Michael Shannon

First Trailer and Poster for RETURN Starring Linda Cardellini and Michael Shannon

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: January 4th, 2012 at 4:45 pm

A trailer for the drama Return has gone online. The film stars Linda Cardellini (Freaks and Geeks) as a returned soldier struggling to fit back into the life she left behind. It’s a familiar story that’s been told quite a few times before, but Return tells it from a female’s point of view. It’s hard to judge the movie based on the trailer as its success will likely hinge on the performances, but Cardellini looks to be doing some solid work here. We don’t see much of co-stars Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire) and John Slattery (Mad Men), but the trailer’s more a mood piece than a full-on plot explanation.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer. Directed by Liza Johnson, Return opens in select theaters February 10th and will be available VOD on February 28th.

BOARDWALK EMPIRE Season One Blu-ray Review

by Rob Vaux    Posted: January 2nd, 2012 at 7:00 am

HBO’s Boardwalk Empire follows in a long line of prestige series produced by the cable network, which actually works against it a little bit. It’s hard to get excited about yet another must-see series from them, especially after the infamous letdown of The Sopranos finale and the way the network botched other great shows like Deadwood and Carnivale.  One hopes, however, that those harsh lessons have been well-learned, and with Boardwalk Empire now a bona fide hit, HBO has a chance to capitalize on the very high standard that the first season sets. The new Blu-ray collection does the show justice, and makes an exquisite New Year’s present for faithful fans. Hit the jump for my full review of the first season of Boardwalk Empire on Blu-ray.

TOP 5: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES, Movie Stars Portray Famous Movie Villains, TRANSFORMERS 4, QUANTUM OF SOLACE Script Problems, Kathleen Kennedy Talks JURASSIC PARK 4, TINTIN, More

by Jason Barr    Posted: December 10th, 2011 at 12:40 pm

I think there’s something to be said for coming to your own conclusions. Case in point: I may currently be at odds with 77% of the Rotten Tomatoes critic community when I say this, but I found The Sitter to be worthy of my box office dollars. Was it the best comedy I’ve ever seen? Not even close. Was it the best comedy I’ve seen in the past six months? Nope. That said, I had been looking forward to the pic over the course of covering it for this site. When the critical negativity began pouring in, I could have easily passed on the film as a result (something I’ve been guilty of in the past). Instead, I decided to check it out and I laughed (quite a bit, actually). So, what’s the moral of my story? If you want to see a movie, go see it. Don’t let poor reviews detour you from something you think you may enjoy. Use reviews as a foundation for healthy debate rather than as an excuse to not give something a chance because someone else didn’t like it.

All ranting aside, in this week’s “Top 5″ installment, you’ll be able to read all about The Dark Knight Rises and its IMAX prologue, viral campaign, and potential IMAX footage runtime. You can also see George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Rooney Mara and more portraying classic movie “villains” of their choice, get up to date on Michael Bay potentially returning to direct Transformers 4, Daniel Craig discussing the script problems that plagued Quantum of Solace, and producer Kathleen Kennedy talking Jurassic Park 4, Tintin, Lincoln, and Robopocalypse. Check out a brief recap and link to each after the jump.

New Set Photos from SUPERMAN: MAN OF STEEL and Paul Thomas Anderson’s THE MASTER

by Brendan Bettinger    Posted: December 10th, 2011 at 11:11 am

This article highlights both extremes on the spectrum of set photos, using two movie starring Amy Adams as examples. On one hand, you’ve got the blurry candids of Henry Cavill as Superman and Michael Shannon as General Zod on the set of Superman: Man of Steel. Not especially revealing, but Superman! Zod!

On the other hand, we have gorgeous black-and-white photographs taken on the set of Paul Thomas Anderson‘s religious cult picture The Master. No stars or supervillains, but arguably more insightful into the process as a look at the period detail on the 1950s-era costumes and sets. Hit the jump to see the images plus background on both films.

Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Rooney Mara and More Portray Famous Movie Villains

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: December 7th, 2011 at 12:06 pm

Well here’s one of the coolest stories you’ll see all week. A number of fantastic actors have gotten together to recreate some of the greatest villains in movie history. Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Rooney Mara, Ryan Gosling, Gary Oldman, Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, and many more are all part of director Alex Prager’s “Touch of Evil” project. The video gallery features each performer uniquely taking on the persona of an iconic villain.

Some of the characters are deep cuts, with Pitt as Henry Spencer from Eraserhead, Clooney as Captain Bligh in Mutiny on the Bounty, Mara as Alex from A Clockwork Orange, and Oldman genuinely unrecognizable as the ventriloquist dummy from Magic. Other highlights include Viola Davis channeling Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest and Michael Shannon as Wall Street’s Gordon Gecko. It appears that the actors chose the characters themselves, which makes this all the more impressive. Hit the jump to check out the images.

Independent Spirit Awards Nominations Announced; DRIVE, 50/50, and THE ARTIST Up for Top Prize

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: November 29th, 2011 at 9:15 am

The nominations for the 27th Annual Independent Spirit Awards were announced this morning with The Artist and Take Shelter each nabbing five nominations. In addition to The Artist and Take Shelter, Drive, 50/50, The Descendants, and Beginners will duke it out for the top prize. Absent from the Best Feature list is Woody Allen’s Midnight in Paris, though the film was recognized in Best Supporting Male (Corey Stoll) and Best Cinematography. Also of note, Elizabeth Olsen and John Hawkes landed nominations for Best Actress and Best Supporting Male for Martha Marcy May Marlene, and Ryan Gosling and Woody Harrelson were both singled out in Best Actor for Drive and Rampart respectively.

Hit the jump to check out the full list of nominations. Recognizing the best in independent film, the awards will be handed out on February 25th, the day before the Oscars.

Michael Shannon Talks BOARDWALK EMPIRE, MAN OF STEEL, and Future Projects

by Christina Radish    Posted: October 31st, 2011 at 9:19 am

On the HBO drama series Boardwalk Empire, actor Michael Shannon plays Agent Nelson Van Alden, a Senior Prohibition Agent with the Department of Internal Revenue. He approaches his work with the zeal of a man on a mission, and will go to almost any lengths to uncover the corruption that he believes to be the root of all evil.

During a recent interview to promote Season 2, Michael Shannon talked about how nice it was to be invited to be a part of Boardwalk Empire, doing a long-term TV series where he never knows what to expect, the depths of despair and misery that his character is facing, how fortunate he feels to be so successful, at this point in his career, and how unprepared he is for the onslaught that comes with being part of a film like Man of Steel, due out in the summer of 2013. Check out what he had to say, along with highlights from the interview, after the jump:

PREMIUM RUSH, Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Moves to August 24, 2012

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 21st, 2011 at 9:48 am

Sony Pictures has moved David Koepp’s small-scale action-thriller Premium Rush from January 13, 2012 to August 24th.  The movie stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as a bike messenger who has a routine delivery turn in to a life-and-death situation when he picks up a package wanted by a corrupt cop (Michael Shannon).  Sony must think they have something if they’re moving the film out of the January wasteland to the summer movie season.  The movie joins Men in Black 3, The Amazing Spider-Man, and Total Recall as Sony’s summer 2012 fare.  The Kevin James comedy Here Comes the Boom was previously slated to be in that group but was recently moved to October 12, 2012.

Box Office Mojo reports that Premium Rush currently has no competition on the August 24th date.  Hit the jump to check out the trailer.

Russell Crowe Talks MAN OF STEEL Fight Scene

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: October 19th, 2011 at 10:51 am

Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel is now deep into production, as evidenced by the many, many set photos that have leaked to the interwebs. Today we don’t have any set photos, but Russell Crowe has let loose a possibly spoilery detail. The actor plays Jor-el (Superman’s biological father, for the nerd-deficient), and earlier today he tweeted about a fight scene that he’s been filming with a certain cast member. Details of the scene in question could be considered potential spoilers, so I’ll keep it clean here on the front page. Hit the jump for the details.

Director Jeff Nichols Brings Michael Shannon, Sarah Paulson, and Sam Shepard to MUD

by Dave Trumbore    Posted: September 26th, 2011 at 7:15 pm

Actor Michael Shannon is once again reuniting with director Jeff Nichols for his next project. The duo have previously worked together on the critically acclaimed Shotgun Stories and Take Shelter, and now turn their sights to Mud. Production on the “Deep South” drama penned by Nichols began today in Arkansas. The coming-of-age tale centers on two boys who come upon a fugitive hiding out on an island in the Mississippi. Excited at the prospect of danger and adventure, they enter into a pact together to help the man escape and reunite him with his lost love. Mud also stars Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon and Tye Sheridan (The Tree of Life).

Other recent additions to the cast of Mud include Sam Shepard (The Notebook), Sarah Paulson (Serenity), Ray McKinnon (The Blind Side), Joe Don Baker (Goldeneye) and Paul Sparks (Boardwalk Empire). Hit the jump for more info on the principal cast and full press release.

FANTASTIC FEST 2011: TAKE SHELTER Review

by Scott Wampler    Posted: September 26th, 2011 at 5:27 am

Austin filmmaker Jeff Nichols’ Take Shelter has been building buzz for some time now, ever since a compelling trailer arrived online a few months back…and particularly after the film enjoyed a rave-review-filled run up at the TIFF.  This weekend, Fantastic Fest’s programmers managed to snag the film for a very special, one-time-only screening for the film geeks currently mobbing the Alamo Drafthouse, and it’d be fair to say that the screening was just as difficult to get into as last night’s You’re Next screening.  Anticipation was running high, the TIFF hype had done its job, and the screening was appropriately exclusive—but did the film live up to the hype?  You’re gonna have to read on to find out, folks.

Exclusive: Michael Shannon Talks MACHINE GUN PREACHER, MAN OF STEEL, BOARDWALK EMPIRE and THE ICEMAN

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: September 21st, 2011 at 4:48 pm

At this year’s Toronto Film Festival, I was able to speak with Michael Shannon about co-starring in director Marc Forster’s Machine Gun Preacher.  The movie is based on the real-life story of Sam Childers (played by Gerard Butler), a former drug-dealer who turned his life around and now dedicates it to saving kidnapped and orphaned children in Sudan.  It’s a hell of a story and one that I’m glad got told.  Watch some clips here.

During the interview Shannon talked about being at TIFF, what the last few years have been like as he’s started landing very high profile roles, making Machine Gun Preacher, the kind of research he does, if he prefers a few takes or dozens, Boardwalk Empire, and how he got cast as General Zod in Man of Steel.  In addition, he talked about The Iceman - which is the story of Richard Kuklinski, who was a hit man in New Jersey who kept his criminality secret from his family.  Hit the jump for the interview.

First Trailer for PREMIUM RUSH Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Michael Shannon

by Jason Barr    Posted: September 15th, 2011 at 5:39 pm

The first trailer for co-writer/director David Koepp’s (Ghost Town) action/thriller Premium Rush is now available online. Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Shannon, Jamie Chung, Dania Ramirez and The Daily Show‘s Aasif Mandvi, the film centers on Wilee (Gordon-Levitt), a New York bicycle messenger who has a routine delivery turn into a life or death situation. Based on the trailer, Premium Rush looks to be a stylish thriller and while some of the dialogue may seem a little heavy-handed, I’m willing to take a chance on anything that features both Gordon-Levitt and Shannon.

Check out the trailer for yourself after the jump. Premium Rush hits theaters on January 13, 2012.

New Set Photos from MAN OF STEEL Reveal General Zod in Black Suit

by Adam Chitwood    Posted: September 15th, 2011 at 7:49 am

Some new set photos from Man of Steel have surfaced, this time featuring Michael Shannon’s General Zod decked out in a black suit. Now, this is a bit confusing as Shannon previously confirmed that he would be wearing a motion-capture suit for the duration of filming, meaning that the majority of General Zod would be created in post-production. Today’s images show Shannon wearing a practical suit, with no motion-capture markings. It actually looks like it could be identical, or at least similar, to Henry Cavill’s Superman suit. Maybe it’s a Kryptonian battle suit? At this point, it’s anyone’s guess, but there does seem to be some sort of insignia on the front.

Hit the jump to check out the images, which also include Henry Cavill as Clark Kent cycling down the streets of Chicago. The film stars Cavill, Shannon, Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Julia Ormand, Harry Lennix, Christopher Meloni, and Russell Crowe. Man of Steel opens June 14th, 2013.

Six Movie Clips from MACHINE GUN PREACHER

by Jason Barr    Posted: September 14th, 2011 at 11:44 am

Six new clips from director Marc Forster’s Machine Gun Preacher are now online. Starring Gerard Butler, Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon, the “based on a true story” pic centers on Sam Childers (Butler), a once upon a time drug dealer who turns his life around and dedicates it to saving kidnapped and orphaned children in Sudan. Hit the jump to watch some new footage from the film. Machine Gun Preacher hits limited theaters in the U.S. on September 23rd and opens in the U.K. on November 18th.

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