Derek Cianfrance’s The Place Beyond The Pines remains among my favorite unreleased movies since I saw it at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, it’s testament to the movie’s satisfying complexity that these three video clips don’t really convey the emotional wallop that the film packs. Here’s the other thing: I can’t really set these videos up properly without some major spoilers, so I would urge you not to write off the movie if these three excerpts don’t exactly move you. Suffice it to say, the first two clips feature appear, in chronological order in the first third of the movie, where motorcycle stunt driver Luke ( Ryan Gosling ) learns that he fathered a child by Romina (Eva Mendes) and decides that he doesn’t want to be the deadbeat dad that he had as a kid. Alas, his decision to be a responsible parent involves robbing banks to support his kid, which is not exactly Brady Bunch territory, but Cianfrance uses Luke’s storyline to set up a movie that has some very smart things to say about morality and legacy. Luke and Romina’s story is intertwined with the narrative arc of police officer Avery Cross, played by Bradley Cooper. In the third and final clip, he attempts to inform his superior of corruption in the department and doesn’t exactly meet with a willing audience. The movie only gets more interesting and gripping from there. The Place Beyond The Pines opens on March 29. More on The Place Beyond The Pines: The Principals Behind The Pines : Gosling and Cianfrance On Robbing Banks, Fatherhood, Face Tattoos, And More Ryan Gosling: ‘I’m Not Allowed to Have An Opinion’ About The Media’s Coverage Of My Life Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
This latest and last trailer for Iron Man 3 before the Marvel movie’s May 3 release takes a while to work up a head of steam, but stick with it. Do your best to ignore the cringe-inducing dialect that Ben Kingsley has adopted to play the Mandarin — “you’lllll neverrrr see me coming” — try not to be distracted by Gwyneth Paltrow in a black bra and wait for the final shots of this Yahoo! exclusive. The rumors were true: Tony Stark’s alloyed forces do appear at the very end of the trailer, and they look like a lot of fun. [ Yahoo! ] Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Disconnect , which is the latest effort from Murderball director Henry Alex Rubin, looks like it could be the Babel of the wired world based on this trailer. The synopsis also indicates that we’ll be getting a series of intertwining stories with one thing in common: the perils of our digital society. The cast includes Jason Bateman , Hope Davis, Frank Grillo , Michael Nyqvist, Paula Patton, Andrea Riseborough , Max Thieriot and Alexander Skarsgard . The synopsis: A hard-working lawyer, attached to his cell phone, can’t find the time to communicate with his family. A couple is drawn into a dangerous situation when their secrets are exposed online. A widowed ex-cop struggles to raise a mischievous son who cyber-bullies a classmate. An ambitious journalist sees a career-making story in a teen that performs on an adult-only site. They are strangers, neighbors and colleagues and their stories collide in this riveting dramatic thriller about ordinary people struggling to connect in today’s wired world. Intriguing. The poster is cool, too. Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
I was disappointed to learn that War Witch ‘s remarkable star, first-time actress Rachel Mwanza didn’t get to meet her idol Beyoncé when she traveled to Los Angeles to attend the Academy Awards on Sunday. I hope that the film’s producers and Sasha Fierce’s handlers figure out a way to make it happen. Just think how good it would be for Beyoncé’s brand. One of those handlers should get the pop star and her husband Jay-Z to watch Kim Nguyen’s quietly powerful film about Africa’s orphan soldiers of war. It’s currently available via VOD and will open theatrically on Friday, March 1. Here’s a trailer to encourage the First Couple of Hip Hop. In this scene, Mwanza’s character Komona earns her War Witch title after the rebel army that has just dragooned her into its ranks sends her onto the front lines to scout out the enemy’s position. There, she encounters the ghosts of her dead parents who alert her to the enemy’s presence. RELATED: Beasts Of The African Wild: ‘War Witch’ Star Rachel Mwanza Should Be As Famous As Quvenzhané Wallis Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Get out your micrometers. The Amazing Spider-Man sequel doesn’t hit theaters until May2, 2014, but ComingSoon.net has an exclusive peek at the new costume that Andrew Garfield will wear, and, well, unless you’re a Spider-man geek (like me), it doesn’t look all that much different than the old one. I’ve included an “After” and “Before” comparison, but the key changes are two: The webslinger’s face mask has bigger eyes and the leg-span on his spider chest logo isn’t so wide — a look that resembles comic artist Mark Bagley’s take on the webslinger during his record-breaking run on Marvel’s Ultimate Spider-Man title in the early 2000s. Yeah, I know: not exactly a daring overhaul. THE NEW COSTUME THE PREVIOUS COS What does the new look say about the Spidey brand? This is definitely wishful thinking on my part, but I choose to interpret it to mean that The Amazing Spider-Man 2 will be more of a visual feast and the “Ultimate” Spider-Man movie. Certainly, a storyline that reportedly will include Electro ( Jamie Foxx ), the Green Goblin (the most excellent Dane DeHaan ) and the Rhino ( Paul Giamatti ) is promising, but it could also end up being as overstuffed as a Subway BMT sandwich. And that puts me in mind of Sam Raimi’s excruciatingly corny Spider-Man 3 . At least that movie had a black costume. Speaking of that last villain, I can’t wait until the first shot of Giamatti as the Horned Hot Mess is leaked. Foxx, not so much. I fear he’ll just end up looking like Static Shock, though I guess I’d prefer that to him wearing a giant cut-out lightning-star on his head. As Count Floyd would say, “Verrry scary, kids!” Here’s the official synopsis: In “The Amazing Spider-Man 2,” for Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield), life is busy — between taking out the bad guys as Spider-Man and spending time with the person he loves, Gwen (Emma Stone), high school graduation can’t come quickly enough. Peter hasn’t forgotten about the promise he made to Gwen’s father to protect her by staying away — but that’s a promise he just can’t keep. Things will change for Peter when a new villain, Electro (Jamie Foxx), emerges, an old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, and Peter uncovers new clues about his past. [ ComingSoon.net ] Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
“ Argo to win it all.” This has been the Oscar pundit thesis statement ever since Ben Affleck was left off the Best Director list and promptly blew over the Critics’ Choice and Golden Globe Awards in a whirlwind weekend of Oscar analysis. Every award Argo has gathered since that weekend last month has added to the confirmation bias. Affleck and his film established themselves as the storyline of the 2012 Academy Awards. But what about the several months leading up to the nominations? Remember when Les Miserables jumped ahead with a rapturous New York premiere? Remember when The Master exploded into the race with a series of secret screenings set up by Paul Thomas Anderson himself? Remember when Lincoln was predestined to win Best Picture, because War Horse lost last year? The storyline of 2012 isn’t Argo ; it’s confusion. And in keeping with that storyline, Movieline presents the “What The What?!” Oscars, a list of out-there-but-plausible winners in the hopes for a less predictable and more exciting show. All of my picks below go against the Argo storyline, as if it wasn’t coming at all. Just like in the film, Argo was a red herring all along. If all goes according to confusion, here’s what could happen: BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS “What The What?!” pick: Jacki Weaver , Silver Linings Playbook Based on previous ceremonies, this is potentially the first award of the night, and what better way to start off the night than ruining everyone’s ballots? An Anne Hathaway win has been too obvious, and when something is too obvious, voters tend to look for a way out. The same rule has been slowly killing Lincoln all season, which doesn’t play into Sally Field’s favor. The next choice would be Amy Adams in The Master , but here’s where we’ve got the Weinstein factor: somewhere in the season, Harvey looked at his prospects and picked the easy Silver Linings Playbook over the bold Master . Jacki Weaver’s nomination was baffling to begin with, and that same campaign leads to a win. BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR “What The What?!” pick: Philip Seymour Hoffman , The Master This category has been swirling around the dependably exceptional Hoffman all season. Christoph Waltz is picking up some late backlash with people commenting that what he does in Django is identical to what he won for in Inglourious Basterds . Tommy Lee Jones didn’t win a lot of support with a grouchy turn at the Golden Globes, not enough Academy voters bought Robert De Niro’s Katie Couric cry-fest, and Alan Arkin’s performance is not all that different from his turn in Little Miss Sunshine . Hoffman’s steadiness wins the day. BEST ACTRESS “What The What?!” pick: Naomi Watts , The Impossible Just like Jennifer Lawrence and Jessica Chastain, Watts is on her second Academy Award nomination. Lawrence has a natural cockiness that charms the Internet crowd, but fmakes her a difficult Oscar campaigner. Chastain was similar to Jeremy Renner in The Hurt Locker , delivering a revelatory, powerhouse performance that’s overshadowed by the film itself (I’m curious if Bigelow will ever direct someone to an Oscar). The storyline behind Emmanuelle Riva is that she’ll turn 86 on Oscar Sunday, but old and accomplished does not guarantee anyone an Oscar. (Six years ago, they overlooked freaking Peter O’Toole, so there’s the love shown for the emeritus crowd.). Watts is someone current, who the voters seem to love, and wins based on a familiar role in a tear-jerker film. BEST ACTOR “What The What?!” pick: Joaquin Phoenix , The Master A hypothetic discussion between prognosticators: “But Daniel Day-Lewis had it in the bag!” “If Jamie Foxx can win for Ray and Philip Seymour Hoffman for Capote , then DDL only makes sense!” “The Oscars love imitations.” “But it was just an imitation.” “No one really knows what Lincoln moved or sounded like.” “They didn’t want a history lesson.” “Phoenix also moved and spoke in a distinct style. Painfully.” “It looked like it hurt, moving all hunched over. He looked like he starved himself.” “The Oscars love pretty people breaking themselves down.” “This must be like Charlize Theron winning for Monster .” “But Phoenix trashed the Oscars.” “No more so than anyone else has in the past. And he hopped back on the trail at Harvey’s encouragement.” “Phoenix must’ve been destined for this. If Harvey has his back.” “I knew it was Phoenix all along!” “I said it first!” BEST DIRECTOR “What The What?!” pick: Michael Haneke , Amour Amour ’s glut of nominations showed there was serious affection for Haneke’s Palme d’Or winner, and it was clearly through the labor of Haneke himself. The Academy has a track record of not awarding prestige directors like Haneke or Malick or Hitchcock or Kubrick, but this is the year for weirdness. The most surprising choice would be Tarantino, but his Django stumping has sparked uncomfortable conversations, which leads to thought-provoking essays but not Oscars. (Plus, in this “What The What?” ceremony, he wins another Original Screenplay award). Spielberg, despite all the industry love, will be the poster child for Lincoln ’s struggles as the obvious choice. A Haneke win is the result of voters not knowing who to fall behind, so why not go with the smart Austrian? BEST PICTURE “What The What?!” pick: Zero Dark Thirty When the prognosticators decided Argo was in, everything else was out. ZDT riled up too much controversy and was done, because they had Argo, which was Diet ZDT . Well guess what: Out of left field comes ZDT for the win. It’s an amalgam of other nominees: it’s got the historical gravitas of Lincoln without the drag; it’s got the the true life thriller ending of Argo without the embellishment; it’s got the fire of Django Unchained without the mess; it stars a face of Young Hollywood who isn’t the too-cocky but too-familiar Jennifer Lawrence. It’s a massive critic success and has been victorious at the box office. A Zero Dark Thirty win would confuse everyone down to Kathryn Bigelow herself, but this has been a season of confusion, not surprises. Plenty of other things could happen to destroy Oscar ballots. Searching for Sugarman could lose Best Documentary; ParaNorman could win Best Animated Feature; Amour could lose Best Foreign Film if Haneke wins Best Director, like the latter is a consolation prize. Even if Argo wins the final prize on Sunday, it will still prove to be a bizarre year. Affleck was not nominated for Best Director, but somehow, an also-ran director became the discussion. The 2012 Oscar race has been strange, and here’s hoping Sunday is strange, too. John Hendel is a playwright from Los Angeles. Follow John Hendel on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
Ric Roman Waugh says his career as a Hollywood stuntman played a “huge” role in his transition to writer-director. “It gave me a sense of the narrative process,” says the Snitch filmmaker. “I could come into a piece of material and then put my stamp on it narratively, but also construct it in a way that I know, production-wise, [will] make it completely organic and real. Waugh sat down with me for a one-on-one interview where he talked about Snitch, which stars Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson , and about what it takes to become a director in Hollywood. For those who doubt Johnson has the chops to handle a dramatic role, Waugh says the former WWE wrestler turned out to be ideal for the role of a father who becomes an undercover informant in a drug cartel in order to spare his son a 10-year prison sentence. “When we started casting the movie, and all the usual suspects’ names came up…you know, I was like ‘boring! I’ve seen that before.’ I’ll tell you what, why don’t we just show how dangerous this world is? Why don’t we take the most formidable guy on the planet — Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson — and…show you when it’s real world rules, it won’t matter how big you are,” Waugh explained, adding: “When a bullet hits you in the head you die just as fast as the guy that’s 5’6.” Check out the interview in its entirety below: Follow Grace Randolph on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
With the Academy Awards just three days away, the Internets are being overworked by bloggers and moviegoers obsessed with staying up on the latest in Oscar news. I also wouldn’t put it past awards season’s prime navigator Harvey Weinstein to have a boiler room full of trained chimpanzees plugging in Jennifer Lawrence’s name and ” Silver Linings Playbook ” into all the top search engines, such as Yahoo!, for instance. The web portal has collected some interesting data about Oscar-related searches, which I’ve culled below: * Jennifer Lawrence is the most searched Oscar-nominated actor this year. Searches for Jennifer Lawrence in the past year on Yahoo! are seven times higher than for Bradley Cooper . *Searches for Seth McFarlane are up 1644% in the past 7 days on Yahoo!. He is the top searched “seth” followed by Seth Green, Seth Meyers Seth Curry, and Seth Rogen . No pressure, Rogen! *The Top Searched Oscar-Nominated Movies on Yahoo! (Past 30 days): Silver Linings Playbook (57% of searches come from females) Argo (55% of searches come from females) Lincoln (59% of searches come from females) Les Miserables Zero Dark Thirty Life of Pi Django Unchained Beasts of the Southern Wild Amour *The Top Searched Oscar-Nominated Actors on Yahoo! (Past 30 days): Bradley Cooper Christoph Waltz Hugh Jackman Denzel Washington Robert De Niro Daniel Day Lewis Joaquin Phoenix Tommy Lee Jones Alan Arkin Philip Seymour Hoffman Top Searched Oscar-Nominated Actresses on Yahoo! (Past 30 days): Jennifer Lawrence (77% of searches come from males) Anne Hathaway Jessica Chastain Helen Hunt Amy Adams Sally Field Naomi Watts Quvenzhane Wallis Jacki Weaver Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
The premise for the The Frankenstein Theory is an interesting one: what if Mary Shelley’s novel was based on actual events and the monster has been living out in the Arctic wilderness for close to 200 years? The movie, which is slated to hit theaters and VOD in March, is a Blair Witch Project -style found-footage tale that follows a documentary crew and a controversial college professor John Venkenheim — a subtle homage to Ghostbusters ‘ Peter Venkman? — as they tempt fate by going out in search of the reanimated monster. According to the credits, the creature is played by Roger Morrissey, but there’s no money shot of him here, and the more I watch this clip, the more it reminds me of one of those Messin’ with Sasquatch beef jerky commercials (if there wasn’t enough budget to spring for a Bigfoot costume). For one thing, The Frankenstein Theory monster’s roar is pretty similar, and the way that victim bites the dust near the end of the trailer has a kind of vaguely comic feel to it. And is it me, or does that last scene with the frightened woman suggest that the monster knows how to use a video camera? For comparison: Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Now that Ewan McGregor has voiced his enthusiasm for playing Obi-Wan Kenobi again, Disney should make it so. The actor, who’s out promoting Jack The Giant Slayer told MTV News that he thought reprising his role as the Jedi Master was “a good idea” and had clearly done some thinking about where an Obi-Wan standalone movie could fit into the about-to-be-rebooted Star Wars franchise — the gap between Episode III and IV “before Alec Guinness, there’s that period where he’s in the desert….That might be my window there, to tell that story.” McGregor said that he didn’t know what Obi-Wan actually did in the desert, but added: “We could make up some stuff.” Actually, there are plenty of sanctioned Star Wars stories that cover Kenobi’s time in exile in the Tatooine desert — some of which have him communing with the spirit of his mentor, Qui-Gonn Jinn (who was played by Liam Neeson in Episode I ) — so the writers wouldn’t have to star from scratch. But even if there wasn’t all that material out there, bringing McGregor back is an excellent idea. Although I’d love to see Harrison Ford finally get his Han Solo death scene, Disney clearly wants these new Star Wars movies to appeal to young demographics, and there’s nothing musty or dusty about McGregor. He’s one of the finest actors of his generation, and, with the exception of the emotional climactic scenes of Episode III , his talents were largely wasted in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. An Obi-Wan standalone movie could not only right that wrong but add a cinematic backstory to the character that would give Guinness’ performance in Episode IV even more dramatic heft. What do you think, Star Wars fans? Let me know in the comments, and while you’re mulling it over, here’s the clip of McGregor voicing his enthusiasm for picking up the lightsaber again. [ MTV News , USA Today ] Follow Frank DiGiacomo on Twitter. Follow Movieline on Twitter.
