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You can tell we’re getting close to Halloween as the month of September has a myriad of great films arriving on VOD platforms that should help get everyone in the ‘spirit’ for every horror fan’s favorite upcoming holiday. The highly anticipated horror comedy Cooties starring Rainn Wilson, Elijah Wood, Leigh Whannell and Alison Pill is finally getting released on September 18th and Scream Factory is kicking off the month with a horror comedy too, the hilarious Bloodsucking Bastards, which arrives on VOD on September 4th.

On September 1st, The Curse of Downers Grove is coming to VOD courtesy of Anchor Bay and on the very same day, Dark Sky Films is releasing the psychological thriller Para Elisa as well. Other notable films hitting VOD in September include Hellions, Contracted Phase II, Some Kind of Hate and Run, Hide, Die.

Blood Moon (Uncork’d Entertainment/Jinga Films)- September...

The gap between a good high school horror flick and a mediocre one is about a mile long, but the difference between a mediocre high school horror flick and a slightly less mediocre genre effort is almost completely indistinguishable. After a while, all these non-descript, hormone-ridden teens start to blend together into the same plaid-shirt-wearing stereotypes, whether they’re partaking in illegal activities or being hacked to bits by the next slasher hopeful.

Unfortunately, The Curse Of Downers Grove is yet another mediocre high school nightmare that’s no different than the last ten similarly scoped thrillers about evil town curses, despite being penned by American Pyscho author Bret Easton Ellis. The story is adapted from Michael Hornburg’s 90s novel Downers Grove, with indie filmmaker Derick Martini stepping behind the camera to take over directorial duties – though you’re probably just here because of Ellis’ name. Either way, this...

Teenage Wasteland: Ellis & Martini Join Forces for Derivative Teen Angst

Check your expectations at the opening credits with The Curse of Downers Grove, a muddled teen scream mix of urban legend meets self-fulfilling prophecy metaphor. Many will be unable to bypass taking a look, however, upon learning the schlocky titled genre effort was penned by Bret Easton Ellis, his first cinematic project following the infamous and ultimately ill-fated Paul Schrader/Lindsey Lohan experiment The Canyons (2013). An ambitious thread of something greater sometimes resonates in this adolescent angst tale spiked with violence and a smattering of watered down sexuality (at least compared to what we know Ellis can imagine), but is ultimately lost in the tonally awkward jumps between genre elements and out-of-touch flourishes as concerns law-enforcement and teenagers.

The eponymous suburb of Chicago is the home of a deadly curse, or at least that’s the urban legend of the...

Title: The Curse of Downers Grove Anchor Bay Entertainment Director: Derick Martini Writers: Derick Martini and Bret Easton Ellis Cast: Bella Heathcote, Lucas Till, Penelope Mitchell, Tom Arnold, Kevin Zegers, Helen Slater Running time: 89 minutes, Unrated (Language, minor sexuality, violence, gore, teenage drinking/drugs) On VOD, DVD and Blu-ray: September 1, 2015 Ever since the town of Downers Grove built the high school on sacred land eight years ago, one senior from each graduating class has died in a bizarre way right before graduation.  Last year Chrissie (Bella Heathcote of Dark Shadows) and her friends witnessed one of the deaths first hand and the whole senior class is nervous as  [ Read More ]

The post The Curse of Downers Grove Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

There is no doubt that Bret Easton Ellis has a distinct voice. We've seen his characters come alive in "American Psycho," he's brought his own worldview to movies like "The Informers" and "The Canyons," and his latest script is for the horror flick "The Curse Of Downers Grove," and today we have an exclusive peek at the film. Read More: Watch The Trailer For Bret Easton Ellis-Penned 'The Curse Of Downers Grove' Starring Bella Heathcote Starring Bella Heathcote, Lucas Till, Penelope Mitchell, Tom Arnold, and Kevin Zegers, with Derick Martini ("Lymelife," "Hick") directing, the story is set in the titular suburb where every year, someone from the graduating high school class meets a gruesome death. Chrissie Swanson fears she might be next, but as you'll see in this clip, she's also got other things on her mind. "The Curse Of Downers Grove" opens on August 21st and hits VOD on September 1st.

Through numerous adaptations of his work, such as Less Than Zero, American Psycho, and The Rules of Attraction, novelist Bret Easton Ellis has become a familiar name to film fans over the years. In 2008, however, the novelist stepped into the film realm himself, co-adapting his book The Informers for the big screen. He followed it up with an original screenplay in 2013 for The Canyons, and his next foray into features will see him adapt another person’s novel.

Titled The Curse of Downers Grove, the screenplay is adapted from the Michael Hornburg novel Downers Grove. Ellis co-wrote the screenplay with Derick Martini, and the latter takes the directing reins for the feature, whose synopsis can be read below.

A teen angst thriller at a high school gripped by an apparent curse that claims the life of a senior every year. Story follows a senior, Chrissie, who is skeptical, and another,...

"The Curse of Downers Grove" is an interesting twist in the career of young indie filmmaker Derick Martini. He came to acclaim with the family drama "Lymelife" with Alec Baldwin, Rory Culkin, and Emma Roberts. Martin Scorsese liked it so much he served as an executive producer. His follow-up “Hick,” with Chloe Moretz, Blake Lively and Eddie Redmayne -- a pretty notable cast -- ended up on many of year-end worst lists in 2011. Now Martini’s back with the teen horror “The Curse of Downers Grove.” Written by Bret Easton Ellis, the movie stars Bella Heathcote (“Dark Shadows”), “X-Men” actor Lucas Till, Kevin Zegers, Penelope Mitchell, Zane Holtz, Helen Slater, and Tom Arnold. Here’s the official synopsis: The town of Downers Grove looks like your average suburban neighborhood —but Downers Grove has a disturbing secret.... For the past eight years, one senior from every high school graduating class has...

Directed by Luc Besson, sci-fi film The Fifth Element now has seven vinyl figures to collect courtesy of Funko's Pop! Movies series. Also in this round-up: release details for The Curse of Downers Grove and a rough-cuts screening of Grinder in New York.

The Fifth Element Figures: Standing at 3 3/4-inches tall, The Fifth Element figures will be released sometime in September.

"The Fifth Element is crash-landing into the world of Pop!

Leeloo comes in two costumes, including her civilian clothes and thermal bandages ensemble!

Korben, Special Forces solider turned cab-driver, comes as her backup!

The glamorous radio host, Ruby Rhod, is accompanied by the revered operatic performer, Diva Plavalaguna!

The evil Zorg and his Mangalore henchman are also included in the series!

Collect the whole set before the Mondoshawans do!"

Images courtesy of Funko:

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The Curse of Downers Grove: Press Release: "Anchor Bay Entertainment proudly announces the release...

Co-written by Bret Easton Ellis (American Psycho, The Rules of Attraction) and director Derick Martini, The Curse of Downers Grove is a high school horror about a town’s seniors fearing for their lives on graduation each year. Anchor Bay has announced an August 21st theatrical and digital HD release for the film, starring Bella Heathcote, Kevin Zegers…

The post The Curse of Downers Grove: Easton Ellis-penned High School Horror out in August appeared first on Shock Till You Drop.

Whether you are a filmmaker, or one of the Sundance programmers whose task it is to identify the films that make up a line-up, it is indeed the most wonderful, panic-filled and nerve racking time of the year. The 31st edition of the Sundance Film Festival kicks off on January 22nd with Park City and Salt Lake City playing host to some of the more innovative, thought-provoking narrative and non-fiction films of 2015. Last year, a Jenga tall order of 4,057 features and 8,161 shorts were submitted. Now let’s think about those numbers for a second.

Twenty years ago, Terry Zwigoff’s Crumb claimed the Grand Jury Prize Documentary award, Living in Oblivion‘s Tom Dicillo was honored with the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, and Edward Burns’ micro-budgeted The Brothers McMullen (there is a read-worthy, lively, eleventh hour account on how it was submitted to the fest in Ted Hope’s “Hope...

The Sitges Film Festival is typically a feast for horror fans, and this year's event looks to be no different as a big batch of new genre movies has been added to the lineup that's sure to make you drool.

From the Press Release:

The 47th Sitges Film Festival, to be held from 3 to 12 October, will be loaded with films that are all eagerly awaited by fantastic and, especially, horror genre film lovers. Festival Director Àngel Sala has announced the names of a good handful of new films that will be included in Sitges 2014.

These new Festival incorporations have been added to the lineup of an edition that will be opening with Jaume Balagueró’s [Rec] 4: Apocalypse, presenting its Grand Honorary Award to Roland Emmerich, and including presentations of the latest productions from important directors like Jean-Luc Godard, David Cronenberg, Kim-ki Duk, and Takashi Miike. See more details on those...

Just a quick update here on a story that broke in October. Back then we told you that Will Smith was circling a new supernatural flick called Selling Time. Well, big Willy is still circling, but now a director has come on board.

According to Deadline, D.J. Caruso (Disturbia, I Am Number Four) is signing on to direct, and he will oversee a new draft by Dan McDermott that is being written in hopes that Will Smith will star in the film. Several other writers have taken a crack at the project, including Spike Lee and brothers Steven and Derick Martini.

John Davis and Jennifer Klein will produce with McDermott.

Selling Time follows a man who is given a chance to relive the worst day of his life in exchange for seven years off his life expectancy.

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Relive your...

D.J. Caruso has come aboard to direct 20th Century Fox's supernatural thriller Selling Time, with Will Smith eyed to star.

We first reported on the project back in October, when it was believed that Will Smith was formally attached as the lead. However, the actor has never committed to the project. The studio hopes that they can entice the actor with a new draft that is being written by Dan McDermott. The writer actually sold the script as a spec back in 2001, with other writers such as Spike Lee, Derick Martini, Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver coming on board in the years that followed.

Now, Dan McDermott is coming back to write another draft under D.J. Caruso's supervision. The project serves as a reunion for the writer and director, who worked on the 2008 thriller Eagle Eye.

The story follows a man who is offered the chance to relive the worst day of his life,...

"After Earth" be damned! Will Smith loves high concept thrillers too much to be sidelined by what most agree was one of the summer's biggest boondoggles. The actor is currently lining up his next project, a supernatural time travel thriller for Fox called "Selling Time." According to the report in The Wrap, Smith was attached to star many years ago, before scheduling conflicts got in the way ("After Earth" probably seemed like a good idea at the time).

The high concept logline for the film concerns a man "given a chance to relive the worst day of his life in exchange for seven years off his life expectancy." They're undoubtedly being vague on purpose, but we are a little confused as to how they'll pull this off. Something like "Groundhog Day" meets "Source Code," maybe?

Dan McDermott, a former DreamWorks Television president, initially wrote the script for "Selling Time" and...

A new supernatural thriller is on the way that will see star Will Smith begin to start Selling Time. Let's just hope this isn't a practice run for a stint selling "bling" late night on QVC in like 20 years.

According to The Wrap, Smith is attached to star in the film for 20th Century Fox. Smith does not have an official deal in place, but he is in the process of coming aboard. Coincidentally, he was attached to star in Selling Time several years ago before scheduling conflicts got in the way. Directors are currently circling the project. Expect an announcement soon.

Selling Time follows a man who is given a chance to relive the worst day of his life in exchange for seven years off his life expectancy.

The script was initially written by former DreamWorks Television president Dan McDermott, who will rewrite the script as part of his original deal.

Will Smith has become attached to star in 20th Century Fox's supernatural thriller Selling Time. The actor was actually attached to the project years ago when it was first in development, although he had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts.

The story follows a man who is offered the chance to relive the worst day he has ever had. However, in exchange, he has to give up seven years of his life expectancy. Several A-list directors are currently circling the project, although no one has signed on yet.

Dan McDermott (Eagle Eye) wrote the original script, which was also worked on over the years by Spike Lee, Steven Martini and Derick Martini. Dan McDermott is coming back to do another rewrite, under the terms of his original deal.

John Davis is producing through his Davis Entertainment company, alongside Jennifer Klein. No production schedule was released.

Will Smith most recently starred in After Earth.

As 20th Century Fox waits to see whether or not Will Smith will join Independence Day 2 (which has two scripts just in case he doesn't), the studio is trying to line him up for another film. The Wrap reports Smith is currently attached to the supernatural thriller Selling Time, but a deal is not yet solidified and is currently described as "sensitive." The story has a time travel twist as it follows a man who is given the chance to relive the worst day of his life in exchange for seven years off his life expectancy. We assume that means he would get seven more years of life as opposed to the other way around, unless he wants to die. There's no director attached to helm the script from Eagle Eye writer Dan McDermott, former DreamWorks Television president. H will rewrite the script as part of his original deal, though...

Stars: Chloë Grace Moretz, Blake Lively, Rory Culkin, Anson Mount, Juliette Lewis, Eddie Redmayne, Alec Baldwin| Written by Andrea Portes | Directed by Derick Martini

If I was asked to name a young actor or actress that I thought was going to be a big deal in the coming years of cinema, I’d have a few to choose from, but one name at the top of that list would have to be Chloe Moretz. Her performances in films like Kick-Ass, Hugo and Let Me In have been memorable and she seems to just keep getting better as she gets older.

Hick, in which Ms. Moretz is the main star, is a funny sort of film. An independent movie filmed in 2011, prior to Hugo, Hick was made on a fairly small budget and directed by Derick Martini, a guy whose directing chops are limited, very limited. This made for an experience...

Exclusive: Longtime ICM agent Carol Bodie, who left the agency around the time that Jeff Berg exited to form Resolution, has gone into the management game. She is teaming with Oren Segal to form Radius Entertainment, which launches as a new management and production shingle. Bodie, an agent with both ICM and before that CAA, steered the careers of such actors as Jon Hamm, Claire Danes, Winona Ryder, Jada Pinkett-Smith, Kim Cattrall, Dermot Mulroney, Joel Edgerton, Jim Sturgess, Mark Strong, David Oyelowo, Hailee Steinfeld, Rosie Perez, Calista Flockhart and many others. She learned the business from mentor Ed Limato, the late great talent agent. Bodie has produced before, including Girl Interrupted, which won Angelina Jolie her first Academy Award. Segal has repped the likes of Kate Bosworth, Kim Basinger, Paz Vega, and Michael Polish. He formed Management Production Entertainment in 2011. Before that, he worked at Media Talent Group for more than seven years.

Radha Mitchell's daughter, Penelope, is hitting the genre scene on two fronts.  Tomorrow, you'll be able to see her in Hemlock Grove, debuting on Netflix, and currently, she's shooting The Curse of Downer's Grove, co-written by American Psycho's Bret Easton Ellis.

The latter - directed by Derick Martini - concerns a small midwestern town gripped by a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Chrissie Swanson (Bela Heathcote) fears she is the next victim of The Curse of Downers Grove.

We spoke to Mitchell recently who gave us an update on the film.

Read more...

Teenage movie star Chloe Grace Moretz has a big year ahead that includes this summer’s Kick-Ass 2 and the remake of Brian De Palma’s Carrie. And now it looks like she’s definitely back on top again as 16 years old Moretz is currently in talks to join Charlize Theron in the upcoming big screen adaptation of Gillian Flynn‘s Dark Places. Sarah’s Key helmer Gilles Paquet-Brenner will direct the upcoming thriller from his own script. Moretz is eyeing the role of Diondra, while Theron is set to play a woman named Libby Day, who, at the age of 7, survived the massacre of her sisters and...

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Related posts: Charlize Theron To Produce & Star In Dark Places! Chloe Moretz Joins Dark Shadows? Chloe Moretz in Hick by Derick Martini Chloe Moretz, Jackie Earle Haley Join Dance...

You would think that being married to Roseanne for several years would have been enough torment for him, but Tom Arnold is pretty tenacious! Up next for the funny man is a spot in Derek Martini's adaptation of Downers Grove, entitled The Curse of Downers Grover.

Arnold has joined the cast of the indie flick opposite Zane Holtz, Lucas Till, Bella Heathcote, Penelope Mitchell, and Kevin Zegers. Martini, who directed Hick, is helming from a script he co-wrote with Bret Easton Ellis, adapted from 2001's Michael Hornburg novel.

Synopsis

Director Derick Martini takes us on a wild ride through a small Midwestern town gripped by a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Chrissie Swanson, played by Heathcote, fears she is the next victim of The Curse of Downers Grove.

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The Curse of Downer's Grove - co-written by American Psycho's Bret Easton Ellis - is rolling cameras shortly and a new cast member has signed up for the project.  To date, we know that Lucas Till, Penelope Mitchell, Kevin Zegers and Bella Heatcote star.

The film - directed by Derick Martini - concerns a small midwestern town gripped by a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Chrissie Swanson (Heathcote) fears she is the next victim of The Curse of Downers Grove.

Read more...

Derick Martini's The Curse of Downer's Grove has cast Tom Arnold in the indie thriller. He joins Bella Heathcote, Lucas Till and Kevin Zegers, reports Variety. The film, adapted from the novel by Michael Hornburg, follows a paranoid school senior concerned about a curse that kills one student each year at the school. In the film scripted by Martini and Bret Easton Ellis, Arnold would play an abusive father who supplies steroids to his son (played by Zegers), powering him up for a professional career. Downey's Grove's being produced by Jason Dubin, Oren Segal and Chiara Trento.

Derick Martini's The Curse of Downer's Grove has cast Tom Arnold in the indie thriller. He joins Bella Heathcote, Lucas Till and Kevin Zegers, reports Variety. The film, adapted from the novel by Michael Hornburg, follows a paranoid school senior concerned about a curse that kills one student each year at the school. In the film scripted by Martini and Bret Easton Ellis, Arnold would play an abusive father who supplies steroids to his son (played by Zegers), powering him up for a professional career. Downey's Grove's being produced by Jason Dubin, Oren Segal and Chiara Trento.

Tom Arnold has been cast in director Derick Martini's The Curse of Downers Grove.

The indie thriller is an adaptation of the Michael Hornburg novel of the same name.

Arnold has been tapped to play the role of an abusive father who supplies his athletic son with steroids, Variety reports.

The Curse of Downers Grove follows a nervous high school senior who fears a curse that takes the life of a school student each year.

Arnold joins an ensemble cast which includes Bella Heathcote (In Time, Dark Shadows), Lucas Till (Walk the Line) and Kevin Zegers (Dawn of the Dead).

Derick Martini and Bret Easton Ellis co-wrote the script for The Curse of Downers Grove, and Oren Segal, Jason Dubin and Chiara Trento are all on board to produce the feature.

The film is slated to be released in the Us and the UK during 2014.

Watch a trailer for...

Untitled Marc Lawrence Project

Bella Heathcote ("Dark Shadows") has joined Marc Lawrence's untitled romantic comedy at Castle Rock. Hugh Grant and Marisa Tomei also star.

The story follows a creatively washed up, divorced and broke former award-winning screenwriter forced to take on a job teaching screenwriting at a small college. Heathcote will play one of his students. [Source: Variety]

The Curse of Downer’s Grove

Helen Slater has joined Bella Heathcoate, Lucas Till and Kevin Zegers in Derick Martini's indie thriller "The Curse of Downer’s Grove". Martini co-wrote the script with Bret Easton Ellis.

Slater will play the mother of Heathcote’s character — a girl who fears she is the next victim of a curse which claims the life of a high school student every year. Oren Segal, Jason Dubin and Chiara Trento are producing. [Source: Variety]

Birdman

Oscar nominee Amy Ryan ("Gone Baby Gone") is the latest to join Alejandro...

More casting news has come in regarding Derek Martini's adaptation of Downers Grove, entitled The Curse of Downers Grover, and we have the skinny for you hot off the presses. Considering most of the nation is freezing right now, that's a good thing!

Variety reports that Zane Holtz has joined the cast of the indie flick opposite Lucas Till, Bella Heathcote, Penelope Mitchell, and Kevin Zegers. Martini, who directed Hick, is helming from a script he co-wrote with Bret Easton Ellis, adapted from 2001's Michael Hornburg novel.

Synopsis

Director Derick Martini takes us on a wild ride through a small Midwestern town gripped by a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Chrissie Swanson, played by Heathcote, fears she is the next victim of The Curse of Downers Grove.

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Get cursed in the comments section below!

The Curse of Downers Grove is an upcoming indie thriller which comes from director Derick Martini and already has quite interesting cast on board. In case you’re not so familiar with the project, let us first inform you that the whole thing is actually an adaptation of Michael Hornbug’s 2001 novel and that Lucas Till, Bella Heathcote, Penelope Mitchell and Kevin Zegers are all set to star in it. Now comes the word that Zane Holtz (last seen in The Perks of Being a Wallflower) will join them as well. Derick Martini will direct the movie from a script he co-wrote with Bret Easton Ellis,...

Zane Holtz (TV's Make It or Break It, The Perks of Being a Wallflower) has joined Lucas Till, Bella Heathcote, Penelope Mitchell and Kevin Zegers in The Curse of Downers Grove, an independent thriller helmed by Derick Martini. According to Variety, Holtz is playing a meth-crazed sidekick to Zegers character in the story which follows a paranoid high school senior concerned about a course which claims the life of a single student every year. Oren Segal, Chiara Trento and Jason Dubin produce with filming set to start in this spring. Martin (known for Hick starring Chloe Grace Moretz and Blake Lively), directs, as well as co-scripting with Bret Easton Ellis based on Michael Hornburg's novel, which was published back in 2001.

Zane Holtz (TV's Make It or Break It, The Perks of Being a Wallflower) has joined Lucas Till, Bella Heathcote, Penelope Mitchell and Kevin Zegers in The Curse of Downers Grove, an independent thriller helmed by Derick Martini. According to Variety, Holtz is playing a meth-crazed sidekick to Zegers character in the story which follows a paranoid high school senior concerned about a course which claims the life of a single student every year. Oren Segal, Chiara Trento and Jason Dubin produce with filming set to start in this spring. Martin (known for Hick starring Chloe Grace Moretz and Blake Lively), directs, as well as co-scripting with Bret Easton Ellis based on Michael Hornburg's novel, which was published back in 2001.

Brett Easton Ellis ("American Psycho") and director Derick Martini ("Lymelife") are teaming for the new psychological thriller "The Curse of Downer's Grove." Bella Heathcote ("Dark Shadows"), and Lucas Till ("X-Men: First Class") and Penelope Mitchell ("Hemlock Grove") are set to star. The film, currently in development, will begin production in spring of this year.  "The Curse of Downers Grove" takes place in a small town, where Chrissie Swanson (Heathcote) fears she's the next victim of the titular town curse that claims the life of one high school senior each year.  Heathcote was recently seen in David Chase's "Not Fade Away." Till will soon co-star in "Paranoia," alongside Gary Oldman,...

Lately author Bret Easton Ellis has only been grabbing headlines through outrageous claims on Twitter and for his most recent film, The Canyons. But far from the feature gaining praise, this thriller directed by Taxi Driver scribe Paul Schrader won attention.mostly negative.for casting porn star James Deen and because of the notoriously bad behavior of its sullied star, Lindsay Lohan. Having recently been rejected from the SXSW Film Festival, The Canyons is still seeking its chance to play before audiences. But Ellis is moving on to his next film venture with the Derick Martini-directed The Curse of Downers Grove. Inspired by Michael Hornburg's novel Downers Grove, this physiological thriller centers on high school senior Chrissie Swanson, who fears she will die within the year because of a terrible curse that terrorizes her Midwestern town. Australian ingénue Bella Heathcote, who played Johnny Depp's doll-like love interest...

Bella Heathcote, the wide-eyed beauty who turned heads in "Dark Shadows" and "Not Fade Away," will join Lucas Till in "The Curse of Downers Grove," the indie thriller's producers said Friday. The movie pairs Derick Martini, director of the 2008 coming-of-age drama "Lymelife," with Bret Easton Ellis, sometime novelist and Twitter provocateur. Martini will slide behind the camera while Easton Ellis will handle screenwriting duties. The film is set in a insular Midwestern town that shoulders a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Heathcote will play...

Back in 2010 work began happening on the adaptation of author Micheal Hornberg's novel 'Downers Grove'. At the time ex-'Heroes' hottie Hayden Panettiere and 'Twlight' star Nikki Reed were attached to star along with Rebecca De Mornay ('Mother's Day'). Of course though it was TV director Nelson McCormick who was also lined up to helm. Flashforward 3 years and things have changed dramatically. To kick off the director cap has been passed to Derick Martini, whilst its a fresh faced double dose of hotness has been served up in the shapely forms of Aussie actresses Bella Heathcote ('Dark Shadows') and 'Hemlock Grove's Penelope Mitchell (below). Jill Hennessy, Kevin Zegers and Lucas Till ('X-Men: First Class') all co-star and the adaptation will be penned for the screen by 'American Psycho' author Bret Easton Ellis....

Two more have signed up for active duty in the new flick to be directed by Derek Martini that was written by Bret Easton Ellis for Myriad Pictures, Downers Grove. Read on for all the latest details.

From the Press Release

Award-winning indie filmmaker Derick Martini (Lymelife with Alec Baldwin and Cynthia Nixon) has teamed up with Brett Easton Ellis on the new psychological thriller The Curse Of Downers Grove. The film, currently in development, will begin production in spring of this year. Martini will direct.

Bella Heathcote, winner of the Heath Ledger Scholarship Award and one of Variety’s Top Ten Actors to Watch who just recently starred in Tim Burton’s Dark Shadows and David Chase’s Not Fade Away, will star in The Curse Of Downers Grove. Penelope Mitchell (Hemlock Grove) will also take a leading role.

Kevin Zegers, and Lucas Till also star. Filming is set to commence in spring.

Bella Heathcote ("Dark Shadows") and Penelope Mitchell ("Hemlock Grove") are set to star in Derick Martini's indie thriller "The Curse of Downers Grove".

The story centers on a paranoid high school senior who is worried about an apparent curse that takes the life of one student every year at the school.

Lucas Till, Jill Hennessy and Kevin Zegers also star. Martini ("Hick") co-wrote the script with Bret Easton Ellis, based on the 2001 Michael Hornburg novel.

Oren Segal, Jason Dubin and Chiara Trento are producing, and shooting aims to begin this spring.

Source: Variety...

Award-winning indie filmmaker Derick Martini ( Lymelife with Alec Baldwin and Cynthia Nixon) has teamed up with Brett Easton Ellis on the new psychological thriller The Curse of Downers Grove . The film, currently in development, will begin production in spring of this year. Martini will direct. Bella Heathcote ( Dark Shadows , Not Fade Away will star in The Curse of Downers Grove with Lucas Till ( X-Men: First Class , Stoker ) who recently wrapped on Paranoia in which he stars opposite Gary Oldman, Harrison Ford and Liam Hemsworth. Penelope Mitchell ("Hemlock Grove") will also take a leading role. The movie takes us on a wild ride through a small midwestern town gripped by a curse that claims the life of one high school senior every year. Chrissie Swanson...

Lucas Till ("X-Men: First Class") is set to star in "Hick" director Derick Martini's indie thriller "Downer's Grove".

Based on Michael Hornburg's 2001 novel, the story centers on a paranoid high school senior who's worried about an apparent curse that takes the life of one student every year at the school.

Martini directs from a script he co-wrote with Bret Easton Ellis. Aimee Teegarden, Jill Hennessy and Kevin Zegers also star, and shooting kicks off in Los Angeles in the spring.

Source: Variety...

Lucas Till has boarded Derick Martini's Downer's The Curse of Downer's Grove thriller, joining Aimee Teegarden, Jill Hennessy and Kevin Zegers. Martini also adapts the screenplay alongside Bret Easton Ellis, based on the Michael Hornburg novel of 2001 which tells of a paranoid high school senior concerned about a supposed curse that claims one student's life each year. Variety reports that filming starts in Los Angeles this spring with Oren Segal, Jason Dubin and Chiara Trento producing. TIll can be seen in Park Chan-wook's upcoming Stoker alongside Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska...

Lucas Till has boarded Derick Martini's Downer's The Curse of Downer's Grove thriller, joining Aimee Teegarden, Jill Hennessy and Kevin Zegers. Martini also adapts the screenplay alongside Bret Easton Ellis, based on the Michael Hornburg novel of 2001 which tells of a paranoid high school senior concerned about a supposed curse that claims one student's life each year. Variety reports that filming starts in Los Angeles this spring with Oren Segal, Jason Dubin and Chiara Trento producing. TIll can be seen in Park Chan-wook's upcoming Stoker alongside Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska...

The 15-year-old thesp Chloe Moretz is reportedly set to star in the big-screen adaptation of Gayle Forman’s Ya novel ‘If I Stay’, which follows a 17-year-old girl called Mia who is involved in a serious car accident.

The word comes from Variety that documentary filmmaker and Nashville producer R.J. Cutler is also in talks to make his feature film debut. Twilight’s director, Catherine Hardwicke was, at one point, attached to direct the supernatural thriller If I Stay, but she left the project to helm Red Riding Hood instead.

If I Stay is the story of the gifted classical musician Mia and her boyfriend, Adam, an up and coming indie-rock star. Torn between two paths in life, her art or her relationship, Mia is forced to make an even starker choice between life and death when she is caught in a fatal car accident with her family one snowy morning in Oregon.

Once again, sixteen year old actress Chloë Grace Moretz has chosen a controversial role to perform. Moretz recently played a murderous child in Matthew Vaughn's Kick Ass. In Hick, she is provocatively dressed and she appears to be playing a lolita styled character. Abandoned by her parents, Luli (Moretz) hits the road for Las Vegas. Here, she hopes to meet a "sugar daddy" to take away the pain of her former life. However, she meets an assortment of hustlers and users on the open road. Will she even make it to sin city? Fans of dark comedies and thrillers will want to check this film out through Constellation TV's premiere event for Hick. This film will show online beginning tomorrow (Aug. 14th) and film fans can ask director Derick Martini questions about the showing. A link to this event is listed below along with the film's Red Band trailer.

Chicago – It’s understandable that people from the Southern or rural United States would criticize the general media. With films like “Hick,” which generally portray them as idiots or sociopathic, there is no balance or honest characterizations. Chloe Moretz, Blake Lively, Eddie Redmayne and Alec Baldwin add their take on it all.

Rating: 2.0/5.0

This is a strange and thoughtless film, with characters that meet each other one second, and become emotionally or too familiarly involved the next. It supposes that a 13-year old girl would get a gun for her birthday, and then hook up – Wizard of Oz-like – with a cast of stereotypes that will become her new family. Alec Baldwin plays a guy named Beau, which is all you need to know about the authenticity of this story.

Luli (Chloe Grace Moretz) is restless on her 13th birthday. Her main present is a handgun, and her parents (Juliette Lewis...

Hick is an ugly piece work. The worst kind of bad. It’s a movie that believes it has something to say, but has nothing – a nothingess that comes after 90 minutes of misery. It’s a vapid mess about a girl who, despite encountering nothing but terrible acts, earns zero sympathy. That girl, Luli (Chloë Moretz), a 13-year-old kid from Nebraska, sets out to Vegas after being abandoned by her loony mother and drunk of a father. Her road trip goes the typical route: violence, rape, drug use, and robbery, everything you’d expect from a 13-year-old’s trip with a wasted Blake Lively. She comes from a world where a gun is a nice birthday gift for a kid, where 13-year-olds awkwardly quote Sunset Boulevard, and where Eddie Redmayne is forced to play a poor man’s take on Kit from Badlands, all these phony details are used to establish we’re in a dark and...

There would seem to be plenty to get excited about in Derick Martini’s second feature film, Hick (based on the novel by Andrea Portes). If the plot is not especially enticing (a young girl from a hick town leaves home, travels West, and experiences the evils of the world), then the cast certainly garners attention. Chloë Grace Moretz takes the lead, playing alongside Juliette Lewis, Blake Lively, Eddie Redmayne and Alec Baldwin. Moretz and Redmayne each starred in two major pictures from last year (Hugo and My Week With Marilyn, respectively), and their pairing here certainly makes for an intriguing...

Hick

Directed by Derick Martini

Written by Andrea Portes

USA, 2011

There ought to be a place for films in which young children are graphically exposed to the evils of the world. The problem is that if those films are mishandled in the least, the average audience member will feel like a child pornographer just by paying money to watch them. Derick Martini doesn’t mishandle every scene in Hick, but he blows enough of them to make any audience uncomfortable and a little bit dirty.

Chloe Grace Moretz (Hit Girl from Kick-Ass) plays Luli, a 13-year-old Nebraska girl caught between a pair of drunken, battling parents who are making the 1980s miserable for her. So she runs away, hitchhiking up Interstate 80 with a plan to go to Las Vegas. But her encounters with the crippled cowboy Eddie (Eddie Redmayne) and conwoman Glenda (Blake Lively) quickly send her on a different path.

So “The Avengers” knocked it out of the park, huh? With a $600 million intake worldwide and lots and lots of good reviews, Joss Whedon and the folks over at Marvel can probably even one-up James Cameron at the next Masters of the Hollywood Universe fete. (That sounds fun, doesn’t it? I’d go to a party like that.) This weekend is a little smaller, but looking good nonetheless. A number of foreign films that have done well in the festival circuit, and the latest eyefeast from Burton and Co. hit theaters today, providing quite a lot of competition – if not dazzling CGI and budget – for the massive blockbuster winner of last week. Let’s see how they measure up.

Tim Burton’s “Dark Shadows,” an adaptation of a 1960s television show, opens this weekend, with Johnny Depp playing Barnabas, a wealthy landowner-turned-vampire that is awoken after a 200-year nap in the ground,...

Each week within this column we strive to pair the latest in theatrical releases to worthwhile titles currently available on Netflix Instant Watch. This week we offer alternatives to Dark Shadows, God Bless America and Hick.

Tim Burton brings the peculiar tale of the Collins clan to the big screen. Johnny Depp stars as Barnabas Collins, a long-imprisoned vampire unleashed on the 1970s, where he discovers a colorful batch of dysfunctional descendants. Michelle Pfeiffer and Helena Bonham Carter co-star.

Prefer camp with your macabre?

Dark Shadows (1966) Check out the cult classic that started it all. Originally conceived as a moody melodrama, this groundbreaking gothic soap found success following the introduction of tormented vampire Barnabas Collins (Jonathan Frid). From there the Collins family regularly crosses the paths of ghosts, werewolves, and witches. Oh my.

Edward Scissorhands (1990) Or revisit Burton and Depp’s first collaboration, the tale of a modern Frankenstein’s monster with scissors for hands.

Later, there will be a brief discussion of how literature is not film, and how some actions and themes do not survive translation from the page to the big screen because our mind can better deal with envisioning them than it can with actually seeing them. Before that though, I feel I have to pause and note that "Hick," adapting Andrea Portes' novel for the screen under the direction of Derick Martini ("Smiling Fish and Goat on Fire," "Lymelife"), is one of the most unclean and clammy films I've ever had to endure at a film festival. Not because it was incompetent and not because it deals with violent and sexual material but, rather, because it is both incompetent in general and even more incompetent specifically when it is concerned with violent and sexual material. We're supposed to be watching the cross-country adventures of 13-year-old Luli (Chloe Moretz, who...