Insidious: Chapter 2 is shaping up to be one creepy sequel.
Last week we got the first trailer. Today we got this poster. It’s safe to say that Insidious: Chapter 2 has raised the creepiness factor of 2011’s Insidious.
Insidious: Chapter 2 opens on September 13.
So I guess since basketball isn’t working out very well right now, Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard has decided to check out acting as a career, well voice acting anyway.
The NBA star has signed on for a voice role in Free Birds which an animated film co-starring Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, Amy Poehler, Dan Fogler, and many other. The movie will be directed by Jimmy Hayward. The story follows a pair of turkeys who travel back in time in an attempt to remove their species from the Thanksgiving menu. So where does Howard fit in? Well Howard will voice the role of Cold Turkey, a wild turkey the duo meet in the middle of their adventure.
This will not be Howard’s first appearance on screen as he appeared as himself in Just Wright back in 2010 and in “comedy” The Three Stooges.
Look for Free Birds in theaters on November 1.
Zack Snyder seems to be a hot commodity right now with Man of Steel coming out and his sequel to that getting of the ground already as well. While Snyder didn’t direct 300: Rise of an Empire, he does have a writing credit meaning he did have a hand on the script here and it may be better than originally thought. I loved Snyder’s 300, but it is a great stand alone movie so I didn’t really care much for this project. That being said, this trailer has interested me a little bit and is better than I would have thought. I’m still a bit skeptical but it may be better than we all originally thought. Anyway, check it out and let us know what you think!
I can imagine that playing Princess Diana is a challenging and stressful role given her popularity and how adored she was. Naomi Watts has the look to pull it off and is an actress that can be convincing. The trailer for Diana is pretty intentional about not showing her face for the first little bit to give you a sense of realizing who you’re watching. The latter half of the trailer I’m sure will be a little gut wrenching to her die hard fans. It doesn’t give anything away but you get a good sense of where it’s going. Check it out and let us know what you think.
Michael Bay has been busy over the last few weeks filming Transformers 4 and revealed to us what his latest Autobots will look like. Well today he’s given us another beauty (sort of) to look at. Check out the Sonic RS Rally Car that apparently is walking on two wheels.
Transformers 4 comes out next June.
It’s been reported that Ubisoft has recruited Michael Bay to develop the long lasting video game franchise, Ghost Recon, into a feature film for Warner Bros. The first Ghost Recon game was released in 2001, which was awesome, and it’s most recent entry, Future Soldier, was released last year. If you’re not familiar with Ghost Recon, it revolves around a top-secret group that is rarely dispatched but when they do, they wreak havoc and leave without a trace.
Ubisoft has been very meticulous in handling their video games going to the big screen. Before releasing any properties to film studios they landed Michael Fassbender in Assassin’s Creed and Tom Hardy for Splinter Cell making sure that they don’t fall victim to what is now stereotype to say “video game movies are bad.” Personally, I love the idea that they are taking this very serious and getting the right people on board.
Right now, Bay is on only as a producer but he may be open to direct after Transformers 4 is finished. Bay is a great action film director and this series is more about tactics and stealth which could be a struggle given the fact he is great at blowing things up. That being said, he has shot great scenes involving firefights with intense drama and action. If he’s able to mix those very well, we could get a great Ghost Recon film.
What do you guys think?
In case you didn’t know, Ubisoft has already made a Ghost Recon short film called Ghost Recon Alpha that was produced by Ridley Scott.
Paranoia has a great cast that includes Liam Hemsworth, Gary Oldman, Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfuss, Amber Heard, and Josh Holloway. The film centers around Hemsworth’s character who is from Brooklyn climbing the corporate ladder and is hired by Oldman’s character to spy for him which leads to all kinds of drama. Oldman’s rival, played for Ford is the one being spied on and when things get messy, these two guys look to have some great screen time. The film is directed by Robert Luketic, who directed 21 and Legally Blonde.
Paranoia comes to theaters August 16.
Ben Affleck, Justin Timberlake, Anthony Mackie and Gemma Arterton star in this film where offshore online gambling is apparently the thing to do. Brad Furman, who directed Lincoln Lawyer, is at the helm here. The film looks to have some serious drama to it and I’m not sure how I feel about Affleck being a bad guy. Take a look for yourself.
Runner, Runner comes to theaters September 27.
Oh, Peter Jackson. You made one of the best trilogies of all-time with The Lord of the Rings – and then you made The Hobbit.
And today we got the first trailer for the sequel to that stinkfest, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, and it doesn’t look much better. The hit-or-miss CGI and cheesiness of the first film all seem to be making a reappearance.
But one piece of good news: Legolas is in this and you get a glimpse of Smaug the dragon (voiced by one of the best actors working in Benedict Cumberbatch).
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug opens on December 13.
For whatever reason, The Purge is getting a sequel.
Actually, there is a reason a follow-up is happening: The Purge opened this weekend at the top spot of the box office with $34 million – over 10 times as much as the film’s budget.
So The Purge 2: Purge Harder (just kidding!) is happening, as Universal and producer Jason Blum are going to work.
We thought the Ethan Hawke-starring film was better than expected but missed out on a lot of opportunities exploring the idea of The Purge itself. I think this is something that could be addressed in a sequel as it’s an event that is very sprawling with many different elements and characters that could be visited and different routes that could be taken.
Man of Steel comes out this Thursday and the marketing for this film has been some of the best I’ve ever seen. The trailers haven’t revealed a ton plot wise but has shown that there will be lots of epic action. However, 2013 didn’t have the greatest of starts and we’ve been let down by some major films this year we thought were going to be big hits. Iron Man 3 and Pain & Gain were two films I was really looking forward to that didn’t live up to what I was hoping for by any means. Other sci-fi films such as Oblivion and After Earth also were let downs, although I did enjoy Oblivion for the most part. That being said, here are three reasons why Man of Steel will live up to the expectations and will most likely be the best action/sci-fi movie of the year.
1) A Coming of Age
This Superman film is going to be unlike any we’ve ever seen before which will rejuvenate this franchise while creating news fans in the process. This will be a story of Superman back on his home planet, what happens to him and his people and how he ends up on earth. We’re going to learn a lot more about where he comes and how that impacts who he is. His real father, played by Russell Crowe, looks to have a big impact on him and who he is to become. That being said, I haven’t seen it yet but I based off all the marketing we’ve seen that’s the sense I get. And who doesn’t love that? This will not just be all action folks, but we are more than likely to get a really great story. Speaking of that…
2) Christopher Nolan
Nolan produced this film and I tend to trust anything he puts his hands too. And Warner Bros. apparently does too as they gave up a lot to be a part of his new film, Interstellar. That beings said, whatever part Nolan played on this film is important and I’m sure was heavy in guiding Zack Snyder to create a wonderful story. I’ve never seen any film that Nolan had a hand in and left thinking, “That was terrible”. Warner Bros. has already moved on to making the sequel too, which is just another indicator that this film turned out great. I understand that Snyder directed this and it will be his shoulders on which this rises or falls, but Nolan as a producer doesn’t hurt you at all. I trust both of them.
1) Incredible Themes
Based off the marketing and from the few reviews I’ve read, the main reason I’m excited for this is the incredible themes this movie will have. This will be a story of hope, learning your place in a strange world and who you are supposed to be. It’ll be masked in action sequences and super hero stuff (which will be a lot of fun!) but don’t miss the underlying themes here. At some point in all of our lives, we have to learn and figure out who we are and what we want to do in this world. Perhaps someday you’ll get to be Superman and get to save the world. Either way, hope is just around the corner and I suspect that’s something you’ll be able to get out of this movie. It’s a fun metaphor that I’m looking forward to seeing.
Cinemark is playing some of the best Stephen Spielberg films in theaters right now as part of its’ Classic Movie Series and we decided to take advantage of it. This week, we got to see his summer blockbuster hit, Jaws, starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw, and Richard Dreyfuss.
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Dreamworks and Electronic Arts have given us our very first look at the upcoming video game adaptation, Need for Speed. This is a behind the scenes look at some of the awesome cars they are racing with as well as some cars flipping through the air. And I’ll admit, while video game adaptations don’t usually do well, this has potential. We also get some quick cuts of stars Aaron Paul and Dominic Cooper which looks pretty cool as well.
We’ll still have to wait and see what the final product will be like given the fact it could be a tough sell. However, it’s being directed by Scott Waugh whose first feature was last year’s Act of Valor, which had some amazing action sequences. Waugh will have some better talented actors here so I have some hopes for it. Either way, check out this awesome behind-the-scenes look at Need for Speed.
This week on the InSession Film Podcast, we discussed our Top 3 Movies with Crazy Premises. This was a tough category but was one of the more fun Top 3 Lists we’ve done yet.
Nate
1) The Human Centipede
2) Weekend at Bernie’s
3) Battle Royale
JD
1) Inception
2) The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
3) Repo Men
Another villain has been added to the cast of The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
According to Comic Book Movie, Colm Feore has been cast as Adrian Toomes AKA The Vulture in Marc Webb’s sequel. That makes The Vulture the fourth villain to join the film as Electro (Jamie Foxx), Rhino (Paul Giamatti) and Green Goblin (Chris Cooper) will also be making an appearance.
And in other big news, it appears those villains will become The Sinister Six, which will be part of the third film in a proposed trilogy. The Lizard may also be a part of that group.
All of this news sounds extremely awesome and with the return of Andrew Garfield (Peter Parker/Spider-Man) and Emma Stone (Gwen Stacy) returning, I’m looking extremely forward to The Amazing Spider-Man 2.
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens on May 2, 2014.
Man of Steel doesn’t come out until Friday but a sequel is already in the works.
According to Deadline, Warner Bros. is fast-tracking Man of Steel 2 with both director Zack Snyder and writer David Goyer returning. Producer Christopher Nolan will also return but his role won’t be as “full blown.”
This news doesn’t come as much of a surprise considering Man of Steel is expected to eclipse the $100 million mark at the box office this weekend and early word is that it’s really good. The embargo for reviews lifts in a couple hours so we’ll know more what to expect then.
Man of Steel is one of my most anticipated films EVER. The marketing (trailers and TV spots) have been outstanding and the main themes/messages involving hope, potential for greatness and finding your place in the world are right up my alley. I CANNOT WAIT to see this at midnight.
On Episode 16, we review The Purge, discuss our Top 3 Movies with Crazy Premises and we stroll down memory lane with some summer movie memories.
– The Purge Review
Grades
Nate: C+
JD: C+
– Our Top 3 Movies with Crazy Premises
– Summer Movie Memories – Past, present and future
– Latest News
– Aaron Taylor-Johnson to play Quicksilver in Avengers 2
– Mel Gibson to join Expendables 3
– Warner Bros. give up rights to South Park and Friday the 13th
– What We’ve Seen This Week
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InSession Film Podcast – Episode 16
Since Man of Steel is coming out this week, we thought we’d ask the age ole’ question, which superhero would you want to be? Here are some popular choices but maybe you’d want to write in your answer? Let us know and vote below!
[yop_poll id=”13″]
The Purge has become the surprise hit of the summer.
The horror thriller starring Ethan Hawke opened with $36.4 million – nearly twice as much as Universal had projected and over 10 times as much as the film was made for – to take the top spot as this weekend’s box office. The Purge features a wild premise (crime is legal for a 12-hour period each year) and some good ideas but ultimately becomes an unoriginal and predictable film that could’ve been much better.
After taking the top spot in its first two weeks, Fast & Furious 6 – another Universal film – came in second with $19.8 million. The sixth installment in the series has now racked up over $200 million domestically.
Now You See Me hauled in $19.5 million to come in third in its second weekend. The Lionsgate film has grossed over $61.4 million.
Coming in fourth was The Internship, which opened with $18.1. The Fox comedy reteams the Wedding Crashers tandem of Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson.
Rounding out the top five was Sony’s After Earth, which bombed in its opening weekend and didn’t fare much better in its second with just $11.2 million. The M. Night Shyamalan-directed and Will Smith-starring film did fare much better overseas, opening in 60 markets and bringing in $45.5 million.
The box office will definitely hit an upswing this upcoming weekend with the opening of Man of Steel. The Superman film, produced by Christopher Nolan and directed by Zack Snyder, is expected to bring in over $100 million.
The first poster for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug is here.
Today we got the initial poster to the sequel to Peter Jackson’s The Hobbit and it features Bilbo Baggins (played by Martin Freeman) standing from afar in front of the opening to Smaug the dragon’s lair (How long do you think it will take little Baggins to reach that door?).
I extremely disliked The Hobbit and this poster does nothing to get me excited for the sequel. Maybe the trailer, which will play in front of Man of Steel this weekend, will help.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug hits theaters on December 13.
