While speaking with Vulture on Monday night, Alec Baldwin revealed that he will be hiring a vocal coach to prepare for his role in Rock of Ages, Adam Shankman's adaptation of the Broadway musical which will require the actor to sing alongside Tom Cruise and Mary J. Blige. This revelation was surprising, both because the 30 Rock star seems capable of excelling at everything -- and because he has already appeared multiple times on Broadway. But that was before Movieline stumbled upon the following video of Baldwin singing at Carnegie Hall.
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Movieline's own Jen Yamato saw Bridesmaids at SXSW and declared it a magnificent crowd-pleaser and the best R-rated comedy since The Hangover. I believe her! But I can't believe the tone set by the new Bridesmaids trailer, which undersells the movie's intelligence and goes for cheap romcom laughs. Rage!
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Conan O'Brien Can't Stop, director Rodman Flender's look at the talk show host's "Legally Prohibited from Being Funny on Television" comedy tour in the days following his departure from NBC, picked up a distribution deal after debuting at SXSW, despite a title that sounds like a Sam Kinison stand-up special. Phew. We'd look forward to a Conan doc with or without proper teasers, but the first released clip of the film is both funny and revealing.
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We all know that some stories are never truly told until you've seen them animated in the sophisticated style of Taiwanese "news" organization NMA. Perhaps it goes without saying, but the tale of Jake Gyllenhaal's bathroom run-in with a camera-wielding fan last weekend at SXSW is one of those stories.
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While it doesn't have the sweet summer tentpole release date, a number of strong early reviews from SXSW suggest that Source Code could become the Dark Horse contender for that Inception Exception at this year's Oscars. Or maybe we should coin a different term for movies simply grabbing for the same "intelligent, mind-bending thriller" street-cred? Anyway, Summit has unveiled the first five minutes of the film, which begin with confusion and end with fireworks. The way director Duncan Jones draws attention to each detail in the scene suggests that you might want to take notes now. Surely the grumpy passenger, the drink spilled on Jake Gyllenhaal's shoes and whatever the passenger dropped on the floor all play key roles later in the film... right?
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Yep, the Sucker Punch trailer is cute when remixed with clips of classic Disney princesses. Mulan is really a kickass woman. But this mash-up mostly just reminds me of how many Disney ladies didn't kick ass. Alice? Esmerelda? Million-watt smiles, disappointing pugilists. Click ahead to watch.
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When you've got a great title like Hobo with a Shotgun, why stop with just a movie? The team behind the Rutger Hauer-exploitation-throwback, which is now making the rounds at SXSW, have unleashed an old-school, side-scrolling video game where iPhone and iPad owners can blast their way through street punks and fascist cops as the titular hero. To my knowledge, there are no keys to find or puzzles to solve. It's maybe not quite as inspired as that Human Centipede video game, but it looks like more fun. Check out the trailer after the jump for a taste of the gameplay.
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You've seen them in the video store and lurking around the corner of your Netflix queue. Familarly-named movies that seem to be design to cash in on a better known entity. But at this point, the direct-to-video cash-in is a time-honored tradition: for every Transformers, there's a Transmorphers, for every Paranormal Activity, there's a Paranormal Entity. And now we've got a two-fer: a gay themed Twilight-esque thriller called Vampire Boys. The acting is a bit...ripe but honestly, is it that much worse than the real Twilight?
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Tron: Legacy came into theaters with some massive expectations resting on its pixeled shoulders. It was the long-awaited sequel to a cult hit that practically defined the computer thriller genre. Gussied up with the latest effects and shot in 3D, it was given the cushy Avatar release position in the hopes it could make the same kind of money. And while it wasn't an outright bomb, it barely made back its reported $170 million budget domestically (foreign grosses brought in an additional $225 million). A lot of money to be sure, but certainly not as much as Disney would have liked. So would there be a sequel?
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So much pure, rippling testosterone was floating around the Conan the Barbarian set that it seems like it's permanently altered the body chemistry of all those involved. Don't believe me? Check out this new teaser trailer below. You only see a few wispy, smoky glimpses of ancient warriors, boobular princesses and the titular savage but the basso profundo rumblings of the voice over guy and Conan himself is enough to make me long for a Paul Lynde cameo. "I live, I love, I slay," Conan gravely and gravelly intones. I get it! You're all very masculine. You're still wearing Raquel Welch's panties from One Million Years B.C., though.
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Chaz Bono, the transgendered son of Sonny and Cher, earned the kudos of critics, festivalgoers, and Rosie O'Donnell at Sundance, for the documentary Becoming Chaz, a chronicle of his gender reassignment. Fortunately we get to see this one much earlier than most Sundance favorites since it premieres on Oprah's OWN Network in May. Take a look.
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If you've been waiting patiently since 2001 for Sully and Mike of Monsters, Inc. to return to the big screen, some bad news: you're going to have to wait another 20 months. Pixar has scheduled a follow-up for November 2012 -- how could they not, considering the original grossed over $500 million worldwide? -- but little is known about the project, other than that it won't be including scenes from the following trailer, assembled by the sequel's original screenwriters.
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Sundance lit up at Win Win, an indie comedy about a failing wrestling coach (Paul Giamatti) who works out shady dealings to collect on an old man's health-care wages. In this new clip from Moviefone, we pick up on the slight cynicism of Giamatti's character Mike Flaherty -- and the fact that he may exhibit less valor than, say, John Adams.
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"We're equals -- aren't we, 007?" asks the disembodied voice of Dame Judi Dench, lecturing her on-screen employee Daniel Craig in a new PSA created for International Women's Day (Tuesday, March 8). "Yet it is 2011 and a man is still likely to earn more money than a woman, even one doing the same job." And what imagery has the power to combat the litany of socioeconomic inequalities that remain between men and women in today's day and age? James Bond in drag! Because of course.
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Welcome to Monday, March 7, 2011 -- or as it's unofficially known at Movieline HQ, "The Day the Stars of The Switch Tried to Make Commercials Go Viral." Earlier we pointed you toward the Jason Bateman interview-cum-Denny's commercial with David Koechner called "Always Open," and now comes Jennifer Aniston's Smart Water campaign. Expect Jeff Goldblum, Juliette Lewis and Patrick Wilson to be shilling for something by the end of the day.
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