The Flickcast

First Trailer for ‘Machine Gun Preacher’ with Gerard Butler Arrives

Posted on August 22, 2011

No, this movie isn’t a sequel or prequel to Hobo with a Shotgun, although I can see how you may make that mistake. Instead, we’ve got Gerard Butler wielding the weapons and taking care of business in this Marc Forster-directed action/drama film with a heart.

Coming soon from Relativity Media, the film is based on the true story of Sam Childers, a tough guy who’s seen and done too much. After some particularly brutal misadventures his life takes a big turn when he finds purpose in establishing a haven for Sudanese children.

We’ve got the trailer for the film for you today and in it we can see what we need to see to know this movie could go one of two ways. Those two ways depend pretty much on if we believe Butler can pull off another tough but inevatible self-sacrificing role.

We’re betting he can, but you be the judge. Watch the trailer after the jump.

In addition to Butler, Machine Gun Preacher also stars Michelle Monaghan and Michael Shannon. It’s set to be released on September 23.

Exclusive Interview: ‘Southland’ Star Ben McKenzie On Playing a Young Dark Knight in ‘Batman: Year One’

Posted on August 22, 2011

From kicking it in The O.C. for 4 years to saving lives for the past few years in Southland, Ben McKenzie has managed to carry a pretty big fan base with him from project to project. Now he’ll be switching gears entirely to the animated DC Universe, as he voices a young and cocky Bruce Wayne in the upcoming animated film Batman: Year One.

Based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller, the story was basically Batman Begins from when Bruce left Wayne Enterprises to when he donned the cowl. Traveling, learning his trade, and figuring out what it took to take out the crime in Gotham City, that’s what McKenzie has to tackle in this performance of the Dark Knight.

We got the chance to talk with Ben in San Diego about taking on this massive role, to his process when coming to a character that has been voiced and portrayed by dozens of award-winning actors.

Check out what Ben had to say about his upcoming role, and check out our interviews with Katee Sackhoff and Eliza Dushku about their roles in Batman: Year One, which hits shelves on October 18th.

First Trailer for ‘Ghost Rider: Spirit Of Vengeance’ Makes the Film look…Good?

Posted on August 22, 2011

We all remember the taste that was left in our mouth the moment we first heard Nicolas Cage would be playing our favorite damned motorcyclist from Hell, Johnny Blaze in 2007’s Ghost Rider, and that feeling didn’t go away after walking out of the theater.

With that said, it’s hard to believe that the new trailer for the sequel looks halfway decent, but you may want to start believing. Directed by Neveldine & Taylor, the guys that brought you the Crank films and the good parts of Jonah Hex, and a story written by Dark Knight’s David Goyer, the film looks like it may be the bad ass we were missing back in ’07. Here’s the overly detailed synopsis.

In the successor to the worldwide hit Ghost Rider, Johnny – still struggling with his curse as the devil’s bounty hunter – is hiding out in a remote part of Eastern Europe when he is recruited by a secret sect of the church to save a young boy (Fergus Riordan) from the devil (Ciaran Hinds). At first, Johnny is reluctant to embrace the power of the Ghost Rider, but it is the only way to protect the boy – and possibly rid himself of his curse forever.

You may be thinking to yourself “a sequel with a kid sidekick? Pass!”, but after looking at the style Neveldine and Taylor are best known for, you can only imagine what insane ideas they can bring to a character and universe like this. One hint? Fire piss.

Take a look after the jump and let us know what you think. See Spirit of Vengeance in theaters on February 17th.

Box Office: ‘The Help’ Proves that Maids Are Better than Barbarians & Vampires

Posted on August 22, 2011

Every year, the time between May and August is always considered a heavy season for big blockbuster-style films. But this year has been like that on steroids. Normally, there are a handful of big films that carry fanboys and fangirls throughout the summer season, but this year we had one just about every week consistently from the beginning of May.

That fact alone has got to be why when two large, previously established franchises hit theaters, neither open in the box office’s top 3. That’s what happened this weekend, as the independent comedy The Help came in at the number 1 spot with just over $20 million.

Just after that, Fox’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes managed to stay strong at #2 with $16 million. Of the 3 big releases this weekend, we didn’t expect Robert Rodriguez’s Spy Kids: All the Time in the World to open as big as the #3 spot with an estimated $12 million, but it did.

Lionsgate’s hope at revitalizing the Conan the Barbarian franchise to a younger, edgier audience seemed to have failed, sadly, as the film had a soft opening of $10 million at the #4 spot. Even sadder is the fact that Buena Vista’s Fright Night barely missed the top 5 as it opened at #6 with just under $8 million.

Game Review: ‘Toy Soldiers: Cold War’ for XBox Live Arcade

Posted on August 19, 2011

One of the most rapidly changing genres in gaming today is that of Tower Defense. Really only starting a few years ago, the genre has gone from a simple, yet addictive desktop Flash based game to one of the most fun and diverse in gaming. From its basic origins to Defense Grid: The Awakening to the upcoming Orcs Must Die, different companies have come up with new and creative ways to put their own spin on Tower Defense.

In Toy Soliders: Cold War, Players are given a limited supply of funds and locations to deploy various armaments against a soviet assault. In addition, players can hop in to these various turrets and control, aim and fire themselves at the oncoming forces adding a whole new level of depth instead of being solely focused on building and upgrading.

Gameplay:

As stated above, players must create a line of defense against waves of oncoming enemies during Toy Soldiers: Cold War. To do this, they are given a choice between six different kinds of turret, each with its only strengths and weaknesses like the machine gun which can mow down foot troops but doesn’t do much damage to heavily armored vehicles to anti-air artillery which can be used to shoot copters out of the sky but cannot target ground forces.

Each of these has three levels of upgrades which include special alternate firing modes depending on their level. For instance, players can zoom in on a “bullet cam” and steer anti-tank missiles at their intended targets. During this time, players must also monitor the health and repairs of all their other turrets and keep a watchful eye out that no enemies have snuck past them on their way towards the Toy Box (the location players must prevent enemies troops from reaching).

Film Review: ‘The Guard’

Posted on August 19, 2011

There’s a scene midway through The Guard where Brendon Gleeson and Don Cheadle have an extended conversation in a pub. Cheadle’s explaining some details of the drug ring and criminals the two are trying to stop. Gleeson looks like a boy being handed his homework assignment and is far more engaged in his beer and the pub’s shoot-’em-up arcade game.

Then you notice that Gleeson’s plastic arcade gun is pressed directly against the screen—he’s cheating. Now if you don’t know anything about arcade games you may miss it, even if you do, you may miss it, and while it doesn’t quite save the scene from being some overly long exposition, it’s a fantastic character touch. And that’s kind of the The Guardin a nutshell: a movie that’s willing to make sacrifices of pacing, plot, and whatever else if it can just have some more fun with its protagonist.

And, for the most part, it works, thanks to Gleeson, who plays Boyle, a roly-poly Irish West County policeman who sees himself as slightly above the law. He’s not the type of fellow who’d commit actual murder, mind you, but he doesn’t mind stopping off at the pub for a quick pint while on duty or even sampling a spot of acid now and then.

New Trailer for ‘Steel Battalion Heavy Armor’ FPS for Kinect Arrives

Posted on August 19, 2011

More news out of Gamescom this week and, to be honest, this looks pretty darn cool. Capcom has unleashed a new trailer for Steel Battalion Heavy Armor, the first first-person shooter game for its Xbox 360 that will take full advantage of Kinect and a standard gaming controller.

Steel Battalion Heavy Armor was first announced during the Tokyo Game Show last year, but we haven’t heard much about it since then. Not even at E3. But now, we’ve got a great trailer for the ame to share with you today.

In the game you play a soldier in the year 2082 fighting with MechWarrior-style machines and weapons. Using the connect, players will reportedly be able to control scopes, weapons, other soldiers on the battlefield and “start up procedures.”

Check out the trailer after the jump. Look for the game to hit store shelves hopefully next year.

Film Score Friday: Film Music of Hans Zimmer & The Music of James Horner

Posted on August 19, 2011

Silva Screen records has done a wonderful job in recent years of putting out “best of” releases of music by absolutely legendary composers. The latest addition to this library are two new releases showcasing a living legend and a modern master, James Horner and Hans Zimmer. The Horner collection is an update to Silva’s original release, adding in some of his more recent scores, Avatar and The Karate Kid, while the Zimmer collection is a second volume focusing mainly on his work in the 2000’s.

These collections are particularly intriguing to film score fans as all of the music is performed by the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. The tracks on these albums are new recordings that are arranged for the Orchestra, essentially creating “covers” of the classic musical pieces we have come to know and love.

Like pop or rock songs, covers can be a mixed bad. Sometimes a new perspective on a song can take it from good to amazing, while other times the magic can be lost in translation.

Thankfully, The City of Prague Philharmonic has a long history of successful re-recordings of classic music and these sets are more proof of their ability to recapture the soul of the music they play. While it isn’t all perfect, there are several tracks that they might have even improved with their new renditions.

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