This is going to be so deep, dark and delicious!  Beautiful Creatures is poised to make an impact in the never-too-crowded  field of Young Adult- Fiction Adaptations and following the massive success of the Harry Potter Franchise, Warner Bros. has its sights set on this first Film based upon Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia’s Novel to whet the thirsts of a demographic which will not be ignored.

The Cast is superb and the Director Richard LaGravanese (P.S. I Love You, Freedom Writers) knows the way straight to heart.  The Drama-Fantasy stars Alice Englert, Thomas Mann, Emmy Rossum, Emma Thompson, Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis and Alden Ehrenreich.

Beautiful Creatures centers around Lena (Englert) who moves to the town of Gatlin, catching the eye of a bored Ethan (Ehrenreich).  He gets more than he bargained for as Lena‘s secret dark powers are unleashed, posing potential danger to others and herself.

Check-out these new Character Posters for the Film below:

Watch the Trailer below:

Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D murders the competition this weekend at the Box Office, kicking-off with a bang on Friday night with $10.2 million. Although slipping noticeably throughout the weekend, the Horror Remake starring Alexandra Daddario and Trey Songz still lands on-top with $23 million for Lionsgate Films/VVS Films, from 2.654 theatres across North America. Rising Star Daddario recently was in Toronto and we caught-up with her. Click here for more.

After menacing in second last weekend Django Unchained still is going strong in its third week with $20.1 million for The Weinstein Co./Alliance Films, keeping The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey behind in third with $17.5 million for Warner Bros., after a successful three weeks in-a-row at number one.

Les Misérables slips to fourth this weekend with $16.1 million, for Universal Pictures, at once surpassing the $100 mark domestically.

Parental Guidance meanwhile still continues to hang-on top the Top Five after a valiant fight, earning $10.1 million this weekend, giving Moviegoers some much-needed funny fare aside from some of the heavier-hearted options out right now.

Judd Apatow‘s This is 40 meanwhile continues to perform steadily, landing in seventh with $8.6 million, closing-in on the $60 million mark, keeping Best Picture Contender Lincoln at bay with $5.2 million in eighth.

Despite a relatively quiet promotional campaign, Gus Van Sant‘s latest Promised Land enters quietly in tenth with $4.6  million. Its Script was penned by its Stars, Matt Damon and John Krasinski.

Bubbling under, The Impossible, based on true story of a Family which survived 2004‘s devastating Tsunami while on vacation in Thailand, debuts in ninth spot with $2.76 million from 572 theatres and is set to expand next week to bigger numbers.  Naomi Watts is expected to gain an Oscar nomination Thursday for her powerful performance as Maria Belon in the Film from Focus Features/eOne Films.

Best Picture Frontrunner Zero Dark Thirty, which stars the currently-on-Broadway Jessica Chastain is seeing an enormous amount of buzz for in the Oscars Race, earning an impressive $2.75 in just 60 theatres! The Drama about the hunt for Osama bin Laden, finally sees a wide release next Friday.

So I’ve been pondering V̶e̶g̶a̶n̶i̶s̶m Vegetarianism a lot of late and although I’ve tried it on two occasions – each time  spanning the course of a year, I really am considering making a change to my lifestyle once again.  One, there are obvious health benefits to doing so. Secondly, there are ethical reasons. Thirdly, there is the Environment. A global increase in meat consumption is adversely impacting our climate and the Planet we live in.

Now I don’t think I could ever go full-on Vegan, but Vegetarian I could do.  We all have an individual responsibility and this doesn’t necessarily mean cutting meat completely out of our diets to save the World, but simply the first step is just being aware.  Something as simple as one Meatless Day a week can improve our health and the health of our Planet.  Learn more about the Meatless Monday Initiative here.

My good Friend Dawn – a full-on Vegan – and I have fallen in love with The Hogtown Vegan (834 Bloor Street West, at Ossington), located in Toronto’s The Annex.  Their specialty is Comfort Foods prepared in Vegan form and although I know the true spirit of Vegan Eating is diluted by wolfing-down flavoury, savoury Chilli “Cheese” Fries, Hogtown Wings, Unchicken & Waffles and Pulled Unpork Sandwiches (all seen above), I really love the Food here and I am stoked to try everything on the Menu.  In simply a meal or two there, I have been inspired to examine healthier eating patterns and recently have had a series of trial Meatless Days. Although I know it’s totally subjective,  I honestly do feel much less lethargic the days I’m not consuming Meat.  Legit.

Although I’m still on the fence which route I plan to go (who knows, maybe I’ll just wind-up being a Meat Eater who enjoys Meatless Days!), I’m ready to make a change – even if just a small one – starting with myself.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)

With the voting deadline having passed for Academy Members, Deadline is reporting much controversy over the transition of the voting process from over-the-mail to online.  Apparently, some Movers & Shakers and even Oscar-winning Actors themselves were having technical issues accessing their accounts as they scrambled to make this week’s deadline. Click here to read more about that.

Non-theatrical Drama aside, I am beyond-excited for this Thursday morning’s Oscar Nominee Announcements.  Expect Jessica Chastain to be the definitive Favourite to win Best Actress for Zero Dark Thirty, as is the case with Anne Hathaway in the Category of Best Supporting Actress based on her bone-chilling Les Misérables Performance.  In a tight match, Hugh Jackman and two-time Winner Daniel Day-Lewis foreseeably will be neck-in-neck for Best Actor, while Django Unchained Co-Stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Christoph Waltz likely will vie for Best Supporting Actor along with Tommy Lee Jones for Lincoln, and Philip Seymour Hoffman for The Master.  In a year with several standouts, Zero Dark Thirty, Silver Linings Playbook, Django Unchained, Argo and Lincoln all to be in close contention, while divisive Dark Horse The Master, could surprise.

Seth MacFarlane hosts the 85th annual Academy Awards on February 24, 2013. ABC airs at 7:00 PM EST. 

As a reminder, the Golden Globe Awards follow only a few days after the Oscar Nominations are unveiled, taking place on Sunday, January 13, 2012 at 8:00 PM EST, to air on NBC; Tina Fey & Amy Poehler host. 

I live for this!

(Photo credit: Oscars.com)

Famous for being famous, we’re all waiting with baited breath to hear what Paulina Gretzky actually sounds like.  She is embarking on a Media Blitz this week as her debut Disc still is being shopped-around. 

“I’m 75% sure my Single will be released in Canada first”, Gretzky tells Flare Magazine after having to do it on her own with Universal Music Canada dropping her last year from their roster of Artists.  She apparently has been working on Music for the past seven years, including spending some time in Sweden.

In addition to covering February’s Flare Magazine (photos by Caitlin Cronenberg, Daughter of David) – she last graced the Publication in 2005 – CityTV will be airing Entertainment City: Paulina Gretzky on Tuesday, January 8, 2012 at 7:00 PM.  The revealing Tell-All is aimed to create a bit of buzz for the Los Angeles-raised Daughter of Canada’s most beloved Hockey Player.

Click here to read more.

(Photo credit: Flare Magazine/Caitlin Cronenberg)

Huge day in Horse Racing as Celebrity Jockey and Hall of Famer, Gary Stevens, who at the age of 50, is coming out of retirement.  Stevens announced his retirement in 2005 after a celebrated careeer which saw him win the Industry’s top honour, the Eclipse Award for Outstanding Jockey in 1998.

Since then, Stevens has gone-on to make a name for himself appearing in Films such as Oscar-nominated Seabiscuit and HBO‘s ill-fated but acclaimed Series, Luck.  He also has appeared as an Anchor on both HRTV and NBC Sports.

Despite downplaying rumours of his return to riding, Stevens announced earlier today on HRTV that he would be coming-out of retirement, later Tweeting Fans, “Just wanted to say thank you. I won’t let you down.”.  He is said to have been training secretly at Pegasus Training & Equine Rehabilitation Center in Washington.

To put this into perspective for those not familiar with the Sport, this is equivalent to Mike Tyson returning to Boxing or Wayne Gretzky returning to Hockey. Okay, maybe not that dramatic, but you get the idea!  Crossing fingers we see him here at Woodbine for some of our major races later this year!

Follow Stevens on Twitter here.

(Photo credit: Universal Pictures)

Mob King Mickey Cohen (Sean Penn) has Los Angeles at the palm of his hands in the the mid-’40s: the Police, Politicians, Prostitutes and Pimps. What he doesn’t know though is that a secret group of LAPD Outsiders headed by Sargeant John O’Mara (Josh Brolin) and Jerry Wooters (Ryan Gosling) are hot on his heels and eager to keep the East Coast Mafia out of the City of Angels.  The stakes are upped as Jerry becomes involved with Mickey‘s choice Companion in Grace Faraday (Emma Stone).

Directed by Ruben Fleischer (Zombieland), we’ve all been awaiting the arrival of real life-inspired Gangster Squad for quite some time now and its release is just-over a week away.  As an interesting tidbit, Screenwriter Will Beall actually just five years ago was working for the LAPD as a Homocide Detective, landing at number seven on 2009’s Black List, honouring the Industry’s best un-produced Screenplays.

If this weren’t exciting enough, Giovanni Ribisi who stars as the technically-inclined Officer Conway Keeler, will be in the City next week to promote the Film!

Watch the Trailer in full below:

This needs to be released like right NOW. Guillermo del Toro has a busy slate in 2013 and in addition to releasing Toronto-filmed Horror Mama, on which he serves as Executive Producer later this month, this July his $300-million Sci-Fi Epic Pacific Rim is set to cause a tidal wave at the Box Office.  As you are aware, I filmed a week’s worth of scenes on the Film last year – even if just in the background – and I’m so super-stoked.

Pacific Rim centers around an impending Alien Attack where Robots are deployed to fight for our lives.  Idris Elba, Charlie Hunnam, Charlie Day, Rinko Kikuchi, Robert Kazinsky, Ron Perlman and Clifton Collins Jr. all star.

Watch the Trailer in full below:

Stay tuned as I have a few Pacific Rim-related Giveaways soon to come!

Warner Bros. releases Pacific Rim on July 12, 2013.

(Photo/video credit: Warner Bros.)

So basically, Toronto has Ramen Fever.  Yet another Competitor has entered the landscape of Japanese Noodle Shops in the City and based on the recommendation of a friend Laura, who actually has a Ramen Blog named It’s Raining Mian, myself and a few of my BFFs decided to give Santouka a try. Luckily enough, the Shop actually was open on New Year’s Day and this was the perfect way to cap-off a festive and chilly Holiday.

Santouka, which actually translates to “Mountain-Top Fire”, is the first Ontario (British Columbia got it first) addition to the internationally-popular Chain of Restaurants which trace back to 1988 when Founder Hitoshi Hatanaka opened his first ever shop in Hokkaido. Hatanaka was inspired greatly by the Rocky of Japanese Food Dramas,  Tampopo, which stars a familiar face to North Americans, Ken Watanabe.

I myself tried their spicy Limited Edition Kara Miso Ramen, showcasing first and foremost their lusciously tender two-day braised Pork Jowls.  Unlike some of the other Shops which dress their Noodles with Meat, the delicious Jowls were served on a separate plate, giving you the option to dip the slices into the immensely flavourful Broth.  In my honest opinion, there isn’t a more tasty bowl of Ramen in the City. Fear not if the concept of Spicy Miso Broth or Jowls scare you, standard Ramen with Fish Cakes and leaner Pork Cuts are available in three other varieties of Broths: Shoyu (Soy Sauce), Shio (Sea Salt) and Miso (Bean Paste-based).

Despite a 30-minute wait and what unjustly seemed like a mad rush to get out of our table, the Hot Spot is somewhere I likely would return to even if it lacks the ambiance of the likes of Momofuku Noodle Bar and Kinton Ramen.  $17 for a bowl of Ramen I admit is a bit on the pricy side, but the quality is there to back it all up.

Santouka is located at 81 Dundas Street East at Church Street.  Visit their Official Website for more.

(Photo credit: Mr. Will Wong)

Although they kicked-off with a bang on Christmas Day, neither  Les Misérables  nor Django Unchained could unseat The Hobbit from the throne on this final weekend of 2012 and believe me, the latter came close. The first installment of the Peter Jackson Trilogy earns $31.5 million this weekend in North America from 4,100 theatres and worldwide it already has grossed over $600 million for Warner Bros.

Quentin Tarantino‘s latest Opus, Django Unchained, debuts in second with $31 million for The Weinstein Co. and Alliance Films, already being touted potentially as the Auteur Filmmaker’s highest-grossing Film ever. With final numbers still come in, it is quite possible we might see a reverse in the order of finish tomorrow with this over-performing Oscar Contender on-top. Since Christmas Day, the Action/Thriller/Western/Drama was earned a stellar $64 million. Critics in addition to audiences are loving the Flick, earning a stellar 89% on Rotten Tomatoes’ Tomatometer.

Tom Hooper‘s Les Misérables started strong on Christmas Day earning $18 million, tailing-off a little since, but the $61 million Musical from Universal Pictures still performs exceedingly well in third with $27.4 million. With overall positive reviews at 72% on the Tomatometer, audiences worldwide are responding and in only a few days, it has grossed $68 million domestically.

Parental Guidance might not have gotten great reviews (17% on Rotten Tomatoes), but the Holiday–Comedy opens with $14.4million this weekend for 20th Century Fox in fourth, landing just a head of Jack Reacher starring Tom Cruise, in fifth with $14 million in its second week.

This is 40 gave Moviegoers a more lighthearted option this Christmas and gets rewarded with $12.5 million this weekend, already surpassing its production cost of $35 million in two weeks of release.

Meanwhile, Disney‘s Lincoln still is going strong in its eighth week with $7.5 million from 1,966 theatres at seventh spot. Rise of the Guardians in its fifth week rounds-out the Top Ten with $5 million from Paramount Pictures.