PACIFIC RIM 2 IS HAPPENING OH YES YES OH YES YES OH YES

Just to let you guys know...Pacific Rim 2 has been set for April 7, 2017!!! All the Kaiju and Jaegars will be back to take part if deliriously well made Guillermo Del Toro mayhem!! Guillermo Del Toro told Buzzfeed this about the awesome sounding film:

"The characters I love will return, Raleigh, Mako, Newt, Gottlieb and who knows, maybe even Hannibal Chau – but we are taking them into a fresh territory that will display amazing sights and battles. The first film set the stage and now we’re ready to have a blast."

Box Office Predictions: Transformers 4 Will Be Massive...But How Massive?

In Box Office Predictions, I take a look at the forthcoming weekend and see how new releases and holdovers will fare.

Unless the Frankie Valli fanboys come out in droves this weekend, the Autobots will wage their war against the Decepticons to humongous numbers. The primary question of course is how big this movie can possibly be.

I Wanna See That!: Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World

In this Thursday fixture, I Wanna See That!, I take a look at specific trailers that are both well crafted and have some kind of importance to them beyond just informing you a film is coming soon. This week, I take a look at the trailer for one the great film Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World, and it's not so great trailer. 

New Jungle Book Movie Adds Ben Kingsley To Awesome Cast!

Ben Kingsley?Trevor Slattery 

I absolutely love Disney (which, interestingly enough, was my first word spoken as a human being!), but I'm especially fond of their work on the animated side of things. Out of all 53 animated features Walt Disney Animation Studios has made though, my all-time favorite may be The Jungle Book, a superbly crafted masterpiece that just has no shortage of energy, fun and engrossing characters. That classic film is the next Disney animated film in line to be given the live-action/CGI treatment that was bestowed upon Alice In Wonderland and Maleficent. A remake of this movie should make my blood boil, but with the talent already lined up for it (and plenty more to come!) the project so far sounds delightful.

Country Music Spotlight: Eric Church

The first singles of Eric Church's career made him stood out from the crowd from the get-go. Him and (especially) Brantley Gilbert have an iron grip over the image of a biker country boy, one adorn with scruffy jeans, baseball hats and perhaps a touch of remorse in his soul. That image was reinforced by his tunes that introduced him to the country music crowd, one of which was titled Two Pink Lines, which dealt with two folks, after spending the night together, awaiting the results of a pregnancy test.  Not exactly the stuff Junior Brown would croon about, but then again, for Eric Church, the norm was just another barrier to burst. But he wouldn't burst through one particular barrier, that of incredible success, until his third album, Chef.

No New Stuff Until Tomorrow Night!

Hey guys, just a brief post to assure you that, no, I'm not gone forever. But I'm going on vacation for the majority of Tuesday and Wednesday, so I won't be doing any writing during that time. A review of Space Jam, a new trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and the two part predictions over the box office for the rest of the summer should keep ya occupied until Wednesday night, when a new Country Music Spotlight goes up. Still, thought an appropriate heads up was in order, just so you don't get worried when there's no new content going up until later today.

Thanks guys! See you real soon!

A New Trailer For Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arrives....And It's Actually Good???

I've thought the overwhelmingly negative reception to this new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie has been extremely over the top for a while now. I have my concerns over the movie too (could they get someone besides the director of Battle: Los Angeles to handle this thing?), but so far, the film has looked like a perfectly fine summer film. Even the turtles redesigns haven't bothered me that much (the versions of these CGI creatures without noses that fans on the internet made look much creepier to me). Now, this new trailer has increased up my excitement even more, and you find out why by watching it below!

Space Jam Review....Why Is This Movie So Popular?

If You Wanna Slam...You Probably Grew Up In My Generation

What is Michael Jordan standing on in this thing??
That circle can't possibly hold him, can it?

Four months back, me and a bunch of friends sat down to rewatch a movie that we knew had shaped not only our own cinema sensibilities, but pretty much our entire generation. Was it the only movie to do this? Of course not. But a movie where Michael Jordan faces off against a Danny DeVito voiced alien is likely to remain one of the more memorable features to have that kind of impact. We popped in the VHS, and it started.

Box Office Analysis: Let's Predict The Rest of The Summer!! (PART TWO)

Guardians of The Galaxy
This is my most anticipated movie for the rest of the summer, and I must say, Disney is doing an excellent job spreading the word and making sure casual audience members are equally excited about it. Extremely distinctive ads playing up the quirky tone, humor, sci-fi action and big actors (John C. Reilly, Vin Diesel, Glenn Close and Bradley Cooper are in this) have started popping up, and if Disney can keep it up through all of July, than the film should play nicely.

From The Interwebs: Guardians of The Galaxy Trailer Gets Beautifully Mixed With Star Wars

I chose this picture solely because it makes me happy. Seriously,
who deosn't love C-3PO??

I love Star Wars so, so, so, so, so, so very much, and Guardians of The Galaxy is my most anticipated movie for the rest of the summer (right alongside Boyhood). I didn't think my love for Star Wars and my excitement for Guardians could possible go any higher, yet a brilliant YouTuber has managed that feat. Presenting, the music and structure of the Guardians of the Galaxy, but presented with footage and dialogue from Star Wars.

Box Office Analysis: Let's Predict The Rest of The Summer!! (PART ONE)

Eight weeks into the summer, we've seen hits (Godzilla, X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Fault In Our Stars) and duds (Blended, A Million Ways to Die In The West). Utilizing the performances so far, I've decided to take a gander at the upcoming features coming out between now and Labor Day and predict their opening weekend and final grosses, and sprinkle some analysis in there too. Not every movie is covered (I'm sure some sleeper hit that'll eventually make big bucks isn't on here), but regardless, here's my predictions for the tidal wave of notable releases left this summer, split into two parts. I'll be bold and daring and put up a Box Office Analysis article on a Tuesday, in order to cover all the releases coming out in August.

Jersey Boys Review

The Good, The Bad and The Jersey

Unbenonkwest to the band, the car, a Transformers in
disguise, had pulled up on its own to watch them sing. 

Whenever someone brings up Jersey Boys, they don't talk about the story, or Frankie Valli or the Broadway show from which it's adapted. The one thing everyone chatters about is the fact that Clint Eastwood, The Man With No Name, is directing a musical! How does that work out? Well, if Eastwoods first musical was Little Shop of Horrors or Mamma Mia! or something, yeah, I'd totally see that. But Jersey Boys in its cinematic incarnation (I've never seen the show on stage) isn't truly a musical, not in the "Let It Go" sense. Characters sing, but considering the real life people on which the characters are based on actually did this for a living, it feels natural to have some tunes going around.

Editorial: Why These New Star Wars Directors Are So Awesome

God those are gorgeous covers.

I told myself I wouldn't be posting rumors on this site. I wouldn't bring you endless rumor updates like"Lupita Nyong'O was seen eating frozen yogurt, so she'll be playing the Star Wars version of the Spaceballs character Frogurt in Star Wars 7!" solely for pageviews (though I'd likely think differently if I had any ad revenue coming from this site) That being said, the fact that the subject of this rumor has posted a video on Twitter that seems to indirectly confirm it, I'll give this one some credence.

The List!!!: Six Great YouTube Channels

EEEEEEEEPPPPPPIIIIICCC RAP.......BATTLESOFHISTORY

In The List!!!, I do a list that just reeks of being click-bait, analyzing a particular topic or subject that pertains to something major occurring in pop-culture. This week, in honor of my CinemaSins editorial, which has had over 400 views in just two days, I take a more positive look at things by highlighting six YouTube channels I enjoy.

Box Office Predictions: The Men Shall Beat The Boys

In Box Office Predictions, I take a look at the forthcoming weekend and see how new releases and holdovers will fare.

Well, as the $134 million gross of Ride Along indicates, Kevin Hart has become a comedic force to be reckoned with. Now, if he can conquer the box office in the very comedy friend summer moviegoing season, the man will join the ranks of Adam Sandler, Will Ferrell, Melissa McCarthy and the like as comedy titans.

I Wanna See That!: Space Jam

I find it weird that Sylvester got to be on this CD cover and not Daffy.

In this Thursday fixture, I Wanna See That!, I take a look at specific trailers that are both well crafted and have some kind of importance to them beyond just informing you a film is coming soon. This week, welcome to the jam as I start my epic coverage of the 1990's film Space Jam by taking a look at its trailer.

The Immigrant Review

I knew nothing going about The Immigrant going into it. Oh sure, I'd heard rave reviews (and interestingly, some vehemently negative ones) and knew the three of the characters in it were being portrayed by three of my favorite actors. But I hadn't watched so much as a trailer for the project before I sat down at the Angelika Plano to view it. In retrospect, that was for the best. Like the protagonist of this picture, Ewa (played magnificently by Marion Cotillard), I'm completely unprepared for what is about to occur, and man, is that the best mindset to have when witnessing this films tragic events.

Franchise Frenzy: The Lion King

I Ain't Lion...That First Movies Still Amazing (The Sequels? Weeellllll.....)

Gives ya chills, don't it?

Disney is pretty much the reason why I love not only the art of animation, but cinema in general. Their movies were ones I rewatched endlessly, to the point where even today even the mention of key words like "necessities" and "world" are likely to cause me to burst into a Disney song. One of my favorites of the bunch was easily The Lion King, a movie released only a year and a half before I was born, and (something I didn't realize until I actually started writing this article) one that came out twenty years ago this week. Who can believe it's been twenty years since moviegoers were enthralled by the Circle of Life? Even today, the movie has a tremendous presence in pop culture, to the point where a new sequel TV series entitled The Lion Guard was announced last week.

Editorial: Why I Hate CinemaSins

I decided to not post an article yesterday devoted to the new created
Honest Trailer for Transformers: Revenge of The Fallen, simply because not only was everyone else already doing it, but because channels inspired by Screen Junkies (which hosts the Honest Trailers) have, in the last two years, been run on cynical content that just reduces the magic of cinema to quick cynical gags. It's hard to promote something that's helping reduce peoples perception of movies to simply unfunny cynical one-liners. Admittedly, at least the crew behind those Honest Trailers (which more often than not are at least diverting) have some respect for some of the movies they parody, unlike the horrific channel that has endured popularity amongst the internet for bewildering reasons.

The haven for lazy, nitpicky critiques of film is without a doubt the channel dubbed CinemaSins.

The Expendables 3 Fire Away A New Trailer Filled With Mel Gibson Antics

These character posters just befuddle me, especially
since Gibson seems to be the only actor in character

Last years Machete Kills was dumb enough enough in many respects to make an average Adam Sandler feature look complex, but its sense of fun was infectious enough to make it a watchable outing. Much of the fun came from Gibsons hammy turn as a villain who had cosmic ambitions, a role the actor wouldn't have even considered prior to his anti-Semitic controversies. Now, Gibson continues to pay homage to his heydays in the 80's as an action stars by being the maniacal baddie in The Expendables 3. The new trailer gives him and the films numerous cast members time to shine, so check it out below.

So, I Was On Netflix: Dirty Dancing Review

Talk Dancing To Me (Cue Saxophone Solo) 

ROADHOUSE

Each Tuesday I review a film that can be found on Netflix Instant Streaming. This week, Patrick Swayze teaches dancing....or should I say, teaches Dirty Dancing.

Every decade has its movies that have earned a place within cinema as some of the greats. Surprisingly, there's actually tons from each respective era that can be called truly exemplary, but it seems that the ones that have gotten the most attention in recent years are the ones from the 80's. While it hasn't gotten a remake like The Karate Kid (interestingly, Lionsgate scheduled one for a July 26th, 2013 date that never came to pass), the 1987 smash hit Dirty Dancing has still endured as a popular movie over the years. After finally seeing it, I'm struggling to truly figure out why.

Huzzah!! Steven Spielbergs Next Two Movies Have Been Announced!

He gets a lot of peculiar criticism from the cynical Internet community, but Steven Spielberg remains one of my favorite directors ever. His blockbusters movies alone would be enough to earn a place among the greats (Jurassic Park and Jaws were particularly impactful for me) but his ability to deliver the goods in dramas like War Horse just shows how expansive and talented the filmmaker is.

His expansiveness is on display again here in his next two movies, which have just been given dates.

From The Interwebs: Rocky & Bullwinkle Return...To Promote GEICO Insurnace

From The Interwebs is a feature where I highlight videos, articles and pictures from the Internet I find interesting and worthy of sharing on this blog. 

The characters that Jay Ward made in the 60's got a big boost in popularity this year when Mr. Peabody & Sherman was released to OK domestic box office and surprisingly high critical praise. I myself found what I have seen of the movie to be dull (my family and I left our theatrical screening about 40 minutes in, so I can't give an official consensus), but at least it gave the characters Jay created some publicity.

Box Office Analysis: The Problem With DreamWorks

Poor little Toothless probably won't be so happy
when Shareholders start getting mad at DreamWorks this week

This weekend, the excellent feature How To Train Your Dragon 2 was released to glowing reviews, eleven months of promotion and a cinema landscape that hadn't seen a CGI animated movie in two months (I'll forget Legends of Oz even existed due to that one being unable to hit $8 million) And yet, it only made $50 million at the box office, way below my $72 million predictions and far beneath most other animated releases that debuted in the month of June. At least it managed to beat its predecessors opening weekend, unlike fellow quality DreamWorks sequel Kung Fu Panda 2, although that's slight comfort for the company that I'm sure will be badgered by jittery stockholders this week by this performance.

22 Jump Street Review

SOMETHING AWESOME!!!

The one problem with many comedies throughout the ages is their ability to just settle. They go with the overly obvious jokes and story choices that just suck all the fun out of the proceedings. Recent great comedies (like The Other Guys, Ted, This Is The End and anything from Edgar Wright) smartly go in unique directions that help strengthen the characters, which helps infinitely in making the jokes land in the best possible fashion. To say 22 Jump Street goes in unexpected directions is an understatement.

Looks Like We Know Whose Playing Aquaman In Batman Vs. Superman!

The long casting process for Batman v. Super: Dawn of Justice is almost complete, even though they're deep into filming at this point. But don't worry; it won't be just Batman that Superman has to face in this feature. In addition to The Caped Crusader, Superman will face Wonder Woman, Cyborg and Swamp-Thing (just kidding on the last one...sadly)

Today, we discovered just whose playing another one of DC's major icons. Playing the role of Aquaman is....

How To Train Your Dragon 2 Review

A Dark And Fascinating Flight

OK, just look at that kid in the back, the bigger one
 right behind Toothless. Isn't he terrifying????

Four years ago, DreamWorks Animation made a movie that was very, very different from their usual offerings. Amidst a sea of cheap comedies filled with dated references and toiler humor came a gem, a beautiful story of a viking and his dragon. None could imagine the movie being as good as it was, nor it becoming as popular as it did with audiences.I myself found, and still do find, it to be one of the best movies of 2010, and perhaps the best thing DreamWorks Animation has ever made.

The List!!!: Five Great Animated Sequels

In The List!!!, I do a list that just reeks of being click-bait, analyzing a particular topic or subject that pertains to something major occurring in pop-culture. This week, in honor of How To Train Your Dragon 2, I take a look at five great animated sequels.

Chef Review

It must be said that Jon Favreau has probably has had the most unexpected career trajectory in Hollywood except for maybe Neil Patrick Harris. Who would have thought the dude who played a recurring character on Buzz Lightyear of Star Command would end up directing the best Christmas (Elf) and Superhero (Iron Man) movies of all-time? Of course, he's had his struggles, with him squaring off against Marvel Studios over the direction of Iron Man 2 and Cowboys and Aliens becoming a major financial failure.

Box Office Predictions: Make Your Choice...Dragons or Drugs?

Jonah Hills agent must be feeling very content now, as his client prepares to feature heavily in both of this weeks new releases that are likely each gonna top $50 million. The main question on everyones mind right now is which one will come out triumphant?

I Wanna See That!: Battle Los Angeles

In this Thursday fixture, I Wanna See That!, I take a look at specific trailers that are both well crafted and have some kind of importance to them beyond just informing you a film is coming soon.

New Trailers: What's Black And White And Beating Up Josh Brolin?

Three new trailers went up today, for a wide variety of film. For your convenience, I decided, why not just compile these bad boys into one mega-super-awesome trailer article?

Country Music Spotlight: Alan Jackson

Every other Wednesday, I analyze a Country Music singers career, high points, low points and what may be in store for them in the future. 

The smooth vocals of Alan Jackson are as easy to adore as any in the field of Country Music. It's simply superb how well this guy can transition from a smooth party tune (Good Time) to a retrospective on fathers (Drive (For Daddy Gene)). I mean, really, Jacksons ability to convey a wide gamut of emotions through different songs is nothing short of outstanding. So why has he fallen out of style in recent years?

Dumb And Dumber To Trailer Has Arrived!

Looking for some dumb antics this November? Well judging from the first trailer for this long awaited sequel, you could do better than what looks like a bit of a pointless cash grab. On the other hand, Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels haven't lost a beat in their dynamic in twenty years and the R-rating promises untold comedic possibilities for the rambunctious duo.

Check out the trailer below!

So, I Was On Netflix: Free Birds

Not since Beverly Hills Chiahuahua has a movies
poster had such a true claim

Each Tuesday I review a film that can be found on Netflix Instant Streaming. This week, what happens when time travel and turkeys get mixed together. Spoiler Alert: an awful movie happens.

Edge of Tomorrow Review

Those Mech-Suits they're wearing are awesome by the way

Few times in my life have I been more surprised then when I heard the good buzz for Edge of Tomorrow. Critics were loving the film, which looked like a Source Code knockoff. And yet, the buzz kept mounting, making its disappointing American box office all the more surprising (internationally, it's in much better shape) Plopping into my seat of my Monday night screening of the film, I was intrigued; would the film truly live up to it's lofty reputation?

Box Office Analysis: A Rose By Any Other Name...Might Have Made Some Money

Tom Cruise stars in Generic Sci-Fi Time Travel Movie We Don't Have
 Confidence In But We Sure Hope It Makes A Lot Of Money In China!!

I haven't seen Tom Cruises latest action movie, Edge of Tomorrow, yet (hopefully I'll catch it tonight so I can have a review up tomorrow). However, I do know plenty about it's production history, including the notable fact that it went under the title All You Need Is Kill for a long period of time until it was switched to its more generic current name. In a recent interview, I believe it was one of the producers who explained that the change was because of the sensitive atmosphere nowadays to violence.

Oh What Could Have Been! John Carter Sequel Titles Revealed

I love John Carter. People look at me like I just said I have a really contagious flu whenever I say I do, but it's truly one of my favorite sci-fi films in recent years. It's refreshing optimism, the amazing effects, plus Taylor Kitsch is an awesome action hero (if only Battleship used him half this effectively!) I really wish a sequel could have come from it, but alas, all we have are these titles director Andrew Stanton tweeted this weekend.

Peyton Reed, The Director of Bring It On, To Direct Marvel's Ant-Man

For Ant-Man, it's been a rough few weeks. Edgar Wright, the original director of the film, left the project leaving Marvel with a PR headache and the internet to quiver in rage. Despite my undying love of Edgar Wright (Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is one of the best movies ever made), I did feel like some of the fanboy communities indignant responses were starting to be hyperbolic. After all, some of the new directors tossed around included Adam McKay, David Wain and Nicholas Stoller sounded more than capable of handling a Marvel feature.

Putting an end to one of the most anticipated directing announcements ever, today, they've confirmed who will now handle Ant-Man's first cinematic journey.

The Fault In Our Stars Review

Wow. That's Powerful

I've never a word of John Greens work. This was no accident; whenever I experienced The Fault In Our Stars in a movie theater for the first time, I wanted every aspect of its storytelling to be as much of a surprise as it could possibly be. As the 20th Century Fox logo came up though, I could tell I was likely the only one in the auditorium who hadn't been obsessively gazing over every page of the text this past week. Thunderous applause and cheers erupted from the crowd as the camera panned up to stars, and the approving noise got only louder once Shailene Woodley began to talk. 

The List!!!: 5 YA Novels-To-Movies That Have Changed Pop Culture Forever

In The List!!!, I do a list that just reeks of being click-bait, analyzing a particular topic or subject that pertains to something major occurring in pop-culture. This week, in honor of The Fault In Our Stars, I look at five YA novel movie adaptations that have had a particularly notable impact on pop culture.

I should note that, in terms of making it onto this list, I'm not talking entirely about quality of these five movies specifically (I haven't seen Twilight, for instance, rendering any critical thought on it beyond "Robert Pattinson needs to smile every once and a while" moot), but rather just what kind of impact they've had on film and pop culture. Onto the list!!

Box Office Predictions: Can Tom Cruise Conquer The Stars?

In Box Office Predictions, I take a look at the forthcoming weekend and see how new releases and holdovers will fare.

As late as 10 years ago, a summertime Tom Cruise tentpole could be guaranteed to be one of the biggest films of not just the season, but also the year. Since those days, he's been extremely more hit and miss, with his only $100 million features coming from Mission Impossible and a (hilarious I might add) cameo in a Ben Stiller film. Edge of Tomorrow has been dogged by both the press and audience members ever since it's first trailer came out, but extremely positive reviews seem to be turning the tide for the movie. I doubt it can all of a sudden churn even an Oblivion sized opening, but I'll be daring and say this thing just barely cracks $30 million.

A Million Ways To Die In The West Review

Frontier Follies Find Fairly Average  Venture

Seth Macfarlane comedy adheres to two different principles; turning the mundane into its most exaggerated form, or taking something zany and bringing it down to Earth. The latter was brought to terrific life in Ted, while the former coheres the humor in A Million Ways To Die In The West. The film takes all the cliches of both western movies and actual frontier life and ratchets them up to their most violent and sexual extremes. For some comedians, this movie would be stepping out of their comfort zones in a big way, while for Macfarlane it feels disappointing he couldn't conjure up something more memorable right on the heels of Ted.

I Wanna See That!: Gremlins 2: The New Batch

In this Thursday fixture, I Wanna See That!, I take a look at specific trailers that are both well crafted and have some kind of importance to them beyond just informing you a film is coming soon.

The first Gremlins is an important movie in my family, namely because of my little brother being traumatized by the sequence where the Gremlins attack in the kitchen. The mere mention of Gremlins, no matter the context, was forbidden in my household, elevating the movies to a sort of forbidden fruit stature that only makes something that much more tantalizing. Once I finally got to see the original Gremlins, it managed to defeat my hefty expectations, delivering thrills and the lovable Gizmo.

Eager for more of the first film, I immediately sought out Gremlins 2: The New Batch from Netflix.

Franchise Frenzy: The Dark Knight Trilogy

Welcome to Franchise Frenzy! Every other week I post a column analyzing the quality and pop culture impact of a certain Hollywood franchise. This week, I swear to Christopher Nolan and cover The Dark Knight trilogy.

Three movies have really impact blockbuster cinema in the 21st Century: Spider-Man, Batman Begins and The Avengers (Inception as well, but mainly because every trailer now needs a BWAAAAMMMM) Spider-Man opened the floodgates for comic book movies, while The Avengers told everyone that more complex blockbuster storytelling was possible. And every single reboot for a while there cited Batman Begins expert mix of darkness and fun as the ultimate way to pull off a blockbuster film.

So I Was On Netflix: The Road

A Wasteland of Opportunity

The landscape that the two main protagonists of The Road inhabit (a father and his son, named Man and Boy in the feature, played by Viggo Mortensen and Kodi Smit-McPhee) isn't just bleak; it's downright horrendous, with no animals, sunlight or flourishing vegetation to speak of. Bloodshed and cannibals are everyday occurrences, and the duo don't really try to survive in this new world as much as they attempt to just exist. And really, can you blame them? What else is there really to give one hope for the future aside from the "once-in-a-full-moon" appearance of a can of Coke.

I'm impressed that, aside from an ending that feels just a bit too fortunate, the darkness of this horrific world is handled consistently throughout the running time. Director John Hillcoat has a great knack for conveying the characters struggles in subtle ways, as Man attempts to protect his son from all the tragedy that has consumed the world. A great deal of the foreboding tone comes from the mystery that inhabits the world, as the exact cause of this apocalyptic wasteland is never fully explained. Fine by me; better to let the audience join Boy in his confusion over the world he lives in than have more knowledge than the protagonists they're watching.

That kind of focus centered on world building (or lack thereof) is something I wish the film had utilized more. Occasionally, things get aimless and while it's not enough to distract from the numerous positives the film conveys, it definitely neuters a few of the films poignant moments. At least none of the films tense moments are hindered, because man, do those work out spectacularly. Anything involving Man and Boy in some kind of peril is terrifically staged with just the right amount of mystery laced around every footstep, every noise, every breath to keep things constantly engaging.

Mortensen shares pretty much most of the film with McPhee, and luckily, the two mix together well, with Mortensen handling Man's morally questionable behavior in a thought-provoking manner that makes a fellow question who one is truly sympathetic for. Take a sequence towards the end where Man catches up with a man who stole him and his sons supplies. It isn't enough for him to just get his supplies back, he has to embarrass the stranger as well by making him strip down naked in the freezing cold. Just watching Mortensen spit out every word drew out complex emotions; one obviously doesn't approve of his actions, but the precarious situation may call for more drastic measures. On the other hand, the thief's sobbing and repentance makes one share in Boy's feelings and hate Mortensen. All while these complex scenarios play out, Mortensen makes sure to have just a hint of vulnerability hidden within everything he does.

This is a movie that one doesn't just watch, but envelop, as everything from the unforgettable environments to the gripping characters seeps into your mind and stays there. If it can get a little lost once or twice along the way, The Road always manages to compel you to keep watching the tragedy. After it's all done, I couldn't help but ask; was the tragedy the disaster itself or what humanity has been reduced to in the face of this apocalypse?

Dwayne Johnson Jumps On A Boar In Trailer For Hercules

I swear to God, Hercules looks so much like a parody to me it's unnerving. The song choice, the hammy dialogue that doesn't mesh with the uber-serious tone, the big actors (John Hurt, why???), it just all feels like some SNL skit gone haywire. Instead, this is an actual movie opening up in 3500+ theaters on July 25th that only has me not entirely dismissing it due to the fact that I absolutely love Dwayne Johnson. Plus, if it plays up all the camp value it's premise has it could still be a dumb fun time at the cinema.

You can enjoy Dwayne Johnson engaging in fist and swordfights with mystical CGI beasties on July 25th.

Box Office Analysis: What May Movies Tells Us About The Rest Of The Summer

Well, May 2014 sure was huge. With 4 movies hitting $60+ million openings, it was the 5th biggest May on record and a rollicking start to the summer movie going season. Going forward, it must be said that there are certainly more larger tentpoles in the back half of the summer than last year, with Transformers: Age of Extinction, Dawn of The Planet Of The Apes and Guardians of The Galaxy still likely to rake in big bucks for studios.

Still, the large amount of those gives me pause, simply because many of the May movies didn't seem to have a lot of stamina, despite good word of mouth and reviews. This can be mainly attributed to the fact that a new summer blockbuster emerged each and every week; who has time to see Godzilla when X-Men just popped up?? It's a real shame, as it's rendered a film like Godzilla (my favorite movie of the summer so far) into the Ang Lee's Hulk of the summer through its disastrous plummets from week to week (the mixed reception it's received from the fanboy community also adds to this perception).

June is a bit more level, but there's really only one guaranteed conventional blockbuster that month; Transformers: Age of Extinction. Then, two weeks later, a constant barrage of summer blockbusters arrive. For six weeks straight, one big movie after another opens up. This is gonna make it difficult for non-sequels like Jupiter Ascending who have to contend with proven franchises like the Ninja Turtles and Planet of The Apes. Even then, those sequels will have to make as much money as possible in their first week before new releases come and steal some of the spotlight (the good news for these six major releases is that they'll have summer weekdays where they can make some extra cash)

Frankly, the situation isn't terrible, especially since we've always had to contend with a jam packed schedule in the summertime. But with all these giant tentpoles fighting for space, I just wish studios could be more flexible with their scheduling, which would allow greater opportunities for all. Consider this; The Lego Movie, Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Gravity all opened outside of summer (February, April and October respectively) and are going to make more money than any movie released in May.

An X-Traordinary Graduation Cake

Just a little fun tidbit for today, but I actually graduated High School this weekend. It was quite a great weekend as one might imagine, with one of the best moments being the graduation cake above. Splendid stuff, right? Fantastic weekend, thanks to my parents for staging some spectacular parties and to all my friends and families that helped celebrate this occasion.

Now, onto summer! There's still tons of movies to see and write about!

Maleficent Reivew

The Only Explanation For This Movies Badness is Magic...Or Poor Filmmaking

Even she looks shocked at how bad this film is!

The best villains in cinema have an aura of mystery to them. Would The Joker be that imposing in The Dark Knight if we knew all of his backstory? How about Richie DiMaso in American Hustle? And if Boba Fett was revealed to be Bill Phillips, an accountant from Oregon, would he still remain so thrilling? (Ok, maybe that last one could work if Noah Baumbach directed. Frances Hoth we could call it) Maleficent makes the crucial mistake thinking that the only thing missing from that impeccable villain is a "tragic" backstory, that really just amounts to Twilight-esque romance and inconsistent characters.

Their main trouble is that the titular characters only appearance in any other media prior to this was the 1959 masterpiece Sleeping Beauty, as well as some Kingdom Hearts media. Unlike the characters seen in Disney's past two fantasy films (Alice In Wonderland and Oz The Great And Powerful), there aren't dozens of different cinematic interpretations of this characters to go through. That's not a terrible scenario; if they were smart, they would forget all about the original Disney movie and do their own thing. Which they kind of do, and yet, kind of don't.

Ya see, the tale of Sleeping Beauty as shown in the 1959 film kind of sort of happened; Prince Phillip, the three fairies, a spinning wheel and that engrossing baddie still factor in here. But the villain this time around is Aurora's (Elle Fanning) father, King Stefan (Sharlto Copley). While it's great that Copley gets a major role like this (he more than deserves it!), he's a pale substitute for the original animated features antagonist. But replacing the original Maleficent with a dude that dresses up in Sauron's armor is the least of the films problems. No, the worst part of the entire film is in it's one instance of entirely remaking a scene from the original movie; the scene where Maleficent curses baby Aurora to enter into an eternal sleep.

The whole scene lacks the dramatic potency of the original, and while Jolie is at least allowed to spring to evil life here (the only time in the movie she's allowed to do so). Oh, and let's just say the way she exits the scene here is just anemic when compared to the original.  Now, when it comes to remakes, I tend to take the attitude of book-to-movie adaptations and allow these things to stand on their own. But when your copying your inspiration this much, and then fail this badly, it deserves to be noticed. Speaking of failing badly,  the character of Maleficent in her incarnation here, is perfectly pitiful. Gone is the Queen of All Evil who threw all the forces of Hell at Prince Phillip; she's pretty much a glorified babysitter here. See, that last plot point really sticks out to me, since just a year or two after cursing the child to die on her 16th birthday, she soon takes the kid under hew wing. Now look, I'm not a soulless monster, I'll even freely admit the first scene where Maleficent encounters Aurora is all kinds of adorable, but it doesn't make scenes for the character as we've come to know her thus far in this particular movie.

That high level of inconsistency that plagues the movie has a field day with the films action sequences, which are so close to being thrilling it's disgusting. In a terrible waste of cool looking fantasy creatures, an epic battle between man and the magical beasts Maleficent helps protect loses all of it's effectiveness since the battles are shot so incoherently. In an effort to make the fights as PG appropriate as possible, no stabbings, impaling or what have you can be shown. As you might imagine, this makes depicting an epic battle sequence extremely difficult and by the end of it all, it just becomes a dull mess.

At least the finale is staged a little more lucid, although all the good is melted away by one of the single most idiotic things I've seen depicted in a film of this financial caliber. It's befuddling how this particular moment, along with practically everything else from the inconsistent characters to the God-awful green screen to the 3D that makes sure you can't see anything that happens in the film, was thought to be acceptable in the slightest.