“Enough with the metaphors… That’s an order.”

In 2009, Paramount handed the reigns to one of its most successful franchises, Star Trek, to their in-house wunderkind, J.J. Abrams. The film that Abrams delivered was a fun throwback to the Trek of old, with plenty of action thrown in to hold the attention of viewers not used to the more leisurely pace of Gene Roddenberry’s creation. The film was a surprise hit that summer, and expectations could not be higher for the follow-up, Star Trek Into Darkness.

So could the film live up to those expectations? Read on to find out…

“I wish I had done everything on earth with you.”

The quintessential high school English teacher’s go-to novel for nearly the last century, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby has received no fewer than five film adaptations and an opera. So why on earth did we need another film version of this masterwork? The honest answer is, we didn’t, but it’s more likely that none of the previous adaptations have been wholly successful in bringing the novel to life.

So how did director Baz Luhrmann (Moulin Rouge) & executive producer Jay-Z fare on their version of Gatsby? Read on to find out…

“Big words make me angry… keep talking!”

DreamWorks Animation’s seven-year partnership with Paramount ended last year, and 20th Century Fox has taken over as the distributor for their animated films for the foreseeable future. It’s interesting that The Croods is the first film released as part of this new partnership since, on the surface, it bears many striking resemblances to Fox’s own animation franchise, the Ice Age series.

If there’s an obvious joke in here about Neanderthals being Fox’s strong suit, I’m going to go ahead and dodge it, but this is a film far more in line with the lackluster Ice Age series than the strong work DreamWorks has been churning out of late.

The writer-director of last year’s indie hit Safety Not Guaranteed has just been handed the keys to one of the biggest franchises in movie history. Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Colin Treverrow has signed to direct Jurassic Park 4 from a script by Rick Jaffa & Amanda Silver (Rise of the Planet of the Apes). Franchise starter Steven Spielberg will serve as Executive Producer.

The film is scheduled to be shot in 3D & released on June 13, 2014.

[Deadline Hollywood]

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“Good work, you just sneezed away the plan.”

Oz The Great and Powerful seemed to be one of the more interesting films on the 2013 release schedule. Part of me cringed at the notion of it turning into another Alice in Wonderland style-over-substance fiasco. But another part of me believed that with Sam Raimi behind the camera, this could be a good film, and a nice companion piece to the classic 1939 The Wizard of Oz.

So, which is it? Read on to find out…

“This is the peace shield!”
“Nothing says peace like a gigantic gun.”

I will fully admit that I was filled with nothing but apprehension about the new Weinstein Company animated film Escape from Planet Earth. The first trailer I saw for it, which was before Wreck-It Ralph, made it look like a 7-11 commercial with a hackneyed storyline. As a movie-loving parent with movie-loving daughters, it’s my duty to see most every kid-friendly film that gets released, and I knew I’d get dragged to this one as well.

Thankfully, the film is actually infinitely better than its advertising campaign would lead you to believe. In fact, despite some lame jokes early on and some ridiculous plot contrivances, the film is actually pretty good. 

“Do you stop believing in the moon just because the sun comes up?”

Marvel spent the better part of the last five years building up to this past summer’s The Avengers, a film whose runaway success won’t help but have you comparing it to DreamWorks’ latest animated effort, Rise of the Guardians. The film is the holiday/fairy tale version of Marvel’s superhero super team, bringing together the heroes and legends of various ancient tales and giving them a bad ass spin.

But is that a good thing? Read on to find out…

“I didn’t know Hindus say amen.”
“Catholic Hindus do. We get to feel guilty before hundreds of Gods.”

The novel Life of Pi by Yann Martel is one of the most celebrated books of the last decade. It’s also passed through many hands in an attempt to adapt it into a film, among them Alfonso Cuaron & M. Night Shyamalan. Thankfully, it fell to Ang Lee, no stranger to “unadaptable” books himself having worked similar magic with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon & The Ice Storm.

So how did his adaptation of another “unfilmable” novel fare? Read on to find out…

Recap of Pop GO posts published on Sep. 16, 2012.

Opening

• NASCAR Racers

Reviews

• Anime Review: Accel World - 23
• Manga Review: Ao Haru Ride - 21
• Film Review: Finding Nemo 3D
• Anime Review: Sword Art Online - 11
• Manga Review: Naruto - 601

“Say that you’ll do it! Swear!”
“Like, the f-word?”

The latest film from Oregon-based stop-motion studio LAIKA, opens with a kitschy throwback opening sequence that perfectly sets the tone for the adventure ahead, including 70s-style studio logos and an “Our Feature Presentation” card ripped right from the grindhouse. It instantaneously alerts you to the fact that you’re in good hands, and does nothing to betray that trust in the ensuing ninety minutes. In other words, I’m happy to report that a summer filled with family films lacking in imagination, goes out with a bang, as this film has imagination and inspiration to spare.

“I want my freedom!” “But are you willing to pay the price your freedom will cost?”

Pixar has a pretty impeccable track record. Our Top 5 segment earlier this week proved that conclusively. Their films have a level of anticipation surrounding them that can be unfair to the films themselves, but the most impressive thing about the studio is how (up until last year’s Cars 2) they are always able to squash those that doubt their abilities.

Their latest effort is Brave, and it falls firmly in the middle of their repertoire. It’s not their best film, but it’s hardly their worst. If it is one thing, though, it is most assuredly their first “Disney” film.

[via]

According to Deadline Hollywood, 2014 will see the sequels to 2011’s surprise hits X-Men: First Class & Rise of the Planet of the Apes, as well as a 3D re-release of Independence Day.

More after the break, including the title for the new Apes movie.

In an attempt to turn just about everything into a movie from board games to self-help books, Warner Brother Pictures announced yesterday that 2014 would see the release of Lego 3D.

“Are you ready to go back to Titanic?”

I can’t adequately express in words the dread that filled every inch of my being when James Cameron’s 1997 epic Titanic began on my most recent viewing. It’s such a long movie, I could feel myself getting bored before it even began. It doesn’t help that the movie begins with over twenty minutes of modern day gobbledygook involving one of the worst actors in cinema history (Bill Paxton), and while I hate to say this, the movie would be infinitely better without this framing device.

James Cameron has a well-documented hard-on for both deep sea diving & Paxton, so the sequence’s existence is never really called into question. The movie is over fifteen-years-old though, so a bunch of Monday Morning Quarterbacking isn’t going to do anyone any good, so let’s talk about what works in Titanic, and why it endures.