The UBS Evening Movie News 05.10.07
Posted by George H. Sirois on 05.10.2007
The “Hey, Look at That Plot Device Falling Out of the Sky” Edition…
Welcome everyone to the latest chapter of The UBS Evening Movie News. I'm George H. Sirois, and considering how dominant one particular comic book icon has been lately, this edition will have a lot to do with Spider-Man 3, in both news and opinion. And believe me, I got a lot of opinions about this film, so let's get on with it…
TOP STORY
Saying that he was "really over the moon" about the record-breaking $382 million worldwide debut of Spider-Man 3, Sony Pictures chief executive Michael Lynton is already reportedly mapping out the franchise's future.
"Everybody has every intention of making a fourth, a fifth and a sixth and on and on," Lynton informed the BBC. He sees the series lasting for "as many as we can make good stories for."
"Everybody's been so busy trying to get this one out that that's been the focus," he added. "When everybody comes up for air, we can think about how to make the next one."
That would seem to include cast and crew, although that hasn't stopped the rumor mill from offering up a name about who might succeed Kirsten Dunst as Mary Jane Watson. Mandy Moore, Alexis Bledel and Camilla Belle are contenders for the role, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Jake Gyllenhall are the front runners as of now to replace Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker. There are also rumors swirling that a new director may be tapped as well since Raimi would want more control over Spidey 4.
Considering everything that happened in this third film, Sony and Marvel are both in a very good position here. Creatively, they could have cut it off here with three films, since the storyline involving Harry Osborn was wrapped up and the new development about Ben Parker's death has been solved. But they're in the financial position where they could produce at least two more movies off the grosses of this latest one. I think Ben Moser said it best yesterday when he said that the only reason Sony wouldn't push for more Spider-Man films is if they didn't like money.
It also seems best that Sam Raimi step aside and let others pick up the directorial duties. The best villains from the first couple decades – the period that Raimi's the most familiar with – have been dealt with, and there are plenty of other storylines that can be picked up by someone who can "get them" more than Sam can. We've already seen what Raimi does with characters and storylines that are beyond the period where he was a fan the most.
Credit: Stax at IGN.com, Cinemablend.com
SYBIL THE SOOTHSAYER
UPCOMING MOVIES
28 Weeks Later: Six months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of the British Isles, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. I was a fan of the original film, even if the structure of it played off like Night of the Living Dead meets Day of the Dead, with so much of the second half taking place around the military. But overall, it was pretty damn scary and I feel the film left the door wide open for the story to continue. From what I've heard about this one, it sounds like it picks things up very effectively, and I have to say my interest is peaked.
Georgia Rule: Lindsay Lohan plays a rebellious, uncontrollable teenager who is hauled off by her dysfunctional mother to spend the summer with her grandmother. So this is the film that got Lindsay on James G. Robinson's shit-list. In case you don't remember, Robinson – the head of Morgan Creek Entertainment – sent Lindsay a memo telling her how disappointed in her he was because of her hard partying and not coming into work on time. This movie seems so much like every other film of its kind, and it doesn't even look like it's brought anything to the table, so even though I'm curious to see if Lindsay's antics affected the chemistry of the lead actresses, I'm passing on this one.
The Ex: A slacker (Zach Braff) is forced to work for his father-in-law after his pregnant wife (Amanda Peet) steps away from her high-paying job. I have no idea what to make of this one. The commercials make it look pretty funny and I like both Braff and Peet, but it doesn't look like enough to be worth the full price of admission.
MOVIE TRAILER OF THE WEEK: Ocean's Thirteen
JIM WEBBING AND HIS IT'S-THE-HONEST-TRUTH-DEPARTMENT
FX wastes absolutely no time
FX has elbowed out TNT/TBS, USA and Spike to land exclusive rights to "Spider-Man 3," which could end up funneling more than $40 million into the Sony coffers for the network window. The final license fee depends on how much money "Spider-Man 3" chalks up in U.S. theaters. If the domestic gross shoots up to $400 million or more, FX could pay up to $33 million. In addition, FX's five-year deal allows Sony to carve out three separate windows within the FX license term to sell the picture to one or more broadcast networks, which could pony up another $7 million to $10 million for "Spider-Man 3." Sony and FX declined to comment on the deal. All I have to say is, FX knew a good thing when they saw one and decided to grab this film before anyone else could. And I'm sure the advertisers are sitting up and taking notice, so kudos to them.
Credit: Variety.com
Some Canucks Gotta Spoil It for the Rest of Them
Following reports that many -- if not most -- new movie releases are camcorded in Canada, then reproduced and pirated abroad, Warner Bros. announced Monday that it will no longer hold preview screenings in Canadian cities. In a statement, Warner Bros. distribution chief Dan Fellman said, "We regret having to cancel our screenings in Canada, but our studio must take steps to protect not only our branded assets but our commitment to our filmmakers and to our distributors." Twentieth Century Fox has indicated that it may delay opening films in Canada unless the country passes legislation that would ban camcording in theaters. I have to admit I'm at a loss as to how the industry is going to fix this problem. Piracy's been around for so long, but it's never run as rampant as it is now. The studios have tried to put a stop to it by releasing movies in Japan a few weeks ahead of their American release dates, but no matter what they do or where they open their films, there's always someone lurking around with a camcorder and in this case, those guys had to ruin Warner Bros. preview screenings for all Canadians. I wonder if they'll post one of those "If You See Something, Say Something" signs in Canadian theaters now. Only this sign would show some tool with a camcorder getting the crap kicked out of him by a guy with a hockey stick.
Credit: Studio Briefing
FILM MUSIC NEWS
Score of the Week: "Private Fears in Public Places" by Mark Snow
* Charles Bernstein Resigns from ASCAP Board
* New Darker Themes for the latest Harry Potter Film
* Fenton Wins British Award
* Goldenthal Ballet on Stage in NY
* Lisa Gerrard on US Tour
* Silva Screen Names 100 Greatest Themes
* Soundtrack Reviews: Premonition (Klaus Badelt), Next (Mark Isham)
* Technology: Dancing Dots Support Blind Musicians
* Commentary: Why So Few Agents?
* The Scoreboard: Hundreds of composers and what they're scoring
Download This Week's Issue at: www.filmmusicweekly.com.
MISS MATA HARI AND HER SKELETONS IN THE CLOSET
This is Just Too Good a Story to Pass Up
Socialite Paris Hilton has appealed the 45 day jail sentence handed to her after being found guilty of violating a probation order and driving with a suspended license. The 26-year-old's lawyers filed a one-page notice of appeal after her Los Angeles Superior Court hearing on Friday. The notice is the first stage towards an appeal and does not automatically guarantee one will take place. The Simple Life star Hilton is currently due to spend 45 days in a California correctional facility. Yes Virginia, there is justice in this world! Finally, someone has the balls to step up to a specific family that is so confident they're above the law and remind them that when all is said and done, the only difference between us and them is that they have more money, and we work harder than them. Paris, this waste of air that I may someday need, deserved to get bitch-slapped by life more than anyone else on this planet, and hopefully after the next couple months, she'll (God willing) learn something and actually apply it to her life.
WENN.com
When in Hollywood, Do As the Baldwins Do
The video of a drunken David Hasselhoff hurling expletives at his teenage daughter was recorded just two weeks ago, according to the actor's ex-wife. Hasselhoff and his aides claimed the video had been taken three months ago when it was leaked to the press last week, but the disgraced Baywatch star's former wife Pamela Bach has now come forward with what she claims is the truth. Appearing alongside her attorney Debra Opri on last night's CNN show Larry King Live, Bach said, "It was (taken) about two weeks ago - the last weekend she was in Vegas." Bach, who has been accused of leaking the tape herself, insisted she knew nothing about it until last Wednesday when her eldest daughter Taylor called her and attempted to explain the footage had fallen into the hands of the media. Bach said, "I didn't know about it and I said, 'Why didn't you ever tell me you taped him?'" The actress/singer went on to claim that the tape was her teenage daughter's "cry for help." She added, "She (Taylor) said she wanted to show daddy... I told her it's not her job, he's the parent... I just pray that he gets help because they love their father." When actresses or socialites want to get famous, they release a sex tape. I guess when males in show business want to get in the press, they'll come out with a tape of them yelling at their kids? This really sucks that this is how people are talking about Alec Baldwin and David Hasselhoff because of something like this, and personally, I thought seeing the Jekyll & Hyde Pay-Per-View musical was the worst I would ever see from The Hoff. It's a shame that I was wrong on that end.
WENN.com
VOX POPULI
This Week's Top 10 Films – US Box Office
1. Spider-Man 3 - $151,116,516
Total: $151,116,516
2. Disturbia - $5,844,363
Total: $60,007,779
3. Fracture - $3,696,060
Total: $26,728,823
4. The Invisible - $3,261,374
Total: $12,482,712
5. Next - $2,892,335
Total: $$11,958,976
6. Lucky You - $2,710,445
Total: $2,710,445
7. Meet the Robinsons - $2,619,654
Total: $91,925,051
8. Blades of Glory - $2,409,106
Total: $111,738,387
9. Hot Fuzz - $2,219,346
Total: $16,310,098
10. Are We Done Yet? - $1,744,619
Total: $46,150,924
I had to put this little bit of news in here as well. When Superman Returns came out last year, it took that film a few months to slowly work its way up the ranking to finally settle in as the 87th highest worldwide grossing film of all time. Spider-Man 3 knocked that film down a notch in only a few weeks. Here are their listings, according to boxofficemojo.com…
And this reminds me of a cute little YouTube parody I found. Enjoy…
VOX POPULUS
This is a segment for you, the reader. Got something on your mind? This is your sounding board. Jot down a couple paragraphs telling us how you feel about the entertainment industry, and send them over to me.
This week, we have the host of Get Lost joining us. Take it away, Ben Piper…
Alright, here's where I go into my thoughts about Spider-man 3 which I saw on opening day but my views are pretty much the same as many others that I have spoken to. Enjoyable in it's own right, but not up to snuff compared to Spidey 2. Too much storyline, not enough sizzle. All the ideas were well thought out, but with so much going on there wasn't enough time to give any depth, other than the Peter/Mary Jane thing, which by now is getting old. Sandman was underbaked, and thus the worst villain of the franchise so far, despite the respectable efforts of Thomas Haden Church. Venom rocked, but we didn't get to see enough of him, so it came off as a tease. (If they don't find some way to bring him back for "4", I'll be pissed) And yeah, black costume was cool, emo Petey, not so much…
But what I'd really like to talk about is the reason why I rarely go to the theaters to watch movies anymore. I'm lucky enough to actually have a drive-in theater within ten miles of my house, so once the summer months roll around, I usually get my fix of eye candy there. You can bring in your own food and drinks, you can talk amongst your friends without annoying anybody (well, sometimes… If somebody REALLY wants to see the movie…) Plus, you can smoke cigarettes as well as other combustibles because it's an open-air setting! Plus, you get a two for one! For twelve bucks (yes, it's gone up, when I was in high school it was five) you and as many friends as you can pack into a car, truck, or SUV can take in a double feature of current summer movies.
As such, I haven't gone to a proper theater in quite a while. The last time was for "Revenge", and that was kinda weird because an old lady sitting behind me was breathing from an oxygen tank so I had the whole Darth Vader breathing apparatus sound going on the whole time. Kinda distracting, considering he didn't suit up until the last five minutes.
But that's another ballgame. Let's get back into the present.
So I show up to the theater to see Spidey 3 at 1:00 PM, with the showing scheduled to begin at 1:30. Early, right? Wrong. Half the theater is already full, so my choice of seats is limited. So I stand there for a second and survey the territory before I set my sights upon a prime piece of real estate up towards the back. Stadium seating theater, so sitting in the back is no biggie. So I make my way up and take my seat.
The red flag should have flown for me when I tried to make my way down the aisle, and some snot nose wouldn't lower his feet from the seat in front of him as I tried to pass. His grandparents, who had lovingly taken him out of school to take him to see a movie he had a hard on for, admonished him for this. No biggie, kids will be kids, I was there once, I figured. So I sat down. And the brat proceeded to talk in his best "outside" voice for over the next five minutes incessantly. Over and over and over again. And each time his grandparents tried to shush him, it never worked. He just got louder.
Instinctually, I decided that the prudent thing would be to move, seeing as I had a Desmond like "flash" that saw me throttling this little kid within an inch of his life once the movie started as his grandparents did their best to sheepishly ward me away… All the while, secretly hoping that I would put them out of their misery as well.
In other words, FREAKIN' BRAT! ( "I WANT AN X-BOX!!!" Direct quote, I shit you not!)
So I got up and moved as more people flooded into the room. It was at this point that I noticed that my great big master plan of taking in a matinee whilst the kiddies were still in school was a fool's errand, as while the majority of the audience were adults, there were a lot of pre-schoolers, a fair share of elementaries as well as middle schoolers and high schoolers. I was surrounded.
Alas, the second seat I had chosen was not good enough, seeing as I was sitting right of center. I prefer to be right in the middle when I stare at the screen, picky f*cker that I am. So I got up and moved again. I finally settled into the seat that I would occupy for the next two plus hours.
Again, I should have seen red flags the instant I moved past a man and a woman in the aisle, each of them holding a young child in their laps. I say that because I wound up making a friend that day. A friend I didn't really want.
So the movie starts. The three year old sitting with his parents to my right decides that he wants to roam. He goes as far as to be right next to me. Distracting me by placing his hand upon my leg as he climbs into the next chair. He continually looks up at me, wanting me to engage him as I try to watch the movie. At some point I relent, and hold up my hand for a "high five". He receives much joy in this. Which at a fundamental level is all well and good. An innocent three year old is happy, I got to play a part, and all is well in our little part of the world. I'm cool with that.
But because I don't continue to engage him, his little ADD riddled mind decides to climb out of the seat next to me, and proceed to manually push the retractable cushion of the chair back and forth, back and forth, back and forth, causing the entire aisle to vibrate.
Yes, I'm starting to get irritated, but really, what can I do? The little shit is three years old and an adorable cherub completely bored. While my basest instincts were to snap at him, I bit my tongue, because really, what does a three year old know about movie attending etiquette?
To his credit, his father took notice and moved over a chair so he could hold the cushion in place so his child could no longer annoy me and the rest of the people sitting in the row. He tried to sit him down and make him watch, but that just wasn't happening for the kid. He wanted to move. As such, he managed to worm his way past his father, get next to me again, and proceed to play jungle gym with the chair next to me for fifteen minutes. And then he climbed down off of the chair, using me as a crutch, at which point I had come to my final straw…
I whispered just loud enough so his father could hear… " Um, yeah, little guy? That's my foot you're standing on. At this point, I think it's time you leave me alone. I'm trying to watch the movie"…
Which in turn caused the father to hoist the young-‘un over his head and on the other side of him. He never got that close again.
First off kudos' the father, who saw that his offspring was being a pain. He made a small effort at first to quell this, but once it began to get out of hand, he put an end to the situation by cutting off all contact, which was the best thing possible for all involved. I mean, hey, I'm a nice guy. In all reality, how can one in good faith bitch out a little three year old kid when he's being a pain in your ass when you don't know him or his parents? You don't do that kind of thing unless you're looking for a fight. And I wasn't. I just wanted to see the movie.
In hindsight, giving the little shit a high five probably wasn't the best move. But I did manage to see the movie. Dad stepped in and saved us both from an embarrassing situation/confrontation, so let's leave it at that.
So that's why… In a nutshell… I rarely see movies in the theaters anymore. Let's move on…
Continuing the speculation about the other "Part III's" coming to theaters this summer, here's a pleasant little look at Keira Knightley, one of the stars of the third chapter of the Pirates of the Caribbean saga: At World's End…
Okay, it's out. For the past week here at 411mania, we've been pushing hard to give you the most news and the most reviews about Spider-Man 3, and judging by the numbers, it's a safe bet a lot of you have seen it. If you haven't, and you're a fan, I advise seeing it in the theaters, and after seeing it on an IMAX screen, if you have access to one, make sure you see it there.
Now, was the movie good? Did it live up to and maybe even surpass the quality of Spider-Man 2? Sadly, no. I really pushed hard to like it, and was totally under the impression that this would be a damn good film before the end of the first hour. But then, once Peter Parker got an unexpected visitor in his apartment in the form of the alien symbiote, Spider-Man 3 slowly becomes undone with each passing minute from then on through the end. By the time the credits rolled, I was resigned to the fact that, while it was still an entertaining movie that had a lot of good to great moments, we still have not been treated to that perfect trilogy where the successors outdo their predecessors.
The word of the evening for me watching that was "frustrating." Being a fan of the character and the first two film adaptations, I care a lot about the direction it's going in, and when there's a misstep, it's up to us fans to make sure the powers that be are made aware of this, lest they want another Batman & Robin on their hands. Anyway, I felt myself getting more frustrated as the second half of the film went on since I could tell all it would take would be a few tweaks here and there and the film could have been so much better.
For starters, the first sequel introduced John Jameson, an astronaut that became the first man to play football on the moon. That's right, he's an astronaut, so the door was wide open for Jameson to have brought the alien symbiote with him from the moon to Earth. The way it is now, the small meteor carrying the infamous black ooze conveniently lands near Peter and Mary Jane and the two of them ride off with the ooze sticking to the bike. Sam, we understand you were forced by the powers that be to put in Venom; you didn't have to show that fact off by having his early form just drop in out of nowhere.
But wait, there's more! There's the character of Flint Marko, also known as Sandman. In the dictionary under the word "under-written," it's a safe bet you'll see the phrase: See Larko, Flint. We see him escaping from prison, we see his wife kicking him out and his child barely able to breathe, and then we see him fall Victor Fries style into a de-molecularizing test site overseen by scientists who barely look old enough to drive. The next time we see him, he is The Sandman and he has to struggle to stand up on his own two feet just like a baby. This is one of my favorite sequences in the film, where every element – the effects, the direction, the music – just works together. Sadly, even though we see plenty more effects shots of Sandman, we don't see anything as meaningful or incredible as that last moment. In fact, all he's doing is stealing money.
Sandman had to do something, so Sam, Ivan Raimi and Alvin Sargeant did the unthinkable: they messed around with the legend that made Spider-Man who he is. Granted, this isn't the first time we've seen mistakes made just like this, but considering how the man firing the gun that killed Uncle Ben was someone that Spider-Man let go free, it's not to the character's best interests to say to him, "Remember how you let this burglar go free and then that burglar killed one of the most important people in your life? Well, forget that because that guy didn't even pull the trigger. It was someone else instead." That's an alteration that threatens to change the man inside completely. So while Sandman's action scenes definitely looked good and his action scenes were entertaining, the overall feeling was that he was simply there to get attacked. Other than Flint's kid, there really wasn't much of a reason to give a damn about him. The only way that they could get him involved is to make HIM the real killer of Uncle Ben. Sorry, but that doesn't work for me.
Then you have Venom. I've never seen a character get so consistently right and then become so consistently wrong, but that's just what happened here. To be such a dangerous adversary for Spider-Man and reduce him to a glorified cameo, that's just screaming out that this is a missed opportunity. There was no hissing demonic voice, no drool escaping his mouth. There was no serpent tongue lashing against his opponents. There wasn't even the use of the word "we" when he spoke. Even though it looks like we're going to see at least three more Spider-Man films, by throwing away such a wonderfully good character that reflects everything wrong with Peter Parker did while affected by him, Sam & Co. made a huge mistake.
But of course, the biggest frustration was being told by both Sam and Tobey that they wouldn't mind doing a fourth film if the script was right. Well, they've been spending the previous 2 and a half hours putting everything they had left into this one film so it ends the trilogy on a real high note. You want love interests? How about 2? You want villains? How about 3? So of course I have to ask, where do you go from there? You stuffed everything humanly possible into this film, so now any other sequel is going to be looked at as a disappointment no matter what. Now, if they knew they were going to do this, they really should have ended the third film with the birth of Venom and leave Venom and Spider-Man to do their own episode where Peter realizes this creature is a living embodiment of Peter's dark side.
And while we're on the topic of fantasy filmmaking, I would have also added in a montage not unlike the one in the first film where he revealed himself to the country as a fighter of crime. (You might remember Jim Norton's classic line, "He stinks and I don't like him!") What would have been so bad about showing Spider-Man in his black costume saving people from crime but being much more physical and intimidating about it. The different people could have been showing concern, saying that Spider-Man now has some kind of mean streak in him.
This is a real shame for me to pick apart Spider-Man 3 like this since there was a whole lot of good in it as well. The music score by Christopher Young was my favorite in the series, the first half hour built very well, had great pacing, and the first action sequence between Peter and the New Goblin was exciting as hell. Around this time, we had the birth of Sandman, which was handled badly in the origin but had that terrific scene where he has to learn to walk again. Plus, there was the second fight with Harry, which was even more emotional than the previous one since this one showed Peter's mean streak. And boy, does he ever have a mean streak in him. Plus, you had Bruce Campbell giving his best cameo appearance in the trilogy and a solid second go-around with Sandman. The main problem with the Sandman fight was that, as Spider-Man worked his way towards him, he was using the shadows as a weapon, not the newly enhanced suit as much. We never really got a sense of what the symbiote costume can do to someone.
As for the dance sequences, well, I'd keep two and drop one. I loved the shots of Peter strutting along the NYC streets, simply because of everyone else's reactions. This is a total dork walking around thinking he's hot shit and women around him want nothing to do with him. It's fantastic and it works in the same vein as the Raindrops sequence in Spider-Man 2. I'd also keep the twisting scene with Harry and Mary Jane, only because this is the happiest we've seen Mary Jane in the whole film. This is her release, and the only man she can confide in is a man who used to want her boyfriend dead. (Oh, and I dug the whole amnesia angle too. It was consistent with the comics, and it allowed Peter to get a little bit of breathing room without looking over his shoulder the whole time.) But the third dancing scene at the Jazz Club, definitely get rid of it. First, I was reminded by Charles Sheen as Topper Harley in Hot Shots, and then next thing I know, I feel like I'm watching The Mask. Now, if that scene gets cut, imagine how much more screen time Venom or Spider-Man could have had.
I think it's best to stop here since it's really late and I gotta submit this column before I collapse at the keyboard. Out of a rating system, I give Spider-Man 3 a 6.5 out of 10. This really could have been the one movie to break out of the Part III funk and actually turn out better than Spider-Man 2, but sadly, no. The Trilogy Curse lives on!
And that's a wrap for Chapter 12 of The UBS Evening News. I'm George H. Sirois, and I'll see you next week!
