Clip: The Princess and The Frog

I was a kid during the late 80s and early 90s, and while I caught the very beginnings of Pixar, my childhood was dominated by movies such as Aladdin, The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast. With fond memories in mind, watching the first five minutes of their newest 2-D animated film, The Princess and the Frog, recently by Disney on YouTube, brought all those feelings rushing back. I am hardly a sentimentalist, but it seems as though Disney has finally stopped trying to placate to today’s youth and is simply returning to its routes. It is all there: the magical realism, the cute characters and the uplifting messages. If the rest of the film is anything like the first five minutes, Disney might have another one to add to the classics collection. Enjoy the videos after the jump.

Be warned: the video is split into two parts and not all of the animation has been completed yet (some just missing color, some looking like a flip-book), but it is all watchable.

Oprah And Chris Rock Want To Be My Black Friend

Oprah’s Harpo Films studio is developing the comedy Will You Be My Black Friend? with Chris Rock set to star. THR reports the movie is based on a November GQ article written by Devin Friedman who went on a quest for black friends on Craigslist. Lionsgate will be handling the distribution.

I love Chris Rock, but this sounds more like a decent skit than a movie. The article was an interesting premise, but when you’re looking at the way race plays out in the U.S., real life is always more interesting the fiction. Then again, if its anything like Larry David living with the Blacks on Curb Your Enthusiasm, I’m in. I could definitely watch 90 minutes of David and Leon, and Rock has been getting back to his sharp, biting wit of late, so maybe I’m selling this one short.

http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/film/news/e3i29ea94e0c38084720897fa0fbba71601

Watch It!: 2012 The Actors Version

Anyone ever point out that if you were to delete all of the CGI and special effects from a Roland Emmerich film it would be nothing but screams and reaction shots? Well, it turns out that it may be true. Using the new five minute clip from 2012, YouTube user whitecoloursStudio edited out all of the shots of crumbling buildings, which not only left the clip less than one-and-a-half minutes long, but it is nothing but John Cusack, Amanda Peet, and Thomas McCarthy shot through a windshield as they scream. Check it out after the jump.

That’s What She Said: Year One Synopsis

Every now and then we come across something that sums up our feelings so well we could not have said it better ourselves. This gem of a bootleg DVD synopsis comes via Filmdrunk so don’t forget to head there for the full story, but it expresses our thoughts on Year One perfectly.

“Jack Black and Michael Cera playing themselves, yeah, where was that even considered funny? Now I absolutely adore these actors, Michael was a great choice in Superbad and Juno and Jack Black has proved he can do great comedy like Tropic Thunder and a good dramatic role like King Kong, even a more calm character like he played in The Holiday. But the main problem? They have no chemistry! You have this wild outgoing maniac who is eating poop(eeeew!) and the calm awkward overly shy nerd who pees on himself(eeew!) and what do you have? Every elementary school joke that could be put into a movie, Year One could have been written by a five year old and proves that top list actors will do anything for those millions that they make.”

Now that’s how you sell a movie! Until next time, that’s what she said, because Michael Scott is always funny.

Review: Trick ‘r Treat

In the spirit of Halloween, every Tuesday for the rest of October we will be posting reviews of horror films. For the first two weeks we will review what are said to be the best in the genre from this year, while the last two weeks will celebrate our favorites from years past. Kicking it all off is Michael Dougherty’s Trick ‘r Treat, which comes out today on DVD. Get exited people!

Out Now: Trick ‘r Treat / Year One / Anvil! The Story of Anvil

More good than bad! I hardly ever get to say that here, but this week’s DVD releases give us two truly fantastic films that you should get your hands on. Check out the details after the jump.

Briefs: October 6th

• Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring is coming to Radio City Music Hall this Friday and Saturday (9th and 10th) as the 21st Century Symphony Orchestra, The Collegiate Chorale and Brooklyn Youth Chorus will perform Howard Shore’s score live with the film. As a fan of not only the movies, but soundtracks in general this is great news. If you’re interested tickets are still available. This is similar to what Star Wars has done with the music of John Williams.
  Billy Boyd who played Pippin will also be in attendance.

Disney and Universal Pick New Chairmen

Disney Studios stayed in the news yesterday as the Mouse House officially named Rich Ross as the replacement for former Disney chairman Dick Cook. The move had been somewhat expected as the head of Disney Channels Worldwide emerged as the favorite shortly after Cook left the company.

According to Variety, Ross has been largely responsible for Disney’s branding efforts over the last five years, and is likely to focus on building franchises that can not only become tentpoles at the box office but transfer to other media. Ross will be in charge of the company’s live-action and animated feature labels, including Walt Disney Pictures, Touchstone, Miramax, Marvel Entertainment and Pixar. Ross will also oversee its music group and theater productions including Broadway and tours like High School Musical and Disney on Ice.