I was already all sorts of excited for 500 Days of Summer, mostly because it stars two of the coolest actors in the business: Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel. Gordon-Levitt has mad talent and a pretty unbeatable taste in projects (though G.I. Joe is an eyebrow-raiser); Deschanel is just all-around wonderful and charming -- yes, even in The Happening. I'd be psyched to watch them in anything, but I'm especially psyched to watch them in an elaborate fantasy musical, which is what 500 Days of Summer has turned out to be.

This is from an MTV story, which has a detailed plot synopsis, and descriptions of some of the film's highlights. Those apparently include a scene with fifteen (15) Zooey Deschanel body doubles, and several choreographed dance numbers led by Gordon-Levitt. The movie is a fractured, stream-of-consciousness narrative about a guy who looks back on his long relationship with the girl who just dumped him (that would be Deschanel's Summer), his reminiscences taking on the flavor of a pop musical.

This is particularly exciting news, since Zooey Deschanel is, among other things, a dynamite singer -- if you haven't checked out She & Him, her wonderful 60's-pop collaboration with indie singer-songwriter M. Ward, you're missing out. She has a sweet, lovely voice, and the songs are killer; try "This is Not a Test." I should also note that Gordon-Levitt and Deschanel worked together before either of them was a Name, in the solid, underseen psych-ward drama Manic.

The IMDb isn't the most reliable source for this sort of information, but it has the movie as being in post-production -- which makes sense since it started shooting in early May. Might it show up at Toronto this September?

After the whole Spike Lee vs. Clint Eastwood kerfuffle, it's great to finally see a glimpse of Lee's new World War II movie, Miracle at St. Anna. The trailer for the film has just shown up on Yahoo! and it looks just as great as I'd hoped it would. Of course, it's difficult to tell the quality of a war movie based on its trailer -- war movies from Hollywood typically all look the same at the marketing stage -- but I have a strong feeling this will at the very least be one of the more interesting war movies we've seen in some time. Coming from the unique perspective of Lee, we're hopefully bound for some things we haven't even seen before.

I like that the trailer begins in a bank that kinda resembles the one from Lee's previous feature, Inside Man. And that it takes a moment to reveal that it's a war movie. I guess now that we see Joseph Gordon-Levitt's role more clearly (he's not even listed on the film's IMDb page), it seems as though St. Anna may involve more of a present story than I had expected. Perhaps his interview with the main character, Hector (Laz Alonso), will be interwoven with the story, like the interrogation sequences of Inside Man? Nah, Lee would never repeat himself so blatantly, would he?

The Miracle of St. Anna marches into theaters September 26.

MTV Movies Blog has the brand new poster for Stop-Loss, the upcoming film from director Kimberly Peirce. Outside of an episode of The L Word, Peirce hasn't directed anything since her highly acclaimed 1999 feature debut Boys Don't Cry -- the film that won Hilary Swank her first Oscar. The script for Stop-Loss was written by Peirce and Mark Richard (Huff), and the film stars Ryan Phillippe (whom I had never liked until last year's excellent Breach), Joseph Gordon-Levitt (one of the best young actors working -- see Brick, Mysterious Skin, and The Lookout!), and Channing Tatum (I intentionally missed Step Up, but he was great in A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints).

Stop-Loss deals with soldiers who are "stop-lossed," meaning they are ordered to return to combat, even though they have completed their enlistment contracts. Phillippe plays a soldier who stands up to the government and refuses to return to battle. It is an MTV Films production, and the poster plays up the cast's beefcake angle, making the film look like Dawson's Creek Goes to Iraq. But I have a feeling it's going to be much better than that. I've been waiting to see another film from Peirce for a long while, and the trailer gives me goose bumps every time I see it. Stop-Loss is set for release on March 28th.

I'm a big fan of author Bret Easton Ellis' work. Since many of his novels rely on the inner workings of characters' minds, they can be difficult to adapt to the big screen. The film version of Less Than Zero made cocaine addiction look like Pretty in Pink. I know I'm in the minority, but I detested Mary Harron's American Psycho. The only adaptation I feel got Ellis exactly right was Roger Avary's excellent take on The Rules of Attraction. Now three more films are going to try and re-create Ellis' world. Darren Star is working on The Frog King with Joseph Gordon-Levitt. There is no director yet, but a movie version of Lunar Park has been announced. And director Gregor Jordan (Ned Kelly) has put together a cast for the film translation of Ellis' 1995 novel The Informers.

The Hollywood Reporter writes that Billy Bob Thornton, Kim Basinger, and Superman himself Brandon Routh are in "various stages of negotiation" to star in the ensemble film. The Informers is set in Los Angeles in 1983 and it tracks seven stories. The major characters are: a movie executive (played by Thornton), his wife (Basinger), his mistress, a rock star, a kidnapper, and a vampire (Routh, apparently looking to darken up his image). Rounding out the cast are Ashley Olsen as a "sexually promiscuous girl" (doesn't it seem like those twins are getting a ton of work these days?), Jon Foster (Stay Alive), Austin Nichols (John Monad on the baffling John From Cincinnati), and Lou Taylor Pucci (star of the very good Thumbsucker and the not very good Chumscrubber -- yes, they're different movies). Sounds like it could be a great flick! Now, whatever happened to Roger Avary's planned Glamorama movie? I would love to see that come to light. Did Zoolander steal its thunder?

With yet another indie role sliding onto his plate, Joseph Gordon-Levitt really has become the Indie King. He's slid past the terribly cliche and ever-rampant path of child actor-turned-unstable-adult, and is building an amazing indie career for himself. In May, I told you about The Frog King, his lone comedic project in a sea of drama. The film, which is letting the actor slip into the role of a wanna-be writer trying to win back his girlfriend, will be tv-great Darren Star's directorial debut, with a screenplay adapted by Bret Easton Ellis. But before he films that, he is going to star in Uncertainty -- a new film from The Deep End's David Siegel and Scott McGehee.

The project sounds pretty interesting. The directorial pair wrote a script for the film, but it is just an outline -- the actors will be developing the dialogue with them. The story focuses on a young couple trying to make a big decision during the Fourth of July in New York City. As The Hollywood Reporter describes it: "the film is split into two versions of the same Fourth of July in New York, presenting a new series of unexpected choices the characters make." I imagine that means we'll see the paths of both possible decisions. Although we know Gordon-Levitt is starring, there is no word on who his co-star is. However, I imagine we'll find out soon, since the production is currently underway in New York.

When I started to read this piece of news, I was shocked. Could Disney have actually picked Joseph Gordon-Levitt to be in the movie about Maddy? After 3rd Rock from the Sun, maybe, but not after Mysterious Skin. While it's a great film, it pretty much solidified the actor as a non-Disney variety. But no, this isn't a literal frog story with warts and ribbits. This is the Adam Davies variety -- a story about publishing and ego that came out of the author's work at Random House.

The Frog King follows Harry, a man of privilege who is farting around in publishing, hating the politics and pretension that surround his work. This inspires him to come in late, spike his coffee and be a general ass -- a mindset that seeps into his relationship with Evie, an editorial assistant. He wants her, but he also wants to cheat on her. The story sounds interesting and reviews seem to agree; however, they also agree that the book came up short. So, if you're making it into a movie and you want to caulk up the plot holes about private advantage, New York City and masculine ego, who do you turn to?

Bret Easton Ellis. The author of American Psycho and Rules of Attraction is penning the adaptation. But that's not all. Darren Star, the creator of shows like 90210 and Sex and the City will make his directorial debut with it. Between Gordon-Levitt and Easton Ellis, this should be a great film -- as long as Star shows some talent behind the camera. At the very least, it should be better than what was originally planned. According to an article here, when the author was tapped to adapt the novel, Joshua Jackson was attached to star. I don't really have anything against Pacey, but he's really no comparison to the star of Brick.

Have yourself a little indie niblet:

• Who would've ever thought of Eddie Vedder as the voice of inspiration for young men suffering from severe head trauma? It seems that Jospeh Gordon-Levitt, who has morphed from the quirky kid on 3rd Rock into a pretty powerful indie actor, listened to Pearl Jam non-stop to get in character for The Lookout, which Kim reviewed recently. According to what the actor told VH1: "I always design an arsenal of songs to go with every character I play, and I had never done it before with only picking one band. But for some reason, just because [the character's] mind goes in circles, [it seemed appropriate]." I think that would be a great jump to a new sort of special feature: the songs, films, goodies that an actor uses to get into character. I'd love to know what music Gordon-Levitt used for his other films.
• Entrapment director Jon Amiel is set to direct the upcoming 105 Degrees and Rising for Overture Films and Echo Lake Productions. The film is about the fall of Saigon in 1975, and it brings together a number of story arcs dealing with characters who are trying to escape South Vietnam as U.S. control ended -- up through the evacuation of the last Americans and some South Vietnamese by helicopter from the roof of the American Embassy. The script has been penned by William M. Akers, the same guy who brought us...Ernest Rides Again. To give the guy credit, his last work in 2002 was an historical story, but it's still surprising. As for the title of the film -- it's part of a code broadcast on Armed Forces Radio. It seems that this quote, followed by part of Bing Crosby's White Christmas was a sign to get the heck out of dodge, pronto.
• Lastly, Spain is starting to look into its laws on child actors after Madrid's child protection ombudsman asked parliament to create some by-laws to protect them. The limits requested: that children can only work fewer than 5 hours a day, that they can only work between the hours of 8 A.M. to 8 P.M. and that the types of work they can do must be specified. According to Carmen Gonzalez Madrid, the ombudsman's assistant: "A child doesn't have the maturity to assimilate certain frustrations that an adult could do, such as why today he is in Vogue and tomorrow he isn't." Hmm, I think Dakota Fanning would have a few words for him on the matter!

You may not have noticed, but everyone and his brother had something nice to say about Rian Johnson's directorial debut, Brick, when it was released earlier this year. Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt (AKA The Kid from Third Rock Who It Turns Out Is a Really Good Actor) as a high school gumshoe, the movie pushed all the right smart, hard-boiled, creative buttons, and pleased audiences and critics alike, even winning a Special Jury Prize at Sundance in 2005. Plus, the thing cost only $500,000. I don't think Michael Bay can even tie his shoes on that kind of a budget.

If you're someone who a)loved the movie, or b)hasn't seen it, we're here to help: Just give us the best caption for the above photo, and we'll send you a brand, spanking new copy of the just-released DVD. Who says we never did anything for you?

Put your entries in the comments; the contest closes at 5pm ET Friday.

Our hero got a call from his ex-lover two days ago, after a furtive note telling him to be at a certain phone booth at a certain time. She sounded like she was in trouble, so he went looking for her; asked around; kept his eyes open. And now he's found her. Dead. Face-down in a reservoir, her blonde hair trailing in the rainwater runoff. He's shaken, but he knows what he has to do: He's going to find out who's responsible. He's going to find out why they killed her. He's going to see that justice – or something like it – is done. He walks away from the body, sad but ready. He's going to have to plumb the local underworld. He's going to have to ask ugly questions. He's also going to have to come up with an excuse for the Assistant Vice-Principal about why he won't be in class for the next few days. …

Brick, written and directed by Rian Johnson, is already being called many things: Hammett goes to high school; a teen noir; a distorted trip through two different genres, as if John Hughes directed The Maltese Falcon. All those things are right (or glib enough to be quotable, which is almost as good), but let's also cut to the chase: The first thing you need to know about Brick is that it's hands down the first truly great film of 2006, one worth seeing and seeing again and actually thinking about, with sharp, snappy dialogue giving it a lustrous gloss, and carefully-drawn, achingly human characters putting real weight and power under the sheen. What Johnson's done with Brick is something akin to taking two old pieces of wood – caked with years of dust and shoddily-applied paint, layers of uneven age-dulled wax, cheap veneer and hastily-applied stain – and banging them against each other so hard and so precisely that all the cover-up and concealment fall away revealing the true beauty and grain of each piece so we can see them both as new.

There are many things you can get out of six years on a sitcom. Cash; a comfort-zone; a catchphrase. Having a career afterwards – especially at a young age – doesn't normally come in the same package. Joseph Gordon-Levitt went from Third Rock from the Sun and Treasure Planet voice-overs to sex and death in Gregg Araki's Mysterious Skin and taking punches to avenge his dead girlfriend in Rian Johnson's Hammett-meets-high school film Brick. In San Francisco, Gordon-Levitt spoke about reading screenplays, small-scale moviemaking and the benefits of passion.

Cinematical: When you first read the script for Brick, did you have any – I almost want to say warning – about the nature and character of the material, or did you just dive into it?

I had no idea what the script was; I opened it like any other script, going 'I wonder what this is. …' and by the time I was through page three, I was flabbergasted. People don't write movies like this anymore. People try to create movies through digital effects and camera tricks – and not that there aren't really cool camera tricks in Brick, but none of them are digital. Rian Johnston, the writer-director, he created the world of Brick with his words … and no one tries to use words anymore; it's like a dying art, the wordsmith. And the language that he came up with for Brick is so fun to say that when I was done reading it, I turned over the last page and went to the front again and started reading it again, just because I liked saying it.

In addition to being one of those rare actors who has successfully moved beyond a starring childhood TV role, Joseph Gordon-Levitt (James will have an interview with him for us later this week; Brick comes out April 7) also appears to be something of an amateur filmmaker. A couple of weeks ago, he posted a short called Pictures of Assholes to YouTube and, despite the title, its brief (less than four minutes) running time, and the fact that it's just Gordon-Levitt shooting a couple of photographers who were trying to take his picture, the video actually ends up offering an interesting (albeit minor) insight into the weird world of professional stalking.

Plus, a nice side-effect of the whole thing is that Gordon-Levitt comes across as intelligent and mature. And, while that might be a damaging discovery about someone like Jessica Simpson, it's a reassuring thing to learn about a guy who's moved from being a TV alien to building a career out of unusual, thoughtful films.

It was announced late last year that The Lookout, screenwriter Scott Frank's directorial debut, had secured the considerable talents of Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Jeff Daniels for its starring roles. Gordon-Levitt plays a disabled janitor who is caught up in a heist, while Daniels is a blind ex-biker who is also involved, though no one in the press seems to know exactly how. While the two of them alone certainly have the ability to carry a well-written film (and, since Frank wrote the script, it's good), it's now being reported that three impressive names have been added to the cast, and the movie is sounding better and better. Playing a criminal (presumably one involved in the heist) will be Matthew Goode, who won praise for his performance as Scarlett Johansson's boyfriend in Match Point, and another scene-stealer, Isla Fisher of Wedding Crashers, has been cast as "a scandalous vixen." (Boys, that one's for you.) Rounding out the trio of additions in the role of a therapist is the wonderful Carla Gugino who someday, maybe, will get the attention she deserves.

The movie is scheduled to begin filming in Canada later this month.