The News...

Johnny Depp is to star as Totto in the Disney's re-imagining of the Lone Ranger. The starring role has not been cast yet. Totto is a half Native American character who after nursing the Lone Ranger back to life, becomes his faithful sidekick.

This is what Depp had to say on the character:

"I always felt Native Americans were badly portrayed in Hollywood films over the decades. It's a real opportunity for me to give a salute to them. Tonto was a sidekick in all the Lone Ranger series. [This film] is a very different approach to that partnership. And a funny one I think."

Depp really is the all unassuming philanthropist ehy...

The News...

Above is the first look at X-men: the First Class, Starring James McAvoy as Professor X and Michael Fassbender as Magneto. The movie is due out this August.

The News...

So firstly we are kicking off with some exciting news regarding The Dark Knight Rises aka the new Batman movie. As well as Nolan and Bale back for a 3rd outing we are introduced to at least two confirmed new characters- Catwoman, known by day as Selina Kyle and Bane played by Tom Hardy, who recently appeared in Nolan's Inception.

This is what Nolan had to say, "I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work with Anne Hathaway, who will be a fantastic addition to our ensemble as we complete our story."

Bane is personally one of my favourite characters in the Batman comics and we can expect some major fight sequences!

Upcoming Movies 2011 continued...

The Rest...

The Immortals

It is about time we got to grips with some Greek myth classics, especially after the dismal Clash of the Titans! Tarsem Singh directs with pretty much newcomer Henry Cavill playing Theseus, a warrior who is on a mission to save a princess as well as overthrow evil king Hyperion, played by Mickey Rourke. Also stars Freida Pinto.

Mission impossible: Ghost protocol

Tom Cruise returns as agent Ethan Hunt in another jet- setting adventure. Locations such as Dubai (which features a stunt on the tallest building on the planet) and Prague are set to accommodate much of the action. Cannot wait!

Tin Tin: The Secret of the Unicorn

Spielberg's first outing for the year features Jamie Bell voicing the lead character and an eclectic cast featuring Daniel Craig. the movie features state of the art capture animation. Looks good!

The War Horse

The second offering from Spielberg is the epic story of a war horse, which is seen mainly through the horses' eyes. It is set against the backdrop of WWI and charts the relationship between a young boy and his horse.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Hot off his victory from the Golden Globes for The Social Network David Fincher's next project is underway and is the Hollywood remake of the recent movies starring Noomi Rapace. Newcomer Rooney Mara stars opposite Daniel Craig.... He's bloody busy this year!

Paranormal Activity 3

We cannot get through Halloween without what seems to be a permanent fixture every year- a Paranormal Activity movie! They are pretty good though. No plot details as it stands but expect, swinging doors, loud bangs and of course people being dragged by the invisible forces of evil...

The Rite

Anthony Hopkins plays a Vatican priest who is part of the "Exorcism arm" of the church. It is based on true events so is probably going to be quite creepy.

West is West

The follow-up to the much loved East is East will see Om Puri return as the head of the dis-functional family. Expect loads of racial gags, stereotypes and probably some decent acting.

Countdown to Zero

A documentary taking a look at the nuclear proliferation that exists. Probably going to be as scary as some of the horrors this year!

Real Steel

A big Action movie full of CGI starring Hugh Jackman as a retired boxer come promoter for the new replacement of boxing- big bad robots smashing the nuts and bolts out of each other! Sure to be a sit back, relax, switch your brain off and enjoy experience.

Transformers 3: Dark of the Moon

Yeah.... err, Transformers 3.

Battlefield: Los Angeles

Big scale Alien invasion movie which pitt's Aaron Eckhart against an attack by superior forces on LA. A group of U.S. Soldiers fight to survive which includes Michelle Rodriguez in her usual hard-nut chick sort of role.

Super 8

Little is known about JJ Abrams next big project but is sure to be a big budget production. Being produced by Spielberg, the Lost creator is doing his usual trick of teasing movie-goers right up until release (remember Cloverfield?). Guessing by the trailer there is probably going to be some involvement of alien life form- though that is just a guess.... Watch this space.

Red Riding

Amanda Seyfried takes on the titular role which is a twist on the classic tale. The story depicts a village which is terrorised by a werewolf- which could be any of the village members. Gary Oldman, Julie Christie and quite a few other well known names also star. Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke helms.

Conan the Barbarian

Jason Momoa stars as Conan, the muscular warrior previously played by the inimitable Schwarznegger. Ron Perlman co-stars and Stephen Lang will play the main bad guy. Let's hope it is as violent as the original and the film studio don't decide to give it a 12A rating!!!

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Jack Sparrow is back, earning from what I hear a very lucrative fee for Johnny Depp. He is joined by Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush and Ian McShane who plays Blackbeard. Not one of my favourite movie series' but probably worth a watch.

Stay posted for movies for 2011...

Upcoming Movies in 2011

So we are into a new year, which means there is a whole new bunch of movies to look forward to (or at least mention).

So here is a brief list of the movies that you can expect to either win praise or make a killing at the box office... Let the 3D frenzy begin!

Superhero movies

Over the last few years or so , we have had an array of superhero movies shoved down our throats, most of which were pretty rubbish. From mutants, to web-slingers, to metallic suit wearing billionaires, superhero movies mean big money- which is why we cannot ignore probably the biggest onslaught of spandex wearing protagonists ever this year.

1. Thor

The year kicks off with the Thunder God himself, cast out of Asgard and demoted to earth (yeah, apparently earth is that bad). Newcomer Chris Hemsworth plays hammer-wielding Thor with a cast rounded out by Natalie Portman, Sam Jackson and Anthony Hopkins playing God of God's, Odin. The trailer looks OK with promises of big effects and lots of action.

2. Green Lantern

With Marvel being the overall residing force this summer, DC comics needed a movie to still show us that they are in the game this year. With Batman and Superman currently in development for next year DC are presenting us with Green Lantern starring Ryan Reynolds as the cocky test pilot commissioned by a group of aliens from around the universe to join the fraternity of intergalactic crime fighters. With the power of his ring he becomes the Green Lantern- queue set pieces galore and loads of CGI. Oh and expect an overload of exhausting humor from Reynolds.

3. Captain America

Marvels First Avenger stars Chris Evans as the patriotic super soldier who battles Nazis and kicks a whole host of evil war-mongering butt, all in the name of the stars and stripes. Oooh Raa! Joe Johnston directs, with Hugo Weaving, Hayley Atwell and Tommy-Lee Jones co-starring.

4. X Men Origins: The First Class

We go back to the origin of X-Men's this August with stories of Professor X and Magneto in their younger days- played by James McAvoy and Michael Fassbender. The movie will surely be filled with family friendly action and psychic beatings for all the baddies!

5. Cowboys and Aliens

Daniel Craig leads leads a starry cast playing a cowboy who has lost his memory and has some weired contraption attached to his wrist. Descending upon an oppressed town ruled by iron-fisted Harrison Ford, they quickly have to settle their differences and unite to take on a common enemy- Aliens! Sounds a bit silly but looks quite good, as well as being directed by John "Iron Man" Favreau. That man loves his comics.

The News...

Some exciting news now Sci-fi and movie- lovers alike. Ridley (superstar/visionary) Scott has announced plans to begin shooting his long awaited Alien prequel. It won't feature Ripley as the leading character, she of course comes face to face with the Extra-Terrestrial nasty in Alien. It will, however, feature a female lead- in the shape and form of Noomi Rapace who stars in movies based on Stieg Larsson's best selling Millennium trilogy books, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Girl who kicked the Hornets Nest. The third movie will surely feature Noomi too.

The movie is described as a Sci-fi epic whilst not being a straight up Alien movie and details of the script are being kept very close to the chest just yet. Here's what the man himself Scott had to say:

"While 'Alien' was indeed the jumping off point for this project, out of the creative process evolved a new, grand mythology and universe in which this original story takes place. The keen fan will recognize strands of 'Alien's' DNA, so to speak, but the ideas tackled in this film are unique, large and provocative. I couldn't be more pleased to have found the singular tale I'd been searching for, and finally return to this genre that's so close to my heart."

Highly exciting stuff! Lets just hope Ridley has not lost his touch for Sci-fi class. At least we can expect a progressive change from the dire "Alien Vs Predator" movies.

Stay posted for further movie and cast details

Golden Globes

So the 2011 Golden Globes took place last night and with not in my opinion a huge amount of quality movies last year, there was no surprise that "The Social Network" walked away with the top honours.

A full list of the movie winners below:

Best film (drama)

The Social Network

Best film (musical/comedy)

The kids are alright

Best director

David Fincher- The Social Network

Best actor (drama)

Colin Firth- The King's Speech

Best actress (drama)

Natalie Portman- Black Swan

Best actor (musical/comedy)

Paul Giamatti- Barney's Version

Best actress (musical/comedy)

Annette Bening- The Kids Are Alright

Best supporting actor

Christian Bale- The Fighter

Best supporting actress

Melissa Leo- The Fighter

Best foreign language film

In a Better World- Denmark

Best animated feature film

Toy Story 3

Best screenplay

Aaron Sorkin- The Social Network

Best original song

You haven't seen the last of me- Burlesque: music and lyrics by Diane Warren

Best original score

Trent Reznor and Attucus Rose- The Social Network


So no major suprises... As you can see. There wasn't much competition for The Social Network. So roll on the Oscars, although I can't see the list of winners being too dissimilar to this one... Take it as a benchmark if you will.

Tali