An Italian movie trailer for Game has shown up online. The new movie from Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor – the madmen that brought us Crank takes us to the sci-fi future world where prisoners do battle in a real life video game. The trailer looks pretty insane, gritty action mixed with sci-fi futuristic tech overlays. And the sci-fi concept is the kind of impossible crazy that could lend it self to a kick ass action flick. And you have to love the use of Marilyn Manson’s cover of the 1983 Eurythmics hit “Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)”. Aparently the trailer originated from JoBlo, but I cant seem to find it on their site. Watch the trailer after the jump and let me know what you think in the comments below.
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Lakeshore Entertainment held a test screening of Game last week in Southern California. Game is the latest film from Neveldine/Taylor, the mad men behind Crank. It stars Gerard Butler, as a prisoner who is implanted with nano-technology which allows a video gamer to control him in a first-person shooter-like game called Slayers. A bunch of reviews have leaked out across the interwebs. Lets take a look at the early buzz:
Collider: “if you want action, Game has it. It had some of the most entertaining and unique actions scenes I’ve seen in a while, and that’s coming from an ex-gamer. In addition to adding in some digitalized pixilation, we could see an on-screen pop up display for Kable that looked like a cross between Tony Stark’s HUD in Iron Man and Call of Duty. I found this exhilarating to watch, because it seemed like Neveldine and Taylor finally broke the bounds of the typical action scenes I’ve seen coming out of Hollywood so often. They might even rival Michael Bay for explosions!” … “While the action scenes were great, Game really felt a bit too long, like some unnecessary scenes out in the real world could be cut and it could be tightened down into a true non-stop action flick like Crank.”
Red User: “The film all around got an excellent response from the crowd. Most of them when asked by a showing of hands rated it as excellent. I especially liked the realism and pacing. The soundtrack also was rockin’ and there was plenty of well choreographed fight and stunt scenes. I don’t want to give anything away, but the game play action sequences were just outstanding.” “I’ll just say that this movie is going to blow people away. The cinematic choices were brilliant and covered a broad spectrum of looks for scenes of all types, from brutal action packed battle and fight scenes to original environments within the game world to the elegant mansion of the evil rich mastermind. There were super saturated looks, harsh gritty looks, and all styles of shooting.”
Aint It Cool: “this movie was beyond boring and the action was completely unexciting.” … “it’s trying sooo hard to be exciting and fresh and appeal to “gamers” – its cuts from dark to computer screens to action to more computer screens to close-ups – its unexcusable.” … “GAME takes itself way too seriously. In fact the movie is filled with these super bizarre dark scenes with sweaty obese gamers, controlling real life hot women who strip, touch themselves and pee in public.”
LonelyReviewer: “Judging by the audience reaction, this film is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. That’s because it’s more like a cup of red bull and vodka. After an early onslaught of extreme violence and orgiastic debauchery, those looking for a typical action flick headed for the hills. Those who remained (95%), were treated to a mixture of grit and flash that dazzled its way into becoming an original and captivating genre pic.” … “The look of this film is consistently visually entertaining. ” … “This film isn’t perfect. The antagonist is somewhat absent when he should be raining down hard on our hero. Some viewers might also yearn for a greater emotional arc and less exposition.” … “Unlike other gaming films (such as Halo), “Game” doesn’t pander to the gaming audience. Instead, “Game” concentrates on being a top notch action film that happens to be about gaming. In doing so, the film winds up being the most accurate incarnation of gaming that the film world has seen.”
I opened my inbox to discover another new photo of Gerard Butler in Game, the new movie from Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor – the madmen that brought us Crank.
The story takes place “in the not too distant future.” Kabel (Gerard Butler), a death row inmate, has unwittingly become a pop culture hero. Every week, millions worldwide tune in online to watch him and hundreds of other convicts battle in Slayers, an ultra-violent multi-player online game invented by technological genius Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). To the wealthy young gamer who controls his every move, Kable is just a sim (simulation) character. To the resistance group that opposes Castle’s games as high-tech slavery, he is a critical element in their battle to take down the inventor. Caught in the crosshairs of two opposing forces and under the command of a teenager’s remote device, Kable must use his extraordinary fighting skills to escape the game, bring down Castle and overthrow the system. Game is currently scheduled for a TBA Fall 2008 release.
Thanks to /Film photo scooper Christopher M for the photo.
/Film reader Christopher M sent over the first photo that I’ve ever seen of Gerard Butler in Game.
Directed By Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the two mad men behind Crank, the story takes place “in the not too distant future.” Kabel (Gerard Butler), a death row inmate, has unwittingly become a pop culture hero. Every week, millions worldwide tune in online to watch him and hundreds of other convicts battle in Slayers, an ultra-violent multi-player online game invented by technological genius Ken Castle (Michael C. Hall). To the wealthy young gamer who controls his every move, Kable is just a sim (simulation) character. To the resistance group that opposes Castle’s games as high-tech slavery, he is a critical element in their battle to take down the inventor. Caught in the crosshairs of two opposing forces and under the command of a teenager’s remote device, Kable must use his extraordinary fighting skills to escape the game, bring down Castle and overthrow the system. Game is currently scheduled for a TBA Fall 2008 release.
Mark Neveldine has confirmed that Crank 3 will be shot in 3-D.
“We were actually thinking of trying to do RED 3-D for GAME for a while,” Brian Taylor revealed to Collider. “We think it’s the way things are going. The problem for us is that the rigs are still a little too cumbersome. They’re a bit too big. So for 3D you tend to have a lot of locked off shots, things on cranes, things that are very controlled. We just don’t shoot that way man, We like to just pick up the camera and run and go berserk and it doesn’t really lend itself to 3D right now.”
Not a day goes by where I don’t get into an argument with someone about the merits of 3D. Sure, it’s becoming an overused technology. But it does have a place in the right films. I think that Crank is the perfect type of movie/story to make use of the 3D technology.
Mark Neveldine also revealed that they have built a moving bullet-time camera rig, which will see action in Crank 2, which begins shooting in six weeks.
“We’re pushing the limits…” explains Mark Neveldine. “We’re going to be creating a ‘moving bullet[-time] camera’ that has never been done before. We’re putting about 15 cameras onto a piece of speed rail, all these super lightweight cameras that I’ll be holding on rollerblades flying around people. So you’ll have that image that you’ve seen in the Matrix, where they stop motion and the cameras spin around, except for the fact that our cameras can spin around and move while the actor moves.”
I’m not quite sure what kind of result a camera rig like this could produce that a green screen bullet-time camera set-up couldn’t, but I’m very interested to see. My guess is that it will allow them to create the bullet-time effect on the fly, in a practical location, with minimal CG. The traditional Bullet-Time set-up requires an entire computer generated background, and an extensively planned set-up path for the cameras. Neveldine/Taylor have had a stance against using computer generated effects unless absolutely needed.
“We kind of want to go a little old school with our action and really literally put the camera, the lens, the actors, and the filmmakers in peril,” said Brian Taylor. “We don’t want to use CG, as a last resort we will to enhance a scene. But we’re really trying to do it real as much as possible. We think if it really was dangerous, it will feel dangerous to an audience. They will feel they aren’t being cheated. Because as soon as you know it was something generated on a computer, and that nobody was really in danger, a certain part of you sort of shuts off. It doesn’t seem as urgent, it doesn’t seem as exciting. That’s our theory.”
Also, as evidenced by the 3D quote above, these guys love to run and gun without limits. And this type of rig would allow them to film on the fly, without the extensive planning or restrictions of the traditional Bullet-time rig.
Neveldine/Taylor will begin shooting Crank 2 at the end of April. The team will appear at Comic Con in July to promote GAME (and the Crank sequel).
“The very first shot in [GAME] is a two minute take with nine explosions, Gerry Butler firing off 52 rounds – it’s unbelievable! We decided to stay with the character Cable. We follow him through this battlefield and we choreographed this whole scene with 250 extras.”
Sounds very cool. Up next after Crank 2, Neveldine/Taylor are planning to finally tackle their adaptation of Jonah Hex, a DC Comic Book (which Mark describes as “Western, Crazy, Sin City style”). Crank 3 would likely then follow (2011 release?).
You can watch Neveldine/Taylor’s full interviews at Collider.com.
Discuss: What do you think of this new “Moving Bullet-Time camera rig” and the fact that Crank 3 will be shot in 3D?
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At Comic Con 2007, Lakeshore Entertainment premiered the movie trailer for their upcoming crime horror thriller Pathology. Written by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, the madmen behind Crank, and starring Milo Ventimiglia.
Since the Con, the release date of Pathology has been pushed back a couple times. The most recent announced Valentine’s date was replaced with a TBA blank. So what’s going on with Pathology? My friend John Campea at the movie blog had a chance to sit down with Neveldine / Taylor during his radio show/video podcast, and was able to get a few answers:
Brian: “We don’t have a date for it right now because we weren’t happy with the situation, where it was going to come out, how it was going to be released, so we’re rethinking…”
Mark: “But we’re way psyched on the movie. Milo loves it. We love it. It’s going to kick ass. We can’t wait for people to see it, we just need to figure that out.”
The guys assure us that Pathology is definitely getting a theatrical release “hopefully within the next couple months.” The filmmaking duo also revealed that Milo Ventimiglia makes an appearance in their next film, the Gerard Butler sci-fi action film code-named Game, under the name Rick Rape (i kid you not).
Heroes star (and Rocky Balboa’s son) Milo Ventimiglia has joined the cast of the currently untitled Gerard Butler action sci-fi movie (codenamed: Game). You know, the film from the two maniacs who brought us Crank. Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor were also the guys who wrote Milo’s last film Pathology, which we swear will get a firm release date one of these days. Milo will play “a very interesting futuristic character that’s not necessarily in control of himself…” Ventimiglia describes his character as kinda a “bad guy”. In the movie, Gerard Butler is a prisoner who is being controlled in a massive multiplayer online figint game.
A couple weeks back I got the chance to visit the set of the new Gerard Butler video game sci-fi action movie codenamed Game (it will have a different title when it hits theaters). I saw some very cool things (watch out for my report later this week) but photography was not allowed. A few days prior (and a few days after), the crew shot some battle sequences in downtown Albuquerque, New Mexico, and a few photographers were able to catch a few of the explosions and destroyed cars (but no Gerry). Check out some of the spoiler free photos after the jump thanks to Sarah Wolf, Adam Wolf and oldnatural.
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Chris “Ludacris” Bridges (Fred Claus, Crash, 2 Fast 2 Furious) has joined the cast of Lionsgate/Lakeshore’s upcoming Gerard Butler sci-fi action thriller which is currently being filmed under the title of Game.
The film, written and directed by Crank helmers Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, takes place in the near future where nano technology has been developed to allow for mind control. In this dystopian world, death row inmates are unknowingly being controlled in an ultimate online multi massive player game, where the winner of 30 games is set free (ala Running Man). Butler plays Kable, who is the most successful player in “Slayer” history, with only three games left to survive. Ludacris is part of a vigilante renegade underground group called H.U.M.A.N.Z., which also includes Alison Lohman. Lohman told me a little more about her role in the film at the Beowulf Junket last week.
“I play this revolutionary chick. She’s a vigilante, part of this underground group that is trying desperately to save the world from debaucherous. She’s an idealist. I help [Gerry], but he doesn’t know what is going on and I inform him that he’s in prison in the video game.”
When asked if the rapper turned actor would be the comic relief, one of the producers responded saying “No,” then describing his role as “the intelligent heavy of the movie.” I got the impression that he might even be the leader of the group.
The yet-to-be-titled film is being shot for the next few months in Albuquerque, New Mexico and will hit theaters in December 2008.
This past weekend we got the chance to speak with Alison Lohman about her upcoming film Game, which is written/directed by Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor (the madmen behind Crank).
“I’m doing a movie now called Game with Gerard Butler. I get to ride a motorcycle. It’s like Sin City, it’s set in the future. It’s a sci-fi thriller about convicts who become the players in a video game, and the players are the ones who control them. And if they win 30 games, they are exonerated, and get out free. The prison system is overloaded so they have to find a way to fund it. This is set in the future and the healthcare system is collapsing, so they have to find another way… “
Butler’s character is on his 28th game and is eager to get back to his family.
“I play this revolutionary chick. She’s a vigilante, part of this underground group that is trying desperately to save the world from debaucherous. She’s an idealist. I help [Gerry], but he doesn’t know what is going on and I inform him that he’s in prison in the video game. I start shooting in two weeks in Albuquerque New Mexico. I just decided that I was going to do this about a week ago, so right now I’m just scrambling to learn my lines.”
The film will be shot for 55 days in and around Albuquerque from November 5 through February 5. Game will hit theaters in December 2008. Alison Lohman appears in Beowulf, which hits theaters on November 16th.
