Must-See of the Month:
Summary:
Clark Kent has spent his life hiding who he really is, but after Earth is
invaded by members of his alien race he must rise to the occasion fully revealing
his gifts – it is Superman’s origin story. Filmmakers:
Director Zack Snyder has been a favorite at Warner Bros. since 300. They have been looking for
a high profile film to put him on, and Man of Steel is it. The film is written
by David Goyer and
Christopher Nolan with Nolan and partner Emma Thomas also producing – the
team that gave us The
Dark Knight Trilogy. Snyder is working with wonderful composer Hans Zimmer (The
Dark Knight Rises), cinematographer Amir Morki (The Salton Sea), and production
designer Alex McDowell
(worked on Watchman for
Snyder). Cast: It stars Henry Cavill (who some will
recognize from The
Tudors), and features Amy
Adams, Russell Crowe, Michael Shannon, Kevin Costner, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne, Christopher Meloni, and Michael Kelly in support. Expectations: Man of Steel looks like the best
film of the summer, hands down. However, Zack Snyder directing does leave me
feeling a bit anxious. He often cannot find the right balance between visual
style and dramatic substance. His last film Sucker
Punch is almost unwatchable, as it completely abandons all notion of
efficient storytelling in favor of highly stylized visuals. Watchman and 300,
while both decent films, also suffer from a favoring of visuals over narrative.
Snyder’s best structured film is probably his first: Dawn of the Dead. All that
said, Christopher Nolan structured Man of Steel’s story and is shepherding the
project, and it looks like Man of Steel does for Superman what Batman
Begins did for Batman. It seems as though Nolan has curbed Snyder’s
directorial tendencies allowing him to reach his great potential (Watchman was
very close to being amazing). This is a must-see for fans of big summer
blockbusters. Trailer: Here.
Worth Checking Out:
Summary:
Beatrice and Benedick do not like each other, but can they be coaxed into
falling in love with each other? This is a modern retelling of William
Shakespeare’s classic play (that still uses the Bard). Filmmakers:
Writer-director Joss Whedon took a quick break from post-production on The
Avengers to shoot this small film at his house with a few friends. It is
his third film following Serenity
and The Avengers. He also scored the film (which should makes fans of Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog
and Once More
with Feeling happy). He is working with cinematographer Jay Hunter and production
designers Cindy Chao and Michele Yu (Save the Date). Cast: Amy
Acker and Alexis Denisof
star, with Reed Diamond, Nathan Fillion, Clark Gregg, Fran Kranz, Tom Lenk, Riki Lindhome, Sean Maher, and Jillian Morgese in support. Expectations: I really like Kenneth Branagh’s Much Ado About Nothing,
and think of it as the definitive cinematic version. Whedon’s version looks
very different, which is good. He is a master of language, which seemingly
would make him a perfect person to adapt a Shakespeare play. Also, he often has
Shakespeare readings at his house featuring many of the cast members. This film
will work well additionally because Amy Acker and Alexis Denisof have fantastic
chemistry as fans of Angel
know well. The film played to critical praise during its festival screenings.
It should make a good change of pace from all the blockbusters. Trailer: Here.
No comments:
Post a Comment