Official Trailer for Disney's "Live-Action" THE LION KING

The official trailer for director Jon Favreau's "live-action" adaptation of Disney Animation Studios 1994 classic, The Lion King, is here and...can we just talk about how fantastic the music is for a second? Hans Zimmer may now be known as Christopher Nolan's composer of choice the man has had a long history of producing movie scores and the original The Lion King is among some of his best work and that really shines here. While it's easy to be cynical about what are more or less re-makes of your childhood favorites in favor of modern technologies such as motion capture and some downright astonishing CGI over the classic hand-drawn style of animation that mine and so many generations before me were raised on it's also hard to deny the beauty and scope of what Favreau has seemingly been able to accomplish here. As with the filmmaker’s The Jungle Book, Favreau's take on The Lion King will feature a mix of CGI and live-action techniques; the tangible environments only making the CGI, but wholly convincing animals all the more real. The moment that music breaks in though, I dare anyone born between 1985 and 2000 to try and not be won over by what this movie might potentially bring to the table as the majesty and wonder these songs capture along with the pure spectacle these visuals provide will seemingly give audiences plenty to chew on even if the narrative is known. Also of note is the fact Elton John returned to re-record some of his original music for this updated version collaborating with cast member, Beyonce Knowles Carter, in the process; it seems as if the Rocketman will be having quite the summer. The Lion King will also feature the voice work of Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Eric Andre, Billy Eichner, Alfre Woodard, James Earl Jones, John Oliver, Keegan-Michael Key, Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Kani, and opens on July 19th, 2019.

Teaser Trailer for Jon Favreau's THE LION KING

The first trailer for director Jon Favreau's "live-action" adaptation of Disney Animation Studios 1994 classic, The Lion King, has arrived and while it gives us more than that Aladdin teaser did a month or so ago, this is still very much a tease. While it's easy to be cynical about what are more or less re-makes of your childhood favorites in favor of modern technologies such as motion capture and some downright astonishing CGI over the classic hand-drawn style of animation that mine and so many generations before me were raised on it is also hard to deny the beauty and scope of what Favreau has seemingly been able to accomplish here. Like Favreau’s The Jungle Book, the filmmaker's take on The Lion King will feature a mix of CGI and live-action techniques as is evident in the shots in this first-look footage; the tangible environments only making the clearly CGI, but nearly convincing animals all the more convincing. The moment that music breaks in though, I dare anyone born between 1985 and 2000 to try and be overly cynical or pessimistic about what this movie might potentially bring to the table as the majesty the song captures and the pure grand spectacle these visuals boast is something that-even if we know the story and know what's coming-will be astonishing to experience on the big screen. Speaking of the music, one has to wonder how many of the original songs will be included and to what degree. Favreau included the notable arrangements from the 1967 animated The Jungle Book in his 2016 version, but while there has been talk of cutting certain songs, The Lion King has such an iconic roster of musical moments it's hard to imagine the finished product with any of them missing. That said, Elton John did in fact return to re-record some of his original music for this updated version collaborating with cast member, Beyonce Knowles Carter, in the process. The Lion King will also feature the voice work of Donald Glover, Seth Rogen, Eric Andre, Billy Eichner, Alfre Woodard, James Earl Jones, John Oliver, Keegan-Michael Key, Chiwetel Ejiofor, John Kani, and opens on July 19th, 2019.

New Trailer for BLACK PANTHER Starring Chadwick Boseman

Marvel's has somewhat unexpectedly, but not really dropped a new trailer for Black Panther today helping everyone's week get off to a better than usual start. While this was expected at some point before Thor: Ragnarok arrived in theaters I'm slightly surprised Marvel has decided to go a full two weeks before the actual release date. That said, this will only get all those who were going to see Ragnarok on the first day anyway all the more pumped for the next installment of their cinematic universe while simultaneously getting the the Marvel faithful as excited as ever for what's right around the corner. All of this is obviously a pretty big deal as it is one of the few African-American led comic book movies and the first for Marvel Studios despite having included characters like Falcon in other films. In the wake of Wonder Woman this summer Black Panther continues to shows the diversification of what that former status quo believed itself to be. It's frankly wonderful to see such major shifts taking place and being executed by major studios as it relays bigger cultural and social impacts than some might even realize, but all of this good is made even better when the film itself tends to look promising. Of course, there was no reason to ever think Black Panther was risky given Marvel enlisted director Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Creed) to helm the project. This paired with the fact we already got our first look at Chadwick Boseman's titular character in last year's Captain America: Civil War which in and of itself was pretty fantastic. Take all of this and add to the ever-growing promise of the film that Coogler also rounded-up frequent collaborator Michael B. Jordan to play the film's antagonist Erik Killmonger and you have what is more or less a guaranteed quality picture if not a guaranteed box office smash due to the fact it is another in a long line of Marvel successes. As for the trailer itself, Coogler and his team certainly seem to have found a look and tone they wanted to work in as the visual effects have improved since that first trailer and there is a scope here that was missing before-a scope that feels appropriate when introducing audiences to an entirely new nation. Black Panther also stars Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Daniel Kaluuya, Angela Bassett, Andy Serkis, Forest Whitaker, Florence Kasumba, Martin Freeman, John Kani, Winston Duke, Sterling K. Brown, Phylicia Rashad, and opens on February 16th, 2018.

First Trailer for Marvel's BLACK PANTHER

Playing a little catch up today as the first teaser for Marvel's latest, Black Panther, dropped on Friday during game four of the NBA Finals, but unfortunately I haven't been able to really sit down and watch the clip until today. That said, this is obviously a pretty big deal as not only is this our first look at what is on Marvel's slate moving into 2018, but it's also our first glimpse at what is one of the few African-American led comic book movies. In the wake of Wonder Woman last weekend this is a big deal and only shows the continuing diversification of what that former status quo believed itself to be. It's frankly wonderful to see such major shifts taking place and being executed by major studios as it relays bigger cultural and social impacts than some might even realize, but all of this good is made even better when the film itself tends to look promising. Of course, there was no reason to ever think this Black Panther movie wasn't going to be promising given Marvel's Cinematic Universe enlisted director Ryan Coogler (Fruitvale Station, Creed) to helm the project. This paired with the fact we already got our first look at Chadwick Boseman's titular character in last year's Captain America: Civil War and that too was fantastic. Take all of this and add to the ever-growing promise of the film that Coogler also rounded-up frequent collaborator Michael B. Jordan to play the film's antagonist Erik Killmonger and you have what is more or less a guaranteed quality picture if not a guaranteed box office smash due to the fact it is another in a long line of Marvel's successes. As for the trailer itself, Coogler and his team certainly seem to have found a look and tone they wanted to work in for despite some of the visual effects shots still feeling incomplete the world in which they're taking us to is fully rendered. It's interesting to see Andy Serkis' Klaw (first introduced in Age of Ultron) and Martin Freeman's Everett Ross (also introduced in Civil War) open the trailer and discuss the mysteries of Wakanda as it only gives the audience a stronger desire to see this place for themselves. Black Panther also stars Lupita Nyong'o, Danai Gurira, Daniel Kaluuya, Angela Bassett, Forest Whitaker, Florence Kasumba, John Kani, Winston Duke, Sterling K. Brown, Phylicia Rashad, and opens on February 16th, 2018.