by Matt Raub, Oct 10 2011 // 10:00 AM
Fairy tales are all the rage these days. Between two brand new series starting on both ABC and NBC later this month about mystical worlds, and the ever-growing popularity of vampires and zombies, people are loving fantasy lately.
Which makes sense why two studios are racing to the finish line with exciting new projects involving the Snow White universe. Twilight star Kristen Stewart is making some moves over at Universal with Snow White and the Huntsman, while Relativity Media is now pushing some new images of their untitled Snow White Film.
For those who still need help differentiating the two projects, here’s Relativity’s breakdown of their film.
Visionary director Tarsem Singh (Immortals) rewrites fairy tale history as a wicked enchantress (Julia Roberts) schemes and scrambles for control of a spirited orphan’s (Lily Collins) throne and the attention of a charming prince (Armie Hammer). When Snow White’s beauty wins the heart of the prince that she desperately pursues, the Queen banishes her to the forest, where a ravening man-eating beast hungrily awaits.
Rescued by a band of diminutive highway robbers, Snow White grows into an indomitable young woman determined to take back her realm from the treacherous Queen. With the support of her subjects, she roars into action in an epic battle that blends spectacle, magic and contemporary humor in Singh’s signature, jaw-dropping visual style.
We’ve got a whole slew of new images for you to check out after the jump, which will have to hold you over while Relativity decides on a release date (and a title) for the film.
Continue Reading →
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted in: Action · Drama · Fantasy · Movies · News · Photos
Tagged: Armie Hammer, Immortals, Lily Collins, Nathan Lane, Relativity Media, Sean Bean, Snow White, Tarsem Singh
No comments yet
by Lon Harris, Nov 29 2010 // 9:00 AM
There have been worse movies than The Nutcracker in 3D. Certainly films made with less ambition, with less skilled actors and more modest sets and effects budgets. But it’s genuinely challenging to recall a more wrong-headed film than Andrei Konchalovsky’s convoluted, frankly baffling re-imagining of a beloved children’s story and ballet.
For all its popularity and name-recognition, Tchaikovsky’s ballet The Nutcracker is a bit light on plot. All the incident is front-loaded to the first half. A girl receives a nutcracker as a Christmas gift. She brings him to life, so he can do battle with the Rat King that enslaved him, and then they return to his fantasy kingdom. The entire second half is just fairies celebrating the Nutcracker’s return. Pretty anti-climactic.
Obviously, anyone wanting to turn the story into a traditional children’s film would have to rework it. But Konchalovsky’s decision to turn the story into a WWII analogy, and to fill the second half with sci-fi/fantasy chase sequences was clearly not the best strategy. (Also, his decision to rework Tchaikovsky’s iconic Nutcracker themes into cheesy musical numbers…more on that later…)
The basic story of The Nutcracker has thus been twisted into this inane sub-Bruckheimer pumped-up fantasy epic about an evil fascist Rat City and the prince, who has been magically transformed into a Nutcracker, that must retake human form and a human rebellion against the rats.
Continue Reading →
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted in: 3-D · Action · Classics · Editorial · Editorial and Opinion · Fantasy · Foreign Films · Kids · Movies · Reviews · Sci-Fi
Tagged: 3D, Albert Einstein, Andrei Konchalovsky, Elle Fanning, John Turturro, Nathan Lane, Tchaikovsky, The Nutcracker 3D
2 comments
by Matt Raub, Sep 16 2010 // 12:00 PM
It seems to be quite the week for trailers, as David O. Russell’s The Fighter gets a trailer, and now we’ve got a brand new trailer for this Thanksgiving’s big fantasy film, The Nutcracker in 3D.
Of course, the film will have to fight tooth and nail in the box office, as it opens wide on the second weekend of Warner’s Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1, but the trailer makes the film look like it could just win the hearts of families everywhere this November.
The premise is a bit complex, so we’ll let the official synopsis do it justice:
On Christmas night, Mary’s new friend, The Nutcracker (Charlie Rowe) or “NC,” comes to life and takes her on a wondrous journey into his magical world of fairies, sugarplums, and other Christmas toys which come to life. Mary soon realizes that this fantastical kingdom is facing danger from the tyrannical rule of the evil Rat King (John Turturro) and his devious mother (Frances de la Tour).
When NC is taken hostage, Mary and her newfound toy friends must uncover the secret of the Rat King to rescue NC and his kingdom. Based on the story that inspired acclaimed Russian composer Piotr Tchaikovsky to create the music for the iconic ballet, the film includes eight exciting new songs penned by Oscar-winning lyricist and librettist Sir Tim Rice (The Lion King, Evita, Jesus Christ Superstar).
John Turturro as the Rat King? Sold. Don’t let the film’s lack of a major distributor fool you, this film could end up being a major release. At least, that’s what we think after seeing the trailer. Check it out for yourself after the jump, and catch The Nutcracker in 3D in theaters on November 24th.
Continue Reading →
Like this:
Like Loading...
Posted in: 3-D · Action · Fantasy · Kids · Movies · News · Trailers · Video
Tagged: 3D, Charlie Rowe, Elle Fanning, Frances de la Tour, John Turturro, Nathan Lane, The Nutcracker, Tim Rice
No comments yet