I’m not sure if the world needed a movie to put those damn hippies in their place, or needed to introduce us to the culture of nude wine-making, or why the name is Wanderlust when the characters stay in one place, but no matter.

Paul Rudd plays George, a 30/40-something someone (this is where I’d mention his job, but it’s never made clear), and his wife Linda (Jennifer Aniston), another 30/40 with a sordid and varied resume; her latest occupation is hocking a documentary she made about penguins with testicular cancer to HBO. They usefully inform her that it could use more sex, violence, and vampires.

George and Linda have recently purchased an expensive and tiny apartment in Manhattan, only for George to lose his job and Linda to, predictably, get tossed out of HBO for her lousy doc. So, unemployed and destitute in New York, they high-tail it to Georgia to stay with George’s brother Rick (Ken Marino). On the way, they stop overnight at Elysium Fields, an ostensible bed and breakfast, but really a hippie commune run by well-aged toker Carvin (Alan Alda), and featuring nudist wine-maker Wayne (Joe Lo Truglio), spacey moonchild Kathy (Kerri Kenney-Silver), eye candy Eva (Malin Akerman) and all-around douche Seth (Justin Theroux).

The nominations for the 2012 Film Independent Spirit Awards are out. These awards highlight the best in independent cinema and have often helped Academy Awards voters who don’t see indie films realie there’e more to life than what they get at the local multi-plex. Not that Academy Awards voters actually ever go to a multi-plex either.

Looking over the list we can guess what you’re thinking: where’s Michael Fassbender’s nomination for Shame? We don’t know either. We are, however, very happy to see Ryan Gosling, Nicolas Winding Refn and Albert Brooks get nods for their work on Drive. Great movie and great performances.

Here’s all the nominees:

BEST FEATURE
50/50 Producers: Evan Goldberg, Ben Karlin, Seth Rogen
Beginners Producers: Miranda de Pencier, Lars Knudsen, Leslie Urdang, Dean Vanech, Jay Van Hoy
Drive Producers: Michel Litvak, John Palermo, Marc Platt, Gigi Pritzker, Adam Siegel
Take Shelter Producers: Tyler Davidson, Sophia Lin
The Artist Producer: Thomas Langmann
The Descendants Producers: Jim Burke, Alexander Payne, Jim Taylor

BEST DIRECTOR
Michel Hazanavicius The Artist
Mike Mills Beginners
Jeff Nichols Take Shelter
Alexander Payne The Descendants
Nicolas Winding Refn Drive

Not sure about you but pretty much everyone here at The Flickcast is really looking forward to the upcoming Starz/BBC series Torchwood: Miracle Day. From what we’ve seen so far, it looks to be even bigger, badder (in a good way) and more action-packed than all the previous seasons of Torchwood put together.

As we’ve had before with the first trailer, we’ve got another video to help get you ready for all the fun. In this one we got a look at a lot of the action, creatures and story of the series plus interviews with the top stars, writers and producers. All in, it’s a lot of info and makes the show look even cooler (as if that’s possible).

Click through for the video. Torchwood: Miracle Day stars John Barrowman, Eve Myles, Mekhi Phifer, Bill Pullman and Lauren Ambrose. It premieres Friday, July 8th on Starz.

Not much longer to wait now as the premiere of Torchwood: Miracle Day is is only a little over a month away. In anticipation of that great day, we’ve got a brand new trailer for the show to share with you today.

In it you get the first real look at our favorite characters in action and also a peek at some of the new ones we will be seeing during the show’s run. It’s nice to see the gang back in action.

In case you’re not familiar with the new Torchwood, it will also feature new characters and actors including Mekhi Phifer, Bill Pullman and Lauren Ambrose.
Turning to the story, here’s what its all about:

It begins with a day when nobody dies. All across the world, nobody dies. And then the next day, and the next, and the next, people keep aging, they get hurt and sick, but they never die. The result: a population boom, overnight. With all the extra people, resources are finite.

But this can’t be a natural event – someone’s got to be behind it. It’s a race against time as C.I.A. agent Rex Matheson (Phifer) investigates a global conspiracy. The answers lie within an old, secret British institute. As Rex keeps asking “What is Torchwood?,” he’s drawn into a world of adventure, and a threat to change what it means to be human, forever.

Check out the trailer after the break. Torchwood: Miracle Day premieres on July 8th at 10/9C on Starz.

It’s no secret we are really looking forward to the new Torchwood: Miracle Day series debuting on Starz in July. Obviously, this is a pretty big deal for fans of the show as it will be a chance to see some of their favorite characters return as well as new ones teaming up with them for big time adventures in the States where the fate of the world is at stake.

The series already has mainstays John Barrowman, Eve Myles, and Kai Owen as well as newcomers Mekhi Phifer, Bill Pullman and Alexa Havins. Now, via a release from Starz, we know the series will get some great guest stars as well.

Check out the full scoop on all the action and who’s going to be on the show from the official press release from Starz:

Today, the network announced that in addition to Torchwood alumni, John Barrowman, Eve Myles, and Kai Owen and new headliners, Mekhi Phifer, Bill Pullman and Alexa Havins, that the 10-episode, hour-long series will also feature an impressive list of guest stars: Wayne Knight (“Seinfeld,” Jurassic Park), C. Thomas Howell (“Southland,” The Outsiders), Ernie Hudson (“OZ,” Ghostbusters), Nana Visitor (“Star Trek: Deep Space Nine”), John DeLancie (“Star Trek: The Next Generation”), Mare Winningham (Mildred Pierce, George Wallace) and Frances Fisher (Titanic, The Lincoln Lawyer).

Additional actors starring in the cult sensation include: Arlene Tur (“Crash,” Eat Pray Love) and Lauren Ambrose (“Six Feet Under,” The Other Woman) who join the cast in an extended guest role. The show’s original creator, writer/producer Russell T Davies, serves as executive producer along with BBC Worldwide Productions’ SVP Julie Gardner, with Davies also serving as show-runner for “Torchwood: Miracle Day.”

If you’ve been a regular reader of this site you know we’re big fans of the BBC series Doctor Who and its companion, spin-off series Torchwood. Of course, we were thrilled to bring you the news that an all-new season of Torchwood was coming to the US on Starz featuring main characters Capt. Jack Harkness (John Barrowman) and Gwen Cooper (Eve Myles).

Now, we are also thrilled to telly you that Starz has set the premiere date for the Torchwood series and that date is Friday, July 8th at 10 E/P. In case you’re not familiar with the new Torchwood, it will also feature new characters and actors including Mekhi Phifer, Bill Pullman and, in an extended guest role, Lauren Ambrose.

Turning to the story, here’s what its all about:

It begins with a day when nobody dies. All across the world, nobody dies. And then the next day, and the next, and the next, people keep aging, they get hurt and sick, but they never die. The result: a population boom, overnight. With all the extra people, resources are finite.

I’ve got to give it to Spike Jonze. He took on the Herculean task of adapting one of the most beloved children’s books of all time, and mostly got it right. I remember the book vividly, and seeing the creatures in the movie brought to life is a spectacle to behold. It is absolutely breathtaking. They are exactly as you remember them, but real.

When Jonze decided to forgo the usual CGI, film followers exhaled a sigh of relief. Instead, a combination of puppetry, live action and CGI (for the facial expressions) was employed. Jonze said that he felt a physical presence was necessary for the actor (Max Richards) to interact with. I agree. However, at times I felt the creatures tread a little too close to H.R. Pufnstuf territory, and I would be jarred out of the movie.

The film begins with the hero Max displaying the typical antics of a boy his age. He’s hyper as hell as he dashes about the house, partakes in a snowball fight in his yard, and terrorizes the family dog. He tries to get the attention of his harried mom (Catherine Keener) and is upset when his sister leaves with her friends.

We’re very excited here at The Flickcast for Spike Jonze’s adaptation of Maurice Sendak’s Where The Wild Things Are. While the film is still a month away, we’ve brought you featurettes, trailers, and more coverage for the film than you could shake a stick at. Now, four new character banners and a new poster just debuted on Myspace’s blog for the film!

The new banners showcase three “Wild Things” Judith, Carol, KW, and Max, the main character as played by Max Records. In addition to Records as “Max”,  the film features James Gandolfini, Catherine O’Hara, Lauren Ambrose, Mark Ruffalo, and Forrest Whitaker. Where The Wild Things Are hits theaters and IMAX October 16th.

You can view the four character banners and poster after the jump.

Now that the Summer blockbuster season has settled down and most of the tent pole films for the year have been put to bed, it’s time for the sleeper hits of 2009 to shine. The Fall is a pretty big time for films like District 9, Gamer, and of course Where the Wild Things Are to take over the box office in a substantial way.

The first trailer for Where the Wild Things Are hit a few months back, and didn’t show us very much. Still, we knew that director Spike Jonze, who was the mastermind behind this stroke of genius, would do the children’s book classic. We now get a new trailer filled with plenty of footage of the titular “wild things” and surprisingly lots of James Gandolfini.

Also starring Forest Whitaker, Catherine Ohara, Lauren Ambrose, Mark Ruffalo, Catherine Keener, and Max Records, Warner’s Where the WIld Things Are hits screens October 16th nationwide.

Check it out the brand new trailer after the jump.