Cinema Retro has received the following press release:
On The Eve Of This Year’S Sundance Film Festival, Past Grand Jury Prize Nominee, Holy Rollers, Starring Nominee Jesse Eisenberg, Makes Its Free VOD Debut Exclusively On Snagfilms Available Beginning January 20th, this Ripped-from-the-Headlines Crime Drama, Directed by Award-Winning Filmmaker Kevin Asch (Affluenza), Co-Stars Justin Bartha (The Hangover), Ari Graynor (TV’s “Bad Teacher”), Danny A. Abeckaser (The Wolf of Wall Street), Q-Tip and Hallie Kate Eisenberg (Paulie); it Will Be Available to View Online at SnagFilms.com, and All Supported Devices, Including Their Multi-Platform App
New York, NY (January Xx, 2015) – Inspired by actual events in the late ‘90s in which Hasidic Jews were recruited as drug mules, Holy Rollers was a Gotham Award winner and Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize nominee in 2010. On the eve of Sundance 2015, the crime drama, starring Oscar® nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Now You See Me...
On The Eve Of This Year’S Sundance Film Festival, Past Grand Jury Prize Nominee, Holy Rollers, Starring Nominee Jesse Eisenberg, Makes Its Free VOD Debut Exclusively On Snagfilms Available Beginning January 20th, this Ripped-from-the-Headlines Crime Drama, Directed by Award-Winning Filmmaker Kevin Asch (Affluenza), Co-Stars Justin Bartha (The Hangover), Ari Graynor (TV’s “Bad Teacher”), Danny A. Abeckaser (The Wolf of Wall Street), Q-Tip and Hallie Kate Eisenberg (Paulie); it Will Be Available to View Online at SnagFilms.com, and All Supported Devices, Including Their Multi-Platform App
New York, NY (January Xx, 2015) – Inspired by actual events in the late ‘90s in which Hasidic Jews were recruited as drug mules, Holy Rollers was a Gotham Award winner and Sundance Film Festival Grand Jury Prize nominee in 2010. On the eve of Sundance 2015, the crime drama, starring Oscar® nominee Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network, Now You See Me...
- 1/16/2015
- by nospam@example.com (Cinema Retro)
- Cinemaretro.com
Holy Rollers
Directed by Kevin Asch
2010, USA, 93 mins.
The title of this film does not refer to Pentecostal churchgoers. Rather, it refers to Hasidic Jews smuggling ecstasy during the late nineties. An unlikely story inspired by actual events (a market that Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Sam Gold, seems to have cornered), Holy Rollers is as much about pressure to succeed and build a family as it is about drugs.
Holy Rollers is an atypical drug movie. There are no car chases, no police investigations, no shooting, no envy of a high-roller lifestyle – few of the usual trappings of a drug film are present here. Rather, the film focuses on Sam, the eldest son in a Hasidim family, who is struggling not just to be successful, but to be more successful than his father. This is the motivation – not a glitzy, party-driven lifestyle – that drives the film. Family and identity play a greater role for Sam.
Directed by Kevin Asch
2010, USA, 93 mins.
The title of this film does not refer to Pentecostal churchgoers. Rather, it refers to Hasidic Jews smuggling ecstasy during the late nineties. An unlikely story inspired by actual events (a market that Jesse Eisenberg, who plays Sam Gold, seems to have cornered), Holy Rollers is as much about pressure to succeed and build a family as it is about drugs.
Holy Rollers is an atypical drug movie. There are no car chases, no police investigations, no shooting, no envy of a high-roller lifestyle – few of the usual trappings of a drug film are present here. Rather, the film focuses on Sam, the eldest son in a Hasidim family, who is struggling not just to be successful, but to be more successful than his father. This is the motivation – not a glitzy, party-driven lifestyle – that drives the film. Family and identity play a greater role for Sam.
- 5/6/2011
- by DaveRobson
- SoundOnSight
Jesse Eisenberg earned for his first Oscar as Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg in "The Social Network." "Extra" takes a look back at this young actor's career -- and throws in a few fun facts you might not know.
Jesse Eisenberg: Oscar Nominee Trivia FileThe Drummer
Jesse has been playing the drums since age 8.
Big Brother
His little sister is former child actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg, who starred in "Beautiful" and "How to Eat Fried Worms.
Jesse Eisenberg: Oscar Nominee Trivia FileThe Drummer
Jesse has been playing the drums since age 8.
Big Brother
His little sister is former child actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg, who starred in "Beautiful" and "How to Eat Fried Worms.
- 2/17/2011
- Extra
Happy Monday, my Voluble Commenters and Mute Lurkers. We Pajiban writers know that the real reason you visit the site is for the bonny mots of our Eloquents. Well, apparently, the world agrees as a Pajiba comment by Melissa was quoted in "The San Francisco Chronicle" this morning. This comment, dear readers, was from March 2010. You may forget what you write here, but Google never does. The tippiest of hats to my very own mom for sending me this link. (Sf Gate)
There is lit'rally no one I would rather see menace James Bond than Ralph Fiennes. I imagine he will have to wear many a tuxedo in order to do so. Are you imagining it too? Isn't it nice? Also, let's hope Ralph gets to keep his nose for this one. (Celebitchy)
This weekend AOL purchased my beloved "Huffington Post." It's possible that nothing will change, it's possible that everything will.
There is lit'rally no one I would rather see menace James Bond than Ralph Fiennes. I imagine he will have to wear many a tuxedo in order to do so. Are you imagining it too? Isn't it nice? Also, let's hope Ralph gets to keep his nose for this one. (Celebitchy)
This weekend AOL purchased my beloved "Huffington Post." It's possible that nothing will change, it's possible that everything will.
- 2/7/2011
- by Joanna Robinson
And on the seventh day, God rested. But not EW’s Big Shill bracket game. Which is apropos when you think about it: Always be selling! Today’s matchups in the advertising mascot throwdown are about as equally matched as they come: In the Creatures Division, you’ve got Hawaiian Punch’s Punchy vs. Kool-Aid Man, and Tony the Tiger vs. Joe Camel (sorry, kids). In the Human and the Human-Like division, it’s a battle between cute children (“the Pepsi Girl” Hallie Kate Eisenberg and Life cereal’s Mikey) and grumpy old men (Dunkin Donuts’ Fred the Baker and Charmin’s Mr.
- 1/11/2011
- by Mandi Bierly
- EW.com - PopWatch
As Jesse Eisenberg currently receives rave reviews as Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg in "The Social Network," "Extra" takes a look back at this young actor's career -- and throws in a few fun facts you might not know.
The Best of Jesse EisenbergThe Drummer
Jesse has been playing the drums since age 8.
Big Brother
His little sister is former child actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg, who starred in "Beautiful" and "How to Eat Fried Worms."
No...
The Best of Jesse EisenbergThe Drummer
Jesse has been playing the drums since age 8.
Big Brother
His little sister is former child actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg, who starred in "Beautiful" and "How to Eat Fried Worms."
No...
- 10/3/2010
- Extra
It's always heartening to see A-list Hollywood talent supporting independent features. The latest example is Jesse Eisenberg, who's red hot thanks to Zombieland (2009), and now stars in Holy Rollers (2010), a little film that will need every last bit of his emerging star power to find an audience. The drama, which was inspired by real events (in the 1990's) and won its share of praise at the Sundance Film Festival, casts Eisenberg as Sam Gold, a young Hasid from a deeply religious Orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn, New York. Sam is supposed to be on the path to becoming a rabbi, which involves marrying a girl of his family's choosing and, in the process, taking his family to the next level financially and socially. However, Sam veers completely off the path, tasting the thrill of drug deals, the power of money, and the fast-lane life of people just over the bridge in New York City.
- 5/11/2010
- by ianspelling@corp.popstar.com (Ian Spelling)
- ScreenStar
It's always heartening to see A-list Hollywood talent supporting independent features. The latest example is Jesse Eisenberg, who's red hot thanks to Zombieland (2009), and now stars in Holy Rollers (2010), a little film that will need every last bit of his emerging star power to find an audience. The drama, which was inspired by real events (in the 1990's) and won its share of praise at the Sundance Film Festival, casts Eisenberg as Sam Gold, a young Hasid from a deeply religious Orthodox Jewish section of Brooklyn, New York. Sam is supposed to be on the path to becoming a rabbi, which involves marrying a girl of his family's choosing and, in the process, taking his family to the next level financially and socially. However, Sam veers completely off the path, tasting the thrill of drug deals, the power of money, and the fast-lane life of people just over the bridge in New York City.
- 5/11/2010
- by ianspelling@corp.popstar.com (Ian Spelling)
- ScreenStar
If you watch a lot of television, particularly if you can't find your DVR remote, you're bound to see a lot of commercials, and in those commercials over a period of time, you're also likely to see some of the same actors rotate through different commercials for different products. (There was an interesting article on this phenomenon a few years ago on Slate, which I can't seem to find.) More often than not, you have no idea what that actor's name is, at least until you see him or her on a television show or up on the big screen, at which point you exclaim, "Hey! That's the guy from that commercial."
Today's Seriously Random List explores the always under-appreciated "guy from that commercial." It's not about famous actors who appeared in commercials before they were stars, or even current celebrities, like Sam Waterston, who are inextricably linked to a certain product.
Today's Seriously Random List explores the always under-appreciated "guy from that commercial." It's not about famous actors who appeared in commercials before they were stars, or even current celebrities, like Sam Waterston, who are inextricably linked to a certain product.
- 1/20/2010
- by Dustin Rowles
We give you an early rundown of what to expect from the upcoming Sundance Film Festival.
By Larry Carroll
Kristen Stewart
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
If you want a sneak peek at the movies you'll care about tomorrow — from the blockbusters to the career-makers to the Oscar contenders — movie fanatics know that the first place to look is the Sundance Film Festival. Now the celebrated institution that unveiled "Precious" and "(500) Days of Summer" earlier this year has unveiled the next class of potential classics — and it includes new films from the likes of Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Natalie Portman and Orlando Bloom.
The Sundance Institute announced their lineup Wednesday (December 2) for the 2010 film festival, to be held in Park City next month from January 21 to 31. The complete list of films is available at the Sundance Web site, but here are some of the highlights that you can bet MTV will...
By Larry Carroll
Kristen Stewart
Photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
If you want a sneak peek at the movies you'll care about tomorrow — from the blockbusters to the career-makers to the Oscar contenders — movie fanatics know that the first place to look is the Sundance Film Festival. Now the celebrated institution that unveiled "Precious" and "(500) Days of Summer" earlier this year has unveiled the next class of potential classics — and it includes new films from the likes of Kristen Stewart, Ryan Gosling, Natalie Portman and Orlando Bloom.
The Sundance Institute announced their lineup Wednesday (December 2) for the 2010 film festival, to be held in Park City next month from January 21 to 31. The complete list of films is available at the Sundance Web site, but here are some of the highlights that you can bet MTV will...
- 12/2/2009
- MTV Movie News
Could Jesse Eisenberg, the gawky kid from Adventureland and The Squid and the Whale, be on the verge of breakout star status? I'd say yes, after watching him on last night's Conan (check out the clip after the jump). The 25-year-old did a great job of plugging his new movie Zombieland, earning big laughs from the crowd with a few of his nervous jokes. And through it all, he reminded me of some other famous people. Here's the breakdown: Woody Allen - 60% The New York accent, the nebbishy stutter, the self-deprecating zingers: all classic Allen. Michael Cera - 30% Cera and...
- 10/1/2009
- by Adam Markovitz
- EW.com - PopWatch
You've heard about Labor Pains, the Lindsay Lohan feature that was picked up by ABC Family after narrowly missing a theatrical release. But you probably aren't familiar with Lara Shapiro, the film's co-writer and director. A Columbia Film School and Sundance Lab alum, Shapiro first established herself in the commercial landscape, writing and directing spots like the memorable Hallie Eisenberg IFC commercials , starring Matt Damon, Edward Norton, Janeane Garafalo and Lili Taylor. We spoke to Lara Shapiro about directing her first feature, dealing with the paparazzi and the unfortunately small world of female directors.
- 7/13/2009
- Movieline
OK, so this is not a movie for the Food Channel. New Line Cinema has no promotional tie-ins with a recipe book. But the title of "How to Eat Fried Worms" will certainly excite the gross-out joys in adolescent males. Plus, this is actually the title of a popular young-adult book that has remained in print since its 1973 publication, so there is a built-in audience for these cooked worms.
The movie doesn't pitch itself to any demographic beyond its target audience, which might be enough as families will turn out in sufficient numbers to ensure average or better business. Boys will be happy at the mild grossness; parents will tolerate anything that entertains their hyperkinetic boys; and sisters will agree with the film's lone girl, who murmurs on two occasions, "Boys are weird". They are.
The story, adapted from Thomas Rockwell's novel by director Bob Dolman ("The Banger Sisters"), centers on Billy Forrester (Luke Benward), who suffers from all the angst and trepidation felt by any boy who finds himself the New Kid at school. Seemingly every-one picks on him. Everyone except Erika Hallie Kate Eisenberg), who can empathize because as an early-blooming youngster she towers above all her classmates.
When bully Joe (Adam Hicks) and his "team" of insecure but blustery fifth-graders mock Billy by loading his lunch Thermos with wiggly, disgusting worms, Billy reacts without thinking. He flings one of the crawlers into Joe's face. The unintended consequence is that Joe challenges Billy to a bet: Come Saturday, Billy will eat 10 worms by 7 p.m. without heaving his guts. Billy, wouldn't you know, has a weak stomach.
His parents are taking Saturday off for mixed doubles in tennis -- the film presents this match as a challenge from an intimidating co-worker not unlike Joe's challenge to Billy. So Billy must solicit Erika to watch over his annoyingly popular Little Brother Woody (Ty Panitz), then travel around the town to dine on a series of increasingly distasteful dishes concocted by Joe's gang.
Worms get fried in pig's fat and hot chili sauce. The wiggly creatures find their way into omelets, microwaves and food processors. The meals have such names as Barfmallow and Radioactive Slime Delight.
The film aspires to etch a portrait in perseverance and courage in Billy's determination of overcome fear and face up to the unappetizing grub. Meanwhile, Joe's team members shift alliances as more and more kids admire Billy's pluck and fewer and fewer appreciate Joe's bullying. And Billy comes to see in Erika a moral force and alternative approach to life. Indeed one problem about the latter subplot is that young Eisenberg is such a smart and talented actress with a character that's perhaps the best realized of the bunch she virtually steals the movie away from the boys.
The Mark Johnson production, shot in Austin, is smooth and watchable, but the film never reaches that comic or dramatic high point you yearn for in a classic children's film. Think of it more as a milder, more palatable version of "Fear Factor".
HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS
New Line Cinema
Walden Media presents a Mark Johnson production
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Bob Dolman
Based on the book by: Thomas Rockwell
Producers: Mark Johnson, Philip Steuer
Executive producer: Toby Emmerich
Director of photography: Richard Rutkowski
Production designer: Caty Maxey
Music: Mark Mothersbaugh, Bob Mothersbaugh
Co-producers: Cale Boyter, Michael Disco, Bob Dolman
Costume designer: Kathleen Kiatta
Editor: Janice Hampton
Cast:
Billy: Luke Benward
Erika: Hallie Kate Eisenberg
Joe: Adam Hicks
Adam: Austin Rogers
Twitch: Alexander Gould
Benjy: Ryan Malgrini
Bradley: Philip Daniel Bolden
Uncle Ed: Clint Howard
Woody: Ty Panitz
Boiler Head: James Bebhorn
Dad: Tom Cavanagh
Mom: Kimberly Williams-Paisley
MPAA rating PG
Running time -- 83 minutes...
The movie doesn't pitch itself to any demographic beyond its target audience, which might be enough as families will turn out in sufficient numbers to ensure average or better business. Boys will be happy at the mild grossness; parents will tolerate anything that entertains their hyperkinetic boys; and sisters will agree with the film's lone girl, who murmurs on two occasions, "Boys are weird". They are.
The story, adapted from Thomas Rockwell's novel by director Bob Dolman ("The Banger Sisters"), centers on Billy Forrester (Luke Benward), who suffers from all the angst and trepidation felt by any boy who finds himself the New Kid at school. Seemingly every-one picks on him. Everyone except Erika Hallie Kate Eisenberg), who can empathize because as an early-blooming youngster she towers above all her classmates.
When bully Joe (Adam Hicks) and his "team" of insecure but blustery fifth-graders mock Billy by loading his lunch Thermos with wiggly, disgusting worms, Billy reacts without thinking. He flings one of the crawlers into Joe's face. The unintended consequence is that Joe challenges Billy to a bet: Come Saturday, Billy will eat 10 worms by 7 p.m. without heaving his guts. Billy, wouldn't you know, has a weak stomach.
His parents are taking Saturday off for mixed doubles in tennis -- the film presents this match as a challenge from an intimidating co-worker not unlike Joe's challenge to Billy. So Billy must solicit Erika to watch over his annoyingly popular Little Brother Woody (Ty Panitz), then travel around the town to dine on a series of increasingly distasteful dishes concocted by Joe's gang.
Worms get fried in pig's fat and hot chili sauce. The wiggly creatures find their way into omelets, microwaves and food processors. The meals have such names as Barfmallow and Radioactive Slime Delight.
The film aspires to etch a portrait in perseverance and courage in Billy's determination of overcome fear and face up to the unappetizing grub. Meanwhile, Joe's team members shift alliances as more and more kids admire Billy's pluck and fewer and fewer appreciate Joe's bullying. And Billy comes to see in Erika a moral force and alternative approach to life. Indeed one problem about the latter subplot is that young Eisenberg is such a smart and talented actress with a character that's perhaps the best realized of the bunch she virtually steals the movie away from the boys.
The Mark Johnson production, shot in Austin, is smooth and watchable, but the film never reaches that comic or dramatic high point you yearn for in a classic children's film. Think of it more as a milder, more palatable version of "Fear Factor".
HOW TO EAT FRIED WORMS
New Line Cinema
Walden Media presents a Mark Johnson production
Credits:
Screenwriter-director: Bob Dolman
Based on the book by: Thomas Rockwell
Producers: Mark Johnson, Philip Steuer
Executive producer: Toby Emmerich
Director of photography: Richard Rutkowski
Production designer: Caty Maxey
Music: Mark Mothersbaugh, Bob Mothersbaugh
Co-producers: Cale Boyter, Michael Disco, Bob Dolman
Costume designer: Kathleen Kiatta
Editor: Janice Hampton
Cast:
Billy: Luke Benward
Erika: Hallie Kate Eisenberg
Joe: Adam Hicks
Adam: Austin Rogers
Twitch: Alexander Gould
Benjy: Ryan Malgrini
Bradley: Philip Daniel Bolden
Uncle Ed: Clint Howard
Woody: Ty Panitz
Boiler Head: James Bebhorn
Dad: Tom Cavanagh
Mom: Kimberly Williams-Paisley
MPAA rating PG
Running time -- 83 minutes...
- 8/22/2006
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Hallie Kate Eisenberg, 8, is already one of America's most successful child actors - and now she's turning her hand to script writing. Hallie has already starred in nine movies, including Insider, The (1999) with Al Pacino and Russell Crowe, and Bicentennial Man (1999) with Robin Williams, but is best known for her role in Pepsi commercials. Hallie has got Hollywood money men clamoring for her script "Three Generations", and Jamie Lee Curtis is even said to be interested in a role. And the curly-haired cutie could be set to earn millions with her writings. "They have genius writers who can turn a few notes on the back of a menu into box office gold, " says one agent. "If Hallie had written something a bit rough I can sell it as a synopsis, but she appears to have written narrative and dialogue, which makes it much more exciting and pushes up the price." Hallie has taken her role very seriously and even learned French so that she could spice up the dialogue. "I'm not writing this just for myself, " she says, "It's a relationship movie."...
- 11/27/2000
- WENN
Pint sized actress Hallie Kate Eisenberg may only be eight years old - but she's already writing a screenplay. And the little actress isn't content with being one of the youngest movie writers in history - she's also making her big screen writing debut in French. Her mother Amy says, "She's learning French, so she's doing the script in French. One of the couples in the story is in Paris on their honeymoon." Hallie adds, "I am never without paper or pen or a book. I like to read Judy Blume. I like stories about orphans and the American Girl series of books."...
- 9/29/2000
- WENN
He's the "Babe" of birds.
The title character of the delightful "Paulie" is a precocious blue-crown Conure who doesn't merely parrot but can carry on entire conversations in Brooklynese with Joe Pesci-style intonations.
An all-ages audience-pleaser that puts a smile on the lips and a lump in the throat, the handsomely assembled picture dispenses sentimentality without the syrup. It's moving but never mawkish.
The payoff should amount to a whole lot more than birdseed for DreamWorks, which could see "Paulie" best its "Mouse Hunt" at the boxoffice.
Gracefully directed by John Roberts (who previously helmed the underrated "The War of the Buttons") from a winning script by novice screenwriter Laurie Craig, the bird-meets-girl, bird-loses-girl, bird-gets-girl adventure begins in a research lab, where a caged and clipped Paulie (voiced by Jay Mohr and played by an assortment of real-life and animatronic parrots) stuns Russian immigrant janitor Misha (Tony Shalhoub) with his no-nonsense approach to the English language.
Contending that his mouth has always gotten him in trouble, Paulie proceeds to tell Misha his story, beginning with the day little stuttering Marie Hallie Kate Eisenberg) raised him from a fledgling.
Concerned that she was becoming too attached to her pet, Marie's parents (Matt Craven and Laura Harrington) send Paulie out into the big, Cold World. Eventually landing in a pawn shop, Paulie is purchased by a lonely widow (Gena Rowlands), whom he convinces to embark on a cross-country journey in her long-dormant Winnebago in search of his beloved Marie.
Their association proves shortlived, but Paulie eventually reaches his goal -- give or take a few years -- with a little help from Misha, a fellow fish-out-of-water.
While the early pacing is somewhat slow to take flight and Roberts and Craig could have afforded to go funnier (especially where the younger viewers are concerned) without fear of upsetting the film's delicate balance, there remains a finely tuned timelessness to "Paulie" that it shares with those perennial family classics.
Rather than the going tendency toward broadly played cartoonish characters, Paulie's human supporting cast keeps it warmly low-key with affectingly defined performances from Rowlands, Shalhoub and young Eisenberg, as well as from Cheech Marin (as an East L.A. entertainer whose act is literally for the birds) and Bruce Davison (as a research scientist who sees Paulie as his ticket to a Nobel Prize).
Mohr gives Paulie's vocal chords the right blend of smart-alecky brashness and gentle innocence, and in addition he plays the part of Benny, a two-bit thief,
Technical attributes are equally impressive. Animal wrangler Boone Narr (who also corralled the rodents for "Mouse Hunt") coaxes fine work from his feathered friends while the more demanding stuff has been seamlessly handled by a Stan Winston Studio animatronic stand-in.
Cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts ("A Room With a View", "Howards End"), meanwhile, lends the Los Angeles and Arizona backdrops a classy vibrance as John Debney's thoughtful score quietly nudges -- but never tugs at -- the heartstrings.
PAULIE
DreamWorks
A Mutual Film Co. production
Credits: Director, John Roberts; Screenwriter, Laurie Craig; Producers, Mark Gordon, Gary Levinsohn, Allison Lyon Segan; Executive producer, Ginny Nugent; Director of photography, Tony Pierce-Roberts; Production designer, Dennis Washington; Editor, Bruce Cannon; Costume designer, Mary Zophres; Music, John Debney; Casting, Risa Bramon Garcia, Randi Hiller, Sarah Finn. Cast: Ivy: Gena Rowlands; Misha: Tony Shalhoub; Ignacio: Cheech Marin; Dr. Reingold: Bruce Davison; Adult Marie: Trini Alvarado; Voice of Paulie/Benny: Jay Mohr; Artie: Buddy Hackett; Marie: Hallie Kate Eisenberg; Warren Alweather: Matt Craven. Color/stereo. Running time - 91 minutes. MPAA rating: PG.
The title character of the delightful "Paulie" is a precocious blue-crown Conure who doesn't merely parrot but can carry on entire conversations in Brooklynese with Joe Pesci-style intonations.
An all-ages audience-pleaser that puts a smile on the lips and a lump in the throat, the handsomely assembled picture dispenses sentimentality without the syrup. It's moving but never mawkish.
The payoff should amount to a whole lot more than birdseed for DreamWorks, which could see "Paulie" best its "Mouse Hunt" at the boxoffice.
Gracefully directed by John Roberts (who previously helmed the underrated "The War of the Buttons") from a winning script by novice screenwriter Laurie Craig, the bird-meets-girl, bird-loses-girl, bird-gets-girl adventure begins in a research lab, where a caged and clipped Paulie (voiced by Jay Mohr and played by an assortment of real-life and animatronic parrots) stuns Russian immigrant janitor Misha (Tony Shalhoub) with his no-nonsense approach to the English language.
Contending that his mouth has always gotten him in trouble, Paulie proceeds to tell Misha his story, beginning with the day little stuttering Marie Hallie Kate Eisenberg) raised him from a fledgling.
Concerned that she was becoming too attached to her pet, Marie's parents (Matt Craven and Laura Harrington) send Paulie out into the big, Cold World. Eventually landing in a pawn shop, Paulie is purchased by a lonely widow (Gena Rowlands), whom he convinces to embark on a cross-country journey in her long-dormant Winnebago in search of his beloved Marie.
Their association proves shortlived, but Paulie eventually reaches his goal -- give or take a few years -- with a little help from Misha, a fellow fish-out-of-water.
While the early pacing is somewhat slow to take flight and Roberts and Craig could have afforded to go funnier (especially where the younger viewers are concerned) without fear of upsetting the film's delicate balance, there remains a finely tuned timelessness to "Paulie" that it shares with those perennial family classics.
Rather than the going tendency toward broadly played cartoonish characters, Paulie's human supporting cast keeps it warmly low-key with affectingly defined performances from Rowlands, Shalhoub and young Eisenberg, as well as from Cheech Marin (as an East L.A. entertainer whose act is literally for the birds) and Bruce Davison (as a research scientist who sees Paulie as his ticket to a Nobel Prize).
Mohr gives Paulie's vocal chords the right blend of smart-alecky brashness and gentle innocence, and in addition he plays the part of Benny, a two-bit thief,
Technical attributes are equally impressive. Animal wrangler Boone Narr (who also corralled the rodents for "Mouse Hunt") coaxes fine work from his feathered friends while the more demanding stuff has been seamlessly handled by a Stan Winston Studio animatronic stand-in.
Cinematographer Tony Pierce-Roberts ("A Room With a View", "Howards End"), meanwhile, lends the Los Angeles and Arizona backdrops a classy vibrance as John Debney's thoughtful score quietly nudges -- but never tugs at -- the heartstrings.
PAULIE
DreamWorks
A Mutual Film Co. production
Credits: Director, John Roberts; Screenwriter, Laurie Craig; Producers, Mark Gordon, Gary Levinsohn, Allison Lyon Segan; Executive producer, Ginny Nugent; Director of photography, Tony Pierce-Roberts; Production designer, Dennis Washington; Editor, Bruce Cannon; Costume designer, Mary Zophres; Music, John Debney; Casting, Risa Bramon Garcia, Randi Hiller, Sarah Finn. Cast: Ivy: Gena Rowlands; Misha: Tony Shalhoub; Ignacio: Cheech Marin; Dr. Reingold: Bruce Davison; Adult Marie: Trini Alvarado; Voice of Paulie/Benny: Jay Mohr; Artie: Buddy Hackett; Marie: Hallie Kate Eisenberg; Warren Alweather: Matt Craven. Color/stereo. Running time - 91 minutes. MPAA rating: PG.
- 4/14/1998
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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