The Hobbit caught some negative reaction when 10 minutes of unfinished footage played at the CinemaCon convention earlier this year in Las Vegas. But Sir Ian McKellen, who stars in The Lord of the Rings prequel, has defended the anticipated film directed by Peter Jackson, after early criticism from fans flared over how it looks in 3-D.
Some viewers complained that the footage appeared “un-cinematic” and that it had “made-for-TV” quality. But McKellan, who plays the wizard Gandalf in the forthcoming film, said he believes audiences will be impressed by the feature’s aesthetics.
“I’ve seen enough of it to know it’s going to be just as exciting as Lord of the Rings,” he said via BBC. “In fact in some senses it’s more exciting because it’s in three dimensions.”
McKellan said the sensation audiences will experience will bring them closer to Middle Earth, drawing fans into the story as never before.
“It’s not the sort of crude 3-D that comes out of the screen. Rather it brings you into Middle Earth. You see round the corners. You see everything,” said McKellen.
For his part, Jackson said he didn’t it surprising by the reaction the footage received. He shot The Hobbit at a rate of 48 frames per second which compares to the industry standard of 24 frames.
“It’s not absolutely complete yet but Peter Jackson’s very pleased with it,” added McKellan.
Along with McKellan, Benedict Cumberbatch, Martin Freeman and Evangeline Lilly star, while Orlando Bloom returns as Legolas and Elijah Wood takes on Frodo again.
The three films are a prequel to The Lord of the Rings series. The first installment, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey will open Stateside December 14th. Part two, The Desolation of Smaug will open…
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Charlize Theron is wearing a dress that looks like a peen sheath made from the night sky. In other words, I’m into it – ICYDK
Lainey’s take on the Zhang Ziyi prostitution whore scandal has turned my #getmoneybitch reaction into a #sneakoutofthereandtakeyourwholefamilywithoubitch reaction – Lainey Gossip
Sofia Vergara knows that a true Latina style icon always matches her lipstick to her purse – Hollywood Tuna
One Million Moms needs to eat one million dicks – Towleroad
UPDATE: Afrojack and Wonky McValtrex are still bumping herp sores – Celebitchy
The City of Los Angeles should just pass a law making it illegal for amphibians to be naked in public, because when Courtney Stodden finally turns 18 in iguana years she’s just going to be all naked all the time – (site NSFW) Drunken Stepfather
Since Spring Breakers basically looks like an episode of Cops, I really hope there’s a cameo by Stephanie Yellowhair – IDLYITW
I’m mad that Bruce Jenner didn’t wear his bikini too – The Superficial
Emma Watson looks like a miniature Posh and Posh already looks like a miniature Posh – The Berry
Leave Mila Kunis’ tiny extra chunk aloooooone – Popoholic
Translation: Laura Weisberger needs a check – OMG Blog
It’s Thor’s baby! – Popsugar
Something you
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Happens to the best of us: “‘At the beginning people [say], “You’re going to be going to the Oscars,” and you’re like, “Whatever, doesn’t matter, don’t think so.” But after a while it does penetrate. After a while you’re like, “Anyway, so I’m going to the Oscars…”‘ He laughs. ‘And you start to believe it. And I did. I thought I was going. And then I found out I wasn’t and I was upset. I was very upset by it. The first reaction was “What the fuck…?”‘ He sounds frustrated that he had let himself get sucked in. ‘It’s a vanity thing. It does become important to you. And it shouldn’t.’ On reflection, he decided that he had learned something about misplaced priorities. ‘A good little lesson.’” [GQ]
“I’ve done nothing wrong,” director Michel Hazanavicius told CNN when asked his reaction to Kim Novak’s recent comments lambasting The Artist for using the Vertigo love theme. “I used music from another movie, but it’s not illegal. We paid for that, we asked for that and we had the permission to do it. For me there is no real controversy…I feel sorry for her, but there’s a lot of movies with music from other movies, directors do that all the time and I’m not sure it’s a big deal.” [CNN]
Full Story »My first reaction to the new poster for Steve McQueen’s acclaimed drama Shame was natural, perhaps obvious: “But where’s Michael Fassbender?” The guy only ran away with the Venice Film Festival award for Best Actor and is on a track for serious contention in this year’s Oscar Index and is one of the brightest rising stars in all of cinema and makes women and men alike swoon with his bracing good looks. (To say nothing of similarly absentee co-star Carey Mulligan.) But that reaction seems forever ago, lodged in the hours since I haven’t been able to stop looking at it.
The reality is that this speaks to both the serious moviegoer who’s familiar with Shame’s notoriety and doesn’t need faces to sell it to him or her and the casual moviegoer who may or may not have heard a peep about this but knows the implications of a messy bed stamped with the word “SHAME.” Sexy! Vivid! Dramatic! It’s not just for 10-year-olds who failed to pull up the sheets before dashing to school anymore.
Anyway, we all remember what happened the last time Fassbender went front and center on for the marketers, so technically the critics got what they wanted. It’s a perfect poster! Well played, Fox Searchlight.
[via THR]
When the first image of Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle was released online last Friday, the Internet reaction went from meh to meh. This is par for the course when dealing with superhero-costume-first-looks, but lest you think the online handwringing about leather pants and Bluetooth-enabled sunglasses didn’t reach Hathaway herself, the Dark Knight Rises star is here to set you straight.
“I am happy to say […] if you didn’t like the photo, you only see about one-tenth of what that suit can do,” Hathaway told MTV News schmoozer Josh Horowitz when asked about fan reaction. Great! Though, did anyone actually think a still photograph foretold all the secrets of the Kyle/Catwoman suit? Not sure that was the complaint, but good on Hathaway for at least commenting.
Watch the full exchange below.
Get More: Movie Trailers, Movies Blog
[via MTV]
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Screenwriting duo Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely began their partnership in college, moved to Los Angeles together (“We watched Baywatch and thought, ‘Somebody wrote Baywatch — we could do that!’” quips McFeely), wrote a film for Bill Pullman, scripted The Life and Death of Peter Sellers, and caught the eye of Andrew Adamson, who then hired them to write all three Chronicles of Narnia films. Now they’ve penned Captain America: The First Avenger, the latest in Marvel Studios’ multi-film Avengers franchise and a rollicking WWII-set adventure that they hope to follow up with a sequel. It’s safe to say Markus and McFeely might have some wise words to share on the subject of their craft.
At the moment, the pair is waiting for the go ahead on a Captain America sequel (“We’re conceiving Cap 2, should we be so lucky,” Markus said last weekend. “It’s not so much pitch as sit down with Kevin [Feige] and various other powers that be and figure out what the best movie is”) and have completed a spec pilot script for a television adaptation of You Kill Me, their 2007 black comedy starring Ben Kingsley (“We figure in a world where Dexter and Breaking Bad exist, the alcoholic hit man who goes back to AA so he can go back to killing people maybe has a life,” said McFeely). The television format in particular excites them in a way that didn’t seem possible until recently.
“People will tell you, ‘It’s not really fucked up enough!’” explains Markus. “You’re like, that’s the greatest note I’ve ever gotten in my life. This needs more incest!”
Writing Captain America was obviously a thrill in itself for Markus and McFeely, who both cite Full Story »
It found critical acclaim and distributor interest this year at Sundance, then shoved off for an award-winning run at the Cannes Film Festival. And now, as writer-director Jeff Nichols’s psychological drama Take Shelter prepares for its incursion into American theaters, Movieline is happy to unveil the film’s first poster for your perusal.
First reaction: That is a lot of birds. Second reaction: Why the long faces, Micheal Shannon and Jessica Chastain? Oh, you know, just another tormented night of doomsday premonitions. Here’s the official synopsis and of course the new one-sheet from Sony Pictures Classics, which will open Take Shelter Sept. 30 in limited release. Look for more about the film on Movieline as the date nears…
[Click poster for bigger image]
Curtis LaForche lives in a small Ohio town with his wife Samantha and six-year-old daughter Hannah, who is deaf. Curtis makes a modest living as a crew chief for a sand-mining company. Samantha is a stay-at-home mother and part-time seamstress who supplements their income by selling handmade wares at the flea market each weekend. Money is tight, and navigating Hannah’s healthcare and special needs education is a constant struggle. Despite that, Curtis and Samantha are very much in love and their family is a happy one.
Then Curtis begins having terrifying dreams about an encroaching, apocalyptic storm. He chooses to keep the disturbance to himself, channeling his anxiety into the obsessive building of a storm shelter in their backyard. His seemingly inexplicable behavior concerns and confounds Samantha, and provokes intolerance among co-workers, friends and neighbors. But the resulting strain on his marriage and tension within the community doesn’t compare to Curtis’ private fear of what his dreams may truly signify.
Faced with the proposition that
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