Sunday, November 6, 2011

Betty White, Cloris Leachman & Robert Englund in SyFy Original

YES on all Counts.  I will absolutely watch this.

According to Entertainment Weekly, Betty White (The Golden Girls), Cloris Leachman (Young Frankenstein), Robert Englund (A Nightmare on Elm Street) and Colin Ferguson (Eureka) have all been cast in Lake Placid: The Final Chapter!





You may remember the 1999 mild hit Lake Placid which Betty White had a great part in along side Bridget Fonda & Bill Pullman.  White made that film, hands down.

"Englund will play Jim Bickerman, a poacher caught up in the film's latest giant croc attack. Elizabeth Rohm (Law & Order) and Yancy Butler (Kick-Ass) to co-star."

The film is said to be shooting in Bulgaria and will be released in 2012.  


Friday, November 4, 2011

The Help director Tate Taylor to Direct Melissa McCarthy Comedy

It's official.  According to the Hollywood Reporter, The Help director Tate Taylor is set to direct rising star Melissa McCarthy in a comedy which she wrote.



 Taylor is riding the success of The Help, as he should and it looks like since September McCarthy and Taylor have been in talks and finally confirmed the deal with New Line.


 Project centers round an overweight woman who is laid off from her job at Hardee's, discovers her husband is having an affair and decided to go on a road trip with her alcoholic, foul-mouthed, diabetic grandmother.


McCarthy co-wrote the script with her husband Ben Falcone (he plaied the air marshal in Bridesmaids)

Thursday, November 3, 2011

Canon Announces 2 EOS C300 Cinema Cameras for High-Resolution Motion Picture Production


If the 5D Mark II changed the game.  This could do it again.  Though the price is not suitable for your average filmmaker.
_________________________


Canon held its highly anticipated Cinema EOS event in Hollywood, California this afternoon. Chairman and CEO of Canon, Fujio Mitarai took the stage and declared that the company wanted to "leave no story untold".







Specifications include a completely new, designed-for-cinema 8.3MP 2160 x 3840 Super-35 CMOS sensor (4K resolution) alongside the DIGIC DV III processor.  Recording to dual compact flash cards is achieved with the Canon XF codec (50Mbps 4:2:2 1080p30 MPEG2 MXF). No priority, autofocus or auto exposure/white balance settings are included; the C300 is a completely manual operation.



The C300 body comes complete with a monitor, power adapter and battery, viewfinder, and modular handles and grips. Several new cinema lenses will also be released, including two zoom lenses available with either EF or PL mounts. Three prime lenses (EF mount only) that resolve to 4K will also be launched. The Canon C300 arrives in January at a list price of $20,000.00.



source: engadget


MORE INFO VIA CANON AT: CanonCinemaEOS.com
About Canon U.S.A., Inc.
Canon U.S.A., Inc., is a leading provider of consumer, business-to-business, and industrial digital imaging solutions. With more than $45 billion in global revenue, its parent company, Canon Inc. (NYSE:CAJ), ranks fourth overall in patent holdings in the U.S. in 2010† and is one of Fortune Magazine's World's Most Admired Companies in 2011. Canon U.S.A. is committed to the highest levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, providing 100 percent U.S.-based consumer service and support for all of the products it distributes. Canon U.S.A. is dedicated to its Kyosei philosophy of social and environmental responsibility. To keep apprised of the latest news from Canon U.S.A., sign up for the Company's RSS news feed by visiting www.usa.canon.com/rss.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

The Thing (2011) Review

The Thing is not a remake but a prequel to the 1982 John Carpenter film of the same name.  Fans of the original will have problems with this film, but audiences of today will more then likely enjoy it.

I found the origin of The Thing interesting the whole how they discovered it idea.  I enjoyed the setting and most of the characters.  It's a good thing they didn't over glamorize Antarctica by placing a bunch of model-esque actors in the snow.  Seriously, that would have cheapened the film, but overall, they did a fine job with casting.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Deathproof, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Final Destination 3) is a solid actress.  She leads this film with a confidence that is not seen in many 20 something women in the horror genre.  Her character is submissive at first but inquisitiveness which only makes the almost entirely male crew pissed off at her & want to protect her, though she takes the reins and really owns this film by the end.

 My only gripe was adding in Eric Christian Olsen (Fired Up, Beerfest).  I think he was supposed to be Winstead's friend possibly a love interest, I'm not sure what they were thinking.  He's not a bad actor by any means he's just no meant to be in a horror flick as a scientist.  It's just odd.

 Also, the CG is a bit overwhelming.  Yeah, we know what the thing is studio people, but the allure of the original is what you don't necessarily see.  Horror_Guy Keenan from Bloody-Disgusting Radio hit the nail on the head when he said to me, "They stayed on the Thing's faces for far too long."  He's exactly right.  There was no scare tactic here, it's just drawn out by 30 seconds to a minute of you staring at the Thing as it attacks it's victims or as when one of the things is killed.  They just LINGER on the creature too long.  It's a bit annoying.

 The one thing (ha, ha) that I would have liked was a cameo from Kurt Russell.  But alas, it did not happen and I was disappointed.

 If you are near a Universal Studios this Halloween season you can check out "The Thing" house at Universal's Halloween Horror Nights.

 I say it's a 7 out of 10.  Not horrible, but not amazing.  Solid performances from all the actors.  Bad CGI.  But it's enough to keep you interested for 2hrs.





@JesseKozel

Thursday, September 8, 2011

Back To The Future Nikes Available on Ebay to support Michael J. Fox

via CinemaBlend


Geeks around the world were worked into a lather when it was announced yesterday that Nike would be producing replicas of Marty McFly's sneakers fromBack To The Future Part II. Sadly, it turns out that the shoes won't have power laces (crap) but they are being made and sold for a very good cause.
Starting tonight and lasting over the next 10 days, 1,500 pairs of 2011 Nike MAGs will go up for auction on eBay and all of the proceeds will go to the Michael J. Fox Foundation, the charity begun by the actor to help cure Parkinson's disease. In promotion of the event, Back to the Future producer Rick Marshall directed a commercial starring Bill Hader, NBA star Kevin Durant, and, of course, Christopher Lloyd:





Michael J. Fox has also posted a video, talking about the auction and the cause each sale will benefit: 





While it sucks that the shoes don't have power laces (only four more years, guys!) this really is better than Nike simply making a buck off of our never ending need for nostalgia. If you were planning on buying these shoes, think about the amount of money you would have been willing to spend and put it towards the auction. Not only will you be helping people in need of your help and support, but you may also get a pair of really kick ass shoes.

Friday, September 2, 2011

Red State Gets Nationwide One Night Only Screenings on September 25th






This is one of the most interesting distribution models I've ever seen.  First tour your own film, then go direct to VOD and now a one-night-only screening across the U.S. and a Q&A using Twitter!
Welcome to a new age ladies and gentlemen.  Get prepared for others to follow in Kevin Smith's tracks.

------------------------------------------------------









On the heels of the chart topping, Academy-qualifying run at Quentin Tarrantino's New Beverly Cinema, SModcast Pictures announced today, the next phase of it's unprecedented release strategy for Kevin Smith's controversial thriller Red State

On Sunday, September 25, Red State will screen at select theatres nationwide through a unique partnership with the Emerging Pictures theatre network, announced David Dinerstein, whose D Squared Films is overseeing the films distribution for SModcast.

"Red State will be made available as a 'One-Night-Only' event which mirrors the format of SModcast's record breaking Red State USA Tour from earlier this year. For this screening event, Smith's trademark post show Q&A will be digitally streamed live from Tarantino's New Beverly into all of the participating theatres, allowing audience members to interact directly with Smith utilizing Twitter. Smith will be joined on stage by a special guest who will moderate the Q&A," saidDinerstein.

Written and directed by Kevin Smith and produced by Kevin SmithRed State stars 2011 Academy Award winner for Best Actress Melissa Leo, Golden Globe winner John Goodman, andMichael Parks. The film debuted at this year's Sundance Film Festival to much notoriety whenSmith ended studio bidding by buying his own film for $20 and declaring he would be self-distributing the film theatrically. Smith has since toured the film around the country to enthusiastic audiences, grossing $1,065,429 to date at the North American box office from only 22 single show engagements and its Academy-qualifying run.

SModcast released the film on March 5 when it embarked on the 15 city Red State USA Tour. SModcast spent less than $500 in paid advertising to support the tour, which kicked off at the legendary Radio City Music Hall and grossed $162,000 during one show. The film quietly topped the per screen average charts for three weekends, making it the highest per screen average film of the year and the 9th highest per screen average film of all time.

Red State also had the highest per-theater-average of any film in release for the past two weekends, averaging of $25,800 and $10,000 per theater, respectively.

Following Smith's original mandate to maximize the potential audience while minimizing the excessive marketing costs normally associated with distribution, he and his team have devised a unique distribution plan that will make the film available on multiple platforms simultaneously, including today's debut of the film on Video-On-Demand (VOD) from Lionsgate. Lionsgate has previously announced that the DVD and and Blu-ray is set to be released on October 18 to coincide with the 17th anniversary of Smith's debut film Clerks.

Red State tells the story of a group of teens in Middle America who receive an online invitation for sex, but soon encounter fundamentalists with a much more sinister agenda.

Additional information about Red State is available at CoopersDell.com

Red State comes to theaters September 25th, 2011 and stars Melissa LeoJohn Goodman,Michael AngaranoKyle GallnerStephen RootNicholas BraunKevin PollakAnna Gunn. The film is directed by Kevin Smith.
.


Thursday, September 1, 2011

Red State available via VOD today

Kevin Smith's controversial RED STATE is available everywhere today (September 1st) via sites like iTunes, YouTube, Vudu, Amazon, Blockbuster and Best Buy's Cinema Now.

 This is an interesting distribution model for a film by such a popular director and with Academy Award Winner Melissa Leo (The Fighter) and John Goodman (Rosanne) starring.

 I heard Smith had some trouble with theatrical distribution and did a small tour with the film leading up to this release.  I've heard great things but I think it's just not a conventional film for the theatrical model and I understand why Smith went this rout.

 If it does well enough, it might show the studio system and the theater's that bend to their every whim that people will watch a film regardless of how violent or off color it is.

Let me know your thoughts on this.

Go to the Official Red State website!



Saturday, August 20, 2011

Fiona Shaw - a true actor preps for the National Theatre

I absolutely love watching actors prepare.

Fiona Shaw is currently bewitching audiences as Marnie on HBO's True Blood,
but in 2009 she was starring in Berholt Brecht's 'Mother Courage and her Children', directed by Deborah Warner on the Olivier Stage.


 This is a rare glimpse behind the scenes as she prepares for the nights performance.







Sunday, July 24, 2011

Universal releases images at Comic-Con of SNOW WHITE and THE HUNTSMAN

Universal released the first images from Snow White and the Huntsman at San Diego Comic-Con.
It's another dark take on Snow White.  If you don't remember, in 1997 there was Snow White: A Tale of Terror with Sigourney Weaver.  It didn't do well, though it was pretty damn dark.  

 Regardless, Universal wants to get interest in their new take on the story before rival Relativity releases their currently Untitled Snow White adaptation. (if you'd like to see Lily Collins in Relativity's Snow White "look" click the link.)
 Relativity does have a good cast as well, but...I'm more interested in seeing a sword wheeling Snow White over another Bitch in a Ball Gown.

 






source: The Hollywood Reporter
Complete: SDCC coverage of the Snow White trailer also on THR

Monday, July 18, 2011

Danielle Harris Directing "Among Friends"


 Genre favorite Danielle Harris (Halloween, Hatchet II) is taking a step behind the camera to direct Among Friends.  The screenplay was written by Alyssa Lobit who previously wrote the feature The Things We Carry.

 Dana Daurey, Brianne Davis, Jennifer Blanc-Biehn,
Danielle Harris, Alyssa Lobit and Kamala Jones
 Harris and Lobit will both act in the film, along with Chris Backus, Jennifer Blanc (who is also a producer on this film),
AJ Bowen, Brianne Davis, Dana Daurey, Kamala Jones, Chris Meyer and Tanya Newbould. Jay Lobit and Bill Allison will serve as executive producers. 


The film is being produced by Blancbiehn Productions, Three Little Birds and Hollywood Treasures Inc.






The flick is said to be an 80's style horror comedy in the vein of April Fool's Day, Clue and Happy Birthday to Me along with some other fun stuff!

 Filming is set to begin in August.

via: Official Among Friends siteDreadCentral, JoeBlow
 

Find Among Friends on Facebook & Twitter





Thursday, July 14, 2011

CONTAGION trailer Kills off Gwyneth Paltrow!

Steven Soderbergh's new Contagion looks to give everyone something to think about the next time they touch a stranger.




Starring:
Matt Damon
Gwyneth Paltrow
Kate Winslet
Marion Cotillard
Laurence Fishburne
and
Jude Law





THE THING trailer starring Mary Elizabeth Winstead

This is a prequel to the 1982 John Carpenter film of the same name which starred Kurt Russell.


synopsis via IMDb:
At an Antarctica research site, the discovery of an alien craft leads to a confrontation between graduate student Kate Lloyd and scientist Dr. Sander Halvorson.





Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, Deathproof) stars.





<a href='http://movies.msn.com/movies/movie-trailers/#/video/f749b83d-e1d0-4983-a918-a9c3914b03c0' target='_new' title='&#39;The Thing&#39; Movie Trailer' >Video: &#39;The Thing&#39; Movie Trailer</a>



Wednesday, June 8, 2011

NSFW Sony's Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Poster

A fellow actor friend of mine of Facebook just posted the new one sheet for Sony's upcoming "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo". This is not typical of the MPAA to allow such an image. A female nipple? Actress Rooney Mara's nipple to be exact.  That seems highly odd.


But then I came across the more suitable chain theatre poster, which is still a little bit on the risky side for Sony or the MPAA & I must say I'm impressed. Could American audiences be ready for minor female nudity on theatrical posters?


Probably not, I'm sure in the images that will be sent out to AMC, REGAL, CARMIKE, ect. will most likely feature a different image or they'll photoshop a bra on her. Lord knows there isn't a mother in the heartland that could handle taking their kids to see "Cars 2", look up from their tub of over priced, over buttered popcorn and see their children staring at a pierced female breast.


read more here: MoviePosterShop.com

Monday, April 18, 2011

Spike Jonze shoots Yo-Yo Ma & Lil Buck performing "The Swan"

This is beautiful.

 Director Spike Jonze recnetly attended an evet “to bring the arts back into schools and got to see an amazing collaboration between Yo-Yo Ma and a young dancer in LA, Lil Buck. Someone who knows Yo-Yo Ma had seen Lil Buck on YouTube and put them together. The dancing is Lil Buck’s own creation and unlike anything I’ve seen.”



If you're a fan of Yo-Yo Ma, a fan of Lil Buck, a fan of Music or a fan of Dance, then you should watch this.





Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Mainstream Media UFO coverage

UFO's have been the subject of controversy for so many years. I for one will never think that Humans are the most inelegant beings in the universe.

This video was tweeted out by writer/director Michael Dougherty and retweeted by actor Seth Green, that's when I caught it.

I had to pass this on.




Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Jared Leto as Kurt Cobain

Jared Leto posted this video on the 30 Seconds to Mars YouTube page along with the statement below.  My guess is there are rumors still flying about the possibility of a Cobain film.  I think this is just his audition on the world stage.

It's believable.

"I heard today (April 5) was the day Kurt passed away 17 years ago. Can't believe it's been that long. So grateful for his contribution and inspiration. Not sure I'd be doing this if it weren't for him. He gave us all permission to create no matter what our skill set and reminded me that dreams are possible. Thanks for that. This made me recall a short piece of film I shot when I heard they were making a film celebrating his life. I made it to explore the character and explore creative possibilities. I never sent it to the studio or to anyone but thought I'd share it now..."
- Jared Leto



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Filmmaker Admits to Killing Victim

A sketch of Twitchell April 6, 2011
The Canadian Press/Amanda McRoberts
Film Making gone Horribly Wrong!
This was a bad idea and I would never recommended anyone making a film try to scare an unsuspecting person on camera with real weapons.  Never do that, ever.

via MSN

EDMONTON - A lawyer has told jurors that his filmmaker client killed and dismembered a total stranger — not in a deliberate murder, but during a publicity stunt gone horribly awry.

"Events spiralled out of control in a way he didn't expect, and Mr. (Johnny) Altinger lay dead or dying on the floor," Charles Davison said as the defence opened its case Wednesday.

Mark Twitchell, 31, is charged with the first-degree murder of Altinger on Oct. 10, 2008. He has pleaded not guilty.
The Crown has argued that Twitchell lured Altinger to a residential garage that night, killed him and hacked up the body to match a movie shot in the same garage by Twitchell and his buddies two weeks earlier.

After Davison spoke to the jury in his opening address, Twitchell took the stand and said the movie, called "House of Cards," gave him an idea that eventually got out of hand.

The eight-minute slasher flick revolves around a philandering husband who goes to meet a woman he met online. But he is instead Tasered and abducted by a mysterious man in a hockey mask.

The killer takes the husband to a closed room, tapes him to a chair and obtains his computer passcode to clean out his bank account. He tells the victim he is being killed for his cheating ways, runs him through with a samurai sword and hacks up the body parts.

Twitchell told jurors that after the movie was shot he came up with a plan to make sequels and to create a buzz around what he hoped would be a franchise. His idea was for something he called multiple angle psychosis layering entertainment, or MAPLE.

The plan was to put actual people through the same experience as the "House of Cards" victim, but not to kill them. That way, he said, when those people saw the movie, they would text or email friends to say something similar had actually happened to them. That, he believed, would get people talking.

"We would be trying to keep the audience down the rabbit hole," said Twitchell, referring to "Alice In Wonderland."

"We would be going from the reality to the fantasy world, but staying in the fantasy world as long as possible."
He testified that on Oct. 3, 2008, he posed as an Internet date online to lure another stranger, Gilles Tetreault, to the garage.

Twitchell said he had bought knives and created a "kill room" with plastic sheets on the walls and table to catch blood that was part of the hoax.

He said the plan was to surprise Tetreault, tell him it was all make-believe and ask him to write about it on the web.
But 10 minutes before Tetreault arrived, things changed.

"I got this spur of the moment idea," Twitchell testified. "Instead of going through it in the regular way, I'll actually try to scare this guy."

Tetreault testified last week that when he got to the garage a man in a hockey mask tried to incapacitate him with a stun baton. He told court he fought back and managed to escape. Twitchell agreed that was pretty much what happened.

A week after that, Twitchell said, he lured Altinger to the same garage on the same premise.
Twitchell's testimony came after three weeks of evidence from the Crown.

A parade of police and civilian witnesses told the jury that knives, a saw and a meat cleaver stained in Altinger's blood were found in Twitchell's possession and in his car.

Police also found that Twitchell had Altinger's car. He told them at the time that a stranger sold it to him for $40.

The Crown has also entered into evidence a text document found deleted on Twitchell's laptop hard-drive that details the unnamed author's plan to explore his "dark side" and become a serial killer.

Davison said the defence doesn't deny that much of what's in the document reflects Twitchell's life. But not, he said, the part about the murder of a man named Jim, who the Crown says was actually Altinger.

In the document, the writer describes luring Jim to the garage, bashing him on the head with a pipe and driving a hunting blade into his stomach until he bleeds out on the garage floor.

"I blasted him so hard blood spattered everywhere,'' writes the author. "He hit the floor but was still conscious.''

The writer says Jim pleaded and bargained for his life but the author was undeterred.
"I wailed on him again.''

The author then embarks on a graphic, multi-day odyssey to dispose of the remains.
First he chops up the body, then tries to burn it in a barrel. When the parts won't disintegrate, he cuts them into smaller pieces, puts them in garbage bags and contemplates tossing them in a river before finally settling on a sewer.

At the start of the trial, Twitchell offered to plead guilty to a reduced charge of interfering with the remains of Altinger, but that was rejected by the Crown.

Earlier this week, jurors were told that a year before the trial, Twitchell gave police directions to a sewer where Altinger's remains — mostly ribs and a kneecap — were found.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Lindsay Lohan on "The Walking Dead"

Lindsay Lohan on AMC's hit The Walking Dead?  It could happen.  She's interested.

“Lindsay is a fan of the show and likes the idea of appearing in what would be a fun cameo as a zombie,” a source explained.
The 24-year-old apparently thinks she will find it easier to secure television roles than leading parts in films. After leaving rehab she admitted she might find it hard to get insured to be on a movie set, which may be why she’s decided to focus on the small screen for now.
“She’s looking to TV for her comeback now and has a number of potential roles lined up including a sitcom and a supernatural drama,” the source added.



She hasn't worked in quite a while and with her latest court battle she needs work.  I think with the loss of the role as Linda Lovelace in Inferno, she's desperate and needs to do a lot to make a comeback.