Liam Neeson Takes Over For Bradley Cooper in ‘The Grey’ Wolf Project
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Sometimes our cinematic heroes are hunted by unstoppable bad guys, and sometimes they’re just the prey of large, hungry animals.
It’s been three years since we first heard of The Grey, a spec script Joe Carnahan was writing. His friend had written a short story, Carnahan bought the rights and adapted it, and it floated around with the filmmaker’s other possible projects, from a remake of Bunny Lake is Missing to a little White Jazz.
Earlier this year, the project finally started to pick up steam with Bradley Cooper, but one A-Team star is getting replaced with another. Faceman is out, and Hannibal is (almost) in.
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Soderbergh to Shoot ‘Contagion’ in Hong Kong
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I saw Outbreak as a wee lad, and for approximately the next 10 years I was convinced that every cough was an early symptom of Ebola. To my over-active imagination, that half-baked Hollywood thriller was just about the most terrifying film conceivable, the invisible microorganisms that bastard monkey brought to the US were infinitely more frightening than the likes of Freddy, Jason, or even the prospect of Freddy vs. Jason.
And now Steven Soderbergh has to come along and stoke my fears all over again with Contagion, a disease thriller (I pray that doesn’t become an actual genre) that promises to be grounded and well-researched enough to scare me into replacing my wardrobe with a Hazmat suit. The project has been coalescing for a few months, and now The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that Mr. Jules Asner’s globe-trotting film will directly confront recent history by shooting in Hong Kong, the epicenter of the 2003 SARS epidemic from which Contagion takes its cues.
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Stars in Rewind: Zach Galifianakis Does Stand-Up for Pre-Schoolers
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Sure Zach Galifianakis is a big star now — thanks to appearances in films like last year’s The Hangover — but it wasn’t always A-list parties for the funny man from North Carolina. Before he hit the bigtime. Galifianakis was a struggling comic who hosted a really hilarious and short lived show on VH1 entitled Late World with Zach.
Late World opened up with Galifianakis performing a monologue that sometimes included musical numbers. From there, the show went on to feature skits and musical guests. It was funny, but unfortunately it never got the chance to really catch on with audiences. Next thing you know, Zach was doing episodes of Tru Calling …
As proof of how funny the comedian could be, we found this old clip from Late World with Zach. In this one, Galifianakis performs his stand up monologue in front of a group of preschool children. He’s a little less beardy, but the comedy stylings are still the same. He has a genuine rapport with the kids, who clearly don’t understand half of what he’s saying, but do crack up when he makes a joke about pooping on a kid’s head. One of the funniest moments comes when he asks the pre-schoolers if they have any jokes for him. One kid comes up and simply says, “You’re poop,” to which Galifianakis responds with, “Guys, don’t work blue on me — let’s work it clean, okay?”
Check out the full clip after the jump.
Filed under: Comedy, Trailers and Clips, Stars in Rewind
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DVD/Blu-ray Announcements: ‘Extra’, ‘Winnebago’ & Joaquin
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It’s a bridge week here at the ol’ DVD announcement column. Those expecting word on Inception, Eclipse or even The A-Team will have to wait a little longer. Instead you get a chance to infuse your Netflix queues and Amazon shopping carts with some of the films from the festival circuit that opened quietly and at least one that hasn’t even opened yet.
THEATRICAL
The choice of the week is, unquestionably, Kino’s release of Ben Steinbauer’s wonderful documentary Winnebago Man on November 2. Some of you may still have an old bootleg VHS of the Jack Rebney outtakes; the Winnebago salesman whose behind-the-scenes commercial flubs have become legendary. We’re in the digital age now so you can revisit it all on YouTube, but Rebney was probably the first guy to deserve a “web redemption” on Tosh.O. Even better though, Steinbauer gave him one in feature film form. He tracked down Rebney, who alternately is very forthcoming and standoff-ish in coming clean about his celebrity status, resulting in a film very much like the terrific Best Worst Movie which gets under the curtain of infamy’s fame and how it affects an unwitting subject. Unlike the next release on our list.
Filed under: Home Entertainment
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Move Over, Terry Gilliam! Miramax is the New Curse in Town
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At the end of July I wrote a post titled “The Miramax Fight is Over: Tutor Takes the Prize.” Oh, what hopeful words. After a long ordeal where the Weinsteins tried to buy back their company, and every rich dude on the block contemplated a movie studio purchase, it seemed like Disney’s sale of Miramax was finally complete. No more out-of-left-field twists like Rob Lowe, Studio Head. But not so fast. Yet again, Miramax is facing monetary issues, but this time it’s not the Weinsteins losing investors.
Ron Tutor and Colony Capital have lost two big money-givers — James Robinson of Morgan Creek Productions, and Jerome Swartz, a retired engineer and philanthropist.
Filed under: Executive shifts, Celebrities and Controversy, Miramax
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Ian McShane’s Blackbeard Appears in New ‘Pirates 4′ Set Photo
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Shooting on the fourth film in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, On Stranger Tides, is underway and photographers have been busy snapping photos of cast members on the set. So far, we’ve seen Johnny Depp in his Captain Jack Sparrow regalia and Penélope Cruz as Angelica — and yesterday we got our first peek at Ian McShane as Blackbeard. This was the one I’ve been waiting for …
The pic is a bit fuzzy and from a distance, but you get a real feel for how McShane will look in the costume — and from this pic, it’s pretty impressive. McShane looks like his namesake with his long dark beard and black clothing. He’s not particularly huge, but he’s still sure to strike fear into the hearts of many a scurvy sea-dog.
We don’t know much about the plot of On Stranger Tides at this point — aside from the fact that Sparrow and Blackbeard are teaming up to find the Fountain of Youth. Angelica, Blackbeard’s daughter, isn’t the biggest Sparrow fan around — she’s a handful and she’s not falling for any of Depp’s shenanigans apparently.
This fourth entry in the popular franchise marks something of a new direction for the series. Geoffrey Rush will return and he’ll be joined by Stephen Graham, Sam Claflin, Greg Ellis and Gemma Ward. The film sails into theaters on May 20th of next year.
Does this Blackbeard look like a menace of the Seven Seas to you or would you expect to find him hanging out in the marina bar drinking fruity beverages with umbrellas in them? Share your thoughts below.
[via Popsugar]
Filed under: New Releases, Johnny Depp, Remakes and Sequels, Images
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Review: Going the Distance
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Long-distance romances suck. You can’t be with the one you love; text messages and phone calls don’t make up for the loss of physical intimacy, and thousands of miles and multiple time zones often doom the relationship to failure. It’s a dilemma faced by millions of teenagers entering college, as well as mature adults who’ve opted to divide their family temporarily so one of the parents can emigrate and seek a better life in another country.
And it happens to movie stars and likable actors, too!
Drew Barrymore plays aspiring journalist Erin (read: struggling actress) and Justin Long portrays record company drone Garrett (read: employed but unhappy lower level movie star) in Nanette Burstein’s Going the Distance, an intermittently funny romantic comedy that piles on obscenities and sexual innuendo in a desperate attempt to be hip and relevant.
It might have played much better if the action were set on a college campus or off-Broadway in Manhattan. It feels like a teen comedy that was re-written to fit the ages and interests of Barrymore and Long (though that wasn’t the case). Thus we have the spectacle of Barrymore as a 32-year-old journalism student interning at a fictional New York newspaper for the summer, without any reasonable hint of why it’s taken her so long to try and get her career started. Is she a slacker? A ne’er do well? The survivor of a disastrous marriage? Still recovering from a childhood encounter with an alien? We have no idea.
Filed under: Comedy, Romance, New Releases, Warner Brothers, Theatrical Reviews
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James McAvoy and Tom Cruise Consider Trip to ‘Mountains of Madness’
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Few people were more excited than me when it was announced back in July that Guillermo Del Toro would finally be making his version of HP Lovecraft’s creepy novella At the Mountains of Madness. The tale focuses on an Antarctic expedition that uncovers some truly chilling things lurking in a mountain range that dwarfs the Himalayas. Having read the novella several times, I can tell you that it should make for a really spooky movie — something akin to John Carpenter’s The Thing.
Del Toro’s set to direct the project for Universal, with James Cameron producing. Now there’s news of potential casting for the film — and the first possible standoff between the filmmaker and the studio.
Universal has their sights set on James McAvoy to play the lead role, while Del Toro wants Tom Cruise. Speculation is that Del Toro wants Cruise because the two had talked about doing a reboot of Van Helsing and had a liking for each other. I’m okay with either actor taking on the part (Chris Pine was reportedly also in the mix, but his schedule is apparently too busy for another project), but all things being equal, I’d rather McAvoy get the role. Cruise is such a big name that no matter what he does in a film, he’s always just Tom Cruise. I’d rather see someone with a more average Joe quality in the in the lead.
As Collider mentions, filming isn’t set to start until May of next year, so neither actor may land the part. McAvoy’s set to tackle the role of the young Professor X in X-Men: First Class while Cruise has Mission: Impossible 4 starting next month and the Les Grossman spinoff at some point after that.
Still, for the sake of discussion, who would you rather see in the role? Tell us below.
Filed under: Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Casting, New Releases, Universal, Remakes and Sequels
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Tom Hardy Replaces Michael Fassbender in ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy’
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Briefly: Let the Right One In director Tomas Alfredson is putting together a stellar cast for his adaptation of the John Le Carré novel Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy. He’s got Gary Oldman in the lead as cold war agent George Smiley, working to uncover a mole in the upper realms of the UK secret service.
Ciaran Hinds, Colin Firth and Jared Harris are all in the cast, and Michael Fassbender was scheduled to appear as well. But he’s moved on to X-Men: First Class (which, like Alfredson’s film, just started shooting) and so has been replaced by Tom Hardy. That’s a pretty good swap, as far as I’m concerned. Would have loved to see Fassbender in the picture, but if we can’t have him, Hardy is a great substitute. Oh, and Peter Morgan scripted, so that’s yet another good point. But Ralph Fiennes was also supposed to be in the cast, and this latest report doesn’t mention him. Looking into that… [DailyMail via The Playlist]
- Ralph Fiennes Joines Tomas Alfredson’s ‘Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy’; Firth, Oldman and Fassbender Confirmed
- Let the Right One In Director Taps Oldman, Firth, Fassbender and Thewlis for His Next Film
- Let the Right One In Director to Adapt John Le Carre Novel
- Robert Zemeckis’ A Christmas Carol International Movie Trailer
- Casting Robert Zemeckis’ A Christmas Carol
- Mad Max: Fury Road Will Feature “130 Cars and Bikes and 298 Stunts!”
Cool Stuff: The 3G Art Show: Ghostbusters, Goonies and Gremlins – Part 4
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How does the Los Angeles-based Gallery 1988 top their Crazy4Cult show? By announcing a team-up with The Autumn Society for something they are calling “The 3G Show”. A Pop-Culture art show in tribute to Ghostbusters, Goonies, and Gremlins. 3 movies that defined our generation. How cool is that? The show will have their grand opening on Friday September 3rd from 7-10pm, and will run until September 22nd 2010. The show features new art from /Film favorites like Tom Whalen and Dave Perillo, among a variety of other awesome artists.
You may recall that we’ve posted two previews from the upcoming show the first one with over 25 images, a second preview with another 20 pieces of art, and a third preview with 24 more pieces of artwork. You thought that was it, right? You were wrong. After the jump I have compiled an additional collection of 32 awesome pieces created for this exhibition.
Drake Brodahl – Ghostbusters
Drake Brodahl – Gremlins
Drake Brodahl – Goonies
Thomas Lynch III – Gremlins, Goonies, Ghostbusters
Matthew Luxich – Slimer
Matthew Luxich – The Fratelli Family
Matthew Luxich – Gizmo
Alberto Cerriteño – Sweet Thoughts
Alberto Cerriteño – Love at First Sight
Alberto Cerriteño – Shinny Memories
Andy Ristaino – Ghostbusters
Andy Ristaino – Goonies
Eric Braddock – “It’s right here, Ray. It’s looking at me”
Eric Braddock – “C’mon, guys, this is our time”
Eric Braddock – “With Mogwai comes much responsibility”
Mike Bukowski – Ivo Shandor from Ghostbusters
Mike Bukowski – Mr. Beringer from Gremlins
Mike Bukowski – One Eyed Willie from Goonies
Drew Falchetta – Showdowns: “You’re the first Goonie”
Drew Falchetta – Showdowns: “1, 2, 3, Roast ‘em!”
Drew Falchetta – Showdowns: “Get out of my kitchen!”
Jay Bevenour – Sta-Puftus (inspired after Goya’s “Colossus”)
Jay Bevenour – The Sloth (inspired after Goya’s “The Simpleton”)
Jay Bevenour – The Sleep of Reason Produces Gremlins (inspired after Goya’s “The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters”)
Pat Kinsella – The Morning After (Ghostbusters)
Chogrin – 3G CMYK Collection
See more art from The 3G Art Show in Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3 of our 3G Art Preview!
The Gallery is located at:
Gallery 1988 Los Angeles
7020 Melrose Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90038
The show premiere is Friday, September 3rd, 2010.
Also check out more work from the artists in The Autumn Society on their official website.
- Cool Stuff: The 3G Art Show: Ghostbusters, Goonies and Gremlins – Part 3
- Cool Stuff: The 3G Art Show: Ghostbusters, Goonies and Gremlins – Part 2
- Cool Stuff: The 3G Art Show: Ghostbusters, Goonies and Gremlins
- Gremlins 3 Not In Development, Goonies Sequel Still Looking For a Story
- Cool Stuff: Complete Crazy4Cult 3D Art Preview
- POTD: Ghostbusters vs. Stay Puft LEGO Dioramas
