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Friday, August 02, 2002
It seems that, in addition to a planned Anime movie and comic books series, the John Carpenter character Snake Plissken will also be appearing in a video game! That's right, you can play at being Snake with Kurt Russell supplying voice and motion capture stuff. I assume it will be coolness. One report on said project can be found here at Scifi.com.
The rumor mill at scifiwire is bubbling, and most of it stinks. One old rumor has footage of Natalie Portman inserted into the closing of Return of the Jedi! Uh, her character is supposed to be DEAD by then. Frankly I'm hoping for a rousing decapitation in Episode III, like something out of Dario Argento's Four Flies on Grey Velvet, yeah! And DO NOT get me started on the digital addition of Jar Jar into Episode IV. More recent 'news' has Dominique Swain telling people that she is close to working on a 'blockbuster new space film' with Jimmy Smits in a 'hot environment'. Considering Smits plays Bail Organa (aka Princess Leia's adoptive father) that can be considered a nudge, wink that she might be in Episode III (but loose lips sink ships and yakking about 'almost' getting a job cab get you an express ticket to Loserville).
Now that Peter Jackson as become an Anointed Filmmaker, Universal is interested in financing his remake of King Kong. Supposedly. Well, after getting glowing accolades from everyone in the universe Jackson is prime for a big time fanboy smack down and box office disaster. Do the remake, Peter, and you'll be apologizing for it for the rest of your career.
In yet more unsubstantiated rumor news, Harrison Ford evidently asked that his current squeeze Clarista (what the hell IS there to squeeze?) Flockhart get written into Indy 4. We already a had a skeleton scene in the first one.
–Chad H. "Chadzilla" Saxelid
posted by Christopher 6:27 AM | Comments
Thursday, August 01, 2002
Good morning, Mr. & Mrs. Fanboy and all the geeks at sea…let’s go to press.
I have but one story for you this morning. I reprint it for you here just to prove to you that I’m not making this up.
Wrestlers Headlock Hollywood
By Claude Brodesser
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - World Wrestling Entertainment has created a Los Angeles-based division that will seek out film and TV opportunities for the WWE-branded characters.
The crossover success of WWE star Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson in the modest hit "The Scorpion King" is one example of the type of opportunity WWE will continue to seek in feature films: placing WWE characters in prominent roles.
WWE Films will aim to create and produce material that "will appeal not only to our loyal fans, but to a larger public as well," said WWE chief executive Linda McMahon.
Increasingly, TV viewer loyalty has become a nettlesome issue for WWE: While still delivering healthy ratings numbers of young male viewers, its grappler shows like "UPN Smackdown" and its TNN cablecast have suffered double-digit declines in young male viewership over the last year.
The office will be run by Joel Simon, a co-producer of "X-Men" and executive producer of "Wild Wild West." He called WWE "a powerful brand" that is "an untapped creative resource for Hollywood."
He added: "I believe that the WWE has created a new breed of action-adventure hero: one with a ready-made audience. WWE attracts a strong, youth-oriented audience, the type of moviegoers and viewers who can financially make or break a film.
"My job is to show how the WWE brand and its Superstars can be used to best advantage to bring its global audience of teens and young adults to new film and television projects."
WWE will finance its own overhead and development for these projects.
No, this is not a joke. Today is August 1st, not April 1st. Normally, I’d toss out some sarcastic barbs but what’s the point because this is laughable enough as it is. Just because The Rock seems to be on the road to success on the silver screen doesn’t mean anyone else in WWE has any business polluting the multiplex. Think of all the talented people in Hollywood who can’t get their projects off the ground and then think about what horrors Vince McMahon is about to unleash upon the movie going public! I guess if you’ve longed for the cinematic adventures of Crash Holly or Scotty 2 Hotty, then this must be good news for you. My God, this has the potential to be an even bigger fiasco than the XFL!
Okay, I lied when I said I had only one story. According to Coming Soon!, Steven Spielberg wants to make a biopic of “The Great Emancipator” himself, Abraham Lincoln, and he wants Tom Hanks to star in it. Ironically, Tom Hank is a direct descendent of Lincoln’s mom. Another little known fact about Lincoln is that he was an amateur wrestler in school. Hey, maybe the WWE can produce the movie and HHH can play Andrew Johnson?
I’m too disgusted to continue today. More news, views, and skews to come.
–Scott Foy
posted by Christopher 6:13 AM | Comments
Wednesday, July 31, 2002
Oh HELL no! That is my official reaction to Cinescape's article about Mace Neufeld's announcement that he and Paramount plan a remake of John Frankenheimer's sci-fi/horror thriller Seconds. The acclaimed director hasn't even been dead a month and their robbing his legacy. What's next, The Manchurian Candidate? Jon (The Core) Amiel is threatening to make it.
Cinescape also says that Paul Schrader is taking over the Exorcist prequel.
Now for some groovy news. Fangoria reports that Snake Plissken is coming back, big time. First off there will be another Escape movie, but it's an anime feature this time around with Kurt Russell providing Snake's voice and Carpenter/Hill producing with a Japanese company. A 2004 release is promised. Also a comic series entitled John Carpenter's Snake Plissken Chronicles is forthcoming from Hurricane Entertainment, the first issue will debut the same day as the upcoming MGM/UA Special Editon DVD, which is aimed at a springtime release.
Henry Selick has an adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Coraline planned for a late 2003 release and yet another music video director is making yet another psychic helping find serial killer the cops can't catch. Frankly, The Cell was bad enough. This cinematic crime will be committed by director Miguel Sapochnik and screenwriters Ted (Ravenous) Griffin and Sean Bailey.
Capturing the Komedy! prize for stupid groans is ESPN, which did a *ahem* funny what-if play by play of John Carpenter's Halloween at their website, check it out if you dare! On a more serious note, the AMC backstory will feature interviews with the usual suspects. . . director John Carpenter, producer Debra Hill, Moustapha Akkad, Irwin Yablans, Joe Wolf, Nick Castle, PJ Soles, Charles Cyphers, Tommy Lee Wallace, Dean Cundey, as well as Tony Timpone, editor of Fangoria magazine (by the way, Timpone mentions in the current issue of Fangoria that GMK, the acclaimed Godzilla movie from the director of the Gamera trilogy, is scheduled to hit video this winter).
–Chad H. "Chadzilla" Saxelid
posted by Christopher 12:22 PM | Comments
Tuesday, July 30, 2002
Good evening, Mr. & Mrs. Fanboy and all the geeks at sea…let’s go to press.
This story was originally printed in Variety back on April 21st, but I pass it along to you in case you haven’t heard about it.
AMC Hooks Up 'Trailer' for Hollywood Series
By Melissa Grego
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - AMC, a cable network dedicated to the world of American film, is developing a reality series about towns that serve as locations for movies.
The pilot for "Movie Trailer," hosted by "Mystery Science Theater 3000" veteran Mike Nelson, will focus on Woodstock, Ill., where the Bill Murray comedy "Groundhog Day" was shot.
If the pilot goes to series, Nelson will travel around the country by trailer, visiting almost-famous locations in the towns and calling on locals to share stories about their moments as Hollywood insiders. He'll also fill his trailer with memorabilia, taking pieces of movie history with him.
AMC, which is in more than 82 million U.S. homes, has pacted with producer Stone Stanley Entertainment (ABC's "The Mole" and the WB's "Popstars") on the project.
As much as I enjoyed MST3K, this really doesn’t sound very entertaining. Actually, it sounds more like something the Travel Channel would come up with. Still, I’m sure it can’t be any worse than Slamball.
Could you imagine Will Smith as Neo in THE MATRIX? It almost happened, but apparently the concept behind THE MATRIX was too hard for Smith to grasp and so he opted to do WILD, WILD WEST instead. And to think people think Keanu is the dumb one!
Wanna get a sneak preview of what WILLIAM SHATNER’S FULL MOON FRIGHT NIGHT is going to be like? Well, get a bad taste of things to come by clicking here.
An even more frightening pairing than William Shatner and Charlie Band is also about rear it’s ugly head. Anybody out there anticipating a new comedy starring Jerry O’ Connell and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer? Too late! Its called KANGAROO JACK. Don’t let the teaser trailer fool you because this is actually a mafia caper comedy set Down Under with a CGI kangaroo. Personally, I prefer an all CGI remake of the 1979 boxing kangaroo movie MATILDA, this time set in the world of illegal underground pit fighting. Wouldn’t you like to see BLOODSPORT with a computerized kangaroo? Anyway, if you’re a glutton for punishment, then check out the KANGAROO JACK teaser.
Okay, who requested the TIME COP sequel? Come on! Speak up! Nobody wanna take credit? Well, TIME COP 2 is in production as we speak. However, the “Muscles From Brussels” is nowhere to be found this time and instead we get Jason Scott Lee and Thomas Ian Griffith as the big name stars. Safe to say this one is heading straight to video.
Enough with the agony, it’s time for some fun. Ever wanted to be a super villain? If so, check this out.
More news, views, and skews to come.
–Scott Foy
posted by Christopher 8:22 AM | Comments
Upcoming DVD releases have been updated through August 12.
posted by Christopher 5:59 AM | Comments
Monday, July 29, 2002
Cinescape reports that Michael Crichton's new book Prey has been eagerly slurped up by Fox. The studio is hoping the bestselling writer's novel about nano-technology will birth a Jurassic-sized hit at the box office.
Dropping by the Fangoria website reveals that Stan Winston (who is currently doing effects for the completely unnecessary T3: Rise of the Machines) has roped together three production companies to finance his "hunters chased by mutant rednecks" flick Wrong Turn (Deliverance meets Predator, oohh-aahh). Alan (Halloween 4, Spawn) B. McElroy hammered out the script and Adam Armstrong (whose script for Stretch Armstrong and a Get Smart movie were never produced, excuse me while I weep for his pain) did rewrites. Crime and Punishment in Suburbia director Rob Schmidt is at the helm.
If you live in San Diego, you might want to drop by the Comicon on August 1st. Don Coscarelli's Bubba Ho-Tep has a 9PM showtime. Angus Scrimm, Reggie Bannister, and Gloria Lynn Henry will be there on August 3rd (11AM a booth #2606) hyping the new Phantasm comic and signing stuff. Tell them Chadzilla sez HI! Full details at www.phantasm.com.
Misty Mundae's official website posted a new interview she did for Film Threat. Although I have yet to see in anything other than a fistful of promo stills and fetish photos of the Seduction Cinema poster 'girl', I do admire the feisty young lady for being so down to earth, keeping her education first, and just being sharp as a tack and unafraid to share her opinion. That's she's a cute horror buff helps too.
–Chad H. "Chadzilla" Saxelid
posted by Christopher 11:07 AM | Comments
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