Music is the heart of any musical, and Rock of Ages has a stolen heart.  The movie is based on a Broadway show designed with tourists in mind rather than people who actually appreciate stage musicals.  It’s a show that plays to nostalgia and provides the comfort of classic tunes so the audience is basically pre-sold: if you like the music, then why wouldn’t you like this music delivery system upheld by the laziest story imaginable?  If a musical must rely on other people’s music rather than writing original songs, then the onus for originality falls on the direction.  Sadly, director Adam Shankman is hardly up for the task of finding a new spin on well-worn rock favorites, and he’s only able to sporadically bring vibrancy to the film adaptation’s almost non-stop barrage of numbers.

In the feature film adaptation of the smash hit Broadway musical Rock of Ages, small town girl Sherrie (Julianne Hough) and city boy Drew (Diego Boneta) meet on the Sunset Strip in 1987, in pursuit of their Hollywood dreams. With the hits of Def Leppard, Foreigner, Journey, Poison, REO Speedwagon, Twisted Sister and so many more, to help tell the story, their rock ‘n’ roll romance hits its fair share of speed bumps on the road to fame.  For more on the film, watch eight clips here.

At the film’s press day, co-stars Julianne Hough and Diego Boneta talked about what it was like for them when they each came to Hollywood, when they felt like their career was on the right track, what Tom Cruise was like as rock god Stacee Jaxx, how tough pole dancing can be, having some of the original rock stars perform for them on a lunch break, and the cut lap dance scene between Hough and Cruise that will make it on the DVD. Julianne also talked about focusing on her acting career and what she’s doing next, while Diego talked about his new MTV show Underemployed and the album he’s working on with Adam Levine (Maroon 5).  Check out what they had to say after the jump.

We’ve been provided with eight clips from director Adam Shankman’s (Hairspray) upcoming movie musical Rock of Ages to share with our readers.   The film stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise), but the film is packed with 80s songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  Joining in on the 80s fun is Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand,Malin Akerman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Diego Boneta, Mary J. Blige, and Bryan Cranston.

Hit the jump to watch the clips.  If you missed any of Steve’s set visit coverage, be sure to check out 20 things to know about the film and his interviews with Shankman, Boneta and Hough.  Rock of Ages opens on June 15^th.

Every so often, there is a story throughout the week that finds itself right on the cusp of Top 5 inclusion before ultimately missing the cut. For whatever reason, today I feel compelled to give one of these said stories an “Honorable Mention” tip of the cap. This write-up from a few days back regarding the chronology of Quentin Tarantino‘s filmography and how Inglorious Basterds influences the entire lineage of his “movieverse” is one that I found incredibly cool and definitely worth your time (even if we’re not bestowing upon it the career-validating honor of making the Top 5).

As for those stories that did make this week’s cut, we have a plethora of coverage from Steve’s visit to the set of The Dark Knight Rises, the first trailer, poster, and new images from Les Miserables, a new trailer for The Bourne Legacy, more set visit goodness for Rock of Ages, and the first installment of our movie poster lovefest column, Limited Paper. A brief recap and link to each awaits.

In director Adam Shankman‘s Rock of Ages, Diego Boneta plays Drew Boley, a twenty something rocker with dreams of making it big in the late 80s Los Angeles music scene.  Based on the hit Broadway musical, Rock of Ages also stars Julianne Hough, Tom Cruise, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige.  For more on the film, here’s the recent trailer and all our previous coverage.

Last August, I got to participate in a group interview with Boneta on the Miami set.  During a break in filming, he talked about how he landed the role, what it was like working with Tom Cruise, what he did to prepare for the role, the costumes, what it’s been like working with the rest of the cast and Adam Shankman, and a lot more.  Hit the jump for what he had to say.

Though this summer is filled with superhero and sci-fi fare to the max, we’ve also got a full-on movie musical to look forward to.  Warner Bros. has released 30 new high-resolution images from director Adam Shankman’s Rock of Ages.  The film stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise), but it’s packed with 80’s songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  Cruise and Hough are joined by a stacked supporting cast in 100% 80’s garb that includes Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Diego Boneta, Mary J. Blige, and Bryan Cranston.

Hit the jump to check out the images.  Rock of Ages opens on June 15th.

We’ve got a few new posters to share with you this evening.  Briefly:

• On the Road – New character posters showcasing Kristen Stewart and Garrett Hedlund from director Walter Salles’ adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel.
• Rock of Ages – An ensemble poster from the 80s rock musical starring Tom Cruise, Julianne Hough, Alec Baldwin, and Russell Brand.
• Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter – A new poster from the blood-filled twist on the story of our nation’s 16th President.  Benjamin Walker, Rufus Sewell, and Anthony Mackie star.
• Neighborhood Watch – A new poster for the sci-fi comedy starring Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, and Richard Ayoade as bored men who join a neighborhood watch group for fun.

Hit the jump to check out the new posters.

We’ve got a few high resolution images from the musical Rock of Ages and the horror flick The Apparition to share this afternoon.  Directed by Adam Shankman, Rock of Ages stars Julianne Hough as a small-town girl with big dreams who falls for a rock star (Tom Cruise).  The musical is full of 1980s hits and features a pretty impressive ensemble cast that includes Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Diego Boneta, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Paul Giamatti.  The film opens on June 15th.

Additionally, The Apparition centers on a young couple played by Ashley Green (Twilight) and Sebastian Stan (Captain America) who accidentally conjure a terrifying apparition that feeds on their fear.  Naturally, they turn to Harry Potter’s Tom Felton to help them get rid of the dastardly creature.  These images confirm that Greene is, in fact, very good looking. The film opens on August 24th.

If the first trailer for director Adam Shankman’s Rock of Ages didn’t blow your denim miniskirt up, perhaps this new one will.  The Hairspray director leads this feature film adaptation of the Broadway musical by the same name. Centering on a small town girl (Julianne Hough) who falls in love with an all-star rocker (Tom Cruise), Rock of Ages will feature 1980s hits by such classic bands as Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  This particular trailer ends on a high note of sorts with Cruise rocking out to Bon Jovi’s “Wanted Dead or Alive.” Rock of Ages, also starring Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige, opens June 15th.  Hit the jump to check out the new trailer.

Not long after Warner Bros. was reportedly getting cold feet with the swelling budget of David Dobkin’s Arthur & Lancelot, it looks like the studio has officially hit the pause button. The film, starring Kit Herington (Game of Thrones) and Joel Kinnaman (The Darkest Hour) in a reimagined Arthurian legend, was supposed to open March 15, 2013. Dobkin (The Wedding Crashers) reportedly informed cast and crew that it “wasn’t looking good,” although studio insiders confirm they’re trying to make the project work. Warner envisions the tone of Arthur & Lancelot to be in a similar vein to their Sherlock Holmes franchise, but will have to negotiate budget and scheduling difficulties. Herington, will return to Game of Thrones this spring while Kinnaman is expected to segue into the film shoot after wrapping on AMC’s The Killing. The project may move forward without one or both of the actors. Hit the jump for news regarding the delay of Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant Killer 3D and Rock of Ages.

Warner Bros. has released the first trailer for the feature adaptation of the Broadway musical Rock of Ages.  The film tells the story of a small town girl (Julianne Hough) who falls in love with a larger-than-life rocker (Tom Cruise) set against the backdrop of the 1980s music scene, featuring songs from the likes of Journey, Foreigner, Styx, and REO Speedwagon.  The gist of the trailer is that if you like 80s rock, you’ll probably like a musical that only features 80s rock and uses it as a basis for the plot.  But there’s also an important lesson:  When sleazy guy played by Paul Giamatti give you a chance at fame, you take him up on his obviously legit offer.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster.  The film also stars Diego Boneta, Alec Baldwin, Russell Brand, Malin Akerman, Bryan Cranston, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige. Directed by Adam Shankman (Hairspray), Rock of Ages opens on June 1, 2012.

Director Alex Proyas is filling out the cast for his big-budget adaptation of John Milton’s Paradise Lost, and it looks as though he’s found his Adam. Variety reports that Diego Boneta (Pretty Little Liars) is in final negotiations to play the first man on Earth. Bradley Cooper and Ben Walker star as archangels Lucifer and Michael respectively. For those unfamiliar, the story centers on the ultimate battle between good and evil when a banished Lucifer mounts an army against the forces of Heaven. Boneta recently wrapped a role in Adam Shankman’s musical Rock of Ages, which stars Tom Cruise.

The fairly impressive cast for Paradise Lost includes Casey Affleck as the angel Gabriel and Dijmon Hounsou as the Angel of Death, as well as Callan McAuliffe and Dominic Purcell. The script has gone through a number of writers, as Byron Willinger and Philip de Blasi wrote the first draft, followed by a draft by Stuart Hazeldine (Exam), which was then polished by Lawrence Kasdan (The Empire Strikes Back). Ryan Condal wrote the most recent draft. Legendary Pictures is looking to release the 3D film towards the end of 2013.

We have a couple of quick casting stories to report this morning.  First up, THR reports that Tom Everett Scott has joined the family comedy Us & Them.  Billy Crystal and Bette Midler will play “old school grandparents who have a hard time finding a middle ground with their three modernized grandchildren.”  Marisa Tomei will play their daughter Alice whose rocky relationship with her parents is healed by watching them interact with her children despite their conflicting approaches to parenting.  Scott will play Alice’s husband.  Andy Fickman (The Game Plan) will begin shooting the comedy this fall in Atlanta.

Hit the jump for casting news for Alex Proyas’ adaptation of Paradise Lost.

Adam Shankman’s musical Rock of Ages has been searching for months to find its “Constance”, the journalist who sleeps with decadent rock star Stacee Jaxx (Tom Cruise) even though she’s supposed to be writing an expose about him.  The project courted Anne Hathaway and Amy Adams, but both actresses passed on the film after they were offered roles in superhero movies (Hathaway for The Dark Knight Rises and Adams for Man of Steel).  Today, Rock of Ages finally has its Constance as Deadline reports that Malin Akerman will take the role.  In addition to Tom Cruise, Akerman will be joining Alec Baldwin, Mary J. Blige, Russell Brand, Paul Giamatti, Diego Boneta, Julianne Hough, Bryan Cranston, and Catherine Zeta Jones.

Rock of Ages is the latest film to fall into Akerman’s packed schedule.  She’s currently shooting Medallion with Nicolas Cage, she replaced Lindsay Lohan in Inferno: The Linda Lovelace Story, she’s co-starring in the romantic comedy The Giant Mechanical Man, and she’s starring opposite Ethan Hawke in the spy thriller The Numbers Station.   Akerman can currently be seen in theaters co-starring in the war drama The Bang Bang Club and she has two more films coming out later this year: the indie crime thriller Criminal Empire for Dummy’s and the David Wain comedy Wanderlust.  Rock of Ages is due out June 1, 2012.