Last year was an incredible year for movies and it’s shown by the nine films nominated for Best Picture at The Oscars. Every single one of them deserves the nomination and it’ll be a fun watch to see who gets the big prize. Right now lots of talk for Argo and Lincoln are being passed around as the top films. If you didn’t get a chance to see any of these amazing films, now is your chance!
Cinemark will be hosting an Oscars Marathon later this month and will show all nine films nominated for Best Picture.
On February 16th, you can see the first five:
12:00 noon – Beasts of the Southern Wild
1:55 PM – Amour
4:15 PM – Life of PI
6:35 PM – Les Miserables
9:30 PM – Lincoln
On February 23rd, will be the last four:
1:00 PM – Argo
3:20 PM – Silver Linings Playbook
5:30 PM – Zero Dark Thirty
8:20 PM – Django Unchained
I recommend that you see all of these and here is a great chance to do it. We will be doing our Oscar Reviews next week as well as a few other surprises. Stay tuned and take advantage of this great opportunity.
We recently posted an extended featurette video for Monsters University where director Dan Scanlon basically gave us the full rundown on the story. Well, now we have a better look at the story, as Pixar recently debuted the trailer for this prequel to 2001’s Monsters, Inc.
I got to say, this looks better than I originally anticipated. The crazy creature designs are back and it appears the chemistry between main characters Mike and Sulley (voiced by Billy Crystal and John Goodman, respectively) hasn’t skipped a beat. I’m really looking forward to this when it comes out on June 21.
Check out the trailer below and tell us what you think.
It was recently announced that Lucasfilm/Disney would be making some standalone Star Wars films focusing on specific characters, with the first one reportedly slated to feature Yoda. Well, there’s some more good news on that front: Frank Oz, the voice of the little green Jedi Master, is ready to return.
In a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times, Oz, whose been associated with the character for more than 30 years, said he would gladly return. “He’s in my heart,” Oz said. “I know Yoda very deeply.”
Oz, who also puppeteered Yoda in three of the five Star Wars films, said the future of Yoda is likely in CGI, just like he was in the final two prequel movies. “I think it depends on the story, but I think at this point you can’t go back to the puppet,” Oz said. “The reason George (Lucas) did the CGI, which I supported, was that he wanted to tell a story that would have been hampered by the physical limitations of the puppet.”
Director: Seth Gordon Writers: Craig Mazin and Jerry Eeten Stars: Jason Bateman, Melissa McCarthy, John Cho
Synopsis: Mild-mannered businessman Sandy Patterson travels from Denver to Miami to confront the deceptively harmless-looking woman who has been living it up after stealing Sandy’s identity.
[/info]
DIRECTION
I am not a big fan of Seth Gordon’s movies, except for Horrible Bosses, but this one is no exception. Identity Thief is very simple; what you see is what you get. The trailer mostly gives away all of the funny parts giving this movie a marketing fail. Outside of Bateman, McCarthy, and Cho, Gordon doesn’t get great performances out of his actors. There are some shots in this movie that are absolutely not necessary in a film like this. It’s beyond cheesy and there is no chemistry in this movie at all. It takes some weird and crazy turns that is distracting, but in some cases is unpredictable. It gets a little wild at times, but the ending does save this movie a little bit. The ending takes a great sentimental turn that brings a strong finish to an otherwise mediocre movie.
Grade: C-
[divider]
SCRIPT
The script of this movie is terrible. The idea and the concept behind it is good, but it was poorly executed. The dialogue is the worst part of it all and leaves you feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed for the writers and actors. McCarthy and Bateman’s chemistry together brings a little light to the script with their performances, but it’s the only saving grace. There are plot points in this film that are ridiculous, even for a comedy where exaggeration is a key element. The are story arcs that are never finished that make you wonder why they were even in the movie at all. There are characters introduced in this film that have no reason to be in it and it steals the spotlight away from Bateman and McCarthy a little bit when it’s not necessary. It’s unfortunate for Bateman and McCarthy as I do enjoy them as performers. The comedic elements to this movie were great in theory, but it dragged on and became dull. The ending to the script was great though and I’ll bump it up half a grade based on that alone.
Grade: D+
[divider]
PERFORMANCES
Bateman and McCarthy are great in this film. They have a wonderful chemistry and pull out great performances. Bateman has this dry humor as he is being revengeful and angry throughout the film that is hysterical. McCarthy, while its no Bridesmaids, is always funny. It’s a shame that the marketing for this film ruins most of her funny moments. John Cho is also great in this movie, but he’s hardly in the film, essentially making his role very minimal. I also loved Amanda Peet, who plays Bateman’s wife in the movie. She’s always been a favorite of mine since her role in Saving Silverman, which is one of my favorite comedies of all time. Outside of that, the performances are not that great. T.I. is terrible in this movie as well as most of the other small acting roles. I do love T.I. as a musician, just not as an actor in this film. This movie would of been 10x better off if it were just Bateman and McCarthy alone for 50 minutes of the movie just going at each other and letting their natural comedic self take over.
Grade: B
[divider]
SCORE
Christopher Lennertz score isn’t bad, but it doesn’t add tons of value to this movie. Most of the great musical elements to this movie are songs outside of the score. The score itself is okay, but because of its value it gets a low grade.
The British Academy of Film and Television Arts handed our their awards Sunday in London and Argo once again is taking home the big awards. Argo took home the awards for Best Film and Best Director in Ben Affleck. The major acting awards went to Daniel Day-Lewis (no surprise there) for Best Actor in Lincoln and to Emmanuelle Riva from Amour for Best Actress. Christoph Waltz from Django Unchained and Anne Hathaway from Les Misérables took home the prizes for the supporting roles. It’ll be interesting to see how these translate to The Oscars as they approach, but so far Argo seems to be getting all the big nods so far. Ben Affleck wasn’t even nominated by The Academy for Best Director and this is one I personally think they got wrong. That being said, will that hurt Argo’s chances for Best Picture? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Best Film Argo
Best Director Ben Affleck, Argo
Best Actor Daniel Day-Lewis, Lincoln
Best Actress Emmanuelle Riva, Amour
Best Supporting Actor Christoph Waltz, Django Unchained
Ever since J.J. Abrams announced he would be directing Star Wars: Episode VII, the question that he’d return to the star Trek series has been raised. And for good reason. Doing a new Star Wars trilogy is not going to be an easy task and to continue an absolutely phenomenal new Star Trek series at the same time, is one heck of a task. In an interview with Absolute Radio on the Red Carpet, Simon Pegg, who has been in both of Abrams’ Star Trek films, seemed pretty confident that Abrams will be back for Star Trek 3.
Star Wars: Episode VII is set to come out in 2015, so it seems unlikely that Abrams will be able to do anything with Star Trek: Into Darkness coming out this year. It’ll be interesting to see how it goes down and the geek wars that follows. Star Trek fans can’t be too upset as they’ll get two amazing films out of Abrams, and it’s a great opportunity that no one should turn down.
We’ll see what happens, but Simon Pegg seems confident. Take a look below.
Director: Tony Scott Writers: Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr. Stars: Tom Cruise, Kelly McGillis, Anthony Edwards, Val Kilmer
Synopsis: As students at the Navy’s elite fighter weapons school compete to be the best in the class, one daring young flyer learns a few things from a civilian instructor that are not taught in the classroom.
[/info]
DIRECTION
Tony Scott does an amazing job with this movie, especially for it’s time. The sounds and sights of F-14’s flying through the air is amazing and executed really well. The actions scenes are intense and give you a real look at how serious Top Gun is for US fighter pilots. Certain moments get a little cheesy for dramatic effect, but throughout most of the movie Scott takes us exactly where you want him too. The music he implemented was the best of it’s era, he got strong performances and given the subject material, he was able to draw in a large audience. There aren’t many movies on the subject of dogfighting or Top Gun, and for a film in the 80’s, the action was terrific. The shots inside the F-14’s were incredible, especially given the maneuvers they pulled. The camera movements used to capture the essence and intensity of the dogfights were incredible. The only major flaw I didn’t like was the use of the F5 Tiger II’s used as MiG 28’s, but I imagine finding real MiG 28’s would have been hard. However, real TOPGUN instructors flew those aircraft during filming which was a cool gesture.
Grade: A+
[divider]
SCRIPT
The script is the weakest part of the movie. The story itself isn’t bad, but the dialogue gets cheesy at times and even unrealistic. I understand that the 80’s was mostly filled with movies scripted like that, but it could of been better and made for an even more intense movie. The story between Maverick and Goose was incredible. The chemistry they had was unique and puts them near the top of any friendship captured in film. The story between Maverick and Charlie could have been much better and for the theme song known to be with that relationship, it didn’t take my breath away. That being said, it wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever seen and didn’t take away much of the movie for me. Overall though, the characters are very interesting and engaging, so while they could of been written slightly better, the performances made up for any script flaws and the story came through for the most part.
Grade: B+
[divider]
PERFORMANCES
Some of the smaller performances were a little weak, but the main characters did an amazing job. Tom Cruise and Anthony Edwards were incredible and had an amazing chemistry together and you’re really drawn into what they were doing on screen. The energy and passion Cruise brings here is second to none and you really get on board (literally) with what he’s doing as Maverick. Edwards was just as great as Maverick and was the perfect “Yang” to Cruise’s “Ying”. As a RIO, you have to always be aware and have your buddies back and Edwards brings all of that and more. Kelly McGillis also did a great job as Charlie, the civilian instructor. However I didn’t really believe in the relationship she has with Maverick. McGillis and Cruise often felt like an awkward high school phase, rather than a romantic relationship. Outside of that element though, McGillis is great and is an essential character to the story which she pulls off well. Val Kilmer did a great job of pushing Cruise’s character and being the main antagonist of the movie even though at times his character’s lines are poorly written. Kilmers does a great job though of bringing tension to the screen and often making Maverick seem like the bad guy. Some of the side characters could have been better, but given the era and direction, I thought it was terrific.
Grade: A
[divider]
SCORE
The score by Harold Faltermeyer is one of the most iconic of all times. The soundtrack to this today is one of the most popular film soundtracks all time, hitting #1 on the billboard charts back in its day. The soundtrack also included “Danger Zone” and “Take My Breath Away”, which ended up winning an Oscar. When “Danger Zone” was released, the soundtrack exploded in sales and became the top most selling soundtrack of the 80’s. They were great compliments to Faltermeyer’s score, which by itself is amazing! The “Top Gun Anthem” is still recognizable today and is a fun listen all on it’s own. This score/soundtrack is probably my favorite of all time behind Transformers. In every scene, the music hits you in the face and integrates with the action and performances like none other. Faltermeyer, Scott, and the music department deserve a medal for the incredible job they did.
UpcomingPixar recently released an extended featurette video for the prequel to 2001’s Monsters, Inc., Monsters University. Most of the footage isn’t new, but director Dan Scanlon does tell us the story we’re going to be seeing when the movie hits in June.
As a big fan of Monsters, Inc., Ican’t wait to see how that relationship between Mike and Sulley got started (and to get that great chemistry again between voice actors Billy Crystal and John Goodman). What do you guys think? Excited for some more monsters?
If you didn’t see J.A. Bayona’s film, The Impossible, last year you weren’t the only one. It didn’t do well at the box office but it became very popular later in the year after some award voters started giving it some attention. The movie is about a 2004 tsunami that hits the Indian Ocean and the aftermath that follows. It’s based off a true story and stars Ewan McGregor and Naomi Watts. Watts was even nominated for an Academy Award for her performance in the film.
The movie is set to come to Blu-ray, DVD and digital download this April. Watts’ character is María Belón in real life and she will be featured in the Blu-ray and DVD extras, which will be fun to hear her perspective as she went through the horrible tragedy.
Since InSession started at the beginning of 2013 (yay!), we didn’t review the film. However, this film is a great watch and Bayona has some great special effects in the film, especially when the tsunami hits land. I thought McGregor and Watts’ performances were great, but the plot was lackluster after the tsunami. The plot becomes a little dull and isn’t anything we haven’t seen before. That being said, you feel for the family since it was a true story and that reels you in. The breakout performance of Tom Holland, who plays the eldest son, was incredible to watch. He was terrific and definitely a positive to the film. Overall, I grade The Impossible a B.
The Impossible Blu-ray and DVD Extras
Audio commentary with director J.A. Bayona, writer Sergio G. Sánchez and producer Belén Atienza and María Belón
“Casting The Impossible” featurette
“Realizing The Impossible” featurette
Deleted Scenes
Stuart Freeborn, Makeup Artist for Star Wars & other films
Stuart Freeborn, the man behind the look and visual character of Yoda and Chewy, has passed at 98. Freeborn was the makeup supervisor for the original Star Wars trilogy Freeborn already had an established career in the film industry before Star Wars with credits in 2001: A Space Odyssey and The Omen (1976); however, he will be remembered most for his contributions to the Star Wars saga. Freeborn may be gone, but his mark in the world of film will not soon be forgotten. Miss you we will.
Last night Ewan McGregor appeared onJimmy Kimmel Live to promote his new movie coming out, Jack The Giant Killer, and ended up talking about Star Wars instead. Okay, maybe he did plug his movie, but I think more people were interested in the secondary questions McGregor had to answer. McGregor was asked his thoughts on the new Star Wars movies set to come out and this is what he had to say:
John McClane isn’t going into retirement just yet. Bruce Willis, who plays the iconic badass, was recently asked on BBC’s The One Show if there would be a sixth Die Hard movie and his response: “Yeah, Yeah … there will be.”
I for one am all for another Die Hard. I’ve enjoyed all of them (nothing will ever top the first one, which is an action masterpiece) and I’m looking for to A Good Day to Die Hard, which opens next week.
What do you guys think? Excited about more McClane? Any suggestions for what the next title should be?
Legendary’s new take on Godzilla just got some more good news as Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Olsen will be joining the cast. This news comes after Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile, The Walking Dead) was confirmed to rewriting the script. Gareth Edwards will direct for just the second time after making his debut with the fantastic indie Monsters.
I don’t know about you guys but I’m pretty excited for this one. This is a great group of talent and I look forward to seeing their take on this next May.
Yesterday, we posted about how Lucasfilms/Disney plans to make a Yoda-centeredStar Wars movie. Well it turns out that’s not the only thing that Disney has in the works. According to a report in EW, Disney plans to do a couple of spin-offs in addition to Yoda and the new trilogy. A young Han Solo saga is in the mix that will tell the story of Han’s origin. There will also be the adventure of the famous bounty hunter, Boba Fett, that will also be coming to the big screen.
According to the report, the Han Solo story would take place in the time period between Revenge of the Sith and the first Star Wars: A New Hope. It’s obvious that Harrison Ford will no longer be Solo, so who would take the part? At this time there is no current leads.
The Boba Fett film would take place between A New Hope and The Empire Strikes Back. It’s also been reported that it could take place Empire and Return of the Jedi. If you recall, that’s where Fett was last seen plunging into a sarlacc pit. Again, no leads for any actors have been named at this time.
So that leaves at least three spin-off movies as well as the new trilogy that’s coming. If you’re a Star Wars fan, you have to be going crazy right now! It’s Star Wars all over the place! Well we’d like to know your thoughts. Let us know in the comment section below!
Chris Pratt is about to take his career out of this galaxy. According to report in Entertainment Weekly, Pratt as been confirmed to play the lead in Marvel’s upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy. This movie is set to be one of the biggest pieces to Marvel’s Phase Two plan.
Pratt recently played a Navy Seal in Zero Dark Thirty but has mostly been known for his comedy side in Parks and Recreation. Pratt will play the character Star Lord, the half-human and half-alien leader. The 2nd phase of Marvel’s plan seems much more alien in nature in comparison to the 1st phase. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Disney recently released online Paperman, a six-and-a-half minute Oscar-nominated animated short that played in front of the Oscar-nominated Wreck-It Ralph. While Wreck-It Ralph is certainly worth a viewing, Paperman is a must-watch. So STOP what you’re doing and watch it!
So who would you want to see featured in the first Star Wars standalone movie? If your answer is Yoda prepare to get really excited (or possibly really disappointed since Star Wars hasn’t been good for the last 30 years). According to Ain’t It Cool, our favorite little green Jedi Master will be the first Star Wars character to get his own movie.
Lucasfilm/Disney also has plans to bring some of our other favorite Star Wars characters to the big screen in their own tales. As a huge Star Wars fan, I would love to see movies centered upon Han Solo and Boba Fett. What about you guys? Any love for a Jar Jar Binks’ standalone film?
In case you haven’t heard, G.I. Joe: Retaliation is finally set to come out this year and Paramount is on the PR offensive right now. Since marketing has essentially been in the works for more than a year, Paramount has some new marketing that, I have to say, is pretty awesome. Paramount has released a new viral marketing campaign that features the Special Forces Cobra unit that is now an elite arm of the US armed forces. The video is a recruitment ad and even has its own website that is very professional and military like. It’s an incredible video and will definitely hype up the movie as it’s drawing nearer. The video may even shock you a little bit and will draw a nice premise to movie. Check it out below and let us know what you think!
New Pacific Rim images have surfaced and they are amazing! There are also reader reviews that you can read at Ain’t It Cool News. This movie could be bad or it could be really awesome. I’m pretty excited for it and I’m keeping my hopes up for it! Either way, check out the cool pics below!
