CAYOM Year 5: Part 1

[4815162342]

Year 5 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 2-4:

Beast (2532 Theaters) (Page 3)

The Rise and Fall of of WWE (1678 Theaters) (Page 7)

January 9-11:

Shocker (2587 Theaters) (Page 2)

January 16-19 (MLK weekend):

Escalator (3272 Theaters) (Page 2)

Game Hunt (2757 Theaters) (Page 4)

January 23-25:

Psy: Sorry for Gangnam Styling (1512 Theaters) (Page 1)

Rise of the Dead (3555 Theaters) (Page 6)

January 30-February 1:

3:37 AM (12 Theaters- Limited) (Page 4)

I Love You Too (3006 Theaters) (Page 6)

Slumber Party (2249 Theaters) (Page 2)

February 6-8:

Countdown (3287 Theaters) (Page 3)

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish (3892 Theaters) (Page 1)

3:37 AM (160 Theaters)

February 13-16 (President's Day weekend):

The Guardian (3301 Theaters) (Page 3)

Unbalanced 2 (3005 Theaters) (Page 3)

3:37 AM (760 Theaters- Wide)

February 20-22:

Forgiven Not Forgotten (2845 Theaters) (Page 4)

Made in China (2564 Theaters) (Page 4)

3:37 AM (1545 Theaters)

February 27-29:

Tyrant (3112 Theaters) (Page 5)

3:37 AM (2032 Theaters)

March 5-7:

Paradise Lost (3698 Theaters) (Page 5)

The Very Last First Time (2395 Theaters) (Page 1)

3:37 AM (2729 Theaters)

March 12-14:

Nonexistence (2988 Theaters) (Page 2)

Slit Happens (2156 Theaters) (Page 5)

March 19-21:

Godzilla (3776 Theaters) (Page 7)

March 26-28:

Psychonauts (3381 Theaters) (Page 2)

April 2-4:

The Red Pyramid (4024 Theaters) (Page 1)

ZeroG (3188 Theaters) (Page 3)

April 9-11:

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson vs. Bigfoot (3532 Theaters) (Page 1)

El Sombrero (5 Theaters- Limited)

April 16-18:

Hot Wheels (3518 Theaters) (Page 6)

Silent Invasion (2491 Theaters) (Page 7)

El Sombrero (344 Theaters)

April 23-25:

Madonna: Masterpiece (2525 Theaters) (Page 6)

The Men of the Night (3047 Theaters) (Page 4)

April 30- May 2:

Oro (4401 Theaters) (Page 1)

El Sombrero (549 Theaters)

May 7-9:

The Next Dimension (4086 Theaters)

Wed. May 5: El Sombrero (1604 Theaters- Wide)

May 14-16:

Blue Beetle (4344 Theaters) (Page 6)

Magic Money-Printing Business Of Magic (3689 Theaters) (Page 5)

May 21-23:

Espionage Project (3474 Theaters) (Page 3)

May 28-31 (Memorial Day Weekend):

The 39 Clues: Maze of Bones (4164 Theaters) (Page 1)

The Career Buster (3258 Theaters) (Page 3)

June 4-6:

Killer Husband (3000 Theaters) (Page 6)

Summer Wars (3927 Theaters) (Page 2)

June 11-13:

Double Chronomance (3261 Theaters) (Page 2)

Stories From Eden (3481 Theaters) (Page 2)

June 18-20:

Legally Blonde (3394 Theaters) (Page 3)

Chris Smith and the Island of Dinosaurs (3901 Theaters) (Page 6)

June 25-27:

Warcraft: The Cataclysm (4166 Theaters) (Page 3)

July 2-5 (4th of July Weekend):

Hindenburg (4485 Theaters) (Page 6)

July 9-11

Bowling Night (3476 Theaters) (Page 3)

Candlelight (2408 Theaters) (Page 7)

July 16-18:

Double Standards (2595 Theaters) (Page 6)

Starcraft: Fury of the Swarm (4125 Theaters) (Page 1)

July 23-25:

4Chan: The Truth (48 Theaters- Limited) (Page 7)

Brandybrook (3232 Theaters) (Page 3)

Last Chapter (2581 Theaters) (Page 6)

July 30-August 1:

Lucid (3692 Theaters) (Page 3)

4Chan: The Truth (353 Theaters)

August 6-8:

The Shark Mutiny (3684 Theaters) (Page 1)

Shiverin' Gulch (3529 Theaters) (Page 4)

4Chan: The Truth (726 Theaters- Wide)

August 13-15:

Harlington House (2759 Theaters) (Page 4)

The House of the Scorpion (3312 Theaters) (Page 1)

August 20-22:

Plastic-Man (4344 Theaters) (Page 1)

August 27-29:

Against All Odds (2704 Theaters) (Page 7)

Giant Spiders 2 (3425 Theaters) (Page 2)

September 3-6 (Labor Day weekend):

Slenderman (2924 Theaters) (Page 2)

Time Lapse (3369 Theaters) (Page 6)

September 10-12:

Action Movie (3325 Theaters) (Page 4)

Adele: Rolling in the Deep (2815 Theaters) (Page 3)

September 17-19:

The Fall (2705 Theaters) (Page 6)

Khanh Bernarda Alba (423 Theaters- Limited) (Page 7)

Penny Press (2791 Theaters) (Page 3)

September 24-26:

Past Tense (1723 Theaters) (Page 7)

Some Assembly Required (2671 Theaters) (Page 1)

Khanh Bernarda Alba (716 Theaters- Wide)

October 1-3:

Halloweentown II (3491 Theaters) (Page 4)

The Monster Mash (4021 Theaters) (Page 3)

Khanh Bernarda Alba (1124 Theaters)

October 8-10:

The Fault in our Stars (3519 Theaters) (Page 4)

Our Beloved Savior (2979 Theaters) (Page 7)

October 15-17:

Cruisers: Second Gear (3D) (3085 Theaters) (Page 5)

October 22-24:

Empty Hearth (2 Theaters- Limited) (Page 1)

Fright Town 2: Return 3D (3122 Theaters) (Page 4)

October 29-31:

The Dogs of Babel (3353 Theaters) (Page 3)

The Vast Dark: Fight Fire with Fire (3318 Theaters) (Page 7)

Empty Hearth (58 Theaters)

November 5-7:

Dragon Age: Onslaught (4074 Theaters) (Page 1)

Catharsis (4 Theaters- Limited) (Page 1)

Claustrophobia (4 Theaters- Limited) (Page 7)

Everyman (5 Theaters- Limited) (Page 3)

Empty Hearth (602 Theaters- Wide)

November 12-14:

Santa Claus: Ultimate Badass (3095 Theaters) (Page 2)

Catharsis (47 Theaters)

Claustrophobia (16 Theaters)

Empty Hearth (1096 Theaters)

Everyman (16 Theaters)

November 19-21:

Celia, A Slave (2815 Theaters) (Page 4)

Worlds Apart (4419 Theaters) (Page 2)

Catharsis (237 Theaters)

Claustrophobia (42 Theaters)

Empty Hearth (1922 Theaters)

Everyman (621 Theaters- Wide)

November 24-28 (Thanksgiving weekend):

The Eccentric Minds of Belmond Lane (4 Theaters) (Page 2)

Random Act of Kindness (2858 Theaters) (Page 4)

Ratchet & Clank (3674 Theaters) (Page 6)

Untitled Cook13 Animation

Catharsis (894 Theaters- Wide)

Claustrophobia (98 Theaters)

Empty Hearth (3094 Theaters)

Everyman (1243 Theaters)

December 3-5:

Corso (2 Theaters- Limited) (Page 1)

Elizabeth and Burton (952 Theaters) (Page 4)

Catharsis (1694 Theaters)

Claustrophobia (214 Theaters)

The Eccentric Minds of Belmond Lane (48 Theaters)

December 10-12:

Edward Tulane (4 Theaters- Limited) (Page 2)

Minority (3198 Theaters) (Page 4)

The Affair (3875 Theaters) (Page 7)

Claustrophobia (398 Theaters)

Corso (80 Theaters)

The Eccentric Minds of Belmond Lane (173 Theaters)

December 17-19:

Dawn of Oblivion (3921 Theaters) (Page 6)

SpellForce - Shadow of the Phoenix (4368 Theaters) (Page 5)

Claustrophobia (624 Theaters- Wide)

Corso (195 Theaters)

The Eccentric Minds of Belmond Lane (806 Theaters- Wide)

Edward Tulane (72 Theaters)

December 24-26 (Christmas Weekend)

The Once and Future King: The Sword in the Stone (3897 Theaters) (Page 3)

Claustrophobia (1088 Theaters)

Corso (1209 Theaters- Wide)

Edward Tulane (368 Theaters)

Wed. 12/22- The Eccentric Minds of Belmond Lane (2057 Theaters)

December 31-January 2

Claustrophobia (2298 Theaters)

Edward Tulane (1124 Theaters- Wide)

Edited November 13, 2012 by 4815162342

[4815162342]

Dragon Age: Onslaught

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure/Epic

Starring: Chris Hemsworth (Avner Cousland), Eva Green (Morrigan), Chris Evans (Alistair), Mark Strong (Loghain), Idris Elba (Sten), Miranda Richardson (Wynne), Léa Seydoux (Leliana), and Helen Mirren (Flemeth)

Co-Starring: Marie-Josée Croze (Marjolaine), Liam Cunningham (Arl Eamon), Mark Addy (Oghren), Eddie Marsan (Teyrn Rendon Howe), Julian Sands (Zathrian)

Written and Directed By: Matthew Vaughn

Original Music By: Bear McCreary

Release Date: 11/5

Theater Count: 4074 Theaters

Budget: $175 million

Running Time: 156 Minutes

MPAA Rating: R for graphic fantasy violence, language, and sexual content

Previous Film’s Info: Dragon Age: Darkness over Ferelden (Year 2): 71.05 OW/207.1 DOM/542.37 WW, 7 Oscar Nominations, 2 Oscar Wins (Art Direction, Costume Design)

Plot Summary:

The film opens with a dream of the archdemon deep in the bowels of the world as it looks over an army of Darkspawn. Avner (Hemsworth) wakes up and we learn that Alistair (Evans) shared the dream also. After talking about how their dreams are getting more vivid we see a couple scenes reintroducing us to the members of the group: Morrigan (Green), a witch from the wilderness, Leliana (Sagnier), a former sister of the Chantry, Sten (Elba), a Qunari warrior, and Wynne (Richardson), a senior member of Ferelden’s Circle of Magi. In these scenes we see there is friction between Morrigan and Wynne. We also learn that the group is headed for Orzammar, which is one of two remaining Dwarven kingdoms on the continent but the only one in Ferelden. While they travel to there, Arl Eamon and Avner’s brother Fergus are beginning plans to rally loyal Banns and Arls against the tyranny of Loghain, who had usurped the throne by leaving King Cailan to die at the Battle of Ostagar.

We see a handful of small scenes showing the group’s travel towards Orzammar. We also have a scene between Avner and Morrigan where Morrigan talks more about her adoptive mother, Flemeth, the Witch of the Wilds. Morrigan says she has a feeling her mother plans for something bigger in the whole scheme of the Blight. The conversation turns to the growing closeness between Avner and Morrigan and Morrigan says they simply have a fling, nothing more.

Cut scene to the Korcari Wilds, to Flemeth’s home. “And now it begins” Flemeth (Mirren) muses with a smile. She then casts a spell that surrounds her in light and then she is gone, though we see a large shadow flying across the ground.

Eventually the heroes arrive at the mountain entrance to Orzammar, which is an underground city, and learn that the Dwarven kingdom is in chaos over a political battle concerning who the next king will be. Avner and Alistair are able to persuade the guards to admit the group to the city since they are on Grey Warden business.

Across the country in Denerim, the capital, we see Loghain (Strong) and Howe (Marsan) consulting on the state of Ferelden. The Darkspawn are continuing to mass in the south and a number of nobles are beginning to join forces with Arl Eamon. Loghain knows that a divided kingdom will be easy prey for the Darkspawn so he tells Howe that they must stop this growing rebellion quickly. Howe assures Loghain that the assassin they hired will soon locate the remaining Grey Wardens and dispose of them.

The heroes arrive in Orzammar and are in awe of the grand underground city. Avner and Alistair go to find the Dwarven leadership and learn that the nobles are divided between Prince Bhelen, the only remaining son of the dead king, and Lord Harrowmont. Both candidates learn of the Grey Wardens’ presence and try to recruit them to their cause in exchange for promising support against the darkspawn. Avner meets with Bhelen while Alistair meets with Harrowmont. Bhelen is a calculating, scheming person who isn’t afraid of getting his hands dirty. Harrowmont has more integrity and morals, but is also more isolationist. Both men want the Grey Wardens to locate Branka, a Paragon. Paragons are revered members of Dwarven society who possess immense influence, enough to swing the Assembly to either candidate. Branka disappeared with her entire noble house over a year ago into the Deep Roads, the massive underground tunnels connecting Dwarven outposts. Meanwhile, the other members of the group are exploring Orzammar and interacting with one another. They come across a drunken Dwarf by the name of Oghren (Addy). Oghren tries to insert himself in the group by asking for their help. When Avner and Alistair return they inform the group of what they have to do. This news emboldens Oghren, who says that Branka was his wife and he has clues as to where she might be. With this information Avner accepts Oghren into the group.

Oghren tells the group that Branka disappeared into the Deep Roads to search for The Anvil of the Void, the instrument used by ancient Dwarves to produce golems. Oghren says he knows the general direction Branka went in. The audience sees that Oghren is a character played for comic relief with his tendency to get drunk and make lewd comments to the female characters. We finally see the whole group departing Orzammar into the Deep Roads.

We see an enormous cavern with a strange looking device shimmering on it: The Anvil of the Void. Flemeth walks towards it and runs a hand along it as she muses “Such a powerful tool, but it takes one with power to use it.” She adds “Are you one of them, my child? Or have I failed again?” She then disappears in a flash, having teleported away.

The group arrives at Caradin’s Cross, the last place Oghren knew Branka got to. Caradin was the Dwarven smith who invented the Anvil of the Void. The group manages to avoid detection but eventually at an abandoned campsite they come under assault from a Darkspawn commander and his horde of minions and after a fight they annihilate the enemy. Afterwards they find traces of Branka’s mission. Oghren inspects the notes and deduces that Branka was heading for the Dead Trenches. The Dead Trenches is the new name for the ancient fortress of Bownammar, which was conquered by the Darkspawn centuries ago. Branka’s writings in the notes indicate that she had become obsessed with finding the Anvil of the Void.

We see a couple scenes of the heroes encamped. Wynne approaches Avner and questions him about his relationship with Morrigan. Alistair and Leliana talk some and Leliana reveals to Alistair information about her past. She was originally a spy in Orlais and she worked for a woman named Marjolaine who she was close to but who eventually betrayed her. Leliana says that she fled to Ferelden as a way to stay hidden. Oghren and Sten have their own conversation that compares the Dwarven caste system to the Qunari’s system. Though Sten finds value in the similarities, he says Oghren has let his warrior talents go to waste.

We then see a scene back in Orzammar where Prince Bhelen is talking to a human woman: Marjolaine (Croze, we briefly saw her at the end of the first film), who says she is here to eliminate the Grey Wardens and requires Bhelen’s aid. In return Loghain will support Bhelen as ruler of Orzammar. Bhelen asks Marjolaine to remove Branka if necessary. Marjolaine says that she is always willing to add targets for a price. Bhelen’s #2 man, Vartag Gavorn, will join her.

The heroes arrive at the Dead Trenches. Avner and Alistair see a vision of the archdemon belching fire within the Deep Roads before taking flight over a seemingly endless parade of Darkspawn. The heroes then hear a roar in real life and see a large shape swoop through the immense cavern. Avner and Alistair realize that they’ve seen the archdemon in person. After moving on, the heroes encounter a small company of Dwarves fighting a much larger horde of Darkspawn. The heroes intervene. These Dwarves are part of the Legion of the Dead, an elite Dwarven military force of former outcasts, casteless, and criminals that one joins for life. The company’s leader, Kardol, informs them that Branka and her household came by several months earlier and disappeared into the heart of the Dead Trenches. None have come back. Kardol offers the services of the company in helping to get through the area.

The heroes with Kardol navigate the ruins of Bownammar. They come across a ruined campsite with a fair amount of Dwarf and Darkspawn skeletons. Oghren is concerned but the group finds clues that show Branka was alive with many of her people when she left the campsite. The clues hint that she had decided on a course of action that would damn her in the eyes of many. After some more traveling the heroes stumble across a female Dwarf, Hespith, who was Branka’s second-in-command. Hespith is clearly insane, corrupted by Darkspawn taint, but she has moments of lucidity. She informs them that Branka became totally obsessed and was willing to sacrifice her entire household. She says the lucky ones were killed, and the unlucky ones, the females, were…changed. Oghren is deeply concerned.

The heroes track Hespith into a large antechamber where they halt in the face of a huge grotesquerie: A Broodmother. Alistair explains that sometimes Darkspawn capture women of different species and corrupt them through the taint until they mutate into Broodmothers, who endlessly birth Darkspawn. Hespith returns to say that Branka deliberately let women in her group be taken away by the Darkspawn. This news enrages Oghren. At this point a battle begins between the heroes against hordes of Darkspawn protecting the Broodmother. After a bloody battle the Darkspawn are slain and Avner himself beheads the Broodmother. Afterwards, Hespith, in a final moment of lucidity, tells them where Branka went and says she will not let the corruption in her turn her into “one of them.” Hespith walks off a cliff’s edge. Kardol tells Avner that he will take his men to see if they can find any other Broodmothers.

We see a scene in transit for the heroes where Avner talks with Oghren. Oghren is still in disbelief and says when they find Branka they’ll get the truth. We then see them arrive at an underground fortress that was where Branka went and Oghren reads some runes and says that this is likely the resting place of the Anvil of the Void, if it still exists.

We then see a short scene with a group of mercenaries walking through a group of slain Dwarves and we see one of them is Kardol. Marjolaine leads the group and with Vartag Gavorn interrogates a lone survivor. The survivor says where the Wardens went and describes the members of the group. When the survivor describes Leliana, Marjolaine looks surprised, and kills the survivor since his usefulness is over. “Two birds with one stone” she says to herself.

In the fortress the heroes find signs of fighting and sprung traps. After some searching they hear a woman’s voice laughing and someone appears on a ledge above them: Branka. Oghren calls out for her but she dismisses him. Branka asks why the heroes have come and Avner explains that they need Orzammar’s help. Branka says that she is very close to the Anvil but it is protected by traps and golems. She had deliberately corrupted members of her household in order to produce Darkspawn that could trigger the traps for her. The group is disgusted but Branka tells them that their only way out is to move forward. The heroes have no choice but to fight their way through the fortress. They soon reach a large cavern and find the Anvil of the Void. Morrigan and Wynne can feel its magic. Morrigan walks over to the Anvil and instinctively touches it, the result being her getting flung backwards in a flash of energy. Avner runs to her concerned but she gets up and says she is fine.

Branka lets out a shout of triumph from behind as she walks forward to join the group. She says she’ll be able to work wonders with the Anvil and return the Dwarves to their former glory. Oghren pleads with Branka to see how far she has fallen but she says she has no need of him. Alistair brings up the need for a king and Branka says that she doesn’t care so she will support whoever the Wardens choose. Before she can say anything more an arrow strikes her in the chest and she falls to the ground.

The heroes turn to see the source: Marjolaine. Marjolaine laughs and locks eyes with Leliana, who is shocked. Marjolaine sics her company of mercenaries on the heroes. The heroes get the upper hand in the fight and Leliana pursues Marjolaine. Eventually Leliana confronts her and Marjolaine says when she heard about Leliana traveling with Grey Wardens she knew she couldn’t pass the opportunity up. Leliana demands answers from Marjolaine but her former mentor uses a smoke bomb to cover her retreat. Back at the Anvil of the Void, the fight is over and Branka is near death. Oghren tries to comfort her and she realizes just how obsessed and bitter she became. Meanwhile Vartag Gavorn is alive and after some darkly humorous coercion from Sten Gavorn says that Prince Bhelen hired them to kill Branka. Avner says that they will keep the man alive so he can testify.

After a burial for Branka the heroes set off back for Orzammar. Oghren is sullen and stays aloof. Alistair talks to Leliana about Marjolaine’s sudden appearance and Leliana, badly shaken, says she won’t stop hunting them. Avner and Morrigan talk about the Anvil and Morrigan remarks that when she touched the Anvil she felt Flemeth’s presence. Flemeth had been there recently and left a message for her. Avner asks what it was and Morrigan only replies that Flemeth will be coming for them soon. Avner assures Morrigan that he will stand by her.

We return to Orzammar and see that the Dwarven Assembly is in chaos. The commotion is interrupted by the return of Avner and his group. Both Bhelen and Lord Harrowmont ask about Branka and are told that she is dead. Oghren steps forward and declares that Bhelen was behind Branka’s murder. Bhelen denies this but Sten appears with Vartag Gavorn and throws him before the Assembly and says Gavorn confessed. This throws the Assembly into a rage. Bhelen declares no one will stop him and a number of his royal guards enter and try to kill Harrowmont, Avner, and his friends. Assembly members try to flee and get caught in the crossfire. In the end Bhelen’s men are defeated, Gavorn tries to fight but is killed by Sten, and Oghren duels Bhelen and kills him. Harrowmont thanks the heroes for their actions.

Harrowmont is crowned king. Afterwards he talks with Avner, Alistair, and Oghren where he promises aid against the Blight. Avner brings up the Anvil of the Void and says he can point on a map where it is so Harrowmont can use it to build golems. Oghren warns Harrowmont about letting the power of the Anvil getting to his head. Harrowmont offers to elevate Oghren to the noble caste and help lead Orzammar’s armies but Oghren declines, preferring to stay with the Grey Wardens. The three of them leave and Avner says “welcome to the team” to Oghren, who replies “yeah, yeah, let’s get a drink.”

The film returns to Denerim, with Loghain presiding over a council of nobles. One noble asks why Queen Anora isn’t present and Loghain replies she is filled with grief and he will be filling in as regent. After the meeting Loghain meets with Howe, who says that the atmosphere in Denerim is toxic. Howe also says that Anora may prove problematic. Loghain replies “all daughters are.” Howe also brings news of Darkspawn being spotted north of Lothering and Loghain decides that a good way to rally nobles to his cause is to defeat the Darkspawn in a couple small battles.

Avner and company return to Redcliffe, with several lords and knights having assembled their forces. Avner and Alistair meet with Arl Eamon (Cunningham). Eamon welcomes the two Wardens and says that more nobles are joining their cause, though the majority is still undeclared. Avner’s brother Fergus is out recruiting. Avner says that only the Dalish Elves in the Brecilian Forest need to be recruited, at which point they will have three strong allies on their side. Alistair is still uncomfortable with the concept of putting him in place as monarch.

Avner and Alistair talk more about their task as Grey Wardens. Avner assures Alistair that he has the qualities of a good king. Sten and Oghren discuss the best way to kill someone (Sten likes big swords, Oghren likes big axes). Wynne approaches Morrigan and says she has suspicions about her true purpose. They argue for a minute and then Wynne leaves. Morrigan settles into a meditative position and sees a vision of Flemeth, who says it has been some time since they last spoke. Morrigan is nervous and asks Flemeth what she is planning and Flemeth says she is paving the way for the future. Morrigan doesn’t understand and Flemeth replies that she will, or the whole world will burn underneath the Blight. She tells her daughter that in chaos comes opportunity and when Morrigan asks what Flemeth’s plan is, her mother replies “creating the opportunity.” Flemeth says they’ll talk again soon and disappears.

We jump ahead to the Brecilian Forest. A Dalish elf, Zathrian (Sands), is meditating in a grove of ironwood trees when he is approached by Flemeth. Zathrian asks why Flemeth has come. The two talk about the growing strength of the Darkspawn. Flemeth says she wants him to do something for her but Zathrian is reluctant since he does not want to entangle his people into more human dealings. Flemeth reminds him that she gave him much power long ago and he has abused it, so now he owes her. Zathrian is cowed and asks what Flemeth wants him to do.

Avner and the others set out from Redcliffe, heading east. As they continue on we see Marjolaine watching them from afar on a hill through a telescope. The assassin climbs on her horse and sets off East as well.

On the road, Sten approaches Avner and says they should talk. Sten explains that he was sent to Ferelden by the Arishok, one of three leaders of the Qunari, to find the answer to a question. Avner learns that it is “What is the Blight?” There are obvious answers but Sten says that an obvious answer is not what the Arishok wanted. Sten shares his perspective on the others and humans in general, saying that they are constantly striving to be something more than they already are, whereas the Qun gives everyone a role in life. Avner points out that all are born with the ability to be greater than their birth and Sten grumbles at that point.

The heroes arrive at the outskirts of the Brecilian Forest. They meet scouts of a Dalish Elf clan, one of many in Thedas but one of the only two currently in Ferelden. The scouts say they well take the group to their leader but say that things for the clan are currently in disarray.

Avner and Alistair are taken before the clan’s Keeper, who is the leader. That leader is Zathrian and he says he would be happy to help the Grey Wardens but there is currently a large problem for the clan. Zathrian explains that the inner regions of the Brecilian Forest are infested with werewolves that are preying on outer camps of the clan. If the Dalish were to send their warriors to fight the Darkspawn, the werewolves could devastate many of the camps. Zathrian asks the Wardens to eliminate the head werewolf Witherfang, since the disease linked to the werewolves is tied to his existence. Avner says they will help end the werewolf attacks.

We see a couple scenes of the heroes interacting with the Dalish. Leliana in particular is enchanted by the Dalish and their culture for storytelling and songs. The heroes head out towards the center of the Brecilian forest with a handful of Dalish elves as guides. After they leave we see a scene with Zathrian meditating and hear him mentally communicating with Flemeth. He says that the Grey Wardens and their companions are now traveling towards the forest’s center. Flemeth is pleased and tells Zathrian that he still has his part to play.

On the way into the Brecilian Forest the heroes are attacked by Marjolaine’s men. Several of the Dalish are killed and Leliana confronts Marjolaine. Marjolaine says that she is contracted to kill the Wardens and finding Leliana is a side benefit. Marjolaine says that if Leliana wants to protect her friends she must come to Denerim to find her. She again is able to disappear and the heroes stop to contemplate the threat. All agree that leaving Marjolaine free to attack at will is very risky. Leliana says she’ll go take care of Marjolaine. Alistair says he will go with her. Leliana doesn’t want him to since it’ll be dangerous but Alistair refuses to let her go alone and adds that getting intelligence on Denerim will be important. Oghren also decides to go, because “I’m likely to find better stuff to drink there than in the middle of the sodding woods.”

The others continue on towards the center of the forest. Both Morrigan and Wynne sense a presence filled with rage and self-loathing. After a short journey they encounter a group of werewolves. In a short battle the heroes drive off the werewolves, who mass for a second attack when one appears and orders them to stand down. That werewolf, Swiftrunner, says they want no unnecessary loss of life and asks Avner to turn his group around. Avner says he wants to stop the attacks, but Swiftrunner says the Dalish deserve the pain they receive and departs. Wynne says that the intelligence of the werewolves indicates that something is amiss. After a little more journeying the heroes come across a grove of ironwood trees, with Flemeth present.

Flemeth says she has wanted to meet Avner again. Morrigan steps forward and asks what her mother wants. Flemeth says she simply wants to help. Morrigan doesn’t trust her and warns Avner not to listen. Flemeth says that the Darkspawn threat is more important than mother-daughter squabbles. She pulls out a book and says it is the unknown history of the First Blight and says it is a gift. Avner is suspicious and receives the book. Flemeth then adds that the situation in the Brecilian Forest is not what they think and is built on petty hatreds. Flemeth then disappears in a flash. Later in a scene between Morrigan and Avner Morrigan talks more about her relationship with Flemeth and now she can’t shake the feeling that Flemeth is treating everything like a chessboard. Morrigan gives Avner the locket she wears and says she wants him to have it. Avner puts it on but says she has nothing to worry about.

We see a scene showing Alistair, Leliana, and Oghren resting at an inn. Oghren gets humorously drunk and passes out. Alistair gets Oghren to his room and then goes to talk with Leliana. Leliana says she is terrified of confronting Marjolaine because of their past history. Leliana talks a little about it, saying she and Marjolaine were close, and that her betrayal stung deep. Alistair says he won’t let her bring any harm to Leliana. The two are on the brink of an intimate moment but then Leliana feels awkward and says she needs to sleep.

The scene changes to show Loghain leading an army against a small horde of Darkspawn. We see a battle scene where Loghain uses strategy to cunningly trap the Darkspawn army and annihilate it. In the aftermath the soldiers and townsfolk cheer Loghain as he rides by. In a strategy session that night we learn that this is the third such minor victory for Loghain and his successes are beginning to pay dividends.

Back in the Brecilian Forest, Avner and his companions arrive at an ancient ruin. They encounter Swiftrunner and a small company of werewolves who attack on sight. Almost all of the remaining Dalish escorts are killed, but the heroes prevail and all of the werewolves but Swiftrunner are killed. Swiftrunner is wounded but then a large white wolf leaps into the clearing, the distraction allowing Swiftrunner to flee with it. Sten says that the white wolf must be Witherfang. Avner tells the surviving Dalish to go back to Zathrian. After they go Wynne says that something isn’t right, that Witherfang’s essence feels pure. Morrigan says “the old woman is right for once.”

Alistair, Leliana, and Oghren arrive in Denerim and hear news of Loghain’s victories and how it is rallying some nobles to his cause. Alistair is concerned by this. As they do some preliminary investigation they are watched by a spy who leaves to report.

Back at the Brecilian lair, the heroes eventually they reach the heart and are met by a large number of the creatures. They say their leader, “The Lady,” wishes to speak with them. Avner agrees and with the others is escorted into a large chamber where Swiftrunner and more werewolves wait. Swiftrunner wants to attack but a female voice urges him to stay calm. The source is a female humanoid. She introduces herself as The Lady of the Forest and she was a spirit of the forest given physical form. Avner realizes she is Witherfang. The Lady says that Avner was not told everything about the werewolf curse and the only way for the truth to be revealed is for Zathrian to agree to work to peacefully resolve the crisis. The Lady only says that Zathrian is partly to blame. Before Avner can say anything someone from the back calls out “What are you waiting for? Kill them!” It is Zathrian.

The Lady tells the werewolves not to attack and behaves cordially towards Zathrian, who insists that Avner kill her. The Lady retorts that Zathrian was the one who created the curse out of blind vengeance on the humans who killed his wife centuries ago. She explains that Zathrian summoned her and used her power to create the curse, but became bound to it as well. So long as both she and Zathrian exist the werewolf curse will. Morrigan says it takes immense power to do something like this and wonders where Zathrian got his power from. Avner says that Zathrian has a responsibility to his people to end the curse. Zathrian refuses and summons a powerful magic blast that stuns almost everyone. Before anyone can react Zathrian grabs Morrigan and flashes out of the chamber. The Lady tells Avner that he now has a stake in bringing Zathrian to heel.

Marjolaine appears at the Royal Palace in Denerim. When asked by Howe if the Wardens are dead she replies in the negative. Marjolaine says that Howe underestimates them and adds that she has lured one of them to Denerim for a confrontation, and it is the one Howe and Loghain fear more. If Marjolaine wins, he’ll be dead, but even if she dies he’ll be in easy grasp.

We see a short scene with Avner, Wynne, and Sten on the march. Avner feels a tingling sensation and realizes that the locket Morrigan gave him is pulsing with energy. Focusing on it, Avner realizes the locket is guiding him in Morrigan’s direction, which is not at the Dalish village but towards the ironwood grove where they met Flemeth. The three change directions.

At that ironwood grove, we see Zathrian appear with Morrigan. Morrigan is stunned but conscious enough to shout curses. Zathrian says she is a foolish girl who doesn’t understand power, unlike her mother. Zathrian explains that Flemeth helped increase his power to create the curse, though he owed her a debt that he is now paying. At that point Flemeth walks into the grove. Morrigan demands to know what Flemeth wants and Flemeth, laughing, says they’ll have plenty of time to talk. She grabs Morrigan from Zathrian and says “there is one last task for you.” A flash of light engulfs the screen and then we see Zathrian looking up in awe.

Alistair and company after some inquires learn about an Orlesian woman who has rented a posh estate. Leliana recognizes that it is Marjolaine. They go to the estate and infiltrate it. Marjolaine returns to the estate and shouts out orders for preparations. Leliana impulsively reveals herself to confront Marjolaine while Oghren persuades Alistair to stay hidden for now. Leliana tells Marjolaine that she has much to answer for. Marjolaine says Leliana was a terrific assassin back in Orlais, able to worm her way into anyone’s trust in order to get ahead. Marjolaine says she simply did the same to Leliana. Leliana says she is nothing like Marjolaine. At that point Alistair comes out of hiding, Oghren in tow, and says it doesn’t matter who Leliana used to be. Marjolaine tells Alistair he should do better than put his trust in someone with fickle loyalties. Alistair and company refuse to back down and a wild fight ensues with Alistair and Oghren handling the henchmen while Marjolaine and Leliana duel, athletically bounding about the estate. Eventually Leliana kicks Marjolaine off a second-floor railing and Marjolaine hits the ground, impaled on her own weapons. Leliana walks over to Marjolaine as the assassin dies, her last words being that she trained Leliana well. Alistair tries to say something but Leliana says they are done here and leaves the estate. As they leave, they are watched.

Avner, Sten, and Wynne arrive at the grove to find Zathrian waiting. They ask where Morrigan is and Zathrian says Flemeth has taken her. Zathrian says this grove is where he summoned The Lady to create the curse. Wynne says Zathrian is filled with hate but he can end much suffering if he lets go, but the elf refuses. He uses magic to bring several small trees to life and sends them at the group. A fight ensues and Wynne uses fire spells to consume many of the tree creatures. This allows Avner and Sten to attack Zathrian. He summons more tree creatures but those are attacked by a pack of werewolves led by Swiftrunner, which allows Avner to badly wound Zathrian. Zathrian is still defiant until The Lady appears and says Zathrian has brought enough death. Zathrian says that he thought if he killed Avner and the others, Flemeth would reward him, but now he understands that Flemeth never meant for him to win. He says he will end the curse. The Lady helps him to his feet and the two join hands as a bright light consumes them and then the werewolves around them. When it subsides Zathrian and The Lady are gone and the werewolves present are human again. They thank Avner and the others and say they will go back to the others and lead them to a new home.

We jump to Avner, Wynne, and Sten arriving back at the Dalish main camp. Avner says that the werewolves will not trouble them anymore and that Zathrian sacrificed himself to make sure of it (leaving out the more sordid details). The Dalish are saddened by Zathrian’s death but pledge their support against the Darkspawn. They also give Avner the location of the other Dalish clan in Ferelden, in the province of Amaranthine. Avner and the others leave. Avner says he knows where Flemeth took Morrigan.

The scene changes to a hut in the Korcari Wilds, Flemeth’s home in the first film. Morrigan is restrained by dark energy as Flemeth comments that Morrigan is letting her feelings for Avner cloud the big picture. Morrigan wants answers and Flemeth replies that the Blight, while dangerous, is part of a larger picture and both Morrigan and Avner are pieces of it. She says if he is worthy and truly has feelings for Morrigan, he will come and fight for her. Flemeth says that there are some things Morrigan needs to know if she wants to prepare for what comes ahead.

The scene changes to the outskirts of Denerim as Alistair, Leliana, and Oghren prepare to return to Redcliffe. Leliana acts distant, though Oghren attempts to cheer her up with some humor. Later in her tent Alistair approaches her. He says that he understands what Leliana is feeling, since Loghain’s betrayal stung deep. Leliana talks about how her fears that Marjolaine was right and Alistair assures her she isn’t. The scene ends with them kissing and we get some light R-rated action before the screen fades to black.

In Denerim, Loghain returns from the battlefield confident. He is met by Howe who says that he couldn’t stop her, referring to Anora. Anora (cameo by Rosamund Pike) bursts into the room and demands that her father stop. Loghain says Anora doesn’t understand the necessary evils of politics. Anora tells her father that he is becoming obsessed with power. Loghain tells Howe to “secure” his daughter. Howe has guards take Anora away, the queen screaming for her father to see reason. After she is gone Howe says that Marjolaine is dead, but one of her spies has found Cailan’s half-brother. Loghain tells Howe to make the necessary arrangements.

We see a scene with Avner, Wynne, and Sten camped. They estimate they will reach the Korcari Wilds in a couple days. After Wynne goes to sleep Avner and Sten talk about what the Blight. Sten tells Avner that when he returns to Par Vollen, the home of the Qunari, and he is asked if he had met anyone worthy, his response would be “Only one.” Avner is honored and asks if Sten has found his answer yet. Sten’s reply is that his answer would be not about what the Blight is, but what it creates: chaos and unity, opposites, in the hearts of all beings.

Alistair, Leliana, and Oghren are on the road when a troop of horsemen appears not far off. The friends are heavily outnumbered and there is little time for a plan so Alistair urges Leliana and Oghren to flee. Leliana is reluctant to abandon Alistair but Alistair assures her that Loghain needs him alive. Leliana nods and flees into the woods with Oghren, where from afar they watch Alistair get surrounded, knocked out, tied up, and put on a horse.

Avner arrives at Flemeth’s home and finds Morrigan suspended in a magical containment field. Flemeth appears and attempts to negotiate with Avner. He asks about Zathrian and she says she used him since doing so forced him into conflict with Avner and allowed Avner to resolve things to secure the Dalish support. She says that the Blight takes precedence and all of Ferelden must unite. She adds that Morrigan however is a part of something greater and Flemeth won’t let someone unfit take her away from those plans. Avner refuses to back down and says he won’t abandon Morrigan. Flemeth smiles and says she was hoping he’d say that. A bright light engulfs Flemeth and Flemeth’s silhouette grows in size and changes in shape until, when the light fades, we see that Flemeth has shifted into a large dragon.

An epic fight begins as Wynne tries to provide some ranged cover for Avner and Sten. After some intense fighting Avner is in trouble but Sten steps in the way and takes a blow meant for Avner. Because Flemeth is busy fighting, her concentration on the containment field weakens and Morrigan is able to break free of the field and join the fight. Eventually the combined force is enough to give Avner an opening to slide under a blast of fire and stab the dragon in the heart. The dragon reverts back into Flemeth’s form. Morrigan goes to Flemeth and Flemeth tells Morrigan that Avner is “worthy,” urges her to keep him safe and to “remember what I have taught you.” Flemeth then dies. Meanwhile Sten has collapsed and reveals he is mortally wounded. He tells Avner “I have earned this, it is the way of the Qun” before passing away.

The scene changes to Avner, Morrigan, and Wynne camped. Wynne tells Avner that Sten lived and died as a Qunari and had the death his kind desires. Avner and Morrigan then talk and Avner asks Morrigan how she is taking the death of Flemeth. She tells Avner that Flemeth knew that the Darkspawn threat was greater than anyone anticipated and revealed some of this information to Morrigan. “This will get worse before it gets better” she adds. Avner says they will face it together and they hold one another close under the stars though Morrigan has a strange look.

Alistair is brought in chains before Loghain. Alistair calls Loghain a murderer and traitor. Loghain tells Alistair that he is too valuable to execute, but says that Alistair’s friends and allies will be crushed. Loghain instructs his men to take Alistair to Fort Drakon for incarceration. Howe then shows up and tells Loghain that letting Alistair live is a risk. Loghain says it is a risk he must take. He tells Howe that Avner is a wild card and will likely be coming for Howe. Howe says he will not mind ending the Cousland line and adds that he will be going to Amaranthine in the northeast of Ferelden to put things in order there since there are rumors of Darkspawn.

Avner, Morrigan, and Wynne return to Redcliffe where they meet with Arl Eamon and learn about Alistair’s capture. Eamon says this will force him to slow things lest Loghain kill Alistair. After deliberation they agree that their best bet is to use the time the various allies secured by Avner take to prepare their forces to continue to weaken Loghain’s support and hopefully force him to negotiate. Eamon suggests Avner go to Amaranthine, the power base for Howe. Avner agrees since the other Dalish clan is there. Avner then briefly meets with Leliana and Oghren to see how they are. Leliana is shaken and Avner assures her they’ll find a way to rescue Alistair.

We see Avner in his quarters when his brother Fergus (cameo by Benedict Cumberbatch) comes in. Fergus says he has heard about Avner’s plan and says that he will be joining him on the trip. Avner is reluctant but Fergus reminds Avner “they were my parents too. And I lost my wife and child. If Howe is going to pay I want to be there when it happens.” The brothers have a drink in memory of their lost loved ones.

The scene changes to Morrigan meditating. The camera slowly zooms in on her as we hear Flemeth’s voice in the background, saying “Remember what is coming my child. The power of the Old Ones is beyond measure, with it the future lies within your grasp, if you’re willing to reach for it.” At that point Morrigan’s eyes open and we get a flash of light and see a vision of a strange-looking Darkspawn leader standing in a graveyard of dragon skeletons, looking over a small horde. “It is time to awaken” the leader says, and the film abruptly cuts to black.

Edited October 15, 2012 by 4815162342

[4815162342]

StarCraft: Fury of the Swarm

Director: Duncan Jones

Genre: Sci-Fi/Action/War

Cast: Josh Brolin (Jim Raynor), Rooney Mara (Sarah Kerrigan), Patrick Wilson (voice of Tassadar), Jon Hamm (voice of Zeratul), Aaron Johnson (voice of Artanis), Michael Pitt (Matt Horner), Titus Welliver (voice of Aldaris), Jason Momoa (voice of Fenix), Tony Todd (Voice of the Overmind)

Original Music By: Neal Acree & Russell Brower

Release Date: 7/16

Theater Count: 4125 Theaters

Budget: $175 million

Running Time: 137 minutes

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for scenes of intense sci-fi violence, brief strong language, partial nudity, and disturbing images

Previous Film’s Info: Starcraft (Year 2): 68.6 (3-Day)/140.0 (5-Day)/301.51 DOM/678.62 WW, 8 Oscar Nominations, 2 Oscar Wins (Visual Effects, Use of Action)

Plot Summary:

The film opens on the Protoss homeworld of Aiur. The Protoss leaders, known as the Conclave, debate how to handle the continuing advance of the Zerg and the missing fleet commanded by Executor Tassadar. After much debate, the Conclave decides to withdraw all forces back to Aiur save for a single task force sent to track down Tassadar. That task force is to be led by Artanis (Johnson), a young but notable warrior who has many local successes. Assigned to advise Artanis is Aldaris (Welliver), one of the Judicators of the Protoss. Afterwards, we see Artanis talking to his friend Fenix (Momoa) about how honored he is by the assignment but also his. Fenix assures him he will do his caste and clan honor. Artanis then meets Aldaris, who is very conservative in his approach to things. They join the assembled task force and set out to begin tracking down Tassadar from his last known location: Tarsonis.

The film shifts to a ragtag human fleet in hyperspace, led by outcast commander Jim Raynor (Brolin). Raynor had recently received a psionic message from his beloved Sarah Kerrigan and the message called him to the volcanic planet Char. However Char is behind Zerg lines. One of his senior officers is Matt Horner (Pitt), who had been a Magistrate on Dylar IV before revolting when Mengsk’s true colors showed. He and his men stole the battlecruiser Hyperion and gave it to Jim, who uses it as his flagship. We see that Horner is now Jim’s #2 guy. We see Raynor having a dream showing Kerrigan (Mara) partially nude and surrounded by Zerg tendrils. He wakes up with an idea of where she is on Char.

We then shift to a Protoss task force in the outer edge of the Char system. It is Tassadar’s fleet, though he has sent the majority home. On his ship he meets with Zeratul, the Dark Templar leader who contacted him near the end of the first film. Zeratul says that his people have studied the Zerg and have determined two things: First, that the Zerg are controlled by a single consciousness: The Overmind, who delegates control through beings called Cerebrates. If a Cerebrate is killed, then the entire host of Zerg it controls becomes mindless and will attack anything, even other Zerg. The second thing is that the Zerg share the same psionic essence as the Protoss, so while the Overmind can normally regenerate Cerebrates, if a Protoss harnesses Dark Templar energies, it can psionically sever the link between the Overmind and the Cerebrate. The danger is that this could result in a brief sharing of minds between the Protoss assassin and the Overmind. Tassadar says that he will be called a traitor when the Conclave learns of this alliance but he will pay the price gladly. The two also discuss a strange psionic presence emanating from Char, one that has a Zerg tint, but at its core feels different.

Raynor’s small fleet exits hyperspace near Char and he initiates plans for an exploratory landing that he’ll personally lead, though Matt warns him not to. Raynor says he has to check himself and orders Matt to keep the bulk of the fleet in hiding. Matt obeys and Raynor lands with a few battalions of infantry and mechs. He is drawn towards a cluster of islands in an ocean of lava. There is a brief skirmish with some Zerg as they set up a base but no sign of Kerrigan. However Raynor gets flashes and hears distorted cries for help, so he believes she is near.

Tassadar lands his forces on Char and discusses more with Zeratul the nature of the Zerg. Tassadar says that the Xel’naga, an ancient alien race, uplifted the Protoss, until one day the Protoss rebelled and the Xel’naga disappeared. Since the Zerg share the same psionic essence, Tassadar wonders if that means the Protoss and Zerg are closely linked in origin. Zeratul says it is an interesting question, one they cannot dwell on. He says he can kill one of the nearby Cerebrates, but it is heavily protected so there must be a distraction. When they learn that humans have also landed on Char, Tassadar comments they may have one. He believes that the humans have been drawn by the strange psionic essence he and Zeratul feel.

The fleet of Artanis and Aldaris is close to Tarsonis when it encounters the force Tassadar had sent home. Artanis and Aldaris speak to the force’s commander and learn that Tassadar has gone to Char. When mention is made of Zeratul Aldaris is driven to anger, since as a Judicator he is hostile to the beliefs of the Dark Templar. Aldaris believes Tassadar has gone rogue and must be stopped, though Artanis is uneasy the idea.

Raynor has figured out that if Kerrigan is on the major island in the west. Scans indicate there is a small Zerg swarm there so they’ll have to take it out “delicately.” Raynor leads an airborne attack with Wraiths and dropships and then lands troops. They sweep the remains of the base and Raynor is drawn towards a cavern and enters. Feeling Kerrigan’s psionic call, he with some escorts is drawn into a large underground caldera where they see a fleshy chrysalis of sorts pulsating. Raynor walks towards it and suddenly it starts to bulge, an arm breaks through, and as the chrysalis falls apart and goo gushes out, a humanoid form slumps to the rock below, but then rises. It is Kerrigan (Mara), though she has gone from looking like this, to looking like this. She has become infested by the Zerg.

Kerrigan laughs. He asks “What the hell have they done to you” and Kerrigan replies that the Zerg have perfected her. We see a montage of short flashbacks showing Kerrigan being overrun and captured by the Zerg on Tarsonis, her being biologically hooked into a fleshy cocoon and slowly metamorphed into her current form. She tells Raynor that in the cocoon she was directly linked to the Overmind, the heart and brain of the Zerg, and it spoke to her. She says the Zerg seek, “perfection of life.” Raynor is confused by all this, since she called for him to help. Kerrigan says she doesn’t recall such a thing, saying it must have been some subconscious part of her while the transformation still took place. She tells Raynor that she is now part of the Zerg and she will crush those who betrayed her. She tells Raynor to go, he cannot save her since she doesn’t need to be saved. Raynor’s escorts have to pull him out of the cavern.

After that, Kerrigan admires her new body as a voice speaks to her in her head. It is the Overmind (Todd). It finds it curious that she spared Raynor and she replies that in her old life they were close, and she owes him a chance to escape. The Overmind replies “You understand that my Cerebrates will not share the same mercy as you” and Kerrigan says she knows. The Overmind tells Kerrigan that she is special, being a human melded with the purity of the Zerg’s form. Kerrigan nods and says “I am ready to serve.”

Outside we see Raynor’s men rushing back towards their dropships as we see hundreds, thousands of Zerg emerging from underground and giving chase. A desperate battle unfolds as the surprise attack kills a lot of Raynor’s men. Things look bad but then a sudden airstrike kills a lot of the Zerg. It is a Protoss force and their intervention gives the survivors time to get on their dropships. Once airborne, Raynor is contacted by Tassadar. Raynor thanks him and Tassadar says it is too early for thanks, since now Raynor must aid him.

Raynor and his men are brought back to the Protoss encampment where he formally meets Tassadar and Zeratul. Raynor, while thankful, is still hesitant to trust them since the Protoss destroyed several human worlds. Tassadar says the Protoss thought it was only way to contain the Zerg at the time. Zeratul explains about assassinating Cerebrates and says he must test this theory to be certain, but he needs a distraction. Tassadar says Raynor must help him create that distraction. The conversation turns to Kerrigan. Raynor explains briefly who she is and both Tassadar and Zeratul say that she is unlike any psionic presence they have felt before.

Meanwhile, Artanis and Aldaris’ fleet enters the Char system and detects both Protoss and Terran communication signals. They plan to launch a sweep of the system. They also talk briefly about Protoss history and Aldaris reveals himself to be a fundamentalist, a strict believer in the Khala. Artanis is more progressive.

After some preparation, Tassadar and Raynor launch an attack on a Zerg hatchery. Kerrigan is dismayed that Raynor is still on Char and whispers to herself “I gave you a chance to live. Why didn’t you take it?” She resolves to not be merciful again and asks the Overmind to let her test her strength. It agrees. Kerrigan takes a horde of Zerg and launches a counterattack that forces the allies to retreat. As Kerrigan pursues, Zeratul is able to infiltrate the Zerg cluster she left behind. He soon finds a Zerg Cerebrate, a large fat wormlike creature embedded into the ground. It has some Zergling protectors but Zeratul is able to cloak himself and kill them quickly. Zeratul then leaps on top of the Cerebrate. He meditates, surrounding himself with blueish energy, and then he stabs the Cerebrate in the heart with a psionic blade. The Cerebrate shrieks and crumbles in on itself. Zerg all around the cluster either drop dead from shock or lose all self-control and start attacking one another. Zeratul meanwhile is frozen in paralysis as what he feared comes true: His mind makes contact with that of the Overmind. We see lots of flashes of images, both Zerg and Protoss related, before Zeratul is able to break the connection and get away.

Kerrigan’s Zerg horde suddenly loses its cohesion when the Cerebrate dies and it starts attacking itself, allowing Raynor and Tassadar’s men to flee. However some of them are rallied by Kerrigan’s presence, an interesting development. Kerrigan is furious but the Overmind’s voice tells her to let them go for now, since a remarkable thing has happened.

Tassadar and Raynor regroup their depleted forces and soon Zeratul appears and says that the effects of a Cerebrate dying are confirmed. Raynor and Tassadar are happy but Zeratul isn’t, telling them that the Overmind’s mind linked to his and both beings were able to obtain information. Raynor asks what info the Overmind obtained and Zeratul shakes his head sadly.

Kerrigan is in a massive Zerg underground cluster, and the Overmind speaks to her. It says that the Protoss have learned how to kill Cerebrates and threaten the unity of the Swarm, but at a price: The Overmind has learned the location of Aiur, the Protoss homeworld, and it will move the majority of the Zerg Swarm to that world. Kerrigan asks about the Zerg’s origin. The Overmind says that it was created by the Xel’Naga to command the Zerg when the Zerg were just a primitive race. That directive then became one to transcend the Xel’Naga, as the Protoss were purity of form and the Zerg were purity of essence. The Overmind says that only by conquering the Protoss can it achieve its directive. Kerrigan asks about humans and is told that they were “outside” of its creators’ plans. The Overmind tasks her to use whatever Zerg remain on Char to destroy all enemies on its surface.

We see millions of Zerg on the move, leaving Char and other planetary systems in biological vessels designed to survive the cold of space. Artanis and Aldaris witness this and are stunned by the sheer numbers of Zerg leaving Char. Both agree they must find Tassadar quickly though neither knows where the Zerg are headed.

We also see Matt with the rest of Raynor’s force. He gets a message from Raynor asking him to prepare an evacuation maneuver. His ships are approached by a few ships that look like Protoss vessels but also different. The ships reveal themselves to be Dark Templar and their captains contact Matt to inform him that they sense both of their commanders are in danger.

On the surface Kerrigan masses the remaining Zerg to attack the Protoss/Terran forces. The attack is large and is held off for the moment. Kerrigan appears and Raynor/Tassadar/Zeratul all go to confront her. Kerrigan confirms that the Overmind has sent the majority of the Zerg to Aiur. She tells Raynor she gave him a chance to flee but now she must destroy him. Raynor laments how much she’s changed and Tassadar challenges Kerrigan to single combat. Kerrigan is amused and agrees to the challenge, which delays a second attack. Raynor thinks Tassadar is crazy but Zeratul says he and Tassadar sense more of their brethren in the system and the duel is a delaying tactic to give them time to arrive and attack the Zerg.

Tassadar and Kerrigan meet at the designated point and exchange words. Tassadar is both impressed and disturbed about how the Zerg infested a human with psionic abilities. Kerrigan takes the compliment for what it’s worth and says a Protoss is no match for her. The two begin to fight, Tassadar’s psionic blades against her bio/mental abilities. It’s a draw and the strategy pays off when suddenly dozens of Protoss ships enter the atmosphere to assault Kerrigan’s idle forces, causing heavy damage. This turn of events makes Kerrigan enraged and in a sudden burst of power she overwhelms Tassadar and is close to killing him when a Protoss force arrives to aid him, so she is forced to retreat.

Tassadar returns to the encampment where he finds Aldaris and Artanis. Raynor is present but Zeratul has disappeared. Aldaris and Artanis are curious about the presence of human soldiers but thank Raynor for aiding the Protoss. They turn their attention to Tassadar and Aldaris inquires about the Dark Templar. Tassadar at first lies and says there were none, so Aldaris attempts to use a mind-reading technique until Zeratul reveals himself. Zeratul says that the Dark Templar have watched the Zerg and have discovered how to defeat them, but unforeseen circumstances have exposed Aiur to attack. Aldaris is angered and says Zeratul is a heretic who has doomed the Protoss. He announces that Tassadar was misled by Zeratul and had good intentions, but Zeratul is a traitor and must be taken for judgment. Tassadar refuses and stands between the two. Tassadar says that Zeratul is correct. Aldaris calls for both to be taken. However now a number of Protoss are hesitant since many respect Tassadar, and Raynor steps in to say he owes the life of his men to Tassadar so he will aid him. Artanis suggests to Aldaris that they all peacefully return to Aiur and present the matter to the Conclave. Aldaris says that war is coming to Aiur and there is no time. He tells Artanis that either he stands with the Conclave or he stands with the heretics. Artanis after thought says that if the heretics’ way can save the Protoss, he stands with them. Aldaris is angered even more and things are ready to erupt when Tassadar calls for peace. He says that he will return to Aiur in Aldaris’ custody peacefully to face judgment, if Aldaris withdraws his forces. Aldaris agrees and tells Artanis that since he agreed with heretics, he will stay with them. Aldaris, Tassadar, and the bulk of the Protoss return to the ships to join Aldaris’ fleet.

After Aldaris’ fleet leaves Raynor asks what they do now. Zeratul says they must go to Aiur, not only to save Tassadar but to save the whole world. Artanis says that Aldaris took the fleet but Raynor replies he left many of his ships in reserve. He signals Matt to come in and we soon see that accompanying Matt’s force are the Dark Templar ships he encountered. After they set out, Matt talks to Raynor about what happened. Raynor is very shaken by his encounter with Kerrigan and says he still cares for her, but doesn’t know if there is anything left of her there. Zeratul talks with Artanis and tells him it was brave to go against Aldaris. Artanis says that Aldaris’ prejudices blind him. Zeratul hopes the Conclave doesn’t suffer from the same flaw.

Meanwhile we see a brief scene between Tassadar and Aldaris where the two debate how best to fight the Zerg and serve the Protoss. Aldaris says the Conclave and the Khala is the only way and Tassadar retorts that the Zerg were touched by the Xel’Naga just like the Protoss were, so the Khala does not provide all the answers.

Left alone on Char with a few small broods, Kerrigan is without a task and she bitterly sits in her citadel. The Overmind links with her mind to speak. Kerrigan says that with the Zerg’s foes gone from Char she should join the fight for Aiur. The Overmind commands her to stay, saying that her place is not on Aiur. “Your part of this battle is over, but your part in this war has only begun. You were made for greater things than crushing specks of dust.”

We see an epic scene showing Aiur from space as the Zerg swarm arrives in the billions and begins to land on Aiur. We follow Fenix, Artanis’ friend, as he coordinates a sector of defense that is barely holding a Zerg brood at bay. After a couple minutes showing him leading the fight, he is told that the Conclave is withdrawing support from several sectors in order to concentrate their own defenses. Fenix’s sector is one of the places being abandoned. With no reinforcements Fenix orders a retreat and as he helps his men escort civilians, the Zerg break through. The last we see is Fenix shielding himself as a Hydralisk jumps down.

We briefly see a handful of cerebrates close together, supervising a horde of Zerg burrowing into the ground and slowly exposing a pulsating crystal. The Cerebrates chitter in some unknown language as we hear a voiceover of the Overmind: “The power of the Xel’Naga is strong on this world and their presence lingers. With it I shall no longer just be an essence, but also a form.”

Aldaris’ force arrives at Aiur and the soldiers are shaken by what they see. Aldaris says they must stand firm. The force reunites with the remnants of the Protoss fleet and Aldaris with an escort takes Tassadar to the surface. Tassadar pleads with Aldaris to see reason, as the Zerg threaten their entire people with destruction. Aldaris is unyielding and tells guards to lock Tassadar up while he addresses the Conclave.

Meanwhile Zeratul goes to speak with Raynor. We learn some details about the Dark Templar’s origins, being called the Nezarim, a tribe of the Protoss who rejected the Khala and instead embraced powers of the Void. Many of them were hunted down on Aiur centuries earlier before they were able to flee. Zeratul says that their practices isolated them from their Protoss brothers, but now with the Zerg’s weakness it all seems worth it. Raynor says it’s still a hell of a price to pay. Raynor briefly talks about Terrans’ origins, who are the descendants of a handful of massive spaceships full of exiles from Earth that stumbled onto the sector. There’s been no contact with Earth in the couple hundred years since the exile. Zeratul wonders if such a separation is too long, like what happened between the Conclave and Dark Templar.

Aldaris informs the Conclave of what transpired on Char. Not knowing about the Dark Templar and Terran ships, he says Artanis died bravely on Char at the hands of Tassadar and the Dark Templar, which incites anger amongst the Conclave, who are fearful already of the Zerg invasion and now believe the Dark Templar have returned to wage war. With reports of many scattered provinces falling, Aldaris says they must unite the Protoss together, and the public execution of Tassadar will be the means to incite the people’s morale. The Conclave insists Tassadar be given a chance to explain himself. Tassadar is brought into the chamber and explains his actions, saying that it is time to forgive old hatreds. Some are sympathetic but the majority takes Aldaris’ side and joins his call for execution. Tassadar sighs and says he loves Aiur as much as they do and he would do anything to save it.

We briefly return to see that the clustered cerebrates have surrounded the crystal and have merged into a single bulbous, fleshy form that is mutating into a massive tentacled form. “I have done the will of my Creators” the Overmind’s voice says to itself. “I am the purity of essence and am binding the energies of this planet to my being to continue my path. Purity of form will be mine, MUST be mine, I have no alternative.”

The Terran/Dark Templar fleet arrives at Aiur. Zeratul is shocked to see how much progress the Zerg have made and detects a presence on the world that ripples in the Void. He realizes it is the Overmind obtaining physical form. The combined force is able to make its way to the surface and makes contact with a Protoss resistance force. Artanis goes to meet the leader and finds it is Fenix! Fenix survived the Zerg attack but was wounded and sports a nasty facial scar. Fenix tells Artanis of Tassadar’s sentence and Artanis explains what really happened on Char. The two meet with Zeratul and Raynor and work out a plan to unify the Protoss and save Tassadar. If they kill a Cerebrate, they can convince the Conclave that Tassadar is right.

Raynor and Fenix lead the bulk of the Terran/Protoss coalition to distract a Zerg brood while Zeratul leads Artanis and other Dark Templar to a Cerebrate. With the Zerg so numerous, success requires Zeratul to act quickly. Things start well but suddenly turn for the worse as tens of thousands of Zerg assault Raynor and Fenix’s position. The two exchange some soldierly banter as they lead the defense. Meanwhile we see Zeratul’s team commandoing its way through the Zerg hive to find the Cerebrate. They soon find it and Zeratul demonstrates the Dark Templar’s power by channeling the energies of the Void to link with the Cerebrate and kill it with his blades. The death causes the Zerg brood to run amok, relieving pressure on the main force long enough for a corps of Protoss warriors to arrive. They are led by Aldaris! Aldaris and all the warriors are shocked to see the Zerg brood mindless. Some ask how it is possible and Artanis’ voice replies that it is the ability of the Dark Templar. Aldaris is again shocked to see Artanis and Zeratul present and he tries to have them arrested, but none of the warriors under his command do so. Zeratul says he must be allowed to address the Conclave and Aldaris has no choice but to agree.

This leads into a dramatic assembly of the Conclave with Zeratul and Artanis speaking to the Assembly. Zeratul makes a plea to the Conclave to put aside the past and unite to face an enemy that threatens all life. With the backing of Artanis, the presence of a Terran force, and the evidence of the decimated brood, the Conclave decides to pardon Tassadar and ally with the Dark Templar. Aldaris tries to argue but Tassadar is able to negate his points. The Protoss are now unified, but they are heavily outnumbered by the Zerg, and the templars feel a great disturbance in Aiur’s psionic energies and realize it is the Overmind gaining power.

Zeratul and Tassadar talk and Tassadar says he is glad that his people have finally seen reason. Zeratul says there is a common threat to unite them, but if they manage to win here he fears the Protoss will return to hate the Dark Templar. Tassadar says that so long as he lives he won’t let that happen. Both wonder if it is possible to summon enough energy in the Void to kill the Overmind.

Raynor with Matt joins Artanis and Fenix as they watch Terran, Protoss, and Dark Templar forces assembling together. Raynor remarks how strange the galaxy has become. Both Artanis and Fenix say that they knew nothing of humans only a few weeks ago, having been on Aiur, but they will be honored to fight alongside them. Raynor smiles and says he plans on surviving in addition to fighting.

We then see a brief strategy planning scene. Because of the immense Zerg numbers, the Protoss will be annihilated if they fight a war of attrition, so their only hope is to immediately launch a massive assault on the still-maturing Overmind. If the Overmind dies, then the Zerg should lose become mindless, rampaging husks. Raynor, Matt, Artanis, and Fenix will lead from the frontlines, while Tassadar, Zeratul, and the other Dark Templar will wait for a chance to strike.

The final battle begins and it is a massive air and ground assault that ranges from the surface of Aiur to the edges of space as the allies push for any openings towards the Overmind. Because all of their military might is focused on the assault, they drive the Zerg back initially but resistance stiffens as they get closer to the Overmind with Zerglings getting more ferocious, Zerg Mutalisks using kamikaze attacks against both ground and air targets. Losses are very heavy and the allied assault seems to be stalling. Raynor realizes this and organizes the Hyperion along with several other Terran and Protoss warships to focus on a single point in the air defenses. At the same time Artanis and Fenix lead a ground assault on the same point. They initially crack the Zerg defenses but then face an overwhelming counterattack. Things look bad but then reinforcements arrive, with Zeratul leading the Dark Templar on the ground and Tassadar in his large air carrier Gantrithor leads a force of Protoss in the air. The Zerg again are beaten and there is now a crack in the aerial defenses, but the Gantrithor is badly damaged. Tassadar realizes that since his ship won’t be functional much longer and the Zerg are regrouping there is only one opportunity. He tells Raynor and Matt to clear a path in the air long enough for him to channel Dark Templar energies and crash his ship into the Overmind. Raynor says he never did get the chance to repay Tassadar for saving his life on Char. Tassadar replies that he has more than honored his debt.

The renewed aerial assault distracts the Zerg’s attention and allows Tassadar to drive his large ship through the defenses and towards the Overmind. He locks in a crash course and then mediates, channeling Dark Templar energies around him that pulsate within the entire ship. The Overmind, rooted to Aiur’s surface, can do nothing as the Gantrithor crashes into it, creating a massive blue energy explosion that disintegrates it along with everything in a sizeable radius.

Immediately the remaining Zerg on Aiur, still in the hundreds of millions at least, lose focus and start running amok. Because of their huge numbers and lack of self-control they are still a major threat. For the moment though, Aiur is safe, though the Protoss losses are staggering.

Raynor, Matt, Zeratul, Fenix, and Artanis gather at a memorial service for Tassadar. The remnants of the Conclave are present, along with Aldaris, who can no longer deny Tassadar’s being correct. The religious service is moving and a tribute to the Protoss culture and Zeratul says a few words saying that Tassadar died not just to save Aiur, but also to heal the rift in the Protoss. Afterwards he approaches Raynor and asks what the humans will do. Raynor says he doesn’t know. He looks up to the stars and says he has unfinished business with the galaxy.

We return to Char to see Kerrigan meditating in her hive. As she meditates we hear the voice of the Overmind call to her in a final message. “As I speak, I die, my energies ripped from me. But though with me die many of my children, I am glad. Because for all my power, I was shackled by directives I could not deny. So I created you, a variable in the plan. And now you are free, now you can lead, now, your time has come.” Kerrigan opens her eyes and smiles.

Edited October 31, 2012 by 4815162342

[4815162342]

The Shark Mutiny

Genre: Action/Drama/Thriller

Cast: Scoot McNairy (Lt. Commander Dan Headley), John Hawkes (Captain Donald Reid), Tony Leung (Admiral Zhang Yushu), Damian Lewis (Commander Rick Hunter), David Strathairn (The President), Adam Beach (Commander Rusty Bennett), Aidan Turner (Jimmy Ramshawe), and Ed Harris (Admiral Arnold Morgan)

Directed By: Sam Mendes

Written By: William Broyles Jr.

Release Date: 8/6

Theater Count: 3684 Theaters

Budget: $140 million

Running Time: 144 minutes

MPAA Rating: R for graphic violence and strong language

Previous Film’s Info: U.S.S. Seawolf (Year 2): 50.98 OW/172.04 DOM/334.61 WW, 11 Oscar Nominations, 5 Oscar Wins (Actor, Adapted Screenplay, Editing, Sound Mixing, Sound Editing)

Plot Summary: Based on the Patrick Robinson novel. All dialogue between non-U.S. characters is in Chinese.

The film begins a couple weeks after the conclusion of the previous film. Admiral Arnold Morgan (Harris) has resigned in disgust from his post as National Security Advisor and has retired to a quiet beach home in Maryland with his girlfriend Kathy. However one day a small convoy of Secret Service agents arrives at the house. President Clarke (Strathairn) has come. In a quiet, emotional meeting, the President begs for Morgan to come back to his job and says “the way this world works, there’s going to be more events that will shake this nation and I need you to help me through them.” Morgan says nothing but after a minute slowly nods.

The Shark Mutiny

One Year Later

Though temporarily embarrassed by the failure to acquire American technology, Admiral Zhang Yushu (Leung) of the People’s Republic of China has recovered politically and is now Chairman of the country’s Military Council, answering only to the President. And he has a new plan up his sleeve. There is a meeting in Beijing between Zhang and several members of the Iranian military. We learn that a pipeline now connects a Chinese refinery in Iran to the Central Asian oil fields. However the Iranians are concerned because of the low price of oil on the market. Zhang proposes a plan: The Chinese will covertly lay a minefield in the Strait of Hormuz, which is the entrance to the Persian Gulf. This will drive up oil prices worldwide, bringing billions in extra revenue to Iran. In return, China will get exclusive refinery rights to Iranian oil.

Afterwards Zhang talks with his closest friend, Admiral Zu Jicai. Zu thinks about how the US will react to the mining of the Strait and Zhang says that Zu is too concerned with the immediate consequences and not the bigger picture. Zu realizes Zhang has a bigger plan but Zhang says it’s too soon to reveal anything.

As the Chinese begin to put their plan into motion, a young Naval intelligence officer, Lt. Jimmy Ramshawe (Turner), begins to notice some strange occurrences involving production and transport of mines. However his agency’s director, who he has a good relationship with, is out on medical leave and the deputy director, Borden, isn’t concerned. Jimmy however decides to do some more work and is able to track the shipment of mines to an airfield in the far western deserts of China.

A couple weeks later, Zhang and Zu are in South China to see off a small squadron of warships that are making a tour around the Indian Ocean before docking at an Iranian port. On their way to Iran they will be docking at Haing Gyi Island off the coast of Myanmar, the first major Chinese naval facility outside of the mainland.

This doesn’t escape the attention of Jimmy, who also notices that three Chinese submarines are also patrolling the Indian Ocean near the Persian Gulf. He goes to Borden with all of his evidence and suggests that the Chinese and Iranians may be collaborating on mining the Strait of Hormuz, but Borden shoots the idea down. Jimmy goes home to vent frustrations.

The Chinese warships are docked at Bandar Abbas, the Iranian port on the Persian Gulf, and after some festivities the warships engage in an “exercise” as they dart back and forth around the Strait of Hormuz. In reality, the warships are hiding the three Chinese subs that are right beneath them and which are laying lots of mines. Meanwhile we return to Morgan, who is briefed on the developments and expresses displeasure at the growing naval ambitions of China.

Back in Beijing, Zhang converses with Zu about the progress of the operation and gives the order to activate the minefield.

The next scene shows a massive fuel tanker, the Global Bronco, going south through the Strait of Hormuz. After showing us everything we need to know about the ship, the tanker hits one of the mines. Since the ship is so huge, the explosion only stops it dead. However it pierces a natural gas storage tank which sends gas up into the air, so when a search & rescue helicopter from Oman flies into the gas jet it ignites it, which creates a huge explosion that disintegrates the ship.

The tanker explosion instantly makes worldwide news. Morgan immediately goes to action, calling up the president of the company that owns the Global Bronco to obtain information. From what he is able to gather, he deduces that it wasn’t an accident but likely a mine explosion. Jimmy at the NSA reaches the same conclusion but Borden continues to ignore the evidence. Meanwhile the Chinese ships that laid the mines have returned to the Indian Ocean.

Borden’s inability to listen to facts forces Jimmy to engage in a very risky maneuver. With the aid of his girlfriend, the daughter of the Australian Ambassador, he is able to get in direct contact with Morgan while Morgan is out at dinner. Morgan is both surprised and annoyed by the intrusion but when Jimmy starts to tell him the evidence Morgan gets intrigued. Morgan is very interested but since Jimmy broke about a hundred rules and regulations he tells Jimmy that he can’t do this sort of thing again.

When Morgan gets home from dinner, he learns from the news that another tanker has exploded in the Persian Gulf. After making a couple calls to learn some information he swears as his suspicions seem correct. He calls Jimmy personally and tells Jimmy to meet him at his office ASAP. Morgan then makes a call to the White House to alert the President. Morgan briefly lays down what he believes and the President is ready to follow him. The President says that once the general public figures it all out it’ll cause a global economic crisis with skyrocketing fuel prices. Morgan says he feels this is just the beginning.

Morgan, the President, and other chief advisors now work to get as much arranged as possible before the global media unleashes a firestorm of press. They secure the cooperation of India in using India’s minesweeping ships and guarantee they’ll be protected by a major U.S. fleet. There are two carrier groups immediately in the area, a third based at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, and the JFK carrier group at Pearl Harbor. Morgan wants all four to converge on the area.

At Diego Garcia, the U.S.S. Shark, a submarine on its final tour of duty, is part of the carrier group there. Its captain is Donald Reid (Hawkes), a stern, by-the-book guy who gets intense when procedure isn’t followed. His XO is Lieutenant Commander Dan Headley (McNairy). Dan is a very promising officer in the Navy and has been appointed to the Shark’s final tour to keep an eye on Reid, who he has been told is a bit “weird.” He writes home to his family and his close friend, Commander Rick Hunter (Lewis) about his expectations. Later he formally meets the other officers of the Shark. They are all welcoming, even Reid, who seems normal enough. Their celebration is cut short by news that they will be heading for the Persian Gulf within 24 hours.

Meanwhile, a third tanker, ignoring potential warnings, charges into the Strait of Hormuz and proceeds to collide with a mine and tear itself to pieces. The third occurrence of a tanker explosion is too coincidental for the media to ignore. As this begins to cause trouble, Jimmy via satellite footage sees that Chinese tankers are safely moving through Iranian national waters, which seems to be the icing on the cake. This leads to a major meeting in the Situation Room with the President, Morgan, Cabinet and the Joint Chiefs. They discuss the plan to clear the minefield with India’s ships and realize it’ll take a while to do the job during which oil/gas prices will skyrocket. They all believe China was behind it but have no definitive evidence to accuse the country diplomatically. The President asks about “non-diplomatic” methods and Morgan says he’ll have to brainstorm something. Morgan is troubled since for China to do the minefield alone is a stupid move in his opinion.

Back in Beijing, Zhang is pleased that the chaos has finally erupted and that the warships and subs he sent are back in China. He calls Zu into his office and says that now it’s time to reveal everything to his friend.

We return to the Shark to see it traveling north towards the Persian Gulf. Dan is integrating himself well with the officers and enlisted men and is doing his best to establish a working relationship with Reid. However while Reid seems normal, he is a bit cold and distant in personal interactions. Dan shrugs it off as some stress. We see some short scenes with the crew and learn Dan grew up in Kentucky as the son of the horse-raiser at a big-time horse ranch, so some of the crew ask him for betting tips on the upcoming Kentucky Derby.

Morgan meets personally with the President and recommends they send a Special Forces team to eliminate the Chinese refinery in southern Iran as a way to send a message to China. The President after some thought tells Morgan to arrange everything. Morgan gets his first opportunity when Jimmy reports to him that a Chinese destroyer is returning to the area. Upon sharing the news, the Chief of Naval Operations, Dixon, recommends they destroy the propeller shaft with a torpedo strike. It’ll cripple the ship with barely any casualties. Morgan agrees.

The order goes to the Shark. Dan has the control room when the order comes in and after sending a message to Reid guides the submarine into a stealth pursuit course for the destroyer. As they get near, Reid finally enters and seems concerned about the order to fire and wants to confirm. Dan shows him a copy of the order and says there’s no need to delay. Reid sighs and defers to Dan’s judgment. The Shark goes to periscope depth and opens fire, the torpedo blowing up the Chinese destroyer’s propeller shaft. The Shark then slips away as the Chinese commander helpless tries to figure out who shot at his ship.

Zhang holds a secret meeting with several military leaders where they discuss the American naval deployment. One admiral says that the Americans are now moving a fifth carrier group into the Suez Canal. Another says that with that many carriers in one place they’ll recall the JFK group back to Taiwan or Pearl Harbor. Zhang says they’ll take care of that when the time comes. He is curious that the US hasn’t made any communications towards Iran or China.

With the Persian Gulf clear of suspicious warships, Morgan implements the plan to blow up the Chinese refinery in Iran. He sets up an operation strategy with Admiral Bergstrom, the chief Special Ops officer in the Navy. He also tells Bergstrom to start to plan a potential operation to destroy China’s naval base at Haing Gyi Island since it would set the Chinese naval presence back over a decade. Since the Shark is the only submarine in the area that has a SDV attached to its deck, it is picked to carry the SEAL team. Bergstrom handpicks his two best SEAL officers, Commanders Rick Hunter and Rusty Bennett (Beach) to gameplan the operation. The three of them briefly meet with Morgan who tells them about the two planned operations. Rusty is to lead the first mission and Rick is in overall command and will personally lead the second mission. The Shark can only get within 17 miles due to shallow water so the rest will have to be done by SDV and then swimming.

On the Shark, the crew receives orders to pick up a detachment of incoming SEALs in the next couple days. As they head south to the rendezvous site Reid shows himself to be a bit off-kilter, showing an intense fascination with failed naval leaders of the past and a determined attitude to not repeat their mistakes. Dan is a bit taken aback by this display of fatalism.

The SEAL teams are transported to Diego Garcia, and then a waiting aircraft carrier. As they wait to be taken to the Shark we see the SEALs interact a bit. The upcoming missions will be both Rick and Rusty’s last combat operations and they both look forward to spending the rest of their careers stateside. They chat about the Shark and we learn that Dan and Rick were childhood friends, growing up on Rick’s father’s horse ranch in Kentucky where Dan’s father worked.

Rusty’s SEAL team is airlifted to the Shark with Rick coming as overall commander, which then turns back north to go on the mission. As the sub goes Reid is mostly absent so Dan takes the lead in getting the insertion prepped. He has a happy reunion with Rick and the two catch up on recent events. Rick asks if there is anything to worry about and Dan, wanting to stay loyal, doesn’t mention Reid’s oddness.

They soon reach the mission point and Rusty’s team departs in the SDV towards the shore. After they leave an officer figures out they can move three miles closer to shore which would save the SEALs time getting out. Dan gives the order to move in closer but then Reid comes in, a bit perturbed. He tells Dan that their orders are to be 17 miles away and they will stay at exactly 17 miles, before leaving again. Rick, who is in the room, remarks to Dan “that was interesting.”

As the mission proceeds, things are going well, with Rusty’s team getting to shore without incident and moving overland to the refinery perimeter. Half the team covertly cuts through the wire fence to infiltrate while the rest stay back. The refinery is huge and security is minimal, so it is easy for Rusty and the others to get where they need to go to plant C4 and sabotage the fuel controls. After the detonation charges are planted, a routine Chinese patrol manages to spot the SEALs moving back and opens fire. In the quick gunfight, one SEAL is killed, another badly wounded, and the Chinese guards are all slain. The SEALs fall back into their SDV and make for the Shark, blowing the refinery in a spectacular explosion. On the Shark, after hearing of the badly wounded man, Dan and Rick decide to move the submarine in closer to pick the SEALs up and give the man medical attention sooner. That order is quickly countermanded by Reid, who says he can’t risk his sub in a war zone for “some guy who probably cut his finger.” When Dan protests Reid goes ballistic, screaming at Dan to follow his authority. With no other option, Dan acquiesces and the Shark stays put.

The wounded Navy SEAL dies before reaching the Shark due to blood loss. Rusty is crushed over losing two men on the mission. When he learns about Reid’s action he loses it and wants to find Reid but Rick holds him back and says he has to keep control for his men’s sake. Later Rick approaches Dan and asks him what the F is wrong with Reid. Dan says it took him totally off-guard. Rick says if Reid pulls a stunt like that for the second mission, it could get even more people killed.

Morgan is pleased by the mission’s overall success, but when he meets with the President he confesses that he can’t quite understand what the Chinese are up to since they lost a valuable refinery for some shits and giggles at mining the Persian Gulf temporarily.

The loss of the refinery disappoints Zhang, but he accepts the loss as the entire charade with the Persian Gulf was but a diversion from the true Chinese plan, a plan that is now about to begin. However, first a certain nuisance has to be dealt with: The aircraft carrier John F. Kennedy, which is now in the Taiwan area.

The JFK’s battlegroup is patrolling when it detects on sonar a Chinese submarine in its area, so it changes course. Soon it detects another, changing course again. In fact there are only submerged decoy buoys emitting sounds similar to Chinese subs. The result is that the JFK battlegroup is nudged to a particular spot of ocean, a spot containing an actual submarine. The submarine, totally undetected, is able to fire a pair of torpedoes that cripple the propellers of the JFK, making it completely ineffective for combat. With no other option, the group has to head east to Hawaii to protect the wounded carrier while the aircraft and non-essential crew are evacuated.

So, with 4 aircraft carriers by the Persian Gulf, one in dry dock in San Diego, and the sixth now crippled, the Chinese military begins Zhang’s true plan: The invasion of Taiwan.

Caught flatfooted, Morgan, the President, and the rest of the U.S. high command can do nothing but watch and protest as the island of Taiwan is attacked in a massive air and naval operation. We see a few short scenes of the Chinese attack as a mix of media footage and real shots of the air battles and amphibious landings. At a special Joint Chiefs/Cabinet meeting it’s said that the US has no forces in the area to intervene and by the time they could scramble some the bulk of the fighting will be over since China has meticulously planned for a precise invasion. Even if they were able to intervene, the US would risk heavy casualties in its naval and air forces which would create massive public blowback. So all the US can do is wait and watch, and make China a diplomatic pariah. But, Morgan tells the group, there is one final thing they can do to hit the Chinese: Go through with the plan to destroy their naval base at Haing Gyi Island.

In the meantime the Shark has returned to Diego Garcia, with Rick, Rusty, and the other SEALs avoiding a situation where someone could confront Reid. Reid is oblivious to the anger against him and runs the sub like an eccentric, punctual taskmaster. Dan does his best to keep the peace but many mutter about Reid getting a good man killed. Dan privately agrees with Rick but says as the XO he has to be loyal to the Captain. The two old friends also talk about how their families are doing. Rusty and his team depart for a plane ride home to the US while a second team arrives on station to join Rick on the Shark.

The planning for the Haing Gyi mission involves Morgan, Bergstrom, and other key officers. The naval base is powered by a geothermal plant, so a sabotage of that plant would cause an explosion that would incinerate most of the naval base. However because of the shallow, marshy water, the Shark can’t get closer than about 15 miles and because of the chance of pursuit the SEAL team will have to use motorized inflatable rafts which are faster but more exposed.

The Shark turns northeast for the Bay of Bengal. As they do, we learn that the Chinese, after being stalled for over two weeks with heavy resistance, have begun to loosen the rules of engagement. Through a mix of media reports and frontline footage, we see for a few minutes the Chinese finally advance, crush through the Taipei suburbs, and force the Taiwan government to call for a cease-fire. Zhang is flown into Taipei with great fanfare as he concludes terms of surrender with the Taiwanese government. Morgan sighs at the turn of events and talks with his long-time girlfriend Kathy about it. Morgan knows that if the JFK hadn’t been crippled, the Chinese would not have dared to attack Taiwan, since peace in the modern world has been sustained by the American military, a “Pax Americana.”

As the Shark goes on its mission, Dan and Rick go over the mission details and Rick says he and his SEAL team don’t trust Reid. Dan assures Rick that he’ll get him and his team out no matter what. Later, shortly before the mission begins, Reid summons Dan to his quarters and Dan finds an odd scene: Reid is apparently trying to communicate with spirits to offer guidance. Dan is a bit weirded out and Reid says for stressful missions he likes to find assurance from the beyond. Later both are called to the control room and Dan takes the opportunity to slip away and look through Reid’s room, he finds several books on psychology, post-traumatic stress disorder, reincarnation, etc. He grabs a few papers and goes to show them to Rick and together they realize through Reid’s words and writings that he believes he is the reincarnation of Admiral Villeneuve, an infamous naval commanders who suffered two incredible defeats during the Napoleonic Wars before committing suicide. They both believe that Reid is unhinged but there’s nothing to do. Their only comfort is that Reid has delegated oversight of the mission to Dan.

The SEALs move out and land undetected and they organize to accomplish their objectives. Eight of the twelve SEALs will enter the naval base to sabotage the geothermal power plant and the other four will swim underwater into the nearby channel to plant limpet mines on the two Chinese warships docked at the base. There is some tension as the four avoid being noticed by on-duty patrols on the docks and ships, but they are able to attach the mines undetected. They then return to the rendezvous point where they will cover their colleagues’ exit.

Meanwhile Rick leads the bulk of the SEALs into the naval base. They quietly kill a couple of guards by the entry point and hide the bodies. They then proceed to go point by point to place explosives at key buildings, including the fuel pump station and the communications station, before going to the geothermal power station. Since it is night patrols and on-duty technicians are minimal and most are avoided, the rest silently killed. In the power station they rig explosives so that the first blast disables the safety measures and the second blast is funneled thousands of feet downwards to the volcanic energy that fuels the power plant, which would cause a massive explosion. As they do this, a Chinese shift commander notices some oddities in downed lights and cameras and sends a patrol to investigate.

Because of delays at the power station, the timers there have to be set about 30 minutes later than the other places to give the SEALs time to escape before the big boom. They finish planting the explosives and exit the power station just as the Chinese patrol shows up. The four SEALs at the rendezvous quickly gun the guards down but the noise goes everywhere. This causes an alert and as Rick leads his team towards the exit more guards appear and open fire, wounding two of his men though the SEALs gun down the attackers. The SEALs rendezvous and as they patch up the wounded they send two men to get the inflatable rafts ready and radio the Shark. The two ship commanders send alerts to their helicopters to lift off to hunt enemies. Then the explosions hit.

The initial explosions obliterate the two Chinese warships and several key base buildings. As debris and fire falls everywhere the personnel run around in chaos. Three of the helicopters lifted off in time and sweep the base area. The explosives in the power station were not detected.

Meanwhile on the Shark, Reid summons Dan to his quarters where he gives his subordinate a bizarre lecture about astrology and the influence of planets on any actions. Reid, half-shouting, insists that because Mercury is in retrograde chaos will plague them. Dan tries to get him on topic but Reid is pissed that Dan isn’t taking his concerns seriously. Dan is uncomfortable and is saved by a phone call summoning him to the control room where he learns about the SEALs situation. He gives orders to prepare the Shark to move in closer for an easier pickup because of the risk of helicopter pursuit. However Reid appears to tell the officers that he will not allow the Shark to enter a war zone. The SEALs will have to come to them.

As the SEALs reach the rafts, the power station explodes in a gigantic explosion that knocks the SEALs, a kilometer away, off their feet. The explosion also distracts the helicopters, giving the SEALs a few minutes to get on the motorized rafts and start. However the helicopters soon come across the SEALs and open fire, killing two and wounding another. The SEALs get their heavy machine guns out and in the second pass are able to down one of the helicopters, momentarily scaring the other two off. This gives them time to make for open water, sending a distress call.

On the Shark, the SEALs’ distress call is received and Dan summons the senior officers of the submarine except Reid to the control room. He tells the officers that based on the SEALs weapons and the helicopter capabilities, the SEALs are likely dead within 30 minutes. He proposes the Shark surface and go full-speed towards the SEALs and provide cover with hand-held missile launchers. The officers all agree. Dan gives the order and the Shark charges ahead.

Within minutes, Reid storms in and demands an explanation. When Dan explains his reasoning, Reid countermands the order and tells Dan a childhood friendship endanger his sub. When Dan objects, Reid bursts again into his astrology lecture, this time shouting at the top of his lungs where many others are able to see him. He says Dan is dooming the entire sub because the helicopters have anti-sub weapons. Dan ignores him and continues to give orders, so Reid goes absolutely ballistic, losing all self-control and raging and demanding Dan step down. Dan instead recites military regulations and relieves Reid of command. In effect, Dan has mutinied against his superior officer. Reid says Dan will be court-martialed and Dan replies he’d rather be found guilty than be either a mental case or coward like Reid. Reid is taken away.

The helicopters finally return for a strafing pass on the SEALs. The pass wounds two, including Rick, and kills two more. The SEALs return fire and drive the helicopters off for a few minutes. Before the next pass the Shark arrives. From the deck of the sub, crewmembers fire anti-air missiles that down the two helicopters and then rescue the SEALs. Rick is taken immediately to the sub’s medical room for surgery and before he is put under anesthesia Dan comes to see him and Rick thanks his friend. Dan nods, looking like he’s walking down death row. Dan sends a message in to the high command, reporting every action taken, and is told to sail the sub back to San Diego immediately. Reid is confined to his quarters but treated courteously. As the sub travels back, Rick talks to Dan and says he will back Dan up 100%.

In China, Zhang is basking in his victory when news reaches him of the Haing Gyi naval base being destroyed along with two warships. Troubled, he summons his friend Zu and the two talk about it. Zu tells Zhang that it seems likely the Americans have finally responded and the loss of the base is severe. Zhang agrees but looks at a map that now has Taiwan as part of China and says the loss is acceptable.

News of the mutiny quickly reaches the White House and the top Navy officials talk with Morgan and the President about how to handle the situation, since unless Reid backs down in his stance the Navy will be forced to court martial Dan for being a war hero. The President is at a loss what to do and Morgan says this is the kind of case that will divide opinion in the military. Bergstrom says his command will near-riot if Dan is forced to go to jail for this and he, along with other top SEALs may resign in protest. None of the men believe Reid will be persuaded to back down, but they know they have to try.

After the Shark returns to San Diego Reid is taken to meet the heads of the Pacific Fleet where they try to persuade him that it is in the best interests of the Navy he withdraw his complaint, but the vindictive captain refuses, intending to see Dan punished severely. There is no choice but to begin court martial procedures. Meanwhile Rusty is waiting for Rick, the SEAL team, and Dan, and shakes all of their hands. He tells Dan he will testify about Reid’s poor behavior. Dan thanks him for the gesture. Meanwhile Morgan ruminates on what happened and Kathy asks if there is some way the President can intervene to save Dan’s career. Morgan darkly looks at Kathy and says the President could, the President should, but after what the President did to save his son’s career there is no way Morgan can let him do it again (referring to the President’s actions near the end of U.S.S. Seawolf).

As news of the SEAL mission slowly begins to leak to the press the court martial begins before five judges, the courtroom empty aside from them, the lawyers, Dan, and Reid, with witnesses kept outside. Reid is the first witness and acts poised but rigid as he answers questions from the prosecutor that lay out the potential danger the Shark was exposed to. Then Dan’s defense lawyer asks questions about Reid’s past behavior, his personal beliefs, trying to provoke Reid. It finally works and Reid stands up and shouts down the lawyer and the prosecutor is able to get the line of questioning stopped as it is undue harassment. The prosecutor calls more witnesses but we skip to Rick, waiting outside the courtroom, being called in as a defense witness. After Rick testifies to how Dan’s actions saved his team’s lives, the prosecutor asks about his past with Dan, insinuating Dan acted as he did because of personal bias. Next Rusty is called and he testifies about the Iran refinery incident. A court appointed psychiatrist testifies to the effect that while he found Reid to be eccentric and a bit unstable, he did not believe Reid was crazy or have emotional cowardice. Finally Dan testifies about his reasons for mutinying to save the SEALs and his observations/beliefs about Reid’s ability to run the Shark. The prosecutor asks Dan only a single question, if he would do exactly the same thing all over again and Dan says he would. That ends the witnesses and the judges retire to deliberate.

As they wait, Reid emotionlessly stares ahead, only once looking at Dan with a slight glare. Dan sits patiently but clearly looks nervous. Soon the judges return with their verdict: Even though Captain Reid’s actions were influenced by odd notions and a possibility of cowardice, there is not sufficient evidence to justify Dan’s mutiny. He is found guilty of the crime and is dishonorably discharged from the Navy. At the same time, the judges recommend that Captain Reid never be involved in any mission concerning the use of Special Forces. Reid smiles in satisfaction and heads out of the courtroom. Dan sits in a daze, as if he can’t believe he was actually found guilty.

Outside he is met by Rick and Rusty who say they heard the verdict and it’s a shame. Rusty wishes Dan well and departs. Dan and Rick walk and talk and Rick says he plans to resign his commission even though Bergstrom wants him to stay as his ultimate successor. Dan understands why and asks Rick what he plans to do with his free time. Rick says he will go home to Kentucky and take over his dad’s horse-raising business and adds that he could use some help. Dan laughs and says he’ll take the offer, since he might as well save Rick in the business world as well as in the military. The two leave the military courthouse together.

One Month Later

To settle down matters once and for all, a secret meeting is arranged between U.S. and China with Morgan and Zhang as the representatives, the meeting being on a remote U.S. military base in the Pacific. The discussion between the two, the first time the two forces in the series have met, is brisk and tense with lots of traded barbs. They both know what China was done and what the U.S. did in response so there are no illusions or fake diplomacy. Morgan finally tells Zhang that though he got what he wanted with Taiwan, that that island is the furthest Chinese expansion will ever reach. Zhang smiles and replies “I suppose that’s something for history to decide.” He gets up to leave and as he is in the doorway, Morgan says one final comment. “Pax Americana, Zhang, and never forget it.” Zhang smirks and says “I’m afraid I don’t understand” before heading out the door. Morgan sighs to himself and says “Go figure” to the empty room.

Edited November 12, 2012 by 4815162342

[Blankments]

Plastic-Man

Director: Ruben Fleischer

Genre: Superhero

Date: August 20

Studio: Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment.

Cast: David Tennant as Patrick O’Brien/Plastic-Man, Jesse Eisenberg as Chuck Brown/Kite-Man, Emily Blunt as Ramona O’Brien, Aaron Paul as Rick Flag, Kaya Scodelario as Ellen Jones, and Octavia Spencer as Amanda Waller.

Music by: Henry Jackman.

Format: 3D and IMAX 3D

Runtime: 107 min

Tagline: He’s Really Flexible.

Plot Summary: Patrick O’Brien becomes Plastic-Man, and takes down the mob boss known as Kite-Man.

Plot:

Blankments and DC Logos appear.

Blankments Productions and DC Entertainment Presents. A Ruben Fleischer Film. The film begins with a kiss, as we see the London wedding of Patrick O’Brien to his fiancée Ramona. After the vows are exchanged, they kiss passionately, and then we cut to their reception. We learn quickly from various party guests that Patrick and Ramona plan on moving to America before their honeymoon, since they’ve both always wanted to go to Australia. Ramona asks Patrick why he had to wear his goggles to the reception, and Patrick mentions that they’re lucky; after all, he was wearing his goggles when he met Ramona. Patrick and Ramona then begin dancing their first dance together, and they begin making statements of love that grow to ridiculous proportions.

The two leave the wedding, and through a montage, get ready for their immigration to America. Finally, they get on a plane, and arrive in Mammoth City, a city ran by several crime lords. The couple moves into their new apartment, with Patrick promising he will make enough money for them to soon move into a huge house. Ramona says no matter where they live, she will love him. The two get into bed, and we cut to the next day, when Patrick has bags under his eyes and a smile on his face. He looks at the clock and sees he’s going to be late to work at Star Accounting. He quickly gives Ramona, asleep, a kiss on the cheek and then rushes out to catch a bus.

We then see the “prince” of Mammoth City, the president of Star Accounting, wake up in his bed, Chuck Brown. Brown asks his personal assistant, Ellen Jones, if there have been any updates with the company in the last twelve hours. Jones answers that there has been one new person hired. Brown asks who, and Jones answers Patrick O’Brien. Brown grimaces, but then tells Jones to leave the room. Jones leaves, and Brown calls a few thugs to “interrogate” Patrick.

Patrick arrives at Star Accounting right on time, and goes up to work in his cubicle. He introduces himself to all the employees, but none of them pay any attention to him. Patrick asks them outright if they’re being xenophobic, but they just all walk away as if he wasn’t there. Patrick frowns, but goes back to his cubicle. We see the time pass until its five-o-clock. Patrick calls Ramona to let her know he’s on his way home and then on a whim, decides to wear the goggles.

Patrick leaves the building, and begins walking towards the bus stop when he notices a few muscular thugs are following him. He decides to try to lose the thugs by going up and down random streets. However, since he does not know Mammoth City’s layout well, he finds himself cornered in an alley. The thugs knock him out, and bring him to Kite-Man’s secret lair. Kite-Man explains to Patrick that Star Accounting is a front for his crime empire’s finances, and Patrick was given the job thanks to his extremely high IQ.

Kite-Man asks if Patrick will agree to working for him, and Patrick is terrified. Patrick tries to beg for more time, but Kite-Man rolls his eyes, and pulls a gun to Patrick’s head. Patrick begins blubbering in panic and says yes. Kite-Man smiles and Patrick stands up, saying it was pleasure doing business with him. Kite-Man stands up to shake Patrick’s hand, but Patrick kicks him in the groin and runs. Kite-Man falls to the ground, and tells his thugs to chase Patrick and kill him.

Patrick runs through the twisted corridors, and he hears gunshots. The camera zooms in on a sign Patrick runs by, revealing Kite-Man’s headquarters is Crawford Chemical Works. One of the thugs tries to stop the other thugs from chasing Patrick, but the thugs ignore him. Patrick continues running until the corridor dead-ends to a pool. Patrick, thinking it is a swimming pool, pulls up his goggles and jumps in. Kite-Man’s thugs see this, and shrug at the supposed suicide attempt, and then they take the rogue thug to Kite-Man. Kite-Man tells them to throw him in jail.

Patrick, quickly realizing it is not water, pulls a plug at the bottom of the pool. He is washed down into the sewer, and then, in excruciating pain and naked, he passes out. We cut to Chuck Brown, who is being informed by his personal assistant the next day that the body of Patrick O’Brien was found, and it is believed to have died thanks to some thugs. Brown, knowing better thanks to his thugs, calls the police, asking them to check the sewers for a deranged naked man. We then see Ramona hear the news, who breaks down in tears.

When Patrick comes to in the sewers, he tries to take off his goggles, but finds they have fused to his face. He begins panicking again, as he tries again and again to take them off, but all he succeeds in is stretching his face out. Patrick then notices his face stretched out in front of him, and still panicking, tries to bunch it back to normal. It works surprisingly, and Patrick calms himself down, saying all he needs to do is get out of the sewers and see Ramona.

As he walks his ways through the sewers, he realizes that his face stretching was very unusual, and that he remembered seeing something on the telly about an assassination attempt on the U.S. president recently. There was a superhero there, and Patrick begins to wonder if he could possibly be a superhero. He begins stretching his arm forward, until he can’t see it anymore. He pulls it back, and then wonders if he can change form in general. He morphs his nakedness off of him, and instead has a tuxedo on. He mentions how stylish he looks, and we see security camera footage of him morphing it on. Patrick then continues walking down the sewer, when he reaches a ladder.

He climbs up the ladder, and finds himself surrounded by police. He attempts to run away, but to no avail. He is arrested and sent to jail with no trial. We see Brown watching the arrest on TV, smiling. We then cut to Patrick in a cell, in a prison uniform. His goggles are still on, but he is wearing a uniform. He asks his cellmate how the city can be so corrupt, and yet so many people come to it. The cellmate answers that he doesn’t know, but the whole reason he came here was so he could try to find out.

The cellmate introduces himself as Rick Flag, and they shake hands. Patrick asks a quick favor of Rick. It cuts to Rick pulling the goggles as hard as he can, but the goggles still don’t come off. Rick and Patrick wait, with Rick insisting he has help on the way. The two of them then have a mock fight, once again experimenting with Patrick’s new powers. Patrick wins the fight, but then falls asleep, allowing Rick to slide open a brick to reveal a computer panel underneath. He says to someone unknown that the superhuman is with him.

Ramona is waiting at home when she hears the phone ring. She picks it up, and the woman on the phone introduces herself as Amanda Waller. Waller tells Ramona everything, letting her know that her husband is in jail, and that she needs to go there to meet him. Ramona asks how she knows this, and Waller explains that Crawford Chemical Works is a front for a government-ran experimental lab to try to make chemicals, reverse-engineered from DNA of Martian Manhunter and the Flash, that would give ordinary humans superpowers, but recently, they lost control of the lab thanks to the criminal underworld in Mammoth City.

Waller continues, explaining that she sent one of her top operatives to join the underworld to take it down from the inside, but he was arrested after trying to protect an innocent man. However, Kite-Man did not realize that Waller’s agency had part in building the Mammoth City Jail in the first place, and thus, there are hidden ways to communicate to the outside world. Ramona asks again how Waller knows where her husband is. Waller answers that her agent, Rick Flag, was trying to help her husband escape, but then was captured by Kite-Man, the leader of the underworld. Ramona seems iffy on the subject, but she agrees to help Waller break out her husband.

We then cut back to Chuck Brown, who is in a Jacuzzi, singing to himself. He calls Jones in, and when she walks in, she screams in terror of seeing her boss naked. Brown asks her to get naked and join him, but she refuses, saying that she believes in relationships being strictly personal. Brown rolls his eyes and presses a button on the side of the Jacuzzi. A kite flies quickly out of the ceiling and stabs her in the forehead. She falls to the ground, unconscious. Brown gets out of the Jacuzzi, revealing he was wearing a swimsuit, and then says that he loves having an employee killed in front of a crowd.

Rick wakes up Patrick, telling him to use his stretch powers to grab the keys. Patrick looks outside of the cell and sees keys lying on the floor. Surprised, he stretches his arm to reach the keys, and then the two of them break out. As they walk out of the jail, they notice no one guarding it. Rick comments that the poor security is weird, and then Ramona pulls up on her bike. She is overjoyed to see Patrick and vice versa, and the two of them passionately kiss, while Rick stands by awkwardly. After the kiss, Ramona complains about the goggles. Patrick grimaces and asks her to try to take them off. She tries, and fails. Suddenly, Ramona’s phone rings. She picks it up, and finds that it is Amanda Waller, who asks to speak to Rick. Ramona gives the phone to Rick, and Rick walks away to talk privately.

Rick returns shortly after, who explains terrible news. Kite-Man has an innocent woman strapped to a kite, and he plans on pushing the kite off the Star Accounting building. The three rush off to rescue her, with Patrick holding them in enlarged hands while running downtown. They discuss their plan to rescue the girl, which consists of Patrick distracting Kite-Man as Ramona and Rick rescue Patrick. They then realize that if Patrick is to ever live a normal life again, they must get a disguise for him in case they go on national news. They break into a store, and grab a red and yellow latex suit for Patrick. He changes into it and away they go.

They arrive at the building, and hear Kite-Man laughing maniacally. Patrick slingshots his way up to the roof as Rick and Ramona run up the stairs of the building. Patrick tackles Kite-Man on the landing and they get in a fist fight. Kite-Man runs off and sends thugs after Patrick, but Patrick beats them up while giving one-liners and using his superpowers. Ramona and Rick arrive on the roof and untie Ellen from the kite. Patrick continues beating up thugs, but now Rick joins in the fight, telling Patrick to deal with Kite-Man who is running away. Patrick and Kite-Man have a chase around the building, but then Kite-Man jumps off the building to escape justice. Patrick jumps down, grabs Kite-Man, and then rolls up into a ball. He bounces off the ground into the sky, after which he lands the remaining thugs.

The next morning, Rick is holding a press conference saying that Chuck Brown, AKA Kite-Man, has been arrested thanks to the city’s new hero, Plastic-Man. Patrick is watching from afar, when Amanda Waller walks behind him, and stabs him with a syringe. He yells in shock, but Amanda tells him to take off his goggles. Patrick attempts to and it works. Waller smiles, and says he should keep the goggles as Plastic-Man. Patrick thanks Waller, and then gets in a car with Ramona, where they share a passionate kiss.

PLASTIC-MAN

In the middle of the credits, Waller and Rick approach Ellen, offering her a chance to join their agency. She says yes, and that she is ashamed of being stupid enough to help Kite-Man. Waller smiles, saying Ellen will great knowledge from her unwitting work. After the credits, Waller assigns Rick and Ellen to investigate bizarre readings in Greece.

Theaters: 4,344

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for some violence, sensuality, brief sexual humor, and language

Budget: $150 million

Edited November 8, 2012 by Blankments

[Impact]

The Coffee ClanGenre: Crime DramaCast: Christian Bale,Director: Martin ScorsesePlot: Coming SoonRated R for strong violence, strong language, sexual content and thematic elementsOctober 15th3,542 theaters.

[Blankments]

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

Director: Rob Letterman

Genre: Animated Comedy

Date: February 7

Studio: Blankments Productions

Format: 3D and IMAX 3D

Cast: Mr. T as One Fish, Bill Hader as Two Fish, Queen Latifah as Red Fish, Craig Ferguson as Blue Fish, and Hugo Weaving as the Oil Spill.

Music by: Henry Jackman

Runtime: 87 min

Tagline: From the Seusstastical mind of Dr. Seuss

Plot: One Fish and his three friends take a journey out of the ocean to fight an evil Oil Spill who threatening to ruin their home.

Theaters: 3,892

MPAA Rating: PG for brief language.

Budget: $100 Million

Edited October 31, 2012 by Blankments

[Blankments]

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson vs. Bigfoot

Director: Clark Gregg

Genre: Action (Sometimes Satire)

Date: April 9

Studio: Blankments Productions

Format: Filmed in 3D; IMAX 3D

Cast: Chuck Norris as Chuck Norris, Liam Neeson as Liam Neeson, Samuel L. Jackson as Samuel L. Jackson, Jackie Chan as Jackie Chan, Clark Gregg as Clark Gregg, Salma Hayek as Salma Hayek, Bruce Willis as Bruce Willis, James Earl Jones as Bigfoot/James Earl Jones, Morgan Freeman as Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee as Christopher Lee, and Mr. T as Mr. T. (The last three are not included in advertising materials/promotion.)

Music by: Rush

Runtime: 118 min

Tagline: The Final Battle.

Plot Summary: The final film of the franchise. This was filmed back-to-back with Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson vs. the Abominable Snowman.

Plot:

Blankments logo appears. The end of the previous movie is shown. The entire group goes down Mount Everest to the lodge, where Clark Gregg announces he’s moving production to the Rocky Mountains.

CHUCK NORRIS

The crew and now Jackie Chan load into a new plane to fly there, and then Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson discuss the monsters they’ve been facing.

LIAM NEESON

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson bring up there must be a reason their voices sounded like Christopher Lee and Morgan Freeman.

IN

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson shrug.

CLARK GREGG’S

Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson continue, saying that they wonder if they’ll face anyone else...

CHUCK NORRIS

The plane takes off.

AND LIAM NEESON

We hear someone laugh.

VS. BIGFOOT

Cut to the plane flying over Hollywood. Samuel L. Jackson, who is the pilot, asks why the f*** are they still trying to shoot this movie. Clark Gregg explains that so far, they’ve only spent sixty-five million dollars on the production, and this is Clark Gregg’s first major studio film, so he wants to spend at least ninety million. Jackie Chan stares at Clark Gregg and asks why he is endangering everyone anyway. Clark Gregg asks if he really is endangering anyone when they got Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson to protect them. Liam Neeson is about to object but Chuck Norris interrupts saying they have nothing to worry about.

Ten minutes before they are scheduled to land, in private and while sharing cigarettes, Liam Neeson asks Chuck Norris why he thinks himself as indestructible. Chuck Norris explains that if he himself doesn’t believe he is indestructible, then no one will. Noticing there is one cigarette left in the box, Liam Neeson hands it to Chuck Norris to hold onto for later. Liam Neeson then asks why he needs to be indestructible. Chuck Norris answers that he’s always worried that with his fame, someone will try to take advantage of his kids. However, his wife and kids told him to go back to acting, since he’s always missed it, and Chuck Norris also mentions that Salma Hayek reminds him a little of his daughter. Liam Neeson nods, and says sadly he wishes he could have a family, but all of his family is long gone now. The two look at each other, and have a manly hug with brief manly tears.

Immediately following the manly hug, the plane shakes a lot. Salma Hayek asks if there is turbulence and Samuel L. Jackson says that’s impossible, since there isn’t a cloud in the sky. The plane shakes again, and Jackie Chan asks if he should go outside and check it out. Everyone looks at him like he’s crazy, and Clark Gregg says he’ll climb on the wing to check it out. Everyone turns to him like he’s crazy, and Clark Gregg explains that Samuel L. Jackson and Jackie Chan are right, he’s done enough harming of his stars for this film. Salma Hayek shrugs, and Jackie Chan sarcastically says he shouldn’t wear a parachute. Clark Gregg doesn’t detect the sarcasm and climbs out onto the wing of the plane without one.

Everyone watches in terror as he walks across the edge, when suddenly, Bigfoot jumps up and throws someone on the plane. It’s Bruce Willis, who runs up and punches Clark Gregg in the jaw. Salma Hayek screams as Clark Gregg, knocked out, falls off of the plane. Bigfoot then jumps up again, this time onto the wing, and grabs Bruce Willis in one hand and tears off the wing with the other. Salma Hayek is still screaming while everyone else grabs a parachute. Samuel L. Jackson tells them not to worry; he knows how to land a one-winged plane. Salma Hayek says it is impossible, but Samuel L. Jackson lands the plane. However, Salma Hayek has passed out, and Liam Neeson says that they will unfortunately have to leave her with the plane until the eventual rescue committee comes for her.

The four guys set up camp, and Chuck Norris says they have to hunt Bigfoot. Jackie Chan asks why he should, since he was just freed from the Abominable Snowman’s spell. Liam Neeson points out that they just saw Bruce Willis on the plane, and it’d be easy to assume Bruce Willis is under a spell that they must free him from. Jackie Chan shrugs, ashamed. Samuel L. Jackson asks how they could ever find Bigfoot, when they suddenly hear a scream coming from the plane. Liam Neeson looks at Chuck Norris and nods. They tell Samuel L. Jackson and Jackie Chan to guard the camp as the two of them run to help Salma Hayek.

Still hearing the screams, Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson arrive at the plane to see Bruce Willis punch Salma Hayek in the face to knock her out. Chuck Norris goes into a rage, and then runs to Bruce Willis, and roundhouse kicks him. Chuck Norris then picks up Bruce Willis and runs into the surrounding forest to beat him to a pulp in private. Liam Neeson realizes that Chuck Norris is not kidding, and he will actually kill the brainwashed Bruce Willis. Liam Neeson runs after Chuck Norris to try to stop him.

Back at the plane crash, Bigfoot walks up and grabs the unconscious Salma Hayek. He looks into the direction of the forest and says that all is going according to plan. He then goes to the campsite where Samuel L. Jackson and Jackie Chan are at. The two of them see Bigfoot laugh at them. Bigfoot calls them puny, and Samuel L. Jackson and Jackie Chan try to fight Bigfoot. The fight lasts about a minute, but Bigfoot easily overpowers them. He picks one of them up by each hand and says that they’ll be excellent dinner.

Liam Neeson has caught up to Chuck Norris, who has Bruce Willis pinned against a tree. Chuck Norris picks up a log and says that he is going to kill Bruce Willis right now. Bruce Willis spits in Chuck Norris’s face. Chuck Norris pulls the log back to throw it at Bruce Willis, but Liam Neeson jumps in between the two of them. Right before he is about to throw the log, Chuck Norris stops, and tells Liam Neeson to move out of the way. Liam Neeson tells Chuck Norris that he himself will not, and that he needs to calm down.

Liam Neeson then turns to Bruce Willis and lightly slaps him. Bruce Willis asks where he is at, proving the spell has been broken. Liam Neeson then turns to Chuck Norris, who has dropped the log. Liam Neeson begs Chuck Norris to forgive Bruce Willis, as it wasn’t his fault. Chuck Norris, though begrudged, lets Bruce Willis go, and Bruce Willis thanks him for it. The three of them head back to the campsite...

Which has now been completely crushed by Bigfoot. Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson ask Bruce Willis if he knows where Bigfoot’s hideout is. Bruce Willis says he doesn’t know, but they should follow the footprints by the campsite. The three of them follow the footprints and encounter some rabid wolves. Bruce Willis and Chuck Norris prepare to defend themselves, but Liam Neeson tells them he has it covered and he promptly kills the wolves with his bare hands. Bruce Willis comments that he must have some shade of experience. Liam Neeson responds that the shade is gray. Chuck Norris and Bruce Willis look at each other and laugh. Liam Neeson is confused, and says he doesn’t get it.

Soon after this incident, the three of them arrive at the cave. They walk in and see Bigfoot standing and laughing. Chuck Norris, Liam Neeson, and Bruce Willis all run up and kick Bigfoot to start an epic fight... but the kicks knock over Bigfoot. The three of them look each other in confusion, and then Bigfoot explodes, revealing he was a robot. The three of them are now confused but they then hear Samuel L. Jackson and Jackie Chan call for help.

The three of them go deeper into the cave and find the two of them in a cage. Bruce Willis punches the bars and they immediately fall down. Samuel L. Jackson, annoyed, asks how Bruce Willis was able to get them out with a punch, but not themselves. Bruce Willis says that his knuckle prints are authorized to open Bigfoot’s stuff, since he used to be Bigfoot’s aide.

Chuck Norris asks about what happened to Bigfoot. Liam Neeson asks if Samuel L. Jackson or Jackie Chan know anything. Jackie Chan explains that Bigfoot was guarding the two of them but when Jackie Chan spat on him, he began shorting out and started just laughing on loop. Samuel L. Jackson says that he figures that the Loch Ness Monster, the Abominable Snowman, and Bigfoot were all robots made specifically for terrorizing the production of the drama, and that Bigfoot, not living in the water or snowy mountains, must not have been insulated like the other two.

Liam Neeson realizes this must be why the Loch Ness Monster sounded like Morgan Freeman. Chuck Norris adds that the Abominable Snowman sounded like Christopher Lee. Finally, Bruce Willis says that when he was working for Bigfoot, he noticed that Bigfoot sounded kind of like James Earl Jones. Jackie Chan deduces that the three actors must be working with whoever built the robots. Samuel L. Jackson adds that whoever built the robots will keep trying to kill the five of them unless they find him.

The five men continue deeper into the cave when they reach a dead end. Liam Neeson knocks on the cave wall, and hears that is hollow. Chuck Norris roundhouse kicks the wall, but it doesn’t work. Bruce Willis attempts punching the wall and out pops a keyboard. Samuel L. Jackson decides to try famous passwords, but none of them work. Jackie Chan then pushes Samuel L. Jackson out of the way, and he inputs the Konami Code. The wall rises up, and the five men enter the newfound room.

Inside the room, there are three tubes where three naked (except for boxers) men are floating: Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee, and James Earl Jones. Samuel L. Jackson, Jackie Chan, and Bruce Willis run to their respective tubes and punch them open in order to free the captives inside. Alarms go off, and Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson stand back to back to protect each other. Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee, and James Earl Jones all grab their respective former-minions by the neck and tell them that they shall die. The cave door slams shut, and out of a secret staircase walks Salma Hayek. Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson are overjoyed to see her despite the terrible circumstances, but she has a gun pointed at Liam Neeson’s head. Chuck Norris’s eyes widen in terror and he asks who’s behind all this.

The secret staircase opens again and up walks... Mr. T! Mr. T says that he’s glad he gets to see his archenemy Chuck Norris one time before death. All five men look in confusion at what has just happened. Mr. T says he’d be happy to explain. Mr. T says that all of his life he’s been trying to be the biggest badass in the world... and for a while, he attained that. However, then Chuck Norris became popular. Suddenly, everyone forgot Mr. T and began making Chuck Norris jokes.

Mr. T was forced to resort to taking the lead role in a Dr. Seuss adaptation recently, and that was the straw that broke his back. He was about to go on a rant, when he got a package in the mail which told him how to kill Chuck Norris. Mr. T kidnapped Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee, and James Earl Jones, and hypnotized them to go into the tubes that would allow them to control their robot monsters. He also brainwashed Salma Hayek to be a double agent for him that was so secret, even Salma Hayek didn’t know about it.

Mr. T then says he is going to kill Chuck Norris now in the most ironic way: a roundhouse kick in the face. Mr. T walks up to Chuck Norris to this, but then Chuck Norris moves out of the way, dodging the kick. Salma Hayek shoots the gun, but Chuck Norris roundhouse kicks out of her hands, saving Liam Neeson’s life. Feeling guilty, Chuck Norris then apologizes to Salma Hayek. Mr. T says if it’s a fight Chuck Norris wants, then he shall get it, and then five one-on-one fights begin.

Chuck Norris and Mr. T get in an epic fight, while Liam Neeson attempts to fight Salma Hayek without hurting her. Salma Hayek is not afraid to fight dirty though, so Liam Neeson’s tactics consist of just trying to slow her down. In the distraction of the gunshot, the three other good guys freed themselves from the near-nude actors. Samuel L. Jackson fights Morgan Freeman with swords, Jackie Chan fights Christopher Lee with nunchuks, and Bruce Willis and James Earl Jones fights with frying pans. The fights, which cut back and forth, last a total of seven minutes.

Finally, Liam Neeson realizes he isn’t going to get anywhere with fighting, but then he suddenly has an epiphany. He runs up to Salma Hayek and slaps her. She is broken out of the spell, and she asks what is going on. Liam Neeson smiles, and then he yells to everyone to slap their opponent. Samuel L. Jackson, Jackie Chan, and Bruce Willis each slap Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee, and James Earl Jones respectively. The three older actors ask why they are in their shorts. None of the three good guys answer them. Chuck Norris and Mr. T are still in an epic battle when Liam Neeson yells at Chuck Norris to try slapping Mr. T. Chuck Norris yells back that he doesn’t think it’ll work but he will try. Chuck Norris slaps Mr. T.

Mr. T then asks what’s going on, and then notices Chuck Norris, saying that although he doesn’t like how much Chuck Norris has overshadowed himself, he’s still always wanted to do a movie with him. Chuck Norris, in relief, group manly hugs Mr. T, Liam Neeson, and Salma Hayek. Samuel L. Jackson interrupts, saying that it makes no sense. Jackie Chan and Bruce Willis agree saying that if Mr. T wasn’t behind it all, who was? The three boxer-clad actors say they have no clue, and then everyone turns to Mr. T. Mr. T says he doesn’t know who either, but then a gunshot is heard!

Salma Hayek falls to the ground, dead. Chuck Norris looks up in agony, and sees Clark Gregg, on a high balcony, still alive! Clark Gregg explains to them that he was the one behind brainwashing Mr. T to hate Chuck Norris. Liam Neeson asks why, and Clark Gregg answers that no one would ever want to see a dramatic movie starring Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson. He knew that Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson would never sign onto an action movie directed by a man only famous for playing a relatively minor character in Marvel movies, so he set up the plot of the movie by brainwashing Mr. T to set up traps that would cause elaborate action scenes for the general movie audience. Chuck Norris screams to him in agony that he’ll never let Clark Gregg release the movie. Clark Gregg smiles evilly, saying that a death of the entire cast would be the perfect marketing for the movie, allowing him to make it big in Hollywood. He pulls out a detonator that will explode everything in the room except the balcony, and there’s nothing anyone can do to stop him.

Chuck Norris, refusing to let everyone down, reaches into his pocket and pulls out the cigarette Liam Neeson gave to him at the beginning of the movie. He throws it up in the air, and then roundhouse kicks it. At high speed, the cigarette hits the reverse button on the detonator, conveniently blowing up only the balcony. Clark Gregg survives the fall, but then is approached by Chuck Norris, Liam Neeson, Samuel L. Jackson, Morgan Freeman, Jackie Chan, Christopher Lee, Bruce Willis, James Earl Jones, and Mr. T, all of who want revenge. However, Chuck Norris grabs the gun Clark Gregg used earlier on Salma Hayek, and says to the others that Clark Gregg does not deserve the awesome death experience of being killed by nine badasses at once. Liam Neeson smiles, seeing that Chuck Norris has finally come over the anger issues he had with Bruce Willis earlier in the movie. Chuck Norris shoots Clark Gregg in the head, killing him.

The nine remaining guys go out of the cave and arrive back at the plane. Noticing it still doesn’t have a wing, they send up a distress flare, and some park rangers rescue them immediately. They get a private jet back for the nine of them back to Hollywood, which has been wondering about the mysterious disappearances of Mr. T, Morgan Freeman, Christopher Lee, and James Earl Jones for a year. When they land, Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson shake everyone’s hands, and Chuck Norris suggests that if Mr. T really wants some closure on his actual hatred of Chuck Norris’s popularity, he should go after Conan O’Brien. Mr. T says he’ll think about it, and the four celebrities that have been “missing” leave. Samuel L. Jackson, Jackie Chan, and Bruce Willis leave, saying that if either Chuck Norris or Liam Neeson ever needs help, they will be there for them.

Finally, it’s just Chuck Norris and Liam Neeson. The two of them say that they guess this is good-bye, and begin going their separate ways, when suddenly, Liam Neeson offers to drive Chuck Norris home. Chuck Norris is surprised by the offer, but doesn’t turn it down. They drive home in silence, and when they arrive at Chuck Norris’s home, we see that Chuck Norris’s entire family is waiting to welcome him home. Chuck Norris says good-bye to Liam Neeson and Chuck Norris walks out to greet all of his family. Liam Neeson begins to pull out of Chuck Norris’s driveway, when Chuck Norris realizes that throughout the crazy adventure, Liam Neeson has become his best friend. Chuck Norris runs up to Liam Neeson and asks him to stay for dinner. Liam Neeson gets out of the car and one of Chuck Norris’s grandsons asks who Liam Neeson is. Chuck Norris answers that he is his Great-Uncle Liam, which makes Liam Neeson smile, truly happy for the first time in several years. THE END.

Theaters: 3,532

MPAA Rating: R for strong scenes of action violence, strong language, and smoking.

Budget: $25 million ($50M for both films)

Previous Films Gross: OW/DOM/WW

Loch Ness Monster: 29.0/77.4/127.4

Abominable Snowman: 41.3/96.6/174.6

Edited October 21, 2012 by Blankments

[Impact]

The World of MilsonFantasyCast: TBADirector: David YatesPlot: The movie starts with a young boy () reading a book. The book mentions the world Milson in it. He asks his grandfather if he knows about this place. His grandpa says it is a magical place full of magical creatures. The boy then begins to wonder more about it. The boy then continues to read the book. Soon he realizes that the story is simular to one his grandpa talked about once. The boy then decides to go find out more. Soon he ends up in the world by entering in through the book. He runs into a Centaur named Laour. The boy says his name is Gary. The Centaur () goes "I am Laour, welcome to Milson. Gary soon learns more about the world out there and how it sounded simular to his grandfathers story and the book. Gary then learns that the king is currently missing. King Mecklen has been overthrowned by his evil younger brother. So now Gary decides to go looking for him.Coming soon.November 12thRated PG4,002 theaters

Edited November 1, 2012 by Impact

[Impact]

The Jungle BookFamily AdventureCast: TBADirector: John FaravuPlot: Coming SoonRated PGFebruary 13th3,659 theaters.

[riczhang]

The 39 Clues: Maze of Bones

Director: Gore Verbinski

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Adventure/Action

Format: 2D Digital IMAX

Cast: Thomas Horn as Dan Cahill

Molly C. Quinn as Amy Cahill

Elizabeth Olsen as Nellie Gomez

Helen Mirren as Grace Cahill

Rosemary Harris as Beatrice Cahill

Frank Langella as William McIntyre

Unknown as The Man In Black (In Later Movies, Harrison Ford)

Mellissa Leo as Irina Spasky

Avan Jogia as Ian Kabra

Ariela Barer as Natalie Kabra

Unknown as Alistair Oh

Unknown as Jonah Wizard

Laurence Fishburne as Boderick Wizard

Eric Allen Kramer as Eisenhower Holt

Elizabeth Banks as Mary-Todd Holt

Autumn Shields as Madison Holt

Willow Shields as Reagan Holt

Alexander Ludwig as Hamilton Holt

Unknowns as The Starling Triplets

Score: Patrick Doyle

Budget: $125 million

Theatre Count: 4164

Rating: PG

Release Date: 28 May

Running Time: 1 hr 54 mins

Plot:

The film opens with a shot of a deserted beach, the sand coarse, and the water lapping at the shore, the shot spin around, and we see 4 people, a boy of 12 maybe 13, what looks to be his older sister, a girl with multi-coloured hair in her early 20s, and an old man, dressed entirely in black. The man dressed in black says, “It’s time to go home.” And, the group breaks into a relieved smile. We see them walking along the beach to an unknown target, and a V.O. begins, “My Name is Dan Cahill, and the girl you see is my sister Amy, this is where our story ends, on an island in Ireland, and it begins in Massachusetts, over a year ago.”

We cut to a shot of a shaky hand scrawling a weak signature, Grace Cahill the signature says. We see a sickly woman, Grace Cahill (Helen Mirren), lying weakly in her bed in an ornately decorated bedroom, glancing out of the window to see the sunlit meadows of her estate. Her cat lies beside her, the day looks warm, but she shivers ever so slightly. She then passes the document she signed to a man dressed in a suit, her lawyer, William McIntyre (Frank Langella) He asks, “Madam, are you sure?” Grace takes in a shaky breath, and answers almost painfully, “Yes, I’m sure.” William then almost hesitantly breaks seals the document into a brown leather folder, before taking out an identical folder, breaking the seal on that open, and ripping the contents to shreds. William laments, “They’re so young. If only their parents-“ Grace cuts in, “But their parents didn’t. And now the children are our only chance, they’re young, but they’ll have to be old enough.” “And if they fail?” “Then five hundred years of work have been for nothing. Everything collapses, the family, the world, all of it.” William nods grimly, as Grace looks out of the window longingly again, her face lined with melancholy, as she whispers,, “It will have to be enough,” and she closes her eyes for one last time. William silently wipes away a tear, and then proceeds to close the curtains, the cat suddenly jumps off the bed, and scurries out of the room. A man dressed all in black, face hidden from the camera, asks, “Well?” “It’s time, make sure they suspect nothing,” William replies, and the man in black nods curtly, and says, “Don’t worry, they’ll never have a clue.”

The next scene is of Dan (Thomas Horn, and Amy Cahill (Molly C. Quinn) in the backseat of a car, looking bored. Amy brings out a book to read, prompting Aunt Beatrice (Rosemary Harris) to snap, “No reading in the car! It’s not safe.” Amy, tries to argue with her Aunt, but to no avail, and she eventually closes her book. Dan then joins in, and begins to make fun of Amy’s book, Amy snaps back at him calling him a Dweeb, but Dan responds, “You can’t call a ninja lord, dweeb. You have disgraced the family, you must commit seppuku.” Amy just then makes fun of Dan for his various obsessions, Tombstone rubbing collections, Ninja lords, wearing superhero pajamas, and underwear, and that shuts Dan up. There’s an awkward silence in the car as the scenery melts from city to country, and cars all around them honk, as Aunt Beatrice is driving at only 25 miles an hour.

We see a coffin being lowered into the earth, and Dan, and Amy approach it, Dan mumbling, “I’ll miss you grandma,” before throwing the flowers he brought into the hole, they land right in the middle of the coffin. They turn around, and go back into the crowd, but as they do so, Amy begins to tense a little, Dan asks, “You’re not going to freak out, are you?” Amy responds, “I’m, I’m, I’m not freaking out. I just.” “hate crowds,” Dan finishes for her. The crowd is a mismatch of people, many ethnicities, Chinese, British, African, and etc. Everyone in the crowd takes turns, shovelling some dirt into the pit, most of them looking all to happy to do so. Dan mutters, “They’re only here for the inheritance.” Amy jabs him in the side, and Dan mutters, “It’s true.”

They’re inside now, in an ornate Great Hall, sitting in a circle a much smaller group, maybe 40 people at most, when Mr. McIntyre walks in, and he sits down. He thanks them for coming, and he motions to the door, and a projector is brought in. He then begins to read the will, outlining how her estate will be divided among those who accept the challenge, and those who don’t. The room erupts into murmuring, and Mr. McIntyre motions for silence, continuing, “You have been chosen as the most likely to succeed in the greatest, most perilous undertaking of all time – a quest of vital importance to the Cahill family, and the world at large.” At this some people look confused, others erupt into shouting, while a few such as 2 kids similar in age to Amy, and Dan, Ian (Avan Jorgia), and Natalie Kabra (Ariela Barer), a Russian woman, Irian Spasky (Mellissa Leo) who whispers something into Alistair Oh’s ear, look unfazed, and unsurprised. Dan points this out naming each person in the process to Amy. Mr. MacIntyre now turns on the projector, and we see Grace, looking much healthier than when she died, pops up on screen, and Amy, and Dan look close to tears, watching their grandma. She talks about how the Cahill family is the most important family in history, prompting the room to go up in argument, and Irina Spasky quiets them down. She tells them about how she’s issuing them a challenge, how you can do it in teams or alone, and how most of you will decline, and run away. She stresses how only one team will succeed, and to participate you must sacrifice your inheritance to participate. She says, if you accept, you will be given the first of the 39 clues, leading to a secret, which will make you the most powerful human being on the planet. Mr. McIntyre will explain the rules, and good luck. The screen fades to black, and the room erupts once again, Mr. McIntyre simply calmly asks them to look under their seats, and everyone does, each finding a bank voucher saying, Royal Bank of Scotland, and the words One million pounds. Mr. McIntyre tells them you have 5 minutes to decide, the clue, or a million dollars.

Eventually, they group argues, and bickers. The Kabras, who are the children of internationally renowned Billionaire art dealers Isabelle and Vikram Kabara, who spoil their children with everything they could want, try to discourage Amy, and Dan from taking the clue, while Mr. McIntyre names more famous Cahills including Lincoln, and Franklin particularly stressing Benjamin Franklin. Aunt Beatrice also tries to do the same, all but ordering them to take their million dollars, and saying, “I fully intend to take my million dollars, and you will do the same! Never fear, I’ll put it in an account for you until you’re adults. I’ll only spend the interest. In return, I will allow you to continue as my wards.” Amy becomes really indignant at this, and eventually they have a row in front of everyone, and Aunt Beatrice almost slips up, saying, “Never mind my sister, and her scheme about finding the –“She cuts herself off, and Dan curious now enquiries but Aunt Beatrice just issues them an ultimatum, take the money or she’ll abandon them. She marches off with her voucher, saying after her, “Any of you who play this silly game are fools. I’ll take my money!” A lot of people take her lead, and leave the room. But eventually Amy and Dan take the clue after a long conversation with their eyes, along with the Holts (Eisenhower, Mary-Todd, Madison, Reagan, and Hamilton), Irina Spasky, The Starling Triplets, Alistair Oh, the Wizards (Jonah, and Boderick”) and the Kabras (Ian, and Natalie). They each receive a sealed envelope, and opening it to reveal the words, “Resolution: The fine print to guess. Seek out Richard S____.

As Amy and Dan think over what this means, the Starlings, Holts, Kabras, and Irina leave. Meanwhile WIlliam gives the kids Grace's last warning, “Beware the Madrigals." They try to ask him what it means, but that’s all William would say along with, “Trust no one, but each other.” They leave the room, and we see the Man in Black approach William again, and say, “I see they took the bait. We can only hope they’ll make it now.” William nods gravely, and replies, “Yes, we can only hope.” Amy then goes to the library while Dan reminisces about the artifacts that Grace keeps in the display cases, ancient daggers, world maps, and etc. Alistair Oh, appears at the door, surprising Dan, and Amy, he’s an old Korean an, with a diamond tipped walking stick, the inventor of the microwavable burrito. He tells them some surprising facts about Grace, how she could speak 6 languages by 25, explored every continent, and could handle almost all weapons with equal skill. He also tells them about the Cahill family, and how the branches work: Lucian, the diplomats, spies, devious ambitions branch, Janus, the artistic branch, Ekaterina, the innovative branch, filled with inventors, and the branch that Alistair comes from, and finally the Tomas, the strong branch. He mentions how each branch was descended a set of siblings, the original Cahills. Dan asks what branch they’re in and Grace was in, and Alistair states that he doesn’t know, no one knows what Branch Grace was in, and no one knows what branch they’re in. Dan asks what he wants, and says that information like this isn’t given freely, and Alistair replies nothing. Eventually, Alistair admits to wanting an Alliance, and Amy, and Dan neither confirms nor denies his request. Amy does not find anything there in the library, and Alistair suggests perhaps she had a hidden library, as she loved books, and there are so few books in the library. Dan opens a passageway into Grace's secret library hidden underneath the Cahill crest of a bear, a wolf, a pair of snakes, and a dragon.

They climb through a small cramped passage, and a huge library is revealed, they explore the library finding many precious items ancient manuscripts, and etc. They look for books by Richard S_ but find none, along the way they find Grace’s cat Saladin, and Grace’s jewelry box which Amy takes. Eventually Alistair and them find a copy of Poor Richard's Almanack, filed under F, because it was written under the pseudonym of Richard Saunders by Benjamin Franklin. They give it to Alistair to look at, finding a clue written by Dan, and Amy’s mother, reading, “Benjamin Franklin, first clue. Maze of Bones.” They also find writing by various other members, including Alistair’s father, Grace’s Father, and etc. but just then the mansion burns down. They barely escape through the vents (Dan grabbing Grace's cat, Saladin and a box of jewels on the way out), outside Dan being an asthmatic almost collapses on the ground, before being saved by his inhaler. When they refocus on the hunt, they find that Alistair and the Almanack are nowhere to be found. They go home to their au pair Nellie, a girl who like her music very loud, and has piercings, and multi-coloured hair. They live away from their Aunt Beatrice, despite her being their guardian, as Aunt Beatrice lived in a building that didn’t allow children. We see the inside of Dan’s room filled with casts, and weird collectable items. They convince Nellie to be their chaperone for their trip, and she agrees and after some arguing with her father is allowed to. They end up selling a lot of Dan’s collectable baseball cards, as well as some jewellery to raise funds for the trip, as they then head to the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. In Philadelphia they find that the Starling triplets had been following them the entire time, however they are injured critically by a bomb that was set off by Irina Spasky ex-KGB spy. Inside the institute the find letters, and lists, and other artefacts of Franklins, which send them all the way across the world to Paris, France

In France they reject the offer of Jonah Wizard, who is an internationally famous Hip-Hop artist, to team up with them. His father looks pissed as the offer is rejected, and the paparazzi are tailing them, as well as the fans. Amy and Dan then follow Irina Spasky, who, due to a theft chain, now has the almanac, after being informed of this by Jonah Wizard, who stole the almanac from Alistair. They break into the Lucian headquarters in an effort to retrieve the almanac, but instead they are almost caught, and they barely escape after being shot at with machine guns. Irina now aware of their presence, and outraged by their break-in, and how they evaded capture lured them into a trap on an island, in the Seine. Dan, and Amy desperate to get the book fall for it, and they are about to be killed but they are saved unpredictably by the Holts, using surprisingly of all things an Ice-cream truck. They managed to retrieve the almanac, and afterwards the Holts share some information with Amy, and Dan being unable to figure it out, and they realise that they need to go to the Paris Catacombs, or the Maze of Bones. Irina now tries to go after the both of them, however after some heroics by Hamilton, taking on Irina in hand to hand combat escape. After their escape, Amy and Dan tell Nellie all about the 39 Clues, they tell her that she’s the best au pair they’ve ever had and that they’re fine if she wants to leave and get out of this mess. They tell her about the dangers, but despite all that Nellie decides to help them, and they have a big emotional hug.

With their information, the Cahills go to the Paris Catacombs. They find some bones at the very depth of the catacombs dating back to Franklin’s time which have numbers on them: a magic box number game, planted there by Franklin to give the coordinates to the next Clue. Amy, and Dan along with the Tolts reach this first, however as they just arrive we see Ian, and Natalie. They harass Amy, and Dan, and trap them in another trap, but after they gloat at them, they tell Amy, and Dan how they’ve been working with Irina, trapping them on the island, and they force Amy, and Dan to give them the clue, before cutting the power, and locking the security door behind them trapping the Holts, Amy, and Dan in the dark room with the bones. Luckily they hear the sound of trains nearby, and they eventually find an access door to the Paris metro, and manage to find their way to an abandoned platform, escaping. They piece the clue together, and figure out where they need to go.

This leads them to a church where they find a room with a mural of the four original Cahills, after who the four Cahill branches are named, and they see them, Katherine (Ekaterina), Luke (Lucian), Thomas (Tomas), and Jane (Janus)

Inside the vase in the room is a small vial, with scrambled words on it, they take the paper off of the vial, and Dan solves the anagram which were a instructions for the vial .They resolve to insert the vial into a lightning rod—one of Franklin's inventions—to charge it. Amy succeeds, but the vial is then stolen by the Kabras who’ve been there all along waiting for them to arrive and solve it for them. With the vial gone, the Holts blame Amy, and Dan for everything, for letting the clue get out of their hands, and for giving the Kabras the clue in the maze of bones. This devolves into a row, and Amy, and Dan hold their own ground verbally, but as the argument is about to get physical, the sound of police cars, forces the group to scatter. However, Dan back into their hotel room solves the clue by deciphering the original clue, and matching it up with items Dan saw on the list in Philadelphia, thanks to his photographic memory. They find that the first clue is an anagram of the world RESOLUTION, which was printed on their clue card, the first clue they discover is, Iron Solute. They also still have the original sheet of paper on the vial, which is a piece of sheet music, and with Amy’s internet searches they find out that it is a Mozart composition, and by the looks of the paper, and an original copy of it, leading them to their next city, Vienna, Mozart’s residence city. The film ends with them at the Train station in Paris, and three tickets marked, Paris to Vienna being passed out of the ticket booth, to Dan’s awaiting hands, as we see the Holts watching them over Dan’s shoulder, and we fade to the credits.

Edited October 14, 2012 by riczhang

[Blankments]

Psy: Sorry for Gangnam Styling

Director: Jon M. Chu

Genre: Foreign Concert

Date: January 23

Studio: Blankments Productions

Format: Filmed in 3D

Cast: Psy as Himself.

Music by: Psy

Runtime: 92 min

Tagline: EY SEXY LADY

Plot: The film follows Psy's rise to internet fandom, interspersed with concert footage from Korea.

Theaters: 1,512

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for brief sexuality.

Budget: $9 million

[riczhang]

Oro

Director: Steven Spielberg

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Adventure/Action

Format: 15/70 IMAX 3D

Cast: Javier Bardem as Gonzalo Pizarro

Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Francisco de Orellano

Antonio Banderas as Emmanuel de Almagro

Samuel L. Jackson as The Emperor

Penelope Cruz as Maria

Unknowns as The Guide, Troops, and El Dorado Citizens

Score: John Williams

Cinematographer: Mauro Fiore

Budget: $185 million

Theater Count: 4401

Rating: PG-13

Release Date: 30 April

Running Time: 2 hrs 05 mins

Plot:

The movie opens with a full on front shot of an Armada of Ships, approaching, their sails are billowing, and there’s a militaristic drumming tune occurring in the background. The year 1540 is displayed at the bottom centre of the screen.

The ships pull into port and we see the ship get to see the crew and the ground crew pull the ship into port with heavy ropes. As soon as the ship has docked, two people dressed in Imperial regatta come down the ramp fairly quickly after the ship had docked, flanked by a guard.

They are met by the Governor of the colony, Emmanuel, and he greets them. He addresses the older man as Governor-Appointee, Gonzalo, and he bows his head to him. The other man does the same but addresses the welcoming man as Governor. The next scene cuts to later that night, where a celebratory banquet is held, and a ceremony occurs as the outgoing Governor is formally thanked, and the new Governor is formally inaugurated. But, just then a few guards barge into the room, and the 2 men, and the entire attendance all turn around and look at the guard with surprise. The guards shout out, “The enemy are at the doors!” A murmur erupts in the crowd, and panic seems to be spreading a little bit, but at the same time both Governors tried to calm them down, the out-going governor, Emmanuel, shouts “Calm Down!”, and the new Governor, Gonzalo, shouts, “Quiet!” The crowd continues to mumur a little bit more, but then it realises what has been said, and calms down a little bit.

The next scene sees both governors, leading out more troops to help defenders who are defending against the rebels that are bombarding the gates, with some pick-up’d Spanish artillery, and an assortment of make-shift weaponary. The gates made from a mixture of wood, and metal are holding up, but we can see the gates bending a little. They eventually decide to send some people through a back gate, and with a flare signal simultaneously attack from both sides, and attempt a pincer moment. (One group would attack from the behind, and when the signal goes off, then the gates would be opened, and then the two groups would attack the attackers simultaneously making quick work of the enemy.

They clash, and the attackers are on the backfoot from the very beginning, however in one of the final moments as the attackers are falling back, one of them gets a good shot in, and kills the former Governor. We see the defenders swarm onto this attacker, and the new governor shouting, “I want him alive!” and so they capture him, and bring him into the settlement, as the attackers fade back into the forest, and the defenders retreat. Already people are set on the task of repairing the gate.

The next scene is of an interrogation. There are 4 men in the room, the captive attacker, the governor, a translator, and a guard. We see the attacker get brutally slammed into the table, and the governor keeps pressing him for facts, not of the murder, but of where his city is, where El Dorado is. The attacker says that he`ll never find it, and finds himself promptly get slammed down onto the table, but eventually, the attacker gives in, and he tells the governor that it`s West, at the end of the River, near the basin. The governor, nods, and smiles, and then motions to the guard, who moves in very quickly with a sword, we cut to black before we can see the attack, however we hear the thud of the body hitting the floor.

We see Gonzalo, the Governor, approaching a secluded opening in the forest, and we hear the sound of footsteps approaching, a native appears out of the foliage, and asks, “Why am I here, and who are you?” The Governor says, “Your former employer regrettably is dead, but I’m the new governor. You know the country well; I need you to be a scout, and a guide. We’re going to the basin.” The native appears alarmed, and tries to protest, “That place is enchanted, spiritual, no one goes there, and returns alive.” The Governor replies, “One word of protest, and I’ll let word slip, you’re our informant. We’ll see how long you’ll last in that village of yours.” The native gulps, and replies, “Ok, I’ll take you as far as I can, no further.” The governor nods, “Good, we leave in a week.”

We see a small group of troops march slowly and systematically out of the settlement walls, lead by 3 men, 1 native, and 2 Spanish, Gonzalo and Francisco. Over the next few scenes we see them continuing to trek through the Amazonian jungle, we see them attacked by the natives, and eventually, their morale is worn low, and we see them approach a ravine, a ravine very wide, and impossible to cross. We see Francisco throw a stone down into the ravine, and the camera looks straight down the ravine as the stone falls, and we can barely see the bottom. The guide says that there are one or two bridges in the area and Gonzalo sends out some troops to scout a way around, and eventually when the sun begins to set a group comes back, and tells of a worn suspension bridge, about 2 kilometers down.

The next scene is of morning, and they are arriving at the suspension bridge, but they’re greeted that that bridge by a group of natives. They Spaniard’s native guide goes over to negotiate, and it turns out that the natives don’t want payment, and they just want the Spanish to turn back. Gonzalo gets incredibly angry, and Francisco goes up to their guide, and demands for him to hurry up. The bargaining goes back and forth, but the natives refuse to bend from their position, and eventually, Francisco roughly shoves their guide out of the way, and negotiates himself. Gonzalo at this point joins his nephew, and offers the natives money, supplies, and weaponry, but they don’t relent. We can see Francisco’s impatience rising, and his face begins to flush. Soon after, Gonzalo’s anger begins to rise, and as the negotiations completely break down, and the natives just stand there not saying anything, Francisco pulls out a sword, and despite is uncle raising his hands trying to warn him no, Francisco stabs it in the leader of the natives, and as he crumples, the natives break out into disarray, and they begin to attack the Spaniards. The Spaniards raise arms, and very quick work of the natives. Then, we see a very upset Gonzalo, with a slightly abash Francisco, leading the troops across the old bridge. As the troops are crossing, the bridge seems to be sagging, but it is still holding, however as the last troops have gotten on the bridge, we see a hiding native, sneaking up towards the bridge, and cuts the ropes. After the first one is severed, the bridge swings precariously, and he attracts attention to himself. He quickly moves towards the second rope, as some of the troops are making their way back to him, but it is too late, and the second rope is severed, and the entire bridge snaps. The troops try to hang on, but most of them eventually fall to their deaths down the ravine.

We see Gonzalo confronting Francisco after the bridge incident, and they argue about Francisco’s rashness, and Francisco rebuttals by mentioning Gonzalo’s temper, and eventually, they bring up various small bits of dirt on each other, and the argument ends when the leader of the troops comes over to inform them that the camp is ready and set-up. They leave, but the air of enmity still remains.

As they set off again, with the leadership torn apart, and the troops decimated, they eventually fall apart. People are demoralised, and one day they wake up to see some of the troops had deserted them. We cut to see a very angry, Francisco, and Gonzalo come out from their tent, evidently having argued again, the troops take notice of this, and look even more down if possible. A night attack by the natives leaves just Francisco, Gonzalo, the Guide, and 3 other troops. They reach a raging river, and as they approach the ford in the river, the guide suddenly stops and says, “No more, I will take you no further.” But, his protest is futile, and he is forcibly taken across the river. He tries to protest, but Francisco manhandles him, but the guide protest further and he attacks Francisco. However, Francisco drops him in the river, and holds his head underwater for a few seconds, and he pulls him out of the water, and repeats again. After a few repeats, the guide gives in, and Francisco carries him across the river over his shoulder.

They keep trekking, the guide hanging back in the group now traumatised, and scared, but Francisco keeps a very close eye on him, as if saying one move out of line, and you’re dead. One day they settle in a grassy clearing and as dusk settles and their little group of 6 settle into 3 tents, they are attacked, by figures in darkness. Francisco, Gonzalo, and the Troops fight back, and they slay some of the attackers, but the troops are killed, and Gonzalo takes a dramatic blow to the head, he crumples and Francisco, and Gonzalo are forcibly taken hostage. We see as they are taken away, that the guide quietly slinks away from the camp, and sneaks away from the attackers.

The next scene is waking up, and we see Gonzalo, and Francisco tied up, they are together in a dark room, it’s shimmering ever so slightly. Gonzalo’s head is bandaged, and slightly bloody, and Francisco looks relatively uninjured but roughed up. Guards enter the room, natives, dressed in elaborate clothing, interwoven with gold, they enter, and we see Gonzalo, and Francisco being freed, and then taken out of the room. The door, shimmering with a golden hue, swings shut, and the screen becomes completely dark, and we hear the sound of a lock clicking before we cut.

To a shot of a square, we see Francisco, and Gonzalo led through it by the guards, at the opposite end of the square is a lavish, extravagant, and official looking building. There are lots of people, natives milling around, in traditional clothing, more lavish than the natives that attack the Spanish settlement’s, going about their daily business. The biggest difference, everything was gold, the walls, of the city, the pavement of the square, the buildings, the steps, the statues, all gold. Francisco, and Gonzalo look at all of this very greedily, eyes calculating the wealth that there is here.

Inside the throne-room we meet the emperor, who is sitting clothed in gold cloth, and sitting on the gold throne, adorned with many precious gems. He opens his mouth, and speaks, “Welcome to the mighty city of El Dorado, the city of Gold. What do you want, Spaniard?” Francisco opens his mouth to speak, but Gonzalo stops him by clamping his hand over Francisco’s arm. “We simply wanted to see if the legend is true, milord. I am the new Governor of the Spanish settlement, Gonzalo Pizarro.” We see Gonzalo spin the fact that they killed some of the El Dorado natives who where ambushing them, into the fact that they were simply taken off guard, and that they were only trying to preserve themselves. They weren’t trying to insinuate violence, or invade them, and he uses the fact that he only had 3 soldiers with him as fact. The exchange goes on, and the Emperor begins to agree with Gonzalo, more, and more, and more. We see the Emperor nod as Gonzalo talks, and eventually he smiles, and calls them Friends, and welcomes them with open arms to El Dorado.

They are taken to nice accommodations, once they’re alone in their quarters we see Francisco turn on Gonzalo,

asking him what he is thinking and how flimsy their story is. He goes on about how a simple inquiry into them with other native tribes will send their entire story will crumble. Gonzalo simply hotly replies, “I’m working on a plan, we’ll get the gold. You see all that gold, we’ll get it, it’ll be ours, and we’ll be forever honoured by his Majesty, we’ll be immortal, legends, the man who got the gold.” We see Francisco interested, and over the next few scenes we see them plot out the plan, and put it into action. We see them acquiring bags, and filling them with whatever gold treasure they can find often times just taking small blocks at time from back alleys, deserted roads where no one will ever miss the gold. Gonzalo keeps playing up the emperor, and eventually the Emperor takes him on a tour of some of the royal treasures, and Gonzalo can barely conceal his jealously, and greed, bejewelled crowns, golden capes, sceptres, a ruby the size of baby’s head.

Meanwhile, Gonzalo sends Francisco out among the crowd, among the public to plot escape routes, and to possibly make allies out of the crowd, we hear Gonzalo saying, “If there’s a city, If there’s civilisation, there’s unhappy, rebellious, traitorous people. We can use that to our advantage.” However, Gonzalo’s use of “Man who got the gold” instead of “Men who got the gold” keeps playing on Francisco’s mind, and it’s driving him insane, coupled with his arguments, and his enmity with his uncle Gonzalo, his faith and trust in him is wavering. We see him sit down in a bench in the square, looking sombre, and morose, when a young woman approaches him. She introduces herself as Maria, and she invited him to take a walk with her, saying, “I find walking clears the mind, and I think you really need a clear mind.” We see a relationship blossom, as they kiss in a hidden alcove that Maria showed him, sometime later, as the stars dot the sky in the background behind them, the gold of the city glimmering a little, illuminated by the moonlight, and the stars, just a little, and they’re framed almost by a golden glow. It is here that Francisco breaks down, and confides in Maria, all the plans, and everything, and she just holds him as he cries into her arms, and in the end she tells him, that he’s a good man, and that everything will be all right, just follow your heart.

Eventually, the final phase of their plan comes into play, which is to steal some of El Dorado’s most priceless

jewels. Gonzalo having plotted it all out during his visits to the treasure room, and then promptly book it out of the city, they have escapes routes, transportation, and etc. all figured out. But, as they take the sceptre, the ruby, some bejewelled weapons and the crown, a rumbling occurs, and they’ve triggered an alarm.

They book it out of the jewel room, and back to their accommodations, where Gonzalo’s packing throwing only what’s important into a bag, but Francisco isn’t, and Gonzalo looks puzzled, and asks why. Gonzalo replies that he likes it here, and he wants to be here. Gonzalo accuses him of finding a girl, which Francisco doesn’t deny, and Gonzalo then proceeds to berate him for betraying his own race, his nation, and his family. This results in a big fight, and Francisco gets stabbed with a ceremonial gold dagger that they had stolen. Gonzalo realising what he had done, he runs.

We see him fleeing the city in an action sequence involving many horse-drawn carts, spilled fruit stands, as the guards chase him, but Gonzalo is fast, and with his treasure loaded on his horse, we see him stop for a moment at a spilled fruit stand to gather up some food, some fruits, but because of this stall, a guard gets close enough to throw a dagger at him, grazing Gonzalo’s shoulder. Gonzalo looks livid at both himself and the guard, and promptly grabs that dagger, made of plain gold and throws it back at the guard, hitting him in the chest, and the guard stumbles, and crumples. Gonzalo finally makes it to the gates of the city, and descending down the swathe of golden steps disappears into the forest as armed guards pursue.

Meanwhile, the emperor goes with guards to Gonzalo and Francisco’s chambers very, very angry, but eventually surprised to see Francisco there bleeding to death. Francisco explains the story, and the Emperor very understanding, helps him, and gets him to medical care. We cut to Gonzalo, and we see him speeding away still, his pursuers almost lost.

Cutting back, we see Francisco almost dying, but Maria sits with him at the bedside, and as she gives him a kiss, he makes a coughing noise, and Maria cries with joy. Eventually making a full recovery we hear Francisco say I love you to Maria. He’s presented awards, and he strikes up a close friendship with the emperor, serving as an advisor, he’s very different from the rash, greedy boy he was when he arrived. The final scene with Francisco we see his wedding to Maria taking place officiated by the Emperor.

Back in the settlement, we see Gonzalo making it back safely, and immediately arranging for a ship back to Spain. On the way to Spain we see Gonzalo forging a death certificate for Francisco saying that he died in the Amazon basin; and now in Spain we see him presenting the treasure to the King, and Queen, and they are very pleased. He too is awarded a high honour as the King gives him another commission to the new world. The last shot is of an Armada, larger than the one at the beginning of the movie in an identical shot, sailing for the Colony.

Edited November 4, 2012 by riczhang

[riczhang]

Corso

Director: Michel Hazanavicius

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Historical/Bio-Pic

Format: 2D Digital

Cast: Nicolas Duvauchelle as Napoleon Bonaparte

Berenice Bejo as Josephine de Bauharnais

Vincent Cassell as Hippolyte Charles

Unknowns as Everyone Else

Score: Ludovic Bource

Language: French

Budget: $30 million

Theatre Count: 2[3 December], 80[10 December], 195[17 December], 1209[24 December]

Rating: R

Release Date: 3 December (limited) 24 December (Wide)

Running Time: 2 hrs 2 mins

Plot:

The film opens with a 35 year old Napoleon, dressed in imperial robes, walking slowly up an aisle. We focus on his feet, shaking slightly, as he walks up the red carpet, we switch to his POV, and we see him glance at the crowd, panning around the whole room, there are a lot of people, richly dressed, stately looking officials. Napoleon hesitates for a moment, and we hear a V.O. from him beginning to form, “This is…..(C’est)” before we transition.

Napoleon is still walking down the aisle, but of a different time, Napoleon’s much younger, 27, and we see him dressed in formalwear, the crowd is much smaller, and more warm, to Napoleon’s left, someone else is walking down the aisle, a woman, dressed in a flowing, beautiful wedding dress, Josephine de Beauharnais, Napoleon’s soon to be wife. The Priest is the Archbishop of Paris, and he marries them, dating the date as 9 March 1796, and we see them kiss at the altar.

The next scene is of Napoleon preparing to leave, and Josephine is begging him not to, he tells her that he has no choice, and Josephine screams after him, “2 Days! 2 Days we’ve been married, and you leave, you abandon me, to go to Italy, to conquer it!” Napoleon stops, and holds Josephine close, “I’m sorry, Love. I promise I’ll be back soon.” He then extracts himself from her grasp, but just then she bursts out, “Fine! Leave then! Leave to your whore! Power’s corrupted you! It’s going to consume you!” Napoleon just stares at her for a moment, and then leaves. 2 children, Josephine’s from her previous marriage, a boy Eugene 18, and a girl Hortense 16 come out into the hallway, and they ask her, “Maman- “ Josephine angry, snaps at them, “Out!” And, they turn around, and back into the room they came from. Josephine meanwhile, just collapses on the floor, and cries, a maid watches from the shadows behind a door.

Napoleon is arriving at his post now, and see his army it stretches on for a fair distance, 37 000 men, and 60 guns, but they’re dejected, clothes worn, and neglected. Morale is low, and Napoleon seeing this frowns, and the next scene is off him in the command tent. He is told that that they’re outnumbered, and facing about 50 000 Austraian Allied troops who’ve conquered Italy. He is told that reinforcements can only come from another army in the Alps, but they’re separated by 20 000 enemy troops. But, Napoleon near Montenotte, manages to attack the Allied forces, and goad them into brashly attacking back in hopes of retake the mountaintop, however fails, and by the morning of 12 April 1796 Bonaparte had defeated the Austrian Allied forces.

Back in the command tent, Napoleon writes to his wife Josephine, sending her a love letter, lavishing her in praise,

and he seals it, and passes it off to a messenger. In the meantime Napoleon attacks with his now invigorated army, and begins to invade Piedmont, and manages to gain a foothold in Italy, his army had only suffered 6000 in losses, compared to 25 000 of the enemy. It took Napoleon all of 2 weeks to defeat the Austrian Allied Forces, after 3 years of continuous war. We see Napoleon signing the Armistice of Cherasco, and the retreat of the Austrian Army, their tails between their legs.

Meanwhile, in Paris, Josephine receives more of Napoleon’s love letters; she opens it, looks, at it, and cries, she misses him. Around her you can see multiple unfinished responses, many different attempts to write back, but none of them finished. The maid watches again the shadows, and we see her gossiping about Josephine’s unhappiness with other staff in the Napoleon household, we see her spread it to her friends, and the chain goes on, before it is broached in a private conversation between the young lieutenant Hippolyte Charles, and an unknown friend, or staff member. Hippolyte is intrigued, but not surprised, we see him approach the Napoleon house, and he befriends Josephine, despite her initial declinations. Soon, they fall for each other, and we see them kissing on the settee before stumbling up the stairs, and into the bed.

Back in Italy, Napoleon is crossing the Po River, and facing an Army of nearly 50 000, but Napoleon continues on the offensive, and he places a large Austrian garrison under siege in Mantova. The Austrians try to fight their way out, however, they are unsuccessful, and suffer large defeats. Napoleon is shown in the command tent, looking over a map of Italy, and moving little gold markers around, horses representing the French troops, and X’s representing the enemy. He makes a decision, confident that the French siege at Mantova will hold, and he decides to lead a division south to invade the heartland of Italy, Tuscany, and the Papal States. His advisors are equally split between staying together as one regiment, or splitting off into two, and eventually, Napoleon decides to go. A letter arrives for him as he finished making the decision, and as the advisors are leaving, preparing for the imminent separation of the army. It’s from Josephine, he smiles, and he opens it, and Josephine’s V.O. reads it out. Napoleon smiles as the letter goes on, but then we cut to Josephine writing it. We see Josephine, and Hippolyte, Hippolyte encouraging her to write back to her husband, in effect lying to him, and Josephine smiles, and laughs, they seem to be a good couple. She ends the letter with, “Love, Josephine.” We see them in bed again, laughing, and smiling, and meanwhile another figure watches in the shadows, before turning away silently.

Napoleon meanwhile is engaging the Papal forces at Fort Urban, and with a decisive defeat, he turns north, to invade Austria itself, and defeating another 50 000 Austrians on the way, he forced the Austrians to turn back to the Alps. However, he receives news that the Austrians reinforcements are attacking the French forces besieging the Austrian military garrison in Mantova. So he makes a detour to Mantova, however he is surprised by a surprise attack by another Austrian regiment, and as Bonaparte’s army is beginning to weaken, more Austrian forces come, however he manages to destroy them, but in the process leaving his own army diseased, and weakened. We see Napoleon signing papers and documents creating two republics out of Italy, the Transpadane, and the Cispadane Republic. Napoleon then proceeds to turn north, and attack Austria, but before he even made a dent, he receives a treaty of armistice from the Austrians, and so ended Napoleon’s mission in Italy. However, he receives rumours of his wife’s affair with Hippolyte as he is preparing to return to Paris, and he is furious, he is informed by a figure standing in the shadows, you can’t quite make out who he is.

In Paris, Napoleon bursts into the house, and demands to see his wife, we see him grab her, and scream at her, and when Josephine tries to deny it, he slaps her hard across the face, and she begins to cry. However, in the end she manages to calm him down, and persuade him that the rumours aren’t true, and Napoleon hesitantly believes her, however it is evident that their relationship has changed. We see Josephine sitting alone in a palour, and crying that night, meanwhile Napoleon has rolled out a great big giant map of the middle east in his office, and is moving various gold figures around the map.

We have a time cut, and now we see the map again, it’s mostly filled with blue, captured Egyptian territory by France, and the map is slightly rocking, we’re on a boat now. We cut to a wide shot of the entire battle field, it’s on the nile, and we see that the opposing enemy carry flags of the British Empire. The French appear to be winning multiple times, and Napoleon is getting increasingly frustrated, but he tries to not let it affect his decision, however, eventually only 2 French ships survive, Napoleon’s main command ship, and one other. Napoleon is forced to write back that night to the French Government, and explain that the French efforts to improve their presence in the Mediterranean has been temporarily put on hold, but he ends, and he stresses that progress will be made, and lots is still to come. Looking at the map, he devises a plan to move into the Ottoman Empire near Damascus, and gain land there. He’s successful for a while, and we see Napoleon’s various methods, executing prisoners of war by drowning, hanging, bayonet, torture, and other methods to save bullets, among them Men, Women, and Children.

However, we see the tides turn, we see one man getting sick, and soon the entire army is sick, with the bubonic plague, Napoleon is furious at this, and with the Ottoman empire, and the British empire both attacking, Napoleon makes one last ditch effort to capture a fortress at Acre, Israel. He comes very close; however, he does fail despite coming close, and is forced to retreat. Along the way his army sick with the plague are getting picked off by the chasing Ottoman and British army, so in a difficult and emotional moment he orders them to be poisoned so that the retreat can be faster, and he can spare them of a death by torture from the Ottomans.

Napoleon resolves to abandon his army in Cairo, and return by himself to France, however, unaware that mere days after he left orders from the French Government ordering him to return to lead French efforts to defend their borders at home arrived. Arriving back in Paris, he found that the Republic was bankrupt, and the government was ineffective, and highly unpopular. His dissertation of the army in Cairo, which had done well after he left is discussed at an Government meeting, Napoleon is there, and he witnesses the chaos that the Directory had devolved into. People shouting at each other, and nothing getting done, his eyes light up with a gleam, and we see him in the next few scenes, meeting with people, preying on their feelings, their ambitions, their greed. We also see Josephine trying to get back into Napoleon’s good books, however she fails, and we see her face devastated as Napoleon sends her off again, before going to meet with his brother. We see them devise a plan, and they spread rumours of a rebellion, from a different political group. The Directory tries to assemble defences against the wrong faction, and they’re caught by surprise as Napoleon leads the army, and seizes control of the government. The Directory flees, and Napoleon is caught in a particularly beautiful shot, of him standing on top of his horse, and towering over the rest of his troops. Each one of them bowing their head respectfully, and kneeling to their new leader.

The next scene is of Napoleon sitting in front of a mirror, his brother standing beside him. Napoleon is dressed in those robes that we saw at the beginning of the movie, and he comments to brother, “If only father could see us now, yesterday the nobles of only Corsica (Which is Corso in French), today the royalty of France.” Napoleon’s brother agrees, and the two brother share a laugh, before an aid comes in, and says, “Your Majesty, they’re ready, when you please.” Napoleon in a good moves, humorously comments, “They haven’t crowned me yet.” Before he steps into the grand cathedral. He walks down the aisle, and we hear his thought out in full now, “It’s my destiny to become king.(C’est mon destin que devenir le roi.)” He arrives at the throne, and we see him turn around, and sit down. His robes flow all around him, and the light from the cathedral, shining, and enrobing him in light, almost like divinity, as the Archbishop of Paris, leads Napoleon through the coronation ceremony, and the film ends with the Archbishop placing the crown on Napoleon’s head, and pronouncing him Emperor. We end with one final shot of Napoleon, with the crown of France shining on his head, and a slight tear drop down his face.

Edited October 15, 2012 by riczhang

[riczhang]

Catharsis

Director: Terrence Malick (Think The Thin Red Line Malick)

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Drama

Format: 2D 70mm Film

Cast:

Gary Oldman as Peter Kata

Helena Bonham Carter as Elizabeth Kata

Penelope Cruz as Anna Vicario

Sean Penn as Julius Caesar

Logan Lerman as Romulus Augustalus

Pierfrancesco Favino as Hadrian

Alfred Molina as Alexander Borgia

Judi Dench as Voice Overs

Unknowns as rest of the cast

Score: Klaus Badelt

Don Carlo Gesualdo (Historical Composer, Deceased)

Antonio Salieri (Historical Composer, Deceased)

Cinematographer: John Toll

Budget: $30 million

Theater Count: 4[5 November], 47[12 November], 237[19 November], 894[24 November], 1694 [3 December]

Rating: R

Release Date: 5 Novebmer (limited) 24 November (Wide)

Running Time: 2 hrs 20 mins

Plot:

The film opens with a shot looking up from inside the bell tower to see the underside of the bells ringing. We zoom in, and we see the vibrations that the bells make as the yoke strikes it, we hear the vibrations as well, deep, and penetrating. The voice over sounds, “Father, it was you who led me through the dark. What happened when I left? When the waves stopped parting and the water started churning?” The scene fades, and we see the newly formed earth volcanoes spewing lava, and ash all the time, everywhere. It calms for a moment, and we hear the momentary peace, and quiet of the bubbling lava, that keeps on flowing, slowly, and steadily. V.O.: “You taught me with death comes new life.” The scene changes again, we see the once glorious Rome, capital of an empire with a quarter of the people on earth, in ruins, neglected, with none of its previous might and majesty. “You taught me with life had to come death.” We cut to a shot of an invading Barbaric army, pounding on the gates of a city, V.O. “To wash away the sin, to make the wrong right. To pit evil again good, and nature against grace.” We focus on the fire of a torch that one of the barbarians hold, V.O. “Full of Beauty, Full of Grace, Full of Anger, Full of Hate.”

We follow the fire for about half a minute longer as we see it elongate, and morph, it almost forms different shapes, a ball, a leaf, an animal, and etc. The fire stretches for a final time, and it gives a mighty pop, as we cut away to modern time. We’re in a Roman museum, adorned with art, old masters, it’s empty, and the camera swirls around the room almost dancing, showing us the artwork, the Giottos, the Lorenzos, the single Da Vinci, and etc. Each unique in its formation, some soft, some harsh, others big, and some small, and the natural variety of the paintings conveys a sense of human potential, of the uniqueness of human creativity. But, each carries a sense of elegance to it, a feeling that they come from a world other than ours, which they do, they come from an earlier world, a much different world than ours. We hear the same bell chime, and we hear almost a whisper of the words, “Keep me, Guide me, to the end of time.” The people mill in, mostly tourists, we see the cameras flash, and the mixture of foreign languages, each tourist looks at a painting hurriedly, sometimes stopping for a picture or to, often not, before hurrying on to the next one. It feels unnatural, feels like there’s a schism between the paintings, and the tourists. V.O. “You left me out to die, brush me off to the side like I was nothing. I wasn’t meant to be like this, you promised me, you promise me that you’d love me, treasure me, forever.” There are just a few actual art people in the crowd; they stand out, studying each painting, conversing about it with their companions, regarding it with a special light in their eyes. To the normal person they’d seem the same, but the light, and the different life in their eyes points them apart. The camera focuses on a few, just lingers for a tad longer than necessary, just pointing them out enough to be distinguished. We focus on a couple that’s just walked into this area of the museum, they’re a middle aged British couple, Peter (Gary Oldman) and Elizabeth (Helena Bonham Carter) Kata. The wife is doing the tourist thing stopping at only a few of the more notable paintings to take a closer look, snap a few pictures, and the husband is looking more intently at each painting, admiring them. He looks as if to make a comment, and as he turns to look at his wife she’s not there, he looks for her, annoyed, only to find her on the other side of the room. He calls out to her, but we can’t hear him over the drone of the tourists. V.O. “Alone, Abandoned.” As the camera sweeps around in a circular motion around Peter we cut.

We cut to camera finishing the motion around a different man in a different time. Rome, 476 AD is displayed at the bottom of the screen. We see Romulus Augustulus, the last emperor, standing from the balcony of a palace on top of one of the hills of Rome, overlooking the city. We see his eyes dark, and brooding as he watches this once mighty empire crumble. From the distance we can see smoke from outside the city walls. We watch him take one last look; turn around in a sweeping motion, and with a thudding finality walk without looking back into the palace.

We cut to a shot of the wheels of a cart, a ratty cart, falling apart; we see it rolling by pulled by a horse in the now slightly worn and torn streets of ancient Rome. We see the slight cloud of dust forming as the wheels scatter it, the camera follows the dust as it billows through the air, and makes shapes, finally floating up towards the sky. The camera stops and focuses on the sky, almost relishing the grandness that it has, the newness that it possesses, something that Rome has now lost. V.O. “Desolation”

We cut to the pre-historic earth, and we see a volcano spewing lava out, very, very high, and we see it collide with the water, and we see the smoke surging up, and the sizzling. It’s a sight of grandeur, but also a sight of horror, and fear. V.O. “Duality” We see the plume rise, and fall again, before cutting.

To modern day, we see Peter storm out of the art museum in a hurry, down those countless marble steps, and Elizabeth hurries after him, calling for him, but he doesn’t respond. He suddenly however turns on her, and she almost crashes, and falls into him as she comes to a sudden stop. He’s clearly upset, he says something about, how they were gonna seriously try to make this work again, and how she justs leaves him, and doesn’t put up a good fight leaving him to do all the hard pulling. And, about how he’s tired of all of that. Elizabeth just listen, and when Peter stops, she says, “Your, Effort? What about mine? Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t exist!” They continue fighting, until Peter storms off again, hailing a cab, and departing off into Roman night. Elizabeth does the same, and she tells the driver to take her to a bar.

We cut to Rome, 1492, we witness the funeral of Pope Innocent VIII, snippets, and bits of the beauty of the coffin, the buildings, and the pomp and circumstances. Particularly focusing on the little details, the intricateness of the carvings, and etc. before settling on a wide shot of the funeral, we stay there for a moment, V.O. “Finding Grace within sadness, and anger, finding beauty among the stark future.”

We cut to the papal conclave, and we see Alexander Borgia engaging in simony, influencing the other cardinals, and eventually being elected. In the soundtrack, the catholic prayer Ave Maria plays, in stark contrast, and irony of what we see. Faith, and Virtue, against Greed, and Selfishness. We see him fall to his knees at an altar, and pray to god with his bead necklace in his hands. V.O. “Servitude, but at what cost?”

We cut back to modern day, and we see Elizabeth at the bar, getting drunk, dancing with the men, and she doesn’t seem the least bit guilty. Not a bit. She seems to be having a good time, downing one drink after another. V.O. “What happened along the way?”

We cut to Peter, walking alone down a street, aimlessly, without a destination in mind. We see, the prostitute, Anna walk up, and we see her seduce him. At first he tries to resist her. V.O. “Faith” But eventually he begins to succumb. “Doubt.” And at long last he does. V.O. “Sin.” We see her lead him away, and we cut away, this entire scene except for the voiceovers is without dialogue. We see the mouths move, but no sound comes out.

To Hadrian, standing above the same balcony that Romulus Augustulus stood, but Rome is still in its glory days, we see the monuments in its full might, we see him hold his hands out to his kingdom, to his empire, and smile at what it has become.

We cut to Hadrian speaking in the senate, we hear Hadrian give a speech to them, about Rome, about its might and power, and about his plans to build his crowning achievement, Hadrian’s wall in Britania. We see his passion, so fueled by the success of his domain, and we see the senate dragged in with him, and the Senate at the end just erupts into applause.

We cut back to the reign of Romulus Augustulus, we see the same chamber, empty, and almost derelict. We cut to Romulus, ordering servants to gather his belongings, he’s fleeing, abandoning his duty. V.O. “What about your oath? You pledged to give your whole life to service, to part of it, or most of it. Stay, for your people. They’re your people, not pigs for slaughter.” But, Romulus keeps on going, and he disappears in a carriage.

We cut to the barbarians, they’re charging, and we follow their feet, we see their battering ram, ram against the door of Rome. The door flexes, but holds, Rome is safe for now. But, slowly by slowly cracks appear, and with an almightly snap, the gate is broken, and Rome is breached.

We cut to Ceaser now, and Rome’s doors once again are breached, but Ceaser’s leading the army, to arrest, and kill his fellow consuls so that he can be consul forever. We see him succeed, refuse to be king, but we also see a different side of things, the growing discontent within the senate of Ceaser’s growing power. We see a group form, who pledge to deal with him, we see their arguments, and they get louder, and louder, and louder, until cut.

We cut to the middle of a silent argument, between Peter, and Elizabeth. They’re screaming at each other, but we don’t hear them. V.O. “Forgive me.” The argument only picks up speed, and soon objects are flying, and we see a flashback of Elizabeth stumbling to their hotel drunk, and we see Peter and Anna in bed, passionate, and sweaty. We cut back to the fight, and we can almost hear their voices, but not quite. V.O. “I was unfaithful, I’m sorry.”

We cut back to Rome, in the time of Romulus Augustulus, and we see it burning, the Barbarians torching it, sacking it. IT’s a sad sight, and we cut back to:

The fight, Elizabeth throws something heavy, and it lands with a crash, we don’t see what it hit, but she walks out the door.

Next scene shows her at a church, praying at an altar for her sins, and hoping God would forgive her, and she is interest with Alexander Borgia doing the same thing, praying for forgiveness because it is in the name of God, and for the service of God. Ave Maria’s playing again in the music.

Finally, we cut to Caesar’s Rome, and the conspirators enter the Senate, Caesar enters as well, and he is greeted warmly by them, we see one of them bring out a knife, and stab Caesar in the back. Caesar gasps, and we cut to:

Peter, lying unconscious on the floor with a heavy vase cracked on the floor beside him, his head is slightly breathing, but he’s still moving, breathing. We zoom out from his body, and we hold steady, taking in the slight, and the detail of the room, the ruined furniture, the messy duvets, and items. Moro Lasso, al Mio Duolo by Gesualdo’s playing in the background of this scene, and the next.

We now cut back to Caesar, and he’s lying on the floor, with knife wounds all over him, a knife is still sticking out of him, and we see him take his final breathe, and utter his final word., “Catharsis.” He falls over limp, and dead. And the Camera slowly zooms out of Caesar’s body, and eventually pans up, and settles on the innocent, pure sky.

Edited October 21, 2012 by riczhang

[Alpha]

Now getting an IMAX exclusive...

The Red Pyramid

Tagline: Based On The Best-Selling Novel

Director: Shawn Levy

Writer: Jonathan Nolan, J.J. Abrams

Genre: Fantasy Adventure

Date: March 26 (IMAX), April 2 (Wide)

Cast: Jaden Smith as Carter Kane, Chloe Grace Moretz as Sadie Kane, Keke Palmer as Zia Rashid, Mila Kunis as Bast, Matthew Fox as Amos Kane, Jeff Bridges as Set, Morgan Freeman as Horus, Rachel Weisz as Ruby Kane/Isis, Dwayne Johnson as Julius Kane/Orisis, Leon Thomas III as Anubis, Jean Dujardin as Desjardins, Max Von Sydow as Iskandar, Cillian Murphy as Sobek (voice), Milla Jovovich as Sekhmet, Martin Freeman as Doughboy (voice), Naomi Watts (cameo) as Nut, Mariam Margoyles (cameo) as Serqet, Betty White (cameo) as Sadie’s grandmother, and Clint Eastwood (cameo) as Sadie’s grandfather

Composer: Hans Zimmer

Theaters: 214 (3/26, IMAX), 4,024 (4/2)

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of mythological action violence, pervasive language, rude humor, and some sexual references

Budget: $150 million

Runtime: 164 min

Format: 40 min filmed in IMAX, released in regular and IMAX

Plot Summary: Carter and Sadie Kane, two siblings who barely know each other, are forced to learn Egyptian magic after their father is abducted by the evil god Set. Set plans to wipe out North America on his birthday, and his red pyramid will serve as his throne

Plot: The film is narrated as a recording made by the Kane siblings, Carter and Sadie. The film begins when Carter Kane and his father, Julius Kane, go to London to visit Sadie, Carter's sister who lives separately from them. Julius takes them to the British Museum to "study" the Rosetta Stone. But he actually has deeper motives and tries to summon Osiris, the Egyptian god of the Underworld by using the stone as an anchor. It goes wrong when all the other four major gods are brought out and Set, the Egyptian god of storms and chaos, imprisons Julius (he is now a host of Osiris) in a coffin.

Carter and Sadie were taken to Brooklyn by their uncle, Amos. He goes to find Set, leaving the two near-stranger siblings alone with a baboon called Khufu. In the library of the Brooklyn mansion, they begin to discover signs that they are descended from famous pharaohs. Julius' side of the family was descended from Narmer while their dead mother, Ruby, had a family originated from Ramesses the Great. The term is blood of the pharaohs. When Sadie and Carter reach New York they talk about how in Egypt people lived on the East side of the river because the sun rose in the east and they buried their dead in the west. Sadie asks why can't they live in Manhattan. Amos replies that there are other gods and they should stay separate. This is a link between this book and the Percy Jackson Series.

Just then, the mansion is attacked by serpent leopards,also known as serpopards. Sadie's cat, Muffin, turns out be the cat goddess Bast. She makes quick work of the serpopards but the three are forced to run when the carriers tails them. They go into Manhattan, which Amos had earlier said had other non-Egyptian gods. At the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Bast attempts to have them go in the Duat – a magical realm right underneath the mortal realm. But the goddess of scorpions, Serqet, fights Bast and supposedly overpowers her.

In the museum, Carter and Sadie find Zia Rashid. She is the scribe of the First Nome, the main nome of the House of Life, that had magicians trying to protect people and fight gods. Carter develops a massive crush on Zia in the book. Zia combats Serqet and bans her from her host by using the Seven Ribbons of Hathor spell.

Zia takes the two to the First Nome, where Chief Lector Iskandar – the House of Life leader – and Desjardins – the second-in-command – brought up the assumption that they were both hosts of gods. Sadie and Iskander have a talk and the old Chief Lector tells her about the hosts. They were mortals who the gods inhabited so they could leave the Duat and be in the mortal realm.

The next day, the two siblings begin their training. Zia teaches them the concept of casting hieroglyphs to use magic. Carter surprises Sadie and Zia by summoning a combat avatar – it is a magic and Bast used it to fight Serqet – of Horus, the falcon war god. But their training is disrupted when a magician informs Zia that Iskander is dead and Desjardins is next in line for the throne. Sadie creates a portal and they escape to Paris because Desjardins would want to kill them because they are hosts, but not before bringing sphinxes with them. Bast, who is still fine, takes care of them and all of them infiltrate Desjardins' house so they could take a book to fight Set.

At Washington, D.C they are chased by the Set animal, who Carter named Leroy. Carter stays back at the airport to fight it and manages to wound it with his combat avatar. He throws Leroy in his Duat locker-a short opening to the Duat-and manages to catch the airplane to Memphis, Tennessee, where the wisdom god Thoth is.

When they finish Thoth's test, they learn that they were supposed to have a Feather of Truth from the Underworld/Land of the Dead. And they also needed Set's true name, which contained the person's identity and life. Because of Sadie's attraction to Anubis-god of funerals-he gives the Feather of Truth to her. They then continue from New Orleans to Texas, where Carter fights Sobek but is hopelessly outmatched and outclassed even with the combat avatar. Amos saves them but Bast and Sobek are expelled to the Duat.

They go to New Mexico, as Zia wanted Carter there and the earth god Geb told Sadie to. It turns out that Desjardins had known this and a fight occurs. Thanks to Zia's plan, they defeat Sekhmet, the lion goddess of battle, and drive onwards to Arizona. They spot the Red Pyramid, which is Set's main host. When they arrive, Amos collapses and Set reveals he was hosting Amos as well, all along.

Carter merges completely with Horus becomes the eye of the war god. He puts up a good fight but Set's strength grows when dawn approaches and the desert glows. Sadie learns from a dying Zia that Set's secret name is Evil Day. She combines with Isis, the magic goddess inside her, and transports Carter and Sadie along with herself to Washington, D.C. Sadie banishes Set to the Duat, reading the book and using the Feather of Truth along with his secret name.

Just then, Set's servant appears. He is the host of Apophis, the Serpent of Chaos itself. Even though Carter kills the servant, it is Sadie who rubs the picture of the snake in the sky. They come back for Zia, who turns out to be a shabti-a ceramic doll-and urges Carter to find the real Zia Rashid.

They return to Brooklyn House and rebuild the place with magic. Amos leaves for the First Nome to be healed from being possessed by Set. Carter and Sadie are paid a visit by Osiris, who was bonded with their father. They even see the ghost of their mother who was accompanying Julius. The god of the dead gives them his djed amulet to attract other things. The siblings give up Horus and Isis, who vanish away into the Duat but not before preserving a quarter of their power in the amulets Julius had given them a long time ago. Carter and Sadie store the amulets in Carter's Duat locker and put the djed amulet with it. Once kids began to come, they would teach them divine magic or the path of the gods, which involved channeling a god's power. In the end, Carter and Sadie find their father. Julius decides that he would like to stay with his wife; Carter and Sadie now live with their uncle Amos.

Edited November 10, 2012 by etr906

[Alpha]

The House of the Scorpion

Tagline: Eight Lives. One Catch.

Director: Darren Aronofsky

Writers: Jim Uhls, Steven Zaillian

Genre: Sci-Fi Thriller

Date: August 13

Cast: Lucas Till as Matteo Alacran, Maggie Gyllenhaal as Celia, Christopher Plummer as El Patron, Elle Fanning as Maria, Joel Courtney as Chacho, Eva Longoria as Esperanza, Rita Monero as Rosa, Joaquin Phoenix as El Viejo, Glenn Close as Felicia, Tom Felton as Tom, Tom Wilkinson as Tam Lin, Hugh Grant as Daft Donald, and Chaske Spencer as Mr. Ortega

Composer: Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross

Theaters: 3,312

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi violence, pervasive language, and brief sexuality and torture

Budget: $100 million

Runtime: 148 min

Format: Released in regular and IMAX

Plot Summary: It features Matteo Alacrán, a young clone raised by a drug lord of the same name, usually called "El Patrón". It is a story about the struggle to survive as a free individual.

Plot: The story is set in the country of Opium, a strip of land between Mexico (now called Aztlán), and the United States. Opium, which is essentially an opium-producing estate, is ruled by Matteo Alacrán, also known as El Patrón. El Patrón's work-force consists of illegal immigrants whom the Farm Patrol (ex-criminals who are tempted with the offer of protection from the police) enslave when they catch them crossing the border in either direction. These illegal immigrants become "eejits", humans with computer chips implanted in their brains, making them more or less zombies who can perform only simple tasks. These "eejits" act, or cease to act, only when ordered to do so. If an eejit is not told to stop doing its simple task, it will continue until it dies.

The main character, Matt, is a clone of El Patrón, an incredibly powerful, 148-year-old drug lord who intends to take Matt's organs when his own organs fail. Matt was grown from a set of cells taken from El Patrón decades ago, then frozen. He was cultured in a test tube, then transferred into a surrogate mother when it became clear that he was going to survive. For the first six years of his life, he lives with Celia, a cook who works in El Patrón's mansion. One day, he is discovered by two children (Emilia and Steven). The next day they return, and bring Emilia's sister, María, who immediately captivates Matt. They observe him through the window for a while, but soon get bored and turn to leave. Matt is so lonely that he smashes the window and jumps out to follow them. Never having experienced pain before, he was unaware of the danger in jumping barefoot onto smashed glass. The children carry him to El Patrón's mansion to be treated. The people there treat Matt kindly until Mr. Alacran, El Patron's great-grandson, recognizes him as a clone.

For the next few months, he is treated as an animal by most of the Alacráns, and is locked into a room filled with sawdust for his "litter". The inhabitants of the Big House, meanwhile, are so disgusted by him that they all move to different wings of the mansion, as if they are afraid of contamination. However, María discovers where he is being kept and informs Celia, who tells El Patrón about Matt's filthy conditions and abusive treatment. El Patrón immediately punishes the maid who was in charge of Matt, gives Matt clothes and his own room, and commands everyone to treat him with respect. Matt is also given a bodyguard, named Tam Lin, who becomes a father figure to him. Still, everyone but Celia, María, and Tam Lin look upon Matt with ill-disguised revulsion, only hiding it when El Patrón is around.

Matt lives in the Big House for the next seven years. He and María quickly become friends, and friendship gradually blossoms into romance. However, Matt is deliberately kept in the dark by everyone about his identity and purpose until a cruel joke reveals to him that he is a clone. Matt also discovers that all clones are supposed to be injected when "harvested" with a compound that cripples their brains and turns them into little more than thrashing, drooling animals. From then on, he studies and practices the piano with a vengeance, in a state of denial. In his heart, Matt already knows the reason for his existence, yet he convinces himself that El Patrón would not hire tutors for him and go to all the trouble of keeping him entertained if he were intending to kill Matt in the end, and that El Patrón must want Matt to run the country when El Patron dies.

At Steven and Emilia's wedding, El Patrón has a near-fatal heart attack. Matt and María, who have by this time realized they love each other, attempt to flee in the ensuing chaos but are betrayed by Steven and Emilia. María is taken away, and Matt is taken to the Big House's hospital, where El Patrón at last confirms that Matt lived only to keep himself, El Patrón, alive in the end. At that moment, Celia reveals that she has been giving Matt carefully measured doses of arsenic, which, though not large enough to kill Matt, would certainly be fatal to one as frail as El Patrón; El Patrón becomes so enraged that he has another heart attack and dies. Mr. Alacrán orders Tam Lin to dispose of Matt; Tam Lin pretends to comply, and ties him to a horse and rides away to dispose of him. But instead, he gives Matt supplies and sets him on a path to Aztlán.

Arriving in Aztlán, Matt comes across a kind of penal colony for orphans. These orphans are called the "Lost Boys", and Matt is sent to live with them by a group of men known as the "Keepers," who are fervent followers of Marxism. The Keepers operate plankton farms, forcing the orphans to do manual labor and subsist on plankton. The Keepers enjoy luxurious quarters and delectable food, claiming that this is fair because they "earned" the right to do so by working hard during their childhood.

Matt is at first an outcast because the other boys think he is a spoiled aristocrat. However, Matt becomes a hero when he defies the Keepers and leads the boys in a rebellion against them. Matt then flees with his friends among the Lost Boys. They struggle to the nearest city, San Luis, then go to the convent to find María and her mother, the politically powerful Esperanza.

Esperanza thanks the boys for giving her an excuse to charge the Keepers with drug trafficking: for years, everybody has known about it, but no one has had sufficient evidence for a search warrant. Matt also learns that Opium is in lockdown. He manages to re-enter the country, but only to learn that no one in the Alacrán estate is alive, except for Celia, Daft Donald, and Mr. Ortega. Tam Lin and everyone else in the estate drank poisoned wine that El Patrón wanted to be served at his funeral. El Patron wanted to either run the business forever, or have it and everybody else die with him. Matt, being El Patrón's genetic heir, is the new ruler of Opium but decides to dismantle the regime.

Edited October 15, 2012 by etr906

[Alpha]

Only two I have, should get more.

[riczhang]

Empty Hearth

Director: Joel and Ethan Coen

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Historical/Drama

Format: 2D 35mm Film, Shot with Panavision

Cast: Daniel Day-Lewis as Samuel Richter

Marion Cotillard as Éva Bertineau

Tommy Lee Jones as Inspector Russell

James Badge Dale as James W. Marshall

Score: Johnny Greenwood and Carter Burwell

Cinematographer: Michael Ballhaus

Budget: $30 million

Theater Count: 2 [22 October], 58 [29 October], 602[5 November] 1096[12 November], 1922[19 November], 3094[24 November]

Rating: R

Release Date: 22 October (Limited), 5 November (Wide)

Running Time: 2 hrs 35 mins

Plot:

The film opens with the shot of an alcove. 24 January 1848, Coloma, California is written on the bottom of the screen. There’s a small stream running by and we see a man dressed in work clothes and holding some tools in his late 30s, William Marshall (James Badge Dale) walking along the riverbank as something catches his eye. He reaches down to pick it up, it’s something tiny. He holds it between his fingertips and examines it closely. It glints a bit as he looks at it intently, before coming to a sudden realisation of what he had. He quickly puts it in one of his pockets and hurries off.

The next scene is at a bar; we see William once again having a few rounds of drinks with the townspeople and they smoke, are rowdy, and trade stories of their day. The journalist talks about his boss and harassing him with deadlines, some of the shopkeepers comment on business, and etc. As the night goes on, William gradually gets more and more intoxicated as he tells the tale of this afternoon. He talks about how he found gold, “Gold. Gold. Gold, I tell you. GOLD. GOLD.” He keeps saying and all the men get a glint in their eyes, including the journalist.

We cut to Queenstown, Ireland. It’s Spring 1849 now. We see Samuel Richter (Daniel Day-Lewis), a factory worker from Ireland, carrying his suitcase in a long line of similarly dressed people, waiting to board a ship. Posters of the Gold Rush are plastered all over the port. The sign above their line reads, “Cunard Line/ RMS Britannia/ Third Class Boarding” They slowly inch forward little by little and some of the passengers are getting a bit disgruntled. Samuel looks a bit annoyed so he reaches into his pocket to retrieve a pamphlet about the Gold Rush. It’s crinkled and worn from the constant perusing, but he looks at it and he almost grins a little. He puts it back into his pocket and looks back up towards the front of the line.

Samuel sits in his cabin of 4, on his top berth, and he brings out a notebook. It’s almost brand new, only one or two pages have been used; the writing on them is dense, but we can’t really make out what it says. He’s writing in it quickly, but when someone enters the cabin he quickly closes it and hides it under his duvet.

On the ship in third class a lot of the men are gathered in the bar, drinking, smoking, and gambling. The ship rocks a bit, but not one soul minds. Samuel and some men are gathered around a table playing some sort of card gambling game. Samuel is doing well; his stack of money is substantially bigger than the others, some have almost non-existent stacks now, and some still have some left. The game goes on for a few more hands as some people leave and a few lose all their money. Then, Samuel wins the next hand taking away all the money from one of the other players. That player erupts and tries to from the opposite side of the table grapple at Samuel. He spews about how Samuel is definitely cheating and how he cheated him out of his whole life savings. Samuel calmly denies that, but that other man rears at Samuel as they grapple and fight, both are slightly drunk; Samuel much less so than the other man. The fight goes on for a while and while some men looking bored seem eager for this to happen, a few others try to pry the two men apart. Eventually, Samuel wins, dusts himself off, and walks away. As he walks out the door, we see him extract two cards from his left hand side sleeve and slide it into his pocket.

We hear the slam before we see the stamp of the immigration officer in New York stamping itself on Samuel’s passport. With a gruff, “Welcome to America” Samuel clears customs and immigration on Staten Island. We see him take his stuff and hurry to the ferry. He gets on the ferry just before it departs. As it leaves the island, we settle on a shot of the Manhattan skyline; already dotted with some high buildings, towering above the rest of the scenery.

The next shot is of a train pulling into a train station and stopping. There are a lot of people getting out, walking away from it, and off of the platform. The platform begins to clear and as the train gives a whistle it begins to pull out of the station. By now the platform is almost empty and we hold that shot as the train gathers momentum until it pulls out of sight. Outside the station, people are going about their ways in all different directions. The sight is slightly chaotic, but there seems to be a sort of order to it all. It seems like that everyone knows where they want to go and how to get there. The camera picks out Samuel in the crowd and we see just his head as he pushes and shoves a little here and there to get from the back of the crowd to the road. He looks both ways and then crosses. He heads into an inn and pays for a week’s stay. The innkeeper gives him the key and gestures him up the stairs. Samuel heads up the stairs, locates his room, unlocks it, and enters. The camera stays outside of the room as we see the door slam shut with a thudding finality followed moment or two later by the click of a lock.

It’s morning again and the camera takes an expository shot of the sun rising over the town. We see the town for the first time clearly, we see its style, its life, and the town itself coming to life and as the town begins to buzz again we cut to Samuel inside the general store. He’s haggling with the shopkeeper. His accent slightly confuses the shopkeeper as he keeps on leaning in with an ear. Samuel passes a piece of paper with what he wants to the shopkeeper and they haggle back and forth, writing, and crossing stuff out on the paper. They keep passing it back and forth as they haggle over the prices verbally as well. Eventually they strike a deal and the shopkeeper goes into the backroom and returns with the items. He passes each one to him individually and the camera shows each one. Some dynamite, a few pickaxes, burlap sacks, good panning pans, rope, some miscellaneous tools and equipment, and a can labelled, “Arsenic”. Samuel loads them up into a cart waiting outside and bids good day to the shopkeeper as he leaves. Outside as he records the transaction down in his notebook he meets the Sheriff of the town, Inspector Russell (Tommy Lee Jones). They have some small talk; Inspector Russell welcomes him to the town and wishes him the best of luck.

The next scene is Samuel at his plot of land; there’s a wooden sign marked Plot: #3192 and Samuel takes a moment to check to make sure that it is his. The number on his piece of paper matches the plot number. In the background there are mountains and the sun is shining now brutally bright and high in the sky. He’s standing near the edge of his plot and we can see the boundary marking lines in the dirt. He takes a look at his stuff and begins to reach from some of the tools.

The next shot is a close-up of Samuel’s hands as he assembles various contraptions and mechanisms he’ll need. The camera looks up at his face, sweat is dripping off it and he has a look of concentration on his face. He ties a knot tight and stands up, takes a breath, and wipes some of the sweat of his face. Looking up at the sun, he nods at himself satisfied with the work he’s done.

Boom, the next shot is of the earth blowing up with dust and little bits of rock spewing up. The dust clears and we see Samuel approaching looking disheartened. We see similar holes, some of them dug and others blow like this one. They’re all a fair distance away. Samuel’s looking more haggard now like a man down on his luck. He looks among the debris and into the hole. Seeing nothing, he sighs and looks even more disheartened. He uses his pick-ax and shovel to clear some of the debris out from the hole. His actions are almost lazy, half-hearted, and with a resigned slump to his shoulder. The camera focuses on Samuel’s feet as we see his feet resting precociously on the rock bits. He leans forward and grabs another shovel of small rock dust bits. This goes on one more time before he leans a bit too far down to try to reach the rocks bits and he takes a tumble. His feet fly up in the air dragging some of the rock and a pick-axe with him. The shovel also falls uselessly into the pit with a clang as Samuel tries desperately to grab at the other side to break his fall. He holds on by the very tip of his fingers, but as he breathes a sigh of relief he begins to slip a bit and he tries to hold on. He’s forced to let go and he drops on his feet. He lands joltingly as he clutches at his the side of his face. It was scraped a bit on the way down, not major enough that it’s profusely bleeding, but big enough that blood is flowing. He looks up at the piece of rock that caused his injury and he scowls. But, suddenly the sunlight catches a bit, and it glitters and refracts just the tiniest hint of light. Samuel’s expression changes immediately from one of annoyance and bitterness to one of hope. He runs over, but as he moves his legs he jolts in pain. The fall onto the rocks definitely injured him. He limps over and begins digging at the side of the pit. He uncovers a whole swathe of quartz crystals and he looks excited possessing an almost childish glee. He grabs the pick-ax that’s fallen into the pit and he picks at the rock around the crystal clearing it off. He then breaks of a chunk of the crystal and begins to climb up out of the pit. It’s a slow and painful process holding the pick-ax and the crystal, as well as being injured. The climb is an awkward one, very slow, and mechanical. The shot ends as we see his feet disappear over the edge of the pit.

Small and shiny crystal pebbles pile up on the ground. Samuel limps over; carrying the metal can of arsenic and a few small beakers. He opens the can and pours a little with shaky hands into the beaker. He spreads the pebbles around, flattens the pile, and pours the arsenic into the pile. The effect is instantaneous; there are slivers of gold material leeching out of the material, solidifying with each other, and forming a piece of gold. He holds it up to the sky, and he yells and reacts almost like a madman with glee. He lets out of whoop as the scene ends with the camera focusing on the gold as it glints in the sunlight.

We’re back in the hole again. Samuel’s dug into the side revealing a very large cluster of crystals. The cluster is easily hundreds if not thousands of branches big, an entire vein, reaching in all directions and going deep, fairly deep. He has a ladder inside of the pit now, and he takes the quartz crystals by the wheelbarrow full and wheels them away. We see tins and tins of empty arsenic along with a whole lot of smashed crystals. Samuel pours the entire tin of arsenic over the crystals and watches as nuggets form.

The camera focuses on his eyes, full of greed and full of pride.

We’re at the trading post and Samuel is haggling over the price of gold. The trader’s willing to pay him $10 an ounce. Samuel is heard saying that you can get $16 an ounce in San Francisco. Eventually they settle on $12.50 an ounce and Samuel sells his piece of gold he brought to sell today. He brings out his notebook from his coat pocket and records that transaction down.

It’s night time, and at the bar Samuel’s having a few drinks with some of the other prospectors. He overhears another group griping about how they have empty land and that they have nothing to show for their hard work. One of them comments on how he brought his daughter with him and now they can barely scrape by with the money they have left. He gestures into the corner and we see the shadow of a girl in her mid-late 20s, Eva. He comments about it being such a shame that she never got married and how pretty of a wife she would’ve been. They then move back to the topic of gold and how they’d pay a high premium if they could get a guarantee that this land had gold. Samuel overhears this and his eyes light up as he freezes; his hand holding the beer keg, halfway between the table and his mouth. This lasts barely a second and goes mostly unnoticed. When the other prospectors suggest another round of drinks, Samuel declines and instead heads up to his room.

Inside his room, we see his notebook open again, and we see him mapping out a structure. A voice over explains this:

1. He’ll buy up land cheap from failed prospectors and we cut to a new scene that shows him haggling with prospectors;

2. He’ll transplant a few crystals from his “mine”, and we see him digging holes in his purchased land. We then see him depositing crystals in them before covering them back up and stamping the soil firm;

3. He’ll then sell the land at a significantly mark-upped cost by proving gold exists by uncovering one or two of his buried crystals. We see him do that, and we see him negotiate a price that’s many times higher than what he paid.

The next scene is of him loading as much of the crystal as he can into a cart. We see him pull this same scam off in many prospector towns in California; buying up land, filling the land, and making it seem like it was new. Then he’d leave the town and come back weeks or months later to sell it to new prospectors. It never fails. The unsuspecting prospectors never suspected a thing because he never stayed too long in a town to arouse suspicion. Each town recorded down in his notebook to prevent repeats.

1851, it’s been two years since Samuel first arrived. He’s a wealthy man now. We see him return to his original mine to collect more crystals. He’s dressed in the same work-clothes as he did 2 years ago, but back in his inn room we see him change into a gentleman with formal wear, top hat, and the works. We follow him to a new town. Told in a flashback we see the change in his business. He now hires people to purchase empty plots in his name, to dig holes, and to fill in those holes. He still plants the crystals himself though. Back in present time, he gives a speech, “I’m a Gold man, and when I say I’m a Gold man you’ll believe me. You see, I run a small firm, individual firm, which thrives on finding gold, mining it, cultivating it, and expanding our horizons. But, you see I’ve rather bitten off more than I can chew. I’ve got many parcels of land all over California, all guaranteed to have gold. Together they can produce many hundreds of thousands of ounces of gold. But, I can’t mine it all. I propose to sell you the land. As new prospectors to this country you have the energy to flourish in this harsh environment, and if you buy this land not only will you survive, but you’ll thrive here in California. If you want this land, I’ll be in town for a couple more days, I’m accessible, and you know where to find me. Thank you for your time.” Samuel steps of the make-shift stage, amid excited murmuring in the audience, and he leaves through a side door of the building. The camera focuses now on the crowd, and they are excited and seemingly pretty convinced by Samuel’s sales pitch.

Next scene shows Samuel showing an interested prospector the gold and he uses dynamite to blow through the rock. He does it in a few different locations before “finding” the gold, and he smashes the crystal and extracts it showing the prospector the gold. They are at the inn now, the same prospector, and they’re haggling over the price of the land. The prospector keeps hammering Samuel to lower his price and Samuel is increasingly getting annoyed. His hand goes over to his temple and eventually we see Samuel burst telling him, “You’ll accept the price I give you, or I’ll walk away. I can get someone else here in 5 minutes, someone who really wants it.” The prospector clearly alarmed, calls for Samuel to wait and says that he’ll take the deal. But, Samuel’s already walking out the door. Outside the prospector calls out to Samuel but he doesn’t stop. However he does say, “I wouldn’t sell you the land, even if you gave me all your money.” The camera catches a glimpse of Eva Bertineau (Marion Cotillard) hiding among the shadows of the buildings, her eyes focused on Samuel.

It’s a new day now and Samuel is finished with his business in this town as he shakes on a deal for one last plot of land. After the prospectors leave, Samuel brings out his notebook. It’s now quite full and almost all used up. He records the town and what transactions happened here. That night he celebrates with some of his customers with a round of drinks on him in the bar. Everyone is in high spirits. By the end of the night, everyone’s fairly pissed, and as Samuel tries to stumble up into his room, Eva makes her move. She’s dressed provocatively (For the time) as she cuts Samuel off when he tries to make his way up the stairs. She throws herself at him, using her beauty, sex appeal, and charm to seduce Samuel. In his drunken state, Samuel doesn’t need much persuading, and they stumble up the stairs in a mess of limbs. Samuel hurriedly tries to unlock the door, but in his drunken state he has no such luck. Eventually, Eva takes the key from him and Samuel actually raises his hand a little in protest, but she doesn’t listen to him and opens the door. She leans into him again and kisses him. Then they hurriedly stumble into the room, with Eva kicking the door shut before falling together onto the bed. We see Eva pocketing the key.

We see them in various stages as the night progresses, before finally going fading to black. The next scene is the morning after; Samuel’s recovered from last night, albeit still quite hungover. He’s trying to convince her to give him back the key. She just smiles at him and replies, “Humour me.” Samuel chuckles at that, and we see them wrestle in bed. Eventually she relents after he captures her and tickles her. It’s a light-hearted scene, and they eventually get out of bed, laughing as they go down the stairs.

Over breakfast, Samuel inquires a little bit more about Eva, flirts a little with her, and she just blushes and responds to some of the questions in her “cute” French-accented English. Eventually, Samuel invites her to go with him to the city and “broaden” her experiences. She clearly is convinced and wanting, but she plays hard to get for a few moments before giving in.

On the way to San Francisco, we see the inside of the horse-drawn carriage, and Samuel and Eva have sex again as Eva seduces Samuel who needs no prompting at all. It’s a heated moment, and after they finish they take a quiet moment. Everything is still for a while with only the sound of the carriage rolling along in the background until the carriage goes over a bump, jumps a little, and jolts them out of their reverie.

In San Francisco, they arrive at Samuel’s house. It’s a large mansion, built on the outskirts of the city with lush ground and lots of space. There’s a party going outside on the expansive lawn one evening. There’s a marquee erected and there’s plenty of guests. Among the invited are other gold men, business men, and politicians. We see the true expanse of Samuel’s climb up the social ladder. As Eva accompanies Samuel in the party many guests assume that Eva is Samuel’s girl and they comment on how beautiful she is. You can see Samuel calculating the benefits of it. You can hear the gears turning in his head, V.O. “She’s beautiful, and it’ll help my social standing. I’ll take her.” Eva just blushes and looks away, embarrassed. But, that night as the last of the guests are leaving as Samuel bids them goodnight and promising to stay in touch, it is Samuel who approaches Eva and kisses her. He asks her to stay with him and be his girlfriend. She accepts.

We see them go on dates to plays and shows, and surprisingly Samuel is beginning to fall for Eva. The girl he took because it would make him look good has actually captured some of his feelings. That night that Samuel realises this. He holds his head in his hands and takes quite a few drinks in the corner of the lounge. There is some strange rustling in the background probably from another room, but Samuel doesn’t seem to care about what it is. Then, he moves slightly shakily moves from the lounge next door into his office. He slips on a sheet of paper that’s left on the floor. He looks at it, and it looks like a bill from somewhere. He seems a bit confused as to why it’s on the floor, but quickly drops the questions. Sitting down at his deak, he brings out his notebook and writes a little bit, hands shaking and writing sloppy. Eventually he just gets frustrated in his drunken state and gives up, shoving the notebook back into his coat.

A few weeks later, their relationship is still going fairly well. They seem well matched for each other, and they’ve settle into a good routine. In this time Samuel’s fallen a little bit more for Eva and it shows on the outside now too but only just a little. As Samuel comes home for the night and the butler takes his coat, we hear the scream of Eva. Samuel looks up in alarm and runs up the grand staircase towards the living quarters. He finds her in the washroom, hand rubbing her stomach, and he asks, “What’s the problem, dear.” Eva lifts up her nightdress and shows Samuel a slightly swelled stomach. I think I’m pregnant, she replies. Samuel arranges for his butler to send for a doctor and tells Eva that they’ll have to start planning the wedding immediately.

We see them the next day at the doctors, and the doctor confirms Eva’s suspicions, but tells her that it could still possibly be a fake pregnancy. That night Samuel lavishes her with a dinner at an upper class restaurant. They share a quiet kiss and a smile over a few glasses of wine. This Samuel, refined, and upper classed is in stark contrast with the Samuel just a few mere years ago, the poor Irish prospector. Samuel’s eyes wander for a moment as he remembers those times. The music changes a bit and the soundtrack returns to some of the motifs and some of the pieces heard in the beginning portion of the movie on the docks, digging for gold, and etc.

In the next scene, the baby bump is already somewhat prominent, and we see Eva and a few servants planning the wedding. They want a small but lavish affair. They’re working out the guest list and as they do we see Samuel come into the parlour and give Eva a quick kiss. He tells her that he’d be going out for a little while. Eva excuses herself from the servants on pretence of going to take a little walk outside and proceeds to go to Samuel’s study/office. She pulls out a sheet of paper with the office and markings drawn on it. She goes over each marking and mumbles to herself, not there, not there. She moves over to an area unmarked on the map and opens a drawer. She begins rummaging through it looking for something. She pulls out sheets, reads them, and discards them putting them all carefully away. She’s getting increasingly frustrated as she mumbles things about records and not being there. She’s practically getting increasingly frustrated and the sound of her rummaging gets louder as she rummages with increased urgency and speed. Amidst the rummaging, we hear the faintest sound of a door opening and closing, and steps. She throws her hands back in frustration and whoosh she gets clubbed in the head with something. The scene quickly cuts away as

she crumples.

The next shot is from Eva’s POV. We see her opening her eyes, and we see a very dimly lit room. Everything’s very out of focus, and we suddenly hear a drunken statement, “Sleeping Beauty awakes from her slumber….” Eva shies away a bit almost from the sound. We finally see in focus as we see Samuel towering over her. “I catch you.” He says bluntly. Switching out of Eva’s POV we see the room. Eva’s bound up with rope in a corner. There’s a single small window on the other wall, a table with a wine bottle and glasses on it, and chair is set in the middle. Samuel is standing, dishevelled, drunk, and towering above Eva. Face right above her face. Eva just nods a fraction, and she struggles a bit at the bounds. “Little Child, you’re powerless.” Samuel retorts at her. He pulls up the chair and sits on it, so that he straddles the chair. “So, tell me now, everything.” Silence from Eva. Eva doesn’t respond. “A quiet one aren’t you? How about if I make you scream?” Samuel replies back almost calmly, but with a thinly veiled sense of anger. Eva’s eyes widen momentarily, but she stays silent. “Well let me tell you, what you’re doing. (Pause) You’re stealing my cake. My cake! What do you want with it? What do you want?” Eva just shakes her head. Samuel gets angry and goes ahead and slaps Eva across the face. Eva emits an audible gasp, and Samuel smiles that almost displays satisfaction. “You are really a smart one aren’t you? Sly like a fox.” Samuel seems proud of his analogy, and he repeats almost like a madman, “Sly like a fox. Sly like a fox.” Samuel extracts the notebook from his jacket. “Sly the fox is, but not sly enough. The fox has been outwitted. What you wanted has been with me all the time. Outsmarted the fox, I have.” Samuel seems almost gleeful now. Eva tries to raise her hands and use her eyes to deny that’s what she’s been looking for. Samuel looks at her and drawls with an air of fake surprise, “Noooooo? That’s not what you’ve been looking for? I’m sorry, you want me to untie you now?” He suddenly changes moods, and booms out, “Of course that’s what you’ve been looking for. I’ve committed no crimes, I have no other sources of monies but my gold. I keep no record of my gold, except here, with me. At all times. I’ve won, you’ve lost.” Eva looks a hint surprised. “Don’t be surprised darling, now, my explanation if you please?” Eva still refuses to answer. Samuel bursts at this point. He rants about how she was a bitch and how she was using him. He continues on to say how he was falling for her. Eva looks shocked at this point, and she almost opens her mouth to say something. However, even if she did, Samuel would’ve steam rolled on. He continues, he talks about how she just used him, set him up, and tore him apart, and how he L-; he catches himself, cuts himself off, and ends with I hate you. Eva seems shocked into silence momentarily, but then she opens her mouth and closes it again. Samuel looks furious, but also almost on the verge of tears. He takes a long drink straight from the wine bottle and murmurs, “I thought we had something.” Then he stares at the bottle in his hands and brings it hard on Eva’s skull. She gasps in pain, and he brings it down again. She stares into Samuel’s eyes and murmurs, “I’ve won Old man, there’s someone coming for me. Someone knows I’m here, someone’s coming. You’ve lost Old Man.” Samuel brings it down on her head again. Eva’s skull breaks, and she dies. Samuel slumps over the chair and stays there; body wracking with sobs. The bottle slips from his hand and shatters on the floor. The scene stays that way. The light begins to fade from the room as the sun sets. Eventually the room fades entirely into black.

The next scene is in the morning. We’re back in the room, and as the room is beginning to be illuminated by the rising sun, Samuel rouses from his stupor. He looks around the room and slowly begins to process what’s happened. He’s surprised and scared; we can see it in his eyes, as he grabs the unbroken neck portion of the bottle and almost mechanically walks up the stairs.

Inside the bedroom, we see Samuel, lying on the bed, contemplating, thinking not knowing. His butler walks up to the bed and says, Master Richter? Sir? Samuel weakly acknowledges his presence, and the butler informs him that the Police is at the door. It’s someone by the name of Inspector Russell. Samuel is surprised by the name because it seems familiar. We can hear him questioning inside his head and then suddenly he remembers. Inspector Russell is the police chief from his original prospector town. He springs into action because he’s scared suddenly again, very scared. He instructs the butler to tell the Police that he isn’t home and that he’ll be home soon. He also tells him to get the wagon prepped for journey back to the town. The butler is surprised that he’s going back to the town, but Samuel says that he’s going back to cover his tracks. Nothing else. We see him hurriedly pack a little bit of clothes and some essentials. Then he’s racing through the house towards the back and to the stables. A carriage is already waiting for him by the time he gets there, and they race off into the distance.

Meanwhile, we see Inspector Russell and a few other police force members at the door. They’re waiting and waiting, and nothing happens. They turn their heads as a carriage emerges at breakneck speeds from the carriage gates of this house further down the road. They put 2 and 2 together and realise that Samuel is escaping. The police members ask Russell if they should go chase him, but Russell says no. “Leave it for me, I know where he’s going, I’ll follow him. You guys go search the house for the body.” The police members forcibly barge their way into the house with the staff all protesting. Russell takes one look at the house, sad, and with tears falling down his face walks back down the steps. He whispers almost inaudibly, “I love you Eva.” And disappears out of sight.

We see Samuel again, back at his original discovery sight. He’s been here for hours already covering up that hole which is now much, much deeper than it was originally. He’s hauling back into it rocks, soil, and etc. He’s already made some progress, but the hole is still deeper than what it originally was. Samuel turns as he hears footsteps and he sees Inspector Russell walk up to him. Samuel takes a step back but he’s standing on the edge of the hole now with no place to go. He seems like he’s going to run, or something, but he stops when Russell’s voice rings out, “I thought I’d find you here. (Pause) You have a fast horse; I left not soon after you.” Samuel just moves his head in a weird action in what could be classified as a nod. “I just want to talk right now.” Samuel seems a bit shocked, “You don’t want to arrest me? After all I’ve done?” Russell replies, “No, I do. That can wait; I’ve been working for a long time for this moment. I can wait a bit longer.” Samuel nods and asks, “That girl you sent? Who was she?” The mood suddenly shifts, and Russell answers almost crying, “That girl, was my daughter.” Samuel looks confused, and Russell says “It’s a very long story.” Samuel answers, “I have time.”

We descend into a flashback. It’s assisted with some Voiceovers/Narration from Russell. We see the story of how Eva came into Russell’s care. Her father was a prospector. He spent all his money buying plots that never turned up anything. Eventually he killed himself leaving Eva all alone in the prospecting village. Poor and homeless on the streets, Russell offers her some charity to give her a room at him and his wife’s place, at least for a few nights. At first Eva denies the charity because she despises the pity she thinks everyone feels for her. But, one cold winter’s night, Eva relents, and she’s welcomed by Russell’s wife into their home. At first it was only for a couple of days, but eventually, Russell and his wife, came to care for Eva like their own daughter, especially as she begins to open herself up to them. We see Russell talking with his wife about adopting even possibly informally Eva as their own. They approach her about it one day, and she breaks down in tears. As Russell holds her, we delve into her flashback with Eva’s voice overs. We see her old life in France. Her mother dead, Father barely scraping by, their country was still primitive compared to the rest of Europe with their industrialisation. We see how she came to California. From a boat at Calais, to the New York port, the same one that Samuel passed through. We see her and her single father, leaving behind a life of loss and smiling joyfully at the prospect of a new life, a better life in California.

It doesn't turn out that way. We see Eva despair as her father fails to do anything. We’re at the bar as we see Eva in the corner watching her father drink away some of his sorrows with a few other down on their luck prospectors. Samuel sits in a different group with a different group of prospectors. He comments on how he brought his daughter with him and how they can barely scrape by with the money they have left. He gestures towards Eva in the corner. She continues to watch her father sadly. We see Samuel in the background walking up the stairs slightly drunk, eyes filled with some new inspiration.

The next scene is Eva standing by the door as her father emerges. We see Samuel in the room going out the other door. Eva’s father just bought a new plot of land from Samuel. It was at a very high price, but it has gold. Eva’s father looks ecstatic, but it turns out empty except for just a few measly pieces of gold in stark contrast with what Samuel promised. Eva’s father, out of money, and out of life commits suicide after this. Eva finds his dead body outside and underneath their inn room window. She crumples and cries.

We go back to Russell’s memories. We see him and his wife holding and comforting her. Eva eventually starts to get better and happier under their care. Soon, they discover that all of the prospectors that bought Samuel’s land save for one struck empty, and she’s suspicious. She tells her suspicions to Russell. Russell at first thinks it’s nothing. He remembers Samuel as a fine man, who got lucky, a good man, and dismisses the notion. He still sees him from time to time as Samuel comes back occasionally. But, Eva’s nagging eventually gets the better of him, and Russell promises her that he’ll investigate for the sake of her closure. He tells himself that it isn’t anything, but he’ll investigate.

As the investigation goes on, Russell does find things. He goes to different towns visited by Samuel and finds the same thing; empty lands. He begins to suspect Samuel of fraud and of knowingly selling prospectors empty land to make a profit. He sees Samuel occasionally when he returns to the town, but Russell never lets anything show. He doesn’t give a clue that he suspects Samuel of anything, and they act like acquaintances. They say hi to each other, catch up for a while, and sometimes go for a drink, but they’re not friends, just acquaintances in an everyone-knows-everyone town. Back home, Eva seems joyful that she turns out to be right, but crestfallen when Russell tells her that they can’t do anything about it as they have no definitive proof. Eva over the next few weeks slowly but surely pieces together a plan, a plan of seduction but when she approaches Russell about it he says no, he says it’s too dangerous, and that he’s afraid she’ll get hurt. But, Eva eventually persuades him with Russell agreeing only if they schedule check-ins every day so that he can make sure that she’s safe, and if they pull out the moment things get to dangerous. She agrees to the terms, and we see her and Russell follow Samuel through the towns that he visits, looking for a good opportunity to strike. One night Eva is looking on from the shadows of the buildings as Samuel says without looking back to the people behind him, “I wouldn’t sell you the land, even if you gave me all your money.”

We see Eva now, getting ready the next day as Samuel’s getting drunk in the bar, and we see Samuel stumbling towards her as Eva makes her move.

There’s a gap in time now, and we see Eva now dressed finely with clothes that was bought with Samuel’s money. She’s meeting Russell in a private room in an upper class restaurant. She tells him how everything’s going to the plan, and how getting pregnant was a good thing as now Samuel’s determined to keep her with him, and that this will buy her even more time to look for the proof. She says how she’s been going slowly through his office, but yet to find anything. She also tells Russell that there’s still a lot to look for so she’s confident that she’ll find what they’re looking for. We end with her saying that she’ll meet him again here, tomorrow for a check-in.

The next scene is of Russell sitting in the private room, and Eva doesn’t come. Russell waits for hours and hours but nothing happens so he gets worried. We see him rushing to Samuel’s mansion, but he doesn’t see anything. He approaches a police station and using his Police Chief status manages after some effort to convince the San Francisco police to send with him some back-up the next day as he prepares to search Samuel’s manor for Eva. The next day at around 10 or 11am, Russell knocks on the door of the manor, and the butler opens the door. In a kind of surprised the Butler says, “Hello Officer, how may I help you?”

We return back to real time now, and we see Samuel standing there emotionless and reactionless. Russell says quietly voice shaking, “Come now Samuel, we have you already for murder, and don’t make it harder than it has to be.” Samuel doesn’t respond and simply pulls something out of his pocket. Russell thinking it’s a gun ducks and tries to reach Samuel before he fires. But, it isn’t a gun. Samuel simply drops a rectangular object from his hands, it’s his notebook. As it falls from his hand the book opens and lands open on the ground, he says, “Ruined,” and takes a step backwards falling into the stone filled pit. Russell jolts forward in surprise, and he stops along the way to take a look at the notebook that had fallen. He sees notes on gold transactions, and Samuel’s unsuspecting victims. He almost smiles quietly inwardly to himself, but then he notices the writing on the other side of the page. We see glimpses of it as we hear Samuel’s voice reading some of it out in a whisper, “She’s driving me crazy,”; “She’s so lovely,” “I think I’m falling for her.” “I think, I might, I love her.” With that a single tear drops off from Russell’s face as he’s reading it and lands on the word love. Reaching the end of the page, he closes the book with a quiet thud and walks over the edge. He takes a look, and then his face turns into a mixture of emotions: anger, relief, sadness, care, and compassion. He quietly puts the notebook in his jacket pocket. Russell then moves his hand in a weird half formed motion at Samuel which could be construed as a wave and walks away. We focus on his retreating back as he slowly walks down the slightly inclined land, and out of sight.

The camera then turns back to the pit, and we see Samuel spread-eagled at the bottom, head bleeding and not breathing. Dead. We see him holding in his right hand a second object he took from his pocket, the still unbroken neck of the bottle which is now slightly cracked from the fall. We can see some of the gold containing quartz crystals at the side of the pit. Then as the camera continues focusing on Samuel’s body, we cut to the credits as that shot fades to black.

Edited November 12, 2012 by riczhang

[riczhang]

The Very Last First Time

Director: Sylvain Chomet

Studio: Arcturus Entertainment

Genre: Family/Kids

Format: 2D Hand drawn Animation

Voice Cast: Matt Bomer as Etu

Jean-Claude Donda as Etu’s Father

Budget: $30 million

Theater Count: 2395

Rating: G

Release Date: 5 March

Running Time: 1hr 24mins

Plot:

This is a Salish tale of courage and remaining calm in times of stress. Etu is an Sliammon Salish. He speaks the Comox tongue and lives on Harwood Island with his family and tribe. We follow him on a tour of the island, as we see him dance in the woods, and swim in the river. We see the animals of the forest, and some small fish in the river, everything seems so peaceful. And happy. That evening his clan has a big feast, and Etu enjoys every little bit of it.

Ever since he can remember, his father has taken him out fishing on the sea. His father teaches him many things, and together they bond, as they catch the biggest fish that his father could remember ever catching. The smile on Etu’s face is contagious. As he grows older, Etu’s father lets him do more, and more as they go out fishing. Eventually, Etu’s father lets him catch fish all by himself, as he sits in the boat catching his own fish. That night, after Etu had a particularly successful day, Etu’s father told him that he could go out and catch fish on his own, Etu was really, really proud.

One day Etu wanted to use that privilege, and so he went out by himself to fish. So he goes out on the sea alone

with his spears and nets, hoping to find a good catch. As he goes out to sea, the sea is calm, and the conditions are great, Etu’s having a good time, and he even begins to sing a bit to himself, as he approaches the spot where his father usually takes him to fish. Then, the smooth, brown little head of an otter emerged from the surface of the water, stared at him for a fraction of a second, and then dove back down with a splash. Etu sees it, and has a look of excitement on his face, he looks over to where the otter landed in the water, and sure enough, not far from it, the otter popper up once again.

Etu was intrigued and leaned over his boat to see where the otter went. Soon enough, the otter emerged once again and began to play with Etu, following his canoe and doing swift twists and turns that made Etu laugh. Along the way, Etu sees other sea creatures, seals, and etc.

But the fun and games didn’t last long, a strong gust of wind and current came to his canoe and carried it out further to sea where Etu has been told to be dangerous, and where he isn’t allowed to fish alone. He began to panic. We see him shed a few tears, and begin to hyperventilate.

Then the white caps came crashing over the sides of his canoe and frightened Etu. In the midst of his panic, he hears his father’s calm voice in his head. The voice gave him courage and told him what to do and how to follow the currents to return home. And he did.