Another week has come and gone, and that means more movie news to praise or bitch about. So lets get right into the good and the bad of the week with Notables.
NOTABLES
"Dreamworks picks up Motorcade" – Monday, November 1
It says this movie is a blend of In the Line of Fire and Black Hawk Down. Those are two pretty damn good movies...but I just don't see how they could possibly have a mix of those two movies. Is this attack on the president by a hijacked helicopter that crashes into the presidential motorcade? Also, this was written by one of the guys who brought us Anaconda and its sequel? That can't be good, so I'm giving this one a Worst News of the Week Nominee.
"Pierce Brosnan wants Colin Farrell for ‘007" – Tuesday, November 2
Now, don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE Colin Farrell fan, but if this were to actually come about, it just doesn't make sense. The main reason reason is age. Brosnan is 51 and Farrell is 28. It looks like they're trying to do a The Sum of all Fears thing using Ben Affleck over Harrison Ford. That just won't work here...not like it worked in The Sum of All Fears, but yeah. It won't work with Bond because the Bond character has been basically set in cinematic stone over the years. Going with a much younger actor now just wouldn't make sense, unless they decide to do a completely different series, like "007: twentysomething." They should just try to get someone that fits the profile better, instead of messing with a good thing. Worst News of the Week Nominee.
"SAW 2 is coming Halloween 2005!" – Tuesday, November 2
As they say in Team America: World Police, "F%*k yeah!" Saw was absolutely incredible, and as far as I'm concerned, that film marked a new landmark in horror. A sequel is definitely feasible here and I can't wait to see what these talented new filmmakers in James Wan and Leigh Whannell can scare up for the seqeul. Best News of the Week Nominee!
"Eric Bernt to develop Vegas Baby" – Tuesday, November 2
Come on! How un-original do you have to be? You rip off the title from Swingers and the plot from Very Bad Things, and probably countless other bachelor party movies. Grow a brain, you tool and think up your own ideas. Worst News of the Week Nominee.
"Christian Bale and Freddy Rodriguez to star in Harsh Times" – Wednesday, November 3
I'm not familiar with Freddy Rodriguez's work, mainly because I don't have HBO and haven't seen Six Feet Under, but this still sounds like a wonderful project. Christian Bale is a stupendous talent, as is writer David Ayer (Training Day) who is finally making his directorial debut with this project. The story sounds great and I'm sure Bale and Rodriguez can pull off these roles. This should be a winner, all the way. Best News of the Week Nominee.
"First Look picks up The Easter Egg Escapade" – Thursday, November 4
I am purely dumbfounded. The cast, the story...I feel like I'm going to spontaneously combust at any minute here. I'm at a loss for words...except for Worst News of the Week Nominee.
"Seann William Scott to star in untitled Universal comedy" – Friday, November 5
This sounds like the usual type of role that Scott would take, but this could very well be Scott's School of Rock role. I can see this as being a movie where the kids teach the adult more in the long run, and this could provide some potential for Scott to expand his range. I think this sounds like a good fit for Scott, who has started to take some more diverse roles for flicks still in development, and it could work out very well for him. Best News of the Week Nominee.
GOING LIVE
High Tension (www.hightensionmovie.com)
I really need a faster computer, folks, because these slow-loading sites like this ones are becoming a pain in the nuts. The site has some creepy industrial background music. When the site finally loads, it says you can watch the trailer and register for updates, only you can't watch the trailer because it's "coming soon." There is supposedly some link when you click on the title on the site, but all it did on my computer was change all the colors. This site is pretty lame, but there will probably be more here before this flick opens on June 3 of next year.
Imaginary Heroes (www.sonyclassics.com/imaginary/)
I appreciate sites like this that actually put out an effort even though it's a teaser site. It has a nice look to it and they show you how confident they are in this flick by stating it will have an "one week award qualifying run" in December. As far as the content on this site, there is only a press kit and a photo gallery. But press kits are always cool to read, and, for a teaser site, it's pretty good. Imaginary Heroes opens in New York and Los Angeles December 17, and it goes wide next February.
Hide and Seek (www.hideandseekthemovie.com)
Another teaser site here with just the trailer and a link to register for updates, although when the site is first loading up, you get the impression there will be more here. Oh well. I wish there would've been a link to the glowing door in the middle of the site, but, disappointed again. Hide and Seek opens January 28.
TRAILER PARK
Hmm I thought that The Incredibles was the last collaboration between Disney and Pixar, but I guess I was wrong. I guess Cars is the last such collaboration, unless some sort of deal is reached between them, and this looks like more of the same Pixar magic we've seen in the past. What's odd, though, is this looks more like a clip of the movie than an actual trailer. It's just thrown together kind of oddly, although I guess they're just letting the footage speak for itself, instead of letting that deep-voiced trailer guy (I always forget his name) do the talking. The trailer is a little weird, but the movie looks like another Pixar winner. Cars opens November 4 of next year.
Oh goody. A Meet the Parents reversal with J-Lo and Michael Vartan, who, ironically enough, are both ex-whatever's of current couple Ben Affleck and the scrumptious Jennifer Garner. And Jane Fonda is still alive? This should be a winner...about as much of a winner as any NHL team right now...Monster-in-Law opens May 6.
This looks like an interesting movie with, if nothing else, a very good cast of Jeff Daniels, Emile Hirsch, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Williams and Kip Pardue. The story looks pretty good, but it looks very similar to either Ordinary People or American Beauty. People, well, award-granting organizations, seem to lock on these types of movies, so it should be in contention for an award or two. We'll have to see if the real ordinary people lock onto this as well. Imaginary Heroes opens in limited release December 17 and it goes wider on February 25.
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
Where's my time machine? I want to see this NOW! LucasFilm people, hook a columnist up like you did for Harry Knowles a few years ago before Episode II was released. This is going to be incredible and I just can't wait for this to come out. But, until I get a call from LucasFilm or I get my time machine fixed (damn flux capacitors!) I'm going to have to wait until May 19 like everyone else.
BEST NEWS OF THE WEEK
It was another tough decision this week, but I'm going with Christian Bale teaming up with David Ayer for Harsh Times. It looks like Ayer has crafted yet another wonderful story here, and this is a perfect project for him to make his directorial debut. He grew up in South Central L.A., where the movie is set, and his personal knowledge of the area should do wonders for the feel of the movie. Christian Bale is really coming into his own as of late, with his great performance in the absolutely astonishing Equilibrium. His little role as that Batman guy should probably help his status as well...Anyway, all the pieces seem to be in place for this to be a great movie.
WORST NEWS OF THE WEEK
This was a hard choice as well, but I'm going to have to pick Easter Egg Escapade as Worst News of the Week. How on earth did they come up with this cast? Did they just pick names out of a hat like some sort f*%&ed up lottery? Brooke Shields? Sandra Berhnard? Nancy Kerrigan? NANCY KERRIGAN?? Sure, James Woods and Joe Pantoliano are solid, but I can't imagine these tough guy actors lending their voices to a movie called Easter Egg Escapade. I'm sure they're the bad guy's who are dubbed the Take-It's. How unbelievably moronic is that? "They take the eggs, so let's call them the Take-It's." How stupid is this John Mitchell Williams guy? Is this movie going to be sponsored by Prozac? NANCY KERRIGAN??!! I'm just going to stop now before I pose any more questions that I really don't want answers to...