There are some who might say a movie’s entire message is sent by how it begins, and how it ends. But rarely do directors actually treat their first and final shots with so much importance. Unforgettable views, moments of triumph, or witty dialogue can all make a cut-to-black and end credits seem perfectly timed, but some directors go the extra mile, crafting a start and finish that add an extra level of storytelling for viewers paying close attent

Director Martin Scorsese wasn’t exactly subtle with the tension and terror of Cape Fear , the story of a convicted criminal who seeks revenge on the lawyer who put him there, terrorizing him and his family, particularly his teenage daughter. Beginning the movie with chilling music and a blood red close-up on the daughter’s eyes warns audiences that the story she’s about to recount is a violent and truly unsettling one, due in large part to Robert De Niro’s acclaimed performance as the film’s villain. The family survives in the end, with the lawyer successfully killing his former client - but the damage has been done. To remind viewers that Cape Fear is as much about the loss of innocence as it is about revenge or protecting your family, the film returns to the "spared" daughter, this time fading from innocent white to red – and keeping audiences from feeling too good about its happy end

Gore Verbinski's remake of this Japanese horror film takes the idea that watching movies affects us, and stretches it to a terrifying extreme. The meta concept is reinforced when single frames from the haunted videotape flash up during other scenes in the movie. Again, not all copies of the film feature the same frames. But fans can all catch a flash of The Ring at the very start of the movie, where it meshes with the crescent moon in the DreamWorks logo. These hidden frames are worth re-watching the movie all on their own - just don't answer the phone when you’re finis

He said that the one of the the most surreal moments in making the movie was when he was first scanned, so that the computer could create a digital imprint of him in order to create his younger avatar, which audiences will see in the film. The actor said it was "Just like the first Tron (when his character is "digitized " onto the grid) but for re

From the moment Avatar hit theaters, it was clear that James Cameron had filled the movie with tons of political messages. From deforestation, over-aggressive military, to the destruction of Native peoples and the discovery of the New World - you name it. It didn't take long for people to notice that there was one country in particular that the director was singling out. When the movie's villain, Col. Quaritch, is explaining the risks of the planet to his new recruits, it's hard to miss the stripes of the American flag shining behind him - once you see it, it's not even that sub

Disney has released fifteen minutes of behind the scenes footage from TRON: Legacy as they increase their marketing campaign in preparation for the December 17 release of the film. The footage is fairly raw, unlike a traditional BTS feature, which would be inter-cut with interviews that give the context for the footage. One does get a sense of some of the technology used in making the film, as well as some of the techniques emplo

Although most of the film is set on a remote tropical island, Cast Away begins in the heart of Texas, introducing an unknown woman sending a FedEx package. The choice makes sense when the camera follows a FedEx package from there all the way to Russia, where the film’s hero Chuck Noland is introduced. When Chuck finally makes it back to civilization, little of his old life remains, and he decides to start over from scratch – but first, he has to return a package that washed ashore on his desert island along with him. That brings him to the exact same intersection the movie opened on, where Chuck finally encounters the woman who he says saved his life. After considering which direction to head, Chuck turns to the woman’s disappearing truck with a smile, and simply click the following site film’s final shot gives another look down the deserted road it opened on – plus Ch

The previous two movies in the rebooted Star Trek franchise were filmed at Paramount Studios in Los Angeles, so the change of locale is most likely due to the hefty tax incentives offered in British Columbia (which have made Vancouver a popular destination for both film and TV productions). It makes sense that Paramount would try to rein in the budget of Star Trek 3 where possible; anything that cuts down the costs of such an effects-heavy movie is no doubt an attractive prosp

Director Terry Gilliam is known for his offbeat visions of the future, with 12 Monkeys focused on a single prisoner, sent into the past to help scientists cure a worldwide plague that killed billions. The film opens with the hero dreaming of his younger self, watching an unknown man gunned down in a crowded airport. Unsure if the memory is real or imagined, he goes on to learn that the virus was spread on purpose by a single person, and sets out to stop it from ever happening. He fails when airport security shoots him dead in front of his younger self. The boy watches as the plane takes off, setting into motion billions of deaths, and closing the endless time loop the way it be