Images

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"Dreams feel real while we're in them. It's only when we wake up that we realize something was actually strange." -Inception

Tuesday, November 30, 2010

2011 Spirit Awards Nominees Announced

Here we go! Awards season is officially on.  Big Oscar announcement yesterday and today the anti-Oscars and the haven for independent movies, the 26th Spirit Awards released its nominees for 2011.


BEST FEATURE (Award given to the Producer)
127 Hours
Black Swan
Greenberg
The Kids Are All Right
Winter’s Bone
BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky, Black Swan
Danny Boyle, 127 Hours
Lisa Cholodenko, The Kids Are All Right
Debra Granik, Winter’s Bone
John Cameron Mitchell, Rabbit Hole
Rest of the 2011 nominees under the cut

Countdown to Oscars - Hosts Announced!


Color me surprised!  The AMPAS have announced their hosts for Hollywood's biggest night, Oscar Sunday, and it is...drumroll, please...James Franco and Anne Hathaway!

Ok, I bet most people were taken aback when they heard this news.  The Academy is not quite known to be hip and cool and yet they're taking steps in the right direction.  Remember when Hustle & Flow won Best Song for its rap song, "It's Hard Out There for a Pimp"?  No?  And let's not forget them trying to weed out all the boring dances and stuff from the telecast.  But...I somehow liked the good ole days of when the Oscar host was someone like Billy Crystal or Steve Martin.   I'm a bit of a traditionalist, I guess.  I grew up watching the Oscar show this way and while Franco and Hathaway are, no doubt, going to do a good job, it's sort of feels very SNL or sketch comedy to me.  Both Franco and Hathaway are also going to be up for Oscar nominations themselves unless something goes awry.  Franco should be nominated for his performance as Aron Ralston in 127 Hours and Hathaway for Love and Other Drugs.  Will this work against them somehow or will this help solidify those nods?  Well, we'll find out come February 27th, 2011 and let's wait and see what else is changing.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

What I'm Thankful for: Movies Edition

There are many things in life I'm grateful for but I'm always grateful for good movies and great cinema.  It's got the power to cheer you up when you're down and distract you from life's everyday problems and transport you to someplace special.

A little late but still nevertheless, here's what I give thanks for this past year:

  • Christopher Nolan and Inception: One of the finest directors working today, Nolan has moved into the auteur category.  He can open a big movie with his name alone, despite having big Hollywood actors in it. This summer's biggest blockbuster, Inception, proved that he is in a league of his own, demanding complete control of his film from Warner Brothers and for having an original script in a sea of sequels and remakes.  Inception was on everyone's lips this summer, how did they do that? How is that possible? Is that real? And how do I get my own totem? (Yeah, that was all me.) Inception is that rare film that keeps you wondering long after you've left the theater.  For my new movie obsession and favorite director, I'm grateful.  Up next, Batman 3 and the Superman reboot, we can't wait.




  • How to Train Your Dragon: Why do I love this animated film so? Mainly because it's about two leads, a one-of-kind dragon named Toothless with behavioral issues and a young Viking apprentice named Hiccup with daddy issues.  This unlikely pair become the pride of the Viking village, Berk, and how they do it is the reason why How to Train Your Dragon is my favorite animated film this year.  This movie has what was lacking in previous DreamWorks films, heart!  And it is this fierce heart and an attitude that being different is not necessarily bad that makes this a top movie for kids to watch and enjoy.  Bonus: The soundtrack composed by John Powell is one of the best of year behind only to Inception



  • Kathryn Bigelow: She broke the glass ceiling and how! Going up against the big juggernaut that was Avatar, the studio system and director, James Cameron, who was also her ex-husband, Bigelow took a gritty independent war movie called The Hurt Locker and turned it into the movie that Hollywood was talking about.  The winner of almost every major directing award (what were you thinking, Golden Globes?), Kathryn Bigelow became the first woman to win an Oscar and an Director's Guild of America (DGA) award.  For all the little girls who grow up wanting to be behind the cameras rather than in front of it, that's an amazing achievement to look up to.





  • Robert Downey Jr: Now this is some comeback story.  A decade ago, Robert Downey Jr. headlining his own True Hollywood Story about his very public addiction problems.  But today, he is a highly respected and sought after actor for so many projects.  There is no genre he can't do.  Comedy (Tropic Thunder, Due Date) to drama (Zodiac, The Soloist) to becoming the ultimate hero Iron Man and leading The Avengers and rebooting how many imagined Sherlock Holmes to be, this is an actor we should be thankful for.  More please!




  • Clint Eastwood: He makes us all ashamed to be young and idle.  At 70, he is churning out film upon film per year as an actor, a director, a producer, and composer too.  His past few films have all been Oscar and award contenders and they keep showing us again and again, that his best is yet to come.  Simply amazing!  





  • Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio: It's no secret that Leonardo is my favorite actor.  But when he pairs up with his favorite director, he pulls out a performance that's extraordinary.  Shutter Island, the most recent collaboration of Scorsese and Leo, was a masterful film of suspense and thrills.  It shows us once again why Scorsese is America's most legendary directors and why the pair of them always produce movie magic.   

Movie Review: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1



I didn't want to write up a review right after I saw the movie.  This is the penultimate movie in the film series and I wanted to savor the time we fans have left.  It won't be long until July and the final battle and then it'll truly be over.

Well, it's time to stop procrastinating and begin reviewing.  First up, this movie was supposed to release in 3D but due to time constraints and quality concerns released without it.  This gives audiences a chance to watch it without any distractions from 3D and focus on the story.  There's no doubt about it, that this is the most ambitious Potter film by far.  Well, until Part 2 that is.

Watching this film is like one emotional roller coaster, one in which Harry, Ron and Hermione leave behind their families, their school and everything that is safe to hunt down horcruxes to take down Lord Voldemort.  What are horcruxes?  To the knowledgeable Harry Potter fan, they are bits of Tom Riddle's aka Lord Voldemort's soul lodged in objects to prevent him ever dying.

It is then up to Harry and gang to find and destroy them.  But how? This movie, therefore, moves the action from Hogwarts to the Ministry of Magic, to London, to forests and Godric's Hollow and to Malfoy Manor, all in the quest of the horcruxes.  Along the way, the trio discovers another quest: those of the Hallows, the very thing that gives the movie its title.  Old and new characters join us in their journey and to name the whole cast is like a who's who of the British film industry.  But this movie is all Harry, Ron and Hermione.  The focus is entirely on them and their adventures.

For the first time in these movies, both Rupert Grint and Emma Watson outshine Daniel Radcliffe.  Don't  get me wrong, Dan is still very good in this but both Rupert and Emma are so like the characters they play that I almost felt I was watching Ron and Hermione.  A lot of the action and scenes in the movie were very true to the book except for the now infamous and controversial dance scene.  Steve Kloves, no, just no.  I think he was trying to project his version of Harry and Hermione unto the movie and veered off what Jo Rowling had put into the characters.  Let's get this straight, Ron is not Harry and doesn't quite have the smarts of Hermione but he's a Gryffindor and a badass in this film, might I add.  The Silver Doe chapter in the book is my favorite characterization of Ron because it shows how far he's come along since the first book.  He was the one that picked up the sword of Godric Gryffindor and he showed how much his insecurities had tormented him but yet he came back.  Most of all, it shows how strong Harry's and Ron's friendship really is.  That is one of the main reasons why I like the books so much.  Friendship, lifelong friendship, is depicted so well.

I also liked how they ended the movie.  It had a very Empire Strikes back vibe showing Voldemort gaining an upper hand.  But for how long?  I enjoyed this film immensely and that's speaking as a fans.  Yes, I do have minor quibbles which I shall list shortly but it's a fast paced action thriller this film that moves so quickly you won't have time to catch your breath.  In the book, you feel the gloom and doom much more than here.  You don't get much time to react.  Overall, I'd say David Yates has delivered on a very true to canon adventure that keeps us sated until the next part.

Onto the specifics, the minor quibbles from an Harry Potter fan:
  • Explaining Bill Weasley's sudden appearance in the Seven Potters sequence when he's been around for most of the action in the books.  Still no sign of Charlie Weasley.  Will we ever see him in the last film or will they pretend there are only 5 Weasley boys.
  • Not introducing Dumbledore's backstory or his past with Grindewald.  Felt weird not having Dumbledore around for guidance.  
  • The film needed another flashback to James and Lily Potters' death to reinforce Harry's loss.  I'd liked the actual flashback in the book from Voldemort's perspective.  Sad but chilling.  
  • Wish there was more on the wedding.   Lots of minor details from the book I had hoped to see.  Maybe as a deleted scene?
And the-that's-exactly-how-I-imagined-it:
  • Snape in the beginning at Malfoy Manor, in fact, the whole Death Eaters meeting, was awesome.  The Malfoys and their fall from grace.  Loved how Voldemort snapped off the ornament of Lucius' wand as if it was trivial!
  • Ron and Hermione's hands almost touching as they fall asleep at Grimmauld Place.  
  • Everyone's reaction as they morph into Harry in the Seven Potters sequence.  Very well done visually.  
  • When the trio take Polyjuice Potion and turn into Ministry workers to get back the locket is the best translation from book to screen.  From actual terror to comedy, the three actors who play Harry, Ron and Hermione transformed definitely leave an impact.  
I'm sure I'll remember more but until the next time I see the film again, that's all, folks!

Directed by David Yates; Screenplay by Steve Kloves, based on the novel by J.K. Rowling; Cinematography by Eduardo Serra; Music by Alexandre Desplat; Editing by Mark Day; Production Design by Stuart Craig

Also in the cast: Ralph Fiennes, Alan Rickman, Michael Gambon, Robbie Coltrane, Brendan Gleeson,  Bill Nighy, Julie Walters, Helena Bonham Carter, Helen McCrory, Jason Isaacs, Tom Felton, Mark Williams, James Phelps, Oliver Phelps, Timothy Spall, Richard Griffiths, David Thewlis, Bonnie Wright, Fiona Shaw, Domhnall Gleeson, Clemence Poesy, Natalia Tena, John Hurt, Frances de la Tour, Evanna Lynch, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Lewis, Imelda Staunton, David O'Hara, Steffan Rhodri, Nick Moran, Toby Jones, Sophie Thompson, Nick Moran, Dave Legeno, and Warwick Davis.


Rating:

Friday, November 26, 2010

Jane Eyre Poster and Trailer






Now this I do remember reading in high school.  Jane Eyre is back in yet another adaptation of this story and it never does get old.  Directed by Cary Fukunaga (Sin Nombre), the movie stars Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) as Jane and Michael Fassbender (Hunger) as Edward Rochester.  The cast also includes Dame Judi Dench, Jamie Bell and Sally Hawkins.

Jane Eyre will release in theaters on March 11, 2011.  Bring out your copies out from high school to refresh your memories!

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Around the world in Posters!


With every new trailer, clip or poster they release, I want to see this film more and more.  

More posters of Blue Valentine, Little Fockers, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, The Zookeeper, Paul and more after the cut.

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

WB shows off its 2011 slate of movies.

I love this studio, I believe I've said that before.  Warner Brothers is showing off some first looks into their movies up for release next year.  Here are some notable big releases that should interest you.




January 28
The Rite 
Directed by: Mikael Håfström
Starring: Anthony Hopkins, Ciarán Hinds, Rutger Hauer, Alice Braga


February 18
Unknown
Directed by: Jaume Collet-Serra
Starring: Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones, Aidan Quinn

February 25
Hall Pass 
Directed by: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly
Starring: Owen Wilson, Jason Sudeikis, Alyssa Milano, Jenna Fischer, Christina Applegate


March 11
Red Riding Hood 
Directed by: Catherine Hardwicke
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Lukas Haas, Shiloh Fernandez, Julie Christie



March 25
Sucker Punch 
Directed by: Zack Snyder
Starring: Emily Browning, Abbie Cornish, Vanessa Hudgens, Carla Gugino, Jon Hamm, Jamie Chung, Jena Malone


April 8
Born to be Wild 
Directed by: David Lickley
Narration by Morgan Freeman


April 22
Crazy Stupid Love 
Directed by: Glenn Ficarra and John Requa
Starring: Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling, Steve Carrell, Julianne Moore, Marisa Tomei, Kevin Bacon
May 26
The Hangover Part II 
Directed by: Todd Phillips
Starring: Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Justin Bartha, Ken Jeong, Jamie Chung


June 10
Something Borrowed 


Directed by: Luke Greenfield
Starring: Kate Hudson, Ginnifer Goodwin, John Krasinski


June 17
Green Lantern 
Directed by: Martin Campbell
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Mark Strong, Peter Sarsgaard


July 15
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2 
Directed by: David Yates
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint, Ralph Fiennes


July 29
Horrible Bosses 
Directed by: Seth Gordon
Starring: Jason Bateman, Jason Sudeikis, Charlie Day, Jennifer Aniston, Colin Farrell, Jamie Foxx


August 26
Final Destination 5 
Directed by: Steven Quale
Starring: Nicholas D'Agosto, Emma Bell, David Koechner, Arlen Escarpeta, Tony Todd


September 9
The Apparition 
Directed by: Todd Lincoln
Starring: Tom Felton, Sebastian Stan, Ashley Greene


October 7
Dolphin Tale 
Directed by: Charles Martin Smith
Starring: Morgan Freeman, Ashley Judd, Nathan Gamble

October 21
Contagion 

Directed by: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon, Marion Cotillard, Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Laurence Fishburne

November 18
Happy Feet 2 
Directed by: George Miller
Starring the voices of Elijah Wood, Elizabeth Daily, Sofía Vergara, Robin Williams, Pink, Hank Azaria



December 9
Hugo Cabret
Directed by: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Chlöe Moretz, Jude Law, Richard Griffiths, Emily Mortimer, Ben Kingsley



New Year's Eve
Directed by: Garry Marshall
Starring: Lea Michele, Robert De Niro, Abigail Breslin, Hilary Swank


December 16
Sherlock Holmes II 
Directed by: Guy Ritchie
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Stephen Fry, Jared Harris, Noomi Rapace


Undated
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island 

Directed by: Brad Peyton
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Michael Caine, Kristin Davis, Vanessa Hudgens, Josh Hutcherson


The lovely Hi-Res images are courtesy of Comingsoon.net!

News Roundup: Avatar 2 and The Wolverine!

  • Jon Landau talks about Avatar 2.
  • Easy A is leading to some easy answers, Emma Stone will reunite with her director from Easy A to recreate the magic.
  • Angela Lansbury has signed on to play mother in Adaline, a story in which a young woman is struck by lighting and is stuck in her 20s.  What a horrible fate! Not!  Although there is no Adaline anymore, Katherine Heigl left the project as she was not ready to come to work from maternity leave.  The movie is being directed by Andy Tennant.
  • Is it true? Will Bill Clinton be cameoing in Hangover 2?  What could he possibly be doing in Bangkok?
  • The next movie about fan favorite X Men character Wolverine starring Hugh Jackman and directed by Darren Aronofsky is called The Wolverine.  How boring!
  • In news that interests no one but me, William Monahan, Oscar-winning screenwriter of The Departed, will adapt and direct Jean Anouilh's play Becket.  Henry II is one of my favorite historical figures and if you haven't yet seen The Lion in Winter starring Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn, you're missing out.  This one has potential written all over it.

Trailer Time: The Source Code, London Boulevard and Sucker Punch 3D

Is it wrong that I want to see this movie right now?  The Source Code is like a hybrid of Groundhog Day meets Speed.  Jake Gyllenhaall plays a soldier who takes part in an experimental program that allows him to relive the last 8 minutes in the life of a commuter on a train to find out who bombed it.  Whoa! Yes, so you see why I want to see it now!  You had me at Jake Gyllenhaal.

The movie also stars Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air) and Michelle Monaghan (Eagle Eye) and is directed by Duncan Jones (Moon).  Fun Fact: Duncan Jones is the son of David Bowie!

Unfortunately, this film doesn't come out until April 15, 2011.  Boo!




If you are ever wondering whatever happened to Colin Farrell and he's been quite under the radar lately.  No major scandals, just quiet work.  Shocking!  Anyways, he's back again in London Boulevard as an ex-con bodyguard to Keira Knightley's starlet.  Take a look at this very British film, it already has Ray Winstone as a gangster.  He's become almost like a cliche or a prerequisite these days.



This one's for the fanboys everywhere...girls in short clothes fighting! I still have no clue what the plot is after watching the trailer but I doubt most of the male audience is going to care. Sucker Punch 3D is directed by Zack Snyder. I'm already looking ahead to Superman.

Sunday, November 21, 2010

Countdown to Oscar - Best Animated Film

If you know me well, you'll know that I'm an Oscar geek.  I live for Oscar day.  I can't sleep the night before and I love the anticipation in the months previous to the big day.  So, it's late November now and the campaign juggernaut is officially started.  Let's get going.


Here are the 15 candidates for Best Animated Film for 2010.  That's the good news, guys.  The bad news?  Only 3 of them will be competing for the big prize come Oscar night.


The Shortlist
Alpha and Omega
Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore
Despicable Me
The Dreams of Jinsha
How to Train Your Dragon
Idiots and Angels
The Illusionist
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga’Hoole
Megamind
My Dog Tulip
Shrek Forever After
Summer Wars
Tangled
Tinker Bell and the Great Fairy Rescue
Toy Story 3
My Pick: Well, Toy Story 3 and How to Train Your Dragon have practically already booked their spot.  Everyone else is fighting for the lone third spot.  I'd say it's between Legends of the Guardians, Tangled and The Illusionist.  But don't count out My Dog Tulip or Idiots and Angels either.  Tough race this year and I wish it was expanded to include 5 nominees.  But rules are rules.  We'll find out when the nominations are announced on January 25th, 2011.  

Saturday, November 20, 2010

First Look: Cowboys and Aliens Teaser Poster and Trailer


Jon Favreau is not just satisfied to be the director of the Iron Man series, he's trying to mix together James Bond (Daniel Craig) and Han Solo (Harrison Ford).  That's the online movie fandom would like to believe.  Well, James Bond is out of work these days so he's off playing cowboys and aliens.  I can't gauge much from the Cowboys and Aliens trailer but everyone just seems really bewildered by the arrival of aliens.  I hope there's a more coherent trailer later.  But, guys, didn't TV's Firefly pretty much cover the whole Western in space thing?  Just asking!

New Trailer and Poster for the Voyage of the Dawn Treader

One more month to go for the third part of The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. But in the meantime, here's a brand new trailer and poster featuring more of Aslan, the most royal of lions. The visuals and special effects in this movie look beyond amazing, they have improved from each film.






And to think this film almost didn't get made. It would have been a shame.

Carey Mulligan as Daisy Buchanan!


Baz Luhrmann has chosen his Daisy.  It's Carey Mulligan and the picture above is from the screen test with Leo DiCaprio.  How very cool!  Mulligan has shown herself to be a fine and capable actress and I have no doubt she'll fit the role.  There's a sweet story about how when she first heard she was cast, she burst into tears. Aww!

Of course, this means I have to read the book, The Great Gatsby now.  I can't recall if I ever managed to read it in school.  How embarrassing! I shall have to rectify that mistake.  Has anyone else read the book?

First Look: The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made


Yay! The Muppets are back.  News has been flying fast and furious these past few weeks about all the cameos and cast additions to the movie and here come some more.  Jack Black, Alan Arkin, Billy Crystal, Zach Galifianakis, and Jean Claude Van Damme are all up for minor roles in the film where the Muppets try to save their theater by putting on a show.  We also meet a new Muppet, Walter, which you can see from the photo above.

Synopsis from Collider.com

The Greatest Muppet Movie Ever Made is about Gary, Mary, and Walter (a man, his girlfriend, and the man’s life-long nondescript, brown puppet best friend) getting the old Muppet gang – now retired entertainers known for the same Muppet show we know them from – together to save the TV studio that the original show was shot in. A villain, Tex Richman, bent on drilling for oil underneath the studio, is due to take over the studio in weeks, and the only way to stop him? Putting on a show that draws ten million viewers.”

Remember all this started because Jason Segel wrote and played a character who wanted to make a Muppet movie in Forgetting Sarah Marshall and now it's a reality.  Simply amazing!

Walk Down Memory Lane - Harry Potter Series

Today as I go to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 and I was looking back and reminiscing.  It'll   be 10 years next July that the Harry Potter movie series has kept us enthralled.  I remember looking back at the first official look at Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone in Vanity Fair and being so excited to see all the characters and the world I had only read about.  But it's now onto the last of the series and it's been quite a journey.  Here's a look at the first six movies of the Harry Potter series and especially at Daniel, Rupert and Emma as Harry, Ron and Hermione.  We've seen them grow up in front of our eyes.  I'll be sad when this series officially ends next July.


Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone


Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets


Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban



Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire



Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix


Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince



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