Editorials

Being the First Fan In The World To See The ‘Fantastic Four’ Teaser.

fantastic four teaser

The ‘Fantastic Four’ Teaser Just Dropped, And It’s Surprisingly Epic:

Simply put, The Fantastic Four is a superhero science fiction movie. And I think it might be the first one…

In the same way I fell in love with the lore behind Panem and Katniss Everdeen, I’m starting to really enjoy this new take on a familiar, but entirely different universe. 

Seriously, the parallels are there. A group of young adventurers with one-in-a-million powers rising above obstacles? Got it.

This is an excerpt from my teaser breakdown of The Fantastic Four, which was released alongside the teaser on Moviepilot. I was the first fan in the world to watch it, or so I was told by 20th Century Fox.

On Monday, I flew to Los Angeles to visit the 20th Century Fox lot. At my side was Aaron Kelly, the Director of Community at MP, along with Andrew Marco, Josh Weinstock, and Britt Frizzell (all MP staff and good friends of mine).

It was a fun time. I met a few of the people in charge of Fox’s marketing, including George Dewey. They invited us to a private screening room (remember, this is Monday afternoon) where we could sit down and watch the teaser a few times.

They didn’t tell me what to say, or lead me into making nice comments about the teaser. The representatives there simply wanted to gauge my reaction. I can’t blame them considering the amount of vitriol surrounding this movie’s sheer existence. They must have been quite curious.

I wrote the breakdown that evening, which was a surprisingly short process. I’m not used to being harshly edited when I write about movies, so what you’re reading above is quite close to the first draft. My breakdown was released in the morning, shortly after the trailer dropped, and to my chagrin, it was retweeted by a few of Fox’s Twitter accounts.

This was definitely a memorable experience, and it makes me excited about this new trend in fan empowerment. Movie studios can only benefit from allowing fans a chance to see how the shawarma is made.

I’ll be sharing more of this experience (and other thoughts on the teaser) on Monday’s episode of Now Conspiring. Also on the show, fellow MP writers, Maria Garcia and Adonis Gonzalez will share their own experiences this week at Sundance and the world premiere of Project Almanac. It’s going to be a great episode.

And yeah, we’ll talk about how you can get the opportunity to do cool things like this, as well.

We Finally Know What ‘Pirates of the Caribbean 5’ Will Be About (Sort of)

pirates caribbean 5

Sandy Schaefer | Screenrant:

Johnny Depp is, of course, reprising as pirate Jack Sparrow, while Orlando Bloom says he’s been approached to return to the Pirates franchise for Dead Men Tell No Tales, as part of a story that would revolve around his character, Will Turner, and Will’s son. Actor Brenton Thwaites (The Giver), who is playing the movie’s young male lead (who may or may not be Will’s son), has now shed a little more light on that matter.

Another recent development is that Kaya Scodelario (that one girl in Maze Runner and Effy from Skins) has been cast for Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.

If the movie really does feature Will Turner/Davy Jones’s son, then it will obviously be hard to tell the story without even a glimpse of him, but I suppose it’s possible. Plus, a return to the franchise’s roots is certainly best.

Pirates has always been best when mismatching Jack Sparrow with a straight man like Turner, so his son is the next best thing for now.

‘The Interview’ Is Coming To Netflix Sooner Than You Think

the interview netflix

Seth Feigerman | Mashable:

Netflix is the latest company to offer up The Interview on demand. 

The online video service announced Tuesday that it will offer The Interview, which it dubbed “the controversial comedy,” to its subscribers in the United States and Canada for no additional charge starting on Jan. 24. Google Play, Xbox and Apple TV previously offered the movie for purchase after the movie was pulled from many theaters following threats from hackers.

That’s this weekend.

Glad I waited to watch this, then. From what I’ve heard, paying for this movie would have probably felt like a waste.

 

Review: ‘Paddington’

paddington

The original book series by Michael Bond is now a live-action family film, but for once, that’s not a bad omen.

Paddington is a breezy, unrelentingly imaginative story about a talking bear taken in by a British family. Their effortless charm is so apparent, plant life within their storybook house is altered according to the events of the movie, and that’s just one clever piece of imagery intended to make you fall in love with these characters.

While frenetic gags and slapstick humor are something to be frowned upon in kid-friendly movies, Paddington reminds moviegoers of why those jokes were once so effective, and it has little to do with the actions themselves. The results of each gag speak louder than the set ups, forcing you to laugh more at the emotions and subtle realizations of the characters, rather than what someone wrote independent of the script in order to infuse more laughter.

But that doesn’t mean Paddington is a lightweight on symbolism, as its immigrant themes are front and center through the adopted bear simply looking for a home. It’s telling, then, that the various people of London care little about the fact that a bear can talk. All they can really register is an aversion to immigrants, or someone different, which is a surprisingly smart and powerful message for such an old property.

Even the villain (well played by Nicole Kidman as a taxidermist) is given a full story arc that eschews mustache twirling for a misguided search in legacy, playing nicely with a main story that more or less follows the same beats with the bear (voiced by Ben Wishaw) and each of his new family members.

The marketing for Paddington has been a huge misfire for marking the quality of this standout children’s film, unless this was an intentional decision to underplay expectations. Whatever the case, Paddington is a delightful surprise.

Grade: A

Extra Credits:

  • A stunning reminder that reboots don’t need to be gritty reimaginings.
  • I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a performance from Kidman. Yes, counting Australia.
  • No celebrity cameos. No pop culture references. No problem.
  • I forgot to mention the CGI itself, which is impressively done with Paddington and his environments. It’s not transcendent, but your immersion will remain intact throughout.
  • I wouldn’t be surprised if Wes Anderson secretly consulted for this movie. The absolutely British framing devices scream his style.

 

No Surprise: The Nominees For ‘Best Picture’ are Ridiculous

oscars 2015 best picture

The nominees for Best Picture aren’t very surprising, save for Gone Girl getting snubbed in favor of noticeably weaker films. But first, here they are:

  • American Sniper
  • Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)
  • Boyhood
  • The Imitation Game
  • Selma
  • The Theory of Everything
  • Whiplash
  • The Grand Budapest Hotel  

One of the trends you’ll notice on this list is that it’s very biopic heavy. Four of them are direct biopics, while another two are indirectly centered around the actor being the movie’s gimmick (Birdman and Boyhood). Only two of these movies are just that: Movies.

These are all great films. The only one of these I didn’t enjoy was Birdman, mostly because it’s such an uneven film made that way because it wants awards.

The only thing about it that worked for me was Edward Norton, but everything else felt so condescending toward nothing. It was just two hours of people screaming at each other for no reason but to vent out frustrations I couldn’t care about.

I sort of understand the appeal of stories that make no sense. But for me, narrative has to have cohesion, or else I’m not going to appreciate the movie as a whole. So for that reason, I’m not on the Birdman bandwagon.

Whiplash is still my favorite film of the year, and I’m also excited to see Selma and Boyhood getting their due. But Imitation Game and American Sniper beating out Gone Girl and Wild seems like a huge “We hate Ben Affleck and Reese Witherspoon” message from the Academy, even though Rosamund Pike and Witherspoon got the obligatory Best Actress nods.

And no, Interstellar doesn’t deserve to be on this list, but I feel terrible for Matthew McConaughey’s snub for best actor.

If Harry Potter Was a Teen Comedy

This is an old video, but I felt compelled to share anyway. It only uses scenes from Half-Blood Prince, which works nicely since that movie was pretty much already a teen comedy that happened to take place in Hogwarts.

More importantly, it’s incredible how different a trailer is depending on the music.

The First Teaser For ‘Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice’ Will Be a Trailer For ‘Jupiter Ascending’

batman v superman teaser

Sandy Schaefer | Screen Rant:

Director Zack Snyder wrapped production on the film Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice late last year, partly completing the next brick in the wall for DC’s Shared Film Universe (after Snyder’s Superman reboot, Man of Steel) in the process. A teaser clip for the superhero movie debuted at the San Diego Comic-Con in 2014, but since principal photography was completed, the wait was been for a theatrical teaser trailer to be unveiled.

We’re now hearing that will happen when Warner Bros. launches it first major tentpole of the new year, in the Wachowskis’ big-budget sci-fi Jupiter Ascending…

It’s easy to assume that Warner Bros. just wants people to watch Jupiter Ascending, and this teaser will create a bit of hype. But how many people out there are actually willing to pay to see a movie just to watch a teaser a day before its free on the Internet?

Unless you’re already psyched to see Jupiter Ascending for some reason.