmarked), Georgia's running game was worse this season (ranked 71st overall) than in 2009 (ranked 54th overall)—something ain't right, folks.

To be fair, 2009's lapse was understandable. Knowshon Moreno was gone and McClendon was walking into a group of backs who had 1) no SEC experience (Richard Samuel and Washaun Ealey), 2) trouble staying healthy (Caleb King), and 3) were incapable of taking the pounding (Carlton Thomas). Still, he managed to get decent production out of that bunch.

However, 2010 was supposed to be the year of the back at Georgia, with both King and Ealey returning to aide the young Aaron Murray in his acclimation to the starting quarterback role. Instead, both guys struggled to find the groove they showed at the tailend of 2009 and, even worse, both became inept at holding onto the football—that's just a gross lack of fundamentals.

McClendon might make a fine assistant one day, and there is no doubt that he is a darn good recruiter, but two-years as a grad assistant did not make him qualified to move into the position of full-time running backs coach. He's in over his head, and Richt should find someone with more experience to take over the job.

2011 will be coach Richt's last season if he can't get this ship turned around and, as nice a guy as he is, he needs to realize that being a good man only takes you so far. Unfortunately for him and his throng of supporters, the "what have you done for me lately" culture of college football is working against him.

It's time that he start finishing the drill as a head coach, and that means making the tough decisions about who's presence is most hurting his staff and letting them go—Finish The Drill, Coach.

Finish.The.Drill.

BFI to distribute funding to UK filmmakers

Back in July the government announced that as part of its cost-cutting measures it would be closing the UK Film Council, the body set up by Labour in 2000 to help develop and promote British film. The news naturally sent shockwaves through the industry, leading Hollywood bigwigs including Clint Eastwood and Steven Spielberg to voice their concerns over the abolition of the Council, which has recently helped to finance projects such as Adulthood (2008), Bright Star (2009), In The Loop (2009), Man on Wire (2008) and Nowhere Boy (2009), not to mention a reported £1m investment in the upcoming Thatcher biopic The Iron Lady.

In response to concerns, culture minister Ed Vaizey announced yesterday that the British Film Institute would be taking on the majority of the UK Film Council's responsibilities including the distribution of funding, with £18m available for new projects in 2011 and a promise from the government of an increase in lottery funding to £40m by year by 2014. Meanwhile Film London will be tasked with attracting outside investment, which may have been made easier by reassurances from the government that there are no plans to scrap the tax credit scheme.

Speaking on the BFI's increased responsibilities, Vaizey said that the organisation would need to "change fundamentally... to realise an exciting vision of a coherent, joined-up film industry". Furthermore he announced the creation of Creative England, which would incorporate the eight regional screen agencies, along with a dedicated ministerial film forum.

So does this show the government's commitment to the UK film industry? Perhaps things will become a little clearer when more detailed plans are unveiled in the new year.

With TCU Accepting a Big East Invite, Boise State Is Back At Square One

Boise State could not have imagined that their decision to leave the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) for the Mountain West Conference (MWC) would have been met by such an utter upheaval.

In the time since the Broncos made said decision to leave the "Little Sisters of the Poor" (AKA Gordon Gee's description of Boise's conference mates) behind, the strongest members of the MWC (BYU, Utah, and TCU) have all jumped ship.

Utah accepted an invite in mid-June to join the Pac-10. Shortly thereafter, BYU decided to become an independent in football—with all their other sports joining the West Coast Conference. Now, today, TCU has accepted an invitation to join the Big East conference.

The latter action has to have the powers that be at Boise State scratching their collective heads—essentially, the MWC just became the WAC.

Boise is no longer adding it's strong record and television appeal to a major, non-BCS, conference in the hopes of making it legitimate but, rather, joining a conference that will now be looking to them for any form of legitimacy—talk about getting the short end.

While you can hardly blame Utah, BYU, or TCU for trying to get their shot at an automatic qualifying (AQ) bid in a BCS conference, you have to feel a little sorry for Boise State because they just seem to keep missing out on acceptance.

Seriously, what can they possibly do now? They will be in no better a position in 2011 than they were in 2010.

Of course the MWC will add more teams, but with BYU and Utah now gone,  and TCU exiting in 2012, how many advertisers will be chomping at the bit to see MWC games on national television—in primetime? Better still, what does this mean for the Mountain West's network? Boise might be a media darling, but they aren't a huge draw all by themselves—and no one is going to be lining up to see them play Colorado State, New Mexico, or Wyoming.

Boise State can't seem to catch a break. They're either damned if they do, or damned if they don't and they have to be feeling a bit piled on by this point. Perhaps they've been right all along—no teams want to play them.

R.I.P. Irvin Kershner (1923-2010)

Following on from the sad news of comedy legend Leslie Nielsen's passing comes word that Irvin Kershner has died at his home in Los Angeles, aged 87. The American filmmaker - best known for directing the all-time classic Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back, was born Philadelphia in 1923 and after serving in World War II he began his career teaching photography at USC School of Cinematic Arts while studying film under montage artist Slavko Vorkapi.

Kershner made his feature film debut with the crime film Stakeout on Dope Street (1958) and honed his skills directing television shows such as The Rebel (1959), Philip Marlowe (1959) and Peyton Place (1964). Through-out the 60s and 70s Kersh collaborated with the likes of Sean Connery, Faye Dunaway, Richard Harris, Tommy Lee Jones, George C. Scott, Robert Shaw and Barbra Streisand with credits including The Luck of Ginger Coffey (1964), A Fine Madness (1966) and Eyes of Laura Mars (1978), along with the critically acclaimed TV movie Raid on Entebbe (1977).

Linking up with Star Wars creator George Lucas, Kershner delivered one of the greatest cinematic experiences of all-time in 1980 with The Empire Strikes Back, which is regarded by many as the highlight of the epic saga. Kersh went on to direct twice just more, reuniting with Sean Connery for the 1983 Bond remake Never Say Never Again and taking over the reigns from Paul Verhoeven for Robocop 2 (1990), his legacy having been firmly established.

Eye Candy Inspiration Day-Not Work Safe

Here is a wake up call for those who need a pick me up after a long holiday weekend. :) Enjoy the mancandy yumminess.

Thoughts on... Machete (2010)

Machete, 2010.

Directed by Ethan Maniquis and Robert Rodriguez.
Starring Danny Trejo, Robert De Niro, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez, Lindsay Lohan, Jeff Fahey, Cheech Marin, Steven Seagal, Don Johnson and Tom Savini.


SYNOPSIS:

An ex-Federale is out for revenge after he is set up, double-crossed and left for dead by a corrupt senator. They call him Machete...


Robert Rodriguez and Ethan Maniquis’s latest cinematic offering opened this past weekend in UK cinemas. The story follows a former Mexican Federale named Machete (Danny Trejo) hiding in Texas after a Mexican drug lord killed his family and tried to kill him. Whilst he tries to make an honest living he is hired to kill Senator John McLoughlin (Robert De Niro), but is set up. As almost everyone in Texas looks for Machete he has to battle corrupt politicians and businessmen, vigilantes patrolling the US/Mexican border and immigration officers as well as bedding any women that come within thirty feet of him.

Hollywood supporting role regular Danny Trejo is mean and ruthless as the story’s hero Machete, but does look a little past his best when running across roof tops and being blown out of exploding houses and cars. However, the role does seem made for him. The supporting cast of De Niro, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodriguez, Don Johnson, Cheech Marin, Lindsay Lohan and Steven Seagal, despite the last of those not looking or sounding like a Mexican drug lord except for his bad fake tan, offer strong support of the leading man who is usually on the fringes.

Machete has obvious undertones of a political statement as it caricatures US politicians, immigration officers, border vigilantes and citizens, to a degree, as well as Mexican immigrants and drug lords. However, the serious statements are a little lost beneath huge explosions, sex with girls a fraction of Machete’s age and an extremely tongue-in-cheek story filled with knife wielding and rolling heads. At one point a naked woman pulls a mobile phone from the only place you could hide it without any pockets and in another machete abseils out of a hospital window using someone’s intestines. The dialogue is so on the nose that every five minutes one character or another will talk for a few minutes to explain their story, someone else’s or fill in any story gaps before the blood bath continues.

If you like chopper motorbikes with machine guns strapped to the front, inexplicable female nudity and lines like, ‘Machete don’t text’ then this film could be for you. The gore is full on, the violence extreme and the leading character devoid of any regret. It goes without saying that the lead character has earned his name, Machete, for his use of a massive blade. The story gets dafter as the film goes on before culminating in a massive shout out.

Machete makes a bold statement through a stupid story with over the top action, dialogue, blood and plot points. It may have been the worst film I’ve seen in a long time, but I thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish. Just don’t expect anything with too much integrity. It’s shamelessly over the top and works because of it.

D.J. Haza

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R.I.P. Leslie Nielsen (1926-2010)

Veteran actor Leslie Nielsen passed away yesterday November 28th in a hospital in Florida after suffering complications from a bout of pneumonia, aged 84. Born in Saskatchewan, Canada in 1926, Nielsen began his career in the entertainment industry as a radio disc jockey before gaining a scholarship at New York's Neighborhood Playhouse. After attending the Actors Studio Nielsen made his television debut alongside Charlton Heston in an episode of Studio One (1948), and went on to star in a range of TV productions before making his theatrical debut in the musical The Vagabond King (1956).

Nielsen's performance earned him a role in the sci-fi classic Forbidden Planet (1956), the success of which opened the doors to further film and television roles with credits including Hot Summer Night (1957), Tammy and the Bachelor (1957), Alfred Hitchcock Presents (1958-1961), The Swamp Fox (1959-1961), The New Breed (1961), The Bold Ones: The Protectors (1969) and The Poseidon Adventure (1972). After appearing in the David Zucker, Jim Abrahams and Jerry Zucker comedy Kentucky Fried Movie (1977) in an uncredited cameo, Nielsen's career received a major boost when he was cast in the classic spoof Airplane! (1980), with his deadpan delivery and comic talents opening the doors to a career in comedy.

Nielsen was cast as Detective Frank Drebin in the parody series Police Squad! (1982) and starred in its three spin-off features, The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad (1988), The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear (1991) and Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994). He continued to thrive in the genre, appearing in efforts such as Repossessed (1990), Dracula: Dead and Loving It (1995), Spy Hard (1996), Wrongfully Accused (1998), Scary Movie 3 (2003) and Scary Movie 4 (2006), along with family features such as Mr. Magoo (1997) and Santa Who? (2000). Nielsen's latest release was the 2009 parody Stan Helsing (2009), while he had recently completed voice work on the animated comedy The Waterman Movie, set for release in 2011.

Guest Author Day with Aubrey Leatherwood/Excerpt

Tell us a bit about your latest book, and what inspired you to write such a story.

 

My latest book is called If You Asked Me To available from Aspen Mountain Press on November 26, 2010. Two things compelled me to write this. First, there was a call for submissions for books featuring a disabled person. I’ve never written anything like that before, and I wanted the challenge. The story, however, ended up much too long for an anthology. Second, a very close friend was diagnosed with a degenerative disease a couple of years ago, and it has been a journey for us both. I’ve known her all my life and I love her, but I’ll be candid: I’ve had to learn a new level of patience. She is a very independent woman, who has taken care of everything for herself and for others for a very long time. Now, she cannot be as independent for medical reasons. She resists help and can be a giant curmudgeon when must accept it. So I thought, if my beloved friend can be a pain in the heiney even with a good support system in place, what would the story be if an independent woman faced with this sort of illness was alone and didn’t have as good a support system? What would the courtship be like for a man who wants to express his love and offer help to such a woman?

 

What are you working on now? Anything you want to tell us about?

 

I’m very excited to say that I am just about finished with a novella called Fan Mail.

 

Model Lover introduced Alicia Langerud, aspiring model, and her somewhat dorky and shy Irish boyfriend, Tommy Touhy. The kids are all grown up now. Alicia is a super model, and Tommy has channeled his inner bad boy and turned into a hot and somewhat mercurial cop… with a superb fashion sense. The story begins with the couple having an explosive break up that has the paparazzi clamoring for the hushed reason why. They have their suspicions, and all of them paint Tommy as a brute not fit to be with America’s sweetheart. Soon after, Alicia finds herself being stalked by a mad man, she realizes that only Tommy can help her, and together they will have to slay their secret demons.

 

What books are currently on your nightstand/bedside? Anything coming you are dying to read?

 

I am dying to read the next installment in Christina Dodd’s Chosen One series. I also hear there is a new Marjorie M. Liu Dirk and Steele out in January.

 

 

If one of your books were to be made into a movie, which book would you choose and who do you see playing your characters and why?

 

Even though it’s not out yet, I think Fan Mail is the most suited for a movie. There’s suspense, intrigue, the glitz of the fashion world, the paparazzi, and some scenes that are guaranteed to get it an NC-17! Hard to say who would place them. The characters have very distinct physical looks: a super-hot, red-haired, freckled, buff fellow who’s a little on the short side, and a biracial girl with a thick mane of hair and piercing blue eyes. Find them for me readers! Give me suggestions!

 

What is your favorite pizza toppings?

 

I love Italian sausage, pepperoni, and mushrooms. Alternately, I like a four cheese and spinach pizza.

 

Which do you prefer: Mac or PC? 

 

PC… although, shh, don’t tell anybody… I think I’m spending too much time in front of the computer, granted I’m accomplishing a lot of good work, but I feel so very sedentary. I want to take a thirty day break from the computer, although I’m aware that is probably impossible considering my choice in careers. C’est la vie!

 

What’s the worst thing you’ve ever done to one of your characters?

 

 

I’ve done a lot of bad things to my characters, but I do it all out of love. Ha ha! Typically, the bad thing happens off page or in the back story, so it’s hard to think of something truly awful I’ve done that the reader gets to see.

 

 

Which of your books contains the sexiest love scene? (if you have one that is J)

 

Ohhh, they’re all good, but Imperfection, hands down, has two… or three… or five of my favorite sex scenes. In fact, the very first scene in the book is a powerful sex scene and I struggled with whether I should start the book with such a strong, up front, and personal piece. But, hey, this book is about a couple celebrating their 25^th wedding anniversary and the fact that they manage to stay in love. Part of that success has to do with their healthy and creative sex life, so I went with it. This book probably has some of the more emotionally intense moments I’ve written as well. It is also the one that I get most fan mail and personal stories from readers about.

 

Which of your covers is your favorite?

 

Oh no, are you really going to make me choose? OK, then I choose The People You Know; The Sex They Have. Not only do I think the cover really belongs to the tone and feel of the book, this was my first important step in my career, and that book led some award nominations and really solidified what I wanted to do in the world of contemporary erotica, which is to make sure there’s a real story, real people, and real emotion with my real sex.

 

Which of your books was the easiest to write? 

 

Easiest to write was probably a short I just completed called Passing Licks. It's not available yet, but I have to say it was so easy to write because it was so close to a conversation I've had, a situation I've participated in. It's so close to a part of my life that you could change the character names to mine and people in my life. It was so easy it almost felt like cheating!

 

What is the hardest part of writing your books?

 

Definitely, the hardest part of writing stories for me is the editing. I am a pantser and I am voluminous! So, when I write stories, I tend to start somewhere in the middle, write the end, maybe add a beginning. I’m all over the place. Editing is where I have to ensure that the dots are connected and the story is seamless when readers receive it. Also, because I tend to write complex characters, my stories tend to be longer and always have the capacity to become novel-length if I don’t reign myself in. Editing is painstaking, but it helps me distill a manuscript so that there are not too many idiosyncrasies, side stories, or back stories that, while they may enhance the characterization, do not necessarily add to the story telling.

 

 

Where can readers find you on the ‘net for more information on you, your books and other fun stuff?

 

 

I can be found at my site, www.aubreyleatherwood.com as well as on Facebook at www.facebook.com/aubrey.leatherwood and myspace at www.myspace.com/aubreymleatherwood

Sneak Peek Excerpt from If You Asked Me To
Coming to Aspen Mountain Press

Maybe this was grief not fear.

In her mind, she kept seeing her mother’s face. The image varied between narrow-eyed, pursed-lip disapproval and distance built on both natural and chemically-enhanced apathy. She'd never liked Shelley. Not once had her face held a warm smile or even begrudging approval for her daughter. Shelley didn't kid herself. It was possible it had never held love either.

But she had been someone and she had been there. Now, Shelley had no one.

Though she had accepted that one day this would come to pass, though she had spent every year since she was fifteen years old working toward this day, Shelley had not been prepared when it came. Insurance was an illusion.

Alone.

Shelley had always known she would be alone one day. Maybe this was fear and not longing. 

Not sure what time it was, not sure of anything more than the darkness hanging like a blanket from the sky and the mosquitoes alighting on her bare arms while fireflies created a distraction, she pressed a button on her phone again. She dialed the entire number and at the end her thumb hovered over the send key.

Her legs shook as they ached, and Shelley released them, letting them slide to the floor. She wondered if she would cry this time, but a familiar dry burn pricked her eyes. No tears.

She should hang up.

* * * * *

He answered the phone like this: "What, Shell?" The words were gruff and crackled across the phone lines like a fire just getting started.

"Hey Raymond." Normality permeated her voice. Shelley infused it with balance and clean modulation. He would never know that anything was wrong. Of course he wouldn't.  

For so long, when Ray said he loved her, Shelley knew he didn't. He couldn't if after all their time together, he still couldn’t read her. He had never been able to tell when her voice or expression lied, which meant he didn't know her. And if he didn't know her, then what he loved was nothing more than a daydream.

The thought reminded her of the enormity of this emotion, whatever it was, that had driven her to call him, to put herself through this. Why had she done it? Didn't she realize he wouldn’t know anything was wrong, that she would have to tell him? And that was something she couldn’t do, had never been able to do.

"What Shelley?" Irritation caused his words to grind like dry, flinty gears. Angry, smoldering fire.

His fire ignited her own temper. If only he knew, he wouldnt be so cruel to me. If only he knew Brash as ever, heated as ever, she attacked. "Thats all you have to say? You haven't talked to me in all this time and all you can say is, What, Shelley?"

"I'm hanging up."

"Don't." Desperation crackled in her voice then softened it. She wasn't sure if he heard.

Maybe he didn't. Maybe that's why he hung up the phone. 

 

CFB Rumor Mill: Kill The Noise, Mark Richt Isn't Headed to Miami Either

Here we go again, more rumors surrounding the head coach at the University of Georgia. You know, for a guy who no one really likes all that much, Mark Richt sure seems to be on a lot of "wish lists" lately.

First he was tabbed as a possibility at Colorado. However, his big salary at Georgia nipped that rumor quickly in the bud.

Now, his name is being floated about for the, newly vacated, Miami Hurricanes coaching position. Randy Shannon was fired late yesterday—shortly after the Canes' lost to South Florida in overtime.

Richt is a Miami alumnus. He played quarterback there from 1979-82, backing up future NFL Hall of Famer, Jim Kelly.

Some feel he is the perfect guy to get Miami back to it's winning ways, but someone needs to let Georgia AD, Greg McGarity, in on the conversation because, as far as he's concerned, Richt will be calling Athens home through, at least, the 2011 football season.

These rumors are just that—rumors. Mark Richt is still the coach at Georgia, and he isn't assumed to be going anywhere. He's planning on being in Athens for as long as the university will have him and he's made it very clear that Georgia is his "home".

So, why all the speculation and rumor-mongering about him being lured to go elsewhere? Well, that's easy, teams will try to go after the best out there, regardless of their current situation. Tommy Tuberville's name has also surfaced as a possibility, and he's only been at Texas Tech for one season.

This is a lot less about Richt's job at Georgia being in jeopardy, than it is about a school (Miami) planning for its future.

Don't believe the hype, folks, there's simply not much to it. 

*Photo courtesy of webshots.com/canesunited—click photo for more info.

Book Review: Harvest Moon by Mercedes Lackey, Michelle Sagara & Cameron Haley

HARVEST MOON ANTHOLOGY
Authors: Mercedes Lackey, Michelle Sagara & Cameron Haley
LUNA/Harlequin Books
October 1st, 2010
Paperback
4 out of 5


Three novellas from three authors who will captivate you from beginning to end. Get ready for a little HARVEST MOON.

A Tangled Web by Mercedes Lackey
This is a retelling of Persephone and Hades mythology told from Persephone's point of view. She is determined to get away from her overprotective mother and she wants to be with Hades, a misunderstood man/god who makes her heartbeat fast and who she loves very much. Set in the five hundred kingdoms series, a fake kidnapping has a mix up and the wrong goddess is taken. Can Persephone and Hades find a way to be together and fix the problem of the wrong goddess being kidnapped?

I have to admit, I never read one of this author's Five Hundred Kingdom's books before and found myself a little confused as to why I should care if one god/goddess was kidnapped or not. It felt like there was a backstory of one set of characters I was missing and it had me scratching my head at times as I tried to puzzle out some of the storylines. Overall, this was a well written story but one I freely admit not enjoying too much in the end.

Cast In Moonlight by Michelle Sagara

Kaylin Neya is a thief and an assassin. She also has a smart m outh, covered in mysterious markings and has street smarts. The Hawklord thinks she is a perfect bait for a child prostitution sting...that is if Kaylin can keep her mouth shut for five seconds to do the job.

This is a perfect way to be introduced into the world of Elantra. I love this series and found this prequel to be a wonderful icing on the cake so to speak in this anthology. Ms. Sagara delivers a stirring story that shows how Kaylin met the Hawklord and her introduction into the world of the Hawks. The writing was slow and steady and kept me on the edge of the seat, waiting to see what would happen next for Kaylin. Would it be death for trying to assassinate the Hawklord or life serving him? This is a perfect story to be introduced into the world of Elantra and one that had me dragging out the books in the series to read again.

Retribution by Cameron Haley

A contract is put out on Dominca Riley and she has something to say about it. An attempt on her life has Dominica racing against the clock to find out who wants her down and out for the count. Retribution is best served cold!

I freely admit, I read Mob Rules, the kick off to this new series on gangsters and magic and didn't care too much for it. It could have been the mood I was in at the time but after reading this short story, I am picking it up again. This was a fantastic story and though if you haven't read Mob Rules yet, you should read that one first before reading this one.  A dark tale of violence, magic and self-discovery, Cameron Haley delivers a pulse pounding ride from start to finish. A gritty tale to keep you entertained and one that had me eager to see what else is coming fromt his talented author.

HARVEST MOON is an anthology that had two wonderful stories and one lackluster one. The writing in all three were tight and the authors did their best in keeping my attention with their novellas. I look forward to another anthology with these three talented storytellers in the future.