Francis Lawrence keeps himself busy, and it shows when you look at his untrusty IMDB page. The director’s name has been tied to a lot of projects in the past few years – Survivor, Sgt. Rock, Houdini, and more — but many of those films aren’t ones Lawrence will be making. In my interview with the director, we spent some time discussing what may be next for him, either Houdini or Unbroken, and why certain projects didn’t come together. First off, Lawrence won’t be adapting Survivor, which he backed away from over two years ago. Not because the project died while he was working on it, but over a tonal issue:

What is Movie News After Dark? It’s sights and sounds, vibe and verve, everything that you need to complete your April 20 high (or low depending on how your tax season went). It is movie news and thinky think pieces, infographics and golden posters. It is that for which you yearn: a window into the world of endless entertainment, man… At the behest of Peter Sciretta from /Film, who has been lobbying for this since Sundance, Fox Searchlight has picked up the red-hot indie drama Sound of My Voice. It’s the story of a couple who infiltrate a Southern California cult whose leader claims to be not of this world. As I mentioned on episode #82 of Reject Radio, it’s one hell of a film.

Well, James Cameron’s Avatar posted a $27 million opening day on Friday, and despite weekend winter storms that slowed its momentum a bit, it still made $73 million for the second highest December of all time. It is also Cameron’s best open of all time.

If a movie ends poorly, the entire experience can go sour in an instant. One such movie that has Robert Fure raging? I am Legend. He is Angry.

Isn’t the news that Fox is rebooting The Fantastic Four a little like hearing that the annoying married couple with the bratty, moronic kid is planning on having another baby?

This is yet another exciting week for the Blu-ray lovers among us, and not just because we finally get The Dark Knight to watch on our HDTVs. We also get a great sci-fi classic and one of TV’s most beloved in glorious 1080p.

So many questions. So we’ll have to make up answers.

Variety reports Warner Bros. wants to make an I Am Legend prequel. Since a sequel would be (spoiler alert) Smith-less, for obvious reasons, WB would need to cash in by going back in time.

Brian Gibson loves to buy DVDs. Come with him on his weekly journey into the depths of credit card debt as he tells you what to buy, rent and avoid.

/Film has a sneak peek at an alternate ending for the Will Smith blockbuster, I Am Legend. It’s from the upcoming DVD release later this month, and it’s sure to be just as divisive as the one released in theaters. Spoilers ahead, although if you haven’t already seen this latest film version of the classic Richard Matheson novel, you’re not really a film fan anyway. You should maybe be browsing EW.com instead… *SPOILER WARNING* [flv:http://media.filmschoolrejects.com/clips/iamlegend-orig-ending.flv 424 200] The theatrical ending was an unsuccessful mash-up of hope and tragedy. A hopeful future for mankind, but a tragic end for one man. Personally, I liked Neville’s demise… it was necessary for both the character and the film. I hated the overall “happy” ending though, with a cure for humanity nestled safely in the walls of a Christian compound. Lame and insulting. This new ending is both better and worse because it flips the two scenarios. Neville lives, although I still don’t believe he wants to or should. But on the bright side, there is no cure and humanity is doomed. Yay! Sound Off: What do you think of this ending? Better or worse?

It’s a surprising shortlist for the best visual effects Oscar this year, with some startling inclusions and some even more startling omissions.

National Treasure: Book of Secrets finished first for the third week in a row. But Juno moved up significantly again.

Well, it’s no secret to anyone now that National Treasure: Book of Secrets is a big hit for the whole holiday season.

With big action/fantasy releases like I Am Legend and The Golden Compass hitting the box office, we can hear audiences voicing two very loud opinions on the use of Computer Generated Imagery.

Based on the 1954 science fiction novel by Richard Matheson, Robert Neville (Will Smith) is the last man living in New York City…

One of the most written comments on the web by movie forum users has been something along these lines: “Does Will Smith say ‘Aww Hell Naw!’ then kill the infected?”

So, come 2010 in I Am Legend land, Batman will be facing off against Superman, don’t you wish you could see that?

When will science ever learn?

“Aww Hell Naw!!” — Will Smith dominates the box office yet again, followed closely by a trio of CGI chipmunks.

To help make things bearable in the slow parts, knock back a few. The film, like anything out there, can be improved with a little help.