This Week In Movies By Pete Hammond – Hollywood’s 3D August clearance sale or call it a disaster
TrendPK.com: Call it Hollywood’s 3D August clearance sale or call it a disaster but what ever way you look at it the glut of new movies unleashed this week pretty much tanked. When a small drama about black maids in the racially-tinged South of the 1960’s in its second weekend wipes the floor over brand new big genre action and family movies It may be time for Hollywood to think again just what it is that audiences want these days?
The Help’s success might give them a clue. Dropping just 20% in its second weekend and moving from number two to number one, this well-reviewed social drama based on the best-selling novel made an estimated $20 million and now is up to $71 million after nearly two weeks in theatres. This should easily hit $150 million or more and gain year end awards attention. The quartet of new movies also had to deal with the continuing strength of 20th Century Fox’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes which did an estimated $16.3 million in its third weekend and a sterling $134 million so far .
/> So what went wrong with the newbies, nearly all in 3D and fighting for those screens in order to goose ticket sale totals due to the increased price of those tickets? It’s a case of deja view or been there-seen that on the part of audiences I think. I mean Hollywood isn’t even bothering to change the names anymore or add a roman numeral next to it. Forget the fact we’ve seen Conan The Barbarian(1982) and its 1984 sequel Conan The Destroyer along with countless ripoffs of the initial Schwarzenegger success, Lions Gate just finds another muscle guy, dusts it off and releases it as , you guessed it, Conan The Barbarian. Arnold was at least a star. This new guy, Jason Momoa they probably found in a gym in Hawaii (he is gaining traction in HBO’s Game of Thrones though). Been there-Seen that. Arnold we forgive you your trespasses , come back please. So what do the studios throw at this Conan reboot for competition? Fright Night. Forget that we already had this Fright Night in 1985 followed by its sequel Fright Night Part II four years later. Can’t get enough Fright Nights I guess especially if you can fool the public by calling it Fright Night 3D. Still, been there- seen that. And then the Weinstein brothers and director Robert Rodriguez just had to waste production dollars on another Spy Kids movie , this one in “4D- Aromarama” or something like that. At least they are labeling it Spy Kids 4 although the way things are going they might as well have left off the ‘4’. Who cares? Been there-seen that! The aroma gimmick is one that goes back to the 50’s and a movie called Scent of Mystery produced by the great showman Mike Todd (Around The World in 80 Days). Audience members are given scratch ‘N sniff cards with their ticket and scratch off numbers as they flash on screen, ideally setting of smells that match what the characters are experiencing. In other words if a movie stinks, make sure it really stinks.
Or is it best just to have an old fashioned stinker WITHOUT the scratch ‘n sniff cards. If that’s the case Focus Features provided one with the fourth wide opening of the weekend (the only one NOT in 3D), the romantic sudser One Day starring Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess. The gimmick here is that we check in on the two best friends on the same day each year to see where their lives are even though we eventually know they were made for each other and have to get together during one of those ‘days’. Been there-seen that. Despite the best efforts of its stars it just doesn’t really work, the characters are just basically obnoxious or unappealing. Audiences gave it less than $6 million for the opening weekend while critics pounced with a disastrous 27% fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Ouch. That’s not good for an adult-skewing movie. Adults actually READ reviews to decide which films to see. Word of mouth is not gonna be good.
Glee – Stars On Their 3D Movie And Season Three!
TrendPK.com: Can’t wait until the new season of Glee starts? You can see the Gleeks at the movies this summer in Glee: The 3D Concert Movie. 3D cameras filmed a performance of the cast’s world tour, and this weekend the movie version opens in theaters. The entire cast of Glee shared their thoughts on the concert performance and the upcoming third season of the show.
There may be more music on the Glee 3D dvd!
Lea Michele: “There was a lot of different versions of the concert. Sometimes we do songs and some nights we maybe weren’t feeling particularly well so we’d take one song and put another song in. It’s constantly changing.”
Mark Salling: “As long as my version of ‘I’m a Little Teapot’ got in there.”
The actors had to stay in character on stage:
Lea Michele: “We got to shoot these really fun little backstage things with Ryan Murphy where he was interviewing us in character. I guess some of us on stage, if they wanted to really embody their characters, they did. I feel like I did a nice blend of Rachel and of Lea while I was on stage performing, but we are in our characters. At the same time, when we walk on stage, we’re ourselves.”
Darren Criss: “It was hard. I definitely blew it a couple times, up in San Francisco making shout outs to my parents. Blaine’s probably never even been to San Francisco. When we were in Ohio we should’ve been really excited but I couldn’t tell you what city Dalton is in.”
Chris Colfer: “I had to be in character. You have to just leave yourself at the door sometimes because there was no way I could do ‘Single Ladies’ every night. Leave yourself behind. Kurt takes over.”
On stage, all your favorite Glee songs are bigger!
Kevin McHale: “It was more so that we had so much space to work with, because normally we don’t get that much space and you have to more let loose. It wasn’t a concern for us to cover it because there’s a lot of us so it was easy to cover the whole thing. It was nice to be able to actually do dance and have a lot of room to do the moves.”
Dianna Agron: “Although every now and then there would be an explosion. A rogue explosion and you’d be like, ‘Oh, that was really close!’ Lea saved me once. There was a slightly smaller stage and the fireworks I guess we could maybe call them, the drizzling rain fire came down a little closer, almost on top of us. Lea’s like, ‘Get over here, you’re about to die!’ Not really, but you know. It was kind of serious.
Cory Monteith: “The possibility of being set on fire when you’re on stage just makes the performance that much more alive.”
Heather Morris: “We did it last year. We did the tour last year, so I think a lot of people that weren’t prepared then, they got to have a feel for it, if they hadn’t done a live stage show like that with an audience, they got really mentally prepared for it this time and this time it was really easy.”
Highlights of the Glee concert:
Harry Shum Jr.: “I have one. During New York, all the boys go down and everyone waves. Literally seeing this with the thousands of people is one of the coolest things ever.
Dianna Agron: 
ublin, the last show. A kid’s house. Every moment you could find to do something a little bit different, a little crazy, involving huge beach balls, at one point water guns, shirtless boys, Warbler ties, things being thrown out of the audience.”
Heather Morris: “Wearing a green suit all the way over the stage in my ‘Slave’ shorts.”
Season three is not as controversial as it sounds:
Lea Michele: “I know that they’re really doing a back-to-basics season, really focusing on it being very similar to a Glee season 1. That’s so exciting. The first script was amazing. I absolutely love it, a lot of songs that have not been on the charts for a while, but were hits in the past, and I love doing stuff like that, I think that that’s so cool. It’s some of our senior year, so we want to make it great, and see what it’s like to be a senior in high school.”
Naya Rivera: “Nothing’s even been established or confirmed, so we’re just focused on this season and I think that’s our attitude right now. We’re really excited to get back to work. It’s like going back to school. We’re really excited about this season. As far as what I would like to see in my character, I don’t know. I’d like to see her be pretty mean, like real mean and maybe get a girlfriend.”
Heather Morris: “I’d like to see her have a girlfriend for sure. Like a hot girl.”
Jenna Ushkowitz: “You kind of stay away from the rumors. You wait for your creators to tell you directly what’s happening, and we kind of ignore the gossip because that’s not what this show’s about. It’s about the work, and as actors, that’s what we look forward to, is what’s going to happen. Nothing is set in stone until you open that script, and even after that things get cut.”
Amber Riley: “I think that the great thing is that this movie is going to put a lot of things in perspective for people, and they’ll get back to what the show is really about. It’s not about gossip, it’s not about drama, it’s about these kids that are connected to each and every one of these characters, and our characters literally have grown up with them, and we are helping them through adolescence, helping them through high school, helping them through junior high, so I’m hoping that that’s what this movie is going to do.”
For mature viewers, Glee goes there. For younger kids, they don’t get it.
Cory Monteith: “I think that the show explores a lot of mature content. I think it pushes a lot of boundaries. Maybe it’s crossed the line a few times, but what’s really important about the show is that it brings these topics of conversation up for discussion and into peoples’ awareness and challenges ideas, maybe conservative ideas about how people live. So I think it’s a responsibility in a way.”
Dianna Agron: “But also too I think that I didn’t know that Rizzo was pregnant in Grease. I didn’t understand any of that. So think that hopefully some of our younger audience members, I think a lots going over their heads. I know it would have gone over my head, for sure.”
Paresh Rawal does voiceover for Bhandarkar’s film, free of cost
The multi-talented Paresh Rawal has provided only his voice to Madhur Bhandarkar’s Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji.
Says Madhur, “I suddenly realized I needed someone to play the sutradhar, to bring the characters and story together. And I wanted a voiceover that is new to the audiences’ ears. I thought of Pareshji. Ironically, we have worked only once together as director and actor in Aan, a film that I am not too proud of.”
Paresh’s voice is a last-minute addition to Dil To Baccha Hai Ji. It was felt that the characters and their motivations needed some amount of explanation. Madhur rushed to Paresh who sportingly agreed.
Says the actor, “We all need to do these things once in a while. When Madhur asked me I readily agreed. He is not only a fine filmmaker but a good human being as well.”
Like his peer and illustrious senior Naseeruddin Shah, Paresh Rawal has seriously cut down on the quantity of his work, to concentrate on theatre in 2011.
Says Paresh, “I’m not very happy with the quality of roles being offered to me. So I am focusing on theatre. I am doing a satire on insurance companies called ‘Kishen Aur Kanhaiya’. As far as films are concerned I’ve only one release this year, Anees Bazmee’s Ready.”
Paresh is disillusioned by the way his more meritorious films are being marketed these days. “I did a really good film Road To Sangam last year. The producer was new and my efforts went to waste. I am now looking at good work in commercial films. I am on the verge of signing two films with one of my favourite directors Priyadarshan.”
Johnny Depp loved being ‘silly’ for new movie
December 31, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under Entertainment
LOS ANGELES: Johnny Depp enjoyed making his upcoming movie Rango as it gave him the chance to “be silly”.
The actor provides the voice for the film’s title character, with stars including Bill Nighy, Isla Fisher and Abigail Breslin also displaying their vocal talents.
The comedy is CGI-animated, with the actor’s own facial expressions providing a reference for their characters, and Johnny loved delivering his performances on a soundstage alongside his co-stars.
“I think it just gives a bunch of grownups an opportunity to be silly,” he laughed.
The movie is set for release next year, and tells the tale of a chameleon that aspires to be a swashbuckling hero before finding himself stuck in a Western town plagued by bandits. Johnny felt he had a great deal in common with his reptile character, as he too sometimes wonders who he really is.
“Rango is a lizard attempting to adapt to his surroundings,” the star told ET. “He”s trying to figure out what he”s supposed to be, like most of us in life. It”s certainly like nothing I”ve ever done before, or any of us have ever done before.”
Toonpur director clears the air on controversies surrounding the film
With Toonpur Ka Superrhero and Tees Maar Khan slated to release this Friday, fans can only ponder over which film would rip the box-office open this week. So would Ajay’s swagger attract spectators again with him having another winning streak, or will Katrina shine in all her glory and sway the audiences with her youthfulness? Besides releasing on the same day, the films have something else in common, they both have garnered their fair share of controversies, the latest being the animation hybrid Toonpur Ka Superrhero.
The first controversy to hit TKS was that the makers on Ra. One claimed that apparently both the films have the same plot, Kireet Khurana director of the film said, “It’s possible that they might have a similar story, I don’t know what Shah Rukh’s script is about but our script is not inspired by anyone, it’s an original script.”
The second argument to hit the makers of TKS is regarding Guppy, one of the characters in the film who constantly harasses The Devtoons by breaking out into a jingle. This apparently, has not gone down well with veteran composer Bappi Lahiri who believes the character is trying to make fun of his real life personality. The singer-music composer is in fact taking legal action for defamation.
Kireet Khurana, director of the film, who was in Hyderabad, came home to find a legal notice in his inbox, appalled he said, “I don’t think that there are any marked similarities but for the record, Guppy wears an Elvis type getup and as an animator we derive inspirations from various sources. Like the lights on Guppy’s outfit has been inspired from the Amitabh Bachchan song ‘Saara Zamaana’ from the film Yaarana.” Kireet also sheds light on the characters cacophonic singing skills which is all attributed from Astrix.
“Were getting tremendous response, I got back from R Mall in Mumbai, and everywhere, kids and their families were applauding the film.” Kireet remarks excitedly waiting for the films release. “I think things are looking very good, it’s very over whelming,” says the debutant director.
Bappi Lahiri sends legal notice to producers of Toonpur Ka Superrhero
The trend of controversies surrounding Bollywood films continues. This time, its Ajay Devgn’s animation film called Toonpur Ka Superrhero that is in the eye of a controversy.
The famous music director Bappi Lahiri, has sent a legal notice to the producers of Toonpur Ka Superrhero, stating that one of the characters in the film (named ‘Guppy’) resembles him not just in name, but also the way he looks. The legal notice was sent by Bappi’s lawyer S. Mandal, which states, amongst other things that “…the movie Toonpur Ka Superhero has a character named ‘Guppy’ on the lines of our client right down to the multiple gold chains. The name of the character based on our client is ‘Guppy’ which is also similar to his name as well as visually and physically similar to the personal/appearance of our client… it’s evident that our client’s persona has been portrayed in a derogatory manner and it is… a clear attempt on the part of you addressees to misuse our client’s persona in order to portray wrong picture of our client to the public at large. It is stated by our client that the said portrayal… is a derogatory and demeaning way of presenting him.”
The film’s producers however state that there is nothing derogatory about the character in the film and that they respect Bappi Da. Their legal team is looking into the issue and the producers are also ready to show the film to Bappi Lahiri is need be.
KJo is all set to resume shoot for his talk show and start work on his next
The exclusive idea for Karan Johar’s next directorial venture is finally in place, thanks to his unscheduled time off due to a sudden bout of malaria.
Because of the illness, Karan had the time to ponder deeply over what he wants to direct next. After months of a mental block, Karan has finally zeroed in on the subject that he wants to take on next.
And here’s the arresting news: after My Name Is Khan, Karan will direct a full-on fun film filled with music and songs…lip-sync songs which were missing in Khan.
Weak but back with his sharp tongue, Karan says, “I suppose out of every setback some good is bound to happen. So yes, that elusive idea for my next film for which I had even taken time off to be in New York but came back empty-brained, is finally locked in.”
Karan has decided to make a complete departure from the mood of his last film My Name Is Khan. He will now make a full-on masti musical with at least 10 songs.
Says the excited director, “I don’t think I should be talking about it so soon. But I can’t help it. Yes, after a serious film like Khan, I am moving into the fun zone. I am doing a fun-and-frolic film. I don’t care if ‘frolic’ is too frivolous a word. That’s what I am doing in my next.”
Significantly, Karan’s next is going to be full-on musical. Says the director, “In My Name Is Khan, I couldn’t have my protagonist singing on screen. Though I’m very proud of its songs, I somehow feel deprived when I don’t do full-on lip-sync songs. My next will be a full-fledged musical with the characters singing away on screen. At the moment that’s all I can tell you.”
On Saturday evening, Karan had the Big B over for dinner. Would it be correct to assume that the mega-star would feature in Karan’s next directorial venture?
At the moment, all one can assume is that Shah Rukh Khan will definitely be a part of Karan’s masti-bhari musical.
Says Karan, “Amitji just came home for a conversation, dinner and an evening with me and my mother. Every time I speak to him, I feel blessed. I’m very fortunate to have not just known him but also worked with him. Of course I’d love to work with him again and with Abhishek.”
Karan intends to invite Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan as solo guests on this season of Koffee With Karan.
“With them, there’s no combination that makes any sense any more,” opines Karan.
After 9 days of no-work, Karan will now get back to shooting episodes of his new talk show Koffee With Karan which went on air on Sunday.
Sighs the filmmaker-turned-talkshow-host, “Fortunately, I had shot four episodes before I fell ill. So there’s a bank. I’m proud of what I’ve shot so far. People talk about Imran Khan-Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor-Deepika Padukone being rivals. On my show they got along so well!”
Interestingly, Deepika is said to have confirmed on Karan’s show that it was Ranbir Kapoor whom she had accused of two-timing in print.
Says Karan, “I’m not saying anything. Just watch my show.”
"Bheja Fry 2 was never supposed to star Rajat Kapoor" – Sagar Ballary
The Bheja Fry director Sagar Ballary is ready with three films, to be released one after the other in the next one year.
Bheja Fry 2 is the one that is being most talked-about. Cutting down the controversy over the casting Ballary, currently shooting with director Madhur Bhandarkar for Hum Tum Aur Shabana says Rajat Kapoor was never meant to star in the sequel to Bheja Fry. “As in any ongoing series, only the character of the hero namely Bharat Bhushan played by Vinay Pathak would remain constant. All the rest of the characters, including Rajat Kapoor changes every time,” explains Sagar.
Sagar says the rumour about Rajat Kapoor opting out was spread by an actor who was sacked from Bheja Fry 2.
“That actor thought that by spreading rumours about Rajat, she was covering her own tracks. I’m very happy to say Bheja Fry 2, as too my other two new films Nimbu Paani (for children) and Hum Tum Aur Shabana which I am shooting now are absolutely original. As for Bheja Fry it was inspired by a French film (Francis Veber’s Dinner Game), no doubt. I am happy to see a new Hollywood film Dinner For Schmuks based on the same matter. If I may say so myself my Bheja Fry was far less slapstick than the Hollywood film.”
Sagar’s new film Hum Tum Aur Shabana is partly set in the fashion world, and that’s where Madhur Bhandarkar came in on Thursday.
“We shot him on the ramp. He plays one of the judges at a beauty pageant. At the end he walks the ramp with the models.”
rajneeti
June 7, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
Raajneeti, writer-director Prakash Jha’s sprawling portrait of a political family, is a mixed bag. The film has moments of ferocious power and just as many flaws.
The narrative has a propulsive movement in the first half but becomes dramatically inert in the second. Jha, who has fought elections in Bihar himself, creates a real sense of the machinations and sordid deals that fuel politics but then hobbles it with outlandish twists and some decidedly ‘filmy’ moments – like a ridiculous love-making scene that is triggered because the characters get wet in the rain.
Apparently getting soaked in Bollywood still equals sex. And, as almost all the female characters in this film find out, having sex even one time, still equals babies.
The performances are strong—especially Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal and Nana Patekar—but the characters are largely one-note.
There has been much hype about Katrina Kaif learning lengthy Hindi dialogue for the film. She’s clearly worked hard but her luminous looks rather than acting are still her trump card.
Raajneeti is a film with ambition and scale but it works in fits and spurts. Jha’s political epic is too busy and bumpy and never quite fulfils the potential inherent in the story.
Raajneeti sources as much from The Godfather as it does from the Mahabharata. So we have sets of cousins whose rivalry spills into the open as soon as the head of the family suffers a stroke.
The film begins with a back-story of Sooraj Kumar, the Karna-like figure played by Ajay Devgn. Abandoned at birth, Sooraj is adopted by a Dalit family.
In quick succession, so many characters are introduced that Jha uses a voice-over to explain who is connected to whom and what the political affiliations are. It takes a good 15 minutes to take in the details and place the characters but the story-telling is engaging and soon you’re caught up with this Machiavellian family in which the plotting begins even as the father is still being treated by doctors. As the stakes get higher, the moves get bloodier.
cadmium
June 4, 2010 by Trend PK
Filed under World News
— Cadmium has been discovered in the painted design on “Shrek”-themed drinking glasses being sold nationwide at McDonald’s, forcing the burger giant to recall 12 million of the cheap U.S.-made collectibles while dramatically expanding contamination concerns about the toxic metal beyond imported children’s jewelry.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, which announced the voluntary recall early Friday, warned consumers to immediately stop using the glasses; McDonald’s said it would post instructions on its website next week regarding refunds.
The 16-ounce glasses, being sold for about $2 each as part of a promotional campaign for the movie “Shrek Forever After,” were available in four designs depicting the characters Shrek, Princess Fiona, Puss in Boots and Donkey.
In the animated comedy, which debuted May 21 as the latest installment of the successful DreamWorks Animation franchise, the voice of Shrek is performed by Mike Myers of “Austin Powers” fame, Cameron Diaz performs as Princess Fiona, Antonio Banderas as Puss in Boots and Eddie Murphy voices Donkey. The movie has been No. 1 at the box office since its release.
The CPSC noted in its recall notice that “long-term exposure to cadmium can cause adverse health effects.” Cadmium is a known carcinogen that research shows also can cause bone softening and severe kidney problems.
In the case of the Shrek-themed glassware, the potential danger would be long-term exposure to low levels of cadmium, which could leach from the paint onto a child’s hand, then enter the body if the child puts that unwashed hand to his or her mouth.
