June 2008 - Film Peek

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filmpeek - June 2008

KUNG FU PANDA SEQUEL

June 26th 2008 22:22

I know I enjoyed seeing Kung Fu Panda recently but I’m flummoxed to learn that a sequel is already being discussed.

According to Dreamworks boss Jeffrey Katzenberg (Shrek), Kung Fu Panda is part of a five-chapter story. He stated: ‘There is a larger story here of which this is the first chapter.’

This news is particularly surprising as at the original film took four years and seven months to make after the idea was devised by Michael Lachance back in 1993.

In its opening weekend in US, the film topped the box office, taking $US60 million ($A62.7 million). It became the third-highest opening ever for a digital animation after the two Shrek movies.

It vanquished You Don't Mess With The Zohan,Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and Sex and the City.

Katzenberg said whether the further chapters happen depend upon movie-goers’ reactions: ‘It needs to be a big hit. It needs to be a blockbuster.’

By looking at those figures, I think he has his answer.

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YELLOW CRAYON - CHRISTINA RICCI

June 25th 2008 22:56

I’ve done a lot of moaning about predictable scripts, sequels and remakes, and now I’ve stumbled upon something different that almost seems bizarre. Christina Ricci will be playing the role of a yellow crayon in the Exodus Film Group's animated film, 'The Hero of Colour City'.

Christina will be a timid crayon called Yellow. According to The Hollywood Reporter: 'Ricci plays one of several crayons whose colourful world is threatened by an evil tyrant. She is the first member of the cast to be announced for the film, which is now in preproduction.'

Versatile both in style and film choices, Ricci (Speed Racer, Black Snake Moan) has previous experience in voice roles; her last one being Gwendy Doll in the 1998 fantasy ‘Small Soldiers'.

Apart from the expected release date of 2010, no further details are known. However, it does leave me with a question, who will play the blue crayon?

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SPIDERMAN 4 SCHEDULED FOR 2011

June 23rd 2008 21:04

Spiderman 4 fans have a while longer to wait for the next film instalment. But it is definitely happening.

Producer Laura Ziskin revealed that the fourth part in the revered series is tentatively scheduled to arrive in May 2011.

There has been much speculation regarding the identity of the infamous villain/s but so far none have been established. Nor has it been confirmed that that Tobey Maguire will be Spiderman himself. But considering the success of the previous Spiderman films, it would seem unwise for Tobey to decline especially as he is best known for his role as Peter Parker/Spider-Man.

The first three films comprise one of the most successful franchises in modern Hollywood history, grossing a massive combined amount of $2.5 billion worldwide.

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STALLONE AND SCHWARZENEGGER TO STAR IN BOLLYWOOD MOVIE

June 23rd 2008 20:41

According to TimesOnline, Sylvester Stallone and Arnold Schwarzenegger are teaming up on screen. The two action icons will be expanding their acting repertoire in the Bollywood movie Incredible Love. Their co-stars are Bollywood stars Ashkay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor.

The story follows an Indian stuntman who moves to the US to find love, but of course there are complications.

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala said Stallone and Schwarzenegger’s presence reflected the increasing power of the Indian film market and Bollywood’s increasing cooperation with Hollywood studios, which are keen to cut costs.

Director Sabir Khan, said: “I have been working on the script for a long time now, and it’s an exciting merging of Hollywood and Indian cinema.”

This will be the first Bollywood production to take place at Universal Studios. It will have the highest budget in Bollywood history: more than $22 million.

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WILL CHRISTIAN BALE BE THE NEXT ROBIN HOOD?

June 22nd 2008 22:51

Director Ridley Scott is keen for Christian Bale to play Robin Hood in his adaptation of the famous tale, Nottingham. Bale is now in talks with Scott to see if the plan will eventuate.

Apparently, the new adaptation will be narrated from the Sheriff's point of view, instead of the usual, Robin Hood’s. Scott has stated there will be more unexpected characters, but did not divulge further. I guess there needs to be some sort of uniqueness about the film for it to stand out, as there are numerous adaptations before this one.

So far, the actors definitely involved are: Russell Crowe as the laudable Sheriff of Nottingham and Sienna Miller as Maid Marian. Vanessa Redgrave and William Hurt are also involved in discussions, but their roles proposed are so far unknown.

If Bale accepts the role, this will be the second film collaboration after 3:10 to Yuma where he has worked with Crowe.

Nottingham seems a curious decision for Bale after his previous dark, atmospheric films, such as Terminator Salvation (2009), The Dark Knight (2008) and American Psycho (2000) but he is an actor not afraid to sample different roles. His commitment is devout as we saw from the extreme weight loss he undertook for his role in The Machinist.

According to the Daily Mail (UK), the decision will be definite in the next week or so.

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HUGH JACKMAN – WALK OF FAME

June 21st 2008 22:54

High Jackman is the latest Aussie to join Hollywood’s legendary stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. He will join past recipients, Nicole Kidman and Cate Blanchett.

Jackman will be one of 25 stars that will be added to the pavement next year. In the film category, his neighbours will include: Tim Burton, Leslie Caron, Cameron Diaz, Robert Downey Junior, Charles Durning, Ralph Fiennes, Ben Kingsley and William H Macy.

Television stars also get their trot of fame, names including: Felicity Huffman, John Stamos, Chuck Lorre, William Petersen, Kyra Sedgwick and Mark Burnett.

In the recording category, Shakira and The Village People were chosen. The Village People addition is interesting as I would’ve thought it was a bit late to add them seeing as they were in their peak in the 70s. Perhaps I’ve missed a significant contribution they’ve made in the last decade.

The Walk of Fame was created in 1969 and is now embedded with more than 2,000 stars. It includes fictional characters such as The Simpsons, as well as human celebrities. The self-financing Hollywood Historic Trust maintains the Hollywood strip.

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THE INCREDIBLE HULK - REVIEW

June 13th 2008 23:22

This is a review of The Incredible Hulk, which I looked forward to since the success of Iron Man. It seems like Marvel has found the correct way to make these movies and I am hungry for more.

If you remember about 5 years ago Ang Lee made a movie about The Hulk, that became a total disappointment. For me the movie sucked for what it tried to be, but I still think it's one of the most original and technically advanced Marvel movie yet. However, when you go to watch Hulk, you don't care. All you need is lots of action and noise.

The Incredible Hulk is a character I consider to be the toughest to make a serious story about. I mean the tiniest misstep and everything can become quite ridiculous. A big green guy that can't speak in complete sentences and smash things up... could might as well be my 7 feet high clumsy cousin as far as I'm conserned (ok, he's not green but that's the only exception).

But what we get is far from ridiculous. It manages everything Ang Lee's version didn't and gives us exactly what we expected - action and noise. The effects are beautiful, the Hulk looks real, and you really sit through the whole movie with an open mouth from all the excitement. Entertaining is an understatement. When the movie ended I felt like only an hour or so had passed.

Edward Norton and Liv Tyler do great performances and the chemistry between them is very believable. To be honest, I'm actually more impressed with Tyler, she gave her character a unique and likeable personality. Tim Roth is also great, but his character was a bit too plain for an actor of Roth's caliber. Then again, the villain always is a monotone and plain type.

Louis Leterrier, the director, has taken a big step from movies like The Transporter and showed that he can do more than superficial watch-and-forget action flicks.

In comparison with Iron Man, well, I don't know how to compare them in this review because they were executed somewhat differently and while I enjoyed Iron Man a tiny bit more, plenty of my friends chose The Incredible Hulk as the better one. And I can understand them as well. If you have the ability, go and watch both of them to decide by yourself. But make sure to make it on the big screen, cause they're certainly worth it.

8.5/10

Watch a TV spot of The Incredible Hulk.
See pictures of smashed cars on the set of The Incredible Hulk.
Watch Tony Stark's (Iron Man) cameo in The Incredible Hulk.

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BABYLON A.D. - TRAILER

June 11th 2008 16:33

Vin Diesel does finally deliver a serious action-flick again, being away on dramas and kids movies. Babylon A.D. has had some photos and posters circulating now and then, but ultimately we got a trailer on which we can base our expectations a bit more.

More info and some behind-the-scenes footage of Babylon A.D. can be found over here.

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THE INCREDIBLE HULK - TV SPOT WITH IRON MAN

June 9th 2008 23:05

I saw Iron Man few week ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it. It's really smart to have Tony Stark, the Iron Man in human state, appear in The Incredible Hulk since it connects the two Marvel movies implying that they're on the same level of awesomeness. If you like the one, you'll like the other. Here you can watch the TV Spot with both in it:

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INDIANA JONES 4: THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL - REVIEW

June 8th 2008 23:10

Better late than never, finally here's a review for those of you that haven't already seen Indiana Jones, followed by the waay too long title, The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Therefore we'll simply call it Crystal Skull from now on.

Of course it had a lot to live up to considering the first three films are on the top of modern history. Make the "brand" justice and the fans proud. I'm not a fan, but still appreciate Indiana Jones for being a unique character with adventures full of action and humor. This, Crystal Skull achieved as well.

The movie starts of with Indiana in serious trouble, from which he gets away due to amazing luck, and continues with teaching archeology in class. But after being fired, Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) seeks him out and they get involved in new mysteries about a Crystal Skull.

Now, to take the story first, it wasn't quite as intriguing as previous films. It's hard to care and we don't get how serious or big it is and don't really care either. Crystal Skull seems more of a roller-coster ride than a cult movie. The good thing is, like all Indiana Jones stories, it's based on real items and mysteries - not just something made up. It's like kids playing around with the thought of something cool archeologists have found in real life and come up with a theory that we see in the movie. And after all, Lucas and Spielberg are pretty much like kids with a lot of imagination.

As for the performances, there's not much to complain about. I didn't expect Oscar-winning quality and I didn't get that either. It was pretty basic stuff, with surprisingly Cate Blanchett being the weakest link. She was messing up her Russian accent all the time and generally seemed somewhat uncomfortable in her role.

Other than that, like mentioned, the action and humor is there and of course the great score. I'm not sure if it was a good idea to make this fourth installment, and I'm not sure they should continue any further, which they might do considering the ending implies Indiana's son takes over the hat. Worth a watch at the cinema as long as you enjoy adventure movies with a powerful ride - it's certainly not bad but nothing special either. Spielberg described it as a "high budget B-movie" and that sums it up pretty fair.

7/10

Watch the trailer of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
See the poster of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

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SEX AND THE CITY BLITZES BOX OFFICES

June 1st 2008 23:51

Sex and the City has become the highest opening R-rated comedy film ever. On its opening night, it grossed an estimated $56 million, even beating Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. On Friday, the film brought in about 26 million in sales. It is believed that eighty-five percent of the ticket buyers were women and many viewing in groups.

It also broke several another record, it scored the best opening ever for a live-action adaptation of a TV series. Mission Impossible,was the previous winner.

Sarah Jessica Parker, star and producer of the innovative and witty series, said in a telephone interview on Saturday, ‘It is kind of mind-boggling...We are thrilled and humbled that the audience came out.’

I’ll be there next weekend...

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