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After the success of THE TWILIGHT SAGA and THE HUNGER GAMES movies, Hollywood is desperately looking for the next big Young Adult book series to strike gold on the big screen. One of the more ambitious attempts hitting this year is MORTAL ENGINES, produced by Peter Jackson and directed by Christian Rivers (longtime storyboard artist for Jackson who worked on all of the LORD OF THE RINGS and HOBBIT films). Based on the book by Philip Reeve, the screenplay is written by Peter Jackson, Fran Walsh, and Philippa Boyens. The cast includes Hugo Weaving (as Thaddeus Valentine), Stephen Lang (as Shrike), Robert Sheehan (as Tom Natsworthy), Jihae (as Anna Fang), Joel Tobeck (as Bürgermeister), Hera Hilmar (as Hester Shaw), Frankie Adams (as Yasmina), Colin Salmon (as Chudleigh Pomeroy), Caren Pistorius (as Pandora Shaw), Leila George (as Katherine Valentine), Patrick Malahide (as Magnus Crome), Ronan Raftery (as Bevis Pod), Mark Mitchinson (as Vambrace), and Sarah Peirse (as Dr. Twix). The teaser trailer did a good job of showing us interesting visuals without giving away any major plot points, the new trailer below gives us a lot more of the story at hand. But the obvious issue here is this is yet another YA adaptation set in a dystopian future with a female protagonist, and audiences may be getting tired of this sort of this – see THE DIVERGENT SERIES for proof. That said, seeing a giant city on wheels consuming other cities within it… well, that’s interesting enough for me to give it a look. Also, MORTAL ENGINES shouldn’t be confused with yet another failed YA adaptation THE MORTAL INSTRUMENTS: CITY OF BONES, though they do sound unfortunately similar. It’s also worthy of note that MORTAL ENGINES doesn’t hit theaters until mid-December, yet the first trailer hit a year in advance, so promoting it that early must mean the studio thinks they’re sitting on something big. Tell us your thoughts on this newest trailer in the comments.
Thousands of years after civilization was destroyed by a cataclysmic event, humankind has adapted and a new way of living has evolved. Gigantic moving cities now roam the Earth, ruthlessly preying upon smaller traction towns. Tom Natsworthy (Robert Sheehan)—who hails from a Lower Tier of the great traction city of London—finds himself fighting for his own survival after he encounters the dangerous fugitive Hester Shaw (Hera Hilmar). Two opposites, whose paths should never have crossed, forge an unlikely alliance that is destined to change the course of the future.
Born and raised in Dallas, Mark has been a movie critic since 1994, with reviews featured in print, radio and National TV. In 2001 he started the Entertainment section of the Herorealm website, where he contributed film reviews and celebrity interviews until 2004. After three years of service there, he started Bigfanboy.com, which has become one of the Dallas film community's leading information websites. Bigfanboy hosts several movie screenings in the Texas area, and works closely with film and TV studios and promotional partners to host exciting events and contests. The site also features a variety of rare celebrity and filmmaker interviews, and Bigfanboy.com regularly covers the film festival circuit as well. In addition to Hollywood reporting, Mark has worked for many years as an advertising and sci-fi/comic book artist. Clients have included Lucasfilm Ltd., Topps Trading Cards, The Dallas Mavericks and The Dallas Stars. From 2002 until 2015 he managed the Dallas Comic Con, Sci-Fi Expo and Fan Days events in the DFW area. He currently catalogs rare comic books and movie memorabilia for Heritage Auctions, and runs the Dallas Comic Show conventions, but remains an avid moviegoer and cinema buff. 
