MARCUS THEATRES® SHOWCASES BEST PICTURE NOMINEES ON THE BIG SCREEN

Marcus Theatres® is rolling out the red carpet for movie lovers to experience this year’s Best Picture nominees – as well as the nominated short films – on the big screen with the Best Picture showcase, passport, and marathon. Moviegoers can choose to see the films they missed, rewatch favorites, or enjoy a full day of big-screen action, all while saving on admissions and getting the best award-season deals at Marcus Theatres.

BEST PICTURE SHOWCASE

The Best Picture Showcase comprises nine Best Picture nominees plus the nominated animated and live-action shorts for the 96th Annual Academy Awards, and will be screened at over 50 Marcus Theatres and Movie Taverns from Feb. 23 through March 10. This gives movie lovers the chance to see the contenders before the Academy Award winners are announced on March 10. For tickets, locations, and prices, please visit www.MarcusTheatres.com/BestPicture.

BEST PICTURE PASSPORTS

Moviegoers with several movies to watch (or rewatch) will want to consider one of the two Marcus Best Picture Passports, featuring discounted admission and food and beverage specials. The passport uses the latest technology to accommodate viewing preferences and hectic schedules, with the moviegoer choosing the specific theatre, date, and showtime versus buying tickets individually for each movie. All passport holders will receive 20% off food and beverage purchases during the Best Picture Showcase film series and have the choice of purchasing a Pick 4 Passport or Full Passport for a major savings compared with buying tickets individually. With the Pick 4, the passport holder gets an electronic ticket to his or her choice of four movies nominated for Best Picture for only $28 while the Full Passport entitles the holder to see nine movies, plus both blocks of nominated shorts, for only $70. To purchase one of the Best Picture passports, visit marcustheatres.com/BestPicturePassport.

BEST PICTURE FESTIVAL MARATHONS

For movie buffs looking to indulge in full days of big-screen bliss, Marcus Theatres and Movie Tavern will host our entire lineup of Best Picture-nominated movies plus the animated shorts showing back-to-back over two Saturdays (March 2 and March 9) at select locations. Festival attendees will also be able to snap pictures at Hollywood-themed photo spots, take part in movie-themed activities, and more. Admission for each day is sold separately, with five movies playing each day for $35. Moviegoers will want to reserve their spot today at www.MarcusTheatres.com/BestPicture

BEST PICTURE VIEWING PARTIES
Hollywood fans know that just like going to the movies, watching the Academy Awards is better with a crowd. Join us on Sunday, March 10, at Marcus Theatres where we’ll be broadcasting all the glitz and glamor of Hollywood’s biggest night at six locations: The Wall at Gurnee Mills Cinema (Gurnee, IL) and the Take Five Lounges at Majestic of Brookfield (Waukesha, WI), Oakdale (Oakdale, MN), Palace (Madison, WI), Ronnie’s (St. Louis, MO), and Twin Creek (Bellevue, NE) cinemas. Admission is free, and there will be movie-themed celebratory activities and photo spots with food and drink specials throughout the broadcast.

BEST PICTURE LINEUP:  
American Fiction (R) –A novelist who’s fed up with the establishment profiting from “Black” entertainment uses a pen name to write a book that propels him to the heart of hypocrisy and the madness he claims to disdain.

Anatomy of a Fall (R)– A woman is suspected of her husband’s murder, and their blind son faces a moral dilemma as the main witness.

Barbie (PG-13) – Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans.
The Holdovers (R) – A cranky history teacher at a remote prep school is forced to remain on campus over the holidays with a troubled student who has no place to go.

Killers of the Flower Moon 
(R) 
– When oil is discovered in 1920s Oklahoma under Osage Nation land, the Osage people are murdered one by one – until the FBI steps in to unravel the mystery.

Oppenheimer (R) – The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

Past Lives (PG-13) – Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are wrested apart after Nora’s family emigrates from South Korea. Twenty years later, they are reunited for one fateful week as they confront notions of love and destiny.

Poor Things (R) – The incredible tale about the fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter; a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist, Dr. Godwin Baxter.

The Zone of Interest (PG-13) – The commandant of Auschwitz, Rudolf Höss, and his wife Hedwig, strive to build a dream life for their family in a house and garden next to the camp.

Nominated Live Action Short Films  (Various Ratings) – The After – Misan Harriman and Nicky Bentham | Invincible – Vincent René-Lortie and Samuel Caron | Knight of Fortune – Lasse Lyskjær Noer and Christian Norlyk | Red, White and Blue – Nazrin Choudhury and Sara McFarlane | The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar – Wes Anderson and Steven Rales

Nominated Animated Short Films  (Various Ratings) – Letter to a Pig – Tal Kantour and Amit R. Gicelter | Ninety-Five Senses – Jerusha Hess and Jared Hess | Our Uniform – Yegane Moghaddam | Pachyderme – Stéphanie Clément and Marc Ruis | War is Over! Inspired by the Music of John and Yoko – Dave Mullins and Brad Booker

Visit marcustheatres.com/bestpicture to prepare for and celebrate the 2024 awards season.

The St. Louis Dad Family Halloween HorrorFest 2023

Every year my wife and I devote October to watching as many horror films as we can. 2023 is no different, except this year we are including the kids. Last week I went through and meticulously curated a months worth of movies for us to watch. Some are probably not appropriate for the kids but that’s why they invented the fast forward button.

Check out our calendar of movies for the entire month of October and feel free to join in our fun! Also, a fun reminder that on my 2023 Media Log you can see what I have been watching all year long!

Behind the Fan-Film: Jason Beware 2

Now that Jason Beware 2 has been out in the wild for a few months I figured I would offer a little behind the scenes look at how this fun project came together.

Back when we created the first video for Jason Beware we had no idea what we were doing. We went to a park, dressed up as some creepy characters and did a couple shots on an iPhone. I think the idea was originally just to do a photography session with the kids dressed up but it kind of turned into it’s own thing and we made a very short movie with no lines and really no plot.

A year went by and my son asked if we were ever going to do another movie and I said “absolutely!” So we got to work on the sequel. I had an idea of how we could make the sequel really a prequel that tied into the first movie so I got to work writing the script. Before I knew it, I had written a nice draft that actually could work with our zero budget, non-technical skill, and amateur child actors. By April 2021 I had the script finished and started planning the production, however there was just one issue. I had 1 extra role than I had actors and that’s when I thought of a cool idea. Secure a popular actor or celebrity to perform this extra role. It was a voice only role, so I figured it could possibly be easier for someone to lend their voice than it would be to schedule them to be on set. So I started my search.

I began my search by just reaching out the easiest way possible, social media. So I crafted a message that I could send to various people with the hope of getting someone to reply and hopefully join our cast. I must have sent out a dozen or so messages to different voice actors, screen actors, YouTube stars, and more. I casted a wide net and I wasn’t very confident that I would even get a reply, and I was right.

A little bit after my contact blitz I learned about a website called Cameo. On this website there are dozens upon dozens of celebrities that will send you a video message for a fee. I thought, maybe this is how I can make this happen. So I got myself a budget of $20 and found who I thought would be an amazing additional to the cast, George Hardy from Troll 2. His Cameo was only $20 and it looked like he was pretty responsive to previous orders, so I figured why not, let’s try it out. I will admit, I was very disappointed in Cameo’s interface, you are very limited in what you can send to the actor. You only get so many characters to type out what you want. So I had to convey a message of what I am trying to do, as well as send him the script, all in under 150 characters. I figured this wasn’t going to go well, but I got to try for the sake of the fan-film. I trimmed as much from the lines I needed as possible and sent the message. The next day George Hardy sent his Cameo, and it was nothing like what I thought we would get. What I was sent though, is still amazing and something that we will cherish forever.

@dadstl

It’s George Hardy from Troll 2! I reached out via #cameo to see if he would do a part for our Friday the 13th fan-film Jason Beware 2! #excellence

♬ original sound – dadSTL

Now a month after the script had been finish I was dead set on making this happen. At this point I got the bright idea to start reaching out to former Friday the 13th actors, writers, and directors. First I started with some of the actors like Adrienne King, Derek Mears, Warrington Gillette, and several others. I never got a response from anyone and I was feeling a bit defeated until I tried one more, Victor Miller. He was the screenwriter for the original movie and I had read that he had also done some voice work. So I reached out and not even 20 minutes later I had a reply! Mr. Miller agreed to help with our fan-film. So I sent over the small part and by the end of the day Victor had already recorded and sent his part back to me!

After three months of searching for an actor for this very small role. We were finally ready to make this movie happen.

Everything really started to come together once that piece of the puzzle was found. I gathered up props and did some scouting for a nice creepy shooting location and made a plan for it all to happen. Luckily for me, my other actors and actresses had been practicing their lines this whole time. So when the time finally came for a table read, they were ready!

Because of how organized I was with everything, and how prepared the kids were, we only had two days of shooting! The kids did great, from the acting, to helping with set design, handling clapsticks, props, and other behind-the-scenes stuff, I am very proud of them all and the work they put into the movie.

Editing took a bit longer to finish up. I knew I would need some sound design for post-production, so I reached out to my cousin to see if his aspiring beat making son would like to produce some scary music for the fan-film. I wanted to create some creepy tunes as well to really round out this production.

After about a month in the editing bay, things were looking good and I could see a target goal of August 13th, 2021 for a release date. It was going to be Friday the 13th after all. With the final things left to do being designing the movie poster and planning a premier party, I would say things were just rolling right along.

Our party was a success and the fan-film has been getting some views. We are all extremely proud of the work we all put into making this and we all honestly cannot wait to make another. My wife and I even decided to get little Oscar awards to give to the kids for things like best actor, best death, etc. They loved getting them and also enjoyed the goodie bags with fake weapons, Jason mask, and candy!

It’s crazy that even a small project like this can take months to come together, and then when it finally does, it is amazing. This crazy cast of characters are sure to make you laugh and probably wince a little too. Our movie is creepy yet funny and definitely worth the watch.

So please, enjoy our Friday the 13th fan-film, and also be sure to like and subscribe to our Facebook page for Jason Beware, the kids love seeing the views go up, likes, shares, and comments! Anyways, without further ado, may I present, Jason Beware 2: The Origin.

Snake Eyes Now Available on Digital!

Like many sneaky ninjas, Snake Eyes, has surprised all as his movie has come out of the shadows and will be available on digital and VOD platforms earlier than most expected. Paramount Pictures has announced that starting Aug. 17, consumers can get early access to Snake Eyes via digital and VOD.

Snake Eyes is a G.I. Joe franchise origin story that released exclusively in theaters on July 23.

Paramount Home Entertainment sent over a great promotional kit to help announce the release of this action packed movie! Be sure to grab the popcorn and the family for an origin story you never knew you needed!

WIN A DIGITAL COPY OF SNAKE EYES!

If you are on a budget this summer, well you are in luck as I have one digital code available for one lucky commenter! Just comment below with who you think deserves the next origin story from the G.I. Joe franchise! On August 31st I will randomly select a winner, so be sure to use an updated email address!

This post is sponsored by Paramount Home Entertainment, check out Paramount+ today!