So how much John McClane can you handle in one day? So far my answer is three movies because that is how many Die Hard’s I have watched in a one day period. Well it looks like 20th Century Fox is giving me a chance to best my record and in a theater no less!
On Wednesday, February 13th theaters across the nation will commemorate the release of A Good Day to Die Hard with a four film marathon of every movie in the franchise (Die Hard, Die Hard 2: Die Harder, Die Hard with a Vengeance and Live Free or Die Hard) that will lead to the first showing of the fifth entry, A Good Day to Die Hard. That’s a lot of yippee ki-yay’s . No pricing or theater locations have been announced yet.
Don’t forget all you romantics that A Good Day to Die Hard opens on Valentine’s Day.
DC unveiled a new Man of Steel statue that is being sculpted by Gentle Giant Studios and it gives us the first up close look of Superman’s new costume from head to toe. We all know by now that the red underoos have gone bye bye and this new costume is very much akin to the New 52 Superman outfit. It is a 1:6 scale and is 13.25″ tall.
What do you think of the full look of the new costume and the statue also?
The statue will retail for $130 and go on sale this May.
[amazon_link id=”B0084IG7KC” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Hunger Games[/amazon_link] was one of the biggest films of 2012 raking in over $400 million domestically. Jennifer Lawrence, Josh Hutcherson, Woody Harrelson and company are back filming the upcoming sequel, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Today Lionsgate released a new poster and screenshots for the movie which will see Katniss and Peeta thrown into another tournament to “celebrate” the 75th games by having past winner compete again. One of the new shots shows Sam Claflin in the role of Finnick Odair.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire releases on November 22, 2013.
So I will just let that title soak in for a second……………………………………………….
Yes, you read that correct. Vulture is reporting that the director of 300, Watchmen and this summer’s Superman reboot, Man of Steel, is indeed hard at work developing a Star Wars movie that will not be a part of the planned trilogy from Disney. The report claims that it will be a stand alone film and may run parallel to the new trilogy. The report goes on to describe the movie:
“It will be an as-yet-untitled Jedi epic loosely based on Akira Kurosawa’s 1954 classic Seven Samurai, with the ronin and katana being replaced by the Force-wielding knights and their iconic lightsabers.”
Disney has already stated that there would be more Star Wars films past the new trilogy, but it is a little weird that we seem to know a bit more about this stand alone Star Wars movie than the new trilogy which is set for release in the summer of 2015.
Many fans may gripe at this with their deep hatred of Zack Snyder, but I will remain optimistic in this early going. It is more Star Wars so that’s a good thing and nothing could possibly be worse than Episode 1…..right? And at least it will look pretty.
UPDATE:
Zack Snyder’s spokesman has gone on record saying that the director is not involved with any Star Wars film.
“While he is super flattered because he is a huge fan, Zack is not involved in any way with the new Star Wars. He is currently in post on his two films, Man of Steel and 300: Battle of Artemisia.”
Of course, denials in Hollywood are nothing new so take this statement with a grain of salt. If Disney has locked up Snyder for a stand-alone Star Wars film and Man of Steel hits it big this summer that will leave Warner Bros. in a bit of a bind if they wanted Snyder to return foe a sequel.
With the announcement of the Academy Award nominations I figured it would be a good time to post our top ten movie list for the year. Now unlike the Academy, you won’t find Beasts of the Southern Wild or Amour on here. All we can do is go by the movies we have seen this year and whittle that down to the ten that we had the most fun with. What you will find is a whole lot of explosions, bad puns, dwarves and ex-slave bounty hunters. So let’s get started shall we?
Max Landis, son of film legend John Landis and creator of the hilarious Death and Return of Superman video, wrote this smart found footage film about three teens that discover something in a cave and find themselves developing powers. Please don’t let the tag word “found footage” scare you off. This movie is witty and snap quick in its dialogue and then add to it a believable tale of heroes and villains and you have a winner.
9. [amazon_link id=”B008G33O0G” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Cabin in the Woods[/amazon_link]
I can not reiterate enough that if are planning on seeing this movie do not let someone tell you the ending. Now when the movie begins you think that they are giving away a big piece of it right off the bat but you really have no idea. It takes everything we thought we knew about the rules of a horror movie and turns it on its head. I wish it had been a bigger hit because it should be considered the Scream of this generation. The most unique horror film since the first Saw.
Despite the books being in the polarizing “young adult” category, The Hunger Games was filled with unflinching violence. The movie did a great job of taking a concept as off base as children being forced to kill each other to ensure government control and made it work in a PG-13 environment. I hope no one simply did not watch this because of what I call the “Twilight syndrome”, where some movies are lumped into the same category as Twilight when they really should not be. This movie is is visually arresting in places and tense.
The Hobbit can not equal The Lord of the Rings trilogy. I think we should all admit that. The source material is a completely different animal but Peter Jackson crafted a very good and enjoyable return to Middle-Earth this year that set up the return of Smaug and showed that Martin Freeman may have been born to play Bilbo Baggins. It was good to see Ian McKellan as Gandalf again and each of the dwarves were represented well with Richard Armitage stealing the show as Thorin.
Movies are a funny business sometimes. The Avengers became the third biggest movie of all time (deservedly so) and Dredd was a certified flop at the box office which is, as I said, a funny thing since people may have overlooked the best straight up action movie of the year and the most faithful comic to film translation ever. Karl Urban’s scowl should get an award by itself. This movie is unapologetic in it’s violence, as it should be, and it should have propelled Dredd into the minds of “normal” moviegoers, but now let’s just hope it becomes a cult hit. For a better idea of what to expect check out our review.
Some people may think that Reservoir Dogs or Pulp Fiction may be Tarantino’s best and it would be hard to argue, but how many film makers could truly say that they are hitting their stride 20 years into their career? Inglourious Basterds and now Django Unchained have brought the director into the rare trifecta of great artists. Where their movies are critically loved, successful at the box office and yet do not compromise the director’s vision. Django is as close to a comedy as I think Tarantino will ever make and is a great look at our country’s bleak past seen through the eyes of a rare director.
Look, the easiest way to explain this is that I am a sucker for Ridley Scott being involved with anything sci-fi. Does the movie have plot holes? Yes, but I am pretty sure most movies do. I appreciate this film for not taking the easy way out for a prequel to my favorite film franchise ever. It seemed like people wanted to be spoon-fed information instead of trying to look for themselves and enjoy the adventure. Sounds a lot like LOST huh? Guess Damon Lindelof will never get away from that.
3. [amazon_link id=”B004LWZWGK” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]The Dark Knight Rises[/amazon_link]
There was really no way that Christopher Nolan could top The Dark Knight. The movie was a cultural phenomenon anchored by the Academy Award winning performance of Heath Ledger. So for The Dark Knight Rises he took the character to the depths of defeat and closed up his Batman story by weaving together the stories of Batman Begins and The Dark Knight in a way that proved Nolan’s point that he set forth in Begins. That Batman should be a symbol, not just a man. Oh and I personally thought Tom Hardy owned the role of Bane.
As I said in my review, Skyfall is the greatest Bond movie ever made so the fact this is almost at the top of this list is a no brainer. Director Sam Mendes brought Bond into the new age and simultaneously took Craig’s version of the character back in time (the classic Aston Martin, Moneypenny, Q). It moves at a quick pace despite being over two hours. And finally, for the first time in his Bond tenure, Craig got to match wits with a villain worthy of the franchise in Javier Bardem’s Silva. The fact Bardem did not get a supporting actor nod is beyond me. Just thinking about Skyfall makes me ecstatic to know that we have Daniel Craig for at least two more movies.
I have to admit I went back and forth for a few days between this and Skyfall for the top spot but in the end it had to be this. While Skyfall may be the best Bond ever, it may someday be surpassed by another Bond movie. The Avengers was something different and only people that grew up tried and true nerds, geeks, fanboys etc. know what I am talking about. When you were growing up reading comics (for me in the 80’s & 90’s) you always imagined what it would be like to have a movie like The Avengers come out but knew it could never be. It wasn’t possible. But then something happened. Comic book movies became popular, raking in heaps upon heaps of cash and now the characters that you grew up loving and getting made fun of for liking became normal in pop culture. It was cool to go see Iron Man. Everyone loved Thor…..THOR! Imagine that internally as your ten year old self. Still seems weird right? Then Marvel did the near impossible. They built a film franchise out of separate movies, gambling that each would be successful enough to warrant them teaming up and making an Avengers movie. And guess what? It paid off. By trusting nerd god Joss Whedon to write and direct, The Avengers gave Marvel a 1.5 billion dollar reward for their risk. And not just that, the movie lived up to a lot of people’s lifetime expectations, mine included.
So let’s just clear this up right now. If you are not a fan of Quentin Tarantino’s films you will most likely not be impressed by Django Unchained. Everything about this film is decidedly his. The unique soundtrack, camera zooms and Samuel L. Jackson saying the f word every 6.7 seconds are all expected and produced with the director’s own flare which he has perfected over a career that now spans 20 years. Inglourious Basterds was Tarantino’s most successful film both commercially and critically so how exactly would he follow it up? With a spaghetti western that was as fun to watch as I am sure it was for the actor’s to shoot.
Our tale begins with Christoph Waltz (who stole the show in Inglourious Basterds) playing Dr. King Schultz, a traveling dentist, who happens upon a group of slave traders and begins questioning the slaves about a group of men known as the Brittle Brothers. He then purchases Django in a very Tarantino style and he tells him that he is, in actuality, a bounty hunter who is on the trail of the Brittle Brothers and if Django will help him identify them he will free him and give him 75 dollars and a horse.
After this little adventure is when the movie’s main plot kicks in. Schultz sees that Django has a talent for the bounty hunting game and decides to train him. Django tells Schultz that he is searching for his wife, who was sold separate from him by their previous owner who was angry over the slaves marrying. Schultz has a soft heart for Django’s plight and agrees to track down his wife and help free her. They find out she has been sold to a large Mississippi plantation owner known as Calvin Candie, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, complete with darkened teeth and rich southern drawl in his voice. Schultz and Django formulate a plan to disguise themselves as men who want to get into the “mandingo” slave fighting business and intend to purchase one of Candie’s fighters when they visit him at his plantation, aptly named “Candie Land”. They offer a ridiculous amount of money for a fighter in hopes that when they bring up purchasing Django’s wife, Candie will think nothing of it and sell her.
Unlike Inglourious Basterds or Pulp Fiction, Django Unchained could almost be considered a comedy. While you do have many moments of cringes from the horrors of slavery and the atrocities that were perpetrated on the African-Americans by their owners, when the movie is hitting its comedic notes I have not laughed more during a film this year. Watching Django in a mixed theater was a very good and maybe unexpected moment of clarity for me as a moviegoer that even when the subject matter is something as heavy as the bleakest moment of our nation’s history, we all can still laugh when there is a well delivered comedic line or sight gag.
Django is nowhere near as tense as Inglourious Basterds was but that is not a bad thing. Sure, there are your Tarantino scenes, like when Candie is examining a human skull, that give you those goosebumps like something messed up is about to happen but those are infrequent and it makes Django feel a bit on the lighter side of Taratino’s work but for the subject at hand (which is serious enough as it is) I am glad he went with a social comedic feel.
Jamie Foxx had a very straightforward role to play with Django. It is a role full of fire and vengeance that he plays with ease. Leonardo DiCaprio as Calvin Candie is an expert of knowing when to turn emotions on a dime. From hospitable plantation owner to bloodthirsty fight enthusiast and back to southern charm within a few frames. It seems like Christoph Waltz as Dr. King Schultz and Samuel L. Jackson, who plays Candie’s elderly house runner Stephen, get to have the most fun inside of their roles. Waltz, who won and Academy Award for Inglourious Basterds, relishes in the role of the German bounty hunter who is not as hard at heart as we are made to believe. He is not so much ruthless killer as he is public servant of the weirdest variety. His delivery walks the perfect line between fish out of water and condescending foreigner. Jackson is easily the funniest performance in the movie. He has been born and bred to serve the Candie’s his whole life that he may believe he is the closest to white any black man can get in that society. So when he begins to argue with Candie in one hilarious scene about Django staying in a guest room, you can see that he thinks he is above normal slaves.
Tarantino fills out the minor roles of his cast with a mix of big names and faces that you wonder where they have been since the 80’s. Jonah Hill, Walton Goggins and even Tarantino himself have great side roles while the likes of Tom Wopat (Dukes of Hazzard FTW) and Don Johnson make appearances. Johnson’s role is especially funny and memorable as plantation owner Big Daddy.
Is Django Unchained Tarantino’s best movie? I wouldn’t say so, but it is certainly in the upper echelon. It is good to see that the director can go less tense and serious and more comedic while keeping true to his odd and graphically bloody style. It is like Blazing Saddles and Pulp Fiction had a lively, witty kid.
If you though the first trailer for the remake of horror classic Evil Dead was a bit on the freaky and bloody side then you have not seen anything yet. A new red band trailer has gone online showcasing some of the films more “liquid filled” moments. When a trailer could possibly scar you mentally, just how insane is the actual movie going to be? I don’t know but I know I can’t wait.
A brand new trailer has gone online for the fifth Die Hard entry, A Good Day To Die Hard. It is not very different from previous trailers but if you are a Die Hard fanatic (raises hand) then you know what to expect. John McClane heads to Russia to help his son who is on the heels of a Russian terrorist with nuclear weapons. Does it sound different from most action movies? No. Do I care? No, it’s Die Hard. Check out the new trailer below.
A Good Day To Die Hard releases on February 14, 2013.
Now that it is officially 2013 we can look back on the year that was at the box office. 2012 set a new record with almost 10.8 billion dollars which overtakes 2009’s total of 10.6 billion. No doubt having so many choices at the theater feature wise helped out receipt totals with many films being in IMAX, 3D, IMAX 3D and theaters that have D-BOX motion chairs.
The big winner of 2012, by far, was The Avengers which took in $623.3 million domestically and over 1.5 billion dollars worldwide as well as setting the single weekend record with $207.4 million in just three days. The Dark Knight Rises did not make as much as it predecessor, The Dark Knight, domestically but made more in worldwide totals.
A few of the surprises of the year were the comedy Ted which was Seth MacFarlane’s first feature film and grossed $218.6 million off of a 50 million dollar budget. Jonah Hill and Channing Tatum’s 21 Jump Street came in with little expectations and pulled in over 138 million dollars.
2013 is loaded with releases including the second Hunger Games film, Catching Fire, and the return of The Man of Steel but may have a hard time keeping pace with 2012’s record pace.
Here are the Top 20 releases for 2012 domestically followed by their worldwide totals:
15. [amazon_link id=”B005LAIHSQ” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Snow White and the Huntsmen[/amazon_link]- $155.1 million/ $396.3 million
This article was going to have some kind of catchy title like “13 movies to see in 2013” but truth be told there are way more films that I (and you) should be excited about next year. We get to return to Oz, Metropolis, and Middle-Earth. The Wolfpack as well as The Wolverine are back. M Night Shyamalan will try and make us interested in his movies again (with Will Smith no less) and Bruce Willis is in three, count em three, franchise movies this year.
So let’s take a look into the future and check out the movies of 2013.
Warm Bodies (February 1)
Wait what? Yeah I know you may be surprised this is on here. I am too because I actually want to see it. Warm Bodies was already on my radar with my girlfriend being a fan of the book so I had an idea of what to expect. Don’t lump this into the Twilight group without taking a look at the trailer which is pretty funny.
A Good Day To Die Hard (February 14)
OK, so Live Free or Die Hard was the least of the the John McClane shoot-em ups but even a sub-par Die Hard gets me in the theater and this one has me more interested with McClane yippee ki-yaying his way to mother Russia to get some quality shooting practice with his son.
Oz: The Great and Powerful (March 8)
Sam Raimi directs this “prequel” that has James Franco playing the future wizard as he finds his way to the land of Oz. It is produced by the same people who had a hand in Tim Burton’s Alice in Wonderland which should be obvious by the look of the preview.
Carrie (March 15)
Yes it is another remake of a great book and classic movie but this one I am not writing off because of the cast. Hit Girl herself , Chloe Grace Moretz, takes over the role from Sissy Spacek and Julianne Moore will get all religious as Carrie’s mother.
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (March 29)
This sequel was originally supposed to be released last June but was pulled a mere month before its release. Paramount said they wanted to convert the movie to 3D while some stories had the actors re-shooting scenes to have more Channing Tatum in it since he is the new Hollywood “it” guy. Supposedly he bit it early in the flick and they had a change of heart.
http://youtu.be/mwtH2CBeZ5M
The Evil Dead (April 12)
How many years have we Evil Dead fans read rumor after rumor of Evil Dead 4 or a remake? I honestly never thought we would get a proper sequel so I will gladly settle for this, especially since it apparently carries the Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell seal of approval.
http://youtu.be/ceBXUyuv4Q0
Iron Man 3 (May 3)
Now that The Avengers has come and gone it is time for Marvel to get started on Phase 2 and that begins next year with Iron Man 3. Shane Black is the new director and is bringing shellheads greatest enemy to the screen with The Mandarin played by Oscar winner Ben Kingsley.
Star Trek Into Darkness (May 17)
JJ Abrams followup to his 2009 reboot sees Kirk and the Enterprise going up against Benedict Cumberbatch’s villain. I say villain because as of right now it is still unknown who exactly he is playing. Gary Mitchell? Khan? Someone new? Either way he looks to be plenty menacing. Remind me not to piss Sherlock off.
The Hangover Part 3 (May 24)
The Wolfpack is back and this time they are taking a road trip. It looks like there won’t be a wedding this go round and that the gang will be getting into more messed up adventures in more than one locale.
Fast & Furious 6 (May 24)
I was never a fan of the F&F series so I was more than surprised when I actually had fun with Fast Five which was the highest grossing of the franchise. Now Vin Diesel, Paul Walker and Dwayne Johnson are back for more. Yeah I think it is odd that this series has six installments too.
After Earth (June 7)
M. Night Shyamalan returns after pissing off a whole lot of people with The Last Airbender. This time he has Will Smith and son Jaden playing (spoiler) father and son in the future who crash land on Earth that has adapted to kill all humans. The preview is interesting enough but will it be enough to make Shyamalan a premier director again?
http://youtu.be/qaRigzlDUi4
Man of Steel (June 14)
Hard to believe it has been almost seven years since Superman last flew across a movie screen. After Superman Returns tripped up Warner turned to Christopher Nolan to fix the world’s most recognizable superhero. Nolan hand-picked Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen) and has his friend and Batman Begins co-writer David S. Goyer write the script that hopes to make the man of tomorrow relevant to today’s movie audiences.
This Is The End (June 14)
It’s the end of the world as we know it and Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Jay Baruschel, Danny McBride and Craig Robinson are just the people to follow and see how our society falls.
World War Z (June 21)
Brad Pitt stars in this very loose adaptation of the novel which sees the zombie apocalypse in its beginning days. This production has been the definition of the world “troubled” having gone way over budget, massive script rewrites and even having to go back and film a huge section of the movie over again.
Kick-Ass 2 (June 28)
Kick-Ass didn’t exactly light the box office on fire in 2010 so the fact we are getting a sequel to the awesome adaptation of Mark Millar’s comic is something of a miracle. Kick-Ass and Hit Girl are back and this time they have Jim Carrey as Colonel Stars and Stripes and Donald Faison as Doctor Gravity joining forces to take down Red Mist now know affectionately as Mother Fu**er.
The Lone Ranger (July 3)
Disney is taking a big gamble with Gore Verbinski’s The Lone Ranger. After John Carter’s 200 million dollar budget blew up in their face they have this 250 million dollar western coming this summer. One good thing is that Johnny Depp is normally easy money in big summer movies. Only time will tell.
Despicable Me 2 (July 3)
Gru, girls and minions return for more fun. I am assuming fun since I know nothing of the plot.
http://youtu.be/q6uoyPTcfic
Pacific Rim (July 11)
Director Guillermo del Toro brings this giant sized sci-fi epic to reality. In a future where creatures have invaded Earth we build giant mechs to deal with the attacks. Like Power Rangers and Voltron had a really violent American baby.
The Wolverine (July 26)
Hopes have to be higher for this sequel. It can’t possibly go any lower than X-Men: Origins Wolverine can it? Wait…can it?
RED 2 (August 2)
What did I tell you earlier? Here is Bruce Willis again revisiting his role of Frank Moses and his merry band of ex-operatives including Helen Mirren and John Malkovich. Anthony Hopkins gets in on the adventure this time too.
Elysium (August 19)
Neil Blomkamp follows up his Oscar nominated debut (District 9) with this sci-fi movie about a ravaged over-populated Earth and the struggle of its citizens as the rich live in splendor aboard a space station called Elysium. Matt Damon, Jodie Foster and Sharlto Copley star.
Riddick (September 6)
When we last left Riddick he had taken over the Necromonger army as their new leader. This third movie seems to be going back to the Riddick we saw in Pitch Black with a scaled down action flick and not so much wannabe sci-fi epic.
Sin City: A Dame To Kill For (October 4)
Taking their good sweet time, Frank Miller and Robert Rodriguez finally return to Sin City with a film version of Miller’s second story A Dame To Kill For. Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba and Rosario Dawson return to the sequel of the 2005 noir hit.
The World’s End (October 25)
Simon Pegg and Nick Frost re-team with director Edgar Wright to complete their “Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy”. They have a lot to live up to with Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz becoming certifiable cult hit movies. This movie sees five friends reunite to attempt a pub crawl from their youth only to find out there are bigger things at work.
Ender’s Game (November 1)
Orson Scott Card’s classic sci-fi book gets the big screen treatment from director Gavin Hood. The story of Andrew “Ender” Wiggun who is sent off to a military academy to be taught how to defend the Earth from a coming alien attack. The cast assembled for this is impressive with Ben Kingsley, Harrison Ford, Abagail Breslin and Viola Davis among the players.
Thor: The Dark World (November 8)
The God of Thunder returns to fight a race of Dark Elves led by Malekith the Accursed played by Christopher Eccleston. Natalie Portman, Stellan Skarsgard and Anthony Hopkins return in the second movie on Marvel’s Phase 2.
The Hunger Games: Catching Fire (November 22)
Katniss and Peeta are forced back into the 75th Hunger Games with previous winners as rebellion begins to break out across the districts.
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (December 13)
Bilbo, Gandalf and the company of dwarves continue their journey towards The Lonely Mountain and the dragon Smaug.
Anchorman: The Legend Continues (December 20)
After a long nine year wait Ron Burgandy, Brian Fantana, Brick Tamland and Champ Kind are back. Does it really matter what the plot is? News team assemble!!
Jack Ryan (December 25)
Chris Pine takes over the role made famous by Harrison Ford (Ben Affleck played the role in The Sum of All Fears) as he takes on a Russian plot to bring down America’s economy. Kenneth Branaugh pulls double duty as the villain and film director.
