In Theaters This Weekend: June 1, 2012

Can you believe it's June already? It seems like just yesterday we were yearning for the summer months to get here. Well, they're here. And in theaters this weekend, we're greeted with one true wide-release and another film that starts its run this weekend, but only opens in handful of cities across the country. Those films are "Snow White and the Huntsman" and "Piranha 3DD", respectively. The first is a big-budget studio adaptation of the classic Snow White storyline. It looks to mix a solid cast with a darker-than-expected tone for the fairy tale. The other is film number two in the remake series from this franchise. While audiences and critics alike applauded the excessive nature of the 2010 film, this one aims to one-up even those extremes.

Both offer very different experiences for film-goers this weekend, but the real question is, are either of these going to be worth your time?

New “Iron Man 3” Details Revealed

A couple new details emerged today about Marvel Studios' “Iron Man 3”, set to hit theaters May 3, 2013. The first is more of a rumor involving details on Ben Kingsley’s character. The second bit is that the film will feature the Iron Patriot armor. America!

Get all the details after the break.

“E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial” Gets First Blu-Ray Release

We don’t talk about DVD/Blu-Ray releases around here very often. But seeing as the film being mentioned here just showed up recently in The Slackers' Greatest Movies of All-Time list, and is one of the most beloved films of all time, I figured it was worth mentioning.

Universal Studios Home Entertainment has announced that Steven Spielberg’s classic film will be released in a digitally remastered 30th Anniversary edition Blu-Ray combo pack. It will be available for purchase in October.

See Universal’s full announcement and the Blu-Ray trailer after the break.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Gary Busey

With this weekend's release of "Piranha 3DD", we decided to take a stab at our Top 5 Films from actor Gary Busey, one of the stars of the upcoming film. Busey has starred in countless films and television shows, stemming back to the late 1960's. With over 150 acting credits to his name, there was no shortage of content to choose from for these lists. Though never fully breaking out as a leading man, his iconic look and demeanor has provided him a household face and name.

Though we look at Busey only as an actor today, interestingly enough, he originally dropped out of college and moved to L.A. to pursue a music career. Skilled in both drums and the guitar, he was in a variety of different bands, at one point even joining forces with another actor/musician, Kris Kristofferson. He dabbled in television while working on his music, until he received an offer he couldn't pass up - portraying Buddy Holly in 1978 biopic about the musician's life. The film provided Busey the opportunity to show off both of his talents, as he actually played guitar and sang the songs for the film. The film landed Busey his first and only Academy Award nomination, and grabbed the attention of every studio in the business.

Since then, his career hasn't necessarily gone how many would have expected, but nonetheless, he's developed a strong following and put together a massive filmography! Hit the jump to check out which films we have enjoyed the most from this actor's career.

The Longest Blooper Reel Ever, At Least According to The Muppets

There's not a lot that needs explained here. "The Muppets" was released last year and was a huge fan favorite. It revitalized the characters and introduced them to a new audience; a new audience that got to enjoy their silly, childlike humor. The film has since been released on BluRay and DVD, and one of the extras from the film is this blooper reel. Normally, I probably wouldn't take the time to post such a thing, but since the video itself claims to be the longest of all time (okay, maybe only in Muppet history), it seemed worth mentioning - plus, other than some new photos and stuff (which you'll see in Friday afternoon's Photo Bomb! post), what else is really going on today?

Anyway, the reel is pretty funny and should provide a few chuckles, especially if you like Muppet humor. So if you're surfing through the internet with nothing else striking your fancy, hit the jump for over eight and a half minutes of Muppet bloopers!

Quick Cuts: "God Bless America" Movie Review by Ben Foutch

Violent, profane, offensive, funny, and at times even a little cathartic. Bobcat Goldthwait's new film, God Bless America, is deeply flawed, but just might be your new guilty pleasure.

Slackers Selection CinemaCast: Episode 17

Thanks for checking out this week's edition of the Slackers Selection CinemaCast!

This week, we discuss the new release "Men in Black III", and the weekend box office numbers for this film and others.

We also discuss our thoughts on next week's films, "Snow White and the Huntsman" and "Piranha 3DD".

Also, movies we've been watching including "The Divide" and Disney's "Dumbo".

It's a nice concise 30-minute recording this week, so don't be afraid to give it a listen!


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The Trailer Park: Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (Red Band), The Amazing Spider-Man, The Apparition, Dark Blood, Maniac (Red Band), Painted Skin: The Resurrection, The Sapphires, Whole Lotta Sole

Welcome to The Trailer Park! - A weekly column rounding up new and newish trailers lurking around the internet.

As always, put on your John Nada sunglasses before the jump or...submit to the advertising.

Box Office Updates: 'MIB3' Rises to $70MM With 4-Day Totals

I was just going to update the previous post with these numbers, but since those are true weekend totals, I wanted to leave them alone. We don't need to discuss a lot of the specifics as we did in the previous write-up, but I did at least want to provide 4-day weekend totals for your reference.

Not much changed in terms of placement, mostly just films adding some more money to their pots. With $70MM, "Men in Black III" got to where many expected it would be this weekend, which is good for the film, and "The Avengers" tacked on another $10MM, raising its weekend totals to $36.8MM. And this time around, "Dark Shadows" did find enough to overtake "Chernobyl Diaries" for fifth place on the weekend.

Hit the jump for a full breakdown of the 4-day totals.

Box Office Report: "Men in Black 3" Topples "The Avengers" Over Weak Memorial Day Weekend

The weekend projections are in, but these numbers obviously won't reflect for what Monday will bring, if you're waiting for the full four-day weekend stats. These are the regular weekend numbers though, holidays aside. And overall, it was a pretty unspectacular showing for just about every film. "Men in Black 3" won the day, but it was with a lower overall number than I think anyone expected for this weekend.

One film you can say produced numbers better than might have been expected was "The Avengers", though this is nothing new for the film, which has over-produced every week and weekend it's been in theaters. The film fell to second place but still held very strong peripherals.

Rounding out the top five were films "Battleship", "The Dictator", and "Chernobyl Diaries". Earlier projections had "Dark Shadows" in this spot, but as of now, they're projecting for the weekend's new release to hang on to fifth place.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Tourist-Based Horror Films

With this weekend's release of "Chernobyl Diaries", we decided to use it as a chance to dive into what I believe is our first horror-based Top 5 Movie Guide to date. The just-released film focuses on a group of Americans traveling through Europe. They decide to make a stop-off at Chernobyl and visit the ruined city. Things of course go terribly wrong as we can see even just from the trailers that some sort of radiation-exposed creatures are after them and hunting them down. Not what you have on the checklist for any vacation.

It was the broad idea of this that we focused on for this list. We played around with a couple different focuses, but ultimately, we just decided to leave it at films that centered around a person or group of people purposefully leaving their homes or cities of dwelling. These had to be trips with intent to return, so no movies that take place with people who just moved into a new house or something. The size of the trip, however, wasn't restricted - it could be on the other side of the world or two hours down the road. As long as it was a noticeable trip, it was included; at least for the broad sense of the list - if a writer wanted to restrict themselves more, they could below.

So check behind that closet door, make sure your doors are locked, and if you dare, hit the break for a complete rundown of some of our favorite tourist and travel based Horror Films!

Movie Review: "Men in Black III" by Alex Schopp

Men in Black III (2012)
Director: Barry Sonnenfeld
Writer(s): Lowell Cunningham, Etan Cohen
Cast: Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, Emma Thompson, Alice Eve, Michael Stuhlbarg
Run Time: 103 min

In this, the third chapter of the franchise, we're met with Agent J (Smith) traveling back to the 1960's to stop an alien from killing his friend and partner, Agent K (Jones/Brolin). The plot thickens as the day K is set to be killed is also the day he activated the defense grid around the planet, protecting us from and monitoring alien insurgence; of which without, the planet would be completely open and unprotected from alien attacks. Time is precious as he hurries to save his partner and the future (present).

It's been ten years since the last Men in Black film, so when I first heard about this film I was stoked that we were getting another installment. Both of the previous films were fun, and I was looking forward to seeing Will Smith (among others) back in a role like this. But as we neared the date of release, with the exact opposite emotions you're hoping for as a film draws closer and closer, I started losing interest. A lot of this probably has to do with the fact that I've been spoiled recently with films like "Cabin in the Woods" and "The Avengers", and at this point I'm really only looking forward to films like "Prometheus" and "The Dark Knight Rises" this summer. So everything else has just felt kind of unspectacular to me. But nonetheless, I did still check this one out this afternoon, and I'm glad I did. Within the first few minutes I was quickly reminded just what type of movies these are and how enjoyably they can be.

Photo Bomb!

Thanks for checking out the latest edition of Photo Bomb!, your weekly roundup of all movie-related photos floating around the internet. 

Lots of great content this week. Included in this week's post are photos from the films "Gangster Squad", "Grown Ups 2", "I, Alex Cross", "The Dark Knight Rises", and "The Amazing Spider-Man". We also have posters for upcoming films "Lawless", "Killing Them Softly", "The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn, Part 2", "The Possession", "The Apparition", "The Dark Knight Rises", and a few international posters for "Ted", "Men in Black III", and "Rock of Ages".

So let's just get right into it. Hit the jump to check out the entire filmstrip!

In Theaters This Weekend: May 25, 2012

In theaters this weekend we're greeted with two wide-releases and one other film touching down in a couple of theaters. The two big ones are "Men in Black III" and "Chernobyl Diaries". The first is Will Smith's latest sci-fi blockbuster installment, and the second is a horror/thriller from the same guy that gave us "Paranormal Activity".

Also, if you happen to be in the right area, Wes Anderson's latest, "Moonrise Kingdom", opens in four theaters this weekend before it starts its larger roll-out.

Sorry Boys and Girls, No "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" This Year

In one of the strangest and most dramatic release date changes I've ever seen, Paramount Pictures said today that no longer will "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" be hitting theaters June 29, 2012, but that we can instead expect the film in late March of next year. Though I don't know of any way to look it up, I can't think of a previous summer blockbuster that's jumped ship with only a month before its scheduled release only to opt for an entirely different calendar year altogether.

First broken by The Hollywood Reporter, the studio has officially announced that the reason for the date change is due to high costs for 3D conversion that the company just doesn't have right now. First off, what I'm wondering is, will the extra money the film makes from 3D sales offset the extra money you have to put into the conversion and re-marketing the film? I tend not to think so, but I'm also unfamiliar with how all of the finances work within a production company. Also, if 3D wasn't in the original plans, do we really want to see this movie converted after the fact? I'm aware of the financial benefits, but in all recent experiences, post-conversion to 3D in fast-paced action movies hasn't generally turned out very well. Why the sudden desire do so?

First Trailer for Baz Luhrmann's "The Great Gatsby"

The first trailer has been released for the retelling of F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic tale, "The Great Gatsby". This version stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan, Tobey Maguire, Joel Edgerton, and Isla Fisher.

Before the trailer, here's the premise:

The Great Gatsby follows would-be writer Nick Carraway (Maguire) as he leaves the Midwest and comes to New York City in the spring of 1922, an era of loosening morals, glittering jazz and bootleg kings. Chasing his own American Dream, Nick lands next door to a mysterious, party-giving millionaire, Jay Gatsby (DiCaprio), and across the bay from his cousin, Daisy (Mulligan), and her philandering, blue-blooded husband, Tom Buchanan (Edgerton). It is thus that Nick is drawn into the captivating world of the super rich, their illusions, loves and deceits. As Nick bears witness, within and without the world he inhabits, he pens a tale of impossible love, incorruptible dreams and high-octane tragedy, and holds a mirror to our own modern times and struggles.

While the story has been retold countless times, it's director Baz Luhrmann that tries to bring new life to its 1920's themes. A director known for his sometimes over-the-top flair, he might just be able to thrive with this material, presenting the lavish and exuberant lifestyles of the 1920's. Much as he did with a couple of his other films, "Romeo + Juliet" and "Moulin Rouge!", the art direction in this looks just as saturated and robust. And add in the fact that he's again working with a star-studded cast, and it seems like a recipe for success.

See for yourself after the break.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Will Smith

With this week's edition of the Top 5 Movie Guide, we decided to focus our efforts on the star of this weekend's upcoming film "Men in Black III", Will Smith. "Mr. July", as he's sometimes referred to due to his impressive run of summer blockbuster successes, has starred in twelve films that have banked over $100MM in their theater runs, and four which have surpassed $200MM. He holds current records for 1) most consecutive films reaching the $100MM mark (8), and 2) the highest average theater gross per film for a lead actor ($127MM). He is the ninth highest-grossing actor of all-time, with his films topping more than $2.54BB domestically (Samuel L. Jackson sits atop this list).

Will Smith started his career as a rapper and musician, but quickly got big screen breaks with films like "Bad Boys" in 1995 and, more notably, "Independence Day" in 1996. Smith hasn't stopped since, churning out box office success after box office success; success that could have been a lot greater had it not been for one minor misstep: in 1999 he turned down the role of Neo in "The Matrix" and instead opted for one of the leads in "Wild Wild West". Smith to this day states that "Wild Wild West" is his biggest regret.

To balance things out though, his role of Agent Jay in "Men in Black" wasn't originally meant for him. The role was first turned down by both Chris O'Donnell and David Schwimmer before eventually landing in Smith's hands. And ultimately, while many might have more appreciation for some of his other roles, it's his presence in the Men in Black franchise that's one of the most notable of his career.

After the break, check out all of the films we find the best of this actor's career.

“The Dark Knight Rises” Rolls Out 6 New Posters

Compared to other blockbusters that have been or will be released this summer, marketing for “The Dark Knight Rises” has been fairly reserved. For someone as hyped about the film as I am, I don’t need to see any footage of the film, and I find their restraint to this point very refreshing. But others have been craving a little more from the film. I honestly don’t know why, its not like we don’t know what type of tone were going to be getting from the film, which is why I think it’s understandable that the studio isn’t wanting to put all there cards on the table.

But for those of you out there who want something to visualize, we got six new posters to look at. There isn’t anything in here that you haven’t seen if you have looked at any photos released before these, or if you’ve checked out either of the trailers.

Check em out after the break.

Slackers Selection CinemaCast: Episode 16

Thanks for checking out this week's edition of the Slackers Selection CinemaCast!

This week, we discuss the new release "Battleship", as well as some thoughts on last weekend's "Dark Shadows". Plus, we again dive into some of the weekend box office numbers, and marvel (pun definitely intended) at "The Avengers'" continued epic run.

Next week, the films releasing are "Men in Black III" and "Chernobyl Diaries". We discuss our thoughts on those and which one we're seeing this weekend if we only get to see one.

Also, thoughts on other films we've been watching, including "Shame", "Chronicle", and "The Vow".

Plus, our thoughts on the proposed "Blade Runner" sequel, as well as the rumors that Ryan Reynolds will be the next Highlander.

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Six-Minute Preview of "The Amazing Spider-Man" To Run Before "Men In Black III"

It was announced yesterday on the official Facebook page for “The Amazing Spider-Man” that a 6-minute preview of the film will be airing prior to the IMAX 3D showings for “Men In Black 3” starting this Friday.

Okay, this is starting to get ridiculous. I feel like in a couple of years, they will be showing entire movies before the feature film. Now obviously I’m being a little dramatic with that, but honestly, when is a realistic cut-off point. I really would like to see someone do a little research and see how much footage they actually have shown with films like this one and “The Avengers” before they were released in theaters.

Now, I wasn’t planning on watching MIB3 in IMAX anyway, since I don’t think the film will be very good, but you had better believe that 6 minute preview is enough to cement me not going to the IMAX showing. Maybe I’m in the minority here with my annoyance of the whole bombardment of footage film studios seem to be throwing at us these days before these films are released. Unfortunately for me and anyone else who doesn’t like this trend, the trend seems to be working. Case in point: “The Avengers” box-office numbers so far. At very least there is nothing to prove that it’s not working

What do you guys think? Are you excited to check out the extended footage before the release of this film? Or do you believe less is more?

The Trailer Park: Anchorman 2, Chinese Zodiac, The Good Doctor, Hit & Run, Hyde Park On Hudson, The Master, Piggy, Skyfall, The We And The I, Won't Back Down, What Maisie Knew, The Words

 Welcome to The Trailer Park! - A weekly column rounding up new and newish trailers lurking around the internet.

As always, put on your John Nada sunglasses before the jump or...submit to the advertising.

Quick Cuts: "The Vow" Movie Review by Alex Schopp

Thanks for checking out our first Quick Cut Movie Review! I'm going to kick off this new type of review with my thoughts on "The Vow". Quick Cuts will basically be short-segment movie reviews of films that have maybe just left theaters or recently came out on DVD that we want to share our thoughts on but don't think it necessary to provide full reviews; we'll save those for the new releases.

With these reviews, they'll vary from film to film and person to person, but generally, expect a paragraph or so on the synopsis of the film, followed by a paragraph or two on our thoughts on what was offered. But that's about it; a quick rundown for you to glance at before opting for that rental.

So anyway, it may not be the best film to kick off this segment, but nonetheless, I'm going to start it off with my rundown on "The Vow" after the break.

The Slackers' Greatest Movies of All-Time

Recently, there's been a lot of discussion floating around the internet on what the Greatest Movies of All-Time should be. I'm not sure if this is what started it, but the post that Film School Rejects first put up is what caught my attention. The purpose of their list was to poll various members of the media, as well as different filmmakers, and see which films they thought to be the greatest. But instead of just polling random people, they kept their focuses on a younger film industry demographic, only polling online movie bloggers and newer directors. And it was because of this that a new trend started to show through; new types of films starting to show up as some of the greatest of all-time.

More than anything, what the conversation has caused debate over is what the term 'Greatest' actually means. How is that word defined? The shift we start to see is that the older generations used the term to define some of the Best films around, while it appears now that it has shifted to be more inline with our Favorites. Ultimately, it looks as if it's more about finding that balance of quality, how much it's meant to the film industry, and overall entertainment.

You can reference our last post that broke down the FSR's list on the topic here, but what this ultimately inspired was for all of us here at the Slackers Selection Movie Blog to come up with our own 10 Greatest Movies of All-Time. We used practically the same rules and points system as the other guys did, and the 10 films with the most points were the ones that made our Top 10.

Check out our compilation list after the break, where you can film the films we deem the Greatest of All-Time!

Movie Review: "Battleship" by Derek Clem

"Battleship" (2012) PG-13
Director: Peter Berg
Writer: Erich & Jon Hoeber
Cast: Taylor Kitsch, Alexander Skarsgård, Rihanna, Liam Neeson, Brooklyn Decker

Run Time: 131 mins

You may have noticed by now that we Slackers respond to blockbuster movies in a visceral way. Sure we throw on a sports coat with patches on the elbows every now and then to dabble in the intellectual strengths of a movie, but we do that mostly during the Oscar season. We want our summer movies to have that rockin’ quality we speak so much about. To us, looking at the technical proficiency of a blockbuster, in most cases, has us asking questions like “How sweet was the action?”, “Were those believable special effects?”, or “How epic were the explosions?”. In regards to action, special effects, and explosions, "Battleship" passes effortlessly. So the real question is, does this summer blockbuster provide the viewer with anything extra? Find out after the cut.

Box Office Report: "The Avengers"' Sinks "Battleship"

How many different websites do you think are going to use that exact same title for this post? I hope all of them will! It was too easy to pass up though. I just want you to know that I didn't put it up there thinking I had a brilliant title idea.

Anyway. Looking over the numbers, yet again, "The Avengers" took the top-spot at the weekend box office again. This wasn't really a surprise to anyone, but what was a bit of a surprise was just how poorly its new competition performed this week. This weekend's special-effects extravaganza, "Battleship", was supposed to offer a bit of competition to the also CG-heavy film, "The Avengers". That didn't really happen. It still took second place for the weekend, but for a film with a $200MM+ budget, these weren't the numbers it needed.

The other new releases, "The Dictator" and "What to Expect When You're Expecting" took places #3 and #5, respectively, with last week's "Dark Shadows" wedging itself in the middle.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Political Comedies

With this week's release of "The Dictator", we decided to share some of our own favorite political comedy films. Political comedies have been a staple in Hollywood since the first film studio landed there in 1909. Obviously filmmaking was quite different back then and I can assure you that none of our selections below are quite so nostalgic, but nonetheless, since its inception, Political Films, and comedies specifically, have been a mainstay to the medium.

This was another one of those weeks where, all around, it just didn't seem like there were massive amounts of films to consider. While if we wanted to get creative with the category, I'm sure there would have been a lot more options out there, but the majority of the selections below are pretty straight-forward, and films that we feel best hold to this category. All of the films listed after the break are quality films that we're happy to share with you and that we feel are staples for the genre.

So hit the jump and check out all of our favorites!

Photo Bomb!

Thanks for checking out the latest edition of Photo Bomb!, your weekly roundup of all movie-related photos floating around the internet. 

This week, lots more new material for you to sink your teeth into. The quantity might not be as high as in recent weeks, but I feel the quality has been raised, with many of the photos and posters coming from solid-looking movies. Included below, we have photos from such films as "Total Recall", "Frozen Ground", "Taken 2", "The Dark Knight Rises", "Piranha 3DD", "Hitchcock", and "Under the Skin". We also have a handful of new posters released for films "Sin City 2", "Machete Kills", "Skyfall", "Katy Perry's Part of Me", "Anchorman 2", some character posters for "The Amazing Spider-Man", and the newest poster for Ridley Scott's "Prometheus".

After the break, check out the full filmstrip of this week's notable photos and posters!

Offical Timeline for Marvel's Movie Universe

This isn't exactly noteworthy, but I came across this and thought it was pretty cool. There have been lots of versions of these things released over recent months and years, but this one is "officially" from Marvel and offers one of the less chaotic views at the entire spectrum.

Basically, the infographic attached is a timeline breaking down each Marvel film, including the most recent "The Avengers", and laying them out in an easy-to-read manner. If you're anything like me, all of these films with their bonus after-the-credits scenes, Captain America from WWII times, and Thor floating around the universe - I can't keep track of who' goes where and how all of the films mesh together!

Well worry no more. After the break you can get a detailed look at exactly when each film and pivotal moment took place. This thing actually looks really nice and it's neat to see all of the films laid out like this.

In Theaters This Weekend: May 18, 2012

In theaters this week, we're again greeted by three legitimate wide-releases. And while "The Avengers" still continues to rake in the cash, this will be the film's first test against another big-effects action blockbuster. This week the new options will be "The Dictator" (which actually was released yesterday), "Battleship", and "What to Expect When You're Expecting".

Personally I don't think the quality is extremely high with any of these selections, but they all offer something a little different, so maybe one of them will be the film for you.

Check out the full breakdown for each film after the break as well as a stab at what we can expect from the weekend's box office.

First Trailer for Sam Raimi Produced "The Possession"

The first trailer has surfaced for the upcoming horror/thriller movie, "The Possession". The film is produced by Sam Raimi ("The Evil Dead", "Drag Me to Hell"), but directed by Denmark filmmaker Ole Bornedal.

The film stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Kyra Sedgwick, and Natasha Calls, and centers around the little girl who, upon purchasing a unique box at a garage sale, starts to encounter very strange things (if you want to put it so lightly).

The film is packed with imagery familiar to Sam Raimi fans, and something that's always the highlight of his films for me. The biggest question I have when I see a big name as a producer on a film is how much influence is he actually having on its production? Ultimately, we'll have to wait and see with this one, but from the looks of it, I'd say he was fairly involved with the process - which is a good thing.

Check out the trailer after the break, courtesy of Yahoo! Movies.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Dennis Quaid

With this weekend's upcoming release of "What to Expect When You're Expecting", it gave us the opportunity to pick between a handful of great actors and actresses for this post. Regardless of what you think of the film, it's jam-packed with quality faces, many of which worthy of their own Top 5 List. But for us, we decided to pick one of the smaller roles in the film and focus this edition on Dennis Quaid.

It's hard to argue that Quaid's career didn't apex years ago, but that hasn't stopped this steady actor from churning out solid performance after solid performance. While not always amazing, he's one of the most recognizable actors in the business today. And while never winning a major award, he has over 75 acting credits to his name. With those numbers, it's hard to find anyone that doesn't appreciate at least some aspect of his career; a career that could have went a little differently had it not been for some interesting films he turned down. Among the note-worthy titles, he turned down Kurt Russell's role in "Backdraft", Kevin Costner's role in "JFK", and even passed on Tom Cruise's character in "Rain Man", a film that was originally written for both him and his brother, the late Randy Quaid. Even these films notwithstanding, Quaid has still put together a very solid all-around career.

Check out our full selection of Quaid films after the break!

Slackers Selection CinemaCast: Episode 15

Thanks for checking out this week's edition of the Slackers Selection CinemaCast!

This week, we only one new film opening nationwide, and that was Tim Burton's latest, Dark Shadows". Unfortunately none of us got the chance to check it out this weekend, but all is well, as that just provided us more time to talk about "The Avengers"! The film again set weekend box office records, surpassing $1-Billion dollars worldwide in only 10 days. Again, a few spoilers are discussed, but shame on you if you haven't seen the film yet anyway.

We also talk about our thoughts on next weekend's releases, including "Battleship", "The Dictator", and "What to Expect When You're Expecting". We're generally uninterested with all of these films, as "The Avengers" has left a thirst for the best or nothing at all.

Also, we talk "Take Me Home Tonight" and some generic plot-points in films we're sick of seeing!


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New Clips from "Prometheus" and "The Amazing Spider-Man"

Well, if you haven't seen enough from either of these films yet, today we get more brand new footage from both. Both films are set for a release in the next couple of months and I guess they just want you to know EXACTLY what you'll be seeing come opening weekend (maybe it's not new, but what feels like a newer marketing trend by Hollywood to completely over-expose us to these films is really starting to annoy me; oh, the simpler days before the internet...).

The first, a clip from "Prometheus" isn't too spoiler-riddled. It's only a minute long and is really just longer cuts of previous snippets we've already seen. The scene shows the ship landing on the planet, mostly just showing off some of the effects of the ship and detail of the alien planet. It's a nice video and one safe for viewing.

The second, from "The Amazing Spider-Man" is much more extravagant piece. It's a 4-minute "Super Preview". At first, I was really hesitant to watch this - I've seen enough to know I'll be interested in this film, I didn't want to take in a full four minutes from the film. But since I was posting about it, I felt I needed to. And to be honest, there are a few new scenes, but ultimately, it's pretty much just a huge compilation of previous material. I will say though that I loved seeing the big picture all wrapped into one "trailer". I thought this was a great look into the film. And if you've seen all of the other promotional material for the film, I don't think you'll do yourself much harm by watching this.

Anyway, check them both out after the break.

The Trailer Park: Crazy Eyes, Dark Horse, Juko's Time Machine, Killer Joe, The Odd Life Of Timothy Green, Thale

Welcome to The Trailer Park! - A weekly column rounding up new and newish trailers lurking around the internet.

As always, put on your John Nada sunglasses before the jump or...submit to the advertising.

New "The Amazing Spider-Man" Clip Shows Rys Ifans Transforming Into The Lizard

A new clip has recently released for the upcoming "The Amazing Spider-Man", that features various members of the film, including actor Rhys Ifans and director Marc Webb, talking about the production of the film and the character of Dr. Curt Connors/The Lizard. It's no surprise at this point that Connors/The Lizard will be the villain, as much has already been released teasing at the doctor's alter-ego.

But in this clip, we see some of the best Connors-to-Lizard footage so far. It still doesn't give too much away, but if you're a purist who's trying to avoid pre-viewing "spoilers", you may want to tread lightly with this one. And don't be too worried about it, the majority of the video is behind-the-scenes talk with just a few snippets from the film.

The footage looks good though, and I like what I see here; I think this character could end up being one of my favorites from the film.

Check it out after the break.

Happy Mother's Day from Hugh Jackman on the Set of "Les Miserables"

Hugh Jackman took a few seconds out of his busy schedule filming his next film, "Les Miserables", with Anne Hathaway and Russell Crowe, to wish all the mothers out there a happy day. I'm sure there are plenty of great Mother's Day snippets from actors floating around, but since this one features an actor in costume from a film we've detailed before on this site, it seemed as relevant as any.

So as Hugh says, Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there - you deserve it!

Box Office Report: "The Avengers" Sets Record for Second Weekend in a Row

There's no denying that "The Avengers" is a smash hit. Last weekend, it easily set the Opening Weekend Record, surpassing the reigning film, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2", by nearly $40MM. It was an amazing feat and something no on expected from the film - not in that capacity at least.

Throughout the week, while still incredibly strong, the film started to come back down to earth a little more. While opening weekend numbers were stronger than "The Dark Knight", daily week totals were much more in line with the film. So many expected that when this weekend rolled around, it would land somewhere right around where "The Dark Knight" fell, at $75.1MM ("Avatar" held the second-weekend record with $75.6MM).

Well, it looks like everyone underestimated this Superhero team again, as for the second weekend in a row, the film blew past all estimates and easily toppled the previous record of $75.6MM with an impressive (estimated) $103.1MM! It's hard to say what's the most impressive about these numbers right now, but the fact that a film was able to put up a 9-digit total in its second weekend - a figure that many thought would never be reached - is amazing. And it's also worth noting that the drop-off this weekend was only 50%, a figure you don't normally expect from films that gross as much as this one did as it did in its opening weekend.

Obviously, this has created for some pretty awesome stats for daily, domestic, foreign and worldwide totals. So hit the break to check out the full report on all of the films earnings! And I suppose we should talk about Tim Burton' latest, "Dark Shadows" too? If we have time maybe...

Top 5 Movie Guide: Films Adapted From Television Shows

For our weekend edition of the Top 5 Movie Guide, and with "Dark Shadows" hitting theaters yesterday, we decided to go after some of our favorite films based around television shows. Adapting television characters for the big screen has been a popular option since the mid-1980's. Since then its seen its different peaks, but it's hard to deny the two strongest eras for this genre were the early 1990's and right where we are today. The 90's was the first wave of mass-producing these television series for newer, bigger audiences. The trend then faded for a while until a few years back when a new generation came along, even more obsessed with nostalgia than before. That's where we're at now, and even if it's not always from a television show, you can see just how many films are being adapted from something (anything) from our childhoods.

But today, we're just focusing on the television adaptations. Not to worry though, because there's still massive amounts of titles available from this genre. The only problem lies is finding the adequate criteria for the overall selection process. We debated back and forth for quite some time about different films that should or should not be included, but at the end of the day, we really just decided to keep it open and let each writer make their own set of guidelines for their picks. The only specific rule was whatever the subject, it just had to appear on television before it hit the bigscreen. That still leaves much up for debate, so you'll have to see how each contributor further defined things below.

Hit the jump to see all the films we chose!

Michael Madsen's PSA for the Alamo Draft House

I'm not sure if you're aware of the huge cultural divide amongst movie theater patrons these days, so just in case, I'll break it down real quick. On one side, you have your older demographics and your movie theater purists, like myself and everyone else who writes for this blog, who believe the theater is a sacred place, and there's a certain amount of courtesy and respect that should be shown, both towards the film and your fellow attendees. Because of that philosophy, we say leave the cell phones and tablets at home; it's not a time for socializing and laughing with your friends throughout the entire movie. But that being said, there's also this younger demographic that studies show prefer the allowance to text and "hangout" during a movie. They don't want to feel restricted as they're all now so used to being connected through their phones 24-hours a day. So the problem then becomes, should cell phone usage be allowed freely in theaters? For someone like you or me, this seems ridiculous and not even like a debate. But for theater chains, it's not quite so easy. The problem here is that this younger demographic drives most ticket sales. And as they get older they'll control the market even more. So now chains are having to become more lenient towards the act as to not scare off potential customers. Principle vs. Profit.

Don't get me wrong, I understand what theater owners are dealing with. It's hard to fault them. At the end of the day, it is a business, and sometimes, even if you don't want to, you have to play to your markets.

But all of that being said, it's so nice when you see someone take a stance against all the shenanigans, and make it very clear what their rules are on the subject. The Alamo Draft House has become a sort of becon for film-goers like myself (even though, geographically, I can't actually attend one right now). This small theater chain in central Texas has been very adamant about their demands for theater courtesy, even going so far as to kick a kid out for having his phone out during the movie - a situation that really sparked the entire debate (and the over-reaction by the kid that kind of fueled the theater's fire).

Anyway, since the theater has so happily embraced the stance, they've been coming up with creative ways to show off and market their values. After the break, check out the new PSA for the theater, featuring Michael Madsen. This new ad will be played before every film that plays at the theater. And let me just say, I think it's fantastic! I wish more theaters would muster up the courage to demand the same.

Movie Trailer for "The Campaign", Starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis

When I first heard about this project, I gotta say, I was expecting a bit more from this team than what I'm seeing in this first trailer for the film. "The Campaign" is a political satire about two unconventional men running for Congress. Just knowing that Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis are the stars gives you a pretty good idea of the type of comedy ahead. But you add in that Jay Roach is directing - he has not only comedies like the Austin Powers and Meet the Parents franchises to his name, but also Emmy Award-winning political drama, "Recount" (which I thought was great) - and it seems like it could be a nice mix of ingredients.

As a preface, I will say that I'm generally over Will Ferrell's brand of comedy. I think he's great at his craft, but with comedic actors like this, they kind of only have one level. And once you've seen it eight or nine times, you have a pretty good grasp of what's ahead. And even though Galifianakis can still be funny, his character does not seem appealing to me at all in this movie. I don't think we're going to get that perfect blend that I was hoping from out of Roach. The film already seems stale to me.

So anyway, after that rave review, check out the trailer for the film after the break, thanks to Apple.

Photo Bomb!

Thanks for checking out the latest edition of Photo Bomb!, your weekly roundup of all movie-related photos floating around the internet.

This week there definitely wasn't a lack of material to display, as we actually started to see some stuff from newer projects and not just more from "The Expendables 2" and "G.I. Joe: Retaliation" - but yes, we do still have some new stuff from the latter. Otherwise, new photos cropped up for films such as "A Good Day to Die Hard", "Riddick", "Lawless", "Spring Breakers", "DREDD", "Anna Karenina", "Now You See Me", "Passion", and "Maniac", and "Prometheus". There are also two new promo photos for "The Amazing Spider-Man". And we have a handful of new posters releases from films like Resident Evil: Retribution", "G.I. Joe: Retaliation", and "This is 40".

No real off-set stuff this week, so hopefully the photos that are actually related to the films will be enough to get you through the post this week. If not, well, it was a good run while it lasted.

Hit the jump to check out the entire filmstrip of movie photos and posters.

First Trailer for "Gangster Squad"

There are a ton of great looking movies coming out this year, and this is one that I feel is constantly getting pushed to the back-burner (a lot probably has to do with the fact that an official release date hasn't been set and some are left to question if it will actually make it out these year). But with a new trailer for the film, most are starting to assume this will be a for-sure player at the end of the season. And while it's not an epic blockbuster like a lot of the films that are getting the attention right now, with its impressive cast and its connection to real-world historical events, this film really does warrant some attention.

"Gangster Squad", directed by Ruben Fleischer ("Zombieland"), stars Ryan Gosling, Josh Brolin, Sean Penn, Giovanni Ribisi, Robert Patrick, Anthony Mackie, Nick Nolte, and Michael Pena. The film centers around 1940's real-life mob boss Mickey Cohen (Penn), and a small group of L.A. cops, lead by Brolin and Gosling, who try and stop Cohen's high-level crime ring from taking over their city.

Check out the first trailer, courtesy of Apple, after the break.

In Theaters This Weekend: May 11, 2012

In theaters this weekend, we're only met with one wide-release, but a couple other films are also premiering if you happen to be in the right areas. Regardless, it seems obvious that the reason we have such a weak lineup this weekend is that most films backed away from this position, knowing they'd be competing with "The Avengers" in its second weekend.

Overall, films you have a shot at seeing brand new this weekend are "Dark Shadows" - our one wide release, "Girl in Progress", and "God Bless America". All offer something different, so if you've already seen "The Avengers" three or four times and just aren't feeling it for a fifth, check out after the break for a rundown on these films and what you might expect from each.

Joss Whedon's Thank-You Letter to His Fans

I think we're all aware that this most recent box-office smash, "The Avengers", is a hit. It's immediately catapulted various members of the film - both in front of and behind the camera - to new heights. And surely one of the most appreciative members of this new status has to be writer and director of the film, Joss Whedon. Whedon has been around for a long time now, and has focused many of his previous efforts in television, his openly favorite medium. And while he's scored millions of fans from his development of series such as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", "Angel", and "Firefly", unfortunately the studios and general public have not been quite as receptive to his visions, as all three series were cancelled well before their intended completion. But even so, it hasn't stopped his dedicated and passionate fans from making their voices and admiration for the filmmaker heard. Many expected it only a matter of time before he got his big break, and with his newest film, I think we've reached that point.

I know that personally I've never been a strong Whedon follower - not that I've ever thought anything against the guy, I've just never followed that many TV programs in general, especially not the types he was creating at the time - but I've always respected him and appreciated his creative and in-depth writing abilities. Plus, fellow writer Ben Foutch has always been a pretty strong Joss Whedon supporter, so I've kept up on his various projects through him.

After the break, Whedon himself composes a letter to his fans, personally thanking all that have continued to stick by his side, even when project after project was scrapped. And while I don't necessarily consider this letter addressed to me, I can still appreciate its purpose and focus. And I'm sure Whedon-ites will genuinely admire the gesture, which should only enhance this filmmaker's cult status - though, now that he's broke through to the mainstream, that cult status made just turn to regular old status).

Anyway, let's just get to the letter and let Mr. Whedon do the talking. Also, be sure to check out his original posting of the letter on his site, WhedonEsque, for a follow-up FAKE Q&A where Whedon further goes into detail on his upcoming plans in his own unique, humorous way. "Q: Does this mean you have changed the very fabric of your existence?" "A: Dude, it's just a movie. Also, yes.". Hilarious.

Top 5 Movie Guide: Helena Bonham Carter

With the upcoming release of "Dark Shadows" we decided to focus this week's list on one of the supporting characters in the film, Helena Bonham Carter. Bonham Carter began her acting career in the later stages of high school, but at the time wasn't sure if it was something she wanted to focus a career around. As a student, she got fantastic grades, and was ready for life at a prestigious college. She applied to Cambridge University, and based on academics alone, should have been admitted. But the school was afraid she would eventually drop out and pursue an acting career, so they denied her admission. Upon hearing the news, she decided forgo college entirely and focus on acting right away - I swear, I don't make this stuff up! You can't beat some of these stories though!

Though never married, Bonham Carter is in a committed relationship with director Tim Burton. They first met and became involved on the set of "Planet of the Apes" (2001). Since then, and including this upcoming installment, Burton has used Bonham Carter in six of his movies. Together for 11 years now, they have two children and, unconventionally, live in two separate houses right next door to each other. Johnny Depp, another Burton alum and close personal friend to both, is the godfather to their first-born child.

Helena Bonham Carter, who's been nominated for a handful of prestigious awards for her interesting and involved work - two Academy Awards, six Golden Globes, and two Screen Actor's Guild Awards - is still looking for her first win, as she's yet to take home an individual award. Regardless, there's little doubt that this actress has carved her unique stamp into the movie world, as her style and presence have followed her throughout her career.

Check out the lists for our favorite films from this actress after the break.

The Greatest Movies of All-Time, According to the Internet

This is a pretty interesting list that FilmSchoolRejects just published. As you're well aware, we're kind of into lists at this site, so anytime something catches my eye that has to do with them, I'm usually into it. So when I saw that this top 10 list ranked the ten best movies of all time, I had to check it out.

What's unique about this list was that the test group was based much more around our generation than some of the seasoned critical veterans we've grown up around. The list aimed to uncover more of what this new wave of film buffs truly described as the 'Greatest Films of All Time'. So it's interesting to kind of see that cultural shift taking place with this top 10 list, even though no one's trying to say any of these films should definitively be on any lists.

There were a handful of films that you could kind of toss out from any generation of film fan that will probably always make these kinds of lists, but there were also some nice surprises.

Check out the full Top 10 list after the break.

First Trailer for Ben Affleck's "Argo"

I've been looking forward to this movie for a while now, so I'm glad we're finally getting a trailer for it. This was one my most anticipated for 2012 early in the year, and this trailer definitely didn't do anything to subdue those feelings.

For those of you unfamiliar with this film's premise, it takes place in the 1970's and tells the true story of the American rescue of hostages held in Iran after the revolution there. "Argo" is the story of government agents who devised a plan to pose as a film crew shooting a movie to get into the country and help free the hostages. With the help of Hollywood, the plan actually succeeded.

The film, directed by Ben Affleck, looks like a solid follow-up for this budding director. This is the third feature film he is directing, behind "Gone Baby Gone" and "The Town". Both received exceptional critical success, and I wouldn't expect much less from this project.

Check out the full trailer and synopsis after the break.

Slackers Selection CinemaCast: Episode 14 - "The Avengers" Edition!

Thanks for checking out this week's edition of the Slackers Selection CinemaCast!

As most all of you know, "The Avengers" was released this past weekend, and as you can probably expect, we all kind of loved it. So since no other wide-releases opened this past weekend, and since "Dark Shadows" is the only big film coming out next weekend, we spent about 95% of this call on said film.

Going in, we really tried to refrain from giving away big spoilers, but honestly, we pretty much failed miserably. I don't think any of us are too concerned though, because at this point, if you're listening to this, you've probably already seen the movie. Even still, at points where we're aware we're going into something rather specific we try to throw out a quick disclaimer. So I believe this podcast can still be listened to with spoilers being avoided, just tread lightly.

Regardless, you're probably going to want to go see this movie beforehand anyway. It'll give all of this a much better point of reference; and the movie rocks anyway, so why wouldn't you see it?


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