Dimension Films Acquires "Compulsion"

Dimension Films announced today that they have acquired U.S. distribution rights to the psychological thriller Compulsion starring Heather Graham and Carrie-Anne Moss. The film, now shooting in Ontario, Canada, also stars Kevin Dillon and Joe Mantegna and is being directed by Egidio Coccimiglio.

Compulsion is based on the South Korean film 301, 302 and centers on two women occupying neighboring apartments, each grappling with obsessions that have begun to overtake their lives. Graham portrays Amy, a vivacious, calculating chef whose need to be desired is so far-reaching that she becomes a star in her own imaginary cooking show. Moss is Saffron, a reclusive but alluring ex-child star who is battling anorexia. Their complex, ever-intensifying relationship builds to a surprising climax as their emotional connections to food and one another boil over.

“The combination of a great script, two very strong female leads and a suspenseful tone and pace made 'Compulsion' a highly sought after project for the company,” said Bob Weinstein, Co-Chairman, The Weinstein Company.

Added the film’s producers Gary Howsam and Bill Marks, “We’re thrilled that Dimension Films recognizes the qualities and talent associated with 'Compulsion.' The film couldn't be in better hands.”

Compulsion is written by Floyd Byars and will be produced by Gary Howsam and Bill Marks. Academy Award-winning cinematographer Vilmos Zsigmond is also on board. The executive producers include Anders Palm and Jeff Sackman, whose TAJJ Media is managing the distribution rights licensing for the picture. International rights are being represented by Etchie Stroh and Moonstone Entertainment.

Clip From Dustin Black's "Virginia"

For years, she's been having an affair with the town's highly-religious and married sheriff Richard Tipton (Ed Harris) who may or may not be Emmett's father, but when the sheriff decides to run for office, he has to end the relationship immediately. Meanwhile, Emmett has gotten into his own relationship with the sheriff's daughter (Emma Roberts) and the two of them want to run off together.

ComingSoon.Net

New "Men in Black 3" Featurette

Agents J (Smith) and K (Jones) are back... in time. J has seen some inexplicable things in his 15 years with the Men in Black, but nothing, not even aliens, perplexes him as much as his wry, reticent partner. But when K's life and the fate of the planet are put at stake, Agent J will have to travel back in time to put things right. J discovers that there are secrets to the universe that K never told him -- secrets that will reveal themselves as he teams up with the young Agent K (Brolin) to save his partner, the agency, and the future of humankind.

ComingSoon.Net

"The Possession" Trailer

Clyde and Stephanie Brenek see little cause for alarm when their youngest daughter Em becomes oddly obsessed with an antique wooden box she purchased at a yard sale. But as Em's behavior becomes increasingly erratic, the couple fears the presence of a malevolent force in their midst, only to discover that the box was built to contain a dibbuk, a dislocated spirit that inhabits and ultimately devours its human host.

Yahoo Movies

Olivia Munn Sexes Up "The Babymakers" Poster

After trying everything to get his wife Audrey (Olivia Munn) pregnant, Tommy Macklin (Paul Schneider) realizes to his horror that he may be “shooting blanks.” Terrified that his marriage may fall apart, Tommy recruits his friends (and an Indian ex-mobster) to rob a sperm bank where he made a deposit years ago.  As with any half-baked scheme, everything can and does go wrong, testing the limits of Tommy and Audrey’s relationship. THE BABYMAKERS is a hilarious twist on the heist film genre, a laugh-out loud comedy showing how far one couple will go in hopes of creating a new life.

"The Legend Continues" with Anchorman 2 Poster

The Anchorman sequel has a title, (albeit vague) release date and poster via The Lebanese Cinema Movie Guide.

Not much to go by. We still don't know if Christina Applegate is coming back (Knock on wood - easy to forget how hard it is to play the straight-man against dead-brain Brick Tamland or Champ fighting his urges for Ron). Guessing by 2013, they mean July. There also remains the task of matching Anchorman's quotability-factor and being funny enough to justify its existence (Imagine if John Belushi hadn't died and we got the Animal House sequel they were planning?)

But those are concerns for a little later. Right now, its about a simple poster sending a simply message. Action 4 News Team returns!

New Prometheus Viral-Video Centers on Noomi Rapace as Elizabeth Shaw

More Prometheus is better than none, I suppose.

Courtesy of Verizon FiOS is a new viral video focusing on Noomi Rapace's Elizabeth Shaw. Doesn't grab you like the video centered on Prometheus' resident android David (played by Michael Fassbender). Is it the overabundance of effects or simply the fact Shaw, at face value, doesn't strike you as compelling a character to watch as David?

One more viral video is expected before release. Hopefully it does a better job.

Exclusive: Superman - The Lost Prince of Krypton?

Something not talked enough in this crazy business. The compromises filmmakers make. Forced to cast actors who aren't their first choice, shoot in locations they don't particularly want, scale back to fit their budget (As famously happened in Back to the Future with its original "Nuclear test-site" deus ex machina to get Marty McFly back to 1985) or incorporate ideas from others. Art thrives through restriction, as Nicholas Meyer said.

In lieu of Collider's report of purported leaked scenes (Sounds right but can't help but feel "Iffy" about the source), it had us thinking of The Man of Steel, Zack Snyder's big-screen reboot of the Superman mythos. Amazing to see how much out in the open is clearly taken from Superman: Flyby, the J.J. Abrams script intended to kick-start Kal-El into the twenty-first century with McG directing.

Warner Brothers spent a fortune getting the franchise off the ground before Bryan Singer's Superman Returns. Way more than the $65 million quoted. They want to justify spending all that cash, even though they wrote it off years ago. Economically, makes sense. Don't blow money when you have perfectly good ideas collecting dust in the Burbank archives. Also helps despite the backlash, Warner Brothers loved the Abrams script (that and Andrew Kevin Walker's Batman versus Superman). Hence you look at The Man of Steel and marvel at the comparisons to Flyby; the same suit, same actor wearing said red-and-blue, trunk-less design (Henry Cavill was originally cast by McG), Krypton modeled after Coruscant (per Latino Review), among others.

Rumblings we hear is another vital Flyby component is being used; the revelation Supes/Clark/Kal is a lost Kryptonian prince prophesied to save the world. Is it as radical as the big stink being made about changes to Spider-Man's origins in The Amazing Spider-Man as leaked by Badass Digest? It's out there, and lazy, let's be honest throwing in the tired "Chosen One" or "Destiny" cliché. But considering how far Flyby originally deviated, it was the least egregious material Abrams cooked up (God forbid they used Supes dying and visiting his father in Kryptonian Heaven!)

Some of you might instantly cry "Bullshit!" with claims of "Christopher Nolan would never let that happen!" Well for one, Nolan's not signing the checks paying for The Man of Steel and second, while the property was in his control (and he had a blank check at his discretion) Bryan Singer agreed to incorporate stuff from earlier, unmade iterations. The sequence where Superman incinerates glass falling with his laser eyes? Directly out of Batman vs Superman.

As a friend put it, these mandates create a creative challenge for the filmmaker (As pointed out with the aforementioned BTTF, it helped the final product) and word is the studio is psyched with what Snyder has delivered.

New Les Miserables Photo: Valjean & Valjean (sort of)

A new photo from Tom Hooper's Les Miserables was released via the film's official Facebook page today, and it's a great shot of Jean Valjean and the Bishop of Digne.  As fans of the musical already know, this is a pivotal moment early in the story where the Bishop's simple act of kindess essentially shapes the entire direction the disgraced ex-convict goes from this point on. 

As fans of the musical also know, what makes this particular moment even cooler is that the Bishop is being played by Colm Wilkinson, who originated the role of Jean Valjean in both the London and Broadway productions of Les Miserables.  He can be heard on both the original London and Broadway cast recordings - the latter of which I first owned on cassette tape, and I played it so much it actually broke.  He played the role again in the 10th Anniversary Concert version of Les Miserables at London's Royal Albert Hall in 1995, and he also appeared at the 25th Anniversary Concert of the show (this time at London's O2 Arena) in 2010. 

It's been said that Valjean's Act 2 tearjerker, "Bring Him Home", was written especially for Wilkinson's tenor voice, and there's a famous story about how when Wilkinson sang it for the first time in rehearsal, a cast member reacted by telling the composers, "You told us the show was going to be about God, but you didn't tell us he was going to be singing in it."

Here's a performance of Wilkinson singing "Bring Him Home" at the 10th Anniversary Concert:

Seriously...how could they have made the movie without him?

Incidently, "Bring Him Home" was just filmed for the movie version.  According to Twitter, via actor Andy Coxon, who plays one of the "barricade boys" in the film, Hugh Jackman sang the song 14 times in two hours today, and was reportedly "phenomenal".  Whether or not he has a voice left after that (14 times?!) is anyone's guess.

Can't wait to hear it, though.  Les Miserables opens in theaters in December.

Scott Z. Burns Takes Over Writing Duties on Rise of the Apes Sequel

This is the virus connection talking, isn't it?

Scott Z. Burns, writer of Contagion (of which Warner Brothers reportedly wants a sequel – UGH!) is writing the Rise of the Apes sequel for Fox, per Heat Vision. Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver, who penned Rise, did a few drafts but have since vacated. Not much on plot details besides taking off where the last left with a virus spreading that (eventually) wipes out the human race and "the apes on the path to emerge as society’s new rulers."

Only returning players, for the moment, are director Rupert Wyatt (turned out plum work elsewhere, thank you very much contractual obligation) and star Andy Serkis. Both were to the key to its surprising success last August. Locked them down, then we're set.

If there's one request (Not lose James Franco or Freda Pinto since it's doubtful either return, me thinks), go in your own path. Many still want to label Rise as a reboot when it was clearly following the original 1968 Planet of the Apes' continuity. Considerate of you but drop it. You have an audience now and don't need to get bogged down by the original franchise’s (at times) loopy time-line. If you want to end on mankind eradicated, have at it.