The Latest in ShowBiz News

Critics Choice Movie Awards reveals nominees!

2010/12/13 at 12:00am

Critics Choice Movie Awards reveals nominees!

12.13.2010 | By Jack Rico |

(Los Angeles, CA – December 13, 2010) – The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) has announced the nominees for the 16th annual Critics’ Choice Movie Awards. The winners will be announced at the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards ceremony on Friday, January 14, 2011 at 9:00 PM ET/PT. This year’s event will again take place at the Hollywood Palladium. This is the fourth year in a row that VH1 will broadcast the gala live on the network and the first year the show will also be broadcast internationally.

“Black Swan” received an unprecedented 12 nominations for the 16th annual Critics’ Choice Movie Awards, garnering nods for Best Picture, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actress, Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, Best Editing, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, Best Sound and Best Score. “True Grit” and “The King’s Speech” followed close behind with 11 nominations each, while “Inception” received 10 nominations and “The Social Network” garnered 9.

“Toy Story 3” was honored in the Best Picture and Best Animated Feature categories while two Best Picture nominees, “Inception” and “The Town,” were also recognized in the Best Action Movie category. “127 Hours,” “The Fighter” and “Winter’s Bone” also scored multiple nominations, including Best Picture.

Nicole Kidman received her record seventh acting nomination for Best Actress in “Rabbit Hole.” She won the first Critics’ Choice Award as Best Actress 15 years ago for “To Die For.” Later Kidman was nominated for Best Actress in “Cold Mountain,” “The Hours” and “Moulin Rouge,” in addition to being part of the nominated Acting Ensembles in “Nine” and “The Hours.”

Amy Adams will be seeking her second Critics’ Choice Award as a Best Supporting Actress nominee in “The Fighter.” Adams previously won the category for “Junebug” and has received three other nods from the BFCA, including one for Best Actress in “Enchanted.”

Twenty-year-old Jennifer Lawrence earned nods in both the Best Actress and Best Young Actor/Actress categories, among the four nominations for “Winter’s Bone,” while fourteen-year-old Hailee Steinfeld earned nods as both Best Supporting Actress and Best Young Actor/Actress for “True Grit,” contributing to its 11 nominations. Thirteen-year-old Chloe Grace Moretz was nominated in the Best Young Actor/Actress category twice for “Let Me In” and “Kick-Ass.”

Brothers Joel and Ethan Coen continue to be Critics’ Choice favorites, nominated jointly for Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay for “True Grit.” Previously they had shared Best Director honors for “No Country For Old Men,” and were nominated as writers of “The Man Who Wasn’t There,” “A Serious Man” and “No Country For Old Men.” “No Country For Old Men” and “Fargo” also won Critics’ Choice Awards as Best Picture.

The 250 members of the BFCA, the largest film critics’ organization in the United States and Canada, representing television, radio and online critics, selected nominees in each of 25 categories. The awards are bestowed annually to honor the finest in cinematic achievement. Eligible films were released in 2010. The accounting firm of Gregory A. Mogab tallied the written ballots.

Historically, the Critics’ Choice Movie Awards are the most accurate predictor of the Academy Award nominations. All four major acting category winners at the Academy Awards in 2010 were first Critics’ Choice Movie Awards winners in the same categories and were present at the January 15, 2010 ceremony to graciously give their first acceptance speeches of the awards season. The BFCA also recognized “The Hurt Locker” for Best Picture and Kathryn Bigelow as Best Director, making her the first female to win the award. “The Hurt Locker” and Bigelow also went on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture and Best Director, but were both overlooked at the Golden Globes.

Today, VH1 also announces the launch of its Critics’ Choice Movie Awards site at CriticsChoice.VH1.com. The site offers movie fans detailed information about the show and this year’s nominees, VH1.com’s Award Season Twitter Tracker, where users can see the awards show buzz that’s happening on Twitter in real time, and Quick Critic, an opportunity to share short film reviews for a prize that includes a trip for two to next year’s Critics’ Choice Movie Awards. Additionally, interviews with many of the acting nominees can be found on the BFCA’s site CriticsChoice.com.

About The Broadcast Film Critics Association:
The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) is the largest film critics organization in the United States and Canada, representing 250 television, radio and online critics. BFCA members are the primary source of information for today’s film going public. The very first opinion a moviegoer hears about new releases at the multiplex or the art house usually comes from one of its members.

NOMINATIONS FOR THE 16th ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE MOVIE AWARDS

BEST PICTURE
127 Hours
Black Swan
The Fighter
Inception
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
The Town
Toy Story 3
True Grit
Winter’s Bone

BEST ACTOR
Jeff Bridges – “True Grit”
Robert Duvall – “Get Low”
Jesse Eisenberg – “The Social Network”
Colin Firth – “The King’s Speech”
James Franco – “127 Hours”
Ryan Gosling – “Blue Valentine”

BEST ACTRESS
Annette Bening – “The Kids Are All Right”
Nicole Kidman – “Rabbit Hole”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Winter’s Bone”
Natalie Portman – “Black Swan”
Noomi Rapace – “The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo”
Michelle Williams – “Blue Valentine”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale – “The Fighter”
Andrew Garfield – “The Social Network”
Jeremy Renner – “The Town”
Sam Rockwell – “Conviction”
Mark Ruffalo – “The Kids Are All Right”
Geoffrey Rush – “The King’s Speech”

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – “The Fighter”
Helena Bonham Carter – “The King’s Speech”
Mila Kunis – “Black Swan”
Melissa Leo – “The Fighter”
Hailee Steinfeld – “True Grit”
Jacki Weaver – “Animal Kingdom”

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Elle Fanning – “Somewhere”
Jennifer Lawrence – “Winter’s Bone”
Chloe Grace Moretz – “Let Me In”
Chloe Grace Moretz – “Kick-Ass”
Kodi Smit-McPhee – “Let Me In”
Hailee Steinfeld – “True Grit”

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
The Fighter
The Kids Are All Right
The King’s Speech
The Social Network
The Town

BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky – “Black Swan”
Danny Boyle – “127 Hours”
Joel Coen & Ethan Coen – “True Grit”
David Fincher – “The Social Network”
Tom Hooper – “The King’s Speech”
Christopher Nolan – “Inception”

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
“Another Year” – Mike Leigh
“Black Swan” – Mark Heyman and Andres Heinz and John McLaughlin
“The Fighter” – Scott Silver and Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson (Story by Keith Dorrington & Paul Tamasy & Eric Johnson)
“Inception” – Christopher Nolan
“The Kids Are All Right” – Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg
“The King’s Speech” – David Seidler

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
“127 Hours” – Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle
“The Social Network” – Aaron Sorkin
“The Town” – Ben Affleck, Peter Craig and Sheldon Turner
“Toy Story 3” – Michael Arndt (Story by John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton and Lee Unkrich)
“True Grit” – Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
“Winter’s Bone” – Debra Granik and Anne Rosellini

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
“127 Hours” – Anthony Dod Mantle
“Black Swan” – Matthew Libatique
“Inception” – Wally Pfister
“The King’s Speech” – Danny Cohen
“True Grit” – Roger Deakins

BEST ART DIRECTION
“Alice in Wonderland” – Stefan Dechant
“Black Swan” – Therese DePrez and Tora Peterson
“Inception” – Guy Hendrix Dyas
“The King’s Speech” – Netty Chapman
“True Grit” – Jess Gonchor and Nancy Haigh

BEST EDITING
“127 Hours” – Jon Harris
“Black Swan” – Andrew Weisblum
“Inception” – Lee Smith
“The Social Network” – Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter

BEST COSTUME DESIGN
“Alice in Wonderland” – Colleen Atwood
“Black Swan” – Amy Westcott
“The King’s Speech” – Jenny Beavan
“True Grit” – Mary Zophres

BEST MAKEUP
Alice in Wonderland
Black Swan
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
True Grit

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Alice in Wonderland
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
Inception
Tron: Legacy

BEST SOUND
127 Hours
Black Swan
Inception
The Social Network
Toy Story 3

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Despicable Me
How to Train Your Dragon
The Illusionist
Tangled
Toy Story 3

BEST ACTION MOVIE
Inception
Kick-Ass
Red
The Town
Unstoppable

BEST COMEDY
Cyrus
Date Night
Easy A
Get Him to the Greek
I Love You Phillip Morris
The Other Guys

BEST PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
The Pacific
Temple Grandin
You Don’t Know Jack

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Biutiful
I Am Love
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
Exit Through the Gift Shop
Inside Job
Restrepo
Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work
The Tillman Story
Waiting for Superman

BEST SONG
“I See the Light” – performed by Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi/written by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater – Tangled
“If I Rise” – performed by Dido and A.R. Rahman/music by A.R. Rahman/lyrics by Dido Armstrong and Rollo Armstrong – 127 Hours
“Shine” – performed and written by John Legend – Waiting for Superman
“We Belong Together” – performed and written by Randy Newman – Toy Story 3
“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me Yet” – performed by Cher/written by Diane Warren – Burlesque

BEST SCORE
“Black Swan” – Clint Mansell
“Inception” – Hans Zimmer
“The King’s Speech” – Alexandre Desplat
“The Social Network” – Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross
“True Grit” – Carter Burwell

NOMINEES BY PICTURE FOR
THE 16th ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE MOVIE AWARDS

127 HOURS – 8 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actor/James Franco
Best Director/Danny Boyle
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Editing
Best Sound
Best Song/“If I Rise”

ALICE IN WONDERLAND – 4 Nominations
Best Art Direction
Best Costume Design
Best Makeup
Best Visual Effects

ANIMAL KINGDON – 1 Nomination
Best Supporting Actress/Jacki Weaver

ANOTHER YEAR – 1 Nomination
Best Original Screenplay

BIUTIFUL – 1 Nomination
Best Foreign Language Film

BLACK SWAN – 12 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actress/Natalie Portman
Best Supporting Actress/Mila Kunis
Best Director/Darren Aronofsky
Best Original Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Art Direction
Best Editing
Best Costume Design
Best Makeup
Best Sound
Best Score

BLUE VALENTINE – 2 Nominations
Best Actor/Ryan Gosling
Best Actress/Michelle Williams

BURLESQUE – 1 Nomination
Best Song/“You Haven’t Seen the Last of Me Yet”

CONVICTION – 1 Nomination
Best Supporting Actor/Sam Rockwell

CYRUS – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

DATE NIGHT – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

DESPICABLE ME – 1 Nomination
Best Animated Feature

EASY A – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

EXIT THROUGH THE GIFT SHOP – 1 Nomination
Best Documentary Feature

GET HIM TO THE GREEK – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

GET LOW – 1 Nomination
Best Actor/Robert Duvall

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART 1 – 2 Nominations
Best Makeup
Best Visual Effects

HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON – 1 Nomination
Best Animated Feature

I AM LOVE – 1 Nomination
Best Foreign Language Film

I LOVE YOU PHILLIP MORRIS – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

INCEPTION – 10 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Director/Christopher Nolan
Best Original Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Art Direction
Best Editing
Best Visual Effects
Best Sound
Best Action Movie
Best Score

INSIDE JOB – 1 Nomination
Best Documentary Feature

JOAN RIVERS: A PIECE OF WORK – 1 Nomination
Best Documentary Feature

KICK-ASS – 2 Nominations
Best Young Actress/Chloe Grace Moretz
Best Action Movie

LET ME IN – 2 Nominations
Best Young Actress/Chloe Grace Moretz
Best Young Actor/Kodi Smit-McPhee

RABBIT HOLE – 1 Nomination
Best Actress/Nicole Kidman

RED – 1 Nomination
Best Action Movie

RESTREPO – 1 Nomination
Best Documentary Feature

SOMEWHERE – 1 Nomination
Best Young Actor/Actress/Elle Fanning

TANGLED – 2 Nominations
Best Animated Feature
Best Song/“I See the Light”

TEMPLE GRANDIN – 1 Nomination
Best Picture Made for Television

THE FIGHTER – 6 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actor/Christian Bale
Best Supporting Actress/Amy Adams
Best Supporting Actress/Melissa Leo
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Original Screenplay

THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO – 2 Nominations
Best Actress/Noomi Rapace
Best Foreign Language Film

THE ILLUSIONIST – 1 Nomination
Best Animated Feature

THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT – 4 Nominations
Best Actress/Annette Bening
Best Supporting Actor/Mark Ruffalo
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Original Screenplay

THE KING’S SPEECH – 11 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actor/Colin Firth
Best Supporting Actor/Geoffrey Rush
Best Supporting Actress/Helena Bonham Carter
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director/Tom Hooper
Best Original Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Art Direction
Best Costume Design
Best Score

THE OTHER GUYS – 1 Nomination
Best Comedy

THE PACIFIC – 1 Nomination
Best Picture Made for Television

THE SOCIAL NETWORK – 9 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actor/Jesse Eisenberg
Best Supporting Actor/Andrew Garfield
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Director/David Fincher
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Editing
Best Sound
Best Score

THE TILLMAN STORY – 1 Nomination
Best Documentary Feature

THE TOWN – 5 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Supporting Actor/Jeremy Renner
Best Acting Ensemble
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Action Movie

TOY STORY 3 – 5 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Sound
Best Animated Feature
Best Song/“We Belong Together”

TRON: LEGACY – 1 Nomination
Best Visual Effects

TRUE GRIT – 11 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actor/Jeff Bridges
Best Supporting Actress/Hailee Steinfeld
Best Young Actress/Hailee Steinfeld
Best Director/ Joel Coen & Ethan Coen
Best Adapted Screenplay
Best Cinematography
Best Art Direction
Best Costume Design
Best Makeup
Best Score

UNSTOPPABLE – 1 Nomination
Best Action Movie

WAITING FOR SUPERMAN – 2 Nominations
Best Documentary Feature
Best Song/“Shine”

WINTER’S BONE – 4 Nominations
Best Picture
Best Actress/Jennifer Lawrence
Best Young Actress/Jennifer Lawrence
Best Adapted Screenplay

YOU DON’T KNOW JACK – 1 Nomination
Best Picture Made for Television

By Jack Rico

2010/12/09 at 12:00am

Movies

Leslie Nielsen’s last movie

12.9.2010 | By Jack Rico |

For all you Leslie Nielsen fans, Nielsen filmed his last project, a comedy on DVD, which will be out next year. We received a press release about the details and info on the film:

New York (Thursday, December 9, 2010) — Screen Media Films is proud to announce the acquisition of Stonerville, to be released on January 11, 2011 on DVD. The hysterical stoner comedy is the final film of Leslie Nielsen, the recently departed comedian.

Starring Leslie Nielsen, Pauly Shore, Patrick Cavanaugh, and Phil Morris, Stonerville tells the story of comedian and self-proclaimed “King of YouTube” Slam Slamsky who wants to make it big in mainstream advertising, even though his sense of humor and frequent pot use are not exactly in sync with the stuffy suits he meets. Things only get worse when a disastrous attempt to impress an executive results in Slam losing both his job and his girlfriend. He finds new inspiration in Erica, a smokin’ hottie who is a fan of his viral videos. Stonerville is a hilarious comedy about living online, getting high, and growing up—though not necessarily in that order!

Watch the trailer at: www.screenmediafilms.net/stonerville.

“Screen Media is proud to be a part of Leslie Nielsen’s legacy. He was one of comedy’s brightest stars, so it is only fitting that he take on his final role in the hysterical Stonerville, a film that pays tribute to the man who made us all laugh” says Robert Baruc, Screen Media Films, President.

By Karen Posada

2010/12/08 at 12:00am

Reviews

The Tourist

12.8.2010 | By Karen Posada |

Who doesn’t want to go see a movie starring Angelina Jolie and Johnny Depp, two of the biggest stars of Hollywood; specially when it is the first time they encounter each other on and off the screen? Did I mention they have some of the biggest female/male followings? These give ‘The Tourist‘ a recipe for success. Unfortunately, these great actors are not enough; neither are the great sceneries or the storyline that has the potential to be #1 at the box office. It was disappointing not to see many action scenes (when Jolie is one of the best female action stars out there) and to experience so much sexual tension (no one can deny these two could deliver some steamy scenes in the right movie). Basically, this movie has everything it needs, but it didn’t reach its potential to make it worth the wait at the movie theater.

I got the pleasure of experiencing the first scenes of the movie, which are set in Paris and taking a cruise down the Seine river shows the authenticity of the set, as well as the romantic feel of it. Director Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck told me how he wanted to bring the glory days of Hollywood back on screen, which he believes to be those of films like Casablanca not films like The Transformers. He also told me how tough it was to make such a different film from The Lives of Others, he had to remind himself not to get too dark. He definitely achieved his goal, he made an elegant, sophisticated and somewhat romantic film.

The main focus of the movie is Elise Ward (Angelina Jolie), an English woman who lives a life of loneliness and luxury. She carries a day to day routine in Paris, where she is patiently waiting to hear from her lover. Her lover Alexander Pearce disappeared after stealing millions from his former employer, a gangster named Shaw (Steven Berkoff), he is also wanted by the London police for not paying back taxes; the main investigator is Acheson (Paul Bettany) who’s made it his life’s work to catch this guy. Elise finally changes her routine when she is instructed by Alexander to get on a train to Venice and choose a stranger to be him. We see men melting at Elise’s sight, but she chooses Frank Tupelo (Johnny Depp) an American math teacher who is touring around Europe to forget his past love. Frank follows Elise’s game nervously, he can’t shake off her charm and doesn’t understand why she would pick him. Elise is very self assured and starts molding Frank into what she needs quickly, she is aware of her impact on others. When the train reaches Venice they each go their separate ways only for Elise to reappear minutes later to take him into the ride of his life. She introduces him to her life of luxury, he goes along without questioning much until everyone that is after Alexander Pierce begins to think Frank is him and start following him with guns. We follow Frank to his imprisonment in Italy and the rest of the labyrinth this mysterious woman built for him. We slowly start getting to know Elise, trying to figure out whether she is “good or bad” is the rest of the story.

Frank is one of the least physically attractive characters Depp has represented, but the utter innocence and niceness is Frank’s appeal. This is one of Jolie’s most girly, elegant and sophisticated roles; her sex appeal can’t be denied here since that’s Elise’s greatest tool. Elise is meant to be tough but at the same time feminine and it’s really hard to see Jolie in a role like this; she herself told me that was the biggest challenge in this film for her, to “slow down”. Bettany has shown us what a great villain he can be in movies such as The DaVinci Code, although he’s not directly a villain here; his character’s frustration makes him one of the most real characters in the film.

The best things in the movie: the scenery, locations like Paris and Venice elevate its elegance.Also, Depp’s character, he is the hilarious part of the movie; he really is one of my favorite parts of the film. That said, this movie calls for a lot of action and if they would have let Jolie loose at least a couple of scenes that would have really helped. The romance in the film is very light, yes they wanted to keep it PG-13, but it needed some sex scenes; the sexual tension takes away from the joy of the movie. There are a couple of twists in the movie which are appreciated but the grand finale is not so grand, it is predictable more than anything.

Guillermo del Toro releases Mexican debut film ‘Cronos’

By Jack Rico

2010/12/08 at 12:00am

Movies

Guillermo del Toro releases Mexican debut film ‘Cronos’

12.8.2010 | By Jack Rico |

I have been waiting years to see CRONOS, Guillermo Del Toro’s debut horror mexican bilingual film, which gave us the first indication of what he had in store for all of us back in 1993. Finally, the DVD and bluray edition are finally here, courtesy of Criterion, and also available for all to see on Netflix Streaming, which is where I’m going to see it today. FEAR.net scored an exclusive interview with Guillermo Del Toro about the buray edition which you can read in it’s entirety here.

Cronos is about an alchemist who in 1535 builds an extraordinary mechanism encapsulated into a small golden device. The invention, designed to convey eternal life to its owner, survives its maker until 1997, when it shows up with an antiques dealer. Fascinated with the strange device, Gris (Luppi) doesn’t note that there’s more than one person looking for it. The promise of eternal life has become an obsession for old and sick Mr. De la Guardia (Brook). He and his nephew (Ron Perlman) will do anything to get the Chronos Invention.

Matthew McConaughey to star in ‘Killer Joe’

By Jack Rico

2010/12/08 at 12:00am

Movies

Matthew McConaughey to star in ‘Killer Joe’

12.8.2010 | By Jack Rico |

New York, NY (December 8, 2010) – Worldview Entertainment, a New York City-based motion picture investment and production company focused on well-crafted high production value filmed entertainment, is co-financing and executive producing the black comedy “Killer Joe.”

“Killer Joe” is directed by Academy Award-winner William Friedkin and stars Matthew McConaughey, Emile Hirsch, Thomas Haden Church, Gina Gershon and Juno Temple. The screenplay was written by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Tracy Letts from his acclaimed off-Broadway production about a family who hires a police detective-turned-hitman to kill their mother for her life insurance policy. Principal photography commenced in Louisiana on November 8th. Academy Award-winner Nicolas Chartier and Scott Einbinder are producing, with Voltage Pictures co-financing the film as well as handling sales. “Killer Joe” represents the kind of world-class, theatrical motion picture that Worldview aims to create for the global marketplace.

“Our goal is to produce quality entertainment with a focus on profitability. Worldview will invest strategically in film assets and consider only the most intelligent packages, applying creative and financial innovation to everything we do,” says Christopher Woodrow, Worldview’s CEO.

Worldview’s vision is to construct long-term value by building a library of commercial films that are both creatively and financially successful. The company is managed by seasoned professionals from the film industry and from major investment banks. The objective is to combine film finance, production and distribution expertise with the business and financial acumen of investment professionals in order to respond nimbly to marketplace opportunities with the goal of maximizing returns.

By Jack Rico

2010/12/07 at 12:00am

DVD Reviews Reviews

Shrek Forever After

12.7.2010 | By Jack Rico |

Rating: 4.0

Rated: PG for mild action, some rude humor and brief language.
Release Date: 2010-05-21
Starring: Josh Klausner, Darren Lemke
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.shrekforeverafter.com/

Go to our film page

The fourth and final installment of the Shrek series titled ‘Shrek Forever After,’ is in my opinion, one of the funniest movies of the year and draws a tie with How To Train Your Dragon as the best family film of 2010. This Shrek movie felt more real and less fictionalized due to the family arc. There was a human connection I had with this one that for some reason or other I couldn’t find in its predecessors.

This time around Shrek, voice by Mike Myers, has to face his toughest challenge – that of being a father and a husband. Surprisingly, our green giant is not used to being the head of a household and longs for the days when he can once again become a fearsome monster. But when an evil dwarf magician makes his dream come true, our hero does everything he can to return to the times when he had the unconditional love of his family and friends.

The original voice cast of the film return, but the talk now is that Antonio Banderas will spin-off his own movie Puss in Boots. This had to happen. The lovable cat is the best of all the characters and its too bad we had to wait this long to know he’s going solo.

Shrek Forever After is the best of the series. The film is excellent; it combines a clever comedy with drama, action and poignant moments. The three-dimensional images appear so real that you forget it’s a fictional world. Adults are probably going to enjoy this more than the kids. Thank you Shrek for the memories.

By Mack Chico

2010/12/06 at 12:00am

Movies

‘Tangled’ is #1 at the box office!

12.6.2010 | By Mack Chico |

By Jack Rico

2010/12/06 at 12:00am

Movies

ShowBizCafe’s Top 25 Films of 2010!

12.6.2010 | By Jack Rico |

By Jack Rico

2010/11/30 at 12:00am

DVD Reviews Reviews

The Twilight Saga: Eclipse

11.30.2010 | By Jack Rico |

Rating: 3.5

Rated: PG-13 for intense sequences of action and violence, and some sensuality.
Release Date: 2010-06-30
Starring: Melissa Rosenberg
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.eclipsethemovie.com/

Â Go to our film page

â€˜The Twilight Saga: Eclipse,â€™ directed by David Slade (30 Days of Nights), is the best film of the series and it is indisputably the most entertaining of the three movies. It has depth, a gripping and sexual tension to it, a surfeit of action, visually appealing special effects and entertaining drama. â€˜Twilightersâ€™ are going to love this second sequel and newcomers will be hooked on the tension filled decision Bellaâ€™s love life has to make.

The first sequel left us on a cliffhanger with Jacob telling Edward to watch out, heâ€™s coming after Bella. Eclipse continues the churning novela with Bella (Kristin Stewart) once again finding herself surrounded by danger as Seattle is ravaged by a string of mysterious killings and Victoria (Bryce Dallas Howard), a malicious vampire who is out for revenge. In the midst of it all, she is forced to choose between her love for Edward (Robert Pattinson) and her friendship with Jacob (Taylor Lautner) — knowing that her decision has the potential to ignite the struggle between vampires and werewolves. Whatâ€™s it going to be Bella – Edward or Jacob? Thatâ€™s been the question pop culture media has been toying with for a year now.

The filmâ€™s predecessor, New Moon, was a test of endurance in tediousness. My criticism of the aforementioned was that it lacked entertainment value. If it only had an ounce of divertissement. Subsequently, Eclipse repaired the damage done and threw me a biscuit in the process. The improvements are rooted in the insertion of several battle sequences, which provided a much-needed injection of energy to the saga, accompanied by quality-eye-candy computer generated effects. Add to that a much more interesting plot and of course, the main event, the confrontation between the films two male leads. The acting is modest, and letâ€™s be honest, it is not exemplary. It does though behoove the genre and the style of the film.

Amazingly enough, Eclipse possesses two Oscar nominated actresses in its cast: Anna Kendrick (Jessica Stanley) and Catalina Sandino Moreno. Kendrick, coming off her â€˜Up in the Airâ€™ nomination, seemed to be fulfilling contractual obligations or spoofing herself in the pic. Moreno on her part, the Colombian Oscar nominated actress for Maria Full of Grace, made a pleasant and surprising cameo. Her appearance, along with Christian Serratos (who plays Angela Weber), represented Hispanics in the film. Some of Catalinaâ€™s dialogue was in Spanish, which I must confess was a bit off brand, but welcome nevertheless. She whispered the word â€œchuparâ€ in a Colombian accent and I automatically thought it was strange, yet cool to listen to within one of the most successful franchises in modern cinema. Regrettably, she went uncredited as Summit Entertainment decided not to include her in their 113 page long production notes, a document usually reserved for press to ascertain microscopic details on cast members, set designs, etc. The reasons for her exclusion in the notes is baffling since she could have served as a great Latino marketing angle for their promotional strategies. Iâ€™m glad a site like ShowBizCafe.com exists to give Ms. Moreno and Latino actors their props.

â€˜The Twilight Saga: Eclipseâ€™ is a step in the right direction and it exemplifies what the film adaptations should have been like from the beginning. The intense, heavy teen romance is still there but layered with a much more entertaining ambiance of thrills and chills to it. I saw the film in standard 2D and was pleased with it. The IMAX version must be even better. Iâ€™m just glad it is not in 3D because with all sincerity, it does not need it. The fans of the books will be fanatical with it, newcomers will be entertained and drag-ons will at least be gratified with the notion that they saw the best of the series.Â I hope the fourth chapter Breaking Dawn, which will be split into two parts next year, is just as good as this one.

By Jack Rico

2010/11/30 at 12:00am

DVD Reviews Reviews

Vampires Suck

11.30.2010 | By Jack Rico |

Rating: 1.0

Rated: PG-13 for crude sexual content, comic violence, language and teen partying.
Release Date: 2010-08-18
Starring: Jason Friedberg, Aaron Seltzer
Director(s):
Distributor:
Film Genre:
Country:USA
Official Website: http://www.vampiressuckmovie.com/

Â Go to our film page

â€˜Vampires Suckâ€™ directed by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer plain olâ€™ sucks. Now donâ€™t get me wrong, I like spoof movies, but ones that are full of hilarity such as The Naked Gun, Hot Shots and the Scary Movie series to name a few. The level of creativity to get this film off the ground is elementary, nothing seems to be out of the box thinking and 10 year old girls must have been consulted.

The premise, as you can tell by the trailers and posters, is a spoof on the Twilight films where teenager Becca (Jenn Proske) finds herself torn between two boys, a vampire (Matt Lanter) and a wolf (Chris Riggi). As she and her friends wrestle with a number of different dramas, everything comes to a head at their prom.

â€˜Horror-bleâ€™ and painful comes to mind when I think of having watched this, though I must admit that actress Jenn Proske mimics Kristen Stewartâ€™s delivery and speech patterns to a tee. Not much else can be praised from this film as a chuckle might as well be interpreted as a â€˜pity chuckleâ€™ for the sake of all the honest hard working technicians that put the production together.

Iâ€™m not going to get into revealing scenes of what I think is awful and boorish, but for the sake of your pocket and mental sanity, stay away from this film full of dreadful, inept jokes, paltry pop culture references and awful dialogue. â€˜Vampire Sucksâ€™ is on my top 10 lists of one of the worst movies of the year.

« Previous 1 … 163 164 165 166 167 … 259 Next »

The Latest in ShowBiz News

Latest Podcasts

Follow SBC

Film Reviews

The Best From The SBC Archive

Film

TV

Broadway Music

Music

Food

Podcasts