Movie News: NEW PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN TRAILER!

It's one of the most successful film franchises ever and there are no signs of it slowing down, as the first trailer for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides has been released.  Captain Jack Sparrow returns with several new faces for this fourth adventure and it looks as good as ever. 

Check it out below and see whether you think it will be a guaranteed box office hit or fail to live up to the previous films.

UK Top Ten: 10-12 DECEMBER 2010

 

 

 

A huge opening weekend has allowed the latest Chronicles of Narnia film to knock Harry Potter off the top of the UK charts, taking almost £2.5m!  An impressive performance, especially considering how lacklustre the performance of the previous film in the series was. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows continues to rake in the money though, still taking almost £2m in its fourth week of release. 

 

The new Johnny Depp and Angelina Jolie movie, The Tourist, didn't do too badly either.  Quite a surprise, considering the trailer looked a bit dry and uninspiring. That being said, Depp and Jolie are box office gold and will nearly always guarantee a good performance, no matter how average a film may be.

 

 

FILM	WEEKEND GROSS	TOTAL GROSS SINCE RELEASE
Chronicles of Narnia: Voyage of the Dawn Treader	£2,460,118	£2,460,118
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows	£1,905,368	£42,570,440
The Tourist	£1,341,143	£1,341,143
Megamind	£1,205,320	£4,545,404
Unstoppable	£406,882	£3,989,854
Due Date	£192,311	£10,303,604
Monsters	£154,743	£695,249
Somewhere	£125,581	£125,581
No Problem	£114,652	£114,652
The American	£109,084	£1,184,528

Premiere: BURLESQUE - LONDON PREMIERE FOOTAGE

Last Monday saw the UK premiere in London of Burlesque, starring Cher and Christina Aguilera.  If you didn't get a chance to head down to Leicester Square and brave the cold for a glimpse of the two stars, then  have no fear, as I've managed to get hold of some footage for you. This should whet your appetite until the film's release this Friday.

Trailer of the Week: THOR

When I first heard that the new Marvel film Thor was being directed by Kenneth Branagh, I was a little sceptical.  Not because I didn't think he could do it, but because I was surprised he'd chosen to do it.  There's no doubt he's a superb actor and director (I really enjoyed Dead Again), but this is his first 'mainstream' movie and a comic book adaption is a notoriously difficult genre to get right. Just ask Joel Schumacher (Batman & Robin) or Pitof (Catwoman).  That being said, Branagh has attracted the likes of Sir Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman to the project, which adds a big chunk of credibility to the whole film.

Anyway, the first teaser trailer has landed online, so you get to have a look and decide for yourselves.  Personally, I think it could good either way at this stage, but it's difficult to tell with so little to go on. I want it to be brilliant, so hopefully over the coming months as more footage is released we'll get to see a film that'll be more Iron Man than Daredevil. 

Take a look at the new trailer and let me know what you think.

Thor - The best home videos are here

Movie News: THE HOBBIT: ORLANDO BLOOM RETURNS

News is just out that Orlando Bloom will be heading back to Middle Earth, as he reprises his role as Legolas in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit. Although he won't be playing a major role in the film, it will be 'more than a cameo'. This could be a good move for Bloom, who's been off the movie radar for a while now, so he needs a big hit to bring him back into the mix. 

No word on whether Ian McKellan (Gandalf) and Andy Serkis (Gollum) will be reprising their roles, but I think it's safe to say they will be.  After lengthy negotiations and a big bag of cash, how could they say no?

Movie News: TRANSFORMERS 3 TRAILER HAS ARRIVED!

The first official trailer for the all new Transformers movie has just hit the web and you can be one of the first people to see it by clicking on the link below.

I keep wanting to call it 'Dark SIDE of the Moon', but the correct title is Transformers: Dark of the Moon.  Either way, check it out and let me know what you think.

TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON TRAILER

Competition: WIN AN INCEPTION GOODY BAG!

After racking up millions of pounds at the UK box office over the summer, the most mind blowing film of the year, INCEPTION, is now available to buy on Blu-ray^TM and DVD from 6 December. If you've read my review of the film click here then you'll know how much I loved it, so was at at the front of the queue last Monday to get my hands on a copy.

Anyway, to celebrate the release of INCEPTION, you could win one of five incredible goody bags courtesy of Warner Bros.  Each of these bags is packed full of fantastic merchandise including;

* cap

* t-shirt

* spinning top key ring

* ‘morph pad’ (a snazzy bendy note pad)

* anti-Gravity pen

* watch

* an Inception branded suitcase.

To be in with a chance of winning, just correctly work out which actor is being described below;

In Inception, this actor plays Fischer and re-teams with filmmaker Christopher Nolan who cast him for the role of The Scarecrow in The Dark Knight. Name the actor.

If you think you know, then send your answer to;

michaelsmovieblog@hotmail.co.uk

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED.
WINNERS ANNOUNCED ON FRIDAY 17TH DECEMBER.

You can also check out the film's Facebook page, by clicking on the link below;

 www.facebook.com/inceptionmovieuk 

© 2010 Warner Bros. Entertainment. All rights reserved.

Movie News: JAMES BOND WILL RETURN!

James Bond will indeed be returning, but we're going to have to wait for two years before it hits the cinemas.  Early word is that Daniel Craig will return and Oscar winner Sam Mendes (American Beauty) will take up directing duties. Judi Dench has also confirmed she will be returning as 'M', but there's been no mention of potential Bond girls just yet.

Bond 23 will begin filming towards the end of next year and has a December 2012 release date. No word on a title yet, or who'll be singing the theme tune, but I'll make sure I report all the rumours to you on this blog as soon as I hear them.

Trailer of the Week: SOURCE CODE

I've been a fan of Jake Gyllenhaal even since I first saw Donnie Darko back in 2001, but don't think for a second that's stopped me spending the last few months trying to remove any memory of last summer's Prince of Persia. That film was a real stinker. Anyway, it seems that his next movie, Source Code, is a return to form and you can check out the latest trailer by clicking on the link below.

It's like Groundhog Day, Unbreakable and Time Cop all rolled into one, but don't let that put you off.  The premise seems strong and I reckon it could turn out to be a great film.  We'll find out when it's released next spring.

Let me know what you think.

SOURCE CODE TRAILER

Movie News: JODIE FOSTER'S BEAVER!

Yes you're right, the post title is a little mis-leading, but it is accurate.  Jodie Foster acts in and directs The Beaver starring shamed actor Mel Gibson...and this isn't a joke.  It's not even a hilarious comedy that relies on one joke throughout, no, this is the story of a man taking back control of his life with the help of a beaver puppet.  Yes, you did read that correctly.  If you don't believe me, click on the link below and you catch watch the trailer with your own eyes.

Let's be honest, it's been a terrible year for Gibson, but I'm not sure this is going to make everything alright.  I was expecting a teary one on one with Oprah or several years in The Priory, not a starring role in a film called The Beaver. What do you think?

THE BEAVER TRAILER

Movie News: SPIDERMAN GETS A NEW VILLAIN

So, news is coming in thick and fast ever since Andrew Garfield was announced as the new Spiderman. Soon after, we heard that Rhys Ifans was going to play a villain in the movie (possibly The Lizard) and Emma Stone (Zombieland) had been cast as Gwen Stacey.

News has now just arrived that Irrfan Khan (Slumdog Millionaire) will also be playing a villain, possibly Van Adder (pic below). Annie Parisse (Law & Order) will be playing Van Adder's wife.

Not sure what I think about this latest news.  I guess I'm going to have to call my geeky comic book friends and find out a bit more about this villain, as I don't have a clue.  Actually having said that, I might just 'google' it myself!

Movie News: IS THIS THE SUPER 8 ALIEN?

Super 8 is the new film from JJ Abrams and has been one of the best kept secrets since it was first announced.  It was only the teaser trailer, released earlier in the year, that gave us any clues as to what we could expect.  You can check it out for yourselves by clicking here, but basically it involved a train crash and some sort of creature trying to break out of a secure carriage. 

Anyway, it seems there's been a leak, as someone (an IMDB member - so it must be true!) has managed to get their hands on some concept art from the film and it gives us an early look at what that creature might look like.

Nothing has been confirmed or denied by anyone involved with the movie, so I'd recommend  taking this news with a 'pinch of salt'.

Source: IMDB

What do you think of design?  Let me know by commenting below.

UK Top Ten: 26-28th NOVEMBER 2010

The power of Potter continues at the UK box office this week, as The Deathly Hallows takes in another £8m, keeping it at the top of the charts.

Denzel Washington's new film Unstoppable easily took second place with over £1.7m in receipts. However, Colin Farrell's latest, London Boulevard could only manage third position with a little over £500K.

No surprise to see Skyline plummet down the chart after terrible reviews and a disappointing first week for Robert Rodriguez's Machete. It could only manage tenth place taking £90K, although to be fair, it's not exactly a 'mainstream' film.

FILM	WEEKEND GROSS	TOTAL GROSS SINCE RELEASE
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1	£8,344,776	£33,257,880
Unstoppable	£1,714,871	£1,714,871
London Boulevard	£577,224	£577,224
Due Date	£560,179	£9,208,287
The American	£411,707	£411, 707
Despicable Me	£241,944	£19,394,633
The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest	£219,259	£219,259
3D Jackass	£119,369	£5,437,656
Skyline	£92,931	£2,645,267
Machete	£90,423	£90,423