Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Avatar


MarketSaw had the chance to interview Fox Filmed Entertainment Co-Chairman Jim Gianopulos at ShoWest on James Cameron's latest film, "Avatar."

“I’ve seen the film-most of the film-and I think Jim’s comment that it’s like dreaming only you’re awake…is enough. (laughs)-Is accurate. I think it’s a truly amazing film in the sense that he’s created visual images, and a story, and a world, and creatures and experiences that I’ve just never seen in a cinema. It’s just truly amazing. So, with the partnership of WETA and James Cameron, and a story that’s been in his mind and developing all these years, combined with the technology to do it catching up, is just a trifecta beyond anything.”

On how far along the movie is in the production pipeline, Gianopulos said:

“The reality, I think, for people, and especially people who understand the technology…you know, the film…Jim is essentially finished all of his shooting of the film, and it has been rendered, in working with WETA. So now the film is at WETA being rendered in its photoreal images.”

“There are great portions of the film finished in final form, but they are not of complete scenes. So when we have a complete scene, when we have enough, it will come out and I think it will meet those expectations.”

When asked about whether or not the past hopes of Cameron for the film to only be released in 3D would come true, Gianopulos replied:

“I don’t think that’s possible, because I think that would deny the movie to too many people in too many places in the world. But most importantly, while the movie is amazing in 3D, it’s such a brilliant film, it would be brilliant in any form. It’s like saying, did Titanic have to be in 3D? Did Aliens have to be in 3D? They were truly great films.”

And finally, Gianopulos talked about the difference between the past and present possibilities with 3D technology:

“…another point that Jim’s made repeatedly is that the old form of 3D was a gimmick that was intended to extend the life of a tired franchise. So you have the monster, the monster returns, and the monster returns in 3D. That was the 50’s and the 60’s and times past. This is the greatest filmmakers in the world using this film medium to express themselves on the biggest pallet and in the biggest scale of any movie made, and it’s an entirely different experience. But - doesn’t mean it’s not a great movie in 1D if you have to show it that way!”

I can say am looking forward to this film at the end of this year on Dec. 19, 2009.
Source: Screen Rant

Star Trek II On Its Way


According to Variety, "As Paramount Pictures readies the May 8 release of its 'Star Trek' franchise relaunch, the studio is moving forward with a sequel, and has hired Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman and Damon Lindelof to pen the screenplay.

J.J. Abrams, who directed and produced the latest chapter, is onboard to produce the follow-up alongside his Bad Robot partner Bryan Burk. No decision has been made yet on whether Abrams will return behind the camera for the sequel.

Story is still in the embryonic stage, but the trio are aiming to deliver their script to the Melrose studio by Christmas for what would likely be a summer 2011 release.

'There's obviously a lot of hubris involved in signing on to write a sequel of a movie that hasn't even come out yet,' said Lindelof, co-creator with Abrams of ABC's 'Lost' who produced the upcoming 'Trek' but did not contribute to Orci and Kurtzman's screenplay. 'But we're so excited about the first one that we wanted to proceed.'

As for potential storylines, Kurtzman stressed that the writing team will wait to take a cue from fan reaction about which direction to go.

'Obviously we discussed ideas, but we are waiting to see how audiences respond next month,' he said. 'With a franchise rebirth, the first movie has to be about origin. But with a second, you have the opportunity to explore incredibly exciting things. We'll be ambitious about what we'll do.'"

Obviously Paramount is very excited about this franchise and they hope to remake it for the next generation and have plenty of sequels. The hype seems to be pretty big for this film if a sequel is already underway. It isn't that unexpected when you realize the film has broken records for the amount of times the trailer was watched on Apple.com.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Monday, March 30, 2009

Movie News Mash 9


"The Kung Fu Kid"

According to First Showing, "Last year it was announced that Columbia Pictures was remaking the 1984 classic 'Karate Kid' with Jaden Smith set to star. In January, we announced that Jackie Chan had been cast as the lovable Mr. Miyagi, stepping in for Pat Morita. As far as I know, not a single person was excited by any of this news, but of course Sony is pushing forward with the production in hopes of convincing audiences later with marketing. Well, a good friends of ours dropped by with a tip recently letting us know that in a recent interview with Jackie Chan, he let slip that this remake is actually going to be called Kung Fu Kid, not Karate Kid.

'They don't want to call it Karate Kid any more,' Chan said. 'They want to call it The Kung Fu Kid.' He quickly changed topics and unfortunately didn't add any more about as to why this change was being made. Our guess is that since this remake is a Chinese co-production and being shot in Beijing, it's much more relevant today to use kung fu as opposed to karate (which isn't as popular as it was back in the 80's) and also more appropriate considering karate actually has its historical roots in kung fu. As in, story updates and Chinese influence caused them to change the title to be more culturally relevant and accurate."

Having the title of "Karate Kid" could have had people want to see the movie based on name recognition alone. Now that won't happen.
Why does this movie need to be remade again?


"Wonder Woman"

According to IESB, "Looks like WB and Silver Pictures are now looking for a director. The studios are enthusiastically working together to attach elements to the film to get it up and going quickly.

"There was a regime change late last year over at Silver Pictures, Andrew Rona is now the man in charge and will be the man spearheading the live action Wonder Woman project along with mega producer Joel Silver.

"WB and Silver Pictures are in the early stages but they are eager to get started on the movie. Sources tell IESB that WB is looking for new writers on the project and have been taking pitches the last few weeks."

Joss Whedon, famous for his hit TV show "Buffy," wrote a screenplay - for which he envisaged Eliza Dushku in the lead role - but it was rejected by studio bosses.

Hollywood babe Megan Fox (pictured) is so keen on the role that she promoted herself as Wonder Woman in a poster via a viral marketing website.

I am still hesitant to think that a "Wonder Woman" movie will be coming out soon, but with the general good responses coming from the recently released animated movie, maybe a director will soon be chosen.



"Sucker Punch"

According to Rope of Silicon, "Following the unfortunate departure of Amanda Seyfried from the lead role in Zack Snyder’s upcoming 'Sucker Punch' the role of Baby Doll has been filled by Aussie actress Emily Browning, one of the stars of this year’s thriller 'The Uninvited.'

Browning replaces Seyfried as Baby Doll, a role described as an insane asylum inmate who loses herself in a fantasy world where she dreams about escaping with her fellow inmates. She will be joining Evan Rachel Wood, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, and Emma Stone in the film described as 'an ‘Alice in Wonderland’ with machine guns.'

Filming is set to begin this fall with a October 8, 2010 release date already scoped out by Warner Bros."

I liked her in "A Series of Unfortunate Events." Though Jim Carrey might have outdone everyone in that film.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies coming out this week!

Adventureland - During the summer of 1987, recent college grad James Brennan (Eisenberg) takes what he thinks is a going-nowhere job at his local amusement park, only to discover it's a perfect opportunity to prepare himself for the real world.

Fast and Furious - The feud between ex-con Dominic Toretto (Diesel) and agent Brian O'Connor (Walker) is reignited back in Los Angeles, where a crime has pitted the two men against one another yet again. However, when they realize they have a common enemy, they put their past behind them and unite to stick it to their foe.

New DVDs this week!

Slumdog Millionaire
Seven Pounds
Marley and Me
Tell No One

Box Office results for the weekend!

1 Monsters vs. Aliens$58.2 M

2 The Haunting In Connecticut$23.0 M

3Knowing$14.7 M

4 I Love You, Man $12.6 M

5Duplicity $7.5 M

6 Race to Witch Mountain $5.6 M

7 12 Rounds$5.3 M

8Watchmen $2.7 M

9Taken $2.7 M

10The Last House on the Left (2009) $2.6 M

"Monsters vs Aliens" dominated over the weekend and earned a lot of money. Yeah, family films do well. And not to mention that over 50 percent of the gross earnings came from screens tat showed this film in 3-D (which had to have higher ticket costs, of course).

"Haunting in Connecticut" did well for a ghost horror story. Based on a true story...yeah...

"Knowing" has actually gotten good word of mouth and stayed in the Top 5. People are actually saying good things about this film except for Nick Cage.

All other films are just staying in the Top 10. No one really wanted to see "12 Rounds" and "Watchmen" is hanging in there (though will most likely not be in the Top 10 next weekend). This might also be the last weekend for "Taken." It has had an amazing run since January. Was this film profitable? Heck yeah!

Check back next week to see what film earns No. 1 Movie in America. I'm thinking "Fast and Furious" unless more kids beg their parents to see "Monsters vs. Aliens" (I actually think parents bring kids to the movies to make them shut up).

Clash of the Titans Remake Cast


Gemma Arterton, Bond girl from "Quantum of Solace" and will next be seen starring alongside Jake Gyllenhaal in next year's "Prince of Persia," is cast as the role of Io in Louis Leterrier's remake of the classic 1981 film "Clash of the Titans."

According to Slash Film, Arterton revealed at the Empire Awards that she was going to be in the new movie.

According to First Showing, "Arterton will apparently play the character of Io, a priestess of Hera who was seduced by Zeus and changed into a cow to escape detection. I don't think that's the exact character that she'll be playing, because she said in a separate interview about Sam Worthington, 'I hope he's nice because we have to fall in love.' The character of Io wasn't even in the original 1981 'Clash of the Titans,' which is a bit odd. Judi Bowker played Princess Andromeda, who was Perseus' original love interest in that film. Unless we hear otherwise, it looks like Gemma Arterton will be the primary love interest in both 'Prince of Persia' and 'Clash of the Titans.'"

“The script is very different,” Arterton said in an interview with Empire. “Obviously the story is the story, but it’s much more about Perseus’ mission, and how he deals with being the son of Zeus, and things like that, so it feels a little more about him, and about the issues around that.”

Also in the film is Liam Cunningham, Hans Matheson as Ixas and Luke Treadaway as Prokopion.

Liam Neeson had been cast as Zeus but following the tragic death of his wife Natasha Richardson, it's not yet known whether he's still available to do it.

"Clash of the Titans" will start filming in London and Spain next month, for release in 2010.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

Ghost Busters III


Harold Ramis, who co-wrote the script of the original "Ghost Busters" films, sat down with MTV News to discuss his new movie "Year One."

Of course there were questions about the upcoming third installment to the "Ghost Busters" franchise.

"Ramis promised that all the old core players will take part in the updated version, including Bill Murray (Dr. Peter Venkman) and Dan Aykroyd (Dr. Raymond Stantz), who co-wrote the original films. 'We're all going to be in it in different kinds of roles,' Ramis said. 'We're going to be the sage mentors. There are going to be young Ghostbusters.'



At the moment, Ramis is waiting on a first draft of the script, which is being penned by Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky, two writer/producers on 'The Office,' who also wrote 'Year One.' 'Gene and Lee, both of whom I mentored, are now writing the new 'Ghost Busters,' ' Ramis said. 'I'm consulting with them, as is Dan Aykroyd and [original director] Ivan Reitman.

'Bill Murray is just waiting for the truckload of money to arrive to get him out of his office,' Ramis joked.

After taking a jab at his old friend, Ramis assured us that Murray is definitely 'in,' even though the two haven't communicated directly about the project. 'I haven't talked to him about it,' Ramis said. 'I want to talk to him about it eventually. I think we just need a script, because he's the thorniest of the group.'

Another open question is who will take over directing duties, since neither Ramis nor Reitman is planning on helming the picture. 'I'm sure we're all hoping someone else will do it,' the 64-year-old Ramis said. 'It's a lot of work!'"

As for who will play the new young "Ghost Busters," Ramis only said that there were a lot of rumors.


More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Saturday, March 28, 2009

Raimi Will Have Control Over Next Spider-Man Film


According to The Geek Files, "Director Sam Raimi has admitted he had no creative control over the much-disliked 'Spider-Man 3' - but he has assured fans he will have a far greater say in the web-spinner's next film outing.

Asked why he had originally committed to a franchise where total control was unlikely, he said: "Well, I had never had it. Only now do I have it with [upcoming horror movie] 'Drag Me to Hell' and the new 'Spider-Man' film.

"That's part of the reason I'm so excited about the possibility of making this new 'Spider-Man,' which I'm really hoping I can make. I love the characters still and I've got a lot more creative control than I ever had.

"They really gave me a tremendous amount of control on the first two films, actually. But then there were different opinions on the third film and I didn't really have creative control, so to speak."

What I believe Raimi is getting at about him not having complete control over the third film is how Marvel Entertainment insisted on bringing in the character of Venom as a villain.
Spider-Man is a Marvel comic book and there were reports that Marvel Entertainment chief creative officer Avi Arad (who is also chairman of Marvel Studios) had insisted on Venom being included in the third movie.



“I don’t even want to comment on Venom," Raimi said, "because I know he’s a great character and all the fans love him. I never want to say anything bad about a much-beloved character because usually it turns out that I’m the one that doesn’t understand what makes it great.

"I wouldn't say it was anybody in particular. It was just that a lot of people had different ideas on what the film should be, and I think - good or bad - the film simply represents exactly the working situation where a lot of people have a lot of good ideas about what the film should be.

"The best way for me to move forward on films, I realize...and this was a lesson I had to learn for myself...is that I've gotta be the singular voice that makes the creative choices on the film.

"I love Spider-Man so much that I'd like to continue telling Spider-Man stories but only under those circumstances where I think I can honor him. I don't think I can honor him any other way."

"Spider-Man 4" is due out sometime in 2011 and Raimi has hinted at the villains of Morbius and The Lizard, which you can read in one of my earlier posts.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Sequel to Dazed and Confused


Director Richard Linklater was at a screening of "Dazed & Confused" held to support Austin, Texas mayoral candidate Brewster McCraken.

After the screening Linklater answered questions from a Q-and-A session. CHUD was there to hear the news that Linklater is planning on making a "spiritual sequel" to his classic film "Dazed and Confused."

"The movie, which he is shooting in and around Austin this summer, will be about the first weekend of college in 1980. So while thematically it'll bookend 'Dazed,' it won't have any of the same characters (which makes sense, as all of the actors are decades older and would look weird pretending it's just four years later).

Linklater's been talking about this movie for a while, but the fact that he plans on shooting it this summer seems to be the new bit of news."

Linklater keeps getting older but his movies stay the same age (Joke from a famous quote from the movie "Dazed and Confused." "). Will be interesting to see how this will link to "Dazed" and create a ending or sequel feeling.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

New Up Featurette

Pixar is preparing for its latest film and first adventure into 3-D with "Up."

By tying thousands of balloon to his home, 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen sets out to fulfill his lifelong dream to see South America. Right after lifting off, however, he learns he isn't alone on his journey, since Russell, a wilderness explorer 70 years his junior, has inadvertently become a stowaway on the trip.

Watch Discovering a Lost World and learn how the creators behind "Up" imagined the world that the protagonists of the film go to.

'The Thing' Prequel Being Rewritten


The prequel script written by Ronald D. Moore that was to take place prior to the events of the original "The Thing" was to be from the point of view of the Norweiginas and their encounter with the creature from outer space.

According to Bloody Disgusting, "We learned that Universal Pictures and Strike Entertainment have tapped Eric Heisserer to rewrite 'The Thing' prequel that was originally scripted by Ronald D. Moore. It was announced here yesterday that Heisserer also did some cleanup work on Wesley Strick's screenplay for 'A Nightmare on Elm Street.'"

So does this guy make rewrites for a profession?

Eric Heisserer responded to the news on his own official blog.

"They were quite fast on the draw, those folks at Bloody. Yes, Matthijs and I are hard at work with the very smart team at Strike on the prequel. We are all so much in love with Carpenter’s film, so protective of it, we’re doing all we can to avoid stepping on its toes. I jumped at this job because I hold the Carpenter adaptation to very high standards, and I knew it would be a challenge to create a comparable companion piece. Sort of a “Nobody better screw this up, especially me” mentality. Lucky for me, the people at Strike and the director have the same standards.

This is a 'from scratch' rewrite assignment for the most part, as was my work on A Nightmare on Elm Street. I can’t say any more on that. I have the highest respect for both Ron Moore and Wesley Strick."

No news on how much of a rewrite this will be. It is "from scratch" so it can be anything new or different.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Friday, March 27, 2009

Dragonball Exclusive Clips

Exclusive clips of the upcoming film "Dragonball Evolution" featured from MTV News.

Goku trains with his grandpa Gohan.


Goku teams up with Bulma and Master Roshi


Goku talks with Chi-Chi


"Dragonball Evolution" hits theaters April 10.

I just want to know where it all went wrong. They took the anime, made it all Hollywood (Goku in high school? wtf?) and just did not stick to the source material besides keeping the same names. I have always wanted to see a live action DBZ movie. Now I think my childhood years of watching DBZ on Toonami on Cartoon Network are ruined.
Thanks 20th Century Fox.

More Marvel Movies

According to Variety, "With more than 5,000 crime fighters and villains in its library, Marvel Entertainment is looking for some help in adapting those characters into films.

Comicbook giant is readying to assemble a group of scribes who will pen scripts for various properties Marvel wants to develop.

Marvel will invite up to five writers each year to work on specific projects, said a source familiar with the deal. Those could include staffers behind Marvel's comicbooks. Tenpercenteries around town are currently pitching potential candidates with writing samples.

The company will provide the specific pitches it wants the scribes to tackle. Those could involve certain plot points for movies already in development or characters it would like to see in its future film slate.

Gathering of scribes will help Marvel come up with creative ways to launch its lesser-known properties, such as Black Panther, Cable, Doctor Strange, Iron Fist, Nighthawk and Vision.

So far, it has focused its efforts on more popular superheroes like Iron Man, the Incredible Hulk, Thor and Captain America.

It was especially encouraged when Iron Man, who wasn't as well known as Spider-Man, Superman or Batman, was able to cross over and launch a new franchise with a $582 million haul at the worldwide B.O."

Other Marvel heroes have been made into films including: X-Men, Spider-Man, Fantastic Four, Blade and Ghostrider. But these films were made by other studios than Marvel and the properties for these heroes won't return to Marvel for a few more years.

But to have some of these other heroes get their own films is cool and leads me to the fanboy dream of someday seeing a giant Marvel crossover (won't happen for many, many, many, many....many years though).

Ready for New Moon


Are you ready for "New Moon," the sequel to the box office smash "Twilight?"

Robert Pattinson, better known as brooding vampire Edward Cullen, says fans of the first film who haven't read the second book should be expecting something different.

"The book of 'New Moon,' the majority of it is incredibly depressing," Pattinson told Reuters. "Obviously 'Twilight' was about finding first love and the difficulties of that, but 'New Moon' is really about loss and reconciliation, but the reconciliation isn't completely full.

"It's a strange story to have for a market that, I guess, wants to see a love story," he said.

The cast and crew of the new film are currently in Vancouver, Canada preparing to start shooting this week.

"It's turned into this crazy situation. I guess it has become a sort of phenomenon now which I really, really didn't expect," Pattinson said of the success of "Twilight" and his own fan base of teenage girls.

So "Twilight" fans, "New Moon" comes out Nov. 20. Are you ready?
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Get Ready for Riddick


According to IESB, "Universal Pictures, the studio behind the ['Riddick'] franchise, is gung-ho about a Riddick sequel due to the huge tracking of Diesel's 'Fast and Furious' due out April 3 co-starring Paul Walker.

IESB is hearing the new 'Riddick' film will be more down and dirty with less "fantasy epic stuff" to deal with. A bounty hunter/space pirate type of story line is expected.

Expect an official announcement about the new film after 'Fast and Furious' opens big on April 3."

I am seriously down for another "Riddick" movie. "Pitch Black" was an awesome introduction to the character and while "Riddick" has some faults, I still think it was a pretty decent sci-fi film. I am ready for Riddick to return in all his bad ass glory.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Scarlett Johansson Ready to be Black Widow?



Scarlett Johansson will be appearing in "Iron Man 2" as Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow, a Russian vixen who is a deadly assassin.

Many people in the online community (also many fans of the comics) were not entirely happy with this casting because Johansson didn't look like she could play the part (look at the above picture). As for sound, I still haven't heard her pull off a Russian accent yet.

Johansson recently showed up at a party in London (the Moet and Chandon: A Tribute to Cinema party) and she looked a lot more like Black Widow.
See?


Do you think she is the right woman to play the role of Black Widow? Personally, after seeing her blond a lot it is weird to see her as a red head.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Crow Director Calls Remake "Ridiculous"


Back in Decembner I posted about how Stephen Norrington, director of "Blade," will be directing an upcoming remake of Alex Proya's original "The Crow."

It is based on the comic created by James O’Barr. It is about a rock musician, Eric Draven, who is murdered trying to rescue his girlfriend from thugs. He returns from the dead one year later to exact vengeance on his killers.

Though the original became a gothic-style hit that grossed nearly $100 million worldwide, it is primarily remembered for a tragic accident in which star Brandon Lee was killed during filming.

Brandon Lee, the son of famed martial artist Bruce Lee, was accidentally killed during the shooting of a scene in “The Crow.” A blank bullet struck and killed the actor during a scene in which Lee’s supernatural character is being targeted by gunfire.

Having just released "Knowing," Proyas spoke to Digital Spy and said his thoughts on the remake of his film.

"I have nothing to do with the remake of 'The Crow.' That's other people involved with that and I wouldn't even dream of remaking the movie, because as far as I'm concerned that's Brandon Lee's movie and that's why I finished the movie - in memory of Brandon. That's the only reason I finished it actually.

"So the whole notion of remaking it, to me, is just ridiculous and I'd have nothing to do with it, as I've had nothing to do with any of the sequels or the TV show or any of that stuff."

Do you think "The Crow" should be remade or not be messed with in memory of Brandon Lee's accidental death on set?
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

The Three Stooges


Peter and Bobby Farrelly, of "There's Something About Mary," will be writing and directing a film based on the wild antics of "The Three Stooges" for MGM.

The Farrelly brothers have landed Sean Penn (Larry), Jim Carrey (Curly) and Benicio Del Toro (Moe) as the leads in their film.

According to Variety, "The film is not a biopic, but rather a comedy built around the antics of the three characters that Moe Howard, Larry Fine and Howard played in the Columbia Pictures shorts."

These are not really final cast roles as they are still in negotiations, but if Variety printed it out then the negotiations must be going pretty well. I hear a lot of flak out there against this film where people say making this movie is a travesty and these are the wrong actors to play the roles.

I have no say in Hollywood and I can't control whether this film gets made or not. But right now they are looking to start filming at the end of this year for a 2010 release.
Will have to find out more news on this film to make a decent final decision on this matter.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Wolf Pack for New Moon


According to Latino Review, "Summit Entertainment announced today that Native American/First Nation actors Chaske Spencer, Bronson Pelletier, Alex Meraz, Kiowa Gordon and Tyson Houseman have signed on to star as the members of the wolf pack in 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon.' In the film, the wolf pack defends humans against vampires although they have a tribal history intricately entwined with Edward Cullen and his family. The wolf pack members will join Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and fellow wolf pack member Taylor Lautner in the film directed by Chris Weitz which will be released domestically November 20, 2009.

In 'The Twilight Saga: New Moon,' Bella Swan (Kristen Stewart) is devastated by the abrupt departure of her vampire love, Edward Cullen (Robert Pattinson) but her spirit is rekindled by her growing friendship with the irresistible Jacob Black (Taylor Lautner). Suddenly she finds herself drawn into the world of the werewolves, ancestral enemies of the vampires, and finds her loyalties tested.

Each member of the wolf pack is of Native decent. Spencer is Lakota (Sioux), Pelletier is Cree-Metis, Meraz is Purepecha (Tarasco), Gordon is Hualapai, and Houseman, who was discovered at an open casting call, is Cree."

I had to take so much from the source since I know very little about "New Moon." There was a big discussion online the other day about which book series was better, "Harry Potter" or "Twilight"
"Harry Potter" won big time.
"New Moon" hits theaters Nov. 20, 2009.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Where the Wild Things Are Trailer

The trailer for the film "Where the Wild Things Are" just hit the Internet and it looks quite visually stunning. I admit I want to see more of the wild things and how they move and look. The mixture of people in costumes and then CGI faces seems to work, but I will have to see more to give out my own opinion.

I remember reading the book many years ago...now we have a movie.



Only one line in the trailer (the voice of James Gandolfini).

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Monsters vs. Aliens Spoof on Cloverfield

If you haven't seen "Cloverfield" yet, then go see it. It is an awesome monster movie.
Coming out this Friday is another monster movie called "Monsters vs. Aliens."

A viral video for the movie was played on TopSecretConspiracy.com and has some of the characters from "Monsters vs. Aliens" spoof the video chaos of "Cloverfield."

I think it is hilarious!



Here is another one that just makes fun of exercise dancing from the 80's.

Green Hornet


Michel Gondry at work with cardboard boxes

During a press conference for "Observe and Report," Collider was there to ask Seth Rogen questions about his next project, "The Green Hornet."

Rogen confirmed that filming was to begin at the end of June.
As for Rogen's thoughts on Michel Gondry, the artistic director behind "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," Rogen was hoping to get some of the effects Gondry is known to use. Apparently the director wishes he can show that he can work in a studio system as well as being independent.

“You know he really does not want to. Me and Evan have actually approached him with ideas like maybe we could do something like this…you could do some of your weird people made out of string and shit like that. He’s like, “No, I don’t want to any of that. The fact that you think I want to do that drives me crazy and makes me never want to do anything like that again.” He hates being predictable and repetitive and doing what’s been done before. As soon as he starts to feel like he’s expected to do something he doesn’t want to do it at all.”

The other thing Collider asked was if the film still had the hero/sidekick story. Seth said, “Yeah and I’d say if anything it’s taken on…at first we were kind of resisting the notion of an origin story but then we realized if we kind of embraced it and played with that idea it could be a lot better so that’s something we’ve added."

Gondry wishes to show off some off his skills other than his usual style. I wish him the best of luck as I am looking forward to hearing more about "The Green Hornet."

Seyfried Out of Sucker Punch


According to Entertainment Weekly, "Amanda Seyfried's attempt to tackle some edgy theatrical material has been thwarted by scheduling issues. EW has learned that the actress, best known for her singing-and-dancing role in 'Mamma Mia,' won't be starring in Zack Snyder's 1960s-set, R-rated action fantasy 'Sucker Punch' for Warner Bros. Seyfried was offered the lead role of Baby Doll, a young woman who has been committed to an insane asylum and fantasizes about escaping with the help of her fellow inmates. But with shooting scheduled for the fall, HBO won't release her from her 'Big Love' commitment, which will be in the middle of filming its fourth season. No word yet on who Snyder will find as her replacement.

Seyfried is scheduled to complete her work on 'Chloe,' in which she costars opposite Liam Neeson and Julianne Moore, this week. It's unclear whether or not Neeson's absence will prolong her schedule on the film. With Big Love concluding its third season Sunday night, Seyfried can be seen next in the Diablo Cody-penned horror film 'Jennifer's Body,' opposite Megan Fox."

What can I say, we won't be getting none of her fantasizing about escaping from an insane asylum and probably killing people. The big wonder is now who will replace her. Do you have any suggestions?

Snyder's next film will be sure to include lots of awesome slo-mo scenes. Believe it!
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

New Astro Boy Teaser

"Astro Boy" is starting to have its marketing campaign flying high by finally have a new trailer and here it is.



"Astro Boy" is based on the classic manga by Osamu Tezuka and is about a scientists who builds a robot son to replace the child he lost. The robot uses its powers for good and to fight evil.

It has an all-star voice cast which includes Nicholas Cage, Kristen Bell, Freddie Highmore, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Eugene Levy and Nathan Lane.

"Astro Boy" hits theaters this year on Oct. 23.

Monday, March 23, 2009

The Phantom on TV


All the way back in December there were reports that "The Phantom" was getting a reboot. Check it out in one of my earlier posts here.

Now according to The Hollywood Reporter, the Sci Fi channel (sooned to be changed to Syfy) will have a "Phantom" miniseries.

"'Phantom' has been adapted a few times without much success, but Robert Halmi Jr., president and CEO of RHI entertainment, said the previous stumbles are a good reason to try again.

'That there hasn't been a successful 'Phantom' leaves the door wide open for us, since nobody has made it their own yet,' Halmi said.

Sci Fi appreciates that the crusader doesn't have superpowers and is more in the grounded vein of Iron Man and Batman. 'It's not a guy in purple tights,' said Mark Stern, Sci Fi Channel executive vp of original programming."

Sounds interesting. Bringing "Phantom" to television may play out better than bringing him back to theaters.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Angels and Demons Science and Religon Featurette

This actually came out last week, but the source I was watching it on had the video link there but there was no video. It ended up just being a black screen with no video available. But alas, I have found another source, watched this and now you can too!

Director Ron Howard and stars Tom Hanks and Ewan McGregor talk about the ideas behind "Angels & Demons" and how they play into the story.



Sony Pictures will be debuting "Angels & Demons" in theaters everywhere on May 15.

I hear rumors that the Vatican wants to boycott this film. I'm pretty sure there is an independent movie coming out called "Antichrist." Wonder if they have heard of it.

Where the Wild Things Are


USA Today interviewed Spike Jonze, director of the upcoming children novel adaptation "Where the Wild Things Are," to discuss the creative process behind this film.

“As a kid, I just connected to it," Jonze said in the interview. "I wanted to hear it over and over. It’s like trying to explain why you love somebody. To me, the Wild Things are both cuddly and dangerous. I wanted to climb atop of them like Max.”

The story deals with Max, a disobedient little boy sent to bed without his supper, creates his own world--a forest inhabited by ferocious wild creatures that crown Max as their ruler.It is written by Maurice Sendak and only contains 338 words.

Sendak added his own input to Jonze on the script of the film, but Jonze says Sendak “was adamant that [Jonze] make [his] own thing.”

Jonze didn't reveal much about the script additions except that they "include details about Max's home life that shed light on why he felt the need to run off to a magical place."

"I never thought of it as a children's movie," he said. "My intention was to be true to how it felt to be 9 years old. Maurice's whole thing is to be honest. You can say anything to kids as long as you are respectful and not pandering."

"Where the Wild Things Are" hits theaters October 16 and the first trailer for the film will be shown in front of "Monsters vs. Aliens" coming out this Friday!
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies coming out this week!

Monsters vs. Aliens - After being hit by a meteorite on her wedding day, Susan Murphy (Witherspoon) is transformed into a monster named Ginormica and subsequently whisked away to a secret government compound where others like her have been rounded up over the years. When the Earth comes under attack by an alien commander known as Gallaxhar (Wilson), however, Ginormica and her new allies are set free to save the planet.

The Haunting in Connecticut - For reasons related to their son's health, Peter and Sara Campbell (Donovan and Madsen) relocate their family to Northern Connecticut. As they settle into their new Victorian home, however, they come face to face with their abode's unsettling history and the supernatural forces who share the space.

12 Rounds - Detective Danny Fisher (Cena) discovers his girlfriend (Scott) has been kidnapped by a ex-con tied to Baxter's past, and he'll have to successfully complete 12 challenges in order to secure her safe release.

Movies coming out on DVD!

Quantum of Solace
Tales of the Black Freighter
Bolt

Box Office results for the weekend!

1 Knowing$24.8 M

2 I Love You, Man$18.0 M

3Duplicity$14.4 M

4 Race to Witch Mountain $13.0 M

5Watchmen $6.7 M

6 The Last House on the Left (2009) $5.9 M

7 Taken $4.1 M

8Slumdog Millionaire $2.7 M

9Tyler Perry's Madea Goes To Jail $2.5 M

10Coraline $2.1 M

Wow. "Knowing" is the No. 1 movie in America. Who knew that? Nick Cage knew.
"Paul Blart: Mall Cop" is no longer in the Top Ten. That is a good sign.
Next week, "Monsters vs. Aliens" will dominate at No. 1. Why? Because as one of my friends keeps telling me, family movies win out all the time.

Sunday, March 22, 2009

I Love You, Man



"I Love You, Man" follows the same stereotypical romantic comedy routine where two people meet, enter a relationship, reach some form of conflict and reconcile by the third act. The catch is that this story doesn't follow a relationship between a man and a woman, but two heterosexual guys in what's been dubbed a "bromance".

Paul Rudd finally gets to play the lead role in a film and one could say he deserves it after being co-starred in so many film such as "Clueless," "Wet Hot American Summer," "The 40 Year Old Virgin" and "Role Models."

Peter Klaven (Rudd's character) is a really boring guy and has no friends. He also is really awkward in his attempts to say words where he just starts to make up his own sayings. They are funny at first, but become extreme overkill through out the movie. People in the theater started shaking their heads at later points in the film when Peter said something strange. In fact, Peter himself would shake his head too, feeding the audience's angst against the continued and repetitive use of a joke which loses its flavor after the 17 time it is used.



After only dating Zooey (played by Rashida Jones fro "The Office") for eight months they decide to get married. Despite being perfect marriage material, Zooey's friends, Hailey (played by Sarah Burns) and Denise (played by Jaime Pressly from "My Name is Earl"), believe that since he has no friends he may become clingy.

Thus the beginning of man-dates and the search for some friends. These are some of the truly funny parts of this movie. Now keep in mind this entire movie has some really funny parts that are great, but when the jokes fall flat they really suck. You win some you lose some and this film really deals with a large gap in the funny factor for some of the jokes. I would say the main problem is that many jokes are recycled through the movie.



Things start to look up for Peter (and the audience) when he meets Sydney Fife (Jason Segel from "How I Met Your Mother")at an open house, a fun loving guy who readily admits he's not in the market for a home and only attends open houses for the free food and to pick up divorcees. The two become friends quite quickly. They bond over their love of the rock band Rush and just being honest with each other.

This feels a lot like "Role Models" where Rudd played the more straight-laced character while Sean William Scott was the crazy guy. Now Segel plays the crazy guy and the relationship between the two characters doesn't feel as real as it did between Rudd and Scott in "Role Models." This might be because they are just becoming friends in "I Love You, Man."

With Sydney's encouragement, Pete starts to come out of his shell and grow more comfortable with himself. Zooey finds his transformation delightful, but grows more than a little concerned when her fiancee begins to spend a little too much time with his new buddy and raise questions like "just why am I getting married?" The film the follows the blueprint of a romantic comedy just switching with two men instead of a couple.



As I said earlier, the film does have some extremely funny moments (I think of vomit, blow-jobs and billboards in my top three laughs), but everything else falls a little flat. Is it a bad movie? No! Is it an okay movie? Yes! Is it a movie you will remember all the time and want to watch it over and over again? Probably not. But it is worth a watch just to see the laughs and hilarity of two men trying to make their friendship work.

6.2/10

Hey, did you know that Barry, the always angry husband of Denise, is the director of "Iron Man?" Yeah, you better believe he acts as well as directs!


Did I also mention Lou Ferrgino is in the movie? He's from "The Incredible Hulk."

Saturday, March 21, 2009

50 Cent Not in Expendables


It was reported last week that rapper 50 Cent would take the place of Forest Whitaker in the upcoming Sly Stallone film "The Expendables."

AICN now reports that Stallone has hired someone else to take the role of Hale Caesar in the movie.

Former San Diego Charger Terry Crews 6'2 & a half" and a big guy, so I think he will fit right in with other tough guys like Sylvester Stallone, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren and Jet Li.

Crews has also been in "Malibu's Most Wanted," "White Chicks,"The Longest Yard" remake and "Get Smart."
He also plays the father on the televisions how "Everybody Hates Chris" and will be in this summer's "Terminator Salvation."

He seems to do mostly comedy stints, but I believe he is a more levelheaded actor than 50 Cent.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Reviews From Spring Break

Spring Break was a blast and I was able to watch quite a few movies. Just getting back to school was pretty busy, but now it is the weekend and I can write up some of the reviews of movies I saw while over Spring Break last week.

Slumdog Millionaire - What makes this movie truly unique (besides winning eight Oscars including Best Picture) is that it correctly portrays life in India. Keep in mind there is a great plot that may be confusing for people who aren't used to being brought from present to past over and over. It definitely is worth a watch and has a happy dance number at the end!
8.5/10

Quantum of Solace - I still don't like the new Bond that is being done by Daniel Craig. Sean Connery is shaking his head somewhere after seeing this movie. "Casino Royale" was a pretty good action thriller but not a good Bond movie. "Quantum of Solace" is just action without anything else. I do not like the new Bond. I admit this and I want to go back to the cheesy gadgets and women with silly names and having Bond not be a pissed off vigilante anymore.
6.0/10

Changeling - Based on a story of a terrible police scandal against a woman (and just society against women in general in the 1920's), this film deals with the loss of a child and a mother's devotion to find him. Angelina Jolie shows off her acting skills in this movie and was nominated for Best Actress for her role in this film. It is a hard movie to watch not because it is bad, but because it is so good but also depressing.
7.5/10

Coraline - Some people just hate claymation films. "A Nightmare Before Christmas" was good, but never drew me in as a cult classic as many people I know swear it is THE movie. "Coraline" looks a whole lot better than "A Nightmare Before Christmas" and I think it has a better story to boot. I could see it being too scary for kids but I think that was a part of the director's intent. One of the last parts of the film kind of felt like a video game quest to me, searching for objects to complete her mission, but that was the only part I kind of shook my head at. Overall, a decent film.
8.3/10

Friday, March 20, 2009

Reyonlds Dishes Out More Deadpool Talk

Ryan Reynolds has been talking about his role as Deadpool in the upcoming "X-Men Origins: Wolverine" and everyone is really interested in whether his character his true to his comic origins.

If the images from the trailer which show a strange figured being with multiple powers is Deadpool, than the movie goes far off from what the mutant really is and makes him into something else entirely.

Does this mean they are ruining the character? Read more on my thoughts from one of my earlier posts here.
Reynolds talks to MTV News more on the transformation of Deadpool, saying how he doesn't play Deadpool, but his alias Wade Wilson.

Director for Little Fockers


According to First Showing, "It looks like director Pete Segal will not be jumping onto 'Get Smart 2' this year as was originally expected. Due to Steve Carell's choice to shoot the comedy 'Date Night' for Fox instead of 'Get Smart 2,' Segal was able to hop onto 'Little Fockers,' the third film in Universal's comedy franchise comprise of 'Meet the Parents' (2000) and 'Meet the Fockers' (2004). Those two films were the work of director Jay Roach, who is being replaced by Segal this time around."

This film will center around a baby being born into the Fockers and the Byrnes families. Of course, then chaos will ensue, there will be a big misunderstanding when people get mad and then every one will make up and be happy. The end.

The franchise was well down back when it was made, but having four years separate the first two films and now a seven year space between the second and third films causes just a gap in how well this film can be done. Has it been too long that a sequel won't be as effective as the originals?

Maybe having a new director on board can liven things up.
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Crank 2 Clip


This movie is starting to make the rounds online. Trailers have been coming out as well as posters and now we have clips of the upcoming film.

Watch below to see Jason Statham in action in "Crank: High Voltage."

WARNING! This clip has violence and an almost naked Amy Smart wearing only tape over her chest and pink shorts!


"Crank: High Voltage" hits theaters in less than a month on April 17.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Kirk as Green Lantern?


IESB and Latino Review both have sources that work fro WB. This sources remain anonymous and say that WB is looking for its "Green Lantern" and the top of that list has the name Chris Pine.

Does that name sound familiar to you? He is playing Captain Kirk in the upcoming "Star Trek" franchise reboot.
Can one man play both Captain Kirk and Green Lantern. Maybe.

In the new "Green Lantern" film, Hal Jordan is a pilot who finds a powerful ring and its lantern-like battery when a spaceship crashes on Earth. Jordan is selected to succeed the craft's dying occupant as the next Green Lantern, a galactic guardian who is a member of an interstellar corps.

Would he make a good Green Lantern? WB seems to think so. What are your thoughts?
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Trailer for Year One

When a couple of lazy hunter-gatherers named Zed and Oh (played by Jack Black and Michael Cera) are banished from their primitive village, they set off on an epic journey through the ancient world.



"Year One" is directed by comedy mastermind Harold Ramis, who played Egon in "Ghostbusters" and both wrote and directed comedy classics like "Caddyshack," "Groundhog Day," "Multiplicity," "Analyze This," and "The Ice Harvest." The screenplay was co-written by Ramis as well as "The Office" writers Gene Stupnitsky and Lee Eisenberg.
Sony Pictures is bringing "Year One" to theaters everywhere on June 19 this summer.

Shooting for Iron Man 2 and Green Lantern

The new age of media is upon us the the way we find news and tell stories has changed vastly over the past few decades. Jon Favreau, director of the "Iron Man" franchise, has relayed more information about filming for "Iron Man 2" via his Twitter.

"Rehearsals began today on Iron Man 2. Three weeks from shooting and my life is no longer my own. I forgot how overwhelming this process is."

Favreau spoke to Entertainment Tonight during the release of "I Love You, Man" and spoke about Mickey Rourke's role in the upcoming sequel.

"I know Mickey's been in Russia doing research for a role, I can confirm that," Favreau said. "We haven't made any official announcements yet. But I will say that there's a Russian villain in our film."

Favreau also spoke with IESB during the "I Love You, Man" premiere and spoke more on Rourke and also Scarlett Johansson.

(He's comes in at the end of this video, is worth the watch)


"Iron Man 2" hits theaters next year on May 7. Expect a trailer most likely by the end of this year or in January.

"Green Lantern" is also getting news via Twitter from Production Weekly which twitted about when shooting will start for this film.

"'Green Lantern' has setup production offices at the Tribeca West complex in West Los Angeles… [and is] scheduled to begin filming mid-September in Australia."

Dark Horizons had the chance to speak with producer Donald Deline and speak about the current status of the film.

“The status is, funnily enough, we are leaving for Australia Wednesday night with Martin Campbell, our director, to go scout in Sydney and Melbourne, and we plan on starting to shoot mid-September in Australia” said De Line.
De Line also admitted that no one has been cast for the movie at all, but they will be sticking with the Hal Jordan version of the Green Lantern.

De Line went on to add he is also working on an adaptation of "The Jetsons" and "Yogi Bear."

"Green Lantern" hits theaters Dec. 17, 2010. Expect a trailer for this film to come around early next year.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Crank 2 Trailer

In this high-octane sequel, hitman Chev Chelios' (Statham) launches himself on an electrifying chase through Los Angeles in pursuit of the Chinese mobster who has stolen his nearly indestructible heart.

"Crank: High Voltage" is written and directed by Neveldine/Taylor, the duo behind the 2006 hit film "Crank."

The UK official site for the film arrived and with it came a new red ban trailer for the film.

WARNING: This video has graphic violence and sexual material!


Lots of violence and sex and some more violence in this movie!

"Crank: High Voltage" stars Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Dwight Yoakam and Clifton Collins Jr.
It is due out in theaters on April 17, 2009.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Movie News Mash 8


"Lost Boys 3"

Bloody-Disgusting is reporting that "Lost Boys 3" is getting made.

Corey Feldman has come on to executive produce and will also return once again as Edgar Frog. On top of that Moviehole reports Jamison Newlander has also been cast and will return as Alan Frog. Newlander had been cast in "Lost Boys: The Tribe," but his scenes were apparently cut which means this will mark the official Frog brothers reunion.

Evan Charnov (”Fearless”) has been hired to write the new film for the Warner Premiere direct-to-DVD feature.

Bloody-Disgusting adds Corey Haim’s return as Sam Emerson “is highly, highly unlikely at this point in time” and the new film will focus on Feldman’s character.

I have only seen the first film and thought it was an okay vampire film though it is extremely dated but gives a nostalgic feeling of the eighties. I haven't seen "The Tribe," but I have heard bad things. I will wind up seeing it someday anyway. This third one will be going straight to DVD for all the Frog brother fans.



"The Expendables"

This film has a stellar cast that includes Sylvester Stallone (who’s also writing and directing the film), we have Mickey Rourke, Dolph Lundgren, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Randy Couture, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, Arnold Schwarzenegger (if only in a cameo appearance) Eric Roberts, Danny Trejo, Forest Whitaker and Charisma Carpenter.

The film has been given a release date of April 23, 2010.

But news has come up that the film may be pushed back a month because Whitaker is not going to be in the movie because of a scheduling conflict. Instead, the news from AICN is that 50 Cent (aka Curtis Jackson) will be replacing the Oscar-winning actor.

My opinion, bad choice.



"Blacklight"

This is the beginning of a new way to envision the term multi-media. "Blacklight" is being developed by Fox Atomic, Union Entertainment and game-developer Zombie Studios. The central story involves a special-ops squad sent to a war-torn region in the near future where, of course, things hit the fan.

The interesting part of all this is that from the get-go this project is being made into a movie, comic and video game. Usually a movie is made and then other products later, but this is a whole new way to have everything set up from the beginning.

According to Screen Rant, "'Blacklight' is looking to do away with the old trend by bringing all parties to the table at the onset, working in unision to conceive and develop the project. So far the word is that Fox Atomic is moving ahead with the 'Blacklight' feature film, hiring screenwriter Jason Dean Hall to both handle the script, as well as the over-arching “world concept” of the 'Blacklight' continuim.

Zombie studios, which is responsible for the 'Blacklight' video game, is currently trying to leverage the movie deal with Fox Atomic into a publishing deal for the game. Union Entertainment, which specializes in developing and producing movie/comic/video game projects, is keeping all parties coordinated while also handling some of the production duties on the movie and game aspects of the project.

No word yet on how far along (or not) the 'Blacklight' comic book is into development, who will publish it, or what it will entail. I’m sure we’ll get those details as soon as the developers think them up."

I do think that "The Matrix" kind of had this deal with "Matrix Reloaded" and the game "Enter the Matrix," since they were made together. So I don't really see this as the 'first' time being done.

The Book of Eli


"The Book of Eli" is Denzel Washington’s upcoming action thriller that is directed by the Hughes brothers. Also starring with Washington are Mila Kunis, Gary Oldman, Ray Stevenson, Jennifer Beals, Michael Gambon and Evan Jones.

"Book of Eli" is set for a January 15, 2010 release from Warner Bros. and centers on a lone hero named Eli (Washington) who must fight his way across the wasteland of a near-future America to protect a sacred book that might hold the key to saving the future of humanity. Beals is playing Oldman’s sexual prize and Kunis’ mother, a blind woman doing anything she can to protect her child.

Here is a featurette on the film that aired during Entertainment Tonight.

Book of Eli


This movie looks like an interesting action flick that might have a pretty good plot twist somewhere in the middle. It has a strange release date for next January, but I will still see it.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Re-Animator Cast


Horror Movies spoke with producers Brian Yuzna (the original "Re-Animator") and Ray Haboush ("The Last House of the Left") and found out more on the cast of the reboot of "Re-Animator."

The remake will be shot entirely in Spain and will start as early as next summer.

"Yuzna also confirms that this is not a new chapter in the Re-Animator saga, but a remake of the first one which follows a dedicated medical student and his girlfriend who get involved in some crazy experiments involving reanimating dead tissue. When one day an odd new student arrives on campus and things really start to 'get moving.'

Jeffrey Coombs, who played the lead in the original, will have a small part in the remake according to Yuzna, however he won't be reprising his role as Doctor Herbert West. Instead it will go to Ezra Godden, who has done some TV mainly but also starred in 'Dagon.' Co-starring as his girlfriend / fiancee will be none other than Canadian Cutie Elisha Cuthbert."



Sounds pretty good to me. Especially having Cuthbert in the film. I love the movie "The Girl Next Door." One of my favorite comedy sex romps because it deals with so much more than sex and comedy. But for that story, you'll have to see the movie.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Bay Needs a Break from Robots


Monday we heard the news that "Transformers 3" would be coming out in 2011, making the franchise a trilogy and having a film out every two years.
That is a lot of work for the crew, as I mentioned in my earlier post.

Now it seems Michael Bay doesn't want all that work. He wants a break. I think he has earned it.

According to Bay's official Web site, "I said I was taking off a year from Transformers. Paramount made a mistake in dating Transformers 3 - they asked me on the phone - I said yes to July 4 - but for 2012 - whoops! Not 2011!!! That would mean I would have to start prep in September. No way. My brain needs a break from fighting robots."

If this does go through and the film is rescheduled and made, then this will be the first trilogy that Bay has made. All of his films stand alone except for his one sequel besides "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" and that is "Bad Boys II."

More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Rome the Movie is Happening


Movie Web had the chance to speak with actor Ray Stevenson for the DVD release of "Punisher: War Zone." Being fans of the HBO television series "Rome," they had to ask about the current status of the film being made to continue where the show left off.

"The script is in full development," Stevenson said. "As you are probably aware, this is a pretty strange process. We could go into production in a year, or it could be as quick as six months. Who knows? It will happen. At least it is no longer a rumor. From what I have heard, they are nearing the end of script development."

Stevenson went on to add how he can't wait to return as the character Titus Pullo.
"The guy is going to come in with a high body count," he said.

Stevenson said that the amount of graphic violence and sex that was seen on the show might be in the movie, but it will be up to Bruno Heller since he is writing the movie.
"I don't think anybody else could write the movie," he said. "It will be Bruno at the helm. That guy has a soft spot for Pullo and Vorenus. I don't think he will let the ball drop. I don't think he will disappoint. He never pulled his punches with the hard drama or the social status, or the action sequences. He put full honesty into the characters. I completely trust him, and I can't wait to read his script once it materializes."

Are you excited for a "Rome" movie? I personally loved the show. Though it may not be 100 percent historically accurate, it was an interesting take on the times of Julius Caesar.

More news to come! Catch ya' later!