Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza – Barbershop: The Next Cut!

Posted on April 5, 2016 by Denise

BARBERSHOP one sheet smallOkay folks — ready for the newest installment of the Barbershop series?  Oh yeah baby.  Synopsis!

It’s been more than 10 years since our last appointment at Calvin’s Barbershop.  Calvin (Ice Cube) and his longtime crew, including Eddie (Cedric the Entertainer), are still there, but the shop has undergone some major changes.  Most noticeably, our once male-dominated sanctuary is now co-ed.  The ladies bring their own flavor, drama and gossip to the shop challenging the fellas at every turn.  Despite the good times and camaraderie within the shop, the surrounding community has taken a turn for the worse, forcing Calvin and our crew to come together to not only save the shop, but their neighborhood.

C’mon; Barbershop was a trip.  And I’m sure this will be too.  Did you check the trailer?  Okay then.  Right this way… Continue reading →

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Short Film, Short Review: Trouser Snake!

Posted on April 3, 2016 by Denise

Trouser Snake short film onesheet

Who wants to read a review that’s longer than the film?  Nobody, that’s who.  So here’s my take on a short film that will get you primed to see it, or prepped to pass on it.  Onward, to Trouser Snake!

“You didn’t get the shaft on this one, Thomas.”

Gotta admit the title had me intrigued.  And I was ready to get a whole lot of giggling done, I won’t lie.  Trouser Snake definitely has a fun, spoofy look to it, but would this short pay off? People, for a no-budget horror short film, I’m impressed.  Is it the best thing I’ve ever seen in my whole life?  Um, this is a short horror film, it’s not supposed to be cinema.  It’s supposed to be fun, and it sure is.  Playfully ridiculous, Trouser Snake is something horror fans can sink their…teeth into. Continue reading →

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: Everybody Wants Some!!

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Denise

everybody wants some onesheetYes, this post’s title can sum up everyone’s feelings.  But it’s doing double duty, as the title of today’s free screening film is indeed Everybody Wants Some!!  (and yes, those exclamation marks are part of the title.)  Synopsis!

A “spiritual sequel” to Dazed and Confused set in the world of 1980 college life, Everybody Wants Some is a comedy that follows a group of friends as they navigate their way through the freedoms and responsibilities of unsupervised adulthood. Get ready for the best weekend ever.

Check out the trailer: http://www.everybodywantssomemovie.com/
#EverybodyWantsSome

Spiritual sequel to one of my favorite movies?  Okay, y’all best come correct.  Only one way to find out though; ready for passes to see for ourselves?

Continue reading →

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: The Huntsman: Winter’s War!

Posted on March 27, 2016 by Denise

Huntsman Winters War onesheetReady to dive back into winter?  Or at least back into the multiplex?  I’ve got passes for the sequel to Snow White and the Huntsman, The Huntsman: Winter’s War!  Synopsis!

Discover the story that came before Snow White in The Huntsman: Winter’s War.  Chris Hemsworth and Oscar® winner Charlize Theron return to their roles from Snow White and the Huntsman, joined by Emily Blunt and Jessica Chastain.

Theron stars as evil Queen Ravenna, who betrays her good sister Freya (Blunt) with an unforgivable act, freezing Freya’s heart to love and unleashing in her an icy power she never knew she possessed.  Retreating to a kingdom far to the north, Freya raises an army of Huntsmen as her protectors, with the only rule that no two of them should ever fall in love.

As a war for domination escalates between the two queens, the hero standing between them is Freya’s most elite Huntsman, Eric (Hemsworth).  Alongside fellow warrior Sara (Chastain)—the only woman who has ever captured his heart—Eric must help Freya vanquish her sister…or Ravenna’s wickedness will rule for eternity.

Ooh!  Passes?  Right this way…

Continue reading →

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Free Comic Book Day & Comic-Con HQ gives you a free sneak-peak of their VOD service starting May 7th

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Denise

fcbd cchqWho doesn’t love Free Comic Book Day?  Who doesn’t love San Diego Comic-Con?  Well, if you hop to it (get it; bunnies, Springtime, hop…oh FINE) you can get access to the brand-new live-streaming Video On Demand of Comic-Con HQ Beta, which will debut on May 7th.  The free beta will run from May 7th through July 25th, including the streaming of San Diego Comic-Con.  So don’t worry if you can’t swing the airfare, missed the lottery, or any other reason SDCC ain’t on your agenda this year.  Just sign up and sit tight.  And I’m betting this stream will be a better view than the usual “got in line late so we’re at the back of Hall H” view…

Oh, and bee-tee-dub; Francesco Francavilla (Afterlife with Archie) and Art Baltazar (Tiny Titans) have designed this year’s FCBD t-shirts.  Just putting that out there. Read on for more info straight from HQ/FCBD! Continue reading →

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Happy Easter from “The Secret Life of Pets”!

Posted on March 25, 2016 by Denise

The Secret Life of Pets onesheetAww.  Gotta love it when the animals we love get all ready for the holidays.  The pets in The Secret Life of Pets are no different.  Remember Christmas?  Yeah.  Kawaii city, amirite?  Well, here they are again for Easter…and with Snowball the rabbit in charge, you know it’ll be just as festive.  Or something.  Here’s the synopsis:

For their fifth fully-animated feature-film collaboration, Illumination Entertainment and Universal Pictures present The Secret Life of Pets, a comedy about the lives our pets lead after we leave for work or school each day. Comedy superstars Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet and Kevin Hart make their animated feature-film debuts in The Secret Life of Pets, which co-stars Steve Coogan, Ellie Kemper, Bobby Moynihan, Lake Bell, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress, Jenny Slate and Albert Brooks. Illumination founder and CEO Chris Meledandri and his longtime collaborator Janet Healy produce the film directed by Chris Renaud (Despicable Me, Despicable Me 2), co-directed by Yarrow Cheney and written by Brian Lynch and Cinco Paul & Ken Daurio. http://www.thesecretlifeofpets.com

The Secret Life of Pets hits theaters on July 8th, 2016.  Happy Licorice Jellybean Day!

 

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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice is Snyder’s muddled masterstroke

Posted on March 23, 2016 by Denise

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Nutshell: Director Zach Snyder knows how to craft a scene to reach maximum audience reaction. With Batman v Superman, he builds up each superhero and then shows the cracks in the facade. But BvS suffers from too-much-itis; there’s a whole lot going on, and people who want an actual story may be disappointed. For those of us who just want to see our heroes on the big screen, and don’t mind wading through “what’s going on?” moments in order to get it? This serves as a kickass, albeit flawed, opening to the new DC movieverse. Grade: B-

“I’m saying there’s a cost.”  

NOTE: I won’t be spoiling anything that you haven’t already seen in trailers for this flick*.  Carry on.

Batfleck. Man of Steel.  There’s been a lot of back and forth about Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, almost as soon as the film started production.  I’ve waffled about this film myself; part of me was totally pumped to see these two heroes together on the  big screen.  Another part of me cringed when I heard Ben Affleck deliver the line “Do you bleed?”  — seriously, they couldn’t have used a better voice modulator? On the whole though, I decided to wait and see, because this matchup sounded cool, because the comic book version of this story kicks all sorts of ass, and because this is the start of a whole Justice League series of films that proves the DC Universe has serious penis envy can toss product into the multiplex with the best of ’em. (In fact, Justice League: Part One hits theaters next November, with Wonder Woman aiming for a summer 2017 release.)

So now I’ve seen the film, in all its dusty, dark-hued glory.  And it ain’t bad.  Continue reading →

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Baltimore Screening Pass-palooza: Criminal!

Posted on March 22, 2016 by Denise

Criminal onesheetPasses for the new movie Criminal?  Yeah, I hear Fiona Apple in my head too.  So why don’t I just cut out the jibber-jabber and head straight to the synopsis?  You can sing along as you read, it’s all good.

In a last-ditch effort to stop a diabolical plot, a dead CIA operative’s memories, secrets, and skills are implanted into an unpredictable and dangerous death-row inmate in hopes the he will complete the operative’s mission.

Oh, and did I mention it stars Gal Gadot, Ryan Reynolds, Alice Eve, Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Tommy Lee Jones?  Yeah baby.  Ready for passes?  Of course you are – I didn’t have to implant that into your brain.  Right this way… Continue reading →

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TrailerWatch: “Genius”

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Denise

unnamed(1)“God help anyone who loves you Tom. Because for all your millions of beautiful words you haven’t the slightest idea of what it means to be alive.”

Where my book nerds at?  Because Lionsgate/Roadside Attractions just released a trailer for their film Genius, a story of author Thomas Wolfe and his editor Maxwell Perkins.  STOP YAWNING.  Would you be more interested if I told you it starred Colin Firth and Jude Law?  Maybe throw in Laura Linney while I’m at it?  And then tell you this movie is about whittling a book down from five thousand original pages?  Okay then.  Thought so.  Synopsis!
From Academy Award-nominated screenwriter JOHN LOGAN (Gladiator, The Aviator, Hugo, Skyfall) and acclaimed, Tony Award-winning director MICHAEL GRANDAGE in his feature film debut, comes Genius, a stirring drama about the complex friendship and transformative professional relationship between the world-renowned book editor Maxwell Perkins (who discovered F. Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway) and the larger-than-life literary giant Thomas Wolfe.  Based on the biography “Max Perkins: Editor of Genius” by Pulitzer Prize winner A. SCOTT BERG, Genius stars COLIN FIRTH as Perkins, JUDE LAW as Wolfe, NICOLE KIDMAN as Aline Bernstein, a costume designer sharing a tumultuous relationship with Wolfe, LAURA LINNEY as Louise Perkins, Max’s wife and a talented playwright, GUY PEARCE as F. Scott Fitzgerald and DOMINIC WEST as Ernest Hemingway.
I’m fascinated. I’m betting this will be hitting the usual awards season rounds, because it’s got Important Film vibes coming off of the trailer like nobody’s business. Genius hits theaters June 10th, 2016.
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TrailerWatch: “The Shallows” may make you rethink snorkling

Posted on March 18, 2016 by Denise

the shallows onesheetWhen your PR says your film is “Jaws for a new generation”, you’d best come correct. Here’s the synopsis for the new Shark Gonna Getcha film, The Shallows:

In the taut thriller The Shallows, Nancy (Blake Lively) is surfing alone on a secluded beach when she is attacked by a great white shark and stranded just a short distance from shore. Though she is only 200 yards from her survival, getting there proves the ultimate contest of wills. It’s Jaws for a new generation.

jaws raft

Bye, Alex.

Seriously; I could not go into the ocean after I saw Jaws.  Probably because I had the same raft little Alex had.  And we all know what happened to that.  Hint:

So, as I’m a sucker for the spooky, I peeped the trailer.  And it’s effective as hell.  Partly because it shows one woman stranded on a coral outcropping in the middle of nowhere; where’s she gonna go for help? This could definitely be Blake Lively’s star turn, as IMDb has a grand total of three actors listed for this film.  All Is Lost, perhaps?  Hey, she killed it in Age of Adaline, so I’m hoping for even better things as her career continues.

But it’s the amazing crystal-clear cinematography by Flavio Martínez Labiano that really gets things cranking.  This trailer shows a great white slowly swim by Lively’s surfer Nancy (the character’s listed as Mia over at IMDb.)  And the size difference between her petite frame and the huge shark is chilling.  Well done, Sony Pictures.

The Shallows swims into theaters June 24th, 2016.  Landshark?  Man, I hope not.

 

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