Press release:
“The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut” Returns to Theaters with Never-before-Seen Footage for Thrilling One-Night Event
NCM Fathom, Warner Home Video and CHUD.com Bring Academy Award®-Winning Thriller Back to Select Movie Theaters Nationwide September 30
CENTENNIAL, Colo.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The scariest movie of all time, The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut, returns to theaters nationwide for a one-night special event on Thursday, September 30 at 7:00 p.m. local time and again for a second showing at 10:30 p.m. in select theaters. The thrilling special in-theater event, shown in more than 450 select movie theaters nationwide, will feature never-before-seen on-set footage and interviews with Academy Award® winning director William Friedkin, writer William Peter Blatty and actress Linda Blair as well as members of the original cast and crew. Following The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut, audiences will also be treated to a look behind-the-scenes showing how many of the legendary scenes were shot in this classic and thrilling tale of good vs. evil.
Tickets for The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut are available at participating box offices and online at www.FathomEvents.com. For a complete list of theater locations and prices, please visit the website (theaters and participants may be subject to change).
Released in 1973, “The Exorcist” caused a cultural earthquake that is still felt today, shocking and enthralling audiences who had never seen anything like it. Many viewers were frightened out of their wits – and literally out of their seats. Some ran out of the theater; others got physically ill or couldn’t sleep for weeks. Now audiences may experience the same visceral emotions again in their local movie theater with this masterpiece of suspense that haunted, intrigued and thrilled the world.
Adapted from the best-selling 1971 novel inspired by an actual exorcism case, “The Exorcist” tells the now-famous story of a young girl’s demonic possession, and her mother’s (Ellen Burstyn) desperate attempts to save her. Blair, in a breakout role, plays the possessed Regan, caught in a gripping fight between good and evil which culminated with an exorcism conducted by two priests. Terrifying audiences and chilling them to the bone, the theological thriller also starred Max von Sydow, Kitty Winn, Lee J. Cobb, Jason Miller and Mercedes McCambridge. “The Exorcist” is still considered one of the most successful feature films of all time, grossing $440 million worldwide and earning 10 Academy Award® nominations (winning Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Sound).
“The cultural impact of this truly frightening thriller cannot be understated and to experience it in movie theaters on giant, 40-foot screens is amazing,” said Dan Diamond, vice president of NCM Fathom. “With the stunning quality of this special event, fans will be on the edge of their seats like never before.”
Presented by NCM Fathom and Warner Home Video, in association with CHUD.com, The Exorcist Extended Director’s Cut will appear in 457 select U.S. movie theaters, including AMC Entertainment Inc., Celebration! Cinema, Cinemark Holdings, Inc., Clearview Cinemas, Cobb Theatres, Kerasotes Showplace Theatres, National Amusements, Rave Motion Pictures and Regal Entertainment Group movie theaters, as well as Arlington Theatre (Santa Barbara, CA), The Carolina (Asheville, NC), The Majestic 10 (Williston, VT) and Penn Cinema (Lititz, PA).
“The Exorcist” will be available from Warner Home Video on Blu-ray in a two-disc, high-definition set featuring both the original theatrical version and Extended Director’s Cut of the film plus three new documentaries on October 5. For more information, visit http://www.warnerhomevideo.com/.
About National CineMedia (NCM)
NCM operates NCM Media Networks, a leading integrated media company reaching U.S. consumers in movie theaters, online and through mobile technology. The NCM Cinema Network and NCM Fathom present cinema advertising and events across the nation’s largest digital in-theater network, comprised of theaters owned by AMC Entertainment Inc., Cinemark Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CNK), Regal Entertainment Group (NYSE: RGC) and other leading regional theater circuits. NCM’s theater network covers 172 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50) and includes approximately 17,100 screens (15,600 digital). During 2009, over 680 million patrons attended movies shown in theaters currently included in NCM’s network (excluding Consolidated Theatres). The NCM Fathom Events broadcast network is comprised of approximately 550 locations in 154 Designated Market Areas® (49 of the top 50). The NCM Interactive Network offers 360-degree integrated marketing opportunities in combination with cinema, encompassing over 40 entertainment-related web sites, online widgets and mobile applications. National CineMedia, Inc. (NASDAQ: NCMI) owns a 48.0% interest in and is the managing member of National CineMedia LLC. For more information, visit www.ncm.com or www.fathomevents.com.
About Warner Home Video
With operations in 90 international territories, Warner Home Video, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company, a division of the Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group, commands the largest distribution infrastructure in the global video marketplace. Warner Home Video's film library is the largest of any studio, offering top quality new and vintage titles from the repertoires of Warner Bros. Pictures, Turner Entertainment, Castle Rock Entertainment, HBO Home Video and New Line Home Entertainment.
About CHUD.com
CHUD.com (Cinematic Happenings Under Development) is one of the premier entertainment websites, having operated since the late 1990's when the Internet was still an unknown commodity for film discussion and opinion. Over its lifespan it has become a daily bookmark for millions of fans across the world as well as Hollywood's best and brightest filmmakers. Featuring one of the smartest and most diverse communities of film fans, CHUD.com and its brand has a reach that has crossed over into television, print, and the multiplex. “The Sewer,” as it's known to its fans, is constantly evolving to keep its audience energized and its editorial staff on their toes.
Saturday, September 11, 2010
"Doom" is Promise Doomed
Doom (2005)
Running time: 100 minutes (1 hour, 40 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong violence/gore and language
DIRECTOR: Andrzej Bartkowiak
WRITERS: David Callaham and Wesley Strick; from a story by David Callaham
PRODUCERS: John Wells and Lorenzo di Bonaventura
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Tony Pierce-Roberts
EDITORS: Derek Brechin, Peter Dansie, Chris Lloyd, and Toby Lloyd
Razzie Award nominee
SCI-FI/HORROR/ACTION
Starring: Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Karl Urban, Rosamund Pike, DeObia Oparei, Ben James, Razaaq Adoti, Richard Brake, Al Weaver, Dexter Fletcher, and Brian Steele
When something goes horrible wrong at the Olduvai Research Station on Mars, causing a Level 5 quarantine, the Rapid Response Tactical Squad, hardened Marines heavily armed with enough firepower to neutralize any kind of enemy (or so they think), head for the red planet. Arriving on Mars via the Ark portal (kind of like a stargate from the film Stargate and the TV series), the Marines, led by Gunnery Sergeant Asher “Sarge” Mahonin (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson), seal off the portal and find the research facility in a state of panic.
The most important scientists that they came to rescue are dead and the one that is still alive, Samantha Grimm (Rosamund Pike), is actually the twin sibling of one of Sarge’s marines, John “Reaper” Grimm (Karl Urban), and Samantha claims not to know what happened to her colleagues. When Sarge and the RRTS begin trekking through the research installation’s countless halls and rooms, they find nightmarish creatures of unknown origin around almost every wall and corner.
Doom is the latest videogame translated to the movie screen, and in this action horror flick, macho clods with little acting talent or ability run around with big guns shooting at big ugly monsters. The film is like a low-rent version of Aliens, with its Space Marines battling the aliens, or Predator, with a covert action team fighting an alien monster in the jungles of Central America. Doom, however, isn’t nearly as entertaining as either of these movies, nor is the quality of the filmmaking in the same league. Doom isn’t even as good as the Resident Evil franchise.
Still, Doom is mildly entertaining, although it is incredible lame – yes, it is so badly made that it is physically handicapped. The writing is atrocious and the acting isn’t worth the effort of coming up with mean, clever things to say. The directing captures that horror movie atmosphere of the boogeyman around the corner. In fact, the monster reveals are quiet good; these creature jump out of the shadows with the flair of the best cinematic ghouls. Some of the attackers are even straight out of a George Romero movie, although I can’t understand why zombies and the living dead were so popular with game developers in the 1990’s.
I guess the film is enjoyable for what it is. Overlook the fact that this film is garbage, and you might enjoy this as a throwaway rental if you’re a guy, but don’t expect your lady friend to sit through this with you – even if she says she really loves you. This is a dog of a movie, not a “good” bad movie, but a “bad” bad movie. Doom is an FPS game, or first person shooter game, and the movie is meant to appeal to the 13-year old boy (or the 13-year old in the adult man) who would love to have a big gun. He can blast away at monsters that in turn explode in gory bursts when the bullets hit, and, of course, he won’t notice that the movie, like the FPS game, is short on story so it can be long on violence.
4 of 10
C
NOTE:
2006 Razzie Awards: “Worst Actor” (Dwayne Johnson)
Friday, September 10, 2010
Saturday Night Live's Brand New Negro
I found this at BET.com's "Stay Tuned..." blog (which they got from the Washington Post):
NBC announced new Saturday Night Live cast members and one of them is Jay Pharoah, the first Black person added since 2003. Pharoah is a 22-year-old comic from Chesapeake, Virginia who became an Internet sensation thanks to spoof videos that featured him doing dead-on impersonations of Denzel Washington, Charlie Murphy, and Eddie Murphy, among others. Since Fred Armisen, who currently impersonates President Barack Obama, is leaving, is Pharoah SNL’s new Obama?
NBC announced new Saturday Night Live cast members and one of them is Jay Pharoah, the first Black person added since 2003. Pharoah is a 22-year-old comic from Chesapeake, Virginia who became an Internet sensation thanks to spoof videos that featured him doing dead-on impersonations of Denzel Washington, Charlie Murphy, and Eddie Murphy, among others. Since Fred Armisen, who currently impersonates President Barack Obama, is leaving, is Pharoah SNL’s new Obama?
Review: "Silent Hill" Movie is Creepy But Mediocre
Silent Hill (2006)
Running time: 127 minutes (2 hours, 7 minutes)
MPAA – R for strong violence and gore, disturbing images, and some language
DIRECTOR: Christophe Gans
WRITER: Roger Avary
PRODUCERS: Don Carmody and Samuel Hadida
CINEMATOGRAPHER: Dan Laustsen
EDITOR: Sébastien Prangère
HORROR/FANTASY
Starring: Radha Mitchell, Sean Bean, Laurie Holden, Deborah Kara Unger, Kim Coates, Tanya Allen, Alice Krige, and Jodelle Ferland
Rose Da Silva’s (Radha Mitchell) adopted daughter, Sharon (Jodelle Ferland), walks in her sleep and calls out the name “Silent Hill.” Rose discovers that Silent Hill is a town located in Toluca County, West Virginia. In fact, Silent Hill is very near Brahams, which is where the orphanage from which Sharon came is located. Against her husband, Chris’ (Sean Bean) wishes, Rose takes Sharon and races for Silent Hill. Meanwhile, she attracts the attention of Brahams Police Department motorcycle officer, Cybil Bennett (Laurie Holden).
Rose and Sharon, however, have an auto accident near the boundary of Silent Hill. Rose awakens to find herself bruised and Sharon missing, so Rose walks into the mist-enshrouded Silent Hill searching for daughter. However, Officer Bennett has also followed them to Silent Hill, and she finds herself in the same predicament Rose does – lost in a seemingly abandoned town that sometimes transforms into a decayed “otherworld” where Rose and Cybil are stalked by horrifying creatures that walk with a disturbingly jerky gait. The two women band together to find Sharon, but the mystery of Silent Hill only deepens when they finally encounter Silent Hill’s human inhabitants.
Silent Hill is based upon the popular horror survival video game of the same title (the first of five – as of this writing – was released in 1999). Horror survival video games usually have players battle an onslaught of undead (usually zombies and monsters) and other supernatural creatures. The best known of this genre is Resident Evil, which has also spawned two film versions. Director Christophe Gans (Le Pacte des Loups – The Brotherhood of the Wolf ) and writer Roger Avary (Quentin Tarantino’s co-writer on Pulp Fiction) have based this movie on the first two games in the series.
Half of the time, the narrative is vague, and those unfamiliar with the game will struggle to figure out what’s going on. The film is also way too long to be so vague; it’s a horrible film going experience to struggle for nearly an hour of the film’s running time not really understanding the concept or central idea. On the other hand, Silent Hill has a lot of superbly creepy atmosphere, and it bears more than a striking resemblance to the paintings and drawings of Clive Barker, a noted horror novelist who is not as well known as an artist. It’s not often that a movie so ably captures what it’s like to be trapped in a nightmare – knowing you have to wake up but you can’t escape the hideous and repulsive monsters your mind has created. Akira Yamaoka (who scored the game series) and Jeff Danna’s music for the film combines eerie synth notes and beats with random noises and sound effects to create the perfectly chilling horror flick score. However, for all its genuine chills, Silent Hill is ultimately a mediocre flick worth a rental. It could have been memorable, if only the filmmakers didn’t act as if all of us (video gamers and non gamers) should already know what’s going on before we take a seat in the local theatre.
4 of 10
C
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Music Documentary "77 Boadrum" at New People
J-Pop Week Offers 5 Nights Of Pop Culture Inspired Film, Fashion, Music And Anime Events That Culminate In J-Pop Summit Festival On Saturday September 18th
NEW PEOPLE teams up with Noise Pop, organizers of the leading independent music festival in the Bay Area, for a special theatrical presentation of 77 Boadrum on Thursday, September 16th at 7:30pm at VIZ Cinema. A pre-screening reception begins at 6:00pm, hosted by Shochu distiller Haamomii.
77 Boadrum is a documentary of the Japanese free-rock group the Boredoms’s astounding concert that took place July 7th, 2007 at 7:07pm in the Empire-Fulton Ferry State Park in Brooklyn, NY and featured 77 drummers performing simultaneously. The film will be preceded by a music video screening of Cornelius’ Synchronized & Sensurround. General admission tickets for the film screening are $10.00.
The Boredoms are one of Japan’s most iconoclastic experimental musical acts. Formed in Osaka in 1986 by Eye Yamataka, along with frequent collaborator Yoshimi, the Boredoms acknowledge no limits of genre or form, there are no boundaries, and no ceiling on the possibilities of experience and expression. For more than 20 years, the band has redefined the concept of noise and experimentation within pop, punk, and psychedelic music.
For a pre-event reception beginning at 6:00pm, NEW PEOPLE will offer J-Pop gift bags and present inventive spirits and beverages provided by Bay Area Shochu distiller, Haamonii. Haamonii is a new low calorie Japanese spirit created from over 400 years of tradition that mixes like vodka but with far less calories and a very smooth, floral-inspired taste. Haamonii, which means harmony in Japanese, also won a gold medal from the Beverage Tasting Institute.
J-Pop Week continues at NEW PEOPLE every night through Friday, September 17th with a variety of events celebrating Japanese and Asian film, anime, fashion design, music and other forms of pop culture. Special gift bags containing a variety of fun premiums will be given to all ticket holders each night. Check www.J-Pop.com for a complete list of nightly events.
The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 takes place Saturday, September 18th in San Francisco’s Japantown and will present a variety of fun Japanese pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, a theatrical film premiere, live art performances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands. Innovative artists and companies from the Bay area and Japan will join in with an array of products for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street and a food court highlighting Japanese cuisine will further complement the celebration. Complete details are available at: www.J-Pop.com.
VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.
About Noise Pop
Established in San Francisco in 1993, Noise Pop started as a yearly festival of independent music that featured the best local bands the city had to offer. Over the last 16 years it has grown into a widely respected brand. Noise Pop prides itself on bringing exposure to emerging artists, many of whom have gone on to widespread acclaim, including the White Stripes, Modest Mouse, The Flaming Lips, Death Cab for Cutie, The Shins, Bright Eyes, The Donnas, Jeff Tweedy (of Wilco) and Silversun Pickups. More info at: www.noisepop.com
About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: www.NewPeopleWorld.com.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Review: "Resident Evil: Extinction" is More Apocalyptic
Resident Evil: Extinction (2007)
Running time: 95 minutes (1 hour, 35 minutes)
MPAA – R for not-stop violence, language, and some nudity
DIRECTOR: Russell Mulcahy
WRITER: Paul W.S. Anderson
PRODUCERS: Paul W.S. Anderson, Jeremy Bolt, and Robert Kulzer
CINEMATOGRAPHER: David Johnson
EDITOR: Niven Howie
HORROR/ACTION/SCI-FI with elements of drama
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Oded Fehr, Iain Glen, Ali Larter, Ashanti, Christopher Egan, Spencer Locke, Matthew Marsden, John Eric Bentley, and Mike Epps
Following the events of Resident Evil: Apocalypse, the recent film, Resident Evil: Extinction, presents a world where only pockets of humanity scattered around the globe remain because the world has been overrun by flesh-eating zombies. Series heroine, Alice (Milla Jovovich), hides in the Nevada desert, traveling the lonely highways on a motorcycle. Fate forces her to rejoin her old comrades Carlos Olivera (Oded Fehr) and L.J. (Mike Epps) and a group of new survivors, including Claire Redfield (Ali Larter), K-Mart (Spencer Locke), and Nurse Betty (Ashanti). They’re all part of a lonely convoy of small trucks and one school bus, trying to evade the undead humans, who were turned into flesh eating zombies by the T-virus.
Meanwhile, Dr. Isaacs (Iain Glen), a scientist from the Umbrella Corporation, the people responsible for the creation of the T-virus is seeking Alice’s whereabouts. Isaacs believes her blood is the key to finding a way to destroy the virus. He tracks to Alice and the convoy just as they arrive in what is left of Las Vegas, which is now nearly buried in sand and likely stocked with the undead.
Resident Evil: Extinction is an improvement over Resident Evil: Apocalypse, but Extinction isn’t as thrilling or as frightening as the original 2002 Resident Evil. Extinction is somewhere in the middle, but closer to the first film. Director Russell Mulcahy (best known for directing Highlander over two decades ago) piles on more visual style and flair than Apocalypse had, so the fight scenes in this film are much more exhilarating. Although often predictable, Extinction is, at times, genuinely chilling and creepy thanks to the stellar makeup on the zombies.
Yeah, the filmmakers sell us out at the end by setting up the story for another film, but what they deliver in Resident Evil: Extinction is mostly good. Bring on the next film.
6 of 10
B
Thursday, October 18, 2007
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VIZ Cinema Presents "5 Centimeters Per Second"
J-POP WEEK CONTINUES AS NEW PEOPLE, ANIME ON DISPLAY AND CRUNCHYROLL PRESENT
5 CENTIMETERS PER SECOND FILM EVENT AT VIZ CINEMA
Fans Are Invited To A Week Of Nightly Events Leading Up To The J-Pop Summit Fest 2010
Next Tuesday, September 14th, NEW PEOPLE and VIZ Cinema partner with leading online content provider Crunchyroll and San Francisco’s very own anime convention, Animation On Display (AOD), for a special theatrical event for director Makoto Shinkai's acclaimed anime feature film 5 Centimeters Per Second.
The ANIME NIGHT premiere includes a pre-show reception party as well as a Q&A session about the film, which screens at 7:00pm and 8:45pm. VIZ Cinema is located inside NEW PEOPLE at 1746 Post St. in the heart of San Francisco’s Japantown. General admission tickets for the film screening are $10.00.
All attendees will also receive a special gift bag containing:
1. A re-mastered retail DVD of 5 Centimeters Per Second, courtesy of Crunchyroll.
2. Certificate for a "Buy One, Get One Free" tickets for AOD's upcoming 2011 convention
3. Free one-month Crunchyroll anime membership
Along with a myriad of other great gifts from Pocky, Red Bull and more! A $60 value for only $10!
The first 25 paid attendees for either screening will also receive a FREE one-day pass to Anime On Display 2011, the Bay Area’s largest annual anime convention.
Beginning with the lyrical image of cherry blossoms falling at five centimeters a second, Makoto Shinkai paints a breathtakingly vivid tableau of young love desire loss and hope. Told in three breathtaking chapters, audiences follow the young dreamer Takaki through his life as cruel winters, cold technology, silence, and finally, adult obligations and responsibility converge to crush the delicate petals of true love.
ANIME NIGHT is part of NEW PEOPLE’s J-Pop Week, offering five consecutive nights of pop culture inspired events that culminate with the J-Pop Summit Festival 2010, on Saturday, September 18th in San Francisco’s Japantown. Tickets and more information are now available on www.J-Pop.com.
The J-Pop Summit Festival 2010 presents a variety of fun Japanese pop-inspired attractions including fashion shows, a theatrical film premiere, live art performances, and mini-concerts by some of Japan’s hottest bands. Innovative artists and companies from the Bay area and Japan will join in with an array of products for sale in open air displays on both sides of Post Street and a food court highlighting Japanese cuisine will further complement the celebration. More details are available at: http://www.j-pop.com/.
VIZ Cinema is the nation’s first movie theatre devoted exclusively to Japanese film and anime. The 143-seat subterranean theatre is located in the basement of the NEW PEOPLE building and features plush seating, digital as well as 35mm projection, and a THX®-certified sound system.
About NEW PEOPLE
NEW PEOPLE offers the latest films, art, fashion and retail brands from Japan and is the creative vision of the J-Pop Center Project and VIZ Pictures, a distributor and producer of Japanese live action film. Located at 1746 Post Street, the 20,000 square foot structure features a striking 3-floor transparent glass façade that frames a fun and exotic new environment to engage the imagination into the 21st Century. A dedicated web site is also now available at: www.NewPeopleWorld.com.
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