There is no one better at getting script spoilers online than my friend Kellvin over at Latino Reviews. The man has the gift for getting his hands on scripts like I’ve never seen before.
Anyway, Kellvin emailed me this morning letting me know about the new inside stuff from The incredible Hulk script (this movie is going to be a hell of a lot of fun, trust me). Here is the main gist of what is said. WARNING… SPOILERS AHEAD!!! DON’T SAY I DIDN’T WARN YOU!
* The Arctic. A MAN wearing disembarks from a tug boat and heads off into the remote wilderness. As he wanders through the ice, memories flash: a woman on the ground, flames – fuzzy and fleeting. At last he stops and removes his parka revealing a gun at his waist. His heart races as takes it in his hands and pulls the hammer back. A slight GREEN envelopes him.
* A gunshot. The man falls forward, but his arms rush out to catch him: huge, muscled, green arms. The hands reach up the man’s head and come down, holding a bullet, totally flattened. We pull back and a roar echoes through the arctic wilderness.
* Five years later. Brazil. BRUCE BANNER runs through the slums of Porto Verde, a pulse monitor keeping careful track of his heart rate, making sure he doesn’t get too excited. He drops by a shop to pick up a package – inside is a book on rare South American flowers. At a computer terminal, he sends a message to MR. BLUE thanking him for the book and explaining that he still has to find the flower – Bruce signs it MR. GREEN.
* A few days later, Bruce enters a primitive bottling plant, putting on gloves and glasses like the rest of the Brazilian laborers around him. During beak time, Bruce talks to a supply driver who hands him a package with a leaf in it. Excited, Bruce checks his now-worn flower book and smiles.
* Later, Bruce helps the factory owner repair a machine. He cuts himself, a few drops of blood landing on the bottle conveyer belt. Bruce quickly cleans it up, but misses a drop that landed in a bottle…
* At his no-frills apartment, Bruce chats online with Mr. Blue. Blue asks Bruce if he has the notes on how to make the inhibitor and he replies that he does. Bruce then gets to work, using the few scientific implements he has. Hopeful, Bruce tests the purple liquid he got from the flowers on his own blood – but no change. He tells Blue it didn’t work; Blue suggests a stronger but potentially lethal dose, but Bruce replies that he doesn’t have any more. Blue then tells Bruce send him a sample of his blood. Bruce is hesitant… but decides it is his only option. He stares sadly at a picture of a beautiful woman, his wife, BETTY ROSS.
* A few weeks later, in America, a woman prepares lunch for a group of children. The mother sips from a bottle – a moment later she spasms and falls to the ground, eyes rolling into the back of her head.
* Later, at the office of GENERAL THUNDERBOLT ROSS, MAJOR CABOT reports that a woman got gamma sickness from a South American soda. Ross is intrigued by this. Cabot reports that it was bottled in Porto Verde, Brazil. Ross tells Cabot to get things ready – they’ve found him.
* Ross watches his team prepare. They have photos of the area: the factory, Bruce’s apartment, etc. Cabot briefs the soldiers, a man named BLONKSKY leading point. She tells them that that Banner is a U.S. fugitive who stole military secrets and that they shouldn’t engage him.
* Back at the bottling plant, some young RUFFIANS bother a pretty girl. Bruce does his best to ignore it, but at last steps up to defend her. The LEADER takes swings at Bruce, but he artfully dodges them. They leave, telling Bruce they’ll get him later.
* At his apartment, Blue tells Bruce that there was success with a higher concentration. Bruce’s face shows hope, something he’s been waiting to hear for a long time. Bruce warns that his situation may be more complicated, but Blue seems confident that there’s a good chance it could cure him. He writes on a pad of paper: DATA FROM MAYNARD and sticks it in his pocket. Bruce packs up everything and sticks it in his pack for a quick escape, his nightly routine – just in case.
* Ross’ team sneaks into area and breaks into the apartment. They attack Bruce in bed – but it’s a decoy. Bruce escapes and a chase ensues through the winding slums. Bruce makes his way to a bar near the factory, but runs smack into the punks from work. They chase after him into the factory while the soldiers also close in. Cornered, Bruce is beaten by the punks and, in cover of dark, he transforms into THE HULK.
* The Hulk easily defeats the punks and soldiers and retreats into the jungle. Blonsky stares after him, in awe of the figure’s staggering size and strength.
* Bruce makes his way north anyway he can. At last he crosses the border and hops a train, heading somewhere.
* Ross and Blonsky meet with GENERAL GRELLER, his friend who helped him put together the South American job. Greller tries to wrap his head around what happened and tells Ross that something this powerful can’t be on the loose anymore. Afterwards, Blonsky insists he get answers about what happened, but Ross refuses. Blonsky, a decorated soldier, says he lost some friends of his and at last Ross gives in and explains everything.
* Ross explains that Banner was part of an early experiment to create super soldier serum, but the funding was running out. In the eleventh hour of the project, Banner was so certain of his research that he tested it on himself – that’s when everything went to hell. Ross tells Blonsky that Banner is a scientist, not a soldier, and that he doesn’t understand that the power he holds belongs to the U.S. and should be used as a weapon. Ross then asks Blonsky if he’d be willing to take a shot of the serum, to have an edge against Banner when they face off again. Blonsky is more than willing.
* Bruce goes to the university where Betty works – the same place his accident happened. Bruce sees her – with another man, SAMSON.
* Bruce hides out with STAN, an old friend who owns a pizza place. He manages to sneak into his former lab at MAYNARD HALL (from the note) to find his old data, but finds it has all been erased. Later, as he discusses this with Stan, Betty and Samson come in. Betty catches a glimpse of Bruce and chases after him. They are reunited and Bruce agrees to go with her and Samson.
* At Betty and Samson’s place, the three chat and Bruce smiles, the first time in a great while. He later talks to Samson, who explains he is a psychiatrist and even though he is sad Betty can’t be totally his, he is happy Bruce is alive. He also says that Betty has refused to talk about anything involving Bruce. Bruce says he hurt Betty and can never forgive himself for what happened, even though he would never let it happen again. Samson is still suspicious.
* The next day, Betty goes to take Bruce to the bus station so he can go see Br. Blue, but Ross’ men get to him and a big battle ensues on the college campus. Betty pleads with her father to leave him alone, but Ross refuses to listen. The Hulk faces off against Blonsky, stronger and faster than before, but still no match for Bruce’s alter ego.
* Badly wounded, the Hulk escapes with Betty, leaving behind a trail of destruction and a nearly-dead Blonsky. Enraged that the Hulk escaped and that his DAUGHTER is with him, Ross speaks with Samson, saying he did the right thing by calling. Samson wonders if he did, mentioning that the Hulk protected Betty better during the battle than her own father did. Samson informs Ross he won’t help him anymore and Ross storms off.
* Blonsky is badly wounded – every bone in his body broken. His doctor says that if Blonsky even survives, he’ll be paralyzed.
* Bruce and Betty travel to see Dr. Blue, laying low in cheap motels and rekindling their love. Betty pawns her mother’s necklace for cash – Bruce feels bad but Betty says they’ll get it back someday.
* Back at the hospital, Blonsky has made a remarkable recovery – not only has he healed entirely, but he is stronger and healthier than before. Ross gives him more shots and Blonsky smiles, a little too happy with his power.
* Bruce and Betty arrive in New York City – Columbia University, the lab of Dr. Blue aka DR. STERNS. Meanwhile, Cabot figures out where the two were headed and warns Ross, who prepares his team for New York. En route, a soldier asks a ripped and muscular Blonsky how he feels – “Like a monster,” he replies.
* Sterns attempts to treat Bruce. He is amazed and shocked by Bruce’s transformation as the procedure seemingly malfunctions; at last, Bruce turns back to himself, the treatment outwardly effective.
* As the team prepares their assault, Sterns shows Bruce his creations – animals Sterns injected with Bruce’s DNA. Bruce is mad, saying they must all be destroyed lest they fall into the government’s hands. Sterns replies that Bruce is paranoid – just as a sniper shoots Bruce with a dart. Bruce falls and is taken captive, Betty following after.
* Ross and his team fly away in a chopper, happy that they’ve finally caught him. But back at the lab, the steroid-filled Blonsky forces Sterns to inject him with Bruce’s DNA.
* In the distance, the occupants of the copter notice a huge explosion – something wrong has happened at the lab. A huge, hulking creature is destroying New York – Blonsky has become… an ABOMINATION.
* Ross has no way to stop him and he realizes that Bruce may be their only hope, but after Sterns’ treatment, can he even transform? The back door of the copter opens and, high above the city, Bruce jumps, about to find out…
The script reporter then goes on to give more commentary on the rest of the script and what they think of it in general. Apparently they loved it. Go on over to Latino Review to see what else they say.
Oh good grief… this is one of the best posters I’ve seen all year. The good folks over at Cinematical offer up this fantastic new Walk Hard poster. Gotta dig John C. Reilly in the faux Jim Morisson pose.
This is one of the best ideas for a film I’ve heard in a long time. “The Queen” was a fantastic film, and Peter Morgan did a fantastic job with it. One of the key threads in the film was the awkward place in history the monarchy has right now and the relationship between The Queen and then British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
The next film Peter Morgan is working on appears to be a follow up to The Queen, but this time the main character will be Blair himself. The good folks over at Moviehole give us this:
Variety has announced that Peter Morgan has started work on a sequel to ‘’The Queen’’, which will dig into former U.K. prime minister Tony Blair’s relationships with U.S. presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. The movie will focus on Blair’s reaction to the handover of power between Clinton, a natural liberal ally, and Bush, who came from the other end of the political spectrum. “Peter sees this as a pivotal moment when the special relationship between Britain and America changed,” says producer Andy Harries.
Tony Blair is one of the most fascinating world figures of my lifetime. Probably one of the most well spoken and respected (at least until the new Iraq stuff broke out) world leaders there has ever been… and trying to delicately balance the relationship with the united States in the radical transition between Bill Clinton and George W Bush must have been insane. A film focusing on this topic is one I would love to see.
My appreciation for Family Guy has grown over the last year or so after not being impressed with it at all (I thought the Stewie movie just blew enormous chunks of bad). I finally got around to watching the Family Guy Star Wars special the other day, and I’ve got to admit I just loved it.
There has been some talk (not much though) about the possibility of Family Guy getting a big screen treatment (considering the massive success of The Simpsons movie, that’s not surprising in the least), and recently creator Seth MacFarlane had some interesting ideas for who would be cast in a live action Family Guy Movie. MTV gives us this:
“I guess Juliette Lewis would be Meg, David Hyde Pierce would be Stewie,” he chuckled. “Ann Coulter would be Brian. Let’s see, Rosie O’Donnell would be Peter – she’d do a good job, she’s talented, a multi-faceted entertainer.” “Who did I leave out?” MacFarlane laughed. “Oh, Chris! Phillip Seymour Hoffman! And of course Lois would be, let’s give it to Kathy Griffin for god’s sakes. She’s paid her dues!”
I’m a big James Purefoy fan. The man has never been a big A List name, but even in his crappier films, his performance always stands out to me as a bright spot (great example of this is A Knight’s Tale where he played Prince Edward). Not to mention it seems that anyone associated with ROME right now is hot for casting directors… so why not Purefoy? Looks like James has been given the lead to play Solomon Kane. Reuters gives us this:
James Purefoy has been cast as puritan swordsman Solomon Kane in a movie of the same name to be made from the stories of “Conan the Barbarian” creator Robert E. Howard. Kane is a 16th century soldier who learns that his brutal and cruel actions have damned him but is determined to redeem himself by living peaceably. But he finds himself dragged out of retirement for a fight against evil.
I love the sounds of this. Not just because it’s epic fantasy type material, and not just because I like Purefoy… but I love the theme. You see, I’m a total sucker for redemption themes. I think that’s why my favorite Lord of the Rings character (book and movies) has always been Boromir. I think it comes from a sense most of us have of needing redemption for one thing or another. So many things I wish I could make up for, or make good on… but that’s a post for another blog.
– Bond’s Moneypenny Passes “Lois Maxwell, the Canadian-born actress who originated the role of M’s smitten secretary Miss Moneypenny in 007 movies, has died of cancer. She was 80.”
Hi there guys. Once again, sorry about my lack of posting this week, but as some of you know, I’m in California at the moment getting ready to show my movie, Prince of Peace – God of War at the San Diego International Film Festival. We screen it on Saturday… I can’t even begin to tell you how nervous I am. Anyway….
What you may not know is that the movie is also opening at the film festival in Orlando this weekend. It was brought to my attention that a local paper “The Orlando Weekly” just included Prince of Peace – God of War in their article entitled “Our top-10 selection of films not to be missed at the Global Peace Film Festival”
They went on to say this:
“Central to John Campea’s engaging documentary is the question of how it is that 87 percent of self-defined Christians are able to rally fists in support of war when one would assume that conflict is not what Jesus would do. The film is a heady affair, too, wherein the “Just War” crowd are intellectually pitted against the pacifists in a debate as to the directives implied in the Bible. While it may seem a distant, simple – even annoying – feast of hypothetical subject matter, the underlying question may be an open door into the religious right’s base politics. Have they skipped Jesus and leapt straight to the Crusades? And why? God knows.”
I am beyond a nervous wreck right now, but excited at the same time. If any of you are in Orlando for the festival and catch the screening, please email me your feedback… I’d love to know how it goes
Hey guys. As some of you may or may not know, right now I’m down in Los Angeles having some meetings and getting ready to head to San Diego tomorrow for the San Diego International Film Festival where I’ll be premiering my new film “Prince of Peace – God of War“. This is my 5th trip down here in just over a year. Hence my lack of posting this week (special thanks to Serena and Rodney for helping to pick up the slack).
Anyway, last night I was invited to the world premiere of the new Morgan Freeman / Greg Kinnear film “Feast of Love” which was held at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences. What an amazing theater with so much stuff inside. Anyway, I’m standing around in the foyer a few minutes before they start the movie and Sharon says to me “Hey John… behind you”… so I turn around and I’m standing right beside Morgan Freeman. Later I had a bit of a geekgasm when I got to meet Fred Ward (Remo Williams himself bitches!), have drinks with a Vice President of MGM and chat for a moment with Toby Hemingway. Earlier in the week I bumped into Michael Bay, was bought lunch by a big Hollywood publicity company and had a meeting at the head offices of Lakeshore Entertainment. The other day I spoke with Kevin Smith and had The directors of Crank call into the live show with me. Later today I’m having coffee with Johnny Whitworth (CSI Miami and AJ on Empire Records) and drinks later in the evening with some more studio folks.
So what’s the point? The point is I still freak out about all this stuff. I mean holy shit… I’ve talked to people who have been movie journalists for like 6 months who don’t geek out anymore about getting to do all this stuff… me… I’ve been doing this for over 4 years now and I’m still as amazed and bedazzled by the world of movies as I’ve ever been. There I was, standing in the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, and I felt like I snuck in or something… because I’m just some wide eyed movie geek feeling like he’s about to wet his pants because HOLY CRAP THERES ROBERT BENTON!!!!
So why can’t I get used to this? Why aren’t I “cool” like all the other people who “cover” the movie industry and not get phased or excited by all this? I remember standing at Comic Con with another web guy and across the room I saw Robert Downey Jr. I freaked out a little and say “Holy crap, don’t look now, but there’s Downey Jr!” To which the other guy (who is much cooler than me) turned his head… said “oh yeah” and then just went on with our conversation like it was no big deal. I felt like such an absolute nerd… but I can’t help it… I AM an absolute nerd.
It’s not because I think any of these people are BETTER than anyone else, and certainly not any more important than anyone else. I think it has more to do with my (and our) fascination and love of the movies that gives me an unyielding appreciation and envy (there, I said it) for those who get to live and work inside that world. It’s not that Fred Ward is so important… it’s that he’s got to do so many cool things and be involved in so amy great movies that I just want to talk to him, hear about his experiences, what he’s seen, what he’s done and what he’s going to do. I think that’s why I get just as pumped about meeting studio people… because they’ve seen and been involved in so many cool things, that all I want to do is buy them a drink and pick their brains about their experiences for hours. I’m standing on a red carpet and had Jon Voight walk up to me… my first instinct wasn’t to ask him about the event… my instinct was to go “OH MY GOD! YOU’RE JON VOIGHT! TELL ME WHAT IT WAS LIKE MAKING DELIVERANCE!”
Is that “unprofessional” of me? Yup… sure is. Is it nerdy of me? Yes. Does it make me look like a loser? No doubt. And ya know what? I DON’T CARE.
I am, and have always been (like most of you guys) just a dude who LOVES movies. This whole site is nothing but an expression of my (and yours) enthusiasm for movies… and sometimes I feel like my whole existence is powered by my enthusiasm for movies. And I make no apologies for it. Let other people be professional. Let other people be cool. I run an irrelevant pointless website… but it let me have drinks with Zachary Quinto while talking Heroes and his new role in Star Trek… so I love my life, and I hope I never get used to it.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen a case in entertainment where both sides have acted with such stupidity. Ok, here’s the background as I understand it:
– Peter Jackson didn’t think New Line was being above board with their accounting on DVD sales for the first Lord of the Rings movie.
– Jackson demanded to see the confidential proprietary books of New Line
– New Line refuses turn over private books and asks Jackson to sit down with them to talk about the problem and try to resolve it
– Jackson proceeds to act like Jackass. “Don’t you know who I am? I’m Peter Jackson. I do things how I want, and if you don’t bow to my will we’ll go straight to court. I’m too important to sit down and try to resolve the problem any other way first before resorting to that.”
– New Line proceeds to act like Jackasses. “How dare you speak to us, the all powerful New Line, that way! Even though it could solve things, we are going to dig in our heals and refuse to budge on this because… well… just because damnit! For we are New Line.”
– Jackson: “Give me the books. Grrrrr”
– New Line: “Sit down and talk first. Grrrrr” (proceeds to pound chest)
– Jackson: “Oh yeah? I’m going to write ludicrous, bordering on dishonest open sob letters to my completely biased fans and talk about how mean you’re being to me”
– New Line: “Oh yeah, well we’re going to put out totally distorted statements about what an ungrateful pig you are, just a millionaire trying to get more millions… and just for good measure… we’re kicking you off The Hobbit”
– Jackson: “You can’t fire me from The Hobbit! I QUIT!”
– New Line: “Grrrr”
– Jackson: “Grrrr”
On and on and on it’s gone now forever. This thing could have been resolved ages ago if Jackson just agreed to sit down and negotiate with New Line… or if New Line just agreed to turn over the books. But both have been stubborn to the point where it doesn’t even matter who was right anymore.
THAT BEING SAID….
New Line has taken it to a new level. In the ongoing court case, the Judge ordered that New Line submit to the court certain documents. I worked in law for a few years… so let me explain… when a Judge tells you to do something… YOU BLOODY WELL DO IT. Well… New Line decided they were too important to listen to a nobody like a Judge. The folks at Yahoo News give us this:
A ticked-off federal judge in Los Angeles has ordered the studio to pony up a $125,000 penalty for failing to turn over documents related to the case, in which Jackson claims the studio used creative accounting to cheat him out of millions in royalties from the first chapter in his big-screen trilogy, 2001’s The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.
In his Sept. 18 ruling, U.S. Magistrate Steven Hillman said New Line not only failed to comply with his previous court orders to produce the paperwork and emails, but he suggests that New Line “haphazardly” searched for the requested documents and may have destroyed potential evidence.
To say this looks sort of suspicious is like saying Paris Hilton is sort of useless. Let me be totally clear here: I do not like how Peter Jackson has handled himself for the duration of this whole thing… at all. That was never contingent on who I thought was “right” and who I thought was “wrong” in this case. There is a proper process for doing things, a proper way to do things…. Jackson in all his self importance snubbed his nose at all of that and acted poorly in the process…. BUT HAVING SAID THAT….
It sure does look like New Line has indeed been the bigger Jackass of the two now doesn’t it?
I am a big fan of Peter Jackson’s work (I recently called Return of the King the best all round movie ever made), and while I’m totally fine with someone else directing the Hobbit (it could be as good or even better than Rings), I still would RATHER see Jackson back for it. Let’s just hope sanity and cooler heads prevail here soon, that they get this ugly matter behind them… and all parties just get back to the business of making movies… preferably The Hobbit… preferably together. Just my two cents worth.
As most of you know, I’ve been talking about the upcoming film “Pathology” for a while now. The film stars Milo Ventimiglia (Peter on Heroes) and is created by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (The guys who brought us Crank). I got to visit the set (see picture above) and watch about 20 minutes of this film…. trust me…. it’s going to absolutely rule. It’s creative, INTENSE and original (at least as original as a movie can be these days) and has some KILLER performances in it.
The very first family friendly version trailer has been released… I’m not really thrilled with it, but that probably has more to do with the fact that I’ve seen an R rated type version already that JUST RULES. Still, most people really like this PG trailer, and I think you will too.
Pathology hits theaters November 30th. Start spreading the word:
Here are some of the other movie related news items floating around the web today that you might be interested in:
- Newman from Seinfeld in talks to join Punisher movie This is not a good sign. Not that Wayne Knight isn’t a good comedic actor… but the fact that they would get him for it would suggest something about the movie’s direction.
- Batman crew member dies in film shoot “A crew member involved in the filming of the new Batman movie has died in a car accident on the set, police said on Tuesday. The special effects technician was killed when his 4×4 vehicle crashed into a tree during a dummy film run involving the “Batmobile.”
- More solid crew added to Wolverine “Oscar-nominated cinematographer Donald McAlpine has joined the production. growing crew of WOLVERINE! He’s worked on flicks from Peter Pan to Narnia to Predator to his Oscar nom on Moulin Rouge.”
- Eli Roth to Direct an Episode of Heroes: Origins Meh… I’m no longer much of a Roth fan… and after watching the sub-par Season premiere last night, I’m not as big of a Heroes fan anymore either
– Dominic West is Jigsaw in ‘Punisher: War Zone’ “Funny, I was expecting someone more well-known, but I guess with recent appearances in 300 and Hannibal Rising and a recurring part on the popular television series The Wire, West is still more famous than Cinderella Man’s Considine”
The lack of any legitimate Transformers 2 announcements out of Paramount has been odd to down right eerie. Generally speaking, when a franchise film that has every intention of being a franchise hits it out of the park as significantly as Transformers did (Nearly $700 million worldwide and still counting), a studio will be VERY quick to capitalize on the early buzz and put out some news of plans for the follow-up film. Thus far… all has been silent on the Transformers front. Until today.
The good folks over at ComingSoon have let us know that Paramount has “officially” set a release date for Transformers 2. The date is June 29 (correction – 26th), 2009. So considering how much of a fan I was of the first film (just saw it on IMAX this weekend and ran into Michael Bay while there), why am I not breaking out the streamer and confetti at this news? Well… that’s simple… because it’s meaningless news.
The reason I call it meaningless news is that it doesn’t mean anything. They’ll change that release date for sure… unless they can FINISH FILMING by June 2008… because that’s when the strike will start. So it’s all well and good for them to come out and announce a release date for the movie… but unless they plan to get their collective asses in gear and start making the movie SOON… that date is totally meaningless.
The REAL announcement we need to hear from Paramount here is NOT a release date… but rather a date for when they plan to start shooting. Last I heard, Michael Bay wasn’t even sure what was going on… that means serious pre-production hasn’t even started yet… which means they’re still FAR from being ready to get everyone together and start filming (a LOT of work has to be done before the cameras start rolling).
IF they can start shooting this thing by January, then getting everything done that needs to be done before the strike (provided they don’t settled the issues before that happens), then yes… a Jun 29th 2009 release date is more than possible. But right now, we still have no idea (and it looks like even Bay has no idea) when they’re going to get the ball rolling.
So yeah, a release date announcement is all well and good… what we need is a shooting date announcement for it to be worth getting excited about.
Hey there guys. Just a heads up. Since I’m not home right now (I’m currently in Los Angeles) we can’t have our Roundtable show tonight… so instead we’re going to have a rare Monday LIVE show at 6pm EST. I think we may even make it a 2 hour show just for fun. So make sure to join us at www.nowlive.com/themovieblog at 6pm EST (3pm PST). Call in and get on the air with me too. Should be fun!
The guys over at “How it Should Have Ended” put out their take on Spider-Man 3. Some parts are dumb…. but a couple of parts are just priceless. Check it out.
A new Alien Versus Predator: Requiem poster has been released on the web. I know this movie is going to be a train wreck, but I just love the trailer they put out a few weeks back, and I’ve got to say I really like this poster.
This was kind of funny. The season 19 episode 1 intro to the Simpsons all picks up where the Simpsons movie leaves off… which is kind of cool. Thanks to Jared for the heads up.
Here are some of the other movie related news items floating around the web today that you might be interested in:
– Crime pays for Morales, Liotta Ray Liotta and Esai Morales will star in “La Linea,” a crime drama loosely based on the infamous Arellano Felix drug cartel. Andy Garcia is in early talks to play the small but pivotal role of an ill kingpin of a Tijuana drug cartel whose violent lieutenant (Morales) takes over the operation and becomes a loose cannon. Liotta will play a veteran Los Angeles-based assassin who is hired to kill him.
– Dangerfield’s widow sues over film Rodney Dangerfield’s widow says that even in death the comedian can’t get any respect. Joan Dangerfield filed a lawsuit Thursday in Los Angeles County Superior Court to stop the airing of a videotape of Dangerfield in his later years that his widow says was never intended for the public.
– Denzel Washington Stars in The Taking of Pelham One Two Three David Koepp wrote this new take on an old classic. His latest incarnation of the story will take place in New York City, where four hijackers board a subway train and use the passengers for ransom. Washington will be playing Zachary “Z” Garber, a role originated by Walter Matthau.
– Xena Actress Tested For Wonder Woman Australian actress Victoria Hill has tested for the role of Wonder Woman. Whether she was trying on a motion capture suit for a CGI version, or an actual Wonder Woman costume for a live action version remains, as previously mentioned, unknown. This doesn’t mean she has the part of course, it just means that Warner Brothers is giving her a shot at flying their invisible jet.
Hey there folks… listen, as some of you know, I’m down in LA right now… and my schedule is a little more full than I thought it would be. Therefore, tonight’s installment of Uncut LIVE will be at 7pm EST instead of 6pm EST! Make sure to join us at www.nowlive.com/themovieblog!
Well, it really is happening, the wheels really are in motion… and I still think it’s a really bad idea. Justice League (the supehero collection of all the major DC Comic characters like Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman ect. ect. ect.) is now in full motion and they’ve even hired themselves a director. Happy Feet and Babe Pig in the City director George Miller.
Ok, so what do I think of this choice for a helmer? Well… let’s say I’m apprehensive about the choice, but not feeling outright negative about it. Miller has done some good work. Happy Feet was overrated, but Babe was solid, Witches of Eastwick is one hell of a fun movie (One of my favorite Jack Nicholson roles of all time) and Mad Max 2 are all decent feathers in his cap. BUT….
Miller’s last non-children’s movie was over 15 years ago (Lorenzo’s Oil) and Witches of Eastwick was over 20 years ago. And although he did Mad Max 2, he also was at the helm for Mad Max 3 falling totally apart. Can a 62 year old director, who has only directed 2 films in the last 15 years…. both children’s movies, and only 3 in the last 20… actually take a project like Justice League and do it any… well… JUSTICE? Personally… I don’t think so.
George Miller is an experienced veteran who has shown in the past that he is capable of putting some good stuff up on the screen. But when you weigh in everything… I just don’t think this is a good fit, or the right guy for this particular job.
So on a scale of 1 (worst idea ever) to 10 (best choice ever) my feelings on George Miller directing Justice League are about a 4 at this point. What are your thoughts?
As a side note, expect news from Justice League to start coming fast and furious since they have to be totally done shooting the movie BEFORE the strike set to start in June.
I recently came under fire by a ton of people (but a surprising number of people also agreed with me) for making the comments that the original John Carpenter version of “Halloween” was a terrible movie. Here’s the background… I remember really liking Halloween… but I hadn’t seen it in like 20 years. Recently at a movie party we watched Halloween again, and to my surprise… the film is actually awful.
I’m really sorry folks, I know you’re supposed to say nothing but sunshine about Halloween… but the plot was ridiculous, the acting… oh holy hell… no one has even tried to defend the acting in that movie. The dialog was laughable… again, no one has even tried to defend that… and the worst part was, that as a horror movie, it just wasn’t even the least bit frightening. Not the smallest bit of tension.
“But John…” some have argued with me “It’s a classic!” I can’t argue that really… but I have to ask then… WHAT MAKES SOMETHING A CLASSIC? What turns a regular movie magically into what we call a “Classic”?
Everyone agrees that first of all it has to be a great movie. Ok, on that I think we all agree. But there seems to be two very different trains of thought on this. To be a classic…
1) The movie has to hold up. It must be able to be viewed by an audience TODAY and still be considered great, as well as have been considered great in its time
This is the school of thought I hold to personally. Many films just get hyped (this happens today all the time too) due to some popular trend… OR… it did something totally different and new, and therefore had that novelty with it as well… but when you allow the “trend” to pass, or the “novelty” to fade… you’re left with a movie that just isn’t really all that good. Should those films be considered “CLASSIC”? I don’t think so at all.
Hence Halloween. I maintain that if Halloween came out in theaters today, it would be dismissed by critics and audiences alike for the most part.
On the other hand… films like Spartacus, Ben Hur, The Godfather ect. ect. ect. are still watched by brand new audiences today who love them. They are true classics.
2) The movie just has to be great in its time.
This is where most people seem to fall, and for understandable reasons. When a movie pushes limits, or outdoes other films in its window, or does something totally new… that is indeed noteworthy and deserves praise. With the Halloween example, many have rightfully pointed out that Halloween went on to influence how TONS of horror movies were made afterwards. Halloween changed the horror genre. This is totally true. BUT…. Does that mean its good when honestly held up against other films in the genre that have come after it? That’s the debate.
This post isn’t about Halloween… its about this question: WHAT MAKES A MOVIE A “CLASSIC”? I’d love to know how you define it, what characteristics you think it needs to have. Does it have to hold up to the test of time? Does it just need to be great in it’s time? Or is it something totally different? Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
There is no one better at getting script spoilers online than my friend Kellvin over at Latino Reviews. The man has the gift for getting his hands on scripts like I’ve never seen before.
This is one of the best ideas for a film I’ve heard in a long time. “
My appreciation for Family Guy has grown over the last year or so after not being impressed with it at all (I thought the Stewie movie just blew enormous chunks of bad). I finally got around to watching the Family Guy Star Wars special the other day, and I’ve got to admit I just loved it.
I’m a big 
Hi there guys. Once again, sorry about my lack of posting this week, but as some of you know, I’m in California at the moment getting ready to show my movie, 
Hey guys. As some of you may or may not know, right now I’m down in Los Angeles having some meetings and getting ready to head to San Diego tomorrow for the San Diego International Film Festival where I’ll be premiering my new film “
I recently came under fire by a ton of people (but a surprising number of people also agreed with me) for making the comments that the original John Carpenter version of “Halloween” was a terrible movie. Here’s the background… I remember really liking Halloween… but I hadn’t seen it in like 20 years. Recently at a movie party we watched Halloween again, and to my surprise… the film is actually awful.
