BEVERLY HILLS, California (AP) ― Yes, the new Fox series “Gotham” will feature a young Bruce Wayne, but don’t expect him to turn into the caped crusader. Creator Bruno Heller told journalists Sunday at the Television Critics Association summer press tour that “If there is a superhero on this show, it’s Gotham.” “To me, heroes are more interesting than superheroes,” he said, “because the difference is superheroes do the impossible, and drama is really about the physically possible. This is about

July 21, 2014

It started as “a narrative problem,” writer-director Richard Linklater says. “How do you tell a story, with actors, over a long period of time? You can’t recast it when you’re catching up with somebody, year by year. The change in appearance would be too abrupt.”He wanted to follow a child from first grade to college enrollment, “and I was stuck with the limitation of the physical appearance of whatever young actor I had.”His solution is “Boyhood,” the most acclaimed film of the year, a movie th

July 18, 2014

Kundo: Age of the Rampant (Korea)Opening July 23Action. Directed by Yoon Jong-bin“Kundo” is set in the 13th year of King Cheoljong’s reign in mid-19th century Joseon, when rampant corruption in the ruling class and its exploitation of the populace pushed the common people over the edge. Dolmuchi (Ha Jung-woo) is a not-so-intelligent but kind-hearted butcher, a typical lower-class job at the time. One day, Dolmuchi makes a dangerous deal with Jo Yoon (Gang Dong-won), a noblemen’s son who was an o

July 18, 2014

It is like going on a ride in an amusement park. In a 4-DX theater the chairs sometimes tremble, rock, heave and pitch; water squirts and bubbles float around; not to mention the odor effects, all in tandem with the action on the big screen. Thanks to the advancement of technology, moviegoers can enjoy a plethora of theater experiences from merely watching actors on the screen, to wearing 3-D glasses to see the film pop out, all the way to the 4-D experience, where audiences are placed into a fi

July 17, 2014

South Korean film “Gyeongju” will compete for top prizes at the Locarno International Film Festival, its production company said Thursday.The movie starring Park Hae-il and Shin Min-a has advanced to the international competition category in the 67th edition of the festival, Invent Stone Corp. said.“Gyeongju,” directed by renowned Chinese filmmaker Zhang Lu, follows the one-day journey of a young university professor to Gyeongju, one of Korea’s ancient capitals, where he encounters a beautiful a

July 17, 2014

SACO, Maine (AP) ― Many in the movie industry feared the need to convert to digital could be the death knell for drive-ins, but drive-in operators are finding creative ways to afford the switch. Drive-in movie theater operators say more than 200 of the remaining 348 drive-ins in the U.S. have made the expensive conversion from film to digital, which typically costs more than $70,000. Theater owners say conversions escalated quickly in 2013 and will help keep the drive-ins in business for now, pr

July 14, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) ― The monkey business is a good business to be in at the box office. “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” roared to $73 million on its opening weekend, one of the summer’s best debuts, according to studio estimates Sunday. The 20th Century Fox sequel easily surpassed the $54.8 million opening to 2011’s “Rise of the Planet of the Apes,” the reboot of the fabled chimp franchise. In a summer heavy on hype but thin on quality, “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes” has proven to be one of the fe

July 14, 2014

Georgian director George Ovashvili holds the main prize, the Crystal Globe, for his film “Corn Island” at the 49th International Film Festival in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic, Saturday. (AP-Yonhap)PRAGUE (AFP) ― Georgian film “Corn Island” won the $25,000 Crystal Globe for best movie at the Czech film festival in the western spa city of Karlovy Vary on Saturday.The film directed by George Ovashvili is a psychological drama about an old man and his granddaughter living on an island on a river sep

July 13, 2014

Santa Barbara (Korea)Opening July 17Romance. Directed by Cho Sung-kyuWhen naïve music director Jung-woo (Lee Sang-yoon) meets a talented creative director Soo-kyung (Yoon Jin-seo) to work on an advertisement project together, at first, they do not get along very well because of striking differences in personalities. But one day, they happen to find similarities in three things: movie taste, a love for wine, and longing for Santa Barbara in the U.S. With these similarities, they grow closer. Howe

July 11, 2014

By Mark Olsen, Los Angeles TimesThe documentary “Life Itself” is about the life, career, death and legacy of film critic Roger Ebert but, as the title implies, also much more. It is about the role of work and love and passion and ideas in the living of one’s life, all the things that come together to make each of us who we are. An adaptation of Ebert’s 2011 memoir of the same name ― a New York Times review called it “the best thing Mr. Ebert has ever written” ― the movie is directed by fellow Ch

July 11, 2014

Chae Yoon-seok is an office worker with a 5- and 2-year-old. When Disney’s animated film “Frozen” hit local theaters in January, his daughters became part of the craze, wanting to watch it over and over again. Instead of taking them to the cinema every time, he decided to pay 9,000 won to buy the Internet protocol television (IPTV) version of the movie. Since May, his girls have watched it well over 20 times. “The perk is that the kids can watch it whenever and as many times as they wish at home

July 10, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Terry Notary is Hollywood’s human shape-shifter. In a blink, he can become an elf, an ape or almost any other moving creature. An expert in motion-capture performance, he specializes in bringing nonhuman characters to life on screen. He’s played goblins in “The Hobbit,” a Who in “How the Grinch Stole Christmas” and a winged, dragon-like banshee in “Avatar.” In “Dawn of the Planet of the Apes,” opening Friday, Notary plays more than 100 primates. He also taught the film’s stars

July 8, 2014

For 17 years, Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival has focused on showcasing genre films, mostly horror, thriller and sci-fi movies. But the 2014 edition seeks to make progress in a new direction, including more films from other genres under the theme of “Love, Fantasy and Adventure.” A total of 210 films ― 123 features and 87 shorts ― from 48 countries will be screened during the 11-day festival, which kicks off July 17 in Bucheon, just west of Seoul.  A total of 131 films will get debu

July 8, 2014

A documentary on the late Cardinal Stephen Kim Sou-hwan (1922-2009) will open in theaters on Aug. 7 to commemorate the fifth anniversary of his passing. “The Cardinal,” directed by Jeon Seong-woo, presents the life of the late clergy member, through interviews with him in his last three years and many accounts from those who knew him. The documentary will focus on acknowledging the cardinal as a human being, beyond his public image. The official poster of “The Cardinal.” (Mountain Pictures)“The

July 6, 2014

Confession (Korea)Opening July 10Crime, Drama. Directed by Lee Do-yoonHyun-tae (Ji Sung), In-chul (Ju Ji-hoon) and Min-soo (Lee Kwang-soo) have been close friends for 20 years. One day, a deadly fire occurs and takes the life of Hyun-tae’s mother and all of her property. The accident turns evolves into an unsolved mystery. Hyun-tae’s suspicion grows over the death of his mother as he begins looking for any kind of evidence. Hyun-tae asks his friends to help, but as the truth unfolds, he begins t

July 4, 2014

He has been referred to as Korea’s version of Quentin Tarantino, with Quentin Tarantino himself recently likening him to Steven Spielberg. Now, with the ambitious sci-fi action film “Snowpiercer,” Bong Joon-ho makes his English-language debut and a bid for a broader audience.The film is the most expensive South Korean production ever, with a budget of more than $40 million, and broke box-office records when it was released there last year. The film has also weathered a high-profile behind-the-sc

July 4, 2014