Opening on November 25^th is director Richard Linklater’s Me and Orson Welles.  Based in real theatrical history, the film is a coming-of-age story about a teenage actor (Zac Efron) who lucks into a role in Julius Caesar as it’s being re-imagined by a brilliant, impetuous young director named Orson Welles (Christian McKay) at his newly-founded Mercury Theater in NYC, 1937.  Claire Danes co-stars as Sonja Jones, the unapologetically ambitious assistant to Welles whom Richard tries to woo.

While the film premiered at last year’s Toronto Film Festival, it took awhile for someone to purchase the film for domestic distribution.  While a delay might be a sign of a problem, I saw Me and Orson Welles a few weeks ago and thought it was great.  While all the performances are really good, Christian McKay as Orson Welles is another level.  He absolutely disappears as Welles and his performance alone makes this film worth seeing.  Also, this was McKay’s first movie, and when you factor that in, it makes his performance even more memorable.

So to help promote the film, we’ve been given two movie clips and the trailer.  Check them out after the jump and look for our interviews with the cast very soon.

“‘The Princess and the Frog’ is a return to the timeless world of hand-drawn animation at Disney. It’s an ageless fairy tale, but with a fresh twist that combines everything we look for in great stories: comedy, adventure, music-and most of all, the kind of heart that always sets Disney animation apart.”

~ John Lasseter, Executive Producer and Chief Creative Officer, Walt Disney Animation Studios

Opening on November 25^th, in limited release, is Walt Disney’s return to 2D animation, The Princess and the Frog.  After years of focusing on computer animation, The House That Walt Built is returning to its roots and I couldn’t be more excited.  While I don’t know if The Princess and the Frog is going to be a classic like Aladdin or Beauty and the Beast, I know there is a place for traditional animation alongside what Pixar does so brilliantly with computers.  So if you feel like I do and want Disney to make more 2D films, you’ve got to buy a ticket when Princess and the Frog goes nationwide on December 11^th.  So to help promote the film, we’ve been provided with six clips from the movie and a featurette.  Check them out after the jump:

A four minute clip from James Cameron’s Avatar has been thrown on the internet thanks to Xbox Live and someone in France with a camcorder.  Apparently the footage was seen on Avatar day, so it’s not all new.  But if you didn’t get into to Avatar day and you weren’t at Comic-Con, this is a way to see a full scene play out.

I watched the first minute and can see why everyone is freaking out about this movie after they see it in 3D.  The detail looks incredible.  Saying that, I don’t think watching a 3D movie on your computer screen is the way to see anything from this movie.  So I’ll wait, as the movie is coming out in a month.  But if you want to check it out, hit the jump:

[I don't think Avatar is going to be a film that relies heavily on twists, but if you want to go into the film knowing as little as possible, then you should stop reading this story right now.]

A new featurette for James Cameron’s just landed on Yahoo! Movies’ Taiwanese site and it takes you through the big beats of the story.  It doesn’t go in depth for any character other than the protagonist Jake Sully (Sam Worthington), but it does explain the tone of the film and how Cameron intends to mix the beauty and danger of the film’s setting, the planet Pandora.  It’s probably not going to sway any opinions on the film but it’s worth a look nonetheless.  Click here to give it a look (although you may want to use IE as your browser; I found watching it to be a tad dodgy on Firefox).

Opening this Friday is the animated movie Planet 51.  The film is about an American astronaut who lands on Planet 51 thinking he’s the first person to step foot on it. To his surprise, he finds the planet inhabited by little green people who are living in a world reminiscent of a cheerfully innocent 1950s America, and whose only fear is that it will be overrun by alien invaders. With the help of his robot companion “Rover” and his new friend Lem, Chuck must navigate his way through the world to try and get back to his spaceship before it returns home.

While I thought the story was mediocre, I was very impressed with the animation.  Watching the film I was constantly looking at the texture and layers in the frame and was surprised by how great it looked.  If you’re a fan of animation, it’s worth seeing just for what they accomplished.  Just know the story is not going to wow you.  So to help promote the film, we’ve been provided with ten clips and you can check them out after the jump.

Opening on November 25^th is director James McTeigue’s Ninja Assassin.  The film stars Asian superstar Rain in the title role and as you can easily put together from the title, it’s about Ninja’s.  And assassin’s.  Also, the film is loaded with action and blood so if you’re into either of those things, this is pretty much a must see movie.  Finally, it’s produced by the Wachowski Brothers and Joel Silver (The Matrix Trilogy, V for Vendetta), and they’ve done a few things you might have liked….

Anyway, if you’d like a taste of the movie, after the jump you can watch six clips.  In the coming weeks check back for interviews with the cast and filmmakers.  Until then….

With “The Twilight Saga: New Moon” getting ready to hit theaters on November 20th, Summit Entertainment has released an EPK for the media to use.  If you’re not familiar with the term EPK, it stands for Electronic Press Kit.  An EPK is where the studio puts movie clips, trailers, and behind the scenes footage from whatever movie they’re promoting.

Anyway, I’ve taken the movie clips Summit released, as well as all the behind the scenes footage, and posted two videos after the jump.  While the three clips have already been released over the past two weeks, the ten minutes of behind the scenes footage is all new.  So if you’ve been waiting for “Twilight: New Moon”, you’ll really enjoy the footage of Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner on set.  Take a look after the jump:

I’ll admit that when I sat down to watch “The Blind Side” last week, I really didn’t expect much.  I thought it would be a Lifetime movie of the week except on the big screen.  But even though I walked in ready to dismiss the film, I’m forced to say “The Blind Side” was a lot better than I expected and I enjoyed the way it mixed a few different genres together.  What you need to know is, “The Blind Side” is both a football movie and a family values film.  It’s also a bit of a comedy.  When films try and mix genres like this, you almost always end in disaster.  So I have to give credit to director John Lee Hancock (”The Rookie”) for crafting a film that should appeal to both football fans and families.  He even made me feel something for Sandra Bullock.  Trust me, that’s not easy.  Anyway, to help promote the film, we’ve been provided with seven clips and you can watch them after the jump.

For those unfamiliar with the book it’s based on, the film is based on the true story of Michael Oher, a homeless African-American youngster from a broken home who is taken in by the Touhys (Sandra Bullock and Tim McGraw), a well-to-do white family who help him fulfill his potential. At the same time, Oher’s presence in the Touhys’ lives leads them to some insightful self-discoveries of their own. Living in his new environment, the teen faces a completely different set of challenges to overcome. As a football player and student, Oher works hard and, with the help of his coaches and adopted family, becomes an All-American offensive left tackle.

It’s been almost two years since their last short film (if you don’t count “Mystery Team Adventures” from a few months ago), but Derrick Comedy is still going strong as they’ve released their new short-form hilarity, “Boy Band”, while continuing to push for their excellent movie “Mystery Team” to come to your city.  If you forgot why you loved Derrick (and I don’t understand why; they have a website with all their videos), this will quickly refresh your memory.  Once again, the group knows how to make you laugh and feel dirty at the same time (…and you can just take a bath…).

Now the important part: you need your city to get “Mystery Team”.  Unlike “Paranormal Activity” which just made people think they got the film released, you actually have to demand that “Mystery Team” come to your town and get all your friends to demand it as well.  It’s a hilarious film and you’re missing out if you don’t catch it.  The best I can do is ask our Atlanta readers to please CLICK HERE and Demand It for our city.  You’re just going to have to trust me on this one.  Hit the jump to watch “Boy Band”, learn more about “Mystery Team’s” quest to reach more theaters, and if you’re one of the glorious cities that will have a chance to see the film this holiday season.  It will just be our little secret.

For future reference, if you’re clearly being punk’d by one of Sacha Baron Cohen’s characters (or really anyone that’s trying to put you into an uncomfortable situation on camera), just play into it.  The whole point of the comedy is having a person realize that they’re not in on the joke and thus they become the butt of it.

Disgraced baseball player Pete Rose was able to realize the prank Cohen’s ultra-gay alter-ego “Bruno” played so easily on the not-very-bright/somewhat-insane Paula Abdul.  The premise is whether or not a celebrity would have an interview while sitting on Mexican laborers.  It’s not as funny when A) no one thinks the subject is stupid; and B) when the subject isn’t stupid and realizes this is a prank.  That’s probably why this is a deleted scene on the upcoming “Bruno” DVD which hits stores on November 17^th.  You can watch it after the jump and wonder why Cohen just doesn’t mention the whole gambling-on-baseball thing.

Opening next Friday is writer/director Richard Kelly’s “The Box”. The movie is set around a deceptively simple moral dilemma.  An average couple is offered an opportunity to get themselves out of financial difficulty: a million dollars, in exchange for the knowledge that their acceptance of this gift will result in the death of one person somewhere in the world - someone they don’t know.  The big question is, “What will they do?”  But writer/director Richard Kelly is also asking, “What would you do?”

So to help promote the film, we’ve been provided with five clips from the movie.  If you want to stay spoiler free, I strongly suggest not watching these clips.  But if you’d like a taste of Richard Kelly’s next film, hit the jump and take a look.

Finally, hypothetically speaking…if I were to have seen “The Box”…I might say it’s infinitely better than “Southland Tales” and it’s worth checking out next week.  Hypothetically speaking of course…

On November 6^th, Universal is releasing “The Fourth Kind” and to help promote the film, they’ve provided us with three clips which you can watch after the jump.  If you missed the featurette we previously posted, you should definitely check it out as the film looks pretty cool.  But with Paramount’s “Paranormal Activity” still making tons of money at the box office, it’ll be interesting to see if “The Fourth Kind” can attract moviegoers.  I’ve heard good things about “The Fourth Kind”, so that should help…

With director Robert Zemeckis’ (”Beowulf”, “The Polar Express”) animated version of “A Christmas Carol” opening on November 6th, Walt Disney has provided us with six clips from the film.  While I normally love to check out the clips that we’re provided, the movie is being released in “Disney 3D” and that’s the way I want to see the footage for the first time.  However, since I know a lot of you want to check out the footage right now, the clips are after the jump.  Again, if you’re planning on seeing “A Christmas Carol” in a theater, make sure you see it in 3D!

I saw a screening of Heath Ledger’s final film, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus”, the other day and am surprised to say….it completely works and the film was great.  Director Terry Gilliam has made his best work in years and even with other actors having to step in to help complete the movie, nothing felt forced and it’s like it was meant to be this way all along.

For those not familiar with the movie, “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus” is Heath Ledger’s final performance as he died while filming.  After he died, production was halted as Gilliam tried to figure out how to salvage what he had.  To make it work he got  Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell and Jude Law to step in and play Heath Ledger’s character at different points in the movie. While you’re probably thinking there is no way this could work…I thought the same thing and I was 100% wrong.  Trust me, the film is a big surprise and it’s absolutely worth seeing. Anyway, while the film doesn’t get released till the end of December, we’ve been given seven clips from the movie and they’re after the jump. Take a look:

As I said the other day when I posted the new “Twilight Saga: New Moon” clip and images, with the film getting ready for release next month,  Summit Entertainment is going to be releasing a lot more clips from the film. While I thought we wouldn’t get another one till next week, Yahoo has landed a new one and it’s called “Volturi Fighting Scene”. It’s the first time Edward and Bella face the Volturi. While I thought the first “Twilight” movie was passable, this new one is definitely looking a lot better as I’ve already seen clips from two action scenes. That’s one more than the entire last film. Watch the clip after the jump:

With Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” set for release next week, Sony has released a few clips and a new featurette. While I wondered what the level of interest was going to be and if the studio overpaid for the rights, Sony clearly knew what they were doing as many shows are already sold out and the 2-week limited run looks to be a big hit. So if you’d like a sneak peek at the film, hit the jump to watch some of the footage now.