Friday, March 25, 2011

Super 8, Mission Impossible Footage Previewed

Paramount Pictures held a sneak peak of their summer 2011 for the press yesterday that included a look at 20 minutes of JJ Abram's directed film Super 8 and Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol that he is executive producing. While incomplete, the report indicates two films that should be very entertaining. As far as spoilers go, it seems I:M might have at least a portion of the film take place between the first and second films while Abrams continues to keep his secrets with Super 8 but the shown scene reinforces his desire to keep things practical as much as possible rather then relying on CGI. Below are descriptions of the shown scenes from Collider.

Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol
Then we got a quick-cut barrage of footage from Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol, which features Tom Cruise back as Ethan Hunt, with hair length somewhere between movies one and two (yes, that’s important). The montage flew by at lightning speed, but we did catch plenty of glimpses of Cruise jumping off moving cars, unleashing weaponry fire and doing his spy thing. We also saw Simon Pegg dressed in a Soviet-like outfit, Paula Patton looking stunning while stepping out of a car , Josh Holloway making his usual angry face and Jeremy Renner in full out action mode. In fact, Renner is eerily reminiscent of original M:I Tom Cruise — obviously ready to take over the mantle.

The audience let out a welcome gasp when the footage went full-on IMAX scope a la Dark Knight for the much talked about stunt in which Cruise actually dangled from the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa in Duabi. The scene features Renner and Patton egging Cruise on as he attempts to swing into a window…which might be a little bit out of his reach. Fun stuff.
Super 8
Before the lights dimmed and the footage played, Abrams warned us that these were completely unfinished scenes. Incomplete SFX, incomplete sound, incomplete color. This was rough, and frankly, he didn’t want to show us. He also didn’t want to let the cat out of the bag on any spoilers, so for the sake of the mystery (because it’s more fun that way), you won’t find anything too shocking here.

Abrams played two scenes for us: a lengthier version of the train wreck scene featured in the trailer and a brief scene at a gas station post-train wreck. In the trailer we see the boys setting up camera before everything derails and that’s what plays out at length in the opening. The vibe is very Goonies in all the right ways — these kids Abrams have found are pitch perfect. They talk like 14-year-olds, they act like 14-year-olds. They’re dynamic is fun loving and they’re having a ball making this zombie movie.

That is, until a truck zips past them, pulls on to the train tracks and takes the locomotive off the tracks. The kids run for cover (as seen in the trailer) and the scene in full is miraculous. You don’t get a sense from the trailer, but the wreck scene is almost entirely practical. At one point a train car barrels through the station and the entire building explodes, wooden panels, metal beams, debris and all. Burning train parts fly through the air as the kids run through the warzone. The main character Joe, a loner kid who recently lost his Mom in a mill accident, witnesses something banging around in one of the cars, but loses focus when his friends call for him. Saying too much would spoil, but Joe and his friends do encounter the man who deliberately drove head on into the train — a man that they know, but we don’t. Creepy!

The shorter scene was a glimpse at an attack on the gas station by the “thing.” A cop and a station attendee mill about in the middle of the night only to cross paths with “it,” which we know from the trailers has some serious powers. In the trailer, we see the attendant being pulled across the floor of the convenience store. From the footage, we just know that he takes quite a walloping before then. Even in this scene, Abrams isn’t giving anything up — who or what was trapped in that train is very much a mystery. To the viral campaign!

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Cloverfield 2 Still Possible

Matt Reeves, director of Cloverfield, has indicated that a sequel could still occur to Total Film. The movie, executive produced by JJ Abrams, was a monster movie that didn't really explain a darn thing about the monster. With JJ Abrams multiple TV series (5 I believe), Super 8, possibly Star Trek 2 and more I seriousily doubt there will be any movement on Cloverfield 2 until mid-2012.
"At the moment we are talking about the story quite a lot. Drew Goddard, who wrote the original, is going to pen the sequel and JJ Abrams is very much involved.

"However, the three of us have been so busy that getting the right idea together has been taking a long time."

But will the sequel shoot in real-time again? "You see, that's a difficult part: we want it to be shot like the first but how can you continue that idea successfully for a second time?

"We have a lot of affection for the original and the sequel can't just be the same thing. But that is tricky when you need to have a monster destroying stuff once again."

Friday, March 11, 2011

First Official Super 8 Poster

With a new trailer, comes the first official poster for the movie. Hit Apple Trailers for the full size poster and the horizontal look (as site background) of the image.

Super 8 Theatrical Trailer

The first theatrical trailer for Super 8 has finally been released. Below is the trailer which is also attached to Battle: Los Angeles. The movie, written and directed by JJ Abrams will be released in theaters on June 10th. Click here if interested in screenshots from the trailer. Update: Changed embed to 1080p HD one. Can also view at Apple Trailers.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Super 8 Trailer Rumor

/Film is reporting that a new trailer for Super 8 is attached to Battle: Los Angeles which hit theatres Friday. If true, then it will likely hit the web shortly afterwards since theatres don't always follow studio instructions on what trailers to play with movies. The article also mentions a synopsis but that is old news from the Super Bowl TV spot which was probably derived from the longer theatrical trailer.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Update on Super 8 Trailer

While at the Vanity Fair part after the Oscars, JJ Abrams provided an update on the next trailer for Super 8 to MTV News.
"There will be a trailer out pretty soon," Abrams promised, quickly adding that he doesn't "know anything" when it comes to whether or not the trailer would reveal what exactly is going on with Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning, and some other concerned-looking citizens.

Still, Abrams -- who revealed last month that the movie is equal parts science fiction, love story, comedy and special-effects spectacle -- left us with some good news about the upcoming trailer: "You'll get more of a flavor of what you're in for this spring."