Tag: Bella Thorne

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Bella Thorne Set To Star In Upcoming Thriller Film ‘Saint Clare’ From ‘American Psycho’ Writer

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Bella Thorne is stepping away from the adult film industry to star in the upcoming thriller film, Saint Clare. The movie, which was co-written by ‘American Psycho‘ writer Guinevere Turner, stars Thorne as a quiet catholic college student with a divine vocation for killing.

The story is actually based on the novel Clare at Sixteen by Don Roff. There’s actually a sequel book coming out in 2023, so the first book was obviously a pretty big success. It was released back in March of 2021.

Mitzi Perione is set to direct this project. She previously directed the psychological thriller ‘Dying to Play’ in 2018. That was her feature directorial debut, so this will be just her second feature.

Producers are in negotiations with Rebecca DeMornay (Jessica Jones) to join the cast, with additional casting of other key roles underway. Production is scheduled to begin soon in Kentucky.

Screen Media has already picked up worldwide rights to the project and will launch international sales at this month’s Cannes market. Screen Media will handle distribution in the U.S.

It’s likely this film gets a 2023 release date, and if it’s a success, you can bet they’ll make a sequel the following year.

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Watch Bella Thorne In First Trailer For Romantic Drama ‘Time Is Up’

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Voltage Pictures has just released the first trailer for their upcoming romantic drama, Time Is Up.

The film stars Bella Thorne and Benjamin Mascolo, which is interesting because they’re actually a couple in real life as well. Time Is Up was co-written/directed by Italian filmmaker Elisa Amoruso. It was actually an Italian production, but it’s entirely in English.

Check out the official synopsis below:

Vivien is a highly accomplished student, with a passion for physics and keen to get into a prestigious American university. She seems to live her own life as a mathematical formula that drives her to look at her own happiness as something to be postponed into the future. Roy, on the other hand, is a troubled and problematic young man who, due to a trauma suffered as a child, sees his desires continually hindered by a past that seems to constantly haunt him. But mathematics too has its variables and as always happens, life manages to weave events together in increasingly surprising and unexpected ways. Indeed, an accident will force them to come to a stop and reclaim their lives, and finally start living in a present that perhaps will prove to be more exciting than any predefined formula.

The synopsis tries to make the film sound unique, but the trailer looks pretty generic.

Have a look for yourself. It’s expected to be released on VOD and digital platforms on September 24.

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Movie Review: Ratchet and Clank – At Least With Results this Bad, We Won’t be Subjected to a Sequel

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After being thoroughly delighted by Keanu, who would have thought my movie going experience would take such a terrible turn? But it did, when some Hollywood producers broke the golden rule of adaptations. Never adapt a movie from a game. Yes, you can do it in the other direction, but as far as I’m concerned, to date no one has given me a convincing movie adaptation of a video game or board game I played. Clue, Mortal Kombat, Wing Commander and Lara Croft: Tomb Raider all have one thing in common. They could never live up to the experience of actually playing the game.

Anyway, in this film, two unlikely heroes (some kind of robot, and a fox thing) team up to fight an evil alien overlord intent on universal destruction. The team then teams up with another team (I know, right?), made of seizure inducing bright colors known as The Galactic Rangers, to save the day.

Again, not nearly as fun as playing the 2002 version of the game. They didn’t even try to deviate from the game story. The storyline is pulled right from it and they changed nothing at all. It’s some pretty damn lazy storytelling, if you ask me.

The animation is good for a video game…but terrible for a movie. I don’t want to go to the movies and feel like I’ve been sent back to 1991, watching my brother hog the Nintendo. I was bored when it happened then, and I was bored in the theater watching this.

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You know what it feels like? It feels like someone recorded them beating the game on their PlayStation and expects us to buy it as a movie…even without Pew Die Pie making nonsensical, but weirdly delightful noises in the background. Well I ain’t buying it.

This was a lazy, phoned in effort that cashes in on the nostalgia of aging Millennials while trying to do as little work as possible. You don’t get any more information here than you do in the video game, which leads me to wonder, why watch the movie? I mean, I liked Ratchet and Clank the video game, but not so much that I really cared enough to see them on the big screen.

 

Also, 94 minutes for a recycled story is a bit excessive. With most movies topping out at 80, it’s a bit stupid to add and additional ten onto the industry standard. Maybe it took the ‘animator’ a bit longer to beat the game.

Whatever, I can’t call this worth the watch and audiences aren’t either. This didn’t even come within a whisper of the top five at the box office and earned a paltry $5 million to date. At least with results this bad, we won’t be subjected to a sequel. If you’re feeling nostalgic, just go play the game.

We Gave it: 1 Star: Official Movie Trailer and Movie Poster Below

1 star

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Movie Review: The Duff – failure to follow the book leaves watered down results

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In case you’re as curious as I was, a ‘duff’ is a designated ugly fat friend. According to the tag line, you either know one, you have one, or you are one. While you might be expecting a “Mean Girls” you’ll find this movie far more similar to “Easy-A”.

We start out the movie meeting Bianca, (Mae Whitman) a happy high school senior who is perfectly happy being the tomboy among her prettier friends (Skyler Samuels & Bianca Santos). That is until she learns she’s been designated the Duff by popular mean girl Madison (Bella Throne) and the name is sticking. So, after ignoring the advice of her high school principal (Ken Jeong) she partners up with Wesley (Robbie Amell), a slick jock, to help her win the heart of her crush Toby (Nick Eversman) and leave her Duff label behind.

Despite the fact that these kids don’t look like anyone I went to high school with, I have to say the casting director did an excellent job. Mae Whitman has a special kind of quirky chemistry, the kind that brings me back to Helen Page in Juno, and she slides into the roll easily, playing a character you root for. Robbie Amell is another huge talent, as he feels a lot like a boy just about every girl went to high school with (though a bit handsomer). This whole cast had a lot of chemistry and was a lot of fun to watch.

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The thing that will keep this movie from being an instant classic was its fear to ‘go there”. Too many films leave too much out in the interest of making it to that PG-13 rating and a lot of stuff in the book didn’t make it to the film adaptation, which was a shame. After all, the book was written by a girl in her senior year of high school. If anyone knows what it’s like, the author did. But failure to follow the book enough turns this film into a watered down version that could have been a lot harder hitting.

Because of that, the whole film’s message about inner beauty becomes almost half hearted and the movie rings shallow more than once. On top of that, almost constant references to current pop culture things like Snapchat and such, are going to make this movie feel dated pretty quickly. It’s not going to make it to teen comedy classic, that’s for sure.

I think ever single generation gets their own “She’s All That.” It’s that nerdy girl gets a makeover and becomes beautiful film that isn’t quite a classic, but is loved among its given generation. The Duff may well be this generation’s version.

A strong cast (if you can get over the fact that a bunch of 20 year olds are playing teenagers) and clever dialog make this movie watchable, and even enjoyable. Where it kind of falls apart is the message. In that case, it looks like the studio made the decision to go commercial over groundbreaking, and that’s a shame, because they had everything they needed to make it powerful.

Regardless, it’s still worth the watch, thought less tech savvy viewers might find themselves confused by all the app references.

WE GAVE IT: 3.5 Stars – Watch the Official Trailer and Official Movie Poster below!

3.5 stars

 

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Movie Review: Blended (2014)

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blended_ver6_xlgDrew and Sandler Fall victim to a Lazy Screenplay

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I love Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler together. While I am not much of a romantic comedy fan, as far as I’m concerned, the Wedding Singer is the absolute standard when it comes to rom-coms. When they teemed up again in 50 First Dates, I was again floored by the combination of their chemistry, as well as their comedic timing. I truly hoped to see that come through in Blended.

It starts off with a great premise. After a absolutely terrible blind date, single parents to multiple children Lauren (Drew Barrymore) and Jim (Adam Sandler) agree that they are not meant to be and that there will not be a second date. Fate has other things in mind and they both sign up for separate family vacations at the same luxury resort for an African safari. Of course, they wind up sharing the same suite, dealing with each other’s out of controls kids and regularly getting assaulted by various exotic animals.

I am pleased to say that Barrymore and Sandler still have that same fantastic chemistry that makes you know there is going to be a happy ending. Despite this great chemistry, the plot of the movie and the eventual happy ending is a bit of a let down.

As a single parent, I can tell you that the reason I date someone isn’t because he’d great for my kid. While that’s a deal breaker, it is only part of what I seek out in a partner. This movie treats single parents like they should simply choose the partner who is best with their children, regardless of how little they actually like that person.

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The roles were underwritten for Sandler and Barrymore. In fact, the roles were flat, two dimensional stereotypes of men and women. She’s a nagging neat freak, pearl clutching professional closet organizer. He’s a dirty schlub who owns a sports store and can’t bear to hear the word ‘tampon.’

But there are some fantastic moments, like Terry Crews playing a resort singer who is far too interested in the couple getting together or a few of the cruder scenes involved animals.

Unfortunately, I really feel like the screenplay writer left far too much up to Barrymore and Sandler to carry this off. The laughs are there, I’ll give them that, but the dialog isn’t. Even though the chemistry is there, we don’t really feel the motivation for the couple getting together in the end, other than they’d make great step parents.

BLENDED

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The dialog wasn’t there and them being forced to share a hotel suite was contrived. They just happened to show up at a hotel where the main idea there is helping blended families get to know each other? Really? Come on.

I can’t give this movie high rankings like I would have 50 First Dates or The Wedding Singer. Barrymore and Sandler still shine. The child actors involved weren’t half bad at all. But they were all let down by a poorly written script with poorly written characters. Watch the official trailer below.

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