ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE FINALLY SEEING THE LIGHT OF DAY!

With the success of Jonathan Levine's WARM BODIES, it's no surprise that someone finally got around to releasing his feature length directorial debut. I've been curious about it myself and have wondered for some time why it was never released. Seven years later, I'll finally see if it has been worth the wait. Here's more info on this "lost" Horror film that being released by RADiUS and The Weinstein Company:

PRESS RELEASE

RADiUS-TWC is proud to announce that it has acquired U.S. rights to ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE, the long anticipated feature directorial debut from director Jonathan Levine (WARM BODIES, 50/50) that has been rescued by the Weinstein Company’s boutique label.

Starring Amber Heard and Anson Mount, ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY is about a group of high-schoolers who invite Mandy Lane, “a good girl” who becomes the object of everyone’s affection after returning from summer break, to a weekend party on a secluded ranch. While the festivities rage on, the number of revelers begins to mysteriously drop one at a time.

ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE will be released in late summer – seven years after its Toronto Film Festival Midnight premiere.

RADiUS Co-President Tom Quinn says:  “I've been chasing this film since I first saw it in Toronto. [Executive producer] Keith Calder and I have kept in touch over the years and he's finally been able to wrangle the film from a deal at Senator.  Originally, Harvey and Bob beat us to it in Toronto and now we get to work together to finally bring MANDY LANE to U.S. audiences. This is one of the few horror films that has remained relevant and in the zeitgeist for years - - no easy feat - - and it still surpasses so much of what is being produced today.“ 

According to Harvey and Bob Weinstein, “We’ve always loved MANDY LANE and are thrilled that RADiUS shares our passion for the film and will get in front of the widest possible audience.”

Levine goes on to say:  “I am thrilled that MANDY LANE has been rescued and is back where it belongs with Harvey and Bob.  Hard to believe it's been seven years, but then again I’ve always perceived myself as a misunderstood artist who was light years ahead of his time, so I am thrilled the world has finally caught up. Seriously, I am incredibly proud of the film and of the hard work that my cast and collaborators put into it, and I am so happy the world will finally get a chance to see it.”

“It's finally time for me to come clean… During the production of MANDY LANE, I broke a mirror and doomed the film to seven years of bad luck. Thankfully, the team at RADiUS-TWC has shown up to rescue our film and clear my guilty conscience. I'm ecstatic that our first film with RADiUS-TWC is also the first film we produced, and I'm looking forward to working with Harvey, Bob, Jason, and Tom on the release,” echoes Calder.

Quinn and RADiUS Co-President Jason Janego negotiated the deal with Calder.

In the dark on this flick, or you just haven't seen the trailer in a long time? Well give it a look and get excited because it looks pretty darned good. I personally enjoyed WARM BODIES a lot, so I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy ALL THE BOYS LOVE MANDY LANE:



No official theatrical, video on demand, or DVD/Blu-ray release dates have been announced yet, but I'll be sure to post them once I find out!

NOW PLAYING: WARM BODIES, BULLET TO THE HEAD, & HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT 2

We did it! We survived January 2013's parade of mediocre theatrical releases! Last month saw Horror movies reign supreme at the box office (TEXAS CHAINSAW 3D, MAMA, and HANSEL AND GRETEL: WITCH HUNTERS all took the number one spot on their opening weekends), and saw several action films fail miserably (PARKER and THE LAST STAND flopped big time; GANGSTER SQUAD is still limping along with $40 million).

But now it's February: Punxsutawney Phil will see his damned shadow tomorrow, dooming us to more Winter. Valentine's Day will happen in two weeks; love will be discovered; hearts will be crushed; oh yes, there will be drama! It's also Black History Month (ever notice that it takes place on the shortest month of the year? I'm surprised no one's complained yet.) so students will be learning about Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, and the dozens of others who fought for equal rights.

That's fine and all, but what why not expand the curriculum to include black actors, actresses, and filmmakers? I think that at least a full week in Black History Month should be dedicated to the blaxploitation genre! (Kids should know who Richard Roundtree, Jim Brown, Pam Grier, and Fred "The Hammer" Williamson are!) Finally, February is now also "Women in Horror Recognition Month," where little seen, and unknown women in the Horror genre (particularly those working in independent film) try to get more exposure (other than going topless) and promote themselves. Read more about it here.

Anyway, February, like its predecessor, is usually another month where studios drop the films they don't consider to be Summer blockbuster material. Luckily we're getting plenty of decent-looking flicks to choose from at the cinema this weekend. First up is WARM BODIES:


At first I had written this off as a goofy "Twilight" type zombie flick, but after seeing the trailer(s) for it, I've changed my tune and am in fact, going to see it today! It gives us the usual zombie stuff (shoot them in the head to kill them; they crave the flesh of the living), but then goes in an entirely different direction. Aside from "My Boyfriend's Back," "Fido," and "Deadheads," there really aren't a lot of romantic "zombedies" out there, and it is rare for any zombie-themed film to try something different.

Note: I saw "Warm Bodies" earlier today and it was (for sake of a better word) cute. It's relatively bloodless, and is essentially a modern day retelling of Romeo and Juliet, with a post-apocalyptic zombie twist. My fiancee liked it quite a bit, and I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy it myself. THIS is the romantic comedy to take your ladies to this (or next) weekend guys!

Next up, here's a little something for the menfolk! Enjoy the trailer for BULLET TO THE HEAD!


Stallone plays aging hitman James Bonobo (a.k.a. Jimmy Bobo) that teams up with a Washington D.C. cop when both of their partners get iced by Keegan (Jason Momoa), a kill-crazy mercenary. The movie looks action packed and has the two main protagonists exchanging insults while beating down / murdering some henchmen. It is good to see Walter Hill back in the director's eat I tell ya!

Note: Just saw this tonight as well. It was pretty good, but it seems like a lot of the Stallone and Sung Kang banter was left on the cutting room floor. The movie certainly lives up to its title (there are a lot of bullets fired into a lot of heads), and though the main baddie is a bore (his plot is to buy up property and convert it into CONDOS! GASP!), his main henchman played by Momoa is a lot of fun to watch. I enjoyed this one, and I'd readily recommend a matinee viewing of it!

Finally here's the trailer for a film that I've already posted about recently, namely A HAUNTING IN CONNECTICUT 2: GHOSTS OF GEORGIA:


I've already discussed the asinine title of the film (which TAKES PLACE IN GEORGIA, NOT CONNECTICUT!) but I'll admit that it looks like a solid rental. It's playing in limited theaters at the moment but will probably expand into the video on demand market soon.

Aside from several documentaries that are getting a small release, these three are your best bets in theaters this weekend, and I can totally vouch for two of them! But if none of these strike your fancy, you can always try STAND UP GUYS which stars Christopher Walken, Al Pacino, and Alan Arkin.