The Olsen Twins have been quiet lately (I’m still wondering how they were involved in Heath Ledger’s death), but their sister seems set to break onto the Hollywood scene.  She’s starting small, but getting a lead role in an indie drama is a good route to take.  Elizabeth Olsen is set to star in the drama MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE with Hugh Dancy and Sarah Paulson.  In the film, she’ll play a young woman that escapes a cult and lives with her older sister.  Paulson will play her sister while Dancy will play her sister’s husband.  Sean Durkin wrote and will direct the film.

Although this definitely won’t break any box office records, it’s one I’m going to keep my eye on.  I always thought the idea of cults would/could make a great film if addressed properly.  Plus, this seems to be a challenging role for a young, inexperienced actress, so it should be a good indicator as to whether or not Elizabeth Olsen is going to make it.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

It has been confirmed that the 2009 James Cameron film AVATAR, starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana and Sigourney Weaver, will be released in a 2D special edition set as well as in 3D in 2010.  The AVATAR: COLLECTOR’S EDITION (2D version) will be released on November 16, 2010.  Right now we know that there will be an extended version of the movie, with at least 16 extra minutes of footage as well as 45 minutes of extras.  I’m sure more information about this edition will be revealed sooner to the release date.  It has also been confirmed that the 3D version of the film will only be available exclusively to purchasers of the Panasonic 3D Viera Plasma TV.  Panasonic is working on making the film release available to early adapters of the 3D Viera Plasma TV, but that deal is still in negotiations.  This Panasonic/Avatar package will be available in early December.

So, from where it stands right now, if you were planning on throwing down money for a high dollar 3D TV it may be worth the wait so you can get the exclusive AVATAR 3D package.  If you’re not willing to go out and purchase a brand new 3D plasma TV around Christmastime (note the sarcasm) then you will have to settle with the regular 2D Collector’s Edition version.  Either way, James Cameron is going to be making even more money on AVATAR with this Panasonic deal as well as the triple release of his film.  Love him or hate him, the guy, or his team, are marketing geniuses.

I thought it oddly curious that there was a sticker on the front of this Blu-ray that read “Sweet’N Low coupon inside” (Sweet’N Low being another kind of Sugar Twin if you didn’t know) but laughed out loud when I saw that Flynn and Nat’s cross country vehicle was a pink Sweet’N Low car.  Despite the issues between father and son, the Sweet’N Low gag pretty much sets the overall tone of this film, which for me was a delightful hoot from start to finish.

The defining factor here in my eyes is Christopher Walken and rest assured the man’s still got it.  He brings a one of a kind energy to each and every character he plays making them empathetic, eccentric, lovable and above all else unforgettable (I’m still moved by his and Dennis Hopper’s back and forth in TRUE ROMANCE and also still believe you can’t get much more for your money than SUICIDE KINGS).  Walken is the perfect swindler with an eye for scams like you wouldn’t believe.  And don’t get me wrong as much as he doesn’t want to do it anymore, Flynn (a grown up Pollux Troy) is the perfect wing man to have in his corner.  I’ve always had a soft spot for workplace scams but these guys take the cake.

As much as I enjoyed this film I will admit that the whole “dying of cancer” bit is getting used up.  I’m not trying to be insensitive, quite the opposite in fact, my dad just got done battling prostate cancer and won so I guess maybe that’s why I cringed a bit at the mention of it.  That aside, I’m all for rekindling the father son bond and it was rather touching to see these two doing just that.  The girlfriend aspect of the film was weak (on that note, what happened to Amanda Peet’s career anyway?) but it did help deliver a happier ending so I’ll let it slide.  Also, props to Sharon Stone, she didn’t have the meatiest role here but she still looks really good !

$5 DOLLARS A DAY was a refreshing treat of a film.  I would never have picked this up, much less even noticed it at the movie store but I’m always happy when I go into a film with zero expectations and come out surprised and happy to have seen it (case in point, check out THE JONESES which was also a solid “out of nowhere” flick).  This film does feel a little sombre in the opening moments but rest assured there’s a ton of laughs and feel good moments making this one worth checking out.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: 1.85:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  I loved the ride to Mexico, the landscapes looked great and so did Sharon Stone in a bikini.

Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD in English, French and Spanish with the same subtitle options.  The dialogue was as sharp as the witty story line, making it pleasant on the ears.

Interviews (35:09): The most alarming part about this is that they interview everyone but Christopher Walken.  I mean hell, Dean Cain’s in the flick for like five minutes and he got an interview so I’d like to know who dropped the ball on this one.

Still Gallery: Here we got a collection of stills from the film as well as a few of the cast and crew.  There’s also a theatrical trailer for the feature.

I suppose when you’re set to star with Ryan Reynolds in a cop comedy, you don’t need to do a small drama about a team of plane crash survivors that battle some angry wolves.  Thankfully for Joe Carnahan, his other A-Team star is more than willing to step into the role as Liam Neeson looks set to replace Cooper in the film THE GREY.  The film will follow a team of oil drillers after they crash land in the middle of nowhere in Alaska.  They soon find themselves under attack from a pack of large, vicious wolves that see them as threats to their land.

I’m not sure how I feel about a movie making wolves out to be mean, vicious creatures and I’m a little nervous they’re going to go FURRY VENGEANCE on us and make this about animals protecting the environment.  But on the other hand, Carnahan’s best film was NARC, which was a gritty drama and from what it sounds like, this could let him get back to his roots.

Source: Heat Vision

Any discussion about the 6^th and final season of ‘Lost’ starts and ends with the two hour season finale.  Holding true to his promise, J.J. Abrams tied everything together in 6 seasons and fans everywhere have been debating the finale’s merit ever since.  Looking back at the series, I don’t think it would be possible to create a finale that everyone loved.  Some people wanted more answers, some people wanted less and some wanted different answers.

The 6^th season starts off confusingly by creating a parallel world where the Oceanic flight didn’t crash.  Each character has a different life and different problems, but the inherent issues for everyone were still the same.  I say this was confusing at first because in the first handful of episodes, it felt like we were retreading old ground and that the events on the island were either being ignored or maybe didn’t happen at all.  For a while, I was nervous that everything on the island was going to be considered a dream ala old school ‘Dallas’.  And then I was convinced the parallel world was actually the future and then the time on the island was a chance for the characters to “grow” like in an 80′s body swap movie.

Thankfully, that wasn’t the case (more on that later).  But unlike other seasons that jumped right into the action, I felt the sixth season took a while to get going.  I really didn’t like the introduction of the temple and the people in the temple.  After six seasons, we didn’t need new characters introduced, especially ones that ended up dying so quickly and apparently served little to no purpose.  The focus should have remained on our heroes the entire time and there was plenty of minor mysteries who’s solving should have taken priority over setting up new characters and mysteries.

However, about halfway through the season, the show picks up and then it becomes typical “OMG LOST!” fodder.  For the last 8 episodes or so, every episode had something in it that prompted a scream or a reaction.  Looking back on the show as a whole, those every-episode cliffhangers were what really made this show incredible and the sixth season was filled with them.  Special mention should be given to the some of the death scenes, which proved to be intense and heartbreaking.

As much as I liked the ending, I still have trouble focusing on anything but the numerous questions it left.  I think I understand the purpose of the island, but how they ended up in the “purgatory” alternate world is still a mystery to me.  If each character had to die on the island to make it there, it would make more sense.  But since we didn’t see the death scenes of every character, I was left questioning what happened to them back on the island.  I loved the pseudo-heaven insinuation the show suggested, but I felt it left some holes.  As for the other mysteries the show failed to solve; I didn’t really care.  I’m glad they didn’t spell everything out for us and I thought they did a great job of clearing up some of the bigger mysteries.  I don’t really care about the molecular structure of the black cloud or how Jacob’s fake mother arrived on the island.

Taking the show as a whole and looking at all the six seasons, I’m in awe.  This is such a great show and I question whether we’ll ever see anything like this again.  Taking the sixth season by itself, I thought it might have been a little weaker than some of the other seasons, but the handful of great episodes made up for it and the ending was a nice wrap to a great show.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: TV doesn’t look better than Lost on Blu-ray.  Every episode was spectacular.

Audio: The same can be said for the audio.  Seriously, if you haven’t upgraded your DVD’s of Lost to the Blu-rays, you’re missing out.

Lost in 8:15 (8:15): Possibly the best part about the Lost sets is watching the “Lost in 8:15” recaps.  This one takes us to the beginning of the sixth season.  I want one that covers the entire series.

Commentaries on LA X, Across the Sea, Dr. Linus, Ah Aeterno with various creators and actors: All of these are great, but I recommend the Across the Sea with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse.  They give a wonderfully detailed commentary on the episode and even point out some of their mistakes.  It was also nice to hear Michael Emerson (Ben) talk about his episode.  These are just really good listens and if you want more lost, watch these episodes again with the commentaries.

Lost University – Master’s Program: This is just too much to cover in one paragraph.  This is an insane amount of content with multiple hours of featurettes, speeches, interviews and random other segments.  Some are better than others, but after attending the Master’s Program, you’ll definitely have your fill of Lost.

New Man in Charge (11:56): This is the feature that has gotten so much press because it’s kind of like 25% of a follow-up episode.  I enjoyed this, but for those hoping to get answers or explanations for all of your questions, you won’t find it here…at least not entirely.

Crafting a Final Season (39:02): Another great feature, this time a documentary about the last season (although it really focuses on the last episode).  I loved that they involved some creators from other shows.  Some of this was a little dry, but when they started talking about the difficulty of how to end the series, it got really interesting.

A Hero’s Journey (9:03): This is more of a straight-forward “Lost in 8:15” and takes an aggregate look at the show.

Lost on Location (28:57): I found myself a little bored with this feature since I wasn’t really interested in the making of specific episodes.  Six episodes are looked at a little closer and we get some specific tidbits, but nothing earth shattering.

See You in Another Life, Brotha (8:56): Various cast members show up to talk about the alternate world they created for the sixth season.  Not much insight here, just the cast talking about it in general terms.

Deleted Scenes (10:02): Deleted scenes on TV shows are usually nothing noteworthy and these are no different.

Lost Bloopers (3:59): The bloopers were kind of fun, just to see what moments and scenes caused the actors to mess up or laugh.

We’ve seen a few images of Johnny Depp in costume as Jack Sparrow and a couple images of the lovely Penelope Cruz, but the missing cast member was Ian McShane as Blackbeard–until now.   The picture below isn’t the greatest, but it should whet your appetite until we get some official stills or a teaser trailer (and no, I don’t count the Comic-Con intro as a “trailer”).   I was skeptical about this film, but the more I see from it, the more I think it could be a good time.   I’m interested to see what director Rob Marshall does with it.   But really, I think audiences are going to be disappointed in him if he doesn’t have a musical number at some point in the film.

Along with Depp, Cruz and McShane, the film stars Gemma Ward, Geoffrey Rush, Kevin McNally, Astrid Bergès-Frisbey, Sam Claflin, Stephen Graham and Yuki Matsuzaki.

Source: Pop Sugar

After his great turn in THE HURT LOCKER, Anthony Mackie has been relatively quiet until now.   Today he joins the cast of MAN ON A LEDGE, which is about a female psychologist trying to handle a former NYPD policeman that’s threatening to jump off a ledge.   Sam Worthington will play the jumper and the psychologist hasn’t been cast yet.   We don’t know what Mackie will play, but with the two juicy roles either taken or for a female, we can assume there’s more to the story than what little we know so far.

I’d like to see Mackie do some bigger movies.   I think he’d do well in a big summer blockbuster or an action movie of sorts.   My only complaint with him is that he always seems angry.   No matter what he’s saying or how he says it, he always comes off like he’s angry at someone or something.   So a romantic comedy is probably out of the question.

Source: Variety

Giovanni Veronesi continues his Italian anthology franchise with MANUAL OF LOVE 3, this time enlisting the help of Hollywood stars in Robert De Niro and Monica Bellucci.   In the third installment, Robert De Niro will play a divorced American professor now living in Rome.   Monica Bellucci will play his love interest.   Not much is known about the plot, but it’s believed that both roles will be spoken in English and Italian.   The previous two films were huge hits in Italy, but producer Aurelio De Laurentiis has international ambitions for the third film.   That leads me to ask the question; why not change the title and remove the “3″?   Audiences unfamiliar with the trilogy are going to be turned off by that, mistakenly thinking this is a sequel instead of an anthology.

I like the merging of Italian and English cinema in one film.   De Niro seems to have lost a step recently, but the guy is still one of the greatest actors of all time.

Source: Variety

MGM Home Entertainment has announced that the 1979 classic action film MAD MAX, starring Mel Gibson, will be released on Blu-ray October 5, 2010.   The release has been supped up and will include a remastered audio track, the original Australian track and even a track that has been dubbed for American audiences so the audience can understand the dialogue and accents present in the film.   And in case you missed the movie sometime in the last 30 years, the plot revolves around a cop (Gibson) seeking revenge for the murder of his family against a biker gang in Australia. The film will be available in a BD/DVD combo pack and has a list of special features that include:

• “Road Rants”: Trivia & Fun Fact Track (on the DVD)
• Filmmaker commentary by Jon Dowding, David Eggby, Chris Murray and Tim Ridge
• Documentaries:
  • Mel Gibson: The Birth of a Star (on the DVD)
  • Mad Max: The Film Phenomenon
• Photo gallery (on the DVD)
• Theatrical trailers
• TV spots

Everyone should know the story of Hamlet. Most people are required to read it as part of their high school English curriculum. There’s another part that has been largely exposed to the theater production, as it is one of Shakespeare’s most performed plays. The last half I’m sure have just heard of Hamlet from various places, or even watched one of the films in class or on television. My point is that HAMLET is possibly the most known play in the Shakespeare catalog. It’s almost impossible these days to find anyone who hasn’t been exposed to the tale in some form or fashion. Branagh brings his own touches to his version that pay off in a huge way. In general, the language used in Shakespeare’s work easily puts off people. It’s never a breeze for anyone, especially me. I actually took a full semester plunging deep into the world of Shakespeare. Sadly though, “Hamlet” was not covered due to the fact that the teacher did not want to just touch on the Baird’s more popular plays.

For those of you who haven’t entered into the secret Shakespeare society, I’ll give you a brief rundown over HAMLET (even though that’s a task within itself). After the mysterious death of his Father, Prince Hamlet immediately has to deal with the fact that his Mother and his Uncle have decided to marry. While Hamlet does love his Mother, he also feels betrayed and full of grief over the loss of his great Father. Very suddenly his best friend Horatio and two night guards come to tell Hamlet of a ghost that resembles his dead Father. Upon hearing this news Hamlet immediately wants to see the ghost. The ghost is in fact his Father, who tells him that his Uncle is actually the one that killed him. His Father demands that Hamlet seek revenge at all costs. Hamlet spends the rest of the play planning his attack against his Uncle. This mind-exhausting task takes its toll on his sanity pushing him between what is real and what is not. His wavering sanity is a huge cause for concern amongst his friends and family. While all this is happening, Fortinbras, prince of Norway is planning his revenge against Hamlet. Fortinbras’ Father was killed at the hands of Hamlet’s Father, so in order to exact his revenge he is planning to attack Denmark. Everyone that surrounds Hamlet is struck by tragedy during his path to revenge.

This is perhaps my favorite film adaptation of one of Shakespeare’s plays. The other is TITUS by Julie Taymor, which is also a very stunning piece of cinema. It’s fair to look upon Branagh’s version of HAMLET as many things whether it is a piece of art or just a piece of classic filmmaking. One of the most eye-catching scenes of the film is when Hamlet (Branagh) is standing between the throne of the King and the Queen while thousands of white confetti disks fall upon him. He is dressed in all black with an expression on his face carries the look of woe and melancholy. You sense that every tiny detail was taken with great consideration and care. Branagh kept true to Hamlet, while bringing his own style to the story and direction.

Besides the performance of Branagh, there is never one actor/actress that stands out more than the other. This cast is fairly huge and filled with actors from everywhere. There are those who can be plucked out of a crowd and the others are ones that you may remember from other appearances. Julie Christie plays the role of Hamlet’s Mother, Gertrude. She remains as optimistic as she can about her son throughout the duration of her time in the film. With her Motherly sadness and her guilt over the marriage to her husband’s Brother, Christie makes it easy to sympathize with. Derek Jacobi channels the role of Claudius all too well. When we first meet his character, he seems like an okay guy, but as time goes on the string starts to unravel. Jacobi brilliantly displays the tiresome restraint that Claudius holds even after Hamlet reveals him. As Ophelia, Kate Winslet borders the lines of innocence and naivety. When Ophelia goes mad after the intermission, Winslet never plays it too over the top. You can sense her pain and yet somehow feel uncomfortable when she starts to ramble. Another notable player would be the late Charlton Heston who steps out of himself and gives a great speech as the player King of an acting troupe. Other names you may recognize that give wonderful performances in the movie are: Billy Crystal, Richard Attenborough, Judi Dench, Gerard Depardieu, Nicholas Farrell, John Gielgud, Jack Lemmon, Rufus Sewell, Timothy Spall, and Robin Williams.

Again, I encourage you to pick this up, even if you don’t buy it. I know a lot of people don’t tend to give 4 hour movies repeated viewings. It’s such a magnificent work that really sets a bar not only for adaptations of classics, but also the filmmaking industry as well. Another reason a viewing of this film is important lies in the fact that the plays of Shakespeare as well as many others are getting lost in the generations. The younger audience is less interested in history and therefore loosing the grasp on the structure of literature. These are stories that need to continue to be told until we are all taken from this Earth. We do not want people to become void of a genuine experience, left to quote HAMLET like Michael Grates in REALITY BITES, “They find his skull in a grave, and they go…’Oh, I knew him, and he was funny.’” No one wants that.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: Not to sound like a robot, but the colors are gorgeous. This is one of those instances where Blu-ray really pays off. Everything is nearly perfect and maybe at times too perfect. There was a nice balance throughout the duration of the film. The only times I saw a problem were during nighttime scenes. Otherwise, the video transfer is crisp and clean. (2.20:1 Widescreen).

Audio: The audio here is right on. At some points it was a little unbalanced with the loud booms and cheers, but then again it leaves you with the feeling that you are right there. (5.1 DTS-HD).

Commentary with Kenneth Branagh and Russell Jackson, Ma, PhD, editor of The Cambridge Guide to Shakespeare on Film and Professor of Drama and Theatre Arts at The University of Birmingham (12:00): Usually I’m like, “Commentary…sigh.” A lot of the commentary I’ve listened to lately is not really worth the time, especially with the more dated films. However, you’ve got to at least listen to this one once. I know the movie is insanely long, but it’s worth the time. Branagh is so passionate about this film and you can really hear it in his voice. Jackson is the perfect balance and gives a great insight.

Introduction from Kenneth Branagh (7:50) The director/star talks about the production and vision of the film. He also details the emotion of the process of getting the film out on DVD. Filmed in 2006.

To Be On Camera: A History with Hamlet (24:34): This feature was released when the DVD came out in 2007. The good thing is you get interviews with the majority of the cast. There are a lot of funny comments made as well, the best about Gerard Depardieu. Also any moments with Billy Crystal are good moments. You may also experience TITANIC flashbacks when you see a younger Kate Winslet. Filmed in 1997.

Vintage Cannes Promo (12:07): A little piece put together for the Cannes Film Festival.

Blu-ray Book: Honestly, this was my favorite part about receiving the Blu-ray. The packaging is beautiful and is a nice little companion piece. There are 35 pages here covering the cast, trivia, and the journey to Hamlet walked by Branagh. If you are a fan of Shakespeare or any of the actors, run, don’t walk to pick this one up and add it to your collection.

It’s kind of weird to see Rihanna in a military uniform on the set of the upcoming film BATTLESHIP.  I’ve gotten so accustomed to seeing her glamored-up for concerts and award shows that I forgot she’s actually a very beautiful woman when she’s dressed normal.  And it’s hard for anyone to look good in military BDU’s.  The tats on the arm look a little out of place but that’s alright.  This marks the first image from the upcoming film that stars Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgard, Brooklyn Decker and Tom Arnold.

I’m still lost as to what Peter Berg is doing with this film.  It’s described as an epic naval battle across land, air and sea against a superior force, which I interpret to mean aliens.  I think Berg is going to have his work cut out for him to make this a good film, but I’ll try to remain optimistic.

Source: Rihanna Daily

When the shortlist of actresses was whittled down to Paula Patton, Kristen Kreuk and Lauren German, all of the smart money was on Paula Patton to land the role.  A few days later, she officially signs on to star alongside Tom Cruise, Jeremy Renner, Ving Rhames and Simon Pegg in the fourth installment of the Mission Impossible series.  Although now comes word that Brad Bird and Tom Cruise don’t want to call this MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4, but want to give it some other name.  And no, we don’t know what that name is yet.

Patton is a good choice to play the young female operative.  She’s racked up a decent resume with small roles in films like HITCH, LONDON and JUST WRIGHT.  I have to assume/hope that she’ll have a bigger role in M:I4 than what Keri Russell had in M:I3.  But I can also assume that given the revolving door the franchise has for actresses that she probably won’t be making an appearance in M:I5.

Source: Deadline

Magnolia Home Entertainment has announced that the action thriller CENTURION, starring Olga Kurylenko and Michael Fassbender and directed by Neil Marshall, will be released on Blu-ray November 2, 2010.  Set in A.D. 117, the film follows a platoon of soldiers, led by Quintus Dias (Fassbender), who must find a way to survive behind enemy lines, rescue their General and make it back to their homeland.  CENTURION had a limited US theatrical release in August, but was released internationally earlier this year.   The film will be released in a BD/Digital Copy combo pack, and has a list of special features that include:

• Deleted scenes
• Interviews
• Behind the scenes
• Photo gallery
• HDNet: A Look at Centurion
• Outtakes
• Making of Centurion

With FASTER, I thought Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson was going to go back to his roots and do some hardcore action movies.  Fans have been clamoring for him to get back to busting heads instead of prancing around in a tutu, but it looks like he doesn’t care.  The former wrestler has just agreed to star in JOURNEY 2: THE MYSTERIOUS ISLAND, which is a sequel to the Brendan Fraser film JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH.  He joins Josh Hutcherson, who is returning for the sequel.

What’s confusing about this is that Johnson is doing a cheesy 3D movie that’s a sequel to a horrible film.  We expect this from Brendan Fraser, but The Rock should know better.  Speaking of Fraser, I wonder if they’re going to work a role in the film for him as well.  Brad Peyton will be directing the film which centers on Hutcherson’s character taking a trip to a mysterious island to find his missing grandfather.  Johnson will play the boyfriend of Huthcerson’s mom.

Source: Heat Vision

George Clooney, hot off the release of THE AMERICAN today, is lining up his next directorial effort FARRAGUT NORTH with a pretty impressive cast.  If everything goes his way (and it usually does), he’ll have Philip Seymour Hoffman, Chris Pine, Evan Rachel Wood, Marissa Tomei and Paul Giamatti starring in the film.  That’s a pretty impressive cast that’s clearly based on talent and not box office appeal, which should make for a quality film.  Clooney is also expected to take a small role in the film.

As for the plot, “the story is set in Des Moines, Iowa, just weeks before the state’s Democratic caucuses officially commence; it follows the exploits of a twentysomething presidential campaign spinmeister/wunderkind named Stephen Myers, and the dirty pool he plays to get his candidate the nomination against a rival senator.”  Many actors have been attached to various roles in the film including Leonardo DiCaprio in the role of Myers (now believed to be going to Pine) and Brad Pitt as Paul Zara (now going to Hoffman).

Source: New York Mag

Aside from the lead character being a realistic old man, the story follows the typical man-on-a-mission synopsis we’ve seen several times before, most recently by Mad-Mel in EDGE OF DARKNESS or Denzel in MAN ON FIRE.  We quickly realize Harry Brown is a lonely man with nothing to lose, which means he has no fear.  Then the thugs kill his best friend, which gives him a reason to be violent.  Then we learn that he was a former marine officer, which legitimizes his murdering skills.  None of that is anything new to the genre and it’s all stuff we’ve seen several times before.  So the focus turns to how well they deliver with the violence and that’s where the film stutters.

To be fair, I was okay with some of the killings when they first started.  Although Harry’s hesitation didn’t make a whole lot of sense, the killings themselves worked for what they were.  It wasn’t until the tunnel scene that I started questioning how Harry was going about exacting his revenge.  Up until that point, the tunnel was packed with thugs, but when he shows up, it’s just the two guys he wants to kill and their girlfriends.  But okay, I’ll buy that; why didn’t they just open fire and start shooting?  Or better yet, why didn’t he open fire and speed up the process?  I guess the point to these questions is that the scene felt awkward and they could have done more with it.  But that scene brought us into the grand finale, which took place in the midst of a giant riot against the police.  This again felt a little over the top, which led to what I felt was an unfitting ending.

It was refreshing to see an action film with an older actor actually acknowledge the actor’s age and then incorporate that into the film.  In the days of a 60-year old Sylvester Stallone doing the same stunts of a 30-year old Jason Statham, I liked the fact that Daniel Barber told a realistic story.  However, that representation of reality needed to be continued with other aspects of the film, along with some more creative “action” scenes.  Few things in film are more exciting than watching the good guy kill a deserving bad guy, which makes the death scenes in HARRY BROWN that much more frustrating.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: We get a nice video transfer here, which was very surprising given the independent British quality of the film.  But the transfer was consistent throughout and looked wonderful.

Audio: The audio was also impressive and delivered an even mix with great effects and clear dialogue.

Commentary with Michael Caine, Daniel Barber and Kris Thykier: This commentary isn’t as great as you might expect it to be, but they give an average commentary and cover the normal commentary elements.

Deleted Scenes (17:11):  Nothing special with these scenes and most would have dragged the story out, so it seems they were cut for pacing reasons.

It seems like it has been forever since we had any news about TWILIGHT: BREAKING DAWN.  For a while there, we were getting news updates every other day.  Today we get a bit of casting news in that one of the stars of the HBO series ‘The Pacific’ is going to be starring in the final chapter(s) of the Twilight Saga.  Rami Malek is all set to play the vampire Benjamin in the final film.  Benjamin is an Egyptian vampire that serves as a witness for the Cullens.  I haven’t read the books, so I have absolutely no idea what any of that means.  This is not the first time Malek has played an Egyptian; he also played Ahkmenrah in NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM 2.  Rami Malek is also set to have a part in the upcoming Tom Hanks’ film LARRY CROWNE.

As you know, the final two films will be directed by Bill Condon and will star Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Jackson Rathbone, Ashley Greene, Taylor Lautner, Kellan Lutz, Dakota Fanning and Nikki Reed.

Source: Entertainment Tonight

“I like rich people. I like the way they live. I like the way I live when I’m with them.”  This is one of my favorite snotty, but true quotes from the 1965 musical THE SOUND OF MUSIC, which stars the timeless Julie Andrews. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has just announced that this classic will be released on Blu-ray November 2, 2010 in a 45th Anniversary Edition.  The film has been restored and remastered and will be available in either a Limited Collector’s Set or in a three disc combo edition.  Both editions will be packed with a list of special features that include:

• Your Favorite Things: An Interactive Celebration — all-new immersive viewing experience with behind-the-scenes images, on-screen lyrics, trivia track and location quiz
• Musical Stages: Creating The Sound of Music — all-new interactive “backlot tour” with in-depth featurettes on the songs, the stage show & movie, the film and sound restoration and the real-life von Trapp family
• Vintage Rodgers & Hammerstein and The Sound of Music programs, including a parody with Carol Burnett and Julie Andrews, and an interview with the real Maria von Trapp on The Julie Andrews Hour
• Rodgers & Hammerstein: The Sound of American Music, hosted by Mary Martin
• Audio commentaries with Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer and director Robert Wise
• A City of Song — virtual map of filming locations in Salzburg, Austria
• Music Machine Sing-Along
• Screen tests, rare treasures, interviews, photo galleries and more
• BD-LIVE:
  • Live Lookup Powered by IMDb

The Limited Collector’s set adds the following:

• Snapshots from Salzburg
• 100-Page “My Favorite Things” scrapbook
• Reproduction of the original 1965 Souvenir program
• 45th Anniversary soundtrack
• Exclusive “My Favorite Things” Music Box with letter of authenticity

I know we have more than a few readers that enjoy the comic styling of Russell Brand, so I’ll refrain from making any negative remarks about the guy.  And even though I don’t necessarily find him funny, I find myself intrigued by the ARTHUR remake.  As I’ve said before, I didn’t like the original, but I do believe there’s a funny movie in there somewhere.  Now whether or not Russell Brand and director Jason Winer can find that comedy still remains to be seen.  But below we have the first official images from the film, leading me to believe a teaser trailer is only a couple of months away.

The film stars Russell Brand as the titular Arthur; a spoiled rich boy that ends up falling in love with a working class woman right around the time his family pressures him to marry a wealthy woman.  Obviously, hilarity ensues.  Helen Mirren and Greta Gerwig also star in the film hitting theaters next year.

Source: The New York Times

I was enamored with the way director Anton Corbijn shot the film, using the Italian backdrop as a supporting character for Clooney.  And much like UP IN THE AIR, Clooney’s character was developed by having the audience watch him do boring, mundane things like doing push-ups and building a gun.  But these things are important as this is really the only thing that develops his character.  That’s a double edged sword for the film because although the style was enjoyable, the slow, meticulous pace needed a bigger, more original payoff than what we ended up with.  Through the entire film, I kept hoping that it wasn’t going to choose one of those two paths and when it did, I was severely disappointed with everyone involved.

I can’t stand heaping praise on people that receive so much of it, but George Clooney deserves all the credit in the world for making the audience care about his character.  When it comes to acting, Clooney is on a whole new level and he can make any character cool.  In this, he creates a character that we never learn anything about but we still root for him to “win” in the end.  Unfortunately, because the biggest driver of this film is Clooney’s coolness, the audience struggles to get completely attached to him and therefore that “win” doesn’t seem as important and the inevitable failure to win kind of feels anticlimactic.

The inclusion of a pseudo-love story between him and Clara was another obvious progression.  But again, we’ve seen that result before where a loner, self-exiled man falls for a prostitute with the heart of gold.  But credit needs to be given to screenwriter Rowan Joffe for not making too much of it and not having it progress to something we couldn’t respect.  The relationship made sense and served its purpose.

The appeal of assassins in Hollywood makes perfect sense.  An assassin sounds like a cool, mysterious jobs with many layers to uncover.  Which is why I was excited that Clooney had chosen to play an assassin in THE AMERICAN.  But overall, this is a film that I felt like I’d seen before.  Assassins have had many incarnations on film and now that the path is so worn out, the pressure is on the filmmakers to do something new and different with it.  Yes, Clooney was great and yes, Corbijn shot the film beautifully, but the story wasn’t enough to keep us involved.

Dear God where to begin.  I’m not a fan of this animal craze Hollywood keeps clinging to with an iron fist.  Watching animals do “cutesy” things, operate hi-tech machinery or in this particular case, lay siege to anyone or anything that messes with their forest homes doesn’t particularly impress me.  Most of the animals found in this film are brainless pests in real life so watching them outsmart people, act surprised with eye bulging expressions, communicate to one another through a series of clouded blurbs and then pull off some insane booby trap action that would make MacGyver himself jealous with envy, came off as loathsome and ridiculous in my books.

To add insult to injury this story has been done a million times in both cartoons and film so having to sit through it again is a mind numbing slap in the face.  We live in a day and age when the envelope must be pushed each and every day or audiences lose interest.  I lost interest in this film after seeing the cover but it was only after the initial five to ten minutes that I began wishing I would suddenly go blind and deaf.  The dialogue in this movie is pure murder and by that I mean they simply kill each and every attempt at humor by redoing the same lame jokes over and over until I shook my head and whispered, “Seriously, another poop joke?”  Everything was overacted cheesed up here, brutally at that.

I’m mostly disappointed in Brendan Fraser.  What happened to you Brendan?  ENCINO MAN was a great way to come into the biz, sure you stumbled a bit with stuff like GEORGE OF THE JUNGLE but the first MUMMY film was a complete and total redeemer.  That series started to lose its edge by the second (and was totally dull by the third) but at least you still had your dignity man!  I was mortified to discover that Jeremy Piven was originally set to lead (Steve Carell also but that I could see), thankfully he didn’t or I would have a hard time enjoying ENTOURAGE.  The only saving grace this film had talent wise was Ken Jeong (who’s always funny and a delight to see) but it pained me to see him here as this film is so far below him.

FURRY VENGEANCE stank to the high heavens with an uncanny vengeance.  Some might try to defend this film in a “oh, but the kids will love it” sort of way but don’t believe the hype as any kid old enough to distinguish between cute animals and what’s really happening on screen will quickly lose interest.  This film is not worth your time anymore than it was worth the time of those sad souls involved so don’t waste your money or your brain cells here as it would be about the equivalent to sniffing glue…no offence to glue.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: 1.78:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  The landscape looked fantastic in HD but that’s about all the flattering feedback I can give.

Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD in English, French and Spanish with the same subtitle options.  Listening to the animals jabbering wasn’t nearly as annoying as the human jabbering.

Commentary (1:31:19): This commentary with director Roger Kumble, Brendan Fraser and Brooke Shields is hilarious as they all try so hard to glorify (and justify) this steaming nugget of crap.  Thankfully we can’t see them as I doubt they could do so with straight faces.

Deleted Scenes (6:11): Three words:  Brendan Fraser naked.  No, it’s not flattering, anymore than extra screen time with him in his “yum yum” pink jumpsuit was.  Terrible.

The Pitfalls of Pratfalls (9:57): Here we get the director explaining how and why Brendan Fraser was the guy they wanted (after Piven and Carell said no of course) as he fit the bill physically as far as all the zany animal abuse was concerned.

Working with Animals: A Profile of Kenn Beggs (8:42): Here we have animal trainer Kenn Beggs giving away all his trade secrets about how he gets these animals to walk the walk.  I find it curious how they all go on like this was the first film to do something like this.

Gag Reel (3:54): There’s a lot of yelling and gibberish found herein but most of it is quite sad and just plain awful.  Shame on them for implying this was funny.

Previews: There are a couple trailers that play before the feature as well as a DVD version of the film.

Sheldon Turner must have written one heck of a script to get it-boys Ryan Reynolds and Bradley Cooper to star in the same film together.  Turner wrote UP IN THE AIR, but before you go lovin’ on the guy, keep in mind he also wrote THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE BEGINNING and THE LONGEST YARD.  So he’s not exactly batting a thousand with his scripts.  But this current script, which doesn’t have a name yet, ” follows two friends, who are also San Francisco cops, whose fathers were once partners on the police force. The older generation is forced out of retirement to help their sons crack a case, with typically antagonistic results.”

It sounds funny and with Reynolds and Cooper in two of the lead roles, it’ll be interesting to see who they get to play their fathers.  How about Robert De Niro and Al Pacino?  Yeah, it’s obvious, but it could be fun.

Source: Risky Business

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that the 1999 comedy BIG DADDY, starring Adam Sandler, Joey Lauren Adams and Jon Stewart, will be released on Blu-ray November 9, 2010.  The film follows Sonny (Adam Sandler), a lazy almost lawyer who “adopts” a kid to impress a potential girlfriend (Joey Lauren Adams).  He soon realizes what it means to be a father and quickly grows up to be a decent role model.  I remember liking this film when I first watched it at the theater, but disliking it every time I re-watched it.  Not one of my favorite Sandler flicks, but not the worst either.  There’s a short list of special features that include:

• HBO First Look: The Making of Big Daddy
• Making of
• Two music videos
  • Garbage “When I Grow Up”
  • Sheryl Crow “Sweet Child O’ Mine”

Artwork Coming Soon

The cast was excellent in PIRAHNA 3D, only because they didn’t take themselves seriously and totally understood how over the top the screenplay was.  Elisabeth Shue and Ving Rhames play the sheriff and deputy who are trying to keep all the tourists safe, Christopher Lloyd plays a local fish aficionado (who also happens to know about local prehistoric fish) and Jerry O’Connell plays a director/producer of a pornography company that is shooting a Spring Break special.  All of the actors do well considering what they have to work with and it’s great that they are willing to do these kinds of films.  We even get a Richard Dreyfuss cameo ala Drew Barrymore in SCREAM.

I’m sure you’ve guessed that this film is chalk full of cheese and campy to the extreme, what you may not have known is that this movie got it’s “R” rating due to excessive nudity as opposed to gruesome piranha attack scenes (although those are in there as well).  However, the 3D effects were not as fully utilized as it should have been. With all the 3D films coming out, it would have made perfect sense to have many, many scenes where the piranha or body parts are swimming at the screen but there was hardly anything.  Of all the problems with this film, lack of 3D is by far and away the worst.  There was a perfect opportunity for the 3D gimmick and they just let it slide.  Hopefully, they will redeem themselves when they make PIRANHA 3D:THE SEQUEL (and yes, that is coming in 2012).

Of course, the plot was also absurd, but what did you expect?  The plot is completely formulaic and over the top but completely fun to watch unfold anyway.  For instance, how did these two million prehistoric fish survive this long without having any other fish to prey on–cannibalism , of course!  And what kind of campy horror film would this be if you didn’t have the obligatory feeding frenzy that was gratuitous and went on way longer than expected.  This is all part of the charm of PIRANHA 3D and what makes it a great ride.

Overall, this film was just a fun watch and a great flick to catch with a couple of friends.  I don’t think I would ever watch it again because it was so bad, but it was so bad that it was good.  If anything, this film made me especially happy and grateful that I was a nerd in high school and never went on a crazy Spring Break at the lake, it just doesn’t seem to end well.

CHARLIE’S ANGELS was one of those films that is fun, colorful, has lots of action and surprisingly enough, holds up pretty well ten years later.  Sure, it’s full of some over-acting and cheesiness, but overall it’s still a good time.  I think a lot of this is due to Bill Murray who plays the charming and oblivious Bosley (which may be a reason the sequel was unbearable) as well as the fabulous performance from Sam Rockwell. Oh, and let’s not forget Crispin Glover as the cool Thin Man.  He really is a great bad guy who should be doing more in Hollywood.

One of the best things about this film is the obvious campiness which is done so well.  In many places it went over the top and held nothing back which was a risk but they managed to pull it off.  The actresses and actors don’t really take themselves seriously and you can tell they had a good time filming this movie.  CHARLIE’S ANGELS could have easily been a complete bust if it would have been cast differently, but this ensemble pulled it off with little effort.  We even get some nice smaller performances from: Luke Wilson, Matt LeBlanc and Tim Curry.

However, admittedly, this film does have some flaws.  Although, the punning throughout the film is fun at first, it does get really old after a while, as does some of the dialogue.  This film really leaves nothing to the imagination and spells everything out to you through dialogue and voice overs.  If you can get past this then you’re almost home free.  The other thing that will really hold you back is if you have an aversion to any of these actresses, and if that’s the case then I would go ahead and skip this film altogether.  There is no shortage of these three ladies and their parts are equally split throughout the film.  Oh, and the wire work was a bit over the top as well, but that’s not a big deal now like it was in 2000 when that was in all the movies for those few years.

Overall, CHARLIE’S ANGELS is a pleasing combination of MISSION IMPOSSIBLE and SPICE WORLD, as in cool spy stuff and action mixed in with a lot of girl power.  Even though it definitely has its flaws, it’s still a fun flick to throw in on a Friday night with a bowl of popcorn.  Plus the music is great-I mean really, how can anyone hate a film that can throw in some Prodigy as well as Sir Mix-a-lot and still make it work?

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video:McG lays on the style pretty heavy and it comes through beautifully in this Blu-ray.  This really is a great transfer.

Audio: The audio is just as impressive with surround channels being put to the test, especially during the action scenes.

Commentary with Director McG and Cinematographer Russell Carpenter: These guys really keep the ball rolling and actually give us some good technical stuff to absorb. Cinematographer commentaries are usually interesting and this is no exception.  There are some really good insights so this is really worth a watch.

Deleted Scenes (4:42): These didn’t add anything to the overall plot, however, we did get to see some more interaction between Curry and Murray which wasn’t necessary but still fun to watch.  We also get some other various scenes that were rightfully cut.

Outtakes and Bloopers (2:39): These were very similar to the ending credits and gave very little more, too many movie clips and not enough bloopers.  They really shouldn’t have added this.

Getting G’d Up (6:32): This was a short featurette of McG directing various scenes and then the cast and crew telling us how awesome he was to work with and how much they loved working with him.  He seemed to have a great energy on the set, which may have been fun if you were there but looks exhausting and annoying from our perspective.

The Master and the Angels (7:25): Cheung-Yan Yuen is the master of the martial arts in the films and this is a featurette about him and his work on the film. This includes a lot of behind the scenes stuff which is always fun to watch, and of course the obligatory training montage.

Welcome to Angel World (4:48): This was about the over the top world they built for the Angels. It’s almost a comical world and very scene specific, this was actually interesting to watch.

Angelic Attire: Dressing Cameron Drew and Lucy (3:25): Obviously, this is about the wardrobes in the film, there were some cool costumes and this was short enough that it was an enjoyable.

Angelic Effects (6:45):This is about the special effects in the film, now obviously this is dated but it’s actually kinda cool to watch just to see how far technology in film really has come.

Wired Angels (2:35): All about the wire work, which like I said before I remembered as being a bit cheesy but wasn’t as bad now as it was back then.  This is a raw scene of the fight between the Angels and Thin Man in the alley.

Music Videos: “Independent Women Part 1” by Destiny’s Child and “Charlie’s Angels 2000” by Apollo Four Forty

Previews

This past weekend was a bit odd in the sense that it featured two films fighting for the top spot that no one seemed interested in seeing.  TAKERS has been completed for a while now, but the studio couldn’t decide what to do with it.  After Chris Brown laid the beating on Rihanna, the studio had to delay it until people forgot he’s a woman-beater.  Looked like the trick worked as TAKERS managed over $20 million at the box office.  But that was only good for second place as THE LAST EXORCISM took the top spot with just over $22 million.  Horror movies like that always seem to do well and Lionsgate pushed and marketed the film pretty well, but I’m still a little surprised by the numbers.  Oh, and for those that are curious, the AVATAR special edition that was re-released didn’t even crack the top 10.  Looks like people might finally be sick of the film.

Next week sees the much anticipated release of MACHETE along with George Clooney going dark on us in THE AMERICAN, which technically opens on Wednesday.  Given the opportune time of year they’re releasing MACHETE (read: no competition), it should easily take the top spot.

UPDATE: It looks like the early numbers were a little off.  TAKERS actually beat out THE LAST EXORCISM at the box office with both films bringing in about $20 million.  The numbers below have been updated accordingly.

1. Takers $20.5 million

2. The Last Exorcism $20.3 million

3. The Expendables $9.5 million

4. Eat Pray Love $6.9 million

5. The Other Guys $6.3 million

6. Vampires Suck $5.2 million

7. Inception $4.8 million

8. Nanny McPhee Returns $4.7 million

9. The Switch $4.5 million

10. Piranha 3D $4.3 million

Source: Deadline, Box Office Mojo

Snake Plissken is a patch wearing bad dude who has countless heroic medals but has been convicted of a crime for mostly marching to a beat of his own drum, meaning, he does what he wants.  By 1988 crime had risen 400 percent so by 1997 (when the film takes place) the government has turned New York’s entire Manhattan Island into it’s own prison, guarding the water around the borders.  Criminals get in but they don’t get out.  Some freedom fighters kidnap Air Force One and crash it into Manhattan Island.  Snake is offered a full pardon if he can rescue the surviving President of the United States and the confidential items that are locked in a brief case and handcuffed to his wrist.  In order to make sure Snake follows through, the officer in charge injects a chemical in him that will kill him in 24 hours if he hasn’t returned.  Snake is given a variety of Bond like weapons to achieve his mission of infiltrating the prison, fighting off the crazies and rescuing the President safely.

So some of this is a bit ridiculous since we are currently 13 years past the future in which the story takes place, but it’s important to remember ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK was made in 1981.  How is 1981 supposed to know that by 1997 information would be put on a disc rather than a cassette?  Or for those in 2010 looking back with our iphones using the Internet to visually and audibly send information anywhere we want instantly?  So yes, the film is clearly dated but that is the risk that is ran when making a film in the not so distant future and relying on current technology rather than creating new possibilities.

A few unlikely stars show up as well.  Oscar Winning Ernest Borgnine as a helpful goofy cab driver name Cabbie, Harry Dean Stanton as the smart guy named Brain, musical artist Isaac Hayes as the prison villain named The Duke and THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY’s Lee Van Cleef all round out the colorful cast.  Even though Russell holds strong as one of his coolest characters and delivers some fun scenes in an interesting futuristic idea, ultimately the film just doesn’t stand the test of time.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (Widescreen 2.35:1) The black levels are pretty heavy even for a dark sci-fi film.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio) Not bad, the score by John Carpenter is simple but effective for the futuristic feel.  Not too many stand out surround sound moments.

This Blu-ray offers nothing special except for an extra DVD copy of the film, which is probably nearly as good.  If you are a fan of the film grab it from the ten-dollar bin but I want and expect more from this classic.

I wanted to get a review out to the public during the week. I was blessed with a break in my always busy schedule and attempted to watch CATS & DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE to write the review and get it to the public (whom I love so dearly) so that they might make an informed decision at the box office. I’m sorry, good people, but I have let you down. I had to leave CATS & DOGS 2 twenty minutes into the thing. And in those twenty minutes, as I watched the inane blather of what the narrator of FIGHT CLUB called “the snooty cat and the courageous dog with the celebrity voices,” I thought about Los Angeles for a bit, and became instantly enraged. So I had to leave the theater to put my rage into a more coherent thought. I would like to share that thought with you now.

I thought about Los Angeles and I thought about New York. And I thought about the countless waiters and hostesses and busboys and hat check girls (they still have hat check girls, right?) that are working their way through these cities, toiling at minimum wage/minimum hours jobs and focusing their off time on writing scripts to be made into movies of which they can be proud. I thought about the waiter from Carmine’s that dropped a plate of Chicken Parmesan when I last visited New York, no doubt lost in thought over the classic dénouement he was putting on a script concerning the tortured relationship of a father and son. I thought about the woman writing a romantic comedy that was empowering to women but also touched on the classic contradictions in human relationships…and I thought about the nights she spends serving drinks at bar on Ventura, enduring all the cheesy come-ons and ogling customers. And I respect those people on those boulevards of broken dreams, and encourage them to keep at it a little while longer.

Other writers give up on their passion projects of emotional or complicated themes to write fluff like CATS & DOGS or this month’s ridiculous STEP UP 3D (though I did watch that, because “one move can set a whole generation free”). And maybe they get the payday, and maybe they get out of work at the bar on Ventura, but a little piece of the most successful art we have going on right now dies. The release of Christopher Nolan’s INCEPTION has invigorated people’s faith in Hollywood’s ability to create an original, captivating story with genuine emotion that excites the visual senses as well as a part of your brain that maybe you’d forgotten about. You mean to tell me Chris Nolan is the only guy that can come up with that? I say “No!” I’m glad he’s out there, but I say there are more. Check out your bars and restaurants. Check out the clerks in book stores or Best Buys in the big entertainment centers of America. I’ll bet you there out there, suffering at menial jobs with flexible hours so they can spend the majority of their day working on their screenplays. And you guys and gals keep fighting the good fight. As a culture we will rise above the CATS & DOGS movies of the world, and you will help us. Keep hope alive! Keep bussing those tables, keep serving those drinks, and take comfort in the fact that true artistic brilliance usually comes with a period of suffering…and your time at The Olive Garden is yours. Table for two, please.

With THE EXPENDABLES slowing down at the box office, it’s time we start talking about the inevitable sequel.  I imagine that we have at least 6-9 months of casting speculation with names like Jean-Claude Van Damme, Steven Segal, Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson being requested and rumored to be starring in THE EXPENDABLES 2.  Of course, a lot of these rumors have, or probably will, come from Sylvester Stallone himself.  Such is the case with the casting of the villain in the sequel, which if Stallone gets his way, will be none other than Bruce Willis.  Willis, as you may recall, was the mysterious character that hired The Expendables in the first film.  Turning him into a villain would be an easy task since they kind of already laid the groundwork in the first one.

The question, of course, is whether or not Willis would have any interest in playing anything more than a cameo in the sequel.  Personally, I think it’d be fun, but what I’d like to see is Willis as a the “super villain” and then Stallone and Schwarzenegger having to team up to stop him.  That way you could have two teams of The Expendables and possibly fit in all the characters they’re talking about.  Plus, that would give Stallone a chance to redeem himself for messing up the scene with him, Willis and Schwarzenegger in the first film.

Source: Sylvester Stallone (via Twitter)

CEMETERY JUNCTION was unknown to me but I’m not surprised as a lot of British based films and TV shows generally fly below radar.  Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (two actors made famous by one such TV show, EXTRAS, which I discovered by accident and ended up really enjoying) co-wrote and co-directed the film which gave it merit in my opinion and definitely helped the comedic bits flow as Gervais’ style of humour was all over it.  Gervais in particular played a small role but despite playing a deadbeat father, his few lines were gold in the funny bank.

What humour there was (I wish there’d been more) carries the film rather well through the dramatic odds and ends.  The storyline, values, drama and conflicts were a connect the dot series of clichés that have been done so much better in films like GOOD WILL HUNTING for example.  The struggle with becoming worthless and living out a life of mediocrity is a common worry in us all but I fail to see the need for yet another film based upon it.  The dialogue here is “win or lose” depending on how much (if at all) you enjoy British flicks and or humour.  Some of it grows on you for sure but as with EXTRAS, there are cringe-worthy moments that don’t make a lot of sense.

The acting was decent for a bunch of dudes who’ve mostly starred in TV roles and then you have Ralph Fiennes (who’s mostly starred in HARRY POTTER roles lately) making a dull appearance alongside WATCHMEN’s Matthew Goode and the once hot but now frumpy Emily Watson (a shame).  Fiennes and Goode have real acting potential but seem to be struggling when it comes to finding decent roles lately.  Fiennes’ Potter bus will be leaving the station here soon so he needs to revisit some of his old swagger from films like RED DRAGON and even STRANGE DAYS (if you remember that one).

CEMETERY JUNCTION isn’t all bad for a film you’ve no doubt never heard of and hence don’t really care too much about seeing but even then it’s only a rental and only watchable if you can tolerate British style comedy.  I liked Merchant’s brief cameo at the winner’s ball but would have liked to see he and Gervais both have some more screen time (then again, I guess they didn’t want to force their way into the film).  The dramatic and romantic sides of this tale play out exactly as I figured they would (it’s quite obvious) but I’ve seen worse endings.  Besides, if for no other reason, you should watch this movie simply because of Snork’s tattoo which was one of the funniest things I’ve seen in a long time.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: 2.40:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  I don’t know much more about the 70s than I got from movies and THAT 70s SHOW but from what I could tell it was well done and looked legit.

Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD in English and French with the same subtitle options.  I can’t help but laugh at British cursing as most times I have absolutely no idea what they’re saying but it still sounds cool.

Commentary (1:34:35): There are two commentaries; one with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant which is funny as hell thanks to this great duo and the second is equally well done and noteworthy as the three main cast members take it away, something most films fail to include these days.

Deleted Scenes (13:36): Most of this is junk but the extended scene with Freddy’s family and the funeral appointment scam were pure gold.

Blooper Reel (13:42): This is the longest blooper reel I’ve ever seen which wouldn’t be so bad if it was funny.  The British must do things a little differently.

The Directors:  A Conversation with Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant (15:07): Here the boys give us a making-of segment where they explain how this film was a long time coming.  I thought it would be funnier but the guys said they distinctly went away from standard comedy.

The Lads Look Back:  The Stars Discuss Cemetery Junction (10:14): Here the three lead actors reminisce about their auditions, meeting Ricky and Stephen and their real chemistry on and off set.  These guys had a blast.

Seventies Style:  Production and Costume Design (8:44): I thought they did a great job bringing back the seventies but the real deal closer for me was wardrobe, music and dancing in the nightclub.

Production Featurettes (6:45): This is just another brief making-of piece that breaks the film down in weekly intervals.

Previews: There are six very decent trailers to choose from.

A few years ago, I would have told you that Stephen Dorff was done.  He hadn’t exactly had a great career at any point, but after suffering through a handful of B-movies and some lackluster performances, I was convinced he was going to be flipping burgers in Idaho somewhere by now.  But with an extremely impressive-looking performance in Sofia Coppola’s SOMEWHERE and a starring role in IMMORTALS, I’m now thinking he’s going to be pushing the A-list edge here pretty soon.  That’s a pretty good career turnaround.

Up next for Dorff is the thriller CARJACKED in which he’ll play a bank robber that carjacks a vehicle driven by a mother and her child and he refuses to let them go.  Maria Bello will play the mother.  As long as this doesn’t turn into 1994’s THE CHASE, I think we should be okay.  The script was written by Sherry and Michael Compton and Peter Medak will be directing.

Source: Variety

I have mixed emotions regarding Paul W.S. Anderson’s upcoming 3D adventure THE THREE MUSKETEERS.  On one hand, I’ve always wanted a quality movie of The Three Musketeers.  It’s one of the few books I actually read and I always thought it would make a great movie.  On the other hand, the fact that Anderson is directing it makes me nervous because what the story needs is a faithful telling, not a mashed up hodgepodge of action scenes that don’t make sense.  He’s assembled a decent cast that includes Mads Mikkelsen, Logan Lerman, Matthew Macfadyen, Ray Stevenson, Luke Evans, Christoph Waltz, Milla Jovovich, Juno Temple, Orlando Bloom and James Corden.

Lerman is playing D’Artagnan and if they’re going to make D’Artagnan the lead character again, then I’m a little skeptical because I’m not completely sold on Lerman’s ability to carry a film yet.  I don’t mind him, but he doesn’t seem ready to be the main star.  The film opens April 15th, 2011.

Source: Splash

Steve Carell is one of those comedians that I think if I were to sit down and talk to him, he’d crack me up.  He seems to have a naturally funny way about him, but for me, that doesn’t always translate well on the big screen.  Which is why I’d like to see him take some more challenging roles and do some dramas (he was great in DAN IN REAL LIFE) to expand his resume.  I’m not sure he’s going to accomplish that with his next film, A BOYFRIEND FOR MY WIFE.  The film is actually a remake of a 2008 Argentine movie from director Juan Taratuto in which a pushover husband concocts a plan to get out of his marriage by setting his wife up with a “legendary Lothario”.

No word on who Carell will play, but the role of the Lothario is by far the better of the two male leads.  The idea actually sounds funny, but maybe a little too familiar.  Mark Gibson and Phil Halprin will be writing the script.

Source: Variety

I think we all knew another big name was coming when the drama started to swirl around Tom Cruise and MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4.  What I wasn’t expecting was for that name to be Jeremy Renner.  Keeping in mind they’ve always been biased against Tom Cruise, Deadline is saying that Renner was hired in case Ethan Hunt doesn’t continue on with the series.  But to be fair, it’s not yet clear if Renner will be part of the team or will actually be a villain.  Given his acting chops and his recent choice in roles (Hawkeye), I would actually expect Renner to do something different and be a villain before I’d expect him to be buddy-buddy with Cruise.

The actor joins Cruise, Simon Pegg and Ving Rhames in the sequel that’s to be directed by Brad Bird.  If Renner is, in fact, going to be part of Hunt’s team, then that still leaves the villain to be cast and I still don’t think they can get a better villain than Renner.

Source: Deadline

I’ve always loved reunion movies, but rarely do you see one with actors that are on the verge of A-list status.  Say what you want about Channing Tatum and Chris Pine, but both guys are getting good lead roles and both have done pretty well at the box office.  So the news that both of them might be part of an ensemble reunion film is pretty cool.  Of course, Tatum is the only one that is officially doing the movie TEN YEAR, while the other actors are still just a dream right now.  But if Tatum gets his way, Anna Faris, Chris Pratt, Scott Porter, Chris Pine and Jenna Dewan will all be starring in the film.

Details on the film are not known, only that it revolves around friends getting together 10 years after their high school graduation.  But with Tatum enlisting the help of his friends (and spouse), this indie production should come to fruition sooner rather than later.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

After SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, I think a lot of people are interested to see what Danny Boyle is going to next.  Well, the answer is 127 HOURS, which is the true story of Aron Ralston, who famously lost an arm while mountain biking in Moab, Utah.  It’s a famous story because he amputated his own arm after being trapped by a boulder.  There are a couple of things I noticed about this trailer that cause at least a little concern.  First, we didn’t see much of James Franco actually trapped in the boulder.  I have to assume that most of the story centers on his being trapped and not his fun time with the two girls he met.  I have no idea how Boyle is going to make a guy trapped between two boulders interesting.  Second, we got a lot of split screen camera work, which is Boyle’s signature, but it was overused in the trailer.

Of course, neither of those complaints mean the movie won’t be great, but I’m hoping this is a lot more 28 DAYS LATER and a lot less THE BEACH.  James Franco, Kate Mara, Amber Tamblyn and Lizzy Caplan star in the film due to hit theaters on November 5th.  Watch the trailer here.

Anchor Bay Home Entertainment announced that the film THE DISAPPEARANCE OF ALICE CREED will be coming to Blu-ray on November 23, 2010.  The thriller stars up and coming actress Gemma Arterton, most recently known for her roles in the summer blockbusters CLASH OF THE TITANS and PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME as well as last years PIRATE RADIO.  Arterton plays the daughter of a millionaire who is kidnapped but doesn’t bow down to her captors.  The film had a limited theatrical release earlier this month but premiered at the Toronto Film Festival.  There’s a short list of special features that include:

• Storyboard featurettes
• Audio commentary with director J Blakeson
• Extended scenes with commentary

Dimension Films has confirmed that the TRUE BLOOD and WHEN IN ROME stars, Anna Paquin and Kristen Bell will be starring alongside, Neve Campbell, Courtney Cox Arquette and David Arquette in the horror film SCREAM 4.  Wes Craven will be coming back to direct and produce the next film in the saga.  Other stars joining the cast include: Emma Roberts, Hayden Panettiere, Marielle Jaffe, Rory Culkin, Nico Tortorella, Erik Knudsen, Anthony Anderson, Adam Brody, Marley Shelton, Alison Brie and Mary McDonnell.  SCREAM 4 is scheduled to open in April of 2011.

The SCREAM trilogy holds a special place in my heart and I, for one, am happy they are making another film.  I will be one of the first in line at opening day.

Source: USA Today

Katie Holmes is in negotiations to star alongside Adam Sandler in his next film entitled JACK AND JILL.  The comedy will be directed by Dennis Dugan and will be produced by Sandler’s Happy Madison company.  The film follows Jack (Sandler) and his wife (Holmes) as they have a difficult time getting rid of Jack’s twin sister, Jill (Sandler), after the Thanksgiving holiday weekend.  Al Pacino is also rumored to star in the film as himself.  Shooting will begin this October.

I’m skeptical about this, only because I usually don’t like it when one actor plays multiple characters in a movie.  I know they were successful at the box office, but I had a tough time sitting through all of THE NUTTY PROFESSOR and BIG MOMMA’S HOUSE, so I don’t have high hopes for JACK AND JILL.  Although, since it is another Adam Sandler film I’m sure it will do well at the box office.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Paul Verhoeven, known for directing classic films such as: BASIC INSTINCT, TOTAL RECALL, ROBOCOP and STARSHIP TROOPERS, has signed on to direct the historical drama THE HIDDEN FORCE.  He will partner again with producer San Fu Maltha on the film (previously on the 2006 film BLACK BOOK), based on the novel by the same name and written by Louis Couperus. The novel tells the story of a man in a Dutch colony in 1900 who has problems adjusting to the ideas of other eastern cultures and ideas that are outside of his comfort zone.  THE HIDDEN FORCE will most likely be presented in the Dutch language and is set to be released in winter of 2011.

Source: Variety

The World Wrestling Entertainment organization has just announced the cast for it’s next film BENDING THE RULES.  The film will star Jamie Kennedy, Jennifer Esposito, Alicia Witt and Adam “Edge” Copeland.  The story revolves around a young district attorney (Kennedy) that tries to expose a corrupt police detective (Copeland) in New Orleans. No filming date has been set as of yet.

I’d like to say I’m shocked that WWE is trying to take over the film market, but I’m just not.  They’ve put out mediocre movies the past few years and seem to be on track to put out even more in order to, “build a library of pics it can generate coin from with a limited run in theaters, on DVD, and through a planned TV channel it’s developing”.  I don’t know what’s more distressing, the fact that we have to put up with wrestlers as actors or that WWE is trying to rejuvenate Jamie Kennedy’s career.

Source: Variety

Details have been announced for the Twentieth Century Fox summer action film PREDATORS, starring Adrien Brody, Topher Grace and Laurence Fishburne, and it will be released on October 19th with a digital copy included.  Directed by Nimrod Antal and produced by Robert Rodriguez, the film revisits one of the favorite monsters from the 80′s but with a new twist.  Seems that this time a group of unsuspecting humans (who are deemed killers on Earth) end up on the Predators planet and the predator/prey role is reversed, or is it?  The release has a long list of special features that include:

• Fox Movie Channel presents: Making a Scene (BD-exclusive)
• Evolution of the Species: Predators Reborn
  • De-Cloaking the Invisible: Alien Terrain
  • Intelligent Design: The Hunting Camp (BD-exclusive)
  • Predators as Prey (BD-exclusive)
  • Bloodline (BD-exclusive)
  • Rite of Passage (BD-exclusive)
  • Yuatja Transformed (BD-exclusive)
• The Chosen Featurette (BD-exclusive)
• Nine deleted and extended scenes (BD-exclusive)
• Commentary by producer Robert Rodriguez and director Nimród Antal
• Motion comics:
  • “Moments of Extraction” – Robert Rodriguez presents exclusive prequel vignettes voiced by the cast of Predators. Witness the secret adventures that turned our world’s most ruthless killers into the ultimate Predator prey:
    • Noland Intro (part 1)
    • Isabelle
    • Cuchillo (BD-exclusive)
    • Hanzo (BD-exclusive)
    • Mombasa
    • Noland Ending (part 2) (BD-exclusive)
  • “Crucified”
• BD-Live:
  • Exclusive Predator Features (BD-exclusive)
• Live Lookup – Powered by IMDB (BD-exclusive)

Marking her third time working with director Robert Rodriguez, Jessica Alba has signed on to star in SPY KIDS 4.  In the film, she will play a retired secret agent that’s reactivated.   Alexa Vega and Daryl Sabara were the original Spy Kids and although they’re not going to be the stars of this film, they are expected to have smaller, supporting roles.  The new Spy Kids will be a reboot of sorts, aiming to bring new kids and a new life into the franchise.  They are still casting Alba’s husband, her kids and the villain, who’s mission is to stop time.

We still don’t know all the details of the plot, but presumably, Alba’s kids get into the spy program and she has to come back to save them…or vice-versa.  You never know with kids movies.  The film is scheduled to start shooting in September and, of course, it will be shot in 3D.

Source: Heat Vision

But it’s not like the film was ripe with opportunity.  The idea of a man and woman meeting and falling in love shortly after the woman gets artificially inseminated is awkward before the first scene is even filmed.  No matter who you have playing in the lead roles, there’s always going to be this level of discomfort that exists in the film.  Therefore, the screenwriter has a great burden to write likable, fun characters that the audience can relate to.  In this case, screenwriter Kate Angelo didn’t come close.  Temporarily ignoring the uninspiring performances from Lopez and Alex O’Loughlin, the characters we should have been rooting for were shallow and poorly developed.  We knew next to nothing about them or their motivations and that put extra pressure on the two lead actors that seemingly couldn’t be bothered to add anything to their characters.

Missing all of his TV performances, this was my first exposure to Alex O’Loughlin and my initial thought is that he’s not ready to be a leading man.  Every line was delivered awkwardly and out of rhythm.  Part of that is poor directing, but the other part is O’Loughlin not being able to relate or understand his character.  A guy dealing with the frustration of falling in love with a woman who is having a kid from another guy is a tough, tough concept and there were times his character could have used some inspiration and some emotion.  But we didn’t get that and therefore, the audience couldn’t connect with him.  J-Lo was just as bad and despite numerous movies, J-Lo’s timing couldn’t have been worse and she looked so fake and unnatural that her appearance didn’t fit the character.  I understand J-Lo always looks good in real life, but her character didn’t seem like that and having her with perfect hair and make-up right after getting soaked in the rain was an insult to the audience.

As with all romantic comedies, THE BACK-UP PLAN had a handful of supporting characters that were there to provide some quick laughs.  But I was confused as to their purpose since it felt like the filmmakers went out of their way to include them in the film. Anthony Anderson appeared a couple of times as a random father on the playground.  He would have worked much better as the best friend and needed a bigger role.  J-Lo’s best friend, played by Michaela Watkins also had some good lines, but again, her role was too small and was never fully explored.

I understand rom-coms are meant to be cutesy and provide some feel-good romantic moments to the audience, so nitpicking on specific plot points is pointless.  With that in mind, the ending came together in ridiculous fashion.  We had the quick break-up-then-realize-they-love-each-other, but the whole thing was forced to an obnoxious degree.  By the time the ending came around, I didn’t want them to be together because I was afraid the filmmakers would have them break-up again, and then the movie would never have ended.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: Surprisingly enough, the video looked really, really crisp.  This is one of the better transfers from Sony, despite being one of the more disappointing films.

Audio: The audio wasn’t quite as nice, but it was sufficient for the dialogue.

Deleted Scenes (5:12):  I would say these were on par with the quality of the film, which of course means they were pointless and unnecessary.  Plus, we get more Alex O’Loughlin, which by this point was too much.

Belly Laughs: The Making of The Back-Up Plan (11:36):  We got off to a bad start when Alan Poul tells us he laughed out loud at the script and then cried at the end.  Did he read the right script?  After that, we get the typical making-of featurette.

For his upcoming film YELLOW, Nick Cassavetes has enlisted the help of Sienna Miller, Gena Rowlands, Ben Foster, Lucy Punch and Melanie Griffith.  Not a whole lot is known about the project right now, but the story is centered around a young woman with a horrible drug addiction who has a plethora of other problems as well.  Cassavetes and wife Heather Wahlquist wrote the script and it is expected Wahlquist will also have a part.

I’m still not sure how much I like Nick Cassavetes as a director.  Compared to most people, I didn’t enjoy THE NOTEBOOK as much as others and the rest of his films are decent, but nothing I would consider special.  I think he’s a talented director, but I’d like to see him tackle a complex story with some really strong performances.  With YELLOW, he definitely has a decent cast, so I’m anxious to see if he can get the most out of them.

Source: Production Weekly (via Twitter)

I don’t really react to all of the atrocities in current events, mainly because I suffer from numbness in hearing about various countries that are experiencing genocide or other horrible events.  It’s sad, but sometimes when we’re so far removed from those things and we hear about it so often in the media, we slowly stop caring.  With that in mind, I think it’s great that Angelina Jolie still dedicates so much time to helping other countries and bringing attention to their problems.  As part of her efforts with UNICEF, Jolie made a trip to Bosnia and announced she would be filming a love story set in Bosnia.  The story will be set during the 1992-1995 Bosnian War and she made a point to say it will be a love story, not a political statement.

She went on to mention that the film’s cast will consist of many ethnicities from the former Yugoslavia and will feature mostly a local cast.

Source: Reuters

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced the summer comedy GROWN UPS, starring Adam Sandler, Kevin James, Chris Rock, David Spade and Rob Schneider, will be released in a BD/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack on November 9, 2010.  The film follows five friends who get together for a long weekend many years after they’ve grown up.  This film was a hit this summer, although I guess that’s not surprising since it was an Adam Sandler film.  I’m still shocked at how much money this guy can pull in with a film, even though the majority of his movies star a lot of the same people and the plots never vary too much.  Anyhow, the film has a list of special features that include:

Artwork Coming Soon

• Behind the Back Basket
• Dennis Dugan: Hands on Director
• The Lost Tapes of Norm MacDonald
• The Cast of Grown Ups
• Commentary with Director Dennis Dugan
• Riff-O-Rama
• Busey and the Monkey
• Gag Reel
• movieIQ
• BD-Live

At first, hearing that Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton would be starring in a movie together might seem odd, but it actually makes sense.  Both of them were pioneers in their respective music genres and both have done somewhat well with their movie careers.  So them teaming up on a gospel-choir feature makes perfect sense.  The two voluptuous ladies will star in JOYFUL NOISE for director Todd Graff.  The film is about two strong-willed women who have to work together after budget cuts threaten their gospel choir.  Latifah will play the choir director that takes over after a death and Parton will play the widow of the former director that thought she was in line for the position.

I recently saw, for the first time, 9 TO 5 and thought Dolly Parton was really good in the role.  I haven’t seen her in much else, but between that and Latifah’s turn in CHICAGO, I think this could be a decent film.

Source: Variety

Alright, now I’m just getting embarrassed.  Here’s another example of Hollywood taking a classic children’s book and turning it into a major motion picture.  The only problem is that it’s another “classic” book I haven’t read, meaning I have no idea if it should be a movie or not.  Why can’t they make a movie of ‘Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing’?  I read that book…I think.  Anyway, Fox has signed on Jim Carrey to star in MR. POPPER’S PENGUINS, which is about a high powered business man that gets 6 penguins after writing a letter to his favorite explorer.  Mark Waters (MEAN GIRLS) will be directing.

Several actors have been attached to this role including Jack Black, Owen Wilson and most recently, Ben Stiller.  The story sounds fun and I have a feeling we’ll be getting some vintage Jim Carrey in this role.  I’ll let you decide if that’s a good thing or not.

Source: Deadline

Carey Mulligan looks set to be the female lead opposite Ryan Gosling in the upcoming action film DRIVE.  In the movie, Gosling will play a professional stunt driver that moonlights as a heist getaway driver at night.  But things get hairy when a contract is put on his life.  Mulligan will play an ex-con that gets caught up in his adventure.  The film will be directed by Nicolas Winding Refn, who directed BRONSON.

Obviously, this sounds like THE TRANSPORTER, at least to an extent.  So I have to assume that there’s more to the story than just the driver getting double-crossed.  What’s interesting about DRIVE is that it features two very talented actors in lead roles.  You’d probably expect to see these two in a Shakespeare adaptation before you’d expect to see them in a seemingly simple action film.

Source: Risky Business

If you’re not familiar with the book by Jonathan Safran, then your initial instinct might be to think that Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock are going to be starring in some sort of romantic comedy.  But you’d be wrong because EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE is not going to feature Tom Hanks’ grand return to romantic fare, but rather the story is about a little boy searching for a lock that matches a key his father left behind after he died on 9/11.  Personally, I haven’t read the book, so I don’t know how prominently 9/11 will be featured in the film, but I’m hoping it’s not very much.  I haven’t enjoyed any movie that featured the tragedy and always feel it detracts from the story.

The film is set to be directed by Stephen Daldry from a script written by Scott Rudin.  Rudin and Daldry previously teamed up on THE READER and THE HOURS, both of which received Oscar attention.

Source: Paramount

I’m surprised that VAMPIRES SUCK even managed to come close to the number one spot at the box office this weekend.  I’m also surprised that the surprisingly good THE SWITCH only managed a measly $8 million, which was good enough for the 8th spot.  That’s frustrating, and even NANNY MCPHEE RETURNS was able to beat it.  Meanwhile, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD continues to frustrate fanboys with it’s lackluster performance.  I haven’t talked to anyone that didn’t like it, but people just aren’t showing up at the theater.  And what about PIRANHA 3D?  I wasn’t sure where that would fall in the box office lottery, but $10 million for such a campy movie isn’t bad.

Next week sees Drew Barrymore and Justin Long trying to make a long distance relationship work in the cutesy looking GOING THE DISTANCE.  I’m not sure how that will fare either, but I’m thinking THE EXPENDABLES might make it three in a row.

1  The Expendables    $16,500,000

2  Vampires Suck       $12,200,000

3  Eat Pray Love         $12,000,000

4  Lottery Ticket         $11,125,000

5  The Other Guys      $10,100,000

6  Piranha 3D $10,035,000

7  Nanny McPhee Returns      $8,310,000

8  The Switch $8,100,000

9  Inception     $7,655,000

10  Scott Pilgrim vs. the World         $5,034,000

Source: Box Office Mojo

Looks like the Broadway musical ‘Memphis’ is becoming a bit of a hot commodity in Hollywood these days.  The Tony award-winning film has attracted the attention of both Zac Efron and Justin Timberlake, along with director Oliver Stone.  Although everything is pure speculation at this point, all three stars have been spotted multiple times attending the show and Stone has reportedly met with some of the writers.  Note: one of the writers is David Bryan, who you might know as a keyboardist for Bon Jovi.  Joe DiPietro is the other writer.

MEMPHIS tells the story of DJ Dewey Phillips, who was one of the first white DJ’s to play black music in the 1950’s.  “Daddy-O” Dewey was a “speed crazed hillbilly” on the radio with a booming personality.  He’s famous for a lot of things, but was one of the first DJ’s to play Elvis’s debut record.  Dewey was not all fun and games and once the free form DJ style went away, Dewey did odd jobs and always struggled with alcohol and drugs.  He died at the age of 42.

Source: NY Post

Maggie Gyllenhaal, Hugh Dancy, Jonathan Pryce and Rupert Everett have all signed on to star in HYSTERIA.  Set in Victorian-era England, HYSTERIA will tell the untold story of the invention of the vibrator.  Because I know everyone out there is dying to know how the vibrator came to be.  Dancy and Pryce will portray doctors that are treating cases of hysteria that they believed to be caused by a woman’s irritability, anger or mood swings.  So the doctors team up with their friend and create the treasured electrical device.  Let the sex jokes commence.  The film was written by Stephen Dyer and Jonah Lisa Dyer and is set to be directed by Tanya Wexler with filming starting in October.

What I don’t completely understand about this is Maggie Gyllenhaal’s involvement.  She’s arguably the biggest star and she’s set to play the daughter of Pryce’s character.  Whether she’s involved with the “testing” of the device is unclear.

Source: Variety

I can’t say I’m familiar with the 1970’s British cop show ‘The Sweeney’, but the basic premise is that it featured a “tough as nails” cop (aren’t all TV show cops tough as nails?) that worked in the Flying Squad that specialized in tracking violent crimes and armed robbery.  The original show starred John Thaw, Dennis Waterman and Garfield Morgan.  Of course they’re going to make this into a movie and leading up that violent crimes division will be Ray Winstone.  Nick Love is writing and directed the project and no other actors have been cast at this point.

Although it’s always disappointing to read about another TV show being made into a film, I’ve become a fan of Ray Winstone over the years and a tough cop seems to suit his talents very well.  He just seems like the kind of guy that would beat your brains in and then start asking some questions.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Now this seems like a good role for Carla Gugino.  The sultry actress is set to star as the lead character in the upcoming revenge thriller MILF.  In it, she will play a woman recently released from prison that hits the streets for a little revenge.  In the film, the term “MILF” will stand for Mothers I’d Like to Fight, as opposed to it’s alternative meaning, which could be applicable to Carla Gugino as well.

I’ve questioned why Gugino isn’t a bigger star and my conclusion is always that she chooses roles that don’t play to her strengths.  She has a strong presence and manages to combine sexy with tough, so this role seems right up her alley.  The film is set to be directed by Franck Khalfoun, who directed the lackluster P2.  But this should be a simple film to make well; you get Carla Gugino into some nice outfits and then have her beat up the bad guys.

Source: LA Times

Carell and Fey are Phil and Claire Foster, a married couple stuck in a rut that decides to branch out and go have dinner in the city.  But when they take another couple’s reservation, they get mistaken for that couple, who happens to be involved in blackmailing a top government official that may or may not have ties to the mob.  So our heroes go on the run and must find a way to clear their name, enlisting the help of a shirtless Mark Wahlberg.  There are several issues with the film that prevent it from ever taking off, but one of the main problems is that they tried to hard to create a twisting, complicated plot.  The point is not to try and tell a government conspiracy story or anything like that, the point is to get the two comedians into humorous situations.  It’s not complicated and in 88 minutes, they didn’t have time to develop the story they tried to tell.  If they had stuck with the two comedians running from the mob boss, it would have given more time to Fey and Carell to provide some laughs and less time trying to figure out a subplot we didn’t care about anyway.

We also have some other subplots going on that would have done well if they had been explored further.  The Fosters kept comparing themselves to their friends (played by Mark Ruffalo and Kristen Wiig) who were going through a divorce because their marriage became stale.  Obviously, the Fosters are concerned they’ll suffer the same fate.  This worked as an underlying issue they deal with while on the run, but it could have also been a source of laughs that instead got pushed to the side.  A stale marriage is something that every married person can relate to and it felt like there were more things to explore with that idea.

I actually liked the addition of Mark Wahlberg’s Holbrooke character as it gave them a legitimacy that they otherwise wouldn’t have had.  Since he actually knew what he was doing, it allowed the audience to accept some of the situations and some of the plot connectors.  I also loved the running shirtless gag and enjoyed how everyone that came in contact with him had to mention it.  But the single laugh-out-loud moment came when Carell impersonated Wahlberg to a hilarious degree.  It made me want another like-scene in which Carell could play off the seriousness of Wahlberg.

Tina Fey’s strength comes with her comedy structure and the “unraveling” of comedy.  As an actress, she’s not a naturally funny person and so I found myself not liking her as much in this as I have in her previous works.  She, like Carell, is best when playing off someone else and we didn’t get enough of those moments.  The whole film felt like it was being held back and the proof of this can be found on the outtakes, which turned out to be funnier than many of the scenes in the film.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: This transfer had some problems, most noticeably during dark scenes in the city.  Although overall it is a decent transfer, there is some considerable grain/noise that can be distracting at times.

Audio: The audio was fine.

Deleted Scenes (5:47): These added nothing to the film but they were funny to watch, but that’s just because it’s Fey and Carell and they are funny no matter what.

Alt City (1:48): These were just alternate takes of some scenes, they were funny but we saw most of them during the credits.

Extended Scenes (10:25): It was good that these scenes were trimmed down because they added nothing to the plot, but they were worth the watch.

Directing 301 (21:48): This featurette follows director Shawn Levy and his crew as they work behind the scenes.  They put a lot of work into this feature and it’s well worth the watch, you really don’t get too many features that aren’t full of film clips.

Disaster Dates (4:43): Just like it sounds, the cast and crew reminiscing about their bad dates.  Not as many good stories as you would expect but worth the watch.

Directing Off Camera (3:46): This is really interesting to watch but hard to explain, basically Levy rolls the cameras and give direction during the scenes.  He gives an introduction to this little featurette in which he explains everything.

Steve and Tina Camera Tests (3:10): Another introduction from Mr. Levy and then the screen test.  Nothing too special here.

Gag Reel (5:49): Not a bad gag reel and quite fun to watch although there was some of that giggling at some unseen joke.

PSA’s (2:02): These were cute and a great way to promote a movie.

Theatrical Trailer

Mary Jane will not be the love interest in the new SPIDERMAN reboot. Kirsten Dunst last played the role to not the most positive reviews. In order to avoid the negativity they’re ditching the character for a yet to be revealed one. The first guess would be Spidy’s other sweetheart in Gwen Stacy but it is still unclear. However, the short list of actresses to play that undisclosed role as the female lead has been revealed. The five actresses are Imogen Poots (28 WEEKS LATER), Ophelia Lovibond (NOWHERE BOY), Lilly Collins (THE BLIND SIDE), Teresa Palmer (THE SORCERER’S APPRENTICE) and Emma Roberts (VALENTINE’S DAY). Mary Elizabeth Winstead (SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD) has just been dropped from the running. Andrew Garfield will be playing the webbed hero in the film directed by Marc Webb.

Source: Heat Vision

Come on, it was only a matter of time before Sean Penn would star in a political drama revolving around the supposed nuclear weapons in Iraq.  Not that it’s a big deal, it’s just a little predictable.  In the film FAIR GAME, Naomi Watts plays a CIA officer leading an investigation into WMD’s in Iraq.  Meanwhile, her diplomat husband (Sean Penn) gets involved in the investigation and when he writes an editorial, a subsequent investigation reveals his wife as an agent.  Sound familiar?  I guess they couldn’t get the rights to the story of Valerie Plame and Joseph C. Wilson.  Which is a shame, because their story is fascinating.

I also have to take exception to the title, FAIR GAME.  For all pre-teen boys in the early 90’s, “FAIR GAME” only meant one thing; Cindy Crawford.  I saw the movie a dozen times, but still can’t remember what it’s about.  Watch the trailer here.

Seth Rogen is a voice whore.  The guy has done more animated movies than any actor I can think of, but it’s hard to complain about it.  Taking MONSTERS VS. ALIENS for example, he really provided the few highlights in the film with his voicing of Bob.  He has that funny, booming voice that resonates well in animated characters.  For his next character, he’ll be voicing a ghost that gets sent back to Ghost University to improve his haunting skills.

This sounds a little MONSTERS INC.-ish to me, so hopefully they’ll be able to make it original enough to keep people interested.  I do like the idea of Rogen voicing a character that’s trying to fit in, but can’t seem to make it happen.  And of course there’s a lot they can do with a “ghost university” that should provide some creative laughs.  The film will be directed by IGOR’s Tony Leondis for a 2012 release.

Source: Heat Vision

It took me a while to make the connection with Morgan Freeman and the character of Dr. Alex Cross.  I had forgotten that he played the same character in both ALONG CAME A SPIDER and KISS THE GIRLS.  He did a great job in those roles, but it seems father time has taken its toll and now he’s being replaced with Idris Elba, who will play Dr. Cross in the film CROSS.  In the new mystery thriller, Cross has left the FBI and is now doing private work when he gets asked to consult on the search for a killer known as The Butcher.  This killer may have had a hand in killing his wife.  David Twohy is set to direct the film.

I haven’t seen an episode of ‘The Wire’, but for the films I’ve seen Elba in (AMERICAN GANGSTER, THE LOSERS), I haven’t thought anything of his characters.  That’s not to say I thought he did poorly, he just didn’t leave an impression on me.  But it will be interesting to see what he does with the role that Freeman made famous.

Source: Deadline

For those of us that watched ‘Blossom’ back in the day, the only thing Joey Lawrence will ever be known for is saying “Whoa!” over and over.  It’s a shame because the guy has worked hard to change his look and seems to actually have a decent screen presence.  Well, he’ll get his shot by starring with Wesley Snipes in the action mystery HAVANA HEAT.  The film is set in Cuba (obviously) and revolves around the murder of a Homeland Security agent and his involvement with Guantanamo Bay.  The film also stars Nicholas Brown, Raul Julia Jr., Heath Herring, Zulay Henao and Lorena Rincoin.

I can’t imagine this will have a theatrical release and I normally avoid B-movies like the plague, but I’m intrigued to see Joey Lawrence in something other than a family sitcom.  I wonder if he’s going to give all of his brothers a cameo.

Source: Variety

The premise that has so many people up in arms revolves around Kassie’s (Jennifer Aniston) decision to conceive a baby through artificial insemination.  But this idea alone is addressed several times in the movie, both from a naysayer and a supporter of the idea.  The movie doesn’t support the idea of single women purposely having babies alone, but it handles the topic subjectively and provides several different viewpoints.  The joke is that the movie really isn’t about her artificial insemination.  In fact, the movie isn’t about Jennifer Aniston’s character at all.  It’s about Wally Mars, played to utter perfection by Jason Bateman.  Much like LOVE HAPPENS was actually Aaron Eckhart’s movie, THE SWITCH belongs to Mr. Bateman.

Aside from some awkward narration that opened and closed the movie, Jason Bateman was nearly flawless in depicting a complex, neurotic character that almost everyone can relate to.  While some romance films make you want to scream at the screen as a character bewilderingly doesn’t say something or makes a questionable decision, we never get that in this film.  Part of that was Bateman nailing the character and the other part was screenwriter Allan Loeb weaving the story in a way that it never really made sense for Wally to divulge his feelings or come clean on “the switch”.  In a movie that was ripe for plot pitfalls and questionable character developments, Loeb managed to make everything believable and create characters we liked and rooted for.

I’m not Aniston’s biggest fan, but she played her supporting role wonderfully here, much like she did in LOVE HAPPENS.  The film shined when Wally was teamed up with his son, Sebastian, played by newcomer Thomas Robinson.  The little similarities they inserted in the film that showed Wally was his father were both cute and creative, making us fully invested into their relationship.  But this wasn’t us watching Wally go head over heels for the kid or for Kassie, the development was slow and it felt natural, which is hard when a film is trying to develop two separate relationships, both of which have to work out in the end.  The other supporting characters (Jeff Goldblum and Juliette Lewis) were a little too cliché to be noteworthy, so the best thing about them was that they didn’t distract from the story too much.

I can imagine that people that have become disillusioned with Aniston over the years will avoid this, thinking this is her showcase.  On the flipside, her biggest fans might flock to the theater, thinking this is her showcase.  Either way, some fans are going to be disappointed.  The people that should be seeing this film are anyone that appreciates an original take on the rare romantic dramedy genre and wants more depth to their characters than what most films offer up.

Ryan Reynolds is in final negotiation to star in Universal’s SAFE HOUSE with Denzel Washington. Reynolds would be the CIA agent who is transporting a dangerous criminal played by Washington. They must begin working together after both are attacked at the Safe House. Daniel Espinosa will direct. Again, this is not finalized but these are a couple a big stars in what could be a potentially exciting film.

Reynolds has been obtaining some high profile films lately. He will be the title character in the upcoming GREEN LANTERN and is still set to play Deadpool in the spinoff by the same name from last year’s X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE. He will next be seen in the thriller BURIED, coming out later this year.

Source: Deadline

I’ll be honest in that I loathe films with subtitles.  Yes, on the one hand, after awhile you forget they’re there (if the movie’s good of course) but I find trying to read the words and watch the screen tedious.  It can start to feel like work rather than a relaxing watch.  That said, this was thankfully an engrossing watch and the subtitles were quickly forgotten.  I enjoyed A PROPHET but I can’t help but wonder why this film needed to be made.  Films like this take themselves seriously and usually try to prove a point but we’ve seen this scenario countless times before (of sorts), lately even, with stuff like PRISON BREAK, FELON (which I really liked) and the upcoming STONE with Ed Norton coming out later this year.  So again, regardless of its pros and cons, I still have to ask why?

On a positive note I dug Malik’s character.  He’s the poster boy for underdog and despite him being guilty of a crime and sent to prison, you can’t help but like the kid.  They make it painfully obvious that Malik doesn’t want to make his first kill and what I loved about it was the whole DEXTER angle they played with in the aftermath.  Talking to his victim (who isn’t really there but we see him) as a means of coping with the impending madness of it all is a sobering sight in my opinion and I especially dug the smoking scene where the dead dude’s exhaling through the razorblade gash on his neck which freaks Malik out a little.

I also dug Malik’s deer vision though I have to say I was perplexed by where it was headed at first.  I’m also rather confused about this particular prison system.  These inmates seem to eat better than most people, have access to all the drugs they can handle, TVs and even DVD players.  Malik even gets to bang a chick in his cell.  Add to this that Malik’s rise to power (from a scrub nothing) seemed pretty easy if you’re willing to take a life…which he had all the help in the world with.  The real irony is that Malik didn’t want to do it and even tried to rat them out a couple times and they still didn’t kill him for it.  I’ve seen some pretty hardcore prison movies and I have to say this was not one of them.

A PROPHET was a cool watch for someone like me who digs prison flicks but when I think of prison I keep wondering when the Toss Salad Man’s going to start terrorizing the new guy or shanking him in the face.  This prison didn’t feel all that tense and almost seemed like it could make Gods and gangsters out of anyone there, on the inside and on the outside.  I also wasn’t crazy about the ending but see the sense in it I suppose.  This flick isn’t for everyone and is far from perfect but it’s worth checking out if you think the way I do and/or don’t mind subtitled films.  The pace is spotty and the cast is mostly unknowns (though they all performed well) but if you let yourself get into it you probably won’t be disappointed.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: 1.85:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  Not much to see in the visual department other than a cold, dull prison most of the time.

Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD in French and German with those, English and Turkish subtitle options.  If you speak French or German you’ll enjoy this film much more.

Commentary (2:35:22): Director Jaques Audiard, co-writer Thomas Bidegain and actor Tahar Rahim (Malik) lead us through it and as with my audio input, if you speak French this will be a bit easier to enjoy but if you don’t you’ll have fun with a second set of subtitles.  Yay.

Deleted Scenes (10:34): There really isn’t much here and for the most part it’s more of the same and seems easy and logical to cut.  To be honest, I feel they could have easily shaved a cool ten to fifteen more minutes off the runtime.

Rehearsal Footage (8:50): Here we get some improve with some of the film’s key scenes from the audition reel.  I think Thar Rahim (Malik) was a solid choice talent-wise.  There’s also five more minutes of individual screen test footage.

Previews: There’s a theatrical trailer for the feature as well as eight other trailers for flicks you probably never heard of.

My biggest problem with the premise of THE NEXT THREE DAYS is that I don’t see how they can end this happily.  The film centers on a man that tries to break his wife out of prison after she’s convicted of murder.  Director and writer Paul Haggis has crafted an intense trailer and gotten the help of some talented actors in Russell Crowe, Elizabeth Banks, Liam Neeson and Olivia Wilde, but what’s supposed to happen after the husband gets his wife out of prison?

The early part of the film makes sense as the husband has to suffer through the horror of his wife being convicted of murder, and breaking her out of prison should be exciting, but then what?  Not many people break out of prison and go on to live happily ever after.  Mainly because so many countries have extradition treaties with the US, there’s nowhere to go.  So unless they’re going to say the family is moving to Argentina forever, I can’t see this ending well for anyone involved.  Watch the trailer here.

Scott Speedman is set to join Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams in the upcoming true story romance film THE VOW in which a newlywed couple suffer a horrible tragedy when the wife is in a car crash and suffers amnesia, forcing the husband to woo her all over again.  Speedman will be playing the former fiancee with whom the woman rekindles a romance while she’s still suffering from amnesia.  Up until this point, I was kind of excited about the romantic drama and liked the idea of a husband trying to win his wife back.  It was kind of like 50 FIRST DATES, but serious.  However, the insertion of another guy who is also trying to compete for her love makes this a little awkward.  My hope is that Speedman’s part is small and it will just be another obstacle the husband has to temporarily fight through.

Michael Sucsy, from HBO’s ‘Grey Gardens’ is directing the romantic drama and is also in the process of rewriting the script.  The film is loosely based on real life couple Kim and Krickitt Carpenter.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

It is raining X-MEN: FIRST CLASS casting news. So much so that they are recasting parts that have already been cast. Mad Men’s January Jones will be staring as the telepathic mutant hottie Emma Frost, a role that has reportedly belonged to Alice Eve. I’m deeply confused by this and am curious if Eve still even has a part in the film. Other casting news has Lenny Kravitz daughter, Zoe Kravitz, set to play Angel.

Well, if you haven’t been paying attention to any of our news updates lately, the 20th Century Fox film will be directed by Matthew Vaughn and will star, James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Nicholas Hoult, Jennifer Lawrence, Jason Flemyng, Caleb Landry Jones, Edi Gathegi, Rose Byrne, Lucas Till, Kevin Bacon and Oliver Platt. Hopefully, we won’t see any more recasting choices.

Source: Deadline

I feel like we’ve heard a lot about Darren Aronofsky’s upcoming film BLACK SWAN for a while, but aside from a few images, we really haven’t seen or heard much about the story.  It seems up until this new trailer, the thing we kept hearing is that Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis have a kissing scene at some point.  Although that’s enough to get most teen boys in theaters, I was wanting a little more in terms of plot.

Turns out, it has one heck of a plot and it looks like Aronofsky once again dives deep into the psyche of his main character, this time portrayed by the talented Portman.  I thought it would be a straight-up drama in the vein of THE WRESTLER, but he took this to a whole new level.  Portman, Kunis, Vincent Cassell, Winona Ryder, Sebastian Stan and Barbara Hershey star in the film that hits theaters on December 1st.  Watch the trailer here.

Universal’s $200 million gamble…err…blockbuster film, BATTLESHIP has added Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker to the cast that already includes Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgard, Rihanna and Tom Arnold.  Decker will be playing the love interest to Kitsch’s character.  Decker follows behind fellow model-turned-actress Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who took over for Megan Fox in TRANSFORMERS 3.  BATTLESHIP is only loosely based on the popular board game and will feature battles in the air, sea and on land.  There’s even talk of an alien invasion, so needless to say this will be more than two people putting pins in a board.

As for the casting of Brooklyn Decker, I have to question the decision since they already cast Rihanna in one of the lead roles.  This film needs a talented actress to give it some legitimacy and I can’t help but fear Universal is taking too large of a risk with this film.  They better hope director Peter Berg knows what he’s doing.

Source: Deadline

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced that IT’S ALWAYS SUNNY IN PHILADELPHIA: SEASON 5, starring Danny DeVito, Charlie Day and Rob McElhenney, will be released on Blu-ray September 14, 2010.  The set will include all 12 episodes along with some special features.  If you haven’t checked out his comedy yet then you must put it on your list immediately.  It’s one of those rare gems that keep you on your toes every episode.  This series showcases Charlie Day and Danny DeVito at their finest, and I still giggle every time I think of the steroid episode from last season.  Special features on this season include:

• Season Five Blooper Reel
• Kitten Mittens Endless Loop
• Archer Season One Pilot Episode
• Schwep Dream Sequence
• The Gang’s Dating Profile
• Commentaries:
  • “The Gang Wrestles for the Troops”: Danny DeVito, Glenn Howerton and Kaitlin Olson
  • “The Waitress is Getting Married”: Charlie Day, Kaitlin Olson and Glenn Howerton
  • “The Gang Gives Frank an Intervention”: Danny DeVito and Dr. Drew
  • “The Gang Reignites The Rivalry”: Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day and Glenn Howerton
  • “Mac and Dennis Break Up”: Charlie Day, Rob McElhenney and Dr. Drew
  • “The Gang Hits The Road”: Rob McElhenney, Charlie Day and Danny DeVito

When Joaquin Phoenix went crazy a while ago and had his “rap” concert and then did his weird interview on David Letterman, many people thought he was either a) going crazy or b) making a movie.  It turns out Casey Affleck was actually making the movie about Joaquin Phoenix going crazy.  Or something like that.  The actual “plot” of the documentary I’M STILL HERE is still confusing because the trailer makes it sound like it’s just a film about Joaquin dealing with being a celebrity, but I’m not sure how the whole rap thing fits into that.  And was that Puff Daddy giving Joaquin a hug in there?

The film opens everywhere in September and supposedly, when Casey shopped this around, it was a hot commodity.  I didn’t see anything in the trailer to make me super excited for it, but the general idea at least intrigues me.  Watch the trailer here.

Troubled teen Ronnie Miller (Miley Cyrus) and her talkative little brother Jonah (Bobby Coleman) are headed off to a beachfront property to live with their father (Greg Kinnear) for the summer.  Ronnie has some built up anger towards life and her father for leaving them after divorcing their mother.  Luckily she meets a cute boy name Will (Liam Hemsworth).  This quickly becomes more than just a summer fling and their relationship grows, as does the one with her father.  More unforeseen problems arise when she finds out her father was accused of burning down a church and diagnosed with cancer, which he had kept secret from his children.  Ronnie must learn not to push people away but cherish those that love her and embrace her gift as a talented pianist.  Wait, what?  Actually they fit that storyline in nicely.

The film narrowly pulls through due mostly to Greg Kinnear who was not utilized enough.  He is just so darn likeable that I want the film to work and all the relationships to work within.  Ronnie and Will’s relationship takes off a little too contrived and quickly for my taste.  As the film progressed I did feel like their relationship was true and strong, however, there were far too many scenes of Ronnie running off angry pushing Will away.  It got old.  I hate it when bad communication and lack of logical thinking are the dilemmas.

Other than the natural Kinnear, the acting isn’t the best but it isn’t the worst either.  Miley Cyrus had bad moments but also had some ok moments.  I think with a little more practice she could become a little above adequate.  She did a good job of shedding her Hannah Montana child image but then again I have never seen HANNAH MONTANA.  I think Liam Hemsworth has a promising future and expect to see him blowing up everywhere.  Bobby Coleman as the cute little kid was trying a bit too hard coming off more annoying than funny but I’m sure he will have his fans.

What we have here is a film split with two stories, the young love story and the father daughter relationship, and on both accounts I’ve seen other films do it better.  It’s consciously hard for me sometimes to bash a nice, good clean film with positive relationships so if that sounds like your cup of tea go for it, but I recommend watching A WALK TO REMEMBER or the far more mature LIFE AS A HOUSE.  They will give you those touching inspirational moments that I wished THE LAST SONG had.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video:  (Widescreen 2:35.1) A nice clean picture with beautiful ocean line shots.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD MA) Sound was clear with great music cues

Audio Commentary with Director Julie Anne Robinson and Co-Producer Jennifer Gibgot: A typical commentary, the two do a good job keeping thing moving.  They chat about the actors, story and the making of the film but nothing overly interesting.

Alternate Opening Sequence (2:55): An extension of the short church fire opening.

Deleted Scenes (7:08): Five deleted scenes with optional commentary by the director.  All our a bit redundant and unnecessary, so they were wisely cut.

Set Tour With Bobby Coleman (5:06): This is basically a bunch of short interviews with the crew including a producer, make-up artist, hair stylist, craft service, video assistant, grip and security.

Miley Cyrus Music Video “When I Look At You” (4:16): I genuinely really like this song.

The Making of the Music Video with Miley Cyrus (4:20): Director Adam Shankman who also produces the film and is a judge on So You Think You Can Dance leads us through a quick making of process of the video.

The casting news for X-MEN: FIRST CLASS just won’t stop. In our third report in nearly 24 hours, we learn that Oliver Platt will be joining the team. He will not be a mutant but will have a cool name as The Man in Black. Great addition, Platt is one of those under recognized actors who make every film better usually stealing scenes from the bigger stars.

So to repeat, the film will be directed by Matthew Vaughn and stars James McAvoy as Professor X, Mike Fassbender as Magneto, Alice Eve as Emma Frost, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, Edi Gathegi as Darwin, Lucas Till as Havoc, Caleb Landry Jones as Banshee, Jason Flemyng as Azazel, Rose Byrne as Dr. Moira MacTagger and Kevin Bacon as a villain yet to be named.

Source: Deadline

Kevin Costner plays baseball players too well.  He captures that arrogance that all ball players have, but always manages to let out a hint of insecurity, causing you to relate to his characters.  Although some would argue that Billy Chapel in FOR LOVE OF THE GAME is his best baseball player character, for my money, it’s Crash Davis in BULL DURHAM.  Crash is a real person, with real dreams and that brings him to a level that all of us can relate to.  The scene where he talks about making it to “the show” on the bus is great, only because it allows us to sympathize with him as a person.  One of the things that made Crash so great was his rapport with Tim Robbins’ Nuke LaLoosh and Susan Sarandon’s Annie Savoy.  It’s those relationships that make us like Crash Davis and in the end, make us like the movie.

In fact, one could even argue that Susan Sarandon turned in the best performance in the film.  I don’t think she’s ever been sexier on camera and her character was a hard one to pull off.  To put it bluntly; she’s…promiscuous.  But she’s really the character that drives the story, so the audience has to relate to, care for and at the end, root for her to come out on top.  A lesser actress could have easily blurred that line and turned the character into a villain of sorts.  But that argument could be made for the big three, because without their natural charm and charisma, the film would have suffered.  Give credit to director Ron Shelton for realizing the talent he had in front of the camera and for letting them carry the film.  And be honest for a second; if you haven’t seen BULL DURHAM in a couple of years, do you even remember any of the baseball scenes?  Do you remember any of the games played in the movie?  I don’t.  I remember the characters, and there’s not too many sports movies where you remember the people playing the games and not anything about the games themselves.

The greatest achievement of BULL DURHAM is how it manages to be so many things at once.  It’s funny, dramatic, authentic, touching and at the same time, it manages to develop three characters that are remembered twenty years later.  First time director Ron Shelton balances the various elements of the film surprisingly well and the result is a baseball movie that has proven to stand the test of time.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: The transfer is a little disappointing considering how far we’ve come with Blu-ray video quality lately.  It’s better than the DVD version, but not by much.

Audio: The sound is better, but again, not so much so that it makes you want to throw away the DVD and buy the Blu-ray.

Note that the Blu-ray contains zero special features, but the DVD that’s included in the set contains all of the below features, making it identical to the DVD special edition.  I can understand not bothering with some of the lame features, but the commentaries really should have been transferred over.

Commentary with Kevin Costner and Tim Robbins: This isn’t as great as it sounds because it feels like neither of these guys have seen the movie in many, many years.  There are a lot of dead spots, which makes it hard to get into.

Commentary with Ron Shelton: Ron drops a lot of great facts, like the fact he played minor league baseball, and keeps the commentary rolling.  This was his first film, so he was very passionate about what he had to say.

Featurettes, including The Greatest Show on Dirt (19:21), Diamonds in the Rough (15:54), Between the Lines (29:17): Normally, I’d review all of these separately, but these were so similar in style that they should have been combined or deleted completely.  They’re basically making-of featurettes that show some classic footage as well as updated interviews.  I’d pick one and go with it.

Kevin Costner (2:10) and Sports Wrap (2:58): I can’t believe these pass as a special features.

Basically, they’re long trailers for the film and not worth the time.

There are also some Previews

Finally!  After weeks of speculation about who would win the coveted role of Lisbeth Salander in David Fincher’s THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO, Columbia Pictures has just announced it will go to Rooney Mara.  Don’t know who she is?  The film you might recall her in is YOUTH IN REVOLT.  Of all the actresses in the running for the role, she was one of the lesser known, but Fincher saw something in her and now she’s set to become a star.  The role was made famous by Noomi Rapace in the Swedish version and based off that performance alone, Mara has some big shoes to fill.

The cast already features Daniel Craig as Mikael Blomkvist, Robin Wright as Erika Berger and Stellan Skarsgard as Martin Vanger.  Filming is set to begin next month and all actors have agreed to star in the trilogy.

Source: Columbia Pictures

Taraji P. Henson signed on last week to star in FROM THE ROUGH, which is inspired by the life of Dr. Catana Starks, who was the first female head coach of a Division I men’s team.  And now she’s going to be joined by Ving Rhames, Henry Simmons and Tom Felton.  Rhames will play the wise old maintenance man that has the inside scoop on all the students while Simmons will play the white-collar athletic director that clashes with coach’s blue-collar style.  Harry Potter’s Tom Felton will play a British golf hustler that the coach recruits to play at the school.  Pierre Bagley will be directing.

I like the addition of Tom Felton, who’s a big golfer in real life, but I’m a little disappointed to see Ving Rhames take a role like that.  He’s such a talented actor that I’d like to see him in bigger roles, not just playing the sidekick in movies like this.

Source: Risky Business

Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Andrew O’Hagan announced that his book ‘The Life and Opinions of Maf the Dog and of His Friend, Marilyn Monroe’ was going to be adapted into a film and would be starring George Clooney as Frank Sinatra and Angelina Jolie as Marilyn Monroe.  The book is a biopic of sorts of Marilyn Monroe and is told through the eyes of her Scottish Maltese Poodle, which was given to her by Frank Sinatra.

Now, I’m not saying this isn’t true, because far be it for me to question the word of a well respected novelist, but I will say that I report this as being hearsay until a studio or an actor’s representative confirms it.  I just have a very hard time accepting that George Clooney would take a role as big as Frank Sinatra and Angelina would topline as Marilyn Monroe and the announcement would come from the book’s author.  So please consider this speculation until official confirmation.

Source: Risky Business

Kristen Bell is determined to show off all of her performance skills, with her singing and dancing being showcased in BURLESQUE and now her ballet skills being put to the test in the upcoming comedy DANCE OF THE MIRLITONS.  Well, maybe not her ballet skills, as I don’t think she’ll actually be dancing in the film, but she’ll at least need to bust out her comedy skills…again.  The actress is set to play an overbearing mother to a precocious 10-year old little girl determined to be a ballet star.  The slightly overweight girl falls into a tense environment where she has to prove herself to her peers.  Evan Greenberg wrote the script and is directing.

The script has a very LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE feel to it and supposedly, this script has been around for a while (Greenberg wrote the story while he was in middle school).  They say they want to cast an unknown in the lead role, but it will be interesting to see who they choose to star as Bell’s daughter.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

It’s extremely rare that you see two news stories in a row dealing with casting choices in the same film, but that’s exactly what happened early this morning.  We first learned that Jason Flemying was joining the cast of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS as Nightcrawler’s father and now we learn that Rose Byrne is also going to be joining the cast, playing Dr. Moira MacTaggert.  Moira is a genetic mutation expert, but also the love interest to Professor X, played by James McAvoy.  With her casting, and the fact that shooting starts at the end of the month, we can assume that almost all the roles are cast, with the exception of Cyclops.  It’s strange that the role has taken this long to get filled, but that would seem to be the last major part.

As a recap, the film stars James McAvoy as Professor X, Mike Fassbender as Magneto, Alice Eve as Emma Frost, Jennifer Lawrence as Mystique, Nicholas Hoult as Beast, Edi Gathegi as Darwin, Lucas Till as Havoc, Caleb Landry Jones as Banshee, Jason Flemyng as Azazel an Kevin Bacon in a villain.  Not a bad cast at all, so let’s hope director Matthew Vaughn makes it work.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

We start our story with Scott Pilgrim, age 22, in a mourning period after losing an old girlfriend, Envy (Brie Larson), who became a huge music success and left him for bigger, better things. In his mourning he starts dating a 17 year old, Knives (Ellen Wong – and for the record, fellas, never date a girl named “Knives”). Pilgrim plays bass for a local Toronto band trying to make it big, Sex Bob-omb, and Knives is their biggest fan. But then he meets Ramona Flowers (Winstead), first in a dream and then real life, and despite his awkwardness – or maybe because of it – they begin dating. It’s then that Scott finds out that he must face off against Ramona’s evil exes, the back stories for these relationships are told in slow monologues with accompanying comic strips, and his first battle with Matthew Patel (Satya Bhabha) is a hilarious, out-of-left-field, fight/dance sequence that sets the tone for the rest of the insane battles he will take part in throughout the flick. For advice and hip commentary, Pilgrim has his roommate and best friend Wallace (Kieran Culkin doing great comic work throughout) and his sister Stacey (Anna Kendrick), while his band mates are just tired of him bringing girls around to their practices. The exes Scott must face are diverse in talents and gender, pitting him against Brandon Routh as a Vegan with special powers (and a great, unexpected cameo dealing with vegans), Chris Evans as a conceited action hero actor/skateboarder, a pair of twins, a psycho girl, and the creator of The League of Evil Exes – Jason Schwartzman.

The battles are fast and fun, with weapons as random as swords, a mallet, a bass guitar and coffee, and the emotions behind all of it are real, which grounds a story so fantastical it has Michael Cera kung-fu fighting Jason Schwartzman. How many writers can do that? Cera is great, playing everything from sad sack to confident crusader, and delivering all of his lines in the best way to maximize their comedic effect. Kieran Culkin is funny as the gay best friend who steals a great deal many scenes. The exes when they come on all have their unique elements which get laughs at every turn – particularly Evans and Routh (actual super-hero’s in other movies who fight Michael Cera in this universe) – while other bit parts like Aubrey Plaza as Julie get their own comedy bits and nail them. Winstead is mostly mysterious and aloof, but we all love that girl, and I could see myself fighting to the death for her. But this flick is all about Scott Pilgrim, and watching him fight through his respective levels, but also grow through them as well. It is an original concept populated with great characters we like and believe in…even as they burst into coins after a battle.

Jason Flemyng is has become the newest member of X-MEN: FIRST CLASS. He will be playing Azazel, a fallen angel of sorts, who looks like a demon and can teleport by opening portals into other dimensions. He also is the father of the popular mutant Night Crawler.

Flemyng might not be a recognizable name to most people but he has an impressively long list of movies on his resume. Most recently he had parts in this year’s CLASH OF THE TITANS and KICK-ASS. He will now be joining James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon, Caleb Landry Jones, Nicholas Hoult, Alice Eve, Jennifer Lawrence and TWILIGHT’s Edi Gathegi in the newest X:Men prequel to be directed by Matthew Vaughn.

Source: ComingSoon

With three big movies opening this weekend (THE EXPENDABLES, EAT, PRAY, LOVE, and SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD), we learned a few valuable lessons at the box office.  The first lesson we learned is that Julia Roberts can no longer carry her own film.  I know that sounds harsh considering her film took in over $20 million, but given the love for the book and the strategic counter-audience opening, it should have taken in SEX AND THE CITY numbers.  We also learn that no matter how much fanboys want a movie to be successful, a movie targeted to only fanboys will not be successful.  It seems like so many people were convinced SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD would be successful, but given it’s extreme target marketing, I was actually surprised it managed over $10 million.  And finally, we learned that if you throw a dozen or so action stars in a film, it will open decent.  I’m betting next week we’ll learn that they can’t hold that success for long.

Next week brings us the Jennifer Aniston and Jason Bateman comedy THE SWITCH, which looks just horrible.  Bateman got a second life with ‘Arrested Development’, but he seems t be doing everything he can to screw it up by choosing some really bad roles.

1. The Expendables $35 million

2. Eat, Pray, Love $23.7 million

3. The Other Guys $18 million

4. Inception $11.3

5. Scott Pilgrim vs The World $10.5 million

6. Despicable Me $6.7 million

7. Step Up 3D $6.6 million

8. Salt $6.3 million

9. Dinner For Schmucks $6.3 million

10. Cats and Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore $4 million

Source: Deadline, Box Office Mojo

Speaking at the Celebration V in Orlando today, George Lucas announced that all six STAR WARS films will be available on Blu-ray in 2011 in a giant box set.  The films will be available in the fall, just in time to cash in on the holiday sales.  And before anyone starts clamoring for the “original” versions of the original trilogy on Blu-ray; it ain’t gonna happen.  Lucas clearly stated that the Blu-ray versions will be the “special editions” and that the original cuts of the films were in too poor condition to merit transferring to Blu-ray.

Regardless of how you feel about the new trilogy, getting all six films on Blu-ray is extremely exciting for long time fans of the series.  Lucas has repeatedly said that the films have never looked like he wanted them to on home video and now is his chance to deliver them to the world exactly how he wants them to look.  Although obvious, George Lucas was quick to tout the greatness of Blu-ray when it comes to audio and video quality.

And if that wasn’t enough for you, he also debuted a deleted scene from RETURN OF THE JEDI (it’s a quick clip of Luke putting his lightsaber together).  Watch the scene here.  Very cool and now we know what we’ll be spending our money on in the fall of 2011.

Source: New York Times

This movie couldn’t be more perfectly cast –Gordon does a great job as likeable yet frustrating Greg by delivering the right amount of good intentions to keep you torn between wanting him to succeed and wanting him to learn life lessons. Greg combines every kid’s worst instincts into one; he’s really not a great friend and you wonder why Rowley is so loyal to their friendship. Whoever selected Capron for the role of Rowley deserves a standing ovation. His story line is by far the most interesting one and you cannot get enough of him on screen. What a genuine performance that was delivered perfectly!  It was fun meeting  a handful of fantastic supporting characters from class spazz Fregley and alpha female Patty, to Greg’s parents (Rachel Harris and Steve Zahn) who are brilliant as the bumbling parents.  I wasn’t crazy about the performance of Greg’s older brother, Rodrick (Devon Bostick) but cannot pinpoint what I wish was different about his performance. The only time I was amused when he was on screen was when he shouts “get off of me baby hippo!” to Rowley and when he startles Greg in the bathroom.

The Physical Education scenes were by far my favorite and included a few genuine belly laughs, Zahn’s overzealous attempt at stopping teens from toilet-papering his yard on Halloween made me chuckle a bit too. Loved the routine performed by Rowley and his mom at the dance – so great! Despite those fun moments, overall, I was mildly disappointed in the film and found it to be a bit of a snooze. Granted, if I were the target audience, I might feel differently or if I were looking for a film that kids might like, I would probably suggest they watch this movie.  It’s hard to be unsupportive of a film that has the underlining message of ‘be yourself’.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (1.85:1 Widescreen) Sharp picture, great for the ever changing moldy cheese that continually gets pushed into the storyline.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio) Nice sound, you can feel the thundering herd of big kids running toward little Chirag in the PE scene.

Deleted Diary Pages: 9 minute long snippets including Fregley’s Scavenger Hunt, Rowley’s Lost Zoo-Wee-Mama Cartoons, Greg Has the Cheese Touch, Greg Meets Fregley’s Mom, Mom Suggests a Friendship Card,  Mr. Winsky’s Safety Patrol Assignment, Greg and Rowely Jump Over the Wall, Mom Drops Greg Off at School, Fregley’s Shuffle, and Chirag’s Trail of Tears.  The only diary pages worth watching are Greg Has the Cheese Touch (this should have been in the film), Chirag’s Trail of Tears and Rowely’s Lost Zoo-Wee-Mama Cartoons.  The rest are superfluous. These snippets desperately needed a “play all” button. The wait for each one was annoyingly long.

Feature Commentary with Director Thor Freudenthal and Writer Gabe Sachs: We learn where the movie deviates from the book, random facts about the cast and characters and how they incorporated drawings from the book into the scenes.

Theatrical Trailer

Remember when Josh Hartnett was right on the brink of being an A-list superstar?  The year was 2000 and the world was a simpler place back then.  Hartnett was all the buzz because his mega-blockbuster, Michael Bay directed PEARL HARBOR was going to announce his arrival to the world the following summer.  Then the summer of 2001 hit and PEARL HARBOR did, in fact, announce his arrival to the world.  But the world didn’t react as kindly as everyone thought and Hartnett never really found a decent follow-up.  He’s done some good films since then (PEARL HARBOR wasn’t that bad), but he still doesn’t seem to be able to catch on to that elite status.

So he’s going to the well again and is going to be starring in Paul McGuigan’s science fiction thriller TOMORROW from writer Michael Gould.  Hartnett and McGuigan previously worked together on WICKER PARK and LUCKY NUMBER SLEVIN.  In the film, Hartnett will play a man traveling through time, always trying to prevent his family’s murder.  Sounds a little like THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT, but we’ll see.

Source: Worldview Entertainment (via Twitter)

I know this is going to be considered sacrilege by so many of his adoring fans, but I’m still not sold on Jake Gyllenhaal as a leading man.  I was one of the few that actually liked PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME, but even with that, I’m still not convinced he’s a Hollywood leading man.  In his new film, LOVE AND OTHER DRUGS, he plays a pharmaceutical salesman that enjoys the luxuries that come with being young, handsome and rich and although he enjoys his womanizing ways, he meets a beautiful free spirit (Anne Hathaway) that makes him question his life.

The film has a great supporting cast that includes Oliver Platt, Judy Greer, Hank Azaria, George Segal and Gabriel Macht.  But maybe the most interesting thing about the film is that it’s directed by Edward Zwick, who hasn’t really directed a humorous (I’m reluctant to say rom-com) love story since his directorial debut, ABOUT LAST NIGHT…  So it will be interesting to see what a couple of decades directing dramas has taught him about romance.  Watch the trailer here.

It’s funny, but even though I saw the original JUDGE DREDD when it came out in theaters, the only thing I really remember about the film is that die-hard fans of the comics really didn’t like it.  I’m not familiar with the comics and Sylvester Stallone’s interpretation of the character didn’t make that much of an impression or leave me wanting more, so I guess you could consider me disinterested in the reboot.  But they’ve gone a different direction with the character as they’ve signed on Karl Urban to don the mask and set the law.

I don’t have much of an opinion on his casting because how good or bad the decision is will depend solely on what director Pete Travis is going to do with the story.  Producer Andrew MacDonald has indicated he wants to make a hard “R” movie that’s grittier and darker than the comic-y Stallone version.  They’re going to film in South Africa, using the same people that made DISTRICT 9.  My interest is peaked, so let’s see if they can deliver.

Source: Empire Online

I’m still perplexed that Justin Bieber is even famous so there’s no way I’ll ever understand why they’re making a 3D “biopic” (side note: they can’t be using that term seriously…).  But today, the director of STEP UP and STEP UP 3D, Jon M. Chu has signed on to direct the film as he famously tweeted “It’s official…I have Bieber fever”.  Of course, he used all caps, but I’m not quite as excited as he is.  I don’t understand this and I know the kid has his fans, which is fine because we’ve seen tweens like this reach fame and then flame out, as they should.  But something’s different with him because I can’t see an 0unce of talent in him.  His voice sounds like a little kid imitating someone else that has talent.

But alas, this film is not made for us old-timers, it’s going to be made for the tweens that actually like him.  And I’m guessing it’s going to do quite well at the box office.  But seriously, they better hurry up and make this movie if they want to cash in on his fame.  I have a feeling the remainder of his fame can be measured in months.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Is it just me, or are trailers getting better and better these days?  The art of editing a trailer from what is usually an unfinished film is an extremely tough task, but over the past year or so, it seems that the trailers we’re seeing are really well made.  So much so in fact that it usually leads to a disappointing theatrical experience when the movie doesn’t live up to the trailer.  That’s my exact fear with HOW DO  YOU KNOW from director James L. Brooks.  It’s about a woman torn between two suitors of drastically opposite financial spectrums.

The film stars Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Owen Wilson, Jack Nicholson and Kathryn Hahn.  James L. Brooks, as you probably know, is one of the main men behind ‘The Simpsons’ and has penned several good films such as TERMS OF ENDEARMENT, BROADCAST NEWS and AS GOOD AS IT GETS.  This film looks good, but consider me cautiously optimistic.  Watch the trailer here.

I was a big fan of the TV show ‘Alias’ back in the day, but oddly enough, I thought the worst part of the show was Jennifer Gardner.  But the show had a lot of great supporting actors, most notably Bradley Cooper and Michael Vartan.  Cooper, of course, has gone on to international superstardom and has built quite an impressive resume.  Vartan on the other hand, has not been able to match Cooper’s success.  But maybe that will change and today Michael Vartan has signed on to star in COLUMBIANA alongside Zoe Saldana.

The film is about a young woman (Saldana) that witnesses the murder of her family and grows up to be an ice-cold killer.  Vartan will play her oblivious boyfriend that provides her link to the real world.  The story is from the mind of Luc Besson (as if  you couldn’t tell) and will be directed by Olivier Megaton (TRANSPORTER 3).

Source: Heat Vision

The premise of the film centers on four actors/salesmen that are hired by a marketing firm to do some targeted selling in a specific neighborhood.  The idea is great, even if I question the idea that four individuals could influence enough sales to justify the cost of keeping them employed, but the idea is an interesting one.  The filmmakers had a tough choice to make with the story and they could either focus on the individual emotional toll the job had on the four salesmen and saleswomen or look at the broader picture and focus on the impact their selling had on the town they were in.  Director and writer Derrick Borte chose somewhere in the middle, which of course meant that neither storyline was developed to its fullest extent.

Obviously, the theme of the film is that the old saying of “keeping up with the Joneses” is one of the many things that can kill the traditional American dream.  The Joneses in the film embody the need people have to buy the latest gadgets or to keep up on the latest trends.  The idea of a marketing firm actually hiring actors to live in a subdivision and secretly sell products is brilliant, but the theme is written in the title of the film.  Therefore, the burden is on the filmmakers to run with the theme and take the audience somewhere we don’t expect to go.  There are numerous side-effects to buying frivolous things, but the filmmakers used their neighbors as the only example.  We needed more tragedy coming from what they were doing and we needed to see the negative impact their actions had on the school, their friends and the local businesses.

The subplots with the “kids” (Amber Heard and Ben Hollingsworth) were too underdeveloped and ended up being distracting.  Between the “daughter” having a thing for older men and the “son” realizing he’s gay, I found myself disinterested in both of their plights.  Each of their situations could have been its own film and touching on them briefly just took us away from the broader scope of the film.  I also failed to understand what the purpose was of having his “girlfriend” involved in a car accident, other than the subtle context that she was drinking one of the products the family was trying to sell.

With all of the problems the film has, the originality of the story and the charm and likability of David Duchovny manage to make this an enjoyable film.  Sure, I was disappointed Bort didn’t use the opportunity to make a greater statement on America’s materialistic society and I would have liked more character development, but the ride we got was enjoyable in its own right.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: The transfer had a few problems with colors looking washed out at times.  Nothing about the video presentation popped out, leaving the film saturated and dry.

Audio: The sound also had some issues and I noticed some inconsistencies with the dialogue volume throughout the film.

Deleted Scenes (4:24):  In the film, we got a peek at the interview Steve (Duchovny) did to get the job, and here we get the actual interview.  I liked it and it might have been a good way to start the film.  It would have been a great way to set the tone right off the bat.  The other scene featured Duchovny teaching kids to play golf.  I’m not sure where they would have put that scene.

After years of struggling as bit parts in television, Jeffrey Dean Morgan has really exploded into film. Last year, he had a breakout role as The Comedian in WATCHMEN. This year, he had the lead in THE LOSERS. In the next year, he will be staring in RED DAWN, THE RESIDENT, THE FIELDS, THE UNBLINKING EYE and PEACE, LOVE, & MISUNDERSTANDING. Now he will be adding THE COURIER to the long list of projects.

The action film is about the best courier (Morgan) who has never missed a drop. He is now on his toughest mission delivering a briefcase to a notorious underworld figure while being pursued by corrupt cops, feds and crime bosses. Hany Abu-Assad will direct from a script by Derek Haas. Jeffrey Dean Morgan will also be an executive producer. I think the film sounds a little similar to Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s upcoming PREMIUM RUSH.

Source: Deadline

Terrence Malick doesn’t do many films, but when he does, he sure knows how to assemble and all-star cast. The guy must be great to work with because he seems to be able to get any A-lister he wants. For his next film, which is being kept uber-secret, but is believed to be a romantic drama, he has enlisted the services of Ben Affleck and Rachel Weisz, who join Rachel McAdams, Javier Bardem and Olga Kurylenko. Affleck will replace the previously cast Christian Bale. Supposedly, he’s already finished with THE TREE OF LIFE, but no one knows when that will hit theaters.

Malick takes a lot of time between films and I loved THE THIN RED LINE, but THE NEW WORLD left a lot to be desired. I like the idea of an ensemble romantic drama done properly, so we’ll see what he adds to it. I am disappointed that Christian Bale dropped out. He’s done so many dramas and action films lately that it’d be nice to see him in a different type of role.

Source: The Wrap

Todd Phillips is known for hilarious comedies like THE HANGOVER and OLD SCHOOL, so it makes sense that the director would want to make a biopic of one of the most iconic comedians of the early 80′s…or does it?  I think most people will be thinking that way, but to me, it doesn’t make sense.  John Belushi is a fascinating character and was hilarious on Saturday Night Live and his handful of movies, but his life wasn’t exactly humorous.  He struggled with drugs, alcohol and a host of other vices that would make for a dramatic film.  Which is why Todd Phillips seems like an odd choice.

Steven Conrad (PURSUIT OF HAPPYNESS) wrote the script and he hopes to do better than the 1989 film WIRED starring Michael Chiklis.  The trouble with making a Belushi biopic is getting the facts straight, which seems to be more difficult than you would imagine.  Getting the support of Belushi’s family and friends is essential if they have any hopes of getting this film right.  But of course, the real question is; who will star as Belushi?  I can’t think of an actor working today that has the right talent and age to play the iconic comedian, leading me to believe they’ll have to go with an unknown for the lead.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

You have to like the way Jamie Bell’s career has progressed since he was a kid starring in BILLY ELLIOT.  He suffered through a few lackluster films, but then showed up in DEFIANCE and then has some big projects on the way, including Steven Spielberg’s THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN and THE EAGLE.  I always like it when child actors find success in Hollywood rather than turn to drugs or obscurity.  Next up for Jamie Bell is a role in the thriller THE RETREAT for writer and directer Carl Tibbets.

The film is about a married couple that vacation on an island, only to find a soldier wash up on shore to tell them the mainland has been destroyed.  Cillian Murphy and Thandie Newton are set for the couple, so Jamie Bell will presumably be playing the soldier that washes up.

Source: Deadline

Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that the remake of the 1984 classic, THE KARATE KID starring Jackie Chan, Jaden Smith and Taraji P. Henson, will be released in a BD/DVD/Digital Copy combo on October 5, 2010.  The film follows the younger Smith as he and his mom move to China where he meets Mr. Han during a scuffle with some kids.  Mr. Han teaches him the ways of kung fu so that he can learn to defend himself.  I’m looking forward to this particular remake because upon another viewing, the original THE KARATE KID didn’t hold up as well as I remembered.  Special features on the remake include:

• Production Diaries Hosted by Jackie Chan
• Play All Hosted by Jackie Chan
• Chinese Lessons – Learn Chinese!
• ON LOCATION: The Karate Kid Interactive Map of China
• Just for Kicks: The Making of The Karate Kid
• Music Video: Justin Bieber Featuring Jaden Smith “Never Say Never”
• Alternate Ending
• movieIQ+sync(TM)
• PS3 Wallpaper Theme

Warner Home Video has announced that the summer film, JONAH HEX starring Josh Brolin, Megan Fox and John Malkovich, will be released on Blu-ray on October 12th in a BD/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack.  The film features Brolin as a bounty hunter who is tracking a terrorist in exchange for his freedom.  The film, based on the DC Comics, was a bit of a flop, only bringing in a little of $10 million at the box office and did not go over so well with critics.  Since the film was received so poorly, it’s really no surprise that we have so few special features, I’m sure it would have been packed if it had done just a few million better.  Special features include:

• The Inside Story of Jonah Hex
• The Weird Western Tales of Jonah Hex
• Deleted Scenes

Ryan Murphy has become quite the it-man in show-business these days.  His hit TV show, ‘Glee’ is proving to have some staying power and manages to find its way into the news almost every day.  And his new film EAT, PRAY, LOVE seems to be on the right track to be a big hit this weekend.  And apart from signing on to direct a follow-up Julia Roberts film, it looks like he’s set to take on more serious themes in THE NORMAL HEART.  The film is the semi-autobiographical story of Larry Kramer and is based on his play about the early stages of the AIDS outbreak in New York City in the early 80′s.

Starring in the lead role is Mark Ruffalo, who has been a busy bee himself lately.  He’s received tons of critical acclaim for his performance in this summer’s THE KIDS ARE ALRIGHT and he’s set to star as The Hulk in the upcoming THE AVENGERS.  He’ll be playing Ned Weeks in the film, who kind of led the “people’s movement” to get AIDS help in the city.

Source: MTV

Let’s start with directing and dialogue-both were tragic and we have Sly Stallone to blame for both of these issues.  Too many close-ups are okay when you’re filming Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, but I don’t think anyone wants that close a shot of either Sly or Bruce Willis.  The audience will get the point if you pan out a little, trust me.  Add in the graininess (which could be homage to the classic 80’s action flick) and the oversaturation and it was just an eyesore the entire film.  Technology has come too far for this to happen in a film with so many stars and with a budget this big, so a little more care could have been taken and done wonders.  The same care could have been taken with the dialogue, it was cheesy as expected with the only redeeming scene being the short exchange between Arnold, Bruce and Sly.  But what made that great scene frustrating is that almost every line was delivered with a single, close shot, so we barely got to see the three legends on camera at the same time.

Violence in any form is always fun to watch, but there comes a point when it’s just too over the top, which quite frankly happens very rarely.  Watching people have their heads blown off and seeing big explosions are two of the things I really treasure in a good action flick, but it was just too ridiculous in THE EXPENDABLES.  There was a five minute montage of Jet Li, Terry Crews, Sly, Jason Statham and Randy Couture running around a mansion placing explosives on the walls and ceilings setting the audience up for a fireworks show.  I’m not an explosives expert, but I think this was a little overkill, and by the way, it added absolutely nothing to the plot but just gave us a full minute worth of fire and a crumbling building.

The aforementioned problems are bad, but the most disappointing part is that none of these characters came across as cool.  There were few kids back in the day who didn’t dress up as Rambo, Rocky or Schwarzenegger for Halloween. These iconic action stars made up our childhood and we wanted to emulate them.  To see all of our favorites reduced to this lame excuse for a film is just sad.  I don’t want to think of Jet Li as an old washed up martial arts star who gets his butt kicked by a wrinkly Dolph Lundgren (yes, this happened in the film, but would never happen in real life), he’s just too good for that.  Shame on you Sly for making our heroes of the past these exhausted and old action stars who should be remembered for their glory days, not your crappy quick-edited big-budget film.

It’s rare that a newcomer lands a starring role in an indie drama, especially one starring Sean Penn, but that’s exactly what Eve Hewson has managed to do.  She’ll be starring alongside Penn in the film THIS MUST BE THE PLACE.  The film has a bit of an odd premise as it revolves around an aging rock star (Penn) that decides to pursue the Nazi criminal that abused his father during WWII.  Hewson will play a punk music fan that’s also a friend to Penn’s character.

So I’m not sure how they’re going to mesh an old rock ‘n roller with World War II Nazi criminals, but this just sounds like the sort of odd role Penn would take on.  I’m curious if the movie is going to look at the rocker’s past as a backdrop or if they’re going to try to make it an actual part of the story.  I’d imagine the hunt for the Nazi criminal is going to be the focus. Frances McDormand also stars and  Paolo Sorrentino will be directing.

Source: Variety

That quote from a deleted scene in PULP FICTION is one of my favorites and with that quote in mind, I’m definitely a “The Beatles” person.  But that doesn’t mean I don’t like Elvis, because even though he’s become somewhat of a punch line over the last decade or so, it’s impossible to listen to some of his best songs and not have them stuck in your head.  But I know a lot of fans out there aren’t familiar at all with his films and even though the films aren’t great by any means, they are a part of American history.  I look at Elvis’s films as music videos before there were music videos.  A movie like JAILHOUSE ROCK is riddled with problems, but the purpose was to sell records and I can imagine it sold a ton of them.

JAILHOUSE ROCK

Speaking of JAILHOUSE ROCK, the plot is pretty basic; a man gets into a bar fight and accidentally kills his opponent, so he gets sent to the slammer.  While there, his cell mate teaches him to play the guitar and pretty soon, he’s on the outside making records and living the high life.  The frustrating thing about this film is that it’s set up to be an epic coming of age tale about a musician struggling with his fame.  However, it felt like they had to meet a certain runtime and so they cut out half the film and edited around the music numbers.  So what’s left is a hodgepodge of a film that doesn’t really go anywhere.  With that said, I dare you to watch this film and not listen to ‘Jailhouse Rock’ at least a dozen times the next day.

But the movie is famous for the big ‘Jailhouse Rock’ dance number and it doesn’t disappoint.  Like I said, this would have made a great music video back in the day, it’s just a shame it came so far into the movie.

VIVA LAS VEGAS

The second film is in color, but it doesn’t do much better than the first.  While JAILHOUSE ROCK tried to add a story around the music, VIVA LAS VEGAS didn’t even try.  In the filmmaker’s defense, they had a lot more musical numbers and they also had the talented Ann-Margret doing her own musical numbers as well.  In this one, Elvis is a racecar driver trying to win enough money in Vegas to buy a new engine for his racecar.  Like Jailhouse, this one came to an abrupt end and didn’t really make a whole lot of sense.  But again, like Jailhouse, it’s impossible to watch this film and not be singing ‘Viva Las Vegas’ the next day.

But the most interesting thing about this film is that it’s the only Elvis film I can think of where he has a co-star that’s probably more talented than he is.  I think the case could be made that this is actually Ann-Margret’s film, which might explain why Elvis never again had another comparable female co-star.

ELVIS ON TOUR

The last film in this set is just a concert film of sorts, featuring an older, heavier Elvis on his 15 city tour.  It’s a little sad to watch this after watching the first two movies because Elvis has really let himself go at this point.  My biggest complaint on the film is that we don’t get any of his biggest and best songs and instead get some of the more common covers.  I would have liked to see a performance of my favorite Elvis song “Suspicious Minds”, but had to settle for “Can’t Help Falling in Love” (see the video below).

But the best part about this concert film is seeing how absolutely nutty his fans were and how iconic of a person he really was.  Elvis would actually stop in the middle of his songs to lean down and kiss one of his adoring female fans.  It’s amazing that one man attracted so much love and adoration and the funny thing is; he didn’t write even one of his own songs.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: The amazing video transfers of all three films really blew me away.  These aren’t classic, Oscar winning films, so Warner Brothers should be commended for taking such care in restoring these fan favorites. Even the most die-hard videophiles will be amazed at how crystal clear these films look.

Audio: The sound was also incredible and Elvis has never sounded so clear.

Commentary with Steve Pond:  Steve Pond is the author of ‘Elvis in Hollywood’, which, as you might have guessed, is an extensive look at Elvis’s movie career.  He does a commentary to JAILHOUSE ROCK and VIVA LAS VEGAS and gives a very interesting look at the films, which actually made me think more highly of them than when I watched them.  I liked this commentary best when he dove into some of the behind the scenes drama between Elvis and his co-stars, which he tended to touch on, but not dwell on.

The Scene That Stole Jailhouse Rock and Kingdom: Elvis in Vegas (20:00): These are two 20 minute featurettes that quickly go over the famous dance scene in Jailhouse and Elvis’s Vegas legacy in Viva.  Both are average, but I enjoyed the Vegas featurette better since I always find the early years of Vegas to be fascinating.

A recently divorced Alice (Rachel Blanchard) is trying to sell her spacious two-story home.  When a psychotic couple, David (Brian Geraghty) and Lila (Tricia Helfer) take over the house pretending that it is their own.  When people come over, whom they usually invite, they kill them.  Meanwhile, David has kept Alice alive, bound and hidden in a cubby space (which appears to have a window that was never utilized for an escape).  He has kept her a secret from Lila and uses Alice as a sense of normality during the day while his sociopath of a worse half is away.  Will she be able to escape?

I would have loved to reedit and shoot scenes in this film.  I’m not claiming to know what I’m doing, but there are some basic things to up the intensity.  First, they should have opened the film with a surprise kill during an open house.  It could have been done without showing David, keeping the suspense heightened.  As it stands, Alice discovers a dead body and then is quickly grabbed from behind.  Then we see David and Lila.  The story becomes about them playing house right away.  This reveal should have been slow.  Lets get attached to our hero by spending more time with her feeling the looming danger then drop us onto the villains.  Unfortunately, her danger happens immediately then we jump right into the psychos that we obviously don’t care about who lose all scare appeal.  With the exception of a couple of kills the murder scenes felt a little anticlimactic but again that goes back to the filmmakers revealing their hand too quickly.

On some positive notes, the score is done well by composer Nathan Barr who is also from the acclaimed vampire series True Blood.  Andrew Paquin really cashed in a lot of favors through his little sister.  Visually, the shots were well lit with some sharp composition.  Technically the film was very sound.  The acting was solid all around too, specifically from Rachel Blanchard and Brian Geraphty who really is the main star as a terribly disturbed human being trying to be normal.

Ultimately, OPEN HOUSE lacked anything remotely close to intensity or suspense and had many questionable moments of reasoning.  It’s a shame, because with a few pick up shots, a restructure and a completely different edit, the film would have improved immensely from bad to less bad.  Instead we are left with a bloody, uninvolved borefest.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (1080P High Definition 16 x 9 Widescreen 2.35:1) Picture was crisp and clear.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD) Sound was decent using quietness with explosive sound mixing devices like washing dishes or stabbing.

Commentary with Actor Brian Geraghty and Director Andrew Paquin: They give a semi-interesting commentary consistently talking about the film.  However, Paquin thinks too highly of it and is proud of his wrong choices.  He claims the film is more relationship driven than suspense.  I agree that there is zero suspense but the relationship drama is poorly conceived when you don’t care about or find the relationships interesting.

Deleted Scenes (9:45): Three deleted scenes that I think add more intensity.  I had two jump moments.  These scenes are exactly what I described earlier as being sorely needed.  This wouldn’t have been near enough but they are better.

Trailer and Previews: Yes!  This trailer is proof that there is a scary movie somewhere in here.  The trailer actually makes OPEN HOUSE look like an interesting movie and is far better than the actual film.  The film should have taken notes from the trailer and told their story in the same order the trailer tells it.

This is an odd bit of news.  Blake Lively and Scarlett Johansson are both up for the lead role opposite Robert Downey Jr. in Alfonso Cuaron’s GRAVITY.  Typically, when a role is down to two or three choices, the public never hears about it, but it looks like this time we’ll know what could have been.  It’s also surprising that Johansson is up against someone like Lively, considering the Johansson has a lot of film success  under her belt while Lively is really just getting going.  But given the appeal of this role, I have to assume that the script from Cuaron and his brother Jonas is pretty impressive, especially considering it already has Downey attached to it.

The film is about two surviving astronauts that are the lone survivors after a meteor shower destroys their repair mission.  Downey is one of the astronauts while the two ladies are vying to see who will play the other.

Source: Heat Vision

Channing Tatum has become quite the hot commodity lately. He’s already working with director Ron Howard in THE DILEMMA and Steven Soderbergh in HAYWIRE, along with a slew of other films. Now we hear that he is not only starring in but also co-producing THE CONTORTIONIST’S HANDBOOK. Robin Shushan will be adapting the script from the novel by Craig Clevenger.

The story is about a con artist (Tatum) who is a master at forging and changing identities. He has kept his work a secret up until he falls for a woman who has a secret of her own. I like Tatum in films like STEP UP and G.I JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA, but he hasn’t completely proved himself to have acting talent quite yet, like DEAR JOHN. With as much work and talented people he is working with I’m sure he’ll come around.

Source: Deadline

Reese Witherspoon has been hot on the trail of a Peggy Lee biopic for a while and now it looks like the multi-talented actress will take on the multi-talented singer in an upcoming music biopic.  Other than being a biopic, no details are known, but Nora Ephron is attached to write and direct Reese in the film.  Nora Ephron is no stranger to real life characters since her last film was JULIE AND JULIA which featured the incomparable Meryl Streep.

What’s a little odd about this news is the fact that Reese Witherspoon wants to do this role after winning an Oscar for her brilliant performance in WALK THE LINE as June Carter Cash.  I’m not saying June Carter and Peggy Lee were twins, but they rose to fame in roughly the same time frame and had somewhat similar styles (although one was jazz and the other was country).  Peggy Lee was a fascinating woman, I’m just not sure it makes sense for Reese to play a role so similar to the one she received so much acclaim for.

Source: Variety

I’ve always been a sucker for high school or college friend reunion type movies.  INDIAN SUMMER being one of the better, more underrated of the like-films out there.  The upcoming dramedy THE ROMANTICS looks like another good reunion themed film and it centers on a group of friends that meet up when two of them decide to get married.  Of course, all is now well because the groom-to-be and the maid of honor used to have a thing and that thing may or may not be over.  The film has a great ensemble cast that includes Katie Holmes, Anna Paquin, Josh Duhamel, Malin Akerman, Elijah Wood, Adam Brody, Candace Bergen and Jeremy Strong. Galt Niederhoffer is directing from the novel that he wrote.

People still like to give Katie Holmes a hard time, but she plays the tortured-girl-longing-for-love character better than anyone, so this is a great role for her.  The film opens everywhere September 10th.  Watch the trailer here.

To celebrate the release of his latest film DEATH AT A FUNERAL, (read the Blu-ray review) Neil LaBute was kind enough to sit down and talk to Flix66.com about the film and other projects.

Flix66.com: Thanks so much for speaking with Flix66.com today, Mr. Labute, and congratulations on DEATH AT A FUNERAL. I was wondering, did you decide to come on board after seeing the original 2007 British version by Frank Oz, or was this a project that appealed to you beforehand?

Neil LaBute: I did see it on its release in the states, and it didn’t make a huge splash here on its original release – most people saw it on DVD or paid television – but I did see it in the theaters, and enjoyed it and didn’t think that much after it. But then Chris Rock also saw it on its release and thought it could be made into a picture here in the states. When he got the rights, got a script together, that’s when I got a chance to get involved.

Flix66.com: With the comedians you had in this film, historically outlandish in their stand up and early roles – people like Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Tracy Morgan – was it difficult to reign them in for this story which called for the majority of reserve called for in the film with only occasional outbursts? Or have they naturally calmed in their later years?

Neil LaBute: They’ve just gotten better and better as actors. Not just comic actors but actors. Martin and Chris were really happy to work together. I was surprised that they had never really worked together. They were both in the movie BOOMERANG but they never shared a scene together. And now from never working together to playing brothers. They actually liked being around each other and making each other laugh on the set, but as far as letting each of them have their moments, it was not a contest, it was never an issue of any one of them dominating the screen at any time. Chris kind of knew he was playing the straight man, per se, but they each knew in their roles what they were supposed to do, and they each were sure that they would have their bits and they would get their laughs.

Flix66.com: From most reviews, the character that’s gotten the most reaction has been James Marsden’s Oscar, which was kind of the same reaction Alan Tudyk got for that similar role of Simon in the 2007 version of the film. How much of Marsden’s hallucinogenic experience was straight from the script, and how much was you and the screenwriter Dean Craig just saying to Marsden “You’re on a hallucinogenic. Go.”?

Neil LaBute: It’s funny you ask, because there are some situations in the film where we wanted to follow the original and others where we really didn’t want to follow the original. In that first film, Alan did some really funny and very specific stuff, some on the page, but a lot of the time we focused on what he did to make sure James was not doing that. Someone like Martin Lawrence can play his character without seeing the original, play it straight off the page and never mirror the same character in the original, but with James’ character – and how well people responded to Alan’s original performance – his journey was a little different from everyone else’s. But it seemed to work out because as you’ve said people have really responded well to it.

Flix66.com: Peter Dinklage was actually the only character that did both the original and this remake, and I was wondering how much either input he volunteered or how much advice you asked from him specifically, if any? Especially in leaning towards not duplicating the original but still hitting on the key points and the money laughs, and I was wondering how much he contributed in that respect?

Neil LaBute: Peter’s work in the original allowed him to come in knowledgable not only about what he did and how he did it, but also what he felt works and bringing him in allowed him a unique opportunity to reprise the same part, the same character in a film that’s not a sequel.  Bringing him in allowed him to reprise the part but he was mindful of how to tweak it for the same story with an American cast and contrasting with a British cast from before. But he did offer insight as far as “This is what happened when we did this…” and it was good to hear those original experiences.

Flix66.com: The actors seemed to have a pretty good rapport on the screen, but I’ve never really seen many of these actors together, especially many of the comic actors. Luke Wilson doesn’t show up in a lot of Chris Rock movies. So I was wondering how that rapport went behind the scenes.

Neil LaBute: I think what was fun for most of these actors was watching the others work. One of the things we did that was helpful to the ensemble getting along was shooting in video… we shot on the digital system, which allowed us to keep shooting, unlike traditionally shooting with film. And minimizing those technical glitches we could shoot longer and allowed the actors to just go, go, go and spill more of their ideas and original aspects to their performance. Another thing we did was, we created, on the set, a green room for the actors. This was a big green room just for the actors right on the sound stage where they could watch the others shooting their scene, and they weren’t isolated like they are when they have their individual trailers. This allowed them to stay close to the scenes even when they were not in the scene. The idea came from Sony/Screen Gems. They’d done it before and we thought it was a good idea. It kept people close, kept them engaged as to what was going on.

Flix66.com: I’m wondering about your future projects. Do you think you’ll do more comedies or lean more towards a dramatic project on the horizon?

Neil LaBute: I really enjoyed working with Sam Jackson doing a thriller, LAKEVIEW TERRACE, a thriller with suspense that also had something to say about race. That Kind of project appeals to me and I’m looking into another project with Sam in the future. I constantly go back to the stage, and I’m working on a new play in New York in the fall and one in London in winter, and I’ll see where my film projects fall from there.

Flix66.com: Again, Neil, thanks so much for talking to us here at Flix66, but one last question before I go, I wanted to know what movie, of all time, other than DEATH AT A FUNERAL (of course) would you consider your favorite?

Neil LaBute: Favorite movie anybody’s made or mine? I’d have to say all time it’s probably something like LA DOLCE VITA, a movie that I’m just happier watching than anything else, if it comes on I’ll stop and watch it. Other movies I’ve seen more are like Woody Allen’s MANHATTAN, I love THE WIZARD of OZ, too, actually, but I’d have to say LA DOLCE VITA for all time.

Flix66.com: Thank you, Mr. Labute, and again best of luck with your future endeavors.

Warner Home Video has announced that the female buddy film, SEX AND THE CITY 2 starring Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattrall, Kristin Davis and Cynthia Nixon, will be released on Blu-ray October 26, 2010.  Even though the film opened to scathing reviews, the sequel to SEX AND THE CITY: THE MOVIE still grossed over $90 million. The film again follows the four previous single women who are still trying to find their way in New York City as they start families of their own, except for Samantha, she’s still a wee bit slutty. The Blu-ray/DVD/Digital Copy combo pack has a list of special features that include:

• Styling Sex and the City 2
• Revisiting the 80s
• “So Much Can Happen in Two Years” – A conversation with Michael Patrick King and Sarah Jessica Parker
• Audio commentary with Michael Patrick King
• The Men of Sex and the City
• SATC2 Soundtrack: Behind the Scenes with Alicia Keys
• Marry Me Liza!

I had reservations about sitting down to watch Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Tracy Morgan put their collective talents together for the big screen remake DEATH AT A FUNERAL.  All three comedians have similar styles and humor and all of them command the screen when their doing their schtick.  Not only that, but their comedy is usually offset by a “serious” actor like Will Smith or Bruce Willis in order to highlight their comedic styles more efficiently.  Knowing that there really were no serious characters in this, I was pessimistic that they could be reined in.  So consider me shocked when I found myself enjoying the film and the performances of everyone involved.

The premise is simple enough; Chris Rock is Aaron, one of two brothers that has just lost his father and is in the process of hosting a funeral for him.  But nothing is going well and he can’t get help from his more famous brother (Lawrence) or any of the close family friends that are in attendance.  To make matters worse, a man (Peter Dinklage) has shown up claiming to be his father’s lover and is trying to extort money from the family.  So right off the bat, there’s a lot going on, not to mention subplots with Aaron and his wife and his struggling career.

In fact, everyone has a subplot or two that gets developed as the film goes on.  Normally, having so many subplots and so much going on in a short film like this would frustrate me, but in this case, it served it very well.  By having so much going on, it reduced the need to have laughs thrown at you every two seconds.  Although the laughs are there, this film actually tries to develop some characters and keep the audience interested in the story.  Like I said; the three main comedians hold it back a lot and their efforts made for a better film.

The actor that has seemed to get the most credit is James Marsden, who plays a character that accidentally takes a hallucinogenic.  That simple character alone provides ample sources for comedy and the irony in the film is that the one actor normally associated with serious, straight-laced characters is the one that gets to cut loose and do whatever he wants to bring a laugh.  Marsden does well in the role, but I can’t help but wonder if it would have been funnier if given to a comedian accustomed to going over the top and getting the big laugh.

This was a bit of a pet project for Chris Rock and the one complaint I always have with Rock’s films is his acting.  He doesn’t do much better here, but he’s slowly getting better.  He just really needs to accept he’s not a good actor and it’s up to his director to help him.  Basically, any time Chris isn’t talking, the camera should be somewhere else.  He just doesn’t do very well when he’s not talking.  Tracy Morgan is another actor that takes flack for just rehashing his ’30 Rock’ character, but it works and here again, he made me laugh.

Overall, I think this film will surprise a lot of people.  It was funny, interesting and the cast worked extremely well together.  Just about everyone involved was responsible for one or two laughs and the film worked.  It had some slow moments and failed to live up to its potential at times, but overall I enjoyed myself.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: Shot completely digital, this transfer is beautiful.  In a movie void of a lot of color (it took place at a funeral, remember), the colors and black levels were stunning.

Audio: The sound was also wonderful, although given this is a dialogue heavy film, surround channels weren’t heavily utilized.

Commentary with Neil LaBute and Chris Rock: Some comedians are just naturally funny and can’t help but make you laugh every time they talk and some comedians are funny only when they really try to be.  I think Chris Rock falls into the latter category.  On this track, he and Neil provide a few laughs here and there, but this is a pretty normal commentary with them talking more about the way the film was made and less about the people involved.

Last Rites, Dark Secrets (20:11): This is your typical behind the scenes feature with everyone showing up to talk about how great the film is and how much fun it was to get the great cast together.

Deleted Scenes (7:11):  These weren’t bad by any means and could have been inserted back into the film without a hitch.  So it seems they were removed for pacing reasons.  But fans of the film will want to give them a look.

Gag Reel (2:36):  So with this great cast, this is the best gag reel they could put together?  Yes, it’s worth the time and is mildly humorous, but I’m guessing there were funnier gags during the making of the film.

Family Album (10:58): Simply put; the cast members talk about their characters.  Not sure what the purpose was of having this a separate feature.

Death For Real (5:54): Again, a worthless featurette where the cast talks about death.  Why put this on a disc that had largely managed to avoid the serious issue?

I have to say, after seeing Patrick Wilson in several serious dramas and in this summer’s THE A-TEAM, I wasn’t expecting him to take on a quirky comedic character like he is in BARRY MUNDAY.  But sure enough, he’s giving it a shot and the results, at least from the first trailer, are mixed.  The film is about a sleazy womanizer (Wilson) that unexpectedly loses his testicles and then soon learns that a woman (Judy Greer) he slept with before the accident is pregnant with his child.  He decides to man up to the responsibility, all the while fending off the advances of her sister (Chloe Sevigny).  While we’re talking about unexpected turns, the underrated Judy Greer goes full makeup as the nerdy, less attractive woman he managed to get pregnant.

As for the trailer itself, I thought it was fun and quirky while he was being a womanizer, then I lost interest as he was trying to be a dad.  I feel like we get a lot of movies where one or both parents are inexperienced, but trying to do good by their kids.  Chris D. Arienzo is directing from a script he wrote.  Watch the trailer here.

The science-fiction action-drama I’M.MORTAL looks like it has assembled a decent cast with Cillian Murphy the latest to join the film.  Murphy, hot off his INCEPTION success, will presumably play one of the law enforcement officials trying to track down Justin Timberlake’s Will.  Will is a poor boy that comes into a fortune and then goes on the run when he kidnaps a beautiful heiress (Amanda Seyfried).  They live in a world where the aging gene can be “shut off” and “time” is the currency.  While the rich can live forever, the others have to negotiate their way into living forever.

Andrew Niccol will be directing with Marc Abraham and Eric Newman’s Strike Entertainment producing.  It should also be noted that although Timberlake is thought to be a sure thing, he technically hasn’t signed on the dotted line yet.  So anything can happen.

Source: Heat Vision

Richard Linklater has enlisted the services of Jack Black and Shirley MacLaine to star in his film BERNIE.  But before you get too excited, read the description of the film.  This is a true story based on the life of Berhardt “Bernie” Tiede, who was a mortician in the mid-90′s that was convicted of murdering an 81 year-old widow.  He was a mortician that befriended the widow and after he killed her, he hid her body in a freezer and pretended she was still alive.  Wow.  How original is that?  A movie about “Bernie” that runs around pretending a dead person is actually still alive.  I wonder if this movie will take place over a weekend and will spawn an equally ridiculous sequel.

I’m sure the story is fascinating and I’m sue the real Berhardt was a wacky, quirky fella.  But the fact remains that the movie is called “BERNIE” and is about a guy pretending a dead person is still alive.  No matter what they do, this film will absolutely never be able to escape the comparisons to WEEKEND AT BERNIES.  Which brings up the point; why even bother?

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

INCEPTION continues to do incredible at the box office, but it was only a matter of time before it lost the #1 spot.  It’s not surprising that THE OTHER GUYS had a successful opening, but it’s a little surprising how well it has been received by critics and audiences alike.  The other new movie this weekend was STEP UP 3D, which did well enough for a third place opening.  That may seem disappointing, but given the fact this movie was a punchline for most of the world, you can’t help but be impressed by the fact it managed a top five finish.

Next week is just a ridiculously packed weekend.  EXPENDABLES, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD and EAT, PRAY, LOVE all opening on the same weekend just doesn’t make sense to me.  I see opening a Julia Roberts film opposite Sylvester Stallone or Michael Cera, but I don’t understand why EXPENDABLES is opening the same weekend as PILGRIM.  Although they’re different movies for sure, they appeal to the same general audience and I think both films could have been helped by being released at least a week apart from each other.

1. The Other Guys $35.6  million

2. Inception $18.7  million

3. Step Up 3D $15.4  million

4. Salt $11  million

5. Dinner For Schmucks $10.5  million

6. Despicable Me 3D $8.9  million

7. Cats and Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore $7  million

8. Charlie St. Cloud $4.9  million

9. Toy Story 3 $3  million

10. Grown Ups $2.4 million

Source: Deadline, Box Office Mojo

I never really questioned whether or not Ving Rhames would return for MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE 4, but today we have official confirmation that the underused actor will, in fact, return for the fourth film.  He announced on ‘Lopez Tonight’ (side note: I have no idea what that is) that he’d be returning as Luther Stickell in the series of films that have nothing in common other than him and Tom Cruise.  We’re also still waiting for an official announcement that Simon Pegg will be returning, although it does seem likely.

So with Brad Bird directing and TC and Ving back on board, I guess all we need now is a lead female character.  There were mumblings that Paramount was going to be giving Ethan Hunt a protege, but that was back when Paramount was supposedly trying to squeeze Tom out of the franchise.  I’m guessing Tom Cruise‘s willingness to take a pay cut might have given him more say-so on the direction of the story.  Given they want to start filming in September, we should be hearing a lot about this through the end of August.

Source: Lopez Tonight

I’ll tell you an interesting story about ‘Jackass’.  My dad was travelling on business one time and at the hotel, he flipped through the channels and came across an episode of ‘Jackass’.  Seeking mindless entertainment, he watched it and the next thing you know, he runs out and gets the movie and all the episodes on DVD.  He calls me, excited about his new discovery, only to find out I had never watched an episode.  So, given his excitement, I had to check it out.  But as I suspected, I just don’t see the fascination with the idea of a bunch of idiots hurting themselves and each other.  But, I can admit that it’s impossible to watch ‘Jackass’ for an extended period of time and not laugh at least a couple of times.

Given his lackluster movie career, it was only natural that Johnny Knoxville would return to what made him famous.  And of course, it was only natural that they would do it in 3D.  Watch the trailer here.

In STEP UP 3D, we reunite with fan favorite from STEP UP 2: THE STREETS, Moose (Adam G. Sevani) and Camille (Alyson Stoner), Tyler Gage’s foster sister in STEP UP, as best friends and NYU freshmen. Moose has given up dance for an engineering degree, but not for long. On their first day on campus he gets pushed into a dance battle where his victory lands him a bit of trouble with leading dance crew House of Samurai and into the warm embrace of The Pirates, Samurai’s arch rival.  As The Pirates leader, Luke (Rick Malambri – who, by the way, looks like a slimmer version of Eric Dane – meow!) invites Moose to join their crew in the biggest battle yet, The World Jam.  Winning The World Jam will give The Pirates the money they need to save their dance club and house both being threatened by the bank.  We also meet Natalie (Sharni Vinson) who not only has caught Luke’s eye and is an amazing dancer, but also looks just like Andie from STEP UP 2: THE STREETS but with Nora’s hair from STEP UP.  Not sure why that detail is important to share but I found myself focused on that most every time she was on screen.

This STEP UP film had more focus on dance than character development or story line but with all the amazing dancing you tend to forgive it those details.   Other than the relationship between Moose and Camille, I had a hard time rooting for the characters no matter how hard I wanted to become invested in the relationship between Luke and Natalie or find the friendship between Luke and Moose as believable.  Despite the lack of connection between the characters the supporting cast did a great job and I was excited each time I saw them working it.  And, when the quote above is said in the film, it did not come across as cheesy as it sounded on the trailer.

The dance sequences were frequent and in your face (3D style as the title promises) and you better enjoy hip hop because it is incorporated throughout the entire movie. I loved how many dance moments there were, found it refreshing that there were no line or group dances that everyone just happened to know.  The 3D portion of the film was a great way to feel like you were a part of the dance crew or a fan in the crowd at the dance battles.  The best part of the 3D is when the credits roll – I think this is the first time I’ve been in a theatre when the entire crowd stayed to watch the ending credits all the way through.  Overall STEP UP 3D is easy and entertaining.

The shaky-cam, documentary style filmmaking seems to be catching on lately.  What’s surprising about this is that it took a while since THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT for it to actually be used in other genres.  But with the success of CLOVERFIELD and PARANORMAL ACTIVITY, it was only a matter of time until someone tried to bring it to the comedy genre.  Leave it to Will Ferrell and Adam McKay to find the guys to do it.  In THE VIRGINITY HIT, a group of friends decide to film one of their buddies while he tries to lose his virginity to his girlfriend.  But when she finds the camera in the bedroom, things don’t go as they planned.

The trailer looks pretty good and should make for a fun movie.  I think it’s going to be tough to keep it going once the night in question fails, but I like what they’ve done with it.  The film stars  Matt Bennett, Jacob Davich, Krysta Rodriguez, Justin Kline and Nicole Weaver.  Huck Botko and Andrew Gurland directed the film.  Watch the trailer here.

**Warning** this trailer contains adult language.

I hope Tony Scott sends Denzel Washington a big, expensive Christmas gift every year.  Because without Denzel’s brilliant acting, Scott’s recent movies would be complete crap.  Denzel makes you forget what you’re watching is ridiculous and insanely edited.  It looks like UNSTOPPABLE falls right into that category, but I have to admit that I think it looks like fun.  I actually like Tony Scott, but man, I really wish he’d ease up on that frantic editing.  This looks like a film that’s intense enough on its own, so maybe he won’t overdue it.

The film is about two conductors/engineers that try to stop a runaway train carrying hazardous substances, on pace to crash into a small town.  The film stars Denzel Washington, Chris Pine, Rosario Dawson, Elizabeth Mathis and Ethan Suplee.  It hits theaters everywhere on November 12th.  Watch the trailer here.

When hearing that Taraji P. Henson was going to play in a role inspired by the “first female head coach of an NCAA Division 1 Men’s team”, I of course was thinking basketball.  I even read the source and skipped over the word “golf” several times.  So, don’t get confused; there will be no basketball in this movie.  But Taraji P. Henson will be playing Cassandra Turner, who is a fiction character inspired by the real life Dr. Catana Starks.  Starks was a successful swim coach who parlayed that success into head coach of the men’s golf team.

The story is intriguing as Turner is the coach of a golf team at a predominantly black college and she finds golfers to be scarce.  So she embarks on a world tour to find eligible players and puts together a “uniquely multi-racial” team.  No mention if the team ever wins anything, although I think the movie would be anti-climatic if they turn out to get beat every tournament.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

A lot is being made today over reports that Tom Cruise is taking a huge upfront pay cut in order to bring MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4 to the big screen.  Cruise will probably still get a significant chunk of the backend profits, but he waived his usual $20 million fee.  Also, Paramount is co-financing the film, which means they’re trying to hedge their bets as far as losses go.  The haters still pounce on Cruise at every turn and I’ve already voiced my defense of Cruise, but I don’t see this pay cut as a sign of anything.  This is a smart move for Tom Cruise, just like Jim Carrey sacrificing upfront pay on YES, MAN proved to be a smart move for him.

What this tells me is that MISSION IMPOSSIBLE 4 is going to be great.  Tom Cruise has stayed around as long as he has because he can pick great scripts.  That’s really what separates him from his peers.  So if he believes whole heartedly that M:I4 is a hit, I believe him.  I also love that Brad Bird is still attached through all of this.  Bird has a few great movies of his own, so his judgment shouldn’t be questioned either.

Source: NY Mag

Ethan Hawke is going to have to brush up on his violin skills because he has signed on to star in A LATE QUARTET where he’ll be playing one part of a string quartet.  The film will be directed by Yaron Zilberman, who wrote the script with Seth Grossman.  The film is about a quartet that has been together for 25 years and then has to adapt when one of their members develops Parkinson’s disease.  Hawke will play the second violinist jockeying for more solos who also ends up having an affair with his jogging partner, destroying his marriage.

Obviously, this is an independent film that will probably attract a very small, niche audience, but I’m glad to see Ethan Hawke continue to do these types of films.  I like him as an actor, but I find him to be very inconsistent when it comes to the quality of the scripts he chooses.

Source: Variety

I remember reading JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH around the second grade. Roald Dahl was such an exceptional and creative mind when it came to writing interesting stories for children. While at times they were a bit more terrifying, they also took you on an adventure that had some sense of hope waiting for you on the other side. Director Henry Selick hit it out of the park when he helmed NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS. It was a film that not only kids could enjoy, but their parents could as well. Not to mention it will also be a film that stands the test of time. After the success of that film, Selick decided to move onward with JAMES with producer Tim Burton in hopes to spark more of that same magic.

While JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH is certainly a heart-warming, magical journey, it doesn’t seem to entertain on the same level as CHRISTMAS. In all honesty, at times it might border on slightly annoying. I guess this all really depends on how many musical numbers you can take. The characters in this film are awfully cheery, and even when they aren’t cheery; they still want to express their emotion in song. Plus, it’s hard to beat Danny Elfman’s voice. Here’s a simple equation when it comes to comparing actors who can carry a tune: Elfman > Richard Dreyfuss.

After viewing this film, I also have to wonder if Henry Selick has an awful family, as he is drawn to direct movies that have poor family structure. In NIGHTMARE, Sally’s only parent figure was a cruel old man. In CORALINE, the title characters parents neglected her, and then she in turn stumbled across a world with even worse parents with button eyes. Then there’s JAMES, who sadly looses his parents when a Rhino eats them. I know rhinos are known to charge, but I’m pretty sure I never caught anything on the Discovery Channel about rhinos dining on human flesh. But this is Dahl’s “fairytale” not mine.

When James’ parents pass away, he goes to his two scary looking Aunts (Joanna Lumley & Miriam Margolyes) who look more like Christopher Walken as the headless horseman in SLEEPY HOLLOW. They basically treat James as a Cinderella type–making him do chores, etc. All James does is dream about going to New York. His parents were planning to go there to visit the top of the Empire State Building before they passed away. The harassment from the Aunts continues and only gets worse when a giant peach grows from a tree in their yard. Soon after they find the peach, an old man (Pete Postlethwaite) visits James and gives him these hot green glowing worms. Obviously, these are no ordinary worms. Next thing you know, James is running after one of the little worms and into a hole in the giant peach. This hole animates him and leaves him in the care of a group of insects: Centipede (Richard Dreyfuss), Miss Spider (Susan Sarandon), Earthworm (David Thewlis), and Ladybug (Jane Leeves). Sadly, this is where it gets annoying. The songs start to break out more consistently now and the insects aren’t the coolest bunch. The only one that I found tolerable was Sarandon and this is simply because I love hearing her voice. Is that awkward? Nah. The rest of the film consists of the crew taking the trip to New York and grow as friends along the way.

One thing I really love about Selick’s film is the use of stop motion animation. This is one of my favorite techniques used in film, especially when it comes to a children’s story. FANTASTIC MR. FOX is a perfect example, although that is not Selick’s work. It does show you what that world is truly capable of, beyond the days of NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS. The animation is fantastic, but I feel like the story wasn’t fleshed out as it could have been. I was stuck feeling like the film relied too much on the musical numbers and not enough on the dialogue. For those of you who are huge fans of the book, I highly recommend this. To me, it wonderfully transfers the pages to the big screen. For the rest of you, unless you are a Dahl or Selick fan, you might want to leave this one to the youngest age bracket.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: I expected animated scenes to shine through on this Blu-ray and they did, to an extent.  But the real life scenes were disappointing, making for an overall dull transfer.

Audio: Nice and loud. I often had to turn it down during the musical numbers, not because I was mildly disinterested, but it was the fact that it was just so loud. There are also a few times when I had to turn the volume up to hear the dialogue. (5.1 DTS-HD).

Production Featurette (4:34) Something good for fans of Selick and the film. Interesting and short, but sadly no new footage here.

“Good News” Music Video (2:26): Just an old video with Randy Newman singing over clips of the film. Not my idea of “Good News”.

It feels weird not putting “Penn” on the end of Robin Wright’s name, but I guess she and Sean Penn are officially divorced, so it wouldn’t be applicable any more.  But Ms. Robin Wright looks set to join the cast of David Fincher’s THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO.  She will play Erika Berger, the publisher of the magazine that Mikael Blomkvist works at.  Daniel Craig, of course, will play Blomkvist and Stellan Skarsgard will play Martin Vanger.  The cast is rounding out nicely, but America still wants to know who’s going to play Lisbeth Salander.

I can’t say I’m Robin Wright’s biggest fan, but the role of Erika Berger (at least in the original) was very small, so this casting doesn’t really do anything for or against the film.  But like I said, we’re still waiting for Lisbeth, and her casting will determine if this film is successful or not.

Source: Deadline

William Petersen, Christina Hendricks and Lucy Liu have all joined an ensemble talent in DETACHMENT. This is Petersen’s first film since leaving his highly successful role in the television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. The other two actresses also come from a television background with Hendricks in Mad Men and Liu getting her start from Alley McBeal. The indie drama will be directed by Tony Kaye and also stars Adrien Brody, Bryan Cranston, James Caan and Marcia Gay Harden

The high school drama focuses mostly on the teachers working with their troubled students and centers around a detached substitute (Brody), who grows close to a homeless teen working as a prostitute. Peterson will play Vietnam veteran history teacher who gets in trouble for showing a gay film in class trying to build tolerance. I like the idea of focusing more on the teacher’s perspective dealing with the students. Lets hope they can juggle all the story lines successfully.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

Today must be “movies that save sea life” day, given this is the second update on a movie dealing with saving sea creatures.  This time, whales are the focus in the upcoming film, EVERYBODY LOVES WHALES.  Tim Blake Nelson is joining the cast of the film as a wildlife expert working in the wildlife management office.  The film is a romantic comedy of sorts following a small-town reporter and a Greenpeace volunteer that fall in love while trying to save three gray whales that get trapped under the ice of the Arctic Circle.  John Krasinski and Drew Barrymore will play the couple while Kristen Bell will play an LA reporter.

Ken Kwapis will be directing the film and since this film is based off true events, he has several different paths he can take on deciding what story to tell.  He can focus on the love story, the whales or the politics that erupted between the US and Russia over saving the whales.  Of course, he could also go after the media, who supposedly made a bigger deal out of this than it really was.  The book the film is based on was written by Tom Rose and is called ‘Freeing the Whales: How the Media Created the World’s Greatest Non-Event’.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

If you like animals or if you like beautiful scenery, then I think you’ll find something worthwhile in this release.  I’m not a big bug guy, so the insect segment didn’t do much for me, but I loved the segment on sea life and mammals.  But every segment has something positive and there’s no way you can view this without learning something about the animals you’re watching.  Although PLANET EARTH was informative, I found LIFE to be even more interesting and I actually felt like I learned something after each segment.

But all is not well in LIFE-land.  My view on this is that we’ve come too far in life (no pun intended) to have a set this popular and this expensive be released in 1080i.  If this was all there was and all that was available, maybe I could understand.  Or, if the price was dirt cheap (like the Over America series), then I would definitely understand.  But the most frustrating thing about this release is that there are basically two identical releases for LIFE; one contains a 1080i transfer and is narrated by Oprah Winfrey and the other contains a 1080p transfer and is narrated by David Attenborough (technically, there’s also a more detailed featurette on this version).  Now, truth be told that the differences are unnoticeable on about 75% of the set, but it’s still a serious disappointment for video enthusiasts.  A set like this should be reference-quality and the fact is that people who bought/have this version are getting slightly cheated.

The other main difference is that this Discovery Channel edition features narration by Oprah Winfrey.  I’m not Oprah’s biggest fan, so I was expecting to find her narration annoying, but I actually did not.  She sounded a little more unnatural and “childish” (I don’t mean that as insulting as it sounds) with her delivery, but her voice was easy to listen to and she kept the high pitches to a minimum.  I’m one of those that prefer Attenborough’s British, more “proper” narration, but I was fine with Oprah’s.

I think the BBC version of LIFE belongs on every Blu-ray collector’s shelf and if the 1080i transfer doesn’t bother you and you prefer Oprah Winfrey to David Attenborough, then this isn’t a bad purchase.  Either way you go, you’re going to love what you’re watching.  I continue to be amazed at what the BBC can do with these sets and look forward to future releases.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: I think I covered this in the review, but the 1080i transfer is a little frustrating.

Audio: The audio was incredible and at times it felt like you were with the animals.  I wasn’t a huge fan of the score, but it wasn’t overly distracting.

On Location Documentaries (68:57): These are actually 10 separate documentaries, all discussing the various aspects of filming some of the difficult scenes.  These are pretty interesting, if only to revel in some of the ingenious ideas the filmmakers came up with to capture various moments.

The Making of Life (41:42): This is similar to the above featurettes, but it takes more time to introduce the crew that actually did the work.  While the featurettes discussed specific scenes, this one spoke at an aggregate level and looked at the overall process.

Deleted Scenes (18:24):  I was surprised these even included narration and I can only assume they were axed to meet a specific runtime requirement.  Otherwise, they could have been included right along with any of the segments that made the cut.

The casting announcements will start trickling in over the next month as David Fincher prepares to start work on his English language remake of THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO.  Today we learn that Stellan Skarsgard has joined the cast as Martin Vanger, who’s one of the men accused of the murder that Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander are investigating.  It’s great to get an update on the casting for the film, but let’s be honest here; we just really, really want to know who’s playing Lisbeth Salander.  I’m still holding out hope that Noomi Rapace will reprise her role, but the longer we go, the more I think that won’t happen.  Rumors have been swirling and it seems like every actress in Hollywood is begging for the part.

The other question I have is whether they’re going to make Daniel Craig speak in a Swedish accent.  That may seem like a dumb question, but given the fact they’re filming it in Stockholm and they’re sticking to the novel, they’re going to have to explain Craig’s English accent or make him change it.

Source: Variety

Will Ferrell, Adam McKay, Kevin Messick and Jessica Elbaum, via Gary Sanchez Productions, will be producing the film HOUSE OF MY FATHER or CASA DI MI PADRE in Spanish along with NALA films.  It’s tough to understand what’s really going on here, but of course they had to announce it in as funny of a way as they could.  In the statement, they indicate that Ferrell’s involvement is because of a “closed-door settlement” of a lawsuit with Sanchez (there is no Sanchez).  NALA said “NALA can’t comment regarding the circumstances surrounding why Will is attached to the project, we are just thrilled he is on board and are moving full steam ahead since we have one month to teach him Spanish.”

Then “Sanchez” said “what comes around, goes around, Will Ferrell.”.  So with all of that said, we still don’t really know what the film is about or even if there really is a film.  Something tells me this is a joke on the gullible media outlets that will no doubt report this as fact.  Truth be told, I don’t think we know really what’s true and what’s not.

Source: Risky Business

The first trailer for David Schwimmer’s TRUST is pretty impressive.  It looks like they take the sensitive story of a father coping with the fact that his daughter was the victim of an online predator and the many emotions that would incite in a father.  My only concern with the film is that the subject matter might be too played out.  Of course, that depends on where they take the story.  But a father busting heads to get answers and to seek revenge is nothing we haven’t seen before.  I just hope there’s some sort of resolution to the situation, unlike THE LOVELY BONES where we see a horrible event and then the movie just kind of ends.

TRUST stars Clive Owen, Catherine Keener, Viola Davis, Noah Emmerich and Liana Liberato.  I’ve been a Clive Owen fan for a while, so I’m happy with him, but I just can’t get on board the Catherine Keener bandwagon.  The film does not yet have a domestic release date.  Watch the trailer here.

I feel like I’ve been reading about Kristen Stewart starring in ON THE ROAD for so long that I just assumed filming was underway and the cast had been set.  It wasn’t until today that I realized the main role hadn’t been cast yet.  But all of that has changed now that Viggo Mortensen has signed on to star as Old Bull Lee and Amy Adams will star as Jane, his junkie wife and mother of his two kids.  They join a cast that already includes Kristen Stewart, Kirsten Dunst, Sam Riley and Garrett Hedlund.  Walter Salles will be directing the film, marking his return to the Jack Kerouac stories after directing THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES.

Jack Kerouac is an acquired taste, but it seems like everyone in Hollywood is always trying to make one of his stories or novels into a feature film.  ON THE ROAD has been a project for Francis Ford Coppola for years and it looks like he’ll finally be able to be a part of the film’s adaptation as a producer.

Source: Deadline

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment has announced that the comic-strip (which ran in 600 newspapers in over 20 countries) inspired film, MARMADUKE  with the voice talents of Owen Wilson, Emma Stone and George Lopez, will be released on Blu-ray August 31, 2010.  The film follows the adventures of a suburban family that move to a new neighborhood with their Great Dane.  Teenage Marmaduke tries to fit into the neighborhood with a pack of four-legged friends while adventures and comedy ensues. The BD/DVD combo pack has a list of special features that include:

• Marmaduke Mayhem! Gag Reel (BD-exclusive)
• Deleted Scenes
• Canine Casting
• Cowabarka! Surfing Dogs
• Puppy Marmaduke and Kitty Carlos: Home Movies (BD-exclusive)

Harry Connick Jr., Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman are set to star in the upcoming family, feel-good movie DOLPHIN TALE about the friendship that develops between a boy and an injured dolphin that loses her tail in a crab trap.  He goes on a crusade to develop a prosthetic tail for her and her disability becomes an inspiration to everyone around her.  Now, taking that synopsis, would you think this movie deserves to be shot in 3D?  Me neither, but that’s the rage right now and now it looks like everything, even family dramas, are coming at you in 3D.

As for the plot, it has a little of that FREE WILLY vibe to it, which is fine because FREE WILLY was pretty good when I was a kid.  I think it’s going to be tough to sit through a bloody and battered dolphin for half a movie, so the filmmakers are going to have to be careful how they deal with the dolphin losing her tail.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The first trailer for the highly anticipated BURLESQUE is here, featuring the much hyped screen debut of Christina Aguilera.  And although many of the stars in this film have a very passionate fan base, I have to point out something about this film; it looks almost exactly like SHOWGIRLS.  So much so, that I found myself snickering at it.  It has an eerily similar storyline of a small town girl heading to the big city to be a dancer, where she works in a club, then gets her big break an becomes famous in that city.  But that’s a generalized plot.  What makes it bad is that they duplicated a lot of the little things like having her mimic the dancers while in the audience and fall for the waiter/bartender guy.  The acting also looks awkward, like no one really knows what to say.

I don’t know, maybe I’m being too hard on it.  Check it out and decide for yourself.  The film stars Christina Aguilera, Kristen Bell, Stanley Tucci, Alan Cumming, Eric Dane, Julianne Hough and Cher.  Steven Antin is directing for a November 24th release date.  Watch the trailer here.

Maggie Grace will reteam with her TAKEN writer and producer Luc Besson in LOCKOUT. The sci-fi drama is about a man, played by the terrific Guy Pearce, falsely convicted of espionage conspiracy against the U.S. He is offered his freedom in exchange for rescuing the President’s daughter from a hostel prison in outer space. It sounds like it’s got a bit of an ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK vibe.

Maggie Grace played one of my least favorite characters in possibly my favorite television dramas of all time in LOST. But I will agree she’s not so hard on the eyes. On the other hand, Luc Besson has created one of my favorite films of all time in LEON: THE PROFESSIONAL. Besson has experience with a fun sci-fi pic in THE FIFTH ELEMENT, so I have high hopes for this next thriller.

Source: Deadline

I hate it whenever I see a movie that’s marketed as being “presented” by another director.  It just irks me because obviously if that person wanted to direct the film, they would have.  So if it’s not good enough for them to direct it, then why should I go see it?  In the case of DON’T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK, Guillermo del Toro isn’t “presenting”, so it’s not quite the same thing, but the trailer clearly uses his name to sell the film.  Technically, he had a hand in the screenplay and is a producer.  But, to the studio’s defense, if they hadn’t advertised his name, I wouldn’t be at all interested.  Because it looks like your standard horror film, but with him attached, I have to believe it’s going to be something more.

The film stars Katie Holmes and Guy Pearce and revolves around a young girl sent to live with her father and his girlfriend when she discovers mysterious creatures that want her to join them.  Troy Nixey is directing and the film hits theaters on January 11th, 2011.  Watch the trailer here.

I know a lot of people that were upset with how bad G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA was, mainly because they were so attached to the action figures of their childhood.  Although I was as big a fan of the figures as they come, I can’t say I was upset at how bad it was.  Truth be told, I expected it to be worse.  With Stephen Sommers and “power suits”, I knew it wasn’t going to be great.  But the film made some serious dough worldwide and chances are good the sequel will do just as well, especially if released at the end of August as to avoid competition.  It seems that Paramount agrees with me and they are moving full steam ahead on a sequel.  ZOMBIELAND writers Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick are already writing the sequel.

Early reports indicate that Stephen Sommers will return to direct and Channing Tatum will once again star as Duke.  No word yet on what other characters will show up, but I have to assume Brendan Frasier’s character will have a bigger role, as will Joseph Gordon-Levitt and his Cobra Commander.

Source: The Wrap

As all Quentin Tarantino fans know painfully well, there are few people in Hollywood that get rumored projects more than Tarantino.  Between films, he can be set to direct numerous films before he actually starts making one of them.  So until he’s on location and behind the camera, physically filming a scene, I refuse to believe he will direct the film.  So with that caveat in place, the latest rumor has Tarantino attached to write and direct a reboot of THE SHADOW.  If that seems strange to you, then join the club.  Although the original radio show had a little bit of a “pulpy” feel to it, I just can’t imagine Tarantino jumping on board.

The main reason the rumor seems farfetched is because of the 1994 film with Alec Baldwin.  Yes, that version was pretty bad, but I don’t remember an outcry from fans seeking a more faithful telling of the story.  Although Quentin can do no wrong in my book, I have no interest in him taking on something like this.  But truth be told, if he directs or writes it, I’ll go see it anyway.

Source: Pajiba

Sean Penn probably makes me more upset than any other actor in Hollywood.  I can’t stand the guy and I think he’s just a despicable, unlikable human being with few redeeming qualities.  Whether it’s his visit to Iraq before the war or his lying about his involvement in the relief efforts in Haiti, the guy is just obnoxious.  But what makes me so upset is that no matter how much I dislike him personally, he’s one of the finest actors of our generation and even though he hasn’t always done great movies, he’s always delivered great performances.  Therefore, despite his real-life persona, I look forward to all of his movies.

Next up for the actor is looking like it’s going to be GENIUS, which is based off the literary editor Max Perkins.  Perkins is responsible for finding and harnessing such talent as F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway and Thomas Wolfe.  Bill Pohlad will be producing and directing the film.  The film is based off the biography by A. Scott Berg titled “Max Perkins: An Editor of Genius”.  It definitely sounds like a role Sean Penn could sink his teeth into.  The official synopsis is below:

Filled with colorful anecdotes about everything from Perkins’s struggles to convince the old guard at Scribners to publish his visionary (and often controversial) authors to his falling out with one of his most brilliant discoveries, Thomas Wolfe, MAX PERKINS reveals with insight and humor the professional and personal life of one of the most legendary figures in the history of American publishing. Given unprecedented access to the correspondence between Perkins and his writers, Berg has fashioned a compellingly thorough biography that is as entertaining as it is informative.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

We have another contest for you today, this time giving you a chance to win the baseball classic BULL DURHAM on Blu-ray.  Kevin Costner, Tim Robbins and Susan Sarandon give some memorable performances in the comedy and even if you don’t win this contest, I highly recommend adding this to your collection.  I’m assuming everyone has seen this movie by now, considering it’s one of the all-time classic sports movies, but in case you haven’t, the official synopsis is below:

The baseball season gets off to a rocky start when the Durham Bull’s new catcher “Crash” Davis (Costner) punches out the cocky young pitcher, “nuke” LaLoosh (Robbins), he’s just been hired to train.  Matters get even more complicated when sexy Annie Savoy (Sarandon) informs both men that each season she chooses one player to share her bed – and Nuke and Crash are this year’s ‘draft picks.’

But, as you know, I can’t make it TOO easy for you.  So to win your Blu-ray, you have to answer the trivia question below.  I’ll warn you; this one is tricky and it helps if you’re a Kevin Costner fan.  If you know the answer, fill in your name, email and answer in the box below.  Winners will be emailed on Monday, August 9th before midnight.  Only one entry per email, please.

Question: What was the last film that Kevin Costner played a current or former professional baseball player?

THE CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.  THANK YOU TO EVERYONE THAT SUBMITTED AN ANSWER.  THE CORRECT ANSWER WAS: THE UPSIDE OF ANGER

Kurt Russell will be joining Freedom Films TOUCHBACK. The film is about a man (Brian Pressley) who gets a chance to relive his glory days as a high school football player before being injured. He gets to live every man’s dream and actually see what would have happened if that injury didn’t take place but this time he gets to decide which life he wants. It sounds like a football version of THE FAMILY MAN. I’m sure it will be very predictable but a feel-good flick nonetheless. Although, I personally think people put too much emphasis on high school sports. The movie will also star Melanie Lynskey, Christine Lahti, Marc Blucas, Drew Powell, Sarah Wright, Sianoa Smit-McPhee and Kevin Covais

Russell will once again be playing the coach. His first time was done brilliantly as the U.S. hockey coach in MIRACLE. Kurt Russell is one of those actors who makes every film, whether it be bad or good, better. He definitely has that charisma factor making him a joy to watch. Writer and director Don Handfield agrees with me and had this to say,

“I am thrilled he responded to the material. He is an icon and brings a unique warmth, charm and strength to the character. I feel blessed to be working with such a legendary actor on my first film,”

Source: ComingSoon

It seems like it has been a while since we had a Twilight related news story.  Robert Pattinson is off filming WATER FOR ELEPHANTS and Kristen Stewart is off filming ON THE ROAD, so no one has time to talk about Twilight any more.  Well, almost no one.  Summit finally announced today that the second part to BREAKING DAWN and the very last movie in the Twilight series is coming a full year after the release of the first part.  That’s right, THE TWILIGHT SAGA: BREAKING DAWN PART 2 isn’t coming to theaters until November 16th, 2012.

I understand Summit’s desire to milk this series for all it’s worth, but releasing the two films a year apart is ridiculous.  The first part should hit in the fall and the second should hit in the summer.  You still get the films on separate fiscal accounting sheets, but you don’t run the risk of the Twi-hards losing interest.  I know that seems impossible now, but tween girls are finicky and this seems like a mildly risky move from Summit.  But both films will feature the Twilight cast, which includes Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart, Jackson Rathbone, Ashley Greene, Taylor Lautner, Kellan Lutz, Nikki Reed and Dakota Fanning.

Universal Studios is bringing GET HIM TO THE GREEK, starring Jonah Hill, Russell Brand and Rose Byrne to Blu-ray on September 28, 2010.  The release will feature both the theatrical version of the film as well as an unrated version and is packed with additional footage as well as an option to choose one of three bonus movies (classic comedies, such as: UNCLE BUCK, DAZED & CONFUSED and LIFE) to stream instantly on Blu-ray, which will be available until March 31, 2011.   That’s an interesting feature to include on a Blu-ray.  I can only assume that Universal is hoping it will help their streaming movie service take off.

GET HIM TO THE GREEK received decent reviews and will have plenty of special features to check out if you are on the fence about adding it to your collection.   I love that they got the cast together to do a commentary.  I would have been disappointed without it.  Special features include:

Bonus Features Exclusively on BLU-RAY:

• Musical performances from The Today Show and VH-1 Storytellers
• The Actual Auditions that landed Rose Byrne, Elisabeth Moss, Nick Kroll, Aziz Ansari and T.J. Miller their roles
• Additional and extended scenes not available anywhere else
• Instant access to stream a bonus movie by choosing one of three hilarious comedies: Uncle Buck, Dazed and Confused or Life via BD-Live or a smartphone
• BD-LIVE^TM—Access the BD-Live^™ Center through your Internet-connected player to get even more content, watch the latest trailers and more.
• Karaoke -  Sing along to 15 Outrageous Songs

Bonus Features Available on BLU-RAY and 2-Disc Collection DVD:

• Line-O-Rama
• Feature Commentary with director Nicholas Stoller, cast members Jonah Hill, Russell Brand, Rose Byrne, Elisabeth Moss and producer Rodney Rothman
• The Making Of “African Child” Documentary
• Getting In Tune With The Greek Documentary
• Getting To Get Him to The Greek Documentary
• Deleted, Extended and Alternate Scenes including an Alternate Intro and Ending
• Musical Performances from Infant Sorrow’s triumphant 1999 Greek Theater Concert and 2009 Comeback Concert, plus a peek at their infamous World Tour and the 2002 London Concert.
• Gag Reel
• Blind Medicine – a promo for Sarah Marshall’s new TV series
  • Five Complete Music Videos featuring Aldous Snow, Infant Sorrow and Jackie Q

Digital Copy

I hadn’t heard much about THE WINNING SEASON and given it stars one of my favorite actors, Sam Rockwell, that’s disappointing.  But today we get the first image from the film, featuring the cute-but-still-awkward-looking Emma Roberts playing basketball.  In the film, Rockwell plays an adult slacker that ends up coaching a girl’s high school basketball team.  Emma Roberts, of course, is one member of that team.  The film also stars Shareeka Epps, Emily Rios and Rob Corddry, who is probably still riding high from his hilarious turn in HOT TUB TIME MACHINE.

The film sounds overly familiar and can be likened to any number of sports movies, but the one that sticks out is THE MIGHTY DUCKS.  However, Sam Rockwell usually gives a good performance and pairing him up with Corddry should make for some good laughs.  I’m still not sure about Emma Roberts, though.  It opens in theaters on September 3^rd…which reminds me, why haven’t we seen a trailer yet?

If you follow projects that are either in work, or on the verge of being in work, you hear about scripts that get really close, but can’t seem to get all the right pieces together.  Paul Haggis’s script HONEYMOON WITH HARRY is one such project that has been gestating for over seven years now.  It seems things might be changing for the script as it now has a studio, two actors and a director all swarming the script like buzzards.  If everything goes through, Jonathan Demme will direct Robert De Niro and Bradley Cooper in the depressing drama.  It should be reiterated that at this point, all three have met with the studio, but none have signed onto the deal.

The film is about a womanizing playboy (Cooper) that meets the girl of his dreams and decides to settle down and marry her, against her father’s (De Niro) wishes.  But right before their wedding, she suffers a tragic death.  Grief-stricken, the guy goes on their planned honeymoon by himself with the goal of drinking himself to death.  But he also meets up with her father, who is there to spread her ashes on her favorite beach.  Just reading that makes me tear up.  And with the overly sappy Haggis behind the script, you can be sure they’ll milk all the emotion out of the audience they can.

Source: Deadline

Their first collaboration (JUNO) was so successful that it’s no wonder director Jason Reitman and screenwriter Diablo Cody would choose to work together on a new film.  This time, Reitman will be taking the reigns of YOUNG ADULT, the new script from Cody about a young adult novel ghost writer that wants to reclaim her identity. Her plan is to try to get back together with her high school boyfriend, who now wants nothing to do with her.  While working on her plan, she meets her old high school pals and that leads to an exploration of hopes and dreams and the reality that sets in after high school.  Charlize Theron will be playing the ghost writer and she’s the only official star attached at this point.

I like the second part of the script, where a writer talks to old high school classmates and learns where their dreams died and what happened to their lives, but the idea of her trying to get back together with her ex, who’s now married by the way, is a little off-putting.  We’ve seen silly rom-coms like that before.  But despite her personality faults, Cody is a talented writer, so I’ll have faith she knows what she’s doing.

Source: Deadline

Ewan McGregor is a ghost writer, tabbed to pen the autobiography of the former British prime minister Adam Lang (Pierce Brosnan).  We start out with the murder of McGregor’s predecessor, setting the tone that something is not quite right with the assignment.  When we meet Lang, we learn that he’s being charged with war crimes for approving the kidnapping of suspected terrorists and handing them over to the CIA.  But the actual mystery that the ghost writer is investigating is how exactly Lang is involved with the CIA and if he really is who he says he is.  So there are a few mysteries going on in the story and none of them really work together.

One of the issues with the film is the impending doom facing the ghost writer.  We know that his predecessor died (presumably murdered), but I never felt that he was actually in any danger.  A more effective way to heighten the intensity would have been to do away with the predecessor all together and instead of having a murder of a character we never saw or cared about, have one of Lang’s employees (or maybe the writer’s agent) get murdered while the writer is at Lang’s house.  That would impact the audience more and create a more dramatic situation for the ghost writer.

Polanski also focused way too heavily on Lang’s impending war crimes trial.  The audience never cared whether Lang was guilty of war crimes and this felt like an attempt on Polanski’s part to push his political agenda, which he did at the sacrifice of his film.  The real mystery that the audience was interested in was whether or not Lang was actually a CIA agent.  I wanted that to be explored more and all of the drama in the film should have centered on the ghost writer investigating and unraveling that mystery.  That could have sparked a cat and mouse situation with each party trying to outsmart the other.

At this point, I’ve basically re-written the entire script, but that leads me to my point that there’s a great, basic idea in THE GHOST WRITER, Polanski just lost sight of it.  Spike Lee is also guilty of sacrificing his story for the benefit of making his political point and it seems Roman Polanski fell victim to the same trap.  I’m all for directors making political points with their films, but never at the expense of developing a story that audiences can relate to.

Despite the problems with the script and story development, I did enjoy Polanski’s direction.  I loved the use of dark, dreary colors and the film had a great feel to it.  I also enjoyed Ewan McGregor and Pierce Brosnan, who did very well in their roles.  That made it that much more frustrating that they didn’t get a chance to really shine when pitted against each other.  The only negative as far as performances comes from Kim Cattrall, who delivers one of the worst British accents in the history of film.  Seriously, Polanski, were there no British actresses available?

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: I loved this transfer.  This is the first double sided disc I’ve seen from Summit, but it definitely didn’t result in a loss of video quality.  The darker tones to the film were beautiful

Audio: The sound was efficient although given the nature of the film, surround channels weren’t used very often.

The Ghost Writer: Fiction or Reality (10:46): It’s kind of funny when screenwriter Robert Harris talks about aspects of the story he struggled with, most of which I didn’t like.  He does most of the talking and speaks openly about the similarities with Tony Blair.

The Cast of The Ghost Writer (11:49): I needed an explanation for why Kim Cattrall was there, but I didn’t get it.  The rest of this is dedicated to how great Roman Polanski is and how much everyone enjoyed working with him and each other.

An Interview with Roman Polanski (8:39): More love given to Roman Polanski, this time Polanski answers questions from an interviewer we can’t hear.  He keeps it pretty light, but it was nice to see a lot of the behind the scenes clips.

Paramount has decided to turn Justin Bieber’s life story into a 3D movie. His life consists of a whopping 16 years so I can’t imagine it being too long. David Guggenheim will direct, who won an Oscar for AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH. I’m sure it will have a few performances with a high selling soundtrack. For all you single ladies, you can catch the teen heartthrob star in his life story movie on Valentine’s Day, Feb 11, 2011.

What is with this Justin Bieber kid? Everyone knows and loves him but I feel late in the game. I just found out who he was because I recently caught his performance in a sketch on Saturday Night Live. It was pretty good but I credit that mostly to the hilarious Tina Fey as a teacher lusting for her student (Bieber). Didn’t he just become popular yesterday? I guess I’m so far removed from his demographic that I don’t realize his popularity. Who am I kidding I own Bieber sheets.

Source: Deadline

The normally successful Jerry Bruckheimer has had a rough year so far.  His first summer movie, PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME fell kind of flat with audiences while his second feature, THE SORCERER’S APPRENTICE wasn’t seen at all.  Personally, I thought PoP was kind of fun and I think it will do much, much better on the home video front.  Disney must be thinking the same thing as they’ve just announced the Blu-ray release of PRINCE OF PERSIA: THE SANDS OF TIME.  On September 14th, it will be available in three separate editions, including a Blu-ray only, a DVD only and a Blu-ray/DVD/Digital copy combo pack.

Unfortunately, extras are kind of limited on the release, consisting of only a featurette entitled “An Unseen World: The Making of Prince of Persia” and some deleted scenes.  The Blu-ray will also feature a feature called “CineExplore” in which users can click on an icon and “unlock secrets behind your favorite scenes”.  That feature will have over 40 segments, making up for the lack of features I suppose.  It would have been nice to get a commentary from Gyllenhaal.  I would have been interested to hear what he did to get in shape for the film.  No one gains that much muscle, that fast.

Late last week we learned that ‘The Tudors’ star Henry Cavill was set to topline the thriller THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY.  I’m sure Cavill’s fans were happy to hear that, but more fans will be pleased to know that Bruce Willis will also be starring in the film.  Cavill will be playing a cocky Wall Street banker that reluctantly goes on a vacation to Spain with his family, only to see them get kidnapped, forcing him to uncover a government conspiracy and discover secrets about his father.  Willis will be playing his father while Sigourney Weaver is in talks to play the villain.  Mabrouk El Mekchri is directing.

At first, I thought this was going to be more of an action movie, but for some reason I’m getting the feeling it’s going to be more of a drama/thriller.  It sounds a little more like a mystery that Cavill’s character is going to have to solve, which is fine, but not what I first thought.  Willis is always good and I’m interested to see Weaver as a villain.

Source: Deadline

Prison, that’s the one place I hope to God I never see in this lifetime.  I do enjoy a good prison based flick but after seeing just about every one of them out there I’ve come to realize that it’s no place for me.  Frank Leone feels the same way but unfortunately he’s passed the point of no return.  I liked this flick when I first saw it and re-watching it now is like singing and eighties farewell tour which is good and bad.  The good part being that I love eighties flicks, the bad part being that we don’t get that kind of movie anymore.

There’s a lot of my favourite eighties nuances here from the gritty finish, the ballsy language and the no holds barred violence, all of which are good to see but truth be told this is one of my least favourite Sly flicks from back in the day.  I will say that this movie bridged a nice gap for his performance in TANGO AND CASH (now THAT was a prison scenario that kicked some ass!).  I enjoyed Frank’s character here but the movie I wanted to see was the back story between him and warden where Frank busted out of his prison and made him look like a fool.  Sadly this isn’t the case which doesn’t make this film bad by any stretch, just a little mildly paced.

It was nice to see Donald Sutherland in action (I miss that guy and always picture him in BACKDRAFT which makes me smile) and of course there were some other familiar faces but the one that sticks out the most is Larry Romano (First Base) who I wouldn’t have known then but recognize now from one of my favourite comedy sitcoms THE KING OF QUEENS.  One of the best parts about revisiting oldies for me is catching small cast things like this, and you’d be amazed how many of them there are to catch.  The acting, dialogue and overall performances were pretty tight and not all cheesy like some eighties fodder, which is also nice considering many of these films are known for that.

LOCK UP is nowhere near Sly’s best film, if anything it felt like a dramatic roll of the dice from a man who was used to just doing shoot ‘em up action pieces.  Is that a bad thing, not really, it’s just not the adrenaline rush you might be used to when it comes down to Sly’s older stuff.  Flicks like this one are what made me love PRISON BREAK and or prison films in general.  Nobody wants to be in general population but I think we’re all very curious about what goes on in there…aside from the soap dropping end of things.  The upgrade to Blu-ray is solid but this one’s for Sly fanatics in my opinion.  One thing’s for sure, this has made me want to go out and hunt down OVER THE TOP on Blu-ray and re-watch TANGO AND CASH on Blu-ray which I happened to pick up last week (new) for nine ninety-nine.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video:  2.35:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  Prison never looks fun, but the transfer to Blu-ray is slick here and the prison football game did look fun…well sort of.

Audio:  5.1 DTS-HD in English, French and Spanish with the same subtitle options.  As I mentioned before, the writing and dialogue were exceptionally well done for an eighties movie.

The Making of Lock Up (6:50):  This old school look at how the film was put together has Sly backing his character and a lot of talk about the ups and downs of shooting on location at a real prison which hadn’t been done much at the time.

Sylvester Stallone Profile (3:13):  I was hoping for a movie profile here but this is more Sly giving us a profile of his character Frank Leone than of himself as an actor.

Behind the Scenes (8:12): Here we get more insight into how a movie gets filmed when you’re in a real prison.  It was more than enough to put everyone involved a little on edge.

Interviews (7:01):  There are five brief interviews with cast members who share their thoughts about the film, Sly’s is a five minute repeat of stuff he’s already said leaving the other ones clocking in at between twenty and thirty seconds, which as you can imagine isn’t enough time to say much.

Previews:  There’s also a trailer for the film.

Over the weekend, the interesting nugget was dropped that Robert Rodriguez is in negotiations with Fox to direct the infamous DEADPOOL spin-off that has been planned for over a year now.  Everyone involved with the project is being unusually tight-lipped about it, but the one thing we do know for sure is that Rodriguez has been sent the script for DEADPOOL, which was written by Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick (who also wrote ZOMBIELAND). However, all signs are pointing to a deal being worked out and Rodriquez taking on the project as director.

I sometimes draw the ire of fanboys everywhere because I refuse to drool over Robert Rodriguez.  I tend to draw comparisons with him and Kevin Smith in that their first few projects were impressive and fun to watch with the little budget they had to work with, but all of their recent projects have been disappointments.  With that said, Rodriquez specializes in snappy one-liners and over the top gore, which is exactly what DEADPOOL needs.  So it kind of seems like a perfect match.  The real question is whether or not Ryan Reynolds will return to the film and whether or not they even need him to actually appear as himself.  His face is supposed to be disfigured, so really they could get an unknown stunt actor to play Deadpool and just have Reynolds do the voice.

Source: LA Times

Rudd’s Tim has ideas to move up the corporate ladder, but as an audition his boss, played slyly by Bruce Greenwood, he must find a loser to be judged in this dinner. At first he is convinced to forgo the dinner by his girlfriend, Julie (played sparingly by Stephanie Szostak), but then he runs into Barry (literally), played ridiculously clueless by Steve Carell, and he can’t pass up the chance. Barry’s schmuckiness exists on many levels, but he’s always trying to help his new friend in the days before the dinner, which lead to disastrous misunderstandings with Julie. Barry’s key schmucky talent, however, is taxidermy – and he recreates classic masterpieces with dead mice. There is a riotous side story with Tim and a psycho ex-girlfriend, played great by Lucy Punch, and good laughs at the expense of the Swiss, but the let down is the dinner itself. We get to meet the collection of circus freaks the execs bring, but they are quick laughs that are either not used enough or just sophomoric. That and the awkward way the tables get turned on the executives are the shortcomings, but the film as a whole has many great laughs, and that’s what we’re there for, right?

Steve Carell does great things with Barry, making him an unbelievably clueless character that we believe in. He has a history that gets revealed through his mouse-terpieces, and when it is brought up his heartbreak is palpable…because we care about him. Other great laughs come from “Flight of the Conchords” Jemaine Clement is a great character as an artist working with Julie, and the scenes he gets, he owns – with hilarious dialogue and eccentricities. Another very funny character is played by Zach Galifinakis as a co-worker of Barry’s…with talents of his own. But Paul Rudd is not just a straight man, and posing him solely as such is a waste of talent. He played it straight in I LOVE YOU, MAN, but still was given comical lines to match Jason Segel. No such writing was given to him here, and that’s a shame. But the film still supplies copious amounts of comedy jokes that had many in the theater laughing out loud. This is a summer comedy worth a viewing.

Josh Hutcherson will executive produce and star in the teen horror-comedy DETENTION. You might recognize Hutcherson from JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH or more recently the well-received THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT with Julianne Moore and Annette Bening. Joseph Kahn will direct the indie film that will also star the fading Dane Cook. He seems to become less and less cool the more exposure he gets.

The film will follow a group of high school seniors who are being tormented by a slasher-movie killer that has come to life. The fact that it’s sort of a cheeky movie and independently financed this might be surprising fun.

Source: Variety

September 1^st

The American

September 3^rd

Machete

The Winning Season

September 10^th

Resident Evil: Afterlife

The Virginity Hit

Never Let Me Go

Easy A

The Town

September 17th

Devil

Jack Goes Boating (Limited)

Catfish (Limited)

Alpha and Omega

September 24^th

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

You Again

Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole

Buried (Limited)

Waiting for Superman (Limited)

It’s Kind of a Funny Story (Limited)

With very little competition at the box office this weekend, it’s no surprise that the great INCEPTION would hold tight at #1 for the third straight week.  The film’s biggest competition came from DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS, which actually beat INCEPTION on Friday’s totals, but lost ground the rest of the weekend.  The other new releases this weekend didn’t fare so well with CHARLIE ST. CLOUD opening in a very weak 6th spot while CATS AND DOGS: THE REVENGE OF KITTY GALORE fared slightly better by opening in 5th.  Neither of those openings surprise me since St. Cloud looks horribly depressing and Cats and Dogs looks plain silly.

Next week is the calm before the storm with the funny-looking comedy THE OTHER GUYS opening before the big August 13th weekend, where THE EXPENDABLES, SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD and EAT, PRAY, LOVE all open up.  Chances are good THE OTHER GUYS will take the top spot, but I suspect INCEPTION will hang in the top five for a few more weeks now.

1. Inception $26 million

2. Dinner For Schmucks $23 million

3. Salt $19 million

4. Despicable Me $15 million

5. Cats And Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore $12.5 million

6. Charlie St. Cloud $12 million

7. Toy Story 3 $5.5 million

8. Grown Ups $4.5 million

9. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice $4.2 million

10.  Ramona and Beezus $3.5 million

Source: Box Office Mojo, Deadline

Perhaps wanting to make up for the casting of Richard Lewis yesterday, director Amy Heckerling has signed the underrated Kristen Johnston to join the cast of her upcoming romantic horror comedy VAMPS.  Johnston will be playing Mrs. Van Helsing, the mother of the boy one of the vampires falls in love with.  And yes, let the groans commence regarding her last name.  Unless one of the vampires turns into a bat, I don’t think this film could get any more cliché.  The film stars Alicia Silverstone, Krysten Ritter, Sigourney Weaver and Richard Lewis.

This movie seems to have zero fan support right now and I have this sneaking suspicion this is going to end up straight to DVD.  They may be thinking theatrical release right now, but I can’t imagine this film will screen well.  Audiences are just too sick of vampires at the moment.

Source: ComingSoon

In 1987, this was a masterpiece of action-thriller filmmaking. You’ve got Arnie, Jesse Ventura, and Carl Weathers ready to bust some heads open. A Special Forces team is sent to a remote location in Latin America (down in the jungle deep) to “extract hostages”. Actually, it’s a little more than that. Before the Special Forces team had to come in, a group of Green Berets are sent in to take care of things. They didn’t exactly get too far into their plan. Arnold and his men stumble upon some of the Green Berets hanging upside down from trees missing their birthday suits—quite gruesome. Could the guerillas from the nearby village have done such a vile thing? Nope. They are the least of their problems. Something else entirely is looking to hunt each and every one of them. Don’t run…there’s nowhere to hide.

The rest of the film is a struggle for survival. There are plenty of tension filled moments, and there were a few times when I actually jumped. The film after all these years still manages to keep you on the edge of your seat wondering who is going to get picked off next. If you’ve never seen this film, be prepared for constant action from one minute to the next.

Like I said at the beginning, what’s great about PREDATOR is the simplicity. The story is easy to follow and the characters are one-dimensional manly men—except for that hardcore chick they were keeping as a hostage. The manly cast works so well together: Arnold, Jesse, Carl, Bill Duke, Sonny Landham, and Richard Chaves. They spend most of their time trying to one up another or laughing at each other’s girly men qualities. Sadly, they don’t all stick around for too long. A few of them put up a decent fight for their own lives, and some of them just like to stare death in its cold hard face.

John McTiernan did a great job with making this a film that still stands the test of time, especially with all of the action films that have come out over the years. You don’t even end up laughing at the cheesy effects used back in ’87. In fact, you sort of admire the film. When you were a kid, this was some serious stuff. I think if you sit down and give PREDATOR another viewing you might realize how much you really like it. I promise you an epic battle scene between Arnold and the predator. Unleash your inner child and let he/she indulge in a little violence. The film is worth it.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: For the most part, the video looked decent. At times the some colors were more vibrant than others, but it was never horribly distracting. I think the only real problem I had was the fact there were quite a few scenes that looked like they were transferred straight off the VHS version. It seemed sort of lazy. (1.85:1 Widescreen).

Audio: The audio is clear and at times seemingly perfect. If you like your action loud like a stealth karate tiger carrying machine guns, then this should make you pretty happy. (5.1 DTS-HD).

Commentary from director John McTiernan- I recommend this for hardcore fans of the series only. This just wasn’t one of the more memorable ones.

Text commentary from Film Historian Eric Lichtenfeld- This was actually more of a treat than the director commentary. It’s basically like the pop-up trivia you’d see included on some disks.

Predator: Evolution of a Species- Hunters of Extreme Perfection (11:13) This goes into the process of the script and development of the movie. There is an interview with John Davis, a producer on the film. Robert Rodriguez and Nimrod Antal were also part of the interview process and there was some behind-the-scenes footages from PREDATORS included as well.

If It Bleeds We Can Kill It: The Making of Predator (28:47): I got really excited to watch this then I was informed by a massive Predator fan that a lot of this was included on a past DVD release. It’s still a cool feature with interviews of the cast, except Arnold. That was sort of a disappointment that he was not included.

Inside the Predator Featurettes (30:00): There are seven short featurettes here that cover a lot of production ground. It’s also a lot of older material that is really cool to see now. Check out how the alien is designed, stunts, and pulling Arnold into the film.

Special Effects Featurettes (5:00): Two really short featurettes that go into the red suit effects and camouflage tests.

Short Takes With the Filmmakers (10:30): Short interviews with director John McTiernan, Jesse Ventura talking about how he got into politics, and an entertaining look at Stan Winston effects master.

Deleted Scenes and Outtakes (6:00): A few cool scenes that were left out of the original. Very short.

Photo Gallery and Predator Profile (2:36): This includes a gallery of still photographs and a profile on the Predator himself. Another awesome feature for huge fans.

Sneak Peek at the new Predators (1:44): I saw PREDATORS previous to reviewing this blu-ray, so it wasn’t much of a peek for me. It did give me an idea of what the film will look like when it does release on blu-ray and there are no complaints here.

So far, it’s hard to find anything to complain about with the career of young Chloe Moretz.  She had a good role in the hit DIARY OF A WIMPY KID, was the breakout star of KICK-ASS, is featured in the upcoming LET ME IN, is starring in Martin Scorsese’s HUGO CABRET and has now signed on to star in the intriguing THE RUT.  In her latest film, she’ll play a young girl that is forced to utilize hunting and survival lessons her dad taught her when he goes missing.  JENNIFER’S BODY director, Karyn Kusama, will be directing.

I love the idea of putting a young girl in the wilderness out on her own, but there a couple different ways they can go with it.  From just the brief description, it sounds like a twist on CASTAWAY (which I love) so I’m hoping Kusama keeps the story grounded in reality and gives Moretz the chance to shine.

Source: LA Times

You can add Showtime’s ‘The Tudors’ to the list of shows I haven’t seen, but still want to.  I’ve heard great things about it and a lot of praise is given to Henry Cavill, who plays Charles Brandon on the show.  Cavill’s career is taking off after starring as Theseus in IMMORTALS and now securing the lead role in THE COLD LIGHT OF DAY.  The film is about a cocky Wall Street stock broker that goes on a vacation with his family, only to see them get kidnapped.  That leads to a series of twists and conspiracies that Cavill’s character has to figure out in order to save his family.

The film will be directed by Mabrouk El Mechri, who directed the wonderful JCVD.  The look and feel to that film was incredible, so if El Mechri can repeat that in this film, it should do well for both him and Henry Cavill.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Jordana Spiro is one of those actresses whose name I didn’t recognize and although her face was familiar, I couldn’t place what I’d seen her in.  But when I looked up her resume, I realized I’d seen her in a lot of stuff, I just didn’t know it.  She’s been around for well over 10 years and currently, she stars on the TV show ‘My Boys’.  Today she gets probably her highest profile role with a part opposite Nicolas Cage and Nicole Kidman in TRESPASS.  The Joel Schumacher film is about a group of thieves that kidnap a married couple.  Cage will play the leader of the thieves while Spiro will play his reluctant girlfriend.

The film sounds pretty basic at this stage and any time I see Joel Schumacher’s name attached to anything, I get weary.  But the whole kidnapping idea can be taken in many different directions, so there is opportunity for them to do something different.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

In 1975, a young Joan Jett (Kristen Stewart) is defying societal norms by playing electric guitar as a female.  She meets up with flamboyant music producer Kim Fowler (Michael Shannon).  The two of them like the look of very inexperienced 15- year-old Cherie Currie (Dakota Fanning) and enlist her as the lead singer to form one of the first all teenage girl rock bands called The Runaways.  Their quick rise in fame leads to drug abuse and sexual exploration to Cherie’s final departure.

The performances here are top notch.  While I’m not the biggest fan of Kristen Stewart in the TWILIGHT films, she does show some promising talent as Jett.  Dakota Fanning is the true lead in the picture proving once again that she is a real force to be reckoned with in Hollywood.  When most child actors hit an awkward stage in their teenage years (I’m looking at you Haley Joel Osment), Fanning flourishes with a gritty exposing performance as Currie.  The major stand out is Michael Shannon who gives another scene stealing Oscar worthy performance as Fowler.

The music is terrific and is played throughout the picture.  The use of color and visuals in cinematography are also very good.  The entire feel of the film has great potential.  However, everything else about the film felt very surfaced never delving deep enough into the characters and their story.   Even though the film is called THE RUNAWAYS, the story is based on Cherie Currie’s book “Neon Angel” a biography of her two-year time with the band.  I would have liked to seen more of the rest of the band and their relationship or at least gotten more in depth with Cherie’s feelings and what her motivations were.

I can never fully get into biography stories of famous musicians because they almost are nearly all the same, lacking any original storyline worth telling.  It’s not that I think they are bad, it’s just I find them uninspiring.  THE RUNAWAYS has a lot of talent working for it, but lacks too much substance and direction in story to propel it to anything great.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (1080p High Definition/ 2.35:1) The picture looks great and uses an interesting color pallet that really comes through giving a strong feel of the time period.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD MA) The music is fantastic and sounds great on the surround sound, however it does drown out the dialogue so the sound levels are too uneven.

Commentary with Joan Jett, Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning: The three of them give a fairly interesting and fun-listening commentary.  Fanning being the youngest doesn’t speak too much, Joan Jett is informative on what was and wasn’t true from the film and Kristen Stewart is definitely the most candid, monopolizing most of the conversation using a surprisingly filthy potty mouth.  Stewart also reveals a lot of over-protectiveness for Fanning and her adult scenes.

Plugged In: Making the Film (15:37): A typical featurette with interviews from Joan Jett, Cherie, actors, director and several other filmmakers discussing the process and how great the movie is.

The Runaways (2:19): A trailer of sort, but with the actors and filmmakers promoting the film as clips are shown.  All are snippets from the previous featurette

I’ve tried to sit down and watch a Tyler Perry movie to understand what it is about him and his movies that draw audiences in.  For the life of me, I can’t figure it out.  Maybe there’s something I just don’t get or maybe it’s a culture thing, but I don’t understand why his movies make so much money.  But the fact remains that they pull in major bank on virtually no budget and as long as that trend continues, he’s going to keep making movies.  Next up for the versatile actor/director is the comedy WE THE PEEPLES.  He will be producing the comedy through his 34^th Street Films along with Lionsgate.

The script was written by Tina Gordon Chism about a man living through a horrible weekend when he surprises his girlfriend during her family’s annual summer celebration.  Chism also wrote ATL and DRUMLINE.  I wish there were more details about the film, but I like the basic idea if it can be done well.

Source: Variety

Len Wiseman can direct.  He hasn’t done anything spectacular, but when you look at the UNDERWORLD movies and LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD, you can tell that the guy knows what he’s doing behind the camera.  Which begs the question; why in the world would he sign on to direct a TOTAL RECALL remake?  Is this a new low for Hollywood?  Have we actually come to the point where we’re taking 20 year-old Arnold Schwarzenegger movies and remaking them just for the sake of remaking them?  And who is going to star in this?  No A-list actor is going to star in a role that is so closely associated with another actor unless it’s a superhero.  Uggghhh.  But the point is that they’re making a TOTAL RECALL remake and Len Wiseman is going to direct it.

In the press release, they do say that they want to stay true to Philip K. Dick’s original short story ‘We Can Remember It for You Wholesale’, so maybe they’ll add a spin to it that will make it more original.  If that’s the case, then don’t even call it “Total Recall”, call it something completely different and remove the association to the original.  And you have to wonder if he’ll convince his wife, Kate Beckinsale, to star in the film.

Today must be “unfunny comedians get work” day after Richard Lewis joined VAMPS and now Rob Schneider signs on to do the voice of the title character in NORM OF THE NORTH.  The film follows on the environmental friendly heels of HAPPY FEET about a polar bear that ends up in New York City with his three buddies after his home melts away.  Ken Jeong and Loretta Divine will supposedly voice two of Norm’s friends.  Anthony Bell will be directing the animated film, marking his follow-up effort to the forgettable ALPHA AND OMEGA.

I actually liked Schneider on SNL where he was a bit player to funnier comedians like Adam Sandler, Chris Farley, Mike Meyers and others.  But as a featured star on his own, I can’t stomach him.  With that said, I am curious about his new stand-up tour and his new CD.  I love stand-up comedy CD’s and I’m always looking for another to add to my collection.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The big and exciting news of the day is that the THOR trailer that was shown at the San Diego Comic-Con has leaked online.  No one’s really sure where it came from, but the quality is too good to be a bootleg, so I’m speculating Marvel may have released this themselves in an effort to drum up some positive publicity.  But I would watch it as soon as possible, just in case they make me take it down.  They would be out of their minds to remove this from the internet because prior to seeing this trailer, I was doubting the film.  The first two pictures looked horrible and cheesy and I was losing faith.  But this trailer looks fantastic.  I mean, it looks really, really great.  Consider me officially excited for it.

The Kenneth Branagh film stars Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Tom Hiddleston, Rene Russo, Natalie Portman, Stellan Skarsgard, Jaimie Alexander, Ray Stevenson, Idris Elba, Colm Feore, Clark Gregg and Kat Dennings.  Watch the trailer here.

The independent drama I MELT WITH YOU has assembled quite a cast that includes Thomas Jane, Rob Lowe and Jeremy Piven.  The drama is about a group of college friends that get together every year, but this time, they decide to “resurrect a pact” that they agreed to live, die and kill by.  I have no idea what that means, but I’m guessing the adults take their cheesy college vow too seriously and things get out of control.  Joining the lead cast are Sasha Grey, Zander Eckhouse, Abhi Sinha and Arielle Kebbel. Sasha will be playing a girl that inspires one of the guys to be live free.

I wasn’t surprised when Sasha Grey headlined Steven Soderbergh’s THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE because Soderbergh does quirky stuff like that all the time.  But I’m surprised she’s continuing to appear in mainstream movies.  I’m not an expert on adult films by any means, but Sasha Grey is not your typical adult film star; she was crazy with some of the stuff she’d do.  Maybe that “free spirit” will serve her well in  Hollywood.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ is one of the best comedies on television and the seventh season was arguably the best.  But my one constant complaint about the show is Richard Lewis.  I think he’s a love-him or hate-him type of comedian and I’m just one of those guys that doesn’t like him.  His neurosis and mannerisms drive me insane.  But hey, don’t let that dissuade you from checking him out in the upcoming VAMPS, where he’ll be playing a former activist and current ACLU lawyer in the romantic horror comedy.

He joins the film that already includes Alicia Silverstone and Krysten Ritter and NYC socialite vampires that fall in love with human guys.  Sigourney Weaver will play the head vampire that sired them.  Alicia Silverstone will be reteaming with her CLUELESS director, Amy Heckerling, who also wrote the screenplay.  Vampire movies have run their course, so I hope Heckerling adds something new and exciting to this story.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

After wowing audiences with the incredible PAN’S LABYRINTH, Guillermo del Toro endeared himself to fanboys everywhere.  When he signed on to direct THE HOBBIT, it was like a dream come true for fans of the Tolkein novel.  But things didn’t go as planned with the film and when del Toro dropped out, we were all left wondering what he’d do next.  Well, now we know that the talented director will tackle the theatrical adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft’s AT THE MOUNTAINS OF MADNESS.  Guillermo del Toro has been wanting to make this movie for a long time, but given the horror nature, extreme budget and high concept of the film, he hasn’t been successful.  Lucky for him, the king of turning extravagant budgets into successful movies, James Cameron, is on board to produce.

The book is described as a high concept horror tale about a group of Antarctic explorers that find a range of huge mountains and on the other side of that range, they find the remains of unknown life forms.  If that story and del Toro’s direction don’t get you excited, then I don’t know what will.

Source: Deadline

It wasn’t exactly the summer blockbuster everyone had hoped for, but Ridley Scott’s ROBIN HOOD did okay at the box office given the competition.  As great as Scott and Crowe have been in the past, I think audiences are growing tired of the epic battle sequences and were looking for a new twist on the old legend.  As it is, most people would rather watch ROBIN HOOD: PRINCE OF THIEVES or ROBIN HOOD: MEN IN TIGHTS again before sitting down to watch Scott’s epic.  But anyway, the film hits Blu-ray on September 21st with a slew of extras.  I’m hoping at some point, they discuss the many incarnations the story went through and why they chose a straight linear story in the end.

• Director’s Notebook (BD-exclusive): a seamless multimedia experience focusing on the director’s vision gives viewers a peek inside Ridley Scott’s unique filmmaking process. Incorporating behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with Scott and his trusted inner circle of collaborators, this feature launches at critical moments throughout the film to illuminate the task of mounting a vast production like Robin Hood.
• The Art of Nottingham (BD-exclusive): a special look at the portfolio of designs generated for the film, including video introductions by key department heads such as production designer Arthur Max and costume designer Janty Yates. Galleries of concept art, costume designs, storyboards and other imagery are featured.
• Deleted scenes with introduction and commmentary by editor Pietro Scalia
• Rise and Rise Again: Making Ridley Scott’s Robin Hood
• Ballad, Legend & Myth: Pre-production – see how the filmmakers and actors, including Ridley Scott, Brian Grazer and Russell Crowe, tackled the challenge of breathing new life into the longest surviving character in the English language, Robin Hood.
• The More the Merrier: Production – a stellar cast led by Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett descended on England to shoot this massive epic under the direction of Ridley Scott. With an unparalleled passion for detail, Scott oversees all of the production design, costuming, weaponry and action sequences in the film.
• No Quarter Given: Post-production – Sifting through a million feet of shot film, Ridley Scott and editor Pietro Scalia perfect the screen story and work with the post-production team to add layers of sound design, visual effects and Marc Streitenfeld’s beautiful score.
• pocket BLU
  • Advanced Remote Control
  • Video Timeline
  • Mobile-To-Go
  • VIRTUAL Keyboard
  • uHEAR (new feature): This innovative feature instantly skips back a few seconds on your Blu-ray disc and turns on the subtitles for the section you couldn’t hear.
  • INTERACTIVE TICKER (new feature): get the latest information about Universal’s theatrical and Blu-ray releases. Plus, get updates about upcoming BD-Live events, awards and TV shows on NBC.
• BD-Live
• My Scenes

First Blood

Rambo: First Blood Part II

Rambo III

Rambo: Extended Cut (Note: The “Extended Cut” is not included in this set)

“What most people call hell, he calls home.”  This is one of many clever, overly ridiculous taglines and quotes that come from the killing good time that is the RAMBO series.  In RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II, Rambo asks Colonel Trautman, “Sir, do we get to win this time?”  Rambo, you always win.

The Rambo films are definitely a love them or loathe them style of movies.  What makes Rambo so comforting and easy to root for as a hero is it is very black and white.  The bad guys are really bad and the good guys, who is basically just him, are really good.  He has a heart of gold but has no problem killing every person he comes across that stands for evil.  And believe me each enemy get progressively worse and the bloody mayhem that Rambo wreaks upon them gets more gruesome.

I have to hand it to Sylvester Stallone; he understands what is entertaining to the mass audiences.  Stallone had a hand in writing every script and finally got behind the camera to direct the fourth installment.  Although from the special features, it sounds like he practically directed the others with most of the creative control.   Stallone deserves a lot of credit seeing that sometime his acting was not where it should be and needed to cut out many of his speaking scenes.  As it stands, the RAMBO films are short on dialogue and heavy on action.

A key component to keeping a film moving without dialogue is an adrenaline filled soundtrack.  Composer Jerry Goldsmith created an iconic score for Rambo.  Without the driving force of the music, I firmly believe these films would not have worked.  Another key to the success is the short length of the films.  Every RAMBO movie comes in at about an hour and a half, except for the third one, which is closer to two hours.  RAMBO III is the weakest of the series and I believe if you trimmed it up a bit it would do wonders.  I usually hate movies that are short because I don’t feel like the filmmakers cared enough to give me my money’s worth.  However, this is the exception to that rule.  RAMBO gets in and gets out with so much energy and destructive fun that the audience doesn’t have enough time to poke holes at all the improbable and silly scenarios.

The films individually show a lot of weakness, but when you put all the films together for the Blu-ray set, you realize it’s all about the brand that Rambo brings as a character and as a movie.  If they didn’t have those outlandish moments the films would suffer.  This is what audiences love about Rambo.  He can go into any situation and single handedly win wars without consequence.  He always wins, even against corruption from the side he is fighting for.  He is not afraid to die and will die for anyone and anything that we all believe to be right.  What’s better than one Rambo?  Four Rambo’s.

Comedian Zach Galifianakis has been getting offers left and right after his scenes stealing performance in the hilarious THE HANGOVER. We learn now that he will be staring and producing in REPLY ALL. The yet to be written film was recently purchased by Dreamworks from the pitch that Galifianakis will play a guy that presses the “Reply All” button on an e-mail that was not meant for all to see. He will spend the rest of the film dealing with the repercussions. I think theirs potential in this idea but the studio is definitely gambling on the power Galifianaki’s popularity.

Mr. Galifianakis has a lot of projects lined up soon. Of course theirs THE HANGOVER 2 but coming out later this year he has IT’S KIND OF A FUNNY STORY and DUE DATE, which also stars Robert Downey Jr. And of course, DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS staring Steve Carell and Paul Rudd will hit theaters on Friday.

Source: Deadline

I was fully prepared to write a scathing piece about how horrible the new YOGI BEAR film looks.  But I have to admit that it made me chuckle a few times and the best I can say is that it doesn’t look completely horrible.  Yogi Bear and Boo Boo look pretty cute and it has a very wholesome feel to it.  I think if you can get past some cheesy moments, this will probably be a decent film to take your kids to and maybe you won’t be bored out of your mind.

The film features the voice talents of Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake and the live action performances of Anna Faris and Tom Cavanagh.  Can someone please tell Anna Faris that she is way too talented and likable to be doing movies like this?  Eric Brevig is directing and he previously directed the JOURNEY TO THE CENTER OF THE EARTH remake.  Watch the trailer here.

When it was first announced that Paul Rudd was going to be starring in MY IDIOT BROTHER, it was told as if it was going to be a small, independent dramedy and overall, a pretty simple film.  I’m not sure what happened to that, because this thing has blown up with a cast that includes the aforementioned Paul Rudd, Elizabeth Banks, Zooey Deschanel, Emily Mortimer, Rashida Jones, Hugh Dancy, Kathryn Hahn, Shirley Knight and Janet Montgomery.  Joining that all-star cast is comedian Steve Coogan, who will be playing a “self righteous documentary filmmaker”.  No word on how he relates to the rest of the cast.

I’m still confused as to how this movie is going to fit together with so many known actors being involved.  The story is about a guy that stays with his three, more successful sisters and they deal with their overbearing mother.  Jesse Peretz is directing.

Source: Deadline

It pains me to write “wolfs” instead of “wolves”, but I didn’t write the script, so I have to go with what they say.  After announcing he’s officially leaving ‘The Office’, we all assumed Steve Carell would get to work producing and starring in a slew of films.  First up for the comedian is RAISED BY WOLFS, which apparently has nothing to do with the furry four-legged mammals, but rather “Wolfs” is the character’s last name, hence the suspected misspelling.  This will mark the first film from Steve Carell’s newly formed Carousel Productions.  Les Firestein wrote the script and as of right now, no plot details have been released.

Firestein is an accomplished writer, working on shows like ‘The Drew Carey Show’ and ‘In Living Colour’.  In their heyday, those were pretty funny shows.  I like Steve Carell, but probably not as much as most fans.

Source: Risky Business

Earlier today, Tom Hardy signed on to star in THIS MEANS WAR with Chris Pine and Reese Witherspoon.  Now, we learn that another INCEPTION star is lining up a project.  Cillian Murphy will join Thandie Newton in the British thriller THE RETREAT.  The film has a fascinating premise in which Murphy and Newton will play a married couple that rent a house on a remote island to work on their marriage.  While there, a soldier in a biohazard suit washes up and tells them that everyone on the mainland is dead due to a virus.

The script was written by Carl Tibbets, who will also direct the film.  I’m loving the idea of the movie and I’m curious if they’re going to go the route where the mainland really is destroyed or if their going to create a mystery where the married couple start to doubt the truth to the soldier’s story.

Source: Deadline

Talk about a dynamic duo; Meryl Streep and Tina Fey have agreed to star in the upcoming comedy MOMMY AND ME, which will be directed by the underrated Stanley Tucci.  The details of the plot are still unknown, but Streep and Fey will play a mother-daughter duo and the film will be a comedy.  We all know Stanley Tucci the actor, but he’s directed a few movies as well, most recently in 2007 with BLIND DATE starring himself and Patricia Clarkson.  But this would by far and away mark the most high profile project he’s tackled.  Starring with Meryl Streep is one thing, but bossing her around on set is probably going to be a completely different ballgame for him.

Not all dynamic duos pan out to produce quality cinema, but the idea of Meryl Streep and Tina Fey together is definitely intriguing.  I also like them together with an accomplished actor like Stanley Tucci.  This is one to keep an eye on.

Source: Variety

Dreamworks Animation has announced HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON is hitting store shelves on October 15^th of this year.  The film was well received by critics and audiences alike, featuring a warm-hearted tale of a boy befriending a dragon and attempting to change the peoples and dragons perceptions of each other.  It featured the voice work of Gerard Butler, Jay Baruchel, America Ferrera, Kristen Wiig, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Jonah Hill and Craig Ferguson.

Special features include a Commentary by the filmmakers, Deleted Scenes and 9 featurettes including Legend of the Boneknapper Dragon, Tech of Dragon, Viking-Sized Cast, The Way We See It, Meet Cressida Cowell, Going for the Gold, Dragon Training Final Exam.  There are two features exclusive to the Blu-ray release including an Animator’s Corner and a Trivia Track.

Official artwork coming soon

With all the talk of how great INCEPTION is, I feel most of the actors involved have gotten their fair share of credit, with the exception of Tom Hardy, who gave a great and underrated performance as Eames.  Not that this is some grand proclamation, but I think it’s easy to say that Tom Hardy is going to be around for a while.  his next big role is going to be in the epic McG romantic comedy THIS MEANS WAR.  In a role originally thought to go to Sam Worthington, Hardy will star alongside Chris Pine as two best friends that fall for the same girl (Reese Witherspoon) and their ensuing battles for her threaten to destroy New York City.

I like the high concept of doing something different with a romantic comedy and McG has grown up a lot since his CHARLIE’S ANGELS days, but I’m not sure I see Hardy and Pine working well together.  I see it more than I see Worthington and Pine, but as much as I like Hardy, I think the role needs someone a little more likable.  Otherwise the audience will automatically gravitate towards Pine.  But we’ll see how the finished product turns out.

Source: Vulture

In OUR FAMILY WEDDING, Lucia Ramirez (America Ferrera) and Marcus Boyd (Lance Gross) are in love and traveling to tell their families of their engagement and plans to be married in three weeks time prior to moving to Laos.  The kicker? The dads, Brad Boyd (Academy Award winner, Forest Whitaker) and Miguel Ramirez (mediocre comedian, Carlos Mencia) met on the very day of the engagement announcement dinner when Miguel towed Brad’s luxury car – making it impossible for the two men to get along.  How-oh-how will these two competitive men get through their differences without spoiling their child’s wedding? Predictable ‘hilarity’ ensues including a FATHER OF THE BRIDE bathroom moment, some random male bonding and an unnecessary goat scene.

Other than the feuding dads, there was a lot more heart to this film than what I was expecting, including some side stories that weren’t necessary but were enjoyable to watch. Those moments are what saved this movie from being a total mess. Forest Whitaker plays the smooth talking radio DJ with a complicated relationship with Regina King’s character, Angela (this is one of the unnecessary side stories mixed within this rom-com).  His performance was a disappointment having last seen him in THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND; I thought he could have done something more with the character but maybe the material was just so stale that there wasn’t much to work with? Regardless, I expected more from him. Carlos Mencia on the other hand, I expected nothing from so was semi-pleased with his so-so performance. His heart to heart moments were painful but nothing like the forced relationship between the main love-birds. The only time I saw a spark of romantic chemistry between Ferrera and Gross was at the very beginning of this film, and when she serenades him outside his house. Other than that, I didn’t have much of a reason to root for them as a couple and empathize with the plight of ‘their wedding, our marriage’.

Without a doubt, my favorite character throughout the movie was Lucia’s tomboyish sister, Isabella, played by Anjelah Johnson. I wanted more scenes with her in it, as she was the breath of fresh air this bland comedy needed.  The banter and side comments she made about everyone and everything made me laugh out loud.

Although I have plenty to identify with in Rick Famuyiwa’s OUR FAMILY WEDDING, coming from a mixed cultural background (Paraguayan-American) and currently in the throes of planning a wedding, this movie didn’t really do much for me other than want to rewatch FATHER OF THE BRIDE and THE LAST KING OF SCOTLAND.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (2.35:1 Widescreen) If only the vibrant colors and sharp picture would make this movie better.

Audio: (5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio) Nice clear sound, great for the Mariachi band at the end.

Gag Reel (2:40): Made me want to gag.

Deleted Scenes (16:52): Out of the six I thought there would be one that could have made a positive impression on me. However, as that was not the case, I’m thankful that they opted to delete these scenes from the movie. Wish they would have deleted them as an extra feature.  Remain deleted.

Extended Scenes ( 4:02): One extended scene featuring Carlos Mencia, the other featuring Forest Whitaker . Mencia’s extended scene made me laugh, but only because of his wife, Sonia, leaves him in jail to go shop.

‘Til Dads Do Us Part (15:02): Carlos Mencia, Forest Whitaker, Lance Gross, America Ferrera and director, Rick Famuyiwa talk about how fun it was to work on this film.  They also discuss the various traditions from two cultures and how awesome an actor the goat is.

Theatrical Trailer

Isaiah Mustafa will join the impressive cast list of HORRIBLE BOSSES. Mustafa is a former NFL football player, but you might recognize him as the guy from the insanely popular Old Spice commercials. The Emmy-nominated commercials have helped boost Old Spice body products a whopping107%. I admit, I’m a huge fan but that is a ridiculous stat. It will be interesting to see if Mustafa has the right charisma and talent to ride this fame wave to further success.

HORRIBLE BOSSES is about a few guys that team up to kill each other’s horrible bosses. The film also stars Jennifer Aniston, Jason Bateman, Kevin Spacey, Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx, Julie Bowen, Donald Sutherland, Lindsay Sloane, Jason Sudeikis and Charlie Day.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

Everyone has their feelings about the cast of the Twilight films and of course Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart are always going to get their share of acclaim, but the other stars have also started to breakthrough.  Kellan Lutz, Ashley Greene, Nikki Reed, Jackson Rathbone and just about everyone that appeared in the film for more than two seconds is now getting lead roles in other movies.  But one actor that, until now, has gone largely under-appreciated is Edi Gathegi, who played the evil vampire Laurent in the first two films.  It looks like he might get his second big break as today he has been cast as Darwin in Matthew Vaughn’s X-MEN: FIRST CLASS.  I’m not that familiar with Darwin, but he has the power to “evolve”, which gives him the unique ability to adapt to whatever his environment calls for.

So far, the cast for First Class looks great with James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Kevin Bacon, Alice Eve, Jennifer Lawrence, Nicholas Hoult and Caleb Landry Jones all signed on.  Still waiting to see what kind of villain Kevin Bacon is going to be playing.

Source: Deadline

While watching it, the biggest question that popped into my mind was; why hasn’t this been done before?  The idea of crafting an entire film that pits dogs and cats against each other is so obvious, I’m surprised Hollywood hasn’t already milked it to death.  In this film, they’ve created a world where dogs are kind of the “G.I. Joes” and cats are the “Cobras”.  When you boil it down, that’s essentially what this is, just with more fur.

The plot is straight out of your typical spy/action movie where a young Beagle pup (voiced wonderfully by Tobey Maguire) is thrust into the secret agent world when he gets mistakenly chosen by a family.  Reluctantly, the seasoned vet (voiced by Alec Baldwin) trains the young rookie to protect a formula the pup’s master is working on that would cure all dog allergies.  Unfortunately for all of them, Mr. Tinkles is out for that formula, but for his own evil plans.  This is not a complicated premise, it’s really just an excuse to get cute dogs and cute cats together for 90 minutes.

I really appreciated the inclusion of so many subtle inside dog and cat jokes.  I loved the play on the different stereotypes for each animal and got a kick out of seeing how they used the animal’s habits in the spy world.  I only wish they had done more of it and focused more on the intelligent subtleties and leave the childish slapstick out.  There’s a surprisingly fun film here, but sometimes it gets lost in the unnecessary silliness.  But like I mentioned earlier, some of the film’s shortcomings can be forgiven because the animals are so darn cute.  That’s a positive for those of us that love animals, but I’m not sure non-animal lovers will be so kind.

Even though some of this will make a lot of adults roll their eyes, there are enough puns and funny bits that will keep the interest peaked.  Sean Hayes does a fantastic job voicing Mr. Tinkles, who alone is worth the price of admission.  If you have little ones and you want something to keep their (and your) attention for 90 minutes, CATS & DOGS is a safe bet.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

When CATS AND DOGS first came out on DVD, there was no widescreen edition.  For some reason, Warner Brothers didn’t release the widescreen version for many months later.  So a lot of you might never have seen the widescreen version of the film.

Video: The eventual widescreen DVD wasn’t bad, but this is a notable upgrade for the film.

Audio: The audio was also a significant upgrade

Commentary with Lawrence Guterman, James Bissell, Chris DeFaria and Sean Hayes: I imagine that working with animals is a very difficult and challenging feat and I was happy to hear the director and producers talk about the difficulties revolved around filming an entire film with animals.  Sean Hayes was a little out of place, but he offered up some humorous tidbits that helped keep the track rolling.

HBO First Look (15:03): This is just an extended commercial for the film.  Some First Look’s have a lot of behind the scenes footage, but this one had more movie clips than anything.

Teaching a New Dog New Tricks (5:58): This is a great featurette, although a bit short.  But they talk to the dog trainer about how they got the dogs to do various stunts and behave naturally.  They also go into the different CGI effects that were used.  Well worth the 5 minute investment.

Dog’s Rule (:52): A quick montage of various scenes from the film featuring dogs.

Mr. Tinkles Screen Test (1:37): This is a silly montage of Mr. Tinkles acting out various scenes from famous movies.

Mr. Tinkles Speech (1:10): Mr. Tinkles gives a speech about the state of the film industry.  Pretty funny, but not sure who this was for.

We’ve seen several pics of Johnny Depp in full Jack Sparrow gear on the set of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES, but the character I was most interested to see in action was that of Penelope Cruz.  Today we get a look at the actress on location in Hawaii with her costar and I have to say that I’m a little disappointed.  In my humble opinion, Cruz is one of the sexiest women alive and in these pictures, she looks like a boy dressing up as Jack Sparrow on Halloween.  You can’t make a judgment from a handful of set photos, so I’m hoping things will get spiced up when the movie actually comes out.  Right or wrong, I’m still holding out hope this will be a fun movie.

The film stars Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane, Stephen Graham, Sam Claflin and Astrid Berges-Frisby.  Rob Marshall will be directing with a May 20th, 2011 release date.

Source: RadarOnline

Geesh, once again, a classic children’s book is coming to the big screen that I have absolutely zero familiarity with.  We just showed the trailer for THE WIND IN THE WILLOWS, which I was completely clueless about and now comes word that the classic book ‘Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day’ is on its way to the big screen.  Shawn Levy’s production company 21 Laps will be the man in charge of bringing the high-concept family comedy to life.  As of right now, he has no star or director and has not hinted he will be taking the reigns himself.  Rob Lieber will write the screenplay.

For those that aren’t familiar with Judith Viorst’s book, it’s about a boy and his family that suffer through the worst day imaginable.  Well, not imaginable considering the first “bad” event is that he wakes up with gum in his hair, but it’s pretty bad when you’re a kid.  It’s not like a scene from FUNNY GAMES erupts and his family gets tortured or anything, which would be the worst day imaginable for most of us.

Source: Variety

Sam Worthington continues his world domination by linking himself with another in-development project, this time with the thriller MAN ON A LEDGE.  This comes hot off the heels of his official confirmation to star as the futuristic pilot DAN DARE.  In Ledge, Worthington will play a former police officer threatening to jump to his death and the female psychologist trying to save him.  The story sounds a little claustrophobic, but I’m guessing that there’s a deeper reason why he’s on the ledge and the mystery will be unraveled as the story goes on.

Asger Leth is looking to direct the film, who directed the documentary GHOSTS OF CITE SOLEIL which took a powerful look at the slums of Haiti.  Going from a documentary to such a simple thriller seems like an odd move, but Ledge is going to need a unique vision so this doesn’t turn into PHONE BOOTH.

Source: Variety

Zac Efron is the kind of star that’s made for a Nicholas Sparks adaptation.  Efron has a tendency to look like he’s about to cry, even when he’s happy.  So that overly dramatic feel will serve him well in what is presumably an overly sappy Sparks novel.  In THE LUCKY ONE, Efron will play a marine that’s searching for a mysterious woman that was in a photograph he carried with him while serving in Iraq.  I haven’t read the book, but I’m guessing there’s a tragic ending in there and things don’t work out for everyone involved.

Scott Hicks will be directing the feature and Denise Di Novi will be producing for Warner Brothers.  This will be the fourth Sparks novel she’s produced with the others being NIGHTS IN RODANTHE, A WALK TO REMEMBER and MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE.  I’m not sure I trust her judgment when it comes to Sparks’s work considering those are arguably the three weakest of all his novels.

Source: Variety

Last week, we showed you the first image from SUCKER PUNCH and now we have the first official trailer.  In the trailer, the words “You Will Be Unprepared” pop up on screen, insinuating that you won’t be ready for this movie when it comes out.  Well, I wasn’t ready for this trailer and to be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from Zack Snyder’s new film.  The cast is fine, it’s the premise I don’t have much faith in.  But it seems the dark story is really going to come to life with Snyder at the helm.

The film is about a young girl that’s taken to a mental institution and with only five days to go before a lobotomy, she creates this fictitious world where she teams up with other girls to fight bad guys, dragons and more.  The film stars Emily Browning, Vanessa Hudgens, Jamie Chung, Jena Malone, Abbie Cornish, Scott Glenn, Carla Gugino, John Hamm and Michael Jai White. It will hit theaters on March 25th, 2011.  Watch the trailer here.

I didn’t care for RAMBO the first time I watched it and I hoped that this second run through the jungle would fare better.  Thankfully it did, though this film is not without its faults.  The first Rambo flick was pretty good for its time but RAMBO 2 is what blew my mind and had be wearing headbands and bugging mom to buy me a huge knife.  The third one was “meh” but I can’t say that I was unhappy with Sly’s decision to expand both Rambo’s and Rocky’s worlds with new age sequels (for the record I loathed ROCKY 5).  On both counts Sly brought back his two most iconic characters with class and style and in Rambo’s case, this setting is exactly what I would have expected from the character.

The opening scene is one of my favourites as who else but Rambo would be crazy enough to be out catching cobras and water snakes (two of THE most deadly snakes in the world), not that the Asian dudes with him were any better, taking the snakes out of the bag so that they could poke and prod at them, pissing them off royally.  The boat scene with the mercenaries was another good one, when the leader was giving Rambo some lip.  The look on Rambo’s face was a lot like the look Arnie gave Bill Paxton in TRUE LIES just before he broke his neck.  Rambo could have smoked all those fools before they even knew what hit them, he didn’t but the fact that he could have if he wanted to was enough to make me smile.

The psychological approach this movie took to the character was also worthy of note even if they only did show his restless dreams from the past only once and briefly at that.  Rambo’s a tortured soul and a few more years certainly didn’t change that.  I found this film aged him gracefully though and even made him more humble.  The war end of things is where I was let down.  Though in all honesty Burma is one of the few places left in the world that we could have sent Rambo in shooting (I’m very curious to see where he goes next).  The gore was a tad over the top.  War is brutal, I get that, but having soldiers bet on which prisoner will blow up on a landmine as they’re herded across a body of water is a touch much.  Add to that an excessive amount of body parts whizzing through the air and gallons of red stuff and you can visualize the kinda party I’m talking about.

JOHN RAMBO is a solid action flick that digs down deep into the roots of its protagonist hauntingly well and paints a dark picture of war and cruelty.  This is not a film for the squeamish that’s for sure, even I winced a couple times and I was brought up on this stuff (RAMBO was the first R rated action flick I ever saw, that, COMMANDO and then COBRA).  Sly did a great job keeping the game going and though it’s not the best in the series it’s good for a watch here and there.  I’m not sure about the whole “extended cut” end of things as I didn’t feel I saw anything different (and the runtime was still a slim hour and thirty nine minutes which is pretty short) but I can’t say it was a bad ride.  Onward to THE EXPENDABLES baby!

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: 2.40:1 Widescreen in 1080p HD with AVC codec.  Let the bodies hit the floor baby, cause in HD you can almost feel the warm blood a flowing.

Audio: 5.1 DTS-HD in English, French and Spanish with the same subtitle options.  Rambo’s a man of few words but I was impressed with the dialogue Sly gave him, though I’m still on the fence when it comes to that “live for nothing, die for something” quote.

Rambo:  To Hell & Back-Director’s Production Diary (1:23:33): Wow, this bad boy’s nearly as long as the feature film itself!  Sly goes above and beyond here to give us a bird’s eye view of how it all came together and top it all off, he shot this thing in forty two days when it should have taken him ninety.  This is great stuff, from carving the village and sets out of the wild jungle to playing with live cobras and who knew that chainsaws were illegal in Thailand?

Previews: There are a slew of LIONSGATE film trailers including (of course) one for THE EXPENDABLES.

R&B Pop sensation Rihanna will star in Universal’s BATTLESHIP. The musician will be joining True Blood’s Alexander Skarsgard and Friday Night Light’s Taylor Kitsch. The film will cover battles over sea, land and air, unlike the popular, strictly sea-based naval board game from Hasbro that it is based on. I’m assuming they are just taking the name and somewhat likeness of the game. The battle will be against a superior force for the planet’s survival. I don’t ever remember that part of the story line in the game. I’m curious on what the similarities will actually be.

But back to Rihanna who will be staring in her very first feature film. I’m not sure how big her role will be but I always have my doubts with musicians turned actors. Peter Berg will direct BATTLESHIP with a May 25, 2012 release date.

Source: Variety

I don’t think I had heard anything about STONE until I saw this first trailer.  All the news about Edward Norton these days revolves around his being replaced in THE AVENGERS while all the news about Robert De Niro is about him switching agents and trying to get his career back on track.  It seems that people are so obsessed with the movies they aren’t doing that they didn’t even notice the movies they are doing.  In STONE, Edward Norton plays an inmate looking for parole and De Niro plays the aging clerk about to retire.  Things get complicated when the wife (Milla Jovovich) starts playing them against each other.

I like Norton as an actor, but sometimes when he plays these quirky characters, I don’t see him become the character, I always see Edward Norton pretending to be someone else.  I’m not sure if that’s a limitation he has as an actor or me just not buying into his performances.  Either way, let’s hope Norton and De Niro redeem themselves after their last collaboration, THE SCORE, turned out to be a bore.  Watch the trailer here.

We meet John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) first with a shot of him tying on a bandana over his same semi curly locks flexing his shoulder and back muscles.  Then when he is summoned the music crescendos as he looks over his shoulder toward the audience.  A nice dramatic intro to a beloved character to get the crowd cheering.  After winning a highly intense stick-fighting match to make extra money, we see that Rambo is living in Thailand helping out a Buddhist monastery.   After turning down helping his former Vietnam superior, Colonel Samuel Trautman (Richard Crenna), lead the Afghanistan rebels to fight off the Russian invasion, he learns the mission failed and Trautman has been kidnapped.  This information prompts Rambo to join the Afghan forces and rescue Trautman from being tortured by Russian Colonel Zaysen (Marc de Jonge).

Rambo is back to his usual stunts, being pretty much indestructible.  He fights and blows people up in a variety of ways and has stealth like moves being undetectable and unseen while in plain sight breaking into the enemy’s camp.  I’m personally glad he goes to so much trouble to save the guy who seems to continually put him in bad situations just so Colonel Trautman can say, “He’ll find you” when referring to Rambo for the third time in clever new ways, like this exchange:

Colonel Zaysen (Russian):  “Who do you think this man is, God?”

Colonel Trautman (American):  “God would have mercy.  He won’t.”

It’s always a bit funny to me how these battles or wars between nations become so personal between Rambo and the leading commanding officer from the opposing country.  In this case, Colonel Zaysen makes sure he personally is the one flying the helicopter doing the strikes and who is out to get Rambo rather than ordering his soldiers to do so.  I’m not sure this is the right man to be in charge.  As it stands, Rambo and the Russian Colonel’s final confrontation is an epic chicken battle between a helicopter (Zaysen) and a tank (Rambo).  I never understood why the helicopters kept fighting at ground level, hovering just a few feet above.  May the dumber man lose.

What is it with the horrendous overly sappy music at the end of these Rambo films?  “He Ain’t Heavy…He’s My Brother” by Bob Russell & Bobby Scott and performed by Bell Medley is the culprit of the third film.   I have to mention it because it sticks with you on just how awful it is.  The target audience and fans of the Rambo films need a little more push or energy for their film.  Thankfully the original score throughout the picture never changes here or in any of the movies.  Despite all it’s familiar flaws, RAMBO III just barely delivers for another good time.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (Widescreen 2.35:1) Very nice picture with beautiful visuals of the Afghanistan and Thailand countries.

Audio: (DTS-HD Master Audio) The sound was great for the explosive action movie.

Audio Commentary with director Peter MacDonald: A mediocre flat commentary with uninteresting information.  The director’s speaking pattern has an uninspiring tone, which makes it a hard listen.

Out of the Blu Trivia: If you choose, you can watch pop-up information and tidbits about the film during your viewing.

Afghanistan Land In Crisis (29:48): Like the previous films, this is the best featurette. The filmmakers including Sylvester Stallone discuss how the entire scenario has been switched how it was released right when we became friend with Russia so the film took a lot of heat.  They talk a little about our current War on Terror in Afghanistan and how the Afghans were a big fan of Rambo and the U.S.

Elisabeth Shue has had a very odd career for an actress.  She was an 80’s sweetheart after wooing Danielson in KARATE KID and then rattled off a few 80’s hits.  Then she disappeared, only to reappear with a startling performance in LEAVING LAS VEGAS, then she kind of disappeared again.  I’ve always liked her and still feel she’s underrated as an actress.  Maybe starring in a teen horror/thriller movie will remind audiences she’s still out there.  She’s set to star in HOUSE AT THE END OF THE STREET, which is described as being to PSYCHO what DISTURBIA was to REAR WINDOW.  So I guess if that’s an insult or a compliment depends on what you thought of DISTURBIA.

In this film, Jennifer Lawrence stars as a girl that moves to a new house with her mom (Shue), only to learn that the family across the street was brutally murdered.  Things get complicated when the daughter befriends the lone survivor of the murders (Max Thieriot).

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The first trailer for LET ME IN felt like a rock music video and seemed to have completely missed the mark as far as capturing the feel of the story.  The second trailer does a much better job of giving us that eerie feeling, but again seems to have missed the point of the story.  In the second trailer, they once again play up the horror aspect of the film, but in the original Swedish version (LET THE RIGHT ONE IN), the horror was just a backdrop to the touching story between a little vampire girl and a boy.  I’m not sure if director Matt Reeves lost sight of that, or if the company putting the trailers together just doesn’t have a clue about the story.

Of course, we shouldn’t rule out the possibility that the studio just wants to market a straight-up horror film and is confused about what to do with a film like this.  I’ll reserve judgment until I see the finished product, but for right now, the Blu-ray edition of the original is more than adequate.  Watch the trailer here.

The basis for the film is that Evelyn Salt (Jolie) is a CIA agent who goes on the run after a Russian defector claims she’s a Russian spy.  I tread lightly when it comes to spoilers, so I’ll refrain from giving too much away.  But the gist is that at certain times in the film we believe she is not a Russian spy and at other times we believe she is a Russian spy.  The entire film is focused on Salt’s predicament, so how much we like and root for her is directly correlated with how much we enjoy the film.  This is where it gets tricky.  When we believe she is a Russian spy, it’s tough to root for her because at that time, she’s essentially the enemy and the CIA agents on her trail are the good guys.  So there’s a big chunk of the movie where we’re not sure we want her to get away with whatever it is she’s doing.

The other detraction from the film is Angelina Jolie herself.  I love having a female lead in an action/spy movie and I think Jolie is a superbly talented actress and one of the most beautiful people on earth.  But I don’t necessarily find her to be a likeable character.  Some actors and actresses are just very likeable onscreen and you find yourself rooting for them at all times, no matter what.  But Jolie doesn’t have that and when she does, it takes a lot of time to build her character and establish her as someone we like.  SALT fails to do that and although we want her to “win” as much as we want all heroes to “win”, we don’t really enjoy the ride as much as we might with someone a little more charming and a little less ruthless.

Even though the film did have an aura of familiarity, I did really enjoy some of the action stunts.  I had a blast with the highway chase, which they added a twist to by having her jump from truck to truck.  They also had one of the best bad-guy-killings I’ve seen in a long time, which had the entire audience cheering.  This is a fun movie that flows pretty well.  And watching Angelina Jolie knock out all the action scenes was a blast and I have to say that she did it better than some of her male counterparts.

John Sedley (Mickey Rourke) is a crafty criminal left with a rare facial deformity since birth. His deformities lend to the cruel nickname given to him, Johnny Handsome. However, Sedley is quite good at setting up possible jobs, and does these jobs with his mentor/father figure. Convinced he can pull off one last job, Sedley, his mentor, and his two partners—Rafe (Lance Henriksen) and Sunny (Ellen Barkin) knock off a coin collectible store in the French Quarter. In a twist unforeseen by Sedley, Rafe and Sunny double cross them. Sedley is left alone at the crime scene and his mentor is dead.

After being arrested, Dr. Steven Fisher (Forest Whitaker) thinks that Johnny is only a criminal due to his rough upbringing. The doctor there in turn decides to attempt to rehabilitate him and fix his facial deformities. Soon, Johnny is paroled and given a new identity along with his new, truly handsome face. He is given the chance to go back into the world and try to start another life for himself.  The real question is, will Johnny lead a normal life or go back for revenge? Lt. A.Z. Drones (Morgan Freeman) knows Johnny all too well, and is convinced that someone like him can never be rehabilitated back into normal society. Once a criminal, always a criminal.

Upon first receiving this film, I realized the reason it was most likely getting a Blu-ray release. A red shiny sticker indicated that a “legend from the upcoming film, THE EXPENDABLES” was in this movie. Perhaps they were hoping that hardcore Rourke fans, or maybe the new ones, would want to check this out due to the massive buzz of THE EXPENDABLES. I’m not sure that plan will work with the power of the sticker alone, but I hope that the film is given another chance with possible audiences.

While I can’t hold it to the title of “cinematic masterpiece”, I can say that it is something of a surprise. A great performance by a younger Rourke, explains why he is receiving a comeback in the recent years. Johnny Handsome could have been a role that anyone could have easily tried to play with the deformities overpowering the actor–this isn’t the case with Rourke. He brings a subtle charm and warmth to Johnny, but at the same time gives enough distance to explain why he feels no malice. In turn, the spotlight stays on him throughout the film even with co-stars like Freeman and Barkin daring to take it away.

Rourke’s co-stars are memorable in some aspects. Barkin nails the trashy, wrong side of the tracks partner to Henriksen’s Rafe. She’s always just the right amount of over the top. Henriksen plays a good sleezeball alcoholic, drug addict. At times I did get him confused with the guitar player for Def Leppard, but that’s only because they’re both so hardcore. When it comes to Morgan, he always calls attention when he’s on-screen. Sadly, some of his lines were a little ridiculous and his performance felt a tad forced. Whitaker only stay through till about half of the film, but manages to convince us with hardly any effort that Johnny will fly straight one day. My least favorite character in the film was Johnny’s mousy accountant lady friend played by Elizabeth McGovern. I think the thing that drove me nuts about her was that terrible Cajun accent.

As I’ve already said at least three times during this review, I really hope that people get a chance to see this film. It’s something that I will wind up watching more than once, basically because of Rourke’s stellar performance. Johnny Handsome gives the action when it’s necessary, but also leaves you with a little heart as well.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: A lot of things are off about the video transfer in this one. The colors are dull and there are noticeable blurry spots. When nighttime hits in the film, there’s no light contrast so you are often bogged down in the dark.  (1.85:1 Widescreen).

Audio: I thought the audio was fairly decent quality. There was never really a struggle to hear anything. I only found myself having to adjust the sound a couple of times. (2.0 DTS-HD).

Wordsmith (12:39) A nice featurette with screenwriter Ken Friedman talking about how the project got together and started from a “dusty old novel” by John Godey.

Eye of the Beholder (10:15): Michael Westmore, special effects make-up designer, talks about the unique task of providing a disfigured face for Mickey Rourke. They talk about trying to create a realism, instead of turning it into something out of a horror film.

Action Man (11:12): Stunt coordinator, Allan Graf talks about getting the job on the film, his interactions with director Walter Hill as well as the actors, and the difficulty of performing stunts in the French Quarter of New Orleans.

Although it’s just a short 30-second trailer, the first footage from the upcoming DRIVE ANGRY 3D looks like it will accomplish exactly what it has set out to accomplish.  Which is, it will provide mindless fun and utilize some fun 3D effects.  Whether that translates into box office success remains to be seen.  The film stars Nicolas Cage as a man possessed for revenge after some guys kill his daughter.  And once again, Nicolas Cage is sporting a horrible, horrible hairpiece.  The guy is a multi-millionaire and has been an A-list actor for two decades; why can’t someone tell him he looks ridiculous in those hairpieces?

The Patrick Lussier film stars Nicolas Cage, Amber Heard, Billy Burke, David Morse, William Fichtner, Christa Campbell and Katie Mixon.  The 3D action is set to hit theaters on February 11th, 2011.  Watch the trailer here.

The magnificent INCEPTION made it two weekends in a row by holding off Angelina Jolie and SALT.  I have to admit that I was a little worried that INCEPTION wouldn’t be received well by the masses, but I’m extremely happy I’m wrong.  Let’s hope the success of the film leads to bigger and better things for Hollywood.  I’m impressed with SALT, even if the movie was average.  It’s nice to see a female action star carry a movie like this.  I can say I’m not surprised about the fall of THE TWILIGHT SAGA: ECLIPSE.  The film fell out of the top five and may not even crack the top ten next weekend.

Next week sees the release of DINNER FOR SCHMUCKS and normally I’d say INCEPTION should have no problem making it three weekends in a row.  But there is a massive void of summer comedies this year and audiences might be clamoring for something funny at the theater.  I don’t think Schmucks looks very funny, but Carell and Rudd have been able to carry movies before.  If Schmucks doesn’t do it, then THE OTHER GUYS should take the top spot the following weekend.

1. Inception  $43.5 million

2. Salt  $36.5 million

3. Despicable Me  $21.4 million

4. The Sorcerer’s Apprentice  $9.7 million

5. Toy Story 3  $9 million

6. Ramona and Beezus  $8 million

7. Grown Ups  $7.5 million

8. Twilight Saga: Eclipse  $7 million

9. The Last Airbender  $4.5 million

10. Predators  $2.6 million

Source: Box Office Mojo, Deadline

Comic-Con is almost coming to a close and although there hasn’t been much breaking news spewing from the convention, w have gotten a few confirmations on things we already knew.  Marvel’s panel was by far the most exciting since they have three huge movies in the works, including CAPTAIN AMERICA, THOR and of course, THE AVENGERS.  Just a few years ago, it was impossible to get an A-List star to show up at Comic-Con and now they’re everywhere.  But maybe the coolest moment at the convention came when Marvel brought out all of the stars of THE AVENGERS.

In the pic below, (from left to right) you have Robert Downey Jr., Clark Gregg, Scarlett Johansson,Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Mark Ruffalo, Joss Whedon and Kevin Feige.  Or, if you prefer their superhero names; Iron Man, Agent Coulson, Black Widow, Thor, Captain America, Nick Fury and then the film’s director and producer.

Picture Source: Deadline

John Rambo (Sylvester Stallone) is in prison when his commanding officer and only friend, Colonel Samuel Troutman (Richard Crenna) offers him his freedom if he accepts a top secret mission to take some pictures of American POW’s being held in Vietnam.  The corrupt official, Murdock (Charles Napier), overseeing the mission wants it to fail but Rambo is determined to rescue the POW’s and kill as many Vietnamese and Russians as possible.

Like I said before, Rambo is a full blown killing machine and this film definitely highlights the kill part.  He single handedly blows up hundreds of Vietnamese with his exploding tipped arrows and has an obligatory montage of killing men one by one.  Sure we never see his transition from one hiding place to the next but it sure is entertaining seeing Rambo blending with the background and surprise attacking his enemies in different ways.  Rambo also has a rather graphic run in with some leaches and gets partnered with a very attractive female freedom fighter, who has a terrible broken English and quickly falls for him.  The last monologue of Stallone’s is cheesy to say the least, especially since the whole formula is so similar to the original.  It’s only heightened by his dramatic walk away, which he appears to be heading absolutely nowhere, followed up by the atrocious song, “Peace in our Life” by Sylvester’s brother Frank Stallone.

The stunts are pretty impressive using helicopters and boats in a variety of ways, however the use of close up shots and smoke to mask improbable actions to get from point A to point B is an insult to the audience’s intelligence.   Your feeling toward the fact that each scenario is heightened by absurdity depends completely on your enjoyment of mindless action movies and this one definitely sets a standard.

It should be noted that RAMBO: FIRST BLOOD PART II had seven Razzie nominations but did receive one Oscar nomination and was positively revered by President Ronald Reagan claiming Rambo as a Republican.  I think these drastic polar feelings toward the film are a little over dramatic and unwarranted.  I could go on and on about how the film isn’t very good in a lot of ways, but it still is a darn good time.

BLU-RAY REVIEW

Video: (Widescreen 2.35:1 Ratio) Very clear.  The jungle of Vietnam looks colorful and vibrant.

Audio: (DTS-HD Master Audio) Verbal audio was far too quiet compared to the sound mixing of the background noise, effects and music.

Commentary by director George P. Cosmatos: He is a little tough to listen to giving a mediocre interest level of generic information.  He sounds like he took more direction than gave it.

Out of the Blu Trivia: The same pop-up style commentary giving facts and information as you watch the film.

We get to win this time – Documentary (20:04) This is an interesting information talking about the difference for Rambo being more in control of this war compared to the first and allowing him to let loose on the enemy.