Movie News: “Wonder Woman 84” starts filming in DC and NoVa!

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Denise

Well’p, Warner Brothers released the official title for the Wonder Woman sequel: Wonder Woman 1984! And they’re BRINGING BACK COMMANDER SALAMANDER!  Well, they’re making a CS “set”. But I’m stoked and can’t wait to try to take a walk around and wear the old buttons I’ve got from the original store.

Sadly, the DC and NoVa locations are closed sets, so getting a peek around is probably not in the cards.  But? Huzzah for WW84 getting started! They’ve even given us a quick peek at what’s going on… (Click on the pictures for the full high-res images!)

No 411 on the plot or storyline, but that’s okay. I can wait. Sorta. Read on for all the details from the studio!

Continue reading →

Posted in Movie News | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

TrailerWatch: live action “Dumbo” nails the cute

Posted on June 13, 2018 by Denise

“Show them.”

Gotta admit I was skeptical when I heard Disney was coming out with a live action remake of Dumbo. But this looks sweet, and lord knows it’s star studded. Plus, anyone who has a dry eye when “Baby of Mine” plays? Ain’t human. Synopsis!

Holt, a former circus star, finds his life turned upside-down when he returns from the War. Circus owner Max Medici enlists him to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughing stock in an already struggling circus. But when Holt’s children, Milly and Joe, discover that Dumbo can fly, persuasive entrepreneur V. A. Vandemere and aerial artist Colette Marchant swoop in to make the peculiar pachyderm a star.

Dumbo hits theaters next year.

Posted in Trailers | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Wayback Review: Anthony Bourdain’s “The Nasty Bits”

Posted on June 8, 2018 by Denise
Originally written in 2010 for The Green Man Review.  But felt like posting it again today, as I’m still in shock from the news of his sudden passing.  May he rest in peace, with the knowledge that he made a positive impact in so very many lives.

I’m a huge fan of Anthony Bourdain.  Love No Reservations, thoroughly enjoyed (and sometimes eek-ed out by) Kitchen Confidential…heck, I even liked A Cook’s Tour.  Those of you who think this is gonna be a puff piece?  You’d pretty much be right.  But with The Nasty Bits that’s a good thing; anyone who wants to know what it’s like to eat, cook and enjoy food like a chef should read this book.  Folks into really getting to know places they travel to – or just armchair dreamers like me – will also find a lot to sink their teeth into.  (What, a gal can’t make a pun every now and then?)

The Nasty Bits is a collection of articles that have been previously published in foodie publications, travel magazines and elsewhere. The articles are sorted into five main sections that correspond to our basic tastes; Salty, Sweet, Sour, Bitter, and Umami, that difficult to put into English taste that is typically thought of as “savory”.  (Think sauteed mushrooms, lightly seasoned seaweed, roasted carrots….)  The articles in each section correspond to each taste, which makes sniffing around to find what you want pretty easy.  You want a glorious article about NYC?  Check out “My Manhattan” in the Sweet section.  Tony Bourdain smack-talking?  That’d be “Is Celebrity Killing The Great Chefs?” in Sour.  Or perhaps you’re like me and love to hear him when he’s on his soapbox.  “The Evildoers” in Salty or “Food Terrorists” in Bitter could be just the thing.  Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Green Man Review, Wayback Reviews | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

TrailerWatch: “Halloween” trailer shows “Grandma” Laurie ready for action

Posted on June 8, 2018 by Denise

“He’s waited for me. I’ve waited for him.”

HOLY COW.  The new Halloween trailer has just dropped, and it’s amazing.  This film jettisons all the sequels in favor of a more realistic story; Michael Meyers has been in a maximum security facility for the last 40 years.  And he’s been biding his time y’all.

I love how the mask looks like something that’s been slowly rotting for the last 40 years. But I’m not a fan of how the trailer slips a HUGE spoiler about one of Michael’s attacks.  It’d  have been much more effective had it been saved for theaters.  Ah well. Studios, amirite?

Read on after the jump for the info the studio just released. Halloween opens October 19th, 2018.  But right now, check out when HE comes back home!

Continue reading →

Posted in In Horror, Trailers | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: “Incredibles 2”!

Posted on June 8, 2018 by Denise

“NO CAPES!”  Who didn’t love The Incredibles?  Jack Jack Attack?  The Edna Mode Retrospective?  Yeah, everybody loves these characters. So let’s go see ’em in Incredibles 2! Synopsis!

In “Incredibles 2,” Helen (voice of Holly Hunter) is called on to lead a campaign to bring Supers back, while Bob (voice of Craig T. Nelson) navigates the day-to-day heroics of “normal” life at home with Violet (voice of Sarah Vowell), Dash (voice of Huck Milner) and baby Jack-Jack—whose super powers are about to be discovered. Their mission is derailed, however, when a new villain emerges with a brilliant and dangerous plot that threatens everything. But the Parrs don’t shy away from a challenge, especially with Frozone (voice of Samuel L. Jackson) by their side. That’s what makes this family so Incredible.

Let’s go!

Continue reading →

Posted in Free Screenings | Tagged , | 6 Comments

TrailerWatch: “HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON: THE HIDDEN WORLD” brings beards, love and a new Big Bad

Posted on June 7, 2018 by Denise

OMGOMGOMG y’all – I love the HtTYD movies. Love them. Toothless is Best Dragon ever (all apologies, Puff, Smaug and Drogon.)

But with this new trailer, there’s another adorable feline-esque flyer, the Light Fury. Look at her. LOOK AT HER. She’s gorgeous. Dang DreamWorks, y’all have really upped your animation game. Not just for this new love interest for Toothless, but all around. Check out the flames Hiccup and Toothless step out of! Look at the shine on those dragon scales!

I can’t wait. I just hope 3 won’t be as savagely heartbreaking as 2. What? I’m still not over how they did Valka’s Bewilderbeast. #JusticeForAlpha

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World comes zooming in next year.

Posted in Trailers | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Columbia Screening Pass-palooza – “Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom”!

Posted on June 7, 2018 by Denise

Ready to get your dinosaur on? Because I’ve got passes for the Columbia, MD screening of Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom! Synopsis!

It’s been four years since theme park and luxury resort Jurassic World was destroyed by dinosaurs out of containment. Isla Nublar now sits abandoned by humans while the surviving dinosaurs fend for themselves in the jungles. When the island’s dormant volcano begins roaring to life, Owen (Chris Pratt) and Claire (Bryce Dallas Howard) mount a campaign to rescue the remaining dinosaurs from this extinction-level event. Owen is driven to find Blue, his lead raptor who’s still missing in the wild, and Claire has grown a respect for these creatures she now makes her mission. Arriving on the unstable island as lava begins raining down, their expedition uncovers a conspiracy that could return our entire planet to a perilous order not seen since prehistoric times.

OOH! Plus, the trailers look epic. So let’s go!

Continue reading →

Posted in Free Screenings | Tagged , , | 20 Comments

Columbia Screening Pass-palooza: “Tag”!

Posted on June 5, 2018 by Denise

Remember summer vacation, when we could play all day?  Well, I’ve got passes for Tag, the movie where grown men decide to keep the fun going. Synopsis!

One month every year, five highly competitive friends hit the ground running in a no-holds-barred game of tag they’ve been playing since the first grade—risking their necks, their jobs and their relationships to take each other down with the battle cry “You’re It!”   This year, the game coincides with the wedding of their only undefeated player, which should finally make him an easy target. But he knows they’re coming…and he’s ready.  Based on a true story, “Tag” shows how far some guys will go to be the last man standing.

Ready, set, GO!

Continue reading →

Posted in Free Screenings | Tagged , | Leave a comment

TrailerWatch: Amazon video’s “Suspiria”

Posted on June 4, 2018 by Denise

How can anyone top the great Dario Argento? The reboot of Suspiria aims to be in the same ballpark, and with this new trailer, 2018’s Suspiria hopes to harness the same creepy, stylistic mood of the original classic. Synopsis!

A darkness swirls at the center of a world-renowned dance company, one that will engulf the troupe’s artistic director, an ambitious young dancer, and a grieving psychotherapist. Some will succumb to the nightmare. Others will finally wake up.

This trailer doesn’t do much for me – I’m a die-hard Argento fan, so I’m keeping a skeptical eye open ’til I know more. Right now it feels like a desperate attempt to clone a cult classic. But here’s hoping that with this film, Dakota Johnson gets a film she can really work with. That she’s co-starring with the glorious Tilda Swinton gives me a bit of hope. Not much, but a glimmer. I’ll wait for the next trailer to give final buzz judgemen Suspiria arrives in theaters November 2.

Posted in Trailers | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Vid of the Day: “Divine Bovine” by Gunnar Madsen!

Posted on June 1, 2018 by Denise

I love cows.  They give us cheese.  They’re content with hanging out in a field, noshing on green grass. They’re kinda awesome.  (Unless they have guns.)

I also love music. Who doesn’t? So when I heard that Gunnar Madsen wrote a song called “Divine Bovine”, I had to dig in. Gunnar’s singing protagonist is a dairy cow, and she gives you a peek at her life down on the farm.

Now, this song (and the entire album it’s on, I Am Your Food) is for kids, but I have to admit I got sucked into this song big time. This is a song folks with little ones won’t want to kill themselves after hearing nineteen zillion times (the average number of times a child wants to listen to a song s/he likes)…in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if families sang this together in the car.  Or in the bath.  Or kitchen.  Or, best yet, on their next trip to a farm.  When in Rome!

“Milk milk, moo moo!”  Your earworm for the day.  YOU’RE WELCOME Y’ALL. Have a wonderful weekend.  And don’t let it bother you.  Be like Cow.

[A review of the whole album is coming down the pike over on The Green Man Review. Of course it’ll be cross-posted here. Keep your bananas peeled!  #seewhatididthere #okayillstop]

Posted in General Mayhem | Leave a comment