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Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Filed under: Action, Animation, Paramount, Sony, Tech Stuff, Comic/Superhero/Geek
Today brings good news and bad news for fans eagerly awaiting The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn, the first film in a proposed trilogy of new, motion-capture animated 3D films co-produced by Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson (among others) based on the comic book series created by Georges "Hergé" Remi. Spielberg took up directorial duties on the first in the series, which was supposed to begin filming in 2008 for a 2010 release, but Universal, burned by the under-performance of Beowulf and Monster House at the box office, decided to pull out in the pre-production process, halting progress until Paramount could partner with Sony in order to grease the gears financially. Not much has popped up in the news department since then, however at the London premiere of Peter Jackson's The Lovely Bones, the Lord of the Rings director told reporters that filming had finally been completed on Spielberg's Tintin entry. However, it's still no where close to release. Jackson went on to say that it is going to take another two years to actually animate the film, meaning fans are most likely looking at a late 2011 release date for The Secret of the Unicorn.
Trailer for Family Guy's 'Something, Something, Something Dark Side'
Filed under: Action, Animation, Comedy, Fandom, Trailers and Clips
An extended trailer for the next Family Guy Star Wars special has arrived online over at Apple and iTunes (watch it after the jump). Titled Something, Something, Something Dark Side, this time the animated sitcom is aiming their lightsabers at Empire Strikes Back. Featuring large camel robots who hurt their knees, annoying high-pitched princesses and a giant chicken dressed as Boba Fett, fans should expect the same sorta hilarious shtick that came out of Family Guy's first Star Wars spoof, Blue Harvest (though some feel the Robot Chicken Star Wars episodes one-upped them considerably, but that's a topic for a different day). Because of the popularity of the first special, 20th Century Fox is pimping out the follow-up pretty hard. It's due to hit DVD and Blu-ray on December 22nd, and I imagine they'll actually air it on television at some point in 2010. A spoof of Return of the Jedi, titled We Have A Bad Feeling About This, is also being planned.
The official description for Something, Something, Something Dark Side goes something like this: "Holy ship! The Family Guy empire strikes back with another hilarious parody of your favorite sci-fi saga! May the laughs be with you as (Chris) Skywalker joins forces with (Peter) Solo and Princess (Lois) Leia to battle (Stewie) Vader and his Imperial minions. A host of new characters comes along for the wild ride, including Mort Goldman as Lando Calrissian, Chris's boss Carl as Yoda, and the Giant Chicken as the nefarious Boba Fett. It's an outrageous, out-of-this-world experience you'll "saber" for light-years to come!"
Watch both trailers for Something, Something, Something Dark Side after the jump.
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
Filed under: Action, Drama, New Releases, Fandom
What major movie production features an interracial friendship that defies all the expected stereotypes? Hint: it's not the one starring Sandra Bullock.
On its own merits, The Blind Side is a heartwarming story of the modern South, in which a rich white 40-something woman (Bullock) befriends a poor black teenager (Quenton Aaron). Their relationship develops to the point that the young man feels a part of her family. I agree with our reviewer, Jette Kernion, who described it as "a very good example of a sports-related family film, with quality performances and writing." She also notes the "seeming visual message that the African-American community can't or won't care for their own, and that the saviors here are rich white conservatives." The film is based on a non-fiction account, but it still makes me wonder why, exactly, we needed another film depicting that particular racial dynamic -- beyond providing a great starring role for Bullock and the aforementioned heartwarming elements.
As finely-edged as a new razor blade, Ninja Assassin establishes itself as a contender for "CGI Fu Movie of the Decade" in its very first sequence, gleefully slicing off body parts with the abandon of an extreme gore flick that would satisfy most horror hounds. It rocks back and forth between ponderous philosophical pontifications and riotously preposterous action scenes like a ticking time bomb, exploding in geysers of blood at regular intervals. Our reviewer William Goss was much less taken with the film than I am -- I think it's fair to say he hated it -- so bear in mind that your mileage may vary wildly. However, I feel confident in saying that Ninja Assassin presents a rarely seen relationship: a friendship between two people that makes no mention of their racial differences.
DreamWorks Puts 'Real Steel' In Their Ring
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sports, Deals, Paramount, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Dreamworks, Steven Spielberg
If you held out faint hope that Hugh Jackman wouldn't be helping Shawn Levy box robots, and would abandon it for a feature film adaptation of A Steady Rain, kiss it goodbye now. Variety reports that DreamWorks' Steven Spielberg and Stacey Snider have green-lit Real Steel, making it the studio's first big financial project since it split with Paramount, and had to find its own money.Spielberg was attached to the project as executive producer when it was first announced, and it seems that it's been a real passion project for him. DreamWorks bought the project back in 2005, and it was one of the films they held onto after splitting from Paramount. "When we took it with us, we really highlighted it as something we would put the pedal to metal on," said DreamWorks co-president of production Mark Sourian. "It's a project that Steven always wanted to do. It just came together rapidly after we left Paramount." The film will be made for the relatively low budget of $80 million, and will begin production next June.
With a low budget to avoid Transformers excess, perhaps the magic of Spielberg and Richard Matheson can overcome the kiddie tendencies of Shawn Levy, and turn it into something special. A lot of commenters mentioned that Matheson's story was adapted into an episode of the Twilight Zone called Steel. Happily, it's online and I've embedded it below the jump. It really is a good episode, and while Levy keeps stressing that his Real Steel is grounded in its "father-son relationship," I hope it can retain a bit of Matheson's grit. I could be happy with a robot version of Million Dollar Baby.
Who Will Be The Crow?
Filed under: Action, Drama, Casting, Mystery & Suspense, Fandom, Remakes and Sequels
Oh, The Crow! I loved you so! I had the poster, the comic book by James O'Barr, the T-shirt, and the unrequited crush on Brandon Lee, whose tragic death only fanned the flames of my teenage desire. I even went to see the sequel, The Crow: City of Angels, which featured the spectacularly bad line, "F*ck you, bird d*ck!" uttered by none other than Iggy Pop. (I did, however, forget to light a candle for its 15th anniversary earlier this fall. Sniff.)As previously reported, there is a relaunch being written by Stephen Norrington, who will also direct, that might not even include Eric Draven, the main character (sacre bleu!). The last time that Norrington took a crack at directing a beloved comic book was the 2003 stinker The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but as io9.com reported, so far the script is getting good reviews. Meredith Woerner at io9.com coaxed some details from producer Ryan Kavanaugh (Nine, Brothers, Zombieland), and while he wouldn't reveal which actor is going to be smearing himself with makeup to wreak vengeance on those who violated and murdered his beloved, he did say it will be "a whole relaunch of the franchise, much more of a dark superhero type" and starring an already-established actor.
Watch This: A 'Twilight' Intervention
Filed under: Action, Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, New Releases, Trailers and Clips
"Team Jacob!" roars a trio of dudes in a bar. Drinks are flowing fast. "A typical horrible Monday just became amazing," gushes a woman who's about to go see a private screening of Twilight: New Moon. The crowd moves from the bar to what looks suspiciously like a high school theater to get amped up for some muscle-bound shirtless werewolf action."C'mon, get out of your seats! Are you ready?" The fans, who are all most certainly of drinking age, are definitely out of their seats and screaming. They're so ready!
"Too bad!" cackles the emcee, and the curtains part to show a young comedian named Skyler Stone who's there to stage an intervention, via FunnyorDie.
"Ladies and gentlemen, you are not going to see Twilight: New Moon tonight." For some reason (I think it has to do with alcohol), the audience is still cheering, but this statement brings a solitary "NO!" Stone continues, "This is a vampire intervention because you clearly don't know what the f*ck a vampire is!" Is that male laughter in the background? Wooing begins. Is this real or is it fake? Stone berates the audience and insults Rpatz with aplomb. Still, the cheering continues!
"Why are you cheering?!" he yells at them. "Do you understand you're not seeing Twilight tonight?"
Will there be a riot? Bloodshed? Will Stone leave the theater intact? Find out what happens after the jump.
Joshua Jackson Flies Away In a 'UFO'
Filed under: Action, Independent, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Casting, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
There seems to be a slow and steady drive towards remaking everything that ever appeared on British television. I suppose that's all right (they do have fantastic shows and made-for-television movies in the United Kingdom) but what happens on that dark day when Hollywood runs out of British productions? Yikes. Let's not think about that, and turn instead to the dark version of 1980 that's being remade for the modern viewer, as Variety reports that British favorite UFO is being re-imagined for the big screen. UFO will be helmed by Matthew Gratzner, and will star Joshua Jackson. The British premise for UFO was set in the near future (ten years in their case -- the show aired in 1970 and took place in 1980) where aliens had conquered Earth. Naturally, they didn't do so with altruistic means, but to use us as an organ harvesting ground. Humanity's future lay with SHADO, (Supreme Headquarters Aliens Defense Organization), a covert organization pretending to be a movie studio, who defend against the alien horde. Many have tried to remake UFO and failed, the last evolved into Space: 1999. (I can't find any reference as to V took any inspiration from it. The timing screams that it wasn't a coincidence.)
Jackson will play Paul Foster, a test pilot who joins SHADO. Foster is one of the original characters, and had an interesting little conflict after he became involved with the enemy. Since Gratzner praises his ability to show Foster's "inner conflict," the movie will undoubtedly take that and run with it. The movie is aiming to begin filming in the spring.
'Avatar' Watch: Running Time Announced and New Featurettes
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand
Though early rumors suggested the film was going to clock in at over three hours, 20th Century Fox claims James Cameron's Avatar will instead clock in at 150 minutes (or 2.5 hours), or about 156 minutes if you count the credits. The main reason why the film will run under three hours is because of the IMAX showings. Avatar will open in about 180 domestic IMAX theaters on December 18th, and because of the way the IMAX system is set up, the theaters that aren't converted over to digital projection can only hold about 170 minutes worth of film. But while Cameron's final edit came in significantly under 170 minutes, there's no saying whether there will be a cut on the DVD that will run over 170 minutes. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Avatar will open on a minimum of 5,500 screens, with almost half of those screens equipped to show the film in 3D.
In other Avatar news, two new featurettes were released online toward the latter part of the week. IGN UK unveiled one behind-the-scenes video focused primarily on the realistic sci-fi equipment created for the film, and Coke Zero released a video that introduces Stephen Ling's character, Col. Quaritch, and reveals a whole bunch of new footage. You can watch both videos over at SciFi Squad.
Review: Planet 51
Filed under: Action, Animation, Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Sony, Theatrical Reviews
As voiced by Dwayne "the artist formerly known as The Rock" Johnson, astronaut Chuck Baker is the paragon of all-American achievement -- that is, until he conquers a far off world with an unexpected population, one inexplicably steeped in our '50s-era culture and terrified by the prospect of an alien invader in human form. More unfortunately for us, Chuck has landed smack-dab in the middle of Planet 51, a short-sighted assembly of sci-fi references and scatalogical humor that should nonetheless placate undemanding tots and, by extension, their undiscerning parents for ninety minutes or so.
Sam Worthington Gets Gritty in 'American Crime'
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Casting, Deals, Noir, Scripts, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek
Few of us have had the chance to read Rick Remender's upcoming series, The Last Days of American Crime, but it's already tapped for the big-screen treatment. To sweeten the deal, American Crime already has a face. An Australian one. Mania is reporting that Sam Worthington has signed on to play the series' star criminal, Graham Brick. American Crime is set in a near-future where the government has found a way to kill the criminal impulse in its citizens. That's good for everyone but the criminals, and chaos erupts as the unsavory element goes mad trying to get in one last job. One of these men is Graham Brick, who is in the midst of planning a big heist, and gets to watch all his best laid plans fall apart in a bloody fashion. I read the preview Radical handed out at Comic-Con this year, and like all previews, it was too short to really get a handle on the story. But the art was incredible, it was ridiculously violent, and it had that slimy feeling of Sin City. You can check out three pages here, and Radical has 15 pages up on MySpace. The first issue is scheduled to hit stands in December.
Remender will be penning the screenplay himself, and Radical will be producing it under their film shingle. We'll supposedly be getting a studio, a director, and more cast-members very soon, but it's tough to get excited without having read issue #1. Still, if this is really the mix of James Ellroy and David Mamet's Heist that Remender promises, Crime will be something to look out for.
Peter Jackson Says Spielberg's 'Tintin' is Done Filming, but...
Interracial Harmony: 'Ninja Assassin' vs. 'Blind Side'
Spin-ematical: New on DVD for 11/24_thumbnail.jpg)
Exclusive 'Nine' Poster Premiere!
Exclusive: Title Track for 'The Road' Soundtrack
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