Teaser - Pixar's UP

Heres a bit of a dope(totally fresh) on Pixar's next feature UP. Looks extremely entertaining and promising.

Cant wait for more such teasers/trailers. Keep watching this space for more.

Spline Doctor's Spline Cast with Doug Sweetland Part 1

Spline Doctors has released a new Spline Cast with Doug Sweetland, the director of the new Pixar short, PRESTO ! Doug Sweetland is a director/animator for Pixar. He has worked on many Pixar films, and was nominated for an Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for Character Animation for Toy Story 2. He has recently made his directorial debut for Pixar with the short film, Presto.

Its a wonderful Spline Cast hearing both Andrew Gordon and Doug speak, where Doug shares his experiences, his journey into animation and loads of interesting stuff which i am sure you don't wanna miss. This is Part 1 of a 2 part series.

So what are you waiting for, get the Spline Cast right here.

Weekly Movie Recommendations : 26th July 2008 - 1st August 2008

American Gangster (2007)

Genre - Crime/Drama/Thriller

Cast - Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe

Whats It About - In 1970s America, a detective works to bring down the drug empire of Frank Lucas, a heroin kingpin from Manhattan, who is smuggling the drug into the country from the Far East.

Why To Watch It - Washington (Training Day) and Crowe (Gladiator) lead a spectacular cast of accomplished and rising stars--Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cuba Gooding, Jr., Josh Brolin, Ted Levine, Armand Assante, John Ortiz, John Hawkes, RZA, Common and T.I.--in this blistering tale of a true American entrepreneur directed by Oscar® nominee Ridley Scott (Gladiator) and produced by Academy Award® winner Brian Grazer (A Beautiful Mind) and Scott from a screenplay by Academy Award® winner Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List).

American Gangster is a gritty and entertaining throwback to classic gangster films, with its lead performers firing on all cylinders.

A sneak peek -

Weekly Movie Recommendations : 19th July 2008 - 25th July 2008

White Heat(1949)

Genre - Heist, Action, Adventure

Cast - James Cagney, Virginia Mayo

Whats It About - Cody Jarrett is the sadistic leader of a ruthless gang of thieves. Afflicted by terrible headaches and fiercely devoted to his 'Ma,' Cody is a volatile, violent, and eccentric leader. Cody's top henchman wants to lead the gang and attempts to have an 'accident' happen to Cody, while he is running the gang from in jail. But Cody is saved by an undercover cop, who thereby befriends him and infiltrates the gang. Finally, the stage is set for Cody's ultimate betrayal and downfall, during a big heist at a chemical plant.

Why To Watch It - One of the top gangster movie of all times.

Enjoy a bit of the heat right here -

Weekly Movie Recommendations : 12th July 2008 - 18th July 2008

Orfanato, El(The Orphanage)(2007)

Genre - Drama, Horror, Mystery, Thriller

Language - Spanish (DVD will have English sub-titles)

Cast - Belen Rueda, Roger Princep, Fernando Cayo

Whats It About - A woman brings her family back to her childhood home, where she opens an orphanage for handicapped children. Before long, her son starts to communicate with an invisible new friend.

Why To Watch It - Before i begin with the review, i have to confess that i am not a very big fan of horror movies, not that i don't like them but for the very simple reason that horror movies are a niche segment, which if not handled properly can be extremely bad or more of a comedy than horror. As like in other genres its the subtle stuff which lingers in audience's mind for which a delicate treatment is required to really understand the audience's psyche. If its too in your face audience might get shocked(not scared) and if its too ignored, it will taste more of drama than horror. And so far there has been very few, actually just a handful which actually communicated the sense of horror the way it should be. The Orphanage is among the few.

The Orphanage is one of those rare horror movies, which is truly disturbing and unsettling. And this is not just during the film but even afterwards the story and the events will remain in your mind much after the movie comes to an end. And is what is truly wonderful is that it chills your spine without showing any gory creatures or blood. This is the true power of film making. Just with the performances, the background sound, the camera angles used, the pace of the movie, the timing of the occurrence of events and doing the editing sensibly we virtually take our audiences in a completely different world. Add to it that its in a different language, Spanish, it proves emotions and impeccable film making has really no language. A person feeling scared will appear scared without any need of dialogs or whether the film is made in English or Spanish or French, provided of course it has been executed well.

But what makes The Orphanage an even greater achievement is its insistence on being more than just a superficial scare-fest. The film makers are more interested in deeper themes of memory, loss, and grief, establishing the lead character as a mother who feels guilt over not being able to protect her child from outside forces. The result is a film that is both unsettling and moving. The Orphanage is morbid yet beautiful !

At your own risk, have a glimpse of The Orphanage right here -