Olympus Has Fallen

Special Agent Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) was one of the best Presidential Guards in the business, until a fateful motor accident left him disgraced. Having trouble adjusting to life in the real world, Banning finds himself out of place in an increasingly confusing world. Until terrorists take over the White House.

In Olympus Has Fallen Banning finds himself trapped inside the now-terrorist-controlled White House. He soon discovers that the President has been kidnapped and the Presidential Guard lies captured or dead. As the national security team scrambles to respond, Banning realizes that he might be the nation’s only hope to keep the President alive. Now, the Pentagon must decide if they can trust a disgraced officer with the President’s life, or if they can risk losing the nation’s capitol forever. As the clock winds down, Banning must use his inside knowledge to save the President and reclaim the White House—and avert an even bigger disaster.

Written by Creighton Rothenberger and Katrin Benedikt and directed by Antoine Fuqua (of Training Day fame), Olympus Has Fallen will be released on March 22, 2013. This Film District action thriller also stars Aaron Eckhart, Morgan Freeman, Angela Bassett, Dylan McDermott, Ashley Judd, Melissa Leo, and Rick Yune. Rated R for strong violence and language throughout.

No Place On Earth

When spelunker Christopher Nicola traveled to the Ukraine in 1993 to explore its vast network of caves, he never could have imagined what he would discover. After finding remnants of human habitation, Nicola spent the next nine years piecing together the remarkable story of the people who had lived there: a group of Ukrainian Jews escaping the Holocaust. No Place On Earth tells their harrowing tale of survival.

This documentary follows the story of the 38 refugees who lived in total darkness for almost 18 months. Split between actors’ reenactments of the events and interviews with surviving members, No Place On Earth paints a vivid picture of the miserable and inhospitable conditions these families survived. The five fathers would risk life and limb every night to sneak out and gather food and supplies, persevering for almost a year and a half with no gear or training. Finally, the surviving members are brought back to see the caves that had been their home all those years ago.

Directed by Janet Tobias, No Place On Earth will see a limited theatrical release on April 5, 2013. This Magnolia Pictures documentary stars Chris Nicola, Saul Stermer, Sam Stermer, Sonia Dodyk, and Sima Dodyk. Rated PG-13 for thematic elements including brief violent images.

Last Passenger

Public transportation just got a whole lot more dangerous. In Last Passenger, Lewis Schaler (Dougray Scott) has caught the last train home from London with his son and is looking forward to relaxing after a hard day’s work. An overworked doctor and devoted single dad, Schaler’s life is consumed with taking care of his son and his practice. Soon he strikes up a conversation with a beautiful and flirtatious stranger (Kara Tointon), and he decides that he might find the time to take care of himself as well.

But all is not well. Little do the passengers know, an angry psychopath has taken control of the train and is bent on crashing it and killing everyone aboard. With the brakes sabotaged and the guards mysteriously gone, it is up to Schaler and a small band of passengers to stop the psychopath and save the train. The body count rises as the locomotive plows through train stations, cars, and everything else in its path. Will Schaler be able to interrupt the psychopath’s plans in time to lead the passengers to safety?

Written and directed by Omid Nooshin, The Last Passenger will see a limited theatrical release on August 13, 2013. This Future Films/2B Pictures/Pathe International/NDF International action thriller also stars Lindsay Duncan, Iddo Goldberg, David Schofield, and Joshua Kaynama.

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

Based on the bestselling series by Cassandra Clare, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones tells the story of an extraordinary teenager’s quest to save her mother. Clary Fray (Lily Collins) is living an ordinary life in New York City—until her world is rocked by a pair of dramatic revelations. First she discovers that she is a descendant of the Shadowhunters, a hidden force of half-human, half-angel warriors sworn to protect our world from demons. Then she discovers that her mother Joceyln (Lena Headey) has been kidnapped by a man feverishly searching for the Mortal Cup, a powerful artifact in Jocelyn’s possession. Clary realizes that she must take drastic action if she hopes to save her mother and connect with her heritage.

Out of her element, Clary recruits the help of three Shadowhunters: Jace (Jamie Campbell Bower), Alec (Kevin Zegers), and Isabelle (Jemima West). They introduce her to a dangerous alternate New York called Downworld, filled with demons, vampires, werewolves, and all manner of threatening monsters. Together they must fight their way through a maze of danger, greed, and betrayal if they hope to rescue Jocelyn and recover the Mortal Cup.

Written by Jessica Postigo Paquette and directed by Harald Zwart, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones will open in theaters on August 23, 2013. This Screen Gems (Sony) action fantasy film also stars Robert Sheehan, Kevin Durand, Aidan Turner, Godfrey Gao, CCH Pounder, Jared Harris, and Jonathan Rhys Meyers.

The To Do List

When an overachieving, goodie-two-shoes teen wants to catch up on all the sexual adventures her classmates have been having before she leaves for college, what is she to do? Make a to-do list, of course! In The To Do List, valedictorian Brandy Clark (Aubrey Plaza) has spent her entire school career hitting up books rather than boys, but this summer she wants to make up for lost time. So she does what she knows best: she brainstorms and writes out a list of all the “extra-curricular” activities she’s been missing out on.

However, Brandy soon realizes that she’s out of her element and in over her head. She recruits the help of her best friends (Alia Shawkat, Sarah Steele, Donald Glover, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, and Johnny Simmons), her older sister (Rachel Bilson), and her burnt-out boss (Bill Hader) to give her some advice. To complete the list by September, the group will need plenty of imagination and very open minds. Loosely based upon writer/director Maggie Carey’s own life, The To-Do List is about a group of friends growing closer and making some very special memories.

Written and directed by Maggie Carey, The To Do List will be released into theaters on August 16, 2013. This CBS Films comedy also stars Andy Samberg, Scott Porter, Connie Britton, and Clark Gregg.

Pacific Rim

“We always thought that alien life would come from the stars. We never considered it might come from deep beneath the sea.” In Pacific Rim it is the near future, and monstrous creatures called Kaiju have been swarming out of the Pacific Ocean, sparking a years-long war that has cost humanity millions of lives and billions of dollars. Mankind’s greatest weapons against the Kaiju are the Jaegers, giant robots controlled by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even these fearsome constructions are proving powerless against the relentless assault of the Kaiju. Exhausted and on the brink of destruction, humanity’s leaders have no choice but to turn to an unlikely duo for help—a washed-up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi) piloting a legendary but obsolete Jaeger from the early days. Will their power be enough to save mankind from total annihilation?

Conceived as director Guillermo del Toro’s “beautiful poem to giant monsters,” Pacific Rim promises a compelling storyline and fantastic visual effects. “The Kaiju counted on the humans to hide, to give up, to fail,” rallies the leader of the human forces. “But today, we are canceling the apocalypse.”

Written by Travis Beachman and Guillermo del Toro and directed by Guillermo del Toro, Pacific Rim will be released in 2D, 3D, and IMAX on July 12, 2013. This Warner Bros. Pictures sci-fi action film also stars Idris Elba, Charlie Day, Ron Perlman, Robert Kazinsky, Max Martini, Clifton Collins, Jr., Burn Gorman, Larry Joe Campbell, Brad William Henke, and Diego Klattenhoff.

The Heat

From Paul Feig, the director of Bridesmaids, comes a new take on the buddy cop genre that promises to put the “laughter” back into “manslaughter.” In The Heat, two law enforcement officers team up to take down a ruthless drug lord, but the pair couldn’t be any more different. FBI Special Agent Sarah Ashburn (Sandra Bullock) is an uptight and straight-laced investigator with an arrogant streak a mile wide. Boston P.D.’s “finest” Shannon Mullins (Melissa McCarthy) is a bad-tempered and foul-mouthed cop who relies on her gut instinct over her training and refuses to play by the book. Neither has ever had a partner—or even wanted one, for that matter. Now, the hardest thing they’ll have to do is work together.

Ashborn and Mullins certainly make an incongruous duo. And yet, they each bring something to the table that the other sorely lacks. Mullins grew up on the streets of Boston; unlike the recently-relocated Ashburn, she knows the town inside and out. Ashburn, on the other hand, offers all the training and experience of an FBI field leader. Will their skills be enough to take down a brutal drug syndicate? And will they be able to look past their differences and become something they never dreamed possible—buddies?

Written by Katie Dippold and directed by Paul Feig, The Heat will be released in theaters on June 28, 2013. This 20th Century Fox action comedy also stars Demian Bichir, Marlon Wayans, and Michael Rapaport.

 

Side Effects

One pill can change your life. In Side Effects, Emily and Martin Tayolor (Rooney Mara and Channing Tatum) are a successful New York couple who have just been reunited after Martin’s release from jail. Having trouble dealing with life after her husband’s return, Emily reaches out to psychiatrist Dr. Jonathan Banks (Jude Law) for help. He prescribes a drug called Ablixa to treat her anxiety—and little do they know, Emily’s anxiety is about to get a lot worse.

Soon after taking the pill, Emily awakes to discover a dead body in her apartment. Police can find no signs of struggle or forced entry, and Emily becomes suspect number one in a murder investigation that threatens to turn her life upside down. As the investigation and ensuing court trial progress, Emily (as well as Dr. Banks) must confront the possibility that she is not the person she thinks she is. And as Emily’s life unravels before her eyes, she and everyone she loves must remember—there are always side effects.

Written by Scott Z. Burns and directed by Steven Soderbergh, Side Effects was released into theaters on February 8, 2013 to positive critical reviews. This Open Roads Films psychological thriller also stars Catherine Zeta-Jones, Vinessa Shaw, and Polly Draper. Rated R for sexuality, nudity, violence, and language.

This is the End

The end of the world has never been this funny. After the Apocalypse strikes Los Angeles, six celebrities (Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, James Franco, Craig Robinson, Danny McBride, and Jonah Hill) find themselves trapped in a house with nowhere to go. Tensions rise as the friends try to piece together what happened and how to deal with the bizarre destruction that continues to rage outside. As their supplies dwindle, the group realizes that they have been left behind. Their friendship gets put to the test as they attempt to come to terms with their current situation. Soon they must venture outside for food—and learn the true meaning of friendship.

Based on Jay Baruchel and Seth Rogen’s 2007 short film Jay and Seth vs. the Apocalypse, This Is The End unites a virtual smorgasbord of current comedic stars in a film that has taken years in the making. Will the celebrities be able to see past their differences and make the best of their end days—or will they go out in a hilarious blaze of glory?

Written and directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen, This Is The End will be released in theaters on June 14, 2013. This Columbia Pictures (Sony) comedy also stars Emma Watson, Paul Rudd, Michael Cera, Jason Segel, Aziz Ansari, Mindy Kaling, Paul Krumholtz, Martin Starr, Kevin Hart, and Rihanna.

2 Guns

Two undercover operatives. Two competing departments. One big bust. For the past year, DEA agent Bobby Trench (Denzel Washington) and U.S. Naval Intelligence officer Marcus Stigman (Mark Wahlberg) have been tracking the same drug cartel in hopes of bringing down the organization and recovering millions in stolen assets. Both men have come dangerously close to success, but when their efforts suddenly go south, each of them finds himself disavowed by his bureau and scrambling to survive. But there’s a twist—neither knows that the other is an undercover agent!

On the run and forced to partner together, the two distrust each other as much as the criminals they have been hunting. For months they had been investigating each other on suspicion of stealing money from the mob, but now that it appears that the mob has set them up, they must set aside their differences if they want to survive. Onetime enemies Bobby and Stig realize that the only person they can count on is the other. As the clock winds down, the two men of the law must turn to some less-than-lawful skills acquired on the job if they hope to stay out of jail—and the grave.

Written by Blake Masters and directed by Baltasar Kormakur, 2 Guns is set for release on August 16, 2013. This Universal Pictures action crime thriller also stars Paula Patton, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos, and James Marsden.