First, check out that gorgeous poster for the IMAX release of Disney’s John Carter. At this point, I can’t believe that there’s anyone, at least anyone who’s been following the progress of this film, that isn’t excited about it yet. Personally I can’t wait.  While my interest might have started with the casting of Mark Strong as Matai Shang, everything I’ve learned, and certainly everything I’ve seen, since then has taken that interest to a whole other level.

Beyond the special effects and the science in the science fiction, I believe John Carter will succeed because it’s got characters we will care about. We didn’t keep going back to see Titanic, back in the day, because of the big boat and the iceberg. We went because we cared about Jack and Rose. I’m not saying that John Carter (Taylor Kitsch) and Deja Thoris (Lynn Collins) are Jack and Rose for the new millennium, by any stretch, but it’s the same idea. (One that James Cameron doesn’t seem to grasp. The techno-files who made Avatar a hit aren’t going to follow him to see a love story in 3D. Just my humble opinion.)

I don’t care about 3D but I do want to see John Carter in IMAX. Of course the CGI will look fantastic, but so will the natural wonders of Utah, where it was filmed. And I can’t wait to hear Michael Giacchino’s score  come out of some massive theater speakers.

I’ve rambled on enough. Check out this clip (via Comingsoon) called “The White Ape” (I finally know who Thomas Haden Church is playing – and no, he’s not the ape) and stay tuned for the sizzle reel, essentially a lightening quick trailer set to the score.  John Carter opens in two more weeks! (March 9)

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21 Jump Street was as good a candidate as any for the 80s nostalgia makeover from drama to comedy, even if no one was exactly clamoring for it.  

In the action-comedy 21 Jump Street, Schmidt (Jonah Hill) and Jenko (Channing Tatum) are more than ready to leave their adolescent problems behind. Joining the police force and the secret Jump Street unit, they use their youthful appearances to go undercover in a local high school. As they trade in their guns and badges for backpacks, Schmidt and Jenko risk their lives to investigate a violent and dangerous drug ring. But they find that high school is nothing like they left it just a few years earlier and neither expects that they will have to confront the terror and anxiety of being a teenager again and all the issues they thought they had left behind.

We have a new featurette to share with you, courtesy of Yahoo Movies, telling us “What It’s All About”.

The movie really is growing on me. Channing Tatum-tot seems to be not only in on the joke, but perfectly suited to the material. (Say…did you know that that was Jonah Hill’s nickname for Channing Tatum on set?? I did NOT. I’m saddened to know I’m not original! I’m still going to use it though.) Jonah Hill, even if he is best taken in small doses (IMHO), seems to be in his element here.

21 Jump Street, costarring (one of the funniest things about the trailers and clips) Ice Cube, Ellie Kemper, Brie Larson, Rob Riggle and Dave Franco, opens in theaters March 16 everywhere. (And apparently, Johnny Depp, who is just a tad more well known now than he was say, twenty-one years ago when he left the show, actually IS putting in a cameo!)

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The above is a new poster to go with the international trailer, for Battleship. Not sure how I feel about it, but at least it’s got a human face on it as opposed to the silhouette of a ship or a man with his back turned.  As for the film, I seem to be one of the few skeptics who think Battleship is going to sink to the bottom of the ocean. Perhaps I’m judging this movie too harshly. There is certainly a place for escapist entertainment. (I just prefer mine to allow me to use my brain a wee bit, rather than check it at the door.)

Director Peter Berg has coined the new term, “Super-movie”, to indicate a new class of giant mechanized blockbuster. He uses the examples Iron Man and Transformers. Of the two, I’d say (and I’m obviously not alone) Tranformers comes closer to Battleship. 

Trying to change the minds of skeptics like me, Universal has, by way of the terrific French film site, Allocine, released a nifty little four minutes plus behind-the-scenes featurette, including footage of Berg discussing the making of the film and its inherent challenges, not the least of which was shooting at sea (SHARKS!).

Peter Berg (Hancock) produces and directs Battleship, an epic-scaled action-adventure that unfolds across the seas, in the skies and over land as our planet fights for survival against a superior force.  Inspired by Hasbro’s classic naval combat game, Battleship stars Taylor Kitsch as Lt. Alex Hopper, a Naval officer assigned to the USS John Paul Jones; Brooklyn Decker as Sam Shane, a physical therapist and Hopper’s fiancée; Alexander Skarsgård as Hopper’s older brother, Stone, Commanding Officer of the USS Sampson; Rihanna as Petty Officer Raikes, Hopper’s crewmate and a weapons specialist on the USS John Paul Jones; and international superstar Liam Neeson as Hopper and Stone’s superior (and Sam’s father), Admiral Shane.

Berg directs this epic action-adventure also produced by Scott Stuber (Couples Retreat), Sarah Aubrey (The Kingdom), Brian Goldner and Bennett Schneir of Hasbro (the Transformers franchise), along with Duncan Henderson (Master and Commander) and Jeffrey Silver (300).  The film is written by Jon Hoeber & Erich Hoeber (Red).

Battleship stars Taylor Kitsch (and I really do want him to succeed), Liam Neeson, Brooklyn Decker, Alexander Skarsgard, Rihanna and Jesse Plemmons. Battleship sets sail 11th April in the UK and May 18 in the US. (Why does that seem odd?)

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I’ve been seeing the trailer for Being Flynn in the theater a lot recently. That may be because I live in Boston and it is set and was filmed here. In fact, there is a premiere next week that is a benefit for a local homeless shelter. Paul Dano and director Paul Weitz are expected to attend. (Unfortunately, I couldn’t get tickets, but that means it’s sold out, which is good news for the shelter.) Being Flynn is written and directed by Paul Weitz (About a Boy, American Pie), the film is based on the award-winning memoir by Nick Flynn called “Another Bullshit Night in Suck City”. (Oh how I wish they’d kept that title. That would get butts in seats) Thanks to Yahoo Movies we have three new clips to share  in which we get to see Nick Flynn (Dano) and his beyond-dysfunction relationship with his father, Jonathan (Robert De Niro).

“Nick Flynn is shocked to have his eccentric and long-absent father, Jonathan reach out to him unexpectedly. Still feeling the loss of his mother in the midst of starting a new relationship with Denise (Olivia Thirlby), the last person Nick wants to see is his father. But you can’t outrun fate and slowly Nick comes to realize he has been given the chance to make a real future not only for himself, but for his struggling father too.”

Take a look:

“My First Wife”:

Being Flynn gets a limited release in the US on March 2. I suspect it will be on VOD shortly thereafter.

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Talk about a very awkward moment! Zac Efron was at The Lorax premiere in Los Angeles when he went to shake hands with someone and a condom came out of his front pocket. He immediately put his sunglasses on, his face went red and then he laughed. I think it’s hysterical! For the girls imagine if a tampon came flying out of your pocket?

Well it looks like Zac was hoping to get him some. It’s nice to see he’s all about practicing safe sex!

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