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Yesterday I posted lists of my Fave Music of ’09 and today I present lists of my Fave Movies and TV shows of 2009. I had a hard time narrowing down my lists for both movies and TV but, in the end, I think I got the list right … at least for me :) Here are my Top 10 Fave Movies of 2009:

At #10 is Avatar:

This movie, in IMAX 3D, was an amazingly beautiful sight to see. I’ll admit that the story (not at all unique) wasn’t the best ever but the storytelling coupled with the amazing special effects makes this movie worthy of inclusion on any Top 10 List for 2009. It was said that Avatar would change the way we watch movies in theaters FOREVER … and while I wouldn’t exactly agree, I will say that James Cameron‘s 15 years devoted to the making of this film were well spent. Avatar may not be a game changer but it very well may be a movie that we look back in years to come as a masterful modern fairytale.

At #9 is Moon:

This movie was all story. While it was cool to look at, the real draw here was the story and acting performance by Sam Rockwell. For most of the film, he acted opposite himself … and he did so very, very well. This movie was not really seen by a lot of people but I think those that did see did really enjoy it … I know I did.

At #8 is The September Issue:

This movie may have been called the “real-life Devil Wears Prada” but it was so much more than that. It was a really intriguing look into what it takes to publish the singly most important magazine issue in the world of Fashion. I loved seeing Vogue Editor In Chief Anna Wintour in action in this film but the real star of The September Issue is Vogue Creative Director Grace Coddington. This film prolly wasn’t very interesting to folks not interested in Fashion but I loved it immensely.

At #7 is Taken:

Taken was prolly the biggest surprise for me this year. The film was released in France early in 2008 and then in the UK in Fall 2008. It wasn’t released in the US until January of 2009 and without much fanfare. I think I went to see it on a fluke and I was totally blown away by how fun the film was. Liam Neeson, action star. It was kind of like a Bourne Identity film but with an older, more mature hero. When I sat down to compile this list, I knew Taken would be on it because it’s one of the films that I really remember enjoying this year.

At #6 is Drag Me to Hell:

Okay, I take it back … Taken was not the biggest surprise for me this year, Drag Me to Hell was — for sure! I distinctly remember laughing out loud the first time I saw the trailer for Hell. It looked stupid and I had no plans to waste my time … then word of mouth started going around and people I trusted said that they loved it. I checked it out and, wouldn’t you know it, I loved it too! The movie wasn’t trying to be anything other than what it is … a jump in your seat, fun, horror flick. It’s a lot of fun.

After the jump, check out my Top 5 Fave Movies and my Top 10 Fave TV Shows of 2009 …

Members of bridge crew of the new Starship Enterprise were on hand at Shinjuku Milano One in Tokyo for the Japanese premiere of the new JJ Abrams film Star Trek which opens in the Land of the Rising Sun on May 29. Here are a few pics from the red carpet arrivals at last night’s premiere (which, due to the time difference, actually took place “today” in Japan):

Yes, that is a replica of the USS Starship Enterprise NCC-1701 on the red carpet with the actors. These pics were too fun not to post … you can tell that everyone was very happy to be promoting the film in Japan … and with good reason. It’s doing very well here in the US. Folks in Japan have a great movie to look forward to. I’ve already seen the film twice and I’m itching to see it one more time … in IMAX. I’m anxious to see that Chris Pine underwear scene on the jumbo screen ;)

[Photo credit: Splash News]

Last night Josh I got to see Star Trek at an ArcLight Cinema members’ screening just hours before the film opened wide at 12AM today. Since I already formally reviewed the film last week after I saw Trek at the Hollywood premiere at Grauman’s Chinese Theater, I shant go into another full-fledged review … but a few things did occur to me having seen the movie a second time, so I’ll share those with all y’all:

First off … I still love this movie. I think it was even better seeing it the second time. While I was a bit miffed at the major changes done to the ST timeline in this movie, I decided to look at the film without that elitist notion and just see the film for what it is … a truly epic, spectacular blockbuster movie. It really is larger than life. The film clarifies, once and for all, Uhura‘s first name and if you pay attention, you might learn where the Cloverfield monster comes from. I’m convinced that it will be the biggest movie of the year. It’s great … I’m sure many of you are planning on seeing the film today or this weekend, trust me — you’re gonna love.

After the movie, I raced home to watch Game 4 of the Stanley Cup playoffs between the Detroit Red Wings and the Anaheim Ducks … while I was stressed for most of the game, I am happy to report that the Wings handily defeated the Ducks by a score of 6 – 3:

The series is now tied at 2 games a piece … the teams go back to Detroit for game 5 on Sunday. Woot!!

Tonight, I’ll be in front of my TV and my computer for the season finale of Dollhouse on FOX and I hope you will be too … and I also hope you’ll join me as I LiveBlog the finale HERE thruout the show. Log on and chat with me … it shall be a blast!!

So … last night David and I were invited to attend the Hollywood premiere of the new JJ Abrams-directed Star Trek film at Grauman’s Chinese Theater and we JUMPED at the opportunity. As a long time Trek fan, I was very anxious to finally see the movie that I have heard so many good things about. I am happy to report that all the hype and the great reviews are absolutely justified … I loved this film. There is so much for old Trek fans to feast on in this film but also much for new fans (or those who aren’t even fans all) to enjoy as well. I suspect that this film will do very well with everyone … it’s got movie blockbuster written all over it. If you wish to remain unspoiled by my review, I suggest you skip over the next part and just go down to see my pics from the premiere after party instead:

Man … where to begin. The story is really superb. The film opens with an action sequence that really sets the pace of the film and clues you in that Abrams means business … he is intent on revamping the entire series into a new, modern version that remains true to the classic series while injecting enough excitement to make it all fresh again. There is action, there is humor and there are pretty fantastic acting performances that are sure to please pretty much everyone who sees the film. Each character gets to shine in this film and each one is infused with enough of their classic mannerisms and catch-phrases to appease the most ardent Trekkie in the audience. I will reveal that a warp core does get ejected somewhere along the way … it wouldn’t be a Star Trek movie if not.

Now, the one thing that I’m not sure that I like. AND THIS IS THE SPOILERY PART SO DON’T READ THIS IF YOU WANT TO REMAIN UNSPOILED! As we should all know by now, JJ Abrams loves to play with time travel … and time travel features heavily in this film. Without going into any details, I will say that a time shift alters the Star Trek timeline and the events of this film break off and head in a different direction than the timeline we know from the classic Star Trek series. This is why I don’t think the movie should be marketed as a prequel. History is changed and a new alternate timeline is created. To me, the movie is more of a sequel to all of the previous TV series and movies that we’ve already seen. That said, this new alternate timeline opens up WIDE the ability to create entirely new stories and wholly new adventures without having to worry about staying true to the original Trek timeline. Again, I’m not sure how I feel about this exactly. There are major changes in this film that drastically alter the Trek universe. I’ll be very interested to hear what others think about this after they see the film (so, please, feel free to email me when you see this film).

But, as I said, I absolutely loved the film overall. Zachary Quinto‘s Spock is excellent and he is, IMHO, the star of the film. I was just so impressed … I’m dying to see the movie again already.

After the movie, we made our way to the afterparty that was held off site from the theater and we got down to celebrating the film. After the jump, check out a bunch of photos of some celebs posing in a fun Star Trek photobooth and see some of the cool folks I got to meet last night …

The principle cast, along with a few folks from previous incarnations of the franchise as well as a few celeb fans, made their way out to Grauman’s Chinese Theater in Hollywood, CA last night for the Hollywood premiere of JJ Abrams‘s new Star Trek film (tho you may recall that the film already premiered in Sydney, Australia and London, England). Hollywood Blvd. teemed with Trekkies and celebs alike clamoring to be a part of the big party … and David and I were lucky enough to be among them. Here are a few pics of the new cast of Star Trek making their entrances on the red carpet (which was actually black and silver) and

The principal stars of the new JJ Abrams prequel film Star Trek made their way to Empire Leicester Square in London, England last night for the UK premiere of their film and were not only met by throngs of adoring fans but were also met with the first reviews of the film … and for the most part, the reviews are raves. Here are a few photos of Chris Pine, Eric Bana, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, John Cho and Karl Urban on the red carpet of the premiere event last night and a portion of one of those published rave reviews:

The entertainment business thrives on surprises, as has been proven once again by the sudden elevation to stardom of Susan Boyle on Britain’s Got Talent. And there has been no bigger surprise for me this year than this movie. Like many people, I yawned at the thought of yet another attempt to breathe life into a series that seemed finished, after the pompous, pointless and all too aptly named Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002. The original cast had long gone, and the ideas had dried up. Why try to reanimate a corpse? The short answer is that J.J. Abrams had come up with a tremendous idea, inspired no doubt by the success of Batman Begins and Casino Royale, both of which had reinvigorated tired franchises by recasting and going back to basics. The result is not only by far the best of the 11 Star Trek movies, it must rank as the outstanding prequel of all time … We see space battles, planets sucked into black holes, chases, space aliens. Stupendous special effects and a magnificent score by Michael Giacchino make it a treat for the eyes and ears. The picture moves at a terrific pace, and is a satisfying tale of good versus evil, with Eric Bana a highly hissable villain. He’s the Romulan Nero, bent on avenging the destruction of his planet by blowing up first Vulcan, and then Earth. The Australian actor is virtually unrecognisable in the role, and confirms my suspicion that, though he struggles to carry a movie as a leading man (proved most notably in Hulk), he is a first-rate character actor. Like all the best villains, Nero is driven by a belief that he is in the right, and makes a fearsome adversary. The script feels remarkably fresh, no small achievement in itself, and takes an ingenious turn with the introduction of a time travel theme, and a highly effective reappearance of 78-year-old Leonard Nimoy, who was of course the original Spock and brings considerable dignity and grace to his scenes, which are far more than cameos. This is space opera on a mythic scale, and it’s stirring stuff. The immense grandeur of the imagery bodes well for anyone who chooses, in the wake of this movie’s inevitable success, to go back into the history of the franchise, and marry some of its better script ideas to 21st century technology. After the artistic disappointment of George Lucas’s Star Wars prequels, with its terrible dialogue and worse acting, this movie really does promise a creative re-birth of science fiction adventure. The revelation for many will be the way the screenplay honours the original characters created by Gene Roddenberry in the sixties, and gives them a moving and satisfying back-story.

The review goes on HERE and offers a bit more information that you might want to read before seeing the film. I didn’t even read the rest of it for fear of ruining the surprise. I am so pleased to know that reviewers are, thus far, happy with the reboot film … which makes me worry less. I was never a fan of the original Star Trek series, nor of the original characters (Capt. Kirk, Spock, et al.) as I was more of a Star Trek: The Next Generation fan (as well as Star Trek: Voyager). This prequel, I’m hoping, will breathe new life into the old characters and hopefully make me a fan. I’ve been impressed with everything I’ve seen thus far … so I’m really anxious to see the final product. David and I procured tickets to see the film early on May 7th the evening before the film opens on the 8th … so I’m gonna do my best to keep away from any new footage from the film so as not to spoil the movie. It won’t be long now.

[Photo credit: Wireimage; Source]

Sydney, Australia was the lucky city to host the official world premiere of the new JJ Abrams prequel film Star Trek last night but the folks in OZ were not the first ones to be able to watch the film in full. An even luckier group of folks in Austin, TX who were told they’d be seeing a preview of clips from the film were treated to a full showing of the film … AND Leonard Nimoy (the original Spock) was in the hiz to introduce the screening. But, we’ll get to that in a sec. Co-stars and jogging buddies Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto were joined by Eric Bana, John Cho and Abrams on the red carpet in Sydney last night … here are a few photos:

The 11th Star Trek movie in 30 years had its world premiere on Tuesday, its markedly younger cast boldly going along the red carpet to a makeshift cinema in the Sydney Opera House. Chris Pine, 28, who plays a cadet-aged James T. Kirk, admitted he’d never met William Shatner, who starred as the original Captain Kirk in the television series dating back to 1966 as well as the first Star Trek movies. But he said he watched the TV show “quite a bit.” “All it was doing was making me think about what the best way I could do a William Shatner impersonation,” Pine said. “It wasn’t helping bringing this story to life.” Hundreds of fans, including one wearing “Spock” ears, waited for hours to meet the leading men who spent nearly an hour walking the red carpet, signing autographs and talking with journalists. “It’s hard to believe Eric Bana plays a meanie when he comes across as such a nice guy,” said Alicia Wetherley, who drove from central Australia to the Opera House for the premiere. Bana plays Nero, the film’s heavily-tattooed Romulan villain bent on avenging the destruction of his planet. He said all the film’s cast “did everything they could” to come up with something fresh this time around. The plot follows the young lives of the original cast from Gene Roddenberry’s TV show as they find their places on the flight deck of the U.S.S. Enterprise as junior officers. It was directed by J.J. Abrams, director of “Mission Impossible III” and “Lost.” “I was never a huge Star Trek fan growing up and so what I hope people will experience when they see the movie is one that stands on its own,” Abrams said. “It’s a huge action spectacle but at the core it is got a big heart,” said Abrams. Zachary Quinto plays Spock, the role made famous by Leonard Nimoy, 77, who has a cameo in the film. Nimoy had joined a campaign for the movie to hold its premiere in the small farming town of Vulcan in Alberta, Canada, that was unsuccessful, partly because the town has no cinema.

LOL! Well, since Nimoy couldn’t get the premiere to take place in Vulcan, he decided to surprise a group of fans in Austin, TX for a screening of Star Trek that took place even before the Oz premiere went down:

While a world of Trekkers believed the new J.J. Abrams Star Trek would premiere in Sydney, Australia Tuesday, Leonard Nimoy made a surprise appearance in Austin, Texas Monday night to screen the film for an unsuspecting audience. A theater full of Trek fans showed up in the Texas capital thinking they were going to see a new print of the classic Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and 10 minutes of Abrams’ reboot, all organized by Ain’t It Cool News. But, Nimoy shocked the house by announcing they would in fact see the entire new movie just hours before it made its international bow in Sydney. The early fan reviews on Twitter are running almost entirely positive so far.

Click HERE to read some of the Twitter posts that came from last night’s Austin surprise. Kudos to Paramount for really capitalizing on getting the buzz for the film going right. Orchestrating a splashy premiere and a surprise screening on opposite ends of the globe all almost the same time is pretty brills. I know I’m amped to see the film … even without all this hoopla … but the word of mouth can only help the film when it opens in May. I’m sure we’ll be seeing the new Trek crew trek the world for other premieres in the weeks to come … but it’s all foreplay to me. I want the real goods and I want them now!

[Photo credit: Wireimage; Source, Source]

JJ Abrams‘s much anticipated Star Trek prequel movie hits theaters this Spring and the movie tie-in merch is already on the way. A new batch of action figures (ie. boys’ toys) have been created to correspond with the major characters in the movie as well as a batch of Barbie dolls (ie. girls’ toys) created in the vague likenesses of a select few ST characters … this way, both boys and girls (of all ages) can get in on the fun of playing with their fave Star Trek characters. First up the boys’ toys action figures:

A new Star Trek film without new toys would be, as Spock might say, highly illogical. So action figures and other items are beaming down to stores in advance of the J.J. Abrams-directed film, opening May 8. The Playmates Toys’ products, in stores starting April 19, are part of a marketing mission that includes Mattel Barbie collector dolls (Kirk, Spock and Uhura), trading cards, radio-controlled spaceships and board games. The action figures re-energize a franchise that “helped prove figures based on science-fiction properties not directly created with kids in mind were a viable market,” says Cliff Annicelli of Playthings magazine. “They paved the way for the development of what today is a cottage industry for collectible toys targeted primarily towards adult males.” The starring triumvirate of Kirk, Spock and McCoy will be available in 3¾-inch ($7), 6-inch ($9-$10) and 12-inch ($30) models. Also available will be figures of the original Spock, who meets the young Spock in a time anomaly. Other crewmembers will be available in the smaller sizes. Playsets include the Enterprise Bridge and Transporter Room. The goal: to “make the brand more accessible to not only existing fans but to a new generation,” says Liz Kalodner of CBS Consumer Products. “It’s important to us that we honor the iconic property for what it has contributed to American pop culture. Since this is a whole new take on the franchise, we followed (Abrams’) lead with a new approach including collectible features, new figure and vehicle scales, and new materials,” Playmates’ Paul Fish says.

Here is a photo of what the Star Trek Barbie dolls look like — check out Spock, Kirk and Uhura:

Form the press release: CBS Consumer Products has just released images of the eagerly anticipated Star Trek Barbie Dolls from Mattel. The dolls have been created mainly for collectors and are for ages 6+. The three dolls – Kirk, Spock, and Lieutenant Uhura – are modeled after the three actors playing the same roles in this summer’s blockbuster film STAR TREK hitting theatres on May 8th! The price point for the three dolls is $43.19. They will be on shelves April 20th. Mattel is distributing to Walmart and walmart.com, Barbiecollector.com and Barbie collector dealers. They are selling them as an assortment (but the dolls come individually wrapped, no two or three-packs). Select international markets will have the dolls as well.

Way to cover all the bases … these toys look kinda cool. If I were a bigger Trek fan, I might have to consider getting a few of these but now that I’ll be living with David … well, the time for childish things is over. Besides, there is no way David will let me fill our new home with too much stuff (junk, as he calls it ;) … but I’m sure there are a lot of fans/collectors out there who are very excited about this news.

[Source, Source]

Last July we got our first look at the first teaser poster for the new JJ Abrams directed Star Trek prequel movie that featured principal characters Eric Bana (who plays villiain Nero), Zoë Saldana (who plays Uhura), Zachary Quinto (who plays Spock) and Chris Pine (who plays James Kirk). Today we learn that the official website for the Star Trek movie has been updated with new downloads, including a second teaser poster which features other members of the Star Trek Enterprise crew:

This poster features John Cho (who plays Sulu), Simon Pegg (who plays Scotty), Karl Urban (who plays Dr. McCoy) and Anton Yelchin (who plays Chekov). I really like the way they are handling the promo for this film. It’s subtle but teases enough to keep folks interested. I’m not sure how much more promo stuff we’ll get to see before the movie is released next year (especially considering how much coverage it got in Entertainment Weekly last month) but I’ve got my eye out for any future goodies. So far … do y’all like the Star Trek promo we’ve been gettin’?

[Source]