“HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA” TRAILER HITS THE WEB

Sony Pictures Animation has just revealed the first trailer of its upcoming animated comedy, Hotel Transylvania featuring the voices of Adam Sandler and Selena Gomez.

Welcome to the Hotel Transylvania, Dracula’s (Sandler) lavish five-stake resort, where monsters and their families can live it up, free to be the monsters they are without humans to bother them.  On one special weekend, Dracula has invited some of the world’s most famous monsters – Frankenstein and his bride, the Mummy, the Invisible Man, a family of werewolves, and more – to celebrate his daughter Mavis’s (Gomez) 118^th birthday.  For Drac, catering to all of these legendary monsters is no problem – but his world could come crashing down when one ordinary guy stumbles on the hotel and takes a shine to Mavis. 

The film’s voice cast also includes Andy Samberg, Kevin James, Fran Drescher, Cee-Lo Green, David Spade, Steve Buscemi, Molly Shannon and David Koechner.

Opening across the Philippines in September 2012, Hotel Transylvania is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Visit www.sonypictures.com.ph to see the latest trailers, get free downloads and play free movie games.

ROCK OF AGES” TRAILER 2

             New Line Cinema and Warner Bros. have just unleashed the latest trailer of director Adam Shankman's feature film adaptation of the smash hit Broadway musical “Rock of Ages.”

 

             “Rock of Ages” tells the story of small town girl Sherrie and city boy Drew, who meet on the Sunset Strip while pursuing their Hollywood dreams. Their rock ‘n’ roll romance is told through the heart-pounding hits of Def Leppard, Joan Jett, Journey, Foreigner, Bon Jovi, Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, Pat Benatar, Twisted Sister, Poison, Whitesnake, and more.

             The movie musical stars Julianne Hough (“Burlesque”), with actor/singer Diego Boneta in his feature film debut, Russell Brand (“Arthur”), Oscar® nominee Paul Giamatti (“Cinderella Man”), Academy Award® winner Catherine Zeta-Jones (“Chicago”), Malin Akerman (“The Proposal”) and R&B queen Mary J. Blige, with Oscar® nominees Alec Baldwin (“The Cooler”) and Tom Cruise as Stacee Jaxx.

             Shankman directs “Rock of Ages” from a screenplay by Justin Theroux and Chris D’Arienzo and Allan Loeb, based on D’Arienzo’s musical of the same name. 

             Opening across the Philippines in June 2012, “Rock of Ages” will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

FIRST-LOOK: “TOTAL RECALL(2012)” TRAILER

Colin Farrell in Total Recall(2012)

Columbia Pictures reveals the first trailer of its upcoming action-thriller “Total Recall” at this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/SonyPicturesPhils#p/f.   Directed by Len Wiseman (“Underworld”), the film stars Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, John Cho and Bill Nighy. 

            “Total Recall” is an action thriller about reality and memory, inspired anew by the famous short story We Can Remember It For You Wholesale by Philip K. Dick.

            Welcome to Rekall, the company that can turn your dreams into real memories. For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid (Farrell), even though he's got a beautiful wife (Beckinsale) who he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life - real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. 

            But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man. Finding himself on the run from the police – controlled by Chancellor Cohaagen (Cranston), the leader of the free world – Quaid teams up with a rebel fighter (Biel) to find the head of the underground resistance (Nighy) and stop Cohaagen. 

            The line between fantasy and reality gets blurred and the fate of his world hangs in the balance as Quaid discovers his true identity, his true love, and his true fate.

            Opening across the Philippines in August 2012, “Total Recall” is distributed by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International.  Visit www.columbiapictures.com.ph to see the latest trailers, get free downloads and play free movie games.

Titanic 3D

The RMS Titanic as seen in the movie

It's been fifteen years since James Cameron's Titanic made moviegoers fall in love with Jack and Rose with exception of this movie reviewer. I only seen it once back then but I remember people I know got to watch it more than ten times. It also won most of the coveted awards during the Academy awards that year but not the best performance in an actor/actress for Leo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet for their respective roles as Jack and Rose. The movie got the Best Picture award that year.

The movie released in 3D was a timely commemoration of RMS Titanic's Centennial Year from it's maiden voyage and tragedy. Even before the movie's first release back in '97, I was already interested in the Titanic. I first got interested in the Titanic after reading my favorite paperback novelist, Clive Cussler when he wrote his third Dirk Pitt adventure, Raise The Titanic! in 1976. Although the novel was fiction, the accuracy of the Titanic's resting place noted in the novel was accurately close to its rediscovery in 1985.

Back to the movie, although it was based on the events that took place as one of the nightmarish sea disasters in history, James Cameron's Titanic is still considered fiction. Fans may be disappointed to see that there is no real passengers by the name of Jack Dawson and Rose DeWitt Bukater, the movie's main characters. But there are real life characters in the movie such as  Thomas Andrews; the builder of Titanic, Edward Smith; Titanic's captain, John Jacob Astor IV; the richest passenger on board, Molly Brown(Kathy Baker); one of the characters whose exploits of were not included in the movie, Wallace Hartley the ship's band leader and a lot more.

There are scenes that are historically accurate in the movies. There are two scenes from the historical documents and the famous quote, "Not even God can sink this ship". There are also issues about the Titanic that also raised some concerns. Besides that it was not christened and that there were negligent crew who failed to look out for the incoming iceberg too late and the lack of life boats, Titanic ignored the radio warning of icebergs from the passing ship SS Californian. The logic of saving women and children first into the lifeboats is not always the solution. After being rescued by RMS Carpathia, the tragedy left many children orphaned. Either the family live as one unit or they might as well be all dead than be separated if there are limited life boats. This was evaluated by maritime experts for possible tragedies that may happen in the future.

The main reason for me to see to this movie is not only because I was invited but more on the historical aspect of it. In the next few days after the re-release in 3D, Titanic will commemorate its centennial year of its maiden voyage and tragedy. As for the 3D, it was not as different when I first watched back in '97 but the 3D made a more fluid feeling of the special effects that was used in the movie. During the advance screening where I was invited, I heard someone cried during the tragic moments. My thoughts of the movie is a perspective of a second time viewer but it would be good for those who will watch it for the first time since there is a newer generation of viewers since it was shown fifteen years ago. Hopefully, it could also make a box office hit as it was back in 1997. Titanic in 3D opens April 7 in 3D cinemas.

FULL-BODY CHARACTER POSTERS FROM “DARK SHADOWS”

Johnny Depp as Barnabas Collins

The creative materials from “Dark Shadows” keep on coming, as Warner Bros. shares nine full-body character posters for the new Johnny Depp-starrer.

Director Tim Burton brings the cult classic series “Dark Shadows” to the big screen featuring an all-star cast.

The new posters feature the nine major characters Barnabas Collins (Depp), Angelique Bouchard (Eva Green), Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer), Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter), Roger Collins (Jonny Lee Miller), Willie Loomis (Jackie Earle Haley), Carolyn Stoddard (Chloe Grace Moretz), Bella Heathcote (Victoria Winters) and David Collins (Gully McGrath).

            Synopsis: In the year 1752, Joshua and Naomi Collins, with young son Barnabas, set sail from Liverpool, England to start a new life in America.  Two decades pass and Barnabas (Depp) has the world at his feet—or at least the town of Collinsport, Maine.  The master of Collinwood Manor, Barnabas is rich, powerful and an inveterate playboy…until he makes the grave mistake of breaking the heart of Angelique Bouchard (Green).  A witch, in every sense of the word, Angelique dooms him to a fate worse than death: turning him into a vampire, and then burying him alive.

Two centuries later, Barnabas is inadvertently freed from his tomb and emerges into the very changed world of 1972.  He returns to Collinwood Manor to find that his once-grand estate has fallen into ruin.  The dysfunctional remnants of the Collins family have fared little better, each harboring their own dark secrets. 

 

           Opening across the Philippines in May 2012, “Dark Shadows” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

SOUNDGARDEN RELEASES NEW SONG FOR “MARVEL'S THE AVENGERS”

End Credit Track “Live To Rise” To Be Included in “Avengers Assemble” Compilation

             BURBANK-CA — Marvel Music/Hollywood Records announce the return of Soundgarden with the release of the band’s first all new song in 15 years, “Live to Rise.” The song will be featured in the end credits to this year’s highly anticipated movie, “Marvel’s The Avengers.” 

Soundgarden

             “Live to Rise” is included on Avengers Assemble, a 14-track compilation of music from and inspired by the film. Avengers Assemble will be released on May 1, 2012.

             Soundgarden stated, "We've been hard at work on our new album, which will come out this Fall. When the opportunity arose to write an original song for ‘Marvel's The Avengers’ film, we thought it could be a cool match. We are excited to release our new song 'Live To Rise,' which is also the only new song in the film. Here's a taste. Loudest of Love." http://youtu.be/lVWjZ6Hk9Jg.

             Also, The Avengers original motion picture soundtrack, with score by Oscar®-nominated and Grammy-winning composer Alan Silvestri (“Captain America: The First Avenger,” “Forrest Gump,” the “Back to the Future” trilogy) will be available at online retailers on May 1, 2012.

             With over 21 million records sold worldwide, Soundgarden redefined rock music for a whole generation and had a revolutionary impact on the course of musical history. At the dawn of 2010, the band, Chris Cornell, Matt Cameron, Kim Thayil and Ben Shepherd, announced a new beginning. In the last two years since Soundgarden has reunited, they have headlined festivals, toured the world and released their first retrospective titled Telephantasm which included the previously unreleased song, “Black Rain” and their first live album, Live on I-5. The press has exalted their return to the stage and the music scene. Rolling Stone called their headline performance at Lollapalooza “an epic set...a blueprint of the Seattle sound,” where the Chicago Tribune hailed them as “one of the last great hard-rock bands to emerge in the last 25 years.” The band are currently in the studio in Seattle writing and recording their first LP in over 15 years, which is set for release in 2012.

             In addition to Soundgarden’s “Live to Rise,” the Avengers Assemble collection features original songs inspired by the exciting and action-packed film event. The diverse range of artists includes Rise Against, Shinedown, Bush and Redlight King.

             The Avengers Assemble track list follows:

             1. Live to Rise Performed by Soundgarden
             2. I’m Alive Performed by Shinedown
             3. Dirt and Roses Performed by Rise Against
             4. Even If I Could Performed by Papa Roach
             5. Unbroken Performed by Black Veil Brides
             6. Breath Performed by Scott Weiland
             7. Comeback Performed by Redlight King
             8. Into the Blue Performed by Bush

             9. A New Way to Bleed (Photek Remix) Performed by Evanescence
             10. Count Me Out Performed by PUSHERJONES
             11. Shoot to Thrill Performed by Theory of a Deadman
             12. Wherever I Go Performed by Buckcherry
             13. From Out of Nowhere Performed by Five Finger Death Punch
             14. Shake the Ground Performed by Cherri Bomb

             ADDITIONAL TRACK ON THE INTERNATIONAL RELEASE:

             15. Pistols At Dawn Performed by Kasabian

SNEAK PEEK: “21 JUMP STREET”

Hill and Tatum

In Columbia Pictures' action-comedy “21 Jump Street,” Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) were enemies in high school who became unlikely friends in Police Academy. While they may not be the best cops on the beat, they have a chance to turn it around when they join the police department's secret Jump Street unit, run by Captain Dickson (Ice Cube). They trade in their guns and badges for backpacks and use their youthful appearances to go undercover. 

             Trouble is, teenagers today are nothing like what they were just a few years ago, and Schmidt and Jenko discover that everything they think they know about being a teenager, from sex to drugs to rock and roll, is all wrong. More importantly, they both find they are still dealing with all of the adolescent problems they didn't address in their own teen years - and both will have to confront the terror and anxiety of being a teenager again and all the issues they thought they had left behind.

             Columbia Pictures and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures present in association with Relativity Media an Original Film / Cannell Studios production, “21 Jump Street.” Starring Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Brie Larson, Dave Franco, Rob Riggle, with Ice Cube. Directed by Phil Lord & Christopher Miller. Produced by Neal H. Moritz and Stephen J. Cannell. Screenplay by Michael Bacall. Story by Michael Bacall & Jonah Hill. Based on the Television Series Created by Patrick Hasburgh & Stephen J. Cannell. Executive producers are Jonah Hill, Channing Tatum, Ezra Swerdlow, and Tania Landau. Director of Photography is Barry Peterson csc. Production Designer is Peter Wenham. Editor is Joel Negron. Costume Designer is Leah Katznelson. Music by Mark Mothersbaugh.

             Opening across the Philippines in May, “21 Jump Street” will be distributed in the Philippines by Columbia Pictures, local office of Sony Pictures Releasing International. Visit http://www.columbiapictures.com.ph for trailers, exclusive content and free downloads. Like us at www.Facebook.com/ColumbiaPicturesPH and join our fan contests.