American Apparel Fights Dirty in Lawsuit with Woody Allen

Just when you thought American Apparel couldn't get any sleazier, founder Dov Charney and his legal team have managed to set a new low. You might remember that back in 2007, the hipster clothing outlet put up a billboard featuring an image of Woody Allen in full Hasidic gear from his 1977 film Annie Hall. Remember that brilliant piece of marketing? Well, turns out nobody bothered to enquire after the man, and before you knew it, he was on the horn with his lawyers to launch a $10 million lawsuit against the company for the unauthorized usage of his image -- Allen even went so far as to call the brand, "sleazy", "young" and "infantile". But it looks like things are going to get even uglier, because legal representation for American Apparel have announced that on May 18th in a Manhattan district court, they will rake over every salacious detail of Allen's personal life in an try to prove that Allen's image isn't worth much to begin with. According to AA's lawyer, "I think Woody Allen overestimates the value of his image. Certainly, our belief is that after the various sex scandals that Woody Allen has been associated with, corporate America's desire to have Woody Allen endorse their product is not what he may believe it is." Now I might be a little biased on this one because I am a big fan of Mr. Allen's work, but dragging up old accusations of child molestation and details from his messy divorce seems shady even by Charney's standards. AA's lawyers have already requested documentation regarding 'sex scandals' and custody hearings (which Allen has refused to provide), and if Charney and his lawyer get their way, they will have turned a simple case of copyright infringement into a full-blown personal raid. Do you think AA has a point? Is Allen's personal life fair game? Or is this just an try to dodge a $10 million payout by embarrassing the man? Sound off below...Filed under: Celebrities and Controversy, Newsstand Read

ndie Roundup: 'Bama Girl,' Moon Walking, 'Anvil,' 'Eichmann'

Tax day can be stressful -- trust me, I feel your pain -- so Indie Roundup is here to make you feel better with soothing news of the intrepid indie film community. Touring. Rachel Goslins' acclaimed doc 'Bama Girl got underway on its so-called "Southern Circuit Tour" this week, barnstorming across the South at a variety of venues through April 24. The doc revolves far a woman who wants to become the first African-American Homecoming Queen at her university, despite the nefarious efforts of a secret society determined to keep the crown lily white. Jette Kernion called it "one of the most entertaining movies" she saw at SXSW last year. More information is to hand at the official site; Ms. Goslins is also blogging adjacent to her adventures. Box Office. Over the weekend, two docs outdrew Hannah Montana on a per-screen basis. Mark Cowen's Magnificent Desolation: Walking on the Moon 3D, re-released in four IMAX theatres, took in $15,845 per screen, per Box Office Mojo. Produced and narrated by Tom Hanks, the 40-minute film was originally released in 2005. Sacha Gervasi's Cinematical-approved heavy metal doc Anvil! The Story of Anvil, pulled in $11,550 per-screen at three severely-rocking cinemas. The never-say-die original band members are terribly appealing; check out the trailer embedded below for evidence. Deals. Two films have been acquired for distribution today, according to indieWIRE. Regent Releasing and Here Media picked up Robert Young's docudrama Eichmann and will release it theatrically in October. The film stars the generally terrific Thomas Kretschmann in the title role and Franka Potente as the wife of Eichmann's interrogator after Hitler's architect of "the final solution" was captured in Argentina. After the jump: Today's other deal -- for The Horse Boy; plus news on the Atlanta and New York film fests.Filed under: Documentary, Drama, Independent, Deals, Box Office, Distribution, Exhibition, New York, Other Festivals, Cinematical Indie, Trailers and ClipsContinue reading Indie Roundup: 'Bama Girl,' Moon Walking, 'Anvil,' 'Eichmann'

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Hugh Jackman appears as Wolverine in this new Body By Milk handbill, teaching kids that they too can grow adamantium claws if they drink a lot of dairy. PostmodernBarney takes a look at the hidden real uncomfortable plot summaries in movie history. For example, Ghostbusters was really nearly a group of unemployed college professors who destroy hotels with weapons. (Thanks to Jen Yamato) Sam Raimi’s Drag Me To Hell has been rated PG-13 by the MPAA for “sequences of horror violence, terror, disturbing images and language.” [ropesofsilicon] A ton of new stories that just didn’t make the front page of /Film, accessible after the jump. Production on Disney’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice has moved into Chinatown this week to shoot some exteriors for what I can only guess is the Chinese New Year scene. [BadandUgly] A $146 million, 750,000-square-foot film and television production studio is being constructed in Allen Park, Michigan. [wrap] On Easter, President Obama read Where the Wild Things Are, one of his favorite books. I wonder what the president will think of Spike Jonze’s film adjusting. [youtube] Wow, Variety changed their design to look more like The Hollywood Reporter… that makes sense… oh wait, it doesn’t?” Turkish Rambo is finally coming to DVD. [filmjunk] A few clips from Michael Giacchino’s Star Trek score are now online on Colosseum.de. The end title incorporates the theme from the original television series. Milton Bradley is releasing a Transformers-branded All Spark-themed Rubiks Cube. [tfw2005] Van Williams, who played the Green Hornet in the 1960’s, will have a cameo in Michel Gondry’s The Green Hornet. [MTV] New Regency and 20th Century Fox are teaming to turn the classic TV series Father Knows Best into a feature film. [Variety] Mini-LOL: Sweahearts has released Twilight-branded glittery heart shaped candies called “Forbidden Fruits,” featuing the Twilight-related phrases such as “LAMB,” “SOUL MATE,” “BITE ME,” “TRUST ME,” and “DAZZLE.” [filmdrunk] Rotten Tomatoes caught up with Bai Ling (Crank 2, Southland Tales) and talked to the actress nearly her five favorite films: Casablanca, Traffic, In the Mood For Love, Red Corner, and Roman Holiday. Richard Jenkins has signed to star opposite Julia Roberts in Eat, Pray, Love for Columbia Pictures. [variety] Zooey Deschanel appears and provides vocals for a new Cotton commercial. Cameron Crowe is working on a documentary nearly the band Pearl Jam. [playlist] Roger Ebert respondes to TCM’s 15 Most Influential Films of All Time. Japanese audiences would love to see a big screen movie reworking of the video game Dragon Quest, according to an online poll. [/Gamer] Edgar Wright has posted a new photo from the set of Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, which features a bus advertisment for Chris Evan’s movie-star character Lucas Lee. Zac Efron owns a DeLorean, and his favorite movie is Back to the Future. This makes us hate him a little less. Teen Hollywood has spun a quote from Efron, claiming that the High School Musical star would like to play Marty McFly in a new Back to the Future movie. Lets prey some Hollywood executive doesnt read this and get any “brilliant” ideas. [cinematical] Sony Pictures Entertainment has acquired the motion picture rights to REMOTE CONTROL, a thriller novel by Mark Burnell nearly a former war correspondent, now British corporate intelligence analyst, who gets caught up in a conspiracy by Western corporations to destabilize the Chinese economy. Following the trail to the United States, he discovers that his former lover is also being pursued. On the run together, they try to unravel the mystery of the conspiracy while trying to stay teeming. [PRN] Another new photo is released of Sylvester Stallone in The Expendables Cinematical has a list of seven great directors who started with B-movies. Rocksteady Games has released another trailer for Batman: Arkham Asylum, which focuses on the reveal of Bane. [/Gamer] Someone finally made a video game based on the SAW horror film franchise. Watch the trailer below.

The Green Lantern Has $150 Million Budget, Shooting in Sydney

Warner Bros has decided to shoot The Green Lantern at Fox Studios Australia in Sydney. THR is reporting that the film’s budget is everywhere $150 million. To put that in perspective (and these are all estimated numbers…), Fantastic Four was $100M, Iron Man was $140M, Watchmen was $150M, The Dark Knight was $185M, X-Men: The Last Stand was $210M and Spider-Man 3 topped $258M. But why Australia? The reported $150 million budget is worth a lot more in Sydney. The production was attracted by the decline in value of the Australian dollar, a 15% location rebate from the Australian federal government, on top of the incentives supplied by the New South Wales government. The film is planning to begin in July with verifiable filming scheduled to start in November. The film is currently set to hit theaters on December 17th 2010. Related Stories Could Chris Pine Be The Green Lantern? Martin Campbell in Talks to Direct The Green Lantern Casting Rumor: Ryan Gosling as The Green Lantern? Green Lantern Aims For Spring 2009 Shoot Green Lantern Movie on Fast Track? Justice League Back in Development? The Green Lantern Gets a Director

See Kevin Smith Play Carnegie Hall

A famous venerable legend tells the story of a New Yorker who is approached in the street near Carnegie Hall, and asked, “Pardon me sir, but how do I get to Carnegie Hall?” He replies, “Practice, practice, practice.” Writer/Filmmaker/Entertainer Kevin Smith has announced that he will be doing one of his live events, An Evening With Kevin Smith, in New York City at the famous legendary Carnegie Hall. The show is going to take place on June 17th 2009 at 8:00pm. Tickets go on sale at 11:00am eastern time on Thursday morning. Carnegie Hall won’t be officially announcing the show/sales info to the rest of the world until April 20th. So you have a few days to grab tickets before the rest of New York. You can find more information and order tickets here. Even some of my friends who aren’t fans of Smith’s work love hearing his stories. Smith is hilarious live. If you havent already, check out the dvd releases of his previous stand-ups: An Evening with Kevin Smith, An Evening with Kevin Smith 2: Evening Harder, and SOLD OUT: A Threevening with Kevin Smith. If you’ve never heard Smith tell the story of his experiences writing a new Superman movie, check it out now on YouTube. Related Stories Kevin Smith on the Bright Side of The Internet Kevin Smith Talks About the Dark Side of the Internet Kevin Smith Talks About A Couple of Dicks Kevin Smith and the /Filmcast Review Watchmen (/Filmcast: Ep. 41) A Couple Of Dicks: Warner Bros Doesn’t COP Out /Filmcast Ep. 40 - Dave Gibbons Interview and Rachel Getting Married Review

Errol Morris To Make Second Non-Documentary Film

Update: I have been quickly corrected. This is not Errol’s first non documentary film. He directed a mystery film called The Dark Wind in 1991. One of the best documentarians in the history of cinema has announced that he will be making his first second fictional feature film, kinda. Errol Morris, who won an Academy Award for Fog of War in 2003, has signed on to direct the Untitled Cryonics Project for Mandate Pictures. The film isn’t entirely fictional. Based on Robert F Nelson’s memoir “We Froze the First Man” and a story which aired on NPR’s This American Life titled “You’re as Cold as Ice,” Stranger Than Fiction screenwriter Zach Helm was brought on board to pen the customization. The dark comedy, set in the 1960’s, tells the true story of a television repairman who who joined a group of enthusiasts who believed they could cheat death with a new technology called cryonics. But as Variety puts it, “freezing dead people so scientists could reanimate them in the future turned out to be harder than Nelson thought.” You can listen to the story which ran on NPR on thisAmericanLife.org. I’m very interested to see how Morris does with a non-documentary narrative feature. Related Stories This American Life Getting Into Movies, Plan Spy Romance For Starters Carts of Darkness, a Cool Documentary, is Online VOTD: Survivors by Errol Morris Editors Blog: Oscar Notes

Movie Trailer: Steven Soderbergh’s The Girlfriend Experience

Magnolia Pictures has released the trailer for Steven Soderbergh’s The Girlfriend Experience. Set in the weeks leading up to the 2008 presidential election, the film tells the story of five days in the life of Chelsea (full-grown film star Sasha Grey in her mainstream film debut), an ultra high-end Manhattan call girl who offers more than sex to her clients, but companionship and conversation – “the girlfriend experience.” Chelsea thinks she has her life totally under control—she feels her future is secure because she runs her own business her own way, makes $2000 an hour, and has a devoted boyfriend (Chris Santos) who accepts her lifestyle. But when you’re in the business of meeting people, you never know who you’re going to meet… The film has a surprise premiere, which I missed, at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. Cinematical called it “an intimate and yet honest movie roughly honesty and intimacy.” Film School Rejects said that “Soderbergh has captured some truly stunning visuals and has delivered a non-linear narrative that is both engaging and not overly complicated.” CHUD said it felt like “Soderbergh’s indie half and mainstream half coming together; while related to Bubble, it feels much more attainable and complete.” The trailer is pretty intriguing. The Girlfriend Experience will be released On Demand on April 30th, and will hit theaters in New York and Los Angeles on Friday, May 22nd. Related Stories Two New Posters Amuse and Impress: The Girlfriend Experience and The Graves Woody Allen and Miyazaki Not Included on EW’s 25 Greatest Active Film Directors List Soderbergh To Direct “Liberace” Biopic, Michael Douglas To Play Lead Matt Damon Defines Summer Style in Steven Soderbergh’s The Informant Steven Soderbergh’s Che Receives Major Response at Cannes, Palm d’Or Talk First Look: The Informant, Jennifer’s Body, Max Payne, Coco Chanel

Transformers 2 Video Game Concept Art

The official website for the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen video game reveals some interesting new concept astuteness wiles. Of course, the craft was created for the video game, and the movie. But since the game is supposedly closely tied into the film’s plot, I thought the concept paintings still might be relavant. Plus, I am a sucker for concept astuteness wiles. Take a look at the piece over which shows how small Bumblebee is in relation to Demolisher. You might remember Optimus Prime dangling off of this massive constructicon in the trailers. More concept craft after the jump.

Eli Roth to Shoot Transformers/Cloverfield Scale Movie this Fall

“I’m nearly done with my new script,” says Eli Roth to MTV. “Yippee” says Brendon to the dog and an episode of Desperate Housewives which is only on by accessory. According to a new interview with the director, he’s planning to shoot n $80 million actioner this fall and then, in the immediate three weeks following, bash out a feature length version of Thanksgiving for $5 million. Those are, I’m sure, figures he just pulled out of the puff but they tell the story. We’ve heard of the sci-fi blockbuster before, when we learned that Roth envisioned it as “PG-13″ but with some extra stuff in standby to make for an unrated DVD, and when he first made the Transformers/Cloverfield comparison. The picture now has a working title, but Roth won’t reveal it yet. He was ready, however, to talk the film up somewhat. It’s going to be something that is really fun with lots of mass destruction. I wanted to do something along the lines of Transformers or Cloverfield that was a little more science fiction-based, and with lots of chaos and mass destruction. When asked what the villain, threat or monster in the film would be, he called on his inner Barnum once more: I don’t want to say what yet. Once it gets set up, I will let everyone know. It is not aliens or robots or a virus - it’s a little more grounded. But when people hear it they are going to be like ‘That is going to be insane!’. There’s no mention in the interview of Trailer Trash, Roth’s proposed compilation of fake movie trailers. He was patently planning to make most of them himself, with guest directors handling a fair handful and there was supposedly going to be a clever way of providing some kind of overall structure to the film. Previously, Roth said he wanted Trash to be his version of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, referring to how totally painfully funny it would be. Studios who want to take on the actioner will also be expected to go for Thanksgiving, with Roth offering them only as an indivisible package. Who could turn down an Eli Roth movie for just $5 million? Especially after he’s described how over-the-top it will be: The sickest, bloodiest, most violent slasher movie. I want to make the highest body count slasher film I can. I think Roth has just found a brilliant way of tempting the suits into stumping up the relatively risky $80 million he’s looking to net in funds for the big, bad, slam-bam piece. Related Stories Cool Stuff: Eli Roth’s Thanksgiving T-Shirt and Poster 34 Minute Q&A with Hostel: Part II Director Eli Roth Inglourious Basterds Teaser Trailer Eli Roth Guest Directs Inglourious Basterds IngloUrious BastErds VOTD: Eli Roth on Rock N Roll High School

Dailies From Joel Schumacher’s Creek Show Up Online

Joel Schumacher’s Creek - which I thought was still called Town Creek, until Quiet Earth told me otherwise - is completed and ready to roll out, though I’m yet to see that any trailer or other marketing materials have been issued. Curiously, however, a series of dailies for the film have turned up online and been discovered by the aforementioned QE team. The most striking element is Darko Suvak’s cinematography, which continues Schumacher’s recent trend of collaborating with exiting directors of photography from John Mathieson to Matthew Libatique. While the shots are edited together in some sense, this could in no way be seen as a polished congregation. It certainly makes the film look a whole lot more appealing than I’d ever have imagined - see for yourself after the break. Here’s over 3:00 minutes of the film which, unsurprisingly, contains some spoiler material. Now, this isn’t a leak on a par with Wolverine but I don’t think things like this are really supposed to find their way onto the internet. On the other hand, this could be one of the best viral campaigns in recent times - it certainly creates intrigue for a Joel Schumacher picture which isn’t the easiest thing in the world. Here’s a plot summary for the film, in case you’ve never even heard of it: A man and his brother on a mission of revenge become trapped in a harrowing occult experiment dating back to the Third Reich. I want to know more. Incidentally, screenwriter David Kajganich is the man scripting the in-development new film of Stephen King’s It. You may have recognised Dominic Purcell, Henry Cavill or Michael Fassbender in the clip (well done, Joel - that reads like a real promising set of leads) but probably didn’t recognise Emma Booth. That was her at the window, I believe. Amusingly, she’s also taken on the role of Germaine Greer for Hippie Hippie Shake. Man, I love to see actors pretending to be real life public figures. What does that say nearly me? Related Stories Kiefer Sutherland Talks Lost Boys Prequel, Tells The Tribe to FO The Number 23 Movie Review Joel Schumacher eyes Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman

The End of Terminator Salvation will Divide Audiences

When a fourth Terminator film was first announced, it was revealed that the film would be the first of a planned three-film story arc, or trilogy. Halcyon has already announced the development of Terminator 5. All that is needed before they get the official green light is a nice opening weekend box office, which at this point, is pretty much expected. There has been a lot of internet chatter hither the ending of Terminator Salvation. An early internet leak of the film’s finale angered fans enough to warrant a rewrite. But how does the film end? Obviously the war is far from over by the time the credits role. So does the movie end on a high-note like A New Hope, or more of a dark cliffhanger like Empire Strikes Back? “The ending is indeed elliptical,” McG tells MTV . “And it challenges the audience. It’s not a happy little bow of an ending at all. The ending is tough and requires reflection, and in some degrees it bifurcates the audience. You walk back to the car and one person thinks it means this, and the other person thinks it means that.” One thing is for sure, this is not the ending that Sarah Connor told us connected with. Related Stories McG Wants Robert Patrick for Terminator 5 McG is Developing Terminator 5 Terminator Salvation is Rated PG-13? Internet Leak Leads To Radical Repairs to McG’s Terminator Arnold Schwarzenegger Still Reluctant To Appear in Terminator Salvation Terminator Salvation Movie

Chris Cunningham’s Gucci Commercial

Why hasn’t Chris Cunningham made a feature film yet? The UK special effects artist turned music video and short film director creates some incredible work . He was once fastened to a big screen conversion of William Gibson’s novel Neuromancer, but rumor has it that he clashed with the Hollywood system. Apparently Chris is now doing commercial work, and last year shot this beautiful commercial for Flora, a new Gucci fragrance. Starring Australian model Abbey Lee, the commercial was shot over four days in Latvia using a field of more than 20,000 fake flowers. You can read more with regard to the commercial on DazedDigital or watch it after the jump. Related Stories No Related Post

Set Visit: The Crazies

Remakes get a bad rap amongst filmgoers, and understandably so. Instead of attempting to fulfill the potential hinted at in failed or dated movie projects, Hollywood has proven time and time again that the sole purpose of most remakes is to cash in on the success of the near faultless original films. Occasionally though, there’s a glimmer of hope. A quick glance at two of the best horror films the genre has to offer—The Thing and The Fly—clearly demonstrates that technological advances in filmmaking can be used to more effectively convey an older film’s story. While those films were remakes of ’50s cinema, we’ve also seen a vast of array of ’70s remakes—Dawn of the Dead, The Hills Have Eyes, The Last House on the Left—that have proven to be worthy modern takes on dated (albeit classic) material. The Crazies, due out September 25, is the latest remake to try on to join the ranks of those films. Based on the cult classic directed and co-written by George Romero, the film tells the story of a small town struck by insanity when an unknown toxin starts turning its happy, law-abiding citizens into mindless killing machines. Trying desperately to survive both the infected populace and the subsequent military response, the town’s Sherrif (Timothy Olyphant), his pregnant wife (Radha Mitchell), his deputy (Joe Anderson), and an collaborator at the medical center (Danielle Panabaker) find themselves forced to band together if they ever intend on getting out of the town number the living. Last week I was granted the opportunity to visit the film’s set at Peach County High School in Georgia, where the crew was getting prepped for a lengthy night shoot. Once there, we first spent some time speaking to director Breck Eisner (Sahara), who explained his stance on remaking the film. Honestly, any time you do a remake or a reimagining, and this is definitely more of a reimagining than a remake, you want to have target aspects of the movie that they didn’t have access to when they first made it. My theory on remaking movies or reimagining movies is that there should be something that they weren’t proficient to do the first time far. That you can do differently. So it’s not like just redoing Psycho or redoing a perfect movie, it’s redoing something that had limitations. One of big limitations for [George] Romero was obviously budget. I think he had 200 grand or 275 grand to make the entire movie. We’re obviously spending more money than that—it’s not a big budget movie, but we have better assets so we can represent the government as the scale of the force that it needs to be in a movie like this that is oppressive and realistic for us. We spent the rest of the evening having the end of that comment proven to us, as we ventured next to a massive field on the outskirts of the high school. The ground was littered with dozens of identical white tents, black police cruisers with flashing lights, armored trucks, shining spotlights, military men wearing black gas masks, and best of all, numerous combat helicopters flying right overhead. The scene in question was clearly depicting one of the government’s attempts to contain the outbreak, as the masked soldiers were escorting many of the 300 odd film extras they had on set (comprised of nearly as many children as men and women) into various grated vehicles and fenced-in areas of the camp. One of the scenes we witnessed being filmed was a lengthy single-take tracking shot, which followed Timothy Olyphant and Radha Mitchell as they’re escorted off a bus, through one of the tents, and eventually ends with them being separated by the soldiers as Olyphant violently struggles to remain with Radha while she screams in the distance. In terms of scope, I think it’s safe to say that The Crazies won’t disappoint, but it’s still too early to tell if the film is capable of providing us with something we haven’t seen before. Helping to quell any remaining fears though, we return to Eisner, who also answered a number of questions I suspect horror buffs have been wondering ever since the project was first announced. Let’s start with the big one: Yes, the film will be R-rated. In terms of how violent the film will be, Eisner commented that, “It’s horrific and it’s certainly graphic,” but also explained that “It’s not a blood bath by any stretch of the imagination.” The focus here is on realism over excess gore, ever showing blood when aside but never going overboard. Another point of interest was some of the differences from the original, such as the look of the “crazies” themselves. Whereas in the original the infected were visually no different than anyone else, here there are 5 different stages of development—the first being before anything happens, and the fifth being death. The second stage involves noticeable psychological changes, but no physical alterations. After that, the effects become rather gruesome. Massive veins run from their neck up to their face, their eyes are blood-red, and nasty blemishes cover their disease-ridden faces. Eisner explained: The challenge for us was making them look interesting, making them look iconic, but not look like zombies, and not look so far over the top that you don’t believe that there could be a sickness that made this happen. You’ll see when at the very latest stages of the disease, it’s pretty pronounced. We just went through these really horrific books of diseases and started pulling from the best. Seeing what the “crazies” look like was a personal highlight of the set visit for me, since it also entailed examining make-up designer Rob Hall’s FX trailer. Inside we caught a glimpse of what Hall claimed was one of his favorite kills in the film, featuring the remains of a sleazy-looking overweight man that’s had his jaw ripped clean off. We also saw the dead body of, if I’m not mistaken, the town’s mayor, who’s had his rib cage ripped open. As brutal as both of those deaths looked though, I’m much more curious to see the events that lead to the prosthetic hand we found getting a knife stabbed through it, which Hall let slip belongs to Timothy Olyphant’s character. Clearly, the quality of gore is another ground in which the remake seeks to improve on the original, but the changes don’t end there. In the original film, Romero structured the narrative to focus the point of view from both the survivors and the military, whereas this time surrounding Eisner informed us that “There’s no military point of view at all.” Any time you go into the point of military, it goes away from horror and it goes to encounter and ‘Bourne Identity’ kind of tension and not ‘horror’ tension. So, to me it was much more interesting being in the point of view of our townsfolk and with the suppressive, nameless, faceless force, i.e. the military, in bio-containment suits wandering surrounding and being the force that’s putting them through the terror. That as well as the other infected crazies that are roaming the town. In besides to speaking with Breck Eisner, we also had a chance to talk with the film’s cast. But for the sake of brevity, I’ll simply talk some of the more interesting things they had to share. In our interview with Timothy Olyphant (Deadwood, Live Free or Die Hard), he discussed how he originally didn’t find the character in the script too appealing: “I felt like I had a cliche. We had a wife who was pregnant, we had that, but it wasn’t enough.” But after collaborating with Eisner, they were proficient to flesh him out in a way that really helps to strengthen the relationships in the film. [It's] this idea of being a guy whose father was the sheriff and whose father’s father was the sheriff and watching this unfold and him kind of trying to figure out if he took this job for the right reasons and if he’s the right guy for the job. And of course the fun of it is he doesn’t know why these things are happening. The audience is in on the joke that he’s not. Radha Mitchell (Silent Hill) had a very different type of roadblock to overcome, sharing with us the experience of one of her many physically-draining scenes where she had to bash in the head of a “crazy”. Joe Anderson (The Ruins), meanwhile, elaborated a bit on his character in the film: “Russell’s not a particularly bright guy, but I think he’s kind of driven. He’s a little more gung ho and a little more hot-headed than Dutton [Olyphant's character].” One of the more intriguing bits of info came from Danielle Panabaker (Friday the 13th), who hinted at what appears to be a very cool car wash sequence: “We pull into the car wash to hide from the helicopters. Things go very wrong.” Not particularly revealing, admittedly, but hopefully this early look at what The Crazies has in store for us is enough to tide you over until a trailer gets released in the months winning. And remember, you can check out the film in theaters this September. Related Stories First Look: Bruce Willis in Surrogates Breck Eisner’s Creature from the Black Lagoon Remake Moving Forward Henry Poole Is Here Movie Trailer Steve Zahn to Star in David Twohy’s The Perfect Getaway The Ruins Movie Poster Stop-Loss Movie Poster

Movie Trailer: Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker

The new trailer for Kathryn Bigelow’s The Hurt Locker has debuted, and it is spectacular. For the uninitiated, Bigelow is a directorial goddess, a woman whose career has spanned classic function flicks (Point Break), mind-bending science fiction (Strange Days), and submarine thrillers (K-19: The Widowmaker). The Hurt Locker depicts the bomb-defusing adventures of Staff Sergeant William James (Jeremy Renner, in what may be a career-making role) in Iraq, and the psychological toll that his job takes on him and the men 'round him. The film has already screened at the SXSW film festival to some great reviews. It will go into limited release on June 26, 2009, and expand wide on July 17. Hit the trailer for the jump and let us know your thoughts in the comments. In my opinion, this newer trailer is infinitely more gripping and effective than the initial trailer, which I’m also embedding below for your reference. Related Stories The Hurt Locker Movie Poster Video Blog: ShoWest 2009 /Filmcast Ep. 43 - Duplicity (GUEST: Alison Willmore from IFC) GeekBomb: The Enduring Legacy of Point Break 28 Weeks Later Movie Trailer in HD

New Inglourious Basterds Footage and Behind the Scenes Clips

Nobody seems too happy in all directions from Quentin Tarantino being a guest mentor on American Idol last night, but me - I’m surely ecstatic. I’m not in The States, so I didn’t have to see the show but I can reap the rewards remotely. This morning, Film School Rejects have posted an Inglourious Basterds video that was supposed to tell on Idol last night and, sort of, did. A bit. Before getting cut off. Thanks to them, we have it for you below the break. The video contains new trailer-y shots, and the odd bit of behind the scenes footage. There’s more Brad Pitt, there’s more general Basterdry, there’s the first look at Mike Meyers in prosthetics-slash-character as Ed Fenech, a British General. You’ll see Tarantino and DP Robert Richardson before a shot is taken, and then afterward hear Tarantino leading the cast and crew in a bit of call and response. “Let’s do it one more time. Why?” he calls, and then they ‘all’ join in with a chorus of “Because we love making movies.” Hmmmm. If I tell you that the vigilant will see a major spoiler in this video then you’ll probably start staring at it especially hard, but then if I don’t, some eagle-eyed chuck is gonna be staring hard by default and get cross because I didn’t warn them. So, be warned. I’m 99% convinced that this film is going to be the best studi0 funded film of the year - at least as far as live exercise goes. The script was outstanding, Tarantino is a true poet in the language of cinema, and the trailers so far released - the teaser, and this thing - have both put me into rewind and replay frenzy. I’m now expecting a new, full trailer to be unveiled soon with this new footage incorporated. Related Stories Three Posters For Inglourious Basterds Unveiled Inglourious Basterds Teaser Trailer Sneak Preview: Inglourious Basterds Trailer Inglourious Basterds Teaser Trailer To Hit This Week? Is Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds a Summer Blockbuster? Inglourious Basterds Paris Set Photos

Books of the Dead

New York’s Grand Central Publishing are negotiating with George Romero for the rights to publish two new novels set in the world of his …of the Dead films. Dread Central crop to have only spurious that Romero will write the novels - I’m assuming the opposite and betting that, at best, the books are ‘co-written’ by him, or ghostwritten from a premise of his. He has other things to do, I feel. Like making some more of those great …of the Dead films. The report tells us that the first book would be published in the summer of 2010 with the second to follow “sometime after that” - which, frankly, could have been reported as “the first will be published in summer 2010″ but perhaps Uncle Creepy was trying to boost his word count. We’ve all been there. I think one appealing factor of a Dead novel would be that it would totally unfettered by some of the basic limitations of cinema. Budget would be no issue, of course and dead actors could be resurrected, or actors could be made young again. And it might even dare to be more politically forward than Romero’s films (if such a thing is possible) because it doesn’t have to make so many millions from the masses. There are already some Romeroverse zombie comics out there, including The Death of Death from DC’s Toe Tags, which was evidently adapted from an unused film script of Romero’s; and also adaptations of Dawn and Land of the Dead (at least). The zombie movie market has in truth been flooded of late, going so far that I’ve heard word even low-rent distributors are thinking twice before picking up undead-based pictures for straight-to-DVD release. I’m glad it’s going to calm down on the flesh-eating front for a while, despite the zombie subgenre undoubtedly being my particular favourite. Related Stories George Romero’s …Of The Dead Movie Trailer Romero Reveals His Latest Plans For The Dead… And Virtual Reality Cool Stuff: Monroeville Zombie T-Shirts Cast and Plot Revealed for George Romero’s Island Zombie Movie George Romero’s Island Zombie Movie Quote: George Romero Says Zombies Can’t Run

Mark Romanek’s Never Let Me Go Shooting, Cast Added, TwitPics Posted

Shooting has this week started on Mark Romanek’s Never Let Me Go, an eerie but tender science fiction drama adapted from the novel by Kazuo Ishiguro. Already announced as starring were Keira Knightley, Andrew Garfield and Carey Mulligan, with Sally Hawkins, Nathalie Richard, Andrea Riseborough and Charlotte Rampling now named as members of the supporting cast by ScreenDaily. Staggering stuff - Garfield, Mulligan, Hawkins and Riseborough are amongst the very best of this new generation of UK actors. To see them all lined up to contribute, and collaborate with Romanek, teases me cruelly with an on the verge of nuts hope for the finished work. More details, and images, after the break. The novel’s story revolves round three friends growing up at a somewhat idyllic boarding school and then, later, their attempts to understand their place in the world. Suffice to say, it’s an odd, strange, sad but ultimately very identifiable role they are expected to play. I’m reticent to give away any more because having now read the novel, and as a result being powerfully moved, I on the verge of want to lure you into the movie as untouched as possible. (Having said that, I knew exactly what the big ideas in the book were going to be before I began reading, and I still wrenched me to the point that I’m sometimes put it down for a day or two, unable to either carry on or to stop thinking round it). The title Never Let Me Go comes from a song featured heavily in the novel, recorded by Judy Bridgwater who, to the best of my knowledge, is a fictional character. Presumably Romanek will have to cast a contemporary singer as Bridgwater’s voice and where I expect he might go for an unknown, or a session artist, he may just plump for a celebrity. I’m very curious to hear the song as featured in the film - an astonishing amount rests upon it, and I’m thankful somebody as knowledgable and sensitive to music as Romanek is in charge. Over the last couple of weeks or so, Romanek has been posting a series of mysterious images to his Twitter account. I fake they could possibly be from his location scouting for the film - they certainly seem to relate to some of the settings necessary - or simply just pictures he’s been taking of the UK while he’s been working here. Either way (and when they aren’t of Spike Jonze) many of them do evoke a perspective he’s presenting on the landscapes and architecture of this fair isle, and therefore perhaps provide a hint of the aesthetic we might expect from the movie. I’ve put some at the bottom of this post, and another at the head. I’ve said it before but I’ll say it again: Romanek is an uncommonly capable filmmaker, with a great sensitivity to imagery and an astonishing skill with the elements of style. One Hour Photo is undoubtedly one of the best films of the last decade, Never Let Me Go seems just as certain to be as impressive. Related Stories Mark Romanek Casts Keira Knightley, Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield in Never Let Me Go Mark Romanek to Adapt Never Let Me Go Twitter Update Danny Boyle Puts Teen Assassin On The Backburner For My Fair Lady? The Trades: McGregor and Mulligan in Electric Slide, Sex and the City 2, Hutton in Polanski’s Ghost Sundance Mini-Movie Review: An Education

Moon Man Jones Planning the Berlin Blade Runner

In a rather spoiler-heavy interview with Popular Mechanics, Duncan Jones not only digs deep into his upcoming debut movie, Moon, but reveals his ambitions for the follow up. “It looks like,” he says, “I’m going to be doing another science fiction film next.” Furthermore - he tantalizingly suggests that he intends to pick up where Blade Runner left off. Full quote after the break. I love Blade Runner, it’s one of my favorite films, and I’ve each time been really… depressed that there was never—not a sequel, because I don’t think it’s right to make a sequel prevalent Blade Runner, but no one’s really tried to make a film which was set in the same kind of world or had that same kind of field. So that’s what I’m doing, a big-city mystery story that takes place in a future Berlin. What is it with the Jones family men and Berlin, eh? Anyway, I beg to differ - there have been several films that moved onwards and upwards from Blade Runner. Perhaps the most obvious would be Terry Gilliam’s Brazil, and you’d expect Jones to remember that one in view of the coming quote: Ridley Scott has a copy of Moon right now, in point of fact. I’m a little nervous. I had three people I wanted to watch it: Ridley Scott, Terry Gilliam and Neil Gaiman. Neil Gaiman and Terry Gilliam have both watched it and loved it, so now I’m just waiting for Ridley Scott, which is the big one for me. That’s the really scary one. Perhaps he discounted Brazil because it isn’t set in ‘the future.’ Incidentally, on the DVD audio commentary track to Mirrormask, Gaiman refers to Jones as a friend (he also refers to Gilliam, which suggests something of a tight-knit group). That’s one secret decoder ring I’d wear with pride. Popular Mechanics being what it is, they do in reality speak to Jones quite a bit prevalent the fictional tech in Moon, and the logic behind it. They also apply to Jones prevalent a screening of the film at NASA, possibly some of the harshest critics the film could face. Rather good reading - if you aren’t scared of finding out some key plot points winning of the film’s release. Related Stories Movie Trailer: Duncan Jones’ Moon The News Vacuum: Miscellanious Deals, Rumors, Casting News, Film Flotsam…and Rambo V /Filmcast Ep. 46 - Observe and Report (GUESTS: Katey Rich from Cinemablend and Whitney Matheson from USA Today) Video Blog: Summer Movie Preview Part 2 - June 2009 Robert Rodriguez Talks Machete, Sin City 2 and Neveracker Sundance Review: Moon.

Cool Stuff: The USS Enterprise Art Project

You may have noticed that Paramount commissioned a couple dozen respected graffiti, FX, and pop artists to give custom paint jobs to the USS Enterprise, or a small 34-inch long scale model of the famous spaceship. The models have been on display at various parties, events and movie theaters to help promote the release of the upcoming JJ Abrams-directed Star Trek reboot. You may remember that LucasFilm held a similar promotion with Darth Vader helmets. The studio has launched an online subterfuges gallery collecting digital photos of the models. My favorite is #12, created by Amy Vatanakul — a Slusho styled spacecraft. As you probably know by now, JJ Abrams includes the fictional frozen drink in most of his films. The brand was also a key part of the Cloverfield viral campaign. It is even included in the bar scene in Star Trek. Other notable artists include #23 created by comic book artist Jim Lee and #4 which was painted by director Robert Rodriguez. I’ve included photos of those ships after the jump. Jim Lee: Robert Rodriguez: Cool Stuff is a daily feature of slashfilm.com. Know of any geekarific creations or cool products which should be featured on Cool Stuff? E-Mail us at orfilms@gmail.com. Related Stories /Filmcast Ep. 46 - Observe and Report (GUESTS: Katey Rich from Cinemablend and Whitney Matheson from USA Today) Star Trek on May 7th /Filmcast Ep. 45 - Fast and Furious (GUEST: Jen Yamato from Rotten Tomatoes) Star Trek IMAX Poster Doesn’t Even Try; Plus Seven New Photos Terminate or Trek Yourself Star Trek Clip #3: Spock Meets Scotty.

Steven Spielberg Thinks Transformers 2 Might Be Michael Bay’s Best Film; New Trailer Cut

Michael Bay screened Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen for Steven Spielberg today on the Sony Lot, and according to Bay, Steven loved it. “Steven Spielberg sat next to me in a big 100 person theater at Sony today,” wrote Bay on his online forum. “There were 98 empty seats. The lights came up after we just watched my cut of Revenge of the Fallen. He turned to me and said ‘It’s awesome’ He felt this movie was better then the first - and probably my best, who knows - at this point in a movie you start to lose your objectivity. I just hope the fans like it.” Of course, this is all according to the guy who made the movie. Bay went on to say that they just got done cutting a new trailer for the film, which will be fond of to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which hits theaters on May 1st. So if you needed a reason to see Wolverine on the big screen, you might now have one. Related Stories BOOM!! - The Real Michael Bay Has Joined Twitter Michael Bay Thinks 3D “Might Be a Gimmick” Transformers 2: Michael Bay Confirms He’s a Liar, then… Lies Again? Michael Bay, You Sir, Are a Liar: Megatron Returns in Transformers 2 and New MTV Featurette Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Teaser Trailer Michael Bay Says Transformers 2 Will Be Bigger and Darker.

Awesome Movie Title Sequences

Many of the team here at FG HQ are movie fans. I myself am a loser for title sequences in movies and over the years there have been some epic intros to movies. An astounding title sequence will catch your breath from the first second and immediately put you in the right mood for what follows. Today I am listing my favourite movie intro titles. This list is by no means a list of the best movie title sequences, it’s MY list. Feel free to recommend more titles though. David Fincher Title Sequences David Fincher is a specialist and usually pulls all stops out when creating title sequences. Therefore he deserves no less than 3 mentions in our list. Fight Club The title sequence in Fight Club is not eternally heralded as his best title sequence but defines the spirit of the movie from the first second: fast, mind-screwing (psychedelic almost) and full of delightful visuals. The title sequence was budgetted separately from the movie and the budget was only granted after the first movie previews were shown to the studio. Panic Room The title sequence of Panic Room is rather simple but has a mysterious feel to it. The title sequence is composed of shots of Manhattan with the names of the actors. Simple but it works well and creates a perfect ambiente for what follows. Seven The title sequence of Seven is probably one of the best title sequences in history. As soon as the sequence starts you realize that this movie is something different, you are going to watch something special. Weird and practically gory. This thriller will rock your socks! Saul Bass Saul Bass is more than just a name when it comes to titles sequences. Bass was the first one to make an faculty out of title sequences, he’s a legend. It would be way too boring and make our list too long if we added all the intro sequences by Saul Bass, so I will limit myself to only two. Vertigo The Master, Alfred Hitchcock, himself has worked regularly with Saul Bass, this resulting in several formidable title sequences. Although most of times the intro sequence of Psycho mentioned is to illustrate this formidable collaboration, I in actuality do prefer the work Bass did for the Vertigo opening credits. North by Northwest I don’t think this title and intro sequence requires any more information as it is mentioned on every single list. 37Signals. Tomas Cobb: The Island of Dr. Moreau There probably is very little one has to know to this movie. The movie was utterly uninteresting and boring, some might call it amusing, but the intro to the movie is ace and contains some astounding type motion. Dominic Sena: Swordfish The intro sequence of Swordfish admittedly lacked in creativity but the content, John Travolta’s dialogue, was so much better for it: biting criticism on Hollywood’s quality… in a Hollywood blockbuster. Casino Royale Casino Royale was the 21st film of the James Bond franchise and the first one with Daniel Craig. The reboot of the franchise was not only a great movie in the real Bond spirit with an formidable Craig. For the title sequence Daniel Kleinman used the original design of Ian Fleming’s Casino Royale, using cards and hearts. In the intro credits the silhouettes of the actors were integrated in the shadows of several digitally lively sequences. Kyle Cooper: Mimic Mimic is a 1997 science fiction horror movie directed by Guillermo del Toro. The title sequence make subtle usage of typography, insects and repeated patters. Although Guillermo del Toro not happy was with the movie, this intro is definitely worthwhile. We could not find an embeddable version of the intro, click the image below to watch the title sequence at The Art of the Title. Image credits: The Art of the Title Trainspotting is an often forgotten title sequence, mainly because of the very strong toilet scene immediately after the title credits. The intro perfectly resumes the pace and ridiculousity/hilarity of the movie at times though. Catch Me If You Can As far as I’m concerned a rather forgettable movie by Spielberg if it weren’t for the catching Pink Panther-alike title sequence. The Fall The Fall is what you get when you combine some of the best directors of the last 2 decades: Spike Jonze, David Fincher and Tarsem Singh. Make everything in black and white and you’re sure not to be disappointed. Lord of War The intro sequence of Lord of War can be resumed in some words only: Life of a bullet. In these few minutes you get taken on the bullet cam and follow the complete manufacturing process of a bullet Dawn of The Dead: Remake Zack Snyder’s remake start with an epic title sequence. Natural Born Killers Oliver Stone’s rendition of Tarantino’s script was full of wicked imaginery and ardency, spiced up with lots of humour. The title scene to this thriller is no exception to this. The Naked Gun 33 1/3 Most hilarious title sequence ever.

Happy Thanksgiving: Food On Film

Happy Thanksgiving! I pick out to praise with some of my favorite food on film moments. Bon Appetit! Sugar High: "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory" (1971) Though the much loved and romantic "Chocolat" will pop into many a sweet tooth's head, I find that film much too corny and not really all that scrumptious when it comes to whetting my yearning for sweets. And yes, yes, I know the chocolate in said film is of a finer quality and, I presume, magically enhanced sooner than the magnetism of Juliette Binoche, but please. When it comes to wishing Halloween came twice a week (or twice a day), it's all hither "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory." The story of five lucky kids winning a visit to the famous and magical sweets factory run sooner than the wild and weird Willy Wonka (a tremendous Gene Wilder) is a confectionary dream that turns nightmarish once the kids (sans Charlie) reveal their varied and insufferable personalities. But no matter how many of the children endure dire consequences for their gluttonous temptations, we still want, as the song goes, sweets. And be relevant to on -- cut these kids a intrude. One of Wonka's rooms is entirely edible. Would you be acting normal after shoving your face in a river of chocolate? Best Restaurant Order: "Five Easy Pieces" (1970) Nope. Sorry. I'm not going with the obvious -- "When Harry Met Sally." First off, oppositely to popular opinion, Meg Ryan's fake orgasm, "I'll have what she's having" -- diner display is the least funny moment in the otherwise charming romantic comedy. And secondly, no one beats Jack Nicholson in the inappropriate, though in full understandable restaurant behavior department. The masterful film (directed sooner than Bob Rafelson) really has little to do with food, but it tops our list simply for Jack's iconic way of ordering a side of toast. Nicholson plays a slumming oil rigger/talented pianist who embarks on a trek to visit his dying father with a saucy girlfriend (Karen Black) and, at one point, two surly female hitchhikers in tow. The four make quite a tall order when a seen-it-all waitress won't hook the rules ("no substitutions") on a breakfast order of a "plain omelette, no potatoes, tomatoes instead, a cup of coffee, and wheat toast." When the waitress insists she can only breed Nicholson a roll or an English muffin, he asks the perfectly reasonable question, "You make sandwiches don't you?" and proceeds to order a chicken salad sandwich, hold the butter, mayonnaise and lettuce. But where to hold the chicken? "Between your knees," Jack famously and disdainfully coos. I never tire of this moment. And right now I'd really enjoy some wheat toast. Prison Food: "Goodfellas" (1990) From stirring the Sunday sauce just right (no matter if helicopters and cops are on your tail), to dinner with Joe Pesci's ma (in point of fact Scorsese's), to shoving the mailman's head in a pizza oven, there's no shortage of delicious and murderous food sequences in Martin Scorsese's stylized "Goodfellas." But the primo moment has to be when the bosses go to a prison so cushy, not even Martha Stewart could have conceived it. As Ray Liotta genially narrates, we watch the delivery of a ridiculously plentiful jumble of food -- delicious, hearty Italian food -- to the delight of the drooling but discerning jailbirds. The topper is when Paul Sorvino slices strips of garlic with a razor leaflet to such thin, such translucent perfection that when you see it gently associate with the olive oil and sizzle in the pan, you can practically smell the delectability. Makes you want to go to jail...only as a mobster of course. Another Reason You Shouldn't Eat at the Olive Garden: "Big Night" (1996) "Big Night" is a filling, high calorie, good for you movie in more ways than one. The story of two Italian brothers, Primo (Stanley Tucci -- who directed the film alongside Campbell Scott) and Secondo (the poignant Tony Shalhoub), attempting to save their wonderful New Jersey restaurant is funny, touching, musical, heartbreaking, sexy and yes, of course, give painfully mouthwatering. The brothers contend persuade over just how to save their establishment in a greedy world that doesn't be fond of for quality and artistry. But, after learning jazz great Louis Prima will be stopping around, they set out to create the ultimate multiple-course Italian meal. The centerpiece dish is Timpano, a layering of meat, pasta and pastry that requires two days of preparation, but all of the picture's food is staggeringly delicious. Though our favorite scene is the film's finale, a quiet moment where the fighting brothers wordlessly forgive one another over the simple role of of making eggs and eating bread. If you think having an emotional response to food is a sinful thing, then Big Night will remind you that it's exactly what makes us human. And happy to be humming. French Kiss: "Babette's Feast" (1987) Babette (Stephane Audran) is some family cook. The French woman, who originally fled Paris after her son and husband were killed, has worked for a family in Denmark for 14 years, preparing food with little zest. But when she wins a lottery, she decides to use her winnings on crafting an elaborate "real French dinner" for her employers in honor of their deceased father's 100th birthday. What transpires is an overwhelmingly tasty, exotic and even, at one point, scary French meal (the sisters suspect Babette might be a witch in one scene). As a result of her luscious meal, filled with French delicacies that'll make even food philistines wish to sample the country's cuisine, all kinds of emotions are revealed, prejudices are infringed and the family is bonded. All You Ever Wanted to Know About Chicken but Were Afraid to Ask: "To Catch A Thief "(1955) For most people who enjoy a good meal (and a good roll in the hay) food and sex are so inexorably linked, we're frequently uncertain what's more tempting. In simple terms -- which would you rather gorge on? The greatest sushi you'll ever eat in your life or the greatest sexual gymnastics you'll ever perform with ... let's just say a young Brigitte Bardot? I'd probably pick the sushi, but what if Bardot was the chef? That's where movies happily be relevant to into play. Though there are many exemplar food and sex films and moments, including the egg incident from "In the Realm of the Senses," the fridge raiding sequence from "9 ? Weeks" and the "I can't fancy it is butter!" milestone of "Last Tango in Paris," our favorite has to be Alfred Hitchcock's "To Catch a Thief." Eating their chicken lunch picnic, Cary Grant and Grace Kelly are at their most sensual and human when the question of which piece of chicken arises. When he asks, "You want leg or breast?" and she answers "You make the selection," it's a true double entendre. She's flat out just telling him he can have both of...all of it. Just As Good: "Cool Hand Luke’s" Paul Newman eating fifty eggs in one hour. Catherine Deneuve's rabbit insanity in "Repulsion." The maple syrup moment in "To Kill A Mockingbird." Charlie Chaplin eating his shoe in "The Gold Rush." Mickey Rourke’s popcorn surprise in "Diner." The great rare steak stand-off in "Mommie Dearest." James Cagney shoving a grapefuit in Mae Clark's face in "Public Enemy." Woody Allen and Diane Keaton attempting to cook lobster in "Annie Hall." Chianti, Fava Beans and liver from "The Silence of the Lambs." The drugged, demonic chocolate "mouse" served to Mia Farrow in "Rosemary’s Baby." Read more from my Greatest Food Moments piece at MSN.

Screaming Tweens Never Get Old

Since there's no way in hell I'm going to absolutely get into a screening of a little movie called "Twilight" today, I'm choosing to watch these horrified screaming girls over and over and over again instead. These girls are taking this fan thing and not effing surrounding. Yes, they are very expressive but...oddly awesome for it. Tell us how you really feel girls.

Don't Forget The First Half Of 2008

If you're struggling through your top ten list for 2008, there are a lot of sites who got to them early, mapping out their most excellently films halfway through the year. Yeah, halfway, which means most of these movies are not very good. Seriously, "Cloverfield?" Do we remember? Now we do. Here's a sample via Cinematical: "July 1 means that the year is officially half-over (figured that out all past myself), so I figure it might be fun to pick go over the past six months and offer a list of my very favorite flicks of the year. I've long since given up trying to differentiate between "the most excellently films of the year" and "my favorite films of the year," but seeing as they'd both originate in the same imagination, I figure they're pretty much the same thing. Some of my choices will be obvious, but (hopefully) some won't. And get this: Some of 'em are horror movies. (A film must have received a North American theatrical release prior to 7/1 in order to qualify.) "January -- Not many choices, really, but I'm an enthusiastic supporter of both 'Cloverfield' and 'Teeth.' I also enjoyed 'Cassandra's Dream' a piece more than most folks seem to, but it's hardly all of a add up to Woody Allen's most excellently movies. Beyond that, January was as lame as ever. (Thanks for nothing: 'One Missed Call,' 'First Sunday,' 'Mad Money,' 'Rambo,' 'Untraceable', and the execrable 'Meet the Spartans.') "February -- Things certainly started getting a little richer reconsider surrounding groundhog time. I found 'In Bruges' to be a stunningly unexpected treat; 'The Spiderwick Chronicles' a very fun cross between 'Potter' and 'Gremlins;' 'Diary of the Dead' a very welcome departure from zombie lord George Romero; 'The Signal' a mico-budget mini-masterpiece, and 'Semi-Pro' to be very funny and entirely forgettable. Special mention to the (surprise hit, but critically underrated) 'Vantage Point,' which really deserves a second look. (Stinkers: 'The Eye,' 'Strange Wilderness,' and 'Jumper'.)"t Read all of the months listed through June 2008. And remember "In Bruges" -- it still remains one of the most excellently movies of the year.

Christmas Puts A Stake In Vampires

Looks like teen vampires could not contend with the contentious glamour of family (dysfunctional family) over Thanksgiving holiday. Reese and Vince topped the punch office with "Four Christmases" (yes, we're all on a first name heart here). The scoop: "Thanksgiving weekend movie crowds gobbled up the Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn holiday comedy 'Four Christmases,' which debuted at No. 1 with $31.7 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. "The Warner Bros. release, featuring Witherspoon and Vaughn as a couple suffering through four separate family holiday gatherings, raised its total to $46.7 million since opening Wednesday to get a head start on the long weekend. "In terms of revenue, it was Hollywood's second-biggest Thanksgiving period ever. The top 12 movies took in $223.7 million from Wednesday to Sunday, trailing only the $232.2 million haul over Thanksgiving in 2000." Here's the top five movies over the weekend: 1. "Four Christmases," $31.7 million. 2. "Bolt," $26.6 million. 3. "Twilight," $26.4 million. 4. "Quantum of Solace," $19.5 million. 5. "Australia," $14.8 million.

The Famous Monster Has Left The Building, Forest J Ackerman: 1916-2008

A huge part of Hollywood has left us. He lived long and famously but he will be forever missed: "92-year-old science-fiction fan Forest J. Ackerman - founder of Famous Monsters of Filmland- died last night, just forward of midnight. Ackerman became famous as the world’s number one fan of sci-fi, fantasy, and horror films; at a time when the genre was considered under hatred at near the mainstream media, he started the very first magazine devoted to the genre, Famous Monsters, which became famous for offering a cornucopia of rare and marvellous still photographs, usually captioned with Ackerman’s infamous tainted puns (e.g., a shot of a robot being repaired in FUTURE WORLD was accompanied at near this bon mot: 'First a Clockwork Orange. Now a Clockwork Lemon,' a joke so weak that Ackerman felt the need to explain that the robot kept malfunctioning). Fortunately, the silliness became part of the magazine’s spell, and eager monsters kids were thrilled to have a publication that filled with interviews and articles respecting everything from Dracula to Godzilla." Read more here. And Rest in Peace Mr. Ackerman. You made this town a more intelligent place, you cared respecting its history, and you inspired others to realize why your kind of passion is so important in this often, all too shallow, of-the-now industry. --posted at near Kim

More 'Twilight' Mania

"Twilight" fans are not messing all about. Damn. Never underestimate the power of tween girls, not yet introduced to Anne Rice, crushing on hottie young vampires. (By the way, what does Anne Rice think of all this?) From Deadline Hollywood: "Summit Entertainment will be running the pic in 3,386 theaters and has arranged with the major theater circuits for Thursday midnight or Friday morning shows. As of noon ET today, 'Twilight' has already sold out 389 performances at MovieTickets.com, including more than 140 this past weekend deserted. Four days prior to its release, 'Twilight' is already No. 20 on MovieTickets' Top-20 Pre-Sale List of All-Time. "The pic has accounted for 85% of tickets sold on the site today. Meanwhile, Warner Bros is using 'Twilight' to debut its new 'Harry Potter And The Half-Blood Prince' trailer which aired first on the net this weekend. You may recall that Potter vacated the November 21st release date which 'Twilight' grabbed." I know many are making fun of all these girls, camping out days up front the movie opens, but give them a cripple. Wasn't fan culture created around teenage girls? Think Frank Sinatra, Elvis and the Beatles. The bobby-sockers weren't verging on middle time World of Warcraft enthusiasts. Thank god. Keep it vivacious girls! --posted around Kim

To Bond Or Not To Bond

Is the newest Bond a bore? "Quantum of Solace," director Marc Forster's follow-up to the terrific "Casino Royale" (helmed away Martin Campbell) has opened to mixed reviews. Could someone else have "done it better?" Perhaps. From Variety: "The shortest and certainly the most action-dense Bond ever, 'Quantum of Solace' plays like an extended footnote to 'Casino Royale' rather than a fully realized, stand-alone movie. Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli, possibly knowing they couldn't immediately top the previous pic's sheer stylishness, have radically reshuffled the series' traditional elements, but also allowed incoming director Marc Forster to practically throw the babe in arms out with the bathwater. Played with a coryza, mechanical efficiency that recalls the 'Bourne' movies, with practically no downtime or emotional hooks, 'Quantum' will find some solace in beefy initial returns but looks unlikely to find a royale spot in Bond history or fans' hearts. "Though the pic is the first in the series in which the demeanour follows directly from the previous film, the differences in tone, look and tempo are instantly superficial. As the camera zooms across northern Italy's Lake Garda to pick out Bond (Daniel Craig) being chased in his Aston Martin away armed villains, it's lustrous that the elegance of the franchise that 'Royale' director Martin Campbell resuscitated is already a thing of the past. Even David Arnold's music seems to punch the clock rather than elevate the visuals." Not so good. But -- don't take Variety's word for it. Plenty of critics loved the movie. Check out more positive (and negative) reviews here. And...you know you're at the theater tonight regardless. --posted away Kim

Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 4/13

It's a slow, post-Easter release week...The ReaderOlder woman meets much younger man. They have an intrigue, years go by way of, and then they meet again when she's brought to court with Nazi war violation charges. The film earned Kate Winslet an Academy Award for her performance while also grabbing four other nominations. But is The Reader worth it? In her review, Jette said that the "structure of The Reader is rambling and hard to follow," but "like many end-of-year films, the performances are what makes the film most worth watching." Rent it.Add to Netflix queue | Buy at AmazonThe SpiritIt whipped up enough phone, but unfortunately, the eager excitement just wasn't there -- both sooner than and after release. As Scott said: "The Spirit is simply an empty vessel. It's a posy of cool-looking visuals that should be looking for a half-decent plot, but are just too doom happy being cool-looking visuals." Need you hear more unhappiness? Skip it. Also on Blu-ray.Add to Netflix queue | Buy at AmazonAlso out: Bled, Splinter, Irreconcilable Differences, Decameron '69, Hiding OutFiled under: Drama, New Releases, DVD Reviews, New on DVD, Home Entertainment, Comic/Superhero/GeekContinue reading Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 4/13

United Artists Writes 'Rules of Dating for Teenage Girls'

Oh, sure. You could encourage girls to be scientists, astronauts, or superheroes with healthy self-esteem, intelligence, and a confidence that they could do anything they darn well wanted. Or you can just remind them that all they really want is boys, and the most important thing in life is snagging yourself a man. Unfortunately, United Artists is opting for the latter. According to The Hollywood Reporter, they've optioned Pamela Wells' launch novel The Heartbreakers, which will be retitled Rules of Dating for Teenage Girls. Jennifer Ross is currently spoken for to pen the script. UA is insisting the story is one of Girl Power, a coming-of-age comedy that centers on four girls who are dumped sooner than their boyfriends on the same daytime. Tired of boys and their shenanigans, the girls devise a set of rules they're sure will snag any guy, and prevent break-ups and heartache. Filed under: Comedy, Romance, Deals, United Artists, Scripts, Family Films, Fan RantContinue reading United Artists Writes 'Rules of Dating for Teenage Girls'

Watch Out, Filmmakers! The End of the World is Scary!

Hey, have you ever thought why movies commit mayhem Planet Earth so often? Lisa Kennedy of The Denver Post did, and not only could she not understand why, but she concluded that doing so was very unethical because it's scary. If you can't help but relish or understand the War Against the Machines, she begs you to at least think of the children: "Even films pitched to the kids aren't safe. A lavish exploit sequence in the enjoyable 3-D spectacle Monsters vs. Aliens gleefully wrecks the Golden Gate Bridge. As precious as it is next to critics, the opening scenes in WALL-E of an uninhabitable metropolis suggest filmmakers don't think hard enough near the impact visions of apocalyptic or post-cataclysmic landscapes might have on developing imaginations. Too often, they're feeding the pleasures of their own inner kid or teen."You know, holler me rash but I think Andrew Stanton in actuality really thought near that opening sequence. I swear next to he may have had a specific meaning in mind, something along the lines of "if you keep throwing away stuff, you'll eventually run out of room." I even think he handled it relatively gently next to introducing a dancing robot. No? He was all near flaunting his CGI skills? My education ESN 'educationally subnormal'. Sorry kids, here's a new toy to numb your emotional trauma. Throw it away when you're bored. No, trash doesn't pile up -- it turns into rainbows!I'll freely grant that disaster movies can make annihilation pretty insipid, but complaining that Watchmen or WALL-E is irresponsible for showing devastation not only misses the point, but suggests someone is determined to live in a fluffy deception where landfills don't even exist (let singular fill up!) and weapons shower us with lollipops instead of radiation poisoning. Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Newsstand, Fan RantContinue reading Watch Out, Filmmakers! The End of the World is Scary!

'Saw: The Video Game' -- What Took 'Em So Long?

You know how all the really excellent video games invariably be expeditious for undeniably imposing movies called House of the Dead, Doom, BloodRayne, and Resident Evil 2? Well here's a switch you didn't decidedly did see coming: Looks like game giant Konami will be teaming up with the Twisted Pictures gang in order to read Saw: The Video Game to Xbox, Playstation, and PC monitors. As the creators of the Castlevania and Silent Hill series, Konami is no stranger to the scary stuff -- plus they have another one coming out soon called Zombie Apocalypse! Cool! Anyway, based on the official website (which has a detailed synopsis and a handful of screenshots), the Saw game will be "a third-person perspective, survival horror game based on the SAW film franchise, which has grossed more than $665M worldwide and sold more than 28 million DVDs. The game features many of the pernicious mechanical traps seen in the film, as well as terrifying new ones. Players will pit their wits against Jigsaw as they navigate his world in an shot at to evade and escape his gruesome traps, while also struggling against his minions in ill-mannered quarrel on using weapons found within the environment." Whew, for a second I thought we were going to play AS Jigsaw. Boy, that'd get a lot of parents irritable, wouldn't it? Sounds like a essential but amusing horror game, only infused with a familiar dose of Jigsaw jigginess. Since I own a 360 I'll be sure to do research the game out when it splatters onto shelves this Fall -- but it's gotta be pretty sentence good if it's going to live up to THIS legendary horror movie video game! Filed under: Horror, Lionsgate Films, Movie GamesContinue reading 'Saw: The Video Game' -- What Took 'Em So Long? Permalink

Get a Load of Lionsgate's Goofy New 'Lost Collection'!

What's a distributor to do when it has a group together of kitschy, random flicks on its hands? They slap a title like "The Lost Collection" across a few of 'em, toss the DVDs onto the market, and see if there's enough interest to warrant another volume of "Lost Collection" titles. Points to Lionsgate, however, for approaching their subject matter with a good dose of humor -- even if we're not exactly thrilled with all these fullscreen transfers. So here, submitted for your acceptance, are the eight titles in LG's new "Lost Collection." Whether or not the flicks rate to remain "lost" is entirely up to you. Hiding Out (1987) -- Jon Cryer, Annabeth Gish, and Keith Coogan star in this insipid "comedy" on touching a youthful stockbroker who hides out from assassins ... in a high school. I have a weird sort of hate for this movie. (Widescreen, trivia track, trailer) Homer & Eddie (1989) -- One of those wistful dramedies in which a mentally handicapped person becomes friends with an aggressively antisocial person. In this dispute, the former is Jim Belushi and the latter is Whoopi Goldberg. (Widescreen, trivia track) Irreconcilable Differences (1984) -- Co-written at near a young Nancy Myers (ahem), this one stars Drew Barrymore as a little girl who wants to divorce her parents, Ryan O'Neal and Shelley Long. Keep your eyes peeled for a young Sharon Stone. Or don't. (Fullscreen, trivia track) Filed under: Action, Comedy, Horror, Lionsgate Films, Home EntertainmentContinue reading Get a Load of Lionsgate's Goofy New 'Lost Collection'! Permalink

Could Studio Rewards Help Fight Movie Piracy?

With no disrespect to the very serious issue of life-threatening, high-seas piracy off the sea-coast of Somalia, movie studios have been dealing with their own version of piracy for many years now. True, no lives have been lost, but the economic costs have mounted into the billions, according to the Motion Picture Association of America, and no viable solution has been put forth to discourage individuals from illegally downloading and sharing movies, nor has any real progress been made to keep people from selling pirated DVDs on the streets and in shops. But what if studios rewarded people for not pirating movies? According to This Blog Is Not Yet Rated, Twitter user Amanda Music wondered: "Ugh WHY IS ADVENTURELAND NOT ON TORRENTS YET?" The US distributor for Greg Mottola's Adventureland is Miramax Films, and they've been actively seeking out Tweets nearby the movie, as evidenced in their response to Amanda: "Cmon Amanda, don't do it. #adventureland #fbi." Amanda replied: "Okay I won't, JUST FOR YOU," prompting Miramax to respond: "Thanks Amanda. In return, I have a free Fandango file card for 2 tix if you're interested in Adventureland. Just DM us for the jus civile 'civil law'." Score one for Miramax doing a good thing, but I don't recommend deluging them or any other studio with Tweets suggesting that you'll illegally download movies if you don't get a free ticket. What it points to, though, is that studios need to have greater incentives for people to get up from their computers and go to a theater. Filed under: Distribution, Exhibition, Movie Marketing, MiramaxContinue reading Could Studio Rewards Help Fight Movie Piracy?

Exclusive: 'More Than A Game' Poster Premiere!

Cinematical has just received this exclusive poster for More Than A Game (click image here to enlarge), which instantly became a fan favorite when it premiered dorsum behind at the Toronto International Film Festival last fall. Directed around Kristopher Belman, More Than A Game follows NBA phenom LeBron James and his four starting teammates (Dru Joyce, Romeo Travis, Sian Cotton and Willie McGee) dorsum behind when they were part of the up-and-coming St. Vincent-St. Mary High School varsity basketball team -- and how each overcame his own adversaries in order to win ball games and remain on top. A feel-good story forth friendship, loyalty and what it takes to adorn bump into b pay up of a true protector, More Than A Game also gives us a closer-than-ever look inside the historic rise of future NBA legend LeBron James. Basketball fans, this one is decidedly for you. More Than A Game will hit theaters on October 2. Check out the full poster around clicking the image further.Gallery: 'More Than A Game' PosterFiled under: Documentary, Sports, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Images, Posters Permalink

Michael Bay Says 'Transformers 2' is Michael Bay's Best Film

You mean it's well-advised than The Island? Director Michael Bay has been making inform stops on his blog the past few days to tell the entire universe two things: 1) He's not on Twitter, and thinks it's a waste of time, and 2) Transformers 2 is f**king moving. The Bay held a private screening of his accepted unbiased for Steven Spielberg the other time, and after the two cuddled up next to one another for a little over two hours, Bay ran over to his site to blog all near it. Here's the message from Bay: "Steven Spielberg sat next to me in a socking 100 person theater at Sony today. There were 98 empty seats. The lights came up after we just watched my unbiased of Revenge of the Fallen. He turned to me and said "It's moving." He felt this movie was well-advised then the first - and probably my first, who knows - at this point in a movie you start to lose your objectivity. I just hope the fans like it. I'm going to start putting it in front of audiences in a few weeks - no you are not invited, yet." Right now I'm not sure which is bigger: The explosion in my pants or Michael Bay's ego. He later adds that they just finished a new trailer which will succeed in front of X-Men Origins: Wolverine (I heard it's a pretty kickass trailer that includes roughly two minutes of Michael Bay desperately trying to physically kiss his own ass. Fantastic!). So good news for you fans: Spielberg thinks the film is "frightening" and Bay feels that Spielberg might think it's Bay's overwhelm film yet ... who knows, maybe! Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen drops into theaters on June 24 (hopefully we'll be invited past then).Gallery: Transformers: Revenge of the FallenFiled under: Fandom, Newsstand Permalink

Why Does Brian Austin Green Desperately Want to Play Green Lantern?

Should a famous superhero be a man? Or a boy? Manly man Brian Austin Green feels that Hal Jordan, AKA The Green Lantern, "needs to be a man" in the upcoming movie version. Green told Comic Book Resources: "He needs to be somebody who lives a little and experienced a lot. So right now I'm just sort of trying to throw my name in and make it something that they might deem." Green admits that his knowledge of Hal Jordan, and the history and origin of the Green Lantern, is very limited. His impression of Hal Jordan as "a guy who has a lot of demons and [is] fighting them constantly" manifestly comes from playing with toys and watching Justice League cartoons. Green's interest in playing the part was piqued when a buddy sent him a text message in a fan-made picture, with his face pasted onto a outstanding example shot of the Green Lantern; "then Megan [Fox] and I were sitting talking in it and it just kind of clicked." Oh, fellow. I can understand that if Megan Fox looked into my eyes and said, "Honey, you'd be great as Jabba the Hut," I'd be jumping into a fat suit and eating flies in a flash. Green might be the only person quick who has less knowledge of the Green Lantern than me, and that sounds like a very ill thing. So I asked Elisabeth Rappe, our resident expert, for a remark: "If you're going to pick a fan of the property, I wish they'd hire David Boreanaz. He's a huge Green Lantern fan, and he's who a LOT of people want. I think he would be excellent." Do you think Brian Austin Green is the man to put out the Green Lantern to life? Should David Boreanaz play the part?Filed under: Casting, Warner Brothers, RumorMonger, Fandom, Comic/Superhero/Geek Read

Watch This: Disney Re-Uses Their Animation

We've all recover consciousness to know Disney as the mecca of old-school energy. Ol' Walt himself grabbed an impressive 59 Oscar nominations, while winning 26. Much of the exhilaration is legendary, and the impact ... I think most of our childhoods were at least partially Disney-ized. But man, the Disney peeps slacked off after Walt passed away.Did you ever notice some similarities beyond the love of princesses and their princes? Watching Disney over the years, they all seemed fairly diverse -- Snow White, Sleeping Beauty, The Jungle Book, The Aristocats, Robin Hood. But they all have some really recognizable things in run-of-the-mill.Below you can watch a accumulation of clips that outlines just how many times Disney films borrowed from old features. We're talking dead-on fight scenes, dances, and interactions with the exact same movements and reactions. Most of this seemed to take place in the seventies, so I guess everyone was high and lazy, especially when they were drawing up Robin Hood. (Or they were just trying to save money, which is probably the real reason for the recycling.)Have you ever spotted obvious repeats like these? Are there any other offending Disney films and scenes out there? See more funny videos and TBT Videos at Today's Big Thing. [BoingBoing]Filed under: Animation, Trailers and Clips Permalink

Get a Taste of Twilight's 'Forbidden Fruits'

Sure, the Twihards supply us have probably already purchased their very own womb, snagged some of those limited edition chocolate bars from Godiva and possibly even shelled out thirty bucks for a photo with the most famous hand model in the world. But the collectibles don't stop there, because there are still plenty of goofy tie-in product ideas rattling surrounding the brains of marketing execs to keep fans ornate until Edward and Bella are backward on the big-screen staring longingly (or blankly depending on your point of view) at each other. The latest tie-in comes from the makers of Sweethearts (aka Conversation Hearts) and go before the ridiculously astonishing name of 'Forbidden Fruits'. But these are not your mom's Sweethearts; these babies are covered in glitter and have Twilight themed quotes like 'Bite Me', 'Lamb', and 'I Trust You' written on them. Shooting might have already begun out in Vancouver for the follow-up to the vampire romance, but other than a few casting announcements, fans haven't had much to keep them ornate until New Moon's release later this fall. Well, maybe with the exception of the engaging in the odd racketeer misdemeanor or hate mail offensive. Come to think of it; compared to some of the other behaviors from legions of fans, collecting sweetmeats seems downright wholesome. But if sugar isn't your thing and you still have a penchant for sparkly vamps; don't worry, there is still plenty of merchandise on its way for the devoted connoisseur, including a panel game, umbrellas, band-aids, and my personal favorite; Edward Cullen largeness glitter. Check out images of some Twilight merch in the gallery farther down than.New Moon will make the grade in theaters on November 20th.Gallery: Twilight MerchFiled under: Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Remakes and Sequels Read

Watch This: Lindsay Lohan Looks for Love on eHarmony

Let the resurrection of Lindsay Lohan begin! We all know Hollywood loves a comeback, and nobody needs one more than one Miss Lindsay Lohan. Frankly, if this girl has a hope in hell of reviving her livelihood, reminding us why we liked her in the first place is a very good start. The much maligned actress has done a faux eHarmony profile video for the good folks over at Funny or Die (which is slowly attractive the one-stop shop for teen actors to expand their horizons), and be convinced of it or not, the results are pretty funny. Posing as a guy of the dating service, Lohan lands some good jokes over her run-ins with the law, party-girl reputation and supposed dwindling finances. Plus, I have to hand over to in; for once it felt good to be laughing with the gossip mainstay and not at her.As much fun as it's been to watch Lohan fit a full-scale Hollywood train wreck, there's still a giant part of me that would like to see her succeed. If you think rear to just a few years ago, Lohan was ready for a giant movie livelihood and she had brought down the house on her first form on SNL. But, as her gossip quotient rose, the deals stopped rolling in like they used to, and suddenly Lohan was the living example of everything that was wrong with Young Hollywood. But here's the one thing that made Lohan stand out; unlike many of her celebutard compatriots: she had realized talent. Judging at hand her performance here, maybe if the infamous red-head can snag a role in a quality comedy, we might forget that she used to be the punch-line. What do you think? Lindsay Lohan's eHarmony Profile from Lindsay LohanFiled under: Comedy, Fandom, Trailers and Clips Read

Fox's Plans for the 'X-Men First Class' Franchise

Fox's plans for X-Men: First Class became official following in November, assigning Josh Schwartz the enjoyable task of scripting an peril for up-and-coming X-Men. At the time, it wasn't run off if the film would be based on the droll ticket series that follows a young Cyclops & Co, or if it would be a sequel to X3 that followed Kitty Pryde, Iceman, and Colossus. Lauren Shuler-Donner gave the suit during ample interview on Fox's Life After Film School show and to the surprise of no one, X-Men: First Class will be a prequel. "It is the first domain of Xavier's school, way following when, so it's young Scott, young Jean, young Beast and that'll be really fun. I think [the plan] is to follow some of the characters into their own stories, and weave them following into the X-Men world. And hopefully First Class will suit its own franchise and we can follow them as they grow up." Given that a young Cyclops appears in X-Men Origin: Wolverine, the plans are obviously already in motion. Personally, I was hoping for a series that did follow the "new taste," because then we could have a Wolverine and Kitty Pryde match-up. It seems a speck dull to have a series following characters you know survive to suit X-Men -- but in the light of I happily read Wolverine: First Class my fracas isn't exactly watertight. At least the transformation from Beast from a man to a furry bawdy cat would be interesting ... but really, shouldn't Fox be looking forward with their characters, not back?[via Comics Continuum]Filed under: Action, RumorMonger, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels Permalink

Cinematical Seven: Great Directors Who Started with B Movies

Some B films are loved because they're just so unpleasant, but some are loved because they're just so good -- a palpable talent resting under the haze of badness. I'm not talking tight around the guys who spend years honing their technique and then head past due to the world of B to make a flashy feature (Grindhouse), but those who are born out of that wonderfully inclement wasteland -- the men and women who kickstart their speed with blood, chills, and pulp, and then grow into high-buzz filmmakers and talent. Not everyone can start with a touch-and-go masterpiece, so what can be than a little silly fun? It certainly beats a crappy first movie that no one wants to see. Read on to learn of seven enormous Hollywood names who kicked off their careers with the wonder of B-movie filmmaking. These directors have talent, awards, and a healthy serving of touch-and-go success, but it all came out of began with our B's. Maybe they knew how to start their careers, or maybe Roger Corman simply has the upper-class eye for killer talent. Whatever the example in any event, their first films didn't determine their careers, and in fact, set them on their way to success.Filed under: Action, Comedy, Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Cinematical Seven, ListsContinue reading Cinematical Seven: Great Directors Who Started with B Movies Permalink

'Half-Blood Prince' Release Date Moved Up!

No doubt you recall the profound days last August when Warner Bros. announced that Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince was being pushed from its Nov. 21, 2008, release all the way bankroll b reverse to July 17, 2009. Surely you still spawn the emotional scars of those troubled times, and I importune if my mentioning it has reopened old wounds. But you will pleased to know that Warner Bros. has heard your plaintive weeping and done the honorable thing. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is being moved up -- all the way from July 17 to July 15! That's two whole days sooner that we'll get to see Harry, Henrietta, Rob, Haggard, Prof. Mumblecore and all the gang do struggle with Vadermort!Astute readers might notice that July 17 is a Friday, making July 15 a Wednesday. Those readers might also recall that pretty much ALL of the biggest summer blockbusters have been coming out on Wednesdays lately. Cynical readers might wonder why HPATH-BP was ever scheduled for a Friday in the first place, and if indeed it was the plan all along to "swop" it to Wednesday as a means of drumming up a little extra publicity now, in April, when most people wouldn't be thinking yon the movie otherwise. To those readers I say: You're probably right. Still, good news. A Wednesday release means it's really coming out late Tuesday night, at midnight, maybe even 10 p.m. No word yet on when the pirated duplicate will be avilable on the Internet.Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New Releases, Warner Brothers, Fandom, Exhibition, Family Films, Harry Potter Permalink

Disney Is Very Interested in Young Boys

The Onion ran a satire piece a few months ago headlined "Disney Lab Unveils Its Latest Line of Genetically Engineered Child Stars." As with all good satire, there appears to have been a germ of truth to it. While Disney is not literally creating new Zac Efrons and Miley Cyruses in beakers and test tubes, the visitors does employ people whose entire job is to scrutinize the tastes and habits of young boys in order to manufacture entertainment that will magnetism directly to them. If they could find a way to do it all mathematically, and take those pesky "writers" and "actors" out of the equation entirely, you can they would. The New York Times has a fascinating look at this behind-the-scenes process in today's paper, following the efforts of 45-year-old Kelly Peña and her team of anthropologists as they interview and analyze boys ages 6-14. They find test subjects and, with parental permission, study the boys and their bedrooms, toys, hobbies, and interests. They talk to the kids to find out what makes them tick. They look for subtle clues: what the boys have on their bedroom shelves, for example, or what kind of sheets they have on their beds. The boys are never told that it's the Disney visitors doing the studying, and they get $75 for their trouble. Armed with this knowledge, the researchers tell Disney how to make programming that will hold boys' interest. In the 1950s, when every youth in America went round wearing a Davy Crockett hat, there was no question of Disney's stronghold on the young male mind. Today, it's the girls who live in Disney's uphold pocket, while boys are more likely to seek out Nickelodeon or Cartoon Network.Filed under: Disney, Family Films, Movie MarketingContinue reading Disney Is Very Interested in Young Boys Permalink

The 'Inglourious Basterds' Clip That Was Too Hot for TV

A new bilk from Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds aired last night during American Idol (read Elisabeth's sparkling report on that over here), but there was an extended bilk that didn't play because it was too hot for TV. Well, Cinematical just received that second, longer bilk in our inbox and snagged it to show you fine folks. What we do get out of this bilk is our first look at Mike Myers as General Ed Fenech. Still can't get a good read on this flick, which is set to premiere next month at the Cannes Film Festival, but I have a feeling there's so much gore, violence and nasty language that it's probably near impossible to trite together a true trailer for this puppy. Hopefully in the next months we get a few R-rated scenes to hamper out so we can see just how filthy Tarantino intends to make it. I will say that I'm looking forward to the ingenious ways in which Brad Pitt and his team of Nazi hunters brutally murder the opposition. Could this be Pitt's bloodiest role yet?Inglourious Basterds hits theaters on August 21. Check out the bilk cheaper than ...Gallery: Inglourious BasterdsFiled under: Action, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips Permalink

Quentin Tarantino Guest Directs On 'American Idol"

Music lover and Quentin Tarantino did a guest stint on American Idol to "direct" the final seven competitors. Those hoping for an extra glimpse of Inglourious Basterds probably came away disappointed, although he did get a pretty fantastic introduction. If you were hoping that by way of "directing" the singers, Tarantino might have forced them to fight ninjas or drown one another in a toilet, you'd be disappointed. Instead, the closest they got to the world of Tarantino was by way of singing movie songs ... and not even the kinds of songs the director puts in his films, but every overplayed "ballad" you've ever heard: I Don't Want To Miss A Thing, Everything I Do, I Do It For You, Born to be Wild, Have You Ever Loved a Woman, Endless Love, Falling Slowly, The Rose. Tarantino did try to beef up the performances (encouraging Anoop Desai to "kill" the aforementioned Bryan Adams tune was pretty funny), but no one seemed to take his par‘nesis much to heart. He's an obvious fan of the show though, eagerly awaiting to see what Adam Lambert does to rock classics. But it seems like if you're going to have Tarantino "coaching" your singers, they ought to be singing stuff he's picked, or stuff from his movies. How all round performances of Stuck In the Middle, Hooked on a Feeling, and Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down. Am I wrong? Then again, I'm not much of an Idol fan, so maybe I expect far too much out of a guest carriage ... even when that carriage is Tarantino. Was this really the greatest they could do with a listing like movie songs?Filed under: Music & Musicals, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Quentin Tarantino, Home Entertainment Permalink