MGM and Paramount Pictures have announced that principal photography is currently underway on director Brett Ratner’s ensemble-action film Hercules.  The film stars Dwayne Johnson as the titular demigod and is based on the graphic novel Hercules: The Thracian Wars, but the official logline describes the pic as “a revisionist take on the classic myth set in a grounded world where the supernatural does not exist.”  Making a Herclues movie without any semblance of the supernatural is a bit odd, but the story of Ratner’s film finds the titular character traveling ancient Greece with five faithful companions sometime after “the legend” that we’re familiar with.

Hit the jump to read the full official synopsis for the film.  Written by Ryan Condal and Evan Spiliotopoulos, the pic also stars Ian McShane, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes, Peter Mullan, John Hurt, Rebecca Ferguson, Ingrid Bolso Berdal, Askel Hennie, and Reece Ritchie.  Hercules opens on July 25, 2014.

The cast is filling out for director Brett Ratner’s new take on Hercules.  Dwayne Johnson is set to star as the titular hero, and MGM announced today (per The Wrap) that Ian McShane, John Hurt, Joseph Fiennes, and Rebecca Ferguson (The White Queen) will be rounding out the cast.  This film takes a grounded approach to the story, as Johnson’s titular character is portrayed as a mortal with a fearsome reputation rather than as the demigod son of Zeus.  In addition to the aforementioned actors, we learned yesterday that Rufus Sewell (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter) is joining the cast as well, and Askel Hennie (Headhunters) signed on last month to play a warrior devoted to Hercules.  Production on Hercules is slated to begin this November, with a July 25, 2014 release date planned. [Update: Hit the jump to see who the new additions will be playing.]

There are two ways to read a bedtime story to a child.  The first is to be animated, and to draw the child into the world.  You move around, you do the voices of the characters, you pause for dramatic affect, and you help the child craft a dream.  The other way is to lethargically read the words on the page, and hope the damn kid goes to bed already.  Bryan Singer‘s Jack the Giant Slayer plays like bored parent who begrudgingly recites the same familiar tale.  Most of the cast seems to have no idea what to do with their one-dimensional characters, and they’re stuck in a bland world that offers few challenges.  Furthermore, the film looks astoundingly cheap from the CGI effects right down to the costumes.  There’s no imagination to Jack the Giant Slayer, and it fails to make a case for why it even needs to exist.

Warner Bros. has released a slew of high-resolution images from director Bryan Singer’s upcoming fantasy adventure epic Jack the Giant Slayer.  The images highlight the film’s massive scale and large amount of visual effects, as well as the impressive ensemble cast which includes Nicholas Hoult, Eleanor Tomlinson, Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Ian McShane, and Bill Nighy.  There’s a lot to sift through, but they definitely give us a good idea of what to expect from the full film.

Hit the jump to take a look at the images.  If you missed any of Steve’s set visit coverage, be sure to check out 15 things to know plus a video blog recap, and his interviews with Singer, Nicholas Hoult, Ewan McGregor, and Eleanor Tomlinson.  Jack the Giant Slayer opens in 3D on March 1st.

Tonight’s episode of FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum not only wrapped up our favorite characters’ arcs, it concluded the show’s entire second season.  Things were tied in a neat little bow with massive character deaths done in the most tasteless possible way…for the most part.  After the jump, we’ll talk about how Ryan Murphy and the creative team of AHS:A explored and resolved the theme of insanity, who will return next year and just where the show might be headed for season three.

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall.  Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s finale, “Madness Ends” and a look back at the second season.

We’re getting down to the wire and running out of living characters on FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum.  Tonight we bid fond farewells to three more souls: one was a surprise, two of them died a second time and one of them was simply brushed aside with nary an explanation.  This episode was also a bit more toned down than we’re used to (well, for this show anyway) so I’m expecting them to lay it all on the table in next week’s season finale.

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall.  Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s episode, “Continuum.”

With only two episodes left after tonight, it’s nice to see American Horror Story: Asylum wrapping up the myriad plotlines in favor of bringing the major arcs to a satisfying conclusion.  We’ve already said goodbye to a few of the main players but more and more characters just keep popping up.  Also returning for this episode is my favorite stand-out director of the series, Alfonso Gomez-Rejon.

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall.  Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s episode,”Spilt Milk.”

What better way to kick off 2013 than with a return to FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum?  Tonight’s episode spent a little bit of time getting us reacquainted with our favorite patients and caregivers of Briarcliff, but quickly got back into the crazy head games, battle between good and evil and even threw in a few surprises.  If you were sharp-eyed, you may have even picked up on a teaser about the plot line in the third season of American Horror Story. 

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall.  Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s episode,”The Name Game.”

A new batch of images have popped up from director Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant Slayer. Starring Nicholas Hoult (X-Men: First Class) as the title character, the contemporary fairy tale follows Jack the farmer as he leads an expedition into the land of the giants in order to rescue a kidnapped princess (Eleanor Tomlinson). Hoult and Tomlinson are featured in these new stills and set photos, alongside Ian McShane as King Brahmwell and Ewan McGregor as the knight, Elmont.

Jack the Giant Slayer, also starring Stanley Tucci, Eddie Marsan, Bill Nighy and Warwick Davis, opens March 1, 2013. Hit the jump to see the new images.

Well, we’ve reached the mid-season finale of FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum and what a bloody and cliff-hangery way to end 2012! Not only did we get some carryover from guest star Ian McShane (who was phenomenal last week), but Frances Conroy also featured in tonight’s story. But those weren’t the biggest surprises as we were left with a shocking cliff-hanger that will have to wait until 2013 for a resolution.

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall. Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s episode,”The Coat Hanger.”

No one does Christmastime quite like FX’s American Horror Story: Asylum. The first season featured quite the climax with the Harmon family gathered round the Christmas tree; the feel-goods are not so joyous this time around. Featuring Ian McShane (Deadwood) as a deranged Santa Claus, tonight’s episode wasn’t just a fantastic addition to the series so far, but a stand-alone dark holiday classic.

American Horror Story: Asylum stars Jessica Lange, Zachary Quinto, Evan Peters, Sarah Paulson and Lily Rabe, along with newcomers Adam Levine, Jenna Dewan-Tatum, James Cromwell, Joseph Fiennes, Chloe Sevigny, Lizzie Brochere and Clea Duvall. Hit the jump for the recap and review of tonight’s episode, “Unholy Night.”

A new trailer for director Bryan Singer’s Jack the Giant Slayer has been released.  Based on the classic tale, the film tells the story of an ancient war that is reignited when a young boy (Nicholas Hoult) unknowingly opens a gate between the world of humans and the world of giants.  This trailer is much more effective than the previous one, as it does a nice job of teasing the epic scope of the fantasy world while also highlighting some of the pic’s promising humor.  Some of the CG still looks a bit spotty, but the performances from Ewan McGregor and the always reliable Stanley Tucci look particularly promising.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  The film also stars Eleanor Tomlinson, Ian McShane, and Bill Nighy.  Jack the Giant Slayer opens in 3D IMAX on March 1, 2013.

Snow White and the Huntsman is part – and in some ways a culmination – of the worst instincts of big budgets Hollywood fantasies. It tries to combine the appeal of the Lord of the Rings films with a known property, Campbellian archetypes and a more dark and serious take on fantasy material. It’s garbage, easily one of the worst films of 2012. Kristen Stewart, Chris Hemsworth and Charlize Theron lead the cast in this botched adaptation of the children’s classic. Our review of the film on Blu-ray follows after the jump.

If you haven’t been following along with the developments of Cuban Fury, starring Nick Frost (Paul), Rashida Jones (I Love You, Man) and Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids), this new video blog will get you up to speed.  The behind-the-scenes featurette shows off the first look at footage from the dance comedy.  Cuban Fury stars Frost as a former salsa prodigy who attempts to regain his dancing form in order to impress his new American boss (Jones) with O’Dowd acting as a cock block.  James Griffiths (Up All Night) directs from a Jon Brown (Mongrels) script.  Cuban Fury, also starring Ian McShane (Snow White and the Huntsman) as Frost’s dance instructor, opens March 22nd of next year in the UK and Ireland.  Hit the jump to check out the video. 

A couple of new release dates have been announced.  First up, Lee Daniels’ adaptation of The Paperboy will hit theaters on October 5th (per Deadline).  The film stars Matthew McConaughey and Zac Efron as two brothers who team-up to investigate the potential wrongful conviction of a death-row inmate played by John Cusack.  The film was met with a less-than-enthusiastic response at the Cannes Film Festival, but I’m still interested in seeing the pic based on the impressive cast.  The drama faces considerable competition on that October release date, as Frankenweenie, Taken 2, the a capella comedy Pitch Perfect and the horror film Sinister all open on the same day.

Additionally, Studio Canal and Big Talk Pictures have set the salsa dancing revenge comedy (how’s that for a genre?) Cuban Fury for release on March 22nd in the UK and Ireland.  Nick Frost plays a burgeoning salsa dancing star alongside Rashida Jones, Chris O’Dowd (Bridesmaids), Olivia Colman (Hot Fuzz) and Ian McShane.  Production begins next week in London, and hopefully we’ll get a US release date announcement soon.  Hit the jump to read the press release.