Forget James Bond, it’s always a good day when you can see new material from a master of cinema like Paul Thomas Anderson.

This new trailer is full of style and wonder and I can’t wait to see this film. It’s a fictionalized account of L. Ron Hubbard’s founding of Scientology. Think Citizen Kane for Scientology. Jeez.

Just the thought of that thrills me. I can’t begin to describe how I imagine seeing the actual movie is going to make me feel.

And this teaser doesn’t even show us the lead of the film: Phillip Seymour Hoffman, who always outdoes himself in PT Anderson pictures.

This film hits theatres in October and has officially rocketed to the top of my must see in 2012 list, right behind Prometheus.

[/via Badass Digest]

This year the Bond movie franchise turns 50 and it looks like we are getting one bad ass movie to celebrate! While the last movie in the Daniel Craig films left a little something to be desired, Casino Royale might just be the best Bond movie to date. Will Skyfall be just as good? I don’t know, but with Javier Bardem playing the villain and Sam Mendes directing It’ll be hard for it not to be.

Recently  The Daily Beast posted an article by Michael Tomasky in which he briefly describes what he considers to be some of Steven Spielberg’s most overrated and underrated films.  I feel that I must share my own views on this.

Regular readers probably know by now that I love Spielberg.  LOVE.  I think my adoration with him began when I realized he at the very least produced and in several cases directed most of my favorite childhood movies.  And even though his focus and themes have changed over the years, I remain ever loyal to his cinematic greatness.

That being said, there are of course films of his that I like better than others.  And, with the exception of Tintin and 1941, I have watched every single one of his full-length feature films.  So without further adieu, I share my thoughts on just a few of Spielberg’s films (though I’ll divide my list between Love and Didn’t Love).

Love

Schindler’s List: Tomasky felt this film was overrated, but even now I can’t listen to the theme without getting chills.  In fact, it was on a mix CD in my car just this morning.  Itzhak Perlman’s violin talent is pure perfection when paired with John Williams’ composition.  The movie is stark, brutal, and yet beautifully shot.  The little girl in the red coat haunted me long after the last credits rolled, and the performances by Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes were brilliant.

The first three Indiana Jones movies:  Harrison Ford.  George Lucas.  Steven Spielberg.  A trio of greatness.  I know many people didn’t love Last Crusade, but I simply adore it.  (“We named the DOG Indiana!” cracks me up every time.)  And Raiders is just great fun.  And while Temple of Doom is my least favorite of the original three, it has a great opening scene in Club Obi-Wan, and a guy gets his heart ripped out of his chest.  Don’t tell me you didn’t love that scene as a kid, and probably still do.

Jurassic Park: Ok, it departed from the book a bit, but the scenery is breathtaking, and this is arguably the film that truly ushered in the digital age.  No more stop-motion.  CGI had made all other forms of special effects nearly extinct.  I remember seeing this in the theater and was blown away at the superb sound quality, and boy, those impact tremors on the big screen.  I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve watched this film.

E.T.: This film has entered into family lore, and I hope my dear relative isn’t embarrassed by this.  But the story is that when a family member (who shall remain nameless) saw the government agents searching for E.T. at the beginning of the film, he shouted, “G.I. Joe is there!”  Out loud.  In the movie theater.  Of course, he was maybe three at the time, so it was somewhat understandable.  But this is a movie about feeling alone and misunderstood and finding someone you can connect with, even if they happen to be from another planet and prefer Reese’s Pieces over M&M’s.

Hook: Honestly, when I first watched Hook, I didn’t love it.  I think the thought of Peter Pan growing old depressed me a little.  But upon further viewings (it came on cable a lot), I realized what a beautiful film it is.  It’s about growing up but retaining your youth.  It’s about believing in the unbelievable, of loving your family, of embracing your destiny.  And when Peter soars over Neverland, I feel like I’m soaring right along with him.  Oh, and Dustin Hoffman as Hook is fantastic.  There’s a vulnerability to him that almost makes us sad when the crocodile gets him one last time.

Didn’t Love

Always: I didn’t hate this film, either, but I never really connected with it.  I’ve seen it a few times and mostly recall the cinematography.  The haziness, the muted colors, like watching the events through a gauzy curtain.  It’s not bad, but it’s not great.

Amistad: I wanted to love this film.  Brilliant casting, strong performances, but all I remember from it is a lot of scenes in a courtroom, and there’s enough of that on television.  I need to go back and view it again, and maybe I’ll appreciate it more, but it just felt long and boring to me.  It was the film that brought acclaim to Djimon Hounsou, though, and I think he’s an incredible actor, both in Amistad and Gladiator.

Indiana Jones & the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: This movie just made me sad.  Sad at how Harrison Ford had aged so visibly in between this and the previous Indy installments, sad at how the story wasn’t better.  The characters weren’t more memorable.  Though I did love that they brought Marion back, but I’m not a fan of Shia.  My favorite part actually was the brief mention of Indy’s time with Pancho Villa, which was a subtle reference to the premiere episode of The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles, and my first introduction to Sean Patrick Flanery.

So there you have it.  My thoughts on just a few of this director’s films.  If you made it this far, then feel free to share your own favorite (or not-so-favorite) Spielberg films, since this list is only the tip of the iceberg.

Variety is reporting that the front-runner for the next Highlander film is none other than Ryan Reynolds, the boyish-looking nice guy in romantic comedies as well as the hunky katana-wielding Deadpool in the Wolverine movie.

This is all still very up in the air, though, as there’s no indication an official offer has been made, and Reynolds is reportedly weighing all his options.   But who wouldn’t want to join the Highlander franchise?  He’d have the chance to go around and say, “There can be only one!” and then chop off someone’s head.  Who wouldn’t want to go into work and do that every day?

His latest film release Safe House earned over $120 million, which more than earned back its $85 million production budget.  In Hollywood terms, that’s no doubt a hit (though nothing like the mega-success of Avengers), so he certainly has offers to consider.

Summit acquired the film rights in 2008, and the original films starred Christopher Lambert.

Without having seen him as Deadpool, I might doubt Reynolds’ abilities to portray an action character, but he has shown the ability to portray a variety of characters.  (I only saw a few minutes of Green Lantern and therefore cannot comment on his action abilities in that film).  But, I think he has range, and it will be interesting to see what happens next in the casting phase.

Okay, no need to panic yet, but despite being a $1 Billion+ success in the box office and receiving high praise all across the board, Joss Whedon is “torn” about returning for another go with Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.

“You know, I’m very torn,” Whedon said in a sit-down interview in Beverly Hills before the film’s U.S. opening. “It’s an enormous amount of work telling what is ultimately somebody else’s story, even though I feel like I did get to put myself into it. But at the same time, I have a bunch of ideas, and they all seem really cool.”

[LA Times, Hero Complex]

I mentioned on the latest Big Shiny Podcast that my excitement level for an Avengers sequel is going to be directly tied to whether or not Joss Whedon directs it. Are there other capable directors out there that could take on such a film? Sure. But Whedon has set the bar so damn high, the only person I could envision once again meeting this level of awesome, or even exceeding it, is Joss Whedon.

That said, we are still at least three years away from a sequel to The Avengers, and the film has only been out in the states for two weeks with many fans returning for second, third and fourth viewings. The excitement is still there so it may be too soon to start talking – or worrying – about what will come in the sequel. Not to mention we have a ton of Marvel movies coming at us between now and then with Iron Man 3, Thor 2, and Captain America 2 all ready to get rolling.

So, yes, the mere thought of Joss Whedon not coming back to direct the sequel to The Avengers is a sad one. But for right now lets continue to enjoy the Avengers movie he has given us, in all its glory! I think I may have enjoyed The Avengers even more on my second viewing than the first, and I plan to see it at least one more time before it leaves theaters. I’m sure as we move forward over the next few years, Whedon will have a better idea if he would like to return to direct a sequel, but I’m guessing for right now he is probably still reeling from the monster success of this first Avengers film and Summer of 2015 is pretty far off in his mind.

Should Joss Whedon not return to direct a sequel (GASP!), who do you think could bring us a worthy follow-up to The Avengers?
Sound off in the comments below!

Warner Brothers is screening one of the greatest films of all time on Facebook tonight for everyone.

Casablanca is a movie every self-respecting geek and lover of cinema should see and they’re making it as easy as pie for you. All you have to do is have a facebook account and you can watch it communally with all of your friends and live chat about it.

I’m wondering if this method of film streaming will catch on. People are becoming more and more isolated in their lives, living more and more of it on the computer, is this the next step of social media?

We’ll see how it goes.

But don’t miss this opportunity to watch this movie for free. It’s one of my favorites (I caught a 35mm screening just a few months ago) and you shouldn’t miss it.

Here’s the press release with more information:

BURBANK, CALIF., May 15, 2012 – Here’s looking at you kid! Warner Bros. Digital Distribution today announced the legendary film “Casablanca” – which critic Leonard Maltin calls “the best Hollywood movie of all time,” starring Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman and winner of three Academy Awards^®, including Best Picture (1944), can be viewed directly on the “Casablanca” movie Facebook Page (http://www.facebook.com/CasablancaTheMovie).  On Wednesday, May 16 movie fans across the United States are invited to microwave some popcorn and gather by the warm glow of the computer monitor to enjoy a complimentary showing this timeless love story at 7 pm ET and 7 pm PT.

This complimentary screening of “Casablanca” celebrates the recent launch of the “Casablanca 70^th Anniversary Three-disc Blu-ray + DVD Combo Edition” from Warner Home Video.  This limited and numbered gift set edition will introduce two never-before-seen documentaries – “Casablanca: An Unlikely Classic,” and “Michael Curtiz: The Greatest Director You Never Heard Of.”  The new documentaries will complete the most extensive collection of content in one gift set — more than 14 hours of bonus material that also includes a compilation of three comprehensive feature length documentaries: “The Brothers Warner, You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story” and “Jack L. Warner: The Last Mogul.”  The “Casablanca 70^th Anniversary 3-Disc Blu ray + DVD Combo Edition” is now available for $64.99 SRP.

This special screening event also celebrates “Inside the Script,” a new digital publishing initiative that gives movie fans an innovative new way to go deep inside their favorite films.  “Inside the Script” is a series of highly illustrated eBooks that contain the film’s actual shooting script, rare materials from the Warner Bros. Corporate Archive and much more. The first series of “Inside the Script” titles are based on cinematic treasures including, “Casablanca,” “Ben-Hur,” “An American in Paris” and “North by Northwest,” and are currently available via iBookstore, Kindle and NOOK by Barnes & Noble.

“Inside the Script” offers movie fans an all-access pass to go behind-the-scenes of the films they know and love. Every “Inside the Script” title includes the film’s complete shooting script in a customizable eBook format; dozens of chapters about the script and the film that detail the movie’s development; rare historical documents such as production notes, storyboards and candid photos; and an interactive image gallery of costumes, on-set stills, movie posters, set designs and behind-the-scenes photos.

Highlighted elements from “Casablanca: Inside the Script” include:
– Jack Warner’s telegrams and memos
– Producer Hal Wallis’ script and production notes
– Production Code Administration letters, notes and seal of approval
– Telegram from producer Hal Wallis refuting his fight with Jack Warner

Note: Movie fans must begin watching “Casablanca” prior to 9 pm PT through the film’s Facebook Page.  Only one screening per Facebook account is permitted.  Additional details on the screening can be found at (http://www.facebook.com/CasablancaTheMovie).

 

Below is the new “Extended Trailer” for the Amazing Spider-Man movie coming out this July. The trailer starts with a new scene we haven’t seen yet. The Lizard seems to be running amok tossing cars off a bridge while Peter tries to save each one. One of the cars still has a little boy inside. A pretty strong scene, at least for me. The last 10 seconds involve a new bit revolving around Peter and Gwen. Other than that, you’ve seen it all in pervious trailers.

In today’s “Boo-F&$%ing-Hoo News”, apparently some 63 people are upset because Thor points out that his brother Loki is adopted in the film, Marvel’s The Avengers.

Mark the date people, this is the date we are officially not allowed to joke about anything, ever, because it might just happen to rub 63 people the wrong way.

For the seven people out there who have yet to see this film, allow me to present you with the dialogue from The Avengers that has just upset 63 people to the point of not being able to function in their daily lives until Marvel/Disney issue an apology:

Steve Rogers: I wanna know why Loki let us take him. He’s not leading an army from here.

Bruce Banner: I don’t think we should be focusing on Loki. That guy’s brain is a bag full of cats. You can smell crazy on him.

Thor: Take care how you speak. Loki is beyond reason, but he is of Asgard. And he is my brother.

Natasha Romanoff: He killed eighty people in two days.

Thor: He’s adopted.

Grab your pitchforks everyone! Thor just implied that all adopted people are destined to become mass-murderers! You know, or not.

Jamie Berke was so upset by this line from The Avengers she started a petition. Setting her sights reasonably low, she is looking for 100 signatures.

Marvel Comics – with one line that you carelessly failed to edit out of the script for the Avengers movie, you have insulted adopted children, adult adoptees, and adoptive parents!

In your new movie, The Avengers, the character Black Widow says “He (Loki) killed 80 people in 2 days.” Then the Thor character replies, “He’s adopted.”

Sooo..according to your scriptwriter, the fact he was adopted is the reason he is a bad guy!

Being adopted is NOT something to use for the butt of jokes! Marvel, immediately cease using adoption as the butt of jokes AND issue a public apology to the adoption community!

Miss Berke, the implication made here is not that the reason Loki is evil is because he is adopted, but that Thor is merely distancing himself from the atrocities his brother has committed by noting that he is not blood-related, and in my opinion, inferring that his evil tendencies have nothing to do with his upbringing by Odin (their father) – also it’s a joke and a factual plot point. Throughout the entire film Thor pleads with his brother (aside from this one instance not once does Thor refer to him as anything but just “brother”) to stop the madness he is bringing down on the world, even trying to appeal to fond childhood memories and the close bond they shared growing up. It is very clear that Thor thinks of Loki as nothing but family. Why am I even explaining this?!

All joking aside, adoption is an awesome thing. It brings children to families who perhaps cannot have children of their own (an issue very close to my own heart), and it brings families to those children who -for a multitude of reasons- don’t have one, I get why it can be a sensitive subject. But I find it incredibly hard to believe that the adoption community as a whole are so offended by an off-hand joke in a movie, nor were they ignorant enough to perceive that it in anyway implied that adopted people are evil.

If you are adopted or are a relative of an adopted family member, I would love to hear your thoughts on this. Leave them in the comments below!

Disney CEO Bob Iger has announced that Avengers 2 is now officially a “go.” With opening weekend sales well above $200 million (and that’s only in the US!) we were pretty sure this announcement was on its way.

With the current lineup set for Iron Man 3, Captain America 2, and Thor 2 – most guesses put the tentative release of Avengers 2 for sometime in 2015.

If you still haven’t seen The Avengers (are you CRAZY?) then I really, honestly am telling you that you should get out there and see what is sure to be the most awesome movie of the year. It climbed my top movies list all the way to the top 5 along with Empire Strikes Back, Last Crusade, and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. I spent most of the film laughing, cheering and clapping along with everyone  around me in a completely packed Los Angeles theater. The whole night was one of the best real movie-going experiences I’ve had in a long time – one where I spent every second absolutely engrossed in the film. I was actually relatively shocked after it had ended that it had really been almost two and a half hours long. Usually, I’m not a huge fan of long movies, but I didn’t want The Avengers to end.

Also, since not many people have commented on this yet, I wanted to say that I was pretty happy with Colbie Smulder’s performance as Shield Agent Maria Hill. If you haven’t seen this awesome photo circulating around the internet yet please allow me to share its awesomeness with you:

Have I really not convinced you to go see The Avengers yet? Watch this and re-consider:

John Carter (of Mars) was way better than you gave it credit for. And it deserved way more money at the box office, but the marketing team failed it. This trailer is MUCH better than the others they used, but it’s still not the right one, for my money.

But if you made the mistake of missing this on the big screen, do yourself a favor and pick it up on Blu-ray.

It comes out June 5 and you can pre-order it now.