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20 articles
Sundance Photo and Trailer Preview: Tucker & Dale vs. Evil
23 minutes ago
Eli Craig, director of the acclaimed short film The Tao of Pong, makes his feature directorial debut with the Canadian horror comedy Tucker & Dale vs. Evil, one of the films selected for the Park City at Midnight category of the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. Co-written by Morgan Jurgenson, the story follows two West Virginian hillbillies who go on vacation to their dilapidated mountain cabin, but their peaceful trip goes horribly awry when a bunch of college kids show up. Basically, it's the story of the typical hillbilly horror film told from the other side. And as it turns out, the hillbillys aren't evil, and are only mistaken as psycho killers through a series of misconstrued circumstances. The film stars Tyler Labine, who most people will recognize from the television series Reaper, alongside Alan Tudyk, who most people will recognize from the television series Firefly. The film co-stars Katrina Bowden, Jesse »
- Peter Sciretta
This Week in DVD & Blu-ray: Paranormal Activity, 9, Jennifer’s Body, A Perfect Getaway, and More
1 hour ago
This Week in DVD & Blu-ray is a column that compiles all the latest info regarding new DVD and Blu-ray releases, sales, and exclusive deals from stores including Target, Best Buy and Fry’s. Paranormal Activity Costing only $15,000 to make, Paranormal Activity makes up for what it lacks in budget with pure ingenuity. The most obvious comparison is naturally The Blair Witch Project, with both films being presented as if they were genuine footage that's been discovered after-the-fact. Where Paranormal Activity shines though, is its setting: a house. Not a forest, not an isolated mansion—a normal, everyday house. When it comes to fearing a supernatural presence, there's no place people feel more vulnerable than their own home. Paranormal Activity takes advantage of this, and uses subtle filmmaking tricks to slowly ratchet up the tension as night after night goes by. I can fully understand why somebody would find the experience terrifying. »
- Adam Quigley
Cool Stuff: Ibraheem Youssef’s Poster Art For the Films of Quentin Tarantino
5 hours ago
Toronto based designer/art director Ibraheem Youssef created these wonderful minimalistic pieces of poster art for the films of Quentin Tarantino., including Kill Bill Volume 1 and 2, Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction. Check out all of the posters in full, after the jump. [gallery columns="2"] via: tdw Cool Stuff is a daily feature of slashfilm.com. Know of any geekarific creations or cool products which should be featured on Cool Stuff? E-Mail us at orfilms@gmail.com. »
- Peter Sciretta
Geek Deal: The Complete Monty Python’s 16 Ton Megaset: Flying Circus for $35
7 hours ago
Amazon's Gold Box Deal of the Day today is The Complete Monty Python's 16 Ton Megaset: Flying Circus for only $34.99, 65% off the $100 suggested retail price. As with any of the Gold Box Deals of the Day, the price will only be good for 24 hours, so get it while you can. This unassuming case is packed with 16 tons of funny: 14 discs of Monty Python’S Flying Circus, packed with every episode from the programme’s four year run, plus 2 Monty Python Live! discs featuring--well, you figure it out. While to the uninitiated they may look like ordinary .65 oz. digital video discs, due to the unique physics of comedy (it’s like quantum but with fewer dead cats), each disc actually weighs a full metaphoric ton! Please remember to lift with your knees. This 16-Ton Megaset contains every single episode of Monty Pythong’S Flying Circus--four years of blood, »
- Peter Sciretta
Votd: Tom Wilson’s Biff Song
12 hours ago
Most people know comedian Tom Wilson as the guy who played Biff Tannen in the Back to the Future trilogy, which probably explains why he is consistently questioned about his experience on the films wherever he goes. Wilson decided to turn the answers into a song as part of his comedy act, so that it might save him time next time you catch him walking down the street and get the urge to ask him about Michael J Fox. The video was recorded at one of Wilson's gigs a few years back, but we're reaching into the archives as this is a slow week for content. Watch the video now, after the jump. You can read more about Tom and his upcoming appearances on TomWilsonUSA.com. »
- Peter Sciretta
Ron Howard’s Favorite Movies of 2009 and David Wain’s Best So-So Movies of the Decade
13 hours ago
Over the past week we've been featuring top 10 lists from famous filmmakers and critics, listing their top films of the year and decade: John Waters, Quentin Tarantino, and Roger Ebert. Today we bring you two more additions: Ron Howard's Favorite Movies of 2009 and Wet Hot American Summer/Role Models director David Wain's Best So-So Movies of the Decade. Madison Square Garden Network caught up with filmmaker Ron Howard, and briefly asked him about a bunch of different things, including his favorite films of 2009, directors he envies, and more. Watch the video below: Meanwhile, comedy director David Wain has written a blog post parodying all the recent top of the decade compilations. Wain decided to instead create a list of the "middle ten neither best nor worst movies of the decade": 10. The Mexican 9. Insomnia 8. The Terminal 7. Charlie Wilson’S War 6. Music & Lyrics 5. 3:10 To Yuma 3. Tie: Runaway Jury »
- Peter Sciretta
James Cameron’s Avatar Continues To Break IMAX Box Office Records
14 hours ago
The IMAX Corporation has sent out a press release announcing that James Cameron's Avatar is continuing to shatter IMAX box office records. Highlights Include: Domestic second weekend gross of approximately $8.8 million International second weekend gross of approximately $3.6 million IMAX theatres were in 17 of the top 20 locations nationwide Read the full press release after the jump. James Cameron's Avatar Continues to Shatter IMAX Box Office Records IMAX Release Races to $39 million Worldwide in Ten Days Los Angeles, Dec. 28, 2009 -- IMAX Corporation (Nasdaq:imax) (Tsx:imx) and Twentieth Century Fox today announced that James Cameron's Avatar continued its record-breaking box office run during its second weekend, grossing approximately $8.8 million from 179 IMAX(R) theatres domestically from December 25 through December 27, 2009, registering approximately 12% of the film's total domestic gross of $75.6 million on less than 3% of the screens. IMAX theatres continued to operate at virtually full capacity all weekend, driving »
- Peter Sciretta
Spoilers: Iron Man 2 Trailer Reveals Black Widow Plot Details
22 hours ago
New, most probably spoilerish, information has been uncovered involving Iron Man 2. So what follows after the jump is most likely considered a spoiler. Even though the image appears in the official trailer, which is playing on the big screen in front of Sherlock Holmes, the details are very hard to notice. In fact, the image above might even feature the spoiler in question, but unless you knew exactly what you were looking for, you wouldn't be able to spot it. Basically, what I'm saying is, don't read any further unless you care to learn a possible major plot point from the upcoming sequel, okay? You ready? You've been warned... The first three production photos released by Marvel Entertainment... ...do not feature the potential plot detail in question, but the below image, screencaptured from the new trailer, does: Do you notice that patch on Scarlett Johansson's arm? That looks like the insignia for S. »
- Peter Sciretta
Captain America Begins Filming in June, Green Lantern Hires Oscar-Winning Crew
23 hours ago
As today is a slow news day, I thought I'd pass along a couple small superhero film tidbits. Fangoria has learned that Joe Johnston is readying The First Avenger: Captain America for a June 2010 start. Sounds like we'll begin hearing casting news shortly. Meanwhile, there might not have been any recent casting developments for Warner Bros' adaptation of Green Lantern, but SuperheroHype has learned some of the Oscar-winning crew hired for the production: Cinematographer Dion Beebe (Memoirs of a Geisha, Chicago, Equilibrium, Collateral) Production designer Grant Major and costume designer Ngila Dickson (Lord of the Rings trilogy) Art director François Audouy (Avatar, I Am Legend, Watchmen, Transformers, the Spider-Man" trilogy) Sounds like the team is really shaping up. »
- Peter Sciretta
Sundance Trailer and Photo Preview: Space Tourists
28 December 2009 12:00 PM, PST
Space Tourists is one of 12 films selected from 782 international documentary submissions for this year's World Cinema Documentary Competition at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival. An age-old dream of man is to leave our planet as a normal person and travel into outer space. For 20 million dollars, the American Anousheh Ansari was able to fulfill this childhood dream. This documentary follows her journey into space and shows everyday life as it is on the International Space Station. This terrific beauty is set in contrast to the crazy trips taken by Kazakh rocket debris collectors in their hunt for the coveted carrot-shaped rocket stages, which literally fall out of the sky and are collected by men with trucks the size of dinosaurs. With breathtaking images, Space Tourists takes its audience into a fascinating world full of of wonder and surprise. Encounters with the least likely people imaginable. Places even stranger »
- Peter Sciretta
Inception Teaser Trailer #2
28 December 2009 11:49 AM, PST
By now, you may have already read my incoherent description of the new trailer for Christopher Nolan's Inception, and perhaps seen the French/International version of it. Those who watched Sherlock Holmes this past weekend may have caught the real deal. The official trailer has finally surfaced online and it is pretty damn spectacular. Note that it's essentially the same as the French version, only in English. Head on over to Apple to see the trailer in HD. Hit the jump to see the trailer and, as always, leave your thoughts in the comments below. In my mind, this teaser trailer does what any good teaser trailer should: Bombard you with a bunch of images, sounds, and voiceover that are barely comprehensible but undeniably cool. The only difference is that with Nolan at the helm, said bombardment is a lot more enigmatic than one would expect from a normal teaser. »
- David Chen
Cool Stuff: Avatar Concept Art Prints For Sale
28 December 2009 10:00 AM, PST
Acme Archives Direct is selling a bunch limited edition concept art prints. from James Cameron's Avatar. The sketch above, titled Neytiri, was created by James Cameron himself, to give the designers a feel for the development of Neytiri and the other Na'vi characters. Invisible to him, draped on the limb like a leopard, is a striking Na'vi girl. She watches, only her eyes are moving. She is lithe as a cat, with a long neck, muscular shoulders, and nubile breasts. And she is devastatingly beautiful - for a girl with a tail. Her name is Neytiri. The Neytiri Sketch is available as a limited edition giclee on 17 inches by 22 inches paper in a 50 piece hand-numbered edition Each piece is individually hand signed by director/artist James Cameron and comes with Certificate of Authenticity for $250. Available framed for $405. "Aerial Battle": The visual scope of the aerial battle »
- Peter Sciretta
Walter Hill’s St. Vincent Moves Forward; Gong Li, Ray Winstone and Forest Whitaker Join Mickey Rourke
28 December 2009 9:50 AM, PST
It's been quite a while since Walter Hill directed a film that could be called a total success, but I never stop pulling for the guy who directed The Warriors, 48 Hrs. and Streets of Fire. (Even if he also directed Another 48 Hrs. -- nasty stuff.) So I'll take any shred of positive news about his upcoming work, and this news is seriously positive. Hill is working on a film called St. Vincent that will reunite him with his Johnny Handsome star Mickey Rourke. Now he's added another Johnny Handsome alum, Forest Whitaker, and some other great cast members that should push the film up on my watch list. Twitch has the casting news. We don't know much more than the new cast members, among which are Gong Li and Ray Winstone. But that collection of talent is enough for me; now my hopes for the film are higher than »
- Russ Fischer
The Top Ten Films of 2009, According to John Waters
28 December 2009 9:45 AM, PST
I'm fairly sick of lists by this point every year, and this year, with all the roundups of the past decade, the listmania is way out of hand. But this is one I can get behind. I like it in part simply because it was penned by John Waters, the long-standing champion of bad taste. I like it more because there are a few entries I hadn't much considered before, and that is the only purpose I see in any year-end list. As I've said before, I don't need to read a dozen roundups that reinforce my own ideas of what the best movies were; I want to see lists that make me reconsider other stuff. The list Waters came up with might do that for you. Given his tastes and the films he's made over the decades, none of these choices are terribly surprising, but they're definitely fun to read. »
- Russ Fischer
New Prince of Persia Featurette Highlights the Sands of Time
28 December 2009 8:44 AM, PST
Disney's Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, based on the UbiSoft reinvention of Jordan Mechner's classic video game, doesn't hit until May 28 2010. But Disney is apparently not so confident that the video game basis will translate to a large audience, so the studio has been pumping out images and footage since the first trailer debut last month. There's a new featurette out now which explains the movie's subtitle and gives some context for some of the trailer's swirling, sandy shots. Check it out below. This clip quickly explains that the Sands of Time are contained within a dagger, which becomes the film's primary plot motivation. The sands control time, which in the games was a neat little trick that allowed players to rewind a short span of time, usually to counter a fatal mistake that they made. It's the sort of gameplay trick that players happily accept, because »
- Russ Fischer
The Warlords Movie Trailer: Jet Li’s Recent War Epic Finally Comes to the States
28 December 2009 2:00 AM, PST
The Warlords is a two-year old Chinese mini-epic starring Jet Li, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro in a tale based on The Assassination of Ma, a story from China's mid-1800s civil war period. The film cleaned up at the 2008 Hong Kong Film Awards and is finally hitting the states courtesy of Magnet's Six-Shooter Film Series. Trailers have been around for some time, but Magnet has dropped a new one for their release, and you can check it out after the break. Magnet has loaded this second Six-Shooter series with a variety of Asian action (Ong Bak 2 and John Woo's Red Cliff were also part of the lineup) and The Warlords (also being called just Warlords in some corners) looks like a good complement to those selections. I like the grit, and I love the cast -- Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro in particular. Serious fans have probably already »
- Russ Fischer
Avatar 2 May Go Off Pandora, And Other Sequel Tidbits
28 December 2009 1:19 AM, PST
Given Avatar's strong showing at the box office for the past few weekends, and that James Cameron and Fox have invested considerable amounts of blood and money in the film, you can rest assured that we're going to get a sequel (and most likely a third film to complete the trilogy). The only question now is what those sequels will be about. According to a recent La Times Hero Complex interview, which occurred on Avatar's opening night, Cameron is considering exploring the other moons surrounding the gas-giant planet Polyphemus, which Pandora orbits. This confirms an earlier rumor by Market Saw, and it gives us an idea about the increased scope of the Avatar universe. Cameron's quote, as well as a few other sequel bits, after the break. And of course, spoilers for the ending of Avatar as well. In reference to the other moons around Polyphemus, Cameron said: »
- Devindra Hardawar
Lol: Battlestar Rhapsody
27 December 2009 10:31 PM, PST
Not too long ago, we ran a Bohemian Rhapsody parody starring The Muppets, and now we've come across another parody of the classic Queen song --- this time based on the Battlestar Galactica 'verse. It's a pretty hilarious lyrical spin on the series, and fans will find a lot to love. BSG virgins, and those still working through the show, should steer clear however. It's chock full of spoilers right up until the end of the series. The video was put together by Youtube user nnaylime, using music by The Great Luke Ski. Check it out below: While the vocals could use some work, the song's lyrics do a rather brilliant job of bringing BSG nerd fanaticism to the tune of Bohemian Rhapsody. I particularly enjoyed this bit: I see a little opera house inside my head. There were five, dressed in white, or perhaps it was Gandalf? Galen's gonna go nuts. »
- Devindra Hardawar
The Most Pirated Movies of 2009 and Avatar: The Making of the Bootleg
27 December 2009 8:01 PM, PST
The above graph is from ChartsBin, showing the top 10 most pirated movies of 2009. The list, which was collected by Torrent Freak from several sources, is pretty odd. It's not surprising that big Hollywood blockbusters like Star Trek and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen topped the list, but who would have thought that a film like Guy Ritchie's Rocknrolla would end up at #3? Also surprising is that X-Men Origins: Wolverine ended up at at the bottom of the list, at #9, even though a workprint of the film infamously hit the internet a month before the theatrical release. Alex Proyas' Knowing places #10, which is probably a good example of a movie that people had an interest in seeing (especially after some of the Wtf buzz) but weren't willing to pay for. How do films end up on the internet? Free Love Forum has posted a faux behind the scenes »
- Peter Sciretta
Gigantor! Ghost in the Shell’s Mamoru Oshii to Direct Live Action Tetsujin 28-go Movie
27 December 2009 4:00 PM, PST
I think that we should first of all indulge in a little primer on Tesujin 28-go aka Gigantor, my favourite giant robot of all - because, yes, I do like some giant robots, honest. Created in the mid-50s as a Manga series, Tetsujin 28-go tells the story of a three-storey tall robot invented to help fight on behalf of Japan in World War 2. By the time the robot is perfected - which is after 27 failed builds, if you couldn't guess - the war is actually over and so there's nothing else to do but... er... give the remote controlled weapon-bot to a ten year old boy. Don't ask me, I'm only passing this along - it was Mitsuteru Yokoyama that actually baked it all up in the first place. Luckily, this young lad doesn't use the robot the way I think many kids would (you'd have to see »
- Brendon Connelly
20 articles
