Lionsgate Announces Release Date for Saw 6

Yes, Jigsaw - and his disciples - will return in Saw VI on October 23, 2009. No word yet on a plot, obviously, but word is Saw franchise editor Kevin Greutert is directing from a script by Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton.

Thoughts:

Seeing as how every Saw movie has been released in October, this doesn't come off as a surprise. The story also was leading to another film in this long franchise anyway

Universal Thinking About More Fockers?

According to Fox 411, "it looks like a third Meet the Parents movie, a sequel to Meet the Fockers is percolating. In the natural progression of things, Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner would return as grandparents to Ben Stiller and Teri Polo 's babies. Of course, Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand would have to return as well."

Universal Pictures and Tribeca Prods. have been developing the second sequel since 2007. De Niro and his Tribeca partner Jane Rosenthal will produce the film for director Jay Roach. Larry Stuckey penned a draft of the screenplay.

Thoughts:

I liked Meet the Parents and thought Meet the Fockers was enjoyable. I wouldn't mind another movie with some little Fockers running around, but I hope it ends up being the final one.

Info And A Poster For Judd Apatow's Funny People

Universal Pictures has released the first poster for director Judd Apatow's next film "Funny People".

For those who aren't familiar Judd Apatow, he directed The 40 Year Old Virgin and Knocked Up. Both of which have become very popular among many adult teens and I have reviews for both films on this blog. He has also gone to produce Superbad, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Pineapple Express and many more comedy films.

Funny People takes place in the world of stand up comedy and the focus is on a comedian who has a near-death experience.

The Universal Pictures release is slated for a July 31, 2009 release and features an all-star comedy ensemble including Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Eric Bana, Jonah Hill, Leslie Mann and Jason Schwartzman.

Thoughts:
I loved The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up. I thought both were great films and I'm really excited about Funny People. I'm very curious to see how the cast turns out.

Watchmen Posters And Info On A New Trailer

6 new Watchmen posters have arrived today and all of them looking really awesome. Yahoo! Movies has also announced that it will debut the new trailer for director Zack Snyder's Watchmen online on Thursday, 11/13 at 5pm PT, so be sure to stay tuned.

UPDATE: Trailer is now live. Click on above link to watch it

Thoughts:
Posters look great and I'm sure the movie will turn out awesome. Trailer is now live and you can watch it by clicking the above link. Looks very, very cool.

Universal Bringing Hasbro's Monopoly To Life

The Hasbro-Universal collaboration "Monopoly" is jumping a large number of spaces up the board.

The feature project has brought on Pamela Pettler to write the screenplay; She penned Tim Burton's "Corpse Bride," Gil Kenan's "Monster House" and the upcoming animated adventure "9," produced by Burton and Timur Bekmambetov.

And Ridley Scott, who has been attached as a producer on "Monopoly" and has been mentioned as a possible director, is now officially attached to helm the project, with an eye toward giving it a futuristic sheen along the lines of his iconic "Blade Runner."

In addition to Scott, Giannina Facio and Hasbro's Brian Goldner are also producing the movie, which will shape a narrative out of the iconic real-estate game. Lawrence Grey will oversee for Universal and Bennett Schneir will oversee for Hasbro.

Universal is working with Hasbro on several projects as part of a long-term development deal.

Thoughts:

I think this could turn out either way. I would love to see Scott tackle a project this weird and add some Blade Runner feel to it. I think that would be a cool idea to see. Than again, the movie could end up pretty mediocre considering its based on a famous board game.

REVIEW: Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Zack and Miri Make a Porno

Year: 2008
Director: Kevin Smith
Starring: Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Craig Robinson, Jason Mewes, Jeff Anderson
Distributor: The Weinstein Company
MPAA: Rated R

The Weinstein Company first greenlit Zack and Miri Make a Porno simply for the films title. The film than had some trouble with its MPAA rating which saw the film getting numerous NC-17 ratings. The studio did not want this and demanded the film crew change or edit out scenes because its rather hard for studio's to market NC-17 rated films simply because most theaters wont carry them. After many attempts later, the film finally received the R rating the film crew were looking for. I have been interested in this film for quite some time now and have been keeping close with its updates. This was going to be my first Kevin Smith film that I go see and review. Its not that I hate the popular director, but that I simply haven't come across it. I have heard of Clerks and Chasing Amy, but just never had the proper time to see them.

Plot Outline:
Zack (Seth Rogen) and Miri (Elizabeth Banks) are two long time platonic friends who live together. The two find themselves hitting hard times. The water and power in the their apartment get shut off, and they have no money to pay the rent. The two of them face possible eviction. And as a last attempt to make ends meet they come upon the idea to make a "porno" movie. Through making the movie, they realize that they might have more feelings for each other than just friends.

Plot:
The plot for Zack and Miri Make a Porno is rather simple and easy to understand. The whole film centers in on this pair of friends who are simply low on their budget and are looking into making a pornography to help pay off their debts. The story had interesting characters that we could all somewhat relate to. Its also pretty funny and entertaining. Having not seen any of Smith's previous films, I couldn't tell if he had a particular style of shooting. The film also has many sexual content in it which doesn't come off as a surprise considering the films title and film rating. This isn't the type of film to take your 6 year old kid to. While the films story is very enjoyable and entertaining, its also pretty damn predictable. After seeing a good 30 min's of the film, I could already guess where this was headed and how its going to end. Its not bad that its predictable, but it just doesn't make room for surprises. I also thought the ending could have been alittle more fleshed out. I mean its a fine ending and theirs generally nothing wrong with it, but I just thought it could be alittle more different and not so expected.

Cast:
Seth Rogen plays as Zack Brown and he does an alright job in his role. I think he was a pretty good choice to be playing this part, but I have a feeling he could have done better in his perforamnce. He gives a performance that's somewhat similar to that of which he gave in Knocked Up. Nothing really great, but alright to pass. Elizabeth Banks plays Miriam Linky and she too does an alright job in her new role. She doesn't give us a good and memorable performance, but I still thought she was a good choice for this role. Shes also very sexy and charming in the film. Craig Robinson plays Delaney and I thought he was simply hilarious. Hes very funny and very much in character. Robinson is very much funny in all his work, but I think he takes the cake in this film. Jason Mewes plays as Lester and I also think he was pretty funny. He isn't afraid to go full nude and his scenes in the movie show this. I think he was a nice addition to this already funny cast.

Picture:
The visual look of the film isn't something to brag about. The film was just recently released and like most new releases, the film's source is pretty clean. I didn't notice any grain or scratches and the image had a nice smooth look to it. Colors ranged from somewhat vibrant to somewhat dull. The film has many interior scenes and these all are nicely colored. Their are a few scenes where some of the colors can tend to look alittle bland. Flesh tones are accurate and definitely have that warm feeling to them. Detail is what I had a slight problem with. The film exhibits some nice detail on certain objects, but most of the time, the image can tend to look pretty soft. I think this was more of a director's choice thing rather than the film itself.

Sound:
The soundtrack in Zack and Miri Make a Porno is pretty good. The film doesn't look like its got its very own score and nor should it. The movie starts out with some punk/rock music and it sounds good. Theirs always music where it should be and they all sound appropriate for the film. I think this also has something to do with the director. The films bass isn't going to get much love. This isn't by all means, the type of film to demo to your friends if your trying to show off your new surround sound speakers. The film has bass where it should be and it sounds generally good for a film like this. Its not like I was expecting much from the film's bass anyway.

Conclusion:
Zack and Miri Make a Porno is a great film that I very much enjoyed watching. The plot was interesting and entertaining even though it was way too predictable. I also thought the ending could have used alittle work, but still a solid film overall. I thought the cast was good and very funny. Craig Robinson easily stole the show for me. The visual look of the film is pretty colorful, but lacks detail here and their. The soundtrack was pretty good and was used effectively, but the bass was pretty soft. I can recommend this film to those who are big Kevin Smith fans or are just looking for a good comedy film. Its not perfect, but its pretty entertaining.

Grade: B

Marvel's Captain America Has Found A Director

Joe Johnston has signed on to direct Marvel Studio's “First Avenger: Captain America.”

Johnston is currently directing “The Wolfman” for Universal which hits theaters on April 3. He is also developing “The Death and Life of Charlie St. Cloud.”Johnston previously directed “October Sky“, “Jumanji“, “Jurassic Park III“, “The Rocketeer and Honey“, “I Shrunk the Kids“. Johnston won an Academy Award in 1982 for Best Visual Effects for “Raiders of the Lost Ark”.

He now joins the ranks of Jon Favreau, Louis Leterrier, and Kenneth Branagh as Marvel’s dream team of directors set to turn bring the real Marvel universe to life in a series of films that will eventually converge in The Avengers in 2011.

The superhero blockbuster, based on a character created in 1941 by Jack Kirby and Joe Simon, focuses on a weak man called Steve Rogers who is injected with an experimental serum which transforms him into a muscular
superhero.

No writers are on board but the studio expects to hire one shortly. The film will be produced by Marvel Studio's President Kevin Feige. Executive Producers on the project are Louis D’Esposito, Stan Lee and Marvel Studio's Chairman David Maisel. Paramount Pictures will distribute “First Avenger: Captain America” worldwide.

Captain America is scheduled for release May 6, 2011.

Thoughts:

Im not sure about this. I'll have to see how The Wolfman turns out, which so far looks pretty cool.