The Informant!

The Academy invites 134 new members to the voting club!

Check out the entire list here, but here's a quick sampling of some of the more interesting actors, writers, directors, etc who got in this year: John August, Michael Cera, Anne Hathaway, Emile Hirsch, Rod Lurie, Clint Mansell, Claudio Miranda, Tyler Perry, Seth Rogen, Paul Rudd, and Paula Wagner.

-Thoughts on the full list?

Podcast #4 comes your way today!

We at The Awards Circuit happily bring you the 4th Awards Circuit Podcast this week, Myles and myself preview 16 Best Picture contenders, everything from The Hurt Locker to Funny People to The Lovely Bones, with plenty in between. Take a listen here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast4.html
-Definitely continue to leave us feedback by commenting on the Poscast page, by commenting here, by leaving general feedback on the site, or by contacting us on Facebook or Twitter. Thanks again for the continued support and happy listening!

One of the best movies of the first half of the year comes to DVD this week!

Indeed, one of the films that I listed as being one of the 5 best of the year so far in the inagural Podcast (and a new one is coming later today!) is on DVD today and is my obvious PICK OF THE WEEK. It's:
Two Lovers
I absolutely loved this grown up romantic drama, which features one of Mr. Phoenix's best performances (and hopefully not his last). It has a lot in common with a low key Woody Allen film, just without the comedy. I absolutely adored this film and imagine you will as well.
-Also out this week we have the dumb John Cena action flick 12 Rounds, Fred Durst's directorial debut (even though it's his second to come out) The Education of Charlie Banks, which is flawed, but not bad at all, Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun Li, which is a legend I'd like to forget, The Jonas Brothers: The 3D Concert Experience, which is what it is, and Uwe Boll's Tunnel Rats, which is an Uwe Boll movie, enough said.
-My Vintage pick this week is the classic comedy Real Genius. Val Kilmer absolutely cracks me up everytime as a slacker with a brilliant mind. It's a movie that never fails to pick me up when I'm feeling down, so it should do the same for you! (It's also one of my favorite movies to quote)
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Today's News: Cuts to Bruno, more on the bigger Best Picture field, an IMAX record for Transformers 2, Jason Lee joins Kevin Smith's latest, and more

In the news:

-Do we have some MJ related cuts to the upcoming Bruno?

-Check out Variety's take on the expansion of the Best Picture field to 10.

-Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen sets an IMAX record.

-Speaking of Transformers (and be on the lookout for my review soon), The Hollywood Reporter has a story on the divide on the film between audiences and critics.

-Add Jason Lee to the promising cast of A Couple of Dicks, the new film from Kevin Smith.

-The results of the L.A. Film Festival come out.

-A remake of An American Werewolf in London?

-Add Amy Adams to the cast of the potential Oscar vehicle The Fighter.

Today's Posters: Spread, Shrink, and Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All By Myself

It's indie movie poster day apparently, and we start off with Spread:

Followed by Shrink:

And lastly Tyler Perry's latest:

I don't particularly love any of the posters (especially not a fan of the overused flower poster design) that much...do you?

Some awards "shine" down on Duncan Jones and 'Moon' at the Edinburgh Film Fest

For all the details on the award winners, click here. Moon is shaping up to be one of the indie flicks that make a play for wider acclaim this year, and we shall see just how far smart science fiction can go in 2009...

ACCA 2005 voting has begun!

Indeed, let your voice be heard in the 2005 edition of the Awards Circuit Community Awards! Your favorites are all there, so vote here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/CircuitCommunityAwards.html
-Feel free to talk about who you're backing in the comments section...

Today's Trailers: Shrink, Sorority Row, and It Might Get Loud

First up we have the Kevin Spacey dramedy Shrink:

Next we have the slasher film Sorority Row:

And finally we have the musical documentary It Might Get Loud:

-Thoughts?

Acting Categories Fixed!

Sorry we were experiencing some technical difficulties throughout the night but it's taken care of. Enjoy the updates on the MainSite. If you see the problem when you click on them, just refresh your pages.

The Honorary Oscars get seperated from the Main Show?

It appears, according to this press release from the Academy and President Sid Ganis that there will now be a seperate ceremony for these honorary awards:

The Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has voted to establish a new annual event at which it will present its testimonial awards – the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award, the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award and the Honorary Award. Honorees will be selected and announced in September and presented their awards at a celebratory dinner event in November. They will also be acknowledged at the year’s Academy Awards ceremony.
“For some years now, the Board has struggled to balance the desire to truly honor worthy individuals with the time limitations that the Oscar® telecast imposes on these honors,” said Academy President Sid Ganis. “By creating a separate event for recognizing these outstanding people in the movie industry, we’re insuring that each honoree will be given his or her full due, without compromise.”
The Academy’s Board will hold a special meeting in September for the sole purpose of selecting the year’s honorees. There will not be more than one Hersholt nor more than one Thalberg Award voted in any given year. No more than four testimonial awards will be given in a single year.
“We wanted to achieve more flexibility with these awards,” explained Ganis. “But we also need to maintain the integrity of them. By setting the limits that we have, the members of the Board feel they have achieved the appropriate balance.”
A black-tie dinner event for about 500 invitees will include film clips as well as remarks from the honorees’ colleagues and admirers.
Previously, these awards were voted at the Board’s December meeting.

-This will probably allow the show to run a little smoother, especially if they are planning to devote segments of the show to all 10 nominees....

Today's Posters: Alice in Wonderland, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and The September Issue

First, a familiar picture becomes Burton's first official poster for Alice in Wonderland:

Next, Cloudy with a chance of Meat Balls rains on the animated parade:

And finally, the documentary The September Issue:

-Thoughts on these posters?

An Inglorious Basterds Prequel coming our way?

Tarantino has basically been keen to make follow ups to any film of his not named Jackie Brown, and it seems that his upcoming WWII opus is no exception. It's too early to know if this is a good idea or not, but if the flick catches on with audiences (and voters), I think Harvey Weinstein will make it happen... -Thoughts?

New Rules for Academy Awards

Rules Approved for
82nd Academy Awards®

Beverly Hills, CA — The governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences approved the rules for the 82nd Academy Awards at their meeting earlier this week (6/23). In addition to the previously announced change in the Best Picture category, a significant change was made in the Music – Original Song category.

The governors approved the Music Branch Executive Committee recommendation that if no song achieves a minimum average score of 8.25 in the nominations voting, there be no original song nominees and thus no Oscar presented for the category. If only one song achieves the required minimum, it and the song with the next highest score will be deemed the nominees. If two or more songs achieve the minimum score, they will be the nominees though no more than five nominees can be selected. Previously, the rules dictated that there be no more than five but no fewer than three nominees in the category.

In addition and as previously announced, the Best Picture category will have ten nominees instead of five.

Other modifications of the rules include normal date changes and minor “housekeeping” changes.

Rules are reviewed annually by individual branch and category committees. The Awards Rules Committee then reviews all proposed changes before presenting its recommendations to the Academy’s Board of Governors for approval.

Academy Award® nominations in all categories will be announced on February 2, 2010. The 82nd Academy Awards presentation will be telecast live by the ABC Television Network on Sunday, March 7, 2010.

Michael Jackson, Our very Own Charles Foster Kane?

"No Trespassing"

Has there ever been a cultural icon as enigmatic as Michael Jackson? His life was largely shaped by the media and public, yet no one really knew anything about him. For a person known around the world as the "King of Pop", he was a mystery, and his death only adds to that lore . . . I overheard someone describing his death, and they mentioned that he died alone. How can a person with so much fortune and fame die alone?

Importantly, despite his iconic status, he became entangled with scandals, and lost much of the mystique that surrounded him for decades. His followers abandoned him, and he was left in an expensive oddly named mansion, collecting things until his untimely death. Sounds familiar right? Michael Jackson's life and tragic death are eerily familiar to Charles Foster Kane's. They both dominated a particular avenue of culture (music/media). They were both larger than life figures, who at the height of their celebrity, fell to scandals. Moreover, they both tried to seclude themselves into fantasy mansions. They collected a ton of items around the world, and eventually died alone.

All of the fame and the fortune did nothing to keep their demons away. For two guys who had it all, it seemed like they had nothing. Both realized that their childhood memories provided the most comfort (Michael before he was a celebrity at 10 ). Just like Rosebud is the greatest mystery in cinema history, Michael Jackson will forever be remembered for his music, but a mystery to most of us.

My apologies for it being so late, but finally this week's DVD article arrives!

Again, apologies for it not being on Tuesday, but this coming Tuesday all will be fixed again. Jumping right in, only one film this week is of any quality at all, so it's an easy choice for my PICK OF THE WEEK. It's:
Waltz with Bashir
This is a very interesting film, one that I liked more on a second viewing than I did on a first. It's an animated documentary about one man's experience with the Lebanon War. Give this film a shot and behold what it has to offer.
-Also out this week we have the mediocre fantasy drama Phoebe in Wonderland, the boring Brendan Fraser family adventure Inkheart, the stupid sequel The Pink Panther 2, and the unfortunately themed Confessions of a Shopaholic. None of these films are particularly worth your time, so just skip them.
-To make up for the lateness of this article and the lack of much on DVD this week, I'll offer a handful of options on DVD for my Vintage pick. There is Peter Jackson's version of King Kong, Steve McQueen's Bullitt, The Wackness, There Will Be Blood, Collateral, and/or Million Dollar Baby. All are unique films, and all are rather brilliant in my eyes, so check them out if you haven't already.
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Today's Trailers: Ricky Gervais' The Invention of Lying, Richard Kelly's The Box, Spread, and Daybreakers

First, the aforementioned comic gives us a world where only one man knows how to lie in The Invention of Lying:

Then, the mad genius behind Donnie Darko and Southland Tales has a proposition for us with his latest film called The Box:

Next, Ashton Kutcher pretends to be Matthew McConaughey in the indie flick Spread:

And finally, we have the futuristic vampire action movie Daybreakers:

-Thoughts on these pieces of genre fare?

Today's News: Anitchrist is coming, so is a leaner Boat that Rocked, as well as the Watchmen Director's Cut, Ryan Reynolds gets buried, and more

Yes, for starters, the controversial Antichrist has gotten a release date of October 23rd.
I for one, can't wait...

-The Boat That Rocked is being edited so it doesn't flop like it did overseas.
I like Richard Curtis, so I'm hopeful Focus Features can find an entertaining movie there...

-The Director's Cut of Watchmen will have a one week theatrical engagement.
I'm curious enough to check it out...

-Ryan Reynolds signs up for a film called "Buried".
The plot is listed as follows: Reynolds will star in "Buried," playing a civilian contractor who's kidnapped in Iraq and awakens buried in a coffin in the desert, armed only with a cell phone, a candle and a knife. Count me in...

-For better or worse, Hitman 2 is coming to big screens...
I'm sure it'll suck, but you never know...

-And finally, the SAW franchise takes over Universal Studios?
Very cool...

-Thoughts?

The 'Amelia' Trailer absolutely screams "Oscar Bait"!

Take a gander for yourself:

-I think this trailer just boosted not only the chances of the film and of Swank, but mainly that of Richard Gere, but that's just my gut instinct...what do you think?

Michael Jackson Dies!

TMZ Reports!
http://www.tmz.com/2009/06/25/michael-jackson-dies-death-dead-cardiac-arrest/

R.I.P.

Today's News: RIP Farrah Fawcett

Sad news today, but Farrah Fawcett lost her courageous battle to

breast anal cancer. Thankfully, she does not have to suffer anymore, and hopefully her passing was peaceful. RIP.

Some new reviews at The Awards Circuit!

Yes indeed, we added some new reviews to the site recently, including 2 positive reviews of the upcoming film The Hurt Locker (with my own take on the film to be added in a few days time), along with my reviews of The Great Buck Howard, The Brothers Bloom, Easy Virtue (all of them are average to good), The Taking of Pelham 123 (slightly below average), and Land of the Lost (horrible, just horrible). Check them all out here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/reviews

-Be on the lookout for some new reviews and a new Podcast in the next few days! *Also, my DVD article will be up in a few hours, all this craziness plus some personal issues put it off from its normal Tuesday slot, but it'll be back normally there next week...*

-What do you think of the reviews?

The Hurt Locker Q & A this Weekend!

If you are in NYC or LA this weekend, you'll have a chance to check out the Hurt Locker with a special bonus: The creators of the Hurt Locker will be in attendance. They will also engage in a Q & A afterward. Trust me, you don't want to miss the movie and this opportunity. Read our reviews if you don't believe me.

Below are the dates:

NEW YORK (Kathryn Bigelow-Director & Mark Boal-Writer)
7:10 - Landmark Sunshine (6.26) - Ed Douglas/COMINGSOON
9:00 - Landmark Sunshine (6.26) - Karina Longworth/SPOUT
7:10 - Landmark Sunshine (6.27) - Jeffrey Wells/HOLLYWOOD-ELSEWHERE
9:00 - Landmark Sunshine (6.27) - Alison Wilmore/IFC
1:45 - AMC Loews Lincoln Square (6.28) - tbd/TIME OUT
4:55 - AMC Loews Lincoln Square (6.28)

LOS ANGELES
7:40 - Arclight Hollywood (6.26) - Jeremy Renner (Lead Actor)
7:30 - Landmark West Los Angeles (6.27) - Jeremy Renner
1:50 - Landmark West Los Angeles (6.28) - Brian Geraghty (Lead Actor)
4:20 - Arclight Hollywood (6.28) - Brian Geraghty

My take on the Best Picture Nomination Field expanding to 10 films...

Right now, I am as shocked as everyone else is about this announcement, as we really didn't see it coming (much as we might have been hoping for some kind of reform, to some degree) or expect this big a change. The question now is the quality of the change. I for one think it could go either way. It's the proverbial double edged sword.

-On the one hand, the Academy now has the opportunity to recognize and nominate (and potentially award) films that are far more diverse, daring, and frankly...better. The days of mediocre dramas that fit the bill of being Best Picture nominees but aren't actually good enough getting nominated might be over. We could see action films, comedies, cartoon, documentaries, and any other out of the norm film grab a nomination.

-On the other hand though, there are no promises that this will happen. The Academy only has the opportunity to make better choices. We don't know that they will. They could pick 10 mediocre movies instead of 5 just as easily as they could shake things up.

-Look at it this way, if last year we had 10 nominees, the extra five could have been:

The Dark Knight

WALL-E

The Wrestler

Iron Man

Rachel Getting Married

-However, the other five could have easily been:

Changeling

Gran Torino

Doubt

The Dutchess

Defiance

-One equals change, one doesn't. This makes for a very interesting Oscar year, but we won't know yet if it's a better one or not. What do you think?

Breaking News: Oscar Expands Best Pic Category to 10!

Would like to thank David S. for pointing this out. This changes a lot. A LOT! (We have more movies to debate about! More movies get an opportunity for oscar recognition! the months between march-august become more relevant!) ---> Will comedies, foreign, animation, and action flicks get more love? I don't see 10 dramas getting nods.

On the down side, 10 might be too much. Will the academy have to reach for the 9th and 10th spots (8th?)? In a given year, how often do we get 10 movies that are Oscar worthy? Some years we do, many years we don't.

Today's New: Toronto Announces 26 Titles

Here's a partial list of what to expect at Toronto this year. They are going to release more films every Tuesday up until the festival.

Today's Posters: Shutter Island, Up in the Air, From Paris with Love, The Last Airbender, and Daybreakers

First, Shutter Island:


Up in the Air:

From Paris with Love:

The Last Airbender:

Daybreakers:

Thoughts on these? (Again, this is the new format for putting up new posters...yay or nay?)

David Fincher to direct the Facebook movie Aaron Sorkin wrote?

Perhaps, according to this post in Variety:
Columbia Pictures is in advanced talks with David Fincher to direct "The Social Network," the Aaron Sorkin-scripted film for Columbia Pictures about the formation of Facebook.
The film will focus on the evolution of Facebook from its 2004 creation on the Harvard campus by sophomore Mark Zuckerberg to a juggernaut with more than 200 million members.
Scott Rudin and Michael De Luca are producing with Trigger Street's Kevin Spacey and Dana Brunetti.
The aim is to begin production later this year.
Fincher last directed "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button."
-An odd choice, but I trust in Fincher...what do you think?

Rest in Peace Ed McMahon

You will be missed...

Today's Trailers: A Teaser for M. Night Shyamalan's The Last Airbender, a Trailer for Miyazaki's Ponyo, and a Promo for HBO's The Pacific

The Last Airbender:

-A decent teaser, though Night's been in a freefall as of late...

Ponyo:

-Miyazaki being Miyazaki...

The Pacific:

-I just hope it reaches Band of Brothers quality...

-Thoughts on these trailers?

Today's news: The Zookeeper gets some animal voices, a new Grisham book is being adapted to film, Macbeth rises again, and Cher returns to screens...

*Just a quick heads up that this is how the majority of posts will go now, provided it goes over well*

-First off, Kevin James' upcoming film The Zookeeper got a high profile cast (mostly voices of animals), including Adam Sandler, Cher (returning to movies after a long time away), Jon -Favreau, Sylvester Stallone and Judd Apatow. For the whole cast and more, check out the article here.

-Author John Grisham has set up his novel "The Testament" to be yet another film adaptation of his work. Details are here.

-A modern take on Macbeth gets rolling. Read about it here.

-And finally Cher returns to the silver screen with a new project (besides voice work in The Zookeeper), details on which can be found here.

-Thoughts on the new format and/or any of the articles?

A Proper Defense of Minority Report

A lot of readers are busting my chops for stating that Minority Report ("MR") is the best Spielberg film. To clarify, I wasn’t trying to bad mouth the Color Purple or Schindler’s List or any of his other classics (the “Spielberg Classics”). I love a lot of Spielberg’s movie, so that’s not an issue. Also, the "best" is a term of art. My definition will probably differ from yours, but I consider a film to be the "best" when it's technically flawless and substantively engaging (a dope plot).

From a technical standpoint, Spielberg is operating at the highest level. I don’t think anyone has a problem with the editing, cinematography, or direction of MR. It moves like a fast paced novel, and he doesn’t waste any frames. It’s fluid, succinct, and visually stunning. (Note: Spielberg generally works with the same production team).

Perhaps MR is not culturally “important” as the Spielberg Classics. Maybe, but I think that response is weak. Who determines what films are “important”? Is it solely contingent on the substance of the plot? The impact? Box office numbers? There is no set standard in determining what films are more important. It isn't objective. If this criticism had any weight, there would need to be an objective standard in determining the "cultural importance" of a film. I don't think that standard exist, hence I'm convinced by this line of reasoning.

Someone might interject, and argue that MR did not deal with a substantive historical issue like some of the Spielberg Classics, and I’d disagree with that too. MR attempted to tackle an important philosophical issue. The freewill/determinism debate has gone on for centuries, so it’s erroneous to play down the magnitude of its importance. I might also add that it's one of the key reasons people decide to dismiss religion, which has led to much strife between the believers and non-believers. Yes, race issues and the Holocaust are important issues, but they aren’t by default the most important. Moreover, the significance of an issue will change depending on the person. So, if you are more interested with philosophy in film, then a movie like MR will resonate more with you.

Maybe one will argue that the acting in MR wasn’t on par with the Spielberg Classics. Maybe. Who determines that? Is there some sort of scale that we can place performances on to determine the best one? Personally, I thought the acting in MR was brilliant. Tom Cruise was at his best (probably gave a better performance in Magnolia). Colin Farrell also gave one of his better performances. Max Von Sydow was the true gem of the film. (and Samantha Morton is brilliant as Agatha - Thanks Fred).

What arguments are left? Realistically, the burden of proof is not on me. Unless there is some objective way to determine what films are the best, then most arguments don’t hold weight. I’m not saying The Mask 2 is better than The Spielberg Classics. I’m arguing that MR is his best film because it appeals to me more so than any of his other films. I’m not arguing that MR is of a better production quality (It’s the same group of dudes), but that philosophically it was more interesting.

Some people like Amnesiac more than OK Computer. I'm one of those people . . .

A quick programming note for The Awards Circuit and the Blog

Just giving a quick heads up that in the next day or so we'll be adding some new reviews and articles to the Main Page, along with a mild change in format to the blog. It's nothing too startling, just organizing things a little better. I don't think it'll be a big deal, mainly just having all the news stories for each day in one post, all the posters in another, and all the trailers in another, so there are less individual posts, but still the same amount of comment...more or less, it lets you guys not have to scroll down as much. Hopefully it cleans things up a bit...stay tuned!

Montreal to get some Funny People a week early

Variety has the story on the impending debut of the latest Judd Apatow film/Oscar hopeful:
Judd Apatow's "Funny People," starring Adam Sandler and Seth Rogen, will unspool at Montreal's 13th Just for Laughs Film Festival a week before its U.S. release.
Co-stars Aziz Ansari and Aubrey Plaza will attend the screening July 25; the comedy goes wide Stateside July 31.
The fest, which unveiled part of its program Monday, opens July 10 with Gallic star Jean Dujardin at the screening of his "OSS 117: Lost in Rio" -- one of a slew of French pics at the event.
Broken Lizard members Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter and Erik Stolhanske will be on hand July 22 to introduce "Broken Lizard's the Slammin' Salmon," which stars the troupe and Michael Clarke Duncan, at its Canadian preem.
Helmer Bobcat Goldthwait will be at the fest for the screening of "World's Greatest Dad," starring Robin Williams as a teacher who wants to become a professional writer.
Thesp Joshua Leonard will tubthump "Humpday," which also stars Mark Duplass. Writer-thesp Charlyne Yi will be on hand to introduce her pic, "Paper Heart."
The 18-day fest is the film component of the Montreal Just for Laughs comedy festival.
-It's no secret that I'm a champion of the script and think that it has some real potential in this year's Oscar race...in about a month we'll all have a better idea though...

One more Trailer for today...this time for a downer of a movie called Death in Love

This has a good cast, but looks like it'll be the most depressing movie I've seen since Downloading Nancy, which says something...

Can Kathryn Bigelow Become the First Woman to Win Best Director?

. . . I'm not sure, but the Hurt Locker is a film that can make this year's Oscar ceremony historic. Here's an interview from Ropes of Silicon with Kathryn Bigelow. She deserves some recongnition for what she achieved with the Hurt Locker. It's a brilliant piece of film making.

More from Burton's Alice in Wonderland

Here are two more pics from Burton's Wonderland.

While we're at it, a new Trailer for Inglorious Basterds for ya!

-Seriously, this needs to just come out today, it's not even fair...

A new Trailer for Halloween 2

Looking just as insane (for better or worse) as you'd expect:

-Thoughts?

Tim Burton's Wonderland . . .

looks awesome.

Poster for Thirst

Thoughts?

Columbia Pictures/Sony drops 'Moneyball'?

Looks like Columbia Pictures have signed off to distribute and produce 'Moneyball' (Soderbergh). Apparently Amy Pascal (Columbia's head honcho) reread Soderbergh's edited script, and thought it deviated too much from the original script they championed. So, unless Soderbergh is willing to revert back to the original script, Columbia is probably out. Of course, they can just axe Soderbergh, but that might come at the expense of losing Pitt. It's a delicate situation, so we'll see how it plays out.

Biggest Snubs of the 2000s (Podcast)/ Upcoming Reviews

Clayton and the rest of the staff thought it would be interesting to chat about some of the best of the 2000s not nominated for Best Picture. We're going to try to get you a podcast every week discussing some of the biggest snubs of the 2000s in each category leading up to the 2009 Academy Awards . . . There are a slew of reviews going up by tomorrow, so be on the look out. I finished up a review on the Hurt Locker, and Joey and Myles wrote up a few. Please feel free to e-mail suggestions, concerns, or criticisms. We definitely appreciate your support, and we will continue to bring you reviews, news, and podcasts. Thanks guys!

Link to biggest snubs' podcast: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast3.html

Ranking Woody Allen's Films

In honor of Woody Allen directing his 40th film in Whatever Works (which I will have a review for soon), Entertainment Weekly ranked all of his films from best to worst, with the result being this list:

1. Manhattan (1979)

2. Annie Hall (1977)

3. Bananas (1971)

4. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)

5. Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex* But Were Afraid to Ask (1972)

6. Match Point (2005)

7. What’s Up, Tiger Lily? (1966)

8. Zelig (1983)

9. Sleeper (1973)

10. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)

11. Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)

12. Love and Death (1975)

13. Take the Money and Run (1969)

14. Stardust Memories (1980)

15. Small Time Crooks (2000)

16. Deconstructing Harry (1997)

17. Bullets Over Broadway (1994)

18. Sweet and Lowdown (1999)

19. Mighty Aphrodite (1995)

20. Cassandra’s Dream (2007)

21. Husbands and Wives (1992)

22. Broadway Danny Rose (1984)

23. Interiors (1978)

24. Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

25. Oedipus Wrecks from New York Stories (1989)

26. A Midsummer Night’s Sex Comedy (1982)

27. Radio Days (1987)

28. Whatever Works (2009)

29. Everyone Says I Love You (1996)

30. Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)

31. Scoop (2006)

32. Alice (1990)

33. The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001)

34. Another Woman (1988)

35. Melinda and Melinda (2004)

36. Shadows and Fog (1991)

37. Hollywood Ending (2002)

38. Celebrity (1998)

39. Anything Else (2003)

40. September (1987)

-I think it's a pretty good list overall, though I'd definitely move the list around a lot (and will put my own ranking in the blog at some point in the next day or so, depending on if I can see the last Woody Allen movie or two I still need to see)...what would your top 10 Woody Allen movies be?

Reese Witherspoon heads back to work

The Hollywood Reporter has the story:
Universal and Reese Witherspoon are going into the pharmaceutical business.The studio is developing "Pharm Girl," an aspirational comedy centering on one woman's odyssey through the drug industry. "Bad Santa" scribes Glenn Ficarra and John Requa are writing the screenplay and in talks to direct. Witherspoon is producing via her Type A banner and attached to the lead role. The project centers on a woman (Witherspoon) who gets a job at a pharma powerhouse but begins to see the underbelly of the industry as she rises through the company's ranks. Tracy Falco and Maradith Frenkel are overseeing for the studio.The modern pharmaceutical industry has played a villainous role in Hollywood pics dating to "The Fugitive," and several years ago it was at the center of a conspiracy in the Focus Features thriller "The Constant Gardener."The CAA- and Management 360-repped Witherspoon, who came to prominence in comedies like "Election" and "Legally Blonde," segued to a more dramatic role with her Oscar-winning turn in "Walk the Line." But she has recently kept the focus on comedies, starring opposite Vince Vaughn in "Four Christmases" and signing on to a new comedy from James Brooks at Columbia; she's also considering starring in Fox's sci-fi comedy "Used Guys."As a producer, she has been ramping up her slate: In addition to "Christmases," which she produced, she and Type A are attached to produce thriller "Bell Witch" and romantic comedy "Around the World in 80 Dates," both at Universal.Ficarra and Requa, repped by WME and BenderSpink, most recently helmed and wrote "I Love You Phillip Morris," the Jim Carrey-Ewan McGregor dramedy about the romance between a con artist and a man he meets in prison.
-Doesn't sound bad at all...thoughts?

Teaser Trailer for the Short Film "Patterson"

It seems that my last short, Lack of Imagination, struck well with some of our readers, so here's the teaser for my current venture, Patterson:

-Filming is currently on hold while my lead actor is on vacation, but once he returns we'll continue filming 

through mid-July, in time for a mid-August premiere, after which it'll be online for a brief spell. 

What do you guys think so far?

P.S. I know a while ago Joey was pimping his Twitter account, so I figured I'd do the same. For updates on 

my filmmaking, the site, and other things,you can follow me here at: http://twitter.com/MylesPerHour

The new Trailer for G.I. Joe only confirms my earlier doubts...

...that there's no way that this film is any good:


-It actually makes me anxious for Transformers 2 (which I probably won't be reviewing, for obvious reasons, unless it surprises me, of course), if you can believe that...

Poster for Youth in Revolt

The Youth in Revolt books are some of my favorite guilty pleasures of all time...they're just low class, dirty fun, and I loved every minute of all 5 books (well, 3-5, depending on how you seperate Youth in Revolt, which is technically 3 books, but that's for the movie to figure out)...I'd never have assumed Michael Cera for the role, but until we see a trailer that makes me doubt it, I'll trust in him...

Trailer for World's Greatest Dad

-I like the look of this (mainly, it doesn't give away a big plot point), and hope that Robin Williams is as good in it as people say...thoughts?

A new Poster for Halloween 2

Nothing says family love like a good stabbing apparently...

Kevin Smith brought down Carnegie Hall on Wednesday...and I was there!

I was there and had the time of my life, and this article in Entertainment Weekly explains why:
Last night, at around 8:10 pm, a little girl of maybe 9 walked out onto the stage of the house that Carnegie built, her mother standing in the wings, watchng. When she got to the mic, she introduced herself: "My name is Harley Quinn Smith. My dad wanted me to say some curse words, but instead, I'll leave it to the master." And for the next three hours, Kevin Smith held court in Carnegie Hall.
If you've never been to one of the hundreds of Q&As Smith has done around the world -- or seen any of the Evening With Kevin Smith DVDs -- the format is simple: The writer-director gets on stage, does about 20 minutes of warm-up, and then fields questions from the audience. And the stories that get woven into the answers are what draws people to these Q&As by the thousands (the Carnegie Hall show was sold out). Smith is a born raconteur, able to spin the barest of questions (like, "Will you ever act again?") into 30-minute seminars on how his Catch and Release costar Jennifer Garner has the sense of humor of C-3PO ("Goodness gracious me!") despite being married to Ben Affleck, who tells tales that make Smith sound like a choir boy.
On stage at Carnegie Hall, he spoke of being overruled by Bruce Willis on the set of A Couple of Dicks ("When Bruce talks, you listen...especially when you're making a movie with a cop or a gun in it"), the late George Carlin's dream role ("I wanna play a clergyman who strangles six children -- I think I can pull that off"), and his legacy ("Longevity kills specialness: If I'd made Clerks, rode that for five years, then disappeared, they'd have built monuments to me"). Provided you don't mind torrents of foul language, sex described in pornographic detail, and arcane pop-culture references -- he even dropped a Doug Henning joke last night -- it's a good time had by all.
The thing that struck me the most, however, was not how funny his Q&As are, but rather how honest they are. Kevin Smith is, by all accounts, a big dude. He's the first one to admit it: "I sweat when I f---in' breathe!" Someone asked him a nothing of a question -- I can't even remember what it was, it was so inconsequential -- and Smith used it to tell of when he hit rock-bottom, weight-wise. It was a 45-minute odyssey of his adventures with a public toilet -- complete with hilariously, sadly graphic details -- that ended with him breaking said toilet, snapping it free from the wall, with his ass. It's a mortifying story but, at the end of the day, an empowering one.
Honesty has power, precisely because we hardly ever see it. When Smith gets on a stage, he strips himself bare for all to see (metaphorically; at Carnegie Hall, he was wearing a bathrobe). He uses humor not to deflect attention away from his self-image issues, but to bring attention to them -- the heat of that attention functioning like a crucible, burning away the inessential and almost purifying himself in the process. No subject is off-limits, no topic is verboten. That kind of honesty is rare, especially in our public figures, and those unaccustomed to it have problems with Smith and what he does. A young female reporter for Time Out New York, armed with a slightly holier-than-thou attitude, got up to the mic and asked him for dating advice. Without missing a beat, Smith explained to her that because he looks the way he looks, he needed to bring something else to the relationship table. So he -- how can I put this? -- spent long hours mastering the ancient marital art pioneered by Colonel Angus (say it fast). Withered by the polite candor of his response, this young woman sat down, and Smith moved on to the next question. Check and mate.
-Like I said, I was there and had an amazing time. All these stories are even better in context, and on a side note, both his wife and daughter, whom I briefly met, are as nice as can be...

Behold some updates to the Main Page!

Indeed, our fearless leader Clayton has brought forth some new predictions, highlighting his new thoughts on the Best Picture and Best Director races, as well as getting well ahead of the game with a first look at predictions for the Golden Globes! Check them out on the Main Page and be sure to let us know what you think!

Is Ghostbusters 3 more likely now that the videogame is a hit?

Variety seems to think it might:
When "Ghostbusters II" reached the bigscreen 20 years ago, the expectation was that it surely would be followed by another edition of the comedy franchise.
That never happened, as principals never could quite come to terms on a deal.
But they did reunite recently for a videogame --and while videogames are usually an ancillary afterthought as studios reboot franchises, in the case of "Ghostbusters," the vidgame is resuscitating the idea of a film sequel.
Sony officially says the game and film are independent projects. But they're encouraged that the game, through its development process and release, has helped reinvigorate the franchise.
A June 16 launch of the "Ghostbusters" game in Dallas saw hundreds of fans crowding a GameStop store -- and Amazon.com currently ranks it as the top-selling title for the Xbox 360 and the second best-selling title for the PlayStation 3.
While Sony won't go so far as to say the success or failure of the game will determine whether "Ghostbusters 3" moves forward, it will at least be a factor in the decision. Work is underway on the script for a third film.
"For now, we're celebrating the 25th anniversary of the franchise," says Mark Caplan, VP of licensing at Sony Pictures. "The game and the Blu-ray (release) will have a big impact on all of us. And we'll decide what to do from there."
Given the number of years since the last movie, Harold Ramis, one of the stars and writers of the original, was a bit circumspect. He recently told AMCTV.com, "I won't say I'm skeptical, I'm just not counting on anything. For me, I've loved the 'Ghostbusters' -- the whole concept of it has been great in my life. I'm happy to do another movie if the script was worthy. If it never happened I'd be fine."
Work on the game began three years ago, after Sony combed its library for game-friendly titles. "We looked at the library of properties that we have at Sony Pictures, and we felt 'Ghostbusters' had all the properties inherent in a film that would translate to a videogame. It had built-in recognition and had suitable content for a wide audience," Caplan says.
The effort marks the first major videogame deal on behalf of one of Sony's library titles, with advances for longterm deals of this caliber typically reaching into the tens of millions of dollars.
The studio also has a freshly minted Blu-ray DVD release of the original, and a promotion running that includes a chance to win a trip to Comic-Con.
For the game, the studio enlisted Terminal Reality, a Dallas-based game development studio. A lingering question was whether the audience would still be there.
They got their answer, ironically, when another developer, unaware that Terminal Reality had secured the license, leaked footage of its take on a "Ghostbusters" game online, and it generated a huge response.
When legitimate licensed footage was released, the excitement didn't wane.
"There's no question that the game being announced and coming out has really brought Ghostbusters back into the spotlight," says Brendan Goss, the game's executive producer.
The path to retail shelves was rocky, though. Sony turned down proposals from three other developers before deciding to move forward with Terminal Reality. And despite bouncing from publishers Sierra to Activision-Blizzard to Atari, reviews have been generally favorable. Critics say the game effectively captures the camaraderie and humor of the films.
"When we started this project, we said, 'We have to create a high-quality authentic experience for Ghostbusters,' " says Drew Haworth, creative director of the game. "We do not want this to come across as another license-exploiting, crap movie-videogame."
The "Ghostbusters" game features most of the talent from the film (with only Sigourney Weaver and Rick Moranis declining to lend their voices) and uses a new graphics engine developed by Terminal Reality to recreate the film's distinctive visual effects. The script -- with more than 10,000 lines of dialogue, much longer than a film screenplay -- was co-written by Dan Aykroyd and Ramis. Ramis, Aykroyd, Bill Murray and Ernie Hudson all put in two or three days of work on dialogue.
"We wouldn't have done this game six years ago," Sony's Caplan says. "I just don't think the technology was there."
-Very interesting...I'm about to get the game, so hopefully it's good...anyone have the game yet?

New Posters for Sherlock Holmes

Not bad, not great...thoughts?

Trailer for Zombieland

-To me, this trailer is brilliant...I laughed incredibly hard...looking forward to it in a big way...how about you?

Woody Allen wants to cast the French First Lady in his next film?

The Hollywood Reporter has this to say on the matter:
Woody Allen would like to use France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy for a film role, the director said on RTL radio Thursday."I'm sure she would be wonderful," he said through a translator. "She's got charisma, she's already acted so she's not unknown to an audience. There are a lot of ways I could use her though I don't have a story for her at the moment," he said."But I'll certainly talk to her about it and I'll ask her if she's interested."Bruni-Sarkozy, one of the world's top models before starting a career as a singer and marrying President Nicolas Sarkozy last year, has appeared briefly on the big screen, playing herself in Robert Altman's 1994 fashion satire "Pret-a-Porter."Allen, whose latest film "Whatever Works" comes out in France next month, plans to shoot a film in Paris next year, RTL said.
-I trust in all Woody casting decisions regarding women...thoughts?

Poster for World's Greatest Dad

As a fan of Bobcat's other films, I'm curious how he can use Robin Williams, the Sundance buzz was good, so I'm in...

Trailer for Cold Souls

-I would say this is a slightly more comedic version of all of Charlie Kaufman's films...and I say that as a compliment...

And now for something completely different...an Antichrist videogame?

Slashfilm seems to think so, according to this, at least:
Antichrist, the new movie from Lars Von Trier, was perhaps the most talked-about movie at Cannes this year. It continues to make headlines as it slowly winds towards theatres outside the Croisette and Scandanavian countries. And now, evidently, it is going to spawn a video game. A post on the video game message board NeoGAF led to some wild Googling, which turns up a Politiken.dk article (Google translation, which may contain movie spoilers) announcing the game’s development. What’s the deal? It’s after the jump.
According to the article, development on the game is being led by Morten Iversen, who wrote the Hitman games, and subsequently formed his own company, Zeitguyz, which created a game called Recoil: Retrograde. The article mentions Zentropa Eden Games as the developer of the title. Indeed, Iversen is listed as ‘game developer’ on the main Zentropa website. Lars Von Trier will approve (or not, one supposes, as it may happen) the final design.
Eden, as the game will be called, will be a first-person thriller/adventure game that invites players to confront their fears. Willem Dafoe will reportedly reprise his role in voice-over, though the game will not replicate the film, picking up afterward instead. (Not having seen Antichrist, I can’t surmise what that means for Dafoe’s performance.) Iversen says the experience will be “strong and very personal,” “controversial” and that it “…must be your own personal hell - a bit like a nightmare version of ‘Mystere’.” First one to help I.D. exactly what ‘Mystere’ he means there (the Cirque de Soleil show? seems weird) gets a no-prize. Iversen evidently was interviewed on Danish radio this week; if you heard that broadcast and have more details, let us know.
-On the count of three everybody...one, two, three...WTF?

Poster for Big Fan

If he directs as good as he writes, Robert Siegel has a long career ahead of him...

"2012" Trailer Plays Like A Parody Of Disaster Movies

-I love how hilariously bad this looks. Danny Glover as the president? John Cusack as the skeptical yet caring 

father? Chiwetel Ejiofor and Oliver Platt bickering about various moral dilemmas from the safety of a boat that 

appears to crash at the end of the trailer? Buildings crashing while decidedly not obeying the laws of physics? 

This has everything. I really hope that Woody Harrelson plays some kind of crazy guy who foresees the signs 

and tries to warn everyone. Just to complete the cycle of cliche. I can't wait to see this so I can tear it a new 

asshole in the reviews. How bout you guys?

P.S. Oh wow, he totally does!

Inception

Just uploaded this to bring us full circle with the Nolan news.

"Love Happens" Trailer: An Exercise In Harnessing Romantic Drama Into A Concentrated Form

Aaron Eckhart and Jennifer Aniston look to win your heart and open your pursestrings with their new romance, Love Happens:

-Way to spoil what I'm assuming is supposed to be the big reveal at the end. At least they don't give any 

hints as to whether or not these two will end up together, even though they're just perfect for one another. 

Sarcasm aside, it looks pretty good I guess, if you're into that sort of thing. What do you think?

No Nolan For Batman 3?

More Christopher Nolan news, but this time it's not so positive. According to Total Film, linking to a “trusted source at Batman-on-Film”, Christopher Nolan might not be involved in the next Batman film. Here's a bit of the transcript from the site:

The death of Heath Ledger in January of 2008 rocked Mr. Nolan hard. So hard that Chris was convinced that TDK was going to be it for him and Batman on film.
The Joker was going to return in BATMAN 3.

“You are correct in reporting that he is developing story ideas with [Jonathan Nolan] and David Goyer, but it will be until AT LEAST 2012 before we see the Caped Crusader back [in theaters]. And that is only an EARLY ESTIMATE at best right now. They are even saying it might not be until 2013.”

Basically, the BATMAN film franchise is back to square one. As far as a story or a BATMAN 3, “Right now, there is none,” says our guy.

Luckily, it's just a rumor, but if it turns out to be true, do you want them to move forward with a different director or end the franchise with the Dark Knight? (Of course the powers that be will move forward with or w/o Nolan, but I'm interested to see how people feel about this).

200 Million Dollar Budget for Inception?

According to /film Christopher Nolan's Inception is operating on a $ 200 M budget . . .

That's more ($ 185 M) than the Dark Knight my friends. Of course budget and quality of movie have little to no correlation. However, it seems like the more you give Mr. Nolan, the more he gives us. So, let's hope that a $ 200 M budget for Nolan means an epic film that gets him his first best director/film nod (shame to the Academy!).

Mission: Impossible IV is possible after all?

So it seems, according to this in Variety:
Mission: Impossible IV," which once seemed truly impossible, is taking shape at Paramount.

Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams have agreed to co-produce the sequel, which is aimed at a 2011 release.

The return of Cruise to Par itself is surprising in view of the circumstances surrounding his departure in August 2006. Apparently irked by the heft of Cruise’s deal, among other issues, Viacom chief Sumner Redstone abruptly terminated the 14-year relationship between the star and the studio. Cruise’s then-CAA agent, Rick Nicita, termed Redstone’s decision “shockingly offensive and graceless.”

The rift led to Cruise becoming the chief of United Artists and taking a more active role in production decisions. Redstone, meanwhile, has sought to heal the relationship. At a recent appearance, he described the star as “a great actor and a good friend.”

The “Mission” installment would augment Paramount’s formidable array of sequels, which will include “Star Trek 2” and a third “Transformers.”

Work on “Mission: Impossible IV” would inevitably be delayed by the busy schedules of the participants.

Abrams will be responsible for guiding the “Star Trek” sequel, while Cruise recently committed to an untitled pic (formerly called “Wichita”) for 20th Century Fox that will be directed by James Mangold and co-star Cameron Diaz.

Cruise and Denzel Washington are also awaiting a rewrite on the David Cronenberg-directed “The Matarese Circle,” the MGM thriller based on the Robert Ludlum novel.

-I'd see it if it happens...how bout you?

Poster for Love Happens

That is amazingly bland...essentially a mainstream version of the Revolutionary Road Poster...

Sam Jackson to play another cop...this time in a Phillip Noyce film

Via Variety:
Phillip Noyce will direct the indie police thriller "Mixed Blood," with Samuel L. Jackson to co-star.

A Bigger Boat, GreeneStreet Films and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment are co-financing and producing the project. Jackson's Uppity Films will also produce.



Kelly Masterson ("Before the Devil Knows You're Dead") is adapting Roger Smith's novel of the same name, published last year by Henry Holt & Co. Pic will center on an American fugitive being forced to make violent and terrifying choices to protect his family while drawing the attention of murderers, kidnappers, corrupt cops and a detective, portrayed by Jackson.

Principal photography is scheduled to start early next year.

FilmNation will handle worldwide sales through its partnership with A Bigger Boat and GreeneStreet Films.

Noyce is directing "Salt," starring Angelina Jolie, for Columbia. Masterson is completing "Good People" for the Film Department, with Maguire Entertainment and 360 Management producing.

-Could be interesting, especially considering the writer...thoughts?

An italian Basterds Poster

Very old school war movie look to this poster, in my opinion...

What's next for Danny Boyle?

The Hollywood Reporter tries to find out:
Danny Boyle won't say whether his next film will be in Asia or take on an Asian angle, but the "Slumdog Millionaire" director seems to be whooping it up on his first visit to China as much as he did in India.

Boyle, who has not previously seen festival jury duty, said he accepted Shanghai's invitation to be president of its competition jury because "Slumdog Millionaire" was allowed to be widely released in China.

"I feel it as a courtesy and a responsibility," he said. "Also, the world is obsessed with this city and on a personal level I wanted to come and see."

During the festival he has been energetic, accessible and, despite seeing three films per day, has often been spotted hanging out in the lobby of the adjacent hotel.

Boyle describes the jury process as "valuable, because we are helping to build profile and careers," but he admits to being "concerned about not being too bossy. All directors have a tendency to be bossy."

So far, he has also managed to kept quiet about his next project which will come under a recent three-picture deal with Fox Searchlight and Pathe. While they have optioned rights to Suketu Mehta's "Maximum City: Bombay Lost and Found," a book that also served as a reference while shooting "Slumdog," Boyle said that will not be first up.

"I'm looking forward to going back to Bombay, what a great place for a thriller, it has so many elements," he said.

Nor is Boyle put off by the tumultuous reactions within India to his picture or the media circus that has surrounded the film's treatment of the child actors. "We'll use some of it in the next pictures," he said. We've made a lot of decisions (about trusts and 10-year education plans for the kids) which we'll stick to."

En route to China's business capital he stopped off in Beijing and Hong Kong, where he met up with an old pal from school. "I've just seen three amazing Asian cities," he said. "There's an appetite for cinema in Asia that Hollywood doesn't recognize yet," he said while discussing the region's onscreen talent.

On Tuesday, Boyle and fellow jurors took time out from the screening rooms to visit the filming of period actioner "Bodyguards and Assassins," shooting an hour outside the city on a backlot where Hong Kong's Central district, circa 1905, has been rebuilt on a full scale. "The scale and ambition on display were amazing. This (set) could be the difference between getting a film made or not," he said.

Boyle said he has been little changed by "Slumdog" bandwagon. "It seems to have changed everyone else, I continue in the same vein," he said. "I was lucky to have a success. And I continue to aim to be ambitious, to promise myself 'don't be careful,' and to enjoy a spirit of recklessness."

As to the films seen he and the jury have seen at the halfway mark: "Quality simply surges out."
-Whatever he does is worth taking note of...anything you'd like to see him tackle?

Poster for A Perfect Getaway

A perfect poster, it's not...

Kate Beckinsale's Whiteout is finally coming out, with a Trailer to prove it...

-Thoughts?

Sean Penn to no longer be a Stooge?

Potentially, according to this in Variety:
Sean Penn's busy shooting schedule has suddenly gone dark.
In an announcement that has caught two studios by surprise, Penn has pulled out of two films, citing personal reasons.
Penn has informed Universal and Imagine that he will be unable to star in the Asger Leth-directed drama "Cartel," which was to be his next movie. His role will be recast. Studio is putting together a list of actors now and hopes to stick with an early fall start date.
Scripted by Peter Craig, the movie follows a man who journeys to protect his son after his wife is murdered by Mexican cartels.
Penn will also be unable to make the start date of MGM comedy "The Three Stooges." He was to star as Larry in the pic, directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly. "Stooges" also stars Jim Carrey as Curly and Benicio Del Toro as Moe. It's unclear if the studio will recast or wait for Penn to return to work.
Penn has completed two films for River Road, both earmarked for release next year. "Fair Game," the Doug Liman-directed drama about outed CIA agent Valerie Plame, co-stars Naomi Watts. The Terrence Malick-directed "The Tree of Life" also stars Brad Pitt.
During the Cannes Film Festival, Penn was revealed to be in talks to star in "This Must Be the Place," which will mark the English-language feature debut of Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino, with a script co-written by Sorrentino and Umberto Contarello (Daily Variety, May 17). Pic was to be produced by Nicola Giuliano of Indigo Film and Andrea Occhipinti of Lucky Red. Financing and scheduling were not yet complete on that film, but Penn still intends to make the film at some point.
Penn is taking an undetermined sabbatical -- possibly as much as a year -- to focus on his family.
-Hopefully everything is ok and none of the films suffer...what do you think?

Trailer for The Rebound

-Bart Freundlich always makes interesting films, so I doubt this will be an exception...thought?

Jason slashes his way onto DVD this week

Pardon the pun, but it's fairly apt considering about the only noteworthy DVD release this week takes place at the infamous Crystal Lake. Lacking much in the way of choice, my PICK OF THE WEEK is:
Friday the 13th
As remakes go, this is a surprisingly decent one, though it will never be considered a masterpiece. You know exactly what you're getting with a Jason movie, and this one doesn't fail to deliver. If horror is your thing, you'll get a good bit of bang for your buck with this slasher flick on DVD.
-Also out we have Tyler Perry's Madea Goes to Jail, which is on the same level as all the other Tyler Perry movies, which is to say, decently mediocre, but forgettable, as well as the eccentric teen drama What Goes Up, which is not quite as good as its cast, but not a disaster either. The other release worth mentioning is the Direct to DVD sequel The Cell 2, which I have no doubt makes as little sense as the first one, just without any of the talent involved in numero uno.
-To make up for the dearth on DVD this week, there are some great Blu-Ray releases, and they make up my Vintage picks this week. Take your pick from Ghostbusters (in honor of the videogame hitting stores this week as well), Dr. Strangelove, Spaceballs, or Miracle. All would be great buys.
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Natalie Portman to star in a supernatural thriller by Darren Aronofsky?

Seems like it, according to The Hollywood Reporter:
Darren Aronofsky's "Black Swan" could soon be taking flight.After being set up in early 2007 at Universal, the project -- a supernatural thriller set in the world of New York City ballet -- has been reconstituted after being put into turnaround by the studio. It has been making the rounds to studios and specialty divisions, several of which are keenly interested.Among the elements giving it a boost: Natalie Portman is attached to play the lead.Several other changes have occurred since the Aronofsky-helmed project was first developed by Universal.Mark Heyman, a development exec at Aronofsky's Protozoa Pictures, has done a rewrite of John McLaughlin's original script for the pic, which Mike Medavoy's Phoenix Pictures and Protozoa are producing.Aronofsky, meanwhile, has gone on to helm the critical and commercial favorite "The Wrestler," putting him in high demand.CAA packaged and is selling "Swan"; it also reps Portman and Aronofsky."Swan" centers on a veteran ballerina (Portman) who finds herself locked in a competitive situation with a rival dancer, with the stakes and twists increasing as the dancers approach a big performance. But it's unclear whether the rival is a supernatural apparition or if the protagonist is simply having delusions. Those who've read the script say it's a spine-tingler with elements of "The Others," the Nicole Kidman breakout in which viewers are left to discern what's real and what's imagined.If a sale happens imminently, "Swan" could begin shooting as early as this year. Aronofsky has not committed to a movie that's ready to go, though he has been developing the "Robocop" reboot at MGM.
-Sounds like a great pairing...thoughts?

Leo gets himself another film project to put on his plate

Variety has the story:
Paramount has put its chips down on an untitled pitch about the world of online casinos based in Costa Rica. Leonardo DiCaprio is attached to star and produce through his Appian Way shingle.
The untitled project hails from scribes Brian Koppelman and David Levien ("Rounders," "The Girlfriend Experience," "Ocean's Thirteen"). Appian Way's Jennifer Davisson Killoran will produce.
Koppelman and Levien are working with DiCaprio and Appian on the thriller "Beat the Reaper." It's based on the novel by Josh Bazell and is in development at New Regency.
DiCaprio will be onscreen next in the fall in Martin Scorsese-helmed "Shutter Island."
-I enjoyed the writers and their work on The Girlfriend Experience, so this could be cool...thoughts?

Poster for Cold Souls

I like it, very Charlie Kaufman-esque...thoughts?

In addition to our second Podcast, some new reviews have gone up on the Main Page!

Indeed, besides taking a listen to Podcast #2 here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast2.html

We have new reviews up for your enjoyment, including my take on Up to go along with Clay's, both Clay and myself spouting out praise for The Hangover, Clay's review of Drag Me to Hell, and my reviews of Downloading Nancy and Moon. They all can be found here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/reviews.html

-Let us know what you think!

You asked for it, and we listened...Podcast #2 is here!

With all the goodwill generate off of our first attempt at an Awards Circuit Podcast (and we sincerely thank you for that bit of generousity on your part), Myles and myself went back and gave it another shot, and we think you'll enjoy this one as well (or at least we hope so, since we'd like to make this a weekly thing more or less on the site). The podcast is up on the Main Page and can be heard here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast2.html -Take a listen and tell us what you think by emailing us, providing feeback below the Podcast itself, writing to me on Facebook/Twitter, or posting a response here!

Roy Rogers rides again...

...according to Variety:
Roy Rogers' iconic presence may be riding back onto the bigscreen in a planned film trilogy to be launched by financier/producer 821 Entertainment.
The Nashville-based company has partnered with the Roy Rogers Family Entertainment Corp. to launch a "King of the Cowboys" film trilogy as well as animated TV, interactive game and merchandising efforts.
821 Entertainment Group CEO Eric Geadelmann said the deal allows his company rights to exploit all the intellectual property controlled by the estate. Deal was made with Roy Rogers Jr. and Jeffrey Kramer, longtime estate gate-keepers.
Geadelmann said the planned film trilogy will "not be a biopic, and will not be a traditional Western, but rather a family fantasy adventure. Roy Rogers, Dale Evans and Trigger are quintessential figures of America, and we will introduce this franchise to a new audience while capitalizing on the millions of Roy Rogers fans worldwide."
Gaedelmann said Rogers was the personification of the heartland and family values that 821 Entertainment was formed to produce and finance films on. The top Western box office star from 1943-1954, Rogers made more than 88 films with Evans and Trigger; produced and starred in 100 episodes of his own TV show; and appeared on more than 400 licensed items, with 120 million comic books sold.
-Thoughts?

Avatar to be revolutionary as a video game too?

Variety has the interesting story:
The track record of film-based videogames has been spotty. While there have been a handful of critical and commercial successes, the majority have been average at best -- and, frequently, embarrassing.
James Cameron plans to change that. Fox has scheduled a December release of his 3-D film "Avatar" and the filmmaker has pushed game publisher Ubisoft to create the vidgame industry's first stereoscopic title.
What's more, Cameron was so impressed by some of the shots developed by Ubisoft Digital Arts, a computer animation studio owned by the game publisher, that he will use some of them in the film.
Admittedly, these are small steps, but they signify a game-changing alliance with a multibillion-dollar industry, as Hollywood and gamemakers begin to work more closely.
And while few gamers -- or anyone else for that matter -- have a TV that will support the spectroscopic feature, a non-3-D version of the "Avatar" game also will be sold, and will bear Cameron's mark of approval. What's more, the 3-D game plants the seed for the Holy Grail of creating stereo 3-D at home in much the same way Cameron's commitment-obsession to 3-D film is being eyed as a significant step in even wider use of the format.
Ubisoft doesn't plan to end its association with high-powered directors after "Avatar" ships. The company announced at tech confab E3 in Los Angeles this month that it would work with Steven Spielberg and Kathleen Kennedy on a gaming adaptation of the upcoming "Tintin." The film marks a reteaming for the company with Peter Jackson, with whom Ubisoft worked on 2005's "King Kong," a launch title for the Xbox 360.
"We can create good games, but we are still very junior at creating movies, so why not join forces with the best of the best to make our visions come to life?" says Yves Guillemot, Ubisoft chairman-CEO, who co-founded the company in 1986.
Cameron and the company began work on the game version of "Avatar" 2½ years ago, an incredibly long gestation period for a film-based game. The long development window was deliberate to ensure the game would match the quality of the film, Cameron said during a surprise appearance at the E3 press conference for Ubisoft.
"Movies are on a one-year track," he said. "One year after someone pushes the button, it's in theaters. Good games can't be made that fast."
While affairs between studios and game publishers aren't always smooth, both sides say the "Avatar" relationship quickly became collaborative. As both sides contributed to each other's work, Cameron's passion for the project pushed Ubisoft to experiment with technologies that have never before been tried in the videogame space.
The partnership is part of Ubisoft's strategy to blend its game studios with filmmaking. Last July, the company bought Hybride Technologies, the visual effects house behind films such as "300" and "Sin City." Today, it uses Hybride to create new technologies for both films and games.
The plan behind the strategy, Guillemot says, is to lower expenses as it pushes new boundaries: "We need to make sure we can reuse our animations and graphics with other mediums, so we can reduce the cost of making games."
Both the film and game versions of "Avatar" are set in the 22nd century on Pandora, a large moon of a gas planet teeming with exotic new forms of life. Among the creatures who live there are the Na'vi, a humanoid race with blue skin, tiger stripes and heights of up to 10 feet. Humans cannot breathe the air on Pandora, but have created a living, genetic hybrid (known as an Avatar) into which they can insert their consciousness and explore the world.
Ubisoft was given full access to the film's CG shots to re-create the world. With Cameron's blessing, though, the game will tell a different story than the film, allowing it to be released at an earlier date.
"They brought the same passion to 'Avatar,' which is a licensed game, (that they bring to) their own games," Cameron said. "The world of the Avatar game is, in some ways, richer than what you'll see in the film. At the same time, it doesn't have any spoilers in it that will ruin the film for you."
The developers also had a few improvements they wanted to make to Pandora. Ubisoft came up with the idea of adding bioluminescence to the plant life. When he saw it, Cameron was so impressed, he added it to the film.
"Let's face it, some games based on movies have sucked," Cameron said at E3. "We had very ambitious goals for this film and we knew we wanted to choose our videogame partner very carefully."
-Almost all movie based games suck (Batman Begins had an ok one, the Spidey games had some interesting parts, but what else?), so this could be good news for gamers...

Poster for The Time Traveler's Wife

I prefer the trailer to this, but it's not bad...thoughts?

The latest film from Michael Moore gets a Teaser Trailer

No title? No problem:

-I'll be there when it opens...

Trailer for The Time Traveler's Wife

I don't know about anyone else, but for some reason I absolutely loved this trailer...am I the only one?

The Incredible Mr. Limpet to be remade

Another day, another remake, from The Hollywood Reporter:
Kevin Lima will swim with the fishes. The "Enchanted" director is attached to helm Warner Bros.' update of "The Incredible Mr. Limpet," a story about a man who turns into a talking fish.Don Knotts starred in the studio's 1964 original, which centered on the title character, an otherwise bland sort who after his transformation becomes a World War II hero when he helps spot and thwart enemy warships for the Allies.The picture was a live action-animated hybrid, with Arthur Lubin directing the live sections and Robert McKimson helming the animated parts.The new project, which also will be a live-animated blend, has been through several iterations, with Robin Williams and Jim Carrey among the stars for whom it previously had been developed. Mike Judge was at one point attached to direct.Akiva Goldsman, Bill Gerber, Paula Weinstein and James Lassiter are producing, with Chris Chase producing. Greg Silverman is overseeing for the studio.The WME-repped Lima is attached to several Warners projects, including the period sorcery tale "The Spook's Apprentice" and the studio's update of Tom Thumb, titled "Thumb." He's also on board to direct Universal's big-screen version of "Candyland."This project would be another in the latest round of live-animated hybrids that began when Fox turned "Alvin & the Chipmunks" into a hit in 2007.Warners has several such projects in development, including a Yogi Bear update. Lima is considered one of the more respected practitioners of the form, with "Enchanted" and "Thumb" falling in the live-ani category.
-This could actually turn out ok, but who knows...thoughts?

Tim Burton comes to The Museum of Modern Art...

...with a show dedicated to him personally. Variety has all the details:
Picasso, Monet ... Tim Burton?
The visually inventive filmmaker behind "Edward Scissorhands," "Batman" and "Sweeney Todd," among others, will be the subject of "Tim Burton," a major exhibition at Gotham's Museum of Modern Art beginning Nov. 22 and running through April 26.
The show will include more than 700 pieces: paintings, drawings, storyboards, maquettes, puppets and other work created or designed by Burton. MoMA will also screen a complete retrospective of the helmer's 14 films over the course of the show.
The exhibition follows Burton from childhood through his most recent work, which the director finds appropriate: "Everybody draws," Burton observed. "I just never stopped when the teachers told me to."
In addition, MoMA will present a series of films that influenced or inspired the helmer, including James Whale's 1931 "Frankenstein," Robert Wiene's silent 1920 horror film "The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" and Roger Corman's 1961 "The Pit and the Pendulum."
Cinephiles will also have a chance to view Burton's earliest nonpro films and student art, on display for the first time.
The exhibition is sponsored by the Sci Fi Channel and organized by MoMA's assistant curator, Ron Magliozzi; the department of film's curatorial assistant, Jenny He; and chief curator of film Rajendra Roy.
Burton confessed that when he first heard from museum reps, "I thought it was an elaborate joke of some sort." The helmer, working on a new version of "Alice in Wonderland" for Disney, said the exhibit's organizers excavated a huge collection of work, much of which even he had forgotten.
"It's easier for me to think things through visually instead of verbally, so it's like a diary in that way," Burton said of the show. "I have so many drawings. I never look at the stuff -- I just keep doing it."
"There is no other living filmmaker possessing Tim Burton's level of accomplishment and reputation whose full body of work has been so well hidden from public view," Maggliozi said.
Much of that unseen output was produced by Burton while he was working for Disney, ostensibly on "The Fox and the Hound" and "The Black Cauldron," but also on his own projects.
"I wasn't very good in the animation department, so they just let me sit there and draw things for a year, which was great," Burton recalled. "But at the end of it all, I realized they weren't going to use any of it."
Now, Burton's fans will get a rare look at some of that work, though the artist himself is anxious about the prospect.
"When you make a film, you feel exposed in a way, and this feels even more exposing," Burton confessed. "I feel like it's a real honor and all, but I'm a bit nervous about it, too."
-I know a few people who are incredibly excited about this...are you?

The next Bond flick gets some writers...

...and Paul Haggis is not one of them, interestingly enough. Variety has the story:
Producers Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli of EON Productions and MGM are moving forward on the next 007 installment, hiring "Frost/Nixon" scribe Peter Morgan, Neal Purvis and Robert Wade to write the script for the 23rd James Bond film.
Purvis and Wade most recently worked on "Quantum of Solace" and "Casino Royale."
Daniel Craig is already set to reprise his role as 007, and Wilson and Broccoli are producing. No start date has yet been set, but sources said EON and MGM are eyeing a 2011 release.
"Peter, Neal and Robert are extraordinarily talented and we're looking forward to working with the three of them," Wilson and Broccoli said in a statement.
Both "Quantum of Solace" and "Casino Royale" were co-productions between MGM and Sony, with the latter distributing. The new film will be the first to return as a full MGM release. The first 20 pictures in the franchise were distributed by MGM.
Morgan, who wrote both the play and film "Frost/Nixon" and "The Last King of Scotland" and "The Queen," has most recently been working on "The Special Relationship" for HBO, and "Hereafter" for DreamWorks. He'll begin writing on the Bond film after completing those projects.
Aside from the Bond films, Purvis and Wade have been working on "The Brazilian Job," the sequel to "The Italian Job," on which they were also writers.
-Morgan will likely be there to make the story work, with the other two being Bond vets to make the action work...thoughts?

Trailer for Creation

Darwin goes to the movies:

-Well, it's nothing if not controversial...looks decent enough though, if not Oscar fodder...thoughts?

John Carter of Mars gets the beginnings of a cast!

From Variety:
Walt Disney Pictures has set "Wolverine" stars Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins to star in "John Carter of Mars," a fantasy epic that marks the live action directorial debut of "Wall-E" helmer Andrew Stanton.
Kitsch, a member of the "Friday Night Lights" ensemble who made his screen breakthrough as Gambit in "X-Men Origins: Wolverine," will play the title character, a damaged Civil War veteran who finds himself mysteriously transported to Mars where his involvements with warring raced of the dying planet force him to rediscover his humanity.
Collins will play Dejah Thoris, the Princess of Mars. Collins worked with Kitsch in "Wolverine," playing Hugh Jackman's character's love interest Kayla Silverfox. She also co-stars in the HBO vampire drama "True Blood."
Pic will begin filming early next year. Jim Morris and Colin Wilson are producing. Stanton wrote the script with Mark Andrews.
-I'm anxious to see Stanton do live action...how about you?

Another great Poster for The Hurt Locker

Love it...thoughts?

The author of The Hours has an interesting new project...

...which you can read about here, from Variety:
Screen Gems prevailed in a spec auction for "Beautiful Girl," a scary genre thriller from a most unlikely source: Michael Cunningham, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of "The Hours."
Douglas Wick and Lucy Fisher are producing through their Red Wagon banner.
Story concerns a shy but brainy high school girl who returns for senior year after having slimmed down six dress sizes. She finds herself flirting with the handsome English lit teacher, but the mutual crush turns deadly when the teacher's obsession with the student compels him to exact maniacal revenge on everyone who was cruel to her.
Screen Gems president Clint Culpepper met Cunningham through Wick and was surprised to find a genre junkie, even if his love of blood-soaked movies didn't seep into his books, or scripts like "A Home at the End of the World."
Cunningham said he has always been a huge genre fan and, when sitting with Wick, would argue such basics as whether the second "Hostel" was as good as the first one.
"While I was writing about Virginia Wolff, my mind was never far removed from the idea of girls in bikinis being hacked up by guys wearing hockey masks, and I vowed that if I ever had a good idea, I would write one of these scary movies," Cunningham told Daily Variety.
"We've become such genre paisans, and when I showed the script to Doug, he showed it to Clint, and it was instant love," Cunningham said. "This summer, I will finish a novel where nobody gets anything gouged out of them, but my plan is to then write another idea I have for an actual monster movie. As it turns out, we sometimes find we can do more than one thing in our lives."
-Definitely something different...

Conan to get remade by a director familiar with remakes...

According to this in Variety:
Marcus Nispel has been set by Nu Image/Millennium Films to direct "Conan," ending a nine-year development ordeal to reinvent the Robert E. Howard-created barbarian first immortalized onscreen by Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1982.
Production on the remake is set to start late this year in Bulgaria and South Africa. Nu Image/Millennium is making the film in a co-production with Lionsgate. Avi Lerner and Joe Gatta are producing with Fredrick Malmberg. Malmberg runs Paradox, the company that holds the rights to "Conan" and the other hero franchises in the Howard library.
The film will be the most financially ambitious ever for Lerner, with a script by Thomas Dean Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer, whose credits include "Sahara" and "Cowboys and Aliens."
Paradox originally set the project at Warner Bros. but declined to ink a new rights deal after numerous unsuccessful attempts to make it with directors like Larry and Andy Wachowski and Robert Rodriguez. Malmberg then set it with Lerner in a seven-figure deal with strong progress to production stipulations. Lerner flirted with Brett Ratner last year, but the filmmaker could not commit in a timely fashion and Lerner couldn't wait.
That opened the door for Nispel, who'll make "Conan" his third redo, after "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" and "Friday the 13th." For Nispel, "Conan" is a job he has dreamed about since his childhood.
Nispel said he will blend his childhood imaginings of the character with the influence of the famous Conan illustrations by Frank Frazetta, and the influence of such viscerally violent period films as Mel Gibson's "Apocalypto."
"Conan" maintains a following through such ancillary properties as a Dark Horse comicbook series, a vidgame for Xbox 360 and a Funcom/Eidos multiplayer online role-playing game.
Boaz Davidson, George Furla, Henry Winterstern, Trevor Short and Danny Dimfort are executive producers.
-Well, at least we know he has an idea about remakes...thoughts?

Diane Lane to star in a Secretariat flick

Variety has all of the gory details:
Diane Lane is set to star in "Secretariat," the Disney film about the relationship between the 1973 Triple Crown-winning racehorse and his owner, Penny Chenery.
Randall Wallace is directing the film this fall from a script by Mike Rich.
Mayhem partners Mark Ciardi and Gordon Gray are producing.
While Secretariat showed potential before the horse became the first Triple Crown winner in 25 years, Chenery's rise to become "first lady of racing" was the real underdog story.
Lane will play Chenery, a mother and housewife who knew little about horse racing when she took over her ailing father's farm in Virginia.
Around the time that Secretariat established himself as a horse with serious potential, she was pressured to sell him and everything else after her father died and she was hit with a large inheritance tax.
Lane last starred in "Nights in Rodanthe."
-Disney has a good track record with their sports movies, so I'll keep an eye on this...

Trailer for Old Dogs

Well, that looked absolutely dreadful...

Justin Theroux gets a new directing gig

Variety has the details:
Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment have set Justin Theroux to direct "Chief Ron."
The Jordan Roberts-scripted comedy concerns a conman who claims Mohegan ancestry in an attempt to open a casino.
Brian Grazer is producing.
The comedy's inspiration is the true story of Chief Ron Roberts. His blonde hair and blue eyes raised skepticism over his ancestral claims but he prevailed in court and is now building a casino in upstate New York.
Theroux takes the directing job after completing the script for "Iron Man 2" for Marvel Entertainment and Paramount. Before that, he co-wrote and was an exec producer of "Tropic Thunder."
Grant Morris, David Gordon Green and Imagine's Erica Huggins are exec producers.
Project reps the first major studio directing gig for Theroux, who made his helming debut on "Dedication," a film that made its debut at 2007 Sundance before being released through the Weinstein Co.
-Could be good, and Theroux is a talent, so we'll see...thoughts?

Trailer for Scorsese's Shutter Island

We finally get a look at Marty's latest:

-What do you think of this trailer? My take is that it looks fantastic, though it seems too much like a horror/thriller for too heavy Oscar contention, but I could be wrong...also, is Mark Ruffalo in this enough to be a player in the supporting actor category? Overall, I dig it heavily...

A new Poster for 9

Looking good...thoughts?

Our first look at Mickey Rourke in Iron Man 2

I like how it seems both similar and different to Tony Stark's getup...the thought of Rourke and Robert Downey Jr. going at it is an exciting one indeed...what do you think of Mickey here?

Poster for Shorts

I'm usually a Robert Rodriguez fan, but I see this being an exception...agree/disagree?

The Howard family to unite on a project?

Perhaps, according to this in The Hollywood Reporter:
Universal and Imagine have picked up "The Originals," a drama written by Bryce Dallas Howard and writing partner Dane Charbeneau that could serve as a directing vehicle for her father, Ron Howard.Imagine is producing."Originals" is an ensemble film about a group of twentysomethings who reconvene for a weekend in New York after learning that the teacher who shaped their childhoods has fallen into a mysterious coma.The idea for "Originals" germinated a few years ago, when Howard, an actress with such films as "The Village" and "Spider-Man 3" under her belt, took to the idea of writing something that tackled the quarter-life crisis issues her contemporaries were dealing with. She roped in Charbeneau and the two have been working on the script for the past couple of years, as Howard shot "Terminator Salvation" and gave birth to her son Theodore."Originals" also became more of family affair during the writing process, as Charbeneau began dating Howard's sister Jocelyn. The two are now are engaged.Howard, repped by ICM and Management 360, and Charbeneau eventually showed it to Ron Howard, who saw it as a potential antidote to the huge productions for which he is known."Originals" is still in development though the elder Howard, who is coming off Columbia's worldwide hit "Angels & Demons" and has not picked his next helming gig.The director will return to his home at Universal for his next movie, with projects like "Colossus," a sci-fi thriller about a supercomputer, high on the priority list. "Originals" also is on that list.
-I like these kinds of movies, and while I'm not a huge lover of Ron Howard, I could see it being good...thoughts?

The International Trailer for (500) Days of Summer

There are few movies I'm looking forward to more than this one...how about you?

Clint Eastwood comes to DVD this week...and wants you off his lawn

Not that it should surprise anyone based on the title of this piece, but Eastwood's latest film is one of the ones being released to DVD this week. None of the films out particularly wowed me, but one must be named my PICK OF THE WEEK, and after some soul searching I've decided to give it to:
Gran Torino
Even though I had some major issues with this film, I found it to be better than average, just mildly disappointing coming from Clint. Granted, I'm in the minority on this, so I decided to give it top honors this week since it will likely be what most people pick up on DVD this week anyway. If you're an Eastwood fan, it's a good movie to add to your collection, just don't go in expecting a masterpiece. That being said, this might be his last acting role, so it's worth buying for that reason, if no other.
-Also out we have The International, which took Clive Owen, a relevant subject matter (banks ruining lives, though here they murder instead of simply rob), and managed to somehow make an incredibly mediocre movie out of it. It's not terrible by any stretch, but it's not that good either, so think long and hard before you pick this out up. It wastes more potential than almost any movie this year. Speaking of wasted potention, Crossing Over is out this week as well, and most of you are aware of my severe distaste for this film, both in my review and on the Podcast. It's a Crash wannabe that fails at every turn and wastes a director's talent along with some good actors. It's a real disaster.
-Rounding out the releases this week are the pretty dull sex farce Fired Up, which annoyed me a lot for many reasons, but mainly for having 30 year olds play teens...again. The other release is Sarah Jessica Parker's melodrama Spinning Into Butter. It pretty much skipped theaters, and watching it you know why. It's not a piece of crap, but it plays more like a Lifetime movie than a theatrical release.
-My Vintage pick this week is a good way to get Will Ferrell's Land of the Lost out of your mind. It's Stranger than Fiction, and it's Ferrell's best work so far in his career. It's funny and sad and touching, just a wonderful film. Check it out if you have yet to do so. It plays like Eternal Sunshine in a minor key, if that makes any sense.
-What will you be watching on DVD this week?

Liam Neeson joining the "A-Team"?

Perhaps, according to this in Variety:
Liam Neeson is in negotiations with 20th Century Fox to star in its long-gestating bigscreen adaptation of "The A-Team" as Col. John "Hannibal" Smith. Bradley Cooper is in early talks to play Lt. Templeton "Faceman" Peck in the Joe Carnahan-directed pic based on the 1980s TV series.
Production begins in late August for a June 11, 2010, release.
Ridley Scott is producing with Jules Daly and series creator Stephen J. Cannell, with Tony Scott exec producing through Scott Free. Carnahan and Brian Bloom polished a script by Skip Woods, whose recent script credits include "G.I. Joe: The Rise of the Cobra" and "Wolverine."
Neeson is in talks to play Hannibal, the role originated by George Peppard, while Cooper would play "Faceman," the role played by Dirk Benedict.
Neeson and Fox are working out money issues. He is coming off the global hit "Taken" and most recently completed "Chloe" and "Clash of the Titans," playing Zeus in the latter.
Cooper has established himself as a commodity after his starring role in Todd Phillips-directed hit "The Hangover." He just completed playing the title role opposite Sandra Bullock in "All About Steve."
Carnahan, Fox and Scott Free have kept the series premise -- four war vets wrongly convicted of armed robbery escape from a military prison to become do-gooder mercenaries -- but they've replaced the campy nature of the series with a tone closer to those of "Mission: Impossible" and "Ocean's Eleven."
Still to be cast are the roles of Capt. "Howling Mad" Murdock, played by Dwight Schultz in the original, and Sgt. "B.A." Baracus, the role that made Mr. T an '80s icon.
-I like Carnahan, and Neeson showed he could be a badass with Taken, so this could have potential...what do you think?

The Winners of the Golden Trailer Awards

From Indiewire:

The winners of the 10th Annual Golden Trailer Awards, which honor the best movie previews of the past year, were announced last night at the Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles.
“Star Trek” took both the Summer 2009 Blockbuster Award and the trophy for Best in Show at last night’s ceremony. Among the other winners, “Man on Wire” received Best Documentary, “The Wrestler” won Best Independent, and “My Winnipeg” took home Most Original. Meanwhile Best Romance went to “500 Days of Summer,” Best Comedy to the upcoming “Bruno” while “WALL-E” took Best Animation/Family and “Frost/Nixon” Best Drama.
Notably, Lionsgate was the studio that took home the most awards, winning nine Golden Trailer Awards.
Also this year, the category Best Voice Over was renamed the Don LaFontaine Award for Best Voice Over to honor the industry veteran who contributed voice overs to thousands of movie trailers over the course of his career. LaFontaine passed away in 2008. The award went to “Tropic Thunder - ‘Hollywood Legend.’”
Below is a partial list of last night’s winners. For the complete list of nominees and winners visit the Golden Trailer Awards’ official website.
-Best Action“Fast and Furious” - AV Squad, Universal
-Best Animation/Family“WALL-E” - Craig Murray Productions, The Walt Disney Studios
-Best Comedy“Bruno” - The Ant Farm, Universal Pictures
-Best Documentary“Man on Wire” - The Editpool, Icon Film Distribution
-Best Drama“Frost/Nixon” - Empire Design, Working Title Films
-Best Horror“The Unborn” - Buddha Jones, Rogue Pictures
-Best Independent Trailer“The Wrestler” - Mark Woollen & Associates, Fox Searchlight

-Best Music“Where the Wild Things Are” - The Ant Farm, Warner Bros.
-Best Romance“500 Days of Summer” - Mark Woollen & Associates, Fox Searchlight
-Best Thriller“Angels & Demons” - Trailer Park, Sony Pictures
-Best Video Game Trailer“Star Wars: The Force Unleashed” - Eyestorm Productions, Lucasarts
-Don La Fontaine Award for Best Voice Over“Tropic Thunder ‘Hollywood Legend’” - Buddha Jones, DreamWorks
-Golden Fleece“The Spirit” - Seismic Productions, Lionsgate
-Most Original“My Winnipeg” - Kinetic Trailers, IFC Films
-Summer 2009 Blockbuster“Star Trek” - Aspect Ratio, Paramount Pictures
-Trashiest Trailer“One Eyed Monster” - The Refinery, Liberation Entertainment
-Best In Show“Star Trek” - Aspect Ratio, Paramount Pictures

-Thoughts?

Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway to reunite on an Ed Zwick film

The Hollywood Reporter has the story:
Jake Gyllenhaal and Anne Hathaway, who played a doomed husband and wife in "Brokeback Mountain," are in negotiations to reunite for "Love and Other Drugs" at Fox 2000/New Regency.Ed Zwick is directing the project (formerly titled "Pharma"), which Charles Randolph ("The Interpreter") adapted from Jamie Reidy's nonfiction book "Hard Sell: The Evolution of a Viagra Salesman."Reidy was a drug rep for Pfizer in the late 1990s who eventually wrote a memoir that shined a light on the practices of the pharmaceutical industry. Gyllenhaal will play the salesman, who begins a relationship with a woman who has Parkinson's (Hathaway) while on one of his sales calls. Their love story plays out in the political and social context of the time.Zwick and his Bedford Falls partner Marshall Herskovitz are producing along with Scott Stuber, who originated the project. Randolph is also producing. Carla Hacken is overseeing for Fox 2000, Kara Francis for New Regency.Fox is in the process of obtaining the rights from Universal, which had put the project into turnaround. The filmmakers hope to begin shooting in the fall.Hathaway also had been considering filling Reese Witherspoon's role in "Tokyo Suckerpunch" at Sony but can't match schedules with would-be co-star Tobey Maguire, who shoots "Spider-Man 4" next year.Hathaway has "Alice in Wonderland" moving toward a March release and "Get Smart 2" scheduled to film in May, with co-star Steve Carell working on the script.Gyllenhaal has the David O. Russell-directed "Nailed" in postproduction and Disney's video game adaptation "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time" hitting theaters in May.Gyllenhaal and Hathaway are repped by CAA and Management 360.The CAA-repped Zwick most recently directed "Defiance," which he also co-wrote.
-Sounds like an Oscar hopeful to me...what about you?

More promotional stuff for District 9!

Definitely not subtle, but I'm digging it...

Julia Roberts to "Eat, Pray, and Love" Javier Bardem

Variety has the details:
Javier Bardem is negotiating to star in "Eat, Pray, Love," the Ryan Murphy-directed adaptation of the Elizabeth Gilbert memoir for Columbia Pictures.
Bardem joins Julia Roberts and Richard Jenkins in the cast.
Roberts plays the author, and Bardem will play Felipe, the man Gilbert meets and falls in love with on the final leg of a journey of self-discovery that began with the end of her marriage.
Richard Jenkins plays a Texan whom the heroine befriends at an Indian ashram.
Pic was adapted by Murphy, the "Nip/Tuck" creator who last helmed "Running With Scissors."
Brad Pitt and Dede Gardner are producing through Plan B.
Bardem, last seen in the Woody Allen-directed "Vicky Cristina Barcelona," most recently starred for director Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu in "Biutiful" for Cha Cha Cha and Focus Features.
-Sounds like a good pairing, and a film with some good potential...agree?

Become a fan of ours on Facebook!

Indeed, you can become a fan of ours on Facebook by going here: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/The-Awards-Circuit/113541220309?ref=mf

-Also, as previously mentioned you can follow me on Twitter here: http://twitter.com/JoeyMagidson

-Join up or follow, and stay close to The Awards Circuit!

A.R. Rahman gets his first U.S. gig

Variety has the details:
A.R. Rahman, the Oscar-winning "Slumdog Millionaire" composer, has agreed to score his first American feature.
Rahman will compose the score to "Couples Retreat," the Peter Billingsley-directed Universal Pictures comedy that stars Vince Vaughn.
Based on an idea by Vaughn, the pic follows four couples who head to a tropical resort, where one couple plans to work on their marriage.
-Good for him...thoughts?

Ken Kwapis picks a new project, and it seems environmentally friendly...

The Hollywood Reporter has the story:
Ken Kwapis is in final negotiations to direct "Everybody Loves Whales," an environmental family film project being produced by Anonymous Content's Steve Golin and Michael Sugar. The script tells the story of three California Gray Whales that were found trapped under the ice of the Arctic Circle in October 1988. The subsequent rescue attempt became a global event as scores of journalists converged on the nearby Eskimo town of Barrow, Alaska, and the U.S. and Soviet governments enjoyed a rare moment of collaboration.In addition to the rescue attempt, the script by Jack Amiel and Michael Begler centers on a love story between a nonprofit aid worker and a journalist.Jon Berg and Jesse Ehrman are overseeing for Warner Bros.Kwapis, repped by UTA and Code Entertainment, last directed "He's Just Not That Into You," the New Line ensemble romantic comedy that grossed almost $94 million. He also directed Alcon's "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants," which Warners distributed. Kwapis made his name in the television world.
-Free Willy meets Happy Feet?

The Awards Circuit is proud to present: The Awards Circuit Podcast!

Yes, myself and Myles have ventured into the realm of the podcast, and our maiden voyage is up on the Main Page along with a slew of new reviews for you all to read! Be sure to let us know what you think of the Podcast by emailing the site, leaving feedback here, and any other way of getting in touch with us. The Podcast (which runs down the top 5 films of the year so far for Myles and me as well as our picks for the worst film of the year so far) can be heard here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/Podcasts/podcast1.html

-As for the reviews, we have a quick take on Up from Clay (glowingly positive) as well as a bunch from myself. Some films reviewed are good (Sunshine Cleaning, State of Play, The Last House on The Left, and The Girlfriend Experience, for example), some aren't so good (Taken and 17 Again), and some are downright terrible (mainly Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian). Check them out here: http://www.awardscircuit.com/reviews.html

-What do you think of the new reviews and our brand new feature (the Podcast) on the site?

Poster for Julie & Julia

Not a fantastic poster, but not the worst we could have seen, which might be the best way to sum up the film we'll be seeing in August...thoughts?

Eastwood's Nelson Mandela flick gets a release date, and a new title...

...for now at least, according to Variety:
Warner Bros. will open Clint Eastwood's "Invictus," the Nelson Mandela pic toplining Morgan Freeman, on Dec. 11.
Matt Damon also stars.
Film's working title had been "The Human Factor," adapted from John Carlin's tome "Playing the Enemy: Nelson Mandela and the Game That Made a Nation."
"Invictus" follows Mandela's attempt to use the 1995 Rugby World Cup to heal his nation following his release from prison, the fall of apartheid and his election as president of South Africa.
Damon portrays Francois Pienaar, the captain of the South African rugby team.
Eastwood drew the title of the film from a short poem often recited by Mandela. "Invictus," penned by William Ernest Henley, speaks to the will to survive in the face of adversity.
"Invictus" isn't the first picture to claim Dec. 11. Also opening that weekend is Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones," from Paramount and DreamWorks.
The Dec. 11 release puts "Invictus" and "Lovely Bones" in the heart of awards season.
Eastwood, Hollywood's most prolific director in the past several years, opened two films in fall 2007 and another two in 2008, "Changeling" and "Gran Torino."
"Gran Torino," in which Eastwood also starred, is the filmmaker's most successful box office title to date, earning $148 million domestically and $112.5 million overseas, where he also enjoys iconic status.
Warners, which has long been in business with Eastwood, released "Gran Torino."
As of now, "Invictus" is set to open wide, although that could change.
-Clint might have another winner on his hands, but it's way too early to tell...what do you think the film's chances are though?

Trailer for The Final Destination

The Final Destination trailer in HD

-More of the same, and I'm not the least bit surprised...are you?

Chris Pine joins up with Denzel for his first post Trek flick

Variety has the story:
In his first role since "Star Trek," Chris Pine is negotiating to star alongside Denzel Washington in "Unstoppable," the Tony Scott-directed drama for 20th Century Fox.
Pine took "Unstoppable" over several other offers after a dinner Tuesday night with Washington and Scott.
Production will begin in August for summer 2010 release.
Studio and Pine's reps are now working out a deal for him to play a young conductor who jumps into a locomotive with an experienced engineer (Washington) in chase of a runaway train that carries a cargo of toxic chemicals. Pic is loosely inspired by real events, and Mark Bomback wrote the script.
Julie Yorn is producing with Scott and Mimi Rogers, and Chris Ciaffa is executive producer. Drama reunites Scott and Washington, whose latest effort, "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," opens June 12.
-Could be a good pairing, but you never know...thoughts?

R.I.P. David Carradine

Associated Press has the saddening story here: