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Showing posts from November, 2011

FYC: Rise of the Planet of the Apes

I've written about this topic before  and the time is as good as ever. Motion-capture performance is just as legitimate as any other medium in film. Recognize it. Now.

Lizard Concept Art for 'Amazing Spider-man'

Today reveals yet another look at the Lizard (Rhys Ifans) from Marc Webb's upcoming Amazing Spider-man . Many didn't anticipate the antagonist to look so human, but given that Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield) has to empathize with him it would make more sense for a less monstrous appearance. (Courtesy: Coming Soon )

'Young Adult' Red-band TV Spot

I think we all remember the adage, "Cry over spilled wine".

'The Artist' and 'Take Shelter' Lead Spirit Awards

The Artist and Take Shelter  each received five nominations from the Indie Spirit Awards this morning. Drive, The Descendants, 50/50  and Beginners will fill out the competition for Best Feature. I was a little surprised that Win Win didn't make it into the crowd, but nominations for Michael Shannon and Ryan Gosling more than make up for it. The rest of the nominees: Best Director: Mike Mills (Beginners) Nicholas W Refn ( Drive) Jeff Nichols (Take Shelter) Michel Hazanavicius (The Artist) Alexander Payne (The Descendants) Robert Altman Award: Margin Call Best Int’l Film: A Separation Melancholia Shame The Kid With a Bike Tyrannosaur Best Male Lead: Demian Bichir (A Better Life) Jean Dujardin (The Artist) Ryan Gosling (Drive) Woody Harrelson (Rampart) Michael Shannon (Take Shelter) Best Female Lead: Lauren Ambrose (Think of Me) Rachel Harris (Natural Selection) Adepero Oduye (Pariah) Elizabeth Olsen (Martha Marcy May Marlene) Michelle Williams (My Week with Mari

To Be, Or Not to Be Olivier

Very infrequently does the opportunity to play an acting legend present itself . More seldom when the actor is one you have been compared to your entire career. Kenneth Branagh has been steeped in Olivier's shadow for years, despite that no men have done more to revive Shakespeare than Branagh and Olivier. Both, well versed in stage acting, crowned with honors, etc. Branagh is no stranger to adapting Olivier's work—he remade Sleuth  in 2007, as well as wrote and directed adaptations of Henry V  and Hamlet —so playing the man may have been too tempting to pass up. Few men are as decorated as Laurence Olivier (10 nominations, 3 Oscar wins) and playing Sir Laurence may finally be the push for Branagh to win the gold statue himself. Branagh plays Olivier as a man of contradictions. He desperately wants to be as big a star as Monroe, but his selection of roles makes that transition almost impossible. He nails the voice, mannerisms, and the odd mix of modesty and arrog

'The Dark Knight Rises' Screencaps

I promised myself that I wouldn't look at any screencaps online, but surfing the web over Thanksgiving proved to be too fruitful to pass up. The focus of the final Nolan-Batman film is headed in the right direction and one can only hope that maybe... just maybe that a comic book film will get its due. The other two screencaps are available at Empire. (Courtesy: Empire )

Review: Hugo 3D

Thinking of Martin Scorsese, the top five pictures that came to mind are probably violent. The living legend of cinema has made his name on gangster films such as Mean Streets , Goodfellas , Casino , Gangs of the New York and The Departed , but a tale about an orphaned child in Paris wouldn't seem to be his forte. Sitting in the theatre after the lights came up, that assumption was wrong. The story begins with a boy named Hugo Cabret (Asa Butterfield) and his father, a gifted clock-maker. His father (Jude Law) comes home bearing a gift in the form of an automaton. He perishes in an accidental fire and young Hugo is left in the care of his drunken uncle Claude. Trained to do his uncle's duties Hugo becomes the repairman for the train station, Claude disappears not long after and Hugo is orphaned. Living in the station, Hugo scavenges for parts around the station in hopes that he finds the missing piece to his father's automaton. His hunch is that the automaton has a

Review: The Muppets

For a while it seemed like The Muppets would be lost to time. Their last appearance was 1999's Muppets from Space , which was a far cry from their successful run on television in the 70s and the revered films from the 80s and early 90s. The lack of films since suggested that maybe Kermit, Ms. Piggy, Fozzie and the rest of the gang may not come back. That Jim Henson's creation may not grace the silverscreen apparently also upset Jason Segel as well. With Forgetting Sarah Marshall cohort Nicholas Stoller on hand, Segel took his childhood love and poured his heart out into the script. Brothers Gary (Jason Segel) and Walter (Peter Linz) are without a doubt the biggest Muppet fans in the world. The two are headed on a trip to Los Angeles with some big plans: Gary plans on proposing to longtime girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) and Walter's first stop is Muppet Studios. The studio has long since been abandoned, but tours are still given. Desperate to see as much as he can, Walter

First Look at 'Prometheus'

The production of Ridley Scott's upcoming Prometheus  has been shrouded in secrecy, but Entertainment Weekly has provided us with a look at the Alien  prequel. I couldn't say what it is we're looking at, but it involves eggs and a very large head. (Courtesy: EW/Dread Central)

Japanese 'Young Adult' Poster

Not all of the posters for Jason Reitman's Young Adult have been winners, but this one is quite nice. Each subsection reflecting the different shades of Mavis Gary (Charlize Theron). Although how many of those shades are likable is anyone's guess. (Courtesy: Imp Awards )

Empire Reveals Batman, Bane and TDKR's Timeline

According to Empire's sitdown interview with Christopher Nolan, The Dark Knight Rises will take place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight: "It's really all about finishing Batman and Bruce Wayne's story," Nolan comments. "We left him in a very precarious place. Perhaps surprisingly for some people, our story picks up quite a bit later, eight years after The Dark Knight . So he's an older Bruce Wayne [and] he's not in a great state ." Apologies for the belated nature of these covers, but this week has been a busy one for me. They don't reveal a great deal, but Batman (Christian Bale) has one hell of a taser. Even a superb Venom-high couldn't keep that from taking you down. (Courtesy: Empire)

Save Community

Granted, the show has not been cancelled, but why wait for it to come to blows before we get out there? All together Community  fans should be able to muster six seasons and a movie. Plus, watching it makes you smarter:  The top three shows of people with four or more years of college are Parks and Rec , The Office and-you guessed it- Community . (Courtesy: Vulture )

'Shame' Quad Poster

Bravo to the marketing team behind Steve McQueen's Shame ! Impressive posters like this haven't been seen since Black Swan last year. (Courtesy: EW )

New 'Avengers' Banner

The Disney/Marvel team seems pretty insistent on not revealing the Hulk at all. Granted, one should not complain that much considering that it isn't another poster where they are all pointing their weapons at each other inadvertently. (Courtesy: IMP Awards )

'Dragon Tattoo' Soundtrack Cover Art

Still no release date, track names, or anything really, but we have the cover art now. And the soundtrack is still by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross so it will be worth the wait. (Courtesy: The Playlist )

Oscar Senses Tingling, Part Two

The Ides of March What it's likely to get nominated for: Best Picture, Supporting Actor (Hoffman) What I'd like it to be nominated for: Lead Actor (Gosling) I don't know what Ryan Gosling has to do to seriously warrant some Oscar consideration, but come on! Nominations for Hoffman and ' Ides'  are a lock. Clooney would probably net something for his dichotomous role as Governor Mike Morris, if it weren't for The Descendants . Martha Marcy May Marlene What it's likely to get nominated for: Lead Actress (Olsen) What I'd like it to be nominated for: Supporting Actor (Hawkes) This year's Best Actress field is a fiercely crowded one. Between the legends of Close and Streep, you have the solid Viola Davis and underdog character actors Olivia Colman ( Tyrannosaur ). Olsen may not be able to pull off what Jennifer Lawrence did last year with Winter's Bone . J. Edgar What it's likely to get nominated for: Best Pic

The Vault: Rebel Without A Cause

Rebel Without A Cause  is made for a certain generation. One that was desperately in search of a hero, a patron saint, a man who could obtain freedom and show expressing yourself is the key of life. James Dean, in 1955 and throughout the 50’s and 60’s, was that hero.  However, it is with great melancholy that Nicolas Ray’s touted and beloved classic is a deplorable, languid mess of a picture. The film follows Jim Stark (Dean) a rebellious teenager, upset with everything and everyone. Particularly his father Frank (Jim Backus): a symbolic character, who represents Stark’s quest for manhood and integrity (neither of which his apron wearing father contains). Written by Stewart Stern and adapted by Irving Shulman’s novel by the same name, the plot in  Rebel Without A Cause  is not only scarce, but irrelevant. There’s next to nothing in quantity and quality in the film. Perhaps that’s on purpose, though. The film is not so much lacking purpose, as it is perplexed in it its wa

Review: J. Edgar

A sprawling bio-pic about one of history's most controversial figures directed by Clint Eastwood and written by an Academy Award winner seems like it should be one of the year's best pictures. However, films like J. Edgar  prove that this is why movies are watched before their success is speculated on. J. Edgar Hoover was not a well-liked man, he was intensely private and let personal prejudices color his mind when enforcing law. Despite his contempt for authority, he outlasted eight presidents and made the FBI one of the most powerful institutions in the United States. A man of public outstanding morals, it is ironic the most lasting legacy of the man is that he was a rumored cross-dresser. Even that isn't verified. This much secrecy leaves Clint Eastwood and Dustin Lance Black in a tough spot trying to reveal some insight into a man that guarded. There isn't an issue inherent with dramatizing history, but when a film presents itself as an authoritative depictio

'Haywire' Clip Kicks Ass

Unfortunately, only Entertainment Weekly has the trailer so you'll have to hit the link  below to witness Gina Carano grapple with Michael Fassbender — watch this and tell me he shouldn't be the next Bond. (Courtesy: EW )

Review: Take Shelter

Curtis (Michael Shannon) has a good life: a loving wife, a daughter and a job with decent benefits. His nights as of late have been sleepless. Inescapable storms and faceless people linger threateningly in his dreamscape. He awakens, short of breath and covered in sweat. Nothing is quite as frightening as the sight of a tornado cloud. No matter how far we run, a storm cloud will cover the distance. It is as if the fury of God is actively playing out against us. If a storm were to hit tomorrow Curtis and his family would have no place to hide. Leaving his family in a gulch is no substitute for a storm plan, so Curtis takes steps to update the shelter he has out back. It may cost some money, but they can't go without. As plans are made without consulting his wife, Samantha (Jessica Chastain) everyone around him begins to worry. Loans are signed, money they don't have is spent on plywood. Their daughter, Hannah, is hearing impaired. She has a surgery that's been sched

'Skyfall' Starts Today

@007 has posted the first set pic from the 23rd Bond film today. Once it's the first day of production it is hard to do better than Roger Deakins as your cinematographer. And maybe it's just me, but is this the same bathroom from the opening of Casino Royale ?

"I'm sorry, Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that."

Stuck in space, millions of miles away from help. The only assistance Dave has is HAL and HAL isn't cooperating. His life has become secondary to the mission and no one else is left. He is a man abandoned. Worse yet, the machine knows that Dave is a liar. We fear that HAL's programming is faulty, rather it works too well.

An Evening with MST3K's Cinematic Titanic

We don't get much here in Reno, though every once in a while we get lucky enough to catch something special. Mystery Science Theater 3000 has been touring around the country recently with their new venture Cinematic Titanic. The evening's film was the fantassssstic Rattlers and the audience eagerly awaited to relive some part of their childhood--thirties for the most of the audience--in the form of a terrible seventies horror film. A herpetologist is called out to the desert when reports of snack attacks are becoming too frequent for the small town sheriff who expects about 2-3 calls a day. Enter Dr. Tom Parkinson who, to his dismay finds out he has to work with a woman! ("She doesn't even have a safari jacket") The two scour the desert ("I drew the place on the map where those two kids died") and come upon an even military plot to release chemicals into an old cave. The snakes are now exposed to the nerve gas and... well, you don't care about

Bond 23 Is Officially 'Skyfall'

The wait is over! Daniel Craig is returning as Bond on the bigscreen. MGM and Sony Pictures officially announce today that Bond 23 will be called Skyfall . Javier Bardem is indeed the film's villain, Naomie Harris will play Eve, with  Ben Whishaw, Ralph Fiennes and Albert Finney rounding out Skyfall cast. The official plot synopsis, as posted by the  @007  Twitter account, reads as follows: “Bond’s loyalty to M is tested as her past comes back to  haunt  her. As MI6 comes under attack, 007 must track down and destroy the threat, no matter how personal the cost. (Courtesy: 007 )

New York/Boston Tour Giveaway

Want to eat in the same pub that Jack Nicholson broke Leonardo DiCaprio's hand in The Departed ? Hit the club from Boardwalk Empire ? See the Bandshell from Breakfast at Tiffany’s? On Location Tours is giving away two tickets (airfare not included) to tour all of these locations and more in New York City and Boston. All you have to do is have the most comments for the month of November. At the end of the month the comments will be tallied and you and a friend can see all these sites and more.