Previews: Mission: Impossible – Fallout Featurette, More!

Plenty in this week’s preview of coming attractions, including the new Mission: Impossible – Fallout featurette, plus Mortal Engines, Mile 22, and more…

Mission: Impossible – Fallout Featurette

Here is the brand new Mission: Impossible – Fallout featurette. Producer and star Tom Cruise and director Christopher McQuarrie discuss the upcoming film, the sixth in the franchise. What is interesting about the series is that rather than starting off strong, and getting progressively weaker, the films have got better generally (Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol is a particular highlight). Mission: Impossible – Fallout will hit UK screens on 25th July 2018.

Mile 22 Trailer

Here is the latest trailer for Mile 22. The action thriller is about an American intelligence officer who must smuggle an informant out of the country. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Ronda Rousey, John Malkovich, and Iko Uwais. Directed by Peter Berg, Mile 22 is coming soon to UK cinemas.

Black KkKlansman Poster

Above is the latest poster for Spike Lee’s Black KkKlansman. The film is based on the true story of first African-American detective on the Colorado Springs Police Department, who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan. The film stars John David Washington and Adam Driver. Black KkKlansman is out at UK cinemas on 24th August 2018.

The House with a Clock in its Walls Trailer

The House with a Clock in its Walls is a new fantasy adventure from director Eli Roth. The film is about a young boy who goes to live with his mysterious uncle in a peculiar house. The film stars Jack Black and Cate Blanchett. The House with a Clock in its Walls will be released in cinemas on 21st September 2018.

Mortal Engines Featurette

Here is a new look at the upcoming Mortal Engines. The film is directed by Christian Rivers, and co-written and produced by Peter Jackson. Set in a post-apocalyptic world, the film is about giant cities that roam the Earth, enveloping smaller towns. Starring Hugo Weaving, Mortal Instruments will hit UK screens on 14th December 2018.

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Stuff To Look At

A bumper edition this week, with plenty of releases for 2013…

Man of Steel

I have always been more of a Batman child than a Superman one, but I did love the Christopher Reeve movies (maybe not the last one). After 2006’s underwhelming Superman Returns, this new version looks more appealing. Henry Cavil stars as the title character in the first full trailer for Man of Steel, due for release in June 2013.

Oblivion

Ageless Tom Cruise has been getting action-heavy recently, with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, Jack Reacher and now Oblivion. This futuristic thriller sees Cruise’s character Jack Harper battle to save mankind. Also starring Andrea Riseborough, Oblivion will be released in UK cinemas on 12 April 2013.

The Wolverine

The follow-up to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, The Wolverine is due for release in July 2013. The film sees Hugh Jackman reprise his role from the X-Men franchise. This adventure is set in Japan, as the above poster suggests. I’m sure a trailer for The Wolverine will be released shortly.

The Lone Ranger

Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter together again, but not in a Tim Burton film? The emphasis in the above trailer is on the fact that it is the same team behind Pirates of the Caribbean. If executed correctly, The Lone Ranger should be a lot of fun, like the first film of that earlier franchise. The Lone Ranger is due for release next year.

The Croods

The latest animation from DreamWorks is The Croods, a prehistoric adventure film. The Croods features the voices of Nicholas Cage, Ryan Reynolds and Emma Stone. From the above trailer, I am liking the monkey. The Croods will be released in UK cinemas on 22nd March 2013.

Broken City

Mark Wahlberg, Russell Crowe and Catherine Zeta-Jones star in Broken City, a crime thriller set in New York. My first thought on viewing this was ‘Russell Crowe’s weave!’. That aside, this tale of corruption could be quite good. Broken City is out on 1st March 2013.

The Last Stand

What is The Last Stand, you ask? Well it is Arnold Schwarzengger’s return to lead roles on the big screen. Schwarzenegger plays the sheriff of a small town where a notorious drug baron is trying to make his escape. The Last Stand, which also stars Forest Whitaker and Rodrigo Santoro, is out on 24th January 2012.

Hitchcock

Everyone loves a bit of Alfred Hitchcock, don’t they? The eagerly anticipated Hitchcock tells the story behind the making of Psycho. Anthony Hopkins stars as Alfred Hitchcock in the film which also features Helen Mirren, Scarlett Johansson. Hitchcock is released in UK cinemas on 8th February 2013.

An Ephemeral Look at Product Placement

There are plenty of lists detailing the worst product placement in movies; the fantastic Cracked.com’s The 10 Most Shameful Product Placements in Movie History is worth a look in particular. Everyone knows how E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial was originally meant to use M&Ms rather than Reese’s Pieces, and that sales of the latter increased by 85% after the release of the 1982 film (Janet Wasko, Hollywood in the Information Age, 1995, p.190). Rather than compile another list or rehash more facts, I thought I would look at some interesting points (the term ‘highlights’ may be misleading at this juncture, as may the term ‘interesting’) throughout the history of product placement in Hollywood.

The Old Timey Product Placement

Product placement in the movies is nothing new, despite its prominence in the last thirty years. In 1945’s Mildred Pierce, Joan Crawford’s drink of choice was Jack Daniels. The placement of this brand was less obvious than some more recent attempts at promoting drinks.

The Quintessential 80s Product Placement

Part of the reason Santa Claus: The Movie holds a special place in my heart is because of the shameless product placement of those most high-profile of brands; Coca-Cola and McDonald’s. It is made all the more amusing by the fact that the film appears to propagate an anti-capatilist message. The McDonalds product placement complemented the Santa Claus: The Movie Happy Meal toys (as seen in the above advertisement). Product placement tie-ins truly reached a zenith in the mid 1980s.

The Mundane Product Placement

In late 2011, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol heavily feaured BMW cars. Earlier that year, How Do You Know featured another type of transport. The Metrobus was omnipresent in James L. Brooks’ film. In the movie, this mode of New York transport was punctual, reliable and clean. Only natives of the city can say how reliable this depiction is. As product placements go, it is hardly the most glamorous.

The Greatest Movie Ever Sold is out on DVD from 27th February 2012.

Trailer Round-Up

This week has seen the release of trailers for some of this year’s biggest movies. If you have missed them, here is a quick recap…

The Avengers

Last week’s Super Bowl saw the premiere of the new trailer of The Avengers. The clip reveals the band of heroes from the Marvel universe. Spiderman is noticeably absent, although the clip below illustrates why one of Marvel’s most famous characters does not seem to appear. Although the trailer is short, it seems that Captain America, Iron Man and the Hulk take centre stage. It will be interesting to see the role Jeremy Renner’s Hawkeye will play, as one of the lesser known superheroes. The Avengers is released on 27th April 2012.

The Amazing Spider-Man

It was clearly Marvel trailer release week. The Amazing Spider-Man trailer was revealed earlier in the week, to much excitement. The first thing that sprung to mind was that it looks a bit CGI-heavy, much like 2002’s Spider-Man (the effects of which now look quite dated). The Amazing Spider-Man is being filmed in 3D, so perhaps the effects will look more seamless in this format. The aspect which is appealing at the moment is the casting of leads Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone. The Amazing Spider-Man is due for release on 4th July 2012.

The Bourne Legacy

The Bourne series is one that I need to revisit. I liked the first film, but need to watch the two sequels again to solidify my opinion on them. This summer a new instalment is released, with Jeremy Renner taking over from Matt Damon. The trailer for The Bourne Legacy is a rather stylish affair for the first half, before the more traditional reveal of scenes. After his appearance in Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol last year and The Avengers this year, Jeremy Renner is fast becoming the go to guy for big action blockbusters. The Bourne Legacy is out on 15th August 2012.

Film Review: Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol

The fourth film in the series and the first in five years, Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol ticks all the boxes as far as providing an entertaining action blockbuster.

Having been away from the work of the IMF for a number of years, agent Ethan Hunt is implicated in a major terrorist act overseas. When the unit is shut down, it is up to Hunt to lead a small team of agents to clear the organisation’s name and expose the real culprit…

Director Brad Bird injects new life into the Mission: Impossible film franchise. After the unmemorable third instalment, the new film seems to have more energy. Part of the reason the film works well is because of the team dynamic. More pronounced than in the previous instalments, Ghost Protocol centres on Ethan Hunt leading a team of agents. The group are indispensable to Hunt’s mission, playing more than merely a subordinate role.

Ghost Protocol recalls a certain type of Bond film in its format. The film revolves around some big set pieces, with the downtime used mostly for expository gap-filling. The stunts in Ghost Protocol are even more elaborate than previous episodes, with Tom Cruise engaged in some truly frightening situations. The opening sequence in particular is reminiscent of the stand-alone action-packed beginning of Bond films. The opening credits sequence also hark back to the spy franchise, as well as the original Mission: Impossible television series.

The film relies on these set pieces to grab the attention. This is a successful tactic, although the film peaks too early with a particularly spectacular scene. Otherwise, the narrative is fairly standard for the genre, with little that will really surprise audiences.

Tom Cruise is on good form in Ghost Protocol; he seems to have a lot of energy and relish for the film. Jeremy Renner provides good support, as does Paula Patton. Simon Pegg brings humour, but is less convincing in more serious moments.

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol should satisfy all those looking for a blockbuster this holiday season. It is stunt-heavy and very entertaining.

Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol Featurette

The fourth instalment of the Mission: Impossible franchise is released in cinemas on 26th December 2011. The above featurette proves what a manic Tom Cruise is. Renowned for doing his own stunts, Cruise scales the tallest building in the world for a scene from Ghost Protocol. If nothing else, the film at least promises the same grandiose set pieces as the previous films offered.

The Empire Big Screen Diaries – Day 3

Like the protagonist on an epic quest in a sword and sorcery film, I embarked on the final day of Empire Big Screen. First order of business was the Paramount Showcase. After a brief video animating the company’s biggest films, a series of trailers were shown. Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol was followed by Paranormal Activity 3 and Like Crazy. After this, a featurette on Cowboys and Aliens was screened, introduced by Jon Favreau (on video). We also got to see a short clip of the Footloose remake, and the trailer for The Devil Inside (which was highly reminiscent of last year’s The Last Exorcism). Two clips of the Shrek spin-off Puss in Boots were then screened. Te footage was great; the film looks as if it will be very funny. To round things off, footage of The Adventures of Tin Tin was screened with a message from producer Peter Jackson and director Steven Spielberg. The clips looked good, but I always think humans in CG-animation look weird.

After a brief interlude, the Lionsgate Showcase began. After the trailer for A Dangerous Method was shown, we got to see footage from Ralph Fiennes’ Coriolanus. Set in the modern day but with the original Shakespearean dialogue, the film looks interesting if a little unusual. The showcase was rounded up by four trailers – 50/50, Abduction, Warrior and Conan the Barbarian.

Seizing the opportunity for a proper lunch break, we headed to Armadillo (again). My fish burger was nice, but I felt bad that we didn’t leave a proper tip. In fairness, it was all the change we had, but apologies to Armadillo staff.

The Disney Showcase was the final one of the weekend. Real Steel was first up, with director Shawn Levy on stage to talk about the film. He also gave away tickets to the premiere, but asked the most difficult question ever. Needless to say, I did not know the answer. Two clips were then screened; the film looks like fairly standard family fare. Andrew Stanton then introduced John Carter and footage from the film was screened. Finally, Steven Spielberg (by video) introduced some footage of his upcoming film War Horse. What struck me more than anything was that Spielberg seems to have some hand in directing or producing many of the films discussed this weekend. He may have even a hand producing this post. Human star of the film Jeremy Irvine then came on stage to discuss making War Horse.

After hanging out in the press room for a bit (Jeremy Irvine was being interviewed there, talent-spotters!), it was time for The Muppets! Director of The Muppets James Bobin and star Kermit the Frog were interviewed live via satelite. I was told that the Muppets were originally meant to appear in person. Maybe it is just as well this did not happen, as I may have got kicked out for running up on stage and hugging Kermit. The interview was a lot of fun, and the clip screened involved Kermit singing a song. It almost brought a tear to the eye…

After all that excitement, it was time for the Conan the Barbarian premiere. Jason Momoa was present to introduce the film, shown at the biggest screen at the O2 Cineworld. The film was pretty disappointing itself (review to follow).

After the very last visit to the press room, I went to the secret screening. Cineworld tried to rob me blind with their popcorn prices, after which I settled down to watch the film. Before it started, I asked the gentleman next to me if he knew what the film was (I did by this point). When he answered “Cowboys and Aliens” I was perplexed, and thought he was joking until he showed me his ticket. I was in the wrong screen. After cursing my stupidity, I ran next door and luckily the trailers were still on. I then settled down to watch The Debt, a very good thriller (review to follow). And that concluded Empire Big Screen; the film was good way to end a busy but exciting weekend.

Many thanks to Empire and Romley Davies for having me, plus all the lovely people who made the weekend so much fun (you know who you are!).