I’ll give you a moment to take in this intense and alluring poster (ok, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Mr. Butler has mesmerizing eyes!). EMPIRE Online just released the UK posters for LAC and boy, this is a much more superior version that the US version here. Looks like they went back to the earlier version that shows GB’s brooding eyes staring straight at you, but improve it immensely. Alas, that’s got to be the worst tag line ever though, sheesh, did they spend all the money on the graphic designer that they couldn’t afford a decent copywriter?? One commenter mentioned it might as well be a Steven Seagal movie, ugh!
In any case, the wait is almost over. LAC opens in three days and I’m EXCITED!! I know, I know, that’s a bit of an understatement… I’ve been bloggin’ about this for months whilst skipping two of GB’s last offerings (for good reasons). The last movie I was excited to see him in was Rocknrolla — decent but wasn’t as rockin’ as the title — but THIS is the movie I’ve been eager to see for quite some time. It also marks his producing debut, so a lot is riding on his shoulders as he’s been involved in the creative process from the get-go.
But from what I’m seeing so far, I’ve moved from hopeful to confident this is going to be one heck of a thriller. EMPIRE said “Gerard Butler always looks more comfortable onscreen when he’s bringing the pain than when he’s bringing the hearts and flowers.” I think more accurately, Butler looks more comfortable when he can be menacing AND vulnerable at the same time. Just like the Phantom, the line between victim and villain is blurred and like the actor himself said in a Fandango interview when asked who’s the villain in the story, “…there is a big struggle with who you are supporting in this film.” That I think that’s the biggest draw of the movie to me, as displayed in this latest clip between the DA (Jamie Foxx) and Butler’s Clyde Shelton:
I’m totally digging the dialog, even his American accent is much improved here (Mike B., I know you might disagree with me on this one). I can still hear a very slight Scottish brogue here and there, but so what, his character could be of a Scottish descent, like most Americans have an accent of sort, there are multiple accents found even in one given state. So that part doesn’t bother me. IMO, he’s still downright convincing as a scorned ordinary man who’s more than meets the eye.
M.Carter at the Movies asked me if I’m excited for this Friday, so Meredith, here’s my long answer =) That’s cool that you’re going to give Butler another shot, here’s hoping he and the movie don’t disappoint!
FLIXCHATTER FILM BLOG 
Alright, so, with the full disclosure that I, too, heart Gerard Butler, here’s my series of questions for you : Do you read movie reviews? If so, how much credence do you lend them?
I ask because in this case, I don’t think it’s being screened, which is normally a bad sign. I don’t allow critic’s reviews to make or break my own opinion/desire to see a film, normally, but as a whole they’re often a good indicator of things.
On a side note, if you DO read reviews, who’s your favorite critic?? 🙂
Hi Sam, sorry it took me a while to answer your questions. Well, sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t. If I’m already ‘sold’ on a movie long before it opens, I usually don’t pay much attention to them and take ’em with a grain of salt. But sometimes I rely on reviews if I’m unsure about a particular movie, so I know whether I should waste my money on it or not. I go to rottentomatoes.com a lot and their fresh/rotten rating is like you said, a good indicator of things, especially if they’re either really low or really high. I use the ‘to each their own’ kind of principle for those that fall somewhere in the middle (50-65%), as it’s not universally thought of as bad or good.
Btw, I’m not sure if a movie isn’t screened makes it automatically bad. I think there are lots of advanced screenings all over the country for this and it was also previewed at UrbanWorld festival, so it’s not like the film makers have anything to hide.
As for your third question, I don’t pay enough attention to each individual critic to have a favorite. Not yet anyway.
Hope that answers your question, sorry it’s kind of a long one =) So, how about you? I’d like to hear your thoughts.
If LOC is an over-the-top GREAT movie (possible – judging by the trailers) GB’s faux American accent will get a pass (by me at least). HOWEVER, if this thing’s “biblically” bad, then his Scot’s tongue will further the state of disbelief of what’s on screen – all while you’re sitting there wondering why you bought your ticket. The way I felt at times during “Ugly”.
A HUGE weekend for GB’s bankability. Truly hope it ROCKS!
I see your point Mike, I think believability goes far beyond pulling off a certain accent, though it certainly doesn’t hurt. Like I said, I think his accent sounds all right – I mean, I’ve watched nearly all of his flicks (minus ‘Ugly’), so I’m quite familiar with his voice. The thing is, I think every actor has a ‘signature’ way of speaking, even if they nail the accent perfectly, I still recognize it’s so and so speaking… y’know what I mean? But believability has more to do with an actor’s presence, body language, etc. that makes the audience accept he truly is the character he’s portraying.
He should have kept the brogue. I’m willing to suspend my disbelief for Scottish brogue!
Your excitement is making me excited. I am not the world’s biggest Jamie Foxx fan (excluding “Collateral” and “The Soloist”), so I can’t wait to see G.B. screw with everyone’s minds and make Foxx look stupid.
Ha..ha… you and me both, M. They should’ve let him keep it in most films IMO, but I thought his American accent is pretty decent here. Foxx is all right in some films but he’s no Denzel. Glad my excitement is contagious, I REALLY want to like this movie, and they’re really pumpin’ the marketing for this. I just hope this isn’t too gory… but with everyone’s been comparing this to SAW I guess I have to keep my eyes shut quite a bit!
Hey RTM,
writing to see if you’d like to run an (Untitled) contest. I see you editorially covered it in September (https://flixchatter.wordpress.com/2009/09/30/conspicuous-trailer-untitled/)
I’ve got some cool prizing so please email me back and let’s chat (Untitled)!
Thanks,
Tristen
hehe I’ve gotten to where I enjoy reading reviews via Metacritic or Rotten Tomatoes more than actually seeing the films sometimes. I looooooooooove A.O. Scott from the NY Times. His reviews read like poetry. Mostly, I’m trying to branch out in terms of how I think about and watch films, so I feel like reading reviews helps with that; offers other perspectives, and so on. My husband and I have a couple of film watching projects going (AFI Top 100, Bond films), plus I have my own personal agenda (RC, RDJ films) so I like to keep my finger on what other people think. Having said that, though, I still draw my own conclusions. For the most part, I don’t think a review has ever deterred me from seeing something I’d already decided I wanted to see … maybe I wait for video, is all. More often, I will read a review of something I previously had no interest in (or hadn’t even heard of) and think “Oh, that sounds really cool – I’ll have to add that to the queue!” So we’re mostly similar on that. My fingers are crossed for LAC, of course … it doesn’t really look like my kind of thing, but I always want to see GB do well. In this case, I don’t think it’s something critics will go for in general, so the “grain of salt” approach is probably a good one. 🙂