Russell Crowe: So badass he plays the Hero AND the Villian!

For years I have been a huge Ridley Scott fan and right now he's been teaming up with Russell Crowe to make a lot of movies. The first time they worked together was on Gladiator and that movie was just plain fucking awesome. And right now Scott is in a pattern where he makes smaller films in between epic films. For example he made Matchstick Men in between Kingdom of Heaven and Gladiator. Well Scott has a spy film coming out called Body of Lies and has announced that his next film has been green lit which happens to be Robin Hood.

Now Russell Crowe has always been rumoured to play either Robin Hood or the Sheriff of Nottingham. I was never surprised by this news because I can see him playing either roles and being great but some disturbing news has been confirmed today.

Mr. Crowe will be playing Robin Hood AND the Sheriff of Nottingham. I don't know how to handle this news. In the hands of a lesser director I would glaze over this news but a "I don't really care anymore" feeling. However this is Ridley Scott we are talking about here and if anyone can pull this off and make it awesome it would be him. The problem is that sometimes directors get this great idea on how to utilize an actor and don't really think whether it helps the film or not, and this has me worried. It could turn out great and I have really high hopes but this has the stink of disaster written all over it.

Spike Lee: Racism and Film

Well Spike Lee has a new "joint" coming out named "Miracle at St. Anna" and I'll probable catch it. However I am by no means a fan of Mr. Lee. The only film I have enjoyed of his was Inside Man by far the most mainstream and watered down version of Spike Lee that there is.

But what really gets me is his film "Do the Right Thing." I don't understand why people like it so much and feel that it tackles racism at a very unique angle. I don't think that at all. Movies are made to tell a story whether plot or character based, but "Do the Right Thing" does nothing for me but shove Spike Lee's message down my throat so hard I feel like I'm choking on an ostrich egg. For example there is the sequence in which all the characters in the film look at the camera and spew out racial profanities. After I watched that sequence all I could think was "Yeah, so. Congratulations people don't like each other and found interesting ways to express it." Never in the film did I feel that any of the characters really felt the way the acted as or understood what it meant to be a racist.

Of course this is just a small little rant on a film I believe is full of problems and is way overhyped by the indie crowd that think Spike Lee is the next Orson Welles. In the end I think Spike Lee is full of himself and if anyone is racist its him. Just look up the argument he tried to have with Clint Eastwood for no apparent reason.