Catching Fire and Noah News

After the enormous worldwide success of the film The Hunger Games, which grossed north of $400 million, Lionsgate seems to be fast-tracking the sequel Catching Fire. In recent news, the multi-talented Philip Seymour Hoffman has signed on to join the sequel and will be cast as Plutarch Heavensbee. Due to hit theatres in 2013, Hoffman is clearly a welcome addition to the cast.

In other news, Darren Aronofsky's Noah keeps on adding big names to its long list of star-studded celebrities. The feature, which plans to tell the biblical story of Noah, has just reportedly brought Academy Award winner Anthony Hopkins on board to play Methuselah. With no release date in sight (loosely planned for 2014), Aronofsky's epic tale seems to be shaping up very nicely and hopefully his follow up to Black Swan will exceed high expectations.

Why Stop Now Trailer

Academy Award Nominee Jesse Eisenberg has decided to keep things light after garnering the red carpet treatment for his role in 2010's The Social Network. It was just last year when Eisenberg returned with his Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer to star in the comedy 30 Minutes or Less. This year he continues the comedic trend with Academy Award Winner Melissa Leo (The Fighter) and stand-up extraordinaire Tracy Morgan in Why Stop Now. The trailer features Eisenberg as a piano prodigy who tries to help his drug addicted mom get one last score to keep her out of his hair before he embarks on the biggest audition of his life.

Savages

Film: Savages

Starring: Aaron Johnson (Kick Ass), Taylor Kitsch (Battleship), and Blake Lively (The Town)

Director: Oliver Stone (Platoon)

U.S. Release: July 6th, 2012 (Rated R)

Genre: Drama/Action

Runtime: 130 minutes


Academy Award winning director Oliver Stone only has one word in the back of his mind while making a film, and that word is "epic". As the director of Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, Natural Born Killers, and the Wall Street movies, to only name a few, Stone has branded himself as one of Hollywood's biggest names. Known for his visions of grandeur, Stone has returned in 2012 with Savages, another big time film filled with an all-star cast from top to bottom. And after a somewhat mediocre stretch of releases over the past decade, we've finally got the Oliver Stone of old.

Savages centers around an unlikely trio of lovers Ben (played by Johnson), Chon (played by Kitsch), and O (played by Lively). Ben, a Berkley grad and Buddhist with a knack for growing the best marijuana on the planet, and his lifelong best friend Chon, a fearless and tainted ex-soldier from the Afghanistan and Iraqi wars, find themselves in a dangerous situation when the Mexican drug cartel wants their product. After the duo refuses to do business with the cartel's leader Elena (played by Salma Hayek), she sends her enforcer Lado (played by Benicio Del Toro) to kidnap their common girlfriend and force their hands. Desperate to save O from enslavement, Ben and Chon must go to outrageous lengths to free their lover and survive the ordeal.

Savages is a full-throttle adrenaline rush that makes for an entertaining ride. Nothing short of intense from start to finish, director Oliver Stone delivers another winning effort to add to his illustrious credentials. Insanely violent and sure to stir up some anxiety, Savages succeeds on countless levels. For starters, Stone conjures up a once in a lifetime cast that undoubtedly helps elevate the film to a whole other level. Aaron Johnson is as superb as ever and Kitsch and Lively give no reason to lose interest in the story. And as convincing as its trio of lead stars are, Savages benefits most from its secondary cast. Benicio Del Toro steals the show as Lado, the head of the cartel's most capable goon. Del Toro is absolutely ruthless and makes for one of the most memorable onscreen villains of all time. Other notable casting decisions come in the form of Salma Hayek, John Travolta, Emile Hirsch, and 2012 Best Actor Nominee Demian Bichir, all of which give excellent performances and propel Savages to stardom. In addition to the film's brilliant casting, I must compliment Stone for his phenomenal directing job and the entire collection of writers. Savages is not only a suspenseful and serious journey, it has a strange aura of dark comedy and a lighter side that enables the movie to progress with ease. It's remarkably unique in the sense that you'll cringe while watching a brutal torture scene and then find yourself simultaneously chuckling at little nuances of the characters. Savages is both clever and original, making it one of 2012's most exciting films of the year.

Despite it's overwhelming amount of highlights, Stone's Savages fails in one major area. The feature's ending is anger inducing. After watching the movie I read an interview with Stone where he attempts to explain his rationale for the film's closing scenes, and his explanation was unjust and idiotic. By wrapping up Savages in the manner he does, Stone shows disloyalty to the natural flow of the story. For roughly two hours Stone has the audience in a trance and hooked whether they like it or not, only to allow the whole experience to unravel in a pigheaded way. It's truly a shame, because Savages ultimately suffers and never feels as complete as it should.

As Oliver Stone likes to do, he once again pushes a piece of work over the two hour plateau. However, due to a fine screenplay and top-notch performances by Del Toro, Johnson, and company, Savages keeps a masterful uptempo feel and remains highly engaging throughout. And despite a butchered ending, Stone still manages to return to classic form and offer up one of 2012's best efforts. If you enjoy dangerously high levels of intensity and you think you can stomach the violence that I promise you is there, get to theatres and check out Savages. It's a wild ride.


Stars: Three stars out of four

Grade: B

The Dark Knight Rises News

In the wake of its July 20th release, Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures have officially released a more detailed synopsis of Christopher Nolan's epic conclusion to his Batman trilogy, The Dark Knight Rises. Along with the updated synopsis, it has also been confirmed that the film will boast a running time of 164 minutes and an MPAA rating of PG-13. Here's the new full synopsis:

"It has been eight years since Batman vanished into the night, turning, in that instant, from hero to fugitive. Assuming the blame for the death of D.A. Harvey Dent, the Dark Knight sacrificed everything for what he and Commissioner Gordon both hoped was the greater good. For a time the lie worked, as criminal activity in Gotham City was crushed under the weight of the anti-crime Dent Act.

But everything will change with the arrival of a cunning cat burglar with a mysterious agenda. Far more dangerous, however, is the emergence of Bane, a masked terrorist whose ruthless plans for Gotham drive Bruce out of his self-imposed exile. But even if he dons the cape and cowl again, Batman may be no match for Bane."

Compliance Trailer

One of Sundance's most talked about films, Compliance, has officially released its trailer. The movie, which is based on a remarkably true story, examines a burger joint and a manager's mishandling of a delicate situation. Check out the trailer for Compliance, which hits theatres in August.

June 2012 Poll Recap

Throughout the month leading up to one of the most anticipated films of all time, The Dark Knight Rises, I posed the poll question asking, "What is your favorite Christopher Nolan film". The people have spoken, and the people are saying that they love all of his work. June's poll resulted in a tie for first place with 33% of the votes going to both Inception and The Dark Knight. In my opinion, you can't argue against either one of those choices. Also receiving votes were Memento (26% of votes) and The Prestige (6% of votes). Make sure to check out July's poll question of the month (located in the upper right hand corner of the page) asking, "Which film is the Best Comedy of the Year".