The Fourth Kind. Directed by Olatunde Osunsanmi. Starring Milla Jovovich.
I screamed “YES!” because I have been waiting quite some time for a movie like this; one that is truly terrifying, abnormal; one that really scares you, sends a genuine chill down your spine and evokes raw emotion in a way that only great horror movies can do. The fact that the story is based on true events just adds to the suspense and excitement. And I love me my freak alien stories mixed with people’s psychosis. Jovoich’s creepy “breaking the fourth wall” moment in the trailer is awkwardly unique and kinda strange. Anyway, I hope the actual film does this trailer some justice by BEING A GOOD MOVIE. I went into The Strangers with such excitement and was left laughing in the end; it was awful. I am a fan of the Saw series, but that’s just plain ‘ol fun and blood and guts. Bring on the scary, Osunsanmi. Bring it.
J.J. Abrams’ Cloverfield is a great film that emphasizes shrouded mystery, unique camera work, spectacular special effects, and an intriguing and original story with believable characters. There is no way Abrams and crew (including producer Bryan Burk, director Matt Reeves, and writer Drew Godderd) could leave this franchise to waste after one film; especially that there is so much unused backstory material from all the viral marketing used to hype the movie way back when.
The crew on a potential sequel in the works…
Reeves: “While we were on set making the film we talked about the possibilities and directions of how a sequel can go. The fun of this movie was that it might not have been the only movie being made that night, there might be another movie! In today’s day and age of people filming their lives on their camera phones and Handycams, uploading it to YouTube… That was kind of exciting thinking about that.”
“There’s a moment on the Brooklyn Bridge, and there was a guy filming something on the side of the bridge, and Hud sees him filming and he turns over and he sees the ship that’s been capsized and sees the headless Statue of Liberty, and then he turns back and this guy’s briefly filming him. In my mind that was two movies intersecting for a brief moment, and I thought there was something interesting in the idea that this incident happened and there are so many different points of view, and there are several different movies at least happening that evening and we just saw one piece of another. That idea sort of tickled me.”
“The idea of doing something so differently is exhilarating. We hope that it created a movie experience that is different. The thing about doing a sequel is that I think we all really feel protective of that experience. The key here will be if we can find something that is compelling enough and that is different enough for us to do, then it will probably be worth doing. Obviously it also depends on how Cloverfield does worldwide and all of those things too, but really, for us creatively, we just want to find something that would be another challenge.”
Burk: “The creative team has fleshed out an entire backstory which, if we’re lucky, we might get to explore in future films.”
Abrams: “It would be a totally different kind of thing but it’s too early to talk about.”
As you can clearly see, there areideas floating around about what a sequel to Cloverfield can entail. Focusing on the backstory of the monster and changing up the style of the way the movie is portrayed to audiences seems to be the two big concepts to take away from the sequel jabber. Also, let me remind you that Cloverfield did leave some questions at the end of the film in two instances. (1) In the final scene of the film (the recording at Coney Island) a quick camera shot reveals a large object falling into the ocean. It has been oft-confirmed that this object was a satellite and that the excavation of said satillite woke up the monster who “[has] been down there in the water for thousands and thousands of years.” [J.J. Abrams] (2) Loyal fans of Abrams and Cloverfield (yeah, that’s me) who waited out the end credits to see if there was a reveal at the very end heardquite the treat. An unknown person whispers softly “It’s still alive.” When played backwards the audio plays “Help us.” {Listen below.} All in all, I would place all bets on a sequel coming to theatres soon. Let the crazy detailed viral marketing and hype begin!
Oh wait…what’s this? It seems as if viral marketing as started for Cloverfield 2. Although it is has not been confirmed as an official video for a sequel, and many speculate it may be fan-created, this video is still quite the treat for the Cloverfield following. Today a video was uploaded to YouTube titled “そこに何ですか？- R U THERE?” by abcharu21. It contains shaky-cam scenes from what appears to be Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica, CA, bizarre cuts to a father playing with his Asian baby, a shot of what may be the monster terrorizing civilians, and it ends with a quick shot of a street sign that reads “Cloverfield.” Though it may very well be a user-generated video, it seems too authentic to me. Check it out below and let the hype begin all over again.
If you have seen the trailer (or the movie itself) for District 9, you will notice it says “Presentend by Peter Jackson, Directed by Neill Blomkamp.” This short film “Alive in Joberg” is what Peter Jackson stumbled upon and got him interested in picking up the concept for D9 and putting Blomkamp at the helm. This six and a half minute short shows off Blomkamp’s raw talent of mixing CGI with live action. With what was surely a low budget and a light crew, Blomkamp took a great idea and displayed his talents in just the right way that led him to making a higher budget masterpiece that is District 9. (Fun fact: D9 star Sharlto Copely appears in and a producer of this short.)
Today The Sun is reporting that Megan Fox will fit into the tight suit and play the role of Catwoman in the next installation of Batman. Her “slightly darker edge” should fit the role just fine. Also according to this source, “All the other stars who have reinvented the Batman films are back on board – Christian Bale, Michael Caine and director Chirstopher Nolan.” Shooting begins next year and a release date will come soon after in 2011. So looking forward to this.
Inglourious Basterds is one of Quentin Tarantino’s finest films made to date. It is dramatic, it is comedic, it is gory, and it is very Tarantino. The film is separated into five different “chapters” each involving its own storyline that connects to the one before it. In traditional Tarantino style, emphasis is put on the (often subtitled) dialogue and subtle character interactions and expressions. Those who are looking for immediate action may find this mildly irritating, though the eventual over-the-top gruesome action is quite satisfying.
From the trailer and overall buzz of the movie one would probably expect that Brad Pitt is the main protagonist and star of this film. Although he does play an integral part as the leader of the Basterds, the “star role” is shared with the entire main ensemble and the supporting cast. Christoph Waltz’s portrayal as “Jew Hunter” Col. Hans Landa is magnificent, Mélanie Laurent’s Shosanna Dreyfus is disturbing and enticing, and Diane Kruger shines as sexy actress and undercover German Bridget von Hammersmark. It is worth mentioning that Pitt’s role as Lt. Aldo Raine from Maynardville, Tennessee is one of his most real and convincing characters he has ever played. It is clear to see that Tarantino wrote the part for him.
Basterds is a WWII movie unlike any you have ever seen before. It will have you clapping (if not standing in your seat cheering softly, like me) at the end of the movie. Tarantino strikes gold yet again with a great storyline, a successful mix of drama, comedy, and violence, a fierce musical score, and a brilliant cast that lifts this movie over their shoulders and holds it high throughout its lengthy but deserved duration.
A teaser trailer for the highly anticipated CG/live action film Avatar has been released. Although I am looking totally forward to this movie, I am disappointed in the teaser trailer. It did not reveal any plot line whatsoever, and more importantly it did not pique my interest. Director James Cameron (Titanic) is looking to shift the way films are made by introducing 3D to mainstream cinema in a way it has never been experienced before. After the 2D teaser trailer was released, eager fans of the upcoming film got the chance to watch 15 minutes of 3D footage at their local theatres. Initial reactions were not so good. Moviegoers do not seem to be convinced that Avatar will revolutionize film-making like Cameron believes it has the chance of accomplishing. However, I will keep my fingers crossed and hope that the final product turns out to be a success. It definitely has stiff competition now with a CG/live action film like District 9 blowing me away in standard 2D. Avatar comes out on December 18.
Wired goes behind the scenes (for a second time) with DISTRICT 9’s Neill Blomkamp (director), Greg Broadmore (WETA Workshop designer), and others. Topics mostly consist of alien and weaponry design. Dig it. For the first behind the scenes video, click here.
The folks over at Cracked.com asked their viewers to Photoshop images that would portray classic movies that could have been resolved much more quickly if they had incorporated BLANK.* The “blank” is what the users created. All of these are quite comedic, so enjoy their work that is in the gallery below.
A recent study has gathered interesting findings of people’s blinking habits and when they blink during a movie. Researchers at the University of Tokyo have found that “the flow of visual information to the brain is halted by up to 450 milliseconds with every blink, and we lose up to 6 seconds of information every minute.” New Scientist relays this information in layman’s terms: “This means moviegoers who sit through a 150-minute film have their eyes shut for up to 15 minutes.” It was also found that people tend to blink in unison during the same parts of a movie. A researcher noted that “”This is the first study to demonstrate that blinks are excellently coordinated during video playback.” After several tests, the researchers went on to conclude that these synchronized blinks occur during “non-critical” moments, so at the end of an action scene or as Gizmodo humorously noted, “whenever Megan Fox is off screen.”
DISTRICT 9. Presented by Peter Jackson, directed by Neill Blomkamp. A masterpiece. A true work of art. Emotions, build up. Edge-of-your-seat action, suspense. Humans, aliens. Peace, war, racism, segregation, gangs, slums. Super-powerful weapons. Gore, violence. Strength, weakness. Friendship, betrayal. Father, son. Fight or flight. Team-work. Flaw. Rebirth. Transformation. Terror, fear, angst. Power, manipulation, money, rations. Dark humor. Grounded. Documentary-style. Shaky-cam, angles. CGI, RED camera, gorgeous scenery. Perfect, stunning mix of reality (humans, surroundings) and CGI fantasy (aliens, mothership, weapons). Sharlto Copley as Wikus Van De Merwe — raw talent. Brilliant. Superb. Best movie of the summer. Most original storyline, best sci-fi movie in recent memory. SATISFYING.
