Movie News

I don't think I've ever thought that I'd actually want to see a documentary about power producer Harvey Weinstein, but maybe it could be interesting after all. In a NY Times article from last week (via SlashFilm) about another different Harvey Weinstein documentary, the director of that film told them that "Quentin Tarantino was considering a competing project that would chronicle Mr. Weinstein's professional life." The doc that the article is actually about will apparently be a no-holds-barred look at Weinstein that will be called Unauthorized: The Harvey Weinstein Project, but I'm much more interested in Tarantino's project.

Harvey Weinstein is an producer who co-founded Miramax in 1979 and now runs The Weinstein Company with his brother Bob Weinstein. Tarantino's doc would supposedly focus on his days as a concert promoter leading up to the "heyday" of Miramax, which is some of the same story that's also told in the book Down and Dirty Pictures: Miramax, Sundance and the Rise of Independent Film. That's actually the only part of Weinstein's life that I want to see a documentary about, because I think it would actually be fascinating to see the inside story. Tarantino's rep says Harvey and Quentin are "unofficially kicking around the idea."

Everyone probably already knows that Tarantino and Weinstein are good friends. Harvey has produced six of his films and Miramax and/or TWC has distributed almost all of them, including Inglourious Basterds (in partnership with Universal). Sure, that means there is probably going to be a little bit biased if Tarantino does make a documentary, but I don't really mind that much. I'd just like to see a very well-made doc about Harvey Weinstein that focuses on how he became as successful as he is today in this industry. Hopefully we'll get to see exactly that in one or these two documentaries. Anyone else want to see this happen?

Discover More: Movie News, Opinions, Rumors

While he has previously taken on the real-life personas of people like Al Capone and Jake La Motta, actor Robert De Niro hasn't been dabbling in historical territory too much in recent years, at least, until now. Not only has he been confirmed to be playing Alabama Governor George Wallace in Lee Daniels' Selma, but now THR's Risky Biz blog reports that he will play iconic coach Vince Lombardi in the ESPN Films biopic simply titled Lombardi, to be written by Oscar winning Forrest Gump writer Eric Roth. The film will focus on the 8 or so years that Lombardi rebuilt the Green Bay Packers into gridiron NFL champions.

Lombardi is a legendary coach most know for his work with the Packers from 1959-67, winning five league championships during his nine years with the team. He went on to accomplish a 105–35–6 record as head coach (.750, discarding ties as was the NFL policy) and he never suffered a losing season. He then led the Packers to a still-unmatched three consecutive NFL championships in 1965, 1966, and 1967; winning the first two Super Bowls, solidifying his place in history as one of, if not the greatest coach in football history.

Charles Coplin, the NFL's vice president of programming said about this casting news: "There are few actors who could accurately portray the fire, passion and grit of Lombardi, and we're thrilled to have Robert De Niro on our team. With the addition of De Niro, Eric and Tribeca Productions, we have a deep bench to produce a film worthy of the legendary coach and American icon." There's some great projects coming up for De Niro, and I'm happy his career hasn't been entirely hampered by some less than stellar missteps (such as Righteous Kill). This is definitely a project that we'll keep our eye on as it develops. Sound good sports fans?

Discover More: Casting News, Movie News, Opinions

Just over a week ago we heard about the short list of contenders to hold the shield and wear the stars and stripes of The First Avenger: Captain America. Honestly, the list wasn't that impressive with barely any of the desired talent looking old enough to eventually lead The Avengers or having an acting resume to back them up. Earlier today came news from Fox 411 that Marvel's first choice, according to insiders at the company, was John Krasinksi, but now it looks like that scoop isn't true as Deadline reports only Mike Vogel and Garrett Hedlund are in serious contention with a few other new names thrown into the mix.

Fox 411 claims that Krasinski has kept getting called back to see producers again and again since the start of the new year, which may still be accurate even though Krasinski's apparently out. Their inside source said:

"John has read 4 times and is doing screen tests. He has screen tested 2 times so far.  It's very likely that he will be the new Captain America.  He is a favorite among the key decision makers and has been asked to come back for more this week. The big bosses are having him read with multiple actresses up for the female leads.  They want to lock down the role and then they will narrow down everyone else."

However, this doesn't look to be the case as Deadline Hollywood says they have scratched Krasinski as well as Chace Crawford, Scott Porter, Michael Cassidy and Patrick Flueger off the list, but added a couple more, the only of which that was mentioned is Chris Evans, who already had his turn as a superhero playing The Human Torch from Fantastic Four. However, it seems like the frontrunner could very well be Tron Legacy's Garrett Hedlund, as Deadline says he was on Marvel’s original wish list but didn't test at first. Scheduling apparently created issues, but much like the rest of us, Hedlund's reps were none too pleased when Marvel informed them that the job would include options for 9 future films and a salary of only around $300,000.

I'm not really sure what to make of this whole superhero casting fiasco at the moment. I definitely wasn't looking forward to the idea of seeing John Krasinksi play Captain America. That comic version of Krasinksi in the photo above comes from a strip on Hijinks Ensue (via SlashFilm). As for the other potentials, I'm not totally sold on Garrett Hedlund yet, even though the Tron Legacy trailer looks awesome, I've got to see if he can really act in that to consider him a big next action star worthy of this role. As for Chris Evans, I hope he doesn't get it either, he had his shot at playing a superhero and wasn't good enough to play another one.

Still, there are apparently a couple of other unrevealed names along with Evans who could very well get the job and director Joe Johnston and the producers are taking their sweet time figuring out who will hold the shield and lead one of the most powerful and iconic superhero teams of all time: The Avengers. There is an entire set of films riding on whoever they cast. I hope they make the right decision. Thoughts? Concerns?

Update: Just when you thought there couldn't be any more news names to throw into the mix, Heat Vision now claims that Wilson Bethel, who starred on HBO's "Generation Kill", is in the running as well. No one else new besides that, with more mentions of Mike Vogel and Chris Evans, but that's about it. I'm going to be happy once we get to the end of this and find out who they actually cast for this. We'll keep you updated!

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Remember last month when we heard the recent Academy Award winning Christoph Waltz was replacing Sean Penn in Francis Lawrence's adaptation of Water for Elephants? Well, his taking on that role meant that he had to give one up, and Deadline reports that it was his forthcoming turn as the famous psychiatrist Sigmund Freud in David Cronenberg's The Talking Cure that has been swapped out for another actor. Waltz was swiftly replaced with the comparable talent of Viggo Mortensen in the story, based on a play by Christopher Hampton, about the conflict between Freud and his pupil Jung, played by Michael Fassbender.

Though Fassbender's involvement in the adaptation, as well as Keira Knightly's, has been locked for awhile, apparently Waltz's departure left it in jeopardy of being shelved. But with Mortensen's involvement, there's a level of comfort since he and Cronenberg came together twice for fantastic collaborations on A History of Violence and Eastern Promises. The Playlist also learned that Vincent Cassell (Eastern Promises, Ocean's 12) has joined the cast, but his role has yet to be revealed. Though I'm fine with Mortensen taking on the role, it would've been nice to see Waltz play something other than such a dastardly character again, since that's exactly what he's doing in Water for Elephants. We'll just have to see how both of these turn out.

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Last night I saw an awesome TV spot for Repo Men that only contained quick cuts of these guys collecting things and no music. You can watch that here and I was planning on posting it until this "Director's Cut" trailer popped up on the official website. Universal just debuted this new red band trailer for Repo Men that was cut by the director. Usually studios hire their own marketing teams to make trailers, but some directors cut their own because they feel they better represent the movie. I don't think this trailer was as good as that TV spot I mentioned, but damn does this look good. Can't wait to see this! Check out the new trailer below.

Watch the new red band trailer for Miguel Sapochnik's Repo Men:

Set in the future, the story revolves around a man (Jude Law) who struggles to make the payments on a heart he purchased. He must go on the run before said ticker is repossessed by the company that owns it.

Repo Men is directed by British first-time feature filmmaker Miguel Sapochnik, of only a short from 2000 called The Dreamer previously. The film is based on Eric Garcia's novel called The Repossession Mambo. The script was co-written by Garcia and TV writer Garrett Lerner ("Smallville", "Boston Public", "House"). Universal is bringing Repo Men to theaters everywhere starting on March 19th. Planning on seeing this?

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And so it's time for another go round of new releases on Netflix Instant up through March 14th. After last week's installment chock full of guilty pleasures and bad video game movies, Netflix amps it up this week with a pretty wide variety of films and only a couple bad ones. There's a few Best Picture nominated films, a couple of flicks that made the festival run for awhile, a couple of blockbusters from last year, and more. But right now only one of our selections is available today, with most of the rest of them getting released later in the week so be sure to check the streaming release date to the right of the title. So what's new this week?

Dare (Available Now):
Provocative and sexually charged, surprisingly without graphic nudity, this Sundance selection seems like a typical high school flick at first, but finds three students (Emmy Rossum, Ashley Springer and Zach Gilford) becoming involved in each others' lives in very surprising ways, weaving a love triangle that's about as awkward as high school was in real life. Genuine performances and a great snapshot of the confusion and obstacles teens face in discovering their identity, this is definitely worth a look.

Bronson (Available March 11th):
A surreal, peculiar and violent biopic of Charles Bronson, Britain's most notorious prisoner. For me Tom Hardy's performance as the fight-loving prisoner was the most engaging part of a film that simply seems to try too hard to be different. Director Nicolas Winding Refn has a unique filmmaking eye, but I'm not so sure it's all that impressive. Still Bronson's life, recounted in his own narration on display in the form of a one-man stage show with flashes to various times in his life, is not objective, and is an interesting take on a man who, otherwise, seems completely insane. You really have to see it to decide for yourself.

Angels & Demons (Available March 11th):
The second installment of adaptations of Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code novels brings back director Ron Howard and Tom Hanks as symbologist Robert Langdon for another cryptic adventure, but, sadly, without any real excitement. Unlike the novel, this is actually a makeshift sequel rather than a prequel to The Da Vinci Code. Even bringing in Ewan McGregor and Stellan Skarsgård couldn't make this series more captivating, and I made it a point not to read the book so I was left in the dark to figure out the mystery as it unfolded. The movies simply aren't as engaging as the novels.

Bad Company (Available March 12th):
Yes, back in 2002 Sir Anthony Hopkins and Chris Rock teamed up for a buddy cop movie that despite the potential of the combination lived up to the "bad" in its title. But of course, how many times do you get to hear someone like Hopkins call someone like Rock a bitch? But there's not much that can save silly identical twin plots as CIA agent Oakes (Hopkins) hooks up with street-smart bookie Hayes (Rock), who's been asked to replace his murdered, Harvard-educated, twin brother spy on a top-secret mission. The biggest problem is the movie takes itself too seriously when it should've been a straight-up comedy.

A League of Their Own (Available March 12th):
The movie responsible for #54 of AFI's 100 Years, 100 Movie Quotes: "There's no crying in baseball!" From actress/director Penny Marshall (Laverne from "Laverne & Shirley") comes this cherished sports comedy which sees Tom Hanks coaching an ensemble cast of female baseball players including Rosie O'Donnell, Madonna, and Geena Davis. Inspired by the real-life All-American Pro Girls League, the film sees a traveling baseball team and its drunk coach hitting the road and facing trials, tribulations and even triumphs on and off the field.

Broadcast News (Available March 12th):
Nominated for a slew of Oscars including Best Picture, this comedy is one of only a couple cinematic gems from "The Simpsons" creator James L. Brooks as he wrote and directed the story of three ambitious workaholics as their work and personal life intersect in a network TV newsroom. Holly Hunter, William Hurt and Albert Brooks all received Oscar nominations for their performances in a film that is almost the opposite of Network in its presentation of the newsroom, but with just as much substance.

The Sixth Sense (Available March 12th):
It's almost an undisputed fact that M. Night Shyamalan doesn't get much better than this. In a stellar breakthrough turn as writer/director, thus began the endless turn of twists in Shyamalan's films. Though mocked up and down in the years following, "I see dead people" also made the list of AFI's 100 Years, 100 Movie Quotes. Bruce Willis and Haley Joel Osment (where the hell is he anyway) turn in amazing performances and even a then lesser known Toni Collette puts on her best in a film that Shyamalan may never top. But, still, The Last Airbender looks pretty kick-ass.

The Proposal (Available March 13th):
If you're still on a high after Sandra Bullock taking endless awards for The Blind Side, including an Academy Award this past weekend, then this should hold you over until her next project. However, despite my enjoyment of both Bullock and Ryan Reynolds, their combined efforts just didn't shine as much as I hoped they would. However, a movie-stealing performance from Betty White makes this a bit more entertaining in a film that never quite gets a grasp on a believable romance between Reynolds' and Bullock's characters. Still, if anything your girlfriend or mother will love it.

Whatever Works (Available March 14th):
In my opinion, a vastly underrated film from last year, and one of Woody Allen's most recent sound triumphs has Larry David, the Woody Allen of another dimension, leading the standard awkward, wordy comedy we've come to expect from the bespectacled introvert. The film isn't exactly groundbreaking or even brilliant, but for some reason it just hit all the right chords of my heartstrings and really nailed my funny bone. Evan Rachel Wood and Ed Begley, Jr. also come along for the ride in a comedy that is not only hilarious but heart-warming.

And now the best of the rest online free movie websites' new additions for your online viewing pleasure…

The Auteurs: Your online cinema. Anytime. Anywhere.
Duck Dodgers in the 24 1/2 Century, Life Is Beautiful, Ocean's 11, Ocean's 12, Body of Lies, The Lost Boys, The Birdcage, Field of Dreams, The Muppet Movie, See No Evil Hear No Evil, Bee Movie, The Mosquito Coast, Antz, Lethal Weapon, Thumbsucker, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, Michael Jackson's Thriller, The Empire Strikes Back, The Hunt for Red October, and Marvin's Room

That's all for this week's installment of new Netflix Instant titles and other free movies to check out online. And remember, if you ever want to look back at titles already released, look forward to movies on the way, or check out the entire library of Netflix Instant titles, you can head over to InstantWatcher (in my opinion the most complete listing of Netflix's instant titles, updated daily) or also FeedFliks, whose hawk-eyes are on the lookout for future streaming release dates. And of course we'll also be back next week with the latest line-up of new Netflix titles. Now go watch some movies! Are you satisfied with this week's new selection?

Discover More: Editorials, Netflix Instant

Disney has finally debuted the teaser trailer for Tron Legacy online. This is one of those drop everything, watch now kind of trailers. As excited as I am for Iron Man 2, I am even more excited for Tron Legacy. We didn't expect this trailer to be online this early, but the viral game from earlier was already solved, and here it is for your viewing pleasure in glorious high definiton at the viral site: program-glitch-esc.net. This is only a teaser and it's our very first look at any real footage from the movie, so don't be let down if you wanted to see more action. The song used in this is a Daft Punk song specifically made for the trailer as well. Enjoy!

Watch the teaser trailer for Joe Kosinski's Tron Legacy:

You can also watch the Tron Legacy teaser in high def on this site: program-glitch-esc.net

Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund), the tech-savvy son of Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), looks into his father's disappearance and is pulled into the digital world of Tron where his father has been living for 25 years.

Tron Legacy is directed by first-time filmmaker Joseph Kosinski. The screenplay was co-written by Adam Horowitz ("Lost"), Richard Jefferies (Blood Tide, Living Hell), Edward Kitsis ("Lost"), and the director of the original movie, Steven Lisberger. This first got the greenlight last year because this early teaser played well at Comic-Con. Disney is bringing Tron Legacy to theaters in 3D starting on December 17th, 2010.

Discover More: Trailers, Tron Legacy, Worth Watching

They call me Mister Casting Tidbits! First up, Variety reports Anna Faris (Observe & Report) and Chris Evans (The Losers) are set to star in What's Your Number?, a new comedy from director Mark Mylod ("Entourage") which focuses on a woman who decides to re-visit her ex-boyfriends in the hopes of finding the man of her dreams with the help of her womanizing next door neighbor. What a terrible idea both in real-life practice and in cinematic narrative. Script is based on Karyn Bosnak's (who wrote her own draft) book 20 Times a Lady and has had some rewrites from Jennifer Crittenden and Gabrielle Allan. Read on!

Next, Variety also reports that the recently announced third installment of Martin Lawrence's "comedy" series Big Momma's House has also placed Jessica Lucas (of Cloverfield and the new "Melrose Place") as the new female lead opposite Lawrence and Brandon T. Jackson. Remember, this necessary sequel will have FBI agent Malcolm Turner (Lawrence) and his 17-year-old nephew Trent (Jackson), who go undercover at an all-girls performing arts school after Trent witnesses a murder. Posing as Big Momma and Charmaine, they must find the murderer before he finds them. How has no one died from seeing these movies yet?

Next, THR reports Liv Tyler (The Strangers), Patrick Wilson (Watchmen), Terrence Howard (Iron Man) and Charlie Hunnam (Children of Men) have all joined The Ledge, an interesting isolated feature that focuses on a man (Hunnam) standing on a high-rise ledge who insists he will jump by noon as the cop below (Howard) tries to manage the situation. The film comes from newcomer Matthew Chapman, who also wrote the screenplay, and who says that The Ledge "examines the different and sometimes dangerous beliefs people adopt as a means of surviving emotional trauma." Actually, this doesn't sound half-bad.

Finally, Variety says Ryan Gosling will star along with Steve Carell in the new yet-to-be-titled comedy about a father dealing with a marital crisis. He will play a suave best friend of Carell's character, whose life unravels as he tries to manage his relationship with his children. Directors John Requa and Glenn Ficarra, the duo behind such films as I Love You Phillip Morris and Bad Santa, are directing from a spec script by Dan Fogelman (Cars, Fred Claus). Seems like an interesting combination of talent, and for a script that netted a nearly $2 million deal, they better not screw it up.

Well, that's all for this edition of Casting Tidbits. Be sure to stay tuned for more casting updates on the way!

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After years of speculation and rumors, we finally got solid news on Men in Black 3 when Tropic Thunder writer Etan Cohen was officially brought on to write the third installment back in October, followed shortly by the less certain word that Josh Brolin was being strongly considered for a lead. Now comes a fairly juicy rumor from Bloody Disgusting who says that Sony is also very interested in adding Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat, Brüno) or Jemaine Clement (Gentlemen Broncos, "Flight of the Conchords") into the mix as a character named Yaz. It could a new agent, but I can't see either of these two playing anything but an alien.

The Men in Black franchise has brought along an interesting cast of aliens in the past played by the likes of Johnny Knoxville, Lara Flynn Boyle, Vincent D'Onofrio and Tony Shalhoub and I would love to see either Cohen or Clement thrown into the mix. Hell, keep both of them in. Either way, the third installment likely can't be any worse than the second which just lost everything that was great about the first, which, if you're keeping track, came out 13 years ago. I just hope this gets moving quickly so we can write up the 3-D news and get that out of the way now. I'd like to hope for the best with this sequel, but it's still too early to tell.

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Set to follow in the footsteps of his brother Chris Hemworth (who's playing the God of Thunder in Marvel's Thor), actor Liam Hemsworth, who can next be seen swooning Miley Cyrus in The Last Song, is making a jump from sappy Nicholas Sparks adaptations to some serious action adventure as Heat Vision reports that he's in negotiations to star in Arabian Nights, an epic new 3-D remake from director Chuck Russell (The Scoprion King). The story focuses on a young commander (Hemsworth) who, after his king is murdered in a coup, joins forces with Sinbad, Ali Baba and the Genie from the magic lamp to rescue queen Scheherazade.

The script was written by Russell and Barry P. Ambrose and shooting will start in the summer. This will be a real test for Hemsowrth to line-up as a big future action star like his brother. Action and adventure is great and all, but it's going to be tough to beat Disney's Aladdin. I jest, but, in all seriousness, with sandy action flicks like Clash of the Titans and Prince of Persia on the way soon, it seems like the ancient epic is in for a serious makeover. Russell's past efforts with The Scorpion King were lackluster, but nothing says action epic like his turn directing The Mask with Jim Carrey or Eraser with Arnold Schwarzenegger. You interested?

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This looks very confusing. Another new viral site for Tron Legacy has popped up online as discovered via a user on the Unfiction forums. The Flynn Lives webpage, which seems to be the home for all things Tron viral, was just updated with a new post talking about the 25-city scavenger hunt event that took place a few weeks ago. Included in the post was a video recap of the event (with footage of me as Los Angeles #1) and a message at the end that says basically: "The search has just begun… The next clue might be just around the corner." Using that clue in the message, you can find a series of codes that flash in the upper right corner.

These codes are a bit hard to find. The first one pops up at about 1:07 in when the video gets glitchy (oh and that's me in the shot seen above). Once all of them are put together, it points to a new viral site located here: http://5xrp2tk0p10ixnl7ga4e82an3s.net/. This is similar to the websites discovered in the discussion boards a few weeks ago that contain huge photos with lightcycle concept art and that random assortment of distorted bars. Similar look and design on this new site, but there's a lot more to "play with" this time. Glad to see them continuing on with the idea that Flynn is trying to contact us, but his messages are all distorted.

We're not sure what to do, since the new site was only recently discovered. But I have a feeling this may lead to the reveal of the trailer online (since it also premiered in theaters in front of Alice in Wonderland over the weekend). This new viral site only has four boxes. If you click each one, the site goes even crazier with all kinds of random numbers and words in huge lists. If you click any of the boxes with a number, it just shows you various patterns of more numbers. If you click the purple RPG box, it shows a bunch of words related to scripting online. But beyond that, we're not sure how to decipher this. If you think you can figure it out, please give it a shot and let us know if you find anything new. We'll do our best to keep you updated as well!

Update: On the new site, you can find 18 underline marks for what look to be 18 characters that have yet to be identified. Maybe once we figure out all 18 it will unlock a site that will take us to the trailer? Any ideas?

Update #2: Wow, that went quick. The trailer has been unlocked at a new viral site located here: program-glitch-esc.net. We just posted it on the FirstShowing home page. I received an email from my friend Nick of MovieViral.com informing me that the secret trailer URL had been discovered and explanations for how the code on the site we talk above was solved. Here is the information he sent to me about the four squares:

0 is the Fibonacci sequence: 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89

2 is just this numerical sequence: 11-647-719-991-467-211-677-127-881-281-643

3 is an old schoolyard puzzle, just starting with the 3 of the button: 13, 1113, 3113, 132113, 1113122113, 311311222113, 13211321322113, 1113122113121113222113, 31131122211311123113322113, 132113213221133112132123222113, 11131221131211132221232112111312111213322113

RPG is the level codes for the old TRON arcade: COBOL, BASIC, FORTRAN, SNOBOL, PL1, PASCAL, ALGOL, ASSEMBLY, OS, JCL, USER

Apparently most of this was solved by the Unfiction forums users, so they deserve most of the credit. I'm not exactly sure how they came up with these patterns and how they plug in to that viral site to spell "program-glitch-esc," but that's what solved this viral game. I wish we would've had a little more time to play around with and get an understanding of how it was solved before someone else just sent us a link, but virals aren't left up to only one person. You can expect plenty more complex numerical and computational sequences like this as the Tron Legacy viral continues on. Now that its been unlocked though, you best watch the trailer!

Discover More: Hype, Tron Legacy, Viral News

Although we just featured awesome new posters for Iron Man 2, those aren't the only new posters to arrive today. Warner Bros has finally debuted (only 46 days before it release) the final official poster for Sylvain White's The Losers based on the Vertigo comic series. I was actually hoping they'd do exactly this - put in the real-life actors into the original cover that they've used for The Losers since it was a comic. I really dig this poster and it's perfect for this movie, giving us a sense of the tone and style and a good look at all of the actors in this. I also added the Comic-Con poster and the original graphic novel cover below for reference.

Originally a Special Forces team seconded to the CIA in the 90s, the Losers were betrayed by their handler, Max, and left for dead following the conclusion of their operation. Eager for revenge and the opportunity to remove their names from a secret CIA death list, the Losers regroup and conduct covert operations against the CIA and its interests, uncovering startling operations spearheaded by the enigmatic villain Max, whose influence within the CIA and US government is unparalleled. The Losers is directed by Sylvain White and will hit theaters on April 23rd, 2010 this year. Still look as good as the original trailer? I'll be watching it.

Discover More: Hype, Opinions, Posters

Last night, the second insanely awesome trailer for Jon Favreau's Iron Man 2 hit the web in glorious high definition and fans went crazy over how fantastic it looks. To spice things up more, Paramount has debuted two new character posters - one for Iron Man and one for War Machine - and a standee (seen above) for Iron Man 2 over on Apple. That standee is one of those giant cardboard cutouts you'll see on display at your local movie theater sometime in the next few weeks. The other two posters look pretty awesome as well, but they feel a little too much like cardboard backing on toy figures I'd buy at Walmart. Check them out below!

Iron Man 2 takes place only six months after Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) revealed his identity as Iron Man at the end of the first movie. Mickey Rourke stars as a powerful new Russian villain named Whiplash.

Iron Man 2 is directed by actor-turned-filmmaker Jon Favreau, who previously directed Made, Elf, Zathura, and the first Iron Man. The screenplay for this was also written by an actor, Justin Theroux, who became a screenwriter a few years ago and co-wrote the Tropic Thunder script. Paramount will be bringing Iron Man 2 to theaters everywhere starting on May 7th, 2010 this summer. See everyone in theaters in May for this!

Discover More: Hype, Opinions, Posters

More troubles on this baseball film? There always seems to be some problem with the casting or the studio or something. The last time we wrote about Sony's Moneyball adaptation, which Steven Soderbergh was originally supposed to direct, was last year when it was revealed that Capote director Bennett Miller would be taking over for Soderbergh. Since then we haven't heard much else, but a little update over on an ESPN blog (via The Playlist) gives us some insight into the latest with Moneyball. According to author Michael Lewis, Brad Pitt is still attached as Billy Beane, but Demetri Martin has been replaced by Jonah Hill.

I don't even need to tell you about the character to know that this just doesn't seem like the right fit. Martin was supposed to play Paul DePodesta, a Harvard grad who turned down Wall Street jobs to use his statistical skills to change baseball scouting tactics. His system, known as "Earned Run Value," allowed manager Billy Beane to evaluate valuable players he could hire at low cost. Even ESPN's Rob Neyer is surprised that Jonah Hill is going to play "the ex-football player and Harvard graduate" instead of Demetri. I was actually looking forward to seeing Martin take on another role in a feature film after a refreshing turn in Taking Woodstock.

ESPN also confirmed that Moneyball is scheduled to start shooting in June, but considering what happened last time it was about to start shooting, you never know what could happen. I really can't see Jonah Hill in this at all, but maybe he's considering taking this opportunity to slim down in order to fit the character, just like Seth Rogen did for The Green Hornet. All I really know is that I think I still prefer Soderbergh's version of Moneyball, but that's gone forever and this what we're going to get whether we like it or not. Thoughts?

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Although Precious director Lee Daniels didn't take home an Oscar last night, his film still ended up with two Oscars and Daniels still went home with quite a few awards overall, including Best Director at Indie Spirit Awards last week. We already know Daniels' is following up Precious with the civil rights movement film Selma, written by Paul Webb. The Playlist followed the red carpet coverage closely last night and not only learned that Lenny Kravitz (seen above with Daniels) will appear in Selma, but also confirmed that Robert De Niro and Hugh Jackman (both previously announced) are officially on-board for this as well.

The film centers on the famous Selma-to-Montgomery marches in 1965 to help get voting rights for African Americans that also helped shift public opinion on civil rights overall. De Niro will play Governor George Wallace, and Kravitz, who had a supporting role in Precious, will play civil rights activist Andrew Young. As for Jackman, Empire speculates that he might be playing a smaller role as James Reeb, a minister who was fatally beaten to death during the marches. There seem to be a lot of other prominent figures still uncast, so I'm sure we'll be hearing plenty about this before they start shooting this May. Stay tuned for more casting!

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This sounds like it could be interesting. Sopranos creator David Chase (seen above) has a new film project he's working on following the conclusion of The Sopranos a few years ago. Deadline is reporting that Chase is currently developing an untitled drama that is a "music-driven coming-of-age saga for Paramount about a bunch of guys who form a rock band in the 1960s." Sounds like it will be fictional, so don't expect a biopic about any real 60's rock band. Chase has set a late summer/early fall start date and also wrote the script for it. This is his top priority and it's definitely next for him, not a Sopranos revival or anything related to that.

Deadline doesn't have much else to add about the project at the moment. Chase is also working on an HBO mini-series called A Ribbon of Dreams that he will apparently start once he finishes the rock 'n roll film. The project was first brought to Paramount back in 2008 and is being developed in their Paramount Vantage indie division. The studio actually shut down Vantage a few years ago, but Deadline says they kept the name in order to slap it on to projects that are "closer to the indie spirit and budget of past Vantage fare like Babel and There Will Be Blood." I'm interested and will be curious to hear more about Chase's film as it develops.

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"It’s the moment of a lifetime," seems to be the Quote of the Oscars this year. Last night, Kathryn Bigelow (photo above) and her film The Hurt Locker took home a total of six Oscars, including for Best Director and Best Picture. There are already all kinds of backlash and appreciative articles hitting everywhere around the web, as expected, so I'll let everyone else debate about the winners. Instead, I always love to talk a little bit about the show and highlights from it, since it's usually quite entertaining. However, I thought this year's show lacked a bit of the "spectacle" compared to last year. Though there were still plenty of great moments!

First, I do have to say that I actually enjoyed Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin as co-hosts. Besides the fact that they didn't "do much" or have more than 20 minutes of screentime the whole show, I still thought they brought some real class to the Oscars. And after Aussie hottie Hugh Jackman as the host last year, I think a little class was necessary to remind us that this is still an event run by rich Hollywood people. Anyway, my favorite jokes of theirs came during the segment early on where they'd single out people in the audience and make some quick one-liner jokes about them. I thought it was a lot of fun and tasteful. Here the video clip:

The only other real highlights of the Oscars this year were the Thank You Speeches. The two I wanted to single out are Christoph Waltz's, just because it was quick and fun and well put together, and Kathryn Bigelow's, which was just a good, strong emotional speech. Awards Daily has a great transcript recap for all of the others, including Mo'Nique, Jeff Bridges, Geoffrey Fletcher, and Sandra Bullock. There was also that wacky lady who seemed to steal the mic from the Best Documentary Short winner, which also has an ever odder explanation. Were there any other thank you Speeches that everyone else thought were really good?

This reminds me to mention one of my other favorite moments of last night. Although everyone pretty much expected Pixar to win at least the Best Animated Feature Ocsar for Up, I was also extremely ecstatic to see composer Michael Giacchino finally win an Oscar. But the best part is that both Up director Pete Docter and Giacchino were both sporting the little Grape Soda bottlecap pins (see photo here) from the movie Up (that Ellie gives to Carl). It was cool to see the first time when Docter was wearing it and even cooler when I saw Giacchino had one on, too. I have a feeling everyone from Pixar who was at the Oscars was wearing one.

Here are two speeches - Christoph Waltz for Best Supporting Actor and Kathryn Bigelow for Best Director:

Lastly, one aspect of the show that I've been getting into a lot of debates about recently was the decision to remove their Best Original Song performances from the Oscars entirely and, well, put in that interpretive dance number for Best Original Score instead. I admit that dance sequence was kind of strange, but it was actually pretty cool to see (since it was well choreographed). Anyway, I fully support the removal of the song numbers because those were always the moments I dreaded at the Oscars. They were always so boring and I didn't want to hear the songs on the show again. But others seem to miss them and want them back. What side are you on? And what did you think about the Oscar ceremony overall this year?

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The only semblance of news so far to come from celebrity-filled red carpet at the Oscars last night, seems to be this speculative story from our friends at MTV. The TV station caught up Keanu Reeves (who was there to introduce The Hurt Locker because he starred in Kathryn Bigelow's Point Break) and told him, jokingly, that they should greenlight a sequel to Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. Instead of a comedic response, Reeves replied with "we're trying, we're trying." Given the lighter atmosphere of the red carpet, MTV's Josh Horowitz then asked Reeves if he was joking: "I'm not." So could it be more than just a rumor? "We'll see."

Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure first hit in 1989 and was followed-up by an even cheesier sequel called Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey in 1991 (the same year as Point Break). The original was one of my all-time favorites as a kid (who doesn't love that movie?!). Given that Hollywood is stuck rebooting and remaking movies from the 80's, it makes sense that someone out there is interested in revisiting this series. We also know that Alex Winter, who played Bill S. Preston, Esq., is directing his own new horror remake of The Gate. So maybe the time is right? Maybe they are indeed revisiting Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure for some sequel or remake. But now the question is - could this be any good? Or is this just a bad idea from the start? Your thoughts?

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Not all of the great films that have become icons of cinema's history are given the pomp and circumstance of a theatrical re-release in celebration of its, presumably, long-lasting impact on the film industry. However, one such film is getting that special treatment, and it's not even a film made in the US, or for that matter, by an American filmmaker. Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless (aka À bout de souffle) is being given the honor of a theatrical re-release in celebration of its 50th anniversary (news via Variety). The New Wave film was heralded as a groundbreaking innovation in filmmaking with its gritty cinematography and hyper jump cuts.

Rialto Pictures, which the LA Times cals "the gold standard of reissue distributors" handling re-releases of films from such acclaimed directors as Federico Fellini yo Akira Kurosawa, is responsible for the re-release of Breathless, which Rialto founder Bruce Goldstein says, "is in a class by itself. It's not only one of the most important films of the last half-century, still inspiring new generations of moviemakers, but it's just as fun and audacious as it was 50 years ago." Here's a brief synopsis for those who aren't familiar with Breathless:

"Michel Poiccard, an irresponsible sociopath and small-time thief, steals a car and impulsively murders the motorcycle policeman who pursues him. Now wanted by the authorities, he renews his relationship with Patricia Franchini, a hip American girl studying journalism at the Sorbonne, whom he had met in Nice a few weeks earlier. Before leaving Paris, he plans to collect a debt from an underworld acquaintance and expects her to accompany him on his planned getaway to Italy. Even with his face in the local papers and media, Poiccard seems oblivious to the dragnet that is slowly closing around him as he recklessly pursues his love of American movies and libidinous interest in the beautiful American."

The film's American premiere will be at Graumann's Chinese in Los Angeles as part of the first TCM Classic Film Festival (which runs from April 22-25), but the restored 35mm print already showed at the Berlin Film Festival last month. After it's festival premiere, it will get a commercial release starting May 28th at New York's Film Forum shortly followed by a nationwide release. Personally, I can't wait to check out this new 35mm print, so hopefully it makes its way near me (in Chicago). I remember seeing this fantastic film along with others like Citizen Kane and Battleship Potemkin in my history of cinema classes and I'm quite excited to see it again on the big screen. Anyone planning on seeing Breathless in theaters this summer?

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"I am Iron Man!" Robert Downey Jr. appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live last night following the Oscars to debut this brand new trailer for Jon Favreau's Iron Man 2 which you can watch below! We all saw the first trailer for Iron Man 2 in December and although that looked awesome, I have to say, this trailer looks even better. We finally get to see lots of plot details in this, including more of Scarlett Johansson and a bit about how Sam Rockwell (as Justin Hammer) meets Mickey Rourke (as Whiplash). There are so many awesome scenes in this, I can't freakin' wait! What a way to kick off the summer. Watch the trailer below and enjoy!

Watch the second trailer for Jon Favreau's Iron Man 2:

You can also watch the second trailer for Iron Man 2 in High Definition on Apple

Iron Man 2 takes place only six months after Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) revealed his identity as Iron Man at the end of the first movie. Mickey Rourke stars as a powerful new Russian villain named Whiplash.

Iron Man 2 is directed by actor-turned-filmmaker Jon Favreau, who previously directed Made, Elf, Zathura, and the first Iron Man. The screenplay for this was also written by an actor, Justin Theroux, who became a screenwriter a few years ago and co-wrote the Tropic Thunder script. Paramount will be bringing Iron Man 2 to theaters everywhere starting on May 7th, 2010 this summer. See everyone in theaters in May for this!

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