John Malkovich | Geekscape

SDCC 2014: Dreamworks Brings Penguins to San Diego

by S.J. BorgerJuly 25, 2014

Dreamworks Animation presented a panel on their upcoming movie, Penguins of Madagascar, the next installment of the Madagascar series, which is centered fully on the adventures of everyone’s favorite flightless birds, the Penguins.

Directed by Eric Darnell (writer for the previous Madagascar movies) and Simon J Smith (Bee Movie), and starring Benedict Cumberbatch, Ken Jeong, John Malkovich, Tom McGrath, Chris Miller, John DiMaggio and Christopher Knights, Penguins takes the Skipper and his compatriots deep into the world of global espionage.

dreamworks-animation-panel — Benedict Cumberbatch at the SDCC Penguins of Madagascar panel. Cumberbatch plays Agent Classified in the upcoming movie.

Cumberbatch, Malkovich and McGrath were at Comic Con to talk about their work on Penguins; Cumberbatch plays Agent Classified, a 007-type agent (and also a wolf) who runs a MI-6/SHIELD type agency, while Malkovich takes on the role of the villain, Dr. Octavius Brine (an octopus, naturally). McGrath reprises his role as Skipper, the erstwhile leader of the Penguins.

A–very good–trailer clip was shown to loud applause, and the cast discussed their experiences working on the animated film.

“It was a really interesting character to play.” said Malkovich. “He’s sort of a large, remorseless kind of psychopath, really.”

Cumberbatch revealed that he had just met Malkovich that day, despite co-starring in the movie together, and spoke about how working on the movie taught him a great deal about voiceover work.

The Penguins were originally only in one small scene in the original Madagascar movie, but their popularity has spawned books, a TV show, and now their own movie.

“We found a way to integrate them more into the story,” said McGrath. “And now after three movies, 10 video games, 80 TV shows, they get their own movie.”

Penguins of Madagascar opens on November 26th, 2014. To tide you over, here’s the trailer:

http://youtu.be/N-SElhktQF0

Are you excited? Were you at the panel? What did you think?

Bruce Willis & John Malkovich Take The Spotlight In New ‘RED 2’ Character Posters

by Shawn MaddenApril 23, 2013

With a new trailer for the film set to debut on Friday, two new character posters for the upcoming action sequel Red 2 have been released. The posters give the spotlight to Bruce Willis’ Frank Moses and John Malkovich’s Marvin Boggs.

In RED 2, the high-octane action-comedy sequel to the worldwide sleeper hit, retired black-ops CIA agent Frank Moses reunites his unlikely team of elite operatives for a global quest to track down a missing portable nuclear device. To succeed, they’ll need to survive an army of relentless assassins, ruthless terrorists and power-crazed government officials, all eager to get their hands on the next-generation weapon. The mission takes Frank and his motley crew to Paris, London and Moscow. Outgunned and outmanned, they have only their cunning wits, their old-school skills, and each other to rely on as they try to save the world—and stay alive in the process.

RED 2 hits theaters July 19, 2013

Source: Yahoo

Geekscape Movie Reviews: Warm Bodies

by MCDaveJanuary 23, 2013

Attempting to circumvent fans of the 2008 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award winner, The Wackness, director Jonathan Levine’s first real burst onto the scene came in the form of his 2011 hit 50/50. The indie drama resonated with audiences all across the country and impressed me enough to land in the #1 spot on my Top Ten Films of 2011. Levine returns nearly a year and a half later with the zombie comedy Warm Bodies. Boasting a main cast far less impressive than his previous hit, Levine and his employer Summit Pictures hope to gain a stranglehold on the teenybopper Valentine’s Day market.

Warm Bodies follows R (played by Nicholas Hoult), a free thinking zombie who ends up falling in love with the girlfriend of one of his victims. However, the more time that R spends with Julie (played by Teresa Palmer), the more he begins to feel human again. This shocking revelation sets these unlikeliest of lovers on a journey to save the world.

At it’s heart, director Jonathan Levine’s Warm Bodies puts a clever spin on the prototypical love story. Although much like its contemporary counterpart the Twilight franchise, plots holes galore and unpredictable behavior consequently deteriorates an otherwise fun-filled affair. For example, Julie’s character constantly begs R to let her return to her new zombie-free barricaded hometown. Yet, when given the opportunity to do exactly as she wishes, instead Julie ultimately drives a car back to her old neighborhood for no apparent reason. Warm Bodies clearly loses its focus and attention to detail, creating a frustrating piece of filmmaking that aspires to get by on charm and heart alone. However, Teresa Palmer feels too much like a spitting image of the often unimpressive Kristen Stewart, and the result is an emotion-less “other half” to this charismatic love story.

For as unpredictable and nonsensical as its characters are, Warm Bodies follows a rather generic and predetermined path to resolution. Unfolding exactly as you would imagine, there’s nothing outside of a few creative components to the effects of eating brains to help keep the viewer’s interest level elevated. All in all, it’s a simple story filled with generic performances. Other than being an assured Valentine’s Day box office success, Warm Bodies is clearly an average movie that never really wavers above or below the level of mediocrity.

As a HUGE fan of Levine’s previous work 50/50, my hopes were pretty high for his latest effort, Warm Bodies. Instead, Levine delivers a to-be-expected final product that’s superficial and often fun, but completely lacking in long term appeal. If you’re looking for a solid date movie during the Valentine’s Day holiday, then Warm Bodies is a decent choice. Otherwise, there’s no loss in waiting for DVD and catching this film sometime down the line.

Grade: 2.5/5

Check out other work from MCDave at Movie Reviews By Dave