There are many things to like about Law Abiding Citizen including both Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler’s performances, direction by F. Gary Gray, cinematography by Jonathan Sela and a rather taught and suspenseful screenplay by Kurt Wimmer.

The movie follows Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler), a family man whose wife and daughter are brutally murdered in front of him while he lies helpless during a home invasion. When the killers are caught, Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx), an ambitions Philadelphia prosecutor, is assigned to the case.

Nick offers one of the suspects a light sentence in exchange for testifying against his accomplice. Sadly, it’s not the guy who did the actual killings but his accomplice that goes to jail. The real killer goes free.

Cut to 10 years later, the man who got away with murder is found dead and Shelton, without remorse, admits his guilt. Then he issues a warning to Rice: Either fix the flawed justice system that failed his family, or more people will die in the name of real justice.

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2010 is in full swing and some really great movies are hitting store shelves this week for the first time and for the first time on Blu-ray. This week’s releases include Gamer, Magnolia, Boogie Nights, Che, Damages, the complete run of ABC’s canceled too soon Defying Gravity and the Blu-ray release of Whiteout with Kate Beckinsale (pictured above).

Check out this week’s releases:

Movies

According to Greta ~ Hilary Duff, Ellen Burstyn (DVD)

Boogie Nights ~ Mark Wahlberg, Heather Graham, Burt Reynolds, Julianne Moore (Blu-ray)

Bourne Supremacy (Single-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) ~ Matt Damon, Brian Cox, Karl Urban (Blu-ray)

Bourne Ultimatum (Single-Disc Blu-ray/DVD Combo) ~ Matt Damon, David Strathairn, Scott Glenn (Blu-ray)

Che (Criterion Collection) ~ Benicio del Toro (Blu-ray)

Gamer ~ Gerard Butler, Amber Valetta, Michael C. Hall, Kyra Sedgwick (DVD and Blu-ray)

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300, one of the biggest hits of 2007, directed by Zack Snyder and based off the comic book mini-series by Frank Miller (The Spirit, Sin City the movie and comic series), is now supposedly getting a prequel. For the prequel, the story is set in time to see the battle of Marathon – which took place ten years before the events of 300.

During the battle, Xerxes’ father, Darius I, battled the Athenians. I believe this is passingly mentioned in a mocking tone in 300, when Leonidas denies acquiescing to Xerxes’ messengers, before kicking them down a giant hole in the middle of town.

Miller, who will again be writing and drawing the comic series before it’s taken to the big screen, has said to the LA Times, “It’s the Battle of Marathon through my lens” and that he’s just about ready to begin. Of course, the interesting thing about 300, and some might say the frightening thing about this new story; is the level of fact and stylization Miller had put into his original story.

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Well, I’m  humbled and a little embarrassed to admit how much I enjoyed this movie. You see, before I actually started reviewing movies, this is exactly the type of film that would cause me to turn up my nose. I’ve made an earnest attempt to go outside my comfort zone, and damned if I am not pleasantly surprised every once and a while. All I knew about this film was that it starred Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler. I’m not exactly a big fan of either.

Law Abiding Citizen is a bloody, sick, and twisted tale of revenge. What if you crossed a gruesome revenge movie like I Spit on Your Grave with a implausible, tech-savy caper like Mission Impossible? Why, you would get something like this film.  Suspend your logic and enjoy the ride. Wholly original, Law Abiding Citizen had me on pins and needles, and there are enough twists and turns to make even the most jaded movie-goer giddy.

Let’s get my disclaimer out of the way so we can get down to the business of reviewing the movie:

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As a big fan of Warren Ellis and his writing, I’m particularly happy to report that one of my favorite comics of his, Gravel, has now been optioned by Legendary Pictures for development as a feature film. This latest acquisition by Legendary makes a lot of sense considering they have several genre projects already going including Inception, Sucker Punch, Jonah Hex and Clash of the Titans.

In case you’re not as familiar with Gravel as you should be, it was created by Ellis in 1999 and is published by Avatar Press in its most current form. It centers on William Gravel, a soldier in the British S.A.S. who uses his skills in dark magic to moonlight and battle supernatural beings for clients in order to make extra cash. Along the way he encounters all manner of nastiness but still manages to not only survive, but to flourish.

According to the trade, Ellis will do the first draft of the screenplay and will also serve as an Executive Producer on the project, with Rick Alexander Producing. Given my fondness for Ellis’ work, I hope this continues the trend of his projects being adapted for the big screen.

No word on a director on any casting for Gravel, but for my money I would like to see Zack Snyder make this his next project after Sucker Punch. And, while we’re at it, how about Gerard Butler as Gravel? I think that combo, when combined with Ellis’ story, would make one hell of a movie.

After a week off your favorite team is back in action with an all new episode of The Flickcast. This week, Chris, Matt and Christina make up for lost time and get right back into it with discussions on topics like the formation of DC Entertainment, the new Titan Maximum show from the creators of Robot Chicken, new iPod Nanos, the box office success of Tyler Perry, the box office failure of Whiteout and new, or returning, TV shows the team is excited about like Dollhouse, Flash Forward, Trauma and more.

The team also made some great picks again this week including Matt’s pick of the new film Gamer featuring Gerard Butler, Christina’s choice of TV’s Project Runway and Chris’ pick of Mark Millar and John Romita, Jr.’s comic Kick-Ass.

As always, if you have comments, questions, critiques or offers of sponsorship, feel free to hit us up in the comments, on Twitter and at Facebook, MySpace or via email.

Thanks for listening.

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Taking advantage of the San Diego Comic-Con crowds, Lionsgate has just released clips for their Fall movies, Saw VI and Gamer.

The chilling R-rated Saw VI clip certainly ratchets up anticipation for the movie, and viewers might want to think twice about entering the insurance industry. Saw VI hits theaters on October 23, is directed by Kevin Greuter and stars Shawnee Smith ,Tobin Bell, Betsy Russell, Costas Mandylor, Mark Rolston and Peter Outerbridge.

The action thriller Gamer clip treats viewers to a future where humans can control other humans; in this case, Gerard Butler as the cult hero Kable. The film is written and directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, and also stars Michael C. Hall, Amber Valletta, John Leguizamo, Kyra Sedgwick and Logan Lerman. Gamer will be released on September 4.

Although it seems most every element of this film is “borrowed” from other films, it doesn’t make Gamer look any less cool. And now, there’s a new international trailer for the film to further confirm that fact. In case you’re not familiar with the film, Gamer is an action/thriller set in the near future where humans control other humans in a massive multiplayer online game.

Billionaire Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall) has created the controversial form of entertainment called “Slayers,” a hugely popular game that allows millions to act out their secret desires and fantasies online. At the center is Kable (Gerard Butler), who is taken from his family, imprisoned and forced to fight against his will. Now, he must survive long enough to escape the game, free his family, regain his identity and save mankind. Doesn’t sound that tough, right?

Like I said, lots of familiar elements but still cool. Plus, Butler does know his way around action, so that can’t hurt either. Can’t wait to see this one.

Gamer, directed by Neveldine/Taylor and featuring Gerard Butler, Michael C. Hall, Kyra Sedgwick, Alison Lohman and Milo Ventimiglia, hits theaters on September 4.

Check out the new trailer after the jump.

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