SALVI: ANG PAGPADAYON Starts Its Screening Week with a Warm Reception

[photo from the Salvi: Ang Pagpadayon facebook page]

The Ilonggo Movie SALVI: ANG PAGPADAYON had its premiere night last September 10, 2013 at the SM City Cinema, and was attended by fully-packed house. It was attended by various distinguished personalities such as City Councilors, which does tell us that the City Government does support the local arts scene. And it was obvious that the audience that evening loved the movie.

SALVI: ANG PAGPADAYON is showing this week [from September 11, 2013 to September 17, 2013] at the SM City Cinema, and is part of the Film Development Council of the Philippines' 2013 Sineng Pambansa National Film Festival All-Masters Edition which will exclusively be screened in 45 branches of SM Cinema across the country. SALVI was chosen to be the film under the festival's New Breed cinema. Watch out for my review of SALVI tomorrow.

JURASSIC WORLD is set for June 2015 [UPDATED: See the Pitch Trailer!]

JURASSIC PARK 4 is now officially titled JURASSIC WORLD. And Universal Pictures has targetted June 12, 2015 as the official release for Jurassic World.  The film currently has that release date all to itself, though Assassin’s Creed and Pixar’s Inside Out are scheduled for release the following weekend.  Nevertheless, Jurassic World should make a very nice addition to the insane slate of films set to be released in 2015. [hit the jump to continue]

Brief Q & A with TM Malones, Director of SALVI: ANG PAGPADAYON

The Ilonggo Film SALVI: ANG PAGPADAYON is showing this week on SM City Cinemas, not only in our cinema here in Iloilo city, but in 45 branches of SM Cinema across the country as well. This is a movie shot with Ilonggo actors and actresses, shot in various locations in Iloilo City, its production crew are Ilonggo, and the director is Ilonggo as well, TM Malones. I have recently caught up with the director TM Malones, who has been quite busy with the premiere and the screening of the movie this week, to shoot in some few interview questions so that we may get a glimpse of what to expect from this Ilonggo movie and a glimpse of what inspires Mr. Malones’ style and work. [hit the jump to check out the interview]

Eli Roth's GREEN INFERNO and its greenlit sequel

Eli Roth, the director of CABIN FEVER and the 2 HOSTEL movies, hasnt directed a movie in a while, but he has been producing such films as THE LAST EXORCISM movies. Now he's back with the movie GREEN INFERNO which centers its story on a group of student activists who travel from New York City to the Amazon to save a dying tribe, but crash in the jungle and are taken hostage by the very natives they protected. While Green Inferno just had its world premiere as part of the Midnight Madness lineup at the Toronto International Film Festival, and while it is yet to be released in mainstream cinemas, a sequel is already being planned. It looks like the studio has much faith in the project; we wonder if this is indeed a movie that audiences will positively respond to. This movie seems to tap on the classic horror theme of cannibals as was popularized in the 80's movie CANNIBAL HOLOCAUST. [hit the jump to continue]

Dwayne Johnson eyed to be THE FALL GUY, McG to direct

One of the popular TV series from the 1980s THE FALL GUY is one of those 80s series that has been in development hell to be made into a movie, but hasn't quite taken off yet. Not until now, Dwayne Johnson is being eyed to star in it. Starring Lee Majors, The Fall Guy centered on a stuntman who moonlighted as a bounty hunter when work was slow.  Just as Johnson is reported as being in negotiations to step into Majors’ shoes, McG (We Are Marshall) is also in talks to direct.  If deals were to close, casting would likely look to the roles of a sidekick cousin and a fetching female stunt actress, played by Douglas Barr and Heather Thomas in the original series, respectively.  That is, if the big-screen version were to follow in the footsteps of the ABC series; no plot details are available just yet. Both Johnson and McG are in talks to get The Fall Guy off the ground. Hit the jump to continue on with the article where we give you a glimpse of what THE FALL GUY is about via the series' synopsis, and the intro for the classic TV series itself. 

Sir Ian McKellen to play a Retired Sherlock Holmes

When he'll be done with X-Men: Days of Future Past where he reprises his role as Magneto, we'll probably be next seeing Sir Ian McKellen playing a retired Sherlock Holmes as lead in A SLIGHT TRICK OF THE MIND to be directed by Oscar winner Bill Condon, director of such films as Gods and Monsters, Chicago, Kinsey, and Dreamgirls. Further casting will be announced in the coming weeks. AI Film, the production arm of the Icon UK Group owned by Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries, has announced it is financing and co-producing the movie. [hit the jump to continue]

ON THE JOB (OTJ) Review

Some people who have described this movie as a return to the classic 80’s Pinoy action movies may not have remembered how those old movies were; Most of those old tagalog action movies were too plain, too stereotypical, and too predictable. In contrast; OTJ breaks the norm and defies the stereotype; it is highly unpredictable, uniquely realistic and very unclear who the good guys actually are, which is a good thing actually. We can safely say that ON THE JOB is that great cinematic hope to change the game in Philippine cinema. [read THE FULL REVIEW click HERE]

Syowing this Week

It looks like another week of great movies with two big genre flicks opening this week, an intelligent  sci-fi action movie, an action remake, a ghost horror movie based on real events, and a biopic of popular 70's pornstar.[hit the jump to continue]

Transformers 4 entitled Age of Extinction; will feature Dinobots

Yes, there is going to be a 4th Transformers movie. And its title has recently been revealed, along with its first teaser poster and the new cast list which include Mark Wahlberg, Nicola Peltz, Jack Reynor, Stanley Tucci, Kelsey Grammer, Sophia Myles and Bingbing Li. The official title of Transformers 4 is TRANSFORMERS: AGE OF EXTINCTION. It has also been revealed that the Dinobots will have their much awaited appearance in the movie. This movie will scheduled for release on June 27, 2014.[hit the jump to continue]

Pinoy Indie Film BABAGWA to compete in Canada, Hawaii, and Poland

The indie film BABAGWA was an entry in this year’s Cinemalaya New Breed section. It is all set to go international, vying for film festivals in Canada, Hawaii, and Poland. On September 28 to October 4, 2013, it will be at the Dragons & Tigers Award for Young Cinema at the Vancouver International Film Festival. It will also be competing in the 29th Warsaw International Film Festival in October 11 to October 20, 2013. And finally, it will also be competing for the Halekulani Golden Orchid for Best Narrative award at the Hawaii fest on October 13 to October 23, 2013. BABAGWA is written and directed by Jason Paul Laxamana, and stars Alex Vincent Medina, Joey Paras, Alma Concepcion, Kiko Matos, Nico Antonio, Chanel Latorre, Marx Topacio, Raqs Regalado, Garry Lim, Sunshine Teodoro. BABAGWA is about an Internet scammer who falls in love with a wealthy old maid while trying to swindle her using a fake Facebook profile.

Dakota Johnson and Charlie Hunnam cast as lead roles in the Fifty Shades of Grey movie

We may have JOKED about Fifty Shades of Grey before (that was April Fool's Day anyway). BUT this time, we're serious when we're reporting the main characters of the book adaptation have been cast. Dakota Johnson has been chosen to star as Anastasia Steele, the lead female character, and Charlie Hunnam has been chosen to star as Christian Grey, the lead male character in Universal Pictures and Focus Features’ highly anticipated film adaptation of “Fifty Shades of Grey,” The film, which will be released by Focus Features on August 1, 2014 in the US, is being directed by Sam Taylor-Johnson and produced by Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti alongside E L James, the author of the bestselling book on which the film is based.  The screenplay is by Kelly Marcel. [hit the jump to continue]

Trailer Tuesdays: Elysium, The World's End, Getaway, Metro Manila

Our Trailer Tuesdays this week brings forth some trailers for the futuristic sci-fi movie from Neill Blomkamp (director of District 9) and starring Matt Damon on the lead; ELYSIUM. The British apocayptic comedy THE WORLD'S END which stars Simon Pegg and Nick Frost, and directed by Edgar Wright (director of Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead). We also got GETAWAY starring Ethan Hawke and Selena Gomez, and Byzantium, directed by Neil Jordan, and starring Saoirse Ronan. All of which opens tomorrow (September 4, 2013). In addition, we got a trailer from the upcoming movie entitled METRO MANILA which was directed by British film director, writer, and producer Sean Ellis, and stars Jake Macapagal, Althea Vega, and John Arcilla. [hit the jump to continue]

Hayao Miyazaki to Retire from Filmmaking

Japanese filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki is retiring.  Studio Ghibli president Hoshino Koji announced earlier today at the Venice Film Festival that the 72-year-old filmmaker and master of animation is retiring, but further questions about the decision were not answered.  Miyazaki first started working as an animator in 1961, going on to co-found the wonderful Japanese animation studio Studio Ghibli, where he directed a number of highly regarded animation features including 1988’s My Neighbor Totoro, 1989’s Kiki’s Delivery Service, 1995’s Princess Mononoke, and 2007’s Ponyo.

This is not the first time that Miyazaki has announced retirement, as he previously took a sabbatical after Princess Mononoke, only to come return to direct 2004’s Howl’s Moving Castle.  Miyazaki’s latest—and probably final—film, The Wind Rises, is currently making the festival rounds and is poised to play Telluride this weekend and the Toronto International Film Festival next week.

Charlize Theron and Chloe Moretz set to star in DARK PLACES

Charlize Theron, Christina Hendricks, Nicholas Hoult, and Chloë Grace Moretz are set to shoot alongside writer-director Gilles Paquet-Brenner a film adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s best-selling novel DARK PLACES. Corey Stoll (MIDNIGHT IN PARIS, HOUSE OF CARDS), and Tye Sheridan (upcoming JOE, MUD, TREE OF LIFE) will also be starring in this movie. DARK PLACES has already commenced principal photography this week on location in Shreveport, Louisiana.

DARK PLACES tells the story of Libby Day (Theron), a woman who, at the age of 7, survives the massacre of her family and testifies against her brother as the murderer. Twenty-five years later, a group obsessed with solving notorious crimes confronts her with questions about the horrific event.  Told in a series of flashbacks from the points of view of Libby’s mother, Patty, and her brother, Ben, Libby is forced to revisit that fateful day and begins to question what exactly she saw - or didn’t see - the night of the tragedy. [hit the jump to continue]

Upcoming Movies: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

One of the biggest anticipated movies of the year is the second movie in The Hunger Games movie franchise; THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE. Based on Suzanne Collins' novel, Catching Fire, the second installment in The Hunger Games trilogy, this is the sequel to the 2012 adaptation of the same title THE HUNGER GAMES which was successful, so much so that its studio Color Force and distributers Lionsgate and Entertainment One are set to adapt the entire series as a movie franchise, hopefully, as successful as the Harry Potter movies.  Francis Lawrence, director of Constantine, I Am Legend, is directing this movie and will also direct the next two movies THE HUNGER GAMES: MOCKINGJAY PARTS 1 and 2 as well. Catching Fire's screenplay is written by Simon Beaufoy and Michael Arndt. THE HUNGER GAMES: CATCHING FIRE is set for release in the US November 22, the film lands in Philippine theaters November 21, 2013.[hit the jump to continue]