Two New Action Packed Trailers for 'X-Men First Class'

Two nearly identical international trailers for X-Men First Class have made their way online. The trailers are a mix of a lot of what we've seen already mixed in with a bunch of new bad ass action scenes. I'm finding it easier and easier to get behind this prequel as more trailers are released. I'll admit when they first anounced the film only last year I was more than skeptical, but now I'd consider it to be one of the top films I have to see this year.

                                                     

Mortal Kombat Episode 1

Back in June of last year we got our first look at what could have been the potential for a new R rated Mortal Kombat film. The trailer was all kinds of awesome, and was said to be director Kevin Tancharoen's pitch to Warner Bros for a new feature. Instead of instantly giving a green light to the risky project they instead commissioned him to develop a new web series based on the short.

Cut to today and we have our first episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy. Just from the impression the short had left on me I had my expectations set pretty damn high. I guess I should have lowered em' just a little bit. The first episode looks like an excerpt from a failed pilot for a shitty HBO series that never got picked up. If done right and given a decent budget I think the series could actually work on a network like HBO or Showtime, but going in the direction they are now, I'd say it fits the web series format they're in now best. A new R rated film probably isn't actually the best idea now that I've seen this and thought about it, and I seriously doubt it's any higher on WB's list of priorities right now that in it was before.

Michael Shannon is Zod in Superman!

 

Just last month it was rumoured that Michael Shannon was in talks to join Zack Snyder's Superman reboot. Speculation had him pegged as either Lex Luthor or general Zod. well now it's official, Shannon will be General Zod! Although he doesn't obviously bring a lot of physicality to the role in terms of his size or physique, he definitely makes up for it in talent. It'll be pretty damn awesome watching him go toe to toe against Cavill as Supes next Christmas. This also marks the fourth Academy Award winning or nominated actor to join the cast so far.

In addition to the awesome casting news the official title has also been revealed as "Man of Steel". It's long been rumoured this would be the title, but there's been no confirmation until now. Aside from the finished cast and the suit reveal the next thing we can likely expect is an actual release date.

Official Press Release:

Warner BrosPictures and Legendary Pictures announced today that Michael Shannon will star in the role of General Zod in director Zack Snyder’s new Superman film, titled “Man of Steel.”

Snyder stated:

“Zod is not only one of Superman’s most formidable enemies, but one of the most significant because he has insights into Superman that others don’t. Michael is a powerful actor who can project both the intelligence and the malice of the character, making him perfect for the role.”

As General Zod, Shannon will go toe-to-toe with Henry Cavill, who plays the new Clark Kent/Superman in the film. The main cast also includes Amy Adams as Lois Lane, and Diane Lane and Kevin Costner as Martha and Jonathan Kent.

Michael Shannon was honored with an Academy Award® nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role in Sam Mendes’ “Revolutionary Road,” with Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. Shannon was most recently seen in the award-winning HBO drama series “Boardwalk Empire,” from executive producer Martin Scorsese. He will next be seen in Sony Pictures Classics’, “Take Shelter,” from director/writer Jeff Nichols.

Charles Roven, Emma Thomas, Christopher Nolan and Deborah Snyder are the producers of the film. The screenplay is being written by David S. Goyer based on a story by Goyer and Nolan. Thomas Tull and Lloyd Phillips are serving as executive producers.

“Man of Steel” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

New X-Men First Class Trailer

What I'm sure is intended to be the second theatrical trailer for X-Men First Class has made its way online once again. The first time we saw it, it was entirely in Russian; the voices and captions both.

Lucky for us we now have that same exact trailer in English, it does however have Chinese captions.  Enjoy the awesome trailer below that is sure to win you over, that is if you're not behind the prequel no one asked for already.

Now if Fox can actually avoid the temptation of raping the original franchise again and returning for an X-Men 4, they might be able to successfully launch a new franchise all together with the First Class generation we'll first see in the new film.

Movie Review: Arthur

 

Arthur is the “re-imagining” of a classic Dudley Moore comedy from the 80’s. Like most great films from that era now being pillaged and raped by Hollywood, Arthur continues the trend in failing to be better than or at very least as good as the original.

The story if you’re not at all familiar is about an irresponsible drunken billionaire heir to his successful families’ fortune. Arthur (Russell brand) is our drunken rich hero, who not only fails to appear somewhat believable in the role, but comes off as doing more of a ridiculous Moore impersonation than giving his own take to the character. He’s being forced to marry a woman he doesn’t care for in order to remain the heir to his family fortune. His mother, who played a very insignificant role in his upbringing, refuses to believe he’s capable of getting his shit together and representing their prestigious family name, so it’s her decision to have Arthurs' marriage arranged. She sets it up for him to tie the knot with one her most publicly well respected employees (Jennifer Garner). The only problem being that Arthur’s fallen in love with a “nobody” from queens that his mother won’t approve of.

As charming and funny as Russell Brand is at times it’s still very obvious the gig was strictly about the pay cheque. His humour would have easily suited an R rating much better than the PG13 cheese fest we’re given. The only real redeeming quality of the film was Helen Mirren’s portrayal of Arthur’s sarcastic and witty Nanny/surrogate mother Hobson.

I went in with high hopes of actually enjoying the film, but unfortanately I ended up more than disappointed. Not only did it feel like a pointless and failed remake, it was no different than any other recent rom-com. Had there been something to set it aside from everything else with a slightly more original take on the story, I think I might have had a different take coming out. Usually Brand finds a way to win the audience over, even when the character or story may be lacking. But without the freedom of an R rating It didn't fee like it was nearly as funny as it could have been.

Although there were a few good laughs throughout, they felt far and few between the drawn out and cliché plot. Not only was the story extremely obvious and predictable, it was also boring as hell. Sadly all Arthur really is, is a by the numbers romantic comedy, which also happens to be a poorly put together remake of an actually funny film.

Movie Review: Sucker Punch

Sucker Punch is by far the most visually entertaining movie I think Zack Snyder or any other filmmaker has made in a long time. Right off the bat I have to throw it out there, the action set pieces and visual mind-fucks of this film will blow you away!

We start out with being introduced to Baby Doll (Emily Browning) who's wrongfully imprisoned in a mental institution. During her stay she spends nearly all her time in a fantasy world she's created for herself to escape her own "reality", although there's actually very little reality to the film at all. In her fantasy world she's being held in a brothel/burlesque house. It's in the brothel where she discovers her crazy dance moves which only bring her further into the fantasy worlds she's creating. The fantasy worlds themselves feel a lot like a video game premise. They need to find key items in order to escape and must defeat the most ridiculous and other worldly foes along the way.

Being that the film is set in the 60's one of the threats looming in Baby Dolls reality is the possibility of a lobotomy. This helps serve as her biggest motive in needing to escape. The only problem is very little of the "real world" is actually taking place throughout the film, making it somewhat of a narrative nightmare. Although the story jumps all over the place and at times feels like the last twenty years of pop culture was just smashed together in one nonsensical action flick, Snyder does an amazing job of keeping you interested and invested to the end. A lot of the film seems like a huge departure from a lot of his previous films in so many ways, but at the same time it has the very noticable Snyder stamp all throughout it. I know most peoples complaints are always that he's too visual and brings no substance to his films. With Sucker Punch there's definitely a recurring theme of male empowerment over women and their attempts to stand strong on their own. It wasn't at all what I expected going in, but served as a surprisingly very intruiging and interesting plot point.

The biggest complaint I'm expecting people to have is the third act. Everything leading up this point seems absolutely brilliant and brings you to think this may be Snyder's best work to date. But this is where you'll either come to love it or hate it. Like most Snyder films there's not much grey area left in between. I found myself torn at this point as well, on the one hand the end and the conclusion make perfect sense, but on the other it almost feels as though things fall apart and don't come together as smoothly as first two acts did. Overall the film works on more levels than it doesn't. The biggest acheivement would likely be succesfully thinking outside the box and not going the safe route like all too many film makers and studios seem to be doing more and more now.

The performances, cinematography, writing and obviously directing were all things I thought worked amazingly. Although I'm well aware not everyone will be able to agree with me, I can honestly say that I actually loved Sucker Punch. It's likely at least the most visual film we'll see this year. It's just too bad that the story behind all the amazing action scenes and visual effects won't get nearly as much if any credit at all. 

Joseph Gordon-levitt Is Alberto Falcone in TDKR!

 

It has just been made official by Variety, Joseph Gordon-Levitt will play Alberto Falcone in The Dark Knight Rises. Alberto is of course the son of Carmine Falcone who appeared in Batman Begins. The ironic thing is called Levitt's role months ago on our Crashing Hollywood Podcast. Now if turns out that Marion Cottilard is confirmed for Talia Al Ghul I'll be two for two.

I think this and the probable casting of Cottilard as Taliah is what Gary Oldman had been referring to when he said that everything tied right back into Batman Begins and brought the story full circle. I think it was actually pretty damn obvious though, considering Nolan had said nothing aside from "well this film will bring our story full circle"whenever he was asked about it.

The logical guess at that point would be the heirs to the Falcone crime family and The League of Shadows. Also being thrown into the mix now as we already know is both Catwoman and Bane. I would expect Bane to play a role similar to what Ras Al Ghul had intended for Bruce in Begins, he'll be leading the League of Shadows back to Gotham, only this time with Talia at his side. As for Catwoman she could either be someone similar to the copy cat vigilantes in The Dark Knight, or she'll be tied to Falcone in some way and be tied to Wayne in another. All really just speculation on my part, but being that I nailed Levitt's and presumably Cottilard's roles already I'd be willing to guess I'm not too far off.

Joseph Gordon Levitt has been confirmed for TDKR

As expected Warner Bros and Nolan were able to come to an agreement with Joseph Gordon Levitt's people in inking a deal for the upcoming The Dark Knight Rises. The news was pretty damn obvious, I mean considering it was either this or another menacing turn as cobra commander in GI Joe 2.

In all seriousness though I'm hoping the next bit of obvious news to come is the deal being made with Marion Cottilard, and then hopefully just maybe they can finally get around to telling us who they're playing. I mean Cotillard as Talia Al Ghul seems all but certain, however speculation as to Levitt's role has ranged from down right ridiculous (The Joker or Robin) to laughable (The Riddler), and even slightly intriguing... (Dead Shot). Regardless we'll know soon enough, and really at this point all I can say is, 2012 couldn't come soon enough!

Breaking: Superman Will Probably Punch Someone In the Face!

Almost six years ago when I walked out of the theater after Superman Returns I felt ripped off as shit. Not because the movie was awful or Brandon Routh didn't do a good job as Supes, but because Superman the strongest being on earth just had his ass whipped by Kevin Spacey and in retaliation he flew off with an island. Now I don't know about you, but I prefer my Superman to be fucking some shit up. I think he should have dropped that island on kevin Spacey and then attempted to shove a building up his ass, just because he's fucking Superman and that's how he rolls! Seriously though, I think we can all agree Superman is most entertaining and awesome when he gets the chance to be physical.

Well it looks like we're in luck when it comes to Zack Snyder's reboot, The Man Of Steel. I'm sure it was already pretty damn obvious the man behind 300 and Watchmen wasn't about to sign on for a Superman movie where he didn't get to kick some asses, but just for shits n' giggles the good folks over at Collider felt the need to reassure the fans by asking the man himself, Zack Snyder. What did he have to say when asked whether or not Superman would punch someone in the face, head on over to Collider and check out the the awesome and hilarious video where Snyder gives a little insight.

Movie Review: Source Code

The sophomore directorial effort for new up and comer Duncan Jones is "Source Code". Before even seeing the film I heard comparisons to last years surprise hit "Inception" being thrown around. In my opinion "Inception"was the best picture of last year, so needless to say I went in to "Source Code" with the bar set extremely high. I was slightly worried, much like I was with "Inception", that there was no way it could live up to the hype. Thankfully, once again I was proven very wrong. Not only did it exceed my expectations, but it brought me to the conclusion that it’s not really fair for it to be compared to any other film. The plot, directing, cinematography and acting performances were the best I’ve seen this year. The film truly deserves to stand on its own as a near perfect example of film making and a story as being told by a more then capable and talented director.

The plot starts by introducing us to Captain Colter Stephens (Jake Gyllenhal) who’s aboard a commuter train in Chicago which is set to explode. The only thing is he has no recollection of ever getting on board or knowledge of the bomb about to be detonated on it. Before he can figure out what happened between being in command of a military fighter helicopter in Afghanistan and how he came to board the train it explodes. Stephens wakes up inside what appears to be a space capsule, he’s alone and there’s a video monitor in front of him with a woman in military attire ( Vira Farminga) on the screen, she’s questioning him as to the location of the bomb and whether or not he was able to determine the culprit responsible as of yet.

Very little is revealed right up until the slightly shocking and ambiguous ending. But what we are made aware of is Stephens purpose on the train and how he was more or less placed there, however what we’re never made privy to is why he was specifically chosen. The military was able to create a technology (the source code) where they can send someone into the mind and technically body of someone who has recently died. The only stipulation is that they can only re-live the last eight minutes of their life. The one advantage they do have though is the ability to be limitless in the action they take while within the source code. Stephens is able to exit the train and even explore an entirely alternate universe, as is vaguely explained to him by source code creator and mysterious character Dr. Walter Rutledge (Jeffrey Wright).

The tone of the film is set in place early on and for the remainder of the movie you’re left guessing as to who Stephens should be looking for, why they chose him to take part in the highly secretive and conspicuous source code program, and where he literally physically is in between sending him back into the source code. Every time he re-enters the source code he's able to examine the scene of the crime over and over until he can piece together enough information to prevent the next attack.

The performances from the core cast were top notch. Not surprisingly though Gyllenhaal steals the show. Farminga and Wright did a great job fleshing out characters which had little development and vague descriptions into their backgrounds. Taking on a pivotal and strong supporting role was Michelle Monaghan who added the emotional involvement to the plot for the audience to become more invested in Gyllenhaal's character.

Without giving too much of the intricate and thought provoking plot away I would easily say that the film was able to keep me not only entertained but thoroughly interested and engaged in the outcome right up until the reality altering conclusion. It would be an understatement to say that Duncan Jones has progressed immensely from the style he applied to "Moon" which made it such a huge critical success. Although his style is still very much apparent it’s obvious he’s not afraid of thinking outside the box or applying new ideas and techniques to his films.

I’m giving "Source Code" an overall 9/10