“Rise of the Planet of the Apes” was a $480 million worldwide hit, but buzz-averse distributor 20th Century Fox rolled out the movie in early August with a blitz of TV advertising but otherwise so little fanfare (as per their usual operating procedure, screenings for critics were “opt-in,” and additionally hush-hush) that a lot of more savvy filmgoers who perhaps look to advance reviews and feature coverage peeks as signs of studio confidence in the marketplace thought the movie was a brainless dud. Far from it, actually. Director Rupert Wyatt’s reboot of Tim Burton’s reboot of Fox’s second most well known franchise property (not counting “Star Wars,” which they don’t own)…

Huzzah! Andy Serkis has signed onto the sequel for “Rise of the Planet of the Apes”! The Hollywood Reporter has an article outlining the particulars of Serkis’ return to the highly successful franchise, which also starred James Franco, John Lithgow, Frieda Pinto and Tom Felton, which includes Fox exercising its option on the director of “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” Rupert Wyatt, and asking “Rise” writers Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver to write a script for the sequel. Also, according to the site, Serkis didn’t originally have a deal for a sequel. Now, that Serkis has proven he can add weight and depth to a role in order…

Title: Rise of the Planet of the Apes Directed By: Rupert Wyatt Starring: Andy Serkis, James Franco, Freida Pinto, John Lithgow, Brian Cox, Tom Felton, David Oyelowo, Tyler Labine, Jamie Harris This summer, CGI’s been presented mainly as a gimmick – in good ways, like in Thor, in okay ways, like in Cowboys & Aliens and in nauseating ways, like in Transformers Dark of the Moon. While Rise of the Planet of the Apes is packed with digitally created apes, they are in no way comparable to the CGI planets, aliens and robots we’ve seen in the past few month; they’re as real as they can be without actually being…

I’ve seen this film and it’s fantastic. As a huge fan of all (even somewhat of the Tim Burton version) “Planet of the Apes” movies, I really dug this new one. It holds true to the mythology and imagination created by these films, while at the same time, pay homage to its source. One of the reasons why this new movie is so effective is the amazing special effects by WETA, who also did the motion capture work of “The Lord of the Rings”, Peter Jackson’s “King Kong” and “Avatar”. All of this capped off by the spectacular and extremely heartfelt performance by Andy Serkis, who play Gollum and King…

“There’s going to be more celebrities here than rehab,” says Katherine Heigl’s cahracter in the newly-released “New Year’s Eve” trailer. While the character was talking about people being in Times Square for New Year’s Eve, that statement could have applied to the movie itself. Just like its predecessor “Valentine’s Day,” it seems like everyone who’s alive in Hollywood is in this movie. The trailer, which is embedded below, shows a lot but really nothing at all except for fluffy, happy, easy-going rom-com movie tidbits. Basically, the story is the same as “Valentine’s Day,” except that Ashton Kutcher and Jessica Biel are playing two different characters (I assume Hector Elizondo, who…

Sony Pictures UK released the latest UK trailer for the upcoming film “The Smurfs” by director Raja Gosnell (Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Scooby-Doo, Home Alone 3) written by J. David Stem (Daddy Day Camp, Shrek 2, The Rugrats Movie) and rumored to be starring John Lithgow (Dexter, Shrek) and Julia Sweeney (The Goode Family, Maybe It’s Me, Beethoven’s 4th). Click Here for more photos, news and videos from The Smurfs. Synopsis: A live-action comedy about the little blue forest-dwellers is being shot in New York, and here is a first peek at the formerly 2-D Grouchy, Papa and Clumsy, reimagined through computer animation and eventual 3-D projection. The film arrives in…

Building more buzz on “The Rise of the Planet of the Apes”, FOX released a three-minute clip from the movie. The clip has actor Andy Serkis, who plays Caesar, introducing the clip and the circumstances of the scene. The clip features John Lithgow as Charles Rodman and James Franco as his son, Will Rodman, along with the ape, Caeser. There’s a cool nod or easter egg to the first “Planet of the Apes”. “The Rise of the Planet of The Apes” will be released on August 5th and was directed by Rupert Wyatt and will also feature Tom Felton, Brian Cox and Freida Pinto. Official Synopsis: A single act of…

Katy Perry (The Muppets) talks about her role in the upcoming film “The Smurfs” by director Raja Gosnell (Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Scooby-Doo, Home Alone 3) written by J. David Stem (Daddy Day Camp, Shrek 2, The Rugrats Movie) and rumored to be starring John Lithgow (Dexter, Shrek) and Julia Sweeney (The Goode Family, Maybe It’s Me, Beethoven’s 4th). Click Here for more photos, news and videos from The Smurfs. Synopsis: A live-action comedy about the little blue forest-dwellers is being shot in New York, and here is a first peek at the formerly 2-D Grouchy, Papa and Clumsy, reimagined through computer animation and eventual 3-D projection. The film arrives in…

Here’s a new Russian movie poster for the upcoming film “The Smurfs” by director Raja Gosnell (Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Scooby-Doo, Home Alone 3) written by J. David Stem (Daddy Day Camp, Shrek 2, The Rugrats Movie) and rumored to be starring John Lithgow (Dexter, Shrek) and Julia Sweeney (The Goode Family, Maybe It’s Me, Beethoven’s 4th). Click Here for more photos, news and videos from The Smurfs. Synopsis: A live-action comedy about the little blue forest-dwellers is being shot in New York, and here is a first peek at the formerly 2-D Grouchy, Papa and Clumsy, reimagined through computer animation and eventual 3-D projection. The film arrives in August 2011….

Check out the latest domestic poster for the upcoming film “The Smurfs” by director Raja Gosnell (Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Scooby-Doo, Home Alone 3) written by J. David Stem (Daddy Day Camp, Shrek 2, The Rugrats Movie) and rumored to be starring John Lithgow (Dexter, Shrek) and Julia Sweeney (The Goode Family, Maybe It’s Me, Beethoven’s 4th). Click Here for more photos, news and videos from The Smurfs. Synopsis: A live-action comedy about the little blue forest-dwellers is being shot in New York, and here is a first peek at the formerly 2-D Grouchy, Papa and Clumsy, reimagined through computer animation and eventual 3-D projection. The film arrives in August 2011….