Tag Archives: works-pictures

REVIEW: Meaty ‘Texas Chainsaw 3D’ Gives The Horror Franchise A Leatherfacelift

The makers of Texas Chainsaw — or Texas Chainsaw 3D , as it’s being widely advertised — would like to you forget all about nearly 40 years’ worth of sequels, prequels, remakes and reboots, and pretend that only a couple of decades or so have passed since the events depicted way back in The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974). Helmer John Luessenhop ( Takers ) and a small army of scripters go back to the bloody roots of the long-running franchise to concoct a better-than-average horror-thriller that relies more on potent suspense than graphic savagery or stereoscopic tricks. Don’t be surprised if it scores a B.O. killing. Pic begins quite literally where Tobe Hooper’s ’74 original left off, with a shrieking, blood-splattered beauty fleeing the homestead of a psycho-killer clan, pursued by a masked and humongous brute wielding a chainsaw. The new plot kicks off when angry locals arrive on the scene, torch the home of the fiendish family, and prematurely celebrate as they rashly assume they’ve destroyed Leatherface, the chap with the chainsaw, and all his creepy kinfolk. Flash-forward about 20 years: Lovely young Heather Miller (Alexandra Daddario) is thrown for a loop when she’s informed that the white-trash couple she’s always known as mom and dad really are her adoptive parents. Truth to tell, however, this revelation doesn’t appear to strike her as bad news. Besides, she’s perked up by what she thinks is good news: A recently deceased grandmother she never knew she had has bequeathed her a palatial home near a small town in Texas. Accompanied by her boyfriend (R&B artist Tremaine “Trey Songz” Neverson ), another fun couple (Tania Raymonde, Keram Malicki-Sanchez) and a too-friendly hitchhiker (Shaun Sipos) they pick up along the way, Heather drives deep into the heart of Texas to check out her inheritance. Unfortunately, the house isn’t entirely empty. Even more unfortunately, the sole, secretive inhabitant is a masked maniac with a penchant for heavy-duty garden tools. Luessenhop occasionally springs a wink-wink allusion to Hooper’s original pic — most notably during a scene involving a well-stocked freezer — and sprinkles a few darkly comical touches into the mix. (Heather, it should be noted, is introduced carving steaks in the meat department at a supermarket.) For the most part, however, Texas Chainsaw is deadly serious as it goes about the business of sustaining tension and generating shocks. And while Luessenhop and his writers respectfully adhere to many genre conventions (rest assured that, during the first two-thirds of the story, just about everyone you’d expect to get killed does), they’re surprisingly clever when it comes to subversively shifting audience sympathies during the final 30 minutes of their briskly paced 92-minute pic. Daddario — who’s given ample opportunity to flaunt the flattest stomach of any scream queen in recent memory — makes an impressively resourceful heroine. Standout supporting players include Thom Barry as a sheriff who disapproves of vigilantism; Paul Rae as a mayor who only thinks he knows where all the bodies are buried, and Dan Yeager as the still-crazy-after-all-these-years Leatherface. Sharp-eyed movie buffs may notice Gunnar Hansen, the original Leatherface, and Marilyn Burns, the heroine of Hooper’s ’74 pic, in cameo roles. To his credit, Luessenhop doesn’t linger on the gore in intensely violent moments. (What he does show is more than adequately effective.) Nor does he exploit the 3D gimmickry to startle auds with gushers of blood or severed body parts. On the other hand, the helmer can’t resist the urge to make it appear, every so often, that a chainsaw blade is jutting off the screen, understandably enough for a pic with this particular pedigree. Read More on Texas Chainsaw 3D : Trey Songz On His ‘Texas Chainsaw 3D’ Debut (And R. Kelly’s ‘Trapped In The Closet’) Follow Movieline on Twitter.

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REVIEW: Meaty ‘Texas Chainsaw 3D’ Gives The Horror Franchise A Leatherfacelift

Oscars To Fete James Bond – Finally

In five decades, James Bond has racked up many feats from babes to bombs, but one figure 007 hasn’t charmed is Oscar, though that will begin to change this year. 007 will receive a full tribute at the 85th Academy Awards . [Related: Steven Spielberg Hoped To Direct James Bond – But Got A ‘No’ ] Oscar organizers will fete the franchise in celebration of its 50th anniversary during the telecast on Sunday February 24th. The original secret British operative was played by Sean Connery, starting with Dr. No in 1962. Connery stayed on for five Bond films when the mantle was handed off for one film to George Lazenby for 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Service before returning to Connery for 1971’s Diamonds Are Forever , Since then Roger Moore took on the role for seven installments, followed by Timothy Dalton and Pierce Brosnan. Daniel Craig is 007’s latest manifestation with three features under his belt, including the franchise’s latest and most successful film yet, Skyfall , which became the 14th film to hit the $1 billion mark in its worldwide theatrical run. Despite not being a big seducer of Oscar, Bond has scored some wins over the decades, including seven nominations and two wins. Goldfinger (1964) won a Best Effects, Sound Effects Academy Award and 1965’s Thunderball took another for Best Effects, Special Visual Effects. Noted Oscar telecast producers Craig Zadan and Neil Meron: “We are very happy to include a special sequence on our show saluting the Bond films on their 50th birthday. Starting with Dr. No back in 1962, the 007 movies have become the longest-running motion picture franchise in history and a beloved global phenomenon.”

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Oscars To Fete James Bond – Finally

Writers Guild Awards Unveils 2013 Nominees

Oscar heavy-weights Zero Dark Thirty , Argo , Lincoln and Silver Linings Playbook are among the titles nominated for screenplay recognition by the Writers Guild. Documentary shortlisted films The Invisible Man , Mea Maxima Culpa and Searching For Sugar Man are also among the nominations in the non-fiction category for the 2013 Writers Guild Awards, which will be held Sunday February 17th in simultaneously in Los Angeles and New York. [ Related: Academy Names 15 As Best Documentary Oscar Contenders; ‘Central Park Five’ Snubbed ] The nominations follow: Original Screenplay Flight , Written by John Gatins; Paramount Pictures   Looper , Written by Rian Johnson; TriStar Pictures   The Master , Written by Paul Thomas Anderson; The Weinstein Company   Moonrise Kingdom , Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola; Focus Features   Zero Dark Thirty , Written by Mark Boal; Columbia Pictures     Adapted Screenplay   Argo , Screenplay by Chris Terrio; Based on a selection from The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez and the Wired Magazine article “The Great Escape” by Joshuah Bearman; Warner Bros. Pictures   Life of Pi , Screenplay by David Magee; Based on the novel by Yann Martel; 20th Century Fox   Lincoln , Screenplay by Tony Kushner; Based in part on the book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin; DreamWorks Pictures   The Perks of Being a Wallflower , Screenplay by Stephen Chbosky; Based on his book; Summit Entertainment   Silver Linings Playbook , Screenplay by David O. Russell; Based on the novel by Matthew Quick; The Weinstein Company   Documentary Screenplay   The Central Park Five , Written by Sarah Burns and David McMahon and Ken Burns; Sundance Selects   The Invisible War , Written by Kirby Dick; Cinedigm Entertainment Group   Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God , Written by Alex Gibney; HBO Documentary Films   Searching for Sugar Man , Written by Malik Bendejelloul; Sony Pictures Classics   We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists , Written by Brian Knappenberger; Cinetic Media   West of Memphis , Written by Amy Berg & Billy McMillin; Sony Pictures Classics

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Writers Guild Awards Unveils 2013 Nominees

‘Paranormal Activity 2’ Trailer Pulled From Some Theaters For Being Too Scary

Cinemark reportedly received complaints in Texas about the trailer, shown before ‘Eclipse’ midnight screenings. By Kara Warner “Paranormal Activity” Photo: DreamWorks Pictures Paramount’s recently released trailer for “Paranormal Activity 2” has some fans running scared. According to Variety, the Cinemark theater chain has pulled the trailer — which began running before “Eclipse” midnight screenings Wednesday (June 30) — from some theaters in Texas after receiving complaints that the footage is too scary. Should Cinemark receive more complaints, the company has informed Paramount that it might pull the trailer from additional theaters, Variety reports. Representatives for Cinemark and Paramount had not responded to MTV News’ requests for comment at press time. MTV commenter Theboogieman631 wasn’t fazed by the trailer. “Love the dog & baby!” he wrote. Other fans, who took to Twitter after viewing the trailer in theaters, were slightly more unnerved — including Ryan Seacrest, who advised people to “hold someone” in his post-trailer-viewing tweet . KellyMichele29 wrote, “Holy sh–! I saw the trailer for ‘Paranormal Activity 2’ and freaked out! Scary as hell!! Watch yo back tonight!” Mysterygirl159 was equally scared, “Omg!! the ‘paranormal activity 2’ preview scared me!! my mom looked at me and tears were runnin down my face…i think i cut my bros arm..oops.” The original “Paranormal Activity” movie, directed by Oren Peli, was a viral-marketing miracle, filmed on a shoestring budget of $15,000 and earning close to $200 million worldwide. “Paranormal Activity” caused such a stir that talk of a sequel started immediately . Did you see the trailer? What did you think? Let us know in the comments! For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com .

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‘Paranormal Activity 2’ Trailer Pulled From Some Theaters For Being Too Scary