Johnny Depp’s Best Performances

“I don't pretend to be captain weird. I just do what I do.”

-Johnny Depp

Johnny Depp is one of the best American actors, and whether you like him or not, you have to admit his performances are always out-of-this world. Sometimes this is a good thing, sometimes it’s a mess. Depp’s latest film Mortdecai appears to possess the whimsical nature Depp often presents and a jovial quality that makes it look like a laugh-riot.

Aksarben Cinema will begin screening Mortdecai which also stars top-notch talent including Gwyneth Paltrow, Ewan McGregor, and Paul Bettany. In honor of Mortdecai’s release we give you the best performances by Johnny Depp.

Edward Scissorhands, Edward Scissorhands

The friendship and partnership between Tim Burton and Johnny Depp began in 1990 with this brilliantly original film. Depp plays the tragic Edward Scissorhands who is struggling to understand the life being lived outside of his grim home where he is kept by an aging inventor, played by the iconic Vincent Price. Depp brought to the role a beautiful gentleness and an innocence that only a young man could possess. He had been in other films and TV series, but Edward Scissorhands marked the introduction of a star.

J. M. Barrie, Finding Neverland

There were plenty of films in between Edward Scissorhands and Finding Neverland that Johnny Depp was excellent in, including Ed Wood, Donnie Brasco, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas. That being said, Finding Neverland gave audiences a dialed back performance from Depp that was every bit as enchanting as Marc Forster’s film. Depp plays J.M. Barrie, the writer of Peter Pan and the film is about his unlikely friendship with a family that inspired him to write the modern classic.

Captain Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

This was the film that made him a megastar. Burton’s movies have always been moderate successes at the box office and his performances in dramas were critically respected, but it wasn’t until he created Captain Jack that Depp became a big star. Pirates of the Caribbean and Depp’s performance brought about a pop culture phenomenon that was totally unexpected. Considering this was Disney’s first PG-13 film release POTC was under heavy scrutiny by the studio and Depp was an unlikely star. Obviously the rest is history and Depp gave Disney a totally iconic character that enticed young and old to go to the movies.

To find out if Mortdecai will be another great performance from Depp check us out online and like us on Facebook. See you at the movies!

Best Fictional Bears

“You need help, and ol' Baloo's gonna learn ya to fight like a bear.”

-Baloo, The Jungle Book

This last Friday Aksarben Cinema premiered Paddington, a film adaptation of one of the most beloved children’s stories of all time. Paddington originally hails from Peru, but over the years has taken on some British sensibilities and dialect.

In the new film he’s voiced by the upcoming British star Ben Whishaw and befriends a family that is looking for something new to shake up their lives. They find it in this lovable little bear in the blue coat with the red hat.

In honor of Paddington’s arrival, we give you the best fictional bears on TV and in movies.

Bear: Baloo                           

Film: The Jungle Book                     

Originally Performed by: Phil Harris

Baloo the bear is one of the many standout characters in Walt Disney’s adaptation of The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling. This big gray buffoon is at the top of the list, because he provides the famous Disney animated film a great goofiness that is obviously inherent in Paddington. He also is a wonderfully dynamic character as he goes through loss when he has to accept that his man-cub is growing up and looking for new adventures.

Bear: Fozzie Bear                

Film: The Muppet Movie                  

Originally Performed by: Frank Oz

There is no better comedian to grace the screen (with orange fur) than Fozzie Bear. Performed by the multi-talented Frank Oz, Fozzie Bear can simply do it all. If the film calls for a dry joke then Fozzie’s got it (“If that's the Happiness Hotel, I'd hate to see what the sad one looks like.”). Or maybe it needs a corny one-liner - Fozzie can do that too:

Kermit: [navigating in the Studebaker] Bear left.

Fozzie: Right, frog.

He’s the best friend of everyone’s favorite frog and gives his heart and soul to the Muppet Show in order to make it the best hour of humorous variety people could ever want. Waka! Waka!

Bear: Winnie the Pooh

Film: The Many Adventure of Winnie the Pooh

Originally Performed by: Sterling Holloway

Is there a bear that is more loveable than the honey-loving Winnie the Pooh? Winnie the Pooh is so wonderful because he does his best to exercise, be active with his friend Piglet, and engage with his fellow Hundred Acre Wood neighbors. The yellow bear with the little red shirt was originally performed by Sterling Holloway who voiced Kaa the Snake in The Jungle Book and is now voiced by one of the best voice talents in Hollywood, Jim Cummings.

Bear: Yogi Bear

Film: Yogi Bear

Originally Performed by: Daws Butler

The final bear on our list is smarter than the average bear as he always liked to tell audiences on his show in the 60s. Daws Butler was the first to voice this ever-talkative brown bear with a skinny green tie who went on adventures for picnic baskets with his friend Boo-Boo. Unfortunately this dynamic duo found opposition in the form of the stern Ranger Smith. Surprisingly it took more than 50 years to bring Yogi to the big screen with his pal Boo-Boo. In 2010’s Yogi Bear famous comedian Dan Aykroyd voiced the titular bear.

Now we can bearly contain ourselves for the arrival of Paddington and are excited for the talkative British bear to join the slew of classic bears to be featured on the big screen. For more information on Paddington and all our upcoming releases go to our website or check us out on Facebook. See you at the movies! 

Best Wedding Movies

“I want my real life to be as fun as the one I made up!”

-Doug Harris, The Wedding Ringer

The Wedding Ringer premiered last Friday at Aksarben Cinema. The Wedding Ringer stars Kevin Hart and Josh Gad. Gad is a groom-to-be who needs to impress his future in-laws so he enlists the help of Hart, a best man for hire. Unfortunately for the young groom, he needs more than just a best man - he needs a whole wedding party. Hilarity ensues as Gad is introduced to an unlikely party for his wedding.

In honor of the release of this new comedy film we give you a list of the best wedding comedies.

Wedding Crashers

Wedding Crashers is one of the most quotable films and will have you in stitches with a script by Steve Faber and Bob Fisher (We’re the Millers). Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn star as a pair of bachelors looking for another one-night stand, but find themselves in a pickle when Wilson’s character falls for the unavailable Claire Cleary (Rachel McAdams).

Along for the comedy hijinks in this 2006 film are Christopher Walken, Isla Fisher, Bradley Cooper, and Will Ferrell in a hilarious sequence.

I Love You, Man

I Love You, Man has to be one of the most underrated comedies of all time. It contains an awkward, dry comedy that feels more 80s than 2000s and features two of the best comedy stars that are now hitting it big with films such as The Muppets and Ant-Man. Paul Rudd and Jason Segel star as two unlikely friends, one is a future groom who needs a best friend and the other is a slacker who thinks he’s got it all together.

“Slap da bass” with Rudd and Jobin (a nickname Rudd’s character poorly gives to Segel’s) as they embark on an awkward, but wonderful friendship.

Bridesmaids

There has not been a comedy like Bridesmaids. We’re confident in that statement because there has never been a comedy film that is so raunchy, gross-out hilarious, and yet so perfectly charming. Now all those criteria are one thing, but the fact that it stars the best female comedians of this decade makes Bridesmaids a landmark film that puts to rest the invalid argument that women can’t be funny.

Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy star in this hilarious film that focuses on Wiig’s characters and her struggles during preparation for her best friend’s wedding that results in food poisoning, a drunken excursion on a classy flight, and a romantic run-in with an adorable cop. If The Wedding Ringer has even a tenth of what Bridesmaids had in terms of comedy then we’re all in for a treat.

Join us at Aksarben Cinema for the new film, The Wedding Ringer. For more information on the film and other films visit Aksarben’s Cinema’s website and like us on Facebook. See you at the movies!

American Sniper Critical Response

“I just want to get the bad guys, but if I can't see them I can't shoot them.”

-Chris Kyle, American Sniper

One of the most controversial films of 2015 is coming to Aksarben Cinema on Friday. American Sniper directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Bradley Cooper is the story of Chris Kyle, the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history. The film is based on real-life Kyle’s book of the same name and focuses on a period of time in which Kyle was sent to Iraq to protect other American military men.

Collected below are famous U.S. critics’ responses to American Sniper, both positive and negative. What is clear is that American Sniper is an important film that needs to be seen.

Richard Corliss, Time

“Cooper, who in earlier roles perfected the persona of the sharp conniver, makes a fast, expert U turn from American Hustle to American Sniper. Packing an extra 30 or so pounds of beef and beer weight, Cooper gives Chris a galoot’s sincerity. He lacks the belligerence of the traditional war lover, allowing himself no Lone Star whoops when he hits a human target.”

Amy Nicholson, LA Weekly

“The film hints, whisper-soft, that perhaps Kyle was afraid to think too hard about the life-and-death decisions his country asked him to make — a fear Kyle himself would have phooeyed. He was a hero doing and saying the things a hero should, and Eastwood is too tongue-tied to prevent this unexamined jingoism from echoing through the multiplex. Instead, Eastwood simply steps back and allows American Sniper to play like heartland bingo, in its opening minutes paying homage to guns, football, hunting, Bibles, Lone Star beer and rodeo cowboys.”

Elizabeth Weitzman, Daily News

“The best movies are ever-shifting, intelligent and open-hearted enough to expand alongside an audience. ‘American Sniper,’ Clint Eastwood’s harrowing meditation on war, is built on this foundation of uncommon compassion...Cooper’s natural humility is perfect for a hero whose unshakable courage is both wrenching and incomprehensible. Still, a little more comprehension would have been helpful. Kyle is never truly defined beyond the bounds of war, though perhaps that’s intentional. Death becomes the one arena that gives his life meaning.”

For more information on American Sniper and Aksarben Cinema visit our website and like us on Facebook. Continue to visit Aksarben Cinema’s Blogger site for more great posts about upcoming releases. See you at the movies!

Selma Critical Response

“WE MUST MAKE A MASSIVE DEMONSTRATION!”

-Martin Luther King Jr., Selma

Director Ava DuVernay brings to AC’s screens the unbelievable true story of Martin Luther King Jr.’s campaign to secure equal voting rights with an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965. Mind you, this is not the full story of MLK, but DuVernay does capture a monumental moment in the icon’s short-lived life.

Below we have collected critical response to Selma from the best critics in the nation.

Richard Roeper, Chicago Sun-Times

“The British actor David Oyelowo, who bears a passing physical resemblance to King, does a magnificent job of inhabiting the character without it ever devolving into impersonation. Oyelowo’s King is deeply spiritual and highly motivated, but he’s no saint. ‘Selma’ doesn’t gloss over King’s many infidelities; in fact, his indiscretions become a major plot point in the film, with Coretta Scott King (Carmen Ejogo) telling her husband he needs to get his house in order, and if that means taking a break from changing the world, so be it.”

Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

“’Selma’ carries viewers along on a tide of breathtaking events so assuredly that they never drown in the details or the despair, but instead are left buoyed. The civil rights movement and its heroes aren’t artifacts from the distant past, but messengers sent on an urgent mission for today. There are several reasons to see ‘Selma’ — for its virtuosity and scale, scope and sheer beauty. But then there are its lessons, which have to do with history, but also today. ‘Selma’ invites viewers to heed its story, meditate on its implications and allow those images once again to change our hearts and minds.”

Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

“DuVernay's intimate style helps in her successful attempt to humanize King, his wife, Coretta Scott King (a deft Carmen Ejogo), and his circle of advisers and comrades in arms, to see them not as monumental icons but, rather, real people with personal lives and problems. Given what they accomplished, ‘Selma’ can't help but mythologize this group as well, but it is a low-key mythologization rather than the bombastic sort.”

See the Film

Rejoice in one of the top rated films of the year at Omaha’s favorite theatre Aksarben Cinema and please check us out on Facebook for more information on Selma and all our upcoming releases. See you at the movies!

Unfathomable News

Unfathomable News

We have some unfathomable news this week! Aksarben Cinema recently installed the Fathom Events system which will allow us to show even more exciting content. This new addition to the Aksarben Cinema family will feature:

●      Quality visuals with surround sound

●      Special features like behind-the-scenes footage, backstage interviews and surprise bonuses

●      Unbeatable affordability and convenience with access to the most premium events in the world

Fathom Events brings to Aksarben Cinema an enhanced presentation, adding to the quality you’re already accustomed to.

The features are one thing, but we’re sure you’re more interested in the content. Our first exciting feature at Aksarben Cinema will be The Metropolitan Opera’s The Merry Window.

Experience the ninth season of the Metropolitan Opera’s Peabody and Emmy Award-winning series The Met: Live in HD in select cinemas nationwide. The broadcast of Lehár’s The Merry Widow will be presented live on Saturday, January 17th.  Check out Aksarben Cinema’s website for showtimes and tickets and like us on Facebook for more information.

In addition to showing the Metropolitan Opera now at Aksarben Cinema, Fathom allows us to present special events such as:

●      UFC Fights

●      Classic Movies

●      RiffTrax (from the creators of Mystery Science Theatre 3000)

Bring your friends and delight in the wonder that is Aksarben Cinema’s new Fathom Events programming. You’ll laugh, cry, and rejoice with even more wonderful content from Omaha’s Favorite Theatre, Aksarben Cinema! See you at the movies!

Selma Red Carpet Premiere

 “We must march! We must stand up!”

-Martin Luther King Jr., Selma

Selma Red Carpet Premiere

Aksarben Cinema will host our first Red Carpet Premiere of 2015! Director Ava DuVernay’s Selma presents the unbelievable true story of the famous reverend turned Civil Rights activist Martin Luther King Jr. and his campaign to secure voting rights for all. This momentous action led to the historical march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama in 1965.

January 8, 2015 @ 7 p.m.

To celebrate this breathtaking film, Aksarben Cinema will host a limited amount of guests for a night of cinema and a look back on history. The event will take place on January 8, 2015 at 7 pm and is co-hosted by Empowerment Network, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc - Delta Epsilon Omega Chapter and Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. - Beta Xi Lambda Chapter.

Even more exciting are the wonderful perks designated for those who are eager for the premiere. The first 85 people to arrive at the event, after 5:45 p.m., will receive a free Selma movie poster (with the purchase of an admission). The Great Plains Black History Museum will also be in attendance for individuals who have questions before or after the excitement of the film.

Please join us for Selma on January 8 for Aksarben Cinema’s first red carpet premiere of the year. Tickets can be purchased online or at the theatre box office. For more information on the event, check out the Aksarben Cinema Facebook page and the special event page. See you at the movies!