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Famous Movie Locations: Alcatraz Island From 'The Rock' (San Francisco Bay, CA)

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jul 21st 2010 3:00PM
Filed under: On the Scene

For 29 years Alcatraz Island, also known as "The Rock," was one of the most intimidating prisons in the U.S. A 22-acre island a mile and a half from San Francisco, it housed some of the most notorious criminals -- from Al Capone to George "Machine Gun" Kelly -- and was inescapable.

Because of this notoriety, Alcatraz has not only been one of the most popular sites to visit while in San Francisco -- it became a historic landmark in 1986 -- but has also attracted Hollywood studios for decades. However, no film has so creatively included this landmark in its story as Michael Bay did in his1996 blockbuster 'The Rock.'
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That Guy! Pete Postlethwaite

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jul 16th 2010 2:00PM
Filed under: Features, Summer Movies
Known for his distinguishable facial features and eloquent voice, Pete Postlethwaite has been sought after for over 30 years for projects from Shakespeare to period dramas to sci-fi thrillers. You'll find him in the latter this weekend as he plays Maurice Fischer, an aging patriarch of a business empire in the much-anticipated Leonardo DiCaprio actioner, 'Inception.'

Born in Warrington, Lancashire, England, and beginning his career on the stage at the Liverpool Everyman Theatre alongside Bill Nighy and Jonathan Pryce, Postlethwaite (pronounced "poss-ul-thwait") first became known to movie audiences when he received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for 'In The Name of the Father' in 1994. He's since followed that with a variety of roles in films like 'Romeo + Juliet,' 'The Lost World: Jurassic Park,' 'Amistad,' 'The Shipping News,' 'The Constant Gardener,' and this year's 'Clash of the Titans.' But he's perhaps best known for his sinister portrayal of Keyser Söze's buttoned-downed right-hand man, Kobayashi, in 'The Usual Suspects.'
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10 Awesome Dream Sequences That Make Reality Seem Boring

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jul 16th 2010 8:00AM
Filed under: Features, Unscripted, Video
Dreams and movies have gone hand and hand for as long as cinema has been around. Not only does a dream in a movie bring out comedy, horror, and sometimes unlock the key to something a character has been searching for, it also gives the director a chance to step outside of the box and create an alternate world for the characters to play in briefly.

Christopher Nolan takes that sentiment and expands it into one of the most elaborate dreamscapes ever put on film with 'Inception.' In the film, Leonardo DiCaprio plays Dom Cobb, a professional thief whose talents involve delving deep into a person's mind to extract valuable secrets while he or she is in a dream state.

So that got us thinking about our favorite dream sequences in movie history. From Hitchcock to Gondry, some of the most creative minds in the business have leaped into dreams to have a little fun. Here are 10 that we feel are in a class by themselves.

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Famous Movie Locations: Monroeville Mall from 'Dawn of the Dead' (Monroeville, PA)

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jul 13th 2010 5:48PM
Filed under: On the Scene

Horror icon George A. Romero's second film in his 'Living Dead' series, 'Dawn of the Dead,' exposed our addiction to material things by setting the story inside a giant shopping mall in rural Pennsylvania. A marvel to audiences for 1978 (it even had a skating rink!), the Monroeville Mall location would quickly become a destination for horror fanatics.

At the heart of the story are four people who escape Philadelphia, now completely overcome by flesh-eating zombies. Flying in a helicopter in hopes of finding any humans who've survived, they come across an abandoned shopping mall and realize they have everything they need there to survive. But gradually the zombies in the area converge on the mall, leading to the famous line: "This was an important place in their lives."
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Famous Movie Locations: Philadelphia Museum of Art From 'Rocky' (Philadelphia, PA)

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jul 6th 2010 3:00PM
Filed under: On the Scene

If you've ever been to Philadelphia, you've probably asked someone -- between bites of a Philly cheesesteak -- "Where are those steps that Rocky runs up?"

It's one of the most iconic images in movies: Rocky Balboa trudging up the 72 stone steps leading to the entrance of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, his arms raised to the heavens as he reaches the top, while the epic song 'Gonna Fly Now' plays. The scene epitomizes the blue-collar sentiment of the city and defined the southpaw brawler from Kensington that catapulted Sylvester Stallone to stardom.
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Father's Day DVD Gift Guide: How to Make Dad Cry, Laugh, or Forgive You

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted Jun 15th 2010 1:00PM
Filed under: Features, DVDs
Some do it with a card. Others with a nice dinner. We here at Moviefone think the best way to appreciate our dads on Father's Day is sitting down with him and enjoying a great movie.

You know what your father loves best, but for those who are torn over getting him that one movie that will fill the house with his laughs or make him beg for the tissues, here's 10 dad-themed movies we think make for a great DVD gift on his special day.

After all, how often can you get him to tear up watching three grown men singing a lullaby to a baby? Now's your chance.
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Famous Movie Locations: Laie Point from 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall' (Laie, Hawaii)

By Jason Guerrasio (Subscribe to Jason Guerrasio's posts), Posted May 20th 2010 3:20PM
Filed under: On the Scene
Laie Point
After movies like 'The 40-Year-Old Virgin,' 'Knocked Up' and 'Superbad' catapulted Judd Apatow's stable of actors -- highlighted by Seth Rogen, Jonah Hill and Paul Rudd -- into stardom, Apatow's least known talent, Jason Segel (who at the time was best known as one of Seth Rogen's raunchy friends in 'Knocked Up' and as Marshall on the TV show 'How I Met Your Mother'), had his chance when he took the lead role in the romantic comedy 'Forgetting Sarah Marshall.' Set in the breathtaking island of Oahu in Hawaii, the movie raised Segel's notoriety, introduced the States to Brit comic Russell Brand and highlighted some of the gorgeous landmarks on the island's Windward Coast.
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