Cinematical

Late August was the last time we mentioned George Lucas' Red Tails, but considering the Star Wars director has been wanting to make the film for decades, less than a year between reports is not too bad. Plus, the new AP story about the film's preproduction couldn't come at a better time. People are currently talking about Spike Lee's upcoming African Americans in WWII film, Miracle of St. Anna, and Red Tails also focuses on blacks fighting in the war. Specifically it deals with the 332nd Fighter Group of the U.S. Army Air Corp., otherwise known as the Tuskegee Airmen, the first all-black unit of pilots, bombardiers and navigators.

The AP story mostly features quotes from Tuskegee vets, who share their memories and their hopes for what the film will show. But there's also some minor updates courtesy of producer Rick McCallum, who's reportedly now scouting locations in the Czech Republic and Italy. He says that Lucas is hoping to begin shooting later this year or early 2009 and that the script by John Ridley (Three Kings) "balances difficult and painful issues with what is, at its heart, the story of men with a dream to fly and serve their country." So, apparently the script is finished, yet it's still unclear who will be directing Red Tails; the AP story almost seems to assume that Lucas will be holding the reigns himself.

There are a few classic films that I simply refused to rent while growing up, specifically for the reason that I knew I should see them for the first time on a big screen. Of these, I managed to see both 2001: A Space Odyssey and Blade Runner in a theater, while others, such as Lawrence of Arabia and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, were on television too often to ignore them on the small screen first. One film that I'm still dying to see in a theater is Terrence Malick's Badlands. A few years ago I actually went to a special screening of the film in Connecticut, but it was disappointingly (understatement) projected from a DVD copy. Then two months ago it played one show at NYC's IFC Center, but I had to miss it for another engagement.

Last week Entertainment Weekly presented an article/photo gallery titled "23 Movies You'd Like to See on the Big Screen," which lists these kinds of films (there's actually many more than 23 cited), most of which should ONLY be seen on the big screen, as they were originally meant to be. The list includes obvious epic choices like 2001, Lawrence of Arabia, Gone With the Wind, The Greatest Show on Earth and The Ten Commandments, as well as other classics, like Malick's Days of Heaven, Casablanca, Once Upon a Time in the West, Star Wars, High Society, Halloween, Singin' in the Rain, To Kill a Mockingbird, Psycho, Oklahoma!, The Music Man, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, The Searchers, Stagecoach and The French Connection.

• Eliot Asinof (1919-2008) - Writer - Author of the book "8 Men Out," which was made into the John Sayles film Eight Men Out, and the novel "Ten Second Jailbreak" which became the 1975 Charles Bronson film Breakout. He also appears in Eight Men Out and Sayles' Sunshine State. He died of complications of pneumonia June 10, in Hudson, New York. (NY Times)
• Tim Russert (1950-2008) - News Commentator - Appears as himself in the documentaries Fahrenheit 9/11, Why We Fight, The Hunting of the President and Martial Law 9/11: Rise of the Police State. He died of a heart attack June 13, in Washington, D.C. (Washington Post)

• Keith Best (1922/1923-2008) - Engineer - Built the titular bridge of The Bridge on the River Kwai. He died of cancer June 1, in York, England. (The Press)
• Arthur Bloom (1920-2008) - Sound Technician - Sound recordist for Fame, Wall Street, Sophie's Choice, Brighton Beach Memoirs, The World According to Garp, Married to the Mob, One Trick Pony and the music documentary Festival. He was also a boom operator for The Warriors, Kramer vs. Kramer, Starting Over,The Prisoner of Second Avenue and The Boys in the Band. He died June 10. (Entertainment Insiders)
  
• Algis Budrys (1934-2008) - Writer - Author of the novels "Master of the Hounds," which became the 1972 film To Kill a Clown, starring Alan Alda and Blythe Danner, and "Who?," which was made into a 1973 film of the same name (also known as Robo Man), starring Elliott Gould. He died of metastatic malignant melanoma June 9, in Evanston, Illinois. (Chicago Tribune)

Movie-turned-musicals didn't do so well at the Tony Awards last night, but that doesn't mean people are going to stop adapting films for the stage. For instance, according to The Daily Telegraph, John Cleese is turning his hit movie A Fish Called Wanda into a musical. He's currently writing it with his 24-year-old daughter, Camilla, who he claims is even funnier than he is. He also jokes that they're going to attempt to write the songs themselves, but he thinks they're going to be no good, so he'll likely be bringing in a lyricist. For now, in its early stages, Cleese says they're simply working out the story (which shouldn't be too difficult, as it already exists in film form).

The Daily Telegraph somewhat speculates that Cleese is working on the project for two reasons: one, he didn't make any money off Spamalot, because he apparently agreed to waive his royalties, thinking the musical adaptation of Monty Python and the Holy Grail wouldn't do well; two, he's currently divorcing from his third wife. Tabloid gossip aside, and ignoring the fact that Cleese may have been 'taking the piss', are we ready for A Fish Called Wanda: The Musical? And if that's a success, would a Fierce Creatures: The Musical be not far behind?

In case you haven't noticed, 3-D movies are officially back, and we're about to see a whole lot of them in the next few years. But it's no longer just Hollywood that's producing new films in the format. Spain is also getting in on the fun with a 3-D family film titled The Magic Tale, which tells the story of a young girl's "magical journey" to Africa. Catalan journalist and filmmaker Jordi Llompart (the IMAX film Mystery of the Nile) has adapted his own children's book, "El Corazón Sobre La Arena," which was dedicated to his daughter, Jana, who died in Africa in 2005.

The movie began shooting in March in Namibia and South Africa and will resume next month in Barcelona. Variety reports that Spanish actress Leonor Watling (Talk to Her) has just joined the cast as a fairy who teaches the young girl (Eva Gerretsen), "the secrets of the heart." The rest of the cast includes Namibian child actor Raymond Mvula, South African actor John Whiteley (Duma), Spanish actor Adrià Collado (Evita) and Spanish supermodel Verónica Blume. The latter two play the girl's parents.

Were you in The Shawshank Redemption? Did you work on set? Were you otherwise involved in the production? If so, you're invited to a 15-year reunion this August in Ohio. Someone having something to do with the 1994 Oscar-nominated film has put together a weekend-long event and a really snazzy website providing details. Oh, and if you're merely a fan of the movie but had nothing at all to do with its making, you can attend as well. A few of the things on the itinerary do cost an admission fee, but only because there are prison and museum tours involved, plus a concert featuring a southern rock band.

Many people consider The Shawshank Redemption one of the best films of the '90s, maybe even of all time, so there are likely plenty of people who'd be interested in a little trip to see the film's shooting locations and meet with extras and crew members who helped create the film. Apparently there aren't many people on board just yet, but if the word gets out to enough people, there's a chance of making this a huge deal. Maybe principal talent like Tim Robbins, Morgan Freeman, Stephen King and/or Frank Darabont could even make room in their schedules to make an appearance. And then, perhaps this can be a yearly thing, like Star Wars conventions and Lebowski Fest.

[via Pop Candy]

When was the last time you tried to see a movie, but couldn't, because it was sold out? I mean really sold out. Sure, you may have recently sat in a packed auditorium and watched a movie that was "sold out." And you may have recently been turned away from a specific showtime for some new movie because that one showing was "sold out." These things come with the season, when everyone's rushing to see the latest summer blockbuster as soon as it's released to theaters. But I bet it's been a long, long time since you were shut out completely from seeing a movie on opening weekend.

I experienced two sellouts this week (details forthcoming), and the frustration made me recall an experience from 21 years ago, when Beverly Hills Cop II came out. The reason I remember this specific movie's release is because I was keeping a summer journal at the time. I was only ten, so I didn't write much on each day, but through the opening weekend for BHC2, I repeated the same phrase three times: "Tried to see Beverly Hills Cop II, but it was sold out." Then, through the movie's second weekend, I again repeated the same phrase on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Finally, in its third weekend, I was able to write, "Saw Beverly Hills Cop II. It was good."

Earlier this week, we learned that Jason Voorhees will be wearing both the burlap sack and the iconic hockey mask in the new Friday the 13th remake (or is it technically a remake of the first three movies?). Now, in honor of today being 2008's only Friday the 13th, MTV (one of the new film's co-producers) also shares a report from the set of the movie. They don't have anything as interesting to tell us as IESB.net did with the headgear news, but they do have video coverage, which you can watch above.

Any fan of the franchise should be excited after watching this footage. We get to see a hot young actress (Amanda Righetti) running through the woods, a dilapidated cabin, a sign telling us its Camp Crystal Lake and an overlong view of the hockey mask prop. That's almost all the ingredients needed for a Friday the 13th movie (it sounds so easy to do, right?). Oh, and finally we get to see the actor portraying Jason (Derek Mears) wearing ... a t-shirt and no make-up.

He's portrayed a few iconic characters, including Shakespeare's Romeo and Howard Hughes, but could Leonardo DiCaprio be taken seriously as an iconic superhero? Specifically the Sentinel of Liberty -- Captain America? According to Latino Review (a site well-known and typically respected for its accuracy with rumors of this sort), Marvel Studios has placed Leo on the top of their list of candidates for the role. Of course, there's been no offer made yet, and this is simply the same sort of wish list we heard about for Thor (Brad Pitt is the top of that list), so there's no need to get crazy over the possibility ... yet.

Speaking of Pitt, Marvel apparently has placed him as second on their list for Cap. They either want him for The First Avenger: Captain America or Thor. Maybe they'll even offer him the roles of Ant-Man and everyone else in The Avengers (it would be like this, but with Pitt playing all the roles instead of Johnny Depp). There's no mention of who is #3. It could be Matthew McConaughey, who was rumored to be considered before. Or, it could be George Washington. Yes, the real G.W., first President of the United States. Not only is he perfectly relevant for the part, but I think Marvel has as good a chance of casting him as they do of casting Leo.

I've gotten excited over teaser trailers without any footage. I've even gotten excited over teaser posters with nothing more than a title (and the words "coming soon") on them. But I never thought I'd get excited over a mere title graphic alone -- no trailer, no poster, no nothing, save for a logo and a release year. Well, that's what just happened. I got all giddy over a post on MTV Movies Blog featuring a bunch of new logos for the next four Marvel Studios release. There's Iron Man II, Thor, The First Avenger: Captain America and The Avengers, all written in mostly familiar fonts (if you're a comic book reader, that is).

The logos were unveiled at the New York Licensing Expo, from which we've also seen new promotional materials from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, from Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins and from Where the Wild Things Are. This latest image may not be as exciting as those, but if you grew up with any of these titles, you may still be as excited as I am by seeing their logos. I'm pretty glad they didn't go with the arched, red, white and blue striped logo for Captain America, and I really hope they stick with the plain old Roman numerals for Iron Man II and avoid any subtitle or alternate title. Also, The Avengers logo is just how I remember it.

Two complaints, though, coming from an old, old Thor reader: first, I much preferred the original Thor logo, with the torn-paper look; second, I wish Marvel would rethink their avoidance of "The Mighty" part before the character's name. After all, look what happened with the simply titled Hulk. Are we to assume the first Thor will be a disappointment and we can then look forward to a reboot titled The Mighty Thor?

So, will we be seeing this compilation of logos as a four-in-one teaser poster in theaters soon?