Transformers 3 Not The Biggest Money-puller

Photo: Actors on set, courtesy of Wikipedia.org

BoxOfficeMojo.com reported on Thursday that the third Transformers movie did not make much money in its opening. Maybe people realised it was destined to be weak.

"The Transformers franchise fell back with the debut of Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The robo-sequel made $37,3m on Wednesday, and, while that ranked as the sixth highest-grossing Wednesday opening ever, it paled compared (with) Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen and likely yielded fewer viewers than the first Transformers," the website said.

The film was released at close to 10 000 screens at 4 011 locations. It had about as many screens as Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (Transformers 2) and exactly the same number of locations as the first Transformers.

Revenge of the Fallen raked in a then-record $62m in its Wednesday debut two years ago, while the first Transformers drew $27,9m in its Tuesday start in 2007. Dark of the Moon was the first movie in the series to be presented in 3D. Its run includes 2 789 3D locations and 146 in IMAX.

I think some of the public realised how derivative the film was bound to be.

Bloomberg West, a financial news program that focuses on media and technology companies recently reported that 3D cinema as a concept, was under-performing in many countries.

Transformers 3 is now showing at South African cinemas in 2D and 3D.

Original article at: http://www.boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3197

Alistair Anderson

Director Of The Month Film Review: Darren Aronofsky - Black Swan

Rating: 6/10 - Good

Billed as a psychological drama, Black Swan (2010) garnered a fair amount of acclaim for its lead Natalie Portman in her Oscar winning role. As for the film itself?

Director Of The Month Film Review: Darren Aronofsky - The Wrestler

Rating: 7.2/10 - Very Good

Welcome to our second to last review in our series on Darren Aronofsky. Is it as good as his previous effort, The Fountain? See the full review after the jump.

Director Of The Month Film Review: Darren Aronofsky - The Fountain

Rating: 9.7/10 - A Masterpiece

As a film reviewer, most of the films I get to watch are pretty dull and uninspiring. Truly remarkable films are few and far between but I guess half the reward of sitting through the most of the nonsense is the hope of catching a true masterpiece every now and again. The Fountain is one of those rare masterpieces.

Mission Impossible 4: Official Trailer

It's here. The new Mission Impossible 4: Ghost Protocol official trailer.

View it here:



Looks like the typical slick action and baffling plotline we've come to expect from this franchise. Can hardly wait.

Which of the impossibles is your favourite?

Films That Make You Want To Go There

Some films are set in such amazing places that when you watch it you just want to go visit that same place and experience what the characters in the film experienced.

Recent reports have said that Hangover 2 has boosted tourism in Thailand. Some tour groups are allegedly even offering 'Hangover tours', whereby visitors can go for a tour around all the places where Hangover was shot.

I really do feel that many films are great ways to boost tourism in the destinations that they are filmed. This is obviously only if the film reflects it in a positive light. It can have the opposite affect and make people not want to visit the place at all.

The film that made me fall in love with 3 destinations, was Eat, Pray, Love. After watching that film all I wanted to do was pack my bags and travel the world. Italy, India and Bali are the three countries featured in this story and I would now love to visit each of them.

Which films have given you the travel itch?

Another Remake

Hollywood has decided to use current technology to remake a cult 1980s science fiction film.

Yahoo! reports that the thriller WarGames will be remade.

"Global thermonuclear war is coming back to a theater near you. And, fittingly, a gamer is helping make it happen," it wrote on Tuesday.

It said news company Deadline had reported that the 1983 film was getting rebooted by MGM, who have chosen Seth Gordon, the man behind the video game documentary "The King of Kong: A Fistful of Quarters", to direct.

The orginal starred Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. Broderick was a computer whizkid who hacked into a government network to entertain himself. He accidentally triggers World War III.

It was a hit hacker film before 1995's Hackers, which starred Angelina Jolie.

WarGames was credited as the first film to reference the security term "firewall" but it was also Broderick's first big hit, made before Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

"Gordon, meanwhile, endeared himself to gamers with his breakthrough 2007 documentary about competing Donkey Kong players. His latest work, the comedy ‘Horrible Bosses', opens July 8th," Yahoo! wrote.

Other MGM remakes in the pipeline are Mr Mom, RoboCop and Poltergeist.

See the original article here: http://blog.games.yahoo.com/blog/797-wargames-remake-coming-from-king-of-kong-director

Alistair Anderson

Toy Story 4?

Just in case you thought you'd said goodbye to Buzz and Woody and the rest of Andy's gang, looks like Tom Hanks is making noise about a fourth installment.

According to the Guardian, Hanks answered in response to the question of TS4 "I think there will be, yeah. Yeah, yeah, think they're working on it now."

Toy Story 3 was one the highest grossing film of 2010, and received critical acclaim. Certainly it continues Pixar's winning streak.

Looks like this franchise might well go to infinity and beyond.

What do you think of rumours of a 4th?

The South African Box Office Report

Welcome to our weekly box office report where we reveal the Top 10 films in South Africa over the last weekend. See the full chart after the jump.

Trailer Roundup: Captain America, The Muppets And Midnight In Paris

As has become the norm on this little corner of the interwebs, I have rounded up some cool new trailers which I think you should have a look at. While you cannot - and should not - judge a film by it's trailer,  they are, more often than not, a useful indicator of what to expect from the final product. Check out the full trailers below:


Captain America: First Avenger



Judging by the response to the previous trailer at a Green Lantern screening I attended last week, fanboys and fangirls are keenly looking to forward to Cap's big screen debut and I can't blame them. Every trailer and clip from this movie so far has looked pretty darn good and this latest trailer continues that trend by upping the action stakes and show more of the film's scope. Fingers crossed Marvel doesn't screw this one up!

The Muppets



I loved The Muppets as a kid so I am probably a bit biased but this looks HILARIOUS! It has everything and more that I'd want to see in a Muppets film so I'm sold already and I will be seeing this on opening day.

Midnight In Paris



With a current score of 92% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, this is the most critically acclaimed Woody Allen film in many years. Box office-wise it's doing really well in the US where it's already opened so I thought I'd bring it to your attention and hopefully get you to add it to your must see list for 2011.

Which of these films are you loking forward to seeing?

Snow White and the Huntsman

Filming for Snow White and the Huntsman is said to kick off in August. The final cast is being wrapped up and decided.

Bob Hoskins, actor in Made in Dugenham, is going to be one of the dwarfs, says Chanel24. He will star opposite Twilight actress, Kristen Stewart, who is the beautiful Snow White. Our South African beauty, Charlize Theron will be the evil stepmother.

Eddie Izzard, Eddie Marsan, Toby Jones and Stephen Graham are all also believed to be in negotiations to play the remaining dwarves.

Ian McShane has recently signed up to play the leader dwarf. He is know for his role in the recent Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides.

This film will have a modern retake on the classic fairytale. It will keep most of the storyline with a few adjustments to make for an interesting story that will keep you entertained.

Let's hope director Rupert Sanders does the classic justice.

Are you a fairytale fan?

Hip Hobbits

Legolas and Gimli have a Roman Holiday moment on a loaner moped. Gimli hates mopeds

Hipster Hobbits? Had to happen. Pics and captions courtesy of How are You I'm Fine. Hard to believe it's been over ten years now since we first watched Fellowship of the Ring. We've still got a bit of a wait until The Hobbit, the first part of which is set to be released in December 2012. Until then, we'll have to be content with pop culture takes on the LOTR phenomenon that was.



You just know Boromir uses that line all the time. Faramir is a sensitive soul who’d rather take artsy photos than party



“Potholes and bike thieves! But the bike thieves were too much for him. I had to choose, Mr. Frodo. I had to come with you"

Counter Cinema

Kathryn Bigelow's Near Dark (1987), an example of horror counter-cinema.

Searching for information on random actors from the 1980s and 1990s and what had happened to them since they starred in a decent movie that I watched, I stumbled upon the term; counter cinema.

Counter-cinema is the rough grouping of films, film makers, and institutions which attempt to work against the formalist and ideological domination of Hollywood cinema.

This is quite a broad definition. It effectively means that counter cinema includes films that do not follow linear plots, have stereotyped characters or are hyper-violent. In fact, one could say that counter cinema does not strictly exist as one concept.

Some research suggests that it started with feminist film. Feminist film theoretician, Claire Johnston, said women’s cinema could function as "counter cinema". Through consciousness of the means of production and opposition of sexist ideologies, films made by women have the potential to posit an alternative to traditional Hollywood films. In reaction to this article, many women filmmakers have integrated "alternative forms and experimental techniques" to "encourage audiences to critique the seemingly transparent images on the screen and to question the manipulative techniques of filming and editing", she says.

But it could also refer to cinema from developing countries. Indie film perhaps crosses into counter cinema. I think many Japanese ultra-violent horror films can be classified as a part of the concept. Maybe the most successful counter films of the last few years, are the Crank films and Gamer, which were directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor. These two directors are now working Ghost Driver 2: Spirit of Vengeance.

Other research says that author Peter Wollen established the term, counter cinema, in his 1972 essay on Jean-Luc Godard's Le Vent D'Est.

He said the cinema is designed to unnerve viewers.

What would you count as counter cinema? - See what I did there?

Alistair Anderson

Sam Rockwell - Dance Man

Sam Rockwell loves to dance or at least movie makers like to see him move. Here are some clips of him dancing:

Iron Man 2 (2010)

He plays Justin Hammer, a bad rich kid who likes to play with expensive toys.



Moon (2009)

He plays a guy lost in space, in a sense.



The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy (2005)

He is Zaphod, a nutter politician. The scene below is a deleted scene from the DVD of the movie, however.



Confessions of a dangerous mind (2002)

Rockwell plays Chuck Barris, a TV presenter and maybe-spy. This was actually lifted by YouTube from when the film was made.



Charlie's Angels (2000)

As Eric Knox, he enjoyed a fine dance moment.



Alistair Anderson

SURPRISE:

Trailer: A Dangerous Method

Fright and thriller master David Cronenberg has made a biopic which will surely attract some award attention.

A Dangerous Method features the worsening relationship between psychiatrists Sigmund Freud (Viggo Mortensen) and Carl Jung (Michael Fassbender) and how they disagreed on how to treat a troubled patient called Sabina Spielrein (Keira Knightley). The movie also stars the talented Vincent Cassel and was filmed in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. I'm expecting an authentic but entertaining film. Freud and Jung have been considered to be rock stars of the psychology world in the past, so a potential bit of creative bending of the truth to make them appear more entertaining, may serve viewers well. Let us know what you think of the trailer. Fassbender looks on form to me but Knightley looks a bit silly. Maybe I need to get used to her accent.



Do you think Cronenberg, who made the brilliant Eastern Promises, with Mortensen, can pull this off?

Alistair Anderson

DVD Review: Big Mommas - Like Father, Like Son

Rating: 3.5/10 - Terrible

I'd be lying to you if I said I was looking forward to this film but, in life you sometimes have to take the good with the bad and Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son definitely falls under the bad. Make that the very bad.

DVD Review: True Grit

Rating: 5.5/10 - Average

This Western directed by the Coen brothers is adapted from the 1968 novel by Charles Portis. It has all the characteristics you would expect from a Western film, a sheriff, horses and a chase.

Film Review: Ek Joke Net

Rating: 6.3/10- Good


South African cinema has two great pranksters in Jamie Uys and Leon Schuster. Can Ek Joke Net hope to create room for a third?

Friday's Cheese: Thank God It's Friday

Warning for those with sensitive stomachs. This is deluxe cheese with added extra cheese. And what could be better for Friday than well, Thank God It's Friday.

What are you doing Friday night? If it was 1978, and you were anyone who was anyone without a date/hoping to score/experimenting with hallucinogenic drugs, you'd be at the disco.Oh yes you would.But this Friday night there's a dance competion, with music by The Commodores.

This disco movie, released in 1978, wears its bell-bottomed pants and sky-high platforms in glorious ode to the Friday night disco scene. It even won an Oscar, I kid you not. For Best Song. Donna's Summer's Last Dance which is at the end of this rather rickety and sponsored trailer that I managed to unearth:



If that wasn't enough, it also has Jeff Goldblum as the owner who oozes sleaze across the screen, Debra Winger before Terms of Endearment, and Teri Nunn (lead singer of Berlin).

Cheesy yes, but with a great disco soundtrack. Nostalgia is a dish best eaten in a room with a glitter ball.

Weekend TV Top 10: 24-06-2011

Hello and welcome to our weekly Friday afternoon series where we highlight the best films to watch on TV during the weekend from Friday evening till Sunday night. See what those films are after the jump.

Film Review: Green Lantern

Rating: 6.7/10 - Good

The filmmakers could have little else with the subject matter than this film. The character of the Green Lantern has incredible superpowers, that are maybe second only to Superman, which makes it inevitable that he is super-powerful and able to take on the most destructive forces in the universe.

Oceanic Inspirations

There is something really interesting about the way that directors adapt specific personal inspirations into their films. One such example is Wes Anderson’s film, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou’s strange similarity to the 1969 film Captain Nemo and the Underwater City directed by James Hill.

The seemingly kitsch and low budget British film, Captain Nemo And The Underwater City, originally adapted Jules Verne’s novel Twenty-Thousand Leagues Under the Sea to include the character Captain Nemo in some of the outrageously fantastical settings as the novel describes. This film is an obvious inspiration for Wes Anderson’s Life Aquatic - Anderson mirrors many of the settings and key concepts within this 1969 oceanic fantasy world.

Considering this intense connection that is established between a directors inspirations and the way that these inputs so strongly influence their creative output - it is very important in a way to comprehend these influences in order to understand each directors’ unique creative process.

Kings Of Leon Might Do Bond

The Bond song is almost as much of an honour as being a Bond girl, though with less call for bikinis. Rumour has it that Kings of Leon have been asked by Daniel Craig no fewer than three times to consider the offer(didn't realise Daniel Craig had pre-approval, but these are rumours).

As much as I am a fan of Kings (have my tickets, ready to party, injured drummers notwithstanding), but are they really James Bond material? Ponder for a moment Garbage's World is Not Enough, and Madonna's Die Another Day. Oi. Vay.

For James Bond's 23rd outing, Adele is also being considered. If you consider the hideous warble that was Jack White and Alicia Key's Quantum of Solace tune, Adele seems a more obvious choice.

Why? Let's take the legendary John Barry's signature James Bond tune. It's classy rather than edgy. Ditto Shirley Bassey's belters Goldfinger and Diamonds are Forever (Moonraker was intended for another singer, so we won't comment on that forgettable track). It's classic rather than country. Consider Matt Munro's From Russia with Love, or Duran Duran's View to a Kill. Even Wings's Live and Let Die.

Yes the series has been re-launched to align closer with the Ian Fleming books, but his cold war spy didn't have that deep-fried Southern twang anywhere. Ah well, let's see. Or rather hear what transpires.

What's your favourite Bond song?

The Good The Bad And Ed Wood

It is very interesting if one considers the vast array of films and the assorted quality that ranges from the worst to the best. With this in mind I had the pleasure of being introduced to one of the worst directors by the means of Tim Burton’s fantastical biography, Ed Wood (1994).

This comedy-drama biopic, starring Johnny Depp as Ed Wood was awarded with 19 official wins and 12 nominations (including 2 Oscars). This underlines the pure irony which epitomizes the life and times of the real Ed Wood. Edward Davis Wood Jr. (1924 − 1978), assigned himself as director, producer, actor, author and editor. As if performed, Wood almost literally waltzed through the flimmaking process and notoriously finished a feature film in the matter of 5 days. Known for the poor quality of his blatantly staged special effects and lifeless actors, Wood earned a considerable cult following in the days following his death.

Despite Wood’s Golden Turkey Award for Worst Director this cult following has shed new light on Ed Wood and his film career. Since ‘bad’ became ‘good’ in this case, it seems like the borders between good and bad has shifted a considerable amount.

Steven Spielberg ordered the axing of Fox from TF3

Picture courtsey of mariosp at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mariosp/

Steven Spielberg, who is the executive producer of Transormers 3, ordered that the makers of the film fire Megan Fox, because she misbehaved on set and compared director, Michael Bay, with Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.

Yahoo! Movies reported on Wednesday:

According to a "new Michael Bay oral history in GQ, Bay says Fox was booted by the direct order of Sir Spielbergo (who helped produce the movie)".

"She was in a different world, on her BlackBerry. You gotta stay focused. And you know, the Hitler thing. Steven [Spielberg] said, 'Fire her right now.'"

Fox probably thought Bay ran his movie sets like Hitler would have, which did not sit well with Spielberg.

But I think Fox should play by Bay's rules. She would have earned a ton of money for the film. Unless, he made her life unbearable and was extremely sexist or sexually harassed, what would she have to complain about?

As for how Bay felt about Fox's comments, he said:

"I wasn't hurt, because I know that's just Megan. Megan loves to get a response. And she does it in kind of the wrong way. I'm sorry, Megan. I'm sorry I made you work twelve hours. I'm sorry that I'm making you show up on time. Movies are not always warm and fuzzy"

When I began this post, I thought maybe I should abbreviate Transformers 3 to T3. However, then I realised that T3 would refer to Terminator 3. The Terminator series was decent although the third film was poor. Let's hope that Transformers 3 is far better.

It may be; Fox was replaced by Rosie Huntington-Whitely, a British model-come-actress, who I have been excited to see more of for months.

Here she is:



Alistair Anderson

It's Time To Play The Music...

It's time to light the lights, it's time to meet the Muppets in the latest Muppets movie. Starring Amy Adams and Jason Segel, the movie looks set to release in November.

You can have a squizz at the new trailer here:



It's been a while since we've seen Kermie and the gang.

Anybody else think Janice looks like Donatella Versace?

Rather Watch The Movie

Most screen adaptions vary from the dire to the just about passable. In other cases, the point of the book is lost. Time Traveller's Wife missed the poignancy of the Audrey Niffenegger novel. Eat, Pray, Love, Binge, Purge, Vomit. In my humble opinion. But occasionally I'm relieved that if I had to write a book report, couldn't be bothered to tire my eyes with reading and rented the movie instead, I would be in for a far better treat.

Atonement. Have you read Atonement? And it wasn't a set work? Ten points to you. The first hundred pages are like swimming in concrete. Then it gets marginally better. But with a creepy soundtrack, and stellar performances by James McAvoy and Madame the Pouter, Keira Knightley, hey presto, you have great entertainment.

Let's be honest. Lord of the Rings. Apart from Tom Bombadil who was chopped, Peter Jackson's masterpiece is a faithful rendition. And so much easier to get through. I'm a fan of the book, but those first few hundred pages never seemed to end.

Practical Magic? Witches of Eastwick? The adapted screenplays are completely different from the books. Sure, Practical Magic didn't win any awards, but it was enjoyable. And Witches of Eastwick had such marvellous casting, we're willing to forgive any lapses in cinematic brilliance. The books? Look John Updike is a genius, and I loved his book, but the movie version was so much more fun. Ditto Alice Hoffman's Practical Magic.

How about you? Which movie adaptions are better than the books?

Surprise Combos: Rhys Ifans And Roland Emmerich

I recently read about a new film from generally rubbish movie director, Roland Emmerich. The maker of some of the worst, far-fetched but just plain at the same time films, is making what could be a more plausible film.

Mr Emmerich is set to release Anonymous later this year. The film asks the absurd but potentially entertaining question of whether or not William Shakespeare really wrote all of his plays and poems.

The film stars the brilliant Rhys Ifans. Most people may only know the Welshman and ex-member of the band, Super Furry Animals from Notting Hill. He played Hugh Grant's character, William Thacker's eccentric flatmate, Spike.

He has not had many leading roles but, finally, he has received an exceptionally exciting one.

He plays Edward De Vere, Earl of Oxford, the man who some people believe penned Shakespeare's plays.

German Emmerich's early American films, Universal Soldier (1992), Stargate (1994) and Independence Day (1995), Godzilla (1998) and The Patriot (2000), were all solid film, but over the last decade, he has created cluster turds.

These were The Day After Tomorrow (2004), 10 000 BC (2008) and 2012 (2009). Let's hope his latest preposterous film is fun, well-made and not overly silly.

Alistair Anderson

Product Placement In Films

So many films these days are becoming so commercial and seem to only be concerned with the profit of the film, and little about the true quality of the film. An issue that is widely debated is about product placement in films.

Product placement is when a company will pay the film producers to place their product in the film. This is done in such a way that the audience does not always notice that they are being advertised to. However, the character in the film is using a Blackberry for a reason, and drinks Coca-cola for a reason, and drives a Mini Cooper for a reason.

Does the product placement change the story of the film? I think in some cases it could, however only small changes would be made. Such as what products the people in the film use, these don’t necessarily define the film. In the cases where the story revolves around the products and not the other way around, that is not good.

The product placement must be subtle and not the main feature in the film.
So in my view I feel that there is nothing wrong with a little bit of product placement, as long as it does not go too far and take over the film.

What do you think?

Ryan Dunn Passes Away

I am really sad to write here that a star of the Jackass films, Ryan Dunn passed away in a car accident today, at the age of 34.

Police said the accident took place around 2:30 am (0630 GMT) in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania, and that Dunn was probably speeding at the time. An unidentified passenger was also killed.

What Do Tom Cruise And Axl Rose Have In Common?

And you thought jumping up and down on Oprah's couch was bad? Or letting his kid of five out the house with high-heels? Or taking a swipe at Brooke Shields for post-natal depression? Nope, he saved the best for his upcoming performance in Rock of Ages.

Tom Cruise is reported as preparing for his role as rocker Stacee Jaxx by hiring Axl Rose's voice coach. What? He didn't think those tight pants alone would be enough for him to hit the high notes?

Seems like Mr. Cruise is in need of a large injection of box-office success with his next project. This one hasn't arrived yet, and already has dodge written all over it.

What do you think? He suits the role of rock God?

Vampire Fever Has Hit SA Film

The vampire craze has come into the South African Afrikaans film industry. Bloedsuiers, is the first Afrikaans vampire thriller to hit the big screens, says Channel24.

Afrikaans singers Francois van Coke and Jack Parow will be debuting on the film. Hopefully they both have some acting talent, and aren’t just being used for their popularity.

The film is set in the time when Jan van Riebeeck arrived in Cape Town and then leaps forward into the present day. It supposedly mixes different genres together to make a truly South African film. I fear this will however contain the usual vampire film clichés, hopefully I’m wrong.

The local rock music and culture is the dominant theme in throughout the film, hence the rockstar actors.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
It is also an interesting film, as it is crowd funded. Fans can contribute to the financing of the film on the Bloedsuiers website. This is certainly a different way to fund a film.

Do you think our fellow South Africans will be able to pull off a vampire film?\

Check out our interview with producer, Benjamin Cowley http://screenforum.blogspot.com/2011/05/bloedsuiers-interview.html

DVD Review: 127 Hours

Rating: 7.3/10 - Very Good
This is a slick, demanding film. It's well-directed and features probably James Franco's best role yet. Not everyone will enjoy seeing him suffer, as opposed to being drunk, ditzy or high, but he uses his role in 127 Hours to aplomb.

Film Review: Mr. Popper's Penguins

Rating: 6/10 - Good

These penguins will weasel their way into your heart and make you fall head over heels in love with them. After watching this film you will definitely want to have your own little family of penguins taking over your life.

Film Review: Source Code

Rating: 5.5/10 - Average

A few weeks back I was fortunate enough to watch Source Code at a sneak preview hosted by the honourable Mr. Barry Ronge at NuMetro Montecasino. Barry Ronge himself thoroughly enjoyed the film and he even gave it a perfect 10 on his website which is pretty impressive. I wish I shared his enthusiasm for the film but unfortunately I don't. See what my thoughts are on Source Code after the jump.

DVD Review: Morning Glory

Rating: 6/10 - Good
Morning Glory is billed as a comedy-drama. I can see the marketer’s problem. Yes there are some delightfully funny moments, but not enough for comedy. And yes there is some drama, but not enough weight to hold it down. At the outset of the film I thought it was a chick flick, but it isn’t entirely. On the other hand, I can’t imagine men really enjoying it, or would the sight of Ms McAdams in her underwear be enough to entice them?

Hobbit News

Photo courtesy of flickr.com; The Immortals, Luke Evans, WonderCon 2011

The Hobbit two-part movie prequel to the Lord of the Rings Trilogy has a new cast member.

Luke Evans has been added as Bard the Grim, one of the last major parts that needed to be filled.

Website hitfix.com reports that Evans will join Martin Freeman, who is playing Bilbo Baggins and "ring stalwarts": Orlando Bloom, Ian McKellen, Christoper Lee, Hugo Weaving, Andy Serkis, Cate Blanchett, Elijah Wood and Ian Holm.

Richard Armitage and Stephen Fry are new major actors for the series.

The Bard is next to rule Dale. The king of that area was killed by Smaug, the dragon.

Evans is starring as Aramis in a new Three Musketeers movie and in a film called "Immortals." He already starred in the recent remake of "Robin Hood" and "Clash of the Titans".

Alistair Anderson

Friday's Cheese: Caddyshack

Golf movies? Apart from The Legend of Bagger Vance, I can't think of too many golf movies. And we've yet to see the Tiger Woods True Story. But there is Caddyshack which mocks this elitist sport where business deals are made and fortunes lost on the putting green.

Caddyshack (1980) is a simple story of a young caddy who works at an elite country club, who wants to win the caddy scholarship so he can go to university. To do this he has to win the favour of a snobby golfer who’s part-owner of the club. But the real story of this movie classic is groundsman Karl Spackler (Bill Murray) and his attempts to destroy the gopher that’s tunnelling across the lawns.

Murray's interpretation of the slightly unhinged Karl is a cinematic classic. His improv sequence of the Master's as he whacks the heads off the uniform flower beds, is an AFI top 100 movie quotes. But his attempts to blow the gopher sky-high link this rather disjointed film, and have elevated it to cult classic status.



Starring Chevy Chase, Bill Murray and Rodney Dangerfield, and directed by Harold Ramis, the movie has a tendency to be less about the plot and more about comedy skits. Not suprising considering the Saturday Night Live alumni making up the cast. One of comedy's classic scenes has to be the infamous Babe Ruth and the swimming pool incident. Then there's Dangerfield. This late stand-up comedian's one-liners introduced his downtrodden humour to a wider audience.

Throw in Kenny Loggins's 'I'm Alright', and you'll be doing the gopher wiggle.

Can you think of any better golfing films for a long weekend?

Weekend TV Top 10: 17-06-2011

Hello and welcome to our weekly Friday afternoon series where we highlight the best films to watch on TV during the weekend from Friday evening till Sunday night. See what those films are after the jump.

Best Movie Soundtracks of the 2000s

Music is an integral part of film. It starts films. It ends films. It runs through montages. Music is key to making films entertaining. Sometimes, the music in a film becomes better than the film itself. Martin Scorsese, a pioneer of music in film, made Bringing Out The Dead, the best thing of which was probably was the score.

Here's a list of a few films which had brilliant soundtracks in the decade before the one we are in now.



10. The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) - The music in this movie is definitely better than the movie itself. It features tracks from Muse, Thom Yorke and Death Cab for Cutie. It's too bad you have a story getting in the way. My advice; buy the CD instead.



9. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou (2004) - This is one of the most relaxed, soothing but bouncy soundtracks I have ever heard, or is that seen?

There are instrumental compositions from Mark Mothersbaugh, Paco de Lucía and the Sven Libaek Orchestra. Devo is featured. As are old but brilliant, Joan Baez and Iggy and the Stooges. Even Brazilian singer Seu Jorge, who you probably have not heard of, features. His David Bowie covers are moving. I don't think any Wes Anderson film can boast a better soundtrack.



8. High Fidelity (2000) - John Cusack's character makes a great mix tape. It's better than any Michael Cera mix tape. I love Scott Pilgrim vs The World - but that's not because of its soundtrack.



7. Juno (2007) - Speaking of Cera, this movie's music is enjoyable. Cera's character, who is basically the same person in every film he is in, made a mix tape in Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, but, as said, that did not match the tape in High Fidelity.

Juno has a better selection of songs; it is as simple as that. Barry Louis Polisar's "All I Want Is You" and the Moldy Peaches' "Anyone Else But You," are both sweet. e film's tension between precocity and naivete.



6. Vanilla Sky (2001) - Cameron Crowe's first love is music and his films show it. Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and even Elizabethtown had great soundtracks. Remember, Elizabethtown was a woeful mess but it's soundtrack was very good. Radiohead and Jeff Buckley feature prominently in the film. I love these bands and the creepy sounds chosen from them here, work well.

I also read that Crowe placed Sigur Ros in the film three years before Steve Zissou used the Icelandic masters.



5. Garden State (2004) - This soundtrack is exceptionally well-composed. It features the likes of Simon and Garfunkel, The Shins; who Natalie Portman's character speaks about, Remy Zero, Coldplay, Iron and Wine and, a man who is getting more praise posthumously, Nick Drake.



4. Once (2007) - This is a really sweet soundtrack about falling in love. It's a film which stars a real musician in The Frames' Glen Hansard, who deserves more awareness and praise for his talent; at least more people could benefit from his beautiful music. Steven Spielberg rated this film highly, and he rarely says things that are not valuable, aside from him endorsing Shia LaBeouf, who annoys me.



3. Lost in Translation (2003) - This soundtrack works well against the performances of the few characters in the film. Brian Reitzell of French geniuses, Air, was in charge of this musical masterpiece. It also has five songs by Kevin Shields, including one from his group, My Bloody Valentine.

Allmusic.com gave the soundtrack four out of five stars. It said: "Coppola's impressionistic romance Lost in Translation features an equally impressionistic and romantic soundtrack that plays almost as big a role in the film as Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson do."



2. O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2001) - This film is good but its soundtrack was incredible. It's an amazing country album. You could say it is covered in alternative country brilliance. This is from the likes of Emmylou and Gillian.



1. Almost Famous (2000) - This soundtrack is top of the list because it is so memorable to me. Every song works to capture an idea of the rock 'n' roll of the 1970s.
It is not just full of commercial artists but rather songs that feed the film's story with intense power. You have to sing-along to "Tiny Dancer".

Alistair Anderson