Five Roman Epics That Rocked Cinema

  |    by: films

Hollywood’s obsession with ancient Rome has spanned many decades and provided some epic adventures and dramas which have become classics of cinema. From the ultra-expensive Ben–Hur in 1925 and C.B. deMille’s works to Hollywood’s latest release The Eagle, it seems audience appetites haven’t wavered even if producers baulked at staging such mega productions.

Whether its tales of gladiators, slave uprisings or mental emperors, ancient Rome captivates audiences provided some iconic moments in film.

The Eagle is the latest instalment in the Roman adventure genre to hit our screens this week and with it, offers up a more gritty portrayal of Roman life, with director Kevin Macdonald exploring the myth of the lost Ninth legion. To mark its release we run down five Roman epic adventures. There will be blood, sex, togas and sandals.

Extended Trailer & Vintage Posters Rev Up For Cars 2

  |    by: films

Disney have shot us over an extended trailer for Cars 2 which sees Lightning McQueen on a worldwide racing tour and involved in a spot of espionage. Comedy high jinks ensue.

John Lasseter is back directing and along with the trailer we’ve got some snazzy vintage-style posters from the movie. Owen Wilson returns with the likes of John Turturro, Bruce Campbell and Sir Maurice Mickelwhite (Michael Caine) lending their distinct voices to proceedings.

Synopsis:

T-Star race car Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2” when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage. Torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret spy mission, Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world. Adding to the fast-paced fun is a colorful new all-car cast that includes secret agents, menacing villains and international racing competitors.

John Lasseter returns to the driver’s seat to direct this follow-up to his 2006 Golden Globe®-winning “Cars.” “Cars 2” is co-directed by Brad Lewis, producer of the Oscar®-winning film “Ratatouille,” and produced by visual effects industry veteran Denise Ream (associate producer, “Up”; visual effects executive producer, “Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith”).

X-Men: First Class Gets New Character Posters

  |    by: films

Two new character poster have surface online for X-Men: First Class. The posters feature Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lensherr a.k.a. Magneto (Michael Fassbender). The posters make an interesting use of reflections, showing us just where these two characters are destined to end up. Xavier of course has a rather metallic reflection, being bound to a wheelchair by some unknown accident, while Magneto’s is altogether more sinister.

The film stars James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Rose Byrne, January Jones, Oliver Platt, and Kevin Bacon and is due to hit cinemas later this year, take a look at the posters in all their reflective glory below:

X-Men: First Class charts the epic beginning of the X-Men saga, and reveals a secret history of famous global events. Before mutants had revealed themselves to the world, and before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Not archenemies, they were instead at first the closest of friends, working together with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop Armageddon. In the process, a grave rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men.