Elizabeth Olsen Is The Latest Female Lead Offered For OLDBOY!

After Mia Wasikowska and Rooney Mara rejected the offer to star as a female lead for Spike Lee's upcoming revenge thriller remake, OLDBOY, the search has continued and now Elizabeth Olsen is the third actress being lured for the part.
 

Elizabeth Olsen is of course, one of the breakout young actresses in Hollywood right now after appearing in last year's critically-acclaimed drama MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE. The biggest question is, will she take the female lead role in OLDBOY?

Donnie Yen Fights Andy On Instead Of Vincent Zhao In SPECIAL IDENTITY?

When the news broke out that the highly-anticipated action movie SPECIAL IDENTITY will pitched Donnie Yen against Vincent Zhao, a lot of die-hard action fans are truly excited. Now the movie has already started filming in Shenzhen just a month ago, with Donnie Yen credited as main actor, producer and action director as well. However, the co-star Vincent Zhao has reportedly unhappy about the changes made to the original script and even ends up refused to continue shooting.

With filming forced to put on hold, negotiation is currently take place to oversee Zhao's matter because Yen is still very keen to work with him. If the situation gets worse, Zhao will be likely replaced by Andy On who used to work with Yen before in last year's THE LOST BLADESMAN.

THE AVENGERS Assemble In A New Poster!

Iron Man! Thor! Captain America! Black Widow! Hawkeye! Hulk! Nick Fury! The team members are all here in a slick new poster for the upcoming summer movie blockbuster, THE AVENGERS. Check out the image below.

Is Jay Chou Out Of The Picture From THE VIRAL FACTOR Sequel?

Currently THE VIRAL FACTOR is doing well in the box-office, and a sequel plan is already in talks. But there's a speculating rumor that one of the main stars, Jay Chou, will be dropped from the cast list of THE VIRAL FACTOR sequel.

Apparently he is said to be lacking in martial-arts training and underperformed with lots of NG (no good) takes. Not only that, he made demanding requests on-set and worried a lot about his wig. He also requested the director (Dante Lam) to make him "look good" during the non-action scenes, while insisting on using stunt double for ferocious fighting scenes.

Investors are looking forward to bring in Donnie Yen or Andy Lau to replace Jay Chou in the sequel to boost box-office sales.

Despite all the rumors surrounding Jay Chou's highly-demanding attitude and the sequel plan for THE VIRAL FACTOR, Jay's recording company JVR Music claimed that they have not heard of plans for making a sequel, and added that Jay once said that he will be filming any action movies in the coming future.

2012 Oscar Winners

BEST MOTION PICTURE OF THE YEAR

WINNER

THE ARTIST

NOMINEES:

THE DESCENDANTS

EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE

THE HELP

HUGO

MIDNIGHT IN PARIS

MONEYBALL

THE TREE OF LIFE

WAR HORSE

As expected, THE ARTIST emerged as a well-deserved winner here!

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING

WINNER

Michel Hazanavicius (THE ARTIST)

NOMINEES:

Woody Allen (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS)

Terrence Malick (THE TREE OF LIFE)

Alexander Payne (THE DESCENDANTS)

Martin Scorcese (HUGO)

It's Michel Hazanavicius vs. Alexander Payne! I'm happy to know that Hazanavicius grabbed a well-deserved win here.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE

WINNER

Jean Dujardin (THE ARTIST)

NOMINEES:

Demian Bichir (A BETTER LIFE)

George Clooney (THE DESCENDANTS)

Gary Oldman (TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY)

Brad Pitt (MONEYBALL)

It's Jean Dujardin vs. George Clooney. But the Academy made the right choice to award Jean Dujardin for his charming performance as George Valentin in THE ARTIST, which also made him the first Frenchman to win the coveted Oscar for Best Actor!

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE

WINNER

Meryl Streep (THE IRON LADY)

NOMINEES:

Glenn Close (ALBERT NOBBS)

Rooney Mara (THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO)

Viola Davis (THE HELP)

Michelle Williams (MY WEEK WITH MARILYN)

This category is narrowed down between Viola Davis or Meryl Streep for the win. Many might have rooted for Viola Davis to nab the Oscar here, especially given her recent winning streak in other awards. But Meryl Streep has finally broke the jinx after being nominated for a record 12th time since 1983's SILKWOOD, with her spot-on performance as Margaret Thatcher in THE IRON LADY.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

WINNER

Christopher Plummer (BEGINNERS)

NOMINEES:

Kenneth Branagh (MY WEEK WITH MARILYN)

Jonah Hill (MONEYBALL)

Nick Nolte (WARRIOR)

Max von Sydow (EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE)

Another shoo-in win. Enough said.

BEST PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE

WINNER

Octavia Spencer (THE HELP)

NOMINEES:

Berenice Bejo (THE ARTIST)

Jessica Chastain (THE HELP)

Melissa McCarthy (BRIDESMAIDS)

Janet McTeer (ALBERT NOBBS)

No surprise here. Octavia Spencer is a shoo-in win for this category.

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE FILM OF THE YEAR

WINNER

RANGO

NOMINEES:

A CAT IN PARIS

CHICO & RITA

KUNG FU PANDA 2

PUSS IN BOOTS

A shoo-in win. Gore Verbinski's loving tribute to the classic western is an inventive and colorful animated feature is worthy of an award here.

BEST WRITING, SCREENPLAY WRITTEN DIRECTLY FOR THE SCREEN

WINNER

Woody Allen (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS)

NOMINEES:

Michel Hazanavicius (THE ARTIST)

Kristen Wiig, Annie Mumolo (BRIDESMAIDS)

J.C. Chandor (MARGIN CALL)

Woody Allen (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS)

Asghar Farhadi (A SEPARATION)

Another undeserved win. While many have hailed MIDNIGHT IN PARIS is Allen's finest movie he's ever made in years, I beg to differ. (read: overrated). Personally Michel Hazanavicus or Kristen Wiig and Annie Mumolo should bag the win instead.

BEST WRITING, SCREENPLAY BASED ON MATERIAL PREVIOUSLY PRODUCED OR PUBLISHED

WINNER

Alexander Payne, Nat Faxon, Jim Rash (THE DESCENDANTS)

NOMINEES:

John Logan (HUGO)

George Clooney, Grant Heslov, Beau Willimon (THE IDES OF MARCH)

Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin, Stan Chervin (MONEYBALL)

Bridget O'Connor, Peter Straughan (TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY)

THE DESCENDANTS is a hugely overrated movie with sadly average plot. Of all the nominees in this category here, I think Steven Zaillian, Aaron Sorkin, and Stan Chervin should win this instead for crafting a unpopular subject matter into something intriguing in MONEYBALL.

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN EDITING

WINNER

Angus Wall, Kirk Baxter (THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO)

NOMINEES:

Anne-Sophie Bion, Michel Hazanavicius (THE ARTIST)

Kevin Tent (THE DESCENDANTS)

Thelma Schoonmaker (HUGO)

Christopher Tellefsen (MONEYBALL)

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN MUSIC WRITTEN FOR MOTION PICTURES, ORIGINAL SCORE

WINNER

Ludovic Bource (THE ARTIST)

NOMINEES:

John Williams (THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN)

Howard Shore (HUGO)

Alberto Iglesias (TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY)

John Williams (WAR HORSE)

Ludovic Bource's layered score is one of the best accomplishments that drives the artistic success of THE ARTIST. Bravo!

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN CINEMATOGRAPHY

WINNER

Robert Richardson (HUGO)

NOMINEES:

Guillaume Schiffman (THE ARTIST)

Jeff Cronenworth (THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO)

Emmanuel Lubezki (THE TREE OF LIFE)

Janusz Kaminski (WAR HORSE)

Robert Richardson won Best Cinematography for HUGO? As good as he is, I still figured either Jeff Cronenworth or Emmanuel Lubezki deserved a better win here.

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN ART DIRECTION

WINNER

Dante Ferretti, Francesca Lo Schiavo (HUGO)

NOMINEES:

Laurence Bennett, Robert Gould (THE ARTIST)

Stuart Craig, Stephenie McMillan (HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2)

Anne Seibel, Helene Dubreuil (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS)

Rick Carter, Lee Sandales (WAR HORSE)

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN COSTUME DESIGN

WINNER

Mark Bridges (THE ARTIST)

NOMINEES:

Lisy Christl (ANONYMOUS)

Sandy Powell (HUGO)

Michael O'Connor (JANE EYRE)

Arianne Phillips (W.E.)

Mark Bridge's splendid recreation of the 1920s glamorous fashion in THE ARTIST is a well-deserved win here.

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN VISUAL EFFECTS

WINNER

Robert Legato, John Williams, Ben Grossman, Alex Henning (HUGO)

NOMINEES:

Tim Burke, David Vickery, Greg Butler, John Richardson (HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2)

Erik Nash, John Rosengrant, Danny Gordon Taylor, Swen Gillberg (REAL STEEL)

Joe Letteri, Dan Lemmon, R. Christopher White, Daniel Barrett (RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES)

Scott Farrar, Scott Benza, Matthew E. Butler, John Frazier (TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON)

This is really a surprise. I was expecting RISE OF THE PLANET OF THE APES would be a shoo-in win for this category. But HUGO? Seriously?

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN MAKEUP

WINNER

Mark Coulier, J. Roy Helland (THE IRON LADY)

NOMINEES:

Martial Corneville, Lynn Johnson, Matthew W. Mungle (ALBERT NOBBS)

Nick Dudman, Amanda Knight, Lisa Tomblin (HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS, PART 2)

Mark Coulier and J. Roy Helland's excellent makeup effect over Meryl Streep's character as Margaret Thatcher is spot-on convincing. A well-deserved win.

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND MIXING

WINNER

Tom Fleischman, John Midgley (HUGO)

NOMINEES:

David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce, Bo Persson (THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO)

Deb Adair, Ron Bochar, David Giammarco, Ed Novick (MONEYBALL)

Greg P. Russell, Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush, Peter J. Devlin (TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON)

Gary Rydstrom, Andy Nelson, Tom Johnson, Stuart Wilson (WAR HORSE)

BEST ACHIEVEMENT IN SOUND EDITING

WINNER

Philip Stockton, Eugene Gearty (HUGO)

NOMINEES:

Lon Bender, Victor Ray Ennis (DRIVE)

Ren Klyce (THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO)

Ethan Van der Ryn, Erik Aadahl (TRANSFORMERS: DARK OF THE MOON)

Richard Hymns, Gary Rydstrom (WAR HORSE)

MONEYBALL (2011)

RATING: 3.5/5

Breaking the traditional sports-movie formula we often seen in the past, MONEYBALL is the kind of rare gem we don't get to see everyday -- a movie about baseball where scenes involving on-the-field action moments are depicted as minor footage and instead focusing more on behind-the-scenes of how team is managed through statistics, odds of winning, and such. It might sounds boring for most viewers, but rest assured that director Bennett Miller and screenwriters Steven Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin, managed to craft a risky subject matter into a surprisingly fascinating movie as exciting as watching a traditional baseball movie itself.

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EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE (2011)

RATING: 3/5

Stephen Daldry's fourth feature, EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE, has been heavily marketed as a prominent vehicle starring Tom Hanks and Sandra Bullock -- an obvious hook to bait sizable viewers to watch the movie. However, those who are hoping to see the two Oscar winners onscreen may end up surprised and disappointed to find their characters are merely extended cameo appearances. Instead, the movie focuses on newcomer Thomas Horn, a 13-year-old wunderkind who doesn't have acting experience at all. That hardly matters at all, because he's one of the main good reasons to watch for. Other than that, EXTREMELY LOUD & INCREDIBLY CLOSE also benefited from an affecting and well-meaning tale of post-9/11 trauma that is guaranteed to tug your heartstrings.

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THE DESCENDANTS (2011)

RATING: 2/5

Writer-director Alexander Payne's long-awaited follow-up to his 2004's Oscar-winning SIDEWAYS has been universally acclaimed by major critics as his most accomplished work to date in his directing career. Well, I seriously wanted to believe that because I always admired the way Payne never ceases to disappoint his viewers since his 1999's breakout hit, ELECTION. But I beg to differ -- and it's hard to believe, really, because THE DESCENDANTS marks his first disappointment ever.

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THE ARTIST (2011)

RATING: 3.5/5

A loving tribute to the 1920s silent-age cinema, writer-director Michel Hazanavicius's THE ARTIST is an entertaining and soulful crowd-pleaser without the aid of spoken dialogue or sound, and also shot in black-and-white. It's certainly a risky choice to release such movie these days in the 21st century but the good news is, Hazanavicius does the impossible to make this one of the must-see movies of the year.

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More Action Galore In WRATH OF THE TITANS New Trailer!

A new trailer has unleashed for the upcoming sequel WRATH OF THE TITANS, which will be shown both normal and 3D theaters on March 29. Check out the action-packed video below, which sees Sam Worthington returns as Perseus.

Live-Action BLEACH Movie Is Coming Soon Near You!

BLEACH was no doubt one of the most popular Japanese manga ever made in recent memory. The anime alone, which began life in 2004, is still going strong for an incredible 16 seasons already.

Now Warner Bros has finally purchased live-action feature rights, in which BLEACH will be adapted by WRATH OF THE TITANS scribe Dan Mazeau. Peter Segal (GET SMART) will produce and possibly directing the movie as well.

BLEACH centers on the adventures of Ichigo, a teenager who can see ghosts. When his family is attacked by a Hollow - a malevolent lose soul - Ichigo has unknowingly absorbs the power to hunt Hollows. He then commits his life to protect the innocent and help tortured souls to find peace.

Here's what Segal has to say about the upcoming project below.

I've always been a huge fan of 'Bleach' and have great respect for its creator Kubo and the truly original and amazing world he has created in this manga.

Three's A Company In A New MEN IN BLACK III Poster!

Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin... here's a new poster for the upcoming MEN IN BLACK III, which arrives in theaters on May 24. Take a look below.

Jai Courtney Is Jack McClane In A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD!

After a global casting search for many months now, Twentieth Century Fox has finally announced that actor Jai Courney has landed the coveted role of John McClane's (Bruce Willis) estranged son, Jack in A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD ( that's a fifth DIE HARD movie, if you are counting). Check out Jai Courtney's screen test with Bruce Willis, as well as the movie's official press release below.

Following a global casting search spanning several months, Jai Courtney has nabbed the coveted role of John (Jack) McClane, Jr., the son of Bruce Willis' iconic action hero, in A Good Day to Die Hard.

A Good Day to Die Hard puts McClane on an international stage - truly a NYC fish out of water in Moscow - and introduces his estranged son Jack. An apple that has not fallen far from the tree, Jack may even be more of a hardass than his father. Despite their differences, they must work together to keep each other alive - and the world safe for democracy.

The film begins production this April, for a February 14, 2013 release.

If Jai Courtney does well in the upcoming A GOOD DAY TO DIE HARD, he is well on his way to become the next sought-after Hollywood actors to look for in the future. He had previously appeared as Varro in the TV's Spartacus: Vengeance, and the upcoming thriller, ONE SHOT (2013) in which he joins Tom Cruise and Rosamund Pike.

From 3D to 4D Version For 3D SEX AND ZEN Sequel!

Last year, Hong Kong movie industry has made a breakthrough with the well-received 3D SEX AND ZEN, the world's first 3D softcore movie which grossed more than HK$40 million at the box-office. Now producer Stephen Shiu Jr has recently revealed that he plans to release a 4D sequel to the movie.

So what's 4D going to be? Shiu goes in length where he is toying with the idea of having moviegoers watch the movie in cinema seats that vibrate (a technology that has already been installed in at least one Hong Kong cinema) at various points throughout the movie. This would add an extra dimension for the viewers to experience the movie further.

The sequel will be tentatively titled as 4D SEX AND ZEN: SLAYER OF A THOUSAND FROM THE MYSTERIOUS EAST. Shiu also acknowledged about the complaint viewers have raised out their voice for the first movie.

They felt that the racy scenes in the first film were not intense enough. This time we will be paying more attention to that, and will be enlisting the aid of experts from Japan to direct these scenes.

Shiu also hopes the introduction of 4D will help the sequel surpass 3D SEX AND ZEN at the box-office.

For my review of 3D SEX AND ZEN, you can check out here.

Two Production Blogs From THE RAID Are Bloody Amazing!

Still anxious whether Gareth Evans' highly-anticipated action extravaganza THE RAID really lives up to its high expectation after the movie was previously all fired up at the recent festival circuits? Well, beats me but judging all the recent trailers and reviews have circulated lately, I'm pretty sure THE RAID remains one of the must-watch action movies of the year.

Now Sony Pictures Classics, who bought the rights for American release this coming March 23, have released two action-packed production blogs for THE RAID. Wonder how these hard-working cast and crew been through to perfect their scenes in this hard-hitting action extravaganza? Check them out below.

KICK-ASS 2 Will Starts Rolling This Summer!

Despite favorable review (which I personally thought it was one of the best superheroes movies ever made in recent memory), KICK-ASS (2010) failed to ignite much interest at the box-office. Still that doesn't stop the filmmakers to dream up a sequel, which is titled as KICK-ASS 2: BALLS TO THE WALL.

Now comic creator Mark Millar has recently announced in an interview that the follow-up to the 2010 superhero movie, is set to start filming this summer! Check out his statement below.

It's really odd. I watch the films and think, my God, that's what happened to me," he says. "It is done subconsciously. Even daft things, like at school there was somebody I fancied who really liked Dynasty. I started watching it so that I could chat to her about it. That is in Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall. I gave Kick-Ass's parents the same names as my parents.

My dad and I were living alone together after my mum died when I was 14 and that's reflected in Kick-Ass. I grew up wanting to be a superhero. You find a lot of these things turn out to be autobiographical.

We shoot Kick-Ass 2: Balls to the Wall and American Jesus this summer.

Original KICK-ASS director Matthew Vaughn is expected to involve in writing and producing part, but not as a director because he has already tied up with X-MEN: FIRST CLASS sequel project.

Double The Posters. Double The PIRANHA 3DD!

Till now, PIRANHA 3DD is still uncertain for its release date. Anyway two posters (here and here) have debuted online for your viewing pleasure, which you can also check them out right below.

Double the action. Double the terror. Double the D's. Let's hope this sequel promises all the "more" factor.

THE IRON LADY (2011)

RATING: 1.5/5

Uninvolving is the best word to describe for THE IRON LADY, a would-be great biopic about Margaret Thatcher, the first female British prime minister and the longest-serving of the 20th century. Despite a pitch-perfect performance by Meryl Streep as the titular character, THE IRON LADY fails miserably to give us a necessary insight of what makes Thatcher as one of the most controversial and powerful figures of the modern generation other than providing a sketchy and basic outline from what we already knew in general term.

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GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE (2012)

RATING: 2.5/5

A slight improvement over the painfully mediocre GHOST RIDER (2007), GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE is benefited from a gonzo, anything-goes filmmaking style by maverick directors duo Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (2006's CRANK, 2009's CRANK: HIGH VOLTAGE and GAMER) rather than a flat-out Hollywood feel that Mark Steven Johnson did the first time around. If you've seen their works in the past, you know what to expect here -- a wildly over-the-top and slapdash piece of entertainment. Such oddity might turn off most mainstream comic-book movie fans expecting something more polished, but GHOST RIDER: SPIRIT OF VENGEANCE is surprisingly entertaining enough to qualify this as a trashy fun experience not meant to be taken seriously.

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GHOST RIDER (2007)

RATING: 2/5

Writer-director Mark Steven Johnson is a "king of Marvel comic-to-movie adaptation hack". After ruined such potential franchise beginning DAREDEVIL (2003) and ELEKTRA (2005), in which he wrote the script, he continues to demonstrate the good stuff all the wrong reason in GHOST RIDER, another potential franchise turns into forgettable effort.

Teenaged Johnny Blaze (Matt Long) is blindly agrees to sell his soul to the devil-in-disguise Mephistopheles (Peter Fonda) to save his cancer-stricken father, veteran stunt biker Barton (Brett Cullen). Bad move since Devil isn't trustworthy: Mephistopheles does heals Barton overnight into a whole new man but circumstances unavoidable when he's unexpectedly died during a dangerous stunt. Heartbroken and all guilt-ridden, Johnny's life is entirely hopeless and so he hits the road with his chopper to outrun his destiny, even leaving behind his first love Roxanne Simpson (Raquel Alessi).

Cut to 15 years later, Johnny (now played by Nicolas Cage) is still alive and kicking. Like his late father, he's becoming a world-famous daredevil, accomplishing a series of impossible motorcycle stunts like nobody else and miraculously survived what should be fatal accidents. Apparently the Devil is watching over his shoulder, and it doesn't take long before Mephistopheles reappears and needs Johnny to deal with his rebel son, Blackheart (Wes Bentley), who's planning to take over his father's command with his demon pals (Laurence Breuls, Daniel Frederiksen, Mathew Wilkinson). Because of Johnny had make his deal before with Mephistopheles, there's no escape whatsoever. Soon Mephistopheles unleashes Johnny's inner Ghost Rider, a leather-clad walking skeleton with flaming skull in his head and armed with shotgun and chain. So at night, Johnny becomes the Devil's bounty hunter and by day he's returning into normal form. When Johnny meets the Caretaker (Sam Elliott), the seen-it-all old man who knows so much about ghost riders, hell and such, teaches him what he knows. Johnny must learns how to control and master his newfound powers, rekindle his romance with Roxanne (Eva Mendes) who is now a TV reporter and of course, stopping Blackheart from a world of chaos.

Okay, let's start with the good stuff: The opening credit sequence is flaming cool; the special effects are above-average, particularly on the CG look of Ghost Rider character and its oh-so-cool flaming chopper and the film is no doubt so slickly-packaged it's hard to take your eyes off. The movie also works surprisingly well as a guilty pleasure trip with the sort of B-movie quirkiness.

Nicolas Cage is certainly having great fun switching roles between the confused Johnny Blaze and the rock-steady Ghost Rider, though his character is borderlined between pure cheeseball and semi-serious. There's something about him who likes to point his finger to a certain person like he's making a dance move or how about being a total fool of himself staring at the mirror, making funny faces? Always feisty whenever onscreen, Eva Mendes continues to display herself nothing more than window-dressing distraction: She's one hot babe you just can't take your eyes off her. Her perfectly-contoured dress that emphasized on her pretty buxom is all what matters the most to make out of her performance. Despite such appearances by legendary figures including Peter Fonda and Sam Elliott, they doesn't do much to make their respective roles worth remembering for (though I bet no one said as smokin' cool as Sam Elliott voicing out the words, "San Verganza" like he does). The less said about Wes Bentley's Blackheart the better. Even with all the heavy make-up mascara around his face, he's look more like a laughable fool than a scary encounter.

What makes GHOST RIDER even more disappointing is Mark Steven Johnson's totally dismissed idea of inspired all those Sergio Leone's spaghetti western-style to fit into his picture here. The movie is often resulted into such jokier situation it's so hard to take it seriously, filled with awfully stilted and unintentionally so-funny-it's-bad dialogue expositions as well as rather too lightweight on the other side. It's also a waste to see the studio granted Mark Steven Johnson a hefty $120 million budget but yet he can't figure out how to elaborate the action sequences into satisfying extent. Other than the exciting driving-up-the-side-of-the-skyscraper sequence, the rest is awfully uninspired and pathetic. That of course, if you're the kind of who's easily hooked by mere visual of Ghost Rider riding around the streets by chopper which leaves a streak of flames in his wake.

Originally positioned as potential last summer release, GHOST RIDER is postponed due to Mark Steven Johnson's demand to polish the special effects for the better. Yeah, right.

I AM LEGEND Will Continues Ahead

Once upon a time, there are talks about prequel for Will Smith's mega-hit blockbuster, I AM LEGEND (2007). Well, not anymore. Now Warner Bros. has finalized the deals with Akiva Goldsman and Overbrook Entertainment to produce another installment of I AM LEGEND. Arash Amel is signed on to write the script, and the next I AM LEGEND movie won't be a prequel after all.

As for Will Smith, he won't commit his role again until the script is ready.

SAFE HOUSE (2012)

RATING: 2/5

Swedish-born helmer Daniel Espinosa (2010's EASY MONEY) makes his first Hollywood directing debut in SAFE HOUSE -- a cat-and-mouse thriller that apes the hyperkinetic feel of Tony Scott, shot in a gritty style of THE BOURNE SUPREMACY (2004) and THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM (2007). With two idealistic pairing of Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds, it's easy to expect that SAFE HOUSE would be an edge-of-the-seat crowd pleaser.

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NIGHTFALL Full Trailer Starring Nick Cheung And Simon Yam!

The highly-anticipated upcoming thriller, NIGHTFALL, starring award-winning actor Nick Cheung and Simon Yam, has finally arrived with a full trailer right below. At the same time, check out the poster above which has been appeared everywhere on the streets of Hong Kong. Apparently that "wanted by Hong Kong Police" poster is so convincing until there are reports from some passerby claiming Nick Cheung is really breaking the law!

When a Hong Kong celebrity is found brutally murdered, his body floating in the middle of the ocean, hardheaded detective Lam is called in to take charge of the investigation. As Lam zeroes in on a killer from the past, the murder appears to be a straightforward case of revenge. But the more that Lam pursues his suspect, the deeper he falls into a web of lies. To find the truth, Lam must dig into a 20 year-old case for answers, the one link tying the suspect to the celebrity. But in doing so, Lam will uncover a dark secret so shocking; it will turn the investigation upside down. Who is the victim and who is the killer? Just as Lam believes he has everything figured out, he will discover that there's a fine line between love and hate.

The New Zorro Might Be Gael Garcia Bernal!

Fox is rebooting ZORRO movies, and it will be called ZORRO REBORN. Taking over Antonio Banderas in the first two ZORRO movies will be Gael Garcia Bernal who is in talks to play the titular character.

In this conceptual reboot, ZORRO REBORN will take place during the post-apocalyptic era. The story will not be set in California or Mexico, but rather a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Gael Garcia Bernal will play the masked vigilante sworn on vengeance.

ZORRO REBORN is still in early development and no director has been attached to helm the project at the moment.

Magneto Will Be Prioritized In X-MEN: FIRST CLASS Sequel!

According to screenwriter Simon Kinberg, X-MEN: FIRST CLASS sequel will be focused mainly on Magneto (played by Michael Fassbender). Here's what he had to say about the sequel below.

I'm a huge X-Men fan. I grew up loving the comic books and it was really exciting to be able to do the origin story of Xavier and Magneto, and getting those two actors, James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender, were really amazing. So being able to explore those characters with actors of that quality will be exciting a second time around, and doing some things unexpected with those characters, which is the plan.

That's what was so cool about the first one and what we want to continue. Magneto becomes the villain ultimately of the franchise but he's a much more complicated character as a young man. He's someone you sympathize with, you care about and you root for even though you might not necessarily agree with his methods, you understand his philosophy.

The truth is ultimately that because Michael is such an interesting actor, he'll never be full-on anything. He'll have a villainous side and he'll have a sympathetic human side you'll be able to relate but you'll also be afraid of him. He becomes Magneto, he says 'Call me Magneto' at the end of the first movie.

TRANSFORMERS 4 Will Features All-New Cast!

Okay, so director Michael Bay will return for TRANSFORMERS 4 after all. What's next? With TRANSFORMERS 4 already targeted on rebooting the franchise, all the previous cast from the first three TRANSFORMERS movies will not return at all. Instead TRANSFORMERS 4 will be reinvented with an all-new cast!

According to Josh Duhamel, who co-starred in the first three movies has confirmed that he will not be returning. And he also believes that neither will Shia LaBeouf, Tyrese Gibson nor John Turturro. Here's what Duhamel had to say below.

I don't think anybody's doing it. I know Shia LaBeouf's not doing it. I don't think Tyrese Gibson or Rosie Huntington-Whiteley or anybody else is doing it. Whenever these movies make that much money they're going to make as many as they can. [But] I haven't heard anything about it. They haven't called me.

Frankly, does it really matter whether the studio decide to change an all-new cast? Because to any fans of TRANSFORMERS, it is the shape-shifting robots that matter the most.

As for now, TRANSFORMERS 4 is targeted for a June 29, 2014.

JOHN CARTER Final Poster!

Walt Disney Pictures has released the final poster of Andrew Stanton's upcoming action-adventure JOHN CARTER, coming to theaters near you on March 8! Check out the image below, which features Taylor Kitsch as the title character.

Michael Bay Is Back For TRANSFORMERS 4 And Confirmed For June 29, 2014!

Mark your calendar, fanboys -- June 29, 2014, to be exact -- as director Michael Bay finally changed his mind and agrees to return for TRANSFORMERS 4! Here's what producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura had to say below about TRANSFORMERS 4 being more of a reboot than a direct continuation.

Michael is going to direct it, and it will be in the summer of 2014. He's a cool customer. He's excited and I think the challenge there is we really are going to do a reboot. What that's going to be, we don't even know yet.

At the same time, the producer also dismissed the rumors that Jason Statham is being targeted to star in TRANSFORMERS 4 as well as his definition of "rebooting" the series.

It's a hybrid. I'm not involved with (The Amazing) Spider-Man, but what I perceive Spider-Man to be is a redoing of the whole thing. This is not. It's an evolution. There's still a continuity that's going on, and yet, there will be a lot of new cast members. Whether there's anybody from the first cast, we don't even know yet, but the truth is, it's going to be a whole new story. The characters that will certainly come along will be Optimus and Bumblebee, I'm sure.

So Michael Bay is returning to direct TRANSFORMERS 4... What do you think?

Are You A Patriot Or A Vampire? Here's ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER Trailer!

President Abraham Lincoln moonlights as a vampire hunter? Why not? Twentieth Century Fox has finally unleashed the first trailer for this highly-anticipated genre mash-up titled ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER, which stars Benjamin Walker, Anthony Mackie and Dominic Cooper. Check out the action-packed video below.

ABRAHAM LINCOLN: VAMPIRE HUNTER hits theaters on June 21, 2012.

LOVE IN THE CELLULOID: TOP 10 BEST ROMANTIC MOVIES THIS VALENTINE'S DAY!

Love is in the air, and Valentine's Day is just around the corner. If you are skimping on budget against lavish dinner, buying insanely expensive roses, or a box of limited-edition chocolates, why not spend quality time with your loved ones on a couch and pop a DVD to watch romantic movie together? Need inspiration? Here's my pick for "Top 10 Best Romantic Movies This Valentine's Day!" right below.

10. THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY (1998)

Cameron Diaz may have been a breakout star in 1994's THE MASK, but it was this highly-successful romantic comedy that skyrocketed her into Hollywood superstardom. She's simply funny, lovely and charming in her title character here, and that now-classic "hair gel" scene remains one of the most unforgettable highlights in a raunchy romantic-comedy genre. Oh, did I mention this is also the funniest movie both Peter and Bobby Farrelly has directed?

9. SERENDIPITY (2001)

Big Apple in the wintry Christmas, coupled with a irresistibly charming John Cusack and lovely Kate Beckinsale. This is one magical love story about embracing one's fate and destiny.

8. WHEN HARRY MET SALLY... (1989)

A classic romantic comedy about two unlikely friends Harry (Billy Crystal) and Sally (Meg Ryan) who subsequently blossoms into close friendship, but of course eventually falling in love. Nora Ephron's Oscar-nominated screenplay is brilliant with witty verbal exchanges and the movie is particularly boosted by an amazing chemistry between Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan. For those who have watched this movie before, who could forget the classic roadside cafe scene where the fussy Sally ordering an apple pie and ice cream that goes like this:

Sally: But I’d like the pie heated, and I don’t want the ice cream on top. I want it on the side. And I’d like strawberry instead of vanilla if you have it. If not, then no ice cream, just whipped cream, but only if it’s real. If it’s out of a can, then nothing.

Waitress: Not even a pie?

Sally: No, just the pie. But then not heated.

And lastly, another classic scene involving Sally simulating an orgasm in front of Harry at a crowded New York deli restaurant... (“Ooooh. Oh, God. Ooooh…”)

7. AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN (1982)

One of the most beloved classics of the 1980s, AN OFFICER AND A GENTLEMAN was hugely popular during its era. Blessed with a top-notch performances by Richard Gere, Debra Winger, Robert Loggia and of course Louis Gossett Jr. (who won Best Supporting Actor Oscar as the no-nonsense drill instructor). Apart from its gripping storyline of a lonely man who fight against all odds to prove his worth, it's also especially memorable for its unforgettable love story between Gere and Winger -- the passionate lovemaking scene and the fairy-tale ending where Gere sweeps Winger off her feet and holds her in his arm. This is one love story that truly lifts them up where they belong (Yup, I'm talking about the Oscar-winning song of Up Where We Belong here).

6. LOVE STORY (1970)

A classic tearjerker that earned its reputation as a landmark romance movie that has something to do with tragic illness. Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw are excellent as two star-crossed lovers from different background. The movie, is of course, made immortal for its unforgettable dialogue: Love means never having to say you're sorry.

5. IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (2000)

Renowned Hong Kong director Wong Kar-Wai is a true cinematic poet of love and heartache. Here, he crafted a love story where romance and beauty can be found in unexpected places (alleys, stairways, cramped offices, cramped apartments). What makes this uniquely different is how the two lead actors (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Maggie Cheung) are seen rarely connected to such intimate moments and yet Wong Kar-Wai manages to feed our senses with a lushly sensual experience. Christopher Doyle's expressive cinematography is breathtaking, and so do its well-selected soundtrack ranging from Nat King Cole and of course, Yumeji's Theme. Maggie Cheung is particularly stunning here in an eye-catching cheongsam.

4. TITANIC (1997)

A perfect mix of disaster genre and a classic tale of doomed love separated by social divide with a state-of-the-art special effects wonder that struck an amazing chord for the young and old generation. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet are immortal in their roles as two star-crossed lovers who never give up against each other until the very end. Coupled with that is of course, the unforgettable (if overplayed) love song of Celine Dion's My Heart Will Go On.

3. GHOST (1990)

A highly-conceptual movie that blends spooky setting, fantasy, romance, melodrama and a dash of unexpected comedy (courtesy from an Oscar-winning performance by Whoopi Goldberg), GHOST was one of the biggest hits during the 1990s. Patrick Swayze and Demi Moore are downright sizzling, and their lovemaking scene in the opening act is especially romantic with The Righteous Brothers' Unchained Melody perfectly accompanied the mood.

2. GONE WITH THE WIND (1939)

1939 was widely known as the "Hollywood's Golden Age Of Cinema", and GONE WITH THE WIND was certainly one of them. This nearly 4-hour romance epic was a cinematic milestone made possible by Victor Fleming's breathtaking direction and timeless storyline. But who could forget the remarkable chemistry so vividly portrayed by Clark Gable as the dashing Rhett Butler and Vivien Leigh as the spoilt rich girl Scarlett O'Hara?

1. CASABLANCA (1942)

  

One of America's most beloved movies and one of the all-time great wartime romance drama. It's a quintessential Valentine's Day movie in a timeless story that involves lost chances, lost loves and love versus honor. Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman are terrific together.

Happy Valentine's Day!