“What can be greater than a King?” DC has revealed a new 60-second trailer hyping up their four upcoming DCEU movies arriving in 2022. The sneak peek is called “The World Needs Heroes” and features footage from their four big movies: The Batman, starring Robert Pattinson Zoe Kravitz; Black Adam starring Dwayne Johnson Pierce Brosnan; The Flash starring Ezra Miller Antje Traue Michael Shannon; and the sequel Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom with, once again, Jason Momoa Amber Heard Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. There’s some new footage for all of these except Batman. And they all look pretty damn good so far. DC is trying very hard to match Marvel in quality, not in quantity, and while their movies have a different feel they’re usually just as epic. “Come with us… there’s a glorious world out there waiting for you.”
Catch some new footage in DC’s “The World Needs Heroes” preview, direct from DC’s YouTube:
DC’s intro: “The official home of Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash and the rest of The World’s Greatest Super Heroes!” There’s no description for this other than the headline: “The World Needs Heroes. #TheBatman #BlackAdam #TheFlash #Aquaman”. And that’s all they say. These four upcoming DCEU movies are opening in 2022! Shazam 2! Fury of the Gods and Blue Beetle are currently set for 2023. Directed by Matt Reeves, The Batman opens in theaters March 4th, 2022. Directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, Black Adam opens in theaters July 29th, 2022 this summer. Directed by Andy Muschietti, The Flash opens in theaters November 4th, 2022. Directed by James Wan, Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom opens in theaters on December 16th, 2022. Which of these four are you most excited about?
Netflix announced on Tuesday that they will produce 70 new movies for the platform in 2021, with at least one new movie being released every week.
The streaming service touted the talented actors and actresses starring in the new movies, including Leonardo DiCaprio, Sandra Bullock, Dwayne Johnson and others.
The pandemic made 2020 a difficult year for the movie industry. There were restrictions for filming, and some studios are now waiting to release movies until movie theaters are open again.
This lag for the industry isn’t stopping Netflix from releasing films from a host of genres this year. Netflixpublished the names of all their movies, including directors, writers, producers, casts and a brief description of each movie.
“2021 = a new movie EVERY WEEK on Netflix. Here’s a sneak peek at 27 of the biggest, brightest, fastest, funniest, feel-good, feel-everything films and stars coming to Netflix this year,” NetflixFilm tweeted on Tuesday.
2021 = a new movie EVERY WEEK on Netflix. Here’s a sneak peek at 27 of the biggest, brightest, fastest, funniest, feel-good, feel-everything films and stars coming to Netflix this year pic.twitter.com/iCr1ZPrc7W
In the lineup is one of Netflix’s most expensive movies they’ve ever produced, “Red Notice,” starring Johnson, Ryan Reynolds and Gal Gadot, Bloomberg reported.
“With this big of a global audience, there’s a great appetite for film,” film chief Scott Stuber said in an interview. “I’m excited about the diversity of what the teams are doing.”
Netflix was under some controversy recently for releasing a comedy special depicting Jesus as a gay man. Netflix movie “Cooties” also saw backlash from people finding the children’s role in the film inappropriate.
Viewers have long complained about the early HBO Max app’s tendency to crash, and its lack of discoverability features. There have been a number of overhauls and fixes since then. Now we know why. Turns out that HBO Max launched its apps before they were ready in order to keep up with its competitors. The app was “never intended to go global” or to suit the needs of a direct-to-consumer market, according to an interview that Sarah Lyons, HBO Max’s head of product experience, gave Protocol. The network wanted to build an audience first, and then fix the app’s flaws as the service scaled up.
While Lyons admits that the early days of HBO Max were rocky, she thinks the company made the right decision. We’ve been changing out the engine of the plane while we’re flying the plane,” she said. “I do think it was the right decision to try to balance both,” said Lyons.
HBO Max first released its app in May 2020, to join an already saturated streaming ecosystem that included Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Apple TV+ and others. At the time, both HBO Go (the network’s on-demand app for cable subscribers) and HBO Now (the standalone app for cord-cutters) were still available, a fact that confused many subscribers. The network has since retired both apps.
Viewers have flocked to Reddit since the app’s initial launch with complaints that spanned platforms and devices. “We’ve been trying to watch the Harry Potter movies and literally every 15 min or so we get an ERROR message and have to force close the app. Another time it froze completely. It’s absolute garbage. I don’t have this problem with any other app or streaming service,” wrote one user in a thread on the r/HBOMax subreddit from January 2021 entitled “Why does this app suck so hard?”
For many viewers long-accustomed to advanced recommendation algorithms on Netflix and other streaming platforms, it was hard to get used to HBO Max’s lack of discoverability features. Lyons admitted that HBO Max wasn’t built with discovery in mind, and the app tried to address this by putting every new show on the app’s home page. “You didn’t have to go find anything, because whatever [show] you were looking for was going to be at the top of the home page,” said Lyons.
While Engadget’s early review of HBO Max detailed its flaws, we pointed out that it was still a “smart bet” for the company. Since then, the service has made many improvements, including a new Apple TV app and updates to its apps for Roku, Playstation, Android TV and others. But following a recent $43 billion merger with Discovery, the biggest change is yet to come. The plan is to merge both Discovery Plus and HBO Max into one unified platform.
HBO Max ended 2021 with 43.8 million subscribers, when combined with the network’s cable subscribers of HBO who also have access to the streaming service. It’ll soon absorb at least another 22 million subscribers from Discovery Plus. While there could be more bumps down the road, viewers can at least be assured that HBO Max has more experience under its belt now.
“There’s only room for one alpha dog in this town!” Samuel Goldwyn Films has revealed an official trailer for Dakota, another new dog movie about an ex-service dog who makes some new friends. There’s also the other dog movie literally just called Dog playing in theaters now. This next movie centers on Kate, a widow who lost her husband in the war in Afghanistan and is struggling to maintain her small-town farm with her daughter while also running the local volunteer fire department. Dakota, the dog, returns from the war to be with the family and quickly adjusts to her new home, becoming somewhat of a local hero as she settles in. This stars Abbie Cornish, Lola Sultan, Tim Rozon, Patrick Muldoon, Roberto Davide, and Billy Baldwin. This looks like a much cheesier version of Dog, a Hallmark movie special about saving the farm.
Here’s the first official trailer (+ poster) for Kirk Harris’ Dakota, direct from SGF’s YouTube:
Dakota, an ex-service dog, joins single mom Kate (Abbie Cornish) and her daughter Alex (Lola Sultan) to live on their small-town family farm. Dakota quickly adjusts to her new home and becomes somewhat of a local hero, soon becoming inseparable from Alex. When the farm’s existence is threatened by the town’s rogue sheriff (Patrick Muldoon), Dakota must help the family band together and save the land.Dakota is directed by the producer / filmmaker Kirk Harris, director of the films Loser, and Bernie The DolphinBernie the Dolphin 2 previously. The screenplay is written by Johnny Harrington. It’s produced by Monika Bacardi, Andrea Iervolino, Danielle Maloni, and Marty Poole. Goldwyn Films will debut Harris’ Dakota in select US theaters on April 1st, then on VOD starting May 20th this summer. Interested in watching this?
When Patrizia Reggiani, an outsider from humble beginnings, marries into the Gucci family, her unbridled ambition begins to unravel their legacy and triggers a reckless spiral of betrayal, decadence, revenge, and ultimately…murder.
Director:
Ridley Scott |
Stars:
Lady Gaga,
Adam Driver,
Al Pacino,
Jeremy Irons
If you like to work in Uris Library’s Cocktail Lounge, you are most definitely a grinder. By that, I mean you are the at-work-until-the-ungodly-hours-of-the-night type. You’re the kind who downs multiple energy drinks in a single night on occasion (spoken from personal experience).
There’s a few things that might attract you to the Cocktail Lounge. Maybe you appreciate that it is one of the only study spaces on campus that is open all 24 hours, so it is the most convenient place for you to cram for the exam you have been procrastinating for. Maybe you appreciate a good sunset, and there is no better place to watch the sunset than from the windows of the Cocktail Lounge. Or maybe you just appreciate a good swivel chair — they make you feel grounded.
A.D. White Library
If you work here, you appreciate the finer things in life. Plus, you are a huge Harry Potterand Lord of the Rings fan. And — let’s be real here — you love Game of Thrones. But c’mon — do you actually get any work done here? It’s simply too mesmerizing.
Realistically, you just snap a few pics for the gram, close your eyes and pretend you’re Hermione Granger.
Olin Library
If you’re going to work in Olin Library, you might as well hit the stacks. That is where all the hard work happens. The stacks get eerie as hell at night, so you’ve gotta be brave to work there. If you regularly hit the stacks, I’d liken you to a lone wolf — only capable of doing your best work in complete peace and quiet. Plus, I’d guess you are a caffeine fiend and appreciate the proximity to Libe Cafe.
Mann Library
If you prefer Mann, it’s because you thrive on a wide variety of seating areas. Sometimes you’re in the mood for a couch, but other times you crave a trusty swivel chair. More than this, you go to bed early. You don’t cram for an exam in one night — you can’t with the library closing at 10 p.m. You’re different from the crew at the Cocktail Lounge — slightly more on top of things.
Carpenter Hall
If you work at Carpenter Hall, we get it — you’re smart. Like smart smart. But c’mon — Carpenter Hall is not nearly the prettiest place on campus to get your work done. The only things this library boasts are a few private conference rooms. I’m judging you for this one.
Gates Hall
You need only to walk up the road from Carpenter Hall to find Gates Hall. Gates Hall is probably my favorite building on campus. If you study here, you are getting the biggest bang for your buck. Gimme Coffee sits on the ground floor, quenching a caffeine lover’s thirst. The design lets a tremendous amount of light in, giving you just the right Monday morning pick-me-up. And it is always quiet there (and not in a creepy way — I’m looking at you, Olin stacks).
Cafe
If you do work in a cafe, you are just kidding yourself. Let’s be real — you’re not actually working. You are soaking in an ambiance. I’d bet you’re a people person who is fine with sacrificing some prime grind-time for some good company. And that’s alright with me.
Your Room
If you study in your room, you are a different breed, and I don’t mean that in a good way. I mean that you regularly commit a cardinal sin. Have you never heard of the division between work and play? Put another way, I feel the same way about people who work in their rooms as I do about people who dislike chocolate or love sprayable cheese: I don’t trust you.
That’s not to say I don’t like you, as most of my closest friends are guilty of this. We just come from two completely different realms.
Lena Thakor is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at [email protected]
“Yeah… we don’t exactly hug.” MGM has debuted a cute 60-second trailer for Dog to celebrate Valentine’s Day. This adorable comedy is opening in a few more weeks, hence the final marketing push. Disgraced Army Ranger Briggs and his Belgian Malinois companion Lulu race down the Pacific Coast in time to catch their best friend’s and her handler’s funeral. We posted the first full trailer a few months ago. Dog is actually the directorial debut of actor Channing Tatum, who co-directs this with his producing partner Reid Carolin, also making his directorial debut after producing Magic Mike and most of Tatum’s movies. Tatum also stars in Dog – he’s joined by Q’orianka Kilcher, Jane Adams, Kevin Nash, Ronnie Gene Blevins, Nicole LaLiberte, Aqueela Zoll, Cayden Boyd, and Skyler Joy. Plus Lulu the dog! This looks super adorable. There’s also two new behind-the-scenes featurettes for Dog to enjoy included below. Who want to see this?
Here’s the second trailer (+ more featurettes) for Reid Carolin Channing Tatum’s Dog, from YouTube:
“A filthy animal unfit for human company… and a dog.” Army Ranger Briggs (Channing Tatum), along with his companion Lulu, a Belgian Malinois, haul ass down the Pacific Coast in time to catch their best friend’s and handler’s funeral. One of them has a week to live, the other lives like every day is his last.Dog is co-directed by first-time filmmakers Reid Carolin (a producer on Magic Mike, Logan Lucky, 6 Balloons, Light Years, America: The Motion Picture) Channing Tatum, both making their feature directorial debut with this project. The screenplay is written by Reid Carolin and Brett Rodriguez. Produced by Gregory Jacobs, Peter Kiernan, Brett Rodriguez, Channing Tatum. MGM will debut Carolin Tatum’s Dog movie in theaters nationwide starting February 18th, 2022 coming soon. Anyone planning to see this in theaters?
It is now 20 years since the first Harry Potter movie Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone was released. The eight movies, based on the books written by British author JK Rowling, went on to become one of the Blockbuster hits of Hollywood. The movies gave us some of the iconic characters like Harry, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Hagrid, Dumbledore, and more. But those who have read the Harry Potter series know that not all the characters mentioned in the books made it to its screen adaptation.
Let us take a look at some of those characters:
Rodolphus Lestrange
In the Harry Potter movies audiences got to see Bellatrix Lestrange, played by Helena Bonham Carter, however, in the books, Bellatrix also had a husband, Rodolphus Lestrange. Rodolphus is imprisoned with his wife in Azkaban following Voldemort’s downfall. In the books, Bellatrix escapes from the prison along with her husband and fights Harry Potter alongside the Death Eaters both in the Department of Mysteries. When Harry and his lookalikes attempt to move from Privet Drive to the Burrow, Bellatrix and Rodolphus.
In the fourth installment of the series, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Ludo Bagman plays a pivotal role in both organising and announcing the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament. Bagman’s description in the book mentions that he is a former professional Quidditch player, the head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports at the Ministry of Magic. Bagman’s hamartia happens to be gambling addiction which leads to his downfall. Bagman is also shown helping out Harry with the tasks, throughout the Triwizard Tournament because he has placed a large bet that the Boy Who Lived will win the cup. However, in the movie we see Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge announcing the Quidditch World Cup, and Hogwarts Headmaster Dumbledore instead gives instructions to the Triwizard champions before each task.
The Prime Minister of UK
The sixth book in the Harry Potter series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince opens up with a scene with the muggle Prime Minister, who is visited by the Minister for Magic to introduce him to the wizarding world. The Prime Minister is made aware of the fact that the attacks on muggles are a result of Voldemort’s return to power.
Frank and Alice Longbottom
In both the books and movies, we see Neville Longbottom, played by Matthew Lewis, has parents who are tortured with the Cruciatus curse by the Death Eaters, including Bellatrix. In the movies, the audience is led to believe that Neville’s parents died. When Ron, Harry, and Hermione go to visit Arthur Weasley in St. Mungo’s Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, they run into Neville, who is visiting his parents with his grandmother. In the books, the Longbottoms never discharge from St. Mungo’s Hospital, but they do not even appear once in the films.
Professor Cuthbert Binns
Rowling created Professor Binns’ character in the book as someone who teaches History of Magic at Hogwarts. Binns taught until very old age and died in his sleep and he did not even realize that he died when he woke up the next morning and continued to teach as a ghost. In the book Harry and Ron describe Binns as being a dreadfully boring teacher who is oblivious to his students’ boredom in class.
Mohan Bhagwat, the Sarsanghchalak of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) on Sunday addressed the Kashmiri Pandit community via video conferencing. Bhagwat addressed the members of the displaced community as part of Navreh celebrations. During the address, the RSS chief said that it is only a matter of time before Kashmiri Hindus return to their homeland.
Mohan Bhagwat addressed Kashmiri Pandits on Sunday and said that Navreh is the start of the new year and the day of ‘Sankalp’. Appealing to the community to continue their fighting spirit, the RSS chief ensured support for their return to their homeland. Speaking to the people of the community as one, Bhagwat said that they were facing the pain of being out of their own homes for a long time.
“We are facing the pain of being out of our homes while being in our country. It is going on for long. The first solution is not to lose our will to win and head back to our homes,” Mohan Bhagwat said in his address to the Kashmiri Pandits. “We have to be determined to move forward. We have courage, mind, and patience. All situations come and go. Situation test us and we add to our capabilities during testing times Today we are in such situation,” he further added.
Next year, we Kashmiri Pandits will be at our homes: RSS chief
In what seemed like a timeline set for the community’s return, the RSS chief also stated that the people would be able to move back in a year’s time. “It’s only a matter of time before Kashmiri Hindus return to their homeland. Next year, we Kashmiri Pandits will be at our homes. There’s not much time left for this Sankalp now. We have to continue our efforts for this. We have to go back home,” Bhagwat said.
Furthermore, the RSS chief went on to state that the country was in support of the community and added that they will be moving back to the valley soon. “We got out of the land but we have our Kashmir our land with us. We have entire India with us,” Bhagwat said. “We will go to Kashmir now as a Hindu, as an Indian. We will settle there, and will never come back. We will settle in such a way that no exodus can take place,” the RSS chief added.
He also stated that the community must be ready to fight back for their stand. “We will teach them a lesson if someone makes any such effort,” Bhagwat said. Further, he also spoke about the exodus of Israeli citizens and how they fought their way back as an example. “Even people of Israel were out of their homes but they fought for 1800 years. Determination of 1700 years and 100 years of the fight made their return back to Israel,” he said exuding confidence into the community over their return to Kashmir.
The Kashmir Files didn’t just show us the truth, it shocked us
Meanwhile, speaking on the discussions over the film The Kashmiri Files which shed light on the exodus of the community, Bhagwat said that the film showed the truth and shocked its viewers. “The Kashmir Files movie was released and many people are objecting to it, giving their analysis. But there are a few people who have supported it and said that truth has been shown. The film didn’t just show us the truth, it shocked us,” the RSS chief said.
Also reiterating the moves made by the group for the community, Bhagwat said that the constant efforts put in by the people since 2011 led to the abrogation of Article 370. “I hail your efforts for return. I told you that 370 has to go and it is because of our efforts since 2011 that 370 is now gone,” the RSS chief said. He concluded his address to the community by adding that their return to their homeland was inevitable and urged them to stay strong to fight for their stand.
Travis Seetoo didn’t have his phone on him. He was out on a bike ride and happened to pull into the grounds of the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont., when he got grabbed by a stage manager.
“She’s like, ‘You’re on!'” Seetoo recalls.
Just like that, Seetoo was ready to act — called up as an understudy for a show last year after another actor started showing COVID-19 symptoms. Seetoo said it was the first instance of a Shaw actor getting called up because of that. You aren’t allowed to come to work at Shaw if you have any symptoms.
As Ontario theatre companies start their seasons amid a sixth wave of COVID-19, the odds of this happening have increased — and so has the reliance on understudies. Shaw is having members of its company understudy more roles this year because of the Omicron variant.
“It could happen at any time now,” said Seetoo, acting in two shows at Shaw this season and understudying an additional five roles in those two plays. “You certainly run your lines a lot more. You try not to forget them.”
Often times, understudies are in the show already, playing another character or part of the ensemble.
Audience members are shown at Stratford Festival’s opening night of their theatre season in 2021. Previews for the Ontario festival’s production of Chicago were supposed to start last week, but were cancelled after cast tested positive for COVID-19. Shows started Tuesday, with understudies replacing two roles. (Chris Young/The Canadian Press)
Stratford Festival has hired more actors this season and also has more understudies than usual. It was set to start previews of the musical Chicago last week, its first show of the season.
But three performances were cancelled after eight cast members tested positive for COVID-19.
Shows were able to resume Tuesday, with understudies replacing two roles.
‘Heroes of live theatre’
Alex Mustakas is currently in the casting process, paying much more attention to hiring understudies, particularly for his musicals.
He’s artistic director for Drayton Entertainment, which is putting on 15 different shows in six venues around southern Ontario this season, in places like Drayton and St. Jacobs near Kitchener-Waterloo and Grand Bend on Lake Huron.
“Understudies are the heroes of live theatre,” he said. “The alternative is no theatre and I don’t think that’s an option anymore.”
Drayton Entertainment artistic director Alex Mustakas plays Don Quixote in a production of Man of La Mancha. He says that pre-pandemic, actors never missed shows. But that’s different now. ‘I don’t think it’s going to be theatre at all costs anymore.’ (Submitted by Hilary Gauld Camilleri)
Still, Mustakas worries. His son and wife contracted COVID-19 recently and he had to isolate at home. He spent all that time thinking what would happen if he were putting on a show right then. Drayton’s season doesn’t start until late May.
Then there’s the cost. Understudies are an added expense, often out of reach for smaller theatre companies with tighter budgets, or shows have smaller casts. There are understudy rehearsals that need to be run, hard to do if the show is only on for a short stint or has a short rehearsal period.
But cancelling performances means losing a lot of money. Mustakas has budgeted for it this season. Mirvish Productions in Toronto doesn’t do shows without understudies.
“To lose a performance is a very, very, very bad thing,” said John Karastamatis, Mirvish’s director of communications and programming. “When you hire understudies and everything that goes with them, what you are buying is insurance.”
A scene from the New York production of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. Mirvish Productions is putting on the show in Toronto starting May 31. The company says each part in the show has two understudies. (Matthew Murphy/Boneau/Bryan-Brown/Associated Press)
Mirvish is in rehearsals for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, the mega 3-hour and 30-minute, Tony Award-winning play, opening in Toronto at the end of May. It was initially supposed to premiere in fall 2020.
To avoid any shutdown, Karastamatis said, each part in the show has two understudies, more than they’ve had before. It also means additional costs, like more costumes to fit those understudies. In the regular cast alone, the show has more than 500 costumes.
Learning from cancelling
Shaw Festival had to shutter its production of A Christmas Carolin December during the first Omicron wave, after someone in the company tested positive. It’s learned from that experience, especially about the importance of masks.
Actors keep masks on in rehearsal and a mask mandate is in place for the audience until at least May 23, even though the province doesn’t require it. If an actor tests positive, the stage manager has to figure out if others in the show are at risk of exposure. That’s a possibility, of course, as actors are maskless when they do shows.
Theatre companies in Ontario are rolling out their first full seasons since the pandemic started over two years ago — and understudies are crucial to ensure the show goes on during COVID-19’s sixth wave. Haydn Watters has more. 8:38
Shaw’s lone show that’s on right now, Cyrano de Bergerac, has not had to cancel any performances yet.
Kimberley Rampersad, Shaw’s associate artistic director, said understudies are already being called upon for other shows in rehearsal right now. She calls them “immeasurable.”
“Our understudies will go on because COVID is what it is,” said Rampersad, who this season is also acting in a show and directing/choreographing another. “They will and have already saved us from cancelling shows.”
Kimberley Rampersad, Shaw’s associate artistic director, says understudies have always been crucial, but the pandemic has heightened that. ‘COVID really is shining a light.’ (Submitted by David Cooper)
It’s also meant a shift in mindset for actors, used to not missing a show regardless of ailments. Seetoo, now in his eighth season at Shaw, has heard his share of horror stories.
“There used to be a great amount of pride [that] more senior actors have, in like, ‘Oh I went on and I was bleeding from my solar plexus the whole time, and I did the best Hamlet you’ve ever seen,'” he said.
Seetoo is glad COVID-19 has changed that.
“We have the same motivation which we used to have that we’d go on no matter what’s happening,” he said. “We’re still doing that, but we’re staying home because we want the show to continue.”
