James Cameron’s Titanic is back in theaters and in 3D no less. The story of Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet) enchanted an entire generation, making it the highest-grossing film of all time (until Cameron’s Avatar came along) and a massive Oscar winner as well. As Titanic 3D has arrived on screens all over the world, Paramount has released a behind-the-scenes clip entitled Titanic 3D: Restoration. Cameron and his team show off how their original film never had a digital copy. Before even starting the 3D conversion process, his team went through and restored the film to its deserved visual glory.

Titanic 3D: Restoring the Ship

Earlier Movie Fanatic premiered the fifteen-second teaser for Savages that got us geared up for the Oliver Stone movie’s first full-length trailer. Who knew the wait would be merely hours and not days or weeks? The full trailer is now here and gives us an even deeper look at the drug dealer, kidnapping drama that alternates between two worlds: The medical marijuana world of San Diego and the drug cartel-ruled universe of Mexico. Taylor Kitsch and Aaron Johnson play marijuana “dealers” who buy in bulk for their patients at their medical marijuana shop. When the cartel wants in on the business and they refuse, Blake Lively’s character -- the guys' shared girlfriend -- is kidnapped. Stone's latest lands July 6.

Savages Trailer

Every team, even The Avengers, needs a leader. In the latest trailer from the Marvel Studios film that features Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and the Hulk, it appears good ole Cap is our man. The film lands May 4 and could easily be classified as the most anticipated of the year. Movie Fanatic is finally seeing it next week and cannot wait to tell our readers all about it.

The Avengers Trailer: Captain America Leads

The Captain America as leader trailer comes on the heels of the announcement of a Captain America 2 release date!

First time director David Brooks has crafted quite the thriller with ATM. The story follows three friends who stop off at an ATM one evening, only to be trapped inside while a madman outside is trying to kill them. Brooks visits with Movie Fanatic for an exclusive interview where he takes us inside the casting process to ensure his story is effectively told, the genesis of this wildly original project, and how a short movie made while in college punched his ticket to the big time. The film premieres April 6.

ATM Director David Brooks Exclusive

American Reunion could not be a more perfect title for the closing chapter in the American Pie series. We first met the gang of sex-crazy teens in 1999 and what set that sex farce apart was its attention to developing characters that people truly cared about. It spawned two official sequels, a slew of direct-to-DVD related films and now returns for what is a reunion on multiple levels.

The gang is gathering in their hometown for their high school reunion and although many of them have completely changed in the years since graduation, once they are all together, with all the insane hijinx, it appears that this circle of friends produces the same hormonally driven madness we adored in American Pie.

Jim and Michelle (Jason Biggs and Alyson Hannigan) are married with a child. They are a tad sexually frustrated as the spark has extinguished since the birth of their baby. When Jim gets horny, hilarity ensues. The iconic pie scene of the first film has had the ante raised as Jim finds himself naked from the waist down in the kitchen after a night with his high school buds. Michelle and a friend enter the room and all he can find to shield his manhood from full view is a clear saucepan cover.

It is that type of humor that still permeates the Pie franchise. And, it is also the same reason that people adored the first one and will treasure the experience of the Reunion.

American Reunion Red Band Trailer 2

Everyone’s favorite character, Stifler (Seann William Scott), has not left their hometown and is working as a temp, simply to keep busy. He doesn’t need the money -- Stifler’s mom is loaded. But when his pals come to town for the get-together, he sees it as his chance to relive the guys’ glory days and get out of his life rut.

How American Reunion filmmakers Adam Herz and Jon Hurwitz (A Very Harold and Kumar 3D Christmas) have triumphed is they, first, could not have been a more perfect selection to close out the series. Lifelong fans of the first film, their love letter to it is present on every frame of the latest. There are moments of reality that they do not shy away from, such as showing that although Stifler is up for more raucous fun, perhaps his bros have grown up and perhaps it is time for him as well. That moment, thankfully, does not come until the third act. And there is no right or wrong when it comes to the realization. But, the funny, laugh-out-loud moments abound that make audiences thrilled that although the gang has changed ever so slightly, they are still prone to the type of situational comedy that endeared us to the first film.

Sure, there are drawbacks. For one, Tara Reid’s acting is simply unwatchable. Not that she was ever the best thespian in the world, but her performance is painful. Also, some may see the high school party scene as a bit creepy. But, true fans of the series will merely see it as another extension of the libido-driven mayhem that this group of friends always seem to find themselves in.

There are other moments that hats have to go off to the filmmakers. One such moment is the pairing of Stifler’s mom and Jim’s dad (Jennifer Coolidge and Eugene Levy). It is a refreshing turn to a film series that could have easily gone stale before the final credits rolled.

The entire cast is front and center in the latest poster for What to Expect When You’re Expecting -- talk about an A-list group of superstars. The film based on the insanely popular non-fiction book features Cameron Diaz, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Brooklyn Decker, Anna Kendrick, Chace Crawford, Matthew Morrison (Glee), Dennis Quaid, Chris Rock, Rodrigo Santoro, Ben Falcone and Joe Manganiello. Seriously amazing, right?

Look for the superstar-laden film to land in theaters May 18.

One thing is sure through witnessing the Whit Stillman film Damsels in Distress: Greta Gerwig is one of our most astounding up-and-coming actresses. After stealing scenes from both Russell Brand and Helen Mirren in Arthur, she runs the show in Stillman’s latest movie. Her Violet is the queen bee, yet has layers of personal uncertainty that makes what could be an average film extraordinary.

Analeigh Tipton is Lily and she has the honor of meeting Violet and her two charges as they push her entire agenda onto Lily. Given the transfer student’s unfamiliarity with the school, she accepts the trio’s kindness and becomes part of their little clique. The former model’s performance is another delight in this charming film. She is tentative about herself, and even appears uncomfortable in her own skin. So, it’s easy to see how she would fall in line with the Damsels led by Gerwig. As the film progresses, her shyness turns into an air of confidence that completely alters where we thought the film was heading.

Violet runs the college campus’ suicide prevention center. It’s a paltry operation. When someone arrives in a huff that he believes his neighbor may be suicidal given her recent break-up, she meets someone who makes her question her own modus operandi.

Although the film is a fantastic ensemble, that also features Adam Brody, Megalyn Echikunwoke and Carrie MacLemore, Damsels in Distress should serve as the launching pad for a stellar career for Gerwig. She shows range throughout the movie that is simply powerful. Stillman has crafted a farce of fiction that lives and breathes through Gerwig’s characterization. In her hands, the film hits all the right beats.

Damsels in Distress Trailer

Stillman is a filmmaker who has split audiences. He is an acquired taste for sure. His work on The Last Days of Disco, Metropolitan and Barcelona have his fans' passion in high gear. There’s a quirkiness to his work and it is not for everyone. But, with Damsels in Distress, he should garner more fans. This writer was not the biggest fan of his first three films, yet has been converted to the Stillman cinematic sense with his latest.

With 1998’s The Last Days of Disco being his last film before Damsels in Distress, Movie Fanatic hopes that he doesn’t take fourteen years to give us a follow-up.

Simon Pegg has released the trailer to his latest film, A Fantastic Fear of Everything, on his Twitter account. The film is pure Pegg and evidence of that is on every frame of the teaser. The story follows the actor playing a man who made his living as a children’s author and now -- through a series of what could be deemed psychotic episodes -- finds himself writing crime novels.

A Fantastic Fear of Everything Trailer

His research into the methodology of Victorian serial killers turns this already paranoid person into a complete schizophrenic mess. Look for Pegg’s latest later this year.

The trailer for High School has premiered and it has the most unique of theories about how to beat a mandatory drug test. What happens when a valedictorian (Matt Bush) is about to achieve his dreams of a full ride to MIT and then gets sucked into the stoned world of his best bud (Sean Marquette) during a moment of weakness? It’s not good as his small stoner stumble arrives on the eve of a newly announced school-wide mandatory drug test that will expel any student that fails. His solution: Get the entire school high so everyone fails the test!

High School Trailer

The film features a killer one-two punch in supporting roles. Adrien Brody portrays a whacked-out pot dealer and Michael Chiklis is insane as the school’s authoritarian principal. Look for the comedy on June 1.

Warner Bros. has released the first movie poster for Rian Johnson’s Looper. The film stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt as the younger version of Bruce Willis. Movie Fanatic spoke exclusively with Johnson and Gordon-Levitt at this year’s Wonder Con and it’s finally nice to have a poster of the film to share with everyone.

The film follows the idea that in the future, time travel exists. It’s illegal to use it, for obvious reasons -- can you imagine how much havoc the average person could create? So now, only the mob utilizes it to “take care of their problems.” By going back in time the mob utilizes Gordon-Levitt’s assassin, or Looper, to wipe out the problem from ever rearing its head in the future. What happens when Willis is sent back and his target is his younger self?

The mind-bending suspense thriller arrives in theaters September 28 and also features Emily Blunt, Paul Dano and Jeff Daniels.

Morgan Spurlock has done it again. When the documentary filmmaker turns his camera on a subject, audiences are in for a treat. Whether it was his Super Size Me or his most recent The Greatest Movie Ever Sold, the man keenly understands his subject and triumphs as a filmmaker in the process. Can you imagine the brilliance that would come out of his journey to San Diego’s Comic-Con? A longtime pop culture fan of all things that are celebrated yearly at the Con (as fans call it), Spurlock could not have been a better director to bring the insanity to the world in a documentary.

The filmmaker tells his Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope story by following several people involved in the annual fest from many different angles. There’s the creature creator hoping for a big dream to come true, the comic book artist bringing his work to be evaluated and hopefully purchased by his idols and hundreds of thousands of people that are the collective of fandom that descend on this sleepy Southern California town each July.

By breaking his story into different elements, Spurlock found a way to manage the unmanageable. The scope of telling the Comic-Con story could be astronomical. Yet, he makes it personal and succeeds on many fronts.

What truly struck us, having been to the fest over 15 times, is how Spurlock also gives the event a history lesson. When it first started in the 1970s, the founder states in the opening moments that if 500 people show up, he would be happy. Quickly, Spurlock then gives us an indelible image: The legions of attendees streaming through the San Diego Convention Center doors and into their version of heaven.

Comic-Con Episode 4: A Fan's Hope Trailer

Spurlock is a gifted filmmaker. He manages to make compelling stories with the same twists and turns, ebbs and flows of a feature film. That is his gift and for the millions who have attended the five-day event at some point in their lives, Comic-Con IV: A Fan’s Hope is a love letter to all things Con.

Director David Brooks embraced his inner thriller fan when he crafted his first film, ATM. The story follows three co-workers on a Friday evening as two are nurturing an office crush and hope to make it more by the end of the night. The third is a tag-along friend who needs a ride to a party. First things first, the third wheel needs some cash. So, the trio stops off at a stand-alone ATM where their night takes an unexpected and horrifying turn.

Alice Eve stars as Emily, Josh Peck is Corey, while Brian Geraghty is David and all three actors are more than up for the task. All Emily and David want to do is be alone, but a mysterious stranger who seems to have it out for them has ideas that are much more sinister as to what he would like the evening to include -- death for one… or all, of our three leads.

How all three wind up in the ATM booth is an interesting choice for Brooks, but once they are inside, our mysterious man appears and simply stands there staring at the trio. His willingness to kill is evident within moments as an unlucky individual meets his maker while the three friends gaze in fear.

Brooks reported being inspired by the Ryan Reynolds starrer Buried. What do people do when they are trapped and death is not an option they can accept? The only issue with ATM is that the film suffers under its own premise. Sure, the camera work (especially his use of the cash machine’s video surveillance cameras) is stellar. Yet, with nothing in place to give us, or his leads, clues as to how this has happened, we fail to see a way out that works. The fault here most likely lies in the script by Chris Sparling, who ironically also wrote Buried. In ATM, he may have taken the concept of people trapped, struggling for survival and jumped the shark.

ATM Trailer

Yet, with the acting efforts of its three leads, especially Eve (soon to be seen in Dark Shadows), ATM is quite watchable. It is a decent cat-and-mouse thriller, where the feline here carries a tire iron with lethal expertise.

The film opens April 6, and is also available on Video on Demand.

Now that Gary Ross will not direct Catching Fire, the search is on for his replacement. We already know that Simon Beaufoy is writing the screenplay and that is in some seriously good hands. There is a myriad of ways that this hiring process could go, but we have narrowed it down to ten helmers we think could work.

Duncan Jones has a firm hand on suspense while still bringing the characters to the forefront with his work on Moon and Source Code. Jon Favreau is a solid director (Iron Man) who can handle anything thrown his way, except for a meddling studio (Iron Man 2). Bryan Singer knows his way around big franchises with his work on X-Men and Superman. Now, Alfonso Cuaron gave us our best Harry Potter adaptation with Prisoner of Azkaban and could do the same with Catching Fire. Kathryn Bigelow, on the other hand, could bring her explosive directing style from The Hurt Locker to The Hunger Games franchise.

We’d like to see what Steven Spielberg does with something that he did not create and see if that challenges the auteur to further greatness. Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol director Brad Bird successfully made the jump to live action after a stellar career in animation. We could see his handprints all over the next chapter in Katniss' adventure. Someone who knows about taking a book and bringing it to the screen is Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter director Timur Bekmambetov. Now that David Fincher is free from directing the second in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series, he could swing over to Suzanne Collins’ world and head up the sequel to Ross’ film. Lastly, Debra Granik made magic with Jennifer Lawrence in Winter’s Bone and has the chops to pull off a feat of the fantastical with the THG sequel.

So then, tell us...

Who should direct Catching Fire?

The American Pie gang is back for their high school reunion in American Reunion, trying to recapture the magic mayhem of 1999. While that film should dominate the new releases, perhaps toppling The Hunger Games from atop the box office tower, a few other smaller releases also bring the cinematic magic this weekend. Those include the wicked comedy Damsels in Distress, the geek heavy documentary Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope and the thriller ATM.

American Reunion: Jason Biggs is back as Jim and after the birth of his baby with wife Michelle (Alyson Hannigan), their sex life has been a little stale. And we all know what happens when Jim gets horny: Hilarious trouble follows. The entire crew from the original American Pie is back, even Stifler’s mom and Jim’s dad. Check out our American Reunion review for more on this satisfying comedy sequel.

American Reunion Trailer 3

Damsels in Distress: Filmmaker Whit Stillman has crafted a unique look at American college life. The star in this ensemble comedy is Greta Gerwig. The actress chews up the scenery and lets us know who the next great American actress is going to be. As we explain in our Damsels in Distress review, this film may not be for everyone, but those who adore Stillman’s work will be in utter bliss.

Damsels in Distress Trailer

Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope: Who better than documentarian Morgan Spurlock to capture the madness that is San Diego’s annual Comic-Con? The director of Super Size Me has triumphed in managing the outlandish scope that could have been a Comic-Con documentary. As we state in our Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan’s Hope review, this is one doc you do not want to miss.

Comic-Con Episode 4: A Fan's Hope Trailer

ATM: A thriller from the screenwriter of Buried that utilizes a similar premise about people being trapped, with death and escape being the only two options. Unfortunately the film doesn’t quite get it right, although the efforts of director David Brooks and star Alice Eve make the film decent enough to watch. Read our ATM review for more.

ATM Trailer

The first clip from Battleship has arrived and boy, do those alien invaders’ “shredders” look completely nasty. They appear to exist solely to ruin your day. Director Peter Berg’s movie, based on the Hasbro game, hits theaters May 18 and stars Liam Neeson, Rihanna, Taylor Kitsch and Brooklyn Decker.

Battleship Clip: Shredders Attack

The Hunger Games not only became the first movie of 2012 to win the box office battle three weeks in a row, it was also the first to surpass $300 million in total ticket sales. The film, based on the Suzanne Collins bestseller, also became the sixth fastest movie in history to make $300 million.

Two heavily hyped new films could not slow down The Hunger Games train that seems to be speeding towards record receipts as fast as that train in the film speeds to the Capitol. American Reunion and Titanic 3D earned $21.5 million and $17.4 million respectively to stake second and third place.

Fourth place found Wrath of the Titans, which added another $15 million to its haul. Meanwhile, Tarsem Singh’s Mirror Mirror banked $11 million in its second week of release, landing in fifth place.

Box office Top 10:

1. The Hunger Games, $33.5 million
2. American Reunion, $21.5 million
3. Titanic 3D, $17.4 million
4. Wrath of the Titans, $15 million
5. Mirror Mirror, $11 million
6. 21 Jump Street, $10.2 million
7. The Lorax, $5 million
8. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, $975,000
9. John Carter, $820,000
10. Safe House, $581,000

Guy Pearce is astounding in Lockout (check out our review this Friday), and evidence of that is in full effect as Movie Fanatic got our hands on the first five minutes of the film. Pearce plays a former CIA agent in the future who was framed, so he says, for a mission gone horribly wrong. As he is about to be sent to prison, we learn that the President of the United States’ daughter (Maggie Grace) is on an informational mission to the high security outer space prison that orbits the Earth -- the very one to which Pearce has been sentenced. Before he even leaves his transport to the orbiting prison ship, a riot breaks out at the prison... and the President’s daughter is kidnapped. What’s the CIA to do? Why… enlist the help of Pearce to free her in exchange for his freedom.

Lockout: First Five Minutes of Movie

The film is a pulse-pounder and in many ways has us thinking that if Blade Runner and Die Hard had a baby, it would be Lockout. Check out the film when it arrives April 13 and don’t miss our exclusive interviews with Grace and Pearce all this week!

American Reunion stormed into theaters this past weekend, and although it didn’t release The Hunger Games’ stranglehold on the box office, it opened to a solid $21.5 million. As the first film gave us some great American Pie quotes, the final film in the series does as well. The story of Jim (Jason Biggs), Michelle (Alyson Hannigan) and their gang led by Steve Stifler (Seann William Scott) has charmed us for over a decade and to celebrate that, we present the very best American Reunion quotes.

Steve Stifler: Be her daddy! | permalink

Selena: Jim, that pan lid is clear. | permalink

Steve Stifler: Drink it! Drink it! Drink it! | permalink

Jim's Dad: It's the fuzz!! | permalink

Michelle: There, um, hasn't been a whole lot of sexy time in the Levenstein household lately.
Selena: Why not?
Michelle: I don't know. I'm a mom now...
Selena: Oh please. Just because you're a mom doesn't mean there isn't a whole other side to you.
Michelle: Hey! Remember that one time, at band camp, when we licked whipped cream off each other's...
Selena: Yes! Yes, I remember...let's keep that in the past though, okay? | permalink

Steve Stifler: Vagina shark! | permalink

Oz: Dude, it's gonna happen, she's a college chick. | permalink

Steve Stifler: Let's make this reunion our bitch! | permalink

Jim's Dad: And who might you be?
Stifler's Mom: I'm Stifler's mom.
Jim's Dad: Oh! I'm Jim's dad... | permalink

Steve Stifler: I love the Twilight books. New Moon is my favorite!
Teen Girl: Mine too!
Steve Stifler: Oh my God, it's like, we have so much in common! | permalink

Jim's Dad: I have not had a night like that since the '70s.
Jim: Don't need this.
Jim's Dad: You'd be surprised what you can do with a well-placed thumb. | permalink

Steve Stifler: Ladies, you'd better be working hard -- you weren't hired for your looks. Actually you were. Not you. | permalink

Kevin: Were we just as obnoxious as these kids back in the day?
Finch: No, our generation was definitely more mature. | permalink

Jim Caviezel (Person of Interest) is a father in Transit seeking to have a weekend with his family that he hopes will bring them closer together. The Sidwell clan heads to the woods for a little camping time. The only thing is, it’s not exactly relaxing. Soon after getting there Nate (Caviezel) is convinced they are being followed and winds up getting arrested for aggressive driving and has to spend the night in jail. Just as they think the trip is as bad as it can be, they discover four million in cash in their luggage rack. Seems they’re not being followed… they’re being hunted. Check out the film's new trailer below!

Transit Trailer

Look for the thriller in theaters May 11.

After visiting with filmmaker Rian Johnson and Joseph Gordon-Levitt for an exclusive chat at Wonder Con, our anticipation for their film Looper is palpable. Both director and star are on hand in a video that teases their new film's trailer premiere on April 12. The film is a mind-bender of the highest order as Gordon-Levitt is a mob assassin living in the past with a future that exists where time travel is real. Only thing, it is illegal. The mob uses it though for the most precise of purposes: Killing anyone in their present that is a problem.

Looper Teaser Trailer

Bruce Willis portrays Gordon-Levitt in the future and things are dandy for the younger version of the character until Willis shows up to knock him off.

Looper hits theaters September 28 and also stars Paul Dano, Emily Blunt, Piper Perabo and Jeff Daniels.