Several friends of mine have told me the same thing: "Dude, you have to check out Cloud Atlas, it'll blow your mind!" And then I head to the book store, pick up the thing, and quickly set it back down, defeated. But with the magic of cinema, I get to enjoy the sprawling sci-fi mish mash in a single evening at the movies!
A handful of stills and conceptual photos have been released for the 2012 adaptation of David Mitchell's experimental novel, giving us a taste of what to expect. Everything looks nice so far (that eerie ship sailing into a dystopian city being the best of the bunch), but to be honest, I think I know less about the project after seeing these pictures than I did before.
Following six interlocking stories that dabble in every genre known to man, Cloud Atlas is directed by Tom Tykwer and the Wachowskis, stars the likes of Hugo Weaving, Tom Hanks, and Susan Sarandon, and is set to be released late next year.
Head over to Han Cinema for the full batch of pictures!
Source: Ain't It Cool News
---
Looks like the "magic" of 3-D isn't putting butts in seats...
According to the Associated Press, movie ticket sales have sunk to a 16-year low. While this is certainly not the most surprising news, it does help to prove my theory: Didn't Joel Schumacher start making Batman movies about 16 years ago?
So what is keeping the theaters empty? With all of our iPads, Kindles, and other fancy devices, it's easy to imagine people staying home and splurging on a new $0.99 app rather than shelling out fifty bucks for a night at the movies. Or could it be that we're all just sick of the onslaught of sequels, prequels, and reboots?
According to Warner Bros. general sales manager Jeff Goldstein, "It's not any one thing. It's a little bit of everything." The studio's most recent outing, Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, brought in smaller audiences than its 2009 predecessor. And let's not even dabble with the flop that was Green Lantern, which ended up a $200 million misfire.
Part of the reason why the 2011 box office appeared particularly gloomy was the looming shadow of 2010's saving grace, Avatar, which grossed $2.7 billion worldwide. Studios should take a hint from this indication that bigger is indeed better when it comes to ticket sales.
And "big" might be too small a word for 2012's film roster, which includes The Dark Knight Rises, The Avengers, and The Hobbit, only to name a few. But will we break the habit and get ourselves out of the 16-year slump? Only time will tell.
Source: Associated Press
---
Brace yourselves, because The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has released the official poster for the 84th Academy Awards, and it looks like they're going for a new theme: Nostalgic and glamorous.
What's that, you say? That's always the theme of the Oscars? My mistake...
Judging by this by-the-numbers poster featuring floating screenshots of classic films like Casablanca, Gone with the Wind, and The Godfather, we shouldn't expect anything too interesting to occur at next year's ceremony. And with Billy Crystal hosting, it's sure to be a pleasant, if not particularly memorable evening.
On the left is last year's poster, with 2012's poster on the right:
The 84th Academy Awards will air February 26, 2012 on ABC.
Source: Coming Soon
