Check out the sweet new international poster for The Dark Knight:

Remember that horror movie survey we ran way back in October? Here’s some of the results:

A survey conducted by Bellevue, Wash.-based movie website Movie-Source.com found that among seven recent and upcoming horror movies to be released in the fall or winter of 2007, Aliens vs. Predator Requiem, a sequel to the 2004 box office hit Alien vs. Predator, did not rank highly among must-see horror films.

The survey, conducted in October 2007 and based on 1,543 responses, compared Aliens vs. Predator Requiem to anticipated films such as 30 Days of Night, Saw IV and Stephen King’s The Mist, as well as Rogue and The Signal, two films that were later pushed back to 2008. The Mist received a whopping 37% of first picks when asked which horror movie respondents would like to see most, and 30 Days of Night followed up with 27%. Saw IV was third with 20%.

Of the top movies selected, only Saw IV was a box office success; both 30 Days of Night and The Mist failed to meet expectations. Saw is already a proven franchise, yet one that has fans sharply divided, which would account for less people voting for it but more going to see it.

So what does this all mean for Aliens vs. Predator Requiem? With only 8% of people anticipating this film most and some of the more highly anticipated horror movies failing to deliver in box office revenues, it will most likely operate like Saw IV on a lesser degree. The Alien and Predator franchises have built-in audiences that will go see the movie no matter what, and, like the Saw franchise, fans are bitterly divided. Of those surveyed, 47% consider the original Alien vs. Predator either a “Spectacular piece of filmmaking” or “a fun ride”, while 53% consider the movie “not so good” or worse.

The survey was conducted on InstantSurvey (http://www.instantsurvey.com).

Stardust comes to DVD next Tuesday, December 18th, and it may very well be this decade’s Princess Bride. I know that’s a big statement, but Stardust is just an all around fun movie that never takes itself too seriously while still offering up some thoroughly enjoyable adventure and romance.

I didn’t know what to think when I saw the previews; it looked fun, the visuals looked so-so, the screenplay awkward. However, as it turns out, Stardust is just one of those movies that ends up being hard to market, even though it can appeal to anyone who has an imagination. Stardust is funny, exciting and… really, really funny (did I already say that).

And don’t mock Robert De Niro for taking a part in this movie! Not only is it his best career choice since Analyze This (yes, I know, that was a comedy), but how many chances to do you get to play a gay pirate who dresses up like a woman? Yes, you heard me right. The movie also offers up a good performance from Michelle Pfeiffer and a decent one by Claire Danes, among others.

You can read my full Stardust movie review here.

The Bourne Ultimatum is out on DVD this Tuesday, and the DVD features some good special features that any Bourne fan will enjoy. I won’t go into detail on how much I liked the movie, as I’ve already written a movie review here, but having now watched the film three times, all I can say is that it is a great action movie – but not quite as good as The Bourne Supremacy (the second one).

Anyway, I’m a big Jason Bourne fan (of both the movies and books, even if they don’t match up at all), but here’s what the DVD offers:

• Deleted scenes
  A few deleted scenes. Nothing much to say here. There’s nothing all too remarkable here, and you can tell these were cut due to pacing issues.
• Man on the move: Jason Bourne
  The first of several very good featurettes, this one, split into chapters, takes a look at each unique filming location, from Berlin to Tangier to New York. You get to see the challenges the team faced in every location, such as in Tangier (they had to block off parts of a busy market, and often had to film in crowds) or, most interestingly, in London, where the train station scene had to be filmed amongst normal commuters – so there are several shots of Matt Damon running around with a camera crew on his tail, winding in between people on their way to work. This is definitely a highlight of the DVD.
• Rooftop Pursuit
  The Tangier rooftop scene was quite an accomplishment, according to the DVD. Whether it’s getting the right camera angles in tight quarters or filming that scene where Jason Bourne leaps across empty space and into a window, there were some complications (apparently camera crews collapsed a roof at one point) in the sequence. This is another great behind-the-scenes look.
• Planning the Punches
  A behind-the-scene look at the choreography and training involving the fight sequences. Also quite fun to watch.
• Driving School
  This is an entertaining one, as we get to see Matt Damon drive stunt cars, do 180’s and speed down a parking garage ramp. It’s always nice to see the actors actually doing some stunts, and having fun with them, too.
• New York Car Chase
  This one has some interesting moments, as we get to see special cars rigged with cameras or even stunt men (a guy sits on the roof and drives the car while Matt Damon is inside below, getting filmed). Overall this one isn’t as good, but still a decent entry.
• Feature Commentary with director Paul Greengrass

All in all, this is a great DVD. It doesn’t have a ton of features, but the features it have are informative and fun to watch. Thankfully, we get to see Matt Damon out of character, and he seems like a pretty fun guy to work with. It’s nice seeing how the cast and crew seem to get along with one another (Damon makes fun of Greengrass’ Oscar nomination at one point), but more importantly, it’s cool to scene how “real” the movie is compared to other action movies, which is really one of the strong selling points of the franchise.

While there are bigger and better DVD sets to follow, I’m sure (there’s already a trilogy DVD set, and an HD-DVD/DVD combo coming soon is going to have more features than what is found here), the regular Bourne Ultimatum DVD is a good value disc.

I’ve posted three new movie reviews, which I believe are the last of the eleven I wrote last weekend. Click on the links to view them:

• We Are Marshall
• Talk to Me
• First Snow

Other movie reviews coming up soon are Stardust, In the Land of Women and The Namesake, and DVD-specific reviews for Braveheart: Special Edition and Halloween Unrated Director’s Cut (Rob Zombie Version).

Um… Where do I start? High School Musical 2 is coming out on DVD this Tuesday in an Extended Edition, which includes a new music scene, sing-along features, a rehearsal cam (where you can watch dance rehearsal footage while watching the movie), karaoke features and music videos. First, though, you have to see the movie, and if you’re not in the Disney demographic, you probably won’t like it.

“Probably won’t like it” – is that true? High School Musical 2 was one of the biggest hits of the year, and that must mean that more than pre-teen kids are watching it. It received pretty good reviews, so that must mean that some adult critics liked it, too.

But honestly, I do not see what the appeal is, though I’ll admit that I am way out of the target demographic. I like musicals, but I like realistic musicals with engaging music with excellent musical sequences. High School Musical 2 does not offer this. I liked one song out of the entire movie, and had to fast forward through several of the other musical sequences as they were just so utterly unbearable. The songs are so chipper (yes, so Disney) and cheesy, but what really kills them is the poor audio matching to the actors – I’m pretty sure they sing the songs, but the audio track is so obviously separate from the actual filmed scenes that it pretty much looks like they’re lip syncing the entire time. Oh, and the dance moves are just dreadful. I felt like I was watching an N’Sync or Backstreet Boys music video from ten years ago, as the dance moves are so goofy and un-trendy you just have to see them to believe them.

When the actors aren’t singing, High School Musical 2 is pretty bearable and somewhat entertaining. The development of Zac Efron’s character is decent enough (the story is about him forced to decide between a bunch of easy choices to get into college and allegiance to his friends and girlfriend), and I also liked the nasty performance by Ashley Tisdale. Having known nothing about the High School Musical franchise before tonight other than Vanessa Hudgens’ nude photos, I was a bit surprised to see that Hudgens has such a small role in the movie (maybe because her acting, singing and character aren’t very inspiring). In reality, the writers’ decision to keep the movie away from a typical teen romance story (though it does have a lot of those elements) and do something different (no, I’m not saying it’s original by any stretch) was a smart one, though.

The only other thing that bugged me about the movie was just how G-rated it was. I should have seen it coming – it’s from the Disney channel after all – but for some reason I had expectations that it was going to be something more. Since it has been so successful, I figured that the movie would branch away from Disney just a little bit, but nope. Why does G-rated stuff bother me? The movie is about 17-year olds, yet Efron and Hudgens only kiss at the very end, there’s almost no cleavage (hair is strategically placed at times to hide Tisdale’s) and the girls don’t wear bikinis. It’s not that I needed these things, but the absence of them are so blatant and forced that the whole movie feels unrealistic as a result. It’s hard to get into characters when everything about them is unbelievable.

High School Musical 2 is probably popular because it is safe and G-rated while never boring, which is perfect for families with younger children or people with certain religious values who don’t believe that men and women should touch each other before marriage. I understand this, and for the right age, I can see how the movie could be quite entertaining.

Still, I am just shocked at how low quality the music and the dance numbers are; they are so bad I couldn’t even watch them. That’s not a good sign for a musical.

Bloody-Disgusting.com is reporting that United Artists, which is owned by Tom Cruise, is in negotiations to secure the rights to Anne Rice’s The Tale of the Body Thief, the fourth book in her “Vampire Chronicles” series. With Cruise’s name associated so close to a sequel to Interview with the Vampire, rumors are circulating that Tom Cruise may reprise the role of Lestat, the bloody thirsty, morally ambiguous vampire.

Considering that Tom Cruise is trying to reestablish himself as a leading man after a bunch of PR nightmares over the last couple of years (not to mention a critical and box office flop in the form of Lions for Lambs), it isn’t completely unreasonable that he would consider returning to one of his most popular characters.

Hopefully the movie will be better than Queen of the Damned…

With Christian Bale being selected to play John Conner in the new Terminator movie, I figured it was time to do a top ten list for this rising actor. For years, Bale has been on the fringe of fame and popularity, and it appears that he is finally breaking into the A-list. If you look back on his career, you’ll realize that Bale chooses his films very wisely for the most part (neither Harsh Times or Captain Corelli’s Mandolin were very good, though).

The movies are ranked on a combination of his performance, the size of his role and the quality of the film overall. Without further ado, here are the top ten movies of Christian Bale’s career:

1. American Psycho
   This satirical drama put Christian Bale on the map as a man obsessed with appearance and reputation, and with killing people in very brutal ways. While some people were put off by the not-quite-literal movie, no one can deny that Christian Bale turned in an Oscar-worthy performance.
2. Batman Begins
   The combination of Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale, along with a cast where every single major player had been nominated for an Oscar other than Katie Holmes, revived the Batman franchise and is arguably the best, if not at least one of the best, comic book adaptations ever. Between Nolan and Bale, the character of Bruce Wayne has never been more realistic or deep.
3. The Prestige
   It took me a second viewing to really appreciate this film, but The Prestige (directed by Batman Begins‘ Christopher Nolan) is a great character study set against a revenge/murder plot. Bale is terrific, and while it was not the kind of movie that would evoke awards, it shows his taste for smart, edgy films.
4. Rescue Dawn
   Few people have seen this war drama as of yet, but Bale is excellent as a real-life pilot who is captured in Vietnam and held in a prisoner’s camp for several years. Funny and powerful at the same time, Rescue Dawn is one of the best movies of 2007.
5. The Machinist
   The movie isn’t completely extraordinary, but the transformation Bale put himself through to become the tragic protagonist shows his dedication to his movies: he lost a record 63 pounds down to a startling 120 pounds. His performance is also quite memorable, too.
6. Newsies
   A lot of you may not realize that Bale is the lead actor in Newsies, the 1992 film about turn-of-the-century kids who sell newspapers. This was one of my favorite films as a kid, and is still a quality musical that stands the test of time.
7. I’m Not There
   Still out in theaters, I’m Not There tells the story of Bob Dylan in a very odd way. While Cate Blanchett overshadows for her portrayal of the artist, Bale, in a lesser role, is also quite good. At the very least, the movie is one of the most unique films ever made, and shows Bale’s capabilities in identifying as such.
8. 3:10 to Yuma
   A classic western made in 2007, 3:10 to Yuma has Bale up against Russell Crowe. While Crowe steals the show, Bale still is a solid edition and is one of the main reasons audiences were lured to theaters. The movie is pretty good, too.
9. Equilibrum
   One of the best action movies to never get a major theatrical release, Bale stars as an assassin in a future, Big Brother society who decides to turn on his handlers and join the rebellion. Spectacular visual effects and direction have Equilibrium rivaling The Matrix, which is not an easy task.
10. Shaft
    A pretty good reimagining of Shaft that never got the recognition it deserved, some may forget that Christian Bale played the ruthless villain in the movie. His character here is not unlike his rich-but-vicious character in American Psycho, but that’s a good thing.

Other honorable mentions are Reign of Fire, a surprisingly good dragon movie that also didn’t get the recognition it deserved (watch it a couple times and you’ll see what I mean), Howl’s Moving Castle, a movie you can’t really credit to Bale even though he did do voice work for the American version and The New World, my Best Movie of the 2005. The only reason The New World isn’t on the list is that Bale has a smaller role and I had completely forgotten he was even in it.

We’ll ignore the fact he did voice work for Pocahontas, my most hated cartoons ever.

I’ve spent the weekend writing movie reviews for a slew of films that I’ve seen over the past week or so. In total, I’ve written eleven movie reviews over the last 48 hours, and I’m definitely looking forward to not writing anymore for a couple of days. The reviews include: Day Watch (2007), Hairspray (2007), License to Wed (2007), We Are Marshall (2006), Lars and the Real Girl (2007), Waitress (2007), Talk to Me (2007), The Nanny Diaries (2007), First Snow (2007), Stardust (2007) and I Know Who Killed Me (2007).

Coming soon… High School Musical 2 Extended Edition, and a DVD review of Lost: Season 3.

I’m not going to post them all at once so as not to overwhelm you all, so here are the four reviews I’ve made public thus far:

Lars and the Real Girl (2007)

The only theatrical release of the eleven reviews, Lars and the Real Girl is a surprisingly good and entertaining film that is both sad (it’s about a delusional young man who falls in love with a sex doll) and funny (it’s about a delusional young man who falls in love with a sex doll). Starring Ryan Gosling, the movie is terrific and boasts a great but relatively unknown supporting cast. There are plenty of laugh-out-loud scenes, and overall the picture is very heartwarming and engaging. While I doubt it’ll get much Oscar recognition, it certainly is one of the best movies of 2007. Read the full review…

Day Watch (2007)

The sequel to Night Watch, Day Watch is a Russian film that boasts absolutely spectacular visual effects on a budget of – brace yourself -only $4 million. The visuals are enough to make it worth it, but unfortunately the story is so convoluted and weird that it’s hard to figure out exactly what the director was intending. Add on the fact that the movie isn’t nearly as exciting or action packed as it should have been, Day Watch really isn’t anything special. Read the full film review…

Hairspray (2007)

A funny and lighthearted musical starring John Travolta, Michelle Pfeiffer, Christopher Walken, Amanda Bynes, Queen Latifah and others, Hairspray works as an entertaining piece of work that balances goofiness and social commentary relatively well. The real star of the show is… the star of the show, Nicole Blonsky, who has never been in a feature length movie before. Read the full film review…

The Nanny Diaries (2007)

Coming to DVD this Tuesday, The Nanny Diaries stars Scarlett Johansson as a young woman who foolishly takes a job as a nanny for an uber-rich woman (Laura Linney) and her husband (Paul Giamatti), who are only referred to as Mrs. and Mr. X respectively. The parents, engrossed in their fortune and social “responsibilities”, complete neglect their child, and Johansson is afraid that if she quits, the son will be lost forever. The comedy and the drama work well together, and the result is a relatively lighthearted, funny and cute picture.  Read the full film review…

Pigs are flying. Hell is freezing over. Yes, Uwe Boll has risen from the ashes and will be gracing us with not one, not even two, but three disasters within one month of each other. Yes, can you believe it? Can you believe that he still gets work? Can you believe that distributors still believe in his movies? Can you believe that anyone actually goes watches his garbage?

On January 11, 2008, we get In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale, a Jason Statham-starring film. Hell, even if Uwe Boll wasn’t directing the movie, I can tell from the title that it’s going to suck.

On January 25, 2008, we get Seed, also from Freestyle Releasing.

And on February 1, 2008, Postal, based on the video game, comes to theaters from – you guessed it – Freestyle Releasing.

What is Freestyle thinking? Are they just trying to dump these all at once so they don’t have to worry about Boll anymore? Somehow, I’m guessing they have more sinister plans in mind. I’m pretty sure that the soul of Adolf Hitler himself – if he had a soul – has returned and inhabited the body of the President of Freestyle Releasing. What other explanation could it be?

I would not be surprised if these releases turn into limited releases, or get pushed back, but it’s pretty shocking to see that three movies from the same director are coming out within a month of one another, let along from Uwe Boll, who is regarded by many as the worst director ever.

Boo, Freestyle Releasing! Boo!