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CAYOM: Year 4 (Part 1)

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Year 4 of CAYOM 2.0 officially begins! Since detailed instructions are contained in the players' guide thread, I'll simply summarize and say that this is the thread where you post all of your films with info including: Title, Cast, Director, Release Date, Theater Count, MPAA Rating, Budget, and a Plot Summary. I will edit this post a few times a day with updates based on postings.

If your plot is of significant length, place it inside spoiler tags so it doesn't take forever to scroll down a page of this thread!!!!!

The schedule:

January 3-5:

Call Me Maybe (3187 Theaters) (Page 2)

January 10-12:

MaZ3 (2993 Theaters) (Page 4)

The Homestarmy Invades! (2204 Theaters) (Page 5)

January 17-19 (MLK weekend):

Sasquatch 3D (3523 Theaters) (Page 1)

The Immune (3084 Theaters) (Page 4)

January 24-26:

A Stark Night (3239 Theaters) (Page 3)

January 31-February 2:

Columbine (3001 Theaters) (Page 3)

Lady Gaga: Born This Way 3D (3005 Theaters) (Page 6)

February 7-9:

Bone: Vernal Equinox (3921 Theaters) (Page 3)

Final Fantasy Dawn of Souls (reissue in 3D) (3500 Theaters) (Page 2)

Madea's Valentine (2694 Theaters) (Page 5)

Unbalanced (Limited- 250 Theaters) (Page 5)

February 14-17 (President's Day weekend):

Pokemon: Rise of the Rockets (3508 Theaters) (Page 1)

Forever Yours (2803 Theaters) (Page 5)

Unbalanced (Wide- 2951 Theaters)

February 21-23:

Six Souls 3D (3001 Theaters) (Page 1)

Army of Two (3387 Theaters) (Page 5)

February 28-March 2:

Phone Conversations with Mother (2688 Theaters) (Page 3)

City of Darkness (2917 Theaters) (Page 5)

March 7-9:

39 Steps (3328 Theaters) (Page 2)

The Conondrum (3205 Theaters) (Page 3)

March 14-16:

Dawn of Souls II: Rebirth (4200 Theaters) (Page 2)

On the Set (Limited- 45 Theaters) (Page 4)

March 21-23:

Sylvarius (3588 Theaters) (Page 1)

The Lost Planet of the Sleeping Creature (2815 Theaters) (Page 5)

On the Set (197 Theaters)

March 28-30:

Illusionio 2 (3D) (3623 Theaters) (Page 2)

On the Set (WIde- 1042 Theaters)

April 4-6:

Weird Al Yankovic: Insert Title Here in 2-D (2758 Theaters) (Page 2)

Mermaid (3315 Theaters) (Page 3)

April 11-13:

Best Friends Forever (2481 Theaters) (Page 3)

Decker (3472 Theaters) (Page 4)

April 18-20:

Paranoia 2 (3358 Theaters) (Page 5)

April 25-27:

Death of a Strawberry (3091 Theaters) (Page 4)

Service (1959 Theaters) (Page 4)

May 2-4:

Divisions (4018 Theaters) (Page 1)

May 9-11:

The Flash (4344 Theaters) (Page 1)

May 16-18:

Call of Duty: Of Their Own Accord (3988 Theaters) (Page 1)

May 23-26 (Memorial Day Weekend):

Once Upon a Mattress (3406 Theaters) (Page 6)

Battle Mars 3D (2164 Theaters)

Bohemian (Limited- 4 Theaters) (Page 1)

May 30-June 1:

Our City (3785 Theaters) (Page 2)

Bohemian (16 Theaters)

June 6-8:

MIdnight: Children of the Damned (3165 Theaters) (Page 3)

Bohemian (367 Theaters)

June 13-15:

Taking Names (3158 Theaters) (Page 3)

Bohemian (Wide- 1001 Theaters)

June 20-22:

Booster Gold (4313 Theaters) (Page 1)

Giant Spiders (3285 Theaters) (Page 5)

Bohemian (2423 Theaters)

June 27-29:

Rivals: The Abyss (3581 Theaters) (Page 2)

Spark (3918 Theaters) (Page 1)

Bohemian (2956 Theaters)

July 4-6:

Tuesday, July 1: Pippi Longstocking (2769 Theaters) (Page 3)

Wednesday, July 2: Nirvana (4261 Theaters) (Page 3)

July 11-13:

The Suicide King (3024 Theaters) (Page 2)

Jane and Tony (2287 Theaters) (Page 6)

July 18-20:

The Last Six (4402 Theaters) (Page 2)

July 25-27:

Comedians (3542 Theaters) (Page 4)

Cruisers (2788 Theaters) (Page 5)

August 1-3:

Island of the Blue Dolphins (3834 Theaters) (Page 1)

Morgan Spurlock's Shut Up and Take My Memes (Limited- 113 Theaters)

August 8-10:

Summer Jobs (2642 Theaters) (Page 2)

The Glass Castle (2539 Theaters) (Page 3)

Morgan Spurlock's Shut Up and Take My Memes (197 Theaters)

August 15-17:

Martian Manhunter (4344 Theaters) (Page 2)

Morgan Spurlock's Shut Up and Take My Memes (230 Theaters)

August 22-24:

Breakout Character (3142 Theaters) (Page 5)

Morgan Spurlock's Shut Up and Take My Memes (Wide- 1005 Theaters)

August 29-September 1 (Labor Day weekend):

Wednesday Aug. 27- Grunge (Limited- 383 Theaters) (Page 3)

Knights of the Lunch Table (2694 Theaters) (Page 4)

Student Film (2557 Theaters) (Page 5)

Remember Flight 175 (Limited- 397 Theaters)

September 5-7:

Remember Flight 175 (Wide- 3235 Theaters)

Grunge (527 Theaters)

September 12-14:

Invaders Must Die!: The Tale of Doogie Rounds (3551 Theaters) (Page 3)

Grunge (Wide- 772 Theaters)

September 19-21:

Lake of the Psychopaths (2738 Theaters) (Page 1)

Duck in Space (3744 Theaters) (Page 5)

Grunge (1083 Theaters)

September 26-28:

LoveBytes (2801 Theaters) (Page 3)

Prisoners (2680 Theaters) (Page 5)

Tomb Raider (Limited- 425 IMAX Theaters) (Page 4)

October 3-5:

The Good Die Young (3076 Theaters) (Page 6)

The Flowers of Arvika (Limited- 128 Theaters) (Page 4)

Tomb Raider (Wide- 3600 Theaters)

October 10-12:

The Simulation (2938 Theaters) (Page 1)

Hope-Fear-Adventure (3525 Theaters) (Page 3)

The Flowers of Arvika (457 Theaters)

October 17-19:

The 13th Night IV: Vengeance of Hell (2994 Theaters) (Page 5)

The Flowers of Arvika (Wide- 1244 Theaters)

October 24-26:

The Party Party (3654 Theaters) (Page 3)

Silence! Part 2: The Revenge (3369 Theaters) (Page 5)

October 31-November 2:

The Vast Dark Part III: The Execution (3318 Theaters) (Page 6)

Defiance (3442 Theaters) (Page 3)

November 7-9:

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson vs. the Abominable Snowman (3132 Theaters) (Page 2)

The Nutcracker and the Mouse King (3724 Theaters) (Page 1)

November 14-16:

Kardashians! The World’s Greatest Family (3123 Theaters) (Page 5)

The Triple Nickels (3472 Theaters) (Page 6)

Never Say Goodbye (Limited- 68 Theaters) (Page 6)

November 21-23:

Insurgent (4185 Theaters) (Page 1)

Never Say Goodbye (450 Theaters)

November 26-30 (Thanksgiving weekend):

Citizen Hughes (3603 Theaters) (Page 2)

The Sketchbook (3426 Theaters) (Page 4)

Wenan (3019 Theaters) (Page 6)

Never Say Goodbye (Wide- 1200 Theaters)

December 5-7:

La Bourrage Marron (903 Theaters) (Page 4)

Death of a Salesman (Limited- 2 Theaters) (Page 2)

The Road Home (Limited- 1 Theater) (Page 2)

Never Say Goodbye (2700 Theaters)

December 12-14:

The Bellringer of Notre Dame (3423 Theaters) (Page 1)

Ready, Player One (3066 Theaters) (Page 4)

Death of a Salesman (59 Theaters)

The Road Home (18 Theaters)

December 19-21:

Alesia (3658 Theaters) (Page 1)

A Series of Unfortunate Events (3834 Theaters) (Page 2)

Miracle Boys (724 Theaters) (Page 3)

Death of a Salesman (599 Theaters)

The Road Home (255 Theaters)

December 25-28 (Christmas falls on a Thursday, so 4 day weekend here):

In the Line of Service (1302 Theaters) (Page 1)

Lord Madship (3487 Theaters) (Page 6)

Death of a Salesman (Wide- 2145 Theaters)

Miracle Boys (2272 Theaters)

The Road Home (Wide- 987 Theaters)

Edited by Impact
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Alesia

Genre: Historical Epic

Stars: Clive Owen (Gaius Julius Caesar), Tom Hardy (Vercingetorix), Henry Cavill (Marcus Antonius), Paul Bettany (Titus Labienus), Léa Seydoux (Calanna), Jonathan Zaccaï (Commius), Jérémie Renier (Vercassivellaunus), and Mark Strong (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus)

Written and Directed By: Peter Weir

Original Music By: Patrick Doyle

Release Date: 12/19

Theater Count: 3658

Budget: $140 million

Running Time: 163 minutes

MPAA Rating: R for graphic battle sequences, partial nudity, and sexual content

Plot Summary: Our story begins in the year 53 B.C.E.

After several years of campaigning, Rome has nearly pacified the land of Gaul, or so it is thought. We meet the governor of Gaul, Gaius Julius Caesar (Owen), a proconsul of Rome who directly rules Cisalpine Gaul, Transalpine Gaul, and Illyricum for a term lasting until 51 B.C.E. We also meet two of Caesar’s most trusted commanders, Titus Labienus (Bettany) and Marcus Antonius (Cavill) ((known to us as Mark Antony)). They discuss recent events, including the death of Marcus Licinius Crassus in Parthia. Crassus, the richest man in the Republic, was also one of its most powerful and his death has created a power vacuum that many will try to fill. The biggest contender is Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, commonly known as Pompey, who is one of the most powerful generals and politicians in the Republic, and a rival of Caesar’s. With most resistance in Gaul subdued, Caesar’s hope is that he will ride out his term peacefully, since any problem could cause the Roman Senate to turn against him.

However, in that winter of 53 B.C.E., a council of Gallic chieftains meets at the town of Bibracte to choose a leader for rebellion against Rome. The meeting has raged for several days, until a chieftain known as Vercassivellaunus (Renier) nominates an intelligent and brave Arverni leader known as Vercingetorix (Hardy). The allied chieftains agree on the selection and appoint Vercingetorix as their champion and marshal, a task he accepts with grim determination. The chieftains also note that one of the most important leaders in the region, Commius (Zaccaï), isn’t present, so they must try to convince him to join the revolt.

Vercingetorix’s wife, Calanna (Seydoux) is saddened by his appointment as military commander, since she fears that he will ride off to war and never come home. He reminds her that he has a duty to fulfill to his people, and that he must go. They bid a tearful farewell, and the march is on. Vercingetorix’s first plan is to have the inhabitants of several occupied towns rise in revolts against their Roman overlords. The plot works, and hundreds of Romans are slaughtered as much of Gaul rises in rebellion. But as this happens, word crosses into the pacified regions, to the ear of a man who has spent several years fighting the Gauls, Gaius Julius Caesar (Owen).

Upon hearing the news of the Gallic revolt, Caesar gathers his generals, including Labienus and Marcus. Together they plan their reaction to the outbreak of war, and hope to crush the Gauls once and for all. The Senate in Rome has long been suspicious of Caesar and his motivations. But by winning in the coming campaign, Caesar will end the Gallic rebellions and will gain fame and power unknown to any Roman general since Scipio Africanus in the war against Hannibal and the Carthaginians. Marcus is supportive of his commander to the utmost, and has become Caesar’s protégé of sorts, a man who would follow him to hell and back again. Titus is solid, dependable, and a voice of reason. But unlike his much younger counterpart, he has some concerns about Caesar’s ultimate goals, though he keeps them to himself. Caesar notes that Commius hasn’t joined the revolt and orders Labienus to secure Commius’ allegiance to Rome, since Caesar had appointed Commius as king of his tribe.

As the Romans begin their advance into the heart of Gaul, Vercingetorix raises his own core army of hardened warriors to hit at the Romans with. He knows that he can’t take them head on and have a good chance of winning, but through ambushes, attacking supply lines, and causing a loss of morale, he can achieve a victory. He remembers back (flashback) to his life a few years before as a younger man who wanted nothing more than to be wedded to Calanna and settle down like any other man of his people. But then the Romans came to Gaul, and some of his people left to fight, including some of his family. Only a few returned alive. It was then that his resolve to fight the Roman invaders was built, and only his love for Calanna and her calming nature stopped him from setting out there and then on vengeance (end flashback). As he wakes up the next morning, he is met by Vercassivellaunus, who tells him that the Romans are heading toward the town of Avaricum, to which Vercingetorix orders that his men move out at once. They have some Romans to fight.

Meanwhile Titus and his legion have been sent to raid various rebel villages as a campaign to spread fear. Titus also sends a message to Commius summoning him to a meeting for him to pledge support. However Titus distrusts Commius and arranges for the meeting to be a trap to kill him, so a friendlier chieftain will take over the tribe, which is fairly numerous. The trap is sprung but Commius and his guards are tough fighters and Commius manages to barely escape though he is injured. With his couple remaining guards at a safe spot, he swears he will never consort with Rome again and tells them they must return to his tribe to prepare for war.

The core of the Roman army arrives at Avaricum under the command of Caesar and Marcus. Caesar hears that the Gauls under Vercingetorix are approaching, but he shows little concern for them, dismissing the Gallic warrior as a brave but foolish person in a conversation with Marcus. Since Caesar has never heard of Vercingetorix before, he assumes the Gaul isn’t skilled. As the preparations for the attack are made and Vercingetorix comes nearer every day, the close friendship and almost father/son relationship between the two generals is shown, furthering developing both men’s characters. After a hard march, the army of Vercingetorix arrives, only to find the town of Avaricum in ashes. A ragged survivor is found and brought to Vercingetorix, and tells him how during the previous day and night, Caesar’s men had attacked and pillaged the town and killed many inside it (scenes of this are intercut with the narrative). Vercingetorix is furious now, and with the Romans marching south away from him, he swears he’ll catch up to them and destroy them.

Labienus and his legion rejoin the main Roman force and Labienus owns up to his screw-up with Commius. Caesar is angered because now it will drive Commius’ tribe to ally with the rebels. Labienus is cowed, but Caesar forgives him, saying Labienus is his best general and took a worthy gamble. Caesar orders his army south and as it moves a herald arrives for Caesar with a message from Rome and the Senate. The message expresses the Senate’s concern over the rebellion. Caesar crumples it up in disgust. When Marcus asks what is wrong, Caesar laments on the inefficiency and corruption of Rome, and how the Senate distrusts him for being successful in doing what they have asked of him. Caesar believes that once his governorship ends the Senate will try to arrest him, since as governor he has immunity from prosecution but once his term expires they will try to eliminate a “rival.”

The scene then shifts to the city of Rome, center of the powerful republic. There we are formally introduced to Pompey (Strong), who is several years Caesar’s senior, though he seems to be even older due to stress. We learn through conversations and exposition that he and Caesar were once the closest of friends, and that he had in fact married Caesar’s daughter Julia to secure that friendship. But after Julia died in childbirth, he withdrew from Caesar and in depression started making alliances with those who were opponents of his old friend. This has resulted in Pompey now forced to work with much of the Senate in opposition to Caesar in order to keep his good standing and position. While part of him loathes this and wants it to end, another part of him genuinely believes that he is doing the right thing and that Caesar will only cause ruin for the republic. A member of the Senate comes to visit him at his villa, and tells him of Caesar’s success in Gaul, and that a special session of the Senate is occurring. Pompey agrees to come, noting that the future for Rome is very uncertain. At the session many things are debated. Pompey is able to capitalize on the death of Crassus to become the biggest power-broker in Rome and most of the Senate is now allied with him. They also debate the rebellion in Gaul and many Senators think Caesar will either lose Gaul entirely, which is embarrassing, or crush the rebellion so thoroughly to give him unrivaled prestige, making him incredibly dangerous. Pompey tries to lay out a moderate course, saying Caesar is a true Roman doing his duty, but it has little success.

After many days of exhaustive pursuit, Vercingetorix gives up the chase and moves himself and his men to the town of Gergovia to rest. In private, he tells Vercassivellaunus that his real reason is to draw Caesar back in for a trap. The plan is bolstered even further when Commius arrives with several thousand men to reinforce the Gallic armies. Commius says Rome betrayed him and he will offer his support to the rebellion, which Vercingetorix gladly accepts. They then go to a tent to plan the precise strategy for the trap.

When Caesar learns of the Gauls in Gergovia he believes he can trap the rebel leaders inside the town and finish the revolt with a siege. Labienus urges caution since they don’t know the territory well but Caesar insists this will be the definitive victory. With Caesar and his generals looking on, the legions advance towards Vercingetorix’s men in the field, who, under order from the Gaul, suddenly retreat back towards the town. The Roman soldiers eagerly pursue, ignoring orders to halt, and that is when the trap is sprung. From the sides, men under Vercassivellaunus race downhill and attack the Romans, who are now fighting for their lives. Things look grim, but Caesar personally leads a counterattack with heavy cavalry that drives back the Gallic flankers long enough for Caesar to pull his legions back. The Romans withdraw and Vercingetorix decides not to pursue since it could overextend his forces.

In the Roman camp miles away that night, Caesar is furious that someone has finally bested him in battle, but the anger is directed at himself, not at others. He blames himself for the defeat and grudgingly admires the plan of his enemy. Marcus and Labienus are somewhat at a loss at what to say, but try to convince Caesar that the war is only just beginning and that they can still win yet. Caesar is still in a depressive mood and says that his enemies will use this defeat as another sign of weakness, and that things seem to be slipping away from him. He asks Labienus to leave, and the general does, leaving Marcus behind. He and Caesar talk some more, the frank personal talk culminating in Caesar getting an inspiration from one of Marcus’ comments on how he can defeat his enemy. When asked what it is, he says that it is not yet time to reveal it, and dismisses Marcus.

That same night in Gergovia, the whole of the town, both warrior and civilian, are rejoicing and celebrating their victory over the Romans. After toasting the triumph with Vercassivellaunus, Commius, and other leaders, Vercingetorix wanders back to his lodging where he finds Calanna waiting for him. The two have an emotional and loving reunion, and make love during the night. The next morning, he tells her that it is not safe for her so near to the army, and suggests that she go stay at the town of Alesia to the north until he returns. She agrees, reluctantly, and they bid farewell once again sadly.

The Romans are on the move, with Marcus leading elements of cavalry to pillage portions of Gaul. The main army with Caesar and Titus though is pushing north into the heart of the countryside, deeper into Gaul. Vercingetorix sees this and moves his army out to try and catch Caesar, but he is always one step behind. He decides to split his army into three parts. He will take half of it to Alesia to rest and resupply. Vercassivellaunus and Commius will split the other half into two pieces and melt into the countryside to keep an eye for Roman advances. Vercassivellaunus is also ordered to summon more Gauls to his army to replace losses they have suffered. After several days of marching Vercingetorix arrives at Alesia and his men lower their guard as they rest. Vercingetorix goes to Calanna and they talk about how their families in Northern Gaul are doing. Alesia is a walled town on a plateau, so it is easily defensible. However it is also easy to isolate.

When Caesar learns from scouts of Vercingetorix’s movements he is pleased, since the Gallic leader has done exactly what he hoped for. Caesar remarks to Marcus that while Vercingetorix is a great tactician and battlefield leader, he lacks a keen mind for strategy. Quickly gathering all of his army and commanders, Caesar forces a long and fast march to the town, which he surrounds during the night. The siege has begun. Upon waking from sleep with Calanna to see the town almost encircled, Vercingetorix sends out runners and messengers to reach other Gallic leaders and plead for aid. All but one are caught and killed, the one who escapes eventually making his way to the camp of Vercassivellaunus, who has reinforced his army to a large size. Vercassivellaunus sends a messenger to Commius with a rough plan for a joint assault on the Roman army to save Alesia before it succumbs to siege.

In Rome, the Senate has convened again to hear a report from Gaul, Pompey in the audience. The messenger was deliberately delayed by Caesar until he had arrived at Alesia, so that the news of the defeat at Gergovia is quickly pushed aside by the fact that the leader of the revolt and his army are trapped. The Senate’s mood is divided, with some thinking this will be a great triumph and others wondering if Caesar has bitten off more than he can chew. After hearing the report, the Senate is dismissed, and Pompey is called in to speak with several of the most prestigious Senators, who are concerned over what will happen if or when Caesar is victorious in Gaul, since it would make him the most revered person in Rome and could influence things across the whole Republic. The Senators plan to trump up charges of fiscal irresponsibility against Caesar if he returns to Rome, since Caesar will no longer have gubernatorial immunity or his army to protect him. After a brief discussion, they ask Pompey if he would be willing to lead the armies of the Senate in battle against Caesar if things ever came to war. Pompey is reluctant to think things will even come to war but promises to think things over.

Fall, 52 B.C.E. As the siege sets in, hunger and disease slowly begins to arrive in Alesia, striking both warrior and peasant. The Romans make a few probing attacks on the defenses but they are all easily repulsed. As time passes, Calanna herself is stricken with the sickness, and Vercingetorix can do nothing except helplessly stay by her side, give orders to secure the defensive lines, and wait for any support to come. In Caesar’s camp, the men are confident of victory, but word comes of two Gallic armies under Vercassivellaunus and Commius marching to save their brethren. Caesar is not alarmed, and says that soon they will destroy all of their foes in one single battle. Labienus is not so sure since while Caesar has committed his entire army, 60,000 men, to the siege, the Gauls, between the three armies soon to be in the area, will have more than double their numbers. Additionally, since the Romans are spread out in a circle around Alesia, they are spread thin and any one powerful attack could break the line, which could result in destroying the whole army. Caesar says that with the superior technology, experience, skill, and leadership of the Romans, they will prevail.

More days have passed in Alesia, and the suffering only increases for the people. But, that is not all that weighs on Vercingetorix. During the night, with him by her side, Calanna finally succumbed to the disease and passed away. After burying her with the help of some loyal warriors, he hears the sound of battle horns. Vercassivellaunus and Commius have arrived with their armies. Spurred from despair into rage and action, Vercingetorix rallies and marshals his men as his fellow Gauls do the same on the other side of the Roman lines, preparing for a double attack from around the entire Roman encirclement. Seeing this, Caesar readies his men and they await the potentially crushing attack from over a hundred thousand fierce warriors. And come it does, with tens of thousands of Gauls running in from both sides to attack the Roman lines, in a massive and vicious battle unmatched by any in the war so far. This is an epic battle that goes on for many minutes, cutting between the major characters of both sides to show them fighting fiercely and/or giving orders for new attacks.

With the Romans stretched to the breaking point, Caesar himself goes into battle with Marcus and Titus, yelling encouragements and throwing himself into the thick of the fighting to rally his men, and it works, spurring one legion in a tight spot to counterattack and crush a local assault, which then begins to unravel the entire Gallic strategy unit by unit. After hours of fighting, the Gauls are defeated, either scattering into the woods or being trapped again in Alesia. Vercassivellaunus, the man who would save Alesia, is killed in the battle. Commius however has managed to wrangle a good portion of the Gauls from both his and Vercassivellaunus’ forces and retreat in good order, though they don’t have the strength or will to attack again. As for Vercingetorix, he is beaten emotionally, his final gambit having failed with half of his men dead and his dear wife already perished from disease. With the siege continuing on and after learning from others that starvation will soon begin to wipe out the rest, there is only one choice before him: surrender. On the Roman side, Caesar walks among his men, who are battered and tired, but triumphant and who adore him. Caesar remarks to Marcus that these men would die for him at any moment, and he would do the same if it brings greatness to Rome.

The next morning, Caesar is awakened by a soldier who tells him of Vercingetorix’s arrival. As Caesar, Marcus, and Titus gather with other leaders of the army, the Gallic chieftain rides up to where they are. After exchanging some words with Caesar where a mutual respect for the other is shown, Vercingetorix throws down his weapons and armor at Caesar’s feet, the sign of surrender. After years of fighting, the war to conquer Gaul is finally over, and for men like Vercingetorix, they have lost everything. Caesar and Vercingetorix lay out terms for the surrender, in which all Gauls will be disarmed and Vercingetorix will remain a prisoner of Rome for the rest of his life. Vercingetorix says he prays it will be short, since he has lost all he has held dear. Caesar understands his meaning, having lost his first wife, and says that is a matter for the gods to decide. Almost all loose ends in Gaul are tied up except for one: Commius. Caesar sends Marcus out with a legion and instructions to resolve the matter “as he sees fit.” After Marcus leaves Caesar and Labienus talk, with Labienus wondering what Caesar will do now that Gaul is his. Caesar says that his governorship expires the following year, so what happens next depends on the Senate. Caesar’s mood towards the Senate concerns Labienus, especially when Caesar says he won’t let himself be condemned by “envious cowards.” Labienus speaks frankly and tells Caesar that if Caesar does anything rash, he cannot become part of it. Caesar is disappointed, but respects Labienus’ decision.

Marcus marches to the region Commius is encamped and has a parley with the Gaul. Marcus says that unlike the other Gallic leaders, Commius joined the revolt only because of a misjudgment by a Roman that caused him to think he was betrayed. Because of this, Marcus is prepared to let Commius go free instead of being imprisoned or executed, if Commius withdraws his tribe outside of Roman borders and gives hostages to Rome. Commius agrees and has a condition of his own: That he never has to see another Roman again in his lifetime. Marcus agrees to the condition and the agreement is formalized. As Marcus’ men march away, one of Commius’ subordinates says it is dishonorable that they have ended their fight against the Romans and not avenged their fallen comrades. Commius replies “Perhaps, but they are dead or enslaved now, and we are free.”

In Rome the Senate learns of Caesar’s victory and wonders what to do next. Pompey arranges for himself to be appointed sole consul for the coming year and suggests the time has come for Caesar to disband his army and return to Rome, since he would likely want to seek political office now. The hardline Senators agree on condition that if Caesar doesn’t disband his army he be declared an enemy of the people. Without their support the motion won’t pass, so Pompey agrees.

Marcus returns to Cisalpine Gaul (in what is now Northern Italy) to find Caesar alone. Marcus informs Caesar that the last holdouts have laid down their arms and Gaul is pacified. Caesar says that is good but is gloomy and when Marcus asks why Caesar says that Rome has given him an ultimatum that will condemn him either way he chooses. Marcus suggests brining in Labienus so the three can consult but Caesar replies “Titus is gone. He’s made his choice, and soon we must make ours.”

Pompey is awakened in the middle of the night by the arrival of Labienus. Labienus tells Pompey that Caesar fears prosecution by the Senate and will not give up power since it will expose him. Pompey says if that is the case then it will end up as civil war. He asks Labienus where he stands. Labienus is silent for a moment, and then says that although he greatly respects and admires Caesar, his loyalty is ultimately to the Republic, and Caesar disobeying the Senate threatens the Republic. Pompey sadly smiles and says he hopes the two of them can help defend it.

Sometime afterwards, Caesar and Marcus are riding south in Cisalpine Gaul and reach the Rubicon River, the boundary between Gaul and Roman Italy. On a hill overlooking it, Caesar says that he has decided to return to Rome and asks Marcus what he plans. Marcus says that since news has reached them of Pompey raising some forces with Labienus’ help, it wouldn’t be good for Caesar to go alone, so he will join Caesar. Caesar chuckles and says two men wouldn’t last long, so it is a good thing he brought some comrades with him, the camera panning up to reveal on the other side of the hill a legion of Caesar’s best troops. As the music starts to swell, Caesar comments that “with a roll of the die we gamble everything” and signals an aide, who blows a horn. This motivates the legion to start marching south towards the river. Caesar and Marcus ride down the hill, the camera having a scenic and panoramic look at the river below as the two generals and their army begin a march towards destiny.

Edited by 4815162342
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Sylvarius

Genre: CGI Animated/Fantasy

Voice Cast: Emma Watson (Selena), Michelle Pfeiffer (Queen Asyr), Anton Yelchin (Marcus), Alexis Denisof (Cobben), Stephen Dillane (Sylvarius), Michael Raymond-James (Frankel), Nolan Gould (Andrew), John Noble (King Julius)

Written By: Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Wyman

Music By: Jeremy Soule

Release Date: 3/21

Theater Count: 3588

Budget: $125 million

Running Time: 113 Minutes

MPAA Rating: PG for scenes of adventure peril, thematic elements, and some language

Plot Summary: The film is set in a fantasy world where there is a mix of magic and Industrial Revolution technology.

The nation of Lyandra lies in a temperate climate and stretches from the waters of the Balantine Ocean in the east to the edge of the Great Aeolian Forest of the west. Decades ago, the attempted expansion of Lyandra westward created a conflict with the guardian of the Forest, Sylvarius, and after some years of turmoil peace settled in, with any further expansion west banned. However in recent months, a strange plague never seen before has hit towns on the western edges of Lyandra, causing some to think that Sylvarius is planning to break the truce.

We meet Selena (Watson), a young woman of 18 years who lives in the town of Farah. We learn that her parents have taken ill with the plague, which while rarely fatal, in many cases makes the victims catatonic. Because of this she had to give up on going to the famous Danton University in the far south in order to stay home and care for her parents. She also has to deal with her younger brother Andrew (Gould), who is growing rebellious in the lack of parental presence. A few early scenes show her caring for her parents, interacting with townspeople, and trying to control Andrew’s behavior.

We briefly visit the capital city of Port Hyand and see at the royal palace a meeting of the King’s councilors. King Julius (Noble) is troubled by the news of the plague in the west and discontent among the smallfolk but is skeptical that Sylvarius would break the truce. His second wife, Queen Asyr (Pfeiffer) enters and persuades the council and Julius to instill more draconian measures to ready for possible war against the Aeolian Forest. It is clear Asyr wields great influence over Julius and we then see her meet with a henchman, Frankel (Raymond-James).

Selena spends time at the market getting goods for her family and sees a protest complaining of the monarchy doing nothing to help. A young man is observing from a corner. Guards break up the gathering and Selena has to duck into an alley. Leaving the alley she bumps into that young man (Yelchin), who apologizes, saying he’s new to the town. After a short conversation they are interrupted by a pair of thugs who want to take the man in for “questioning” and decide Selena is involved. This results in the young man knocking the two men out and leading Selena away. He avoids giving an explanation and says he should go. He hurries on his way and Selena goes home. Unknown to them both, two other men were following the man, and one follows her.

We see a grumbling magician, Cobben (Denisof), driving his hodgepodge steam-driven wagon down the road towards Farah. He grumbles to himself about the kingdom driving honest magicians out of work, forcing them to become wanderers. His pet hawk, Arryn, arrives with a note tied to a leg. Cobben reads it and comments he’s employed again.

After a bit of exposition Selena and Andrew have an argument where Selena berates Andrew for being a terrible, selfish little brother and Andrew storms out. Selena then leaves for another errand and discovers a small box with a note in a pocket in her travel cloak that wasn’t there the previous day. It’s written in a language she can’t read. She returns home to find it deserted. After frantically running around, she collapses and starts sobbing. Suddenly someone enters: Andrew, causing Selena to hug him and apologize for the things she said. Suddenly another person enters: Frankel. He tells them that their parents are being held hostage until Selena helps him with something: finding the young man. Andrew tells Selena to cooperate but Selena is reluctant so Frankel orders them taken outside. Outside the group is accosted by Cobben in his steam vehicle, using magic to disable the guards. He gets Selena and Andrew onto his vehicle and detonates a smoke bomb to cover its escape. Frankel orders pursuit on horseback and we get a chase scene with the steam wagon going fast enough for horses to have trouble catching it, and Cobben using various magic tricks to slow down the chasers, finally creating several illusions of the vehicle that go different ways at a crossroads, sending the chasers off the wrong way.

With the chase over, things settle down and Selena thanks Cobben, who introduces himself properly and explains things a bit. He says that many people in Lyandra think the country is going the wrong direction, but the leaders have to organize in secret. Selena was accidentally involved in the transfer of a message. Selena gives her note to Cobben and he looks a bit perplexed reading it. He refuses to say what it means, saying it is safer if Selena and her brother know less. We then learn that Cobben is a magician, who are rare in Lyandra. Cobben says he can take them to a safe place, but Selena says her and Andrew must find their parents, so Cobben agrees to help them but says the man who took them works for the Queen, so they’ll have to go to Port Hyand to learn more.

We see a scene between Asyr and Frankel. Frankel asks how much more is necessary until they can begin and Asyr says that soon things will reach a boiling point and people will demand action against the Great Aeolian Forest.

We see bits of Selena, Andrew, and Cobben travelling southeast towards Port Hyand, the magician using Arryn to send and receive messages. Eventually things between Selena and Andrew reach another boiling point and Andrew shouts that it’s all Selena’s fault. Selena holds back from shouting at Andrew but runs off to be alone in a glade. Soon Cobben finds her and sits with her to say he knows her and her brother are going through a rough time. Selena mentions her desire to go to Danton University and Cobben says a bit about his experiences there, saying it is a wonderful place of learning, and his hope that when this is over Selena can pursue her aspirations there since it is still rare for most people to get higher education.

At the royal palace King Julius talks with Asyr about his concerns. Julius says he is sure Sylvarius wouldn’t break the truce, but Asyr says that Sylvarius is like any other ruler and wants power and will take it from a weak king. Asyr says that Julius must show he is not weak.

Selena and company arrive in Port Hyand and Cobben says must find a leader of the dissenters. They go to a quiet inn and Cobben sends out Arryn to deliver a message. As they wait Cobben tells Selena that the writing on the messages he sends is Aelic, the language of the people who used to live in the Aeolian Forest. It’s an obscure language so it allows the leaders to communicate easily in secret. Arryn returns with a message to wait. Soon e a person arrives to meet them: The young man who bumped into Selena. She is furious, blaming him for getting her family involved. The young man, whose name is Marcus, is very sorry for what happened. He says that her parents are now in the custody of Asyr, the queen, being kept alive as leverage. Marcus pledges to Selena that he will do what he can to get her parents back safe and says she just needs to stay out of sight for now. Meanwhile Andrew, who has been watching from a corner, sneaks out of the room.

Selena goes to a reserved room in the inn. Eventually Marcus comes to talk to her and apologize again. Selena talks to him about her family and Marcus says that he never knew his mother and his father has gotten more distant as he aged. The talking has the two bond a bit when suddenly a crash is heard: Royal Police have forced their way into the inn. Cobben shoos Arryn out a window and shouts (not using names) for the other two to get out. Selena realizes Andrew is missing but there’s no time and Marcus has to half-drag her out a back exit. There, they are able to peek around and see Cobben dragged off in chains and see that Andrew has led the police there. Marcus says Andrew probably thought it’d be a way to get Asyr to return their parents. Selena understands but is disappointed. She is at a loss at what to do now and Marcus says he knows how they can keep an eye on both Andrew and Cobben.

That plan is to infiltrate the Royal Palace. Selena is to be disguised as a new serving girl since the palace is hiring a bunch at the moment. Marcus gives her advice on what to do and says he’ll have to use a different route but he’ll find her once they’re both inside. He goes and off and Selena follows his advice and soon gets admitted to the servants’ quarter of the palace where she is lodged with the other female servants.

Cobben is brought before Asyr, who tries to interrogate the magician but with little success. She gets bored and has him taken to a dungeon. Frankel is present and brings up how they caught Cobben (Andrew’s ratting him out to police) and Asyr is pleased, since it means Selena is in the city and her desire to save her family will eventually draw her and her helpers out. She tells Frankel that Andrew shall be treated well, since “good deeds deserve rewards.”

We see a couple short scenes of Selena integrating into palace servant life. Meanwhile Asyr pays Andrew a visit to thank him and he asks about his parents. Asyr says they are being treated for their condition and are fine, but until Selena turns herself in she can’t release them. Andrew complains about Selena getting the family into trouble and Asyr says Andrew can help save his family. Eventually Selena is tasked with being part of the serving detail for a big banquet. Julius and Asyr are present, and so is Marcus, introduced as Prince Marcus, Julius’ only child. Selena and Marcus briefly exchange glances of recognition. In a tense bit Selena deftly has to perform her job while avoiding the gaze of Asyr, who would likely know her from a description. We see Marcus interact with his family for the first time at the banquet and while he tries to be warm with his father, he is terse when talking to Asyr, who acts sweet in public.

Eventually the dinner ends and Selena returns towards her quarters but on the way Marcus intercepts her and pulls her to a secluded part of the castle to talk. She wants to know why he failed to mention he was the heir to Lyandra and he explains there was little time to explain things. After some arguing Marcus says Cobben is being kept in the dungeons and she will have to try to free him after he arranges for an easy access. He doesn’t know about her brother.

Meanwhile, Asyr and Julius talk and it seems Asyr has convinced the king to start preparing for war. The king makes a sad comment about how his first wife would despair about Sylvarius breaking the holy vow that bound the three of them. Asyr briefly looks confused, a detail she doesn’t understand. Later she talks to Frankel and says there are unknown variables.

Selena follows through on Marcus’ plan and enters the dungeons claiming to be bringing food and water. We see Cobben in his cell, thinking of ways he could try to escape but dismissing them all comically (each way gets more outlandish). Finally he says “maybe I’ll just try to open the door with my mind” and after a couple seconds of staring at the door it swings open…because Selena opened it with a key. She unchains him and helps him out the door. As they try to escape, they stumble upon a more comfortable room where Andrew is being kept. Selena is happy and tells Andrew to come with her, but instead Andrew says he has to save their parents and screams for the guards. Guards rush in and Cobben tries to do magic tricks but his being weak means they fail. Instead they are taken prisoner.

The two of them and Andrew are brought to a big reception room at the top of the palace, which has huge open-air windows. Asyr thanks Andrew and says that once Selena gives up her information his parents will be freed. Selena and Cobben refuse to talk but Asyr says Selena has no reason to stay silent since she can free her parents and go home. She wants to know who the leader of Cobben’s group is and she’ll use “nasty methods” if she has to. The two still refuse to talk so Asyr conjures magic to torture Cobben. Asyr considers torturing Selena, but instead says she’ll torture Andrew until Selena talks. Andrew freaks out and Frankel pins him as Asyr gets ready. Just before Asyr starts Selena says she’ll talk. Before she can say anything, suddenly Marcus appears. Marcus admits to being the one helping Cobben/Selena to spare them more punishment. Asyr is pleased and says Julius will be so disappointed to learn his son is a traitor and orders her guards to take him prisoner. As they close in Cobben tells Selena to stay low to the ground. Suddenly Marcus gets a strained look on his face and doubles over to fall on hands and knees. Asyr and Selena and Frankel look utterly confused as suddenly Marcus morphs into a griffin. Marcus’ wings beat away the nearby guards and Cobben fills the room with smoke. He whistles a short tune and then with Selena stays low as they go to Marcus. Cobben has her climb on, she sees Andrew and calls for him to come over but he is reluctant, so Cobben grabs him and drags him over. As they climb on Asyr uses a spell to clear up the smoke and as Marcus’ form leaps into the air she readies a spell to shoot at it, but suddenly she is dive-bombed by Arryn, who tears a gash on a cheek and distracts her long enough for Marcus to get out of her sight. Arryn is not so lucky and receives a fatal blast of electricity. Cobben senses it and closes his eyes as he, Selena, and Andrew are carried into the countryside on Marcus’ back.

At the palace, Asyr informs Julius that his son is a traitor, mixing truth with lies to convince the king that his son is working for Sylvarius to overthrow him. The news rattles Julius and he says he couldn’t believe that the peace he made would result in his own undoing, but the strain makes him unwell and he secludes himself, leaving things fully in Asyr’s hands. Asyr tells Frankel that they must accelerate their plans.

After enough flying, Selena and Andrew finally have enough and demand that Marcus land. Marcus lands in a wooded patch. Selena, Andrew, and Cobben get off and Marcus’ form walks out of sight into the woods. Selena asks why and Cobben says that when Marcus transformed it ripped all of his human clothes off meaning when he transforms back…and Selena and Andrew understand. There is a light moment with Marcus back as a human hiding behind a tree as Selena tries to talk to him while Cobben and Andrew look for clothes. Marcus answers some of her questions, saying he first found out he could shapeshift about six months earlier. Selena asks how he can do it and Marcus pokes his head out from behind the tree to say he doesn’t know; only that Cobben has helped him control it since they met. He says Cobben knows the most and it’s probably time for him to explain everything.

Cobben and Andrew return with clothes, Cobben saying Andrew is pretty good at fitting through small windows in unattended homes, and everyone then gathers around a campfire. After urging by Selena and Marcus, Cobben agrees to explain what he knows:

He says that Asyr is planning to start a war against the Great Aeolian Forest so it can be destroyed and she can gain its power for herself. She has used dark magic to manufacture the mysterious plague to make people afraid of it again. Asyr belongs to a family whose ancestors were powerful magic-users who wanted to dominate the world, but had to conquer the places in the world strongest in magic to do so. So they instigated the original war against the Aeolian Forest but underestimated Sylvarius’ power, so the war raged for decades. Asyr wants to finish what her ancestors started. The conversation then turns to Marcus and his ability to shapeshift into a griffin and Cobben says he should have told Marcus this when they first met, but he didn’t since sometimes the truth is a burden. He says that to answer, he has to tell a story.

(The following bit is shown in traditional 2-D animation instead of CGI, with Cobben’s narration): Twenty years ago, the war was still raging and Julius had just been crowned king. He went to war and one day was separated from his men after an attack by forest creatures. He got lost and was injured in another attack but was saved by a beautiful woman near the border of the forest. The woman healed his injuries and explained that she was a guardian of the forest like Sylvarius, but she thought there was a chance for peace and wanted to learn more about the human world. Julius arranged for her to return to Port Hyand with him and as she learned more about humanity the two of them fell in love. At this point the woman revealed that she was not just a guardian like Sylvarius, she was Sylvarius’ daughter. She asked Julius to come with her to her father, so she could plead for peace. Julius agreed and she brought him to the heart of the Forest to meet her father. Though Sylvarius believed humans could not be trusted, his daughter convinced him that violence was no longer the way, and he and Julius consented to peace, bound by their love for her. Julius took the woman home as his wife but soon she got pregnant and died in childbirth, birthing a son.

The news surprises everyone else and Cobben says that he knows all this because the story had a witness: himself, who was befriended by Marcus’ mother years before when he was a child. She asked him to do whatever he could to ensure the peace stayed, but now he fears it will end since Sylvarius is stirring in the forest again and with Asyr’s actions he will certainly go to war. All of this news proves to be too much for Marcus and he gets up and wanders off. After a minute, Selena decides to follow him.

She finds him sitting against a tree trunk, looking confused and lost, and she sits down next to him. He says he now feels overwhelmed after having all that info dumped on him and Selena says she felt the same way after being whisked into this crazy adventure. The two talk for a bit and it becomes clear that they are growing closer together. Meanwhile we get a light moment with Cobben and Andrew with Cobben demonstrating a few minor tricks to Andrew and he says that anyone can do some magic tricks since the most basic elements of magic have to do with human intelligence and concentration. Andrew is eager to try a trick out and Cobben gives him instructions, but when Andrew attempts it it humorously backfires.

Selena and Marcus return from the woods and Marcus says he’s ready to continue on. Cobben nods and says that since Asyr is likely going to start the final steps of her plan, they have to go to the one being who can fully stop her: Sylvarius.

We see Asyr in her private quarters. She is meditating. Frankel appears and says the first units are prepared to invade the forest. He says they will likely be slaughtered. Asyr says that is the point, since their invasion will provoke Sylvarius to retaliate, and the whole country will be behind the war when he strikes back. She says it is time for her to go to the frontier.

We see a short scene with Selena and Andrew talking and he apologizes for ratting them out earlier since he was desperate to get their parents back. After a couple short traveling scenes we see the heroes arriving at a hill overlooking part of the Great Aeolian Forest. They see that pieces of the Forest are on fire and there are sounds of battle. Cobben uses a mix of magic and ingenuity to craft a telescope and looks through it. He says that royal soldiers are setting fire to the forest but some are running away in terror. He also sees strange steam machines emitting a strange smog into the air. Cobben says the forest has many defenses that they can’t pass on foot, meaning they’ll have to fly in, which makes Marcus sigh. Andrew tells him to cheer up since they stocked up on extra clothes.

They fly on Marcus’ griffin body into the forest. Cobben tells Selena and Andrew that it may be difficult to convince the forest’s protectors they mean no harm, but in no event can they act hostile. After a little flying he tells Marcus to land in a clearing. As Marcus is changing behind cover Cobben says they don’t have far to go. But after he says that forest creatures begin to emerge from the clearing. Some are plain old wolves, bears, etc, but others are more fantasy-oriented versions of forest predators. Cobben pulls Selena and Andrew close as he casts a protective force field. The predators are warded off for the moment, but then bigger, more magical creatures show up that use brute force to break down the barrier, which finally collapses. As the creatures come in closer Marcus suddenly appears and calls for the creatures to stop. One of the big ones, an ogre-like thing, walks towards him, but flinches away at the last second. The forest creatures thus slowly back away into the woods. Andrew asks what happened and Selena guesses that they recognized that Marcus has some of the forest guardians in him. Cobben surmises they should be left alone as they proceed further.

Going on memory, Cobben finally leads them to a wondrous grove of trees, flowers, etc where a middle-aged man is…gardening. The man is tending to the plants and ignores the others as they approach until finally Cobben addresses the man as “Sylvarius.” Sylvarius (Dillane) comments that he remembers Cobben from a long time ago and asks why they have come. Marcus says they need his help. Sylvarius asks why he should help humans when their own kind is once again destroying nature for power and Marcus replies “because I’m not just human, I’m your grandson.” Sylvarius stops his gardening and turns to look. “You have his eyes” he says “but her courage.” He says it is too late, this time he won’t have peace until the humans truly learn their lesson. He says that when humans intentionally inflict plague and other horrors on their own people, can they be a species worth trusting, or saving? Selena says that he doesn’t believe that. If he did, he wouldn’t have been convinced by his daughter. Sylvarius says that he loved his daughter and for her sake he agreed to peace, but now he wonders if it was a mistake. He says that humans are already baiting him to strike back. He says that when he does, those humans will use it to turn the entire country against him, and then there will be no other option but to fight. Selena then says he shouldn’t fall for the bait. Sylvarius snaps back that he is the Guardian of the Forest, the avatar of its spirit and protector of its plants and creatures. If he does nothing, then countless of them will perish, so eventually he MUST respond or he will be betraying his purpose. He tells the heroes that they may stay for protection and stalks out of the grove.

Asyr arrives near the border of the forest, near a collection of the strange steam machines. We learn that they are emitting a special poison into the air that when blown west will contaminate the forest and kill off the plant life. Asyr has used her magic to make it even more toxic and says that Sylvarius will have to show himself unless he wants his forest to sicken and die. We also learn that the toxin was the original source for the plague.

Back in the capital, Julius is still sulking, with Frankel keeping an eye on him for Asyr. Julius is looking at a locket with a picture of his dead first wife and cries. However looking at it also seems to give him a resolve and when he learns that Asyr has summoned the royal army westward, he manages to sneak out of the palace and makes his way west. When Frankel discovers this he gets nervous and rides west also to let Asyr know.

We see Sylvarius tending to a plot of blue flowers when Marcus approaches. Sylvarius says that his daughter loved these blue flowers and he maintains this special plot of them to remind himself of her. Marcus says he never knew his mother, but he knew how much his father loved her. He says that grief paralyzed his father and allowed a few wicked people to put things in the wrong direction. Sylvarius, sad, says that humans are always seeking to be “better”, but that always leads to them destroying what they should cherish. Marcus says it doesn’t always have to be like that and asks his grandfather to give him a chance to prove that. Sylvarius gives a nod.

Cobben, Selena, and Andrew are talking when Marcus returns and says Sylvarius will help, but first they must do something. He says that Asyr’s people have constructed machines that will poison big areas of the forest and they have to sabotage them, since Sylvarius’ strength is tied to the health of the forest. Marcus tells Cobben to come with him but Selena and Andrew to stay. Andrew is fine with staying since he’s a kid, but Selena objects. Cobben points out that she doesn’t know how to fight or use magic but Selena insists that she can still help. The two after some hesitation agree to let her come.

Frankel arrives at Asyr’s location and informs her about Julius getting loose. Asyr is momentarily annoyed but then tells Frankel that if Julius is discovered he has to be captured immediately before he can discover the truth and use his status as king to order the forces to stand down.

Selena, Marcus, and Cobben make their way to the edge of the forest and notice that the fringes of it are starting to perish. It’s getting dark but they see the encampment with the strange machines. Cobben uses magic to summon a fog that will help conceal them. They sneak into the camp, avoiding guards, and Cobben is able to inspect one of the machines. He says it’s steam-driven technology but enhanced with strong magic. He figures out how to disable the machines and tells Marcus and Selena how and they split up. They disable most of them but a guard eventually discovers Marcus and sounds the alarm. In the scramble the three try to escape but Selena is surrounded. Marcus tries to rush to get her but she yells for him to get away and Cobben has to drag Marcus away.

In the countryside, Julius is riding on horseback incognito when he stumbles across a patrol of soldiers. The soldiers are led by Frankel and he recognizes the king. Frankel says Julius’ wife is expecting him and offers to escort him to her. Julius agrees since he has no other option.

Selena is brought before Asyr, who says all she did is force her hand. Selena says Asyr is crazy and greedy for power, which Asyr agrees to since she is doing what her ancestors tried to do and failed. She says Selena is very persistent and strong for a common girl. She says Marcus will come back to save her, and that will be his undoing. Frankel then suddenly arrives with Julius and Julius tries to confront his wife, saying that he was wrong about Sylvarius and that she is forcing him to break the peace with her bad actions. Asyr smiles, tells the king he is “unwell” and has guards take him away. She tells Selena it appears she holds all the cards now and she should pray that Marcus cares more about some silly forest god than her or his father.

Marcus and Cobben return to the grove. They find that Andrew has accidentally and comically gotten himself adopted by a small pack of coyotes. Cobben goes to tell him about Selena’s capture while Marcus goes to find Sylvarius. He tells Sylvarius about what happened and that he has to go back for Selena. Sylvarius understands Marcus’ feelings and says Asyr will be forced to move against him more openly, which will mean battle. He says in the midst of that Marcus may have his chance to save those he cares about.

After a couple minutes showing preparations by either side, it’s time for the showdown. We see that Cobben has managed to create an elastic backpack that will stay on Marcus’ back when he shifts and allows him to carry a change of clothes with him. Asyr details Frankel to keep an eye on the prisoners. She uses the remaining steam machines in a magical burst to send a wave of toxins into the forest that instantly kills a lot of plant life, making it dry. She then uses magic to create a firebomb that explodes in the dead wood, creating an inferno. This sudden and terrible attack causes a horde of forest creatures to rush out to attack, though Sylvarius isn’t seen yet. In the chaos, Marcus flies overhead carrying Cobben and Andrew and lands in the back of the encampment unnoticed. After shifting back into human form and clothed, Marcus says he’ll take Andrew and find Selena and asks Cobben to do what he can to weaken Asyr’s plans.

Marcus and Andrew go look for Selena, Marcus knocking out a guard to take his weapons. They find Selena and Marcus subdues her guards. He unties her and the two embrace. Selena tells Marcus that his father is here too as a prisoner. Meanwhile we see Cobben using magic tricks to cause distractions, obscure the vision of Asyr’s troops, and other tactics to reduce the ability of her forces to fight well. Sylvarius finally shows himself and he uses nature magic to use the ground itself against the enemy, opening up large pits in the ground that Asyr’s soldiers fall into. Asyr confronts him and the two become engaged in a magic duel, the vast amount of destruction fueling Asyr’s power.

After more searching, Marcus locates the tent holding his father, but Frankel is guarding it and he engages Marcus in a swordfight as Selena and Andrew hold back. As they fight, Cobben goes to sabotage the remaining poison machines and as he gets to the last one he looks like he gets an idea. Back at the swordfight, Frankel gets the upper hand and knocks Marcus down. He taunts Marcus but then Selena rushes forward, grabbing a shovel, and whacks Frankel in the head to knock him out. Marcus thanks her and they impulsively kiss though immediately both feel awkward, especially after Andrew comments that there’s a battle going on right now. Marcus goes to untie his father, who profusely apologizes for not seeing the woman Asyr is. Marcus forgives him and asks Andrew to take Julius to a safe spot. Marcus and Selena then go to find Cobben.

The magic duel between Asyr and Sylvarius continues and the destruction of some of the forest has weakened the guardian, so Asyr is gaining the upper hand. Marcus and Selena find Cobben, who says that he can manipulate the toxin so instead of draining life, it drains magic. He says that it can be used against Asyr to substantially weaken her, but they need to get close. Marcus says he can do that in griffin form. Selena wants to go with him but Cobben says she needs to help him with another plan. Cobben gives Marcus a vial of the altered toxin and Marcus shifts and flies up into the air. Cobben tells Selena to quickly give him a hand with turn the machine over on its side. After they do that Cobben begins use magic to rearrange the parts in some order.

In the duel, Asyr has knocked Sylvarius down and seems to be close to winning. But then suddenly she senses something and turns to blast a shape with lightning. It’s Marcus and the result is that his attempt with the toxin fails and he is hurt. Asyr laughs and taunts both Marcus and Sylvarius. This gives Cobben and Selena time to use his backup plan: a steam cannon made from the machine that will shoot aerosolized toxin at her. She notices this too late and the two fire the cannon and the blast of steam hits her and immediately Asyr begins shaking and screaming and as she tries to use one last bit of magic Sylvarius hits her weakened body with magic that sends her tumbling into a deep crevice in the Earth and she falls to her doom.

Selena rushes to Marcus’ side as Marcus shifts back. She covers him with a blanket and comforts him. With Asyr dead her forces lose heart and run away and Sylvarius calls the forest creatures back into the woods. Julius appears with Andrew and he goes to his son’s side and is told by Cobben that Marcus will recover. Sylvarius then approaches Julius and Julius, remorseful, says he was so struck with grief for nearly 20 years that he failed to notice his own people working against him. Sylvarius looks at Marcus, Selena, and the others and tells Julius that for a time he lost faith in humanity, but the efforts of a few have reminded him of why his daughter had it. It seems that the peace forged two decades earlier will be maintained.

We see a montage of short scenes showing some results. With Asyr gone, her officials beg for mercy and reveal the location of where she kept prisoners, including Selena and Andrew’s parents. Cobben discovers the toxin is linked to the earlier plague and with the aid of Sylvarius’ powerful magic is able to remake it into a cure that heals both its human and plant victims. This causes a joyful reunion with Selena and Andrew and their parents. Julius, realizing his failings, makes Marcus his co-ruler. And Sylvarius returns to his grove in the heart of the forest where he silently tends the plot of blue flowers.

With the dust settled, Cobben says he will be staying by the Aeolian Forest to act as an intermediary between Sylvarius and the kingdom to promote peace. In a private talk with Selena he says she’s shown how any person can do great things if they put their heart and mind into it. He reminds her that she must follow her dreams so she can make her whole life complete. Later she meets with Marcus, who will be returning to the capital. He invites Selena and her family to come with him, saying they can have a rich life there and he and her could spend more time together. Selena, after thinking, says she cares for Marcus a lot, but she can’t go with him. She says she has dreamed of going to Danton University for so long and now that her parents are healed, she finally has the chance. Marcus understands and says she’ll do wonderful there. She gives him a sad kiss, and Marcus walks away. Selena returns to Andrew and her parents and they have a nice family moment together, though Selena is sad.

The film moves a little forward in time and we see Julius and Marcus in the royal palace working together to rule the country, though Marcus looks out into space. We also see Cobben on his rickety steam wagon traveling on a road, being humorously harassed by an owl. Eventually it perches above him on the wagon and stares at him. “I’m going to need to think of a name for you” he says to it.

We finally see Selena and her family are at the train station near Farah with her about to take her trip south to Danton University for the start of the next term. Her parents and Andrew hug her goodbye and she gets on the train. It chugs south and she relaxes in a seat by a window, lost in thought as she looks out it. Suddenly she straightens up and looks intensely out the window, then she leans back again with a smile as we then see what she saw: A griffin in the distance flying south parallel with the train.

Edited by 4815162342
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Call of Duty: Of Their Own Accord

Genre: Action/War/Thriller

Cast: Luke Evans (Soap MacTavish), Sean Bean (Captain Price), Richard Madden (Gary “Roach” Sanderson), Diego Luna (James Ramirez), Konstantin Khabenskiy (Vladimir Makarov), Til Schweiger (Nikolai), Nikolaj Lie Kaas (Yuri), David Oakes (Ghost), and Michael Biehn (General Shepard)

Directed By: Paul Greengrass

Release Date: 5/16

Theater Count: 3988 Theaters

Running Time: 140 minutes

Budget: $150 million

MPAA Rating: R for graphic scenes of war violence and pervasive language

Previous Film’s Gross: 94.03 OW/261.28 DOM/449.6 WW

Plot Summary:

Five years have passed since the previous film. Despite the efforts of the United States, British, and Russian loyalists, the Ultranationalists have seized control of Russia and have declared Imran Zakhaev a hero and martyr. We are introduced to General Shepherd (Biehn), who in a meeting with high-ranking members of the U.S. and British militaries talks about the new Ultranationalist regime in charge. We learn that Vladimir Makarov (Khabenskiy), who was Zakhaev’s #2 man, has formed a splinter paramilitary group that has cells all over Europe and Central Asia and is committed to terror acts against the West. Shepherd is given clearance to create a multi-national task force to bring down Makarov. The force is called “Task Force 141.” The various leaders say they need to learn more about Makarov’s plans and Shepherd says he has flipped a guy on the inside.

We’re introduced to Yuri (Lie Kaas), a thirty-something ex-Spetsnaz officer now working for the Ultranationalists as an aide to Makarov. Makarov is sequestered in a bunker somewhere in Russia and says he is making plans that will finally shift the balance of power in the world. He has several operations going on at once and for security reasons Yuri and other assistants know little about ones they aren’t directly involved in. Yuri is tasked to escort Makarov to a meeting with several Russian military leaders who support his cause. Yuri is excused from the meeting but hears a couple tidbits before he goes about obtaining massive cargo airplanes and jet fighter deployments. After he leaves we learn a little more, mainly that many Russian leaders are willing to follow Makarov’s plans, but the country needs a spark first. Makarov says he will give them far more than that. Later we see Yuri using a special satellite uplink that connects him to Shepherd and he gives him information about Makarov’s plans, saying that Makarov is planning something big. Yuri also says he has learned of high-value materials being held at a Russian airbase in Kazakhstan. Shepherd says he’ll put his best men on it right away.

Those men belong to the 141, the group led by Captain Soap MacTavish (Evans). We’re introduced to a handful of other members in Soap’s squad: Gary “Roach” Sanderson (Madden), a younger recruit to the task force who Soap sees as having big potential, James Ramirez (Luna), on temporary loan from Delta Force, and Ghost (Oakes), the tech and communications expert. We’re given some time to ease into their characters with some banter and personal talk, and then it’s time for a mission. They are helicoptered to the Tian Shan Mountains to retrieve an ACS (Attack Characterization System) module that an Ultranationalist cell stole from a U.S. base in Western Europe. We learn that the ACS module connects into the U.S.’s early warning system of radar nets and sonar buoys so if someone can crack it they can hack the early warning system. After some scaling of ice cliffs near the airbase boundary the team splits up into two groups: Soap and Roach in one, Ramirez and Ghost in the other. They use stealth to kill several guards as they sweep the airbase for the ACS module. Eventually Soap and Roach locate it, but are cornered by a platoon of Russian soldiers. Fortunately Ghost and Ramirez cause a diversion by exploding a fuel dump, which causes secondary explosions across the base. Soap and Roach are able to avoid their trap and reunite with the other pair and the two locate a pair of snowmobiles to escape on. This begins an exciting chase as the two good guy snowmobiles are pursued by several Russian ones with gunshots exchanged. A few of the enemy vehicles are taken out but things look grim until Soap orders his men to jump their vehicles over a gorge. The crazy maneuver works and their evac helicopter picks them up after driving off the remaining enemy troops. As they fly off Soap radios Shepherd to say they got the ACS and he hopes the Russians weren’t able to crack it before they got to the airbase.

Back at their regroup center Ramirez gets orders to return to the U.S. where he’ll be stationed at Quantico with a Delta Force unit for the near future. He bids Soap and the others farewell and departs. Soap and Ghost rib Roach a bit over some rookie slipups he had and when Roach gets a bit irritated Soap calms him down and says he was a rookie once too. He says he made it out okay because he had a good commander and when Roach asks what happened to him Soap quietly says “he’s gone now.”

We see Makarov making more plans, this time talking to the commander of the Russian Northern Fleet about plans to take the entire fleet on an “exercise” in the North Atlantic. The admiral agrees to the plan and says it would be good if he could “simulate” amphibious operations. Makarov then returns to one of his hideouts, a dacha in the Russian Caucasus. There he makes plans about assembling a team of his best men for the mission that will start the next phase of his plan. Yuri is there and is picked as one of the men, though he knows nothing about the mission’s goals. He does learn that Makarov has obtained some American soldiers as prisoners though Yuri knows no other details. He is torn over what to do since we learn in a conversation via satellite phone with Shepherd that while he agrees with Makarov that strengthening Russia is crucial, Makarov’s methods are getting worrisome. Shepherd advises him to stay close to Makarov and do what is asked of him, since he is providing key intel.

We then see Shepherd meeting with Soap and a few other 141 leaders to talk about progress. We learn that the ACS is back in safe hands. Shepherd says that Makarov is planning something big soon but they have little knowledge of what it’ll be. Soap says that they’ve spent too much time trying to figure out what Makarov is trying to do and not enough using other methods to track down his assets. Weaken Makarov’s support and he’ll have less room to hide in. Shepherd agrees with the plan and Soap says he’ll start checking his contacts.

We see Ramirez arriving at Quantico and he joins Delta Force Team Metal, where he is second in command under Sandman. Other members are Foley, Truck, and Grinch. They all get acquainted and Ramirez is looking forward to some downtime.

Yuri joins Makarov on his mission and after traveling in a sealed van to a parking garage learns that Makarov is planning a massacre of citizens at the Zakhaev International Airport in Moscow. Yuri realizes he can’t stay silent and confronts Makarov, saying that the plan is wrong. Makarov replies that it’s actually just what the country needs and says he’s found out that Yuri is not one of his men anymore. Makarov shoots Yuri in the gut. Makarov says Yuri was a friend and that this betrayal hurts him. As Yuri bleeds out Makarov and his other men grab assault weapons, put on ski masks, and Makarov says “No Russian.” They quickly move out to an elevator and we see Yuri struggling to survive, crawling and stumbling his way in the same direction, exiting the elevator onto the main floor to find chaos, dozens of civilians dead or wounded along with security guards and Makarov’s men shooting indiscriminately in the distance. Yuri grabs a security officer’s gun to try and stop the massacre but his wound overcomes him and he collapses as additional security personnel arrive. We follow Makarov and his men some more as they ruthlessly gun down dozens of people and eventually escape through a maintenance corridor where a van is waiting. Makarov takes the pair of American prisoners he has from the back and shoots them in the loading dock. The rest of his team climbs into the van and Makarov joins them, saying that “now Russia must respond.”

We see news reports on the airport massacre and learn that the two Americans were special forces people and their presence has led most Russians to believe that the U.S. was behind the terror attack that killed well over a hundred civilians. We see Soap’s team reacting to the news, all of them thinking that Makarov is behind this somehow. Ghost says that until they find proof implicating Makarov the word is going to be pissed at the U.S. Soap comes into the room to let them know that a friend of his has tracked an arms dealer who sells guns to Makarov to the slums of Rio de Janeiro and they need to move quick to get there before the dealer disappears.

We see the Russian high command debating what to do about the airport massacre. President Vorshevsky is unsure and everyone is stalled. Suddenly Makarov storms into the conference room with several military men and says what he is about to say is for all of Russia. He begins a speech where he says that for 25 years the West has done its best to trample on Mother Russia and inflict humiliations and dishonor upon it. He says that the West will never stop interfering with Russia’s development and that they killed Zakhaev, the martyr of the new government, simply because he chose to defy them. Makarov says that the airport massacre is only the latest step in Western domination and they will continue until Russia shows them the cost of their evils. Stirred by the speech the whole Politburo and military command cheer and shout for justice. Vorshevsky, reluctant, is also swept along eventually. He says that it is Russia’s duty to protect its people and the U.S.-led massacre was an act of war.

Soap and his team arrive in Rio where they are met by an old friend of Soap’s: Nikolai (Schweiger), who will be providing helicopter insertion and extraction. Soap lays out the plan where Roach and Ghost will take most of the team to flush out the dealer, Rojas, at which point Soap and Nikolai will spring a trap. Soap sends his team off to begin prepping and talks with Nikolai about recent events and other stuff. Nikolai says that Captain Price would be proud of the man Soap has become.

The plan is executed with Roach and Ghost leading an ambush of Rojas’ men that kills many of them and has Rojas flee on foot, with some local militia giving him cover. After a tense run-and-gun chase Rojas is cornered and Soap tackles him out a first-floor window to secure him. They quickly evacuate to a rooftop where Nikolai picks them all up in a helicopter. As they fly off Soap tells Rojas that the quicker he cooperates, the easier it’ll go for him.

Makarov’s plan is now put into action, as Russia, motivated to act, utilizes the ACS, which we learn it did crack, to sabotage the U.S. early warning system. This allows them to fly hundreds of commandeered jetliners and military cargo planes from quickly seized airbases in Canada into the U.S., where paratroopers begin dropping over the D.C. metro area as the cargo planes land at Dulles airport, Ronald Reagan airport, and BWI airport and begin unloading hordes of troops and combat vehicles. America is caught with its pants down. The U.S. government is able to flee D.C. to the north and while regrouping realize that the Russians aren’t planning to conquer, but instead to just thoroughly embarrass the U.S. government and military. Since it will take hours, days to mobilize the divisions needed to fully crack the Russian assault, the D.C. area’s only defense will be scattered military bases in Maryland and Virginia and their occupants, along with local National Guard units.

Thus we see Ramirez and his team scrambled for action and they join a convoy of Marines heading north from Quantico. Their mission is to retake Dulles airport and stop one of the landing zones for Russian forces. The armored convoy runs into a fierce battle a couple miles south in the Centreville/Chantilly area and Ramirez’s unit is forced to infiltrate the rest of the way on foot. After securing a perimeter near the border of the airport, they are able to call in a precise artillery bombardment that causes heavy losses for the Russians and craters the runways, the result being that no more landings can be made, as shown by a Russian cargo jet attempting to land but losing control due to the craters, spinning off the runway, flipping over, and then exploding. The lack of reinforcements from this area allows the Americans to retake Dulles, but that is just one of 3 Russian landing zones and the other 2 are funneling lots of men into D.C. Plus there are reports that a large Russian fleet is approaching the Eastern Seaboard. D.C. has to be secured before it arrives. While his unit rests and rearms, Ramirez uses the downtime to talk with Sandman, Grinch, and others about the current situation and their fears for friends or loved ones.

Soap and Ghost interrogate Rojas and learn that the man Makarov hates the most is locked up in a gulag on the Kamchatka Peninsula in Eastern Siberia. Soap figures the man can be bait for Makarov and takes the info to Shepherd, who approves. Shepherd talks to the U.S. Joint Chiefs and they approve for a naval and air assault on Russian naval and airbases on the Siberian coast as part of a counterattack. During the confusion Soap’s team will assault the gulag. At their staging area Soap bids farewell to Nikolai, who says that he will be returning to Russia to talk with friends who oppose the current war and see what h can learn.

After being flown to a U.S. fleet in the Pacific, it motors through the ocean towards a strike point. It’ll take some time before it’s in position to attack so the 141 uses the time to try and let off some steam, with some drinks, some friendly competition in games, etc. We learn some about Roach’s background, his motivation for joining Special Forces, whereas Ghost remains playfully enigmatic. Soap meanwhile has a talk with Shepherd, who reminds Soap of the time they first met five years ago. Shepherd asks Soap how far he’d go to stop Makarov and Soap replies “pretty damn far, though there’s a line out there.” Shepherd nods and says he hopes one of them doesn’t find it before the other.

Back in the D.C. metro area, Ramirez’s unit receives orders to proceed into D.C. itself and help retake the downtown area by the National Mall, which is a no man’s land currently. Sandman informs the men that the Russians have sent an amphibious force up into the Chesapeake Bay, which will reach the Potomac River in a couple hours. The main Russian fleet’s location is unknown. Sandman says that securing the National Mall is critical or D.C. will fall. After some character moments where Ramirez talks a bit about his time with the 141 the unit is moved out to the east.

In the Pacific it is go-time. As fighters, submarines, and frigates launch missile strikes against various Russian targets, the 141 launches a helicopter assault on the gulag. Soap sends Roach and Ghost to secure the security control room which they do. They use it to locate the area where their target is and Soap takes the rest of his men to that cell. After some fighting they reach it and upon breaking into the cell Soap discovers that the prisoner…is Captain Price, presumed dead for five years after Zakhaev died. Soap bearhugs Price out of joy and Price, weary but ready, says there can be reunion time later. Soap gives Price a weapon and his team fights their way out into the prison courtyard where they reunite with Ghost and Roach. They are evacuated by helicopter just as a missile strike flattens the gulag.

Back at the fleet, Price is formally welcomed back into the land of the living by Soap, Shepherd, and the others and he explains that he was barely alive but was saved by Russian doctors. However Makarov had men kidnap him from the hospital and fake his death. Makarov then tossed him into the gulag to rot away for the rest of his life. Soap says Makarov will now pay for making the mistake of leaving Price alive. Price says he expects Makarov will figure that out very soon.

Speaking of Makarov, we finally see him again in his dacha from before, getting reports of the Russian punitive strike as well as the U.S. counterattacks. Makarov isn’t concerned about the overall success of the Russian attack since he says its main purpose is to weaken the U.S. military’s capability so they can’t intervene successfully in the next step. However when he learns of the attack on the gulag he flies into a rage as it was unexpected. He demands to know if Price is alive or dead but none of his aides know the answer. Makarov says that he can’t let things turn against him now.

Elsewhere in Russia, Yuri wakes up to find that he is in a hospital bed and is told by a doctor that he’d been in a coma for a short time due to shock and blood loss. He is too weak to be released but apparently people think he is just another civilian wounded in the airport attack. Yuri sees on the news that Russia and the U.S. are at war and gets upset since he realizes how far Makarov has gone. We then see him get a visitor, Nikolai. Nikolai says he had friends look through known associates of Makarov and through some keen background research he discovered Yuri’s existence. Yuri says he tried to stop Makarov at the airport. Nikolai nods and says Yuri’s future depends on how willing he is to continue trying to stop Makarov.

Back in the U.S., we see Ramirez’s unit in the subway system of D.C., a portion of which is an underground command center for U.S. forces in the downtown sector. Sandman tells Ramirez and the others that they need to secure the Department of Commerce building so they can cover the evac zones. The unit moves out and up of the tunnels right into the middle of the National Mall, which is a major war zone. We see several iconic buildings such as the Capitol Building, the Washington Monument, and the Lincoln Memorial, all substantially damaged. Sandman has his team move out with some tank support and we see some intense urban warfare as Ramirez leads his squad to the entrance to the Commerce Building and inside, where they neutralize Russian soldiers. Eventually they get to the roof and clear out the snipers there and we learn that the Russian reinforcements from the Chesapeake Bay have arrived and are turning the tide against the U.S. forces, which are still trying to mobilize. Ramirez and Sandman get into a helicopter and provide air support for the evacuations, but they are shot down. Them and the other survivors of their unit and the chopper crew have to dig in as they are soon surrounded on all sides by Russian forces.

Back at the U.S. fleet in the Pacific, Price and Soap meet with Shepherd, who tells them about the iffy situation in D.C. He says that before they can really pay the Russians back they have to clean their own house first. Price says he has a plan to quickly end the Russian assault, but it’s a bit extreme. Shepherd asks Soap what he thinks and Soap says Price’s plan is crazy, but it’s the best shot they have. Shepherd says that right now extreme methods might be their only choice and says “Start talking.”

We jump to Roach and Ghost being dropped off by helicopter in the forest beyond the Rybachiy naval base, along with a squad of the 141. Soap and Price have been dropped off elsewhere with their own team. The plan is for them to infiltrate the naval base, establish a secure control point, and hold the line while the team secures a Russian ballistic missile submarine that is docked there. Roach and Ghost lead their squad, with a bit of banter between them, and they succeed in infiltrating the edge of the base. At that point they get orders to “go loud” and they blow up a fuel dump with a rocket launcher. Everything then goes haywire as they push towards a central hub of the base, shooting all resistance, and they get radio reports that Soap’s team is doing the same. Eventually the two teams reunite at their first objective and Soap tells Roach to go with Price and secure the submarine. Roach and Price dash to the docked submarine while Soap and Ghost coordinate a defense of their control point. The submarine has only a skeleton crew so Roach and Price easily take down the few guards and the command crew. Roach asks Price what they do now and Price says they stop the war. He grabs from the captain’s corpse an odd key which Roach realizes is the missile control key. As Price starts to work with the missile firing console Roach thinks Price has gone insane and draws his gun on him. Soap gets in touch over the radio and persuades Roach to stand down, that this is part of the plan. Roach reluctantly relents and Price goes ahead and launches a single nuclear missile, though he activates only one of its multiple warheads. Roach tells Price he better not have started a nuclear war with that launch. Price laughs and says what he did might be their best chance at avoiding one.

We watch as the nuke soars beyond our atmosphere into the beginnings of outer space. It curves on its trajectory to the North Atlantic Ocean and explodes at a height of several dozen kilometers in the atmosphere over Maryland. The result is a major EMP blast that disables most electronics in the Mid-Atlantic region of the U.S., including the military vehicles of the Russian attack. On the ground in D.C. we see that a number of Russian helicopters and jets start falling from the sky, which distracts the Russians long enough for Sandman’s surrounded team to escape down a street and hole up in a building. Ramirez confirms that all electronics are dead and suggests they make for a local command center.

We see Shepherd in a video conference with the Joint Chiefs and while they question the extremity of Price’s plan, they can’t deny that for the time being the Russians in the D.C. area are on their heels. They however say that unless they can regain control of downtown D.C. within the next couple hours, they will initiate a bombing run that will level the area to kill as many concentrated Russians as possible, though there will be friendly casualties and many historic buildings will do down.

Back in D.C., Sandman, Ramirez and his team arrive at the nearest American command center. There, they receive a transmission informing them that the Air Force is preparing to carpet bomb the entire city unless there are confirmation flares at key downtown centers that show the U.S. is back in control of the area. Sandman’s unit is assigned the White House. With little time to rest because of the tight deadline, the unit sets back out and fights their way to the White House, though in the intense fighting they lose some more members such as Foley. In the end though they manage to secure the building and set off flares mere minutes before the air strike begins, Ramirez seeing flares on several other landmarks. D.C. has been saved, though Ramirez observes to Sandman that he thinks this fight really has just been the beginning.

Makarov in his dacha learns of the U.S. retaking D.C. and is disappointed, but says the Russians could never have held it for long anyway. He says to Russian military leaders via satellite phone that the other punitive strike on American soil is about to begin, which will continue to tie down the Americans’ main forces while Phase 2 of Russia’s vengeance is being prepared. He is told that President Vorshevsky is growing uneasy at the casualty rates so Makarov tells the leaders they will need to keep pressuring the president. He then says that attention may be drawn to him soon so he will be going into the shadows for the time being and executing strikes that will aid in the causes’ progress. Makarov then leaves his dacha and tells his men to begin destroying all evidence within the next few hours.

Nikolai contacts Soap and Price to tell them that he has obtained information about possible locations for Makarov’s hideout. There are two main ones: An aircraft bone-yard in Afghanistan and a dacha in the Russian Caucasus. After some consultations with Shepherd Soap decides to split up the 141 into two teams. He will lead one, with Price, to the bone-yard, while Roach takes Ghost and the other team to the dacha. We see a scene between Soap and Roach where Roach admits his insecurities about leading such a mission since Makarov could end up being there. Soap reassures him that he’ll do fine. Meanwhile Price talks to Nikolai and tells him to be ready in case things go bad fast. Nikolai says he’ll be waiting and adds that he’ll have backup.

We see Roach’s team get dropped near the dacha and they infiltrate the grounds. They take out most of the guards but an alarm sounds. With little time, Roach tells Ghost to download as much information as possible from the computers Makarov’s men haven’t destroyed yet. Ghost does that as Roach and the other soldiers defend the home. Once Ghost finishes, Roach calls for evacuation and Shepherd says over the radio it’ll be there in moments. Roach and Ghost flee into a valley with their team, but heavy enemy fire kills everyone except Roach and Ghost, and Roach is injured. They make it to the evac zone and had the flash drive with the downloaded files to Shepherd, who asks if that is all. Roach says it is and then Shepherd replies “Good, no loose ends,” and suddenly shoots both Roach and Ghost. Ghost is killed instantly but Roach is still alive barely. Shepherd says he’s sorry, but it’s the only way to keep his plan going. He shoots Roach a second time to kill him and orders his men to move out.

Meanwhile at the boneyard, Price and Soap take their team to investigate for signs of Makarov but find none. Suddenly helicopters drop in Shepherd’s Special Forces teams which attack Soap’s unit. The sudden betrayal kills several of Soap’s men and the rest fall back to defend themselves. Soap tries to contact Roach and Ghost but gets no response and realizes they are dead. Price is sorry, but tells Soap they need to survive now so they can mourn later. Price contacts Nikolai for help and learns Nikolai is on his way. Makarov’s men emerge as well to engage Shepherd’s forces and Soap and Price have to carefully navigate through the conflict. They commandeer a jeep and drive off towards a runway as a large cargo plane lands and drives down the runway with a lowered ramp. Soap and Price are chased by other jeeps but a man on the loading ramp of the plane shoots at them to kill their drivers. This gives Soap and Price time to drive up the ramp and Nikolai’s plane then takes back off.

On the plane, Soap now vents about almost the entire 141 being wiped out by Shepherd’s betrayal. Price tells him that no one could have seen this coming and speculates that Shepherd, while anti-Russian, must have some reason to not want anyone else having Makarov’s files. Nikolai is also sympathetic about losing Roach and Ghost and says that things are difficult now that they have to deal with both Makarov and Shepherd. At this point the man from the ramp introduces himself as Yuri and says that he knows how they can contact Makarov to get information about Shepherd’s location, since Shepherd is now a threat to both them and Makarov. Soap asks how Yuri could know this and Yuri admits to being a former Ultranationalist. Soap doesn’t trust him but Price says if Yuri wants to kill Makarov then he’s worth trusting for now. Yuri tells them how to contact Makarov.

Soap and Price follow the instructions and are able to talk to Makarov via satellite phone. Makarov is disappointed that they are still alive and tells Price that he hopes he is in pain from losing more men to treachery. Price tells Makarov to cut the bullshit and says since Shepherd is gunning for them both it’s in both their interests to kill Shepherd. Makarov reluctantly admits that is true and gives Price information about how to find Shepherd’s mountain base in Afghanistan. Makarov then adds “Price, in case Shepherd kills you before I can, I’ll see you in hell.” Price replies “You will, but say hello to Zakhaev for me when you get there first.”

Meanwhile Shepherd is talking with the U.S. military command and says he has files on Makarov but they’ll take time for his techs to fully crack. He also adds that Task Force 141 under Soap and Price has gone rogue and they’ll have to be hunted lest they cause more damage. The high commanders approve his request to mark Soap and Price for termination and say that all of these recent events call for a greater emphasis on U.S. military might. Shepherd says he will be glad to take part in reasserting America’s prowess as the single global superpower.

We briefly catch up with Ramirez, who has mourned the loss of his friend Foley and is recovering from the stress of saving D.C. He talks a bit with Sandman about how it feels lose friends in their unit and the two bond more. Then suddenly Sandman gets contacted and after listening to a phone call tells Ramirez that their unit has to move out immediately. Ramirez asks where and Sandman says he doesn’t know, only that the big missing Russian fleet in the Atlantic has finally struck.

In a quiet moment, Price goes to talk to Soap, who is dejected over getting almost all of the 141 killed by not realizing Shepherd’s betrayal. Price says the only way to make it right is to kill Shepherd for what he’s done. Soap points out that they won’t have any evidence to implicate him, so all that’ll do is make them wanted criminals. Price replies that if they simply run and hide, then Shepherd can spin things however he wants and turn himself into the hero of the whole war. He’ll be conning the entire world and they can’t let that happen. With those words in mind, Soap nods and says they need to finish this then. Meanwhile Yuri talks with Nikolai and thanks him for allowing him to help in their fight against Makarov. Nikolai says Yuri still is completely trusted, but right now Price and his friends need all the help they can get.

Nikolai and Yuri use a helicopter to take Soap and Price to a cliff overlooking Shepherd’s mountain base. Price tells Nikolai to wait an hour and if he doesn’t hear anything by then then it means the two of them are dead. Soap and Price infiltrate the mountain base to discover that Shepherd’s mean are priming it to blow up to leave no trace. With little time, they shoot their way through guards to find Shepherd only to see him escaping in a motorized river raft. Soap and Price climb on another and give chase. They get close, but near a bend in the river Shepherd’s raft boards a ramp of a large helicopter, so Price disables it by shooting the helicopter's rotor, causing a crash landing. However Price and Soap’s raft tumbles over a waterfall in the process. After recovering from the fall, a dazed Soap gets up and approaches the crashed helicopter with only his knife. He sees Shepherd and moves in for the kill. Shepherd counters by slamming Soap onto a destroyed car and stabs him in the chest. Shepherd tells the wounded Soap that he had leaked intelligence to Makarov, such as the location of the ACS, so Makarov could implement his plans to attack the U.S. Shepherd justifies it by saying Makarov is too greedy and has bitten off more than he can chew, so now the U.S. will be motivated to thoroughly crush the Russian military and people like they should have done when the Soviet Union started to fall apart. He pulls a gun to kill Soap but then suddenly Price appears and tackles Shepherd and the two fight. Shepherd gets the upper hand and starts to choke Price to death, but Soap is able to pull the knife from his chest and throw it at Shepherd's eye, killing him.

Price gets up and inspects Soap's wounds, saying that they’re pretty bad. At that point Nikolai’s helicopter lands nearby and Nikolai and Yuri rush out to help with Soap. Price says he told them to stay put and Nikolai replies that it’s a good thing he didn’t. They load Soap into the helicopter and it takes off with Yuri and Price applying first aid.

We change scene to Makarov in a bunker somewhere, watching news reports and other video data showing the Russian military mobilizing for a full-scale war. A henchman informs him that they’ve heard through tapped communication channels that General Shepherd has been murdered by rogue Special Forces. Makarov gets up to walk through his bunker and tells the henchman that with Shepherd gone and Soap/Price wanted criminals soon to be in hiding, nothing can stop his next plan. When the henchman says that the Americans could still use their military, Makarov says that the Americans will be too preoccupied with fighting on their own soil and are too focused on changing the world with their hordes of vehicles and technology. Makarov says “All you need to change the world is the will of one man.” He stops walking and we see he is in a large storage room and he is looking at a series of lined-up bombs, all of which are marked with an insignia for poison gas.

In Nikolai’s helicopter Soap is stabilized for the moment and drifting in and out of consciousness says he’s glad he got Shepherd. Price tells him he did well and says they’ll get him a doctor soon. Yuri points out that Soap and Price are probably the second and third most wanted men on the planet (after Makarov) and they’ll be hunted. Price says they have no other option and asks Nikolai if he knows where they can get Soap medical treatment. Nikolai replies that he knows of a place as the helicopter flies off over the mountains to safety.

AFTER CREDITS SCENE!

We see Ramirez and his unit inside a large Chinook helicopter, uneasily waiting as they go towards an unknown destination. Sandman doesn't know where they're headed but says that he does know that the Russians have begun a second major assault on U.S. soil and it's almost as bad as the one at D.C. A pilot says over the intercom that they're almost there and they can slide open a side door to see where they are. Ramirez does that and looking outside has a look of fear and shock on his face. The camera angle changes to behind the helicopter and it zooms out to show that the helicopter is near the harbor for New York City and the large Russian fleet that disappeared earlier in the film is attacking the city.

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In the Line of Service

Director: Tom Hooper

Studio: Arcturus Films

Genre: Historical Drama/Bio-Fiction

Cast:

Cate Blanchett as Amilia Earhart

Ken Watanabe as Fujiwara Sakamaki

Unknowns as Other Japanese People and the Raiding Army Personnel

Guy Pearce as Franklin Delano Roosevelt

Beau Bridges as Admiral Landry of the 14th Naval District

Unknowns as the Other American People, and Amelia’s Family.

Budget: $25 million

Languages: English

Theater Count: 1302

Rating: PG-13

Release Date: 27 December

Running Time: 1 hr 52 mins

Plot:

The film opens with the sounds of war, and we see the Japanese, and the American navy engage, as both sides suffer damages. We see the American ship fire a torpedo at the Japanese side, and the title appears on screen, as the torpedo speeds through the water. Just as the torpedo is about to hit, the scene begins to cut, and the last thing we hear before the new scene begins is the boom of the torpedo hitting the Japanese warship.

The new scene begins in an ornately decorated and furnished mahogany office, and we hear a radio broadcast coming from the radio on the desk, saying: “On the Eastern front of World War II, the American Navy engaged the Enemy navy yesterday. Our lads made a valiant and highly successful effort to push the enemy lines back. Losses minimal. That is all we have for you today. God bless them, and God Bless America.” At the same time as the broadcast goes on, we see the back of a man sitting behind the desk, evidently gesturing to someone in front of him, however that person is blocked by the man. As the radio broadcast ends, we get to hear their conversation. The man is President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and the other person is Amelia Earhart. The President is talking to her evidently about some sort of plan or proposal called Project Howland, and asking for final confirmation that she understands the risks of what’s she’s about to do, and that she’s committed to doing it. Amelia unfazed, and completely concentrated, answers in short brisk answers, both times yes. Then FDR tells her that he and the country thanks her for her effort, and of course that God blesses her. Amelia replies, “And God Bless America as well, Mr. President.” FDR chuckles, and the scene ends.

The next scene is of Amelia evidently some months later as the seasons have changed, and the location is Lae, New Guinea. Amelia is trying a second attempt at a cross world flight, and of course, History knows this as the time the final time Amelia is seen alive. She is presented a wrapped present by a man in a suit, and she accepts it graciously, and hops into the cabin. She looks over her shoulder almost hesitantly, waves at the gathered crowd one last time, and closes the cockpit door with a resounding thud. The plane then takes off, and as the plane levels off we cut to the interior of plane, where Amelia is ripping open the present, revealing a framed picture of Lae. She flips it over, and opens the back cover, revealing a thin folder of paper. She opens the folder, and reads what appear to be instructions and documentation. There is a time cut, and we see her now in the middle of the night, and a US military ship can be seen nearby. We cut to a shot of the dashboard, where Amelia’s hand reaches towards the eject button, there is a slight pause before she presses it, and she is shot up into the air. She lands in the water, and we see her airplane crash, before exploding into a fireball in the distance just as a small motorboat manned by Admiral Landry, approach Amelia. Admiral Landry helps her into the boat, and they have an exchange at which point Amelia is tense until the Admiral reaches the code phrase. Then they relax and Amelia shakes the Admiral’s hand. He asks if she’s ready for Japan, and she replies slightly nervous, “Ready as I’ll ever be, Admiral.”

Admiral Landry ushers her into a decrepit looking boat, and hands her some contact information, new ID papers, and etc. wishing her luck. The boat sails off, and Amelia looks back and waves looking almost longing just as the music gives a eerie feel to the entire thing, and the music is sombre.

We see the news break that Amelia is missing, and the crowds of America looking very upset, as Amelia was a symbol of hope in this current war torn world that has little hope, or really anything happy in the world. Then the scene cuts to Amelia arriving on the shores of Japan in the middle of nowhere as to not draw attention to herself. There is someone waiting for her there, a Japanese American, Fujiwara Sakamaki, also sent by FDR to act as a spy when the war started, even though the US had not yet gotten involved. They go through the same key phrase exchange that Landry had with Amelia. He leads Amelia to a small shack built by the sea, and before anything else he sends a message back to the states. We immediately cut to a print out appearing in Washington D.C. where the secretary immediately rushes over to FDR, and hands it to him. He looks at it and breathes a sigh of relief.

Meanwhile, Admiral Landry has been assigned to look for the missing Amelia, and of course he finds nothing, and he’s been intentionally looking in the wrong area the whole time. The search eventually finds nothing, and he acts sombre, and sad as he tells the crew who are actually sombre and sad to head back, and that it’s been a fruitless search.

Back in Japan, Amelia, and Fujiwara, sneak into Tokyo, and hide in a CIA established safehouse, that has been cleared out for the express use for the two of them. Fujiwara, who will eventually play the part of Amelia’s husband when they start working in the field, begins to train Amelia who has been studying Japanese customs, and the language for the past year, in the finer details of the Japanese way of life, so that when Amelia finally goes to spy in the field she can act like an American that’s been in Japan all her life, and not seem out of place.

Back in the states, the war has been going not as well as anticipated, and FDR gets more and more anxious for Amelia to go into the field, so he begins to pressure Fujiwara into training Amelia harder. However, Amelia is experiencing some difficulties in training particularly in the finest of Japanese customs, and especially the accent. This is driving her crazy, and we can see her close to cracking so many times, before we have an emotional scene where Amelia breaks down crying, and seems to regret having taken this job. Fujiwara who has come to really appreciate Amelia’s steadfastness, and perseverance in the face of difficulty, comforts her, and she’s still sobbing, but begins to calm down a little bit.

The next few scenes show Amelia with a new determination for training, and she throws herself at it, and does get better. Meanwhile, in the US wild theories are being thrown, and we see FDR talking with his press secretary, and media advisor to see how they could quash the rumours, and theories that are getting increasingly more bizarre such as Alien Abductions, and Getting eaten by mutant animals on a remote island in Oceania. Meanwhile, Amelia is officially declared dead In Absentia and we see Amelia’s relatives posing for a newspaper photograph, and they’re all sombre, and teary eyed. The camera goes click.

We see Amelia clutching a telegraphed version of the paper, and we see her looking at her family, and stroking their faces. Her eyes are full of tears, and Fujiwara is beside her comforting her, as just a few drops of the salty liquid drip onto the paper. She mumbles that she never really said good bye to them, that she couldn’t risk them even suspecting anything about it. She says she misses them so much, and we can hear the emotion, and longing in her voice as she does so.

The next scene is where Amelia is declared ready by Fujiwara, and they’re just getting some of the details, and ID sorted out, when the Japanese military having gotten wind of their safe house conducts a raid on the building, and Amelia, and Fujiwara have to quickly gather the money and ID, and hide. They do this by climbing out of the window, and hiding by standing on the ledges of the building while military personnel conduct the raid. There is a tense moment, accompanied with a rising musical score when a military personnel pokes his head out of the window, but does not spot Amelia, and Fujiwara who are hiding below the window. Then the building is all cleared, and Fujiwara and Amelia see the personnel clear the building, before they climb back into the window. Then they check to see everyone is complete one final time, before walking hand in hand out of the building. Amelia looks at the building almost fondly, before walking with Fujiwara into the crowd and disappearing.

The scene fades, and the credits would normally have began, but one last short scene is of a print out appearing in Washington reading, “Subject: Project Howland [Amelia, and Fujiwara] Message: All Safe, Have news about………..” that’s all we see before the credits appear.

Edited by riczhang
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Pokemon: Rise of the Rockets

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure

Cast: Hailee Steinfeld (Stephanie), Joel Courtney (Gary Oak), Jared Harris (Giovanni), Polly Walker (Mom), Aidan Gillen (Mr. Apollo), Hiroyuki Sanada (Koga), (Sabrina), and Bill Nighy (Professor Oak)

Release Date: 2/14

Theater Count: 3508 Theaters

Budget: $110 million

Running Time: 112 minutes

MPAA Rating: PG for fantasy creature violence, mild language, and situations of peril

Previous Film’s Gross: 36.45 OW/122.21 DOM/276.68 WW

Background: These are Stephanie’s Pokemon so far:

Silva- A female Ivysaur

Conan- A male Nidoking

Spike- A male Beedrill

Selene- A female Zubat

Leviathan- A male Gyarados

Houdini- A male Drowzee

Plot Summary:

The film opens in Celadon City. We follow Mr. Apollo (Gillen), a Team Rocket leader introduced in the previous film, walk into a casino and use a secret entrance in the back to descend into a secret base. He eventually reaches the office of Giovanni (Harris), the Team Rocket leader. They talk about an upcoming major operation for Saffron City and say that the casino in Celadon generates tons of money for their operations. Giovanni tells Apollo to continue overseeing preparations in Saffron City at Silph Co.

The scene shifts to the southern entrance of Rock Tunnel near Lavender Town, where we suddenly see the main character Stephanie comically running out of the entrance in terror with her Pokemon following her. They eventually wind up hiding behind a big boulder. Out of breath, Stephanie declares that that will be the last time she ever goes into a cave, though she comments that at least they have a new friend out of the experience. She pulls out a Poke Ball and reveals that she caught a male Mankey which she has named Ali.

She arrives in Lavender Town, which is home to Pokemon Tower, where many trainers have deceased Pokemon of theirs buried and go to pay their respects. Stephanie looks at the Tower sadly (remembering from the first film learning that her mother’s original Pokemon died and the loss caused her mom to stop being a trainer) and says maybe she’ll check it out some other day. At the Pokemon Center she contacts Professor Oak (Nighy). They talk for a couple minutes about her journey and Oak says the next Gym is in Celadon City to the west. Oak says her mom is wishing her well and signs off. Stephanie sighs and goes to get some rest after sightseeing for a little bit.

In Pallet Town Professor Oak visits Stephanie’s Mom (Walker) and gives her an update on her daughter. Mom is a bit saddened when Lavender Town is brought up but says she is confident Stephanie can avoid her mistakes because she is smart, confident, and she cares for her Pokemon. Mom asks Oak if there is any news of his son Gary and Oak says he hasn’t heard anything since Gary left Vermillion City.

Stephanie travels west to Celadon City, which is one of two major cities in Kanto (the other being Saffron City). There’s tons to do and see in Celadon and Stephanie is enthralled, ending up at the top of the huge department store and looking out at the city from the roof. Her Pokemon are excited too and enjoy the sightseeing and we also see some of them getting into comical mischief. Eventually Stephanie decides it’s time to go to the Pokemon Gym but finds that it is closed. Stephanie is confused but is told by one of the trainers that the Gym Leader, Erika, is investigating suspicious activity in the city.

Stephanie follows directions to find Erika and learns from the gym leader that she suspects Team Rocket is running the casino in Celadon and is using it to fund their illegal projects. Erika says she is too well known to investigate, so Stephanie volunteers to take a look. Erika is glad for the help but suggests Stephanie train her Pokemon some more since she suspects this Team Rocket outpost has some of its best guys guarding it.

We briefly see Mr. Apollo at Silph Co. where we know he is a high-ranking executive. We see him sitting in on an important meeting of the chief officers, including the company president, where the scientists brief the officers about research progress. We learn that one project, the “Master” project, is nearing prototype stage. Later Apollo and Giovanni talk via videoscreen and Giovanni is happy to learn of the updates. He says that the resources of Silph will be perfect for their Cinnabar and Sevii projects.

We some a few scenes of Stephanie training her Pokemon outside of Celadon City and we see her catching a new teammate, a female Growlithe she names Io.

Stephanie returns to Erika to say she is ready and Erika gives her a small device to signal her when she finds illicit looking stuff and Stephanie goes to take a look around. She’s briefly tantalized by the wealth of gambling but gets focused and observes some employees suspiciously entering a basement entrance. She follows them and winds up in a vast, multi-level underground operation. She stumbles across one warehouse where dozens and dozens of Pokemon are caged up and is seen by guards, who challenge her. Stephanie is able to defeat them in Pokemon battles. Stephanie activates the signal device. Meanwhile Giovanni watches her on security cameras and he looks intrigued.

After a couple more short Pokemon battles that she wins, Stephanie arrives in an office to find Giovanni. Giovanni says she is impressive for a teen but she can’t just go around meddling in adult plans. Stephanie says she will meddle in anything Team Rocket does and Giovanni laughs. He tells Stephanie to prove her skill then against Team Rocket’s leader and sends out his Pokemon to battle. At the same time a couple goons show up, so Stephanie has to divide her forces. First up for Giovanni is a Rhyhorn and Stephanie sends out Silva. Silva is strong and has a type-advantage, so she easily beats the Rhyhorn, and does the same easy victory against Giovanni’s Onix. Meanwhile the two goons send out a Raticate and a Koffing, and Stephanie sends Houdini and Ali to face them. Ali easily karate-chops the Raticate into submission, but then the Koffing uses self-destruct and triggers an explosion. Houdini uses his psychic powers to contain the blast but the explosion still badly injures him. Giovanni in the main fight has sent out a Kangaskhan, which hits Silva with a powerful punch that dazzles her. Stephanie switches Silva out for Conan, who can better match the Kangaskhan blow for blow. The two duke it out with neither getting an advantage when suddenly alarms sound: Erika and Celadon City cops have arrived. Giovanni recalls Kangaskhan and tells Stephanie they’ll continue this battle another time and uses a small smoke bomb to conceal his escape via hidden passage. It is now that Stephanie notices Houdini’s injuries and tries to apply first aid and keep him conscious as Erika and her backup swarm the hideout.

Film shifts to shortly afterwards at a Pokemon Center. Stephanie is told by the doctors that Houdini was badly hurt but will recover, though it will take some time. Stephanie says she’ll send him to Pallet Town to rest there at Oak’s lab and with her mom. After bidding him farewell she briefly talks about what happened with Oak, who is concerned about both the Rockets and Stephanie’s well-being. Erika then arrives to thank Stephanie for her efforts. She gives Stephanie the Rainbow Badge for her work. We then see Stephanie exit Celadon City, heading east.

Giovanni arrives in some secret hideout to meet with Apollo and says that the Celadon operation was compromised, but the Silph takeover will more than compensate. Apollo says that everything is almost set for the coup; it’s just a small matter of waiting for a few little pieces to fall into place. Giovanni is pleased.

We briefly see Pallet Town with Professor Oak conferring with several Gym Leaders via video conference, such as Brock (cameo by Tristan Wilds), Misty, Surge, Erika, Koga (Sanada), and Sabrina (Olsen). Koga says that Blaine has refused to answer his calls and Oak says Blaine can’t be trusted. They discuss the growing threat of Team Rocket. Oak then goes to talk to Stephanie’s Mom with Houdini to look after and informs her of what happened in Celadon. Her mom is understandably worried, and Oak suggests she go find Stephanie so Stephanie can understand things better and he’ll look after Houdini until she returns home.

Stephanie returns to Lavender Town, planning to then go south and encounters none other than her rival Gary Oak, who has acquired several badges as well. They talk and Stephanie talks about what happened in Celadon City. Gary is sympathetic but says Stephanie really proved herself by taking on the head of Team Rocket. Both of them plan to go south so they agree to stick together for a little bit. We learn that Gary has evolved his Eevee into a Flareon, the fire-evolution of Eevee.

The following morning Stephanie and Gary let out their Pokemon to mingle and socialize, with some cute and comic results, while they walk around town. As they return to the Pokemon Center, they see Stephanie’s mom there. Stephanie is surprised and her mom says she wants to help Stephanie process almost losing a Pokemon. Her mom says it’s been many years since she’s been here and she would like Stephanie to come with her into Pokemon Tower. The two do so with Gary waiting outside. Inside, Stephanie’s mom shows her around and finally takes her to where her deceased Pokemon is. Her mom relates about how distraught she was, but says that the bond between Stephanie and her Pokemon will never die. The two have an emotional moment and after a bit finally leave. Stephanie’s mom then leaves after hugging her daughter.

Stephanie and Gary then travel south together for a bit and encounter something strange: a giant sleeping Pokemon blocking the road. It’s a Snorlax. They try to wake it up with several different methods, each comically failing, until finally they consult a Pokedex and learn that music can wake it up, so Gary takes out a small music player and turns it on to play a soothing tune. The Snorlax wakes up, but gets very grumpy and forces a battle. Stephanie and Gary use Silva and his Flareon to fend it off and after a short fight with the Snorlax lumbering around, it gets bored and wanders off into the woods.

Stephanie and Gary have a laugh over the incident and continue south towards Fuchsia City, which is home to the next gym. Gary has already gotten the badge from there so he says he’s way ahead of where Stephanie is. He’s fine with going back since he wants to check out the Safari Zone, where conservation efforts keep many rare Pokemon safe and allow for other uncommon Pokemon to be caught.

We briefly go to Saffron City to see Sabrina conducting some investigations of suspicious activity and learning something might be up with Silph Co. She goes to speak to the President of the company, who believes things are normal but promises to keep an eye out. Sabrina is uncertain but leaves. Afterwards an assistant to the President is revealed to be a Team Rocket spy and he tells Apollo of the meeting. Apollo brushes it off and says by the time Sabrina learns the truth it’ll be too late.

Stephanie and Gary arrive in Fuchsia City and Gary convinces Stephanie to come check out the Safari Zone. They go to enter and outside meet none other than Koga, the Gym Leader in Fuchsia. Koga remembers Gary and introduces himself to Stephanie. Koga asks her some questions about her training and says it takes a clever trainer to strategize how to beat his Gym. He asks the two to keep an eye out for the Zone Warden while they’re in the Safari Zone since the Warden tends to get lost in his own zoo.

Stephanie and Gary explore the Safari Zone, following its very selective rules about encountering wild Pokemon, the rule being you’re only allowed to catch and keep a single Pokemon, so you have to choose wisely when you encounter a Pokemon. You’re also not allowed to bring any Pokemon into the Zone. They stumble upon a Scyther, a super-rare Pokemon and Gary immediately wants it. He throws the special Safari Ball but in a bit of comedy the Scyther sees the ball coming and swats it away, the Ball flying a few dozen feet sideways where it hits into a sleeping Slowpoke, which lazily looks up confused before it is caught. Stephanie chuckles while Gary says “I meant to do that.” After some more exploring around the lush Zone, they find the Warden aimlessly wandering around and he accidentally antagonizes a Tauros, a big bull Pokemon, which revs up to charge him until Gary and Stephanie distract it. Gary leads it in a circle on a chase and Stephanie is able to time it perfectly to capture it to end the threat. The Warden, now out of his daze, thanks them and asks them to lead him out.

After getting the Warden out he thanks the two by giving them lifetime passes to the Safari Zone and says they are free to enjoy it anytime. Stephanie now wants to challenge Koga but Gary says she will need to train some more first, since Koga uses crafty tactics. He gives her some advice on what to do and says he’d stay to watch but he wants to go to Saffron City to get his next badge. He wishes her luck and says he might stick around Saffron to wait and see how good she is. After Gary leaves Stephanie decides to do so training. She gives her male Tauros the name. We see her train and see Silva evolve into a Venusaur and Selene evolve into a Golbat. She feels she is ready to challenge Koga.

Koga’s gym is set up to have lots of trick rooms and obstacles to stump the trainer’s intelligence, but Stephanie is able to think her way through them to reach Koga in the center. Koga says she now has to apply the same skills to a Pokemon battle and sends out his first Pokemon, a Venomoth. Stephanie sends out Selene and the two Pokemon engage in an aerial duel of evasion that culminates in both Pokemon firing a confuse ray at the other. They rays collide and the backwash sends both Pokemon into a daze, but Selene is able to recover quicker and knocks out the Venomoth. Koga then sends out a Muk, who is able to absorb Selene’s hits easily and cover Selene in sludge. Stephanie recalls Selene and sends out Leviathan, whose sheer offensive power allows it to break through defenses and smash the Muk. Koga sends out his last Pokémon, a Weezing. The Weezing uses a smokescreen move to cloud the room with smog. Leviathan’s attacks all miss and the Weezing is able to lumber behind it and deliver a powerful body slam to take it out. Stephanie sends out Io and orders it to use flame wheel, which sends out a burst of fire in all directions that burns away the smog, revealing the Weezing. Io dodges the Weezing’s sludge attacks and is able to use a flamethrower move, winning the battle. Koga congratulates Stephanie and gives her the gym badge.

Stephanie decides to celebrate by going to the beach south of Fuchsia and relax in the sun while her Pokemon play in the water (Leviathan making some huge splashes!). Everything seems like it’ll be just fine…

In Saffron, Giovanni receives a message from Cinnabar Island that things have suddenly gone poorly and their lab there is damaged. Giovanni tells Apollo that they must go now to seize Silph so they can use its resources immediately to contain the Cinnabar situation. With the go order, Team Rocket goons start to swarm the key areas of Saffron City, including the gatehouses controlling entry to the city by road. Giovanni and Apollo walk into the President’s office in Silph Co. to let him know that the company is now in Team Rocket’s hands (as we see goons taking the building). Giovanni tells the President that his company is now going to be used the proper way: to harness power. Afterwards, Giovanni tells Apollo to go to Cinnabar to try and manage things with Blaine while they send resources from Silph his way. Apollo says that all of Kanto will now focus on trying to stop him here and Giovanni recognizes this and tells Apollo that if he “disappears” then Team Rocket is Apollo’s until he returns.

We briefly see a conference of the Gym Leaders, minus Sabrina, Blaine, and the Viridian Gym Leader discussing with Professor Oak and Bill the Scientist (cameo by Tom Hiddleston reprising his role) about what happened. Brock and Surge want to go into Saffron immediately but they are outvoted by the others, who want to pass word on to the Elite Four for proper consideration. Oak and Bill are frustrated since they agree that this is a means to an end for Team Rocket, not their final goal.

Back in Fuchsia, Stephanie is rested and ready to continue her travels when she is suddenly contacted by Professor Oak about the Saffron situation. Oak says he hasn’t heard from Gary since the Rockets took over. Since he knows Stephanie has fought Rockets, he asks her to go look for his son since the Gym Leaders and Elite Four are taking too long debating how to respond. Stephanie agrees, worried about him.

We see Stephanie traveling north and then sneaking into Saffron City with help from Selene, who is able to hypnotize some Rocket goons into letting Stephanie pass by. We see that Saffron City is essentially under martial law. Stephanie learns at the Pokemon Center that Sabrina tried to fight but was overwhelmed and barricaded herself in her Gym with some other trainers. Stephanie goes to check this out and finds the Gym surrounded by a bunch of Rockets. She realizes she has to create a distraction. She uses Selene to do hit-and-run attacks with hypnosis and confusion attacks to incapacitate some Rockets. When they focus on her, Silva is deployed on a rooftop and she grabs Rockets with her vines and stuns them and drags them to other rooftops. This throws the other Rockets into even more confusion but they start to unify and gang up, but then suddenly most of them get a glazed look and fall asleep. The door to the Gym opens and Sabrina comes out with some trainers, Stephanie goes to meet her and Sabrina says that she couldn’t make a move with her Psychic Pokemon before since all of the Rockets were focused on her. Stephanie tells her what Oak said about the other gym leaders waiting for the Elite Four and Sabrina is annoyed by that and decides they’ll have to retake Saffron on their own. At this point Stephanie sees Gary is one of the trainers who was hiding with Sabrina and she is happy to see him and he to see her. She says Oak sent her to find him and help and Gary tries to play it a little cool by saying he wasn’t in any danger. Sabrina says that as Gym Leader she has to ensure the safety of Saffron citizens first and asks Stephanie and Gary to take other trainers to try and retake the Silph building. They agree.

As Stephanie and Gary collect their small group to sneak towards Silph Gary explains briefly what happened when the Rockets took over and complains that they interrupted his battle against Sabrina. Stephanie snaps a little that gym battles are less important than a city being taken over. The entrance to Silph is heavily guarded but then battle noises are heard from elsewhere in the city (Sabrina’s actions) and many guards rush off. With the reduced number Stephanie’s group is able to charge in and easily dispatch the remaining ones and then enter the building. Gary says Sabrina said the Rockets want the science facilities to use so Stephanie says they should secure those first, then find the President.

As the trainer group begins to liberate the building, Giovanni watches on security camera screens. He sees that Stephanie is part of the group and smiles. He gives an order for some men to take some key research tools and go to a safe zone, to be cautious.

Stephanie, Gary, and the other trainers do some smart maneuvering and battling to get to the main research floor and find that a number of scientists are being held hostage and forced to work against their will. After some battling they free the scientists, who tell them that the President is being kept captive in his office on the top floor. Stephanie tells Gary to escort the scientists to safety while she rescues the President. Gary doesn’t want to let her face any enemies alone but she tells him to go, which he does reluctantly. Stephanie then makes her way up, finally reaching the President’s office to find him cowering at his desk while Giovanni waits. Giovanni says he is very impressed of her skills and says if she understood all of his plans she wouldn’t interfere. He says that only the strongest trainers deserve the best assets and his plan will ensure that the strongest trainers not only have the technology to study and control Pokemon, they will be able to control Kanto through those Pokemon. Stephanie says Giovanni’s crazy and she’ll stop him. Giovanni says he has been waiting to finish their earlier battle and the fight begins.

It’s a double battle with Giovanni sending out a Rhyhorn and a Nidorino. Stephanie sends out Silva and Leviathan. Between their grass and water attacks they’re able to subdue Giovanni’s first two Pokemon, but then he sends out a Nidoqueen and his Kangaskhan. The Nidoqueen is able to fight Silva equally and the Kangaskhan delivers a series of powerful punches that stun Leviathan, forcing Stephanie to switch him out for Conan, who had fought the Kangaskhan to a stalemate in Celadon. The fight is again even with lots of back and forth, until finally Conan is able to land a powerful uppercut that knocks out the Kangaskhan. With Silva having wrapped up the Nidoqueen in its vines, Giovanni is out of Pokemon. Giovanni laughs and says Stephanie is even better than he had expected, and says such talent will go to waste fighting for the common, weak people. He presses a small button on a device on his belt and seconds later a helicopter appears outside that uses an air cannon to smash the office windows open. Giovanni nods to Stephanie and says Team Rocket will have to regroup, but its master plan can’t be stopped. He then runs to the window and leaps into the waiting helicopter, which then flies off away from Saffron. The fight over, the President thanks Stephanie for her effort but says she came too late to stop Team Rocket from taking some of their most secret research.

In the aftermath Stephanie and the President exit the building to find that Sabrina with help has driven off most of the Rockets guarding the city borders and Saffron is safe again. Gary is happy to see Stephanie is okay and rushes in to hug her. He says he wishes he could have seen her beat Giovanni and she says he might have a chance in the future since Giovanni got away. Sabrina thanks the two for their help and says they’ll have to share their information learned with the other Gym leaders and Professor Oak and Bill.

This segues into a scene with 6 of the 8 Gym Leaders (minus Blaine and the Viridian leader), Oak, Bill, Gary, and Stephanie present through video conference. Stephanie relates what the President of Silph said and Sabrina says that she is collecting data about exactly what projects are compromised. At this point another person joins in, Lance (cameo by Wes Bentley), leader of the Elite Four. Lance says that the Elite Four has underestimated Team Rocket and that they will need to send all of their investigative powers to uncovering their plans. Lance tells the Gym Leaders to coordinate with all police forces to track down all leads swiftly. Oak and Bill say that they’ll run through the data they know Team Rocket copied for their own use and see if they can figure out what the Rockets are planning. The meeting then breaks up. Oak stays onscreen to talk to Stephanie and Gary and says they’ve done far more than anyone could ask of them and says they should focus on their trainer quests for now, to keep their minds focused on “happier” things.

We briefly see Oak and Bill, in Oak’s lab, talking about what to do now. Oak says that the police forces won’t dig up anything unless Team Rocket reveals itself, and with two gym leaders not participating, those cities won’t be dug into by the police. Bill volunteers to go to Cinnabar Island and the nearby Sevii Islands to try and see if he can learn anything there. Oak warns him he’ll be on his own since Blaine is a suspect and Bill laughs and says that knowing Stephanie and Gary, he wouldn’t be surprised if they wind up involved yet again to bail him out.

We now see Cinnabar Island for the first time and follow Apollo as he enters the prestigious Pokemon lab on the island to talk to its director: Blaine (cameo by Ron Rifkin), the island’s Gym Leader. We learn that Blaine works for Team Rocket as their science division head and that the legitimate Pokemon Lab on the island is a front for a secret lab elsewhere on the island, which Blaine says has run into difficulties. Apollo tells Blaine to explain everything, and when Blaine says he reports only to Giovanni, Apollo says that Giovanni has disappeared and now Team Rocket works for “me.”

The last scene is Stephanie and Gary recuperating with their Pokemon and Gary planning on going straight for the Pokemon League since he thinks he is ready, while Stephanie wants to get some more badges first. Gary remarks that he could have taken Giovanni in a fight also, with Stephanie laughing at the comment. Gary says he’s serious and he can prove it, implying he wants a battle. Stephanie says “okay, but I’ll just beat you again like before.” Gary replies “don’t count on it.” They set up in a grassy field and at the same time throw a Pokeball, the camera cutting to black just as they start to open.

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Divisions

Director: J.J.Abrams

Studio: Arcturus Films/Elliptical Entertainment

Format: Native IMAX 3D

Genre: Sci-Fi

Cast:

Matt Damon as Alfred

Dillon Freasier as Will

Judi Dench as The Old Lady

Edward Norton as Peter

Tom Hardy as Tim, one of the group leaders

Colin Firth as John, one of the group leaders

Sam Riley as Jack, one of the group leaders

Mark Whalberg as Steven, one of the group leaders

Scarlett Johansson as Emily, one of the group leaders

Andy Serkis as The Bears

Budget: $165 million

Languages: English

Theater Count: 4018

Rating: PG-13

Release Date: 2 May

Running Time: 2hrs 05mins

Plot:

The film opens with a sweeping shot of the spaceship Pandora, it’s not very big, maybe a few hundred meters long, and looking very battered. We see it moving through space, and then we begin to jump back in time, as the spaceship seems to move backwards, and the travel back in time speeds up faster and faster, as we see the ship become newer and newer, we see a takeoff sequence go by in reverse, in a blink, and finally we see the last days of the Earth, which was very war ravaged. Finally, we see the earth as we know it now, and the time travel stops.

The next scene tells the story of earth up until now, which is told through pictures that depict each stage, and a man’s voice reading it out exactly like a story. We have hand-drawn detailed pictures that depict each phase from the world as we know now, and how as time went on, people developed better stuff, coupled with low natural resources led to people getting jealous of what others had, and this eventually escalated so much that a war started between the US and UK, China, Russia, and Saudi Arabia. This eventually ravaged the world, and the US and UK decided in the world’s dying days to send 10 ships of 200 people each to try to preserve the human race. However, when they were launching, the Russians launched a surprise attack and many if not all the other ships perishes. The lone ship Pandora makes it out barely alive, and heads off on its lonely 50 year journey. As the pictures go on, the pictures transform from pictures to pictures you see on a tablet.

It is revealed that it is the captain of the ship, Alfred, telling his 14 year old son, Will, of the story, which he’s heard so many times before judging but still not tired of it, judging by his expression. Alfred then says, “And after 50 long years, we’re at the end of our journey, big boy.” “Where are we headed, Daddy?” asks Will. “I dunno, kiddo, but it’ll be out new home.” “How can you know, it’ll be home, if you don’t know where we’re headed?” “You’re a sharp little one aren’t you? You see, before we left, scientists selected a new habitable planet for us, and we’re due to arrive in just a few hours.” Will opens his mouth to ask more questions, but Alfred tells him that it’s time for bed. He tucks Will in, ruffles his hair, and waves his hand at the sensor near the door, and the lights dim themselves out. He tells his kid Good Night, and then steps out into the fluorescent light lit hallway. It is in the brighter light that we can see the effects of 50 years of wear and tear on the ship, as some lights flicker, and some don’t work at all, as well as the walls which are battered, and the doors some of which are labeled, do not enter, Danger, and etc.

Alfred steps into the bridge of the ship, and in the distant, a small blue dot can be seen, and that is the new planet they’re travelling to. Alfred’s second in command Peter, is at the bridge having a snooze, but wakes up when Alfred walks in with a start. “That’s it boss, ain’t it a beaut?” Alfred nods at that, and asks how long they have until they reach it and Peter answers about 8 hours. Alfred mumbles something about 50 years and finally getting there, and suggests they both get some rest.

The next scene cuts to a shot of the planet, and it’s a gorgeous highly vegetative planet, with lots of grass, and tall vegetation, and trees as well. There really isn’t any animal life as far as we can see right now, and then we pan up to the sky, and we see Pandora entering the atmosphere. However, there are problems with the landing, as it is an old ship and large enough ship that it is causing problems. We cut between the bridge, and the outside, as we see them trying to desperately figure out how to land it safely and properly, which eventually leads to a crash landing, with the ship highly damaged but still relatively impact. This is due to the fact that it was Alfred’s grandfather who originally piloted the ship off earth, and not all the training was passed on properly from generation to generation, as simulations only could do so much, and Alfred never actually tried to pilot the ship from space onto a planet.

Surveying the damage, most people were suffering some sort of injury due to the crash landing, and around 50 people had life-threatening injuries, or were dead including some young children. The next few scenes establish them exploring the new planet, in the area right around the ship. They also include some scenes of parents mourning, people helping to try to restore power to the ship to power up heating, and most importantly the medical centre, and the vegetation chambers, so that they can heal the sick, and obtain food as they do not yet know what is safe to eat on the planet or not. They manage to restore power to a certain portion of the ship, but the power is still low, and it will run out soon. However, they proceed to heal the injured. In one particularly bad injury, the power needs are so high that they blow the power circuits, and overstretch the generators. They however do manage to salvage the generator however by now the power supply is critical. The healing has to stop at this point, and the heat can now only be turned on minimally, which leads to the first seeds of disagreement being spread between the survivors.

Over the next few days, the food supply, being unable to regenerate themselves, run very, very low, and the group is forced to spread out, and look for food, and they use a mixture of technology, and taste-testing to find out what is edible, and what isn’t. However they don’t find much that is edible, and 2 people even died because of poisoning, which further dampens the spirits of the group who has found their heat turned even lower, and technology banned due to a lack of power to power it.

Soon, because of a lack of proper food, and the fact that the only water they’ve found so far tastes really disgusting, they are forced to spread out, further, and further. They are not very successful, as they’ve encountered some interesting, and viscous animals. The little edible food they’ve found has to be rationed very carefully, and moral gets lower, and lower, and we can see small alliances in groups getting formed, and hoarding going on. One person is caught hoarding, and gets viciously attacked by the crowd, resulting in his death. Rumours are being spread already by certain people in the crowd, and discontent is getting worse and worse. The only little bit of cheer, is a small scene where Will, the still optimistic son of Alfred, who too is getting low on his spirits, offers half of his share to a old lady. The old lady smiles at Will, and mumbles what seems like a blessing.

After a period of intense rain, people are practically at each other’s throats, with beatings, and fighting happening very regularly. Most of the fighting is between 3 or 4 Alpha Male, group leaders, and one leader of a mostly female group; Tim, Jack, Steven, Emily, and John each with different strengths. They cause the most trouble, because they are leading by example, as they become more, and more self-centered, it makes it suddenly okay for the rest of the group to do the same. This is a vicious cycle, and it doesn’t help that it is revealed that they are the ones spreading rumours about Alfred, about each other, which causes the group as a whole to be deeply suspicious of each other. They also spread out further and further, and they are also becoming increasingly paranoid. One group eventually finds edible food, and a small species of birdlike animals which they can capture, roast and eat, but they refuse to share with the rest of the group. This leads to more fighting, and etc. Alfred being a more logical one, still tries to keep the peace, and tries to get everyone to bond together, however he is increasingly shunned from each group, as the more they retreat in on themselves, the worse it becomes, and consequently in a vicious cycle the more they retreat in on themselves. Albert is only helpless to watch the devastation, and the infighting, as even his best friend, Peter, deserts his cause, and tells him to shove it. This breaks Alfred, as in a confrontation, of particular emotion, that almost turned physical, Peter says a lot of things that he normally wouldn’t have meant, but in the heat and midst of the moment, as well as in the poor mental state all of the survivors are in, practically shreds Alfred to pieces.

Eventually others find their resources, and food supplies, and they all are only keeping stuff within their own groups, this was just like what happened on the Earth they left, and what the original intent of the mission wasn’t. Alfred is highly alarmed by this, however as usual no one cares. But, the groups soon deteriorate even further than Earth ever did by splitting off into couples, and individuals, and at this point, the entire mood of the group is mutinous. Of course, the original group leaders rise to the top of the food chain, and they bully people, and etc. As well they hoard their supplies. They’re all wet, tired, and often not eating enough. This in addition to physcological aspects has the group scattered, and moral low.

When one individual accidently stumbles into a cave, and manages to wake up a species of bear like creatures prematurely from hibernation, they come to attack the camp, and because the group is now all so spread apart, and the bears need a few people to take one on, can pick the now separated group off easily. The few weapons that the group has are being fought over like gold, and even then, one laser gun doesn’t work very well against the bears unless you get them in their sensitive areas such as eyes, and the inside of their mouth. Alfred tries to take charge again, however this time it gets physical, and Peter, and some others, actually tries to shoot Alfred for that, as they think that “caring for the entire group” is overrated, and that it should be everyone for themselves.

However as the bears get worse, and from time to time we see Will and Alfred who still believe in working as a group, run over to try to save the person to set an example, but reach them too late. However, eventually the seeds of teamwork are somewhat appearing again, as they people realise to a very small extent that they need to work together. However, many people want to lead this, and each time someone else suggest teamwork, the group shoots them down, leading to no progress at all. Eventually, the group is down to maybe only 50 survivors, yet the I’m best, and I should lead mindset still plagues the entire group.

Then one night, when people are coming more to their senses, but still definitely kind of at each other’s throats, a bear bursts into their clearing, and attacks the old lady that Will offered food too. However, Will seeing this jumps in front of the old lady, and saves her. However, he is bitten, and the whole group is practically stunned at this act of kindness, and Alfred screams “NO” as he sees his only child getting torn to shreds, shoots at the bear’s mouth. The bear dies, however as Alfred rushes over to Will, it is already too late, and Will is dying. Alfred is crying at Will’s side, but Will tells him not to cry, as he made a difference. He tells his father, that isn’t that what the whole idea of continuing the human race past that war on Earth was? Making a difference? He tells his father in that innocent way of his that he’s happy that he was able to help, and at that he dies. Alfred smiles a little tiny watery smile, but continues on crying. Meanwhile the old lady that was saved has been talking and convincing the group, to make Alfred leader, and to deal with the bears as a team. This eventually leads to the group chanting Alfred’s name [led by the old lady], and he is made leader. The final scene of the movie is the group as a whole tackling their first bear as a team. Then we have a warp through time, as we see this group of survivors, bond together over Will’s sacrifice, and eventually prosper once again into an advanced race. Despite having a few harsh winters, their spirit powers them through to come out even stronger. And we end the movie, as we hear a man tell his child the story of Will. [We only hear the very last few lines of the story, which has over time been spun into something not entirely truthful, however at the heart of every myth is a grain of truth.]

Edited by riczhang
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Insurgent

Director: Mike Newell

Studio: Arcturus Films

Genre: Sci-fi/Dystopia

Cast:

Saoirse Ronan as Beatrice "Tris" Prior

Zachary Quinto as Caleb

Alex Pettyfer as Four/Tobias

Hailee Steinfeld as Christina

Callum McAuliffe as Will

Aaron Johnson as Peter

Ian Somerhalder as Eric

Elizabeth Banks as Jeanine

Score: Clint Mansell

Budget: $155 million

Theater Count: 4185

Rating: PG-13

Release Date: 21 November

Running Time: 2 hrs 14 mins

Previous film: 56.2M OW/155.0M DOM/434.1M WW

Plot: (Will have a better version up later)

We pick up where we left off in the previous film, with the shot of the Chicago sign, and we move back onto the train, and we see Tris, Four, Caleb, Peter and Marcus travel to Amity, at which several surviving Abnegation are already settled in. The Amity issue a statement that all factions may seek refuge at Amity as long as they reside in peace. Tris overhears Marcus talking to the Amity leader, Johanna, and he confesses to her that Abnegation's leaders died to protect a secret. Tris later confronts Marcus and demands to know the truth. He refuses to share the information. Tris is suffering from her guilt over killing her friend Will during the simulation and the deaths of her parents, who saved her life. Soon the Erudite and Dauntless traitors arrive at Amity. Tris tells all of the Abnegation refugees to dress and behave as Amity, since the Erudite don't know specifically who they are looking for. During the traitors' search of the compound, Four's tattoos give the group away, and a gun fight begins. The refugees run into the nearby fields and orchards, pursued by the traitors. Four, Tris, Caleb, and Susan manage to escape, and jump onto an oncoming train. The train car is full of armed factionless, including Edward who was a former Dauntless initiate with Tris. The factionless force Four, Tris, Caleb and Susan to accompany them to a factionless safe zone. Tris is shocked to learn that the factionless are numerous and have established a society in which the people seem happy and taken care of. The group is led to the factionless leader, Four's mother Evelyn. That evening Tris overhears a conversation between Four and Evelyn, during which Evelyn tells Four he needs to convince the Dauntless to join the factionless, that he needs to become a leader. Caleb and Susan decide to travel to a safe zone where more Abnegation are living. Tris and Four decide to travel to Candor headquarters.

Upon reaching the Candor headquarters, Tris and Four are arrested and subjected to a truth serum trial. During the trial, Four admits that he joined Dauntless to escape his father's abuse, and Tris admits that she shot Will and the guilt is overwhelming her, which angers Four because Tris didn't tell him. The Candor are attacked by the Dauntless traitors led by Eric. Many people are shot with a new simulation serum. Tris and fellow Uriah, revealed to be a Divergent, plan to figure out what is happening and warn the remaining Divergent. Eric plans to take two back to Erudite headquarters and execute the rest. Tris manages to stab Eric, but he survives. At the same moment, the Dauntless burst into the room and take control. Afterwards, Tori and Zeke, Uriah's brother, confess that they posed as Dauntless traitors to gain information.Tori tells the Candor questioner that she learned Jeanine, the Erudite leader, has a secret laboratory with top security, which she had almost entered it before she was discovered. They figure out that the new simulation serum allows Jeanine to subject the victims to simulations from great distances and that it won't wear off, giving the Erudite much greater control over the group. Following the attack, the Candor leader decide to arrange a meeting with the Erudite. Tris and her friends plot to observe the meeting in secret. Four, Tris, Lynn, and Shauna are the only that go. The Erudite do not send Jeanine, but they send the Dauntless traitor leader Max. Max demands that Candor turn over Eric, the Divergent, and a list of names of all those who did not receive the new serum injection. Tris figures out that Jeanine is telling Max what to say through an ear piece and must be close by, but before she can act, Lynn shoots Max in the chest from her secret location. Four, Tris, Lynn, and Shauna run to escape the Dauntless traitor guards but run into Jeanine and more guards. One of the guards is Peter, and he allows them to escape while he also escapes. During this event, Shauna is shot in the back.

Back at Candor, Four confronts Tris, telling her that she is being reckless with her life and he won't continue to put up with it, that they are finished if she risks her life in that way again. The Dauntless hold a secret meeting about what the group observed. New leaders are elected and consist of Four, Tori, and Harrison. The new leaders then put Eric on trial for his crimes. They convict him, and Eric demands that Four kill him, which he does with no guilt. The Dauntless return to their headquarters and cover the security cameras with paint balls. Four asks Tris to come with him to a meeting and explains that he wants her to use her acute perception to read the situation. They get on the train, and soon Evelyn and Edward join them. Four makes an agreement between the Dauntless and Factionless to destroy the Erudite and their technology and establish a new government. Tris doesn't care for the situation and doesn't trust Evelyn, who she feels abandoned him to his father's abuse, which Tris and Four argue over. That night Christina takes Tris to the top of the Pire. There Marlene, Lynn's brother Hector, and a child are standing on the roof's edge. It is clear they are being controlled by a simulation. Marlene states that this will happen every two days unless they give up a Divergent to the Erudite, and then all three step off the roof. Tris lunges for Hector, and Christina grabs the child, but Marlene plunges to her death. Tris is again overcome by grief and guilt. She flees the funeral ceremony, and in a quiet hallway, Christina finds her and forgives her for what happened with Will, understanding that simulations make a person completely controlled by Jeanine. Tris wanders the halls searching for peace and finds her way to Four's sleeping quarters. He soon walks in and begs Tris to consider him, that he couldn't live without her. He makes her promise not to go to Erudite. She promises but leaves for Erudite at midnight while he sleeps.

Tris walks into Erudite headquarters, terrified but accepting that she will die for the other Divergent and Dauntless. She makes an agreement with Jeanine that she will be compliant with her testing, as long as Jeanine explains the results to her. Peter is Tris' dedicated guard. He escorts her through endless, confusing hallways daily. She is subjected to an MRI and several simulations. One evening Tris encounters Four in the hallway. He's badly beaten and led by guards. Later, Tris is taken to the execution chamber and strapped down, and to her surprise, Four is led in. Jeanine injects Tris with a terror-inducing drug so that Four will give up the locations of the factionless safe houses. Tris also encounters Caleb and is beyond shocked that Caleb is not only at Erudite HQ but helping the Erudite to study, and soon, to kill her. She feels beyond hurt and betrayed. Caleb tells her that she doesn't understand the magnitude of what it happening. Despite all her efforts, Jeanine cannot find a simulation to control Tris, and at one point, Jeanine loses her temper, and the two have an altercation. Jeanine then declares that Tris will die the next day. Peter leads Tris from her cell on the day of her execution and allows her to briefly see Four through the door of his cell. Peter then leads her to the execution room. He straps her down and hooks the heart monitor to her. She is injected with a substance and watches as her heart monitor stops, but she's still alive. Peter pushes a paralyzed Tris to Four's cell. Four cries out in grief, but Peter explains that Tris isn't dead and that it's time for them to escape. Peter leads Tris and Four from Erudite HQ. They throw off their pursuers by hiding in a nearby building. Peter confesses that he owed Tris for his life she save while at Amity, and the thought made him sick. He had to make things even again.

The three travel to the Abnegation sector of the city. The Factionless and Dauntless have gathered in the nearly abandoned houses. Four leads Tris to his own home, and he says his mom kicked his dad, Marcus, out and took over the home. He helps her get cleaned up, and she sobs about losing all of her family, her parents to death and her brother to betrayal. Four asks Tris to consider him her family, and she tells him she loves him. Having been greatly affected by her near-death experience, Tris meanders around her old neighborhood. She stops in the Abnegation gathering hall, and inside she sees Marcus. Marcus convinces Tris that her parents died to save the information that Jeanine stole and has hidden. He says that information must be made public, and it's in dire jeopardy since the Dauntless/factionless army is planning to destroy all data in their attack. Tris decides to help him, even knowing Four will see it as a betrayal. She makes a plan with Christina and Marcus, and the three leave for Amity, Marcus as their Abnegation escort and Tris and Christina dressed as Amity members. The Dauntless traitors at the gate allow them to pass through. At Amity, the three update Johanna on the status of the conflict. She holds a meeting to inform all Amity, and after the decision is reached to remain impartial, Johanna and some others declare that they will not stand by and allow innocent Erudite to be killed by the Dauntless/Factionless army. Tris and Christina speak with the Erudite refugees living in Amity. The refugees, including Will's sister Cara, agree to help with the mission to save the information that was stolen and transmit it to all factions. The Amity and Tris' party travel together into the city. Tris' party, dressed as Erudite, attempt to sneak into the building. They quickly discover that Jeanine has activated the simulation for the Candor, who now encircle the building armed with guns. Tris' party discover a way to enter the Erudite HQ by passing between it and a nearby school over a ladder spanning two windows. Inside Erudite HQ, Cara begins connecting the computers to transmit the data to other factions. Tris and Marcus realize the data won't be on the main computer after an encounter with Caleb. Tris, Marcus and Christina head up to Jeanine's private laboratory, after Tris remembers what Tori mentioned about security. On the way, the group runs into Edward. After a fight that disables Edward and Christina, Tris and Marcus reach an intersection. They split up, going into two different doorways. Tris is sprayed with a fluid, and a simulation begins giving her five minutes to make it through the next door before the poison kills her. The simulation forces her to fight herself. Realizing she is more desperate that her simulation counterpart, she forces the simulation to give her a gun, and facing her guilt over Will, she shoots and kills her simulation-self.

When she walks into the laboratory, she hears Tori screaming at Jeanine. Tori is telling Jeanine to acknowledge her brother, a Divergent, who was killed on Jeanine's command. Tris disarms Tori, and after a struggle, she attempts to explain that she wants Tori to not kill Jeanine at this time so they can obtain the information from Jeanine's computer, which Jeanine can access. Tori refuses, and in a surprise move, she pulls out a knife and stabs Jeanine in the stomach. In that moment, Uriah and Four enter the lab. Tori yells that Tris is a traitor and should be taken into custody to answer for her crime. Uriah and Four are surprised to see Tris in the building since they thought she had stayed behind. Four asks her if she is there with his father, and when she confirms it, he feels betrayed that she would ally with the man he hates most. She confronts him about claiming he loves her and believing she's unusually intuitive and perceptive, but at the first chance, he distrusts her and believes her to be lying. He stares at her for a beat but then looks away. Uriah escorts her downstairs, and as they walk, he offers Tris some bandages for his wounds. The factionless ally behind him asks him to hand his gun to her, and Tris notes it as odd because the factionless ally is already armed. They reach the holding area for the surviving Erudite innocents, Candor, and Dauntless traitors. Tris sees Christina's family, and also notices Peter with his mother. She joins Christina in the next room, and they discuss Tris' failure to get the information. They speculate that the poison Tris was showered with was a simulation transmitter. Tori, Harrison, and Four walk into the room, and Four retrieves Caleb and returns upstairs. Uriah shouts and runs over to where Lynn has been brought in on a stretcher. She is badly wounded, and Uriah demands a Erudite doctor in the room save her. The doctor shouts that if they hadn't just destroyed all the technology in the HQ he could save Lynn, but as it is, he can save no one. Tris holds Lynn's hand as she dies. The leader of the factionless Evelyn, who is Four's mother, announces that they will be instituting a new factionless government, factionless society. The Dauntless begin to protest but realize that they have been relieved of their weapons. Caleb, Marcus, and Four then enter the room, and Four walks to Tris. He says he believed her and just needed her reminder. The information begins to be projected on the screens in the room. Four tells Tris that Caleb helped him retrieve the information and project it on the screens. It is an old video featuring a woman called Amanda Ritter from an organization fighting for justice and peace. Several clips of cruelty and death and destruction pass on the screen. She says that human nature is the root of these evils, and Tris realizes that Jeanine was wanting to use the simulations to suppress human nature and keep people inside the fence. Amanda says that her organization set the people inside Chicago apart from the rest of the world, to give them separate food and water, to establish their society in such a way that they can regain a moral sense. She says that there will come a time when the leaders will know they need to help the rest of the world, and that will be when the Divergent are most abundant, those whose minds are most flexible. When the Divergent have increased in numbers, the Amity are to open the gate, the fence, forever and the population should re-enter the world. She says the leaders should keep this information secret, and she and others will voluntarily forget their name and forge this new society. So that those who hear the message will know it is true she states that the name she will take in her new life will be Edith Prior. The video ends, and the room erupts into voices.

Edited by riczhang
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Untitled Steven Daldry Year 4 Film

Director: Stephen Daldry

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Crime Drama

Format: 2D 65mm Film

Cast:

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Albert Cunnigham

Rooney Mara as Lisa Cunnigham

Leonardo DiCaprio as Colin Adams

James Badge Dale as Inspector Barrigan of the NYPD

Jeremy Irvine as Josh Hunt

Score: Howard Shore

Cinematographer: Roger Deacon

Budget: $35 million

Theater Count: 3019

Rating: R

Release Date: 26 November

Running Time: 2 hrs 39 mins

Plot:

Edited by riczhang
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The Flash

Director: Shawn Levy

Genre: Superhero

Date: May 9

Studio: Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment (in collaboration with Perseus Films)

Cast: Bradley Cooper as Barry Allen/The Flash, Ralph Fiennes as Captain Cold/Leonard Snart, Rachel McAdams as Iris West, Brandon Routh as Fred Jensen, Michelle Williams as Patty Spivot, and Ed Harris as Ira West.

Music by: Danny Elfman.

Runtime: 127 min

Format: IMAX 3D and 3D

Tagline: Fastest Man Alive

Plot Summary: Barry Allen is a police scientist who gets the power of running really fast. He fights crime as the Flash and ultimately faces the crime boss, Captain Cold. Based off the DC comic.

Plot:

Blankments and DC Logos appear.

Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment Presents. A Shawn Levy Film. The film begins suddenly with Leonard Snart on trial. Snart looks like he’ll get off free, but the last piece of evidence, analyzed by Barry Allen, a police scientist, sends Snart to jail. Snart declares revenge of Allen somehow. Cut to Barry Allen on a date with Iris at an amusement park. They’re leaving and talking about they love the speed of rollercoasters, and Iris makes a comment about she wishes Barry could be fast. walking into work, when everyone in the office congratulates him for his new engagement to his long-time girlfriend, news reporter, Iris West. The day passes and Fred, his partner, and Patty, Barry’s secretary, invite him out to dinner to celebrate, but he decides to work late. When he does leave, he carries some chemicals to analyze at home. Suddenly, lightning strikes him and the chemicals, knocking him out. When he comes to, he’s completely naked except for his boxers with lightning bolts on him. He doesn’t feel bad, but he realizes he must be late for his plans with Iris, and he runs home to change, realizing his powers. He calls Iris, and cancels their plans so that way he can discover his powers.

Barry then runs around the city, realizing he isn’t getting tired, and no one can see him since he is moving so fast. When he reaches a wall, he is able to vibrate his body unconsciously to pass through the walls. He runs around the city for a bit, but then finds a thug stealing a purse. Barry beats him up and decides to fight crime. He goes to Ira, Iris’s father, at Central City University, and tells him about what happened. Ira makes him promise not to tell Ira and to fight crime in costume so that way his daughter can remain safe. The two of them design the Flash’s costume and the Flash is born, quickly becoming established as Central City’s hero.

Meanwhile, Leonard Snart breaks out and hears about Flash. He reads of a cyclotron that could slow down Flash. Snart then designs a weapon to harness that power and breaks into a cyclotron lab and charges his weapon. When he finishes the charging, a security guard surprises him. Snart shoots him, freezing the security guard in place. Snart decides to become Central City’s head supervillain, dons a parka and visor, and becomes Captain Cold.

Meanwhile, Barry’s life is going great. Everyone loves the Flash, and his wedding is being planned greatly. He feels the need to tell Iris about his double life, but remembers his promise to Ira every time. Fred is determined on finding out who the Flash is, thinking it’ll get him and Barry a raise. Patty begins dating Fred, and their first date is in Central City’s biggest restaurant, the Iceberg Lounge. Captain Cold takes over the restaurant, freezing everyone. The Flash comes and fights Captain Cold. The fight comes to a draw, and Flash manages to unfreeze everyone in the restaurant by letting Captain Cold get away. Captain Cold then decides his next target: Central City University.

Barry becomes worried about Captain Cold and goes with Ira to tell Iris to get out of the city. Iris says fine, she needs to go to Washington D.C. anyway to cover the president’s speech at the White House. Barry and Iris return to the university to think of how to defeat Captain Cold. However, before they can discuss this, Captain Cold attacks the university. Barry quickly changes into Flash and fights Captain Cold in the courtyard of the university. He is clearly losing, but then Ira goes to the roof of the ten-story building and shoots Captain Cold with a gun. Captain Cold freezes the bullets and then freezes Ira, who begins sliding down the roof. Flash takes advantage of the distraction and knocks the weapon out of Captain Cold’s hands, and captures Captain Cold.

Flash runs to Ira who has fallen off the roof, and died. He screams in anger at Captain Cold who then realizes Ira must have been related to Flash, and tells Flash he knows he’s Barry Allen. Flash says no one will believe a convicted criminal, giving Captain Cold into the custody of policemen. Iris breaks the engagement, believing she needs time to deal with her dad’s death. Barry agrees, and after she leaves, he goes back inside, turns on the TV, and sees a bank robbery is occurring. He quickly gets in costume and runs out the door.

THE FLASH

In the middle of the credits, Amanda Waller (Octavia Spencer) talks to Barry, revealing that she knows he’s the Flash and will be in contact with him. After the credits, Amanda Waller interrogates Michael Carter (Zachary Levi) asking where he came from.

Theaters: 4,344

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for violence, sensuality, and language

Budget: $150 million

Edited by Blankments
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Bohemian

Director: Spike Jonze

Genre: Drama

Date: May 23 (4 theaters,) May 30 (16,) June 6 (367,) June 13 (1,001,) June 20 (2,423,) June 27 (2,956)

Studio: Blankments Productions

Cast: Tom Hiddleston as the man, Julie Andrews as the man’s mother, Nick Nolte as the other man, Emily Browning as the Nurse, and Jean Dujardin as Scaramouche/Galileo/ Beelzebub.

Music by: Carter Burwell.

Runtime: 104 min

Tagline: No escape.

Plot Summary: An adaptation of Bohemian Rhapsody in film.

Plot:

A man is driving down the road, pondering life. He asks himself out loud if what he sees is real or just a fantasy. Pondering this, he is not able to swerve out of the way from a landslide. Before he passes out, he realizes that this is reality and there is no escape from it.

He opens his eyes, and finds himself in a hospital. He looks up to the ceiling, seeing a sky painted on it. He begins remembering his childhood in a flashback. He is a poor boy in the streets of London. People offer him charity but he does not accept this. He comes and goes, eventually turning to drugs. He gets a little high, but then kicked to a new low after the high when he arrives home. The flashback ends and a wind blows into the open window in the hospital room.

Back in the flashback, the man arrives home to his mother. His mother asks him what happened, noticing blood on his hands. The man says he just killed a man, starting a flashback within the flashback. The man, still on his high, has a gun against another man’s head. The other man begs for mercy, but the man just pulls the trigger. Back to the first flashback, the man laments to his mother about how life has just begun and now he went and threw it all away. His mom begins crying and the man tries to comfort her saying he’s going to leave. He might come back tomorrow, but if not, just carry on. The flashback ends.

In the hospital bed, the man begins to ponder once again. He shivers and groans at the aches in his body. He realizes his time has come. He begins hallucinating, seeing his mother walk into the room. A wind blows into the open window as he begs for mercy in front of her, telling her he doesn’t want to die, and if he does, he’d rather have never been born. The room disappears, and the man falls into a great abyss.

Cut to the Scaramouche staring at the man, who has become a silhouette. The man fades into becoming seeable and asks the Scaramouche to dance. They both dance for a bit, but then a thunderstorm begins, shooting thunderbolts and lightning towards the two. They are frightened and run away. The Scaramouche takes off his mask, revealing himself to be Galileo. The man begins calling for him, telling Galileo he is magnificent.

The man begins complaining about how he is a poor boy who nobody loves. Galileo agrees and asks to the gods to spare him from his horrible life. The man finds himself in a court room with Galileo as the judge. The jury begins arguing amongst themselves whether or not to let the man go. After quite a bit of debating, it is decided that the man will not be let go from his terrible life. Galileo transforms into the demon Beelzebub and runs after the man to torment him.

The man awakes from his lucid dream, ticked off. He jumps out of his bed and tears out the IVs in his arm. A nurse walks in and he begins screaming at her, asking her if she thinks she can stone him and spit in his eye. The nurse answers no, terrified. The man then forcibly kisses her, asking if she could love him and leave him to die. The nurse is speechless. The man is upset, telling her she can’t do this to him. He begins looking for any way out and sees the open window. He’s screams that he has to get out of here, and jumps off the window.

He falls down four stories on the ground. Fatally injured, he begins comforting himself, saying nothing really mattered. The man then dies, and we see the wind blow.

MPAA Rating: R for thematic elements, drug use, and drinking

Budget: $15 million

Edited by Blankments
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The Simulation

“The perfect world for all at an unimaginable cost.”
Director: Duncan Jones
Genre: Sci-Fi/Drama
Date: October 10th
Cast: Joseph Gordon Levitt (Chris Harvey), Michelle Williams (Lauren Harvey), Ewan McGregor (Arthur Kimball), Michael Douglass (The Chancellor/Stephen DiBonte)
Theaters: 2,938

Composer: Atticus Ross

Runtime: 100min (1hr, 40min)
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for language, some violence including disturbing images, and brief sexual content
Budget: $55,000,000

Synopsis: Set in the near future, a couple discovers the ugly truth behind their utopian society.

We see a man walking through a long hallway, looking for door AB285. There are several doors across this hallway on both sides, and it is just one of many. He finds the door and enters a password and has his eye scanned to verify his identity. The door opens to a tube like elevator. The man enters the elevator and travels downward at a great speed. He arrives at a floor with one room, several computer monitors and a large scope screen, depicting the conditions of Chicago, IL at the present time. “Welcome back, Arthur Kimball,” says the central AI. He finds his monitor and logs himself in. He triggers settings within the city to create a sunrise. Simultaneously, the majority of citizens save those who had to wake earlier for special occupations, awake from their nightly sleep and start the day. The life styles are not unlike that of modern society. Everything goes by as an ordinary day. However, the crucial difference is that nothing ever bad happens. All medical incidents are handled with swift attention. There are no robberies or other crimes. Everyone has sufficient resources to survive. There is no corruption in government or large business The environment is well maintained. It was as if everything in life was kept in perfect control. However, this is only because it is literally kept in perfect control. People like Arthur Kimball work at Central Control, an obscure building somewhere near Washington DC, that keeps all of The United States in line, letting people live out perfect lives at the cost of their free will, and none of them even know it.

In Chicago, a man named Chris Harvey is taking a futuristic version of the Chicago “L” trains to work. He works as an executive for a company that sells well-made electronic devices. Everyone is kind and helpful to him, as work is extremely efficient. That night, Chris returns home to his wife, Lauren, who works as a teacher in a nearby elementary school. She kisses Chris upon his arrival home, and she talks about how well her work went, and Chris replies in the same fashion. Arthur looks at the married couple through his monitor, but he feels somewhat uncomfortable at having to control their actions through seemingly infinite levels of operation and action. Later on, he has a break and talks to his friend, Robert. Arthur begins to question if doing this is really a good idea. Robert instantly confirms that everyone is happy now, and both Arthur and Robert have viable jobs. This system was set up to protect the people and give them the lives they always asked for. “But they’re not truly living,” Arthur says, “We’re not letting them live. Life is about making choices for yourself, whether or not they’re good or bad. We have that will! Why shouldn’t they!” Robert tells Arthur that he is young and naïve, but he is able to keep peace well, which is why he was chosen for this project. He tells Arthur not to do anything that could jeopardize this project, just because his personal ethics disagreed with it.

The next day, Arthur is back at his job, monitoring over Chris Harvey. He knows that on every person controlled by CC, there is a small implant on the back of their necks that affects their brain to be fit for control. Arthur finds access to a nearby car that passes through the crosswalk Chris uses to get home daily. He lines up everything so that the cart hits Harvey while he is crossing. As Arthur is hit, he has a vision of Arthur arguing for free will from earlier in the film. Simultaneously in both worlds, the workers at CC monitoring Chicago and the nearby citizens that witnessed the incident are in utmost shock. The co-workers soon identify Arthur as the man responsible for letting this incident happen, reporting him to the Chancellor, the man in charge of CC. Arthur openly admits that he was responsible for this incident, but not without stating that he had good reasons for it. Back in Chicago, Chris is being rushed to the hospital, but is currently unconscious. He is soon healed with great speed, and he fully recovers. However, when he awakens, he sees something odd behind the nurse: a holographic control panel. He tries to point it out, but the nurse insists that she is just seeing things. The woman controlling the nurse is nervous. The car accident that knocked out Chris must have also destroyed the control implant on the back of his neck, causing him to break free of the system and see the control on everyone else. He runs out of the hospital in terror, seeing his entire city - and all the people in it - are under complete control. He discovered what our price was for this new utopia.

Arthur Kimball is seen being dragged down a hall to the Chancellor’s office. Arthur is currently panicked and frustrated at the situation. Upon his arrival, he is sat by The Chancellor at his desk, right across from him. The Chancellor begins by stating bluntly that he is angry with him. The Simulation Project has been successful for nearly 40 years now, giving the entire populace and land maximum conditions, and this perfection of society is jeopardized by one man’s selfish actions. Arthur retaliates by saying how free will was not something that had to be lost in order to achieve this perfect world. The Chancellor zooms in on a family at a beach in California. “Look at this family,” he said, “they’re part of the system, but do they seem upset? Of course not. In fact, I’ve seen few people as happy right now as that sweet little child.” “But they’re being lied to!” That lie was giving them everything. It’s why they’re able to play right along the shore of this lovely beach. The Chancellor knows that Arthur was adamant in his feelings. He was even hesistant to let him work here, considering how he slightly questioned the ethics of The Simulation when he was offered the position, but he only signed him on because he was a good leader and peace keeper. Now, he’s gone too far. The Chancellor remove’s Arthur’s job as monitor, and the armored guards drag him out, as The Chancellor nods, implying that he is about to be punished. He then sends out an order to some guards to enter the city with one order: Bring Chris Harvey to Central Control, dead or alive, even if it means breaking the peace.

Chris rushes home to talk to Lauren, and he is terrified to see that she has the hologram at her side, too. Lauren backs away and picks up a knife from the kitchen. “Who are you? And how did you get into my house?” Chris realizes that the implant may have caused her to lose her memory about him. Chris tries to tell Lauren who he is, but she refuses to believe it. Chris remembers overhearing that the implant on the side of his neck was the cause of his “liberation.” He looks on the back of Lauren’s neck, and he finds the small implant. Chris asks Lauren to put the knife down, and he doesn’t want to hurt her. He convinces her that he is unarmed. With some hesitation, she lets it go. Chris uses a screwdriver to take of the implant. This causes slight pain for Lauren, but he is able to get it off. Lauren begins to feel different, and but she remembers Chris. Like Chris, her memory of life before the implant came off was shaky, save the major details. Chris asks her to look out the window, and she also sees the control of the people.”How could I have lived like this for so long?” Lauren asks through her tears. Meanwhile, a worker at CC becomes nervous when she finds out that she lost control over Lauren Harvey, and she uses a surveillance camera to look onto Lauren and Chris. The next day, we see a man move into an apartment building in Chicago, IL. He gets everything situated and fills out paperwork, revealing himself to be Arthur Kimball. His punishment was being thrust into the system he has grown weary of. One of Arthur’s previous friends is shocked to discover that she is controlling his every move, and not in a good way.

Chris has a friend who lives at the apartment building, and he posted a picture of him meeting his new neighbor. Chris looks at the picture, asking to himself why the new neighbor looks so familiar. He decides to go meet him at his apartment. As he walks out on the street, however, we see some guards catching Chris’s eye. They start to chase after him, and he runs across the city street, trying to get away from the armored guards. He has to climb on a building rooftop and go down a fire escape in order to create a difficult path for the guards to trace. The monitors had no idea that this was going to happen; the Chancellor kept very secret about it. As a result of their lack of preparation, many car accidents are caused, and several people are injured. Chris soon makes it to Arthur’s apartment, having outrun several of the guards. He opens the door and sees him casually sitting in a chair and drinking coffee. He recognizes Chris vaguely, but not what he did to him. Chris, with little time to explain, pulls the implant off of Arthur’s neck, who is very flustered and irritated at the situation. After a moment, Arthur realizes who Chris is: This was the man that he saved. Before they can say anthing else, guards barge into the apartment and aim their guns at the two of them. They decide that since Arthur was broken out as well, they would take him, too. They already mention that Lauren was caught back at their home, and a helicopter comes off the roof of the building to get to lower ground, where Lauren, Chris, and Arthur are given sedatives that knock them out.

Soon, they awaken at what appears to be a hospital. However, this wasn’t familiar at all. In fact, everything seems unfamiliar to them. Arthur tells the couple that he knows where they are, and he will tell them everything they need to know about their lives. This scene is told in an extended flashback. 64 years ago, a war broke out when the general public grew angry with the national government. The nation was in a terrible state. War, poverty, energy crises, disease, global warming - these were just some of the plagues of the nation. Some people thought that it was a sign of our end. A few considered ourselves as the only ones to blame, and we needed a massive campaign for national improvement. Others blamed the government for their woes, and they soon rebelled. Unfortunately, the government highly outnumbered them, and they used heavy force to keep the civilians in line. When all was said and done, the nation’s population greatly shrank as a result of the war and the poor conditions to only 160 million. However, the government knew a way to heal the wounds that they may or may not have caused and punish those who had defied them. It was the start of a highly ambitious project, one that required gifted leadership and technology skills. It was called, The Simulation Project, proposed by sociologist Matthew DiBonte.

In a video shown only to government officials, The project was depicted as a haven to create a new utopia in a wasteland using the power of technology. Using a highly advanced system that took years to develop, we will be able to take control of any human being and guide him or her to the perfect life that could ever be imagined. Any decision, from ordering lunch to who to marry, will be chosen for them by a line of gifted scholars, trained to keep peace and ensure a satisfying life for everyone. With our guidance, all human activities that could exist can be carried out with ease by these monitors. These monitors will be trained and tested through an intensive program, ensuring that they are suited to guide us to the best lives that we could possibly ask for, led by The Chancellor, who was Matthew DiBonte at the time. Also, we will encapsulate each city area within a massive dome that provides perfect weather conditions, such as perfect distributions of rainfall for growing crops. Through our perfect control, nobody will ever feel free to rebel, or be able to. Essentially, it was a loss of free will in exchange for a utopia. The government was hesitant to accept such a controversial program, but they soon complied after much persuasion.

Chips were publicly installed into all civilians without telling them the purpose. Some people resisted, naturally, but we kept them in line. It wasn’t long before everyone had the implant. They were moved into nearby cities encapsulated with the domes. (All other land, mostly rural areas, was left as the wasteland that it had become.) However, life became perfect for all. Crimes stopped occurring, and no major problems or epidemics have ever occurred since The Simulation took full effect. The monitors gave birth to children that would grow up to follow in their parents’ footsteps. For example, Matthew DiBonte died 18 years ago, but his son has proven to be just as competent, and readily filled his shoes as Chancellor. The system continued without any single breach into the system. “But not anymore, and this was my doing.” Arthur says, still sorrowful at the true potential of humanity being obscured. Chris is still in shock as to what he has discovered about his life. It was a lie. He didn’t end up here because he wanted too. This was all the part of a stranger’s plan. He is, however, not upset with Arthur, knowing that he was responsible for ending this nightmare for him. They soon are told by a guard that the Chancellor wanted to talk with them, and Chris, Lauren, and Arthur are escorted down a long hallway. They finally meet with The Chancellor, who looks at them with stern eyes.

The project was put in motion for several years, and it has proceeded without a hitch for several years, and the selfish actions of Arthur had nearly compromised the entire mission. Chris and Lauren beg him to let him stay in this "real world," where they can truly be free. Stephen DiBonte contemplates on the situation, which is entirely unprecedented. He had never seen someone so desperate to make their own choices, even when the choices made for them already gave them an immensely satisfying outcome. However, he thinks about how free will is one of the key differences between life and synthetics. Left in a dilemma of his entire operation, he decides for now to let Chris and Lauren stay with Arthur, but they cannot return to their old home. We later see Arthur driving Chris and Lauren to his home in a futuristic city, as the couple awaits what net life may come for them. They know that free will is a gift, and they feel bad for escaping from the city while many others failed too, even if they're living "ideal" lives. During their final narrations, we see DiBonte thinking about the situation in his private observatory, concerned about what he has been doing. We also see another monitor lining up car and pedestrian traffic to create another car accident, marking the start of a potential revolution.

THE END.

Edited by Spaghetti
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Island of the Blue Dolphins

Filmed in 3D

Date- August 1st

Genre- CGI Animation

Rating- PG- some scary moments and mild action

Theaters- 3,834 theaters

Budget- 115 million

Running Time- 101 minutes or 1 hour and 41 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment Animation Studios

Director- Lee Unkrich

Actors and Actress-

Karana (voice) – Freida Pinto

Ramo (voice) – Madhur Mittal

Tutok (voice) – Katee Sackhoff

Ulape (voice) - Zoe Saldana

Plot: The movie begins with a view of a beautiful tropical island shaped like a dolphin in the middle of the ocean. The waves rush onto the shore and the wind rustles through the palm trees. On a cliff over looking the ocean stands an Indian girl named Karana and her young brother Ramo. They chat about the ocean as the Karana digs for roots. Suddenly Ramo shouts that a ship which is an Aleutian vessel because of the red sails is approaching the island. He darts toward the village to tell the news. Karana continues to dig for roots but she desperately wants to go to the village. Finally when the basket is full, she hurries to the village. The village is in a bustle. Warriors rush down the narrow trail leading to the coast while woman and children hurry to gather on a mesa over looking the beach. Karana’s father who is the chief of the tribe stands on the beach awaiting the Aleut boat. The Aleut captain steps out of the small boat and tells the chief that he has come in peace. Karana’s father says that he is the chief. Chief Chowig. The captain says that they have come with forty men to hunt the otter on the coast of Island of the Blue Dolphins. The chief is silent. The captain tells Chief Chowig that he is not like the previous captain who came to the island who forced the Ghalas (the Indian tribe) to hunt for two months without rest. He says that he will do all the hunting and then give the Ghalas one-third of otter pelts. Chief Chowig says that the parts must be equal. The captain says that they will be. The next day Karana and her older sister Ulape gather shell fish on the shore. Suddenly large shimmering bass rush up onto the shore. Karana and Ulape look as two massive Killer Whales rush about the school of fish. The fish in terror rush up onto the shore. Ulape shouts to some other women near by to help her and Karana take the large bass to the village. As the women enter the village with the fish, the tribe excitedly surrounds them. It is the first fresh meat in months. That night the Ghalas feast on the fish in celebration. Within the next few weeks the Aleuts prepare to leave the island. It is a cloudy day. The sky is threatening and dark. The captain has not yet paid Chief Chowig. The chief tells the tribe that he is going to confront the captain. The warriors and their chief assemble on the beach to confront the Aleuts. Karana and Ulape with the woman hide in the brushes. The captain and Chief Chowig being to talk loudly on the beach. Ulape tells Karana that father is angry. Suddenly the captain pulls out a gun and shoots Chief Chowig. Karana leaps to her feet and Ulape screams. The warriors shout the war cries and rush on to the Aleutians. The Aleutians and the Ghalas fight. The women and children on the cliffs begin to hurl rocks onto the Aleutians. Puffs of white smoke rise from the ship. A loud ban is heard six of the warriors fall dead and many more continue to fall. The Ghalas begin to fall back. The Aleuts pursue the Ghalas. Suddenly a bolt of lightening shots out of the sky a loud clap of thunder follows shakings the ground. The captain shouts for his men to fall back and get back to the main ship. The Aleuts leave the island. The rain falls in droves. Lightening races across the sky and the wind screams across the island. The women and children ran to the village. Their cries of grief are louder than the raging storm. Wounded warriors trickle into the village. Karana kneels by her father’s body crying as the waves crash into the shore. Ulape pulls Karana away and they head back to the village. The storms last for days as the Ghalas mourn and bury their dead. Karana says that this is the most significant event in the Ghalas history. She says that only fifteen men remain and that twenty-seven had died in the fight. Months pass as we see the Ghalas struggle to survivor. One day, a ship is seen entering the bay. The village leaders order the people to pack up their belongings and head for the canoes hidden on the other side of the island because it could be the Aleuts. Karana and Ramo head for the canoe, Ramo asks were Ulape is. Suddenly Ulape races toward the group of villages yelling for them to stop. The village elders ask what is wrong. She says that the ship is not Aleutian but Spanish sailors. She says that a sailor told her that they have come to take the Ghalas to Mexico to live in safety. The elders call a council. The elders vote unanimously to go to Mexico to leave. The elders meet with the captain of the ship to arrange the passage to Mexico. The next day Karana and Ulape pack in a hurry because the ship must leave soon because the winds are going to change. The people of the island hurry toward the ship and board it. We see Ramo still carrying some items toward the shore as the ship begins to leave. Karana asks a man if he has seen Ramo on the ship. The man says no. They see a boy running along the cliffs shouting. Karana says that it is Ramo and they must go back for him. The man says that the ship will wreck on the rocks if they go back. He says that Ramo has enough food and water to survive for several weeks and that the ship will return in three days to get him. Karana says no and throws her belongings in the water and jumps over the boat into the water. Ulape shouts after Karana to come back but Karana continues to ship toward the island. Ulape is about to jump over board when the man tells her that Karana made her choice and that the boat will be back for her and Ramo. When Karana reaches the shore she finds Ramo. He asks if the boat is coming back. Karana says that the boat will be back in a few days. As they climb up the narrow trailer the wind begin to blow hard. A pack of wild dogs runs through the tall grasses. Karana and Ramo reach the abandoned village. Karana tells Ramo to go out and hunter for some food while she prepares the hut for them to stay in. Ramo grabs his bow and arrows and runs outside. Several hours pass and Karana begins to wonder were Ramo is. She grabbing a spear, she runs down the trail were Ramo went down. In the distance she can hear a pack of wild dogs barking. She shouts no and runs at full speed. She sees a pack of dogs circling a body lying on the ground. She hurls her spear at one of the dogs killing it. The other wild dogs take off running. We see Ramo lying on the ground dead. Karana with tears in her eyes cares the body back to the hut. The wind blows hard and screams as she carries Ramo back. The sky grows dark since night is fast approaching. Karana lies Ramo down by the fire and she sits and cries. The screen fades to black. Days pass as we see Karana try to survive on the island and planning her revenge on the wild dog pack. One day she is canoeing in the ocean and suddenly dolphins leap out of the water all around her. She laughs as the dolphins make funny sounds as they play with each other. We see on the shore a giant herd of elephant seals. Karana paddles over to the herd because she needs the bones of the seals for making more arrows. She cautiously makes her way through the herd undetected. Suddenly two enormous male seals roar at each other. They begin to fight viciously, slashing each other with their teeth. They roll over and over fighting. Karana leaps out of the way as they almost crush her. She fires and arrow at one of the males. It misses. The male turn around and roars at Karana however the other male taking advantage of the situation grabs the other male by the throat. The male seal tries to shake the other seal off. Its tail smacks Karana in the leg bruising it. The males leap into the water and disappear underneath the waves. Karana decides not to attack the other seals since they know she is here and since her leg hurts. The next day when she is out canoeing she spots on of the male seals died on the shore. Hundreds of gulls swarm around the body picking the bones clean. Karana gather some of the bones and takes them back to her hut were she makes arrows. After two days of making arrows she is ready to get her revenge on the wild dogs. She creates a fire near the entrance of the dogs cave to smoke them out. She then hides in the brushes. A group of dogs dash out. She quickly kills them. Then out of the cave comes the leader of the pack. He is different then the other dogs. He has silver fur and looks more like a wolf then a dog. He slowly walks out of the cave. Karana lifts her bow to shot him. He looks up at Karana and snarls. She lets the arrow fly. It strikes the dog in the chest. He turns and runs but then falls down. Two other dogs emerge from the cave. Karana turns from the leader and kills the other dogs. When she turns back to see if the leader of the dogs is dead she finds that he is gone. Karana sees his tracks leading down to the shore. She pursues. She finds the dog lying on the shore still alive. She lifts her spear to kill him but suddenly lets it drop. She picks up the dog and cares him back to her hut. We see her over the next few days lovingly take care of him. She names him Rontu. She and Rontu begin to bond. We see them take long walks through the grasses and swim in the ocean together. It has been three months since the Spanish ship left Island of the Blue Dolphins. One day she and Rontu are standing on the cliff over looking the ocean when she spies a ship coming. It is Aleutian. She quickly runs to her hut and gathers her belongs and heads to the caves on the far side of the island were she will be safe from the Aleuts. She and Rontu spy on the Aleuts. We see a young Aleutian girl the same age as Karana. Karana desperately wants to meet her but knows that the Aleuts can’t find out about her. One day while Karana is picking berries, she spies the girl walking toward her. The girl spots Karana. Karana think of throwing her spear at the girl but doesn’t. The girl smiles at Karana and says her name is Tutok. Karana looks at Tutok cautiously. Tutok says that she will not tell the others that Karana is hear. Karana smiles a little and says thank you. Tutok asks Karana’s names. Karana says her name is Karana the girl smiles and laughs and Karana laughs. Karana asks if Tutok if she wants to help her gather berries. Tutok says that she would love to. The girls laugh and talk as they pick the berries. Tutok asks about Karana. Karana tells Tutok the story of her life on the island after the tribe left. Suddenly Rontu barks. Tutok says that the men are coming and Karana should run. Karana grabs the basket and runs with Rontu to the cave. Over the next few days Karana and Tutok develop a deep friendship. One day Karana awakes to Rontu barking. She runs to the other side of the island. She sees the Aleutian ship ready to set sail. She sees some men still working on the shore. She says that the ship will probably leave first thing tomorrow. The whole day Karana waits for Tutok to come to Karana’s cave but Tutok doesn’t. That night Karana prepares a meal for her and Tutok but still Tutok doesn’t come. Karana sits by the cave entrance waiting for Tutok the entire night. The next day she sees the Aleutian ship leaving. She suddenly starts to cry. She says that she misses Tutok. The sky grows dark and the wind grows cold. Karana stands on the cliff still overlooking the harbor were the Aleut ship once was. The rain beats down on her and a bolt of lightening lights up the sky. Karana still stands and cries. Rontu howls at the sky. As the months pass Karana grows lonelier on the island. On sunny days she and Rontu walk along the beach collecting shells and on raining days she sits in her hut which she moved back to thinking of Tutok and making up imaginary conversations with Tutok. On one cold rainy day, she hears Rontu winning. She lets him out to go run around outside. The day passes and no Rontu. As night draws near Karana goes and looks for Rontu. She finds him lying down in the cave that the wild dogs once inhabited. He whimpers. She sees that he is dying. Rontu licks Karana’s face. Karana begins to sob. Rontu lays his head down and closes his eyes. The screen goes black. One day many weeks later we see Karana cleaning her hut when suddenly a shadow is cast over her. She screams and turns around. She sees a group of men standing outside. On of the men says that they have come back for Karana to take her to her people. Karana smiles with joy. She with the help of the men take her belongs to the ship. Karana stands on the ship looking back on the Island of the Blue Dolphins. She says that she will miss her island and her home but is looking forward to meeting her tribe once again. She then walks to the front of the ship. The sun sets in a beautiful display as dolphins leap out in front of the ship. The water is thrown into Karana face. She throws back her head and then closers her eyes. The screen goes black.

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Remember Flight 175

Date- {Limited August 29th 4} {Wide September 5th 4}

Genre- Drama/Thriller

Rating- PG-13- intense emotional content, language, disturbing images, and sequences of terror

Theaters- {Limited August 29th 397 theaters} {Wide September 5th 3,235 theaters}

Budget- 35 million

Running Time- 118 minutes or 1 hour and 58 minutes

Studio- Number 2 Productions

Director- Steven Spielberg

Composer- Hans Zimmer

Score- The score for this film is tense for the beginning. At the middle after the plane crashes the score is dark and depressing. Toward the end the score becomes soft and quiet film. During the credits Never Say Never by the Fray is played.

Actors and Actress-

Trenton Smith-----Logan Huffman

Jake Bu’ti--------Dev Patel

James Smith-----Tom Cruise

Agatha Smith-----Sandra Bullock

Carly Smith----Carey Mulligan

Plot: The movie starts with Trenton (17 years old) waking up. He rolls over and hits the alarm off. Trenton then falls back into the bed. He glances over at the clock and it says 6:22AM. He leaps out of bed and runs to the bathroom were quickly gets showered and dressed. As he packs for his trip to Los Angeles, he calls his best friend Jake and tells him that he is going to be late at the airport. Trenton grabs something to eat and then grabs his keys and leaves for the airport. As Trenton passes into the airport we see the sign saying Logan International Airport. Arriving at the airport he meets up with Jake. He and Jake discuss how it will be a ton of fun in Los Angeles for a week and not do any school. They are interrupted by an announcer that says that United Flight 175 will be boarding in 10 minutes. Jakes gives his dad and mom a hug goodbye. Trenton watches and shuffles around uncomfortably. Jake’s mom asks Trenton if he has any family saying goodbye. Trenton says that his dad and mom are to into their jobs as usual to think about him and his older step-sister is at college in New York City. Jake’s mom gives Trenton a hug goodbye. Trenton and Jake leave to board the plane. As they board the plane Jake says that he has a feeling that they are never going to return. Trenton tells him to shut up and stop freaking out. Trenton and Jake sit down on the plane. Jake tells Trenton that this is the first time he has flown and that he is a little worried. Trenton tells Jake that flying is a ton of fun and that Jake should sit back and relax. The camera moves to a Middle Eastern man sitting in front of the boys. The man smiles when he hears Trenton telling Jake to relax and have fun. The flight attended stands up and tells the passengers to buckle in and enjoy the flight. Trenton and Jake smile at each other as the plane takes off down the runway. Once they are in the air Jake pulls out his DVD player and the two boys are quickly engrossed in the movie. After nine minutes into the movie the man in front of the two boys stands up and shouts something in Arabic. Trenton whispers to Jake that the man need to shut up. Jake laughs. The man then pulls out a knife and stabs the flight attendant who was walking over to see what the man wanted. The man shouts for everyone to get to the back of the plane. The plane is filled with confusion as people rush to the back of the plane. Trenton and Jake drop the DVD player and dash to the back of the plane. People start to cry and throw up as the plane makes jerky movements. Trenton asks a man what is happening but the man just ignores Trenton. A lady tells them that the plane has been hijacked by terrorists and that the one terrorist says that they are going to land the plane and use the passengers as hostages. As tense minutes pass, a man who as just on the phone exclaims that the North World Trade Center has been hit by a plane. People start to freak out and call loved ones at the news. Trenton tells Jake that they are not going to crash. Jake passes out. A man sets Jake in a seat while a flight attendant puts some cold packs on Jake. Trenton peeks out of the window and see New York City sprawling in the distance him. He looks and sees the World Trade Centers and he exclaims “No”. The plane banks left suddenly and sharply throwing Trenton against a seat breaking a few of his ribs. Mourning in pain, he pulls out his phone and dials his dad number. The camera moves to Trenton’s dad’s office where we see Trenton’s dad, James talking with a client. The phone rings and James peeks over and sees that it is Trenton’s number. He hears Trenton’s voice asking if he is there. James pushes the volume button to off. He’s client ask if that is his son. James says it is. The client says that James can take the call but James insists that it is only his son saying goodbye and that he will pick up his son at the airport on his son’s return from Los Angeles to make up for not saying goodbye. The client smiles. The camera moves back to the plane were we see Trenton calling his dad. Trenton tells his dad that the plane has been hijacked and that they are going to crash. He also says that he forgives him and mom for not being there for him and that he loves them very much. And that his last wish is that Dad, Mom, and Carly will resolve the conflicts that have divided the family. He says that he has to hang up now to call mom and say goodbye. Trenton dials his mom’s number and she picks up. She ask him way is he calling on the plane and to knock off any trouble that he might be causing. Trenton tells his mom that the plane has been hijacked that that they are going to crash. His mom, Agatha tells Trenton in a harsh voice that he knows better than to talk like that. Trenton then exclaims, “Oh, My God!! The tower is burning!! Oh, My God!!” She hears screams and shouts in the back ground, just as she is about to speak, Trenton in a quivering voice says, “I love y...…” The camera zooms out and we see a massive fire ball emerge from the tower with black smoke and debris. People go flying out of the building screaming as they hurtle toward the ground along with burning debris. Agatha shouts into the phone Trenton’s name but hears nothing. She dashes out of her office, as she runs through the waiting room she sees on TV a replay of the plane hitting the building. She stands petrified. Suddenly she awakes out of her trance and rushes to the car. She calls James and tells him that she is driving to New York City. He asks her to calm down and tell him way she is driving to New York City. She tells him everything and that she is going to pick up Carly and look for Trenton. James tells her that Trenton is probably died. Agatha says, “No he can’t be died, he just can’t” After she hangs up, James tells the client that a family crisis just happened and that he has to go. Just as he gets done saying that a worker burst into the office and says that two planes crashed in to the World Trade Centers. The client leaps up and exclaims that his wife works in the buildings. James offers to drive the client to the site. When they reach the New York City they find they city in confusion. Debris and ash are scatted everywhere and people are covered with it. Fire fighters, police, and paramedics dash bravely through the crowds of people toward the towers. Injured people lay all over the street. The client leaps out of the car and runs toward the burning buildings shouting his wife’s name. James gets out and is immediately finds Agatha and their daughter Carly standing watching hopeless as the rubble burn. Agatha tearfully says that airlines confirmed that Flight 175 crashed into the buildings. James embraces Agatha and Carly. As they hug they see Jake’s parents crying. The Smiths go over and comfort the two distressed parents. Mrs. Bu’ti says that Jake was all they had and how could have this happened to him. Agatha hugs Mrs. Bu’ti and says that their two sons are in a much better place now. James looks up and sees his client with his wife. James whispers to himself that at least this day is not filled with all sorrow and grief. Agatha says that she can’t stay here anymore and the family leaves. Arriving the next day, James says that he will be gone at work for a few days. Agatha insists that he stay home. James refuses saying that he took yesterday off to be with them. Agatha says that their son just died and the family needs him. James says yeah whatever and slams the door and leaves. Agatha shouts after him to come back and throws a glass at the door and collapses in a chair crying. Carly stands and watches without a sound. When James gets to his office, he finds it empty. He mutters under his breathe. Sitting down in his chair he reaches over and presses the play button on his phones answering machine. Find the volume off he turns it on. After playing through work messages he reaches Trenton’s message. After hearing the message he breaks down. 15 minutes later he grabs his coat and leaves the office. He reaches home to find Agatha and Carly cleaning the house. Carly confronts his saying that Agatha does not wish to see him and she ask him if he is going to ditch Agatha like the last woman he married because time got difficult. She tells him that he is treating Trenton’s death like the death of a pet; you just forget it the next day and move on. She tells him that she saw Trenton’s plane fly into the World Trade Center and it was appalling. She tells him that this is his son they are talking about. James pleads with Carly but she will not hear him. She tells him to get out. James leaves the house. Going to a coffee shop, James sits and ponders his past life. We see Agatha cleaning Trenton’s room. She sits down on his bed holding some of his belongs and reflects. We see Carly sitting on the couch looking through a photo album of Trenton and her as young kids. Then screen divides into three. On one side we see James’s flash back memories, in the middle we see Agatha’s memories, and on the other side Carly’s memories of Trenton. The screen moves back to one. Carly shuts the album as she looks off into the sunset. Agatha shakes herself and wipes away the tears and then rises. James picks up is coffee and leaves the café. Arriving back at home late that night, James quietly slips in. The next morning James wakes up and goes down stairs and talks with Agatha and Carly. He tells them what Trenton’s last wish was and says that he is sorry for being such a bad parent and husband. Agatha and Carly ask James forgiveness for responding badly to James and forgiveness for past mistakes they have done. The three hug each other. Three days later we see the three standing at Trenton’s grave. Carly says as she places a flower on Trenton’s grave, “His death united our family” Agatha tearfully says; “We must never forget him” James nods in approval. The family slowly walks away from the grave. As the camera zooms toward the grave stone we hear the song Never Say Never by the Fray.

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The Nutcracker and the Mouse King

Date- November 7th

Genre- Christmas/Animation

Rating- PG- some mild frightening scenes

Theaters- 3,724 theaters

Budget- 65 million

Running Time- 98 minutes or 1 hour and 38 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment Animation Studios

Director- Ron Howard

Actors and Actress- (Marie) - Emily Barclay

Plot: The film begins on Christmas Eve at the Stahlbaum house. Marie, twelve years old, and her brother Fritz, eight, sit outside the parlor speculating about what kind of present their godfather Drosselmeyer, who is a clockmaker and inventor, has made for them. They are at last allowed into the parlor, where they receive many splendid gifts, including Drosselmeyer's, which turns out to be a clockwork castle with mechanical people moving about inside it. However, as the mechanical people can only do the same thing over and over without variation, the children quickly tire of it. At this point, Marie notices a Nutcracker doll, and asks whom he belongs to. Her father tells her that he belongs to all of them, but that since she is so fond of him she will be his special caretaker. Marie, her sister Louise, and her brother Fritz pass the Nutcracker among them, cracking nuts, until Fritz tries to crack a nut that is too big and hard, and the Nutcracker's jaw breaks. Marie, upset, takes the Nutcracker away and bandages him with a ribbon from her dress. When it is time for bed, the children put their Christmas gifts away in the special cupboard where they keep their toys. Fritz and Louise go up to bed, but Marie begs to be allowed to stay with Nutcracker a while longer, and she is allowed to do so. She puts Nutcracker to bed and tells him that Drosselmeyer will fix his jaw as good as new. At this, the Nutcracker's face seems momentarily to come alive, and Marie is frightened, but she then decides it was only her imagination. The grandfather clock begins to chime, and Marie believes she sees Drosselmeyer sitting on top of it, preventing it from striking. Mice begin to come out from beneath the floor boards, including the seven-headed Mouse King. Marie, startled, slips and puts her elbow through the glass door of the toy cupboard. The dolls in the cupboard come alive and begin to move, Nutcracker taking command and leading them into battle after putting Marie's ribbon on as a token. The battle at first goes to the dolls, but they are eventually overwhelmed by the mice. Marie, seeing Nutcracker about to be taken prisoner, takes off her shoe and throws it at the Mouse King, then faints. Marie wakes the next morning with her arm bandaged and tries to tell her parents about the battle between the mice and the dolls, but they do not believe her, thinking that she has had a fever dream caused by the wound she sustained from the broken glass. Drosselmeyer soon arrives with the Nutcracker, whose jaw has been fixed, and tells Marie the story of Princess Pirlipat and the Queen of the Mice, which explains how Nutcrackers came to be and why they look the way they do. The Queen of the Mice tricked Pirlipat's mother into allowing her and her children to gobble up the lard that was supposed to go into the sausage that the King was to eat at dinner that evening. The King, enraged at the Mouse Queen for spoiling his supper and upsetting his wife, had his court inventor, whose name happens to be Drosselmeyer, create traps for the Mouse Queen and her children. The Mouse Queen, angered at the death of her children, swore that she would take revenge on the King's daughter, Pirlipat. Pirlipat's mother surrounded her with cats which were supposed to be kept awake by being constantly stroked, however inevitably the nurses who stroked the cats fell asleep and the Mouse Queen magically turned the infant Pirlipat ugly, giving her a huge head, a wide grinning mouth and a cottony beard, like a nutcracker. The King blamed Drosselmeyer and gave him four weeks to find a cure. At the end of four weeks, Drosselmeyer had no cure but went to his friend, the court astrologer. They read Pirlipat's horoscope and told the King that the only way to cure her was to have her eat the nut Crackatook, which must be cracked and handed to her by a man who had never been shaved nor worn boots since birth, and who must, without opening his eyes hand her the kernel and take seven steps backwards without stumbling. The King sent Drosselmeyer and the astrologer out to look for the nut and the young man, charging them on pain of death not to return until they had found them. The two men journeyed for many years without finding either the nut or the man, until finally they returned home and found the nut in a small shop. The man who had never been shaved and never worn boots turned out to be Drosselmeyer's own nephew. The King, once the nut had been found, promised his daughter's hand to whoever could crack the nut. Many men broke their teeth on the nut before Drosselmeyer's nephew finally appeared. He cracked the nut easily and handed it to the princess, who swallowed it and immediately became beautiful again, but Drosselmeyer's nephew, on his seventh backward step, trod on the Queen of the Mice and stumbled, and the curse fell on him, giving him a large head, wide grinning mouth and cottony beard; in short, making him a Nutcracker. The ungrateful Princess, seeing how ugly Drosselmeyer's nephew had become, refused to marry him and banished him from the castle. Marie, while she recuperates from her wound, hears the King of the Mice whispering to her in the middle of the night, threatening to bite Nutcracker to pieces unless she gives him her sweets and her dolls. For Nutcracker's sake, Marie sacrifices her things, but the Mouse king wants more and more and finally Nutcracker tells Marie that if she will just get him a sword, he will finish the Mouse King. Marie asks Fritz for a sword for Nutcracker, and he gives her the sword of one of his toy hussars. The next night, Nutcracker comes into Marie's room bearing the Mouse King's seven crowns, and takes her away with him to the doll kingdom, where Marie sees many wonderful things. She eventually falls asleep in the Nutcracker's palace and is brought back home. She tries to tell her mother what happened, but again she is not believed, even when she shows her parents the seven crowns, and she is forbidden to speak of her "dreams" anymore. As Marie sits in front of the toy cabinet one day, looking at Nutcracker and thinking about all the wondrous things that happened, she can't keep silent anymore and swears to the Nutcracker that if he were ever really real she would never behave as Princess Pirlipat behaved, and she would love him whatever he looked like. At this, there is a bang and she falls off the chair. Her mother comes in to tell her that godfather Drosselmeyer has arrived with his young nephew. Drosselmeyer's nephew takes Marie aside and tells her that by swearing that she would love him in spite of his looks, she broke the curse on him and made him handsome again. He asks her to marry him. She accepts, and in a year and a day he comes for her and takes her away to the Doll Kingdom, where she is crowned queen.

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Booster Gold

Director: Duncan Jones

Genre: Superhero

Date: June 20

Studio: Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment (in collaboration with Perseus Films)

Cast: Zachary Levi as Michael Carter/Booster Gold, Peter Weller as Chiller/the Vice President, Brian Posehn as Skeets, Elisha Cuthbert as Michelle Carter, Tim Robbins as Jonar Carter, Annie Wersching as Ellen Carter, Stephen Colbert as President Downing, Octavia Spencer as Amanda Waller, Rachel McAdams as Iris West, and Armie Hammer as Jaime Reyes.

Music by: James Newton Howard.

Runtime: 117 min

Format: IMAX 3D and 3D

Tagline: This Summer, Make it Gold

Plot Summary: Michael Carter is a man from the 24th century who comes back in time to become a superhero and stop an assassination attempt on the President. Based off the DC Comic.

Plot:

Blankments and DC Logos appear. A large panning shot of a futuristic city, eventually ending at the small Carter apartment.

Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment Presents. A Duncan Jones Film. Arriving at the apartment, The 25th Century: Coast City appears on screen. Michelle and Michael Carter are four-year-old twins. Jonar and Ellen are having an argument about Jonar’s gambling addiction, and Jonar leaves the family in disgust, leaving with them his gambling debts. 16 Years Later appears, and Michael is now a star college football player at Central City University nicknamed “Booster.” After winning his fifth game in a row, he goes off with friends to celebrate, when he gets a call from his sister. He’s told his mom has just been diagnosed with a terrible terminal disease, she has only nine months to live and the only treatment is too much money for the family to afford. Michael says that he can find a way to afford it and hangs up.

Michael starts placing bets and throwing games so he can collect the money. We see a montage where the rest of the season’s losing streak occurs and Michael collects the money. Finally, he has enough money to give his mom the treatment. He goes to visit his family, and gives his mom the treatment. Michelle finds out how Michael can afford it, and admonishes him. However, she doesn’t do anything about it, as she doesn’t have to. Ellen takes the treatment and Michael’s roommate back in Central City finds out about Michael’s gambling, and turns him into the dean as soon as he returns to Central City. Michael is instantly expelled and thrown in jail for five years for what he has done, and we see his mom finding out and breaking down in tears.

Three Years Later, Michael is let out of jail and the state after completing parole for good behavior. He then moves to El Paso, Texas, and takes a security job at a museum there. He gets a security robot as a partner, Skeets. A montage is shown of his boring job there, which consists of walking around at night and day shining his flashlight and talking to Skeets about random things. Skeets and Michael become quick friends, when one day, they decide to go to the basement to see the old exhibits considered too dangerous for exhibition.

They find an exhibition of the history of superheroes. There are statues all over and interactive exhibits. Michael sees one on Flash and presses it. He sees a brief presentation of Flash’s powers, and then the exhibit asks he’d like to see the civilian life or hero life of the Flash. Michael just moves on, finding more interest in the Blue Beetle scarab the exhibit seems to have under glass. Skeets tells him it is against protocol be down here and they need to get out of here. However, Michael then sees the crown jewel of the collection: a fully equipped costume equipped with plenty modern weapons. Michael reads the description of the item, saying after the hero who wore this died, all of his gadgets were reverse-engineered to make the 25th century’s technology. The hero is most famous for saving President Downing from the shapeshifting assassin Chiller. There is no name for the hero listed, though, and Michael asks Skeets if he knows. Skeets doesn’t recognize it.

Michael decides to leave, making Skeets happy. However, before he leaves, he sees something labeled “Rip Hunter’s Time Machine.” Michael then looks at it, and asks Skeets about it. Skeets says this is the reason the exhibit closed down, as the time machine is impossible to disable functioning on, and the security wasn’t strong enough to prevent wackos from trying to use it. Michael then gets an idea, which he tells Skeets, and Skeets says it is a terrible idea, as the time machine is a one-way trip. Michael wants to put on the fully equipped costume, go back to when President Downing’s assassination attempt and beat the original hero at defeating him, making Michael the huge hero of the past and Skeets his sidekick. Michael will then start a corporation for his heroics allowing the two of them to make loads of money and live in luxury. Skeets asks why would he want to leave everything he has now. Michael responds bitterly by saying he has nothing now.

A flashback occurs revealing his mom died while he was in jail, and his sister blames him for her death. After Michael was released from parole, his sister sent him his limited possessions and money and said she’s moved on from family life and living on her home. The flashback ends, and Michael says the past might not be great, but it’d be certainly better than his present right now. Skeets pauses and says he considers Michael a friend, and that can go ahead with his crazy plan. Michael then thanks Skeets, telling him he won’t regret it.

Michael puts on the hero suit, and then he and Skeets go in the time machine. They realize that the time machine will land in its same location whenever they go back, so they will still be in El Pasa. Skeets figures that with Michael’s flight that’ll be available in the suit, and Skeets’ own flight speed that they will need to arrive two days before the assassination attempt. Michael agrees, and they start the time machine, which sends them back immediately.

Michael and Skeets open up the time machine after they’ve landed, and it turns out they’ve landed on the couch of a teenager’s basement bedroom. As soon as they walk out of the time machine, it disappears and the teenager, Jaime Reynes, is staring at them in shock. Skeets flies up and shuts the door, while Michael tries to explain that they’re superheroes from the future. Jaime is apprehensive and asks them their names. Michael is prepared and says triumphantly his name is Goldstar, and the robot is his sidekick, Skeets. Skeets rolls his robotic eyes, and asks Jaime if they can leave to go save the president from an assassination attempt.

Jaime still doesn’t believe them, so Michael attempts to knock out the kid with a laser on his costume. Skeets stops Michael, saying to him privately that there’s something locked in his data chip telling him the boy will become something important. Michael doesn’t shoot Jaime, and instead tells him that they can prove it to him if they go out of the house. Jaime relents and they go upstairs, passing his mother quietly and comically as Jaime explains he has to go over a friend’s house to study while Skeets and Michael sneak by. The three of them go outside, and Jaime tells them to prove it. Michael and Skeets look at each other and fly away. Jaime looks up in awe, realizing they must be heroes... or at least, have superpowers. He goes back inside the house. We see a government agent looking from afar at Michael and Skeets, saying that they need to apprehended into his earpiece.

A comical montage begins of Michael and Skeets flying across America, stopping in costume at places to get food and use the bathroom. Finally, they arrive in Washington D.C., twenty-four hours before the president will have an assassination attempt. They stop and land on top of the Washington Monument, surveying the city. Skeets asks how Michael plans on subduing the assassin and the hero. Michael says he actually has no idea. They fly down to the ground, where lights blind them, and Michael is knocked out and captured. Skeets escapes however and shoots a small, light tracker at the leader of the capturers.

Michael wakes up staring into the face of Amanda Waller, who asks him where he came from. Michael is dumbfounded, and gets even more confused when he realizes he is completely naked except for some boxers that aren’t even his. Amanda Waller explains that his suit has been taken for studies on the weaponry, which vastly exceed the government’s current technology level. She asks Michael if he’s a terrorist. Michael tells her he’s just a guy from the future who came back in time to save the world. Amanda rolls her eyes and asks him if he can be serious and what country is he working for. Michael says no, he’s from the future and he’s here to stop the president from being assassinated. He frantically asks what time it is. She says it’s six o’clock at night.

Michael realizes the president will be assassinated in three hours... and then he realizes something else. He asks Amanda if she’s ever seen someone else wearing his suit. Amanda says no, and that’s why he’s here. Michael realizes he is the original hero in the exhibit, and he needs to get out and save the president. Michael tells Amanda this, and she still doesn’t believe him. She’s paged and then talks into her earpiece, finding out she needs to go to Central City for investigating a new class of criminal there. Amanda assigns her top guards to Michael, and tells him she’ll be talking to him when she returns.

Meanwhile, Skeets finds Amanda Waller thanks to the tracker, and sees the building he must break into. He hacks the code to get in and then hacks the building’s security system to find out where Michael and the suit are. Skeets sees the security level at Michael’s end, so he sneaks down to find the suit. The guards are distracted, talking about how satellites are reporting seismic activity on Mars. Skeets ignores this and attaches himself to the suit, allowing him to use it as a body. He fights the suit’s guards, easily subduing them, and then goes to find Michael.

We cut suddenly to the White House, where we see a maid walk to the vice president, who is waiting for a meeting with the president. The maid gives him tea, and then shoots him with a pistol. The maid then reveals herself to be Chiller, who hides the body under the couch. He then takes his place as the vice president, smiling. The president walks out, and Chiller blocks the couch and says that they need to go to the conference right now. The president agrees.

Back at the agency, Michael is waiting, watching the guards watch him. Suddenly, Skeets in the suit comes in, and fights the guards, subduing them both after about a minute. Skeets then disconnects from the suit, revealing himself to Michael. Skeets hacks and removes the electronic lock from Michael, and while Michael puts on his suit, he tells Skeets what happened, and how he realized there never was another hero to fight to begin with. Michael asks Skeets how long it is until the assassination attempt, and Skeets says ten minutes. The two start flying to the White House.

The president and Chiller walk out together. Chiller waits for the president to start his speech, and then removes his disguise, smiling, and then aiming a ray gun at the president. Everyone in the crowd starts panicking, while the president is surrounded by twenty Secret Service agents, all of them who are working the speech. Chiller calmly takes all of them out in about twenty seconds. The president then tries to talk Chiller out of it, and Chiller just laughs, saying the only thing that can get to him is money. Suddenly, he hears, “How about some Gold?”

Chiller looks up and sees Michael and Skeets floating above him. Chiller just laughs and asks what are they going to him sarcastically. Michael then punches Chiller, pushing him back about five meters. Chiller frowns and an all-out fight between Michael and Chiller begins. During this five-minute fight, Skeets helps the President escape into the safety of his own house, and they find the vice president’s body under the couch. Back to the fight, Michael and Chiller are still going at it, both by using weapons and fighting hand-to-hand. Michael then discovers that he can turn up his power on his blasters, and then shoots Chiller at the highest capacity.

It doesn’t kill Chiller; however, it does disintegrate all of his weaponry. Forced to fight exclusively hand-to-hand, Chiller loses after about ten seconds, falling to the ground unconscious. The remaining people at the press conference cheer, and the president walks out to announce that Chiller has killed the vice president and he would’ve killed the president if it weren’t for this new hero. A cry comes out from the press from Iris West, who asks what the name of the new hero is. Michael turns to her, intending to answer Goldstar, but she reminds him of a girl from college, and he nervously says, “Booster Gold.”

BOOSTER GOLD. Credits begin.

In the middle of the credits, we see Amanda meet with Booster Gold, saying that the president has pardoned him for apparently non-existent crimes. After the credits, we see the remains of a lab. Dr. Erdel (Elijah Wood) approaches J’onn J’onn (Channing Tatum) when J’onn’s eyes open suddenly.

Theaters: 4,344

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sci-fi violence, some crude humor, and language

Budget: $150 million

Edited by Blankments
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Battle: Mars 3D

Date- May 23rd, 4

Genre- CGI Animation

Rating- PG- for sequences of sci-fi action and violence

Theaters- 2,164

Budget- 4 million

Running Time- 86 minutes or 1 hour and 26 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment Animation Studios

Director- Aristomenis Tsirbas

Actors and Actress-

Mara- Evan Rachel Wood

Zack- Justin Long

Plot: When Earth invades the planet Mars when pollution destroys Earth. A Martian princess, Mara must defend her home against the invaders knowing that only one species can survivor. She falls in love with a human boy who is captured in a skirmish, Zack who promises to help her people. After several adventures Zack grows to love the peaceful Martians. When the final battle comes the Martians narrowly defeat the humans. The remaining humans are allowed to live on Mars in peace.

Six Souls 3D

Date- February 21st

Genre- Horror Supernatural

Rating- R- disturbing images, strong language, and violence

Theaters- 3,001 theaters

Budget- 14 million

Running Time- 89 minutes or 1 hour and 29 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment

Director- Wes Craven

Plot: Six boy scouts go camping and are attacked by a group of devils who want the boy’s souls. The boys flee the camp and head toward a cabin were a witch lives. Along the way three of the boys are killed gruesomely. When they reach the camp the witch reveals that one of the boys is the child of Satan. He confronts Satan in Hell to stop the killings. After fighting, he finally defeats Satan and forces him to not kill the witch, him, and the other two boys.

Sasquatch 3D

Date- January 17th 4

Genre- Family Comedy/Live Action

Rating- PG- some mild violence and peril and brief mild language

Theaters- 3,523 theaters

Budget- 65 million

Running Time- 81 minutes or 1 hour and 21 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment

Director- Eric Brevig

Actors and Actress- Peter (voice) - Justin Timberlake

Plot: Peter a young big foot lives a national park in Washington State. However when foresters plan on destroying the park he and his friends must stop them. They plan several tricks on the foresters which leave the foresters confused. When the manager plans on burning the entire forest to the ground since logging is unsuccessful because of the big foots, Peter is blamed for this by his clan. Peter in an act of gaining their love back defeats the manager and stop the forest from being destroyed. Peter is announced hero by the clan.

Lake of the Psychopaths

Date- September 19th 4

Genre- Horror

Rating- R- gruesome violence and strong language

Theaters- 2,738 theaters

Budget- 3 million

Running Time- 79 minutes or 1 hour and 19 minutes

Studio- Mystic Entertainment

Director- Rob Zombie

Actors and Actress- Unknown

Plot: Three psychopaths obsessed with horror films launch a gruesome attack on visitors of Silver Lake. When David’s sister goes missing along with her friends, David and two other trusted friends go on a search at the now shut down Silver Lake. They discover David’s sister’s friends dead in a lone cabin. After one of his friends is killed by the psychopaths, David and his other friend call the police who are brutally murdered. After a wild chase to avoid the psychopaths David and his friend discover his sister alive. They then have a frantic chase through the cabin in which David dies killing the leader. David’s sister and friend shoot the two other the psychopaths and escape. The film ends with David’s sister and his friend falling in love. The camera zooms on one of the dead psychopaths who rises and begins sharpening a knife.

Edited by Andrew the Alien
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The Bellringer of Notre Dame

Director: Marc Webb

Genre: Drama Musical

Date: December 12

Studio: Blankments Productions

Cast: Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Quasimodo, Anne Hathaway as Esmeralda, Hugh Jackman as Phoebus, Neil Patrick Harris as Clopin, Christopher Lee as Frollo, Tom Hulce as Antoine, Demi Moore as Loni, Paul Kandel as Charles, and Russell Crowe as the Archdeacon.

Music by: Alan Menken.

Runtime: 123 min

Format: Partially filmed in IMAX (Every musical number is filmed in IMAX; nothing else is.)

Tagline: Based off the beloved classic.

Plot Summary: Based off the Disney movie and the Victor Hugo novel.

Plot:

In 1482 Paris, Clopin, a gypsy clown, sings of the bells of the Cathedral of Notre Dame ("The Bells of Notre Dame") and tells the story of the Hunchback of Notre Dame. The story begins as three gypsies sneak illegally into Paris, but are ambushed by a squadron of soldiers working for the Minister of Justice, Claude Frollo. A gypsy woman attempts to flee with her baby, but Frollo catches her and kills her outside of Notre Dame, intending to kill the deformed baby. However, he is stopped by the Archdeacon and accuses him of murdering the gypsy woman. Frollo accepts the Archdeacon's offer to raise the child in the cathedral's bell tower, naming him Quasimodo.

Twenty years later, Quasimodo is the bell ringer of Notre Dame and has become a kind young man with three gargoyles - Antoine, Charles and Loni - as his friends. They encourage him to attend the annual Festival of Fools, but Frollo arrives and forbids Quasimodo to leave the tower, while the gargoyles urge him to disobey and venture out ("Sanctuary"). After Frollo leaves, Quasimodo decides to go out for just one day ("Out There").

While the Parisians continue their preparations for the festival, Clopin, King of the Gypsies, prepares his gypsies for the festival at their underground hide-out, the Court of Miracles ("Balancing Act"). Their attention is taken by a newcomer, a young gypsy dancer named Esmeralda. Meanwhile, Captain Phoebus arrives in Paris excited about his new promotion as Captain of the Guard ("Rest and Recreation"). He flirts with a young girl but is suddenly interrupted by a fleeing gypsy accused of theft. The gypsy pleads innocence but Frollo arrives and orders his soldiers to arrest the gypsy. Frollo tells Phoebus that the city has become over-run by gypsies and that he plans to find the Court of Miracles and eliminate them all.

As the Festival begins ("Topsy Turvy"), Quasimodo arrives in disguise so Frollo will not recognize him. Frollo crosses paths with Esmeralda while dancing for the crowd. Afterwards, people begin to audition for the King of Fools. Thinking Quasimodo is in costume, Esmeralda pulls Quasimodo onstage and the crowd crowns Quasimodo as their king, only to be humiliated. Esmeralda intervenes and openly defies Frollo's orders to let the hunchback suffer. Esmeralda comes to Quasimodo's rescue and Frollo orders Phoebus to arrest her but Esmeralda disappears. Frollo scolds Quasimodo and sends him back to the cathedral.

Esmeralda follows Quasimodo but Phoebus catches her inside the cathedral. Frollo arrives and interrogates her but the Archdeacon orders Frollo to leave, because those in the cathedral are protected by the law of sanctuary. Esmeralda prays for her people and the down-trodden ("God Help the Outcast"). Meanwhile, Frollo orders Phoebus to post a guard at every door to ensure that Esmeralda does not escape.

Esmeralda follows Quasimodo to the bell tower and is captivated by the view of the city ("On Top of the World"). To repay Esmeralda for rescuing him, Quasimodo offers to show her a way out of the cathedral. Before leaving, Esmeralda gives him an amulet leading to the Court of Miracles should he ever need to find her, and she also kisses him on the cheek. After Esmeralda leaves, Quasimodo expresses his feelings, as he has been touched by Esmeralda's kindness ("Heaven’s Light"). Frollo begins to realize his lustful feelings for Esmeralda and wishes to be free of them to escape eternal damnation ("Hellfire").

Discovering that Esmeralda escaped, Frollo asks Quasimodo where she is, but he says that does not know. Frollo orders a city-wide manhunt to find Esmeralda. Realizing that Frollo has fallen into madness, Phoebus defies Frollo, who orders his execution. Phoebus flees while Frollo and his men begin to search the city ("Esmeralda"). Phoebus falls into the river below after being shot by an arrow but Esmeralda rescues him.

he soldiers continue searching the city ("City Under Siege"). Esmeralda rescues Phoebus and tells him to seek sanctuary at Notre Dame while she returns to the Court of Miracles. Meanwhile, the gargoyles convince Quasimodo that Esmeralda finds him romantically intriguing, and they reassure him about her safety ("A Guy Like You"). The Archdeacon brings Phoebus to the bell tower and Phoebus, knowing Quasimodo to be a friend of Esmeralda's, asks Quasimodo to hide him.

Frollo returns and discovers that Quasimodo helped Esmeralda escape after asking him. Frollo tells Quasimodo that he knows where the Court of Miracles is and intends to attack at dawn. After Frollo leaves, Phoebus comes out of hiding and asks Quasimodo to help him find the Court of Miracles and warn Esmeralda. Quasimodo refuses to leave the cathedral again but Phoebus and the gargoyles teach Quasimodo the value of devotion and selflessness ("Out of Love").

Using Esmeralda's amulet as their guide, Quasimodo and Phoebus find the Court of Miracles. (“The Court of Miracles”) The gypsies assume them to be Frollo's spies but Esmeralda assures them that the two men are friends. Phoebus tells the gypsies about Frollo's plan and Clopin orders the gypsies to prepare to leave. Esmeralda and Phoebus decide to leave the city together while Quasimodo, heartbroken, watches Esmeralda leave with the man she truly loves ("Out of Love" (Reprise)). However, Frollo's army appears and captures them, with Frollo revealing that he had followed Quasimodo.

Esmeralda refuses Frollo's offer for freedom in exchange for becoming his mistress. Quasimodo, tied up in the bell tower, refuses to help and tells the gargoyles to leave him ("Made of Stone"). As dawn approaches, Esmeralda awaits her execution in the dungeon with Phoebus hoping that one day the world will be a better place ("Someday").

Witnessing Frollo burning Esmeralda at the stake, Quasimodo gives in to his anger and rescues her. Phoebus ignites a mutiny and leads the citizenry to fight with Frollo's soldiers. Quasimodo calls upon the saints and the gargoyles before using a cauldron filled with molten cascade to make sure no one gets inside. Frollo, however, breaks into the cathedral. Esmeralda dies after thanking him for being a good friend. Quasimodo breaks down beside her body as Frollo comes into the room to kill him with a dagger. Quasimodo fights back and after a long struggle, he throws Frollo over the balcony to his death. The gargoyles comfort Quasimodo and tell him the world is full of good as well as evil. The Parisians watch as Quasimodo carries Esmeralda's body through the square with Phoebus by his side. Clopin appears again and asks what makes a monster and what makes a man ("Grand Finale").

Theaters: 3,423

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for thematic elements, brief nudity, and mild language

Budget: $60 million

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