Posted in Movies, News, Reminder, Television, Video on October 2, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The made-for-TV movie Abducted: The Carlina White Story will debut on Lifetime on October 6 at 8 PM.
Aunjanue Ellis (The Help), Keke Palmer (True Jackson, VP), and Sherri Shepherd (The View) star in the true story of the kidnapping of Carlina White (Palmer), who was abducted as an infant by Ann Pettway (Ellis) from a New York hospital and solved her own kidnapping and reunited with her biological parents 23 years later.
Here is a trailer for Abducted: The Carlina White Story.
Posted in Books, Geekdom, Movies on October 1, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Last year, I posted two separate articles about books that are being made into films, which included The Hunger Games trilogy, The Mortal Instruments series of novels and The Millennium Trilogy (among others).
It’s been far too long since I’ve posted another article about books being made into films so here is yet another list of books that you can expect to see on the big screen sooner or later (there will be another article posted in a few days from now too).
They books being made into films appear below in no particular order:
Chaos Walking Trilogy by Patrick Ness
Chaos Walking – The Patrick Ness young-adult novel trilogy is being developed by Lionsgate. The books are set in a dystopian future where humans have colonized another planet and an infection makes all thought audible, destroying privacy. When an autocrat tries to take over the human settlements amid the chaos and wage war with the indigenous race, only one young man can stop the planet’s destruction.
You can learn more about Patrick Ness and his book series here.
The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker
The Age of Miracles – The first book by Karen Thompson Walker has been optioned by River Road Entertainment with Seth Lochhead set to write the script. The novel covers a young girl’s adolescence, a poignant family drama and a heartrending glimpse into the everyday tragedies and triumphs that occur at a time when the world might be ending.
You can visit here to learn more about Karen Thompson Walker and her book.
Deadmail – This novel, which has yet to be published by Doubleday, is being written by Laurie Frankel. The as-yet to be released novel has been acquired by Summit Entertainment and is a love story about letting go where a computer genius invents a way for people to email loved ones who have passed on. When he unexpectedly loses the woman he loves, he must face his own creation to keep her close or lose her forever.
You can learn more about author Laurie Frankel here.
Empty Coffin Series by Gregg Olsen
Empty Coffin – This young adult book series by best-selling author Gregg Olsen has been acquired by Vigilante Entertainment. The book series is about twin sisters who try to unravel the mystery surrounding the death of their friend.
You can learn more about Gregg Olsen and his book series here.
Wicked Lovely – The series of books by Melissa Marr will be adapted by Caroline Thompson for Wild West Picture Show Productions. The novel is about 17-year-old Aislinn, who has seen dangerous faeries her whole life but has avoided harm by following stringent rules. Now, she is torn between a seductive Faery king and the mortal she loves.
Wicked Lovely Trilogy by Melissa Marr
Visit here to learn about the Wicked Lovely book series and author Melissa Marr.
The Maze Runner by James Dashner
The Maze Runner – The novel by James Dashner is being adapted by the author with the Gotham Group producing. The story follows a boy named Thomas who wakes up in “the Glade,” an enclosed structure populated by other boys and surrounded by tall, stone walls that protect them from monsters called Grievers that live in a maze that surrounds the Glade. Every day, some of the kids venture into the labyrinth trying to map the ever-changing pattern of walls.
You can learn more about James Dashner and his book series here.
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card
Ender’s Game – The novel by author Orson Scott Card will be produced by Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman. The story is about how our planet has been twice invaded by the Formics, an insectoid alien race; and as Earth prepares for a third invasion, it drafts a boy, the brilliant Andrew “Ender” Wiggin, to train for intergalactic battle.
You can learn about author Orson Scott Card at his official website here.
Let It Snow by John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle
Let It Snow – Jordan Roter will write the script from the John Green, Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle that will be produced by Fake Empire. The book consists of three intersecting short stories about a giant snowstorm on Christmas Eve.
You can visit here to read more about the novel Let It Snow.
The Giver by Lois Lowry
The Giver – Jeff Bridges will appear in the adaptation of the Lois Lowry novel that follows a 12-year-old who lives in a futuristic utopian society where all memory of human history has been erased. His life is thrown into turmoil when he is designated to inherit the role of the Giver and bear his community’s vast range of human emotions, which causes him to realize that living a pain-free life comes at a high cost.
Visit here for information on author Lois Lowry and her book.
Tempest by Julie Cross
Tempest – This first novel by Julie Cross that is being planned as a trilogy has been picked up by Summit Entertainment (the folks behind the Twilight Saga films). The story behind this book is about 19-year-old Jackson Meyer who has the natural ability to flash backward in time, but he tends to go only a short chronological distance, usually a few hours. But then a tragedy strikes as the love of his life, Holly, is brutally murdered before his eyes, which becomes the catalyst for his jump back in time further to attempt to save her, but her death was not a random act of violence. She was targeted because of Jackson’s ability and he must find out who is out to either recruit or execute him too.
You can visit Julie Cross’s blog here.
These are just some of the books that are being adapted into film. It will be interesting to see how these adaptations turn out; especially to learn if they will become box office smashes or disasters. Do you have a book you would like to see made into a film? Or do any of the above strike your fancy? Or would you rather not see any of the books to films listed above for whatever reason? Please share.
Posted in Movies, News on September 27, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Based on information provided by the Dark Horizons site and internet research, here are just some of the movies you can expect to see in the movie theatres in October.
Butter
Opens: October 5
Jennifer Garner stars as a small-town, conservative Iowan housewife hell-bent on keeping an adopted young orphan (Yara Shahidi) from winning gold at a Midwestern butter-sculpting competition. The cast includes Olivia Wilde, Hugh Jackman, Ty Burrell, Alicia Silverstone and Rod Corddry.
Frankenweenie
Opens: October 5
This 3D stop motion animated film comes from Tim Burton and pays homage to “Frankenstein” and 1950’s suburbia. It follows a boy who loses his dog and uses the power of science to bring it back to life. Voices will be provided by Charlie Tahan, Winona Ryder, Catherine O’Hara, Martin Landau and Martin Short.
Pitch Perfect
Opens: October 5
This is a comedy set in the competitive world of college a cappella singing, focusing on a lackluster all-female group. The cast includes Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow, Anna Camp and Elizabeth Banks.
Taken 2
Opens: October 5
Liam Neeson returns as retired CIA operative Bryan Mills in a story set in Istanbul where Mills and his wife (Famke Janssen) are taken hostage by the father of Marko Hoxha, the man whom Bryan left to die in a makeshift electric chair in the original film. The cast includes Maggie Grace, Rade Serbedzija and Luke Grimes.
Argo
Opens: October 12
This true story looks at the plan by the CIA to rescue six U.S. diplomats held hostage at their embassy in Iran in 1979 by convincing officials they were members of a camera crew scouting the area for a Hollywood movie. The cast includes Ben Affleck, Clea DuVall, John Goodman and Alan Arkin.
Here Comes the Boom
Opens: October 12
Kevin James plays a high school biology teacher who moonlights as a mixed-martial arts fighter in an effort to save the school’s music program. The cast includes Salma Hayek, Henry Winkler, Greg Germann and Reggie Lee.
Alex Cross
Opens: October 19
In this outing, Alex Cross (Tyler Perry) is now retired from the FBI but is drawn back in to find a killer only to learn it may be the same man responsible for the murder of his wife 12 years ago. The cast includes Matthew Fox, Edward Burns, Rachel Nichols and Jean Reno.
Chasing Mavericks
Opens: October 26
This biopic is about American surfing legend Jay Moriarty, a young Santa Cruz surfer who famously conquered a stretch of treacherous Northern California waves, but later perished in a free-diving accident in the Maldives one day before he was to turn twenty-three. Gerard Butler will play Rick ‘Frosty’ Hesson, a fellow surfing legend and mentor character to the young man. The cast includes Jonny Weston, Elisabeth Shue, Leven Rambin and Abigail Spencer.
Cloud Atlas
Opens: October 26
Based on the six interwoven tales in the 2004 David Mitchell novel, the film explores the consequences of courage and betrayals across continents, time periods and genres. The cast includes Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Jim Broadbent, Hugo Weaving, Jim Sturgess, Ben Whishaw, James D’Arcy, Keith David, Susan Sarandon and Hugh Grant.
Fun Size
October 26
Victoria Justice plays a whip-smart teen girl who accidentally loses her oddball little brother after being forced to take him out for trick-or-treating on Halloween. The cast includes Johnny Knoxville, Chelsea Handler, Jane Levy and Josh Pence.
The Big Wedding
Opens: October 26
This comedy is about a long-divorced couple (Robert De Niro and Diane Keaton) who fake being still married when their family unites for a wedding of their adopted son (Ben Barnes). The cast includes Amanda Seyfried, Robin Williams and Katherine Heigl.
Movies coming out in November will be posted at the end of October.
Enjoy!
Posted in Movies, News, Recommendations, Television, Video on September 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The Hallmark Channel movie Puppy Love will debut on September 8 at 9 PM.
When single mom Megan Nolan (Candace Cameron Bure) moves to a new town, she feels guilty for uprooting her ten-year-old daughter Caitlin (Katie Hawkins). Seeing that the little girl’s only friend is a neighbor’s dog, Megan decides to adopt a shelter pet for Caitlin. She immediately regrets her decision when Caitlin gravitates to the biggest, sloppiest dog in the pound, Jake. Megan’s beautiful new home is now in shambles and, as Megan considers returning Jake to the shelter, handsome ballplayer Ben (Victor Webster) shows up claiming Jake is his dog — the regrettable outcome of his roommate leaving a gate open.
Megan and Ben butt heads. Ben wants to take his dog and leave, until he sees that Caitlin loves Jake as much as he ever could. Now it is clear: the pound puppy everyone loves deserves no less than joint custody.
Here is a trailer for Puppy Love.
Posted in Movies, News, Recommendations, Television, Video on August 30, 2012| Leave a Comment »
On September 3 and 4 the new A&E four-hour two-night movie Coma will air at 9 PM on both nights.
Lauren Ambrose (Six Feet Under), Steven Pasquale (Rescue Me), Geena Davis, James Woods, Ellen Burstyn and Richard Dreyfuss star in a modern day retelling of the bestselling novel by Robin Cook and based on the film by Michael Crichton.
The mini is about a young doctor (Ambrose) who discovers that something sinister is going on in her hospital after routine procedures send more than a few seemingly healthy patients into comas on the operating table.
Here is a trailer for the mini-series Coma.
Posted in Movies, News on August 29, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Based on information provided by the Dark Horizons site and internet research, here are just some of the movies you can expect to see in the movie theatres in September.
Hello I Must Be Going
Opens: September 7
This movie became a darling at the Sundance Film Festival and is about a depressed 35-year-old divorcee (Melanie Lynskey), who is forced to move back in with her parents (Blythe Danner and John Rubenstein). She doesn’t expect to fall in love again, but she’s taken by surprise by a 19-year-old actor (Christopher Abbott).
The Cold Light of Day
Opens: September 7
After his family is kidnapped during their sailing trip in Spain, a young Wall Street trader is confronted by the people responsible: intelligence agents looking to recover a mysterious briefcase. The cast includes Henry Cavill, Bruce Willis and Sigourney Weaver.
The Words
Opens: September 7
The film tells the story of an aspiring novelist (Bradley Cooper) who comes upon a dusty old manuscript in a vintage satchel and passes it off as his own work. He earns both acclaim and money, but right after the book goes on sale an elderly man (Jeremy Irons) approaches him and says he is the true author. The cast includes Olivia Wilde, Dennis Quaid and Zoe Saldana.
Arbitrage
Opens: September 14
The film chronicles the story of a troubled hedge fund magnate (Richard Gere) forced to turn to an unlikely person for help after a crucial mistake involving a sale in his trading empire. Among the cast are Tim Roth, Susan Sarandon and Brit Marling.
Liberal Arts
Opens: September 14
The film follows a guy in his mid-30’s (Josh Radnor) who still yearns for a college student life and eventually has to come to terms with this age and responsibilities. He meets a 19-year-old college student (Elizabeth Olsen) who falls for him and wants to pursue a relationship. The cast includes Richard Jenkins and Allison Janney.
Resident Evil: Retribution
Opens: September 14
The Umbrella Corporation’s deadly T-virus continues to ravage the Earth, transforming the global population into legions of the flesh eating Undead. Alice (Milla Jovovich) awakens in the heart of Umbrella’s most clandestine operations facility and unveils more of her mysterious past as she delves further into the complex. Without a safe haven, she continues to hunt those responsible for the outbreak. Aided by newfound allies and familiar friends, she must fight to survive long enough to escape a hostile world on the brink of oblivion. The cast includes Sienna Guillory, Kevin Durand and Michelle Rodriguez.
The Master
Opens: September 14
Philip Seymour Hoffman plays a charismatic man who returns after witnessing the horrors of WWII, creating a new religion which pulls an alcoholic sailor (Joaquin Phoenix), who is at first a devout convert and later begins to question the founder’s true motives. Among the cast are Amy Adams, Laura Dern and Rami Malek.
Dredd 3D
Opens: September 21
The future world is an irradiated waste land. Somewhere, off an eastern coast, lies Mega City One – a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets. The only force of order lies with the urban police force known simply as the “Judges” who possess the combined powers of judge, jury, and instant executioner. Known and feared throughout the city, Dredd (Karl Urban) is the ultimate Judge, challenged with ridding the city of its latest scourge – a dangerous drug epidemic that has users of “Slo-Mo” experiencing reality at a fraction of its normal speed. During a routine day on the job, Dredd is assigned to train and evaluate Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby), a rookie with powerful psychic abilities due to a genetic mutation. A heinous crime calls them to a neighborhood where fellow Judges rarely dare to venture – a 200 story vertical slum controlled by prostitute-turned-drug lord, Ma-Ma (Lena Headey), and her ruthless clan. When they capture one of the clan’s inner circle, Ma-Ma overtakes the compound’s control center and wages a brutal, vicious war against the Judges that proves she will stop at nothing to protect her empire. With the body count climbing and no way out, Dredd and Anderson must confront the odds and engage in the relentless battle for their survival.
End of Watch
Opens: September 21
The film delves into the world of two young cops (Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Pena) whose partnership is tested when they battle a ruthless drug cartel. The film also stars Anna Kendrick and America Ferrera.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Opens: September 21
Based on the novel by Stephen Chbosky, who also is the director, tales the story of Charlie (Logan Lerman), a painfully shy high school freshman, who is taken under the wing of two charismatic older students, Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller).
Trouble With the Curve
Opens: September 21
Clint Eastwood stars as Gus, an aging Atlanta Braves scout with vision problems whose daughter, Mickey (Amy Adams), reluctantly agrees to be his eyes on a crucial recruiting trip. He is the kind of old school scout who picks based on instinct and observation. One friend is Johnny (Justin Timberlake), a scout from a rival team who has a lot of loyalty to Gus.
Hotel Transylvania 3D
Opens: September 28
The 3D CG animated family horror comedy is set at a five-star Romanian resort for the world’s monsters. It’s there the hotel’s owner Dracula (Adam Sandler) tries stopping his teenage daughter (Miley Cyrus) from falling for a curious young man (Andy Samberg) who has just checked in. Other voices include Kevin James and Fran Drescher.
Looper
Opens: September 28
Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays a contract killer who works for the mob of the future. After their deaths, he disposes of corpses by sending them three decades back into the past – leaving no trace of them in his time and a body that can’t be identified in the past. Things take a twist when he realizes his next target is a future version of himself. The cast includes Bruce Willis, Emily Blunt, Paul Dano and Jeff Daniels.
Won’t Back Down
Opens: September 28
Two determined mothers, a bartender (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and a teacher (Viola Davis), look to transform their children’s failing inner city school. Facing a powerful and entrenched bureaucracy and corruption the teacher’s union president (Holly Hunter) and the school’s principal (Ving Rhames), they risk everything to make a difference in the education and future of their children. The cast includes Rosie Perez and Marianne Jean-Baptiste.
Movies coming out in October will be posted at the end of September.
Enjoy!
Posted in Movies, News, Recommendations, Television, Video on August 21, 2012| Leave a Comment »
On August 25 the Hallmark Movie Channel will debut the movie Strawberry Summer at 8 PM.
Beth Landon (Julie Mond), a small-town music teacher with big singing aspirations has been crowned the Strawberry Queen of the annual Festival. Pulling some strings, Beth has landed country music heartthrob Jason Keith (Trevor Donovan) to perform at this year’s event. A one-hit wonder notorious for cancelling shows, Jason with his bad-boy attitude isn’t what Beth’s mother, Eileen (Shelley Long), considers a reliable musical act for the town’s beloved festival, which she is proudly hosting. Beth attempts to stick up for her favorite singer, but when she finally meets Jason face-to-face, it becomes obvious it won’t be easy. But behind Jason’s rock star stereotypes, he’s hiding a secret about his past that could turn his tanking career around. Along with his Jason’s manager, Beth convinces Jason the festival gig is a great way to revitalize his career and win back his audience appeal. Soon, as Jason spends more time with Beth and finds himself opening up for the first time, an unexpected romance develops and they help each other find the courage to pursue their real passions in life. Cindy Williams also stars.
Here is a trailer for Strawberry Summer.
Posted in Movies, News, Reminder, Video on August 21, 2012| Leave a Comment »
The Lifetime movie Fatal Honeymoon will debut on August 25 at 8 PM.
Harvey Keitel (Reservoir Dogs), Amber Clayton (Three Rivers) and Billy Miller (Ringer) star in this film that is based on a true story that tells the shocking story and controversy surrounding a newlywed who tragically dies on her dream honeymoon and the subsequent investigation as to whether or not her husband was guilty of killing her.
Here is a preview of Fatal Honeymoon.
Posted in Movies, News, Spotlight on August 15, 2012| Leave a Comment »
Last year at this time, up-and-coming director Devon Newberry had a short film called Project: Elysium making rounds at the local film festivals. This time around, he and his crew, have a new project working the circuit called Phynes.
With this short film Newberry wanted to scale back, telling a more intimate story – “a character piece” as he calls it. In fact, this project is what he has described as a short that was never supposed to be made. He and Dominick Aznavour, who plays lead character Scott Phynes, actually tried to make this film back in 2006 and then again in 2008; but various factors got in the way and it was never made. He shared that, “the most obvious factors were budget, crew (and) time. But it wasn’t until after we finished shooting last year that the biggest factor was simple: experience”. They both needed experience because the themes and emotions explored in the film – heartbreak, depression, loss, bad jobs – they “wouldn’t have been able to tell the story truthfully years ago”.
Devon Newberry and Dominick Aznavour
It should be noted that Newberry and Aznavour have known each other since high school; but it wasn’t until after graduation that they started working together when Newberry brought a script entitled “Into the Night” to Aznavour, asking him to be the star. They quickly discovered how passionate and serious they both were about filmmaking and they have been working together since.
Aznavour also shared that he has loved entertaining people since he was very young; and as he got older he “started to build a love and curiosity for the emotional and psychological side of acting”. Being “able to fully create another person from scratch and fuel it with your own emotions” is what made him fall in with acting. And while he loves acting, more than writing, he isn’t opposed to directing in the future. He shared that he would “love to be able to actually manifest what I see in my head into reality”.
Obviously Phynes has been in production for six years, but the duo hasn’t been working on it solid for those years. They would write and rewrite the script and “where the shooting script ended compared to the very first draft from 2006 is like night and day” according to Newberry. He also shared that “a lot of the dialogue remained the same, but I think virtually everything about the movie changed”. Newberry worked with Aznavour and Vanessa Bronson, who helped with the original idea, on the script in 2008; but then he handled the script on his own when they revisited the short in 2011.
As for the casting process, Newberry usually has one or two actors in mind once his scripts are in “good shape” and from there it is “easy to fill up the roles”. Aznavour was the clear choice for the lead in Phynes and “I am crazy fortunate that everyone I approached on the first wave of casting accepted and ended up on the screen as you see them”. The only hiccup was in casting a character named Mrs. Sellick. “It was a week before (we had to start) shooting, we (were) scrambling (to fill the role). But, two days before principal photography (was to) begin, a dear family friend (Suzanne Kemp) offered to play the role. We got lucky there. She was exactly as written and played it as so”.
What drew Aznavour to the character of Scott Phynes was that “whether you are 20 or 40, you can relate to the character”. He continued that “the story covers so many bases that people can relate to”; and that he has “always found comfort in knowing that I’m not the only one going through certain things”.
When asked if there were any hard aspects in filming Phynes, Newberry shared there weren’t any. “I work with the best cast and crew…and everyone is so efficient that we roll over bumps in the road with little effort”. They prepared for about two months, shot for a little over two days and then they took a number of months on post-production, which is always the longest process.
Phynes
Now that Phynes is complete and making the film festival rounds, Newberry shared that getting into the festival is “nerve-racking and it costs so much to do a festival circuit and there (are) always rejection letters that come with it; but when you do get into festivals, you have a completely unbiased audience watching your work, and that’s the scariest thing in the world”. For Newberry, his cast and crew, they were accepted into and screened at the LA Reel Film Festival and just got accepted into the Los Angeles Short Film Festival. The short film has also been recently submitted to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival and the NewFilmmakers LA Festival.
The general story behind Phynes is “when Scott Phynes decides the only way to change his luck around is by ending his life, he begins to question his decision when the love of his life returns”. Needless to say, the main theme behind this short film will undoubtedly be dark, but will definitely give viewers a great deal to think about.
In an effort to stay within the guidelines of festival regulations, Phynes cannot be freely viewed, but upon request the short film can be seen in private by contacting Newberry at theveryillusive@gmail.com.
Good luck and much success are extended to Newberry, Aznavour and the entire cast and crew of Phynes.
Posted in Movies, Recommendations, Television, Video on August 14, 2012| Leave a Comment »
On August 18, the Hallmark Channel original movie Smart Cookies will debut at 9 PM.
Julie Sterling (Jessalyn Gilsig) is a high-maintenance realtor who is just two sales away from being named “Real Estate Agent of the Year.” A firm businesswoman, her schedule doesn’t leave much time for anything else, including relationships. So when her boss Lola (Patricia Richardson) launches a closeted promotion for the company masquerading as company-wide commitment to community pro-social work, and assigns Julie to lead a struggling local Girl Scout troop, Julie is full of protests. Then, she meets the group of hopeless girls, a troop named the Fireflies, including eager new member Daisy (Bailee Madison). As she gets to the know the girls and sees their desperate need for friendship and self-esteem, Julie begins to do whatever it takes to transform them from zeroes to heroes in the annual cookie sale competition against their cruel rivals, the Monarchs, led by superior scout volunteer Hazel (Samantha Ferris).
The cast also includes Ty Olsson.
Here is a trailer for Smart Cookies.
Rueben's Ramblings 