The Motion Picture Association of America must die. It’s a monopolistic behemoth that poisons creativity and commerce while hiding behind the failed task of educating parents about film content, and the time has come to call for its dissolution. The above logo is what we, as movie fans, are most familiar with when it comes to the MPAA because we see it on trailers and home video, but that symbol is really a trick of PR. The goal of the MPAA is not to rate movies, even if that’s the product we know and loathe best. The MPAA’s founding, fundamental aim is to maintain the corporate dominance of its members – the six largest studios. It does not serve fans. It does not serve families. It does not serve filmmakers.

Recently, it was reported that Universal Pictures ended their deal with Hasbro – meaning that movies adapted from Hasbro products that nobody wanted to see in the first place, like Ouija Board and Monopoly, now have very questionable futures. Or, at least, you would think that they would have very questionable futures. In actuality they all seem to be getting scooped up by other studios pretty quickly. First, Relativity Media acquired the rights to Stretch Armstrong, and now, in news that surely must be ushering in the end of the world, Sony and Adam Sandler’s Happy Madison are teaming up to make Candy Land, which Sandler himself intends on both co-writing and starring in. Kevin Lima (Enchanted) is attached to direct the project, with Robert Smigel and Sandler in talks to pen the screenplay. Why make a Candy Land movie? Columbia Pictures president Doug Belgrad says, ”Candy Land is more than just a game. It is a brand that children, parents and grandparents know and love. The world of Candy Land offers an extraordinary canvas upon which to create a fantastical, live-action family adventure film with a larger than life part for Adam. We are thrilled to partner with Hasbro and Happy Madison on this project.”

When Sony released the “Untold Story” tagine for The Amazing Spider-Man, it rang about as true as a career politician and lobbyist claiming to be a Washington Outsider (or, for a less current joke, like Hot Pockets claiming they wouldn’t cause your bowels to erupt). It’s a rebooted franchise – essentially a remake of an earlier film that came out of the same studio a decade ago. However, there were always elements that hinted at Sony and direct Marc Webb going big instead of going home. A new synopsis, uncovered by the Times of India (via Screen Rant), shows off exactly what they mean by an untold story, and as it matches up to the original Sam Raimi film – it’s pretty damned untold. Sure, there are the teenage elements of angst and that certain feeling of being lost in a sea of hormones without a rudder or a helping hand. Hopefully there will be some playfulness and some sarcasm. Of course there will be a spider bite. All of it rings familiar, except the rest of the plot. In fact, much like a comic book, it reads like an alternate history of a character delivered by a new writer. Check it out for yourself:

On January 11, 1991, the then-head of Disney studios, Jeffrey Katzenberg, circulated an incredibly important memo about the state of the movie industry and the products they were making. It was called, “The World is Changing: Some Thoughts on Our Business,” and it had a simple purpose: to locate the root of a growing problem and to take steps to avoid falling victim to it. Katzenberg began the memo by stating: “As we begin the new year, I strongly believe we are entering a period of great danger and even greater uncertainty. Events are unfolding within and without the movie industry that are extremely threatening to our studio.” As we begin a new year two decades after this memo was written, it’s critical to look back at the points Katzenberg made to see that his period of great danger is now our period of great danger, to note that the same events unfolding within and without the industry still threaten the entire studio system in 2012, and to predict our future based on the past.

Sony isn’t slowing down on its adaptations of Steig Larsson‘s best-selling novels, so according to Entertainment Weekly, we’ll get a healthy dose of Lisbeth Salander and The Girl Who Played With Fire soon. Undoubtedly, unless the second one struggles worse, we’ll have The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest soon after that. Apparently there was some question as to the plan when The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo didn’t perform at insanely high levels. So far, the $90m-budget film has scored $72m worldwide, which isn’t all that great, but it’s still early in its life as a release at two weeks old. It’s not the crazy phenomenon that the Niels Arden Oplev flicks, but lightning so rarely strikes the same franchise twice. No matter what a studio believes. Checking the scoreboard, Rooney Mara and Daniel Craig are both signed up for two more movies, Steve Zaillian is already working on the script for the second film, but David Fincher is not secured. Maybe he’ll come back, maybe they’ll need to find a new director. Either way, the train is leaving the station and headed for a late 2013 release. Would you want to see Fincher stay on?

Looks like Sony’s official bid to make you happy you’re not a member of a twisted and wealthy Swedish clan of apparent criminals is coming a day early! That’s right, “the feel-bad” movie of Christmas and the spark of one of film journalism’s biggest hullabaloos of the year is opening a whole day early (well, really about five hours early, if you’re into midnighters). David Fincher‘s The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo will now open on Tuesday, December 20 at 7PM. It’s a smart move by Sony, as the holiday marketplace is already damn crowded. Next week sees the opening of no less than nine new picks, with further expansion by awards bait flicks The Artist and My Week with Marilyn. The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo will be going up against a strong slate of other awards contenders – including War Horse, Albert Nobbs, The Adventures of Tintin, In the Land of Blood and Honey, and Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close. Oh, and The Darkest Hour is opening next week, too.

Sex Tape is a script that Sony has their hands all over, thanks to screenwriter Kate Angelo. It must be something special, because in a world where people selling their spec scripts is becoming increasingly more rare, Angelo was able to unload this one for seven figures. It tells the story of a suburban couple whose increasingly boring lives lead to them ditching their kids for an evening and getting together to make a salacious sex tape. The trouble starts the next morning when they wake up from their post-debauchery coma and realize that the tape has gone missing. Thus begins a desperate search for the tape in hopes of staving off humiliation. Sony has been working on making this movie happen for a while now, and it seems like their efforts are about to pay off. They’re in negotiations with not only a director, but also a pair of actors to play the lead couple. The director is Nick Stoller, who helmed the hit comedy Forgetting Sarah Marshall and co-wrote this year’s The Muppets. The actors are Jason Segel and Reese Witherspoon, which makes sense because Segel and Stoller have worked together numerous times before and Witherspoon is just the type of name that studios want to put in things. If Sony is able sign the trio, then I’m sure it will be only a matter of time before Sex Tape goes from spec script to comedy hit. But can we do something about that title? It’s kind of the [Due to Content Scraping and Theft, we have been forced to try abbreviated feeds. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and woud very much appreciate you clicking through to view the full article on FilmSchoolRejects.com]

The Los Angeles Times is reporting that Sony has gathered a shortlist of screenwriters for its Steve Jobs biopic, and that the chief name among them is Aaron Sorkin‘s. Considering his track record and recent success, along with the type and high profile of the project, he might just be the best possible choice out there to capture the balance between jargon and jangling heartstrings. The movie will be based on the book by Jobs biographer Walter Isaacson, but no definite decision has been made on who will be writing it, and it’s unclear as to whether Sorkin is even interested considering he personally knew the subject of the film and has a brand new television project to keep him busy. On the other hand, a movie of this magnitude and emotionality (considering how recently Jobs passed away) might be the kind of challenge needed to attract Sorkin. For some reason, The American President comes to mind. In that, Sorkin crafted a flawed character that was still a major public figure and the central presence in a triumphant story. The tones might be different, but the potential is there for similarities. Maybe a blend of Social Network and American President? Who knows. Either way, Sorkin is a strong choice (if not the strongest).

Earlier this summer, the Cameron Diaz- and Justin Timberlake-starring R-rated comedy Bad Teacher cost $20m to make and brought in nearly $215m in worldwide ticket sales. If you imagined that there was going to be a sequel made to that film, well then you’re probably right, I’m sure that’s inevitable. But there isn’t yet word on any progress on that front, there is, however, some news to hold us over. Deadline Santee is reporting that Sony is re-teaming the Bad Teacher team of director Jake Kasdan and screenwriters Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky for a new relationship comedy. The new film doesn’t yet have a title, but it tells the story of a Supercuts manager who advises his best friend to break off his engagement, and then promptly falls in love with the fiancée. Loyalties are questioned, a lot is learned about love, and apparently people get haircuts. I mean, honestly…this project doesn’t have a title yet, but they already know that the main character is definitely going to work at a Supercuts? How hilariously random. I’d have to guess that either Eisenberg or Stupnitsky is going to be tapping into the horrors of a past day job for inspiration on this one. They can count me in, though, Bad Teacher wasn’t anything special, but it made me laugh enough to be a good time. I think it would have been even bigger if it didn’t come out the same summer that Bridesmaids ruled the world.

Merantau was an astonishing achievement in martial arts storytelling. It displayed incredible hand-to-hand combat work while managing to have a compelling story with solid acting. Go figure. Essentially, it made a lot of other action filmmakers look like amateurs, and it looks like Gareth Evans and Iko Uwais are returning with a stripped down flick to repeat the feat. The Raid is currently enjoying praise coming out of TIFF with hyperbole and review titles featuring exclamation points aplenty. Does it earn the hype? The trailer offers one clue, and you can check it out for yourself (if you’re old enough):

You may already be a film industry cynic. Maybe you think Hollywood is a barren wasteland, devoid of creativity and originality. Maybe you’re sick of seeing talented people get ignored and vapid hacks get splashed all over the trades. Maybe you’re tired of 3D everything and having to re-buy your movies every five to ten years. I’m not here to dissuade you of any of that. Hell no, I’m here to make it worse. Get ready, because this is some of the rottenest shit of which the film industry is capable. These are the things so terrible that Hollywood has to cover them up, lest God see their sin and smite them accordingly (and keep various government entities and lawyers off their backs, of course). If you still had any kind thoughts toward Hollywood, I suggest you prepare yourself for crushing disappointment. But first, I’d like to give a very huge shout out and thank you to writers C. Coville and Maxwell Yezpitelok for their help on this article. You guys are great! And now back to the shit storm, already in progress:

This past spring saw the premiere and hasty cancellation of the Christian Slater-starring comedy Breaking In. The show aired on FOX and despite critical praise, it failed to maintain most of its audience once it moved to a new time slot and losing its American Idol lead in. This is all after the show’s rocky production history where FOX nixed the program after the pilot was shot, but then revived it for its seven episode spring run. Many analysts have stated that the show wasn’t given a fair chance on the network with its extremely short run and time slot stumbling. That ‘s why the impossible might just be happening as FOX is in the tail end of a deal reviving the show for a 13-episode second season. In order to achieve this renewal according to Deadline, FOX “joined Sony TV in shouldering the cost for extending the cast’s options and then put Breaking In on the list of contenders for its 2-hour midseason comedy block.”

Wow. The trailer for Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance contains a lot of chain whip cracking, a lot of skulls on fire, and that wacky flaming vomit/urine combination that got Fure so hot under the collar. Considering the history of the movie and the weight of the first film’s failure that Vengeance carries around its neck, it’s probably a great idea to watch both trailers side by side to see what each production was going for. And whether they achieved it:

30 Minutes or Less is a movie that takes risks. In a flat landscape of studio movies that seem mostly to be shoved into a formula that doesn’t quite work anymore, watching this film is like drinking an ice cold lemonade on a hot summer day that’s been spiked with stuff that would put hair on your chest. For all the laughs and gore of Zombieland, director Ruben Fleischer seems to have taken this comedy about a pizza boy forced to rob a bank simply to further prove he can get away with anything he wants. And he gets away with it, because the movies he makes are damned funny. This is a film for adults that grabs its anatomy, goes about its business, and doesn’t care to cater to any particular sensibility. It’s because of that attitude that it all works so well. The direction, the actors, and the writing commit fully to the premise, and sells us on the bit by sheer willpower (and a healthy amount of adult language and situations).

According to the LA Times, Congressman Peter King of the great state of New York is urging the CIA and the Department of Defense to take a look into Kathryn Bigelow‘s forthcoming, still-untitled movie about killing Osama Bin Laden. Apparently, Mr. King thinks the government should have script approval. Why is he calling for such a probe? It’s not readily obvious that he has any evidence to warrant it, but the movie deals with very sensitive subject matter, and that, for Mr. King, seems to be reason enough. On the one hand, it’s absolutely important that the movie not contain any classified secret or top secret information on how the raid was carried out, but on the other, what Mr. King is insinuating is that government officials and CIA members that cooperated with the production may have given out secret information. “I’m very concerned that any sensitive information could be disclosed in a movie,” King told the Times. “The procedures and operations that we used in this raid are very likely what we’ll use in other raids. There’s no way a director would know what could be tipping off the enemy.”

With almost exactly 11 months to go before The Amazing-Spider Man hits screens in July, Sony is already staking its claim to May 2, 2014 to release the second installment. An unnamed Sony executive told Deadline Downtown, “I think it speaks volumes about our confidence in what we are seeing on the new film and our desire to move quickly on the next installment.” Confidence, yes. Plus, they lose nothing by announcing it this early. They get a boost in buzz, and they never even have to fulfill that promise if they don’t see the need to. What it truly shows is a commitment toward building this franchise back up no matter what audience response is. And why not? The Amazing Spider-Man will undoubtedly make a large amount of money, and as we’ve seen with Warners and Green Lantern, even losing money isn’t a deterrent to studios who are determined to get more superheroes into theaters. If they were really confident, they’d set a date for Amazing Spider-Man 3. 2016, baby!

San Diego’s Comic-Con has come and gone once again with 2011 marking my fourth straight year of attendance. Living in Los Angeles, it’s easy for me to shoot down there for the weekend, but beyond that, I actually like Comic-Con, seemingly unlike the majority of my colleagues. It’s only been three days since the Con ended, which means the memories are still fresh and the bones still ache, so it’s a perfect time to pop some Advil and reflect on SDCC, on the good and on the bad. Without further words to flush out the introductory paragraphs on the homepage, I present to you Comic Con 2011: 10 Things I Liked, 5 I Didn’t.

San Diego Comic-Con is a busy place. No one can cover everything, or even a significant portion of everything. Judgement calls must be made, like sleeping through panels or buying cool toys instead of waiting in line at Hall H. Or you know, just covering A instead of B. I found myself in that situation when it came time for the Sony panel that featured a lot of cool things, including The Amazing Spider-Man and Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Instead of suffering though the line at Hall H, which I gladly would have done, I caught up with Spartacus and then went off to see Jason Momoa, the next Conan. Luckily I was able to read all about the Sony panel on Twitter and, well… Shit.

Turns out all it takes to become a big star these days is flowing blonde locks, bulging muscles, a sly grin, and a giant war hammer. Who knew? After playing the Norse God of Thunder in Marvel’s most recent hero flick Thor, actor Chris Hemsworth has become a bit of a hot commodity. Good for him. Never to miss an opportunity, Sony has capitalized on this new Hemsworth craze by finding the actor a brand new movie to star in. They’ve acquired the rights to a film called Shadow Runner, which will see Hemsworth playing the leader of a covert team who specializes in taking on impossible tasks. The film is loosely inspired by a real life event where an Israeli hit team took out a Hamas leader in a five star hotel in Dubai, but it doesn’t appear as if that specific story is the one that will be told in the movie. So, I guess, one of the producers of this film just read an article about covert ops, had his mind blown, and decided to make a movie about it. What’s the over under on how long it takes before this thing gets retooled to be about Seal Team Six?  [Deadline Coronado]

As if anticipating the announcement of a sequel, I finally watched Salt last week and enjoyed it. The storyline is so absurd that I looked for a writing credit from Mel Brooks, but it’s a capable action thriller that turns into a hilarious cartoon in the last minute. What’s not to like? Now Deadline Sakha is reporting that Sony is ready for more killing and has hired Kurt Wimmer to write the script for Salt 2. Going back to the original’s writer is somewhat encouraging (and Wimmer will always get a soft pass from me for writing Equilibrium), and it’s assumed by Deadline that Angelina Jolie will be on board “if it comes together right.” Empty speculation aside (what actor wouldn’t want to join a project if it came together correctly?), Jolie returning makes more sense than her character returning for a new Wanted installment, so at least logic is on the studio’s side. It’s unclear if director Phillip Noyce will come back to the franchise, but he’s not exactly idle; his name is attached to a handful of projects that might or might not get off the ground (as things often do or do not do). Regardless, this thing hinges on Jolie more than anyone else. If she approves the script, we’ll be seeing more from the woman on the run.