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"Lass is More" on "Careful What you Wish for," "13 Hours," & "Triple 9"

By Josh Lasser on June 7, 2016 • ( 3 )

Greetings and salutations!

The main feature on today’s “Lass is More” is an interview with Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum, the director of Nick Jonas’ new movie, “Careful What you Wish for.” As the movie is a neo-noir affair with a teenage bent it makes some sense for us to also mention two new Blu-ray arrivals, “Triple 9” and “13 Hours.” The former is an update to the cop drama and the latter an update to the war film.

“Triple 9,” frankly, works really well. It blurs the line between cops and crooks, shows us some reasons why people do what they do and offers some great action sequences. “13 Hours” can definitely boast impressive action sequences but it’s take on Benghazi feels too obvious, too black and white. It is difficult to believe that the government people on-site (as opposed to the private contractors) could possibly have been so blind to their situation. I do like Bay’s direction of the action, but the depiction of the story not so much.

Now, before we go the podcast link and the interview, here’s one more follow-up answer from Rosenbaum. In our discussion she mentions her USC graduate school degree–I too have a degree from their film school–and I wanted to ask her one more question about it which she was kind enough to answer via email. This last question to her was “How do you feel as though that experience [USC film school] shaped your view of movies and television and influenced your work?”

Her answer: “I loved going to USC. For me, I used it as an incubator to start to find my voice. I have a bit of an East Coast ‘puritan work ethic’ so I don’t think I would have had the courage to take three years on my own to make little projects. I would have felt like I wasn’t ‘working.’ Therefore, getting a ‘Graduate Degree’ validated me allotting three years of my life to getting my hands on a lot of equipment and workshopping short stories in a safe forum. I had some terrific teachers whose lectures I still draw from to this day (and who I still collaborate with). I also teach there and find it to be rewarding to help foster new voices (and selfishly, to stay current and be more daring – because I’m interacting with young, very enthusiastic new talent.)”

“Careful What you Wish for” opens in theaters and on demand this Friday, June 10th.