Essential Entertainment are planning to have the pre-sales out in full force in Cannes this week.

Source: Screen Daily

The series premiere is set for April 17th, on HBO. But it’s got a bad-ass poster.

Source: IMDb

Don Carmody Productions and Davis Films have released a new still from the film (pictured right).

The film is being directed by Michael Bassett (Solomon Kane), who also wrote the screenplay, and he had this to say about the casting additions. “It wouldn’t be the same without some of the original Silent Hill cast. Sean, Radha and Deborah’s return will certainly thrill fans of the franchise and compliment Revelations stars Adelaide and Kit.”

Now on the eve of her 18th birthday, plagued by terrifying nightmares and the disappearance of her father, Heather discovers she’s not who she thinks she is. The revelation leads her deeper into a demonic world that threatens to trap her in Silent Hill forever.

No word on a release date yet.

Source: Coming Soon

Earlier today we heard that production on Silent Hill: Revelations 3D begun today (here), but we have yet to hear any casting for the film. Bloody-Disgusting is now reporting that Adelaide Clemens (X-men Origins: Wolverine, Vampire) is negotiating to join the film as the lead character Heather. The film features Heather as she’s “been on the run, always one step ahead of dangerous forces that she doesn’t fully understand. Now on the eve of her 18th birthday, plagued by terrifying nightmares and the disappearance of her father, Heather discovers she’s not who she thinks she is. The revelation leads her deeper into a demonic world that threatens to trap her in Silent Hill forever.”

Sean Bean (Black Death, Silent Hill) is also in negotiations to reprise his role from the first film.

Update: Shock Til You Drop is reporting that Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) has also joined the cast.

Here we are only two months into the new year and there are already a of pair of flicks that deal with the plague and witchcraft. We already had the Nicolas Cage film Season of the Witch, which I reviewed here, and now we have the newest movie from one of my favorite directors – Christopher Smith. The British auteur has been flying under the radar since his 2004 feature debut Creep i.e. the best subterranean creature feature since Gary Sherman’s Raw Meat, also known as Death Line. He out did himself with Severance, best described as Friday the 13th meets the cast of The Office on a team-building weekend in the mountains. Then there is Triangle – a spooky, sea bound, time travel project that was poorly handled by its distributor and it never really found its audience.

It is 1348, the Year of our Lord, and a bishop sends a monk and an assemblage of holy warriors to a Utopian village that is kept safe from the pestilence by a necromancer, a witch who uses a form of black magic in which the practitioner seeks to summon the spirit of a deceased person, either as a ghost or apparition, for the purpose of divination. Fearing the love of his life might catch the dreaded disease, the monk implores her to leave to the marsh that is not at all what it seems. Our heroes are welcomed with open arms and are invited to a grand feast, and in the process, they make the cardinal sin of letting down their guard and not realizing their food is drugged. The attractive heretic shows the monk that his woman has “perished” as he questions his faith in God as to why she was taken away from him. He starts hallucinating that she is still alive, and witnesses a ceremony where it appears she is brought back from the dead.

Before reaching their designated destination there is a whole lot of walking and talking that was an unfriendly reminder why I have not watched any of the Lord of the Rings films since they first came out. I appreciate the slow burn approach, but none of the exchanges are very engaging and I felt like I was watching Centurion, sans the gore and action. Then things kick into high gear as our band of brothers are put on display in front of the flock of villagers, trapped inside of steel bars, and will be allowed to live only if they denounce their vengeful God. “If they keep him, they will die.” It is here where the two different sects of people jaw back and forth about their beliefs and who is on the right side – material that I find fascinating. They are the kind of exchanges that still go on today and will until the end of time. Regardless of whether you are Christian, Catholic, Buddhist, agnostic, or an atheist – these theological differences make us who we are.

Black Death does not hit the unreachable stratosphere of cherished works like The Wicker Man and Witchfinder General, but it is a grungy, first-rate horror thriller that shows Christopher Smith is a major talent and a force to be reckoned with at a time when creativity and originality is a lost form of art.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Jason Bene: After doing Triangle, Severance, and Creep – what made you want to tackle a historical horror film?

Christopher Smith: I’ve always been drawn to that period in history. It’s one of those conundrums where you sat up and listened in class because not only was this disease insane in the way it spread through Europe, but it was also a time when the country was as fundamentalist as it ever was or ever will be. That mixture is really relevant today. There aren’t many historical horror films that deal with it like The Wicker Man and Witchfinder General, films that did it in a straight way. The kind of movies that dealt with horror as a real thing and that it’s really happening. I just wanted to approach it that way and I thought that it would be interesting and a nice departure for me.

Jason Bene: When you read Dario Poloni’s script do you think of those two classic period piece movies? Also, did you know at the time that you were making this film that Nicolas Cage had his own project that dealt with witchcraft and the plague?

Christopher Smith: When I read the script I wasn’t thinking of those two films [The Wicker Man, Witchfinder General]. I was thinking of The Name of the Rose, The Seventh Seal, and the Werner Herzog film Aguirre, The Wrath of God – in terms of the chaos of that world. I wanted to try and keep that spirit and realism of it. Then we kind of got the script ready and pushed Dario to try and keep it as real as possible. Then we found out that there was this other movie called Season of the Witch and we thought we had to get our film finished before it. They have real witches, and ours is like what if there were witches in the real world. I think that question is scarier than the other side of the coin which is people flying through the air and so forth. We tried to use the evil that people do to one another and that scares me more than fantasy.

Jason Bene: I have seen Black Death and Season of the Witch and your film is more grounded in reality and what is was really like six hundred years ago. There are elements of horror, but it almost seems like a “medieval guy’s on a mission journey”.

Christopher Smith: That was exactly what I read. When you think of “guy’s on a mission movies” you think of Where Eagles Dare and things like that. I didn’t want this film, even though it’s six hundred years ago where the story is set, to have that likeness and touch that you would see in Inglourious Basterds. I felt it would be interesting  to go back that far historically and make a “guy’s on a mission movie” as though you were making a film that was set in a war that happened a lot closer. History allows you to soften the blow a bit because it’s too painful  because it’s too close to us. I thought it would be interesting to try and approach it in a much more realist fashion and a much more brutal fashion. Often historical films become fantasy and sword and sorcery, as Season of the Witch did. The pressure was to try and not do that and go another way with it.

Jason Bene: Did you try to make sure the historical aspects were correct?

Christopher Smith: Dario did a brilliant job in terms of the way he approached it. There are some sequences in it which are probably are not exactly historical, but they seem like they are. For example, the sequence where the guy’s are carrying the crucifix up the river. The idea that you could flagellate yourself and you would be spared the plague was real. What we tried to do in my movie was to show that religious flagellation could spare people from the plague. Those historical facts are something different, but I think the spirit of the film, and the way the characters behave with one another, and the look of the film and the whole smell of the film feels very real. We made the characters in the world act in a medieval way, and not in a modern way.

Jason Bene: There are not a lot of special effects in the film, and the make-up effects are there, yet not over-the-top.

Christopher Smith: [Laughs] There is some CG in there, but you won’t see it because I was just like “Show me what we can do. If I feel like it is CG , then it is not going to be in there.” I really think those things pull you out of a movie. They make you suddenly feel like you are seeing modern technology in an old film. It is not just the technology aspect. There is lots of CG in Black Death, but you don’t see it because when it’s used brilliantly you don’t see it. When you see old people make-up and they go too far with it you really get pulled out of it. I love movies where you are just be immersed and not disrupted. I think CG is great if you are in a CG world. If you’re in Tron: Legacy, great, because you are in the Tron world. If you try and mix the two then you’ve got to be a lot more careful with it, otherwise, it pulls you out. Certainly in a world where you are trying to sell realism.

Jason Bene: The best death scene of the movie is where Sean Bean gets ripped apart by the horses. It seems you went for the less is more approach, and what your mind can come up with is more horrible than showing it.

Christopher Smith: Well, here’s the thing. When Sean Bean cuts the witches throat, I did that in a long shot. I did not do that to stay away from gore, I’ve done that because it looks more shocking to see something happen brutally and coldly than sixteen different camera angles and turn it into a set piece moment. I like the films that do that, but for this film I didn’t want it to be that way. When people get killed, they just get killed. It’s just brutal, quick, and painful. That’s it, they’re gone. There’s not movie moments like that. The one movie moment that there is that is done in the traditional way is a guy being torn apart by a horse. I wanted it to have the same logic to it. I didn’t want in any way risk people laughing. Imagine cutting away and seeing the whole thing happen and arms popping. You do see something. You do see limbs. There is a shot were you see him pull apart and it’s done subtly. You are watching the pain more than you are watching the special effects.

Jason Bene: It reminded me very much of William Wallace’s death in Braveheart.

Christopher Smith: Absolutely! That’s a film that’s very violent, yet it’s not a splatter movie. It’s a film with an approach to the violence. You fee it, but it’s not over-the-top. It wasn’t a direct influence, but I agree with you.

Jason Bene: My favorite actor you cast in the movie is the great David Warner from The Omen. What was it like to work with him?

Christopher Smith: David is a legend. We shot the film in order and on the very first day in the very first scene I was directing David Warner. I was very star-struck with David. He is one of those amazing actors that when he says something he says it with such gravitas, and when you watch it with the naked eye, it can feel almost too big. When you watch it on the screen it’s absolutely brilliant. I would be watching it and going, “That is sort of too big.” Then when I watch it on the screen and go, “It’s brilliant!” I had some fun with him and he was really a nice guy. When you find yourself working with someone who was a favorite of Sam Peckinpah’s, you kind of feel a little bit intimidated. I just hope I get the chance to work with him again. He’s truly a great actor.

Jason Bene: I have always been attracted to religious-themed movies that deal with Christian values and how they are right and everyone else is wrong. And here is gets twisted where these men are forced to denounce God if they want to live. That’s powerful material that comes off well.

Christopher Smith: That idea is not just a Christian idea. It’s the idea of people corrupting and you are either with us or against us. It comes out of fear and it comes out of people’s reason for doing that for their own gain. You picked up on a theme that is my favorite of the movie. You meet this band of guys and some of them are about money and on some are about God. Except for one, all are willing to die, in order, in line, as men, for their God. And that is powerful stuff. They realize they can be free, but they are betrayed when one of them does renege. The reason I did that was to show that as soon as you have one side of the coin being better than the other, then it is about which religion is right. It is about fundamentalism and bad people can corrupt good people with an honest faith.

Jason Bene: Although Black Death is a period piece, it’s themes are relevant to what is going on in the world now.

Christopher Smith: It’s true. I am glad that you said that. When we watched the film and we had its first run through we realized we had classic themes. I am really proud of the film in the sense that I think it can be watched. Whereas Severance a Bush era movie. It is a movie that comes out of those years. It will be looked upon that way. I love that film and I am very proud of it. This film can be from any period.

Jason Bene: What can fans expect from you next?

Christopher Smith: I love the genre! There are projects coming up. What I am in interested in is trying to not just make simple choices because if you make a simple choice and make the slickest movie of all-time, it’s just slick and shallow and that attracts me less than trying to do something that picks people up a bit. I grew up loving those 70′s movies. I’m always inspired by the ambitions and some of the chaos of those films. Some of the films that I am going to do in the future are going to try and take that crazy spirit in a way possible that I can get bigger stars and a bigger budget. The more that we can try to make interesting stuff, the more films that really challenge the genre, the better. People can say, “What do you do for a living?” Do I say I am a film director or do I say I’m a horror director? Weirdly, within the film industry, it’s like one is lesser than the other. Which is preposterous because some of the best movies being made today are being made in the genre, not in drama. Look at Christopher Nolan’s stuff, for example. Is he a genre director, or is he a director director? He’s one in the same.

A the moment I am going to do a film noir [Detour], a twisted thing that will play with time. It may be my next film. I am also looking at a werewolf movie [Bitch] and I will try to make them scary again. You can’t better the practical effects that they did in An American Werewolf in London. I will be trying to make a werewolf movie that seems right up to date with practical effects and big transformation sequences. I do love a good transformation sequence when it is done right.

Jon Peters: It’s been three years since you directed Timber Falls. So how and when did Death Race 2 come to you?

Tony Giglio: You know, I’ve been working to get a job with Paul [W.S. Anderson] and Jeremy [Bolt] for years. I had an interview to direct Resident Evil: Apocalypse, and then several interviews and call backs for Resident Evil: Extinction, but it came down to my lack of visual effects knowledge. But through that whole process, I got to know Paul [W.S. Anderson] and his company very well.

When I was doing Timber Falls, I would get emails from them asking me what I was up to or what not, and about a year-and-a-half ago, I get this call from Jeremy saying Paul and him were doing another Death Race for Universal and they wanted me to write it for them. Even though, Death Race isn’t a Resident Evil, I felt it was one of Paul’s better movies, so it was a job I was really into. Universal was into the idea, too. Basically, Paul and I did a quick two page treatment for what and where we felt this film is and would go, and we got prepared to meet with Universal. In a week, we all agreed to the film and what we were making. It happened so fast. It took me four years to try to work with Paul and within a week, I got Death Race 2 [as a screenwriter] and Resident Evil: Afterlife second unit director spot.

Jon: Didn’t realize Paul had a hand into the film. That’s interesting. Usually, a prequel has trouble successfully linking to the prior film, but Anderson had this little nugget of a scene at the beginning of Death Race with Frankenstein dying that set us up for Jason Statham’s character. What were the challenges in linking the films or were you free to just go wild?

Tony Giglio: To break that into two parts, Paul was really invested into this film. Death Race was a passion movie for him and he didn’t want to let this one fall by the way side. The original concept was the birth of Frankenstein, that’s what Paul wanted to do. One of my biggest questions was how to handle Hennessey [Joan Allen’s character], who created the Death Race. My challenge was to really bridge all aspects of the origin story, and not just focusing on Frankenstein. I used that opening scene that you mentioned, to spur off into my idea, and asked: “what would this Death Match be and how would it go to a Death Race?”

We wanted to make a prequel that had an origin and everything, and in the original draft had all of the [Death Race’s] characters in it. Paul wanted to bring back everybody, and I said to him, “I have nobody to kill if you bring back everyone.” So we picked characters for this origin story. Let us focus on Frankenstein, the Death Race itself, and then bring back a few characters just for familiarity like 14k [Robin Shou]. We needed to know Frankenstein since in Death Race, Paul had this line that the original Frankenstein prior to Jason Statham’s, maybe wasn’t even the original Frankenstein. We had a lot of liberty here. That was a priority, and to answer your question, I did have a lot of freedom with it. My original draft was 130 pages, since I wanted to make sure everything that we [Paul and Universal] discussed was there, but the Universal troupe said it was too long, and to get it down to 85 pages. They trusted Paul and green-lit my screenplay after the second draft.

Jon: Was Death Race 2 always conceived as a direct-to-video film?

Tony Giglio: I think there was talk of it going theatrical and test screenings went really well, so there was that possibility, but I don’t know if those were rumors or whatnot. What I knew going in that they wanted this as a DTV movie and I know that sometimes carries a stigma, but meeting with Paul and Universal , I knew they wanted this to be bigger than one would expect. I personally, I had some theatrical success with Timber Falls limited run.

Jon: Well, its early success must have sparked Universal’s eye as they are using it as their feature debut under their new Universal Premiere DTV line [called Universal Studios Home Entertainment DVD Originals™]. Death Race 3 is now announced (here). Scorpion King 3 is announced (here). The film has a great cast, and I think that’s what got a lot of fans interested.

Tony Giglio: Yeah, I think it all depends. The quality of the movie depends on the filmmakers but sometimes just putting someone in, people can see if they’re doing it for a check. Sometimes DTV movies have lazy, half-hearted performances, and it all comes from Paul not wanting to have this film shit on his first Death Race. I take great pride in my work and wanted to do my best for the film, for the producers. I know the director they hired [Roel Reine] had done plenty of DTV movies, but talking to him, he had a bigger vision for this than I, and we were all motivated to up our game.

Who Universal got for the characters was a testament to the film and wanted we were doing. I mean, they had the balls to go out and get a Sean Bean [Goldeneye, The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring]. I liked that they went after really good actors, like for the lead, Luke Goss [Hellboy II: The Golden Army] and not necessarily that DTV name. No disrespect to anyone, but by going with Luke Goss, he’s been good at his craft and I’ve been a fan since Blade II.

When I knew we were getting some of these actors, I begged to do a quick rewrite for them. Sometimes as writers, you don’t know who they’re going after. You just put it down. But when I heard they got Sean Bean, one of my favorites, I rewrote his lines just to cater to him a bit.

Jon: When Death Race 2 was in production, you were doing second unit directing on Resident Evil: Afterlife, but was Roel Reine [Marine 2] always the director, or were you considered?

Tony Giglio: Sometimes as a writer for me, it’s difficult to separate myself as a director too, since even on Timber Falls, I did an uncredited rewrite. I feel that’s the best way to prepare yourself to direct, but everyone has their own ways. I did write this in preparation to make the leap if I did, but as soon as Resident Evil: Afterlife popped up and I knew Universal really wanted Roel, it wasn’t a difficult choice for me. Universal saw Marine 2 and really targeted Roel and while Paul wanted me to direct and I did entertain the thought, I really wanted the Resident Evil franchise. He did a great job. Roel was Universal’s top choice and he made it look great. It comes out the 18th of January and I hope the fans really like.

Look for Death Race 2 out now on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital download from Universal Home Entertainment.

Source: Bloody-Disgusting

Adding along with that news, Death Race 2 is already started up principal photography on February 13th in South Africa. The story takes place in the very near future, as the United States economy begins to decline and violent crime starts to spiral out of control. To contain the growing criminal population, a vast network of for-profit, private prisons springs up, creating a lawless subculture ruled by gangs, cold-blooded killers and sociopaths. The worst of these prisons is the Terminal Island.

Convicted cop-killer Carl Lucas (Luke Goss) arrives on the Island to serve his life sentence just as ruthlessly ambitious television personality September Jones launches the ultimate reality show, Death Race. A brutal prison yard demolition derby that pits prisoners against each other in steel reinforced, heavily armed vehicles, Death Race offers the winner the ultimate prize: freedom — if he can survive to enjoy it. When Lucas signs up to be a driver, the stage is set for the birth of a legendary racer.

Death Race 2 has no specific release date at the moment, but will be coming out under Universal Studios Home Entertainment Productions on DVD/Blu-Ray.

Set to be part of the cast is Sean Bean, Robert Vaughan and Dougray Scott. Producing the picture is Angry Badger Pictures along with John Adams.

Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman) finds out that he’s a half breed child of the God Poseidon (Kevin McKidd) or demi-God if you’r one of those politically correct types, after Zeus (Sean Bean) accuses him of stealing his lightning bolt. The awesome weapon wielded by the God of Gods. Knowing that he didn’t steal the bolt and feeling a little cheated that his pops never hung around to play catch with him, Percy sets out on a quest to find the real lightning thief, and plead his case to Zeus himself.

I’m a sucker for Greek Mythology. I love all the different Gods with all their different personalities and character flaws. I find it interesting that these Gods got jealous, angry, and even horny. I also enjoy a good quest movie (when said movies doesn’t focus on walking the entire time). Percy Jackson has everything I mentioned above, and it doesn’t take itself too seriously.

Of course no one can embark on a quest alone, well you can embark alone, but sooner or later you must be joined by others that support your cause or just want in on some action (I’m pretty sure this is a rule in the quest handbook). So, because director Chris Columbus knows the rules he waved his director’s wand and added a few friends to help Percy achieve his goals. Grover (Brandon T. Jackson) a guy that’s half man and half goat and is also Percy’s protector (junior protector) goes along for the ride as does uber-hottie Annabeth (Alexandra Daddario).

I enjoyed the fun pacing, along with the new twists on old mythology. All of the actors are solid and Alexandra is yummy. There’s also a host of amazing actors that round out the cast including, Pierce Brosnan, Steve Coogan, Rosario Dawson, Joe Pantoliano, and Uma Thurman. In fact one of my only complaints is that many of these stellar actors were underutilized.

If you watched the trailer and you decided that you’d be cool and hate it because it isn’t artsy enough, or because it was based on a children’s book, then this flick isn’t for you. On the other hand if your open enough to just enjoy a flick for what it is and let your self have a great time at the movies, then this flick is definitely for you, because Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief is positively a killer film.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

Synopsis: In medieval England fallen under the shadow of the Black Death, a young monk called Osmund is charged in leading a fearsome knight, Ulric and his group of mercenaries to a remote marsh. Their quest is to hunt down a necromancer – someone able to bring the dead back to life. Torn between his love of God and the love of a young woman, Osmund discovers the necromancer, a mysterious beauty called Langiva. After Langiva reveals her Satanic identity and offers Osmund his hearts desire, the horror of his real journey begins.

“Disc 1 Fellowship of the Ring Feature
Trailers
“The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest” Game Trailer
“The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy Supertrailer]
“The Lord of the Rings: War in the North” Game Trailer

“Disc 2″ Welcome to Middle-Earth: Houghton Mifflin In-Store Special
Quest for the Ring: FOX TV Special
A Passage to Middle-Earth: SCI-FI Channel Special
Finding Hobbiton
Hobbiton Comes Alive
Believing the World of Bree
Ringwraiths: The Fallen Kings
Rivendell: The Elven Refuge
Languages of Middle-Earth
Two Wizards
Music of Middle-Earth
Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen,,Orlando Bloom,,Cate Blanchett,,Liv Tyler,
Ian McKellen
Weathertop: The Windy Hill
MTV
Fellowship
To Ten/AFI
Phenomenon
Academy Nomination
Epic Oscar
Enya “May it Be” Music Video
Special Extended DVD Edition Preview
Behind the Scenes Preview of “The Two Towers”

“Disc 3 The Two Towers Feature
Trailers
“The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest” Game Trailer
“The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy Supertrailer
“The Lord of the Rings: War in the North” Game Trailer Only

“Disc 4 On the Set “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” – Starz Encore Special
Return to Middle-Earth: WB Special
“The Long and Short of It” A Short Film Directed by Sean Astin
The Making of “The Long and Short of It”
Forces of Darkness
Designing the Sounds of Middle-Earth
Edoras: The Rohan Capital
Creatures of Middle-Earth
Gandalf the White
Arms and Armor
The Battle of Helm’s Deep
Bringing Gollum to Life
New Power, Another, Event, Dream Darkness, Return,Strike,Countdown,,One
World Review, The Wait is Over
Review B/Golden Globes
Gollum,Supreme Review
Review A/Globe, Good Top 10
Top 10 Review, Emiliana Torrini “Gollum’s Song” Music Video
Special Extended DVD Edition Preview
Behind the Scenes Preview of “The Return of the King”

“Disc 5 Return of the King Feature
Trailers
“The Lord of the Rings” Trilogy Supertrailer
“The Lord of the Rings: Aragorn’s Quest” Game Trailer
“The Lord of the Rings: War in the North” Game Trailer

“Disc 6 The Quest Fulfilled: A Director’s Vision
A Filmaker’s journey: Making “The Return of the King”
National Geogrpahic Special – “The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King”
Aragorn’s Destiny, Minas Tirith: Captial of Gondor
The Battle of Pelennor Fields, Samwise the Brave
Eowyn: White Lady of Rohan, Digital Horse Doubles
Heart/Frodo, Every Path, Test, Aragorn, Time, Every Step, Sword, Decided
Time Review
Decided Review
Step Golden Globes
Globe Noms
New Epic Globe
Special Extended DVD Edition Preview

“Disc 7 DCOD – Fellowship of the Ring

“Disc 8 DCOD – The Two Towers

“Disc 9 DCOD – Return of the King

Source: DVD Active

Synopsis: It’s the 21st century, but the gods of Mount Olympus and assorted monsters have walked out of the pages of high school student Percy Jackson’s Greek mythology texts and into his life. And they’re not happy: Zeus’ lightning bolt has been stolen, and Percy is the prime suspect. Even more troubling is the sudden disappearance of Percy’s mother. As Percy adapts to his newly discovered status as a demi-god (his father is Poseidon), he finds himself caught between the battling titans of Mt. Olympus. He and his friends embark on a cross-country adventure to catch the true lightning thief, save Percy’s mom, and unravel a mystery more powerful than the gods themselves.

Source: MSN.com