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Get Ready for The River with a Preview

Damon Houx — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:27:01 +0000

ABC’s The River – which looks like an attempt to recapture the magic of Lost – premieres tonight, February 7. Though less a puzzle box (ala J.J. Abrams) and more of a jump scare-centric piece, Paranormal Activity‘s Oren Peli is the big name on the project as its creator. The show follows a family looking for their famous explorer father, and ends up on the Amazon looking for his lost vessel. Check out the preview featurette…

It looks like ABC spent some money on this one. Though it stars working actors with Bruce Greenwood the most notable – though I like Joe Anderson and thought he gave a good supporting performance in The Crazies – they shot it in Hawaii, and there’s been a lot of ads. As a show that seems to hinge on a concept, they want eyes on this tonight.

ABC should see a good showing for the pilot, but they’re going to have to keep people’s attention, and hopefully they’ve got a good hook. What they want is for this to be a water cooler show, something that people talk about (or to use the more modern parlance – twitter about) right out of the gate. IMDb lists seven episodes shot, so this is likely expensive enough that if it doesn’t work they’ll pull the plug quickly. Network television is going through one of its roughest patches as cable and streaming video have fundamentally changed how people watch TV, so they’ve got a reason to be nervous. We’ll see if the hits or misses shortly.

Bring back Community!

Harrison Ford Not Up For Blade Runner Sequel

Damon Houx — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:04:24 +0000

Though Harrison Ford may have made peace with he original Blade Runner, Alcon Entertainment (who’s producing the sequel) has made it clear that he’s not in talks to star in Ridley Scott‘s follow up and they have no interest in using his character. Word hit yesterday that Ford might be up for a role, but Deadline Hollywood contacted the producers who said no such thing would happen.

When Blade Runner came out in 1982, it was Harrison Ford’s first high-profile bomb. Up until that point he had appeared in three of the most successful films of all time (Star Wars, The Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark), and Blade Runner was considered a huge misstep. He followed it with Star Wars and Indy sequels, and then appeared in Witness.

Ford might have mellowed on the film since then (at least he appeared in the supplements of the massive five-disc Blade Runner DVD and Blu-ray), but this rumor always seemed unlikely. Of course with a film like this – which is in pre-production – there’s always going to be interesting rumors and news about the project. Likely the fate of the project will rest on the success or failure of Scott’s Prometheus, which comes out this summer.

What Harrison Ford project would you most like to see a sequel to?

Robert Rodriguez To Make ‘Machete Kills’ For Some Reason, Followed By ‘Machete 3′

traviswoods — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 18:27:55 +0000

Despite the fact that every year he announces about 477 planned reboots, remakes, sequels, and prequels that he never actually ends up making, Robert Rodriguez appears to actually be in talks and development to make a sequel to 2010 action film/ Grindhouse spinoff, Machete. The film will be called—wait for it—Machete Kills.

According to Rodriguez, “the fan response to the Machete character has been fanatical since his first appearance… Machete is truly a super hero and Machete Kills will be bigger and more ambitious than the first time.” So this is why we still haven’t seen a Sin City sequel?

Machete star Danny Trejo is apparently already in talks to return to the Machete “franchise,” while production is set to start in April. The sequel will find Machete being recruited by the United States government to lead a battle in the heart of Mexico to take out the head of a drug cartel “an eccentric billionaire arms dealer who has hatched a plan to spread war across the planet with a weapon in space.” Yes, it appears that part of the film may take place in space. Ok, Rodriquez, you win—I can’t stay mad with news like that. Also, Rodriquez has stated that this will the second entry in what is shaping up to be a Machete trilogy. Yay?

What do you think of the Machete news?

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

The Official Trailer For ‘The Amazing Spider-Man’ Has Been Released

traviswoods — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:46:30 +0000

As we noted on Monday, we were able to attend a sneak preview of new Amazing Spider-Man footage, along with the official trailer… and now, the trailer has been released for everyone to see. Curious as to what The Lizard looks like? Do the shots of Spidey web-slinging across New York look less CGI-y than the Sam Raimi films? Can Andrew Garfield pull off playing a high school student? Check out the trailer after the jump for answers.

While this trailer seemed much more epic on the big screen and in 3-D, it’s still not bad, even in a compressed YouTube fashion:

So what did you think? Yes, it’s retelling the origin story of Spider-Man and yes, it features another scientist gone mad after an experiment goes awry, but in all, we think the trailer looks great. In it, we get a look at the dynamic between Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, and her dad (and it’s complicated), we see the cocky, sarcastic humor of Parker as Spider-Man, and we catch glimpses of the creature known as The Lizard. More importantly, something that was on ever more of a display at Monday’s screening can be witnessed—while this may be a special effects-laden comic book film, it’s one that seems deeply focused on characters. Unlike the last few Marvel films, The Amazing Spider-Man seems less interested in franchise building, or setting up other films, and is more about telling a new and exciting story about characters that fans cherish.

Is it July 3 yet?

What did you think of the trailer?

Gossip Girl: Season 5 Episode 14: The Backup Dan – TV Review

Laura Aguirre — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:30:06 +0000

Last night’s “Gossip Girl” picked up right where it left off, with a runaway bride dressed in Vera Wang. As we found out in last week’s episode, Blair’s emergency call was Dan, who drove her away from her horrible royal nightmare. More than anything, ‘The Backup Dan’ felt like a continuation to the wedding episode. Everyone’s still dressed in the same gowns and tuxes, and some are still celebrating the holy union (not knowing that a bride is on the loose). When the word is finally out that Blair is on the run, everyone is desperately searching for her – Serena, Chuck, Nate, the horrible Grimaldis – but she’s got a plan, a backup plan. Let’s go over the ups and downs of ‘The Backup Dan’.

The Players:

Director: David Warren
Writer: Matt Whitney
Cast: Blake Lively, Leighton Meester, Penn Badgley, Chace Crawford, Ed Westwick

Episode Title: “The Backup Dan”

Blair struggles with a decision that could hurt those she loves the most; Serena tries to protect someone important to her; Georgina (Michelle Trachtenberg) pursues a scandal.

The Good:

JFK (SPOILERS!): After finding out Louie’s real intentions, Blair and Dan headed straight to the airport. Blair’s plan is to book a quick flight to the Dominican Republic where she’ll be able to get a divorce (apparently Elizabeth Taylor did this) without the groom’s consent. The scenes at the airport are all about Dan and Blair. They are like fugitives, trying to escape the evil monarchs. One of the best moments is when Blair takes Dan’s credit card and purchases some casual jeans and an ‘I Love NY’ T-shirt (she’s been running around in her wedding dress). A T-Shirt? Blair? Is this a hint at Dair?
A Sincere Apology (SPOILERS!): Towards the end of the episode, Dan gets fed up with Blair’s bossy behavior and leaves her with her ‘true friends’ (Serena and Chuck). Later, Blair finds Dan and makes a genuine apology, telling Dan that she does care about him.
New Mystery: There’s a new mystery of who sent the video blast that ruined Blair’s wedding? There are several hints that point to Dan, but we won’t get ahead of ourselves.
Best Line: Serena to Chuck, “Maybe I’ve seen The Hangover too many times.”

The So-So:

Is Georgina Gossip Girl? (SPOILERS!): So Georgina isn’t the original Gossip Girl. Apparently, GG abandoned the site after Blair’s accident, and G took over. Although it makes a lot more sense that G isn’t Gossip Girl, we can’t help but wonder, what are her true intentions? And, who is the real GG?

The Bad:

The Dowry (SPOILERS!): In the end, after all the running and searching, Blair returns to Louie. What? Yes. Why? Because if she doesn’t, The Waldorfs will have to pay a huge dowry. Wait, what? It doesn’t make any sense! This is the 21st Century. Who pays a dowry? This is completely unbelievable. It seems like the writers are messing with us to see how much we’ll be able to let slide. But this new ‘plot twist’ is hurting one of the most important relationships on “GG.”
Chuck and Blair (SPOILERS!): How much humiliation can one guy take? Once again, Blair has rejected Chuck. Their relationship is losing its heat, its chemistry. At this point, it just seems like Blair is making up excuses not be with Chuck. We’re starting to think she doesn’t actually love him.

Overall:

It breaks our heart to see Chuck humiliated so many times. His life is on hold because Blair can’t make up her mind. But as their relationship is losing its heat, another is gaining it – Dair. After last night’s scene between Dan and Blair, it seems like these two may give it a shot. As for some of the other characters, well, Serena’s role in the series is just fading away. She’s such a secondary character at this point, which is unfortunate because she use to be quite interesting. Overall, ‘The Backup Dan’ didn’t really work. There should have been a plan C.

Rating: 5/10

“Gossip Girl” airs Monday nights at 8 p.m. on The CW.

Gallery:

What did you think of last night’s episode?

VOTD: ‘Chronicle’ Writer Max Landis Teams With Elijah Wood And More For ‘Death And Return Of Superman’ (NSFW)

traviswoods — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 01:19:18 +0000

Remember back in 1992, when DC Comics, desperate to somehow make Superman relevant again, decided, heck, the only way to make a flying alien who wears red underwear on top of his blue leotard and sports a cape interesting was to, quite simply, kill him? Well, if you don’t, you’re lucky. But if you do, you’ll recall it was one of the more bizarre, outlandish, and ultimately, ridiculous storylines in DC’s history. Turns out that Chronicle writer Max Landis thinks so, too, and decided to make a video about it.

Starring Elden Henson, Elijah Wood, Mandy Moore, Morgan Krantz “and many more,” The Death and Return of Superman is a short film that explores the outright inanity of the dead Superman storyline, and the silly characters, plot twists, and economic motivations fueled the story (as well as the outright goofiness of the four “resurrected” Supermen—or is it Supermans?—that followed in his death).

Anyway, if you happen to be a comic book fan or pop culture nerd like the rest of this, the Death and Return of Superman video is good of a clever, knowing laugh as it pokes fun at one of the more dubious pop culture moments of the 1990s.

What do you think of the video?

First Look: 10 Minutes Of New ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ Footage Reviewed!

traviswoods — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 22:57:36 +0000

Warning! Some spoilers!!

OK, Spider-Man fans, have I got some news for you: after having just left a screening of the new Amazing Spider-Man trailer (check it out) as well as about 10 minutes of new footage, I can say this: any doubts or fears about this reboot not living up to the potential, heart and scope of the first two Sam Raimi Spidey-ficks can now be dispelled. Amazing, indeed.

Given, the special screening (held worldwide in various theaters, from here in L.A. to New York, London, Rio, Tokyo and more) wasn’t of the whole film, and so a complete and total opinion cannot yet be formed. That said, we were given several extended glimpses into the lives of Peter Parker, Gwen Stacy, Dr. Connors/Lizard, and more, and despite all the flashy special effects (some of which were not completed, some of which were breathtaking), what really caught hold were the performances and moments between characters. The upcoming film seems to be—again, judging by the footage seen today—not just a Marvel cash-in on a popular name brand, but also a genuine attempt to translate the Spider-Man franchise into a more “realistic” and human series of films than the previous three.

Complaints? If there were any, it was that once again we seem to be watching Spider-Man fighting a good scientist whose experiments have driven him mad. Beyond that, nada. Spoilers? Well, it seems that Peter Parker’s father, and possibly his untimely death, are tied into the early history of Doc Connors; Gwen Stacy’s dead unmasks Spider-Man in front of an armed police squad in the middle of a busy city street; and we get to see Pete construct his web-slingers, as featured in the comics.

In all, it seemed as if director Mark Webb has attempted to wed the epic and dramatic heft of the wonderfully grandiose and operatic first two Spider-Man films with gritty realism of a certain Christopher Nolan franchise that has now become the yardstick for “realistic” comic book films, making The Amazing Spider-Man shoot up from a film I was mildly curious about and into a movie I cannot wait to see.

PS: The Lizard in 3-D? Gotta admit, it was the coolest thing I’ve seen on the big screen in quite awhile.

What do you think of the Spider-Man news?

RIP: Ben Gazzara (1930 – 2012)

Damon Houx — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:02:34 +0000

For many, Ben Gazzara (who passed away on February 3) will always be Jackie Treehorn, the porn king in Joel and Ethan Coen‘s The Big Lebowski. And though after that he worked with such directors as Spike Lee and Lars Von Trier, the cult following of Lebowski is enough that many thought of that first when Gazzara passed away. Of course, the main reason why he worked with those people is because of his collaborations with John Cassavetes.

Gazzara hit Hollywood in the 1950′s. He worked in television, with the occasional meaty big screen role (most notably in Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of a Murder). It wasn’t until 1970 when he worked with Cassavetes and Peter Falk in Husbands and became a part of Cassavetes’s troupe of players that his status as a legend was cemented. Gazzara also appeared in The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, and Opening Night for John, and those three films are some of his finest work.

It’s hard to gauge how well the mainstream knows Cassavetes’s work. Though he’s been canonized by The Criterion Collection, he seems better known by filmmakers than the general population. But John’s influence over filmmaking is evergreen, and even filmmakers who might not have seen his films may be influenced by those who had (Martin Scorsese has always talked about how he was a huge influence on Mean Streets). In terms of independent cinema, Cassavetes is Prometheus. He self-financed a number of his films, and focused on human drama in a bracing and real way.

But though his work with Cassavetes turned him into a legend, Gazzara spent his entire career as a working actor, doing TV movies and such. Though Peter Bogdanovich cast him in the lead of 1979′s Saint Jack, it took a while for the cinematic world to catch up. That is to say, it’s unlikely that Rowdy Herrington cast Gazzara in 1989′s Road House because of Cassavetes, but Ben was game for that film as well. Somewhere around the time of Lebowski, he started appearing in more notable movies, from John Turturro’s Illuminata to Todd Solonz’s Happiness. The filmmakers who loved Cassavetes wanted to pay tribute, and you can see him (and Seymour Cassell) working in roles that treat them with great fealty. It was earned.

What’s your favorite Ben Gazzara role?

Could Harrison Ford be in the Blade Runner Sequel?

Damon Houx — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 17:11:24 +0000

It’s worth taking this with a grain of salt, but Twitchfilm is reporting that Harrison Ford may take a role in Ridley Scott‘s Blade Runner spin-off. Though they don’t have direct quotes – and the story may be updated later in the day – it suggests a direct sequel, which has not been what anyone’s said in the past. In fact, Scott said it would have none of the original cast members. If Ford does jump on board, surely Sean Young will see if there’s a role for her too.

This then brings up the question that Scott made unsubtle in his director’s cuts of the first film: is Harrison Ford’s character Deckard a replicant? Whereas in the theatrical cut there were some ambiguous clues, the latter versions leave less to interpretation and Scott has said point blank that he is a “skin job.” If Ford is involved, will they go the Tron Legacy route and de-age him? Or will he play Deckard at all?

But adding Ford has to be attractive – it would give the new film another level of anticipation, though it’s worth remembering that Blade Runner bombed when released in 1982. Much like Tron. And much like John Carpenter’s The Thing, which also inspired a spin-off. And none of their reboots/sequels/etc. did particularly well at the box office. But maybe this will be different…

Do you think Deckard is a replicant?

Weekend Box Office: Chronicle and The Woman In Black Exceed Expectations

Laura Aguirre — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:22:32 +0000

Despite the Super Bowl, the box office enjoyed another successful weekend. Both Chronicle and The Woman In Black opened to more than $20 million each, far more than we predicted. 20th Century Fox’s Chronicle was expected to make $12.5 million, but instead the superhero flick shocked with $22 million, debuting at No. 1. Daniel Radcliffe‘s first major role in a film outside of the Harry Potter franchise, The Woman In Black, also got off to a good start and came in at No. 2 with an estimated $21 million. Last weekend’s winner The Grey dropped to third place and brought in $9.5 million. Drew Barrymore and John Krasinski‘s Big Miracle didn’t do as well as the other new releases, but still managed to exceed our expectations with $8.5 million. And finally, rounding off the top 5 was Underworld Awakening, which brought in an additional $5.6 million.

Check out the numbers…

Chronicle (2012) | NEW | Fox | Weekend Gross $22,000,000 | Average Per Theater $7,568 | Total Gross $22,000,000 | Film’s Budget – $12 | Week 1
The Woman in Black | NEW | CBS | Weekend Gross $21,000,000 | Average Per Theater $7,356 | Total Gross $21,000,000 | Film’s Budget – N/A | Week 1
The Grey | Last Week #1 | Open Road Films | Weekend Gross $9,500,000 | Average Per Theater $2,961 | Total Gross $34,756,000 | Film’s Budget – $25 | Week 2
Big Miracle | NEW | Universal | Weekend Gross $8,500,000 | Average Per Theater $3,992 | Total Gross $8,500,000 | Film’s Budget – $40 | Week 1
Underworld Awakening | Last Week #2 | Screen Gems | Weekend Gross $5,600,000 | Average Per Theater $2,124 | Total Gross $54,353,000 | Film’s Budget – $70 | Week 3
One For the Money | Last Week #3 | Lions Gate Films | Weekend Gross $5,250,000 | Average Per Theater $1,918 | Total Gross $19,668,000 | Film’s Budget – $40 | Week 2
Red Tails | Last Week #4 | Fox | Weekend Gross $5,000,000 | Average Per Theater $2,130 | Total Gross $41,323,000 | Film’s Budget – $58 | Week 3
The Descendants | Last Week #8 | Fox Searchlight | Weekend Gross $4,600,000 | Average Per Theater $2,257 | Total Gross $65,523,000 | Film’s Budget – N/A | Week 12
Man on a Ledge | Last Week #5 | Summit Entertainment | Weekend Gross $4,500,000 | Average Per Theater $1,501 | Total Gross $14,700,000 | Film’s Budget – $42 | Week 2
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close | Last Week #6 | WB | Weekend Gross $3,925,000| Average Per Theater $1,567 | Total Gross $26,793,000 | Film’s Budget – N/A | Week 7

The Woman In Black‘s success answered one important question – it’s likely that many had asked themselves if Dan Rad would be a bankable actor outside the Harry Potter franchise, and it seems so. Not only is the film a surprise financial hit, but it’s also received positive reviews. Scar or not, Radcliffe’s still got it.

What did you watch this first weekend of 2012?

Super Bowl Commercials Debut New Trailers For ‘The Avengers,’ ‘G.I. Joe: Retaliation,’ And ‘Act Of Valor’

traviswoods — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 05:08:41 +0000

Well, the annual orgy of advertising every possible combination of beer, soda, potato chip, automobile, credit system and film occurred on Sunday night, despite being repeatedly interrupted by some kind of organized game in which something called “The Giants” apparently did something awesome and a strange, well-muscled and blonde corpse danced and lip-synched in what was obviously some kind of pagan or voodoo ritual. And, in the middle of that ruckus, a few new movie trailers shook loose.

First up, a new clip for The Avengers. This trailer features a little more Hulk than we’ve seen before, as well as Chris Evans looking impossibly goofy in that ridiculous Captain American outfit:

Next up, we’ve got a G.I. Joe sequel trailer, in which loud things happen with loud explosions and loud music happening in the background. It’s loud. And things happen. That’s what I got out of this one. Oh, and Bruce Willis gets all Bruce Willis-y and does that dead eyed Bruce Willis smirk thing. Then some loud things happen again:

Next up, we have a film about the Navy Seals, called Act of Valor:

A new trailer for John Carter also popped up, but we previewed that for you on Friday.

So, what did you think of the Super Bowl ads this year?

Nikita: Season 2 Episode 13: Clean Sweep – TV Review

Krystal Clark — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 07:23:04 +0000

“Kill them all!” That’s one of the deadly orders given in this week’s episode of “Nikita.” The gang of assassins have their hands full when Percy breaks free and tries to take down Oversight. There’s nothing more dangerous than a revenge-seeking psycho, with Guardians at his disposal.

Check out our review…

The Players

Director: Brad Turner
Writer: Kalinda Vazquez
Cast: Maggie Q, Shane West, Lyndsy Fonseca Aaron Stanford, Melinda Clarke, Xander Berkeley, Devon Sawa

Episode Title: “Clean Sweep”

Nikita, Michael and Sean attempt to rescue the captured members of Oversight. Percy and Amanda strike a deal that finally grants him freedom. Meanwhile, Alex returns to Division and tries to disable “Operation Clean Sweep.”

The Good:

Percy Has a Way with Words. Percy is the king of manipulation. When confronted by Nikita’s gang, he hit all the hot button topics. He brought up Michael’s part in the death of Nikita’s fiance, then taunted him with a possible Nikita-Owen fling, and tapped into Sean’s mommy issues. He went for the jugular in one fell swoop.
Nikita joins Oversight: After realizing she’s lost control of Amanda, Senator Pierce asks Nikita to help her dismantle Division. At first, Nikita’s against it but Michael convinces her that it’s the safest, smartest way to do it. We never thought we’d see the day.
Amanda’s Gone Rogue: Speaking of Amanda, we can never read her! She’s worse than Percy. Her back-up-back-up plans have back-up plans. We genuinely thought she cared about the innocent Division employees whose brains would turn to mush if the nerve gas was released. But we should have known better. She was prepared to slip on a gas mask and watch them all die. Her fake concern knows no bounds.
Percy’s on the Move: Where’s Percy going? Over the past two seasons he’s been a stationary character. This time, the tables have turned and now he’s on the run. It will be interesting to see him in a different setting that has him adapting to his surrounding. Nikita does it all the time.

The Bad:

Anyone Else Confused?: There are a lot of story lines going on right now and we’re trying to keep up. Nikita is still taking down Division, but with the help of Oversight. Division is in cahoots with Gogal, who’re still working for Semak, whom Alex is trying to kill. Oh, and did we forget to mention that Percy is still out there? Or that Ryan is still imprisoned? And where the heck is Owen when we really need him?!

Overall:

“Clean Sweep” was a decent episode. The first half was rather slow, but the final 30 minutes made up for it. One of the things we love about “Nikita” is its hand-to-hand combat scenes but this week, they were scarce. We mostly saw gun-play and lots of threatening, which is pretty generic.

Rating: 7.5/10

“Nikita” airs Fridays at 8 p.m. on The CW

What did you think of this week’s episode of “Nikita?”

ScreenCrave.com

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Gossip Girl: Season 5 Episode 14: The Backup Dan – TV Review

The Players:

Episode Title: “The Backup Dan”

The Good:

The So-So:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 5/10

Gallery:

What did you think of last night’s episode?

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The Players

Episode Title: “Clean Sweep”

The Good:

The Bad:

Overall:

Rating: 7.5/10

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