As far as what individual scripts Big Hollywood will be releasing next, that information will have to remain a pleasant a surprise after your first click of whatever morning they are released. We are currently holding a dozen or so SPS reviews on deck. That I can promise. And I do want to thank Mark Tapson, Joe Lindsey, Tim Slagle and Kurt Schlichter for the enormous time, talent and effort each of them put into successfully helping to launch this series. 

Some of you have commented that there are no real sucker punches when you’re dealing with a film starring Sean Penn or directed by Oliver Stone, and wondered why we would waste the SPS reviews on “Fair Game” and “Wall Street 2.”

Three word answer:  

The Entertainment Media.

They are the Palace Guards who look out for Hollywood’s ideological and corporate interests. Their job is to pump up Hollywood’s product, run interference for whatever criticism arises, and if possible, turn the story of an upcoming film or television show into a part of the “national political debate.” These water-carriers whose existence depends on currying and retaining favor with the same people they’re supposed to scrutinize and cover, will label these projects everything from fair-minded and thoughtful to non-partisan — all in the hopes of suckering the unsuspecting into one more propaganda-fest and/or ginning up a little Academy interest. (more…)

[Editor's Note: Script reviews of upcoming projects have been around for as long as there's been an Internet. Therefore it's no secret that a film can evolve into something quite different from its screenplay. Please keep in mind that this article represents a look at a particular script and not the final product.]

The truth is, it was State Department official Richard Armitage – a Bush critic, not an evil neocon – who leaked Plame’s name. Yet Armitage’s name never appears in the script. And how could it? That would defuse the filmmakers’ intent to demonize Rove and Bush and to condemn the war as shameful, unjust American aggression.

Coming soon to a theater near you: a movie starring Sean Penn as a great American patriot taking a courageous stand against a tyrannical power. No, it’s not a biopic about Penn’s South American idol, Hugo Chavez, facing down the imperialistic Goliath of the United States. It’s a dramatization of “Plamegate,” the affair of the CIA operative whose identity was outed in the run-up to the Iraq War, ostensibly by a vindictive Bush administration. Fair Game, based on Valerie Plame Wilson’s autobiographical book of the same name, stars Naomi Watts as the aggrieved Plame and Penn as her husband, former ambassador Joe Wilson, in a role apparently already gaining Oscar buzz.

(By the way, what Oscar voters in recent years refer to as “buzz” is actually the sound of audiences all across this country snoring – such is the disconnect between Oscar winners and what Americans usually like to see). (more…)

Sean Penn, who has some kind of twisted relationship with Hugo Chavez, recently defended the Venezuelan president. In an article in the Guardian, Penn, “defended Hugo Chavez as a model democrat and said those who call him a dictator should be jailed.”

He directed his ire directly at journalists who accuse Chavez of being a socialist and a dictator.  He said:

“Every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it, and accept it. And this is mainstream media. There should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies.”

According to the Washington Post, the murder rate in Venezuela has quadrupled in the past 11 years under the leadership of Hugo Chavez. The article breaks it down to two murders every hour.

Perhaps Mr. Penn would like to educate himself on the recent findings of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.  This 319-page report was referenced in an editorial in the Washington Post dated March 1, 2010 titled, “Report details violence and lost freedoms in Venezuela.” (more…)

Can any of you remember a time when so many creative film artists in Hollywood shit where they eat by endlessly voicing such outspoken contempt and loathing for the majority of the American people, our history and our way of life? I can’t. Now I’m not talking about Hollywood Lefties going off on political tangents like at HuffPo. We do the same damn thing here. I’m talking fighting words as defined in the Chaplinsky ruling. Too many fighting words coming out of Lefty Hollywood these days.

I don’t know about you, but I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take them anymore. Prime example. Sean Penn calling for the arrest of anyone who tags dictator Hugo Chavez as a dictator. That must now include the mass arrest of the entire leadership of the OAS, which just slammed Pennhead’s hero El Chavista on his horrific human rights record. I will say it: that statement is as un-American as it gets, and is dictatorial in itself. Those are fighting words, IMHO. Tell me where I’m wrong.

Then we had Tom Hanks effectively saying that the Japanese and Americans wanted to destroy each other only because they were different breeds of racists. That intellectually vacuous statement not only slanders America’s most honorable record in the war against a genocidal Imperial Japan, it slanders the sacred memory of every US service member who fought and died in that conflict. As a Navy veteran myself, and the son of an Army veteran of Normandy Beach on D-Day? Fighting words. (more…)

I’m not crazy about congressional Democrats right now.

As I write this, Congressional Democrats are engaged in a furious partisan battle to pass their idea of healthcare reform. Alas it is an idea the majority of Americans do not share. It is in fact an idea that the majority of congressmen do not share, which is why President Obama and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are twisting arms, bribing, cajoling and threatening all manner of mischief in order to eek out a majority vote – or non vote — on a bill the people have made clear they do not want. They may succeed.

I am not all that enamored of Congressional Republicans either. It is painful indeed to listen to the feigned outrage of so many Republicans who spent years in office redefining the meaning of concepts like “limited Government,” and “fiscal conservative”. Surely they must realize that their inept stewardship over so many years not only opened the door for the leftist now in power, but also rolled out the red carpet for them.

The contract we strike with government holds that citizens will give up certain of our rights in exchange for government protection of our liberty and property. The foundation of that bargain is trust. And that trust must be guarded jealously. Men must trust that their wishes will be respected and that government will not over step its bounds. When that trust dissipates due to the contraventions of officials within the government, the actions of government lose their legitimacy. (more…)

We have all heard of Sean Penn’s most recent outbreak of insanity when he suggested that the critics of his efforts in Haiti “die screaming of rectal cancer.”  Of course his whole life has been filled with controversy.  But when he opens his mouth some of the most nasty, ill informed, un-patriotic trash spews out.

Of President Bush on the Iraq war he stated: “I am more patriotic than this president, who I consider a traitor of human and American principles.”

The Cambridge dictionary online defines “patriotic” as “showing love for your country and being proud of it.”

I don’t believe patriotism equates to calling ones President “a traitor of human and American principles.”  It is not up to Sean Penn or any of his Hollywood friends like Susan Sarandon, Charlie Sheen, and Tim Robbins to decide our President is a traitor.  Our system of government has a method to identify traitorous Presidents.  Over the course of President Bush’s eight years in office he was never identified as a traitor.  So how much truth is in Penn’s allegations? (more…)

Lady Gaga’s new video, “Telephone” hit the streets last week. You’ve all heard of it, I’m sure. As nothing more than violent softcore porn, even MTV has allegedly given it the shut-out. Not only is the video a tasteless, boring herpes-fest, but it’s indicative of a larger problem facing Americans (particularly young ladies today). Can anyone guess what it is?

Let’s be honest; in the world of popstar Divas… Lady Gaga isn’t exactly a Bo-Derek-perfect-10. So how does she find a way to close the gap? As many ugly dames have done since the dawn of time, she decides to up the ante of sluttiness. I speak the truth. Women, if you don’t live up to the current magazine standards of “beauty,” the message being pumped to you through pop culture is loud and clear: ugly and/or fat chicks need to go fishing with dynamite.

Even more confusing is when pop-musicians use said form of packaging to try and push a corporatized “be proud of who you are” message (see any “Pink” music video ever made). By default, we end up breeding a generation of slutty, shallow, self-absorbed, empty shell human beings and then confusedly ask why they have “self-esteem” issues. Whatever happened to the idea of esteeming others first? Seems to me that that would do wonders for the tweens self-confidence (not to mention their productivity levels). You know who was big on that concept? Jesus. We can’t have that. (more…)

Although Sean Penn has the reputation of being a fine actor, I’ve never shared that opinion and regard his acting as overrated. His early performance in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” as stoner Jeff Spicoli is regarded fondly by those with sophomoric comedic taste but my taste prefers more subtlety. Penn absolutely destroyed the film “The Interpreter” with his hound dog expression throughout the film and “I Am Sam” remains the thespian lesson in what to avoid when portraying the mentally challenged. 

I used to think that Penn’s liberal statements came from a genuine concern for the poor and downtrodden and did not laugh at that pathetic picture of Penn in that leaky rowboat in New Orleans after the Katrina devastation. I also did not join the skeptics who questioned his Haitian relief efforts. I figured him to be naïve but with his recent statement that “Hugo Chavez” is not a dictator, the truth is finally clear. Sean Penn is an idiot-a useful one-but an idiot nonetheless. 

I’ve never been to Venezuela but I know many transplanted immigrants from that country who relate tales of horror since that “dictator” took over. What kind of spell has Chavez spun to cloud the Hollywood fool’s mind to the damage this man has wrought on his country?  (more…)

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Could Sean Penn look anymore smug and sanctimonius as he allows some offscreen water carrier to fight his battle for him? At about the 20 second mark you can see the the rage build in Penn’s eyes. They scream: “How dare you hold me accountable for my words. Don’t you know I’m an actuh!”

You have to wonder what kind of cancer he was wishing on this polite young woman. Or how he managed to restrain himself from this choice opportunity to delight once again in his infamous fetish with the human bum.

Washington Examiner:

What is it with Sean Penn? When he’s not busy wishing rectal cancer on his critics (and looking constipated while doing it), he’s slamming Americans who dare to say mean and nasty things about his pal Hugo Chavez. I kid you not!

In a recent appearance on Bill Maher’s HBO show, Penn showered praise on Venezuela for assisting him in assisting the quake victims in Haiti. He also claimed to have a little sympathy for those who hold America-as-an-evil-empire-looking-to-conquer-the-world views. Then he turns around and says journalists here who call Chavez a dictator (shudder) should do a stint in the hoosegow:

The collaborative opportunity in Haiti, when you talk about Hugo Chavez, and some of the other people who are demonized [think Castro], and you know, when some of these countries accuse us of an occupation – where I believe this was strictly a humanitarian action by the United States military, and an incredible one – I’m a little sympathetic. Because every day, this elected leader is called a dictator here, and we just accept it! And accept it. And this is mainstream media, who should – truly, there should be a bar by which one goes to prison for these kinds of lies.

Okay, so he’s not officially a dictator. Neither was Saddam Hussein, you may recall – he won 100 percent of the vote back in the day. How about we call Hugo “dictator in waiting” instead? Would that make Sean feel better?

Let’s take a look at some of the things Venezuela’s  duly elected leader has done lately: (more…)

“You know, do I hope that those people die screaming of rectal cancer? Yeah, you know, but I’m not going to spend a lot of energy on it.” – Sean Penn (when addressing his detractors)

No, I’m not making it up, you can even view the video here. O’Reilly, feel free to examine his body language, though to be fair, there isn’t much of a body to work with. For those too lazy to watch the video, let me recap it for you: **Spoiler alert!** Sean Penn has decided to take the life-plunge and go full-retard. Honestly, I don’t even know what to say anymore. Clearly, his statement was made in the poorest taste possible. Even more appalling however, is that the media doesn’t seem upset about these remarks in the slightest.

Is it just me, or do the “outrageous” quotes from Limbaugh, Coulter, and Beck that send the mainstream-media into a tizzy pale in comparison to the vitriolic hatred of Penn?

If Sean Penn were to tell his detractors to take a hike, that would be fine. If he suggested that they jump off a bridge, I’d be cool with that. But to describe in vivid detail, a torturous, agonizing death (one from which many cancer-sufferers were likely suffering while watching the interview from their hospital beds) in which his detractors should perish, is evil, pure and simple. The worst part about it is that we all know Sean Penn isn’t quick enough to think on his feet, which leaves no doubt that the man had spent “a lot of energy on it” in order to craft the graphic mental imagery beforehand. What a sick, twisted, vulgar, knee-high little minikin. (more…)

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Last night I was on the Stage Right Show with the great Ben Shapiro and he alerted me to this story about Sean Penn’s latest addition to his growing list of butt-fetish statements — and what a sordid history it is: Here’s Penn discussing anal sex on (NSFW)YouTube, going so far as to suggest his audience “f*ck some sense” into those gay conservatives who dare think for themselves as Log Cabin Republicans. And who can forget this epic passage of perverse anal-pretension from Penn’s 2007 open letter to President Bush:

We cower as you point fingers telling us to “support our troops.” Well, you and the smarmy pundits in your pocket, those who bathe in the moisture of your soiled and bloodstained underwear, can take that noise and shove it.

…those who bathe in the moisture of your soiled and bloodstained underwear.

There just aren’t enough “WTFs” in the whole wide world… (more…)

Is Sean Penn doing some good work for Haiti? Yes. At some point, did he opt to advance his own Hollywood image in place of casting the widest relief net possible? Yes. Will he violently threaten those who question his motives in the name of “peace?” That’s a definite possibility. I liked him better when he was rattling his skull with a checkered slip-on.

For those of you who don’t know, Sean Penn has been “making the rounds” to keep the public awarene about Haiti. By “making the rounds” I mean scoring Hollywood elbow-bumping points by appearing on Tinseltown’s golden fanboy show… Larry King Live.

“One of the most important aspects of that will be that I’ve never asked to be on television before in my life, with the exception of unintelligible. I asked to be on your show today and you said yes. That’s what’s important, to keep the eye on Haiti. …The eyes of CNN and FoxNews and everybody else, the New York Times stays on this disaster…”

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Howard Zinn wants teachers to bring in whatever materials they want to your child’s class room. He wants them to use their own judgement to teach whatever they think is appropriate. He wants them to subvert the rules regarding the approved curriculum at the school you are paying for. Of course, if Zinn’s advice is followed, there is nothing keeping a teacher from bringing materials related to Holocaust denial, or 9/11 conspiracies or creationism into the class room, as well. Unless Zinn is recommending only HIS enlightened view of history should be secretly brought into the classroom.

There are some very important people in our country who have aligned themselves with Zinn. With his philosophy. With his view of history. With his view of the United States. And, with his strategy for getting his message into the public schools outside of the legal construct of School Boards and State Departments of Education.

They made a film of his book.  They walked the red carpet and they posed with the man they admired.  He was the inspiration for their film and they spoke of him glowingly, almost like he was a hero.  They began their film with him striding out alone onto a stage in a theatre full of admirers.  It was his way of taking a curtain call (a standing ovation, by the way) before the show even began. (more…)

Film blogger and sometimes Turner Classic Movies’ programmer,The Self-Styled Siren, came up with a terrific idea for a movie list: That which we love in filmdom that puts our cool credentials into question (And yes, I do have Cool Credentials. My mother keeps them with my badminton trophies). Siren describes the criteria for the list this way: 

“As always, it’s best to define terms. By uncool, the Siren doesn’t mean “slightly offbeat” or “quirky” or “underrated.” She means “courting hoots of derision from critical colleagues.” Picking a lesser work of a widely admired auteur doesn’t cut it, because after all, even late Hawks is still Hawks. And picking a film that was once lambasted, but is no longer, is also not exactly what the Siren had in mind.”

I would also add that there are certain uncool films that are now cool to like. The work of Ed Wood, for instance. Those choices shouldn’t count, either. We have to go for what’s embarrassing to admit to, and lucky for you there’s plenty to clean out of my uncool closet.

1. Fox Musicals: Everyone loves those big lavish MGM musicals of the forties and fifties, and those triumphs do represent for me the highest level of  artistic achievement we will ever see on film. But that doesn’t mean I don’t enjoy the hell out of the musicals Darryl Zanuck’s 20th Century-Fox produced to help Americans through a Great Depression. The name of the game was “simple”; simple stories, simple tunes… And not one true classic film emerged from the bunch. These films weren’t about that. They were about innocent, joyful escapism and to help you along were such stars as Sonja Henie, Carmen Miranda, Betty Grable, John Payne, Edward Everett Horton, Billy Gilbert, Charlotte Greenwood, Alice Faye, Don Ameche, and Cesar Romero. (more…)

So here’s a fun quiz!

What do celebrities like Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon, Benecio Del Toro, Danny Glover, Naomi Campbell and Oliver Stone all have in common?

Was it sex with Punxsutawney Phil?

No, but you’re close.

All of these stars have had their pictures taken and/or partied with Hugo Chavez: their happy faces cheek to mottled cheek with the latest trend in socialist splendor.

He is after all, proof that it can happen! The third way! A new Castro! An anti-capitalist David, taking down that Yankee Goliath!

Being around him, means you’re more than just an overpaid movie star, you’re an overpaid movie star who matters. (more…)

“Right and Wrong.” It’s a silly dated idea, I know. As a progressive society after all, shouldn’t we be past the antiquated idea of moral absolutes? We’re big thinkers, and a higher-learned people. Let’s leave the obtuse “black and white” mindset to those simplistic conservatives. They’re so silly. Plus, they don’t like having sex.

It seems that over the past several decades, we haven’t been able to avoid having the “moral relativism” mantra pumped into our brains. Sometimes it’s subconscious (being planted in our minds from under-the-radar messages in the talkies of Tinseltown) and sometimes it’s less subtle than Johnny Depp’s awful pubic-hair goatee. How does this resonate with the American people, however? Do most of us believe that a majority of the worlds issues are really just shades of grey? (more…)

In an industry notorious for wasteful pretentiousness — directors shooting a hundred takes, crews taking all day to light a single shot, gazillions spent on the latest effects — Hal Needham was a rebel. Directing? “There is no magic to it, you know. All you have to do is look through the camera and see if it’s got the lens on it that you want. . . I don’t really think it’s that tough.” Cinematography? “We’re not doing Gone with the Wind or Fiddler on the Roof. It’s action/comedy. . .don’t give me none of this artsy-fartsy stuff, just shoot the film.” Expensive locations? “I like to get outside whenever I can. I think it gives a film energy to be outside. . . and beauty.”

And so Smokey and the Bandit was made fast and loose, outside, on a low budget. In Reynolds’ words, they worked “lightning quick,” with first-time director Needham “reigning over crew and camera with instincts that made him, in my humble opinion, the best action director in the business.” The entire film was shot on location in the South. “We moved all over Georgia. . . It was a screwy chase picture, but Hal’s fun, outlaw, hell-bent-sensibility made it sparkle.” (more…)