Random Babble: Top 10 Most Anticipated Films of 2015

As 2014 wraps up, 2015 is just around the corner and the new year will bring some promising films with it. That being the case I want to share my top 10 most anticipated films of 2015. Like with any top 10 list, this list is just my subjective opinion based on mere anticipation and some knowledge of the films. Also, just because you don't see a film here doesn't mean that I am not looking forward to it, it just means that I am looking forward to the ones on the list more. That being said these are my top 10 most anticipated films of 2015:

#1- Star Wars: The Force Awakens

I am sure that this film is either in or at the top of the list of most anticipated films for many you, as it should in my opinion. Fans of Star Wars have been waiting years for the continuation of this story, and J.J. Abrams' Star Wars: The Force Awakens will take us back to the galaxy far, far away. If the teaser is any indication this film will be what we all expect and more. The film opens on December 18th, 2015.

#2-Spectre

The next film in the Bond franchise, Sam Mendes' Spectre will see Daniel Craig reprise his role as 007, joined by a great returning and new cast that includes Christoph Waltz. I am a big fan of the most recent Bond films and can't wait to see what will come next with this new installment. Spectre is currently filming and will open in theaters on November 6th, 2015.

 #3- Avengers: Age of Ultron

We have all been waiting for The Avengers to team up again on screen, and 2015 will grant our wish as they assemble to face their most menacing villain to date in Ultron. From the trailer this next film appears to be somewhat darker and will apparently see The Avengers dealing with more than they can handle, and that is something I am very much looking forward to. Joss Whedon's Avengers: Age of Ultron is set to hit theaters on May 1st, 2015.




#4-Inside Out

I have been a fan of Pixar films for a long time, but unfortunately the studio has not been at its best lately. I believe Inside Out will be the return to form of Pixar, and I really hope that I am right when the film comes around. This film sounds like one of those incredibly creative original stories that Pixar is known for, and by the looks of the trailer that came out it will be a Pixar film to remember, hopefully. Inside Out open in theaters on June 19th, 2015.




#5-The Hateful Eight

I really enjoy Quentin Tarantino films, so I can't help but be excited for his new western The Hateful Eight. The story of the film sounds intriguing and the characters sounds like they will be a lot of fun, as can be expected from a Tarantino film. The Hateful Eight has begun filming and will hit theaters sometime in 2015 (no specific date has been announced).





#6-The Martian

Based on Andy Weir's novel of the same title, Ridley Scott's The Martian stars Matt Damon as an astronaut stranded on Mars as he is left for dead by his crew who evacuated. I know nothing else of this film other than who is directing, who is starring, and the main plot, but to me that is enough to look forward to this film. The Martian is set to open in theaters on November 25th, 2015.




#7-Untitled Steven Spielberg Cold War Thriller

From my entire list this is the film that I know the least about, all I know is that Steven Spielberg will direct, Tom Hanks will star and that the film revolves around a lawyer working for the CIA trying to rescue a pilot from the Soviet Union. The film doesn't even have a title and all I have seen has been an image of Spielberg and Hanks on set, but honestly just with the names Spielberg and Hanks plus the words Cold War thriller, I'm sold. The untitled Cold War thriller will open in theaters on October 16th, 2015.

#8-Jurassic World

Jurassic Park is a classic, and much like with Star Wars fans have been waiting to go back to the park and seeing the continuation of this story as well. Taking place 22 years after the events of the first film, Jurassic World will bring us an entire dinosaur theme park where trying to bring up visitor numbers something goes very wrong. The trailer gave us a glimpse of the new park and the new menace that threatens it, and from what I saw it looks great. Jurassic World hits theaters on June 12th, 2015.


#9-Ant-Man

At this point Marvel has my complete trust, so each year I am going to look forward to whatever movie of theirs is coming out, such as Ant-Man next year. The film has been described as a heist movie, which sounds very fitting for the character and goes back to my point about Marvel making great movies that just happen to involve superheroes. Ant-Man recently finished shooting and is set to open in theaters on July 17th, 2015.




#10-The Jungle Book

Disney is giving us a new telling of the popular story in 2015 with Jon Favreau's The Jungle Book (Not to be confused with Andy Serkis' Jungle Book: Origins opening in 2017). This version will be a mix of live-action a CG effects featuring the voice talents of Idris Elba, Scarlett Johansson, and others. Three things have me excited for this film and they are Disney, Jon Favreau, and the cast, which is actually where my knowledge of the production ends so hopefully it will be as good or better than I am expecting it to be.

Random Babble: Top 10 Favorite Films of 2014

2014 is quickly coming to and end, so it is very appropriate that before the year ends I share with you my top 10 favorite films of 2014. There are a couple of things to keep in mind from this list of films. First, there are a lot of acclaimed films that I have not gotten to see yet so there might be some films that would have been on this list had I seen them and enjoyed them. Second, this list is subjective and only my humble opinion based on the films I saw this year, your list might be very different or similar and that's alright, it doesn't mean my list is more or less valid than yours. So, that being said, lets get to my top 10 favorite films of 2014:

#1-Boyhood


A fantastic and innovative coming of age film that literally saw the cast grow older, Boyhood was storytelling of the highest level. Taking audiences through the life of a family effectively communicating the struggles of each member and as a whole via amazing performances.

#2-Gone Girl

David Fincher hit the ball out of the park with this film, a compelling film that had me on the edge of my seat. Also empowered by outstanding performances, Gone Girl kept me thinking and was entertaining from start to finish.

#3-Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Arguably one of the best Marvel films in my opinion, Captain America: The Winter Soldier is a clear example of what the studio continues to do right. This wasn't just a great superhero movie, it was a great movie, and I believe that is why Marvel has been so successful. They are not making only great superhero movies, but great movies that happen to involve superhero characters.

#4-X-Men: Days of Future Past

The most successful film in the franchise, X-Men: Days of Future past was the solidification of the revival of the X-Men franchise as well. A fantastic comic book movie with a great ensemble that came together to bring lots of action and entertainment.

#5-Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

A story about survival, both apes and humans deal with the aftermath of the previous film. A character-driven film where the apes take center stage with amazing motion-capture performances, while also dealing with the remaining humans. Dawn of the Planet of the Apes sends a nice message about humanity as a whole.

#6-Guardians of the Galaxy

The Marvel film that solidified my trust in whatever the studio puts out, Guardians of the Galaxy proved that unknown characters in comics have a bright future in comic book movies. This film was a lot of fun, had great special effects, and likeable characters, bringing out the wonder of space adventure films.

#7-The LEGO Movie

A pleasantly surprising animated film that I honestly didn't expect to like as much as I did, The LEGO Movie was as entertaining to children as it was to older audiences. Very funny, visually amazing, and with great voice performances, this film shows what animated movies done correctly look like.

#8-The Babadook

As a fan of the horror genre and in a time where embarrassing films can pass as horror films, it is refreshing to know from films like The Babadook that there are still genuine horror films being made. Great performances, an appealing story and an overly creepy monster in Mr. Babadook, this horror film hits you in the right places as far as scary movies go.

#9-Fury

I enjoy my fair share of war movies, and if that is your thing then Fury is a must see film for you. Great characters that go hand in hand with great performances, and a dark and gritty tone that rounds up the film beautifully. You will also get a generous amount of explosions, firefights and tanks in this action-packed war movie.

#10-Chef

A charming story about a chef/father and his journey to regain his status as a professional cook, all while building a strong relationship with his son. Chef was an entertaining film and a fun one as well, this intimate story was an example that films don't have to be massive in scale to be good.

Random Babble: Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays From Babble Movie News!

On behalf of Babble Movie News I want to wish everyone a merry Christmas and happy Holidays! I hope you can enjoy this time surrounded by family and loved ones. If you have been wondering why there haven't been any posts in the past days it's because of the holidays, I apologize for not mentioning that I was taking a break, but I will be back to bringing you the latest movie news, trailers, and more after New Year's.

With today being Christmas day I decided to share a video from the popular YouTube channel CinemaSins, Everything Wrong With The Nightmare Before Christmas. This is one of my favorite Christmas movies so I really enjoyed this video, and I hope you do as well. But if you haven't watched the film please do so immediately and then watch the video.

Mark Wahlberg Says He Will Return for 'Transformers 5', Possibly Soon

Even with how negative the audience response was to Transformers: Age of Extinction, the fact of the matter is that it made money, over $1 billion worldwide to be exact. So as long as these films keep bringing in profit to the studio they are going to keep making more, so that being said, there should be no doubt that Transformers 5 will come. The questions that surface are if Michael Bay would return to direct and if Mark Wahlberg will continue to appear in future films, and according to Wahlberg, he is signed up for two more films.

While talking to MTV promoting his film The Gambler, Wahlberg confirmed that he will return to the franchise, and hinted that it could be soon by saying:

"I committed to doing a couple more.  I can't speak for Mr. Bay but something tells me we'll be on the set soon."

I am one of the people that didn't like Transformers: Age of Extinction at all, so I can't say I'm excited with the idea of a new one or Wahlberg returning. I guess we will see (soon or not soon, I'm indifferent) what this franchise will throw at us next. Check out a clip of Wahlber's comments below.

Get More: Movie Trailers, Celebrity News

New 'Jurassic World' Image with Chris Pratt Riding Alongside Velociraptors

If you enjoyed yesterdays image from director Colin Trevorrow showing Chris Pratt standing with a velociraptor, then you have a treat again today. A new image has been revealed from the film showing Pratt again, but this time riding his motorcycle with velociraptors by his side, like we saw him do in the trailer.

Same as when we saw it in the trailer and like the image from yesterday, hanging around with velociraptor makes anyone look like a badass. This image continues to tease the idea that there is a possibility that the velociraptors are not going attacking the humans (or Pratt at least), but we will have to wait for confirmation on that. The image comes from EW, to who the director talked to about the main threat in this film by saying:

"There are dinosaurs and there's the other—there's this thing that is not one of them, that is not of them."

This new installment will reportedly see a human created hybrid dinosaur threaten the park, which sounds great to me because they have to switch it up this time around. Jurassic World also stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins, Vincent D’Onofrio, Irrfan Khan, Jake Johnson, Omar Sy, and Judy Greer, set to open in theaters on July 12th, 2015. Check out the image below.

Steven Spielberg's Untitled Cold War Thriller Reveals First Image

The first image for Steven Spielberg's untitled Cold War Thriller has been revealed. The film follows the true story of James Donovan (Tom Hanks), who is a lawyer working for the CIA trying to secretly negotiate the release of a U.S. pilot that was shot down in Soviet airspace in 1960.

The image is pretty nice looking, and how awesome is it to see Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg working together again. Just the fact that this will be a Cold War thriller directed by Spielberg and starring Hanks should be enough to make you interested. The movie still has no title and I'm already anticipating it. The untitled Cold War thriller is set to be released on October 16th, 2015. Check out the image below (via EW).

First 'True Story' Trailer

The first trailer has dropped for Rupert Goold's upcoming drama True Story. The film is based on real events and revolves around New York Times journalist Michael Finkel (Jonah Hill), who after loosing his job establishes an unconventional relationship with murderer Christian Longo (James Franco), who has taken on his identity.

I know that most of us are pretty used to seeing Hill and Franco in comedy films so to some people this pairing in a drama might feel unusual, but I have to say I like it a lot. The trailer really intrigued me and made me feel very curious about this story. True Story also stars Felicity Jones and will be part of the Sundance Film Festival in January, then opening in theaters on April 10th, 2015. Check out the trailer below (via Yahoo! Movies).

Steve Jobs Biopic Adds Michael Stuhlbarg

After all the issues that this film has been through, it seems that things might finally be looking up for Danny Boyle's Steve Jobs biopic. Casting news has surfaced from the film and fortunately this time it's not about anyone leaving the film, but the report is that actor Michael Stuhlbarg has joined the Aaron Sorkin-scripted film.

Deadline reported on the Steve Jobs biopic adding Stuhlbarg, who joins still attached Michael Fassbender and Seth Roger as Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, respectively. According to the report, Stuhlbarg will play Andy Hertzfeld, a computer scientist and inventor who was part of the original Apple team that came up with Macintosh Operating System and worked closely with Jobs until leaving to Google in 2005.The report also adds that Universal is putting the film into production next year.

I'm happy that we are starting to hear good things from the film again, and I hope that I'm not speaking too soon and find out next week that Stuhlbarg has left the project. The beginning of prodcution next year is also great to hear and hopefully that ends up happening as well. Let's keep our fingers crossed for more positive news to come.

New 'Jurassic World' Image Featuring Chris Pratt with a Velociraptor

Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow has done a great job in teasing his upcoming film using social media, specifically with Twitter. In anticipation of the holiday break, the director shared an image through a tweet from the editing room of the film wishing everyone happy holidays. The image features a badass Chris Pratt standing side by side with a velociraptor, similar to what we saw in the trailer with Pratt riding his bike alongside the velociraptors.

From that segment of the trailer people started speculating that since the raptor weren't attacking Pratt and running by his side maybe that the raptor were on his side, and this new image apparently points to that assumption. I won't be quick to make any assumptions and will just take the image for what it's worth, just a cool-looking picture to continue to tease us. Jurassic World also stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Nick Robinson, Ty Simpkins, Vincent D’Onofrio, Irrfan Khan, Jake Johnson, Omar Sy, and Judy Greer, opening in theaters on July 12th, 2015. Check out the image below.

Happy Holidays from the editing room. Do not try this at home. pic.twitter.com/cL755EHExw
— Colin Trevorrow (@colintrevorrow) December 17, 2014

Andy Serkis Talks About His Role in 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'

By now you should all know that Andy Serkis  will be appearing in Star Wars: The Force Awakens, and it was confirmed shortly after the teaser trailer dropped that Serkis was indeed the voice in the trailer. But with the talents of Serkis that include motion capture and voice performance many people believed in the possibility that Serkis could be playing more than one character in the film, but according to the actor himself he will be playing only one character.

While talking to EW, Serkis confirmed that his own voice was the one in the trailer and that it's the character he will be playing in the film:

'That is the character. There's no digital manipulation. That’s just me."

When asked about the rumors of him possibly playing more than one character the actor was quick to put those rumors to bed by saying:

"Not true at all. I can say I only play one character."

Serkis was also asked about his character, who's voice sounds weary in the trailer. The actor answered:

"I have to be very careful about how I answer these questions. The character… he's been through some stuff."

To the question if his character would come to life through motion capture or if it would be him onscreen, Serkis said the following:

"I can't say a single thing about that. I’m sorry! These things will all come out in the fullness of time, I promise."

The secrecy of his answers is expected and is more than understandable, but at least now we know that Serkis will only be playing one character. I am perfectly fine with Serkis not revealing or not being able to reveal much, personally I prefer those types of things to remain a mystery until the film is closer, after all they have to keep some reveals up their sleeves to keep us talking about the film. Directed by J.J. Abrams, Star Wars: The Force Awakens also stars John Boyega, Daisy Ridley, Adam Driver, Oscar Isaac, Domhnall Gleeson, Max von Sydow, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher, Mark Hamill, Anthony Daniels, Peter Mayhew, and Kenny Baker, opening in theaters on December 18, 2015.

Disney's 'The Jungle Book' Behind-the-Scenes Look

Jon Favreau has pitched in on the reveals from Disney's upcoming The Jungle Book, releasing some behind-the-scenes photos that include the first set image from the film. The director went on his Instagram (via Collider) and posted a behind-the-scenes image from the set and also some images that appear to be recording sessions for the film as well.

Disney's The Jungle Book will be a mix of live-action and CG, and will include the voice talents of Bill Murray as Baloo, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, Christopher Walken as King Louie, Lupita Nyong'o as Rakcha, Ben Kingsley as Bageera, and Giancarlo Esposito as Akela, with Neel Sethi as live-action Mowgli, the film opens in theaters on October 9th, 2015. Check out the images below.

Mr. Murray Mr. Walken and the Doctor #nola #junglebook

A photo posted by Jon Favreau (@jonfavreau) on Dec 12, 2014 at 7:40pm PST

Ssscarlett voicing the role of Kaa #Disney #JungleBook

Ein von Jon Favreau (@jonfavreau) gepostetes Foto am Nov 11, 2014 at 9:16 PST

Behind the scenes #junglebook

Ett foto publicerat av Jon Favreau (@jonfavreau) Dec 12, 2014 at 8:21 PST

Kermit Ruffins and Bill Murray #nola #junglebook

A photo posted by Jon Favreau (@jonfavreau) on Dec 12, 2014 at 3:57pm PST

Hugh Jackman Says He Has Been in Talks For 'X-Men: Apocalypse'

At this point we know that X-Men: Apocalypse will be based predominantly on the First Class cast, but what we don't know is to what extent, if any, the original cast will be involved. Wolverine played by Hugh Jackman is by far the most marketable character in that franchise, so the assumption is that we will be seeing him in X-Men: Apocalypse. Jackman himself has now given more credibility to that assumption by confirming that he has been in discussions about the film.

While talking to Happy Sad Confused (via /Film) the actor said the following about his involvement in X-Men: Apocalypse:

"I have been speaking with the guys and I am not at liberty to tell exactly what's going on. Which is largely framing my answer here. But there's still a lot unknown, actually, about that. What I do know is there are some very exciting things about integrating the whole X-Men world, including the Wolverine movie. There’s some really cool things going on."

The comments aren't revealing at all about the film, but what we can take from this is the confirmation of discussions about appearing in the film. The talks will probably lead to him being in the film like we all expect, because their most popular character you would assume has to be there, specially because of the big threat the X-Men will face with Apocalypse. X-Men: Apocalypse hits theaters on May 27th, 2016.

New 'American Sniper' Clip

Warner Bros. released a new clip for the upcoming Clint Eastwood directed war drama American Sniper, starring Bradley Cooper. Based on the autobiography of the same name, the film revolves around U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, who after four tours in Iraq became known as the most lethal sniper in U.S. military history. In the clip we see Kyle argue about joining the fight on the ground instead of from his sniper post.

The clip is a small tease into the role Bradley Cooper will be playing, other than that it doesn't show much. American Sniper also stars Sienna Miller, Jake McDorman, Luke Grimes, Navid Negahban, and Keir O’Donnel, opening in select theaters on December 25th and for a wider audience on January 16th. Check out the clip below (via Warner Bros.)

"I just want to get the bad guys." New clip featuring Bradley Cooper from #AmericanSniper: https://t.co/Gf3nO4HnA8
— Warner Bros Pictures (@wbpictures) December 16, 2014

J.K. Simmons Joins 'Kong: Skull Island'

Following the news of Skull Island being re-titled Kong: Skull Island and pushed back to 2017 come more reports about the upcoming film, but this time in the form of casting. The film has now reportedly added Whiplash's J.K. Simmons to star in the film alongside Tom Hiddleston.

The report comes from Deadline, but the role that Simmons would play remains unknown at this point. Kong: Skull Island will be directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts from a script by John Gatins and Max Borenstein, the film will center on the origin of the mighty King Kong.

This addition sounds great to me, J.K. Simmons is a very talented actor and with the award buzz he is getting for Whiplash there is little if any room for disappointment with this addition. I can't say much more since there is barely anything else known about the film or the character Simmons would be playing to comment further on how well he fits, but overall and with what I have to go on I am very happy with this choice. Kong: Skull Island is set to be released in theaters on March 10th, 2017.

First 'Pixels' Posters

The first posters have been released for Chris Columbus' upcoming film Pixels, featuring some familiar faces in video games like Pac-Man, Space Invaders and Donkey Kong. The film follows a group of 80s arcade game champions who must use their abilities to save the world from invading aliens who have misinterpreted classic arcade games as a declaration of war.

The posters look great and appealing mostly because of the nostalgic factor of the characters, the plot sounds fun so I am very curious about this film. I have to say I am a little nervous because Adam Sandler is starring and it's been a while since I saw him in something I enjoyed, but I can give him the benefit of the doubt and not completely lose interest in the film because of him. Pixels also stars Peter Dinklage, Michelle Monaghan, Josh Gad, Brian Cox and Kevin James, hitting theaters on July 24th, 2015. Check out the posters below (via Collider).

'Knight of Cups' Trailer

The first trailer for Terrence Malick's film Knight of Cups dropped online, and it looks great. I learned that this film was shot in 2012 and will debut at the Berlin Film Festival in February. I hadn't heard about this film before, but after watching the trailer I am really interested in watching it. The trailer is really great visually and adds to my curiosity of the story behind the film, not to mention the cast. Christian Bale, Natalie Portman, and Cate Blanchett, I don't have to say anything else about that.

Knight of Cups also stars Isabel Lucas, Imogen Poots, Wes Bentley, Freida Pinto, Teresa Palmer, Armin Mueller-Stahl, and the voice of Ben Kingsley, the film is expected to hit theaters sometime in 2015. Check out the trailer below (via YouTube and Collider).

'Star Trek 3' Director List Reduced to Five

After the departure of Roberto Orci from the directing position for Star Trek 3, Paramount went on the hunt for a new replacement that was said could be Edger Wright. Now it seems that Wright will not be the choice, but the list of possible replacements has been reduced to five candidates, Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes), Morten Tyldum (The Imitation Game), Daniel Espinosa (Safe House), Justin Lin (Fast & Furious 3 – 6), and Duncan Jones (Source Code).

Deadline reported on the list of possible replacements to direct Star Trek 3, mentioning that Wyatt appears to be the top choice for the job. The article also points out that the decision may come down to the availability of each director, with Espinosa expected to direct the Boston Marathon bombing film Boston Strong and Jones working on Warcraft. Jones actually later removed himself from the list by putting out a tweet that said that he was flattered for being considered but will pass on the opportunity to direct an unspecified passion project. So, that would leave only Rupert Wyatt, Morten Tyldum, Daniel Espinosa, and Justin Lin.

Very flattering being on short list for Star Trek, but won't be doing it. Absolutely MUST make my own thing next, or I'll die of old age!
— Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) December 15, 2014

 This is a very interesting list, and to me looks very diverse. Out of the remaining directors I would be interested in seeing a Star Trek 3 directed by any of them, but Wyatt stands out on the list to me and would also be my top choice. I would put my preference list in the order that I listed the directors before.

Amy Adams Talks Lois Lane in 'Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice'

At this point we know that Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice will be packed with big characters, Batman (Ben Affleck), Superman (Henry Cavill), Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa) and more. So you have to wonder what importance the roles of the smaller characters will have in the film, for example, Lois Lane played by Amy Adams. Well, if that is something that worries you then you can feel better about the role of Lois because according to Adams, her characters will still be key in the film while surrounded by superheroes.

During an interview with Collider for her upcoming film Big Eyes, the actress talked about the importance of Lois Lane in Batman v. Superman:

"Lois is still sort of like the key to the information, you know?  She's the girl going out and getting it and figuring it out and putting it together and all of that, so she's very much involved, but I kind of leave the heavy lifting to the boys, you know?  So to speak. They're awesome together.  It's kind of like this big fest of muscles … it was really kind of nice.  And then you add Jason Momoa and Gal Gadot and I felt very short and, yeah."

I assumed that Lois would play an investigative role like the one she had in Man of Steel, and these comments apparently confirm that. It makes sense to use the character that way, and it's how she can stand out in a way among all these superheroes. Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice opens in theaters on March 23rd, 2016. Check out a clip of Amy Adams' comments below.

20th Critics' Choice Movie Awards Announced

Award season is well under way and the critics have added their input to what the best films and performances of the year 2014 will be, revealing the nominations for the 20th Critics' Choice Movie Awards. Birdman is ahead of the rest with 13 nominations, The Grand Budapest Hotel follows with 11 nominations, and Boyhood received 8 nominations. The awards will air on A&E on January 15th at 9pm EST/ 6pm PT. 

We are seeing many of the same movies get nominations for different award events, and that will probably happen with most of the events, so you better go and see these movies that are receiving so much acclaim. The list of nominations is quite extensive so I apologize in advance for the long list, these are the nominees for the 20th Critics' Choice Movie Awards (via CriticsChoice.com):

BEST PICTURE

Birdman

Boyhood

Gone Girl

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The Imitation Game

Nightcrawler

Selma

The Theory of Everything

Unbroken

Whiplash

BEST ACTOR

Benedict Cumberbatch – The Imitation Game

Ralph Fiennes – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Jake Gyllenhaal – Nightcrawler

Michael Keaton – Birdman

David Oyelowo – Selma

Eddie Redmayne – The Theory of Everything

BEST ACTRESS

Jennifer Aniston – Cake

Marion Cotillard – Two Days, One Night

Felicity Jones – The Theory of Everything

Julianne Moore – Still Alice

Rosamund Pike – Gone Girl

Reese Witherspoon – Wild

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

Josh Brolin – Inherent Vice

Robert Duvall – The Judge

Ethan Hawke – Boyhood

Edward Norton – Birdman

Mark Ruffalo – Foxcatcher

J.K. Simmons – Whiplash

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Patricia Arquette – Boyhood

Jessica Chastain – A Most Violent Year

Keira Knightley – The Imitation Game

Emma Stone – Birdman

Meryl Streep – Into the Woods

Tilda Swinton – Snowpiercer

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS

Ellar Coltrane – Boyhood

Ansel Elgort – The Fault in Our Stars

Mackenzie Foy – Interstellar

Jaeden Lieberher – St. Vincent

Tony Revolori – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Quvenzhane Wallis – Annie

Noah Wiseman – The Babadook

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE

Birdman

Boyhood

The Grand Budapest Hotel

The Imitation Game

Into the Woods

Selma

BEST DIRECTOR

Wes Anderson – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Ava DuVernay – Selma

David Fincher – Gone Girl

Alejandro G. Inarritu – Birdman

Angelina Jolie – Unbroken

Richard Linklater – Boyhood

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

Birdman – Alejandro G. Inarritu, Nicolas Giacobone, Alexander Dinelaris, Jr., Armando Bo

Boyhood – Richard Linklater

The Grand Budapest Hotel – Wes Anderson, Hugo Guinness

Nightcrawler – Dan Gilroy

Whiplash – Damien Chazelle

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn

The Imitation Game – Graham Moore

Inherent Vice – Paul Thomas Anderson

The Theory of Everything – Anthony McCarten

Unbroken – Joel Coen & Ethan Coen, Richard LaGravenese, William Nicholson

Wild – Nick Hornby

BEST CINEMATOGRAPY

Birdman – Emmanuel Lubezki

The Grand Budapest Hotel – Robert Yeoman

Interstellar – Hoyte Van Hoytema

Mr. Turner – Dick Pope

Unbroken – Roger Deakins

BEST ART DIRECTION

Birdman – Kevin Thompson/Production Designer, George DeTitta Jr./Set Decorator

The Grand Budapest Hotel – Adam Stockhausen/Production Designer, Anna Pinnock/Set Decorator

Inherent Vice – David Crank/Production Designer, Amy Wells/Set Decorator

Interstellar – Nathan Crowley/Production Designer, Gary Fettis/Set Decorator

Into the Woods – Dennis Gassner/Production Designer, Anna Pinnock/Set Decorator

Snowpiercer – Ondrej Nekvasil/Production Designer, Beatrice Brentnerova/Set Decorator

BEST EDITING

Birdman – Douglas Crise, Stephen Mirrione

Boyhood – Sandra Adair

Gone Girl – Kirk Baxter

Interstellar – Lee Smith

Whiplash – Tom Cross

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

The Grand Budapest Hotel – Milena Canonero

Inherent Vice – Mark Bridges

Into the Woods – Colleen Atwood

Maleficent – Anna B. Sheppard

Mr. Turner – Jacqueline Durran

BEST HAIR & MAKEUP

Foxcatcher

Guardians of the Galaxy

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Into the Woods

Maleficent

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Edge of Tomorrow

Guardians of the Galaxy

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies

Interstellar

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Big Hero 6

The Book of Life

The Boxtrolls

How to Train Your Dragon 2

The Lego Movie

BEST ACTION MOVIE

American Sniper

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Edge of Tomorrow

Fury

Guardians of the Galaxy

BEST ACTOR IN AN ACTION MOVIE

Bradley Cooper – American Sniper

Tom Cruise – Edge of Tomorrow

Chris Evans – Captain America: The Winter Soldier

Brad Pitt – Fury

Chris Pratt – Guardians of the Galaxy

BEST ACTRESS IN AN ACTION MOVIE

Emily Blunt – Edge of Tomorrow

Scarlett Johansson – Lucy

Jennifer Lawrence – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

Zoe Saldana – Guardians of the Galaxy

Shailene Woodley – Divergent

BEST COMEDY

Birdman

The Grand Budapest Hotel

St. Vincent

Top Five

22 Jump Street

BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY

Jon Favreau – Chef

Ralph Fiennes – The Grand Budapest Hotel

Michael Keaton – Birdman

Bill Murray – St. Vincent

Chris Rock – Top Five

Channing Tatum – 22 Jump Street

BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY

Rose Byrne – Neighbors

Rosario Dawson – Top Five

Melissa McCarthy – St. Vincent

Jenny Slate – Obvious Child

Kristen Wiig – The Skeleton Twins

BEST SCI-FI/HORROR MOVIE

The Babadook

Dawn of the Planet of the Apes

Interstellar

Snowpiercer

Under the Skin

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

Force Majeure

Ida

Leviathan

Two Days, One Night

Wild Tales

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

Citizenfour

Glen Campbell: I’ll Be Me

Jodorowsky’s Dune

Last Days in Vietnam

Life Itself

The Overnighters

BEST SONG

Big Eyes – Lana Del Rey – Big Eyes

Everything Is Awesome – Jo Li and the Lonely Island – The Lego Movie

Glory – Common/John Legend – Selma

Lost Stars – Keira Knightley – Begin Again

Yellow Flicker Beat – Lorde – The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 1

BEST SCORE

Alexandre Desplat – The Imitation Game

Johann Johannsson – The Theory of Everything

Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross – Gone Girl

Antonio Sanchez – Birdman

Hans Zimmer – Interstellar

Marvel's 'Ant-Man' Official Synopsis and Characters Revealed

Marvel's upcoming film Ant-Man recently finished shooting, and given that fact the studio has seen fit to release the official synopsis of the film and revealing the characters that will appear. Ant-Man will see Marvel introduce another of their lesser known characters to their cinematic universe, and with the roll they are on, none of us can question what they plan on putting out at this point.

The official synopsis for Ant-Man goes as follows (via Collider):

The next evolution of the Marvel Cinematic Universe brings a founding member of The Avengers to the big screen for the first time with Marvel Studios’ Ant-Man. Armed with the astonishing ability to shrink in scale but increase in strength, master thief Scott Lang must embrace his inner-hero and help his mentor, Dr. Hank Pym, protect the secret behind his spectacular Ant-Man suit from a new generation of towering threats. Against seemingly insurmountable obstacles, Pym and Lang must plan and pull off a heist that will save the world.

Also, Ant-Man will see Paul Rudd as Scott Lang aka Ant-Man, Michael Douglas as Hank Pym, Evangeline Lilly as Hope Van Dyne, Corey Stoll as Darren Cross aka Yellowjacket, Bobby Cannavale as Paxton, Michael Peña as Luis, Judy Greer as Maggie, Tip "Ti" Harris as Dave, David Dastmalchian as Kurt, Wood Harris as Gale, and Jordi Mollà as Castillo.

The synopsis sounds good, and the word "heist" caught my attention a lot since I really like heist films, so Ant-Man pulling a heist sounds really fun to me. I am not really all that knowledgeable about Ant-Man and the characters in his comics so the new character names don't really stand out to me, that is if they are even characters from the comics, but I am really excited about this film. Ant-Man hits theaters on July 17th, 2015.

Concept Art and Logo Revealed for Disney's Live-Action 'The Jungle Book'

Just recently we found out that Andy Serkis' Jungle Book: Origins for Warner Bros. was pushed to 2017, and surprisingly close to that announcement Disney decided to give us a first look at their new film version of the story, releasing concept art and the first logo for Jon Favreau's The Jungle Book. Disney's version will be a mix of live-action and CG, and will include the voice talents of Bill Murray as Baloo, Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, Christopher Walken as King Louie, Lupita Nyong'o as Rakcha, Ben Kingsley as Bageera, and Giancarlo Esposito as Akela, with Neel Sethi as live-action Mowgli.

I am very interested in both of the Jungle Book  movies that are coming our way, and with this one being closer I am at this point anticipating this one a bit more. With the director, the cast, and being a Disney film, you have to assume that this movie will be a lot of fun. The concept art and the logo are great as a tease, but I hope this was a sign that something more is on the way and not just a move to get some attention coming off the date push of the other film. The Jungle Book is set to hit theaters on October 9th, 2015. Check out the concept art and logo below (via The Jungle Book Facebook Page).

'Skull Island' Re-titled and Pushed back to 2017

Legendary Pictures' Skull Island directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts and starring Tom Hiddleston has received and new title, and apparently there was a reason the film needed more time to be finished because the film was also pushed from the original release date of November 4th, 2016. Kong: Skull Island is the new title of the film and will be pushed back to March 10th, 2017.

The announcement was made through a press release (via Collider), that specified the new title and new release date. As usual, there was no specific reason given to why the film was being pushed back, so that can be anyone's guess at this point. The press release also mentioned that Zhang Yimou's untitled Great Wall film is set to be released on November 23rd, 2016.

The name change makes sense to me, the new title makes it easier or rather obvious to identify the film with the character that the film will be about, and King Kong is definitely what will draw regular audiences to the movie. The move doesn't worry me too much because of how far we are even from the original release date, so maybe they just decided to take more time to be ready. I am glad we are getting a release date for Zhang Yimou's Great Wall movie, I had my eye on this film before and hadn't heard anything recently, so this could mean they are moving along. The newly titled Kong: Skull Island will open in theaters on March 20th, 2017 and Zhang Yimou's untitled Great Wall film will hit theaters on November 23rd, 2016.

Mark Hamill Talks 'Star Wars: The Force Awakens'

From Star Wars: The Force Awakens other than the continuation of the story in this world many of us love, people are also excited about seeing characters from the original trilogy and what their role will be in this new version, namely Luke (Mark Hamill), Leia (Carrie Fisher) and Han (Harrison Ford). Mark Hamill has joined in on the talks about the teaser trailer and gave some insight of his involvement in the film, Hamill is sworn to secrecy but there were still things he could say about his experience in the upcoming film.

All of these comments come from an interview with Yahoo! Movies, where he talked about the beard he had to grow to play an older Luke Skywalker:

"That is what I call my contractually obligated beard. Listen: I think they look fine on other people. It's just not me. I mean, I never got used to it. But face foliage is almost a part of the costume. And it does bring a gravitas, perhaps unearned, but nevertheless, it makes a statement that they wanted to make, and I'm more than happy to oblige them."

Hamill was also asked about his absence in the teaser trailer, if he was surprised that he was not in it like some of the fans were:

"Not really. This is about the new generation of characters; I think that's the most important thing. It's the opening act of a whole new approach to the storytelling. So I never thought that the stories would be – first of all, I never thought I'd be involved in it again, period. And then when George [Lucas] said that they wanted to do more, I rightly assumed that it wouldn't be our story, because we had a beginning, a middle, and an end. This must be our offspring and the current generation, with us there lending the kind of support that Peter Cushing and Alec Guinness did in the original. So no, that didn't surprise me.  And I mean, I'm one of those people where I just think, 'Keep me out of it. I'll ruin it, I'm sure!' [Laughs] I’ll show up and just ruin the whole thing."

The actor also confessed that he had second thoughts about his appearance in new Star Wars films, and that for him it was a package deal for Luke, Leia and Han to appear in the new film:

"I said to George, 'Have you really thought this through? Because maybe it's not such a great idea.' But I had a feeling, I said, 'You know what – if there's a weak link, if Carrie [Fisher] or Harrison [Ford] decides they don't want to do it, there's an out. Because it's all or nothing. It should be all of us or none of us.' So I was ready to go either way. And now that we're all in, we'll see what happens."

To add to the previous statement, Hamill followed by commenting that he was also hesitant to think that Ford would return to reprise his role as Han Solo:

"Well, you know, he [Ford] was someone that was unpredictable. I hadn't seen him in years; I didn't know what his feelings were. I know he's sometimes grown impatient with people that don't want to focus on what he's doing currently and want to go stroll down memory lane. God knows, I'm used to that sort of thing. But who knew? And for him to jump back in so enthusiastically, I was delighted. It's a wonderful character. Everybody loves Han Solo.

Hamill also joined the discussion about the new droid BB-8 (the rolling droid), saying that he likes it and revealing that the droid was made with practical effects and not CGI:

  "They never cease to amaze me with what they're able to come up with, you know? I said, 'How are you ever gonna top R2-D2, the most adorable droid in movie history?' And then they have this new one. I can't even tell you his name, but you saw it in the trailer. And when they were demonstrating how they did this thing, live on set — because it's not CGI, that's a live prop — I was just amazed. They let me play around with it. [Laughs] I was running it all around at the creature shop up in Pinewood. I'm telling you, it's an absolute delight. And not having thought that I'd ever go back there, to go back into that world, is just – I get the chills. It's just so much fun."

Star Wars: The Force Awakens hits theaters on December 18th, 2015.