J.K. Simmons

CONTRABAND Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: May 9th, 2012 at 5:58 am

It’s nice to see a down and dirty action movie, and Contraband offers a number of things that are fun. It’s got Mark Wahlberg in the lead, and a supporting cast that includes Kate Beckinsale, J.K. Simmons, Ben Foster, Giovanni Ribisi, and Lukas Hass.  It’s got a no-nonsense plot about smuggling, and at least one good shootout. But it’s also imminently forgettable. Our review of the Blu-ray of Contraband follows after the jump.

Watch the First Episode of THE LEGEND OF KORRA, the Sequel to AVATAR: THE LAST AIRBENDER

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: March 24th, 2012 at 11:54 am

Long before M. Night Shyamalan tainted the name of Avatar: The Last Airbender with his awful feature adaptation, millions of fans around the world were able to enjoy the animated Nickelodeon adventure series. When the show ended its three season run, those same fans were left wondering if and when their favorite characters would ever return. Luckily, Nickelodeon put the show’s sequel, The Legend of Korra into production. From creators Michael Dante DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko, The Legend of Korra occurs 70 years after the original. The new avatar is a young woman named  Korra who finds herself in Republic City, the capital of the unified nations. Judging from the trailer, sneak peeks and first episode, the sequel is everything the original was and more. The show is slated for an April 14th premiere but you can get an early look at the first episode of The Legend of Korra right here! Hit the jump to check it out.

Emilie de Ravin Joins ABC Pilot Drama AMERICANA; Other Networks Continue to Wrap Up Casting

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: February 24th, 2012 at 9:26 pm

Lost alumna Emilie de Ravin has a recurring role on ABC’s freshman drama, Once Upon a Time, but has recently landed another pilot for the network. She is set to co-star in Americana, a soap revolving around a famous fashion family. Here are some other recent casting additions:

• Twilight’s Edi Gathegi will star opposite Kyle Bornheimer in the ABC comedy pilot, White Van Man.
• The CW has added Nicole Gale Anderson and Nina Lisandrello to their Beauty and the Beast drama pilot.
• Martin Landau will team up with Roland Emmerich for an untitled ABC drama pilot.
• Another Twilight alum, Chaske Spencer will join Ethan Embry, Megan Ferguson and Jake McLaughlin in NBC’s Western drama pilot, The Frontier.

Hit the jump for more on each project.

5 Movie Clips and 16 Images from CONTRABAND

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 7th, 2012 at 5:11 pm

We’ve been provided with five clips and sixteen images from director Baltasar Kormákur’s crime thriller Contraband. The film is set in the world of international smuggling and stars Mark Wahlberg as a man trying to escape his days as a criminal. When his brother-in-law (Caleb Landry Jones) botches a deal, Wahlberg’s character must settle his brother-in-law’s debt in order to keep him safe from a drug boss (Giovanni Ribisi).  The film also stars Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster, J.K. Simmons, and Diego Luna.

Hit the jump to check out the clips and images.  Contraband opens January 13th, 2012.

Synopses and Info on 2012 Lionsgate Films Including the EVIL DEAD Remake, Spike Lee’s OLD BOY, MURDER OF A CAT, FLIGHT 7500, and More

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: October 31st, 2011 at 12:17 pm

Each year, a number of films are presented and sold at the American Film Market in Santa Monica. The 2011 AFM takes place this week, and in preparation for the AFM, Lionsgate has compiled production information and synopses for the properties that they plan to sell at the convention to both domestic and international buyers (for the territories that they have the rights). Lucky for us, that info is now public, and we’ve pulled together cast, director, and writer information as well as official synopses for some high profile 2012 Lionsgate films. We’ve got info on the Evil Dead remake, Spike Lee’s English-language adaptation of the now classic Park Chan-wook film Old Boy, Diablo Cody’s directorial debut, the comedy Murder of a Cat starring Jay Baruchel, Alison Pill, and Rob Lowe, and much more. Hit the jump for all the details.

First Trailer for Jason Reitman’s YOUNG ADULT [Updated with Alternate Trailer]

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 6th, 2011 at 11:24 am

The first trailer for Jason Reitman’s Young Adult has gone online.  Written by Diablo Cody, the story centers on an alcoholic writer of young adult fiction (Charlize Theron) who decides to return to her small hometown and pursue her high-school boyfriend (Patrick Wilson) even though he’s now happily married and has a young child.  What I dig about this trailer is that it is almost entirely devoid of sentiment.   Charlize Theron’s character is apparently just a sad, selfish person and Theron looks like she’s having some fun with the role when she’s not giving a dead-eyed stare. The film also stars Patton Oswalt, J.K. Simmons, and Elizabeth Reaser.  Young Adult opens in limited release on December 2nd and expands nationwide the following weekend. [Update: Hit the jump to check out an alternate, slightly raunchy trailer]

New Trailer and Images for CONTRABAND Starring Mark Wahlberg, Kate Beckinsale, Ben Foster, and Giovanni Ribisi

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 29th, 2011 at 10:44 am

The trailer for Contraband has gone online and I have no idea what differentiates it from other Mark Wahlberg crime movies.  He’s either a cop or a good-guy criminal and in this movie he’s the latter.  He plays a former smuggler who’s called back into the game when his brother-in-law (X-Men: First Class‘ Caleb Landry Jones) steals from the wrong gangster (Giovanni Ribisi with a bizarre, distracting accent).  Wahlberg then puts together a team of crooks (including characters played by Ben Foster and Lukas Haas) and it looks a little like The Italian Job with smuggling and cool duct tape masks.  Hopefully, the film will have something to make it stand apart from other movies where Wahlberg plays a frantic, hard-nosed character.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and a number of new images.  The film also stars Kate Beckinsale, J.K. Simmons, and Diego Luna.  Contraband opens January 13, 2012.

First Poster for Jason Reitman’s YOUNG ADULT Starring Charlize Theron [UPDATED]

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: September 6th, 2011 at 8:01 am

The first poster for Jason Reitman’s Young Adult has gone online and it’s pretty great.  The film centers on an alcoholic writer (Charlize Theron) who writes young adult novels (hence the design of the poster) and decides to return to her small town to pursue her high-school boyfriend (Patrick Wilson) who is now happily married with a young child.  This leads Theron’s character to another high-school classmate played by Patton Oswalt.  It’s a good cast, Reitman makes pretty good movies, and the script is from Diablo Cody.  Young Adult is being billed as a darker movie than Reitman’s previous work and it’s skipping the festival circuit in favor of a limited release on December 2nd and a wide release the following weekend.  However, because of the re-teaming of Reitman and Cody, the Juno comparison will be inevitable despite the drastically different story and tone.

Hit the jump to check out the poster. [Update: We have updated the poster with a hi-res version]

Olivia Wilde, J.K. Simmons and Ben Barnes Join Bradley Cooper in THE WORDS

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: June 2nd, 2011 at 5:05 pm

The cast for Tron: Legacy scribes Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal’s directorial debut The Words continues to grow. Olivia Wilde, J.K. Simmons and Ben Barnes (The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian) have joined a cast that also includes Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Irons, Zoe Saldana and Dennis Quaid. The drama centers on a writer at the peak of his success (Cooper) who must pay the price for stealing the work of another author (Irons). Not much else is known about the project at this time, but the cast is looking pretty impressive. Filming is set to get underway this month. Wilde will be dominating theaters this year, as she’s starring in Jon Favreau’s Cowboys and Aliens, the Jason Bateman/Ryan Reynolds body-swap comedy The Change-Up and Andrew Niccol’s sci-fi thriller In Time. Hit the jump to read the full press release.

Images and Voice Cast for THE LAST AIRBENDER: THE LEGEND OF KORRA

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: March 7th, 2011 at 9:31 pm

Oh, The Last Airbender, you stupid movie.  You are the first thing most people think of when they hear “The Last Airbender,” and I hate you for that.  There’s such a fantastic mythology at the heart of the Nickelodeon cartoon Avatar: The Last Airbender, all of which was referenced but never explored in the lifeless film adaptation.

Avatar creators Michael DiMartino and Bryan Konietzko are on a mission to reclaim the phrase “The Last Airbender” with The Legend of Korra, a new series set 70 years later when rebellious teenage girl Korra becomes the new avatar.  The voice cast has been announced: Janet Varney will play Kara — Kiernan Shipka, Daniel Dae Kim, David Faustino, Seychelle Gabriel , Lance Henriksen, P.J. Byrne, and JK Simmons will supply additional voices.

The Legend of Korra is scheduled to premiere sometime in 2012.  Check out two new images after the break.

Trailer and Poster for THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED Starring J.K. Simmons and Lou Taylor Pucci

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 7th, 2011 at 2:26 pm

Roadside Attractions has released the trailer and poster for the The Music Never Stopped.  I caught the film at Sundance and while I found it to be schmaltzy, it was still enjoyable because of the strong performances from lead actors J.K. Simmons and Lou Taylor Pucci.

If you were curious about the movie but didn’t have 90 minutes to kill, this trailer does you the service of condensing the entire picture down to two minutes and thirty seconds.  If that’s what you want, then hit the jump to check out the trailer as well as the poster.  The Music Never Stopped also stars Cara Seymour and Julia Ormond.  The film opens March 4th.

Sundance 2011: THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED Review

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: January 21st, 2011 at 11:36 am

Schmaltz isn’t always a bad thing.  It’s just usually a bad thing since it tells us how to feel, eschews genuine emotion in favor of forced sentiment, and cheapens emotional payoff.  The Music Never Stopped is undoubtedly schmaltzy.  It’s a feel-good father-son relationship story that relies on nostalgia of classic rock in order to bolster its real-life narrative about a brain-damaged man tapping into his memories through the songs he loved.  However, the film never gets to the point where the sappiness is unbearable, and that in large part is due to the tremendous performances of lead actors J.K. Simmons and Lou Taylor Pucci.

Sundance 2011: First Images from THE DETAILS Starring Tobey Maguire and THE MUSIC NEVER STOPPED Starring J.K. Simmons and Lou Taylor Pucci

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: December 21st, 2010 at 1:27 pm

While the Sundance Film Festival doesn’t begin until January, we’re bringing you the first images from films that will be screened at the festival. Today we bring you two films that will premiere out-of-competition at the festival: The Details and The Music Never Stopped. The Details stars Tobey Maguire, Elizabeth Banks, Laura Linney, Ray Liotta, and Dennis Haysbert. The film tells the story of the chain reaction of events that occur following the discovery of worms living under the sod in a couple’s backyard by raccoons.

The Music Never Stopped stars J.K. Simmons, Julia Ormond, Cara Seymour, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Mia Maestro. The film centers on a father attempting to connect with his son, whose brain tumor prevents him from forming new memories. Hit the jump to check out images, as well as a brief synopsis for both films. The 2011 Sundance Film Festival runs from January 20 – 30th.

Orlando Bloom Is THE GOOD DOCTOR (and Not a Bad Dentist)

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 2nd, 2010 at 9:57 am

Orlando Bloom has made us belief he’s an elf, a pirate, and a crusader, so it shouldn’t be too much of a stretch to convince us that he’s a doctor with a medical license and a stethoscope and everything.  THR reports that he’ll topline the indie “Hitchockian” thriller The Good Doctor, which is about, “a frustrated doctor looking to impress his superiors and colleagues. When his 18-year-old patient, admitted for a kidney infection, provides him with the esteem he so craves, the doctor tampers with her treatment so that she’ll have to stay at the hospital with him.”  So remember, next time you go to the hospital, make sure your doctor is feeling good about himself.  My advice for Bloom’s character would be to go look in the mirror and realize he looks like Orlando Bloom.

Michael Pena, Troy Garity, Courtney Ford, Taraji P. Henson, Rob Morrow and J.K. Simmons are in negotiations to co-star.  Here’s how THR breaks down Pena, Garity, and Ford’s roles: “Pena will play an orderly who discovers the doctor’s budding relationship and blackmails him for prescription painkillers. Garity is a successful, self-assured doctor, a counterpoint to Bloom. Ford is a woman who has eyes for Bloom’s character.”

EXTRACT Blu-ray Review

by Andre Dellamorte    Posted: January 5th, 2010 at 9:57 am

Mike Judge is a great comic observer. It’s apparent from most of his work that he likes to record how humans interact, how they bounce off the other’s peculiarities, and he has a special fondness for workplace absurdities. Judge’s 2009 film Extract – which follows the owner (Jason Bateman) of a Vanilla extract bottling plant as he struggles with selling his company and a wife that has become frigid – is all about the small details. Though the film never amounts to much, there are a number of wry, memorable moments to savor from the movie. My review of Extract after the jump.

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