Movies, Screenwriting & Independent Film
Header

The Rundown Ep. 29

July 9th, 2011 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Movies | The Rundown - (0 Comments)

The Rundown Ep. 29 | Movie News Recap | Weekly Movie Headlines | Movie Blog

Huge Interviews Featuring Some Of  THE BEST.

Steven Spielberg, J.J Abrams, James Cameron, Ron Howard, Brian Grazer, Jon Favreau and more…

Click here for The Director’s Guild Tribute to Steven Spielberg. (It’s nearly 2 hours long!)

Click here for Jon Favreau’s sit down with Spielberg,

Click here for another giant interview with J.J Abrams.

Final Destination 5 Trailer…  Still Not Pumped

I’ve never been a fan of this series.  I suppose you might.  I saw the first and figured that was all I needed to see.  This new trailer features a couple cool sequences.  Personally, I have a high level of discomfort for ‘eye’ horror.  I squirm.  If you look at the 1:12 mark there’s a pretty lazy edit.  Guy gets doused in hot oil and the next shot he is wandering around in the background.  Nobody caught that?

The Myth of the American Sleepover Trailer

I’m a big fan of dramas like this.  Decent trailer too.

5 Days Of War Trailer Starts Slow… But…

It finishes strong.  It got me interested.

“Happy, happy…  It’s only a war.”

Restless Trailer

Another great trailer from the director of Good Will Hunting. Which just happens to be one of my favorite movies.

XTRA | Movies That Changed Everything: Good Will Hunting

How Did They Create The Apes?

Here’s a pretty cool look at the complicated visual effects for the upcoming Rise of The Planet of the Apes.  Still not a fan of the longer title.

Even More Movie Stuff

-Check out this really bad trailer for a movie called Jack and Jull starring Adam Sandler as both a man and a woman…

-The trailer for Amigo is pretty great.  I enjoy movies like this.

-Juan of the dead.  Don’t ask.  Just watch.

This Week’s Featured Post

A Screenwriter In A Car Accident.  A personal true story of the ‘characters’ you can meet during a really bad day.

Click here for more original Screenwriting Posts.

The Recap

SCREENWRITING | The Non-Artists Guide To Photoshop Addiction

Inside The Edit: Mission Impossible 4 Trailer

All Time Best: Movie Ghost

SCREENWRITING | Short Screenplays: Making Them Up As You Go Along

I’ve Never Seen A Harry Potter Movie In Theaters

 

Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Google Bookmarks
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS

Can The Film Industry Learn From The Miami Heat?

In a historic off season, the NBA has been changed forever.  7 years ago, when they first entered the league, no one could have predicted that we would all witness a team that boasted Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh and Lebron James.

Are you kidding me?

These three superstars put ego and money aside to join forces and win a championship.  The Miami Heat have since become the most talked about franchise in professional sports.

Even a few years ago people would never have guessed that we would see Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen together.  We all saw the success they had.

It got me thinking…

What if a few superstar filmmakers got together and created a movie?

We have definitely seen some amazing filmmaking teams over the years but I’m thinking bigger.

We’ve seen Spielberg and Lucas team ups in the past but what if Scorsese or Coppola joined in to create something new? Can you imagine how many people would follow that movie?  The hype would be enormous. What magical project would unite these titans?

Can the film industry learn from the Miami Heat?

Is their enough shots to go around? (I suppose that works for both basketball and film doesn’t it? Nice.)

I think it’s all about the greater good and knowing each others strengths.  You HAVE to be a team player to pull it off.

The Three Kings of Miami have the entire sports world talking about whether or not they can pull it off.  Some people doubt they will be able to win a title right away but nobody is doubting the enormous amount of talent they bring to the table.

James, Wade and Bosh may not have the supporting cast yet but they are united in a common goal.  To win NBA championships.  I think it’s fantastic to see 3 superstars willing to share the spotlight to achieve their collective goals.

Why not film? Is it possible?

Imagine that it was for a moment…

What team ups would you like to see?

  • What if Christopher Nolan, Zak Snyder and J.J Abrams decided to lock themselves in a room and work on a secret project together.
  • What if Peter Jackson, Quentin Tarantino and Ridley Scott were planning an epic war drama? Written by Tarantino and Jackson with Ridley Scott directing.  Bring in Weta Digital to do the visual effects.
  • How about M. Night Shyamalan (Sixth Sense Night, not The Happening Night.) hooked up with George Romero and created a project that enticed David Fincher to come on board?
  • What if James Cameron created a brand new sci fi love story and worked closely with Cameron Crowe and Michael Mann?

The possibilities are endless!

I can’t decide whether it’s wishful thinking or sheer curiosity but I think the trend has already begun.

We’ve seen some pretty incredible casts come together already.  Insane amounts of talent in one place. Take The Expendables for example.  Did you ever think you would see those action legends in one movie?

We’ve even seen some directors teaming up with one producing but I’m thinking much, much bigger.

What I’m talking about here is a GIANT team up with a specific goal in mind.  To create the absolute best movie possible.  To win the championship.

It’s an interesting thought.

Obviously, like the NBA, you can’t win a title without a supporting cast and the film world is no different.

You can’t just bring 3 incredible directors on board and then skimp out on key technical and artistic positions. There are a ton of loose ends that need to be tied up before a team can achieve success.  You need the right group of people in the right creative atmosphere for it to work.

I can’t help but wonder what could be possible if the stars aligned someday.

Is there a dream team out there willing to put aside money and ego to achieve creative immortality?

Would it even lead to creative immortality?

It’s a reality in the sports world.  Look at the Celtics and Heat.  I really don’t think we’ve seen the last of this incredible new trend.  What crazy team up will happen next?  Maybe the Heat will succeed and another super team forms to defeat them.  Time will tell.

As for the filmmaking super awesome team?

We can hope can’t we?

Would the film be able to live up to the hype? What kind of film would it be?

Anything is possible.

Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Google Bookmarks
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS

Avatar Was Awesome, Finally

January 5th, 2010 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Movies | Reviews - (0 Comments)

[facebook_ilike]

The Athletic Nerd Movie Reviews

It took longer than I thought but I finally got to see Avatar in glorious IMAX 3D. I was so busy over the holidays that an afternoon never presented itself. I desperately wanted to see this movie and I’m happy to report it was worth the wait.

For anyone who ever doubted that the movie would succeed, here is the line up I came across at 11:00 am on a weekday three weeks after it’s release.

Thankfully, we already had our tickets and laughed as we scored prime seats before the theater filled up.  What boggles my mind is how many people were still coming in AFTER the movie started.  Not only that, they actually looked upset that there weren’t any good seats left.  It’s almost like they felt they deserved it.  Enjoy the front row losers!

Once the movie started, I was absolutely fascinated.  The entire world of Pandora is completely unique and original. Fascinating is the perfect word to describe it.  There was one chase sequence early in the movie that included a couple amazing slow motion shots that I absolutely loved.  This is why I’m obsessed with movies.  I love seeing things that I’ve never seen before.  It’s addictive.

Cool!

The action in the movie was unbelievable.  The final showdown is easily one of the most entertaining 30 minutes you’ll ever see in theaters.  I’m still thinking about how amazing the movie looked on the screen.  It’s the best looking movie I’ve ever seen and should easily win the VFX oscar this year.  In fact, I’m going to go ahead and guarantee it.

Last summer, The Dark Knight became the second highest grossing movie of all time.  For some reason, I’m proud of that.  It’s beginning to look like Mr. Cameron is going to have 2 of the top 3 movies ever on his resume.  There’s even a shot at the top 2.  I’m perfectly happy with Avatar knocking The Dark Knight down to 3.  It deserves to be there.  People say that movies are supposed to take you to another world.  Avatar takes you there and then makes you wish you never had to leave.

PS: Avatar is an awesome movie.

PS #2: I liked Avatar a lot.

Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Google Bookmarks
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS

Avatar is Golden

December 15th, 2009 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Movies - (0 Comments)

avatar-navi-1

I’ve been looking forward to Avatar for years…  The closer we get, the more excited I become.  I recently saw the trailer in 3D on the big screen and I was blown away.  It just looks incredible.  The action sequences alone are going to be worth the $15 dollar IMAX ticket. 

A while back, I wrote about how many people weren’t sold on the film.  It appears the filmmakers were right.  You just need to see it on the big screen and you’ll understand.  Critics and audiences are already raving about the film.  Currently, it has an 86% Tomato Rating on Rottentomatoes.com

Now, The Golden Globes have nominated the film for best picture!  I really need to see this movie.

Here’s the bad news.  I have to wait until January!

Avatar_navi

Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Google Bookmarks
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS

Avatar Looks Cool

November 7th, 2009 | Posted by jasonmckinnon in Movies - (0 Comments)

    

“A paraplegic ex-marine war veteran is unwillingly sent to establish a human settlement on the distant planet of Pandora, only to find himself battling humankind alongside the planet’s indigenous Na’vi race in this ambitious digital 3-D sci-fi epic from Academy Award-winning Titanic director James Cameron.” Fandango

The man behind Terminator, True Lies and Titanic has been hyping this movie for years.  I’ve been following it closely as it’s supposed to change the way we watch movies forever.  Apparently the technology behind this movie is so mind blowing that people’s minds will be blown away. 

When the first trailer was released during the summer, I wasn’t thrilled.  Neither was most of the online community.  The common sentiment was… Meh.  However,  the marketing team behind the film was quick to point out that the movie needs to be experienced in 3D theaters.  Essentially, the trailer just didn’t do the visuals justice on tiny screens.

So they organized Avatar day towards the end of August.  Select people willing to stand in line were given a few minutes of footage to experience.  It blew their minds.  Since then, I’ve become a believer in all the hype.  Why not?  It looks like a pretty sweet flick.

A new trailer came out recently and I think it’s pretty great.  Yet still I’ve talked to people who think the CG looks worse than anything they’ve seen lately.  Hopefully, Mr. Cameron is right and the visuals are stunning.   I just wonder why the promos haven’t really mentioned any of the technology behind it.  It’s almost like they are already assuming it’s going to be the biggest movie in history but it hasn’t done anything yet.  A few months ago, non movie buffs had no idea this film was coming out let alone in super 3D.  General audiences need to know this stuff.  I do but I’m a giant film nerd.  I’ll be sitting in a theater on opening weekend for sure.  I want to experience something ground breaking first hand.

avatar_movie_promo_screenshot

Share This:
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Digg
  • Google Bookmarks
  • del.icio.us
  • StumbleUpon
  • Add to favorites
  • Reddit
  • Tumblr
  • email
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS