Cannes 2013: Sci-Fi 'Last Days on Mars' Retreads Familiar Territory

Last Days on Mars

One of the very few full-on science fiction films premiering at the Cannes Film Festival this year is a thriller called The Last Days on Mars, directed by Irish filmmaker Ruairi Robinson making his feature debut after a number of shorts including Blinky™ and Fifty Percent Grey. Set on Mars at the end of a six month manned mission to the planet to search for signs of life, it starts out as an intriguing indie sci-fi with some promise. But alas devolves into something that I hate to say is derivative and brings absolutely nothing new to the sci-fi game, which is a bit unfortunate because it otherwise looks great—the VFX were done by Weta.

 Posted 7 hours ago in Cannes 13, Review, SciFi | Comments

How Far Did Abrams Go to Hide 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Villain?

Star Trek Into Darkness

This past weekend, Star Trek Into Darkness took the #1 spot at the box office. And despite some intense (and mostly valid) nitpicking of the writing and plot, the film is a fun roller coaster ride of suspense and action, complete with stellar performances and a glorious score. But leading up to the film, the primary focus was that of the film's villain. Early rumors pegged the sequel's bad guy as the infamous Khan from the frequently lauded Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, but J.J. Abrams and everyone else kept saying that Benedict Cumberbatch was playing a villain named John Harrison, and they were wrong. More below!

 Posted 9 hours ago in Hype, Movie News, SciFi | Comments

Watch: International Trailer for 'Turbo' Highlights Slow Snail World

Turbo

In what is basically a superhero movie repurposed for a mollusk, DreamWorks Animation has Turbo coming this summer. Ryan Reynolds voices the snail who finds himself with the gift of super speed after a chance encounter with some nitrous fuel liquid. In this new international trailer, we get an entertaining glimpse into the mundane lives of the slow-moving snails, and also get introduced into some of the other snails in the film voiced by Samuel L. Jackson, Bill Hader, Richard Jenkins, Michelle Rodriguez and more. This looks like it could be the second hit for DWA after The Croods earlier this year. Watch now!

 Posted 10 hours ago in To Watch, Trailers | Comments

Damon Lindelof Talks Extensively About Inception of 'Tomorrowland'

Tomorrowland

Right now the plot details for Brad Bird's original Disney project Tomorrowland, which has George Clooney and Hugh Laurie attached to star, are still under right wraps. There have been theories about UFOs and other guesses resulting from digging in the "mystery box" that Bird revealed earlier this year. Thankfully, in an interview with Grantland (via SlashFilm), writer Damon Lindelof talked a bit about the new project, and while he didn't reveal any big secrets, he did talk about the inception of the story, how Bird ended up getting involved, and how this ties in to the Disney theme park area of the same name. Read on!

 Posted 11 hours ago in Hype, Movie News | Comments

'The Wolverine' Gets Yukio & Viper Posters Before Trailer Tomorrow

The Wolverine - Yukio

Tomorrow there will be a brand new trailer for The Wolverine, continuing the story that started in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but without neglecting the events of the X-Men trilogy. Now the film from director James Mangold gets a couple more cool posters in the same vein as the initial watercolor style teaser poster and the more recent Silver Samurai poster. That initial teaser featuring a painted Hugh Jackman is so popular, it's been stolen from bus shelters and more around the country, and these posters, highlighting the characters of Yukio (Rila Fukushima) and Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova), weakly capitalize on that style. Still, we're anxious to see what this new trailer, arriving tomorrow morning, has in store. Look!

 Posted 11 hours ago in Hype, Posters | Comments

Liam Hemsworth Takes Flight in Fighter Pilot Thriller 'Aurora Rising'

Liam Hemsworth

Later this year, The Hunger Games franchise star Liam Hemsworth shares the screen with acting giants Harrison Ford and Gary Oldman in Paranoia, hitting theaters on August 16th. And Hemsworth is continuing his rise to A-list status as THR reports he will be leading a film called Aurora Rising for Relativity Media. In a story that might have flares of Point Break, the film follows a Southern California surfer who becomes a fighter pilot. But after a messy combat mission, he's recruited to be part of an elite team testing a new kind of aircraft at the dawn of an international conflict. So Top Gun meets Red Dawn?

 Posted 12 hours ago in Casting, Development, Movie News | Comments

Jor-El Looks Pretty Intimidating on 'Man of Steel' Character Poster

Man of Steel

Kicking off what will likely be a series of posters leading up to the release of Man of Steel, a new character poster has arrived featuring Russell Crowe looking quite intimidating as Kal-El's father Jor-El. We've heard Crowe's voice on nearly all of the trailers and TV spots, and this puts him front and center, seemingly ready for a fight. We're not sure how much action Jor-El will see in the film before he sends Superman to Earth, but since the character has his own poster, that implies there's a good amount. Again, the lens flare is prominent, and we're still wondering if this will be akin to J.J. Abrams use of the light element in Star Trek.

 Posted 12 hours ago in Hype, Posters | Comments

Sylvester Stallone Talking to Steven Seagal About 'Expendables 3'?

Steven Seagal

With director Patrick Hughes confirmed to be at the helm of The Expendables 3, the biggest concern is rounding up all the bad asses to make up the ensemble of action stars kicking ass this time around. Wesley Snipes has been pegged for a role, and recently Stallone further confirmed the involvement of Jackie Chan and return of Mickey Rourke. Now it sounds like another new face might enter the mix. Stallone took to Twitter for another revelation and merely said, "Just talked to Steven S. in Moscow. Sounds great and says he wants to be in EX3, if the part fits..." If you're thinking that means Steven Spielberg, just get out of here.

 Posted 12 hours ago in Casting, Movie News | Comments

Anna Kendrick & Kate Hudson Join Zach Braff's 'Wish I Was Here'

Anna Kendrick

Despite some misinformation about the funding coming together for Zach Braff's film Wish I Was Here, following a very successful Kickstarter campaign, it sounds like the Garden State director has his head on straight, and there hasn't really been any deception to those who so graciously helped Braff get his project off the ground. And so the film marches onward with a couple new casting additions. First, The Wrap reports that the lovely Anna Kendrick (Pitch Perfect, 50/50) has landed a supporting role and Deadline pegs Kate Hudson for a role alongside Braff, who is leading the film in addition to writing and directing.

 Posted 13 hours ago in Casting, Development, Movie News | Comments

Dan Aykroyd Talks Plot Details for Still Gestating 'Ghostbusters 3'

Ghostbusters 3

While fans wait for the long-gestating and frequently hyped Ghostbusters 3, a sequel that we're not necessarily excited about anymore, some vague story details have now surfaced from Dan Aykroyd himself. The co-writer and star of the film has been one of the few consistent parts of the hype machine for this developing sequel, and he recently appeared on "Larry King Now" (the TV personality has appeared in the franchise as himself) with some vague plot details that sounds relatively interesting. Aside from again confirming a new, young Ghostbusters, Aykroyd reveals info about the supernatural force they'll deal with.

 Posted 13 hours ago in Development, Movie News | Comments

First Look: Lawrence as Mystique in 'X-Men: Days of Future Past'

X-Men: Days of Future Past

Another day, another set photo from X-Men: Days of Future Past from director Bryan Singer. This one doesn't reveal anything that we haven't seen before, but there's just something special about seeing Jennifer Lawrence go blue as Mystique. It looks like there's a lot of green screen work in this particular scene, and while she was quite fit in X-Men: First Class, it looks like Lawrence is even more trim. This time around we've heard there's not as much full body make-up and she has a body suit on so preparing to shoot is less arduous. It's cool to see a shot like this without any Photoshop work to see the real make-up quality.

 Posted 14 hours ago in First Look, Marvel, Photos | Comments

Cannes 2013 Blog: Watching Films on the Croisette, Rain or Shine

Cannes 2013

Would you wait in line for over an hour in the pouring Mediterranean rain, drenched and dripping by the time the doors open up, just to see the new Coen Brothers film? If you love cinema, the answer to that is an undeniable yes. And yes, me and about two thousand other members of the press huddled underneath umbrellas of all shapes and sizes to wait in a torrential downpour just to catch the very first screening ever of Inside Llweyn Davis. That's Cannes for you. Cinema fiends and movie lovers ignoring the bad weather just to be there for more cinema. Rain or shine, we're all here to see films, all day, every day until the end.

 Posted 15 hours ago in Cannes 13, Editorial, Indies | Comments

Antonio Banderas & More Join Chilean Miner Disaster Drama 'The 33'

Antonio Banderas

It's been nearly three years since the headline-making Chilean miner accident captivated millions around the world as an international effort was made to save 33 miners who became trapped in a copper and gold mine, half a mile beneath the surface, for 69 dyas. More than a billion people tuned in to the 24-hour coverage of the rescue effort, and it was only a matter of time before a film chronicled the disaster. Shortly after the rescue, Javier Bardem was said to be involved with a film about the event, but now Variety has word Antonio Banderas will lead The 33 as Mario Sepulveda, who came to be known as “Super Mario.”

 Posted 16 hours ago in Casting, Development, Movie News | Comments

Rumor: Jonathan Rhys Meyers in Talks for 'Star Wars: Episode VII'

Jonathan Rhys Meyers

After the swarm of rumors that circulated about who might be behind the camera for Star Wars: Episode VII, before J.J. Abrams was officially announced as director, it sounds like the casting rumors are heating up again. We've already heard plenty of talk about Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher and Harrison Ford reprising their roles from the original sci-fi saga, but now we have a rumor on a new young cast member for this sequel that will follow Return of the Jedi. Latino Review reports that Abrams' Mission: Impossible III star Jonathan Rhys Meyers is currently in talks for an unknown role in the anticipated sequel. More below!

 Posted 17 hours ago in Casting, Rumors, Star Wars | Comments

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