Tag: len wiseman

Win Passes To The St. Louis Advance Screening Of BALLERINA

—- THIS CONTEST HAS ENDED —-

Taking place during the events of John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, Ballerina follows Eve Macarro (Ana de Armas) who is beginning her training in the assassin traditions of the Ruska Roma.

The film brings together familiar faces and exciting new characters. Returning icons from the John Wick world are: The Director (Anjelica Huston), the formidable leader of the fearsome training ground / ballet school, the Ruska Roma; as well as Winston (Ian McShane) and Charon (Lance Reddick) as, respectively, the head and concierge of the hotel for assassins, The Continental New York and John Wick himself, Keanu Reeves.

At the same time, we’re introduced to intriguing characters new to the franchise, including the mysterious Daniel Pine (Norman Reedus), with whom Eve has a fateful encounter at The Continental Prague; and The Chancellor (Gabriel Byrne), the domineering head of a cult-like army of killers.

Under the direction of action maestro Len Wiseman (Live Free or Die Hard, the Underworld films), BALLERINA puts a new spin on the action franchise’s hallmark elements, including high-level chases, never-before-seen propulsive set pieces, striking international locations, intricate fight choreography, and an arsenal of inventive weaponry — from ice skates and katana swords, to ice axes and flamethrowers.

The next movie in the John Wick franchise: #BallerinaMovie – only in theaters June 6. Get tickets now.

https://johnwick.movie/film/ballerina

Watch a new clip now.

15 lucky readers will win a pair of tickets (good for 2) to the advance screening of BALLERINA.

The St. Louis screening is at 7pm on Monday, June 2nd at B&B Creve Coeur West Olive.

To enter, email michelle@wearemoviegeeks.com. Winners will be notified.

Please arrive early as seating is not guaranteed.

Rated R.

Keanu Reeves as John Wick and Ana de Armas as Eve in Ballerina. Photo Credit: Larry D. Horricks

TOTAL RECALL ( 2012 ) – The Review

Well Mr. Farrell, is this going to be an annual Summertime event ? I’m talking about his starring in big budget remakes. And not of films from Hollywood’s Golden Age. These are from the last 30 years or so ( I saw them in theatres in the original release, so thanks for making me feel even older Mr. F! ). Last year he was in the remake of 1985’s FRIGHT NIGHT taking on Chris Sarandon’s suburban vamp Jerry Brewster ( I prefer the original for Roddy McDowell and the lack of murky, dim 3D ). This time he’s got much bigger shoes to fill. Farrell’s got the Arnold Schwarzenegger role in the remake of TOTAL RECALL. The first version came out in 1990 inbetween the Austrian Oak’s comedies KINDERGARTEN COP and TWINS, well before he returned as our favorite cinema cyborg. This was also director Paul Verhoeven’s follow-up to ROBOCOP ( which is about to be rebooted soon ). Now Len Wiseman ( perhaps best known for starting the UNDERWORLD series ) is behind the reins. Can he replace our memories of a butt-kickin’ Sharon Stone and those misshapen Mars mutants with this new SF head trip?

It’s pretty much the same set-up as before. Doug Quaid ( Farrell ) is a working drone living in the “Colony”. Seems that in the far off future the only parts of Earth that are still inhabitable are England ( now the United Federation of Britain where all the swells reside in luxury ) and an island across the globe ( probably Australia ) called ” The Colony”. It’s not so nice. You could say that it’s Gotham City to UFB’s Metropolis ( for you comics fans ). Every morning Doug leaves his gorgeous wife Lori ( Kate Beckinsale ) and joins pal Harry ( Bookem Woodbine ) in a massive commuter tube ( called ” the Drop”, or ” the Fall”, or something ominous like that ) that shoots them through the Earth’s core to UFB where they work at a factory producing robots ( or “Synthoids ” ) used as military back-up. Seems a revolutionary group lead by Matthias ( Bill Nighy ), which is trying to liberate the colonists, is causing UFB leader Cohaagen ( Bryan Cranston ) no end of headaches. Speaking of the old noggin, Doug’s not been sleeping well because of some dreams where he’s fighting UFB forces alongside gorgeous warrior Melina ( Jessica Biel ). These visions along with some job fatigue inspire Doug to walk into the local “Rekall” shop ( despite Harry’s warnings ). ” Rekall ” plants new memories into your brain via a high-tech brain-chair. But something goes haywire and a switch is tripped inside Doug. Seems that everything he knows is a lie! ( Cue David Byrne, ” This is not my beautiful wife..” ). Can he get to the bottom of things and learn the truth about his past? And how does he fit into the big global battles? Just who is he and what side is he on?

So does this version work better in the era of CGI effects? Well, Farrell is more believable as a working stiff than Ah-nold. And Mr. F handles the action stuff very well. But, for wont of a better word, the 1990 model is a whole lot more fun. I mean gooey-cheesy fun! There are a few nods to the original, but I miss those over-the-top make-up effects from Rob Bottin and company. And the new version is repetitious almost to the point of boredom. It’s chase, leap, shoot, chase, exposition…., shoot, chase, explosion, leap, plot…., chase, etc. The film plays out more like a video game with dull dialogue between levels. And all the running and chasing. Makes you realize why Chuck Jones’s Road Runner cartoons are so great! They’re only seven minutes, not stretched-out over two hours! I wish I could at least praise the art direction, but the ” Colony ” is pure BLADE RUNNER meets Venice ( with the crowded neon-lit streets and constant rain ) and AFB is THE FIFTH ELEMENT with the massive, stacked skyscrapers and magnetic hover-cars ( a nod to STAR WARS EP. II there ). As for the actors, Beckinsale looks to be relishing a rare bad-girl role ( greatly expanded from Stone’s role in 1990 ). She’s a sexy future version of the unstoppable Bond hench…er…person. At least she’s having some fun!  Biel and Nighy are woefully underused as the rebels while Cranston is playing a more vicious balck-hatted villain version of the oily politico we saw a few weeks ago in ROCK OF AGES. The whole flick is exhausting and overdone. Not that the original is full of subtlety. After viewing this you may wish that you got your ” a** to Mars”, or to your local video store to see the original. I bet that talking chest-head thingy looks mighty fine on Blu!

Overall Rating: 2 Out of 5 Stars

Sony Pictures Preview Of TOTAL RECALL Trailer; World Premiere This Sunday During Celtics-Heat Game On ABC

Moviegoers will begin their Recall experience on Sunday, April 1, as Columbia Pictures debuts the trailer for the highly anticipated action thriller TOTAL RECALL during the NBA game between the Boston Celtics and the Miami Heat broadcast nationally on ABC, it was announced today by Marc Weinstock, president of Worldwide Marketing for Sony Pictures. TOTAL RECALL will be released in theaters nationwide on August 3, 2012.

The world premiere of the TOTAL RECALL trailer will air during the first half of the game and will be promoted with tune-ins in the week leading up to the game.

Following the trailer’s premiere on ABC, a special extended trailer will debut online at www.apple.com/trailers.

The trailer will also launch simultaneously in over 30 countries on broadcast and online outlets.

Commenting on the announcement, Weinstock said, “We’re thrilled to be working with the NBA and ABC to give millions of fans all across the country this exciting first look at the trailer.”

TOTAL RECALL is an action thriller about reality and memory, inspired anew by the famous short story “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale” by Philip K. Dick. Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Colin Farrell), even though he’s got a beautiful wife (Kate Beckinsale) whom he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life – real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the police – controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Bryan Cranston) – there is no one Quaid can trust, except possibly a rebel fighter (Jessica Biel) working for the head of the underground resistance (Bill Nighy).  The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate.  The film is directed by Len Wiseman. The screenplay is by Kurt Wimmer and Mark Bomback and the screen story is by Ronald Shusett & Dan O’Bannon and Jon Povill. The producers are Neal H. Moritz and Toby Jaffe.

Visit the movie’s official site: http://www.totalrecall-movie.com/
“Like” the film on Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/TotalRecall

 

UNDERWORLD AWAKENING Trailer


PHOTO BY: Joe Lederer

From Screen Gems and Lakeshore Entertainment, check out this first trailer from UNDERWORLD AWAKENING.

UNDERWORLD AWAKENING brings a stunning new dimension to the epic battle between Vampires and Lycans, as the first film in the franchise to shoot in 3D. The fourth installment stars Kate Beckinsale, Stephen Rea, Michael Ealy, Theo James, India Eisley and Charles Dance.

Kate Beckinsale, star of the first two films, returns in her lead role as the vampire warrioress Selene, who escapes imprisonment to find herself in a world where humans have discovered the existence of both Vampire and Lycan clans, and are conducting an all-out war to eradicate both immortal species.

The action/horror film is directed by Måns Mårlind and Björn Stein, produced by Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, Len Wiseman, Richard Wright, executive produced by Eric Reid, David Kern, David Coatsworth, James McQuaide, Skip Williamson, Henry Winterstern with a screenplay by Len Wiseman, John Hlavin, Allison Burnett, J. Michael Straczynski.

UNDERWORLD AWAKENING will be in theaters January 20, 2012.

“Like” the film on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Underworld

First Photo Of Colin Farrell In TOTAL RECALL Remake


PHOTO BY: Michael Gibson

Here’s your first look at Colin Farrell in Columbia Pictures’ TOTAL RECALL. The film (and pointless remake) is directed by Len Wiseman (UNDERWORLD, LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD) and stars Colin Farrell, Bryan Cranston, Kate Beckinsale, Bill Nighy, Jessica Biel, Ethan Hawke, and John Cho.

As the nation states Euromerica and New Shanghai vie for supremacy, factory worker Doug Quaid (Farrell) begins to suspect that he’s a spy, though he is unaware which side of the fight he’s on.

From Columbia Studios, TOTAL RECALL will be in theaters August 3, 2012.

Visit the movie’s official site: http://www.totalrecall-movie.com/

“Like” the film on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/TotalRecallMovie

‘Gears of War’ gets Director

Len Wiseman is set to direct New Line’s “Gears of War,” based on Microsoft and Epic Games’ hit video game. Chris Morgan is penning a new draft of the actioner that Stuart Beattie originally tackled. Scribe’s credits include Universal’s upcoming “Wanted” and “The Fast and Furious Tokyo Drift.”

It has been rumored for nearly a year that Wiseman may helm the project; the game was featured in his most recent film, “Live Free or Die Hard .” But talks with New Line took place only over the last several months.

Wiseman will develop the story with Morgan. The two are also collaborating on the sci-fi action thriller “Shell Game” at Lakeshore Entertainment and Columbia Pictures. Wiseman, who established himself in the biz as an art director on pics like “Godzilla” and “Independence Day,” is also producing the third installment in the “Underworld” franchise, after having helmed the first two.

“Gears” revolves around a world reeling from an invasion by aliens known as the Locust, and a small team of elite soldiers who fight to retake the planet Sera and save its human inhabitants.

“Gears” is Microsoft’s second-biggest seller after the “Halo” franchise, and gamemaker Epic always intended to branch out the property into various media, such as films and novels, with an extensive backstory it developed.

A sequel game to “Gears'” first outing in late 2006, which was available for the Xbox 360 only, will ship in November. The game has sold more than 3 million copies.

New Line had initially aimed for a summer 2009 release for the pic, but further development on the project now will likely delay that plan. “It’s like with our games, you can have it right or have it right now,” said Epic Games topper Mark Rein. “We want to get it right. There’s no timetable for us. We just want to make as good a movie as we can, and we think (Wiseman’s) the guy who will do it.“