Jack Reynor and Toni Collette Head to 'Glassland' in First Teaser Trailer

In theaters right now is Michael Bay's Transformers: Age of Extinction, which stars Jack Reynor, an actor most had never heard of just a few weeks ago. He may be in the world of big Hollywood blockbusters now but the film that first gained him attention, and caught Bay's notice, was a small-scale film titled What Richard Did. It pegged Reynor as someone with serious dramatic upside, and now he's getting a chance to show what he can do again in Glassland, an Irish drama in which he stars alongside Toni Collette and Will Poulter.

Glassland is directed by Gerard Barrett (Pilgrim Hill), and here's the official synopsis:

 In in a desperate bid to save his mother from addiction and unite his broken family, a young taxi driver on the fringes of the criminal underworld is forced to take a job which will see him pushed further into its underbelly. But will John be prepared to act when the time comes knowing that whatever he decides to do, his and his family’s lives will be changed forever.

Certainly the mood of this one is way too somber but it does look like a potentially moving character piece. Glassland debuts later this week at the Galway Film Fleadh.

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Review: 'Tammy' Starring Melissa McCarthy and Susan Sarandon

In the few years since Bridesmaids catapulted her to stardom with a surprising Best Supporting Actress nomination, Melissa McCarthy has made the absolute best of it. Always a funny and talented actress relegated to supporting roles, she's now having projects designed specifically for her and they've all been huge hits thus far. But Tammy is her first chance to indulge in a true passion project, one she's been developing for years with her co-writer and director husband, Ben Falcone. Essentially a road movie it gives McCarthy the chance to do pretty much the exact same thing she's been doing in exactly the same way, and it makes one wonder why this was such a big deal project for her in the first place.

Maybe a good place to start is the titular character, a lumbering tangled mess of sorrow and rage, like so much of what McCarthy has done before. Was there not even a hint of desire to do something....new? Different? Tammy is suffering one of those abysmal days that often launch this type of comedy of the spirit, one we know will end with insights and epiphanies galore. Having lost her terrible job at a fast food joint (Falcone plays her overbearing boss) because she was late after hitting a deer in the road and totaling the car, Tammy comes home to find her husband (Nat Faxon) having an affair with the neighbor (Toni Collette, given zero to do). Basically everything that can go wrong does can wrong, so trudging over to her parents' (Allison Janney and Dan Akroyd) home, which is like one door down and was probably meant to be a joke but isn't funny, Tammy just wants to get out of town. Fortunately, so does her boozing grandmother Pearl (Susan Sarandon), and with a wad of cash and grandma's car they decide to hit the road for a journey both literal and emotional.

By this point Tammy has probably fallen flat on her face, crashed into something, or caused some sort of wreckage at least a dozen times until it becomes obvious this is the extent of the humor, and it grows tiresome very fast. Maybe it's the relative inexperience of Falcone as a director and the pair as writers but they do a terrible job of sketching out Tammy's world and the relationships she shares. What they do is portray Tammy as something of a half-wit who hasn't heard of Mark Twain and lacks any shred of social grace. She's mean, aggressive, and generally disagreeable to the point that it's hard to feel anything for her, and the script isn't crafted well enough to change our perception of Tammy no matter how hard it tries. So what we get is essentially lip service to a troubled upbringing, and some brief altercations with Pearl that hint at something deeper. But there's no commitment to any of it, in favor of getting to the next ridiculous set piece where McCarthy can pull whatever stunt she can think of. She's a funny lady but with only Sarandon to play off of you can sense McCarthy struggling to come up with something to do that might get a laugh. So we get numerous overlong and laugh-free scenes where McCarthy labors to kill time: one in which she sings nearly all of the Allman Brothers' "Midnight Rider", and another where she dances unprovoked to hip-hop because....well, that's never really made clear. It just kind of happens. That's probably the best way to sum up Tammy as a whole: it just kind of happens.

By the time a love interest is introduced (played by the utterly wasted Mark Duplass), it feels like an afterthought and considering his character's lack of personality it probably was. We're at a loss to figure out what Tammy's drive or motivation is meant to be, and any lessons learned only come when, you guessed it, after the slovenly Tammy gets a physical makeover. Even as she gets some hard words of wisdom from her lesbian aunt (Kathy Bates), it never really registers as meaningful because Tammy just goes on doing what she's been doing, which makes us wonder what this was about other than lazy and predictable slapstick. If you guessed there might be a stint in jail for Tammy at one point then you are a winner!

So what was the draw for McCarthy to do a movie like Tammy in the first place? Obviously there's an appeal to developing her own movie when Hollywood isn't always so forthcoming, but there's a real missed opportunity here for McCarthy to show what she's really capable of. 

Rating: 1.5 out of 5

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Watch a Globe-Hopping Simon Pegg in Trailer for 'Hector and the Search for Happiness'

In last year's The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Ben Stiller played a regular guy living a boring life who sought freedom and new experiences by traveling the globe. The film was originally seen as an Oscar contender but ultimately kind of vanished without making much of a mark. Now a very similar film led by Simon Pegg is on the way in Hector and the Search for Happiness, and the jury is out whether it can succeed where 'Mitty' may have failed.

A new U.K. trailer for it has been released and it's the rare chance to see Pegg in a lead role all by himself. Normally he's got his partner-in-crime Nick Frost by his side, or he's part of a larger ensemble, but now Pegg is being asked to carry all of the emotional burden. He plays the titular Hector, a psychologist who, despite a lovely wife (Rosamund Pike) and successful practice, feels dissatisfied with life. And so he sets out on a journey around the world to investigate if true happiness really exists, along the way meeting a diverse array of characters played by Toni Collette, Jean Reno, Christopher Plummer, and Stellan Skarsgard. This is also the first film directed by Peter Chelsom since 2009's Hannah Montana: The Movie.

Hector and the Search for Happiness opens September 19th, and that fall date suggests somebody has fairly high aspirations for the film.

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New Trailer for Melissa McCarthy's 'Tammy'

Bridesmaids may have been the start of Melissa McCarthy's meteoric rise but she's maintained it with a pair of blockbuster comedies, Identity Thief and The Heat. That success opened the door for her to reunite with her husband Ben Falcone (he was the air marshall in Bridesmaids) for Tammy, a comedy they co-wrote and he will make his directorial debut on.

A new trailer for Tammy has been released and it's McCarthy right in her comfort zone of playing uncontrollable, unhinged characters. Co-starring Susan Sarandon, Mark Duplass, Allison Janney, Dan Akroyd, Nat Faxon, and Toni Collette, the film follows a woman whose life is ruined all at once, and decides to hit the road with her foul-mouthed, alcoholic grandmother.

There aren't many comedic stars who can compete against the summer tentpoles but McCarthy has proven to be one. Tammy will open on July 2nd.

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Catherine Hardwicke to Direct Toni Collette and Rachel Weisz in 'Miss You Already'

The Morwenna Banks-scripted dramedy Miss You Already has been developing for a couple of years, but never seems to gain any traction. Jennifer Aniston seemed to give it a firm A-list lead with which to build from, with Paul Andrew Williams in line to direct. Toni Collette joined soon after, only for the project to run aground for various reasons. Now it's back on with a new director, a new star, and hopefully some new momentum.

Deadline reports that Catherine Hardwicke has replaced Williams as director, while Rachel Weisz is in for Aniston. Collette remains attached to the film which centers on "lifelong best friends whose relationship is tested as they confront a crisis." The story, described as similar to Beaches, is based on Banks' personal experiences. Invoking Beaches is probably a good way to make sure no guy pays to see this movie.

The film will be shopped around at Cannes where it should find lots of potential investors with Weisz and Hardwicke on board.

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New Trailer for 'Lucky Them' Starring Toni Collette and Thomas Haden Church

Toni Collette did a lot of flirting and partying on her underrated Showtime series, The United States of Tara, a show that I miss dearly. She's settled a little bit into comfortable, more mature roles, like in last year's The Way Way Back, so for me it's good to see her have fun again in the trailer for Lucky Them, a road trip dramedy co-starring Thomas Haden Church.

Directed by Megan Griffiths (Eden), the film has Collette as a hard-partying rock music journalist who is too busy bagging young musicians than doing her job. She's given one last chance to prove her worth by teaming up with a documentary filmmaker (Church) to discover the truth behind the disappearance of rock god Matthew Smith, who also happens to be her ex-boyfriend.

Lucky Them opens in limited release on May 30th.

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New Trailer for 'The Boxtrolls' from the Makers of 'Coraline' and 'ParaNorman'

The amount of work that goes into stop-motion animation requires an extremely long lead time, which may explain why we've been seeing footage from Laika's The Boxtrolls since last summer. The film doesn't come out for months, but now another trailer has been released for what looks like another magical entry from the folks behind Coraline and ParaNorman.

Featuring the voices of Elle Fanning, Toni Collette, Jared Harris, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Ben Kingsley, Tracy Morgan, and Richard Ayoade, the Victorian-era story follows Eggs, an orphan in the town of Cheesebridge who was raised by trolls beneath the streets. Kingsley voices Archibald Snatcher, an exterminator hired to wipe out the Boxtrolls, who are believed to be stealing the city's children. This trailer also includes an original song by Cee-Lo Green.

With no animated projects from Pixar this year, perhaps there's room for Laika to finally get the attention they deserve? Co-directed by Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi, The Boxtrolls opens September 26th.

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First Trailer for 'A Long Way Down' Starring Aaron Paul, Imogen Poots, and Pierce Brosnan

Before Imogen Poots and Aaron Paul race for their lives in Need for Speed, they'll first decide if life is worth living in A Long Way Down. Based on the Nick Hornby novel and directed by Pascal Chaumeil, the film co-stars Pierce Brosnan and Toni Collette, centering on four suicidal strangers who meet on New Year's Day as they're all planning to jump off the same building. When does the fun start?

The first trailer for the film has been released and while Nick Hornby adaptations have mostly been successful, this one looks like a tonal misfire. After making a pact to keep on living until Valentine's Day, they each experience the best life has to offer; learn some profound lessons; grow into a quirky little family; etc. etc. etc. I think Aaron Paul has worn that jacket (and worn that same character) in everything he's ever done, and there are probably better uses of the entire cast in general.

A Long Way Down takes the leap in the U.K. on March 21st, but has yet to gain a U.S. date.


A Long Way Down with Aaron Paul – Official Trailer by FanReviews

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New Trailer for 'The Boxtrolls' From the Studio Behind 'ParaNorman' and 'Coraline'

It's a small group of animators who are willing to dedicate themselves to the grueling process of stop-motion animation, and a few years ago it was the team at Laika who proved to be among their adaptation of Coraline. They followed it up with a fresh spin on horror with ParaNorman, and even though Laika may not have gotten the reaction to it they were hoping for, they're coming back again with another visionary animated tale in The Boxtrolls.

The first teaser has been released for The Boxtrolls, an adaptation of Alan Snow's illustrated novel Here Be Monsters! The Victorian-era story centers on an orphan named Eggs who was raised in an underground city by trash and cheese-collecting creatures known as Boxtrolls. Ben Kingsley leads a top notch voice cast which includes Isaac Hempstead-Wright (Game of Thrones), Simon Pegg, Elle Fanning, Toni Collette, Jared Harris, Nick Frost, Tracy Morgan, and Richard Ayoade. 

Like Laika's previous films, there's a darkness that creeps in to the light-hearted story as an exterminator seeks to wipe the Boxtrolls out of existence. It's not clear by this footage just how faithful Laika intends to be, but judging by their track record we can assume it'll be pretty close.

The Boxtrolls opens on September 26th 2014.

THE BOXTROLLS - Teaser Trailer by dmagianet

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Review: 'Hitchcock' starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren

Hitchcock is hardly the first film to ever explore the rather neurotic personality and eccentric creative process of Alfred Hitchcock. In fact, there's another movie in HBO's The Girl that explores much the same territory in a way that filmmaker as a creepy old letch lusting who simultaneously lusts for his blond starlets while taking glee in causing them distress. Thankfully, Sacha Gervasi, who last helmed the excellent rock doc Anvil: The Story of Anvil, has chosen to go in a totally different direction with his film.

A devilishly entertaining behind-the-scenes glimpse at the making of a cinema classic, Hitchcock is based on Stephen Rebello's book, Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, and while it touches upon the director's many disturbing quirks, there's no desire to languish in them. Rather, we accept his failings as part of the whole that makes up one of the most fascinating minds in movie history.

But Hitchcock wouldn't be quite as much fun without Anthony Hopkins' uncanny performance, which isn't a rigid characterization so much as a creation all his own. The film is wildly speculative for the most part, so it makes sense to allow a bit of freedom in the way everyone is portrayed, and clearly Hopkins is relishing in the experience. The same can be said for Helen Mirren as Hitchcock's wife, Alma Reville, who shows her usual strength, poise, and cheeky humor as the woman who helped hold everything together. More than just his wife, she was his creative partner and the driving force for much of his greatest works. While Hitchcock and Alma's relationship difficulties are well- documented, screenwriter John McLaughlin dreams up a potential love triangle involving screenwriter Whitfield Cook(Danny Huston). Alma is eager to establish herself outside of Hitchcock's sphere, a prospect which drives him a little nuts. This particular part of the film dominates much of the story, which is unfortunate because it's the least interesting aspect because it's largely untrue. McLaughlin and Gervasi find the greatest success when detailing the personal and professional difficulties Hitchcock faced in getting Psycho off the ground.

Set shortly after one of Hitchcock's greatest and most gaudy achievements, North by Northwest, the director has hit a point where those critical folks in the Hollywood media are wondering if perhaps he should quit while he's ahead. Looking for inspiration and finding none in the usual stack of potential projects, he would ultimately discover fresh glee in Psycho,  Robert Bloch's novel on horrific murderer Ed Gein(Michael Wincott), who killed a few women but was most notable for his obsession with his mother, which only increased after her death. Through imagined conversations we see how Hitchcock sympathizes and even relates to Gein, getting into the mind of the killer.

Not everybody thought Psycho would be a success, and the studio certainly wasn't expecting a straight and violent horror from the unquestioned master of suspense. Refusing to finance it, Hitchcock and Alma risked everything to foot the bill themselves, and the film is great at capturing the subtle pressures of such an undertaking. Every issue is amplified, from Hitchcock's concerns with actress Vera Miles(Jessica Biel) with whom he's had past problems, to the constant badgering by studio execs who seem anxious for the film to fail: "Thank God we have 'Cinderfella' for the holidays!" 

While there was quite the initial uproar over the casting of Scarlett Johansson as Janet Leigh, she's fantastic as the actress who clearly admires Hitchcock while also being wary of his reputation. While we don't get to see him nearly enough, Brit actor James D'Arcy is a dead ringer for the shy and effeminate Anthony Perkins.  The casting is superb and inspired all the way around. Most of all, Hopkins and Mirren, who to the best of my knowledge have never been paired up before, have a remarkable lived-in chemistry that makes them a joy to watch.

Another in a recent trend of movies that celebrate the history and love of big Hollywood cinema, Hitchcock relishes in the details of such a major cinematic achievement. Unable to use any actual footage from Psycho, we see the recreation of the iconic shower scene(along with Hitchcock's surprising brutality there), the director's demands of loyalty from his crew, and his gift for hyping his own projects.

Hitchcock isn't especially deep, but it's smart, whimsical, and nostalgic in a way that the similar My Week with Marilyn failed to be. Gervasi, in his first narrative feature, has managed to transport us back to a time when movies were cherished. Hitchcock himself probably would have preferred a more macabre version of the story, but what we've got is a real pleasure.

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'The Descendants' writers land Steve Carell and Toni Collette for their directorial debut, 'The Way, Way Back'

Academy Award firmly in hand, The Descendants scribes Jim Rash and Nat Faxon are seeing exactly what victory brings. Increased leverage and the ability to get every stalled project rolling again. Such is the case with The Way, Way Back, their directorial debut which has been lounging in limbo for years. Now that it's finally gearing up, they don't seem to be having any trouble rounding up top shelf talent, hooking Sam Rockwell, Allison Janney, and AnnaSophia Robb(Soul Surfer). Jake Gyllenhaal was even circling it at one point.

The film still needed an A-list face to sell it, and now they have it with Variety reporting Steve Carell coming aboard, along with Toni Collette. The coming-of-age story follows a teenage boy who strikes up a friendship over the course of one summer that gives him the courage to stand up to his boozing, abusive stepfather. Carell, in what will clearly be the darkest role of his career, will play the stepdad. Collette will play the boy's mother. Carell and Collette last worked together in Little Miss Sunshine.

A number of directors have been attached at one point or another, starting with Shawn Levy and including Alexander Payne, but there's something right about Rash and Faxon taking it on themselves. Production on The Way, Way Back begins this summer.

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Toni Collette, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Danny Huston join 'Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho'

Ok, so casting on Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho is running downhill now(that's a good thing, folks), with Jessica Biel joining this morning in the role of Vera Miles. Now four more names have been added to the film, including one in a role that casts the entire story into a different light.

Toni Collette, Danny Huston, Michael Stuhlbarg(Boardwalk Empire) and Michael Wincott(Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves) have joined the Sacha Gervasi directed film. Anthony Hopkins stars as Hitchcock, following his obsession with seeing the classic horror completed despite numerous professional and personal roadblocks. Collette will play Hitchcock's assistant, Huston as Whitfield Cook, and Stuhlbarg as old school super agent Lew Wasserman. Wincott, best known for playing bad guys most of his career, will play Ed Gein, the murderer who was the inspiration for the Norman Bates character.  How Gein figures in is anybody's guess, but possibly he'll factor in to Hitchcock's research when making the film? Maybe it's something more?

Helen Mirren, James D'Arcy, and Scarlett Johansson will co-star when production kicks off next month. [Variety]

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Trailer Time: 'Jesus Henry Christ', starring Toni Collette and Michael Sheen

Jesus Henry Christ seems to have all the right things going for it. Toni Collette and Michael Sheen, two immensely gifted actors take center stage in the film, which Julia Roberts saw enough potential in to executive produce. Dennis Lee, who led the star-studded Fireflies in the Garden last year(which also featured Roberts), is directing based on his own Student Award winning short film. Oh, and Stephen Hawking loves it enough to make a rare appearance as well. The story follows 10-year old genius James Hervin(Sunshine Cleaning's Jason Spevack), who wants to find his real father but learns he was conceived via sperm donation.  Ok, sounds good enough, so what's the problem?

While there's nothing really wrong with the newly released trailer, it bears too close a resemblance to the films of Wes Anderson for my liking. Lots of quirky, self aware characters with no real emotional center. Even the music sounds like pure Anderson. Mainly, Dennis Lee doesn't do much for me as a director, and as we saw last year he's perfectly capable of wasting a wealth of top notch talent. But I like every person in the film, including Spevack who was a joy to watch in Sunshine Cleaning and Ramona and Beezus, so hopefully my sensors are misfiring this time.

Jesus Henry Christ opens on April 20th. Check out the trailer below....

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