THE UNINVITED (2009)

“Fear moves in”

“The Uninvited” revolves around Anna (Emily Browning), who returns home after spending time in the hospital following the tragic death of her mother.

Her recovery suffers a setback when she discovers her father (David Strathairn) has become engaged to her mother’s former nurse, Rachel (Elizabeth Banks).

That night, Anna is visited by her mother’s ghost, who warns her of Rachel’s intentions.

Together, Anna and her sister (Arielle Kebbel) try to convince their father that his current fiancée is not who she pretends to be, and what should have been a happy family reunion becomes a lethal battle of wills between stepdaughters and stepmother.

Fact : “The Uninvited” is based on Kim Jee-Woon’s 2003 Korean horror film : “Changhwa Hongryon”.

Producer(s) : Ivan Reitman, Michael Grillo, Tom Pollock, Walter F. Parkes, Laurie MacDonald, & Riyoko Tanaka.
Star(s) to watch : Elizabeth Banks (”Spider-Man”, “Catch Me If You Can”, “The 40 Year Old Virgin”) as Rachel.
Director(s) : Thomas Guard & Charles Guard.
Note : Also known as “A Tale of Two Sisters”.
Genre : Suspense, Horror, Remake, Drama, Thriller.
Release date : January 30, 2009
Official website : http://www.uninvitedmovie.com

UNDERWORLD: Rise Of The Lycans (2009)

"Every war has a beginning."

The third film of the Underworld franchise delves into the origins of the centuries-old blood feud between the aristocratic vampires, known as Death Dealers, and the barbaric Lycans (werewolves).

A young Lycan, Lucian (Michael Sheen), emerges as a powerful leader who rallies the werewolves to rise up against Viktor (Bill Nighy), the cruel vampire king who has persecuted them for hundreds of years.

Lucian is joined by his secret lover, the beautiful vampire Sonja (Rhona Mitra), in his battle to free the Lycans from enslavement.


Fact : A lifelong comic book fan, Len Wiseman built a career that can only be described as every geek’s dream come true – coming seemingly out of nowhere to co-create and direct a highly successful film franchise that pitted – joy of joys! – vampires against werewolves.

Note : Bill Nighy returns in the role of Viktor, the lead vampire of the “Underworld” movie series, in “Underworld: Rise of the Lycans.” Nighy, a vampire fan, never dreamed he’d be stepping back into the character for a third time, but he’s happy to be back playing Viktor in this prequel to the “Underworld” films.


Star(s) to watch : Rhona Mitra (”Shooter”, “Hollow Man”, “Highwaymen”) as Sonja, Michael Sheen (”Kingdom of Heaven”) as Lucian, & Bill Nighy (”Pirates of the Caribbean”, “Shaun of the Dead”, “Hot Fuzz”, “Valkyrie”) as Viktor.

Director(s) : Patrick Tatopoulos.
Producer(s) : Len Wiseman, Tom Rosenberg, Gary Lucchesi, & Skip Williamson.
Genre : Romance, Suspense, Horror, Thriller, Sequel, Action, Fantasy.
Release date : January 23, 2009
Official website : http://www.entertheunderworld.com

INKHEART (2008)

“Every story ever written is just waiting to become real.”

Brendan Fraser stars as Mo Folchart, a father who possesses a secret ability to bring characters from books to life when he reads them aloud.

But when Mo accidentally brings a power-hungry villain from a rare children’s fable to life, the villain kidnaps Mo’s daughter and demands Mo bring other evil fictional characters to life.

In an attempt to rescue his daughter, Mo assembles a disparate group of friends - both real and magic - and embarks on a journey to save her and set things right.

Fact : Toby Emmerich is the head of production at New Line Cinema, who produced many blockbuster movies such as “Frequency” (2000), “Blade II” (2002), “Austin Powers in Goldmember” (2002), “Highwaymen” (2004), “Cellular” (2004), “After the Sunset” (2004), “Snakes on a Plane” (2006), “The Golden Compass” (2007), & “Shoot ‘Em Up” (2007).

Note : Based on source material from novel : “Inkheart” by Cornelia Funke.

Star(s) to watch : Brendan Fraser (”Journey to the Center of the Earth”, “George of the Jungle”, “The Mummy”, “Looney Tunes: Back in Action”) as Mo ‘Silvertongue’ Folchart, & Andy Serkis (”The Lord of the Rings”, “King Kong”) as Capricorn.
Director(s) : Iain Softley.
Producer(s) : Toby Emmerich, Diana Pokorny, Mark Ordesky, Cornelia Funke, Diana Pokorny, & Barry Cunningham.
Genre : Kids, Family, Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Adaptation, Adventure.
Release date : January 23, 2009
Official website : http://www.inkheartmovie.com/

Paul Blart: MALL CCOP (2009)

"Safety never takes a holiday"

A single, suburban dad tries to make ends meet as a security officer at a New Jersey mall.

It’s a job he takes very seriously, though no one else does.

When Santa’s helpers at the mall stage a coup, shutting down the megaplex and taking hostages (Paul’s daughter and sweetheart among them), Jersey’s most formidable mall cop will have to become a real cop to save the day.

Note : Brooklyn-born Adam Sandler is a genial, laid-back stand-up comic and graduate of NBC’s “Saturday Night Live”, who produced “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo” (1999), “Little Nicky” (2000), “The Animal” (2001), “The Hot Chick” (2002), “Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo” (2005), “Click” (2006), and “You Don’t Mess With the Zohan” (2008).

Fact : Written by Kevin James.
Star(s) to watch : Kevin James (”Hitch”, “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan”) as Paul Blart.
Director(s) : Steve Carr.
Producer(s) : Kevin James, Adam Sandler, Jeff Sussman, Todd Garner, Jack Giarraputo, & Barry Bernardi.
Genre : Comedy, Crime.
Release date : January 16, 2009
Rating : Coming soon.
Official website : http://www.paulblartmallcop.com/

HOTEL FOR DOGS (2009)

“No stray gets turned away”

When their new guardians forbid 16-year old Andi and her younger brother, Bruce to have a pet, Andi has to use her quick wit to help find a new home for their dog, Friday.

The resourceful kids stumble upon an abandoned hotel and using Bruce’s talents as a mechanical genius, transform it into a magical dog-paradise for Friday — and eventually for all Friday’s friends.

When barking dogs make the neighbors suspicious, Andi and Bruce use every invention they have to avoid anyone discovering “who let the dogs in.”

Star(s) to watch : Emma Roberts as Andi, & Don Cheadle (”Swordfish”, “After the Sunset”, “Ocean’s Eleven”, “Volcano”) as Bernie.

Fact : Ivan Reitman is one of the box-office powerhouse filmmaker who produced “Space Jam” (1996), “Disturbia” (2007), “Beethoven” (1992), and “Evolution” (2001).

Note : Don Cheadle is surprising everyone when he replaces Terrence Howard’s role for “Iron Man 2″ (2010) and “The Avengers” (2011).


Director(s) : Thor Freudenthal.
Producer(s) : Ivan Reitman, Tom Pollock, Lauren Shuler Donner, Ewan Leslie, & Jon Gordon.
Genre : Comedy, Kids, Family, Adaptation.
Release date : January 16, 2009
Official website : http://www.hotelfordogsmovie.com

THE UNBORN (2009)

“He wants to be born now.”

Plot Summary: Casey Bell (Odette Yustman) hated her mother for leaving her as a child. But when inexplicable things start to happen, Casey begins to understand why she left. Plagued by merciless dreams and a tortured ghost that haunts her waking hours, she must turn to the only spirtual advisor, Sendak (Gary Oldman), who can make it stop.

With Sendak's help, Casey uncovers the source of a family curse dating back to Nazi Germany—a creature with the ability to inhabit anyone or anything that is getting stronger with each possession. With the curse unleashed, her only chance at survival is to shut a doorway from beyond our world that has been pried open by someone who was never born.
Star(s) to watch : Odette Yustman (”Transformers”, “Cloverfield”) as Casey Beldon, Carla Gugino (”Sin City”, “The One”, “Night at the Museum”) as Janet Beldon, Cam Gigandet (”Never Back Down”, “Twilight”) as Mark Hardigan, Gary Oldman (”The Dark Knight”, “Interstate 60″, “Air Force One”, “True Romance”, “Hannibal”) as Rabbi Sendak, & James Remar (”The Girl Next Door”, “2 Fast 2 Furious”, “What Lies Beneath”) as Gordon Beldon.


Fact : Michael Bay is a Southern California native aspiring filmmaker, who produced many blockbuster movies such as “Transformers” (2007), “Armageddon” (1998), “Pearl Harbor” (2001), “The Hitcher” (2007), & “The Island” (2005).

Note : Writer/director David S. Goyer is a master of the dark, brooding brand of off-kilter sci-fi that defined the 1990s before spilling over into the new millennium with such efforts as “Blade II” (2002). After directing “Blade: Trinity” in 2004, his upcoming directorial blockbuster project is “X-Men Origins: Magneto”.

Release date : January 9, 2009

Director(s) : David S. Goyer.
Producer(s) : Michael Bay, Jessika Borsiczky Goyer, Andrew Form, & Brad Fuller.
Genre : Sci-Fi, Fantasy, Suspense, Horror, Thriller.
Official website : http://www.theunbornmovie.net

Trailer:

GRAN TORINO (2008)

Walt Kowalski is a widower, grumpy, tough-minded, borderline-hateful, unhappy old man who can’t get along with either his kids or his neighbors, a Korean War veteran whose prize possession is a 1973 Gran Torino he keeps in cherry condition.

When his neighbor Tao, a young Hmong teenager, tries to steal his Gran Torino, Kowalski sets out to reform the youth.

Drawn against his will into the life of Tao’s family, Kowalski is soon taking steps to protect them form the gangs that foul their neighborhood.

Fact : Directed by Clint Eastwood, former number-one box-office star in the world who directed “Unforgiven” (1992), “Blood Work” (2002), “Space Cowboys” (2000), and “The Changeling” (2008).

Note : Clint Eastwood stars in the drama Gran Torino, marking his first film role since his Oscar-winning Million Dollar Baby. Eastwood also directs the film in which he plays Walt Kowalski, an iron-willed veteran living in a changing world, who is forced by his immigrant neighbors to confront his own long-held prejudices.
Star(s) to watch : Clint Eastwood (”Dirty Harry”, “Unforgiven”, “Blood Work”, “Space Cowboys”) as Walt Kowalski.

Genre : Drama, Action, Thriller.
Release date : January 09, 2009
Official website : http://www.thegrantorino.com/