I had a soft spot for 2009’s G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, and I have a soft spot for this, even with its flaws. If you remember the end of the last film (and never mind if you didn’t), Zartan is impersonating the President of the United States in one step of Cobra Commander’s grand plan for world domination.

I think this is supposed to take place right after the last film, but no matter. All you need to know is that the President is not the real President, and the Joes are not aware of it. They’re busy raiding a nuclear arms facility in Pakistan — a mission devised by Zartan (Arnold Vosloo/Jonathan Pryce) to wipe out the Joes when they call for transport after the mission.

All of them, save for Lady Jaye (Adrianne Palicki), Roadblock (The Rock), and Flint (D.J. Cotrona) are killed. Fortunately Snake Eyes (Ray Park) is away on another mission training with Jinx (Elodie Yung) and quite possibly the worst actor in the entire film, RZA as the aptly named Blind Master.

It’s been nearly ten years since Middle Earth unfurled across the screen, and in that time, the Lord of the Rings films have cemented their place in cinematic history. The actors have aged, technology has evolved, and the influence of Peter Jackson’s trilogy is evidenced in all the three-plus-hour epics we’ve seen over the past decade.

Jackson slips back into this world seamlessly, elevating the grandeur but also reigning it in; instead of army battles and global chaos pitting kings against wizards and demons, this is a merrier tale of Bilbo Baggins, Gandalf, and a band of dwarves hunting a lost treasure guarded by the fierce dragon Smaug.

Smaug, we’re told (and cleverly not shown until the very end) attacked the thriving dwarf city of Erebor years ago, evicting dwarven kind from their homeland (writing that I’m starting to wonder if there’s a parable here, big noses and all…) and forcing them to have it out with every other race in Middle Earth, from the orcs at Moria (the chief of whom kills the leader dwarf, Thorin’s, grandfather and becomes the main antagonist) to the elves at, uh, Elvania (the elves chose not to help the dwarves in the battle against Smaug).

It’s been some time since we got to see “Q” in a James Bond movie. He’s basically been absent since Desmond Llewelyn passed away in 1999, even though John Cleese took up the official “Q” moniker in Die Another Day. Still, Llewelyn will always be “Q” to us.

That hasn’t stopped the makers of Skyfall from giving it a try, however. They’ve introduced a new ‘Q” for the upcoming movie, played by Ben Whishaw, and we’ve got a clip of him, with Daniel Craig’s James Bond, for you today.

Even though he’s a new “Q”, we sorta like the kid. He could end up being okay after all.

After waiting for a bit of extra time for the next James Bond movie to arrive, it’s almost here. Skyfall is the name and from the looks of this latest trailer, it’s going to be pretty great.

But really, we’re big Bond fans around here so we would see it no matter what. The fact that it appears to be awesome is just a bonus.

Check out the new trailer below. Look for Skyfall to arrive on November 9.

Wow, leading up to comic-con this concept was inconceivable. Take the already stretched tale of The Hobbit and transform it into a trilogy, to paraphrase Bilbo, it seemed like an idea that make the story feel like butter spread over too much bread.

Then the avalanche started to roll when Jackson himself alluded to the potential of a third film. We talked about the potential expanding of the story in the wake of the first rumors. Now, thanks to a posting on Jackson’s Facebook fan page, we have confirmation:

So, without further ado and on behalf of New Line Cinema, Warner Bros. Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Wingnut Films, and the entire cast and crew of “The Hobbit” films, I’d like to announce that two films will become three.  It has been an unexpected journey indeed, and in the words of Professor Tolkien himself, “a tale that grew in the telling.”

Go visit Jackson’s page for the whole note to the fans, it goes a little deeper into the why of this decision.

So there you have it, The Hobbit is officially a trilogy. This is an interesting turn of events for one of the most anticipated films of this and next year.

We need some processing time to decide of this is wonderful or treacherous news. Stay glued to The Flickcast for a more in-depth reaction and any new news regarding the new, third, Hobbit film.

Being a Prime member at Amazon just got a bit sweeter with the announcement late yesterday that the online giant has signed a licensing agreement with MGM to offer hundreds of classic movies and TV programs to members. The service, which is available for $79 a year and offers customers free two-day shipping, already offers over 18,000 movies and TV episodes for instant streaming.

“Our customers tell us they love having tons of movies and TV shows to choose from, which is why we are focused on adding even more titles to our already extensive Prime Instant Video library,” said Brad Beale, director of digital video content acquisition for Amazon. “MGM offers one of the most distinguished catalogs in all of Hollywood, and this deal will bring Prime Instant Video customers hundreds of new titles to enjoy on their Kindle Fire or any device compatible with Amazon Instant Video.

Customers can enjoy favorites like The Silence of the Lambs, Dances with Wolves, Rain Man and The Terminator, as well as fan-favorite TV series like Stargate.”

For more, click through for the full press release from Amazon.

CinemaCon has been the source of many interesting and exciting movie news items in the past few days. One major player at the theater owner convention was Sony who brought with them lots of info on it’s 2012 slate.

The folks at ComingSoon.Net are reporting that Sony made it clear that they are looking ahead in regards to one of it’s marquee franchises:

Sony’s President of Worldwide Distribution Rory Bruer talked about Sony’s slate for 2013 and beyond and confirmed that James Bond would indeed be back in 2014 with the 24th movie in the franchise and the follow-up to Skyfall.

This is expected news, but still great to hear confirmed. Daniel Craig is signed on for a total of 8 Bond films, and after the MGM bankruptcy fiasco it began to look like we might not get to see them all. Now that we have confirmation that the films are back to a quick turnaround of every other year we should be seeing a lot of our favorite Super Spy in the coming decade.

Sony also showcased the first footage from Skyfall at the event. Early word is that it looks good, but the teaser footage was a bit to fast paced to get a true feeling of it. We should be seeing the first teaser some time soon ourselves, so keep an eye peeled to The Flickcast for all your Bond news.

For a little while there it din’t seem like we would get another James Bond film after Quantum of Solace. With MGM’s money problems, it looked like James Bond was going to retire from his cinematic exploits while things were sorted out — if they were ever sorted out.

Fortunately, the tide turned and now Bond is back in a new installment called Skyfall, which is filming right now. As is the custom these days with highly anticipated film releases, the production has released the first of what wil no doubt be many videos highlighting the behind-the-scenes action of making a Bond film.

In this particular video blog, the producers and director take us to Shanghi, China for some brief glimpses into the filmmaking process and the sleek cityscapes of that location. Looks good. Can’t wait for this one.

Check out the video after the break. Skyfall, which stars Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Ralph Fiennes, Bérénice Marlohe and Judi Dench, hits theaters on November 9.

Sometimes the first official image from a movie can drastically change the public’s perspective of an upcoming film. It can show you an exciting new look from a main character, or it can give you hints to the story or plot. Then some times the first official still is just a man sitting by a pool in the dark.

Empire has debuted the first official image from Skyfall. A lonely and sullen looking Bond playing footsie with a swimming pool after hours. Maybe that watch is a new Q gadget, or perhaps there are sharks with laser beam head gear just out of frame!

Yeah, not exactly the most exciting first still in the history of movies, but it is still notable for a few reasons. One, it is James Bond, and with the recent strife with MGM, seeing him officially in Skyfall is nice to see. There was real concern that the movie would never get made, but it is really happening.

Also this is the 5oth anniversary of James Bond, which is a huge deal. The Golden Anniversary for a cinematic icon is important to recognize, and any opportunity this year to talk about Britain’s most dashing spy will be used. Hopefully they will be more meaty in the future.

The 50th anniversary of the longest running film franchise of all time is something to celebrate, and while at CES the first major release of that celebration was announced. Bond 50 is a comprehensive Blu-Ray collection of all twenty-two James Bond films, together for the first time in a single, high definition, collection.

The announcement was made by a who’s who of Bond creatives from the franchise’s storied history. Director’s John Glen, Martin Campbell and Micheal Apt, who together combined to direct eight of the films, were joined by Bond Girls Olga Kurylenko and Caterina Murino as they debuted the impressive new set.

The James Bond films are one of the longest and most storied film franchises in the history of cinema. Despite over twenty films and nearly five decades of action, the series has been rather consistent in the score department. For well over three fourths of the James Bond films music dudties have been held by two men, the late great John Barry and excellent David Arnold.

It was assumed that Arnold would be returning for his sixth Bond film with Skyfall, but it seems the delays caused by MGM have actually caused Arnold’s schedule to be too full, he will be spending much of the next six months being the musical director for the summer Olympics. MI6 is reporting that in Arnold’s absence, director Sam Mendes is calling on a long time collaborator to fill his shoes.

American composer Thomas Newman will be scoring the new James Bond film, “Skyfall”, due out later this year. It will be his first 007 adventure.

Newman has been a long time collaborator with “Skyfall” helmer Sam Mendes, having scored four of the directors other films: “American Beauty” (1999), “Road to Perdition” (2002) [which also starred Daniel Craig], “Jarhead” (2005) and “Revolutionary Road” (2008).

Newman is an interesting choice for a big budget action film, but in many respects so is director Sam Mendes. One thing is for certain, Newman always brings his A game, so you can expect to hear an exceptional Bond score once Skyfall hits theaters later this year.

There have been a lot of Hobbit related stories in the last few days, including the debut of the first teaser for the film. Now in addition to that first footage we are also getting the first one-sheet for the film, just in time for the Christmas cinema rush.

The poster does a great job evoking the sense of starting a grand adventure, and the focus on just Bilbo in Bag End is appropriate. Compared to the first Lord of the Rings one-sheet that focused on Frodo and the ring, this poster feels right as the beginning of the whole saga. The dutch angle and harsh lighting might seem a rather odd choice at first, but then you realize how off putting an uncomfortable leaving the Shire is for Bilbo and it all makes sense.

Everything we have seen from this movie up to this point has been amazing, it is finally starting to feel like there is a new Peter Jackson directed Tolkien film coming in less than a year. This poster helps set the tone for a two year adventure that brings us back into the glorious world of Middle Earth.

You can see The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey next year and the full poster after the jump.