Movie Muser

Have your say about cinema

Win Wolves On DVD! – A young man ends up in a town full of werewolves

By

David Hayter, screenwriter of X-Men and The Watchmen, proves he’s got some serious bite behind the camera with his directorial debut. Packed with blood, fights and plenty of frights WOLVES stars Game of Thrones’ Jason Momoa and X-Men’s Lucas Till, you’d be howling mad to miss this this dark and deliciously sharp horror.

Wolves is out to own on DVD from 2nd March, and to support the release, we have a comp copy up for grabs courtesy of Altitude Film Entertainment.

When high-school student Cayden (Till) finds his parents have been brutally murdered, he goes on the run and arrives in the small town of Lupine Ridge, where he discovers the hairy truth to his nature…
The town is home to feuding clans of werewolves, and when Cayden starts to fall for the beautiful Angelina (Merritt Patterson) he finds himself as love-rival of brutal clan alpha and pureblood lycan Connor (Momoa). But can Cayden survive and get the girl as the werewolves prepare for a fight to the death?

To be in with a chance of winning the copy of Wolves we’ve got to give away, sign in to the site below (or click here to register) and answer the multiple choice question (see below for more details on how to enter). The competition closes on March 10th, 2015, so get answering and good luck!

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:

New Avengers: Age Of Ultron Poster – Heroes old and new unite

By


Believe it or not but it’s now less than two months until Avengers: Age Of Ultron on April 23rd 2015 (and a week later in the US). As a result it’s time for the official poster which brings together an awful lot of heroes, including Hawkeye, Black Widow, Hulk, Iron Man, Captain America, Thor and newcomers Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver.

It looks cool if a little and rather generic, especially with Vision and loads of robots flying around in the background.

Here’s the short synopsis: ‘When Tony Stark jumpstarts a dormant peacekeeping program, things go awry and Earth’s Mightiest Heroes, including Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, The Incredible Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye, are put to the ultimate test as they battle to save the planet from destruction at the hands of the villainous Ultron.’

It stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Hemsworth, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Evans, Scarlett Johansson, Jeremy Renner, Don Cheadle, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Bettany, Cobie Smulders, Stellan Skarsgård with James Spader and Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury.

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:

Nicolas Cage Joins Edward Snowden Biopic – Oliver Stone signs him up

By


Oliver Stone is bringing together a great cast for his planned biopic of Edward Snowden. Joseph Gordon Levitt is taking the lead role, with Shailene Woodley, Scott Eastwood, Zachary Quinto, Melissa Leo, Rhys Ifans, Joely Richardson, and Tom Wilkinson also onboard.

Now THR reports that Cage has joined the movie, playing a former U.S. Intelligence official, although it’s not clear exactly which one he will be.

Oliver Stone will direct from a screenplay he co-wrote with Kieran Fitzgerald (The Homesman), which will look at Snowden, the infamous NSA operative who leaked thousands of highly sensitive government papers, causing great controversy and revealing a cache of hidden information. It made him a hero to some and a pariah to others.

As well as Snowden himself the film will cover the others involved, such as the people who helped Edward get the documents into the public domain, including Laura Poitras, who won an Oscar yesterday for her Snowden documentary Citizenfour (and will be played by Melissa Leo in the movie).

Stone’s biopic should start shooting soon.

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:

Effie Gray (DVD) – Great story, great cast, not so great execution

By


Effie Gray is a genuinely fascinating character and one day there will be a brilliant film made about her, but despite vast amounts of effort and some interesting touches, this movie isn’t it.

At 19-years-old Effie (Dakota Fanning) marries the older John Ruskin (Greg Wise), a prominent art critic who’s seen as a very good match. However soon after the wedding problems begin to appear, as while she wishes to be a proper wife, John controlling parents (Julie Walters and David Suchet) prevent her from helping her husband with his domestic affairs, and he himself refuses to consummate their marriage.

Effie understandably begins to feel trapped and suffers from what would probably be today diagnosed as severe depression, something her distant husband has little patience for – taking it as evidence of his increasing conviction that she is wicked. However when they head to Scotland – for her health – they take young artist John Everett Millais (Tom Sturridge) with them, who has been commissioned to paint Ruskin. This lays the seeds for what became one of the Victorian era’s greatest sex scandals, after Effie begins to seek ways to escape and find the passion her life is severely lacking.

Effie Gray had a difficult journey to the screen as even after it was in the can it was delayed due to a lawsuit that challenged Emma Thompson’s script, with another screenwriter making a copyright claim over her screenplays about Effie. Once that was dismissed that path was cleared for it to hit the screen, but unfortunately it’s not half the movie is might have been.

While Thompson has a great way with words, she wants this to be a Victorian Remains Of The Day, where the conflict comes from repressed people whose emotions are held in tightly to the point where they’re about to explode – and therefore even the tiniest show of real connection has great power. However what Remains Of The Day has that this doesn’t is Thompson and Anthony Hopkins giving two of the greatest performances in cinema history. Instead we have Dakota Fanning who seems less repressed and more totally blank. Greg Wise starts off seeming perpetually perplexed before getting a bit moustache-twirly, but it’s very difficult to discern what’s happening under his surface.

There’s plenty of promise in Tom Sturridge’s Millais, but he doesn’t appear properly until after the halfway point, giving the movie little time to build any passion between him and Effie – indeed we see so little that when she eventually starts to think about leaving Ruskin for him, it seems more foolhardy than a call to passion. Richard Laxton’s direction doesn’t help either as it’s so contained it always feels like you’re outside looking in rather than being brought into their world.

It doesn’t help either than in its desire not to stray too far from the historical record, it feels like we’re only getting part of the story. The most famous story about Effie is probably apocryphal – that her husband never slept with her because he was horrified by the sight of her pubic hair, having only seen female nudes in art – but it’s a better explanation than the movie gives. There are hints about why he won’t touch her, such as the possibility of him being asexual, gay, interested in younger girls or completely oedipally screwed up with a massive Madonna/whore complex. However it’s all hints, so at the end of the movie the real reason could be absolutely anything.

Although some people criticise films when they don’t 100% stick to the known historical facts, that would be better than this.

There’s a lot of promise here and it’s a massive shame the film doesn’t really get to grips with Effie’s story – she is an incredible figure, but we will have to wait for a movie that does her justice.

Overall Verdict: With a stronger hand at the till and actors who could better portray the turmoil under the surface of seemingly still waters this could have been great, but unfortunately it’s not just Ruskin who’s accused of impotency, it’s the film itself.

Reviewer: Tim Isaac

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:

Birdman Takes Best Picture At The Oscars – But ties for most wins with Grand Budapest Hotel

By


In the last few weeks many thought Boyhood had overtaken Birdman as this year’s Best Picture Oscar frontrunner, but in the end it was the latter that took to the podium at the end of ceremony, with Alejandro González Iñárritu also winning Best Director.

However everything didn’t go to Birdman, as while it took two other prizes, it actually tied for most wins with The Grand Budapest Hotel, which took Best Makeup, Best Production Design, Best Costume and Best Original Score.

On the acting front, while a few months ago many critics had already pretty much given the award to Michael Keaton for Best Actor, it was actually Eddie Redmayne who won for The Theory Of Everything. Julianne Moore won Best Actress for Still Alice, while both supporting acting awards went to the frontrunners, Patricia Arquette for Boyhood and J.K. Simmons for Whiplash.

The ceremony itself was ok, although Neil Patrick Harris struggled after a rousing opening, largely due to weak writing. It’s a shame as NPH himself was good, but he had little to work with in a job that’s thankless at the best of times.

Oh and if you’re wondering why he’s in his undies in the pic above, it’s not because the show was going so badly he decided to try stripping, he was re-enacting a scene from Birdman – and looking fine while doing it.

Take a look below for the full list of Oscar winners.

Best Picture
“Birdman”

Best Director
Alejandro González Iñárritu, “Birdman”

Best Actress
Julianne Moore, “Still Alice”

Best Actor
Eddie Redmayne, “The Theory of Everything”

Best Supporting Actress
Patricia Arquette, “Boyhood”

Best Supporting Actor
J.K. Simmons, “Whiplash”

Best Adapted Screenplay
Graham Moore, “The Imitation Game”

Best Original Screenplay
Alejandro González Iñárritu, Nicolás Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris and Armando Bo, “Birdman”

Best Foreign Language Film
“Ida”

Best Documentary Feature
“CITIZENFOUR”

Best Animated Feature
“Big Hero 6”

Best Film Editing
“Whiplash”

Best Original Song
“Glory” from “Selma” (written by Common and John Legend)

Best Original Score
Alexandre Desplat, “The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Cinematography
Emmanuel Lubezki, “Birdman”

Best Costume Design
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Makeup and Hairstyling
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Production Design
“The Grand Budapest Hotel”

Best Sound Editing
“American Sniper”

Best Sound Mixing
“Whiplash”

Best Visual Effects
“Interstellar”

Best Short Film, Live Action
“The Phone Call”

Best Short Film, Animated
“Feast”

Best Documentary, Short Subject
“Crisis Hotline: Veterans Press 1”

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES:

Win Birds of a Feather The Complete ITV Series Two On DVD! – Sharon, Tracey & Dorian are back

By

Birds of a Feather The Complete ITV Series Two is out to own from Monday 23rd February, and to celebrate, we have a DVD copy for one lucky winner!

Synopsis: Kicking off with a promised Christmas trip to Tenerife, courtesy of Dorien’s continued income as ‘Sixty Shades of Green’ author Foxy Cohen, the Birds share their many successes and failures, including Sharon’s interview to become a spy, Tracey’s trip to jail and a traditional cockney knees-up with London’s Pearly Kings and Queens. But there are life-changing surprises too as Dorien comes face-to-face with someone she thought she’d never see again and a heart-stopping scare for both the Chigwell sisters in a poignant and hilarious two-part finale.

All 8 episodes of the series are included in this DVD.

To be in with a chance of winning, sign in to the site below (or click here to register) and answer the multiple choice question (see below for more details on how to enter). The competition closes on March 7th, 2015, so get answering and good luck!

HOW TO ENTER: This competition is open to all registered Movie Muser members who live in the UK. It’s free to register and obligation free, and once you’ve signed up to the site, you’ll be able to enter any other competitions we run, plus post comments, join in on the forum or even have your own film blog. CLICK HERE TO REGISTER. If you’re already a member, sign in below and answer the multiple choice question in the grey box, click enter, and you’re done!

This competition closes at 11.59pm on March 7th, 2015. Competition open to UK residents aged 15 or over. (For general competition terms and conditions, privacy policy and site T&Cs, CLICK HERE)

The Prize Finder – UK Competitions

CHECK OUT THESE RELATED ARCHIVES: