PAWN is an overplotted, low-expectations hostage drama that manages to work up a fair share of suspense despite some ridiculous plot holes. It opens with cop Forest Whitaker entering a diner just before midnight and quickly realizing all the employees and customers are on edge. Turns out he’s walked into the middle of a hostage situation. An armed robber named Derrick (Michael Chiklis) and his two accomplices are waiting until midnight when the time-locked safe can be opened. I won’t go into much more of the plot but I’ll say no one’s hands are clean and the story has enough double-crosses, ulterior motives, and conspiracies to make your head spin. The chief problem with THE PAWN is its lack of originality; this is simply a story which is too familiar to be told in a straightforward manner…. and it’s not. Director David Armstrong and writer Jay Anthony White jump back and forth in time, leaving clues that are revisited, and showing the same scenes from different points of view. This is an obvious way to cover up the fact that they don’t have an original story to tell but it’s done in a clear, orderly way so on many level their trickery works. The ‘hostage drama’ subgenre is so overdone and one of my least favorites, but damn if PAWN isn’t an engrossing enough film that I was compelled to stay with and see how the situation was resolved. It’s just well-paced and engaging enough to overlook its many flaws.
Forest Whitaker and Ray Liotta are the name stars in PAWN but Whitaker is out of the picture quickly and Liotta, who can play this criminal type in his sleep, comes and goes. The real star is Michael Chiklis, sporting, for no reason, a British accent. It’s a needless touch but he does such a convincing job with it, it works. Chiklis has a way of holding your attention the way a snake stares down its prey and he’s a really good villain here. Rapper Common, Stephen Lang, Sean Faris, Nikki Reed, Max Beesley, Marton Csokas, and Jessica Szohr all add able support. PAWN is an exercise in ideas and suspense that is instantly forgettable but a decent ride while you’re talking it.
Presented in 2.40:1 Cinemascope Aspect Ratio, the Blu-ray features 1080p image that is always rock solid. Detail is impressive, with excellent depth throughout and shadow delineation superior. Even the darkest scenes reveal fine texture in the backgrounds, and close-ups and skin tones are tremendous. Great video (and audio) aside, PAWN does feel a bit like a rushed release in terms of extras. The only significant one is “Pawn: Behind the Scenes”, a 23-minute, featurette featuring interviews with several cast members and producer Jeff Most. It’s standard stuff and not very interesting.
Nothing else, not even a trailer is included here.
Last week, WAMG got to attend the press day for THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN at The Montage Hotel in Beverly Hills. While there, I participated in a small round-table with Jennifer Garner, who plays Cindy Green in the film. You can find our Q&A below.
Academy Award®–nominated writer/director Peter Hedges (“Dan in Real Life,” What’s Eating Gilbert Grape”) brings enchantment to the screen with “The Odd Life of Timothy Green.” It’s the inspiring, magical story of a happily married couple, Cindy and Jim Green (Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton), who can’t wait to start a family but can only dream about what their child would be like. When young Timothy (CJ Adams) shows up on their doorstep one stormy night, Cindy and Jim—and their small town of Stanleyville—learn that sometimes the unexpected can bring some of life’s greatest gifts.
JENNIFER GARNER: Hi. I haven’t done this in so long. It’s my first one in so-, I feel all, like, fresh, I don’t know what I’ll say.
Q:So how much of Jennifer Garner do we find in Mother Cindy and her overprotective, fussbudget-y, “Do not too much pressure on the child.”
JENNIFER GARNER:Right. Um, well, first-time-Mom-Jennifer, you’d probably see quite a bit of, I could draw a lot from … I’m not nearly that way now, and neither would Cindy be. I feel like, though, um, this character juxtaposed against Laura Pickler in “Butter,” which is coming out this fall, you get a kind of a real sense of my sensibilities, mixed in there, kind of naughty, kind of nice, and, uh, blended together. Yup, that’s, that’s … sums it up right there. [LAUGH]
Q: Was being the mom in this, and what they go through and all that expectations beforehand of being a parent, were those things that you related to at any particular …
JENNIFER GARNER:Of course.
Q: Not exactly, but, I mean, you know …
JENNIFER GARNER:Of course. I mean, I didn’t, I was so lucky. I did not have any fertility issues, obviously. Um, but, uh [LAUGH], but I could definitely relate to the longing and relate to how much once you’re ready for a baby you are really ready right then, and you have this enormous fear that it isn’t gonna work. And, um, for me, it did about eight days later. But, um [LAUGH], but I could relate to, or at least understand how shocking and crushing that would be.
Q: And there are a lot of high highs and low lows in the movie. And it’s so emotional. Did you find that exhausting, delivering that?
JENNIFER GARNER:Yes. I, I mean, whenever a movie, you feel like, “Oh, this is a sweet comedy kind of thing,” you end up crying more on those movies than if it was the biggest tragedy in the, world. I mean, you could play Lady Macbeth and [LAUGH] not have to be as emotional as in a sweet little comedy. Um, and this was definitely an example of that. I, you know, we de- we did some digging, for this, for sure. And had a lot of conversations about balancing it so that it wasn’t just, ‘cause you stop feeling if you just see people blubbering on screen the whole time, and just kind of making sure that it was full emotionally and didn’t go too far, which usually means performance-wise, you get there, you go too far, and then in the editing process, you figure out where it is that you want to hit those notes. And I, I mean, I, I think, in my opinion, Peter did a pretty great job of balancing all that out. But I also had Joel. I mean, how, what heaven is Joel Edgerton. Isn’t he just bliss on a stick. I just adore him.
Q: And then you get to go home to Ben.
JENNIFER GARNER:I, well, I mean, you know, life is unfair.
Q: Would you like to do movies with your own kids sometime?
JENNIFER GARNER:No. No. Never. I would never want to do that.
Q: Why not?
JENNIFER GARNER:I mean, it’s, uh, because it’s a really, really hard day, and it’s a long day. And it, um, and I I don’t know. It’s impossible, for me to say without sounding judgmental so I just can’t. Because I don’t feel that way. I feel like, uh, this was a beautiful experience for C.J., and I think, I think he loved it, learned a lot from it, and was, is very suited to it, but it’s not always that way, and …
Q: Not for your kids.
JENNIFER GARNER:Yeah.
Q:Can you talk about your relationship with C.J. and what it was like working with him on set?
JENNIFER GARNER:Oh, C.J. is, the kind of magic that Timothy Green has, C.J. has. He seems like he’s from another planet. And he seems to kind of have been plopped down here with his eyes wide open and his heart wide open. I can’t imagine another little boy playing that role. Um, I, we all fell so totally in love with C.J. and with Odeya Rush, who gives a beautiful, she’s, God, is that girl just somethin’ else. Um, she’s just mature and measured and together and has lived ten lifetimes compared to my little, my little life. But, um, he, Joel and I worked like parents with him. I mean, his parents were around all the time, and they’re, they’re amazing, and that says so much about C.J. But, um, working on a film is hard, and, it’s not hard compared to ditch, digging. It’s hard for a little kid. Because as a grownup, you expect when you are wearing of, uh, ten coats and a wool sweater and a scarf and a hat it’s gonna be 90 degrees outside. You know that. And you know you’re gonna be uncomfortable a lot of the time, but as an adult, you think, “Oh, okay, this is just the job, whatever. It doesn’t, uh, it doesn’t matter. This is the best job in the world.” As a kid, being caked in mud for 12, you know, eight hours at a time, under hot lights, and , having to be sprayed down to keep the mud looking moist, that’s a bummer. You know, that gets old. Having food on you all day while you shoot, that’s a drag. And being hot or being cold, those things matter to kids a lot. And he was a super trooper about it, but, you know, we worked with him a lot, and, and worked on making sure that he was as comfortable as he could possibly be. And, uh, I would say that Joel entertained him, and I made sure he had snacks and bathroom breaks.
Q: There’s a lot of things about “The Odd Life” that are nontraditional.
JENNIFER GARNER:Thank goodness, right?
Q: Yeah. It’s a modern story in that the town isn’t recession-proof, that the family deals with infertility issues, that the child is nontraditional, he’s not from the Mommy’s tummy. And when you were in the beginning process of filming, when you were making your decisions, how did you go about handling those decisions, those nontraditional and signs of the times?
JENNIFER GARNER:Well, whenever Peter makes a movie or writes a book, he has something to say, he has a lot of things to say. And, um, the way that he weaves them into story, I think, is, he’s, he’s such a smart guy and such a passionate man, and you can really see that in, just his writing, if you’re just looking at it as writing, you can, you can really see that. And writing is the thing that I’m drawn to first and foremost by … I mean, I, obviously, we all fall for a good script. But his writing is, has something, some extra juice to it.
Um, he really cared about making the point that we don’t make things in America anymore, that we, we outsource everything, and that you don’t have the joy of holding something up and saying, “We, I am responsible for this. I made this.” Do I get to keep this? Okay. Um, and he really cared about what women are going through and having women, having children later, and fertility issues, and what t, how that reflects on, you as a woman. And he really, he, it mattered to him that this family was hit by the recession, that, that they were grappling with all of these things at the same time, because that’s what life is, and life is messy, and it’s not, um, things don’t just fall in order the way you want them to.
Um, and, so it was, so that was, that was definitely, those were things that we talked about a lot. We talked a lot about the car they would drive, the, you know, um, I think we spent an hour on what watch she would have. The, those are the little details that, that Peter really paid a lot of attention to, um, and that we all did. And as far as the kind of magical realism, whenever you do a movie that has a little sprinkling of fairy dust, you are so conscious about the rules.
You know, what are the rules? How, what does this mean? If, if th-, you have leaves growing out of your leg, does that mean X or does that mean Y? Are you seen by a botanist, are you seen by a pediatrician? Are you seen … and, um, those things just are a constant conversation on a film like this.
Q: Being a parent, and Joel not being a parent, did you give him any guidelines in his performance, or any helpful hints with anything he had to do?
JENNIFER GARNER:No. You don’t have to help Joel. No. And besides that, Joel was so gifted with C.J. right from the beginning, that they had their own relationship before C.J. and I did. I mean, C.J. and I became incredibly close, but right away he was enamored with Joel. Joel with a soccer bowl, with magic tricks, with, you know, he’s, he’s a guy.
Q: I was just gonna say we haven’t seen you for a while. You mentioned yourself when you came in it’s been a while since we’ve seen you here. And now it seems like you’re back to your working three jobs at the same time almost. What kind of was the impetus of that? Is it just that the kids are old enough and that you can spend some more time doing movies and stuff?
JENNIFER GARNER:Well, I did this movie, before I got pregnant with, uh, my baby two months after I finished this movie, so that was in the air. [LAUGHS] And we thought this was a good time. Ben, you know, took a break from his work to come to Atlanta and be Mr. Mom so that I could do this. And, uh, you know, it’s just, it’s a lot to, it’s a lot to juggle. And I’m, he’s doing more and more, and we have these kids. It’s not like, you know, what are you gonna do with them? You have them.
So, um, I feel lucky to work whenever I get to work. I really, really value it, now in a different way than I ever have. I really feel like I am getting something back from it. It’s, it feeds a part of me that I didn’t realize I needed to take care of before, and now, um, I really don’t take a job unless there’s something in it that I need to do. And that is just not, that often.
Q: If you had a memorable moment from the entire filming process, what would that be?
JENNIFER GARNER:Um, I have a lot of memorable moments on this movie, it turns out. Well, we were working really hard. It was super hot. We were in Atlanta. Um, and we had to add a couple of Saturdays. And the crew was tired. And so we decided on a Saturday we were shooting this super hard scene, and we decided to have a party during lunch. And, um, I just found a local band to come and play, and we, the whole cast and crew, when they came out for lunch, there was just a band playing. And we just sat and, listened to music.
But we had Common on the movie, and we had Lin-Manuel Miranda on the movie, and they’re obviously both, um, rappers, and, uh, uh, I didn’t think of that. They both happened to be working that day. So they did kind of a, what’s it called when they’re competing with each other?
SEVERAL PEOPLE: A battle.
JENNIFER GARNER:A battle. They did, like, a, a battle, but about the movie, freestyle. And little, you know, C.J. was dancing, all the kids were dancing their asses off, and all, you know, the, the crew was all dancing. And it was just … I, I love making movies so much. And I love the, the familial aspect of it. I, I love feeling like a part of this community and, and helping to foster that sense of community is a, something I really love. And this was one of those, um, kind of magical moments, with little C.J. dancing while they were sing-, rapping about him, and, and I thought, will he remember this? Will this be something for him down the road that he’ll think, “Oh, yeah, that was, I was that guy. That was about me,” you know. Anyway. That’s all.
(L-r) Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR.; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL; and in front, Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Check out all the latest photos and featurette from Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure HAPPY FEET TWO. You can catch it in RealD 3D, IMAX 3D and 2D in select theaters on Friday, November 18
The sequel to HAPPY FEET, the Academy Award®-winning animated smash hit, HAPPY FEET TWO returns audiences to the magnificent landscape of Antarctica in superb 3D.
Mumble, The Master of Tap, has a problem because his tiny son, Erik, is choreo-phobic. Reluctant to dance, Erik runs away and encounters The Mighty Sven – a penguin who can fly! Mumble has no hope of competing with this charismatic new role model.
But things get worse when the world is shaken by powerful forces.
Erik learns of his father’s guts and grit as Mumble brings together the penguin nations and all manner of fabulous creatures – from tiny Krill to giant Elephant Seals – to put things right.
(3rd from left) Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; and (right) Bryan the Beachmaster, voiced by RICHARD CARTER, with two Elephant Seals, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Ramon (center), voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, stands between (back l-r) Nestor, voiced by CARLOS ALAZRAQUI; Lombardo, voiced by JOHNNY SANCHEZ III; Rinaldo, voiced by JEFF GARCIA; and Raul, voiced by LOMBARDO BOYAR; and (front l-r) Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR.; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES and Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; and Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Bill the Krill, voiced by MATT DAMON, and Will the Krill, voiced by BRAD PITT, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Will the Krill, voiced by BRAD PITT; and Bill the Krill, voiced by MATT DAMON, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) The Mighty Sven, voiced by HANK AZARIA; and Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES (background), and Will the Krill, voiced by BRAD PITT (foreground), in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Director GEORGE MILLER, during the making of Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
ELIJAH WOOD, voice of Mumble, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
ELIJAH WOOD, voice of Mumble, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., voice of Atticus, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., voice of Atticus, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
HUGO WEAVING, voice of Noah The Elder, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Noah The Elder, voiced by HUGO WEAVING, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
HUGO WEAVING, voice of Noah The Elder, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
BRAD PITT, voice of Will the Krill, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo by Bob Marshak
(Top to bottom) Will the Krill, voiced by BRAD PITT; and Bill the Krill, voiced by MATT DAMON, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
BRAD PITT, voice of Will the Krill, and MATT DAMON, voice of Bill the Krill, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
MATT DAMON, voice of Bill the Krill, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
COMMON, voice of Seymour, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Seymour, voiced by COMMON, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
COMMON, voice of Seymour, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
ROBIN WILLIAMS, voice of Ramon and Lovelace, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Lovelace, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release.Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release.Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
ROBIN WILLIAMS, voice of Ramon and Lovelace, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
HANK AZARIA, voice of The Mighty Sven in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
The Mighty Sven, voiced by HANK AZARIA, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
HANK AZARIA, voice of The Mighty Sven in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
ALECIA MOORE (P!NK), voice of Gloria in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Gloria, voiced by ALECIA MOORE (P!NK), in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(Center) Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(Center) Carmen, voiced by SOFIA VERGARA, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Carmen, voiced by SOFIA VERGARA; and Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r from center) Raul, voiced by LOMBARDO BOYAR; The Mighty Sven, voiced by HANK AZARIA, Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS; Nestor, voiced by CARLOS ALAZRAQUI; and Rinaldo, voiced by JEFF GARCIA, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(Center) Lovelace, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, and (far right l-r) Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL, and Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(Center) The Mighty Sven, voiced by HANK AZARIA, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Miss Viola, voiced by MAGDA SZUBANSKI, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR.; and Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Gloria, voiced by ALECIA MOORE (P!NK), in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Gloria, voiced by ALECIA MOORE (P!NK), in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; and Gloria, voiced by ALECIA MOORE (P!NK), in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; and Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL (center), with two Baby Emperor Penguins, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; and Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Carmen, voiced by SOFIA VERGARA; and Ramon, voiced by ROBIN WILLIAMS, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; and Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD; Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; and Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR.; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; and Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Bo, voiced by MEIBH CAMPBELL; Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES; and Atticus, voiced by BENJAMIN “LIL P-NUT” FLORES JR., in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Erik, voiced by AVA ACRES in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
(L-r) Gloria, voiced by ALECIA MOORE (P!NK); and Mumble, voiced by ELIJAH WOOD, in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Village Roadshow Pictures’ animated family comedy adventure “HAPPY FEET TWO,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
HAPPY FEET TWO is directed by George Miller, who won an Oscar® as the creator of the original “Happy Feet.” The film features the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Hank Azaria, Alecia Moore (P!nk), Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Sofia Vergara, Common, Hugo Weaving, Richard Carter, Magda Szubanski, Anthony LaPaglia and Benjamin “Lil P-Nut” Flores, Jr.
George Miller co-wrote the screenplay with Gary Eck, Warren Coleman and Paul Livingston. Miller is also producing the film, along with Doug Mitchell and Bill Miller. Chris deFaria, Philip Hearnshaw, Graham Burke and Bruce Berman serve as executive producers. The cinematographer is David Peers and the animation director is Rob Coleman. The film features vocals by P!nk, with music by John Powell.
Warner Bros. Pictures presents, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, a Kennedy Miller Mitchell production, with Dr. D. Studios, a George Miller film, “Happy Feet Two.” The film will be presented in RealD 3D and IMAX 3D, and also in 2D. It has been rated PG for “rude humor and mild peril.”
Check out the first trailer and poster (via Yahoo! Movies) for Walt Disney Pictures’ THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN. When young Timothy suddenly comes into the lives of Cindy and Jim Green, they learn that sometimes the unexpected can bring some of life’s greatest gifts.
Academy Award® nominated director/writer Peter Hedges (Dan in Real Life, What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?) brings enchantment to the screen with THE ODD LIFE OF TIMOTHY GREEN, an inspiring, magical story about a happily married couple, Cindy and Jim Green (Jennifer Garner and Joel Edgerton), who can’t wait to start a family but can only dream about what their child would be like. When young Timothy (CJ Adams) shows up on their doorstep one stormy night, Cindy and Jim – and their small town of Stanleyville – learn that sometimes the unexpected can bring some of life’s greatest gifts.
The film stars Jennifer Garner, Joel Edgerton, CJ Adams, Ron Livingston, Dianne Wiest, Odeya Rush, Rosemarie DeWitt, Lin-Manuel Miranda, M. Emmet Walsh, Lois Smith and Common.
Brad Fiedel. Â Marco Beltrami. Â Danny Elfman. Â What do they all have in common? Â They’ve all now scored a ‘Terminator’ film, as it was reported by MTV on Friday that Elfman would be pulling scoring duty on ‘Terminator: Salvation’.
“I just started yesterday,†Elfman told MTV News from the red carpet of the Critics’ Choice Awards.
Elfman, who has been nominated for Academy Awards for his scores on ‘Men in Black’, ‘Good Will Hunting’, and ‘Big Fish’, said that he had not yet incorporated the original ‘Terminator’ theme into the score yet. Â He also explained that there was no mandate for him to do so.
“I think if it comes up and it seems appropriate, we will [use it],†Elman said. “And if it doesn’t, we [won’t]. I never really know what to expect when I begin other than just kind of get into it and have fun. Especially a movie like ‘T4’ – just have fun. So that’s what I intend to do.â€
It was also reported last month that the ‘Terminator: Salvation’ soundtrack would include an original song by the film’s co-star, Common.
What do you think? Â Is Elfman a good choice for the ‘Terminator: Salvation’ score? Â Should the original ‘Terminator’ theme be included? Â Does this seem less and less like a ‘Terminator’ film with each passing day? Â Let us know by commenting below!
