New “Man of Steel” Set Image Released.

Here’s a fresh look at director Zack Snyder’s reboot of the Superman movie franchise. According to Cosmic Book News, it was shot in the desert near Edwards Air Force Base in California. Henry Cavil, Amy Adams and Michael Shannon star.

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Take A Good Look: Here’s Cobie Smulders As An Agent Of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Here’s the “How I Met Your Mother” star getting her action heroine on as S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Maria Hill in Joss Whedon’s upcoming superteam flick. As if you didn’t know already, the movie opens in May.

(via IO9)

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New “Hobbit” Production Video Arrives.

Here’s another inside look at director Peter Jackson’s upcoming prequel to “The Lord of the Rings.” I’m not even going to try to list the cast, which is all-star, and seemingly grows more all-starry by the day.

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Dramatic U.S. Trailer For “Headhunters” Debuts.

Here’s the trailer for an intriguing new film called “Headhunters” from director Morten Tyldum. It’s based on the best-selling thriller by author Jo Nesbø.If the actual film is as impressive and stylish as the trailer, filmgoers could be in quite for quite a ride. The movie opens April 27 in the U.S.

Here’s a synopsis:

“HEADHUNTERS stars the talented Aksel Hennie (Max Manus) as Roger, a charming scoundrel and Norway’s most accomplished headhunter. Roger is living a life of luxury well beyond his means, and stealing art to subsidize his expensive lifestyle. When his beautiful gallery owner wife introduces him to a former mercenary in the possession of an extremely valuable painting, he decides to risk it all to get his hands on it, and in doing so discovers something which makes him a hunted man.”

(via HeyUGuys)

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Would This Poster Make You Want To Pay To See “Battleship?”

I’m going with “No.” Sorry Rhianna.  This does not diminish my affection for your deliciously disposable dance-pop, however.

The folks at HeyUGuys have the rest. They are not an improvement.

At all.

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The Top Five, Can’t Miss Silent Films.

Intrigued by “The Artist” but don’t know where to start learning about silent films?

Worry no more. The Guardian has put together a handy list of its Top 5 Can’t Miss Silent Films. There’s some good entry points here, such as Rudolf Valentino’sThe Son of the Sheikh,” for those of you who are unfamiliar with the art form.

Here’s the nut graf:

“The top 10 most-streamed silents include a clutch of Buster Keaton’s ingenious comedies, some heady Hollywood melodrama (A Fool There Was, starring Theda Bara, and The Son of the Sheikh, with Rudolph Valentino) and creepy Swedish horror The Phantom Carriage. There are only two films on the list that seem to bear any relation to Michel Hazanavicius’s surprise hit: Frank Borzage’s mournful romance Seventh Heaven (which inspired the “tuxedo scene” in The Artist) and FW Murnau’s City Girl, a sweet romance that turns terribly dark, and which Hazanavicius has repeatedly claimed as an influence.”

I’ve always really loved silent film. They require a kind of participation from the audience that you just don’t get from the talkies. My personal favorite is Sergei Eisenstein’sAlexander Nevsky.” It’s the Ur-Action film and Eisenstein was doing amazing stuff with camera angles and narrative techniques.

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New “Hunger Games” Clip Shows Jennifer Lawrence taking archery practice

It’s a busy day for news for the expected teen-book blockbuster. Via ComingSoon, here’s a brief clip of actress Jennifer Lawrence, who portrays protagonist Katniss Everdeen, taking some archery practice. Readers of the books know why this is happening. I don’t want to give too much away.

Vodpod videos no longer available.

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Suzanne Collins Likes The “Hunger Games” Movie.

Taking to her Facebook page, the YA author weighed in on the big-screen adaptation of her wildly successful series of novels:

Here’s what she had to say:

“Dear Readers,

I’ve just had the opportunity to see the finished film of The Hunger Games. I’m really happy with how it turned out. I feel like the book and the film are individual yet complementary pieces that enhance one another. The film opens up the world beyond Katniss’ point of view, allowing the audience access to the happenings of places… like the Hunger Games control room and President Snow’s rose garden, thereby adding a new dimension to the story.

Director Gary Ross has created an adaptation that is faithful in both narrative and theme, but he’s also brought a rich and powerful vision of Panem, its brutality and excesses, to the film as well. His world building’s fantastic, whether it be the Seam or the Capitol. It’s amazing to see things that are suggested in the book fully developed and so brilliantly realized through the artistry of the designers.

And, my God, the actors. The cast, led by the extraordinary Jennifer Lawrence, is absolutely wonderful across the board. It’s such a pleasure to see how they’ve embodied the characters and brought them to life.

So I’d like to sincerely thank all the many people who devoted their time and talents to the film, especially producers Nina Jacobson and Jon Kilik, and the excellent teams at Color Force, Larger Than Life, and Lionsgate.

I hope you enjoy the film!

Suzanne Collins

This is pretty unusual. It’s rare that an author thinks that Hollywood has done justice to their literary creations.

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New MiB3 Poster Debuts.

So there’s a poster. But it still doesn’t explain why someone felt obligated to make a third movie. Whatever. Here it is:

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“John Carter” The First Reviews Are In.

Ohhh … boyyy … Disney may want to move permanently to Mars if this early review from HeyUGuys is any indication. The big-budget adaptation of Edgar Rice Burroughs’ pulp hero has all kinds of problems.

Here’s a sampling:

“What’s really frustrating is that in the handful of moments where we’re trusted to piece things together – Carter’s back story in particular – the movie comes alive. For a few seconds here and there we’re allowed to muse on what we’re seeing, and enjoy ourselves, but it never lasts; all of a sudden we hit a juggernaut of exposition and the narrative drive of the movie comes to a grinding halt.

It doesn’t help that Taylor Kitsch plays John Carter with all the charm and charisma of an over-boiled cabbage. For a few moments near the start of the film (well, after the two false starts, anyway) broody, sulky John Carter is quite enjoyable, as he escapes US military custody, and growls at Bryan Cranston, but it soon wears thin.”

Read the full story here.

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