Cinematical

Welcome back to another installment of Insert Caption -- the game President Bush would love to play ... if only he knew how to find the internet. Zing! Last week we asked you to "go long" for a photo from the new movie The Express, and score you did. Congrats to the three sports who managed to cross into our funny zone. (Get it -- instead of end zone, I said funny zone? Heh ... wait, why aren't you laughing?)

1. "Staring Contest? This is no Staring Contest....This is FOOTBALL!" -- Darren C.

2. 'Coach: Why aren't you playing up to your obvious potential yet?
Player: Because we haven't had the requisite training montage yet!" -- Matt B.

3. "Damn ... Did you hear about O.J.?" -- Chaz K.

See full image and all captions


I'm a little afraid of the captions we'll be receiving this week, in honor of the new Oliver Stone flick W. (in theaters October 17), though I'm sure our readers will show a little {cough} respect with their captions. Based on the life and times of our current president (who'll be leaving office in just a few months), W. stars Josh Brolin (as W.) and a whole slew of all stars as some of our most favorite political heroes. The candidates behind our three favorite captions will spin away with one W. poster, one W. t-shirt and a set of six W. shot glasses. Sound off below ...



Read the official rules for this contest

Pictured: Ian Fleming in his study with a copy of For Your Eyes Only (April 1960). (Photo by Evening Standard / Getty Images)

Last month, Cinematical was lucky enough to join a few other select outlets on a trip to London for something called The James Bond Experience. One of the cooler activities we took part in (aside from driving an Aston Martin at 150mph and chatting with both Daniel Craig and Marc Forster) was our field trip to the Imperial War Museum London where, to celebrate Ian Fleming's 100th birthday, they're currently housing an exhibit dedicated to the man called For Your Eyes Only.

If you're a James Bond fan or an Ian Fleming fan or both, then I seriously recommend boarding a plane to London in order to check out this exhibit because you'll see so much -- some of which is on display for the very first time. I'm talking a slew of original manuscripts (from Casino Royale to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), props from some of your favorite James Bond films, personal letters, photographs, notes -- essentially Fleming's entire life right there before your eyes.

While there's no photography allowed inside the exhibit, Cinematical managed to snag a bunch of photos showing only a fraction of what's on display across the pond. So, instead of writing a thousand words describing what I saw, I present these two packed galleries full of images from the Imperial War Museum and the For Your Eyes Only exhibit. Show, don't tell ... right?





For a little more info on the exhibit (which runs through March 1, 2009), head after the jump. Quantum of Solace hits theaters on November 14.

Not too long ago we featured a group of Steampunk Star Wars figures created by Sillof's Workshop. Well, yesterday Cinematical reader Jeff pointed out that Sillof had finished a Return of the Jedi line of figures, and, well, as you can see they're pretty damn cool. Above you'll find figures for Jabba the Hutt, slave Princess Leia, Salacious Crumb and Bib Fortuna. (Is it just me, or does this Jabba look straight out of a Guillermo del Toro flick?) Other characters in this set include an Ewok (who kinda looks like a smaller Wookiee -- which is funny since, originally, the forest full of Ewoks was supposed to be full of Wookiees), the Emperor, Imperial guards, Admiral Ackbar and a pimped-out Luke Skywalker. Check out a few images, along with other Steampunk Star Wars figures and drawings, in the gallery below.

Click image above to enlarge

Cinematical has just received this exclusive poster for A Christmas Tale, directed by Arnaud Desplechin. The emotional French drama centers on a family who, throughout the years, struggle to come to terms with a personal tragedy that changed their lives forever. Reviewing the film from this year's Cannes Film Festival, Kim called it a "tragically comic tale of love, death, and familial strife and forgiveness."

Starring Mathieu Amalric, Catherine Deneuve, Anne Consigny and Jean-Paul Rossillon, this French flick has received nothing but good buzz since debuting a few months back. Toward the end of her review, Kim adds "I hope the film will secure distribution in the United States as well, so that American audiences might also get to appreciate its humor, beauty and depth."

Well, good news is IFC picked up A Christmas Tale and it will arrive in select theaters and On Demand on November 14, before expanding to other cities. Check it out.

So who watched the season premiere of South Park last night? I tell you, just when you think those boys are starting to get a bit weak in their old age, you're shown a scene featuring Steven Spielberg and George Lucas physically raping Indiana Jones as the poor man cries out for help. Oh yeah ... and did we mention Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull comes out on DVD this Tuesday? Yup ... and it's, er, loaded with extras!

Obviously this was their way of saying the latest Indiana Jones film sorta raped their childhood, but count me among those who kinda enjoyed watching the flick. (And I'm not alone -- here's Jeffrey's passionate post in defense of the sequel.) Sure, I could do without a few scenes here and there, but overall it wasn't terrible. What do you think? Did South Park cross a line last night?

Note: The following scene might be a little sensitive for some, so be warned -- TV-MA and all that ...

Pictured: The winners of Cinematical's Third Annual Costume Contest in the adult category

Hey, so did you know that dressing up in a movie-related costume for Halloween could win you all sorts of fabulous prizes from your most favorite online movie destination? Of course you knew this ... and now that it's October, we here at Cinematical are putting the finishing touches on our Fourth Annual Halloween Costume Contest. Like we have in previous years, we'll be giving away a pretty awesome Halloween-themed prize package to our top winner(s) in each of our two categories: best adult costume and best children's costume.

The contest will begin on October 20th and run through early November (exact dates to be named later). We'll be working with the same rules as last year more or less (read a few after the jump), but instead of letting you vote in the comments, we'll be creating a poll for you to use. Make sure to check out last year's contest for costume ideas and such, and get your ass back here later this month for our official contest kick off post where we'll announce the sweeet prize packages.

Happy Halloween movie freaks!

Those interested in picking up Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull when it hits DVD on October 14th might want to pay attention to this post because there are several different options available to you. For example, above you can see an image of what's being offered at Best Buy -- a gift set with replica crystal skull from Sideshow Collectibles and a $25 gift card to Sideshowcollectibles.com. Pretty cool for you cats who'd have no problem staring at that freak-ish alien skull for all eternity.

Okay, the alien skull is a bit much -- I get it -- but, like I said, you have options. Case in point:

• Circuit City is handing out 2 lithographs of concept art from the movie.
• Target is fooling around with a very sweet looking 80-page hardcover book with behind the scenes photos and never-been-published images.
• Kmart and Sears will give you four exclusive LEGO mini-posters, each being a replica of the original theatrical poster from all four Indy films.
• Lastly, Trans World is offering exclusive steelbook packaging.

Check out images of all these specials, along with their descriptions, in the gallery below.



Which Indiana Jones DVD will you be purchasing? (Here's where our first commenter says, "The one that's not called Kingdom of the Crystal Skull!" Zing!)

The perfect Fan Made content for the day after our second presidential debate, above you will see the Barack Obama poster that's been around for awhile, but next to it you'll see a new Star Wars-inspired poster created by David Friedman. "A long time ago, in a political campaign far, far away, this poster was hanging in campaign offices across the galaxy...," says Friedman. (But does Skywalker care about Joe Six Pack and those of us on Main Street?) If you'd like to own a piece of this Star Wars pie (I actually think it's a pretty cool dorm room poster), you can purchase this image on either a poster or a t-shirt, courtesy of Zazzle.

... I dig the Skywalker poster and all, but I'm waiting for these bumper stickers (also courtesy of Friedman) to hit my local online shop ...



[via Super Punch]

"Well, this is the biggest depression since The Notebook." -- Paris Hilton

I'll be the first to bash Paris Hilton on any given day of the week, but I must admit these fake presidential videos starring Hilton have brought us one or three actual laughs. In her latest video, just posted over at Funny or Die (watch it after the jump), Paris Hilton is joined by one of our greatest fake presidents, Martin Sheen, as the two discuss what it takes to become the nation's next fake president. Both take on such issues as the economy, foreign policy (which Hilton calls FoPo) and Iraq. Toward the end even Charlie Sheen makes an appearance, but then bails to take in a jacuzzi. While I'm not so keen on the word 'president' being associated with Hilton in any way, shape or form, part of me wouldn't mind watching her host a debate. The girl has a larger fanbase than either candidate, and I'm sure she'll choose questions that keep them on their toes. "Prada or Gucci ... and why? Senator Obama, we'll start with you." What say you?

While I'm sure we'll all agree that these past few years have given us some wonderful little comedic gems, it's often unfortunate to see most of the attention thrown at one particular sex, or, in some cases, one particular man: Judd Apatow. But this post won't be about Judd Apatow, or Seth Rogen ,or Jonah Hill, or Michael Cera, or Will Ferrell, or Adam McKay, or Vince Vaughn, or Owen Wilson, or Kevin Smith ... or any of the male names that currently populate (and dominate) some of your favorite comedies. Nope, because it's about damn time we give the ladies some respect.

I'm sick of the female roles in comedies today. She's either the bland girlfriend, or the bland friend, or the bland enemy -- she's full of cliches, and only serves two purposes: 1) to help move the story along, and 2) to make her male counterpart appear funnier. That said, Hollywood is beginning to take more chances on the female-driven comedy, with films like Baby Mama, The House Bunny, Sex and the City, Bride Wars and Confessions of a Shopaholic all arriving in theaters this year or in early 2009. But is this enough? Is there better, smarter and funnier material for women out there, somewhere ... over the rainbow? While you ponder that, here, in my opinion, are the funniest ladies of 2008 (in no particular order) ...


1. Tina Fey

Right now you know her as "that woman who does the awesome Sarah Palin impersonation," but people forget Fey has been making us laugh for a good while now. One of three four women on this list who began their career on Saturday Night Live, Fey brings hilarity from multiple directions. Whether she's producing, writing or starring, anything with her name on it is guaranteed to bring in more than a few laughs ... and then some. (See: Mean Girls, 30 Rock, Baby Mama)