• Red Cliff
John Woo's mega-budget war history impresses with spectacular battle sequences, mindless fun. 
For the full review, click here.

• Mammoth
A deeply touching and personal family drama... but a little plot would've been nice.
For the full review, click here.

• Broken Embraces  
A wonderful vehicle for Penelope Cruz, but a clunky, soap opera-like story surrounds her. 
For the full review, click here.

• The Twilight Saga: New Moon
Vastly better than the original Twilight, but still dragged down by a vapid story. 
For the full review, click here.

• Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
Port of Call New Orleans - Herzog and Cage make for a baffling combo in this lost remake.
For the full review, click here.

• The Missing Person
A wannabe postmodern noir, but its rigid structure keeps it from capturing the right mood. 
For the full review, click here.

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• Uma Thurman will costar with Twilight's Robert Pattinson in Bel Ami, about a young journalist's rise from poverty in Paris. Since Pattinson and Thurman are now working together, we're going to start the rumor mill and just say they're dating.

• Brad Pitt's production company Plan B purchased the rights to the video game Dark Void as a possible vehicle for the star.

• New Moon is on pace to break midnight screening records and possibly top the record set last year by The Dark Knight. If this movie outgrosses The Dark Knight, there will be a serious geek fight come Monday.

• Idris Elba (The Wire) is joining the cast of Thor as Heimdall, the guardian of Asgard. About time this film got some edge to balance out all the stuffy British actors.

• Word has it that Jackass 3-D will hit theaters in 2010. You have been sufficiently warned.

• Judd Apatow confirmed that Pineapple Express 2 might happen, while Superbad 2 will definitely not. I think most folks would like to see the latter happen, actually.

Continue reading "The Newsdesk 11.20.09 - Thurman and Pattison Team for Ami; New Moon Breaking Midnight Records" »

The premiere for the latest chapter in the Twilight saga, New Moon, was completely insane -- as you well know if you follow me and AMC News on Twitter.

What happens in New Moon? What is it like being at the center of the Twilight storm? And perhaps most importantly, what does it mean for fans and future movies that author Stephenie Meyer says she's "burnt out" on vampires? Watch my Opening Night report for answers from the cast.

• Rumor has it Anne Hathaway is also being considered for the Black Cat role in Spider-Man 4. Can someone please cast this already? You're causing some serious geek panic attacks.

• Will Ferrell and Ewan McGregor topped Forbes magazine's list of Hollywood's most overpaid actors. Ferrell makes sense, what with Land of the Lost. But McGregor? Who knew?

• New Moon director Chris Weitz plans to abandon Hollywood after his experience on The Golden Compass. Funny, we wanted to give up moviegoing after Golden Compass.

• Amy Adams will star in The Ten Best Days of My Life, based on the novel about a woman who must prove her place in heaven by recounting her best days. Or, as it was known when Albert Brooks and Meryl Streep starred in a movie with the exact same story in 1991, Defending Your Life.

• Harvey Weinstein is angling to get the Miramax name back. And what Harvey angles for, Harvey usually gets. 

• Hollywood sources think New Moon could debut with Iron Man numbers of $100 million over its opening weekend. I...am...sparkly vampire?

Continue reading "The Newsdesk 11.19.09 - Ferrell Tops Overpaid Actor List; Hathaway Is Latest Spider-Man Rumor" »

Once again, the world's all abuzz for Twilight so AMC News host Jacob Soboroff headed out to the frontlines for this week's star-studded premiere of New Moon. There he caught up with Robert Pattinson, Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner. Check out this photo gallery for some serious red carpet action.

Olivia Wilde might be most known for her portrayal of Dr. Remy "Thirteen" Hadley on House -- but don't expect her to play doctor forever. The actress is filling out her resume with comedies (Year One), scifi (Tron Legacy), and indie dramas like Fix, which was written and directed by her co-star -- and real-life husband --Tao Ruspoli. Wilde talks about what she finds appealing in dark storylines, how her recent experiences have made her want to get behind the camera, and compares making no-budget films with big-budget ones.

Q: Does it change the dynamic when your husband is the director?

A: It definitely changes the dynamic, but I wouldn't say it's harder. In some ways, it's more fun. And it changed the way Tao and I communicated. We have this streamlined communication built in already, but we were able to discuss different choices we were making for this character and for this story in a way that I wouldn't be able to with any other director. The downside is that this meant we didn't ever stop working. When we weren't shooting, my house became the production office. The bottom floor of our loft was the editing suite. And now, because I've seen the whole thing from conception to premiere, I think I would love to produce my own films.

Q: It's usually the cliché that as an actor, you'd want to direct --

Continue reading "Q&A - Olivia Wilde Is Happy There's No Happy Ending in Fix" »

• Jennifer Hudson will play Winnie Mandela in Winnie, a drama about the wife of former South African president Nelson Mandela.

• Keanu Reeves is attached to star in the samurai epic 47 Ronin. It's safe to say the fight scenes will be described as "Matrix-y."

• Precious director Lee Daniels is in talks to direct Selma, a period piece about the 1965 civil rights march in Alabama.

• Universal is taking heat for the U.K.poster for Couples Retreat, which removes the movie's African-American couple from the original promotional image. To make peace, Universal should add them to every Vince Vaughn movie poster from here on out.

• Actor/Iron Man 2 writer Justin Theroux will script Space Invader. Surprisingly, it's a romantic comedy about astronauts, and not an adaptation of the Space Invaders video game. For once, Hollywood tossed a curveball.

• The Spider-Man 4 rumor web has been cast on Julia Stiles, as word has it she's in talks to appear in the comic book sequel. Internet geeks are so desperate for Black Cat to be cast, they'll believe anything.

Continue reading "The Newsdesk 11.18.09 - Hudson to Play Winnie Mandela; Stiles Rumored For Spider-Man 4" »

• Anna Faris and Ryan Reynolds are teaming up for TMI, a romantic comedy from Universal Pictures. Faris is also in talks for the comedy Wedding Banned with Robin Williams. If it has a cutesy title, Faris will star in it apparently.

• Rachel McAdams confirmed that she will not be playing Black Cat in Spider-Man 4 despite recent rumors. Turns out this was yet another Internet rumor started by hopeful geeks.

• Chicago and Nine director Rob Marshall will helm Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth installment in the Disney franchise. Finally, the dancing pirate saga we've all been waiting for.

• Word is McG's remake of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea is pretty much a washout. Get it? Because it's under a sea? Anyway, the project's canceled.

• Stuart Townsend, Ray Stevenson and Tadanobu Asano have been cast as Thor's Warriors Three. Will Stevenson make amends to fanboys for Punisher: War Zone? 

Continue reading "The Newsdesk 11.17.09 - Faris and Reynolds Offer TMI; McAdams Won't Be Black Cat" »

Tonight yours truly and the AMC News team will be on hand at the Twilight: New Moon premiere in Westwood. There are already reports of people camping out in the streets to catch a glimpse of what I would imagine is going to be the biggest premiere of the year.

Follow along with AMC News on Twitter for real-time tweets, pictures and even video from the red carpet. Tonight promises to be wild and you can experience it with me by following AMC News on Twitter.

Photo of New Moon premiere setup via ohemgeeceleb on Twitter.

The first trailer for Kick-Ass, based on the hit comic by Wanted writer Mark Millar, tweaks comic book movie conventions right out of the gate. A winged superhero perches atop a building as a narrator (who sounds suspiciously like Spider-Man's Peter Parker) earnestly wonders why no one before him ever put on a costume and fought crime. But then the twist: The costumed man, who is not our hero, lands face first into a parked car. Looks like we're in for a superhero satire along the lines of Mystery Men and Hancock. The trailer then shifts into "Superbad with superpowers," introducing us to the titular teen hero and his band of geeky buds. Splashy graphics reminiscent of Sin City introduce Hit-Girl and Big Daddy, a duo who are like Batman and Robin by way of Kill Bill. (And was that "McLovin" as the Red Mist? Suddenly the Superbad comparison is even more apt.) While light on plot details, this trailer showcases the source material's brutal action and immediately announces that this is definitely not your dad's comic book movie.