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‘Gravity’ Scoops Up Six BAFTAs

Sandra Bullock and George ClooneyGravity won big at the BAFTAs last night, taking home six awards.

The 3-D space drama directed by Alfonso Cuaron and starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock was the biggest winner of the night at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTAs) in London, gaining trophies for Best Director, Special Visual Effects, Cinematography, Original Music, Sound and Outstanding British Film. Accepting his award, Alfonso - who is Mexican, but has lived in England for more than ten years - said, "I don't know if I can open my mouth. I consider myself a part of the British film industry. I guess I make a good case for curbing immigration." He also praised his son, Jonas, and Sandra Bullock before dedicating the award to the "downstairs" workers who had made the film's sound and effects possible.

Although Gravity won the most trophies, historical drama 12 Years A Slave was named Best Film and its star, Chiwetel Ejiofor, took the Leading Actor award. Accepting the trophy, Chiwetel thanked director Steve McQueen, saying, "Thank you for you work, your artistry and your passion in this project ... to make it of such value, of such worth. This is yours by the way - I'm going to keep it, that's the kind of guy I am, but it's yours."

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‘American Hustle’ and ‘Gravity’ top Oscar Nominations

American HustleAmerican Hustle and Gravity lead this year's Academy Award nominations.

David O. Russell's crime caper starring Christian Bale and Jennifer Lawrence and Alfonso Cuaron's breathtaking space thriller both have 10 nominations at the 86th annual film awards, while 12 Years a Slave follows closely behind with nine nods.

American Hustle is up for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Original Screenplay, as well as acting nominations for all four main cast members including Christian, Jennifer, Amy Adams and Bradley Cooper.

Gravity and 12 Years a Slave are also in contention for Best Picture alongside Captain Phillips, Dallas Buyers Club, Nebraska, Her, Philomena and The Wolf of Wall Street. 12 Years a Slave has yielded a Best Actor nomination for leading man Chiwetel Ejiofor, Best Supporting Actor for Michael Fassbender and Best Supporting Actress for newcomer Lupita Nyong'o.

Click to continue reading ‘American Hustle’ and ‘Gravity’ top Oscar Nominations


Michael Fassbender Mastered the Whip for ‘12 Years’ Role

Michael Fassbender and Steve McQueenMichael Fassbender had to master cracking a whip for 12 Years A Slave.

The 36-year-old actor plays nefarious slave owner Edwin Epps in the historical drama and admits he had to keep practicing with the weapon to perfect his skills so the punishment of his slaves was realistic on screen. Fassbender found it uncomfortable to play a man so readily willing to inflict pain on other humans in order to control them, but he believes his dedication to mastering the tool is apparent to everyone who sees the acclaimed movie.

"I remember I had to practice on the whip; I had to learn to crack it properly. I remember thinking about the knot it created in my shoulder, the knot it would create from doing such a physical task as whipping the skin off another human's back. That physical memory would stay in the body, my body, Epps' body. The body would retain the memory of what you have done to your fellow man or fellow woman. What would the psychological effect of this be? The retention of pain in your body memory? It's got to be stored somewhere. That's what I tried to with Epps. There's a deep conflict in the man."

Click to continue reading Michael Fassbender Mastered the Whip for ‘12 Years’ Role


Cinecast: ‘Magnificent Seven’ Rewrite, Keanu on ‘Bill & Ted’ Sequel

Brad Pitt on a '12 Years a Slave' poster in Italy+ After a Tumblr user in Italy questioned a 12 Years a Slave poster featuring Brad Pitt (whose role in the film - despite his producing credit - is minimal), Lionsgate released a statement claiming that the advertisements (another similar one featured Michael Fassbender, who is also a supporting actor) were unauthorized and not approved by the filmmakers.

+ Saving Mr. Banks director John Lee Hancock has been picked to rewrite the Magnificent Seven remake, which Tom Cruise was previously attached to work on. No word yet as to who is set to replace Cruise.

+ In doing promotional rounds for his latest film 47 Ronin, Keanu Reeves ruled out any participation from him in the upcoming Point Break remake.

+ Fortunately for Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure fans, Reeves did state that he's open to doing a third film, which would follow Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey.

Click to continue reading Cinecast: ‘Magnificent Seven’ Rewrite, Keanu on ‘Bill & Ted’ Sequel


Box Office Breakdown: ‘Catching Fire’ Takes Down ‘Thor 2’

The Hunger Games: Catching Fire

Although Thor: The Dark World had a fairly good two-week run at the top, we all knew that it was short-lived with The Hunger Games: Catching Fire on its way to theaters.

The sequel to last year's huge hit The Hunger Games took in $158 million, which makes it the biggest opening for a film in the month of November and the sixth biggest opening for a film overall (right behind The Dark Knight and above its predecessor by $6 million). Thor: The Dark World came in second with $14.1 million while The Best Man Holiday also slipped one position down to number three with $12.4 million. Vince Vaughn's Delivery Man debuted at number four with $7.9 million, and Free Birds hung in there dropping one spot to number five with $5.3 million.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: ‘Catching Fire’ Takes Down ‘Thor 2’

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Box Office Breakdown: ‘Best Man’ No Match for ‘Thor 2’

Thor: The Dark World

Despite The Best Man Holiday beating Thor: The Dark World at the box office on Friday, the Marvel sequel came out on top overall this weekend, making it number one for a second consecutive week.

The superhero flick - which stars Chris Hemsworth and Natalie Portman - took in $36.5 million, just enough to get it ahead of The Best Man Holiday's $30.1 million debut. Last Vegas - which came in fourth last week - placed third this week with $8.4 million. Free Birds dropped one spot to number four with $8.1 million while Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa fell three spots from last week's second place with $7.4 million.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: ‘Best Man’ No Match for ‘Thor 2’

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Box Office Breakdown: ‘Thor 2’ Seriously Dethrones ‘Ender’

Thor 2

Talk about a sci-fi takedown! Although Ender's Game was the big winner at the box office last week, Thor: The Dark World came in even stronger (though imagine how much more dough a film starring Loki would bring Disney?).

Thor: The Dark World took in $86.1 million while Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa remained at number two with $11.3 million. The animated film Free Birds moved up one spot to number three with $11.8, taking last week's number three film Last Vegas down to number four with $11.1 million. Lastly, Ender's Game fell four spots to number five with $10.2 million.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: ‘Thor 2’ Seriously Dethrones ‘Ender’

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Box Office Breakdown: ‘Ender’ Beats ‘Bad Grandpa’

Ender's Game

Though last week's number one film, Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa, had movie-goers paying plenty of money for the laughs, newcomer Ender's Game was more appealing to them in this box office weekend.

The sci-fi film - Starring Harrison Ford - earned $27 million, pushing Bad Grandpa down to second place with its $20 million. Last Vegas and Free Birds also debuted this weekend, landing respectively at number three and four with $16.3 million and $15.8 million. Rounding out the top five was Gravity, which slipped three spots from its position at number two last week due to its $12.8 million take.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: ‘Ender’ Beats ‘Bad Grandpa’

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Box Office Breakdown: ‘Grandpa’ Kicks Gravity Out of Top Spot

'Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa'

Gravity had a nice three weeks at number one, but the critically-acclaimed space film starring George Clooney and Sandra Bullock was apparently no match for the latest Jackass film, Bad Grandpa.

Jackass Presents: Bad Grandpa - which sees veteran Jackass-er Johnny Knoxville as the eponymous patriarch - debuted at number one this weekend with $32 million, which effectively left Gravity in the dust with its $20.1 million, which secured it a second place spot. Captain Phillips dropped one spot to number three with $11.6 million while the much-hyped The Counselor debuted at number four with $7.8 million. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 remained at number five with $6.2 million.

Click to continue reading Box Office Breakdown: ‘Grandpa’ Kicks Gravity Out of Top Spot

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