film - page 2

Serious or funny — what kind of film will Citizen George become?

By

Without fame and fortune, how might the prequels have turned out? Photo: JR Ralls
Without fame and fortune, how might the prequels have turned out? Photo: JR Ralls

Citizen George is slated to be a full-length independent film about a director who creates a hugely popular space opera film trilogy (read, George Lucas and Star Wars), only to end up releasing disappointing film prequels 20 years later.

So far, so basic, right? The catch here is that you have to choose the type of movie this fan film will end up being. Want a dramatic story about a serious film auteur and the perils of fame and fortune, like Citizen Kane? Drop some cash into the Drama tip jar. Want a wacky, time-travel comedy like Austin Powers? Slide your money into the Comedy tip jar.

District 9′s Neil Blomkamp will direct the next Alien movie!

By

Neil Blomkamp will be officially directing the next Alien film. Photo: Neil Blomkamp
Neil Blomkamp will direct the next Alien film. Photo: Neil Blomkamp

Despite attracting the absolute best talent, the Aliens franchise has been on a bit of a rough patch for the last, oh, 30 years or so.

Ridley Scott’s Prometheus prequel? It sucked. Alien: Resurrection, a joint written by Joss Whedon and filmed by the director of City of Lost Children? It blew. Alien 3, directed by multiple Academy Award winner David Fincher? Well, I’ve personally always thought it got a bum rap, but the general consensus is: It’s terrible.

Now Neil Blomkamp, the talented South African director behind District 9 and the upcoming Chappie, has been hired to film the next Alien movie. And thanks to Blomkamp, we have a pretty good idea what the movie will be about.

See four minutes of jaw-dropping space travel in this sci-fi short

By

A group of people await the arrival of a few dirigibles at the edge of the Victoria Crater on Mars in Erik Werquist's short film
People await the arrival of dirigibles at the edge of Mars' Victoria Crater in Erik Werquist's short film Wanderers.

You can wait until the 2030s when NASA hopes to land astronauts on Mars. Or, if you have four minutes to spare right now, you can see what it is like to stand on the edge of the red planet’s Victoria Crater or catch a Martian sunset.

Erik Wernquist will even throw in a side of rings — Saturn’s that is — for watching his awe-inducing short film, Wanderers, which is embedded below.

“I am always inspired by reading about astronomy, and planetary astronomy in particular,” Wernquist told Cult of Mac. “And when I read about, or see pictures from places, I often fantasize about what it would … feel like to actually be there.”

VII crazy rumors about the new Star Wars film

By

x-wing-pilot

With the new Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer hitting everywhere this weekend, anticipation for the new movie — and thirst for all the details and rumors we can handle — is at an all time high. What are the story details? Who are the characters in the trailer? What about all the original cast members?

Set 30 years after The Battle of Endor (seen in 1983's The Return of the Jedi), The Force Awakens is directed by hotshot and super Star Wars fan J.J. Abrams, fresh off his success with the Star Trek franchise. If the trailer is anything to go by, the new films are in fantastic hands. What the final product will be is any fan’s guess, so here are seven crazy rumors about the details coming to the films next December.


Meet the Marvel unknowns before they become blockbusters

By

Lesser known characters join the lineup of Marvel movie madness. Photo: Marvel Studios
Lesser known characters join the lineup of Marvel movie madness. Photo: Marvel Studios

Marvel Studios’ Kevin Feige took to the stage at a special event at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood Tuesday to talk about the next slate of blockbuster films the company is planning to release over the next few years. The full docket, with projected dates, is as follows:

· 5/1/15 – Avengers: Age of Ultron
· 7/17/15 – Ant-Man
· 5/6/16 – Captain America: Civil War
· 11/4/16 – Doctor Strange
· 5/5/17 – Guardians of the Galaxy 2
· 7/28/17 – Thor: Ragnarok
· 11/3/17 – Black Panther
· 5/4/18 – Avengers: Infinity War Part I
· 7/6/18 – Captain Marvel
· 11/2/18 – Inhumans
· 5/3/19 – Avengers: Infinity War Part II

While most of us are clear on who The Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy are, there are some lesser-known characters getting the full movie spotlight that you may not be aware of. Here’s how they fit into the larger Marvel cinematic universe.

Christian Bale in talks to step into Jobs this spring

By

The hero Cupertino deserves. Photo: Mike Marsland/WireImage
Bale is the front-runner for the role. Photo: Mike Marsland/WireImage

Entertainment insiders are saying that Oscar-winner Christian Bale will start filming Jobs this Spring as Apple’s late CEO and wonder-boy, Steve Jobs.

According to Variety, Bale is in talks to star as the mercurial tech leader in the movie based on the biography by Walter Issacson and a script written by Aaron Sorkin (The Social Network).

8-bit Miyazaki tribute film will fill you with nostalgia

By

It's rainy out there for neighbors. Screengrab: Pablo Fernandez Eyre
It's rainy out there for neighbors. Screengrab: Pablo Fernandez Eyre

My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle. Ponyo, Kiki’s Delivery Service. Chances are you’re thinking of these lovely, peaceful, wonderful animated films right now.

And these are just a few of the fantastic and bewitching animated films that Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli have made together over the past couple of decades. Now, however, Miyazaki has retired after making one final, autobiographical film, The Wind Rises. Studio Ghibli has put its film-making on hold, as well, citing restructuring.

Independent filmmaker Pablo Fernandez Eyre was a little sad when he heard the news.

“I decided to make a tribute to show my love for movies like Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away,” he told Cult of Mac in an email. Check out his moving 8-bit piece below.

Experience the full rush of traveling Turkey in this epic video

By

Screenshot: Cult of Mac
Video still: Leonardo Dalessandri

Got three minutes? Then you can travel Turkey, north to south, through this shifting and cunningly edited short film, called Watchtower of Turkey, by Leonardo Dalessandri.

He traveled over 3500 kilometers in 20 days, filming the lush landscapes and varied peoples of this middle eastern land, across eight different regions and cities in the Republic of Turkey, a land that has been inhabited since the paleolithic age.

“I’ve crossed Cappadocia, Pamukkale, Ephesus, Istanbul, Konya; and tasted baklava, kunefe, doner, the turkish tea; and got the chance to meet the soul of Turkey, its people,” writes Dalessandri on the video page, “and got their smiles and their hospitality.”

You’ve got to see this short film below.

WSJ: New iPad Will Use iPad Mini’s Touch Technology To Become Thinner And Lighter

By

iPad-Retina-Screen

The fifth-generation iPad will use the same touch-panel technology as the iPad mini to allow it to become thinner and lighter, according to “people with knowledge of the matter,” who have been speaking to The Wall Street Journal. The device is expected to look just like the iPad mini, with narrow bezels and a significantly thinner shell, but it will maintain a 9.7-inch Retina display.

Tru-Fit Anti-Glare Films For iPhone 5 Prevent The Sun From Ruining Your View [Review]

By

P1030851
Reflection-free.

Ah, summer. Isn’t it just the best time of year? But like the other three seasons, it has its drawbacks. It gets too bright too early, ruining your lie-in; bugs and creepy-crawlies decide it’s okay to come live with you; and the sun is so bright you have to find some shade every time you need to reply to a text message because you can’t see your screen.

Tru-Fit HD Anti-Glare by Tru
Category: Screen Protector
Works With: iPhone 5
Price: $19.95

But the latter can be eliminated with the Tru-Fit HD Anti-Glare film for iPhone 5. It’s a screen protector that utilizes “the highest grade materials and cutting-edge technologies” to provide your iPhone’s Retina display with scratch protection and a matte finish that doesn’t reflect light.

Every Tru-Fit film is precision die-cut to ensure a perfect fit, and they are applied using the included Tru-Fit applicator, which ensures every film goes on straight, and without dust or bubbles beneath it.

Every one of its four layers has an important role to play, and they combine to create a strong screen protector that promises to install easily, stick well, protect your display from damage, and be removed with no residue.

The Tru-Fit costs $19.95 for two films, which isn’t exactly cheap when it comes to a screen protector. But let’s find out if you get what you pay for.

An Emotional Ashton Kutcher Explains How He Felt After Steve Jobs’s Death [Video]

By

Ashton-Kutcher-JOBS-Jay-Leno

Ashton Kutcher, who plays Steve Jobs in an upcoming biopic called JOBS, has revealed how he passed up the opportunity to meet “the Leonardo da Vinci of our generation” since months before he passed away because he had to work.

During an emotional interview on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Kutcher also speaks about how he felt after Jobs’s death, and how he took the Apple co-founder “for granted.”

First Update For ‘Man Of Steel’ iOS Game Flies In A New Chapter And Price Drop

By

I believe I can fly.
I believe I can fly.

The first update for Warner Bros’ Man of Steel iOS game is here, and it’s got new story content and a new Superman suit to purchase. The new Skin suit from Krypton gives Kal-El a boost to his power, health, and defense. No more kneeling before Zod!

The game itself is a 3D action brawler with gesture-based combat and cinematic cut scenes, and follows the storyline of the movie, Man Of Steel.

Ashton Kutcher’s ‘Jobs’ Film Delayed, No New Date Announced [Report]

By

It's gonna be a tough sell.
It's gonna be a tough sell.

The Steve Jobs biographical film,”jobs,” starring Ashton Kutcher, has been delayed. Originally set for an April 19th release, the distributor, Open Road, feels like it hasn’t been able to create enough buzz for the flick before this date.

There’s no new release date announced, either, though it’s fairly atypical for a distribution house not to set a new one when the orignal date is delayed. We can only assume that Open Road will want to avoid the Aaron Sorkin film on the same subject, not wanting to go up against The Social Network screenwriter, no matter how much star power they hoped Kutcher would bring to the project.

Who Wore It Best: Ashton Or Steve? [Gallery]

By

eljobsoorashton

It’s been said about 120,386 times now, but holy crap, Ashton Kutcher really does look like Steve Jobs. This latest comparison almost got me excited about his movie. Like, Ashton looks impeccable as Steve Jobs, and because he’s got all those years of modeling under his belt, I’m gonna go ahead and say yes, Ashton is wearing that vest and tie combo better than El Jobso himself did.

I don’t wanna get ahead of myself, but maybe this really is the role he was born to play. Maybe jOBS won’t suck as badly as I claimed it will. If looks alone win you the Grand Jury Prize at Sundace (they don’t), then I think Ashton’s on his way. As for Woz, well, Josh Gad’s portrayal is embarrassing so far. The costume director couldn’t find him a denim shirt so they dressed him up in paisleys?

Here are some other Jobs vs Ashton comparison photos for good measure:

The Daily Sweetly Sings “So Long, Farewell” To The World’s First iPad-Only Newspaper [Video]

By

sound-of-music-goodbye

The Daily was the first bold publishing experiment on the iPad, the project that was supposed to be a shining light to show journalism the way through the murky path of the 21st Century.

Instead, it was sadly shut down earlier this month, with December 14th marked as the last day for the world’s first iPad-only newspaper.

Well, today’s December 14th, and the remaining staff of The Daily have opted to go out in style, sweetly releasing their own version of “So Long, Farewell” from The Sound of Music… with modified lyrics calling out various Apple products and the newspaper they’d worked for. Here’s the video.

Mophie OutRide Turns Your iPhone Into A Weatherproof, Wide-Angle Action Cam

By

post-204619-image-90e3cd3b97767fbb72188a924c7c19b2-jpg

We’re continually seeing examples of how the iPhone has exploded its horizons to become much, much more than just a phone. Case (ha) in point: Why shell out $300 for an action cam when you already own a video cam with stellar optics and image-stabilizing, a big, beautiful screen and the ability to upload your exploits whenever you damn well please? All you need to turn your iPhone from video cam to action cam is a rugged, weatherproof case with a wide-angle lens, and the ability to stick the whole thing onto a helmet or such. And that pretty much describes the $150 Mophie OutRide system.

Coming Soon: A World Populated Only By Old Apple Computers

By

Mac-Project-Genesis-Film.jpg

Project Genesis offers a new take on the silicon Story of Creation

Word is spreading of a new independent film, Project Genesis, involving a world populated only by old Apple computers. Italian director and filmmaker Alessio Fava has posted an enigmatic teaser of Macs shuffling around in a drab soulless environment, with hints of better existence:

We computers have always looked at our world from a single point of view: with resignation, limiting ourselves to survive. We were wrong! From this moment on, everything changes: new unexpected ways open up in front of us, the world we knew now becomes more accessible, simple, within everyone’s range.