It's been fifteen years since Men in Black first brought a cinematic version of the comic book created by Lowell Cunningham to movie theaters across the world.  The film introduced audiences to an extra-governmental force tasked with covertly carrying out extraterrestrial policing on Earth, and did so with a witty comedic sensibility not as present in the source material.  The result was an international success that captured the zeitgeist in 1997 and helped propel Will Smith to global stardom.

After a decade without a hint of Agents J or K since Men in Black II, the franchise has been revived with a third sequel that sees Smith and Tommy Lee Jones returning to their roles.  Director Barry Sonnenfeld is also back to tell another story of the MiB organization.  For the third outing, an intergalactic biker played by Jemaine Clement travels back in time to settle a score with K and pave the way for an alien invasion.  With no other choice, J must journey back to 1969, teaming up with a younger K, played by Josh Brolin, to save the future.

At the Los Angeles press day for Men in Black 3, IAR Managing Editor Jami Philbrick was present to gain some insight on the latest science-fiction comedy.  Stars Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, and Josh Brolin were all in attendance to discuss the sequel, their roles, working with visual effects, and prominent ears in 3D.

Dustin Lance Black is a screenwriter, producer and director, having won the 2009 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Milk, the biopic of the late gay rights activist Harvey Milk starring Sean Penn. Additionally, Black wrote the screenplay for J. Edgar, directed by Clint Eastwood and starring Leonardo DiCaprio which earned him a Golden Globe nomination. Black earned his chops writing on HBO’s Big Love quickly climbing the ranks from staff writer on the series to executive story editor to co-producer. Black’s newest film Virginia, which he wrote and directed, is loosely based on his own childhood experiences growing up in the South and is now playing in theatres.

Virginia stars Jennifer Connelly (Requiem For A Dream, A Beautiful Mind) in the title role as a beautiful yet unhinged single mother who struggles to raise her son Emmett (Harrison Gilbertson) while dreaming of escaping her small Southern boardwalk town. Her longtime affair with the very married, Mormon Sheriff Richard Tipton, played by Ed Harris (A Beautiful Mind, Pollock), is thrown into question when he decides to run for public office. Things are further complicated when Emmett begins a romantic relationship with Tipton’s daughter, played by Emma Roberts (Nancy Drew, Valentine’s Day). Virginia and the town – populated by Amy Madigan, Toby Jones, Yeardley Smith – are full of secrets and everyone knows Virginia can only keep things together for so long. Virginia is a funny, touching drama that looks at the American Dream and what it takes to keep it together.

I recently had a chance to sit down and chat with Dustin Lance Black about Virginia. The Director spoke about Schizophrenia, his southern Mormon upbringing, the American Dream, working with Jennifer Connelly, the exhaustive effort of researching the biopics he wrote, and his upcoming projects.

Dallas Richard Hallam and Patrick Horvath are the writing / directing duo behind Entrance, an indie, slow-burn horror film / psychological thriller. It’s a slasher film in which you might not even realize it’s a slasher film until you’re a good deal of the way through it. Entrance is about Suzy, played by Suziey Block (The Island), a lonely young woman in Los Angeles who begins to develop a growing case of anxiety and uneasiness living in the city. The movie is about the limits of our perception, how things lurking in our periphery of our lives can lead to horrific conclusions; and it’s about how Suzy fell out of love with the city of LA but the city wouldn’t let her go. It is also one of the most unique and unnerving films I’ve seen in a quite a while. Entrance is now playing in theaters, as well as IFC Midnight Cable VOD and Digital Outlets (SundanceNOW, iTunes, Amazon Streaming, XBOX Zune, Playstation Unlimited).

I recently had the chance to speak with Directors Dallas Richard Hallam and Patrick Horvath about Entrance. The directors spoke about where the idea for the film came from, what films and filmmakers influenced them, creating tension and anxiety for the audience, their metaphor for Los Angeles, sound work, and their upcoming project.

David R. Brooks and Zev Brooks are the sibling filmmakers behind The Yankles, a film about an Orthodox Jewish baseball team with a very unorthodox coach. Though both brothers co-write the script, David helmed the direction of the film while Zev acted as Producer. The Yankles is a comedy about a hapless Orthodox Yeshiva baseball team that earns a ticket to compete in the college world series. The team hires Charlie Jones, played by Brian Wimmer (Footloose, Flipper) to coach. Charlie is a washed-up, ex-major league center fielder on parole for multiple DUI convictions and desperate to fulfill his community service. While The Yankles strive for success on the field, Charlie works to rebuild his reputation and relationships. The film, which has garnered numerous awards at domestic and international film festivals, is a hilarious and touching story about redemption. The Yankles opens in theatres today, Friday, May 18th.

I recently had the chance to speak with David and Zev Brooks about The Yankles. The filmmakers discussed their long, arduous seven-year journey to make a film with no prior track record and independent from any Hollywood or studio help. The brothers also discussed working with real-life husband and wife actors, tricks for shooting on such a tight budget, the stunts involved in shooting a sports movie, the themes in their film, and their influences.

On the same day that Sacha Baron Cohen, in character as General Aladeen, led an elaborate, absurd, and hilarious press conference at the Waldorf Astoria for his new film, The Dictator, a slightly more serious press conference was conducted with the films supporting actors, Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi, Schindler’s List) and Jason Mantzoukas (Baby Mama, The League). The Dictator, which is now playing everywhere, stars Sacha Baron Cohen as Supreme Leader, Chief Ophthalmologist, and excellent swimmer, General Aladeen, a misogynistic, anti-Semitic dictator of a fictional country in northern Africa called The People’s Republic of Wadiya. Sir Ben Kingsley plays Aladeen’s scheming uncle and Jason Mantzoukas plays Aladeen’s Chief Nuclear Scientist.

Along with other members of the press, I had a chance to sit down with Sir Ben Kingsley and Jason Mantzoukas to discuss The Dictator. The actors discussed the energy of New York City, what it was like working with Sacha Baron Cohen, trying not to break character, the phrase ‘just kidding,’ improvisation, Arab Spring, accents, and beards.

The new comedic drama What to Expect When You're Expecting isn't based on the most likely source material.  Sure, the book of the same name by Heidi Murkoff has consistently topped bestseller lists since first being published in 1984.  In three subsequent editions since then, it has sold almost 15 million copies and become the go-to handbook for modern pregnancy.  That's what makes it an unlikely movie: it's a self-help text, a practical guide filled with information and tips on the different stages of pregnancy and early childhood.

The film version, Kirk Jones and co-written by Heather Hatch and Shauna Cross, incorporates Murkoff's applicable advice into a narrative feature by telling five interconnected stories of pregnancy, each with their own couples and circumstances.  That means What to Expect When You're Expecting stars a sprawling ensemble cast, including Jennifer Lopez, Cameron Diaz, Elizabeth Banks, Rodrigo Santoro, Chris Rock, Brooklyn Decker, Matthew Morrison, Anna Kendrick, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Ben Falcone, Chace Crawford, Rob Huebel, and Joe Manganiello.

IAR Managing Editor Jami Philbrick attended the press day for this Lionsgate release in Los Angeles, where Murkoff and Jones, along with much of the all-star ensemble cast, enthusiastically discussed the book, making the movie, drawing from real-life experience, and working with lovely, talented ladies.

If you’re a Hollywood A-Lister, than you have most likely worked with, and have definitely heard of, visionary Costume Designer Colleen Atwood. She’s worked with the best of the best and when you see the upcoming film Snow White and the Huntsman, you’ll know why that is.

Supreme leader, Chief Opthamologist, and excellent swimmer, General Aladeen of the People’s Republic of Wadiya, addressed hundreds of journalists from all over the world recently in New York City. General Aladeen is the latest alter ego of Sacha Baron Cohen (Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Brüno), a comedian known for promoting his films with in-character stunt appearances. In his latest film, The Dictator, which opens Wednesday, May 16th, Cohen plays a misogynistic, anti-Semitic dictator of a fictional country in Northern Africa, called Wadiya.

Director Tim Burton and star Johnny Depp go together like peanut butter and jelly, like smoke and fire, like whiskey and Coke.  Their efforts together began with Edward Scissorhands, and now, twenty-two years later, their eighth collaboration is about to hit theaters from sea to shining sea.  That would be Dark Shadows, and to most audiences, the new film is likely a whole new quantity, a mixture of garish, gothic visuals and a comedic sensibility.

But Dark Shadows is, in fact, a theatrical update of the creaky soap opera created by Dan Curtis in 1966.  The series, which followed the exploits of the highly dysfunctional inhabitants of Collinwood Manor, has maintained a passionate cult of die hard fans devoted to the characters, particularly the vampire Barnabas Collins, originally played by Jonathan Frid.

In the new version, Depp plays Barnabas, a wealthy gentleman in the Colonies just before the Revolutionary War who is cursed with vampirism and buried alive for two centuries.  When he's unearthed in 1972, he naturally returns to his home and finds his descendants presiding over the dilapidated Collinwood Manor.  Depp leads a cast that includes Eva Green, Jonny Lee Miller, Helena Bonham Carter, Bella Heathcote, Chloe Grace Moretz, Gulliver McGrath, and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Joel Amos from Moviefanatic.com was on hand for the film's press day, where cast, along with Tim Burton, writer Seth Grahame-Smith, and composer Danny Elfman discussed the influence of the original series, soap opera acting, being part of an ensemble, and the film's unique tone.

Over the last decade and change, the superheroic exploits of neon gods in spandex and armor have become one of our most reliable sources of blockbuster entertainment.  Ever since Bryan Singer's X-Men and Sam Raimi's Spider-Man ushered in the modern age of the comic book movie, the Marvel Comics stable of iconic heroes have dominated the popular culture and multiplexes across the country.  Now, even with comic book adaptations having saturated our sensibilities, The Avengers is something truly unprecedented.

It's the event movie towards which Marvel Studios and its head honcho Kevin Feige have been building since the studio's first feature, 2008's Iron Man.  It's culmination of years of planning and ambitious, never-before-attempted franchise cross-pollination between The Incredible Hulk, Thor, Captain America: The First Avenger, and both Iron Man films.  It's also an outstanding standalone piece of pop entertainment, with Buffy the Vampire Slayer creator Joss Whedon ably providing thrills and juggling characters as writer-director.

Those characters Whedon so impressively juggles are played by an all-star cast, each of them capable of carrying their own franchise and many of them having done just that.  IAR Managing Editor Jami Philbrick was amongst the global entertainment journalists present at the Los Angeles press day for The Avengers.  Held in LA the day after the film's premiere, the press conference included Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Mark Ruffalo, Chris Hemsworth, Samuel L. Jackson, Jeremy Renner, Clark Gregg, and Cobie Smulders, all of whom were happy to discuss making the film together.