The Flick:

Steven Soderbergh is a director that isn’t afraid to take chances. Sometimes those chances pay off, and sometimes they don’t. With Traffic his ability to follow his gut no matter what the box office outcome definitely payed off. Traffic won four Academy Awards, including Best Director.

The film follows multiple cast members in a captivating and complex interwoven storyline. There is a Mexican cop (Benicio del Toro) tackling the drug trade, a judge (Michael Douglas) moving up in the political arena waging a war on drugs, two cops (Don Cheadle and Luis Guzman) working to take down one of Los Angeles’ larges suppliers, said supplier’s wife (the yummy Catherine Zeta-Jones), and the drug addicted daughter of the judge (Erika Christensen). Don’t worry, it sounds confusing, but Soderbergh is a master storyteller, and the plot-lines flow together with grace.

Traffic is one of those films that sticks with you long after it’s over. It grabs hold of your gut and doesn’t let go even after repeated viewings. It’s beautiful and for its time, quite experimental. Its look is nothing short of breathtaking. The grainy colored haze that bleaches each scene serves the plot perfectly by separating each storyline. It contains some of the most impressive cinematography I’ve ever seen, and a cast that is impossible to forget.

Based on the British series Traffik, Soderbergh took the material and transformed it into a brilliantly executed story about a time in our nations history that changed the American landscape forever. This is a killer film should be mandatory viewing for everyone over the age of 17.

The Blu-ray:

Audio/Video

Presented in a director approved aspect ratio of 1.78:1 with a DTS-HD 5.1 audio, and a beautiful 1080p transfer Criterion has exceeded expectations and created a viewing experience that is nearly flawless. It looked and sounded so beautiful on my home theatre I watched it two days in a row. Simply stunning.

Special Features

Commentary: There are multiple tracks on here including, Steven Soderbergh, Steven Gaghan, Cliff Martinez, Laura Bickford, Marshall Herskovitz, Edward Zwick, Tim Golden, and former DEA chief of Intelligence Craig Chretuen. Most of these are standard issue, but listening to Soderbergh talk is always a treat.

Deleted Scenes: There are a ton of deleted scenes on this disc. Some are worth watching, and some are just filler. Either way, if your a fan of Soderbergh’s work I’d recommend checking them all out.

There are a number of features that cover the look of the film, the editing process, and more. It’s pretty extensive stuff and worth checking out.

Additional Footage: There are four uncut scenes presented in raw form that are pretty great. Well worth watching.

Trailers: Believe it or not there are seven trailers and TV spots included on this disc.

Booklet: There is a small booklet that lists the cast and crew and contains an essay from film critic Manohla Dargis called Border Wars.

The Flick Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

The Blu-ray Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

While using Khan as the villain does seem like laziness on the writers part, I’m confident Robert Orci, Alex Kurtzman, and Damon Lindeloff will offer a new take on the character.

That’s not to say it wouldn’t be great to see an updated version of Khan, but this is new storyline, and needs a new villain. But this is just a rumor at the moment, but Latino Review has shown to be a very reliable source when it comes to inside information.

Update: Hitflix was able to contact Abrams about this rumor, and he responded in just two words, “not true”. Of course, how many times have filmmakers denied rumors that have turned out to be true?

Director Ariel Vromen has this to say on the news: “I am honored to work with such a talented cast on such a compelling story. Since the early stages of development I had the dream of casting Michael Shannon as Kuklinski, as I believe there’s no one else that can play this part better than him.”

Notes from the Press Release:

* Michael Shannon, Benicio Del Toro and James Franco will be starring in THE ICEMAN, it was announced today in a joint statement made by Millennium Films and Bleiberg Entertainment.

* Ariel Vromen (Danika,Rx) is directing from a screenplay he co-wrote with Morgan Land (Rx, The Point of No Return), based on the book The Iceman: The True Story of a Cold-Blooded Killer by Anthony Bruno and on interview footage from the documentary The Iceman Tapes: Conversations with a Killer by Jim Thebaut.

* THE ICEMAN is the electrifying true story of Richard Kuklinski (Shannon), a notorious mob contract killer and loving family man. He earned his nickname by freezing the bodies of his victims, disguising the time of death, and throwing police off-track. He was a man who used his tendencies toward violence and detachment from consequence to create an idyllic family life. His family and neighbors believed he was an average businessman, having no idea about his deadly alternate life. Kuklinski killed over one hundred people during his life. He never felt remorse for anything he had done, except hurting his family. Del Toro co-stars as Kuklinski’s employer, the notorious mobster Roy Demeo, and Franco plays his mentor assassin known as Mr. Softee.

* “Our film is going to be fantastic. The story is riveting, the cast perfect, and all being directed by the talents of Ariel Vromen. We are pleased to be working with Bleiberg Entertainment” says Nu Image/Millennium’s Avi Lerner.

* “Richard Kuklinski is a remarkably vivid, imminently watchable character, as was evident from the real-life footage of him. I’m looking forward to working with Avi, Danny, Trevor, and Boaz on this film; Ariel is a tremendously talented young filmmaker who has poured his heart into this project and has a strong, artistic vision,” remarks Ehud Bleiberg.

Source: Collider

Del Toro was one of the original three actors to sign on for the film. The other two included Jim Carrey, who recently dropped out (here), and Sean Penn, who also dropped out. Unlike Carrey and Penn, Del Toro hasn’t wavered on the film, but he still isn’t locked for the film. As for those who’s being looked at for the other roles, Peter Farrelly explains the difficulty of casting the roles. “Our feeling is that it just can’t be your take on Moe. It’s gotta be Moe. Someone could nail Curly’s mannerisms, but if you’re 130 pounds it probably wouldn’t work,” he said. Although, many new from the beginning that replacing the original actors would be a very difficult job.

Diaz lends her voice once more to the DreamWorks Animation film Shrek Forever After, coming out in theaters on May 21rst. You can check out Benicio Del Toro howl it up as The Wolfman, expected to be released on DVD and Blu-Ray on June 1rst. Read the synopsis below for An Ex to Grind from JaneHeller.Com.:

In An Ex to Grind, Manhattan financial planner Melanie Banks likes being on top. She’s addicted to the money, the power, and the success only hard work and long hours can bring. When she first meets and falls in love with pro football player Dan Swain, she admires his work ethic too. But then they get married and his career comes to a screeching halt, and suddenly she’s the one bringing home the bacon – and falling out of love with him. In the years – years! – since he last held a job, he’s become a paycheck-devouring, couch-sitting mooch, and he likes it that way. And Melanie decides it’s time to lose the loser.

Divorce, however, isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. For starters, Melanie’s forced to share custody of Buster, the couple’s adorable dog. And married or not, she still has to support the income-less Dan in the princely style to which he’s become so infuriatingly accustomed. Whether the overpaid lawyers term it “alimony” or “maintenance,” the bad news is that she has to pay it – and keep paying it until death do them part.

But there is one loophole.

If she can dump her ex onto some other unsuspecting female for ninety days and get him to violate their cohabitation clause, she’s off the hook – forever.

Sound tricky? Not for Melanie Banks. The first step is to secretly hire Desiree Klein, New York’s premier professional matchmaker. It’s not long before Desiree supplies Ms. Right (or at least Ms. Right-for-Ninety-Days) and Dan walks straight into the trap. Before Melanie knows it, her lazy ex has a new love, and by the end of the ninety days he’ll be out of her life – and her checkbook. Revenge is going to be so sweet…

Unless Melanie gets caught in a little loophole of her own creation.

Dan’s fresh start has revitalized him. His new sweetheart is miraculously transforming him into a responsible, caring, focused go-getter. In other words, he’s becoming precisely the man Melanie always dreamed he could be. And now she wants him back.

“When the moon is full, the legend comes to life. Academy Award^® winners Anthony Hopkins and Benicio Del Toro star in The Wolfman, a stunning re-imagining of the Universal Pictures thriller classic, coming to Blu-ray^TM, DVD and digital download on June 1, 2010 from Universal Studios Home Entertainment. Both the Blu-ray^TM and DVD releases of The Wolfman will contain two versions of the movie – the thrilling, never-before-seen unrated director’s cut, as well as the theatrical version of the film. The Wolfman will also be available day and date on video on demand.”

“As part of a groundbreaking offer, The Wolfman Blu-ray^TM will give purchasers an exclusive opportunity to stream the original 1941 The Wolf Man starring Lon Chaney, Jr. three ways via BD-Live^TM, pocket BLU™ app and www.UniversalHiDef.com. The Blu-ray also features two exclusive alternate endings and, for a limited time only, a digital copy of the film that can be viewed on an array of electronic and portable devices. Both the Blu-ray^TM and DVD will include a never-before-seen unrated version of the movie, as well as the version seen in theaters.”

I, unfortunately, missed the film while in theaters, but Killer Film has a review for you all here.

Before he retired, Garcia took down 39 members of New York’s Gambino Crime family. The Cuban-born G-man was so convincing while pretending to be Italian that he was invited to become a made man before the feds broke out the handcuffs (Deadline Hollywood). No word yet not only on who will be directing this picture but what studio or production company will eventually put this under their wing for distribution.

Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro), a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father (Anthony Hopkins), Talbot sets out to find his brother… and discovers a horrifying destiny for himself. Talbot’s childhood ended the night his mother died. After he left the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor, he spent decades recovering and trying to forget. But when his brother’s fiancée, Gwen Conliffe (Emily Blunt), tracks him down to help find her missing love, Talbot returns home to join the search. He learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline (Hugo Weaving) has come to investigate.

You can view even more clips for the movie below from ShockTillYouDrop, with a couple of new images from the upcoming horror/thriller. If yoru more itnerested in the whole story of the wolf man, be sure to check out The Blackmoor for uncovering the mystery behind the strange creature that’s got the Scotland Yard in a frenzy.:

More clips from The Wolfman

This film is promising enough to be the one to break February out of the dead month, or will at least give a majority of the men (and some women) their sanity back as they sneak away from many screenings of Valentine’s Day, yes they’re released the same weekend, to go and watch this film. The Wolfman will spew out under Universal Pictures in theaters everywhere on February 12th. Go and check it out below from the folks at IMP Awards.:

Originally set to replace Sean Penn in the part was Paul Giamatti who eventually fell out of it as well. The only person within the whole group that has, to a certain extent, kept himself onboard is Benicio Del Toro for Moe. This is what Bobby Farrelly had to say about the re-attachment of Penn onto the project, from Coming Soon.:

“We got him back,” Bobby Farrelly said. “He always said he wanted to do it after, you know, taking care of his family.”

The Farrelly brothers are both attached to direct their already written script that they both clearly created. The only problem with this project that continues on is the start of initial filming. This will not be happening anytime soon due to the production of their other project called Hall Pass. Even though Penn is back on board at this point does not mean that he could stay on board. At this point, I’m surprised the development is still some what together on this piece.

Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman, is lured back to his family estate after his brother vanishes. Reunited with his estranged father, Talbot sets out to find his brother… and discovers a horrifying destiny for himself. Talbot’s childhood ended the night his mother died. After he left the sleepy Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor, he spent decades recovering and trying to forget. But when his brother’s fiancée, Gwen Conliffe, tracks him down to help find her missing love, Talbot returns home to join the search. He learns that something with brute strength and insatiable bloodlust has been killing the villagers, and that a suspicious Scotland Yard inspector named Aberline has come to investigate.

On the site you can check out a huge gallery of pictures, trailers, features and cool downloads. The film stars Benicio Del Toro along with Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Hugo Weaving. The Wolfman is directed by Joe Johnston and claws away into theaters everywhere on February 12th, 2010. Is it February 12th yet?

The Wolfman Official Movie Website

Joe Johnston directed the remake monster movie that stars talented actors Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt and Hugo Weaving. The movie will claw its way into theaters on February 12th. Anyone else excited for it? I am.