What’s Your Number is the completely predictable and formulaic tale of Ally Darling (Anna Farris), who, in the midst of a quarter-life crisis becomes obsessed with an article she read in Marie Claire that says that anyone who has any chance of finding true love can’t sleep with more than 20 men. Doing the math, she figures she’s at 19. . .and then gets really drunk and sleeps with her douchebag boss (Joel Mchale).  Since her true love must be one of the people she’s already slept with, she goes about trying to track down all of her ex-lovers with the help of the literal boy next door Colin (Chris Evans). Predictably, sparks fly, and love triangles form between ex-boyfriends and Colin. . .and it’s just as predictable and by-the-numbers as it sounds.

What’s good? Anna Faris is as fun and charming as ever, and they really play up her ability to perform physical comedy. And if you couldn’t get enough of shirtless Chris Evans in Captain America. . . yeah, you might like this. A parade of amazing cameos of douchy ex-boyfriends, played by (I mentioned Joel Mchale– oh, and ladies, you get to see his butt. A LOT.), Thomas Lennon (Reno 911), Andy Samberg (Saturday Night Live), Chris Pratt (Parks and Recreation), Aziz Ansari (Parks and Recreation, Human Giant), Zachary Quinto (Star Trek, Heroes), Martin Freeman (The Hobbit, Sherlock, Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, The Office [UK]).  So if you’re a fan of NBC’s Thursday night lineup like I am, then you’ll be liking these cameos. We also get some great supporting performances from Blythe Danner as the mother, Ari Graynor (Fringe) as the sister who is getting married, and Eliza Coupe (Scrubs) as a bridesmaid/friend. It’s like they looked at this script and said, “well, there’s not much here. But maybe if we throw enough talented people at it the movie will be passable.”  Mission Accomplished.

And in a world where Bridesmaids hadn’t already tread over much of this same thematic material, this would be a breath of fresh air.  Wow– an R-rated chick flick! But now it, unfortunately, seems like a less fresh take on all of it. The completely predictable script and story don’t help.

You know who else doesn’t help? Ed Begley Jr. Now, I love Ed Begley. Like in “>this clip from Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job about the Cinco phone.  Or his reality show where he descends into madness as he tries to sort out his recycling and find organic fertilizer. But in this I think he’s trying to emulate his beloved trees by giving a completely wooden performance. Perhaps he was trying to lower the production’s carbon footprint by telecommuting– by phoning in a performance. Maybe the craft services table was only vegetarian rather than full vegan, or they used non-locally sourced produce. I’m not sure of the reason, but he was terrible.  C’est la vie. I’ll go back and watch his great work on Arrested Development or one of the Richard Guest movies.

I also fully disclose that I’ve seen A LOT of movies this past week at Fantastic Fest here in Austin, so my radar may be a little off because of the huge variance in quality of said genre films. But this was just ho-hum.

But there are going to be people who really like this movie. If that’s the case, please check out this deal– you can get the paperback of the book the film is based on AND a movie poster signed by the cast!!!! That’s almost worth it- again, because of how amazing this cast is.

2 1/2 stars.

The Muppets are on a mission with their new Fan-a-Thon: to get “a bazillion” (or even “gazillion”) likes on Facebook.

I’m fully on board with this mission, because if there is one thing I really and truly want it’s for there to be more awesome Muppet movies in my future. Admittedly, the Muppets hit a bit of a slump at the end of the 90’s, but I’m confident that this new movie will bring them back to us in exceptional fashion. Jason Segel and a fantastic creative team have taken up the mighty task of bringing the Muppets back, and I can’t help but root for them every step of the way. Mostly because I feel that the Muppets have become so much more than the characters themselves- in many ways they are symbols of hope, inspiring creativity, and friendship that deserve to be remembered and, in my opinion, carried on into the future.

“My hope still is to leave the world a bit better than when I got here.” – Jim Henson

Jim Henson’s 75th birthday would have been September 24th, 2011 – and the Muppet Mindset Blog posted a lot of great articles for the occasion. One article in particular, “Jim Henson’s 75th Birthday: The Effect on the World,” is especially heartfelt and a must-read. The following quote from the post really spoke to me as someone who has adored the Muppets my whole life:

“James V. Carrol (Muppet Fan Artist):  At five years old, my parents took me to see the theatrical debut of The Muppet Movie and it greatly impacted my life. I remember everything about that day. The illusion was so real that I actually believed the Swedish Chef broke the projector in the middle of the movie. Most people mistake becoming rich and famous as the goal of the film, but it’s about sharing your journey with other likeminded individuals who may be very different in every other aspect of their lives. That kind of positivity, no matter what the challenge, is how I always think of Jim Henson and is only a fraction of what his work continues to mean in my life.”

Head over to their site and give the article a read.

Passing the Muppets on to another generation is a huge deal, and it’s even bigger if this movie is as much the achievement I hope it will be. If you haven’t seen the latest trailer, “The Pig With the Froggy Tattoo,” watch it here and then head over to facebook to give the Muppets as many “likes” as you can.

And if you love Muppets music, check out the new “Green Album” featuring covers by OK GO, The Fray, Andrew Bird, Rachael Yamagata, Weezer and Hayley Williams, My Morning Jacket, Alkaline Trio and more. You can preview some of the tracks from the Album here.

Finally, the ultimate question to you, the readers. Who is your favorite Muppet and why? My favorite Muppet has always been Kermit – for his ability to bring the “whole gang” together, every time, no matter what the obstacles may be.

In 1997 Guillermo Del Toro begrudgingly released his second feature film, Mimic. Inspired by a short story by Donald A, Wollheim the film was originally developed as a short that would have appeared in an anthology called Light Years. The film, along with an adaptation of Philip K. Dick’s Impostor, were instead picked up as feature length films. During the pre-production process Del Toro watched his original concept for the story, which went through numerous drafts with a variety of writers working with Del Toro, as well as the design of the creatures in the film stray from his original vision. Studio interference continued throughout principle photography and while Del Toro remained in the director’s chair numerous scenes shot by the 2^nd unit (which apparently at one point included Robert Rodriguez) took the narrative off in directions that Del Toro disagreed with. Despite his objections these scenes made it into the theatrical release of the film.

Not that I knew any of this when I saw the film on DVD in 1998. At the time Del Toro had yet to establish himself as one of my favorite directors. I doubt I even made the connection between Cronos and Mimic until sometime after Blade 2. No, I bought Mimic based on my love for sci-fi horror films and Mira Sorvino.

Mimic offered more than the B-movie thrills I was expecting. It’s atmosphere was pervasive and brooding, the character design was brilliant and while the ending seemed a bit too rosy the script was far more intelligent than a traditional genre film, particularly on about giant cockroaches.

In Del Toro’s new director’s cut the story of the film remains pretty much the same. When a disease spread by cockroaches threatens to kill off the children of Manhattan Entomologist Susan Tyler (Sorvino) genetically engineers an insect called the Judas Breed to wipe out the cockroach population. The Judas Breed works famously but rather than dying off after one generation the insect continues to breed in the sewers of New York City. Just three years after their creation the Judas Breed have evolved in to an unimaginable threat.

What has changed is the subtext. The theatrical cut of Mimic never touched upon the philosophic and spiritual aspects of why the insects survived and evolved. The director’s cut reinstates scenes that hint at Del Toro’s original ideas that became more and more watered down with each revision of the script.

The new cut also removes all but one of the scenes shot by the 2^nd unit. The purpose of many of the exorcised scenes was to over explain aspects of the film that the producers thought audiences were too dumb to pick up on. The fact that the scenes can be removed entirely and not take away from the understanding of the film’s narrative speaks volumes.

Unlike many of the Miramax titles that are being released by Lionsgate, Mimic features new extras including a video prologue, an excellent featurette “Reclaiming Mimic” and an interesting audio commentary from Del Toro that not only talks about the making of the film, the various changes from the original storyline but also his approach to filmmaking and how Mimic forever changed the way he approached projects. Also included are featurettes on the creature design and shooting of the film as well as deleted scenes, storyboard animatics, a gag reel and the theatrical trailer.

On the surface Guillermo Del Toro’s director’s cut isn’t dramatically different from the theatrical version in that the story remains intact but the new cut is a better and more intelligent. It’s a shame that we’ll never get to see the film end in the way that Del Toro originally intended. That would have been something special. As it stands Mimic is still an excellent film that belongs in your Blu-ray collection.

Following the success of Abre los ojos (Open Your Eyes) director Alejandro Amenábar turned his attention towards his English language debut The Others. Inspired by Henry James’ novella The Turn of the Screw, The Others is a psychological ghost story about Grace Stewart (Nicole Kidman), a devote Catholic living alone with her two children in a remote house In Jersey, a British controlled island off the coast of Normandy, France. Her husband is away fighting in World War II, leaving Grace, aided by a trio of newly hired servants, to tend to the needs of her children who suffer from a rare disease that makes them allergic to sunlight.

Following the arrival of the new servants a series of strange events lead Grace to believe that there are others hiding in the house. Grace’s children talk of seeing a young boy named Victor and an old woman and while all evidence points to the supernatural Grace refuses to believe that the intruders are ghosts.

Reviews of The Others often feature comparisons to M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense. Like Shyamalan’s film, which was released two years earlier, The Others features a twist ending that completely changes the nature of the narrative. Still, despite sharing the subgenre of ghost stories, the films couldn’t feel more different in terms of setting and atmosphere. Where The Sixth Sense features a clever script set in a contemporary world Amenábar’s film features a classic gothic motif in its faux Victorian setting. It’s quite easy to forget that The Others, due to the house’s lack of electricity and constant use of oil lamps for lighting, is set during World War II and not somewhere in the late 19^th century. This is an interesting stylistic and thematic choice that connects the film with the literature that inspired it. It also helps to give the film a visual flare, captured gorgeously by cinematographer Javier Aguirresarobe (The Road), that separates it from contemporary ghost stories.

Lionsgate’s Blu-ray release contains the same bonus features of the Miramax 2-Disc release (a pair of behind-the-scenes featurettes, the trailer and a short piece on Xeroderma Pigmentosum) from 2002 minus the superfluous stills gallery. The video quality sees a reasonable boost in clarity and color that trumps not only the DVD release but also the Canadian Blu-ray release from Alliance. Audio has also been upgraded to a lossless 5.1 DTS-HD Master Audio track that is reference quality.

Warner Brothers Animation announced today that fan favorite and all around badass Nathan Fillion would be filling in the shoes of Hal Jordan in the upcoming Justice League: Doom. He joins Tim Daly as Superman and Kevin Conroy as Batman, making this one exciting movie to look forward to.

Justice League: Doom is the next full length feature after Batman: Year One and features the Justice League fending off more villains than you could shake a fist at.

From the press release:

Primetime television stars Nathan Fillion and Tim Daly, the reigning voices of Green Lantern and Superman, respectively, join an exciting group of actors reprising their famed cartoon roles in Justice League: Doom, an all-new entry in the popular series of DC Universe Animated Original Movies due in early 2012 from Warner Home Video.

Justice League: Doom finds Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Cyborg and Batman on their heels when a team of super villains discover and implement the Dark Knight’s “contingency plans” for stopping any rogue Justice League member. The story is inspired by Mark Waid’s much-heralded “JLA: Tower of Babel.”

Fillion, the star of ABC’s hit TV drama Castle, made his debut as Green Lantern/Hal Jordan in the recent Green Lantern: Emerald Knights. Fillion made his initial DCU bow as the voice of Steve Trevor in the 2008 hit Wonder Woman.

Currently headlining the cast of ABC’s popular Private Practice, Daly originated the title character’s voice in the landmark cartoon, Superman: The Animated Series. He has reprised the role in two DCU films: the 2009 extravaganza Superman/Batman: Public Enemies and the 2010 thriller Superman/Batman: Apocalypse.

In addition to current primetime stars Fillion and Daly, the cast is a grand reunion of the original group of actors who provided the voices of the Justice League for the cartoon of the same name and its follow-up, Justice League Unlimited. Reprising their roles are Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series) as Batman, Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville, Breaking In) as Flash, Susan Eisenberg (Superman/Batman: Apocalypse) as Wonder Woman and Carl Lumbly (Alias) as J’onn J’onzz/Martian Manhunter. Bumper Robinson (A Different World, Transformers: Animated) joins the cast as Cyborg.

The Justice League faces two sets of villainous teams in the film – The Royal Flush Gang and a sextet of notable evildoers. The latter group includes three voice acting alumni of the Justice League animated series: Phil Morris (Smallville, Seinfeld) as Vandal Savage, Olivia d’Abo (The Wonder Years) as Star Sapphire, and Alexis Denisof (Angel) as Mirror Master. Also opposing our heroes are Carlos Alazraqui (Reno 911) as Bane, Paul Blackthorne (The Dresden Files) as Metallo, and Claudia Black (Farscape, Stargate SG-1) as Cheetah.

David Kaufman (Danny Phantom) also reprises his Justice League role of Jimmy Olsen.

The film is executive produced by Bruce Timm (Batman: Year One), and directed by Lauren Montgomery (Batman: Year One), who is also credited as producer alongside Alan Burnett (Batman: The Animated Series). Justice League: Doom is the final script from the late Dwayne McDuffie (All-Star Superman, Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths). Casting and dialogue direction is once again in the capable hands of Andrea Romano (Batman: Year One, SpongeBob SquarePants).

In 2009 special makeup effects artist Robert Green Hall made his directorial debut with the film Laid to Rest. While the script was nothing too exciting gore fans were drawn to the film’s ample amount of blood and guts as well as the film’s killer Chrome Skull. Chrome Skull’s unique characteristics being his chrome-skull mask and the video camera mounted on his shoulder to document his recreational activities.

ChromeSkull picks up exactly where Laid to Rest ended. Chrome Skull, having just had his head bashed in, is rushed away to a medical facility in hopes of saving his life. It seems that Chrome Skull is a wealthy overlord with a loyal following of minions including Preston (Brian Austin Green), a psychopath in his own right, and personal assistant Spann (Danielle Harris). Spann spends her time trying to raise Chrome Skull’s spirits by enticing him with video footage of a possible new target. Meanwhile Preston, believing that Chrome Skull won’t recover, looks to establish himself as the new killer in town.

While I wasn’t nearly as taken with Chrome Skull as many horror fans were the last thing I wanted to learn was that he was a wealthy eccentric that gets away with his nasty habits simply because his money makes him untouchable. I suppose it’s a bit more realistic than the supernatural elements behind Freddy Kruger or Jason Voorhees but it’s hardly the sort of thing that enhances the mystic of a character.

Not that ChromeSkull is actually about Chrome Skull. It’s more about Preston running around in Chrome Skull’s chrome skull. This builds up to a final showdown that doesn’t make up for the general lack of tension that precedes it.

Hall is a talented makeup artist with a wild imagination when it comes to making a death scene but when it comes to writing a script or squeezing good performances out of his actors he comes up short. Yes, the film might be the crème de la crème when it comes to gore but if you want anything more engrossing than that you’ll have to look elsewhere.

Now, this is only an interesting bit of tabloid news from the set of The Avengers (no, really, the source is The National Enquirer):

Apparently Robert Downey, Jr., dressed as Iron Man, hit a wrong button on his costume and smacked Scarlett Johansson in the face, knocking her off the platform they were on.

From the Metro.Co.Uk report:

The actor was waiting to film scenes with his glamorous co-star in their new movie and was fiddling with the hi-tech gadgets attached to his outfit.

Downey Jr, 46, hit the ‘wrong’ button, which controls one of the arms and hit Scarlett – who plays Black Widow in the movie – in the face.

A source said: ‘It suddenly jerked backward and whacked poor Scarlett. ‘Knocked silly, she staggered backward, then lost her balance and fell off the low platform they were standing on.’

I guess this tells us that Iron Man and Black Widow share scenes in costume.

Basically, I’m so excited for The Avengers, I’m willing to pass on any scrap of news about it until it comes out.

For anyone following the current Netflix debacle, it has become clear that something is a awry at the offices of the “golden company”. To most of us watching from afar the decision process with Netflix seems less planned and more panic after their monstrous stock drop and million plus customer loss. With blood in the water it was only a matter of time before someone took a stab at creating a product to wrestle away the attention of the media hungry masses.

Judging by the announcements this morning shown on CNET, and The Washington Post. I’d say we’re in for a new streaming service that can hopefully compete with Netflix. Dish Network sent out invites to their “Stream Come True” event that airs at 10:00 am PT. Using their ownership of Blockbusters media assets they are rumored to begin offering direct streaming of their content to current Dish customers, which then may blossom into a full service streaming program.

Dish Network may be able to use their already active connection to gain easier relationships with companies like Time Warner and the other cable giants, as well as Starzz, HBO, and other premium providers. The biggest worry I have is will the new service be sold a la carte like current cable packages, or will we see a nice flat rate to access the content of our choice. With Dish already being so involved in the cable/satellite distribution market I don’t know if I have faith that they’ll care to match the value proposition that we have been enjoying through Netflix as customers.

Check back later today to find out if our media golden age is coming to an abrupt end or blossoming into a fruitful future.

Warner Brothers has been kind enough to debut this scene of Batman: Year One with us.

It comes out on Blu-ray and DVD October 11.

From their release:

The all-new, PG-13 rated film arrives October 18, 2011 from Warner Home Video as a Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD ($16.99 on Amazon) , On Demand and for Download.

There is also an opportunity to download-for-purchase in an early window starting October 11 through iTunes, Xbox Live, Zune, VUDU HD Movies and Video Unlimited on the PlayStation Network & Sony Entertainment Network.

Batman: Year One is based on the landmark 1987 DC Comics titles from 12-time Eisner Award winner Frank Miller and illustrator David Mazzucchelli. The film depicts young Bruce Wayne’s return to Gotham City in his first attempts to fight injustice as a costumed vigilante. The playboy billionaire chooses the guise of a giant bat to combat crime, creates an early bond with a young Lieutenant James Gordon (who is already battling corruption from inside the police department), inadvertently plays a role in the birth of Catwoman, and helps to bring down a crooked political system that infests Gotham.

Primetime television stars Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Ben McKenzie (Southland, The O.C.), Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse, Buffy the Vampire Slayer) and Katee Sackhoff (Battlestar Galactica) provide the core voices for Batman: Year One. Three-time Emmy® Award winner Cranston gives voice to young Jim Gordon, while McKenzie makes his animated voiceover debut as Bruce Wayne/Batman. Fanboy favorites Dushku and Sackhoff fill the roles of Selina Kyle/Catwoman and Detective Sarah Essen, respectively. Alex Rocco (The Godfather) is the voice of crime lord Carmine Falcone.

Animation master Bruce Timm is executive producer of Batman: Year One. Directors are Lauren Montgomery (Superman/Batman: Apocalypse) and Sam Liu (All-Star Superman) from a script penned by Academy Award® nominee Tab Murphy (Gorillas in the Mist, Superman/Batman: Apocalypse).

When the bank threatens to foreclose on his mother’s house Paul (Kevin Zegers) masterminds the perfect plan to kidnap three socialites and extort their parents into paying for their release. But perfect plans have a way of unraveling as Paul enlists the help of outcasts Dean (Devon Bostick) and Jenna (Tatiana Maslany) who want more than money; they want to make a statement.

With a supporting cast that includes Ray Liotta, Victor Garber and Stephen McHattie The Entitled proves to be a better-than-expected thriller that offers up a few unexpected twists along with its clichés and cookie-cutter characters. William Morrissey’s script isn’t nearly as sharp as it needs to be as some of the characters feel too manic and one-sided but it has some interesting ideas inspired by the current state of the economy. The performances are decent, but Bostick and Maslany are a little too over the top to feel real. This might be a product of the writing but director Aaron Woodley should have reeled them in. The Entitled is a good direct-to-video release that is worthy of a rental.

Anchor Bay has included a brief behind-the-scenes featurette and a slightly different alternate ending. Neither are essential viewing.