Thanks to Etherlad who sent me a link of this Google Video page which features a video editing project done to compare the timelines of the events in both Back to the Future and the segment that had the chronologically misplaced Marty McFly aka Calvin Klien revisiting the same time in the sequel.

It shows the last 15 minutes of Back to the Future in a split screen to the sequel. Pretty cool to see it “at the same time”

Wow… if there is one place in the world I don’t think I’d want to be arrested for ANYTHING it’s in China. Everyone knows that the vast vast vast majority of DVD piracy happens in Asian countries… well it looks like China is doing something about it… and doing it HARD.

The good folks over at M&C give us this:

China says 9,500 people have been arrested and 8.4 million DVDs and CDs confiscated thus far into its 100-day crackdown on film piracy. Chinese authorities have raided 90,000 shops nationwide since July and have forced the once thriving and highly visible black market for Hollywood films underground, Daily Variety reported Tuesday.

They’ve arrested almost 10,000 people in 3 months?!?! WOW!!! Right now… the evil monsters at the MPAA are trying to see if there is a way to use the “Patriot Act” to legalize a mass roundup of people they suspect of downloading movies.

The trailer for the DVD film “Feast” is out. Many will remember it as the Project Green Light born feature. The thing is… I LOVE this trailer! Now that I’ve seen it… I’m lamenting that I won’t get to see this film on the big screen! How sad for me.

The good folks over at Bloody Disgusting give us a nice little synopsis:

DVD release October 17th: A group of strangers gather in a bar where they’re attacked and systematically killed by monsters. The film was a product of “Project Greenlight”, the program created by Matt Damon, Ben Affleck and Chris Moore to showcase new talent.

That really is all there seems to be to it. People in a bar trying to survive monsters. Sounds like fun to me! Perfect for the genre.

The ending of this trailer made me laugh my ass off too! You can check out the Feast trailer here (be warned… it’s a bit of a slow download)

The Covenant is a film that runs the risk of looking like a bad Lost Boys knock off (come to think of it… I really have to rent that again soon). But the more I’ve seen from this modestly budgeted thrill film… I have to admit the more I like it.

The film is based on the graphic novel of the same title. The good folks at MovieWeb give us this synopsis:

The Covenant tells the story of the Sons of Ipswich, four young students bound by their sacred ancestry. As descendants of the original families who settled in Ipswich Colony in the 1600’s, the boys have inherited special powers - but the one hitch is that the misuse of these powers can shorten their lives and, once they turn 18, can actually kill them. When the body of a dead student is discovered after a party, secrets begin to unravel and the covenant of silence that protects them is threatened.

Like I said, I’m getting a little excited about the film. We’ll see.

For now, you can actually go to the official site and watch the first 3 minutes. As with most internet marketing that boasts to show you the first X amount of minutes of the film it’s mostly credits… but still pretty cool. You can see the first 3 minutes of The Covenant here.

Besides having evolved himself into a total Jack Ass… Tom Cruise is a VERY talented and diverse actor. A lot of people tend to forget that before doing Mission Impossible style action or heavy The Firm or Magnolia type drama, Tom Cruise did some comedy in his younger career.

I was reading an article in the USA Today about the state Cruise is in these days, and I came across this really interesting piece of info:

He could go funny, returning to those Risky Business and Losin’ It roles that made him so endearing. The 40-Year-Old Virgin director Judd Apatow told Entertainment Weekly he has been talking with Cruise about making a comedy.

Really?!?! Tom Cruise in a Judd Apatow film? Now honestly… think about that for a minute… that could be just the kind of project that could soften Cruise’s image in the public and get his PR moving in the right direction again… especially if he’s open to some self-depreciating comedy. I think people would eat it up. What do you think?

As we mentioned almost 2 years ago, there is a re-make in the works for the classic “Revenge of the Nerds“. I have 2 problems with this. First of all it seems too soon to do a remake… and secondly (and most importantly) I think this is a stupid idea because “Nerds” doesn’t mean what it used to mean. Times have changed… the term “nerd” doesn’t carry the same stigma that it used to back in the glorious 80’s.

The thing is… way back when Revenge of the Nerds was out… we could associate with it. We either were those characters on screen… or we certainly knew them. The “Nerd” back then, is a slightly different creature than what is a “Nerd” today… and so is how they’re looked at and treated (just in my opinion).

I’m not saying it’s TOTALLY different now… but different nonetheless. I’m just not sure a movie like this can connect with the audience the same way the original did. To be honest… all this poster does (which is a pretty good poster by the way) is make me want to run out and rent the original Revenge of the Nerds… but it fails to get me at all interested in a remake. Just my thoughts.

What do you think of the poster? (Thanks to Jim for the heads up)

I’ve been looking forward to the new film Eragon (based on the popular book). The cast is one of the best ever assembled for a fantasy movie, and I’m been dying to see a trailer. Well.. a poor quality version of the trailer has been leaked… but you can’t hear any dialog… but even still… it looks AMAZING! Just click play to watch the Eragon trailer:

Hey there folks. John here with a couple of quick updates.

1) Thanks again for all the donations. We got more than we needed… but please feel free to keep donating. All of it is now going to Doug and Darren and Bruxy… then NEVER get any money from the site at all… and it’s nice to give them something.

2) Audio Edition tonight. AMAZING SHOW!!!! I interview the 2 directors of the new Jason Statham movie Crank, and Chris Carle (Senior Entertainment Editor from IGN.COM) talks about his insight on the whole Transformers thing. SEND IN YOUR QUESTIONS AND COMMENTS SOON!!!! I start recording the show in about 4 hours.

3) Site redesign is coming along well. Should be up soon. Very very simple and clean… I’m loving it.

4) Doug, Darren and I are going to the Toronto Sci-Fi/Horror/Comic convention this weekend with press passes. Watch for our special reports all weekend… it should be fun

Well here it is folks, our very first (released) movie commentary track. We selected an amazing film for our inaugural trek. Raiders of the Lost Ark!!! Man this movie is amazing!

Ok folks, here’s the thing… we are offering this MP3 commentary for FREE. But… (there is always a but) the file is over 100 megs large… which means my bandwidth bill is going to be insane. Soooo… while we are offering this commentary track for free, we are requesting… no asking… no no no… BEGGING that you would consider making a donation for your 2 hours of entertainment.

We’re asking that you consider is pitching $2 or $4 our way… or even $10 or $100… but honestly, we’d take anything.

The commentary features myself (John Campea), Darren Conely, Bruxy Cavey and Doug Nagy.

We’re hoping this will at least pay for itself so that we can make this a regular thing. We already have ideas on how to make the next one better… we’ll continue to improve.

You can download the Commentary here.
Please also consider making a donation by clicking the button:

**UPDATE** - Guys, thank you so much for your generosity. You guys have already donated more than enough to cover any expenses for the bandwidth on this thing… all the extra I’m going to give to Darren and Doug and Bruxy. But do keep giving if you feel so inclined. I’m personally able to scrape out a living by doing The Movie Blog, but these guys have done everything for 100% free. Everything you donate from this point on goes directly to them. Just wanted to be upfront with you guys so you know where everything is going now. Cheers!

Behold the face of Bumblebee from the upcoming Transformers movie. I don’t hate it.. but I’m not thrilled with it either. It’s a HELL of a lot better than the face on the toy was… but I was still hoping for something more… but honestly I just don’t know how you make the face look good.

The Sarah Connor Chronicles are coming. Yes… the same Sarah Connor from The Terminator franchise. Only she isn’t coming to a theater near you… she’s coming to a TV screen.

Hot on the heels of the Blade TV series, it look like the Terminator is taking to the airwaves. The good folks over at Comingsoon give us this:

The new installment in the “Terminator” franchise revolves around Connor and her savior son, John Connor. The series will explore what happened to Sarah Connor after the end of Terminator 2: Judgment Day, when the character went on the run.

The franchise seems to be in experienced hands too. David Nutter will direct… he’s also directed the pilots for Smallville and Supernatural, so the dude seems to know what he’s doing.

I’ll admit that I think this is a great idea. Sarah Connor is a terrific character and I’d love to see the events after T:2.

There isn’t any word on cast yet, but it’s a pretty safe bet that it won’t be Linda Hamilton… which at first I thought was too bad… but she is 50 years old now and probably wouldn’t fit the bill. What do you think about this?

United 93 was quite good. World Trade Center was quite good. But you know what… and forgive me if this sounds a little insensitive… but for now enough is enough. We’ve heard the heroic story from the air… we’ve heard the heroic story from the ground. Let it rest for a while.

But apparently there are plans in the works for yet ANOTHER 9/11 story of heroism movie. This one about a janitor who helped Firefighters rescue people. The New York Post has the following:

William Rodriguez says he is in talks with actors Charlie Sheen and Esai Morales to turn his riveting story into a feature film - and a top writer-director, David Marconi, is already involved in the project…

Responsible for cleaning the stairwells of the north tower, Rodriguez - a 20-year veteran custodial staffer - had the only available master key to the WTC complex when the first hijacked plane struck.

He led firefighters up floor after floor, unlocking doors and aiding rescue efforts. But when he got to the 39th floor, the second plane hit and he was forced to evacuate
The last person to escape the tower before it collapsed, Rodriguez was buried under the rubble for an hour before being rescued.

Ok, that really is a great story… no question. But please not another movie that is pretty much nothing more than a rehashing of what was already conveyed in World Trade Center.

The story gets more interesting after the 9/11 events. Apparently Rodriguez sued President Bush for arranging the 9/11 atacks so he could justify the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq. The case was later dismissed. None of that will be in the movie.

You see… THAT would make for an interesting conspiracy movie!!! Not right now… it’s too soon… but maybe in a few years. Get Oliver Stone to direct it and you’ve got an instant hit!!! Just don’t make THIS movie… it’s been done already.

There are some celebrities that I’ve always lamented that I never got to see in their prime. Bruce Lee ranks right up there. A master and a legend who left us WAY before his time. The influence the man has on even modern day cinema is still felt quite strongly.

The funny thing, is that even though Bruce Lee died way back in 1973, his name and image are still worth millions. As a matter of fact, a Chinese television network is currently working on a 40 part (yes… 40) documentary on his life. The good folks over at M&C give us this:

‘When you have someone like a Bruce Lee or a James Dean, someone who has a very strong name recognition, their myth and their legend seems to grow over the years and they can maintain a very consistent revenue source,’ CMG Worldwide Chairman Mark Roesler said. CMG represents more than 300 dead celebrities for their heirs.

Wang Dechao, who works the cultural and sports authority in Shunde, China, convinced the government in 2002 to found a Bruce Lee museum there. Though Lee was born in California, he visited Shunde at age 5

Still so much interest and passion around this man. People usually forget they were even talking to me 5 minutes after I leave a party. It’s amazing how he was able to touch the world.

I’d personally be really curious to see this documentary they’re working on for Lee. To me, he’ll always be the guy who kicked the crap out of Kareem Abdul Jabbar. Or Kato. Take your pick.

Well… some would call it a rebound signing. Tom Cruise has himself a new deal just a week after getting dumped by Paramount Pictures. No, it’s not with another studio… it’s with an investment group.

The good folks over at Movieweb give us the following:

Cruise/Wagner Productions (C/W) has partnered with First and Goal, an investment firm headed by Washington Redskins owner Daniel M. Snyder, homebuilding and mortgage banking company NVR chair Dwight Schar and Six Flags prexy-CEO Mark Shapiro.

According to Variety, the deal gives C/W development and overhead costs for two years, with the option to renew long term. A dollar amount was not disclosed. The pact is said to be part one of a three-step process for C/W in setting up an independently operated production shingle post-Paramount. The other two parts of the deal include distribution and finance elements.

From an objective perspective, this (on paper anyway) looks like a pretty good deal for Cruise and his partner Wagner. No, the money won’t be nearly as good as it was with his old Paramount deal, but it does offer him a flexibility and freedom he didn’t quite have before.

But considering how stupid he’s acted with his freedom and flexibility… maybe what he really needed is someone who could hold his leash for him and keep him out of trouble. It’ll be interesting to see how this plays out.

George doesn’t have all your money yet. But he WILL. You can’t stop him. He will just keep releasing the same movies OVER and OVER with little tweaks.

FilmJunk Reports:

a 6-disc box set is currently in the works to coincide with the 30th Anniversary of the original Star Wars movie hitting theatres. In typical George Lucas fashion there will be more tinkering, including replacing the puppet Yoda in Episode I with CG, plus a ton of new special features: “…all the good stuff that was held back by Lucasfilm from the original Trilogy DVD release a few years ago.

Oh. My. Disembodied Force Ghost.

ObiWan just rolled over in his fictional grave.

I thought this might be it. The up coming Uncut Original FanWank Trilogy set on DVD next month should have been all of them.

So to my knowledge, I will try to list all the avaiable collected sets released. (not including individual title releases)

Collectors Edition Letterbox VHS set (Including Star Wars to Jedi, the “making of” documentary) -which I own
LaserDisk Original Trilogy
Special Edition Original Trilogy VHS (released before Lucas agreed to put them on DVD) - which I own

Special Edition Original Trilogy DVD Edition - which I own
Original Uncut Trilogy DVD set (which will include the Special Edition DVDs that you already bought)

And now Lucas has announced the

30th Anniversary Special DVD Edition Boxed set

And with any luck, that set will strategically not be in HD or BluRay, which will mean the HD Collected set will be set to come out with CGI updated versions of the updated shots that didnt look as good as Lucas wanted.

Then when it turns 50, Lucas can release a version that replaces the original trilogy actors with a digitally imported older looking versions of the prequel trilogy actors.

You heard it here first. Columbia House is about to announce their own StarWars DVD Club. Buy 3 versions and commit to buy the next 10 withing 6 years, and you will get a membership card that says Lucas owns your soul. And the Christmas Special.

Someone check the weather! Has hell frozen over? The muscles from Brussels, Jean Claude Van Damme, is about to be in a new movie - Til Death. And its not a karate action flick. This looks like its going to be a serious drama.

Twitch Film caught this:

Can’t find any images for this one but the trailer for new Jean Claude Van Damme flick Til Death has appeared online and the film co-stars - bizarrely - Stephen Rea.

You can view the trailer Here but be warned this trailer includes some foul language and suggestive sexual clips.

I can honestly say I am excited to see this. Stephen Rea was in the recent V for Vendetta as the Detective, so we are comfortable seeing him as a cop. Mostly I want to see it because Van Damme actually looks like he is holding his own as a dramatic actor. Granted there is a LOT of action in this preview, but nothing typically Van Damme. I didnt see him pull the splits even once. He doesn’t even pull any standard karate moves, but he does his fair share of pushing people around.

Could this be a comeback for Van Damme? Are we seeing a whole new side to him?? Who would have guessed that this guy might actually be able to act?

Guess we will have to wait for Til Death to come out so we can see.

Universal has recently announced they have picked up the film rights to Choke. No, this isnt a movie about snakes on a plane. Its about a guy who chokes. I know that doesnt sound so interesting, so lets have the guys at Cinematical sum it up for me:

Choke revolves around a man who scams folks out of their money by pretending to choke in restaurants; he uses the money to keep his overbearing mother in a nursing home. At the same time, he visits sexaholic meetings to meet women.

This sounds a lot like the Edward Norton character from Fight Club, and that wouldnt be too far of a stretch. Chuck Palahniuk wrote Fight Club and he wrote Choke too. The main characters seem to both be sociopaths.

They are getting Paul Bernbaum to do the screenplay, which strikes me as odd for the guy who did the screenplay for Bill and Ted’s Excellent adventure. This seems far darker and twisted. But he did write the drama Hollywoodland. Not to be confused with Halloweentown (which he also wrote).

This Spider-Man 3 Comic Con trailer has been on the web for a while… but this is a much better one than the one I’ve seen. It’s still blurry as hell… but I think you get a much better idea of what’s going on. Enjoy. (Thanks to Chris for the heads up)

After it’s second week, Snakes on a Plane has pulled in a disapointing $28 million worldwide.  Some esitmates say it needs to make as much as $70 million to break even ($35 million production costs, $15 million marketing plus theater take).  That’s not going to happen.  So the question is… why?  Why did this movie that so many thought would do well tank so baddly?  If one of the options isn’t here, just mention it in the comments section.

As most of you know, I just spent a couple of days down in Los Angeles.  While there, I got to hang out with some studio people, and some folks from some other amazing movie news websites.  The conversation turned to Jackass 2 on more than one occassion.

I haven’t seen Jackass 2… but a couple of the people I was hanging around did.  The word they gave me?  Hilarious.

They just raved about this film and said it really out does the first one.  The one girl said she laughed so hard she nearly passed out.  That’s always fun to hear.

So yeah… while I’m not the bigest Jackass fan in the world… I’ve got to admit I’ve got my curiousity up for it now.

I hated the Transformers after they killed everyone off in the first 10 minutes of the 1986 movie. The whole thing just went to the crapper after that. Well DM just sent me this video of Optimus Prime’s return… with a slightly different take on it. I giggled. It starts a bit slow… but then kinda takes off.

Hey there guys, John here.

Sorry about the lack of posts on my part (Rodney is doing a good job!), but as most of you know, I’m in Los Angeles at the moment and about to leave to go on my Transformers set visit.  Should be fun.  I’ll be joined by guys from JoBlo, Latino Review, Chud, AICN, Cooming Soon and a bunch of others.  Should be fun.

Ok, so here’s my rundown so far:

Thursday 5:45am  - Woke up to get ready to leave for the airport.  My shuttle was picking me up at 6:45am.  My flight was scheduled for 10am with a connection in Chicago.

Thursday 8am - Arrive at the airport and get through customs and security

Thursday 9am - A nice staff person informed me that an earlier flight to Chicago has room available and that I was free to take it instead of the 10am.  I decided to wait in Toronto since my flight was continuing to LA… so it was either sit on my ass in Toronton or sit on my ass in Chicago.  I decided to wait.

Thursday 10am - MY FLIGHT GETS CANCELED due to severe thunderstorms in Chicago.  So I’m scheduled to take a direct flight to LA at 6pm… 8 hours to wait.  I decide to wait at the airport.

Thursday 6pm - My flight leaves for LA

Thursday 8pm (LA time) - I land in LA after a 5 hour  flight and a limo is waiting to pick me up and take me to my hotel.  The driver is this big young guy who talks to me a bout surfing.  Glad to see stereotypes are still alive and well.   :)

Thursday 8:45pm - I get to my hotel.  The Renaissance Hollywood Hotel right on Hollywood and Highland.  Right beside the Kodiak Theater (where they hold the Oscars), the Manns Chinese Theater on right on the Walk of Fame.  I can see the Hollywood sign from my room.  It’s amazing.

Thrusday 11pm - Sharon Dewit comes over and we chat and go for a bite to eat (she lives down here now)

Friday 9:45am - I grab a cab and head over to Lakeshore Entertainment to meet with Brendan, who is their web marketing guy (I still don’t know his full title there).   Brendan is a fantastic guy.

Friday 10am - Brendan takes me in to meet the President of Lakeshore, Gary Lucchesi (He has also produced films like Underworld, Million Dollar Baby, The Mothman Prophecies, Primal Fear, The Gift, and the upcoming films “The Covenant” and Zach Braffs new flick “The Last Kiss”).  Gary is a pure joy to talk to.  I thought I’d get a quick hand shake and hello.  Instead, he had us sit down in his office and we just talked about movies and the movie business for almost 45 minutes.  This guy LOVES the movies and everything about them.  He ignored phone calls and seemed to actually be interested in my opinions on what was wrong with the movie industry today.  He was amazing to yack with.  A real first rate guy and I can’t wait to come back to LA to meet with him again.

Friday 10:45am - Brendan then takes me to meet Gary’s right hand guy named Bob (who I’m ashamed to admit I can’t remember his last name).  Bob has been in the movie business for decades.  We sat in their conference room… and Bob just talked about movies.  This guy also LOVES movies.  Most of us think of Movie execs as these stuffy guys who could actually care less about film… but not the guys at Lakeshore.  It was so refreshing to listen to how passionate these guys are about the movies.  They’re still kids, and that was great to see!!!

Friday 11:10am - Brendan takes me into meet Robert Burke, the Vice President of Lakeshore and head of the Marketing Dept.  He is another very cool guy.  he’s coming up to Toronto for the Film Fest, and we’re going to hook up again up there.

Friday 11:20am - Brendan and I finally have a chance to sit and chat for a few minutes.  Brendan is someone who really understands the role the internet has to play in the new age of promoting movies.  The other studios need guys like Brendan.

Friday 11:30am - I have them call me a cab since I have to be a Paramount Studios at Noon.

Friday 12pm - I arrive at the MASSIVE Paramount Pictures campus.  It’s intimidating.  It’s like a little city in the middle of LA.

Friday 12:10pm - I go to the office of Amy Powell, Senior Vice President at Paramount.  We chat a little bit about “The Incident”… you know what I’m talking about… and the nature of the internet with regards to the movie biz.

Friday 12:30pm - I go in and meet with Tamar Teifeld of Interactive Promotions & Publicity at Paramount.  She’s really wonderful.  I’ve been doing most of my correspondence with Paramount through her.  We just chatted about stuff for about 30 minutes.

Friday 1:30pm - I get back to my hotel, grab something to eat, shop a little bit and relaxed until Sharon Dewit and her boyfriend Dan came back to pick me up in the evening.  We had some drinks and then went out to Santa Monica to see the pier and the beach.  We hung out until they dropped me off at 9pm.  I wasn’t feeling well, and just stayed in for the rest of the night… because I have a big day today.

Saturday 8am - I wake up and start writing this massive post.

Saturday 10:15am - Tamar from Paramount is going to be picking me up to take me to the Transformers set.  We’ll be there for about 4 hours and have a chance to chat with Michael Bay and the cast.  That’s nice… I’m really hoping John Knoll will be there (Head VFX Guru of ILM).

I’ll give you guys another report tonight when I get back.

Cheers!

~John

I am a HUGE Robin fan, but I have yet to see his character done right in any incarnation of the Batman franchise, whether on film or TV. Close, but not quite. I don’t think the character deserves his own movie, but I would be first in line if there was one. I had thought maybe with the introduction of Joker in the series, that they might introduce a Robin only to kill him off. The first Robin graduated, and the second Robin was killed by the Joker - a defining moment in the Batman books.

SlashFilm reports:

Nolan assured fans that Robin won’t make an appearance, at least not on his watch. … He reasoned that the caped crusader’s sidekick is in a crib somewhere at this point in the timeline isn’t appropriate for him to enter the picture.

I am a little disappointed that there will not be a Robin in any foreseeable future, but at the same time I am encouraged to see that logic is the only thing keeping him absent. There is a significant age difference between the Dark Knight and his acrobatic sidekick.

It does give me hope however that if they do eventually introduce the character, that Robin will be approached right, and I have every confidence that Nolan could capture not only the character, but Batman’s need for a sidekick. They have to have both if Robin is ever to appear at all.

Just one more tidbit that makes me confident that this franchise is in good hands.

Spiderman has been one of my favourite Superhero movies, and each one is better than the last. I hope that Spiderman 3 is going to keep up that momentum. There was a lot of talks about how they wanted to end on a high note and were going to leave it at three. Earlier this year, on this very site, we reported that rumours had suggested it would be four movies total. Is there more?

ComicBookMovie.com reported:

Fans can expect many more Spider-Man films after next year’s third film, says Kevin Feige of Marvel Studios.

Feige told MTV: “There will be many more Spider-Man films to come. We already have stacks of ideas for the next one because of the wealth of stories in the comics. We could be making Spider-Man movies for the next 20 years, based on the 50 years of Spider-Man history we have.”

I am unsure how I feel about more movies. Obviously I would LOVE to see more Spiderman, but as far as the track record of franchies that break the third movie benchmark, it might not mean good things for the Webhead.

It seems that the original cast might not return, and if they choose someone wrong for the roles, or do ANYTHING “wrong” really, they will have to live up to the running start of the series. And though the consensus seems to be against Kirsten Dunst as MJ, I liked her.

Could anyone BUT the original cast even stack up? Would they be doomed to forever be compared to the original cast?

Is it better to quit while you are ahead? or just keep putting out movies even though they might be direct to DVD.

Well just when you thought master filmmaker George A. Romero might break the mold and try something new…. he doesn’t.

There are some people out there that should stick to what they do best and NEVER step outside their circle of comfort. I wouldn’t say Romero is one of them, but he apparently does.

Cinema Fusion got the scoop:

Like the saying goes, you just can’t keep a good zombie down. News coming out of The Hollywood reporter is that horror god George A. Romero is preparing to write and direct another zombie sequel. The new movie titled George A. Romero’s Diary of the Dead will mix in “elements of The Blair Witch Project and the long-running Dead series, the film will follow a group of college students shooting a horror movie in the woods who stumble upon a real zombie uprising.

Don’t get me wrong. I like the Dead series, but is this all Romero is capable of? Maybe he knows his limitations and feels that anything BUT horror is not for him. Ok, they dont ALL have zombies in them. Ok, maybe they do.

Do you think if he did anything BUT zombies that it would fail??

There are few actors that I respect as much as William H. Macy. Can you think of one single film where this guy didn’t turn in an amazing performance? No… I can’t either. But as great as he’s been… man… he’ll always be “The Shoveller” to me.

The man is also known to be the eternal professional, and for that reason a lot of people love to work with him. But he had a few choice words about Lindsay Lohan. No… not blasting her for her political views… but for how she conducts herself on set. The IMDB gives us this:

Veteran actor William H. Macy has blasted co-star Lindsay Lohan for her behavior while filming the movie Bobby, insisting she “should have her a** kicked.” The star shared scenes with the 20-year-old actress in the film and admires her talent, but not her manners. He said, “You can’t show up late. It’s very, very disrespectful.” Lohan was blasted in a letter last month from the Ceo of Morgan Creek Productions for her absences on set of her new film Georgia Rule, who called her behavior that of “a spoiled child.”

Yeah, this isn’t the first… or the second… or the last time we’ve heard about the diva like behavior and unprofessional conduct of Lindsay “I have no hits or drawing power, yet I think I’m the second coming of Julia Roberts” Lohan.

This is just… just… wrong. For all you good folks who seem to think The Transformers has strayed too far from the source material (I don’t think so personally), I say to you… look at the Thundercats… and then get on your knees and thank whatever gods you worship for how close Transformers is keeping things.

They are re-doing the Thundercats. I love the Thundercats… but this… this is just wrong:

WB animation is remaking the Thundercats as an animated TV series. The animation style is whimsical, Americanized-anime, along the lines of Teen Titans.

The setting is modern-day Earth, in a major city (possibly LA)
The Thundercats are all teenagers. Their leader is Snarf (!) who is now a mystic with a “third” eye. Each of the Thundercats has a weapon with an “Eye of Thunderra” and transformative powers (not just Lion-O)

When they aren’t fighting evil, the Thundercats play together as a rock band. That’s not a typo, or a joke. They are rockin’ cats in their present form.
Mum-Ra now has wings.

Did they just say the Thundercats are teenagers in LA playing in a rock band with Snarf as their leader?!?!?!  I’m stunned… I just… I just don’t know what to say. (via AICN). Thanks to Brian for the heads up.

Holy freaking crap!!!!  Ok, as some of you may remember, a few weeks ago I posted up some of the posters that were released for next years Frank Miller Graphic Novel adaptation of “300″.  I heard some great buzz about the project and the story, so I finally got around to getting out to my local comic shop and grabbing myself a copy.

I read it in one sitting (which wasn’t too hard since it’s not that long) and I couldn’t put it down.  I read it again immediately.  The story is powerful and drenched with honor and bravery… tragedy and betrayal… it’s fantastic!

I thought Sin City (the graphic novel) was good… seriously… it’s nothing compared to 300.  I feel in love with this story, and I can not wait to see it on the big screen next year.

They’re already well into production, and you can see a whole bunch of production photos at the official site here.

Here’s the synopsis again for those of you who missed it last time:

An emperor amasses an army of hundreds of thousands, drawn from two continents, to invade a third continent and conquer a tiny, divided nation. Only a few hundred warriors stand against them. Yet the tiny nation is saved. It sounds like the plot of a preposterous fantasy novel. It is historical fact. In 481-480 B.C., King Xerxes of Persia raised forces in Asia and Africa and invaded Greece with an army so huge that it “drank rivers dry.” Then they entered the mountain pass of Thermopylae and encountered 300 determined soldiers from Sparta.

Behold Lord Megatron.  Thanks to Chris for sending me these (I’m in the airport at the moment). Personally… I LOVE IT!!! Although… I do wish they would have made him a tank. Oh well. I really like the organic look to him.  Very alien.  I hope they do something more creative with the coloring… But damn… he looks EEeeeevvviilllll.

.The official trailer for Beer League has hit the net. Looks like it will be an ok “underdog” comedy film.

You can watch it Here.

Why?

Two words. Ralph Macchio.

Yup. Watch for him.

Now go.

Jessica Stevenson (Sean of the Dead, Bridgette Jones Diary:The Edge of Reason) has been cast in the upcoming Harry Potter: Order of the Pheonix to come out next summer. She will play the authoritative Mafalda Hopkirk in the fifth chapter of the JK Rowling book series.

SlashFilm reports:

[Jessica] Stevenson will play Mafalda Hopkirk, who works for the Improper Use of Magic Office within the Ministry of Magic.

In Book five, Hogwarts is under attack by the Wizard authorities. The Ministry of Magic is denying the truth about Lord Voldermort’s return, and no one believes Harry’s story. Potter also learns about the mysterious Order of the Phoenix, of which the novel/book is named after.

For those of you unfamiliar with this character, yet familiar with the books, you are not alone. This character is mentioned once in the book, and only in the second chapter before Harry even returns to Hogwarts (a part of the movie they tend to rush through)

Harry will need to appear at a disciplinary hearing at the Ministry at nine on the twelfth of August. The letter is signed by Mafalda Hopkirk of the Improper Use of Magic Office.

Yeah, thats it. Potter fans unite. Tell me that I missed something. I read this book and I had to look up who she was. Did she even appear again in Order of the Phoenix? She wasnt even mentioned in Half Blood Prince, if I recall.

Is there so little news about this film that they would announce a casting of a character that ranks barely above “extra”? And why are they casting a “known” in this role?

Well if there was ever a reason to buy into the Blu-Ray camp for the upcoming war for next-gen DVD formats this might be it.

DVD Dossier reports:

Appearing on [Warner Home Video] Blu-ray Disc on September 5th will be “Lethal Weapon,” “Firewall,” “Blazing Saddles” and “Full Metal Jacket.” And on September 12th, four more HD DVD titles will be released: “Troy,” “Lethal Weapon 2,” “House of Wax” and “Space Cowboys.”

“Troy” will make its HD DVD debut with In-Movie Experience (IME), the new interactive feature allowing viewers to enjoy new ways of accessing interviews and other material while the movie is running.

Wow! You will be able to actually jump to the special features WHILE watching the movie! Why didnt I think of that.

How often have you been watching a movie and thought “hey, I really wish we could interupt this wonderful moment to see how they filmed this scene!” You know those moments can’t wait until you have finished watching the movie. Watching it until the end is for old-schoolers. Welcome to the age of the Future!

I know this rivals the “Director Commentary” feature and ups the ante a notch with on the fly access for those intrepid videophiles who actually listen to them, but I see no reason to do this IN the movie. The option to run the commentary or insert deleted scenes in the menu is good enough for me.

I can’t wait to see what else they are going to announce to lure me into a BluRay. So far the Playstation 3 using it would be the only reason I might get one.

Might.

Emily Mortimer is just adorable. She can pull of the sexy seductress, but to me, she is best suited for being the infectiously pretty and irresistable smiling angel. Ever since she was in “The Kid” with Bruce Willis, I have always wanted to see her in something super fun. Maybe I already missed it, but it caught my eye when I saw this story.

Cinema Blend says:

The official plot description calls it what [Ryan] Gosling falls in love with a “lifelike doll he finds on the internet”

I jumped to the same conclusion as the Cinema Blend writer. The only reason to cast a real actress to play the “doll” would be for the doll to actually come to life, at least in some part of fantasy for Gosling.

Ryan Gosling was the “trying to be cool” stereotype in the teen show “Breaker High” and back then I always thought he would break into comedy if TV didnt kill him. I was impressed to see him break forth into a more dominate role on tv, and then the impressive dramatic lead in the Notebook.

So here are two people that have been on my radar but not actively watched for some time now. And they are in a romantic comedy together.

I am actually looking forward to see how this one turns out.

Earlier this month, John posted about Tom Cruise getting his production contract cut back from $10million a year to the studio is offering Cruise and Wagner in the neighborhood of “$2 million plus a $500,000 discretionary fund each year for two years. Well now it looks like the contract that officially expired at the end of July and has been in negotiations for nearly a month has resulted in Paramount choosing NOT to offer him anything at all.

I have to say I wasn’t surprised by this, as Cruise’s behaviour has been sketchy at best, and it was really hurting his reputation. Don’t get me wrong, I think Cruise is a fine actor, and I really enjoy his stuff. I just dont enyoy him as a person.

Cinematical gives us this news

Well, It’s official: Paramount has ended a long-standing production deal with Tom Cruise. The 14-year-long relationship included the release and box-office success of films like Mission: Impossible, Top Gun and Days of Thunder, but a memo released today cited Cruise’s recent public behavior as “unacceptable.”

I am sure with Tom’s star power, if he makes some serious effort to calm his public antics, keep his mouth shut, and make a solid commitment to not jump on Oprah, he might just recover his Production career.

Studios don’t want him, and the fans are tired of him. I think it would be a sad day to see the end of Tom Cruise movies, and I hardly think this is the end, but I do hope this is a HUGE wakeup call for Cruise.

Neat little interview with Jason Statham about Crank.  Nice little Movie Blog hello at the start.  I’m looking forward to this flick!