In 2008, the biggest movies of the year were superhero movies: The Dark Knight and Iron Man. In 2009, another superhero movie looks to be equally huge, and that's Watchmen,Zack Snyder's adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' graphic novel.
First published as a serial comic book in 1986, Watchmen was immediately heralded for turning the notion of a "superhero story" on its head. Set against the backdrop of the Cold War, Watchmen depicts a group of vigilantes who band together to fight crime; they have costumes, but no unusual powers ... save Doctor Manhattan, a scientist who acquires supernatural abilities after being caught in an experiment gone wrong.
There's been a lot of talk (maybe too much talk -- OK, sorry, antiquated U2 reference) about Zack Snyder's involvement in the project, which has taken eons to get off the ground. Would he be faithful to the book? Too faithful, not faithful enough? How would he handle all the side stories, and such a large ensemble cast?
Now you can get the answers straight from the horses' mouths, as Moviefone's Unscripted interview series is bringing several of the stars of Watchmen together to talk about the movie. Now's your chance to grill Patrick Wilson (Dan Dreiberg/Nite Owl), Billy Crudup (Dr. Jon Osterman/Doctor Manhattan), Matthew Goode (Adrian Veidt/Ozymandias) and Malin Akerman (Laurie Juspeczyk/Silk Spectre) about their geek knowledge of the comic book, about what it felt like to wear all that rubber or play a ginormous blue man ... or whatever else your fanboy/girl heart may desire.
Submit your question in the comments section below for Crudup, Goode, Akerman or Wilson by Tues, Feb. 17, and be sure to include your first name and the city where you live. Then check back here on March 2 to see if your question made the cut. Thanks, and good luck.
If there's one film that's going to finally beat The Dark Knight at the box office this weekend, it's the hip, hysterical Apatow-produced stoner action/comedy Pineapple Express. Seth Rogen stars as a process server/stoner who, along with his flaky pot dealer (James Franco), go on the run from a crooked cop and a drug kingpin after witnessing them commit a murder. While you can't see the movie in theaters until tomorrow, we've got you covered: Rogen and Franco sat down for another installment in Moviefone's fabulous Unscripted series, where stars interview one another using your questions and some of their own.
Above you'll see an outtake from their chat that's only featured here on Cinematical (the boys talk Hudson Hawk, Shane Black, etc ...), then you can skip on over to Moviefone and watch the entire thing. In it, Rogen and Franco talk about Pineapple Express, they wonder what their Freaks and Geeks characters would be up to today, why James Franco won't be acting much in the near future and what they consider to be the best stoner movie of all time, among a slew of other things. Definitely worth checking out if you're a fan of either dude, or you just feel like laughing a little this morning. I'll be back later with some more quotes from the Pineapple Express NT press day where Rosie Perez was looking totally hot. You go girl!
It's finally time for Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly to bunk together in Step Brothers, which means it is time for another edition of Moviefone's Unscripted -- questions from the readers and questions off the top of their heads all mixed into one! Above you can check out an exclusive clip, which you won't see in the Moviefone segment, where Ferrell discusses Anchorman 2. After that, head over to Moviefone and spend a few minutes with the funny men. They chide Moviefone for the title of this series, and then they discuss focusing the hate, little baby ham hands, and one heck of an awesome shot-by-shot remake idea they had. When you hear what it is, remember the movie's shower scene and imagine the possible sexiness.
The trio were feeling a bit frisky when they entered Moviefone land to record the interview, and they discuss favorite movies and monsters, poke some fun at James Lipton, and delight in some low-brow humor. Watching del Toro in this clip, I can only hope that his future includes more of the humor present in the clips. There's a lot more to this man than creepy creatures.
And there's one additional, cut clip above, tossed to us scavengers here at Cinematical. Check them all out, and be sure to hit the theaters and see Hellboy II this Friday.
With The Incredible Hulk out this Friday (June 13), stars Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and director Louis Leterrier sat down for another one of Moviefone's fabulous Unscripted segments. The great part about these Moviefone Unscripted sessions is that not only do the stars and filmmakers ask each other questions, but most of those questions are from you, the reader -- because you left them in the comments section of this very blog! OMG! But anyway, above you will find an exclusive clip from their chat (one you won't see over at Moviefone), where all three talk about the importance of getting "the eyes" right, since, as Liv says, they're "the window to the soul." And I totally agree, especially when it comes to CG characters like Hulk and Abomination. Interestingly enough, because of certain techniques used, the eyes on Hulk and Abomination are "pretty much" the eyes of stars Edward Norton and Tim Roth, according to Leterrier.
It seems like just yesterday that the Interwebs were buzzing about the casting of Edward Norton as Bruce Banner in The Incredible Hulk (or as the French would say, Hulk Incroyable!).
In theaters June 13, this new Hulk movie sees Banner trying desperately to "cure" himself of the gamma radiation that unleashes the not-so-jolly green giant within, all the while struggling with his secret identity, dodging the industrial military complex, pining for his true love (Liv Tyler) and confronting a nasty enemy known as The Abomination (Tim Roth).
Who better to play such a multi-faceted Hulk than the versatile Norton, an actor who lives to play complex characters? How did he approach playing the role -- and what was his interpretation of the line "HULK SMASH!"?
You don't have to wonder -- you can ask him yourself. Edward Norton, Liv Tyler and director Louis Leterrier (known for the Transporter movies) have just agreed to huddle for Moviefone's Unscripted series, in which they'll interview each other using your questions.
You know what to do. Ask your question for any one of the three (or all three!) in the comments below, and be sure to include your first name and your city and state; then come back here on June 9 to see if your question got asked. The interview's happening on Monday, June 2 -- so submit by Monday morning, or else you'll make Hulk mad. And you wouldn't want to make him mad, would you?
I think I've made no secret elsewhere that I'm a huge Freaks and Geeks fan -- I still haven't recovered from the cancellations of this show, My So-Called Life and Sportsnight. So imagine my delight when I heard that Seth Rogen and James Franco, two of the stars of Freaks and Geeks, were reteaming for the stoner comedy The Pineapple Express, another Judd Apatow joint that's co-written by Seth Rogen.
Just like in Freaks and Geeks, Rogen and James get high ... a lot. And get up to a whole bunch of no good. It's like the high school reunion we never saw! Aside from that, obviously, Rogen's stock has been on quite a run since F&G, with his breakout starring role in last year's hit comedy Knocked Up, around which were sandwiched scene-stealing roles in The 40-Year-Old Virgin and Superbad.
Franco's had success of a somewhat different sort -- his leading man roles haven't catapulted him to stardom, but he earned himself a nice chunk of change as Harry/New Goblin in the Spider-Man movies, so we're not feeling too sorry for him.
Before Pineapple Express hits theaters on August 8, Rogen and Franco will be sitting for Moviefone's Unscripted series to interview each other using your questions. Knock 'em on over here in the comments section, making sure to include your first name and the city where you live -- and the interview happens this weekend, so get those questions in by Friday, May 30.
Then mark your calendars and come back here on Monday, August 4, to see if your question got asked. Good luck. Dude.
It's safe to say that Steve Carell, though wildly successful on The Office, hasn't had the greatest track record as a leading man in movies. He's starred in Evan Almighty (I'll be kind and simply say it didn't do well), Dan in Real Life (great movie, but it never broke out), and Horton Hears a Who! (in which he was heard, but not seen).
That looks to change with the release (on June 20) of perhaps the biggest comedy of the summer: Get Smart, the big-screen adaptation of the wonderfully goofy '60s spy sitcom of the same name, which inspired kids everywhere to believe that they, too, could become secret agents -- even if they were bumbling morons.
Not only is Carell an inspired casting choice -- he even looks like Don Adams, the original Maxwell Smart -- but he's been paired with Anne Hathaway as Agent 99, in the role that's going to leave her Princess Diaries days in the dust and catapult her to bonafide sexpot status.
We've been lucky enough to score both Carell and Hathaway for an exclusive Moviefone Unscripted interview, in which they'll grill each other using your questions. So let 'er rip, Chief -- ask Carell and Hathaway whatever your heart desires by this Friday, then head back here on June 16 to see if your question made the cut. Please don't forget to include your first name and the city and state where you live. Good luck!
Not long ago we asked you folks to submit a bunch of questions for Speed Racerstars Emile Hirsch and Christina Ricci to answer, and guess what -- they answered them! Well, not all of them, but a few lucky individuals had their questions hand-picked, thrown up on a screen and presented to those two charming kids during another one of Moviefone's fabulous Unscripted installments. As always, you can check out an exclusive clip from their chat above -- one you will only see here on Cinematical. In it, Hirsch and Ricci talk about working with a green screen, and how "tripped-out" the whole experience is. I believe Ricci compared it to feeling very high. Hmmm.
But anyway, these two cats star in the new film Speed Racer, out this Friday in theaters everywhere. And, as you're probably already aware, Speed Racer was based on an old 14th century poem about two spiders who fall in love with an elephant. Kidding! Of course it's based on the "tripped-out" (just tying it all in) cartoon from the '60s. The live-action feature film was written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski (aka those Matrix guys), and it also stars John Goodman, Susan Sarandon and Matthew Fox.
Check out the Moviefone Unscripted chat over here, and watch as the two talk about kissing (with and without tongue), cutting hair, fighting and details on their "perfect drive." Speed Racer arrives on May 9, and you can check out loads of really cool images from the film in our gallery below.
Who's excited about Iron Man? We are, we are! And we know you, like us, are counting the days -- nay, the hours -- until May 2, when Iron Man hits the big screen. In the meantime, though, we have this little behind-the-scenes tidbit from Moviefone's recent Unscripted interview with the Iron Man himself, Robert Downey, Jr., Jon Favreau and Terrence Howard, interviewing each other with your questions.
The clip above (which is not included in the full interview over on Moviefone) is short, but funny -- how can you not like a video that includes Robert Downey, Jr. talking in a Jersey accent and saying, "What?! You feeling froggy, bitch? Jump!" Oh, yeah. If only I'd been there myself for this, perhaps Downey, Jr. would finally recognize his long unrequited love for me. Oh, wait, I'm the one who's had a crush on him forever ... ah, well.
Iron Man. Man, what can we even say about this movie that doesn't have you stoked (now there's a word I haven't used in a while) for it already? Robert Downey Jr. plays philanthropist Tony Stark, who, in the great tradition of billionaires through time, moonlights as an iron-clad superhero who fights villains and injustice; Gwyneth Paltrow makes a rare acting appearance as his secretary; Terrence Howard plays Stark's military colleague Jim "Rhodey" Rhodes, who helps him build the suit; and Jon Favreau directs (and also appears in the film, showing off his newly slimmed-down self -- OK, so I read People).
If you're a fanboy -- excuse me, fanperson -- and have already spotted 15 errors in what I just wrote, hang onto your hat. We've scored a summer-movie coup: Downey, Howard and Favreau will be gathering for a meeting of minds in our Unscripted studio this Saturday, interviewing each other using your questions. And what do we need? Your questions. When do we need 'em? Now!
Submit your question in the comments below by this Friday, April 25 -- then come back here on April 30 to see if it made the cut. Please don't forget to include your first name and the city where you live. Good luck.
You enjoyed them for a long time on Saturday Night Live, and then one of these girls ran off to do her own show (the nerve!). But now Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are back together AND on the big screen in Baby Mama, which arrives in theaters on April 25. Both women sat down for one of those nifty Moviefone Unscripted segments recently -- ya know, the one where they interview each other with questions you submitted (through this very blog), as well as their own. Above you can check out an exclusive clip from their chat that's not included in the actual Unscripted installment. (And yes, to that boy picking his nose in the back corner -- that does mean you can only view it here on Cinematical.)
In Baby Mama, Tina Fey plays a straight-laced New York yuppie who desperately wants a baby, but is unable to conceive. Her only option is to bring on a surrogate mother (Poehler), but problems arise when that surrogate acts more like a child than a baby mama. So head on over to Moviefone's Unscripted area to check out their chat, which includes all kinds of tasty tidbits like what Amy Poehler wore to her prom, as well as which male celebrity Tina Fey would choose as her surrogate. Oh yes, it gets nasty. Enjoy.
I don't remember a heck of a lot about the original Speed Racer TV show except that it had one of the great theme songs of all time. (Man, Greg Kihn spoke the truth: They really don't write 'em like that anymore.) That, and Speed's eyes were extraordinarily large and looked like a girl's, and his mouth never seemed to match what he was saying. Oh, anime! We were so young and untrained in your ways.
Forty years after it ended its two-year run on TV, Speed Racerhas grown up to be a movie, starring Emile Hirsch (as Speed) and Christina Ricci (as Speed's girlfriend Trixie), both of whose eyes are appropriately large and well-lashed. Filmed by the Wachowski brothers (err, siblings?) in their first directorial effort since the Matrix movies, Speed Racer looks to be one of those movies that people will either love or hate. When we debuted the trailer back in December, it seemed like half the comments included the word "awesome," while the other half included the letters (and symbol) "WTF?"
You'll be able to see for yourself on May 9 whether the Wachowskis have pulled off the trick of transferring anime -- and racetrack shenanigans -- to the big screen. Meantime, we have more pressing business at hand: Emile Hirsch and Christina Ricci have signed on for our Unscripted interview series, for which they'll be asking each other your questions. And they can only do that if you get off your butt and submit one, so do it in the comments section below.
Please post your comment by Friday, April 18, and include your name and the city where you live. Go, Speed Racer fan, go!
If Jason Segel was a character on Heroes, what would his super power be? And speaking of super powers, which comic book character would Kristen Bell take on without even reading a script? You can get the answers to these questions, as well as watch Segel talk, at length, about his good friend Mr. Johnson, over at Moviefone -- where they've unveiled the latest installment in their very funny (and thought-provoking) Unscripted series, featuring the two stars of Forgetting Sarah Marshall.
Above, you'll be able to see a special super secret exclusive clip from their chat that's NOT featured in the actual Unscripted session. Oh yes, that means you can only watch it right here ... on Cinematical. Aren't you glad you stopped in today? So listen to Kristen Bell mock Jesus Christ's comedic skills above, then head on over to Moviefone to see their entire chat. Remember, Segel and Bell are answering questions you left for them right here on this very blog, as well as mixing in some of their own. If you thought you knew everything about gratuitous male nudity on the big screen ... you have no idea. Forgetting Sarah Marshall. April 18. Go!
An upwardly mobile career woman wants to have a baby -- but she's fertility-challenged; so she enlists the help of a surrogate, who's unexpectedly free-spirited, immature, quick to speak her mind and nothing at all like the aspiring mama-to-be.
Sound a little like ... Juno? Well, sort of, only sort of not, since Baby Mama was written and directed by veteran Saturday Night Live scribe Michael McCullers -- and, most importantly, stars former and current SNL regulars Tina Fey (as the career woman) and Amy Poehler (as the free-livin' surrogate). Expect more laughs, more physical comedy, less indie music -- and of course, a whole bushel of Fey and Poehler, two of the most gifted comic actors working today.
OK, so maybe the Juno reference was a stretch (it's Monday, cut me some slack). It's more like if Liz Lemon wanted to have a baby and hired ... well, any character Amy Poehler's ever played. It's Fey's first big-screen starring role, and we're eager to see what she does with it when Baby Mama opens on April 25.
Fey and Poehler have signed on to interview each other for Moviefone's Unscripted series, and we need your questions to make it happen. Please submit a question for either Tina Fey or Amy Poehler (or double your chances, and submit one for each!) by this Friday, April 11; then come back here on April 21 to see if your question made the cut. Don't forget to include your first name and the city and state where you live. Good luck.