Woody Harrelson has had an interesting revitalization in the past few years with films like Zombieland and 2012, but now it’s time for him to take on another meaty lead a la The People vs. Larry Flynt. Except this time you can expect a better film with Rampart.

The film’s got a pretty star-studded cast with Harrelson being joined by Ned Beatty, Ben Foster, Anne Heche, Ice Cube, Cynthia Nixon, Sigourney Weaver, Robin Wright, and Steve Buscemi, but that’s not even as good as the story itself. Here’s the synopsis.

Los Angeles, 1999. Officer Dave Brown (Harrelson) is a Vietnam vet and a Rampart Precinct cop, dedicated to doing “the people’s dirty work” and asserting his own code of justice, often blurring the lines between right and wrong to maintain his action-hero state of mind. When he gets caught on tape beating a suspect, he finds himself in a personal and emotional downward spiral as the consequences of his past sins and his refusal to change his ways in light of a department-wide corruption scandal seal his fate.

Brown internalizes his fear, anguish and paranoia as his world, complete with two ex-wives who are sisters, two daughters, an aging mentor dispensing bad advice, investigators galore, and a series of seemingly random women, starts making less and less sense. In the end, what is left is a human being stripped of all his pretense, machismo, chauvinism, arrogance, sexism, homophobia, racism, aggression, misanthropy; but is it enough to redeem him as a man?

Take a look at the trailer below to see the film in action, and catch Rampart in limited theaters on November 23rd.

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A few months ago, we first brought you the trailer for Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s newest comedy, this time taking place in the US, titled Paul. Fanboys (especially those who attended Comic-Con this year) had heard nothing but great things about this upcoming film, and when the first trailer hit, we got anything but tickled with humor. The trailer showed us all of our favorite actors and actresses that could make a good flick, but was cut in a way that was lacking in any comedic payoff whatsoever. It looks like things have changed with a brand new trailer, however.

This new International trailer finally gives us the goods. For those who don’t know, the film follows Pegg and Frost’s characters across country to their first ever San Diego Comic-Con. On the way, they decide to pass through the famed Area 51 and come across Paul, an escaped alien, voiced by Seth Rogen. After choosing to befriend the little guy, they are forced to keep him safe from a shadowy government figure (Sigourney Weaver) who sends her best men after him (Bill Hader & Jason Bateman).

The flick has plenty more cameos, nods to other geeky franchises, and yes, alien nudity. Check out the full trailer after the jump and catch Paul in theaters on March 18th.

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Nerds everywhere have been hearing more and more about the next big Simon Pegg & Nick Frost (stars of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz) film called Paul. All we really knew was that it starred our favorite English duo plus Bill Hader, Jason Bateman, Sigourney Weaver, Kristin Wiig, and Seth Rogen. That is until a little show called San Diego Comic-Con happened, and now all we want is more from the film.

The premise of the film has Pegg and Frost as two Brits traveling across the country on their way to Comic-Con. Along the way they come across a rogue alien escaping from Area 51. Rogen lends his voice as the titular Paul, the alien, with Bateman and Hader as the Men in Black-style FBI agents who are sent to retrieve him.

From what we hear, the footage they showed during the Comic-Con panel did the film more justice, but this will appeal to the mass audience. Expect to see plenty of fan service throughout the film, as just about everyone involved in it has some bit of geek cred to their name.

Check out the first trailer for the film after the jump. Catch Pegg and Frost in Paul on March 18th of next year.

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As summer dies down with explosive fire power and spiritual journeys to other lands, I recall the glorious action fest that was The Expendables. In turns out Julia Roberts has nothing on protein packed men with a mission on their minds. My female counterparts have voiced their love of meaty men in droves and unexpectedly taken away business from Julia’s love fest. Nearly 40 percent of The Expendables‘ audience was women. X-Men Origins: Wolverine‘s audience raked them in as nearly 50 percent of the audience was female. It seems women have tired of the boys akin to Michael Cera and instead jones for something with a little more muscle. Stallone should have learned the key to Hugh Jackman’s success to driving women in throngs- taking off his shirt.

I hear Hugh gave up his lead in Avon Man to start his insane work-out to become the ferocious mutant once again. If you take months upon months to beef up like these 80‘s action legends did, you’d think they’d want to show it off. Plus, wasn’t it super hot in Louisiana and Brazil where The Expendables shot? It was like 100 degrees with 100 percent humidity. Stallone couldn’t have been the only one who was feeling the heat.  Take off those shirts and up your female movie-going audience to 51 percent.

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Congrats to all those who have made it past Comic-Con’s endless Hall H lines, sat through countless hours of the studio’s pleading with you to buy movie tickets, and made it back home in one, tired piece. What awaits you is a month filled with the studio’s last line of blockbuster attack ads until the holiday season.

Fear not, as the lines will be vastly shorter than the wait for Eclipse. Instead of emos and soccer moms in “Team Edward” T-shirts, you’ll find yourself beside teenage boys who watch Rocky V on their Evos while waiting for The Expendables.

Curiously, the generals of Universal and Lionsgate both decided to fire missiles into the 13-30 years old guys camp. With the troops dispersing, you should be able to deftly maneuver yourself to the safety of a comfy recliner at the multiplex.

My advice, do like Julia Roberts and Eat some buttery popcorn, Pray for a film worth the ticket price, and Love the below reviews. Let’s check out what’s in store for us in August.

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By now, you’ve read a dozen articles proclaiming the past year or so to be the Age of the Vampires. You have probably complained loudly about how many darn vampire movies and television shows there are. I know I have.

I make a few exceptions (you’ll pry my True Blood DVDs out of my cold, undead fingers) but for the most part, I could let most of the movies and television shows pass on by.  But we’re all going to have to make another exception for Sigourney Weaver.

According to THR’s Heat Vision, Weaver has joined the cast of Amy Heckerling’s vampire horror comedy Vamps.   The film centers on two young vampires played by Alicia Silverstone and Krysten Ritter who find their permanent youth, sexiness, and penchant for darkness a boon in the New York club scene.   But when they find true love, they face a difficult choice that threatens their immortality.

Weaver will play Ciccerus, a vicious vampire who turned both girls into bloodsuckers.   She’s also a queen vampire. Move over Evan Rachel Wood!  Weaver will have the power of Zuul at her back. Frankly, that’s why I’m excited to see her embrace her (campy) dark side. No one can play vicious like Weaver, and few have her dry comedic chops.

Even if the idea of a vampire romantic comedy immediately makes your fangs pop out, you have to admit this addition makes Vamps a lot more appealing.

Vamps is eying an April start.   Let’s hope all the blood isn’t drained of the trend before we get to see a goddess like Weaver have some fun with it.

According to an interview with MTV, Ivan Reitman, who directed the first two Ghostbusters movies and some misfires such as My Super Ex-Girlfriend, and the David Duchovny starrer Evolution, will indeed return to direct the third film in the Ghostbusters franchise. He also mentioned that the first draft script from Year One writers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky is completed and they are currently at work on another draft.

Regarding rumors from stars Harold Ramis, who said the movie is hopefully to be filmed in time for a 2011 release, and Sigourney Weaver who said Bill Murray’s character would be returning as a ‘Slimer’-like ghost, Reitman kept silent saying he didn’t want to talk about what “cool things” were in the script or what may have been said about it. He did say that he’s hoping to film sometime in the coming year, which fits with hopefully having the movie out next year.

Ghostbusters 3 is set to definitely star Ramis, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson and Sigourney Weaver with Murray, Annie Potts and the retired Rick Moranis all rumored to be returning as well. The story is supposedly about the older generation of Ghostbusters handing the reins over to a younger generation including, again according to Weaver, her movie son ‘Oscar’ who should be all grown-up now.

Ghostbusters is one of those films that’s simply timeless. Sure, the special effects are a little iffy these days but the story and comedic beats are still perfect. On the other hand  Ghostbusters 2 didn’t quite hit the mark for most people. That being the case, it’s hard to decide which way a third film may fall.  Would it live up to the original or become a parody of itself like the sequel?

It’s hard to imagine anything being as good as the original. However, I think some sort of transition film, in which a younger Ghostbuster team takes the place of the originals, could work. Original Ghostbuster Harold Ramis thinks so too:

“Something’s going to happen. Dan [Aykroyd] did write a spec GB3 screenplay a few years ago, but no one was motivated to pursue it. Now, 25 years after the original, there seems to be some willingness to proceed and apparently a substantial public appetite for a sequel. We’ll introduce some new young Ghostbusters, and all the old guys will be in it, too. Think Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future … GB3 is progressing with plans to shoot next summer and release in 2011. . . “

So there you have it, right from Egon’s mouth.  Ghostbusters 3 is on track to production and will probably set up a new franchise. The original spec script by Dan Aykroyd Ramis referred to was Ghostbusters Go To Hell which probably wouldn’t work to well. As such, co-executive producers Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky from The Office TV series have been tasked with writing a new script.

Hmm, Ghostbusters meets Dunder-Mifflin?  Sounds crazy, but it may just work.

Well, it certainly didn’t suck. That’s me, eating a little crow.  For months I have snickered about the colossal disaster I was sure Avatar was going to become. Admit it, you thought so too. How on earth could you not be pessimistic after seeing the early trailers?

Alien creatures a hue of blue so intense it would make papa smurf puke, and waxy humans that would beat any of Robert Zemeckis’s early efforts for “most soulless rendition of a human being” did not exactly instill confidence in me. Then came the daunting news that the movie weighed in at almost 3 hours. Add the driving time in and the Avatar screening took up almost half a day. I disliked the movie before I even slipped on the  exquisite 3-D nerd-spectacles that I so love.

A funny thing happened when the movie began. I was captivated. I rarely looked at my watch, and the three hours kept me glued to my seat. I became completely immersed in the alternate reality that James Cameron (Titanic) created, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Now, I am not jumping aboard the fanboy express like 90% of the critics I know. This  is not the end-all, be-all of epic movies.  I don’t think that it will “change the way we watch movies forever”, and I hope it doesn’t quite frankly.

As a stand alone experience, I absolutely recommend Avatar, but I won’t be going to the theater for repeated viewings. Avatar is innovative and visually spectacular, but its story and woeful dialogue keep it from being a truly great movie.  However, I will give James Cameron props for once again delivering a truly ground-breaking experience.

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With critics and other people around the Internets finally having a chance to see James Cameron’s upcoming Avatar this week, more footage is pooping up online as well. Case in point is these six clips from the film that are now online, as discovered by our pals at Coming Soon.

The six clips give you a pretty good idea about how the film begins and what happens during the first 30 or so minutes. In them you see how Sam Worthington’s character, Jake, comes to planet Pandora, meets the human military and scientific personnel stationed there, gets his Avatar body and his mission and then heads out into the wilderness to accomplish that mission.

If you like to go into a movie like this without having much knowledge of it, these clips won’t help you accomplish that. If you do like to know something about a film before seeing it, go ahead and click on the links after the jump to watch these six clips and it will be “mission accomplished.” Sadly, we can’t embed them for you here so you will have to click through to watch them at YouTube.

Oh, one more thing. If you do want to watch these, I suggest you hurry before they are all gone — as sometimes happens with “leaks” like this. Avatar opens December 18.

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Last night in Austin at Fantastic Fest producer Jon Landau screened footage from Jim Cameron’s upcoming major motion picture Avatar. Having not managed to see the footage at Comic-Con in San Diego and having not made it to Avatar day either, I was obviously curious to see what all the fuss was about. So, with a packed house of over 200, I watched several scenes from the film. Some already screened and some never before shown.

Don’t worry, I won’t be doing a review of the film based on this footage — I’ll save that until I see the entire film. However, I will render a few opinions on the footage, characters, action and the 3-D process I did see. My opinion can be summed up in one word: interesting. I know that probably doesn’t sound like a ringing endorsement but if you’ve followed my opinion on 3-D on The Flickcast podcast or here at the site, you know I’m not really a fan of this 3-D resurgence.

That said, I can tell you that the 3-D of Avatar is probably the best I’ve ever seen. The effect is pretty seamless and Cameron obviously knows his way around the process. Some of the scenes on the planet Pandora, in particular one where Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) as his Avatar has to tame a flying beast and bend its will so he can fly it, was outstanding. The sweeping vistas of Pandora, which would probably have looked great in 2-D, were made even more spectacular with the added third dimension.

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This past Friday was a pretty new and exciting day for the cinema, as most dubbed it “Avatar Day” because 20th Century Fox ran free screenings of select clips from James Cameron’s highly anticipated film in 3D IMAX theaters across the country. There were roughly six clips totaling about 15 minutes. Cameron made an appearance at the beginning of the clips (in 3D, of course) and introduced the scenes.

Not much was known about the film, let alone the premise, leading up to “Avatar Day,” so it was nice to get an idea of the story. From what was gathered, the film takes place in the 21st century, when mankind is at war with the alien race known as the Na’vi. They enlist people to fight on the warring planet, but before they are dropped off, they go through a process which places them in an alien body, or their “avatar”.

From there, the main character Jake Sully (played by Terminator: Salvation‘s Sam Worthington) embarks on a journey of this new and beautiful world, and discovers that he may be fighting for the wrong side. The story is pretty old-hat, which most people could remember as the main plot from 2003′s The Last Samurai.

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