Frickin' Eh Movie News 10.14.09: Stone Tablet Edition
Posted by Matthew Motiuk on 10.14.2009
Singer on X-Men, Spider-Man 4 updates, writer hired for the World of Warcraft movie, news on a sequel to Independence Day, a cast switch on The Tourist, Toy Story news, and more!
The long Thanksgiving weekend didn't recharge me as much as I'd hoped, although I definitely got some good food and company. And leftovers, which is pretty nice, since I don't have to cook for most of this week. But anyway, let's jump right into things . . .
The Mid-Week Box Office Time Machine
Alright, the top of the box office last weekend was Couples Retreat, which opened with $34.3 million. Zombieland hung on at second with $14.8 million. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs fell a spot to third with another $11.5 million. Paranormal Activity had a fantastic opening, making it all the way to fourth with $7.9 million. The Toy Story double feature fell two spots to fifth with $7.8 million. Surrogates fell from fourth to sixth, The Invention of Lying went from fifth to seventh, Whip It fell two spots to eighth, and Capitalism: A Love Story fell a spot to ninth. Rounding out the top ten was Fame which fell from seventh and made $2.5 million.
So what have we got this weekend? Three movies open, the first being Law Abiding Citizen starring Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler. This looks like a decent one. Or you can check out Stepfather starring Dylan Walsh and Sela Ward. This one looks kind of scary. And finally, Where the Wild Things Are, coming to you from Spike Jonze and starring Paul Dano, Forest Whitaker. This is a kids' movie that actually looks a little terrifying but heartwarming at the same time. So take your pick.
Saving Private Ryan's Writer Taking on Warcraft
MTV alerted us that Sam Raimi revealed to them in a phone interview last week that Saving Private Ryan and The Patriot screenwriter Robert Rodat is writing the script for the Warcraft movie, a project Raimi is expected to take on after Spider-Man 4. Here's a clip:
The aim is to adapt the game, rather than a previously conceived story written within that world. "We want to be really faithful to the game," Raimi said. "We would have our writer, Robert Rodat, really craft an original story within that world that feels like a 'World of WarCraft' adventure. Only obviously it's very different 'cause it's expanded and translated into the world of a motion picture."
Really, somebody with as much acclaim as Rodat is taking on something like Warcraft? That's a little sad. Raimi's involvement isn't overly exciting for me, either, given my previous lukewarm feelings toward him. But the overarching thing is that this topic simply isn't what it used to be. A couple years ago, when every second joke was about Warcraft, when South Park crafted a hilarious parody and the game was at the top of the world, this would have been an appreciated movie, or at the very least, would have found a bigger audience. I have a feeling that by the time this gets done (and it will be a while) nobody will really care all that much about the World of Warcraft.
Some Toy Story News
Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich announced today, via the video below, that the Toy Story/Toy Story 2 3D double feature release, which was supposed to be in theaters for just two weeks, has been extended longer. The special release has earned $22.8 million since hitting theaters on October 2.
Unkrich also announces in the video that "The Flight of the Conchords" star Kristen Schaal voices a new character in Toy Story 3, but he wouldn't reveal what character it is. Blake Clark is doing the voice for Slinky this time, taking over from his friend Jim Varney, who passed away in 2000.
They are joining Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Don Rickles, Wallace Shawn, John Ratzenberger, Estelle Harris, John Morris, Laurie Metcalf, R. Lee Ermey, Jodi Benson, Ned Beatty, Michael Keaton, Timothy Dalton, Jeff Garlin, Bonnie Hunt and Whoopi Goldberg in the sequel, opening in theaters on June 18, 2010.
It shouldn't be any surprise that Disney is going to drain the Toy Story double feature for all its worth, which is of course good news for anyone who missed the run. As for Schaal's addition, he's a fairly distinctive addition, so that should be good, although it's anyone's guess which character he might represent. And it's nice seeing a friend take over the late Jim Varney's position. Hopefully this movie pleases all the fans of the original when it finally makes it here.
Emmerich Speaks on Independence Day 2
Latino Review got a chance to ask 2012 director Roland Emmerich if there's still a chance we'll see a sequel to 1996's Independence Day at some point. After all, the blockbuster made a massive $817.4 million at the worldwide box office that year. Emmerich gave an interesting response...
Dean Devlin and I are still set to make a sequel likely because we've found some sort of idea and we approached FOX and FOX has not quite figured out how to incorporate Dean's and my deal, and Will's (Smith) deal. Will wants to do it in some sort of a package they can live with. So it's just been in negations now since forever, and naturally FOX says "Why don't you do it without Will Smith?" I said Will is essential for us, for this movie and actually for the audience too. And, so, it's in limbo and lately the studios are fighting. Like gross players, and Will is a gross player and is probably the only gross player right now who's worth his gross. So we'll see what happens. I would love to do it..
This is definitely an interesting response. Clearly Emmerich is ready to go and get this out the door, it's just Will Smith hanging it up, which is actually kind of surprising. I know Will Smith seems to be trying to define himself as a more serious actor, but he's damn good in roles like this, and this was one that really got him out the door, so it would be nice to see him pay homage to it. I'm not completely behind the idea, because I think it would be really hard to make a faithful sequel that lived up to the original, but we'll see what comes of this. I'd expect very little.
Singer Wants to Return to X-Men
Bryan Singer said Sunday he's interested in making another "X-Men" movie and has discussed the possibility with 20th Century Fox, according to The Associated Press.
"I'm still looking to possibly returning to the 'X-Men' franchise. I've been talking to Fox about it," the X-Men and X2: X-Men United director said at South Korea's Pusan International Film Festival. "I love Hugh Jackman. I love the cast."
Singer said the "X-Men" series is about tolerance and social structures. He said he likes to "trick audiences into thinking they're seeing fireworks, but they're learning about themselves and listening to what I have to say."
"The excitement about working in science fiction and fantasy is — the stories, if they are good, are about the human condition," he added.
I love the X-Men franchise and I think they've really handled it well in every way so far. I had nothing against The Last Stand and Singer's departure, but it would be nice to see Singer come back, and I'm glad to see he's probably learned his lesson jumping ship for the ill-fated Superman. And I definitely think X-Men, especially the main storyline and cast, has a lot of life left in it.
Jolie Replaces Theron in The Tourist
The Risky Biz Blog is reporting that Charlize Theron has opted out of the Spyglass-produced thriller The Tourist and in talks to replace her is Angelina Jolie.
The project is now also seeking a director, as Bharat Nalluri (Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day) is as of last week off the project.
A remake of the 2005 French thriller Anthony Zimmer, The Tourist centers on an American tourist who, on behalf of Interpol, goes undercover to entrap a former lover who's a suspected global criminal.
Sam Worthington is still attached to play the lead male role.
That's a couple of bumps for this movie, and not some good bumps, either. Losing your lead female and director is pretty major. Jolie for Theron is a different trade, but she'll do fine in the role. Hopefully they can find another capable director as well, and this will all work out.
Spider-Man 4 Starts March 2010
MTV talked to director Sam Raimi, who says he's hoping to start shooting Spider-Man 4 the first week of March 2010 for a May 5, 2011 release.
Raimi added that Gary Ross is doing a rewrite of the script using notes Raimi gave him, a production designer has started designing the sets and environments, and Scott Stokdyk is back on board on his fourth Spidey film as visual effects supervisor.
Raimi said that no casting has taken place--other than Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst--but that they are starting to think about that now.
Still a long time coming, although it's drawing nearer for fans. All the wheels are starting to turn, so expect a flurry of casting announcements in the near future to flesh out the cast. We'll see where this is headed soon.
Moses Returns
Variety reports that 20th Century Fox will develop a retelling of the story of Moses, from his near death as an infant to his adoption into the Egyptian royal family, his defiance of the Pharaoh and deliverance of the Hebrews from enslavement.
The script will be written by Adam Cooper and Bill Collage, who recently completed a scripted retelling of Herman Melville's Moby Dick for director Timur Bekmambetov at Universal.
Moby Dick was pitched as a 300-like reimagining of the Melville story as a visually stunning action piece, and the story of Moses is conceived similarly.
The trade adds that the goal is to give a Braveheart feel to a story most famously captured in Cecil B. DeMille's 1956 film The Ten Commandments. Peter Chernin will produce with Dylan Clark.
I'm surprised they haven't produced more religious movies lately, for two reasons. The first being to counteract movies like The Da Vinci Code which draw in big crowds to essentially bash religion, and secondly, since the special effects are finally up to snuff to the scope of the tales. I just don't see the story of Moses translating into a 300-style movie. But we'll just have to see, I guess.
Rapid-Fire: South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut (1999, starring Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Mary Kay Bergman)
I've started watching South Park at the urgings of a couple of friends, and while it's been a gradual process, I am really appreciating the show now, so I got to finally watch the movie. And so this week I present:
My appreciation of the show, unfortunately, is mostly of the later seasons; the pop culture references and real-world parodies, not the earlier style of the show, so the movie is at a sharp contrast to what I really enjoy about the show. That said, this is still South Park, almost exactly like the show, with all the coarse humour and fun of the show.
I wasn't a big fan of the musical aspect of the show, although I really did enjoy Cartman's cultural renditions (then again, I almost always enjoy anything Cartman does). Musicals are just not my thing. The parts in between were usually solid, although again, it felt lacking compared to some of the better episodes of the show, or even the Imaginationland trilogy.
About all I can say is that this movie is a very faithful translation of the show. All the voice actors are back in their usual roles and there are a couple fun additions like George Clooney or Brent Spiner helping out. The story is ridiculous in typical South Park fashion.
The movie is a good supplement to South Park but nothing overly special, at least not for me. It definitely has its moments, and any fan should watch this to complete their appreciation of the show, but it's not the fantastic masterpiece that it was made out to be from the people I knew.
Closing Time . . .
That's all for me this week. After this week I've got two midterms and then I'm sure the next round of papers will be coming up soon. So until next week . . .
