Realistic FX Brings Viewers Inside Tornadoes in “INTO THE STORM”

Towering over and around the human characters of New Line Cinema's tornado disaster film “Into the Storm” is its intimidating main character—the storm itself. “I think it’ll be exciting for the audience to go inside this massive tornado with its horrific power of destruction and, at the same time, see its beauty,” director Steven Quale says. “With advances in sound and visual effects, it’s now possible to do that in an incredibly visceral and realistic way.”

Quale’s a firm believer in the notion that “sound is 50% of the moviegoing experience” and enlisted Oscar®-winning sound editor Per Hallberg (“Skyfall”) to give the storms their concussive power. The visuals were hatched on hundreds of computers spread across among leading visual effects houses, all working from high def video references and a detailed previsualization (“previs”) Quale put together with VFX producer Randall Starr.

"The Walking Dead's" Sarah Wayne Callies Heads “INTO THE STORM”

Sarah Wayne Callies, who was last seen fleeing zombies in TV’s “The Walking Dead,” faces a different kind of menace in New Line Cinema's tornado-disaster thriller “Into the Storm.”

Callies plays professor of climatology and meteorology Allison Stone, who is with the storm chasers as a scientist, not a thrill-seeker. “This is Allison’s first season studying what these guys chase year after year,” Callies explains. “So, she is on the fence as to whether or not they are doing something legit or are just mavericks. She also has a young daughter back home. This is the first time Allison has been away from her, and there’s a real risk that she won’t be coming back.”

Having grown up the with two college professors for parents, Callies is a born researcher and consumed as much information as she could about the field, including conversations with a meteorology professor at the nearby University of Michigan. But nothing could prepare her for experiencing what director Steven Quale had in store for the actors on set. “The first time they turned the wind machine on me, it blew me 20 feet off my mark. But that was part of the draw for me. I get to fly around and do wire work—it’s pure adrenaline, and really fun. How many times in your life do you get to work in a playground like this?”

Callies was also drawn in by the human story in the midst of this big tornado movie. “The tornado is the catalyst, but what happens to these characters is very simple and very moving. It’s about how people who are strangers can become almost family over the course of a single day, when that day threatens all their lives. I think Allison starts this journey very invested in science and ends up more invested in people, so for her, the big question becomes if she should stay with the storm chasers or help Richard Armitage's character, Gary, find his son.”

From New Line Cinema, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, comes the tornado disaster film “Into the Storm.” Steven Quale (“Final Destination 5”) directs the film, which is produced by Todd Garner (“Knight and Day”).

In the span of a single day, the small American town of Silverton is ravaged by an unprecedented onslaught of tornadoes. The entire town is at the mercy of the erratic and deadly cyclones, even as storm trackers predict the worst is yet to come. Most people seek shelter, while others run towards the vortex, testing how far a storm chaser will go for that once-in-a-lifetime shot.

Told through the eyes and lenses of professional storm chasers, thrill-seeking amateurs, and courageous townspeople, “Into the Storm” throws you directly into the eye of the storm to experience Mother Nature at her most extreme.

Opening across the Philippines in August 07, 2014, “Into the Storm” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

“INTO THE STORM” New Disaster Thriller

From New Line Cinema, in association with Village Roadshow Pictures, comes the tornado disaster film “Into the Storm,” an adrenaline-fueled thriller that will plunge audiences in the eye of the storm as an unprecedented series of powerful tornadoes converge on the small town of Silverton, seen through the eyes and lenses of the people living through it.

Steven Quale (“Final Destination 5”) directs the film, which is produced by Todd Garner (“Zookeeper,” “Knight and Day”). The film stars Richard Armitage (Thorin in “The Hobbit” films) Sarah Wayne Callies (TV’s “The Walking Dead”), Matt Walsh (“Ted”), Alycia Debnam-Carey (“Where the Devil Hides”), Arlen Escarpeta (“Final Destination 5”), Nathan Kress (TV’s “iCarly”), Jon Reep (“Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay”) and Jeremy Sumpter (“Soul Surfer,” TV’s “Friday Night Lights”).

INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE Posters Revealed!

New Line Cinema has uncovered four character one-sheets of its upcoming magic-themed comedy “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone.” The posters individually highlight the lead castmembers Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde and Jim Carrey.

In the film, superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone (Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Buscemi) have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking in millions with illusions as big as Burt’s growing ego. But lately the duo’s greatest deception is their public friendship, while secretly they’ve grown to loathe each other.

Facing cutthroat competition from guerilla street magician Steve Gray (Carrey), whose cult following surges with each outrageous stunt, even their show looks stale. But there’s still a chance Burt and Anton can save the act—both onstage and off—if Burt can get back in touch with what made him love magic in the first place.

The film is directed by Emmy Award winner Don Scardino (“30 Rock”), from a screenplay by Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley (“Horrible Bosses”).

Serving as a special consultant for the stage illusions is the world’s most successful magician, David Copperfield.

Opening across the Philippines on March 2013, “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” is a New Line Cinema presentation and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

“THE INCREDIBLE BURT WONDERSTONE” Main Poster

New Line Cinema has just revealed the main poster art of its upcoming magic-themed comedy
“The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” starring Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Olivia Wilde and Jim Carrey.

In the film, superstar magicians Burt Wonderstone (Carell) and Anton Marvelton (Buscemi) have ruled the Las Vegas strip for years, raking in millions with illusions as big as Burt’s growing ego. But lately the duo’s greatest deception is their public friendship, while secretly they’ve grown to loathe each other.

Facing cutthroat competition from guerilla street magician Steve Gray (Carrey), whose cult following surges with each outrageous stunt, even their show looks stale. But there’s still a chance Burt and Anton can save the act—both onstage and off—if Burt can get back in touch with what made him love magic in the first place.

Opening across the Philippines on March 20, “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone” is a New Line Cinema presentation and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.

“THE HOBBIT” Breaks to the Top of PH Weekend Box Office

First film in Peter Jackson’s epic “The Hobbit” Trilogy breaks multiple records in its opening.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey,” a production of New Line Cinema and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures (MGM), soared to the top of Philippine box office in its opening weekend, earning P55-million on more than 300 screens, including six IMAX theatres. That figure represents the biggest opening ever for any film in the canon of “The Lord of the Rings.” The announcement was made today by Francis Soliven, General Manager of Warner Bros. (F.E.), Inc.

“The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” is the acclaimed first film in Oscar®-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson’s epic “The Hobbit” Trilogy, based on the timeless novel by J.R.R. Tolkien.

Shot in 3D 48 frames-per-second, the film was released in High Frame Rate 3D (HFR 3D) in select theaters, other 2D and 3D formats, and IMAX®.

Soliven stated, “Peter Jackson and his team of actors and filmmakers have delivered another superb film in the canon he established with ‘The Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy. Audiences everywhere have been excited by the prospect of returning to Middle-earth and these results speak to the incredible enthusiasm out there for this new adventure.” 

In the U.S., “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” dominated the weekend with an estimated $84.775 million domestically and $138.2 million internationally, for a worldwide estimated total of $223 million, including a record-breaking $15.1 from IMAX theatres worldwide.

Domestically, the film broke records for largest December opening in motion picture history, including Christmas/holiday weekends. Back in the Philippines, the top-performing cinemas are SM Mall of Asia (P4.16-M), SM North EDSA (P3.16-M), Trinoma (P3.00-M), Greenbelt 3 (P2.22-M), SM Cebu (P2.16-M), Glorietta 4 (P2.02-M), SM Megamall (P1.82-M), Power Plant (P1.73-M), Newport (P1.64-M) and Eastwood (P1.53-M). They are followed closely by Alabang Town Center (P1.41-M), Gateway (P1.242-M), SM Southmall (P1.241-M), Robinsons Galleria (P994,816), SM Clark (P940,995), Shang Cineplex (P916,080), Robinsons Ermita (P850,310), Ayala Cebu (P849,474), Robinsons Magnolia (P845,407) and Theatremall (P782,932).