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Two very popular movies from the 90’s are coming back in the form of TV shows. NBC is working on a half-hour comedy based on the iconic movie Reality Bites, ..
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Two very popular movies from the 90’s are coming back in the form of TV shows. NBC is working on a half-hour comedy based on the iconic movie Reality Bites, while FX has closed a deal to turn make an hour long drama series based on the Oscar-winning film Fargo.
The movie Reality Bites was about a group of loser friends who struggle with their careers and love life after graduating from college. The TV show, just like the movie, will take place in Houston in the early ‘90s. The main character will be Lelania Pierce (played by Winona Ryder in the movie), who has just graduated from college and lives with her slacker buddies. So it seems to be that this sitcom will be a lot like Friends, Happy Endings or Girls.
Ben Stiller, who produced the film, will produce the show through his shingle Red Hour Films; and Helen Childress (writer of the movie) is going to write the script of the show’s pilot episode.
On the other hand, the film Fargo was a dark comedy about a fake crime that went horribly wrong. Frances McDormand (who won an Oscar for her performance) played a pregnant police chief from Minnesota trying to find two criminals (Steve Buscemi and Peter Stormare) who killed a policeman and staged the kidnapping of a car salesman’s wife.
The TV Show will be a miniseries of ten episodes that will air for FX. John Landgraf, president of FX, stated that the show will be "remarkably true to the film,", in spite of the fact that there are no plans to include existing characters. He also said that the writer, Noah Hawley, has “invented a new version of Fargo that’s its own thing, but that’s true to the spirit of the original,".
Joel and Ethan Coen, who directed the film Fargo, will be the executive producers of the miniseries. Billy Bob Thornton (a frequent collaborator of the Coens) will star the TV version, playing a rootless con artist. Bob Odenkirk (Famous for playing Sail in Breaking Bad) and Glenn Howerton (It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia) have joined the show as well. Other actors with roles in this miniseries are Oliver Pratt, Kate Walsh, Martin Freeman, Colin Hanks, Adam Goldberg and Allison Tolman.
In 1997, actress Kathy Bates attempted to adapt “Fargo” to the small screen. She directed a pilot with Eddie Falco playing Marge McDormand. But that pilot was not picked up. Instead, it aired as a TV movie in 2003.
Taking successful movies to the small screen is something that has certainly been done before. Movies like Clueless, Clerks and Buffy, the Vampire Slayer became were turned into TV shows, the latest being the most successful one. The big question is… can Reality Bites and Fargo be positively translated to the current style of TV? Time will tell.
On September 29th Masters of Sex made its debut on Showtime and it was seen by 1 millions of viewers.
The show tells the true story of Dr. William Masters and Virginia “Gini” Johnson. William (played by Michael Sheen) is a brilliant obstetrician and fertility specialist who wants to study sex scientifically. In spite of his intelligence, he’s socially inept. He has a wife who adores him and with who he has bad sex from time to time. On the other hand, Gini (played by Lizzy Caplan) is sassy woman who is light-years ahead of her times. There’s practically nothing she wouldn’t do in bed. She has mind-blowing sex with men she doesn’t love. William hires her to work with him in a sex study. The two of them plan to observe individuals pleasuring themselves and couples engaging in intercourse. In such an unorthodox way, they would make groundbreaking discoveries such as the fact the women are capable of multiple orgasms. They would also establish the Human sexual response cycle.
Beautiful actress Caitlin Fitzgerald also stars. She plays Libby, William’s sweet and submissive wife, the archetype of a woman in the 50’s. She goes as far as to call her husband “daddy” all the time, displaying the typical submission of wives of that era. It might be difficult for modern women to fully comprehend her and the other female characters. One tends to relate more with Gini. But it’s very interesting to see such an accurate portrayal of how life was like for women back then.
Another main character is Dr. Austin Langham, a womanizer played by Teddy Sears. Nicholas D’Agosto stars as Dr. Ethan Hass. Ethan is a young doctor, William’s protégé, who has a brief but intense sexual relationship with Gini. He gets obsessed with Gini and is brokenhearted when he finds out that Gini was only interested in sex and doesn’t love him.
The story was taken from real life. Michelle Ashford indeed developed the plot basing on Thomas Maier's biography Masters of Sex: The Life and Times of William Masters and Virginia Johnson, the Couple Who Taught America How to Love. In real life, William divorced Libby and married Gini in 1971. Ultimately, William and Gini got divorced in 1992. He died due to Parkinson’s disease in 2001. She passed away last July at the age of 88.
Since the premiere, Masters of Sex received a lot of praise from the critics. Most people agree that the show is seductive and shows impeccable period décor, great acting and a skillful direction. Basing on 32 reviews, Metacritic gave the series 85 points out of 100, while Rotten Tomatoes gave it a 89% approval rating, basing on 42 reviews. “I enjoy the acting of Caplan and Sheen and the side storylines are interesting..in that they help viewers understand Masters' and Johnson's back story”, said a fan who identified himself as emo_ville2002.
To the fans’ delight, it was announced on October 22nd that the show was renewed for a second season that will air next year.
The fans of the popular TV show The Simpsons were surprised recently by some shocking news. Executive producer Al Jean revealed to the press during a conference that the writers are "working on a script where a character will pass away”. He explained that they’ll kill off a character because “we think it has a good emotional through line". He also said that he expects the episode with death to obtain "Breaking Bad-type numbers".
At this moment, it’s not known when the death will happen. "The story will be produced this year though it may air in season 26”. Jean stated. It’s also unknown whether the character will die of natural causes or will get killed by someone. Jean only said that the character will die in a funny way and that “It’s an emotional story”.
Details are scarce. Not even the actor who gives voice to the character knows that his or her character will die. The only big hint given was that the actor who gives voice to the character won an Emmy for his or her role.
During the show’s long run, four actors have won an Emmy for their role in The Simpsons: Anne Hathaway, who played a minor character called Penelope that only appeared in one episode; Dan Castella, who gives voice to Homer Simpson, Grandpa Simpsons, Mayor Quimby, Krusty, Barney, Groundskeeper Willie, Sideshow Mel; Hank Azaria, who plays several characters, including Moe, Chief Wiggum, Cletus, Comic Book Guy and Apu; and actor Kelsey Grammer, who plays recurrent villain Sideshow Bob.
Jean stated that the character has appeared on the show “More than twice”, which rules out the character played by Anne Hathaway. “I think Moe might finally end up killing himself”, a fan identified as ilyaboris speculated in the boards of IMDB.com.
Thorough the show’s 25 seasons, several characters have died. However, some of those deaths had little or no impact on the show. For instance, after gangster Fat Tony passed away, his cousin Fit Tony took his place in the criminal organization. Soon, Fit Tony began overeating due the pressures of being the mafia’s leader and gained a lot of weigh. Hence, people started calling Fat Tony and the status quo was restored.
Also, Homer’s mother, called Mona Simpson, died in a very emotional episode from the 19th season titled “Mona Leaves-a”. Her death, however, didn’t have a major impact on the show since the character didn’t appear very often anyway.
The death that has had a bigger impact on the show was definitely the passing of Maude Flanders, Ned Flanders’ wife. Maude died in an episode of the 11th season titled "Alone Again, Natura-Diddily", after Homer accidentally knocked her off a racetrack grandstand by t-shirts shot from cannons. The character was eliminated because of problems with the actress who did the voice, Maggie Roswell. This death affected the show the most, since Ned Flanders would later remarry to Edna, which was a major plot twist.
It is not known yet whether the upcoming death will be as significant al Maude’s.
The show stars Toni Collete (Best known for “The United States of Tara” and the movie “Little Miss Sunshine”), Tate Donovan (Best known for his role in “Damages”) and Dylan McDermott (Best known for “The Practice” and “American Horror Story”).
Hostages is about a world-class surgeon called Ellen Sanders (Collete) who is about to operate on the president of the United States. In the eve of the big surgery, she’s taken hostage along with her husband (Donovan) and her two kids. The family is taken hostage by a group of terrorists led by a rogue FBI agent called Duncan Carlisle. Duncan tells Ellen that her family will be murdered if she doesn’t kill the president. In a sort-of unexpected twist, the hostage-takers seem to be working for the president’s Chief of Staff and have people working for them who are infiltrated in the secret service.
At the end of the pilot, Dr. Sanders secretly gave the president a blood thinner. By doing that, she got the surgery postponed for two weeks. That means she has fourteen days to get herself out of the horrible situation she’s in. Since each episode covers one day and it’s been said that the show will have fifteen episodes, the day of the big surgery will collide with the finale.
“We normally like orders of 22 episodes”, said Jonathan Littman, TV chief of Jerry Bruckheimer. As per him, when something that is this intense and thrilling, it’s difficult to bring out twenty-two [episodes] and keep the suspense up.
The big question is: what to do after those 15 episodes? It’s not like the family can be taken hostage for months. The critics and the audience seem to think that this story won’t work in the long-term, and that it would have worked better as a movie. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer responded saying that they are doing fifteen [episodes] and hope for getting not just 2 seasons but many more.
Last May, advertisers were shown a sizzle reel in advance. The reel included scenes not seen in the pilot. This made critics wonder whether the producers shot scenes from additional episodes to prove CBS executives that the series can last for several seasons. Jeffrey Nachmanoff, writer/director of the show, admitted that the additional footage was meant “to show everybody there is a series here.” He also explained that they shot sample scenes for something coming in future; for giving the illusion they had shot the series already, which is technically impossible. He then also added that they we were asking CBS executives that they would like to do something different for their network and that they’ll meet CBS in middle.
At this moment, though, it doesn’t seem very likely that the show will be renewed for more than one season. The critics haven’t been nice and the ratings have been pretty low. The pilot only had 7.41 million viewers and the second episode had only 5.96.
Last Sunday the popular show Breaking Bad came to a very exciting end.
The last episode titled “Felina” was watched by 10.28 million people when it first aired, becoming the most watched episode in the history of Breaking Bad. The last episode also had the highest number of tweets: 1.24 million tweets from 601,370 while it aired on both coasts of the US. It hit a peak of 22,373 tweets per minute when it started on the East Coast. The name of the episode refers to the 1959 song "El Paso" by Marty Robbins, which is about an unnamed cowboy who falls in love with a woman called Felina. The cowboy gets shot by his enemies and dies.
During 5 seasons, 62 episodes, Breaking Bad portrayed one of the most iconic antiheroes of our times: Walter White. He was a chemistry teacher. He spent his days talking about the elements to high school kids who didn’t care about what he was saying. He didn’t make enough money, so he also had a second job as car washer. One day, he finds out that he has lung cancer. His health insurance’s very bad and it won’t cover his whole treatment (this entire show is a public condemnation to the United States’ health care system). He realizes that when he dies, he’ll leave his family with an astronomic debt. Desperate for money, he decides to use his knowledge of chemistry to manufacture methamphetamines. He allies with a former student of his, Jesse Pinkman, and winds up making the purest methamphetamine ever made, with a distinctive color blue. His powerful product soon becomes very popular. He changes dramatically. By season 5, he’s a ruthless drug lord responsible (directly or indirectly, purposely or not) for the deaths of over 170 people.
In the last episode, called “Felina”, Walter goes to see his former friends, Gretchen and Elliot Schwartz. He shows them the nearly 10 million dollars he made as a drug lord. By threatening them, he forces them to give that money to his son, making it look like a charitable donation from two liberals ashamed of their connection to Walter White. He even tells them that he hired the best assassins to make sure they comply, even after he dies (It turns out that the supposed assassins are Badger and Skinny Pete, two characters who wouldn’t actually kill a fly. This shows that Walker was only making an empty threat). Gretchen and Elliot believe him and it’s plain to see in their faces that they will do as told. So, Walter managed to provide for his family, which was his goal through the entire show.
Our antihero also managed to save his wife from many years in prison. He visits his wife, Skyler, and gives her the location of two bodies the police is trying desperately to find (Hank and Gomez’s). She’ll be able to use that information to get a deal with the prosecutors. In addition, in what’s probably the most poignant moment of the finale, he finally admits to her what the viewers had been saying for a long time: that he didn’t cook meth for his family, but because he liked it, because it made him feel alive, and his ego was his big motivator.
Besides leaving tons of money for his family and protecting his wife from legal problems, Walter also succeeds in killing all the enemies he had left.
He first meets with Lydia Rodarte-Quayles (a methylamine supplier that threatened to kill his family) at a cafe under false pretexts and somehow changes her stevia packet with ricin, which she pours into her tea (It’s not actually plausible that he achieved this considering that Lydia was looking at him the entire time. But it’s worth suspending disbelief) . She’s later seen sick from the poison, but her death doesn’t happen on-screen.
However, what’s much more impressive is the way he kills an entire group of neo-Nazis (A group that had ripped Walter off and killed his brother-in-law). It’s a thrilling scene. Walter assembles some sort of devise with a M6 machine that he can control remotely with a Chinese made UN-4001 Central Car Lock System. He goes to the Nazi’s compound pretending he wants to make a deal, concealing the M60 in the trunk of his car. When he himself and Jesse Pinkman are safe in the ground, he activates the devise by hitting the trunk-opener on his car keys. The machine-gun begins firing everywhere, killing instantly most of the bad guys. Todd Alquist survives the shooting but is chocked to death by Jesse. Jack Welker, the leader of the group, survives the big shooting, but is murdered by Walter right afterwards.
In a very intense moment, Walter gives Jesse a gun and tells him: “Do it”. Walter obviously wants to die and wants Jesse to kill him. Our anti-hero purposely let Jesse’s girlfriend die at the end of Season 2 and poisoned Jesse’s stepson at the end of Season 4. And Walter very well knows that he deserves to die by Jesse’s hands (Bryan Cranston does a very good job conveying that emotion). Yet, Jesse refuses to be the one killing Walter, probably because he doesn’t want another death on his conscience. Jesse takes off driving away from the compound where he had been held captive. It’s a fitting sort-of-happy ending for that young man who never had the stomach for the drug business.
But Walter had already been wounded in the big shooting. Seriously injured, he walks to the compound’s meth lav. He caresses the equipment, marveling in the science of it. He probably recalls his glorious days of cooking meth. Finally, he succumbs to his injuries and dies just before the police’s arrival.
In the very symbolic last shot of the series, Walt is lying flat on the floor of the meth lab with his arms spread out of his body, as if he had been crucified. He dies with a serene expression on his face.
Spoiler Alert!! Don’t read this article if you don’t want to know how Dexter ends, but feel free to share it!
Last Sunday the fans had to say goodbye to Dexter, the serial killer who only kills people who deserve it. The last episode called “Remember the monsters?” had the biggest audience ever for an original episode in the history of Showtime.
The finale finds Dexter about to leave the country with Hanna, whom he loves deeply, and his son, a cutie who’s four years old. He’s happy and looking forward to starting a new life in Argentina. He’s embracing his human side. But suddenly he finds out his sister Debra has been shot by the season’s main villain, Oliver Saxon. At first, it seems that Debra will make a full recovery. However, she soon falls into a permanent vegetative state due to unexpected complications. Dexter decides to kill Saxon before going to Argentina. He manages to kill him with sticking a pen in his throat while Quinn and Batista observe in shock.
Quinn and Batista are also devastated by what’s happening to Debra, so they let Dexter get away with Saxon’s murder. Our antihero then goes to Debra’s side and ends her life in a very emotional scene. Then, he takes her body and throws it to the ocean in the middle of a hurricane. After that, he drives his boat into the storm. We can see Batista in Miami and Hanna with Dexter’s son in Argentina learning that Dexter has perished drowned in the ocean. But the final scene shows that Dexter is alive somewhere in the mountains, all by himself. He looks at the camera and it’s plain to see that he’ll live the rest of his life in despair.
The final scene didn’t have Dexter expressing his feelings in a voiceover. According to the producers, the silence symbolizes the fact that Dexter is now empty inside.
About Debra dying, Jennifer Carpenter, who played Debra, said, “I did want her to die. But it was more about me. Deb deserves some peace. There was this setup when she and Quinn were finally able to set their sights on a love that existed, but I don’t know what kind of peace she would have found there because Dexter always would have been in that place”. Carpenter, however, pointed out a negative aspect of Debra’s death: “Deb dies not knowing how Dexter feels about her. She doesn’t have access to his feelings, which is all she ever wanted”.
Dexter’s finale left an army of furious fans who criticized it harshly in the show’s board at imdb.com and on twitter. A fan called Jordo Rosell stated, “Dexter ended. A mediocre ending for a series that had its high point in the 4rt season and has been deflating ever since”, an opinion that seems to be extremely popular among the fans.
The biggest complains about the episode were about plausibility. An angry fan identified as Kuato_And_George said, “I think it lazy and inexcusable that Hannah continues to walk around in Miami without so much as dying her hair. I think it's just as bad that Dexter walked out of a hospital with a corpse. I'm also not too happy that he went directly into a Hurricane like Bodi from Point Break and somehow survived”. The board was flooded with comments like that.
Regarding Dexter surviving the hurricane, Buck explained, “Hopefully it’s not a question that will be examined too closely. The show has always been a half step away from reality; it’s a hyper-reality. We established there is an emergency life raft with an outboard motor on the boat. He could have gotten in the raft and made it safely to shore”. And about Hanna not wearing a disguise, he stated, “In the research we did on fugitives we learned there are countless fugitives out there just walking around that nobody is really looking for”.
Probably the most disappointing aspect of the finale was the fact that nobody discovered that Dexter is the serial killer called The Bay Harbor Butcher, or that Debra killed Maria LaGuerta at the end of season 7. A dissaponted fan identified as Jmmmz said, “It would make more sense to us and we would feel more complete if we knew at least they were on to him”. Scott Buck explained by saying that they discussed Batista suddenly finding something like this at last moment, but it appeared that it may take the episode off in an entirely different direction and moving the focus off of how Dexter's emotional journey had been.
Another thing the finale’s haters didn’t care about, was the way Dexter threw Debra’s to the ocean. That action was perceived as disrespectful and selfish.
However, there’s a great number of other fans who believe the ending was brilliant.
A viewer identified as Thrillseeker303 said, “The ending actually redeemed most of season 8. And most of that is due to the wonderful music on those sad scenes where. It made me feel sad for both Dexter and Deb's unfortunate fate”. And another fan who enjoyed the finale and calls himself ronojeet8429 stated, “I think it was a good ending because his actions post what happened to Deb seemed justified to me and the fact that the punishment that he imposed on himself seemed more fitting than anything else that has been suggested. Also more brutal”.
This controversial finale will not be the last we see of Dexter, though. Showtime entertainment president David Nevins has expressed his desire to keep the show alive somehow and the network recently signed Scott Buck for a two-year overall deal, which is an unusual move for Showtime. There has been talk about a possible spinoff, but the future remains unclear. "We're nowhere yet, but I do feel like Dexter is such a core franchise to Showtime," Nevins stated at a September Paley Center event celebrating the show. He has also said "It's not necessarily a spinoff. All options will be explored. We're really not dealing with it at all until we're through this season and maybe for a while thereafter."
Behind the Candelabra, a Liberace biopic, has won the top honors at the Emmy awards this year, held on Sunday in Los Angeles. The film, broadcasted on HBO in US, won 3 Emmy awards that include “best actor” award for Michael Douglas and a “best TV movie’.
While receiving his first ever Emmy award, Michael Douglas paid thanks to his family, especially to wife, Catherine Zeta Jones. Douglas also thanked Matt Damon, a fellow nominee and his co-star. Addressing Damon, Douglas said, "You're magnificent". He further added "The only reason I am standing here is because of you."
‘Breaking Bad’ was awarded for the best drama, and ‘Modern Family’, for the 4th time, won the leading comedy award.
For playing in Homeland, Claire Danes won the prize for best actress. This is the second consecutive Emmy award winning for Danes in the same category for playing the role of Carrie Mathison, a troubled CIA officer in Homeland. She paid a tribute to Henry Brommell who is one of the writers of the series. He passed away in March and received an award for writing, retrospectively during the awards ceremony.
Damian Lewis, British actor, lost out in category of lead actor to Jeff Daniels who happened to be a surprise winner. It is the first ever Emmy win for Jeff Daniels who plays Will McAvoy, a self-righteous news anchor in The Newsroom.
Daniels successfully beat a stiff competition among House of Cards’ Kevin Spacey, Breaking Bad actor Bryan Cranston (extensively tipped for taking the popular accolade) and Mad Men's Jon Hamm.
In addition to taking the honor of being best drama, Breaking Bad also won in the category of supporting actress, where Anna Gunn won ahead of Mad Men's Elisabeth Moss and Downton Abbey's Maggie Smith. Gunn, who is seen as Skyler White in Breaking Bad, dedicated this victory to her daughters.
Bobby Cannavale won in the Best Supporting Actor category in a drama series, for Boardwalk Empire.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus won in the category of best comedy actress for her role as US Vice-President in Veep. She was competing with Armando Lannucci, the creator of The Thick Of It. It is her 4th Emmy.
The Big Bang Theory’s Jim Parsons won his 3rd Emmy in the best comedy actor category. Jim Parsons, who plays the role of Sheldon Cooper in CBS comedy, made the hat trick after his last wins in 2010 and 2011.
HBO took the most Emmy Awards leading this year with 7 awards, followed by Showtime with 4, NBC and ABC with 3 each and Comedy Central and AMC with 2 each.
In the next two weeks, viewers will have to kiss both "Breaking Bad" and "Dexter" goodbye. With those two very popular shows ending for good, expectations are very high. There’s a lot of pressure on the show-runners and writers. The end of a series is always a tricky thing, especially when talking about shows as Breaking Bad and Dexter, with so many fans. If a finale is done right, it’ll give the fans the bittersweet sensation of having witnessed the appropriate ending to a wonderful era. But if it’s done wrongly the show will only leave a great number of furious fans who will swear for the next decade in every existing forum. A perfect example of this is the panned finale of Lost. Who can look back fondly at the series knowing that nothing will be solved at the end? That nothing you watched will ever make sense?
Let’s take into account that, in this time and age, a series ending doesn’t necessarily mean that the show can’t get new fans anymore. Anybody can download an old series or buy the DVD. But will someone say “Hey, I wanna start watching Lost” after hearing half the planet talking about how awful the finale was?
Now, how to write for a show a finale that fills the internet with positive feedback? An ending that makes to every “Best Series Finales ever” list? Here are some suggestions:
Go for a teary goodbye:
It’s very moving when in a series finale the main characters must part in different ways. In the real world, life gets in the way and nobody is surrounded by the same people or live in the same place forever. And when a show lasts many years it makes sense that the main characters end up far from where they started from.
Bring back a beloved character that had left the show:
If a series last for many years (Like Dexter), there are beloved characters, once protagonists, who left the show. It’s always a good idea that some of those characters come back for the finale. The audience wishes to know what happened to them. Seeing them again warms the heart and puts a sweet flavor in your mouth.
Make the cycle start again:
Sometimes the best ending is a new beginning.
Don’t end it with a cliffhanger.
Never end the show revealing that it was all a dream.
There’s nothing more frustrating for the fans than that.
Better punishment or suffering for the bad guy:
It’s always a good idea that the main villain suffers something worse than death. If a series lasts long, the fans sometimes spend years watching a villain torment the protagonist. If such villain simply dies, it doesn’t feel like enough.
Let’s hope the endings of Breaking bad and Dexter enter in the history of television as two of the best ones ever. Let’s hope those finales don’t give the fans something to bitch about for the next decades.
When it’s done right, parting is actually “Such a sweet sorrow”.
Last May, Deadline Magazine confirmed that the pop culture phenomenon, 24, will come back as a miniseries. After 24 ended on May 24th of 2010, there was a lot of talk about it coming back as a movie. However, the idea of a film was eventually aborted and it was announced that the show will come back as a limited-run “event series” named 24: Live Another day.
In 24: Live Another Day, Kiefer Sutherland will reprise his role of Jack Bauer, a federal agents willing to do whatever it takes to get the results he needs. His objective is to stop terrorists from committing terrible acts. In eight seasons he saved the life of a presidential candidate, stopped more than one nuclear attack, prevented an attack with radioactive weapons and stopped a strike with a biological weapon, among others. And stopping each attack only took him twenty four hours! The last time we saw Jack he was wanted for the brutal murder of the Russian Foreign Minister and the attempted murder of the Russian president. He killed the Russian prime minister on the 22nd episode of the eighth season and was about to kill the President of Russia because those two men were responsible for several deaths, including the death of Renee Walker, a woman who because his lover during the last season and came to mean a lot to him. For his act, Jack became the most wanted man in the North Hemisphere since Lee Harvey Orwell
But what will happen to Jack this time?
It’s known that the miniseries will last twelve episodes, it’ll take place several years after Season eight and those twelve episodes will cover events that will happen in twenty four hours of Jack’s life. It has also been said that the miniseries will take place outside the US. “This is gonna be set in an international setting. They’ve got a great idea,” said Kevin Reilly, Fox Entertainment Chairman. .
But very little is known about the plot at this point.
It’s been stated that Kim Raver will reprise her role of Audrey Raines. Audrey was Jack’s love interest from seasons four to six. The last time she was seen she was in a coma after being kidnapped by the Chinese government. She and Jack are up for a very emotional reunion. That much is sure.
Regarding who’ll be the president of the United States on the miniseries, writer David Fury posted on his twitter account that it will be a returning character. Most fans believe that it’ll be James Heller, portrayed by William Devane.
But, without doubt, the news that excited the fans the most is the return of Jack’s favorite sidekick, the beloved Chloe O’Brian, who’s played by Mary Lynn Rajskub. The fans had been desperately begging for her return ever since the miniseries was first announced and now they’re thrilled to find their wishes come true. Last time the viewers saw Chloe she was being arrested for assisting Jack on Season eight.
The Great Gatsby is 3D romantic drama which is an adaptation of the book by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The film is co-written by Baz Luhrmann who also directs the movie. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio and real life friend Toby Maguire. Set in the roaring twenties, the movie recounts the life and times of Jay Gatsby. The movie is already influencing the fashion industry and Leonardo DiCaprio can never go wrong as a suave millionaire. Fans of the book will definitely find this a treat as the star is cast alongside Toby Maguire who is rarely seen after his Spiderman movies.
The Hangover Part III – Release Date: May 24th, 2013
The third and final instalment to the hilarious comedy series is here and this time, promising to be better than before. Directed by Todd Philips, the cast remains the same with Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis as well as Ken Jeong playing the roles as a gang of goof ups who always get so stoned, they don’t remember what they did the night before. This time, it’s not the same story line in a different location. This time they’re back in Vegas. There are no bachelor parties; nobody is getting married, what could go wrong? We’ll soon find out.
The Heat – Release Date: June 28th, 2013
The Heat is an upcoming crime comedy film featuring Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy. The film is directed by Paul Feig and is scheduled to release on June 28th 2013. In the movie Sandra Bullock and Mellissa McCarthy is paired up to take down a drug lord. The problem is, neither of the two female cops had a partner before, or a friend for that matter. Sandra Bullock already played the tough cop role before in Miss Congeniality and she was absolutely delightful. It seems that tough roles bring out the hard boiled essence of Sandra Bullock – Hard on the outside but soft and gooey on the inside.
The Kings of Summer – Release Date: May 31st, 2013
This movie has already received glowing review after premiering in the Sundance Film Festival. The movie is directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts and is written by Chris Galletta. The film stars Alison Brie, Moises Arias and Nick Offerman, they decide to do the ultimate act of independence and spend their summer building a house and living off the land in the middle of the woods. The movie is said to be carefree and light hearted. Amidst all the action packed fantasy films and horror flicks, The Kings of Summer come as a breath of fresh air. It is already creating a lot of buzz before it’s time.
The Lone Ranger – Release Date: July 3rd, 2013
The Lone Ranger is an upcoming action western film which is produced and directed by Gore Verbinski. It is based on the American Old West character series of the same name. Armie Hammer plays the lone ranger with Johnny Depp playing the role of Tonto. The two fight against greed and injustice in a setting of the old Wild West. Johnny Depp, a spirit warrior dressed in Native American garb and war paint is a sight to see. Produced by Walt Disney, the movie is expected to have light hearted comedy moments like the ones in Pirates of the Carribean.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones - Release Date: August 23rd, 2013
After all the hit and miss fantasy movies that have graced the theatres this past year, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones seems to have the potential to fulfil the fantasy craving movie goers have been hankering for. This is an upcoming 2013 action adventure series based on the first book, The Mortal Instrument series by writer Cassandra Clare. The film stars Lily Collins, Jamie Campbell Bower and Jonathan Rhys Meyers. The protagonist, Lily Collins finds out that she can see demons walking amongst us and joins a vigilante band to defend the world. This maybe another movie of a group of vigilantes taking the law into their own hands, or it could be what we're all hoping it to be, a satisfying fantasy flick.
The Wolverine – Release Date: July 26th, 2013
Hugh Jackman is back, looking the same as he did in the first movie 13 years ago. The movie itself is the sixth instalment of the X Men film series. Directed by James Mangold, Hugh Jackman takes the big screen once again as the immortal good guy with a bad attitude. This time he’s in Japan on a tangle with the crime mob Yakuza. He is said to go through an emotional and physical metamorphosis which is said to change him into a more powerful hero. The X-Men series is always anticipated by hard core Marvel fans and this one will be no different.
The World’s End – Release Date: August 23rd 2013
The World’s End is an upcoming British sci-fi comedy film directed by Edgar Wright and is once again – an apocalyptic. The film is scheduled to release on August 23rd 2013. It features five friends who reunite after 20 years to repeat a pub crawl from their younger days. Over the course they realise that the struggle is not about them but of human kinds. They decide that tonight they are going to get totally annihilated. The cast of characters seem promising and the directors made some of the funniest movies you have seen. This definitely looks like it might be something.
This is the End – Release Date: June 12th, 2013
Another post-apocalyptic movie about the world ending, except this one is a comedy. The movie is directed by Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen. The movie features some A list movie stars such as Jason Segel, James Franco, Jonah Hill, Emma Watson, Michael Cera as well as a few from the music industry like Rihanna and the Back Street Boys. The movie is about a group of friends who has to stick together in a series of comical situation as the world ends around them. Judging by the cast of characters, especially Jason Segel and Michael Cera, known for comedies, this movie is a must watch.
White House Down – Release Date: June 28th, 2013
This is a movie that promises something, maybe because Channing Tatum is starring looking better than ever. White House Down is an action packed thriller film which is directed by Roland Emmerich. The movie is set to release on June 28th 2013. The film centres around Channing Tatum, a rejected recruit to the Secret Service, rescuing the United States’ president, Jamie Foxx, while trying to keep his daughter Emily from harm’s way. The Hollywood reported says that the movie has many similarities with Air Force One and Die Hard, so for the action fans out there, this movie is a keeper.
World War Z - Release Date: June 21st, 2013
World War Z is an upcoming apocalyptic horror film, based on a novel of the same name. It is directed by Mark Forster and stars Brad Pitt and Mireille Enos. While we all absolutely love Brad Pitt and movies about the end of the world is always fun, the long-earned reputation of zombie movies falling flat at the box office is hard to miss. Pitt plays a United Nations worker who searches the globe for information that will stop the zombie outbreak. Although the filming began in 2011, the release was pushed from December 2012 to June 2013. We wait with baited breath!
You’re Next – Release Date: August 23rd, 2013
You’re Next is a 2013 American horror thriller film which was written by Simon Barrett and directed by Adam Wingard. The film premiered at the 2011 Toronto International Film Festival and rumour has it that it’s going to be the scariest horror flick of this summer. A gang of murderous, axe-wielding villains crash the Davison’s family reunion. The situation seems dire except that an unlikely guest proves to be greatest killer of all. The movie has already created a buzz with its horrific posters and movie goers are already reading reviews of the nature of this movie. This may just be this year's horror flick.
We have seen a few great hits and a number of high-profile bombs, which resulted in trailing behind all records that were set in 2011. In this year we have got several long-awaited sequels, superhero flicks, and animated films. With several great movies being released each weekend staring from beginning of May through August, it's hard to know which of the movies are actually worth your money and time. So, below are ranked 25 titles you’ll be most excited to watch this summer and enjoy watching their trailers:
2 Guns – Release Date: August 2nd, 2013
Baltasar Kormâkur is directing this movie which has lots of action, crime and comedy. It stars Denzel Washington who is back with some fire power. This time he’s starring in 2 Guns, an upcoming action-crime-comedy film directed by Baltasar Kormâkur. He stars alongside Mark Wahlberg. The movie itself is based on a graphic novel by Boom! The movie is set to release on August 2nd 2013. The movie is about an elaborate scam where Washington and Wahlberg are both undercover agents and then realise that they have been scammed by the CIA. Washington has proved his worth in Safe House and Unstoppable. Wahlberg plays best with a strong actor on the set. So pairing up the both might make for a good action flick.
After Earth - Release Date: May 31st, 2013
After Oblivion, another movie about post-apocalyptic Earth is set to launch in movie theatres, this time starring Will Smith and his real life son Jaden Smith. The movie is directed by M. Night Shyamalan with Will Smith also acting as producer and co-writer. Will Smith actually came up with the original concepts of this movie while he was watching another movie with his brother in law Caleeb Pinkett. It is a movie about how the father and son move across uncharted terrain filled with peril and coming across evolved animals and aliens. Will Smith being paired up with his son and acting in a sci-fi of his own creation will definitely credit a watch.
Before Midnight - Release Date: May 24th, 2013
Before Midnight is the sequel to Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, all of which were directed by Richard Linklater. The lead characters are played by Ethan Hawke as Jesse and Julie Delpy as Celine. Unlike every other romance, this movie does not end the story at happily ever after, but goes deeper to unravel the complicacies of staying together and maintaining relationships. The movie released on January 20th 2013, 9 years after the second instalment and 18 years after the first. The series shows the relationship of Jesse and Celine as they go through the ups and downs of life.
Despicable Me 2 - Release Date: July 3rd, 2013
The evil super villain Gru is back and so are all his minions for more cuteness and laughs. The movie’s director is once again Pierre Coffin and Chris Renaud. Steve Carell will still play the evil genius with a soft side, so will Miranda Cosgrove and Russell Brand. The movie is scheduled to release on July 3rd 2013. In this sequel the Anti Villain league takes in Gru so that he can assist them in bringing down a villain with the sinister name of Eduardo. For those who can’t get enough of Gru’s henchmen, a spin off is set to release on December 19, 2014 called Minions.
Elysium - Release Date: August 9th, 2013
Elysium is an upcoming drama science fiction film which is directed by Neill Blomkamp of District 9. The movie is set to release on August 9 2013. The film stars Matt Damon and Jodie Foster and depicts a future where the wealthy live in a space habit on Earth orbit while the poor live on overpopulated and destroyed Earth. The poor desperately need to escape Earth’s crime and dilapidation and they need the proper medical care available on Elysium. But the wealthy will do anything to prevent their sanctuary from being infiltrated. It is up to Matt Damon, who is dying himself, to save the people of Earth.
Fast and the Furious - Release Date: May 24th, 2013
The sixth instalment is here and so are Vin Diesel and Dwayne Johnson for some cars, crime and muscles. The movie is written by Chris Morgan and directed by Justin Lin. The movie is set to release on May 24th 2013. After Fast Five, the crew of international thieves led by Dominic Toretto are filthy rich but their criminal records prevent them from returning to their home country. But an agent from Diplomatic Security Service had cut them a deal if they help bring down a lethal mercenary and his second-in-command Dominic’s should have been dead love Letty Ortiz. (gasp!)
Iron Man 3 - Releases on May 3rd, 2013
Tony Stark is back bringing us the third instalment of the Iron Man series. Who here isn’t excited? A new director is involved, Shane Black, and who knows, maybe he’ll bring a different flavour in Iron Man. Gwyneth Paltrow reprises her role as Pepper Potts, Tony stark's love interest and Jon Favreau who directed the last two movies is still Happy Hogan. The film has already been released on May 3rd so many of you may have already seen the movie. The franchise has been wildly popular and has a 78% rating from rotten tomatoes. So I guess the movie was pretty good!
Kick-Ass 2 - Release Date: August 16th, 2013
Kick-Ass 2 is coming up with the nerdy super hero in tight green pants along with the smaller tougher Hit Girl. Jim Carrey is also set to appear and join the rat pack as Colonel Stars and Stripes. In this sequel, Hit Girl tries to retire and live a normal life; however, Red Mist is reborn and is badder than ever with his army of baddies. Seeing how the first movie was so well received with the audience, Kick Ass 2 is definitely on many people’s watch list, especially with comedy legend Jim Carrey joining the crew adding some spice to the mix.
Man of Steel - Release Date: June 14th, 2013
The much awaited superman movie is back and with two amazing directors to set the screens on fire. Zack Snyder (300) and Christopher Nolan (The Dark Knight) pair up to direct and produce this gem of a movie. The film will replay the original story of Clark Kent, a journalist adopted by Johnathan and Martha Kent but is actually an alien being from an extinct planet. The leading stars are Henry Cavill as superman and Amy Adams as Lois Lane. The film will release in June 14th much to the anticipation of fans. It’s hard not to expect too much.
Monster University - Release Date: June 21st, 2013
Monster Inc. is back with a prequel. Those who have seen the 2001 Monster Inc. they will automatically know what this movie is about. Pixar will release their first ever prequel to an animated movie on June 21st 2013. The movie will be set 10 years before Monster Inc. right into the college days of Sully and Mike. Unlike what readers would believe in the movie, the two best buddies weren’t always pals but were actually rivals in college. Billy Crystal will voice Mike Wazowski and John Goodman will voice Sully Sullivan. For those who have watched the movie, it’ll be a trip back memory lane.
One Direction: This Is Us - Release Date: June 14th, 2013
One Direction, The British pop sensation, is trying out something other than music to please their fan. The movie would be directed by Morgan Spurlock and will feature all the members of the boy band. The film contains real life and behind the scenes footage. It shows a side of One Direction which is never before seen by their fans. Member of the band, Harry Styles says that the movie will show an in-depth side to the boy band, one that hasn’t been known to the public. One thing is for sure, their fans, consisting mostly of gushing teenagers, would love to see the human aspects behind the pop sensation.
Pacific Rim - Release Date: July 12th, 2013
Pacific Rim is a movie about robots versus monsters. Guillermo del Toro is the director of this movie, and is also notable for his work, Pan’s Labrynth. But what kind of monsters are we talking about here? Why, none other than giants, and who better to fight giants than massive robots? The film is set in the near future, where soldiers pilot lethal robots to combat against the giants who have risen mysteriously from crevices in the Pacific Ocean. The film features Charlie Hunnam, who plays a former pilot and Rinko Kikuchi, a rookie who team up to pilot the enormous robots. The film‘s release is on July 12, 2013 set to release in 3D.
Star Trek into Darkness – Released on May 17th
The Star Trek franchise is always something to get excited about. This being the twelfth instalment and is the sequel to Star Trek. J.J Abrams had directed the movie and it is written by Rovert Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof. The film was turned into 3D in post-production. Most of the characters reprise their roles of the previous film and Peter Weller and Alice Eve were brought along to play key roles. For the hardcore Star Trek fans, this is something they will set their calendars by. After all, Star Trek is part of the movie industries legendary sagas.
It was at first announced that viewers will be watching 300: Rise of an Empire during this August. It was announced by Warner Bros. today that the sequel has been shifted to March 7th, 2014 and stars Sullivan Stapleton and Eva Green.
The President of the Domestic Distribution, Dan Fellman said that moving the sequel of 300 to March 7th will continue in tradition of original 300 Movie and will kick off Spring season in the epic style. The movie is on track for becoming all that audiences have been expecting from the 300 franchise.
Although it was not declared in press release, Rise of an Empire is one of the films impacted by the latest financial afflictions of the visual effects house called Rhythm and Hues, so it is expected that the film just would not have been completed within time for August.
In the meantime, Warner Bros. has also moved the release of All You Need Is Kill, which stars Tom Cruise, to June 6th, 2014. It is a sci-fi action movie, with select international scheduling its domestic release, on May 30th, 2014. The earlier global release date was particularly selected to put the release 2 weeks in advance of the beginning of World Cup.
Fellman further said that they have remarkable confidence in the film All You Need is Kill, and see it as a great tent pole for Summer frame, offering a great combination of cast, tremendous action and compelling story. The film is directed by Doug Liman and is based on an admired novel by Hiroshi Sakurazaka and has the same name. The film also stars Bill Paxton and Emily Blunt.
Both movies are going to be distributed in 3D and 2D in IMAX and select theatres.
Tony Award Nominations 2013: 'Kinky Boots' Leading with 13, Affirmations for Tom Hanks, Nora Ephron, Tony Shalhoub's 'Lucky Guy'
The Tony Awards 2013 Nominations were announced today morning. "Kinky Boots", the Drag queen musical, inspired by a true story behind the film of the same name released in 2005, tops in the class acts with the 13 nominations comprising the best musical. Cyndi Lauper, the music and lyrics writer for "Boots," was nominated for best score whereas Harvey Fierstein, the playwright who won Rony for "La Cage aux Folles", is up for the best book. The "Matilda the Musical" by Dennis Kelly, based on the novel of Roald Dahl about a supernaturally gifted girl, is closely behind Kinky Boots with 12 Tony Award nominations that include best musical.
The final play of Nora Ephron, "Lucky Guy" has a place in 6 categories that include Tom Hanks for the best actor and best play. Several other prominent Hollywood personalities have a place on ballot, comprising Tony Shalhoub for the best featured actor for "Golden Boy" and then Tracy Letts for the best actor having played in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" by Edward Albee. He wrote plays "Killer Joe" and "Bug"; both of which were adapted into the feature films from William Friedkin. Tracy Letts also wrote "August: Osage County," a movie that stars Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep scheduled for a release at the end of year by TWC.
Broadway habitues may be dazed by shut-out from Bette Midler. The one-character show "I'll Eat You Last" just opened to raves on Broadway, specifically for performance of Midler as the titular infamous Hollywood agent.
Jessica Chastain, the 2013 Oscar nominee, did not make a cut for her role in the renewal of "The Heiress," the play based on "Washington Square", the late-nineteenth century novel penned by Henry James. Also, among the absent celebrities were Al Pacino for "Glengarry Glen Ross" -- it was a role already immortalized by him in the screen version by David Mamet's -- Scarlett Johansson for "Cat on a Hot Tin Roof", and Alec Baldwin for "Orphans".
Among about a dozen musicals in debate for 2013 Tony Award nominations, only 4 could receive a substantial number: The musicals “Kinky Boots” tops with 13; “Matilda” on 12; the revivals “Pippin” received 10 and “Cinderella” got 9 nominations. Meanwhile, “Motown: The Musical,” considered the biggest commercial flick among the new musicals, was snubbed in best actor and best musical categories, showing mixed judgments from the critics.
View the full list of 2013 Tony Award nominations Here.
The world of television and entertainment is advancing with time. This is because many television channels have taken another route, in making sure that their customers receive clear picture on their TV sets. Quality being the number-one factor, they have moved to a whole new level of ensuring that their channels can decode and send signals to a digital receiver, which increases clarity in the television set. With this technology coming at hand, most people have moved from using aerials as receivers, and switched to satellite dishes and receivers. Using these devices helps in enhancing quality of picture in their television sets, hence an increased flavor in the entertainment sector.
The Olympics and football in general is another aspect and factor that has made people move to use a digital receiver to watch games. The reason behind watching the super league with a digital receiver is the fact that, you get to watch the live game, and never watch recorded games. This brings in fun into the picture, as you can watch these games in crispy clear quality, and as it happens in the fields. For the people who love the game and fun, a digital receiver is not enough when watching the super league. A great visual picture comes best with great sound. This means that you need to look for a sound system to support the game, and enable you to hear almost everything in the game, thus enjoying it.
Nevertheless, if you want to watch clear pictures from your TV, and are tired of tuning and retuning the aerial to receive clear picture, then worry no more. You can now look for a company offering most of these television services, and have a digital receiver to make watching the super league a reality in your house. All you need to do is make sure you get a subscription plan for the television channels you would like to watch.
Many people get to watch the super league, and all the games involved in it in bars and restaurants. Some of them even miss the game because they cannot afford the time to go to the bars every single time there is a game. You can now save yourself from all these hustles and get a digital receiver to make it possible for you. All you need to do is call the digital television company to install the decoder and receiver for you, and leave you enjoying the game from the comfort of your house.
Technology in the television sector is now saving people many things, as you do not have to worry about missing a game. When looking for a decoder, always try to look for a decoder that can recode and rewind live television without much to do. You can also recode live the super league games when away, and watch them later when you are free. This capability has even made it easier for the working class game lovers, as they do not have to miss a game anymore. Recording is the best option from the digital receivers.
