Category: Movies

Twilight trivia contest deadline extended!

Trisha Lynn1 Comment

So after peeking into the geekingoutabout@gmail.com Inbox and seeing three entries to our first-ever trivia contest, I thought it was perfect because there are three prizes to be won (a $15 gift certificate to Amazon.com, iTunes, or online retailer of your choice). Then, I thought that maybe that was making it way too easy for the three who submitted to win a prize; therefore by fiat, I have decided to extend the contest deadline by one more week. (Sorry, folks!) That’s right, you have seven more days (or until midnight on July 9, whichever comes first) to enter the first-ever GeekingOutAbout.com contest by answering 10 trivia questions in the most entertaining way possible (which may also involve being wildly inaccurate).

Did I forget to mention that in addition to winning this fabulous prize, selections from the winning entries and runners-up will be published for everyone else to enjoy? Or that if this contest goes well, future contest will feature better prizes?

If you have questions about the contest, ask ’em here, and I’ll be glad to answer them.

Trisha’s Video of the Day: You’re gonna need headphones for this… (NSFW)

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…especially if you choose to view this at work, because courtesy of British film editor Harry Hanrahan, I present The 100 Greatest (and Profane) Movie Insults of All Time:

(Special thanks to the gang at Pajiba.com, who hunted down the names of all the movies in the clip.)

Trailer Watch: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1 first official trailer

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Here’s a synopsis:

Part 1 begins as Harry, Ron and Hermione set out on their perilous mission to track down and destroy the secret to Voldemort’s immortality and destruction—the Horcruxes. On their own, without the guidance of their professors or the protection of Professor Dumbledore, the three friends must now rely on one another more than ever. But there are Dark Forces in their midst that threaten to tear them apart.

Meanwhile, the wizarding world has become a dangerous place for all enemies of the Dark Lord. The long-feared war has begun and Voldemort’s Death Eaters seize control of the Ministry of Magic and even Hogwarts, terrorizing and arresting anyone who might oppose them. But the one prize they still seek is the one most valuable to Voldemort: Harry Potter. The Chosen One has become the hunted one as the Death Eaters search for Harry with orders to bring him to Voldemort… alive.

Harry’s only hope is to find the Horcruxes before Voldemort finds him. But as he searches for clues, he uncovers an old and almost forgotten tale—the legend of the Deathly Hallows. And if the legend turns out to be true, it could give Voldemort the ultimate power he seeks.

Little does Harry know that his future has already been decided by his past when, on that fateful day, he became “the Boy Who Lived.” No longer just a boy, Harry Potter is drawing ever closer to the task for which he has been preparing since the day he first stepped into Hogwarts: the ultimate battle with Voldemort.

When the Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book came out in July 2007, my then-roommate wasn’t going to read her copy right away, so I decided to read it all in one day, just to prove I could. Six hours later, my conclusion was that it was a great read, I cried like a little child when Dobby died, and I was able to successfully cite Ernest Hemingway in defending J.K. Rowling’s use of a train station to symbolize the afterlife.

I did not keep up with the Harry Potter movies in a similar fashion, mostly because movies are damn expensive and borrowing a book is free. However, I think that based on just how damn epic the movie looks—and my own curiosity about how the trio of Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, and Rupert Grint have matured as actors over the last nine or ten years, depending on when you want to start counting—I’m going to try and start re-watching the series again, just to get caught up before the movie’s release on November 19.

LEGO movie builds up steam with announcement of directors

Trisha Lynn
Will these guys be the next to make it big in Hollywood? (Source: Dunechaser)

After two years of blogging about upcoming movies, I thought that I’d seen all of the most ludicrous things you could adapt into a movie actually get the green light and funding to become a movie. Yes, even the upcoming Candyland and Battleship films.

Until this exclusive from Borys Kit over at The Hollywood Reporter‘s Heat Vision blog which announces that there will be a movie based on the LEGO franchise, that is.

According to Kit, Phil Lord and Chris Miller (Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs) are in final negotiations to direct a blended live-action/animation movie featuring the ubiquitous building bricks for Warner Bros., under the supervision of producers Dan Lin and Roy Lee with Jill Wilfert handling the money and creative contributions on the LEGO side. And there is bound to be lots of creative influence from the LEGO folks, who are shrewdly and wisely protective of their brand, trademark, and copyright.

There is no word yet what the plot will be, but Kit reveals that Lord and Miller will be working on this film the second they’re done with the upcoming remake of 21 Jump Street .

Trisha’s Take: Le Concert review

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Le Concert

Directed by Radu Mihăileanu
Starring Aleksei Guskov, Mélanie Laurent, Dmitri Nazarov, Miou-Miou and more

On Midsummer Eve, I was walking through a park in Brooklyn with some friends on our way to get some artisanal ice cream. As we neared the park’s exit, the unmistakable sound of a piano wafted towards us in the summer air.

There at the crux of two paths stood an upright piano, and a bushy-haired hipster was coaxing out a very familiar classical tune. No, not Für Elise or the Moonlight Sonata, but Chopin’s Nocturne in E flat (or Op.9 No.2 for the musical geeks). A crowd had formed, and everyone applauded with verve as the final notes died away, the pianist acknowledging the applause briefly before melting back into the crowd. A friend who was visiting from L.A. said later that it had been the fourth time that day he had encountered spontaneous music that day coming from people who weren’t busking.

It’s that idea of making music for the pure joy of making music or the beauty of it that permeates every frame within Le Concert, and I’m afraid that if you don’t understand that, you’re definitely not going to understand or like this movie. Continue reading “Trisha’s Take: Le Concert review” →

Trailer Watch: The Green Hornet first trailer

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I’m going to come right out and say it: I totally believe in Seth Rogan as the Green Hornet now.

Here’s the synopsis:

Britt Reid (Seth Rogen) is the son of LA’s most prominent and respected media magnate and perfectly happy to maintain a directionless existence on the party scene – until his father (Tom Wilkinson) mysteriously dies, leaving Britt his vast media empire. Striking an unlikely friendship with one of his father’s more industrious and inventive employees, Kato (Jay Chou), they see their chance to do something meaningful for the first time in their lives: fight crime. But in order to do this, they decide to become criminals themselves – protecting the law by breaking it, Britt becomes the vigilante The Green Hornet as he and Kato hit the streets.

Like many geeks, I was dubious at the thought of Rogen as an action hero, but then I was correctly reminded by the trailer that it wasn’t Van Williams who kicked ass in the 1960s TV show, but Bruce Lee as Kato.

I think I’m also fond of what Rogen seems to understand about Britt Reid as the movie-going audience of today will see him. He’s not as smart or as hot as Robert Downey Jr’s Tony Stark, nor is he as tortured and angst-ridden as Christian Bale’s Bruce Wayne, and that’s perfectly fine with me.

The Green Hornet comes to theaters in the U.S. on January 14, 2011.

Marvel Studios starts looking at Dr. Strange

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According to Mike Fleming in an exclusive for the New York branch of Deadline.com, screenwriters Thomas Donnelly and Joshua Oppenheimer have been tapped to write the script adaptation of the Marvel comic Dr. Strange.

This isn’t the first geek-oriented property that Donnelly and Oppenheimer have been involved with. The duo, which was credited along with two other writers for 2005’s Sahara, had also been hired by Columbia Pictures to work on the script for the adaptation of Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune and have also worked on the upcoming remake of Conan.

Fleming opined that the property would be the first superhero property that would be made into a movie under the studio’s new arrangement with the Walt Disney Company, something which geeks everywhere will be watching with a wary eye.

Fun and fabulous prizes in store at the end of June

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In the interest of being responsible reviewers, there are some times in which we here at Geeking Out About.com will read, watch, or experience something that’s outside of our comfort zone in order to provide the most coverage. For example, in preparation for her “First Night Flicks” review of Twilight: Eclipse, lead movie reviewer Lyssa has decided to watch both Twilight and New Moon back to back in one day.

Being the loving, and caring editors we are—and just because we’re into the idea of doing some MST3K-style commentary on two potentially horrible movies—co-editor Jillian and I decided that she shouldn’t have to do this alone. So, we’re going to join her for the first two parts of this epic saga of a human-vampire love that was never meant to be.

“But what is this thing about fabulous prizes?  I want fabulous prizes!” Well, we’re glad you asked… Continue reading “Fun and fabulous prizes in store at the end of June” →

Trisha’s Take: Cyrus review

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Cyrus

Directed by Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass
Starring John C. Reilly, Marisa Tomei, Jonah Hill
Rated R for language and some sexual material

Back when I had a Netflix account, I went on an indie movie-watching spree, and that’s where I encountered the concept behind “actor’s workshop” films for the first time.

For the people who aren’t acting or film geeks, I’ll explain. An actor’s workshop film is one where a bunch of actor who are taking classes together take what they’ve learned and make a movie out of it. The coolest thing, though, is that some of the best actors are always taking classes and workshops to hone their craft even further. Another thing I learned about was the mumblecore movement, wherein production is very low-budget, conversations are improvised, and the focus is on characterization over complicated plots.

Multi-hyphenate brothers Jay Duplass and Mark Duplass, who helped form the latter, seem to have taken the best of what’s cool about an actor’s workshop film, given it a mumblecore feel, and turned it loose into the world.

The plot to Cyrus is pretty simple. John C. Reilly stars as John, a divorcé who never really got out of the depressive funk that drove his now-ex-wife (Catherine Keener) away seven years ago. Strangely enough, they’re still friends—and may possibly also work together—and after she tells him that she’s getting married again, she tries to get him out of his rut by forcing him to go to a party. There he meets Molly (Marisa Tomei) who sees something charming in his sad sack and “drunk on Red Bull and vodka” exterior and follows him back to his place.

However, she doesn’t stick around in the morning, but instead leaves him a note. Intrigued but not scared off, John invites her over for a proper first date which is as romantic as it is charming… only to catch her sneaking out of his room at night. Her vague explanation doesn’t satisfy him, so John follows her back to her house where he meets the source of her secrecy: her antagonistic live-at-home 21-year old son, Cyrus (Jonah Hill). Continue reading “Trisha’s Take: Cyrus review” →

Trailer Watch: The Norwegian Ninja first English-subtitled trailer

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To all you schlocky film fans out there, I heartily apologize for not mentioning anything about this sooner:

Here’s the synopsis, courtesy of the gang at TwitchFilm.net:

Kommandør Treholt & Ninjatroppen is the true story of how Commander Arne Treholt and his Ninja Force saved Norway during the Cold War. The story takes place in the time right before Treholt’s arrest on espionage charges in 1984, and reveals a spectacularly different version of our recent past than has been previously known.

A mix of true story and unabashed flights of fancy, the movie will premiere in Norway on August 13. An English-language blog is here, and I really hope someone decides to release this in the U.S.