From Warner Bros. Pictures comes Matt Reeves’ “The Batman,” starring Robert Pattinson in the dual role of Gotham City’s vigilante detective and his alter ego, reclusive billionaire Bruce Wayne.
Starring alongside Pattinson (“Tenet,” “The Lighthouse”) as Gotham’s famous and infamous cast of characters are Zoë Kravitz (“Big Little Lies,” “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”) as Selina Kyle; Paul Dano (“Love & Mercy,” “12 Years a Slave”) as Edward Nashton; Jeffrey Wright (“No Time to Die,” “Westworld”) as the GCPD’s James Gordon; John Turturro (the “Transformers” films, “The Plot Against America”) as Carmine Falcone; Peter Sarsgaard (“The Magnificent Seven,” “Interrogation”) as Gotham D.A. Gil Colson; Jayme Lawson (“Farewell Amor”) as mayoral candidate Bella Reál; with Andy Serkis (the “Planet of the Apes” films, “Black Panther”) as Alfred; and Colin Farrell (“The Gentlemen,” “Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them”) as Oswald Cobblepot.
Reeves (“The Planet of the Apes” franchise) directed from a screenplay by Reeves & Peter Craig, based on characters from DC. Batman was created by Bob Kane with Bill Finger. Dylan Clark (the “Planet of the Apes” films) and Reeves produced the film, with Michael E. Uslan, Walter Hamada, Chantal Nong Vo and Simon Emanuel serving as executive producers.
The director’s behind-the-scenes creative team included Oscar-nominated director of photography Greig Fraser (“Dune,” “Lion”); Reeves’ “Planet of the Apes” production designer, James Chinlund, and editor, William Hoy; editor Tyler Nelson (“Rememory”); and Oscar-winning costume designer Jacqueline Durran (“1917,” “Little Women,” “Anna Karenina”). The music is by Oscar-winning composer Michael Giacchino (the current “Spider-Man,” “Jurassic World” and “Star Wars” films, “Up”).
Warner Bros. Pictures Presents a 6th & Idaho/Dylan Clark Productions Production, a Matt Reeves Film, “The Batman.” The film is set to open in theaters beginning 3 March 2022 and will be distributed worldwide by Warner Bros. Pictures.
From director Jason Reitman and producer Ivan Reitman, comes the next chapter in the original Ghostbusters universe. In Ghostbusters: Afterlife, when a single mum and her two kids arrive in a small town, they begin to discover their connection to the original ghostbusters and the secret legacy their grandfather left behind. The film is written by Jason Reitman & Gil Kenan.
The film stars Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace and Paul Rudd.
Oscar nominee Denis Villeneuve (“Arrival,” “Blade Runner 2049”) directs Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures’ “Dune,” the big-screen adaptation of Frank Herbert’s seminal bestseller of the same name. A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, “Dune” tells the story of Paul Atreides, a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence—a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential—only those who can conquer their fear will survive.
The film stars Oscar nominee Timothée Chalamet (“Call Me by Your Name,” “Little Women”), Rebecca Ferguson (“Stephen King’s Doctor Sleep,” “Mission: Impossible – Fallout”), Oscar Isaac (the “Star Wars” franchise) Oscar nominee Josh Brolin (“Milk,” “Avengers: Infinity War”), Stellan Skarsgård (HBO’s “Chernobyl,” “Avengers: Age of Ultron”), Dave Bautista (the “Guardians of the Galaxy” films, “Avengers: Endgame”), Stephen McKinley Henderson (“Fences,” “Lady Bird”), Zendaya (“Spider-Man: Homecoming,” HBO’s “Euphoria”), Chang Chen (“Mr. Long,” “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”), David Dastmalchian (“Blade Runner 2049,” “The Dark Knight”), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (“Rogue One: A Star Wars Story,” Netflix’s “Sex Education”), with Oscar nominee Charlotte Rampling (“45 Years,” “Assassin’s Creed”), with Jason Momoa (“Aquaman,” HBO’s “Game of Thrones”), and Oscar winner Javier Bardem (“No Country for Old Men,” “Skyfall”).
Villeneuve directed “Dune” from a screenplay by Jon Spaihts and Villeneuve and Eric Roth based on the novel of the same name written by Frank Herbert. Villeneuve also produced the film with Mary Parent, Cale Boyter and Joe Caracciolo, Jr. The executive producers are Tanya Lapointe, Joshua Grode, Herbert W. Gains, Jon Spaihts, Thomas Tull, Brian Herbert, Byron Merritt and Kim Herbert. Behind the scenes, Villeneuve reteamed with two-time Oscar-nominated production designer Patrice Vermette (“Arrival,” “Sicario,” “The Young Victoria”), two-time Oscar-nominated editor Joe Walker (“Blade Runner 2049,” “Arrival,” “12 Years a Slave”), two-time Oscar-winning visual effects supervisor Paul Lambert (“First Man,” “Blade Runner 2049”), and Oscar-winning special effects supervisor Gerd Nefzer (“Blade Runner 2049”). He also collaborated for the first time with Oscar-nominated director of photography Greig Fraser (“Lion,” “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”); three-time Oscar-nominated costume designer Jacqueline West (“The Revenant,” “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,” “Quills”) and co-costume designer Bob Morgan; and stunt coordinator Tom Struthers (“The Dark Knight” trilogy, “Inception”). Oscar-winning and multiple Oscar-nominated composer Hans Zimmer (“Blade Runner 2049,” “Inception,” “Gladiator,” “The Lion King”) is creating the score.
Warner Bros. Pictures and Legendary Pictures Present a Legendary Pictures Production, a Film by Denis Villeneuve, “Dune.” The film is slated to be released in Australian theaters beginning 2 December 2021
Disney+ announced today that “The Book of Boba Fett”— the new Lucasfilm series teased in a surprise end-credit sequence following the Season 2 finale of “The Mandalorian”— will premiere on Wednesday, December 29, exclusively on the streaming service. Disney+ also debuted the key art for the series.
“The Book of Boba Fett,” a thrilling Star Wars adventure, finds legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett and mercenary Fennec Shand navigating the Galaxy’s underworld when they return to the sands of Tatooine to stake their claim on the territory once ruled by Jabba the Hutt and his crime syndicate.
“The Book of Boba Fett” stars Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen. Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Robert Rodriguez, Kathleen Kennedy and Colin Wilson are the executive producers. Karen Gilchrist and Carrie Beck serve as co-executive producers, with John Bartnicki producing and John Hampian as co-producer.
Frank Grillo! Remember the name because you are going to be hearing it quite a lot over the next decade or so. For awhile now actor Frank Grillo has been on the verge of becoming a breakout star. He’s done it the hard way – starring in B-Grade action flicks that go straight to streaming, having a fairly major part in a minor franchise like The Purge and of course playing a villain in the Marvel universe. Now though with new sci-fi action flick Boss Level Grillo finally manages to take that well-earned step of being the film’s leading man.
Directed by Joe Carnahan (The Grey) Boss Level sees Grillo play retired Special Forces Officer Roy Pulver who has found himself trapped in a time loop that sees him wake up every day next to a mystery blonde before being attacked in his apartment by a machete wielding man and then a helicopter. Should he make through them he then finds himself being hunted down by a group of elite hit-people, including the sword-expert Guan Yin (Selina Lo – The Debt Collector). When one of them eventually kills him he finds himself waking back up and living the same day all over again.
Each day Roy tries to put together the pieces of the puzzle to work out what his happening and that intensifies when the cruel Colonel Clive Ventor (Mel Gibson – Braveheart) informs him that the woman that he loves, scientist Jemma Wells (Naomi Watts – The Impossible), is dead – and strongly alludes that he did it.
Boss Level is a fun ride from start to finish. The screenplay which sees the Borey Brothers (Open Grave) team up with Carnahan is inventive and creative despite using the same time loop theme that has worked so well over the years for films like Groundhog Day and Happy Death Day. The video game vibe that Carnahan and his team manage to bring to the film also takes the story to the next level as the intriguing mystery element of the film intertwines with brilliant stunt work and some amazing fight sequences.
So many action movies these days think that over-the-top stunts can overcome a weaker than average script, but that certainly isn’t the case here. The screenplay here is top notch and the mystery element comes to the fore as Roy crosses paths with the likes of Dai Feng (Michelle Yeoh – Tomorrow Never Dies) and Chef Jake (Ken Jeong – Community) who help put together the jigsaw pieces to solve what is exactly going on. Even the sci-fi element of the film goes to the extreme and works if you don’t think too much about it.
Grillo really embraces the opportunity to shine and her he becomes a true action hero, the type of action hero that many of us grew up watching in the 1980s and 1990s. Whether it means him jumping off a building, being thrown from a moving car and hang off a helicopter Grillo does it with complete ease and unlike some action heroes he also has the acting ability to back it up. The fact that he can also pull of dramatic and touching scenes alongside Naomi Watts and Rio Grillo (who plays his son Joe in the film) shows that Grillo has what it takes to move to the forefront of action stars in modern day cinema.
Added to Grillo’s performance are the performances of the main ensemble around him. Mel Gibson shines as the unrelenting villain, Ken Jeong again shows his comic genius while Michelle Yeoh and Selina Lo’s fight sequences are out of this world. Then there is of course Naomi Watts who doesn’t let the fact that she is in an action keep her from performing at her A-Game.
As a general rule Joe Carnhahan’s movies can be hit or miss. For every movie he makes that is as brialliant as The Grey he makes a dud like The A-Team, but here Carnahahn is onto a winner. Here he has delivered a creative action sci-fi that is destined to become a cult classic.
Summary: Nick Bannister, a private investigator of the mind, navigates the alluring world of the past when his life is changed by new client Mae. A simple case becomes an obsession after she disappears and he fights to learn the truth about her.r.
Year: 2021
Cinema Release Dates: 19th August 2021 (Australia), 24th September 2021 (Thailand), 20th August 2021 (UK), 20th August 2021 (USA)
VOD Release Dates: 27th September 2021 (Australia), 20th August 2021 (USA)
Country: USA
Director: Lisa Joy
Screenwriter: Lisa Joy
Cast: Mojean Aria (Sebastian Sylvan), Barbara Bonilla (Frances), Giovannie Cruz (Cindy), Brett Cullen (Walter Sylvan), Cliff Curtis (Cyrus Boothe), Marina de Tavira (Tamara Sylvan), Gabrielle Echols (Titch), Rebecca Ferguson (Mae), Roxton Garcia (Freddie), Rey Hernandez (Harry), Myles Humphus (Moe), Hugh Jackman (Nick Bannister), Jorge Longoria (Lorenzo), Natalie Martinez (Avery Castillo), Andrew Masset (Butler), Sam Medina (Falks), Javier Molina (Hank), Thomas Francis Murphy (Armin), Thandie Newton (Emily ‘Watts’ Sanders), Norio Nishimura (Harris), Nico Parker (Zoe), Angela Sarafyan (Elsa Carine), Han Soto (Wesley Humphrey), Daniel Wu (Saint Joe), Teri Wyble (Angela)
Running Time: 116 mins
Classification: M (Australia), 13 (Thailand), 12A (UK), PG-13 (USA)
OUR REMINISCENCE REVIEWS
David Griffiths’ Reminiscence Review:
When Hugh Jackman hung up his Wolverine boots… um claws… he made the statement that one of the reasons for the decision was so that he could tackle very new and different roles. Of course one of his first performances outside of the Marvel universe was a return to his all-singing and all-dancing roots with his acclaimed performance in hit musical The Great Showman, and now Jackman heads into a whole new alternative sphere as he takes on the role of a noir Detective in Reminiscence.
Written and directed by Lisa Joy (TV’s Westworld) Reminiscence is set in a futuristic world where most of the world has flooded and a Great War occurred over the land that remains. Two veterans of that war are Nick Bannister (Jackman) and Emily ‘Watts’ Sanders (Thandie Newton – Mission: Impossible 2). Watts is in love with Nick, not that he notices that or that she would ever admit it, and together they run a business that allows people to use a technologically advanced tub that allows the subject and those watching to access their past memories.
During the war the device was used to interrogate prisoners but today it is used by people who want to remember a happier time from their life, however that doesn’t mean that Nick doesn’t sometimes use the tank to help out the Police.
However everything changes for Watts and Nick when the very beautiful Mae (Rebecca Ferguson – Doctor Sleep) turns up one day and asks to use the tank to help find some lost keys. Upon witnessing her memories, which include watching her perform as a cabaret singer, Nick becomes captivated by Mae, something that Watts is instantly alarmed by.
Things then take another turn after Nick completely falls in love with Mae but then has her mysteriously disappear. As Watts warns him digging into Mae’s past may uncover some things and an underground world that he doesn’t want to be part of.
There is very little doubt that as a filmmaker Lisa Joy has been completely influenced by the Detective noir genre. As you watch Reminiscence you can see Hugh Jackman channelling the likes of Humphrey Bogart throughout his performance and to Joy’s credit she is a smart enough director to make the illusion work without ever becoming a parody.
At time in the film Rebecca Ferguson takes on the class of Marilyn Monroe and the persona of Jessica from Who Framed Roger Rabbit and it is that style of acting that suits the noir kind of world that Joy has created. To her credit though Joy goes one step further than that and instead of just setting the film back in the 1960s she instead creates a futuristic world that at times lends itself to the scenes at hand and never dominates the occurrences happening in the film.
Jackman’s acting style also lends itself to the noir/war genre blend that Joy has created. He walks the walk of a noir style Detective but at the same time has a Civil War veteran feeling around him that comes to the fore in the scenes when he is meeting with people from Mae’s past.
Joy alongside her cinematographer Paul Cameron (Gone In 60 Seconds) has created a steam-punk futuristic world that looks amazing up on the screen. The art design of the film is amazing and the fact that Joy and Cameron use little things to enhance the world it is set in makes for an absolute visual feast for the audience. As a viewer it is almost welcoming to be watching a film where the director/screenwriter doesn’t need over-the-top special effects to move the story along. Some of the most memorable moments of this film is seeing characters like Nick, Watts or Mae walking past post-war water towers and having them just in the background without Joy or Cameron feeling like that needs to be the focal point of the scene. It takes a very special filmmaker to realise something like that in what is their feature film directional debut.
At times Reminiscence is a strange film. This is more the kind of film that will be loved by people that have enjoyed films like Blade Runner in the past rather than someone who is going to enjoy the latest Marvel blockbuster and it is certainly a must see for anyone fascinated by noir steam-punk worlds.
With cinemas still not fully opened around the world one of the biggest movies of the year has just landed straight in everybody’s lounge-rooms. At a budget that topped the $200 million dollar mark The Tomorrow War is no low-budget feature, in fact it is possibly one of the biggest blockbusters to go straight to a streaming service since the Covid outbreak started.
Directed by Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie) the film gives obvious nods back to the great action films of the 1990s with some pretty amazing similarities and visuals as films such as Starship Troopers and Waterworld. The good news is though the film also has a screenplay that is much better than the films just mentioned, thanks largely to the work of Zach Dean (24 Hours To Live).
The film itself centres around former Green Beret Dan Forester (Chris Pratt – Guardians Of The Galaxy) who finds himself working as a biology teacher as he struggles to find work within the scientific community. While de-stressing with his family after another employment knock-back he witnesses a major interruption during a World Cup broadcast that alerts today’s society to the fact that in 2051 humanity will be wiped out after a three year war with alien invaders known as Whitespike.
When it is decided that people from today will be sent to the future to help save humanity Dan finds himself drafted. His wife, Emmy (Betty Gilpin – Isn’t It Romantic) and his young daughter beg him to do anything he can to stop himself from being sent. In a last bid effort he goes to see his conspiracy theory loving, ex-military father, James Foreter (J.K. Simmons – Whiplash), to see if he can find away to prevent him from that going.
But when that fails he soon finds himself being sent off to the futuristic war where he finds himself fighting alongside his now fully grown daughter, Colonel Muri Forester (Yvonne Strahovski – The Handmaid’s Tale), who reveals to him that they have been estranged for years.
It is hard not to notice the similarities between The Tomorrow War and Starship Troopers as you watch the film but while the 90s classic tried to create an anti-war storyline The Tomorrow War does nothing of the kind and instead in a way follows the formulas of films like Independence Day that centre around wars against some intergalactic visitors.
The thing that prevents The Tomorrow War becoming just another dull all action affair is the storyline that revolves around Dan and adult Muri. Dean’s screenplay drops little breadcrumbs throughout the film that suggests that the perfect Forester family that we saw at the start of the film have been ripped apart by something. When Muri tells Dan in 2051 that they have been estranged for years it opens up a storyline that is a lot more suspenseful than any of the alien versus human battle sequences throughout the film.
That is not to say that Chris McKay doesn’t make the action sequences quite a spectacle on the screen but to be honest there is nothing here that we haven’t seen previously, and in fact many of the battle scenes look a lot like what we saw in Monster Hunter earlier this year.
A mentioned earlier though it is the father-daughter storyline that makes this film so special though and that vision first planted by Dean in the screenplay is brilliantly brought to life by the performances of Pratt and Stahovski. We know though his work in the Marvel universe that Chris Pratt is an actor that can blend genres together seamlessly. And while the comedic skills that come into play as he portrays Star-Lord are not needed here he does show a more dramatic side to his acting as his character is faced with questions about his future that leave him completely confused. As usual Pratt also comes to the fore during the action sequences.
He is also well supported by Australian actress Yvonne Strahovski who portrays his daughter Muri. The very under-rated actress has been making a name for herself over recent years with her performance in the hit show The Handmaid’s Tale but is was her performance alongside Noomi Rapace in Angel Of Mine that revealed just how talented she is. She again brings the intensity of that role to this film as she mixes dramatic sequences with action brawn with ease.The Tomorrow War is not the most original film to be released this year but if you are looking to waste some time with a big dumb action film it will certainly fill that void. Well worth a look though for the performances of Chris Pratt and Yvonne Strahovski.
For the first time in the cinematic history of Spider-Man, our friendly neighbourhood hero is unmasked and no longer able to separate his normal life from the high-stakes of being a Super Hero. When he asks for help from Doctor Strange the stakes become even more dangerous, forcing him to discover what it truly means to be Spider-Man.
Starring Tom Holland, Zendaya, Benedict Cumberbatch, Jon Favreau, Jacob Batalon with Marisa Tomei
