Welcome to a new world of gods and monsters. Witness the beginning of a Dark Universe. Universal Pictures announced that its series of films reviving the studio’s classic monster characters for a new generation will be known as “Dark Universe.” Dark Universe films will be distinguished by performances from some of the most talented and popular global superstars stepping into iconic roles, as well as electric new talents whose careers are starting to break through. While previously announced, the stars of both imminent and future Dark Universe projects are gathered for the first time in the attached photo: The Invisible Man and Frankenstein’s Monster will be played by, respectively, blockbuster icon Johnny Depp and Academy Award® winner Javier Bardem, who appear together later this summer in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Those actors join superstar Tom Cruise as soldier of fortune Nick Morton and Oscar® winner Russell Crowe as Dr. Henry Jekyll, who lead the all-star cast of The Mummy, along with Sofia Boutella, the actress who embodies the title role in that film.
At its organizing principle, Dark Universe films are connected by a mysterious multi-national organization known as Prodigium. Led by the enigmatic and brilliant Dr. Henry Jekyll, Prodigium’s mission is to track, study and—when necessary—destroy evil embodied in the form of monsters in our world. Working outside the aegis of any government, and with practices concealed by millennia of secrecy, Prodigium protects the public from knowledge of the evil that exists just beyond the thin membrane of civilized society…and will go to any length to contain it. For more visit: www.WelcometoProdigium.com.
Movie Synopsis:Captain Jack Sparrow finds the winds of ill-fortune blowing even more strongly when deadly ghost pirates led by his old nemesis, the terrifying Captain Salazar, escape from the Devil’s Triangle, determined to kill every pirate at sea…including him. Captain Jack’s only hope of survival lies in seeking out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, a powerful artifact that bestows upon its possessor total control over the seas.Read more Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales VIP Advance Screening Seats
The Master of the Marvel Mix Tape is back. Yes, Peter Quill and his gang of misfits have returned to the movies. “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” takes another step into the wilder side of Marvel’s never-ending stream of comic book heroes. Back in 2014, the first movie introduced the characters, and now you have more time to get to know your ‘Guardians’.
Quill (Chris Pratt), also known as Star Lord, is working with Gamora (Zoe Saldana) and Drax (Dave Bautista). With them are the two creatures; a genetically-modified raccoon named Rocket (Bradley Cooper) and humanoid tree-thing, now called Baby Groot (Vin Diesel). They are hired to fight off a monster for a group of gold-colored Sovereign people. They defeat the beast and win the release of Nebula (Karen Gillan), Gamora’s evil half-sister.
But soon the Sovereign leader is after the Guardians, and they hire a mercenary team of Ravagers led by Yondu (Michael Rooker). Yondu and Quill have a sorted history going way back to when Peter was kidnapped off Earth. Peter Quill is still looking for his father, when the Guardians meet up with Ego (Kurt Russell). Ego is an ancient being called a Celestial, and he has created an entire Living Planet based on his brain power.
Quill learns that Ego (his human-like avatar, not the Planet) is his actual father. But Quill is still upset that Ego loved his mother, but then left her. Quill wants to go along with Ego, so that he can be a semi-immortal creature, too. But Gamora is wary, and she has a right to be. Not everything is as rosy as it appears. Yondu has his crew mutiny against him, but with help from Rocky and Baby Groot, he’s back in command.
Nebula escapes and goes after her half-sister Gamora. They fight an attack each other, but they do eventually find common ground. Ego has plans, much larger than what Peter Quill can imagine. But his plans would cause death and destruction of thousands of planets. All of the Guardians, along with Nebula and Yondu, team up for a good old-fashioned fight to the finish. Ego is immortal and all-powerful, but he still has some weak spots. If the crew all work together, can they find the answers in time?
Marvel scored really big with the first ‘Guardians’ movie, and now they have a chance to double-down on the crazy fun of these characters. There is such a high-energy spark within this group that the easy dialog and funny situations just are a joy to watch. Each characters get a little time to develop more and become deeper and more intense. Some are real standouts, such as Yondu. His character was not much more than a cameo in the first movie. But here Michael Rooker really gets to make fantastic impression.
All the actors are great and well cast for the roles. The most fun is to see Kurt Russell coming back into movies big time, and this role for him is just icing on the cake. Baby Groot is such a little huggable sapling, that every time his image is on screen, you just want to say, “Awwwww”. Quill is still clever and snarky, Gamora is strong and stoic, and Drax is a huge mountain of power, with a big soft heart.
The movie is full of pop culture references. Lots of things are brought up, such as Pac-Man, Cheers (the TV show), Knight Rider (the TV show) and David Hasselhoff. There are again lots of Marvel cameos, like Howard the Duck, Cosmo the Space Dog and (of course) Stan Lee. There are a few celebrity cameos: Sylvester Stallone, Ving Rhames, and Michelle Yeoh.
Yes, the “Guardians of the Galaxy” have come back, and they are saving the Galaxy again. As Rocky says, “We can really raise our rates now”. It seems that they have raised the quality standards, too. Hey, and it can also be found in 3-D and in IMAX format, which actually makes for Greater Guardians!
There are other worlds than these. Stephen King’s The Dark Tower, the ambitious and expansive story from one of the world’s most celebrated authors, makes its launch to the big screen. The last Gunslinger, Roland Deschain (Idris Elba), has been locked in an eternal battle with Walter O’Dim, also known as the Man in Black (Matthew McConaughey), determined to prevent him from toppling the Dark Tower, which holds the universe together. With the fate of the worlds at stake, good and evil will collide in the ultimate battle as only Roland can defend the Tower from the Man in Black.
“Ghost in the Shell” has been around for quite a while, first as a Japanese manga comic series, and in 1995, as an animated movie based on the series. Now it has become a live-action version. This cyber-punk classic is given a new look and feel, still keeping with the dystopian future and the Asian-themed storyline. The most prominent roles are not played by Asian actors in this version. But it still has a futuristic vibe that has been seen before.
In this future generic Asian city, the largest company is Hanka Robotics. A crucial experiment is successful when Dr. Ouélet (Juliette Binoche) oversees a living human brain merged into a cybernetic ‘shell’ body, with a perfect human form. The Major (Scarlett Johansson) becomes a super-powered crime fighter for a counter-cyberterrorist group called Section 9. This group is led by Togusa (Chin Han), who reports to the government about all criminal activity.
Major and her partner Batou (Pilou Asbæk) are caught in a series of murders when top executives from Hanka Robotics are brutally killed. Evidence leads to a shadowy figure called the Puppet Master, later found out to be named Kuze (Michael Pitt). The Major catches up to Kuze and they find very unusual similarities. Major starts to question everything about her past, which has always been clouded and mysterious.
The more that Major and Batou investigate, the more troubled Major becomes. She knows that her body is manufactured, but she tries to understand why her brain (her “ghost”) is leading her to a place and time in her past. Hanka Robotics is led by a shady CEO who keeping many secrets from Major. When she finally learns the truth, it will change everything in her world.
Marvel will probably not release a stand-alone “Black Widow” movie for a long time. So now with “Ghost in the Shell”, you can see it as “I, Black Widow Robot”. Scarlett Johansson has perfected her bad-ass, take-no-prisoners hot chick fighting machine persona. In this movie, she further perfects the ‘machine’ part of that equation. She is always cool and in control, and this movie demands that she continue in that role. She pulls it off with no problem.
The rest of the cast is very much on target to the original source material. Pilou Asbæk is terrific as Batou, and he looks like a young cyber-punk Kiefer Sutherland. Juliette Binoche brings a very conflicted worry to her role, as she does not want Major to know her true origin. Chin Han has the perfect look for a wise man who can lead the Section 9 group, always speaking his native language when everyone speaks English.
The production values and set designs are stunning. They are beautiful to see and visually very active and colorful. The action sequences are set up and carried out with a smooth style. The story leads deeper into the background of the Major, and finds that she might want to be there.
However, the main drawback is that all has been done before. All classic science-fiction movies are copied here and there: ‘The Matrix’, ‘The Terminator’, ‘Blade Runner’, The Fifth Element’ and others. Even the animated version of this same movie beat it by over 20 years. If all you want is something 100% original, then you must look somewhere else.
If you are looking for a well-produced and action-filled science-fiction movie, then this will please you. Scarlett Johansson plays the role well, even without being Oriental. If you do not mind all the places where they have borrowed from other movies, you might really like “Ghost Blade in the Matrix Runner Shell”…
I had a chat with fellow Wisconsin native turned L.A. filmmaker, Hunter Adams, about his new release, Dig Two Graves, which is available to watch on iTunes and at a theatre near you. His film is a suspenseful thriller that is summed up perfectly by its tagline. ‘A young girl’s obsession with her brother’s death leads her on a nightmarish journey where she is faced with a deadly proposition to bring him back.’ I was excited to speak to him and could have talked to him all night but administered some self-control and kept it short. Here is some of that chat:
Me: So you’re from Wisconsin, I see.
HA: Wisconsin has a long history of serial killers and great directors.
Me: (I resisted asking him if he were also a serial killer.) A lot of great actors, as well.
HA: Yeah. I’ve met a lot of crew out here in L.A. who are Wisconsinites.
From my experience, Wisconsin schools always encourage the arts and most Midwesterners are escaping the cold so this makes sense to me. Moving on, I asked him where his fairly unique and bizarre story came from.
HA: It started off as a simple story about a young girl who loses her brother and then makes a deal with the devil, by way of these three hillbillies. Ultimately, I decided I wanted to give them more of a concrete narrative… to be messing with the girl. They were originally drawn in the Shakespearean tradition (the witches from MacBeth) where you just weren’t quite sure how much supernatural power they had or if they were just being manipulative. I kinda wanted to walk that fine line. But in the final version, we do have an actual reason for messing with the girl.
Me: Where did you originally get your love of films?
HA: From my mother. She’s in my first film, The Hungry Bull.
Me: That’s a nice thing to be able to do. What does she think of this film?
HA: My mom passed away while I was writing the script so she didn’t get to see the final product, unfortunately.
Me: I’m sorry. She’s with you, though.
HA: She definitely influenced the film.
Me: Did you go to film school?
HA: I didn’t really have a film school education per se. Its been mostly a hodge-podge of classes and self-teaching and just watching as much as I can.
Me: How long does it take to get a film like this made from script to screen?
HA: We started in 2011 and we went through a program called IFP (Independent Feature Project) New York, which is a big non-profit program. So, we did their– we went to this film week in New York. We went to a script lab and after that, we made some connections that led us to some investors and we ultimately started shooting in 2013. It was about a year of editing afterward. We shot for four weeks in January in the dead of winter and we went back for a few days in the summer for the opening shots of the two kids in the quarry. And then the underwater sequences, which are at the end, we did that here in L.A.
Me: You clearly love both writing and directing, is there one you’d prefer over the other if you could choose only one?
HA: Directing. I like to have the control. I love being on set and the collaboration, working with actors… the whole process; post production, working with the sound team. All that stuff. And I love the technical side as much as I do the artistic side.
Me: Do you have a say in editing your projects?
HA: I edit a lot on my own for a living. That’s how I pay the bills. It’s something I’m heavily involved with but I had a good editor who worked with me on this one.
Me: I loved the tone, the color, and the overall feel that the landscape gave the film. Where was this shot?
HA: We shot it in an interesting part of the country called Little Egypt. It’s in southern Illinois. Everything there is Egyptian themed. Down there it isn’t flat and boring, it’s really wild and it has swamps and hills and cliffs and lots of slivers. It’s a really interesting place; a great backdrop for a supernatural setting. It’s about six hours south of Chicago.
Me: What was the most difficult thing to shoot in this production and what was the easiest?
HA: It’s sort of hard to narrow it down. There were so many difficult shots. So much of it was shot at night in very rural locations in the dead of winter and during one of the coldest winter spells on record in Illinois. That made everything pretty challenging; pretty grueling. But there were a couple of really technical things that were hard to achieve. There was a fire scene… and the underwater sequence was really hard both for the actors and for me because as the director, you’re giving over control to the underwater technicians and it’s a really slow process. That was really frustrating because I like to keep things moving. So, I have to say the fire and the water. They were the most technical and the hardest to pull off. I think the easiest were the scenes between the grandfather and granddaughter. They had such a natural chemistry together. There wasn’t really very much I had to do except just get out of their way and let them be great actors together. They’re the real heartbeat of the story. They’re the real emotional arc and I think that they both did a terrific job. That makes me look good and makes my job easier.
Me: Are you ever going to direct someone else’s work?
HA: It’s possible if the right script came along. There’s nothing in the works at the moment. I have a few projects that I’m developing but those are things that I’ve also written… but I definitely have my eyes and ears open. If something came along I would not be opposed.
Me: Tell me about your writing process.
HA: To me, because I’m writing, directing and am involved from the conception to completion, the writing process is pretty fluid and doesn’t just start and end on the page. That’s one part of the process. I also went down to southern Illinois, spent a couple of months down there… scouting locations and talking to locals and incorporating some of the folklore that I heard, into the screenplay. Some changes come when you’re on set and you’re with the actors and they’re bringing their instincts in, it continues to change. Then in post (production) we significantly re-shaped the storyline, as well. But when I’m specifically writing, I try and set hours, you know? I’ll get up at three in the morning and try and work; try to be as diligent as possible. I have to really be regimented or I won’t get anything done. I consider the writing process to be throughout the entire filmmaking process. I was making changes right up until the last day of the sound mix; cutting shots out. It’s an evolution, for sure.
Me: Congrats on doing such an amazing job of casting.
HA: We knew casting the girl was going to be the most important decision we made on the movie because it really rests on her shoulders and if the audience doesn’t take the journey with her than there really is no movie. So, we spent a long time looking for the right actress to play that part and pretty late in the process we had a tape in the mail from Sammy (Samantha Isler). She was living in Tulsa OK, had never been in a movie before and when we got the tape I knew, pretty much right away, that she was the one. She had great instincts, she was smart and understood the subtext… had a real intention behind the words which is pretty rare to see in someone of that age and still have that innocence, you know, that wide-eyed look that we needed. So, we got pretty lucky that we found her and a lot of the other cast were Chicago-based. We were trying to cast locally as much as possible because of the budget. So, we tapped into the local T.V. and theatre scene there and got some great actors and then Ted Levine was on our short list of actors we were looking at. Short because the actor had to be a pretty specific age because we age him up and down for the two time periods. And I’ve always loved his work. He’s played some pretty iconic roles, Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs being the most notorious, but I was excited to see him play a meaty role for a change. We gave him a chance to dig into a morally complex character. We got lucky with him. He’s a real method actor; he gets into the part… pretty obsessive about wardrobe and costuming and all that kind of stuff. It was an honor to work with him. I can’t even imagine another actor playing that role now.
Me: Tell me about your next project, Blue Palms.
HA: The guy that did the storyboards on Dig Two Graves is a cartoonist friend of mine and we concocted a graphic novel that’s best described as a demented version of Three’s Company. So, it’s kind of a wacky comedy about these eccentric artists living in a dilapidated apartment in Hollywood. And we’re getting ready to publish the first volume of that and try to spin that off into an animated comedy series. It’s very different in tone from Dig Two Graves but sometimes you gotta swing the opposite way and keep in interesting.
Me: Give me some words of wisdom for any budding filmmakers who may be reading this.
HA: If you want to be a filmmaker, it’s important to watch movies. To watch a lot of great movies; old movies and really understand the potential of the medium. I think, a lot of times with a first-time filmmaker, they can be a little bland in a cinematic sense. Sort of shot after shot of talking heads. They don’t utilize the full vocabulary of the medium. When you’re ready to make a movie, my advice is, it’s such a laborious, time-consuming process that you really have to make something that you’re passionate about, not something that you think is going to sell or be popular cuz chances are it’s not going to necessarily make millions of dollars. You’re going to be spending years of your life on this. You gotta invest your time in something you really believe in. And enjoy the process as much as the final product.
Me: How do indie filmmakers get their films seen?
HA: We played the festival circuit and then the last year or two had just been trying to figure out the wild, wild west of independent film distribution. We finally got that sorted out. It’s now releasing in theatres and on VOD. Its been a long journey. We’re doing an iTunes exclusive for the first four weeks and then it’ll be available on all VOD platforms; Amazon, Playstation… all of them. That’ll be April 21st. All VOD platforms. Just search Dig Two Graves right now on iTunes and it’ll pop up.
What are you waiting for?! You heard the man. Go check it out and watch this little gem. If you’re a horror fan and like a good indie film, this is a strong story with great characters that is filmed beautifully be someone who appreciates a good movie and wanted to create something for his audience to remember. Hunter Adams was a joy to talk to. I believe he’s a director to watch out for and a name you’ll hear more of in the future. Start now and don’t miss a thing he does.
The Chinese proverb, ‘When you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves,’ is where the title for the film comes from. I had never heard it before and now don’t think I’ll ever forget it. Dig Two Graves is set in the 1970’s and partly told in well-established flashbacks. It’s an award-winning thriller that will keep you on the edge of your seat for most of the time. It was written, produced and directed by Hunter Adams, he wrote it with Jeremy Phillips, stars relative newcomer Samantha Isler, from last years Captain Fantastic, and also stars the fantastic Ted Levine from Silence of the Lambs. Adams, relatively new himself, only has five directing credits to his name, two of them shorts, so if this film is an indication of what’s to come, I’d have to say it won’t be long before his resume doubles.
In this creepy mystery, you’ll fear for the life of an innocent young girl who may or may not be so innocent by movies end. Beautifully shot in a location scouted by the director himself, it takes place in a remote town where siblings, Jake (Isler) and Sean (Ben Schneider) are, essentially, one another’s best friends. In the beginning of the film, an assumed accident happens and Sean vanishes after jumping off a cliff into a quarry below. Devastated and feeling somewhat abandoned, Jake, who witnessed the leap, is filled with guilt for having not jumped herself. Unable to truly move on from his disappearance she retreats from life, eventually believing she’d do anything to get her brother back.
If someone has passed away it’s a silly notion to think it’s possible to bring them back to life but she meets a man who convinces her it’s not such a crazy idea. Her anguished young heart comes across the dark and intimidating vagabond, Wyeth (Ruptash), and his two nomadic pals, who have a history with her grandfather, Sheriff Waterhouse. The sheriff is played devilishly well by Levine who won Best Actor at the Beaufort International Film Festival for his role. He’s not channeling Buffalo Bill in this tale but his voice is still penetrating nonetheless. Waterhouse is carrying guilt regarding the former sheriff that’s eating him alive; consuming his spirit. If you only know Levine from Silence, this is the film to see and watch him spread his wings.
As if stalking prey, Wyeth pops out of nowhere and zeros in on exactly what Jake needs and promises to deliver if she does something for him. She must retrieve an item that was taken from him; a medallion. The medallion summons the power that’s needed to bring her brother back. Agreeing to help him if he helps her, she is now contractually obligated to oblige and fulfill her end of the bargain, however, as often happens in a deal made with the devil, the medallion is only one part of her obligation.
I loved the acting in this film and not just by Levine. Ruptash invokes a Jack the Ripper type feel in his character of Wyeth, as he is so solidly played it was hard to tell if he were human or from the spirit world. Also, this was a great film for Isler to launch her career and deciding to cast her was a brilliant decision by Adams. Of choosing her he told me, ‘She had great instincts. She was smart and understood the subtext… had a real intention behind the words which is pretty rare to see in someone of that age and still have that innocence, you know, that wide-eyed look that we needed.’ So, with this substantial combination of weighty script and successful casting, Adams claimed the Best Director award at the 2015 Beaufort International Film Festival and the Director’s Choice Independent Spirit Award at the Sedona International Film Festival in 2015. If you didn’t catch the film during its festival run, you can catch it now at a theatre near you and on iTunes.
‘We played the festival circuit and then the last year or two has just been trying to figure out the wild wild west of independent film distribution. We finally go that sorted out. It’s now releasing in theatres and on VOD. It’s been a long journey. We’re doing an iTunes exclusive for the first four weeks and then it’ll be available on all VOD platforms; Amazon, Playstation, VooDoo… all of those. That’ll be April 21st. All VOD platforms. Just search Dig Two Graves on iTunes and it’ll pop up.’ -Hunter Adams
Enjoy the film and if you’d like, please come back and share your thoughts.
It’s invigorating to see that Kong: Skull Island isn’t just a remake of King Kong. It has a few similarities, such as beast still digs beauty, but that’s about all. It stands alone on its own giving director Vogt-Roberts something to be very proud of having a part in. Speaking of beauty, however, I did like the more substantive presence of the ape in the 1970 movie King Kong, where you could see Jessica Lange pull at Kong as she begs him to not let her go. This gives you the chance to feel for him much more. That realism isn’t in this version where Kong is CGI. However, if you have a heart, you’ll still hope the best for the guy. Why he keeps falling, literally, for these woman is beyond me, though! You’d think he’d learn by now! I digress.
Far be it for me to suggest you can learn something from a monster movie but I’m going to. You can learn something from this monster movie. You can learn, if you haven’t already, that sometimes with nature things are better left alone. Though we don’t always pay attention to it, there is a natural order of things and if you interrupt or disturb that order, in the name of helping mankind, you could be doing just the opposite. Such is the case here.
Kong is set in the early 70’s in the time of Watergate. Research scientist Bill Randa (Goodman) is in Washington and looking for some money and a military escort to an uncharted island he’d like to explore for the possible medicinal cures it holds. Insert political statement here as Randa stands outside and proclaims that there’ll never be a more screwed-up time in Washington. The Nixon bobblehead is a nice touch, as well.
Randa gets his grant, a photographer (Larson), a rather large escort and his own tracker (Hiddleston); they set off to explore Skull Island which is shrouded by vicious storms. Going only so far by water, the teams, which are led by Colonel Packard (Jackson), take to the air the rest of the way. However, once they clear the dangerous weather another danger appears; Kong. He immediately senses danger and begins to protect his turf which looks more like swatting at flies, to be honest. This scene was well placed as it’s not too far into the film, wasting no time getting you into some heavy action. Packard takes the attack personally. Losing many of his men in the battle he’s now hell-bent on killing the creature. He must prove to Kong that man is King. Jackson’s look is fiery and savage as his Packard stares Kong down for a moment before being whisked away at the last minute. Getting stomped on like a cockroach might have ruined his already horrible day.
Helicopters are scattered and the teams separated. One group meets an indigenous tribe and Hank Marlow (Reilly), also known as the comic relief, a paratrooper who has been stranded on the island since WWII; twenty-eight years to be exact. Through Marlow, the team hears all they need to know of who Kong really is… he’s King. To the people of the island, he’s God. Without him, the Skullcrawlers would dominate and kill every living thing on the island. Kong keeps the skeletal creatures in low numbers and below ground. If not for him, all would perish and not only would they take over the island but they’d begin to take over the planet.
During their lesson, other teams are meeting and in some cases, wiped out, by other inhabitants of the island. If spiders aren’t your thing… this might not be the movie for you but the thought of taking the mother of all spiders down in a wicked way would be spectacular then remember this is a Kong movie, not a spider movie, and get your butt to the theatre. What’s left of the team meet and make their way to the destination point so they can leave the island and you can leave the theatre but don’t do that too soon! There is an after credit scene so make sure you stay all the way until lights up. What they will be assuring you of here is that the MonsterVerse will continue and who could be coming up next. If you like monster movies, you’ll like Kong: Skull Island. You might not like the way Hiddleston overplays his role as Larson’s love interest but the CGI is great and the motion capture performance really pulls you in. Those reasons alone are worth spending the extra money on seeing this at an IMAX theatre if you can. ENOY!
Written and directed by: Hunter Adams Starring: Ted Levine (Shutter Island, Silence of the Lambs) Samantha Isler (Captain Fantastic, TV’s “Supernatural”) Danny Goldring (The Dark Knight, The Fugitive)
Ann Sonneville (“Chicago P.D.,”) Troy Ruptash (TV’s “General Hospital,” “Prison Break,”) After 13-year-old Jacqueline Mather (Samantha Isler) loses her brother in a mysterious drowning accident she is soon visited by 3 moonshiners who offer to bring her brother back to life, but at a grim cost. As the dark history of her grandfather, Sheriff Waterhouse (Ted Levine) is unearthed, the true intentions of the moonshiners come to light.
