Recently in At the Movies Category

The 3D dance movie Step Up 3D is scheduled to be released in conventional 2-D, Real D 3D, XpanD 3D and Dolby 3D formats on August 6, 2010.

Many of you may have already noticed that there are two versions of the movie soundtrack being sold. One is the U.S. version (left) with 16 tracks by artists such as Flo Rida, Trey Songz, Jessie McCartney and Jazmine Sullivan. The other is the European version (right) with 14 tracks.

The cover art for the two albums differs significantly. I think I prefer the cover of the import version. The U.S. version looks as if a hooded grim reaper is ready to grab the young lovers. The other cover shows a dynamic dance move.

Posted by: zeefritz

  

The film Charlie St. Cloud starring Zac Efron is scheduled to be released to theaters on July 30, 2010. However, the soundtrack album will not be released until August 17.

The music was composed by Rolfe Kent, who has done the scores for such films as About Schmidt, Sideways, Wedding Crashers and The Men Who Stare at Goats. It is difficult to judge the soundtrack by the trailer and previews are not yet available online.

The album cover art is a square version of the movie poster. However, the image does work well as album art. It features a nice portrait of Efron that is certain to appeal to his fans.

Director Christopher Nolan's sci-fi thriller Inception opened in theaters today. It is definitely one that I will go to see. The special effects look impressive and it has an interesting cast that includes Leonardo DiCaprio, Ellen Page and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

I have been listening to the soundtrack all afternoon and I think it is the best work that Hans Zimmer has done in years. The track Old Souls is haunting and beautiful and definitely my favorite.

Unfortunately, the cover art for the soundtrack album is not goin to going to get such a favorable review. It is going to serve as a prime example of why a squared-off version of the movie poster doesn't always work as album art.

In this case, the poster shows a dramatic bending of a city street behind the cast of the film. You can see that the street is being folded over on to itself. This is a graphic depection of the film's special effects.

The album art has been cropped so that it looks as if the cast is standing at the foot of a steep hill. It looks like a typical scene in San Francisco. Half of the poster has been lost. I could almost imagine Steve McQueen speeding up behind them in his green Mustang. Sadly, it is just my imagination. Nothing but a lot of standing around is going on in that album cover.

The new science fiction action film Predators is scheduled to open in theaters on July 9, 2010. The film's soundtrack was composed by John Debney and is scheduled to be released on August 10. I'm not sure why they're waiting a full month after the film's debut to release the soundtrack.

The album cover is a square version of the movie poster. I am not sure that it works very well in a small format. The outline of the alien is a weak image. Also, it is puzzling that there is only one predator shown when the title of the movie indicates that there are a more than one.

There have been a couple of prerelease posters issued for the film in the international markets and one of them (right) would make a better album cover. It shows one of the film's stars, Adrien Brody, with lazer beams targeting him and a alien in the background. I understand that there is often a desire to create an iconic image for a science fiction movie (as was done with the egg hatching for Alien and more recently with the "no aliens" sign for District 9). If that is the case with Predators, the alien needs to be much more detailed and dynamic. The outline profile also seems a bit dated -- like something from the early 1990s. 

The soundtrack for the film Scott Pilgrim vs. The World is scheduled to be released on August 10, 2010. The film starring Michael Cera as a nerdy bass guitarist for a rock band is based on the Scott Pilgrim comic book series. The film will be
released on August 18.

The soundtrack features tracks by Beck, Metric, Broken Social Scene, Cornelius and other artists. The cover art is a square version of the movie poster. It features a image of Cera playing an electric guitar.

Visitors to the film's official website will find one of those Flash gizmos that can be used to create customized illustrations (similar to what South Park did a year or so ago). The images can be saved as avatars and wallpapers. I did one of myself that turned out kind of cool (except that I'm labeled a "gothic lolita" for some reason).

Visit the Scott Pilgrim vs. The World Website

The cover art for digital release of the Toy Story 3 soundtrack is somewhat odd. It doesn't have the title of the film — just a big "3" and two of the animated characters. It also has the name of the composer, Randy Newman, in very large type.

AlbumArtExchange.com user raffster has uploaded the first page of the digital booklet (right) as a more reasonable version of the cover art. I have to agree that the version being used is somewhat garish. I don't think kids really care about Randy Newman.

As a promotion for the film, Pixar has hired YouTube remixer Pogo to create a great video using sound bites from the Toy Story films. Toyz Noize is not on the Toy Story 3 soundtrack, but it should be. It is amazing!

The cover for the soundtrack album for the motion picture remake of The A-Team has been revealed. It is scheduled to be released on June 22, 2010.

The cover is a squared version of the movie poster (right). The faces of the actors have been cropped quite and bit more for the album. The result is an image that features craggy skin and over-sized pores. It is not pleasant to look at -- but from what I understand neither is the movie.

The music was composed by notable composer Alan Silvestri, who did the music for Back to the Future, Forrest Gump, and many other films. I have not seen a track listing, so I don't know if this album has anything worth buying. The music heard in the trailer doesn't impress me very much. Yawn.

The cover of the soundtrack album for Universal Pictures and Illumination Entertainment's upcoming 3-D CGI feature Despicable Me has been revealed. The film is scheduled to be released on July 9, 2010. The soundtrack will be released on July 6.

In January, it was announced that Grammy Award winning singer, songwriter, and producer  Pharrell Williams would write original music for the film. It is Williams' first time composing music for a motion picture. Legendary composer and Oscar winner Hans Zimmer has composed the score. I do not have a track list for the soundtrack at this time.

Despicable Me, which features the voices of Steve Carell, Jason Segel, Russell Brand, Will Arnett, Kristen Wiig, Danny McBride, Miranda Cosgrove, Jack McBrayer, Mindy Kaling, Jemaine Clement and Julie Andrews.

The second Sex and the City movie was released to theaters this week. The soundtrack was also released as both a CD and digital download. The album features 18 tracks by artists such as Jennifer Hudson, Alicia Keys, Dido, Liza Minnelli and something called the Sex and the City Men's Choir.

If I were not familiar with the HBO series, I would probably assume that the movie is about a spooky-eyed female zombie who marches out of the desert after being cursed to wear ugly, red torture bindings on her feet. Can you seriously imagine anyone wearing high heels on a sand dune?

The fourth and final installment in the Shrek movie series is scheduled to be released  in theaters on May 21, 2010 in the U.S. and on July 2nd in the U.K. Two albums are being released in conjunction with the movie, Shrek Forever After: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack and Shrek Forever After: Original Movie Score.

The cover art for the albums is different enough that is should prevent the usual confusion between movie soundtracks and scores. The Shrek series has always been good about using album covers that can be recognized as being different.

The soundtrack is scheduled for release in the U.S. on CD exclusively through Walmart on May 18 and in the U.K. on June 29. The soundtrack will ba available as a digital download via iTunes. The score will be released in the U.S. on May 25. The soundtrack will include songs by artists such as Weezer, Beastie Boys, and Scissor Sisters. I do not have a U.S. release date for the soundtrack.

Various Artists - Shrek Forever After Music from the Motion Picture

Posted by: zeefritz

Harry Gregson-Williams - Shrek Forever After Original Movie Score

Posted by: zeefritz

The soundtrack for director Ridley Scott's Robin Hood is scheduled to be released on May 11, 2010. The score is by composer Marc Streitenfeld, who did the scores for American Gangster and Body of Lies. 

The cover art for the album is a square version of the movie poster (right). I think this a good example of a movie poster not really making a great album cover. The blurry hand in the foreground dominates the smaller format. In this case, a different image would have probably been a better choice. One with a more balanced focus would be a big improvement.

You can hear some of the score in the trailer posted below. It has a modern rock sound that I don't think works with the film. I found it distracting. I almost aniticapted hearing Aerosmith start to sing.

Robin Hood is scheduled to be released in theaters on May 14.

Kick-Ass is a movie about high school kids who dress up as superheroes and (you guessed it) kick ass. The movie also has a "kick-ass" soundtrack album with artists like The Prodigy, Primal Scream, New York Dolls, Sparks and The Dickies. It also has tracks by Ennio Morricone and Elvis.

The cover art for the soundtrack is a square version of one of the many posters created for the film. The album was released digitally yesterday. The film is scheduled for release on April 16, 2010.

Any time I see a movie about the 1980s, I hope that it will have a great '80s soundtrack. Like 1998's The Wedding Singer, the soundtrack for Hot Tub Time Machine does not disappoint. The album has tracks from David Bowie, Talking Heads, New Order, Echo & The Bunnymen, Salt N Pepa and several other '80s artists.

The cover art for the album has a very retro look to it. It has a bright pink band at the top containing the phrase "Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" and humorous cast photo. It definely looks like the cover of a soundtrack album from the '80s.

The film is scheduled to be released on March 26, 2010. The soundtrack will be available as a digital download on March 23.

The soundtrack for Shutter Island, the Martin Scorsese film starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo and Ben Kingsley is getting some buzz. It is an ecclectic collection of tracks by artist such as Brian Eno, Kay Starr, Johnny Ray, Nam June Paik, and Dinah Washington. Unfortunately, this is one of those soundtrack albums that isn't being sold as individual tracks. Those who want the haunting Dinah Washington and Max Richter track will have to shell out for the entire album.

The artwork for the album is a square version of the movie poster. It features DiCaprio holding a lit match. I don't think the poster does a great job of capturing the spirit of the film. It would have been nice to see something a bit more creative. Perhaps I'd be more inclined to buy the album if that were the case.

German composer Harold Faltermeyer won a Grammy for the score 1984's hit Beverly Hills Cop. While Faltermeyer's original score was never released, the soundtrack (right) was a popular album that featured several hit tracks such as Patti LaBelle's New Attitude, Glenn Frey's The Heat Is On, Pointer Sister's Neutron Dance, and Faltermeyer's Axel F.

Hoping to recapture the success of Beverly Hills Cop, director Kevin Smith has teamed up with writers Mark and Robb Cullen to create a "buddy cop" film starring Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan that includes both a score by Faltermeyer and a theme song performed by Patti LaBelle.

What is interesting is that the soundtrack album released for Cop Out is Faltermeyer's score, rather than a collection of music tracks heard in the film. The soundtrack does include the theme song, which was written by Faltermeyer.

The entire project has me somewhat confused. It is as if they took several elements from Beverly Hills Cop (black comic from Saturday Night Live, Harold Faltermeyer score, Patti LaBelle) and thought that using them would result in similar success. Perhaps they should have started by casting a hip young comic rather than Tracy Morgan. Morgan is great in small doses on 30 Rock, but I don't think I could stand listening to him ramble on and on as the star of a feature film (I could barely make it through the trailer).

Looking at the cover art for the soundtrack, all I can think about is Morgan upstaging co-star Bruce Willis by rambling incoherently and doing a routine that only a man 20 years his junior should be allowed to get away with. Cop Out is scheduled to be released on February 26, 2010. The soundtrack will be available on February 23.