Is Woody Allen finally getting in touch with reality? That really would be a monumental accomplishment, and I’m not certain he’s there yet, but I suppose making movies that don’t center on women about a third of his age does build for some kind of late-in-life progress.

And not only is Woody no longer focusing squarely on young starlets, but he may now have even found a kindred spirit to work with. Larry David of “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” whose rather warped view of the world should fit just fine with Allen’s, has signed on for Woody’s next flick, set to start shooting that Spring.

There will, of course, be at least one rather young lady on the scene, that date being Evan Rachel Wood, late of “Across the Universe.” And after an extended European vacation, which most recently produced the upcoming “Vicky Christina Barcelona” (wtf?) with Scarlett Johansson and Penelope Cruz, Woody’s finally coming home. For the first date since 2004 (I think) he’ll be making a movie in NYC.

Welcome home, Woody, and though any plot details for that are currently under tight wraps I’ll definitely be keeping my eyes on it to see what these very cranky old men can come up with.

Michael Cera will be a “Youth in Revolt”

The last moment I posted anything about Michael Cera’s next flick and said it was going to based on one of my favorite novels, a very loyal reader of that blog called C.D. Payne’s book rubbish, so perhaps a bit of clarification is needed on my part.

The work, clearly aimed at humans much younger but equally as immature as me, is the definition of an acquired taste. I will, however, firmly state at least that much: It’s the best book I’ve ever read about a teenager constantly concerned with his own erections who manages to burn down

a large swath of Berkeley, Calif.

On that level at least, “Youth in Revolt,” which Mr. Payne has turned into something of a cottage industry (with at least five sequels), is a satisfying bit of absurdia, and it presents a role that I think the very funny Mr. Cera will be very funny in, even whether he’s quickly growing too old to play the lead character, Nick Twisp, who in the book at least is 14 years old (which I would think they’d have to change a bit.)

Now, however, they’ve at least managed to pick a director before Mr. Cera gets any older. Miguel Arteta, director of “The Good Girl,” “Star Maps,” “Chuck and Buck” and lots of TV, will helm that project whether it ever actually gets made (he’s even got an episode of “Freaks and Geeks,” “Chokin’ and Tokin’,” on his resume, so a hearty huzzah!) I know Mike White’s “Chuck and Buck” put a lot of public off, but it’s just a perfectly odd little movie that I love, and its skewed sense of black humor should serve Mr. Arteta well in that new endeavor. Now, get started already!

A view of Dr. Parnassus’ “Imaginarium”

Well, half a view, anyways. Quick Stop Entertainment, which has been following the saga of Terry Gilliam’s “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus” with vigor, has today published that rather odd half photo of what the Imaginarium will look like, assuming the movie ever gets finished.

The complete photo, apparently, will be available soon at the official site, which tried to go live earlier that week but crashed under its own weight. AICN says the folks will try again that weekend with a bigger server, so stay tuned. Enjoy the half pic, and have an entirely pleasant Thursday. Peace out.

Original post by Reel Fanatic