The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies

Posted: 18 Sep 2012 03:44 AM PDT

It's shark week with a difference ... in the 3D feature, Bait.

IMAGINE not one, but two disasters occuring within the span of one day. In the film Bait, that is exactly the situation a couple of characters find themselves in.

Shoppers at an underground supermarket are minding their own business – well, except for Josh who still looks longingly at his ex-fiancee Tina whenever they meet – when the town is hit by a tsunami. The water is then trapped in the basement along with hungry sharks, brought there by the huge waves.

But that's not all. The tsunami comes just as the supermarket is held up by a couple of guys with guns. Working together so the thugs make it out alive as well is not up for discussion, is it?

This Australian 3D film directed by Kimble Rendall, features quite a large cast, including Xavier Samuel (Sanctuary, A Few Best Men, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse), Julian McMahon (Fire With Fire, Fantastic Four) and Sharni Vinson (You're Next, Blue Crush 2, Step Up 3D), Phoebe Tonkin (Secret Circle, Tomorrow When The War Began), Lincoln Lewis (Underbelly, Tomorrow When The War Began) and Singaporean stars Qi Yuwu (The Home Song Stories, Founding Of A Party) and Adrian Pang (Holiday, I Do I Do). Bait was developed by Russell Mulcahy and Gary Hamilton as a shark movie with a high concept. Their pitching sale was simply, "Sharks in the mall."

In the production notes provided by RAM Entertainment, producer Chris Brown said: "When somebody says that, what else can you say really? Except, I've got to make this movie. It's a brilliant high concept idea. I've always wanted to make a shark attack movie. We all grew up with Jaws, which is such an iconic film. To make a shark movie that takes on Jaws was a dream come true."

His co-producer Todd Fellman also said: "It was not your standard horror script with thinly drawn characters and a one-note storyline, it was about survival and human nature, about a group of people that is randomly brought together in one of the most horrific experiences imaginable and we watch their relationships develop and deteriorate. It's quite a roller coaster ride."

Speaking of Jaws, Bait comes at a perfect time since Jaws is making its Blu-ray rounds right now, featuring awesome digital restoration of the man-eater. Both make for a great reminder that this sea creature is not to be trifled with, and is best left alone. To maximise the scares, Rendall went with the fury of the great white shark and sharks that were as long as tiger Sharks. Several mechanical models were designed to create different effects and for different angle shots. One thing all these robotic sharks had to have was to look bloody real.

To gain the fluid organic movement, the team led by Grant Lehman, the animatronics supervisor, developed it further for six months.

Fellman shared: "By the end of it, we had a fully articulated swimming shark that could move itself through the water, to the point where our underwater cinematographer got down to look through the lens and jumped back in fright on the first day of shooting.

"The shark could lunge out of the water and snap its jaws. Its eyes rolled back and the gills moved. It was definitely delivering a performance equal to any of the cast members.

"The shark with the ramming head was incredible in its versatility of movements and the speed at which it could move underwater."

Completing the mechanical sharks is the digital technology. Director Rendall, however, knew that it's ultimately the characters that define what the audience is feeling.

Here to ground the emotion is the main character Josh (Samuel) who has to save the day. Samuel commented: "Julian McMahon's character is quite an imposing figure ... (but his character's) morality is in question. So that is the point when Josh steps up and tries to redeem himself in a way. But, it's a group effort, everyone's kind of involved in figuring out how to get out of here."

Actor Lewis added: "It wasn't really that hard to get into character because the shark looked the real deal as did the set, just unbelievable, and there were bodies everywhere and fake blood all in the water ... you could really feel that you were there." – Mumtaj Begum

■ Bait (3D and 2D) gnashes its way into cinemas starting Thursday.

'Resident Evil: Retribution' powers to top in N. America

Posted: 17 Sep 2012 11:14 PM PDT

LOS ANGELES: Sci-fi action-thriller Resident Evil: Retribution topped the North American weekend box office, holding off the 3D version of Finding Nemo, final figures showed Monday.

Both films were making their debut but the former, starring Milla Jovovich, took US$21.1mil in receipts, ahead of animated feature Finding Nemo, which earned US$16.7mil, according to box office tracker Exhibitor Relations.

Last week's number one, The Possession, a supernatural thriller starring Kyra Sedgwick, was knocked into third, well off the pace with just US$5.8mil in weekend receipts.

Depression-era gangster tale Lawless fell from second place last week to fourth earning US$4.3mil.

Action romp The Expendables 2, starring Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger, continued its drop, finishing fifth on US$3.14mil.

ParaNorman, an animated movie about a boy who can speak to the dead, moved down to the sixth spot, earning US$3.09mil.

The Words, a literary drama about an author who earns fame by stealing another writer's work, was in seventh place, with US$2.86mil in sales, just ahead of thriller The Bourne Legacy which earned US$2.85mil.

In ninth place, quirky fantasy-comedy The Odd Life of Timothy Green brought in US$2.6mil.

And rounding out the top 10 was political spoof The Campaign, starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis, which took in US$2.4mil. - AFP

Kredit: www.thestar.com.my

Selasa, 18 September 2012

The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies

The Star Online: Entertainment: Movies

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