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Producer Says X-MEN 3 was not a "Last Stand" after all as it continues with X-MEN 4 and 5, which are in Active Development. And that a DEADPOOL is being made, and it is a ‘Total Reboot’
X-Men: The Last Stand (X-men 3) and X-Men Origins: Wolverine are two of the WORST superhero movies ever made.
Everybody who has a good understanding of what the X-men universe is all about knows that. X-Men Origins: Wolverine not only ruined the character of Wolverine himself, but it also ruined another character who is a potential Marvel character frontrunner: Deadpool.
X-Men: The Last Stand was hastily directed by Brett Ratner, a last minute replacement for Bryan Singer when he left the project (to direct the similar failure: Superman Returns). Not only was it badly directed, but it also went to reckless directions in storyline (with poorly executed deaths of Cyclops, Professor X, and Jean Grey).
Despite the seemingly irreparable damages done to the X-men movies, producer Lauren Shuler Donner has unexpectedly revealed that sequels to X-Men 3: The Last Stand are still in ‘active development’ at Fox. Yes, sequels with a "plural S" 2 sequels to be exact.
"We took the treatment to Fox and they love it… And X4 leads into X5" says Donner.
There’s no mention of who wrote the treatment but insiders think that it’s probably Bryan Singer himself, who did the same for X-Men: First Class and seems to be circling a hands-on return to the franchise once he has made his fantasy re-imagining Jack and the Giant Killer this year.
Donner also said in regards to the long-gestating Deadpool spin-off from X-Men Origins: Wolverine;
“It’s a total reboot… We’re either going to pretend that didn’t happen – or mock it, which he could. It’s insane, it’s definitely comedy. But it’s an R script, it’s really irreverent and violent. Right away, we’re out of the X-Men world”.
So what do we have coming out? A new origin of the X-Men world in First Class, a new Wolverine solo story in The Wolverine, a completely rebooted take on Deadpool, and fourth and fifth sequels to the original trilogy. Shouldnt they just have started a full reboot with the upcoming X-MEN: FIRST CLASS instead?
Sucker Punch is Fantastically Insane But Never Impressive
by Reymundo Salao
The story of Sucker Punch revolves around the facade of mental patients who live in an imaginary world filled with vivid fantasy. While the storyline originally is set in a mental institution, the audience are taken in to view things from the main characters’ point of view; instead of mental patients plotting to be free, we see them as showgirls trying to escape the club. The mind-bending does not stop there, whenever the main character dances, she is transported to another imaginary world where she fights different creatures and go on various adventures; where she and her friends are an elite force of bad-ass hot-chick fighters.
Sucker Punch is a very stylized movie. A bit too overstylized at times. I’m sure director Zack Snyder has some really intelligent intentions with the film's prolific undertones in the story. He tries to inject something deeper amidst the visual thrills. Unfortunately , that message drowns out in all the visual style, and ends up undelivered. what is delivered though is a great big “Huh?” for those who crave for creative satisfaction. I could not go so far as to say that the movie was pretentious (although, it sort of is), but I can say that it simply fails on what it intends to tell.
Extremely bad news for those who are looking forward to the hopeful redemption of the Wolverine movie franchise under director Darren Aronofsky. It seems that the Black Swan director will not be around to direct the next Wolverine movie anymore.
Deadline has heard that his withdrawal has to do with his breakup with actress Rachel Weisz, and custody issues involving their son. All but two weeks of the film will be shot in Japan (a few scenes are being shot in Canada). His withdrawal had nothing to do with the script, because I'm told that Chris McQuarrie delivered. Or even the current crisis in Japan after the earthquake and tsunami. Aronofsky simply couldn't be out of the country that long. There hadn't been a firm start date. There was once an intention to start in the spring, but the situation in Japan and Hugh Jackman's Real Steel promotional schedule pushed things back a bit.
Aronofsky released this statement: "As I talked more about the film with my collaborators at Fox, it became clear that the production of ‘The Wolverine’ would keep me out of the country for almost a year. I was not comfortable being away from my family for that length of time. I am sad that I won't be able to see the project through, as it is a terrific script and I was very much looking forward to working with my friend, Hugh Jackman, again."
Twentieth Century Fox also issued this statement: “While we are of course disappointed that Darren can’t do ‘The Wolverine’, we also understand and respect his reasons. Having done both ‘The Wrestler’ and ‘Black Swan’ with Darren, we know he is an extraordinary talent and we look forward to working with him on other projects in the future. Hugh Jackman and Fox both remain fully committed to making ‘The Wolverine’. We will regroup and move forward aggressively.”
Many fans including myself were looking forward to Arronofsky's style (appropriately) applied to the brooding mood of Wolverine universe. It should be noted that the previous movie X-men Origins: Wolverine which starred Hugh Jackman was a very unfaithful interpretation of the Wolverine comicbook character, and is considered by most critics as one of the worse comicbook/superhero movies ever made, second only to Joel Schumacher's "Batman and Robin"
In addition, this take on Wolverine was immensely watered down to please a more kid-friendly audience. In the comics, Wolverine has a more violent nature, and is simply a ruthless unflinching killer.
Aronofsky's history of extremely dark and depressing movies such as "The Wrestler" and the classic "Requiem for a Dream" is a perfect fit for the actual story/history of Wolverine, a Marvel comics character who, in the actual comic book references, has actually had experienced countless traumatic tragedies in his life.
It is tragically funny to note that Aronofsky's career with movies in production purgatory is such that he has teased on big genre projects, only to be dis-attached to them at the last minute. Years ago, before Chris Nolan was chosen to direct Batman Begins, it was Aronofsky who was initially picked to revive the once-dead Batman franchise. Just a couple of years ago, he was also attached to the planned Robocop sequel/franchise relaunch but that did not push through. Now, maybe production with Aronofsky should have begun this season. But now, we are left to dream of a better director to redeem the Wolverine film franchise from its current awful image.
The Tomb Raider movies series, based on the popular video game series, is up for a reboot.
GK Films acquired the film rights from interactive entertainment company Square Enix Ltd, and announced its plans to launch some fresh new "Tomb Raider" movies, separate from the 2001 and 2003 Tomb Raider movies which starred Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft. In an interview with Ugo.com way back in 2004, Jolie made it clear that she was done with the Tomb Raider series and was satisfied with the second movie; "I just don't feel like I need to (go back to the role of Lara Croft), because I felt very happy with the last one, which was kind of the one we wanted to do. The first one kind of frustrated us, because we were trying something new. The second one, I felt like that's kind of how I wanted to do it, and I don't really feel the need to do another one."
That means that we are bound to see a fresh new actress to fill in the boots as the Lara Croft for movie franchise reboot. Producer Graham King, who produced "The Departed" and "The Town," said: "We are very excited to be rebooting what is already a hugely successful film franchise and continuing the 'Tomb Raider' phenomenon"
The press release noted that the reboot "will create daring new adventures for the young and dynamic Lara Croft."
The first film in the series reboot is aiming to hit theaters in 2013.
Director of the Mad Max franchise George Miller sat down with The Daily Telegraph to give an update on the status of his delayed project Mad Max: Fury Road. The film, which has Tom Hardy set to star as the new Mad Max and also includes Charlize Theron, Nicholas Hoult, and Teresa Palmer in the cast, was already set to begin filming, but has been shut down due to extreme flooding in Broken Hill, Australia, where it was scheduled to shoot.
If you’re a fan of Mad Max, then you know how important its dry, desolate, scorched Earth setting is to the story. Getting that post-apocalyptic desert landscape feel to resonate on film is pretty hard when you’re standing in ankle deep water. Miller said, “The week we were to start, it rained the heaviest it had in 10 years. I’ll never forget the first day — we were holed up in a big sort of shed watching the rain. We couldn’t shoot. If you want the rain to come, just send a film crew there.”
a scene from Mad Max 2
The decision has been made to hold off on shooting for 12 months, and try to get back on the saddle next January. Miller seems to want to assure fans that while this is a huge setback, the film is still going to happen. He said, “We’ve built the vehicles. We’ve designed the movie. The principal cast is locked in. The film is funded. It’s all ready to go. We just wait.” When speaking about the current cast, Miller seemed confident that they would all still be onboard, he reiterated, “All the contracts are signed. It’s a locked-in film. It has been for 18 months now.”
When talking about the decision to push the shooting back an entire year, Miller said, “It also gives me a chance to get Happy Feet really going well — so there were a lot of factors in the decision. But the big one was that we really had nowhere to shoot.” With the fast changing landscape of Hollywood contracts it seems like it would be pretty impossible to put off a film for an entire year and have all of the same pieces come back together for a second go. I’d say at the very least some of these actors are going to have other offers coming in and will try to get out of their contracts. And really, how long does big budget film funding sit around before investors start getting antsy and litigious? Miller says he’s confident though, “We will restart pre-production later this year and begin early next year — weather permitting.” Good luck, George.
The new Conan the Barbarian poster is up, and its not just any poster; its a motion poster. The film will be released on August 19, 2011. Well, I think the poster is awesome, I just hope it will exceed or satisfy my expectations; the first Conan the Barbarian, for me is one of my top 5 personal favorite movies of all time; this one better be good enough.
Paquito Diaz, one of the country’s most popular kontrabidas, succumbed to pneumonia at 9:45 Thursday night at his residence in Daraga, Albay. He was 78.
Only a week ago, a tabloid reported that Paquito had died, prompting his wife Nena (sister of actor Bob Soler) to comment that when a person is rumored to have died, it meant that he would live longer. Paquito had been wheelchair-bound after he suffered a stroke in 2004 that paralyzed him. He was one of FPJ’s favorite kontrabida. In 1965, he won a FAMAS Best Supporting Actor award for Ang Mananandata, an FPJ starrer. His brother Romy Diaz, also a kontrabida, died a few years ago.
Introduced in Premiere Productions’ Pandora in 1955, Paquito graduated from FEU where he was a basketball player. When he was diagnosed with pneumonia, Paquito was confined at the ICU of a hospital in Albay. He got better and was brought home where he died. Paquito is survived also by his children, among them actors Cheska and Joko; and 14 grandchildren.
His remains are at the Salvacion Funeral Homes in Legazpi City. They will be transferred to the Funeraria Paz at the Manila Memorial Park in Parañaque City tomorrow, March 6, and will be cremated.
FASTER seems like a simple revenge movie, but it really is layered with some high quality, rich storytelling. The integrity of the movie's quality is so high that it feels like up there on the level of "No Country for Old Men"
With spitting saliva and a gritting teeth, I say it with pride - "I LOVE THIS MOVIE!" It was awesome! The characters and the direction of the story, it's unquestionably applaudable. For those who love action that is grounded in realism and a good storyline, this is a high two-thumbs-up, Full Price movie.
X-MEN: FIRST CLASS is the fifth installment of the X-Men film series and will probably be best understood by general audiences as a prequel to the first three movies. The film, set during the 1960s, will focus on the relationship between Professor X and Magneto and the origin of their groups, the X-Men and the Brotherhood of Mutants.
"Before Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr took the names Professor X and Magneto, they were two young men discovering their powers for the first time. Before they were archenemies, they were closest of friends, working together, with other Mutants (some familiar, some new), to stop the greatest threat the world has ever known. In the process, a rift between them opened, which began the eternal war between Magneto’s Brotherhood and Professor X’s X-Men."
The film stars James McAvoy as Professor X (you will remember him as the main character in the movie WANTED) and Michael Fassbender as Magneto (many of us saw him in the movie 300 as one of the spartan warriors). Other cast members include Kevin Bacon, January Jones, Rose Byrne, Jennifer Lawrence and Lucas Till. The film is mostly being shot in England and parts of the United States. Fox envisions this film as the first in a new trilogy. X-Men: First Class is scheduled for release on June 3, 2011.
To those familiar with the comic books, when you say "X-Men First Class", it refers to the original first X-men characters; the first mutant class that went under the tutelage of Professor Xavier; namely, Scott Summers (Cyclops), Jean Grey (Marvel Girl), Bobby Drake (Iceman), Warren Worthington (Angel), and Hank McCoy (Beast). But this upcoming movie "X-men; First Class" appears that it will not focus mainly on these characters, rather it will focus on the characters of Professor Xavier and his once best friend Erik Lensherr (Magneto) when they first sought out to save mutants from the prejudices of mankind. The First Class referred in this movie will refer to characters such as Sean Cassidy a.k.a. Banshee, Alex Summers a.k.a. Havok, Raven Darkholme a.k.a. Mystique, & Hank McCoy a.k.a. Beast, as well as lesser known characters such as Riptide, Darwin, and Azazel. The villains in this movie will be the aristocratic mutant group The Hellfire Club.
The X-Men Universe have a rich history, and it is actually a good thing that this new "reboot" of the franchise goes back to its roots in order to tell its great stories properly and with a hopefully decent continuity and faith to the source material.
In April 2006, one month before the release of X-Men: The Last Stand, writer Zak Penn revealed he was contracted to write and direct a spin-off. He later explained in 2007 that "the original idea was to have me do a young X-Men spin-off, a spin-off of the young X-Men characters. But someone came up with a pretty interesting idea; it was this guy who worked with me named Mike Chamoy, he worked a lot with me on X3. He came up with how to do a young X-Men movie which is not what you'd expect." Penn compared the idea to the comic book series X-Men: First Class, and Josh Schwartz was writing the screenplay in May 2008. Schwartz's writing assignment also included the possibility of directing of X-Men: First Class, but Fox approached Bryan Singer, director of X-Men and X2, in October 2009. The original idea was to green-light the film depending on the success of X-Men Origins: Magneto, but Singer added elements of the Magneto spin-off, merged into a new script by Jamie Moss. In addition to Moss, Ashley Miller and Zack Stentz were hired to rewrite the script. Miller compared it tonally to Singer's work on the first two X-Men films. Singer dropped out of the director's position in March 2010 due to his commitment to a Jack the Giant Killer adaptation. He formalized his duties from director to producer. Matthew Vaughn signed on as Singer's replacement in May 2010. With his hiring, Fox announced a June 3, 2011 release date, and Jane Goldman was hired for another rewrite. Vaughn wanted to model X-Men: First Class after the 2009 Star Trek film, taking the franchise in a new direction with a fresh, young cast. An action scene that was to have been set in a dream sequence with revolving rooms was scrapped after the release of Inception. The 1960s setting of X-Men: First Class will be technologically inspired by the James Bond films of that era, also adding to the international feel of the characters. The X-Men costumes will look much more as they did in the original comics compared with the first three films.
Fox envisions X-Men: First Class as the first film of a new trilogy. Donner compared the franchise plans to the darker, more mature content of the Harry Potter film series. X-Men: First Class is scheduled for release on June 3, 2011.
