First poster for Clint Eastwood’s HEREAFTER is bleak and blue

It doesn’t take much to sell a Clint Eastwood movie. His name alone is usually enough; just let everyone know that the guy who made Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, and Gran Torino is doing something new, and they’ll come to the cinema to see it.

The poster for Hereafter relies a little too heavily on Eastwood’s name for support: it’s bland and generic; Bryce Dallas Howard is almost unrecogniseable; there’s some naff-looking alien and / or ghost thing in the background … if the words ‘A film by CLINT EASTWOOD’ weren’t there above the title, I think the majority of people would skip this one. Me, I’m in it for the tsunamis.

Hereafter is directed by Clint Eastwood, starring Matt Damon and Bryce Dallas Howard. The US gets the film on 22 October 2010; no release dates for us as yet.

New trailer for HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS PART I pours on the ‘epic’

Wow, those kids are getting old. Part one of the big finale for the Harry Potter series (before they reboot it years later?) is right around the corner, and Warner Brothers have dangled a new trailer in front of audiences to ensure they are suitably enticed.

They know what they’ve got here and they’re selling it with gusto. Sweeping shots, big drums and symbols and lots of, well, just, ‘epic’. Everything about this trailer for Deathy Hallows Part I screams “do not fucking miss it!”

It’s even got a non-Potter fan like me wondering if I should give it a shot… the only thing discouraging me is the guaranteed fact that, after two and a half hours of over-the top cgi and wizardry drama, the only conclusion will be a title card reading ‘To Be Continued…’

Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows Part I is one of the longest Harry Potter titles yet, and opens worldwide from 18 November, 2010.

I wish I was joking: GNOMEO AND JULIET trailer

So, uh, garden gnomes, huh? In a kind of Toy Story deal where they come alive when their owners are away? Right. Oh, and it’s based on Shakespeare’s Romeo And Juliet? I see.

In a bid to prove that imagination is not necessarily the same thing as creativity, someone thought it was a good idea to populate the popular tragedy with cute little ceramic geezers and terrible jokes. Terrible, terrible jokes. I counted how many times I laughed during the trailer: zero. See if you can beat that.

Gnomeo And Juliet is released on 11 February 2011 in the States. It stars the voices of James McAvoy, Emily Blunt, Jason Statham, Michael Caine, Maggie Smith, and Patrick Stewart; directed by Shrek 2‘s Kelly Asbury.

Drats. Paul Thomas Anderson’s THE MASTER is ‘suspended indefinitely’

Yes, this LET ME IN poster is pretty neat. It’s still a damn remake, though

This new quad poster for Let Me In has been released for UK audiences. Of course, everyone in the world gets to see a copy via the trusty internet. Sometimes territory marketing is silly.

I’ve been critical of Matt Reeves‘ American remake of the Swedish film Let The Right One In since it was the first trailer arrived. Only because a remake geared toward Western audiences with Hollywood arcs, all for the convenience of no subtitles, seems like such a smack in the face to an original film that is otherwise perfect.

My doubts were eased a little when Reeves assured he and the producers were adapting the original book from scratch, and not ripping from the Swedish film. Turns out that is not the case at all. The remake looks like a spitting image of the original.

And guess what? Audiences are excited. Buzz is growing, because vampires are ‘in’. Twilight fans are curious. Horror fans are intrigued. People who can’t get enough True Blood are raising an interested eyebrow at this one. Most have no idea this is a remake.

And that’s how it works.

Let Me In opens 1 October in the States, 14 October Down Under.

First look at Nicole Kidman getting dramatic in RABBIT HOLE clips

We’ll next be seeing Nicole Kidman in the drama film Rabbit Hole, where she plays the wife of a happy couple whose life is turned upside down after their young son dies. Directed by John Cameron Mitchell, written by David Lindsay-Abaire (based on his play), the film co-stars Aaron Eckhart (Thank You For Smoking, The Dark Knight), Dianne Wiest (I Am Sam, Synecdoche, New York) and Sandrah Oh (Sideways, Hard Candy).

Rabbit Hole recently screened at the Toronto International Film Festival and there was a ripple of buzz about Kidman’s dramatic performance. Oscar buzz? No. But buzz none the less. There’s no denying ‘our’ Nicole can punch out a performance, it’s just been script selection in recent times that has been a little iffy.

Rabbit Hole is still green and has no release dates yet.

New character posters and hilarious second trailer for DUE DATE

Legendary Pictures and Warner Brothers have released some typically strange character banners and a hilarious second trailer for Due Date, starring Zach Galifianakis and Robert Downey Jr.

I’m looking forward to seeing how well these seemingly perfect ingredients blend together when the film is released later this year. Zach is the go-to comedian of the moment, Downey Jr. finally got real famous after those Iron Man movies and Todd Phillips is coming off one of the most critically acclaimed comedies in a long time (The Hangover). What could possibly go wrong?

Not much, it seems. This trailer had me laughing out loud and I definitely anticipate a good time at the cinema when I buy my opening-night ticket.

Due Date opens 5 November for lucky-ducks in the States. Aussies will likely need to wait until the Christmas holidays start in December.

Reel Short: The Making of NUIT BLANCHE

Nuit Blanche is one sexy short film directed by Arev Manoukian for Spy Films (featured on Reel Short last week). The film was shot primarily to feature on the Spy Films show reel and demonstrate what the team is capable of.

To help bolster that showreel demonstration they have also created this fantastic behind-the-scenes look at the making of Nuit Blanche. The video runs the same length as the original short, but cuts between the actual footage and the composites as they were in progress. Green screen, wire frames, live-action actors– the lot. It’s fascinating to look at and impressive, considering Nuit Blanche was completely self-funded.

First trailer for Ron Howard’s comedy THE DILEMMA, starring Vince Vaughn, Kevin James, Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder

Universal Pictures have released the first trailer for Ron Howard‘s return to comedy, The Dilemma, starring situation comedy favourites Vince Vaughn and Kevin James along with Jennifer Connelly, Winona Ryder, Channing Tatum, Queen Latifah.

Normally I wouldn’t entirely trust a Vaughn-James comedy, but one really should trust Ron Howard, shouldn’t one? And I trust Jennifer and Winona to back the film up accordingly. While this trailer doesn’t look drop-dead hilarious, it does look like it’ll be an enjoyable dramedy.

The Dilemma is released 14 January in the States.
No Australian release date has been announced yet .

The Dilemma is a story of how far you can bend a brotherly bond before it snaps. Since college, confirmed bachelor Ronny (Vaughn) and happily married Nick (James) have been through thick and thin. Now partners in an auto design firm, the two pals are vying to land a dream project that would launch their company. With Ronny’s girlfriend, Beth (Connelly), and Nick’s wife, Geneva (Ryder), by their sides, they’re unbeatable. But Ronny’s world is turned upside down when he inadvertently sees Geneva out with another man and makes it his mission to get answers. As the amateur investigation dissolves his world into comic mayhem, he learns that Nick has a few secrets of his own. Now, with the clock ticking and pressure mounting on the biggest presentation of their careers, Ronny must decide how and when he will reveal the truth to his best friend.

Jeff Bridges, Olivia Wilde in striking new TRON LEGACY character posters

Disney’s expected-to-be-epicly-awesome sequel Tron Legacy is only weeks away (releases worldwide in December) and something tells me they’ve barely scratched the surface of the marketing campaign they have in store in the dying days– especially considering how elaborate the marketing has been up to this point.

Here’s a look at some new character banners that have hit the web recently, dripping with ‘oh, wow! Nostalgia!’ (Bridges as Flynn) and ‘oh, wow! Sexy!’ (Olivia Wilde in a tight outfit).

Excitement for this film continues to build. It helps that the trailers have been well cut and the 3D is expected to be top-notch. It’s been a ‘tent pole’ release for Disney for some time, and is expected to make a fair wad of box office cash. I didn’t think I’d care about it when I first heard about it, but I have slowly been convinced to give a damn.

Tron Legacy is released worldwide from 16 December 2010.

Confirmed: Sacha Baron Cohen will play Freddie Mercury in Queen biopic

Now this is some exciting casting news: Deadline Hollywood reports Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat) has closed a deal to play Queen front man Freddie Mercury in a film that’s being scripted by Peter Morgan (Frost/Nixon, The Last King Of Scotland, The Queen) for a 2011 production start.

The film is still untitled, but is said to follow Queen’s years as a band leading up to their appearance at Live Aid in 1985, widely considered one of the rock’s all-time greatest performances.

Despite not being a fan of his comedy films Borat and Bruno, there’s no doubting Sacha Baron Cohen is capable of turning in a character performance, and with the right hair, make-up and wardrobe behind him, he’ll definitely look like the famous Queen front man. I have complete faith he’ll nail the mannerisms and voice of Mercury.

The only question will be his ability to sing (less he mime?), but I don’t see that as a major issue. Yes, Mercury was one of the greatest front men of all time with an unquestionably unique and brilliant voice, but there are ways to get around or replicate the singing performance for a feature film. The appearance and performance of Sacha Baron Cohen need to be top-notch before we can even begin to be convinced of a singing voice.

This news was rumoured quite some time ago, and I remember thinking at the time that it would be some brilliantly perfect casting. I’m glad it has come to fruition. Now, we wait patiently for a some pictures, a trailer and a release date!

Director Casey Affleck finally confirms crazy Joaquin Phoenix documentary I’M STILL HERE is fake

In an interview with the New York Times, Casey Affleck has finally confirmed his documentary about the dramatic life change of his brother-in-law and actor Joaquin Phoenix is indeed a fake. We had our suspicions, Casey. Nice to hear you finally admit it.

That being said, part of me was starting to believe the film was based on a whole bunch of reality and doubting it was entirely fake. The impressive trailer went a long way to convincing me. I’m bummed it has been revealed as entirely fake, because now there’s no question we’ll be seeing a performance in a mockumentary, no matter how dedicated that performance might be.

“I never intended to trick anybody. The idea of a quote, hoax, unquote, never entered my mind.”

“We wanted to create a space where you believe what’s happening is real. There were multiple takes, these are performances.”

At the very least, we’ll still be able to gawk in awe at the performance Phoenix (apparently) delivers in this film, dramatically changing his life and entering the psyche of this alternate character for over a year. It’s a long way to go, metally, for a mockumentary. I hope it was worth it.

I’m Still Here is screening at independent cinemas in Australia right now, and select theatres in the States.