20th Century Fox recently released the official teaser trailer for the upcoming film "How to Train Train Your Dragon 2". The animated film features the voices of Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Kit Harington, Cate Blanchett, Djimon Honsou, Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, T.J. Miller and Kristen Wiig. "How to Train Your Dragon 2" hits theaters on 6/13/2014.

For more information on this film, you can goto: http://www.howtotrainyourdragon.com.

Plot Synopsis:

The thrilling second chapter of the epic HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON trilogy returns to the fantastical world of the heroic Viking Hiccup and his faithful dragon Toothless. The inseparable duo must protect the peace – and save the future of men and dragons from the power-hungry Drago.

"How to Train Your Dragon 2": Official Trailer

“Coriolanus”
Year: 2012
Director: Ralph Fiennes
Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Gerald Butler, and Vanessa Redgrave
Studio: Anchor Bay Films
MPAA Rating: R
Running Time: 123 Mins.

When there is a new film based on a William Shakespeare play, it always seems to grab my interest and curiosity. Maybe it’s the fact that I always enjoy them. Whether it is Romeo and Juliet (1968), Richard III (1995) or Hamlet (1996), I’ve always been interested in the Shakespeare’s works. This leads to the latest adaptation of Shakespeare’s “Coriolanus”.

The film marks the directorial debut from actor Ralph Fiennes. It takes place in the modern day, where Caius Martius Coriolanus (Fiennes) is a feared and vicious Roman general that finds himself in a lot of trouble. After rebelling against the wishes of his manipulative mother (Vanessa Redgrave) and inciting a riot on the streets of Rome, he is exiled from there. He then, hooks up with his sworn enemy Titus Aufidius (Gerald Butler) to reclaim Rome from him and Aufidius’ people. Brian Cox, Jessica Chastain and James Nesbitt also co-star in the film.

“Coriolanus” is one of those films, where you can’t understand why this didn’t find an audience with theatergoers. This film had an epic feel to it. Most of that had to with Ralph Fiennes’ direction. One of the things that made his direction very good was the way that he handles the action elements. The action scenes had that feel of an epic war film. It has very good firefight sequences and intense action that helps make the pace of the film move at a brisk pace for its two hour running time.

Also, I liked the way that Fiennes directs himself and his cast. The performances were very good. Fiennes does a very good job using his experiences as an actor to get his cast to make their performances to be on the level of a Shakespearian play. There were some very good performances here from Fiennes, Vanessa Redgrave and Gerard Butler that help keep your interest through the Shakespearian dialogue.

John Logan, who also wrote the screenplays for “Gladiator” and “Hugo”, does a very good job with the way that he sets the film’s tone. He does that, by the way that he writes the dialogue. The dialogue felt like it came right out of a Shakespearian play. It helps set the tone that was going to be an epic film. Logan also does a very good job making the main character so engaging. Whether during that battle scenes or the scenes with the protestors, you very interested in the character and how he’s going to react. It’s those scenes that got me interested in the character.

If there was one thing that I didn’t like, we don’t see much of the Coriolanus/Aufidius dynamic. It would have been nice to have seen a couple of more scenes with the two characters just to give sense of the relationship between the two characters. Even without that, this is still a very good film.

This is one of those films that I truly hope will find an audience on DVD and Blu-Ray. With very solid acting and great direction from Ralph Fiennes, “Coriolanus” is one very entertaining film.

Review Rating: Five Stars.

Anchor Bay Entertainment and The Weinstein Company has send over information about their upcoming DVD and Blu-Ray release of "Coriolanus" This film marks the directorial debut from actor Ralph Fiennes and with the screenplay written by three time Academy Award nominee John Logan. The film also boasts an all star cast that includes Fiennes, Gerard Butler, Vanessa Redgrave, Brian Cox, Jessica Chastain, James Nesbitt. Special Features on the Dvd an Blu-Ray include an audio commentary with the film’s director and star, Ralph Fiennes, and a “The Making of Coriolanus” featurette. "Coriolanus" set to stores on May 29th.

For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at: www.coriolanusmovie.net

Press Release:

Anchor Bay Entertainment and The Weinstein Company announced today the Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD release of two-time Academy Award® nominee Ralph Fiennes’ (Schindler's List, The English Patient) directorial debut, CORIOLANUS. Fiennes, who also stars in the title role, was nominated for a 2012 BAFTA Award – Britain’s equivalent to an Oscar® – for Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer. Based on the original play by William Shakespeare, the critically-acclaimed film features an award-winning cast that includes Gerard Butler (300, The Ugly Truth), Academy Award® winner Vanessa Redgrave (Julia, Howards End), Academy Award® nominee Jessica Chastain (The Help, Tree of Life), and Emmy® Award winner Brian Cox (Bourne Identity, HBO’s “Deadwood”). A fast-paced, action-packed film, CORIOLANUS heads to retail on May 29, 2012 for an SRP of $34.99 for the Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and $26.98 for the DVD.


In her review for Entertainment Weekly, film critic Lisa Schwarzbaum described Fiennes’ interpretation of CORIOLANUS as “an utterly arresting, creative modern-day adaptation.” David Edelstein, film critic for New York Magazine, wrote CORIOLANUS is “sensational and gripping,” adding “Brian Cox is superb and Jessica Chastain is riveting!” Wrote The Hollywood Reporter’s Ray Bennett, “Ralph Fiennes delivers heavyweight screen acting at its best,” while Rolling Stone’s Peter Travers exclaimed, “Ralph Fiennes, as star and commander, pulls off a triumph!”


The classic legend of honor and betrayal has been astonishingly re-imagined in this exhilarating action thriller that wields a profound relevance for today. Caius Martius ‘Coriolanus’ (star and director Ralph Fiennes) is a feared and revered Roman General, suddenly pitted against his own city and fellow citizens. Rebelling against the power-hungry designs of his manipulative mother (Vanessa Redgrave) and rejected by his own people, Coriolanus incites a riot that expels him from Rome. The banished hero joins forces with his sworn enemy Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler) to exact his revenge — and determine his destiny.


The CORIOLANUS Blu-ray™ Combo Pack and DVD special features include an audio commentary with the film’s director and star, Ralph Fiennes, and a “The Making of Coriolanus” featurette. Note: Special features are subject to change.


Learn more about CORIOLANUS at: www.coriolanusmovie.net.

Ralph Fiennes makes his directorial debut with “Coriolanus” which is based on William Shakespeare’s tragedy of the same name. He also stars as Caius Martius, a Roman general who is both revered and feared, and at odds with his fellow citizens. Fiennes certainly picked a most challenging project for his first film as director, but having done many Shakespeare plays onstage, he has a mastery of the bard’s infinitely passionate dialogue.

The action has been moved to present day where parallels to Occupy Wall Street and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan can be seen. Caius has more than proven himself in combat, but the townspeople despise him for taking their food away. When he is pushed by his mother Volumnia (Vanessa Redgrave) to seek the powerful position of Consul, fellow politicians scheme against him and get the town to expel him for good. This forces Caius to join forces with his blood enemy Tullus Aufidius (Gerard Butler) in battling the Romans and seeking vengeance against those who betrayed his trust.

“Coriolanus” is one of those Shakespeare plays you could do an entire thesis on as it covers many thematic elements. Be it the power of the people, the corruption of politics, the selfish desires of others, or looking at what war does to some, you could spend hours discussing all that goes on here.

Fiennes gives a powerful performance as Caius, and certain scenes will enthrall the audience to where you can hear a pin drop in the movie theatre. While the townspeople’s anger at him is justified, Fiennes makes Caius seem like a war veteran who has done his patriotic duty only to be spat upon by the people he has defended. This is not some power hungry villain at play here but a man who feels he deserves more respect than he has been given. His flaw however is that he is incapable of respecting those he has spent time defending.

As a director, Fiennes employs the same kind of shaky camerawork Kathryn Bigelow used to great effect in “The Hurt Locker” (which he made a cameo in). The bullets fly all over the place, and they sound like steel swords clashing with rage. He also gets the actors to speak the Shakespearean language in a natural tone while giving those with bigger parts a chance to show off their amazing theatricality. The tone is a bit jarring at first, but everything comes together as the movie goes on.

Fiennes is also backed up immeasurably by an impeccable cast. Gerard Butler easily gives his best performance since “300” as Tullus whose anger at Caius equals his passion for his people. Jessica Chastain, who has appeared in every other 2011 movie, is a strong presence as Caius’ wife Virgilia. But the movie’s best performance comes from Redgrave who is a powerhouse as Caius’ mother. She captures her character’s controlling and manipulative nature to where she doesn’t just bring her son to his knees but the audience’s as well.

“Coriolanus” does meander a bit and threatens to bite off more than it can chew, but it is a powerful experience nonetheless. Kudos to Fiennes who picked quite the project to mark his directorial debut with as any lesser director would have easily failed in adapting such complex material. Some would have started with something easier, but not the man who played Lord Voldemort!

* * * ½ out of * * * *

Relativity Media recently send us over the official trailer and stills for Marc Forster's upcoming film "Machine Gun Preacher", which is currently playing at this year's Toronto International Film Festival. The film stars Gerard Butler (300), Michelle Monaghan (Due Date), Kathy Baker (Cold Mountain), Madeline Carroll (Mr. Popper’s Penguins), Academy Award® nominated Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road) and Souleyman Sy Savane (“Damages”). The film is scheduled to be released in limited release on on September 23rd.

For more information on this film, you can visit the film's official website at: http://www.machinegunpreacher.com/movie/

Plot Synopsis:

In this inspirational true story, Machine Gun Preacher is about Sam Childers, a former drug-dealing criminal who undergoes an astonishing transformation and finds an unexpected calling as the savior of hundreds of kidnapped and orphaned children. Gerard Butler (300) delivers a searing performance as Childers, the impassioned founder of the Angels of East Africa rescue organization in Golden Globe-nominated director Marc Forster’s (Monster’s Ball, Finding Neverland) moving story of violence and redemption.

When ex-biker-gang member Sam Childers (Butler) makes the life-changing decision to go to East Africa to help repair homes destroyed by civil war, he is outraged by the unspeakable horrors faced by the region’s vulnerable populace, especially the children. Ignoring the warnings of more experienced aide workers, Sam breaks ground for an orphanage where it’s most needed—in the middle of territory controlled by the brutal Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA), a renegade militia that forces youngsters to become soldiers before they even reach their teens.

But for Sam, it is not enough to shelter the LRA’s intended victims. Determined to save as many as possible, he leads armed missions deep into enemy territory to retrieve kidnapped children, restoring peace to their lives—and eventually his own. The explosive, real-life tale of a man who has rescued over a thousand orphans from starvation, disease and enslavement, Machine Gun Preacher also stars Michelle Monaghan (Due Date), Kathy Baker (Cold Mountain), Madeline Carroll (Mr. Popper’s Penguins), Academy Award® nominated Michael Shannon (Revolutionary Road) and Souleyman Sy Savane (“Damages”).

Upcoming Screenings:

Friday September 16
Scotiabank Theatre 1
12:00pm
Toronto, Canada






"Machine Gun Preacher": Official Trailer

Phase 4 Films recently send us over a copy of "Guilty Hearts" which boasts an all star cast that includes: Eva Mendes (The Other Guys, Hitch), Gerard Butler (300, The Bounty Hunter), Kathy Bates (Valentine's Day, Titanic), Anna Faris (Scary Movie, Observe and Report), Charlie Sheen (“Two and Half Men,” Due Date), Julie Delpy (Before Sunrise, Broken Flowers), Stellan Skarsgård (Angels & Demons, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End), Imelda Staunton (Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1, Vera Drake).

The film hits DVD shelves on June 28th, but we here at Film Arcade.net is giving a copy to one lucky reader.

Plot Synopsis:

Follow the lives of nine strangers living worlds apart as they look for love, happiness, success, and friendship against all odds. Carrying the burden of guilt, they must escape their pasts before they can move forward.

To enter: send us an email to facontest@gmail.com

Please put "Guilty Hearts" in the subject line of the email.

Contest Ends: June 30th, 2011.

One entry per person and open to US Residents. Film Arcade writers are not eligible.

Starring: Gerard Butler, Jamie Foxx, Colm Meaney, Leslie Bibb

Written by: Kurt Wimmer

Directed by: F. Gary Gray

As someone who formerly worked in the court system, I can tell you that “justice” is rarely fair. It is not meant to be really. The criminal justice system is set up so that the innocent people get a fair shake, even if it means the guilty get too much leeway. The system has its problems and its failsafes, and it is not perfect. The system simply cannot not be perfect.

There is no right or wrong, there is simply proven and unproven. This means the guilty are often set free and even when the guilty are convicted, they are out on the streets of the great U.S.A. shortly thereafter. Working in that system I have been tremendously frustrated. But I also know that overall, it is a pretty well thought out process.

“Law Abiding Citizen” is a movie that examines one man’s ferocious determination to fix the judicial system. How? By spotlighting absurdities with violence. Clyde Shelton (Gerard Butler) is an inventor whose wife and young daughter are killed during a home invasion. Nick Rice (Jamie Foxx) is an assistant district attorney assigned to prosecute the Shelton murder case. Fearful of losing the case and damaging his win ratio, Rice agrees to cut a deal with one of the accused home invaders in order to get the death penalty for the second accused murderer. To rationalize his actions, Rice says, “Some justice is better than no justice.”

In real life, Rice’s comment is almost a maxim to live by. Often crucial evidence is inadmissible or made inadmissible and the only way to send an accused criminal away for any length of time is to cut a deal. It is not pretty, but it is common. Rice makes just such a deal with the one criminal, causing Clyde Shelton’s world and quite possibly his sanity, to crumble down around him. Distraught over Rice’s deal, Shelton fades away into obscurity only to reappear ten years later with a vengeance.

Though the premise is a bit far fetched (and what action/thriller movie isn’t?), it is worth the requisite suspension of disbelief. Normally Shelton’s methodical and ultra violent killing spree would seem absurd coming from a man who tinkers with robots for a living, however, the plot gains traction is in the backstory.

*SPOILER* Clyde Shelton previously made a living as a specialized and highly imaginative assassin. As Clyde is someone who once killed for a living, I think it is plausible that he snapped and now has no compunction about killing people left and right in order to prove a point.

The most difficult part to this movie is that the audience truly wants to root for Shelton. Shelton’s family was brutalized while he watched, helpless. Then the man that was personally responsible for killing his wife and child is set free after a brief prison term, while Shelton again watched helplessly from the sidelines. When Shelton notes the problems with the criminal justice system, he is absolutely right. As the movie does not delve into the counterarguments to Shelton’s issues, we really only see Shelton’s side of the conversation. It is only because Shelton coldly executes innocent people that you find yourself stopping just short of rooting for him.

Is this story ever likely to happen? No but the idea is an intriguing way to look at the problems with the criminal justice system. These are very real and very frustrating issue. Plus, the special effects have very little CGI work, which gives the story a bit more realism as well.

Regarding the cast, Butler turns in some very good acting here, but we never see his character fully break. You see Shelton’s emotions and some of his internal struggle, but for any man capable of doing what Shelton did, perhaps Butler should have exhibited either less or more emotion. Either Shelton is a sociopath or he has gone completely insane. Instead, Butler’s portrayal is somewhere in between making it good, but it falls short of what it could have been.

Foxx turns in solid performance as the mouse to Butler’s cat, but the character of Rice never shows the charisma that Shelton does. You know you need to root for Rice, but you also know his inability to learn a simple lesson is causing people to lose their lives. For that reason, it is kind of hard to root for him and enjoy it.

The dialogue is fairly well done with a few laugh out loud moments and lines. We never get a full soliloquy of exposition and explanation, but we get enough to get the point. Besides, anyone as brilliant and methodical as Shelton is not going to have a long-winded explanation for his mayhem. However, if he had been clearer from the start, maybe more people would have survived Mr. Shelton’s class on the justice system.

As it is, I was actually pretty entertained throughout. The movie clips along at a swift pace, and there are a few tense and surprising moments. This is not one of the best thrillers of all time, but it was a solid bit of cat and mouse story telling. The character of Shelton I found to be riveting, even if he was a bit gruesome at times. Still, the movie is worth a viewing in the theatre if you want to enjoy the explosions, but a viewing on Blu-ray at home would be a pretty good way to watch it as well.

Starring: Gerard Butler, Michael C. Hall, Ludacris, Kyra Sedgwick, Amber Valletta, Alison Lohman, Terry Crews

Written & Directed by: Mark Neveldine & Brian Taylor

"Gamer" is a mix of equal parts "the Sims," "Running Man," "Ender's Game," and "Death Race." The movie is shot in the style of a video game; that is to say constantly spinning and always focused in a close up shot. As someone who got their gaming start with the trusty Atari 2600, my current days of game play consist of my inability to direct the camera POV on the item I want to shoot. Instead, I'm constantly spinning round and round, trying to find the target for my guns that are a blazing. The direction of this movie was kind of like that.

Set in the future, the evil love child of bizarro Will Wright and Bill Gates is the game mastermind named Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). At first Castle created an online community of people who interact and play online in a world called "Society." The difference between "Society" and something like "the Sims" is that the avatars they inhabit are real people with computer nanites in their brain. You want to be a beautiful blonde lady with no moral qualms or inhibitions? Great! For a small fee you can order around a beautiful blonde woman to do your bidding from the safety of your chair at home. Assuming you can get past the idea that the woman may be doing this out of a necessity to feed her family or drug habit rather than a desire to be controlled by some stranger, than you should have a swell time.

Even beyond this very disturbing premise is the next level: actual killing. Castle's newest game "Slayers" has all the vicariousness of "Society" but it also comes with the ability to immerse yourself in a war like environment. The fighters are all death row inmates who have gambled on fighting to live rather than passively awaiting the inevitable conclusion of their death sentence. A slayer must complete and survive 30 combat missions in order to be set free. For anyone that saw "The Running Man" (or even read the Richard Bachman story), you know that the powers that be will not let any of the fighters win the game.

Kable (Gerard Butler) has completed 27 missions and is poised to win his freedom and return to his wife and daughter. Brace for this spoiler plot point: he was wrongfully imprisoned by Castle. I know, I was totally shocked too. However, Kable is an interesting character who doesn't talk in quips or witty one liners like the usual action star character. Kable runs. Kable shoots. Kable kills quickly and efficiently and is always on the move for the safe zone of the mission. I think I liked this most of all about the movie. Kable is likeable not because he is charming or amusing or even because he is innocent: Kable is killing to survive and not taking any pleasure in it or spending any more time than he needs to do it. Kable rarely talks, and just keeps going.

The creator of the game, Ken Castle, is clearly unstable from the first moment we see him, and I think it is kind of unbelievable that no one would find an ulterior motive in the fact that he is slowly replacing the brain cells of the people of the world with mind control computer nanites. If you thought people were unhappy with the idea of a DNA database, would those same people be okay with any corporation having the ability to completely and utterly control your body? Most people I know don't even like to be given advice on what to do from friends they trust much less a corporation or anonymous guy in an armchair in Scranton. It seems highly unlikely.

Still, the idea is a horrific envisioning of a possible future. The thirst for reality television seems to grow more each year, and the desensitization of humans toward violence in gaming seems to occur even faster. That said I still don't believe civilization will actually come to "Society" or "Slayers." Though I could argue that no one would want to expose themselves to a situation that is tantamount to experiencing emotional, mental, or physical rape, I am reminded that people do that every day in the real world (i.e. prostitution). Though "Society" would offer a supervised environment, one would never have that crucial thing that keeps us human: the ability to say no.

But enough with the philosophy of possibilities and probabilities of this world actually occurring. Regarding the movie itself, it is an interesting bit of mess. At times the movie is kind of exhilarating and enjoyable, quickly followed by a section that made me want to leave the theatre. The directing style is a bit at odds with itself (even beyond the frenetic camera work). One moment it tries to be a serious action flick (think Statham) but is then quickly followed by perverse over the top humor (like a sexually amped "Fifth Element" if you will).

Still, the action sequences were good when you could see what was going on. I like that Butler's fight moves were simple punch and kick combos rather than a bunch of ornate choreography. Kable prefers a quick snap of a neck to a grudge match, and honestly, that was more interesting to me. Disturbing for sure, but more realistic. I found Terry Crews scenes to be kind of giggle inducing. That was due in part to his over the top character in this movie but mostly because every time I looked at him I thought of his character on "Everybody Hates Chris." Crews may be a large man, but he just didn't seem all that scary to me because of that show.

The other moment I kind of loved was the unexpected and firmly left field surprise of a dance sequence near the end of the movie. I don't know what inspired it (other than Hall's Broadway roots), but it kind of saved the movie for me. I mean looking at Gerard Butler can only carry a movie so far before you need another reason to keep sitting in the theatre. (For example, it won't even get you in the door to see "The Ugly Truth." Trust me.)

Overall it was an interesting movie. I wouldn't recommend it beyond cable (or maybe DVD rental), but honestly I don't know if I would recommend it for that either. Other than the dance sequence near the end and a couple of neat fight scenes, there really isn't any reason to watch this movie. In fact, the cameo appearance by Milo Ventimiglia was so repugnant that it makes a strong argument against seeing the movie at all. Though the movie might be a good jumpstart to a conversation about humanity, its weaknesses, and which hand basket it will be riding to hell in, in all honesty, any episode of "Seinfeld" could probably get the ball rolling on that conversation too.

Film Arcade.net recently received alot of material courtesy of Lionsgate for their upcoming release "Gamer, which stars "The Ugly Truth's Gerard Butler and Dexter's Michael C. Hall. The film is written and directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the due behind "Crank" and "Crank: High Voltage".

GAMER is a high-concept action thriller set in a near future when gaming and entertainment have evolved into a terrifying new hybrid. Humans control other humans in mass-scale, multi-player online games: people play people...for keeps. Mind-control technology is widespread, and at the heart of the controversial games is its creator, reclusive billionaire Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). His latest brainchild, the first-person shooter game "Slayers," allows millions to act out their most savage fantasies online in front of a global audience, using real prisoners as avatars with whom they fight to the death.



Kable (300's Gerard Butler) is the superstar and cult hero of the ultraviolent "Slayers." Kable is controlled by Simon, a young gamer with rock star status who continues to defy all odds by guiding Kable to victory each week. Taken from his family, imprisoned and forced to fight against his will, the modern day gladiator must survive long enough to escape the game to free his family, regain his identity and to save mankind from Castle's ruthless technology.

GAMER also co-stars Amber Valletta (TRANSPORTER 2), John Leguizamo (RIGHTEOUS KILL, ASSAULT ON PRECINCT 13) and Kyra Sedgwick (“The Closer”).

The film hits theaters on September 4th.

Here's the film's trailer and a clip from the film

Gamer: Official Trailer



Gamer: It's Cool Yeah Clip

Starring: Abigail Breslin, Jodie Foster, Gerard Butler

Rating: 2 out of 5 (3 1/2 for kids)

I waited until Saturday morning to see this movie. I would like to say it was only because it would be the best way to gauge the audience’s reaction to a kids' movie, but honestly, my Friday night ritual movie takes a backseat to the season premiere of “Battlestar Galactica.” Still, I think it was a wise to delay until Saturday so that I could see how kids reacted to this movie. Although I may not have been bowled over, you could have heard a pin drop in the theatre. It is rare that you go to a movie stocked with that many kids and do not hear a peep from any of them. Either they were riveted to the screen or high on the sugary goodness of Raisinettes, they fell asleep during the hypnotic opening credits.

“Nim’s Island” is the story of 11 year old Nim who lives on an island in the Pacific Ocean, somewhere near the Cook Islands. Her mother, an oceanographer, died when she was four years old. Her scientist father Jack (Gerard Butler with an American accent) loaded her onto their boat and sailed around the world twice until he discovered this “Fire Island” where they settled to live. Nim grew up on the island with her father and only the local animals as her friends. It sounds like a lonely existence but you would never know it from the total, unmitigated joy emanating from both Nim and her father. These are clearly two people who are passionate about life and quite content with what they have. Nim spends her days with her sea lion, pelican, and lizard friends, and only punctuates this routine with shipments from the outside world, which occasionally include the latest Alex Rover adventure novel.

Jack sets off on a two day boat trip to track down new species of plankton, reluctantly leaving behind his stubborn daughter after she talks him into letting her stay behind to help hatch sea turtles. However, a horrible storm pops up out of nowhere, leaving Jack stranded out at sea in his sinking boat. Meanwhile, Nim enjoys her freedom back on the island and even manages to meet her hero Alex Rover online. What Nim does not know is that adventurer Alex Rover is actually an agoraphobic woman named Alexandra living in San Francisco who has never done anything close to adventurous, save attempting to get her mail. When the crazy storm comes ashore on the island, Nim becomes worried when she no longer can contact her father by satellite phone. Scared, Nim reaches out to her hero Alex Rover and manages to talk her into coming to the island to help her.

This movie has a number of things going for it. The cast is phenomenal, even if I do not buy for a second that Jodie Foster would be afraid of anything. The four main characters, Nim, Alexandra Rover, imaginary male Alex Rover (also Butler), and Jack are likeable and interesting. The story idea is exciting and fun, and it is exactly the kind of movie I would have either imagined myself as a child or been anxious to watch repeatedly at the local movieplex. The problem I had with the movie was that despite the story and actors, it still kind of felt flat. In part this was the directing, but in larger part, the writing just did not flow well. There was 10 lbs of plot in this 5 lb bag and yet the movie still seemed to drag. The side plot of Nim defending her island was fun, but it took up too much of the screen time. I almost would have liked to see more of Alexandra’s journey and struggle, but on the other hand, I don’t think Jodie Foster’s comic timing would have made that more enjoyable. I also liked the imaginary Alex Rover played by Butler with his native Scottish accent, talking to Foster. It kind of reminded me of Jack Flack from “Cloak and Dagger” only Alex haunts the adult rather than the child in this movie. Still I liked Alex’s chemistry with Alexandra quite a bit, and I almost would have liked to see more of it.

Overall this movie is better for kids because adults might get bored, especially on repeat viewings with their children. I think the movie has enough things going right with it that children will not only enjoy it, but have a special place in their heart for it as they get older. A great family movie, it is worth checking out in the theatre if you have kids. If you don’t have any, DVD and cable are a fine place to check this out later.

SHATTERED (a.k.a. BUTTERFLY ON A WHEEL) (2007)

DIRECTED BY

Mike Barker

STARRING

Pierce Brosnan - Tom Ryan

Maria Bello - Abby Randall

Gerard Butler - Neil Randall

Emma Karwandy - Sophie Randall

Claudette Mink - Judy

3 Howls Outta 4

The perfect family: husband & wife, 2.5 kids, the house with the white picket fence - most of us try very hard to have that kind of life once we settle down. But what happens if a stranger just steps into our lives and threatens to take that away because of some deep, dark secret you've been keeping? Would you do everything in your power to reveal your secret to save the people you love, even if it might cause you to lose them at the end? Or does the secret mean more to you than your family? In the straight-to-DVD released SHATTERED, distributed by Lions Gate, you may be bound to find out while experience many twists and turns before you get the answer.

PLOT

Abby (Maria Bello) and Neil Randall (Gerard Butler) seem to be the perfect married couple. They have a beautiful daughter (Emma Karwandy), a big house in Chicago, and enough money to go away on vacation for a weekend. However, that perfection begins to flaw when a stranger named Tom Ryan (Pierce Brosnan) enters their lives, taking them hostage and threatening to murder their daughter, who an associate has kidnapped. For about 24 hours, Tom keeps the couple at bay, torturing them and making them do things they don't want to do but need to in order to save their daughter. Eventually, the whole thing is leading to Tom wanting Neil to kill someone for him - in exchange for his daughter's life.

REVIEW

SHATTERED, which was known as BUTTERFLY ON A WHEEL [a reference to Alexander Pope's "Epistle to Dr. Arbuthnot"], is probably the best straight-to-DVD feature distributed by Lions Gate Entertainment so far. This pretty entertaining thriller/mystery was definitely made for the movie theatres, but something must have happened along the way for it to end up straight on a disc. It's too bad because this film has a lot of star power, who bring good performances to make an implausible situation actually seem believable.

SHATTERED is a hard film to review. It's the kind of film that if you really dig deep and talk about certain aspects, it may spoil and ruin the experience for someone who hasn't seen it yet. I don't want to do that, so I won't talk about the story and the characters. I will say that the film is very heavy on twists and turns until it reaches its resolution. Yes, this is very common in most modern thrillers these days but the twists actually make the film and are actually quite entertaining. I won't say whether the resolution is satisfying or not [I liked it personally], but it'll definitely make you think.

The direction by Mike Barker is very good. The film starts off very slow but picks up once Brosnan is introduced, and it pretty much doesn't let up. It builds and builds and builds as the films tries to trick you with things you may or may not have seen coming. Nice use of angles, lighting, and close-up reaction shots truly benefit the film's visual style. You're never bored and the cinematography by Ashley Rowe is beautiful. Barker truly tries to get the viewer emotionally involved with the characters, making us wonder what we would do in their shoes. The morals of people are questioned here and I thought the visual did a good job making that clear.

The acting is very good here as well. The acting by Pierce Brosnan especially, who dumps everything that was suave and cool as James Bond, and pretty much plays an immoral character who suffers from sociopathic tendecies for reasons I don't want to bring up right now. Brosnan has done great work as of late in recent films and this one is no exception. It was kind of weird seeing him as the antogonist since he's known for his good guy roles. Also, his accent was either Irish or Scottish, and didn't sound as British as Bond's. Just an interesting character change for the actor that I appreciated. Maria Bello and Gerard Butler also do well as the supporting cast, as their characters were pretty much going through the emotional wringer most of the film. Bello is solid as always and is quite believable in her performance. Butler had an issue with his accent with me, as I wasn't sure if he was American or European or what. His accent going in and out and it took something away from his performance. But for the most part, he convinced me that was capable of more than just being Lara Croft's sidekick, a phantom of an opera, or a spartan.

I also had issues with some of the twists. While I enjoyed them, I thought that the resolution really didn't explain their plausibility enough. It seemed like some were shot one way and by the end, shown at a completely different angle that didn't match to what was shown before. But then again, you gotta make your story work. Sometimes bullshit is a nice easy way out.

THINGS I'VE LEARNED WHILE BEING TAKEN HOSTAGE BY THIS FILM

1. If you wake up at the middle ofthe night and your husband is not in bed with you, he's either working hard, screwing a younger version of you, or working hard screwing a younger version of you. Either way, you're not too important in his life.

2. Don't be a handsome smug executive who acts innocent while stealing other people's opportunities at the same time. It will only bite you in the ass later on. Believe me, people have learned from the Amanda Woodward Epidemic of the 1990s.

3. Abby can't get enough of Neil. I guess she's just another in a line of women who really want to see if he's really the King of Sparta. Lucky bastard.

4. Abby wanted a younger nanny to take care of her daughter, Sophie. Has she not learned from Sienna Miller or Uma Thurman? Read the tabloids, girl!

5. Tom Ryan took Abby and Neil hostage. I guess losing the James Bond gig left him shaken, not stirred.

6. Tom Ryan claims to be God. Yeah, because DIE ANOTHER DAY was so heavenly...

7. If you tell a woman to do something, she'll do the exact opposite. And people wonder why the divorce rate is so high? All us men want is for a woman to listen to them. Is that so hard?

8. Does stress bring the ugly truth out of people?

Yeah, I guess.

That answer is....

::biting nails::

....

::shaking and sweating::

...TRUE.

9. Tom Ryan is getting annoyed by Neil's "big dick pride". How does he know about the size of his manhood? Look, I know Europeans are very comfortable with sex, but that's just a little weird...

10. Tom Ryan is making Neil's life a living hell. Maybe if Neil had kicked Tom into that big bottomless pit, none of this would be happening!

THE FINAL HOWL

SHATTERED is a pretty good thriller that deserved the silver screen treatment. Hell, if PERFECT STRANGER could get it, why shouldn't this much better film? Good-to-great performances, nice direction, a pretty entertaining story with nice twists and turns - I dug this film. It's far from perfect but it does enough well to be worth a watch. I wouldn't buy SHATTERED but I'd definitely rent it. You could do a lot worse with your free time than by watching this film.