'IT VEXES ME - I'M TERRIBLY VEXED'.Byline: Glenn Whipp Film Writer It was a year in which movie characters themselves pretty neatly summed up the state of filmmaking. Who knew that when Russell Crowe's Roman general ordered his minions to ``unleash hell,'' he was actually forecasting a summer movie season that would include two Jerry Bruckheimer pictures and the appropriately titled ``Scary Movie.'' These are indeed mediocre times, as Samuel L. Jackson's comic book collector noted in ``Unbreakable.'' And they're not likely to get much better as movie studios rush scores of films into production without finished scripts just so they can be completed by the time the actors and writers possibly go on strike next summer. We can't wait to see that bunch. They might even make us nostalgic for this year's bummer bum·mer n. 1. Slang An adverse reaction to a hallucinogenic drug. 2. Slang One that depresses, frustrates, or disappoints: Getting stranded at the airport was a real bummer. crop of films. But we're not going to play Grinch here (unless someone pays us Jim Carrey money). Here are some of our favorite things This article or section contains information about scheduled or expected future events. It may contain tentative information; the content may change as the event approaches and more information becomes available. (and targets) from 2000's movies. Images we'll never forget Zhang Ziyi and Michelle Yeoh skipping across rooftops in the first of many jaw-dropping, gravity-defying scenes in ``Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Traditional Chinese: 臥虎藏龍; Simplified Chinese: 卧虎藏龙; Pinyin: .'' Tom Hanks bobbing on a life raft, illuminated by lightning, in ``Cast Away.'' Bjork singing and dancing to the beat of a railroad car in ``Dancer in the Dark.'' Michelle Pfeiffer taking what might be her final bath in ``What Lies Beneath.'' Geoffrey Rush finding new ways to hone his writing craft in ``Quills.'' Russell Crowe's tiger act in ``Gladiator gladiator (Latin; swordsman) Professional combatant in ancient Rome who engaged in fights to the death as sport. Gladiators originally performed at Etruscan funerals, the intent being to give the dead man armed attendants in the next world. .'' Christopher Guest's ventriloquist act in ``Best in Show.'' Jim Carrey settling the score over his neighbor's dog in ``Me, Myself & Irene.'' Images we'll never forget ... no matter how hard we try Girls gym teacher Miss Mann in ``Scary Movie.'' Just about anything from ``Scary Movie.'' Ellen Burstyn's electro-shock treatment, Jared Leto's infected arm and Jennifer Connelly's sordid sex show in ``Requiem for a Dream This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims. Please help Wikipedia by adding references. See the for details. This article has been tagged since September 2007. .'' Granny taking out her dentures in the whirlpool in ``Nutty Professor II: The Klumps.'' Good movies, bad endings ``Cast Away'' ``What Lies Beneath'' ``Frequency'' ``The Contender'' Bad movie, good ending ``The Perfect Storm'' Bad movie, most shameless ending in the history of film ``Pay It Forward'' Worst use of post-Oscar clout Kim Basinger follows up her Oscar for ``L.A. Confidential'' with ``I Dreamed of Africa'' and ``Bless the Child.'' She must be getting career advice from husband Alec Baldwin. Time for him to go away again John Travolta, continuing to show why he's America's most overpaid o·ver·pay v. o·ver·paid , o·ver·pay·ing, o·ver·pays v.tr. 1. To pay (a party) too much. 2. To pay an amount in excess of (a sum due). v.intr. To pay too much. actor, makes two of the year's worst movies - ``Battlefield Earth'' and ``Lucky Numbers.'' Can He Go, Too? After Mike Myers decided not to make ``Dieter'' (claiming the script wasn't ready, and, since he wrote it, he should know), Universal Pictures sued him for breach of contract. Myers countersued, charging Universal with invading his privacy by giving his home address to a process server who, according to Myers' suit, ``engaged in stalkeresque, thuglike, outrageous and reckless conduct - chasing Myers and his wife in their vehicle at night at a high rate of speed down dark, winding and unlit streets, and nearly causing Myers to crash his vehicle into his garage.'' If that wasn't enough, the suit claimed Myers and his wife had suffered severe emotional distress emotional distress n. an increasingly popular basis for a claim of damages in lawsuits for injury due to the negligence or intentional acts of another. Originally damages for emotional distress were only awardable in conjunction with damages for actual physical harm. and trauma since their home address was publicly disclosed, forcing them to ``retain a security guard for protection . . . and to seek a new residence.'' Myers also claimed that likable Ron Howard, Imagine's co-founder, told him ``it's going to get ugly'' if he didn't make ``Dieter.'' The lawsuits were eventually settled. And hopefully Howard hooked Myers up with a good therapist and licensed real estate agent. Favorite couples Mac and Rocky the Rhode Island red Rhode Island red a deep red-brown, dual-purpose poultry breed which lays a deep brown egg. It has a single comb, with clean yellow legs. rooster rooster its crowing at dawn heralds each new day. [Western Folklore: Leach, 329] See : Dawn rooster symbol of maleness. [Folklore: Binder, 85] See : Virility in ``Chicken Run.'' Laura Linney and Mark Ruffalo in ``You Can Count on Me.'' Mike White and Chris Weitz in ``Chuck & Buck.'' Ben Stiller and Robert DeNiro in ``Meet the Parents.'' Frances McDormand and Patrick Fugit in ``Almost Famous.'' Jim Carrey and Jim Carrey and ``Me, Myself & Irene.'' Tom Hanks and Wilson in ``Cast Away.'' Poison pairings Richard Gere and Winona Ryder in ``Autumn in New York Autumn in New York may refer to;
Richard Gere and any of the women in ``Dr. T & the Women.'' Ben Affleck and Gwyneth Paltrow in ``Bounce.'' Matt Damon and Penelope Cruz in ``All the Pretty Horses All the Pretty Horses is a novel by U.S. author Cormac McCarthy published in 1992. Its romanticism (in contrast to the apocalyptic bleakness of McCarthy's earlier work) brought the writer much public attention, spending some time on bestseller charts, earning the U.S. .'' Jason Biggs and Mena Suvari in ``Loser.'' John Travolta and Lisa Kudrow in ``Lucky Numbers.'' Any of the couplings in ``Duets.'' Best performance by an inanimate object Sam Jackson's leather jacket in ``Shaft.'' Wilson the volleyball in ``Cast Away.'' The raging refrigerator in ``Requiem for a Dream.'' Now playing: Hades Hades (hā`dēz), in Greek and Roman religion and mythology. 1 The ruler of the underworld: see Pluto. 2 The world of the dead, ruled by Pluto and Persephone, located either underground or in the far west beyond the Octoplex ``Loser'' ``The Cell'' ``Gone in 60 Seconds'' ``Hanging Up'' ``The Next Best Thing'' ``Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2'' ``Mission to Mars'' ``What Planet Are You From?'' QUOTEBOOK ``I saw my whole life flash before my eyes . . . it was boring!'' - Babs the hen in ``Chicken Run'' ``Conversation, like certain portions of the anatomy, always runs more smoothly when lubricated lu·bri·cate v. lu·bri·cat·ed, lu·bri·cat·ing, lu·bri·cates v.tr. 1. To apply a lubricant to. 2. To make slippery or smooth. v.intr. To act as a lubricant. .'' - Geoffrey Rush, as the Marquis de Sade Noun 1. Marquis de Sade - French soldier and writer whose descriptions of sexual perversion gave rise to the term `sadism' (1740-1814) Comte Donatien Alphonse Francois de Sade, de Sade, Sade , in ``Quills'' ``Do I listen to pop music because I'm miserable? Or am I miserable because I listen to pop music?'' - John Cusack, exploring a question for the ages in ``High Fidelity'' ``If you utter so much as one syllable, I'LL HUNT YOU DOWN AND GUT YOU LIKE A FISH! If you want to fax me, press the star key.'' - The Grinch's answering machine greeting in ``How the Grinch Stole Christmas'' ``It vexes me. I'm terribly vexed.'' - Joaquin Phoenix's vexed emperor in ``Gladiator'' ``Cheerleaders Notable cheerleaders
``They're called boobs, Ed.'' - Julia Roberts, explaining her powers of persuasion in ``Erin Brockovich.'' Films that saved 2000 from being a complete loss Nobody is going to remember the year 2000 as one of the cinema's best and brightest. Not the public, who, by and large, seemed more disenchanted dis·en·chant tr.v. dis·en·chant·ed, dis·en·chant·ing, dis·en·chants To free from illusion or false belief; undeceive. [Obsolete French desenchanter, from Old French, than ever with the choices at the neighborhood megaplex, and not critics who had to sit through three Jerry Bruckheimer movies and rancid ran·cid adj. Having the disagreeable odor or taste of decomposing oils or fats. rancid having a musty, rank taste or smell; applied to fats that have undergone decomposition, with the liberation of fatty acids. fare like ``Scary Movie'' and ``The Cell.'' Yet, as always, there were some bright spots. Not many, but enough to make us recall the year and occasionally grin instead of grimace grimace Neurology A humorless facial 'mask' typically seen in Pts with catatonia. See Amimia. . 1. ``Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'' 2. ``Dancer in the Dark'' 3. ``George Washington'' 4. ``Before Night Falls'' 5. ``Quills'' 6. ``Gladiator'' 7. ``Shadow of the Vampire'' 8. ``Chicken Run'' 9. ``You Can Count on Me'' 10. ``Almost Famous'' - Glenn Whipp CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: ``Gladiator'' Box: Films that saved 2000 from being a complete loss (see text) |
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