ZiaZine July 2008 : 13
Never Back Down Sick of watching the talented and noble Djimon Hounsou play a slave in every other movie? He gets to branch out here as the mentor of a troubled teen who joins an underground fight club. Not the type of fight club that rails against consumerism and engages in ironic yet poignant yet terrorist activity, but the kind where you simply beat the crap out of teen who joins an un people for fun. In Stores July 29 SUMMIT ENTERTAINMENT Mad Men— Season One Much in the same way that George Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck doubled as a commentary on modern-day Ma Sea Mu way Clo Nig Luc a co on American media, Matthew Weiner trains the same forward-looking critical eye on 1960s advertising via Mad Men. The popular AMC series highlights the brazen sexual and ethical politics of the era’s ex- ecutives, re-creating a niche of the decade with startling authenticity. Jon Hamm, Elisabeth Moss, Vincent Kartheiser and January Jones star. In Stores July 29 AMERICAN MOVIE CLASSICS Shine a Light The concert film is a dying art, but Martin Scorsese (who already gave us a classic with 1978’s star-studded paean to the Band, The Last Waltz)lt ) appears determined to keep it alive with Shine a Light. Although it isn’t nearly as epic and emotional as that classic, Light ably documents the still wildly popular Rolling Stones and features an incredible 18 song set co-starring Jack White, Buddy Guy and Christina Aguilera. In Stores July 29 PARAMOUNT d t The Bank Job W h i l i i b e’ve seen Jason Statham stake his claim to the action throne in both Transporter flicks, War with Jet Li and, um, an Uwe Boll movie. It’s always nice when dudes like him actually try to, you know, act, and in that regard, e Bank Job is a success. e kind of movie Steve McQueen would probably approve of, it features Statham as a down-on-his-luck ex-con who’s lured back into the titular activity by his ex (Saffron Burrows). LIONSGATE Dark City: Director’s Cut It wasn’t long ago that director Alex Proyas was a future star; while he’s had his crowd- pleasing hits (The Crow, I, Robot), this is far and away his most thought-provoking and personal film, not only accomplish- ing much of what The Matrix did first, but earning a rare Roger Ebert commentary track. This cult favorite stars Rufus Sewell as an amnesiac fugitive battling a pack of “Strangers” who seem to control his un- f d hi named metropolis. In Stores July 29 NEW LINE HOME VIDEO b DVD? I Meet Bill Okay, The Black Dahlia was a bomb, but Thank You for Smoking kind of made Aaron Eckhart a star (again)—why is his latest indie dramedy making its bow on DVD? I mean, check out that Garden State-esque blending-into-the- background cover art! Anyway, as you may have guessed from that symbolism, Eckhart plays a milquetoast who tries to get his moribund life and marriage back in order with a few new friends (including lingerie saleswoman Jessica Alba!) In Stores July 29 FIRST LOOK PICTURES [ JULY 2008 + monitorTHIS! + 13 ] stores in july
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