Pacific Rim feels so far away, and that’s because it kind of is.  We’re a little under two months until the movie’s release, and there are plenty of blockbusters before Guillermo Del Toro‘s monsters-vs-robots picture hits the big screen.  But Warner Bros. is already making sure that TV audiences are aware of the flick, and the first TV spot has been released.  There’s some new footage in here, but every thing I’ve seen just leaves me with the same thought: I need to see this on a movie screen.

Hit the jump to check out the TV spot.  The film stars Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, and Ron Perlman.  Pacific Rim opens in 3D on July 12th.

Another trailer has been released for Guillermo Del Toro‘s Pacific Rim.  The story is kicked off by the emergence of monsters (known as Kaiju) who start a war that devastates humanity.  To fight back, humans build giant robots (known as Jaegers) that are controlled by two pilots.  The latest trailer explains how the Jaegers work, but the main focus is the scale of the kaiji-vs-jaeger battles.  Nothing is really spoiled here, and watching this in a YouTube player is almost a disservice to the size of the action.  I still can’t wait to see this flick up on the big screen.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film stars Charlie Hunnam, Idris Elba, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, and Ron Perlman.  Pacific Rim opens in 3D on July 12th.

Pacific Rim owes a great debt to Japan.  Director Guillermo del Toro‘s upcoming film draws from the country’s monster movies and manga, and in a new Japanese trailer, del Toro acknowledges these influences.  Pacific Rim doesn’t look like a homage as much as it appears to simply be the loving offspring of some of Japan’s most beloved entertainment.  There’s also some new footage lurking about in the trailer, so that’s worth checking out as well.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film stars Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Charlie Day, Clifton Collins Jr., Idris Elba, and Ron Perlman.  Pacific Rim opens in 3D on July 12th.

Guillermo del Toro‘s Pacific Rim had a presentation at this year’s WonderCon, and the response was overwhelmingly positive.  They showed off plenty of new footage in a new trailer for the upcoming giant-monsters-vs-giant-robots flick, and now that trailer has landed online.  As Charlie Day‘s character says, it’s “2,500 tons of awesome.”  The new trailer provides a lot more info on the story, but it’s the visuals that will really blow people away.  I felt bad watching it on my computer monitor because this is a movie that clearly demands to be seen in theaters.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film also stars Charlie Hunnam, Rinko Kikuchi, Clifton Collins Jr., Idris Elba, and Ron Perlman.  Pacific Rim opens in 3D on July 12th.

Emotions have run high in these last few Sons of Anarchy episodes, and while much of it has made up for the unevenness of the season, one wonders how entertaining the full season will be upon rewatch knowing that resolution evades.  Still, “J’ai Obtenu Cette” (which is one hell of an unnecessarily pretentious title) was in and of itself a great episode, and it set up a very emotionally complex fifth season.  Of course, that’s also the reaction most of us had at the end of last season.  While Season Five has indeed been about Jax versus Clay and their ongoing power struggle, the show has wandered a great deal in between, (even though it’s extended its episode count and occasionally the runtime to allow for more storytelling).  Hit the jump for a look at the best parts of “J’ai Obtenu Cette” i.e. “I Got This.”

It’s been an emotional season for Sons of Anarchy, but the feelings in “Darthy” were some of the deepest and most difficult yet.  Though the season has put us through some horrendous deaths and near-deaths, to see the club and its members at such a crossroads, breaking apart more and more after each incident rather than rallying together, has been unsettling.  This has been especially true as members are picked off one by one, and the morally grey lines become increasingly blurry for every character, even those who have traditionally been on the side of right (at least, as right as any SAMCRO member can be).  Hit the jump for why Opie was right: the gavel does corrupt.

At some point I should upload a scan of my notes for Sons of Anarchy, because they are far, far more chaotic than any other show I have ever reviewed.  Even Boardwalk Empire, with its myriad plots, can’t compare.  At least with Boardwalk, certain stories develop in their own world, like little vignettes whose significance may not be made clear now or ever, but they’re still enjoyable to watch unfold.  Sons of Anarchy has plenty of strange, throwaway plots too (look to almost any guest stars during the season and you’ll find the filler) and has been chastised by many, myself included, for being just about plot points more than character development (though not unusual for a series in its fifth season).  Still, one’s mind is impressively boggled by the incredible amount of layers in not just the outside forces pressing on SAMCRO, but the changing alliances within.  Hit the jump for my attempts at untangling some of the spider’s web.

So much happens in any given episode of Sons of Anarchy it can be hard to know where to start.  Even though in each season the action does focus down to a core four or five characters, with a few constants (Jax, Gemma and Clay) and a few rotations (in the past, Chibs and Unser, now Bobby and Nero), with Tara always floating around in the background as the most unevenly written character maybe of any show I’ve ever given serious consideration to … there’s always a lot going on.  It’s helpful to have so many cards in play for Sons‘ incredibly complicated stories, though they can mange to veer too much into just a litany of plot points without enough character building.  But “Andare Pescare” actually slowed down for some telling conversations and interactions, which made it a fairly strong episode.  Hit the jump for why I don’t break into mausoleums — I’m not Tig!

Now here’s the stuff!  After a shaky few weeks, Sons of Anarchy gives us a great, dense episode that answers old questions, brings up new ones, and even has its own complete in-episode dramas.  Jax is at a breaking point with everything surrounding him, pressures from the club, his family, Pope, Eli, Frankie, Nero, the RICO case, the cartel … the list goes on and on.  Still, Jax keeps his cool, maneuvering his pieces to battle Clay as club business, meaning that the club could vote to exile him and kill him.  It ain’t easy bein’ a Son.  For more on the episode and why if you don’t do what I say then you’d better get used to living in a brothel, hit the jump.

Until the last few minutes of “Toad’s Wild Ride,” I was having a rather nice go of things.  Sons of Anarchy threw some weirdness at us this year, and a lot (and I do mean a metric crap ton) of violence, but in “Toad’s Wild Ride” there were some really interesting moments about loyalty and betrayal, especially bringing Juice’s story to the forefront.  Alliances change often on the show, but Bobby, Chibs and even Tig are firmly in Jax’s corner right now.  Clay is delusional if he thinks he could get back at the head of the table and past all of them.  I sincerely doubt, too, that Juice would ever fully back Clay in a coup, especially if Chibs was on the other side.  Still, seeing Clay carefully play Unser and Juice and the Nomads was fun to watch, especially the trick he pulled at Unser’s Airstream.  Clay is just as dangerous as ever, and now Jax knows that giving him a second chance was a mistake.  Of course, most of us would have thought the first time after someone tried to kill everyone we love but, you know, things are different in Charming.  For more on the wild ride and what Joel McHale has to do with it all, hit the jump.

It’s been a rough week for TV characters across the board, and I was desperately hoping that Sons of Anarchy would be just as weirdly funny as it was last week.  Alas.  Despite Jax telling Tara that it was a quiet day, nothing could have been further from the truth.  Everyone had something difficult to deal with and, in a surprisingly high number of cases, people died.  Murder, suicide, more murder … there weren’t any laughs in Charming for the Sons or anyone else.  “Senseless,” Tara says to Gemma, thinking back on her afternoon seeing Otto.  “It’s been that kind of day,” Gemma replies, not knowing the half of it.  But let’s pause and consider how truly senselessly violent and insane “Small World” was.  Hit the jump for my picking apart the deaths this week and how much we did (or didn’t) need them.

The outrageous comedy Frankie Go Boom, from writer/director Jordan Roberts, tells the story of Frank Bartlett (Charlie Hunnam), who tells himself that he’s holed up in the desert to write, but in reality is just hiding from his family, namely his brother Bruce (Chris O’Dowd).  A reckless but charming addict, Bruce has always enjoyed secretly filming Frank in all sorts of compromising positions and sobriety isn’t making their relationship any better.  And as much as Frankie tries to move on with his life, family just keeps sucking him back in.

At the press day, actor Ron Perlman – who plays the movie’s humor, heart and voice of reason, Phyllis – spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about how he ended up playing a woman in the film, his first impression of the script when he read it, discovering Phyllis’ look, how quick of a shoot this was for him, and how he thinks his Sons of Anarchy fans might react when they see him in character.  He also talked about what it’s like to be a part of such a successful TV show, how surprised he’s been by the direction of Season 5, and how bittersweet it is that they’re closer to the end now, with only two seasons left, as well as his longtime collaboration with filmmaker Guillermo del Toro.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

The outrageous comedy Frankie Go Boom, from writer/director Jordan Roberts, tells the story of Frank Bartlett (Charlie Hunnam), who tells himself that he’s holed up in the desert to write, but in reality is just hiding from his family, namely his brother Bruce (Chris O’Dowd).  A reckless but charming addict, Bruce has always enjoyed secretly filming Frank in all sorts of compromising positions and sobriety isn’t making their relationship any better.  And as much as Frankie tries to move on with his life, family just keeps sucking him back in.

At the film’s press day, actor Charlie Hunnam spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about why he didn’t think he was right for this role, what finally convinced him to sign on, what made Ron Perlman the perfect actor for Phyllis, how it was to work with Lizzy Caplan, and giving CPR to a pig.  He also talked about what it’s been like to be a part of Sons of Anarchy and how bittersweet it is that they’re closer to the end of the show now than the beginning, and his desire to direct a film that he’s written for Tommy Flanagan (who plays Chibs on SOA) to star in.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

On the new CW drama series Beauty and the Beast, Catherine Chandler (Smallville’s Kristin Kreuk) is a smart, no-nonsense homicide detective haunted by the murder of her mother, which she witnessed as a teenager.  She would have been killed as well, if a mysterious beast hadn’t been there to save her.  Years later, a case leads her right to Vincent Keller (Jay Ryan) and possibly some of the answers that she has been waiting for.

During this recent exclusive interview with Collider, actor Jay Ryan talked about how he came to this role, his crazy chemistry read with co-star Kristin Kreuk, the process of finding the look for the beast, spending four hours to put on the make-up and an hour to take it all off, how he feels about using the same character names as the original Ron Perlman/Linda Hamilton series, whether more beasts might make an appearance, just how physical the role will get, and how he originally came to acting.  Check out what he had to say after the jump.

It looks like director Guillermo del Toro’s much-anticipated Monsters vs Mecha movie, Pacific Rim, is about to get a graphic novel companion.  Penned by Travis Beacham (Clash of the Titans), the same screenwriter behind the feature, the graphic novel will be put out through Legendary Comics and will be available before the film’s July 12th, 2013 release date, as its story is a prequel of sorts.  Del Toro talks about the decision to release the comic as a prequel rather than adapt the movie after it debuts.  See what the director had to say, along with a brand new poster for Pacific Rim after the jump.