When I first heard that Disney was funding a kung fu based retelling of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves it struck me as one of those rumors that was so strange it had to be true.  Well, it is, and by the time it was originally announced it had already attracted big name Asian talent in the form of director Yuen Woo Ping - fight choreographer of the gods - and stars Chow Yun Fat and Kwan Sang Soo. 

There’s still no word on who will be playing the Snow White role - she will be white and most likely British - but the project now has a writer:  Michael Chabon.  Que?  The man won a Pulitzer for his last novel - The Adventures of Kavalier and Klay - and huge critical raves for Wonderboys.  Sure, he’s done some writer-for-hire work, notably on Spider-Man 2, but what’s a Pulitzer winner doing working on a project like this?  I like it but it’s leaving me awfully confused ...

The full Hollywood Reporter story is here.

The Japanese trailer for Steven Chow’s Kung Fu Hustle has just turned up online.  Go, watch, now.  Sure, the narration is all in Japanese but this is the first full length trailer for the film anywhere and also the first to show any significant amount of fight choreography and effects work.  Looking good?  Oh, yes.

Here it is in Real Video and Windows Media formats.

Via FilmRot and The Movie Box.

The folks at Aint It Cool have laid hands upon some set pictures from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.  No more shots of the Wonka’d up Johnny Depp, but if there was any doubt who was directing this thing they’ll all disappear as soon as you see the factory.  No doubt about it, we’re in Burton-land here ... check the shots out here.

I suppose in was inevitable [what?]. Reports are out that Hollywood is again stumped for fresh ideas and they’re going to remake the Horror/Sci-Fi classic The Blob.

Seemingly 30 years between the original in 1958 and the first remake in 1988 [another period of non stop Hollywood Horror/Sci-fi remakes] is just too long for Hollywood execs to wait. Plus, with today’s bigger and better means of mass destruction you can surely take out a spot of killer Jell-o with something greater and more spectacular than by freezing it. Cause, y’know, your fridge motor could burn out and then what would happen. You’d have to eat all that ice cream and endure mass destruction at the same time.

No word about writers, directors, or which young spry actors or actresses of the minute will be involved. We may keep an eye on this and let you know. No promises.

via EmpireOnline.

Oh joy. Can Wes Anderson do no wrong? Seemingly not it seems. Granted we have yet to see The Life Aquatic but gosh darn don’t those trailers make it look good? And now we have received word about Mr. Anderson’s next project The Fantastic Mr. Fox, adapted from the works of Roald Dahl.

But wait, there is another twist in the plot here. Anderson’s not going with CGI or Cell animation here. He’s going back to the classy and dignified art of stop-animation. Was he inspired to do so by the stop animation work in The Life Aquatic? The work done by Henry Selick who also directed the brilliant James and the Giant Peach, another work by Roald Dahl! Suddenly we have a game of six degrees of Kevin Bacon.

Regardless, this news has me very excited. While I don’t want my appreciation of Anderson’s former works, Bottle Rocket Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, telling me I must enjoy The Life Aquatic I am looking forward it and now this news has me very excited. Very excited indeed.

My Bacon number is 4.

via EmpireOnline.

Director James Wan has been making waves with his debut film. A mix of grisly realism and kitschy humor my only question is will it survive it’s own pretensions. I think the answer is yes but then mabe that’s because somebody kidnapped and chained me in a room with A STINKING T-T-TAPE RE-RE-RECORDER AND THREATENED TO KILL EVERYONE I EVER KNEW IF I DIDN’T GET THIS RE-RE-REVIEW ONLINE. MAYBE I.... OH IT’S YOU, I DID WHAT YOU SAID, NO-NO-NONONONONONONONONO....

Continue Reading "SAW REVIEW"...

It looked like the city of Boston and the Red Sox weren’t the only ones celebrating their World Series win last night. According to reports Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon were in attendance and on the field refilming the ending to their latest production Fever Pitch.

Plot Outline: based on the Nick Hornby novel and movie “Fever Pitch” (1997) starring Colin Firth. Film has been updated to center of a guy and his obsession with the Boston Red Sox. Ben meets Lindsey. They fall in love. All things are wonderful. But their future together is threatened once the baseball season comes around and Lindsey discovers something about Ben...his obsession with the Boston Red Sox.

Read the full Boston Herald article here.

Continue Reading "For Boston for Boston, we sing our proud refrain!"...

In a sense I don’t want to be that guy that’s the only one to post about Star Wars stuff on this site. I mean, I don’t live in my parent’s basement. I have a job. The only flannel I have are the bed sheets. Yes, a girlfriend would be swell. And I try not to geek out on Star Wars. But if no one else will pick up the story then I guess this is a sacrifice that I am willing to make for you the people.

“You don’t know what it was like! You weren’t there!”

So if you haven’t seen it already today Lucasfilm and 20th Century Fox released the first teaser poster for Star Wars Episode III Revenge of the Sith. Click here to see the much bigger and prettier version.

I’ve gotta admit, I am slightly underwhelmed by this poster. It’s not that it pales in comparison to Natalie Portman’s sudden and dramatic uh… development in the Episode II teaser poster. This one just looks like it would be something I would have done in high school art class while Mr Whorly sang us Van Morrison songs like Brown Eyed Girl.

Where’s the slick? Where’s the dang that’s cool? Where’s the I’m starting to line up now image?

Am I the only one here? What do you think?

They had been reannounced for February 22nd 2005 but now apparently they’ve disappeared altogether from the release list and are simply TBA (to be annouced).

So, you may want to scrape that extra cash together for either the Japanese DVDs (all with English Subtitles) or the new and upcoming Australian DVDs.

There’s no obvious reason this time around for them to be delayed. It was assumed the previous February 2005 dates were intended to coincide with the cinema release of Howls Moving Castle.

Sorry. All yer gettin is a teaser! But I saw Saw!!! Full review up Friday but the bottom line is don’t go expecting to find the new Seven. But do expect to be entertained by this doofy psycho thriller that knows better than to take itself too seriously. Those wanting some simple Halloween fun shouldn’t worry. Saw’s moral point is buried under loads of over the top moments. Reminiscent of Italian giallo it almost qualified for a “ripping” good spoof of same. The cast seems to sense it too. Cary Elwes had our entire audience laughing by the end of the film and I’m still not sure what the intent was re: laughs vs. screams. Awards? No. Plot holes? yes. Fun? Too quote famous Christian Pastor and Apologist R.C. Sproul “If you can’t see the humor in dead people eating other people I can’t help you.” A truer foundational statement was never made for the horror fan. Tune in for my review on Friday.

Kazuaki Kiriya’s Casshern has, by far, been my most anticipated film of the past year.  The very first time I saw the trailer online I was completely swept away by the visual style of the thing and there was something there, something lurking just beneath the surface, that got me thinking that this would be one of those films that had substance to back up the style.  I found myself returning to the film’s web site over and over again, watching and rewatching the trailer, digging through the image galleries, and trolling the bulletin board system for whatever scraps of information I could find.

I realized that I was setting myself up for a potentially huge disappointment.  Asian film has not fared well in the world of live action science fiction and the last time I was swept away by a flashy Japanese sci-fi trailer – that’d be for Returner, by the way – the film was indeed a significant let down.  Having received my copy of Casshern on DVD two days ago and given it a first viewing yesterday I am very pleased to say that letdown is not a problem here.  Casshern is a visually stunning film filled with complex, multi-faceted characters and a surprisingly topical, and timely, storyline.  Kiriya has crafted one of the finest debut films I have ever come across and instantly established himself as a visual stylist on par with Alex Proyas, Ridley Scott and the Wachowski Brothers.

Continue Reading "Casshern DVD Review"...

According to Bloody Disgusting plans for the DVD release of The Grudge are already in the works and the DVD will include new and extended scenes, an alternate ending and will be unrated.  Check out all the details here.

While Spider Forest didn’t blow me out of the water when I caught it at the Toronto Film Festival it certainly is a very good film and one worth a second look.  The lads at Greencine feel even stronger about it, proclaiming it loudly and repeatedly as one of the best films of the year and deserving of ‘best-director’ awards.  Thus I’m pretty happy to say it’s just been given a Korean DVD release date of November 10th. 

Check out my film festival review of it here and the official web site here.  Then, if you feel so inclined, you can order a copy to call your very own here.

Now, I haven’t been able to find any info on this on any of the normal David Lynch sites so take it with a grain of salt, but according to Moviehole Kick Gurry has signed on to play the lead in Lynch’s next film.  Gurry is pretty much a complete unknown here in North America with his one brief moment in the spotlight coming as the lead in Alex Proyas’ Garage Days. 

That same article also reports that Gurry has been added to the cast of Daltry Calhoun, which it mistakenly lists as a Quentin Tarantino film.  Tarantino was to have an acting role in it, yes, but that was the limit of his involvement.  Gurry has just taken over the role that was to be Quentin’s which means his over all involvement in the film is now zero.  Cue up the ‘Quentin Tarantino Presents’ ad campaign.

A set of on set pictures from Guy Ritchie’s Revolver have turned up here.  No sign of Ritchie’s famous wife - though she has apparently been given a role - but you do get to see what Jason Statham looks like with hair.  Make that greasy, 1970’s hair.  And handlebar mustache.  Nice.