COOP COOPER is an independently syndicated film critic with a split personality. His “Southern Side” prints mainstream reviews that appear in various print publications across the mid-south. His “Dark Side” from Los Angeles befouls the site with reviews of horror and grindhouse flicks. Welcome to the site where COOP’s two halves (and his contributors) review and debate the latest film/DVD releases…

Why should you check out the 2nd Annual Clarksdale Film Festival? I can think of a few reasons…

1. Memphis wrestling idols “Superstar” Bill Dundee and Buddy Wayne will be on hand Thursday night for a Q&A following the documentary “Memphis Heat: The True Story of Memphis Wrasslin’.” Anyone who grew up in the area remembers seeing these guys performing on live TV or at the Clarksdale Civic Auditorium. If you missed this event by the time you read this article, pay close attention. There is much more to look forward to the rest of the weekend…

Even the plot of “Hugo” is a mystery.
Hugo (Asa Butterfield) is a clever orphan in post-World War I Paris who lives in the clock fixtures of a train station. He spends his time spying on the various kiosk vendors, especially a mean toy merchant (Ben Kingsley) whom he steals mechanical parts from. He filches these parts to repair a broken robotic automaton his deceased watchmaker father (Jude Law) was repairing when he died. When caught by the toymaker, he begins a tenuous apprenticeship and a fast friendship with the toymaker’s pretty ward (Chloe Moretz). As Hugo begins to unravel the mystery of the automaton, he uncovers an unexpected secret. This secret will prove important to modern history once revealed; however, an overzealous station security guard (Sacha Baron Cohen) with a dislike of thieving orphans threatens to put Hugo in the poor house before he can complete his mission…

Holiday films are a special genre, best viewed during this time of the year. If you’re looking for a few to give you a bit of seasonal cheer, you can do no wrong with the list below…

ELF (2003) – Made at the height of Will Ferrell’s career, Elf tells the story of Buddy, a human raised as an Elf at the North Pole. Definitely Ferrell’s most kid-friendly film, Buddy must restore Christmas spirit to a New York (and his father, played by James Caan) before everyone’s holiday apathy sabotages Santa’s annual mission. Only Ferrell could make a potentially annoying character this funny…

Ancient Greek/Roman films have a spotty record critically and commercially since they are difficult to pull off. Fortunately, “Immortals” is exciting and innovative enough to work as long as you can get over its glaring mistakes.

Theseus (Henry Cavill), a peasant warrior, is favored by the god Zeus (Luke Evans) to save mankind from the brutal King Hyperion (Mickey Rourke). Hyperion seeks the Epirus Bow, a magical weapon forged by the gods, so he can use it to unleash the Titans (evil former gods) who are imprisoned deep within Mount Tartaros. Hyperion wishes to enslave the world and start a war in the heavens, but killing Theseus’ mother in a raid sets the hero against him. Aided by a virgin oracle (Freida Pinto), a former slave (Steven Dorff), and the gods themselves, Theseus pursues revenge and his destiny…

The concept of “In Time” would grab most sci-fi fans immediately. A reworking of the old “Logan’s Run” story, it takes place in a world where overpopulation has pushed society to the breaking point. As a measure of control, people are genetically engineered to live only to the age of 25. After that, they must earn more time in order to increase their (literal) biological clock to continue living. Time is subtracted when you need to pay for things like rent or a cup of coffee. The rich can live forever, frozen at 25 years old. The poor must fight for survival every single day. To make matters worse, time can be taken away by force.

Will Salas (Justin Timberlake) is a working-class guy with a matter of days left on his clock and his mother (the ironically young and beautiful Olivia Wilde) hides the fact that she has even less. One night he saves the life of a…

“Terra Nova” (Monday 7pm on FOX) – In the future where Earth has become ravaged and polluted, adventurous citizens get the chance to go back in time to the dinosaur age (85 million B.C.) to begin a new civilization. Ex-cop Jim Shannon (Jason O’Mara) breaks out of prison to join his family on a one-way trip to the past. On the other side they encounter two warring factions of humans fighting over a well-protected secret while trying to survive amongst predatory monsters. Plagued by clichés, the first episode rose above the poor writing with big-budgeted special effects and an intriguing mystery reminiscent of “Lost.” Trying to duplicate some of the qualities of “Avatar,” the show employs “Avatar” veteran Stephen Lang to play the gruff militaristic leader of the main colony. The pilot showed a lot of promise. Hopefully it becomes more like “Lost” and less like “Land of the Lost.”(…)

With sloppy films like “Columbiana” and “Conan The Barbarian” wasting our time at the multiplexes, I feel relieved when I catch something special on DVD that I missed in the theater. Such is the case with “Hanna,” a quirky and fun action/fantasy which borrows heavily from other films but impresses with a fresh and interesting style.

Saoirse Ronan plays Hanna, a spooky girl who knows every fact about the world and every language in it, but doesn’t have a shred of worldly experience. Since her infancy, her ex-superspy father (Eric Bana) has educated her in the Scandinavian wilderness, particularly in advanced survival and combat. Eager to experience the world, Hanna flips the switch on a transmitter her father warned her not to activate until she felt ready. She is quickly thrust into a hostile world where she must separate from her father to flee an insidious intelligence agent (Cate Blanchett) hell-bent on killing her…

Instead of coming up with a slick retread of the original 1982 “Conan the Barbarian,” Hollywood did something much worse. It took the plot from the original film, merged it together with the plot of the lesser 1984 sequel “Conan the Destroyer” and dumped out all the good stuff to create this obnoxious and brainless remake of a film…

by: Coop Cooper
I have a vested interest in the “Harry Potter” films – not only because “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” was one of my first movie reviews – but because I’ve read every book and seen every film since. Throughout all those years I anticipated the end of the wildly successful franchise, and now the moment has arrived. This film marks the conclusion of Harry Potter and the end of a worldwide phenomenon.
As Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) mourns the loss of his fallen friends, Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes) celebrates his acquisition of the Elder Wand, the most powerful and deadly wand in the world. In order to stop him, Harry and his travelling companions return to Hogwarts in an attempt to destroy the last of the magical “horcruxes,” items that give Voldemort his power. At Hogwarts, Voldemort’s Death Eaters prepare to lay siege to the school, forcing Harry and his allies into a final showdown that will lead Harry to his ultimate destiny…

The simplest plot description I can manage from this whole mess: NASA actually went to the moon in 1969 to investigate a crashed ship only to discover Soviet cosmonauts had beaten them to it. The artifact the Soviets bring back eventually causes the nuclear meltdown in Chernobyl and has the power to bring all enemy robots (Decepticons) to Earth. The technology falls into the wrong hands and the heroic Autobots must team up with the humans once again to thwart a massive invasion of evil alien robots.

This is the most mindless and loosely-plotted story in the franchise so far…

An intergalactic police force known as the Green Lantern Corps chooses a brash test pilot named Hal Jordan (Ryan Reynolds) to become its first human officer. Unfortunately for Hal, his Lantern predecessor was killed by a planet-devouring entity dubbed Parallax who sets its sights on devouring the Corps-protected planets starting with Earth. Hal must overcome his crippling fear in order to save the Earth and prove himself a worthy keeper of the peace. Green Lanterns have a very appealing and powerful weapon. A ring that harnesses the energy of pure willpower, then projects it into whatever form the wearer imagines. It’s like a portable hologram projector, except the holograms have a physical form. This weapon with unlimited possibilities is the reason we haven’t seen a “Green Lantern” movie until now. Portraying the power itself requires the most modern computer generated effects and a $100 million-plus budget. The power also provides the potential for unlimited silliness…

The most positive thing I can say about “Super 8” is how well it captures the style of those films from 30 years ago. Foul-mouthed kids? Check. Supernatural forces? Check. Sweeping music designed to fill the audience with wonder? Check. Grandiose action scenes? Check. Upbeat resolution? Check and mate. It takes elements from “E.T.,” “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” “Jaws” and so many others, you’ll feel waves of nostalgia during many of the key moments, especially in the first half. For this reason alone, I can almost recommend the film…

I had many favorite superheroes as a kid but Thor ranked among the highest. He had the power of flight and strength of Superman, he commanded the elements, he wielded a magic weapon and he ruled an entire kingdom. I held out little hope anyone would adapt him into feature film without making him look as silly as Batman in the 1960s TV show. Finally, “Thor” has arrived and although some of the silliness persists, it holds up well enough to usher the God of Thunder into the “Avengers” superhero team movie next year…

by Coop Cooper

As educational institutions gear down for their summer sabbatical, Hollywood gears up to release their highest-budgeted films. This tradition seems to arrive earlier each year, but the first of these mega-budget projects usually arrive in May. The May blockbusters are strategically placed in this month, often under the assumption the studio heads feel the films are weak, risky or may not compete against the reliable mid-summer releases. Sometimes the reason is simply beating other films to the punch and audiences occasionally find some some pleasant May surprises. Here’s what’s coming next month: CLICK HERE TO READ THE ARTICLE AT THE CLARKSDALE PRESS REGISTER WEBSITE

It’s been a long ride but the wait is nearly over for fans of the “Harry Potter” series. Since the release of the seventh and final book, legions of loyal readers have awaited the film adaptation of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” which was mercifully split into two films to accommodate as much of the story as possible. “Part 1” released last year and now arrives on DVD (for sale only, rentals will be made available on May 10th). “Part 2” will release in theaters this summer on July 15th.
Instead of spending their senior year at Hogwarts; Harry, Hermione and Ron go on the run as…

By Coop Cooper

One highly anticipated sequel (“Tron Legacy”) and one Oscar-winning film (“Black Swan”): Both are now available on DVD for you to buy or rent.

“Black Swan” tells the harrowing story of a talented, yet emotionally repressed ballerina named Nina (Natalie Portman) who suddenly receives the role of her career playing the Broadway lead in “Swan Lake.” When the sleazy and demanding director (Vincent Cassel) challenges Nina to tap into the dark side of her personality in order to play the sinister Black Swan role, she begins a slow spiral into madness. The conniving upstart Lily (Mila Kunis) both seduces Nina and threatens her career, propelling Nina’s insanity into disturbing realms of paranoia and hallucination.

“Black Swan” emulates the unsettling art-house horror films of Roman Polanski and David Cronenberg, but manages to remain explainable enough for general audiences to digest. It punctuates the more disturbing scenes of… CLICK HERE TO READ THE REST OF THE REVIEW AT THE CLARKSDALE PRESS REGISTER WEBSITE

Coop here. I released the trailer for THE BEST DAY on Facebook this past weekend and have gotten a very positive response so far.  Now that I’m back from teaching my screenwriting workshop at the Crossroads Film Festival (thanks to all of you who attended), I finally have the opportunity to release the trailer by way of a blog post where it will reach many more viewers…

A few details about this sci-fi/horror short:  It was filmed in four days in December 2010 entirely in Clarksdale, Mississippi by myself and a crew of locals.  It stars Anna Carson Tyner as Jenny, Amye Gousset as Mommy, David Dallas as Daddy and Lois Erwin as Miss Vargas.  The film is currently in the final stages of post production.

Logline:  Little Jenny wishes nothing more than to reunite with her “sick” mommy and daddy, but poor Jenny will live to regret this wish…  again, and again, and again.

CLICK “Read More” below to watch the trailer…

Coop’s most recent MICRO REVIEWS (via Twitter):

New stuff and old! Run out and see “Scott Pilgrim”!…

EXPENDABLES: Supergroup of action stars battle a banana republic dictator and CIA traitor. Watchable but sloppy filmmaking. 2&1/2 out of 5

SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD: Bassist must defeat 7 evil exes of new gf in order to woo her. Brilliant videogame-styled romp. 4 out of 5

THE GOOD, THE BAD, THE WEIRD: Outrageous Korean remake gives new life to the Spaghetti Western classic. Kang-ho Song = amazing! 3 out of 5

THE EDUCATION OF CHARLIE BANKS: Sociopath befriends a college boy who ratted on him as a teen. Great characters, lame conclusion. 3 out of 5

VIRUS: Energy being lands on ship, declares humans a “virus” & proceeds to kill a salvage crew. Cheesy despite big budget. 2&1/2 out of 5

RUNAWAY: Cop who takes down malfunctioning robots discovers a plot to use robots as assassins. Selleck, Simmons, Crichton, cool. 3 out of 5

I AM THE CHEESE: A mentally unbalanced kid trying to find out what happened to his parents. Depressing drama delivers. 3&1/2 out of 5

Thy Twitter has spoken.

Coop’s most recent MICRO REVIEWS (via Twitter):

I got to conduct some great Q & A’s for some terrific films at the FEEL GOOD FILM FESTIVAL this past weekend. I met some truly gifted filmmakers and inspirational people.

I’d like to thank these special guests for affecting me the most: Cheryl Hines for her big intro, Shirley Jones for classing up the joint with her presence, Marty Ingles for reminding us what this festival is really about, Leeza Gibbons for singling me out with a nice compliment, writer/director Lexi Alexander for the lively discussion, producer/actor Googy Gress for his sincere enthusiasm, the League of S.T.E.A.M. for entertaining us all weekend and motivational speaker/actor Nick Vujicic for the sheer inspiration he gave to us all with his fantastic short film The Butterfly Circus (watch here!).

I’d also like to give big high-fives to all of the coordinators and volunteers for making the festival such a fun and engaging experience. I had a great time bonding with you all.

Finally a big congratulations to producer/actor Joe Russell and writer/actress Casey Strand from the short film “Strawberries” whose engagement I helped orchestrate during one of the more memorable Q & A’s.

I wish I had seen them all but of the ones I did see, here are the films that I felt were the best (in no particular order)…

Coop’s most recent MICRO REVIEWS (via Twitter):

Nothing brand new here, but I just can’t get the energy up to go see WANTED II… I mean, SALT…

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO: Quirky autistic hacker chick fights crime and has a lot of sex in Sweden. High brow yet boring. 2 out of 5

PECKER: Photog’s quick fame ruins lives of loved ones. Semi-autobio of John Waters. Clever allegory for artistic expression. 3&1/2 out of 5

WATCHING THE DETECTIVES: A girl (Lucy Liu) uses wild pranks to woo a nerdy boy (Cillian Murphy). Well-written indie rom-com. 3&1/2 out of 5

SALVAGE (2006): Girl relives her death at the hands of a serial killer over and over. Above par indie horror with a great twist. 3 out of 5

SALVAGE (2009): Mother searches for daughter during invasion by soldiers hunting a murderous mutant. Good tension, lame BBC plot. 2 out of 5

2012: John Cusack tries to save family from the apocalypse. Worst disaster movie ever. Roland Emmerich should take up bowling. 1 out of 5

APACHES: Sinister 1977 British public service film about irresponsible brats dying in farming accidents. Brutal and brilliant. 4 out of 5

Thy Twitter has spoken.