One of the big complaints about The Golden Compass, was the abrupt ending. Fans of the novel complained that the last few chapters of the book had not been included. And people that never read the book series could sense that something was missing.
Truth is, they were actually filmed more scenes, but they were cut due to running-time. You can even see a bit or two in some of the trailers. And one of the ending scenes shot but not included in the theatrical cut of the movie actually made it into the video game adaptation. Watch the video below.

UGO has a new craptastic poster for Harold & Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. And by craptastic, I mean, it’s not as good as the teaser poster. How can you get any better than Neil Patrick Harris on a unicorn? The new poster also features the new funny play on words tagline “This time they’re running from the joint.” Check out the new poster after the jump.

Rumors of Gerard Butler’s (300) departure from the Escape From New York remake have been greatly exaggerated. Butler, who has been doing press for his new romcom P.S. I Love You, insists that he hasn’t dropped out of the project, but is taking a wait and see position. In October, New Line hired Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines helmer Jonathan Mostow in to rewrite, with an option to direct. The actor points out that no start date has been slated.  If everything lines up again, Butler might indeed take on the character of Snake Plissken.
Originally Len Wiseman was attached to the project, and most recently, hack director Brett Ratner [...]

The new trailer for Will Farrell’s Semi-Pro is now online. Looks like another generic Will Farrell comedy, which might be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your age range.
Farrell stars as Jackie Moon, the owner-coach-player of the American Basketball Association’s Flint Michigan Tropics, who “rallies his teammates to make their NBA dreams come true.” The film also stars Woody Harrelson, Andre Benjamin, Maura Tierney, and Jackie Earle Haley. Kent Alterman makes his feature directorial debut.
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Harold and Kumar Go To White Castle wasn’t just a stoner comedy, it was laced with smart undertones which touched on social/racial stereotypes. The sequel, Harold & Kumar 2: Escape from Guantanamo Bay looks to be very similar in both tone and humor. And if the title wasn’t a give-away, this one seems to get a little bit more political.
The new red band (unrated) movie trailer shows just a few of the scenes from their journey (or escape), including a brush in with the Ku Klux Klan (with a cameo appearance by The Howard Stern Show’s Richard Christie), NPH, and even the President of the United States. Watch the new [...]

New Line has released the first five minutes of The Golden Compass online for your viewing pleasure.
I was able to see the first film adaptation from Philip Pullman’s controversial “His Dark Materials” trilogy on Saturday, and we hope to have a FightCast review up on Tuesday.  But I will say this: my feelings are very mixed. It wasn’t a complete failure, nor was it a home run. And this video clip gives you a good indication of the feel of the movie.
Watch the first five minutes after the jump.

New Line has provided us with six new photos from the much anticipated comedy sequel, Harold and Kumar Escape From Guantanamo Bay. Check out the photos after the jump. As always, click on the images to enlarge.

If I had to make a list of the top 10 movies I’m excited about for 2008 (note: I once tried, but came up with 55 movies instead), Be Kind Rewind would be front and center.
Michel Gondry’s film captures the magic of movies and filmmaking, and a weird, quirky and totally original comic plot starring Jack Black and Mos Def. This week it was announced that Gondry will premiere the film at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival. I’m very excited to see it. Check out the new theatrical poster after the jump.

Update: AICN was able to get in touch with Jackson’s camp and confirm this rumor as untrue. Jackson, as I speculated in the original story below, will also be tied in projects for the next few years.  Peter is interested in 3D but absolutely nothing has settled with the Jackson/New Line feud.
MarketSaw is reporting that Peter Jackson has signed on to direct an adaptation of The Lord of the Rings prequel, The Hobbit, split into two separate 3D films. According to MS’s WETA sources, Jackson also intends to convert and rerelease the Lord of the Rings trilogy in 3D as well (sometime between 2012 and 2014).
New Line has not confirmed [...]

Hollywood is still going 3D crazy. New Line has decided to enter the new cinema revolution by acquiring Ilion Animation Studios’ $60 million computer animated feature film Planet 51, which they plan to release in 3D.
Shrek scribe Joe Stillman’s screenplay tells the story of Earth astronaut Capt. Charles “Chuck” Baker, who lands on Planet 51, which is inhabited by creatures who live in fear of an alien invasion. Befriended by a young resident, the astronaut has to avoid capture in order to recover his spaceship and return home. Sounds like a great concept, but I already saw a movie called Terra with almost the EXACT SAME STORYLINE at this year’s [...]

On Friday we showed you a “Sweded Trailer” for the classic film Ghostbusters, from the parody of the movie within the movie of Michel Gondry’s Be Kind Rewind. On Saturday, we brought you the Jack Black and Mos Def’s Rush Hour 2. Today we bring you the trailer for Robocop, only available at Be Kind Rewind.

We have an incredible contest for /Film Readers. New Line has provided us with five prize packs to promote the upcoming release of The Golden Compass. Each prize pack includes:

The Golden Compass XBox 360 Video Game
Golden Compass Ornaments,
A Golden Compass Lunch Carrier
A Golden Compass Luggage Tag
and a Mini Golden Compass Movie Poster.

How do you enter to win? It’s easy:
1. You send us an e-mail at slashfilm@gmail.com with your name and address.
2. You must subscribe to our daily RSS email newsletter. Click here to subscribe. (note: you will be required to activate the email subscription)
It’s that easy! On December 14th we will pick five winners at random. We will be checking [...]

Yesterday we showed you a “Sweded Trailer” for the classic film Ghostbusters, from the parody of the movie within the movie of Michel Gondry’s Be Kind Rewind. Today we bring you Jack Black and Mos Def’s Rush Hour 2. Can’t be worse than Brett Ratner’s film, can it?

Due to the Thanksgiving holiday, it’s been an extremely slow news day. Check out this “Sweded Trailer” for the classic film Ghostbusters, from the parody of the movie within the movie of Michel Gondry’s Be Kind Rewind.

At the Southland Tales junket earlier today, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson gave us a big update on the big screen adaptation of the Captain Marvel comic book Shazam! Things have changed and Johnson is now playing Black Adam.
“I just met with Pete Segal last night,” The Rock told /Film. “It was a great meeting on Shazam. We’re just waiting for John August to hand in another draft, which will probably be handed in months from now because of the strike.”
“And not Shazam but Black Adam, that’s now very clear. He’s a character that I can’t wait to play. When they first approached me about playing Captain Marvel, they said there [...]