Friday, November 20

Four Tonics to TWILIGHT

November 19th, 2009
Author Kyle DuVall

lee
 

 

The Twilight phenomenon is nothing new. It’s just the apotheosis of a sort of pop-cultural nosferatu makeover that has been chugging along since Anne Rice sent moody young romantics swooning with Interview With a Vampire way back in 1976. Purists may scoff at the melodrama and angst that have been infused into the sinister vampire archetype by authors like Stephenie Meyer or Laurell Hamilton, but nowadays, the real paroxysms of angst are coming from tormented horror fans who can’t stop moaning about the sparkling Nu-Vampire paradigm. Still, whining sourpuss fans should take heart. If you hunt hard enough, there are still plenty of counterpoints to the new moon that is rising, and even stories that integrate elements of the romanticized Nu-Nosferatu in a way even anti-Twilight curmudgeons can appreciate. Consider the following suggestions a sort of prescription for the current vampire epidemic going around, a treatment regime of literary inoculations and cinematic antidotes that can help you survive. (more…)

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Branagh casts the Warriors Three!

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

UPDATE, 7:57AM: Marvel.com now has the official word. As readers speculated below, David’s casting ideas were utterly ridiculous. :) From Marvel:

Fandral will be played by Stuart Townsend. The job of Hogun goes to Tadanobu Asano. And Volstagg will be portrayed Ray Stevenson.

Now read on, and everyone point and laugh at David. Go on, it’s okay this time. -The Management

UPDATE, 11:48PM: Variety has since taken down the link to the story — no word yet as to the reasons why. It could be incorrect, or it could be simply because it was posted prematurely. Until they repost the article, I’d take this all with a grain of salt. That said, this is Variety we’re talking about here, so if anyone’s to be believed at this point, it’s them.

11:24PM: Wow, that was some quick turnaround — while Chuck’s Zachary Levi was reported today to have backed out of playing Fandral the Dashing, Variety seems to have announced that Kenneth Branagh has found his Warriors Three!

warriorsthree

According to Variety (from left to right), Stuart Townsend (from the Anne Rice film Queen of the Damned), Ray Stevenson (from Punisher: War Zone), and Tadanobu Asano (from Mongol) have been cast as the Warriors Three. The film is due out May 2011.

I could certainly see Townsend and Stevenson as Fandral the Dashing and Hogun the Grim, but that leaves me wondering where Asano would fit — he certainly isn’t as massive as Volstagg the Voluminous, but perhaps they’re toning down the humorous aspect of the character? That said, this could also be a slip on Variety’s part as well — this comic book continuity stuff is hard work! But what say you, Rama readers? You ready to ride into battle with the Warriors Three?

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Rachel McAdams declaws Black Cat rumor

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Sorry, Felicia — you just didn’t hit the jackpot.

blackcatbrooks

Entertainment Weekly has reported that Rachel McAdams — heavily rumored last week to be in the running for the role of the Black Cat in the upcoming Spider-Man 4 film — is most definitely not going to be stealing any scenes as the black-leather-clad cat thief anytime soon.

“That’s a total rumor, I have to say,” McAdams said to EW. “I was hanging out in Toronto the other day and someone came up to me and said, ‘I just heard you’re doing Spider-Man 4.‘ And I said, ‘Really? No one told me!’ It’s not true.”

With that rumor out of the way, the question remains — who would you want to see as the Black Cat? Sound off!

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Will Wes Anderson push a Fantastic Mr. Fox comic?

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

MTV has an interesting interview up with Wes Anderson, who seems to have been bit by the comic book bug while working on his computer animated feature, the Fantastic Mr. Fox:

Could there be a comic book spin-off for White Cape anytime soon? More importantly, could there be enough longing pauses, indie tracks, and Jason Schwartzman to satisfy Anderson’s jonesing? Either which way, the Fantastic Mr. Fox — starring George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Bill Murray, and the Anderson mainstay Schwartzman — will be hitting theatres this Thanksgiving.

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Stephen Susco to write Hack/Slash film

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Bloody Disgusting reports that the film adaptation of the Devil’s Due comic Hack/Slash is getting a new writer.

hackslash

According to their announcement, Stephen Susco, writer of the Grudge, has been signed on to write the adaptation.

This is a new development, apparently marking the departure of Justin Marks, whose biggest (and only) feature film thus far was the disappointing Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li.

Susco’s signing also marks a brand new creative team, as Fredrik Bond joined the production as a director back in July. What about casting? Currently there’s no word on any of it, although Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (boy, that says something about my viewing habits when I confuse that movie with Zombieland) actresss Kat Denning expressed her interest in the property to MTV.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Zack Whedon to write Terminator comic

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Even as his new comic on singing supervillain Dr. Horrible comes out this week, Zack Whedon is showing that he has a lot of range — even up to the horrors of 2029.

Indeed, the brother of Joss Whedon announced on Techland last night that he would be taking on a Terminator comic for Dark Horse.

Read on for the goods:

I am currently working on a six issue Terminator series for Dark Horse. I just turned in the first script and I’m very excited about it. I love Terminator. I think that movie is so good. Holy Toledo is it good. Now I get to play in that universe and make up Terminator stories of my own that people will get to read. I am not a big-time, famous dude and yet now I am choreographing action sequences set in a post-apocalyptic future overrun by evil cybernetic organisms hell bent on destroying the human race. How is that possible?! I’ll answer your question, Made-Up Person. It’s possible because in comics it doesn’t cost 150 million dollars to tell that story. They can put an idiot like me in charge!

No word yet over whether or not it’s set in the future, the present, or the past — or how John Connor, his mother Sarah, and his Resistance will play into this. What do you think, Rama readers?

Editor’s Note: Stay tuned to the mothership for our EXCLUSIVE Interview with Zack on the new series, later today!

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Chuck almost cast in Thor

November 16th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Usually the “almost-cast-but-didn’t” kind of news doesn’t really stir our fancy, but USA Weekend has a post up that makes me almost mournful regarding the upcoming Thor film.

zacharylevi

According to their interview, Chuck star Zachary Levi was apparently cast in the Kenneth Branagh-directed film to play Fandral the Dashing. He also said that at one point he had been considered for the main role of Thor himself, having even begun an exercise regimen to bulk up.

(Un)Fortunately, Levi had to back out of the production in order to film six more episodes of Chuck that NBC had ordered. At the very least, however, this means that the Warriors Three have to be in the film — who would you cast as Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg? Sound off!

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

The Fourth Kind: A Failed Experiment in Suggestibility

November 14th, 2009
Author Isabelle Burtan

Fourth Kind Poster

“The Fourth Kind” begins with its lead actress, Milla Jovovich, insisting that “real” footage was used wherever possible throughout the film, including audio and film recordings. This is followed by the “real” footage of the film’s director interviewing a strikingly alien-looking “real” Dr. Abigail Tyler. This creepy woman starts to ramble on, giving clues to the “true story” we are about to witness. While her “true story” could be oh-so-compelling—what is really going on in a remote Alaskan town when multiple people start sharing the same sleepy memories of owls—it opts to bludgeon itself to death with its own “evidence,” which succeeds in interrupting built-up tension wherever it occurs. Jarring first-year-o’-film-school split screens reveal the poor acting abilities of the “real people” in the story, making the “actors” seem more convincing. The film also spends so much time hammering on the “truth” of its story that it literally forces you to wonder if it’s not all one big fat lie.

And, (no) big surprise, it is and Universal has to pay money for its viral marketing.

The truth behind hypnosis—the tool the film uses to recover hidden memories of alien abductions from the “real” people of Nome, Alaska—might have been applied to make this “true story” scary movie a much better one. I’ve come up with four (hyuk hyuk) suggestions that “true story” horror filmmakers can use to help make an audience believe in something that isn’t real.

(more…)

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Dr. Doom, William Stryker in talks for Red

November 13th, 2009
Author David Pepose

With news of Mary-Louise Parker, John C. Reilly, and Helen Mirren joining the film adaptation of Warren Ellis and Cully Hamner’s Red, don’t you think you need a little bit more evil in the mix?

The Hollywood Reporter has some news for you, as Dr. Doom and William Stryker have entered the building.

Julian McMahon, who played Reed Richard’s deformed, electricity shooting (yay, creative liberties!) archfoe in the two Fantastic Four films, along with X-Men 2’s Brian Cox, are apparently in negotiations to join the film, the Reporter said.

McMahon is in the running to play the Vice President, who is at the center of the conspiracy, while Cox will play a personal nemesis of protagonist Bruce Willis.

In addition to these two, Ernest Borgnine is in talks to play the keeper of the CIA’s records, while Richard Dreyfuss will have be “a wealthy man who builds a fortune out of lucrative government contracts.”

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Mad Hatter: Do You Want To See What I See?

November 9th, 2009
Author Henry Chamberlain

Disney's Alice in Wonderland (Smaller File)

Mark your calendars and set your time pieces. Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland” arrives in theaters on March 5, 2010. The above image has just been released by Disney. Want to see more? Join The Disloyal Subjects of the Mad Hatter on Facebook and help prepare his army! Do as The Mad Hatter says and you’ll be rewarded. You’ll be given orders like, “Do you want to see what I see? Then start shouting for it! I won’t release it until I’ve received 1,000 Likes. Please begin the praise now!”

From the press release:

From Walt Disney Pictures and visionary director Tim Burton comes an epic 3D fantasy adventure ALICE IN WONDERLAND, a magical and imaginative twist on some of the most beloved stories of all time.  JOHNNY DEPP stars as the Mad Hatter and MIA WASIKOWSKA as 19-year-old Alice, who returns to the whimsical world she first encountered as a young girl, reuniting with her childhood friends:  the White Rabbit, Tweedledee and Tweedledum, the Dormouse, the Caterpillar, the Cheshire Cat, and of course, the Mad Hatter.  Alice embarks on a fantastical journey to find her true destiny and end the Red Queen’s reign of terror.  The all-star cast also includes ANNE HATHAWAY, HELENA BONHAM CARTER and CRISPIN GLOVER. The screenplay is by Linda Woolverton.

Capturing the wonder of Lewis Carroll’s beloved “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” (1865) and “Through the Looking-Glass” (1871) with stunning, avant-garde visuals and the most charismatic characters in literary history, ALICE IN WONDERLAND comes to the big screen in Disney Digital 3D™ on March 5, 2010.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Ghost Rider II — NOT a reboot!

November 9th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Considering how we’ve heard how Marvel intends to reboot certain underperforming film franchises — the Fantastic Four and Daredevil being two that spring to mind — MTV has some interesting news about the Spirit of Vengeance himself. Namely, that a reboot is not in Johnny Blaze’s future.

ghostridermovie

“This story picks up eight years after the first film. You don’t have to have seen the first film. It doesn’t contradict anything that happened in the first film, but we’re pretending that our audience hasn’t seen the first film,” David Goyer told MTV. “It’s as if you took that same character where things ended in the first film and then picked it up eight years later—he’s just in a much darker, existential place.”

Goyer said he hoped that the next film — which will be darker and less over-the-top — would do the Ghost Rider franchise what Casino Royale did to reenergize the James Bond series. The thing I’m curious about is: will Nicholas Cage return? On the one hand, he wasn’t exactly hitting Leaving Las Vegas levels with the last film, but on the other hand, his recent financial troubles may make him a bit of a bargain for Marvel. What say you, Rama readers?

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Wussup, Holmes?

November 9th, 2009
Author Kyle DuVall

The Game's afelt

Sherlock Holmes is a character whose fame far outstrips the source material that birthed him. People seem to absorb Holmes lore via a sort of pop-cultural osmosis. You don’t have to read a word of Conan Doyle or even watch the movie adaptations to have Holmes’ indelibly etched on at least a tiny space in your brain. Like Tarzan, or even Superman and Batman, Sherlock Holmes is probably in your head whether you’ve made a conscious effort to put him there or not.

Holmes already prodigious profile is definitely on the ascendant these days. He’s featured in a comic series by Dynamite, TV hit House is, if not a straight adaptation, a definite riff on Holmes, and Holmes will even go head to head with zombies in the upcoming VICTORIAN UNDEAD. Most prominently in the zeitgeist, is second string Tarantino Guy Ritchie’s upcoming Sherlock Holmes film adaptation, a buddy action movie that threatens to bend the character out of all recognizable shape. With all of this Buzz floating around one of literature’s most enduring creations, it’s a good time to go back and look at the original legacy of a man who has a legitimate claim on the title world’s first Superhero.

(more…)

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

In which I discuss G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra

November 3rd, 2009
Author Corey Henson

Knowing is half the battle. The other half? Lots of ninjas.

Today saw the release of the DVD for G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra, the much-maligned summer blockbuster based on the enduring Hasbro toy line. I resisted seeing this when it was in theaters over the summer because the previews made it look like baby vomit, and I had no desire to spend ten bucks and a couple of hours in a movie theater to have my intelligence insulted, no matter how desperate I was for air-conditioning. Thank goodness for Redbox, because I only had to pay $1 to have my intelligence insulted in the comfort of my own home.

Actually, I didn’t think G.I. Joe was really all that bad. Don’t get me wrong, it was still a lousy film, it just wasn’t the crime against humanity I was expecting it would be. It helped a bit that I didn’t go in to the movie expecting to see the G.I. Joe from my childhood. Director Stephen Sommers and crew aren’t interested in that G.I. Joe, they would prefer to create a G.I. Joe for the new generation. And that’s fine, and in that sense, they’ve mostly succeeded. I can see kids going street rat crazy for the movie, what with the nonstop violence, copious amounts of explosions, not-very-funny one-liners and hot ninja-on-ninja action.

(more…)

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Black Summer now in development

November 2nd, 2009
Author David Pepose

Variety has announced that the newly-formed Vigilante Entertainment will be developing Warren Ellis’ Black Summer.

blacksummer

The book, published by Avatar Press, chronicles the struggle of the Seven Guns, a team of scientists who transformed their bodies into weapons to battle back the police.

Vigilante, meanwhile, is a new group founded by Hichram Benkirane, formerly of the French comics publisher Les Humanoides Associes. Benkirane still holds control of the properties he created at Humanoides, including Fragile, Miss: Better Living Through Crime, and The Book of Jack.

According to Variety, Knowing’s Ryne Pearson is slated to write the adaptation. This is yet another bit of good news for Ellis, as his series Red was recently optioned, and is slated to have Morgan Freeman and Bruce Willis attached.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

“Conan! What is best in life?” Casting lists, that’s what!

October 27th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Forgetting driving your enemies before you and hearing the lamentations of their women — Moviehole has posted some casting breakdowns for the upcoming Conan film!

conanthebarbarian

As far as things go, it looks like director Marcus Nispel is going the reboot route with the Cimmerian Barbarian, as seen by this partial description of Conan himself:

Conan is very smart, almost inhumanly strong, and very cunning. His entire life, from the moment of his birth, has been shaped by violence. Being the last of his tribe and having to watch his father die a cruel death, he is determined avenge his peoples slaughter by killing all those who led the attack on the Cimmerians, including the all-powerful Khalar Singh. He is prepared to die in order to accomplish his goal. What Conan did not expect, was to find a reason to live

Want more information? There are some more character information — as well as some spoilerific plot points revealed — at Moviehole, which you can see by clicking here.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

SUPER ARTICULATE: [insert "Who Ya Gonna Call?" reference here]

October 21st, 2009
Author The Rev. OJ Flow

Mattel have released some imagery of the latest from the GHOSTBUSTERS action figure line. After the jump is a handful of shots of some of the characters based off the original motion picture in various shapes and sizes.

By the way, did anyone here see Zombieland?
(more…)

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Jon Favreau NOT directing the Avengers

October 15th, 2009
Author David Pepose

The race is on again, as Jon Favreau will not be assembling the Avengers on-screen.

The Iron Man director spoke with MTV about his decision, confirming that Marvel will have to find another director to take on the group franchise, as he says he has really focused his energies on Iron Man.

“It’s going to be hard, because I was so involved in creating the world of Iron Man and Iron Man is very much a tech-based hero, and then with ‘Avengers’ you’re going to be introducing some supernatural aspects because of Thor,” Favreau told MTV. “How you mix the two of those works very well in the comic books, but it’s going to take a lot of thoughtfulness to make that all work and not blow the reality that we’ve created.”

That said, Iron Fans, Favreau will be involved in the Avengers film as an executive producer, which presumably will give him a decent amount of say in terms of maintaining Tony Stark’s characterization and well-being in the event additional Iron Man and Avengers films came out.

So what say you, Avengers fans? Are you disappointed? Is this good news? Who do you feel should helm the Avengers franchise?

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Former Japanese PM becomes… ULTRAMAN KING!

October 15th, 2009
Author David Pepose

I couldn’t make this up if I tried.

Usually, former heads of state spend their retirement years creating foundations and libraries, knocking a few holes back on the golf course, or, depending on the country of course, occasionally getting trussed up for war crimes. But Junichiro Koizumi — the former prime minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006 — has a different gig lined up.

ultramanking

He’s going to be Ultraman King.

Time reports that Koizumi will be lending his voice to the upcoming Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legend, the Movie. Ultraman King is seen as the elder “god” of all the Ultra heroes. In this film, King will give a rousing speech to the heroes, urging them to press on.

According to Time, representatives from the producers have said “Koizumi, as a former national leader, is the only person who has the presence to deliver such a pivotal address in the film.” Koizumi apparently first turned down the role, only to have his 28-year-old son Shinjiro convince him to take the part.  “[The role] is not related to politics, so it should be okay,” he told the former statesman.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

Adrian Brody to fight a Predator

October 7th, 2009
Author David Pepose

Yep, it’s about as believable as it sounds, and yes, I did spend way too much time Photoshopping this image.

predbrody1

But Variety reports that star of the Dahrjeeling Limited will be taking on that hunter of the spaceways in the upcoming Robert Rodriguez film, “Predators.” To be fair, with that title, I think he just thought he was signing on for another Roman Polanski film.

That said, Brody’s luck against larger-than-life foes hasn’t been good, if any of you have seen the Peter Jackson remake of King Kong.

Even more hilarity — The Hollywood Reporter has said that Topher Grace is also in talks to be in the film as well. I guess the motto of this one is “it’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s the size of the fight in the dog.” That is, until the dog gets horribly murdered by the Predator’s plasma caster.

 
Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe

In which I gripe about the “A Nightmare on Elm Street” remake

October 2nd, 2009
Author Corey Henson

A Nightmare on Elm Street in HD

Michael Bay has made a name for himself by doing two things: blowing shit up, and producing crappy, unimaginative remakes of classic horror flicks like Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Hitcher, The Amityville Horror, and Friday the 13th. (Actually, his Friday the 13th was superior to the original films, but that’s not saying a lot. The original Friday series sucked hard.) Next year, Bay once again dives headfirst into creative bankruptcy with his production of the Samuel Bayer-directed remake of Wes Craven’s classic A Nightmare On Elm Street.

As a longtime Nightmare fan, I’ve been dreading this movie ever since it was announced. The original is one of the most enduring horror films ever created, and Robert Englund’s Freddy Krueger has become an iconic figure in movie history. So while I understand why the movie is being made ($$$), I seriously doubt anyone has ever watched Craven’s original version and thought, “Hey, this movie really needs to be remade, because it sucks.”

Now that the trailer for Bay/Bayer’s quasi-reimagining has been unleashed, we’ve had our first glimpse of what the movie will be like. And since I have a tendency to be a judgmental ass, I figured I would share my initial thoughts about the movie.

(more…)

Leave a Reply »
  • Add to delicious
  • Digg It!
  • Save to Newsvine
  • Add to reddit
  • Add to Netscape
  • Email to Friend Email
  • Subscribe Subscribe