Lionsgate Turning Zombie Video Game Dead Island Into a Movie

The brilliantly conceived trailer for the zombies-versus-vacationers video game Dead Island became an Internet sensation when it premiered in February, and rumors of a feature film adaptation followed soon thereafter. Now, seven long months later, those rumors have finally come to fruition with the announcement that Lionsgate has acquired the movie rights to the game. Sean Daniel, whose dubious genre credits include the Mummy films and the Wolfman remake, will produce, but no writer, director or cast has been lined up yet.

New This Week: Dream House, Good Neighbors

This week, Dream House hits theaters, while home video releases are headed by Good Neighbors, Slaughtered, Dead Cert, Terror Trap and the Criterion edition of The Phantom Carriage.

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Dreamy New Dream House Pics

Briefly: here are some more photos from Dream House, the (sort of) long-delayed (sort of) haunted house movie starring Daniel Craig, Naomi Watts and Rachel Weisz. It hits theaters on Friday, September 30 in spectacular 2-D.

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Africa-Set Zombie Movie The Dead Lumbers Into Theaters October 7

2011 has been a pretty zombie-deficient year so far, but a little British production called simply The Dead hopes to change that with a 25-city US release starting October 7. If nothing else, its striking African setting immediately sets it apart from the bulk of other zombie flicks. We'll see if the rest of the film -- about an American soldier who crash lands in a zombie-strewn African nation and teams with a local man searching for his son -- lives up to its promise. Until then, check out the trailer and some photos.

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TV Movie Highlight of the Week: Black Swan

This week, the hit thriller Black Swan — featuring Natalie Portman’s Oscar-winning performance — makes its TV debut, airing om Saturday, October 1, at 10:00 PM ET/PT on Cinemax.

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Seth Rogan’s Horror Comedy Beefs Up Cast

A feature-length version of the short film Jay and Seth vs. the Apocalypse, starring Seth Rogan (Knocked Up) and Jay Baruchel (Tropic Thunder, Good Neighbors) as a pair of slacker roommates holed up in their apartment during, well, an apocalypse, is closer than ever to reality. And with Rogan claiming to MTV that he’s added Jonah Hill (Superbad), Danny McBride (Land of the Lost), Craig Robinson (Hot Tub Time Machine) and James Franco (127 Hours) to the cast, plus his declaration that he’s striving to make it a horror comedy, it appears more awesome than ever.

Seth Rogan’s Horror Comedy Beefs Up Cast

A feature-length version of the short film Jay and Seth vs. the Apocalypse, starring Seth Rogan (Knocked Up) and Jay Baruchel (Tropic Thunder, Good Neighbors) as a pair of slacker roommates holed up in their apartment during, well, an apocalypse, is closer than ever to reality. And with Rogan claiming to MTV that he’s added Jonah Hill (Superbad), Danny McBride (Land of the Lost), Craig Robinson (Hot Tub Time Machine) and James Franco (127 Hours) to the cast, plus his declaration that he’s striving to make it a horror comedy, it appears more awesome than ever.

Seth Rogan’s Horror Comedy Beefs Up Cast

A feature-length version of the short film Jay and Seth vs. the Apocalypse, starring Seth Rogan (Knocked Up) and Jay Baruchel (Tropic Thunder, Good Neighbors) as a pair of slacker roommates holed up in their apartment during, well, an apocalypse, is closer than ever to reality. And with Rogan claiming to MTV that he’s added Jonah Hill (Superbad), Danny McBride (Land of the Lost), Craig Robinson (Hot Tub Time Machine) and James Franco (127 Hours) to the cast, plus his declaration that he’s striving to make it a horror comedy, it appears more awesome than ever.

Haters: Red State Movie Review

After a notoriously unusual, albeit somewhat successful, city-by-city self-distribution effort, Kevin Smith's Red State -- about a religious hate group's violent endeavors -- finally gets a nationwide(ish) release this weekend (see theaters here) before hitting home video on October 18. Is it worth seeking out? Find out in my review of Red State.

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