Hot Topic Tuesday: Violence and Hollywood

After last week's tragedy in Aurora, Colorado, it was only a matter of time before we heard pundits hop on CNN and MSNBC and tout the "Violence and Hollywood" angle as a possible motive.  A secondary thread to this is "Violence and Video Games" and that is also another factor in this case.  Many folks want to take a look at MPAA (Motion Picture Association of America) ratings because PG-13 films have the same amount of violence, suggestive scenes, and language that a Rated R film did ten years ago.  Has violence in Hollywood movies escalated?  Sure.  I would hardly argue with that statement as torture porn movies like Saw came in vogue and sophomoric sex humor encouraged by the success of the Judd Apatow movies grew.  I think we have become accustomed to tolerating more in our PG-13 movies as trends and social mores have changed.

A movie studio often finds an R rating slapped on its film the kiss of death because it eliminates a younger moviegoing audience that would fuse a lot of cash into the box office.  They want that younger viewer to see the movie once and then love it so much that they pay the ten dollars (Or fourteen dollars if you are in a big city.) to see it again.  Can you imagine putting a rated R rating on The Avengers or Dark Knight?  Nope, it won't ever happen.  This is where it is up to parents to police what their kids are seeing and the games they are playing.  I imagine it is a constant struggle to figure out what is appropriate given that new movies and games are released each week.

However, the real question circles us back to what happened last week in Colorado:  Did the gunman's obsession with the Batman franchise inspire his violent acts?  Did his love for bloody video games take his role playing to another level?  While I know everyone loves to make Hollywood the scapegoat in these situations, I am actually going to have to defer to the fact that he clearly had massive psychological issues and while he wanted to recreate a scene from fiction and make it reality, the real issue is gun control.  While our Second Amendment to the Constitution allows us "to keep and bear arms", I think there has to be a limit.  Protecting your family with a handgun seems reasonable, especially after living in Hollywood with celebrities constantly dealing with stalkers.  If you are into hunting, I think owning a hunting rifle makes sense for your sport. (While I am not a fan, I get that some people want to participate in this centuries old pastime.) Yet, not one person has been able to answer this question for me:  Why does someone need a semiautomatic weapon/assault rifle in their gun collection?   Why are weapons like this even accessible to us in the United States?  In 2004, Congress allowed the Federal Assault Weapons ban to expire.  Well, Congress, I hope you enjoyed the fruits of your labor....twelve innocent lives were lost last week.

Your turn to chime in on this hot topic.  I realize that politics plays into this a bit.  I ask that you are respectful to people's views and let's calmly and rationally discuss gun control, violence, and Hollywood.

Waiting for Thor.......

On Saturday morning, I got up early because I had a Skype date.  He's big, he's strong, and he's handsome.  Oh, and he's also a movie star plus he had a baby with his wife the day before.  Who is he? Chris Hemsworth AKA Thor or in this case, the Huntsman.  I interviewed him for iVillage while he was on location at the Auckland Castle outside of London. The cast was in town for the premiere which happened last night for Snow White and the Huntsman.  Now, I can't offer up the details of the interview just yet, but I can offer up a screen shot I grabbed.  One of me waiting for Chris to Skype (They were running a little late.) and one a moment before I asked the first question. Have a dreamy Tuesday, kids.  

Wait for it.....wait for it........here he is!

Not a bad day at the office......

Tomorrow is the last day to enter the Gift Bag Giveaway.  Entries close at 11:59PM PT on Wednesday, May 16th.  Enter here.

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Radio Burtt on Driving with Gass: May 7th

Every Monday night, I appear on Driving with Gass with Kevin Gassman and Cindy Love at 7:35PM PT/10:35PM ET on 106.7FM (Arizona) or online at KWSS.  My segment, Red Carpet Confessions, talks about the latest in entertainment news for the week.  Here is what we talked about on Monday, May 7th:


1.  Fifty Shades of Grey:  This is the hottest (XXX) book of the summer and it will be a hot trilogy from Universal and Focus Features soon enough. I'll be discussing the book on my June 2nd appearance on Cocktails and Conversation, so let's read the book together.  Watch the SNL spoof of what to get your mom for Mother's Day:



2.  The Avengers:  It is only the biggest movie ever after this weekend.  Kevin and Cindy were supposed to see it this weekend, but I was the only one who followed through on the homework assignment.  I will be interviewing Chris Hemsworth on Saturday, so I will have more Thor dish next week.  In the meantime, take a look back at the Disney D23 conference where they gave Disney enthusiasts like me a sneak peek at The Avengers and then head over to The Hollywood Reporter and read this fascinating article with Jeremy Renner.  He's kind of a reluctant A-List star, but his work onscreen is impeccable.

Chris Hemsworth

3.  Dark Shadows:  This is everyone's homework assignment for next week's show.  I am going to see it.  Let's see if Kevin and Cindy follow through.  I am a big Tim Burton fan, so enjoy my adventures at the Burton exhibit at LACMA last summer.  

Don't forget to mark Monday, May 14th on your calendar for the next Radio Burtt night.

D23 Expo: Disney's Film Slate

It's not a hard task when I am asked to cover the D23 Expo down in Anaheim:  Disney?  Pixar?  Disney World?  Disneyland?  It's billed as the "ultimate Disney fan event", so count me in! On Saturday morning, I was able to attend The Walt Disney Studios presentation which gave the audience a taste of the films to come now through 2014.  Fans lined up as early as 6AM to get in line and wait for a seat in the Arena.  I rolled into the convention center at 10:15 AM with my Press Pass and I was escorted to a seat within minutes.  As a press member, I was thrilled with the VIP treatment all day, but I know the long lines and chaos of some of the events had a lot of the attendees grumbling.  It's something for the D23 planners to consider when most fans are accustomed to the golden Disney customer service.

 Billy Crystal received a standing ovation when he came out. I wonder if 2012 Academy Award Producer, Brett Ratner is listening?  

Once we were all settled in, the program kicked off with a highlight reel of the movies that were going to be presented to us.  Tim Burton's Frankenweenie, The Muppet Movie, and The Avengers received the biggest cheers as these are all highly anticipated films in the Disney lineup.  John Lasseter was on hand to present the Disney/Pixar animated slate and this is when D23 started rolling in the stars from Jon Cryer for Planes (If you like Cars, you are sure to like Planes, right?), Sarah Silverman and Jack McBrayer for Wreck-It Ralph (an 8-bit video game bad guy), Kevin McKidd and Kelly McDonald for Brave, and Billy Crystal for the prequel to Monsters, Inc called Monsters University. You knew they were buttering us up for box office dollars.  What interested me the most was the humor behind Wreck-It Ralph and the beauty and strength behind the story of Brave, which features Pixar's first female main character. (It's about time, guys!)  Expect to see Wreck-It Ralph in theatres November 2, 2012 and Brave will be hitting the big screen on June 22, 2012.  They also teased us with two untitled films:  one for Holiday 2013 about Dinosaurs and another feature about what takes place in your mind for Summer 2014.  (Yes, what happens in your brain.  You can't make this stuff up.)  The Pixar segment wrapped up with cupcakes in honor of Pixar's 25th Anniversary.  It was a very Oprah-esque moment as cast members came out with boxes of cupcakes for the full arena.  You get a cupcake and you get a cupcake and you get a cupcake!

Director Rich Moore, Sarah Silverman, and Jack McBrayer (Hello, tan boy!) for Wreck-It Ralph.

Walt Disney Studios' feature fare was up next with a lengthy and rather awkward presentation about the March 2012 film, John Carter.  Andrew Stanton, Oscar winner for Finding Nemo and Wall-E, brought out Willem Dafoe, Lynn Collins, and Taylor Kitsch to describe four long clips about the movie.  Lynn and Taylor looked uncomfortable up there and read their sound bites straight from the TelePrompter giving rehearsed pitches about the film.  It was clear Disney had invested a lot of money in this film and they really want us to see it.  Unfortunately, the response was rather lukewarm in the audience.  Livening up the audience was the presentation for Frankenweenie described as a film about a town where "Transylvania meets Burbank" in a timeless story of a boy and his dog told in a way that  only Tim Burton can achieve.  The film is all stop motion and in black and white with a Danny Elfman score, could this film be any more delicious?  We have to wait until October 2012, so tide yourself over with the Tim Burton Exhibit at LACMA in the meantime.

Willem Dafoe for John Carter

Jenifer Garner was brought out next to talk about The Odd Life of Timothy Green which will be perfect family fare.  Garner was positively sweet in her role as a Disney spokesperson, but I do wish the questions were less rehearsed and more spontaneous.  Sometimes the Disney suits are not as engaging as John Lasseter who is able to balance the creative and the corporate a bit better than others.  Next up was Oz (March 2013), the Sam Raimi directed film that just began principal photography on July 21st in Detroit.  Yep, Detroit is Oz, kids, in case you didn't know.  The stellar cast includes James Franco, Rachel Weiz, Mila Kunis, and Michelle Williams and Disney promises the audience a story we haven't heard from The Wizard of Oz legacy.

Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson for The Avengers.

Finally, the two films the audience was waiting for:  The Muppet Movie and The Avengers.  I was more excited about the former since I am tired of superheroes.  I know I am in the minority on this topic, so I will give you a few highlights on The Avengers.  First up, Jason Segel, Kermit, and Miss Piggy make an appearance and introduce two clips from the film.  The longer musical clip to "We Built This City" by Jefferson Starship proved to me that the silver screen has been missing the Jim Henson heart for some time. This movie will be huge and I will be the first in line to buy a ticket.  The Avengers clip was action-packed filled with stars, superheroes, and the perfect fare for Marvel fans.  Kevin Feige, President of Marvel Studios, introduced Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey, Jr, Jeremy Renner, Chris Hemsworth, Tom Hiddleston, and Cobie Smulders to an arena filled with screaming fans.  Joss Whedon and several cast members were still shooting back in Cleveland since there are two weeks left of principal photography left.  They then showed the same exact trailer again.  I wasn't sure if this was for the audience or for the cast who stayed on stage to watch the clip.  I do know that it was at the end of a 2 hour and 45 minute presentation, so a lot of the audience was antsy to move on to the next event and pick up their cell phones after keeping us in a media blackout for that time period.

Chris Hemsworth of The Avengers

Overall, Disney has a strong slate of films through 2014, but I will be fascinated to see how well John Carter performs at the box office given the lackluster response from the D23 audience.  I will be back tomorrow to give you some of the Expo and Archive details and photos from the show floor.  In the meantime, I want to hear what film you are excited about, feel free to comment below!





Photos 2-6:  Courtesy of D23 Expo 2011.