Movie: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs * Trailer * Official Site	In Theaters: July 1, 2009
Runtime: 94 minutes	Directed by: Carlos Saldanha
MPAA Rating: PG for some mild rude humor and peril	Gecko Rating:

They’ve really mined everything they can out of these "Ice Age" movies, haven’t they? That’s not to say they’re not cute and fun and all that stuff. Just that maybe they’ve come to the end of the line on these particular characters and stories. Then again, they’ve added a few new characters in this movie, and let’s face it, they’re just at the dawn of the dinosaurs, which means this franchise could go on into infinity.

The first movie, 2002’s "Ice Age," was definitely the best. The second, 2006’s "Ice Age: The Meltdown," was cute, and this one is cute, too. They just seem to be losing their steam. But the animation continues to be fantastic, with every snowflake and furry animal popping off the screen at you (the 3D animation helps, too). 

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Movie: Public Enemies * Trailer * 6 Clips * Images * Official Site	In Theaters: July 1, 2009
Runtime: 140 minutes	Directed by: Michael Mann
MPAA Rating: R for gangster violence and some language	Gecko Rating:

I wondered if "Public Enemies" would romanticize the gangster life, and it sort of does. But it also gives the other side of the story – the blood, violence, and nastiness.

Still, this movie mostly romanticizes it, mainly because Johnny Depp is just so darn cute. What girl could resist his charms, gangster or not? Plus, I think he’s actually getting better looking as he gets older. But enough of my crush…

In "Public Enemies," Depp plays notorious gangster John Dillinger in the 1930s. It’s not a life story or anything; the movie actually picks up with him getting out of prison after something like nine years. Apparently, he’s learned nothing in there, because he’s right back at it, gathering the gang back together and planning their next bank robbery.

We really don’t see a lot of the other gangsters – it’s mostly about Dillinger – but on the sidelines is Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham), Pretty Boy Floyd (Channing Tatum) and others. In a nightclub, Depp spots the beautiful Billie Frechette (Marion Cotillard) and goes over to introduce himself. He wastes no time and not only strikes up a romance right away, but also tells her who he is and what he does. "I’m John Dillinger, and I rob banks." She resists his charms at first, but they’re soon involved in a torrid affair.

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I’m probably more in love with "Transformers" than "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" (read my review here). They’re both rock-em sock-em movies with giant robots, but the first one had more plot and character development, in my view. Well, as much as you can have in a movie about giant robots. 

THE DVD: The 2007 action flick directed by Michael Bay centers on an ancient battle between two extraterrestrial robotic clans, the heroic Autobots and evil Decepticons. But the key to who wins this battle is held by a teenage boy, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf). Also stars Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Rachael Taylor, Jon Voight, and John Turturro.

("Transformers" is also now available in a two-disc Blu-ray edition. As with the DVD, it includes new deleted scenes and 25 minutes of bonus features; available on June 16 from from Paramount Home Entertainment.)

THE GIVEAWAY: I have FOUR “Transformers" DVDs to give away.  

HOW TO ENTER: To enter the contest, simply leave a comment on this post by midnight on Saturday, July 11, 2009. Be sure to include a valid email address. Winners will be drawn randomly. I’ll email the winner for their snail-mail address after the contest ends. Good luck!

Image: Amazon.com

Much of the population might think that vampire Edward Cullen and his human alter-ego Robert Pattinson is cuter than cute. But he doesn’t share that feeling, and says that not only did he almost back out of auditioning for the role, but seeing himself on screen makes him sick!

For the rest of us, we’ll get to see Pattinson as the sultry vampire again on Nov. 20, 2009, when "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" hits theaters.

I love it when studios release movies on Wednesday, because it helps to break things up and gives us a chance to see lots of new movies in the same week!

In Theaters Today:

Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (PG). Released in regular and 3D formats, this third movie in the franchise finds Scrat still on the hunt for that elusive acorn (and possibly finding love with a female sabre-toothed squirrel); Manny and Ellie expecting a baby; Diego pondering his place in the world; and Sid wishing for a family of his own. Rated PG for some mild rude humor and peril. [Trailer] [Poster] [Official Site]

Public Enemies (R). Directed by Michael Mann, this gangster movie tells the story of charismatic John Dillinger (Johnny Depp), whose bank raids made him the number one target of J. Edgar Hoover (Billy Crudup) and his fledgling FBI, including agent Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale). Rated R for gangster violence and some language. [Trailer] [6 Clips] [Images] [Official Site]

Images: © Universal Pictures

Movie: The Hangover * Official Site	In Theaters: June 5, 2009
Runtime: 100 minutes	Directed by: Todd Phillips
MPAA Rating: R for pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, and some drug material	Gecko Rating:

Sometimes a movie comes along that you think will be crude and stupid, and it turns out to be smart and funny. That’s "The Hangover." At first glance, it’s a crude buddy movie with lots of sex and drugs. Ok, it’s all that, but look a little further and you’ve got a smart, funny film with great writing and real characters, not movie cliches.

Basically, the story is about a Las Vegas bachelor blow-out that goes horribly, horribly wrong. Two days before his wedding, Doug (Justin Bartha) and three pals (Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis) head for Vegas for one last bash they’ll never forget.

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There’s no denying that "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" may be short on plot, but high on special effects action — which makes it the perfect movie for IMAX theaters. Read my review here.

The sequel from Paramount raked in an estimated five-day gross of $14.4 million on 169 IMAX screens, the largest haul ever for the big screens.

Directed by Michael Bay and starring Shia LaBeouf and Megan Fox (though the real stars are the giant robots), the action flick earned a per screen average of $85K plus between June 24 –28, 2009.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, "Transformers" also gave IMAX its biggest single-day domestic gross of $3.9 million, and its biggest international gross for a digitally remastered IMAX title at $770,000 on Saturday.

Did you see "Transformers" at an IMAX theater? Did you like it?

Image: © 2009 DW Studios L.L.C. and Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

The weekend box office numbers are not all that shocking. "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" is miles ahead of everything else, with "The Proposal" coming in second, and "My Sister’s Keeper" a distant fifth.

Maybe people are like me and don’t want to go see a sad movie right now. My daughter wants to see it, and I’m just not into it! Here are the numbers from Box Office Mojo:

1. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, $108.96M
2. The Proposal, $18.57M
3. The Hangover, $17.02M
4. Up, $13.06M
5. My Sister’s Keeper, $12.44M
6. Year One, $6.02M
7. The Taking of Pelham 123, $5.45M
8. Star Trek, $3.71M
9. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, $3.64M
10. Away We Go, $1.70M

Image: © 2009 DW Studios L.L.C. and Paramount Pictures Corporation. All Rights Reserved.

Movie: The Brothers Bloom * Trailer * 2-minute clip * Official Site	In Theaters: May 29, 2009
Runtime: 113 minutes	Directed by: Rian Johnson
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for violence, some sensuality and brief strong language	Gecko Rating:

“The Brothers Bloom” is a funny little movie, the sort of movie you might watch at an arthouse or indie theater, then walk away going, “Yeah, that was an interesting movie with great acting.”

It stars Mark Ruffalo as Stephen, and Adrien Brody as his younger brother Bloom. These two brothers have been con artists since they were kids, with Stephen orchestrating intricate stories for each swindle and Bloom playing the main character.

They work on their own except for the mysterious and silent Bang Bang (Rinko Kikuchi), a Japanese woman who showed up one day and has a penchant for blowing things up. She feels that once you’ve used something, you might as well blow it up.

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I’m giddy over the release of "Public Enemies" next Wednesday, July 1, 2009. Here are a few clips of the premiere, with Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cotillard and Leelee Sobieski talking tommy guns, cars and fedoras.

Thanks to MTV for the videos, and check out all of Film Gecko’s "Public Enemies" coverage!

Johnny Depp: What motivates an outlaw?