Fox Searchlight is getting its Oscar plans in order by announcing that they’ve set Steve McQueen‘s Twelve Years a Slave for December 27th.  Based on Solomon Northup’s autobiography of the same name, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays Northup, an educated and married black man living in 1853 New York.  Northup was approached by two men about a job offer in Washington D.C., but when he showed up he was kidnapped and forced into slavery.  The film has lined up one of the best casts in recent memory.  In addition to Ejifor, the film also stars Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Paul Dano, Scoot McNairy, Quvenzhane Wallis, Paul Giamatti, Sarah Paulson, Garrett Dillahunt, Alfre Woodard, and Benedict Cumberbatch.  Fox Searchlight’s Oscar odds also go up when you consider that two films involving slavery—Lincoln and Django Unchained—grabbed Best Picture nominations last year (somehow, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter missed the cut).

The only other film set for December 27th’s is The Weinstein Company’s Oscar-hopeful Grace of Monaco starring Nicole Kidman as Grace Kelly.  I can’t wait to see Twelve Years a Slave, and I hope it will play at TIFF like McQueen’s first two features, Hunger and Shame.

A new trailer for writer/director Quentin Tarantino’s new film Django Unchained has been released.  This new Django trailer is way more fun than a movie about slavery has any right to be.  We get to see a lot more of Broomhilda (Kerry Washington) and her treatment at the hands of Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio).  We get some sage advice from Samuel L. Jackson’s character, Stephen, and a bit of historical postulating from DiCaprio himself. Why, we even get our first look at funnyman Jonah Hill in a somewhat surprising role!

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  Adult supervision is required. The film also stars Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, M.C. Gainey, Walton Goggins, Garrett Dillahunt, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson, and Tom Savini.  Django Unchained opens on December 25th.

The first trailer for Quentin Tarantino‘s Django Unchained has landed online.  The film stars Jamie Foxx as the titular Django, an escaped slave who goes to rescue his wife (Kerry Washington) from sadistic plantation owner Calvin Candie (Leonardo DiCaprio) by teaming up with bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz (Christoph Waltz).  This trailer is quintessential Tarantino with killer music choices, flowery dialogue, and atmosphere galore.  Waltz is actually front and center here, and it’s great to see him spouting Tarnatino’s words with such cheerfulness once again.  Foxx looks to be in fine form as our protagonist, but I’m eager to see more of DiCaprio’s performance as the dastardly plantation owner.  Nevertheless, I love everything about this first footage and if the trailer doesn’t bring a big smile to your face, then you’re probably dead inside.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  The film also stars Samuel L. Jackson, M.C. Gainey, Walton Goggins, Garrett Dillahunt, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson,and Tom Savini. Django Unchained opens on December 25^th.

Though the new “trailer for a trailer” trend is, in general, annoying as all get-up, exceptions do exist.  Case in point is our first look at Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained by way of this trailer tease from the folks at Entertainment Tonight.  Granted it’s not much, but we do get a nice tease of Leonardo DiCaprio as the dastardly plantation owner and a few shots of Jamie Foxx as the titular Django.  New Quentin Tarantino films are celebrated as events, and Django Unchained is no exception.  Though we’ll have a much better idea of what to expect when the full trailer drops tomorrow, I’ve already got a smile on my face from the signature zooms on display in this clip.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer preview.  The film also stars Christoph Waltz, Kerry Washington, Samuel L. Jackson, M.C. Gainey, Walton Goggins, Garrett Dillahunt, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson,and Tom Savini.  Django Unchained opens on December 25^th.

Director Quentin Tarantino must have written a doozie of a role for a certain Django Unchained character; not only has Kevin Costner left the picture, but now Kurt Russell has exited as well.  Both veterans were slated to play the role of Ace Woody, a villainous character who trains slaves to fight each other for public amusement.  Granted, the role isn’t feel-good like Man of Steel’s Pa Kent or Miracle’s Herb Brooks, but it’s a Tarantino flick; no one gets out unscathed.  Costner had previously cited scheduling difficulties for his departure from Django Unchained, but Russell’s camp has yet to provide a reason.  Slightly concerning is the fact that with a December 25th release date, there hasn’t been a replacement announced just yet. 

Sacha Baron Cohen also let slip that his planned cameo won’t happen due to a scheduling conflict.  The rest of the Django Unchained cast, however, needs little support, boasting Jamie Foxx, Kerry Washington, Leonardo DiCaprio, Christoph Waltz, Samuel L. Jackson, M.C. Gainey, Garrett Dillahunt, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson, and Tom Savini. Hit the jump for more. [Update: We've added new information regarding Russell's role]

Following the release of the excellent teaser poster for Quentin Tarantino‘s Django Unchained, The Weinstein Company has now released the film’s official synopsis.  Briefly, the movie takes place before the Civil War, and follows Django (Jamie Foxx), an escaped slave who teams up with a bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz) in order to rescue Django’s wife (Kerry Washington) from a cruel plantation owner (Leonardo DiCaprio).  The outstanding cast also includes Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, Garrett Dillahunt, Walton Goggins, RZA, M.C. Gainey, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson, Tom Savini, and Sacha Baron Cohen.

Hit the jump to check out the full synopsis.  Django Unchained opens December 25th.

Filming on Quentin Tarantino‘s Django Unchained is gearing up and actor Garrett Dillahunt has the TwitPics to prove it.  The film has been described as a “southern”: a spaghetti western set in the Old South.  Jamie Foxx stars a Django, an escaped slave who goes to rescue his wife (Kerry Washington) from a sadistic plantation owner (Leonardo DiCaprio) by teaming up with a bounty hunter (Christoph Waltz).  As you can see from the photos, the Santa Clarita Melody Ranch looks like the set of a western town, which makes sense since it’s the same set from HBO’s sorely-missed western drama Deadwood, which also stars Dillahunt (in two different roles!).  Tarantino recently told the LA Times, “It’s a blast shooting here. Most other western towns look like dollhouses. This has the complete look. It’s fantastic.”

I haven’t read the script so I don’t know if Django heads out west at some point in the story, but that set looks like a place set in the West rather than the South.  Hit the jump to check out the images.  The film also stars Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell, M.C. Gainey, Dennis Christopher, Gerald McRaney, Laura Cayouette, Don Johnson, Tom Savini, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  Django Unchained opens December 25th.

There’s a bitter pill to swallow in owning the Deadwood complete series on Blu-ray. One of the best shows ever to be on television, Deadwood ends unceremoniously. There is no sense of closure, there is no sense of a finished narrative – creator David Milch gets a twenty minute segment on the set to talk about the end of the show and expresses nothing but frustration about the show’s demise. He tries to intellectualize it, but struggles to come to grips with the euthanasia HBO performed. Alas, with an existing set and the cast of characters Deadwood had it was not a cheap show, and where The Wire was able to struggle against low ratings Deadwood fell because it never exceeded its modest but committed fanbase. But Deadwood is one of the best shows ever put to television, and I come here not to mourn its end, but celebrate its greatness. My review of Deadwood: The Complete Series on Blu-ray follows after the jump.

Wes Craven’s original Last House on the Left is one of those films that stays with you. The premise is that two young girls get kidnapped, raped and murdered by a gang of criminals. Those criminals end up at the home of one of the people they murdered. The family then gets their revenge. Craven’s film was based on Ingmar Bergman’s The Virgin Spring, and the subject matter also seemed to influence In the Bedroom. Craven’s original film has a documentary feel, and was shot on 16mm, so it has that voyeuristic quality, which benefits the film, which is clumsily staged at times. But all this does is add to the unease. It’s not a great film, it could be a terrible film (though Robin Wood has been a staunch defender), but it is unshakeable. More after the jump: