Father Geek here with Coffin Joe, Jr. and this Tuesday's edition of Latin-AICN. Before we get to Joe's report here's a bit of info on the current Robert Rodriguez project that is shooting right now in central Mexico...
I just wanted to let you know that I saw in a local TV show called "En Medio del Espectáculo" that Johnny Depp is going to play a character who hires someone to kill the President of Mexico, while Willem Dafoe will play a character involved in the drug of worlds. All of this, of course, in "Once Upon a Time in Mexico". Apparently, the info was very reliable.....
See ya'......
Then came this update from the same source...
Me again. It's just that what I sent you before isn't entirely correct. I had problems with tha translation. As a matter of fact, Depp will play a corrupt FBI agent who hires El Mariachi to PREVENT a strike against the Mexican President. This strike is being planned by General Barillo (Willem Dafoe) a man who's deeply involved in the world of drugs and smuggling.
There you go......
PEPE
Father Geek back, this adds to the casting info we received the other day that told us that Antonio Banderas will be playing El Mariachi, Salma Hayek will play the knife wielding Carolina, Quentin Tarantino will play Cucuy, Eva Mendez will play the female federale Agent Ajedrez, and that the film also had signed Johnny Depp, Willem Dafoe, Mickey Rourke, Marco Leonardi, Ruben Blades and Cheech Marin. Can't wait for this one, Robert's signed a heavy duty cast to this project.
Now here's Coffin Joe Jr. and his regular report...
Ok, Coffin Joe Jr. is back you freaks, here for yet another installment of our beloved Latin-AICN. How you guys doing? Ok? Alright then. Sorry about the delay, I´m in the middle of my finals so, you know, cut me some slack here.
Here´s this week´s news:
US
-Actor Jon Seda ("Selena", "Price of Glory") is keeping himself busy with a number of projects, including the latest film from action auteur Walter Hill, a prison drama called "Undisputed" with Wesley Snipes, Michael Rooker, Ving Rhames, Wes Studi, rapper Master P and veteran Peter Falk; he´s also in "Rikki, the Pig", under the direction of James Gavin Bedford, an adaptation of William Shakespeare´s Richard the Third, set in modern day L.A., with turf wars, betrayals, deaths, all in East Los Angeles, with Jon playing the title role; in "Love the Hard Way", a romance/drama of a thief who meets a young lady that changes his life, Seda plays the part of Charlie. Other cast members in "Love the Hard Way", directed by Peter Sehr, include Pam Grier, Adrien Brody and Charlotte Ayanna; finally, Mr.Seda is in the action pic "Double Bang", written and directed by Heywood Gould.
-Check out the site www.hayekheaven.net, for extensive coverage on the Frida Kahlo movie project and how it is coming along. They got photos, scoops, the works. There you can also find out more about Salma´s involvement in "NiteVision", formerly titled "Hotel", Mike Figgis´s latest digital experience in filmmaking, which sounds very similar to his last flick "Timecode".
-Jennifer Lopez next project, after the recently released "Angel Eyes", is tentatively called "Enough", set for release in 2002. This thriller is directed by Michael Apted, from a script by Nicholas Kazan, with Lopez as a character named Slim, Bill Campbell ("Rocketter") playing Mitch, and Juliette Lewis in the role of Ginny.
ARGENTINA
-The movie "La Libertad", the debut of director Lisandro Alonso, was the only Latin film in the "Un Certain Regard" showcase this year at Cannes. The story deals with a lonely man, who lives in the province of La Pampa, working with his axe in the countryside. We follow his actions, trying to uncover the mystery of his apparently simple existence. The cast includes Rafael Estrada, Javier Didino and Mizael Saavedma.
BRAZIL
-A friend of mine was an extra in Beto Brant´s ("Belly Up", "Friendly Fire") latest flick, "O Invasor", and they shot a scene in a whore house here in São Paulo.
-You can (finally!) pre-order the DVD of Hector Babenco´s "Pixote" at your local video store or at any online trader. The U.S. edition, region 1, is brought to ya by New Yorker, who released a good DVD of Takeshi Kitano´s "Fireworks" too. "Pixote" will be released June 5th. Here are some pics of the flick.
all photos copyright and tm HB filmes
COFFIN JOE JR.´S MOVIE REVIEWS
Pachanga Punchlines, Dos Guys Productions
I got this movie on tape in the mail last week, so I´ll review it for you geeks. It´s shot on B&W video, done on a really tiny budget and using basically amateur actors. The best definition I can give is that it is sort of like a hispanic "Clerks" shot on video, during a barbecue. There, how about that? It´s a series of jokes, connected by the fact that you´re dealing with a small number of characters, who are very different from each other and keep things fairly interesting, even though there´s basically no plot. The actors have some problems initially, but as the movie goes on things get better and the performances become tighter. It´s a comedy, and it accomplishes its task with some pretty funny jokes, with elaborate recreations of these anecdotes told by the characters. One character in particular is pretty funny, the crazy drunken guy, Nacho Loco, who has one priceless scene with the family´s grandpa. The soundtrack has songs by a Texas ska band called Los Skarnales, who even make a cameo in the picture.
As far as shot on video stuff goes, this is neat little movie with some funny bits that will entertain.
