Right Cinema

It’s time for summer blockbusters, and the movies releasing Friday fit the bill. It’s time for some family fun with the long-awaited Pixar film, “WALL-E”, and some hot action with Angelina Jolie’s latest, “Wanted”.

“Wanted” Releases June 27

Wanted

Curving bullets. Assassins. And the return of Morgan Freeman. Oh, and one fine-looking Angelina Jolie. The folks in “Wanted” are a fraternity of assassins who recruit James McAvoy. Though the plot and the focus of the movie appear somewhat lacking, the action looks bad ass. The only question is, will it be enough to carry the script?

The plot: After Wes’ father is murdered, the Fraternity recruit him to avenge his death and become a trained assassin. Kill one, save thousands. But there might be more to this group of assassins than meets the eye.

WALL-E

In the most anticipated animated movie of the year, we find Short Circuit look-alike Wall-E alone on planet Earth, left to clean it up. But love blossoms when a spaceship, carrying Eve, lands at Wall-E’s landfill. And while reviewers say that there’s really only 45 good minutes in the one and a half hour movie, they also say that’s a damn good 45-minute stretch. As Mick LaSalle of the San Francisco Chronicle writes,

Philosophically and emotionally, this is probably the most profound animated film ever made or attempted. … For as long as it stays on Earth, “WALL-E” is a great film, and on its way to being one of the masterpieces of the decade. But then it leaves Earth, and, once it does, it goes into pedestrian territory.

See the trailers for the movies below.

Videos

We are getting closer and closer to summer blockbuster season, and the movies releasing this week are sure sign of that. The titles are getting bigger and the celebrities more famous. In theaters this Friday are “The Incredible Hulk” and “The Happening”.

“The Incredible Hulk” Releases Friday

The Incredible Hulk

The last Hulk movie was a pretty big disappointment - even an actor as attractive and talented as Eric Bana couldn’t fix that script. But this time around the film is more promising. Starring Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and Tim Roth, the latest in big green men comic book movies starts with the Gamma Bomb and traces the adventures of the Incredible Hulk as he learns to deal with his new powers. And so far the critics are loving it, saying things like “Hulk Smash!”, “one of the most spectacular and exciting things I’ve ever seen on screen”, and “a summer popcorn movie that favors thrilling action”. It looks like this is the pick of the weekend, so get your tickets early.

The Happening

“The Happening” begins with a wave of strange and mysterious deaths across the US, and Mark Wahlberg, as a high school science teacher, sets off to discover a way to escape the freaky phenomenon. But even far-off farmland isn’t far away enough, and Mark and his wife must face the invisible killer head-on.

The movie is the latest psychological thriller from M. Night Shyamalan, and it looks to be better than some of his more recent films. “The Happening” is being called “a tantalising, sometimes frustrating parable about the menaces that human beings might face from unexpected quarters.” Though Shyamalan usually sticks with a plot-upending twist in his stories, not this time - we’ll leave it up to you whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing.

See the movie trailers below.

Videos

I hope you weren’t looking to get caught up in a good drama or suspense movie this weekend because the new movies releasing this week are nothing but laughs. This Friday “Kung Fu Panda” and “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan” come out in theaters.

“Kung Fu Panda” Releases Friday

Kung Fu Panda

A star-studded cast of celebrities provide the voiceovers for this family-friendly animated comedy. Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu - the list goes on and on. This sounds like the highest paid cast of an animated movie that there’s been in awhile.

But will the turnout live up to the payday? So far it sounds like it. Rotten Tomatoes gives it 88% after the critics weighed in. The reviews go a little like this:

• “simple and lighthearted”

• “my favorite film of the year so far”

• “A Jenny Craig wet dream”

• “funny, unpretentious, more than bear-able crowd-pleaser”

• “solid family film material”

You Don’t Mess With The Zohan

Adam Sandler’s latest movie brings a little lightheartedness to the war on terror. Sandler plays Zohan, and Israeli specialist who really just wants to do ladies’ hair. He moves to New York to pursue that dream, but when Palestinian terrorist Rob Schneider comes calling, things get messy … and funny. Well, it’s supposed to be funny, but it appears that the movie may have missed the mark. Instead “Zohan” is full of vulgarity and gay jokes, gimmicks that lost their luster long ago. But you might get a laugh or two out of it, and with only one other competitor this weekend, it will probably bring in the cash.

See the movie trailers below.

Videos

In theaters this Friday, Adam Sandler brings his brand of wacky comedy to the big screens with his latest movie, “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan”. You can see the preview here.

Adam Sandler in “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan”

“Knocked Up” and “Superbad” genius Judd Apatow helped out with the screenplay of “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan”, in addition to Robert Smigel of “TV Funhouse”. Which means this movie is sure to be full of laughs, even if some scenes are a little dumber than others. In the film, Sandler is Zohan, the anti-terrorism specialist who secretly wants to do women’s hair in New York City. But when Palestinian terrorist Rob Schneider hits the scene to take out Zohan, things get messy.

Unfortunately, not everyone loves “Zohan” - it’s about 50-50 with the critics. But if vulgar is your thing, this movie might be just what you’re looking for on Friday.

See more photos of Adam Sandler in “You Don’t Mess With The Zohan” and the movie trailer below.

Photos and Video

This Tuesday is a slow day for DVDs releasing this week, unless the only DVDs you watch are Blu-Ray, in which case there are several discs being released on the high definition disks that were already previously released on DVD. This week, the only two semi-big titles we’ve got are “The Eye” and “Flawless”.

“The Eye” Releases on DVD

The Eye

Jessica Alba stars in this horror film about a blind girl who is given the chance to see after a corneal transplant. Unfortunately for the girl, along with the sights of everyday life, Alba’s character is also able to see death capturing people and taking them away. She must find out whose eyes she has inherited and why they hold these secret visions. Critics have almost universally panned the flick, which received a C- overall. Alex Markerson of E! Online writes,

“So, there’s nothing in The Eye that’s scary enough to warrant closing your eyes. Sadly, there’s nothing exciting enough to keep them open, either.”

But Jessica Alba on screen for 90 minutes might keep your eyes open. See, there is an up side.

Flawless

Demi Moore and Michael Caine star in this diamond heist thriller set in 1960s London. Demi is diamond company executive frustrated by the glass ceiling holding her down. Michael is a night janitor with a personal vendetta against the company. Together they come up with a plan to take down the man and steal all of his diamonds.

Unfortunately, it appears that the movie never quite gets going. After the robbery, the film starts to get a little more unpredictable, but not necessarily in a good way. As a New York Times reviewer writes,

None of it makes much sense. In an extra, unnecessary layer, “Flawless” is told as a flashback in which the aged Laura brings her story to a magazine editor.

Also on DVD this week is the Third Season of “Weeds”.

See the trailers for the movies below.

Videos

Whenever there’s a top secret double-agent spy action hero, he drives a manly car. He drives KIT. He drives a Ferrari. He drives an Audi. He drives a Bat Mobile. He drives a … a Vespa? If you’re Maxwell Smart in “Get Smart”, that’s right. Agent Smart drives a Vespa.

Agent Smart Rides a Vespa

Steve Carrell stars as Agent Maxwell Smart in the upcoming comedy, “Get Smart”, opposite Anne Hathaway, which premieres June 20, 2008. But in spoof comedy fashion, this action hero doesn’t drive just any old vehicle - he’s rockin’ the Vespa.

Vespa has been a part of “Get Smart” since it was a television show in the 1960s. In fact, the Alpha-Wallis Vespa was developed specifically for Maxwell Smart, which could fly and scope things out under water.

To promote both the movie and the scooter company, they have paired with Subway in an instant-win sweepstakes. Ten free Vespas will be given away as grand prizes. So go get your 5, 5-dollar, 5-dollar footlooooong, and maybe you’ll get a Vespa while you’re there.

See more photos from the “Get Smart” movie and the trailer below.

Photos and Video

Friday is almost here, and with it there are new movies. Here are the movies releasing this week, on Friday, May 30. There’s only two this week: “Sex and the City” and “The Strangers”, so whether you want to laugh or jump out of your seat, you’ve got options.

“Sex and the City” Releases Friday

Sex and the City

Friday night, it’s going down. Groups of girls are going out in droves, wearing their best Carrie garb and drinking their cosmos, all in the name of one movie: “Sex and the City”. But as much hype as there is, it sounds like the film doesn’t live up. But did you really expect it to? And is it really necessary that the movie is 2 hours 15 minutes? I smell overkill.

While one qualm with the film is the way the characters have remained stagnant over time, the big complaint is the abundance of product placement. It is also much tamer sex-wise than the television show ever was - I’ll let you decide whether that’s a good or a bad thing. One reviewer writes,

There are some good lines, but the much-feted banter is far less soulful or funny than that in Bridget Jones’s Diary. Sex and the City won’t disappoint any of its fans. But like its characters - Samantha, who’s on the verge of 50, and Carrie, who looks like a skeletal transvestite - it’s getting on a bit. This really should be its final hurrah.

Having said all that, I’ll be wearing my stilettos, martini glass in hand, on Friday.

The Strangers

Liv Tyler is back, and this time she’s going horror film - a movie that will make you think twice about renting a cabin for the weekend somewhere. In “The Strangers”, Liv and her husband, played by Scott Speedman, check into a large house for the weekend, but their romantic getaway is interrupted by a group of people who want to torture the couple just because “they were home”.

Feelings on this movie are about 50-50. I guess you’ll either love it or hate it, but either way I bet you jump out of your seat at least once.

See the trailers for the movies below.

Videos

Not many new DVDs releasing this week, but enough to write about. For both the big screen and small screen, we’re in the dead zone as far as exciting new releases go. But there’s a couple, so here we go.

“Rambo” Releases This Week on DVD

Rambo

Sylvester Stallone is back. In “Rambo”, both written and directed by Stallone, we find the always kickass fighter living a quiet life in the jungles of Thailand. That is, until he is hired by a group of mercenaries to travel to Burma to save a group of Christian aid workers. Fans have been waiting for more Rambo since 1988, but it looks like they might be a little disappointed. The New York Times writes,

“Rambo” is, for most of its fairly brief running time, a blood bath punctuated by occasional bouts of clumsy dialogue. There are beheadings, mutilations, disembowelings — enough gore to rival “Apocalypto.”

But if you’re looking for violent excitement, this might be just the movie for you this week.

Grace Is Gone

John Cusack made two movies about the war this year, “Grace is Gone” and “War, Inc.” “War, Inc.” is a satirical look at the capitalist side of conflict. But “Grace is Gone” is a much more emotional story. Cusack plays a husband whose wife has been killed in the line of duty in Iraq. With two daughters to raise, Cusack isn’t sure how to break the news, so he waits. Throughout the movie we watch him struggle with how and when to tell his 8 and 12-year-olds that their mother isn’t coming home. I’m guessing Kleenex are a requirement with this one - I needed one just for the trailer.

Cassandra’s Dream

“Cassandra’s Dream” is written and directed by Woody Allen. But with a plot that sounds a lot like “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” (Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marisa Tomei), it looks like Allen has backed away from comedy this time. “Cassandra’s Dream” follows two brothers down on their financial luck who turn to crime as a way to make some cash. When their Uncle Howard offers to help, by paying them to kill an old business associate, the brothers must come face-to-face with their decision. In the film we follow Ewan McGregor and Colin Farrell as they deal with the criminal decisions they make.

See the trailers for the movies below.

Videos

Though not set to release until November 7, 2008, “Changeling” is already starting a buzz of excitement. Starring Angelina Jolie and John Malkovich, “Changeling” is the story of a mother’s search for her lost son. Set in 1928, Angelina comes home from work to find her son missing. When a boy returns months later saying he’s her son, Angelina knows he’s not, and the quest to find the truth in the Prohibition Era begins. John Malkovich stars as the Reverend who helps Angelina along the way.

Angelina Jolie In “Changeling”

Clint Eastwood directs this promising drama. He says,

“A mother’s love is the whole driving force of the movie.”

When the script was laid in front of him, Eastwood was particularly impressed by how closely it followed the actual events of the time. In 1928, the mother’s story and her conflict with the LAPD had riveted Los Angeles and appeared all over the news.

“Changeling” premiered at Cannes. Clint Eastwood, Angelina Jolie, and Brad Pitt did the promotional rounds, and insanity followed. The press couldn’t wait to get their photos of a pregnant Angelina Jolie (twins!) standing next to Brad, but even without her baby bump Angelina would draw some attention with the powerful performance she pulls off in her upcoming film.

See more photos of Angelina Jolie on the set of “Changeling” and a video of Eastwood and Jolie discussing the movie below.

Photos and Video

The Indiana Jones review from Cannes is in and it starts with a 3 1/2 standing ovation from the audience. The film’s world premiere was Sunday night at the film festival and it looks like Harrison Ford will be enjoying another successful run at the box office.

Indiana Jones Review

Reporters and fans have made this movie the event of the festival so far. There was an overwhelming reaction to Ford, Steven Spielberg, and George Lucas by both the crowd and photographers when they took the red carpet.

Before the film had ended, the festival sent out an alert that it would be reviewing tapes of the hordes of photographers on the red carpet, and revoking the closing-night credentials of those responsible for “inacceptable incidents.”

The film has been the target of many internet critics, but it looks like Indiana Jones fans aren’t listening. After all, according to Spielberg, they are the ones who got the film made.

“I never thought it was a gamble. Although, to be fair, every movie I’ve ever made is a gamble…but this was something I and the cast members were always asked, ‘When’s Indiana Jones coming back’?”

From the beginning, it was thought the movie would always be a commercial success. After the premiere at Cannes, it looks like it could be a critical success also. You can see more photos from the movie and the premiere below.

Photos

Jason Reitman, the hot new director in Hollywood, has just announced his the next film that he’s going to be working on. Jason Reitman’s new movie will be a film adaptation of the book “Up in the Air”.

Jason Reitman’s New Movie: “Up In The Air”

Jason Reitman was born for Hollywood. His father is “Ghostbusters” director Ivan Reitman, so it was only a matter of time before he joined the movie business. At age 12, Jason had a tiny role in “Ghostbusters 2″, and he’s done a little more acting since then. But he is most known for his writing and directing - he wrote and directed “Thank You For Smoking” and directed the indie instant-classic “Juno”.

Since Ellen Page made Jennifer Garner the happiest adoptive mother in Minnesota, everyone has been wondering what Reitman will do next, and now we know. Reitman recently announced that he will be writing the adaptation for and directing the movie “Up in the Air”. The film is a comedy and a drama, according to Reitman. It takes a shot at the corporate world, following a professional who specializes in “career transition counseling”, a.k.a. firing people. His two main goals in life are to acquire a million frequent flier miles and work for the company MythTech. The book, written by Walter Kirn, was named one of Amazon.com’s Best of 2001, and reading the reviews it sounds pretty entertaining. One reviewer writes,

Reading Walter Kirn’s “Up in the Air” is like sitting next to someone on an airplane who’s led a fascinating life and won’t shut up about it.

See more photos of Jason Reitman and a video of Michael Cera and Ellen Page singing a song about him below.

Photos and Video

It’s the slowest weekend at the box office so far - only one movie releasing tomorrow. But that one movie should bring in the crowds, because it’s “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian”.

“The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Capsian”

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

The kids from the wardrobe are back, but things aren’t as rosy this time around. It’s been a year since Lucy, Edmond, Peter, and Susan were in Narnia, but for Narnia it’s been 1300 years and times have changed. In the time that has passed, Narnia was conquered by the Telmarines and King Miraz. Under Miraz’s rule, the rightful heir to the throne, Prince Caspian, has been forced into hiding to avoid assassination. It becomes the quest of the Pevensie children to restore Narnia to the great land that it once was.

The movie looks to be as entertaining both in storyline and in pictures, and a great follow-up to the first instant classic. (Come on. When you get an SNL Short rap about your movie, it’s an instant classic.) Although noticeably darker, the reviews have been strong. Chronicles has been called,

“A grand and visually stunning epic with thrilling battle scenes and powerful themes.”

and

“… an elaborately presented feast …”

Most are even calling it better then the first. No matter what, I know I’ll be singing “the chronic what cles of Narnia”.

See the trailer for “The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian” below.

Video

Angelina Jolie arrives at the Cannes Film Festival to promote her new animated movie “Kung Fu Panda.”

Angelina Jolie at Cannes Film Festival

Angelina and Jack Black were comparing bellies on the red carpet, but I think the Panda has both of them beat. Jolie’s co-stars have managed to let out all of her pregnancy secrets in the last couple of days. First, Jack confirmed to Natalie Morales at the Today Show that she and Brad Pitt were having twins. Then Dustin Hoffman announced the due date – August 19.

“It seems like everybody is bursting at the seams around her with her baby news.”

The next question to answer is where will the birth take place? France seems to be the front runner, but maybe they’re trying to throw off the paparazzi. I’m sure People magazine has already paid a small fortune for those pictures.

You can see more of Angelina Jolie on the red carpet at Cannes below.

Photos

‘Sex and the City: The Movie‘ is finally here and you can see the world premiere photos below. I’m especially digging Sarah Jessica Parker’s choice of head gear. No, I did not photoshop it, but I wish I had. Cynthia Nixon reportedly agrees:

“What was SJP wearing on her head?,” she was heard to say. “What was going on there?”

Sex and the City: The Movie World Premiere Photos

The girls, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Catrall, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis, stepped out in London, England on May 12th at the Odeon Leicester Square. They were all looking very couture and Nixon was one wind gust away from a nip slip. You can see her very revealing dress here. Coincidentally, Nixon is also the only one of the four girls who appears nude in the film.

Check out more photos of the world premiere below and a video of Cynthia talking about the film.

Photos and Video

Several Hollywood names are angry with the war in Iraq, and while actors and actresses have long voiced their anger in the media, few have gone so far as to make a movie that directly satirizes the conflict. But that’s exactly what John Cusack aims to do in his new movie “War, Inc.”.

John Cusack In “War, Inc.”

“War, Inc.” premiered at Tribeca, and as Cusack surprisingly found, opened to pretty good reviews. He helped write the screenplay, which he also stars in alongside Hilary Duff, Marisa Tomei, and Sir Ben Kingsley.

In the film, Cusack plays a hit man who is hired by Tamerlane, a company occupying the country of Turaqistan which is run by a former U.S. vice president. Cusack is hired to assassinate a Middle Eastern oil minister because he plans to lay an oil pipeline through Turaqistan, which would foil Tamerlane’s plan for sole proprietorship of the country.

For her part, Duff plays a trashy central Asian pop singer who is set to wed a powerful local politician. She hopes that moviegoers will see the humor in the movie, as serious as the subject is.

“We’re trying to raise awareness with it. It is funny and it is bizarre and a little disturbing. But really at the end of the day it’s looking at what (our country is) doing, and it’s not right.”

I’m sold - watch the trailer and you will be to (although it’s nice to have a plot overview going into it because otherwise it’s a little confusing).

See more photos of “War, Inc.” and the trailer below.

Photos and Video