SXSW Take Two!

That's right! Coming out of retirement to do a little coverage of this years SXSW. On tonight's dock, we have competition films Wild Canaries and The Heart Machine

Wild Canaries - Barri and Noah, a newly engaged Brooklyn couple, are disheartened by the death of their elderly downstairs neighbor, Sylvia. Though Noah sees nothing unusual about the old woman's death, Barri suspects foul play and sets out to investigate, enlisting her roommate Jean to join her on a reconnaissance mission to trail a possible suspect. Tensions mount, however, when the investigation uncovers unsettling secrets throughout the building—including in their own apartment—and suddenly everyone seems like a reasonable suspect. "Wild Canaries" is a freshly comedic take on classic film noir.

The Heart Machine - Cody and Virginia start talking while he’s in Brooklyn and she’s in Berlin. It’s a romance that could only happen online, and they’re happy together—except they’ve never really met. But Cody’s questions about Virginia’s life in Berlin become an obsession, leading him to doubt that she’s there at all. Combing NYC for clues, an increasingly driven Cody begins overstepping boundaries of privacy in his desperate quest for answers. Tracking two parallel journeys that show how digital mediation complicates modern love,The Heart Machine explores the evolving relationship between physical and emotional intimacy, isolation in the urban hive, and the seduction of hiding behind a screen.

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5th Annual Fangirl Awards Eligibility List

It's that time again!!

Even though our IRL jobs are preventing us from being super active on this blog, we still believe in the Fangirl Awards and the Fangirl Academy. Nominating ballots are due from our 130 members this Friday and the nominations will be announced next week. Winners announced Friday, February 28th!

After the jump is the list of the 289 movies eligible for awards this year. But NEW CATEGORY ALERT, this year we are adding a Best of Fest category, where the five favorite movies that played at festivals but haven't been released yet can get a little love too :)

To join the Academy, head here and to remember winners of years past, head here.

Follow our current activity on Twitter and Tumblr!

http://eruditechick.tumblr.com/
http://loquaciousmuse.tumblr.com/
@eruditechick
@loquaciousmuse
@castling

"About Time"
"Admission"
"Adore"
"After Earth"
"Afternoon Delight"
"Ain't Them Bodies Saints"
"All Is Lost"
"Alone Yet Not Lone"
"American Hustle"
"Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues"
"The Armstrong Lie"
"Arthur Newman"
"At Any Price"
"August: Osage County"
"Augustine"
"Austenland"
"Baggage Claim"
"Ballad of Rustom"
"Battle of the Year"
"Beautiful Creatures"
"Before Midnight"
"The Best Man Holiday"
"Between Us"
"The Big Wedding"
"Black Nativity"
"The Bling Ring"
"Blue Caprice"
"Blue Is the Warmest Color"
"Blue Jasmine"
"The Book Thief"
"Brave Miss World"
"The Broken Circle Breakdown"
"Broken City"
"Bullet to the Head"
"The Butterfly's Dream"
"The Call"
"Captain Phillips"
"Carrie"
"Charlie Countryman"
"Cleaver's Destiny"
"Closed Circuit"
"Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2"
"The Company You Keep"
"The Condemned"
"The Conjuring"
"Copperhead"
"The Counselor"
"The Croods"
"Dallas Buyers Club"
"Dancing on a Dry Salt Lake"
"Dead Man Down"
"Delivery Man"
"Despicable Me 2"
"Diana"
"Disconnect"
"Don Jon"
"Down the Shore"
"Drinking Buddies"
"The East"
"Elysium"
"Emperor"
"Ender's Game"
"Enough Said"
"Epic"
"Ernest & Celestine"
"Escape from Planet Earth"
"Escape from Tomorrow"
"Escape Plan"
"Everybody Has a Plan"
"Evil Dead"
"The Fall of 1980"
"The Family"
"Fast and Furious 6"
"The Fifth Estate"
"Fill the Void"
"Filly Brown"
"For No Good Reason"
"47 Ronin"
"42"
"Frances Ha"
"Free Birds"
"Free China: The Courage to Believe"
"Frozen"
"Fruitvale Station"
"G.I. Joe: Retaliation"
"Gahan Wilson: Born Dead, Still Weird"
"Gangster Squad"
"Getaway"
"Gimme Shelter"
"Gimme the Loot"
"Girl Most Likely"
"Girls Against Boys"
"Gloria"
"Go For Sisters"
"A Good Day to Die Hard"
"Grace Unplugged"
"The Grandmaster"
"Gravity"
"The Great Beauty"
"The Great Gatsby"
"Grown Ups 2"
"Grudge Match"
"The Hangover Part III"
"Hannah Arendt"
"Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters"
"A Haunted House"
"Haute Cuisine"
"The Heat"
"Her"
"The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug"
"Hollywood Seagull"
"Homefront"
"The Host"
"Hours"
"How I Live Now"
"How Sweet It Is"
"The Hunger Games: Catching Fire"
"The Hunt"
"I Spit On Your Grave 2"
"I Used to be Darker"
"The Iceman"
"Identity Thief"
"If I Were You"
"Il Futuro"
"I'm So Excited!"
"The Impaler"
"In a World..."
"In the Fog"
"The Incredible Burt Wonderstone"
"The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete
"Inside Llewyn Davis"
"Insidious Chapter 2"
"Instructions Not Included"
"The Internship"
"The Invisible Woman"
"Iron Man 3"
"Jack the Giant Slayer"
"Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa"
"Jayne Mansfield's Car"
"Jewtopia"
"Jobs"
"Kamasutra 3D"
"Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain"
"Khumba"
"Kick-Ass 2"
"Kill Your Darlings"
"The Kings of Summer"
"LA Superheroes"
"Labor Day"
"The Last Exorcism Part II"
"The Last Stand"
"Last Vegas"
"Lee Daniels' The Butler"
"The Legend of Sarila"
"A Letter to Momo"
"Live at the Foxes Den"
"The Lone Ranger"
"Lone Survivor"
"The Lords of Salem"
"Lore"
"Love Is All You Need"
"Lovelace"
"The M Word"
"Machete Kills"
"Mama"
"Man of Steel"
"Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom"
"Mental"
"Metallica Through the Never"
"The Missing Picture"
"Monsters University"
"Morning"
"The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones"
"Movie 43"
"Much Ado About Nothing"
"Mud"
"Mumia: Long Distance Revolutionary"
"Murph: The Protector"
"The Muslims Are Coming!"
"Nebraska"
"99% The Occupy Wall Street Collaborative Film"
"No One Lives"
"Nothing Left to Fear"
"Now You See Me"
"O Apostolo"
"Oblivion"
"Officer Down"
"Oldboy"
"Olympus Has Fallen"
"One Chance"
"One Direction: This Is Us"
"Only God Forgives"
"Out of the Furnace"
"Oz the Great and Powerful"
"Pacific Rim"
"The Package"
"Pain & Gain"
"Paradise: Love"
"Paranoia"
"Parkland"
"The Past"
"The Patience Stone"
"Pawn"
"Pawn Shop Chronicles"
"Peeples"
"Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters"
"Philomena"
"The Place Beyond the Pines"
"Planes"
"Populaire"
"Prince Avalanche"
"Prisoners"
"Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie -Rebellion-"
"The Purge"
"R.I.P.D."
"Reaching for the Moon"
"Red 2"
"Redemption"
"Renoir"
"Riddick"
"Rio 2096: A Story of Love and Fury"
"Romeo and Juliet"
"Runner Runner"
"Rush"
"Safe Haven"
"Salinger"
"The Sapphires"
"Saving Mr. Banks"
"The Secret Life of Walter Mitty"
"Shadow Dancer"
"Short Term 12"
"Side Effects"
"A Single Shot"
"The Smurfs 2"
"Snitch"
"Somm"
"Sound City"
"Spark: A Burning Man Story"
"Specific Intent 2"
"The Spectacular Now"
"Spring Breakers"
"The Square"
"Star Trek into Darkness"
"State 194"
"Still Mine"
"Stoker"
"Texas Chainsaw"
"Thanks for Sharing"
"This Is Martin Bonner"
"This Is the End"
"Thor: The Dark World"
"3 Geezers!"
"Tim's Vermeer"
"The To Do List"
"To the Wonder"
"Touring Talkies"
"Trance"
"The Truth About Emanuel"
"Turbo"
"12.12.12"
"12 Years a Slave"
"21 & Over"
"Twice Born"
"2 Guns"
"Two: The Story of Roman and Nyro"
"Tyler Perry's A Madea Christmas"
"Tyler Perry's Temptation Confessions of a Marriage Counselor"
"The Ultimate Life"
"Unfinished Song"
"Upside Down"
"Wadjda"
"Walking with Dinosaurs"
"The Wall"
"Warm Bodies"
"The Way, Way Back"
"We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks"
"We're the Millers"
"What Maisie Knew"
"White House Down"
"Why We Ride"
"The Wind Rises"
"Winnie Mandela"
"The Wolf of Wall Street"
"The Wolverine"
"World War Z"
"The World's End"
"Yossi"
"You're Next"
"Zaytoun"

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You May Have Noticed...

We aren't as active as we once were! Or at all. Jobby jobs have happened and your faithful Fangirls have disappeared from the world of blogging. We are still tweeting about our geeky interests on the Twitters, so follow us there at @loquaciousmuse and @eruditechick and of course will occasionally post giveaways and rants when the mood strikes, and never stop running the Fangirl Awards if we can help it!

If you are a Fangirl looking for an outlet and would be interested in taking over the content of All Things Fangirl, shoot me a note at allthingsfangirl at gmail dot com and we can discuss.

It's been a great run! So long and thanks for all the fish! #42

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Basically, I like Arcade Fire

As you probably know, Arcade Fire's new album Reflektor was officially released today. With its lyrical references to the Orpheus myth, its influences from Haitian music, and producution help from LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy, Reflektor is a grand addition to the band's discography. Always thematic but never totally conceptual, Arcade Fire's albums are best when listened to in full but most tracks are still great out of context. This time around, their title track is a definite hit single.



It's too soon for me to rank Reflektor among the rest but then again I'm not sure I'll ever have a favorite Arcade Fire album; each one is a unique and solid record that moves and charms me with every listen.

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Byuioo: Pipeline's New Musical

Byuioo is the new musical production from the incredibly innovative Pipeline Theatre Company. Described as a folk gospel musical, Byuioo is set in a post-apocalyptic New York where survivors live in nomadic packs, each with its own language and customs.



Always entertaining and imaginative, Pipeline produces must-see shows. I expect no less with Byuioo. Previews start next weekend and the show runs until mid-November at The Gym at Judson. For tickets and more info, visit the website.

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It's The World's End! Better Give Some Stuff Away!

In celebration of the world coming to an end, Wright/Pegg/Frost style, we are giving away some items everyone probably needs before the Apocalypse. 

Our friends at Focus Features are offering to one lucky reader,

·         $25 Visa Gift Card to see The World’s End

·         T-Shirt & Pint Glass

·         The World’s End Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

AHH HOORAY THE BEST!!!

To enter the contest, just rock out the rafflecopter below. And trust me when I say you want to see this movie. It's perhaps Wright's weirdest outing yet and a fantastic time at the movies, with the best climax of any film yet this year. Hyperbole shmyperboyle, I can't think of anything better right now, so just go with it, I'm probably right. As is the case with all of their films, it also examines something deeper, in this case, friendship and maturity. 

From our Film.com monthly preview, edited by @davidehrlich,
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost reunite with Edgar Wright behind the camera in the third and final chapter of their ice cream and blood trilogy, this installment concerning  a group of childhood friends who reunite in their 30s for an epic pub crawl, at the end of which lies the fabled pub The World’s End. During this epic trek of bros and booze, they realize the world is actually coming to an end. Let the action/comedy ensue! The film also stars Martin Freeman, Rosamund Pike, and an array of recognizable faces from not only the Edgar Wright repertoire, but all of British everything. What’s more, it surprisingly features some of the best fight scenes in recent memory. And a special treat for you Spaced fans: Keep an eye out for Mark Heap (Brian) and Julia Deakin (Marsha).

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Pre-Order the Album: http://bit.ly/WorldsEndSoundtrack

THE WORLD’S END ONLINE

Visit the official website

Like The World’s End on Facebook

Watch the trailer & clips on YouTube

Follow the Cornetto Trilogy on Tumblr

#TheWorldsEnd

ABOUT THE FILM

A signature brew of camaraderie, knockabout humor, excessive quaffing, questionable life choices, hand-to-hand combat, and explosive surprises, The World’s End reteams director Edgar Wright with actors Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, following their hits Shaun of the Dead (2004) and Hot Fuzz (2007).

The tale of The World’s End begins on June 22nd, 1990. In their suburban U.K. town of Newton Haven, five boys in the prime of their teenage youth celebrate the end of school by attempting an epic pub crawl together. Despite their enthusiasm and the downing of a slew of pints of beer, they fall short of seeing their quest through, to the last pub on their list, The World’s End.

Twenty-odd years later, “the five musketeers” have each left their hometown and are now husbands, fathers, men with careers – with the flashing-red-light exception of their voluble onetime ringleader, Gary King (Simon Pegg), who is now a 40-year-old man trapped at the cigarette end of his teens. The irrepressible Gary, keenly aware of his estrangement from his onetime closest friend Andy (Nick Frost), becomes hellbent on trying “The Golden Mile” drinking marathon again. He convinces Andy, Steven (Paddy Considine), Oliver (Martin Freeman), and Peter (Eddie Marsan) to stage an encore, and one Fridayafternoon they are all reunited. Gary is in his element: the mandate is one night, five guys, twelve pubs – imbibing at least one pint apiece at each establishment. Arriving in Newton Haven, they re-encounter Oliver’s sister Sam (Rosamund Pike), for whom Gary and Steven each still carry a torch.

As the gang attempts along the way to reconcile their past and present, an increasingly insane and dangerous series of encounters with old haunts and acquaintances makes them realize that the real struggle is for the future, not just theirs but humankind’s. Reaching The World’s End is the least of their worries…

Genre: Comedy

Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Martin Freeman, Paddy Considine, Eddie Marsan, Rosamund Pike

Directed by: Edgar Wright

Written by: Edgar Wright & Simon Pegg

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Indie Watch: August 2013

Full monthly preview on Film.com

edited by @davidehrlich

 The Spectacular Now

This film from the director of “Smashed” comes a love story between a teenage alcoholic and the slightly nerdy girl he befriends after a bad senior year break up. While it may sound trite on paper, the festival darling (one of many hitting theaters in limited release this month) surprises with its deliberate lack of showiness, understated nature and simple, effective performances. Miles Teller and in particular Shailene Woodley shine with their nuanced naturalism and easy chemistry.

Although parts of the film feel too reliant on improv to achieve this realism, a rather rampant problem with a lot of indie filmmaking nowadays, the good ultimately outweighs the bad. And you’ll never look Coach Taylor the same way again. Since both Teller and Woodley appear in YA adaptation “Divergent”, and the film’s marketing focuses more on the teen love story than teen alcoholic story, expect high critical praise and potentially low cinema scores from the inevitably confused 13-18 year old set.

The Canyons

This movie!! Guys!! This movie!!  Lindsay Lohan, renaissance porn star James Deen, Bret Easton Ellis, and the inimitable Paul Schrader join forces to create this masterpiece/sh*t show, which is finally coming to theaters and VOD after what seemed like an eternity of gossip. In any event, nothing is keeping me from taking in this “contemporary LA noir about the dangers of sexual obsession and ambition,” so good job stoking the strange fires of controversy, this NY Times piece and this New York Magazine article!

Ain't Them Bodies Saints

Another one of those aforementioned festival darlings that wowed at Sundance, SXSW, and LA Film Fest, to name a few. This neo-Western set in 1970s Texas Hill Country, stars Rooney Mara, Casey Affleck and Ben Foster and was developed through the Sundance Writing and Producing labs. David Lowery’s  film currently has 100% on Rotten Tomatoes, but can this swooningly romantic drama break out from the art house audience?  At the very least, the Sundance US Dramatic Cinematography Award winner will be beautiful to look at, and allegedly features one of the most compellingly strange scores of the year.

The Grandmaster

As if a Wong Kar Wai movie would be opening and we *wouldn’t* put it in our movie preview. What, were you expecting? “Planes”? “Mortal Instruments”? PSHAW I SAY. “The Grandmaster” is yet another biopic about Ip Man, the legendary martial arts master who trained Bruce Lee, Wong’s take following the martial artist as his world collides with that of another kung fu master, Gong Er, during the Japenese invasion in 1936. Choreographed by Yuen Woo-Ping, mastermind behind “Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon”, “Kill Bill” and “The Matrix”, “The Grandmaster” certainly promises to be a different and decidedly unique take on both biopics and martial arts movies.

You're Next

It has now been a solid TWO YEARS since “You’re Next” started playing the festival circuit to much acclaim, but finally the twist-on-the-home-invasion horror flick will be available for consumption nationwide. Opening weekend, grab a giant group of horror loving friends and get thee to a theater. Oh fun fact for you fellow geeks out there -  that cat mask you see in the trailer? Very popular random item floating around at Comic-Con, that was even discovered backstage by Michael Fassbender and shown off during his Comic-Con panel for “X-Men.”

Short Term 12

This little movie from director Destin Cretton won both the Grand Jury and Audience Award at SXSW, and then the Audience Award at LA Film Fest, and mark my words, will be making plenty of noise come Film Independent Spirit Awards time. Although the film was the second Cretton made, after “I Am Not A Hipster”, he began work on “Short Term 12″ long before, having worked with foster kids himself and becoming inspired to tell this story of the people who find hope in such facilities, whether they are the ones being cared for, or the ones attempting to do the caring. This beautiful, moving uncliched drama stars Brie Larson in a star-making role and an excellent John Gallagher Jr (“Newsroom”) as her sympathetic boyfriend.

Recommended: 

Europa Report (Aug 2nd, on VOD now)

In A World (Aug 9th)

Prince Avalanche (Aug 9th)

Drinking Buddies (Aug 23rd, On VOD now)

Afternoon Delight (Aug 30)

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