More Watchmen Footage

A new trailer for "Watchmen" has come out in Japan and it shows some more exclusive footage of the film.
Also, Zack Snyder has created another video journal focusing on the Minutemen, the old-school heroes in the film.

Japanese Trailer


Minutemen Video Journal


Let's just ignore the lawsuit stuff for now and enjoy these videos!

Ninja Assassin Training Video

Do you like ninjas? Do you want to see how ninjas train to fight?

Check out this awesome training video for the upcoming movie "Ninja Assassin!"



"Ninja Assassin" follows Raizo, one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them... and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.

In Berlin, Europol agent Mika Coretti has stumbled upon a money trail linking several political murders to an underground network of untraceable assassins from the Far East. Defying the orders of her superior, Ryan Maslow, Mika digs into top secret agency files to learn the truth behind the murders. Her investigation makes her a target, and the Ozunu Clan sends a team of killers, led by the lethal Takeshi, to silence her forever. Raizo saves Mika from her attackers, but he knows that the Clan will not rest until they are both eliminated. Now, entangled in a deadly game of cat and mouse through the streets of Europe, Raizo and Mika must trust one another if they hope to survive... and finally bring down the elusive Ozunu Clan.

Source: Latino Review

Jonah Hex New Director

The Hollywood Reporter broke the news on the newly appointed director for the anticipated comic adaptation of "Jonah Hex."

"Jimmy Hayward, who directed the animated 'Horton Hears a Who!' will make his live-action debut with 'Jonah Hex,' the Warner Bros. western based on the DC Comics character.

Josh Brolin is attached to star in the film, which previously had Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor ("Crank") on board as directors. The duo, who also wrote the script, bowed out over creative differences in November. The studio, which hopes to put the movie into production in March or April, went on a fast-track search, putting together a short list that included such names as Andy Fickman and McG before narrowing it down to Hayward.

The character of Hex, known for having the right side of his face disfigured and wearing a Confederate army uniform, was a rough-and-tumble gunslinger and part-time bounty hunter whose adventures always ended in blood. One incarnation of his comic book series saw the Western genre combined with supernatural elements, and it's this aspect that was featured in Neveldine and Taylor's script. The studio will likely keep the script, though it's expected that Hayward will put his stamp on it."

I am willing to see how Hayward, an animator, will do on a live-action film based on a comic. I wonder how much Hayward knows about Hex too.
What are your thoughts on this new director?
More news to come! Catch ya' later!

Shazam Movie Dead

Sad news for fans who were hoping for a "Shazam!" movie.

According to Screen Rant, "A big-screen adaptation of 'Shazam!' has long been in development over the years. And it appeared the project was picking up steam with the news that Peter Segal (the director behind Warner Brother’s recent Summer hit 'Get Smart') had signed on to direct.

But according to the film’s writer John August ('Charlie & the Chocolate Factory' and 'Big Fish'), Shazam! is in fact dead.

Speaking on his blog, August gave a detailed 'blow by blow' report detailing the problems he faced with issues ranging from the age of Billy Batson (the lead character) to keeping the film’s villain Black Adam from being 'too sympathetic.'"

On August's blog, he reveals that it was actually other movies that proved to be the downfall of "Shazam!"

“In retrospect, I can point to two summer Warner Bros. movies that I believe defined the real issue at hand: Speed Racer and The Dark Knight. The first flopped; the second triumphed. Given only those two examples, one can understand why a studio might wish for their movies to be more like the latter. But to do so ignores the success of Iron Man, which spend most of its running time as a comedic origin story, and the even more pertinent example of WB’s own Harry Potter series. I tried to make this case, to no avail.”

How do you feel about other movies affecting "Shazam!?"

Valkyrie

"Valkyrie" is a film based on the true events of the last assassination attempt on Adolf Hitler in 1944. It stars a major list of actors incluuding Kenneth Branagh, Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson, Carice van Houten, Thomas Kretschmann, Eddie Izzard, Christian Berkel and Terence Stamp. The film stars Tom Cruise in the main role as Colonel Claus von Stauffenberg, the German officer who hatches the plan to overthrow Hitler. The film is directed by Bryan Singer.

I felt there were a few difficulties to get over in this film, and Screen Rant picked out the major three ones that I wished to discuss.
Tom Cruise.
Accents.
History.

Tom Cruise is a major actor and performs well in "Valkyrie." His performance does not outshine other actors since the rest of the cast include many A-list English actors. Some audience members just don't see Cruise the same anymore since the all the gossip from magazines and such. His comeback cameo from "Tropic Thunder" has brought him back to the front and I believe he can return to doing more movies.



One of the major concerns about the movie that I heard from others was the use of accents in the film. Everyone was supposed to be German, yet the entire cast included English actors (there were a few German actors, like Thomas Kretschmann). The film stars out with a monologue voice over with Cruise speaking in German which slowly bleeds into English. English is then used throughout the film. The hard part of "Valkyrie" was to make the audience believe these were Germans speaking English, and it worked out well. During the movie I was watching Germans trying to kill Hitler and not English Germans.

In history, we know Hitler died in 1945 by killing himself (unless you believe otherwise). So unless you never went to school, you would know Operation Valkyrie fails. The other trick was to keep the suspense going so that people don't get bored knowing the group fails at the end. Singer did a great job of this in keeping Hitler a mysterious, menacing figure while making it seem hopeful at points that the group survives. But during the last 15 minutes of the film, you already know what is going to happen, but you watch it anyway.

Other concerns that I thought about during the movie dealt with complexities of names and explosives. I am terrible when it comes to names of characters in movies. I really am. If a character is not pointed to and a name is given to them, then I don't know who is who. So when a bunch of German names are thrown at me (I'm even bad with American ones), I could get confused. Luckily the film differentiates each character and it is actually hard to not know who a name belongs to (there were a lot of characters that I never got the name of at all). Another complex issue dealt with explosives and how bombs will explode at different pressures and etc. All that information was sugarcoated down so that anyone without a degree in physics could understand (like me!).

In the end, I believe it is a good WWII epic that can be viewed on the other side of the fight instead of such battle films as "Saving Private Ryan" or "Flags of our Fathers." Plus, I learned something about history...if they stayed true to the facts. Will have to wait for some kind of documentary on the DVD to find that out for real.
7.3/10

Personal Message/Rant

My laptop did not make it out of the shop on time for school.
I am not at home anymore and I am currently typing in a computer lab.

My laptop was suuposed to be returned to me after two weeks. The fix-it place recieved my computer Dec. 16, but didn't start working on it until Dec. 26. When I get it back is anyone's guess.

I will try to head to the lab once a day to update. Otherwise, go out and enjoy some movies! I know I will have to do that more since I have no computer!

Box Office Results and Weekly Movie News

Movies opening this week!

Bride Wars - Two best friends (Hudson and Hathaway) become rivals when a clerical error results in their respective weddings being held at the same place ... on the same day.

The Unborn - Haunted by strange dreams and recurring ghostly visions, Casey Beldon (Yustman) turns to a spiritual advisor (Oldman) for help. Together, they learn that Casey had a twin brother who never made it to term, and that her intended sibling is tied to a curse that requires Casey's death in order to manifest itself in our world.

Not So Easily Broken - A car accident threatens to sever the already fragile bond between Clarice Johnson (Henson) and her husband, Dave (Chestnut) -- especially when they both begin to develop feelings for other people.

Movies coming out on DVD this week!

Righteous Kill
Bangkok Dangerous
Babylon A.D.
Pineapple Express

Box Office Results for the weekend!

1 Marley & Me$24.0 M

2 Bedtime Stories$20.0 M

3 The Curious Case of Benjamin Button$18.4 M

4 Valkryie $14.0 M

5 Yes Man $13.8 M

6 Seven Pounds $10.0 M

7 The Tale of Despereaux $7.0 M

8 Doubt $5.0 M

9 The Day the Earth Stood Still$4.8 M

10 Slumdog Millionaire$4.7 M

Fantasy Film Franchises

Fantasy films sometimes create major turnouts at movie theaters and sometimes they don't. Movie makers saw the success of "Harry Potter" and immediately tried to jump on the band wagon of the fantasy genre.
It turns out not a lot of fantasy franchises do well.

According to The Independent, "America's half-empty shopping malls aren't the only place where big business is sucking its teeth and proclaiming 'everything must go.' The worsening credit crunch is also threatening the future of some of Hollywood's best-known film franchises.

Disney took advantage of the seasonal news lull last week to quietly slip out news that it has decided to withdraw from producing 'The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,' the next in the Chronicles of Narnia series of films based on the children's books by C S Lewis.

Blaming 'budgetary considerations' for its decision, the studio said it would not renew an option to co-finance the $200m (£137m) movie because the worsening economic climate has forced it to become more selective about the number of films it produces.

It was the second major fantasy franchise to be unceremoniously cancelled in recent months. Earlier this year, Warner Bros decided not to make a follow-up to 'The Golden Compass,' the first instalment of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy. At the time, the studio suggested that the decision to abandon the sequel, 'The Subtle Knife,' had been made because the original had upset Christian groups.

However, the real reason was likely to have been more prosaic: The Golden Compass received lukewarm reviews and managed to generate just $70m at the US box office. Although the film staved off disaster by taking $300m internationally, investors were sceptical about a follow-up.

The wider film industry is expecting to tighten its belt in 2009 with even blue-chip film-makers unable to raise funds. Steven Spielberg's Dreamworks company is facing a rocky new year after failing to raise the $750m it needs to produce its slate of 17 films. Some of the money was to have been provided by AIG, the insurance giant that collapsed in September. No new investor has yet emerged.

Even Harry Potter, the most profitable franchise in film history, isn't totally secure. Its screenwriter, Steve Kloves, said recently that Warner Bros was worried about the prospects for the last three films in the series, since J K Rowling is no longer driving anticipation for the titles by producing new books."

Screen Rant replied to the threat of the last three "Harry Potter" films not being made by saying, "But I don’t understand how Warner Bros. could think even for the slightest of moments that a 'Harry Potter' film wouldn’t make tons of money at the box office. Whether there are new books being released or not, the remaining installments are going to do just as well as the other films… perhaps even better because they show the story drawing to a close. 'Harry Potter' has already proven itself to be the most financially successful film franchise of all time."

What are your thoughts on these economic troubles affecting the movie industry? Do you think there should be new "Narnia" or "Golden Compass" films? How would you feel if the last Harry Potter films weren't made?