Saturday, January 31, 2009

New Footage from LAND OF THE LOST and Pixar’s UP

With the Superbowl always getting massive ratings and people tuning in to see what commercials get aired, the movie studio are going full force this year and promoting a lot of their upcoming films during the game. And in an effort to get extra exposure for their ridiculously expensive TV spots, they’ve released a lot of clips a day. We've included 2 bellow and as you might expect, Pixar's "Up" looks the best. It’s almost not fair to put anything against a Pixar movie.

LAND OF THE LOST

Will Ferrell stars as has-been scientist Dr. Rick Marshall, sucked into one and spat back through time. Way back. Now, Marshall has no weapons, few skills and questionable smarts to survive in an alternate universe full of marauding dinosaurs and fantastic creatures from beyond our world - a place of spectacular sights and super-scaled comedy known as the Land of the Lost.

Sucked alongside him for the adventure are crack-smart research assistant Holly (Anna Friel) and a redneck survivalist (Danny McBride) named Will. Chased by T-Rex and stalked by painfully slow reptiles known as Sleestaks, Marshall, Will and Holly must rely on their only ally - a primate called Chaka (Jorma Taccone) to navigate out of the hybrid dimension. Escape from this routine expedition gone awry and theyre heroes. Get stuck, and they'll be permanent refugees in the Land of the Lost. In theaters June 5, 2009.






UP

From Disney•Pixar comes UP, a comedy adventure about 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic 9-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. From the Academy Award-nominated director Pete Docter (“Monsters, Inc.”), Disney•Pixar’s UP invites you on a hilarious journey into a lost world, with the least likely duo on Earth. UP will be presented in Disney Digital 3-D in select theaters.





Wednesday, January 28, 2009

New Batch of Stylish G.I. Joe Posters

We've got a brand new batch of posters to feature today, straight from JoBlo. I know, I know, we've already seen plenty of posters for G.I. Joe before, but I assure you, these are worth checking out. They're a definite improvement over the older black and white design they've used and are a tweaked version of the Matrix Reloaded-style cut off head posters. And given I'm easily excitable, I'll admit that I think these look pretty badass. Thoughts?

Below you'll see Channing Tatum as Duke, Rachel Nichols as Scarlett, Sienna Miller as Baroness, and Ray Park as Snake Eyes. There is also another poster featuring Marlon Wayans as Ripcord that can be seen on JoBlo. With the trailer out on Sunday and these new posters out today, is G.I. Joe gaining any buzz?

G.I. Joe Poster - DukeG.I. Joe Poster - Scarlett

G.I. Joe Poster - BaronessG.I. Joe Poster - Snake Eyes

G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra is directed by big action filmmaker Stephen Sommers, of The Jungle Book, Deep Rising, The Mummy, The Mummy Returns, and Van Helsing previously. The screenplay was co-written by both Stuart Beattie, of Collateral, Derailed, and 30 Days of Night, and Skip Woods, of Swordfish and Hitman. The movie is based on Hasbro's G.I. Joe line of toys that first debut in 1964. Paramount will premiere G.I. Joe: Rise of Cobra in theaters everywhere on August 7th, 2009 this summer.

Friday, January 23, 2009

Another Brand New Poster and Clip for Pixar's Up!

Yahoo! Movies has debuted this new poster for Disney•Pixar's Up and a clip from the film that was shown at Sony's CES Keynote last week has been leaked online. You can watch it below the poster!






Exclusive Trailer For 'Up' from Sony Insider on Vimeo.

Opening May 29, Up is a comedy adventure about 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen, who finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America. But he discovers all too late that his biggest nightmare has stowed away on the trip: an overly optimistic 9-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell.

I think the consensus is that movie trailers and movie title sequences used to be better - just look at the back catalogue of Alfred Hitchcock for numerous sterling examples of each, all from the oeuvre of just one director. Lately, it might be argued that title sequences have had something of a renaissance, with the work of Kyle Cooper and Imaginary Forces, but much of the great stuff has been pushed to the end of the film, as the credits roll. Witness the Pixar films, such as The Incredibles and Ratatouille and their atmospheric and engrossing final scrolls.

Of Pixar films, in fact, I recall only Monsters Inc. really having a really solid title sequence up front - but it isn’t a sequence I’m going to forget in a hurry. In fact, some of my most vivid sense memories of that film, and of how exciting, charming and awe inspiring I found it, are all tied up in my recollection of the title sequence.

Trailers, however - though not without exception - still tend to be rather formulaic affairs.


Now, I don’t know if Coraline is going to come with a wonderful opening sequence or not, but it has definitely been ratcheting up the trailers and the latest is something really wonderful. It features Neil Gaiman, author of the original Coraline novel, and he talks to us, directly, about Koumpounophobia, the fear of buttons.

Already this is a classic trailer, comparable to Hitchcock giving us a tour of the Bates motel. Much of what makes it work is the writing, and Gaiman’s brilliant delivery (well practiced on promotional reading tours of bookstores worldwide, audio books and endless interviews). Seemingly simple stuff, but dynamite too, and it really does give us a megaton blast of atmosphere most promo clips can’t get near.

The clip ends with some quick glimpses of the film, and having been primed by Gaiman’s address, I found them to really hit home.

Coraline doesn’t make it to the UK until May but the US has to wait only a couple more weeks, until February 6th.

Dakota Fanning, Teenage Vampire!


Dakota Fanning, no longer the midget moppet we likely know her best as, might be sucking on necks come November.

The "Charlotte's Web" star is in talks to play 'Jane'* in "Twilight" sequel "New Moon", according to E! Online.

Jane, for those who don't wear skirts, is a member of Italy’s Volturi, the most deadly group of bloodsucking killers in author Stephenie Meyer’s best-selling series.

Fanning, seen in more 'big people' flicks of late (like "The Secret Life of Bees"), has been offered the part - no audition, read, or lunch meeting necessary; it's hers if he she wants it.

For once, though, it looks like fans could be happy with the role going to Fanning, and there was even an online petition created by fans demanding Summit give Fanning the role -- then again, there's an online petition for anything these days. One thing is for sure: if Fanning does sign on, I think fans can feel a lot more confident in her acting chops than in some of the other names that have been tossed around.

So now I leave the floor to the fans: sound off below and tell us what you think about Ms. Fanning taking over as one of the baddest Volturi on the block...

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Oscar Nominations Announced!


If you've recovered from the stunning awesomeness of the Golden Globe awards still itching for some gold, some statues and some more nominations, then do we have some news for you. The 81st Academy Award nominations are here! Check them out below ...

Shockers!
  • The Dark Knight gets snubbed for Director, Best Picture, Score
  • Darren Aronofsky gets snubbed for Best Director
  • Leonardo DiCaprio snubbed for Best Actor
  • Clint Eastwood fails to get a Best Actor nod
  • Kate Winslet doesn't get double nomination
  • The Wrestler snubbed for Best Picture
  • But Richard Jenkins -- yay!
  • No Sam Mendes either ... wow
  • Australia snubbed for Best Cinematography. The film was flawed, but come on!
  • THEY SNUBBED THE BOSS FOR BEST SONG?!


Best Motion Picture of the Year
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role

Richard Jenkins for The Visitor
Frank Langella for Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn for Milk
Brad Pitt for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke for The Wrestler

Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role
Anne Hathaway for Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie for Changeling
Melissa Leo for Frozen River
Meryl Streep for Doubt
Kate Winslet for The Reader

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role

Josh Brolin for Milk
Robert Downey Jr. for Tropic Thunder
Philip Seymour Hoffman for Doubt
Heath Ledger for The Dark Knight
Michael Shannon for Revolutionary Road

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role

Amy Adams for Doubt
Penélope Cruz for Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis for Doubt
Taraji P. Henson for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei for The Wrestler

Best Achievement in Directing

Danny Boyle for Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry for The Reader
David Fincher for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard for Frost/Nixon
Gus Van Sant for Milk

Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen

Courtney Hunt Frozen River
Mike Leigh Happy-Go-Lucky
Martin McDonagh In Bruges
Dustin Lance Black Milk
Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter Wall E

Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material Previously Produced or Published

Eric Roth, Robin Swicord The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
John Patrick Shanley Doubt
Peter Morgan Frost/Nixon
David Hare The Reader
Simon Beaufoy Slumdog Millionaire

Best Achievement in Cinematography

Tom Stern Changeling
Claudio Miranda The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Wally Pfister The Dark Knight
Roger Deakins, Chris Menges The Reader
Anthony Dod Mantle Slumdog Millionaire

Best Achievement in Editing

Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Lee Smith The Dark Knight
Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill Frost/Nixon
Elliot Graham Milk
Chris Dickens Slumdog Millionaire

Best Achievement in Art Direction

James J. Murakami, Gary Fettis Changeling
Donald Graham Burt, Victor J. Zolfo The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Nathan Crowley, Peter Lando The Dark Knight
Michael Carlin, Rebecca Alleway The Duchess
Kristi Zea, Debra Schutt Revolutionary Road

Best Achievement in Costume Design

Catherine Martin Australia
Jacqueline West The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Michael O'Connor The Duchess
Danny Glicker Milk
Albert Wolsky Revolutionary Road


Best Achievement in Makeup
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Score

Alexandre Desplat The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
James Newton Howard Defiance
Danny Elfman Milk
A.R. Rahman Slumdog Millionaire
Thomas Newman WALL·E

Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song

Slumdog Millionaire A.R. Rahman, Gulzar ("Jai Ho")
Slumdog Millionaire A.R. Rahman, M.I.A ("O Saya")
WALL·E Peter Gabriel, Thomas Newman ("Down to Earth")

Best Achievement in Sound
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Slumdog Millionaire
WALL·E
Wanted

Best Achievement in Sound Editing
The Dark Knight
Iron Man Slumdog Millionaire
WALL·E
Wanted

Best Achievement in Visual Effects
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Iron Man

Best Animated Feature Film of the Year
Bolt Kung
Fu Panda
WALL·E


Best Foreign Language Film of the Year

Der Baader Meinhof Komplex (Germany)
Entre les murs (France)
Revanche (Austria)
Okuribito (Japan)
Vals Im Bashir (Israel)

Best Documentary, Features

The Betrayal - Nerakhoon
Encounters at the End of the World
The Garden
Man on Wire
Trouble the Water

Best Documentary, Short Subjects

The Conscience of Nhem En
The Final Inch
Smile Pinki
The Witness from the Balcony of Room 306

Best Short Film, Animated

Ubornaya istoriya - lyubovnaya istoriya
La Maison en Petits Cubes
Oktapodi
Presto
This Way Up

Lost Planet to Cost $150-200 Million to Make?

Capcom's "head of character contents business" Toshihiro Tokumaru was interviewed by his company, and while he talked a bit about the "Resident Evil" franchise and upcoming Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, he made a big reveal about Warner Bros. Pictures' big screen adaptation of Capcom's Lost Planet:

Speaking of "Lost Planet", that project will cost somewhere between 150 and 200 million dollars to make. The producer on the project is Avi Arad, producer of Spider-Man. I think that it is because of our original IPs that we are able to try something so ambitious. When the game creators at Capcom develop a game, they think about everything from the main characters to the setting, which makes it easy to bring our games to the big screen. In game-making, we consider the main character's upbringing, interpersonal relationships, and their place in time. But in a game we can only show a cross-section of that. In Lost Planet for example, we can show the game's protagonist on a distant planet fighting against various foes, but we can't really show his interpersonal relationships. By developing that part of it on the movie screen, we can add substance to that world and expand it.

The full interview is located here.

David Hayter is writing the script for Lost Planet, which revolves around an expedition to an ice planet that harbors an energy source with the potential to save mankind.

Sneak Peak at 25 Minutes of Trek

No, you don’t get to see it, but it appears the studio decided that to curb some of the dissenters they would treat select members of the media to an advanced screening of sorts.

25 minutes of the new Star Trek film was shown to select media and we have Jonathan Llyr from Hardcore Nerdity offers up his take on the whole thing here:

I’ve been skeptical about this movie from the beginning, but was trying to remain cautiously optimistic about the whole thing. I like Abrams, and never had any doubt that he would make a fine action picture. But would it be Star Trek?

The answer is - holy fuck yes.

This movie is going to blown your brains out. I was gob-smacked at the production values, size and scope. All of the actors (with one notable exception) are bang on. I still have a few issues with the look of the bridge and the ship, but those issues have shifted to the background.

Since I haven’t yet seen the whole thing, I have no idea if the entire movie holds together. But from what I’ve seen, we are all going to have a great ride.

And man are you ever going to love Chekov. Never thought I would type that.

I wonder who the exception will be? Clearly not Chekov. I think considering how iconic each member of this cast is if only one is off I anticipate a lot of hate spilled in that direction.

I have been insanely hopeful for this movie and haven’t seen anything to take away from that. With any luck this 25 minute bit they were exposed to represents the whole movie.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

15 Films That Influenced Metal Gear Solid Creator Hideo Kojima

Hideo Kojima is perhaps a better filmmaker than he is a game designer. Since the Playstation’s Metal Gear Solid, Kojima has always attempted to push the envelope in terms of making video games cinematic. While it was merely an interesting artistic experiment on the PS1, Metal Gear Solid 2 & 3 on the Playstation 2 both managed to bring many new cinematic elements into the video game arena. With Metal Gear Solid 4, some would argue it’s more of a film than an actual game.

When playing these games, it’s clear that Kojima was very much inspired by some great films. Now you can check them out for yourself: Japanese media store Tsutaya is promoting 15 films that inspired the series. Some of the choices are fairly obvious (Heat, Die Hard), whereas some of the films left out are pretty damned surprising (no Escape from New York!).

'2012' Gets Bumped Back Four Months

Sony has announced yesterday that they're pushing back the release of Roland Emmerich's 2012 from its July 10th date all the way to November 13th, just before Thanksgiving. The studio claims this move was made to "maximize playability" largely because they don't have a major tentpole film during the fall season this year. 2012 will now be competing with Guy Ritchie's Sherlock Holmes as well as Fox's family comedy The Tooth Fairy, both opening the same weekend. Sony execs said 2012 could have been completed by its summer date, though the new date will add some extra time for the effects-laden production.

Roland Emmerich's 2012

I remember when the news about 2012 first hit, it was being sold as a pre-packed project, with everything from marketing to the budget completely worked out by Emmerich. It's interesting to see that Sony has pushed this back, and as always, it makes me a bit nervous, especially considering it was originally slated to be a big summer film. The first teaser trailer didn't seem to go over too well, with most people calling it another effects-driven Emmerich flop. 2012 stars John Cusack and Amanda Peet and is about the apocalypse that has been predicted to arrive in the year 2012. Does this seem like a confident move?

50 Cent is now a Filmmaker


50 Cent is the prime example of how money makes everything better.

He isn’t happy with his fabricated rap star super star status, he also has a clothing line (so macho) as well as shares in a vitamin drink recent bought out by CocaCola. Now he thinks he is a movie star and a director. So all that good money he makes will be aimed at his newly launched production company Cheetah Vision.

And no, he didn’t just buy up a name and a business license, he already has stuff planned. The first of which he shared in the article over at Yahoo!

He said Cheetah Vision had already bought eight scripts and among the first to be produced would be “The Dance,” starring himself and Nicolas Cage.

“(The script) was previously passed around a little bit but both me and Nicolas Cage had an interest in the film so it will still happen. He plays the founder of a boxing program, and I play a fighter who goes to state prison,” 50 Cent said.

“They are all different types of movies that I bought the rights to, and we’re developing projects. You will see different things from me in the future,” he said.

I am not a fan of … well anything this guy does. He is a rapper and that already puts him outside my circle of influence. His fame got him everything else he wanted, but so far the guy (or his staff) have handled his money well.

Saturday, January 17, 2009

New Outlander Trailer

Vikings, aliens, dragony things... This is not an advert for the Norwegian tourist board, but it should be, because we definitely want to visit the bizarro world of the new Outlander trailer


Crash landing on Earth, other-worldly Kainan (Caviezel) joins forces with the Viking inhabitants to fight the Moorwen, an alien predator which has already landed on the planet. Using Kainan's advanced alien technology and know-how along with the brute force of the Viking's Iron Age weaponry, it's time for lots of men in furs to slash about themselves with swords while a big scary monster pwns them from the shadows. Think Highlander meets Beowulf (somewhere between the animated one and the Christopher Lambert one) meets Aliens - and if it's not quite as good as the latter, it's nearly as much fun as the former.

Outlander stars Jim Caviezel, Jack Huston, Ron Perlman and John Hurt and hits cinemas on April 24. Check out the trailer online here.

First Look at the Where the Wild Things Are Monsters!

The Girl Skate Company, which was co-founded by Where the Wild Things Are director Spike Jonze, has posted an interview with Jonze, a promo photo from the film and this first look at skateboard series that include photos of the monsters in the movie.


Based on Maurice Sendak's classic book, the Warner Bros. release hits theaters on October 16, 2009.

Watchmen smiles again :)

As predicted, a caravan of brinks trucks showed up on Fox’s doorstep and magically they canceled their playdate with Judge Gary Feess. The release date will not be changed. Everything is going as planned.

ComingSoon offers us the good news:

Warner Bros. and Twentieth Century Fox have resolved their dispute regarding the rights to the upcoming motion picture Watchmen in a confidential settlement. Warner Bros acknowledges that Fox acted in good faith in bringing its claims, which were asserted prior to the start of principal photography. Fox acknowledges that Warner Bros. acted in good faith in defending against those claims Warner Bros. and Fox, like all Watchmen fans, look forward with great anticipation to this film’s March 6 release in theatres.


It appears that this Larry Gordon fella turned out to be the sore spot over all of this confusion and many lawyers are now turning their hurtful gaze in his direction. Right from the very begining this has had Gordon written all over it. WB was certain that they recovered the rights to their property, Fox was not so convinced.

Now the movie will be released on schedule, Fox and the Brothers Warner are playing nice and they will deal with Gordon on their own time.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Fast & Furious Trailer Hits Hard!

Universal Pictures has revealed the full new trailer for Fast & Furious, I really love their marketing style - showing us nearly a full action scene. It really gets me pupped up and excited to see more and that's all that Fast & Furious is about. I really think they might've pulled off a damn successful reboot of this Fast and the Furious franchise. Plus it's great seeing all the actors back again and it just looks downright entertaining. I like a little guilty pleasure every once in a while!


When a crime brings them back to L.A., fugitive ex-con Dom Toretto (Diesel) reignites his feud with agent Brian O'Conner (Walker). But as they are forced to confront a shared enemy, Dom and Brian must give in to an uncertain new trust if they hope to outmanuever him. And from convoy heists to precision tunnel crawls across international lines, two men will find the best way to get revenge: push the limits of what's possible behind the wheel.

Patrick McGoohan Passes Away

Sadly, the man has passed away.

LA Times reports:

Patrick McGoohan, the Emmy-winning actor who created and starred in the cult classic television show “The Prisoner,” has died. He was 80.

McGoohan died Tuesday in Los Angeles after a short illness, his son-in-law, film producer Cleve Landsberg, said.

McGoohan won two Emmys for his work on the Peter Falk detective drama “Columbo,” and more recently appeared as King Edward Longshanks in the 1995 Mel Gibson film “Braveheart.”

But he was most famous as the character known only as Number Six in “The Prisoner,” a sci-fi tinged 1960s British series in which a former spy is held captive in a small enclave known only as The Village, where a mysterious authority named Number One constantly prevents his escape.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Six Minutes of Valkyrie


/Film suggests you go over to the Apple website to see the HD Version.

Are you interested in this film?


Could Aaron Eckhart's Two-Face Still Be Alive?!

What happens when you get a few of the stars from The Dark Knight on the red carpet at the Golden Globes? Well, you bombard them with sequel questions, of course. And even though Aaron Eckhart has previously said that the character of Harvey Dent/Two Face was "Dead as a door nail," the man has apparently had a change of heart (or should we say he's become a bit two-faced?). While speaking to MTV at the Globes last night, Eckhart had this to say about his character: "I think Harvey - if he's not dead - is in a serious coma ... and I'm not sure he's coming out. They might pull the plug on him."



And while it's quite obvious no one knows anything yet (there's not even a script!), remember that Nolan brought back Scarecrow for a brief scene in Dark Knight, and so Two Face may show up in the next sequel if it makes enough sense. Personally, I'd rather see different villains -- but that's me. What do you make of all this?

And the Winers are...

The Hollywood Foreign Press Association presenting the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards on Sunday evening and you can view the winners marked in red below.

Sure, lots of people see this as a preview of the Oscars, and they do often line up, but just like “best of” lists and other opinion polls, not everyone is going to agree on the recognition of the top of each category. So I am going to throw it open to you now to discuss the results.

Golden Globes Official Website gives us the skinny:

Cecil B. DeMille Award - Steven Spielberg

Best Motion Picture - Drama

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Frost/Nixon
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Slumdog Millionaire

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama

Anne Hathaway – Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie – Changeling
Meryl Streep – Doubt
Kristin Scott Thomas – I’ve Loved You So Long
Kate Winslet – Revolutionary Road

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama

Leonardo DiCaprio – Revolutionary Road
Frank Langella – Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn – Milk
Brad Pitt – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke – The Wrestler

Best Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy

Burn After Reading
Happy-Go-Lucky
In Bruges
Mamma Mia!
Vicky Cristina Barcelona

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy

Rebecca Hall – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Sally Hawkins – Happy-Go-Lucky
Frances McDormand – Burn After Reading
Meryl Streep – Mamma Mia!
Emma Thompson – Last Chance Harvey

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Musical Or Comedy

Javier Bardem – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Colin Farrell – In Bruges
James Franco – Pineapple Express
Brendan Gleeson – In Bruges
Dustin Hoffman – Last Chance Harvey

Best Performance by an Actress In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Amy Adams – Doubt
Penélope Cruz – Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis – Doubt
Marisa Tomei – The Wrestler
Kate Winslet – The Reader

Best Performance by an Actor In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture

Tom Cruise – Tropic Thunder
Robert Downey Jr. – Tropic Thunder
Ralph Fiennes – The Duchess
Philip Seymour Hoffman – Doubt
Heath Ledger – The Dark Knight

Best Animated Feature Film

Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
Wall-E

Best Foreign Language Film

The Baader Meinhof Complex (Germany)
Everlasting Moments (Sweden, Denmark)
Gomorrah (Italy)
I’ve Loved You So Long (France)
Waltz With Bashir (Israel)

Best Director - Motion Picture

Danny Boyle – Slumdog Millionaire
Stephen Daldry – The Reader
David Fincher – The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard – Frost/Nixon
Sam Mendes – Revolutionary Road

Best Screenplay - Motion Picture

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button - Written by Eric Roth
Doubt - Written by John Patrick Shanley
Frost/Nixon - Written by Peter Morgan
The Reader - Written by David Hare
Slumdog Millionaire - Written by Simon Beaufoy

Best Original Score - Motion Picture

The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button - Composed by Alexandre Desplat
Changeling - Composed by Clint Eastwood
Defiance - Composed by James Newton Howard
Slumdog Millionaire - Composed by A. R. Rahman
Frost/Nixon - Composed by Hans Zimmer

Best Original Song - Motion Picture

“Down To Earth” – Wall-E - Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman
“Gran Torino” – Gran Torino - Clint Eastwood, Jamie Cullum, Kyle Eastwood and Michael Stevens
”I Thought I Lost You” – Bolt - Miley Cyrus and Jeffrey Steele
“Once In A Lifetime” – Cadillac Records - Beyoncé Knowles, Amanda Ghost, Scott McFarmon, Ian Dench, James Dring and Jody Street
“The Wrestler” – The Wrestler - Bruce Springsteen

Best Television Series - Drama

Dexter (SHOWTIME)
House (FOX)
In Treatment (HBO)
Mad Men (AMC)
True Blood (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series - Drama

Sally Field – Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
Mariska Hargitay – Law & Order
January Jones – Mad Men (AMC)
Anna Paquin – True Blood (HBO)
Kyra Sedgwick – The Closer (TNT)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Drama

Gabriel Byrne – In Treatment (HBO)
Michael C. Hall – Dexter (SHOWTIME)
Jon Hamm – Mad Men (AMC)
Hugh Laurie – House (FOX)
Jonathan Rhys Meyers – The Tudors (SHOWTIME)

Best Television Series - Musical Or Comedy

30 Rock (NBC)
Californication (SHOWTIME)
Entourage (HBO)
The Office (NBC)
Weeds (SHOWTIME)

Best Performance by an Actress In A Television Series - Musical Or Comedy

Christina Applegate – Samantha Who? (ABC)
America Ferrera – Ugly Betty (ABC)
Tina Fey – 30 Rock (NBC)
Debra Messing – The Starter Wife (USA)
Mary-Louise Parker – Weeds (SHOWTIME)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Television Series - Musical Or Comedy

Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock (NBC)
Steve Carell – The Office (NBC)
Kevin Connolly – Entourage (HBO)
David Duchovny – Californication (SHOWTIME)
Tony Shalhoub – Monk (USA)

Best Mini-Series Or Motion Picture Made for Television

A Raisin In The Sun (ABC)
Bernard And Doris (HBO)
Cranford (PBS)
John Adams (HBO)
Recount (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress In A Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Judi Dench – Cranford (PBS)
Laura Linney – John Adams (HBO)
Shirley MacLaine – Coco Chanel
Susan Sarandon – Bernard And Doris (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actor In A Mini-series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Ralph Fiennes – Bernard And Doris (HBO)
Paul Giamatti – John Adams (HBO)
Kevin Spacey – Recount (HBO)
Kiefer Sutherland – 24 (FOX)
Tom Wilkinson – Recount (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Eileen Atkins – Cranford (PBS)
Laura Dern – Recount (HBO)
Melissa George – In Treatment (HBO)
Rachel Griffiths – Brothers & Sisters (ABC)
Dianne Wiest – In Treatment (HBO)

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
Denis Leary – Recount (HBO)
Jeremy Piven – Entourage (HBO)
Blair Underwood – In Treatment (HBO)
Tom Wilkinson – John Adams (HBO)

So, thoughts? Opinions? Disappointments or dead on for you?

Sunday, January 11, 2009

First Look at Transformers' Sideswipe

Back in August of '08, it was reported that the mystery car that was spotted on the Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen set was GM's Corvette Centennial Design Concept. A month later, reports said that the car will be the Autobot Sideswipe, who was a Lamborghini in the original cartoons. Now, a user at TF08.net has posted a photo of Hasbro's figure that gives you a good look at what the robot will look like in Michael Bay's film, opening in conventional and IMAX theaters on June 26

New Photos From Upcoming 2009 Flicks

Avatar (I know the film is 3D, motion-capture, highly-secret, but at this point with all the behind-the-scenes stills, I'm starting to convince myself that James Cameron is actually in the movie).

Funny People

Observe and Report

Pandorum

The Taking of Pelham 123

The Uninvited

Where the Wild Things Are

Whiteout

The Joker Back In Next Batman Film???

The folks over at Total Film give us this:

The Dark Knight producer Chuck Roven has claimed that people need to “separate the actors from the role,” in response to a question regarding The Joker and Heath Ledger. When asked by MTV whether the filmmakers would have done anything different had they known Ledger wouldn’t be reprising the role, Roven claimed that the character wasn’t tied to the actor.

“On a personal level, Heath was a friend of mine,” he said at the People’s Choice Awards. “We had worked together before The Dark Knight, but I still think that The Dark Knight is its own thing, and we have to separate them.”

I celebrate this news IF it indeed turns out to be true.

Saturday, January 10, 2009

Revenge of the Fallen Teaser Poster UPDATED

Yahoo has debuted the first teaser poster for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, the highly anticipated sequel to Michael Bay's explosive giant robots action movie from 2007. Don't forget this is just a teaser, it's meant to show only enough to get you excited

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Poster

UPDATE: A user at the Transformers Live Action Blog enhanced the image to where you can see quite a bit more! We've included below (you can also click on the official first one to view a bigger version):

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen is again directed by action film superstar Michael Bay of Bad Boys, The Rock, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor, The Island, and Transformers previously. The story and screenplay for the sequel was written by Transformers writers Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci as well as Ehren Kruger (The Ring, The Brothers Grimm, Blood and Chocolate). Paramount is unleashing Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen in both IMAX and regular theaters on June 26th this summer. We'll be there!

Thursday, January 8, 2009

10th Watchmen Video Journal Online

Warner Bros. Pictures has released the 10th Watchmen Video Journal online in QuickTime format at Apple.com!

Opening March 6th in conventional theaters and IMAX, the Zack Snyder-directed adaptation stars Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Matthew Goode, Carla Gugino, Jackie Earle Haley, Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Patrick Wilson.Watchmen is set in an alternate 1985 America in which costumed superheroes are part of the fabric of everyday society, and the "Doomsday Clock" - which charts the USA's tension with the Soviet Union - is permanently set at five minutes to midnight. When one of his former colleagues is murdered, the washed-up but no less determined masked vigilante Rorschach sets out to uncover a plot to kill and discredit all past and present superheroes. As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion - a ragtag group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers - Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. Their mission is to watch over humanity...but who is watching the Watchmen?

Monday, January 5, 2009

Snyder Wants to Make THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS

Talking to iFMagazine.com (via MTV's Splash Page), Snyder says, "That’s really my favorite comic book. However, the studio has this massive franchise and I don’t think they’ll let me make a BATMAN movie where he’s fifty years old and Ronald Reagan is president." I think Snyder just missed his window. After "Batman & Robin", I think Warner Bros. would have tried anything to get the franchise off the ground again. Then again, with "The Dark Knight" WB allowed Batman to be portrayed as a fascist and that fits right in with Miller's comic. Keep hope alive, Snyder!

Head over to iFMagazine.com to check out the full interview where Snyder also talks about his favorite Minuteman and why he chose to keep the film set in the 80s rather than the modern-day.

Awesome Fight Training Video for Ninja Assassin




This video originally comes from our friends over at SlashFilm. Considering I'm one of the few supporters of this movie, I'm excited to feature this today. This video shows Korean actor Rain training with 87 Eleven, the stunt team behind Matrix, 300, Watchmen, and the Bourne movies. I also love watching this because it shows me why I admire actors like Rain so much - they can do something I could never do, no matter how much training I had. Just watch!

If you're looking for the best parts of this video, there is a badass fight scene that starts at about 1:31 into it. There's also another really cool one-on-one fight that starts at about 3:02. Sit back and enjoy!

Watch the fighting training video for Ninja Assassin:


Ninja Assassin follows Raizo (Rain), one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them… and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.

Ninja Assassin is directed by Australian filmmaker James McTeigue, who worked as second unit director under the Wachowskis on the Matrix trilogy before directing V for Vendetta on his own. The story was developed by newcomer Matthew Sand and the screenplay was written by both Sand and J. Michael Straczynski ("Babylon 5", Changeling, World War Z). Joel Silver and the Wachowskis are producing. Warner Brothers will debut Ninja Assassin in theaters sometime in mid-to-late 2009.

US Poster for Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li

From KristenKreukWeb we have the new, and I'm assuming only, U.S. poster for "Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li". If you thought floating heads were bad, then you have not experienced them jammed into fighting bodies. I also like how Kreuk, the star and title character of the film, has been relegated to the lower right-corner of the poster because she needed the biggest head but only that dude's torso had enough room. There Kreuk will dwell until she emerges a la Kuato.

I also like how this is the "Legend of Chun-Li" but while the Japanese Poster had the balls to show Kreuk dressed in Chun-Li but here, a hot lady in a kimono wearing oversized spiked bracelets won't sell a movie. What does sell: two dudes filled with faces, punching each other in the face. They've got my ticket.

Finally, because there just isn't enough to rip on with this atrocious poster, look at the tagline: "Some fight for power. Some fight for us." You know, because the two are mutually exclusive.



Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li Poster

Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li is directed by ex-cinematographer Andrzej Bartkowiak, who directed Romeo Must Die, Exit Wounds, Cradle 2 the Grave, and Doom previously. The script was penned by up-and-coming screenwriter Justin Marks, who also penned screenplays for Masters of the Universe and Voltron. Hong Kong fight choreographer Dion Lam, who previously worked on The Matrix Trilogy, Spider-Man 2, and all of Bartkowiak's previous films, is handling the fight sequences. Fox is debuting Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li in theaters everywhere on February 27th. See you in theaters!

Tsui Hark Directing Andy Lau in Detective Dee

Tsui Hark will direct Andy Lau (Infernal Affairs) in production company Huayi Brothers' period martial arts suspense thriller Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame in Hong Kong and China beginning in May, says The Hollywood Reporter.

With a $13 million budget, a script by Chen Kuofu and production by Chen, Tsui's wife and partner Nansun Shi and former Columbia and Emperor executive Peggy Lee, Tsui and Huayi will bring to life an imagined case solved by a real Tang Dynasty detective.

When the mysterious deaths of a series of loyal subjects threaten to delay the 690 A.D. inauguration of Empress Wu, China's only female leader, she calls the infamous Detective Dee (Lau) back from an exile into which she cast him eight years earlier.

Dee accepts the challenge and partners with gung-ho Commander Bei and the Ghost Doctor, a master of disguise, to solve the crimes.

Huayi Brothers hopes to finish the film in time for a summer 2010 release in Asia.

Marley & Me Still Doing it

Well, there’s not much news to report this weekend at the Box Office. Thank you very much, Hollywood, for not rolling out any new wide releases and giving me (and a lot of movie fans) a free weekend to watch football on TV and stuff.

Here’s what happened at the theaters this weekend. Suffice it to say the winning streak for dogs at the box office seems to keep on rolling on:

1. Marley & Me $24 million
2. Bedtime Stories $20 million
3. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button $18.4 million
4. Valkyrie $14 million
5. Yes Man $13.8 million
6. Seven Pounds $10 million
7. The Tale of Despereaux $7 million
8. Doubt $5 million
9. The Day the Earth Stood Still $4.8 million
10. Slumdog Millionaire $4.7 million

So that’s what happened at the theaters this weekend. Now I plan to resume my weekend playing pool games here in Mozambique (37ºC). See you later. ;

Michael Myers Mask from Rob Zombie's H2

Halloween

The photo comes from Zombie's own MySpace blog, where he mentions that make-up artist Wayne Toth is "back on the case working the greatest Michael ever." The photo at the top is from Zombie's original Halloween to reference any changes. It doesn't look like that much of a modification, but then again, I'm not a big Halloween fan so I'm not able to pick out all the minor differences.

Note: While it doesn't officially say that this is only a maquette, I'm guessing that this is just an early sculpt of the mask and that it obviously won't be orange and it will have hair in the end. Thoughts?

H2: Halloween 2 Michael Myers Mask

Rob Zombie is both writing and directing H2: Halloween 2 which is already slated for release on August 28th later this year. Are there enough fans of Rob Zombie's reboot to keep this franchise going? And those of you that are hardcore Halloween fans — what do you think of this new mask? Good or bad?

Saturday, January 3, 2009

Coraline Behind-the-Scenes Featurettes!

Thanks to AICN, I'm highlighting a few of the best behind-the-scenes videos for the upcoming Coraline. Coraline is a stop-motion movie from Nightmare Before Christmas director Henry Selick based on a book by Neil Gaiman. That sentence alone should be enough to convince anyone that Coraline is going to be good, but if you need more reasons, look no further. We've got 3 behind-the-scenes featurettes that show you just how much work went into making this beautiful 3D stop animation feature film.

The Story of Coraline:

Coraline in the Higher Dimensions:

The Biggest Smallest Movie Ever Made:

Coraline Jones (Dakota Fanning) is bored in her new home until she finds a secret door and discovers an alternate version of her life on the other side. On the surface, this parallel reality is eerily similar to her real life and the people in it — only much better. But when this seemingly perfect world turns dangerous, and her other parents try to trap her forever, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination and bravery to escape this increasingly perilous world — and save her family.

Coraline is both written and directed by Henry Selick, the visionary filmmaker behind the other stop animation movies Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach, and Monkeybone. The film is an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's young adult book of the same name. Focus Features is debuting Coraline in both regular and 3-D movie theaters everywhere on February 6th, 2009.

Thursday, January 1, 2009