For A Few Movies More

Itching for your movie poster fix? Well we’re here to satisfy your addiction. In this week’s addition of Poster Round Up we take a look at a whole bunch of new posters for The Dark Knight Rises,  The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2, Snow White And The Huntsman, Ted, Madagascar 3, The Apparition, Step Up 4, Woman In The Fifth, Wish Me Away, The Bunny Game, Sellebrity, One Out Of Seven, The Invisible War and The Gold And The Beautiful.

We’re all excited for The Dark Knight Rises. That’s just a given. But holy crap is that film receiving a maddening amount of promotional material! This week I have no less than nine banners featuring The Caped Crusader and pals to share with you, plus an extra poster featuring everybody’s favourite feline influenced anti-hero. And while this onslaught of poster art is perhaps leaning on the side of overkill, there’s no denying that they’re all glorious pieces of art. In particular the Batman vs Bane pieces are spectacular. Seriously, I would hang those on my wall over any given example of conventional, modern-day art.

And then on the other end of the spectrum we have the poster for Step Up 4. That movie already looks like a Technicolor nightmare so it’s only appropriate that its accompanying poster should reconfirm this. I feel like I’m on the brink of having a seizure from just looking at it. Plus on top of its dangerous to your health side effects, the artwork for it looks decidedly cheap. The central protagonists in particular look like they were shot by an amateur photographer who then proceeded to cheaply photoshop them onto an ugly background.

Click on each individual thumbnail to enlarge the image or continue on after the jump to see a larger version of the entire gallery. Enjoy!

The Great Gatsby

Directed By Baz Luhrmann

Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Joel Edgerton, Tobey Maguire

Is it weird that I’ve never read The Great Gatsby? It probably is. Reading the novel has been on my to do list for a long, long time now, but despite my intent on diving into it, I always end up finding myself reading a book about magic Vampires from Mars or some such garbage. Being one of the most famous novels of all time and all it’s hard not to have some familiarity with the The Great Gatsby’s story, and since it’s one that features very little in the way of bombastic set pieces, it’s understandably difficult to cut an exciting trailer for its big screen adaptation. This debut trailer most definitely does an excellent job at setting the mood and highlighting the gorgeous visuals, however despite the best efforts of using an upbeat soundtrack to enhance the subdued tone, there’s nothing really showcased here that will convince you to run directly to your nearest theatre, slam your money on the counter and plead for some advance tickets.

With that being said, Baz Luhrmann is a wildly imaginative director and an expert storyteller, a combination that when paired with the classic source material he has to work with should result in a breathtaking experience that’s sure to rake in the dollars. Also given Luhrmann’s way with creating striking visual delights, it should be interesting to see how the much hyped 3D aspect of the film will stack up. I’m not a fan of 3D at the best of times, but this might be one of the rare occasions where I might indulge in the usually gimmicky technique. All in all, while I may not be foaming at the mouth for a slice of The Great Gatsby, I have faith that Luhrmann will deliver a satisfying experience for fans and newcomers alike.

Anticipation Level: 3/5

Guess what? It’s me again! Don’t like it? Tough. I’m not gonna stick around and make excuses — just sit back, relax, and let the fun stuff do the talking.

When it comes to comedies, one of the most commonly heard complaints is that all the best gags are shown in the trailers. It’s a common annoyance; the best punch lines of the film are shown in each and every promotional short, drawing you in with the promise of nonstop laughs. However when you finally find yourself sitting in the theatre watching this film you’ve been so eagerly anticipating, you realize those promises made were completely false. Those moments repeated time and time again in the trailers are still indeed funny, however their over saturation has substantially diluted their effectiveness. Worse still, the remainder of the film is full of mediocre stabs at humour that are passable at best, cringe worthy at worst. Such is the way with comedic genius, Sacha Baron Cohen’s latest venture, The Dictator. An entertaining expedition that revels in everything politically incorrect, The Dictator is a sufficiently amusing comedy, however it’s hard not to be left wanting more.

The Dictator’s plot is not exactly its strong point. Admiral General Hafez Aladeen (Sacha Baron Cohen), a malicious anti-western and anti-Semitic dictator, has ruled the fictitious North African Republic of Wadiya for the last forty years. Protected by his female bodyguards at all times, Aladeen is a hated figure thanks to his treacherous ways.  However after expressing grave concerns towards his nuclear weapons program, the United Nations Security Council summons Aladeen to the UN headquarters located in New York to answer to the council. But before he ever has a chance to, a hit man sent by his right-hand man and uncle, Tamir (Ben Kingsly), kidnaps Aladeen. Following an unsuccessful assassination attempt that leaves him without his iconic beard, Aladeen is left to fend for himself in the heart of New York City. Meanwhile, Tamir thinking that Aladeen is dead hires a mindless invalid who looks almost identical to Aladeen to take his place.

Like a mysterious stranger emerging from a swirl of fog baring gifts, Poster Round Up is here to offer a handful of goodies to make your day just that little bit more enjoyable.

In this week’s addition we take a look at posters for Skyfall, The Dark Knight Rises, Prometheus, Killing Them Softly, The We And The I, Woody Allen A Documentary, The Possession, The Pact, Hyde Park On Hudson, Grassroots, Excision, Crawl and Katy Perry Part Of Me.

If I had to choose the pick of the litter, it’s hard to not go past the latest batch of Dark Knight Rises posters. More so the Batman/Bane/Catwoman trio featuring the rubble crumbling around the rain plastered characters. They’ve done an amazing job at depicting the bleak mood we can expect from the film itself while giving us another good look at the characters. But I’ve also got to give the latest Prometheus poster a shout out too. It’s simply a stunning design that really captures one’s attention. My only concern is that the image at the centre of the poster may possibly be a huge spoiler. And if that is the case, then that’s an incredibly bad example of marketing….

As for the worst this week, well just try staring at the Katy Perry Part Of Me poster for longer than a minute without your eyes bursting into flames in a desperate act of self-preservation….

Click on each individual thumbnail to enlarge the image or continue on after the jump to see a larger version of the entire gallery. Enjoy!

Skyfall

Directed By Sam Mendes

Starring Daniel Craig, Helen McCrory and Javier Bardem

Before we dive into the trailer itself, let me give you my honest opinion on where  I believe the James Bond series is currently at. When Casino Royale first hit cinemas, it was viewed as a fresh breath of air. In what was considered a huge shakeup, for the first time we were watching a Bond film grounded heavily in reality. The gadgets were nearly completely absent, the once over the top action was now gritty and tense, and the cinematography opted for a handheld, fly on the wall perspective. And while these were all major changes, the biggest alteration to the franchise’s familiar formula came from the casting of Bond himself. Straying away from the lean, dark-haired typecast that audiences were familiar with, a blonde, buff Daniel Craig was cast as the iconic spy. An against type piece of casting that yielded remarkable results. These were all smart moves that radically shifted the landscape of the series, resulting in a film that was a standout in the stale franchise. But then Quantum Of Solace came along. I know that there are plenty of viewers out there who thoroughly enjoyed this follow-up, but personally, I felt it was a loathsome insult to the James Bond name. The villain was bland, the pacing of the story tedious, the quality of the action sequences lacklustre, but worst of all, the film was just flat-out boring. James Bond films are allowed to be silly, over the top and a little ridiculous, but they should never, ever be boring. Plus while the lack of gadgets and fun stuff was unique the first time around, their absence left Solace feeling like a poor man’s  Bourne Identity.

So where does that leave Skyfall? Truthfully, it’s kind of hard to tell at this point in time. There’s no denying that this newly released teaser looks great, but it’s easy to cram all of the money shots from a film into a minute and half while hiding any flaws. Perhaps I’m being a little to cynical here, but I just really do NOT want another Quantum Of Solace to further taint the legacy of the series. I’m still most definitely looking forward to the film, but until I see more, I’ll continue remaining a little wary. Still, fingers crossed this will be a leap in the right direction.

Anticipation Level: 3.5/5

I’ve always been a TV guy; I was raised on TV from a very young age – the onslaught of colourful commercials singeing my retina with their carefully crafted brands and dampening my tonal palette with their repetitive jingles as I patiently waited for the program to return and do pretty much the same thing – TV was basically a constant until I managed to get my Nintendo GameCube hooked up in my room to enhance the attention span damage to the point where nowadays I’m the type of writer who forgets how to properly structure and punctuate legible sentences, let alone a whole blog, choosing instead to embrace my laziness, publish it, and complain when no one praises me. The difference between television and its older brother cinema may not seem big but in the scheme of inane internet commentary it is definitely noteworthy. In a film you are putting it all out there; it’s written, shot, edited and polished, start to finish, before anyone gets a chance to see it. And when they do see it, they do so in less than 2 hours. But a TV show only gets that freedom for an episode, maybe a few more or a season if they are lucky. Then the fans and the networks and the advertisers get their hands on it. Lost, Heroes, Prison Break – All had such potential but lost sight of their goal. But on the other hand TV has time to breathe. It doesn’t take shortcuts to meet a reasonable runtime – it is free to be expansive and reward patience. The Wire, The Sopranos, The Office. A great show can really achieve so much more than a great film simply through its scope. That is not to discredit a great film that can harness its potential with one immersive escape from reality, but today on Filmblogging I will be celebrating the creepy uncle that is television. The one who taught me to laugh, prevented me from ever needing imaginary friends – or imagination – and the one who allowed me to spend valuable time with my family without ever having to talk to them. Today we celebrate television!

Ok, here we go. Let’s take a deep breath in together and get started. Finding the right words to hype up each week’s Fun Stuff Friday article is always a tricky matter. I mean how is one supposed to be expected to summarise the face-meltingly awesome content that awaits just a few paragraphs away? So to change things up a little, let’s go ahead and attempt to do the impossible and choose a visual representation that might, just might prepare you for the ultimate in awesome you’re about to experience…

Well this, this is a little embarrassing isn’t it. A dog pointing and winking at a camera. Wow. According to Google, that is literally the most relevant match when searching for the term awesome. I mean I guess it is pretty awesome, dogs don’t usually act like some bizarrely adorable animal version of Fonzy, so I’ll still give that clever canine a mild thumbs up.

Enough preparation! It’s now time to get to the heart of this week’s Fun Stuff Friday. So what’s in store? A s**t ton of Lego that’s what. Seriously, this week’s edition somehow turned into Legopalooza, but everybody loves Lego so I guess that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Other than an overload of Lego, we also have a candid photo featuring two long time rivals making amends, a sweet replica prop lifted from Aliens that you can own, an obligatory piece of Star Wars merchandise, as well as a few more surprises. So strap yourself in, engage the hyperdrive and enjoy this week’s Fun Stuff Friday!

Poster Round Up triumphantly returns once more. As per usual, we’ve compiled all of the latest movie poster art released form the last week into one convenient article. So brace yourself faithful reader for you are about to come on a life changing journey full of surprising twists and turns, not to mention some totally sweet movie posters.

This week we take a look at posters for The Amazing Spider-Man, Ted, Killer Joe, Ruby Sparks, The We And I, Mansome, People Like Us, The Good Doctor, A Common Man, Neil Young Journeys and LOL.

There are a few striking standouts amongst the bunch, but have to give the POV poster for The Amazing Spider-Man first prize this week. As much as I hate the idea of Peter Parker going back to utilising mechanical web-slingers, they’re highlighted effectively against the epic city skyline thanks to a very eye-catching design.

As for the lowlights, well it has to be a tie between the uninspired posters for People Like Us and LOL. People Like Us gets the thumbs down for looking like Hollywood’s horribly forced idea of a perfect family, while LOL gets a disapproving head shake pretty much just because the movie looks gross…

Click on each individual thumbnail to enlarge the image or continue on after the jump to see a larger version of the entire gallery. Enjoy!

In case you haven’t heard already, Robert Rodriguez is gearing up to head into production for Machete Kills, the follow up to his co-directed exploitation outing, Machete. But even more exciting, Rodriguez is also about to start work on a sequel to Sin City entitled, Sin City: A Dame To Kill For. It’s about damn time!

With that gratifying news out of the way, a promo poster for each of these upcoming films has just hit the web. Nothing too exciting or revealing, just basic text posters boasting eye-catching designs. But at least you can browse the crazy list of names set to star in Machete Kills. Is anyone else incredibly intrigued about the possibility of Mel Gibson playing a crazed villain? If his recent outbursts are anything to go by he should nail the role effortlessly…

Also if the Sin City 2 poster is to be trusted, we now have conformation that Rodriguez will be sharing directorial duties with Frank Miller once again. They made a commendable team the first time around so I see nothing to complain about in that department.

Details regarding both films are sparse at the moment, however it’s pretty obvious that the Sin City sequel will at least feature the standout A Dame To Kill For story from Frank Miller’s Sin City comic series. A Dame To Kill For is a brilliant tale that features a wide array of familiar faces from the Sin City universe, including fan favourite Marv, so to see it get the big screen treatment is fantastic.

So what do you think of these relatively simple promo posters? And of higher importance, which film are you looking forward to more? Head on after the jump to check out the full-sized posters, otherwise click on the thumbnails above for the same effect.