Survived Hurricane Irene with dry basements and dvd’s?  Well, here’s a look at what you might have missed while heading out to buy bread, milk & toilet paper….

* If you like Team America: World Police and you don’t live in NYC?  You’re gonna wish you did; there’s a “Sing & Swear-Along” slated for the 17th of September in Tribeca.  Yeah, you wanna go.

* Zombies from World War Z!

* It’s on.  It’s off.  It’s on?  Don’t trifle with me; The Dark Tower, does it stand or fall?  Here’s the latest.

* No questions here: Ghostbusters 3 is definitely shooting next year.  What’s not definite is if Bill Murray will be a part of the team.  No Venkman?  Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together… mass hysteria! (C’mon.  I had to use it. Because I couldn’t finagle a way to use “It’s in the hole!” Unless there’s a Caddyshack sequel coming…. *shudder*)

More trailers:

* Fireflies in the Garden, starring Ryan Reynolds & Julia Roberts. It was shot back in ‘07 and is finally getting some theater play.  Hope it was woth waiting for…but then again I’ll watch Roberts & Reynolds in just about anything.

* A Hellraiser without Doug Bradley as Pinhead?  Um…  Well, judge for yourself.

* The Red Band trailer for Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (be prepared to verify your age, you young’uns)

* The trailer of Disney/Pixar’s Brave (that debuted at D23):

* Kate Winslet and Jodie Foster tear it up in Carnage.  A hilarious Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?  Bring it.  And I wipe my ass with your human rights!

Since I was behind the 8-ball on getting SDCC image access, please enjoy this pic of the Tucker & Dale vs. Evil poster!

Why do so many people love Comic-Con?  It’s the peeks at genre movies that will be hitting theaters soon.  So what hit at this year’s San Diego lovefest?

In Time: coming this October, this story about how the world has “cured” people from aging…for a price stars Justin Timberlake and Amanda Seyfried.  The idea of the human race charging for the ability to live forever…sounds about spot-on.  Can’t wait to see how the story plays out.

Drive: coming in September, Ryan Gosling plays a guy that gets to put his stunt-driver job to good use.    (WARNING: this is a Red-Band trailer, which means it shows R-rated bits.)  Tons of positive buzz on this movie!

 Paranormal Activity 3: I loved the first two in this series, so this trailer, that takes a look at how all this supernatural throwdown got it’s start, got me psyched.  And it opens right before Halloween? Badass.

Knights of Badassdom: speaking of badass, this is a movie that (replays my first year of undergrad with uncanny accuracy) looks to be what Your Highness wishes it could have been, a whole lot of LARP-ing goodness.  They had me at the title, they made it un-missable by casting Peter Dinklage and Ryan Kwanten.

Tucker & Dale vs. Evil: I love Firefly.  LOVE.  I love horror.  DITTO.  So when I heard that Alan Tudyk was starring in this spoof?  Let’s just say I’m counting the seconds ’til this opens in September.

 The Hobbit:  psyche!  No trailer, but a great video clip from PJ, released for the Con.  Nice!

 Fright Night: again, not a new trailer, but a fan-tastic clip of David Tennant “preten(ding) to be Russell Brand”.  Behold, for it is awesome.  (But if you don’t want to be spoiled when you see the film next month, I understand.)

Supernatural: yeah yeah yeah, I know.  “Supernatural isn’t a movie, it’s a tv show, idiot.”  Gotcha.  But I Don’t Care.  Supernatural is one of the best genre shows out there right now, so how can I resist popping up this clip of Cass losing his shit?  That’s right, I can’t.

Speaking of can’t resist, who’s with me for storming the gates at Baltimore Comic-Con?  Yeaaaaaah!

* Box office?  As expected, Super 8 is the top moneymaker for this weekend.  Meanwhile, Magneto and Charles Xavier wrapped this up nicely; X-Men: First Class nab the second spot, with The Hangover Part II and Kung Fu Panda 2 right behind.  Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides hangs on to the final spot in the top five, ousting Bridesmaids.

* The Wire’s Idris Elba in talks to take a role in Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim.  This is still sketchy at this point, but since the reason it’s sketch is probably due to the possibility of Idris having a role in Quentin Tarrantino’s new flick, Django Unchained, I say that’s a good thing.  Either way, we’ll have him on the big screen soon.  Go ahead, Stringer Bell!

* Twilight and Star Wars…similar?  Well, Jason Sudeikis, the host of the MTV Movie Awards, explains the connection.  Okay, gotta say he’s not wrong.  And check out the winners of this year’s MTV Movie Awards — hooray for The Help’s Emma Stone for breaking through the Twilight sleeper hold on the ceremony!

* Alyson Hannigan’s back in the American Pie fold with American Reunion, and thank goodness.  She drops a few spoilers for fans, and it looks like it’s going back to the old-school fun of the original.  Hey, couldn’t get worse than the last few straight-to-DVD flops, but the return of Alyson, Jason Biggs and the incomparable Jennifer Coolidge gives me hope.

* I can’t be the only grownup that absolutely adored How To Train Your Dragon.  Right?  Well, for my fellow fans, there’s a release date for How To Train Your Dragon 2, and the possibility that this story could play out to a third film.  I can’t wait to see Toothless strut his adorable dragon stuff.  The problem is, the release date will be in 2014.  The agony!

* Last week a “leaked” version of the new American re-do of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo hit the internet.  Why didn’t I cover it?  Because it looked like someone just hit “record” on their iPhone and let it fly. Now the official The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo trailer is up, as is their Web site.  I could do without the self-important word. By.  Word fast cuts from “The Feel Bad Movie Of Christmas” and “The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo” to snippets of the teaser (seriously, you can just show the entire movie title, we’re already sucked in to the teaser folks).  I missed the heavy bass beat from the original Immigrant Song too, if I’m being honest.  If you’re gonna get the Led out, go real or go home.  The cover just doesn’t cut it.

* I love classic movies.  Gimmie Bringing Up Baby, The Thin Man, His Girl Friday and I’m in heaven.  But they’re planning on remaking The Three Stooges.  Not sure how that’s gonna play with modern audiences, but then moviegoers did love Dumb and Dumber.  Anyway, Jennifer Hudson will be lending her Academy Award winning self to the film.  Bless her heart.

* Because Harry Potter did it.  And Twilight did it.  The Hunger Games will most likely be four movies.  I just finished the trilogy this week, and  I can see how an extra film could help tell the full story.  The fact that they’ve cast Lenny Kravitz as fashion designer/friend to Katniss Cinna has me crossing my fingers in the hopes they’re really trying to do this story up right.

* This week’s Everybody’s Talking trailer is Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, a movie even Tom Hanks told Entertainment Weekly that he’s dying to see.  Hey, after seeing the trailer myself I’ve got to agree.

I don’t know about you, but the Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn — Part 1 teaser trailer released shortly before the MTV Awards only left me frustrated. Beautiful scene! Gorgeous hair clip! Hey, Edward all gussied up! But just when I was settled in…the end. Well, they don’t call ‘em teasers for nothin’.

Now the entire trailer is available, and I’ve gotta say I’m even more excited. That’s a pretty neat trick, considering I’ve no love of the books. The movies have been done well, however.

But enough rambling. Check out the new Breaking Dawn — Part 1 trailer!

Too busy last week to go through all the movie news?  It’s a holiday weekend, so what better way to relax (and avoid the heat-advisory-level weather out there today ‘til the grill gets going) than to catch up on the newest movie trailers?  Enjoy, and have a fantastic Memorial Day!

* It’s way too hot outside — remember, according to many Republicans, Global Warning doesn’t exist — so why not stay cool?  Really, really cool.  Don’t know about you, but Happy Feet 2 is definitely on my must-see list.  Baby penguins singing Sexyback?  Fuggetaboutit.

* Speaking of cool, there’s a new film coming out by the folks from Sideways and About Schmidt.  It’s called The Descendants, and it features an amazing performance by George Clooney.  Check it out….

* Muppets.  A Hangover II parody.  Quotes like “The Xanadu of family entertainment.”  A cameo by Danny Trejo.  What more needs be said about the new Muppets trailer, except…where can I get a Fuzzy Pack t-shirt?

* If you’re bummed that you didn’t get to the beach this weekend, it could be worse.  You could be at the beach when a tsunami hits, trapped in a grocery store with armed killers and tiger sharks.  Okay, maybe not.  But why take the chance; just stay home and watch the new trailer for Bait 3D.

* Okay, so this isn’t a new trailer, but it is the number movie I’m dying to see this summer.  Bad Teacher has Cameron Diaz, Justin Timberlake and Jason Segal letting loose like nobody’s business.  Cameron’s bad teacher wants her students to do better, so she can get a bonus and pay for a boob job.  C’mon, you know you wanna see this.  (Note: this movie has a Red Band trailer that let you know exactly how adults-only this movie is gonna be.  So no bringing your kids to this one, ‘kay?)

* Need a reason to get up off the couch?  Guillermo del Toro’s remake of Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark should get you into the sunshine. Or else.

Enjoy your Memorial Day — back at’cha with movie news next week!

Too busy last week to go through all the movie news?  Here’s a look at what you missed!

It was a busy week, so let’s get started….

* Box office this weekend: no surprise that Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides lead the box office.  They’ve certainly pushed it enough.  And to be fair it’s a fun ride, so it deserves it’s time in the sun.  Bridesmaids is #2 for a second week (and with the Summer Movie Season in full swing, I doubt it’ll snag top honors anytime soon, not with the Wolf Pack’s The Hangover Part II opening this week.)  Thor, Fast Five and Rio round out the top spots.

* Remakes?  Sequels?  Heck yeah, they’re a’comin’.  Scream, The Flintstones, Resident Evil, Fletch, My idiot meter went up to 11 when I heard that Carrie is getting a re-do.  What, just because the Cohen brothers scored with their remake/homage to True Grit, Hollywood thinks they can rush all sorts of similar projects out?  Do they think movie viewers are that stupid?  Oh, don’t answer that.

* By the way, if all these remakes have you longing for the good old days, when movies had at least a whiff of originality, well, I can’t help you there.  But Titanic will be getting a re-release, so maybe you can pretend it’s a classic.  It’s coming to theaters in 3D…because apparently that’s the law nowadays.

* Hunger Games fans, take a peek at Katniss! And for fans who didn’t believe Jennifer Lawrence could pull it off, I have one question for you; ever heard of hair dye?  Seriously.  Sookie Stackhouse = Anna Paquin + hair dye.  And that equals amazing.  I’m quite sure Jennifer Lawrence will nail the part of Katniss too.

* Oh for crying out loud; The Tree of Life won the Palme d’Or at Cannes? *headdesk*  Well, there’s no accounting for taste.   I’ve said I may not be cool enough for this movie. Maybe it’s just that I’m not French enough.  Guess I’ll need to re-read my undergrad Heidegger while at a coffee shop at the edge of existence.  Or figure out some other way to stomach pseudo-existentialist BS.  Cannes judges did do something right; congrats to Kirsten Dunst, who won for her work in Melancholia.  Which brings me to….

* A quick game of Who Said It?  Here goes: “I understand Hitler.”  Mel Gibson? Charlie Sheen?  Nope, and nope.  Lars Von Trier.  And he got his stupid tuchas banned from Cannes for it (appropriately enough.) Joke?  I don’t think so.  If you had fun playing that round, of Who Said It, how about the full version, pitting Lars quotes vs. Charlie quotes? Winner gets a ice-cold shot of tiger blood and a tiny little fake mustache.

* Transformers: Dark of the Moon is being bumped up to an earlier release date, but only from Friday, July 1 to Wednesday, June 29.  Frankly I’m surprised they didn’t start with this new opening date.  With the Fourth of July weekend, Wednesday is a no-brainer.

* After seeing Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, if you want a bit more Johnny Depp (maybe this time with some Tim Burton thrown in), here’s a peek at the storyline for the new Dark Shadows movie.  Gotta say that I raced home from school when they played these on re-runs when I was a kid.  And the Tim Burton quirkyness will play amazingly well in this story.  Barnabas Collins was my first tv crush, so to see Johnny Depp put on the fangs is gonna be awesome.  Plus, no sparkling in this vampire tale.  Winning!

* Speaking of On Stranger Tides, I got all happy inside when I saw Judi Dench’s cameo.   So finding out she’s doing genre work — and that said film will be called The Curse of the Buxom Strumpet — made my week. The fact that she’s working on this film with Ian McKellen…well, I didn’t think they could get any cooler.  Apparently I was wrong.  Can’t wait!

* The Hobbit.  Stephen Fry.  Two great tastes that taste great together. Hooray!  I’m glad to see Stephen Fry in anything, but the fact that he’ll lend a bit of his charm to The Hobbit makes me all happy inside.  The Master of Laketown won’t get massive screen time to be sure, but it’s gonna be cool.  Just you wait.

*  Oh wait.  You didn’t think I’d wrap up last week’s big stories without mentioning Ah-nuld, did you?  Heaven forfend!  And his no-longer-secret love child has The Sperminator (what?  It writes itself.) cancelling all career moves ‘til (he can bury this bad press) he can make things right with his family.   Well, at least one good thing has come of this; Arnold’s animated series, The Governator, has been canned.

* This Monday, to lighten the load after the heaviness of Lars and Arnold, it’s the new trailer for Mr. Popper’s Penguins.  Gotta say that even though I gave up on Jim Carrey’s career years ago (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind notwithstanding), this movie looks too cute to pass up.  Fingers crossed that this is the film that gets Carrey back on track!

Haven’t The Three Musketeers been done to death?  When Mickey Mouse gets in on the action, you might as well have these swordsmen strap on the waterskis and jump that shark.  But there’s a new take on the old tale coming soon.

From Summit Entertainment:

So far, with Christoph Waltz and Orlando Bloom as Richlieu and Buckingham, I’m rooting for the bad guys.  Mila Jovovich, in full Resident Evil mode, plays what could be the most badass Milady yet.  Check out the trailer if you don’t believe me:

The Three Musketeers, in 3D, comes to theaters this October.

What’s summer blockbuster season without a little Michael Bay Go Boom?  A cold, lonely season, that’s what.  The folks at Transformers: Dark of the Moon want you to wet your whistle with a sneak-peek at the latest movie in the Transformers series.  The Apple Web site has the first peek at this new trailer. This looks awesome, and it would make a fantastic double-bill with the upcoming Apollo 18.  Though I’m guessing Transformers should be the second movie up, ’cause after the amazing special effects (a building cut in half?  The moon getting shredded?)  Well, maybe Apollo‘s more suspenseful, less action-packed film would be a come-down.

Check out the trailer Right Here!

Quick synopsis:

When a mysterious event from Earth’s past erupts into the present day it threatens to bring a war to Earth so big that the Transformers alone will not be able to save us. The movie stars Shia LaBeouf, John Turturro, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Patrick Dempsey, Kevin Dunn, with John Malkovich and Frances McDormand.

The film opens nationwide July 1st.  Boom!