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First Official Look: Disney’s Prince of Persia
17 July 2009 2:17 PM, PDT
It has been almost a year since paparazzi photos surfaced of Jake Gyllenhaal in full costume as Dastan, the Prince of Persia. The shirtless shots were mainly just the actor strolling around the sandy Moroccan set with a mane of hair. Another spy pic captured Ben Kingsley as the villain Nizam. Now Entertainment Weekly has the first official photo of Gyllenhaal for Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time. Pictured right, the story is still the same only now he’s dual-wielding swords and sporting a scared facial expression. Disney doesn’t seem to be promoting the video game adaptation at San Diego Comic-Con this year, though the author of the graphic novel version will be on hand next Friday for the Disney Press panel. Instead...
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Jeff Leins
Cast Member Added to ‘Eclipse’ Plus ‘New Moon’ Image
16 July 2009 11:25 PM, PDT
Summit Entertainment is gearing up for the August 17 start date for shooting on The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the third installment in the popular vampire series. Casting has already started and the first new member of the cast has been added to the Stephenie Meyer adaptation. According to the Risky Business Blog, an unknown Australian actor named Xavier Samuel has scored the part of Riley, a good-looking college student converted to a newborn vampire. He joins the legion of followers for Victoria, a bloody-thirsty villain seeking revenge on Bella (Kristen Stewart). The army of powerful new vampires becomes the main conflict for her, Edward (Robert Pattinson), and Jacob (Taylor Lautner). Like the members of the werewolf pack in The...
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Jeff Leins
Radcliffe, McAvoy, and Tennant Rumored for ‘Hobbit’
16 July 2009 10:28 PM, PDT
Update: Peter Jackson denies any sort of announcement at Comic-Con and says they’re still finishing the script. They’ve only just started to discuss casting choices. The first of two Hobbit films doesn’t hit until 2011, but already casting rumors are rampant. Fans are eager to know who will adventure through the continued world of Peter Jackson under the new direction of Guillermo del Toro. The La Times’ Hero Complex has been hearing “whispers” of possible actors for the role of Bilbo Baggins. Since the adaptation is a prequel to the epic trilogy already committed to film, Ian Holm won’t be strapping on the rubber feet again. Instead the choices include Harry Potter himself (Daniel...
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Jeff Leins
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Review
16 July 2009 9:41 PM, PDT
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is a maturation of age and style, showcasing the talents of its now adult actors and continuing the darker elements introduced in the previous film. Movie magic has transformed the mystical world of teleportation and flying brooms into a gritty world of destiny and sacrifice. There’s something intense and ominous casting a shadow over Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and it isn’t the Death Eater skull mark emerging from the smokey clouds. It’s raging hormones. Either everyone has had a sip of a love potion or the now 16-year-old characters are finally discovering something an owl couldn’t bring them. There’s plenty of snogging amidst the strengthening...
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Jeff Leins
‘Half-Blood Prince’ Earns $58.4M on the First Day
16 July 2009 4:38 PM, PDT
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince made $58.4 million on opening day at the box office, the fourth largest single day in history. This was after claiming the biggest midnight sales numbers with $22 million. The sixth Potter movie missed third (held by Spider-Man 3) by merely a million and failed to top Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ($62 million) and The Dark Knight ($67.2 million). The British boy wizard placed second in all-time Wednesday openings behind Michael Bay’s robot sequel. No other Harry Potter film is in the top ten despite eventually grossing $250-300 million a piece domestically. It’s also the best single day for the lucrative franchise, which is nearing $1.5 billion in the U.S. alone. Across the...
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Jeff Leins
First Look: Wes Anderson’s Fantastic Mr. Fox
16 July 2009 3:33 PM, PDT
Two images have emerged giving us the first look at The Fantastic Mr. Fox, an animated film adapted and directed by Wes Anderson. Based on the book by Roald Dahl, the film focuses on a crafty fox (voiced by George Clooney) who finds himself and his family targeted for death by the three dumb, plug-ugly farmers who tire of sharing their chickens with the critter. The film also features the voices of Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman and Meryl Streep. As a fan of Royal Tenenbaums, Bottle Rocket, and Rushmore, I’m excited to see another Wes Anderson movie. However, I’m a little underwhelmed by the style of it. It looks like taxidermy. Not to be morbid, but it looks like someone is posing dead animals admiring a...
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Jeff Leins
First Look: Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow
16 July 2009 11:02 AM, PDT
Here is your first look at Scarlett Johansson as a redhead and in costume as Black Widow for Iron Man 2. Entertainment Weekly has the exclusive images as part of their preview of Comic-Con before it starts next week. Director Jon Favreau wowed audiences in 2007 at the geek festival and will be presenting new stuff next Saturday, July 25. Pictured left is the cover of the issue. On the left is ScarJo, center is Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man, and on the right is Mickey Rourke as the villain Vanko/Whiplash (in case you haven’t seen his suit, here’s a better look). Johansson plays Natasha Romanoff, “Stark’s mysterious new assistant,” whose alter ego is Black Widow. In the comics, the character is...
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Jeff Leins
Willem Dafoe Inhabits ‘Mars’
16 July 2009 10:15 AM, PDT
Willem Dafoe is joining Disney’s John Carter of Mars alongside Taylor Kitsch and Lynn Collins. Andrew Stanton of Finding Nemo and Wall-e fame is directing in his first live-action feature for the studio. The film is an adaptation of a book from the 11-novel series by Edgar Rice Burroughs, specifically “A Princess of Mars.” It centers on Civil War veteran (Kitsch) who seemingly dies and is transported to another physical body on the planet Mars. Because of the gravity difference, John Carter is stronger than the natives, a race of 12-foot tall, green barbarians. He’s imprisoned by the creatures until he escapes and meets Dejah Thoris, Princess of Helium (Collins). Dafoe will play Tars Tarkas, one of the fierce green...
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Jeff Leins
The Vatican Approves of ‘Half-Blood Prince’
15 July 2009 9:15 PM, PDT
Good news for Christians, the Vatican approves of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. According to the official newspaper of Vatican City, L’Osservatore Romano, the film achieves the “correct balance” in its depiction of teen romance and praised the PG-rated movie for showing good must overcome evil though it sometimes requires “cost and sacrifice.” The positive review is news because the other five Harry Potters weren’t about good overcoming evil. Oh, wait a minute… The “correct balance” statement is a little awkward too because much of the movie is focused on the teenage hormones surfacing within the main characters (Harry, Ron, and Hermione). Either the Vatican sees Potter...
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Jeff Leins
Trailer for Drew Barrymore’s Whip It
15 July 2009 8:30 PM, PDT
Fox Searchlight has released a trailer for Whip It, the directorial debut of actress Drew Barrymore. The story is based on a novel by Shauna Cross (who also wrote the screenplay) titled “Derby Girls” about the world of competitive all-female roller-derby. Ellen Page stars as a rebellious teenager who signs up for the Hurl Scouts to escape the trappings of small town life. She leaves Bordeen, TX to come to the great city of Austin, which was filmed in Michigan for some reason… Also appearing in mostly female cast are SNL veteran Kristen Wiig (pictured on the right), Juliette Lewis, Marcia Gay Harden, stuntwoman turned actress Zoe Bell, Eve, and Alia Shawkat (Maeby on “Arrested Development”). Late night host Jimmy...
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Jeff Leins
Third Bridget Jones Movie in the Works
15 July 2009 4:44 PM, PDT
A third Bridget Jones movie is in the early stages at Working Title and has already attached Renee Zellweger to reprise her role as the British publishing executive. The untitled third installment will likely be based on Helen Fielding’s weekly columns in 2005 for the British newspaper “The Independent.” In the stories, the now 4o-year-old Bridget attempts to have a baby before it’s too late. No writer has been hired yet, but the production is rumored for a start date late next year. Variety notes the new sequel comes as Working Title struggles to keep its 45 staffers on payroll and Zellweger’s recent movies have all been flops at the box office. The first movie in 2001, Bridget Jones’s Diary, made...
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Jeff Leins
Cable Network Schedules Twilight TV Series
15 July 2009 4:03 PM, PDT
Sometimes I feel like there’s too much Twilight news on the Internet. The Twilight Saga: New Moon is rapidly approaching and the rabid fan base seems to be growing exponentially. Robert Pattinson eats a sandwich for lunch and it turns into hundreds of blog posts and exclusive photos of said ham and cheese. I know I’m guilty of the constant updates myself, but at least I try to cover the more legitimate headlines for Summit Entertainment’s vampire phenomenon. Meanwhile there are hundreds of fan sites that only post information related to Twilight and the stars of the series. It has finally happened. A TV network has dedicated an entire, regularly-scheduled program to only covering Twilight-related news. Reelzchannel...
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Jeff Leins
Half-Blood Prince Sets the Midnight Record at $22.2M
15 July 2009 3:02 PM, PDT
Warner Bros’ Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opened to massive numbers in the early hours of Wednesday morning, setting a new record for all-time midnight sales at $22.2 million. The sixth adaptation in the wizard franchise opened at 3,003 theater locations across the country at 12:01am on the same Wednesday as Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix in 2007. That film made $12M at midnight and eventually earned a total of $292 million in the States ($938.2 million worldwide). The new midnight record beat The Dark Knight’s $18 million midnight gross (in 3,040 locations) and the late night numbers posted by Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen ($16 million) last month. Harry Potter was helped by a more...
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Jeff Leins
Teaser Trailer for Percy Jackson: The Lightning Thief
15 July 2009 2:18 PM, PDT
When Fox started assembling their all-star cast for Percy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning Thief, I asked along with Entertainment Weekly if this could be the next Harry Potter. Already the studio is doing what they can to align themselves with the multi-billion dollar franchise since the teaser trailer is playing in front of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince. The novel adaptation also borrows the director who kicked off the J.K. Rowling series, Chris Columbus, after Warner Bros picked up new talent and moved Potter in a more mature trajectory. Columbus may have created the magical whimsy of Hogwarts, but he’s recreated the same look now for Olympus, the city of gods. By the way, his latest is I Love You, Beth...
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Jeff Leins
Brüno Review
15 July 2009 1:44 PM, PDT
Sacha Baron Cohen’s Brüno is an outrageously funny mockumentary on par with his last crazy character, Borat, which ramps the shocking humor and scathing social commentary to almost unbelievable levels. In 2006, Cohen scored laughs under the guise of a blunt, politically incorrect foreigner, but as Bruno, the openly gay Austrian fashionista, he wields a sharpened, mean-spirited wit necessary for defending himself against the more outed hatred. Cohen uses the same guerrilla tactics to strike devastating, embarrassing bitch slaps to unsuspecting targets spliced with scandalous sketches and occasionally forced bits. The rude, crude gags will be instantly offensive to some, especially those who are unaware of what they’re getting...
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Jeff Leins
Denzel Washington is Done Solving Train Problems
14 July 2009 3:25 PM, PDT
Denzel Washington has backed out of Unstoppable, the second train movie in a row directed by Tony Scott. The two worked together on the ho-hum remake of The Taking of Pelham 123, but the Oscar-winning actor is tired of waiting. The ironically-titled movie was put on hold by Fox last month while they discussed potential budget issues for such an action-heavy production. One of the main concerns was the $20 million price tag that comes with Washington, who never officially signed a deal after three months sitting at the station. Meanwhile, the studio is looking at the last Washington-Scott collaboration and seeing this as a possible dud in the making. The budget on Pelham was a reported $100 million at Sony and the mediocre movie has...
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Jeff Leins
Morgan Spurlock Directing Simpsons Documentary
13 July 2009 11:37 PM, PDT
Documentary filmmaker Morgan Spurlock is directing a new film about the cartoon family “The Simpsons” for 20th Century Fox. The documentary, titled The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special in 3-D on Ice, will air on TV (on Fox, of course) January 14, 2010. Nice touch on the title. In the made-for-tv movie, Spurlock will examine the cultural influence of the longest running comedy show in history and how the Simpsons have seen the world over the last 20 years. “Excellent…” “When they first called me about this, I thought it was a prank and I hung up,” said Spurlock. “And then my agent called back and said, ‘No, no, this is for real,’ at which point I fainted. Then when I woke up, I called everyone I knew...
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Jeff Leins
Sarandon, Goodman Assist Kevorkian Biopic
13 July 2009 11:18 PM, PDT
Susan Sarandon and John Goodman are joining HBO Films’ You Don’t Know Jack, a biopic of former pathologist Jack Kevorkian. Al Pacino is set to star as the infamous “Dr. Death” for director Barry Levinson. Kevorkian is a vocal advocate for patient-assisted-suicide and a patient’s “right to die.” He claims to have assisted at least 130 terminal patients to their death between 1990 and 1998 even after his Michigan medical license was revoked in 1991. Several attempts to charge him in court were unsuccessful until Kevorkian sent a tape of himself assisting a suicide to “60 Minutes.” After being convicted of second degree murder, he served eight years of a 10-to-25 year sentence before being released on parole for...
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Jeff Leins
Lead Already Cast in ‘Let the Right One In’ Remake?
13 July 2009 6:08 PM, PDT
In the pull-out section of the Herald-Sun, the Australian newspaper claims casting has begun on the American remake of the Swedish vampire film Let the Right One In. According to the paper and the eagle eyes of Moviehole, Kodi Smit-McPhee is up for one of the leads in Let Me In, Matt Reeves’ new adaptation of John Ajvide Lindqvist’s original novel. The 13-year-old actor is just the right age for Owen (renamed from Oskar), a boy who discovers his best friend is a vampire. Reeves said last month Avy Kaufman (The Sixth Sense) was working on casting believable young actors rather than trying to raise the age level to fit the typical quadrant marketing system. He also plans to set the story in 1980s and possibly in Littleton,...
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Jeff Leins
Jennifer’s Body Script Review
13 July 2009 5:29 PM, PDT
Script reviews will become a regular feature on NewsinFilm as Script Woman tells us all about the latest upcoming screenplays. May contain spoilers… Another Hollywood thriller is headed your way, luckily without the customary and oh-so-scary “Based on true events” disclaimer. The trailer for Jennifer’s Body was out last week and has given moviegoers only two reasons to splurge $12.50 on a ticket to this horrible horror movie. The first is the opportunity to see Megan Fox (the hottie from the summer blockbuster Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen for those of you who have been hiding under a rock) scantily clad and second, the fact that the script was written by Diablo Cody, who wrote 2007’s hit, Juno. Do Not...
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Jeff Leins
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