Neil Patrick Harris says it best, “Smurfs is baby crack cocaine.” Perhaps that isn’t a PG-approved assessment of the film franchise, but nevertheless, it is true. During our screening of The Smurfs 2 in Las Vegas ahead of interviewing the cast, we were joined by a theater full of kids, and they loved every minute of the film, to say the least.
In the sequel, the Smurfs are back, but this time, they’re joined by a new breed of Smurfs dubbed The Naughties. Distraught over his inability to capture real Smurfs and suck up all the Smurf essence he wants, Gargamel (Hank Azaria) decides to manufacture his own. Trouble is, his Naughties aren’t true blue. The only way for Gargamel to turn Vexy and Hackus (voiced by Christina Ricci and J.B. Smoove) into essence machines is by getting a hold of Papa Smurf’s (voiced by the late Jonathan Winters) secret formula, so he kidnaps Smurfette (voiced by Katy Perry) in an effort to get her to divulge the ingredients that once helped her go from a Gargamel creation to a true blue Smurf.
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Two release delays and some serious director drama typically isn’t a good sign, but the first trailer for 47 Ronin actually isn’t all that bad. A number of vivid and highly impressive visuals are enough to sustain the film’s first promo, but the display does raise concern that the final film won’t offer enough attention to story details. Regardless of where this one ends up, for now, 47 Ronin is nowhere near worthy of the Best Stuff, but keeps clear of the Worst, too.
The details of the mission are a little sloppy, but the appeal of watching Bruce Willis, John Malkovich, and Helen Mirren rock some serious firepower is still there, making “RED 2” another satisfying Retired and Extremely Dangerous thrill.
It’s a little too silly to sustain a significant character journey, but “The To Do List” is still a successful overload of nostalgic and incredibly raunchy humor.
Big-screen superheroes stole much of the San Diego Comic-Con spotlight, but now more than ever, young adult book-to-film adaptations aren’t far behind. Sadly The Maze Runner only made it to Nerd HQ, but Ender’s Game, Divergent, The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, The Seventh Son, and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire all enjoyed their own panels, interviews, press conferences, convention center floor giveaways and more.
Back when The Conjuring was in production, the film was titled The Warren Files, and it made sense. Should The Warren Files go on to be a hit, we could have The Warren Files: Case A, The Warren Files: Case B, and so on. Even though the title was ultimately changed to The Conjuring, now that the film is a sequel-worthy success, there’s always a chance Warner Bros. could revert back to The Warren Files and create an entire film franchise chronicling the best of Ed and Lorraine Warren.
It seems as though there’s this never-ending search for the next best thing in the young adult book-to-film adaptation world. What will trump The Twilight Saga? What will match the success of The Hunger Games? With the growing craze, there are loads of possibilities out there, but the one I’ve got my money on is Neil Burger’s Divergent.
While the widespread success of young adult book-to-film adaptations like The Twilight Saga, Harry Potter and The Hunger Games does facilitate some serious potential for a big-screen version of Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, it also comes with the added pressure of ensuring that the Ender’s Game movie stands out.
Before fielding rapid-fire Q&A questions at the Ender’s Game panel at San Diego Comic-Con, Asa Butterfield and Hailee Steinfeld sat down and had some fun telling us how they might fare if they ever really had to compete in the Ender’s Game Battle Room.
If The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones isn’t on your radar, after Saturday’s Hall H panel, it should be. Screen Gems unveiled an impressively suspenseful and rather brutal sequence from the film that culminates in an ideal payoff – Jamie Campbell Bower’s Jace Wayland nonchalantly stepping in to save the day.