2014 R DramedyCast: Jason Bateman, Tina Fey, Jane Fonda, Adam Driver, Rose Byrne, Corey Stoll, Kathryn Hahn, Connie Britton, Timothy Olyphant, Dax Shepard, Abigail Spencer,
Director: Shawn Levy
Writers:
Jonathan Tropper (screenplay), Jonathan Tropper(novel)Filming Locations:
Plot: When their father passes away, four grown siblings are forced to return to their childhood home and live under the same roof together for a week, along with their over-sharing mother and an assortment of spouses, exes, and might-have-beens
Review: I was on the fence about this one, but after noticing that every time the trailer came on I was laughing, I thought I'd give it a chance. It's also a faith-based film which I'm always a fan of at least giving it a go. Great cast. Hopefully it's good.
Rating: TBD
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2014 PG Music DramaCast: Ray Liotta, Ashley Judd, Seth Green, Joe Pantoliano, Blake Rayne, Brian Geraghty, Amanda Crew, Danny Woodburn, Chris Mulkey
Director:
Dustin MarcellinoWriter:
Howard KlausnerPlot: Twin brothers (rayne) are unknowingly separated at birth; one of them becomes an iconic rock 'n' roll star, while the other struggles to balance his love for music and pleasing his father.
Review: Though I'm not a huge Elvis fan, I'm a huge Ashley Judd fan. This is based on the idea: What if Elvis's twin brother had lived? What happens to people with gifts if raised in two different households? This whole nature vs nurture thing has always fascinated me. It's also nice to see such a great cast in what looks like a faith based film. I'm glad to see this as a growing trend of actors in Hollywood not being afraid of doing faith based films. I just wish these films got bigger budgets. For those of you out there that think of every Christian film as propaganda, just cool it. We all need to be tolerant & respectful of one another's religions & faith. Faith without reason equals fanaticism. Faith itself does not simply cause it, and it's bigoted to say such things of any religion/faith. Every faith deserves an equal opportunity to make films. Let the market decide if they continue to make them.
Rating: TBD
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"Elvis" 2005
2013 R Music Drama BioIndependent Spirit Awards 2015
| Nominated Independent Spirit Award | Best Male Lead André Benjamin |
Filming Locations:
IrelandPlot: A drama based on Jimi Hendrix's (Benjamin) life as he left New York City for London, where his career took off.
Review: When I read who would be playing Jimi I was skeptical, but the trailers & the Indie Spirit award nomination gives me hope. I love Jimi's music, but I wish the estate had given the film rights to it for the film. All that's gonna be in it is his covers. I'm really hoping this film does him justice.
Rating: TBD
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'73
2014 PG-13 ThrillerCast: Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst, Oscar Isaac
Writers:
Hossein Amini (screenplay), Patricia Highsmith(novel)Plot: A thriller centered on a con artist (Mortensen), his wife (Dunst), and a stranger (Isaac) who flee Athens after one of them is caught up in the death of a private detective.
Review: The plot reminds me a bit of The Talented Mr. Ripley without the homo erotic undertones. This is like if Gwyneth Paltrow's character helped Top Ripley with his cons. Looks like an interesting premise with beautiful locales.
Rating: TBD
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2014 PG-13 Action Mystery Sci-FiCast: Dylan O'Brien, Aml Ameen, Will Poulter, Patricia Clarkson, Don McManus
Director:
Wes BallWriting Credits
| Noah Oppenheim | ... | (screenplay) and |
| Grant Pierce Myers | ... | (screenplay) and |
| T.S. Nowlin | ... | (screenplay) |
| James Dashner | ... | (novel) |
Review: Haven't seen this movie yet as a JeremyJahns video review convinced my husband not to catch it at the theaters for fear that the ending is nonsensical & ruins the film. Still interested in this movie anyway. Here's some non-spoiler trivia: The production had to hire snake wranglers to make sure the areas where they were filming were snake free. Before filming began the wranglers found 25 venomous snakes. The biggest one they found was a 5 foot rattlesnake. To gain the role of Chuck, actor Blake Cooper continuously campaigned for an audition via twitter. He would send director Wes Ball tweet after tweet after tweet stating that he was made for the role. Wes Ball eventually relented and told Cooper to send his audition to the casting director who stated that Cooper was the perfect Chuck. The Maze Runner novel was published on October 6th, 2009 before Divergent.
Rating: TBD
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2014 R DramedyCast: Adam Sandler, Jennifer Garner, Rosemarie DeWitt, Judy Greer, Dean Norris, Emma Thompson's voice, Ansel Elgort, Dennis Haysbert, J.K. Simmons, Phil LaMarr
Director:
Jason ReitmanWriting Credits
| Jason Reitman | ... | (screenplay) & |
| Erin Cressida Wilson | ... | (screenplay) |
| Chad Kultgen | ... | (novel) |
Filming Locations:
Austin, Texas, USAPlot: A group of high school teenagers and their parents attempt to navigate the many ways the Internet has changed their relationships, their communication, their self-image, and their love lives.
Review: I like films that ask questions. I like films that combine comedy & drama. I'm curious to see Adam Sandler in what looks like a higher caliber film than he's been in in a while, and interested in how well he does in this. I like the subject matter of questioning how technology effects our personal relationships. Seems a bit pretentious to have a narrator that's not one of the characters in the film though. Here's some trivia to tide you over before I see this & give my review. This film premiered in US theaters on October 1, 2014. It was removed from all US theaters by October 30, and made less than $1 million domestically. Director Jason Reitman felt so much of the acting in the film was so based on reactions to texts, chats, and photos that using dummy screens with no text would not suffice. The production team had to create very realistic-looking versions of popular websites, all on their own tightly controlled software, which the actors could interact with in real time. Cameron Diaz was offered the role of Donna Clint (Judy Greer).
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2014 UR Drama, Fantasy, RomanceCannes Film Festival 2014
| Nominated Un Certain Regard Award |
Cast: Josh Charles, Anaïs Demoustier, Radha Mitchell
Director:
Pascale FerranPlot: In an airport hotel on the outskirts of Paris, a Silicon Valley engineer (Charles) abruptly chucks his job, breaks things off with his wife (Mitchell), and holes up in his room. Soon, fate draws him and a young French maid (Demoustier) together.
Review: The trailer makes this film look depressing as hell. I hate when films showcase people leaving their families as if it's a noble thing to just abandon someone. It also shoves the idea that all people actually go through a mid-life crisis as if it's as normal as adolescence & puberty. It's not. Not everyone does that. It's not noble either. However, I'm very curious to see Charles in a film now that he's no longer on "The Good Wife". I've also read that this film has a fantasy element which intrigues me and might explain the plot a bit better.
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2012 Romance Drama BiopicCast: James Franco, Mila Kunis, Jessica Chastain, Zach Braff, Henry Hopper, Bruce Campbell,
Directed by:
Writing Credits:
Produced by: James Franco et al.
Filming Locations:
Detroit, Michigan, USAPlot: A poetic road trip through Pulitzer prize-winning CK Williams' (Franco) life.
Review: This movie looks interesting though potentially pretentious. Here's some trivia til I get a review in: It's the second time James Franco, Mila Kunis, Zach Braff, Bruce Campbell and Mia Serafino play together in a movie. They last worked together in "Oz the Great and Powerful."
Rating: TBD
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2013 Crime Drama ThrillerCast: Jeremy Allen White, Mackenzie Davis, Mark Pellegrino, William Devane, Jon Gries
Writer:
Dutch Southern
Plot: Three Texas teens hope to make a break for it and escape their dead-end existence in a cotton-mill town but get sucked into the seedy underbelly of organized crime when one of them steals from the wrong man.
Review: This looks like a great modern crime film in the vein of Bonnie & Clyde. Much better by look of the trailer than I thought it was gonna be. Trivia: Actress Mackenzie Davis was recommended for the role of Sue to the Producers by director Drake Doremus because of her performance in his film Breathe In. Actor Mark Pellegrino (Giff) and director Zeke Hawkins first met on the set of the film Capote. Mark was playing the role of Dick Hickock and Zeke worked for Capote director Bennett Miller. The actors playing The Wolfsons in the film are actually the grandparents of the film's Producer Justin Duprie. The hands of the narrator during the film's imaginary heist scene are actually the hands of Cinematographer Jeff Bierman who was operating the camera during the shot. Actor William Devane made the suggestion that his character should be wearing a bathrobe. The directors loved the idea and ran with it.
Rating: TBD.
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2014 R DramaIndependent Spirit Awards 2015
| Nominated Independent Spirit Award | Best Feature Lucas Joaquin Lars Knudsen Ira Sachs Jayne Baron Sherman Jay Van Hoy |
| Best Screenplay Ira Sachs Mauricio Zacharias | |
| Best Male Lead John Lithgow | |
| Best Supporting Male Alfred Molina |
Cast:
John Lithgow, Alfred Molina, Tatyana Zbirovskaya, Marisa Tomei, Charlie Tahan, Harriet Sansom Harris, Cheyenne JacksonDirector:
Ira SachsPlot: After Ben and George get married, George is fired from his teaching post, forcing them to stay with friends separately while they sell their place and look for cheaper housing -- a situation that weighs heavily on all involved.
Review: Ripped from the headlines, I keep reading news articles about this happening: An openly gay teacher teaching at a religious parochial school, suddenly gets fired after marrying their partner. As if making a lifeline commitment to someone of the same sex is somehow worse than living together. What hypocrisy! I'd respect it more if these schools didn't hire them at all as it is their religious right to turn down employment to someone who lives a life contrary to the religious teachings at the school. It's no more public to marry someone than it is to live with them as the internet can reveal everything about a person's life to the masses. Unless someone were to make a televised or hugely public demonstration, I don't see the big deal for these schools to just either leave it alone and let people's private lives stay private or not hire them to begin with. But to get the students to form relationships with theses teachers to just rip them away suddenly is wrong. Also you would then have to fire any straight teacher who gets remarried after a divorce or is living together outside of wedlock. OK off my soapbox. This looks like a bittersweet film that I'm looking forward to seeing.
Rating: TBD
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\2014 Horror Mystery ThrillerCast: Antonia Campbell-Hughes, Rupert Evans, Steve Oram,
Director:
Ivan KavanaghWriter:
Ivan Kavanagh
Plot: Film archivist David's (Rupert Evans) work partner Claire (Antonia Campbell-Hughes) gives him a reel of to-be-archived footage that shows that his house was the setting for a brutal murder in 1902. Becoming progressively more unsettled and unhinged, David begins to believe that a spectral presence is in his house. When wife Alice (Hannah Hoekstra) goes missing shortly afterwards, David contacts the police- only to become the prime suspect in her disappearance.
Review: This seems intriguing but a bit low budget. That worries me, especially with low budget + possible special FX. We'll see.
Rating: TBD
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2014 PG-13 Horror ThrillerCast: Sarah Snook, Joelle Carter, Mark Webber, Larisa Oleynik
Director:
Kevin GreutertWriter:
Robert Ben GarantPlot: Returning to her childhood home in Louisiana to recuperate from a horrific car accident, Jessabelle (Snook) comes face to face with a long-tormented spirit that has been seeking her return -- and has no intention of letting her escape.
Review: Growing up with family living in New Orleans, most of my favorite childhood memories are of visiting there. That being said, though this movie takes place in Southern Louisiana, it was not filmed there. It was filmed in NC. Voodoo stuff scares the crap out of me. I have a feeling there's more to this film than simply a haunting movie. Trivia: Jacob Sullivan did uncredited rewrites which always scares me when there's too many cooks in the kitchen and there are rewrites.
Rating: TBD
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2014 R HorrorCast: Rose Leslie, Harry Treadaway
Director:
Leigh JaniakPlot: A newlywed couple finds their lake-country honeymoon descend into chaos after Paul finds Bea wandering and disoriented in the middle of their first night.
Review: The only thing that makes me wanna watch the movie is pure curiosity. I wanna know what happened to her in the woods. While watching the trailer I immediately thought of the tree rape scene in Evil Dead. I hope it's not that though.
Rating: TBD
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