Category Archives: Urban

Precious -vs- Precious: Based on the Novel “Push” by Sapphire

Posted on February 3, 2010 by

Sorry. Just can’t do this any more. Can’t waste any more of my precious life energy writing it all out. So, here it is, one last time… all 38 blessed characters…

“Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire”

Okay, we’re done here. From now on, it is the policy of this website to refer to this Oscar nominated film as “Precious.”

How did it happen that a film could be called by a title that sounds this unnecessary and pretentious? After all, all of the films in the “Adapted Screenplay” category could give themselves the same treatment. Then we’d be looking at films like “Up in the Air: Based on the Novel ‘Up in the Air’ by Walter Kim.” Or how would you have liked to see this on the big screen — “Star Trek: Based on the TV Series ‘Star Trek’ by Gene Roddenberry.” Ugh… Continue reading →

Posted in Awards, Book Adaptation, Bryce Zabel, Drama, Family, Urban | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Bryce’s Ten Best Films of the Past Ten Years

Posted on December 15, 2009 by

Everybody seems to be out with their Top Ten. This year it’s a two-fer. You can go with “Top Ten of 2009″ or “Top Ten of the Decade.” I say go for the Top Ten of the Last Ten. Now, … Continue reading →

Posted in Action, Animated, Awards, Blockbuster, Book Adaptation, Bryce Zabel, ChickFlick, Classic Smack, Comedy, Comic Book, Coming of Age, Comix, Disaster, Drama, DVD Release, Fantasy, Foreign, Franchise, Holiday, Indie, Journalism, Kids, Major Star Vehicle, Music, Musical, Oscar, Period, Politics, Polls, Race, Religion, Romance, Sci-Fi, Smackdown News, Thriller, Travel, Urban, War, Weblogs, Western | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009) -vs- The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

Posted on June 15, 2009 by

Both films share the same basic underlying premise from the novel by John Godey. And Godey’s premise is a goody — four gunmen hijack a New York City subway train and demand a huge ransom be paid within the hour. The money must not be late in arriving because for every minute thereafter, one of the hostages will be shot. No exceptions. What ensues is a deadly cat and mouse game of verbal sparring between the leader of the highly armored gang and the unlucky transit official who must do everything possible to delay the inevitable. It’s said that Benito Mussolini kept the trains running on time. Does Tony Scott do the same for the New York Transit Authority? Or is the original the better ride? It’s time to get out the subway tokens — all aboard!
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Posted in Action, Bob Nowotny, Book Adaptation, Crime, Re-Make, Urban | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mad Men (2009-2007) -vs- Revolutionary Road (2008)

Posted on June 13, 2009 by
MadMen

In the age of instant communication, instant gratification looking back 50 years seems like a trip in the way-back machine. Many of us remember this as the time our parents scrambled to attain a level of security described by the catchall American Dream.
We tie this period before the Cuban Missile Crisis to hula hoops, fallout shelters, drive-in movies, TV dinners and American Bandstand. This was a time when people in the background –mostly men– worked overtime branding these cultural signposts as passports to the good life. This period matters. It directed the shape of many of our lives.
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Posted in Awards, Book Adaptation, Mark Sanchez, Period, TV Smack, Urban | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Hairspray (2007) -vs- Saturday Night Fever (1977)

Posted on November 21, 2007 by

Thirty Years of Dancing Travolta! The Smackdown It was three decades ago that a charismatic sitcom star named John Travolta crossed over into feature film fame with the cultural sensation Saturday Night Fever. In the years since, Travolta has seen … Continue reading →

Posted in Awards, Bryce Zabel, Comedy, Coming of Age, Drama, Major Star Vehicle, Mark Sanchez, Musical, Oscar, Period, Re-Make, Urban | Leave a comment

American Gangster (2007) -vs- Hoodlum (1997)

Posted on November 15, 2007 by

The Smackdown Audiences love gangsters on film. They appeared as early as 1912 in D.W. Griffith’s Musketeers of Pig Alley. Little Caesar, Public Enemy and Scarface set the tone in the early 1930s for generations of hard-talking hard guys on film: … Continue reading →

Posted in Drama, Major Star Vehicle, Mark Sanchez, Race, Thriller, Urban | 3 Comments

American Gangster (2007) -vs- The Godfather, Part II (1974)

Posted on November 7, 2007 by

The Smackdown It can’t be easy being a young criminal crime boss and drug lord, coming from a struggling underclass, living in the shadow of an even more powerful criminal. Both Frank Lucas and Michael Corleone step out on their … Continue reading →

Posted in Awards, Biopic, Blockbuster, Book Adaptation, Bryce Zabel, Drama, Major Star Vehicle, Oscar, Period, Politics, Race, Sequel, Urban | Leave a comment

The Nines (2007) -vs- Go (1999)

Posted on September 6, 2007 by

The Smackdown “The Nines” begins with the protagonist tightly winding three pieces of green twine around his wrist to make a bracelet.  Just like “Go” (also written by veteran screenwriter John August), you’ll have to do some mental basket weaving … Continue reading →

Posted in Action, Jonathan Zabel, Thriller, Urban | 1 Comment