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Tim Burton's Next 3D Film is...
With Alice in Wonderland raking in the cash at the box office, it’s no surprise that Tim Burton is looking to remain in the world of 3D for his next project. While some have suggested that the writer-director-artist present his own interpretation of The Wizard of Oz, Deadline New York reports that he’ll instead resurrect another classic family, signing on to create a stop-motion 3D film based on the Addams Family. Ya know, those folks who are creepy, kooky, mysterious and spooky. So bad news for those who wanted Burton to go back and churn out another original story, but good news for those who’d rather see a stop-motion Burton film over anything else. Before it was a television show, and then later a couple of movies, the Addams Family were a series of cartoons by...
Your Five: Most Anticipated Summer Films
Fabulous weather here on the east coast has me feelin’ those summer vibes today, even though we’re still a little over a month away from the official start of the summer movie season. Looking over the 2010 summer movies, I feel like this will be somewhat of a quiet year – what with Marvel and DC still piecing together the big guns for premieres in 2011 and 2012. Still, though, even in a quiet year, we have some very big movies arriving in theaters between now and September – but which ones are you looking forward to most? As I did a couple of weeks ago, I’m turning our usual The Five into Your Five, which turns the microphone over to you instead of forcing you to read me babbling on for 1300 words about how awesome Robert Downey Jr. is (we’ll save...
'New Moon' DVD Release Party Details
I'm sure you're already well aware that this Friday at midnight The Twilight Saga: New Moon will finally arrive on DVD, packed with all sorts of vampire and werewolf angst, as well as more than a few young actors with no shirts on. But the question still remains: What will you be doing come midnight? Will you flake out and head to your local DVD shop at some point Saturday afternoon once the crowds have parted, or will you brave the midnight hysteria and get your Twilight on in style? Good news for those night owls who want to celebrate the New Moon DVD release by partying it up into the wee hours is that several major retail chains will be hosting DVD release parties, complete with contests, games and Twilight-related munchies. Select Borders stores will be kicking off their DVD...
Bryan Singer to Direct Every X-Men Movie From Now On?
The Los Angeles Times seems to be interested in rounding up today's current geek icons before bombarding them with questions about their previous films and the ones they may have planned for the future. Last week they sat down with Christopher Nolan and talked all things Batman and Superman, and now they've posted up a chat with Bryan Singer and producer Lauren Shuler Donner on all things X-Men. Perhaps the most interesting thing to come from the conversation is that Singer admits to meshing more with the X-Men universe than any other – so much so that there's a chance he'd even return (after directing X-Men: First Class, a prequel to the original X-Men film) to direct X-Men 4 and possibly even Wolverine 2. Unfortunately for Singer, though, there may not be enough of him to go...
Exclusive Poster Debut! 'Mother and Child'
Coming to theaters soon is Mother and Child, a drama that tells the story of three people: a 50-year-old woman, the daughter she gave up for adoption 35 years before, and an African American woman looking to adopt her own child. Here's an exclusive look at the new poster... What do you think? We like the multi-panel approach (gives a nice sense of the film's journey and the players involved), and besides the story, the draw here has to be the A-list cast, including Oscar nominees Samuel L. Jackson, Annette Bening and Naomi Watts, and strong character actors Jimmy Smits and Kerry Washington. The film's directed by indie stalwart Rodrigo Garcia (Nine Lives) and debuted to good reviews at last year's Toronto Film Festival. Look for the movie in theaters in...
Sigourney Weaver Goes from' Avatar' to Vampires
Already they're pitching this one as Clueless, but with vampires. And I don't blame folks for throwing in the Clueless reference since this new film will not only star Alicia Silverstone, but it will also be directed by Clueless' Amy Heckerling. The duo who first helped us, like, totally fall in love with dumb blondes from California are now bringing us a film called Vamps, and it sounds sorta like Twilight times two…but a comedy. The news today is that Sigourney Weaver has joined the cast as an age-old vampire named Ciccreus, whose two vamps (played by Alicia Silverstone and Krysten Ritter) are living it up in New York until they stumble across the whole love thing, forcing them to choose between being an immortal vampire and…dating some random dude from New York, I...
Kristen Stewart Enters the 'Backwoods'
All of you will be able to see Kristen Stewart get her rock on this weekend in The Runaways, and then she'll be returning as Bella Swan in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse this summer, but after that it's all up in the air. Will Stewart go the Taylor Lautner route and start lining up action franchises? Or will she remain in low-budget independent films as that troubled girl with a chip on her shoulder? I can't tell you for sure what she's up to, but we do know that Stewart has signed on to join Julianne Moore in the film Backwoods, which, according to Showbiz 411, "concerns the end of the world." Moore's husband Bart Freundlich will direct, and he'll be reuniting with Stewart after directing her in the 2004 film Catch That Kid. Seeing as Freundlich isn't exactly a blockbuster...
First Look: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Returns to Action!
Tired of watching Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson suck it up in one boring family comedy after another? Did you, like me, finally write him off following the atrocity that was The Tooth Fairy? Are you still kind of itching to see this former wrestler get back to using those giant muscles to beat up bad guys instead of lift children's spirits? Well guess what – The Rock is back, baby! USA Today has premiered the first image from Johnson's next film, Faster, where he'll play an ex-con who's out to avenge his brother's murder. And if you're not convinced at how badass this film is gonna be based on that image of a ripped Dwayne Johnson, then know that the man also gets shot in the head at some point during the film. Billy Bob Thornton and Carla Gugino also star as a couple of...
SXSW Fanboy Buzz: 'Kick-Ass' and 'Monsters' Are a Hit
The SXSW Film Festival is still screening films through March 20th over in Austin, Texas, but I've returned early to let you all know about some of the films making waves as the fest nears its final bow. I'll be back later in the week to present you with a few more titles to watch for, but in the meantime here are two fanboy flicks you'll definitely want to put on your must-watch list. Kick-Ass The Buzz: I'm sure you've already heard about this one, but after seeing it for myself on opening night I can tell you one thing is for sure: this film kicks a whole lotta ass. It's very R-rated, with lots of blood, violence and more dirty language from the mouth of a 12-year-old girl than you'd probably care to witness, but this sucker packs a nasty punch – especially during the last...
Poll: Do You Want Healthier Snacks at the Movie Theater?
One of the best parts about going to the movies is knowing that we'll be able to devour some sweet candy or an extra large tub of extra-buttery popcorn. But should theaters start considering some healthier options at the snack stand? At the annual ShoWest exhibitor's convention, Sony Pictures' Michael Lynton told theater owners that one of their surveys found that two-thirds of moviegoers would be interested in buying healthy food at the concession stands if those options were made available. No specific food suggestions were made, but I'd think we'd be looking at a variety of salads for starters, and maybe light sandwiches on whole wheat bread. That sort of thing. But would healthier snack options help theaters or hurt the moviegoing experience? Let's face it: We don't feel so bad...
Captain America Casting: Channing Tatum and Ryan Phillippe Try Out
If you're an actor currently working in Hollywood, there's a good chance you've already auditioned to play Captain America in Marvel's highly-anticipated superhero flick, due in theaters in 2012. While it's already been reported that Matrix baddie Hugo Weaving will play the iconic Captain American villain Red Skull, we still don't know who will be donning that classic red, white and blue costume…and this is after a whole slew of recognizable and not-so-recognizable names have tried out. What was once thought to be John Krasinski's (The Office) role to lose has now turned into somewhat of a casting mess as producers and director Joe Johnston slave over names and faces in an attempt to find the guy who will best fit the job. Keep in mind that whoever they do wind up casting will...
New on DVD: ‘New Moon,’ ‘Princess and the Frog,’ ‘Ninja Assassin,’ More
The Twilight Saga: New Moon I don’t need to explain, recommend, or criticize this one—if you’re into the Twilight phenom at all, you know who you are and you know you’ll be owning this movie when it’s released on DVD and BD at 12:01 March 20. Extras: 6-part documentary, 3 music videos, rehearsal footage with Muse, more. Also: The documentary Twilight in Forks: The Saga of the Real Town comes out at the same time, for you Twihards. The Princess and the Frog Disney makes a welcome return to 2D with this movie based on the classic mermaid story “The Little Princess,” with toe-tapping Randy Newman songs and lovely animation. Extras: Tons! Ne-yo music video, Disney princess quiz, deleted scenes, commentary (DVD); additional...
'New Moon' to Win ShoWest/Fandango Fan Choice Award
When it comes to the Academy, they chose The Hurt Locker as this year's best film. But when it comes to the fans, well, they had a little something different in mind. As part of the festivities currently taking place in Las Vegas during the annual ShoWest convention, it's just been announced that The Twilight Saga: New Moon will receive the ShoWest/Fandango Fan Choice Award for 2009. With over 66% of the vote, New Moon topped other fan favorites during the 8-week online survey in which 71,000 moviegoers participated. Other films in the survey included Avatar, The Hangover, The Blind Side, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, The Proposal, Up, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, 2012, Star Trek and more. According to Ted Hong, Chief Marketing Officer here at Fandango...
First Look at 'Predators'
Those curious to see what Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Grindhouse) and Nimrod Antal have in store for this summer's Predators sequel/reboot/re-invention got a nice treat over the weekend when Rodriguez premiered a behind-the-scenes look at the film at the same time that he premiered the trailer at the South by Southwest Film Festival. The trailer itself will premiere for everyone else on March 18th, and the film is scheduled to hit theaters this July, but in the meantime Rodriguez (who's acting as a sort of hands-on producer while Antal directs) gave fans at home a nice taste by introducing a behind-the-scenes featurette on the film's new website, as well as images of new Predators like some kind of weird Predator dog. In case you're not up to speed on what is slowly shaping up to be...
New 'Eclipse' Footage from 'New Moon' DVD!
And here you thought Monday was never ever good for anything. Some brand new footage and behind-the-scenes coolness has arrived online, giving us a lot more of a taste of what the next installment in the Twilight Saga will serve up. Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner and others take us through the main set up of the story – that Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard) has returned to do away with Bella and Edward; meanwhile, there's this really hardcore vampire group that decides to pay a visit and cause some trouble – forcing the vampires and wolves to team up, which, of course, leads to that tasty love triangle between Bella, Edward and Jacob. Most of what you see here is behind-the-scenes interviews mixed with background footage (I really liked the stunt Bryce...
Box Office: Who Will Win the Weekend? 'Alice' Again?
In terms of movie seasons, Alice in Wonderland kicked off what I like to call the Prelude to the Summer – that two-month span before May where the films are big, yes, but not monstrous. This is a time to prepare for summer; like spring training, but for movies. Alice blew the box office wide open last week with a whopping $116 million, but that was with no competition. This week sees four new wide releases, and each title has real potential to put a stop to Johnny Depp's Mad Hatter. She's Out of My League What's the Scoop: Your choice for funny this weekend, Jay Baruchel stars as a skinny nerd who does a favor for a girl way out of his league and somehow winds up wooing her, much to the dismay of his baffled friends. Why It Might Win the Weekend: Judd...
Hugo Weaving to Play Villain in 'Captain America'
Though we don't have our Captain America just yet, it looks like that's not stopping Marvel from casting the film's main villain. The Hollywood Reporter tells us that Hugo Weaving will play the Captain America villain Red Skull, who, in the comics, was the superhero's arch-nemesis and right-hand man to Hitler during World War II. The story goes that both remained in suspended animation following a battle and were revived in modern times to do battle once again. Weaving, of course, has already played one classic villain – that of Agent Smith in the Matrix trilogy. Though he turned good for the Lord of the Rings franchise (man, Weaving is a franchise machine!), he's always been great as a villain. This is definitely inspired casting, and I can't wait to see Weaving back in a...
The Five: Hottest Films Playing SXSW 2010
What’s that? Another film festival? No, actually, SXSW (or South By Southwest) is not just another film festival – it’s actually one of the hippest, liveliest festivals you can attend all year. Based in Austin, Texas, SXSW includes three festivals in one: an interactive festival, a film festival and a music festival -- and as far as the film festival goes, there’s always a slew of really hot new buzzed-about films that are either hitting theaters real soon, or haven’t even been discovered yet. Which titles should you be interested in keeping an eye out for? Here are five of my most anticipated … Kick-Ass What’s It About: The opening night film of the festival, Kick-Ass is based on the graphic novel about an ordinary...
Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning Rock Out This Music Video
Before you get to watch Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning star opposite one another in The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, you’ll get to see them rock out hardcore in The Runaways, a biopic about that legendary all-female band from the ‘70s who tore up the rock scene doing the kind of illegal things you wouldn’t exactly want to write home about. Kristen Stewart stars as iconic rocker Joan Jett, while Dakota Fanning plays Cherrie Currie, and according to early reviews, not only do these two share a pretty intimate on-screen kiss, but the film also promises lots of hard drugs, loud rock and enough obscenities to make you forget Stewart is the same girl who also plays the sweet, innocent Bella Swan in those Twilight movies. As part of the marketing for the film, MTV...
‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse’ Trailer Has Arrived!
There is a god … and he’s a Twi-hard. The teaser trailer fans have been waiting months for has finally arrived online (it’ll also screen before prints of Remember Me this weekend), and, well, our hearts have officially stopped beating. Summit has released a minute and a half of pure, unfiltered, angsty teen relationship drama, with Bella (Kristen Stewart) trying to decide whether she wants to become a vampire in order to be with Edward (Robert Pattinson), while Jacob (Taylor Lautner) tries everything under the sun (including going topless in more than one scene) to get Bella to be with him instead. Not only do they tease a tasty confrontation between Jacob and Edward, but there seems to be an intensity that keeps building in this trailer, especially when...
