Inside The Mouse Castle 09-21-2015 - Halloween and Christmas at Disneyland, 'Star Wars' on Netflix and a New 'Mary Poppins'

By Tim Callaway

GOAT TRICK!

Anthony is back from a week at Disneyland, where he checked out all the Halloween Time activities. There was fall finery everywhere and pumpkin spice-flavored everything, but, we're mostly excited by this perfect pic Anthony took of the goat on Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. 

Of course, Halloween festivities are barely underway and we're already talking about Christmas. We've got a preview of all the stuff to expect--and what will be missing--from this year's holiday events at Disneyland. 

Here's what else we have slated for this episode of Inside The Mouse Castle. It's enough to make your head spin. 

• Rob Marshall (Into the Woods, POTC 4) will direct a new Mary Poppins movie for Disney. Before you lose your minds for them daring to touch this untouchable classic, keep in mind this will not be a remake of the original. It won't exactly be a sequel either. P.L. Travers wrote eight Mary Poppins books. The new movie will likely be adapted from stories we haven't seen on the screen before. If you really want something to be excited about, Emily Blunt (Into the Woods) is the rumored front-runner for the role of the practically perfect nanny. We can't think of a better choice.
• Bryan Singer (X-Men, The Usual Suspects) has confirmed he'll direct a remake of Jules Verne's 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. We aren't certain if it's going to be for Disney or not, but we're intrigued nevertheless.
• There's a new trailer for next year's live-action remake of The Jungle Book. Despite some interesting casting choices (Bill Murray as Baloo, Christopher Walken as King Louie), we're not terribly excited yet for this CG-heavy adventure.

• Star Wars is coming to Netflix. Maybe. Kind of. Probably not where you are. Whatever.
• Here's some travel advice for your next Walt Disney World visit: don't joke about building a meth lab in your hotel room. Kthanksbye.

Enjoy!

Download: http://traffic.libsyn.com/insidethemousecastle/InsideTheMouseCastle09-21-2015.mp3

Listen and subscribe to Inside The Mouse Castle on iTunes, Stitcher and SoundCloud.

RSS Feed: http://insidethemousecastle.libsyn.com/rss

Live 'Into the Woods' Q&A in The Mouse Castle

Want to take an early trip Into the Woods? Yahoo! Movies is hosting an exclusive Q&A with the film's stars and you can watch it live right here in The Mouse Castle. Scheduled to appear are Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Tracey Ullman, Christine Baranski, director Rob Marshall, and screenwriter James Lapine. The event starts today at 6:30 p.m. Pacific Time and will include a first-look at a new Into the Woods featurette. So, why don't you stay with me and find out more about Disney's upcoming film based on the award-winning Stephen Sondheim musical? It opens in U.S. theaters on Christmas Day.

First Look at 'Into the Woods'

We've got a first look at Disney's Into the Woods, the film adaptation of the award-winning Broadway musical. The film is directed by Rob Marshall and stars Meryl Streep, Emily Blunt, James Corden, Anna Kendrick, Chris Pine, Tracey Ullman, Christine Baranski and Johnny Depp.

The Baker (James Corden) and the Baker's Wife (Emily Blunt)
exchange words with the Witch (Meryl Streep).

Cinderella (Anna Kendrick) polishes the silver.

One cannot have Cinderella without the appropriate Evil Stepmother (Christine Baranski)
and Evil Stepsisters (Lucy Punch and Tammy Blanchard).

Mackenzie Mauzy is an ethereal (at least in this picture) Rapunzel.

Chris Pine as Cinderella's Prince on his trusty steed

Somewhere in there is Johnny Depp as the Wolf.

In the woods with Corden and Streep.

Still in the woods with Blunt and Corden.

Jack (Daniel Huttlestone) and his mum (Tracey Ullman) take their
Milky White cow for a stroll.

Excuse me, miss. Would you happen to have a red cape I could borrow?
The Baker (Corden) with Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford).

Red (Crawford) traipses into the woods.

Meryl Streep as the Witch.

A new trailer was also released today:

This re-imagining of Grimm's Fairy Tales was originally written for the stage by James Lapine with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Lapine penned the screenplay as well.

Into the Woods opens in U.S. theaters on December 25, 2014.

www.themousecastle.com

www.facebook.com/themousecastle

www.twitter.com/disneytim
www.tout.com/disneytim

www.youtube.com/disneytim

www.youtube.com/mousecastletrailers

Yo Ho, Yo Ho....Yawn

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides avoids the excesses of the last two movies, but also sucks the life out of the franchise.

Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and
Angelica (Penelope Cruz) search for the
Fountain of Youth.

By their own admissions, both Johnny Depp and director Gore Verbinski were confused by the numerous plot twists in the second and third Pirates of the Caribbean films. Depp explained to Entetainment Weekly that he told Verbinski on several occasions, "I don't really know what this means," to which Verbinski would reply, "Neither do I, but let's just shoot it." This resulted in two movies that, although entertaining, had needlessly over-the-top visuals and horribly convoluted plots. Their sole purpose was to keep hurtling forward, even if they had no idea where they were going.

Breaking free of the wretched excess of Dead Man's Chest and At World's End, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides focuses more on characters, cutting down on the subplots and special effects. It's the right idea, but director Rob Marshall and screen writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio take it way too far, removing most of the excitement audiences demand from a Pirates flick. On Stranger Tides is a snore.

Oh sure, there are plenty of sword fights, chases and explosions as Captain Jack Sparrow (Depp) goes in search of the Fountain of Youth, encountering his old flame (Penelope Cruz) and the vicious pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane) along the way. The problem is there's never any real sense of peril to the action, never a moment when we think, "Wow, how's Jack going to get out of this one?" The movie just plods along from mild cliffhanger to mild cliffhanger with Jack effortlessly extricating himself every step of the way. It wants to be Pirates of the Lost Ark (complete with a scrappy ex-girlfriend and religious subtext), but it doesn't have the energy or heart to pull it off.

Ian McShane's Blackbeard is a bad man.

Which is an even bigger shame because the performances are pretty good. By now we've become very familiar with Johnny Depp's twitchy pirate captain, but in On Stranger Tides, he doesn't use the flamboyant gestures as a crutch like he did in Dead Man's Chest. Here, they're more subtle, the basic extension of a character Depp's become very comfortable with. Also effectively dialing it down a bit is Geoffrey Rush as Sparrow's longtime frenemy Barbossa, who's now sold his services as a privateer to the British navy and may have his own score to settle with Blackbeard. Rush has always channeled Robert Newton in his portrayals in the past, but this time he keeps the "ARRRGGHH's" to a minimum, making Barbossa less campy.

Cruz is smart and sexy as Capt Jack's former conquest Angelica. Even better is McShane, dark and menacing as Blackbeard, a "bad man" who will kill for sport and sacrifice others for his own self-interest.

If only they weren't all scuttled by Marshall's controlled, lazy direction and a tired storyline. Say what you will about Verbinski's bombastic approach to the first three Pirates movies. At least they were never boring.

Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush)

www.disneynewsarchive.com
www.facebook.com/disneynewsarchive
www.twitter.com/disneytim
www.youtube.com/disneytim

'Pirates' Premiere: On the Black Carpet at Disneyland

Here's some more video from Saturday night's premiere of Pirates of Caribbean: On Stranger Tides at Disneyland. It's the next best thing to being there:

On stage at the Pirates premiere (l. to r.): Producer Jerry Bruckheimer,
director Rob Marshall, Geoffrey Rush, Penelope Cruz, Johnny Depp,
Ian McShane, Keith Richards, Astrid Berges-Frisbey, Sam Claflin.

www.disneynewsarchive.com
www.facebook.com/disneynewsarchive
www.twitter.com/disneytim
www.youtube.com/disneytim

Disneyland Hosts Premiere of 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'

Direct from the black carpet (what, you expect pirates to walk a red carpet?), we've got early footage of the crowds on Disneyland's Main Street, USA getting ready to watch the celebrities arrive for the premiere of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. Some folks have been waiting in line for the arrivals since 7:00....yesterday morning.

This evening's presentation of the latest installment in the Captain Jack Sparrow saga will be projected on a giant screen on Tom Sawyer Island that stands six-stories tall. Special bleachers have been constructed along the Rivers of America just for the event.

I'll have more photos and video from tonight's festivities, with plenty of celebrity sightings, later this weekend. Stay tuned...

www.disneynewsarchive.com
www.facebook.com/disneynewsarchive
www.twitter.com/disneytim
www.youtube.com/disneytim

'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' Trailer - Die Hard Fans Sail With the Dawn

Forget about seeing the whole movie, how early would you get up to be first to see a trailer for a movie?  A group of dedicated Pirates of the Caribbean fans, many dressed in full buccaneer garb, tested that idea at the AMC Theatre in Disneyland's Downtown Disney district yesterday.  Winners of a local radio contest, they were lined up before dawn to see the trailer for the newest installment of the Pirates franchise, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, hours before it was released to the public.  They were also treated to an invitation-only reception and a special ride on the Pirates of the Caribbean attraction before the park opened.

Here's a peek inside the event, along with the complete trailer and comments from On Stranger Tides director Rob Marshall:

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides opens May 20, 2011.

http://www.disneynewsarchive.com/
www.facebook.com/disneynewsarchive
www.twitter.com/disneytim