Public Enemies - What Did You Think?
Mystery Team, Richard Kelly, Ninjas and More Invade Comic-Con 2009
Posted on Sunday, June 14th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
As Comic Con approaches, we’ll be learning more and more about what we can expect at this year’s geek fest.
First up, I’ve learned that Derrick Comedy’s Mystery Team will not only have a booth on the convention floor, but will be holding a panel and a special sneak preview screening at the con. No word on the exact dates. Writers/stars Dominic Dierkes, Donald Glover, and DC Pierson, producer Meggie McFadden, and director/editor Dan Eckman will be on hand at the panel debuting an all-new Mystery Team short film. On the convention floor:
Come bust kid criminals with Oakdale’s best eighteen-year-old kid detectives the Mystery Team in their storefront slash crime lab. Meet the filmmakers, take pictures with actual setpieces, and submit a mystery of your own for solving.
Next up, Donnie Darko/Southland Tales director Richard Kelly says he will be making an appearance at the con to promote his upcoming sci-fi thriller The Box, starring Cameron Diaz, James Marsden and Frank Langella. The panel will take place on Friday, July 24th as part of the Warner Bros presentation. Cameron, James and Richard will be in attendance to present a first look at the trailer and “other cool stuff.”
More after the jump.
After Brett Ratner dropped out of directing Conan due to “scheduling conflicts,” V For Vendetta director James McTeigue was tipped to be the top choice to helm the project. CHUD is now reporting that while Nu-Image/Millenium want McTeigue, Lionsgate is interested in three different choices:
A couple of days back, Empire scooped the news that Brett Ratner was off of the Conan the Barbarian project and the hunt for a new director was on. Seems it was a real short chase as Chud are now already telling us that James McTeigue, director of V for Vendetta and Ninja Assassin, has been lined up to slip into the hot seat.
I think it’s reasonable to assume that McTeigue was already in the frame when the “The Rat has left the building” cry went up and, had he not been, the comment would not have been made.
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice Goes Head To Head With Christopher Nolan’s Inception
Posted on Thursday, March 19th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
Walt Disney Pictures has announced a July 16th 2010 release for the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced Jon Turteltaub-directed family adventure film The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. Marvel recently moved Thor out of the weekend, but now the Mouse House production will go head to head with Christopher Nolan’s sci-fi action film Inception. Disney has two other event films scheduled for Summer 2010: Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time hits theaters on May 28th and Toy Story 3 will be released on July 18th.
Meanwhile, Warner Bros has set The Wachowski Brothers-produced James McTeigue-directed Ninja Assassin on November 25th 2009, up from a TBA 2010. Richard Kelly’s sci-fi thriller The Box has been moved from November to Halloween weekend, up against Youth in Revolt, and a week after Saw VI.
source: Variety
The Wachowski Brothers to Direct Superman Reboot?
Posted on Wednesday, February 11th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
Could The Wachowski Brothers be in line to direct a reboot of Superman for Warner Bros? A scooper over at AICN caught an interview with V For Vendetta director James McTeigue on Berlin television where the filmmaker admitted that Plastic Man was originally scheduled to be the brothers’ next project, but the film has been delayed indefinitely due to a major shake-up of projects at Warner Bros. McTeigue was even signed on to direct second unit, as he has done on past Wachowski Brothers productions.
Bad Ass Ninja Assassin Fight Choreography Video
Posted on Sunday, January 4th, 2009 by Peter Sciretta
/Film reader Christopher M scored this bad ass fight choreography/stunt training video showing some of the work of 87 Eleven (the stunt team that worked on 300, Watchmen, Matrix and Bourne films) on The Wachowski Brothers-produced, James McTeigue-directed Ninja Assassin. Check it out after the jump.
Nu Image Meeting With Slew of Directors For Conan Reboot, Including Brett Ratner
Posted on Friday, September 19th, 2008 by Hunter Stephenson
On Thursday, we played pinata with the rumor that Brett Ratner was in talks to helm the $100 million R-rated Conan reboot. Well, Latino Review put the gossip in focus, reporting that Ratner merely took a meeting with Nu Image, and evidently so have a lot of other directors. We think a few of them would be ace for the job.
Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (Crank, Crank 2, Crank 3/3D, Game, Jonah Hex)
At Slashfilm: In Crank We Trust (a lot). With their debut feature, the duo hit the ground running with so much batty confidence and aggression that we’ll support any genre fare they wish to assault with a bullet-time rig or a gazillion consumer-grade cameras and a mulleted Corey Haim. Moral: If someone throws a ridiculous house party, from then on you just need an invite. Imagining what these guys would do for barbaric decapitations, naked women nestled in animal furs, and a botched crucifixion with vultures (if applicable in the reboot) makes us want to sell your sister to James Earl Jones to make it happen. And their down-to-earth relationship with movie sites would quickly dust off the skepticism amongst readers who didn’t grow up with Milius’s version. But aren’t they insanely busy?
Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, Intacto)
If LR is on the money with this list of prospects, it seems that Nu Image wants to invest in a director(s) with turbo-powered visuals and style to spare. Fresnadillo is apparently scheduled to meet with producers, and he’s a guy we’d recommend for several projects of Conan’s magnitude…if we didn’t keep forgetting about the dude! In the summer of 2007, the sequel to Danny Boyle’s 28 Days Later was supposed to put the Spanish hotshot on the fanboy map; alas it fell well below Fox Atomic’s box office expectations. That said, along with the 10 people at my screening and the New York Times, I was knocked-over by how well he handled action, tension, gore, clever subtext, and a modern flare too often attributed to coked-out music video directors. I was possibly even more knocked-over by future runs-ins with 28WL haters and meh’ers. Fresnadillo is likely seen as untested for the dinero at play here, but the talent is obvious. With a solid cast, he’s a fantastic gamble. Take advantage.
Other directors who’ve sat down with Nu Image include the long rumoured Neil Marshall (The Descent, Doomsday), James McTeigue (V For Vendetta, Ninja Assassin, Wachowski Bros’ protege), Greg and Colin Strause (AVP-R, fuck this), and Robert Rodriguez, who’s been attached to a reboot for years, and is said to remain choice numero uno, but he can’t work it in. Oh yeah, and Brett Ratner (Chris Tucker’s career, swimming pools). So, the list is pretty encouraging, with a few welcome surprises. More as it develops.
Discuss: Out of the directors here, who would you choose? Why do you think the level of interest in a Conan reboot isn’t incredibly strong?
German newspaper BILD has run a set photo from James McTeigue’s Ninja Assassin, which shows the front end of a car with who knows how many Ninja stars sticking through the hood. One can only imagine what kind of sequence The Wachowski Brothers have come up with that has resulted in this kind of car damage. Thanks to Christopher M for sending the photos along. The photo appears to be a month old, so I apologize to anyone who may have already seen it (I had not, so I decided to share).
Ninja Assassin stars stars Korean pop star Rain (Speed Racer) as Raizo, one of the deadliest assassins in the world. Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them… and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.
In Berlin, Europol agent Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris) has stumbled upon a money trail linking several political murders to an underground network of untraceable assassins from the Far East. Defying the orders of her superior, Ryan Maslow (Ben Miles), Mika digs into top secret agency files to learn the truth behind the murders. Her investigation makes her a target, and the Ozunu Clan sends a team of killers, led by the lethal Takeshi (Rick Yune), to silence her forever. Raizo saves Mika from her attackers, but he knows that the Clan will not rest until they are both eliminated. Now, entangled in a deadly game of cat and mouse through the streets of Europe, Raizo and Mika must trust one another if they hope to survive… and finally bring down the elusive Ozunu Clan. The film also stars legendary martial arts performer Sho Kosugi (Revenge of the Ninja) as the ruthless leader of the Ozunu Clan.
Images Removed at Warner Bros Request
/Film reader Christopher M sent over four photos from James McTeigue’s Ninja Assassin, which is being produced by The Wachowski Brothers. You might also want to head over to IESB, because they have some details about the opening sequence of the film.
Warner Bros has released new details on The Wachowski Brothers-produced Ninja Assassin. As you probably already know, Ninja Assassin is directed by James McTeigue (V For Vendetta) from a screenplay by Matthew Sand and J. Michael Straczynski. The film stars stars Korean pop star Rain (Speed Racer) as Raizo, one of the deadliest assassins in the world.
“Taken from the streets as a child, he was transformed into a trained killer by the Ozunu Clan, a secret society whose very existence is considered a myth. But haunted by the merciless execution of his friend by the Clan, Raizo breaks free from them… and vanishes. Now he waits, preparing to exact his revenge.
In Berlin, Europol agent Mika Coretti (Naomie Harris) has stumbled upon a money trail linking several political murders to an underground network of untraceable assassins from the Far East. Defying the orders of her superior, Ryan Maslow (Ben Miles), Mika digs into top secret agency files to learn the truth behind the murders. Her investigation makes her a target, and the Ozunu Clan sends a team of killers, led by the lethal Takeshi (Rick Yune), to silence her forever. Raizo saves Mika from her attackers, but he knows that the Clan will not rest until they are both eliminated. Now, entangled in a deadly game of cat and mouse through the streets of Europe, Raizo and Mika must trust one another if they hope to survive… and finally bring down the elusive Ozunu Clan.”
The film also stars legendary martial arts performer Sho Kosugi (Revenge of the Ninja) as the ruthless leader of the Ozunu Clan. Sounds like it could be a very cool Ninja action film. I was really impressed with McTeigue’s V for Vendetta, but The Invasion was a disaster, although I’m not sure McTeigue can really be blamed for not being able to fix the mess that was handed to him.
he behind-the-scenes creative team includes director of photography Karl Walter Lindenlaub (Independence Day, Prince Caspian), production designer Graham “Grace” Walker (Pitch Black, Gothika), costume designer Carlo Poggioli (Cold Mountain) and editor Giancarlo Ganziano. The Wachowski brothers’ longtime stunt coordinators Chad Stahelski and David Leitch are also on board as second unit co-directors. Joel Silver, Grant Hill, Larry Wachowski and Andy Wachowski are producing, with Thomas Tull, Jon Jashni and William Fay serving as executive producers.
Principal photography has started at Babelsberg Studios and on location in various parts of Berlin.
V For Vendetta’s James McTeigue to Direct Revelation
Posted on Friday, May 9th, 2008 by Hunter Stephenson
Director James McTeigue looks to follow-up his gig on the Wachowskis-produced Ninja Assassin, currently in production, with Revelation, a thriller with a sci-fi twist from Inferno Distribution. The pic will follow a female journalist following a string of “bizarre murders and discovers that the victims were all treated by the head of an org that researches alien abductions.” The brothers Wachowski are not listed as being involved this go around. John Salvati, who penned 2009’s Dali and I: The Surreal Story starring Al Pacino, wrote the screenplay. Nothing about this news makes me raise an eyebrow or a sparkler just yet, you?
 via Variety
Collider is reporting that Collin Chou, one of the two reported leads of The Wachowski Brothers-produced, James McTeigue (V for Vendetta) directed Ninja Assassin, has dropped out of the project for unknown reasons. The film was scheduled to start production in just a few weeks in Berlin. I wonder if that time table might have been pushed back as it sounds like the cast is not completely finalized. All we know about the movie is that it’s an original martial arts movie with a revenge storyline. The Wachowski Brothers, the guy who made V For Vendetta and a martial arts revenge story? Count me in.
