How Very Dare They!?

Came in this morning to find an exciting package on my desk. Was it the Wolverine people finally sending me my own claws?! No! It was this metal desk-name thing from the people who brought out state of Play. They say it made them think of me!!

Harsh to say the least. Have you seen it yet? It is rather good. Here’s our review.

My First Movie Premiere…

…by Hayley Kaplan, MSN Entertainmen

World Premiere State of Play blog entry

Hi! I’m an intern for Entertainment at MSN. Thanks to my wonderful colleagues here, I was lucky enough to get two tickets to the world premiere of State of Play in Leicester Square.

I am just a university student here for a few months from the States, so this opportunity is basically a movie-goers dream come true. I was very excited. I was even more excited when the tickets were delivered right to my desk because I never get mail at MSN, never mind getting mail from Universal Studios.

I decided to take my friend Linda to the premiere as my date because she is equally as obsessed with movies as I am, and was possibly more excited about the premiere than I was. The invite said that doors open at 6:00 and that everyone must be seated (in big bold letters) at 6:45.

Advised by my colleagues not to go to the premiere too early, Linda and I strolled down the red carpet at 6:30 proudly clutching our tickets because they were the reason we got passed the numerous security to get in. We were the envy of every face on the other end of the barricades.

We walked in with all the other guests who were not famous. The red carpet was rather long for this premiere, so strutting down it was a dream within itself. Once we got passed the red carpet, everything was not as exciting as one would think. There were queues for popcorn and a crowd moving anxiously into the theatre. It was like seeing any other movie.

Linda and I took our seats and immediately opened our complimentary water bottle and chocolate bar. We then waited for the film to start. And waited. And waited. It was not until 7:30 that the real action actually started.

Ed, the movies editor who usually blogs here, told me the next morning that the whole “doors close at 6:45” thing was just a rouse, but I am naturally a prompt person and this was my first premiere (and possibly only), so how was I supposed to know?

And then…Kevin Macdonald, the director, walks in and introduces the film. I was in awe to be sitting in the fourth row just feet away from him. And then…he introduces Helen Mirren and Russell Crowe.

Linda and I are huge fans of Helen Mirren and were thrilled to hear her speak. I honestly was so stunned I don’t remember much of her little speech, besides her saying how grateful she was to Russell Crowe for taking over the lead role in the film at the last minute because Brad Pitt dropped out (although she didn’t mention Brad Pitt).

Then it was Russell Crowe’s turn to speak. I’m not a huge fan of his considering all he’s done to journalists and his less than stellar reputation, but I was excited to see him nonetheless. However, he got handed the microphone said that what he was about to say was per tradition and recited a brief poem about how much he loved Australia. Or at least that was what I got out of it. Anyway, he didn’t make the best impression.

The lights dimmed and the curtains opened and from there on out it was like any other film-going experience. The film itself was pretty good. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it to any movie fan.

That was my first premiere experience. It was very exciting to be in Leicester Square in the thick of it all, but I do have to say that the whole process is a little overrated. I guess I can be arrogant enough to say that now that I’ve been to a premiere, but it is really just watching a free movie with some famous people speaking before it. The whole red carpet event outside was a much bigger deal than what actually happens when stars go through the theatre doors. Helen Mirren actually stayed through the whole film because I’m pretty sure I saw her leave afterwards, but for the most part stars do not stay through the film at all.

Anyway, it was a great opportunity to go the premiere, and one that I enjoyed very much. Everyone go and see State of Play in theatres on Friday.

Wiley Old Walt…

Walt Disney was a clever old cat in more ways than one. I was fascinated by the YouTube phenomenon that reveals later Disney movies copying frames from earlier ones. London’s Metro newspaper put it well yesterday – there’s truth in their assertion that this might have something to do with the “reassuring familiarity” of Disney flicks.

Blockbusters – leaked the way they want??

Transformers 1 had an incredibly slick marketing machine that had us all nostalgic and biting our nails in anticipation of the forthcoming flick at the same time. Now some new images from Transformers 2 have “emerged” online – and they’re pretty exciting!

Further to these, there’s a line-up of transformers from both sides, which reads like the team sheets for some kind of futuristic sports event. I can’t wait to meet “demolisher”.

In contrast to this exciting stuff, it appears that X-Men Origins: Wolverine has been leaked onto the internet in near-complete form which is really regrettable for the producers. Clearly this is an example of a positive leak and a negative leak. In the future, as we start to consume more and more digitally, I wonder if the lines will be blurred between intentional leaks and unintended.

Nominated?! Us?!

There’s no need to clap. Please, stay in your seats. MSN UK has been nominated for an award – an International Digital Emmy no less!

Kirill – our 2008 sci-fi drama series – represented our first steps into narrative online video. We were impressed with the results as, it seems, were the people over at the International Academy.

Fronted by Pirates Of The Caribbean star David Schofield, Kirill is the story of a renegade scientist secluded in a filthy lab. He knows that a sinister organisation is preying on young science students. But he can’t reach them – it’s all very mysterious.

There are 8 mini-episodes here at the Kirill homepage, but there’s a lot more to it than that. What really distinguishes Kirill are the character blogs that remain integral to the story throughout. Our characters, particularly the young scientist Vivian (Vee Vimolmal), blog their experiences and communicate with each other in text as well as video. This makes the series a unique online experience that wouldn’t work in any other medium.

We’re proud of it and chuffed to bits with the recognition. Fingers are crossed for the awards on March 30. Go Kirill!

Counting Down to 24…

Tick… tick… tick… the 24 movie is happening!!

The folks over at Digital Spy took a brief diversion from the subject of Monsters vs. Aliens, which Kiefer was out promoting recently, and this is what he said when pressed about the possibility of some cinematic 24 action – sounds like a Europe-bound 24 adventure is on the cards…

“It’s something that we’ve always talked about because I think the fantastic thing about Europe, for something like 24, is that it’s very feasible to get from Prague to London in the course of a day,”

“It’s just a question of when we’re actually going to make the movie,” he said.

BTW – I was there for that Monsters v Aliens press junket. And may I just say what a thoroughly, THOROUGHLY nice chap Mr Sutherland is. If I ever thought that this was a bad idea and that 24 belongs on TV, I don’t any more. I’m with him whatever he does. Go Jack!! Sorry… go Kiefer!!

A franchise with the decency to die…

In times like these, when the 80s’ and 90s’ every hero is being resurrected whether good or bad, it’s fantastically refreshing to encounter a brand with the guts to call it a day and admit defeat. I never thought I’d say this, but we can all learn a little from the Power Rangers.

According to the New Zealand Herald, the long-running series, which spawned two movies in ‘95 and ‘97, has finally bitten the dust.

This news comes in the same week that we hear further word of Beverley Hills Cop 4, Zoolander 2, Twilight 3 (!), Free Willy 4, Fantastic Four 3 and Mad Max 4. The world has gone sequel-crazy!

In this credit crunchy environment, every established brand is being wrung for every $ it’s worth. So it’s nice to see that Power Rangers are biting the dust. I’d love to say that this is entirely due to an ethical decision that the world has had enough Power Rangin’, but the reality is almost certainly that the barrel is dry oin this one.

One franchise calling it a day with its dignity intact is Lethal Weapon (yes, Lethal Weapon 4 WAS good!), despite calls for a last hurrah from Mel Gibson and Danny Glover. Apparently, Mel won’t wear the mullet again. Bravo, Mel!

One piece of good news on the sequels front is the announcement of Tron 2, with Jeff Bridges starring and Daft Punk on the soundtrack! I’ll have a write-up of this along with a collection of other sequels that would actually be welcome on the site tomorrow.

Oscars 2010!

One of the more interesting segments of the Oscars is the part where they look forward at the movies likely to by vying for awards next year.

Of course it’s far too early to make any accurate predictions. But, public enemies looks like a beast of a crime thriller. The Boat That Rocked may also find itself in contention if it carries sufficient indie charm.

However, I’m going to go out on a limb and say that I don’t think Night At The Museum 2 will be nominated for anything.

The Academy Awards 2009 Blog

Two happy things…

The world came out with two wonderful things that made me smile today.

One – Chewbacca in a cupboard (I don’t care if it’s fake!).

Two – The Sun’s clever, clever front page headline (on the subject of the bankers who were questioned yesterday.