Elizabeth Banks is on a new career path as a director. The Hollywood Reporter has learned that she’s in talks to direct a Charlie’s Angels reboot, led by Sony.
The franchise was born in 1976 with a show that became a success as Farrah Fawcett, Jaclyn Smith and Kate Jackson were catapulted to fame. Cheryl Ladd and Tanya Roberts joined the show later on and it ran until 1981.
In 2000, the formula was rebooted into a movie, with Lucy Liu, Drew Barrymore and Cameron Diaz playing the trio of female detectives who worked for faceless Charlie. They had the help of their sidekick Bosley, portrayed by Bill Murray. It was a fairly well-received film, while the 2003 sequel, Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle, wasn’t.
More recently, in 2011, there was an attempt to bring the show back, but it was cancelled mid-season after four episodes due to a mix of low ratings and negative reviews.
Now, it seems that Elizabeth Banks could be the person in charge to revive the franchise, not only directing but also producing, along with her husband Max Handelman. They did the same with Pitch Perfect 2, and although it wasn’t at the same level as the first one… “pitch-wise”, Banks deserves props for adequately helming the much bigger scale follow-up.
While Sony is looking for a screenwriter, who do you think should star in the new Charlie’s Angels reboot?
Thanks to the success of 2014’s Godzilla, a new generation of moviegoers were shown why the giant lizard is the King of the Monsters. The cerebral adventure remake was an international box office smash and scored a 74% on Rotten Tomatoes. Legendary Studios announced a sequel for 2018, but many more releases surrounding Godzilla have been announced, or at least hinted at.
The success of Gareth Edwards’ version spurred Godzilla’s birthplace, Toho Studios, to get the band back together and make a new Godzilla film of their own. Tentatively titled Shin Godzilla (New Godzilla) the new movie will be released next year. To top it off, the announcement it would be directed by Hideaki Anno – known for the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion – has fans of Japanese cinema even more fired up.
The internet is abuzz with other rumors of Godzilla making crossovers into other film series. The first involves Pacific Rim, where writer/director Guillermo Del Toro stated, “I would love to see a Jaeger and Godzilla duke it out.” Perhaps one of Godzilla’s old adversaries with a new design – maybe King Ghidorah or Space Godzilla – could make an appearance. The possibility of the crossover hinges on the success of Pacific Rim‘s first sequel, Maelstrom.
The second and most recent rumor involves Godzilla crossing over into another franchise, facing off against an old foe. Depending on the success of King Kong: Skull Island, Legendary could remake King Kong vs. Godzilla, which would be a fun ride for anyone who enjoys the characters, and grew up having fun with the campy Japanese version from 1962. Legendary sounds incredibly eager to make this happen.
The news surrounding Godzilla keeps growing, seemingly by the day. Unfortunately, many future film appearances hinge on initials films being successful. This means that fans will have to support these other properties to ensure that we see more of The King will be on the horizon.
The Pokémon Company is truly impressive when to comes to marketing campaigns. At the end of their latest movie; Hoopa and the Clash of Ages they teased the introduction of a new Pokémon. This as you might have guessed sent fans across the world into full speculation mode. Was it the reveal of the first Generation VII Pokémon or rather a new form set to play a role in the long-rumoured Pokémon Z.
On Monday, the Pokémon Company finally put fans out of their misery by revealing five different forms of Zygarde. Instead of being linked to Mega-Evolution, the forms are dependent on the number of cells that Zygarde has absorbed. That’s right, Pokémon has taken a page from the Dragon Ball school of character design.
While this reveal, in and of itself, was enough to make headlines. It seems that the Pokémon Company were not satiated. Today they revealed the latest season in the long-running Pokémon anime; Pokémon X,Y and Z. The trailer shows Zygarde and Team Flare will take a more active role in the plot, potentially excluding them from headlining the next feature film. It also heavily hints at a meeting between Ash and Alain (star of the Pokémon: Mega-Evolution Specials).
While a new game in the series has yet to be officially revealed, one can only assume that an announcement is forthcoming if this trailer is anything to go by. In news that got less traction, the Pokémon Company also revealed that Ash’s Greninja would be getting a new form. The new season will see Greninja take on some of his trainer’s characteristic features as a result of their strong bond. While the specifics remain a mystery, we can assume that friendship and Mega-Evolution are sure to play a factor.
Pokémon X,Y and Z is set to premiere on Japanese TV on October 29 and will be coming to English speaking audiences in the near future.
Monster Girls is able to deliver its signature blend of strangely sexy and creepy funny this week. And since it accomplishes this more than a couple of times, I’d say overall this episode was a success.
Episode Summary
Its time for dates with the MON squad now, since another more ominous letter from D has appeared. But after a set of three dates it’s revealed that Doppel-chan was behind the letter all along, the first one at least. Kimihito is left alone and nearly killed by a headless girl with a scythe. He brings her back after finding her in duress over her missing head. They all go out and find her head. And now that she’s whole again it’s revealed that she sent the second letter, is a Dullahan and thinks that Kimihito is going to die soon.
Episode Thoughts
This episode has many things that remind me what I love about Monster Girls. One of those is the pacing, and the fact that they know when to move on from a joke. And considering that every date with the MON squad is one big joke, its nice that their dates take altogether no more than seven minutes. They just get the jokes, get the fan service and then move on.
But while the jokes are brief, there are some monster exclusive jokes that I can highly appreciate. Like the part where Kimihito has to sew on Zombina’s breast. This is just like the Miia shedding scene but kicked up a notch. It hits on both the sexy and funny level perfectly while making a lot of sense at the same time to where I’m like, “Yeah I bet if I could detach my body parts, I would mess with people too.”
The jokes with Tio seem just like jokes they would do with Cerea, but with Tio’s personality it somehow seems fresh. But I’m sure if they had continued with it, things would have got real boring, real fast. The same can be said for Manako’s date. She really only has one joke, and it involves her stumbling over her shyness about being a cyclops. This mixes funny and cute but falling on the cute side more than anything. But they don’t really have anywhere else to go with that joke without it getting mean-spirited. I just hope that if they incorporate these girls in future episodes that they will freshen it up by mixing them with the cast. Because on their own, there literally is nothing more to show, without it getting boring and repetitive.
One complaint I probably should have had earlier is the fact that these girls constantly want to be treated normally. I think it’s popped up a number of times, but when the MON squad says it, something clicked in my head. Having them say they want to be treated like normal girls makes it sound like their monster-ness is a bad thing. That’s a weird way to phrase it. The message should be about embracing the monster part of them and learning that people can love that part of them too. Something about a girl wanting to be treated like something they’re not is gross and seems counterproductive from the whole point of the show, even if that’s the way human society treats them as a whole. Cereas pride as a centaur is a good example at what the goal should be for all these girls.
And while the dates were, for the most part free of waste, there is one thing that I found annoying. How many times do we need to hear an inner monologue from a girl about how nice Kimihito is. It’s always the same thing about how the world sees her versus how he sees her. I don’t need to hear that for the seventh, eight, and ninth time. If you show them blush I can interpret that from the situation, I don’t need the inner monologue. This is a show about getting hot and bothered over monster girls, lets keep it short and to the point, shall we.
The parts with Lala the dullahan are pretty funny all around. But one thing I find odd is that they don’t say her name at all in this episode; I had to look it up. Not damning of the episode or anything, but you would think they’d squeeze it somewhere in the episode. As for Lala as a character, she’s alright. At first I thought she would be somewhat of a scary ominous character sort of like Rachenra but without the devious side, but her occasional slip ups and total shift in personality make me think otherwise. It almost feels like she’s putting on an act at being all dark and creepy. Only next episode will we find out for sure, but I’m pretty sure that’s the case. I’m also confident that her saying Kimihito will die is just another game she’s playing at. Mostly because of her seemingly fake persona and the fact that Monster Girls wouldn’t go in that direction.
I do like how they incorporate all the other girls in the introduction of Lala. From Miia being scared to death by the headless factor, to Rachnera preying on her headless body. It felt like a normal episode of hijinks but with added headless hijinks being introduced in a natural way. Plus we get more monster exclusive jokes and fan service with Lala’s headless body being strung up by Rachnera’s bondage games. And it also reminds us that sometimes the most arousing things are a girl moaning while sucking on a finger. But the fact that it’s just a head and nothing else is what makes Monster Girls, Monster Girls. And with two episodes left, I’m hoping that Monster Girls can keep doing all these things that make it great, right up until the end.
Woody Harrelson is the second “human” who has agreed to join War for The Planet of The Apes. The actor, who will play Lyndon Johnson first in an upcoming biopic, directed by Rob Reiner.
The only details surrounding the addition of Woody Harrelson, according to the report at Deadline, is that he will play a villain in the film. He joins Gabriel Chavarria as the only other human lead confirmed for the film. Certainly, Andy Serkis will return for the motion capture of Caesar, the leader of the ape resistance.
Matt Reeves is also returning to complete what will (hopefully) only be a new trilogy. The new Planet of the Apes saga has been a welcome surprise in the realm of reboots, remakes, prequels, et al. Dawn of The Planet of The Apes was a masterful summer thriller, and I expect War for The Planet of The Apes to be the same, if not more.
Adding Woody Harrelson definitely piques my interest even further.
Disney’s latest live-action version of one of their classic cartoons, The Jungle Book, has a new teaser trailer. The teaser shows off a cavalcade of CGI creatures, and what looks to be some grand adventure.
Directed by Jon Favreau (“Iron Man”), based on Rudyard Kipling’s timeless stories and inspired by Disney’s classic animated film, “The Jungle Book” is an all-new live-action epic adventure about Mowgli (newcomer Neel Sethi), a man-cub who’s been raised by a family of wolves. But Mowgli finds he is no longer welcome in the jungle when fearsome tiger Shere Khan (voice of Idris Elba), who bears the scars of Man, promises to eliminate what he sees as a threat. Urged to abandon the only home he’s ever known, Mowgli embarks on a captivating journey of selfdiscovery, guided by panther-turned-stern mentor Bagheera (voice of Ben Kingsley), and the free-spirited bear Baloo (voice of Bill Murray). Along the way, Mowgli encounters jungle creatures who don’t exactly have his best interests at heart, including Kaa (voice of Scarlett Johansson), a python whose seductive voice and gaze hypnotizes the man-cub, and the smooth-talking King Louie (voice of Christopher Walken), who tries to coerce Mowgli into giving up the secret to the elusive and deadly red flower: fire.
Jon Favreau can be an interesting director, and this looks like a perfect adventure for the kiddos. Not to mention that voice casting looks superb. The Jungle Book hits theaters April 15, 2016.
“As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster.” – Henry Hill
Goodfellas, Martin Scorsese’s masterpiece amid an oeuvre of career masterpieces, turns 25-years old this month. Forget those Oscars, everyone knows they got it wrong. Oscar knows, trust me. Despite Dances with Wolves dominating that fateful night, here is one of those rarities, perhaps the rarest of all cinematic experiences: the perfect film.
There are obvious reasons why Scorsese’s white-hot gangster odyssey is considered his best movie, and one of the best of all films. First and foremost, it is the work of America’s greatest filmmaker. It’s his serene musical structure throughout. It’s his collaboration with former muse Robert De Niro. It’s the entire cast, from De Niro, to the fresh-faced Ray Liotta, to Joe Pesci’s powder-keg performance, to supporting turns from Lorraine Bracco and Paul Sorvino, to the delightfully textured turns from a myriad of impactful character actors filling the periphery with percolating kinetics.
These crucial elements set up Goodfellas for greatness, but there are six more specific reasons why it is, in fact, a perfect film. Yes, perfect. Such a hyperbolic description must be used lightly, if at all; yet here it’s absolutely a fit. There are more than six reasons why Goodfellas is perfect; the aforementioned list of on-screen talent involved would stretch beyond six alone. But at a base level – and more importantly a personal level – with moments the casual viewer may not notice, these decisions were made and said elements carefully deposited throughout the fabric of the film to cultivate an undeniable tour de force.
1. That Opening
Every great film has an unforgettable opening scene. It’s arguably the most crucial element, catching the attention of the audience and setting tone. And that opening scene of Goodfellas… that’s a mainline injection of brutality and foreboding, building slowly from confusion and quiet calm, stirring us away from the safety of our seats, delivering a moment of shocking violence. It sets the stage, and from there the audience firmly understands the violent culture in which they will be immersed the next two hours. Truly a visceral introduction.
https://youtu.be/LRw3nudL1Fw
2. Schoonmaker’s Editing Room
Martin Scorsese and Thelma Schoonmaker have a lifelong working relationship with one another. Schoonmaker’s ability to inject energy into Scorsese’s greatest films are as vital to the overall product as just about anything else, responsible for more iconic moments than any other cinematic body of work. And in Goodfellas, her editing prowess is on full display. It is an all-encompassing edit, working from beginning to end. The early scenes, when Henry’s voiceover romanticizes the world-dominating culture of the criminal underworld in his neighborhood, are put together with longer, more languid scenes. The audience relishes the romantic side of being a gangster, the freedom of a life without rules. A glorious time for the mob is shown through a patient, softer, more endearing lens.
As the narrative continues, however, and things begin to fall apart in Henry’s life, the edits grow more frenetic. Cuts come much faster, scenes feel jumpy and immediate and threatening. This leads us to the final act of the film where Henry, deep in the throes of a paranoia-fueled cocaine addiction, is racing around town trying to cut his new shipment, make dinner for the family, and skirt what he believes is a police chopper on his tail. Here, Schoonmaker’s edits deliver the opposite end of the spectrum when compared to those early, cheerful scenes. The cuts are frantic, rapid, mirroring Henry’s fractured brain. These are subtle strokes executed in Schoonmaker’s editing room, creating an undeniably perfect rhythm, an operatic unraveling of what was once sanguine.
3. Calculated Glorification
A common complaint from the buttoned-up vocal majority in America when it comes to films like Goodfellas almost always focuses on the glorification of a culture of violence, and the adulation of the gangster lifestyle. Prudes say it sends the wrong message to kids, it leads them into a life of crime. This is a lazy and wholly unfounded opinion, especially here. It ignores the whole in order to criticize the parts. Goodfellas absolutely must glorify the life of the mobster. The glitz and the glamour are vital when it comes to world building.
Without these early moments of hedonism, we would be lost in a world of despicable characters, with no explanation as to why Henry Hill was drawn to this sad and dangerous life. These good things must exist in order come to an end in a desperate and violent collapse.
4. The Pesci Decision
The real Tommy DeSimone (DeVito in the film) was a large, hulking menace, described as such in Nicolas Pileggi’s source material, Wiseguy. He was, however, the same raving psycopath portrayed in the film. The choice to cast Joe Pesci was a bold stroke by Scorsese and Co., and it turned out to be a sublime decision. The slight frame of Pesci juxtaposed the sociopathic temper boiling just beneath his surface. It made him all the more threatening, unpredictable, and frightening.
Consider a large lump of a man in the role, especially in the above scene; it wouldn’t work with a baritone voice. You could see the violent outbursts coming a mile away, and they would lose a certain impact. But with Pesci, who seems innocuous enough on the exterior, his brutality comes as veiled poison.
5. The Dinner Scene
In the midst of killing Billy “Shinebox” Batts (Frank Vincent), a made guy, in the middle of a diner – therein sealing their fate – wrapping his body in tablecloths and carrying him to a desolate wooded area to bury the body, Tommy, Jimmy, and Henry stop off at Tommy’s mother’s house to grab some tools. Then, wouldn’t you know it, Tommy’s loving mother surprises them and decides to fix them a full-course meal in the middle of the night. The whole time, Batts’ dying body is fighting for life in trunk of the car outside.
https://youtu.be/3eVqdnDk02Y
What a marvelous scene, a moment stripped clean of malice of malevolence, directly in the middle of the most crucial (and violent) turning point of the entire film. Tommy’s mother (played by Scorsese’s own mother, Catherine) is a sweet, doting mother, asking him why he isn’t married with children. She has no idea of the monster inside her son. This sequence works to bring the frenzy back into focus, it allows us to catch our breath, and calm an otherwise crumbling set of circumstances for our three leads. Scorsese and Schoonmaker take their time, perhaps for the last time in the entire film, and the result creates an eye of the storm.
It also adds something lacking in Tommy’s character to that point: humanity. Tommy has a mother? Who would have thought such a thing.
6. Tracking Shot Nirvana
The tracking shot into the bowels of the Copacabana is a virtuoso, seminal moment in film history. Not only does it work on unspeakable technical levels, it serves a purpose in the narrative. Karen is swept up by Henry, this young “construction worker” with the smooth hands, silver tongue, and cash falling out of his pockets. The backroom trek through the Copa gives us the feeling Karen is being swept along, dizzyingly, in an unavoidable world of glamour.
The Copacabana shot is legend, but another tracking shot deserves attention. It’s a much more utilitarian sequence, introducing the peripheral hoods in Henry’s world. Plenty of fun to be had here watching Scorsese show off a little:
As Goodfellas turns 25, it has not lost a step. Nor will it ever. Here is a two-hour adrenaline shot of violence, exhilaration, and seamless energy, standing head and shoulders above others of its kind. Perfection.
What else do you think belongs on this list? What makes it perfect in your eyes?
The new trailer for Hardcore shows us what could be one of two things: a game-changing action spectacle, or a nauseating video-game ripoff. The ultra-violent sci-fi action flick is told entirely from the first-person point of view of its protagonist. If anything, it looks like a non-stop thrill ride.
HARDCORE is a modern, action Sci-Fi story about HENRY, a newly resurrected cyborg who must save his wife/creator ESTELLE (Haley Bennet) from the clutches of a psychotic tyrant with telekinetic powers, AKAN (Danila Kozlovsky), and his army of mercenaries. Fighting alongside Henry is JIMMY (Sharlto Copley), who is Henry’s only hope to make it through the day. Hardcore takes place over the course of one day, in Moscow, Russia and it’s all shot in the same style as writer-director Ilya Naishuller’s mega popular short film “BAD MOTHERF–KER.”
While it looks cool, Hardcore could certainly be difficult to stomach for 90 or so minutes. What do you think?
Walking into the theater this past week, it was Admiral Ackbar’s voice ringing inside my head … “It’s a Trap!” I immediately said to myself, “Look, this may not be my cup of tea, but that’s not what this job is all about.” As time ticked closer and closer to the start of Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials, it became quite evident that this film was not going bring the typical throng of critics to review it. Ackbar’s tocsin rang again.
The lack of buzz at this screening was utterly surprising to me as the original Maze Runner was well reviewed and well received when it was released. Maze Runner, in its opening weekend, brought in $32.5 million during it’s opening weekend, an amazing success given the film’s budget of $34 million. The picture ended up with a total domestic box-office of $102 million. That may seem like 20th Century Fox made quite a great deal of profit on that film, but remember that a lot of those totals domestically are frontloaded. So, with all of these bits of information rattling in my brain, I still was struggling to figure out why they would go through with a sequel to Maze Runner. Then the number 238 popped into the discussion, as in $238 million in ticket sales for Maze Runner internationally. You add all that up and Maze Runner made a mind blowing $348 million dollars total. That’s enough money that even if the 2nd and 3rd movies just tanked at the box-office, 20th Century Fox would still turn a profit on the whole franchise. So once this became evident, it at least made clear why I was sitting in the theater trudging through yet another sequel to a popular YA novel.
As wonderful as the original Maze Runner was, it’s a painful revelation when you realize in the first ten minutes of the film that Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials is an unoriginal, conventional adaptation of the second book. Thomas (Dylan O’brien) and his fellow suriviors have been rescued from the maze with promises of a new life once matters run their course. Thomas quickly finds out that there is no new life for any of them and they quickly dash out into the post-apocalyptic “Scorch.” The rest of the film has Thomas running from one apocalyptic scenario to another one while trying to stay away from zomb…..errrrrrrr I mean “Cranks” that roam the land. Of course, Thomas has his friends on this quest trying to find this rumored resistance, the one group of people that can help rectify all their issues ( I know … I know .. we’ve never heard that plot device before). It all comes to head to during an all too familiar final battle sequence that leads to highly predictable set up to the final film.
This movie is a robust 131 minutes and it feels like its 431 minutes .The character interaction you do see is primarily during action sequences. As for any stunning revelations, all we really get is confirmation of what we already knew in the first film. Patricia Clarkson plays the standard icy blonde female authoritarian figure, which seems to be now standard in all of these films.
Wes Ball should receive kudos for the production elements in his second installment of the Maze Runner trilogy. This movie has a big budget look about it and, as we all well know, first impressions are everything. The imagery in some of the scenes are, for a lack of better term, quite terrifying, which aids in projecting the sheer hopelessness that life on the scorch apparently is. The problem with this film lies solely in the script. As we go through this adventure with Thomas and his crew, we find that these plot advancements truly don’t add up to much at all. It’s as if they were sitting in the writing room crafting this script and they were like “Whatever .. let’s just work on that during the third film.” A franchise that seemed destined to be a unique trilogy has become nothing more than Divergent meets a maze.
Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials can be summed up in one word: placeholder. 20th Century Fox is essentially telling the audience “Hey … guys … just bare with us and it will all make sense in the third movie.” As someone who reviews films, I’m getting sick and tired of movie companies producing these cookie-cutter placeholder films. We as the consumers should demand better quality films from companies like 20th Century Fox. I get that you want to stay true to the original source material, but that doesn’t give you a right to make films that are a waste of space. Essentially, 20th Century Fox wants to trap you into seeing the second film with promises that they will make it worth your while in the third.
In some of the coolest news in a while, it seems Darren Aronofsky’s next project will be an Evel Knievel biopic starring Channing Tatum. Say no more, show me no previews, just let me know when I can set my eyes upon this.
The tracking-board broke the news this evening. Aronofsky has agreed to helm the biopic, working from a script by Magic Mike writer Reid Carolin. Although the screenplay has received a heavy re-write from Scott Silver.
Darren Aronofsky, who broke on the scene with the Sundance hit Pi, changed the way I look at films and filmmaking with his 2000 gut punch, Requiem for a Dream. For my money, Black Swan was the best film of 2009, The Wrestler was an interesting character study, and Noah was better than some would have you believe. And don’t even get me started on The Fountain; take your hatred elsewhere.
It may seem like an unusual choice for Aronofsky to take on the story of Robert Craig “Evel” Knieval, America’s most famous stuntman. But the director’s tastes are more diverse than some would believe. Tearing up with Channing Tatum should make for a compelling drama, hopefully with a little fun on the side.
