First Look: Matt Damon Packs It on for The Informant

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Warner Bros, Adaptation, Biopics, Drama, Comedy, Thrillers, Trailers, Upcoming Releases

Later this fall, Matt Damon will take the lead in yet another Steven Soderbergh project.

In The Informant!, the Ocean’s Eleven actor plays Mark Whitacre, a real-life tipster for the FBI. Whitacre’s price-fixing information about Archer Daniels Midland (ADM), an agri-industry giant, made him the highest-ranked whistleblower in US history.

The dark comedy - also starring Scott Bakula and Joel McHale - opens in September.

Read More | Warner Bros.

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Box Office Breakdown: Transformers Rises Above the Competition

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, FOCUS, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Period, Remakes, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

It’s not very often when “loud” and “mindless” are deemed good qualities. But in Paramount’s case, it was a recipe for success.

Over the past five days, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen did what most films have been attempting all year: It passed the $200 million mark. (Up just became the first 2009 film to hit $250 million.)

While the Michael Bay film is definitely on track to be one of the most successful entries this year (let’s not forget about Harry Potter), the sequel’s opening still takes second behind last year’s topper. During its opening run, The Dark Knight earned $203.8 million domestically.

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Read More | Variety

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In Theaters This Weekend: June 26, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: DreamWorks, IFC Films, Magnolia, Miramax, New Line, Paramount, Action, Adaptation, Documentary, Drama, Foreign, Foreign Language, Music, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• My Sister’s Keeper (PG-13): starring Cameron Diaz, Abigail Breslin, Alec Baldwin (directed by Nick Cassavetes)
• Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (PG-13): starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel (directed by Michael Bay)

Click to continue reading In Theaters This Weekend: June 26, 2009

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Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Agree on The Proposal

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Touchstone, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Remakes, Romance, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

It seems a little skin might just go a long way.

After weeks of talking to the media about their joint nude scene, Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds saw their movie take the top spot. Was it a coincidence? Maybe. Whatever the reason, The Proposal became the actress’ biggest opener ever. Prior to this weekend, 2007’s Premonition - a horrible film, btw - had Bullock’s largest debut. (That movie grossed $17.6 million, almost 1/2 less than the romantic comedy.)

Meanwhile, Reynolds is this week’s Bradley Cooper. Sandra’s leading man, like The Hangover star, has just had his second #1 film of the year. (The first being Wolverine.)

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Audiences Agree on The Proposal

Read More | Variety

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Sorority Row and Destination Mark Reemergence of Bad Teen Horror

Posted by Kathleen Kane Categories: New Line, Horror, Mystery, Remakes, Thrillers, Casting, Trailers, Upcoming Releases

As much as raping Asian horror films like The Eye and One Missed Call irked me, I’m fairly sure that Sorority Row and The Final Destination (trailer after the jump) are leaving me even more distressed at the fate of American horror.

By the looks of the trailer, the remake of 1983’s The House on Sorority Row strikes me as a bad mix of I Know What You Did Last Summer and The House Bunny (seriously, what is Rumer Willis‘s character from that film doing in this one?). I’m happy to see Carrie Fisher get work, although I find it disheartening that the only gig she can get is this egregiously-looking thriller. Then again, this is a Summit production…

Click to continue reading Sorority Row and Destination Mark Reemergence of Bad Teen Horror

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Box Office Breakdown: Hangover Hangs on for Another Win

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: 20th Century Fox, Disney, Paramount, Sony, Universal, Warner Bros, Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Horror, Remakes, Science Fiction, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Box Office, Lists

This is one hangover that’s taking a while to recover from.

For the second week in a row, the must-see comedy of the summer has taken the top spot at the charts. The Hangover, which already had a greenlighted sequel prior to its debut, raked in another $32.7 million over the weekend. The film has now earned over $100 million and given Bradley Cooper his second #1 entry of the year. (His first was February’s He’s Just Not That Into You.)

Sitting in third place this week (right behind Up), was The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3, a remake of a 1974 version starring starring Walter Matthau and Robert Shaw. The action thriller, which had Denzel Washington working with director Tony Scott for the fourth time, pulled in a respectable $23.3 million. Meanwhile, Imagine That, Eddie Murphy’s latest stinker, earned $5.5 million in wide release. That gross bests the premiere of Meet Dave by approximately $200,000.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: Hangover Hangs on for Another Win

Read More | Variety

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This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: June 16, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Disney, MGM, Lionsgate, New Line, Paramount, Sony, Action, Drama, Horror, Period, Science Fiction, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Home Entertainment, Lists, New Releases

Here are some of the DVD and Blu-ray options available this Tuesday:

• Dr. Strangelove: Blu-ray
• Fracture: New Line
• Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter: DVD
• Friday the 13th, Part 2: Blu-ray
• Friday the 13th, Part 3 (3D): Blu-ray
• Friday the 13th, Part V: A New Beginning: DVD
• Friday the 13th, Part VI: Jason Lives: DVD
• Ghostbusters: Blu-ray
• The Greatest Game Ever Played: Blu-ray
• Kickboxer: Blu-ray
• Miracle: Blu-ray

Click to continue reading This Week on DVD and Blu-ray: June 16, 2009

Read More | Amazon

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Mark Millar Already Plotting Kick-Ass Sequel

Posted by Kathleen Kane Categories: Action, Adaptation, Adventure, Mystery, Satire, Sequels, Comedy, Thrillers, Casting, Upcoming Releases

Despite the fact that Mark Millar has yet to finish neither the first arc of his Kick-Ass comic nor the film adaptation of it (he has so far only published six issues in thirteen months), the Scottish author already wants the sequel to shoot within two years.

“Kick-Ass 2 is already being plotted out. We’re planning it, because all the actors are quite young and we have to make it relatively quickly. So we’ll definitely do that inside the next 18 to 24 months,” he told Sci-Fi Wire.

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Read More | Sci-Fi Wire

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First Look: Leonardo DiCaprio in Scorsese’s Shutter Island

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Paramount, Adaptation, Drama, Thrillers, Trailers, Upcoming Releases

When Martin Scorsese comes calling, the stars show up.

For his first film since Revolutionary Road, Leonardo DiCaprio reteams with his three-time director for Shutter Island, another Boston-area set thriller from author Dennis Lehane (Gone Baby Gone, Mystic River). The story centers around a search for a criminally-insane patient from a mental institution.

Mark Ruffalo, Michelle Williams, Patricia Clarkson, Ben Kingsley, Jackie Earle Haley, Emily Mortimer and Max von Sydow all join DiCaprio for this adaptation. Shutter Island opens on October 2.

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In Theaters This Weekend: June 12, 2009

Posted by Veronica Santiago Categories: Magnolia, Paramount, Sony, Documentary, Drama, Family, Music, Remakes, Comedy, Sports, Thrillers, Lists, New Releases

Here are some possible suggestions for your upcoming weekend:

• Imagine That (PG): starring Eddie Murphy, Thomas Haden Church, Nicole Ari Parker (directed by Karey Kirkpatrick)
• The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (R): starring Denzel Washington, John Travolta, James Gandolfini (directed by Tony Scott)

Click to continue reading In Theaters This Weekend: June 12, 2009

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