In what can be considered to be quite the ambitious project, SEE Games has announced that they have partnered with Chinese online gaming company ZQGame to create a new MMO based on Columbia Pictures’ upcoming Total Recall remake starring Colin Farrell.

Th ambitious part comes in the promise that the MMO (massively multiplayer online) game will be free-to-play, and that it will be made on a specially designed engine allowing for a full-on 3D browser-based experience that’s able to present console-level graphics, characters, and environments with NO need for a client download.

London Boulevard
DIRECTED BY: William Monahan
WRITTEN BY: William Monahan
STARRING: Colin Farrell, Keira Knightley, Ray Winstone, Anna Friel, David Thewlis, Ben Chaplin, Stephen Graham, Eddie Marsan
IFC Films
RELEASE DATE: October 5, 2011 (on demand); November 11, 2011 (limited theatrical release)

Writer William Monahan has made quite a name for himself as a screenwriter, crafting the scripts for films such as Kingdom of Heaven, Body of Lies, Edge of Darkness, and The Departed, for which he won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. Now Monahan is stepping behind the camera for his directorial debut, London Boulevard (which he also wrote), but can he find the same kind of success as the man in charge?

The movie follows Mitchel (Colin Farrell), a very dangerous man who’s just getting out of prison. As is the case with most who come out of prison, he’s now facing two paths: one leading right back to his old life, while the other leads to a fresh start. Mitch tries to go legit and wants nothing to do with the life of crime he once knew, but unfortunately for him that’s a difficult feat to accomplish when some of the people closest to you are trying to pull you back in.

I’m not big on remakes or 3D, so this new Fright Night 3D remake already had two strikes against it just in the title alone. Yet, somehow, the movie won me over. Typically, upon hearing that a film is being remade, I immediately scoff and question why, especially if the original film is a classic that I feel doesn’t need an update.

The remake of 1983’s Fright Night, which is in theaters now, stars Colin Farrell as the vampire Jerry Dandrige and former Doctor Who star David Tennant as vampire slayer Peter Vincent.

Now, if you enjoyed the original movie, you’re probably wondering why you should bother to go see the new version, which was released in both 2D and 3D. While I’m a fan of the original Fright Night, I really like the remake, so I feel there’s room for enjoyment of both films. Therefore, here’s 5 Reasons To See The Fright Night Remake.

If you’ve expected a movie to be terrible for the longest time, and then you watch it and it turns out not to be complete garbage, does that necessarily make it good? I have no idea. I do know it’s never a good idea to start a review off with a question.

I will admit to not thinking much of the Fright Night remake (except for the casting) as it seemed to be yet another remake in an litter box full of them and the best one could hope for is that it’s better than _________ [insert your own shitty remake here as you could probably name a dozen off the top of your head].

But 2 hours later as you exit the theater singing along to the end credits (“99 problems and a bitch ain’t one…”) you realize that you had a pretty decent time, and that last week’s The Help would have been a lot more entertaining and a lot less preachy had vampires been involved.

Besides, it’s always nice to see a real vampire movie for a change instead of the brooding Beiber-vag’s that contaminate the megaplexes nowadays.

It’s time for SPOILERS…

Fright Night
Directed by Craig Gillespie
Starring: Anton Yelchin, Colin Farrell, David Tennant, Imogen Poots, Toni Collette, Christopher Mintz-Plasse
Release Date: August 19, 2011

Horror fans are well aware of the gloom associated with many remakes of well-known films, but despite this, I was pleasantly surprised with Craig Gillespie‘s take on Fright Night. The new film certainly pays tribute to the original film, but definitely brings it into the contemporary age, with a faster pace and some solid performances from the lead cast members.

Fright Night follows a great deal of the same plot elements as its original namesake. Charley Brewster (Anton Yelchin) begins to have a sneaking suspicion that his new neighbor, Jerry Dandrige (Colin Farrell) is a vampire. Brewster seeks the assistance of famous “vampire hunter” Peter Vincent (David Tennant) in the fight against Dandrige, to protect his mother, Jane Brewster (Toni Collette), and his girlfriend, Amy Peterson (Imogen Poots).

The principal strength of the remake is in the substantial performances from both David Tennant and Colin Farrell, and even Anton Yelchin puts in a very convincing role that truly makes you want to cheer on his character as the film heads to its climax. However, having said that, it is Christopher Mintz-Plasse (McLovin!) who truly steals the show in his rendition of the character of “Evil” Ed Lee. In the original film, Ed was a lovable highlight who was depicted as a hilarious weirdo. Yet in the new movie, Mintz-Plasse brings the character into the 21st century, providing that “weirdo” element but adapted to his demeanor.