One sorority girl is dying like no one is watching over and over and over again in the first trailer for the time loop horror ‘Happy Death Day’ Continue reading
HAPPY DEATH DAY Trailer Celebrates One Horrific Time Loop
Tag Archives: Blumhouse Productions
INSIDIOUS: CHAPTER 4 Director and Release Date Confirmed
Blumhouse has officially announced the start of production on Insidious: Chapter 4 with a video featuring Lin Shaye and Leigh Whannell. Continue reading
First Images of ‘Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension’ Tease the Franchise’s End
After various delays that may have prolonged a beautiful disaster, the first images of Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension have finally materialized on the Internets. The latest and supposedly final installment of the found footage horror franchise that started a flurry of copycat films is set to debut this October.
The Paranormal Activity series has seen its ups and downs, but could The Ghost Dimension bring everything around full circle to offer horror fans with a satisfying conclusion? In a recent interview with USA Today, Blumhouse Productions founder Jason Blum believes so:
“We made this movie like it’s the end of this Paranormal line for sure. And that title promises quite a few revelations. It’s coming to an end. This is it, the finale. We’re saying it before the movie opens. We’re not going to grind this horror franchise into the ground. This will keep Paranormal Activity as part of this culture and this particular time in a really fantastic way.”
As the mythology around the series took shape, many questions have built a delicate house of cards for such a basic premise. Answers to those questions will hopefully be unveiled. Blum continues:
“We couldn’t go just teasing. All the questions that everyone has asked from the past Paranormal Activity films: What does Toby look like? What’s the backstory to the families? These questions have been teased out. Now they will be answered.”
Oren Peli, the creator of Paranormal Activity and producer of The Ghost Dimension says fans will get more than just answers, we’ll finally see what the demonic “Toby” looks like:
“We’ve done well without showing Toby, being able to create tensions and scares based on audiences’ imagination. But people are very curious.”
Toby, of course, is the paranormal presence that has haunted the lives of one little girl named Katie and her family up through her adult life. The series took a turn in the spin-off, Paranormal Activity: The Marked Ones, but tied itself loosely to the events of the main story – read my review. To me, revealing Toby’s physical form could make or break this series for me. I’d rather be in suspense not knowing what horrifying figure he could be.
Here are the first images of Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension for your viewing pleasure (Click on any image to enlarge):
To date, the five previously released Paranormal Activity titles have cost Blumhouse Productions $18.015 million and have earned the studio a jaw-dropping $811.6 million. Blumhouse is ending the series with a bang by introducing a 3D element into the scares, which is a franchise first. The additional costs for the 3D will definitely send the film beyond the micro-budget productions Blumhouse typically shoots for. The average production budget for each Paranormal Activity entry goes for $3-5 million, aside from the original that cost an astonishing $15,000.
Here is the official plot synopsis for Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension
Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension centers on the Fleeges — father Ryan (Chris J. Murray), mother Emily (Brit Shaw) and their young daughter Leila (Ivy George) — who move into a house and discover a video camera and a box of tapes in the garage. When they look through the camera’s lens, they begin to see the paranormal activity happening around them – including the re-emergence of young Kristi and Katie. The video camera footage will be presented in 3D in theaters.
Directed by Gregory Plotkin, Paranormal Activity: The Ghost Dimension stars Katie Featherston, Chris J. Murray, Brit Shaw, and Ivy George. The last entry of the iconic horror franchise will hit theaters on October 23, 2015.
Source: USA Today
First ‘Jem and the Holograms’ Trailer Depicts the Outrageous Melodrama of Fame [96 Screenshots]
And so it is, the first trailer for Jem and the Holograms has been released. It has been a little over a year ago since we learned of its development and yesterday new images cropped up to give us a taste of what’s to come. But could the animated musical series of the ’80s live up to modern day expectations? Now that we’ve seen the first footage of the film, this may not be the Jem that diehard fans quite remember.
I’ve kept a cautious optimism in the back of my mind, preparing for this exact moment. Before seeing this trailer, I pegged that Jem would either target an ageless group like Pitch Perfect or be geared more toward a younger audience. The fact that she earns stardom through YouTube definitely signifies the later, which is fine, but the whole Beyond the Lights meets Dreamgirls kind of vibe gives it an awkward tone in the middle of a teen-focused musical.
With an astounding, “meh,” the Jem and the Holograms live-action adaptation isn’t quite as outrageous as the original series’ theme song would leave you to believe – see below. The music is hardly even a highlight of the trailer, which focuses more on the relationship drama between the band mates. This all makes the film feel very generic and watered-down, not so much the wacky ’80s shenanigans some may have been hoping for.
In the original cartoon, Jerrica masked her identity as Jem through the help of a super computer named Synergy. We only get a brief mention of it by name only. Throughout the series Jem would have to protect Synergy from those looking to obtain it. It doesn’t seem that any of that will play out into this movie, but only time will tell.
Watch the original theme song here:
(Click on any thumbnail below to begin the image gallery)
Here is the official plot synopsis for Jem and the Holograms, courtesy of Universal:
As a small-town girl catapults from underground video sensation to global superstar, she and her three sisters begin a one-in-a-million journey of discovering that some talents are too special to keep hidden. In Jem and the Holgorams, four aspiring musicians will take the world by storm when they see that the key to creating your own destiny lies in finding your own voice.
Directed by Jon M. Chu, Jem and the Hogorams stars Aubrey Peeples, Stefanie Scott, Hayley Kiyoko, Aurora Perrineau, Ryan Guzman, Molly Ringwald, and Juliette Lewis. This film is set to release on October 23, 2015.
Source: BuzzFeed
First ‘Jem and the Holograms’ Trailer Depicts the Outrageous Melodrama of Fame
And so it is, the first trailer for Jem and the Holograms has been released. It has been a little over a year ago since we learned of its development and yesterday new images cropped up to give us a taste of what’s to come. But could the animated musical series of the ’80s live up to modern day expectations? Now that we’ve seen the first footage of the film, this may not be the Jem that diehard fans quite remember. See for yourself after the break. Continue reading
New Sneak Peek Offers More ‘Jem and the Holograms’ Details and Photos
It was only a year ago when the cast for the Jem and the Holograms movie was announced. In that time we have gained very little details, news, or images on the production that micro-budget horror producer Jason Blum from Blumhouse Productions is backing. Seeing that we are only six months away from its release, I feel as though the marketing team has awoken from their slumber to realize they need to start getting the word out.
Full disclosure, as much as you’d all like to think I spend my time wearing pink wigs and my face painted as I type this out, I have no history with Jem and the Holograms. I know of the cartoon and that’s about it. And when Blumhouse became the studio behind this movie, it raised a few eyebrows, mine included. The production house that brought us Paranormal Activity and Insidious, how could they tap into the psyche of teen girls?
They have dipped their toes outside the realm of genre features before with the Oscar winning Whiplash, as well as HBO’s The Normal Heart and The Jinx. So is this an adult romp for nostalgic Millennials? Director Jon M. Chu (Step Up 2: The Streets; G.I. Joe Retaliation) shed some light on the project in a recent interview with USA Today:
“It’s actually about a group of young people who are going to be inundated with this idea of fame and fortune and products and stuff, and within all that, how do you stay true to who you really are? That’s the real soul of the movie.”
Many audiences today may relate this property to Hannah Montana, as the lead character Jerrica (Aubrey Peeples) takes on the alter ego of Jem. Chu continues:
“Jerrica is definitely a 21st-century sort of girl. She’s shy and scared to use her voice after the death of her father, who taught her guitar and would call her ‘Jem,’ yet still finds ways to make music even though she’s frightened of the stage. We see the transformation as she gets brought into it, getting seduced by it, and at the same time trying to find her real self in between those two identities.”
Peeles adds:
“She never wanted to pursue the big costumes, lots of makeup, all that stuff. But in a way it helps her hide and have the confidence to come out and be this persona.”
And so we have the band members, but now the supporting cast has also been revealed. Molly Ringwald will be playing Aunt Bailey, the legal guardian to sisters Jerrica and Kimber (Stefanie Scott), and their foster siblings Aja (Hayley Kiyoko) and Shana (Aurora Perrineau). And then we have Ryan Guzman, a Step Up veteran who enters the scene as the love interest, because we all need one of those, right? Juliette Lewis (Natural Born Killers; Whip It; August: Osage County) inhabits the role of the antagonist known as Erica Raymond, “a Starlight Music record executive.”
Check out the new production stills for the live-action adaptation of the hit ’80s cartoon here (Click on any photo below to being the image gallery):
It’s still not clear as to how we’re suppose to take this film. Whether it will be a fun romp like Pitch Perfect that services all ages, or more apt for tweens and young adults. I can only assume with the release of these images that a trailer should drop soon, which you can expect to find here once it drops.
There is no official plot synopsis yet, but here’s what IMDb.com has to say:
Music executive, Jerrica Benton, lives a secret, adventurous life as a glamorous rock star named Jem.
Directed by Jon M. Chu, Jem and the Hogorams stars Aubrey Peeples, Stefanie Scott, Hayley Kiyoko, Aurora Perrineau, Ryan Guzman, Molly Ringwald, and Juliette Lewis. This film is set to release on October 23, 2015.
Source: USA Today
WonderCon 2015: The Future of Blumhouse Productions and Jason Blum’s Favorite Horror Film
After Blumhouse Productions‘ WonderCon panel this weekend, members of the press got the chance to sit down with founder and CEO Jason Blum to have a more direct conversation about studio happenings and his views on the horror genre. From his favorite scary movie to reviving Blumhouse of Horrors to his love of the supernatural, the man behind your nightmares opens up on these topics and more. Read the interview after the jump. Continue reading
WonderCon 2015: What Does the Cast of ‘Unfriended’ Fear Most About Social Media?
In Blumhouse Productions’ upcoming low-budget horror film, Unfriended finds a group of teens literally cyber-attacked by an unknown entity seeking revenge for something they may or may not have posted online. With many of today’s first world problems and humble brags, some believe that there could not be anything more terrifying than to lose your privacy to the Internet. Following their WonderCon panel this weekend, I had the opportunity to sit down with the cast of Unfriended to discuss what they fear about social media and online culture. Continue reading
WonderCon 2015: Sinister 2 Teaser Revealed; First Trailer on its Way Soon
During the WonderCon 2015 Blumhouse Productions panel yesterday, the folks who set out to frighten us each year teased something special would come for those who sat through to the end. That big announcement came in the form of promo teaser for Sinister 2. Dubbed “Warning,” this short little snippet of footage gave heed to the terror we’ll be seeing come August 21. Watch the video after the break. Continue reading
WonderCon 2015: Director Leigh Whannell Shares Villainous ‘Insidious: Chapter 3’ Details
This past weekend I had the opportunity to speak with writer/director/actor Leigh Whannell at WonderCon to learn more about what we can expect from the third installment of the Insidious franchise. As a prequel, Insidious: Chapter 3 takes fans back in time to discover how Elise (Lin Shaye), Specs (Whannell), and Tucker (Angus Sampson) came together to become the ghost hunters we know and love. After the jump, learn about his writing process and how he conceived the film’s main antagonist. Continue reading
Turn The Right Corner 