Sure, he’s always been uncomfortable in the spotlight — but retirement?

Joaquin Phoenix told an E! reporter at a recent red-carpet Hollywood event, “This will be my last performance as an actor. I’m not doing films anymore … I’m going to play music.

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Has there been a movie this year that even comes close to generating the drama and suspense that marked the 2008 presidential campaign?

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Kevin Smith's Red State premiered to mixed reviews and a small group of protesters at the Sundance Film Festival Jan. 22. But, even more than the film's provocative premise — which has been described as “a horror/comedy/satire about a Westboro Baptist Church-esque fundamentalist community that murders those it finds abominations in God's eyes (aka gay people)” — it was the veteran filmmaker's post-screening Q&A antics that drew the most attention.

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Just in time to rescue us from another week of safe, reheated Hollywood product (yes, I'm referring to you, Sex and the City 2), a locally produced film gets its local debut at 8 p.m. tonight at Cincinnati State's ATLC Auditorium (3520 Central Pwky., Clifton).

Meth, the latest short from Cincinnati filmmaker Michael Maney, centers its fast-paced 20-minute story on a meth addict (played by CCM-trained local actress Stephanie Brait) who, in an effort to score her habit of choice, crosses paths with a tweaked-out drug dealer (Dan Davidson), a pawn-shop operator (Nick Rose), a talking mannequin (voiced by Robert Pavlovich) and a guy who might be the victim of a conspiracy to exterminate wrongdoers via vigilante justice.

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A couple of days ago I wrote about news regarding the release dates of George Clooney's Ides of March, much of which was shot in and around Cincinnati. Now we have Ides' first trailer, which gives us a much better idea of the film's tone and focus.

Here's Ides' official synopsis, the contents of which are readily on display in the tension-laced trailer, which centers heavily on Ryan Gosling's campaign press secretary character:

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Terrence Malick's Tree of Life is coming. Or is it?

Like everything the acclaimed 68-year-old filmmaker does, Malick's latest — just his fifth film in 38 years — has gone through a mysterious gestation, changing release dates and distributors numerous times (it was originally slated for a Dec. 25, 2009, release) while simultaneously revealing little about its contents.

It looks like the wait is finally over: I received a package from its current distributor, Fox Searchlight, a few days ago that contained the film's poster and a brief, one-sheet press release announcing that Tree of Life will open in select theaters on May 27.

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John Hughes, the writer and/or director of such 1980s staples as Sixteen Candles, Pretty in Pink and The Breakfast Club, died of a heart attack yesterday at age 59. That sucks for a variety of reasons, the least of which is that few filmmakers made popular entertainments with as much heart, authenticity and wit as Hughes, and fewer still did it in the largely vapid genre of teen comedy.

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Is anyone else as jazzed as I am about the new Star Trek film? It looks like a thrilling ride.

It's due in theaters May 8, and there's already a sequel planned.

Live long and prosper

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George Clooney was featured on Inside the Actor's Studio with James Lipton Tuesday night. The local hero talked about growing up in Kentucky, making it in Los Angeles and many of his famed performances on the oft-spoofed show.

There were plenty of local mentions throughout the interview. Clooney briefly talked about his time at Augusta High School, where he played basketball (he claimed that the team was 1-25 his senior year) and was generally a great student. Just like myself growing up, every student who got As at his school received Reds tickets. Gotta love that Carl Lindner.

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The 2009 Independent Spirit Awards were unveiled yesterday. And while the Academy Awards' more adventurous little brother has been leaning toward higher-profile specialty films in recent years (like Juno and Little Miss Sunshine), the ’09 batch hearkens back to the awards’ early days when ultra-low-budget indies ruled the scene.

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