Category Archives: Movie News & Opinions

Haunter: Trailer for New Vincenzo Natali Horror Flick

After a tremendous start with the low-budget horror film Cube, director Vincenzo Natali has had a hit or miss track record since, most recently being the tantalizing, twisted film Splice. But if his films prove anything, it’s that they’re different, which to me, warrants a viewing.

So that brings us to his newest flick Haunter starring Abigail Breslin (Little Miss Sunshine) in the lead, and Stephen McHattie (300, Hellmouth) as I believe the antagonistic killer. The listed premise seems intentionally vague, which could mean there’s quite a few twists in the film that are hidden, cause the trailer hints at more, but here it is via IMDb : The ghost of a teenager who died years ago reaches out to the land of the living in order to save someone from suffering her same fate. Check out the Haunter trailer below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EW_r7UKbk7w

The trailer is pretty good, giving us a hint that the film hopefully pushes the boundaries of the standard haunted house flick. That said, reviews I’ve read so far have been mixed, with some saying it’s better than the average horror film, but others straight up panning it. Then again, Natali’s other films weren’t for everyone, so if you’re a fan of his previous flicks, this could be right up your ally. The official synopsis of Haunter can be seen on the SXSW website, but other sites have reported it gives away hidden details, so I’ll leave it up to you if you want to read it.

Haunter hits theaters and Video-on-Demand October 18th.

American Hustle: First Trailer for David O. Russell’s New Film

The first trailer for David O. Russell’s follow-up to Silver Linings Playbook has been released, giving a first look at the tremendous cast, 70’s flare, and somewhat atrocious hair cuts. Leading the film is Christian Bale (Dark Knight Trilogy) and Bradley Cooper (The Hangover Trilogy) as the former being a con man recruited to help the latter, an FBI agent. In addition to those two big names are Academy Award winners and ‘O. Russell’ alums, Jenifer Lawrence (Silver Linings Playbook) and Robert De Niro (The Godfather Part II). But wait, there’s more well-known faces in Jeremy Renner (The Hurt Locker), Amy Adams (Man of Steel), and Louis C. K. (Blue Jasmine). Co-written by O. Russell, this seems to be a sure contender come next February. Keep your eyes peeled for this, and check out the trailer below.

Originally titled ‘American Bullshit’, the script made the blacklist (an unofficial list of the top un-produced scripts voted on by producers) in 2010, and was bought by Sony Pictures who lined up David O. Russell to direct. The story goes as follows, a fictional take on the 1970’s FBI sting operation know as Abscam that follows a con-man and an FBI agent as they try to turn the table on other cons, mobsters, and politicians in the area.

The film is due out December 13th, and if Columbia shelling out what ever insane amount for a Led Zeppelin song is telling, they are gonna spend as much as they can to market this film in the coming months.

‘X-Men: Days of Future Past’ – Viral Website Reveals Bolivar Trask and Sentinels!

That Bryan Singer is one sneaky little bleeder. Over the past few months Singer has done a superb job at raising the excitement levels of X-Men: Days of Future Past by dropping sneaky little Tweets and Instagram shots of new characters, costumes, set design and those beautiful character posters during Comic Con.

Peter Dinklage as Bolivar Trask

Now the promo job seems to have set itself into viral mode with the launch of www.Trask-Industries.com. The website itself was launched a little while ago during San Diego Comic Con, but at that time there was very little up on the site. Today there seems to have been a major update that gives us our first shot of everyone’s favorite Lannister, Peter Dinklage, in full 70’s Bolivar Trask get up.

We are also treated to a great little propaganda style Trask Industries infomercial explaining how, if the X-Gene is allowed to continue propagating without limit, that homo sapiens could cease to exist by the year 2030.

The website also gives us a nifty little bit of X-history with a timeline of the Sentinel program as well as the big reveal of the Sentinels themselves.

First Look at a Sentinel in DoFP

Now, this all sets up the premise and tone of the film very nicely and obviously starts to point us towards the dystopian future that Wolverine, Kitty Pride and the rest of the X-team inhabit. I imagine that most of the material used here, or at least the premise it sets up, will be covered briefly within the opening scenes or credits of the film once it is released. In the meantime it gives us good insight into were they are going with the film. One of X-Men: First Class’ main accomplishments I feel was the tone. By the looks of things so far, Bryan Singer has really picked up on that and is stylistically aiming to conjoin the two cinematic threads.

I particularly like the ‘Mutants are the Enemy’ posters that were popping up around SDCC and on the web. which you can see more of at the link above.

Mutants are the Enemy promo for Days of Future Past

There are a few things that worry me about X-Men: DOFP, though. I loved X-Men: First Class. In my opinion it was the strongest of all the X-films (I wonder how many more X-idioms I can use). It’s my opinion that the film that X-Men: DOFP bridges First Class with (X-Men: The Last Stand) is probably the worst. Singer revealed to UK magazine Empire that the future set parts take place 10 years after The Last Stand. This leaves a lot of questions to be answered, such as how Professor X is now inhabiting the body of Patrick Stewart again, and not that bloke in the bed who he ‘mind-swapped’? Also, there does seem to be a rather bloated cast. Will there be enough time to give them all the screen time they deserve and not turn it into the cameo fest that was The Last Stand.

Sentinels and the Government in DoFP

Ultimately, this could all be explained very easily and done satisfyingly. I for one am more excited to see this and hopefully Singer and co. will pull out all the stops to avoid X-fanboy ire.

X-Men: Days of Future Past hits theaters on May 23, 2014.

‘The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’ Trailer Is Here & It Looks Amazing

Wow. The fact that a trailer forgoes relying on the “directed by…” or the “starring…”, and instead leaves us with beautifully imagery and an accompanying song that sets the mood really means something. Directed by Ben Stiller (Tropic Thunder, Zoolander), and along with starring as the lead, he is joined by a solid cast including Kristin Wiig (Bridesmaids), Adam Scott (Parks and Rec.), and Sean Penn (Milk). The film was given a 20 minute preview at CinemCon that got rave reviews with some even hailing it as a major Oscar contender. While obviously they only saw a snippet of the film, it’s still nice to hear good things, cause boy does this trailer make me believe those comments.

Also, a little shout out to Of Monsters and Men whose song “Dirty Paws” is used in the trailer. It fits great for the trailer, and I highly recommend the rest of their album, My Head is an Animal.

Based off James Thurber’s classic tale of the same name, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Ben Stiller stars as a magazine writer who constantly fantasizes about story book elements such as heroism, romance, and action, day-dreaming the themes into his life. When his and his co-worker’s jobs are in danger, Walter embarks on a global journey that could be the real life adventure he has always imagined.

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty

The film is due out Christmas Day, which is perfect timing for a rumored Oscar contender.

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire Trailer Impresses

About two years since the release of The Hunger Games, it’s not surprising that a sequel is being made. Making near 700 million at the box office, fast tracking this follow up book was inevitable. Almost all the main cast returns, including the now Academy Award winner Jennifer Lawrence as the main protagonist Katniss. Check out the The Hunger Games: Catching Fire trailer below.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keT5CRhhy84

Adding to the already incredible cast from the first flick are even more incredible actors, such as Phillip Seymour Hoffman (The Master) and Jeffrey Wright, who will also be arriving soon in Atlantic City as seen in this Boardwalk Empire trailer.

While the first film, in my opinion, was paced oddly, hopefully the two Academy Award winning writers, Simon Beaufoy (Slumdog Millionaire) and Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3, Star Wars: Episode VII), can fix that. Also added to the mix is a new director, Francis Lawrence (I Am Legend), who’s pedigree may not be top notch, but seeing that he’s signed on to the next two iterations in the series, The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 and Part 2, he must have a unique view of the worlds that warrants his stay in the franchise.

Catching Fire Poster

The story takes place almost right after the first film, when Katniss and companion Peeta, return home after winning the 74th Annual Hunger Games. Shortly preceding their embark on a “Victory Tour” through all the districts. Sensing an uprising brewing in the districts, Katniss is pulled between the people and President Snow, the man in control of everything. With the 75th Annual Hunger Games about to commence, Katniss is forced back into the games due to the Quarter Quell, an event every 25 years that brings up the victors of the previous competitions to face off. As Woody Harrelson puts it in the trailer, “Last year was child’s play”. Hopefully that means a chance to amp up the action, and thrill of the games that I found missing in the first film. And yes, the love triangle seems to be very prevalent in the sequel.

hunger_games_catching_fire_poster

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire is due out November 22.

The Iceman Trailer Gives Us Another Reason to Love Michael Shannon

With an all-star cast, an unbelievable true story, and a period setting, it’s remarkable that The Iceman got such a limited release and such little buzz.  Directed by relative unknown Ariel Vromen, the film is based on the true story of Richard Kuklinski, who not only was a contract killer who worked for various mobs over 30 plus years, but managed to hold a stable family that knew nothing of his work. Michael Shannon stars as Kuklinski with Winona Ryder playing his wife. Chris Evans, Ray Liotta and a few other well-known faces join the two as well. Originally given a limited release last May, the film did poorly, only earning back about an eighth of its 10 million budget. Now coming to DVD soon, this movie will have a second chance to reach an audience. While I have not seen the film myself, reviews have been mostly positive. Plus by the looks of the trailer, Shannon seems to be putting in one hell of a performance. This seems like something to keep your eyes out for in the coming months. Check out the trailer, and then read on if you want to know more about the true story.

The Iceman is hitting DVD and Blu-Ray on September 3. Here’s a little more background on the true story of Kuklinski for those interested. Richard Kuklinski grew up in an abusive family in Jersey City, New Jersey. Between his brother dying at the hands of his father’s abuse, his other brother going to prison for murder, and the constant beatings by his mother, Kuklinski had a tough upbringing. First going through the ranks as a loan shark, the DeCavalante crime family eventually caught wind of his ruthless, no nonsense tactics, and in the mid 1950’s hired him for his first hit. From there sprung a period of about 30 years, where he jumped across various crime families in New York City performing assassinations for money. In this period, he claimed to have committed over 100 killings, but at the same time, was in a healthy marriage with three children all while keeping his entire work private to his family.  In 1986, Kuklinski was finally caught by undercover cops and was incarcerated. The oddest part of the story is the media frenzy that sprung up. During incarceration, and until his death in 2006, Kuklinski provided multiple interviews on his time as a contract killer, had two documentaries made on his life and had two biographies written about him. While clearly no saint, Kuklinski had a quite an interesting story that could make one hell of a film. Hopefully, The Iceman is just that.

Iceman - Michael Shannon

In addition, here’s a test scene with Michael Shannon as Kuklinski that was shot about a year prior to production on The Iceman. If you want to get a better sense of Shannon’s dark and soft-spoken portrayal, without spoiling any of the flick, check out the clip below.