“Toy Story 3″ teaser shown with “Up”
On Wednesday night, I attended the packed Oklahoma City preview screening for the new Disney/Pixar film “Up.”
I have a bit of advice for seeing “Up,” which you definitely should plan to catch in theaters, preferably in 3-D. One tip would be to bring tissues, since the film made me and several others cry.
The other advice: Don’t be late. Not only are the first 10 minutes some of the most touching and visually stunning moments you’ll see at the movies this year, you won’t want to miss the highly anticipated return of Woody and Buzz.
As usual, Disney/Pixar are shipping prints of their new film with a teaser trailer for the upcoming feature. But their 2010 release won’t be just another great Pixar animated adventure. It will be the long-awaited “Toy Story 3.”
The 3-D adventure will be the long-awaited follow-up to 1995′s “Toy Story” (Pixar’s first feature and the first ever computer animated feature film) and 1999′s “Toy Story 2″ (the rare sequel that matches or even outdoes the grand original).
The teaser is just that, a quick peek into the next film, so it doesn’t offer too much information.
But it makes several impressions: Sheriff Woody (voice of Tom Hanks) and Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) are still trying to one-up each other. Jessie the yodeling cowgirl (Joan Cusack) and Bullseye the horse are still as action-packed as ever. Long-suffering Mr. Potato Head (Don Rickles) and squawky-voiced Mrs. Potato Head (Estelle Harris) remain married. Hamm the Piggy Bank (John Ratzenberger) and Rex the Dinosaur (Wallace Shawn) are still up to their hijinks in the trailer.
The teaser also features Slinky Dog, but he utters just a single word. That makes it impossible to ascertain what the Pixar masterminds have done about the wonderful character’s voice. Jim Varney, who brought the folksy toy to life in the first two “Toy Story” films, died of cancer in 2000.
I’ll try to remember to post the teaser when it inevitably reaches the Internet.
“Toy Story 3″ is set to open in theaters on June 18, 2010.
-BAM
What to do in Oklahoma on May 28
Ben Folds (Associated Press photo)
Today’s featured event:
TULSA – Hear pianist/singer/songwriter Ben Folds at 7 tonight at Cain’s Ballroom, 423 N Main.
For more information, go to www.cainsballroom.com.
For more events, go to www.wimgo.com.
-BAM
BAM’s 7 favorite George Strait songs
It’s George Strait Day today on BAM’s Blog. As I’ve previously noted, the festivities are in conjunction with CBS’ broadcast at 7 p.m. of ”George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert.”
The show will celebrate the Academy of Country Music naming Strait the Artist of the Decade for the 2000s. It will feature music stars such as Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton, Brooks & Dunn, Sugarland, Keith Urban, Taylor Swift and more performing Strait’s classic hits.
George Strait has performed so many great songs over the course of his more than 25-year career it’s hard to pick just a few favorites. In fact, this started out as a top five list and I had to expand it to seven. So, here are my seven favorites, for what it’s worth:
1. “The Chair”: It’s the ultimate meet-cute song. It actually pulls off the meet-cute conceit better than most romantic comedies you see in movie theaters. The song has been around for so long, it’s easy to forget how clever it really is.
2. “Ocean Front Property”: So many break-up songs try to use sarcasm but come off sounding obnoxious. Strait’s such a sincere singer that you know he’s making himself the butt of the joke, not the listener.
3. “If I Know Me”: This is my kind of break-up/make-up song. I can never stay mad at my sweetie, either, George.
4. “Amarillo by Morning”: It’s an evocative road and rodeo track, with some excellent musicianship complementing Strait’s mellow vocals.
5. “I Saw God Today”: This 2008 hit about faith and gratitude is my favorite among Strait’s recent chart-toppers. It’s just a really touching song.
6. “It’s a Love Without End, Amen”: Another Strait song with religious themes, this has always been one of my favorites because it so effectively draws the parallel between the relationship between parents and children and Christians and God.
7. “You Look So Good in Love”: Again, Strait’s sincere vocals really shine here. You really can hear the regret and pain when he croons about his former lover finding true love with another man.
-BAM
“Home of Carrie Underwood” signs come down outside Checotah
First Lady Kim Henry, left, and Gov. Brad Henry, center, present 2005 “American Idol” Carrie Underwood, right, of Checotah, with a replica of a road sign to be placed along I-40 and also along U.S. Highway 69 during a press conference at the state Capitol in this Aug. 10, 2005. (Photo by Paul B. Southerland/The Oklahoman Archives)
Because of Oklahoma State Department of Transportation regulations, the “Home of Carrie Underwood” signs have been removed from the highways leading into the country star’s hometown of Checotah.
Apparently, the plan is to put the signs back up soon, reports Jennifer Chancellor, one of my counterparts at the Tulsa World. Because of ODOT rules, the signs evidently had to be taken down after two years on state property.
Gov. Brad Henry and First Lady Kim Henry presented replicas of the green and white signs to Underwood in August 2005, just a few months after the singer won the fourth season of “American Idol.”
Click here to read the full story.
-BAM
George Strait’s new single “Living for the Night” coming to country radio Thursday
“Living for the Night,” the debut single from George Strait’s upcoming album “Twang,” will be available to radio stations across the country at noon Oklahoma time Thursday via PLAY MPE.
“Twang” is set to be released in early fall, according to GeorgeStrait.com.
Strait was recently named the Academy of Country Music’s Artist of the Decade for the 2000s, joining only four other artists who have received this distinction: Marty Robbins for the 1960s, Loretta Lynn for the 1970s, Alabama for the 1980s and Oklahoman Garth Brooks for the 1990s.
Several superstars of country music pay tribute to the “King of Country Music” on the “George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert” airing at 7 tonight on CBS. The special will feature a special appearance by Brooks and performances by Dierks Bentley, Brooks & Dunn, Jamie Foxx, Faith Hill, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Jamey Johnson, Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Martina McBride, Tim McGraw, Montgomery Gentry, John Rich, LeAnn Rimes, Blake Shelton, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban and Lee Ann Womack.
-BAM
Wednesday Video Spotlight: George Strait
George Strait
Country Music Hall of Famer George Strait will be honored as the Academy of Country Music’s Artist of the Decade for the 2000s tonight on CBS (KWTV-9 in Oklahoma City).
“George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert” will air at 7 tonight. The concert was taped in Las Vegas in April and features Toby Keith, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Brooks & Dunn, Jamie Foxx, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Montgomery Gentry, John Rich, LeAnn Rimes, Blake Shelton and Lee Ann Womack.
For this week’s Wednesday Video Spotlight, I’m featuring some of Strait’s memorable performances, courtesy YouTube. If you want to see some of his music videos, you can also find them on YouTube, but Universal Music Group has requested embedding be disabled on them.
Strait is just the fifth country star to receive the Artist of the Decade accolade. The previous honorees: Marty Robbins in 1969, Loretta Lynn in 1979, Alabama in 1988 and Oklahoman Garth Brooks in 1998.
-BAM
Photo gallery: “George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert”
George Strait is all smiles at the “George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade” concert. The taped show will air tonight. (All photos Associated Press)
The Academy of Country Music’s big salute to George Strait will air at 7 tonight on CBS (KWTV-9 in Oklahoma City).
“George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert” is the first TV tribute special to honor the ACM Artist of the Decade winner. It was recorded in Las Vegas on April 6, the day after the ACM Awards.
Only four other artists have received the Artist of the Decade accolade: Marty Robbins in 1969, Loretta Lynn in 1979, Alabama in 1988 and Oklahoman Garth Brooks in 1998. Brooks presented Strait with his Artist of the Decade hardware at the concert.
The event definitely lives up to the “all star” moniker. Performers included Faith Hill, Toby Keith, Tim McGraw, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Brooks & Dunn, Jamie Foxx, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Jamey Johnson, Miranda Lambert, Montgomery Gentry, John Rich, LeAnn Rimes, Blake Shelton and Lee Ann Womack.
This photo gallery provides a sneek peak at tonight’s special. All photos are from the Associated Press.
Oklahoman Garth Brooks poses backstage at the show.
Miranda Lambert of Tishomingo smiles backstage at the show.
Oklahoma star Toby Keith performs “Unwound” at the concert.
Kix Brooks, left, and Tulsa-raised Ronnie Dunn, of the country duo Brooks & Dunn, perform “The Cowboy Rides Away.”
See more photos after the break.
Adrien Brody makes magic again with “The Brothers Bloom”
Oscar winner Adrien Brody in “The Brothers Bloom.” Look for my review when it opens in Oklahoma City, which hopefully will be soon.
UPDATE: I just got word from Summit Entertainment that “The Brothers Bloom” will NOT be opening Friday in Oklahoma City after all. I’m trying to find out what the new OKC opening date will be.
From Wednesday’s Life section of The Oklahoman.
Actor Adrien Brody creates screen magic in newest film
DALLAS – When Adrien Brody was a child, he created his own magic act, performing as “The Amazing Adrien.”
Brody, the youngest man ever to win the best actor Oscar, returns to enchanted conjuring and sleight of hand with “The Brothers Bloom,” writer-director Rian Johnson’s (“Brick”) con men caper that mixes first-rate trickery and magical realism.
“There should always be an emotional truth no matter what, but I am drawn to a kind of lighter material at the moment just because it feels good. It just feels good to take that home at night and to work with that and to try to bring some truth to that and yet at the same time maintain the humor. So that’s kind of what I was drawn to,” Brody said in a question-and-answer session after a screening of the film earlier this spring at the AFI Dallas International Film Festival.
The thespian, who won his Oscar in 2003 for the Holocaust drama “The Pianist,” also received a Dallas AFI Star Award at the screening. American Film Institute President and CEO Bob Gazzale praised Brody as an actor who keeps a shroud of mystery around him.
“This is not a man who goes on the cover of US magazine to tell us how his abs look or discuss his favorite flavor of gelato,” Gazzale said. “In the search to solve the mystery, I have heard people say, ‘He’s the next Robert DeNiro. He’s the next Al Pacino. No, he’s ‘The Amazing Adrien.’”
For his latest cinematic act, Brody, 36, plays Bloom, who with his older brother Stephen (Mark Ruffalo) makes up the wildly successful con men combo the Brothers Bloom. Since they were children, Stephen has written fantastic schemes with the philosophy that in the best cons everyone wins, even the mark. And Bloom plays the starring role in every story his sibling concocts.
But Bloom longs to leave the business and live “an unwritten life.” So, Stephen plots one last big job, assigning the Bloom to instigate a relationship with eccentric heiress Penelope Stamp (Rachel Weisz) so they can bilk her. With the help of their silent but deadly partner Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), the brothers soon sweep Penelope away on what she believes to be a grand adventure. But Bloom seems in danger of being swept away himself by the sweetly fetching Penelope.
In accepting the Dallas award, Brody showed a quick, dry wit, a self-deprecating humor and a gift for mime. After the microphone cut out repeatedly, he mimed through a few introductory thank yous, pretending the mike again wasn’t working. He also explained how his parents keep him grounded.
“When I told my parents that I was gonna be honored with the Dallas Star Award … my mother immediately said, ‘You’re gonna be a star?’” he said with a grin. “And then my dad pleasantly reminded me of the time we passed this young couple in Toronto and this woman turned to the guy and she said, ‘Oh my gosh, eh, you know who that is?’ He said no. She goes, ‘That’s Adrien Brody … he used to be huge.’”
The New York native actually has stayed busy since his Oscar win, performing in M. Night Shyamalan’s “The Village,” Peter Jackson’s “King Kong” and Darnell Martin’s “Cadillac Records.” The only child also starred in another brother tale, Wes Anderson’s “The Darjeeling Limited.”
“I was in India and I’d done ‘The Darjeeling Limited’ and I was kind of on this kind of weird, trippy adventure. And then there was this kind of heightened surrealistic quality in Rian’s material that had an emotional truth but was also kind of a different adventure,” he said. “And that’s what had attracted me. And what I discovered was something far more complex personally and more challenging than I would’ve actually liked.”
As the cast and crew traveled throughout Eastern Europe like a “traveling circus,” Brody said he found he related a little too closely to Bloom.
“There are similarities with the way Bloom was feeling and the life an actor. Not necessarily a correlation between the con man and an actor,” he said with a laugh. “But the fact that you do experience all of these wonderful and creative and exciting experiences, but they’re not your own. At the end of the day, someone’s always calling cut. … So it was very important at that time of my life to kind of take some time for myself – I’d been working a lot – and work on my life and fulfilling those things.”
-BAM
Blake Shelton reveals his 10 favorite George Strait songs
Blake Shelton
George Strait
Oklahoma country star Blake Shelton recently shared his 10 favorite George Strait songs with CMT.com.
The Tishomingo resident currently is on tour with Strait, whom he considers one of his musical heroes. Shelton, a native of Ada, also will be featured on tonight’s “George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade All Star Concert,” airing at 7 p.m. on CBS.
Among Blake’s favorite Strait songs: “Unwound,” “The Chair,” “Ocean Front Property,” “Amarillo by Morning,” “All My Ex’s Live in Texas” and “Easy Come, Easy Go.”
To check out Blake’s full top 10 list, which explains why each song is a favorite, click here.
-BAM
George Strait Day on BAM’s Blog
George Strait (Associated Press photo)
In conjunction with tonight’s TV special “George Strait: ACM Artist of the Decade,” I’ve declared it George Strait Day here on BAM’s Blog. I’ll be bringing you video of some of Strait’s memorable performances, photos and stories on the talented “King of Country” during the course of the day.
The Academy of Country Music has bestowed the Artist of the Decade title for the 2000s on the Country Music Hall of Famer. To honor him, the ACM put together a special tribute concert in Las Vegas on April 6, the day after the ACM Awards.
That concert airs from 7 to 10 tonight on CBS (KWTV-9 here in Oklahoma City). The special pays tribute to “The King of Country” and his legendary 25-year career.
Performers for the show include Oklahomans Toby Keith, Miranda Lambert, Blake Shelton and Brooks & Dunn (which includes Tulsan Ronnie Dunn). Other performers that will be featured include Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, Keith Urban, Jamie Foxx, Jack Ingram, Alan Jackson, Jamey Johnson, Montgomery Gentry, John Rich, LeAnn Rimes and Lee Ann Womack.
Only four other country artists have received the Artist of the Decade accolade: Marty Robbins in 1969, Loretta Lynn in 1979, Alabama in 1988 and Oklahoman Garth Brooks in 1998. This marks the first time the honor will be presented in a separate television special.
-BAM
