http://patrickvuong.com Fri, 05 Mar 2010 22:04:31 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Last Sunday, I was invited to attend Diana Lee Inosanto's DVD release party of her directorial debut, The Sensei. For most martial artists, you'll recognize the name. She is the daughter of martial arts legend Dan Inosanto and the "honorary niece" of one of the world's biggest icons, Bruce Lee. But ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1132 In my typical revisionistic fashion, I’ve rewritten my list of “Best Produced Screenplays of 2009” after finally watching The Hurt Locker. My Top 8 now becomes a Top 9. I didn’t bump anybody off the list because they’re all stellar work. But at the same time, I didn’t put Kathryn Bigelow’s ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1125 OK, so yet again I've rewritten my Best-Of list. This time, it's because I finally saw The Hurt Locker. Here's how it ranks up against my other favorites of last year: 1. Up Written by Bob Peterson & Pete Docter The first three on my list are all running neck and neck and ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1118 Fellow screenwriter/blogger Ashley Scott Meyers has a pretty good post about how to write a synopsis on his SellingYourScreenplay.com site. He's got some common-sense advice mixed in with some real-world experience. Here's a taste: "...you simply want to intrigue them enough so that they can’t wait to read the entire screenplay. ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1101 Check out this cool little ditty: a trailer for an CG-animation zombie movie. It's called A.D. and is directed by Ben Hibon, written by Haylar Garcia, and produced by Bernie Goldmann (300), Tarik Heitmann (The Sensei), and Renee Tab. Looks pretty cool. I like the idea of taking the zombie genre ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1091 No, this isn't an entry about a screenwriter starring in his own horror comedy. John August, writer of the most recent Charlie and the Chocolate Factory adaptation, posted an interesting blog today about being interviewed for a new book called Tales from the Script: 50 Hollywood Screenwriters Share Their Stories. It seems ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1061 Avatar continues to whup massive box-office ass (as reported by Entertainment Weekly). And rightfully so (see my review). Here's a snippet of EW's assessment: A trio of new releases failed to topple James Cameron’s Avatar, which claimed the top spot at the box office for the fourth weekend in a row. ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1054 Another year, another arbitrary "Best Of" list. But this isn't just any arbitrary "Best Of" list. This is my arbitrary Top 8 list. Why Top 8, why not Top 5 or Top 10? Why not. Plus, I did a Top 4 last year. So, enjoy! It's kinda hard to judge a ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1027 "I deduce that this movie is elementary entertainment, my dear boy." Bad joke aside, Sherlock Holmes could have been an excellent action thriller...but it's hampered by a slow second act and unoriginal third act, resulting in only an above average popcorn flick, despite Robert Downey Jr. starring in the title role ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1019 If you haven't already, treat yourself to a holiday present and watch Avatar. Is it the best movie ever made based on the best screenplay ever written? No, of course not. But it's certainly one of the better movies I've seen in a long, long time. Though it's wrapped in the ... http://patrickvuong.com/archives/1015