Jacob Hall
‘Chappie’ Trailer: What the Heck is This Movie?
Okay, let’s ask the big question: what the hell is ‘Chappie’? The first trailer made the film look like a slightly goofy and overly sentimental ‘Short Circuit’ riff, with the title robot learning about the world ... while teaching us (blech). The new trailer feels more like director Neill Blomkamp’s previous work, showcasing wacky science fiction ideas and explosive action. In any case, we’re definitely not sold on the film yet based on either trailer.
‘Big Game’ Trailer: Samuel L. Jackson and a Young Boy Battle Terrorists in a Movie That Really Exists
The ‘Big Game’ trailer sells a concept that rides a fine line between totally preposterous and incredible. What if Air Force One was shot down and the President’s escape pod landed in the isolated woods of Finland? What is the President, now pursued by terrorists, only had one ally? What if that one ally was a pre-teen boy armed with a bow? What if the President was played by Samuel L. Jackson? Yeah, ‘Big Game’ is a real movie and we still can’t decide if it’s too ludicrous or just ludicrous enough.
‘Star Wars: Episode 7’ Will Feature a Trio of Actors From ‘The Raid’
With all of his projects, J.J. Abrams has shown extraordinary good taste in casting and ‘Star Wars: Episode 7’ is no different. Forget about the old-timers returning to the saga and think about John Boyega, Adam Driver, Gwendoline Christie and the other terrific thespians being given the biggest spotlight of their careers. Abrams, more than most working filmmakers, knows how to showcase an actor or actress in a way that makes us wonder why they weren’t movie stars before he cast them. Anyway, this is just a longwinded way of getting around to saying that Abrams’ impeccable taste is once again on display since a trio of actors from ‘The Raid’ and ‘The Raid 2’ are apparently in ‘The Force Awakens.’
Weekend Box Office Report: ‘The Woman in Black’ Can’t Stop ‘The Hobbit’
After the jam-packed month of December, with its huge family-friendly blockbusters and awards season Oscar bait, we have arrived in the month of January. Formerly a dumping ground for mediocre films, the month has taken on a new identity in the past few years as a testing ground for unique genre films (think ‘Cloverfield’) and a solid place to release a horror movie, which seems to do quite well right around New Year’s for whatever reason. This year, we have ‘The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death,’ which had a fairly solid opening. Not solid enough to topple the Christmas Week champions, but no one is complaining too much.
Marvel Teases ‘Ant-Man’ With an Ant-Sized Teaser
Okay, Marvel. This is cute. As exhausting as “teasers for trailers” can be, we’ll give you credit for this ‘Ant-Man’ preview, which is more of a snarky joke than an actual piece of marketing. Technically, this is our first look at footage from the upcoming film, but someone has apparently saturated the video with Pym Particles because the screen is literally too small for us to actually comprehend anything that’s going on.
‘Get Hard’ Trailer: Kevin Hart Helps Will Ferrell Toughen Up
The odd couple is one of the basic principles of comedy. You take two very different people, fling them into an absurd situation and (hopefully) rack up some good laughs. The ‘Get Hard’ trailer shows off one of the more inspired comedic pairings in recent memory, with the tall whiter-than-white Will Ferrell teaming up with the short black Kevin Hart. If the differences between two lead actors generated laughs on their own, then this is already the funniest movie of 2015.
‘Avengers 2’ LEGO Sets Reveal Potential Spoilers For the Sequel
Just yesterday, the reveal of a new Iron Man toy gave us out first glimpse of the character’s new armor in the upcoming ‘The Avengers 2.’ The trend of toys jumping the gun continues today: a German ad for the first wave of LEGO sets based on Joss Whedon’s superhero team-up sequel has made its way online and it may very well tease some setpieces and concepts that haven’t been present in any of the trailers thus far.
Weekend Box Office Report: Audiences Pass Over ‘Exodus: Gods and Kings’
Sometimes, a film can effortlessly open at number one at the box office while still being a pretty huge disaster. This is the case with ‘Exodus: Gods and Kings,’ which rode a wave of terrible reviews and an even more terrible marketing campaign to a hugely disappointing start. With a lot of big movies opening the next two weeks, the new Biblical epic won’t even find time to grow some legs. Chances are strong that it is dead on arrival.
‘The Divergent Series: Insurgent’ Trailer: Shailene Woodley Defies Reality
If you loved ‘Divergent’ and are already totally on board with the cinematic adaptations of Veronica Roth’s young adult science fiction novels, then the trailer for the awkwardly titled ‘The Divergent Series: Insurgent’ is probably going to prove exciting. If you’re unfamiliar with the franchise, prepare for 144 seconds that might as well be in a foreign language.
‘Into the Woods’ Trailer: The Cast Actually Gets Around to Singing This Time
The first 'Into the Woods' trailer was strangely lacking in singing, which was an odd way to sell a movie based on one of the most beloved of all modern musicals. Thankfully, Disney has course corrected with trailer number two, which actually lets us see and hear the ensemble cast performing Stephen Sondhiem's iconic songs. It's an improvement by default.
Hackers Demand Sony Halts the Release of ‘The Interview’…Or Else
Unlike previous messages, this one actually has demands outside of vague, frightening threats: Sony must delay the release of ‘The Interview,’ “the movie of terrorism,” or face the consequences.
Cary Fukunaga’s ‘It’ Split Into Two Films, Separating the Past and Present Timelines
Stephen King’s ‘It’ is a beast of a book. Over its 1,000-plus pages, the novel follows a group of close-knit friends who do battle with a malevolent, child-killing force in their youth, only to reunite decades later to finish the job. It’s a messy, ambitious and insanely (perversely, even) detailed work. It feels unadaptable. But no one tell that to ‘True Detective’ director Cary Fukunaga, whose long-gestating adaptation is finally going before cameras next summer.
Christian Bale Got Super Jealous When He Heard Ben Affleck Was Playing Batman
Every generation has their Batman. Depending on the age of the person you ask, you’ll discover Adam West fans, Michael Keaton fans, Kevin Conroy fans and, if you stare into the darkness long enough, a George Clooney fan. For a certain group of fans, Christian Bale’s take on the Dark Knight always be the definitive interpretation, with his gravelly growl and trademark intensity instantly beating out whatever Ben Affleck brings to the character in ‘Batman vs. Superman.’ Some of these people are going to resent Affleck no matter what. And, in a surprising turn of events, it looks like they can all rally around Bale himself.
Watch Stan Lee’s Animated Cameo in ‘Big Hero 6’
‘Big Hero 6’ may only be tangentially related to the Marvel comic on which it is based and completely unconnected to the larger Marvel cinematic universe, but it still has the obligatory Stan Lee cameo. Yes, this is an animated movie featuring an animated version of the legendary comic book icon/Marvel mascot. But hey, it’s a tradition at this point.
Rumor: Christoph Waltz is Playing Blofeld in ‘Bond 24’
It’s no secret that Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz has been cast as the main villain in the next James Bond adventure (which we’re all just calling ‘Bond 24’ for the moment). However, the exact nature of the role may have been revealed and, if it’s true, 007 fans all over the world will rejoice. Yes, it’s exactly what you think it is: Waltz may be playing Bond’s old arch-nemesis, Ernst Stravo Blofeld.
‘Pitch Perfect 2’ Trailer: The Pitch is Back
Yes, the internet just shook with squeals of glee (no pun intended): the ‘Pitch Perfect 2’ trailer has arrived and, for better or worse, it looks like a whole lot more of the same. For fans, that's perfectly okay! Why fix something that clearly isn't broken? For the people who just couldn't deal with the first entry, this one promises all kinds of new nightmares and/or migraines.