The Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol World Tour rolled into New York last night, beginning the final leg of the media blitzkrieg at the Ziegfeld Theater (where else) on Monday December 19. Tom Cruise, looked very dapper indeed in a suit that matched wife Katie Holmes’ dress (love the pocket square). In the pic at the top, Katie looks like she lost a tooth but I chose it because I love the way ole Tommy is looking at her.  (Call me crazy, but I think they look happy. ) Costars Simon Pegg, Michael Nyqvist, Anil Kapoor and Josh Holloway all joined director Brad Bird on the red carpet.

Of course, no one is having as much fun on this press junket as Paula Patton. With or without hubs Robin Thicke (who she clearly missed the past couple of weeks), Paula was all smiles, giggles and girlish tics.  

Then there’s our newest crush, Jeremy Renner (love the pinstripes!), who practically steals the movie out from under one of the world’s biggest stars. If he’s been hand-picked to take over this franchise (eventually), just as he’s Matt Damon’s successor in the Bourne series, then I think it will be in good hands.

Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is out in IMAX now. It opens in regular theaters tomorrow December 21.  Next stop LA tonight! (More pics tomorrow!)

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The BBC has released more details about the upcoming second season of their acclaimed Sherlock Holmes adaptation, simply titled “Sherlock” , starring Benedict Cumberbatch, who can currently be seen in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Martin Freeman who is currently filming The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey as Bilbo Baggins.

While Cumberbatch is known primarily for playing period roles, his Sherlock is definitely fixed in the present. He lives and works in contemporary London, solving crimes by taking advantage of the latest technologies like GPS and the internet.  Dr. John Watson (a veteran of Afghanistan instead of The Crimea) still writes a journal in which he chronicles his adventures with Holmes, but it is, of course, an online blog. Cumberbatch delivers an intense and nuanced performance as the great detective and is at once modern while reminding the viewer of his roots. The updates are handled deftly and seamlessly.

The series, created by Doctor Who writers Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat, which aired last year in the UK on BBC and in the US on PBS, has gained a worldwide following. The show is due to return early next year (in the UK, Fall in the US) with a new batch of three episodes. Below is a trailer for the first, A Scandal in Belgravia.

Cumberbatch explained in a recent interview with the BBC how he thinks the series will change viewers perceptions of the iconic character: “I think the audience can expect three incredibly different films. The first episode is going to be about the heart, whatever that may be for Sherlock. (It includes the introduction of Irene Adler played by True Blood’s Lara Pulver) The second episode is about horror and suspense and the third is going to be a bit of an emotional rollercoaster and a thriller, so expect love, horror and thrills!”

Steven Moffat continued, “I think the first series was more about John Watson being redeemed from being a massively traumatized war veteran into a bit of a hero. This year it’s more about the forging of the mighty Sherlock Holmes.”

Enjoy the vids. We’ll keep you posted on air dates!

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Trailer for Ep. 1 A Scandal in Belgravia

Christopher Nolan has said that the third installment of his Batman saga, The Dark Knight Rises, will be the last. It seems he wants to make the endcap to his trilogy as grand as the final opera in Wagner’s Ring Cycle. After viewing this new trailer, ‘epic’ would seem to be a word that fits. I saw the trailer in IMAX this weekend, attached to Mission:Impossible – Ghost Protocol.  I felt a little disappointed that we didn’t get the much talked about prologue, the first eight minutes of the film, that Warner’s had been touting for months. Apparently only NY and LA got that. We got a trailer. (Said in my best Charlie Brown at Halloween “I got a rock” voice.)

We got a look at Anne Hathaway’s Selina Kyle, but the main thing I’ll take from this trailer is the heartbreak in Sir Michael Caine’s Alfred’s voice. Speaking of voices, I don’t know whether it’s been tweaked or not, but I didn’t have as much trouble deciphering what Tom Hardy’s Bane was saying through the mask as most of the internet had been complaining about. That’s something easily fixed in post in any case. The rest of it just looks bad ass, particularly on an IMAX screen. I will probably decide to shell out the extra bucks to see The Dark Knight Rises in IMAX when it opens on July 20.

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Vanessa Hudgens has completely changed her look since her split from Zac Efron. She and her boyfriend Austin Butler (any relation to Gerard?) are seen leaving Target  after lunch today where she wore ripped jeans and a huge hat in a very bohemian manner. The two seem quite smitten with one another as they avoided looking at the cameras.

Although the holes in the jeans are a bit too big for my liking, you can't deny the outfit looks comfortable! 

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Photos: Danny/WENN

I suppose 21 Jump Street was as good a candidate as any for the 80s nostalgia makeover from drama to comedy, although I don’t know anyone who was exactly clamoring for it. And it’s not like Johnny Depp (who is now just a tad more well known now than he was say, twenty-one years ago when he left the show) was going to put in a cameo for this ill-conceived project. They could probably have gotten Depp-lite…I mean Richard Grieco. He was probably available. 

So I guess the tongue-in-cheek approach that co-directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord  (it took two people to bring this puppy in!) took is the best one. After having watched the two previous trailers (one green, one red), I have to say the damn thing is growing on me. Even Channing Tatum-tot seems to be not only in on the joke, but perfectly suited to the material. Jonah Hill is still best taken in small doses (IMHO) but again, he’s perfect for this. And Nick Offerman’s police captain gets funnier every time. He needs to work more anyway.

21 Jump Street, costarring Ice Cube, Ellie Kemper, Brie Larson, Rob Riggle and Dave Franco opens in theaters March 16 everywhere.

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Relativity Media has released the first two posters for Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror, which opens in the US on March 16 (Beating Rupert Sanders’ Snow White and the Huntsman out of the blocks by nearly 2 months. Curses!). That’s Julia Roberts looking better than she has since Pretty Woman, as the Evil Queen and Lily Collins (daughter of Phil) as Snow White. Armie Hammer plays her Prince.

Paramount has released the second poster for The Devil Inside, which opens in the US just in time to rid you of any residual Christmas cheer on January 6 (Kings Day actually). This new poster features a possessed nun, and that is about as scary as it gets, IMHO.

This is merely a first teaser poster for Jack the Giant Killer. It’s a modern day fairy tale in which the long-standing peace between men and giants is threatened, as a young farmer leads an expedition into the giants' kingdom in hopes of rescuing a kidnapped princess. Directed by Bryan Singer and starring Nicholas Hoult as Jack along with Ewan McGregor, Stanley Tucci, Bill Nighy, Warwick Davis,  Ian McShane and Eddie Marsan, the film opens June 15 in the US and the UK.

The 2^nd poster for The Expendables 2 leaves Stallone standing alone among the rubble. (Does that bode ill for the inevitable Expendables 3 cast? Will he have to start from scratch?)In this one, Bruce Willis’ Mr. Church reunites Barney Ross (Stallone) and the rest of the Expendables for what should be an easy paycheck, but when one of his men is murdered on the job, their quest for revenge puts them deep in enemy territory and up against an unexpected threat. Directed by Simon West (Con Air, The Mechanic), the film opens August 17 in the US.

And finally, did you know that Goon played TIFF? Somehow that strikes me as a non sequitur. I must say, this movie looks like more fun than it has a right to. The cast is just too talented. It’s like Slap Shot’s goofy cousin. In addition to Seann William Scott, Live Schreiber is playing the villain, Kim Coates the beleaguered coach, Allison Pill the hockey groupie…Goon opens in the UK on 6^th January, VOD in the US on February 24 and in a limited theatrical run on March 30.