World War Z

 

In “World War Z,” director Marc Forster’s film adaptation of Max Brooke’s best-selling novel, “World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War,” the “Z” stands for “Zombie.” Lots of zombies. Zombies that, as visual effects supervisor John Nelson explains, “are like predatory animals that can’t control themselves. Their instinct to infect is so basic, efficient and overpowering. They will go through anything. If they lose both legs, they will walk on their hands.” And with the human population falling by the millions, the Zs appear to be on track towards taking over the world.

 

Against this backdrop meet Gerry Lane (Brad Pitt), a United Nations researcher and devoted family man. With civilization teetering on collapse, Gerry is tapped to travel the world in a race against time. His goal: to search for information that will stop the zombie outbreak that is toppling armies and governments around the globe.

 

The screenplay for “World War Z” was written by Matthew Michael Carnahan and Damon Lindelof. Mireille Enos plays Gerry’s wife, Karin, while Daniella Kertesz is his comrade-in-arms, Segen. The horror/thriller also stars James Badge Dale, Matthew Fox and David Morse. Paramount Pictures plans to release “World War Z” on June 21, 2013.

The Big Wedding

 

Don and Ellie Griffin (Robert Di Niro and Diane Keaton) fell in love, got married, had children, fell out of love, and got divorced. Don married Ellie’s good friend Lyla (Katherine Heigl). The kids grew up. Everyone moved on with their lives. “The Big Wedding” starts out as a typical American story.

 

Now, years later, Don and Ellie’s adopted son Alejandro (Ben Barnes) is getting married. The plans for a big wedding are going well until Al drops a bomb on the family: his biological mother has decided to fly halfway across the world to attend the event. An ultra-conservative Catholic, she believes that divorce is a terrible sin. Which is why for the past 15 years Al has neglected to tell her that his parents are not only “heathens,” they’re also divorced.

 

What can they do? Al doesn’t want to disappoint his biological mother, who “gave up her only son in the hopes that he could have a better life.” The solution: for one weekend, Don and Ellie will pretend to be a happily married couple once again. Among all of their family and friends, the hoax snowballs into a poignant and raucously funny story as the Griffins are forced to confront their past, present and future.

 

“The Big Wedding” is an American remake of the original French film written by Jean-Stephane Bron and Karine Sudan. Written and directed by Justin Zackham, “The Big Wedding” is scheduled for release on April 26, 2013 by Lionsgate. The all-star cast also includes Amanda Seyfried, Topher Grace, Susan Sarandon, Robin Williams and Christine Ebersole.

A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman

“A Liar’s Autobiography” is a comedic, fictionalized biography of Graham Chapman, a member of the Monty Python comedy group who died of cancer in 1989. Prior to his death Chapman was recorded reading excerpts from his book, “A Liar’s Autobiography,” which was a heavily fictionalized account of his life. These recordings are used as the basis for this animated film, which has been called Chapman’s own take on his bizarre life and search for self-knowledge.

Told through 17 different animation styles from 14 different animators, “A Liar’s Autobiography” is a surreal film that also features the voices of most of the other members of the Monty Python troupe. Not a documentary and not a Monty Python film, “A Liar’s Autobiography” nonetheless includes enough Python sketches, songs and references to please even die-hard Monty Python fans. After all, by the movie’s own account, the three most influential aspects of Chapman’s life were “sex, booze and Python!” Much of the visual material in the film illustrates Chapman’s experiences growing up gay in a homophobic environment during World War II, as well as his very heavy drinking.

“A Liar’s Autobiography: The Untrue Story of Monty Python’s Graham Chapman” was directed by Bill Jones, Ben Timlett and Jeff Simpson. The animated film is set for a limited release on November 2, 2012 by Trinity, Brainstorm Media. Also features the voices of Terry Jones, Michael Palin, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam and Eric Idle.

Flight

 

One moment Captain “Whip” Whitaker is being hailed as an all-American hero who did the impossible – he landed a plane that had stopped functioning at 30,000 feet, saving 98 lives in the process. It was an emergency landing that was hailed as “miraculous,” given the fact that no other pilot was able to pull it off in a simulated re-creation. The next moment Whip is facing the possibility of life in prison. What could possibly have gone so wrong?

 

“Flight” tells the story of that emergency landing and Whip’s struggles to hold up to the scrutiny of the government’s investigation into the circumstances of the landing. The problem: in spite of his heroic actions, when Whip was taken to the hospital after the event he had alcohol in his system from the drinks he had consumed the night before. Will he go to prison – or will he go down in the history books as a hero?

 

 

Written by John Gatins and directed by Robert Zemeckis, “Flight” is an R-rated drama that’s scheduled for release by Paramount Pictures on November 2, 2012. Also starring Kelly Reilly, Don Cheadle, Bruce Greenwood, Brian Geraghty, John Goodman and Tamara Tunie.

The Details

Marriage…infidelity…suburban dreams…extortion…and one some very ravenous raccoons. “The Details,” the new comedy written and directed by Jacob Estes, tackles all of these issues and more.

Jeff and Nealy Lang (Tobey Maguire and Elizabeth Banks) are an environmentally-concious couple who seem to have it all. After 10 years of marriage they have a newly renovated home in the suburbs, a child, and a Prius. A successful obstetrician with his beautiful wife. Beneath the surface, though, their marriage is on the rocks and their struggling.

Against this backdrop, the Langs embark on a landscaping project. Jeff has decided that he wants his home to have a perfectly manicured backyard. What he gets, however, is a bunch of raccoons that repeatedly burrow under the sod to get to the tasty worms that lay beneath. In response, Jeff becomes obsessed with eradicating the raccoons – and his efforts initiate an incredible chain reaction of increasingly crazy plans. As Estes explains, “‘The Details’ is about how adults can act like children, or like silly little animals, driven by impulses that are, or can be, out of their control.”

“The Details” also stars Ray Liotta, Dennis Haysbert, Anna Friel, Laura Linney and Sam Trammell. The film is scheduled for a limited release on November 2, 2012 by RADiUS-TWC.

Iron Man 3

 

Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) is accustomed to being on top of the world. He’s brilliant. He’s handsome. He’s a billionaire. He’s the world’s foremost weapons manufacturer. And he’s IronMan. So what happens when Tony suddenly finds his personal world destroyed at the hands of Iron Man’s archenemy, The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley)? Left to survive by his ingenuity and his own devices, will Iron Man be able to protect his girlfriend, Virginia “Pepper” Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) – the one thing he can’t live without?

 

Trying to fight his way back after losing so much, Iron Man’s mettle is tested at every turn. A small “silver lining” to Iron Man’s predicament, though, is that he will finally learn the answer to a question that has vexed him since he first put on the suit that gives him his “super” powers: does the man make the suit or does the suit make the man?

 

The sequel to “Iron Man” and “Iron Man 2,” “Iron Man 3” is based on the Marvel Comics super hero Iron Man character. Directed by Shane Black from a screenplay by Black and Drew Peace, “Iron Man 3” is set for a May 3, 2013 release in both 3D and 2D by Walt Disney Pictures and Marvel Studios. The action adventure film also stars Don Cheadle, Guy Pearce, Rebecca Hall, Stephanie Szostak, James Badge Dale, and Jon Favreau.

 

Alter Egos

“Alter Egos,” a comedy spoof of all of the super-hero films that have been so popular in recent years, takes place in a land where superheroes roam the streets. Having lost all government funding and public support, the superheroes (and many not-so-super heros) are now starting to have issues reintegrating into society with their alter egos, i.e. their “normal” selves.

Do-gooders Fridge (Kris Lemche), whose special power is to shoot ice out of his hands, and his friend C-Thru (Joey Kern), who has X-ray vision, are holed up at a deserted off-season hotel. Fridge is angry that his unsuspecting girlfriend is having an affair with his own alter ego – and that she seems to like his “normal” self better than his “super” self. Ironically, in the midst of his anger with his girlfriend, Fridge falls for an attractive innkeeper, Claudel (Brooke Nevin). Claudel is being harassed by Jimmy (Danny Masterson), a superhero wannabe whose special power, the ability to become invisible for exactly 2.3 seconds, wasn’t judged to be sufficiently “super” to allow him to join the superheroes “club.” Meanwhile, C-Thru has captured Fridge’s mortal enemy, Shrink (John Ventimiglia), the villain who murdered Fridge’s parents. But what should Fridge do? Killing Shrink would violate superhero rule #27, “no revenge.” Of course, as his friend points out, “no one follows these rules anyway.”

Although on its surface “Alter Egos” is about humans who have extraordinary (or, perhaps, semi-extraordinary) abilities, underneath it all the film is about all of the emotional issues that go with regular life.

Featuring a soundtrack by Sean Lennon, who also plays the character of “Electric Death” in the film, “Alter Egos” also stars Geneva Carr, Christine Evangelista, Kristina Klebe, Marina Squerciati, Aurelie Claudel and Carlos Velazquez. Written and directed by Jordan Galland, the R-rated film is scheduled for a limited New York release on October 19, 2012 by SModcast Pictures.

Holy Motors

“Holy Motors,” a French fantasy drama written and directed by Leos Carax, is a surreal film about a day in the life of a man whose job appears to be to use make-up, elaborate costumes and various props to carry out a wide variety of complex and unusual scenarios.

After being picked up in a white stretch limo by his friend and chauffer Celine (Edith Scob), Monsieur Oscar (Denis Lavant) spends the day traveling through the streets of Paris on a mysterious odyssey to a series of nine “appointments.” Although Monsieur Oscar initially appears to be a high-powered business man, each time he gets out of the limousine he has transformed into a different character. On his first stop, for example, Monsieur Oscar emerges as an elderly bag lady; as such, he stands on a bridge begging for spare change. On other appointments Oscar is a demented troll, a frustrated father, a professional assassin…and the list goes on. From kidnapping a fashion model from a photo shoot in a cemetery to having simulated sex with an actress on a soundstage while an off-camera director calls the shots, Oscar has a rather full day!

“Holy Motors” has been described as a “ravishing, shape-shifting, fever dream of becoming, unraveling and starting all over again.” Movie-goers will be able to judge for themselves, as the film’s October 17, 2012 limited New York release (by Indomina Releasing) is scheduled to expand on November 9. “Holy Motors,” which was filmed in French, is being shown in the U.S. with English subtitles. Also starring Eva Mendes and Kylie Minogue.

The Sessions

“The Sessions” is based on the triumphant true story of Mark O’Brien, a poet and journalist whose childhood bout of polio left him paralyzed from the neck down. Confined to a gurney and an iron lung, Mark’s spine was locked in a curve and his head was barely able to move. For a few hours a day he was freed from the iron lung by a portable respirator, but these hours were always a risk.

At the age of 38 Mark (John Hawkes) became obsessed with the idea of losing his virginity. A deeply religious Catholic, he consulted his friend and priest (William H. Macy) about the idea of having sex outside of marriage. After receiving the priest’s blessing and his therapist’s encouragement, Mark hired a sex surrogate, Cheryl Cohen Greene (Helen Hunt), to help him on his unlikely journey.

Cheryl set the tone with their first encounter, explaining that she’s not a prostitute, she’s a happily married mother, the two of them will be limited to six encounters, and that they aren’t forming a long-term relationship. The film is about the sessions that Cheryl and Mark had together, and the effect that these sessions had on them.

A sensitive exploration of love and sexuality, “The Sessions” was written and directed by Ben Lewin, based on the autobiographical work on Mark O’Brien. Scheduled for a limited release on October 19, 2012 by Fox Searchlight Pictures, the R-rated drama also stars Moon Bloodgood.

 

The Impossible

On December 26, 2004, Thailand was hit by a massive tsunami that caused unthinkable destruction. “The Impossible” is based on the true story of one family’s experience during this terrible natural disaster.

The film starts with the family’s arrival in Thailand for what was expected to be an amazing Christmas holiday. Mom Maria (Naomi Watts), dad Henry (Ewan McGregor), and their three boys – Lucas (Tom Holland), Simon (Oaklee Pendergast) and Thomas (Samuel Joslin) – quickly settle into their beachside bungalow and begin to enjoy their vacation in this tropical paradise.

On the morning of December 26 the family is relaxing in and around the pool when they hear a terrifying roar and see a wall of black water rushing towards them. The family is separated, with Maria and Lucas managing to stay together while Henry grabs hold of their other two boys. Pulled deeper and deeper inland by the water, Maria and Lucas are injured as they’re pummeled by floating debris.

“The Impossible” tells the story of this family’s fight for survival amidst thousands of strangers in a destroyed landscape, and journey to find each other and eventually reunite. It’s a true-life terror that’s tempered by the compassion, courage and simple kindness that the family encounters along the way.

Directed by J.A. Bayona from a screenplay by Sergio G. Sanchez, “The Impossible” is a drama thriller that is set for a limited release in New York and Los Angeles on December 21, 2012 by Summit Entertainment.