Film School Rejects » Buzz Monitor

Buzz Monitor: Transformers 2 is ‘Too Much of a Good Thing’

Neil Miller — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 06:55:36 +0000

Normally I take pride in not complaining about seeing a movie two days before it comes out — its that kind of spoiled, bratty behavior that gets movie bloggers like myself in trouble. That, and it just isn’t my style. But I will say this — knowing that I won’t see Michael Bay’s Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, my most anticipated film of the summer, until two days prior to its release is weighing heavy on my geekness.

Alas, this is not going to stop me from talking about it for the next two weeks. Why? Because other journos around the world have begun chiming in on the film as it makes international premieres all over the world. One such reviewer is IGN UK journo Orlando Parfitt, who posted his review this past evening. Parfitt — who seems to be quite positive when referring to the first Transformers — says essentially that Michael Bay is clearly trying to ‘paint Revenge of the Fallen on an epic canvas’ and that this sequel is ‘more of the same – a lot more’.

He goes on to praise some of the film’s comedic moments, including one that sees Sam Witwicky’s mom ingesting some of the ‘daily green’ during a college visit. As well, he lops plenty of praise as Bay’s editing choices during the films numerous robot-on-robot battles, saying that we can actually see what is going on this time. That, in my experience, is a good thing.

The film culminates with a climactic battle which Parfitt calls “a brilliantly crafted sequence that is kinetic, emotional and genuinely thrilling.” Then, as he explains, there is still 80-minutes left in the film. From there, the review turns toward the film’s second half, which sounds like it might be numbingly over-drawn.

I will be quick to note that this is just one review — one opinion from one silly Brit — but it is interesting nonetheless. A bigger, longer, more Cybertron-focused and robot-heavy Transformers flick is exactly what fans have been calling for since the first film hit theaters in 2007. It will be interesting to see if those same naysayers — those who called for less Shia and more Optimus (in frame) — will be pleased with Bay’s additions to the sequel, or whether they will find something new and different to bitch about. At this point it’s hard to say.

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen hits theaters on June 24, 2009. Check out Parfitt’s generally spoiler-free review over on IGN.

Cannes Dispatch: ‘Inglourious Basterds’ Draws Battle Lines

Neil Miller — Wed, 20 May 2009 18:12:48 +0000

A day that has been in the minds of plenty of folks around the world of entertainment journalism has finally come and gone — Quentin Tarantino’s long gestating World War II project Inglourious Basterds has finally made its Cannes Film Festival debut, on time, as promised by the every chatty director more than a year ago. And with said premiere come the first round of reviews. The verdict: here’s the line in the sand on the beaches of the French Riviera, and you’re either on one side of it or the other.

Between critics, it appears as if battle lines have certainly been drawn. On one side — a side comprised mostly with the buzzed minds of the internet’s Tarantino-craving culture — are the ones who loved it. They are applauding the “badass” and “way fucking cool” moments that Tarantino has splattered on celluloid. On the other side sit some familiar faces, some reputable names and decidedly cooler heads — saying that the film talks it way into a coma. So who’s to say who’s right? Certainly not me, and certainly not yet. Lets allow the quotes to do some of the walking.

On the side of good…

The ever-excitable Alex Billington of First Showing loves it, but even he remains a bit timid, especially when comparing it to other Tarantino films:

“Basterds is a bit light on the action, heavy on the talking, and full of great performances. It’s as awesome as Tarantino’s first two films and as entertaining as his most recent few. It’s the WWII movie we’ve been waiting to see…Tarantino has done it again!” (I’m not exactly sure what that last part means.)

Chris Hewitt at Empire goes all out:

“Rather brilliant. Every bit as idiosyncratic as the spelling of its title, it’s a wonderfully-acted movie that subverts expectation at every turn. And it may represent the most confident, audacious writing and directing of QT’s career.”…“[Christoph Waltz] may be a shoo-in for a Best Supporting Oscar nom.”

Sam Ashurst of Total Film wants to get Inglourious again and again:

“Not only did I love every minute, if the French projectionist wanted to cue it up and roll it again from the start, I would have sat through the whole film again, with the biggest grin on my face. This is Quentin’s best film since Jackie Brown. It might even be his best film since Pulp Fiction.”

Former SXSW Chief Matt Dentler, writing into AICN:

“…the film as a whole is a great ride. Early reports indicate it may not be the final theatrical version, and while I could see 10 minutes trimmed here and there, I feel it still delivers as is.”

On the other side…

Eric Kohn at IndieWire reminds us that we need more Super Bubble for the office:

“No matter how much extreme contextualization and heavily stylized techniques Quentin Tarantino [uses] in Inglorious Basterds, it feels like a bubblegum sidedish to the heavy dinner plate of his career.”

Kirk Honeycutt at The Hollywood Reporter says that it is lacking all of the things Tarantino usually delivers:

“The film is by no means terrible … but those things we think of as being Tarantino-esque, the long stretches of wickedly funny dialogue, the humor in the violence and outsized characters strutting across the screen, are largely missing.”

Movieline’s David Bourgeois fails to connect with the plight of the Basterds:

“…despite all of Tarantino’s typically intricate plot weavings, character development is nowhere to be found. We never know the Basterds, Dreyfus remains a mysterious figure, and Col. Landa, the real main character of the film, is only minimally developed. By the end of the film — almost two-and-a-half hours later — its hard to care much about what happens to anybody on screen.”

The Guardian’s Peter Bradshaw goes for broke, calling it an “armor-plated turkey”:

“There are some nice-ish performances, particularly from Fassbender and Waltz, but everything is just so boring. I was hoping for Shosanna at least to get a satisfying revenge on the unspeakable Col Landa. But no. The two Hitler-assassination plots cancel each other out dramatically and the director’s moderate reserves of narrative interest are exhausted way before the end. He should perhaps go back to making cheerfully inventive outrageous films like Kill Bill. Because Kill Adolf hasn’t worked out.”

Of course, we leave it to one of our favorite Hollywood-types, Anne Thompson, to keep things in perspective for us. In her filed report, she described the reaction of critics as being very tepid. “The press did not boo Inglourious Basterds. Nor, judging from my sampling of critics afterwards, are they anointing it his best. Several wanted to think about it, to figure out what if anything, is missing.”

But what does it all mean? That is the ultimate question. From what I have gleaned off of the dozen or so reviews that I’ve read while putting this little update together, it appears as if Inglourious Basterds can best be described as an overly-talky, but potentially fun ride that fits somewhere in the middle of Tarantino’s body of work. If this reminds me of any one Tarantino work, it could very well be his other most recent film Death Proof, a film that talked itself out of having momentum. As well, from what I’m seeing, this film is decidedly not the Nazi hunting spree that the first trailer might have suggested.

At this point we are all left to draw conclusions based on the trust-levels we have with the writers quoted above. My conclusion: sounds like there might be a lot of disappointed fankids come August, as well as some militant defenders of yet another soft piece of work from Tarantino. The loyalty to the house of Quentin runs deep for some, which could continue to escalate this film’s buzz, despite the extremely cool overall reaction from Cannes.

But that all remains to be seen…

What do you make of the early Basterds buzz from Cannes?

G.I. Joe Trailer Firing Blanks?

Robert Fure — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 02:11:42 +0000

One of the boys over at Nuke the Fridge was unfortunate enough to get an early look at the teaser trailer for GI Joe: The Rise of Cobra at a “test screening.” Yeah, you read that right, a test screening for the trailer. Hey man, whatever.

The bad news, both for fans and Paramount, is that the reviewer described it as “worse than horrible.” He describes the trailer as featuring bad CGI, poorly choreographed fights, and members of the Joe team all dressed like Snake-Eyes. Oh, and something about the Eiffel Tower being covered in green goop. Are we certain he didn’t see a mash-up of TMNT 2: Secrets of the Ooze and Ghostbusters 2? (Both feature goop!) Then again, Stephen Sommers is directing, so I wouldn’t be surprised by any amount of suck. (Why is this guy still working?)

Basically everything that was said about the trailer came across horribly negative. So negative, in fact that Paramount gave the ol’ “Cease and desist” warning, which temporarily caused the site to remove the review. However, posting review material (when no contract has been signed stating otherwise) is not infringement of any kind and the review is back up.

GI Joe is planned for a Summer 2009 release and none of this horrible news comes as a surprise.

Check out the full review here.

On a scale of 1-10, how badly do you think Stephen Sommers is going to screw up GI Joe?

Buzz Monitor: Frank Miller’s The Spirit Gets Flushed by Critics

Neil Miller — Fri, 19 Dec 2008 06:15:34 +0000

Earlier in the year, following the film’s presentation at Comic-Con in San Diego, we made a few wise cracks at the “toilet humor” in Frank Miller’s The Spirit. In one particular scene Samuel L. Jackson, as viciously unfunny baddie “The Octopus,” slams a toilet over the head of our hero. He then proceeds to burst into laughter, chiding The Spirit with “Come on, man. Toilets are always funny!” It was the unequivocal low point of our Comic-Con experience.

This morning, months after watching fans at the Con walk out on a Frank Miller panel, I dragged myself out of bed bright and early to see what the rest of The Spirit had in store. And while my full review isn’t ready, I can promise you that I shall be throwing more than just a toilet at it. That, and I’m happy to report that we were right all along, criticizing The Spirit’s overly campy nature and its “Sin City meets Looney Tunes” tone.

And as it turns out, we aren’t the only ones looking poorly upon Miller’s film:

Variety’s Justin Chang had this to say: “A slain cop is resurrected as a masked crime-fighter in ‘The Spirit,’ but Frank Miller’s solo writing-directing debut plunges into a watery grave early on and spends roughly the next 100 minutes gasping for air. Pushing well past the point of self-parody, Miller has done Will Eisner’s pioneering comicstrip no favors by drenching it in the same self-consciously neo-noir monochrome put to much more compelling use in ‘Sin City.’ Graphic-novel geeks will be enticed by the promise of sleek babes and equally eye-popping f/x, but general audiences will probably pass on this visually arresting but wholly disposable Miller-lite exercise.”

A spy report from AICN claims that it “takes over the top spot from Battlefield Earth.” While the folks at Uniquely Geek are a little more optimistic, saying “There’s a lot of work and opportunity that went by the wayside here, a lot of talented people and some great source material that never quite gels. The parts that look good, look good, but maybe next time, they’ll hire a fox to put it all together.” Newsarama adds that “The Spirit does a precarious balancing act juxtaposing great moments and terrible ones, leaving audiences likely be split over which makes the greater impression.”

Stay tuned next week when I will bring you my own full review of Frank Miller’s The Spirit.

Will you still see The Spirit despite what critics are saying?

Roger Ebert Lays Down His 20 Best of 2008

Neil Miller — Sun, 07 Dec 2008 20:05:35 +0000

Despite the fact that our own Cole Abaius recently penned an article entitled Roger Ebert is Wrong About the CelebCult, we here at FSR are actually very big fans of Mr. Ebert. He is, in fact, the person we would all someday like to be, at least when it comes to his ability to be continually insightful and invariably interesting. So when Ebert drops his 20 Best Films of 2008 list on his website we have no choice but to cover it.

Why 20, you might ask. As Roger explains, it was because 2008 was just too good a year for movies to limit his list to just 10 titles. ” I am violating the age-old custom that film critics announce the year’s 10 best films,” he explains. “But after years of such lists, I’ve had it. A best films list should be a celebration of wonderful films, not a chopping process. And 2008 was a great year for movies, even if many of them didn’t receive wide distribution.”

In his list of 20 Ebert lists a few films that you will recognize and a few others that you are soon to discover. Always a champion of the little film, Ebert doesn’t shy away from making his list one that is as diverse as it is interesting. Check out the full list below:

Ballast
The Band’s Visit
Che
Chop Shop
The Dark Knight
Doubt
The Fall
Frost/Nixon
Frozen River
Happy-Go-Lucky
Iron Man
Milk
Rachel Getting Married
The Reader
Revolutionary Road
Shotgun Stories
Slumdog Millionaire
Synecdoche, New York
W.
Wall-E

To read Ebert’s full commentary on the entire list as well as see which film’s earned honorable mention, head over to his page at The Sun Times. As for what I think of Ebert’s list, it is too early to say. There are a few films here that will certainly have a chance of making my ‘best of’ list for this year, including The Dark Knight, The Fall and Rachel Getting Married. And there are several that I will be seeing this coming week, including Milk and Revolutionary Road. Therefore I’m in no position to comment difinitively just yet. That said, Roger’s list includes a really interesting range of films, all of which are definitely worth a look.

Star Trek Trailer Boldly Goes Online on Monday

Neil Miller — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 15:32:22 +0000

We’ve received word from a highly reliable source — otherwise known as the official Star Trek website — that a new trailer for the J.J. Abrams-directed reboot will be online this coming Monday. An official countdown has appeared on the site which counts down to 10am Pacific / 1pm Eastern on Monday, November 17th. As well, sources have revealed that the Star Trek trailer will be attached to Quantum of Solace, which hits theaters on November 14th.

In addition to this information the folks at AICN also received a report from someone on the Paramount lot who saw the trailer this past weekend. You can read the full report here or check out some bullet points, which were assembled by our friends at Slashfilm:

A 60’s style corvette convertible tears down the road, a policeman in hot pursuit.
The driver, a 13-year-old boy, leaps from the car right as it goes off a cliff.
Reveal: the policeman has a hover bike
The Policeman asks “Who are you? What’s Your Name?” The boy answers “James Tiberius Kirk!”
Kirk years later, a young man (Chris Pine) is riding a hover bike
Voice Over: “You never found yourself here, you never really fit in. What you choose to do with you’re life is up to you.
Young kirk stares at a huge futuristic structure, possibly Star Fleet headquarters or the factory where the Enterprise is being constructed
Maybe you were meant for something different, something… bigger.”
Shots of Spock as a baby, toddler, and then a 20-something-year-old Spock yelling at Kirk
Quick cuts of spaceships and lots of other fun stuff

Star Trek is scheduled to hit theaters on May 8, 2009.

Test Screeners Watch the Watchmen and Live to Tell All

Ashley Demma — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 20:24:41 +0000

Earlier in the week, some lucky fans got the chance to attend a test screening of Watchmen in Portland, and spilled the beans about how the movie is so far. Executives are trying to shut down the buzz and the so-called leaked information, but Spoiler TV has an interview style thread that tells all. The content of the thread has major spoilers, whether they are true or not.

The general consensus seems to be that the film stayed razor sharp, following Alan Moore’s beloved graphic novel to a T…but the ending has been modified. Personally, I hated the end of the graphic novel and thought it was a really lame way to end an awesome story. I am much happier with the film’s alternate ending.

At this point, there is still a lot of speculation about the truth of this leak. Some claim it’s just WB people trying to spread false information and confuse the fans. Some think that the leak is legit. Whatever the case, read for yourself now, or you’ll have to wait until next March to find out what happens.

Does an alteration to the ending of Watchmen bother you at all?

Wolverine Will Slay the Definition of Badass, Says Producer

Neil Miller — Wed, 08 Oct 2008 15:52:28 +0000

It has been a little while since we’ve talked about X-Men Origins: Wolverine. In fact, not much has been said since Hugh Jackman showed up at Comic-Con and knocked 6,000 people out of their seats with an explosive surprise clip. In fact, it actually seems a bit odd that we haven’t been talking more about Wolverine. Coming out of Comic-Con 2007, all we talked about was Iron Man, the clear star of that year’s festivities. And while Wolverine may not have made the exact same sort of splash, it certainly stuck with us as we departed San Diego.

Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that we are now almost 3 months removed from Comic-Con and Fox is yet to release even a teaser trailer for Wolverine, whereas Iron Man’s teaser was online in September following the Con. But just because we haven’t seen anything from Wolverine, that doesn’t mean that we can’t talk about it a little bit. As well, that also won’t stop producer Lauren Shuler Donner from telling us that it is going to be great. While making a red carpet trip for the premiere of The Secret Life of Bees, Donner stopped to talk with Scott Huver of ComingSoon.net.

During the conversation, Donner promised what many fans have been hoping for all along, a darker, more badass version of the character. “You haven’t seen this side of him,” she explained. “It’s darker and sadder and it’s kick-ass. There’s a ton of action. It’s really kick-ass.”

She also went on to talk a bit about one of the film’s supporting characters, Wade Wilson, also known as Deadpool, who is being played by Ryan Reynolds. When asked about the long-rumored Deadpool spin-off film, Donner said, “I really hope so. He’s so good at it.”

Cryptic, enthusiastic — but are these words from one of the film’s producers reassuring to fans? At this point it really doesn’t matter. Fans know that what they saw at Comic-Con was fantastic and they have every right to expect more of the same as we move closer to May 2009. As well, the Deadpool movie is almost certainly going to hinge on the success of Wolverine and possibly the Magneto movie that is currently on The Dark Knight scribe David S. Goyer’s plate. But that is all for future discussion. At this point, fans could probably use a teaser trailer to keep them salivating over Wolverine, otherwise it could be an uphill battle for the film to compete next May. Here’s hoping that Fox wises up and takes a page from Paramount’s Iron Man playbook, and fast.

For more from the Shuler Donner interview, including her talking about being an Ohio girl about to get a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, head over to Coming Soon.

Are you still as excited about Wolverine as you were right after Comic-Con when the footage showed up online?

Someone Was Watching the ‘Watchmen’ Last Night

Neil Miller — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 17:12:19 +0000

Unfortunately, that someone wasn’t us. Insert sad face here. Oh well, I suppose that’s what we get for not having FSR HQ in L.A., at least not yet. Either way, our friends at First Showing and Collider did attend the event that took place last night at the Warner Bros. lot in West Hollywood, where director Zack Snyder was on hand to show off some footage from his highly anticipated comic adaptation Watchmen. And according to the reports, the footage was equal parts ‘breathtaking’ and ‘mind blowing.’ For Watchmen fans, this should be a good sign.

Here are a few key highlights, courtesy of Alex at First Showing:

The current running time is 2 hours and 43 minutes, and Zack Snyder doesn’t expect it to get much shorter.
Snyder said he would not be involved with a prequel/sequel if Warner Bros stupidly decided to make one.
The next movie trailer will be attached to Quantum of Solace, which hits theaters in the US on November 14th 2008.
Snyder also mentioned that they are working on a version of the film that integrates the “Tales of the Black Freighter” sub-story into the theatrical cut. Though, with the film already at 2 hours and 43 minutes, I doubt that they will be adding that in.

As well, Frosty at Collider had great things to say about some of the footage that was shown, including the opening credit sequence, which he described as follows:

The first thing he showed us was the opening credit sequence. The opening is just like the comic book, but the fight has been extended a bit and it’s very violent. After we see The Comedian get thrown out the window, the credits start and they’re amazing.

With pin point accurate precision, we get shot after shot that’s filmed in slow motion where we see actual events mixed in with the Watchmen universe. We see Dr. Manhattan with JFK, Adrian Veidt/Ozymandias outside Studio 54, Dr. Manhattan on the moon, plus tons of other crazy things…as I don’t want to spoil it all. During all these shots we hear Bob Dylan’s “The Times They Are a Changing,” and it’s played throughout all the photos and filmmaker credits. While the song is under 4 minutes, they’ve clearly extended the song as the credits are 6 minutes.

What’s amazing about the credits is the way it slowly submerges you into the universe. The shots have a purpose and a motion, they’re almost 3D the way the camera moves in them. Trust me, after these credits end, every viewer will be entranced.

Now, I’m not sure about all of you, but that description alone makes my shorts a little tighter. I’ve been a fan of Zack Snyder since before he ‘broke out’ with 300, and this appears to be just the right project for him. In fact, it is worth pointing out that Warner Bros. has done a great job lately of finding that ‘right guy’ for their major properties — Christopher Nolan with Batman, Snyder with 300 and Watchmen, and (in my opinion) McG with Terminator Salvation. Kudos to them for finding the right person for the job and giving them space to work. Of course, our hope is that the the studio stays away from Snyder between now and March 6, 2009, so that he can deliver his 2.5 hour plus film in its unhindered glory.

How are you feeling about Watchmen thus far?

Half-Blood Prince Goes IMAX and 3D; Release Still July 2009

Neil Miller — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 18:18:12 +0000

Unfortunately for die-hard Harry Potter fans, it appears that the July 17, 2009 released date of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince isn’t going to get here any sooner, nor will it be changed any time soon. But, while fans will undoubtedly stay in their depressed Muggle states for another 10 months or so, there is some good news on the horizon, depending on how you look at it.

Sources close to Empire are saying that upwards of 25 minutes of Half-Blood Prince, including opening and closing scenes, will be in 3D. This feature will be available to audiences who choose to see the film on IMAX screens. According to the report, audiences will receive instructions from a little wand that will tell them when to put on their glasses:

In a process similar to that used on Superman Returns, action-y sections of the film will be threedeeified (that’s a technical term) on Imax, and there’ll probably be a little wand or something that appears in the top corner of the screen to let you know to put on your goofy glasses. That, and the way everything suddenly goes blurry.

Of course, no confirmation has come from Warner Bros. as of yet, but this news could prompt them to provide a few more details on the release. Then again, they’ve got time.

What do you think about Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince in IMAX and 3D?

New Spirit Photos, And a Word from Samuel L. Jackson

Neil Miller — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 17:45:23 +0000

We haven’t talked much about Frank Miller’s upcoming film The Spirit in a while — well, to be more precise, since fans were seen walking out of the panel at Comic-Con, we didn’t really have much to say. It was a nasty break-up, to say the least. But with the film’s December 25th release getting closer and closer by the day, it is inevitable that we will have to patch things up and get back to covering it. And today is step one toward getting back on board with The Spirit — maybe.

Today does bring with it a gallery of 9 new photos, which were sent to us by our good friend Patient Zero. It also appears that he (or one of his spy friends) sent the same pics to our friends at /Film. Either way, those are in the gallery below. But first, our friends at Crave caught up with The Spirit’s villain Sam Jackson over the weekend while he was press-lining for his latest film Lakeview Terrace. When asked about The Spirit, Jackson seems to have gone into defense-mode. Perhaps he and the other cast-members are starting to get the word that fans are less than impressed by the footage that has been shown thus far. I will let you decide for yourself after you read the excerpt below:

Crave Online: Do you see a more optimistic Frank Miller, because he was disillusioned after Robocop II?

Samuel L. Jackson: I’m sure he is until you guys finish with him. We’ll see what happens. Frank’s made the film that he wanted to make. Hopefully, it will be that. The film comes out and people will talk about it and either he’ll be thick-skinned or bruised by it. Even happens to seasoned directors. Happened to Quentin. You guys made Quentin go away and go, “Oh! Oh!”

Crave Online: At Comic Con it looked very far out there.

Samuel L. Jackson: It’s a cartoon. The movie is a cartoon to me. I don’t know what anybody else is gonna think it is, but to me it’s a cartoon. We do Wile E. Coyote kind of stuff. I hit him in the head with toilets. We’ve got wrenches that are as big as this room. Clang! I hit him with the wrench and he gets up. We’re both pretty much indestructible and I created him so I know he’s indestructible and I use the stuff on myself, made myself indestructible. We’re the only two people that are like that, so we do outrageous things to each other. Even when I get shot I kind of shake bullets out of my head. It’s a cartoon. It’s so kind of outrageous and crazy and over the top. I get to wear all these outrageous costumes. I mean, come on, I dress up like a Nazi in this movie. I have lightning bolt eyebrows. It’s fun!

You can read the entire interview over at Crave Online. Now, as for those pictures…

Darren Aronofsky Talks RoboCop, Noah’s Ark

Neil Miller — Mon, 15 Sep 2008 19:03:52 +0000

With the heavy acclaimed garnered by his film The Wrestler, starring Mickey Rourke, at this past week’s Toronto Film Festival, it seems as if everyone was vying for a chance to talk to Requiem for a Dream and The Fountain director Darren Aronofsky. In addition to having what appears to be 2008’s hottest independent up-and-comer, Aronofsky also seems to have two of the most interesting upcoming projects as well.

RoboCop:

Up first, Aronofsky has the reboot of RoboCop slated for a 2010 release. When asked about it by MTV Movies Blog, Aronofsky was very cryptic, saying that they are still waiting on a screenplay, but that they are “deep in it.” We can only assume that it is in active development, as the film’s producers have promised the film to be on a grand scale with a hard R-rating. Aronofsky was also grilled on the setting of the film, saying that it would not be somewhere that was recognizable to audiences. This is to infer that it might take place in an ambiguous city of the future, rather than a real life location, such as Detroit where the original series took place.

Noah:

Aronofsky also talked to the Peter Sciretta over at /Film in Toronto about another upcoming project, entitled Noah. This religious epic would tell the tale of the boat which Aronofsky calls the second most famous ship in history, Noah’s Ark. It appears that this is one of Aronofsky’s passion projects, as he certainly has a very interesting take on the story he’d like to tell:

“I think it’s really timely because it’s about environmental apocalypse which is the biggest theme, for me, right now for what’s going on on this planet. So I think it’s got these big, big themes that connect with us. Noah was the first environmentalist. He’s a really interesting character. Hopefully they’ll let me make it.”

The last part though, where he says “Hopefully they’ll let me make it,” is where the entire story around Noah sort of stalls, as it is not currently attached to a studio. Aronofsky did complete a script with friend Ari Hanel, though, one that he describes as “huge.” At this point, according to Aronofsky they are currently starting to feel out some talent and get the project off the ground.

That said, Aronofsky is also expected to begin filming The Fighter with Mark Wahlberg and Brad Pitt sometime this fall, which is a boxing biopic. Beyond that he appears to have a full slate through 2011. It will be interesting to see where he squeezes Noah in.

Which project of Aronofsky’s interests you more, RoboCop or Noah?

Buzz Monitor: Trailer Details for Transformers 2, Star Trek

Neil Miller — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 06:04:55 +0000

Either my movie geek radar is going crazy, or something very unpleasant just crawled up my shorts. Phew, it was the former. The wee hours of this morning have brought us some interesting details about very hot projects from the mega-studio known as Paramount Pictures. A reader wrote in to Ain’t It Cool News reporting in from a promotional event held for international distribution folk in London yesterday, where Paramount showed off some of its 2009 international slate. This includes Watchmen, which Paramount is distributing across the pond, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, Star Trek, The Lovely Bones and GI Joe.

First up is what the reader, known as icaddy, had to say about G.I. Joe: Rise of the Cobra:

We saw a number of unfinished scenes including introductions to Duke, The Baroness and Snake Eyes. We also saw a computer generating scene which acted as a story board for the eventual filming. There was a scene where the baroness comes home to France and we got to see the mansion, another scene where a member of GI Joe is captured by COBRA, Chris Eccleston and Arnold Voslo both look on form. Finally we saw a scene which involves a MASSIVE car chase and the eventually toppling of the Eiffel Tower. The film itself look like typical Steven Sommers schtik, massively enjoyable, Sienna Miller looks amazing but I do not think it will fare well with critics, action is very stylised from the scenes I saw, the character development is terrible, Marlon Wayans in particular looked bad!!

As well, he dished some details about the Star Trek trailer that many of us doubted would ever actually come into existence:

We saw the teaser trailer and then we saw what looked to be a very very early version of the full trailer – It showed more footage of Quito as Spock, much more Chris Pine and also some John Cho and Simon Pegg footage. The film looks like immense fun and there seems to be a lot of action in it. There look of the crew and the bridge is spot on and the costumes look like the original but with a more modern and practical twist. We got to see Spock talking to his parent as well and Kirk being told to take more responsibility. There were also a lot of montage scenes involves spaceship battles, gun fights and hand to hand combat. I especially like a short clip where we see the crew running through the corridors of the Enterprise – reminded me of next generation loads.

And finally, he gave one more little tidbit, mentioning that many of Paramount’s trailers should be hitting in November — so expect a busy month of trailers before Thanksgiving. As well, he also has the scoop on when we will be seeing footage from Transformers 2. Apparently they will be releasing a full-length trailer that will be attached to Star Trek in May ‘09. This of course, does not rule out the possibility of a teaser trailer before the holidays, but it does give us a better idea of when we should start to see major footage hitting the web. As well, it is always worth noting that this information is coming from an otherwise unknown source — so there is a chance that it is all absolute bullocks.

Get a look at the entire report over at Ain’t It Cool News. We will continue to keep you posted if we hear anything. Also, if you happen to accidentally stumble onto information regarding any of these upcoming films, don’t hesitate to drop us a line: editors@filmschoolrejects.com

Star Trek Buzz Continues, From One Kirk to Another

Neil Miller — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 20:48:21 +0000

As we’ve reported before, Kevin Smith has been talking a lot about a few of next year’s biggest releases, including glowing accounts of Zack Snyder’s Watchmen and J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek. And in a recent interview with MTV, Smith continued to talk about the upcoming Trek reboot, focusing mainly on the performance of Chris Pine:

Chris Pine is fantastic… It is a star-making performance. From his first scene forward, this dude is not doing an impression of Shatner. He is doing young Kirk. He doesn’t have the slow delivery mannerisms of Shatner but it’s totally James T. Kirk, the bravado, the self-assuredness. It’s such a great performance. You can’t take your eyes off the guy. Anytime he’s not on the screen you’re waiting for him to get back. And the chick [Zoe Saldana] who plays Uhura is really great. They made Uhura really interesting.

Of course, while Kevin Smith and I generally have a similar taste in film — at least, as far as I can tell — I am still in wait-and-see mode on Star Trek. I have not been a fan of the casting, most notably of Simon Pegg as Scotty or of John Cho as Sulu, but I am hopeful that I will end up being wrong. One thing that has evolved over the course of the last year is my impression of J.J. Abrams’ direction with this film. Many fans had become upset when they found out that William Shatner would not be making an appearance. Though, Abrams’ explanation of Shat’s absence in a recent interview Sci-Fi Scanner suggests that his approach is, as Spock might say, highly logical:

We actually had written a scene with him in it that was a flashback kind of thing, but the truth is, it didn’t quite feel right. The bigger thing was that he was very vocal that he didn’t want to do a cameo. We tried desperately to put him in the movie, but he was making it very clear that he wanted the movie to focus on him significantly, which, frankly, he deserves. The truth is, the story that we were telling required a certain adherence to the Trek canon and consistency of storytelling. It’s funny — a lot of the people who were proclaiming that he must be in this movie were the same people saying it must adhere to canon. Well, his character died on screen. Maybe a smarter group of filmmakers could have figured out how to resolve that.

Ultimately, while I am still skeptical of this Trek reboot, I am becoming anxious to see some footage from the film. Perhaps the waiting game is getting to me — a movie that was originally expected to hit theaters in December, but is now set for May ‘09 combined with a minimal presence at Comic Con and no footage beyond a short teaser, that is a recipe for one of two things: either the curiosity of fans will continue to grow or their excitement will fade. We’ve seen it happen before, most notably with The X-Files: I Want to Believe, where fans were very excited early on, but lost interest toward the release. And while I doubt that Star Trek fans will be anything but excited come May 8, 2009, here’s hoping we get to see a little bit of what Kevin Smith loved so much in the near future.

How do you feel about the state of J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek reboot at this point?

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