After a six-second ‘Tweaser’ anda 20-second preview of The Wolverine , Marvel unleashed almost four-and-a-half minutes of adamantium goodness in the form of two trailers on Wednesday, and it sets up at least part of the storyline for Hugh Jackman’s latest outing as the cigar-smoking mutant. It looks like a scientist whom Wolvie saved from what looks like a nuclear explosion wants to repay the favor: The mutant gave him life, so Mr. Big Brain wants to give Wolverine the ability to die by taking away his regenerative powers. Or is it all a diabolical trick? That beautiful blond assistant in the lab coat is Svetlana Khodchenkova , who plays the villain Viper in the movie. Below are both the domestic and international trailer. The latter does a much better job of telling the story. You might want to watch that one first. In this context, The Wolverine reminds me of one of the themes that Anne Rice grappled with in her Interview with the Vampire novels: Is immortality as alluring as it seems? ‘The Wolverine’ Trailer (Domestic) : A Life Saved The International Trailer Reveals More Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
The Host author Stephenie Meyer is a sci-fi grrrl. Now that the Twilight creator is transitioning from vampires and werewolves to aliens, I asked her what it was like to work in the male-dominated science-fiction genre. “I grew up reading science fiction!” she told me. “There are many women out there reading science fiction and enjoying it — it’s our genre too!” I also asked why her Twilight novels seemed to promote abstinence when the key characters in The Host, Melanie and Jared, have plenty of sex before marriage. Turns out, Twilight was never about abstinence! “In Twilight , there was a character who was born in the early 1900s and had a different value set. And I really enjoyed taking this anachronistic character, shoving him into modern life and having him stay who he is and making everyone else bend.” Meyer’s unique look at relationships has earned her many fans, including Diane Kruger who plays the main villain in The Host : “I love Twilight , I have to say. I was totally Team Edward !” the actress told me. But beyond Meyer’s pretty boys, Kruger feels the author looks out for women most of all. “That’s what I like about Stephenie Meyer. I think it’s rare to have not just a female centered movie but to have two female protagonists in a film,” a reference to Melanie and the alien “Soul”, Wanda , who shares her body. “That’s really rare,” Kruger adds. Max Irons and Jake Abel are Meyer’s pretty boys this time around, and Irons points out that his co-star is the one who has to depict “interspecies love” since Abel falls in love with an alien. Abel defends their relationship though, saying his character falls in love with alien Wanda because “there’s a sense of softness to her and he’s in a group of people that have been really hardened by a struggle to survive.” Check out my full interviews below: Follow Grace Randolph on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Stephenie Meyer is best known for creating the characters that made Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart famous. But the author now deserves props for another impressive achievement: some serious weight loss! At last night’s premiere of The Host in Los Angeles, the novelist showed off quite the slimmed-down figure. Donning a floral dress and also rocking a very different hairstyle than the one she wore in 2009 (left, below), compare the look of Meyer from three years ago with the one today and prepare to be amazing:
It’s the first day of spring and a perfect time to celebrate young love of the parasitic alien variety. And how do we do that? By giving away a prize pack for Open Road’s adaptation of Twilight creator Stephenie Meyer’s novel, The Host , to one budding poet out there who can capture the spirit of the movie in an original haiku. First, some inspiration: one winner will receive the following bag o’ swag: 1. The Host T-Shirt 2. The Host Buttons 3. Signed Poster 4. A copy of Meyer’s novel 5. Movie Companion with Behind-The-Scene Photos If that’s enough to turn your brown eyes an eerie shade of blue, all you need to do is reside in the United States and submit an original haiku ( using the 5-7-5 format ) inspired by the plot of The Host or an actual parasite. I’m crossing my fingers that we get at least one entry involving bedbugs. Deadline is 6 p.m. Pacific Time on March 28 . A winner will be chosen on March 29, when The Hos t opens in theaters. In the event that you’re going to completely wing it for this contest, some background follows. Good luck. The official synopsis: What if everything you love was taken from you in the blink of an eye? “The Host” is the next epic love story from the creator of the “Twilight Saga,” worldwide bestselling author, Stephenie Meyer. When an unseen enemy threatens mankind by taking over their bodies and erasing their memories, Melanie Stryder ( Saoirse Ronan ) will risk everything to protect the people she cares most about — Jared ( Max Irons ), Ian ( Jake Abel ), her brother Jamie (Chandler Canterbury) and her Uncle Jeb ( William Hurt) , proving that love can conquer all in a dangerous new world. The trailer: Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
Nine years after Napoleon Dynamite made Sundance darlings out of its makers, screenwriter Jerusha Hess is set to make her directorial debut with the femme-centric comedy Austenland , adapted from Shannon Hale’s best-seller about a Jane Austen obsessee on holiday at a resort where the Regency authoress is venerated like a goddess. Austenland stars Keri Russell, JJ Feild, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Seymour, and Bret McKenzie, but there’s even more star power behind the scenes in the form of producer Stephenie Meyer ( The Twilight Saga ). Meyer, who served as producer on the final films in the Twilight franchise, Breaking Dawn Parts 1 & 2 , as well as the adaptation of her novel The Host , co-created her Fickle Fish Films shingle to create literary-themed projects, beginning with Austenland . Ahead of Austenland ‘s Sundance premiere this Friday, Hess released a director’s note emphasizing her focus on a female audience after scripting the goofy male comedies Napoleon Dynamite , Nacho Libre , and Gentlemen Broncos — “[our] most testicular film to date”: I remember thinking after my husband and I finished Gentlemen Broncos , our weirdest and most testicular film to date, that I really needed to start making movies for girls. Cut to a dinner meeting with author Shannon Hale. She was smart and funny and handed me a book she had recently published, Austenland . I read it in an evening and we started writing the screenplay within the month. The book was so fresh and read like a film; it was a joy to adapt it for the screen and write it with Shannon. Since the romantic element in the book was always strong, my goal was to make the film as quirky and light as possible. The result is a ridiculous romp in Regency culture – commenting not only on the historical time but also on the Jane Austen film genre itself. Although the film gently pokes at the Austen “afficianado” it never intends to alienate the fans, rather to celebrate the fun and funny of it all. Austenland was as girlishly indulgent to make as I hope it is for you to watch. Enjoy. Synopsis: Austenland is a romantic comedy about 30-something, single Jane Hayes (Keri Russell), a seemingly normal young woman with a secret: her obsession with all things Jane Austen. But when she decides to spend her life savings on a trip to an English resort catering to Austen – crazed women, Jane’s fantasties of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman suddenly become more real than she ever could have imagined. Based on the novel by Shannon Hale (who also co-wrote the script), the film was written and directed by Jerusha Hess (writer, Napoleon Dynamite ) and produced by Stephenie Meyer’s Fickle Fish Films. The film features an all-star cast including Bret McKenzie, Georgia King, Jane Seymour, JJ Field and Jennifer Coolidge. Follow Movieline’s Sundance 2013 coverage here . Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
The unveiling of the 2013 Sundance Film Festival line-up has begun! (Get the first wave of titles in the U.S. and World dramatic and documentary slate, plus the NEXT selections here .) Here are ten intriguing, surprising, and promising figures and filmmakers to look forward to following around Park City as their films vie among the 16 dramatic and 16 documentary films in competition this year — including a certain Twilight maven, everyone’s favorite boy wizard, and two kinds of Bries. 1. Stephenie Meyer ( Austenland ) When you think “billion-dollar vampire franchise” you don’t necessarily think “Sundance,” but after producing the last two films in her Twilight series ( Breaking Dawn Part 1 & 2 ) and the upcoming adaptation of her sci-fi novel The Host , Stephenie Meyer came onboard to produce another lit adaptation, Austenland , based on Shannon Hale’s book — and the Jerusha Hess-helmed pic, starring Keri Russell, Bret McKenzie and JJ Feild, makes its debut in competition in Park City. Thirtysomething, single Jane is obsessed with Mr. Darcy, as played by Colin Firth in Pride and Prejudice. On a trip to an English resort, her fantasies of meeting the perfect Regency-era gentleman become more real than she ever imagined. 2. David Sedaris ( C.O.G. ) Bestselling author David Sedaris gets his first big screen adaptation in C.O.G. , based on a short story in Sedaris’s book Naked . Kyle Patrick Alvarez directs Jonathan Groff ( Glee ) in the account based on Sedaris’s own experience working as an apple picker in Oregon, joined by a colorful cast including Casey Wilson, Dean Stockwell, Corey Stoll, Dale Dickey, and Denis O’Hare. In the first ever film adaptation of David Sedaris’ work, a cocky young man travels to Oregon to work on an apple farm. Out of his element, he finds his lifestyle and notions being picked apart by everyone who crosses his path. 3. Lake Bell ( In a World… ) The hilarious Lake Bell stars in and makes her feature directorial debut with In a World after cutting her teeth on the comedy short Worst Enemy and episodes of Childrens Hospital . An underachieving vocal coach is motivated by her father, the king of movie-trailer voice-overs, to pursue her aspirations of becoming a voiceover star. Amidst pride, sexism and family dysfunction, she sets out to change the voice of a generation. 4. Harry Potter — okay, okay: Daniel Radcliffe ( Kill Your Darlings ) Daniel Radcliffe as Allen Ginsberg. Ben Foster as William Burroughs. Jack Huston as Jack Kerouac. An untold story of murder that brought together a young Allen Ginsberg, Jack Kerouac and William Burroughs at Columbia University in 1944, providing the spark that led to the birth of an entire generation – their Beat revolution. 5. Sebastian Silva & Michael Cera ( Crystal Fairy ) Michael Cera stars in two upcoming films from Silva, who won the Sundance Grand Jury Prize in 2009 for The Maid , but they had me at “Mescaline-fueled psychedelic trip,” (Their second film, Magic Magic , is also set in Chile.) Jamie invites a stranger to join a road trip to Chile. The woman’s free and esoteric nature clashes with Jamie’s acidic, self-absorbed personality as they head into the desert for a Mescaline-fueled psychedelic trip. 6. Cherien Dabis ( May in the Summer ) Sundance alum Dabis nabbed the FIPRESCI prize out of Cannes with 2009’s Amreeka and serves as writer, director, and star of her sophomore feature, which also features Alexander Siddig, Hiam Abbass, Bill Pullman, and Alia Shawkat. A bride-to-be is forced to reevaluate her life when she reunites with her family in Jordan and finds herself confronted with the aftermath of her parents’ divorce. 7. Lynn Shelton ( Touchy Feely ) The busy Lynn Shelton ( Your Sister’s Sister ) is back in Park City with Touchy Feely , starring Rosemarie Dewitt, Ellen Page, and rising star Scoot McNairy, who should be your favorite breakout actor of 2012. A massage therapist is unable to do her job when stricken with a mysterious and sudden aversion to bodily contact. Meanwhile, her uptight brother’s foundering dental practice receives new life when clients seek out his “healing touch.” 8. The Bries: Alison Brie ( Toy’s House ) & Brie Larson ( The Spectacular Now ) Sundance-watchers get a double serving of girl crushes as Hollywood’s two gorgeous, adorable Bries pop up in competition pics. Toy’s House : Three unhappy teenage boys flee to the wilderness where they build a makeshift house and live off the land as masters of their own destiny. Or at least that’s the plan. The Spectacular Now : Sutter is a high school senior who lives for the moment; Aimee is the introvert he attempts to “save.” As their relationship deepens, the lines between right and wrong, friendship and love, and “saving” and corrupting become inextricably blurred. 9. Shane Carruth ( Upstream Color ) You’d be hard pressed to find a filmmaker whose new work will be as anticipated at Sundance as Shane Carruth, who presents his first film since debuting with the sci-fi indie hit Primer . A man and woman are drawn together, entangled in the life cycle of an ageless organism. Identity becomes an illusion as they struggle to assemble the loose fragments of wrecked lives. 10. Pussy Riot ( Pussy Riot – A Punk Prayer ) The Russian punk ladies imprisoned for being awesome are the subject of the documentary Pussy Riot – A Punk Prayer , which world premieres in Park City and competes in the World Cinema Documentary category. Three young women face seven years in a Russian prison for a satirical performance in a Moscow cathedral. But who is really on trial: the three young artists or the society they live in? Read further about Sundance 2013’s line-up and check back for the unveiling of more fest titles . Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Readers of Stephenie Meyer ‘s Twilight books know what happens at the end of Breaking Dawn … or do they? Movieline sat down with director Bill Condon for an all-out, no-holds-barred, spoilery chat about the shocking changes at the end of Breaking Dawn Part II that had fans gasping in theaters around the globe over the weekend — including how the filmmakers decided who lived and who died, and why if you blinked you may have missed the most earth-shattering character fates of them all. Spoilers abound from this point on! Now that you’ve all had a chance to see Breaking Dawn in theaters, it’s time to dive into the bounty of spoilery riches that Bill Condon left us with when he spoke with Movieline about all things Twilight . Such as: — Deciding who lived and who died in Breaking Dawn ‘s horrific, head-rolling, jaw-tearing bloodbath of a (dream) battle sequence. — Walking the fine line between Uncle Jacob being just protective enough of Renesmee and being totally creepy. — Which character’s battlefield speech was left on the cutting room floor — and which scenes will we see on the DVD? — How much real world political commentary can viewers read into Aro’s weapons of mass destruction-seeking, warmongering ways? (Also — if Condon used the “smaller” take of Aro’s gleefully campy cackle, what in the world did it sound like when Sheen cranked it all the way to 11?) — And, most shocking of all: Did you realize that Edward and Bella were meant to die ? PHOTOS: Stars Hit The Premiere Of Breaking Dawn – Part II You had just finished the last of the effects prior to release, working on the Renesmee CG. Hers stand out because it’s a kind of CG effect we haven’t seen before — applying Mackenzie Foy’s face to her character from birth to adulthood. How challenging was it to achieve the desired effect? Bill Condon: You’re building on stuff that was done on The Social Network and Benjamin Button , but it had challenges beyond what they had. She is a special creature — she’s not entirely human — so that helps us, a little bit. It is a bit uncanny, that CG baby face. Condon: Yes, I agree. We briefly see a flash forward to the grown Renesmee, living happily ever after with Jacob once she reaches her full maturity a few years down the road — when Jacob finally gets to date Renesmee. Condon: Finally, yes! On La Push. What was the trick to figuring out how to include that happy romantic ending for Jacob and Renesmee without it being creepy? Condon: Well the thing is, obviously it was controversial the minute it was written. But as a filmmaker you have a great ally in Taylor Lautner, and Taylor was concerned about it. But Taylor is a pure soul. He is able to look at her with love and it doesn’t have another component to it, and I think another actor couldn’t have done that. I think there’s something so essentially sweet about him that it’s a generous love. The humor element throughout the entire film helps relieve the pressure and the far-fetched nature of much of the mythology — what spurred you folks to add in more levity for the finale? Condon: Any time you can add humor it’s great, because it makes something more real. You take Billy Burke; he had to play a scene which is so incredibly hard I called him “The Miracle Worker,” in which a father has to accept that his daughter has become a vampire, but he also has to accept that she can’t tell him anything about it. He can’t ask questions, but he’s a cop. Billy went through a hundred changes through that scene, and you see it all on his face – and he’s funny the whole time he’s doing it. That deadpan, “Are you kidding me?” look really gets you through some of this strange stuff. You filmed Parts 1 and 2 simultaneously, sometimes having Kristen Stewart play weak, dying Bella in the same afternoon as strong vampire Bella. Condon: I really do think that Kristen Stewart is amazing, but I feel like in terms of this series she doesn’t get credit for how much she accomplishes. I think if someone were to sit and watch these two movies that we made together at the same time and realize that Kristen shot that all together, it’s just another level of her gift. She was stepping out of her comfort zone, because there was so much Kristen in teenage Bella — and now this was someone who she was just creating. I think Kristen, who’s tough on herself, was able to step out of all that stuff and just really own everything. Readers of the books have been defending Twilight for years now, understandably; Bella is a passive character early in the franchise, and we only see her grow into her strength in Breaking Dawn . Condon: That’s right — and she always had this latent power. In the beginning it was the thing that made her remote, but I love the last scene in the movie; it’s such a beautiful idea. It’s the reason he was interested in her the moment that he met her, but it’s such a metaphor for love, that you trust a person enough to let them see inside of you. You inherited much of your primary cast from the previous films’ directors, but in Breaking Dawn Part II you got to cast a number of colorful new additions. Like Lee Pace… Condon: Dreamy, right? Yes, and so funny with such limited screen time. Condon: I know! These actors all have a couple of scenes to establish these characters, and we have 25 of them, so we had to get actors who really pop. And they also had to know how to mine as much comedy as you can possibly get out of something. Did you feel a lot of pressure to deliver with the action sequence? Condon: I did! I loved it. It was like making one big musical number, because it’s all about rhythm in an action scene. It’s all about the way it’s like, my god, this is happening so we’ll slow it down for a bit, and you take a moment to really take it in – then things are going well, then they’re going badly. It’s like a roller coaster. I loved working on that, but it was the hardest thing. It was a two-year effort. We had an editor who just concentrated on that. Once we stopped shooting it started all over; we put it in a different order and rearranged things, reshot a little bit of it, to really make it work. I didn’t realize it right away, but the battle scene ends on a much darker note than I thought, so please set the record straight — after killing Aro in that alternate future-flash, do Bella and Edward die? Condon: Yes. There’s a hint of it; it’s about to happen. Edward gets surrounded and they’re coming right at her with the fire. It’s very subtle and there’s the switch. I didn’t want to spend too much time in there; it’s just a little hint in there if you can see it. What do you expect fans will be most shocked by? Condon: The moment when Carlisle’s head comes off, I’d think. I’ve seen it with an audience and I love it. The collective gasp in the theater in that moment is pretty fantastic. Condon: I know — it’s fun, isn’t it? I love that. NEXT: Deciding who would live and die Breaking Dawn Part II ‘s big battle, DVD deleted scenes, and more
Taylor Swift and Selena Gomez are BFFs . And now they have something unfortunate in common. Gomez faced numerous death threats when her relationship with Justin Bieber first went public – and now Swift is undergoing the same disturbing treatment. Taylor was spotted getting cozy with Harry Styles backstage at The X Factor on Thursday. Are they an item? It’s possible. Is hand-holding a valid excuse for threatening the life of a stranger? We don’t believe so, but a few One Direction fans have taken to Twitter and posted such unsettling messages as: “I’ll murder Taylor Swift. She will not date my Harry.” “If u dating my harry, I kill u.” We’re guessing/hoping these are empty threats, but come on people. Access to a keyboard does not give you an excuse to sound like a psychopath.
Man. Who knew Robert Pattinson despised The Twilight Saga with such passion? We kid… mostly. But in a funny new mased-up video, we watch as the actor discusses this franchise in detail, mocking Edward Cullen as an “axe murderer;” referring to author Stephenie Meyer as “mad;” and making fun of his fictional family for the way it uses Google. Pattinson’s sense of humor is what we all love so much about him, but it’s hard not to sense a pattern here. Watch now… Robert Pattinson Hates The Twilight Saga
From Robert Pattinson’s bird mishap to Kristen Stewart’s heavy breathing, here’s what caught our attention at last night’s fete. By Amy Wilkinson, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart, Stephenie Meyer and Robert Pattinson at the “Breaking Dawn – Part 2” premiere Photo: Eric Charbonneau/ Getty Images
