The surprise winner of last year’s Sundance Film Festival was Like Crazy: unconventional filmmaker Drake Doremus’ take on the highs and lows of love. Unlike other romantic dramas, this one is able to subvert the clichéd trends and offer a simple yet fruitful romance story that relishes in its low-key charm.

Anna (Felicity Jones), a British student studying in America, embarks upon a passionate love affair with the artistic, if slightly less involved, Jacob (Anton Yelchin). When Anna overstays her visa and is denied re-entry into the US, the couple must battle a mélange of issues to keep their love alive.

This is a story not only about the ups and downs of love, but also of the naïveté and recklessness of being young. Anna and Jacob live by their hearts, never thinking about the effects of their actions. Instead of pondering their future, they spend their early courtship having pillow fights and spending whole days in bed.

It’s only when they’re forced to take action in their lives, find jobs and settle into complex relationships (with Charlie Bewley’s Simon and Jennifer Lawrence’s Sam, respectively), that they can look back on the early days. Can that innocence be reclaimed, and could that relationship ever work?

No matter how true-to-life Like Crazy feels, Doremus and screenwriter Ben York Jones’ decision to work against the norm – an in-depth script was scrapped in favour of a brief outline and the cast’s ability to improvise - causes the characters to feel a little perfunctory and absent-minded. However, thanks to Jones and Yelchin’s devotion and aptitude, the cracks are only just visible, barely having any effect on the predominantly absorbing experience.

Jones and Yelchin are, to the film’s advantage, simply marvellous at making the conceit believable and reflective of real life relationships. Working mainly off-the-cuff and encapsulated in DoP John Gulesarian’s encompassing handheld camera and whimsical lighting, they’re able to create an inherently tangible and organic connection – one that feels entirely logical in the way it’s left to mature without any outside interference.

In addition to their subtle yet engaging and competent chemistry, they also prove themselves as excellent actors, not least in their capability to say so much through the touch of a hand, the look out the corner of an eye or slight movement in their bodies. Even the supporting cast, no matter how clearly their characters are engineered for the narrative, deliver surprisingly affecting performances. It’s Alex Kingston and Olivier Muirhead, though, as Anna’s intriguing if much-too-blasé parents that steal the show in their brief scenes.

Like Crazy is not without faults, but it’s through sheer tenacity, candor and the air of authenticity Doremus, Jones and Yelchin are able to establish that it can differentiate itself from other films of its ilk. For those willing to invest a little, there’s oodles of reward.

****~ (4/5)

Just yesterday, we got the news that Peter Weller, the original RoboCop, had joined the new additions to the cast of JJ Abrams’ upcoming Star Trek sequel, along with Alice Eve and Benicio del Toro. (You can catch up on all our Star Trek-related coverage right here.)

Del Toro was the first of the new additions to be announced last month, and over the past few days there’s been some speculation as to what villain he’d be playing, with Khan surfacing as a possibility. Abrams was thought to have denied that del Toro would be playing Khan, but Vulture, via The Playlist, are now reporting that his wording was a slight technicality, in that del Toro is now exiting the project, and that the film’s villain is indeed set to be that of Khan.

I must confess that I’ve never seen any of the Star Trek films, including Abrams’ first film in 2009, but I’m a big fan of del Toro’s work, and thought that he was a brilliant addition to the original cast, which is headed up by Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, and Anton Yelchin.

Unfortunately, it looks as though that’s no longer the case, with the report citing issues over wages being the breaking point for negotiations, which is a real shame. The show, of course, must go on, and so the search will no doubt be on to re-cast the villain’s role in del Toro’s place. With production scheduled to start next month, for a release date currently set at 17^th March, 2013, it’s not unreasonable to expect an announcement coming soon, hopefully in time for Christmas.

Following on from the recent casting additions we’ve been getting in the past few weeks, with the brilliant Benicio del Toro and Alice Eve joining the cast, JJ Abrams’ highly anticipated Star Trek sequel has another new cast member, Deadline report, in the form of Peter Weller.

Weller is best known for his role as the original RoboCop back in 1987, and has more recently been seen in TV’s Dexter, Fringe, and half a season of 24 back on Day 5 as Christopher Henderson.

Much of the original cast, including Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, and Anton Yelchin, are expected to reprise their roles for the sequel, with del Toro heading up the new additions in the form of the as-yet-unannounced villain.

Naturally, plot details are being kept under wraps, including what Weller’s role will be, but with a script coming from frequent collaborators Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, whose credits include the original 2009 film, Transformers, and TV’s Alias and Fringe, and with their Cowboys & Aliens co-writer Damon Lindelof joining them this time around, I think it’s a safe bet that fans will be happy with whatever they’ve got in store for us.

Though I’ve not seen him in much, I thought Weller was brilliant in season five of 24, and he’s clearly still on top of his game in joining the cast for the sequel. Filming is scheduled to begin next month, and is currently set to be released in 3D on 17^th May, 2013.

Alice Eve (Big Nothing) has been cast in J.J. Abrams’ as-yet-untitled Star Trek sequel.

The actress, best known for her role in She’s Out of My League, beat out Hayley Atwell (Captain America: The First Avenger) and Teresa Palmer (I am Number Four) for the unspecified role.

Most of the original cast, including Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana and Anton Yelchin, are expected to return for the sequel, with Benicio Del Toro on board as the villain.

Plot details, on the other hand, are being held closely under wraps, but expect more details to trickle out as the film edges closer and closer to its imminent production start date.

The film will be released on May 17, 2013.

Source: Variety

Drake Doremus has been making something of a name for himself this year with his latest feature film, Like Crazy, after winning the Grand Jury Prize in the Dramatic category for his direction at Sundance back in January.

His leading female, Felicity Jones, also came away with the Special Jury Prize for Dramatic Acting, and it’s really good to see her doing so well in and out of the UK.

We saw the film’s theatrical trailer back in August, and now we’ve got a brilliant TV spot to share with you, courtesy of Yahoo Movies, to promote its US release.

“A love story is both a physical and emotional tale, one that can be deeply personal and heartbreaking for an audience to experience. Director Drake Doremus’ film Like Crazy beautifully illustrates how your first real love is as thrilling and blissful as it is devastating. When a British college student (Felicity Jones) falls for her American classmate (Anton Yelchin) they embark on a passionate and life-changing journey only to be separated when she violates the terms of her visa.Like Crazy explores how a couple faces the real challenges of being together and of being apart. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Picture at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and of the Special Jury Prize for Best Actress for Felicity Jones, Like Crazy depicts both the hopefulness and the heartbreak of love.”

Sadly, we’ve got a bit of a wait to see this, with its UK release scheduled for 3rd February next year. But it definitely looks like it will be well worth the wait, and I can’t wait for the start of February to roll around. Though the film itself may not be on many people’s Films of the Year lists come the end of next month, I really enjoyed Jones’ performance in Chalet Girl earlier this year, and Yelchin has been a brilliant rising young star for several years now, and this is fast becoming one of the films I’m most looking forward to seeing in 2012. It looks to be indie cinema at its finest. Without further ado, here’s the TV spot, entitled Memories, to enjoy. It’s pretty wonderful.

Mel Gibson’s on-screen reunion with Jodie Foster was with a film which had a seemingly bizarre premise, but reception for The Beaver was generally very positive and that’s due in no small part to the work of writer Kyle Killen.

Killen is also the creator of Lone Star, a show very well-received by critics, which fell victim to the peculiar practises of US Network TV and cancelled after just two shows had aired but The Beaver should propel Killen to greater heights.

I had the chance to put my questions to the man who put a talking beaver puppet on the hand of Mel Gibson (and there’s a sentence I never thought I’d write…), here’s the interview:

The premise is a very bold one, and has to be sold to the audience quickly for the film’s emotional threads to work. Was this a daunting task?

When I started the script I was actually adapting it from what had been a novel I was trying to write, so the first step was really figuring out what to get rid of, what characters and storylines really weren’t ultimately required to tell this story between a father and a son.  Matt Lauer for instance was a big character in the novel, but got the axe in the script.

Did you ever come under any pressure to change any elements of the scripts, or was it the difference what made it exciting for the cast, crew and producers?

Before Jodie came on there was lots of pressure to change certain elements about the end.  It was really her defence of those items that allowed them to exist.  That certainly made her involvement exciting for everyone involved.  That doesn’t mean she didn’t have other things about the script that she wanted to rethink or change, but it meant that on some level we were working with someone who hoped to tell the same type of story the script set out to tell.
Were you on set a lot, and was there anything you changed or cut at the last minute?

I wasn’t on set that much.  I’d sold a TV pilot and was off writing that.  Jodie tended to want to get the script nailed down before she started shooting so most of the changes took place before we got to set. Jodie and Mel are about as close as two people can be and they worked out what they were going to do entirely between the two of them.  I think they had a sort of shorthand that you can only develop with people you’ve known and trusted for a long, long time.

How was working with Jodie Foster as a star and director – was her take on the material different to how you had written it?

Jodie was excellent.  Her take on the material was different than mine, but it came from a very personal and unwavering place.  She knew what kind of movie she wanted to make, and she did just that.  In the end that’s what you ask of a director, to have a vision for the film, and Jodie brought just that.
With the success of the film are you finding the landscape of opportunity an exciting one, and do you have any passion projects which are closer to being made?

It’s been a very exciting time.  The opportunities that have stemmed from it are both incredible and intimidating and there’s an awareness on my part that it could all dry up at any time.  The Beaver really came from a willingness to not worry about what might work and to instead focus on a story I wanted to tell.  I’ve tried to let that guide me since.
Your next project is Scenic Route – can you tell us a little about the film, and how far you are along with it?

Scenic Route is casting to shoot in November.  It’s a very small film that sort of came from the idea that if you were to be trapped in a rapidly deteriorating situation with someone, you’d probably hope for your best friend.  But in this case it turns out the baggage you bring might mean you’d be far better off with a total stranger.

To mark the release of The Beaver on DVD 10th October, Icon Home Entertainment have given us three copies of the movie to give away. Not only that, but you’ll also win a beaver hand puppet! The Beaver is directed by Jodie Foster and stars Mel Gibson, Anton Yelchin and Jennifer Lawrence.

Written by Kyle Killen, The Beaver is an emotionally compelling story about a man who embarks on a journey to re-discover his family, and re-start his life. Plagued by his own demons, Walter Black (Gibson), formerly a successful toy exec and family man, suffers from a severe form of depression. No matter what he does, Walter can’t seem to get himself back on track – until a beaver hand puppet enters his life.

In what will surely go down as one of the performances of his career, Mel Gibson perfectly epitomizes the split personality of Walter Black and The Beaver hand puppet, the gravely cockney voice of the latter is said to be modelled on Gibson’s Edge of Darkness co-star Ray Winstone.

Director and co-star Jodie Foster says of her close-friend’s performance, “Walter Black and the beaver had to be somebody who could fully understand and communicate comedy and tragedy at the same time. I’ve been friends with Mel for over 15 years and we’ve had many, many long discussions about life, it was a natural place to go.”

To be in with a chance of winning this fab movie on DVD, simply answer the following question using the form below:

Who Directed the movie, The Beaver?

COMPETITION NOW CLOSED

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 10th October at 23.59 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received
• No cash alternative is available

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

After months of speculation, JJ Abrams has finally gone ahead and confirmed what we were all expecting anyway: he’s going to direct Star Trek XII. Or II. Whatever it’s going to be called, he’s directing it.

Despite the phenomenal success of 2009’s critically acclaimed reboot the Star Trek sequel has faced a number of delays, not least of which was the fact that Abrams was himself committed to directing this summer’s Super 8 as well as producing the forthcoming Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol. On top of that, co-writer Alex Kurtzman has been working on his own directorial debut, Welcome to People, meaning that Star Trek’s so-called ‘supreme court’ has been stretched pretty thin of late – so much so, in fact, that Paramount had previously confirmed that the film would not meet its already announced release date of June 29th 2012, a spot that has now been taken by G.I Joe 2: Retaliation.

Still, the stars are finally aligning for the new crew of the Starship Enterprise; work on the long in development script will reportedly be complete by the end of this month with shooting beginning sometime during the winter (most signs suggest a January stardate – I mean start date; sorry). The studio has already exercised its options on the cast, meaning that Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Karl Urban, Zoe Saldana, Simon Pegg, John Cho and Anton Yelchin will all be returning to the roles they first played in the 2009 film.

Look for the Star Trek sequel to warp into cinemas anywhere from Christmas 2012 to summer 2013.

Better late than never I suppose… Recently I had the chance to sit down with two of the stars of Fright Night, Gary Gillespie’s remake of the 1985 Tom Holland horror comedy in which a retired ghost hunter is recruited by two local teens to rid their town of the local vamp.

Anton Yelchin is rocketing to the top of his game with roles in sci-fi staples Terminator: Salvation and the latest Star Trek films as well as less standard fare such as Like Crazy and The Beaver, while his co-star Christopher Mintz-Plasse is known to many for his turn in Superbad and later suiting up for Matthew Vaughn’s Kick-Ass and the two were in London recently to throw spotlights on their latest film.

The pair were good enough to sit down with me after what must have been an exhausitng press tour for the film, which is out now, to talk about making horror films in a post-Scream world and how much fun it was to be part of a good old-fashioned gory horror.

Jamie put up the teaser trailer for the new Paramount Vantage Pictures movie, Like Crazy just a few days ago and now apple have released the second full length theatrical version which shows us a little more footage from the movie which came away with the Best Picture Award at the Sundance Film Festival earlier in the year.

Like Crazy stars Anton Yelchin, Felicity Jones, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlie Bewleyis directed by Drake Doremus and will be with us in the UK February 3, 2012 rather a long time after it lands in the US on 28th October.

A love story is both a physical and emotional tale, one that can be deeply personal and heartbreaking for an audience to experience. Director Drake Doremus’ film Like Crazy beautifully illustrates how your first real love is as thrilling and blissful as it is devastating. When a British college student (Felicity Jones) falls for her American classmate (Anton Yelchin) they embark on a passionate and life-changing journey only to be separated when she violates the terms of her visa.Like Crazy explores how a couple faces the real challenges of being together and of being apart. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Picture at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival and of the Special Jury Prize for Best Actress for Felicity Jones, Like Crazydepicts both the hopefulness and the heartbreak of love.

Seeing little blue people prancing before your very eyes is usually not a sign of good health. But Raja Gosnell’s The Smurfs In 3D makes you feel far from blue and has a simple if predictable storyline that all ages can get involved with. It’s Smurfin’ good fun.

When the evil wizard Gargamel (Hank Azaria) chases the tiny blue Smurfs out of their village, they tumble from their magical world through a wormhole and into ours in the bright lights of New York City. Now they must find a way back before Gargamel captures them all and drains them of their magical blue essence. They’re going to need some human help first.

If the plotline sounds familiar, then that’s because it is – the idea of mixing live-action and animation was done in the hit 2007 film Enchanted when Giselle pops up and falls in love with a human character in the Big Apple. The Smurfs is much less inventive and charming, and far more slapstick for kids with lots of death-defying accidents and puerile toilet humour, especially when Gargamel is in the frame.

The single most annoying factor for adults here is ‘Smurf-zing’ of all words in the English language. This starts out as quite quaint and a bit of a giggle to share with the kids, but fast wears thin. Still, the little blue people are so cute, cuddly and funny at times that all is very often forgiven as they put a smile back on your pained face – especially when they sing their hypnotic little song that’s actually more fun to sing/hum post-viewing to annoy the hell out of others.

Like all kiddies’ films, the adult heroes are also ‘cute and cuddly’ and funny in a dopey, inoffensive sense. These performances are provided by Neil Patrick Harris as pressurised marketing director Patrick Winslow and Ugly Betty’s Jayma Mays as his hormonally challenged pregnant wife, Grace, two of the nicest New Yorkers any visitor from another world could ever hope to land themselves with. Both Harris and Mays are so kid-friendly and welcoming that it’s hard not to warm to their mounting concern and Smurf loyalty. As always, the lead human character proves his/her worth when the chips are down, and rises to the occasion, proving to the little darlings watching that humanity and kindness to all creeds speaks volumes in any language.

Gurning Azaria who’s the spitting image of the Child Catcher in Chitty Chitty Bang Bang puts on another daft accent and panto performance to become more animated that realistic, but is nevertheless always amusing to watch, if incomprehensible at times. Smaller children looked noticeably frightened of him on screen – especially in 3D with that nose, so there could be repeats of sleepless nights for kids across the land, mirroring the late Sixties/early Seventies, even though this wizard gets his comeuppance.

Naturally, there is a direct commercial angle to the whole film that cannot be ignored, with ‘spot the Sony product placement’ in virtually every shot – but at least it’s not Apple for once. The other aspect that isn’t really necessary is the 3D, although if you fork out for the ticket price, the overall result is better on the eyes than some recent offerings, and the shots use the technology to the best ability.

The Smurfs In 3D is join-the-dots, made-for-kids goofy blue magic that does nothing memorably new, but is guilty of putting a smile on your face, even after the Smurf-zing assault on the ears. If nothing else, it reinvents the franchise, and adds a little cool blue factor to the iconic figures, especially with Katy Perry being the voice behind Smurfette.

***~~ (3/5)

Paramount Vantage have released a brand new trailer and poster for Like Crazy.

Directed by Drake Doremus (Spooner), Like Crazy stars Felicity Jones (Albatross), Anton Yelchin (The Beaver), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone), Charlie Bewley (The Twilight Saga: New Moon), Alex Kingston (Alpha Dog) and Oliver Muirhead (The Social Network).

Synopsis: When a British college student (Felicity Jones) falls for her American classmate (Anton Yelchin) they embark on a passionate and life-changing journey only to be separated when she violates the terms of her visa.

Like Crazy won both the Grand Jury Prize and the Special Jury Prize at the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, and is scheduled to hit UK cinema screens on February 3, 2012.

Check out the trailer and poster embedded below:

Source: Apple

Here is another surprise from this week.  I love coming to con with no expectations from certain films and being turned into a believer.  Last year Megamind was one of the films changed my mind during its hour long comic-con panel. ”Fright Night” had a little bit of that wonder at today’s panel.  I don’t think I’ll spend money on it in the theaters but it sure as heck looked like a fun ride.  Most of the cast was on hand to discuss and screen footage from the film.

The first thing to note is that the film was filmed in 3D.  For me, that’s enough to get my seal of approval.  For the most part, I’ve stayed away from seeing movies in 3D that weren’t natively shot in 3D.  This film looks really great, albeit very dark, which bodes well for non-action directors who want to foray into the medium without having to blow shit up.  Sure there is some action in the film but the film is much more a tense thriller then balls to the wall action, which is what we’ve come to expect from 3D movies.

For me, the highlight of the panel was one of the pieces of footage we were able to see.  The sequence involves a mild car chase were Colin Farrell is chasing a car with Anton Yelchin, Imogen Poots and Toni Collette.  Farrell has just been outed as a vampire and is determined to kill our main character.  The entire scene is a single take that lass what felt like 5 minutes.  It felt a lot like that car scene from Spielbergs “War of the Worlds” in which the camera knows no bounds.  The camera smoothly works its way outside, inside and through the car with a very slick ease.  The director said it took them about 3 months to get that shot right based purely on choreography and the fact that the camera weights 90lbs. I really feel like the 3D is on full beautiful display here.  I would really like to see more directors work with 3D this way.  Quick cuts and fast camera motion really mess up 3D.  The only downside I could see from seeing it in 3D is my common problem with all 3D films, it’s too damn dark.  Other then that, this flick seems like a fun time at the movies

There is a really nice blend of action, horror and comedy that I think a lot of people will really enjoy.

Comic Con has drawn to a close for the evening (at least it has for us as it’s now 2.45am!) and to end the night, here’s the extended clip from Fright Night whcih was shown during the panel introduced by former Dr. Who himself, David Tennant.

Fright Night stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse , Colin Farrell , Anton Yelchin , David Tennant , Toni Collette , Imogen Poots and is directed by Craig Gillespie . It gets it’s UK premiere August 14th and we cant wait to see it all finished.

Senior Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) finally has it all going on: he’s running with the popular crowd and dating the most coveted girl in his high school. In fact, he’s so cool he’s even dissing his best friend. But trouble arrives when Jerry (Colin Farrell) moves in next door. He seems like a great guy at first, but there’s something not quite right—but everyone, including Charlie’s mom (Toni Collette), doesn’t notice. After observing some very strange activity, Charlie comes to an unmistakable conclusion: Jerry is a vampire preying on the neighborhood. Unable to convince anyone, Charlie has to find a way to get rid of the monster himself in this Craig Gillespie-helmed revamp of the comedy-horror classic.

 Source: Yahoo

Felicity Jones (The Tempest), Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone) and Guy Pearce (Memento) have signed on to star in director Drake Doremus’ as-yet-untitled next film.

Filming on the Indian Paintbrush production is expected to commence next month in upstate New York, and is said to be about “love, fidelity, marriage and music”.

Doremus’ latest film, Like Crazy, was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, and stars Jones, Anton Yelchin (Fright Night) and Jennifer Lawrence (Winter’s Bone). It will be released later this year.

Source: Deadline

He’s something nice for the evening, it’s a nice new UK trailer for the remake of the 1985 classic, Fright Night although it comes courtesy of American website, Bloody Disgusting. It gives us another little look into the movie although if you want to go in knowing nothing about it, you might want to avoid this one as it gives rather a lot away. To me, it looks like a modern day Lost Boys so I’m game!

Fright Night stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Colin Farrell, Anton Yelchin, David Tennant, Toni Collette, Imogen Poots and is directed by Craig Gillespie. It gets it’s UK premiere August 14th and we cant wait to see it all finished.

Senior Charlie Brewster (Anton Yelchin) finally has it all going on: he’s running with the popular crowd and dating the most coveted girl in his high school. In fact, he’s so cool he’s even dissing his best friend. But trouble arrives when Jerry (Colin Farrell) moves in next door. He seems like a great guy at first, but there’s something not quite right—but everyone, including Charlie’s mom (Toni Collette), doesn’t notice. After observing some very strange activity, Charlie comes to an unmistakable conclusion: Jerry is a vampire preying on the neighborhood. Unable to convince anyone, Charlie has to find a way to get rid of the monster himself in this Craig Gillespie-helmed revamp of the comedy-horror classic.

Jon’s seen the movie and you’ll be able to read his review nearer the movie’s release date.

Columbia Pictures have gifted the world with this brand new clip from The Smurf movie which shows what happens when Neil Patrick Harris opens a box which contains multiple little blue people (nothing to do with Avatar!).

The Smurfs is directed by Raja Gosnell and features a voice cast which includes Jayma Mays , Neil Patrick Harris , Katy Perry, Sofía Vergara, Anton Yelchin , Hank Azaria , Alan Cumming and George Lopez. Papa Smurf, Brainy Smurf, Smurfette, Grouchy Smurf, Gutsy Smurf and Panicky Smurf are all present ahead of their new movie which is set to be released 3rd August next year.

Synopsis: The adventures of a mythical race of little blue creatures in medieval times that must deal with each other and humans, particularly an evil wizard obsessed with capturing them for his own sinister purposes.

The Smurf Movie is in 3d and hits UK cinemas 10th August.

Dreamworks have remade the 1985 horror comedy Fright Night and this Wednesday, the 6th of July, there is a special screening being held in London’s West End and you could be coming along to see the film almost two months before it is released in UK cinemas.

If you’ve not caught up with the trailers and posters for this film then feel free to click here and immerse yourself in Craig Gillespie’s film, which stars David Tennant, Imogen Poots, Anton Yelchin and Colin Farrell alongside Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Toni Collette.

It should be a very fun night and we’d love for you to join us there. 4 pairs of tickets are on offer and all you need to do is answer the following question in the form below.

Which UK TV role is David Tennant most famous for?

Competition now Closed

The small print:

• Open to UK residents only
• Only one entry per household will be counted
• The competition will close 5th July at 12.00 GMT
• The winner will be picked at random from entries received
• No cash alternative is available
• Entrants must be available to make the screening in a West End on Wednesday the 6th of July at 6pm
• Expenses to get to and from the the screening are not covered in the prize

The usual T&Cs can be found here. Good Luck!

Dreamworks have kindly sent through these lovely new character posters for Craig Gillespie’s updating of the horror comedy Fright Night and we get our best look yet at David Tennant as as a tooled up Peter Vincent.

Imogen Poots, Anton Yelchin and Colin Farrell complete the set and they are part of an excellent cast which include Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Toni Collette. The film is due out in the UK on the 2nd of September and the clips and trailers so far point to a decent horror movie, with Farrell doing his best to creep us all out. Buffy’s Marti Noxon is on scripting duties, having been on the board of Mad Man recently.

Looks good (except that Imogen Poots’ head doesn’t sit quite well on her shoulders in this pic), we’re hoping Gillespie’s film will live up to its promise.

Here are your posters,

Mention Mel Gibson’s new film The Beaver, and the standard retort is, “who wants to see that?” after what the actor’s said in public. Reminiscent to loathing a political party, based on a figurehead’s opinions and actions, fallen star Gibson has a lot of campaigning to do. But putting all the less-than-attractive Gibson character traits aside, and merely looking at The Beaver as a relationship story about coping with mental illness, it does highlight what a great actor Gibson is – a pity, considering his name will put some off considering this as a viable cinema choice.

The Beaver, directed by and co-starring Jodie Foster, is an emotional story about a man called Walter Black (Gibson) with an escalating mental illness who wants to get better and rebuild his family, but initially feels he can only live in the real world through the aid of a discarded puppet called the Beaver. Once a successful toy executive, Black deals with his demons by letting the Beaver speak for him, to the success of his ailing business, but to the detriment of his family life: His wife, Meredith (Foster), feels more and more alienated by his behaviour, although she tries to incorporate it as part of his healing process. Walter’s older teenage son, Porter (Anton Yelchin), who spends his life being the voice of others via the written word, tries blocking out his father’s worst characteristics he feels he’s adopting, making him hate Walter all the more. The only one who gets Walter is his young son, Henry (Riley Thomas Stewart), who relates to the Beaver – and his father – via woodwork crafts. It takes a tragedy to rally the family into take action, before their bonds are damaged beyond repair.

Without a doubt, writer Kyle Killen’s short story about a ‘talking’ beaver has evolved into an immensely thought-provoking, touching and original screenplay about the effects of depression. Indeed, far from patronising those with the illness, stories and characters have helped sufferers and their relatives deal with its effects in the past – take Ellverton’s Taming the Black Dog, for example. Hence The Beaver feels like a cinematic explanation that doesn’t attempt to find a solution in 90 minutes, but tries to paint a picture of one person’s experiences.

All the adult cast inject an emotional wealth and complexity into their characters that make for some gruelling viewing moments, compared to lighter-hearted and hopeful ones. It seems Foster still has the tricks of the trade since Little Man Tate (1991) to get the most poignant, natural and spontaneous reactions out of her stellar cast, particularly the younger actors, and possibly down to her own friendship and connection with Gibson.

Gibson brings the much-needed inner turmoil laced with subtle humour and child-like insolence to the part of Walter as he explores his ‘alter ego’ and the hold it has on it. Walter’s own love-hate relationship with the Beaver takes an abrupt, stomach-churning turn, but one necessary to push the film onto the next phase and the road to salvation. The irony is this film was made long before Gibson’s ‘public escapades’, but with hindsight, you can’t help watching it as a redemption piece for his character and career, especially one scene when the Beaver delivers rough justice on its human mannequin.

On the downside, some of the Black-est moments seem borderline glib, enhanced by a dubious, upbeat soundtrack, and The Beaver has some stagnant, complacent parts to its story that make proceedings drag a little. Although the introduction of Jennifer Lawrence as popular girl Norah is designed to stir the real Porter from his comatose self – and add a touch of ‘glamour’ to the neutral colour palate of the film, it does feel like an odd sub-plot, like the marriage of a teen-angst drama of the Heathers ilk, to a more serious character study, like the Madness of King George. Still, Yelchin does not disappoint, bringing a Charlie Bartlett ‘oddball’ side to Porter – if a less witty one, and does his best opposite Oscar-nominated Lawrence (Winter’s Bone) in character development. Foster furrows her brow and stumbles her words in a role we’ve seen her enacted countless times, but still adequately gets her character’s message of personal hardship across.

Gibson or no Gibson, The Beaver is never going to be an easy sell on subject matter alone. But curiosity over a Gibson screen return may make this a surprise box office climber – and a warm-up act for the greatly anticipated How I Spent My Summer Vacation this year. Maybe Gibson can get The Beaver to do all the talking from now on?

***~~ (3/5)