Cinematical

In this weekend's well-meaning docudrama, Flash of Genius, Greg Kinnear portrays an inventor who struggled for years to sue car manufacturing behemoth Ford and get them to admit that they helped themselves to his patent on the intermittent windshield wiper. (Eugene reviewed it back at Telluride, and I basically agree with his assessment.)

Despite the real-life case being settled a couple of decades ago, Ford has taken this current opportunity to point out the factual inaccuracies in the movie that they've taken issue with, doing so in the form of this handy timeline, without causing any sort of formal stir, as covered in this accompanying text. Especially considering that the film's subject, Robert Kearns, passed away over three years ago, I doubt it would (and hope it won't) come to any sort of renewed head.

Maybe in thirty years or so, we'll get a movie about a blogger battling impossible odds to get all the facts straight on either side of a movie in which an inventor battled impossible odds to get just some facts straight. Now, to just work the word 'Genius' back into the title...

Early last month, Variety published a rather scathing look at 20th Century Fox's summer receipts and mentioned the studio was digging through its collection of superheroes with an eye on getting some of that blockbuster mojo back. It wasn't surprising to see more X-Men spin-offs and sequels being talked about -- but what did raise a few eyebrows was the inclusion of Daredevil. The Man with No Fear had a pretty disastrous debut in 2003, and his girlfriend/nemesis Elektra fared even worse.

IESB caught up with Fox's co-chairman, Tom Rothman, and pressed him on the subject of revisiting Daredevil. It's more than a passing fancy in the trades -- Fox is thinking "very seriously" of a reboot. Says Rothman: "I think that the thing the Hulk showed, although it did what it did, is that it is possible that if you really do it right the audience will give you a second chance. That it is possible. And I think that you see that when they did Batman Begins, the first Nolan movie, that you can have made some mistakes along the way or movies that the audience wasn't that crazy about and then given the proper amount of time and the right creative vision behind it, you can, to use your word, reboot."

Love her, hate her, envy her or worship her, fact is Megan Fox sells sex with the best of them. She may not be in line for an Oscar nod anytime soon, but she knows what her greatest assets are and is more than willing to flaunt the hell out of them if it means another starring role in a big Hollywood film. And that's what we're here to talk about (I think), as Now Magazine claims Fox has nabbed a lead role in the big-screen comic adaptation of Fathom -- and, luckily, this is one role where clothes are definitely optional.

In Fathom (which has been in development for some time, and is now apparently over at Fox Atomic), Fox would play Aspen Matthews, an amnesiac girl who's discovered and adopted by a naval officer vacationing on a cruise line out at sea. Eventually we learn Aspen isn't just some regular girl, but instead a member of a race of aquatic humanoids called the Blue who, somehow, can control water. So she's not a mermaid, and this isn't a remake of Splash (though I think I'd like to see a remake of Splash, maybe ...), but like any comic, it has its good guys, its villains, its intrigue and its adventure. And if Fox can film the whole thing half naked, then it's also a big box office draw.

More on this project as it develops. Who's up for a little underwater action with Ms. Fox?



[Thanks Cinemablend and IESB]

The first time I came across a trailer for the Diane Lane/Thomas Jane/Mickey Rourke hitman thriller Killshot (only remaining on an AICN archive page and the errant DVD release), it was back in September of 2006. Since then, the Elmore Leonard adaptation has endured reshoots in January of 2007 and countless changes in release dates after that. Of course, there's also at least three test screening reviews that bring to light the entire removal of a character played by Johnny Knoxville from the film.

Now, not long after the Weinstein Company issued its latest round of supposed scheduling, Killshot's most recent date -- November 7, 2008 -- has been dashed away by this Los Angeles Times piece, and as pointed out, how does one struggle to release anything that John Madden, Anthony Minghella, Sydney Pollack and Quentin Tarantino all had hands in at some point? How does one struggle to even sell off domestic distribution rights to a film with this cast and that crew? The obvious answer is, of course, that the film is a downright dud, though the general pedigree and harshest reviews seem to suggest that it's not a total turkey.

The best-case scenario at this point is that the film rides the awards buzz of Rourke's performance in December's The Wrestler as suggested and gets a theatrical release in the early winter dumping grounds (through the Weinsteins' Third Rail arm, I'd bet), while the worst-case scenario is the film being directly downgraded to the level of a Blockbuster-exclusive curio. We shall see...

I know, I know -- "sequelized" isn't a word, but it's the most fitting label I can come up with. Ever since 300 hit theaters in March 2007, there has been talk of creating some kind of spin off. Would it be a prequel? Would it be a sequel? Would it be some demented fever dream invented by one Cinematical blogger on a late Colorado night?

Well, someone finally asked a 300 alumni other than poor Gerard Butler. IESB.net caught up with director Zack Snyder, who revealed that 300 would receive the sequel treatment. Snyder did the impossible, and actually spoke to Frank Miller about it, and learned he's writing a graphic novel that takes place between Thermopylae and the Battle of Plataea which is seen at the end of the film. There's a mere year in between waiting to be populated with new Spartan heroes (though David Wenham's lone survivor, Dilios, could return) by way of Miller's pen. Snyder promises to direct the adaptation when Miller finishes the book.

There's certainly historical material to draw from -- the time between Thermopylae and Plataea was marked by several battles -- the naval Battle of Artemisium, which occurred alongside Thermopylae, and the Battle of Salamis. Both were victories for the Greek states (although Artemisium could be argued to be a draw), but not without cost. Several Greek cities, including Athens, suffered severe Persian attacks.

But while the Greco-Persian Wars are ripe for many stories and movies, I don't see any of them fitting the hyper-stylized mold of the original graphic novel or the film. The insanity of it all worked because it had a legendary story and king to anchor it down, and shine through the blood-splatters and giant rhinos. Why water that down? As fond as I am of Snyder, Miller and violent boys in leather pants, I wish they would just let the Spartans lie.

***Note: The above "memo" is not real, it is a work of fiction and it is not to be taken seriously.***

Not ten minutes after this scintillating story hit the wire, I came across this similar item on my very own desktop. Read on to see how the movie marketing machine really works:
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From: Enrico Palazzo, Digital Marketing, Disney
To: Equally Deluded Colleagues

Attached is an updated report on online buzz around the new Beverly Hills Chihuahua assets:

Favorable Tone Dominates Trailer Buzz – Currently, reactions to the Beverly Hills Chihuahua trailer are significantly favorable (approximately 80%) within Entertainment, Fan-Boy, Video Sharing, Social Networks, Social Bookmarks, and Dog Show communities. Latin-American groups seem particularly pleased with the ways in which their culture is depicted in the trailer. Fans deem the trailer "full of small dogs," often praising the "disturbingly non-human" way that the dogs were presented and asserting that it is "slightly less migraine-inducing" than the initial teaser. Enthusiasts also note that the "furry" trailer has furthered their anticipation for the film's release and anticipate that it will feature many great ADR-to-dog-lip performances from the ensemble dog cast. Additionally, many viewers share panting excitement to see Raja Gosnell's "distinctive work" in the film and, while others admitted that they "aren't fans" of the voice of George Lopez, they stated that the trailer has "sold" them on seeing Beverly Hills Chihuahua during their next flight to Denver. Neutral reactions (15%) arise from viewers sharing sickened reactions to the trailer, often asserting that while the film has the potential to be "doggy-riffic" they still have their doubts based on the initial reviews in the predictably dismissive Cat Fancy magazine.

Lack of Taco Bell References Still an Issue - The limited amount of unfavorable discussion (5%) stems from critics expressing general disinterest in the film, contending that the trailer makes Beverly Hills Chihuahua look like "another talking dog movie that will briefly spark interest in chihuahuas, but only till the kids get bored and they abandon the yappy little dogs in an unsanctioned dog shelter along with all those dalmatians they swore to love forever." Additional focus group testing indicates that American viewers are "confused" by the lack of Taco Bell references in the trailer, while other viewers confused a boom mike for a cattle prod and promptly sent a complaint to PETA.

In related news, Americans barely have money to buy milk, but early tracking indicates that they'll gladly drop $25 on Beverly Hills Chihuahua if it makes their children stop whining for 91 consecutive minutes.

Wait, stop -- don't throw yourself out that window just yet! It may or may not be as bad as it looks/sounds. According to Slashfilm, one of their readers attended a Q&A session with one of the writers of Eagle Eye, which was hosted by Creative Screenwriting magazine. During said Q&A, the writer, Travis Wright, said that he and his partner John Glenn were working through "various treatments for a Blade Runner sequel over the last couple years." Apparently, they've been working alongside Blade Runner co-executive producer Bud Yorkin, and all of this has been done outside the studio system -- meaning this is in no way a done deal, only that these writers are trying to put together their best package in the hopes a studio will bite.

As of right now, Ridley Scott is nowhere near the project (although both guys are working on a Warriors remake for Tony Scott), and given the somewhat negative reaction to Eagle Eye, I imagine most fans will take a similar approach. In my opinion, Blade Runner is a film you don't touch and you don't sequel-ize, but perhaps I'm in the minority. Maybe there's a very cool way of doing it -- maybe I'm wrong, and maybe this is a project fans can get behind. What do you think? Blade Runner 2? Could it happen? Would you watch it?

Update: Eagle Eye co-writer John Glenn responded via email to this. Here's part of what he said: "There was a point where Travis and I were working with Bud Yorkin on a sequel to Blade Runner, but that was years back. It never got too far off the ground because the movie is so perfect, so the more we thought about it, the more uneasy we became with the idea. Anyway, just an note to clear the air." More over at Slashfilm.

• Legendary actor Paul Newman passes away at the age of 83.
• Cinematical sits down with Daniel Craig and Marc Forster to discuss Quantum of Solace. What happened to the line, "Bond, James Bond?" Check out these new images from the film. Oh, and James Bond doesn't think he'll ever seduce a man.
• Could Steven Spielberg direct Superman?
• Exclusives: Images from Steven Seagal's Kill Switch. First poster for Clint Eastwood's Changeling. New poster for Charlie Kaufman's Synecdoche, New York. Trailer for The Pleasure of Being Robbed.
• Fan Made: Holy hottie Hellgirl! Cozy up to some nifty Star Wars slippers. What do the economic bailout and The Dark Knight have in common? Look out ... it's Angelina Jolie: The Doll.
• Odd News: From Wanted to ... Moby Dick? American Psycho: The Musical? Awesome! Someone wants a Lethal Weapon 5 ... but who?
  
• Countdown: Five Fall/Winter Trailers to Watch, Four Casting Choices for Brett Ratner's Batman, Three Awesome Movie-Related T-Shirts to Buy, Two Photos of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland ... and one week in review!
• Cinematical Seven: Top Movies Within Movies Since 2000, and Sex Addicts on the Silver Screen.
• Fan Rant: Leave Keira Knightley's skinniness alone!
• They're Back: Captain Jack, Ghostbusters, I Am Legend prequel, Cars 2 gets an earlier release
• Insert Caption: How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
• Interviews: Gary Cole and Spike Lee
• Reviews: Eagle Eye, Nights in Rodanthe, Choke, Miracle at St. Anna
• And finally ... Cinematical hits up Fantastic Fest.

If you read my posts regularly, you might be under the impression that the only movies that make me truly weak in the knees are Marvel adaptations. But my heart belongs more to rogue cops than it does superheroes, and if I could have my film wish, it would be for a renaissance of the action/thriller. And you know, I think it might be on its way ...

First comes a story from The Hollywood Reporter that Paramount has hired Josh Olson to adapt Lee Child's novel One Shot. It's the ninth in Child's Jack Reacher series -- why they aren't adapting the first, I have no idea. Now, I haven't read the series, but from all accounts Reacher is the kind of man we haven't seen onscreen since Harry Callahan or Wendell "Bud" White. And that's why Olson (who was also behind the adaptation of A History of Violence) took the job: "I had just finished watching the first two Dirty Harry movies on Blu-ray. And I thought, 'No one's making movies like that anymore.' It coincided perfectly. It's just the kind of movie that I haven't seen in a while. It's a tough, smart, action-oriented thriller." (In a really funny twist, I was watching Dirty Harry last weekend and thinking the same thing -- and also how much I want to date Clint Eastwood circa 1971.)

Obviously, One Shot isn't enough to revive the genre, but Entertainment Weekly reports that rumors continue to gather around Lethal Weapon 5, particularly with Shane Black's Cold Warrior catching everyone's interest. Seems he's down for writing and directing the fifth installment, though all waits on the approval of Mel Gibson. I'm intrigued by the new story details, as it introduces a pair of young New York cops. Now, if Lethal Weapon 5 was more of a reboot/origin story for two new characters who could carry some films of their own, well, that would be pretty darn cool.

We end the week with all kinds of intriguing possibilities and rumors -- try to contain your joy at the Ghostbusters 3 bit, especially if you're at work. We can't have your employers finding out you're reading Cinematical on the clock!

• Bill Murray is at Fantastic Fest, undoubtedly partying with our writers and promoting City of Ember and at the film's Q&A, AICN's Kraken (a stellar guy) asked the question we all wanted the answer too -- would Murray return for Ghostbusters 3? Murray thinks the scriptwriters (borrowed, you'll remember, from The Office) are off to a good start, that enough time has passed to heal the Ghostbusters 2 wounds, and he would definitely be open to playing Peter Venkman again. In fact, his enthusiasm for the franchise was rekindled by recording the voice for the upcoming video game -- and he had even been singing the theme song in public. There's video of Murray's answer up at AICN, so check it out, and get your hopes up.
  

• One of the questions surrounding Iron Man 2 was its change-up on the writing front. Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby weren't returning, their job was taken by Justin Theroux, and we all frowned a little inside. But MTV has the scoop that they're unavailable for Iron Man 2 because they're working on something else for Marvel. Fergus wouldn't specify what, he just dropped maddening hints. "There are some really juicy [movies] that we are very much talking intensely with Marvel about ... We're interested in working on a bunch of these other Marvel projections and everything in the Marvel canon is fair game. We have a lot of ideas about all this, but until they officially ask us to come do one of these we'll keep our mouths closed about the actual ideas. It's moving along nicely but nothing official yet. But, yes, we are planning on working on some of those movies. That much I'll say." At this point, all of the Marvel movies have writers -- and impressive ones at that. Either they're replacing someone, or it's a new character altogether. Guess away.

The trades apparently read yesterday's tirade about their not being any news -- because as weird luck would have it, everything hit the wire as I was getting my Anderson Cooper fix. (I'm not making that up for the sake of cuteness, it's true. The evening is not complete until I discover I lost the 360 Challenge ... again) Now, to the headlines:

• Being the sole man alive never meant you couldn't get a franchise! Variety reports that Warner Bros is putting a prequel to I Am Legend into production. The prequel boasts the return of Will Smith and director Francis Lawrence, and is based on a script outline cooked up by Smith, Lawrence, and producers Akiva Goldsman and James Lassiter. Obviously, it takes place before the plague wiped out New York. I hope they go daring and all Terminator 3-ish, and show Smith as being the scientist responsible for the whole mess. I also hope they name it I Will Be Legend.
  

• Top Cow continues its slow takeover of comic book movies -- IESB reports that Fathom movie is back on, despite creator Michael Turner's untimely death. And reportedly, Cinematical's ever present friend Megan Fox has snagged the lead as Aspen Matthews. It's all from anonymous sources, but given that Magdalena and Witchblade are on their way, I wouldn't be surprised if it's made official before too long.

• Who needs Iron Man and Samuel L. Jackson cameos? September 30th brings, at long last, your chance to finally own David Hasselhoff's Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D on DVD. Don't think you can pick this up just anywhere, though, it's exclusive to Best Buy. But what price to pay for a cult classic?

I know this is traditionally a slow news time but wow, it's a desert out there! Is everyone in Hollywood sleeping? Are they becoming addicted to CNN election coverage like I am? Well, I managed to tear myself away from Anderson Cooper to do a little Cinematical work (and it's hard, 360 runs on such an endless loop that it's kind of like spending a delightful eternity with him), you'd think someone in Tinseltown could option some graphic novels or cast Captain America. Sheesh. Anyway, here's what we've got today:

• The Hasbro Licensing Summit of 2008 revealed the Transformers appearing in Transformers 2 are: Sideswipe (Chevy Corvette), Ravage, and Devastator. Also from Transformer World 2005, Robert Orci has answered a slew of new sequel questions. Beware of spoilers. Additionally, The Insider visited the set of Transformers 2, and you check out some video after the jump.
  


• Oh, Brett Ratner. I snark on him, but immediately feel guilty because everyone does, and it can't be easy for one man to endure. And then he goes and tells MTV about his superhero spin-off ideas and I just want to shake him by the shoulders, and tell him to leave this genre alone. Disappointed that he didn't get to direct Batman, he nevertheless thinks there should be a Joker spin-off -- and not even Heath Ledger's death dampens his enthusiasm. "Heath was great," Ratner said. "But the Joker is a great villain. That's why Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger had so much to work with. And I think there will be another actor who can interpret that. It would be great to see [Robert] Downey [Jr.] as the Joker, for instance." Now, while I don't think the character of the Joker should die with Ledger, I certainly think he's off-limits for awhile -- and a spin-off? Come on. This isn't Magneto, this is a character we never really want to know more about, he needs to exist solely where you can't see him. But then again, Ratner also thinks a Storm spin-off with Halle Berry is a good idea.
  

Ever since Daniel Craig took over as James Bond and helped re-boot the entire franchise with a modern, serious spin, folks have wondered how far, exactly, they'd take our favorite secret agent. Not long ago there was a rumor that Bond would go full frontal in Casino Royale, but that came and went. And then, for some odd reason, fans pondered whether Bond would ever seduce a man ... or if a man would ever seduce him. Perhaps the rumor began when Craig co-starred in Infamous and shared a kiss with Toby Jones -- or maybe a select group of fans simply like to push the buttons of those who would rather ... let's just say not be down for watching Bond take on a homosexual experience.

Well, most of you have nothing to worry about (and I say 'most' because I know our readers like to get their freak on and wouldn't mind some Bond on Hanz action). While in London, Craig addressed the issue and, regarding whether Bond would ever seduce another man, he said: " No. Kill him and then seduce him [laughs] but not seduce him. This is that question that keeps eternally coming up but it's never been on the agenda and we've never had a discussion about it. It's not something that I desire or want. No." Or shall we call that a Double-O No?

What do you think? Is there room in the franchise for them to play around with this idea?

To believe or not to believe:

MTV has posted an exclusive that says Michael Caine, Scarlett Johansson, and Matthew McConaughey are teaming up for a new heist thriller. However, the news doesn't come from the most reliable source -- Mr. Caine himself. Last time he mentioned an upcoming film, he was confirming the casting of Johnny Depp and Philip Seymour Hoffman in a new Batman movie, which MTV later debunked. Spotty memory or not, I'm inclined to believe this. Having a crappy memory might make you misremember conversations about future projects, but not completely create them out of thin air (unless he's going crazy!?). Besides, the project Caine is most likely referring to is the heist thriller Brilliance, starring Scarlett Johansson, which we first reported all the way back in September 2007.

I am both intrigued and repelled by this news. Should this go the fluff route that most of McConaughey's flicks have taken lately, it could be shite. However, if they can whip up something funny, but more charismatically subdued (like Dazed and Confused), I'm there. I better stop musing though -- thoughts of Wooderson with some snarky Rebecca will only leave me disappointed.

One is a giant silver robot who wants to destroy earth and the other is a 100-pound actress who wants to destroy the hearts and souls of single men (and women) everywhere by marrying "that dude from 90210." And yet ... we love them both.

A bunch of new images of what appear to be the latest version of Megatron have popped up online over at Latino Review, and since no one has put the kibosh on them after roughly 20 hours, there's a good chance these are the real deal. Each image includes the word 'Toy' near the bottom, featuring an image of a baby (sucking its thumb?) -- rather appropriate considering ... ya know. So, one imagines this is concept art for the eventual Megatron toy, based on what the robot will look like in Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. And what will he look like? Well, as you can see above (and over at LR), Megatron looks to be a tank this time around. A pretty badass tank if you ask me. Question is: Will Dark Knight dollars be shot out of that cannon, or what?

And since you all like to be kept in the loop when it comes to the ridiculous-yet-erotic exploits of Ms. Megan Fox, a new video has arrived online and it shows, in part, the gal auditioning for her role in the original Transformers. What you get is footage of Fox auditioning for the part, as well as what the actual scenes in the film looked like. Check out more Megan Fox pics and the video after the jump ...


Pictured: (left) The new face of Megatron and the beautiful face of Megan Fox (right)