Happy New Year

This is likely the last post of 2012, so I just wanted to say I hope everyone has a Happy New Year! Ride and/or drive safely and let's ring in 2013 with style.

Catch you in the new year. =^D


And for fun, let's have the year in review.

The Amazing Spider-Man - Review

The Amazing Spider-Man follows Peter Parker, a teenage outcast searching for the reason why his parents disappeared over a decade ago. After finding his father's old briefcase in his basement he is led to Dr. Curt Connors, his father's old business partner, who quickly reveals his dangerous alter-ego and sets Peter on his journey to self discovery after being bitten by a genetically altered spider.


I'm not a real big Spiderman buff, but I have been holding out on The Amazing Spider-Man since I learned it was being made. I felt like it was way too soon to reboot Spiderman and to put it in simple words, I was not happy one bit. Not to mention once I saw the Comic-Con snippets and the trailers I swore I wouldn't see it in theaters. After hearing and reading reviews when it was released this summer my criticism was justified because most people said it wasn't that good. That includes a lot of Spiderman fanatics. However, I wanted to give it a shot at some point so I could see for myself what it was all about and I must say... it was pretty terrible.
I put aside my irritation that it was rebooted to begin with the best I could, but if they were going to reboot it at least make it a good reboot. The entire movie was rushed, things that should have been explained weren't, things that didn't need as much focus were beat to death, the new Spiderman suit is stupid, Emma Stone was a terrible Gwen Stacy, and I honestly wasn't a fan of Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker. The only high part was Rhys Ifans as Dr. Connors but the awful CGI for The Lizard ruined that mighty quick. Well, that and the fact that they made Spiderman an asshole which Sam Raimi didn't do enough of with his trilogy.

As far as plot goes it is the same old thing regarding Spiderman. Uncle Ben gets killed and Peter is sent out on his quest for revenge and battling his ever longing lesson on responsibility. Martin Sheen was a decent Uncle Ben, I will admit, but the beginning of the movie was ridiculous. It starts with young Peter being left by his parents and suddenly he is a high school student with a skateboard who has a knack for getting in fights. Magically he finds his father's briefcase and that sets the truth into motion when Uncle Ben decides to tell Peter about Dr. Curt Connors, his father's old colleague. Then all of a sudden Peter is sneaking into Oscorp to meet with Connors who acts way too calm about Richard Parker's son tracking him down all of a sudden and giving him magical equations to fix his cross-species gene therapy project. It was just ridiculous.
Once Peter becomes Spiderman and Dr. Connors becomes The Lizard it just gets worse. The funniest part to me was not only the awful CGI, but the part when Peter saves the kid from the car. First of all, Peter took his mask off way too damn much. The key to Spiderman is secrecy. On top of that he is saving this child from a burning car and Peter magically doesn't get burned and even better, the kid walks away with no injuries despite sitting right in the flames. I mean, what the fuck? It was hilarious.

There are just so many bad things to say about The Amazing Spider-Man. I am glad I didn't see it in theaters and I am sorry that I wasted the 2 hours watching it at home. It's even more unfortunate that they are making a sequel. The best part of the whole movie was Stan Lee's cameo.

The Devil's Carnival: Episode 2 Teaser Trailer

I'm a little behind on this but oh well. We have our first look at the second chapter of The Devil's Carnival. We were introduced to The Devil's Carnival this past spring and summer with the road show put on by director Darren Lynn Bousman and co-creator Terrance Zdunich. I saw the road show in Denver and I was impressed for the most part. It was enjoyable. I'm intrigued enough to continue with this thing.

No word just yet on if there will be another road show or how this is going to be released, but I will do my best to keep everyone updated.

Beasts of the Southern Wild - Review

Beasts of the Southern Wild follows a young girl named Hushpuppy who lives with her ill father in the small Delta community, "The Bathtub." In the wake of a storm and her father's fading health she is forced to venture off to find her mother and learn how to make her own mark on the world.


The only reason I wound up seeing this movie is because of the early awards season buzz, to be honest. I had heard about it previously and I never really learned exactly what the movie was about so I figured I would pass on it. However, I got curious enough after seeing the nominations for the Golden Globes and SAG Awards that I wanted to give it a shot. And let me tell you... wow.

This by far is one of the best movies I have seen all year. The story was interesting in the sense that it isn't all that calculated. It is a simple story of a small community who is hit by a terrible storm and this 6-year old girl living with her ill father feels the need to quickly adapt and learn how to love and care for herself and others in preparation for when her father is no longer there to protect her. Along the way prehistoric Aurochs are unleashed when the ice caps begin to melt and water in "The Bathtub" begins to rise.
With all that said, this is a fictional and borderline fantasy movie. It has a great, heartfelt message to it and that is what I loved. You connect so quickly with Hushpuppy it's unbelievable and a lot of that has to do with the acting. Quvenzhane Wallis has an incredible career ahead of her if she wants it and I am pulling for this girl to not only be nominated for an Oscar but to take it home. She was phenomenal. The acting in general was good.
I also loved the visuals and the cinematography. You do feel like you are in the "Southern wild" and it honestly reminded me of the footage I saw when Hurricane Katrina happened. People were displaced, homes went underwater, and a lot of the people went under with them. I loved all of it.

I would strongly suggest this film to anyone. If you love movies you will love Beasts of the Southern Wild. If you have a chance to see it before the awards season exercises all these movies to death I would do that if at all possible. I rented it through iTunes and it was worth the $4. Great, great movie. I mean... I cried, guys. More than once. I want to add that this definitely is added to my list of the best films of 2012.

The most annoying parts of 2012

We reflected on the best and worst films of 2012, so how about we reflect on the most annoying parts of the year as well as the biggest shit storms.


Jessica Simpson's pregnancy

It's always a big deal when a celebrity gets pregnant. That's just how it is. However, the attention social media paid to Jessica Simpson was ridiculous. Yes, she ate too much and gained like 80lbs during her pregnancy. Yes, she gave her daughter a boy's name. Does anyone really care? No.
The saddest part is we're about to get it all over again because she's pregnant again. Weight Watchers must be pissed.

Nicki Minaj joins American Idol

I will admit that I have watched American Idol since 2006. My aunt made me watch the auditions that year and I got hooked. I was fine up until I realized that the votes weren't based on talent and until Simon Cowell left. After that I just got tired and I swore after Phillip Phillips won this year that I would never watch again. That statement became even more true after it was announced that Nicki Minaj was being brought on as a judge. I have never liked her and I find her extremely annoying.
It got even worse after shit broke out and she started fighting with Mariah Carey and it was all over the internet and the magazines and the television. I'm shocked they didn't fire her. As much as I would love to laugh at the fact that this season is undoubtedly going to be a hot mess I am sticking to my guns and still saying, fuck American Idol. I hope everyone enjoys yet another young, attractive male winner with sub-par talent.

The Presidential Election

Seeing that our election coverage is practically nonstop I was tired of this before it even happened. I just had to get that off my chest.

One Direction

I had no idea who the hell these kids were until I saw them on Nickelodeon one night. My first question was, " why are boy bands making a comeback? "  After that it seemed like they were everywhere. I saw them on the Olympics, they were all in the entertainment magazines, all over the internet, and the television. To add onto that their stupid song was playing everywhere. I hate it.
My mother always tries to pin on me the thought of if I was a 12-year old right now I would probably love One Direction and Justin Bieber too. My argument back... when I was 12 I was listening to Korn and Black Sabbath. I never got into the boy band craze the first time around when it was N*Sync and Backstreet Boys. I hated them, too.

Lindsay Lohan

Lohan is just a classic example of what fame does. She taught all of us that you can repeatedly break the law and manage to get away with it just because you're famous. If I did the things she has done I would have been in jail years ago and still would be there.

Honey Boo Boo

Let me start off by saying I do not watch Toddlers & Tiaras. I find it a blatant example of child abuse and is glossed over for publicity and pop culture. I had a friend show me a clip of Honey Boo Boo from her episode of the show and while I thought it was funny I also thought it was ridiculous. I also wondered how this child's mother, who looks like Jabba the Hutt, wasn't brought up on child abuse charges or investigated by Child Protective Services.
And then I hear TLC made a spin-off show called Here Comes Honey Boo Boo. I watched like 2 episodes out of curiosity and I couldn't believe these people got a show. I use the term " hick " lightly but what a bunch of hicks. I didn't think people like that really existed. It showed us you can give your obese 6-year old energy drinks and feed them nothing but cheese puffs and get a television show. I hope these people look back at some point and are ashamed of themselves.

Kristen Stewart cheating scandal

I was probably one of the first people who discovered this cheating scandal. I was reading IMDb the night the news broke and I saw an article with the title " Kristen Stewart caught cheating on Robert Pattinson with Snow White director. "  Of course I just had to click on it because I thought it was fake. However, when pictures surfaced shit became very real. The Robstens and the Krisbians began shutting down their Twilight fantasy blogs, people flooded message boards slamming Stewart for hurting Pattinson, Universal initially dropped her from the Snow White sequel, Stewart and Rupert Sanders both issued apologies, and everyone involved kind of disappeared for a while.
The funniest part about this whole thing for me was how incredibly arrogant Kristen Stewart had to have been. It's like she was thinking, let me just cheat on my boyfriend of 3 years in broad daylight in public with a married man. She either wanted to be caught or she didn't give a fuck.

2012 Summer Olympics

I like watching the Olympics but something about this year's Olympics in London was annoying as hell. The opening ceremonies made absolutely no sense and the best part about the closing ceremonies was the Spice Girls reunion. I feel like a lot of the overexposure was due to the fact that Michael Phelps was still swimming. Everyone wanted to see him make Olympic history so they plastered the guy all over the place yet again. I got to a point where I felt like I would scream if I saw his face again. He wasn't even that good this year. He barely made the medals he won and he didn't even qualify for a medal in one of his races. Missy Franklin was more exciting to watch, imo.

Snooki has a baby

Look... it isn't shocking when partying whores get knocked up, guys. I always saw this as a matter of time with any of those trashy Jersey Shore chicks. I don't know why everyone in this country thought Snooki getting pregnant was such a big deal. I just know MTV was happy because now they have more material for another television show.

Gangnam Style

I fucking hate Gangnam Style. I am just waiting for this fad to die out. Psy is an anti-American wannabe rapper who got lucky because people are stupid enough to pick up a dumb dance and do it everywhere.




I'm sure there is more that could be talked about but I am annoyed already with what I have discussed. Feel like I missed something? Go ahead and leave a comment.

NBC not renewing Mockingbird Lane

Mockingbird Lane, the attempt at rebooting The Munsters, has been officially passed over by NBC. The show had a Halloween pilot which drew a decent amount of viewers (5.4 million) and gave the network its best rating in a Friday time slot in the past 2 years. I guess that wasn't enough for them, though.

I didn't watch Mockingbird Lane but I honestly feel like Bryan Fuller is just getting screwed. If it were up to me Pushing Daisies would still be on TV.

Fangango hosts Warm Bodies - The First 4 Minutes

We now have the first 4 minutes of the new zombie to human love story, Warm Bodies.
Yeah... I'm still not seeing it.

J.J. Abrams declines Star Wars: Episode VII

It was announced that J.J. Abrams declined the offer to direct Star Wars: Episode VII back in November, but now we know that he not only entertained the idea but was in early conversations with Kathleen Kennedy to direct. However, Abrams now revealed that he initially turned down the offer because of his loyalty to Star Trek.

“I quickly said that because of my loyalty to Star Trek, and also just being a fan, I wouldn’t even want to be involved in the next version of those things. I declined any involvement very early on. I’d rather be in the audience not knowing what was coming, rather than being involved in the minutiae of making them.”

I'm not really bummed that Abrams is out of the picture for Star Wars. I can't really pinpoint why, but the idea bothered me.

[UPDATED] The Best Films of 2012

Hello again, everyone.

My previous post dealt with the worst films of 2012, so now it is time to reflect on the best films of 2012. I want to remind everyone this is a list of the movies I have personally seen and also note that I am aware the year is not over. I still plan on seeing one or two more movies this year, so I might alter this list after the fact. Good? Excellent. Let's get started!


The Grey

I didn't see this movie in theaters but after watching it on DVD I regretted not seeing it in January. This was a great movie and not just because it had Liam Neeson. It was tense and had a great progression. I also loved the way it was filmed. Very well done.

The Hunger Games

I will admit that I didn't love the movie as much as the book and it left a lot to be desired, but it was very well done. I was pleased with the casting, the acting, and portrayal, and the overall progression. I cannot wait for Catching Fire and Mockingjay to come out.

21 Jump Street

I delayed seeing this movie until just a couple months ago and let me tell you, I was so impressed and pleased. It was hilarious and oddly enough it worked perfectly as a spin-off of the original TV show. I laughed through the whole damn movie and that I what I loved. The humor was perfect. Highly recommended to anyone else who skipped it like I did.

Project X

I am only mentioning this because as a teenage party movie it was pretty legit. I enjoyed it a lot.

The Cabin in the Woods

By far the best horror movie I have seen in a couple years. I loved how this movie was set up, I loved how it played out, and I enjoyed the hell out of it. The only downside was the last 5min or so, but apart from that it was great. A definite must see for any horror fan.

Mother's Day

For a horror remake that went Direct-to-DVD it was pretty damn good. Darren Lynn Bousman finally did another good thing after his first two Saw movies.

Brave

This was a fantastic movie. The animation alone blew my mind and put me in complete happiness. I liked the message of the film and it was a lot of fun. Pixar did it again.

ParaNorman

Beautiful animation, first of all, and the story itself was a little more adult. Even though it was a kids movie and an animated movie I felt like there was more for the big kids than the little ones. The horror aspect was very well blended and quite enjoyable. I highly recommend this one.

Frankenweenie

By far Tim Burton's best movie in 10 years. The animation was beautiful, classic, and I loved that they left it in black and white. The story was incredibly easy to relate to and I think it held up nicely with the original live-action short film. I absolutely loved it.

Skyfall

Out of the Daniel Craig 007 movies this was the best one. Much, much better than Quantum of Solace and I even thought it was better than Casino Royale. Adele's song was perfect, the story was perfect, and I was surprised with how much I liked Daniel Craig. I think he finally was able to capture the perfect Bond performance. And of course... Javier Bardem was the best villain I have seen in many Bond movies. He needs an Oscar for it.

Wreck-It Ralph

This was a nerd's dream movie. I had a big smile on my face from beginning to end. As I said about the other animated movies this year, the animation was flawless and beautiful. The voice talent was also great. The concept was very original, too. And fyi... there is a free version of the Fix-It Felix arcade game in the Apple App Store. I have it on my iPod. =^D

Prometheus

I almost put this on my worst of 2012 list but I decided against it. I almost put it on the other list because I felt like we were all lied to when Ridley Scott said it had nothing to do with the Alien franchise. The final shot of the movie alone flushes that down the toilet. Apart from the anger of that, it wasn't all that terrible. Noomi Rapace was great and the stress level the movie put on was very high. I saw it in theaters and I was going nuts the whole time. Great science fiction movie but it was kind of a big trick.

The Dark Knight Rises

After 4 years of anticipation this movie, for me and many others, was tainted with tragedy. The Century Theater shooting happened about 2 miles from me and I almost went to that midnight premiere at that same theater. With that said, it took me until the DVD release earlier this month to fully enjoy the movie. I saw it twice in theaters and was paranoid as hell both times. However, I do appreciate it and think it was a great finale to the Nolan trilogy. I don't think it was as good as The Dark Knight but it was better than Batman Begins.

The Avengers

The... best... movie... of... the... entire... year.
Not only was this one of the best superhero movies I have ever seen but it will hold up as that. The casting of the heroes and villains was perfect and the lead into this movie was just incredible. The special effects, sound effects, acting, and dialogue was perfect. Everything about The Avengers was perfect. It was more proof that Marvel does truly have the upper hand when it comes to comic books on film.

[Updated] Beasts of the Southern Wild

I literally just saw this movie and I want to say it is one of the best movies I have seen all year, if not ever. I had no idea what to expect going in and I walked out teary eyed with something new. Like, it is hard to describe how this movie affects you but it does. Quvenzhane Wallis is phenomenal. For a little girl like that to be so good. I was just blown away.

Honorable mentions: Les Misérables, Sound of My Voice, The Raid: Redemption, For Ellen, Dark Shadows, The Possession, V/H/S, We Need to Talk About Kevin, and Pitch Perfect.



Well, there we have it. Like I mentioned before this list is of the movies I personally saw. I haven't seen every movie I wanted to see this year, but that happens every year. Movies are released on DVD within 3-4 months anyway. It's no big deal. Overall I think 2012 was a better movie year than 2011 so that was a pleasure. Here's to hoping 2013 is a great movie year!

[UPDATED] The Worst Films of 2012

Ahh, ladies and gentlemen.

It is that time of the year once again where we reflect on the best and worst films of the year. I will do a separate post on the best films of 2012, but I figured why not start off with the bad things that happen. When you do that things only go uphill. There is no particular order to these except for the first and I explain that. So let's get this party started!


Snow White and the Huntsman

I put this one at the very top of the list because I don't think it was absolutely terrible. Was it great? Nowhere close, but it wasn't completely awful. It had more low points than high points and had some serious miscasting as far as Snow White went, but it was salvaged enough with Charlize Theron and pretty bomb special effects to not be a total loss.

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2

All I really have to say is... it's finally over.

Bachelorette

Now, let me say that I did enjoy Bachelorette overall but that was initially. After some reflection I came to realize that the movie was, in general, a hot mess. They tried too hard to re-create magic started with Bridesmaids and it failed. Rebel Wilson was the best part of the whole movie and she was hardly in it.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter

Talk about disappointment. I went into this movie with such high expectations and I expected to love the hell out of it because I love the book. However, it was probably one of the worst movies I have ever seen. The 3D was bad, the story was bad, and the adaptation was even worse. I think this was probably the biggest disappointment for me this year.

Bel Ami

I think Bel Ami was what people were counting on to show Robert Pattinson as a serious actor but it was yet another failure. The dialogue was weak, his character was weaker, and it was basically just a bunch of people having sex to gain position in society. Not interesting and no substance and I could have gone my whole life without seeing Pattinson naked.

Magic Mike

I am probably one of the only females on this planet that hated Magic Mike. It was just a terrible film. The script was as bad, if not worse, than a Twilight movie and it was relying on male strippers to bring females to the theater. That was it. Channing Tatum can't act and neither can Alex Pettyfer.

Mirror Mirror

By far the worst of the Snow White films we had this year. I feel like they tried to cater it more toward children and stumbled over a lot of rocks along the way. It wasn't funny, Julia Roberts tried too hard, and Armie Hammer just didn't strike me as a charming prince. It just didn't do it for me and I'm glad I didn't waste the money to see it in theaters.

The Woman in Black

Yet another example of franchise actors trying to prove they can do more than their character. Daniel Radcliffe will always be Harry Potter to me. He should stick to the stage because he has been quite successful there. Apart from that I found the movie predictable and boring. I even fast forwarded through a couple parts.

Chronicle 

Yet another disappointment for me. Chronicle was a disaster. There were terrible plot holes, it moved too quickly, the ending was predictable and abrupt, and how the kids even got their powers was never fully explained. It was just a bunch of stuff that happened and was caught on film.

The Devil Inside

Another one that I don't really have anything to say. I watched it and when it was over I wished that I hadn't.


Honorable (or dishonorable) mentions: Sparkle, What to Expect When You're Expecting, Chernobyl Diaries, Silent House, [REC] 3: Genesis, The Pact, Lovely Molly, Excision, and The Amazing Spider-Man.


Now keep in mind that these are just the movies that I personally saw this year. I heard about other movies that were apparently terrible and usually when I hear that much negative feedback I try to avoid them. Examples being Battleship, Lockout, Joyful Noise, etc..


Click HERE for the Best of 2012 list.

Scary Movie 5 Official Trailer

I don't know if it's the fact that they used the Beetlejuice theme or the fact that this just looks 100% unfunny, but I will definitely pass on this one. Scary Movie hasn't been funny since the 2nd film.

Kristen Stewart to return for Snow White sequel

After months of speculation and after basically being fired by Universal earlier in the summer, it appears that Kristen Stewart is on board to reprise her role as Snow White in the upcoming sequel to Snow White and the Huntsman.
Earlier this year it was reported that Stewart was not being invited to return for the sequel after she was caught cheating on her boyfriend and Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson with Snow White director Rupert Sanders, a married man with two young children. Not a very classy move but everyone apologized and it seems that all parties have moved on. It also seems that Universal has forgiven her and realized she is their cash cow for this Snow White franchise they are trying to build and it would be difficult to continue it without her.

Stewart confirmed with IndieWire during a press junket for On the Road that she will be returning for the Snow White sequel.

The Walking Dead confirmed for season 4; Showrunner quits

AMC has renewed the growing zombie apocalypse drama The Walking Dead for a fourth season. In addition to this news, AMC released that showrunner Glen Mazzara has parted ways with the show and the network due to "differences in opinion." Mazzara will remain as showrunner for the second half of the third season set to return in January, but after that we will no longer have him.

I don't understand this. They booted Frank Darabont out after a season and a half and now they have done the same with Glen Mazzara. Ratings have been booming, they have broken cable television records, and the show's popularity consistently is growing. There are several sources out there calling for Robert Kirkman, the writer of the original comic material, to step in as showrunner. He has been on board since season one and has been on as a producer. I would agree that he would probably know best at this point.

Disney sets Planes for 2013 release

The upcoming Disney film Planes, a spin-off from Cars, is set for theatrical release on August 9, 2013. It was originally reported to be a Direct-to-DVD movie but John Lasseter is so fond of it, apparently, that he wants it to be theatrical.

I personally think Planes looks dumb as far as concept goes. The photo they released looks just like Cars only with an airplane. I wasn't a huge fan of Cars so I will probably be skipping Planes unless a trailer comes out that seriously catches my attention.

Pitch Perfect - Review

Pitch Perfect follows Beca, a college freshman who aspires to be a famous DJ. While trying to find where she belongs during her first year of college she is coerced into an all-girl A Capella singing group and along the way finds what she has been looking for the whole year.


I wanted to see Pitch Perfect in theaters but I never got around to it, so I went ahead and picked up the DVD this week. I want to say that I really enjoyed it for what it's worth. I don't necessarily love musicals but I do love music and with that said, I wouldn't peg Pitch Perfect as a musical. It is a college-based comedy that just so happens to have A Capella singing in it.
If the voices in the movie were really the actors I will admit that I was quite impressed with Anna Kendrick's voice. I would have never guessed it. I also want to mention Rebel Wilson who didn't necessarily have the best voice but it was enough to get the job done. She was hilarious as always. I actually did enjoy the A Capella because they were using current songs and were doing mash-ups of them. In all honesty this movie reminded me of Bring It On only with singing instead of cheerleading. I say that because of the way the script was written. The language like "aca-scuse me?" instead of "excuse me." It reminded me of the classic line in Bring It On, "this is not a democracy, it's a cheerocracy."
With that said the script was what it was. The movie is meant to be a comedy and it did achieve the laughs, at least for me. I wasn't necessarily falling out of my chair laughing but I did laugh a lot. Rebel Wilson, Anna Kendrick's Korean roommate, and the quiet Asian member of the singing group made me laugh the most. The male lead character annoyed me, though. Something about the way he acted just rubbed me the wrong way.

Overall there isn't too much to say about Pitch Perfect. I would recommend it because it is funny. The plot is predictable, as most movies are, but that was to be expected.

Rebel Wilson to host MTV Movie Awards in 2013

MTV announced the host for their 2013 Movie Awards show set to air on April 14th. The host will be none other than Rebel Wilson (Bridesmaids, Pitch Perfect). To most people, I think, she is known as the stupid fat blonde chick from Bridesmaids.
Wilson will be the first female host since Sarah Silverman hosted in 2007. Since Silverman hosted we have had rather shitty hosts in Andy Samberg, Russell Brand (more than once), Jason Sudeikis, and Aziz Ansari. Out of those I think Ansari did the best job and was actually funny.

I personally love Rebel Wilson and was cracking up watching her in Pitch Perfect last night. I think she is incredibly hilarious, so this sealed the deal for me watching the Movie Awards once again. After the last show I was going to ditch it entirely.

New images for Iron Man 3

I cannot wait for this movie.

Damon Lindelof not returning for Prometheus 2

Damon Lindelof, who re-wrote Prometheus, has confirmed he is not returning to write the sequel. Lindelof mentioned a conversation he had with Ridley Scott and apparently said he has other commitments that will prevent him from writing the sequel for Prometheus.

Vulture nailed it by predicting that he is not writing the sequel mainly because so many people blamed the writing for Prometheus' shortcomings. I agree completely.

Ben Affleck drops out of Focus

I posted about Kristen Stewart joining an upcoming Ben Affleck movie called Focus. She was set to be his love interest in the film. Well, it seems that she will have to be another guy's love interest as Affleck has dropped out of the film. Afflecks' rep is citing scheduling conflicts as the reasoning.

Either way they will have to cast someone fairly soon because filming is set to begin in April.

Jackie Chan to star in The Expendables 3

None other than Jackie Chan, the famous Chinese stunt man and actor, has joined the cast for The Expendables 3. According to Chan he was invited to join The Expendables 2 but declined due to another commitment. He also confirmed that his agreement to join was under the stipulation that he has a minor role with very little screen time.

The Expendables 3 is set to hit theaters in 2014.

[REC] 3: Genesis - Review

[REC] 3: Genesis follows a couple on their wedding day as they witness pandemonium and terror when a zombie outbreak infiltrates the wedding and infects their guests.


I will admit that I am a fan of [REC] and [REC] 2. I also did enjoy Quarantine a lot. Hell, I even enjoyed Quarantine 2 for what it was worth. I had added [REC] 3 to my Netflix months ago and was waiting for it to become available so when it did I got all excited. Let me tell you... this movie was a hot mess from start to finish.

First of all, I will admit that I liked how they began the movie. It starts as a wedding DVD and shows some footage of the church and the guests before the bride arrives. It is in the same found footage style the first two movies were in and that is what I was expecting anyway. There are two cameramen filming and suddenly shit goes down at the wedding when the groom's uncle, who is a veterinarian, falls off a balcony and starts eating a woman's neck. This starts the zombies and the infection spreads from there. HOWEVER, this was just the film's intro. After the groom and his little group gets separated and hides in the kitchen there is a title screen and then it switches formats completely. It now morphs into a full on scripted, non-documentary style film. From then on characters start dying left and right, the bride and groom are separated at different areas of the reception grounds with different people, and it didn't work one bit.

I have to say that I was enjoying myself for the most part but that doesn't mean it was in a good way. I laughed through a majority of this film as it had nothing to do with the previous two and was in a completely different style. Not to mention the bride and groom were annoying. They kept implying that they were psychic and could feel each other's presence while they were separated. I'm not kidding, there is a scene where the bride is running and suddenly stops to close her eyes and say something like, "he is still alive. I feel him." He would do it with her, too. It was really weird and it didn't work at all. That and they give it the perfect setup for this 4th [REC] movie they are apparently making so never fear. Even foreign film franchises can be ruined.

Overall this was a big disappointment. I expected so much more because the first two were so good. I wouldn't even waste my time watching it if I were you. You aren't missing anything.

James Franco may not return for Apes sequel

I am one of the people who assumed James Franco would return for the Planet of the Apes sequel, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. However, with a recent MTV interview Franco revealed he might not return after all.

“I was going to be a small part of the next one. There was a moment when Rupert Wyatt was going to direct the second one. A lot of the human characters that were in the first movie were dead in the sequel that Rupert was going to direct. But there was one scene, between Caesar and my character, maybe even just like on a video that was left behind, but then a lot of things happened, like [former Fox co-chairman] Tom Rothman who was a big part of the first movie, left. Now Rupert’s not a part of it so I don’t know. My guess is I won’t be in it. Nobody’s talked to me since Rupert left.”

Matt Reeves (Cloverfield, Let Me In) is attached to direct and it has been confirmed that Andy Serkis will return for more motion-capture to bring Caesar back to life, but no other names have been mentioned. Aside from Franco the only other person I can see realistically returning, as John Lithgow bit the dust, is Freida Pinto. There is still plenty of time for them to get Franco on board if they want and if he wants, though. The movie isn't set for release until May 2014.

Ricky Gervais joining The Muppets sequel?

After Jason Segel confirmed he wouldn't be returning for the sequel to The Muppets there has been a search for a new human lead character. Ty Burrell (Modern Family) has recently been cast as the main human rival, but there hasn't been word on the "good guy" until now. Apparently Ricky Gervais, you know the guy who was banned from hosting the Golden Globes, is in talks for the role.

Now... I didn't see the new Muppets movie but I don't really see Gervais as Disney material. Not only is he extremely annoying but he is crass and rude as a general rule. So much for me seeing the Muppets sequel if he secures the role.

AMC to air The Walking Dead in black and white

This is pretty random but I love it.

AMC announced they are going to be airing seasons 1 and 2 (18 episodes total) of The Walking Dead in black and white starting this February. They aired the season 1 pilot in black and white earlier and I missed it, but the pictures I have seen from it look pretty cool. They are saying the reasoning is to give fans more of a comic book feel since the books are not in color.

Garrett Hedlund to return for another Tron film

People are acting like this is a "duh" story and I'm not so sure it is. Basically, Garrett Hedlund confirmed during a press junket that he will be returning as Sam Flynn in a third Tron film (aka, the followup to Tron: Legacy).

Casting for this movie was speculated after Disney changed the writers for the film and websites are all, they aren't in the habit of recasting the lead roles etc.. I have seen numerous main characters recast when it wasn't necessary and/or when it made absolutely no sense. I wasn't all that sure that Hedlund was going to return or if they were going to make another Tron movie to begin with. So to everyone acting like this is a "no duh, lol" moment... get over yourselves. This is Hollywood. Remember that.

[Updated with winners] 2013 Golden Globe nominations; Lincoln leads

Ah yes, all the nominations are in full swing. The Globes at least gave us some variety by including Salmon Fishing in the Yemen and more of The Master and Django Unchained, but they are still quite similar to the Critics Choice and SAG nominees. I am surprised that they stiffed ParaNorman for Best Animated Film, though. It should have been there over Hotel Transylvania. I can only predict what the Oscars will be.
The Golden Globes are set to air on January 13, 2013.

UPDATE: The winners of the 2013 Golden Globes are highlighted in red. I wasn't expecting Argo to take Best Picture, that's for sure.


Best Picture (Drama):
Argo
Django Unchained
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Picture (Musical or Comedy):
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Miserables
Moonrise Kingdom
Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Director:
Ben Affleck - Argo
Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty
Ang Lee - Life of Pi
Steven Spielberg - Lincoln
Quentin Tarantino - Django Unchained

Best Actor in a Drama:
Daniel-Day Lewis - Lincoln
Richard Gere - Arbitrage
John Hawkes - The Sessions
Joaquin Phoenix - The Master
Denzel Washington - Flight

Best Actress in a Drama:
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard - Rust and Bone
Helen Mirren - Hitchcock
Naomi Watts - The Impossible
Rachel Weisz - Deep Blue Sea

Best Actor in a Musical or Comedy:
Jack Black - Bernie
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Ewan McGregor - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Bill Murray - Hyde Park on Hudson

Best Actress in a Musical or Comedy:
Emily Blunt - Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
Judi Dench - The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Maggie Smith - Quartet
Meryl Streep - Hope Springs

Best Supporting Actor:
Alan Arkin - Argo
Leonardo DiCaprio - Django Unchained
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln
Christoph Waltz - Django Unchained

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams - The Master
Sally Field - Lincoln
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions
Nicole Kidman - The Paperboy

Best Animated Film:
Brave
Frankenweenie
Hotel Transylvania
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

Best Screenplay:
Argo
Django Unchained
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Original Score:
Anna Karenina
Argo
Cloud Atlas
Life of Pi
Lincoln

Best Original Song:
"For You" from Act of Valor
"Not Running Anymore" from Stand Up Guys
"Safe and Sound" from The Hunger Games
"Skyfall" from Skyfall
"Suddenly" from Les Miserables

To see all the rest of the nominees for television click the link here. I don't really feel like typing the rest because they are essentially the same as they were for the SAG Award nominees.

New poster for The Wolverine

There is also a motion poster that Collider has live.

[UPDATED] 2013 SAG Award nominees revealed

The 2013 Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards have announced their nominees. Not only is this list almost identical to the Critics Choice nominees that were announced yesterday, but I guarantee it will also be identical to the Golden Globe nominees. I am seeing a trend and I bet you the same names will be on the nomination list for the Oscars. It's pathetic. Although I must admit I am surprised SAG completely stiffed Beasts of the Southern Wild. Everyone else is putting that movie at the top of their lists.
The SAG Awards will air on January 27, 2013.

UPDATE - The winners are highlighted in red.


Best Ensemble:
Argo
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Miserables
Lincoln
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Actor:
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
John Hawkes - The Sessions
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Denzel Washington - Flight

Best Actress:
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard - Rust and Bone
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Helen Mirren - Hitchcock
Naomi Watts - The Impossible

Best Supporting Actor:
Alan Arkin - Argo
Javier Bardem - Skyfall
Robert De Niro -  Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln

Best Supporting Actress:
Sally Field - Lincoln
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions
Nicole Kidman - The Paperboy
Maggie Smith - The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Best Performance by a Stunt Ensemble:
The Dark Knight Rises
Skyfall
The Bourne Legacy
The Amazing Spider-Man
Les Miserables

Best Ensemble in a Drama Series:
Boardwalk Empire
Homeland
Mad Men
Breaking Bad
Downton Abbey

Best Ensemble in a Comedy Series:
30 Rock
The Big Bang Theory
Glee
Modern Family
Nurse Jackie
The Office

Best Actor in a Drama Series:
Steve Buscemi - Boardwalk Empire
Bryan Cranston - Breaking Bad
Jeff Daniels - The Newsroom
Jon Hamm - Mad Men
Damian Lewis - Homeland

Best Actress in a Drama Series:
Michelle Dockery - Downton Abbey
Maggie Smith - Downton Abbey
Jessica Lange - American Horror Story: Asylum
Julianna Marguiles - The Good Wife
Claire Danes - Homeland

Best Actor in a Comedy Series:
Alec Baldwin - 30 Rock
Ty Burrell - Modern Family
Louis C.K. - Louie
Jim Parsons - The Big Bang Theory
Eric Stonestreet - Modern Family

Best Actress in a Comedy Series:
Edie Falco - Nurse Jackie
Tina Fey - 30 Rock
Amy Poehler - Parks and Recreation
Sofia Vergara - Modern Family
Betty White - Hot in Cleveland

Best Actor in a TV Movie or Miniseries:
Clive Owen - Hemingway & Gellhorn
Ed Harris - Game Change
Woody Harrelson - Game Change
Bill Paxton - Hatfields & McCoys
Kevin Costner - Hatfields & McCoys

Best Actress in a TV Movie or Miniseries:
Alfre Woodard - Steel Magnolias
Julianne Moore - Game Change
Sigourney Weaver - Political Animals
Nicole Kidman - Hemingway & Gellhorn
Charlotte Rampling - Restless

Best Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a TV Series:
Game of Thrones
Homeland
Breaking Bad
Sons of Anarchy
The Walking Dead
Boardwalk Empire

The Haunting in Connecticut 2 trailer debuts

We now have the first trailer for The Haunting in Connecticut 2: The Ghosts of Georgia. I haven't laughed that much all week. I didn't even know this was happening until this morning. I mean, I liked The Haunting in Connecticut for what it was worth but it definitely didn't merit a sequel. Especially one that has absolutely nothing to do with the first movie.

[Updated with winners] 2013 Critics Choice Award nominations

The 18th annual Critics Choice Movie Awards will air on the CW Network on January 10, 2013.
UPDATED: The winners are highlighted in red.

Best Picture:
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Django Unchained
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
The Master
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Actor:
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Daniel Day-Lewis - Lincoln
John Hawkes - The Sessions
Hugh Jackman - Les Miserables
Joaquin Phoenix - The Master
Denzel Washington - Flight

Best Actress:
Jessica Chastain - Zero Dark Thirty
Marion Cotillard - Rust and Bone
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Emmanuelle Riva - Amour
Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild
Naomi Watts - The Impossible

Best Supporting Actor:
Alan Arkin - Argo
Javier Bardem - Skyfall
Robert De Niro - Silver Linings Playbook
Philip Seymour Hoffman - The Master
Tommy Lee Jones - Lincoln
Matthew McConaughey - Magic Mike

Best Supporting Actress:
Amy Adams - The Master
Judi Dench - Skyfall
Ann Dowd - Compliance
Sally Field - Lincoln
Anne Hathaway - Les Miserables
Helen Hunt - The Sessions

Best Young Actor/Actress:
Elle Fanning - Ginger & Rosa
Kara Hayward - Moonrise Kingdom
Tom Holland - The Impossible
Logan Lerman - The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Suraj Sharma - Life of Pi
Quvenzhane Wallis - Beasts of the Southern Wild

Best Acting Ensemble:
Argo
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Les Miserables
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook

Best Director:
Ben Affleck - Argo
Kathryn Bigelow - Zero Dark Thirty
Tom Hooper - Les Miserables
Ang Lee - Life of Pi
David O. Russell - Silver Linings Playbook
Steven Spielberg - Lincoln

Best Original Screenplay:
Quentin Tarantino - Django Unchained
John Gatins - Flight
Rian Johnson - Looper
Paul Thomas Anderson - The Master
Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola - Moonrise Kingdom
Mark Boal - Zero Dark Thirty

Best Adapted Screnplay:
Chris Terrio - Argo
David Magee - Life of Pi
Tony Kushner - Lincoln
Stephen Chbosky - The Perks of Being a Wallflower
David O. Russell - Silver Linings Playbook

Best Cinematography:
Danny Cohen - Les Miserables
Claudio Miranda - Life of Pi
Janusz Kaminski - Lincoln
Mihai Malaimare Jr. - The Master
Roger Deakins - Skyfall

Best Art Direction:
Anna Karenina
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln

Best Editing:
Argo
Les Miserables
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Zero Dark Thirty

Best Costume Design:
Jaqueline Durran - Anna Karenina
Kym Barrett * Pierre-Yves Gayraud - Cloud Atlas
Bob Buck, Ann, Maskrey, & Richard Taylor - The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Paco Delgado - Les Miserables
Joanna Johnston - Lincoln

Best Makeup:
Cloud Atlas
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Les Miserables
Lincoln

Best Visual Effects:
The Avengers
Cloud Atlas
The Dark Knight Rises
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Life of Pi

Best Animated Feature:
Brave
Frankenweenie
Madagascar 3
ParaNorman
Rise of the Guardians
Wreck-It Ralph

Best Action Movie:
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rises
Looper
Skyfall

Best Action Actor:
Christian Bale - The Dark Knight Rises
Daniel Craig - Skyfall
Robert Downey Jr. - The Avengers
Joseph Gordon-Levitt - Looper
Jake Gyllenhaal - End of Watch

Best Action Actress:
Emily Blunt - Looper
Gina Carano - Haywire
Judi Dench - Skyfall
Anne Hathaway - The Dark Knight Rises
Jennifer Lawrence - The Hunger Games

Best Comedy:
Bernie
Silver Linings Playbook
Ted
This is 40
21 Jump Street

Best Comedy Actor:
Jack Black - Bernie
Bradley Cooper - Silver Linings Playbook
Paul Rudd - This is 40
Channing Tatum - 21 Jump Street
Mark Wahlberg - Ted

Best Comedy Actress:
Mila Kunis - Ted
Jennifer Lawrence - Silver Linings Playbook
Shirley MacLaine - Bernie
Leslie Mann - This is 40
Rebel Wilson - Pitch Perfect

Best Sci-Fi/Horror Movie:
Cabin in the Woods
Looper
Prometheus

Best Foreign Language Movie:
Amour
The Intouchables
A Royal Affair
Rust and Bone

Best Documentary:
Bully
The Central Park Five
The Imposter
The Queen of Versailles
Searching for Sugar Man
West of Memphis

Best Original Song:
"For You" - Act of Valor
"Learn Me Right" - Brave
"Skyfall" - Skyfall
"Still Alive" - Still Alive
"Suddenly" - Les Miserables

Best Original Score:
Alexandre Desplat - Argo
Mychael Danna - Life of Pi
John Williams - Lincoln
Jonny Greenwood - The Master
Alexandre Desplat - Moonrise Kingdom

72 original songs eligible for Oscars

We have the list of songs that have made the first cut in eligibility for Best Original Song for the 2013 Academy Awards. Included on the list are:

Skyfall (Skyfall)
Touch the Sky (Brave)
Ancora Qui (Django Unchained)
Strange Love (Frankenweenie)
Song of the Lonely Mountain (The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey)
Abraham's Daughter (The Hunger Games)
Wide Awake (Katy Perry: Part of Me)
Ladies of Tampa (Magic Mike)
Breath of Life (Snow White and the Huntsman)
When Can I See You Again? (Wreck-It Ralph)

The full list can be seen here. Also available as of right now are the 104 original scores eligible for Best Original Score.


As far as Original Song, I am rooting for "Skyfall" by Adele to take home the Oscar. That is the best movie song I have heard in years. I would also take "Breath of Life" by Florence + The Machine, but that wouldn't be as satisfying.

Man of Steel Official Trailer debuts

I still hate the new logo and the new outfit, but this does look pretty decent for a Superman film.

Star Trek Into Darnkess villain revealed

There has been much speculation about the villain to be in Star Trek Into Darkness. All we have known so far is that the villain is played by Benedict Cumberbatch. We now have confirmation via an image released by Paramount Pictures that Cumberbatch's character is named John Harrison.

I don't know too much about the whole Star Trek universe so the name honestly doesn't ring a bell for me. However, I heard quite a few people, including my boyfriend, tell me that some of the images from the trailer we got last week have a strong tie-in or foreshadow to Wrath of Khan. I have no idea what the hell is in store for this movie but I am excited.

AFI's annual Top 10 lists released

The American Film Institute released their annual Top 10 lists in both film and television categories. No real surprises, imo.

AFI Movies of the Year:
Argo
Beasts of the Southern Wild
The Dark Knight Rises
Django Unchained
Les Miserables 
Life of Pi
Lincoln
Moonrise Kingdom
Silver Linings Playbook
Zero Dark Thirty

AFI Television Programs of the Year:
American Horror Story
Breaking Bad
Game Change
Game of Thrones
Girls
Homeland
Louie
Mad Men
Modern Family
The Walking Dead

Lords of Salem gets a release date

The upcoming Rob Zombie film, Lords of Salem, has received an official release date. Anchor Bay is releasing the film on April 26, 2013. The film's release will also get a coinciding novelization to be released about a month earlier on March 12, 2013.

no word on if this is going to be a wide theatrical release, a theatrical release at all, or a direct-to-dvd.

Kristen Stewart to co-star with Ben Affleck in comedy

Kristen Stewart has confirmed she will be starring opposite Ben Affleck in the con-artist comedy film Focus. The film is set to start shooting in April and is to be directed by Glenn Ficarra and John Requa (Crazy, Stupid, Love). The basic plot revealed so far is as follows:

"Stewart will play a rookie con artist alongside Affleck, who will play an experienced swindler. The fraud-loving pair’s relationship grows complicated when they begin to develop romantic feelings for one another."



Something about Kristen Stewart not only in a comedy but playing a love interest for Ben Affleck, who is almost 20 years older than her, sounds very unappealing. Sorry.

Sound of My Voice - Review

Sound of My Voice follows Lorna and Peter, a couple making a documentary about cults. In order to provide first hand experience to their film they become involved with a cult led by a young woman who claims to be from the year 2054.


Let me start off by saying this movie sucked me in very quickly and kept me pulled in so much that I watched half of the end credits to see if there would be more. With that said, Sound of My Voice is a great film. It is what movies should be. It is a series of events that come together but at the same time it leaves you with a sense of wonder. You think you know what is going to happen but then it flips the cards over and you don't know what to think. I absolutely loved it.

I really loved the characterization of this film. They do brief backgrounds of Lorna and Peter to give a sense of why they are the way they are. Peter was raised by his grandparents after his mother rejected modern medicine and died of cancer on his 13th birthday. Peter makes a living as a school teacher. Lorna was the child of Hollywood society members and grew up addicted to drugs and became an alcoholic, but shaped up as an adult and is now a healthy Vegan. I thought the backgrounds were helpful in understanding how the cult leader, Maggie, handled them and was able to weed out their strengths and weaknesses.
Maggie's given background is a woman who awakens underwater in a bathtub and winds up homeless on the streets with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She is discovered by an older man who then takes her in and cares for her. Maggie was one of the most interesting and addicting characters I have seen in a very long time. I wasn't as invested in the scenes between Lorna and Peter as I was whenever Maggie was present. They did a great job with her.

Aside from the great characters, the plot does leave numerous questions that are left unanswered and leave you wondering why they even introduced it. However, I think that added to the mystery of the cult and leaves you wondering exactly what some of the characters were at the end... who is Maggie?


I don't want to give anything away, but if you want a great mindfuck mystery I would suggest watching Sound of My Voice. It is a little short as it doesn't even reach 90min, but it is worth the watch. I really enjoyed it.

Release date for Fantastic Four reboot announced

We might as well just call 2015 the year for superhero movies. It seems like every sequel or major movie is coming out that year. So far we have The Avengers 2, Ant-Man, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, Star Wars Episode VII, and the announced Justice League movie. On top of this 21st Century Fox has released an announced date for the upcoming Fantastic Four reboot. The release for this potential train wreck is March 6, 2015 and is promptly titled The Fantastic Four.

In addition to the Fantastic Four announcement, Fox also released 3D announcements for their upcoming films. Films to be released in 3D are The Wolverine, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, and Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.

Star Trek Into Darkness - Official Teaser Trailer

We finally have the first teaser for Star Trek Into Darkness. I enjoyed the hell out of JJ Abrams' Star Trek despite not being a big "Trekkie" but I am excited for this one. Not to mention it looks a lot better than the first.

Zero Dark Thirty named best film of 2012

The National Board of Review, the second major critics organization, released their list of 2012 winners for achievement in film. Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker) took home Best Film for Zero Dark Thirty. Bigelow also took Best Director for the same film. Zero Dark Thirty also took Best Actress for Jessica Chastain.

Aside from the major success of Zero Dark Thirty, Bradley Cooper took Best Actor for Silver Linings Playbook, Best Animated Feature went to Wreck-It Ralph, Best Adapted Screenplay went to David O. Russell for Silver Linings Playbook, and Best Original Screenplay went to Rian Johnson for Looper.

Click the jump for the full list of winners and top lists:

More original X-Men actors approached to reprise roles

Seeing that the upcoming film X-Men: Days of Future Past has a time travel element it has been confirmed that we will see various versions of the characters. In fact, it has been confirmed that Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellan will be back once again for an X-Men film and that Hugh Jackman is in negotiations to return as well. It is now being reported that other actors from the previous X-Men films are being sought after to reprise their roles in one way, shape, or form. There is no report saying which characters director Bryan Singer is trying to bring back but the rumor mill (already) is mentioning Halle Berry (Storm) and James Marsden (Cyclops). Collider says that a lot of the actors from previous X-Men films have offered due to them being fond of Singer.

Personally, I would love to see an Anna Paquin cameo because I have always liked Rogue, but we will have to wait and see how this one plays out. I can only assume another one who will return for some sort of cameo, once again, is Rebecca Romijn as Mystique. She had a very brief cameo in X-Men: First Class and played Mystique in X-Men, X-2, and X-Men: The Last Stand so I can't see that happening any other way.

Sound City trailer debuts; February release slated

Dave Grohl knew how to reel me in. Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails are featured... I'm sold.

Disney signs multi-year deal with Netflix

Disney has officially signed a multi-year streaming deal with Netflix. The deal starts in 2016 and includes films theatrically released by the following production companies: Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar, Marvel, and Disnenature. It states that some films will be exclusively available via streaming and it also includes direct-to-DVD releases.
This also included a deal making previous Disney releases available via streaming including films that are "in the vault." I also would assume this includes Disney owned television which includes ABC and ABC Family shows.

Watch every zombie kill from The Walking Dead

Sometimes I truly love random findings when it comes to YouTube.
These users have made videos made of the zombie kills from The Walking Dead, both seasons one and two. I love it.

New poster for Man of Steel

1. Why is it so damn fuzzy?
2. I really, really hate the logo.

Dane DeHaan joins The Amazing Spiderman 2

We can put the casting rumors for Harry Osborn aside. Dane DeHaan (Chronicle) has been confirmed for the role via Marc Webb's Twitter account. This comes shortly after Shailene Woodley (The Descendents) was confirmed for the role of Mary Jane Watson. Filming for The Amazing Spiderman 2 is set to take place early in 2013 so it is ready for the May 4, 2014 release.

I still haven't seen The Amazing Spiderman, but I am comfortable with this casting. DeHaan was pretty decent in Chronicle despite it being a fairly shitty movie overall.

2012 Annie Award Nominees

The Annie Awards, which celebrates achievement in animation, announced the Best Picture nominees for 2012. Nominated this year are:

Brave
Frankenweenie
ParaNorman
Wreck-It Ralph
Hotel Transylvania 
Rise of the Guardians
The Rabbi's Cat
The Pirates! Band of Misfits 

As you can see, a majority of the nominees were wide release films. Movies like The Lorax and Ice Age missed out this year... bummer haha.

First poster for Star Trek Into Darkness

This kind of looks like the Dark Knight Rises poster, but oh well. I'm excited.

2012 Governors Awards draw in Oscar hopefuls

This weekend was the Governors Awards in Los Angeles. It is an event that gives a lot of foreshadowing to the Academy Award possibilities and gives potential Oscar hopefuls the chance to expose themselves to the press and promote their films.
According to EW there was a general consensus hinting at Best Picture possibilities; those being Life of Pi, Argo, Les Miserables, Lincoln, Zero Dark Thirty, and Silver Linings Playbook. Personally I think those are all possibles just due to the media buzz around them, specifically Life of Pi and Lincoln, but I would like to at least see The Dark Knight Rises on the list. It deserves to be there. I'm going to be pissed if The Hobbit swoops in at the last minute and takes it.

Apart from Best Picture buzz there is a lot of speculation for the actor and actress categories, both lead and supporting. In attendance were Kristen Stewart, Tom Hanks, Bradley Cooper, John Hawkes, Amy Adams, Helen Hunt, and quite a few others who have Award buzz movies out. Stewart and Adams have On the Road, Hanks has Cloud Atlas, Cooper has Silver Linings Playbook, and Hunt and Hawkes have The Sessions. I am still kind of baffled at the fact that Kristen Stewart could potentially be nominated for On the Road, but I still haven't seen the movie so I can't really comment. She should have been nominated in 2010 for Welcome to the Rileys but that's just me. Same goes for Bradley Cooper. I guess I just never figured him for an Oscar nominated actor. That is if he is nominated.


Awards season is starting!

Producer Rick McCallum leaving Lucasfilm

Rick McCallum, a Star Wars producer who was "instrumental" in bringing back the saga, announced via StarWars.com that he will be leaving Lucasfilm. McCallum says the move is so he can produce independent films and historical dramas.

This news breaks about a month after the announcement was made that Disney purchased Lucasfilm and was planning a new trilogy consisting of Episodes VII-IX.

Nick Fury won't return to Marvel until 2014

Samuel L. Jackson announced that his Marvel character Nick Fury won't be seen again until 2014 for Captain America: The Winter Soldier. He mentioned that Fury or any other Avengers character won't appear in Iron Man 3 and added that he won't appear in Thor: The Dark World. It is possible he will appear in Guardians of the Galaxy in between Captain America 2 and The Avengers 2.

Bummer dude.

Hugh Jackman in talks for X-Men: Days of Future Past

We all knew this was coming.

Hugh Jackman is apparently in talks to reprise his role as Wolverine in X-Men: Days of Future Past. Jackman had a very short cameo as Wolverine in X-Men: First Class. He has also appeared as Wolverine in X-Men, X2, X-Men: The Last Stand, and X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Not to mention he is close to wrapping the upcoming film The Wolverine which focuses on Wolverine's struggle with immortality. Needless to say... Hugh Jackman has pretty much made himself a staple in the X-Men cinematic universe.

If this does really happen he will join former co-stars Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen who were confirmed for X-Men: Days of Future Past earlier this week. If you are confused about how exactly this is possible seeing that this is technically the sequel to X-Men: First Class there is a logical explanation that Collider was nice enough to lay out:

"The First Class sequel not only occurs before the events of the original X-Men trilogy, its source material also includes two alternate timelines, which makes it feasible for the casts of both series to appear in the same film. In Chris Claremont’s Days of Future Past arc, an alternate future saw surviving mutants held in concentration camps while giant robot Sentinels patrolled the land;  most of the X-Men had been killed. It fell upon heroes of a prior timeline to stop a key event from happening that would lead to the alternate future. How the two versions of Professor X and Magneto are going to be used in the film remains to be seen."

So there you have it. Am I excited about potentially having Jackman back as Wolverine yet again? I guess. The good thing about this is that he is a great Wolverine. It's not like he is bad at the role so I guess this is something we just have to expect whenever a new X-Men movie comes out.

Archer to return in January for Season 4

FX announced the return dates for several television shows including Archer. Most of these are set to start on the same Thursday so it will be a busy night, for sure.

Archer returns for season 4 on January 17, 2013
Anger Management returns for season 2 on January 17, 2013
Legit premieres on January 17, 2013
Totally Biased with W. Kamau Bell returns on January 17, 2013
Justified returns for season 4 on January 8, 2013


I kept meaning to get into the habit of watching Anger Management as well as Archer, so if they will both air on Thursdays FX just made my life a lot easier. Thanks guys!

X-Men: Days of Future Past gets casting confirmations

Director Bryan Singer confirmed via Twitter that Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen have been confirmed for X-Men: Days of Future Past to reprise their roles as older versions of Professor X and Magneto. Also confirmed to return are James McAvoy (Professor X), Michael Fassbender (Magneto), Jennifer Lawrence (Mystique), and Nicholas Hoult (Beast).

Official synopsis for Star Trek Into Darkness

We now have the official synopsis for the upcoming Star Trek sequel, Star Trek Into Darkness. It is as follows:

"When the crew of the Enterprise is called back home, they find an unstoppable force of terror from within their own organization has detonated the fleet and everything it stands for, leaving our world in a state of crisis.
With a personal score to settle, Captain Kirk leads a manhunt to a war-zone world to capture a one man weapon of mass destruction.
As our heroes are propelled into an epic chess game of life and death, love will be challenged, friendships will be torn apart, and sacrifices must be made for the only family Kirk has left: his crew."

Star Trek Into Darkness is set to hit theaters on May 17, 2013. It will be released in 2D, 3D, and IMAX formats. 

Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel to return for Girl Meets World

It is official. Ben Savage and Danielle Fishel are both returning to reprise their roles as Cory and Topanga on the upcoming show Girl Meets World, a sequel to Boy Meets World. The show will take place from the point of view of Cory and Topanga's 13-year old daughter Riley. A casting search is currently underway to find the lucky girl who will play Riley.


I am still shaking my head at this, but at least Ben and Danielle are returning. If this new show has no reference to "TACO" I will quit awful quick.

The Raid: Redemption - Review

The Raid: Redemption is an Indonesian action film which follows a group of SWAT members on a building raid where a powerful and seemingly untouchable gang leader and his thugs trap them inside.


First of all I want to give a shout out to Eric over at Pretty Much It for recommending this movie. I watched his review of this one back in March after he, of course, saw it at Sundance and I was intrigued enough that I added it to my Netflix queue and waited for it to become available. Thank you, Eric. This was by far one of the most enjoyable movies I have seen all year.

Now with that said, I would also recommend this one. It is an action and martial arts type film but it is really well played out. The visuals are great and I thought as far as violence and gore went it was within the realm of reality and quite graphic. Now of course if you aren't into action films with a lot of fighting then you might not like it, but trust me... it is a thousand times better than The Expendables or whatever action movies we have received in the United States the past couple of years. I normally am not big into action movies and I enjoyed the hell out of The Raid: Redemption.

As far as story and all that goes it is basic. It focuses on one main SWAT member named Rama and basically follows him as the team continually gets picked off one by one and they try to escape the building alive. There is a subplot that is introduced later into the movie but I won't spoil it for anyone.
And in case you haven't gathered already, it does have subtitles. It is an Indonesian film with Indonesian actors and they speak their native language. If you aren't into reading subtitles then that is another thing to think about. However, the DVD copy I got from Netflix had an English dubbed audio track so you could always switch. Subtitles usually don't bother me so I kept the original dialogue audio, but there also isn't a whole lot of dialogue due to the fighting and action. I wouldn't worry about it.

Overall this is a great action flick. I highly recommend checking it out and from what I gather they are working on a sequel so I'll definitely be keeping my eye out for that. Bravo.

Paranormal Activity 5 will arrive in 2013

Yes, yes I know... another one.
Paramount announced the release of a fifth installment of the Paranormal Activity franchise. The fifth film is set for release on October 25, 2013. No details as far as directors or cast have been released, but Oren Peli and Jason Blum will once again return to produce.

I just want this franchise to end. It's run its course already, imo.

Star Wars 3D re-releases to continue

Given the fairly successful 3D re-release of Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace the powers that be have decided to continue the re-releases with Episodes II and III.

Star Wars Episode II: Attack of the Clones is set for release on September 20, 2013.
Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is set for release on October 4, 2013.


Now, I hate Episode I with a fiery passion so I chose not to see it in theaters. However, I might see Episodes II and/or III. I love Episode III so that will be a definite.

Man of Steel trailer will play before The Hobbit

A brand new, full trailer for Man of Steel has been confirmed to screen before The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. This trailer joins a new trailer for Star Trek Into Darkness along with a 9-minute extended preview for IMAX screens. This is similar to what they did for The Dark Knight Rises before Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol.

Anyway... everyone who goes to see The Hobbit should let me know how that one is.

Marvel Phase One Blu-Ray set to be released in 2013

Remember that Marvel Cinematic Universe Blu-Ray box set we were supposed to get like 3 months ago? The one that was going to be released in the Tesseract briefcase?

If you don't then you will be pleased to know it will finally see the light of day April 2, 2013.
If you do then you know why this is such a "finally!" moment. We were supposed to get this box set around the time The Avengers was released back in September, if I remember correctly, and it was indefinitely delayed because the company who made the briefcase didn't approve for Marvel to replicate it and sell it. So in short, they sued Marvel which ultimately halted the set. But we are set to get the box set just before Iron Man 3 is released next year and to make up for the delay Marvel is including sneak peeks of Phase Two including Iron Man 3, Thor: The Dark World, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and Guardians of the Galaxy.

Personally I am not paying over $200 for this seeing that I already own all the Phase One movies, so I look forward to watching the sneak peeks on YouTube like many others.

EDIT: Here is the original posting I did on this story back in September.

Evil Dead poster promises scares

According to the first official poster for the upcoming Evil Dead reboot it will deliver "the most terrifying film you will ever experience." We will see about that one.

Insidious Chapter 2 to be released in August 2013

James Wan and Leigh Whannell are teaming up once again for Insidious Chapter 2, the sequel to their 2011 film Insidious. Wan will be directing and the script will be written by Whannell. The sequel is set to be released on August 30, 2013 with production beginning in Los Angeles on January 15th. FilmDistrict, Alliance Films, and Sony Pictures Worldwide Acquisitions made a press release today confirming the sequel and also confirming producer Jason Blum's Blumhouse Productions will be fronting the low-budget film.
Along with Whannell and Wan returning it has also been confirmed that Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Lin Shaye, and Ty Simpkins will be reprising their roles.


I think this is exciting. Insidious is one of the only horror movies to seriously scare me since I was like 6-years old. Like, I literally slept with a light on for 2 days. Bring it on!

Rupert Sanders will not direct Snow White sequel

I don't know how reliable this is just yet but I figured it was worthy of mentioning.

Rupert Sanders, the director of Snow White and the Huntsman, apparently will not be returning for the sequel according to Cinema Blend. Snow White served as Sanders' directorial debut and was a fairly big box office hit taking in over $400 million worldwide and subsequently had a sequel approved by Universal within a few weeks of the release.
However, Sanders' success was tampered after photos surfaced of him cheating on his wife, Liberty Ross, with his lead female star Kristen Stewart. Both parties apologized and it was a big mess all summer long. BUT... despite the cheating scandal it appeared that Sanders was still set to direct the sequel and Kristen Stewart was the one kicked to the curb. The source for Cinema Blend claims that Sanders has withdrawn from the project in a continued attempt to save his marriage. It also is plausible that he dropped the Snow White sequel due to other offers. It is rumored that Universal is considering him to helm the upcoming reboot of Van Helsing starring Tom Cruise. He also landed the director's chair for the upcoming film The Juliet by Sony Pictures. Seeing that he is being offered work by not only Universal is a sign that the scandal hasn't ruined his career or his chance at the Snow White sequel. I personally think he realizing he has better things to do. Not to mention if he returned for the sequel the press tour would no doubt be flooded with questions about the scandal.

Along with this is it also being reported that Kristen Stewart might, or is, returning for the Snow White sequel after all so this is all a big mess. I personally wouldn't etch anything in stone regarding the upcoming sequel until official press releases from Universal are made. I bet the Stewart rumors are surfacing just because Twilight is finally over and because Rupert Sanders is officially out of the picture.


Personally... I would like Stewart to return simply because I was looking forward to the storyline of her as the Queen, but who knows how it will play out. If the sequel is purely a Huntsman spinoff like Universal was saying after the cheating scandal broke out I probably won't be too interested in it. That is a cop out, imo.

Silent Night Official Trailer #1 (2012)

I am laughing, holy crap. The saddest part is I will probably watch this when it's on DVD. It looks hilariously terrible.

20,000+ views

Holy shit, guys.

I just want to say thanks to anyone and everyone for viewing and reading what I post here. I encourage you to keep on reading. I'm doing my best to share the news and review the flicks.

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 - Review *spoilers*

In Breaking Dawn Part 2, the Cullens and newborn vampire Bella must face the Volturi after a claim is made that Bella and Edward's daughter is an immortal child. A claim that, in the vampire world, is a very high offense punishable by death.


Let me start off by stating I am not a Twilight fan. I have seen all the movies and have read the books but I have never been a fan. I have always thought the story was bland, poorly written, and even more poorly acted. However, I decided to conclude my Twilight experience like many others and I went to see Breaking Dawn Part 2.
In my opinion, it is just as poorly acted and poorly written as the previous films but I will give credit for the fact that it is incredibly entertaining. BD Part 2 is by far the most enjoyable and entertaining of all 5 Twilight films. Yes it strayed from the book (a lot) and had awful pacing but it had humor and kept you pretty into what was going on.

You begin the film right where Breaking Dawn Part 1 left off. By "right where" I mean just that. The first part ends with Bella's transformation into a vampire and the second part begins with her red eyes opening and her first experiences as a vampire; seeing Edward for the first time as an immortal and her first hunt. In the book Bella's first hunting experience was rather dragged out and a lot more happened. In the movie it was very quick and right to the point. It's like right as she sees Edward he is like, you're thirsty let's go hunt. Right away they are running through the woods and she encounters a deer, gets distracted by a rock climber, and then jumps off a cliff and devours a mountain lion. It adds to my argument of extremely poor pacing in this film because it happened with almost no explanation and no lead in or out of the scene. It just kind of happens.
Along with that the rest of the events of the film, some in the book and some aren't, do the same thing. They just appear out of nowhere and happen and then they move onto the next event. It's like they present us with information and expect you to understand what is going on. I mean, I read the books and there were a couple moments that had me a little lost.

I don't want to spoil anything since the end of the film does have things that DID NOT happen in the book, so if you haven't seen the movie yet I would advise you to not click the jump and read ahead. I would wait until you see the movie. Just my recommendation.

Year Zero TV show on hold

It was announced in 2010 that Trent Reznor, the mastermind of Nine Inch Nails, was in the process of developing a television show for the 2006 album Year Zero with HBO. News of the show development has been fairly silent since then until Reznor did a Reddit Q&A with fans today.

Basically, the show is on hold. He and Rob Sheridan met with writers and the network and they couldn't find any writers they liked. As a result, Reznor and Sheridan are doing the writing themselves and it is taking more time than expected because they are avoiding the process. Reznor did say the project will see the light of day eventually but he doesn't know when.


* sigh *
They should have gone to AMC, ffs. HBO is a bunch of suckers these days.

First image of Thor from Thor: The Dark World

Thor is back in action!

Skyfall - Review

Skyfall is the newest film in the long standing James Bond saga. In this installment, James Bond is declared "killed in action," but comes out of seclusion to overcome both injuries and age as he fights to defeat a former agent's plot to destroy the MI6.


I will admit that I wasn't too excited for Skyfall at first. I remember writing an entry when the first trailer was released and when the first images surfaced and I was overall in a "meh" mood. I figured it would be more concrete wall acting from Daniel Craig with very little substance. I am happy to say that I was proven wrong. Skyfall was not only a great James Bond installment but it was a great movie in general. Out of the Bond films we have had with Daniel Craig I would easily list this as #1. He finally nailed James Bond.

As far as the acting goes, aside from Craig, I think Javier Bardem should win an Oscar for this performance. This man has such a great overall character of himself and the way he portrays these villains is just remarkable. I was in awe the whole time he was on screen. If he isn't at least nominated for this role it is just more proof that our movie industry is shit.

I also have to compliment the score. The score in itself was great and the placement of the recognizable Bond theme was very well placed in various parts of the film. I also tip my hat to Adele's theme song. The song fit perfectly and Adele made it even better. I hope she receives an Oscar for it as well. It's well deserved. By far the best Bond theme I have heard in a while.

Now I do have one bug about Skyfall but it does contain minor spoilers, so if you have not seen Skyfall I would restrain from clicking the jump. If you have seen it then click away.