Lawless
The latest from director John Hillcoat (The Proposition, The Road) is set to compete for the Palme d’Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival. Lawless is based on the historical novel, The Wettest County by Matt Bondurant, which follows the story of Bondurant’s grandfather and his brothers running a bootlegging business in Virginia during Prohibition and the complications that arise. This action packed trailer boasts an impressive cast: Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Jessica Chastain, Guy Pearce, Mia Wasikowska, and Shia LaBeouf. Let’s face it, we all decided to this film once Gary Oldman showed his face on screen. Not only is he a brilliant actor, he’s a fantastic villain (i.e. The Professional, Fifth Element, Air Force One, True Romance). Oh yeah, and John Hillcoat is no slouch when it comes to pulling incredible performances out of his actors. This one has potential.
Brave (Trailer 3)
Pixar is featuring new talent with freshman co-directors Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman. Perhaps it’s no surprise that Andrews and Chapman come from the Art and Animation Departments respectively. Pixar acts more like a collective or a college that trains and elevates its animators to directorial positions. This trailer finally gives us a better look at the plot, characters and a short sample of the film’s theme song. According to IMDb.com, Brave is about Princess Merida, a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of royalty who defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and archery skills to undo a beastly curse. Pixar seems to be treading new ground with this one. The tone is much darker and adult than any other film in their library. It’s nice to see them taking chances.
Hotel Transylvania (Trailer 2)
Yep, that’s Adam Sandler voicing Dracula in this wacky new animated comedy from Sony Pictures Animation. In case you didn’t know, Sony produces most of Sandler’s films so it’s only natural that they would sign him for this tent pole project. In fact, he’s only one small part of it. This film is packed with names like Kevin James, Cee-Lo Green, Selena Gomez, Steve Buscemi, David Spade, Fran Drescher, Andy Samberg, David Koechner, and Molly Shannon. You better believe they’re betting this will perform really well. It’s a tent pole film that’s Halloween themed and released just before the holiday accordingly. The film is about Dracula, who operates a high-end resort away from the human world. He goes into overprotective mode when a boy discovers the resort and falls for his teen-aged daughter. You don’t have to wonder if this has any plot holes (it most certainly will), but it looks goofy enough. I’m sure this will be the talk on all the playgrounds come September.
Mansome
I must admit, my inner Bluth leaped (that sounds dirty) when I first heard that Will Arnett and Jason Bateman were producing and appearing in a film called Mansome. My hopefulness faded somewhat when I discovered the film was a documentary about manscaping. Director Morgan Spurlock (Supersize Me, The Greatest Movie Ever Sold) is a talented and inventive filmmaker. However, he’s trying a little too hard to justify his handle bar mustache. I suppose populating a film with witty celebrities makes this look watchable – especially Arnett/Bateman scenes. What do you think?
lawless — i can’t put my finger on it, but it looks too bright, or too clean, or too digital… they need to dirty/analog it up