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Friday, February 14, 2003
Before we begin with your Valentine’s Day news I have a question for everyone. AM I HOT? Well, am I? Unfortunately, I saw part of last night’s latest foray into reality television hell called Am I Hot? and would like to forever erase the 15 minutes of it I saw from my memory banks forever. Lorenzo Lamas, who probably took the gig with hopes of finding the next ex-Mrs. Lamas, serves as one of the judges. Good lord! As Jimmy Kimmel so eloquently put it last night, “Kato Kaelin uses his name as a punchline!” Anyway, on with the news.
Speaking of reality programming from hell, it’s the battle of the Spring Break movies in Hollywood right now! New Line Cinema has forged an unholy cabal with the makers of The Real World to make THE REAL SPRING BREAK or CANCUN: THE REALITY MOVIE (they haven’t quite finalized the title yet) with hopes of having it in theaters this summer. The documentary will focus on a group of 12 good looking young college students who get shipped off to Cancun, Mexico to find out what Spring Break is really all about. Then there’s Universal, who is teaming up with the makers of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette who are making THE SAME DAMN MOVIE!!! only with 8 college students in Cancun instead of 12. Their version to be called SPRING BREAK: THE MOVIE is specified for a fall release. Both will be filming in the same place at the same time this March and one can only hope that a tsunami or a meteor strike wipes them all out. Hey, maybe the two will cross paths and get into some wild rumble? We can only hope that this plague of reality TV -- and now movies -- ends very, very soon.
In your absolute BS story for the day, a site called Wrestling Edge claims that WWE diva Trish Stratus is in line for one of the lead roles in the big screen version of THE FANTASTIC FOUR. If you believe that then I’d like to sell some swampland I own in Nevada.
Variety reports that Sylvester Stallone will be playing the villain in that 3-D SPY KIDS sequel. I suppose I could make a sarcastic comment but the truth is that this is really a big step up considering the tailspin his career has been in of late.
Add IRON MAN to the ever-growing list of comic book movies. New Line Cinema announced a summer 2005 release for the film. I think before the end of the decade we will have seen a movie based on every single Marvel Comics superhero at this rate. Marvel honcho Avi Arad recently joked about the slew of movies in the works based on Marvel Comics saying, “the only Marvel character who shouldn't be getting a movie soon is the obscure roller-skating mutant-singer Dazzler." Awesome! That means there is still hope for my dream of a Speedball movie!
And in video game to movie news, The Hollywood Reporter reports that the movie rights to the video game DRIVER have been optioned by the folks who made the RESIDENT EVIL movie. Oh joy, another fast car movie. Yawn.
Variety reports that Charlie Sheen has signed on for SCARY MOVIE 3. Hopefully it will be funnier than HOT SHOTS PART DEUX. Hopefully it also will be funnier than SCARY MOVIE and SCARY MOVIE 2.
Variety also reports on an upcoming unholy alliance as rapper-turned-wannabe actor DMX will star in a movie alongside public nuisance David Arquette. The movie called NEVER DIE ALONE is about the rise and fall of a gangsta, whose life unfolds in flashback as a reporter probes events that led to his killing. Oh, dear lord, its not a comedy! They’re going to get serious.
Lions Gate has announced a September 23rd street date for the video and DVD of BEYOND RE-ANIMATOR. Actual DVD specs are not yet available.
Finally today, something that’s a bit on the funny side. Here’s a little news blurb from DVDdrama.net about the Chinese release of BLACK MASK 2, which actually came out on video/DVD here in the states before it was released in Asia. “The movie which was financed in part by the US company Columbia Tristar, was shot originally in English with a casting composed of American and Chinese actors. But the local distributor ChinaStar, who also financed the movie was not very pleased with the final result, has decided to completely change the dialogue of the movie to make it into an absolutely crazy unserious comedy made in China. They changed the original sci-fi serious story to make a pure comedy.” Speaking as someone who rented the movie and enjoyed it so much he bought the DVD, I just have one thing to say to this. I thought it already was a comedy!
–Scott Foy
posted by Christopher 6:59 AM | Comments
Wednesday, February 12, 2003
The Halloween Returns to Haddonfield (or at least the Pasadena locations that created the fictional Illinois town) October Convention is now listing confirmed appearances. So far the list includes producers Moustapha (oh, saw it again) Akkad, Irwin Yablans, and Joseph Wolf, as well as actors P.J. Soles (Linda in Halloween), Charles Cyphers (Sheriff Brackett in Halloween 1 and 2), Bradford English (John Strode in Halloween 6), Donald Shanks (Michael Myers in Halloween 5), Dick Warlock (Michael Myers in Halloween 2), Thomas Morga (Michael Myers in Halloween 4), Pamela Susan Shoop (Nurse Karen, you know, the one in the hot tub scene, in Halloween 2) and Cliff Emmich (Mr. Garrett, the security guard that gets hammered by Myers, from Halloween 2). Screenwriter Daniel (Halloween 6) Farrands will be there, but will the Producer's Cut bootlegs of Curse of Michael Myers be there? Halloween comic book writer Phil (Wet Work) Nutman will be there as well. Of course, guests are subject to change, and I will leave all the snotty, mean spirited sarcastic comments about those who dare to appear at conventions such as these to other correspondents.
La-La Land Records has announced a limited to 3,000 edition release of Elia Cmiral's score for the Robert Harmon directed flop They. I think I'll pass, I don't remember the music as being all that good. To me it sounded like somebody tossed an orchestra down a stairwell and mixed that with a drum machine.
The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Session 9 writer/director Brad Anderson's first movie for a major studio with be a psychological thriller title Lucid, about a woman who cannot distinguish the real world from her own dream world.
The biggest non-news story of the day will probably be the non-nominating of Peter Jackson for the best director Oscar (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers). Expect more complaining when the same thing happens next year with The Return of the King.
The Fangoria website recently reported that legendary Spanish horror star Paul Naschy will be making his American debut in Don (Dinosaur Valley Girls) Glut's Countess Dracula's Orgy of Blood, a sequel to The Erotic Rites of Countess Dracula. Joining the Nacshman will be William Smith and Del Howisen.
–Chad H. "Chadzilla" Saxelid
posted by Christopher 2:51 PM | Comments
Tuesday, February 11, 2003
MY NAME IS SCOTT FOY & I PAID TO SEE BIKER BOYZ!
But first the news and I vow that there will be no news about comic book movies or movies based on old TV shows today. Okay, I’m lying. Hey, if it weren’t for those two categories there really wouldn’t be much movie news these days.
The nominees for the 23rd Annual Golden Razzies were announced yesterday. The nominees for Worst Picture are CROSSROADS, PLUTO NASH, Roberto Benigni’s PINOCCHIO, STAR WARS EPISODE II: ATTACK OF THE CLONES, and SWEPT AWAY. Eddie Murphy (PLUTO NASH), Adam Sandler (MR. DEEDS & EIGHT CRAZY NIGHTS), Adriano Giannini (SWEPT AWAY), Roberto Benigni/the dubbed voice of Breckin Meyer (PINOCCHIO), and Steven Seagal (HALF PAST DEAD) vie for the dishonor of Worst Actor. On the female side, it will be a heated contest between Angelina Jolie (LIFE, OR SOMETHING LIKE IT), Winona Ryder (MR. DEEDS), Madonna (SWEPT AWAY), Jennifer Lopez (ENOUGH & MAID IN MANHATTAN), and Britney Spears (CROSSROADS) for the crown of Worst Actress of 2002. You can find a full list of nominees by clicking here. The Razzies will be presented Saturday, March 22nd, the night before the Oscars.
Speaking on Roberto Benigni’s PINOCCHIO, Miramax is actually re-releasing the movie into a few select art house cinemas in it’s original Italian language with English subtitles and with the extra nine minutes of footage they cut from the dubbed version. Apparently they realized what a fiasco it was trying to market it as a kids movie at Christmas and are now trying to resell it as a sophisticated foreign film. I guess paying $21 million for the rights to something that only grosses a grand total of $3.7 million at the box office will make Miramax kingpin Harvey Weinstein think crazy things like this. Speaking as $6.75 of that $3.7 mil, NOTHING YOU DO WILL MAKE THAT MOVIE WATCHABLE! NOTHING! This concludes my rant for the day.
The Oscar nominations were announced this morning. Harvey Weinstein produced 4 of the 5 movies nominated for Best Picture. I expect the cover of tomorrow’s Daily Variety will have a picture of Harvey Weinstein shaking hands with Satan. In fact, the only reason to watch the Oscars this year will be to see Eminem perform his Best Original Song nomination. It’ll be fun to see how much they have to bleep out and whether or not he can behave in front of such an uptight audience.
Australian director Brett Leonard, who previously made THE LAWNMOWER MAN which I actually liked and VIRTUOSITY which I did not, is attached to direct the big screen version of Marvel Comics’ MAN-THING. According to E! Online, Leonard is saying he'll be playing it as more of an "urban legend" creature, like the Jersey Devil. I’m not exactly certain what that means. Hey, just as long as it turns out better than THE RETURN OF SWAMP THING. Shooting is expected to begin within two months in and around New Orleans. Hey, that’s not too far from where I live. I wonder if I could get on the set if I flashed them my Badmovies.net press credentials, just as soon as Chris “PhotoShop’s” them.
A few weeks back I reported on the possibility of Britney Spears playing daughter Judy in a big-screen live action version of THE JETSONS. Well, nothing has been heard on that but Dark Horizons reports that Steve Martin is rumored to be the top contender for the role of George Jetson. Hey, why not? How about Reba McEntire as his wife Jane too?
According to Ain’t It Cool News, Martin Short did a radio interview this past week where he talked up a “Giminy Glick” movie (Dear God, NO!) and said there was a possibility of making a sequel to his 80s hit INNERSPACE. We need INNERSPACE 2 about as much as we need MY SCIENCE PROJECT 2.
Columbia Tri-Star will be releasing the 50s classic, if only for the fantastic f/x work by Ray Harryhausen, IT CAME FROM BENEATH THE SEA on DVD on May 6th. Unfortunately, this will be a bare bones disc with no special extras. Heck, might as well just tape the movie off a Cinemax and save $19.95. Cinemax sure has been playing the hell out of this movie the past two months.
So I'm hanging out in the Ain't It Cool News chatroom this past weekend and I make some joke about Yeti movies and I jokingly pitch my idea for a really stupid Yeti movie and how I could probably sell it to Revolution Studios because "they'll make anything." Well, this one Ain't It Cool News Hollywood insider who goes by the moniker Mr. Beaks informs me that I probably could sell that to someone in Hollywood considering a certain script that is currently the subject of a bidding war. Now get this - HOTT COPZ - the year is 2046 and mankind has colonized THE SUN! He didn't go into specifics how but this alone is a premise stretching credibility. The movie is about two cops living on the sun who are trying to track down a serial killer preying on prostitutes. And don't confuse this for some silly outer space b movie because the film takes itself very seriously and wants to be a gritty thriller ala SEVEN but with sci-fi elements such as a space chase through a solar flare. But with a title like that how can it possibly not be a terrible movie? Get it? They're cops who work on the sun! They're HOTT COPZ! And it isn't a comedy or a dumb actioner! Mr. Beaks was less than kind in detailing the script, which he has read. He can't believe this is going to go for big bucks but apparently it will because there is a big money bidding war going on between Revolution Studios and a couple other studios over who is going to buy the script. I'm just speechless. If you have a terrible idea for a movie perhaps now is the time to pitch it to someone in Hollywood because the idiots running the asylum have apparently been replaced with even bigger morons.
And finally today, as evidenced by this report’s opening line, I went to see BIKER BOYZ and wrote a review of it for Ain’t It Cool News. Actually, I went to see it the week before last but AICN’s Moriarty was so busy that it took him a whole week to get around to updating the site. Anyway, for those interested in taking a ride down my experience watching this woefully mediocre melodrama, just click here.
–Scott Foy
posted by Christopher 7:42 AM | Comments
Monday, February 10, 2003
The Order and 28 Days Later - coming soon to a theater new you?
Great news, Fangoria.com reports that 20th Century Fox has announced release dates for The Order (formerly The Sin Eater) and 28 Days Later. The Order, which was delayed to to Special Effects issues, is set for September 5th, while Danny Boyles' 28 Days Later is planned for an August 1st launch via Fox Searchlight. No word on just how wide the 28 Days Later release will be.
–Chad H. "Chadzilla" Saxelid
posted by Christopher 12:30 PM | Comments
Let’s start out the news today with some good news for giant monster fans. First off, GAMERA: GUARDIAN OF THE UNIVERSE, Shusuke Kaneko’s 1995 giant monster movie that revolutionized the entire genre, finally gets released on DVD in the US on March 18th. More importantly, ADV Films will be releasing the DVD with both English and subtitled Japanese Dolby Digital 2.0 soundtracks. More importantly, it will be loaded with extras. Extras include an interview with special FX creator Shinji Higuchi, a behind-the-scenes featurette, footage from the film’s press conference, promotional events and opening night, original trailers and TV spots. Whoa! The suggested retail price is $14.98. However, for $24.98 you can purchase the disc along with a special box designed to house the next two movies in the trilogy which are slated for release later this year. Thank you, ADV Films, and let me say that it is about damn time!
Also on the giant monster front comes this news blurb from Fangoria. Popular New York Press columnist Jim Knipfel has a novel coming out called THE BUZZING. It is the story of Roscoe Baragon, a reporter for the fictional New York Sentinel who specializes in bizarre conspiracy theories. But it’s also a homage to Japanese monster movies, which Roscoe watches at the end of each day to relax—before he discovers that events very similar to those in his favorite films might be on the verge of afflicting Manhattan. Roscoe Baragon? Suffice it to say that Mr. Knipfel is a daikaiju fan. THE BUZZING will hit bookstore shelves March 11th. Should make for an interesting read.
IMDB reports that Steve Oedekerk and Jennifer Tung will reprise their roles in the sequel the whole world is longing for, KUNG POW 2: TONGUE OF FURY. The sequel is set for a 2004 release so you may want to go ahead and camp out in front of the theater to be the first to get tickets. They’ll make sequels to anything these days. How long until I have to report on CORKY ROMANO 2 going into production?
One day after Creature Corner posted their exclusive news about George Romero directing THE AMITYVILLE HORROR: 24 YEARS LATER they received word that Romero was already out of the directing chair and has been replaced by Hungarian filmmaker Tibor Takacs, who is best known as the director of THE GATE. Adding to the impending schlock, the guy who wrote HALLOWEEN: THE CURSE OF MICHAEL MYERS is writing the script. Maybe it won’t be better than AMITYVILLE 3-D after all.
IGN FilmForce is reporting that the crash landing space shuttle sequence in THE CORE will be left in and that the movie will still open on March 28th. David Foster, one of THE CORE’s producers, says, “In fact, in the movie it is a very heroic scene when it crash-lands safely in the L.A. River basin—a funny thought itself. In every test screening that scene has received huge applause.” He neglects to mention that virtually every test screening received huge laughter at the film’s absurdity.
Ain’t It Cool News and Entertainment Weekly both have exclusive info regarding the third and final installment in the SPY KIDS series. The next one, which will involve a MATRIX-like virtual world, is going to be in 3-D. I’m not a huge fan of the franchise but I will definitely be going to see SPY KIDS 3D: GAME OVER. I can’t believe it has taken this long for someone to think of doing a 3-D movie what with all the advances in technology used in movies these days.
Director Gus Van Sant was was interviewed by Moviehole about his latest film but said something about one of his past movies which leads up to a possible future movie that you may find horrifying. "PSYCHO was great, a huge kind of grand experiment project. Very trial by fire. It met with a lot of criticism – but we managed to keep afloat, I think we broke even. But no, I wouldn’t remake another movie again, however, I’m thinking of remaking PSYCHO again. Doing a third remake. The idea this time is to really change it – we’re talking about doing a Punk rocker setting. Viggo Mortensen suggested it. He was married to Exene Cervenka and knows all the right people to get involved – all the right punk rocker etc – so he would definitely be involved if we go ahead." I’ll take “The Worst Ideas Ever Concieved By Mankind” for a thousand, Alex!”
Time for some comic book movie news! Numerous reports on the internet state that Mutant X star and former soap opera hunk Victor Webster has been cast as the Man of Steel in the SUPERMAN movie that may or may not ever get made. Nicole Kidman is reportedly going to be donning the garb as CATWOMAN in the BATMAN spin-off movie. The Hollywood Reporter states that she’s waiting to see the final draft of the script before she agrees to the role. I suspect we’ll be hearing that she’s passed on the project in the very near future.
Speaking of Mutant X, Comics Continuum reports that Freddie Prinze Jr. has written an episode of the series that will kick off the May sweeps period. And what a quality show to showcase the screenwriting talents of such a talented man!
Asian martial arts master Donnie Yen told SCI FI Wire that he will serve as action director for the upcoming Hong Kong vampire film TWINS EFFECT, which he described as "Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets BLADE." Isn’t that sort of like saying a movie is LETHAL WEAPON meets Fastlane? They are like two sides of the same coin. What I want to know and what Mr. Yen didn’t reveal is whether or not the vampires will be of the hopping variety as has been made famous in Hong Kong cinema?
Once again, a TV show is being converted into a movie. This time it’s the late 50s/early 60s action adventure show HAVE GUN, WILL TRAVEL. The show focused on a justice-seeking knight calling himself Paladin who lived a double life as an erudite, well-off San Francisco society man and as an antihero in black with the symbol of a chess knight on his holster who avenges evil in a savage land. The Hollywood Reporter that Paramount is fast-tracking the movie as we speak so they must really have high hopes for this one. Hope it turns out better than THE WILD, WILD WEST.
The Hollywood Reporter also gives us word on the latest remake in the words. New Line Cinema is planning a remake of the 70s blaxploitation flick THE HARDER THEY COME. Sounds more like a porno title to me. The 1973 original starred musician Jimmy Cliff and had a heavy reggae theme to it. The new version will replace reggae and hip-hop and star a yet to be determined rapper thus making it indistinguishable from every other hip hop movie of recent times.
Finally today, I have a question. Did we really need a two-hour documentary to confirm that Michael Jackson is a very disturbed individual? All you had to do was just look at the man!
–Scott Foy
posted by Christopher 12:25 PM | Comments
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