Behind The Films

The first trailer for Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince has hit the web. Like the books by J.K. Rowling, this trailer shows that the movies are getting progressively darker and darker.

A trailer for Oliver Stone’s George W Bush bio pic has hit the web- looks like it’s going to be a wonderful movie. The casting looks to be truly brilliant.

On a side note- I have been away for the past week so sorry for the lack of updates.

To say I had high expectations for this film is a bit of an understatement, however I doubt I was alone. The massive marketing campaign which included not only trailers and teasers, but viral websites, games, news papers and souvenirs that made this film one of the most anticipated of the year if not the most. Walking into the theater I was expecting a much different film, however when I left I was more then satisfied I was exhilarated. (minor spoilers)

The Dark Knight is less about Batman then Batman Begins was; no The Dark Knight is about crime in Gotham, and escalation. Escalation: referenced by Lieutenant Gordon at the conclusion of Batman Begins the idea that if the cops get semi-automatics, the criminals will get automatics it’s a cycle that was really explored in The Dark Knight. Batman Begins was about creating a new Batman, a darker Batman, more anger, more darkness and a complete overhaul of the franchise, it introduced and explored the character of Batman and Bruce Wayne. The Dark Knight is the next logical step; we know Batman so lets push him to the limit with some great trials/villains. That’s what The Dark Knight was about, the next step. Batman now shares the stage with a politician, a psychopathic killer and a hardworking police lieutenant. I loved how the film was able to really focus on The Joker, Dent, and Gordon but at the same time it had a very nice character ark for Bruce wayne.

Batman: Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), starts the film in the same place he was at the end of Batman Begins; ready and determined to clean up Gotham. However as the film progresses he begins to realize that he may be part of the problem, the harder he tries to fight crime the harder the criminals work to stay in business. This is a moral issue that Bruce/Batman struggles with until the conclusion of the film.

The Joker: I would not be surprised if Heath Ledger gets a best supporting actor nomination, his performance is superb almost flawless. Very dark and very creepy, psychopathic and deranged the Joker is one of the best villains I have ever seen, not because he’s flashy or theatrical it’s much deeper: this guy is messed up in a very creepy way.

Harvey Dent: Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart) is a complicated character, on one side (literally) he represents justice, and bravery on the other side he represents hatred and vengeance. After a terrible tragedy Harvey goes from being the incorruptible face of Gotham to a man twisted on revenge. The change is quick but at the same time you can almost see it coming, which is an amazing tribute Eckhart’s acting.

Lieutenant James Gordon: In the first film Lt Gordon (Gary Oldman) was trying to do his job and lay down the law without being killed by a corrupt cop, however now he has a bit more freedom to stand up for justice. With Batman, Harvey Dent and the good citizens of Gotham on his side he can stand up to injustice and try to restore order to Gotham, he takes on this role fully committed.

The Dark knight is more complex and much darker then the Batman Begins. It’s a complex crime story with a large ensemble of heroes, villains and those who walk in the grey area. 

Rating:

-Travis Fantina

On a side note: as I walked out of the theater I found myself wondering how this film ever got a PG-13 rating.

Well The Dark Knight came out last night so if you were lucky enough to have tickets chances are you really loved it, that seems to be the general reaction of people who have seen it so far. As far as IMDB goes The Dark Knight currently rests at number 4 on there top 250 list of movies. It’s an IMDB trend for films to rise very high on opening day and for a while after that then slowly sink, however with over four and a-half thousand votes already making it number 4 I wonder where The Dark Knight will be in 6 months? Most likely it will remain high on the 250 list.

As far as Rotten Tomatoes goes the film is 94% Fresh.

So if you were lucky enough to see it last night tell us what you thought. I hope to post a review tonight or tomorrow.


July 19th update


The Dark Knight is now listed as the no.1 film of all time on IMDB!

Trailer Addict has the first trailer for the upcoming Zack Snyder film Watchmen, adapted from the Alan Moore comic by the same name.

A complex, multi-layered mystery adventure, Watchmen is set in an alternate 1985 America in which costumed superheroes are part of the fabric of everyday society, and the “Doomsday Clock” – which charts the USA’s tension with the Soviet Union – is permanently set at five minutes to midnight. When one of his former colleagues is murdered, the washed up but no less determined masked vigilante Rorschach sets out to uncover a plot to kill and discredit all past and present superheroes. As he reconnects with his former crime-fighting legion – a ragtag group of retired superheroes, only one of whom has true powers – Rorschach glimpses a wide-ranging and disturbing conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future. Their mission is to watch over humanity…but who is watching the watchmen?
-Official Site

The international version of the trailer for director Ridley Scott’s thriller Body of Lies is now online! Written by William Monahan and Steve Zaillian, the October 10 release stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, Carice Van Houten and Vince Colosimo.

Based on Washington Post columnist David Ignatius’ 2007 novel about a CIA operative, Roger Ferris (Leonardo DiCaprio), who uncovers a lead on a major terrorist leader suspected to be operating out of Jordan. When Ferris devises a plan to infiltrate his network, he must first win the backing of cunning CIA veteran Ed Hoffman (Russell Crowe) and the collegial, but perhaps suspect, head of Jordanian intelligence. Although ostensibly his allies, Ferris questions how far he can really trust these men without putting his entire operation – and his life – on the line.

International Trailer (7.17.08):
QuickTime, Hi-Res
QuickTime, Med-Res
QuickTime, Lo-Res
Windows Media Player, Hi-Res
Windows Media Player, Med-Res
Windows Media Player, Lo-Res

You may not have heard of Mathieu Ratthe, however you may have heard of  Stephen King and Peter Straub’s The Talisman.   The Talisman was first published in 1984, at some point in time apparently the rights to a film adaption were purchased by Steven Spielberg and is now being developed as a mini-series.  A young Canadian filmmaker named  Mathieu Ratthe has put together an amazing 4 min clip from the book in hopes of getting a job working on (hopefully directing) some of the proposed mini-series.

“My main objective for creating this piece is to demonstrate my directing ability and my vision to the producers who own the rights to the story…”

I hope one of the producers sees this because it’s awesome. Mathieu Ratthe has quite a lot of talent and it would be nice to see his efforts rewarded.

Coming Soon sat down with director J.J.Abrams recently about his upcoming film ‘Star Trek’ that is due in theatres Summer 2009. Below is excerpt from the interview but you can read the full interview here.

CS: You’ve said that you didn’t start out as an uber-fan of “Star Trek,” but you quickly became a fan. Can you talk in general terms about what you fell in love with about the whole franchise?
Abrams: I fell in love with the relationships between the characters. I fell in love with the characters. The idea of – it’s so funny because you hear something so often and it loses it’s meaning. But “space, the final frontier” – if you actually consider space as uncharted territory there’s something about the idea of these people, because any ship flying by isn’t going to get you excited. It’s who’s on the ship that matters. I feel like these characters actually going out into that nothingness and finding something is great. Having lived with it now and gotten to know the characters and worked with amazing actors who portrayed them, it made me fall in love with that notion, that idea that for some reason never struck me the way that “Twilight Zone” did.

Will Ferrell is attached to star in Two Face, a Vince Gilligan-scripted drama-comedy for Sony Pictures Entertainment, says Variety. Mark Johnson and Jimmy Miller are producing.

Ferrell will play the title character, a racist who, after a prank gone awry, develops a split personality.

Ferrell has been intrigued by the script for three years, but the project has gained momentum over the past year. Johnson and Gilligan previously worked together on Home Fries, and Gilligan’s more recent credit is the Sony hit Hancock.

Johnson and Miller are looking for a director, with an eye toward making the film early next year.

John Woo will direct comic book adaptation Caliber, to be unveiled at next week’s Comic-Con in San Diego, reports Variety.

The film looks likely to be a three-way co-production of Johnny Depp’s Infinitum Nihil, Barry Levine’s Radical Comics and Lion Rock, the U.S.-based company that Woo runs with longstanding partner Terence Chang.

Radical Comics’ hit story sets King Arthur and his knights as 19th century gunslingers in the Pacific Northwest.

Woo, who is currently editing part two of his epic Red Cliff, previously announced that he will helm Lion Rock’s $40 million film 1949, a period romancer set against the tumultuous background of the Chinese Revolution.

Woo’s other Stateside projects include a remake of 1969 French crime drama The Sicilian Clan, which starred Alain Delon and Lino Ventura, and The Divide, the story of a Chinese laborer working on America’s transcontinental railroads in the 19th century.