Verbinski In Bioshock , Buck Rodgers Returns & Birthing "Super-Bling Flare"...
Gore Verbinski to Direct "Bioshock"
(Variety.com) Universal Pictures has signed "Pirates of
the Caribbean" trilogy helmer Gore Verbinski to direct and produce an
adaptation of Bioshock, last year's hit video game that sold more than
2 million units worldwide. John Logan is in talks to write the
screenplay.
Variety says "Bioshock" publisher Take-Two Interactive is getting a
multimillion-dollar advance against gross points on the film. It is
believed to be the biggest video game-to-movie deal since 2005, when
Universal and Fox signed onto the since aborted Halo movie, for which
Microsoft got $5 million against 10%.
"Bioshock" takes place in an underwater city based on the free market
principles of Ayn Rand, but things have gone disastrously wrong.
Players control a pilot who crash-lands at a secret entrance to the
city, called Rapture, and is drawn into a power struggle during which
he discovers that his will is not as free as he'd thought.
"I think the whole utopia-gone-wrong story that's cleverly unveiled to
players is just brimming with cinematic potential," said Verbinski.
"Of all the games I've played, this is one that I felt has a really
strong narrative.
Verbinski noted that Rapture's art deco design and visually arresting
characters, such as the mechanical Big Daddys who protect genetically
mutated girls called Little Sisters, particularly inspired him to see
the game as a film.
Though no release date is even being targeted, Verbinski said he plans
to start pre-production as soon as Logan's script is finished and
approved by all involved.
Take-Two is developing a "Bioshock" sequel that will be released in
2009, almost certainly before the film comes out.
LUCASFILM / GOT CAREER?
(-cntv.usc.edu) An Evening with LUCASFILM Ltd.
Please join us for a presentation about "Current & Future Innovations in Filmmaking & Entertainment"
Tuesday, May 13th, 7pm, LUC 108
Open to Students and Alumni RSVP: http://www-cntv.usc.edu/about/events/event_20080507.htm
'Iron Man' To Battle "Edgy, Dystopian Auteurs"
(LAtimes.com) For "Iron Man," the sequel is two years away.
But the encore comes this weekend.
After starting Hollywood's summer with a $98.6-million bang, the
Marvel Studios' production should return to the top of the box-office
heap with an additional $45 million or more in ticket sales this
weekend.
Until recently, Warner Bros.' family-friendly "Speed Racer" had been
seen as a potential blockbuster, but the candy-colored, effects-driven
adaptation of the 1960s Japanese cartoon show now looks more likely to
become the summer's first major misfire.
The live-action movie, a sharp departure for those edgy, dystopian
auteurs the Wachowski brothers, could open in the
$25-million-to-$30-million range. That would be enough to beat "What
Happens in Vegas," the new Cameron Diaz-Ashton Kutcher romantic
comedy, for No. 2, but disappointing in light of the movie's high
cost.
Midweek sales have been robust for "Iron Man," starring Robert Downey
Jr. as the metal-clad superhero, though they cooled a bit Tuesday and
Wednesday. The film has a chance to become one of the extended summer
season's few $300-million blockbusters at the domestic box office,
thanks to enthusiastic word-of-mouth. Reviews are 93% positive,
according to RottenTomatoes.com, and users at IMDB.com rate the movie
8.4 out of 10.
Produced for an estimated $140 million, "Iron Man" launched Marvel
Entertainment Inc.'s feature production business in style, although
the advance buzz is mixed for the mini-studio's follow-up, "The
Incredible Hulk." That's slated for a June 13 release.
"Iron Man" also began the summer on a high note for distributor
Paramount Pictures, which gets a slice of the gross after recouping
its costs for prints and advertising. Paramount's "Indiana Jones and
the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," coming Memorial Day weekend, is
tracking for an enormous opening, based on consumer surveys, and on
June 6 the studio releases DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc.'s promising
"Kung Fu Panda."
This weekend's results could signal whether "Iron Man" will fade
quickly, like most of the "X-Men" movies, or hang tough in the
marketplace like the first "Spider-Man," "Batman Begins" and
"Transformers."
Speed Racer: The First Seven Minutes
http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/speedracer.html?showVideo=1
A Game Face For DreamWorks Animation "MasterMind"
(darkhorizons.com) THQ Inc. and DreamWorks Animation SKG,
Inc. announced today that they have entered into an exclusive
licensing agreement to develop and publish video games based on the
studio's 2010 fall animated feature film.
The film, acquired under the working title of MasterMind, is due in
theatres on November 5, 2010. The new agreement grants THQ exclusive
rights to publish interactive games based on the DreamWorks Animation
property for all console and handheld systems, wireless devices and
Windows PCs.
The project is a satirical send-up of the superhero genre, built
around the story of a super villain who must find a new motivation
after accidentally killing his archrival, Uberman, in the opening
scene of the movie.
IMAX EXPANDS TO BECOME A 3D-VFX TENTPOLE MECCA
(showbizdata.com) IMAX is engaged in a "construction boom"
that will see the number of IMAX theaters in North America increase by
nearly 80 percent by the end of next year, USA Today reported today.
Many of the new venues, it indicated, will deploy digital projectors
instead of the enormous machines that have been required in the past
to project images from gigantic reels of 70mm film stock onto the
oversized screen. Some of the movies that will be converted into the
IMAX format this year include Speed Racer, Kung Fu Panda, The Dark
Knight, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and the animated
Monsters vs. Aliens.
IMAX and AMC Entertainment plan to convert 100 IMAX theaters into
digital 3-D venues at a cost of $50 million for the projection
equipment alone, the New York Times reported today.
"Buck Rogers" is Coming to the Big Screen
(Variety, IGN) Variety reports that Nu Image/Millennium Films
has acquired film rights to "Buck Rogers," and will develop a
live-action feature about the venerable pilot who awakens in the 25th
Century and battles evil.
IGN also reported that Sin City and The Spirit director Frank Miller
was attached to helm the pic, but the company later told them "they
are still mulling over director contenders."
Buck Rogers has enjoyed incarnations in books, comic strips, movies,
radio and television, a run that began in the 1920s. That included a
feature serial from Universal in 1939 that starred Buster Crabbe, and
a short-lived NBC series that starred Gil Gerard.
Nu Image/Millennium will search for a studio partner, just the way it
did after gaining the movie rights from Paradox Entertainment to
"Conan," which is now being developed with Lionsgate.
Should "T4" Go Into Production Pre-Potential SAG Strike?
(cinematical.com) The New Zealand Herald (Reuters) pointed
out today that the T4 production is moving on despite the distinct
possibility that the movie industry could get hit with another strike
very soon.
Right now, the SAG contract expires on June 30, which could very
easily become the start of another strike. (Union leaders say they
hope to reach an agreement, and of course they do -- but that doesn't
mean they'll get one.) Nevertheless, Terminator Salvation: The Future
Begins has started filming in New Mexico this week, throwing caution
to the wind.
But this doesn't mean they'll speed through it. A source told Reuters
there is no intention to finish production by June 30, and that legal
precautions have been taken in case the strike happens. But still --
stopping for an undisclosed period of time right in the middle of
production is very far from ideal.
It seems a bit cocky to me, to go forward now rather than waiting, but
what do you think?
Should T4 be moving full steam ahead regardless of the strike? Or, is
this just a careless or cocky move?
Dennis Quaid Heads Back Into Deep Space
(ComingSoon.net) Constantin Film and Impact Pictures are
heading into space. The companies jointly announced today that actors
Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster are in final negotiations to join
Pandorum, a sci-fi thriller set aboard an abandoned pioneer space
vessel. Overture Films will release the film in North America.
Pandorum will be financed by Constantin Film under its joint venture
deal with Impact Pictures, a Constantin Film subsidiary. Summit
Entertainment is handling foreign sales for Constantin Film and will
introduce the project to buyers at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival.
Quaid comes fresh off of Smart People and the international box office
hit Vantage Point, and can next be seen in the upcoming Universal
release The Express. He has recently completed production on Paramount
Pictures' G.I. Joe, and is currently shooting Legion for Screen Gems.
Foster, currently in production in the starring role of The Messenger
for Reason Pictures, has made a name for himself as one of Hollywood's
most exciting up-and-coming stars with powerful turns in 3:10 to Yuma
and Alpha Dog. Christian Alvart, whose directorial debut Antibodies
was met with rave reviews, is set to direct.
The feature reunites the successful producing team of Impact Pictures'
Paul W. S. Anderson and Jeremy Bolt, and Constantin Film's Robert
Kulzer. The trio has collaborated on a number of projects, including
the hugely popular "Resident Evil" movie franchise. Last year's third
installment, Resident Evil: Extinction grossed nearly $150 million
worldwide.
Dave Morrison is executive producing.
"We really look forward to working with Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster,"
said Robert Kulzer. "Dennis has this true movie star quality and
versatility, and Ben is such an intense and fascinating young actor."
Added Jeremy Bolt: "Christian Alvart's unique vision and passion for
this project really blew us away. He is a very gifted young
filmmaker."
Overture's Chris McGurk and Danny Rosett are committing to the project
in anticipation of an early August start date in Berlin, Germany.
Overture currently has the critically acclaimed Tom McCarthy feature
The Visitor in theatres. Next up for the studio is Mark Pellington's
Henry Poole is Here starring Luke Wilson and Radha Mitchell on August
15th.
Developed at Constantin Film and Impact Pictures and written by Travis
Milloy, Pandorum is a dark and claustrophobic tale about two crewmen
who awaken aboard their spacecraft, unaware of their mission or their
identities. As they piece things together, the men make a harrowing
discovery that threatens the survival of mankind.
Speed Racer Invents 'Faux Lensing', 'Photo Anime', & 'Super-Bling Flare'
(time.com) In The Matrix, the brothers hid allusions to the
Bible, Greek mythology and mathematics. If there's any complex
philosophy in Speed Racer, it went over my head (probably at the speed
of light). Here, the texture is the text, and it's deliriously dense,
with more than 2,000 effects shots, often layered on top of each
other. The effect, if you get into it, isn't just a store window of
technology. It is, as Mom says of Speed's mastery behind the wheel,
"inspiring, and beautiful, and everything art should be." That's what
the Wachowskis are aiming for, and, I think, what they've achieved.
In the big races no actual car was used; these magnificent set pieces
are almost totally animated. The races aren't just 200 miles of left
turns; the tracks are designed as crazy theme-park rides, with 360
loops, chasm-wide broken tracks, roads that wind around mountains and
across rivers. The autos skid sideways and fly over other cars on
stilts. In a reference to the Ben-Hur chariot race, they brandish
hubcap spear hooks to disable their opponent's vehicle. And, since the
rallies take place in Virtual World, there's no fretting about the
waste of fuel. All of Speed Racer is a holiday not only from the gas
tax, but from gas.
In devising this mach (or mock) world, the Wachowskis' desktop
dervishes invented so many new techniques they had to create a bunch
of new names for them. As effects supervisor John Gaeta itemizes them
in the forthcoming book The Art of Speed Racer: "'Faux lensing' toward
a 'Photo Anime' film format (including designer shape de-focus,
infinite depth of field, bling and super-bling flare enhancements and
candy-inspired 'Techno Color')." You can tell that everyone had
liberated fun making the film; it feels like the group effort of Mensa
kids let loose in the paint store. More than the story of the Racer
family, Speed Racer is the visual autobiography of the Wachowskis and
their pit crew of computer-nerd Einsteins, using the tools of their
trade to transform the movie medium.
Movies like Polar Express and Sin City proffered seductive experiments
in digital cinema and green screen, but Speed Racer announces the
arrival of the virtual movie. If you watch the film overwhelmed by the
assault of seductive visual information and wonder what you're seeing,
here's the happy answer: the future of movies. And the people who made
it? They're the industry's can-do-anything superheroes. Not
Spider-Men, not Hulks or X-Men. No: Speed Demons.
Can JJ Abrams Save "Star Trek: The Experience"?
(intergameonline.com) The future of the Star Trek: The
Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton, US, is in doubt and it could close
at the end of the year, according to the trekmovie.com website.
The world's foremost Star Trek attraction, complete with themed
restaurant, museum, shops and rides, opened in 1998. The current
contract between CBS, the licence holder, and its current owner, Cedar
Fair, ends on December 31 - though it will need to have been
dismantled and moved by this date if it is to close. A spokesman for
Cedar Fair reportedly told trekmovie that are currently "no plans to
renew."
Despite the addition of the Borg Invasion 4D ride in 2004, attendance
has been in decline for a number of years. However, it is hoped that
with a new movie on the horizon, new interest may yet be sparked or,
at least, a new owner can be found.
George Lucas Presents "Singin' In The Rain"
Our last post must have inspired George Lucas to remaster another classic film for the modern generation. This time, he's set his sights on Singin' In The Rain.
Sadly, our favorite Sith Lord is mysteriously absent.
Either way, enjoy your happy Friday with these dancing Jedi!
Take a look: http://dailyflog.tbs.com/2008/05/george-lucas-pr.html
