The comedy A.C.O.D., which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year to positive reviews, has been picked up for distribution by The Film Arcade and Paramount Home Media.  The title stands for “Adult Children of Divorce” and the Stuart Zicherman-directed film centers on a guy (Adam Scott) who has been caught in his parents’ (Richard Jenkins and Catherine O’Hara) ugly divorce for the past twenty years, and matters become even worse when his brother gets engaged.  Then the details of the feud are revealed in a definitive new book on children of divorce.

I caught the film at Sundance (read Matt’s review here) and it’s a solid comedy with a big heart, and as a fellow A.C.O.D. it hit really close to home for me in quite a few parts.  It also features scene-stealing performances by Catherine O’Hara and Richard Jenkins, with other nice turns from Clark Duke, Amy Poehler, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.  The Film Arcade will be handling theatrical distribution in North America, while Paramount Home Media will manage domestic home entertainment, television licensing and digital distribution, as well as international distribution.  Hit the jump for the press release.

In films, alcoholism is rarely treated as the crippling, devastating disease that it is.  It’s oftentimes romanticized or portrayed as some quirk for comedic aspects.  A lot of diseases and mental illnesses are treated this way on screen.  There are some great films about alcoholism that take it seriously, like Lost Weekend and Under the Volcano.  But for the most part films tend to leave out the lies, shame, and heaps of ruin laid on the alcoholic and their family.  James Ponsoldt‘s Smashed manages to find the perfect balance between a romantic comedy and a compelling study of a relationship fueled by booze.  More on Sony Pictures Classics’ Smashed Blu-ray after the jump.

The feature film adaptation of Jonathan Tropper’s novel This is Where I Leave You is picking up some steam.  The project was initially gearing up to begin production last spring under director Adam Shankman with an ensemble cast that included Jason Bateman, Zac Efron, Goldie Hawn, Leslie Mann, Malin Akerman, and Jason Sudeikis, but Shankman subsequently exited the project and casting deals were never completed, so movement stalled.  Shawn Levy came onboard to direct last fall, and now Bateman is back on the project as the search to fill out the rest of the cast begins in anticipation of a May or June production start date.

The book tells the story of a dysfunctional family that is forced to reunite when their father requests they sit Shivah for seven days following his death, and the feature film adaptation has attracted a great deal of talent, with Harry Potter director David Yates previously flirting with the project.  Hit the jump to find out which actresses are currently testing for roles opposite Bateman.

“Live in the moment” is a nice platitude and a crappy life philosophy.  Vivacity is all well and good.  We should appreciate the present, but we can’t live only for the present.  We have to think about tomorrow because we’re probably going to be there.    In his wonderful new film The Spectacular Now, director James Ponsoldt explore the live-for-the-moment mentality with an authentic and earnest look at high school emotions, anxiety about the future, and first love.   Led by extraordinary performances from stars Miles Teller and Shailene Woodley, The Spectacular Now is a thoroughly charming and surprisingly powerful coming-of-age story about the fear of looking ahead and the seductive safety of living in the present.

Just yesterday we brought you the good news that A Good Day to Die Hard would be rated R.  Today, a new TV spot for the John Moore film, the fifth in the Die Hard series, confirms that rating.  The commercial doesn’t show much in the way of new footage, especially if you’ve already seen the previously released TV spots, but there is, of course, a new one-liner.

Starring Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney and Mary Elizabeth Winstead, A Good Day to Die Hard opens February 14th.  Hit the jump to watch the new TV spot.

Fox has released a new trailer for A Good Day to Die Hard.  Usually at this point, the trailers begin to reveal the basic plot (and some go too far and reveal the whole movie).  However, the fifth Die Hard is a little over a month away, and I still don’t know what the plot is beyond “McClane n’ Son fight bad Russians.”  The Die Hard movies have never been complex, but the villain always has a clear motive, so we know what John McClane is trying to stop.  I think the bad guy in this movie wants nukes or something, but even that seems kind of vague.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film stars Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch, Yulia Snigir, Cole Hauser, Amaury Nolasco, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Anne Vyalitsyna, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.  A Good Day to Die Hard opens February 14th.

The first trailer for writer/director Roman Coppola’s A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III has been released.  The film stars Charlie Sheen as a successful graphic designer whose fame and fortune have made him irresistible to women.  After his girlfriend breaks up with him, he heads into a downward spiral that forces him to look back on his failed romantic history.  We previously saw some rather strange teaser posters for the film, and this trailer is certainly a trip.  Sheen is joined on his journey by Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman, who look to be playing a couple of suitably colorful characters.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  The film also stars Aubrey Plaza, Patricia Arquette, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, and Katheryn Winnick.  A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charles Swan III opens on February 8th. [Update: A batch of high-resolution images has been released and are now included after the jump.]

The nominations for the 2013 Independent Spirit Awards have been announced, and Oscar hopefuls Silver Linings Playbook and Moonrise Kingdom lead the pack.  Both films picked up nominations for Best Feature, Director, and Screenplay with Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper landing acting noms for SLP and Bruce Willis garnering a swell Best Supporting Actor nomination for his work in Moonrise Kingdom.  Beasts of the Southern Wild, Bernie, and Keep the Lights On round out the Best Feature nominees, while The Perks of Being a Wallflower and Safety Not Guaranteed were singled out for the Best First Feature award.  Also, Matthew McConaughey pulled double nominations for his stellar work in this year’s Magic Mike and Killer Joe, landing a Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor nod, respectively.  Notably shut out of the race entirely was Leos Carax‘s critically-lauded Holy Motors.

Hit the jump to check out the full list of nominations.  The winners of the 2013 Spirit Awards will be announced on Saturday, February 23, 2013.

Following on the heels of a new poster and image, a new trailer has been released for John Moore‘s A Good Day to Die Hard.  If you were unaware that the Die Hard franchise is a series of action movies, this trailer will be quite an education.  In fact, there’s very little to identify the film beyond “It has action.”  It seems like after Die Hard with a Vengeance, there’s a misunderstanding about what a Die Hard movie is: John McClane (Bruce Willis) getting the ever-loving shit kicked out of him, wise-cracks, and swearing. Unfortunately, it looks like we’re stuck with the new movies being rated PG-13 from now on, so that’s a third out of the equation.  Also, there was always some ability to suspend disbelief that a person could live through the stunts.  I don’t know if that will be present in the series’ fifth installment, but there’s certainly a lot of McClane and his son (Jai Courtney) jumping through panes of glass.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer.  The film also stars Sebastian Koch, Yulia Snigir, Cole Hauser, Amaury Nolasco, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Anne Vyalitsyna, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.  A Good Day to Die Hard opens February 14, 2013.

A couple of new posters and related images to share with you today.  We’ve got the first poster and a new image from director John Moore’s A Good Day to Die Hard, starring Bruce Willis as John McClane alongside his estranged son (Jai Courtney) as they take on those evil Commies no-goodniks Russian bad guys.  A twist on McClane’s signature catch phrase lets us know what he thinks of their country.  If you missed the trailer, check it out here. A Good Day to Die Hard opens February 14th, 2013.

We’ve also got the US poster for Walter Salles’ On the Road, starring Garrett Hedlund, Kristen Stewart and Sam Riley. An adaptation of the Jack Kerouac novel,  On the Road drives into theaters on December 21st.  Hit the jump to check out the new posters and images for each film. 

It’s been a couple of weeks since our last round of Marvel rumors, but today a new batch of possible information has popped up concerning both Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  While director James Gunn is currently busy rewriting the script for the other-worldly Guardians, we may now have a clearer idea of which characters from the comics will be in the spotlight when that film rolls around.  Additionally, another rumor throws Mary Elizabeth Winstead and Lost actor Josh Holloway into the possible casting ring for Captain America: The Winter Soldier.

Hit the jump for all the details.

The indie dramedy Smashed follows Kate (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) and Charlie (Breaking Bad’s Aaron Paul), a young married couple who prefer to drink than deal with their own demons. But, when Kate’s drinking puts her job as a school teacher in jeopardy, it scares her into wanting to join AA and get sober. Directed by James Ponsoldt, he film also stars Octavia Spencer, Megan Mullally, Nick Offerman and Mary Kay Place.

At the film’s press day, actress Mary Elizabeth Winstead spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about why she wanted to make an independent film, what attracted her to this specific project, the research she did for the role, finding the awkward humor, and how important it was that her character did not just have an easy road to recovery. She also talked about re-teaming with Ponsoldt for The Spectacular Now, what attracted her to A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charlie Swan III, and going to Budapest for A Good Day to Die Hard. Check out what she had to say after the jump.

The first trailer for the sequel A Good Day to Die Hard has been released.  The story takes place in Moscow and sees Bruce Willis’ John McClane teaming up with his estranged son (Jai Courtney) to take on some Russian baddies.  The new trailer doesn’t elaborate on the story, but it does show off plenty of action, which is probably a good idea considering this is a Die Hard movie.  I still can’t bring myself to get on board with a PG-13 Die Hard film, and I don’t know what director John Moore will bring to the project, but this is a fun trailer, and I especially like the remixing of “Ode to Joy”.

Hit the jump to watch the trailer.  Directed by John Moore the film stars Bruce Willis, Jai Courtney, Sebastian Koch, Yulia Snigir, Cole Hauser, Amaury Nolasco, Megalyn Echikunwoke, Anne Vyalitsyna, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead.  A Good Day to Die Hard opens on February 14th, 2013.

The first trailer and poster for the indie drama Smashed have been released.  The film stars Mary Elizabeth Winstead (Scott Pilgrim vs. The World) and Aaron Paul (Breaking Bad) as a married couple who are brought together by booze.  Things get complicated when Winstead’s character decides she wants to be sober.  The trailer plays things pretty light, and its effective in making this drama about a struggle with alcoholism seem appealing.  That said, Smashed isn’t exactly a comedy.  The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year to positive reviews, with Matt noting that Winstead gives the best performance of her career thus far.  Nick Offerman (Parks and Recreation), Megan Mullaly (Will & Grace), Mary Kay Place, and Octavia Spencer round out a promising supporting cast for what looks to be a solid character drama.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer and poster.  Directed by James Ponsoldt, Smashed opens on October 12th.

Mary Elizabeth Winstead‘s performance as John McClane‘s daughter was one of the best parts of Live Free or Die Hard.  In a more interesting world, the reigns of the franchise would be handed over to her character, and I have no doubt that Winstead would be able to carry an action franchise (see her work in The Thing remake).  However, it’s still Bruce Willis‘ show, and the next film, A Good Day to Die Hard, will have McClane’s son Jack (Spartacus: Blood and Sand‘s Jai Courtney) tagging along for the adventure.  Thankfully, Lucy McClane won’t be completely gone from the upcoming sequel.

Hit the jump for more.  The film also stars Sebastian Koch, Yulia Snigir, Cole Hauser, Amaury Nolasco, Megalyn Echikunwoke, and Anne Vyalitsyna.  A Good Day to Die Hard opens February 14, 2013.