The News

Star Wars Episode VII Official Title Announced. 

It has been confirmed that Star Wars Episode VII will be titled The Force Awakens. Confirmation came this Thursday Via the official Star Wars twitter, which also released the titles logo as shown to the left, as celebration for the finishing of principal photography. 

This comes a month after the films producer Kathleen Kennedy stated that shooting on the highly anticipated sequel was nearing completion. Yet, much to fans disappointment no trailer has emerged for the film that is scheduled for a December 2015 

Despite such high levels of anticipation, a tight lipped crew led by director JJ Abrahams  has not revealed any significant plot information, allowing fans imaginations worldwide to run wild with speculation. Staring returning cast members Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford and Carrie Fisher the film will also feature newcomers Oscar Isaac, John Boyega and Daisy Ridley along with many more. 

Pixar/Disney Confirms Toy Story 4 Will Be Made.

Five years after what the public perceived was our goodbye to beloved characters Woody, Buzz and Jesse Disney along with Pixar confirmed that the beloved franchise will return for a fourth instalment, set for a June 16th 2017 release. 

The film is to be created by original Toy Story director John Lasseter  along with Lee Unkrich who directed the third instalment. As well as this, the script is being penned by actress Rashida Jones (famous for the United states version of The Office)  and Will McCormack.

This news came as a shock to many, especially seeing as Toy Story 3, released in 2010, seemed to bring the highly acclaimed and loved franchise to a end. Is this a genuine earned sequel? Or more so an attempt to provoke sentimentality? In order to draw people back to a studio that has been struggling recently to hit the nail on the head in terms of pictures. 

The Hunt For The Five Best Female Performances. 

An Argument raised by The Hollywood Reporter is that 2014 is the year in which female roles have depleted to such an extent that the Academy will be forced to scrape the barrel to find five female leading roles worthy of an Academy Award. 

The industry magazine, revealed how only 15% of all film protagonists are female. And as the Oscars are being overwhelmed by numerous potential  Leading Male contenders, one has to ask Where are all the Leading Ladies?

I for one was taken aback by this statement. But, after thought it seems rather obvious. The film industry has been considered a patriarchal business for many, and now in 2014 a time of  gender equality, it would be safe to presume that leading roles would be made more accessible to females regardless. However, this just does not seem to be the case. 

No doubt, by the time the nominations are released in January 2015, there will be 5 worthy nominees. However, it should not be a struggle to find that many brilliant actresses for leading roles. The conclusion we need to ponder is that are we as audiences and industry members permitting females to be under appreciated and struggle to find such worthy roles.