Entertainment Today and Beyond

Never Met a Zombi I Didn’t Like…

Everyone’s Fine trailer

everybody's fineMiramax has released the trailer for Everybody’s Fine, a new Robert Deniro vehicle. Deniro stars as “a widower who embarks on an impromptu road trip to reconnect with each of his grown children only to discover that their lives are far from picture perfect.”

Drew Barrymore, Kate Beckinsale and Sam Rockwell costar in the movie which looks like it will have strong mainstream appeal. Actually I’m getting pretty sick of hearing a cry in some internet site circles knocking anything that appears too mainstream. I didn’t know that art house films were supporting the movie industry. I think this looks pretty good although it’s hard not to watch Deniro and think that he won’t be whacking someone in any given frame. Everyone’s Fine hits theaters December 4, 2009. Take a LOOK

September 18, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | Leave a Comment

Paranormal Activity Trailer



Paranormal activityParanormal Activity: This small horror flick made for the amazingly small amount of only $11,000 has garnered some terrific buzz after being screened at the Screamfest and Slamdance film festivals. Paramount just recently picked up the distribution rights hoping they can catch lighting in a bottle and wind up with a Blair Witch Project type success. Actually I hope it’s a lot better since the Blair Witch Project was almost all hype and very little payoff except for its last few minutes which I admit were pretty creepy.

Anyway, Paramount will release Paranormal Activity in select cities on Sept 25th hoping that word of mouth can get it a wider nationwide release soon after. Synopsis: After a young, middleclass couple (Katie Featherton and Micah Sloat) move into what seems like a typical suburban “starter” tract house. They become increasingly disturbed by a presence that may or may not be demonic but is certainly most active in the middle of the night, especially when they sleep… or try to. I really like the way the studio cut this trailer which features audience reaction during a screening. This trailer certainly has peaked my interest. Take a LOOK

September 16, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , , , , | Leave a Comment

R.I.P. PATRICK SWAYZE

Road House picHere’s a clip from my favorite Patrick Swayze film Road House, a movie I saw three times in its first week in release in 1989. It’s one of those great high octane b-movies that has tremendous entertainment value I can watch anyday of the week.

  

September 15, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , , | Leave a Comment

The Twilight New Moon Trailer

new-moon-new-moon-movieIt’s almost hard to believe how hot vampires are right now on the big screen with the Twilight franchise, and on TV with the wildly entertaining HBO series True Blood. Even the new CW program, The Vampire Diaries, garnered the largest premiere ratings in that networks history with almost 5 million viewers.

In many ways I think Warner Bros. should take a serious run at reviving its Lost Boys franchise for the big screen. I think it would do quite well if you put some quality talent behind it. As it stands now the third Lost Boys film will be a direct to DVD effort like the second installment in the series. Anyway, here’s a LOOK at the newest New Moon trailer which appears to up the intensity anti from the first movie.

September 15, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | Leave a Comment

Clooney’s Up in the Air getting great reviews

upintheair posterIf the overwhelmingly positive reaction at both the Telluride and Toronto Film Festivals are any indication this Jason Reitman (Juno) film starring George Clooney should be a major player come award season. Clooney plays Ryan Bingham, a corporate downsizing expert, whose cherished life on the road is threatened just as he is on the cusp of reaching ten million frequent flyer miles and met the frequent-traveler woman of his dreams. Verma Farmiga (The Departed) co-stars.

Here are some of glowing reviews coming in on the film:

Anne Thompson of indiewire’s Thompson on Hollywood wrote:  “The director, who debuted Juno here two years ago at the same theater, delivers a winner. Loosely based on Walter Kirn’s novel, Reitman’s updated movie, which he started working on six years ago, has become, with the economic downturn, far more timely. It’s a witty, charming and moving exploration of a world we all recognize”.

In Contention’s Kristopher Tapley says “This is one of the year’s finest films”.

Jeffrey Wells over at Hollywood-elsewhere.com says “It’s the Year’s Best film”.

And the Hollywood Reporter says “Laughs and heartbreak meld seamlessly in this brilliant character drama.

Paramount will open Up in the Air in limited release on November 13 before going wide on November 25, 2009. Take a LOOK at the excellent trailer cut exclusively for the internet by the film’s director, Jason Reitman.

September 12, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | Leave a Comment

Trick ‘r Treat Trailer

Trick R Treat DVDWarner Bros will finally give horror fans a chance to see Trick ‘r Treat when the film comes out on DVD Oct 6th. I’ve been hearing about this movie for the last year or so. It has received some excellent buzz at screenings during festivals around the country, including Toronto’s After Dark. Many outlets that cover horror primarily say this:

Fangoria says “We have a new classic on our hands”, Dreadcentral.com says “Ranks alongside John Carpenter’s Halloween”, Shocktillyoudrop.com says “One of the best Horror films I’ve seen in years”, and Bloodydisgusting.com says “Trick ‘r Treat is a trip back to the 80’s when the goal was to excite and entertain, not to torment you …it’s the type of movie you can bring anyone to, whether it’s a date or your kid”.

Since I haven’t seen the film yet it’]s hard to say if this praise is justified but if it is why didn’t the movie get a theatrical release, especially in October with the Halloween season to bolster it. It just doesn’t make much sense, particularly when one of its stars is Anna Paquin, lead on the very popular HBO program True Blood. Mike Dougherty, who was one of the writers on Superman Returns, directed the film. The trailer looks really good and the DVD will be on the market soon enough. Take a LOOK

September 11, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | | Leave a Comment

Halloween 3-D gets a director

HalloweenIII_posterAccording to Variety, Dimension films and The Weinstein Co. are putting another Halloween movie on the fast track. They are reportedly close to signing Patrick Lussier (My Bloody Valentine) to write and direct the latest installment in the long running horror franchise. It’s anyone’s guess how Lussier will be able to clean up the stench from the awfulness that was Rob Zombie’s Halloween 2. It certainly won’t be an easy task.

Since the title of this newest film is going to be Halloween 3-D (yes it will use the 3-D gimmick), could anyone really want a continuation of two Zombie films which featured totally new and ridiculous changes to the main characters. Not me! I really hope they don’t even think about doing this as a sequel to the pathetic Halloween 2 film currently in theaters.

While it’s way too early for another re-boot, my best suggestion would be to produce a standalone film that features the Dr. Loomis character in the same spirit as Donald Pleasance’s creation in the original pre-Zombie series of films.

While I fully admit the whole Michael Myers thing has been done to death (no pun intended), I fully expect Lussier (who was also the editor on the Scream trilogy) to deliver a product that is superior to Zombie’s latest effort. At least one can only hope so. Halloween 3-D is expected to be in theaters next summer.

September 10, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | Leave a Comment

RAMBO 5 UPDATE

RamboSavageHuntmovie20posteRight out of the horse’s mouth: Sly Stallone has given Harry Knowles of Aintitcool the official plot line (the one reported last week was inaccurate) for his next Rambo movie which is scheduled to beginning filming next spring. It will be titled Rambo V: The Savage Hunt. From the press release below it appears that Stallone will take Rambo into the science fiction genre and, in many ways, the concept seems more than a little out there.

Synopsis for ‘Rambo V: The Savage Hunt’
JOHN RAMBO could track anyone – or anything – on earth. Now the MILITARY desperately needs him for a mission that his ultrasensitive instincts tell him he should refuse. A BEAST is loose somewhere north of the ARCTIC CIRCLE. It has already decimated a secret research facility and annihilated a SQUAD of elite MILITARY GUARDS. And the raging CREATURE is headed south toward civilization, ready to wreak bloody devastation.

It’s a job that RAMBO and his 22 year old hunting partner, BEAU BRADY, can’t turn down. They and a highly skilled SPECIAL FORCES KILL TEAM discover that the prey is a terror beyond their wildest imagination, a half-human abomination created by a renegade agency through a series of outlawed genetic experiments. It has man’s cunning, a predator’s savageness, and a prehistoric power that has transcended the ages. And, even if RAMBO and BEAU survive its unrelenting hunger for human blood, they’ll still have to confront the grim reality that it may have grown immortal.

Really.  While I’m a big fan of Stallone and love the Rambo franchise it’s hard to believe he can sell this idea with a straight face after the last installment which was grounded in very harsh reality. While Rambo II and III where much more comic book in tone compared to the First Blood which launched the franchise, this new concept really takes the series off the rails. While I’ll be there on opening day simply because I love the Rambo character, this appears to be a move Stallone has made solely to sell the twenty-seven year old character to the broadest of mainstream audiences. This should be one interesting watch to say the least.

September 9, 2009 Posted by | And Beyond - Trailers & News | , | Leave a Comment

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