PREVIEW: A WALK THROUGH X-MEN: FIRST CLASS - PART 3

It’s been two weeks since the last preview post was posted in Green Tea Movie. I am glad to be part of the global phenomenon that will be swarming across beginning June 2. On the first part of the preview I talked about the story that the X-Men: First Class is to be covered; ranging from a mixture emotional cocktail regarding issues surrounding the United States during the 60’s to 70’s; for instance the Cuban Missile Crisis, racism and social equality. X-Men: First Class will look on how X-Men is first established, going back into the origin, a look into the day of formation and the day when Professor X (Charles Xavier) and Magneto (Erik Lehnsherr) were friends. Things then turn ugly and proceeds into the known events that happen in the modern day where a bit of shear rivalry and partition of the special mutants into two schools of taught. I have also shown you the profiles of the two men whom will lead the mutants, once afflicted and then ripped apart as archenemy. In part three of the preview post, let me invite you to the rest of the mutants (in second part), where we will feature two X-Men mutants - Havok and Darwin.

THE HOUSE OF MUTANTS (PART TWO)

Alexander "Alex" Summers (Havok)

He is played by young American actor Lucas Till (The Spy Next Door, Battle Los Angeles). Havok possesses superhuman abilities Ability to absorb cosmic energy and energy blasts. Alex Summers is the youngest of Christopher Summer, the other is been Scott Summer (Cyclops). He is later part of X-Men.

Unlike the comics where he is the brother of Cyclops, Havok may be playing his father since the film is based in the ’60s. Fans will also note the change in color of his energy blasts to red, more in line with Cyclops’ optic blasts from the previous X-Men movies. In an interview with LA Times, Bryan Singer described Havok as:

"And I really, really like [Lucas Till as] Havok, who we’re bringing in [to the continuity] at a sort of a different time, relative to the comic book lore. It’s an extremely cool character. What’s great, too, about all of these characters is that they haven’t honed their abilities yet. Havok is a danger to himself and everyone around him. That’s where this movie is at — the recruiting of these mutants and bringing them together."

Armando Munoz (Darwin)

He is played by young Kenyan-American actor Edi Gathegi (Twilight, House TV series). Darwin is known to possess the power of reactive evolution. He is later part of X-Men.

----- END OF PART THREE -----

X-Men: First Class is opening this weekend, with early shows starting tomorrow. Are you ready for the X-Men journey? Watch the awesome featurette trailer below:

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BOX OFFICE NEWS MAY 27 - MAY 30, 2011

The weekend we have gone by happened to be the Memorial Day weekend. The box office screamed very loud and the audiences flocking to the cinemas to create the biggest Memorial Day weekend gross in the history. Newcomers like The Hangover 2, Kung Fu Panda 2 and holdovers blazed the weekend with fire!

Coming in hot for the number one spot and eventually opening the biggest number of the year happened to be The Hangover Part II. It seems deja vu yet again with the Wolf Pack embroiled in a similar trouble that they had in Vegas two years ago but the movie this time suffered a series of mediocre reviews. Nevertheless, the audiences decided to give this a winner with the Warner Bros'R-rated live action comedy grossed an estimated $86.5 million over the proper weekend. Adding in its spicy $31.6 million on Thursday's release and another $19.7 million on the extended weekend (on Monday), the total stood at a blazing $137.38 million. That number itself reflects The Hangover Part II as the biggest opener of the year!

Laughing on approximately 6,700 screens at 3,615 locations, The Hangover Part II delivered the top-grossing weekend ever for a live-action comedy, while it ranked second to The Matrix Reloaded among R-rated movies start. While the $86.5 million start on proper weekend may have fell a little short than last week's 2011 record of $90.2 million set by "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides", it would have been first if it hadn't burnt off some demand with its Thursday opening. According to exit polling from distributor Warner Bros (again partnered with Legendary Pictures), The Hangover Part II's audience composition was 51 percent female and 54 percent under 25 years old. The under 18-year-old bracket was 13 percent. The first Hangover was 52 percent male and 53 percent under 25 in its opening weekend.

The other wide-new-opener, Kung Fu Panda 2 was not as huge as the first one. The animated sequel generated an estimated $48 million on close to 7,500 screens at 3,925 locations, retreating from the first Kung Fu Panda's $60.3 million nearly three years ago over the proper weekend. It is now running less than its predecessor which had $66.6 million start over the first four days, against $53.8 million (including $5.8 million start on Thursday). Included in Kung Fu Panda 2's numbers were 3D presentations at 2,707 locations that accounted for 45 percent of business. Paramount's research showed that 54 percent of Kung Fu Panda 2's audience was male (animated movies usually skew female) and 53 percent was under 25 years old. A third of the audience was under 18.

In limited release, Midnight in Paris expanded to 58 locations (up from six last weekend), and its business jumped to a solid estimated $1.9 million. Meanwhile, The Tree of Life also made waves as far as specialty releases go, claiming an estimated $352,000 at four locations, averaging $88,000 per location. The Tree of Life recently won the coveted top prize at the Cannes, opening solidly in domestic market ahead of its gradual expansion releases. The movie was directed and written by Terrence Malick; and stars Brad Pitt, Sean Penn and Jesse Chastain.

Here are the top twelve box office of the weekend in a 4-day weekend tally according to the studio estimates

Rank	Title	Weekend Gross ($)	Change (%)	Total Gross ($)
1	THE HANGOVER PART II	105,765,000	NEW	137,375,000
2	KUNG FU PANDA 2	62,200,000	NEW	68,000,000
3	PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES	50,372,000	-44.1	163,967,000
4	BRIDESMAIDS	20,987,000	+0.5	89,594,000
5	THOR	12,030,000	-22.2	162,375,000
6	FAST FIVE	8,166,000	-22.8	197,576,000
7	MIDNIGHT IN PARIS	2,615,000	+487.6	3,520,000
8	RIO	2,400,000	-48.8	135,441,000
9	JUMPING THE BROOM	2,350,000	-36.5	34,631,000
10	SOMETHING BORROWED	2,320,000	-34.0	35,234,000
11	PRIEST	2,100,000	-55.8	27,662,000
12	WATER FOR ELEPHANTS	1,400,000	-35.8	54,729,000

*Note: All figures are ESTIMATED grosses. Courtesy of BOX OFFICE MOJO

Related articles

• Box office update: 'The Hangover Part II' parties on with $86.5 mil three-day weekend (insidemovies.ew.com)
• Hangover and Kung Fu Panda Sequels Add Up for Biggest Memorial Day Weekend Ever (omg.yahoo.com)
• Weekend Box Office - THE HANGOVER PART II Brings Its Four Day Total to $118 Million (collider.com)
• 'The Hangover Part II,' 'Kung Fu Panda 2,' 'The Tree of Life': What will you see this weekend? (popwatch.ew.com)

THE HOBBITS NOW WITH NEW SUBTITLES AND RELEASE DATES

Actually, the following news aren't much of a surprise! Anyway, New Line Cinema, Warner Bros and MGM have jointly announced the new subtitles and release dates for the upcoming The Hobbit project. The Peter Jackson-directed two parts adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien's beloved master piece "The Hobbit" is currently on active shooting at various locations in New Zealand.

The Hobbit as we have known will be split into two-parts. The part one is now called "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" while part two is now called "The Hobbit: There and Back Again". The first part will be released on 14 December 2012 while the second part will be released a year later on 13 December 2013. The official synopsis that was provided in the press release is as follows:

"Both films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar-winning The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. The adventure of “The Hobbit” follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug."

Here are part of the official press release description as also featured on Coming Soon and Slash Film:

"Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy, and Martin Freeman, who just won a BAFTA TV Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the BBC series “Sherlock,” takes on the central role of Bilbo Baggins. Also reprising their roles from “The Lord of the Rings” movies are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; and Andy Serkis as Gollum. The ensemble cast also includes (in alphabetical order) Richard Armitage, Jed Brophy, Adam Brown, John Callen, Stephen Fry, Ryan Gage, Mark Hadlow, Peter Hambleton, Stephen Hunter, William Kircher, Sylvester McCoy, Bret McKenzie, Graham McTavish, Mike Mizrahi, James Nesbitt, Dean O’Gorman, Lee Pace, Mikael Persbrandt, Conan Stevens, Ken Stott, Jeffrey Thomas and Aidan Turner.

The screenplays for “The Hobbit” films are by Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, Guillermo del Toro and Peter Jackson. Jackson is also producing the films, together with Fran Walsh and Carolynne Cunningham. The executive producers are Ken Kamins and Zane Weiner, with Philippa Boyens serving as co-producer.

“The Hobbit” films are productions of New Line Cinema and MGM, with New Line managing production. Warner Bros Pictures is handling worldwide theatrical distribution, with select international territories as well as all international television licensing being handled by MGM."

Related articles

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• Orlando Bloom joins J.R.R. Tolkien's 'The Hobbit' as extras casting continues (filmtvcasting.wordpress.com)
• Orlando Bloom is Now Officially Part of 'The Hobbit' (slashfilm.com)
• Peter Jackson Writes Legolas Into The Hobbit (escapistmagazine.com)

X-MEN FIRST CLASS STARTS SHOWING ON WEDNESDAY

I have to say that X-Men First Class is about to become the first X-Men movie that I truly enjoy! I can already foresee the good premonition of it been one of the best superhero and summer movies of the year. Truthfully, the current Rotten Tomatoes rating has it standing tall at 100%, I hope I am not wrong with my previous statement. After all, if you have been following the development of the production in this blog, I have to assure you that it is indeed mesmerizing how they can pulled out such magic in a somewhat rushed project. The Matthew Vaughn-directed and Bryan Singer-produced prequel project about the X-Men franchise is arriving this week.

Here is some good news if you are an eager fan of X-Men series or simply you just want to become among the first in the world to watch the movie. The movie will start to open to the public audiences this Wednesday night! Here are the Wednesday's early showtimes ahead of its official release on Thursday for various Klang Valley cinema locations:

GOLDEN SCREEN CINEMAS
Mid Valley - 2125 hrs, 0000 hrs, 0030 hrs
Pavilion KL - 2130 hrs, 2310 hrs (2 shows), 0030 hrs
1 Utama - 2100 hrs, 2200 hrs, 2345 hrs, 0045 hrs
Tropicana City - 2100 hrs, 2345 hrs
Berjaya Times Square - 2100 hrs, 2130 hrs (2 shows), 2340 hrs (2 shows), 0010 hrs
Alamanda, Putrajaya - 2145 hrs (2 shows), 0045 hrs (2 shows)
Leisure Mall - 2300 hrs
Summit USJ - 2120 hrs, 2350 hrs
IOI Mall - 2130 hrs, 0000 hrs (2 shows)
*For more showtimes at GSC, please visit http://www.gsc.com.my

TANJONG GOLDEN VILLAGE
No showtimes available at the time of blogging
*For more showtimes at TGV, please visit http://www.tgv.com.my/default.asp

CATHAY CINEPLEX
Damansara - 2105 hrs, 2130 hrs, 2345 hrs, 0015 hrs
*For more showtimes at Cathay Cineplex, please visit http://www.cathayholdings.com.my/cineplexes/movies.html

MBO CINEMAS
Galaxy Ampang - 2200 hrs, 2245 hrs
Village Mall Kepong - 2245 hrs
*For more showtimes at MBO Cinemas, please visit http://www.mbocinemas.com/100930/index.php

BIG CINEMAS

No showtimes available at the time of blogging

*For more showtimes at TGV, please visit http://www.bigcinemas.com/MY/visMovies.aspx

MOVIE REVIEW: KUNG FU PANDA: THE KABOOM OF DOOM

KUNG FU PANDA: THE KABOOM OF DOOM (U)

Genre: Action/Adventure/Animation

Release Date: 26 May 2011

Running Time: 90 minutes

Distributor: DreamWorks Pictures, Paramount Pictures (United International Pictures)

Director: Jennifer Yuh Nelson

Screenplay: Jonathan Aibel, Glenn Berger

Starring: Jack Black, Angelina Jolie, Dustin Hoffman, Gary Oldman, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross, James Hong, Michelle Yeoh, Danny McBride

Plot: "Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom Of Doom" is an upcoming animated film adventure and the sequel to "Kung Fu Panda". Set to be in 3-D, the movie is directed by Jennifer Yuh Nelson with actor Jack Black reprising his role as Po, the Giant Panda. The plot will involve a new villain with a weapon so powerful it threatens the very existence of kung fu. It is then up to Po, Master Shifu, and the Furious Five to defend it, whilst along the way, Po is forced to confront his past.

Review: So the Furious Five has return; but not to be confused with the guys and girls from Fast and Furious. Instead of providing plenty of testosterone punches as we have gone through since the early of this month, it is probably that time of the year when we settle down for a calmer but enjoyable adventure. Yes, this is the one. The second chapter for the kung fu animation returns with more awesomeness and kabooms as it seems with a little bit more of justice for hunger. They are back to save the world of kung fu, China and even the world from more catastrophic disaster that fireworks may caused. I have to admit that this is the best DreamWorks Animation production I have seen since last year's sleeper hit "How To Train Your Dragon".

The movie opens with a prologue that portrays the peaceful city of Gongmen under the rule of the peacock clan. For years, the peacock clan has brought happiness and peace to the citizens of Gongmen by harnessing the power and magic from fireworks. However, their heir, Lord Shen (Gary Oldman) decided to use the firework as part of dark magic and a weapon that will be used to take control of China. When Shen learned from the court's goat soothsayer (Michelle Yeoh) that "a warrior of black and white" would one day defeat him, he assumed she was referring to the giant pandas. To avert such prophecy from becoming true, he had all the pandas to be exterminated. Shen's parents were horrified at his action and decided to banish Shen, only to vow for a vengeful return.

Meanwhile, Po (Jack Black) is living his dream as the Dragon Warrior, protecting the Valley of Peace alongside his friends and fellow kung fu masters the Furious Five, but Master Shifu (Dustin Hoffman) tells him he has yet to achieve inner peace. One day during a standoff against the wolves who have been stealing refined metal for Lord Shen to use for his newly developed cannon, Po is distracted by a symbol on the head wolf's (Danny McBride) armor, which causes Po to have a flashback of his mother and allows the wolves to escape. Po decides he must know his past. Words have that Master Thundering Rhino (Victor Garber), leader of the kung fu council protecting Gongmen City, has been killed by Lord Shen's new weapon, which threatens to destroy kung fu tradition. The Furious Five is once again sent to Gongmen to save the day!

The plot may have been the weakest link here but it is still somehow enjoyable. The arc story seems to have been taken lazily to follow the mold of the original predecessor. It's the same kind of things you should have expected from the movie about warrior, where heroes combat baddies from destroying the world. Fortunately it is not a bad decision at all. We follow the Furious Five, not only that our warriors comprising of a giant panda, a tigress, a crane, a monkey and a snake setting out for adventure yet again to save the day, but also to self rediscover the lost soul and to achieve that inner peace. It is a somewhat wild, bold and hilarious adventure that sets our warriors in the most entertaining way possible. Indeed you will be served with enough workable humors, as well as some intensity of actions and emotional feels at time. Beware, this animation is rather entertaining and less annoying than any of your standard animation features.

As for the mythology goes, this sequel brings one to reconnect to the past about the origin of Po, among other new themes and story in this sequel. Po's parenthood is been explained curiously, beautifully and emotionally. I have to say the part when Po discovered the truth about his younger days and how he weirdly connected to his "biological" father goose, Mr Ping (James Hong) is powerful, dark and emotionally; although not really a true tear-jacker like we have seen in "Toy Story 3", "Up" or "How To Train Your Dragon". After all, the movie is not powered by pure emotion, rather director Jennifer Yuh Nelson chose to balance all acts of craziness and awesomeness well. Not really much of a surprise since Guillermo del Toro (the executive producers) was suspected to might have lend some hand on the story development as well given the little dark nature in the movie.

As much as I might have hate Jack Black when it comes to live-action comedy, he seems greatly casted for the role of Po, just like in the original. He is more realistic, less annoying and does his voice job beautifully. It is clear that the character Po has matured from the last time we have seen him and for that, Black invests personality into Po and for that it works. Gary Oldman's Shen appropriately demonstrated how robbing love can make one into the evil side, thus he is a foe that looks ruthless but at times indecisive when he comes to face the prophecy he inherited. Angelina Jolie's Tigress seems to have more involvement this time and only those who have not paying attention during the movie will not realizing how importance she will be in the third movie. Romantic involvement perhaps? We shall see then. Speaking of awesomeness, the special effects are the real deal in this movie, been way better than anything you have seen in an animation point of view. The spectacular cinematography is equally viewable in either 2D or 3D format. Kudos yet again to DreamWorks to produce another great 3D movie!

THE RATING:

Story: 3.0

Casts: 4.0

Cinematography: 4.0

Effects: 4.5

GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 14.4

--------------------------------------------

Related articles

• Kung Fu Panda 2 (Review by Logan J Fowler) (supermarcey.com)
• This 'Panda' Can't Match the Magic of the First (Short Ends and Leader) (popmatters.com)
• Kung Fu Panda 2: Movie Review (screencrave.com)
• Download Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom Movie Watch It Online (movieadobo.wordpress.com)

UPDATES ON ELYSIUM: ALICE BRAGA AND RELEASE DATE CHANGES

In this quiet weekend, I shall update you with some news regarding Elysium. Those who have watched 2009's District 9 must have enjoyed the concept and the characters. Well, in case you did not know, the writer/director of that Best Picture nominee is back with a new project. The project that I am talking about is not the sequel of that movie, but rather a new sci-fi film entitled Elysium. The movie sets in the far future on another planet and is filled with many sociopolitical ideas wrapped up inside a Hollywood action film.

Coming Soon reported that Alice Braga, whom we have seen her films like The Rite and Predators, has been cast in the Neill Blomkamp's sociopolitical satire for an unknown role. Recently, Wagner Moura was also casted for another unknown role, joining the list of already star-studded castings that include Matt Damon (The Bourne Ultimatum, Green Zone), Jodie Foster (The Beaver), Sharlto Copley (District 9, The A-Team) and William Ficthner (Drve Angry 3D, Prison Break).

Meanwhile, the production and distribution studio, Sony Pictures has announced a minor shift on the release date. Previously slated for March 8, 2013 release, Elysium will now open on March 1 instead. This was done to avoid direct competition with Walt Disney's Sam Raimi's "Oz, the Great and Powerful".

Related articles

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• Neill Blomkamp's Elysium Bumped WAY Back! (dreadcentral.com)
• William Fichtner Joins Neill Blomkamp's 'Elysium' (slashfilm.com)
• Sam Raimi's OZ, THE GREAT AND POWERFUL Set for March 8, 2013 (collider.com)

LEAKED TRAILER: THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO

The poster for the Swedish version

[UPDATED: Click here to see the trailer instead. The original video was removed]
Some folks managed to leak out the brand new red band trailer for the upcoming monster hit of this Christmas (I hope), The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Yes, if you have not known, the movie is supposedly has finished shooting and now undergoing post-production process. The outcome is one hella awesome trailer which you can watch below. Directed by Academy Awards nominee David Fincher (whose last work on The Social Network almost won Best Picture this year) and starring a notable list of castings headed by Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara, as Mikael Blomkvist and Lisbeth Salander respectively.



Now if you are a fan of the original novel written by the late Steig Larsson and the original Swedish-language adaptation film, this could be something to cheer for. Now, this red band trailer does not go into the details of breaking down the convoluted story, rather it flashes amazing scenes that regarded as some visually spectacular feast, accompanied by some brilliant music that composer Trent Reznor took a cover on Led Zepellin's "Immigrant Song" with mesmerized ear-banging experience.

I just need to reiterate that this is a leaked red-band trailer and there might be a chance that it will be pulled off from site-sharing Youtube any moment. Anyway, if you have watched the Swedish version, you would recognized plenty of scenes that were familiar for. If you are not familiar with this beloved franchise, here's some synopsis for you:

"Based on Stieg Larsson's posthumously published crime thriller trilogy, "The Millennium Series." The book describes the mystery surrounding the long-unsolved disappearance of an heiress. A journalist recently dinged by a libel case and a young female hacker try to resolve it, stirring up bundles of personal and industrial corruption along the way."

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo is hitting cinemas in the United States on December 21, just in time for Oscar contention. Malaysians may need to wait a little while!

Related articles

• Red-Band Trailer for THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Leaks (collider.com)
• 'The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo' Red Band Teaser Trailer Hits The Net (slashfilm.com)
• Red-Band Trailer For David Fincher's 'The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo' Playing Overseas; US Version Next Week (slashfilm.com)
• Red-Band International Trailer for THE GIRL WITH THE DRAGON TATTOO Debuts in Europe; Green-Band Domestic Trailer Launches June 2nd (collider.com)

TRAILER: DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK - COULD BE THE BEST HORROR MOVIE OF THE YEAR

One of the most anticipated movie of the year comes in the form of horror movie called "Don't Be afraid of the Dark" The horror is co-written and produced by Guillermo del Toro, directed by Troy Nixey and having peoples like Guy Pearce, Katie Holmes and Bailee Meadison to star. The horror has a teaser way back last year for an early of this year's release but has since then been delayed following the Miramax studio restructuring plan. You can watch back the trailer back in August last year here.

With some great early reviews already in the bag, the movie then went quiet following the studio's problem. Now, a new trailer has been released and you can watch the creepiness below:



Here is the story synopsis for "Don't Be Afraid of the Dark":

"Sally Hurst (Bailee Madison), a lonely, withdrawn child, has just arrived in Rhode Island to live with her father Alex (Guy Pearce) and his new girlfriend Kim (Katie Holmes) at the 19th-century mansion they are restoring. While exploring the sprawling estate, the young girl discovers a hidden basement, undisturbed since the strange disappearance of the mansion’s builder a century ago. When Sally unwittingly lets loose a race of ancient, dark-dwelling creatures who conspire to drag her down into the mysterious house’s bottomless depths, she must convince Alex and Kim that it’s not a fantasy—before the evil lurking in the dark consumes them all."

Audiences in UK will watch this on 12 August while the United States will follow a fortnight later. However, no release date is currently secured for Malaysia market. Get ready to freak out!

Related articles

• 'Don't Be Afraid of the Dark' UK Trailer (slashfilm.com)
• Movie Trailer for Guillermo del Toro's DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK (geektyrant.com)
• UK Trailer for the Guillermo del Toro-Produced DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK (collider.com)
• Creepy UK Trailer for Guillermo del Toro's DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE DARK (geektyrant.com)

TRAILERS: THE DESCENDANTS, SHARK NIGHT 3D, FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS

For today's selection of trailers cocktail, we mix it all up with some spice of horror, sweetness of tying up family matters and some struggle of kinkiness on the bed. We have trailers for you from Fox Searchlight's The Descendants, Relativity Media's Shark Night 3D and Sony's Friends With Benefits.

THE DESCENDANTS

From Alexander Payne, the creator of the Oscar-winning SIDEWAYS, set in Hawaii, THE DESCENDANTS is a sometimes humorous, sometimes tragic journey for Matt King (George Clooney) an indifferent husband and father of two girls, who is forced to re-examine his past and embrace his future when his wife suffers a boating accident off of Waikiki. The event leads to a rapprochement with his young daughters while Matt wrestles with a decision to sell the family's land handed down from Hawaiian royalty and missionaries. It is based on the novel by Kaui Hart Hemmings.



Release date will be on December 16 in the United states. No words on Malaysian release yet.

SHARK NIGHT 3D

Relativity Media has released the first in-sight trailer from David R. Ellis' directed shark horror feast, Shark Night in 3D. The movie stars Sara Paxton, Dustin Milligan, Katharine McPhee, Chris Carmack, Alyssa Diaz, Joel David Moore, Donal Logue, Sinqua Walls and Chris Zylka. The story revolves around seven male and female college friends who spend a weekend at a lake house in Louisiana’s Gulf area. When their vacation quickly becomes a nightmare of hellish shark attacks, unheard of in freshwater lakes, they soon discover that the sharks are part of a sick, greedy plan on the part of several locals.



The film opens on September 2 in United States while Malaysian audience may have to wait! It feels more like Hostel than Piranha...

FRIENDS WITH BENEFITS



Sony Screen Gems released an international trailer that takes things into more of sexuality action and talks, rather than a piece of fun humongous comedy that we have seen in the first trailer. The story centers around two professionals who meet but are too busy to find a mate. They agree to have an intimate relationship with no strings attached. Things get complicated when the guy falls for the girl, who’s dating someone else. We have seen that piece of drama on the first trailer which you can view back at here.

This, however, features more bed actions:



Will Gluck who previously directed Easy A is on this one as well. The Sony's Screen Gems pic will be released on July 22 in the United States and September 22 in Malaysia.

Related articles

• Trailer for Alexander Payne's THE DESCENDANTS Starring George Clooney (collider.com)
• Trailer for Shark Night 3D Packing Some Serious Bite (dreadcentral.com)
• 'Shark Night 3D' Trailer (slashfilm.com)
• First trailer for SHARK NIGHT 3D makes me afraid of the water (geektyrant.com)

MOVIE REVIEW: PRIEST

PRIEST (PG13)

Genre: Action/Horror

Release Date: 12 May 2011

Running Time: 87 minutes

Distributor: Sony Pictures

Director: Scott Stewart

Screenplay: Cory Goodman, based on Min-Woo Hyung's "Priest"

Starring: Paul Bettany, Cam Gigandet, Maggie Q, Karl Urban

Plot: The film is about a warrior priest (Paul Bettany) who disobeys church law by teaming with a young sheriff (Cam Gigandet) and a priestess (Maggie Q) to track down a band of renegade vampires who have kidnapped his niece.

Review: "Priest" comes with a different package when one compares it with other vampire movies. That's the good thing because we never have something so uncommon about its concept. "Priest" ensures you that the vampires look nothing humanoid (like Underworld) or even glimpse themselves sparkling under the basking sun (read Twilight). Vampire is not invoked by any deadly virus (like Resident Evil) but it is explained that they co-exist with human for ages, from some religious point of view. This movie happened to outdo itself after several hiccups in the production, bringing in fear despite its stylish looking; the film may wither on its quality. I'm afraid that's happening.

Based on the Korean comic novel of the same name, Priest is set in an alternative Dystopian world in which the human is facing extinction and fatal threats from the vampires, a ruthless and nasty creature that breeds like an ant, attacking without mercy. The war between the two sides has devastated the world. The human is on the losing bench, not until The Church created an elite spiritual warrior known as "Priests". The majority of the vampire race was killed during the human insurgent, while some of the remainder was placed in reservations. The Church tried to protect the humans by isolating those who believes behind the guarded walls if the city. However, The Church needs no longer of their services hence disbanded.

Not until one day, an unnamed Priest (Paul Bettany) is approached by Sheriff Hicks (Cam Gigandet) who tells him that his brother Owen was mortally wounded; Shannon (sister-in-law) was killed while his niece Lucy (Lily Collins) was kidnapped. He pressed forward for The Church assistance but only to be ignored and dismissed by Monsignor Orelas (Christopher Plummer), the leader of The Church. No longer believing in the power of The Church to protect its citizen, he goes against the order to search and rescue Lucy together with Hicks.

"Priest" is rather unsurprisingly bad. The only good things about the movie are that it is different, sleek and acknowledgedly stylish from other vampire-themed movies. The deep mythology and the conceptual of the movie are pretty amazing, unique and wondrously groomed. One of the more notable scenes from the movie has to be the opening animation that creatively dwelt the connection between the past and the current. Oh boy I like the way they handled the back story and the substances for their action, full stop! That's all until all these unique features were thrown and wasted for arguably disappointing direction and writing.

"Priest" while retains a unique elements for the back story, it fails to grasp the attention of the audience with its uninspiring piece of action adventure. The most fundamental aspect of piece of writing goes terribly wrong because of the bad writing, cheesy dialogue and hammy acting. The pace is uneven by infusing an annoying injunction of trying so hard to scare but without any logical success. Looks pretty much like a tamed down version of gore-feast, but the intensity does not match the premise itself. Dialogue looks silly and cliché too. Fret not, it's bad but not the worst piece of writing I have ever encountered.

In addition to that, "Priest" does not worth the action we might expect. All the actions look hardly believable, intense nor exciting. The climaxes of action ended up been lesser than just a 'hoorah' of silly choreograph, albeit stylish. The fact that the film editing works are so bad should also be taken into consideration as well. The bad editing has made the film more undeserved. The connections between scene transitions looks flaw, discontinue and lost. For fans of the Korean comic this movie is based on, they will be truly despised and disappointed by the outcomes. "Priest" is really bad and not even an Our Father prayer could make it better.

THE RATING:

Story: 2.0

Casts: 2.5

Cinematography: 3.5

Effects: 3.5

GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 9.9

--------------------------------------------

COLUMBIA PICTURES TO SET UP THE KILL BIN LADEN

Earlier this month, the head of al-Qaeda organization Osama bin Laden was killed in a raid by the United States on his compound in Pakistan. Following his death, the interest for a movie that revolved around the terrorist seems growing, including the Hollywood. a news spec earlier this month revealed that there were two projects already been developed for years - Paramount's adaptation of "Jawbreaker" - written by CIA's Gary Bernsten which is about the first attempt to kill Bin Laden in the initial invasion of Afghanistan that took place back in 2001, and another one previously entitled "Kill Bin Laden" by Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal. You can read the news again at Green Tea Movie here.

According to Coming Soon, Columbia Pictures, the arm division of Sony Pictures has just announced that they are set to distribute that Kathryn Bigelow's film, which reunites her with The Hurt Locker screenwriter Mark Boal. It seems likely that the movie may no longer entitled "Kill Bin Laden", rather now an untitled film. The official description for the black ops thriller is as follows:

"The untitled film focuses on the black ops mission to capture or kill Osama bin Laden, which culminated in his death earlier this month during a high-stakes raid on his compound in Pakistan. Bigelow and Boal have been developing the project since 2008 and plan to incorporate recent events into the film."

Read more: Columbia Pictures to Release Kathryn Bigelow's Next - ComingSoon.net http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=78037#ixzz1NJnGptny

Joel Edgerton is believed to have been given a feature in the movie that many believe that the shooting may start at the end of this summer, for late 2012 theatrical release. He was rumored to have replace Bigelow's favorite Jeremy Renner, who since his portrayal in The Hurt Locker, has became pretty busy with offers - including roles in Mission: Impossible, Hawkeye for Marvel-related entries and the new lead in The Bourne series.

"With the death of Osama bin Laden," says Sony Pictures Co-Chairman Amy Pascal, "this film could not be more relevant. Kathryn and Mark have an outstanding perspective on the team that was hunting the most wanted man in the world. . Mark is second to none as an investigative journalist, and Kathryn will bring the same kind of compelling authenticity and urgency that distinguished The Hurt Locker and made that film so memorable and special."

[SOURCE: Coming Soon]

Related articles

• Kathryn Bigelow was already working on 'Kill Bin Laden' before the U.S. killed Bin Laden (insidemovies.ew.com)
• Osama Bin Laden Death Will Be Featured in Untitled Kathryn Bigelow Project (businessinsider.com)
• "Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal to re-write Bin Laden movie" and related posts (indielondon.co.uk)
• Fate of Kathryn Bigelow's Bin Laden assassination film unclear (arts.nationalpost.com)

RELATIVITY'S SNOW WHITE PROJECT COUNTER-ACTS BY SLATING IT FOR MARCH

Last week, Green Tea Movie talked about the two Snow White projects on-going in the Hollywood at the moment but it seems very clear that the two productions itself were already heating up for some battle. Despite sharing the same concept by ripping off some tales based on the popular character, the race between the two to establish itself as the first Snow White film looked intense as well. It started out last week when Universal's version entitled Snow White and the Huntsman (starring Charlize Theron, Kristen Stewart and Chris Hemsworth) was pushed from the late of 2012 to June 1 giving it a full three weeks ahead of its rival project at Relativity Media. The latest about the rivalry is that, Relativity Media has pushed the release date to counter Universal.

Relativity Media's Tarsem Singh's version (which previously known as The Brothers Grimm: Snow White), starring Lily Collins, Armie Hammer and Julia Roberts has now have its release date pushed way earlier - March 16 to be exact. This gives itself only about ten months space to breathe. It seems absurd as the production has not yet start to shoot. Could this be a mistake by pushing itself earlier? I am not sure what was in the mind of the executives but an article at Slash Film seems to justify that the move may not be wrong, but it is a risky business that the studio is dealing with. Head on to Slash Film article at this link.

In addition to changing their Snow White date, Relativity has officially slotted two of their other movies on dates that put them in direct competition with Universal releases. Safe Haven, based on the Nicholas Sparks novel, will come out on June 1 opposite Snow White and the Huntsman while Hunter Killer, the latest from Phillip Noyce, will open on December 21, the new date for the untitled Judd Apatow movie with Paul Rudd and Leslie Mann.

[SOURCE: Coming Soon, Slash Film]

Related articles

• Did Relativity Make A Mistake Moving Its 'Snow White' Up To March To Beat Universal's 'Snow White and the Huntsman?' (slashfilm.com)
• The SNOW WHITE War Continues as Relativity Kicks Their Film up to March 16th; Release Dates Announced for SAFE HAVEN and HUNTER KILLER (collider.com)
• Relativity sets Snow White pic earlier than Universal's 'Snow White and the Huntsman.' Does timing matter? (popwatch.ew.com)
• Cinemath: The Game Theory Behind the Snow White War (collider.com)

THE MUPPET IN THE TEASER TRAILER

Walt Disney released the first teaser trailer for their upcoming The Muppets movie which will hit the theaters on November 23 this year. The new teaser was released in conjunction with Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides over the weekend and it takes the audience to look back into the nostalgia of the Jim Henson's muppets like Kermit the Frog, Gonzo and Miss Piggy. You can watch the trailer below:



Here is the official synopsis as provided by Disney:

"On vacation in Los Angeles, Walter, the world’s biggest Muppet fan, and his friends Gary (Jason Segel) and Mary (Amy Adams) from Smalltown, USA, discover the nefarious plan of oilman Tex Richman (Chris Cooper) to raze the Muppet Theater and drill for the oil recently discovered beneath the Muppets’ former stomping grounds. To stage The Greatest Muppet Telethon Ever and raise the $10 million needed to save the theater, Walter, Mary and Gary help Kermit reunite the Muppets, who have all gone their separate ways: Fozzie now performs with a Reno casino tribute band called the Moopets, Miss Piggy is a plus-size fashion editor at Vogue Paris, Animal is in a Santa Barbara clinic for anger management, and Gonzo is a high-powered plumbing magnate."

In conjunction with the release of the trailer, Walt Disney also debuted the first poster for The Muppets:

The movie stars Jason Segel, Amy Adams, Chris Copper, Rashida Jones, voices behind The Muppets as well as notable cameo guests stars. The script was written by Jason Segel and Nicholas Stoller, the writer-director team behind the 2008 film Forgetting Sarah Marshall. James Bobin, co-creator of the HBO series Flight of the Conchords, is directing the film and Bret McKenzie, co-star of Flight of the Conchords, has written the film's songs.

NOTE: In May 2011, Kermit plugged the film in a web video reporting from the world premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides at Disneyland. The trailer for the movie was attached to the film. The trailer was promoted as a fake romantic comedy starring Adams and Segel entitled Green with Envy for the first half, with the Muppets appearing in the second half (much to the surprise of Segel). When uploaded online, the trailer was named as such, and Disney even created a faux poster for "Envy."

BOX OFFICE NEWS MAY 20 - MAY 22, 2011

This week, all major studios back out from releasing any movie on the weekend before the Memorial Day, except for Walt Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" of course.

The fourth installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series swooped in a huge $90.1 million opening from 4,155 locations. That number is enough for the movie to claim the year's biggest opening so far. It edged out Fast Five's opening of $86.2 million three weeks ago, settling for the mediocre 12th highest opening and the 27th most attended (estimation) for the month of May in the history. 3D takes it slightly half of the total take.

When the relative predecessors are considered, On Stranger Tides did lesser business than its previous two installment. At World's End drew $114.7 million on its first weekend in May 2007 (not including $13.2 million in Thursday night previews), while Dead Man's Chest raked in a then-record $135.6 million opening weekend back in July 2006. On Stranger Tides was always destined to debut lower than At World's End and Dead Man's Chest, given the mixed reaction to those movies and how the audience lost interest with At World's End. Distributor Walt Disney Pictures' exit polling indicated that 54 percent of On Stranger Tides' audience was male and 54 percent was over 25 years old (the age 26-34 group was most represented at 24 percent, followed by 18-25 with 22 percent).

The number for Pirates 4 outside the United States were more impressive. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides grossed an estimated $256.3 million in its first week. That number topped Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince's highest ever start and illustrating the rapid growth in the foreign marketplace. Russia and China were Pirates's top territories with $28.6 million and $20 million, respectively. Key territories included the United Kingdom ($19.5 million), Germany ($19.4 million), Japan ($18.2 million), France ($14.8 million), South Korea ($12 million), Italy ($11.5 million), Australia ($10.3 million), Spain ($10 million), Mexico ($9.8 million) and Brazil ($6.1 million).

Midnight in Paris also debuted on the week in a limited releases. The Woody Allen's romantic comedy grossed almost $600,000 from only 6 locations, registering the year's highest grossing per theater. Midnight in Paris boasted an ensemble castings that include Owen wilson, Rachel Mcadams, Marion Cotillard, Michael Sheen, Tom Hiddleston and Adrien Brody.

The rest of the Box Office numbers can be obtained below:

Rank	Title	Weekend Gross ($)	Change (%)	Total Gross ($)
1	PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES	90,151,958	NEW	90,151,958
2	BRIDESMAIDS	20,882,070	-20.4	59,341,310
3	THOR	15,455,304	-55.5	145,361,459
4	FAST FIVE	10,576,865	-48.3	186,165,450
5	PRIEST	4,750,041	-68.2	23,833,169
6	RIO	4,687,714	-43.4	131,684,365
7	JUMPING THE BROOM	3,703,310	-47.6	31,320,562
8	SOMETHING BORROWED	3,516,387	-48.8	31,519,452
9	WATER FOR ELEPHANTS	2,179,046	-48.2	52,456,620
10	TYLER PERRY'S MADEA'S BIG HAPPY FAMILY	956,589	-56.8	51,723,579
11	SOUL SURFER	930,008	-49.1	40,610,678
12	MIDNIGHT IN PARIS	599,003	NEW	599,003

*Note: All figures are OFFICIAL grosses. Courtesy of BOX OFFICE MOJO

Related articles

• 'Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Sets International Box Office Ablaze (moviesblog.mtv.com)
• 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Takes Top Box Office Spot (inquisitr.com)
• 'Pirates' Plunders the Global Box Office (artsbeat.blogs.nytimes.com)
• 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Plunders The Box Office (mtv.com)

MOVIE REVIEW: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES (PG13)

Genre: Action/Adventure/Comedy

Release Date: 19 May 2011

Running Time: 137 minutes

Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures

Director: Rob Marshall

Screenplay: Terry Rossio and Ted Elliott, based on Tim Powers' "On Stranger Tides"

Starring: Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Ian McShane, Geoffrey Rush

Plot: Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush returns as Captain Jack Sparrow and Captain Hector Barbossa, where both will be working together to find the Fountain of Youth. On their journey to find the illusive Fountain of Youth, they have to battle their new nemesis Captain Blackbeard played by Academy Award winning actor Ian McShane, while actress Penelope Cruz will play as Blackbeard's daughter and Captain Jack's love interest.

Review: "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" is the fourth movie in the lucrative Disney's tentpole that based itself from one of the theme park attraction. This time, it borrowed some elements from Tim Powers' "On Stranger Tides" which is a 1987 historical fantasy novel that tells about the journey of its main character to search for the Fountain of Youth. Indeed it is but before seeing this, I thought I was a little saturated with the franchise now. After seeing it, I am officially in a stage of been fatigue of the franchise as it does not offer anything fresh in terms of concepts. Hence, if you expecting this to be a return to its original's fun and enjoyable swashbuckling, you could be wrong. Perhaps, only mermaids and zombie are fresh enough to punch a hole in this one.

On the fourth outing, Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) travels to London to locate a person who has been impersonating him. The impersonator has been actively recruiting crews to search for the legendary and mystical Fountain of Youth. However, during an attempt to rescue his former first mate, Joshamee Gibbs (Kevin McNally), he is caught and brought before King George II (Richard Griffiths). The king intends to have him to guide an expedition under the command of Jack's old nemesis, Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) to locate the fountain ahead of the Spanish armada. However, Jack escapes and discovers that the impersonator is Angelica (Penelope Cruz), his former lover and the recently found-daughter of Blackbeard (Ian McShane).

Blackbeard forces Jack to join his crew on Queen Anne's Revenge to find the Fountain of Youth wile prophetically acknowledge that a one-legged man will kill him. While Sparrow is forced to join Blackbeard for the search, Gibbs joins Barbossa's crew after he destroys Sparrow's map to bargain for an exchange of life from hanging. Angelica reveals that the Fountain's water must be drunk from chalices once belonging to Juan Ponce de León, and that one chalice must contain a mermaid's tear. Whoever drinks the Fountain's water with the tear will absorb the previous and remaining years of the person drinking from the second cup. Knowing this, Blackbeard heads to Whitecap Bay, where he traps a mermaid that a captive missionary Philip Swift (Sam Claflin) later names Syrena (Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey).

On superficial, "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" maintains the fun-factor on several occasions only. The fantastical desire for some swashbuckling action is always present in the hours-long journey but may get to some disappointment as there lack of tidy in its executions, less gripping and always falls off on unnecessary manners. So easy to say, it comes a little way off from the best we have seen in the first three movies but the movie managed to wrestle in hardly some great actions and goofy dialogues at most of the time. One of those good points in the movie has to be Johnny Depp's timely and ruthless portrayal of Jack Sparrow. He is always been plucky and ruthless. When his character combined with Barbossa or Blackbeard, the movie comes to live. They play opposite to each other's characteristics and it certainly cements some interesting clashes. The other good point is that the side story between Philip and Syrena looks impressive, believable and reminiscences the romantic story between Will (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth (Kiera Knightley) from the first three movies.

It seems like the good points run out quite fast here. It is unfortunate because the fourth film failed to set itself free from yet again the same mistakes they did in "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End". It becomes a little formulaic and in some scale fails to match the epic feels. The convoluted and thick plot again possess some troubles here. For instance, the easiest argument when Angelica revealed that she is Blackbeard's daughter continues to purge the audiences with its unintended to get things pretty complex by making audience unsure if she is telling the truth. That same argument is then shot down when she seems to have a play on her own by suggesting her father should died, but again her notorious plan to deceit died off again later. For sure, it is one of those complex stuffs that make things difficult to digest and also deem unnecessary. Perhaps the same can be said about the multi-back stabbing acts that all the characters are demonstrating. It is not as worst as "At World's End" for that matter but it is still pain-stacking annoying.

The pace is intensely uneven because the audiences are served with somewhat interesting opening sequences, but dampened down with tepid and lazy plot in the middle act. The closing stage makes no interesting offer to greatness of swashbuckling adventure, rather staying close down to not so inspiring ending. The ending lacks of proper monstrous action and it feels disappointing at every turns it tries to offer. Like I always said, the film becomes only a little interesting if Sparrow is set up against Barbossa and Blackbeard - and also the story between Philip and Syrena! It is also unfortunate that the movie offers no connection to its past even when it plays down as a true sequel, besides the lack of surprise throughout the movie. However, in the end of the day, "Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" is not a terrible movie, it is just lukewarm and slightly below the average on it fails to perform as good as we hope for.

On the side note, please avoid the movie in 3D. The 3D does not enhance your viewing experience and it makes things even worst. The standard problem of profound 3D movies - dark, lack of depth and unimpressive; are visibly if you watch this in 3D.

THE RATING:

Story: 3.0

Casts: 3.5

Cinematography: 4.0

Effects: 4.0

GREEN-TEA-O-METER: 13.5

--------------------------------------------

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MALAYSIA: GOLDEN SCREEN CINEMAS INTRODUCES MOBILE APP FOR iPHONE

It is true that we can do almost anything with our mobile phone these days. Now you can purchase movie tickets conveniently with your just a tab on your iPhone; thanks to the launch of the new mobile service by Golden Screen Cinemas Sdn Bhd (GSC). Yes, I have attended the launching event this morning and certainly this will be a good news for all movie-goers.

The launch marked another significant achievement for the leader of cinema exhibitor and distributor in Malaysia as it now emerged as the first cinema operator to have its own mobile application and content. Exclusively for the iPhone users in Malaysia who love watching movies, GSC Mobile App (iPhone) was officially launched today (on 10th May 2011) at GSC Signature The Gardens Mall, Kuala Lumpur.

Photo credit: Golden Screen Cinemas

Speaking at the launch, GSC Senior Manager Mr Heng Beng Fatt said that the GSC mobile application will mark GSC's foray into the smartphone application market and a recognition to the growing market share and popularity of smartphones, particularly the Apple iPhone among Malaysian movie-goers who are tech savvy. He added, "The GSC Mobile App has been uploaded in the Apple Store since late April and was the top downloaded apps in the Apple Store (Malaysia) from April 29 to May 1 2011. Not surprisingly, page views for this app has surpassed 1 million for the past one month."

Photo credit: Golden Screen Cinemas

Mr Au Yong Eng Lim, Head M2U Business of Maybank highlighted that since 2007, Maybank and GSC have launched nationwide's first online cinema ticketing through Maybank2u.com and have seen a tremendous growth over the years. "Today with GSC Mobile App (iPhone), we once again demonstrate the robustness of Maybak2u.com as an effective payment channel for a range of services as well as Maybank's leadership for online payment. Maybank2u.com now leads with over 700 billers in Malaysia."

Also present was Mr. Klas Hesseman, Head of Marketing, PayPal Southeast Asia and India region. With well over 780,000 PayPal account holders in Malaysia, the new service will provide an easy way of buying movie tickets anytime, anywhere without cutting the queue to see the best movies at GSC theaters. He said, "We (PayPal) are proud to collaborate with GSC to give Malaysians a completely paperless mobile movie ticketing experience combined with PayPal's faster, safer way to pay on mobile devices in as little as two clicks."

The GSC mobile app can be installed and accessed from iOS devices running on iOS version 4.0 version onwards. The app allows GSC customers to select seats for their desired movies and purchase movie tickets by paying through Maybank2U.com (m2u) or through PayPal accounts. This service is offered for the current 20 GSC cinemas with e-payment facility. Users need only to perform the transaction on the app, turn up at the cinema, scan the 2D barcode on their iPhone screen at the cinema checkpoint before making their way to the cinema halls. Each transaction will be limited to six tickets per transaction but no limit of transactions are enforced to the user as long as there is credit balance in the Maybank or PayPal accounts. A certain amount of booking fees will be charge, up to RM1 for each ticket.

Photo credit: Golden Screen Cinemas

Hence, the whole movie experience will be "ticketless". The "ticketless" facility is currently available at GSC cinemas at Mid Valley, 1 Utama and Tropicana City Mall and will be rolled out to selected cinemas in stages. In conjunction with the launch of GSC Mobile App (iPhone) today, Maybank is waiving the online booking fees for the first 100,000 tickets from 11 May (tomorrow) until 10 July 2011, whichever comes first. Although the app is only available in Apple Store, plan has been underway to develop the Android version, expected to be released in the last quarter of the year.

To learn more on the GSC Mobile App (iPhone), please check out GSC Mobile App microsite and tutorial in www.gsc.com.my

TEASER TRAILER OF THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN

Green Tea Movie brings you the first official Tintin trailer which you can get the glimpse below. Entitled The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn (though it is now been shortened into just the primary title only), it will be released at the end of this year - December 23 to be exact. Most importantly, it is an upcoming animation motion-captured that based on Belgian artist Georges "Hergé" Remi.

Combining the stories of The Crab with the Golden Claws, The Secret of the Unicorn and Red Rackham's Treasure, the film depicts Tintin's (Jamie Bell) first encounter with Captain Haddock (Andy Serkis) and the discovery of a clue to the treasure of his ancestor Sir Francis Haddock. They set out to find it with protection from a prison escapee who tried to get the treasure as well as Detectives Thompson and Thomson (Simon Pegg and Nick Frost). Other castings include Daniel Craig as Red Rackham, Toby Jones, Cary Elwes and Ron Bottitta.

As promised, here's the teaser trailer:



Seeing that the script was co-written by Edgar Wright, along with current Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat, and Joe Cornish (Attack the Block), the film should be a proper mix of period adventure, intrigue, and the sort of puzzle-like mystery plot that Moffat in particular is well known for. This upcoming December could be a very good month for Spielberg, seeing as that The Adventures of Tintin is due to arrive on December 23rd, followed by his Oscar-hopeful adaptation, War Horse, on the 28th.

Green Tea Movie also have our eyes on the new posters. Here have a look:

[SOURCE: Screen Rant]

Related articles

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• Teaser Trailer for THE ADVENTURES OF TINTIN: THE SECRET OF THE UNICORN (collider.com)
• Steven Spielberg's 'The Adventures of Tintin' Teaser Trailer (slashfilm.com)