WATCH: New ‘American Sniper’ Trailer: Will Bradley Cooper Earn Third Consecutive Oscar Nomination?

sni

The first trailer for Clint Eastwood’s ‘American Sniper‘ was brilliant. One of the best trailers of the year. If that trailer was the only thing they released before premiering the movie, I don’t think anyone would have complained. But this is the season of giving, and the folks behind the true story of Navy SEAL Chris Kyle are giving us a second trailer just one week before the limited release on Christmas.

In this new trailer, we see more of Kyle’s family and a little more of the story behind the film. It’s a more traditional trailer, directed at the small group of people who needed to see more before buying a ticket.

The film has received mostly positive reviews, and some people believe Bradley Cooper could land his third consecutive Oscar nomination for his role as Chris Kyle. That’s still unresolved, though. Clint Eastwood’s recent films haven’t had much success with critics, and American Sniper was shut out at the Golden Globes, so it will be interesting to see what happens.

If you are lucky, you will be able to catch American Sniper during its limited release on Christmas. If you can’t see it then, it will open nationwide January 16, 2015.

Check out the new trailer down below.

New Movie Poster released for ‘American Sniper’ displays a Beefed up Bradley Cooper

Bradley-Cooper-American-Sniper

Now this is a freakin’ movie poster.  As you can probably tell, I’m still a little disappointed at the lack luster release of the Jurassic World poster.  It gave us nothing.

This, this gives us substance!  Bradley Cooper looks so bad-ass in this poster, I want to watch the movie no matter what it is.  It just so happens that the movie might actually be as good as this poster makes it look.  Directed by Clint Eastwood (…did I hear some groans, come on, give him a chance!); where was I?  Oh yeah, Directed by Clint Eastwood, this movie is based on a book entitled ‘American Sniper: The Autobiography of the Most Lethal Sniper in U.S. Military History,’

If you weren’t into this before, after that book title you have to be now.  This book spent 18 weeks on the New York Times best seller list.  13 of those 18, it held down the number 1 spot.

The story is about Chris Kyle who is a Navy Seal, a trained killer, husband and father.  It goes into his struggle to be good at all of those things, which at the end of the day is pretty freakin’ hard to do.

cooper-kyle

Coop had to beef up for this role and from the side by side shot of him with Chris Kyle, he’s nailed it.

The movie will be out on limited release Christmas Day and will have full release on January 16th 2015.

I can’t wait for the trailer.

[toggle title=”Here is the official move synopsis.”]U.S. Navy SEAL Chris Kyle is sent to Iraq with only one mission: to protect his brothers-in-arms. His pinpoint accuracy and courageous exploits earn him the nickname “Legend.” However, his reputation is also growing behind enemy lines, putting a price on his head and making him a prime target of insurgents. He is also facing a different kind of battle on the home front: striving to be a good husband and father from halfway around the world. Despite the danger, as well as the toll on his family, Chris serves through four harrowing tours of duty in Iraq, personifying the spirit of the SEAL creed to “leave no one behind”. But upon returning to his family, Chris finds that it is the war he can’t leave behind.

[/toggle]

american_sniper_bradley_cooper

 

Movie Review: Guardians of the Galaxy – A Dizzying Array of Alliances and Enemies, but all together it Works

guardians-of-the-galaxy-team-2

Guardians of the Galaxy is currently sitting at number one at the box office and has earned an astonishing $94 million so far. It’s also managing to do pretty good with critics. So what is it about Guardians that is earning it such accolades?

This is another comic book adaptation from Marvel. In Guardians, adventurer Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) finds himself the object of a universe wide bounty hunt, after he swipes a magic orb. Main bad guy Ronan (Lee Pace) has plans to control the universe with said orb and will stop at nothing to get it back. To escape Ronan, Quill teams up with Rocket (Bradley Cooper), a gun-toting raccoon, Groot (Vin Diesel), a tree-like humanoid, the deadly and enigmatic Gamora (Zoe Saladana) and the revenge-driven Drax the Destroyer (David Baustida).

I was a little surprised that Disney chose to go with Guardians. While I might be familiar with the series, I doubt most non-comic readers are. These are not the familiar and comforting characters that spurned action figures and Saturday morning cartoons, so choosing to make a movie out of them seems like a big risk.

Luckily, it paid off. This is a movie that does not take itself too seriously. Quill, the main character, is a bit of a bumbling egotist who brings back shades of Hans Solo. One clever part to the movie is the ever present mix tape that Quill listens to on an old school Walkman, playing music that shouldn’t fit the scenes, but does. It’s possibly the strangest soundtrack I’ve ever heard, but it works.

rocket-raccoon-guardians-of-the-galaxy-bradley-cooper

guardians-of-the-galaxy-groot-vin-diesel

Zoe Saldana as Gamora was a great choice, possibly because this is a woman who is used to wearing full body make-up. This time around she’s all green instead of all blue and she’s completely fantastic. Gamora wasn’t quite as dimensional as her role in Avatar, but she still manages to fit the part seamlessly.

I question why it was necessary to pay Vin Diesel’s likely astronomical price tag to play the part of Groot. Groot literally only says three words the entire movie. “I am Groot.” This is a guy who got $15 million for The Fast Five, so I’m curious as to how much it cost Guardians producers to get him to say the same three words over and over again.

The battle scenes are engaging and clever and no characters are really one dimensional, like you might find in other superhero movies. There is a lot going on, a ton of different locations, and a dizzying array of alliances and enemies, but all together it works.

michael-rooker-yondu

You’ll find a lot more humor in Guardians than you will in most superhero movies. There are a few heart wrenching moments as well. The first scene in the movie starts with a cancer stricken mother, dying in a hospital bed. That scene might be a bit much for younger viewers, but the movie really picks up from there.

Disney took a huge risk with this movie and it paid off. If you’re sick of the same old superheroes, then Guardians of the Galaxy will give you something new. These obscure anti-heroes really shine when brought to the big screen and this is a movie that is absolutely worth the watch.

WE GAVE IT: 4.5  Stars: Official Movie Trailer and Movie Poster Below

four and a half stars

 

[youtube id=”GQRqShJGIJc” width=”633″ height=”356″]

18b149286ca6f2920e017bd5d2ffcbf5