First photos of the Volturi from New Moon

According to someone over at ONTD! (via The Playlist) these are official Volturi character art from Summit Entertainment and really, they're only worth it for Michael Sheen. If you don't know who the Volturi are, they're a law-enforcing vampire coven. It hurts just to write that crap. Featured in the photo along with Michael Sheen are Dakota Fanning and Jamie Campbell Bower. The Twilight Saga: New Moon is set to open on November 20, 2009.

Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning in costume for 'The Runaways'

Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning are currently shooting The Runaways - a biopic about the all-girl rock band from the 197os. IESB.net points us to some photos of Stewart as Joan Jett and a rather grown up looking Fanning as Cherie Currie and there even more photos at the source.

Alessandra Torresani cast as Lita Ford in 'The Runaways'

Back in March, we got word that Dakota Fanning had been cast as Cherie Currie, lead singer of 1970s band The Runaways. Now, largely unknown actress, 22-year old Alessandra Torresani has been cast as lead guitarist Lita Ford. Kristen Stewart as Joan Jett, Stella Maeve as the band's original drummer Sandy West, and Michael Shannon as manager Kim Fowley round out the rest of the principal cast.




It also looks like Torresani will begin shooting pretty soon:

Now, Torresani laughed, she has less than seven days to learn how to convincingly wield her axe.

"I learn the guitar starting [Monday], so that'll be interesting," she laughed. "I'm very nervous about it."

Torresani told us she'll be picking up the guitar as she meets Stewart, Fanning and Maeve for the first time and that the newly formed band has less than a week to rehearse. "I haven't met any of the girls yet. I'll meet them soon. I see them tomorrow, so that's soon enough," she grinned. [MTV via The Playlist]

I'm looking forward to this film even though I haven't actually seen Torresani or Maeve in anything. It still seems hard to determine the direction The Runaways will take, mostly because director Floria Sigismondi has never directed a feature film and two of the principal actors are relative unknowns, but perhaps that's what makes the project intriguing.

Casting news: Dakota Fanning joins 'The Runaways', Megan Fox proves she's a comic book nerd, and Leonardo DiCaprio teams up with Chris Nolan

From Variety: Dakota Fanning is in talks to play Cherie Currie, the lead singer of The Runaways - the first truly famous all-girl rock band from the 1970s. Dakota's co-star from New Moon, Kirsten Stewart has already signed on to play Joan Jett. Dakota Fanning is 15, and the same age Currie was when she started out with The Runaways. Admittedly, I have my doubts about the casting. I like Fanning and Stewart, but I just don't know how much weight and strength they could bring to these real life characters. When the rest of the band is cast, we'll get a much fuller picture of where the project is headed. The Runaways is being written and directed by Floria Sigismondi, who I have high hopes for considering her enormous talent as a music video director (just watch Fionna Apple's O' Sailor or Christina Aguilera's Fighter).



Megan Fox has signed on to star in not one, but two comic book adaptations - Jonah Hex and Fathom. Just call her the Carrie Fisher for a new generation of geeks. First, she's signed on to play Leila, the gunslinging love interest to Oscar nominee (I just love being able to write that) Josh Brolin's anti-hero in Jonah Hex. In the adaptation of Michael Turner's comic book, Fathom, Fox plays Aspen, a young woman who is discovered at sea and later learns she is a member of an aquatic race of humanoids who can control water. Um...okay then; nobody will be watching either film to see Megan Fox act and I doubt there will even be a reason to have a costume department. I have my own girl crushes (Kerry, Penelope, Emily), but Ms. Fox has never done it for me. It would be cruel to deprive you of photos though, so I'll oblige:



And finally: Leonardo DiCaprio will star in Inception, helmed by my one true love Chris Nolan. If you want to know more about the film, there's basically nothing I can give you. All anyone knows is that Inception is a sci-fi action movie that takes place in the architecture of the mind. Sounds like utter Greek to me, but I will watch anything Nolan directs or DiCaprio stars in. The combined forces of these two is just impossible not to get excited about. The film will open July 16, 2010.

Opening today - Dakota's twofer

He's Just Not That into You
Five years ago I would have raced to see Scarlett Johansson in anything. But romantic comedies do NOTHING for me unless most of the cast has a British accent. Director Ken Kwapis may have directed some episodes of the American version of The Office, but if knowing he also directed License to Wed doesn't have you screaming from the movie theater, I don't know what will.

Coraline
The first of Dakota Fanning's movies (surley we get two tickets for the price of one). Unlike her live action movie, this animated fantasy about a girl who discovers a strange new world, looks promising. The animation is stunning, but that's to be expected from director Henry Selick (The Nightmare Before Christmas). The PG rating means it might scare the crap out of the kids much the same way Nightmare did me. Call it my lust for vengeance unleashed upon a new generation.

Aishwarya Rai & Steve Martin - The Pink Panther 2

The Pink Panther 2
Peter Sellers rolling in his grave aside, expect it to make a bucket load of money. I refused to watch the first Pink Panther with Steve Martin (Clive Owen cameo be damned), and this one looks worse if such a thing is possible. Quelle horreur.

Push
This is not the sensation from Sundance:

“A shadowy government agency is genetically transforming citizens into an army of psychic warriors – and ...disposing of those unwilling to participate.”

Haven't we seen this before? My girl brain is excited about a drool worthy Chris Evans, but with the exception of Sunshine his films are painful to watch. I expect getting through this will be agony.


Limited Release:


Chocolate
With its very limited release the DVD won't be far behind its US release. It does sound interesting – there aren't exactly a lot of Western films about an ass kicking girl with autism, who takes on an organized crime ring:



Fanboys
Everything I know about this movie leaves me pretty fucking irritated. Star Wars fanboys going on a road trip in 1999 to watch Episode I? Before I go into my own fangirl tirade (fuck you Jar Jar) I have to ask: why does the Weinstein Company hate us?

Jump right in with a comment. Which film are you planning on seeing this weekend? Got a review of any of them (which to steer clear of, which to watch)?