Body of Lies is a 2008 American spy film based on the novel of the same name by David Ignatius about a CIA operative who goes to Jordan to track a high-ranking terrorist. The film is directed by Ridley Scott, director of American Gangster and Black Hawk Down, written by William Monahan, and stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe, Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani and Australian actor Vince Colosimo. Production took place in Washington D.C. and Morocco. Body of Lies was released in the United States on October 10, 2008.

Roger Ferris (DiCaprio) is a CIA operative, most likely from the elite Special Activities Division, in Iraq who is trying to track down a terrorist called Al Salim. While following a lead, Ferris' asset (who he has become good friends with) is killed during a car chase involving terrorists, rocket-propelled grenades and two missile-firing U.S. helicopters. Ferris recovers from his injuries at a U.S. facility in Qatar before he is sent to Jordan to run down some intelligence he recovered in Iraq. Meanwhile, unknown terrorists plan to follow up an offscreen series of bus bombings in Sheffield, with more attacks in Manchester but blow themselves up when the police find their cell. Later, another terrorist undertakes a cell phone-triggered bombing in an Amsterdam flower market that kills at least 75 people.
Ferris' handler, Ed Hoffman (Russel Crowe), keeps tabs on Ferris via an unmanned aerial vehicle. Towards the start of the movie, Hoffman speaks to his CIA superiors. He explains to them how terrorists are turning their back on technology by throwing away their phones and computers and using old methods of communicating face-to-face and with written messages. Because of this, the terrorists are very hard to track.
In Jordan, Ferris tosses the ineffectual Chief of Station out of his office before he meets Hani Salaam, head of the Jordanian General Intelligence Department, or GID who tells Ferris to never lie to him. Hoffman finds an Al Salim safehouse in Jordan and tells Ferris to conduct a surveillance operation on it. However, Hoffman organises another CIA operative Skip (Vince Colosimo) to conduct an operation without Ferris' consent. The other agent screws the operation up and blows his cover after saying something compromising to a terrorist from the safehouse. The terrorist takes off running, intent on relaying information that the safehouse is being watched. Ferris chases him down and kills him by stabbing him, getting bitten by dogs in the process. Hani covers up the killing by passing it off as a robbery and Ferris accuses Hoffman of running "side operations", telling Hoffman to lay off.
Ferris meanwhile goes to hospital to tend to his wounds. While in the hospital he meets a nurse named Aisha, and he gradually falls in love with her. Hani recognises one of the men living in the safehouse as a man he had known for years named Karami (Kais Nashif) and he takes him out into the desert and coerces him into working for Jordanian intelligence (he has been sending money to Karami's mother and making it appear as if it came from her reformed and successful son, so she doesn't know Karami is still a thief and now a wannabe terrorist, and he is shamed and surprised when Hani does not kill him but lets him ride away on his bicycle). Hoffman asks Hani to hand Karami over to the CIA, most likely to interrogate him but Hani refuses, having earlier told Ferris he does not believe in torture. Unknown to Ferris and Hani, Hoffman tells Ferris' CIA subordinate to follow Karami and kidnap him. Karami gets away and notifies the terrorists in the safehouse that it is being watched, resulting in the safehouse being lit on fire and abandoned. Ferris's partner is caught and Hani professes his belief that Ferris had knowledge of the move on Karami and therefore blames his lack of honesty with Hani for the destruction of the safehouse. Hani gives Ferris 12 hours to leave Jordan.
Ferris comes back to the States for a while and argues with Hoffman, whom he derides as power-hungry and fat. He then comes up with a plan to make contact with the terrorist Al Salim by staging a significant terrorist attack, the logic being that Al Salim will hear about this attack and try to make contact with the terrorist group who committed it. With the help of one of Hoffman's CIA friends, Ferris is able to frame a Jordanian architect named Omar Sadiki by posing as a financier contracting a bank's construction in the UAE, making him look like the head of a terrorist cell.
The "terrorist attack" is staged at the Incirlik Air Base in Turkey. A bomb is exploded in the base and Ferris uses unclaimed local bodies dressed as soldiers to make it seem that soldiers were killed in the attack. Al Salim( Alon Abutbul) sees the report of the attack on television and tries to make contact with Sadiki.
Hani tells Ferris to come back to Jordan because he knows that he needs Ferris. Hani then talks to Ferris about his suspicions that Omar Sadiki is a terrorist. Ferris hides that this is not the case, and acts as if he doesn't know anything concerning Hani's suspicions. Ferris later tries to save Sadiki from being kidnapped by Al Salim's henchmen but fails and sees another CIA agent nearly killed in the subsequent car crash. Sadiki informs Salim that Ferris made it seem he committed the terrorist attack. Sadiki is killed. Ferris goes back to his apartment and finds out that Aisha has been kidnapped. He then desperately asks Hani for his help, explaining to Hani that he made up Omar Sadiki's terrorist cell and the terrorist attack supposedly committed by Sadiki was faked. However, Hani refuses to help Ferris because Ferris lied to him.
Ferris gets a call from the kidnappers and is told to wait for a van. The van picks him up and drops him in the desert. Meanwhile back in CIA headquarters, Hoffman is watching everything via an unmanned aerial vehicle. Ferris is then picked up by a group of men in cars and the vehicles create a massive cloud of dust before splitting up. Hoffman is unable to follow Ferris because he has no idea which van he is in.
Ferris is taken to be interrogated by Al Salim, just across the border in Syria. When Ferris asks Al Salim about Aisha, Salim tells Ferris that someone has lied to him and he has been doublecrossed. While Ferris tells Salim that there is an infiltrator (Karami) in his organization who works for him, and that, by association, Salim works for him, and laughs in his face, and subsequently spits in Salim's face, Salim smashes two of Ferris' fingers with a hammer before turning on a video camera and ordering Ferris to be cut loose. Al Salim then leaves. Ferris is prepared by Al Salim's men to be executed on video. As Ferris is about to be executed, Hani and his men burst into the room, killing all of the terrorists and arresting Al Salim.
While in hospital, Ferris is visited by Hani who reveals to him that it was his men who kidnapped Aisha, using blood she donated regularly at work to make it appear she'd been killed or wounded. He then brokered a deal with Al Salim (using Karami): he would deliver CIA agent Ferris to him, for money. It was one of Hani's men who rang Ferris and dropped him in the desert. Since Karami was Hani's man inside Al Salim's organization he was able to locate Ferris and Al Salim in time to save Ferris and arrest Al Salim. Aisha has been released and is fine, and she does not know what role her kidnapping played.
In the end Hoffman offers Ferris a job in his office, but Ferris declines and tells Hoffman that he quits the CIA. Hoffman prepares to leave Jordan and resigns himself to Ferris not changing his mind. At the movie's end, Ferris prepares to renew his contact with Aisha.

Death Race

Death Race is an action film written and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson. The film is a remake of the 1975 film Death Race 2000, based on Ib Melchior's short story "The Racer", and stars Jason Statham in the lead role. The remake had been in development since 2002, though production was delayed by disapproval of early screenplays then placed in turnaround following a dispute between Paramount Pictures and the producer duo Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner. Death Race was acquired by Universal Studios, and Anderson re-joined the project to write and direct. Filming began in Montreal in August 2007, and the completed project was released on August 22, 2008.


In a future United States of America, prison inmates compete against each other in a driving arena. The film begins by showing a race near its end between two cars, a Dodge Ram and a Ford Mustang, both loaded with various guns and armor. The driver of the Mustang is a famous masked driver known as Frankenstein, who is accompanied by a female navigator. The driver of the Dodge Ram, Machine Gun Joe (Tyrese Gibson) fires various weapons at Frankenstein's car, damaging it horribly, and Frankenstein's defense weapons fail for unexplained reasons. As a last resort, Frankenstein drops his car's rear armor plate (nicknamed "The Tombstone") and succeeds in brutally damaging the Dodge Ram. However, Frankenstein's fuel tank is exposed as a result, and Joe capitalizes, firing off a missile to the exposed fuel tank. Frankenstein tells his navigator to eject herself, but he continues on as the fuel tank explodes, propelling his flaming car upside down across the finish line, presumably leaving Frankenstein critically wounded, or dead.
At this point, title cards explain that within four years from 2008 the economy of the United States has fallen into disaster, and private corporations run most prisons across the nation for profit. The movie focuses on the Terminal Island Prison, where arena cage fights between prisoners fighting to the death are broadcast to the world via internet. After crowds became bored with the fighting, the prison adopted a new event for the entire world to see: Death Race, a race where cars armed with various weapons and armour would try to win, but survive each other while doing it. Jensen Ames (Jason Statham) works at a steel mill that closes due to bankruptcy, but things get worse when he returns home to tell his wife. She's fine with it, but as Ames goes to check on their baby, his wife comes face to face with an intruder. Ames returns to see his wife on the floor dead and is knocked out by the intruder, awakening later with a bloody knife in his hand and his wife's body next to him, with the police standing above him, framing him for her murder. Ames is sent to prison where he is coerced by the prison warden, Hennessey (Joan Allen) to become the new driver of the Ford Mustang. She tells Ames that she knows of his baby that was left in foster care, and that prisoners are freed upon winning five Death Races, but since he will take on the mask of the legendary Frankenstein (who had 4 wins at the time of his death), he will only need to win one race. The races are broken apart into three stages: Stage 1 and 2 are races in which the driver must survive, and Stage 3 you must win the race in order for it to add to the count towards freedom.
During the Stage 1 Race, Ames is introduced to his navigator, Case (Natalie Martinez), who happens to be Frankenstein's previous navigator, and later in the race recognizes another driver, Pachenko, using the same exact hand gesture the intruder had made upon completing the framing, thus giving Ames a flashback and the realization to a very promising suspect to his wifes murder. Three drivers are killed during Stage 1 including Grimm and Travis Colt. Ames finishes last after taking a hard hit from Machine Gun Joe. Ames learns he is part of a plot to keep the legend of Frankenstein alive, solely for the personal profit of Hennessey. He confronts Hennessey about the driver, but instead she shows him pictures of his baby living with foster parents, asking him if he thinks he could provide for his baby better than the foster parents. Angered, he takes one of the pictures and leaves. The night before Stage 2 he makes a trip to the garage of Pachenko's team to confront him. He is beaten down by a few members of the team but is helped by a member of his garage allowing Ames to retaliate and nearly kill Pachenko. His revenge is thwarted by the prison guards telling them to save it for the race. Ames goes into the Stage 2 race and immediately questions Case on her intentions. She tells him she was ordered to sabotage Frankenstein's defense weapons so he would not win his freedom, and thereby earn her own. Ames realizes he is not meant to survive the Death Race at all, but is meant to die so another "Frankenstein" can be brought into the prison to keep viewers paying to see the races. He seeks revenge during Stage 2 by crippling and rolling Pachenko's car allowing him to turn around drive back and to get revenge up close and personal by snapping Pachenko's neck as he crawls away from the car wreck. Three drivers remain until 14K is killed by 'The Dreadnought', Hennessy's secret weapon (an 18 wheeler filled with massive machine guns) that had been in production for months. Ames and Machine Gun Joe are able to destroy The Dreadnought then finish Stage 2. Then Ames sets his sights on Hennessey. Realizing that Ames knows what's going on, Hennessey has Ames' car armed with an explosive before the Stage 3 Race as insurance to make sure he does not cross the finish line alive. However, Ames devises his own scheme from an image shown by one of his crew members of a destroyed billboard in an earlier race.
The Stage 3 Race begins with only two drivers remaining: "Frankenstein" and Machine Gun Joe. Before the race, Ames adds an extra half-gallon fuel tank to his car, and tells Joe that he and Frankenstein should talk. The race begins, and Ames soon takes the lead. However, the odds are against Ames as Hennessey rigs the track to benefit Joe. Throughout the entire lap, Joe keeps hot on Ames' tail, and as they near the beginning of the second lap, and the Tombstone starts to give out, Ames' orders Case to release it, in an effort to make Joe back off. Unlike last time though, Joe expects it, and easily avoids the oncoming Tombstone. Now that Ames' fuel tank is exposed, Joe preps newly added missiles and fires in Ames' direction. However, they seem to miss the car and instead hit the billboard at the first turn of the track. It is shown that the image Ames saw was a pathway to the bridge leading off the island to the mainland behind the destroyed billboard.
It turns out that Ames and Joe had plotted their escape from the beginning of Stage 3, as they drive out onto the bridge to escape the island. However, Hennessey mobilizes helicopters and police cruisers to apprehend them. As the cruisers close in on the two cars, Ames releases his exposed fuel tank, causing it to explode and stop the pursuing cars. Turning to her back up plan, Hennessey then orders that the explosive under Ames' car be set off, but nothing happens because Coach (Ames' crew member) had found, removed, and deactivated the bomb prior to the start of the race. Escaping past the bridge, Joe and Ames separate, and Hennessey orders the helicopters to focus on Ames, but he switches seats with Case when she tells him that Hennessey had already signed her release papers for her work, and that she owed one to the old Frankenstein. He jumps from the car leading the helicopters to believe he is still inside. Joe meets up with Ames and they board a train to escape, lamenting on Hennessey's continued existence. Soon, Ames' Mustang is stopped and "Frankenstein" is apprehended.
Later, it is shown that Hennessey believes she still won after all, as a guard notifies her about presents sent to her for the record number of viewers subscribing to the Death Race. However, the explosive that was put on the Frankenstein car is found inside, and blows up as Coach is seen setting off the detonator and giving the quote "I love this game". Six months later, Ames and Joe are shown working in a junkyard in Mexico, when Case unexpectedly arrives. The two men and her are happy to see each other, and Ames shows her his baby. The movie closes with Ames explaining that even though he knows he's far from being the best parent in the world, no one could love his baby more than he could.

pointed and uncomplicated as its title, Death Race is a pure sadistic smash-em-up that provides some of the most explosive, gratuitous fun at the box office this summer. Based on the 1975 original, Death Race 2000, Paul W. S. Anderson's take on the material isn't a remake, but a solid update to the dystopian tale of vehicular carnage and the public's devolution into violent voyeurism. In Death Race, private companies now run the prisons and make money off gladiator-like events, pitting prisoners against each other to battle until death, all the while streaming the mayhem to the masses. While obviously not real, we as viewers could be considered part of the blood-thirsty audience cheering for destruction. And cheer we do.
Movie-driver Jason Statham headlines the production as ex-con Jensen Ames, a humble husband and father to an infant daughter. Ames' life erupts in destruction when he is framed for murdering his wife, sending him to the dead-end Terminal Island prison. In addition to being a mile out in the water, the prison's claim to fame is its live-broadcast Death Race, which is a three-round competition wherein inmates drive souped-up cars and pretty much just try to kill each other. The winner of five races gets his freedom. Taking a cue directly from the 1975 original, the lead driver and fan favorite is Frankenstein, purportedly a driver so badly mangled from accidents prior that he wears a Jason-esque mask.

The grey and grit that makes up the Terminal Island environment is a solid accomplishment by writer-director Anderson. Despite a healthy, albeit slightly rote, background in action, violence and sci-fi having helmed the Resident Evil series and the original Aliens vs Predator, Anderson brings a freshness and surprisingly seasoned sensibility to big action that will certainly catch you off guard. The choreography of the dizzying chase sequences and myriad explosions is reminiscent of the work of the king of blockbuster blow-em-ups, Michael Bay. Thankfully, Anderson's taste leans more toward the dark and sinister - a style that revs and roars in Death Race.
Shortly after Statham's character settles into the prison (following the obligatory initiation fights and arguments over territory), he's approached by the warden - a porcelain cougar named Hennessey (Joan Allen). Hennessey, knowing Ames' background as a race car driver, wants him to participate in the Death Race. While Allen partly channels her stoic role as CIA leader Pamela Landy from the Bourne series, she ups the bitch quotient to an impressive degree. Hennessey is one of the most fun characters of Death Race, largely because she is as twisted as all of the wrenched metal that litters Terminal Island. Supporting characters that also make the film a bit more than just sound and fury include seasoned actor Ian McShane as Statham's pit boss and Tyrese Gibson as Frankenstein's number one opponent, Machine Gun Joe.

To be sure, the film runs out of gas when trying to reach any level of drama or story, and it positively dies when wrapping things up. But who cares? An armored 800+ horsepower Mustang with double gatling guns mounted on the hood far overshadows any need for sympathy we might feel for the characters. And when one of those characters goes out in a bloody blaze, the story is the last thing we're thinking about. For once, I totally agree with a director's boasting of a film. Anderson recently said, "I firmly believe [Death Race] is the best, most spectacular car action I've ever seen in a film." I think you might agree. A straight crimson shot into bedlam, Death Race is a film for which you're either going to call "shotgun!" or let pass you by.

Yahoo said:Terminal Island, New York: 2020. Overcrowding in the U.S. penal system has reached a breaking point. Prisons have been turned over to a monolithic Weyland Corporation, which sees jails full of thugs as an opportunity for televised sport. Adrenalized inmates, a global audience hungry for violence and a spectacular, enclosed arena come together to form the 'Death Race', the world's biggest, most brutal sporting event. Five-time NASCAR champion Jensen Ames is a man who has become an expert at survival. After eight years of hard time, he has only six weeks before reuniting with his family. But when Weyland demands a driver to headline the big game, Ames is forced to submit. Donning the costume of mythical rider Frankenstein, the racer becomes an instant crowd favorite, an unequaled sporting superstar. His face hidden by a metallic black mask, one convict will be put through a brutal three day challenge, with the trophy being the ultimate prize: freedom. The only catch is that he must survive a gauntlet of the most vicious criminals in this post-industrial wasteland to claim it. Driving a monster car outfitted with machine guns, flamethrowers and grenade launchers, Ames must now kill or be killed to win the most treacherous spectator sport on Earth: 'Death Race'.

Hamlet 2

Hamlet 2 is a comedy film directed by Andy Fleming, written by Fleming and Pam Brady, and starring Steve Coogan, Catherine Keener, Amy Poehler, and David Arquette. It was produced by Eric Eisner, Leonid Rozhetskin, and Aaron Ryder. Hamlet 2 was filmed primarily at a high school in New Mexico from September 2007 to October 2007. The film premiered at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and will be distributed by Focus Features. The film had a limited release on August 22, 2008, followed by a wide release on August 29.

After an opening recapping the highlights of Dana Marschz's unsuccessful acting career (undignified television commercials and a bit acting part), the film joins him "where dreams go to die": Tucson, Arizona. He is an even more unsuccessful suburban high school drama teacher, with only two (enthusiastic) students and a history of producing school plays that are merely stage adaptations of Hollywood films. When the new term begins, a bunch of inner city kids are forced to transfer schools and take his class, as it is the only remaining arts elective available. He gets off to a rocky start with the new students, and is floored when the school notifies him that the drama program – a worthless waste of money in the administration's judgment – is to be shut down at the end of the term. Unintentionally inspired by the school paper's ruthless pre-adolescent drama critic, Dana undertakes to write and produce an original play: a sequel to Hamlet featuring a time-traveling title character, and a song-and-dance number featuring the Son of God, called "Rock Me Sexy Jesus". He begins to win the cooperation of his students, but is further traumatized when his wife leaves him for the uninteresting – but fertile – boarder they had taken into their home to supplement their modest income. The students rally to finish the play, especially after the school shuts down the production over its controversial content, staging it in an abandoned warehouse and rave spot, amid a media frenzy.

Written and directed by Andrew Flemming (Nancy Drew of all things) along with South Park-writer Pam Bady, Hamlet 2 surrounds Dana's struggle to keep his drama program alive in the face of school cut-backs. The former commercial actor never helped secure much relevance for the program, being that the department was made up of two humdrum drama students who shelved anything considered classic and enacted plays based on mainstream blockbusters. (Coogan joked recently that following the department's "Hamlet 2" production, they probably would have tackled FX's "The Shield.") The department grows exponentially when another school program is canceled and a group of what most would consider "inner-city youths" joins the awkward threesome. From there, we witness a sequence of scenes that is in many ways Coogan's own take on Dangerous Minds.
Through Coogan's quirky style, his character breaks down the walls of culture and drama-stigma, bonding with the new students to come together and hold a final unlikely production in the hopes of saving the department. "Hamlet 2" draws the ire of the high school higher-ups due to its "modern" approach to the subject matter, and the play is subsequently canceled. Not unlike organizing a rave, the resourceful students find a warehouse and equipment to host the production instead. Through obligatory missteps and setbacks, the play goes on, even with a good part of Tucson in attendance.

Tropic Thunder

Tropic Thunder is a 2008 action comedy film produced and directed by Ben Stiller and written by Stiller, Justin Theroux, and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black and Robert Downe Jr. as a group of prima donna actors making a Vietnam War film when their fed-up writer and director decide to abandon them in the middle of the jungle, forcing them to fight their way out.
Stiller initially had the idea for the film while playing a small part in Empire of the Sun, and later brought on Theroux and Cohen to help him complete the script. After the film was greenlit in 2006, filming took place in 2007 on the Hawaiian island of Kauai over 13 weeks, and was deemed the largest film production in the island's history. The film had a large marketing promotion, including showing numerous screenings, selling the fictional energy drink advertised in the film, and posting faux websites for the characters, films, and products shown in Tropic Thunder.
The film met controversy among the disability advocacy community prior to its release on August 13, 2008. It received generally positive reviews with 84% and 71% approval ratings according the review aggregator websites Rotten Tomatoes and Metacritic, respectively. It earned $26 million in its opening weekend and retained the number one position for its first three consecutive weekends of release.

During the filming of Vietnam veteran "Four Leaf" Tayback's (Nick Nolte) memoir, the stars—fading action star Tugg Speedman (Ben Stiller), five-time Academy Award-winner Kirk Lazarus (Robert Downey, J.), rap star Alpa Chino (Brandon T. Jackson), low-brow drug-addled comedian Jeff Portnoy (Jack Black), and character actor Kevin Sandusky (Jay Baruchel)—behave unreasonably, resulting in a $4 million explosion going off with no cameras shooting. With filming a month behind schedule only five days into shooting, the media dubs the production "the most expensive war movie never made". Rookie director Damien Cockburn (Steve Coogan) is ordered by studio executive Les Grossman (Tom Cruise) to get the production back on track or risk having it shut down. With inspiration from Tayback, Cockburn drops the spoiled actors into the middle of the jungle, where he installs hidden cameras and special effect explosions rigged so he can film "guerrilla-style". The actors have only a map and a scene listing to guide them to the helicopter waiting at the end of the jungle. Shortly afterward, the director is blown up by a land mine left by the French, but thanks to his preceding diatribe, only Lazarus realizes his death was real.
Unbeknownst to the actors, they were dropped in the middle of the Golden Triangle, the home of the heroin-producing Flaming Dragon gang. The Dragons believe the actors to be DEA agents. When Tayback and pyrotechnics man Cody (Danny R. McBride) attempt to locate the now-deceased director, they are captured by the drug producers. In captivity, Tayback reveals he has never left the U.S. before, and originally wrote the book as a tribute. The actors trek through the hostile jungle, with Speedman the only one completely interested in finishing the movie.
After doing a "scene", Portnoy's stash of heroin is swept up by a passing bat, causing him to go into withdrawal. After Lazarus and Sandusky discover that the inept Speedman is leading them the wrong way, the rest split off from him, with Speedman continuing to follow the film's script while the others attempt to escape the jungle. His sanity slowly slipping after he accidentally kills a Giant Panda, Speedman soon is captured and taken to the Flaming Dragon's heroin factory, which he initially believes to be a POW camp from the script. The gang soon realizes that he is the star of the box office bomb Simple Jack (which happens to be the only movie they have on VHS) and they force him to reenact the film several times a day. The gang contacts Speedman's agent, Rick (Matthew McConaughey), and Grossman and asks for a ransom. Grossman instead curses out the gang, later telling Rick that they can benefit more by collecting the insurance claim on Speedman's death, offering the torn agent a share of the profits along with his own personal jet.
The other actors stumble upon the Flaming Dragon's heroin factory. After seeing Speedman being tortured, they plan an ambush based on the film's plot line. Kirk impersonates a farmer who has caught Jeff in his farm, distracting the armed guards as Chino and Sandusky sneak into the building the captives are held in. After the gang notices inconsistencies in Lazarus' story, the actors open fire on the gang, temporarily subduing them despite being armed with only special effects blanks. Portnoy kidnaps the gang's child leader from the fray in order to be led to the drugs. After barely defeating the prepubescent crime lord in combat, he finds an enormous mound of heroin; however, reflecting upon his unsuccessful low-brow movie career, he rejects the heroin and uses it instead to knock out two guards.
Portnoy, Chino, and Lazarus find Speedman brainwashed: after performing to an approving crowd several times a day, he now believes he is home. Before they can snap him out of it, Lazarus breaks down, as he has remained in character up to this point. He reveals that he is conflicted with his own identity, and Sandusky and Chino help him realize his identity as an Australian man and not the character Sgt. Osiris. With Speedman still dazed, they drag him out and attempt to escape in Cody and Tayback's recaptured helicopter. The gang quickly rejoins, crossing a bridge which is rigged to detonate by Cody. Speedman asks to remain behind with his "family", but he quickly returns with the murderous gang in hot pursuit. Tayback detonates the bridge just in time for Speedman to reach safety, and the actors and crew escape from the jungle (thanks to a timely arrival of Rick, who saves them from an RPG with a TiVo box). A documentary of the botched production is made from the hidden camera footage, and results in a multiple Academy Award-winning blockbuster film. The film breaks Speedman's streak of flops and he wins the award for Best Actor, presented to him by the previous year's Oscar winner, Kirk Lazarus. The film also jump starts the rest of the cast's careers and personal lives, as Portnoy, Sandusky, and Chino were seen with Alicia Silverstone, Jennifer Love Hewitt, and Lance Bass during the ceremony. Rick, who is proud that he made his choice of saving his friend, flies home with his son in his new private jet. Les Grossman, thrilled by the film's success, dances alone in his office.

Traitor

Traitor is a 2008 spy thriller film, based on an idea by Steve Martin (who is also an executive producer), and written and directed by Jeffrey Nachmanoff. The film stars Don Cheadle as a US Army Special Forces Engineer Sergeant, and Guy Pearce as an FBI agent.
The project was in development since 2002, and was originally set to be produced by Walt Disney Pictures, but was dropped due to management change. Principal photography started in early September, 2007, in Toronto and Morocco.
Don Cheadle's character, Samir Horn, is a man conflicted. He's Middle-Eastern yet also a US citizen; he's a concerted Muslim but also a pragmatist; he helps to further terrorist goals but works for the CIA. So when Samir turns to his girlfriend at one point in Jeffrey Nachmanoff's directorial debut, Traitor, and says "the truth is complicated," he's definitely not kidding. This complexity, along with a rounded cast, a globe-trotting story and a peppering of smart action makes Traitor an entertaining espionage thriller that is not only uniquely smart, but timely. But while the film doesn't reach Bourne or Syriana heights, it's certainly a thought-provoking and cautionary tale about the many shades of grey that exist in the world.
Samir is a former US Special Operations officer that is loosely under the employ of the CIA by way of of the morally questionable Carter (Jeff Daniels). Samir is working in Yemen when he's thrown in jail following a raid of a terrorist group's compound. This is the first of only a few instances where the film's two plotlines intersect - FBI agent Roy Clayton (Guy Pearce) along with his partner Max Archer (Neal McDonough) show up to question Samir. Uncooperative, Samir keeps quiet, and stays in the Yemeni jail until he escapes with the help of the terrorist cell with which he worked, led by Omar (Saïd Taghmaoui of Vantage Point). The group resumes their nefarious plans in France when Clayton catches Samir's scent again. I don't want to give too much away, but it's safe to say that the veritable cat-and-mouse game continues throughout the film, crossing more continents with Clayton just a hair's-breadth behind.
If you can believe it, the idea for Traitor actually came from Steve Martin back in 2003, while he was doing Bringing Down the House (of all unrelated things). Nachmanoff, who also wrote the script for the apocalyptic adventure The Day After Tomorrow furthered the concept, eventually enlisting the help of Cheadle when the Academy Award-winning actor came on board as both lead and producer.
One of the most engrossing aspects of Traitor is that throughout much of the film, you never truly know where Samir's loyalties lie. Cheadle effectively rides the fence to an impressive degree, having his character actually commit terrorist acts, yet doing so with remorse following short behind. That inner conflict, however, doesn't stop him from furthering the next attack. At the same time, Samir checks in with his pseudo-CIA-handler, manifesting an air of underlying anti-terrorist intentions. Samir's character and his true loyalties will keep you guessing long after the film is over - a real credit to Cheadle's range as an actor.
Writer and director, Nachmanoff, achieves a thrilling level of suspense and complexity in Traitor, as well. While Samir wages his battles both internally and externally, Nachmanoff gives us a composite look at U.S law enforcement by way of Clayton and Archer — the latter being your typical beat-it-out-him hard-ass, with Clayton as a progressive and thinking lawman. Juxtaposed to these two is crafty CIA agent Carter, who portrays yet another face to the organizations protecting our country. On other side of the fence is the tepid solider, Omar, and the unabashed decision-maker, Fareed (Aly Khan of A Mighty Heart). Truly, Nachmanoff's Traitor contains more angles than a De Beers diamond. Well, a Zales diamond is probably more accurate. The film's form and cut is skilled, but the overall quality isn't totally flawless, especially in its finish. Regardless, Traitor is a thought-provoking film with a great cast that still shines.

Yahoo Said:When straight arrow FBI agent Roy Clayton heads up the investigation into a dangerous international conspiracy, all clues seem to lead back to former U.S. Special Operations officer, Samir Horn. A mysterious figure with a web of connections to terrorist organizations, Horn has a knack for emerging on the scene just as a major operation goes down. The inter-agency task force looking into the case meets with Carter, a veteran CIA contractor who seemingly has his own agenda and Max Archer, a fellow FBI agent. The task force links Horn to a prison break in Yemen, a bombing in Nice and a raid in London, but a tangle of contradictory evidence emerges, forcing Clayton to question whether his quarry is a disaffected former military operative -- or something far more complicated. Obsessed with discovering the truth, Clayton tracks Horn across the globe as the elusive ex-soldier burrows deeper and deeper into a world of shadows and intrigue.

Transporter 3

Transporter 3 is a 2008 action film, and is the third installment in the Transporter series (and the first not distributed by 20th Century Fox in the US). Both Jason Statham and Francois Berleand will reprise their roles, as Frank Martin and Tarconi, respectively. Robert Knepper will be added to the cast list. This will be the first film in the series to be directed by Olivier Megaton. This film will continue the story of Frank Martin, a professional "transporter" who has relocated to Paris to continue his low-key business of delivering packages without questions.
After breaking the news last March that The Transporter 3 would officially be coming sometime in the next few years, confirmation has arrived today via Variety that the series' star Jason Statham will be back again for the third film. Statham will be reprising his role as the indestructible delivery man Frank Martin and is gearing up to shoot for 16 weeks in Russia and France. The only bad news is that the director of the first two, Louis Leterrier, won't be back, and is instead being replaced by another more inexperienced Frenchman
French filmmaker Louis Leterrier, who directed the first two films, is instead off putting the finishing touches on The Incredible Hulk with Edward Norton. His replacement is Olivier Megaton, another French director whose previous directing credits include Exit and The Red Siren in addition to working as second unit director on last year's Hitman. The news doesn't include information on whether writers Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen will be back for this one as well. However, Besson is attached as a producer along with Steve Chasman. Actor Francois Berleand will also reprise his role as Tarconi while Robert Knepper ("Prison Break") will join the cast.
I've got to make a confession - I've never seen either of the first two Transporter movies. I love Statham and always enjoy good action, but for some odd reason I have never had the slightest urge to watch them. I don't know what it is and I still can't get myself to watch them. As is certainly apparent with the reaction in the comments (over 50) to our original Transporter 3 news, there are numerous fans of the series that I'm sure could easily give me reasons why it's a good set of films. Maybe when this third movie comes around I'll go for a trilogy showing and experience all of it at once for the first time.
Statham previously hinted that Luc Besson was writing a script, but no other possibly story details have been revealed. We can probably expect The Transporter 3 sometime in early 2009.

Babylon A.D.

Babylon A.D. is a 2008 science fiction film based on the novel Babylon Babies by Maurice Georges Dantec. The film was directed by Mathieu Kassovitz and stars Vin Diesel. It was released on August 29, 2008 in the United States.

Mathieu Kassovitz developed an English-language film adaptation of Maurice Georges Dantec's French novel Babylon Babies for five years; in June 2005, this project got financed from StudioCanal and Twentieth Century Fox.The adapted screenplay was written by Kassovitz and screenwriter Éric Besnard. Production was initially slated to begin in February 2006 in Canada and Eastern Europe. French actor Vincent Cassel was initially sought to be cast in the lead role. In February 2006, actor Vin Diesel entered negotiations to star in the film, titled Babylon A.D., dropping out of the lead role of Hitman in the process. Production of the futuristic thriller about genetic manipulation was slated to begin in June 2006. By February 2007, filming was slated to wrap in April to release Babylon A.D. in time for the coming Thanksgiving. In February, filming took place at Barrandov Studios. In March 2007, the filming crew, having shot in the Czech Republic, took a two-week hiatus to deal with uncooperative weather, such as the lack of snow, and problems with set construction. Crew members scouted Iceland for locations with snow to shoot six to eight days of footage, which was supposed to be done in February. Filming was also done with the leads Diesel, Michelle Yeoh, and Mélanie Thierry in Ostrava in March. The French visual effects company BUF Compagnie was contracted to develop the film's effects.In April 2007, Babylon A.D. was reported to be over-budget and three weeks behind schedule. A lack of snow meant a skiing sequence to be shot in Eastern Europe had to be moved to Sweden. Later in the month, actor Lambert Wilson was cast into the film. Filming was completed in May 2007.
American artist Khem Caigan designed the sigil that appears as a tattoo on the right side of Toorop's neck - an emblem which originally appeared in the Schlangekraft Necronomicon in 1977.
The music of Babylon A.D. is scored by composers Hans Zimmer and Atli Örvarsson. The musical alliance Achozen, represented by Shavo Odadjian and RZA performed the score for the film. Zimmer described the intended style: "Musically, our objective was to merge the sounds and energies of hip hop with classical music, seamlessly melting them into an unusual soundscape."

Yahoo said:
It is the not-too-distant future. Thousands of satellites scan, observe and monitor our every move. Much of the planet is a war zone; the rest, a collection of wretched way stations, teeming megalopolises, and vast wastelands punctuated by areas left radioactive from nuclear meltdowns. It is a world made for hardened warriors, one of whom, a mercenary known only as Toorop, lives by a simple survivor’s code: kill or be killed. His latest assignment has him smuggling a young woman named Aurora from a convent in Kazakhstan to New York City. Toorop, his new young charge Aurora and Aurora’s guardian Sister Rebeka embark on a 6,000 mile journey that takes them from Eastern Europe, through a refugee camp in “New Russia,” across the Bering Straight in a pilfered submarine, then through the frozen tundra of Alaska and Canada, and finally to New York. Facing obstacles at every turn, Toorop, the killer for hire, is tested like never before, in ways he could never have imagined--as he comes to understand that he is the custodian of the only hope for the future of mankind. For the first time in his life, Toorop has to make a choice: to make a difference or walk away and save himself. Too bad it came on the day he died.

Watchmen

Watchmen is a 2009 film adaptation of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons' comic book limited series Watchmen, directed by Zack Snyder. The film stars Patrick Wilson, Jackie Earle Haley, Malin Akerman, Billy Crudup, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Matthew Goode, Stephen McHattie and Carla Gugino. Set in 1985, the film follows a group of former vigilantes as war begins to break out between the United States and the Soviet Union. The film began shooting in Vancouver in September 2007 for release on March 6, 2009. Like his previous film 300, Snyder closely modeled his storyboards on the comic, but unlike 300, he chose not to shoot all of Watchmen using chroma key.
Following the novel's 1986 publication, the film adaptation was mired in development hell. Producer Lawrence Gordon began developing the project at 20th Century Fox and Warner Bros. with producer Joel Silver and director Terry Gilliam, the latter eventually deeming the complex novel unfilmable. During the 2000s, Gordon and Lloyd Levin collaborated with Universal Studios and Paramount Pictures to produce a script by David Hayter (who set it in modern times). Darren Aronofsky and Paul Greengrass were attached to Paramount's project, before it was canceled over budget disputes. The project returned to Warner Bros., with Paramount handling international rights, where Snyder was hired to direct in 2006. Fox is now suing Gordon for failing to pay a buy-out in 1991, which enabled him to develop the film at the other studios.
A DVD based on elements of the Watchmen universe will be released; it will include an animated adaptation of the comic Tales of the Black Freighter within the story, starring Gerard Butler, and the documentary Under the Hood, detailing the older generation of superheroes from the film's back-story. An extended edition of the film, with Tales of the Black Freighter edited in a manner reminiscent of the comic, is also possible.

Patrick Wilson as Daniel Dreiberg / Nite Owl II: A retired vigilante superhero with technological experience. John Cusack, a fan of the comic book, expressed interest in the role. Wilson did not read the comic until he was offered the part, and loved it. Wilson put on weight to play the character, instead of wearing a fatsuit.
Billy Crudup as Dr. Jon Osterman / Doctor Manhattan: A superhero with genuine powers who works for the U.S. government. The role was once pursued by actor Keanu Reeves, but the actor abandoned his pursuit when the studio held up the project over budget concerns. He later visited the set while filming The Day the Earth Stood Still, an experience which he enjoyed. As well as playing Osterman in flashback as a human, for his post-accident scenes as Dr. Manhattan, Crudup is replaced in the film with a motion-capture CG version of himself. During filming on set, Crudup acted opposite his co-stars, wearing a white suit covered in blue LEDs, so he would give off an otherworldly glow in real life, just as the computer-generated Manhattan does in the movie. Crudup had to keep thinking of the character in the comic, because he felt ridiculous in the suit.Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Edward Blake / The Comedian: A vigilante superhero who is commissioned by the U.S. government. Prior to Morgan's casting, producers Lawrence Gordon and Lloyd Levin met with Ron Perlman to discuss portraying the Comedian. Morgan found the role a challenge, explaining, "For some reason, in reading the novel, you don't hate this guy even though he does things that are unmentionable. [...] My job is to kind of make that translate, so as a viewer you end up not making excuses to like him, but you don't hate him like you should for doing the things that he does."
Jackie Earle Haley as Walter Kovacs / Rorschach: A superhero who continues his vigilante activities after they are outlawed. He was transformed over time from a "soft" costumed hero into a killer who sees the world in black and white. Haley and fourteen friends put together his audition, where he performed scenes from the comic. Rorschach wears a mask with ink blots that morph to reflect his emotions: motion capture markers were put on the contours of Earle Haley's blank mask, for animators to create his ever-changing expressions. Haley found the mask "incredibly motivating for the character" because of its confining design, which heated up quickly. Small holes were made in the mask for him to see.
Malin Akerman as Laurie Juspeczyk / Silk Spectre II: A retired vigilante superheroine. Akerman described her character as the psychology and the emotion of the film due to being the only woman among the men. The actress worked out and trained to fight for her portrayal of the crimefighter.
Matthew Goode as Adrian Veidt / Ozymandias: A retired vigilante superhero who has since made his identity public. The role of Ozymandias was originally connected to actors Jude Law and Tom Cruise, but they left the project behind due to the studio's delay in handling the budget. Goode was not familiar with the comic when he was cast, and read it at the urging of his friends. He joined the critical consensus, saying "it's the best graphic novel out there". He had his own interpretation of Veidt's backstory, in that he gave up his family's wealth and travelled the world, becoming a self-made man because he was ashamed of his parents' Nazi past. Goode suggested Veidt disguised his German accent to highlight the themes of the American Dream and the difference between one's public and private personas. Stephen McHattie as Hollis Mason / Nite Owl: The first vigilante to take up the mantle of Nite Owl.
Carla Gugino as Sally Jupiter / Silk Spectre: A retired vigilante superheroine, mother of Laurie Juspeczyk. Gugino's character ages from 25 years old in the 1940s to 67 years old in the 1980s, and the actress wore prosthetics to reflect the aging process. Gugino described her character's superhero outfit as an influence of Bettie Page-meets-Alberto Vargas. The actress donned the trademark hairdo of the character, though it was shaped to be more plausible for the film. Matt Frewer as Edgar Jacobi / Moloch the Mystic: An elderly rehabilitated criminal, known when he was younger as an underworld kingpin and magician.
Niall Matter as Mothman: He is not a main focus of the storyline, but appears in flashbacks, at one point reduced in his later years to fragile sanity, unnerving the second Silk Spectre. He is regarded fondly by most of the Minutemen, and the first Nite Owl sends the second to visit him, uncostumed, on his behalf.
Dan Payne as Dollar Bill: A first-generation crimefighter who caught his cape in a revolving door during a bank robbery, and was shot to death. Payne is a fan of the comic and shot his scenes over four days, both for his cameo in the theatrical cut and the fictionalized DVD documentary.
Actor Thomas Jane said in June 2007 that Snyder had expressed interest in casting him in the film. Snyder said he wanted younger actors due to the many flashback scenes, and it was easier to age actors with make-up rather than cast two actors in the same role.Production for Watchmen began casting in July 2007 for look-alikes of the era's famous names for the film, including Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger, H. R. Haldeman, Ted Koppel, John McLaughlin, Annie Leibovitz, John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Fidel Castro, Albert Einstein, Norman Rockwell, John F. Kennedy and Jackie Kennedy, Andy Warhol, Mao Zedong and Larry King. The actor playing Nixon used a full face prosthetic.

Pineapple Express

Pineapple Express is a 2008 action comedy stoner film directed by David Gordon Green and written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. Producer Judd Apatow, who previously worked with Rogen and Goldberg on Knocked Up and Superbad, assisted in developing the story, which was partially inspired by the buddy comedy subgenre. The film was originally set for release August 8 but was changed to August 6, 2008, in order not to conflict with the opening of the 2008 Olympics. It is approximately 121 minutes.

The film starts off in 1937 in a secret underground government laboratory where tests are being performed on the effects of marijuana. Private Miller (Bill Hader) is a subject in a test to decide if marijuana should be illegal. Miller, obviously high, begins to insult the government and his superiors. As a result, the government deems marijuana illegal and quickly "disposes of" Private Miller.
Jumping to the present, Dale Denton (Rogen), a 25 year-old process serving stoner, visits his equally stoned dealer, Saul Silver (Franco), to purchase cannabis. Saul offers him a rare strain of marijuana called Pineapple Express. After making his purchase, Dale agrees to smoke a 'cross-shaped' joint with Saul before leaving. Next, Dale visits his girlfriend Angie (Amber Heard) at her high school and argues about accepting an invitation to eat dinner with her family. He then leaves her school, smokes more, and ends up in front of the house of the next person he is supposed to serve, Ted Jones (Gary Cole), who turns out to be a drug lord.
While waiting outside in his car smoking a joint made of Pineapple Express, Dale witnesses Ted and a crooked police officer, Carol Brazier, (Rosie Perez) commit murder. As Dale panics, he throws his roach out the window and leaves the scene, while hitting two parked cars in the process (one being Officer Brazier's cruiser). As Carol and Ted run outside to find Dale driving away, they determine that he saw the murder and are able to classify the roach he threw out the window as the rare Pineapple Express. Dale drives back to Saul's in a panic and eventually concludes that he could be traced back to Saul by the rare Pineapple Express (Saul is the only dealer who has it, and Ted is the only supplier). Dale and Saul leave the apartment. Meanwhile, Ted is determined to catch the witness of the murder so he dispatches two henchmen, Matheson (Craig Robinson) and Budlofsky (Kevin Corrigan), to find and dispose of Dale and Saul.
The henchmen go to Saul's middleman, Red (Danny R. McBride) and try to arrange a meeting with Red and Saul, which subsequently fails because Dale and Saul spend the night in the woods. With just the Pineapple Express with them, Dale and Saul head over to Red's apartment where a fight eventually breaks out between the three of them. Dale and Saul are now convinced that the henchmen came to the house and that they must leave the city. Because the henchmen could not kill Dale or Saul, Ted believes that the rival drug gang, led by the Asians (whose leader is Korean), have hired Dale as a hitman, and Ted goes to war with the Asians.
With no money to buy bus tickets, Dale and Saul (at Dale's suggestion) sell some of the Pineapple Express to some school kids. Saul goes off to buy food and Dale stays behind and smokes more; however, the school's police officer catches him for selling the marijuana to the kids. On a routine ID check, a warrant shows up for the earlier hit-and-run (ostensibly orchestrated by Officer Brazier). Dale tells the female officer about the murder he witnessed and she actually believes him and wants to help. As they drive off, Saul jumps in front of the car, splattering the windshield with a red slushee. The cop gets out to investigate while Saul sneaks into the police cruiser and drives off. Officer Brazier arrives in her car shortly thereafter. A high-speed chase ensues, and Dale and Saul successfully evade her.
Once again, Dale and Saul have a disagreement, with Dale telling Saul he is not his friend, just his drug dealer. Saul takes it really hard and leaves Dale to go to his grandmother's assisted living home. But it turns out Budlofsky and Matheson beat him there, and kidnap and take him hostage at the Pineapple Express grow house (the underground base at the beginning of the film).
Dale has a revelation and, with Red, decides to break Saul out of the grow house, but Red chickens out at the last minute, which results in Dale being held captive. At the same time, the Asians break in and start shooting everyone and a gun-battle ensues. Dale and Saul manage to free themselves despite the fact that the walls are super thin, and everything they've said about escaping, Matheson could hear. Saul escapes through an insulation pipe while Dale fights with Ted. Saul re-enters the barn with a gun yelling, 'FUCK THE POLICE', and with Red they save Dale. However Red is shot multiple times (making this the fifth time he is shot in the movie) and is believed to be dead. With Saul unconscious, Dale carries him out of the barn just before it explodes, killing both Ted and Carol. Seconds after the explosion, Red walks out, unharmed, and the 3 go off to a diner and reminisce about the previous events of movie (mentioning the car chase and the fact that Red has lost a lot of blood and should probably see a doctor) and rekindle their friendship. Then the credits roll.

Mamma Mia!

Mamma Mia! is a film adaptation of the West End stage musical, based on the songs of successful pop group ABBA, with additional music also composed by ABBA member Benny Andersson. Despite opening in the USA on the same date as the critically acclaimed film The Dark Knight on July 18, 2008, the film did very well at the box office and had the largest opening weekend of any musical film in U.S. history. Like the stage musical, the film's title originates from the group's 1975 chart-topper "Mamma Mia". It was produced by Universal Pictures in partnership with Playtone and Littlestar. It was released on July 3, 2008, in Greece, July 10, 2008, in Australia and the United Kingdom, July 11, 2008, in Sweden, July 16, 2008, in the Philippines, July 18, 2008, in the United States and Canada, and on July 24, 2008 in Israel. Meryl Streep heads the cast of the film, playing the role of single mother Donna Sheridan. Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth and Stellan Skarsgård play the three potential fathers to Donna's daughter Sophie (Amanda Seyfried).

The plot of Mamma Mia!, while being a lighthearted comedy, involves several subplots about the eight main characters and attempts to resolve the fate of each: young Sophie, her boyfriend Sky, her mother Donna with two lady friends (who sang together years ago as Donna and the Dynamos), plus the three men Donna had been with in midsummer 20 years ago (Sam, Harry and Bill). Each of them has been concealing secrets from the others, and the frantic pace of wedding preparations will lead to further miscommunications. Unbeknownst to all, no one is who they at first appear to be, and it might require the intervention of the gods for the truth to be revealed. Fortunately, all are about to meet together, on a Greek island dedicated to the ancient goddess Aphrodite.The 20-year-old Sophie Sheridan (Amanda Seyfried) lives with her mother Donna (Meryl Streep) on the small Greek island Kalokairi, where Donna runs a hotel named Villa Donna. Sophie is planning to marry Sky (Dominic Cooper), and wants her father to be present to "give her away," but does not know who he is. After reading Donna's diary from 20 years ago, she concludes he is one of three men: Sam Carmichael (Pierce Brosnan), Harry Bright (Colin Firth), or Bill Anderson (Stellan Skarsgård). Without telling her mother and fiancé, Sophie mails invitations to all three ("I Have a Dream"), and hopes to find out which is her father. Sophie tells her two best friends, Ali (Ashley Lilley) and Lisa (Rachel McDowall) about her potential fathers ("Honey, Honey"). All three men come to the island, thinking Donna asked them to come, and Sophie hides them upstairs in the old goat house, getting them to agree not to reveal she wrote to them pretending to be her mother Donna. Other guests have also arrived from the harbor: Donna's longtime friends, single, fun-loving writer Rosie (Julie Walters) and rich three-time divorcée Tanya (Christine Baranski).While Donna is making repairs to the hotel she cannot afford ("Money, Money, Money"), there is a tremor, and the dolphin mosaic in the courtyard floor splits. Donna hunts flooring supplies in the goat house, hears noises upstairs, and peers inside the trap door and window. Recognizing the men she had dated, Donna sings ("Mamma Mia"), but she cannot get inside the locked room. Finally, she climbs to the rooftop, and then falls through the top door, opened by a member of the Greek chorus. Donna, unable to handle the memories, asks the three men to leave, so they simply stay in the harbor on Bill's boat. Seeing the three men has sent Donna into shock, and her two friends, Tanya and Rosie, try to reassure her ("Chiquitita"). Donna explains the 3 potential fathers are on the island, and comments, "it's like a hideous trick of fate," when some bystanders instantly laughed. Tanya and Rosie ponder the quiet bystanders, and Rosie mutters, "It's so Greek" (see: Greek comedy).
However, Donna's depression continues, so the friends remind her of her free-spirited past (singing "Dancing Queen") and Donna rebounds; the three sing together and dance through the streets, joined by many women of the town, dancing down to the harbor pier (Former ABBA member Benny Andersson appears playing the piano in this scene). Sophie visits the three men on Bill's boat and convinces them to stay for her wedding after hearing all three men's memories of Donna ("Our Last Summer"). When she hears Sky, she jumps into the sea and swims to him on the beach. There, they discuss their meeting and their love for each other ("Lay All Your Love On Me"), but Sky is ambushed by his buddies for the bachelor party.
That evening, the three women, at a hen party, recreate their old 80's style musical group, Donna and the Dynamos (singing "Super Trouper") to entertain at the bachelorette party. The three men come to the party, and the crowd separates, with the girls singing "Gimme! Gimme! Gimme!". Sophie talks to Bill, and he realizes he could be her father. She asks him to give her away at the wedding. The masked guys from the bachelor party invade the hen party, in a wild dance ("Voulez-Vous"). In the commotion, the other two men also conclude that they could be the father, and separately, each tells Sophie that he will be the one to give her away at the wedding. Sophie then faints over the dilemma. To avoid contention between the three men, Sophie instead asks Donna to give her away. Harry, feeling responsible for missing 20 years of Sophie's life, insists that Donna accept a very large monetary gift to cover the "cost of the wedding" (and more).
While talking to Sam, Donna, making more repairs, attempts to seal the cracks in the central-courtyard dolphin mosaic, but the caulking nozzle splits, further thwarting her efforts of the day. Donna must rush to other preparations. Sam and Donna have tried to talk to each other, but each have concealed their feelings, and each laments their love separately ("SOS"). Meanwhile, Tanya rejects the playful advances of some of Sky's friends ("Does Your Mother Know").
After telling Sky that she has invited all three fathers, Sky says that he is unsure of what he wants to do about the wedding. Sophie rushes up to Donna and asks her if she will help her prepare for the wedding and she agree;, whilst preparing, they both reminisce about the times before being engaged ("Slipping Through My Fingers").
Donna, still unaware of Sam's true feelings, and rushing to the hilltop wedding, tells Sam to stop talking to her ("The Winner Takes It All"). Sam is stunned.
During the wedding ceremony, Donna finally mentions the "father" issue, and the secrets begin unraveling: all three potential fathers publicly make a claim to be Sophie's father and agree to happily take a 'third' each, and Harry admits that he is gay. Sophie and Sky then decide to postpone the wedding, as Sky wanted all along, and to take a trip together. Sam proposes to Donna, revealing he is divorced, and argues that if they marry right away, the wedding party is not wasted. Donna agrees to marry Sam ("I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do"). He sings his speech ("When All Is Said and Done").
During the after-wedding party, Rosie reveals she is strongly attracted to Bill ("Take a Chance on Me"); he does not reciprocate at first, but eventually gives in. One issue remains to be resolved: as the crowd dances in the courtyard, the central dolphin mosaic breaks open, in a tremor, and a tall spray rains over the party. Donna concludes it was Aphrodite, the Greek goddess of love, influencing events all along. The closing scene of the film shows Sophie and Sky sailing to the horizon to begin their life together and see the world ("I Have a Dream").After the closing scene, there is another of the Donna and the Dynamos performing the ABBA song "Dancing Queen" over the credits. Next, the entire cast sings "Waterloo" (the first ABBA hit), together dressed in some of the glittery clothes of the 70s and 80s made trendy largely by the ABBA group themselves. Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus appear in cameo appearances: Andersson depicting a fisherman playing piano during Dancing Queen, and Ulvaeus and other notable people of the Mamma Mia! production as Greek gods and goddesses in a heavenly setting overlooking the cast's final performance. Finally, Sophie sings "Thank You for the Music" as the credits roll.

High School Musical 3: Senior Year

High School Musical 3: Senior Year will be the next installment in Disney's popular High School Musical franchise. It is scheduled for a theatrical release on October 24, 2008. Kenny Ortega returns as director and choreographer and all six primary actors from the previous two films will reprise their roles.

Now high school seniors, Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) are facing the prospect of being separated from each other as they go off in different directions when graduating from East High. Joined by the rest of the Wildcats, including Sharpay Evans (Ashley Tisdale), Ryan Evans (Lucas Grabeel), Chad Danforth (Corbin Bleu), Taylor McKessie (Monique Coleman), they stage an elaborate spring musical reflecting their experiences, hopes and fears about the future.

An international casting call went out to find three new sophomore "Wildcats". This resulted in the casting of Matt Prokop, Justin Martin, and Jemma McKenzie-Brown. Commenting on the announcement, Ortega said, "Peter Barsocchini’s exciting script for ‘High School Musical 3’ called for the addition of three sophomore characters, so we set out on a massive casting search across North America and England to find just the right young actors to play the parts. We think these talented performers will bring lots of humor, new twists, and musical fun to the film. Jemma was one of the many young actresses that we met in London, and she impressed us with her singing and dancing, in addition to being very exciting and effervescent. Matt has a terrific personality, and a great sense of comedy and fun. And Justin had a great presence and charisma, besides being a wonderful comedic actor who could really dance. I am confident that the three new actors joining our original cast will help to bring great musical thrills, surprises and a lot of fun to Senior Year and the halls of East High."

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is a 2008 American adventure film that follows The Mummy and The Mummy Returns. It is slated for release on August 1, 2008 in the US. The first official trailer of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince will be released with this film.
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor is directed by Rob Cohen and written by Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. Bob Ducsay, Sean Daniel, Stephen Sommers and James Jacks produce the film.
The emperor on which this fictitious account was based was Qin Shi Huang and not the first Emperor of the Han Dynasty, Emperor Gaozu of Han.

The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor stars Brendan Fraser reprising his role as explorer Rick O'Connell, along with his son Alex (Luke Ford), wife Evelyn (Maria Bello), and brother-in-law Jonathan (John Hannah). The two parents are now retired, but they must stop the resurrected tyrannical Han, the Dragon Emperor (Jet Li), a mummy awoken from a 2,000-year-old curse, and whose army was found by 18-year old Alex. The Emperor now wishes to rebuild his empire, and threatens to plunge the world into his merciless, unending service with his Terracotta Army.
The O'Connel family's hope now lies with a mysterious century old sorceress (Michelle Yeoh), who has an old rivalry with the Emperor, for two thousand years ago the Emperor summoned her to his court, for she possesses the secrets of immortality. Instead of blessing him though, she cursed him, sending him and his army into a 'permanent' suspended animation.
She now is back to help the family, by raising up a smaller, undead army made of the Dragon Emperor's enemies, who were buried under the Great Wall of China.

In March 2006, actor Oded Fehr said Sommers had told him a third film was in development and being written, with only Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz's characters returning for the sequel. The following September, director Joe Johnston was offered the helm by Universal Pictures, who hoped to start filming early in 2007. Later in the month, Weisz expressed interest in reprising her role.In January 2007, Universal announced that Stephen Sommers, director of the first two Mummy films, would not be attached to direct the third film. It was then announced that Universal entered talks with director Rob Cohen to take the helm from Sommers as the director of the third Mummy. Later in the month, the story was revealed to center around Brendan Fraser's and Rachel Weisz's characters, as well as their now grown-up son. Negotiations with the actors were in progress at that time. In February, casting began for the role of Alex O'Connell. In addition, the character of Jonathan, previously portrayed by John Hannah, will return for the sequel. Also in February, director Rob Cohen mentioned that Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh will star in the movie although the official confirmation was not published until May.
In April, Fraser re-joined the cast for The Mummy 3, though Weisz did not. The film was shot in Montreal and China. The movie was reported to be titled The Mummy 3: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. In April, Luke Ford was cast as Alex O'Connell, and in May, Maria Bello was cast to replace Weisz in the role of Evelyn. Bello reported during an interview that the new "Evy" is different from the original "Evy". "She has the same name, but she's quite a different character," said Bello. At a news conference in Shanghai, Bello told the audience that "Rob Cohen has 'created a new Evy ... in the first two Mummy's she was all actiony and lovely, but this Evy might be a little more ... forceful in terms of her martial art skills and shooting skills'".

Hellboy II: The Golden Army

Hellboy II: The Golden Army is a 2008 film based on the fictional Dark Horse Comics character Hellboy. The film is directed by Guillermo del Toro and is a sequel to the 2004 film Hellboy, which del Toro also directed. Ron Perlman reprises his role as the titular character. The film was commercially released on July 11, 2008 in the United States and Canada.

In Christmas of 1955, a young Hellboy is told a bedtime story by his father, Professor Trevor Bruttenholm (John Hurt), involving an ancient battle between humans and mythical creatures. A Goblin built an unstoppable clockwork army for Balor, the King of the Elves, which could only be controlled by those of royal blood provided no one challenged their right to do so. This 'Golden Army' of 4900 soldiers or "70 times 70 soldiers", decimated the humans so mercilessly that Balor forged a truce with them to stop the bloodshed: man would keep his cities and the creatures would keep their forests. Balor's son, Prince Nuada (Luke Goss), didn't agree with the truce, and left in exile. The crown was broken into three pieces, one piece going to the humans and the other two kept by the elves, so the Golden Army could never be raised again.
In the present, Nuada decides to declare war on the humans. He collects the first piece of the crown from an auction and kills his father for the second. His twin sister Princess Nuala (Anna Walton) escapes with the final piece. Meanwhile, Hellboy (Ron Perlman) is having relationship issues with his girlfriend Liz (Selma Blair). He is also having trouble accepting that their organization, the BPRD, must remain a secret. During a mission to eradicate thousands of ravenous tooth fairies, which Nuada set loose as he took the first piece of the crown, Hellboy reveals himself to the world. Abe Sapien (Doug Jones) discovers that Liz is pregnant in the commotion. Furious about the public unveiling, Washington sends a by-the-book agent, Johann Krauss (voiced by Seth MacFarlane), to take command. Krauss is another "special" agent of the bureau, existing in a containment suit as a gaseous being of ectoplasm. They track the tooth fairies to the Troll Market, an enormous merchant city hidden under the Brooklyn Bridge, for clues. Abe stumbles into Nuala, who has obtained a map leading to the Golden Army, during their search, and quickly falls in love with her following a brief psychic encounter. She is brought under BPRD protection following an attack by Nuada's companion Mr.Wink and a forest elemental.
Nuada tracks his sister to BPRD headquarters using their magical bond, which causes them to share wounds and allows them to read each others' thoughts to an extent. Nuala, sensing her brother's arrival, burns the map and hides the final piece of the crown within one of Abe's books. However, the real map is on the canister. Nuada kidnaps his sister and mortally wounds Hellboy with his spear. Unable to remove the spear shard, Johann, Liz, and Abe take Hellboy to the location of the Golden Army, hidden in Northern Ireland. They encounter the Goblin that oversaw the creation of the Golden Army, and he brings them before the Angel of Death, who has been waiting for their arrival. Though told that Hellboy would doom humanity if he lives, and that she'll suffer the most from it, Liz pleads for Hellboy not to die. Amused by her choice, the Angel removes the spear shard from Hellboy's chest and tells Liz to give him a reason to live. She reveals to Hellboy that he's going to be a father.
The Goblin leads the team to the resting place of the Golden Army, where Nuada awaits them. In exchange for Nuala, Abe gives him the last piece of the crown. With the crown reformed, Nuada invokes the Golden Army and has them attack the agents. Counterattacking proves pointless, as the soldiers magically reform themselves when destroyed. Hellboy challenges Nuada for the right to the crown, and Nuada is forced to accept. Hellboy defeats and spares Nuada's life, but the Prince tries to stab Hellboy in the back. Nuala commits suicide to stop her brother. Abe rushes to Nuala's body and psychically tells her his feelings before she dies. Liz then melts the crown, shutting down the Golden Army forever. As the BPRD agents leave the underground compound, Agent Manning (Jeffrey Tambor) reprimands them for their actions. To his surprise, Hellboy, Liz, Abe, and Johann all hand over their belts (though Hellboy keeps his pistol) and announce their resignation from the bureau. As they walk away, Hellboy contemplates his future life with his baby. Liz stops and corrects him, saying "babies", surprising him with the fact that she's pregnant with twins.

Bangkok Dangerous

Bangkok Dangerous is a 2008 crime film written and directed by the Pang Brothers and starring Nicolas Cage. It is a remake of the Pangs' 1999 debut film, Bangkok Dangerous, a Thai film for which Cage's production company, Saturn Films, purchased the remake rights. Known by its working title, Big Hit in Bangkok, and also as Time to Kill, it began filming in Bangkok in August 2006, with locations that include Soi Cowboy. The film is due for release in the North America on September 5, 2008.

The film follows a hitman (Cage) who goes to Bangkok on an assignment. The original film's main character is a deaf-mute whose disability makes him a fearless, unflinching gunman. That character has been changed in the remake.
"We'd like to keep him the same, but we understand that from a marketing point of view Nic needs to have some lines," Oxide was quoted as saying in the International Herald Tribune. "So what we’re going to do is transform his girlfriend instead into a deaf-mute. This switch will maintain the drama of communication between the two main characters."

The Bank Job

The Bank Job is a British 2008 crime film directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Jason Statham, based on the 1971 Baker Street robbery in central London, from which the money and valuables stolen were never recovered. The story was prevented from being told because of a D-Notice (now known as a DA-Notice) government gagging request, allegedly to protect a prominent member of the British Royal Family. According to the producers, this movie is intended to reveal the truth for the first time, although it includes significant elements of fiction and the extent to which it represents historical fact is difficult to determine.
It also may be based upon the scandal causing Lord Lambton's resignation, with Lew Vogel representing the Soho porn baron Bernie Silver.
The premiere was held in London on 18 February 2008, and the film was released in the UK on 28 February 2008.

Petty-criminal-gone-straight Terry Leather (Jason Statham) owns a failing car-sales garage being harassed by two debt-collectors. His old girlfriend Martine (Saffron Burrows) offers Terry a chance to earn enough money to never worry about debt again: a bank robbery in Baker Street, London. Terry gathers a bunch of petty-criminal friends to help execute the plan. They lease a shop two lots away from the bank and start digging a tunnel underneath the middle shop (a chicken fast-food restaurant) in order to reach the underground bank vault. Terry employs Eddie, (Michael Jibson) a worker in Terry's garage, as a "watchman" with a walkie-talkie to sit on the roof of the building opposite and keep a look out for trouble.
What they don't know is that Martine, who has been caught smuggling heroin into Britain and desperately wants to avoid jail, is setting them up on behalf of MI5, which wants the contents of a certain safe deposit box within the bank. This safe deposit box contains compromising photos of a female member of the British Royal Family (identified in the film as Princess Margaret). The photos are in a box belonging to a black militant who calls himself Michael X; he is using the photos to avoid trouble with the Metropolitan Police, and MI5 is desperate to keep the photos out of circulation.
As Terry and his crew dig, their radio chatter draws the attention of a local amateur radio operator, who listens in on the conversation and realises he's overhearing a bank robbery in progress. He calls the police, but with a 10 mile radius to search and a lack of concrete details, they fail to pin the robbery down.
After they have broken in and begin looting the vault, Martine goes for the deposit-box with the photos. A suspicious Terry opens the box with her and, upon seeing the pictures, knows that Martine has a hidden agenda. In addition to those photos, further photos of a number of high-ranking government officials are found, at the top a senior MP in compromising positions in a local S&M brothel. The robbers pocket these with the money and other valuables. Terry arranges for alternate transportation "to be safe", throwing off MI5 who had intended to immediately intercept them.
Guy (James Faulkner) and Bambas (Alki David), leave with their share of the spoils. When Terry confronts Martine over the photos, she explains their predicament. Meanwhile, the robbery is discovered, and the police — both corrupt ones receiving payoffs and honest ones — start their investigation. MI5 is likewise searching. Lew Vogel (David Suchet), a local club owner, is worried about the contents of his ledger, which lists every payoff he's made to the police, which was stolen during the robbery. He also phones Michael X to inform him that his box containing the royal 'portraits' has gone missing. Michael X starts to get suspicious of Gale Benson, a British spy who has befriended his brother and gone with the family to Trinidad.
The club owner manages to find one of the robbers, Dave (Daniel Mays) and tortures him for information. When he eventually tells Vogel everything, Vogel goes to the garage where Terry worked and kidnaps Eddie, who was the lookout during the robbery, taking him to the same secret location and tying him down. At the same time, the senior MP is shown the photos of himself in the brothel, and agrees to try to help absolve the robbers of all wrongdoing and give them safe passage out of the country. Meanwhile, MI5 issues a D-Notice forbidding the press from reporting on the heist any longer. Police simultaneously release recordings from the walkie-talkie conversations, in the hope that someone will recognize the voices. These recordings are heard on the radio by Terry's family.
The club owner's accomplice shoots Dave in the head and threatens to shoot Eddie unless he gets his ledger book (with incriminating info about payoffs) back. Lew makes an agreement with Terry, and agree to meet him at Paddington Station in London. During this time as well, Guy and Bambas are murdered by unknown people, and Michael kills Benson. Terry has Kev give the same instruction to the officer in charge of the investigation, citing knowledge of corrupt officers under his control. He also convinces the club owner to go to Paddington Station at the same time, offering him the book with details of corrupt officers in return for the safe return of his mechanic. This results in a large meeting of all of the involved parties at the same time.
Terry stands on the platform waiting for the others, while Martine meets up with Tim Everett, her original contact within MI5, on a bridge overlooking the scene. The club owner and his corrupt police accomplices arrive with the mechanic, but recognize MI5 agents present and run. At the same time, the head of MI5 arrives (with Lord Mountbatten), handing over the documentation and passports that Terry bargained for, in return for the photos of the princess. Terry then chases the fleeing club owner and his henchmen. He starts to attack the club owner, and then fights with one of the aides, knocking them both out. The second aide appears with a gun, but Terry manages to avoid the shots and knock him out with a brick hastily dislodged from a wall.
The police officer in charge of the investigation then arrives, and sees the robbers being arrested. He speaks with the MI5 officers present, who direct police to let the robbers go. When the officer approaches the car where Terry is being held to ask for the bribe payout ledger, Terry agrees to hand it over in exchange of freedom. Terry and the other robbers are then released, the policeman saying "I don't see any bank-robbers in here" upon looking in the car in which the robbers are sitting. The club owner and the corrupt officers are arrested, and Michael X is arrested in Trinidad and Tobago. His house is then burnt down after orders from a disgusted Tim Everett.
The epilogue states that the revelations about the brothel forces many government officials to resign. Scotland Yard starts investigating the corrupt officers named in the ledger. Michael X was hanged in 1975 for Gail Benson's murder and his personal files are kept hidden in the British National Archives until 2054. Vogel gets imprisoned eight years for crimes that were unrelated to the robbery. The murderers of Guy and Bambas have never been found. About GBP 4 million worth of materials and money was stolen from the robbery. At least 100 safety-deposit box owners did not claim insurance nor identify their items in the boxes.