Jumat, 15 April 2011

'Rise Of The Planet Of The Apes' Teaser Trailer: Five Key Scenes

There's still another four months until the apes take over humanity, but the first real glimpse at "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" provides a chilling look at the suspenseful flick to come. This teaser of the prequel to the "Planet of the Apes" films certainly makes us feel like our days are numbered, thanks to James Franco and his team of scientists. Here's a look at the trailer's five key moments as we count down the days until August 5.

Caesar Is Chosen
Franco plays central character Will Rodman, who thinks he has found the cure to Alzheimer's and is looking to test it on one of his lab's many apes. He ends up settling on Caesar, an ape who shows the ability for functional thought more than the others he has at his disposal. But things don't go according to plan.

Watch Out, Tom Felton
Caesar's mental processes start developing quickly, and soon he escapes after he learns to build a tool to unlock his cage. With these advanced apes set loose on the world, no one is safe, especially not "Harry Potter" star Tom Felton! In our first and only glimpse of him in the trailer, Felton stands outside as an ape sneaks by on the roof behind him.

Freida Pinto and James Franco Need to Boost Security
An ape (maybe Caesar) stands over the bed doctor power couple Franco and Pinto Pinto are sleeping in. They should probably padlock their doors, because when simian creatures taking over the world, it's doubtful that they feel charitable toward the people who were experimenting on them.

The Apes Are Loose!
As we teased earlier, the main focus on the trailer for "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" is the sense of foreboding as the mutated apes take over Earth. Our favorite of these shots shows David Oyelowo standing in an office building with hundreds of apes looking down from the upper floors. They might not be humans, as the trailer warns, but they sure do look threatening.

Visual Effects On Display
The final shot in this first trailer is the same as the one in Wednesday's teaser, and for good reason. The apes look fantastic, thanks in large part to "Avatar" special-effects company Weta Digital. Caesar looks more realistic than any CGI simian we have seen in the past, and that's the clincher for making "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" rise above its series predecessors.

'Transformers: Dark Of The Moon' Features 'More Mature' Story, Michael Bay Says

While gearing up for the release of "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," director Michael Bay has not been shy about his desire to right the missteps in "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen": putting more focus on writing a better story, making the action more accessible, yet "epic" in scale. Based on the footage and trailer MTV News saw on the Paramount lot before a candid chat with Bay on Thursday, it looks like he's making good on his word.

We can't get into specifics, of course, but with regard to the trailer — the 2-D version of which will roll out in theaters on April 28, while a 3-D version will hit in front of "Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides" — it takes the intrigue of the teaser trailer, plus the intensity from the action-packed 30-second Super Bowl spot and adds enough mind-blowing, mesmerizing robotgasm goodness to leave even the most passive of fans slack-jawed. Or googly-eyed. One of the two.

We also saw snippets of returning and new supporting castmembers, a possible Pink Floyd tie-in and a tantalizing, yet not at all overwhelming, 3-D sizzle reel.

Speaking of his latest and likely last "Transformers" installment, Bay began by admitting that he is not trying to capture the magic of the first film.

"You're never going to match the innocence of the first movie and the wonderment," he said. "The genie is out of the bottle there. This one, I think, is a more mature story line. It's definitely darker."

He later explained that the new movie has more of the aliens' backstory. "You learn a lot more about the hierarchy, there's a lot more history of what they've had on Cybertron," he said.

Bay also went into his reasoning and reservations behind the decision to shoot in 3-D, and what (actually, who) convinced him to go ahead with the new technology.

"[James Cameron], at the last minute, goes, 'Mike, come on,' " Bay recalled, imitating the "Avatar" director's enthusiasm with a slightly deep and gravelly inflection in his voice. "This is like my idol. He goes, 'Mike come on, we've done everything.' I'm thinking, 'I haven't done everything.' "

Cameron pushed him to try out this "new toy," and that despite all the headaches that are added to the filmmaking process with shooting in 3-D, he's glad he did it.

"3-D, it's pretty great when you see these robots interact in the space," he said.

Other excitement added into the mix for "Dark of the Moon" are the souped-up action sequences, specifically a scene that involves base jumpers jumping off the Sears Tower and literally flying through downtown Chicago.

"There's a lot of action stuff I've never done before that's pretty cool," Bay said of what makes this installment stand out. "I want to make up for the second one, and I want to leave the franchise as best I can."

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Episode 1 Now Online!

Warner Bros. Digital Distribution and Machinima.com have debuted the first episode of director Kevin Tancharoen's "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" live action digital series online. You can watch the video, as well as a teaser trailer for the full series, using the players below!

Starring Jeri Ryan ("Star Trek: Voyager") as Sonya Blade, Michael Jai White (The Dark Knight) as Major Jackson 'Jax' Briggs and Darren Shahlavi (300) as Kano, this series will take gamers deep into the history of the warriors they know and love.

Written by Kevin Tancharoen , Aaron Helbing and Todd Helbing, "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" is an anthology of nine live action shorts, and brings to life the motivation behind each character's participation in the Mortal Kombat tournament. Each episode will provide never-before-revealed insights into characters featured in the upcoming videogame as well as the game's universe.

Read more: Mortal Kombat: Legacy Episode 1 Now Online! - ComingSoon.net http://www.comingsoon.net/news/gamenews.php?id=76352#ixzz1JeT6EyOa

Mortal Kombat: Legacy Reveals Baraka

The first clear photo of Baraka from the new "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" web series is now online, courtesy of The New York Times.

The series stars Jeri Ryan ("Star Trek: Voyager") as Sonya Blade, Michael Jai White (The Dark Knight) as Major Jackson 'Jax' Briggs and Darren Shahlavi (300) as Kano and is designed to take gamers deep into the history of the warriors they know and love.

Written by Kevin Tancharoen , Aaron Helbing and Todd Helbing, "Mortal Kombat: Legacy" is an anthology of nine live action shorts, and brings to life the motivation behind each character's participation in the Mortal Kombat tournament. Each episode will provide never-before-revealed insights into characters featured in the upcoming videogame as well as the game's universe.

Rabu, 13 April 2011

Scream 4


Like the films that preceded it, Scream 4 is pretty tricky to talk about without giving away most of the story. But if you're a Scream fan you already know the basics – super-squeaky-clean suburban gal Sidney Prescott is again menaced by Ghostface, a knife-wielding killer whose identity – and motivation – change from film to film, but who's always determined to make her life as miserable as possible. Sid's few fellow survivors – Deputy (now Sheriff) Dewey Riley and his girlfriend (now wife), news reporter (now struggling writer) Gale Weathers – join her in trying to stop a new string of murders that erupt, this time when our heroine returns to her home town of Woodsboro, a stop on a tour promoting her new self-help book inspired by the events of the first three Scream films. So what can I talk about? Well...
The above premise isn't exactly clever, but it's a good enough way to reintroduce Sidney (and actress Neve Campbell) to the Scream saga, and to a potentially new audience of filmgoers. Of course there are also a lot of fresh faces to draw in the kids. Hayden Panettiere, Lucy Hale, Anna Paquin, Kristin Bell, and my personal favorite, the endlessly watchable Alison Brie (as Sid's hilariously cutthroat publicist) all do their part to reinvigorate the franchise. (There are probably a half dozen other photogenic newcomers that teens will squee over, but, since I rarely watch CW or the Disney Channel, they remain nameless to me.) The standout performance, however, comes from Emma Roberts, Sidney's teenage niece, who seems destined to inherit her aunt's title as Least Lucky Girl in Woodsboro. Roberts isn't given much to do in Scream 4's early scenes. But as the film unfolds, her role expands, and by the end she's proven she's capable of a lot more than Nancy Drew.
Scream 4's strongest moments are in its opening scenes, which poke fun at the self-referential craze in horror that the first Scream launched (the film also takes knowing jabs at some of the fright-film trends that followed), and its glorious finale, which, again, is damn near impossible to describe without spoiling the surprises. So I'll just leave you with this bit of hyperbole – the last twenty minutes of Scream 4 are the most fun I've had watching a mainstream horror movie so far this year. Really. Oh, they may not be the scariest, or even the most suspenseful. But with that ending director Wes Craven proves he's still got what it takes to jolt us out of the vanilla everyday and into the kind of black-as-night batshit craziness that's been missing from the multiplex ever since Hollywood decided to stop producing R-rated horror. Scream 4's ending alone is worth the price of admission. And it's enough to make me pray that someone finds a way to coax both Craven and writer Kevin Williamson (who left the project early) back for at least two more Screams.

Tennessee Titans Wide Receiver -- The Mug Shot

TMZ has obtained the mug shot of Tennessee Titans wide receiver Kenny Britt -- taken moments after he was arrested yesterday for allegedly trying to run from police.

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As we first reported, cops in Bayonne, NJ attempted to pull Britt over for speeding -- when the NFLer allegedly put the pedal to the metal in an effort to outrun them.

Cops say Kenny eventually stopped after a few miles -- and was arrested and booked on three charges: eluding, obstructing, and hindering apprehension. 

Kenny's passenger -- who allegedly took off on foot during questioning -- was arrested for pot possession, resisting arrest, and obstruction.

LeBron James' Mom to Valet: 'You F**king N**ger'

The attorney for the valet who is suing LeBron James' mom tells TMZ ... during the confrontation, Gloria James allegedly told the valet, "You don't know who I am, you f**king n**ger.  Tomorrow, you won't have a job"

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Angela L. Cohn, the attorney for valet Rockfeller Sorel, tells us, Gloria James spewed the hateful remark just as the confrontation became physical.

Gloria was arrested after the incident, and TMZ just broke the story that the valet is suing her for assault and battery.

As for our earlier story showing video of the confrontation, Cohn says any intimation that the valet was the aggressor is untrue. 

Cohn says the video shows Gloria was clearly the aggressor by leaning into Sorel as she launched into her alleged racial attack.