The UBS Evening Movie News 06.07.07
Posted by George H. Sirois on 06.07.2007
The “Most Dangerous Thing in the World” Edition…
Welcome everyone to the latest chapter of The UBS Evening Movie News. I'm George H. Sirois, and I have a very different item to rant about this week. So let's get on with it…
TOP STORY
Russell Crowe has formed Fear of God Films and set up his first feature project as a producer. Using his own coin, Crowe optioned "Dolce's Inferno," a spec script by Mark Staufer. Crowe will develop the project as producer, and does not plan to star in the film.
The contemporary romantic comedy concerns a hardnosed L.A. gossip columnist who falls in love and watches his world spin out of control.
Staufer is a former U.K. Universal television exec. "I'm looking forward to collaborating with Mark, who is such a talented writer," Crowe said.
Crowe, who previously directed and produced the docu "Texas," has been branching into other areas. He's planning to make his dramatic directing debut on "Bra Boys," a feature adaptation of the docu about Australian underground surf culture. The film is set up at Universal and Imagine Entertainment.
I have to say I'm very interested in seeing where all of these actor-headed production companies are going. Obviously, it's nothing new in the industry to see something like this, but just as with each batch of movies there's likely to be a remake in there somewhere, with each batch of new production companies, there's a good chance a couple are put together by an actor.
It's also very refreshing to see some very good actors with a good eye for projects leading these companies. So many actors in Hollywood are bored with the current crop of what's out there, and they want something different, something challenging. And if it's something that they don't see a role for themselves in, yet they're still intrigued by it, they'll simply produce it themselves and make sure it gets out there. Since now there are people like Russell Crowe that are looking for new voices, it may only be a matter of time before the spec script market starts moving again.
Credit: Variety.com
SYBIL THE SOOTHSAYER
UPCOMING MOVIES
Ocean's Thirteen: Danny Ocean (George Clooney) reassembles his crew of master criminals to take revenge on a hated Las Vegas businessman and casino owner played by Al Pacino.
The whole story of Danny Ocean is a strange one going all the way back to the Sinatra days. The original film was just a little something that Frank, Dean, Sammy, Peter and Joey could do while in Vegas and Frank never took it seriously. Fast forward 41 years and Clooney & Co. make a huge hit out of one of the few remakes to ever surpass the original (in some people's opinion, my dad hated the remake).
But then Ocean's Twelve came out, and in my opinion it was a mess from the start. It wasn't nearly as fun to watch it as it was for the cast to make it. It seemed like they were having a blast, but I didn't want to watch George Clooney's European Vacation. Seeing them laughing it up at the very end of the film too just gave me a sick feeling, like they know they made a pile of crap and they were still laughing all the way to the bank.
When I first heard about this film, I was naturally immediately skeptical, but then I saw the trailers and read the early reviews from people who hated the sequel as much as I did. The early word is that even though this is a different story, it still has enough familiarity to bring back the fun of the original. And even better, the victim of the act that gets the ball rolling here is Elliott Gould's character, so the supporting cast isn't shoved into the back like they were before. So yeah, even though I'd been burned before, I'm still checking this out in the theater to close out the trilogy on a high note (if it is just a trilogy).
Surf's Up: A behind-the-scenes look at the annual Penguin World Surfing Championship, and its newest participant, up-and-comer Cody Maverick.
I love penguins in animated films (even though I still haven't seen Happy Feet, the ones in Madagascar killed me) and I love mockumentaries, so since this is a mix of two elements that make me laugh, I'm interested in giving this a look. I hope that coming out less than a year after Happy Feet doesn't hurt its box office, but then again, there aren't many options for family films other than the big 3's, and judging by their take, the families have seen all of them already.
Hostel Part II: Three American college students (Lauren German, Bijou Phillips and Heather Matarazzo) studying abroad are lured to a Slovakian hostel, and discover the grim reality behind it.
I still haven't seen the first one, and it's been a movie that I have been anxious to see, but still pull back from getting it on Netflix when the opportunity arises. I think it was when I saw the clips on Bravo's second special on the sickest scenes in horror movies and that film was in the number 1 slot. It shouldn't make me hesitate to see it as much as I have, since I own several Hellraiser movies and they don't skimp on the gore at all, but I think it's because this is a story of real people doing terrible things to other people…
Ahhh, to hell with it. I'm putting it on my queue now. If I liked it, I'll let you know (if it doesn't already have a long wait status).
La Vie En Rose: The tragic life story of Edith Piaf (played by Marion Cotillard), one of France's most loved singers, who became a national icon.
Considering everything Edith Piaf had gone through in her lifetime, I'm surprised there hasn't already been a film about her released. (There was Edith et Marcel, but that only covered the time when she was married to boxer Marcel Cerdan, and it didn't reach the US.) Just look at what she had to deal with according to legend, and you'll see what I mean. Almost from birth, she had been raised among prostitutes in her mother's brothel, from three to seven she was allegedly blind and from eight to fourteen she was allegedly deaf. She gained her sight back in a "miracle," after she was sent on a pilgrimage. And she hadn't even started singing yet!
I have no idea what kind of approach is being taken with this film, since there are a lot of alleged stories about her young life. Will this delve into the legend or will it try to give a more accurate breakdown? Whatever direction they will go in, I have a very good feeling about how it will be.
Credit: TheMovieBox.net
MOVIE TRAILER OF THE WEEK: TransFormers
The teaser looked good, the first trailer looked like another War of the Worlds, but this one looks fantastic. If they keep the old-school transforming sound, there are gonna be quite a few hairs standing up on the back of my neck.
JIM WEBBING AND HIS IT'S-THE-HONEST-TRUTH-DEPARTMENT
Sight Beyond Sight on the Silver Screen: Warner Bros. has optioned a script by tyro scribe Paul Sopocy to turn Thundercats, the popular 1980s animated series and toy line into a live action feature.
Paula Weinstein will produce through her Spring Creek Productions banner, along with Dick Robertson and Lew Korman.
Thundercats revolves around a group of humanoid cats (with feline names like Lion-O, Tygra, Panthro and Cheetara) who must flee their planet of Thundera after it's destroyed. Once crash-landing on another planet, Third Earth, they must thwart Mumm-Ra, an evil sorcerer, bent on killing them off.
Sopocy has written the script as an origin story expanding on the major heroes and villains from the animated series, with the plot focusing on Lion-O coming of age as the leader of the Thundercats.
The project was brought to Warner by Palek Patel, VP at Spring Creek. Dan Lin is overseeing the pic for Warners.
This is definitely a case of Warner Bros. borrowing the Sword of Omens and getting "sight beyond sight," since they're currently picking up the rights to various 80s cartoons based on the success that TransFormers HASN'T GOTTEN YET. Don't get me wrong, I want TransFormers to be a great success, and I definitely want it to be a good movie, but I can't say with 100 percent confidence that not only will it be good, but that it will guarantee other cartoon adaptations will be as successful.
Thundercats definitely worked as a cartoon, but I don't know if it'll work well enough as a live-action film. First of all, there's the "Third Earth" concept. If my 80s pop culture drenched memory doesn't escape me, "Third Earth" means that the Earth went through the age it's in now, became "Second Earth" after the original inhabitants (us) wiped themselves out, then became "Third Earth" after the later inhabitants wiped themselves out. That's Planet of the Apes territory there (the original film, not the piece of shit remake), very heady stuff. But the best thing about that course of action was that it eliminated the human factor from interfering with the battles between the Thundercats, the Mutants of Plun-Darr and Mumm-Ra. After all, the series had its own toy line and nobody was going to buy a human character, not when Lion-O's eyes glowed when you stuck the ring device in his back.
If this was to be picked up for a big budget WB adaptation, I can just imagine the producers switching things up so the Thundercats land on Earth during the present day, which would of course make the film less about the main characters and more about the humans reacting to them. And I don't need the Sword of Omens to see that coming. Just look at Masters of the Universe or Alien vs. Predator. Studios are insistent on having humans involved in some way so that audiences have someone for them to live vicariously through. At least in TransFormers it's expected that humans be there since their interaction was a major part of the animated series and the comics.
Considering the amount of changes that would most likely be made in order to appeal to the masses, it might not be the best idea to turn Thundercats into a live-action film. Unless you get Jessica Biel to play Cheetara, then by all means…
Credit: Variety.com
"Well, hey! Can I have ya BOTH?! I'll buy THAT for a (hundred) dollar(s)!": Sharp has just announced the release of a new optical disc player that will allegedly be the smallest player ever produced. It will be capable of playing CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray and HD DVD, a dual format player that could potentially eliminate the need to worry about formats.
The press is very vague on the availability of this on a consumer level. However, the player - be it a consumer item or component - is expected to cost less that $100 and begin shipping next month.
Sharp is absolutely brilliant to be doing something like this. If the quality of the item that they're putting together is up to snuff, then this could be almost as hot a seller as any gaming system this year, especially when the holiday season comes around. After hearing all these different articles on the Internet about which version people will be getting – either HD or Blu-Ray – along comes Sharp with the idea of putting together something that will cater to both crowds. This just might put an end to the constant debates over which version will be better since everyone will be satisfied.
But before the debate ends, I'll throw in my two cents. I'm perfectly satisfied with my DVD player and my DVDs so I don't feel the need to upgrade. However, if I had to pick one format, I'd go with HD since the player I'd get would make my current DVDs look better. That works for me.
Credit: DVDReview.com
FILM MUSIC NEWS
* RMA San Francisco Dissolves Chapter
* Cutting Edge Acquires Air-Edel
* Score of the Week: "Severance" by Christian Henson
* Fred Steiner Receives Honorary Doctorate
* Industry Poll: 87% Disagree with ASCAP Candidate Policy
* Grammy-Award Nominated Producers form Music Consultancy Co.
* Sharon Farber Signed by Soundtrack Music Associates
* Joel Goldsmith Launches Record Label
* Signings & Projects: Joel McNeely, Patrick Doyle, Antonio Pinto
* Technology: The Music Never Lies
* Commentary: Write Music Outside the World of Film!
* The Scoreboard: Hundreds of composers and what they're scoring
Download This Week's Issue at: www.filmmusicweekly.com.
SOUNDTRACK OF THE WEEK
The Matrix Revolutions: Music Composed by Don Davis
This film has been in heavy rotation the past two months on HBO, and it seems that whenever I switch on one of their channels, it's always on the same spot in the film: Neo making his deal with the machines to fight and stop Agent Smith. Then I put the remote down and turn the volume up so I can soak in one of the pieces of music that I will never tire of: "Neodammerung," which is played during the final battle between Neo and Smith.
Out of all three Matrix films, the soundtrack for Revolutions is my favorite of them all. Even though there's much less techno and no real hit songs, this is a great example of how incredibly talented Don Davis is when he's allowed to really cut loose and give an epic sounding score. It starts off with the now-classic theme, builds significantly as the battle for Zion gets closer, and then shoots into the stratosphere with the previously mentioned final confrontation of Neo and Smith. And just in case you were wondering why the Wachowskis chose a fusion of orchestral and techno instead of a Rage Against the Machine song, well… by the end of the movie, there is no more rage against the machines. Instead, there's a peaceful co-existence between humans (orchestral) and machines (techno).
I couldn't recommend this soundtrack more. It's one of my favorites and will stay that way for a very long time.
VOX POPULI
Top Grossing Movies from June 1 - 3
1. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End - $44,206,660
Total: $217,545,728
2. Knocked Up - $30,690,990
Total: $30,690,990
3. Shrek the Third - $28,020,991
Total: $255,927,783
4. Mr. Brooks - $10,017,067
Total: $10,017,067
5. Spider-Man 3 - $7,578,055
Total: $318,342,110
6. Waitress - $2,012,857
Total: $9,441,911
7. Gracie - $1,355,904
Total: $1,355,904
8. Bug - $1,286,397
Total: $6,158,052
9. 28 Weeks Later - $1,214,942
Total: $26,591,704
10. Disturbia - $1,112,533
Total: $76,703,481
If you're a fan of the TransFormers toys and animated series, it's a safe bet you'll be seeing the movie next month. If you're not a fan, and you're still a guy, then Megan Fox would be a good reason to see it…
I said much more than expected in my news reports this week, so I'll leave this one short and sweet. I'm sending out a plea to my fellow New Yorkers. Please, when you are walking around the city while it's raining, remember that you're carrying an umbrella, which in the wrong hands can be considered a lethal weapon. Don't believe me? About ten years ago, I was crossing the street on a rainy morning to get to work and my eye was almost gouged out by a woman crossing the street who was holding an umbrella AND READING A BOOK!
One wrong move while holding an umbrella can scratch, gouge, spear, impale, you get the point. And it's especially bad in New York City since so many people are walking around. It's hard enough to get from Point A to Point B on 5th or 6th avenue during a sunny day. It's even harder to get there in the rain because of some asshole dragging a golf umbrella that covers an entire square mile. And don't even get me started on the tourists in the rain that stop to look up at an office building. I normally like them since they're good for our economy, but sightseeing shouldn't be a high priority when there's a monsoon going on.
And then you have the spring-activated ones, which pretty much make up all umbrellas out there today. You want to open it safely, you have to make sure there's nobody within 25 feet around you so you don't accidentally grab someone's hair and yank on it while you're trying to get dry. And speaking of opening it, you don't have to open it as you're walking up the stairs of the subway station and you can take a break from holding it up when you're walking under a scaffold. Either way, if some rain gets on you for a moment, you're not going to melt. Unless it's acid rain, and then you're screwed.
And that's a wrap for Chapter 16 of The UBS Evening News. I'm George H. Sirois, and remember that friends don't let friends abuse umbrellas. I'll see you next week!
