2013-05-25T12:23:44-04:00 Drew Taylor http://www.news.moviefone.com/author/index.php?author=drew-taylor Copyright 2008, HuffingtonPost.com, Inc. HuffingtonPost Blogger Feed for Drew Taylor Good old fashioned elbow grease. tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-24T13:30:38-04:00 2013-05-24T14:07:30-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ Tom Cruise has exited Warner Bros.’ high-profile big-screen version of ‘60s spy show “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” which is co-starring Armie Hammer and being directed by Guy Ritchie.

The project was previously being overseen by Steven Soderbergh, potentially as his final movie before retirement, with George Clooney set to star in the part that Cruise just vacated. Clooney’s back injury, sustained during the filming of “Syriana,” kept him from doing such a physical role, and after that Soderbergh had trouble finding a suitable replacement that the studio was happy with, so he quietly left the project.

It picked up steam again when Ritchie and his “Sherlock Holmes” producing partner Lionel Wigram were handed the film. Cruise would have played Napoleon Solo, a character originated in the series by Robert Vaughn. Hammer will still play Illya Kuryakin, a Russian agent. Both spies report to the United Network Command for Law Enforcement, a sort of utopian international spy organization dreamed up at the height of the Cold War.

Cruise will next be seen in Doug Liman’s manga adaptation “All You Need Is Kill” (best title for anything ever), next summer. He supposedly left the “U.N.C.L.E.” project so he could focus on the fifth “Mission: Impossible,” which is currently being written by “Iron Man 3” co-writer Drew Pearce, with “Jack Reacher” director Christopher McQuarrie loosely attached to helm. Based on reports, Cruise will spend the rest of the year getting “Mission: Impossible 5” up and running, which will once again be produced by J.J. Abrams and his Bad Robot team.

The search is now on for a replacement for Cruise, with production on “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.” still set to commence this fall.

[via Deadline]
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Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ so enjoyable.

But, if you're unsure about jumping into "Fast and Furious 6" without reading the instruction manual first, then here’s a guide to 10 things to know about the film. Buckle up. It's going to be a wild ride.

1. It Might Be a Good Idea to Brush Up on Your 'Fast and Furious' History
"Fast and Furious 6" represents a culmination, not just of the mini-trilogy, which started with the fourth film and ends here, but of the entire franchise (it even weaves in events from the largely standalone "Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift"). As such, it might be a good idea to brush up on your "Fast and Furious" lore. There were characters and callbacks to earlier films that I didn't even pick up on, and I consider myself a devout member of the Church of Dominic Toretto. In a weird way it makes you appreciate the "mythological" underpinnings of a series that started as a muscle car variation on "Point Break."

2. The Gang's All Here!
Part of what makes "Fast and Furious 6" so much fun to watch is that the cast of the entire series -- not just Vin Diesel and Paul Walker, but characters from a number of the sequels, including Michelle Rodriguez -- reunite for this entry. What's more -- director Justin Lin has added some additional firepower to the mix, including Gina Carano, last seen kicking ass in Steven Soderbergh's unfairly marginalized "Haywire," and at least one cast member from the delirious Indonesian martial arts movie "The Raid."

3. The Rock Continues His Year of Never-Ending Ass-Kicking
Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson has had a truly unstoppable year with great turns in both "GI Joe: Retaliation" and the sorely underrated "Pain and Gain." He returns in "Fast and Furious 6" as Hobbs, a secret agent type who enlists the help of Vin Diesel and Paul Walker to stop a bad guy who uses fast cars to steal really dangerous stuff. The Rock is now about as big as a house and watching "Fast 6" you wonder if he has to custom order T-shirts that can fit over his massive biceps. Well, it doesn't matter. He's still great and he can genuinely out-growl Vin Diesel, which is really saying something.

4. It's Not Really About Underground Street Racing
Around "Fast Five," the series turned from being exclusively about cops and criminals set in the underground world of street racing, to something more -- a genuine caper movie that just happened to feature dudes who could drive cars really, really well. This new movie is sort of like a spy-versus-spy scenario, with the villains just as adept at using cars to heist stuff as the heroes. It's an ingenious movie, and while the time devoted to the culture of underground street racing is probably at an all time low (which could infuriate longtime fans), as far as the franchise maturing and evolving, it's a welcome change of pace.

5. There Are at Least Two Action Sequences That Will Floor You
The less you know about "Fast and Furious 6," the better, especially when it comes to two key action sequences in the movie's third act, which are absolute jaw-droppers. We won't say what happens specifically, but you'll know them when you see them: one involves an out-of-control tank, the other a plane.

6. Stick Around Through the Credits
Trust us. There's a little bonus scene not unlike the Marvel movies (except way, way cooler).

7. Luke Evans Is Kind of a Weak Bad Guy
Compared to The Rock and Vin Diesel, both hulking brutes, Luke Evans is kind of a weak bad guy. The stuff he does is cool but he doesn't exactly instill fear in your heart.
honestly, if you want to see a British dude who is still really scary, you can always walk over to "Star Trek Into Darkness." In that movie Benedict Cumberbatch's austerity never gets in the way of his scariness.

8. See It in the Biggest, Loudest Theater You Can
"Fast and Furious 6" is a giant movie full of roaring muscle cars and roaring muscle men, so if you can, see it in the biggest, loudest theater you can find. You'll be thankful later.

9. The Music Could Have Been Better
One of the great things about the "Fast and Furious" franchise has always been its choice of songs. This reached its apex with "The Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift," which featured tunes by Teriyaki Boyz, an amazing Japanese hip-hop outfit. Most of "Fast and Furious 6" is set in London, and yet the soundtrack doesn't give us a blast of British grime (I was hoping and praying for at least one Dizzee Rascal tune on the soundtrack), it's just kind of anonymous electro noise.

10. Yes, There Will Be A 'Fast and Furious 7'
Again: stick around during the credits. It sets up the next movie, and it looks like it will be positively turbo-charged.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-24T09:46:40-04:00 2013-05-24T10:23:51-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ "Epic," an animated, well, epic that concerns a human girl (Amanda Seyfried) who is shrunk down to microscopic size, hits theaters. It's an amazing romp -- just as impressive as any of the big budget action movies of the summer, but sweeter and more gorgeously rendered. Featuring an all-star cast that includes Colin Farrell, Josh Hutcherson, Steven Tyler, Aziz Ansari, Chris O'Dowd, Beyonce, and Jason Sudeikis, "Epic" is the kind of movie you can take your children too and still be breathlessly entertained.

We got to chat with the film's director, Chris Wedge about how he almost left and took the project to Pixar, action movies that inspired the film, and what it was like working with famous composer Danny Elfman.

Moviefone: You almost left and took this movie to Pixar. What happened there?

It's not a story any of us like to dwell on but it took a little bit of convincing to get the film on its feet to get a green light. I was crazy about making this movie and at the time Fox didn't see it. They very generously gave me turnaround rights, which meant they were alright with me shopping it to other studios. I don't think they thought that I would. But at the same time I was developing some live-action projects that weren't going anywhere. So I was getting pretty desperate. A handful of projects I had poured my heart and soul into weren't happening. So I did take the movie over to Pixar and I think they were eager to start.

How close did it get?

At that point I think the dynamic started to shift around a bit. To Fox's credit, I did need to do some work on the story. I'm sure it would have been a different movie if it had gone to Pixar. But I've got to say I'm pretty happy the way it came out. I was given an awful lot of creative freedom on this and I'm very happy with the outcome. I really didn't feel as though I made any compromises. What you see on the screen is the best I could come up with.

What about the story so captured your imagination that you had to get it made?

What captured my imagination was the notion that you can go into the forest and maybe if you looked a little bit closer than you normally do you could see something that you never knew was there. The notion that you could make a big fun heroic action movie was what was driving me. Finding the story and getting the characters figured out was the challenge.

I'm assuming that the William Joyce book the film was based on [“The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs”] focused purely on the Leaf Men and the movie's human characters were invented?

There wasn't even that much in the book. Listen, I love Bill's book. I've always loved it. It's a charming children's book that's beautifully rendered by Bill and it's a cute little story that you can read at bedtime. But it was never anything that he had interest in making a movie out of. We took the notion that the Leaf Men were out there for this story but amped them up into these samurai warriors. I may have said this but I wanted to make an action movie. I wanted to make a kinetic, thrilling action movie.

Part of the way you made that kinetic feeling was in the way it was shot. There are sequences that are unbroken for seemingly minutes on end. Where did that come from?

I collected a lot of influences and opinions in my brain. I've got definite touchstones of references in movies that I brought to this. You just make this as you go. It's your movie, it's your story. Beat by beat you decide where to put the camera. If there's a long language shot it's because two characters are having a conversation. If the camera is moving it's to give it a little bit more excitement. If we're cutting quick it's because there's a lot of excitement. It's just a matter of how you choose to tell the story.

What were some of those touchstones?

At the very beginning it was "Robin Hood." "The Adventures of Robin Hood" with Errol Flynn. We thought it would be fun if we threw some swashbuckling in there. Some hands-on-hips, arms akimbo kind of thing. If you go back and watch that movie you might think it's old fashioned, but nobody writes dialogue that's snappier these days. It's just great stuff. I wanted an update of that feeling. But as we went along, I realized I wanted an update on the filmmaking too. I remember when we were just starting to think about this "Gladiator" had just come out. The first action sequence in that movie really struck me. That's why we start our movie out with an ambush -- I wanted to see our characters in that way, through action, and get used to the tone of the movie.

And lastly what was it like working with Danny Elfman?

Oh, it was fantastic. It was dreamy. He's a gentle genius. He made the movie twice as good as it is.
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Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ "Rush," a film about the life of British Formula 1 racecar driver James Hunt (played by Thor himself, Chris Hemsworth).

In the newest trailer, Hemsworth sets things up nicely: "There's a lie that all drivers tell themselves -- that death is something that happens to other people. That's how you find the courage to get in the car in the first place. But more powerful than fear itself is the will to win." Most of the movie is centered around Hunt's rivalry with Niki Lauda (played by Daniel Bruhl from "Inglourious Basterds"), an Australian racecar driver. And by the looks of things, it gets pretty heated, on and off the track.

"Rush" has an exemplary creative team behind the scenes, including screenwriter Peter Morgan ("Frost/Nixon") and cinematographer Anthony Dod Mantle ("Trance"), and the film boasts an equally impressive supporting cast, which includes Olivia Wilde, Alexandra Maria Lara, and Natalie Dormer. In short: it looks like something that could be potentially Oscar bait-y but also hugely exciting.

"Rush" opens in America on September 20th.
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Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ revealed that a pseudo-sequel to another one of his most beloved films, "Dazed and Confused," could be closer than you think.

The film, which is titled "That's What I'm Talking About," was fully financed and ready to go as of a couple of years ago, but a number of projects got in the way (additionally, there was a hang-up when it came to distribution). But during the Q&A he said that he was, "Hoping to make it this fall, actually. A college comedy. I feel like mixing it up with a big ensemble."

We had a friend who went to a special "Before Midnight" screening in Los Angeles on Monday and said that Linklater's comments about "That's What I'm Talking About" during the Q&A there were less optimistic. Linklater said that the film is about the first week of college, before any classes actually start, where everyone is just hanging out, getting to know each other, and partying. In other words: it sounds amazing.

The director has said in the past that it's more of a "spiritual" sequel to "Dazed and Confused" than an out-and-out sequel that follows the same characters. Whatever it ends up being, consider us first in line.

[via Slashfilm]

EARLIER: Richard Linklater, 'Before Midnight' Director, on 'Bernie,' the 'School of Rock' Musical, and 'Dazed and Confused']]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-23T10:40:54-04:00 2013-05-23T11:13:36-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ he nodded off several times (more like "Now You Zzzz Me," right?).

While Caine was being enthusiastic about the movie, discussing the scale of the tricks, Freeman begins to close his eyes. Then his head droops and you realize, he's taking a little nap. The interviewer (from a Fox affiliate in Seattle) either doesn't realize that he's temporarily lost the "Shawshank Redemption" star or doesn't want to bring it to anyone's attention, so he lobs a softball question about what it takes to be a narrator, and everybody is once again on the same page.

Seeing a movie star fall asleep during an interview is like capturing footage of bigfoot and a unicorn making out; it's the rarest of the rare.

"Now You See Me," which also stars Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Mark Ruffalo, Isla Fisher, Melanie Laurent, Dave Franco, and Elias Koteas, opens on May 31st.

[via Q13Fox h/t Gawker]]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-23T09:40:51-04:00 2013-05-24T16:51:31-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
The movie, directed by Rawson Marshall Thurber ("Dodgeball"), concerns a small time pot dealer (Sudeikis) who is enlisted by a wealthy client (Ed Helms) to retrieve a staggering amount of weed from Mexico. Feeling that a family is a better cover for cross-country drug smuggling, he cajoles a local stripper (Aniston), a homeless teen (Roberts), and a nerd who lives in his building (Will Poulter) to pose as a family. They're the Millers.

As the trailer suggests, things get out of control. Honestly it's amazing how much they get away with showing in a green-band trailer (there's also a red-band equivalent that's only slightly more risqué), which includes Aniston doing a pretty vigorous striptease. It looks like there will be some pretty notable cameos, too, like the always-hilarious Nick Offerman and Kathryn Hahn playing a couple of swingers.

Coming at the tail end of summer, we'll need all the laughs we can get after being pummeled into submission by all the big budget action and superhero movies we can handle.

"We're the Millers" opens on August 9th.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-22T13:08:58-04:00 2013-05-22T14:47:04-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
We got to chat with Ed Helms about the movie while he was in Las Vegas for the junket. We're not sure what went down out there, because, as we all know, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, although he did tell us what he wanted from the third installment, how his relationship with Zach's character evolved, and his thoughts about the end of the franchise.

How's Vegas?
Good ole Vegas… It's like a second home to me.

You should just live on the Strip.
I practically do, I spend so much time here.

Did you have anything specific that you really wanted to do in this third "Hangover?"
That's a really interesting question. If anything, and for Stu in particular, I just wanted a sense of closure for the whole "Hangover"/Wolf Pack world. And then if I got a few good jokes in along the way, I'd be happy.

It seemed like the relationship between you and Zach was even more antagonistic this time around. Was that something that you two developed or was that in the script?
You know, it kind of became this running joke what a punching bag Stu is. And Zach, and as a consequence Alan, kind of picked up on that. Alan has always seen Stu as a threat to his bromance with Phil. So there's a natural animosity there. Even though I really believe, underlining all of it, these guys would do anything for each other, including Alan, as tweaked as he is. He makes fun of Stu because it gives him a little sense of power or makes him feel cool. But he's ultimately more vulnerable than anybody.

I know I'm not supposed to say this because the film is supposed to be edgy, but this one does have a nice sweetness.
Come on it's hard! It's so punk rock!

You've got two huge parts of your life missing, with both "The Hangover" and "The Office" coming to a close. Is it bittersweet to have these things ending at the same time?
Super duper bittersweet. It's very very sad. I love both of these things so much and yet in both cases it just feels like the right time and the right step for both. I can't even begin to describe how much both "The Office" and "The Hangover" have impacted my life. It's been a hell of a ride. The best analogy I can think of is when you get on a rollercoaster and it's so fun and there's peaks and valleys, there's scary parts, there's exciting parts, there's a lot of laughs and screams along the way. And then when you finally pull into the station at the end of a rollercoaster ride, you're bummed. You don't want to get off. But you realize if you stayed on the rollercoaster you'd probably get hurt or sick or something. It's time marching on. It's life evolving. And it's very poignant and very exciting.

It must have been fun too because you probably didn't think, “I'm signing on to a long-running show” or “This is going to be the highest grossing comedy franchise of all time.”
That's part of the peaks of the rollercoaster. It's like Space Mountain at Disneyland. It's dark, you can't really see where you're going… and I'm going to stop with the rollercoaster analogy. You can't know. All you can do is, when you're in a creative situation like that, just put it all out there and leave it all on the court. Which I really think everybody in "The Office" and "The Hangover" did. And you hope that people respond and they did. I'm just so grateful to have been a part of both things.

When you set out to make "The Hangover, Part III" did you look to anything in particular? There aren't many third entries in a comedy series but did you set out to make it different or special in a specific way?
Well it had to be different. The first two follow the same template and it just wasn't going to work; you can't do that again. So the question became “How do you do it and what do you focus on?” And what I love about this third one is that, in the same way that a great serial TV show will be constantly mining its previous episodes for the structural tidbits to build future episodes, that's how this narrative came together. There's so many ghosts from one and two that haunt this story in such a cool and fun and organic way. I really think it all fits together. This is a great closer. I'll say on top of that, Alan in screenwriting terms has kind of been the inciting incident or the precipitating factor to all the chaos, so it also makes sense for this third one to really explore Alan a little bit more and get into what that character is about. He's so fascinating.

Was there anything that you didn't get to do that you wanted to do?
Hmmm… Hmmm… Well I wish that between "Hangovers 2" and "3," Stu got really fit, like super buff with washboard abs. That way Warner Bros would have had to put me on some crazy diet and hire a personal trainer and I would have been a total bad-ass. But that didn't happen. Zach and I laugh about that -- that we wish a movie would take responsibility for our health. But honestly I couldn't ask for anything more than what's in these movies. What an incredible journey to be on and an incredible team to be a part of.

So if Todd Haynes called you tomorrow you'd be down to collaborate again?
I would throw myself in front of a train if it meant working with Todd again. If Todd told me audiences would laugh, I'd throw myself in front of a train. So many of these horrible things Stu goes through I've just had to trust Todd. I have these kneejerk reactions -- I am not a dark, edgy comic and a lot of this stuff pushed me out of my comfort zone. I just realized: don't fight it. And I'm always glad I did.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-20T11:15:44-04:00 2013-05-20T12:22:04-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ "Star Wars Rebels" has been announced, to air on Disney XD in fall 2014. This, admittedly, sounds pretty cool.

"Star Wars Rebels" will be set in the period of time between "Star Wars: Episode III" and "Star Wars: Episode IV." In a brief promotional video on the Star Wars website, you can see executive producer Dave Filoni (who also oversaw "Clone Wars") lovingly caressing an "Art of Star Wars" book, saying they drew inspiration from original designer Ralph McQuarrie's concept art for the first film.

Filoni is joined by Simon Kinberg, who will serve as an executive producer and script the one-hour pilot of the series (which will air on the Disney Channel initially); Kinberg is heavily involved in Disney's grand design for the "Star Wars" universe, serving as a consultant on the J.J. Abrams-directed "Star Wars: Episode VII" and writing a standalone feature set in the universe. Filoni will be joined by Greg Weisman, an executive producer who has worked on everything from "Young Justice" to "Spectacular Spider-Man" but is probably best known for the beloved Disney animated series "Gargoyles."

The official statement describes the series as taking place "in a time where the Empire is securing its grip on the galaxy and hunting down the last of the Jedi Knights as a fledgling rebellion against the Empire is taking shape." The statement then quickly adds: "Details about the show are a closely guarded secret at this point."

This seems to be a particularly fertile setting in the "Star Wars" universe, as Brian Wood's recent, totally brilliant "Star Wars" comic book takes place about three months after the original "Star Wars" ended.

"Star Wars Rebels" will hit Disney XD in fall of 2014, while "Star Wars: Episode VII" follows closely in the summer of 2015. Make sure your lightsabers are fully charged.

[via Star Wars]
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Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
In successive months, James Badge Dale stars in three of the summer's biggest, most talked-about blockbusters. You can currently see him as a gum-chewing bad guy in the excellent "Iron Man 3"; next month he battles hordes of flesh-eating zombies in the highly anticipated "World War Z," and in July he stars alongside Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer in Disney's mega-budget "The Lone Ranger."

We got to speak with the actor about what it was like being in these projects and how comfortable he is with the title "The King of Summer." Take that Will Smith!

First off, congratulations. Did you ever think you would be starring in three of the hottest movies of the summer season?
I did not plan it this way. Let me be very clear about that.

But it must be a thrill for you?
It's great. I had a great time doing all three films. All three films are very different. And to have them all open up in one summer a month apart, I've never experienced anything like this before. It's thrilling.

Let me first talk about "Iron Man 3." Were you a fan of the comic book before you signed on?
Let me tell you about my childhood, about my level of geekdom -- I got beat up by the kids who used to read comics. I was definitely down the geek ladder. I wasn't cool enough to read the comic books. My cousin is actually a massive comic book fan and she walked me through the Marvel universe. She was my technical advisor of the film. She gave me all the info on the characters and the world. And I brought her to the premiere.

That's a good trade-off.
You know, you don't work for free.

Did you reference anything specific from the comic book?
No. They kind of gave me free reign to do what I wanted to do. And Savin seemed to be a combination of the old template of the Coldblood character and another character in the 'Extremis' arc. The great thing about Shane Black and especially Downey -- you get on set with Downey and they are very much about the creative process as it's happening then and there. And they like to play. You're not boxed in by anything.

I've seen about 20 minutes of "Lone Ranger" and it looks pretty amazing. What brought you to that project?
They said I could grow a moustache and I was like “I'm on board, yeah. Let's do it.” No I'm kidding. To me, it was Gore Verbinski. There's not many guys out there like him. He makes big movies that are very good. The story works, it was a great script, and we had a lot of fun on it. And I'd never done a western before. That was the great thing about "Iron Man 3," that was the great thing about "World War Z" -- I've never done a zombie movie before, I've never done a comic book film before. This was all new. And as an actor you want to do things that are new and exciting.

I was going to ask you about some of the amazing directors you've worked with -- Martin Scorsese, Steve McQueen, Joe Carnahan, Robert Zemeckis -- do you sort of watch them and pick up things from each of them?
I'm a watcher, I am. When I did "The Departed" in '05, I was very young. And I didn't really know how to conduct myself on set. But what I did was watch Matt Damon watch Martin Scorsese. Damon studied Scorsese and talked to him about film every chance he got. Because sometimes you just have one moment with these directors... You should talk to them and watch them work and soak it in, because it can only help you as an actor and understand your place in the whole film process. So I try to steal a page from Damon's playbook and watch and study the different methods.

Damon wants to direct soon. Is that something you want to try, too?
I'm still trying to figure out this acting thing. Talk to me in 10 years.

What can you tell us about "World War Z?"
"World War Z" -- that's a big movie in scope and size. It's based on this book by Max Brooks, which I think is a brilliant book, but the idea of the zombie epic becoming a worldwide plague. You think of it in terms of disease. I think the brilliance of the movie is what happens with society and economy and government and the way that these things break down. If you had a worldwide economic collapse, what would the results of those be? In a strange way it's very realistic.

The kind of ongoing creative process of "World War Z" has been highly publicized. Were you brought back for those reshoots?
No. As in the book, it's almost like a series of vignettes. So the part that I'm in is isolated and it wasn't touched.

Have you seen it yet?
Yeah I have seen it. It's pretty cool. I saw it at 11 o'clock in the morning. I've never seen a zombie movie at 11 a.m. Let me put it this way: it changed the way I dealt with the rest of the day.

So it maintains its intensity even though it's PG-13?
I know that's what everybody's worried about with a zombie film. But people were jumping out of their seats at the screening I was at -- at 11 in the morning.

That's when you know it's good.
Yeah. When people are screaming at 11 a.m., it's good.

So can we start calling James Badge Dale "The King of Summer" from now on?
[Laughs] You know how many people in my neighborhood would just rip me apart for that one?

I'm going to take that as a yes.
[Laughs] Thank you.
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Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
Ever since he decided to do massive movies, he has included sequences that could have been lifted directly from one of the dashing adventures of Britain’s most suave superspy. Nolan knows how to mimic James Bond set pieces in tone and intensity. There’s the Hong Kong sequence from “The Dark Knight,” the whole third act of “Inception” (with the snow fort, which seems to have been a hodgepodge lift of various Bond tropes), and the opening sequence of “The Dark Knight Rises,” which had more jaw-dropping spectacle than all of “Quantum of Solace” combined.

Now, Nolan may get his chance to do a 007 entry himself.

According to the UK paper the Daily Mail (so please, find the biggest grain of salt you can and take it), “informal talks have begun” between Nolan and the Bond powers that be -- namely producers Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson -- for him to helm the next chapter in the franchise.

After the worldwide critical and commercial success of “Skyfall,” it was assumed Sam Mendes would be game to direct another Bond outing, but commitments to theatrical productions, as well as the exhausting amount of effort that it takes to get a Bond movie off the ground, sidelined those plans. It would be fascinating if the series entered an “auteur” phase, with big name directors, known for their singular artistic visions, took on a series known for its workmanlike dexterity more than its creative adventurousness.

Right now Nolan is in the middle of prepping “Interstellar,” his big-budget space exploration film that will star Jessica Chastain, Anne Hathaway, Matthew McConaughey, and (of course) Michael Caine. That film will be out on November 7th, 2014. It’s unclear whether Nolan would have the time (or the energy) to jump from one gigantic project to the next, but we’re crossing our fingers that this isn’t simply tabloid chatter.

[via Daily Mail]]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-16T15:24:25-04:00 2013-05-17T17:16:01-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
It was fast, funny, and sexy, and director J.J. Abrams took his sweet time developing a sequel (keeping it shrouded in mystery, of course). Now that sequel is (FINALLY) here, with "Star Trek Into Darkness," which pits the crew of the USS Enterprise against a terrorist villain known as John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch).

In all likelihood, this will be Abrams's last go 'round in the captain's chair, as he starts work on the seventh "Star Wars" movie for Disney and Lucasfilm some time this year, for release in 2015. The question then is: Does he go out on a high note, or will he leave you begging for another director to helm the Enterprise? Well, here are 10 things you should keep in mind as you travel "Into Darkness."

1. It's Not That Dark
The trailers and title for "Star Trek Into Darkness" make it seem like a more oppressively heavy piece of machinery than it actually is, full of explosions and terrorists and sooty spaceships falling out of the sky. Thankfully, it's really not. In fact, it's just as zippy and entertaining as the original film. So don't worry -- it's just pretending to be "The Dark Knight."

2. The Cast Is Still on Fire
What made the original 2009 "Star Trek" so much fun was that director Abrams and his confederates had assembled a crack team of newcomers that embodied the spirit and fun of the original series (and, to a lesser extent, the original set of films). That means everybody is back and ready to party, and while the movie again focuses on the relationship between Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and his first mate Spock (Zachary Quinto), each character does get his or her moment in the sun (and Karl Urban's McCoy is given a chance to really shine). You could watch these actors read the phone book and it'd probably be pretty riveting.

3. The New Additions Are Great
And what's more, Abrams and his crew have welcomed the new cast members with open arms. Of particular note is Alice Eve, as Carol Marcus, who Trek diehards can tell you holds a very special place in the series' mythology. She's got a wonderful asymmetrical haircut and an adorable British accent, and adds some much-needed emotional depth to all of the Star-Trekking craziness. (Her father, a Starfleet superior played by Peter Weller, is also totally brilliant and not altogether a good guy.) And speaking of bad guys…

4. Yes, Cumberbatch Is Very, Very Bad
A lot of the speculation about "Star Trek Into Darkness" has been around Benedict Cumberbatch's character and who, exactly, he plays. We're not going to spoil that here because we want J.J. Abrams to still talk to us if we ever run into him at a party. But that doesn't really matter because, yes, Cumberbatch is a really scary bad guy and totally makes the character (whoever that character might be) his own. We also love that his floppy hair seems to react to whatever mood he's in. It's pretty great, too.

5. See It in IMAX 3D
During our screening, people were literally ducking as things came flying out of the screen and into the audience. That's how great the 3D looks. There's this thing that Abrams does with the warp drive, where it leaves this glittery trail behind the ship in space (the soundtrack even "twinkles"), and it's so amazing in 3D. The IMAX is another matter altogether -- it's genuinely stunning and just as immersive as the 3D. Yes, the tickets are considerably more expensive, but in the case of "Star Trek Into Darkness," it's worth it.

6. It Doesn't Make a Whole Lot of Sense
Yes, 2009's "Star Trek" had a whole superdome's worth of plotting issues, but "Star Trek Into Darkness" makes so little sense that thinking about it for any prolonged amount of time will probably give you a brain aneurysm. Thankfully, the movie moves so quickly that you don't have time to linger on questionable character motivations and plot mechanics. Forget about a roller-coaster ride, this is like spending the entire day at the theme park. Please keep all hands and feet inside the vehicle at all times.

7. Michael Giacchino's Score Rules
The original "Star Trek" theme music is so iconic that it's hard to think of anyone replacing that score -- or even coming close to replicating it. Thankfully, longtime Abrams collaborator Michael Giacchino has made a score all his own that is just as exciting and heartwarming. His "Star Trek" theme is fast approaching the level of the original, and that's no small feat.

8. Watch "Star Trek II: The Wrath Of Khan" Again Before You See This New Movie
That's not giving anything away, either. It's almost like both movies (2009's "Star Trek" and "Star Trek Into Darkness) are subtle remakes of "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan," for different ways and in different shades. Like putting them together and getting one huge, two-movie-length remake. What makes "Star Trek Into Darkness" so fascinating is how many direct callbacks there are to that movie (including exact copies of snippets of dialogue), with a bunch of extra "Star Trek" shout-outs to various parts of the mythology. If it's been your dream to see a tribble on the big screen, consider that dream come true!

9. It Could Have Used More Aliens
Just saying. There are a whole host of aliens in the "Star Trek" universe, and while we get to see a few of the most familiar ones in this movie (no, we're not saying who), there seems to be a genuine untapped goldmine for characters and creatures that Abrams and his collaborators could have drawn from (but chose not to). Oh well. There is some weird robot guy on the bridge that nobody calls by name or even really acknowledges. That's something, right?

10. You'll Be Ready for "Star Trek 3," or "Star Trek Into More Darkness"
The movie ends on something of a cliffhanger, which makes you clamor for the third installment. Too bad J.J. Abrams is leaving the franchise for a galaxy far, far away…

"Star Trek Into Darkness" is in theaters now.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-16T11:06:53-04:00 2013-05-16T11:24:06-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/ Bruce Willis is nothing if not totally willing to make fun of his advanced years while still churning out tireless action movies full of mayhem.

At least three franchises Willis is currently involved in ("Red," "The Expendables" and "Die Hard") fulcrum around the hey-isn't-this-old-guy-shooting-people-funny thing. Now it's been announced that Willis will star in yet another old dude action movie this time with the name (wait for it) "Expiration."

Willis, showing a new level of self-awareness, will star as a hardened hitman who is "poisoned and desperately searching for an antidote before he dies." So… "Crank?" Brian Tucker, who wrote this year's rote political thriller "Broken City," penned the screenplay, which is being produced by Emmett/Furla Films.

Willis's "Red 2" opens later this summer with plenty of jokes about how old he is while he fires automatic weapons at bad guys.

[via The Wrap]

Earlier on Moviefone: 'Red 2' Poster Debut: Bruce Willis & Catherine Zeta-Jones Are Ready for Action (PHOTO)]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-14T15:21:33-04:00 2013-05-24T17:40:59-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
What makes this such an unlikely trilogy is that the first film was so self-contained and simple -- it wasn't bogged down with the kind of loaded mythology that can be unspooled over subsequent films. In fact, there was barely enough plot to keep that original movie together (the sequel was more or less just a rehash of the first with Bangkok filling in for Las Vegas and a monkey in place of a baby). Still, if it makes money, the studio has to make more. And here we go again on the "Hangover" train.

1. It Doesn't Follow the Formula of the Other Two
The original "Hangover" featured three dimwits (Bradley Cooper, Zach Galifianakis, and Ed Helms) who lose consciousness during a bachelor party and awake to find their friend (Justin Bartha) missing and their memories of the night before completely gone. The sequel was pretty much the same, although Bartha wasn't missing he was just kind of… hanging out away from the rest of the guys. This movie takes a different approach, which you can tell from the opening scene of supporting character Chow (Ken Jeong) escaping from a maximum-security prison in Thailand. From there, things get really nuts. Bartha is taken out of the equation but in a more logical way, and there are no instances of mistaken drugging or amnesia or "oh my god what happened" nights.
2. It Doesn't Take Place in Las Vegas
All of the advertising for "The Hangover, Part III" has centered around the fact that the Wolfpack is returning to Las Vegas, which is where the original film took place. While this is true for a portion of the movie, most of it actually takes place in Tijuana, which makes sense given its notorious reputation for debauchery and criminal exploits.

3. It's Not as Atrociously Sexist as the Other Two…
Maybe it was the structure of the two other films (and their bachelor-party connection), but they tended to paint women as nagging, whiny hangers-on with very little to actually contribute to the story besides someone to mock or lie to. (The female character with the most dimension was Heather Graham in the first one… and she was a prostitute.) For this one, women aren't seen as the ultimate enemy but rather something worth fighting for. They represent the normal, calming relationship that exists outside of the hedonistic free-for-all that the movies used to lionize. Even Graham makes a return appearance, but as a woman with a full life (even if she is literally barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen. D'oh!).

4. …Although if You're an Animal Lover, This Might Not Be the Movie for You
"The Hangover Part III" starts with a giraffe decapitation (endlessly teased in the trailers) and continues to include chickens being shot, thrown out a window, and smothered with a pillow, and two dogs having their necks broken.

5. There Isn't All That Much "Crazy" Stuff in This One
The earlier films made it a point to emphasize (with neon lettering and double-underlines) how outrageous they were. The locations were meant to drive this point home (Las Vegas! Bangkok! And now Tijuana! That's where anything can happen!) But even their attempts at outré humor seemed to fall a little flat, with the explanation of the night before always failing to live up to the visual gag of waking up surrounded by mayhem. Thankfully, "The Hangover Part III" doesn't attempt to indulge in the levels of vulgarity that the first two achieved. It's still very R-rated, but doesn't shove it in your face.

6. Zach (Once Again) Steals the Show
Interestingly enough, they have decided to center the movie around Zach Galifianakis's character, Alan, who has gone off the rails following his father's death. In fact, the craziness of the movie starts when they're driving Alan to rehab. The character goes through a noticeable arc and it's great that director Todd Phillips and his creative team decided to at least try to emotionally anchor the movie (somewhat). It might not always work, but the scenes between Galifianakis and an un-credited Melissa McCarthy are easily the most enjoyable in the movie.

7. Oscar Nominee Bradley Cooper Is Pretty Wasted
Bradley Cooper, coming off of last year's amazing "Silver Linings Playbook," is more or less a background extra in this movie (although one that gets to say the F-word a lot). Although, he does get one truly amazing moment: as he's dangling off the edge of Caesar's Palace and Alan is trying to take a cell phone photo of him, he first gets annoyed and then pauses and says, "Did you get it?" It's a very real, very funny little bit and a testament to Cooper's power as an actor.

8. Stay Through the Credits
It's not exactly a Marvel movie teaser, but it's worth sitting through the credits (don't worry, you won't have to sit through the whole thing). It's like an alternate reality glimpse of what this movie could have been (you'll be very thankful it wasn't like this).

9. John Goodman Is Great
After appearing in a bunch of Oscar-caliber movies last year ("Argo," "Flight," "ParaNorman"), Goodman gets to turn in an appropriately hammy performance as the chief bad guy. He gets one of the best lines (too good to spoil here) and gets to thunder around, menacing people, and barking orders. It's unlikely "The Hangover Part III" will follow in those films' Oscar-nominated footsteps, unless a new category is created for Least Believable Depiction of a Giraffe Decapitation.

10. It Really Does Feel Like the Last One
Thankfully it goes out on a high note; this is easily the best of the three. Whew.]]> tag:www.huffingtonpost.com,2012:/theblog// 2013-05-14T10:59:51-04:00 2013-05-17T17:39:23-04:00

Drew Taylor http://www.huffingtonpost.com/drew-taylor/
First, there were the adventures of the Starship Enterprise commanded by Captain Kirk (William Shatner), and then another crop of movies when, much later, another Enterprise, led by Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart), explored the final frontier. The new 'Trek' continuity involves alternate realities and time travel, and a kind of parallel universe crew of the original Enterprise, again with a Captain Kirk (Chris Pine) and the same crew, except much younger and sexier.

But where does "Star Trek Into Darkness" fall in the entire franchise? We decided to rank all 12 (!) 'Star Trek' adventures, from best to worst, for your reading pleasure.

Where did your favorite "Trek" end up on our list?
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