It’s hard to watch Star Trek Into Darkness and not think about Star Wars. Yes, J.J. Abrams is directing Episode VII and so we have that knowledge on the brain going into this. Maybe we’re even on the lookout for clues hinting at what we should expect from his take on that galaxy. This isn’t the first time the Trek franchise has had to try and prove itself in the shadow of George Lucas’s own series. Even though it originated with a TV show in the 1960s, Trek‘s cinematic resurrection a decade later was in part allowed by and somewhat influenced by the success and quality of the first Star Wars. But even regardless of the fact that Abrams is following the latest Trek with the next Wars, I often otherwise felt like I was watching one of the latter while sitting through Into Darkness. Before getting into the evidence that Abrams is a clear fan of Lucasfilm works (and not just Star Wars) and likes to sample from them, let’s take a moment to think about what all his call back references and allusions to both Wars and Trek might mean for Episode VII. Will there be too much winking and fan-service, unhidden Easter eggs and inside jokes and maybe even outright recycling the way Into Darkness is with certain prior Trek installments? Could Episode VII have a number of allusions to Trek the way Into Darkness pays obvious homage to Wars? Rather than creating new worlds of his

The reboot of Star Trek in 2009 was a risky move for Paramount. However, it paid off, reinvigorating the franchise that had died with the poorly performing film Star Trek: Nemesis in 2002. J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek became one of the biggest hits of that summer and introduced a whole new generation to the classic franchise. Abrams was not a Star Trek fan before working on the film (and arguably even less of one after making the movie), but that didn’t stop him and his production team from making a solid science fiction update. Throughout the commentary with his writers and producers, recorded only a month after Star Trek came out in 2009, it’s clear that the Star Wars films had a greater impact on the production team’s childhood. Maybe the search for a Luke Skywalker in the character of James T. Kirk was what made the film work so well.

Tonight on Movie News After Dark, we explore some of the unfriendly feelings that are had toward J.J. Abrams and his Star Trek films, we look at the real life Tony Stark (maybe), see a bit about Natalie Portman’s latest and as always, try to wedge in some Doctor Who.

Tonight on Movie News After Dark, a picture of Megan Fox. No really, that’s happening. Also some things that will be worth reading and seeing.

If you’ve been bummed about getting shut out of next week’s Friday screenings and sold out Wednesday night IMAX sneak peeks of Star Trek Into Darkness, worry no more (or, at least, worry a bit less), as Paramount Pictures has now officially moved the release date of the J.J. Abrams sequel to Thursday, May 16th. So, yes, you can now see the film on Wednesday at an IMAX preview. Or on Thursday at a regular theater near you. Or even on Thursday at an IMAX theater. Or, well, on Friday or the rest of the weekend and onward wherever the heck you want. The possibilities are just endless on this one. Will you be catching STiD this week, or are you holding out on this one? [Press Release]  

With Star Trek into Darkness looming only a couple weeks away, Paramount is unleashing a load of Star Trek discs onto the market. Some of them – like all of the films – have seen high definition before with previous Blu-ray releases. However, the more impressive assortment of choices come from the newly remastered television series. Season Three of Star Trek: The Next Generation is the latest year to get that treatment. However, that season ends in one of the biggest cliffhangers in television history, and that can be frustrating. To offset any ill will, the two-part season finale and season premiere “The Best of Both Worlds” is also available packaged as a single movie. The remastered version of these two episodes also comes with a commentary track, giving some insight into one of the most popular episodes of the series.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’re aware of the upcoming release of Star Trek Into Darkness on May 17. If you’re like me, you might be catching up on all things Star Trek before the movie comes out. Fortunately, a whole slew of Star Trek titles are being released on Blu-ray leading up to this release, including season three of Star Trek: The Next Generation, remastered in high definition. While this series isn’t the basis for the new film, it offers a good way to get into the Trek mood before the new film comes out in a few weeks.

During the production of 2008′s Star Trek, director J.J. Abrams was quite determined to keep as much information about the film from the public as possible. This included tactics on set such as putting actors under blankets to hide their costumes, additional security on set and limiting (until the last moment) how much information was distributed to the press. He loves this game, as evidence by the even more secretive Cloverfield project and his extensive talk about his mystery box. He enjoys the fun of not knowing everything that’s going to happen next. As a longtime Star Trek fan, I found myself alright with his stance. Even though knowing a great deal about the film would fulfill some part of my devilish curiosity, the moments of discovery that occurred during that fateful first screening of Star Trek in 2008 were more than worth the wait. In that case — as it has many times — J.J. Abrams’ mystery machine worked. So now that he’s signed on to bring Star Wars back to life for new owner Disney, will Abrams toy with Wars fans as he did his Trekker brethren? And would you want him to play things close to the chest? This is the subject of this weekend’s big discussion.

On tonight’s rousing edition of Movie News After Dark, we make stops in the TARDIS library for books, Westeros for tough women, South Florida for spring breakahs, Facebook for some nerdiness and the trailer park for a fan-made Man of Steel credits sequence that will blow your mind. Don’t worry, I hear there’s a cream for that.

New shots from Star Trek, a bit about Michael Bay’s ninja turtles and some fun facts about why Will Smith may or may not want to kill Leonardo DiCaprio. It’s all there in tonight’s edition of Movie News After Dark…

It’s true that a lot of Star Trek’s praise came from its stellar cast and the visual flare of its director, JJ Abrams, and that most of its criticisms came from the holes and coincidences in its plot, but one can’t discount the role that the story Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman’s script told had in taking a property that was traditionally thought of as being a niche thing for sci-fi geeks and turning it into a summer blockbuster that appealed to mainstream audiences. So it might be interesting to hear what else they have up their sleeves when it comes to ideas for science fiction movies.

If you’re starting to look at pieces of Star Trek Into Darkness just to imagine what J.J. Abrams‘s Star Wars movie will look like, the second trailer for the upcoming sequel is perfect for you. There’s a scene in which Kirk (Chris Pine) and Spock (Zachary Quinto) are in a small ship being chased around what looks like a trench on the surface of the Death Star, and they squeeze through a tight spot reminiscent of when the Millenium Falcon eludes two TIE Fighters on a large asteroid in The Empire Strikes Back. Also, the Enterprise crew appears to venture underwater… Maybe they’re looking to recruit Jar Jar Binks?

While answering questions about something very few people care about (NBC’s Revolution) writer/director/mystery boxer/producer J.J. Abrams went on the defensive about his secrecy concerning projects. The filmmaker, who has his hands in many, many different pies, has long been known to keep relatively mum about his projects, whether they’re television shows like Lost or the upcoming sequel to Star Trek. Abrams said that it was no fun always having to keep mum on his projects, but ultimately it’s worth it. On the subject, he said “all the work we’re doing is about making this a special experience for the viewer; let’s preserve that as long as we can.” He went on to say that, as a movie fan himself, he doesn’t understand why people are always clamoring for information. While Abrams and I may disagree on the subject of lens flares, on this one we are 100% in agreement.

One of the most anticipated films of 2013 is Star Trek: Into Darkness, which finally comes out this May. After the trailer dropped late last year, there was plenty of speculation about how it connects to another Star Trek II from more than thirty years ago. Questions were asked – is this about Khan? what exactly is Sherlock doing in this movie? will Kirk and Spock finally make out? and will we ever get to see the green girl’s boobies this time around? It seems fitting to kick off the new year with a look back at Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, especially after all the hubbub it made as part of the beloved Summer of ’82 from last year alone. The older DVD and the more recent Blu-ray release includes director Nicholas Meyer’s commentary, in which he talks about Shatner’s acting, learning to direct, and (spoiler alert!) the death of Spock. And on to the commentary…

Look – computers will never have souls. It’s disappointing to admit, but we all have to face facts at some point in our lives. Maybe one day they’ll manage to act alive, but they will never feel our love. They have no feelings. They are soulless, uncaring devices that we all too often assign our own humanity to – just like cats. But of course, in film, that would just be no fun. It’s better to have an A.I. that is dynamic and has some kind of personality, even if that personality is a lack of any kind of personality. The key is the voice, and here are some of the most unforgettable ones…

Are you simply unable (or, more precisely, unwilling) to wait until May of next year to see more of J.J. Abrams‘ patented lens flares, Chris Pine’s tight pants, and Zachary Quinto‘s perfectly pointy ears? Desperate to find out just what sort of “darkness” we’re “trekking” into? Do you just like going to movie theaters to see tiny slices of footage from full-sized features? You’re in such luck! Paramount Pictures has just announced that they will show the first nine minutes of Abrams’ upcoming Star Trek Into Darkness on no less than 500 IMAX 3D screens beginning on December 14. Variety reports that the footage will “act as an extended trailer in front of The Hobbit when it bows Dec. 14.” Paramount and Warner Bros. (the home studio of The Hobbit) appear to be in the business of trading these mega-trailer favors: last year, a six-minute “prologue” for Warner’s The Dark Knight Rises played in front of IMAX prints of Paramount’s Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol. Isn’t synergy fun? The film utilized IMAX cameras for a number of sequences, and Greg Foster, Chairman and President, IMAX Filmed Entertainment, said of the footage: “Our longtime partners J.J. Abrams, Bryan Burk and the Bad Robot team have really hit it out of the park – the footage is absolutely incredible. Their use of the IMAX Camera and canvas is sure to impress current and future Star Trek fans alike, and we’re thrilled to once again work with our friends at Paramount Pictures to offer this extended ‘first look’

Some of you may already know me by my Twitter handle: @thefilmcynic. It’s a name I’ve gone by for nearly a decade (so, before current social media outlets), because I’m very cynical about the film industry and try to keep my expectations low. I’m also very cynical about the Academy Awards and awards season in general, because we devote so much focus on them — with a wide spectrum of positive and negative angles — and they’re really a bunch of malarkey (much like the V.P. debate, which has inspired my newfound obsession with that word). So, the higher ups at FSR have asked me to write a cynical column devoted to the Oscars. The first one is inspired by the films Seven Psychopaths, Looper and Lincoln and their celebrated performances. As someone who has studied acting (I’m not very good at it), I’ve long taken issue with the way people look at film performances, because there are just so many different kinds. But there are two real distinct types that we tend to recognize while watching and writing about movies that aren’t acknowledged by the Academy: realistic and artificial. The former has been a big favorite since method acting came into play, though it doesn’t necessarily apply to that style nor does that style necessarily always mean realism. The latter could be more expressive and therefore goes back to the dawn of cinema and its silent performances or could even be more stiff, if that’s what’s intended. Directors who

What is Movie News After Dark? It’s a nightly movie news column that brings you only the most excellent links, news items, art and moving images from around the web. It’s also glad to be back in the saddle now that guest author week is over. First up tonight, a big round of applause for Ryan Gallagher of The Criterion Cast for stepping in last week and filling in while I gorged myself on the bloody mess known as Fantastic Fest. It made the festival experience that much more enjoyable to know that fans of this column were being treated to some excellent writing. Maybe we’ll convince him to come back again in the future. We begin our news night with one of over 30 new images from Argo, the Ben Affleck directed drama that’s getting all sorts of buzz. Even our own Rob Hunter is said to have liked it a lot…

Rian Johnson’s new film, Looper, is a pretty awesome time travel flick, one with as many elements that are clever and original as there are purposefully derivative and influenced. It’s the kind of smart and stylish sci-fi cinema we expect every once in a while on the festival circuit, like Sound of My Voice (which hits DVD and Blu-ray this Tuesday), rather than from a major Hollywood studio. Looper does fit the indie model, though, since Sony/Tristar picked it up for distribution only after it was done shooting, yet as Brian’s review of the film attests, we can still consider it a good sign for mainstream movies of this genre, and we can hope that Hollywood will see Johnson as the sort of directorial talent they need. But is it the best science fiction film since The Matrix? That’s a question posed in a headline from Time magazine yesterday, though its respective post doesn’t address such a discussion let alone attempt to answer the inquiry. Well, if we exclude superhero movies, animated features (Pixar, Miyazaki and The Iron Giant among them) and the Star Trek reboot, Looper is currently one of only two original studio films of its order to be battling for the status of best reviewed since the Wachowskis’ groundbreaking modern classic. The other is Alfonso Cuaron’s Children of Men.

What is Movie News After Dark? It’s a nightly column that tracks movie news and other, slightly more interesting editorials from around the web. It hates starting the week with a slow news day, but sometimes that’s what you get. Our evening begins with a shot from Skyfall, courtesy of Empire. They’ve released five new images from the upcoming James Bond adventure, including this somewhat alluring shot of Daniel Craig and Naomie Harris. Look for more on their site and in their upcoming issue.