For all of the uneasiness I felt watching The Internship play as a not so subtle promo for Google’s portfolio of services (what in the hell is Google Wallet?), the movie painted a dichotomy that I found interesting. While far from perfect, I thought the film did a nice job of contrasting the eternal optimism of a couple Gen X’ers with the often harsh practicality and cynicism I see embedded in myself and many of my fellow Millennials. Although this is hardly the platform from which to dive into a generational debate, The Internship at least introduced the idea that belonging to a generation that has had the wealth of the world’s knowledge at their fingertips for a good portion of their lives (not to mention video games and the lack of a military draft) faces a whole new set of unique challenges and insecurities. At the same time, it also sent an oft-overlooked truth that we (Millennials) don’t know it all, haven’t seen it all, and the “Culture of Meh” that we often embrace is cynical bullshit that I can only hope life experience will help pull us out of.

In addition to my “meh” soapbox, this week’s Top 5 offers The Internship interviews with Vince Vaughn, Owen Wilson, and Rose Byrne, the first trailer and a set visit recap for director James Wan‘s Insidious: Chapter 2, a truckload of set images from X-Men: Days of Future Past, The Purge interviews with Ethan Hawke and more, and a look at the WGA’s list of the “101 Best Written TV Series of All Time”. Check out a brief recap and link to each after the jump.

FilmDistrict has released the first trailer and images for director James Wan’s horror sequel Insidious: Chapter 2.  The majority of the cast from the first film returns in this follow-up, which finds the Lambert family trying to uncover the mysteries behind the childhood secret that has made them prone to some rather spooky paranormal events.  Having not seen the first film, I don’t necessarily find anything in this trailer scary (Wan’s other 2013 horror film The Conjuring, on the other hand, looks terrifying).  Chapter 2 almost looks like more of a thriller than a horror pic, but I’m sure fans of the first movie will be glad to wade back into the world of Insidious this fall.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer, and click here to check out our recap from the trailer event and Q&A with Wan.  The film stars Ty Simpkins, Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, and Lin Shaye.  Insidious: Chapter 2 opens on September 13th.

Last night, James Wan took the stage at the Linda Vista Hospital to unveil the trailer for Insidious: Chapter 2 and answer some fan questions about the making of the film.  We were on hand to get a first look at the trailer and see what insights Wan had to offer.  The trailer looks solid, with a couple good scares and a similar tone to the first film, it looks like the sequel will inhabit and explore the creepy world established in Insidious and find new ways to scare the haunted Lambert family anew.  While we were there we also got a tour of the abandoned hospital, which was used for a number of locations in the film, and even though I was there for the set visit a few months ago it was definitely cool to get a more extensive look at the layout of the hospital.  It’s obvious why filmmaker after filmmaker chooses to shoot there, the location is soaked in atmosphere and I can’t wait to see how it looks in the film.

Insidious ended up being one of the surprise hits of 2011 and the anticipated sequel reunites Wan with writer Leigh Whannell and the entire cast from the first film.  Insidious: Chapter 2 opens September 23rd and stars Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Lin Shaye, Barbara Hershey, Ty Simpkins and Jocelin Donahue.  Check out the highlights from Wan’s Q&A after the jump.

One of the things that most impresses me about Blumhouse Productions it’s the smart way they’re making movies.  Through clever budgeting and location Blumhouse consistently manages to secure impressive talent for their projects, both in front and behind the camera, endowing their films with a credibility and quality that is unusual on the low-budget horror circuit.  Insidious was one of the films that helped set this trend for the company, and one of the most exciting things about the sequel is that they’re bringing back the whole bunch for round two.  Back in March I got to visit the set of Insidious: Chapter 2 and see firsthand the chemistry between the cast and crew, their enthusiasm to be working together again, and how thoughtful they all are about the work they’re doing.

During a break in filming, I sat down with a few other journalists for a press conference with Director James Wan, Writer Leigh Whannell, Producer Jason Blum, and actors Patrick Wilson, Rose Byrne, Lin Shaye, and Barbara Hershey.  They talked about the higher stakes of the sequel, what makes Chapter 2 unique, exploring the world established in the first film, what we’ll see in the Further, shooting at Linda Vista Hospital, and a lot more.  Check out what they had to say after the jump.

As we approach the release of the sixth film in the Fast and Furious franchise, it’s a bit crazy to think that the series is actually at the top of its game this far in.  The worldwide box office total of 2011’s Fast Five doubled that of the second-highest grossing entry in the series, Fast & Furious, and now director Justin Lin’s Fast & Furious 6 is poised to be one of the biggest films of a very crowded summer.

Steve recently spoke with producer Neal Moritz for an extended interview, and during their conversation he talked extensively about what fans can expect from Fast & Furious 6 as well as the progress on the very fast-moving Fast & Furious 7, which was recently announced for a summer 2014 release.  Moritz confirmed that James Wan will be directing the next installment and talked about why they chose the Saw director to step into the franchise, and he also assured us that Dwayne Johnson will indeed be returning.  Hit the jump for much, much more.

We already knew that Universal was wasting no time in moving forward on Fast & Furious 7, and today at the studio’s CinemaCon presentation, Vin Diesel announced that the next installment is due out on July 11, 2014.  No details are known other than filming begins this summer, Diesel will return alongside Paul Walker, and James Wan (Insidious) is set to direct.

While I assume Universal would try to round up cast members other than Diesel and Walker, the involvement of Dwayne Johnson is a bit up in the air.  In a recent interview with Steve, Johnson seemed doubtful that production would begin so soon, but if Universal wants to hit that July 2014 release date, filming has to begin ASAP.  Johnson could be a little out of the loop on this, so either his character won’t be in the seventh installment, or it will be a minor role since filming on Fast & Furious 7 will conflict his shooting schedule on Brett Ratner’s Hercules.

With CinemaCon starting tomorrow in Las Vegas, I arrived earlier today to take pictures of the new posters on display.  For those unaware, CinemaCon is a convention put on for theater owners in order to get a look at what the studios have to offer for the rest of the year, and where vendors can show new products for theaters to buy.  It’s basically Comic-Con for theater owners.  Besides showing off never before seen footage, the studios often bring the cast and the filmmakers.  Over the course of a few days, Hollywood comes to Las Vegas.  So over the next few days expect tons of updates.  I’ll have new posters, thoughts on the new movie footage, and exclusives interviews.  It should be a fun week.

To start things off, I just spotted the first posters for Spike Lee’s Oldboy and James Wan’s Insidious: Chapter 2.  Hit the jump to check them out.

We learned last week that Justin Lin, the director of the last four Fast & Furious movies, will not return to direct the seventh movie in the series after Fast & Furious 6.  This is a big franchise for Universal—the studio may shoot as early Fast Seven this summer for a 2014 release, but to do so they need a director.  Universal reportedly spoke to Baltazar Kormakur (Contraband), Jeff Wadlow (Kick-Ass 2), and Harold Zwart (The Karate Kid) about the job, but Deadline expects James Wan to sign a deal by the end of the week.  Wan made his name as the director of Saw.  His last film was the surprise hit Insidious, and Wan is currently in post-production on Insidious: Chapter 2.

Hit the jump to read what Lin had to say on the choice of Wan, plus a rundown on what we know about Fast & Furious 7 so far.

Warner Bros. has released the first full-length trailer for director James Wan’s (Saw, Insidious) upcoming horror film The Conjuring.  The first trailer for the film was a genuinely terrifying clip that showcased the kinds of scares Wan has crafted for this latest horror pic, and this new full trailer is no less terrifying.  The film is based on the story of the Perron family who inhabited a haunted Rhode Island farmhouse in the 1970s.  Lili Taylor and Ron Livingston play the Perrons, and Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson play a husband and wife team of psychic investigators who encounter the most horrifying case of their career.  Wan recently told the audience at WonderCon that the film received an R-rating simply for being “too scary,” and I’m now fairly certain that I’ll be watching this one through covered eyes this summer.

Hit the jump to watch the new trailer, click here to read Dave’s recap of the film’s WonderCon panel, and click here to read our interview with Wan.  The pic also stars Joey King and Mackenzie Foy.  The Conjuring opens on July 19th.

James Wan, the talented filmmaker behind Saw and Insidious, was on hand this at WonderCon (ComicCon’s little brother) this weekend to promote his newest horror/ghost-story The Conjuring.  Much like Insidious, the film focuses on the haunting of a family and the paranormal investigators tasked with ending such woes.  However unlike Insidious, The Conjuring purports to be a true story.  There really was a Perron family – and they (per Andrea Perron’s book and recollections) really were haunted by the supernatural for close to nearly a decade.  The validity of such claims seems like a moot point – as based on the quick teaser and footage shown, the film seems terrifying enough on its own be it fictional or not.

In the following video interview with Wan, he discloses his fascination with ‘true’ supernatural tales, the testing process on The Conjuring and when the next trailer for the film is set to premiere.  Hit the jump to watch.

Today at WonderCon, the Warner Bros. panel featuring a presentation from James Wan’s The Conjuring.  Wan set the tone for the panel by presenting two creepy clips that sent waves of nervous energy coursing through the audience.  The footage got great crowd reactions and will certainly create some buzz leading up to the film’s summer release date.  Also on hand were members of the real-life victims of this particular haunting and the original paranormal investigators upon which the film is based.

The Conjuring, opening July 19th, stars Vera Farmiga, Patrick Wilson, Ron Livingston, Lili Taylor, Joey King and Mackenzie Foy.  Hit the jump for our panel recap. 

Every once in a while I use this space to tout a recently released Blu-ray/DVD that I missed in theaters but, via the magic of home video, was finally able to check out from the comfort of my couch (click here to see me gush about The Perks of Being a Wallflower). Today I’ll do the same by encouraging you to check out co-writer/director Scott Derrickson‘s horror pic Sinister. There’s nothing spectacular going on here, it’s just an effective movie with several scenes that I found genuinely frightening/disturbing. Moreover, it’s probably the last widely-released horror entry since Insidious that left me turning some of the lights on in the house shortly after it ended.

With my “Super Cool Blu-ray Pick of the Week” out of the way, this week’s Top 5 includes interviews from the set of The Incredible Burt Wonderstone, some drama-inducing first set images from The Amazing Spider-Man 2, a set visit recap and interviews for Park Chan-wook‘s Stoker, Jack the Giant Slayer interviews, and the first trailer and poster for director James Wan‘s The Conjuring. As you may expect, a brief recap and link to each of these can be found completely free of charge after the jump.

Warner Bros. has released the incredibly creepy first trailer and poster for director James Wan’s (Insidious, Saw) horror film The Conjuring.  The pic is based on the story of the Perron family who inhabited a haunted Rhode Island farmhouse in the 1970s.  Lili Taylor and Ron Livingston play the Perrons, and Vera Farmiga and Patrick Wilson play a husband and wife team of psychic investigators who encounter the most horrifying case of their career.  The film’s release date was moved into the middle of the summer after some through-the-roof test screening responses, and from this trailer I can most certainly see why.  Horror films rarely frighten me, but I found this incredibly well-cut trailer to be extremely effective and just a little bit terrifying.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster, and click here to read Matt’s positive recap of the film’s New York Comic-Con panel.  The film also stars Joey King, Mackenzie Foy, and Shanley Caswell.  The Conjuring opens on July 19th.

Check out the latest casting news below:

• Frank Langella (Frost/Nixon) has signed on for director Mike Newell’s political drama Reykjavik as Paul Nitze, the U.S. Secretary of the Navy and Ronald Reagan’s senior adviser.
• Kevin Durand (Real Steel) reunites with Devil’s Knot director Atom Egoyan for Queen of the Night, starring Ryan Reynolds, Mireille Enos, Scott Speedman, Rosario Dawson and Alexia Fast.
• Cody Horn (End of Watch) joins the untitled thriller written by James Wan (Insidious) and directed by Will Cannon (Brotherhood).  The paranormal pic already stars Frank Grillo (The Grey) and Maria Bello (A History of Violence).

Hit the jump for more on each picture.

Check out the latest casting news below:

• Rosario Dawson (Sin City) will join Queen of the Night, the Atom Egoyan thriller that stars Ryan Reynolds, Scott Speedman and Mireille Enos.
• Frank Grillo (The Grey) and Maria Bello (A History of Violence) will star in a James Wan-presented thriller, possibly titled House of Horror, to be directed by Will Canon (Brotherhood).
• Peter Facinelli (The Twilight Saga) and Yuliya Snigir (A Good Day to Die Hard) join the cast of Freezer, an action/thriller directed by Mikael Salomon and starring Dylan McDermott.
• Richard Cetrone and Revard Dufresne, who each had stunt/small roles in Sucker Punch, will fill out the villainous contingent of Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel presumably as General Zod’s henchmen.

Hit the jump for more on each casting announcement.