As someone initially unimpressed with the teaser trailer for next weekend's horror offering, Mirrors, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the unpleasantries on display in the film's restricted trailer, among them the sight of Amy Smart ripping her own jaw off (what can I say, I'm a man of simple taste).

However, I then wondered if that particular moment wasn't the best that the film had to offer. Sure, you don't want to spoil too much before a film opens, but it's a scene that has become the focus of most TV spots and -- in hindsight -- the poster, and as a plot development, I'm almost certain that it'll happen before the film hits its hour mark (a matter that no one will be able to confirm until late Thursday evening, which is its own little omen). But it fell on me to watch that part and find my interest piqued.

Back in 2006, Erik posted about the tragic death of Nick Papac -- a 25-year-old assistant propmaster who was then working on The Kingdom. While he was driving a motorized cart on a closed stretch of highway in Arizona which was used for shooting, it accidentally collided with an SUV that happened to be carrying director Peter Berg. Papac was thrown from the cart, and pronounced dead later at the local hospital.

Now the AP/Yahoo reports that Papac's parents are suing Berg, a driver, and the production company asking for an unspecified amount that includes funeral costs, lost earnings, and medical expenses. (Papac's father, Michael, is a longtime propmaster who has worked on films like Die Hard and Iron Man.)

It seems like a fairly reasonable request, and I have to say that I'm surprised it has gotten to this stage. Perhaps things will become clear as the lawsuit continues. Papac's lawyer stated that the lawsuit is still in the early stages, so specifics could not be given.

I was first introduced to Lars von Trier through the horror and thrills of The Kingdom (Riget). I had never even heard of Lars before, but for some reason, I let myself be talked into buying the DVD -- at full, foreign import price -- and it was worth it. I was quickly engulfed in the strange world and hungered for more chills, von Trier style. Unfortunately, I've had to wait a good decade. Now, through the haze of depression, and reports that trickled out all the way back in September of 2006, Variety tells us that the English-language Antichrist is still on, Lars is still shooting it, and it will launch production in Germany this summer. Yes, that means von Trier is traveling to Germany -- a big step for the filmmaker.

Early reports were tight-lipped on the plot, but now there's a few nibbles. The film will focus on "a couple who retreat to a cabin in the woods to recover from the death of their child." Cabin in the woods, ooo, cabin in the woods, yeah. Oh, there's nothing like a cabin in the woods. But that's not all that's being said about it. Talking to the Telegraph back in February, the filmmaker said that it's a "psychological thriller that evolves into a horror film."

If this can even tap into some of the essence of The Kingdom, this should become one sweet cinematic journey. Thoughts?

This weekend sees the release of Kimberly Peirce's Stop-Loss, about a soldier who returns from a grueling tour of duty in Iraq only to learn that he's being sent back for another one. The movie's not bad: very passionate, very angry, a bit didactic, and liberal to the core. (See our own Eric D. Snider's SXSW review here.) The "liberal" part is no surprise, at least not if you've been listening to the conservative pundits who have torn into Hollywood for what they see as anti-war propaganda masquerading as entertainment. Those same pundits like to gloat about Iraq War movies' perceived financial failure, holding up their box-office receipts as proof that the American people either aren't interested or aren't on the same page.

But have the Iraq War movies we've seen in the past couple of years actually performed all that poorly? And even if they have, does that have anything to do with public distaste for liberal Hollywood or its "propaganda"? Take a look at some numbers and share your thoughts after the jump.

DVD releases are a little wacky and slow due to the holiday, so here's some nibbles from this week. Happy whatever-it-is-your-celebrating-or-not!

The Kingdom
Taking a cue from Babel, Peter Berg's The Kingdom details a deadly attack on American forces in Saudi Arabia that becomes an international news piece. However, unlike the other film, Berg's adds in the quest for retribution. While diplomats work slowly, an FBI special agent played by Jamie Foxx puts together a team to hunt down the man behind the attack. As our own James Rocchi described it: "if The Kingdom does offer bitter pills to swallow, it's also smart enough to offer a little action-flick sugar to help them go down." It's action also starring the likes of Chris Cooper, Jennifer Garner, and Jason Bateman, so it's hard to go wrong.

The DVD offers deleted scenes, a breakdown of "The Apartment Shootout" scene as well as another about "The Freeway Sequence," a making-of featurette, commentary, and even a history education piece. You can search a timeline of events to learn more about the issues through news stories and featurettes.

Check out James' Take and Ryan's Take | Buy the DVD


The Heartbreak Kid
I admit, this is a bit of Christmas charity since it's a slow week of releases. The Heartbreak Kid probably wouldn't have made the list otherwise, but Merry Christmas, Ben Stiller. Coming to us from the Farrelly Brothers, who have brought us the likes of Dumb & Dumber, There's Something About Mary, and Stuck on You, The Heartbreak Kid tells the case of really, really bad timing -- the tale of a man who falls for someone else during his honeymoon. On the one hand, you've got Malin Akerman (who will soon kick butt in Zach Snyder's Watchmen) playing the wife who reveals her rough spots after marrying ol' Ben. On the other, there's Michelle Monaghan, who plays Stiller's perfect girl.

Like any good comedy DVD, the extras include a gag real, as well as commentary, deleted scenes, "The Farrelly Brothers in the French Tradition," "Ben & Jerry," "Heartbreak Halloween," and an egg toss, just in case you needed some added action on the disc.

Check out James Rocchi's Review | Buy the DVD

Other New DVD Releases

The Brothers Solomon
Pan's Labyrinth -- Blu-ray or HD
Living & Dying
Lost and Found: The Harry Langdon Collection

Check out Peter Martin's Indies on DVD for even more new releases.

Consider this a spoiler warning for the whole post, if you still haven't seen The Kingdom. The people over at RopeofSilicon have found the time amidst all their holiday shopping to sit down and listen to Peter Berg's director's commentary on the upcoming DVD of the film and it contains some interesting reveals. According to Berg, the original script had a fascinating and very dark ending -- too dark for it to make it through to the shooting stage. Remember the character of Haytham, the Saudi policeman who gets beaten by the scary general early in the film, because the general suspects he was involved with the terrorist plot? Well, turns out the general was on to something. The original ending of the film, scrapped by Berg, comes after the death of Abu Hamza and all his goons. We see the team going to the airport and all the Saudi good guys they've met during their trip are there to say goodbye to them, including Haytham. Here's how Berg tells it:

"In the original draft, at this moment, when Jamie went to say goodbye Jamie hugged him and he realized that [Haytham] was carrying a bomb on him and the character of Haytham detonated the bomb and the entire team was killed and it was a very powerful ending. At the end we decided it was just too much." Boo. That would have been a much more powerful ending, and much more evocative of the cultural ambiguity that Berg tries to set up with his current ending. I wish they would have at least shot that ending so that we could see how it plays out in comparison, on the DVD perhaps.

Considering how hard it is to get people to go see a Tom Cruise movie these days, it wouldn't be surprising if it was also hard to get a director who'll work with the guy. Of course, Cruise's waning bankability isn't the reason that his spy movie, the weakly titled Edwin A. Salt, has already lost Terry George and Michael Mann as potential directors. I'm not sure why they aren't doing the film (Mann apparently picked Public Enemies instead), but it can't be fears of a potentially low gross. No matter; they are out and Peter Berg (The Kingdom) is in, according to Entertainment Weekly's Hollywood Insider Blog. Well, he's not quite in yet; Columbia Pictures is only reportedly wooing the guy, though in the end it's supposedly up to Cruise's approval whether or not he gets the gig. Interestingly enough, Berg can almost be viewed as a Mann protégé, since he produced The Kingdom and Berg's follow-up, next summer's Will Smith vehicle, Hancock (the trailer of which hit the net this week). However, it doesn't appear that Mann will have any involvement with Edwin A. Salt.

I won't admit to being the biggest fan of Berg's work (who could, really?), but I will admit that The Kingdom was one of my top ten movies of 2007. Though it's mainly on my list because all critics have to have that one obligatory mainstream Hollywood pick, I do think it was directed quite well, with a tone that perfectly suited what it was really about (American dreams of an '80s action-movie-type response to 9/11). Also, his Friday Night Lights (the film; I haven't seen the TV pilot he did) was better than most high school football movies. So, I'm excited to see what he can do with Cruise, a script from Kurt Wimmer (Equilibrium) and the beginning-to-get-tired world of spies.

I may have initially hated Miami Vice, but it might be time to take another look. Especially because it's taking Michael Mann a long time to make a follow-up (though it's normal for him to take a few years between films). Lately he's been concentrating on producing, overseeing such pics as The Kingdom, which is currently in theaters, and the upcoming Hancock, which stars Will Smith. According to Variety, though, Mann has found a project that he's interested in directing next year, and it's to be another vehicle for Smith, who Mann previously directed to an Oscar nom in Ali. The drama, titled Empire, will also reunite Mann with screenwriter John Logan, with whom he worked, as a producer, on The Aviator. The plot involves a "contemporary global media mogul."

Other than that job title for (I'm assuming) Smith's character, little is known. But with such a great team involved, I don't think we need to worry. They're all very talented and respected (even if Logan did write the recent version of The Time Machine), Columbia apparently dished out at least a million bucks for the must-be-amazing pitch and I trust that Mann will not disappoint me again in the future. Something about this project -- perhaps the hint of corporate and media dealings -- makes me think it will be most in line with Mann's The Insider, which I think is his best film, even though it doesn't have a lot of action nor does it have Pacino and DeNiro face to face. Empire also won't feature classic Hollywood icons, like the film noir Mann and Logan were recently said to be making, but with that in mind, I think I'm anticipating this new project on less-kitschy grounds. Meanwhile, I'm also hoping that Smith make this a priority over Seven Pounds, his presumed next film (following Hancock) that returns him to the care of Pursuit of Happyness director Gabriele Muccino. I guess it all could come down to which film Smith thinks offers him a better chance at another Oscar nom for 2009.

For people in South Brooklyn, there are two great incentives to going to the movies on Tuesdays. Unfortunately, each is offered by a different theater. At the independently owned Cobble Hill Cinema, the attraction is discounted tickets -- $6.50 instead of the usual $9. Down the street, at the huge Regal Entertainment-owned UA Court Street Stadium 12, the deal is a free small popcorn -- upgraded to a medium for only 50 cents.

So, being a South Brooklynite, I typically schedule my movie going for Tuesdays. But how do I choose which theater to patronize? Well, obviously, the first factor is what movies each theater is showing. Normally, Cobble Hill has indie films and other similar, adult-oriented fare (I don't mean porn; I mean Elizabeth: The Golden Age) while the UA has mostly mainstream, studio pictures (e.g. The Heartbreak Kid). However, on occasion, they are both showing the one movie I want to see. This week, for instance, both theaters are running The Kingdom.

Because I'm both cheap and poor, the best draw seems to be Cobble Hill's discount ticket. But then if I'm going to buy popcorn (I almost always want popcorn), it isn't really any cheaper than going to the UA and paying $11.25 for a ticket and a medium bag. And as much as I'd like to say that you should always support the mom-and-pop business, the truth is that I prefer the projection, the seats and, most importantly, the corn at the UA. Besides, Cobble Hill offers its discount on Thursdays, too; so anytime I choose to see a movie on that day of the week, the smaller business is definitely first choice.

What do you get when you cross Citizen Kane with Ruthless People? Something that sounds like the greatest movie ever, right? Well, we'll see if that's really what we get when Peter Berg makes a movie about the kidnapping of teenage heir J. Paul Getty III. According to Variety, the actor/director is developing a project based on John Pearson's book "Painfully Rich: The Outrageous Fortune and Misfortunes of the Heirs of J. Paul Getty" (with that title, it sounds like another Bette Midler movie is thrown into the mix, too). For those who don't know the story, 16 year old Getty III was abducted in Rome and the kidnappers demanded $17 million. But his miserly grandfather -- the founder of Getty Oil -- initially refused to pay up. At first everyone thought the kid was pulling a prank. Eventually the poor teen's ear was mailed to the family. Finally, gramps paid, though he only did so with the assurance he'd be paid back by Getty II (his son) ... with interest. As for Getty III, well he became totally screwed up, turned to drugs and his life was ruined forever. Thanks grandpa!

The trade doesn't mention whether or not Berg, whose new film, The Kingdom, is now in theaters, will direct the pic; he's currently shooting the washed-up superhero movie Hancock, starring Will Smith, and then he's linked to a few other projects, including the true Navy SEAL story Lone Survivorr, the racehorse drama Gone Like the Wind, the Cheung fo remake The Mission and the fantasy Bran Mak Morn. He will definitely be involved in producing the Getty film, through his company Film 44, along with Working Title's Chris Clark (Catch a Fire). The adaptation of Pearson's book is being written by Robin Shushman, an apparent newbie (no IMDb listing) who is also currently writing the script for The Contortionist's Handbook. Hopefully she will make the thing twisted enough, and possibly add in some relevance to how good today's spoiled heirs have it.