Sports - M&TV: Fresh Loaf, Creative Loafing Atlanta

Did 'Trouble With the Curve' kill baseball movies?

Gabe Wardell — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 07:29:00 -0400

Clocking in at 52% "Rotten" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and striking out with a close, but disappointing third place box office showing, Clint Eastwood's Trouble With the Curve did little to shake the notion, posited by Indiewire's Gabe Toro, that "baseball generally doesn’t draw. Despite the number of classics that have emerged from the most cinematic of sports."

Could a mediocre opening, coupled with baseball's lack of play overseas (other than Japan), spell doom for baseball movies?

Toro continues, "Curve spotlights a baseball scout, an insular, nerdy profession that seems to run counter to the attitudes towards Eastwood, the Last Hard Man. Audiences flocked to [boxing movie] Million Dollar Baby once the strong accolades came in (and because of Morgan Freeman’s delicious caramel voice), but Gran Torino very clearly tapped into the primal appeal of Eastwood as a take-no-prisoners shit-kicker.…

Oympics withdraw: From running to synchronized swimming

Gabe Wardell — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 07:42:00 -0400

Basking the post-closing ceremony glow, and still recovering from the Spice Girls reunion, here are some sporty (wink) movies that give you what you really really want, to assuage your inevitable Olympics jones.

The two best Olympics films are Olympiad documentaries:

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Why we love Samuel L. Jackson's new 'Rise Up' Falcons TV spot almost as much as his Olympic Twitter feed

Gabe Wardell — Sun, 05 Aug 2012 09:31:00 -0400

Sometime Atlantan Samuel L. Jackson returns for his third season as the Falcons pitchman in this new ad that expands upon the "Rise Up" theme. I like this spot because it acknowledges the team's recent successes, but makes the candid admission that there's more work to be done—in 2012 it's Super Bowl or bust.…

Star Wars Night at Turner Field: Braves use "The Force" to Stand Up to Cancer

Gabe Wardell — Wed, 01 Aug 2012 11:50:00 -0400

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...err OK, this coming Friday, August 3rd at Turner Field, is Star Wars night at the Ball Park.

What exactly do baseball and the trillion dollar milestone sci fi franchise have in common?…

The Televangelist: ATLwood Weekly Rundown

Allison Keene — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 10:57:00 -0400

— Exclusive! According to our own Besha Rodell, Cameron Diaz must not be a fan of takeout since she was spotted at LeRoy's, Miller Union and Ecco this week.…

Plaza turns up the 'Memphis Heat' with Jerry Jarrett

Jonathan Williams — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 10:30:00 -0400

To some, professional wrestling goes hand-in-headlock with Southern culture. With the pageantry, triumph and overall spectacle of larger-than-life personas dramatically settling their scores through in-ring combat, wrestling's Southern appeal is obvious.…