Posted on 01 September 2010

The screenplay race is always the most fun to speculate upon. Mostly because it is the one category where one of your favorite films of the year has a real shot at getting its single nomination; a little toss off to the year’s best comedy, indie or twisty genre entity. It is where Pixar has proven time and time again that animated screenplays can be well-thought out and respected rather than forming the trace of an idea through a bunch of poop culture jokes. (Yes, I meant to say “poop.”)
Depending on what the Writer’s Guild might disavow in their preemptive awards because the writer of one of the year’s best doesn’t pay membership dues, we see hope for films like Garden State, Mean Girls and both Judd Apatow’s The 40 Year-Old Virgin and Knocked Up. So which films have a shot of sneaking into the race this year? Will it be the standard respect for also being a Best Picture nominee or a little thanks-for-playing recognition while being passed over everywhere else?
Filed under: Awards, Oscar Watch
Continue reading Early Picks For The Best Screenplay Race
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Posted on 31 August 2010
Did anyone see Avatar this past weekend? The once-high-grossing 3D movie was re-released in theaters again, this time with nine minutes of previously unseen material tacked on. And going by its box office take of “only” $4 million, it’s likely that you did not give in to that little bit of bonus footage. Both Fox and James Cameron are likely not crying, though. They’re probably fine with any additional pocket change thrown atop their $750 million total. Besides, $4 million in one weekend is the best it’s done since mid-March, when it was playing on a lot more than this past weekend’s 800s screens.
Without looking at the data, maybe this Special Edition release seems a disappointment, as Steven Zeitchik spins it over at 24 Frames. He wonders if this “struggle” by Avatar could be a nail in the coffin for re-releases, still despite success with 3D retrofit editions of films like The Nightmare Before Christmas and Toy Story and Toy Story 2. Plus, as he notes, they’re low-risk. And they shouldn’t be looked at against a weekend’s new titles. Avatar might not have done Star Wars Special Edition numbers, but it had a better re-release gross than The Dark Knight — of course that one didn’t get the extended cut treatment (and it didn’t have the benefit of 3D surcharges).
Filed under: Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Box Office, Exhibition, 20th Century Fox
Continue reading Will ‘Avatar’ Mark the End of the Re-Release?
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Posted on 31 August 2010

In the annals of hip-hop history, I don’t think the lovable duo of Kid N’ Play will probably ever get the musical respect of some of your more ’serious’ rap artists out there. But they did do one thing right; they made House Party, and their induction into the hall of fame for Scenes (Songs) We Love, has been long overdue. But today we fix that, so let’s all go back to 1990 for Kid Vs. Play, and some good natured (but quality) rap battling.
In the teen comedy, the duo starred as high school buddies (in roles originally written for DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, aka Will Smith) who scheme and plot their way into having the party of the year while taking advantage of some parental absences. The usual obstacles from every teen movie find their way into the story, but thanks to performances from comedy heavyweights like Robin Harris (who passed away from a heart attack only nine days after the film’s release), John Witherspoon, and Martin Lawrence, the movie is still funny 20 years later (20 years!? I think I may need to lie down).
Filed under: Comedy, New Line, Fandom, Trailers and Clips, Scenes We Love
Continue reading Scenes (Songs) We Love: “Kid Vs. Play” from ‘House Party’
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Posted on 31 August 2010
- Hah: Apparently no one searched Google for “blue dong” prior to Zack Snyder’s Watchmen. [via Reddit]
- Jackie Chan is set to direct and star in the Chinese historical drama The 1911 Revolution. The film is expected to feature a cast of around 70 of China’s biggest stars and be done by September of 2011 so as to be ready for release on the 100-year anniversary of the titular revolution. Sounds like a good enough reason to me to climb back into the director’s chair (which Chan hasn’t done in over a decade).
- Want to know how Neil Marshall pulled off the fireball scene in Centurion? Turns out it was pretty simple: he actually rolled massive fireballs down a hill at his stunt team. Gotta love practical effects (okay, so it wasn’t done all in camera, but it was all practical; some of it was just composited together later).
- Looks like the nasty-sounding bed bugs that have invaded NYC movie theaters have also made their way into the main press venue at TIFF. And not only that, but their resurgence as a hot topic has also reactivated interest in a horror movie about the little beasties that was once set up at New Line but has since reverted back to its producers.
Filed under: Casting, Newsstand
Continue reading Cinematical Late Night: Jackie Chan Directs Again, Super 8’s Massive Call for Extras, More Bed Bugs
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Posted on 31 August 2010

Last night the Emmy Awards aired, seeing television’s finest come out and celebrate the magic of the small screen. Claire Danes’ Temple Grandin won five awards, including Best Actress for Danes, who really hasn’t had critical love like this since her small-screen, short-lived phenomenon My So-Called Life. Many of the remaining actress accolades even went to women-led television fare — Nurse Jackie, The Good Wife, and The Closer. Naturally, that got me thinking about the other television series recently making waves — the still-running Weeds and how that got a boost from Laura Linney and The Big C’s killer, record-breaking ratings. Once I got thinking about women on TV, my brain zipped to thoughts of all of the professional ladies on the small screen.
Wherever you turn, working women are everywhere on TV. For some reason, however, while a majority of Hollywood’s female roles continue to be cliche-constricted, television is a smorgasbord of female-centric options.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Girls on Film
Continue reading Girls on Film: The Working Girl Only Thrives on TV
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Posted on 31 August 2010
The last time we had an update on Fox’ shortlist for directors to helm the hitherto untitled first sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine it was down to two possible contenders: David Slade (30 Days of Night, Twilight: Eclipse) and Robert Schwentke (The Time Traveler’s Wife, Red). Reports were that franchise star Hugh Jackman would have final say on the matter and was set to meet with both directors before making his decision. Well, it turns out that scenario didn’t exactly pan out as planned.
It also turns out that Wolverine 2 isn’t the only Marvel property that’s currently undergoing changes over at Fox.
Filed under: 20th Century Fox, Comic/Superhero/Geek
Continue reading Marvel Shakeup: Darren Aronofsky for ‘Wolverine 2′, ‘Deadpool’ Roadblock
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Posted on 30 August 2010
One of the great things about the Internet has always been all the free stuff you can find on it — and I don’t mean pirating. Sites like Hulu and Slashcontrol and countless others have been offering films and television programs for free through their websites. That’s started to change recently. First Hulu announced the debut of a premium pay service for users who want access to the vast majority of the site’s content, and now comes news that Google’s looking to get into the online movie streaming business, which will utilize YouTube. Are the days of free Internet content nearing an end?
The Financial Times says that Google has approached major studios about launching a global pay per view movie service by the end of 2010. If this comes to fruition, analysts speculate that YouTube will become one of the major players in the online video streaming marketplace.
According to sources, Google is using their clout as the most well-known search engine and YouTube’s reputation to pitch the service. They feel this will attract lots of visitors to the venture, which translates to money for them and Hollywood. Talks have been ongoing for quite some time, but apparently it’s ramped up recently. If Google jumps into the streaming movie business and gets Google TV up and running, they’ll theoretically be able to give places like Netflix and iTunes a run for their money. The one potential snag here is pricing. While no price has been set, the rumored amount is five bucks per movie. Seems steep to me, given everything else out there.
I’m all for competition since it should help consumers, so Google’s welcome to join the party. Would you pay to stream movies through YouTube? Would you pay $5 a movie? Share your thoughts below.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips
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Posted on 30 August 2010
While no official casting has been announced by 20th Century Fox, rumors of contenders for roles in the Fantastic Four reboot have been making their way online, with names previously mentioned as top possibilities for three of the main heroes, Mr. Fantastic (Adrien Brody), Invisible Woman (Alice Eve) and Human Torch (Kevin Pennington). Now here’s someone being linked to The Thing: Bruce Willis. According to ComicBookMovie.com the Die Hard star is wanted to play Ben Grimm on screen during the opening credits sequence, which will quickly present the team’s origins, and then voice the orange, rocky character after his transformation. Another idea, heard by Screen Rant, is for Kiefer Sutherland to handle the mainly vocal gig. As we’d heard before, The Thing will be entirely CGI rather than an actor in a suit, a la Michael Chiklis’ portrayal in the prior two FF installments.
ComicBookMovie.com has additional inside info about Fox’s interests in the casting of villain Doctor Doom and choice of director. The lead candidate for the former is True Blood star Stephen Moyer, who if signed could then have more in common with his newly wedded bride (X-Men’s Anna Paquin), than just starring opposite her in the popular vampire series. Three directors have been reportedly shortlisted as potential helmers of the reboot, Joe Carnahan (The A-Team), David Yates (Harry Potter) and James McTeigue (V for Vendetta). All are perfectly capable of making a comic book movie, though their talent does vary.
Filed under: Casting, RumorMonger, 20th Century Fox, Comic/Superhero/Geek
Continue reading ‘Fantastic Four’ Reboot Rumors Include Bruce Willis as The Thing
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Posted on 27 August 2010
Welcome to Framed, a column at Cinematical that celebrates the artistry of cinema — one frame at a time.
Zack Snyder’s 300 is a divisive film — a title loved by fanboys and action junkies who hail it as one of the best movies of the past decade, yet looked down upon by other cinephiles who find all the growling dialogue and super slow motion hard to take seriously. One thing nearly everyone can agree upon is that it’s a film with a very unique visual look.
Filled with hyper-stylized colors and computer-generated imagery, 300 is literally a comic book brought to life. Frank Miller’s graphic novel is recreated with exacting detail in some sequences, which is at least part of why the comic crowd loves the film as much as they do.
Unlike most installments of Framed, this one isn’t so much about how the director and cinematographer worked together to get a great shot. 300 is indicative of a newer kind of filmmaking — one where visual effects supervisors and CGI artists are nearly as important as the cinematographer himself. Regardless of whether or not you think 300 is good, it’s hard to argue against it being visually stunning. Even someone who’s not a fan of CGI — like myself — finds some of the images in Snyder’s film absolutely breathtaking. Is it an exercise in style over substance? Definitely — but that style is still impressive.
Filed under: Action, Critical Thought, Tech Stuff, DIY/Filmmaking, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Columns, Images, War
Continue reading Framed: 300
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Posted on 26 August 2010
Update: Paramount has now confirmed this news to be official.
Deadline has, presumably, the final the word on Tom Cruise’s Mission: Impossible4 co-star (Brad Bird is still set to direct). His new co-star in the fourth entry in the Mission:Impossible franchise won’t be Kevin Zegers, Christopher Egan, and Anthony Mackie, actors mentioned earlier this week in connection with the third sequel in the M:I franchise. Executives at Paramount Pictures have decided against a younger, lesser-known co-star who, if box office returns and Cruise’s potential unavailability, warranted, could pick up the mantle for future entries in the M:I franchise. That actor? None other than Jeremy Renner.
Renner has been around for the better part of a decade, usually in supporting roles, but catapulted to leading man status (if not quite the A-list) with his Oscar-nominated turn in last year’s Best Picture winner, The Hurt Locker (Kathryn Bigelow also won Best Director). Renner is set to co-star as Hawkeye in Joss Whedon’s The Avengers (set for a May 4, 2012 release), but The Avengers doesn’t start production until early next year.
Filed under: Action, Thrillers, Casting, Paramount, Tom Cruise
Continue reading Jeremy Renner to Co-Star with Tom Cruise in ‘Mission: Impossible 4′
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