We’re off to explore the fantastical, the unusual, the intergalactic, the oddly non-linear in this edition of Marvellous Massing of Movie Trailers with movies that refuse to be bound by the bland, the everyday, the here and now.
And the results are quite promising with all five movies featured attracting all kinds of buzz, especially the latest upcoming offering from the re-giver of dramatic life to the Batman franchise, Christopher Nolan, who is getting set, rather mysteriously as it must be said (as is his way), to take us into the far reaches of space in search of an extraterrestrial future for humanity.
So strap yourself, suspend all belief and come with me as we preview the sort of journeys that make going to the movies such a mystical, wonderful, escapist thing to do …
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Ig Perrish (Daniel Radcliffe) is accused for the violent rape and killing of his girlfriend, Merrin Williams (Juno Temple). After a hard night of drinking, Ig awakens, hungover, to find horns growing out of his head; they have the ability to drive people to confess sins and give in to selfish impulses. Ig decides to use this effective tool to discover the circumstances of his girlfriend’s death and to seek revenge by finding the true murderer. (synopsis via Hey U Guys)
OK so this is one way to handle a break up.
Grow a pair of spiralling horns, compel people via some Jedi mind trick to be ruthlessly transparent about their shortcomings and follow the less altruistic angels of their nature.
Admittedly it’s not quite the same as sitting in your week old pajamas, watching When Harry Met Sally and Fast and Furious: Tokyo Drift in endless repeat, a bucket of caramel cherry amaretto cheesecake ice cream in your lap, but who said everyone had to handle the loss of true love in exactly the same way!
This is, after all, Harry Potter, we’re talking about! Or is it?
Honestly, not really at all.
Radcliffe, understandably, has been choosing roles of late that put as much distance between the boy wizard and himself as possible, such as Kill Your Darlings, The Woman in Black, and the very favourably reviewed rom-com What If, not because he isn’t proud of those films but they do not a varied career constitute.
So to Horns which is based on Joe Hill’s beautifully written novel of the same name, a horror/romance/black comedy hybrid, that manages to be both devilishly dark and romantically light, all at once, a tone that the film manages to match beautifully or miss completely, depending on which critic is speaking.
Either way, it’s an intriguing idea that looks to be reasonably well-executed, featuring one of the most talented actors of the new generation, and looks like making for one wicked night out at the movies.
Horns on 31 October 2014 in UK and USA with no date assigned to Australia as yet.
THE HOBBIT: BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES
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The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies brings to an epic conclusion the adventures of Bilbo Baggins, Thorin Oakenshield and the Company of Dwarves. Having reclaimed their homeland from the Dragon Smaug, the Company has unwittingly unleashed a deadly force into the world. Enraged, Smaug rains his fiery wrath down upon the defenseless men, women and children of Lake-town.Obsessed above all else with his reclaimed treasure, Thorin sacrifices friendship and honor to hoard it as Bilbo’s frantic attempts to make him see reason drive the Hobbit towards a desperate and dangerous choice. But there are even greater dangers ahead. Unseen by any but the Wizard Gandalf, the great enemy Sauron has sent forth legions of Orcs in a stealth attack upon the Lonely Mountain.
As darkness converges on their escalating conflict, the races of Dwarves, Elves and Men must decide – unite or be destroyed. Bilbo finds himself fighting for his life and the lives of his friends in the epic Battle of the Five Armies, as the future of Middle-earth hangs in the balance. (synopsis via Coming Soon)
Words cannot express now much I have loved and adored what Peter Jackson has cinematically wrought with first The Lord of the Rings and then The Hobbit, both by master classic fantasy writer J. R. R. Tolkien.
Visually, narratively, character-wise, in fact in just about every single way, the movies for both franchises have possessed the ability to not only pay homage to the rich source material but became engaging storytelling vehicles in and of themselves, and I can’t foresee any possible reason why The Battle of the Five Armies (previously titled There and Back Again) won’t be every bit as magical as its predecessors.
It is after all the climatic finale to the Hobbit movies, in which the newly-released dragon Smaug (voiced by Benedict Cumberbatch), booted out of the the Dwarf kingdom of Erebor in the Lonely Mountain, takes his revenge on the hapless souls of nearby Laketown, while the Dwarf leader Thorin Oakenshield (Richard Armitage) stays put, obsessed with his newly-regained material wealth.
Thus it is up to Bilbo Baggins (Martin Freeman) to step up to the plate, so to speak as the massing armies of Orcs and Wargs spill forth from the darkening surrounds of Dol Goldur, spurred by the Necromancer/Sauron to wage war with the less than united assembling of men, elves and dwarves for the future of Middle Earth itself.
It will be full of heart-poundingly intense action, beautiful character moments and flights of fantasy so richly-realised that you will be no doubt be mourning the end of the series even as the evil forces of the Necromancer are defeated … at least for now.
The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies opens
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When Thomas (O’Brien) wakes up trapped in a massive maze with a group of other boys, he has no memory of the outside world other than strange dreams about a mysterious organization known as W.C.K.D. Only by piecing together fragments of his past with clues he discovers in the maze can Thomas hope to uncover his true purpose and a way to escape. Based on the best-selling novel by James Dashner. (synopsis via Coming Soon)
I never quite expected it to happen but sometime in the last year or two, I have found myself watching more movies targeted at the Young Adult demographic than I ever expected to.
It is largely because of the much-welcome rise and rise and rise of authors like John Green (The Fault in our Stars), Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games) and Veronica Roth (the Divergent trilogy), among many other talented names, all of whom have written stories ideally suited to Hollywood, newly in love with this age group’s literature after the monumental success of the Twilight series.
Joining this largely august group now in cinemas is The Maze Runner by James Dashner, another addition to the unending tide of post-apocalyptic material flooding both cinema and TV at the moment.
While I haven’t read the book myself, I am assured it is a well-written, compelling book that is well-reflected in the movie – well as much as you can work that out from one trailer – and it is already being compared to The Hunger Games, both because of its themes and the look of the film adaptation, as Moviepilot points out:
“The directors have made no bones about wanting a Hunger Games feel: the color palette is identical, for one. And though Scodelario doesn’t feature in the clip in question, we can imagine that her awkward sex appeal is going to be amped up in the same way as J-Law’s. Warrior girls unite!”
There may come a point where these tales of life after the apocalypse lose their appea,l but I don’t see that happening anytime soon in this increasingly messy world of ours where people need reassurance that good will still triumph over evil no matter the circumstances, and you can expect Maze Runner do some very solid business among moviegoers of all ages.
The Maze Runner opens in Australia on 18 September 2014 and USA on 19 September.
INTERSTELLAR
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“Interstellar chronicles the adventures of a group of explorers who make use of a newly discovered wormhole to surpass the limitations on human space travel and conquer the vast distances involved in an interstellar voyage.” (synopsis via Hey U Guys)
My lord but Christopher Nolan is an impressively talented director.
Gifted with the ability to craft movies that are both blockbuster-massive in terms of look and ambition, while possessing the nuances dramatic soul of an indie – let’s leave aside the fact that back in the ’70s when blockbusters first arose, both these sets of qualities were in evidence in just about major release that came out, something that rarely happens in today’s CGI-heavy cinematic behemoths – he is an artist who crafts big budget movies with brains and heart.
Interstellar, which tugs heavily on both the heartstrings and our sense of wonder and awe, and about which spectacularly little of any substance is known (it’s very much in keeping with Nolan’s buttoned-down approach to making movies, a welcome thing in this information-saturated world of ours), looks like it is very much in keeping with his previous films like The Dark Night, Inception and Memento.
The newly-released trailer does give us a little more insight into a movie which has some of the look and feel of Contact, a movie which saw humanity reaching for the stars as well but quite a different purpose.
In Interstellar, the future of humanity itself rests in the balance as the Earth, blighted by a disease that left every food crop bar nutrient-poor corn, is increasingly unable to feed the multiple billions of people that inhabit it.
In an effort to find humanity a new home, a mission is sent to the farthest reaches of the universe via a wormhole to find a planet suitable for life which means separating the crew, chief among them a pilot played by Matthew McConnaughey, from their families, a dynamic which looks like providing the film which Nolan wants to be 2001: A Space Odyssey big, with the necessary heart and soul so beloved of this brilliant director.
And the trailer is thus stirring, emotionally-heartbreaking and amazing all at once, with visuals that simply take your breath away.
This looks like being one of THE movies to see later this year (thought not everyone shares that sentiment).
Interstellar opens on 6 November 2014 in Australia and 7 November in USA.
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Predestination is written and directed by Michael & Peter Spiering (Daybreakers). The film chronicles the life of a Temporal Agent (Ethan Hawke) sent on an intricate series of time-travel journeys designed to ensure the continuation of his law enforcement career for all eternity. Now, on his final assignment, the Agent must pursue the one criminal that has eluded him throughout time. (synopsis via First Showing)
Let’s it hear for the Aussies on this impressive-looking time-travelling film!
Specifically brothers Michael & Peter Spierig, who reunite with star Ethan Hawke in Predestination, a film described by Ethan Anderton at First Showing as “Minority Report meets Looper“.
That short, sweet linking of two of my favourite sci-fi movies is enough to get me in the door regardless of anything else, but the premise, which takes a thoroughly intelligent and grounded look, at one’s need to safeguard his legacy and the stunning, all-encompassing visuals are also motivation enough to check out this bold new film.
Premiering at South by Southwest this year, it hasn’t quite won everyone over as Drew Taylor’s review at Indiewire makes clear:
“Ultimately, Predestination isn’t about anything, really. There are some handsome compositions and the twinkly electronic score is sometimes nice, but it’s an effort in futility. There are so many interesting ideas and concepts that could have been spun from this framework. Instead, it’s the work of a bunch of filmmakers who seemingly wanted to offer up a WTF-worthy twist ending and tried to reverse engineer a movie from it. In the end, it’s worse than nonsensical—it’s boring, overlong, pretentious, and oddly under-styled.”
But I am prepared to give it a go if only because it sounds like such a fun ride.
So what if there are some great big bumps in the road – I am still aiming to go on the journey!
Predestination opens in Australia on 28 August 2014.