Posted Nov 24th 2009 7:15PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Drama, Thrillers, Mystery & Suspense, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand
A mere month ago, it seemed like Michael Connelly's
The Lincoln Lawyer was set for a top notch adaptation thanks to the
arrival of Tommy Lee Jones.
Jones was interested in directing and costarring in the film, which gave us all hope that he could help makeover
Matthew McConaughey into something serious and shirt wearing. But alas, it's not to be.
Variety reports that Jones has departed
The Lincoln Lawyer, leaving it idling and spitting fumes.
Jones departed for that vague and all-encompassing reason "creative differences."
Variety reports that he had issues with
John Romano's script, and neither Jones nor Lakeshore Entertainment were willing to budge. The studio is currently on the hunt for a new director, and hopes to be shooting by spring.
So, feel free to speculate on just what script issues there might have been. I know we have some Connelly fans who were looking forward to this, and who know more about the book than I do. Given that it
is a star vehicle for McConaughey, and the character is a bit of a legal freewheeler, I wonder if the script is more of a comedic departure from the book. We've cracked a lot of jokes about bongo drums and shirtlessness, but could that actually have been what Jones departed over? It's sleazy and easy to jump to that conclusion, and I can't really believe a Connelly book could be adapted into
Fool's Gold. But this is Hollywood. Stranger things have happened.
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 7:20PM by Jenni Miller
Filed under: Action, Drama, Casting, Mystery & Suspense, Fandom, Remakes and Sequels
Oh,
The Crow! I loved you so! I had the poster, the comic book by James O'Barr, the T-shirt, and the unrequited crush on Brandon Lee, whose tragic death only fanned the flames of my teenage desire. I even went to see the sequel,
The Crow: City of Angels, which featured the spectacularly bad line, "F*ck you, bird d*ck!" uttered by none other than Iggy Pop. (I did, however, forget to light a candle for
its 15th anniversary earlier this fall. Sniff.)
As previously reported, there is a relaunch being written by Stephen Norrington, who will also direct, that might not even include Eric Draven, the main character (
sacre bleu!). The last time that Norrington took a crack at directing a beloved comic book was the 2003 stinker
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, but as
io9.com reported, so far the script is getting good reviews. Meredith Woerner at
io9.com coaxed some details from producer Ryan Kavanaugh (
Nine, Brothers, Zombieland), and while he wouldn't reveal which actor is going to be smearing himself with makeup to wreak vengeance on those who violated and murdered his beloved, he did say it will be "a whole relaunch of the franchise, much more of a dark superhero type" and starring an already-established actor.
Continue reading Who Will Be The Crow?
Posted Nov 20th 2009 3:48PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Classics, Drama, Independent, Romance, Casting, Mystery & Suspense, Focus Features, Newsstand
The Brontes are all the rage for adaptation right now. It's undoubtedly due to Edward and Bella bestowing their favor on
Wuthering Heights, and had they chosen
Great Expectations, perhaps we'd see Dickens adaptations flinging themselves to the big screen. I love corsets and cravats, so I'm not going to complain, and I'm certainly not going to whine if
Cary Fukunaga gets
this cast for
Jane Eyre.
Variety is reporting that
Michael Fassbender and
Mia Wasikowska are in talks to play Jane and Rochester for Fukunaga, and oh, how torrid it would be!
This is actually the second time Fassbender has circled a Bronte adaptation. Last May, he was said to be
in talks for Wuthering Heights, but Ed Westwick stepped into that particular waistcoat. It's a shame. I think Fassbender would have made an excellent Heathcliff, and may have been the first one to actually snarl, bang his head against a tree, and slap people convincingly. But he will make a very simmering Rochester, and is the only actor who could top
Toby Stephens' wonderful turn in 2006.
Wasikowska is still a bit of a dark horse. She's becoming one of those much-discussed names, but most of us have yet to really meet her until Tim Burton's
Alice in Wonderland hits theaters. She's very pretty, but is just "ordinary" (if that doesn't sound too terrible) enough to fit the part of plain Jane, and as an Aussie, she'll be able to turn on an English accent better than Ellen Page. If this is the
Jane Eyre that makes it to the screen, I'll be happy. Let the eerie screams, mysterious fires, and lingering looks commence.
Posted Nov 6th 2009 2:02PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Classics, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, Scenes We Love
In the Great Coen Debates that occur among film fans, there's one that I never feel gets enough love:
Miller's Crossing. It's probably my favorite next to
The Big Lebowski. The film is deliciously dark and dreary (you can watch this in summer and still feel cold), but punctuated by that startling Coens humor. The dialogue and character quirks are not as exaggerated as they are in other Coen films, and when a character does get theatrical, it's appropriate to the setting. These are thugs who find themselves in positions of great wealth and power, after all, and they'll never know quite how to behave in the real world.
The film has a level of tension I don't think the Coens matched until
No Country For Old Men. Tom's white-knuckle walk into Miller's Crossing is probably my favorite scene (actually, it's difficult to pick just one), but it doesn't appear to be on YouTube. So, here's another moment of violence that just doesn't go the way you think it will, and features the best use of
Danny Boy in history. I really want to believe that the gramophone is a nod to Sean Connery's death scene in
The Untouchables, but I suspect it's a noir standard that ushered many a mobster and cop into his grave.
Continue reading Scenes We Love: Miller's Crossing
Posted Nov 6th 2009 12:30PM by William Goss
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Mystery & Suspense, Warner Brothers, Theatrical Reviews
Richard Matheson's original short story, "Button, Button," was a nifty little morality tale about a couple faced with a peculiar opportunity -- if they push a button in a box, they'll get a sum of money but kill a stranger in doing so. That version of the story ended with the wife pushing the button and killing her husband, a man she didn't really know. As an episode of
"The Twilight Zone" in 1986, the story ended with the couple paid off and assured that the device would then go to another couple to whom they qualify as strangers. Now, Richard Kelly's
The Box takes that same basic premise and spins it into a mind-bender of the most baffling degree, starting out as another "Twilight Zone"-worthy variant but eventually reaching the outer limits of both patience and reason.
Continue reading Review: The Box
Posted Nov 3rd 2009 9:02PM by William Goss
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Drama, Mystery & Suspense, Paramount, Focus Features, George Clooney, Trailers and Clips
I'm grateful for this Friday, because that's the day that
The Men Who Stare at Goats comes out and I can stop seeing
its trailer relentlessly attached to anything and everything I see (and given that I try to see most anything and everything out there, it's really only a 'me' problem, I suppose). One night, I had myself a triple feature and saw the preview not one, not two, but three times; as a pal put it, he had "more than a feeling" that I was getting sick of it.
Before that, it was a summer of
Taking Woodstock time and time again, and it would already seem that
Shutter Island's move to February will insure that I'll be sitting there, trying to piece the thing together for the next three months when not perfecting my New England Leo impersonation.
So, whether currently or in your own formative years, what trailers have you been just absolutely burnt out on? Did you and your friends quote along with them as they played? Were you actually ever turned off from seeing a film because you had it advertised to you too much? Come on, let it all out...
Posted Oct 28th 2009 3:48PM by William Goss
Filed under: Comedy, Drama, Independent, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Awards, Mystery & Suspense, IFC, Sony Classics, Fantastic Fest, Oscar Watch
Fall brings with it awards season, and among our first round of nominations are those of the British Independent Film Awards. According to
Empire, Andrea Arnold's acclaimed
Fish Tank took the lead with eight, while Duncan Jones' similarly lauded
Moon came up with seven, including one for lead actor Sam Rockwell.
I'm personally happy to see the savage political satire
In the Loop getting due notice, especially its expletive-laden screenplay, since it'll likely go overlooked when it comes to Yank laurels (sad but true, although I'll be happy if it's not). Meanwhile, the multiple nods for
An Education and
Bright Star only parallel their warm reception Stateside and their likely contention in next year's Oscar race.
And after being quietly
blown away by it at Fantastic Fest a few weeks back, I'm also glad to see
Down Terrace get some love under the Raindance Award category. Enough of these awards, and maybe that puppy'll earn some distribution in our neck of the woods. (You listening, IFC?)
Posted Oct 28th 2009 12:03PM by Peter Hall
Filed under: Horror, Independent, Mystery & Suspense, Paramount
I know, you might be bordering on a
Paranormal Activity overdose at this point. It's been slowly rolling out for weeks, every person in America is talking about it, and it so totally scared your best friend, but certainly not
you. Well, as you likely know, what is currently playing in theaters is not the original ending to Oren Peli's haunted house triumph. In fact, the new theatrical cut features an ending suggested by Steven Spielberg.
The original ending, as
detailed here by our own William Goss, hasn't played in theaters for over a year and a half, but now that the film is king of the demonic world, someone has provided the service of actually putting the alternate ending online. This is actually just one of several endings, as explained in our
interview with the director, but until the far-off DVD of the film is released, this is the only way you're going to see it. And I kind of have a feeling that may not be the case for long, so catch it while you can over
at Horror Squad!
Posted Oct 27th 2009 10:32PM by William Goss
Filed under: Action, Drama, Sports, Thrillers, Awards, Mystery & Suspense, Universal, Warner Brothers, Oscar Watch, War, Trailers and Clips
August gave us the voice of Matt Damon in
Ponyo, September gave us the inner voice of Matt Damon in
The Informant!, and now October has brought us a look at his next two performances.
Clint Eastwood's
Invictus is one of the last big likely contenders of the awards season, though it is as of yet unseen (unless those very few who have seen it are very good at being very quiet). Damon plays real-life rugby captain Francois Pienaar, whose team saw the support of Nelson Mandela (Morgan Freeman) as a rallying point around which they might lift the spirits of South Africa in the wake of apartheid. It's political! It's underdog! It's opening in December! It's Oscar bait for certain, and
Apple has the exclusive trailer.
Paul Greengrass'
Green Zone, on the other hand, was shuffled out of the Oscar race once Universal decided to
sort out its slate after a lackluster summer at the box office, and that may have been a wise move.
Yahoo's trailer (which is also embedded below) comes across as more of a straight-up actioner than a ready-made contender, with Damon back in
Bourne mode as a betrayed soldier on the hunt first for WMDs, and then for answers. Based on the best-seller
Imperial Life in the Emerald City, it opens on March 12, 2010.
Continue reading "Matt Damon!" New Trailers for 'Invictus' and 'Green Zone'
Posted Oct 26th 2009 10:25PM by Jen Yamato
Filed under: Drama, Gay & Lesbian, Thrillers, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, Cinematical Seven, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Lists
We love it when our heroes fall for the suspicious types: the wolves in sheep's clothing, the dangerous femme fatales. It happens often in film noir and a heckuva lot in comics, and provides some of the best last-act twists and turns as our hearts palpitate along with those of our protagonists... up until the bitter end. Can't that evil love interest turn out to have a heart of gold, so we can all have a happily ever after? Sometimes, yes. Most of the time, no.
What is it about these doomed romances that we love so much? Perhaps it's the futility of it all; you can't have your cake and eat it when you're a superhero or a (wo)man on a mission to right wrongs, even if you'd rather be kissing that beguiling bad guy than fighting them, arresting them, or foiling their evil plans. Turning down a chance at love is the ultimate sacrifice for a hero or heroine to make -- it proves their commitment to the side of good. Hence, loving a villain makes a hero even more heroic. How tragic!
In what will surely spur controversy, I've whittled my favorite villain-hero romances down to the seven best pairings in cinema. No,
Phantom of the Opera didn't make it. That would have been too easy. Instead, find odd couples, would-be perfect pairs, star-crossed lovers, and yes, the world's most legendary bromance after the jump.
Continue reading Cinematical Seven: Best Villain-Hero Romances
Posted Oct 26th 2009 5:40PM by Scott Weinberg
Filed under: Independent, Thrillers, Noir, Mystery & Suspense
I'll give you a few details and some material from the press release right here ... but I've made an executive decision to place the brand-new poster for Frankie Latina's
Modus Operandi beneath the jump -- but only because it's slightly "adult" in nature. Anyway, this flick sounds like a weird one, and of course I mean that in the nicest way possible.
Described by the Las Vegas Weekly as "
a James Bond film directed by Ed Wood," the 8mm
Modus Operandi is about ... heck, I'll let the press notes tell you: "Two briefcases with mysterious contents are stolen from top Presidential candidate Squire Parks, setting off a deadly series of double-crosses and betrayals. Desperate warring factions of subterranean organizations will stop at nothing to gain possession of the sensitive material. A covert branch of the CIA calls on notorious black ops agent Stanley Cashay, who has been barely existing in a semi-comatose twilight since the murder of his wife. Cashay is offered the identity of his wife's killer in exchange for locating and returning the cases." And it gets even crazier after that! (More post-jump.)
What has me intrigued is the responses from folks like Eric Kohn at
IndieWire ("
A mondo B-movie that holds nothing back ... Modus Operandi is a movie utterly content with its own insanity.") and Stephen Zeitchik of
The Hollywood Reporter ("
It bursts with campiness and odes to '70s movie outrageousness.") Sounds right up my alley.
Check post-jump for the poster premiere and more of that rather amusing plot synopsis...
Continue reading Poster Premiere: Ed Wood Meets 007 in 'Modus Operandi'?
Posted Oct 26th 2009 1:32PM by Monika Bartyzel
Filed under: Action, Classics, Mystery & Suspense, Remakes and Sequels, Posters
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Click image below to view full poster
Cinematical has just received this exclusive new poster for
Sherlock Holmes, due in theaters on Christmas Day. No more reserved stuffiness for this detective -- there's not a magnifying glass and classic hat in sight! Talk about a poster that boils the feel of a film down to one snazzy collection of images. Color us not surprised --
Robert Downey Jr.'s confident smirk alone is enough to tantalize, but there's also
Jude Law with the campy and inquisitive Watson brow and a background of images ranging from a bottle of poison (cyanide, not any sort of booze) to faded glimpses of Rachel McAdams and Mark Strong. As the trailer and now this poster attest, Downey Jr. and Law are itching for roguish fun of a whole new flavor.
Set in 1891, Guy Ritchie's take on the famous detective finds Holmes and Watson battling an evil cult leader named Lord Blackwood (Mark Strong), whose devilish schemes could give the crime-fighting duo their toughest challenge yet. "Revealing fighting skills as lethal as his legendary intellect, Holmes will battle as never before to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy the country" (read the full synopsis after the jump). Of course, with a depravity that knows no bounds as he brawls and flirts his way to the truth.
Sounds like the perfect roguish antidote to sappy holiday fare, doesn't it? Click on the image below to view the full poster.
Continue reading Exclusive: 'Sherlock Holmes' Poster Premiere!
Posted Oct 24th 2009 9:02AM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Classics, Drama, Independent, Thrillers, Noir, Mystery & Suspense, RumorMonger, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Remakes and Sequels
An intriguing remake rumor has popped up on
CHUD. Devin Faraci is reporting that longtime friends
Tobey Maguire and
Leonardo DiCaprio might star in a remake of Carol Reed's classic thriller
The Third Man. Canal Plus is said to be shopping around the project, which includes a screenplay penned by
Steven Knight.
The details are scarce (and it may not happen at all), so it's not known whether this would be a straight up-remake or a rewrite, or who Maguire or DiCaprio would be playing. But the idea is enough to undoubtedly cause reactions of anger and panic around film fans, but think about this calmly. It's not as though Maguire, DiCaprio, or Knight are untalented slouches, and it's the kind of story that
could be given a modern rewrite and stand on its own feet. I would actually love to see this rewritten, and set in Iraq or Afghanistan. I'd love to see it set it in years immediately preceding the Soviet Union, putting Harry Lime and Holly Martins in the dangerous, free-for-all Yeltsin economy. (Faraci suggests making it sci-fi, which would be very brave and very awesome.)
The Third Man is one of those stories like Dashiell Hammet's
Red Harvest that is flexible enough to work in another adaptation and lose nothing of its original power. I'm very curious to see if this comes together, and in what form. DiCaprio would be the perfect actor to play the smirking Lime. I just hope they don't mimic
my favorite scene. Some things are better left to Welles.
Posted Oct 21st 2009 3:45PM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Classics, Independent, Romance, Deals, Mystery & Suspense, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Remakes and Sequels
Bronte and Austen movie adaptations are cyclical things. Every young actress seems to get her shot at playing Elizabeth Bennet, Emma Woodhouse, Jane Eyre, or Catherine Earnshaw. Five years later, they're now Mature Actresses, and watching the next crop come through the English classics. Right now, we're on the Brontes (spurred undoubtedly by Bella and Edward) and Ruby Films' adaptation of
Jane Eyre spurred a lot of talk when
it hooked Ellen Page as its poor and plain heroine.
Variety reports that Page has officially dropped out of the project, but that it's landed
Cary Fukunaga as its director.
Fukunaga has earned a lot of positive buzz for his feature debut
Sin Nombre, which nabbed him a Best Director award at this year's Sundance Film Festival. Since then he's landed writing-directing deals at Universal and Focus, and it will undoubtedly surprise many that he's eying an English classic as his next film. But hey, if Gothic dramas are good for young actresses, why not young directors too?
As the project now boasts Fukunaga and Moira Buffini (one of Britain's rising screenwriters) Ruby Films now plans to "ramp up casting" for the roles of Jane and Rochester. With Page uninterested, which ingenue will leap at the chance to be one of literature's finest heroines? What brooding hunk will they cast as Rochester? As a lifelong Bronte addict, I await the news with fluttery, Victorian breaths.
Posted Oct 21st 2009 10:32AM by Elisabeth Rappe
Filed under: Horror, Independent, Romance, Thrillers, Mystery & Suspense, RumorMonger, Scripts, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels
Last December, many Goths wept and fans of the late Brandon Lee took to message boards all over our great Internet to protest
Stephen Norrington's remake of The Crow. News on the project has been so scarce that you've probably forgotten all about it, or even assumed it was dead and buried. But like its supernatural character, Norrington's
Crow is alive and flying and
Comics2Film is reporting that Norrington's script has been "very well received" by Relativity Media, and the film is set to go forward with casting. Cue the angry rants.
While the news sparked a lot of angry comments, there were a few fans of James O'Barr's graphic novel who wanted to see a new adaptation that might stay truer to the book. But earlier this summer, Comics2Film ran a rumor that Norrington wasn't going to use the character of Eric Draven, but was inventing
a completely new character and storyline for his remake / reboot. Let me stress that little item hasn't been confirmed, but if it's true, it certainly raises the question of "Why bother?" O'Barr fans want their guiding crow and self-mutilation back.
At this point, all we know is that Norrington is aiming to make it "realistic, hard-edged and mysterious, almost documentary-style." Now that I've seen more of the graphic novel (thanks, Google Images), I can't think of a poorer approach to something so deliberately introspective. But who knows? If it's truly a whole new character who just happens to have a crow as a pal, the shaky-cam approach might work just fine.
[via
Bloody-Disgusting]
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