I know you're probably groaning at seeing yet another X-Men Origins: Wolverine post, but I can't help it! There's new pictures! And the photos are always so cool -- and yes, I am easily pleased when it comes to the admantium one ... and yes, at this point the movie could be Wolverine reading a phone book for 2 hours and I would probably count my money well spent.
Anyway, 20th Century Fox has released five new images from Wolverine -- if you saw the bootleg ComicCon trailer, you'll recognize the image above. I like that Wolverine and Sabretooth appear to be bickering moments before being "executed." Hate runs deep. My favorite of the bunch, though, is the Weapon X photo ... not because it shows off a lot of Hugh Jackman, but because I'm hoping its an indication we see the whole nasty bonding procedure. If it's another blink-and-you-miss it sequence, well, they just missed the point of doing a Wolverine origin story!
Check out all the photos in the gallery below, accompanied by the two that hit the web last week -- and don't be surprised if there's more before the trailer hits on December 12th because, come on ... where the heck is Deadpool?! Where's Beak? We want to see them, too! Even I need a break from Jackman sometimes.
Hollywood, please. Leave The Fountain's soundtrack alone!
Somehow, in the course of my writing, I neglected to ever watch the Frost/Nixon trailer, something now rectified thanks to it being attached to Australia. I was into it right up until a familiar theme started playing ... and then I just felt an inexplicable disgust. I wondered what, exactly, Ron Howard (or whoever at Universal put together the trailer) was thinking. Why on earth would you use The Fountain for that movie? What about the music is appropriate for the mood and story you're trying to convey? (A similar problem plagues Mansell's Lux Aeterna piece from Requiem for a Dream -- for every trailer that uses it beautifully, like The Two Towers, there's one that just cheeses it up, like Babylon A.D.)
I confess, I have a weird, protective feeling towards this soundtrack. It's one of my favorite films and scores, one I listen to constantly. I'm convinced that even if you didn't see the film, or hated it, Clint Mansell's score is music enough to stand on its own -- something few soundtracks really are. Honestly, if you don't own it, put it on your Christmas list -- you won't regret it.
The first photo of Taylor Kitsch as the card-charging mutant Gambit has leaked online, scanned from the pages of Empire's upcoming Wolverine themed issue. He's quite dapper, isn't he? You can get away with wearing silky purple shirts and velvet vests when you're a mutant who can charge everyday objects with lethal kinetic energy. Anyone who mocks your taste in colors and fabrics is going to end up fried by a card, a bowl of pretzels, whatever he can grab first.
Cheesy clothing aside, I think Kitsch embodies Gambit quite well. He's got the right amount of scruff, the right hair, and he flings his cards with a casual machismo. This character is one of my biggest stumbling blocks for the movie, because I just don't get where he fits into a Wolverine origin story. He was a buddy to Wolverine in many of the comics, but was usually relegated to being a French Captain Obvious. "Mon ami, you are going to use them adamantium claws, no?" Fans love him though, and after being left out of three X-Men movies, I suspect they've used any excuse they can to work him in. But I know Gambit fans are psyched -- and the fact that he's probably being groomed for a spin-off should make up for his lack of X-Men screentime.
The trailer for The Ugly Truth, the romantic comedy starring Gerard Butler and Katherine Heigl is up at the film's official website. The premise of this film sounded downright terrible -- a television producer is forced to deal with a chauvinistic correspondent, who decides to teach her what men want so that she can find love, with the pair discovering "an unexpected result" along the way. Could that result be ... love? Yeah, probably.
But you know what? The trailer's not half bad, and it really does seem like an updated and raunchier Pillow Talk. Plus, it's rated R, which gives me a lot of hope that it could be something akin to a Judd Apatow movie. I really expected a lot of PG-13 chauvanism, not lessons on how to sexily eat a hot dog, or Butler using the phrase "ladygarden."
Maybe I'm just a sucker for a Butler movie after all. I slagged him off a bit last week, but he's just so darn charming, even when he's being a total sleaze. Then again, 2 hours of him saying things like "Get on a Stairmaster!" might be an emotionally unpleasant experience. I like escapism in my movies. If I wanted to hear guys saying that kind of stuff to me, I'd just go to a Denver bar and wait ten minutes. It'd be cheaper than a movie ticket. The Ugly Truth opens April 3rd, 2009.
Okay, maybe I'm being a bit tough on the film and the trailer. After all, it seems every few years we need one of these films -- the kind that reminds us how hard it is to connect and communicate with the opposite sex. Or do we? Maybe it's the star-studded cast that's turning me off, then, or maybe it's just that I feel like we've been down this road time and time again; relationships are tough, we know, and they're painful, unfortunately -- so does throwing in a blackberry joke and a few lines of dialogue about MySpace make it all seem fresher?
Anyway, there's a new trailer out for the rom-com He's Just Not That Into You (in theaters February 6), which itself is based on a book full of relationship advice and not a real, solid story -- and so what you get is pretty much what you see in this trailer: A mish-mosh of different romantic situations and people (ie: pretty famous faces) looking for advice from other famous faces. "Should I call? When should I call him back?" I don't know, didn't we decide this, like, 37 movies ago? Ben Affleck, Jennifer Aniston, Drew Barrymore, Justin Long and Scarlett Johansson star. Check out the trailer below, and let me know if I'm being too rough on this one.
We've seen a few photos from the set, but Empire has snagged the first official images from Michael Mann's Public Enemies, starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale in what has to be one of the most anticipated on-screen match-ups of 2009. In the flick, which is based on the book by Bryan Burrough, Bale will portray FBI agent Melvin Purvis, who, under the guidance of J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup), waged a full-on war against the country's most notorious (and successful) criminals -- namely John Dillinger (Depp), Pretty Boy Floyd (Channing Tatum) and Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham). It's a pretty wild true story, and one Mann and his cast should have a ball with. Check out an image of Bale after the jump, and the full images in this month's issue of Empire Magazine.
Well, Happy (Almost) Thanksgiving indeed. Between Australia and the flood ofX-Men Origins: Wolverine news, you can't turn around without seeing Hugh Jackman's biceps somewhere this week ... not that I'm complaining. How did it take so long for him to be dubbed Sexiest Man Alive, anyway? The physique should have earned it twice over.
Anyway, get a peek of Empire'snew Wolverine cover, which will be on shelves in December. Click on him to get the whole thing, and tidbits like this from the magazine's tell-all set visit: "There's a scene in the first X-Men movie," says Jackman, "where Wolverine's introduced in a bar, fighting in a cage, and you felt that he did this every night of his life. If this movie is successful, you should feel that this guy can walk straight off the end of this film and into that bar. "
And in other Origins news, ComingSoon has confirmed that the film's trailer will be seen on December 12th, attached to The Day the Earth Stood Still. Some say that means the sci-fi remake isn't very good, and Fox is counting on the trailer to bolster ticket sales. But do people really do that, particularly in these tough economic times, and with bootlegs providing instant gratification? I doubt it. We'll post it as soon as it appears online, though, count on that.
A new trailer for J.J. Abrams' Star Trek has just debuted over at AICN, but be warned that it's exactly like the other trailer save for one particular scene that comes right at the end. Yup, I won't tell you exactly what happens, but one look at the image above and you can imagine what you'll see. This particular scene was part of the four Cinematical screened last week, and it takes place on the icy planet where Kirk (Chris Pine) gets sent to. It's there where he meets an older version of Spock (played by Leonard Nimoy) and a younger version of Scotty (Simon Pegg). Check out the trailer over at AICN. Star Trekhits theaters on May 8.
Also, a brand new motion poster for Terminator: Salvation just arrived online (check it out at this link). Really digging these flash posters -- this particular one begins on an overhead shot of Los Angeles before slowly transforming into the face of our favorite robot via explosions and fire. Oh, and don't forget that memorable score. Sweet. Terminator Salvation hits theaters on May 22.
Above you will find the two For Your Consideration ads for The Dark Knightthat have been running in Variety this week. One promotes Heath Ledger for Best Supporting Actor, while the other targets a Best Picture nomination for the film itself. With The Dark Knight approaching $1 billion at the box office, it'd be a stupid move on the Academy's part to not give this flick the credit it deserves. From a ratings standpoint, knowing The Dark Knight is up for a few big awards (including Best Picture) would probably bring in tons more viewers, and, well, from a normal human being standpoint, the movie is freaking awesome! Give it some love!
Of course, it's a comic book movie and we all know the serious adults who vote on Oscars don't take too kindly to them comic book kids stuff. Hopefully, though, they'll see what a terrific job Nolan did with his Batman follow-up and the unbelievable performance Ledger gave as Joker. Should Ledger find his way into a nomination, he'll most likely be up against folks like Philip Seymour Hoffman (Doubt), Josh Brolin (Milk), Ralph Fiennes (The Duchess) and Robert Downey Jr. (Tropic Thunder).
Check out larger versions of the above ads in the gallery below.
Here are some stuff and things for your lazy Sunday:
-- News of that planned Arrested Development movie has finally found its way to the trades, with both Variety and The Hollywood Reporter saying that series creator Mitch Hurwitz is real close to signing a deal to write and direct the film. Ron Howard (who narrated the show), as well as the original cast, are all expected to return (we hope).
-- Two moreStar Trek character posters have arrived online, with one featuring Eric Bana as the Romulan villain Nero, and the other shows Zoe Saldana as a very sexy Uhura. These end a pretty busy week for Trek, which began with the debut of the film's first full-length trailer and a special presentation of footage by director J.J. Abrams. Check out larger versions of these posters, as well as the other two previously released character posters, in the gallery below.
-- The 5th Annual Big Apple Film Festival came to a close last night, where yours truly moderated six very fun Q&A sessions over the course of the four-day fest and was on hand for the final awards ceremony. Winning Best Feature was The Living Wake, with The Projecttaking the fest's Cityscape Award (which goes to the film that best exemplifies the city of New York). Thanks to all those Cinematical readers who stopped me to say hello!
-- Looks like Universal plans to turn those Jason Bourne films into the next James Bond franchise, as Variety tells us the studio has cut a deal with author Robert Ludlum's estate which gives Universal exclusive rights to not only the Jason Bourne character, but also a first look at other Ludlum novels. As far as a fourth Bourne film goes, Paul Greengrass and Matt Damon have already signed on, and George Nolfi is currently writing the script.
I bet you were sitting around today wondering what the director of Superbad was up to, right? That was you, right? Well, good news is Greg Mottola has been finishing up a new film called Adventureland, and based on this hilarious new trailer (which just premiered over at Rotten Tomatoes), it's got an '80s Dazed and Confused vibe written all over it ... and me likey Dazed and Confused very much.
Starring Jesse Eisenberg, Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig (the new comedic love of my life), Ryan Reynolds and Kristen Stewart (OMG, what's Bella doing in another film?!), Adventureland takes place in 1987and follows an awkward kid straight out of school who takes a gig at an amusement park, falls in love, meets a bunch of maniacs and walks away with some pretty valuable life lessons. I had the pleasure of conversing with Jesse Eisenberg earlier this week during the NY premiere of The Living Wake (one of the funniest films of this year, no doubt) at the Big Apple Film Festival, and he's a very cool dude ... AND a big fan of Cinematical, no less. Check out the trailer below; I'm really looking forward to this one. You?
There was no hotter ticket at the Toronto International Film Festival in September than The Wrestler, Darren Aronofsky's new drama about a washed-up professional body-slammer played by Mickey Rourke. I vividly recall the press screening, where every seat in the fest's largest theater was occupied by eager journalists, many of whom had sworn they'd miss whatever other films they had to as long as they could see this one.
It paid off, too -- the acclaim for the film was nearly universal. (Read Cinematical's James Rocchi's rave review here.) Now, in advance of the film's limited release on Dec. 31 (just in time to qualify for Rourke's inevitable Oscar nomination), Fox Searchlight has released the first trailer. Variety has it, and we've got it here, at the end of this post.
The trailer is good in the sense that it accurately conveys the tone of the film: moody, reflective, and only partially set in the wrestling ring. Bruce Springsteen's theme song is a nice touch. We get a few glimpses of Marisa Tomei, who plays Rourke's stripper friend (you'll catch more than a glimpse of her in the movie itself, if you know what I mean), and Evan Rachel Wood as Rourke's estranged daughter. Their performances are terrific, too, as is Aronofsky's direction -- man, I really hope this gets the Oscar attention that everyone thinks it will. It deserves it.
What do you think of the trailer? Does it make you more or less interested in the film? Let us know in the comments.
Cinematical has been given an exclusive look at the first official still for Astro Boy (see above), while our very good looking cohorts over at Moviefone have just debuted the first teaser (see below or over on Moviefone in glorious HD). Based on the popular Japanese manga and television series, this computer-animated 3-D version of Astro Boy is being produced by those wizards over at Imagi Animation Studios, and stars the voices of Freddy Highmore, Kristen Bell, Nicolas Cage, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane and Eugene Levy.
From the synopsis: "Set in futuristic Metro City, Astro Boy is about a young robot with incredible powers. Powered by pure positive "blue" energy, Astro Boy (Freddie Highmore) is endowed with super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed and the ability to fly-not to mention the purest spirit on the planet. Embarking on a journey across the planet to discover his powers, Astro Boy encounters a netherworld of robot gladiators and other comic characters, and learns the joys and emotions of being human. When he learns his friends and family are in danger, Astro Boy marshals all his awesome super powers and returns to Metro City, in a valiant effort to save everything he cares about and to embrace his place in the world."
Astro Boywill soar into theaters on October 23, 2009.
It's beginning to look a lot like Twilight ... everywhere you go. Remember the other day when I told you about that so-called review embargo on Twilight? Yeah, well ... nice try. Seems most of the major outlets (mainly newspapers) have published reviews, and they're quite positive, with Entertainment Weekly giving the film a B and Roger Ebert giving it 2.5 out of 4 stars (I imagine that's a sideways thumb?). Cinematical will publish our first review (out of two) later on tonight, but in the meantime here's a whole bunch of Twilight stuff to keep you busy:
2000 shows are already sold out this weekend for Twilight, and folks are currently projecting an opening of $45-65 million. Did Summit Entertainment step in sh*t, or what? Here's an entertaining article from the LA Times' Patrick Goldstein on "How the big studios missed the boat on Twilight."
Despite what appears to be positive feedback, Twilight is only running at 39% over at Rotten Tomatoes, though it's still early. Here's a quote from Variety's negative review: "A disappointingly anemic tale of forbidden love that should satiate the pre-converted but will bewilder and underwhelm viewers who haven't devoured Stephenie Meyer's bestselling juvie chick-lit franchise."
And finally, check out an interview with Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart from this morning's Today Show below.
In anticipation of what's sure to be the first trailer (or teaser) for Night at the Museum 2, USA Today has unloaded the first official batch of photos -- most of which show off a few of the new characters, a couple of returning characters and a cameo from Jonah Hill (who plays a security guard). Above, you'll see Ben Stiller, returning as the bumbling guard, and Bill Hader, who's playing General George Custer. Director Shawn Levy and Stiller both chat up the film, claiming it's definitely better than the first one. And with a cast that includes Robin Williams, Dick Van Dyke, Owen Wilson, Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais (all of whom are returning), Christopher Guest, Hank Azaria, Craig Robinson, Ed Helms, Eugene Levy, Bill Hader and Amy Adams, you can't really go wrong.
In the sequel, Stiller's Larry Daley goes in search of his friends (and museum pieces) Octavius (Coogan) and Jedediah (Wilson) after they're mistakenly shipped to the Smithsonian in Washington, DC. On whether this will turn into a franchise for the studio, Levy says, "There are rumblings of another installment. We would love to take this premise (further). But even to say there's a likely third film is premature. We're not going to jinx things." We've included a few more images below, then feel free to hop on over to USA Today for the rest.
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