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Public Enemies Movie Review

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:50:21 +0000

During this 2009 summer season when brainless entertainment (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen), a Pixar masterpiece (Up), and a hysterical R-rated buddy comedy (The Hangover) are ruling the roost, plopping one of the better dramas Hollywood's put together in years into theaters is a risky move. Audiences are avoiding dramas as though they were the cause of swine flu, but Public Enemies does have three important ingredients working in its favor: Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, and Michael Mann. This fearsome, fearless threesome could sway adults looking for an escape from the usual summer fare into taking a risk on something more intense. And it's most definitely a risk worth taking. Public Enemies is violent and graceful, and filled with dazzling performances from a cast hitting on all cylinders led by a man who pays attention to the most minute detail. Read More...

Also of Interest

Public Enemies Premiere Photos

Public Enemies Cast Interviews

Johnny Depp Biography

Christian Bale Biography

_{(Photo &copy Universal Pictures)}

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Ice Age 3 Beats Transformers 2

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:20:23 +0000

The extended 4th of July holiday weekend started off well for Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs, the third film of the popular animated franchise. 20th Century Fox reports Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs grossed an estimated $13.8 million on Wednesday - its opening day - in 3,993 theaters. That tops Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen's Wednesday take by about $3 million and, according to Variety, moves Ice Age #3 into first place for the best Wednesday opening for an animated film.

Commenting on Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaur's performance, 20th Century Fox domestic distribution president Bruce Snyder said, �We are pleased with yesterday�s numbers, showing that this latest installment of Fox�s beloved Ice Age franchise is playing very strongly as a comedy for all audiences.�

Also bowing well was Universal Pictures' Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp as gangster John Dillinger. Public Enemies got off to a great start grossing $8.2 million in 3,300+ theaters.

In Related News

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Movie Review

Review of Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

_{(Photo &copy Blue Sky Studios)}

Christian Bale Talks About Public Enemies

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 17:18:29 +0000

Johnny Depp stars as gangster John Dillinger and Christian Bale is FBI Agent Melvin Purvis, one of the men responsible for bringing Dillinger to justice, in Universal Pictures' Public Enemies, a crime drama based on Bryan Burrough's book. Directed by Michael Mann (Collateral, Heat) and set in the 1930s, Public Enemies tells the story of John Dillinger's short but memorable life of crime while examining how the pursuit of Dillinger helped make the FBI into the powerful law enforcement agency it is today.

Bale said shooting Public Enemies in high-def digital was a real eye-opening experience, and he'd like every film he works on to be shot that way in the future. But that doesn't mean he'll try to sell Batman director Christopher Nolan on the idea if they do another Batman together. "Not a hope in hell. Listen, he's going to come to that decision purely by himself and it's not as if I don't recognize I'm in very, very good hands when I'm working with him, so we've done just fine working with film so far. I ain't gonna be overstepping my boundaries." Read More...

Public Enemies Photos

Trailer and Clips from Public Enemies

Asteroids Hit Universal

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:04:23 +0000

The classic Atari video game "Asteroids" is making the transition to the big screen. Yes, it's true. "Asteroids," the simple, kind of boring, no-plot '70s game, will be made into a feature film by Universal Studios - and apparently they weren't the only studio that wanted the film rights.

The Hollywood Reporter says Matthew Lopez (The Sorcerer's Apprentice) will pen the script with Lorenzo di Bonaventura (Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra) producing. Because the game didn't really have anything to it - players just shot asteroids - Lopez and Universal can take the script any direction they want without risking offending "Asteroids" fans. Which I guess begs the question: why do a film based on the game at all? Wouldn't it be just as easy to write a fresh script set in space about a ship that destroys asteroids and not have it based on an old video game?

_{(Photo &copy Richard Chavez)}

Hitting Theaters This Week

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 19:08:30 +0000

Johnny Depp and Christian Bale team up with Michael Mann for one of the better dramas of the year and the animated Ice Age gang finds a land full of creatures that are supposed to be extinct in this week's new release, both of which hit theaters early in order to get a head start on the July 4th holiday weekend. The third Ice Age film should provide Transformers #2 with some real competition as the animated prehistoric animal franchise's part two opened with $62 million back in 2006.

As for the other big release, although Depp is popular with audiences, moviegoers haven't exactly been embracing dramas this year. With Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen still new in theaters, action fans who might have gone for the shoot 'em up crime film may opt for robots over gangsters. But I'm going to engage in some wishful thinking here and hope quality wins out this weekend:

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs featuring the voices of Ray Romano and John Leguizamo

Public Enemies starring Johnny Depp and Christian Bale

Brand New Photos

9 Photos

Alice in Wonderland Photos - Johnny Depp/Anne Hathaway

Ashley Tisdale Photos

Beastly Photos - Alex Pettyfer

Couples Retreat Photos - Vince Vaughn/Jon Favreau

The Last Airbender Photos - Dev Patel/Noah Ringer

Pandorum Photos - Ben Foster/Dennis Quaid

Post Grad Photos - Alexis Bledel/Rodrigo Santoro

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen LA Premiere Photos - Megan Fox/Shia LaBeouf

Vision Awards Red Carpet Photos - Ashley Greene/Billy Burke

And a Couple of New Videos

The Box Trailer

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Trailer and Clips

My Sister's Keeper Pete Yorn Music Video

Orphan Video Clips and Trailer

New Movie Posters

Adam Poster

Couples Retreat Poster

Post Grad Poster

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_{(Photo &copy Blue Sky Studios)}

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Movie Review

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:19:25 +0000

I'm hardly an expert on the first two Ice Age movies having seen Ice Age and Ice Age: The Meltdown a total of one time each, but I don't remember either of those two movies having as much 'adult' humor as the third film of the series: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. This one seems to have taken its cue from the Shrek films, inserting more than a handful of jokes that'll soar over kids' heads. It's not a bad idea, adding a little salty humor to the Ice Age world, and the jokes and double entendres (which don't come close to being R rated) liven up what could have been strictly a film for the young ones. Read More...

_{(Photo &copy Blue Sky Studios)}

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Michael Mann on Public Enemies and the 1930s

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:02:15 +0000

Michael Mann was fascinated with the 1930s and had even written a screenplay about gangster Alvin Karpis before taking on the task of writing and directing Public Enemies, the true story of the FBI's pursuit of John Dillinger. Although Karpis is featured in Public Enemies, the film is really all about the charismatic Dillinger (played by Johnny Depp). The Depression-era gangster earned the respect and admiration of the public by robbing banks, giving those poor folks suffering through hard times - and foreclosures - someone to root for. His exploits also earned him the attention of FBI director J Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) who proclaimed Dillinger 'Public Enemy Number One' and set him as the central figure in the agency's war on crime. Read More...

Also of Interest
In Public Enemies John Dillinger tries to outwit the FBI, engaging in a tantalizing game of pursuit with the fledgling law enforcement agency. In support of the release of Public Enemies - and to get you in the mood - check out this list of 10 of the best cinematic games of cat-and-mouse: Top 10 Cat and Mouse Crime Films

_{(Photo &copy Universal Pictures)}

Unstoppable is Stoppable

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:37:33 +0000

Hot on the heels of news that Columbia Pictures has put Brad Pitt and Steven Soderbergh's Moneyball on hold comes word that Unstoppable, another big-budget project with a big name star attached, has hit a roadblock. Variety reports 20th Century Fox is trying to work out a more reasonable budget for the Tony Scott film set to star Denzel Washington and Chris Pine.

Fox had penciled in Unstoppable to begin shooting in August, but now it looks like the earliest production could possibly start is this fall. It appears to be a matter of getting the budget reduced some, something every studio is dealing with in these hard financial times. If the budget concerns can be worked out, then production will move ahead on the action drama about two railroad employees trying to stop a runaway train carrying toxic chemicals.

_{(Photo &copy Richard Chavez)}

Amy Adams May Join The Fighter

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 12:41:15 +0000

The cast of the boxer movie The Fighter is thisclose to expanding by one. Amy Adams is in talks to take on the role of Charlene, a bartender who becomes boxer Micky Ward's love interest, in the gritty drama. If the deal goes through Adams will be joining Mark Wahlberg as Micky and Christian Bale as Micky's brother/trainer Dickie Eklund. David O. Russell is set to direct the film which is heading into production next month.

Darren Aronosfky (The Wrestler) had long been attached to The Fighter, but the project never got off the ground. Back in our exclusive interview in November 2008, Aronofsky was still hoping to make The Fighter. "The Fighter is this great script that has such complicated issues and problems that it�s just ridiculous that that is so hard to make," said Aronofsky, adding, "I think it will get made. It�s too good of a script to not get made."

Aronofsky's currently involved with a RoboCop remake and Russell has stepped in to move The Fighter forward. Amy Adams will next be seen in the comedy Julie and Julia which reunites her with her Doubt co-star, Meryl Streep.

_{(Photo &copy Richard Chavez)}

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Cast on Ice Age #3 in 3-D

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 01:28:07 +0000

Ray Romano returns as Manny the Mammoth, John Leguizamo's back as Sid the Sloth, and Queen Latifah brings the love of Manny's life - Ellie - to life once again on the big screen in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs. This latest adventure finds the prehistoric friends eagerly anticipating the birth of Manny and Ellie's first child. As the mighty Mammoths prepare for parenthood, Sid the Sloth and Diego the saber-toothed tiger (Denis Leary) are forced to face the fact that Manny and Ellie are forming their own new family and that might mean it's time for the group to break up and go their own ways. But as usually happens, Sid gets into trouble - with dinosaurs, no less - and it's up to his long-time traveling companions to band together to save the silly sloth. Read More...

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs Photos

Poster for Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

_{(Photo &copy 20th Century Fox/Blue Sky Studios)}