After last week’s incredible, incredible presentation, Hannibal turned more towards a procedural this week with a regular Case of the Week.  As I’ve said in the past, the show is at its best when it doesn’t have to shoehorn these stories in (like the one about the man who saw heads on fire), because it distracts from the excellence of the rest of the series and what we are most interested in.  Still, the point of the totem pole of bodies is, as has been the case all season, to send Will further and further down the rabbit hole of his own mind, perpetuating a kind of self abuse by forcing himself into the minds of these killers when his own mind isn’t strong enough to handle it.  Hit the jump for more on on why “this is my legacy.”

In 2011, The Amazing Spider-Man went to Comic-Con, and showed off the first footage of The Lizard (the reaction on Twitter from my peers seemed to be “That looks like Killer Croc, and I hope they do more work on the CGI”).  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 is set to kick off the 2014 summer movie season, and so it looks like Sony is bringing the movie for a panel at this summer’s San Diego Comic-Con, which runs from July 18 – 21st.  Jamie Foxx, who plays the villain Electro, tells Yahoo! Movies, “Now I’m just waiting to get to Comic-Con and see how people respond to it.”  People will probably be enthusiastic.  They love Spider-Man, and while The Amazing Spider-Man is a misfire, it didn’t kill off interest in the reboot.  There’s still a great cast, and hopefully the script is stronger this time around.

The film also stars Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Dane DeHaan, Shailene Woodley, Paul Giamatti, Felicity Jones, Chris Cooper, and Sally Field.  The Amazing Spider-Man 2 opens in 3D on May 2, 2014.

[This is a re-post from the 2013 Sundance Film Festival.  Before Midnight opens today in limited release.  Click here to find out when the film will open near you.]

Richard Linklater‘s 1995 film Before Sunrise is a love story. His 2004 follow-up, Before Sunset, is a life story. His latest film, Before Midnight, is a lived-in love story. The relationship of Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) resumes at its most complicated point where we see what happens nine years after true love. Once again, Linklater and his co-writers (also Hawke and Delpy) have delivered an honest and thoughtful romance that truly taps into the maturity of its lead characters. Although the story falters when the focus pulls back from its protagonists, Before Midnight firmly establishes the trilogy as a unique and remarkable accomplishment that manages to always find the humor, tragedy, frustration, and desire in a brutally honest love story.

I know many a Harry Potter fan made the pilgrimage to Universal Orlando Resort to down a butterbeer when The Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened.  As a lifelong Simpsons fan, I now have my own pilgrimage to make.  Universal Studios announced they will build a real-life Springfield to accompany The Simpsons Ride.  The concept art (previewed above) shows the Kwik-E-Mart, Moe’s Tavern, Krusty Burger, The Android’s Dungeon & Baseball Card Shop, Lard Lad Donuts, Krustyland, and a Duff brewery.  Simpsons creator Matt Groening has previously chosen not to license Duff Beer, concerned it would encourage kids to drink.  But the press release promises, “And yes – there will be Duff Beer, brewed exclusively for Universal Orlando.”

There’s more food joints, the Jebediah statue (to embiggen the smallest patron), and a new attraction, Kang & Kodos’ Twirl ‘n’ Hurl.  I must go.  Hit the jump for the press release with all the details and the full concept art.

Here are the latest release dates for the following films:

• Oldboy – The Spike Lee-directed remake of Chan-wook Park’s revenge thriller stars Josh Brolin, Elizabeth Olsen and Sharlto Copley, and will now open two weeks later on October 25th.
• Endless Love – Shana Feste’s remake of the 1981 film stars Alex Pettyfer and Gabriella Wilde.  The picture will open on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2014.

Release dates courtesy of Box Office Mojo.

Opening in limited release this weekend is one of the best films you’re going to see this year: Before Midnight, director Richard Linklater’s follow-up to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset.  The new film takes place 18 years after Before Sunrise and 9 years after Before Sunset, and sees Celine (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) navigating married life on a trip to Greece.  Like the previous films, it’s a lot of walking and talking, but it absolutely works because of the intimate and lived-in chemistry between the lead actors, who also co-wrote the film with Linklater.  I can honestly say this is one of the best films I’ve seen in a long time, and even if you haven’t seen the previous films, you should see it when it comes to a theater near you.

The other day, I landed an video interview with Hawke and Delpy here in Los Angeles.  We talked about whether they were more nervous writing the 3rd installment than the previous films due to fan expectations, deleted scenes, how they once tried to improvise and failed miserably, did they make any radical changes to the story during the writing process, the reasons why they filmed the sequel with little fanfare, and a lot more.  Hit the jump to watch.

The moment you’re famous enough that your voice becomes recognizable, the animated movie offers must come pouring in, but even after years of being in the spotlight, Epic only marks Amanda Seyfried’s very first foray into the world of voice work. She plays Mary Katherine, the daughter of Professor Bomba (voiced by Jason Sudeikis) who’s essentially given up everything for an obsessive pursuit to prove that there are tiny warriors living in the forest. Like everyone else, MK isn’t buying it, but when Queen Tara (voiced by Beyonce Knowles) has no choice but to shrink MK down to Leaf Man size so she can help save the forest, MK realizes her father’s been right all along.

With Epic on its way to a May 24^th release, Seyfried sat down in New York City to talk about making the film and more. We ran through what drew her to the project, her love of the forest, the challenge of tapping into her imagination while in a sound booth, the physicality involved in doing voice work, how voicing an animated character compares to singing live on set, and the awkwardness of non-dialogue voice work. Seyfried also offered an update on her upcoming projects including Lovelace and Z for Zachariah. Hit the jump to watch.

Here’s today’s latest casting news:

• Amanda Seyfried (Les Miserables) will join the cast of the Noah Baumbach-directed midlife crisis comedy, While We’re Young.
• Gael Garcia Bernal (The Motorcycle Diaries) will lead Jon Stewart’s directorial debut, Rosewater.
• Paddy Considine (The Bourne Ultimatum) is in talks to star in Child 44, Daniel Espinosa’s adaptation of the Tom Rob Smith Soviet-era novel.

Hit the jump for more on each casting announcement.

Some new set photos from Gareth Edwards’ Godzilla reboot have popped up.  As expected in a giant rampaging monster movie, the images show scenes of wanton destruction of a small Japanese fishing village and what appears to be schoolchildren fleeing from said monster.  Unfortunately, our only look at the title monster is a giant blue screen that towers over the set.  Be sure to check out previous galleries of set photos here, here and here.

Godzilla stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Juliette Binoche, David Strathairn,  Bryan Crantson, Ken Watanabe, and Richard T. Jones and opens in 3D on May 16, 2014.  See the images after the jump.

Fast & Furious 6 is a machine running close to peak performance.  The Fast & Furious franchise has been stripped down and rebuilt through six iterations.  It’s gone from racing to revenge to a heist and now it’s forced to find its own identity.    After finding a good group of characters and upping the stakes in the action scenes, there’s finally a level of confidence instead of simply watching fast cars drive around.  The new movie struts into the room and proudly proclaims, “If we’re going to be goofy and loud, we’re going to be the goofiest, loudest movie we can be!”  It’s almost admirable in its own twisted way.  After four films, Justin Lin‘s direction has finally matched the ambition of his set pieces, and aside from indulging in the “family is everything” treacle, Fast & Furious 6 is easily the best film in the franchise yet.

The best film I’ve seen so far this year is Joshua Oppenheimer‘s The Act of Killing.  Produced by Werner Herzog and Errol Morris, the documentary focuses on executioners from 1965-66 Indonesia who were allowed to murder practically anyone they wanted, and are still treated as heroes today.  Because of their utter lack of remorse, Oppenheimer asks them to direct recreations of their atrocities. The trailer hints at the dark and twisted plot without giving away too much.  But even by showing scenes from near the end of the movie, this is a film that can’t be spoiled.  No trailer can recreate the absolutely chilling experience of watching this documentary.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer, and click here to read my review from SXSW.  The Act of Killing opens July 19th.

Producer Joe Roth does enjoy his fairy-tale reimaginings.  His recent films including Alice in Wonderland, Snow White and the Huntsman, Oz the Great and Powerful, and the upcoming Maleficent, which is the tale of Sleeping Beauty told from the villain’s perspective.  Since Alice and Oz were both monster hits, it’s not surprise that Roth is now planning another fairy-tale* movie.  According to Deadline, Roth has picked up the rights for Soman Chainani‘s new young adult novel, The School for Good and Evil.  The story takes place in a school where students are chosen and trained to become heroes or villains.  The beautiful Sophie expects to be a princess in the School for Good while her homely best friend Agatha readies herself to be a witch in the School for Evil.  But when they arrive, their roles are reversed.  It sounds like a fun premise that’s reminiscent of the opening of Wicked.  The book is the first in a planned trilogy, so Universal Pictures’ seven-figure deal makes even more sense when a potential franchise is at stake.

Deadline reports that Chainani will co-write the script with her former screenwriting professor Malia Scotch Marmo (Hook).  Hit the jump for the official synopsis of The School for Good and Evil.

Though production is already well underway on director Bryan Singer’s sequel X-Men: Future Past in Canada, a late addition to the cast has been made.  Singer announced today on Twitter that American Horror Story star Evan Peters will play Quicksilver in the star-studded superhero pic, though this may make things quite complicated for Marvel’s The Avengers 2.  In comics lore, Quicksilver is a mutant capable of moving and thinking at superhuman speeds.  He also happens to be the son of Magneto, along with his twin sister Scarlet Witch.  While this is certainly a fascinating cast addition to the time-bending X-Men: Days of Future Past, it could very well affect Marvel’s Avengers sequel as Joss Whedon only recently revealed that he’s written both Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch into his script.  Hit the jump for more.

New posters have been released for World War Z, Pacific Rim, and The Conjuring.  Starting with World War Z, Paramount seems determined to make sure that no zombies are shown in the marketing beyond a faceless hoard.  This new poster also copies the previous one, and so we’re stuck with a handsome guy looking over devastation.  Is that enough to get people interested?  Moving on to Pacific Rim, it’s a giant robot about to take a nasty-looking blade to a giant monster.  It’s easy to understand, and easy to like.  Finally, the UK poster for The Conjuring is sadly generic and rests on the power of a creepy doll.  This could be used for countless horror movies.

Hit the jump to check out the posters.  World War Z opens in 3D on June 21st.  Pacific Rim opens in 3D on July 12th.  The Conjuring opens July 19th.

So much for retirement.  Much has been made over the past year or so about the fact that filmmaker Steven Soderbergh would be taking a self-imposed hiatus from directing after the release of his Liberace film Behind the Candelabra.  While Candelabra premieres on HBO this Sunday, it appears that Soderbergh is already coming out of “retirement” to direct a new TV series for Cinemax.  The filmmaker will helm 10 episodes of a period series called The Knick, which will star Clive Owen and takes place in New York in 1900.  Hit the jump for more.