Hear from director Quentin Tarantino and the Django Unchained cast about Leonardo DiCaprio's performance in this new featurette:

 

Django Unchained Leonardo DiCaprio Featurette

Jamie Foxx stars as Django, a slave freed by the bounty hunter Dr. King Schultz, played by Christoph Waltz, in order to help him seek a band of criminals that only he has seen. As the two develop a friendship, their focus shifts to freeing Django's wife from the evil plantation owner Calvin Candie, played by DiCaprio.

Kerry Washington, Walton Goggins, Samuel L. Jackson (The Avengers), Don Johnson, James Russo, Bruce Dern, and Jonah Hill (21 Jump Street) also star.

Quentin Tarantino's latest film is in theaters now. So watch the film, then deck out your desktop with a Django Unchained wallpaper.

Animation had a stellar year in 2012 and the method to the artistic madness took many forms: From stop-motion, computer generated and hand-drawn, artists had a field day with the releases of the last 12 months. The genre also pushed the boundaries of storylines with the format showing that it is for audiences of all ages with its complex emotional landscapes and powerful, well-drawn-out characters.

So, who is number one?

10. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett-Smith and David Schwimmer returned to their parts as escaped zoo animals struggling to find their way home. For the third installment in the series, the gang gets out of Africa and heads to Europe in search of those pesky penguins that they believe, hold the key to their triumphant return to the Central Park Zoo.

The film was even funnier and zany -- if that's possible -- than the previous two incarnations and has us looking forward to a fourth. And the fact that Rock did his Afro Circus dance in this Madagascar 3 clip only further enhanced our love of the flick.

9. Ice Age: Continental Drift
It's hard to believe that the Ice Age gang have made four films, but with Continental Drift those prehistoric characters keep finding ways to entertain us. The cast, Ray Romano, Queen Latifah, John Leguizamo and Denis Leary, all are finding things changing. The world is starting to split apart (thus the title) and during one emotional scene, families are violently separated by a seismic shift. Our Ice Age: Continental Drift review states that the film series is more for kids than adults, unlike many on this list, and that is exactly where filmmakers direct their storylines and humor.

8. The Secret World of Arrietty
Japanese anime finds its way to the Top 10 Animated Movies list for the first time. Disney took the Asian film and dubbed American actors over the action, including the iconic Carol Burnett. As shown off in The Secret World of Arrietty trailer, the animation is of the most beautiful we've seen all year.

7. The Pirates! Band of Misfits
The U.K. animation studio behind Wallace and Gromit do it again with a quite English-based humor fest that takes on the ripe for the spoofing world of pirates. Not above spoofing other movies as well, check out the purely U.K. humor that is shown in this The Pirates! Band of Misfits Titanic trailer. Hugh Grant voicing the inept pirate at the center of the film has us wanting more from this sassy seaman.

6. Rise of the Guardians
DreamWorks animation scores their second film on our countdown with Rise of the Guardians. The studio wisely centered their first teaser for audiences on their lead character, shown off in the Rise of the Guardians Jack Frost trailer. Chris Pine's role is the audience's view into the world where Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and Sandman all work together to ensure the fantasy world of children remains unaltered. Spectacularly drawn and wildly original, DreamWorks hopes that the film will be part of a series.

5. Hotel Transylvania
What an original idea! Selena Gomez voices Dracula's daughter and as her character is turning 118, she seeks to have her father (a stellar Adam Sandler, yeah, we know!) fulfill his promise of letting her go venture into the world. The only problem is the world hates monsters. That is why Dracula built his titular establishment as a place where monsters can get away and forget the world who seeks their destruction. As evidenced by these hysterical Hotel Transylvania quotes, it's as fun for adults as it is children.

4. Frankenweenie
Tim Burton's latest film is a full-length feature based on one of his first. Frankenweenie tells the story of a boy and his dog and what lengths the child will go to to bring his beloved canine back to life when he unexpectedly dies. Burton's cast of characters are as pitch perfect as ever and the director has scored his best work in years. Check out our Frankenweenie exclusive wallpapers for more inside the film.

3. Wreck-It Ralph
Disney animation had us with the very first Wreck-It Ralph trailer. We were enthralled by the idea of staying with the video game world, long after the arcade closed at the end of the day. Ralph is the bad guy in a video game called Fix-It Felix and after 30 years, he's a little tired of being bad. What's a guy to do? Why not jump out of his game and try his hand at being a hero in others? Impeccable visuals, a scene-stealing turn by Sarah Silverman and it all added up to one of Disney's finest works in years.

2. Brave
Pixar headed to Scotland and came back with the story of a Scottish princess who cares more about riding her horse Angus and shooting her bow and arrow than thinking about marriage. Unfortunately for her, at Merida's age, it is time to think about nuptuals and the carrying on of the royal legacy. Brave surprises by becoming not exactly the princess story you'd expect and the message here is pure Disney: Love your family, warts and all.

1. ParaNorman
The creative team behind Coraline returns to stop motion and further pushes the boundaries. A story of the ages, for all ages, follows a young boy (Norman) who can see and hear the supernatural as they live (and die) around us. As the ParaNorman trailer teased, this is an artistic world with humans and monsters created from a quite different palette. It gets points for originality, artistry and a story that compels right up to the final credits.

After yielding to two new releases on Christmas Eve, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is back on top for the third weekend in a row. The film took in $32.9 million in the final days of the year, reaching $222.7 million in total domestic ticket sales.

Coming in second place is Django Unchained. Quentin Tarantino's new film grossed $30.7 million over the weekend, after opening in second place on Christmas Day. After being open for just under a week, Django has earned a total of $64 million.

Les Miserables, which opened in first place on Christmas, came in third place in its first weekend in theaters. Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Amanda Seyfried, and Anne Hathaway earned $28 million, bringing its total one-week gross to $67.5 million.

The new film Parental Guidance, and the second-week film Jack Reacher fill out the top five. The family comedy and Tom Cruise action film grossed $14.8 million and $14 million, respectively.

Box office Top 10:

1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, $32.9 million
2. Django Unchained, $30.7 million
3. Les Miserables, $28 million
4. Parental Guidance, $14.8 million
5. Jack Reacher, $14 million
6. This is 40, $13.2 million
7. Lincoln, $7.5 million
8. The Guilt Trip, $6.7 million
9. Monsters, Inc., $6.4 million
10. Rise of the Guardians, $4.9 million

Dead Man Down is a new crime thriller starring Colin Farrell and Noomi Rapace (Prometheus). Check out the first trailer below:

 

Dead Man Down Trailer

Farrell plays a killer-for-hire named Victor. After a woman named Beatrice (Rapace) sees Victor commit a murder, she blackmails him into killing the man responsible for violently maiming her.

Dominic Hooper (Captain America: The First Avenger) and Terrence Howard (Iron Man) also star.

Dead Man Down is the first English-language film from Niels Arden Oplev, who directed Rapace in the original Swedish adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The film hits theaters March 8, 2013.

January used to be thought of as the month where studios dump their least desirable films. That is not so much the case anymore as the stars are lining up in new films to be released in this first month of 2013.

Mark Wahlberg and Russell Crowe do battle in Broken City while Josh Brolin, Ryan Gosling, Sean Penn and Emma Stone go gangster as so awesomely teased in the Gangster Squad trailer. And a whole new generation gets to discover the grisly story of Texas Chainsaw 3D.

And let's not forget about Kathryn Bigelow's bin Laden story -- Zero Dark Thirty -- finally opening nationally, as is Matt Damon's Promised Land. Then there's Jeremy Renner and his bringing a new take on a classic fairy tale with Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters and the Wayans brothers doing more movie parody with A Haunted House. Then, is it us, or does it look like everyone in Hollywood is in the Movie 43 trailer? Lastly, Jason Statham hopes to have a new franchise on his hands with the graphic novel leap to the big screen effort that is Parker.

Take our latest poll and let us know...

What is January's most anticipated movie?

Two new stills and one set photo have hit the internet from Texas Chainsaw 3D. Take a look (click thumbnails to enlarge):

Alexandra Daddario (Hall Pass) stars in the seventh film from the horror movie franchise. This installment picks up where the first film left off, as a young woman named Heather travels with her friends to pick up an inheritance from a grandmother she never knew about. What she doesn't know is that Leatherface comes with the deal.

Dan Yeager, Trey Songz, Scott Eastwood, Tania Raymonde, Shaun Sipos, and Bill Moseley also star.

John Luessenhop directs the film, which hits theaters January 4. Until then, check out even more Texas Chainsaw 3D stills!

With the year coming to a close, it's important to really take a look at the best parts of 2012; the things to be thankful for; the little moments that made the year special -- like our Top 10 Movies of 2012. But it's way more fun to just go to town on something you hated. So let's do that!! Yaaaay!

As we head into the new year, Movie Fanatic's own Micah Gordon and Joel Amos each discuss their least favorite movie of 2012.

MICAH:

This is going to be a very contentious pick, but there's a lot to consider when discussing the worst movie of the year. I'd say that beyond simply picking the movie you enjoyed watching the least, one must consider expectation vs. payoff, cultural context, and the taste a movie leaves in your mouth long after you've left the theater. Keeping all this in mind, I really have to go with The Dark Knight Rises as the worst film of 2012.

TDKR was supposed to be the end of an extremely well-respected series. It was supposed to wrap up what is possibly the greatest superhero movie ever, The Dark Knight (which recently made our list of the 100 Best Films of All Time). It was supposed to feature the coolest villain we've ever seen, and the one guy who could actually defeat Batman. Instead, what audiences got was a 3-hour narrative nightmare, with a silly villain who wore his Achilles' heel on his face (nobody thought to go after Bane's mask, if only to make him more intelligible?), some plot holes so canyonesque, I had to make up the word "canyonesque" to describe them, and one of the least believable, most unsatisfying, biggest cop-out movie endings I've ever seen.

Was TDKR a decent movie to sit and watch? Yes. But beyond being way too long, the moment I left the theater, doubts began to set in. Then, a close analysis of the plot revealed some truly unforgivable oversights, which ultimately concluded in flat-out hatred. So there you have it, America. I. Hated. The. Dark. Knight. Rises.

JOEL:

For my worst picture of 2012, we have to travel all the way back to January when an apocalyptic horror movie was nothing more than an absolute terror to watch. As I stated in my The Divide review, the film was supposed to be this big morality picture, masked in the horrors of what happens to humans after an all-out nuclear attack. Instead it was simply the most awful mix of what human evil can be inflicted on each other by each of us and a government-as-bad-guy story with neither ever being even remotely realized.

At one point in the film, one of the characters swims through a sewer and that is a perfect metaphor for how one feels after watching this stinker. It's terrible on so many levels, it's hard to know where to stop.

First of all, who is it that attacked New York City? Secondly, why did the government weld shut the door to the outside world that our handful of survivors are stuck behind? And lastly, would people really turn on each other in the way that is painted in The Divide? Sure, horrible things would happen, but there is no way that after surviving a nuclear attack, a group of strangers would act as filmmakers painted in this horror show.

If one has to watch violence porn, there are at least a dozen better examples (Saw) of how to achieve that sick feat in a more compelling manner.

Not only will you want to take a shower after witnessing The Divide, it may even make you swear off movies!

Stephen Rebello is the author of Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, and his book largely contributed to Hitchcock, one of the one-two punches audiences got this year that revived interest in the master of suspense. That film landed on screens merely weeks after The Girl premiered on HBO and suddenly 2012 became the year of Hitch.

We caught up with Rebello for an exclusive interview to close the book on the year that spawned mountains of new interest in the man who gave us The Birds, North by Northwest (one of our Top 100 Movies of All Time) and numerous indelible classics. “There are so many Hitchcocks and I knew a few of them,” he said and laughed.

“What I mean, there are so many ways of looking at him through so many different prisms in which to look at his work and his life. There’s nothing definitive. Look at the numbers of books on him. Look at the great number of movie makers who talk about him and he is many things to many people. So, I’m excited that we’re a part of this new surge in Hitchcock interest.”

Hitchcock, Rebello said, takes audiences inside the world of a film master and shows why the filmmaker was given so much attention in 2012.

“This film provides an interesting view of Hitchcock in terms of the different methods to his madness. He could be cruel and kind. He could be a genius, but a genius who was unsure of himself. He could be enormously gracious and enormously focused on his own issues,” he added. "I think it’s amazing that there are many looks at him that are brought to bear this year. It’s a man who will never be pinned down. He can never be wrapped up in a neat little package.”

The focus of the film, and Rebello’s novel, was on a specific period of time: When he was making Psycho. “The book, and the film, is meant to be a fly on the wall. He never thought we’d be talking about that movie all these decades later,” Rebello said.

It’s hard not to notice that the heart of the film, and his book, is how Hitchcock’s wife Alma was integral to his success. “He was a genius who had a perfect collaborator in his life partner. She preceded him in the movie business. He often deferred to her about casting and material. She was extraordinarily brilliant and what audiences wanted. He trusted few people, but trusted her in every way,” Rebello said. “He would have been a great filmmaker without her, but he was a better human being and filmmaker because of her.”

Hitchcock is a fascinating look at a movie master and his muse, and that is why it was one of our honorable mentions in our Top 10 Movies of 2012. The film also shows an aspect of Hollywood that even the great Hitchcock was not immune to… its unfriendly relationship with the passage of time.

“Here was Hitchcock at a time in his life, age 59, hitting 60, top of his career, and yet dealing with a new generation of filmmakers nipping at his heels,” Rebello said.

Making Psycho after North by Northwest was a very unpopular choice. In fact, the couple had to mortgage their home to get the movie made… as shown in the Hitchcock trailer. “What was it like as he took a nose dive into a different kind of material? He put his own financing on the line, his reputation on the line. And who did he trust above all else? The answer was Alma.”

Goodbye 2012! We hardly knew ya. As the calendar switches from 2012 to 2013, Movie Fanatic recently looked back at the Top 10 Movies of 2012, and now we look forward. 2013 will feature the highly anticipated return of Superman in Zack Snyder's Man of Steel. It also gives us the world of Tony Stark, version 3.0, as Iron Man 3 seeks to capitalize on the success of The Avengers -- which ruled the 2012 box office.

There is so much to get excited about for the cinematic year that will be beginning in the coming days. Where to start? Well, in honor of the 13 that anchors our new year's moniker, we bump up our usual Top 10 in favor of the Movie Fanatic Top 13 Movie Moments of 2013.

13. Pain and Gain
You know what recent teaser truly captured our attention? It was of the utmost of surprises: The Pain and Gain trailer. The Michael Bay film looks to provide its action with a side dish of Mark Wahlberg's impeccable comic timing.

12. This Is the End
It is a modern day comic dream team that assembled to make the end of the world comedy This Is the End. Pineapple Express quotes wielders Seth Rogen, James Franco and Danny McBride reunite in an end of days cinematic comedy that throws caution into a disastrous wind storm of apocalyptic humor. From these guys, that will be a very good thing.

11.Thor 2: The Dark World
Chris Hemsworth and his alter ego Thor pick up where The Avengers left off with Thor 2. Where we go from there specifically, is as secretive as sequels come. Whether Loki is involved, has not even been hinted at. Movie Fanatic just knows that it is filming and judging by its first foray, this Thor franchise is one we plan on following for years to come.

10. The Wolverine
You-Know-Who is back sporting blades out of his hands once again in a Wolverine story that has compelled fans and even wider audiences since it was announced. When we saw The Wolverine first photo of Hugh Jackman, the X-Men character most likely to succeed suddenly seemed like someone we desperately wanted to check in with once again.

9. Pacific Rim
Guillermo del Toro directing again! After passing on The Hobbit franchise, Del Toro put his focus on producing movies like Don't Be Afraid of the Dark and the upcoming Mama. With Pacific Rim, the auteur has clearly crafted a world beyond our own that is bewildering us in the best of ways. Look at the Pacific Rim trailer and admit you're not intrigued beyond belief.

8. Kick Ass 2
We cannot believe that a sequel to Kick Ass was given a green light! If there's a movie that deserves it, it is Matthew Vaughn's opus to the superhero genre. Both stars Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Aaron Johnson are back and they are joined by Jim Carrey (check out this Kick-Ass 2 set video of Jim Carrey!). We could not be more thrilled that Kick Ass 2 is becoming a franchise.

7. The Wolf of Wall Street
Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese reunite for The Wolf of Wall Streetand you know their collaborations always lead to fireworks. Remember The Departed and its Best Picture and Director honors? Mark Movie Fanatic's word that this film will be front and center when we're talking about the 2014 Oscars -- especially given the ever-timely recent history of the storied institution that is Wall Street and its role in our collective financial woes.

6. Anchorman: The Legend Continues
It may have taken a long time, but like good scotch, the return of Will Ferrell as Ron Burgundy will be worth the years. This is something that has been waited on by so many for so long, that the mere tease of an Anchorman 2 trailer caused a collective swoon among fans.

5. The Lone Ranger
Johnny Depp as Tonto? That's where you had us! Then, we saw the first The Lone Ranger photos and even Armie Hammer was the embodiment of what is thought of when the phrase the Lone Ranger is mentioned.

4. Star Trek Into Darkness
As if we need a reason to put this puppy on this list! First, the mere idea that J.J. Abrams was back working on it got us too excited for words. Then, we saw our first images. Oh, boy. Then, Paramount caused a Star Trek universe collective earthquake that resulted from a simple, yet effective Star Trek Into Darkness teaser.

3. Elysium
The guy behind District 9 pairs with Matt Damon for a version of the future that is not too far off from our own. As the film's stars, Jodie Foster and Matt Damon, told us in our Comic-Con Elysium interview, this movie will be unlike anything you've ever seen.

2. Iron Man 3
Tony Stark is back in business. Judging by the first full Iron Man 3 trailer, this is more Iron Man than Iron Man 2. And Ben Kingsley as Mandarin... nicely done.

1. Man of Steel
Surprised? Hardly! The return of Superman has to be the movie event of 2013. After Brandon Routh did a solid job in Superman Returns in 2006, yet it was perceived as a swing and a miss, fans of the Kryptonite-hating superhero have been waiting for his next chapter. Heck, even an origins story would be welcome just to get the Man of Steel back on the big screen. Want to get your heart racing? Check out this best of the 2013 early looks we've seen in this Man of Steel movie trailer.

Aptly called Man of Steel, the Zack Snyder-directed first chapter in what Warner Bros. hopes is their next big franchise arrives summer 2013 and we'll be racing you to the front of the line!

Honorable mentions:After Earth, The World's End, Oblivion, Gravity, Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters, Robocop, Oz the Great and Powerful, Fast and Furious 6, The Hangover 3, World War Z, A Good Day to Die Hard, Monsters University, Ender's Game, RIPDand of course... The Hobbit: The Desolution of Smaug!

Texas Chainsaw 3D is a proper sequel to the 1974 cult classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. However, if one goes into the theater to see Texas Chainsaw 3D without having any background with the series, it is not needed. It pays tribute to the 1974 original -- that gave us so many chilling The Texas Chainsaw Massacre quotes -- while picking up where it left off for a whole new generation.

The original film, and to an extent this one, is based on a true story of a rural Texas family who go to great lengths to ensure their chainsaw-wielding kin stays out of trouble. Of course we all famously know he doesn't.

In Texas Chainsaw 3D, the film shows that after one particular rampage, the town sheriff and some locals wielding shotguns show up at the family’s house. They are demanding that they send out the young killer. When they refuse, the locals that have swelled into a mob torch the house and all inside appear to perish -- except for a young baby.

Those familiar with the film and its subsequent sequels and remakes might be confused by the story teased in the Texas Chainsaw 3D trailer. Filmmakers took their inspiration from the original and produced what they are calling a sequel to a classic.

The first thing that stands out in this "sequel" is a gross error in arithmetic. If our continuity between the early 1970's original and today lies in the baby who survives the house fire and grows up to be Alexander Daddario's character, shouldn't she be in her late thirties instead of in her twenties? There's creative license and then there's this stretch.

Once you let that go, if that’s possible, the story has a unique way of tying together the past and the present... and as some hope for further sequels, a future. But Texas Chainsaw 3D is filled with the usual horror pratfalls instead of carving out its own unique ways of terrifying the audience. If this is a true sequel to the wildly original first film, then filmmakers should have pushed the envelope when it came to the scares. What we are given is standard run-of-the-mill shocks and awes.

There is a twist. Is it a good twist? Yes. Is it easy to swallow given the parameters filmmakers have given the audience? Our Texas Chainsaw 3D review says: No.

What does make this a compelling story is the character of Leatherface. With his weapon of choice revving while he comes at his victims wearing a mish-mosh of his previous victims' faces -- it's pretty scary. That’s probably why the story has resonated so much over the last four decades. In our Alexandra Daddario and Trey Songz exclusive interview, they clearly echo this sentiment!

But, this particular Texas Chainsaw horror-show suffers under the weight of a weak plot, predictable scares and an overall misfire effort to restart a franchise.

A Dark Truth should be a ripped-from-the-headlines thriller starring Andy Garcia that will give audiences a serious amount of pause. It covers a wretched reality of what is going on in South America right now. Yet, the film can't be an inspired-by-the-headlines effort, as it is something that is not being covered by the mainstream news! Which, honestly, makes it all the more scary.


Water companies, some American, are attempting to create a virtual monopoly concerning the rights to buy and sell the precious resource in the Southern hemisphere. So how on earth does Garcia's ex-CIA agent, current talk radio host, get pulled into these water wars in the fictional story?

We learn that while still with the CIA he did something very bad to Forest Whitaker’s Francisco Francis. As A Dark Truth gets going, we discover that Francisco just happens to be on the front lines of the water battle, fighting alongside his wife, Eva Longoria's Mia Franci.

Excuse Movie Fanatic for a moment as we wonder when Longoria’s character first appears: Do the actress and Garcia have it in their contracts of late that they have to be in each other’s movies after just starring together in their last movie, 2011’s For Greater Glory?!

Damian Lee, the film's writer-director, clearly has a passion for the subject as it is incredibly well researched. The A Dark Truth trailer teases the drama, but there are so many more layers than it even lets on.

There is a multinational corporation that is essentially the film’s villain. Deborah Unger’s Morgan Swinton is by birth a part of it and it is her meddling that most leads to the film’s drama. It’s terrific to see an actress as talented as Unger finally have a role she can dive into. Frankly, it’s her first since 1996’s Crash.

Although Whitaker is his usual terrific self and Longoria does a decent job, A Dark Truth is Garcia’s movie. From the film’s opening moments as he’s talking to a caller on his radio show, it is established that the movie lives and breathes with his character’s arc and the actor’s bravado.

There are aspects of A Dark Truth that remind us of A Clear and Present Danger. The CIA is doing things in South America that may be questionable, but is in the interest of American greater good. Garcia’s Jack Begosian is driven by righting a wrong and the power of redemption. A Dark Truth uses that emotional powerhouse of a plot driver and shows what one man can do to help another and in the process, bring solace and basic human rights to millions.

Overall, our A Dark Truth review can state that the film is not the greatest put together piece of movie making, but it makes a pretty solid point.

Earlier this week we reported that newly-elected President of Everything, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (The Dark Knight Rises), was on a shortlist to play Star-Lord in the upcoming Guardians of the Galaxy movie. The shortlist also included Jim Sturgess (Cloud Atlas) and Zachary Levi.

Now, another actor who got his start on a sitcom has joined the fray. John Krasinski, best known as Jim on The Office, is apparently in the running, along with Michael Rosenbaum. Marvel has been looking at Krasinski since they began casting for the role of Captain America, a role which eventually went to Chris Evans.

Star-Lord will likely be the main character in the new superhero film. The character is a half-human, half-alien named Peter Quill, who becomes a master strategist intergalactic police officer with a powerful suit.

Krasinski can currently be seen alongside Matt Damon in Promised Land, in theaters now. Guardians of the Galaxy is set for an August 1, 2014 release.

The second Evil Dead red band trailer has dropped, and it absolutely puts the "red" in "red band." Seriously, it's crazy bloody.

 

Evil Dead Red Band Movie Trailer

Jane Levy (Fun Size) stars as Mia, who travels to a remote cabin with her friends. There, they find a mysterious book that unlocks a horrifying demonic presence in the woods around them.

The film is a remake of the 1981 cult classic The Evil Dead, by Sam Raimi and Bruce Campbell, who are producing the new version. Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas, Lou Taylor Pucci, and Elizabeth Blackmore also star.

Evil Dead is directed by Fede Alvarez, with Juno writer Diablo Cody co-writing the script. It premieres April 12.

A new red band trailer for Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters has hit the web. It's NSFW mostly because of a bit of swearing, so if that's not an issue, have a look:

 

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters Restricted Trailer

Jeremy Renner (The Avengers) and Gemma Arterton star as adult versions of Hansel and Gretel in this action adventure film based on the well-known fairy tale. The film finds the siblings fighting witches for a living, fifteen years after the events of the Brothers Grimm tale.

Famke Janssen, Peter Stormare (The Big Lebowski), and Thomas Mann also star, with Tommy Wirkola directing.

Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunter premieres in 3D January 25.

As we inch closer and closer to the Academy Award Nominations, the entertainment Guilds have begun releasing their nominations, which often give a good indication of the Oscar favorites.

Earlier this week, the Producer's Guild of America announced their nominees for best productions, and now we have the Writer's Guild of America nominations for best screenplay, separated into three categories. Take a look at the nominees below, then check back when the winners are announced on February 17.

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Flight, Written by John Gatins
Looper, Written by Rian Johnson
The Master, Written by Paul Thomas Anderson
Moonrise Kingdom, Written by Wes Anderson & Roman Coppola
Zero Dark Thirty, Written by Mark Boal

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Argo, Screenplay by Chris Terrio; Based on a selection from The Master of Disguise by Antonio J. Mendez and the Wired Magazine article The Great Escape by Joshuah Bearman
Life of Pi, Screenplay by David Magee; Based on the novel by Yann Martel
Lincoln, Screenplay by Tony Kushner; Based in part on the book Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin
The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Screenplay by Stephen Chbosky; Based on his book
Silver Linings Playbook, Screenplay by David O. Russell; Based on the novel by Matthew Quick

DOCUMENTARY SCREENPLAY
The Central Park Five, Written by Sarah Burns and David McMahon and Ken Burns
The Invisible War, Written by Kirby Dick; Cinedigm Entertainment Group
Mea Maxima Culpa: Silence in the House of God, Written by Alex Gibney
Searching for Sugar Man, Written by Malik Bendejelloul
We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists, Written by Brian Knappenberger
West of Memphis, Written by Amy Berg & Billy McMillin

Superman is in so much trouble in Man of Steel. Every image of him seems to have some police or military officers involved. I assume that's what's happening in this new one, which features some blurry helicopters and tanks in the background.

Henry Cavill stars as the title superhero, in this origin story film from Warner Bros. Transported from the planet Krypton to Earth, and adopted by humans, the young Clark Kent has always felt alienated by his special powers. But when the world comes under attack, he transforms himself into Superman.

Amy Adams plays Lois Lane, with Kevin Costner and Diane Lane as Kent's parents. Michael Shannon, Russell Crowe (Les Miserables), Laurence Fishburne, and Christopher Meloni also star.

Man of Steel will premiere June 14. Check out some Man of Steel set photos for a behind-the-scenes look.

Our first weekend movie preview of 2013 finds the studio behind Texas Chainsaw 3D hoping for a little horror deja vu. Last year during this very weekend, the scary flick The Devil Inside debuted to an astounding $34.5 million opening. Will Texas Chainsaw 3D achieve the same fate? With it being a relatively quiet weekend, what with the small releases of Andy Garcia's A Dark Truth and the military drama Allegiance opening in wider markets, it will face little competition. But, in the end, look for that little movie that could, The Hobbit, to keep chugging along.

Texas Chainsaw 3D: Picking up where the classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre left off in 1974, the film that is being called a true sequel by filmmakers, hits screens as the first true horror film of 2013. As we state in our Texas Chainsaw 3D review, there is very little originality in the flick, but there is still something really compelling about the character of Leatherface. The young cast does their best with the material they are given, but it is not quite enough to make this a memorable scare at the cinema.

 

Texas Chainsaw 3D Trailer

A Dark Truth: Andy Garcia plays an ex-CIA agent who is working as a radio talk show host when he gets an offer he cannot refuse. There is a war over water rights going on in South America and a former colleague of his, that he wronged back in the day, needs his help and this "mission" is his chance to make it right. As reported in our A Dark Truth review, the film raises some good questions and shines a light on a horror that is being fought that few know about. Will it shine a light on the water wars of South America? Perhaps... if enough people see it.

 

A Dark Truth Trailer

Allegiance: Talk about a film that simply rivets solely on its premise. A National Guard medic (Bow Wow) learns that his son is dying and only has weeks to live. Only, our medic is about to ship off to war. The military refuses his compassionate transfer request to a unit that is not being called up to fight in Iraq. It's 2004 and the war is raging with American casualties mounting. Meanwhile, the company's leader has been given a transfer and will avoid battle. Given that transfer's suspicious nature, Bow Wow plays on his superior officer's guilt and the two try to get the medic AWOL to be with his son. As we state in our Allegiance review, this is a solid drama that raises some powerful questions about service to one's country and duty to family.

 

Allegiance Trailer

Three new posters have been released for The Host. Check them out (click thumbnails to enlarge):

The Host is adapted from the novel of the same name by Twilight author Stephenie Meyer. After an alien race invades Earth, implanting their souls into human hosts, a girl named Melanie fights her parasitic intruder from the insider.

Saoirse Ronan stars, with Jake Abel, Max Irons, and William Hurt (The Incredible Hurt) also starring.

The film hits theater March 29. Check out some The Host stills for more.

The new trailer for Steven Soderbergh's upcoming psychological thriller Side Effects has debuted. Take a look:

 

Side Effects Movie Trailer

Rooney Mara (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo) and Channing Tatum star as Emily and Martin, a couple whose lives begin to unravel due to the side effects of a new prescription drug. Jude Law (Rise of the Guardians) plays Emily's psychiatrist, with Catherine Zeta-Jones and Vinessa Shaw also starring.

Soderbergh previously directed Tatum last summer in Magic Mike. Zeta-Jones has also worked with the director on three previous occasions.

Side Effects will premiere February 8.

Welcome to 2013, where Texas Chainsaw 3D is the most popular movie in theaters. The seventh film in the popular horror series starring Alexandra Daddario and Tania Raymonde was the only new film to hit theaters this week, in a typically slow month, earning $23 million.

Django Unchained stays in second place in its second weekend in theaters. Quentin Tarantino's latest took in $20.1 million to bring its total earnings to $106.4 million.

Dropping to third place after three straight weeks in first is The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. The first film in the new J.R.R Tolkien series grossed $17.5 million over the three-day period, for a domestic total of 263.8 million, and a worldwide total of $824.8 million.

Rounding out the top five are the musical Les Miserables and the family comedy Parental Guidance. The two films earned $16.1 million and $10 million, respectively.

Box office Top 10:

1. Texas Chainsaw 3D, $23 million
2. Django Unchained, $20.1 million
3. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, $17.5 million
4. Les Miserables, $16.1 million
5. Parental Guidance, $10.1 million
6. Jack Reacher, $9.3 million
7. This is 40, $8.6 million
8. Lincoln, $5.3 million
9. The Guilt Trip, $4.5 million
10. Promised Land, $4.3 million