Author Archives: Candace Ramirez

About Candace Ramirez

"Sun is bad for you. Everything our parents said was good is bad. Sun, milk, red meat... college." -Woody Allen Accomplished wearer of dresses.

Men in Black 3 Takes Top Spot At Box Office

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Many people may not be surprised that highly anticipated Men in Black 3 took the top box office spot in its opening weekend. Although some people may be surprised that it replaced Joss Whedon’s Marvel’s The Avengers which was steadily holding the number one spot until last weekend.

MIB3 opened to earnings of $54.6 million, making it Will Smith’s third highest-grossing Friday-Sunday debut to date behind I Am Legend ($77.2 million) and Hancock ($62.6 million). However, despite it’s very strong opening when these figures are adjusted for 10 years of ticket price inflation and 3D ticket prices, Box Office Mojo reported that MIB3’s initial attendance was significantly lower than that of MIB 2. 

 In “Men in Black 3,” Agents J (Will Smith) and K (Tommy Lee Jones) head back in time. J has seen some inexplicable things in his 15 years with the Men in Black, but nothing, not even aliens, perplexes him as much as his wry, reticent partner. But when K’s life and the fate of the planet are put at stake, Agent J will have to travel back in time to put things right. J discovers that there are secrets to the universe that K never told him — secrets that will reveal themselves as he teams up with the young Agent K (Josh Brolin) to save his partner, the agency, and the future of humankind. 

MIB3 stars Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Josh Brolin, Jemaine Clement, Emma Thompson, Nicole Scherzinger, Alice Eve, and Michael Stuhlbarg.

The film has good reason for being number one though. It has been receiving positive reviews, with a 76 percent audience rating at Rotten Tomatoes. The film’s audience was 54 percent male and 56 percent over the age of 25, according to Sony.

Even though Marvel’s The Avengers was knocked out of the top spot, it is not about to lose steam. The film still made $46.9 million during the four-day weekend. Its three-day gross was $36.7 million, which is the second highest fourth weekend ever behind Avatar’s $50.3 million.

Other films that opened this weekend included Oren Peli’s horror flick Chernobyl Diaries as the 12 highest grossing movie, Wes Anderson’s Moonrise Kingdom also opened with the highest grossing indie debut of all time, according to Box Office Mojo.

Mia Wasikowska Announced To Star In Memoir “Tracks”

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Mia Wasikowska, most known for starring in the Tim Burton adaptation Alice in Wonderland, has confirmed that she will star in the big-screen adaptation of Robyn Davidson’s memoir Tracks. The King’s Speech duo Emile Sherman and Iain Canning will produce the film through their See-Saw Films banner and John Curran (The Painted Veil) will direct the indie drama.

Tracks tells the story of author Robyn Davidson, a young woman who traveled more than 1,678 miles through the Australian desert in 1977.  Sherman and Canning said they feel Curran will be able to tell the story in an effective way.

“John is an incredibly talented filmmaker and we feel the story of one woman, transforming her life by attempting the impossible, is both universal and timely,” Sherman and Canning said.

Davidson was celebrated internationally as “The Camel Lady,” according to Variety. Her journey, which included the company of four camels and a dog, was documented by photographer Rick Smolan for National Geographic.

Read the official summary below:

A cult classic with an ever-growing audience, Tracks is the brilliantly written and frequently hilarious account of a young woman’s odyssey through the deserts of Australia, with no one but her dog and four camels as companions. Davidson emerges as a heroine who combines extraordinary courage with exquisite sensitivity. One map.”

No word yet on who else will star in the adaptation or a projected release date.

Simon Pegg Tapped For Hector and the Search for Happiness

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Simon Pegg recently confirmed that he will play the title character in the upcoming adaptation of Francois Lelord’s Hector and the Search for Happiness. The dramatic comedy is being adapted by Peter Chelsom and Tinker Lindsay, and will feature the Shaun of the Dead actor as an eccentric London psychiatrist in crisis because his patients are getting happier.

He’s going nowhere.“ the press release said of the character. “Then one day, armed with buckets of courage and an almost child-like curiosity, Hector breaks out of his sheltered vacuum of a life into a global quest to find out if happiness exists. More importantly, if it exists for Hector. And so begins a colorful, exotic, dangerous and hysterical journey.”

The news was announced at the Cannes Film Festival by The Solution Entertainment Group. Pegg will begin shooting after he finishes The World’s End, a collaboration with his frequent partner Edgar Wright.

Chelsom said that he put a lot of thought into casting Peg for the part.

“I’ve been searching long and hard for a film that would bring me back to my European sensibilities,“ Chelsom said. “Not unlike Being There and Forrest Gump, ‘Hector’ is a contemporary love story, a fable wrapped around a very human hero’s journey. Nobody does the innocent abroad better than Simon Pegg: he is not only a brilliant comedian but a very touching actor. He is the Hector that you want to follow to the ends of the earth.”

Chelsom is best known for Shall We Dance?, Funny Bones, Hear My Song, and most recently Hannah Montana: The Movie. 

View the official summary below:

“Can we learn how to be happy? Hector is a successful young psychiatrist. He’s very good at treating patients in real need of his help. But many people he sees have no health problems: they’re just deeply dissatisfied with their lives. Hector can’t do much for them, and it’s beginning to depress him. So when a patient tells him he looks in need of a holiday, Hector decides to set off round the world to find out what makes people everywhere happy (and sad), and whether there is such a thing as the secret of true happiness.”

The book, which was published on August 31, 2010 has received very well by critics since its release. Marie Claire called it, “Intelligently naïve.” with BookPage calling it, “Utterly charming . . . Hector and the Search for Happiness turns psychological research into a fast-paced, enchanting story. Lelord himself is a psychiatrist, and his interest in the human mind is infectious. . . . Fans of Eat, Pray, Love and The Elegance of the Hedgehogwon’t want to miss this gem of a book.”

There is no word yet on when the project is projected to be released or who else will accompany Pegg in the cast.

Peter Weller To Voice Batman in Frank Miller’s “The Dark Knight Returns” Animated Series

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Warner Bros. has chosen the voice cast for its animated adaptation of Frank Miller’s 1986 Batman story The Dark Knight Returns, from Warner Premiere, DC Entertainment, Warner Bros. Animation and Warner Home Video.

Peter Weller (Robocop) will star as Batman/Bruce Wayne, and Ariel Winter (Modern Family) will voice Robin.

Bruce Timm, executive producer for DC’s animated movies, said Weller has “the proper weight to his voice. He definitely brings all of the world-weariness of the character and inner core of optimist covered in a cynical shell.”

The show’s creators are splitting the adaptation of the four-part graphic novel into two animated features called Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 1 and Part 2.  The first of the two films will be released in the fall, and Part 2 will be released in early 2013. Wade Williams (Prison Break) will voice Harvey Dent/Two-Face, and Michael McKean will voice Dr. Wolper, the psychiatrist who releases the Joker from Arkham Asylum.

David Selby, who starred in the original Dark Shadows soap opera, has also joined the cast.

Jay Olivia, who storyboarded Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman movie Man of Steel, will lead the project. Bob Goodman, a writer for Syfy’s Warehouse 13, penned the script. The graphic novel miniseries was praised for its mature and psychological take on superheroes, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

It set a violent and realistic tone in superhero comics and served as a big influence on Christopher Nolan’s Batman movie trilogy, the last of which opens July 20,” THR reported.

Read the official summary below:

“If any comic has a claim to have truly reinvigorated the genre, then The Dark Knight Returns by Frank Miller–known also for his excellent Sin City series and his superb rendering of the blind superhero Daredevil–is probably the top contender. Batman represented all that was wrong in comics and Miller set himself a tough task taking on the camp crusader and turning this laughable, innocuous children’s cartoon character into a hero for our times. The great Alan Moore (V for Vendetta, Swamp Thing, the arguably peerless Watchmen) argued that only someone of Miller’s stature could have done this. Batman is a character known well beyond the confines of the comic world (as are his retinue) and so reinventing him, while keeping his limiting core essentials intact, was a huge task.Miller went far beyond the call of duty. The Dark Knight is a success on every level. Firstly it does keep the core elements of the Batman myth intact, with Robin, Alfred the butler, Commissioner Gordon, and the old roster of villains, present yet brilliantly subverted. Secondly the artwork is fantastic–detailed, sometimes claustrophobic, psychotic. Lastly it’s a great story: Gotham City is a hell on earth, street gangs roam but there are no heroes. Decay is ubiquitous. Where is a hero to save Gotham? It is 10 years since the last recorded sighting of the Batman. And things have got worse than ever. Bruce Wayne is close to being a broken man but something is keeping him sane: the need to see change and the belief that he can orchestrate some of that change. Batman is back. The Dark Knight has returned. Awesome. –Mark Thwaite”

The Walking Dead Video Games Surpasses 1 Million Sold In First Two Weeks

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The Walking Dead video game has sold more than one million copies in its first two weeks on sale. This figure includes both Episode One and Season Pass sales for Xbox Live Arcade, PSN and PC, according to Joystiq.

It is now TellTale Games’ fastest-selling videogame to date. The video game is based on the mega-popular comic book series and AMC television series. However, instead of focuses on the character from the series’ it introduces a new character named Lee Everett, a convicted murderer who gains a chance at redemption thanks to the aftermath of the zombie outbreak.

Players of the game will, however, meet characters they may already be familiar with from the series such as Glenn. There are also characters who will live or die depending on the choices the player makes in each episode.

The Walking Dead Episode One: A New Day launched for PSN, XBLA, PC and Mac last month. An iOS port, meanwhile, is scheduled for the summer. Episode two, titled Starved For Help, will be released as a digital download in June. It will be followed by three more episodes over the coming months.

In celebration, TellTale released a trailer highlighting some of the praise and awards the game has received so far.

View the trailer below:

Peter Weir To Adapt Jennifer Egan’s “The Keep”

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Peter Weir (Dead Poet’s Society) recently confirmed that he will direct an adaptation of Jennifer Egan’s 2006 bestselling contemporary gothing thriller The Keep. Weir will also write the screenplay and begin filming next spring with a budget around $30 million, according to Variety.

Ben Said’s Paris-based production-sales team SBS Productions, also the producer of Brian de Palma’s Passion, will produce the film.

The Keep will be the next film after The Way Back for Weir, Said added.

In it, two estranged American cousins reunite to rennovate a medieval castle, stirring up childhood traumas and fears along the way. The author, Egan, previously won the Pulitzer prize with her 2011 novel, A Visit From the Goon Squad.

View The Keep’s official synopsis below:

“From National Book Award finalist Jennifer Egan, author of Look at Me (“Brilliantly unnerving . . . A haunting, sharp, splendidly articulate novel” —The New York Times), a spellbinding work of literary suspense enacted in a chilling psychological landscape—a dazzling tour de force.

Two cousins, irreversibly damaged by a childhood prank whose devastating consequences changed both their lives, reunite twenty years later to renovate a medieval castle in Eastern Europe, a castle steeped in blood lore and family pride. Built over a secret system of caves and tunnels, the castle and its violent history invoke and subvert all the elements of a gothic past: twins, a pool, an old baroness, a fearsome tower. In an environment of extreme paranoia, cut off from the outside world, the men reenact the signal event of their youth, with even more catastrophic results. And as the full horror of their predicament unfolds, a prisoner, in jail for an unnamed crime, recounts an unforgettable story—a story about two cousins who unite to renovate a castle—that brings the crimes of the past and present into piercing relation.

Egan’s relentlessly gripping page-turner plays with rich forms—ghost story, love story, gothic—and transfixing themes: the undertow of history, the fate of imagination in the cacophony of modern life, the uncanny likeness between communications technology and the supernatural. In a narrative that shifts seamlessly from an ancient European castle to a maximum security prison, Egan conjures a world from which escape is impossible and where the keep—the last stand, the final holdout, the place you run to when the walls are breached—is both everything worth protecting and the very thing that must be surrendered in order to survive.

A novel of fierce intelligence and velocity; a bravura performance from a writer of consummate skill and style.”

There is no word yet on who is expected t star in the film or a projected release date.

The Walking Dead Season 3 Begins Filming; Releases Video

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Filming has begun on season three of AMC’s “The Walking Dead,” and the network released the first promo video which shows viewers what’s happening on set.

The two and a half minute video features clips of cast members Andrew Lincoln, Norman Reedus, Lauren Cohan, IronE Singleton and Laurie Holden, as well as several of the showrunners telling fans what to expect in the upcoming season.

Among the future plot twists are two new characters- the Governor and katana-wielding Michonne. Cohan said that other characters who have not yet been announced would appear as well.

Reedus also confirms that romance will blossom for a couple of characters.

Producer Gale Anne Hurd also confirmed what fans already know, that the prison will play a large role in season three.

It’s a journey into the unknown, and it’s a huge gamble,” Lincoln says in the video. “But it just shows how desperate they are.”

The cast members, who are covered in fake blood during the video, also promise an abundance of zombie kills. Ernest Dickerson, who directed the season two finale, will also direct the first episode of season three, which Hurd says gives a sense of symmetry to the premiere.

Singleton says season three will top all of season two. Lincoln makes note that the overall pace will be darker, harder, faster and deeper.

“It’s incredibly dangerous, and it’s thrilling,” he adds.

The third season is scheduled to premiere in fall 2012 and will feature 16 episodes. The series is based on the series of comic books of the same name by Robert Kirkman, Tony Moore and Charlie Adlard; it was developed for television by Frank Darabont, and is executive produced by Robert Kirkman and Glen Mazzara.

You can watch the behind-the-scenes video below:

Hulk To Get New Television Series

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Movies based on Marvel Comics characters have been big moneymakers in recent years, most recently The Avengers. It’s only natural that they’d make their way to the small screen at some point, and it may come in the form of a new Hulk series from ABC.

ABC Entertainment President Paul Lee said in a conference call Tuesday that he hopes “The Hulk” will be ready for the 2013-2014 season, according to NYDailyNews.com.

We had hoped it would be ready this year, but that didn’t happen,” Lee said.

Lee told listeners the show may be aired on ABC, but they might instead sell it to another network.

Wherever it would work best,” he said.

Unexpectedly, horror director Guillermo del Toro may be executive producing the show, according to TGDaily.com. ABC continues to work with Marvel writer Stan Lee, and Lee said he hope to bring more Marvel characters to television. Both ABC and Marvel are owned by Disney.

This will not be the first time Bruce Banner’s destructive alter-ego has starred in his own television show. Running from 1978-1982, CBS’ The Incredible Hulk starred Bill Bixby as Banner and Lou Ferrigno as Hulk. There has also been several cartoon versions of his storyline that have been successful.

Mountain Dew® Partners with The Dark Knight Rises

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Mountain Dew® (DEW) announced a new partnership with Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ The Dark Knight Rises. DEW plans to unveil exclusive content and storylines from the upcoming film to fans before opening day, July 20.

DEW will also undergo design changes, introducing Dark Knight themed graphics on packaging and temperature-sensitive cans that change when chilled. The company plans to market a limited-edition mixed berry flavor as a part of the promotion as well.

Brett O’Brien, vice president of marketing for DEW, said the partnership is based on fueling passion.

You’d be hard-pressed to find more passionate fans than those of DEW and The Dark Knight franchise. Our goal is to offer those fans unique experiences — from package and product innovation to exclusive content and access that only DEW and Batman together could provide.”

According to DEW’s release, the campaign will include the following:

  • A new limited-time-only flavor, Mtn Dew Dark Berry, inspired by The Dark Knight Rises, available nationwide for 8 weeks beginning in mid June.
  • Select 16-oz cans of DEW will receive a facelift of the thermochromic variety. The special cans will use thermochromic ink to feature a bat symbol that transforms to the distinctive green color of DEW when chilled. The limited-time 16 oz. cans will hit shelves in mid June.
  • The unveil of DEWGothamCity.com, an online destination designed to give fans unprecedented access into the world of The Dark Knight Rises, including exclusive sneak peeks of movie content and storylines. The experience will launch June 18.
  • Fans who participate in the DEW Gotham City experience and enter product codes from 20 oz. and 2-liter bottles, 12-pack and 24-pack and Fountain Cups will earn points to redeem for DEW or The Dark Knight Rises gear or for sweepstakes entries for a chance to win exclusive prizes.
  • Diet Mountain Dew driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr., will give (and get) a first taste of the Dark Knight. Members of the DEW Crew, an extension of the #88 team fueled by Diet Mountain Dew, will be asked to vote to select which of four Dark Knight paint schemes will appear on Dale’s #88 Chevrolet this season. Voting begins at www.dewcrew.com on May 12.
  • In-store point-of-purchase displays in retailers nationwide.
  • Robust cable, primetime TV, radio and digital advertising, launching June 18, will drive mass campaign awareness.

DEW has previously partnered up with upcoming releases such as Halo 3 when it released a specialized bottle and “game fuel” flavor.

The Dark Knight Rises was directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan and the story with David S. Goyer. Based on the DC Comics this is the third installment in Nolan’s Batman film series, and is a sequel to Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008). The Dark Knight Rises is intended to be the conclusion of the series. Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Morgan Freeman will all reprise their roles from Batman Begins and The Dark Knight. The film will take place eight years after the events of The Dark Knight and will introduce the characters of Selina Kyle and Bane—portrayed by Anne Hathaway and Tom Hardy, respectively—two villains from the Batman mythology.

The Amazing Spider-Man Oscorp Industries Viral Ad

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The viral marketing campaign for Marc Webb’s The Amazing Spider-Man is continuing with a new video featuring Rhys Ifans’ Dr. Curt Connors. In the advertisement-like video, he asks viewers to participate in an Oscorp Industries science program that focuses on reptile genetics.  Oscorp, according to the video, is looking for interns, and the application process began Monday.

See the full video below.

The Twitter account @scaleseeker coordinated a nationwide effort to track sightings of the film’s villain, the Lizard. The coordinates revealed led players to locations in Los Angeles, New York City, Atlanta, Chicago, Salt Lake City, Las Vegas, Phoenix, Austin, Tampa, Minneapolis and New Orleans. At the locations, players discovered packages containing Connor’s shredded lab coat, an Oscorp ID badge and scientific samples of reptilian skin, according to ComingSoon.

Twitter user Sarah Barrow (@dearbuny) posted this photo of a package she found.

Letters listed on each sample unscrambled to form the words “animal dynamics lab,” leading players to a new promotional website for the film.

The Amazing Spider-Man comes to theaters July 3, starring Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Irrfan Khan, Martin Sheen and Sally Field.

You can watch the Oscorp Video below: