March 23rd: Be There

by Kelly Bedard 

The official Hunger Games trailer hit the world like a flaming District 12 tribute today after Josh Hutcherson (who plays fan favourite Peeta Mellark) introduced it on Good Morning America.

The superb, pulse-pounding teaser kicks off with the serene Jennifer Lawrence as heroine Katniss Everdeen meeting her tried and true best friend Gale (Liam Hemsworth) in the woods for their daily hunt. It's as peaceful a scene as Katniss ever enjoys and the sense of foreboding in Gale's pleas for them to run away together gives just the right sense of unease. Then we're on to the grey-tinted Reaping and Elizabeth Banks' frothily icky take on Effie Trinket, Lawrence's screams, the face of her terrified young sister Prim. The rest is a flash- the train, the prep team, Cinna's designs, Haymitch's training, Caesar's interviews and that crucial scene on the roof when Peeta first shows us who he is. 

Exclusive: Amy Acker talks Joss Whedon's Top Secret "Much Ado"

photo by Elsa Guillet-Chapuis

by Kelly Bedard

Two days ago my facebook wall started lighting up with friends reporting the latest impossibly exciting story to reach well-rounded geek ears: that TV god/brilliant writer Joss Whedon had used his vacation time post-Avengers to adapt and shoot a new version of Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. I immediately dismissed the possibility- clearly someone was playing a trick on me. There's no way one of my favourite cultural icons could have cast a squad of my favourite actors to produce a film version of one of my favourite plays ever written; there was no way it was true. But by the time the story hit EW.com yesterday there was no denying it- this thing was real.

Back in 2010, our fellow My Entertainment World branch, My TV featured an exclusive interview with My TV Award nominee Amy Acker. Now, Whedon's newly minted Beatrice (Much Ado's word savvy leading lady) has graciously agreed to answer a handful of my giddiest questions about the film, the exceptional cast, working with Joss and the super quick and top-secret 12 day shoot that ended on Sunday.

From the Desk of A Critical Caster

by Rachael Nisenkier 

Oh hey, new images of Peeta and Gale from the upcoming Hunger Games adaptation. I, personally, love them. I stand by my (cautious) belief that the seemingly look-blind casting approach that led to a naturally blond Katniss, dark haired Peeta, and Viking God-related Gale will lead to a movie cast with actors who actually can behave like their parts.

What do you think? More at Ew.com

Anticipating the Avengers

by Rachael Nisenkier

I’m officially nervous.

It was sitting in the back of my brain during the post-credits sequence of Captain America. And as I breathlessly indulged in comic-con coverage on entertainment websites, it just sat back there, percolating, bubbling up into my cerebellum. It brings unbidden images of middling box-office numbers, critical dismissal, and fan eruptions of anger.

I’m nervous because Joss Whedon is directing and writing The Avengers! There, I said it.

I love Joss Whedon in a way most people reserve for people they’ve actually met. I love his easy going nature in interviews, the stories of Shakespeare parties, his feminist rantings. But mostly, I respect the crap out of his work. He’s a great writer and an increasingly impressive director, who has turned in some of the best episodes of television of the past twenty years. He’s played with the form and constantly seems to want to expand what he is capable of. He’s ambitious, innovative and intelligent. He’s also a huge nerd. His run as a writer on the X-Men comics was funny, smart and really true to the characters. His Buffy Season 8 comic managed to really take the form by the hand and lead it into this strange, mystical, uniquely Buffy world. And he imbues even his most mainstream work with his nerdy bonafides. So why does it scare the crap out of me that he’s helming The Avengers?

The Hunger Games Makes the Jump to My Cinema

I have been obsessed with The Hunger Games since I first sunk into Katniss's world. Over on My Bookshelf, I waxed poetic about how the series helped me recapture that Harry Potter, so eager in anticipation magic. So I can't believe it's taken me this long to comment on the casting of the scary-as-hell, god-i-pray-they-harry-potter-it-and-not-golden-compass-it movie adaptation.

First, Katniss. The girl who was on fire. For this dark skinned, dark haired, badass warrior, the movie chose Jennifer Lawrence, who may be badass but is decidedly not dark skinned nor dark haired. And honestly? If the movie wants to cast a blond oscar-nominee over a brunette who can't act, I'm down with it.

That goes for Peeta and Gale too. In the books, Peeta is blonde and I always imagined kind of all-american-boy looking, with broad, bakers' shoulders and an open face. Gale is darker skinned and haired, more like his long time best friend Katniss. And the two actors they cast? Josh Hutchinson, dark haired and smaller, is Peeta, and the light-haired all american-boy Liam Hemsworth is playing gale.

But honestly? I never cared that Daniel Radcliffe had blue eyes rather than green, and I don't care that Maggie Smith is older than I pictured McGonagall. What I care about is that these actors are capable of bringing my beloved characters to life. And by casting people with no overt physical resemblance to the characters (e.g. by NOT casting Alex Pettyfer as Peeta just because he has blond hair, despite the fact he can't act), I'm making the leap of faith to believing that they are casting based on talent. A leap of faith underscored by how talented I KNOW Jennifer Lawrence and Josh Hutchinson are.

So color me cautiously optimistic for the movie adaptation of this challenging, fascinating and heart breaking book series.

And also cautiously optimistic they'll cast Robert Downey Jr. as Haymitch.

Thor?

Posted by Rachael

I am a comic book nerd, and a huge fan of movie adaptations of same, and yet the Thor movie (even with Kenneth Brannagh in the director's chair and Kirk's daddy playing the man himself) never really sparked my interest. But even my apathy couldn't survive this surprisingly intriguing trailer, which manages to even make that freaking helmet look less-than-goofy.

(I wanted to embed the trailer, but it wouldn't let me do any of the decent quality ones, so just grab this link to check it out in glorious HD)

First Look: The New Muppet Movie

Take an exclusive first look at this photo from the new Muppet movie. Now I dare you not to love Jason Segel (not to mention all the other wonderful cuddly creatures in this photo!)

First Look: The Tempest

In a joint article with other My Entertainment World website My Theatre, here are some preview photos from one of my most anticipated films of the year: Julie Taymour's adapatation of Shakespeare's The Tempest. Due out on December 10 (in the year of the play's 400th anniversary) from Touchstone pictures, The Tempest stars Helen Mirren as a female version of the film's hero, Prospero. Comedian Russell Brand, Alfred Molina, Alan Cumming and Djimon Hounsou also star.

Taymour, who's direction and design for the stage adaptation of The Lion King won her notoriety, praise and Tony Awards, is tackling her second major Shakespeare adaptation with The Tempest. The first is an iconic Titus that is at once brilliant and bizarre. The Tempest promises to be similarly enthralling.