First 10 Minutes of Batman V Superman Ultimate Edition Released

Warner Bros. have released the opening ten minutes of the upcoming extended Ultimate Edition of Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice online. After releasing the trailer at the beginning of the month, fans in the UK can now watch the opening sequence of the extended cut which to whet their appetite’s for the release in August. It is currently available on digital download in the US and will be out in the UK July 18th, with the Blu Ray due out July 19th in the US and August 1st in the UK. While there are no drastic changes to the opening sequence in the extended preview, it’s still enough to tantalise us for now. Check out the preview below:

12 Facts you didn’t know about The Dark Knight Rises

The Dark Knight Rises is the epic conclusion to Director Christopher Nolan’s acclaimed Batman trilogy. While comic book fans may think they already know and love the film as much as possible, here’s 12 interesting facts that might just surprise you and impress your friends at parties…

1. One of our favourite lines when Bane unexpectedly praises a young Gotham choirboy by remarking to himself “ what a lovely lovely voice” was actually improvised by Tom Hardy.

2. Christopher Nolan wanted Marion Cotillard so much for the role of Miranda Tate that he rescheduled filming to accommodate her pregnancy. Nolan marveled at Cotillard’s ability to do her job so soon after giving birth, he described her as “superwomen”.

3. Jennifer Lawrence and Chloe Grace Moretz auditioned for Juno Temple’s role of Jen, Selina Kyle’s sidekick.Meaning we almost had Mystique and Hit-Girl teaming up with Catwoman.

 

4. Bane’s voice was originally much more distorted. His lines had to be re-recorded because it was impossible to understand what he was saying.

 

5. Anne Hathaway thought she was auditioning for Harley Quinn and was shocked when she found out it was Cat-woman.

6. Tom Hardy said he based his voice for Bane on Bartley Gorman (1944 – 2002), an Irish Traveller who was the undefeated Bare-knuckle boxing champion of the United Kingdom: “The choice of the accent is actually a man called Bartley Gorman, who was a bare knuckle fighter, a Romani gypsy. So I wanted to underpin the Latin, but a Romani Latin opposed to Latino.”

7. In a scene involving a football match in Gotham City, the crew used more than 15,000 people to shoot. However, they faced the problem of artists leaving in mid shoot due to long hours. Extras also had to wear layers of clothing to make it look like its cold. Thus, to make them stay, they decided to give them prizes comprising of goodies, car, and iPods etc. so as to retain them for the rest of the shoot.

8. Ryan Gosling and Mark Ruffalo were considered to play John Blake before Joseph Gordon-Levitt was ultimately cast.

 

9. According to Nolan, all of the three films in The Dark Knight Trilogy deal with a specific theme. The first film was fear, the second was chaos. This third film deals with pain.

10. Anne Hathaway, Jessica Biel, Gemma Arterton, Kate Mara and Keira Knightley all auditioned for the role of Selina Kyle. Ultimately, Anne Hathaway won the role.

11. In a fighting scene shot at Wall Street, Bane (Tom Hardy) fought, by accident, a policemen patrolling the area. Due to presence of so many actors in the fighting scene, things got pretty confused and Bane was unable to differentiate between the actual policemen and actors and ended up fighting with actual police

12. For the final scene at the Wayne family cemetery, a tombstone with “Miranda Tate” was used during filming to conceal the actual ending to the film. The name on the stone was changed to “Bruce Wayne” digitally in post-production.

Thanks for reading and check back soon for more movie trivia and exclusive video content.

Written by Bernadette Nelson

Preacher Episode Five Review

The Plot

After his stunt with Quincannon, Jesse is Annville’s newest rock star. Tulip and Cassidy connect, and The Cowboy makes a tragic decision

The Good

Preacher officially hits the halfway mark for it’s first season in this fifth episode (entitled South Will Rise Again) and, while there’s still a fair bit to go, writer Craig Rosenberg manages to bring a few highlights.

The first of which comes in it’s nearly 10 minute long cold open. Back again in 1881, we see the tragic outcome of his wife and daughter as he returns home too late to save them, finding crows pecking at their bodies. The character of The Cowboy is still very much an enigma at this point, with this being only the second episode in which he has made an appearance. The question of how his story works into the main body of the show still looms over viewers who aren’t familiar with the comic book like this reviewer. It won’t be surprising to see him get even more screen time in the remaining 5 episodes.

Meanwhile in the present day, Jesse is starting to use his powers much more after his success with Quincannon creates a following. Though he seems to be a bit more wary with his words with no more suggestions to ‘open your heart’. Managing to give out more sage advice such as ‘be patient’. He even gets to help out Eugene who’s father is becoming more and more frustrated with him after suggesting he ‘finish the job’ of the suicide attempt that left him so uniquely deformed.

Another of the highlight’s comes from Tulip who, after discovering last week that Cassidy is a vampire, manages to ask all the right questions. Thanks to her we now know that he has no fangs, doesn’t turn into a bat or sleep in a coffin and, thanks to the invention of sunscreen, is able to handle sunlight a bit better, though it’ll still kill him.

The Bad

Unfortunately the mystery surrounding Jesse’s power is still taking it’s time to be fully revealed. With Fiore and DeBlanc hiding from the ringing telephone, trying to practice the inevitable conversation in the motel bathroom, last week’s cliffhanger is not paid off in the most interesting way. While we do finally get to see the two angels sit down and discuss Jesse’s predicament to the man himself, there’s still very little information gained from the scene which becomes a disappointment. Telling Jesse that what is inside him isn’t God shouldn’t have taken five episodes to get to, considering that it was pretty clear from the start.

The Ugly Truth

If anything, episode 5 gives more intrigue to The Cowboy’s storyline which is impressive after only two short and far between scenes with him. Now we’re at the halfway point, the next half really does need to speed things up and give just that bit more to keep the audience coming back.

Review by Johnny Ellis

James Earl Jones Confirmed for Rogue One

Ever since Star Wars spinoff, Rogue One was confirmed by Disney, the question of whether the galaxy’s ultimate villain would return has been circling the interwebs. Being set between Episode’s III and IV, Rogue One certainly has a chance of Darth Vader appearing in a bigger form than the half melted helmet we saw in The Force Awakens. Now, it seems that the rumours have been confirmed.

James Earl Jones will be making a triumphant return as the voice of Darth Vader in Rogue One. How exactly Vader will be integrated into the story remains to be seen but since the plot revolves around the Rebellions mission to steal the plans of the iconic Death Star, it won’t be too hard to slip him in.

Don’t go expecting for Vader to run the show however. Producer Kathleen Kennedy told Entertainment Weekly ‘He will be in the movie sparingly.’ with the main villain seemingly Ben Mendelsohn’s Director Orson Krennic. Mads Mikkelsen meanwhile, is playing a character named Galen Erso, a designer of the Death Star. On the Rebellion side we have Felicity Jones and Forest Whitaker playing Jyn Erso and Saw Gerrara respectively. Rogue One is due out December 16. More news as we get it of course.

Independence Day Resurgence Review

The Plot

Two decades after the first Independence Day invasion, a rebuilt Earth is faced with a new even more determined alien threat. But will mankind’s new space defenses be enough to save humanity this time?

The Good

Director Roland Emmerich returns to the beloved world of Independence Day, bringing back Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman and Vivica A. Fox to lead a new generation (Maika Monroe, Jessie T. Usher and Liam Hemsworth) into another intergalactic battle.

It’s a joy to see the old cast return, even if it is without Will Smith who’s character has been unceremoniously killed off-screen. With five screenwriters attached, the twenty year gap is managed well, with the world now having straightened itself up after the last attack, using their newfound alien technology to further their own space age warfare in preparation for more attacks.

But soon enough, the aliens return. Bigger and badder and with all new rebuilt landmarks to destroy. Thankfully, the world is somewhat more prepared this time, with Liam Hemsworth’s Jake Morrison part of the recently built moon base. However, it’s not enough to prepare them for what’s to come.

The Bad

This long-awaited sequel never manages to top the effect it’s predecessor had on audiences. While visual effects have indeed been updated drastically since 1996, the destruction feels less incredible as a result. More is shown this time, leaving it feeling marginally less impactful.

What’s also disappointing, is the scripts tendency to feel messier in its characterization. At a running time of two hours exactly, (25 minutes shorter than its predecessor) Independence Day: Resurgence somehow manages to cram in more plot threads while not focusing enough on any group to give a sense of who should be the main characters of the piece. It comes as more of a let-down when the younger generation is set up pretty well with Maika Monroe and Jessie T. Usher serving as the family connections to the first installment, only to feel underused.

Perhaps Emerich should have looked to The Force Awakens as inspiration for how to properly pass a story down to the next generation without relying too heavily on the likes of Goldblum and Pullman. It’s even more dismaying to see an awful attempt at retreading the iconic Presidential speech for which the first film is so fondly remembered. Resurgence kicks off with a throwback to this classic moment and that’s really where it should have left it. Instead we get a half-hearted attempt at Bill Pullman again rousing the rally for earths last stand . Though purposefully  downplayed it it’s still a transparent attempt to lazily recapture some of the original film’s former glory.

The Ugly Truth

Independence Day: Resurgence is a bigger, darker sequel that hosts the return of the actors that made the first such a success (minus Will Smith) and brings in a new generation of alien attackers to lead the franchise. Unfortunately it doesn’t hold a candle to its far superior predecessor and ultimately becomes a disappointing mess instead of what could have been a fun summer blockbuster.

Review by Johnny Ellis