Win 'The Purge' Prize Pack

  

If, on one night every year, you could commit any crime without facing consequences, what would you do?

In an America wracked with crime and overcrowded prisons, the government has sanctioned an annual 12-hour period in which any and all criminal activity--including murder--becomes legal. The police can't be called. Hospitals suspend help. It's twelve hours when the citizenry regulates itself without thought of punishment. On this particular night in 2022, plagued by violence and an epidemic of crime, one family wrestles with the decision of who they will become when a stranger comes knocking.

When an intruder breaks into James Sandin’s (Ethan Hawke) gated community during the yearly lockdown, he begins a sequence of events that threatens to tear his family apart. Now, it is up to James, his wife, Mary (Lena Headey), and their kids to make it through the night without turning into the monsters from whom they hide.

One lucky reader will receive an exclusive The Purge pack which includes a t-shirt and mask to #SurviveTheNight with.

 

Want to win? Post your results from the Would You Survive the Night? quiz into the Comments section and leave your email address so I can contact the winner. All entries must be made before June 19th and the winner will be notified June 20th.

The Purge hits theatres on June 7th.

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Hit Me With Your Best Shot #31

The game where I throw out one of cinema's more obscure quotes and you try to guess it. Readers are currently 22 for 30. Let's see if you can name the film this quote is from:

"It's so damn hot... milk was a bad choice."

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How Iron Man 3 Should Have Ended

The aside with Superman and Batman alone makes this a worthwhile viewing. Just watch.

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'Pacific Rim' Monsters Get Spotlight in Empire

 

Courtesy of Empire, there are new images of one of the monsters featured in Guillermo Del Toro's Pacific Rim. Along with images of the beast is a quote from Del Toro explaining how each monster creates a unique battle in the film:

"The first fight is very operatic, theatrical: Wagnerian. It happens in the middle of an iceberg-strewn sea, in the middle of a storm, with huge waves crashing on the Jaeger and Kaiju. We worked really hard at making water a character in this movie, frequently referring to Hokusai or the Fuji wave, and trying to make the water enhanced and add to the drama. This fight tries to quote the majesty of a painting by Goya called the Colossus.”

Not that I was worried about repetition, but I'm glad Del Toro thought to make each battle different visually, it should make for a blast in IMAX.

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Review: Mud

A little over two years ago, Matthew McConaughey came out in The Lincoln Lawyer and started the road to repairing his reputation as an actor. He followed up that good word with other critically appreciated performances in Killer Joe, Bernie and Magic Mike. The man known for being shirtless in romantic comedies has reinvented himself as a leading man with a knack for good material again. When it was announced that he would lead Jeff Nichol's follow-up project to Take Shelter, Mud became a must see picture of 2013.

Ellis (Tye Sheridan) and Neckbone (Jacob Lofland) don't have much to look forward to in DeWitt, Arkansas, life on the river is dying and they are at the age where girls aren't interested in them. A boat in a tree poses new opportunities, though, something they can lay claim to. The only problem is someone is living in it.

He goes by Mud (McConaughey) and, at the moment, he's living on nothing but beanie weenies. His possessions are few: one gun and a shirt he believes to be lucky. Mud tells the boys he is waiting on a woman to meet him there on the island, and he won't be leaving without her. Something in Mud's voice when he says her name inspires Ellis. His own concept of love is on the ropes as of late and Mud's optimism gives Ellis hope for his own life. Neckbone has his doubts about a man living on an island on his own accord, but Ellis is eager to help him piece together a way to leave with Juniper (Reese Witherspoon).

The more information comes to light about out Mud, concern grows that Ellis is blind to the danger that the man poses.

On the surface, Mud would seem to be a vehicle for McConaughey, but the focus is placed predominantly on the two boys. Director Jeff Nichols drew excellent performances out of Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain with Take Shelter and he continues that trend with Mud. Sheridan and Lofland manage to glide that shaky line of child performances that blends naivete, without going into overly saccharine territory.

McConaughey covers his natural charisma in a thin layer of grime and dirt that obscures his classic movie star good looks, but not his folksy charm. That the audience is constantly guessing just exactly what the man is capable of is a testament to the actor's abilities. The McConassaince has officially come full-circle.

Mud is only Nichol's third film, but he is very quickly becoming a singular voice in a new generation of auteurs. Filming on location in the south gives Nichol a canvas to work from that highlights the, sometimes, obsessive way we live our lives and knowing when to walk away from it.

***1/2 out of ****

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Join PopCircle Now

In beta testing, right now, is a new site where you can share all of your favorite movies, televisions shows, books and music with your friends and discover things you haven't seen yet. That site is PopCircle.

What sets PopCircle apart from other entertainment sites—like Letterbox and Get Glue—is that while many sites give you recommendations based on complete strangers, PopCircle allows you to get recommendations from friends, families and experts you choose, people that you listen to when they talk about entertainment. The reason Ebert and Siskel became so popular was that they understood very well that idea of how valuable a recommendation is.

Have a favorite critic who shares your taste on film? Add him/her to your movies circle. Find music fans who share your love of Beck? Add them. Better yet, if you don't share their tastes on everything, you can create separate circles for each medium.

PopCircle allows you to walk out of the theatre (let's say you just watched Mud and had to share your thoughts) and with just one click, you can forward your review of it to friends on Facebook, Google Plus, and Twitter. Sharing has never been this easy.

You can sign-up for PopCircle and start reviewing films, songs, TV, and books, build collections, share those collections with others. You can start following people (LAMBers like Kai, Dylan and me for example) and maybe you’ll discover new music, movies, and books you’ve never heard of before.

I was invited this past winter to join PopCircle as a movie expert and I can tell you firsthand that I've had a blast creating collections like Hitman Movies to Kill For and The Cinephile Essentials, but the fun is in sharing, so join today! The site is still in Beta, so if you’ve signed up just contact me, one of the benefits of being an expert is I can get you through the velvet rope.

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'Ain't Them Bodies Saints' Trailer

A love story of two outlaws desperately trying to reunite, Ain't Them Bodies Saints chronicles Bob Muldoon (Casey Affleck), his wife Ruth (Rooney Mara) and the sheriff that comes between them.

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