Movies

Movies

Thu
16
Apr

New Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer debuts at Star Wars Celebration (see it here!)

JJ Abrams debuted a new teaser trailer for Star Wars: The Force Awakens at the Star Wars Celebration today.  I guess to prevent crappy bootleg versions from showing up online, they actually posted it online, which was pretty decent of them. 

I do have some quick comments about it, but I'm sure you are much more excited to watch the trailer than read to what I have to say, so here it is.  Meet me below to read my thoughts on it:

Wed
15
Apr

Cheap Pops - Wrestling News and Views - April 15, 2015

by Chris Delloiacono, Mike Maillaro and Jeff Ritter

This week!

Wed
15
Apr

Super Powers, Shoestring Budget: The Posthuman Project Appeals Despite Flaws

The Posthuman Project Director Kyle Roberts superhero indie film

THE POSTHUMAN PROJECT is an idea we've seen before, any number of times with varying degrees of success, with outings like X-MEN and GEN-13. In this particular version of the trope, the teens are a group of Oklahoma high school kids nearing graduation. To celebrate, they're going to climb a mountain. Denny Burke (Kyle Whalen) is still recovering from falling off a mountain, in a freak accident which also saw his father disappear.

All is not as it seems, however, as Denny and his beleaguered brother, Archie (Collin Place), meet their long-lost Uncle Billy (Jason Leyva), and his unusual offer. Soon enough, the Burke brothers, joined by their friends Adam (Josh Bonzie), Lisa (Alexandra Harris) and Gwen (Lindsay Sawyer) pile into the SUV and drive off to conquer Mount Dominick, which Uncle Billy now owns.

Mon
13
Apr

Come see Marvel's Ant-Man Trailer

This is the trailer Marvel posted this morning.  It definitely looks like it will live up to the terrific movies Marvel has been putting out the last few years.  I'm still not sure Ant-Man needs his own movie, but at least the movie does look pretty awesome.  I laughed when Lang says "my days of breaking into places to steal stuff are over.  What do you want me to do?" and Pym replies, "I want you to break into some place to steal some stuff." 

If nothing else, the effects look incredible.  And the Yellowjacket costume looks incredible.  I was actually thinking that Pym was going to end up having a split personality and secretly be Yellowjacket, but the trailer definitely suggests otherwise. 

Shameless self-promotion: Ant-Man is one of Critical Blast's most anticipated movies for 2015!

Enough out of me, let's check out the trailer:

Mon
13
Apr

Blast of the Week - 2015 Movies We Want To See Now!

Mike Maillaro: Welcome to Blast of the Week.  Each week, the Critical Blast staff will post up a question and do our best to answer it.   This is going to be pretty freeform and stream of consciousness, so I have no idea what we’ll end up with.   So, good luck, and hopefully we will all survive this.

Thu
09
Apr

Batman vs Robin a Dysfunctional Father and Son Action Adventure

Batman vs Robin DC Universe DVD Critical Blast

Picking up from the ashes of SON OF BATMAN, BATMAN VS ROBIN pits father against son in one of the most dysfunctional family dynamics that could be imagined.

Damian Wayne (Stuart Allan) is a ten-year-old assassin, trained by the best in the business. His bloodlust is potentially inborn, what with having Talia al Ghul as a mother. United with his father, Bruce Wayne (Jason O'Mara) for the first time has been tumultuous at best, as Damian is eager to accompany his father in the battle against crime as Batman and Robin. Only this Robin has to be reined in to keep him from killing the bad guys.

As BATMAN VS ROBIN opens, Robin has gone off on his own in search of some missing children taken by The Dollmaker ("Weird Al" Yankovic). It is during this encounter that Robin meets Talon (Jeremy Sisto), who fights like Batman but isn't timid about crossing the line of taking lives. He offers Robin an opportunity to join him, which Robin begins to seriously consider.

Wed
01
Apr

Arrow's Stephen Amell to play Casey Jones in next TMNT movie

From Variety:

Stephen Amell has been tapped to play Casey Jones in “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2″ for Paramount and Platinum Dunes.

Megan Fox is set to return as April O’Neil. Will Arnett is also returning. David Green is directing the pic. Plot details and information on other returning cast members are still unknown.

A loner who becomes an ally of the turtles and a love interest for O’Neil, Jones is a fan favorite of the series going back to when Elias Koteas played him in the 1990 New Line pic.

Michael Bay is producing along with his Platinum Dunes partners Brad Fuller and Andrew Form. Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec are penning the script.

Amell tested with a half-dozen actors over the weekend, but it was his chemistry with Fox that led to the studio eventually giving the role to the star of CW’s “Arrow.” Paramount had no comment on the casting.

Mon
30
Mar

Into The Woods Captivating, Creepy Trip Into The Weeds

The concept of getting various fairy tale characters to interact with each other in a shared universe is always an intriguing concept (if, not necessarily, a new one, as easily attested to by ONCE UPON A TIME and, even before that, with Bill Willingham's series, FABLES). In this Disney musical, the audience enjoys an interweaving of Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella and Rapunzel, orbiting around an entirely new tale of the Baker and his wife who are out to lift a curse put on their family by a witch.

Fri
27
Mar

Beyond the Mask Genre-Crossing Cinematic Brilliance

Beyond the Mask Colonial America Historical Romance Action

BEYOND THE MASK is the brainchild of writer Paul McCusker, brought to cinematic life by director Chad Burns. This is McCusker's first official screenplay, and Burns has one other film to his credit, PENDRAGON: SWORD OF HIS FATHER. One wouldn't guess their recorded lack of experience by watching this film. I found it to be exceedingly well done, with nicely choreographed action, well-crafted believable conflicts, exquisite settings and a rousing score by Jurgen Beck.

As the film opens, we are introduced to William Reynolds (Andrew Cheney), an assassin in the employ of the East India Trading Company in the mid-1700s. He's had his fill of the business, however, and turns in his notice to his employer, Charles Kemp (John Rhys-Davies, ONCE UPON A TIME). Unfortunately for Reynolds, he knows too much about Kemp's plans for the fledgling colonies to be allowed to live.

Fri
27
Mar

Ferrell And Hart Are The New Wilder And Pryor In “Get Hard.”

Ferrell Hart Get Hard

Will Farrell is one of the funniest and talented actors to ever grace the Saturday Night Live stage, but I’ve found his big screen output to be a bit of a mixed bag. I laughed a lot at “Talladega Nights: The Story of Ricky Bobby” and his somewhat absurd yet semi-dramatic “Stranger Than Fiction” is one of my favorite movies to recommend. On the other hand, I saw more of the inside of my eyelids when I attempted to sit through “Step-Brothers” and “Semi Pro.” Kevin Hart is a very funny comedian, but the film version of his stand-up routine from last year was marred by poor editing. Could these two hilarious entertainers succeed together? For me, the answer was a resounding yes.
 

Thu
26
Mar

Vote for the Best of 2014

Best of 2014 Voting Begins

Hello readers! I know we're still just getting started for Critical Blast, but it's never too early to open up with a bang.

To that end, I'd like to introduce you to our first annual Critical Blast Awards -- and you get a vote! In the future, we'll have more categories, but for this year we're limiting ourselves to Best Movie, Best Television Series, and Best Actor (from each).

In an effort to prevent ballot box stuffing (as much as we can), the form below requires a Google+ account to participate. We look forward to your input. The polls will remain open through April 6th, 2015.

Sun
22
Mar

Peter Jackson's Last Tolkien-Dream Arrives on Blu-ray

Hobbit Five Armies Blu-ray Peter Jackson Tolkien Critical Blast

In comic books, we have this thing called "the fight scene." Some comics end up being nothing but an extended fight scene, skipping over story for wall-to-wall slugging it out.

With the end of THE DESOLATION OF SMAUG, the great dragon Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch) was awakened. As THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES opens, Smaug has begun his attack on Lake-town, destroying all in his path. The humans who live there are left refugees, as Bard (Luke Evans) escapes the cell that imprisons him and tries to defend his crumbling and burning town with arrows, eventually succeeding with the enigmatic (and huge) Black Arrow and a makeshift bow.

Fri
20
Mar

Sean Penn Delivers A More Vulnerable Shoot 'Em Up Hero In "The Gunman"

"The Gunman" starring Sean Penn opens March 20, 2015.

“The Gunman” is a rare foray into an action-heavy role for Sean Penn, who wrote and produced the film as well. Directed by Pierre Morel, the man who surprised us all with the taunt and darkly comic “Taken” film (which spawned a perhaps ill-advised franchise starring Liam Neeson, who in turn cannot seem to escape that role now) this action thriller is well-crafted but feels very familiar.

Tue
17
Mar

Marvel to publish series set between Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens

From Newsarama:

Earlier this week Disney has announced via StarWars.com a new publishing intitiative that aims to bridge the gap between Star Wars: Return of the Jedi and Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Entitled Journey to The Force Awakens, the initiative will feature books and comics that tie directly into Marvel's ongoing Star Wars comic, and will be considered in continuity and canon.

The first title, entitled Star Wars: Journey to the Force Awakens - Shattered Empire #1 was also previewed on the site Friday, with the cover by Phil Noto.

Michael Siglain, director, Creative Franchise, Lucasfilm had this to say about the upcoming titles, “The filmmakers have a lot of surprises in store, and the hints and puzzle pieces in the publishing program will keep fans guessing until the film opens. Until then, let the anticipation — and the speculation — begin,”

The others titles in the program are as follows:

Thu
12
Mar

Major news about upcoming Star Wars movies!! Release Dates and More!

Variety posted some big news about upcoming Star Wars movies, including the title of next year's spin-off film and the release date for Episode VIII!

Disney and Lucasfilm have announced details of the upcoming “Stars Wars” films at its annual shareholders meeting in San Francisco.

Rian Johnson has also been confirmed to write and direct Star Wars: Episode VIII, which will hit theaters May 26, 2017.

Gareth Edwards’ upcoming standalone film, starring Felicity Jones, will be called “Rogue One.” The movie starts filming in London this summer and opens Dec. 16, 2016.

“Rogue One,” based on an idea by Oscar-winning vfx supervisor John Knoll, was written by “Cinderella” scribe Chris Weitz.

Kathleen Kennedy will produce the standalone film alongside Knoll, Tony To and John Schwartz.

Plot details of “Rogue One” are unknown.

Fri
06
Mar

Ginnifer Goodwin Gets Her Pixie Dust On in Disney's NeverBeast

Tinker Bell Pixie Hollow NeverBeast Ginnifer Goodwin Mae Whitman Disney

In Pixie Hollow, every fairy has a role. Fawn (Ginnifer Goodwin) is a fairy whose specialty lies with helping animals. But her big heart sometimes has her making dangerous decisions, underscored in the beginning of this film when we find she's been tending an injured baby hawk. Apparently hawks are the natural predators of fairies, and Fawn's attempt to return the baby to the wild results in near-catastrophe. As a result, she makes a promise to Queen Clarion (Anjelica Huston) that she will be more responsible.

Shortly thereafter, a green comet flashes by, one that returns every 900 and some odd years. Its glow awakens a large hibernating animal, who does strange things. When Fawn encounters the beast, there's an "Androcles and the Lion" moment that bonds them, and then she tries to learn everything about the creature's strange activities, which include building rock towers.

Thu
05
Mar

Burton and Depp's Chocolate Factory Less Dream, More Nightmare in 10th Anniversary Blu-Ray

Tim Burton Johnny Depp Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Tenth Anniversary Blu-ray

I'm a Tim Burton fan. Flat out, I've loved everything of his I've seen, from the Michael Keaton BATMAN film through the black and white FRANKENWEENIE short. Even SWEENEY TODD is on my list of Burton masterpieces.

But until recently, I had not seen CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, which puts a slight dent in what I considered a perfect record.

If you've read the Roald Dahl book, or seen the slightly renamed Gene Wilder film WILLIE WONKA AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, then you may be somewhat taken aback by the deviations made in this version of the film. Oh, for the most part, it's the same story: Charlie Bucket (Freddie Highmore) is a good kid from a poor family; Willie Wonka (Johnny Depp) agrees to open his mysterious factory to those who find hidden Golden Tickets; rotten kids from around the world make the cut; cue the Oompa-Loompas for every lesson learned as the rotten kids become victims of their own flaws.

Fri
27
Feb

He Lived Long and Prospered: Leonard Nimoy, 83

Leonard Nimoy 2015 Age 83 Spock Star Trek Critical Blast

Leonard Nimoy, star of stage and screen, and idol to millions of science fiction fans everywhere for his portrayal of the logical Vulcan, Spock, on STAR TREK, has passed away at age 83 from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

There will be numerous articles appearing almost immediately detailing Nimoy's illustrious career. This isn't one of those. This is rather my personal remembrances of this actor, author, photographer and -- yes -- singer and musician.

Fri
27
Feb

Will Smith Regains His "Focus" In This Smart, Sexy Con Artist Caper

Focus opens in theaters 2/27/15.

Will Smith is an easy actor to like. He doesn't interrupt award shows pining for Beyoncé like some people we could mention. He hasn't had a major meltdown on the set or in public. He's gone about his film career about as well as any top drawing actor truly could and yet he hasn't really had a huge hit at the box office for some time, at least in my opinion—2008’s “Hancock” was the last Smith movie I really enjoyed. That's about to change.

Tue
24
Feb

Not-So-Horrible Bosses 2 Arrives on Blu-Ray

Horrible Bosses 2 Blu Ray Warner Brothers Jason Bateman Critical Blast

As I sit to watch Horrible Bosses 2, I remember the first one being pretty amusing. Jason Sudeikis was one of my favorite recent SNL members, Charlie Day is genius in It's Always Sunny in Philly, and who doesn't love Jason Bateman, the only (fairly) sane Bluth. It's this casting adoration that drew me to the first movie and made me return for the second. However, it IS a sequel. With trepidation, I hit play, knowing sequels are generally regurgitated humor posing as original wit.

The movie opens with the Clash singing Police on My Back, so at least we know someone involved has good musical taste. We jump right in with the lead trio having witty banter, an Austin Powers-seque visual penis gag and vaguely racist humor, that is a strong start so far and sets the tone. There will be no high-minded comedy hiding around here. If only they could shoehorn in a fart joke, we would be set.

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Movies