Month: July 2014

Categories
Music

Damn awesome!! Now release it so we can hear it!!!

Foo Fighters finish work on ‘epic’ new album

Butch Vig has confirmed that Foo Fighters have finished work on their new album.

The producer, who worked with Dave Grohl on Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ and is also a member of Garbage, tweeted earlier today (July 30) to reveal the news. “We are officially done with the new Foo Fighters album. 23 straight days mixing! IT’S EPIC!!!” Vig tweeted.

The new album was recorded in eight different studios in eight states across America. It will be accompanied by mini series Sonic Highways, broadcast on HBO, which will document the recording progress. Dave Grohl will operate as director on the project, following his Sound City documentary of 2013.

Meanwhile, Foo Fighters are to return to the UK stage at the closing concert for the Invictus Games in September.

The event takes place at London’s Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on September 14, and sees Dave Grohl and co top a line-up including Kaiser Chiefs, Ellie Goulding, Ryan Adams, The Vamps, Rizzle Kicks, James Blunt, Diversity and Military Wives Choirs. The 26,000-capacity outdoor concert will take place on the south lawn of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park from 5pm to 10pm and highlights will be broadcast by the BBC.

Categories
Business

Get it done!!

No ‘Big Bang’ until they work out the bucks

The Big Bang Theory delayed the scheduled start of Season 8 production Wednesday as actors and producing studio Warner Bros. discuss new pacts.

“Due to ongoing contract negotiations, production on The Big Bang Theory — which was originally scheduled to begin today — has been postponed,” Warner Bros. Television said in a statement.

Contracts for five of the top-rated comedy’s stars – Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar – expired after last season, and the actors and the studio have yet to agree on new salaries. Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch are signed.

At this point, the delay would not affect the CBS comedy’s Sept. 22 premiere date. Bang, which will start the fall season on a Monday, is scheduled to open with a one-hour premiere, leading into the series premiere of Scorpion. Bang will move to Thursdays in late October, after CBS’ Thursday NFL coverage ends.

CBS program chief Nina Tassler didn’t seemed particularly bothered that the contracts hadn’t been worked out when she spoke to TV writers at the summer press tour two weeks ago.

“When you have successful shows, you have renegotiations. We’re feeling very confident that everything will work out. These deals manage to get done somehow miraculously year after year,” she said.

Categories
Movies

So many movies to see!!

Weekend Box Office: Lucy Decks Hercules

A chemically smarted-up party girl sideswiped Zeus’ son this weekend at the North American box office as the new Scarlett Johansson action flick Lucy debuted with big numbers in the number one spot. The Universal release beat fellow new arrival Hercules for the top spot while sending last week’s champ Dawn of the Planet of the Apes down to third. A third wide release, the adult comedy And So It Goes, was DOA in eighth place. Overall business continued to be down in the dumps as evidenced by the 13% decline from last year at this time when The Wolverine opened at number one with $53 million.

Budgeted at a modest $40 million, Lucy arrived on 3,173 screens this past Friday to earn a big $44 million in its first three days. The film stars Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman and was directed by Luc Besson. The opening was a career best for both Johannson (as the lead) and Besson (for a directorial effort). The opening also proved that Johansson could open an action flick without the assist of her fellow Avengers.

The film met with mixed reviews (58% Rotten Tomatoes approval rating, 61/100 Metacritic) from critics while ticket buyers polled by CinemaScore were even less impressed. They gave the film a “C+” rating, which may translate into bad word-of-mouth and a short -but profitable- theatrical run for Lucy. The film also faces fierce competition starting on Thursday night with the arrival of fellow sci-fi action epic Guardians of the Galaxy.

Dwayne Johnson returned to screens this weekend with his latest big budget action flick Hercules. The second film this year to focus on the legendary Son of Zeus, Hercules earned a decent $29 million in its first three days on 3,595 screens. The opening was $11 million more than The Legend of Hercules earned in its entire domestic run this past January.

The new Hercules co-stars John Hurt, IanMcShane, Rufus Sewell, Joseph Fiennes and was directed by Rush Hour’s Brett Ratner. Reviews were okay for the $100 million Paramount/MGM co-production. Critics gave the film a 63% approval on Rotten Tomatoes (46/100 on Rotten Tomatoes) while ticket buyers gave it a “B+” rating on CinemaScore. The film opened in a few overseas markets where it earned $28 million.

The third wide release for the weekend was the Clarius Entertainment release of And So It Goes. The Rob Reiner comedy/drama starring Michael Douglas and Diane Keaton opened on 1,762 screens where it grossed a dismal $4.5 million. Released as counterprogramming for the likes of Lucy and Hercules, the film received terrible reviews (15% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 39/100 on Metacritic) from critics but kinder notices from CinemaScore pollsters. They gave the film a “B+” rating. The film may have fared better than it did had Clarius actually advertised the film. I can’t recall a single TV ad for this film in the days and weeks leading up to its release.

After ruling the box office planet for the past two weeks Fox’s hit Dawn of the Planet of the Apes stepped aside for the new fantasy offerings entering the marketplace and dropped to third. The Matt Reeves-directed hit fell by 55% in its third weekend on 3,668 screens to earn $16.4 million. To date, the domestic haul for Caesar’s latest adventure has earned $172 million. The film will eclipse the $176 million earned by Rise of the Planet of the Apes this week and is still on course for the $210 million mark. Overseas totals currently stand at $182 million.

Dropping 67% in its second weekend to land in fourth place was Universal’s The Purge: Anarchy with $9.8 million from 2,856 screens. After ten days, the micro-budgeted thriller has earned $51.2 million and should wind down its run with $65 million. The estimated final domestic total would be right in line what the first Purge earned a year ago, so you know what that means: a third Purge is most likely on the docket for next summer.

Rounding out the top five is Disney’s animated sequel Planes: Fire and Rescue with $9.3 million from 3,839 theaters. Off 47%, Fire and Rescue has earned $35.1 million after ten days and should reach $50-55 million by the end of its run, roughly 40% lower than the first Planes earned a year ago. Overseas totals currently stand at $21 million.

The remainder of the top ten were the following:

Sex Tape (Sony) $5.9 million (-59%); $26.8 million
Transformers: Age of Extinction (Para) $4.6 million (-53%); $236 million
And So It Goes (CE) $4.5 million
Tammy (Warner) $3.4 million (-54%); $78 million
A Most Wanted Man (Roadside Attractions) $2.7 million (NEW)

The new film featuring the final leading role for Phillip Seymour-Hoffman launched impressively on 361 screens this weekend to land in the number ten spot.

Next week sees the long-awaited arrival of Disney/Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy while Universal opens the James Brown biopic Get On Up. There is no question that Guardians will open at number one but now the question remains just how high will the sci-fi comedy fly.

Categories
The Couch Potato Report

Nothing superb this week, but a couple of the releases are worth a watch

The Couch Potato Report – July 26th, 2014

“Heaven Is For Real: A Little Boy’s Astounding Story Of His Trip to Heaven and Back” is a 2010 New York Times best-selling Christian book written by Todd Burpo and Lynn Vincent.

The book is about the near-death experience of Burpo’s then-four-year-old son, Colton and is the story of how the little boy started telling people he had visited heaven.

A movie based on the book was filmed in and around Winnipeg last Summer and it is called HEAVEN IS FOR REAL. The movie stars Greg Kinnear from LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE as the little boy’s Dad.

Not only does the boy just say that he was in heaven, he begins describing events and people that he didn’t even know…such as an unborn sister whom no one had told him about and his great grandfather who died 30 years before he was born.

HEAVEN IS FOR REAL is never a bad movie, but it’s also never great. It just tells it’s story and then ends. While watching it, I liked it and I liked the characters in it. Most of them seemed like real people dealing with an odd circumstance.

So what we have here is a nice little movie that I will mildly recommend.

I’ll also mildly recommend the film THE FACE OF LOVE, although its not completely believeable.

Annette Bening from the Academy Award winning film AMERICAN BEAUTY is a widow who – years later – has yet to get over the loss of her husband, the love of her life.

Then, she meets Tom, who looks and acts just like her dead husband, and so she goes after him and they start a relationship…and all the while we, the audience wait for the other shoe to drop.

We wait for Tom to find out that he looks exactly like the woman’s dead husband.

Four time Academy Award nominee, the great Ed Harris from APOLLO 13 and THE TRUMAN SHOW plays the man and he, Bening and supporting actor Robin Williams are all very good here, giving us restrained, mature performances, but what held the movie back for me is the fact that we’re supposed to buy the fact that this guy, who looks and acts almost exactly like the woman’s ex-husband, also just happens to live in Los Angeles?!

The film wants the viewer to get lost in whether she actually loves Tom or just his face…the face of love…but the other stuff gets in the way.

Yet, even with the fact that I never quite bought into the fact that she would actually stumble upon the guy, and even though we spend the whole movie just waiting for the other shoe to drop, THE FACE OF LOVE still has enough going for it that I can mildly recommend it.

I’ve mildly recommended two films to you this week, and now I’m going to suggest that you stay as far away from one as you can.

At all costs you should avoid the Johnny Depp flick TRANSCENDENCE.

TRANSCENDENCE is a science fiction film directed by cinematographer Wally Pfister in his directorial debut. Pfister has a great eye for movies as he has worked with Christopher Nolan on the films THE DARK KNIGHT, MEMENTO and INCEPTION.

Plus, in addition to Johnny Depp, TRANSCENDENCE stars Rebecca Hall, Kate Mara, Cillian Murphy, Paul Bettany, and Morgan Freeman, but this is one of the most boring films of the year.

The intent of TRANSCENDENCE is to show us the dangers of a scientist’s drive for artificial intelligence and the implications of what can happen globally when his consciousness is uploaded into one such program.

But you won’t care, you’ll be bored. I sure was.

Skip TRANSCENDENCE. Unless you are a Johnny Depp completist, you never need to see it.

Finally this week is a very good, but not fully realized documentary called VIDEO GAMES – THE MOVIE.

This is a 105 minute look at video games; it’s history and culture, told by the creators of the games and systems, and fans.

It was a blast looking back on the history of gaming from their inception in the 50s and 60s to modern day games. It goes from Pong to Call Of Duty, from Atari and Intellivision to the PS4 and beyond.

The problem with VIDEO GAMES – THE MOVIE is that it’s a love letter to games and gamers. It constantly screams – aren’t games awesome?!

And they are, but there are also youth violence and obesity issues that have been connected to video gaming over the years and this documentary doesn’t spend much time looking at them. They are mentioned, but then we are taken back to the positive side of gaming again.

A truly great documentary shows both sides of the story – the good and the bad – and I would have appreciated seeing more of that story, and how the gaming industry has changed over the years to protect it’s audience.

That it didn’t tell the whole story is the only problem I have with VIDEO GAMES – THE MOVIE, otherwise I really enjoyed it and can highly recommend it.
The very good documentary VIDEO GAMES – THE MOVIE is available now On Demand.

The boring Johnny Depp sci-fi drama TRANSCENDENCE, the mildly recommended mature drama THE FACE OF LOVE and the mildly recommended made-in-Manitoba Christian drama HEAVEN IS FOR REAL are available now, either on disc or on demand.

And that’s this week’s COUCH POTATO REPORT.

Enjoy the movies and I’ll see you back here again next time on The Couch!

Categories
Music

Congrats Al!!

“Weird Al” Yankovic earns first No. 1 album, first comedy album to go No. 1 in 54 years

For all intents and purposes, “Weird Al” Yankovic literally took over the Internet in the last week, releasing not one, not two, but eight expertly-crafted music videos in support of his new album, Mandatory Fun. All that hard work has paid off (literally), as the comedian has earned his first-ever No. 1 album. Not only that, but Mandatory Fun is the first comedy album to debut No. 1 in 54 (!) years.

According to Billboard, Yankovic’s 14th LP moved 104,700 copies in its first week. The success is largely attributed to the viral success of those eight aforementioned videos, which received more than 20 million cumulative views during their initial week of release. Ironically enough, Yankovic’s label, RCA, refused to pay for the videos, so instead the comedian partnered with sites such as Funny or Die, College Humor, and Nerdist to help bring his project to fruition.

Yankovic has two previously top 10 albums in 2006’s Straight Outta Lynwood and 2011’s Alpocalypse. His previous best sales week, when Straight Outta Lynwood sold 73,000 copies in its first week.

Categories
The Simpsons

Woo hoo!!

The entire ‘Simpsons’ catalog is going online

Attention, “Simpsons” fans: Stock up on Duff and doughnuts because FXX is airing a historic “Simpsons” marathon, showing all 552 episodes of the groundbreaking animated sitcom in chronological order — including the “Simpsons” movie.

But if you’d rather choo-choo-choose to watch the episodes on your own terms, you’re in luck: After the marathon, the network is unveiling its Simpsons World app, which will allow cable subscribers all-you-can-eat access to the show’s entire catalog once the series launches.

Starting at 10 a.m. Aug. 21, FXX — the first network to get syndication rights for the show — will air all 25 seasons, 24 hours a day, for 12 days straight through Sept. 1, with the movie appearing after episode 400 (the same time, chronologically, that it was released in theaters). It’s the longest marathon in TV history, so your couch ass-groove will be in good shape afterwards.

Of course, you can probably stop watching after about Season 10, which is generally considered where the show took a nose dive in quality (although there are a few gems in later seasons, but you have to sit through a lot of gratuitous guest stars and increasingly absurd plot lines).

On the app, you’ll be able to search by character, favorite quote or scene, and share it across social media — which is great because, despite the fact that they have the Internet on computers now, Fox doesn’t currently allow you to share clips from the show.

As Hitflix reports, you can also create your own playlists of episodes and open up an exhaustive guide for each episode, with behind-the-scenes info, explanations of references and the full episode script. The app will be available on iPhone, iPad, Android phones and tablets, Apple TV, Samsung, XBox1 and XBox360.

You might be tempted to buy some goggles to protect your eyes with all that viewing. But be warned, they do nothing.

Categories
Weezer

I would like to hear it now please!!!!

Rivers Cuomo hints at Weezer UK gig and says new album helps keep the format alive

Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo has said that new album ‘Everything Will Be Alright In The End’ shows the band shunning the idea that the album is a dying format as the popularity of playlists and singles increases.

The band recently revealed new song ‘Back To The Shack’ and will release the album on September 29. It is the US group’s first since ‘Hurley’ in 2010.

Speaking to Zane Lowe on BBC Radio 1 on Monday (July 21), Cuomo spoke about how Weezer are rejecting current trends with ‘Everything Will Be Alright In The End’.

“I think there are a few ways of adjusting to the new world where people don’t listen to albums anymore – they listen to playlists or just buy singles – and maybe we’ve tried to evolve with the time, but you know that’s not who we are, so ultimately this time we’re going all in again and we’re going to make a great rock album like the good old days and put everything we have into it,” he said. “Maybe no one will appreciate it that way but we think that it’s what our core fans really want from us and that’s what we’re best at.”

Cuomo also hinted at a collaboration with a “famous rock star” on the album but refused to name names. He was, however, more forthcoming about live dates and suggested that a UK show in London will be confirmed “any day now.”

After that will come a series of US dates where Weezer will play ‘Everything Will Be Alright In The End’ in full to select audiences. “We’re most excited to do a run of small shows later this year, where we’re playing the new album front to back and, I don’t know, 500 to maybe 1,500 fans can get in,” said Cuomo. “So it’s really the people who really wanna hear this new album, they know it front and back, and they’re ready to participate and sing along, and it’s gonna be such a new fresh experience for us – I can’t wait.”

Weezer’s new album was produced by Ric Ocasek of The Cars, who also produced their ‘Blue Album’ in 1994 and ‘Green Album’ in 2001. In keeping with Cuomo’s comments, drummer Pat Wilson recently described the album as a mix between ‘Blue Album’ and the band’s 1996 follow-up, ‘Pinkerton’.

Categories
Music

Get it done, boys!!

U2 reportedly set to release new album ‘before the end of the year’

U2 will reportedly release their new album in November, with the band said to be “very confident” ahead of their long-awaited comeback.

The group are due to release their first album since 2009’s ‘No Line On The Horizon’ and have been recording with producers including Danger Mouse in recent months. A spokesperson for U2 recently denied that the band have pushed back the release date of their 13th studio album to 2015.

Taking this further, a report in The Sun today (July 22) sees the tabloid report that “the new album will drop before the end of the year, most likely in November” while also suggesting that the band could perform at London’s Roundhouse in September as part of this year’s iTunes Festival.

“The U2 comeback is very much on for this year,” said a source. “This album has been a real struggle for them to make. It’s taken a long time and Bono didn’t find it easy. But they’re very confident now and are convinced the wait has been worth it.”

In addition to a new U2 album, Bono and The Edge are also working with Once director John Carney on a new musical film based on the filmmaker’s childhood.

U2 won a Golden Globe earlier this year for their song ‘Ordinary Love’, taken from Nelson Mandela biopic Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom.

Categories
People

Odd…

George Harrison memorial tree killed by infestation of beetles

A tree planted in memory of George Harrison has died after being infested by beetles.

The pine in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park was planted in 2004 as a tribute to the late guitar player in The Beatles, who passed away in 2001 in the city. A plaque on the tree read: “In memory of a great humanitarian who touched the world as an artist, a musician and a gardener.” It also featured a quote from Harrison: “For the forests to be green, each tree must be green.”

The LA Times says that Councilman Tom LaBonge has promised that a new tree will be planted to honour Harrison.

Meanwhile, Ron Howard is to direct new documentary about The Beatles’ early years. The film will be produced for The Beatles’ Apple Corps Ltd company with White Horse Pictures and will be made with the full cooperation of Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison.

It will focus on the formative touring days of the band, from shows at Liverpool’s Cavern Club and their time in Hamburg, up until their final gig – in Candlestick Park, San Francisco in 1966.

The Beatles’ movie A Hard Day’s Night was recently re-released in cinemas on its 50th anniversary. The 1964 film, which follows a day in the life of the band with Beatlemania in full swing, was fully restored and there was a limited-edition DVD and Blu-ray release earlier this week.

Categories
Movies

A delay – no matter what they say – is rarely good news.

Untitled Cameron Crowe Movie Starring Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone & Bill Murray Pushed To 2015

With release schedules in the fall generally packed with tentpoles trying to muscle way between Oscar contenders, it can be tough to try and fit something in that’s neither. And certainly, Cameron Crowe’s upcoming untiled rom-com would’ve faced stiff competition. Originally set for a Christmas Day release, the movie has now been pushed to next spring, and it looks like a wise move.

Sony has announced the release date change and it takes Crowe’s movie out of the way of Angelina Jolie’s “Unbroken,” Disney’s musical “Into The Woods,” MGM’s sequel “Hot Tub Time Machine 2,” and the family movie “Paddington” all opening in wide release. And that’s not to mention the MLK pic “Selma” and Tim Burton’s “Big Eyes” coming in limited release. Sometimes, you gotta know when to fold ’em. And to hear Sony tell it, Crowe’s film probably wasn’t going to be an awards season contender anyway. Now, the still untitled film will open on May 29, 2015 putting it right in blockbuster season, and it will face far lesser competition with “Insidious Chapter 3” and “Monster Trucks” opening.

“Once we saw the film, we knew that it would make a perfect summer release. The movie is Cameron at his best,” Jeff Blake, Chairman, Worldwide Marketing and Distribution for Sony Pictures said. And this cast will certainly make for an attractive multiplex offering.

Bradley Cooper, Emma Stone, Rachel McAdams, Bill Murray, John Krasinski, Danny McBride, and Alec Baldwin are part of the ensemble about a celebrated military contractor who reconnects with a long-ago love while unexpectedly falling for the hard-charging Air Force watchdog assigned to him. Meanwhile, a complex satellite system being launched by an enigmatic billionaire with suspicious intentions. So yes, sounds more wacky and less statue worthy. While we’re bummed we’ll have to wait even longer for this, we’re glad it’s getting a date deserving of Crowe is putting together.