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Showing posts from October, 2012

Disney Buys LucasFilm, New Star Wars Every 2-3 Years

Well, I picked a terrible week to move. Disney made major news today in announcing the purchase of LucasArts and, more shocking, that Star Wars  will have new features released every two to three years. Newly hired Kathleen Kennedy will act as executive producer on Episode VII and George Lucas will be creative consultant. George Lucas released a statement shortly thereafter today: For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been to see  Star Wars  passed from one generation to the next. It’s now time for me to pass  Star Wars  on to a new generation of filmmakers. I’ve always believed that  Star Wars  could live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up the transition during my lifetime. I’m confident that with Lucasfilm under the leadership of  Kathleen Kennedy , and having a new home within the Disney organization,  Star Wars  will certainly live on and flourish for many generations to come. Disney’s reach and experience give Lucasfilm the opportunity to bla

'Wolverine' Poster Has Claws

Nice artwork. I just hope that The Wolverine  proves to be a better film than Origins  was. With James Mangold ( Walk the Line , 3:10 to Yuma ) in charge, I'm expecting good things.

Iron Man 3 Trailer Premieres

Looks like stuff just got real for the eccentric billionaire known as Iron Man. The glamour of his superhero alter-ego is gone and the enemies he faces have far more reach than a homeless Russian man. No one is safe: Pepper, Rhodey, or Tony himself. Iron Man 3 opens in 3D on May 3, 2013.

Review: Blast from the Past (Argo)

The economy is slow, the President is embattled, and a crisis in the Middle East has sparked a panic. The year? 1979. Nothing ever really changes does it? Hostages are held captive in the Embassy, elsewhere, six workers sit in a the house of a Canadian Ambassador. The CIA is bereft of ideas on how to get them out of the country. Exit strategy maestro Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) has been called in to assess the situation. The extraction options suggested thus far have been a teaching program, vegetable growers and bicycling to Iraq. Understandably, Tony is not pleased. The Company asks a lot of its faculty and Tony has felt the brunt. He rarely sees his wife and son, at most he gets a phone call every few days a week. He saves lives every day and yet can say nothing. During one of his few phone calls with his son, an idea blossoms: a fake b-movie production. First things first, they'll need a crew to make their fake film. John Chambers (John Goodman) is another ass

Profile Posters for 'Django Unchained'

Just in case you forgot, Django Unchained is coming out this Christmas and Jamie Foxx and Leonardo DiCaprio are starring in it. Also, slavery, rich people, and guns.

Marvel Announces New Slate of Films

IRON MAN 3   –  now available in 3D – 5/3/13 THOR: THE DARK WORLD   –  now available in 3D – 11/8/13 CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER  due on 4/4/14 GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY  date is unchanged  8/1/14 ANT-MAN is scheduled for 11/6/15 With The Avengers 2 release date listed in summer of 2015 it shall be seen whether or not Ant-man makes an appearance in the film prior to his solo-shot. Given that audiences are unfamiliar with the character, he may join the team in their adventures (battling Thanos?) similarly to how Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson were introduced in Thor and Iron Man 2 . Still no standalone Hulk feature though.  Either way, I'll be there with bells on for Whedon's second effort.

Second 'Django' Trailer Is Heartening

This should quite easily wash the taste of Oscar-fare out of your mouth following a heavy November and December. I don't recommend inviting your mom to see this on Christmas, mind you, no matter how much she likes that handsome, young man from Titanic .

'Hitchcock' Trailer Jammed with Prestige

For all of the questions of whether or not Anthony Hopkins or Scarlett Johnannson would look like Hitch and Janet Leigh, the newly released trailer seems to quell those complaints. Fox Searchlight may have a winner on their hands come awards season.

More Bad News for 'Community'

Fans of Community will be disappointed to hear that the show's debut on October 19th has been delayed until further notice. No word yet on whether this is because NBC is considering bringing Community  back to Thursday's comedy night, but here's hoping. And because I can't help it, it's worth mentioning that the fellow in the very sparkly dress is an Oscar winner (Adapted screenplay for The Descendants ). Take that, Peter O'Toole! Courtesy: EW.com

Review: Rage Against the Time Machine (Looper)

Film noir has not been a traditionally successful genre in the last twenty years. Then along came Rian Johnson and changed all that. He took the leads who provide the context for the audience, the women who lead them to their fall, and hard times where morally ambivalent men succeed and reformatted it for the 21st century. The man is Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt), the year is 2044 and the occupation is looping. Joe is a cocky young man and he has little time for anything other than making money and planning on getting out of the country. His profession is explained in few words and without dumbing it down. Loopers are not forward-thinking people, Joe explains. They are contracted to kill people who don't yet exist in this time and collect the precious metals that come with the body. They are rewarded quite handsomely for this task, but it comes with strings: eventually they have to kill themselves. Killing your future self usually goes off without a hitch. Blunderbuss in

Adele Performs "Skyfall"

The last song for Bond by Jack White and Alicia Keys was criticized for how it fit the 22nd film (oddly enough "Two Against One" would have fit Quantum of Solace  much more). Adele's selection, without doubt, will not be questioned given her classic sound. Give it a watch. Don't get sold out! Buy advance tickets to Skyfall .

Review: Welcome Home (The Oranges)

The Wallings (Hugh Laurie and Catherine Keener) and Ostroffs (Oliver Platt and Allison Janney) have been friends for years. They share dinners, holidays, and traditions. The only problem for these two benevolent clans is that they're about to share something else: infidelity. The eldest daughter and son of the Ostroffs and Wallings are coming back home. Nina (Leighton Meester), fresh off of a break-up and Toby are both returning after being on their own for five years. Most stories would dictate that Nina and Toby get together and turn the friendly bond between families into a marital one. Instead, Nina engages in an affair with David (Hugh Laurie), upheaving everything. Christmas, never the time of festiveness that it promises, is now a battleground between good pals David and Terry (Oliver Platt). Carol Ostroff (Allison Janney) and Paige Walling (Catherine Keener) are left to take sides as well as Vanessa, the daughter no one wants to deal with. The holidays will not pr

The Most Distinctive Movie Voices

Characters that sound unique are rarely found in cinemas. Globalization has made most voices recognizable to moviegoers all over the world. Very few characters make one turn their head and go "huh?", so one when such characters present themselves, we have to take notice. Bane - Tom Hardy Of the many discussed items of The Dark Knight Rises this summer, Tom Hardy's voice for the masked villain was easily the most popular. What was it? Scottish? Indian? Anton Chiguhr - Javier Bardem Another villain with a voice hard to detect. While Bardem slipped between accents in scenes, no one was really wondering anything other than "what is he going to do with that cattle prod?" Batman - Christian Bale Bale's growl that he used as Caped Crusader has been described as many things: a mix between Clint Eastwood and a Gorilla, a severe case of bronchitis, and induced by childhood nightmares. All I know is, it is the best Batman voice done. Vito Corleone - Ma

"Clothed in Immense Power"

Daniel Day-Lewis' delivery of that last line is chilling. So can we please stop talking about his voice?

New 'Killing' Poster Is Work of Art

Surely, there are those of you who are more than tired of seeing posters line the top seven posts of NMPF on a regular basis, but this one simply couldn't be ignored. Contrast this with the one-sheet released for Parker  and you will know exactly what I'm talking about. Killing Them Softly  comes out November 30th

'Lone Ranger' Trailer