Ever since Sacha Baron Cohen broke onto the scene with Borat he has become the one comedian who would do anything or say anything, and then taken it one step further. Cohen simply does not care what other people think, and he is the one actor who really says whatever he feels without fear of . . . → Read More: Sponsored Video: The Dictator with Sacha Baron Cohen]]> Sponsored Post

Ever since Sacha Baron Cohen broke onto the scene with Borat he has become the one comedian who would do anything or say anything, and then taken it one step further. Cohen simply does not care what other people think, and he is the one actor who really says whatever he feels without fear of public opinion or judgment.

The Dictator with Sacha Baron Cohen

That said, it’s actually a delightful romp that takes you into the world of a dictator that is just as enamoured with the western world that he claims to hate as anyone else, and therein lies a bit of the satire that hides behinds Cohen’s outrageous stunts.

Also starring Anne Farris, John C. Reilly, and featuring cameos from some of Hollywood’s greats such as Ben Kingsley and Megan Fox, The Dictator is more harmful to the societies that it portrays than the democracy that it opposes, as it shows Cohen enjoying the life of the free just a bit too much to believe that he really hates it.

Plus, while Cohen may seem to go off the rails at times, the man can be downright funny due to his penchant for being truly unpredictable and that’s what makes this film a couple of hours of fun.

One of the most anticipated  blockbusters for the summer of 2012 is the new alien movie from Gladiator director Ridley Scott. This is the version showing on . . . → Read More: New Prometheus trailer has landed]]>

Prometheus trailer

One of the most anticipated  blockbusters for the summer of 2012 is the new alien movie from Gladiator director Ridley Scott. This is the version showing on British TV

The . . . → Read More: Curzon On Demand is changing cinema]]>

Curzon Cinema offer an on demand service which is a very different offering in the streaming market from some of the other major competitors, such as Netflix and Love Film. Instead of offering what is essentially a DVD service online, Curzon offers you the ability to watch films that are currently in the cinema, from the comfort of your own home.

The On Demand service from Curzon is also different because instead of showing major Hollywood movies, Curzon focuses on smaller releases and independent films. One of the movies that has recently been made available on the service is Into The Abyss, this is the latest documentary from Werner Herzog. The movie is a fascinating insight into the life of a death row inmate who has only days to live and is a fascinating exploration of why the United States chooses to execute people.

Watching this movie on Curzon On Demand is a very easy experience and once
you have completed the simple registration process, all you have to do
is pay a small charge and you’ll be able to enjoy this latest movie
from your living room. The quality of the film is outstanding, and for
those who have a fast enough Internet connection, they will be able to
enjoy the film in high-definition. In fact, all of the movies that are
available on Curzon On Demand are available in HD for your viewing
pleasure.

From exploring this website, it is easy to see that there are an
enormous number of films that a member could enjoy. Better yet, the
price of the films is very affordable and comparable to other leading
online movie providers. For movies that have been released for a while,
the price is even more favourable. It pays to sign up as well, as you
will get a discount on every movie you watch, and signing up comes at no
cost.

Sponsored Post

Twilight Bella as a vampire photos and video

Twilight: Breaking Dawn part one ended after the immortal Edward Cullen had turned his new wife Bella Swan into a vampire, now Twilight fans have the chance to get a glimpse of Bella in her new persona after a teaser . . . → Read More: Twilight Bella as a vampire photos and video]]>

Twilight Bella as a vampire photos and video

Twilight Bella as a vampire photos and video

Twilight: Breaking Dawn part one ended after the immortal Edward Cullen had turned his new wife Bella Swan into a vampire, now Twilight fans have the chance to get a glimpse of Bella in her new persona after a teaser trailer for the last part in the Twilight series hit the net.

It is believes that this trailer was shown to tie in with the release of the first instalment on DVD in the US Target Stores, and fans have been quick on the uptake to post the video online. In the trailer we see Bella waking up as a vampire following the injection Edward gave her in the heart in a last ditch attempt to keep both her and Renesmee, their baby daughter, alive.

With her pale skin and red eyes and lips, Bella looks literally worlds away from the lively teenager we have always known her as, and is now on a par, appearance wise, with her vampire husband. The video also shows Bella studying part of a page that has been torn from Shakespeare’s ‘The Merchant of Venice’ that says “gather as many witnesses as you can before the snow sticks to the ground. That’s when they’ll come for us.”

Twilight Bella as a vampire photos and video

Bella then tries to explain how she feels to Edward, saying that physically she feels capable of demolishing a tank, but that mentally she is totally drained. Now she is a vampire, Bella also finds herself with a power she never had before; a greatly elevated level of self control, alongside this she can also use her mind to project a shield that can be used to protect those around her.

This tantalising trailer is certainly going to get those fans who are already counting down the days until its release in November chomping at the bit even more.

Note. Video is poor quality

Even though Brad Pitt’s zombie war movie ‘World War Z’ hasn’t yet been released, plans are already in place to turn it into a potential franchise. In an article in the Los Angeles Times that focused on Pitt’s acting career, it reveals that this post-apocalyptic movie has been  . . . → Read More: World War Z may already be a franchise, trailer]]>

World War Z may already be a franchise

Even though Brad Pitt’s zombie war movie ‘World War Z’ hasn’t yet been released, plans are already in place to turn it into a potential franchise. In an article in the Los Angeles Times that focused on Pitt’s acting career, it reveals that this post-apocalyptic movie has been  prepared as being the first part of a trilogy

The article also says that as far as Pitt is concerned, this huge sci-fi thriller is his strongest  bid to fate to have his own big movie franchise, something that could be viewed as the missing piece in the jigsaw puzzle that was his career. It went on to say that both Paramount Pictures and the director Marc Foster, both viewed World War Z as a trilogy.

It continued to say that the storyline of this potential trilogy would have the grounded and gunmetal realism of, for example, Matt Damon’s Jason Bourne franchise tethered to the unsettling and end of times vibe of the Walking Dead. Despite all this conjecture, however, there has been no official word from Paramount regarding  the much hyped franchise.

Pitt plays Gerry Lanein World War Z, an employee of the United Nations who traverses the world in a bitter race against time to try and stop the Zombie pandemic that is toppling governments and armies and threatening the survival of humanity itself. The story is based on the horror novel of the same name by Max Brook.

Playback is the latest offering from Michael A. Nickles and it stars a group of friends who are studying journalism. The lead character is Julian who is played by Johnny Pacar. As journalism students might do they start investigating a murder which took place over 15 years ago. As . . . → Read More: Playback from Michael A. Nickles, review, trailer]]>

Playback from Michael A. Nickles, review, trailer

Playback is the latest offering from Michael A. Nickles and it stars a group of friends who are studying journalism. The lead character is Julian who is played by Johnny Pacar. As journalism students might do they start investigating a murder which took place over 15 years ago. As they look into the past of the town they discover the story of a filmmaker who could apparently capture people’s souls on film. The group initially pass the idea off as just a legend but they soon discover that there is a very real link between the murder and this old filmmaker.

The movie starts off very well and it really sets the audience up for a good, original horror movie. Unfortunately, after this promising start, the audience will start to lose interest in the film. It starts to employ all the horror movie clichés such as curses and haunted items. It also utilises modern media which is coming to be regarded as one of the great clichés in modern horror movies. The movie feels very familiar and those who watch it will be quite disappointed after such a good start.

The filmmakers certainly had some good ideas and there are plenty of twists and red herrings in the film. The characters feel as if they have been taken out of movies from the past however and there is no real effort made on their development. They even have the token black guy in the production and today this just makes for an inappropriately funny moment that breaks the suspense.

The casting for the production is also not particularly well done and the characters, who are supposed to be young, look very much older. The reason for this is obvious, the actors who are playing them are significantly older than the characters. A main character in the movie as Quinn who is supposed to be 15 years but he is played by Toby Hemingway who is 28.

Many people will be pleasantly surprised to see the Christian Slater making a brief appearance in the movie. However, when you see his role it has become clear that he is willing to perform any acting job for money and a pay cheque has become more important to him than a good production. There is a moment in the movie when his character is being insulted by his boss and it almost feels as if it has been inserted just to insult Slater himself. This doesn’t make you feel good about the film and you will feel bad for Slater.

The acting in the movie is just fine but the actors are let down by a weak script and so their characters seem hollow. The music is also a bit disappointing and it could have done with some better editing. The special effects work more well and the kill scenes are definitely quite impressive. The movie is not a great horror film but if you don’t mind a lot of cliches then it could be worth your time.

The ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) stated that the lingerie commercial was not likely to offend the majority of viewers and thus revoked its ban. The . . . → Read More: Agent Provocateur women in lingerie kidnapping another woman video cleared for viewing]]> An Agent Provocateur advert that features four women in lingerie kidnapping another woman from her home has been cleared for broadcasting, despite a complaint that the video was too disturbing to air.

The ASA (Advertising Standards Authority) stated that the lingerie commercial was not likely to offend the majority of viewers and thus revoked its ban. The ASA banned the ad back in November when it received a complaint about the content of the lingerie advertisement.

The video ad; which has been circulated around YouTube and the Agent Provocateur website, features a brunette sitting at home in an old dressing gown who is then abducted and teased by four women that are dressed scantily in knickers and peep-hole bras. The ad runs for about two minutes and has a bit of a classic horror film feel to it, with the clip starting with a shot of an apartment that is surrounded by waving trees.

Suddenly, the phone rings in the home and when the woman answers it she hears nothing. Of course, the phone rings again but this time she hears females laughing in the receiver. Out of nowhere two lingerie clad models pop up outside of the window and as the woman screams one of the lingerie models appears in front of her face.

In horror the women runs through the home before she runs into another set of lingerie models and then collapses out of fear. At this point the screen darkens as she is dragged along the floor. She wakes up in horror to see the sexy models provocatively standing in front of her ready to ravish her. A second later she gets up from the floor, only now her dressing gown is gone and in its place is sexy lingerie to show that she has been drawn to the dark side.

One viewer felt that the video ad was offensive and misogynistic and filed a complaint with the ASA. According to the ASA, they are aware that some viewers may find it distasteful, but that it was obviously meant to be fictional and stylish and those would not offend most people that visited the Agent Provocateur website.

Filmed in Chicago, which acts as the city of Plano in the film, we see our intrepid hero doing all the Superman stuff we know and love, and the official trailer has already has over 4.5m hits on YouTube.

The trailer is . . . → Read More: Man of Steel trailer released]]> The last superhero film in production is essentially a reboot of the Superman series of films.

Filmed in Chicago, which acts as the city of Plano in the film, we see our intrepid hero doing all the Superman stuff we know and love, and the official trailer has already has over 4.5m hits on YouTube.

The trailer is a montage of shots from the film, showing him landing on earth, being taken in by the Kents, through his young years when he discovers his powers and how to use them, going back to Krypton, starting work at the Daily Planet, and his final transformation into the most super of all film heroes. The close up shot of a bullet bouncing off his eye will make you wince, as well as cheer.

The effects in the film are spectacular if the trailer is anything to go by, and if all those hits equate into bums on seats, Warner bros seem set to have a monster hit on their hands. Henry Cavill fits well into the iconic costume, and the ever watchable Amy Adams is Lois Lane. Judging by this trailer, you may well believe a man can fly after all.

He lies through his teeth to everyone about everything, until he lies to a guru, who ties his spirit in with a tree.

There are a thousand leaves . . . → Read More: A Thousand Words]]> The latest Eddie Murphy vehicle sees him taking the part of Jack McCall, a literary agent who is so fast talking he says anything to get what he wants, literally.

He lies through his teeth to everyone about everything, until he lies to a guru, who ties his spirit in with a tree.

There are a thousand leaves on the tree, once they have dropped off the tree will die, thus Jack is only allowed 1000 words, less that what he usually says in a day.

The trailer is both funny and informative, and you are left with the knowledge of what the film is all about. There is a scene where he is sitting with a boy playing an elaborate game of pictionary to get across his dilemma without speaking, and other where he is with a babe and she keeps asking him to speak.

Another one shows him enter a coffee shop with a huge queue, he rips out his mobile phone and pretends to be speaking to his wife in labour. The crowd parts and he gets almost to the front, behind two rednecks. He then loudly declares its twins, they part for him to get through and he gets his order on the house. Whether this is the hit Eddie Murphy has been looking for remains to be seen, but it definitely a possibility.

In the new movie Haywire, Gina Carano plays Mallory Kane, a contractor to global governments who is capable of working operations for them on a private basis. She has a reputation for success with such things as hostage rescue and distracting people while another operative completes the mission.

In the movie world of spies and . . . → Read More: Haywire review, trailer]]>

Haywire review

In the new movie Haywire, Gina Carano plays Mallory Kane, a contractor to global governments who is capable of working operations for them on a private basis. She has a reputation for success with such things as hostage rescue and distracting people while another operative completes the mission.

In the movie world of spies and secret government ops, doublecrosses are the norm and as you would expect Mallory becomes hunted by the very people she was previously hunting for. In order to survive this ordeal she must use all the skills she has developed to avoid being killed and find out who is responsible for betraying her.

This is the first lead role that Carano has had in a movie and her training is in mixed martial arts. The first scene we see her in the movie is when she is at a coffee shop and a man who has been ordered to bring her arrives. They start with polite questions until he makes an aggressive move and initially it looks as if he is going to overpower her. Suddenly, Mallory turns the tables on him and he is left with little opportunity to complete his mission. From this point on it becomes clear that Mallory is going to be on the run although she has no idea who from, or who has betrayed her trust.

The movie is directed by Steven Soderbergh who has previously directed such hits as Ocean’s 11 and Traffic. The film is based on the screenplay written by Lem Dobbs he has previously written Dark City and The Limey. The movie takes a different approach to the action genre and the exaggerated sound effects, big explosions and intense musical score are not present.

The action seems much more real and when there is nothing going on there is simply silence. This is a welcome departure from recent movies which have been overdoing things with overwrought scores which simply overpower any action that is occurring, for an example think of the latest Transformers movie.

The fight sequences look much more real and this is helped by the lack of unrealistic sound effects. They have a Jason Bourne movie style and there is no question that Carano is an excellent martial artist. The director made a wise decision to keep everything believable and there are no huge jumps through the air or unrealistic flying kicks.

The story itself is rather complicated and the amount of scene changes going from country to country might make the audience think that Mallory’s primary motivation is simply to collect air miles. The movie certainly delivers but not exactly what you would expect after seeing the trailer, this isn’t a full on action movie, it’s an intelligent thriller