View full post on BBC – Kermode Uncut Blog

A new official trailer for the release of Peter Stebbings’ comedy Defendor starring Woody Harrelson and Kat Dennings has debuted on Trailer Addict. We originally featured an early trailer for this wacky superhero comedy last September before its premiere in Toronto, but this new trailer is a better representation of what to expect from the movie. Yes, the cinematic marketplace is getting a bit saturated with superhero comedies (like Kick-Ass) but this is one that I suggest seeing because Woody Harrelson gives a great performance and because it is mildly entertaining. It’s not that bad, but it’s not really that amazing either. Watch and enjoy!

Watch the official trailer for Peter Stebbings’ Defendor:

If you miss the opportunity to see Defendor in theaters, it arrives on DVD on April 30th.

Reality intersects with delusion in the mind of Arthur Poppington, a regular man who adopts a superhero persona known as Defendor, and combs the streets at night in search of his arch-enemy, Captain Industry.

Defendor is both written and directed by Canadian actor-turned-filmmaker Peter Stebbings, who is making his directorial debut with this film. This first premiered at the Toronto Film Festival last year (you can watch my video review of the film here). It’s being distributed in Canada by Alliance Films and in the US by Darius Films. Defendor will hit very limited theaters start on February 26th this month before arriving on DVD.

Discover More: Hype, Trailers, Worth Watching

View full post on FirstShowing.net

This is the perfect day for another viral to kick back into action. ComingSoon says that one of their readers in Puerto Rico received a box from the Flynn Lives group (flynnlives.com) containing a big, odd, red star plus a URL written inside the box that points to flynnlives.com/zerohour. This Tron Legacy viral kicked off last summer during Comic-Con, where Flynn’s Arcade tokens were sent out and an actual arcade was discovered in San Diego (see photos here). We’re not sure where this is going to take us next, but it looks like the next phase of this Tron viral is starting up. Can’t wait to see what’s in store for us viral geeks next!

We’re not sure what’s going on at this Zero Hour site yet, but it looks like there’s some Flash game we’ve got to play (or figure out) to get to the next step. Those little red stars are from the original Tron as well but I can’t exactly remember what they do, although I think they’re good guys. Anyone have any idea? A few of the stars on the right side of the grid keep changing back and forth between the orange diamond and the star. Maybe it’s some sort of code? This is the most we’ve discovered so far in regards to this latest aspect of the Tron Legacy viral game, but we’ll be updating this post with more details as they arrive – so stay tuned!

The only other site involved in this Tron Legacy viral is the homeoftron.com site for Flynn’s Arcade. I did a quick check that of site and the Flynn Lives site and there have been no major changes to either page yet.

Discover More: Tron Legacy, Viral Marketing

View full post on FirstShowing.net

I guess I’m writing about this only because it’s a holiday and I really wanted to show you guys how totally awesome this James Cameron as a Na’vi painting is, so check it out below. Hero Complex has a new blog interview up with James Cameron talking about how he had to cut a “epiphanal scene” featuring Jake and Tsu’tey from Avatar because “there was one dramatic beat too many.” He also goes on to talk briefly about how Avatar is his most personal film he’s ever made because it has been sort of a culmination of all things in his life that have fascinated him, underwater and as a kid. It’s a pretty interesting little interview featurette.

“As a kid who was both an avid reader of science fiction and fantasy and comic books and constantly conjuring all these images in my head before there were VCRs and I could just watch any movie any time I wanted…

“There was very little imagery out there at the time. You had to make it up yourself, and as an artist I was always drawing all these things, so all the stuff in Avatar was stuff I had been drawing for years as a teenager… And then as a scuba diver sort of discovering the endless bounty of nature’s imagination underwater, which is really, ultimately, almost unfathomable. So Avatar is all of that, all sort of distilled down into one movie.

“The story was written 15 years ago, and certainly there was a strong environmental consciousness then… but it’s obviously on our minds a lot more now as this sense of a coming day of reckoning… that we really have to deal with this.”

This is pretty much just some Oscar bait material just to hype up Cameron for the big ceremony next month. I mean it’s cool that he makes some and informed decisions like this, but [spoiler] Tsu’tey’s death sounds like it would’ve been a very important scene to see in the film to complete the story. Anyway, the real reason I wanted to feature this article was because attached to it was this totally awesome painted portrait of James Cameron as a freakin’ Na’vi! It’s just awesome and I wanted to show this for all of you to chuckle at as well. Let’s hope this man below wins the Oscar on March 7th. Maybe he’ll even speak more Na’vi again this time?

Discover More: Awards News, Cool Stuff, Opinions

View full post on FirstShowing.net

Quentin Tarantino has been making the rounds worldwide since last August, doing hardcore press for Inglourious Basterds in hopes that it takes home some Oscars on March 7th. He’s been talking a lot about what’s next for him, which we know won’t be Kill Bill Vol. 3 (yet), but will be either a western or a gangster movie. The idea of Tarantino doing a western is what excites me the most, so that’s what I’d love to see him do next, but what would be about? While talking with NY Daily News, Tarantino unveiled an idea he has for a western, but who knows if we’ll ever actually see something like this actually come together. Read on!

Next up for Tarantino? “I’d like to do a Western. But rather than set it in Texas, have it in slavery times. With that subject that everybody is afraid to deal with. Let’s shine that light on ourselves. You could do a ponderous history lesson of slaves escaping on the Underground Railroad. Or, you could make a movie that would be exciting. Do it as an adventure. A spaghetti Western that takes place during that time. And I would call it ‘A Southern.’”

That’s a big idea and I actually hope he does something like this (at some point), although I’d have to know more about the story to honestly say I’d be excited for it. His answer just sounds so hypothetical that I’m not sure it will ever happen. However, this isn’t the first time he’s talked about that slavery setting. The Playlist says he mentioned it back in 2007, saying “I want to do movies that deal with America’s horrible past with slavery and stuff but do them like spaghetti westerns, not like big issue movies.” This isn’t a sure sign that Tarantino will be making a western about slavery next, but it is certainly possible. We’ll keep you updated!

Discover More: Movie News, Opinions

View full post on FirstShowing.net

It’s been almost seven years since Kevin Costner directed his last film (Open Range) and about fourteen years since I saw him in a film that I actually enjoyed (Tin Cup). It’s a shame, because I grew up really liking him in films like Field of Dreams and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and then as I got older, I discovered his great performances in The Untouchables, Dances with Wolves and Bull Durham as well. Now he might get a chance to shine on both fronts again as Variety reports that Costner will direct and star in A Little War of Our Own, which centers on a sheriff who has to try and keep a town from exploding into violence.

Armyan Berstein will be producing through Beacon Pictures (the fourth time he has done so with Costner, and the first since Open Range) and says it’s been a real passion project they’ve wanted to get off the ground for awhile, saying: “This has been a dream project for Kevin and I for years. The themes are timeless – war, peace and reconciliation. The canvas is epic – look at the movies Kevin has directed.” All four of them, only one of which was really great (Dances with Wolves)? Done. I’m not exactly sure what kind of film this will be either, because the logline sounds like a western, but Variety mentions the pursuit for someone to take another lead role as a German U-boat commander. So who knows what this “little war” is going to be like?

Discover More: Casting News, Movie News, Opinions

View full post on FirstShowing.net

As a big fan of the sci-fi genre, I usually hunt for every indie sci-fi film I can find, and today we have a new one to introduce to you. CHUD premiered a teaser trailer for a film called Earthling, written and directed by Clay Liford, about a group of people aboard the international space station who discover that the lives they have been living are all a lie. They’re not human, they’re aliens and now they must decide whether to keep on living as men or find a way back home. Just like Duncan Jones’ Moon, I love seeing how much they can accomplish on a limited budget, and this looks great. Looking forward to seeing this as soon as I can.

Watch the first teaser trailer for Clay Liford’s Earthling:

After a mysterious atmospheric occurrence aboard the international space station causes a tragic event, a small group of people wake up to realize that their entire lives have been a lie. They are in fact aliens disguised as humans. Now they have to make a choice: Live amongst men, or try to find a way back home.

Earthling is both written and directed by New York City-born filmmaker Clay Liford, who directed a few comedic short films and was a cinematographer before making his feature directorial debut with this. The film is premiering at the SXSW Film Festival next month, which is where we’ll see some of the first reviews as well. There is also an official website that you can check out by clicking right here. Anyone interested?

Discover More: Indies, Trailers, Worth Watching

View full post on FirstShowing.net

Video game movies still aren’t a hot commodity yet (maybe after Prince of Persia?), but it doesn’t mean we can’t be excited for more adaptations coming up (like BioShock, too). SlashFilm has learned that writers Douglas Cook and David Weisberg, of The Rock and Double Jeopardy previously, will be adapting the video game Darkest of Days released by Phantom EFX last year (for Xbox 360 and PC). The project is being produced by Joe Roth (Hellboy II, Alice in Wonderland, Knight & Day) and is currently be shopped around to Hollywood studios by CAA. You’ve got to hear what the plot of this game is, though, it’s pretty awesome!

Here’s a brief synopsis of the introduction to our protagonist and story in the Darkest of Days video game.

In Darkest of Days, the player controls Alexander Morris, a soldier fighting in General Custer’s army during the Battle of Little Big Horn at the beginning of the game. After Custer is killed and Morris is wounded he is suddenly rescued by a man in futuristic armor and taken through a strange portal.

Morris then awakens in the headquarters of Kronotek, an organization that has managed to develop time travel technology and is apparently dedicated to researching and protecting history. A Kronotek higher-up known as “Mother” tells Morris that the organization’s founder has gone missing and disturbances have started appearing through history, causing individuals that have played key roles in history to be placed in danger, and tasks Morris with helping Kronotek restore history.

So although Darkest of Days isn’t the greatest game, it has such a cool concept, that I’m just excited to see it adapted into a movie. Reading that synopsis above fills my mind with so many cool ideas and thoughts. I’m a sucker for anything time travel, too, and this takes it to a whole other level. As a game, Darkest of Days is a first-person shooter that takes players back in time into historic battles in an effort to save certain people from death to keep the continuity of history. I’d love to see someone put some money into this and create a world where we, as moviegoers, get to see them travel back to different battles. As long as it’s not as cheesy as Night at the Museum, I think we’ll be fine. We will definitely keep you updated on this, so stay tuned.

Discover More: Movie News, Opinions

View full post on FirstShowing.net