Kong is back, transformed into a ‘MonsteVerse’ colossus suitable for combat with Kaiju-sized foes. The key inspiration is video games but the day is saved by capable performers in mostly amusing roles. Even though the show treats its fantasy halfway seriously, it’s still an infantile guns ‘n’ monsters romp, embellished with impressive visual effects.
Kong: Skull Island 3D
3-D Blu-ray + Digital
Warner Home Video
2017 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 118 min. / Street Date July 18, 2017 / 44.95
Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, John C. Reilly, Thomas Mann, Brie Larson, Tian Jing .
Cinematography: Larry Fong
Film Editor: Richard Pearson
Original Music: Henry Jackman
Written by Dan Gilroy, Max Borenstein, Derek Connolly, John Gatins
Produced by Mary Parent, Jon Jashni, Alex Garcia
Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Much of genre filmmaking is now being corporatized into interrelated ‘shared universes.’ Universal is struggling to shape its horror icons into a Marvel-like gallery of interchangeable ‘fun’ adventure figures.
Kong: Skull Island 3D
3-D Blu-ray + Digital
Warner Home Video
2017 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 118 min. / Street Date July 18, 2017 / 44.95
Starring: Tom Hiddleston, Samuel L. Jackson, John Goodman, John C. Reilly, Thomas Mann, Brie Larson, Tian Jing .
Cinematography: Larry Fong
Film Editor: Richard Pearson
Original Music: Henry Jackman
Written by Dan Gilroy, Max Borenstein, Derek Connolly, John Gatins
Produced by Mary Parent, Jon Jashni, Alex Garcia
Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts
Much of genre filmmaking is now being corporatized into interrelated ‘shared universes.’ Universal is struggling to shape its horror icons into a Marvel-like gallery of interchangeable ‘fun’ adventure figures.
- 7/22/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
The Accountant
Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
2016 / Color / 2:40 widescreen / 128 min. / Street Date January 10, 2017 / 35.99
Starring: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Jon Bernthal, Jeffrey Tambor, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, John Lithgow, Jean Smart, Andy Umberger, Alison Wright, Robert C. Treveiler, Mary Kraft, Jake Presley.
Cinematography Seamus McGarvey
Film Editor: Richard Pearson
Original Music: Mark Isham
Written by: Bill Dubuque
Produced by: Lynette Howard Taylor, Mark Williams
Directed by: Gavin O’Connor
Comic book action thrillers are so influential today, that more naturalistic suspense thrillers are giving way under the strain. Just winding up is a long series of paternal revenge & response thrillers starring Liam Neeson, who is forever striking back against the ‘evil forces’ threatening the sacred family unit. No action hero ever fights for right for its own sake anymore, it’s always because of some heightened sense of family loyalty or personal duty – a ‘me’ motive. My...
Blu-ray + DVD + Digital HD
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.
2016 / Color / 2:40 widescreen / 128 min. / Street Date January 10, 2017 / 35.99
Starring: Ben Affleck, Anna Kendrick, J.K. Simmons, Jon Bernthal, Jeffrey Tambor, Cynthia Addai-Robinson, John Lithgow, Jean Smart, Andy Umberger, Alison Wright, Robert C. Treveiler, Mary Kraft, Jake Presley.
Cinematography Seamus McGarvey
Film Editor: Richard Pearson
Original Music: Mark Isham
Written by: Bill Dubuque
Produced by: Lynette Howard Taylor, Mark Williams
Directed by: Gavin O’Connor
Comic book action thrillers are so influential today, that more naturalistic suspense thrillers are giving way under the strain. Just winding up is a long series of paternal revenge & response thrillers starring Liam Neeson, who is forever striking back against the ‘evil forces’ threatening the sacred family unit. No action hero ever fights for right for its own sake anymore, it’s always because of some heightened sense of family loyalty or personal duty – a ‘me’ motive. My...
- 1/10/2017
- by Glenn Erickson
- Trailers from Hell
Warner Bros. Pictures has released a second trailer for the upcoming drama The Accountant.
Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is a math savant with more affinity for numbers than people. Behind the cover of a small-town Cpa office, he works as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations.
With the Treasury Department’s Crime Enforcement Division, run by Ray King (J.K. Simmons), starting to close in, Christian takes on a legitimate client: a state-of-the-art robotics company where an accounting clerk (Anna Kendrick) has discovered a discrepancy involving millions of dollars. But as Christian uncooks the books and gets closer to the truth, it is the body count that starts to rise.
The film also stars Jon Bernthal (“Fury,” “The Wolf of Wall Street”), Jean Smart (TV’s “Fargo,” “24”), and Cynthia Addai-Robinson (“Star Trek: Into Darkness”), with Jeffrey Tambor (TV’s “Transparent,” “The Hangover” films...
Christian Wolff (Ben Affleck) is a math savant with more affinity for numbers than people. Behind the cover of a small-town Cpa office, he works as a freelance accountant for some of the world’s most dangerous criminal organizations.
With the Treasury Department’s Crime Enforcement Division, run by Ray King (J.K. Simmons), starting to close in, Christian takes on a legitimate client: a state-of-the-art robotics company where an accounting clerk (Anna Kendrick) has discovered a discrepancy involving millions of dollars. But as Christian uncooks the books and gets closer to the truth, it is the body count that starts to rise.
The film also stars Jon Bernthal (“Fury,” “The Wolf of Wall Street”), Jean Smart (TV’s “Fargo,” “24”), and Cynthia Addai-Robinson (“Star Trek: Into Darkness”), with Jeffrey Tambor (TV’s “Transparent,” “The Hangover” films...
- 7/28/2016
- by Michelle McCue
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
One of the most enduring and captivating figures of all time unveils his beginnings in Dracula Untold, a gorgeously realized, never before seen, story of the legendary vampire’s origin story. Dracula Untold debuts on Digital HD on January 20, 2015 and on Blu-ray™ Combo Pack, including Blu-ray™, DVD and Digital HD with UltraViolet™, and On Demand February 3, 2015 from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Legendary Pictures.
For almost a century, the legend of Dracula has mesmerized audiences with the story of a charismatic royal who feasts on the blood of innocents after the sun goes down. Dracula Untold reveals the man behind the myth in the thrilling, action-packed tale of Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (Luke Evans – The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Fast & Furious 6), who makes a terrifying deal with a supernatural ally that will allow him to save his family and his country – at the cost of his soul.
For almost a century, the legend of Dracula has mesmerized audiences with the story of a charismatic royal who feasts on the blood of innocents after the sun goes down. Dracula Untold reveals the man behind the myth in the thrilling, action-packed tale of Vlad III, Prince of Wallachia (Luke Evans – The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, Fast & Furious 6), who makes a terrifying deal with a supernatural ally that will allow him to save his family and his country – at the cost of his soul.
- 1/26/2015
- by Movie Geeks
- WeAreMovieGeeks.com
Vlad III, the prince of Wallachia, has a tough choice to make in Gary Shore’s Dracula Untold. He can either remain human and see his son unwillingly recruited into the vast army of Sultan Mehmed II, or he can become a monster and save his family. The early, human days of Bram Stoker’s timeless character, Dracula, are explored in Dracula Untold, which is hitting home media soon with an abundance of bonus features.
Coming out on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD on January 20th ahead of its On Demand release on February 3rd, Dracula Untold will feature the following bonus features courtesy of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Legendary Pictures (for more details, see the official press release and cover art below):
“Bonus Features Exclusive to Blu-ray
Alternate Opening Deleted Scenes The Land of Dracula – An exclusive interactive map that takes fans deep into Dracula’s mysterious world,...
Coming out on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD on January 20th ahead of its On Demand release on February 3rd, Dracula Untold will feature the following bonus features courtesy of Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Legendary Pictures (for more details, see the official press release and cover art below):
“Bonus Features Exclusive to Blu-ray
Alternate Opening Deleted Scenes The Land of Dracula – An exclusive interactive map that takes fans deep into Dracula’s mysterious world,...
- 12/5/2014
- by Derek Anderson
- DailyDead
Chicago – When Paul Greengrass’s “United 93” opened in American cinemas on April 28, 2006, the vast majority of buzz surrounding the film centered on the controversial question of whether it was in fact “too soon” for a film based on the 9/11 terrorist attacks to hit the big screen. It apparently wasn’t too soon for the small screen, since Peter Markle’s TV dramatization “Flight 93” played to little fanfare in January of that year.
Watching Greengrass’s “United 93” a mere five years after the historic tragedy was one of the great out-of-body experiences I’ve ever had in a theater. Though various films have attempted to function as memorials, this one actually succeeds in honoring the lives that were lost while resisting every opportunity to exploit the material for cheap theatrics. The film takes an intimate god’s eye view of the people on the ground and in the air,...
Watching Greengrass’s “United 93” a mere five years after the historic tragedy was one of the great out-of-body experiences I’ve ever had in a theater. Though various films have attempted to function as memorials, this one actually succeeds in honoring the lives that were lost while resisting every opportunity to exploit the material for cheap theatrics. The film takes an intimate god’s eye view of the people on the ground and in the air,...
- 9/8/2011
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
Veteran Welsh actor Richard Pearson has died, just one day after turning 93.
The star passed away at a home for retired actors in London on Tuesday, just hours after his birthday.
Pearson made his film debut at the age of 32 in the 1950 movie The Girl is Mine, and went on to appear in three Roman Polanski movies, Macbeth, Tess, and Pirates.
The actor was best known in his native Britain for voicing Mole in 1983 TV movie The Wind in the Willows and its subsequent small screen series of the same name.
His last film appearance came in 2002, when he starred in Men In Black II, alongside Will Smith.
Pearson's son Patrick says, "He did a rather good line in rather priggish, pompous characters."...
The star passed away at a home for retired actors in London on Tuesday, just hours after his birthday.
Pearson made his film debut at the age of 32 in the 1950 movie The Girl is Mine, and went on to appear in three Roman Polanski movies, Macbeth, Tess, and Pirates.
The actor was best known in his native Britain for voicing Mole in 1983 TV movie The Wind in the Willows and its subsequent small screen series of the same name.
His last film appearance came in 2002, when he starred in Men In Black II, alongside Will Smith.
Pearson's son Patrick says, "He did a rather good line in rather priggish, pompous characters."...
- 8/3/2011
- WENN
- The San Diego critics might have picked a familiar pic for their best film of the year, but they’ve indeed bucked the trend with at least 3 of their 4 choices for acting awards – finally The Proposition is remembered and Dick Pope gets a worthy kudos for Best Cinematography for The Illusionist. Here are San Diego Film Critics Society top choices of the year. Best Film: Letters From Iwo Jima Best Director: Clint Eastwood Best Actor: Ken Takakura - Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles Best Actress: Helen Mirren - The Queen Best Supporting Actor: Ray Winstone - The Proposition Best Supporting Actress: Lili Taylor - Factotum Best Ensemble Performance: Babel Best Original Screenplay: Karen Moncrieff - The Dead Girl Best Adapted Screenplay: Jason Reitman Thank You for Smoking Best Non-Fiction Film: Shut Up & Sing Best Animated Film: Cars Best Cinematography: Dick Pope The Illusionist Best Editing: Christopher Rouse,
- 12/21/2006
- IONCINEMA.com
In the capable hands of Doug Liman, 2002's The Bourne Identity was able to cast off the creaky shackles of the conventional espionage thriller thanks to a kinetic energy that agreeably propelled the genre into the next millennium.
For The Bourne Supremacy, based on the second novel in the Robert Ludlum series, the director of Swingers and "Go" has gone (he still remains as one of the executive producers) but not before handing the reins to British filmmaker Paul Greengrass.
He's certainly an intriguing choice. For his previous film, the blistering Bloody Sunday, Greengrass brought a vital, documentary feel to his retelling of the 1972 civil rights march in Northern Ireland that ended tragically, with his handheld, darting cameras creating the desired effect of plunging the viewer right into the middle of the chaos.
The director incorporates essentially the same technique to track the further exploits of the amnesia-plagued Jason Bourne, but in this case the jittery fly-on-the-wall approach has the undesired opposite effect of driving a distracting wedge between the viewer and the chief protagonist.
While the picture still has its smartly choreographed moments, that audience disconnect will most likely prevent the Universal release from approaching the $120 million-plus heights of its predecessor.
When we catch up with Matt Damon's Bourne, he and his girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente) are finding it difficult to outrun his murky, haunting past, which has a way of resurfacing with every suspicious phone call and sidewise glance in every new city they attempt to call home.
But that paranoia proves justified after an attempt on his life by a paid assassin. Not to mention the fact that two recent deaths were made to look like Bourne's handiwork.
Determined to track down the responsible parties, Bourne initiates a complex game of cat and mouse with the equally determined Pamela Landy (Joan Allen), a CIA agent who likes to run things her way.
That dynamic begs for a gradually escalating tension that never materializes.
Instead Greengrass, working from a script by Tony Gilroy (who adapted the previous Bourne), relies on those highly caffeinated, handheld quick pans (by cinematographer Oliver Wood) and rapid cuts (courtesy of editors Christopher Rouse and Richard Pearson) to establish a feeling of urgency, but like its various post-Cold War European locations, the film remains chilly and distant.
Every time you feel like you're finally grabbing hold of something involving, the picture once again spins frustratingly out of reach.
His actors are certainly up to the task at hand, with Damon, Allen, Brian Cox (as Allen's antagonistic colleague) and Julia Stiles (as a field agent pressed into service as a go-between for Bourne and the CIA) turning in uniformly sturdy and intelligent performances.
The Bourne Supremacy
Universal Pictures
Univesal Pictures presents in association with MP Theta Prods.
a Kennedy/Marshall production in association with Ludlum Entertainment
Credits:
Director: Paul Greengrass
Screenwriter: Tony Gilroy
Based on the novel by: Robert Ludlum
Producers: Frank Marshall, Patrick Crowley, Paul L. Sandberg
Executive producers: Doug Liman, Jeffrey M. Weiner, Henry Morrison
Director of photography: Oliver Wood
Production designer: Dominic Watkins
Editors: Christopher Rouse, Richard Pearson
Costume designer: Dinah Collin
Music: John Powell
Cast:
Jason Bourne: Matt Damon
Marie: Franka Potente
Ward Abbott: Brian Cox
Nicky: Julia Stiles
Kirill: Karl Urban
Danny Zorn: Gabriel Mann
Agent Pamela Landy: Joan Allen
MPAA rating: PG-13
Rnning time -- 108 minutes...
For The Bourne Supremacy, based on the second novel in the Robert Ludlum series, the director of Swingers and "Go" has gone (he still remains as one of the executive producers) but not before handing the reins to British filmmaker Paul Greengrass.
He's certainly an intriguing choice. For his previous film, the blistering Bloody Sunday, Greengrass brought a vital, documentary feel to his retelling of the 1972 civil rights march in Northern Ireland that ended tragically, with his handheld, darting cameras creating the desired effect of plunging the viewer right into the middle of the chaos.
The director incorporates essentially the same technique to track the further exploits of the amnesia-plagued Jason Bourne, but in this case the jittery fly-on-the-wall approach has the undesired opposite effect of driving a distracting wedge between the viewer and the chief protagonist.
While the picture still has its smartly choreographed moments, that audience disconnect will most likely prevent the Universal release from approaching the $120 million-plus heights of its predecessor.
When we catch up with Matt Damon's Bourne, he and his girlfriend Marie (Franka Potente) are finding it difficult to outrun his murky, haunting past, which has a way of resurfacing with every suspicious phone call and sidewise glance in every new city they attempt to call home.
But that paranoia proves justified after an attempt on his life by a paid assassin. Not to mention the fact that two recent deaths were made to look like Bourne's handiwork.
Determined to track down the responsible parties, Bourne initiates a complex game of cat and mouse with the equally determined Pamela Landy (Joan Allen), a CIA agent who likes to run things her way.
That dynamic begs for a gradually escalating tension that never materializes.
Instead Greengrass, working from a script by Tony Gilroy (who adapted the previous Bourne), relies on those highly caffeinated, handheld quick pans (by cinematographer Oliver Wood) and rapid cuts (courtesy of editors Christopher Rouse and Richard Pearson) to establish a feeling of urgency, but like its various post-Cold War European locations, the film remains chilly and distant.
Every time you feel like you're finally grabbing hold of something involving, the picture once again spins frustratingly out of reach.
His actors are certainly up to the task at hand, with Damon, Allen, Brian Cox (as Allen's antagonistic colleague) and Julia Stiles (as a field agent pressed into service as a go-between for Bourne and the CIA) turning in uniformly sturdy and intelligent performances.
The Bourne Supremacy
Universal Pictures
Univesal Pictures presents in association with MP Theta Prods.
a Kennedy/Marshall production in association with Ludlum Entertainment
Credits:
Director: Paul Greengrass
Screenwriter: Tony Gilroy
Based on the novel by: Robert Ludlum
Producers: Frank Marshall, Patrick Crowley, Paul L. Sandberg
Executive producers: Doug Liman, Jeffrey M. Weiner, Henry Morrison
Director of photography: Oliver Wood
Production designer: Dominic Watkins
Editors: Christopher Rouse, Richard Pearson
Costume designer: Dinah Collin
Music: John Powell
Cast:
Jason Bourne: Matt Damon
Marie: Franka Potente
Ward Abbott: Brian Cox
Nicky: Julia Stiles
Kirill: Karl Urban
Danny Zorn: Gabriel Mann
Agent Pamela Landy: Joan Allen
MPAA rating: PG-13
Rnning time -- 108 minutes...
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