Public Enemies - What Did You Think?
It seems like everyweel one of the Hollywood studios announces a new board game or toy movie adaptation that pushes the limits on believability. Some nights while I’m writing up news, I wonder if I’m actually a minor character in one of those Hollywood satires that paints Hollywood executives as bumbling idiots, trying to suck onto any idea that might have audience recognition and franchise potential.
I would like to believe that the studio execs are much smarter than these type of films make them out to be. In fact, I know that, for the most part, they are much smarter than that. But every night a new new story hits my screen. Another news story that seems dumber than the one from the previous week, previous month. Stretch Armstrong, Candyland, Monopoly, Battleship, Asteroids, and now a movie based on the Viewmaster?
The Game In Talks To Play B.A. Baracus in The A-Team?
Posted on Wednesday, July 1st, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
When John Singleton was developing an A-Team movie, he was talking to Ice Cube about playing B.A. Baracus. A year and a half later, Joe Carnahan has since been brought on board to get the project started, and BlackFilm is reporting that a new rapper has now become the front-runner for the mo-hawked soldier of fortune role originally played by Mr. T in the television series. The Game. The 29-year-old Grammy nominated rapper made his big screen debut in the not-well-received 2006 action-drama Waist Deep. He later had a small role in Street Kings.
The announced cast includes Liam Neeson as John “Hannibal” Smith and Bradley Cooper as Lt. Templeton “Faceman” Pack. For some reason I’m really not interested in an A-Team movie, which probably stems from my dislike for the series as a child. Also, I just think the show only worked in Regan-era (let’s not get political…) But if I were interested, The Game’s casting would probably excite me less than other, possibly more credible, options (even within the hip-hop field).But who knows, we really haven’t seen what he has to offer yet. What do you guys think?
Another Vague Hint That The Goonies Sequel Might Not Be Dead
Posted on Wednesday, July 1st, 2009 by Brendon Connelly
Do you want a sequel to The Goonies? Really? Well, you might be in luck. The original’s scriptwriter Chris Columbus has been speaking to Sci-Fi Wire about the possible new picture, revealing that Joe Pantoliano, who is starring in Columbus’ Percy Jackson and was Francis Fratelli in the original Goonies, has had some relevant chatter with Richard Donner. Quotes on that coming up after the break, as well as Columbus’ rather glib proposal on what adventure the next gen Goonies could face.
According to an unnamed source who spilled to Nuke The Fridge, Jessica Biel is currently negotiating a role in Kenneth Branagh’s Thor. If true, and let’s pretend for a moment that it is, this would seem to simultaneously stomp on the rumour that Natalie Portman was up for the female lead and those never ending Jessica Biel Wonderwoman stories (though stomping on those is rather like stomping on mist and just about as necessary). Who would she play? There’s a handful of options but other information on the film would seem to suggest it isn’t Nurse Jane Foster.
With only two feature films and one TV show to his name, writer/director Jody Hill, is now synonymous with ignoring the boundaries and “genre rules” of modern comedy and creating anti-heroes that laughably burble with nihilistic rage, scary faux pas and hot-air egos. But there is also an internal depth to these macho doofuses played by Hill’s longtime pal and writing partner, Danny McBride, and comedy star Seth Rogen, to surpass the high art of a perfectly-timed and pronounced “fuck.”
Hill’s work on Observe & Report, The Foot Fist Way, and his cultural breakthrough, HBO’s Eastbound & Down, contains more glass-darkly social commentary and life-lived expression than the work of any hotshot young novelist in recent memory. Rather than document the cold realities and indulgent pleasantries of another big city with bright lights, Hill is set on exploring the very place that so many creative-types vacate upon the arrival of their first Visa card or college acceptance letter: the American South. Moreover, as many middle-class and broke white American males face sobering, if inevitable, realizations and disillusions about the future, laughing at Hill’s moronic, unhinged versions as they champion outdated movie/sports star heroics atop small-town kingdoms is like homemade medicine. When it comes to countering the monotony of the average day-to-day? Eastbound is harder to beat still. The sight of Kenny Powers “dancing” in a middle school gym under the influence of eggrolls and ecstasy or ejecting a topless broad from his Jet Ski is priceless. Like cheetah-spotted gold or “a bulletproof tiger, dude.”
A native of North Carolina, Hill is the latest progeny of the North Carolina School of the Arts, alongside McBride and creative partner Ben Best, fellow EB&D director David Gordon Green (Pineapple Express), and EB&D cinematographer Tim Orr. In the first part of my interview, we discuss the show in-depth, including some of the surprising and vile admissions and special features on the Season One DVD. We also talk about what it’s like to be a young director coming from, and staying in, the South, why so many comedians today are from there, and why the region was overdue for a proper comedic depiction.
Hunter Stephenson: Hey Jody, how are you?
Jody Hill: Hey Hunter. Good, good, good. Hey man, I wanted to say that I was sorry I wasn’t there when you visited down in Wilmington [Eastbound & Down set, 2008]. I remember the piece you wrote, and it sounded like a really good time. [laughs] Sucks I couldn’t there, man; I was editing my film (Observe & Report), and Warner Bros. wouldn’t let me go. When you have to do a director’s cut, they want to lock you up for 10 weeks. [laughs] Everybody said they had a blast…and I was editing.
Yeah. I expected to interview you there. And I didn’t know about the change, that David Green was now directing the majority of the episodes while you were in L.A. But it all worked out, he killed it. My first question: Legend has it that when you, Danny [McBride], and Ben [Best] first conceived of Kenny Powers you were sitting in a kiddie pool in North Carolina drinking beers. [laughs] Is that accurate?
Jody Hill: [laughs] Yeah, this was before we made Foot Fist Way or anything. We were trying to come up with ideas for shows. I was between jobs; I had been working this really shit reality show job, doing motion-control for Behind the Music and shit like that. [laughs] It was pretty lame. And so, yeah, we were in Charlotte, in the backyard of Ben Best’s house. And yeah, we were literally sitting in a kiddie pool with a case of beer. And Kenny was one of the ideas that, uh, we came up with. [laughs]
Could a new collaboration between Tony Scott and Denzel Washington be about to get Moneyballed? According to The Hollywood Reporter, there’s every chance that Unstoppable will be in fact stopped, and dead in its tracks. The issue, of course, is financial. Let’s not pretend for one second that a Tony Scott/Denzel Washington picture would run into studio problems on any kind of artistic basis. Apparently, neither Scott nor Washington’s contracts are signed yet, nor is that of second-fiddle star Chris Pine.
Ramon Rodriguez Getting Bigger Role in Next Transformers?
Posted on Tuesday, June 30th, 2009 by Brendon Connelly
When Michael Bay gets around to the next Transformers movie (and I expect it will be his next film, a year spent trying to get a ’smaller’ picture off the ground possibly coming to nothing quite in time) there could be a beefier role for Ramon Rodriguez, Revenge of the Fallen’s conspiracy nut Leo Spitz. There’s a piece at the LA Times’ Hero Complex blog today profiling the young actor, who does seem to be having a real growth spurt in his career right now. The story was written by Geoff Boucher who reports that Michael Bay “hinted” to him that TF3 would see Rodriguez step up to a bigger role. More immediately amusing, however, was Rodriguez’ description of his audition for this current Transformers film…
Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Return: Micmacs A Tire-Larigot International Movie Trailer
Posted on Monday, June 29th, 2009 by Russ Fischer
I don’t put much stock in movie nostalgia, but I still remember how thrilled I was by my first viewing of Delicatessen over fifteen years ago. Even with the weak elements of the movie taken into consideration, the world realized within is still one I like going back to. So I’ve been eager for actual footage from Micmacs A Tire-Larigot, the first film from Jean-Pierre Jeunet since 2004’s A Very Long Engagement. And now thanks to Twitch we have a teaser, after the jump. Read More »
Dimension Films To Remake An American Werewolf In London?
Posted on Monday, June 29th, 2009 by Russ Fischer
According to Bloody Disgusting, the Weinstein Brothers have purchased the rights to remake An American Werewolf in London from original writer/director John Landis. Dimension Films already has a Hellraiser remake in the works (which can’t seem to keep a director on board) and has the second new Halloween film hitting theatres soon. The news that a cash-strapped Landis has sold rights to the Weinsteins (who have been reported to be equally cash-strapped, ironically) will probably cue the question that has cropped up a lot lately: is nothing sacred? The perpetual answer is: not in Hollywood, no. And that’s OK, because we’ll always have the original. Read More »
There’s a new rumor about the Robert Rodriguez-produced Predators, according to Latino Review: supposedly Nimrod Antal is at the top of the list to direct the film. Which would actually be great news, if true. What, you don’t recognize the name? Read more after the jump. Read More »
Who Will Replace Sean Penn as Larry in The Three Stooges? How About Paul Giamatti?
Posted on Monday, June 22nd, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
Last week Sean Penn announced that he would be backing out of the Farrelly Brothers comedy The Three Stooges and another project to deal with family issues. So who will replace Penn as Larry in redo of the famous comedy trio? How about Paul Giamatti?
Tenacious D Have Written A Song For New Heavy Metal Movie
Posted on Monday, June 22nd, 2009 by Russ Fischer
Buried in a video interview with MTV, Jack Black mentions that he and Kyle Gass, aka Tenacious D, have written a song for the new Heavy Metal movie. Which doesn’t mean that we’ll ever hear it, because the project could be perennially stuck in development hell, but the very idea of having a song in the film by the ‘D is great. Black also mentions that he’s working on a musical comedy with producer JJ Abrams. Read More »
