Category: Adventure

Christopher McQuarrie Writing ‘Wolverine’ Sequel

wolverine

After the lackluster reception for ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine,’ it was going to take some pretty big players to come back on board the franchise to generate much buzz.   Well, one big player has signed on.   According to The Hollywood Reporter, screenwriter and sometimes director, Christopher McQuarrie, is officially on board to write the screenplay for ‘Wolverine 2.’

Hugh Jackman is already set to return for the sequel, which looks to relocate the indestructible Logan to Japan.   This would follow much the same storyline as a mini-series from the early ’80s written by Frank Miller and Chris Claremont.   The mini-series had Wolverine encountering a group of ninjas and had the superhero learning the strict code of the Samurai.

This notion of the story being set in Japan came about from one of the alternate endings for ‘X-Men Origins: Wolverine.’   This featured Wolverine sitting in a Japanese bar pondering his next course of action.

McQuarrie previously worked with ‘X-Men’ director Bryan Singer on the first film in the franchise.   He helped write the screenplay, yet took his name off the final film when it was realized the film was more attuned to the screenplay written by David Hayter. McQuarrie has also collaborated with Singer on ‘Public Access,’ ‘The Usual Suspects,’ for which McQuarrie won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay, ‘X-Men,’ and 2008’s ‘Valkyrie.’   There is no official word on a director for ‘Wolverine 2,’ but, with McQuarrie officially on board, you know rumblings of Singer returning to the franchise cannot be far behind.

Review: ‘GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra’

GI Joe

GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra is the story of a devious young explosion who yearns for nothing more than to blow up everything in sight. This young explosion teams up with fellow explosions, all with the same goal, and together they explode so much that they feel UNSTOPPABLE!!! Unfortunately, this group of evil explosions has forgotten that the good guys have their own army of explosions, which they unleash, setting off a chain reaction of good VS evil, explosion VS explosion to see who can rack up the most damage. After two hours of consecutive explosions [SPOILER ALERT] the good explosions win. Yeah, director Stephen Sommers likes his explosions, even more than Michael Bay (gasp!)

There’s really not a whole lot more to explain than that. Sure, there is a little bit of a “story” underneath all those explosions, like how a hotshot military man, Duke (Channing Tatum), joins GI JOE (where knowing is half the battle) and becomes way more awesome than anyone else in about three seconds of training, and also how another strangely young man (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) [SPOILER ALERT x2] rises to power as Cobra Commander, and more importantly goes from having a high pitched voice to a low-pitched gravelly voice full of EVIL. Oh yeah, and we can’t forget the futuristic nano-machines, little green robots that eat everything in their path, even entire cities! It makes no sense, but it does make a lot of EXPLOSIONS! However, all these “story” elements serve one purpose and one purpose only: to make things blow up!!!

OK, OK, OK, enough about EXPLOSIONS. If you’re not into loud, fast, stupid ACTION is there anything here to like? Nope. Not one bit. Fortunately, if you can turn your brain off, there is a fairly enjoyable movie in there. We get to see things such as: a military convoy VS an army of Cobra airships (that look much more like alien UFOs), an asian ninja VS a white ninja, machine guns VS energy beam blasting guns (again, very alien), two guys running around Paris in Halo-style battle armor destroying everything in their path, and even a Superman style race against the clock to blow up some missiles. Many of these events are loosely explained with a crazy amount of flashbacks.

The flashbacks in JOE range from pretty cool to laughably awful, with most falling somewhere in between. This is also where almost all of the “character development” takes place. How come the asian ninja hates the white ninja? FLASHBACK. Did Duke used to be friends with Cobra Commander? FLASHBACK. Did Duke used to date the evil Baroness? FLASHBACK. The most ridiculous flashback comes right at the start of the movie, which begins in Paris… in the 1600s. Yeah. GI JOE starts off hundreds of years ago, in a Paris where everyone speaks English. This opening really set up the tone of the movie. As soon as the scene started, everyone in the audience erupted in laughter and the thought came to mind, “is this GI JOE or Van Helsing 2?” Luckily that scene only lasted for a few minutes, before we headed into the “not too distant future”.

It seems like I’ve really been trashing the movie, but like I said it actually was pretty fun. The Paris scene where Duke and Ripcord (Marlon Wayans) smash their way through Paris in their Halo suits was pretty great and was probably the most accurate reproduction of how you would play with a GI JOE toy. Even though the suits looked pretty lame (OK, incredibly lame) I couldn’t help but think how cool it would be to be running around like that.

Unfortunately, the weakest aspect of GI JOE are the special effects, which is strange considering that the movie is nothing but special effects. If you’ve seen Van Helsing or Mummy 2, you probably know that director Stephen Sommers is no stranger to bad CG, but here it seems like he’s gotten even that much worse. Every time a CG helicopter passes through the frame, it looks like something out of a mid-nineties video game, and the first time that the big GI JOE plane flies over their base in the desert, the CG was so terrible I almost thought it was a joke. These effects shots, which should be relatively easy to do in this day and age, looked mind-blowingly awful, and no I’m not exaggerating. They are THAT BAD. They also break the very basic laws of physics at the end of the movie when [SPOILER ALERT x3] they make ice sink. That’s right, a giant underwater base is destroyed when they blow up a big chunk of ice, which then proceeds to sink down in the ocean. Uhh, what?

I haven’t mentioned the acting since it’s really not worth mentioning. None of the actors really bring anything special to the movie (not that it’s necessarily their fault) except for Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who is quite hilarious as the scene stealing “The Doctor” and eventually Cobra Commander. Also, is that Gordon-Levitt doing the low-pitched gravelly voice work? If so, kudos, because it was hilarious.

If you like seeing stuff blow up, by all means go and see this immediately and bring your kids. Out of the two hour run time, there’s maybe about twenty minutes where stuff isn’t blowing up, and the movie certainly never gets boring. Plus, if the kids want to see the movie again, just give ’em a few GI JOE toys and some firecrackers and they can recreate the movie in the backyard!

Peter Berg Promises More Adventurous ‘Dune’

dune

It’s going to take a serious fall from grace for me to ever not be excited for a Peter Berg project now that we’re three seasons into “Friday Night Lights.”  Say what you will about the third act issues with ‘Hancock,’ the movie kept the entertainment level at an all-time high throughout, and Berg’s direction was never an issue.

So it makes me even more excited that Berg is still trucking through on his attempt at recreating Frank Herbert’s ‘Dune’ for the big screen.  SciFi Wire caught up with Berg, who had a few, interesting pieces of info about the upcoming project.

I think I had a much more different experience, I think, with the book than David Lynch did.  To me, I think my interpretation will feel significantly different from that and the [Syfy] Channel miniseries that aired. I have a different experience than both of those filmmakers did.

[The book] was much more muscular and adventurous, more violent and possibly even a little bit more fun.  I think those are all elements of my experience of the book that can be brought in without offending the die-hard fans of the Bene Gesserit and Kwisatz Haderach. There’s a more dynamic film to be made.

So, a more muscular, adventurous, violent, and all-around fun version of ‘Dune.’  That’s what’s in store for us when Berg’s vision finally comes to life on the big screen.  Here’s just hoping the film keeps the same level of style and visual effects that Lynch’s film had while holding true to the story a la the Sci-Fi Channel’s version.

Source: SciFi Wire

‘Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant’ Trailer Gets a Little Freaky

cirque du freak

Evidently, I didn’t get the memo that vampire is the new black.   Everything that has ever been connected to the vampire sub-genre is getting a revitalization for the big screen.   Mix that with the idea of bringing a series of novels to feature film life, and you’ve got a perfect pitch for a studio to jump on.

Enter ‘Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant.’   Yeah, it’s a lengthy title.   In fact, it derives its name from the first two books of the series of books by Darren Shan.   The story centers on a young boy (Shan in a fictitious past) who is taken in by a vampire, a member of a traveling group of freaks.

Today, we bring you the trailer for the movie.   Check it out:

It looks like a fun bit of entertainment, full of Hollywood-riffic sight gags, familiar faces, and plenty of CG.   It’s a little bothersome that John C. Reilly doesn’t come off as the cultivated vampire lead you might expect.   It’s a little distracting, in fact.   Let’s just say he’s no Bill Compton and leave it at that.   Regardless, it could be a whole lot of fun, and, if the film is any kind of success, look for the ‘Cirque Du Freak’ franchise to take off.

‘Cirque Du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant’ is set for release on October 23rd.

Source: Moviefone

First Look at Paul Bettany as ‘Priest’

priest

Screen Gems has given us our first look at Paul Bettany in the upcoming adaptation of the comic book ‘Priest.’  It looks like a poster is in order with the same graphic you see above.  Bettany looks creepy, and the movie looks to be quite the capper for next Summer.

Bettany plays a warrior priest living in a world that has seen centuries of war between man and vampires.  The priest disobeys church law in order to save his niece from these vampires.  Cam Gigandet also stars with Scott Stewart directing.

‘Priest’ is set for release on August 13th, 2010.

Source: Official Site

‘Pirates 4’ Could Have a Director Attached

pirates of the caribbean

Nothing is official yet, but Variety is reporting that director Rob Marshall is “on the verge” of becoming the director of the fourth entry in the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ franchise.   Marshall, who got his start as a choreographer for television productions of “Victor/Victoria” and “Annie!,” has helmed ‘Chicago,’ ‘Memoirs of a Geisha,’ and the upcoming musical, ‘Nine.’

Marshall would be filling a spot left open by Gore Verbinski, who directed all three of the preceding ‘Pirates’ movies.   Verbinski left the franchise in April when he decided to turn his attentions towards a feature film adaptation of the video game ‘Bioshock.’   Since then, that film has lost its momentum, and Verbinski has moved on to other projects.

Bruckheimer and Disney have been looking over potential directors for the film in recent weeks.   Bruckheimer hopes to get the film shot before he moves star Johnny Depp over to his long-planned ‘Lone Ranger’ project.   Sources close to the deal claim Marshall’s involvement looks good enough to begin the casting for new characters.

Again, this is not set in stone, but it is looking good that Marshall will be sitting in the director’s chair on this one.

Source: Variety

The Spierig Brothers Want ‘Blood’ in Space

captain-blood

Michael and Peter Spierig, the Australian brothers behind ‘Undead’ and the upcoming ‘Daybreak,’ have set themseves up to next direct ‘Captain Blood’ for Warner Brothers.  They have been hired by WB to direct as well as write a new version of the 1935 classic starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. The Spierigs were chosen, because of their idea to have the new version of the film set in space.

At first, I felt like I was in that scene in ‘The Player,’ where Buck Henry pitches the sequel to ‘The Graduate.’  But when I took a look at their animatic depiction of a pirate battle in space, it had such a distinctive visual look to it that I said, ‘Great, I get it.’

That comes from producer Bill Gerber who is backing the project for WB.  The film will tell roughly the same story as the original, that of a doctor who is wrongfully sentenced to deportation and slavery and the buccaneer he forms allegiance with.

Says Gerber about the plot:

There are some things you don’t mess with, and that is as classic a movie storyline as you will ever find.

Source: Variety

Spielberg Could Be Helming ‘Matt Helm’

matt helm

Variety is reporting that iconic director Steven Spielberg could be moving next to a film based on the novels centering around playboy super spy, Matt Helm. Spielberg is seriously considering directing the film, which was, at one time, set up at DreamWorks before the company and Paramount split. The ‘Matt Helm’ property was left at Paramount, and whether Spielberg wants to direct the film or not, there will be some serious negotiations between the two companies to settle the deal.

Spielberg was so pleased with Paul Attanasio’s (‘Donnie Brasco’ and ‘The Sum of All Fears’) recent rewrite on the project, that he has definitely stepped on as producer.  There is no official word yet on whether he has decided to direct it.

While the four movies based on the 27-novel series by Donal Hamilton were somewhat tongue-in-cheek, Variety is saying Attanasio’s screenplay is closer to the recent ‘Bourne Identity’ spy thrillers.

Hollywood golden boys Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are also on board as producers.

Source: Variety

New ‘NIMH’ Project in the Works

nimh

‘Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH’ are having another go-around on the big screen.  Director Neil Burger (‘The Illusionist’) is in talks with Paramount to write the screenplay for another adaptation of the Robert C. O’Brien 1972 novel about a field mouse who must move her family along with her sick son out of the path of a farmer’s plow.

Many movie geeks will remember the 1982, animated feature from Don Bluth, ‘The Secret of NIMH.’  Unlike that film, this new film looks to combine live action with animation, a style that is becoming more and more popular.

Cary Granat (‘Journey to the Center of the Earth 3D’ and executive producer on the ‘Spy Kids’ franchise) will be serving as producer.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

Art Work and Logo for Zack Snyder’s ‘SuckerPunch’

suckerpunch

Zack Snyder is becoming a fan favorite at Comic Con, always bringing something sweet for his fans to take home.   During the panel for the ‘Watchmen’ DVD, the above t-shirt was given out for ‘SuckerPunch.’   It shows us the first item of artwork from the film, and it shows us the logo.   Pretty kickass.

‘SuckerPunch’ tells the story of a Babydoll, young girl in the 1950s who is sent to a mental institution by her stepfather.   With only five days before she is lobotomized, she delves into an alternate reality that may hold the key to her escape.

‘SuckerPunch’ stars Emily Browning, Vanessa Hudgens, Abbie Cornish, and Jenna Malone.   It is set for release on March 25th, 2011.

Source: Deadline Hollywood