Reviewing "The Roommate" and "Sanctum" on Today in LA

I have to admit, I was pretty proud that I spit out, "It's not The Abyss, it's abysmal," on the fly.

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Comic-Con 2010: Michelle Rodriguez on Avatar, James Cameron and Movie Death

At the press conference for her new film Battle: Los Angeles, described as a cross between Black Hawk Down and Alien by director Jonathan Liebesman, Michelle Rodriguez sounded off about what James Cameron thinks about animation replacing actors and why she gets killed off in every movie.

Asked about the possibility of actors eventually being replaced by animated avatars, Rodriguez instantly bristled:

“I’d like to make a note, people don’t understand because they weren’t there. I was there. I saw what Jim did with Avatar and what the future of film is in his eyes. What he wanted to transition to was respect toward the actor because you are literally looking at an enhancement of the actor’s performance. You are not looking at some guy who’s an animator creating the emotions or performance. The dots are on all the parts of your face and you have a camera staring at you. It’s the actor’s performance. That’s something I think a lot of people don’t understand because there’s a lot of work that was placed behind it. Eventually, over the years, it’ll become a lot easier to do [that kind of animation], a lot cheaper and it’ll take a lot less time. But directors who know what it’s all about, like Jim and Jonathan, know it’s about the human soul shining through into whatever story it is you’re trying to tell. Actors aren’t going anywhere.”

Damn, Gina. Simmer down. We’re with you; if we want to see animated acting, we’ll go to whatever new movie Pixar is putting out, not rent Beowulf. No need to get so testy.

Surprisingly, she was much perkier when asked the question: “Why does Michelle Rodriguez always die in every movie?”

"Because I don’t rip my clothes off and I’m nobody’s girlfriend!" she hooted, clapping her hands and laughing hysterically. "A lot of writers are new to the whole tough girl thing. They don’t know what to do with a chick. If she’s got character and she’s strong, it’s sort of like, ‘Well, we’ve got the dude who’s strong, so what do we do with the chick who does that? Kill her. Duh.’ Eventually they’ll get used to it. Maybe Salt will change a thing or two.”

Having seen Salt, we can say with total certainty that the only thing that’s gonna alter is Angelina Jolie’s bankability and credibility. That movie gives ass-kicking tough women everywhere a bad name.

Sam Worthington, the Poetry-Quoting Titan

When Sam Worthington bustles into the Four Seasons Hotel to promote his new film, "Clash of the Titans," you can’t help but stop and stare. Smaller than one might expect, dressed casually in jeans and an Iron Maiden t-shirt, gnawing on a croissant, it isn’t just that Worthington starred of the highest grossing film of all time that earns the double take. Charming, handsome and filled with firecracker energy, you can’t seem to rip your eyes away, waiting for what might tumble out of his mouth next, be it a string of curse words or a poem by Rudyard Kipling.

In his new film, Worthington stars as Perseus, the half-man, half-god son of Zeus (Liam Neeson), on a mission to save the world from Hades (Ralph Fiennes), the vengeful god of the underworld. Following similar savior roles in "Terminator: Salvation" and "Avatar," one might wonder if Worthington has something of a God Complex, but the actor says he just wants to make movies he’d want to see, so don’t expect to him to pop up in a little art-house flick any time soon.

“To be honest, I want to do big movies,” Worthington shrugs. “If I’m going to do films and invest six months of my life, it better be something worthwhile.” But he’s quick to point out that he’s not after a paycheck or marquee space, his taste simply leans toward action adventures. “I’m not in this profession to be famous,” he says, but, unlike most actors, you believe him. “That’s a by-product of the size and scope of the movies I do. You want to be famous, go on "Big Brother." This job is too hard and it requires a lot of skill and a lot of passion. So if I want to go and see this movie myself, it’s even better therefore to be a part of it and we get to give the audience their $16 bucks worth.”

Even though the majority of the roles he’s played recently have been in what he calls “Saturday popcorn flicks,” Worthington still approaches each role seriously, allowing the character to seep into “the fabric of your skin for a bit.”

“I remember when I was doing the 'Terminator' press,” Worthington chuckles, “It all got quoted as ‘Sam is an angry young man, he’s all jaded.’ That’s because I was playing Perseus, killing shit every day!” he laughs. “It goes into your being.”

When he’s not in character or traipsing the globe promoting his next blockbuster, Worthington keeps his existence monastically simple, living out of two suitcases. He says that one day, on the cusp of thirty, he woke up, looked in the mirror, and didn’t like what he saw…so he sold the mirror. He sold everything, in fact. He calls it control-alt-delete, like on a computer.

“I thought, why not reboot yourself? Because you can get defined by what you own. I had a great career in Australia. Don’t get me wrong. I worked for ten years, solidly. I kinda just didn’t like the position I was in, so I sold everything to my friends, had an auction at my house, had a gavel and everything. You know ‘Four bucks for the TV.’ Even sold the gavel in the end. And then it’s that Rudyard Kipling poem, ‘If you can risk it all on the pitch and toss and lose and tell no one about your loss, then you, sir, are a man.’ I thought that poem was quite inspiring.”
After the auction, left with what he still calls his only possessions, one bag of books and one bag of clothes, Worthington says he got in his car and drove, thinking, “Something’s got to give, something’s got to crack. Little did I know there’d be a man who’d come along and change my life.”

“But also, when you’ve got nothing to lose, you’ve got everything to gain and that was the key,” he continues. “Then if I did audition for 'Avatar' and I didn’t get it, well, I put myself in the position where I had nothing, so it didn’t bother me.”

When asked what it was that he saw that caused him to make such a drastic change, he smiles a wicked grin, gets a twinkle in his eye that makes you believe he just might be half god, and says, “That’s between me and the fucking mirror.”

"Clash of the Titans" opens April 2nd.

Sam Worthington on Avatar 2 and (Hopefully) 3

At the press day for Sam Worthington's latest tent pole offering, "Clash of the Titans," an epic, 3D adventure that Worthington dubbed "history-fi" (as opposed to sci-fi), the question on everyone's mind was when audiences can expect a follow up to the highest grossing film of all time.

Worthington confirmed that "Avatar" director James Cameron was spitballing ideas for the sequel even while they were still shooting the first film, but don't expect the director to dive into anything willy-nilly.

"With any undertaking, and the manpower and time that it takes to make that kind of movie, Jim's got to find the challenge," Worthington says. "He's got to push the bar again. He's the man who raises the bar, dares everyone to jump over it and give you the courage to jump over it, but he's got the find the challenge for himself."

But don't fret, that doesn't mean there won't be more films to come. According to Worthington, "Jim had an arc for three. Three's a great number. It's the number you want to do. But we didn't even know we'd go into a second one until ["Avatar"] fully [got] embraced. The fact that it got embraced so quickly and so amazingly, which is mind blowing for all of us, means an audience wouldn't mind going back to Pandora with us. But if you do the second one and it's terrible, you don't do the third one. It all depends on the audience. That's why you make movies."

"Clash of the Titans" opens April 2.

"How to Train Your Dragon" is Pure Magic

James Cameron can suck it, "How to Train Your Dragon" is the best use of 3D we've ever seen.

eautiful, well-imagined and unexpectedly touching, Dreamworks Animation has a new crown jewel to trump their previous best effort, "Shrek."

The film is set on the island of Berk, where daily combat with dragons is the way of life, until a young boy meets and befriends the enemy, hoping to turn his community from dragon-slayers into dragon lovers. Featuring some of the funniest rising comedic talent Hollywood has on tap, Jay Baruchel leads the charge as Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, a Viking without the blood lust or battle prowess that made his father, Stoick the Vast, the chieftain of their tribe. Stoick, voiced by Gerard Butler in a disarmingly compelling turn that's an amalgam of King Leonidas and Asterix from the French comics, sends his son to dragon training in an effort to turn the thoughtful young boy into a man, not realizing the friendship his child is developing with the most fearsome of all dragons, a Night Fury, who Hiccup dubs "Toothless."

Utterly engrossing, heart-warming and filled with wonder, the non-verbal communication between Hiccup and Toothless will have every child (and many adults) whining "I want a Night Fury too!" while the flying scenes send you soaring and wheeling, taking the audience on a ride felt in the pit of your stomach. Proving the power of both 3D and animation, the world directors Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois have created in completely immersive thanks to outstanding execution. Fantastic voice talent, great storytelling and stunning visuals would be enough to make "How to Train Your Dragon" a must see, but it goes beyond the expected, becoming a euphoric and transportive viewing experience that can best be described in one word: Magical.

"How to Train Your Dragon" opens March 26.