GODZILLA's Boring Viral Campaign Reveals Dr. Serizawa (Who?) And New App

 

While WB/Legendary are still kind of not talking, on thing is for sure: Unlike most relationships where you can get a pregnancy scare, these two are having a flop scare after Pacific Rim failed to return the dough they expected, and now their second kaiju-Japanese centered film is about to be shown to the world. Admittedly, Godzilla might be a somewhat easier sell.

Anyway, the mind-numbingly generic viral campaign has revealed enough poorly hidden red letters that spell out SERIZAWA- which to normal people doesn't mean anything; but to weaboos with no life, they remember Serizawa as Dr. Serizawa, from the 1955 film Gojira as he developed the "oxygen destroyer" which is the only thing that could kill Godzilla. or at least that's what the always helpful Godzilla-Movies website said.

 

As per the course, many speculate long-time Christopher Nolan bff, Ken Watanabe, to play Serizawa (he's almost literally the only one it could be unless they go Cloud Atlas on Walter White) but nothing is confirmed.

Also, we have now the "Godzilla App":

 Legendary invites you to get closer to the King of the Monsters than ever before.

The Godzilla Encounter is a live experience that celebrates the expansive history of this iconic character and takes fans on a journey to discover the upcoming Godzilla film.

The Godzilla Encounter App offers fans different ways to interact with the Encounter, enhancing the physical event for attendees and extending the experience to those unable to attend. 

Activate the Geiger Counter to scan your area and detect Godzilla. Use your camera to customize photos and share them with other Godzilla fans. Use your translator to unlock exclusive content, both at GodzillaEncounter.com and the live event.

Godzilla is out there… Download the app to be prepared for the Encounter. 

For iPhone and Android devices

ALL YOU NEED IS KILL Now EDGE OF TOMORROW; Poster is Half CoD, Half Elysium

Well here's the poster for Edge of Tomorrow formerly known as All You Need Is Kill, so if you want to see Tom Cruise roleplaying as "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2" character 'Ghost' crossed with Matt Damon from Elysium with Emily Blunt I guess. 

The film will be at Comic-Con and has been in production for what seems like forever.

 

 Lt. Col. Bill Cage (Cruise) is an officer who has never seen a day of combat when he is unceremoniously dropped into what amounts to little more than a suicide mission. Killed within minutes, Cage now finds himself inexplicably thrown into a time loop—forcing him to live out the same brutal combat over and over, fighting and dying again…and again.

Your New 'FAST' Director Wants FAST & FURIOUS 7 To Be A 'Gritty '70s Revenge Thriller'

 

While many were taken aback when franchise-saver Justin Lin stepped back to do some other shit and not film the final installment of the franchise he rescued (and almost burried again), they can take solace knowing that the final FAST film will be a 'gritty 70s revenge thriller' but set in the tone of the FAST franchise directed by 'That guy who did Saw'

Speaking with The Playlist, James Wan (Insidious, SAW) who will be taking the franchise down the home stretch due out next summer, said this:

“I really like the theme of this next one that we're going with. I can't really talk about it, but I like the theme; it's one that I really relate to,” Wan said. “Then there's the drive of Number Seven, which was set up at the end of Number Six, which is a classic revenge story. I'm a big [genre] fan, so that's how I'm approaching it: I'm looking at it like a gritty, '70s revenge thriller, but one that still fits into the 'Fast and Furious' series."

Well, there you. I think this is a good theme and a good direction that really will work bringing the series to a close. Especially with how Fast & Furious 6 ended.

What do you guys think? 

12 Years A Slave Trailer Is Why We Go to the Movies

The wonder of cinema is taking us to places we've never been to before. Sometimes make believe, like Oz or Middle Earth and sometimes to send us back to the past. To remind us of times before. That as strange as it may sound, there was a rhythm and way to life prior to our existence.

Just last night I re-watched Schindler's List, and one of several thoughts to run through my mind was reminding myself that this happened. The world was this stark. Our fellow man was that monstrous, as portrayed by the Nazis, and by the same token noble as portrayed by Liam Neeson’s title character.

Which brings us to the trailer to 12 Years a Slave, the third directorial effort from acclaimed filmmaker Steve McQueen. The plight of Solomon Northup isn't full of plot devices to engage us for its duration and move on. We're not meant to be entertained. This is a reminder. This really happened. Something we should never forget.

It's why cinema exists and will continue to long after we're gone.

Kevin Costner Headlines Midnight Delivery

He was the butt of every joke thanks to Waterworld and The Postman; accumulating to the immortal "I'm so sorry" commentary track gag on The Simpsons. But you know what? Life has turned the other cheek for Kevin Costner. About damn time it did. Now all he needs to do is direct again.

Variety reports he's in talks to headline Midnight Delivery for Universal and producer Guillermo del Toro, who should direct this after his fanboy-masturbation-material Pacific Rim didn't perform this weekend. But he's not. Those monsters don't create themselves, you know. Sigh.

Anyway, the plot entails a father going into the world of drug smuggling to save his son's life.

Comic-Con 2013: Godzilla Poster

The under-performance of Pacific Rim, while expected, has repercussions beyond its cast and filmmakers. Legendary Pictures better rethink whatever strategy planned to sell Godzilla, due May 2014.

In lieu of an expensive gamble reliant on a niche market, it was always one of the dumber decisions to follow that up with another $200 million-budget monster movie the very next year. If Roland Emmerich and Dean Devlin couldn’t make Americans care about Godzilla after Independence Day, what chance does Gareth Edwards have?

Nevertheless, Edwards has promised a big presence in San Diego this weekend and IGN has the world premiere of the Comic-Con poster. Hopefully they remember to sell this to those hundreds of millions who don't roam forums, know the names of movie-bloggers by heart and only rely on what looks cool. 

Marvel REALLY Wants To Be in the Joseph Gordon-Levitt Business

Marvel likes the sound of Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Not hard to see why. Multi-talented, rising star making the rare transition from child actor to adulthood without winding up in a ditch or worse on TMZ. Levitt is an actor we look forward to seeing what he's going to do next.

But yeah, Marvel mainly wants him to rub it in to Warner Brothers/DC Entertainment. Take someone firmly planted in their "family." Imagine the bragging rights of apprehending Batman, or in this case Robin too. They unsuccessfully took a shot at Guardians of the Galaxy before settling on Chris Pratt (Levitt was up for Star-Lord).

Latino Review says he's their favorite for Doctor Strange. The Sorcerer Supreme is expected to be one of their big Phase Three projects and a name as recognized as Levitt could help considerably awareness among the general populous. But will the deal go down or is this execs bullshitting at the water-cooler?

It's a cool notion and adds to how thinking outside-the-box can work in spades. Everyone forgets the gamble it was to cast Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man circa 2006 in the wake of his years of substance abuse issues. Comic-Con is this weekend and Marvel always likes to drop big announcements there. So... we'll see, I guess.

Weekend Box Office: July 12-14

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1.  Despicable Me 2 - $44.7 million

2.  Grown Ups 2 - $42.5 million

3.  Pacific Rim - $38.3 million

4.  The Heat - $14 million

5.  The Lone Ranger - $11.1 million

6.  Monsters University - $10.6 million

7.  World War Z - $48.8 million

8.  White House Down - $6.1 million

9.  Kevin Hart: Let Me Explain - $5 million

10.  Man of Steel - $4.8 million

It was Minions vs. Giant Robots vs. Adam Sandler at the box office, and not surprisingly, the Minions won the race this weekend, although it was close.  Taking first place for the second weekend in a row was Despicable Me 2, which earned another $44.7 million and pushed its domestic total past the $200 million mark, having earned $229 million.  Worldwide, the animated sequel has owned $472 million.

That left us with Giant Robots vs. Adam Sandler, and much to the dismay of Giant Robot fans, it was Sandler's Grown Ups 2 that easily took second place with an estimated $42.5 million.  Despite scathing reviews, audiences apparently still love their Adam Sandler movies.  Want to be even sadder about that?  It's the second-biggest opening of any Adam Sandler film (behind The Longest Yard), and the highest opening for any comedy this year.

Now where did that leave Pacific Rim?  Well, the good news is that it's director Guillermo Del Toro's highest opening weekend.  The bad news is that overall, a $38.3 million opening is just not a very good opening weekend, especially not with a budget that was reportedly close to $200 million.  You can blame lousy marketing that didn't catch on with mainstream audiences, or you can blame reviews that were decent but praised the special effects and not much else.  It's just not going to be the breakout hit that Del Toro fans were hoping it would be.

But at least its not The Lone Ranger.  Adding insult to last week's already embarrassing opening, the Disney western dropped an awful 62% in its second weekend.  At this rate, it's not even likely to earn $100 million domestically.  At least they can be happy that Monsters University still doing well, that picked up another $10.6 million this weekend.

And if you're still shaking your head about so many people turning up to see Grown Ups 2, you'll be happy to know that the far-superior The Heat is still doing great business with $14 million this weekend, bringing its domestic total up to $112 million.

In limited release, Fruitvale Station earned a terrific $377,000 in just seven theaters nationwide.  The Way Way Back expanded to a whopping 79 theaters, and earned $1.1 million.  Both films are expected to go into wider release as the summer progresses.

Next week has a lot of Ryan Reynolds in it:  he's the voice of the racing snail in the animated Turbo, which opens on Wednesday, and he's co-starring with Jeff Bridges in R.I.P.D., which exists for some reason.  Joining them in theaters will be the sequel Red 2, which has no Ryan Reynolds and looks far superior to either of his movies coming out next weekend.

PREDATORS Facebook Page Updates With Cryptic Image: PREDATOR At Comic-Con?

The Offcial Facebook Page of the 2010 film Predators updated with something pretty legit today, and that's this image of what appears to be San Diego, with Petco Park in the bottom right corner, as many on Twitter have pointed out, right by where nerd-haven SDCC Is being held.

 

So, does this mean a new film? I'd say we're long over-due, and Robert Rodriguez hasn't mentioned Predators 2 in years.  Although, more likely is that it's some dumb video-game or something.

#HUNTthePREDATOR  

Quinto Says STAR TREK 3 Might Film In 2014 and Abrams Might Direct; Is Probably Wrong

 

Instead of an apology from Abrams, Lindelof, and Co. about how disappointing  Star Trek Into Plotholes Star Trek Into Darkness was, Buzzhub got word from Zachary Quinto, who plays Spock, that Paramount told him Star Trek 3 would be filming in 2014 and then he dropped the fact ol' J.J. might direct. Yeah, Ok. 

Star Trek 3 should be filming, I suppose, next year. It’s going to be made a lot quicker than the last one. That’s the plan, although nothing is confirmed yet.

Buzzhub then went on to say:

At one point in the interview, Quinto mentioned that J.J. Abrams was planning to direct Star Trek 3, which is another surprising fact, but once again, he did not elaborate.