Well, here’s an interesting twist. We’ve seen interracial buddy cop movies before – Lethal Weapon, 48 Hours, the list goes on – but how about the very first chronological pairing of black and white police officers? The Hollywood Reporter announced that Paramount has picked up a comedy starring Seth Rogen and comedian Kevin Hart as the “original” interracial buddy cops, set late in the 1940s as the duo goes undercover in the local jazz circuit to bust an illegal marijuana ring.

The movie is still untitled, but it’s being written by frequent Apatow collaborator Rodney Rothman. Rogen and his partner Evan Goldberg (they co-wrote Superbad, The Pineapple Express, and The Green Hornet) will produce alongside Rothman, who produced the upcoming Apatow movie The Five-Year Engagement, which co-stars Hart. I’ve been wondering when Hart would get his big high-profile film project; he’s been kicking around the comedy scene for a while now, doing stand-up and mostly appearing in small roles in spoof movies. This looks like it could be a breakout part for him, and we know Rogen is passionate about anything involving marijuana, so we’ll see how this one turns out. Anybody interested in this one?

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Although certain subject matters should not be discussed in a joking manner, the comedy industry is sometimes given a pass when it comes to entertaining audiences. However, joking about things such as 9/11 or a tragic murder are instances that even the bravest comedians will not touch these days.

50/50 attempts to take a serious issue, that affects millions of people on a daily basis, and make it humorous. It’s quite the task as the 99 minute flick needs to juggle serious moments with audacious comedic writing. And eventually, the filmmakers find the correct balance.

When 27 year-old Adam (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) goes to find out why he’s having random back pains, a cyborg-like doctor (Andrew Airlie) alerts the nervous guy that he has a rare form of cancer. In a subtle state of shock, Adam alerts his live-in girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard), his best friend, Kyle (Seth Rogen) and his over-protective mother (Angelica Huston) about his aliment. Everyone pledges to help Adam, but none of them realize how much of a challenge the next few months will be. Plus, Adam is still unsure how to handle his predicament.

While spending days at chemotherapy, he yaps – and indulges in some medicinal marijuana – with fellow patients, Alan and Mitch (Philip Baker Hall & Matt Frewer); who bluntly joke with the young guy about their current status. Eventually, Kyle tries to lift Adam’s spirits as he convinces him to embrace his disease in the hopes of getting more action from the ladies. As in: sympathy sex. Though Adam is taken all of this in stride, his true demeanor is always revealed during his sessions with the surprisingly young hospital counselor, Katherine (Anna Kendrick).

Once the audience gets into this story, moments of “Should I be laughing at this?” may enter one’s mind. The marriage of borderline crude comedy and emotional segments takes awhile to run smoothly. Just over halfway through, things start to mesh as the rollercoaster ride of laughing – mainly due to the clever randomness & sarcasm of Seth Rogen’s R-rated one-liners and rants; to the painfully real instances of Joseph Gordon-Levitt giving a glimpse of what many go through with the disease, are engrossing to watch.

While the goal is to get the audience laughing – especially in the 2nd act – the seriousness of the situation is always chiming in. It’s never laid on too thick until the tearful climax (you’re not human if your eyes don’t well up), but the screenplay does just enough to reveal the challenges someone in this situation will go through on their own along with the people mentioned above. By far the best interactions from a dramatic standpoint are between the always on-screen Levitt and his excellent female supporting cast in Kendrick (near perfect in this role) and Howard.

Natural comparisons to Funny People (also featuring Seth Rogen in a similar role) will come up. 50/50 has more heart to it – and a better cast – but the tone of the screenplay is essentially the same. Basically, you’ll laugh (though some of Rogen’s material is forced) and cry.

Overall, 50/50 pulled it off in the end. It takes some time to work-in the challenging atmosphere of the subject matter as not everyone will dig this take on a serious condition. Yet everyone comes together and executes this modern comedic-drama (in that order) in the candid fashion it was going for.

RATING: 4 out of 5

(You can check out Ben’s review of 50/50 from earlier this month here)

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Based on real experiences from the life of writer and cancer survivor Will Reiser, 50/50 is a poignant, funny movie that blends comedy with the most serious kind of subject matter. I’d imagine it’s difficult to bring humor into a story about a guy getting cancer, but with a competent script, solid actors well-suited for both comedy and drama, and some reserved directing from Jonathan Levine, the filmmakers accomplished their goal.

When Adam Lerner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is abruptly diagnosed with a rare form of cancer, his life radically changes: his girlfriend (Bryce Dallas Howard) distances herself from him, his best friend (Seth Rogen) encourages him to start using cancer as a pity tool for sex, his overprotective mother (Anjelica Huston) freaks out and constantly checks in on him, and he becomes the third patient ever for a young therapist (Anna Kendrick) seeking her doctorate. From the summary, it may seem as if a lot is going on, but in fact, the movie lounges easily from one point to the next, fading in and out of subplots as Adam struggles to retain his sanity in the wake of horrible circumstances.

There’s no shortage of jokes, the funniest of which come from Rogen, a comedian who wore out his welcome early with me but who I’ve actually found increasingly likeable in recent years. Gordon-Levitt plays the whole thing straight, but a lot of humor is derived from his occasional deadpan deliveries; his dips into the dramatic provide an anchor for audience relatability, giving us a canvas on which to project our own loved ones who may be suffering similar fates. Anna Kendrick plays her usual on-screen self – a charming, insecure girl who talks a bit too much – but I enjoy her work, so I didn’t have any problems with her. And Bryce Dallas Howard, someone who (to me, anyway) is known for playing mostly likeable characters, goes against type here in a career choice similar to Rachel McAdams’ in this year’s Midnight in Paris.

Jonathan Levine, who directed the interesting Sundance indie The Wackness as well as the abysmal All The Boys Love Mandy Lane (I hope it stays shelved forever, that’s how bad it is), takes a more reserved approach behind the camera than usual. His normal stylistic flourishes are left behind in favor of emotional character moments, and perhaps the best compliment I can give him is that 50/50 doesn’t feel like a Jonathan Levine movie. He coaxes some really good performances out of his actors, and this is clearly the best film with which he’s been involved. Michael Giacchino’s score is beautiful, and this guy continues to show why he’s nipping at John Williams’ heels to become the best in the business. Somehow, the man is able to make a scene where trash is dumped out of a car incredibly romantic with just a few notes (you’ll know the scene when you see it). He’s pumping out iconic score after iconic score, and he’s still in his prime.

I won’t get into too many details, since most of this movie is more about the feelings it conjures and less about the individual scenes that accomplish said conjuring. 50/50 is as funny as a movie about cancer can be without turning into a downright farce, but it’s real strength lies in the dramatic beats. JGL fans will be pleased. Until next time…

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While Paul is not the third entry into the infamous Blood and Ice Cream Trilogy, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s third cinematic team-up is almost as enjoyable as their previous collaborations. Let’s face it: Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz are both awesome movies, and without Edgar Wright behind the camera to complete the triumvirate, one might assume that another director stepping into the situation would be a bit intimidated to work with such a close-knit group. Not the case for Superbad and Adventureland director Greg Mottola, who, while not matching Wright’s unique dynamism, imbues Paul with his own pacing and comedy sensibilities that ultimately results in a very enjoyable moviegoing experience.

The story follows Graeme (Pegg) and Clive (Frost), two geeky British comic book creators who travel to America to go on a road trip to see their favorite alien hot spots across the country. Along the way, they discover an actual alien named Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen) and go on the run from Agent Zoil (Bateman), a “man in black” tasked with hunting the alien down. Pegg and Frost’s influence is felt all over this film and keeps with their signature style of slightly mocking a genre, paying homage to it, and adding an exciting new entry to its ranks all at the same time. This is one that movie geeks will love in the same way that gamers and pop culture nerds loved Scott Pilgrim vs. The World; there are so many references to other movies (alien, road trip, and otherwise) that I could spend an entire post listing all of them.

The CG work for Paul’s alien body was surprisingly impressive, never aiming for “realism,” per se, but always remaining fluid and true to the character. And speaking of the character, Paul was hilarious. He’s a smoking foul-mouthed version of E.T., embracing (and at times contributing to) human pop culture in a way that makes his character almost pleasant among all the cursing and drinking. Honestly, Paul himself was the character about whom I had the biggest doubts going in, but Seth Rogen – an actor yet to give a truly excellent performance in my opinion – did a fantastic job with the voice work and really gave the alien an extra spark of life that would be hard for many other actors to replicate.

The movie featured smaller roles for a lot of people we’ve seen in comedy before. Kristen Wiig is charming as the extremist Christian whose world is turned upside down with the discovery of extraterrestrial life (her character also doubles as Pegg’s love interest and provides a bit of conflict between Pegg and Frost). Sigourney Weaver has a small cameo as the determined head of the government agency looking for Paul. Bill Hader (“SNL”) and Joe Lo Truglio (Superbad) play rookie agents tagging along with Bateman, David Koechner (Anchorman) and Jesse Plemons (TV’s “Friday Night Lights”) are a couple of redneck homophobes that become bitter enemies to our heroes, and Jeffrey Tambor (“Arrested Development”) has a small role as a self-centered comic creator the guys meet at Comic-Con.

Speaking of Comic-Con, the movie has the best depiction of the convention I’ve ever seen on screen. It’s such an accurate representation of what it’s like, and though the movie wasn’t actually shot at the convention, it could have fooled me. I had a chance to attend my first Comic-Con last year with the guys and girls at GeekTyrant (check out all our coverage here), and Paul not only captured the physical accuracy of the convention center and surrounding areas but also the giddy feeling of excitement it provides – geeking out as only geeks can.

If I have any qualms with the movie, it’s that the story was a bit predictable at times. Due to personal bias, I’m more willing to forgive predictability with movies that embrace fun than ones that aim for seriousness, so this wasn’t as big of a turn off for me as it most assuredly will be for some. To me, the comedy and the heart are the most important parts of this movie, and they hit on all the right beats. A lot of people will find the anti-Christian overtones to be a bit off-putting, but aside from that one issue, I think the entire film has an infectious enthusiasm to it – all of the protagonists are extremely likeable and Pegg and Frost’s writing makes it very easy to root for them. The pacing was solid, with no scene dragging on too long and the action moving quickly across different locations to keep things visually interesting.

Paul is a great entry into the ranks of the Pegg-Frost collaborations, and a new high point in Greg Mottola’s career alongside Superbad. This movie will undoubtedly put smiles on the faces of movie lovers across the country as they take an insane road trip with these characters that ends at the absolute perfect location. Until next time…

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Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced that The Green Hornet, starring Seth Rogen, Jay Chou, Christoph Waltz and Cameron Diaz, will be released on DVD, Blu-ray and 3D Blu-ray on May 3rd.

The movie was originally filmed in 2D but is one of the best examples of a good 3D conversion, however a ‘meh’ box office ($225 million worldwide) and ‘meh’ reviews (45% on Rotten Tomatoes) suggest we won’t be seeing another Rogen/Chou outing any time soon.

The DVD special features include:

- Filmmakers Commentary
- Awesoom -Gag Reel
- Writing The Green Hornet featurette
- The Black Beauty: Rebirth of Cool featurette

Blu-ray special features include all the above and:

- The Green Hornet Cutting Room
- Deleted Scenes
- Trust Me Director Michel Gondry featurette
- The Stunt Family Armstrong featurette
- Finding Kato featurette
- The Art of Destruction featurette
- Jay Chou Audition (Easter Egg)
- Double Barrel (Easter Egg)

The 3D Blu-ray will include everything on the DVD and Blu-ray, plus “3D Animated Storyboard Comparisons”.

You can now pre-order The Green Hornet from Amazon via the links below:

- DVD
- Blu-ray
- Three-Disc Combo: Blu-ray 3D / Blu-ray / DVD

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Paramount has released a new full trailer for Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom. This trailer features new scenes, new gags and finally gets round to explaining the story.

Watch below:

The sequel sees the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. It is up to Po and The Furious Five to journey across China to face this threat and vanquish it. But how can Po stop a weapon that can stop kung fu?

Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross and James Hong have once again provided their voices, as have newcomers Victor Garber, Michelle Yeoh, Gary Oldman, James Woods and Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom will be released May 26th.

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Paramount has released the Super Bowl TV spot for Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom. Releasing these things early kills the anticipation somewhat, but trailers are made to be seen so they might as well.

Watch below

The sequel sees the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. It is up to Po and The Furious Five to journey across China to face this threat and vanquish it. But how can Po stop a weapon that can stop kung fu?

Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross and James Hong have once again provided their voices, as have newcomers Victor Garber, Michelle Yeoh, Gary Oldman, James Woods and Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom will be released May 2011.

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When it came to The Green Hornet, I was more curious than anything else. What would a buddy-cop action superhero comedy written by Seth Rogen & Evan Goldberg and directed by Michel Gondry (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) look like? Don’t let its troubled production history fool you – this is actually a really enjoyable movie. I’ve been calling it this year’s The A-Team; the plot makes very little sense at times and the physics are ridiculous, but it’s a lot of fun to watch.

The opening scene is a good representation of the tone we get in the rest of the film. A young Britt Reid has his favorite superhero toy’s head ripped off by his father, an overbearing news magnate played by Tom Wilkinson. While not subtle in the least, the message is clear: this is not going to be your typical superhero movie. Turns out that promise is only partly true; The Green Hornet plays on the conventions of the superhero film that we all recognize but succeeds in separating itself enough from the pack that it stands as its own relatively unique project. Ten years after Bryan Singer’s X-Men and Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man helped usher nerd culture to the mainstream, it’s impressive that any superhero movie can feel even remotely fresh.

As to be expected from a script co-written by Rogen and Goldberg, the characters here feel especially self-aware. Nowhere is this more evident in the case of the main villain, a character named Chudnofsky underplayed by Academy Award winner Christoph Waltz (in a role originally played by Nic Cage). Chudnofsky is not your normal Los Angeles gangster: he’s constantly worried about his reputation and how scary he appears to his fellow members of the underworld. He carries around a gun with two barrels (“very difficult to make”) and seems to take criticism of his clothing choices to heart. He’s a likeable villain, someone with enough little character moments to overshadow the lack of originality in his evil plan. (At one point, he wants to change his name to “Bloodnofsky” because he thinks it sounds scarier.)

A high profile cameo in the early minutes of the movie adds to the humor of the villainous portrayals. He comments about the furniture in his lair (“I’ve got sh*tloads of glass everywhere…I have a see-through piano!”) and seems totally aware of both the ridiculousness of his surroundings and the expectations of how a movie villain is supposed to dress and behave. This is easily one of the most entertaining scenes in the film.

The rest of the movie hints at a deeper understanding of the genre and its conventions, but seems to stick just a little too close to the formulaic nature of an origin story instead of truly mining new ground. Long sections of the film that feel as if we’ve seen similar content before are almost enough to make us question the flashes of creativity which with Gondry peppers the movie – almost. If you’re even loosely familiar with Gondry’s filmography (which includes Eternal Sunshine, The Science of Sleep, Be Kind Rewind, etc.), then you’re aware of the man’s distinct visual style. That gets lost through most of The Green Hornet, but the occasions in which those touches make it on screen are pretty spectacular. Kato’s fight sequences turn the character into an almost Terminator-like character (complete with red eyes), with Gondry opting for POV vision that highlights bad guys’ weapons in red but puts martial arts on full display. Perhaps the most “Gondry-esque” scene plays out near the end of the film, in a lengthy exposition scene that would be unbearable if not for his unique approach.

Seth Rogen dropped a lot of weight for this movie, and looks good as a result. He never shows much of a physical presence as the masked hero (or is it anti-hero?) Britt Reid, but he doesn’t have to: he can hide behind the toys designed by his coffee maker/mechanic Kato (played by Taiwanese pop star Jay Chou). A gas gun and the infamous Black Beauty are utilized to their full potential, though some could make the argument that the latter is a bit overused. They seem to form a friendship fairly quickly, but there’s no conceivable reason as to why Kato would want to be friends with Britt in the beginning – he’s kind of a douche who only finds his calling as the Hornet after what essentially is a lucky break during a drunken night out with Kato. In real life, Chou’s language barrier hinders the banter of the characters; it’s clear Rogen, who cut his teeth in improv comedy, wishes he could have someone who could keep up with him in that area, and the film is written as if Chou has those abilities even though he’s clearly lacking.

Regardless, the characters’ friendship progresses and the rest of the movie is spent meandering through ganglands with them as they dispense vigilante justice however they wish. This pisses off Chudnofsky, who is watching the Hornet rack up massive media attention while he gets left in the dust. Since Britt’s father died (under suspicious circumstances – guess if THAT will come back as a plot point), Britt now controls a huge media empire and devotes all the resources of the newspaper to giving coverage to the Green Hornet. Britt and Kato know nothing about journalism or the criminal life they’re trying to infiltrate, so they enlist the help of the unwitting Lenore Case (Cameron Diaz in a forgettable part), a secretary who basically uses her “minor in criminology” to inform the guys’ decisions as the film progresses. Like I said – much of this film makes very little sense.

For me, the most surprising aspect of this movie was how great the 3D looked. This is some of the best post-converted 3D we’ve seen, and this film stands as a beacon that this process can be completed with successful results if done correctly. Much has been made of the rise of 3D, and many of the complaints surround dark picture quality and murky visuals. There’s none of that to be found here, since Gondry and company have somehow cracked the code: the image is crisp, and even scenes set in the dark pop and have nice contrast. And I don’t think I can rave about this enough: the final credits sequence looks phenomenal. Even if you absolutely hate the film, go to sleep and wake up for the end credits because that’s nearly worth the price of admission.

I’m not sure how many people are truly anticipating The Green Hornet, considering it’s based on a character popularized on the radio in the 1930′s and in an almost forgotten TV series playing second fiddle to Adam West’s “Batman.” But if you’re willing to excuse many of the logical flaws and a preposterous climax involving a car riding in an elevator, I think you’ll find a few things to like about this film. Until next time…

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DreamWorks has released a new TV spot for Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom. It only lasts 16 seconds, but it’s worth a watch as it contains new footage and promises “Awesomeness”.

The sequel sees the emergence of a formidable villain, who plans to use a secret, unstoppable weapon to conquer China and destroy kung fu. It is up to Po and The Furious Five to journey across China to face this threat and vanquish it. But how can Po stop a weapon that can stop kung fu?

Jack Black, Dustin Hoffman, Angelina Jolie, Jackie Chan, Seth Rogen, Lucy Liu, David Cross and James Hong have once again provided their voices, as have newcomers Victor Garber, Michelle Yeoh, Gary Oldman, James Woods and Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Kung Fu Panda 2: The Kaboom of Doom will be released May 2011.

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head over to Yahoo! has released a new trailer for Paul which stars Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman and Sigourney Weaver. The teaser trailer we got back in October was only 70 seconds long, but this latest trailer is the full 2 minute 30 seconds one.

The movie follows two British comic book geeks (Pegg and Frost) who go on a road trip through America. On the way, they discover an alien named Paul (voiced by Rogen) at Area 51 who needs their help.

In the trailer, embedded below, we get to see a lot more of Seth Rogen’s alien character who exposes himself on a number of occasions, turns invisible, and brings birds back to life.

The film is directed by Superbad director Greg Mottola so fans of that type of comedy should be looking forward to this, as will fans of Pegg and Frost’s earlier work in Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz.

Paul will be released on February 18th in the UK and March 18th in the US.

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