Cinematical

Hayden Panettiere's Nude Scene: Much Ado About Nothing?

Peter Martin — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:32:00 EST

Filed under: Comedy, New Releases, 20th Century Fox, Summer Movies

Quick: what actress said she would only go naked for an Oscar-caliber role? If you answered Hayden Panettiere, you'd be right. (Of course, if you answered Megan Fox or a few dozen other actresses, you'd also be right.) Two years ago, the budding Heroes starlet claimed: "I'd never go nude or shave my head - unless it's for an Oscar!" Either things have changed, or I Love You, Beth Cooper is a sleeper contender for an Academy Award. Chris Columbus' film, based on the book by Larry Doyle, opens on Friday. Panettiere stars in the titular role as a freshly-graduated high school student who decides to show a nerdy valedictorian (Paul Rust) the night of his life. And her breasts.

Panettiere confidently drops her towel in front of Rust in the locker room scene. "It didn't bother me much," she told People. "I don't think it takes much thought, and I don't think it takes much preparation as an actor," she explained to Parade. "I didn't find it very hard being naked. It's like I drop my towel and that's it." How naked was she? "I was really naked," she elaborated to E! Online. "I had these little sticky petals on my boobs, but that was about it."

Sounds like a hot, naked scene -- except the movie is rated PG-13 ("for crude and sexual content, language, some teen drinking and drug references, and brief violence") and you may be able to see more of the 19-year-old Panettierre's body in a bikini (the trailer hints that her exposed flesh is limited to her bare back, above the waist). Kudos to Panettiere for getting as much publicity as possible for her movie while keeping her private parts private -- for now.

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Fox Releasing 'The Paul Newman Tribute DVD Collection'

Elisabeth Rappe — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 15:32:00 EST

Filed under: Classics, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Home Entertainment, Movie Marketing

It's tough to lose a legend like Paul Newman, and the rush of DVDs, biographies, and rumor mongering don't make it any easier. The rush of merchandising seems to walk a fine line between actually honoring the person, and pure graveyard profit. You can decide what category Fox's upcoming Paul Newman Tribute Collection falls into. I'm going to err on the side of classy, even at its steep price of $89.98, because it contains a total of 17 DVDs. The list includes:

The Long, Hot Summer (the film that Newman Joanne Woodward met on)
Rally 'Round the Flag, Boys
From the Terrace
Exodus
The Hustler Collector's Edition
Hemingway's Adventures of a Young Man
What a Way to Go!
Hombre
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Collector's Edition
The Towering Inferno Special Edition
Buffalo Bill and the Indians Or Sitting Bull's History Lesson
Quintet
The Verdict Collector's Edition

The collection goes on sale on September 22. It's definitely a fine collection of films (and it's especially nice to include the posh Collector's Editions of films like Butch Cassidy, unfortunately the notes say nothing about the lesser known films like Exodus or Quintet getting the remastered treatment. Still, it's a chance for a lot of people to meet some gems of Newman's impressive career for the first time, and for longtime fans to rediscover a film they forgot all about. To sweeten the deal, the set comes with a 136 page softbound book with new photos of Newman, photos of cast, crew and sets of the film along with , movie excerpts, and personal quotes from the man himself. The book alone might help tip the balance -- he was possibly the most beautiful man to have ever lived! Who wouldn't want a nice book like that?

[via DVD Active]

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Yesterday, Did You Celebrate Our 'Independence Day'?

William Goss — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 17:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, 20th Century Fox

Maybe I just follow far too many movie nerds on Twitter to get an accurate reading on this, but did Independence Day turn around and become an honest-to-goodness movie staple over the Fourth of July holiday while I wasn't looking?

I mean, I get that it was huge when it landed on said weekend back in 1996, and I know that President Pullman's speech (embedded below) is quotable as all get out -- though extra points to the pal who instead posted "Eagle-20! Fox-2!" -- but I usually see war movies and TV show marathons as go-to fodder for the 4th, however less fitting their titles may be.

So how many of you actually did watch ID4 yesterday? How long had it been since you watched it? How fond of it were you thirteen years back? Did you watch it because it harkens back to a big, loud, relatively healthy level of cheese that we used to get from our blockbusters, back when we could see what exactly was going on in any given action scene? Or was it simply a more welcome/convenient option than going to see a third Ice Age or a two-and-a-half-hour gangster drama, or perhaps a memorial to the late Jeff Goldblum?

Comment away!

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The Game to Play B.A. Baracus in 'A-Team'?

Peter Martin — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 16:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Casting, RumorMonger, Fandom, 20th Century Fox

Set the bar low enough, and it can only be exceeded. That's how I feel about the upcoming big-screen version of The A-Team, a 80s television series entirely beholden to the staid formula of the day and ripe for reinvention. I didn't hate the series so much as I found it routinely mediocre. My colleague Monika Bartyzel loved the series as a kid, yet still questioned the casting choices that were being entertained: Liam Neeson as Hannibal? Bradley Cooper as Face? Adding fuel to the fire, rapper The Game is being considered to play the role of B.A. Baracus, according to blackfilm.com, which quotes "a very highly reliable source in the entertainment industry."

For me, the only thing that made The A-Team watchable was the bantering between the characters, and the choices so far all indicate that director Joe Carnahan is aiming for a more straightforward action picture, based on a script by Wanted's Michael Brandt and Derek Haas. Which is crazy, like moving Miami Vice to Seattle or transforming the lead character in Get Smart into a fairly bland, somewhat competent secret agent. (Even though the latter still made money.)

The mistake would be in confusing brand recognition with brand loyalty. If you're promising fans of the TV show that you're going to deliver the same thing, only bigger and better, then you damn well better deliver something in the same spirit. I haven't seen The Game's work as an actor (Waist Deep, Street Kings) yet; is he any good? If this rumor is true, could he wear the mohawk of the immortal Mr. T?

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Rodriguez Picks His 'Predators' Director

Scott Weinberg — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:03:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, 20th Century Fox, Remakes and Sequels

Lots of movie geeks (yes, like us) have been abuzz with the vague discussions regarding the Predator remake / reboot / sequel / whatever. All we really knew was that the generally kick-ass Robert Rodriguez was on board to oversee, as the producer, but now we have confirmation have Robert's good pal that the director has been named. And that name ... is Nimrod.

Nimrod Antal, to be precise, who fest-goers will know from Kontroll and thriller fans will recall from Vacancy. Harry's got a whole bunch of cool info on the project right here, but I've chosen a small segment that makes me particularly happy: "It involves a very intense group of people stranded on a Predator planet discovering unspeakable horrors." Yes! Plus Mr. Rodriguez shares some enthusiasm from a Fox colleague: "No one is going to talk about AVP again after this movie. I stake my life on it."

Hell, just give us a knock-down, drag-out Predator fest with a few meaty characters, a whole lot of action, and maybe a few storytelling hooks. That'll make a whole lot of people happy. Speaking only for myself, heck, I thought both of Antal's films were darn good, so I've no reason to doubt RR's call on this one!

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Review: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

William Goss — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:02:00 EST

Filed under: Animation, Comedy, Theatrical Reviews, 20th Century Fox, Family Films, Summer Movies

Pixar and everything else - them's the breaks when it comes to judging computer-animated fare these days. Although Pixar has rightfully earned themselves the lead among studios, and by a significant margin, it's all too easy to then marginalize the performance of others.

DreamWorks has certainly raised their game beyond pure pop-culture recitation with the inventive and entertaining likes of Over the Hedge, Kung Fu Panda, and Monsters vs. Aliens (and Aardman or no, I'd even include the winning Flushed Away among their finer efforts). For every Open Season, Sony has given us a Monster House (okay, so that's just one-for-one at the moment). And every time that Fox bequeaths to unwilling audiences something like Space Chimps or Everyone's Hero, Blue Sky has nothing to do with it.

Fox/Blue Sky, however, is the precise pairing that gives us the visually engaging and moderately amusing outings like Robots, Horton Hears a Who!, and the Ice Age films, with the latest of which -- Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs -- falling right in line with that modest-yet-reliable tradition.

Continue reading Review: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs

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Tony Scott's 'Unstoppable' Derailed?

Elisabeth Rappe — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 19:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Thrillers, Celebrities and Controversy, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand

A mere week after Sony canned Steven Soderbergh's Moneyball, another big-budget film may have bitten the dust. Fox is putting the breaks on Tony Scott's next project, Unstoppable, over budget concerns, and may can the project altogether.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the film was set to begin shooting in fall, and Denzel Washington and Chris Pine were attached to play the leads. But none of the acting deals have been officially closed, and not even Scott is definitively signed to the project. Fox is growing more and more concerned about the cost of production on the thriller, which would be quite high -- after all, it centers around a runaway train loaded with toxic chemicals, and it's being stopped by the $20 million dollar Denzel Washington. While the film isn't in as much production peril as Moneyball, its budget is definitely a roadblock, and fat will have to be trimmed somewhere. Maybe they can make a smaller train, or just have it be an unstoppable semi-truck, or maybe some of the A-Listers can take a pay cut ... something like that.

This summer has seen a lot of big-budget films falter at the box office, so studio hesitations are understandable, and budget trimming has been a long time coming. Though I do love a good action flick, I'm neither here nor there about the plot of Unstoppable, but it would be a shame for Pine to lose his next big role, and kill his Captain Kirk Buzz. So let's hope they figure out how to cut some corners.

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The Trailer for 'Amelia' Takes Flight

Elisabeth Rappe — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Drama, Romance, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips

A biopic of Amelia Earhart is like every girl's dream come true. Did any woman not grow up idolizing her, spend hours covering her gorgeous flight jackets, and wondering just where her plane vanished to? She has a story just made for the big screen, and if there was an actress who could pull it off, I do think it's Hilary Swank. She has the physical resemblance, and I know she has the talent, if only because I still love her as Maggie Fitzgerald.

Unfortunately, I'm not seeing much promise in Amelia. The first trailer for Mira Nair's biopic has gone online at Yahoo! Movies. (I've embedded a version below the jump to make it easier, but be sure to go visit Yahoo! for the HD version.) While it's beautifully costumed and lushly filmed, it looks a little too teary and overwrought. Admittedly, my image of Earhart is one filtered through the Golden Age of celebrity, and I picture her as a flying Rosalind Russell / Girl Friday type. I've never forgotten a National Geographic blurb I read about her, which described her calmly powdering her nose after one of her plane crashes. That's the kind of biopic I want ... one that has humor and the adventure of the times, not one that's gloom and "You're going to die!" doom from the get go. I'll continue to hold out hope for it, as it has a great cast, and I want it to bring back 1920s and 30s fashion.

Continue reading The Trailer for 'Amelia' Takes Flight

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The Latest on Live-Action 'Cowboy Bebop' and 'Robotech' Movies

Jessica Barnes — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:25:00 EST

Filed under: Animation, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, Warner Brothers, RumorMonger, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, Comic/Superhero/Geek

It was just last week that anime fans the world over breathed a sigh of relief that Leonardo DiCaprio's live-action Akira was no more. But, that doesn't mean Hollywood has lost its taste for anime, and there are still plenty of other reboots headed our way. So while most of them have stayed in development limbo, two of the more popular titles: Cowboy Bebop and Robotech have started to make new ground, and some of the people involved are starting to talk.

Cowboy Bebop:
When the live action film of the beloved anime was first announced, fans were not thrilled with the idea. Plus, it probably didn't help that Keanu Reeves was taking the role of Spike. But, maybe we shouldn't count out the film yet, because when it comes to the film's screenwriter, there is good news and some bad news. But, let's start with the good news. In an interview with Anime Vice, Craig was asked about whether or not he was familiar with the series, and to his credit, Craig went into full fan-boy mode, telling them about some of his favorite episodes and that both he and Reeves have been meeting with Sunrise studio (the creator of the anime) to make sure that the original 'feel' of the show remains intact. According to Craig, "they [Sunrise] were very specific about their vision for the series, and how it might convert to a live-action film." -- sounds promising, right? Well, the bad news is that Craig has zero experience with sci-fi, and made his name writing about con-men and dysfunctional families. But, I'm going to remain hopeful that with Sunrise watching over the flick, there might be a chance we get something a little better than expected.

Read the rest over at SciFi Squad

Continue reading The Latest on Live-Action 'Cowboy Bebop' and 'Robotech' Movies

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Zak Penn Talks 'The Avengers' and Fox's Failure to Crossover

Elisabeth Rappe — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 10:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels

The Avengers' mighty writer Zak Penn gave a nifty little update on all things Marvel yesterday, and it completely slipped past my radar. Better late than never though, right?

SciFi Wire caught up with Penn right as he was on the verge of another Marvel meeting. With Iron Man 2 well underway, they're beginning to knit together the continuity and overlap the plotlines: "I'm taking a meeting next week with the Thor and Captain America people, and we are all going to get together, and I will see what is going to happen. I'll see where they are leaving the characters; it's pretty complicated. ... There's a board that is tracking what is happening. [We'll see] how this movie overlaps in that movie ... Marvel is autonomous now. It is night and day: Everyone has read every comic. They know how to make a cool movie." (Low wages or not, wouldn't you just love to work for Marvel?)

Every compliment Penn has for Marvel is a backhanded slap to his old parent studio, Fox. He revealed that he was frustrated while writing X-Men and X2 because he was dying to do a crossover, and bring in the Fantastic Four.
"They're doing Captain American and Thor first, and then Avengers is coming out," Penn said. "They want to see that they're all connected, not like the Fantastic Four can't come into the X-Men world, like I was told ... It is a world of difference [at Marvel]; it is a lot easier to do things like that, and they encourage it." Here I'll leave off so you can weep at the missed opportunities, and wish we lived in an Ultimate Universe where Marvel still owned their entire stable of heroes.

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Neil Marshall in Talks to Direct 'Predators'

Peter Martin — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 11:15:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, RumorMonger, 20th Century Fox, Remakes and Sequels

My principles may be crumbling, just a little. Neil Marshall (pictured) is in talks to direct Predators, according to Bloody Disgusting, citing an anonymous tipster. At this point, it's very much a rumor -- for all we know, Marshall was visiting a friend in the commissary at 20th Century Fox and was seen in close proximity to an executive -- but of all the possible candidates to helm a sequel to the alien hunter franchise, I'd definitely be down with Marshall.

He has three features to his credit: The Descent is the best and most widely-acclaimed, a feverish nightmare in which a group of women explore a cave and discover deadly denizens, to their dismay. I got a huge kick out of the bloody, funny, pulse-pounding Dog Soldiers, featuring Scottish soldiers on a training run who encounter werewolves, and, though I was decidedly in the minority, really enjoyed the post-Apocalyptic action epic Doomsday. The latter was his first with a Hollywood studio (Rogue Pictures). Upcoming is his "old-style swords 'n' armor action epic" Centurion, which looks promising but doesn't yet have US distribution.

Robert Rodriguez is on board to produce. Predators is already set to be released on July 7, 2010, so Fox will have to make a decision soon. Marshall has always written his own scripts; if this rumor proves to be true, either he'll have to pound out a rewrite in a hurry or take what Fox gives him. Considering the track records of Marshall and Fox, there's reason for both optimism ... and despair.

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Rob Cohen Dumps Vin Diesel and Goes 'Medieval'

Elisabeth Rappe — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 09:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Deals, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, DIY/Filmmaking

If you're going to dump Vin Diesel and XXX: The Return of Xander Cage for anything, it should be The Magnificent Seven. Nothing less would do. Now, if your heart stopped at the idea of Rob Cohen directing The Magnificent Seven, let me pause here to laugh, and assure you that he isn't ... he's just going medieval.

According to Variety, Cohen has dumped Diesel for Medieval, "an event-sized action film" that the director is describing as Magnificent Seven meets the Middle Ages. Fox and New Regency paid a nice chunk of change to Alex Litvak and Michael Finch for their spec script, and brought McG on to produce. They're hoping to get underway by October. Regency is determined to keep the details of this medieval tale under tight wraps, but the Seven reference stems from it reportedly being about a group of warriors who hail from different cultures, and come together to fight ... something. that exists Cohen's promise of "a heightened reality" and gigantic action pieces. Knowing his past films, I would bet very good money on it being a dragon.

While this has shades of 10,000 B.C., I have to give props to Cohen for carrying around a degree like mine, and finding some way to use it. All those facts about the Plantagenets don't come in handy nearly as often as I thought they would.

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Javier Bardem Joins 'Wall Street' Sequel

Peter Martin — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 14:45:00 EST

Filed under: Drama, Casting, Deals, 20th Century Fox, Remakes and Sequels

Now we're talking! Javier Bardem will bring Anton Chigurh, his character from No Country for Old Men, roaring back to life in the sequel to Oliver Stone's Wall Street. The hired assassin with the funny haircut will stalk financial company executives, using a fire extinguisher to put the fear of God into those heartless suits who stole America's money and refuse to give an accounting for their actions.

Unfortunately -- at least to my way of thinking -- that's not quite how the Wall Street sequel will play out, but it's not that far from the truth, either. Instead of playing a bad guy who sets things straight, Bardem will, in fact, play "a stock-shorting worldwide hedge fund manager," according to Nikki Finke at Deadline Hollywood Daily. He is the villain of the piece, held responsible for the suicide of the hero's mentor.

UPDATE: Nikki Finke clarifies today (via Fox) that Bardem is not onboard ... yet ... though that's who they want for the role.

Continue reading Javier Bardem Joins 'Wall Street' Sequel

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Bryan Singer Feels Shame and Wants to Return to 'X-Men'

Elisabeth Rappe — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 17:03:00 EST

Filed under: Action, RumorMonger, Celebrities and Controversy, Fandom, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels

Poor Bryan Singer. He may have X-Men and X2 under his belt, but a lot of fans will never forgive him for selling out the mutants in favor of Superman ... and we won't go into the Superman thing again.

But Singer is sorry. Very sorry. In fact, he told Total Film that he made a terrible mistake and that he regretted not directing X3 "before I was watching it, during watching it, after watching it." (Join the club, Singer.) He was quick to amend his longing with praise for a little praise for Brett Ratner, though. "It's weird for me to watch it, because I'm so close to the universe. And also Brett is a good friend of mine. But, of course, I would love to return to that universe." How to return is a problem now that the series has devolved into spin-offs and prequels, and he's understandably reluctant to return through one of the avenues open to him: a Magneto origin story. "The only thing that concerns me about Magneto is that if the prequel were to follow the track I used in X-Men, which is Magneto's history in the concentration camp, then I've lived in that world. Apt Pupil, X-Men and now Valkyrie ... I've lived in that Nazi universe for quite a while. I just might need to take a little break before I do something like that."

Continue reading Bryan Singer Feels Shame and Wants to Return to 'X-Men'

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Tony Scott Confirms Carl Rinsch and 'A L I E N' Prequel

Jessica Barnes — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:02:00 EST

Filed under: Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, 20th Century Fox, Remakes and Sequels

So, do you want the good news or the bad news first? Well, let's start with the bad news: Its official, the A L I E N reboot has gone beyond rumor and straight into reality. But the good news is that at least it won't be a remake. Just last week, Peter broke the story that Fox was looking to revive the franchise, but at the time, none of the principals involved (original creator Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, or rumored director, Carl Rinsch) had officially commented on the status of the project. Now, though, Collider brings us news that they got the chance to speak with Tony Scott during a press event for The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 and he confirmed that Rinsch has indeed been given the nod to direct a prequel to the 1979 sci-fi horror.

Once you get over the fact that a prequel is a particularly goofy idea, it probably wouldn't be that hard to come up with a plausible story. In the original film, the story of the derelict ship that the crew of the Nostromo encountered was never really explained. That element of the unknown was always an integral part of the original film's scare factor, but you have to admit, it wouldn't be all that difficult to fill in the blanks. Scott is looking to get the film into production by the end of the year, but there is still a small matter of a script and a cast before they can think about sticking to a tentative release date of summer, 2011.

After the jump: how do you make an A L I E N prequel? And does it automatically have to star Christina Bale?

Continue reading Tony Scott Confirms Carl Rinsch and 'A L I E N' Prequel

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Ryan Reynolds Makes Deadpool Promises

Elisabeth Rappe — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 15:02:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, Scripts, 20th Century Fox, Newsstand, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels

The announcement of a Deadpool spinoff was pretty much a non-event. It was a guarantee the moment they cast Ryan Reynolds way back in February 2008. It may even have been predestined from the moment Reynolds was born. It's probably written on a scroll somewhere ... a scroll illustrated by Rob Liefeld, because that's how mysticism works.

The real issue is whether or not fans care after they trotted out a guy with arm-katanas and called him Deadpool. (Let's pretend it matters that we do or don't.) There was a lot of happy talk that Reynolds was "actively developing" the spin-off, but Hugh Jackman "actively developed" X-Men Origins: Wolverine, too.

So, take HitFix's interview with Reynolds for what it's worth. Drew McWeeny caught up with the man who assured fans he would really give us the Merc with a Mouth: "Well, I'm intimately involved with it. We're just trying to break a story right now and figure out who the villain is going to be and all that stuff. But, it's going to be just like the comic books. I'm gonna have a messed up face and you may see some flashbacks of Wade earlier in his life, but primarily what you see is what you get in the comics and that's the goal. And there is no better place to draw material from then the comics which are incredible." There's a fragment of hope there. Grab onto it, and dream of a movie where Wilson cracks jokes about spin-offs and franchises like he mocks the pages of his comic book.

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Cruise! Diaz! Spy Comedy! 'Wichita' (?!)

Peter Martin — Thu, 28 May 2009 16:35:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Comedy, Romance, Casting, Deals, RumorMonger, 20th Century Fox, Tom Cruise

Don't hold your breath, but Tommy Boy may have chosen his next project. Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz "are in advanced negotiations" to star in an action comedy currently titled Wichita, according to Variety. Cruise is notoriously ~~indecisive~~ cautious, though, so it's not a go until the cameras start rolling.

If all goes well for 20th Century Fox, the idea is to throw the movie into the summer 2010 maelstrom. Fox already has The A-Team, Gulliver's Travels, and Predator set for the season. The bigger question is how Cruise would handle the role. The character he would play is described as "a secret agent who pops in and out of the life of a single woman." The movie is described as having "several action scenes," so it sounds like it would lean more on comedy and romance. The sole time Cruise has tried to be funny and romantic was his Academy Award-nominated performance 13 years ago in Cameron Crowe's Jerry Maguire. Cruise looks very good when he's running, and can play stoic and stiff in his sleep, but comedy is basically an undiscovered country for him.

The secondary question is James Mangold, who is set to direct. He has mad skills with actors (Girl, Interrupted, Walk the Line), but his only previous romantic comedy was Kate & Leopold with Meg Ryan and Hugh Jackman in 2001, which, alas, I haven't seen. Cameron Diaz is a definite asset as a comedic actress. Still, I'm wondering: is this a recipe for disaster?

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Very Cool 'Avatar' Concept Art

Peter Martin — Thu, 28 May 2009 13:35:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, 20th Century Fox, Images

OMG! Up to now, all we've seen from James Cameron's upcoming 3-D epic Avatar is a photograph of Cameron on set with star Sam Worthington, and another solo shot of Cameron, so these peaks at concept art for the film, courtesy of the blog MarketSaw, make me very happy because they look so cool.

The blog says that the images are from The Art of Avatar: James Cameron's Epic Adventure, a book that's due to be published in November. As such, they don't represent the final product, of course, but they give a good idea of the look and style that Cameron has in mind for the movie. (That's a presumption on my part.) To quote from a previous post, Avatar "tells of a paraplegic ex-marine war veteran (Worthington) who's sent to establish a human settlement on the distant planet of Pandora, but winds up in a battle against the planet's indigenous population, the Na'vi." The image above shows a pretty wild-looking helicopter pitted against winged creatures; the other pic depicts the power suit that allows humans to explore Pandora.

If you'd like to know more about how the power suit and helicopter fit into the overall scheme of things, head on over to MarketSaw. They have the full-size, full-resolution pics. Right now, I can't wait to see some images in action. When do we get a teaser?

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Is Fox Rebooting 'Alien' Next?

Peter Martin — Thu, 28 May 2009 11:45:00 EST

Filed under: Action, Horror, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, RumorMonger, 20th Century Fox, Remakes and Sequels

In Hollywood, no one can hear you think. With a remake / reboot of Predator on its way, 20th Century Fox may now be setting its sights on Alien. (That "popping" sound you just heard emanates from the burst blood vessels of a million fans.) An anonymous source told Bloody Disgusting that Fox is developing a remake of Ridley Scott's 1979 classic. Another source says that the studio "is possibly working on an origins story, as opposed to a straight-up remake."

Considering how both the Alien and Predator franchises have been devalued, thanks to the low quality of AVP: Alien vs. Predator and AVP: Requiem, as well as Fox's recent, poor track record with action movies, my expectations are below zero. With Robert Rodriguez on board as producer and a July 2010 release date set, a new Predator is coming whether we want it or not. As a strictly business decision, it makes sense for Fox to keep remaking, rebooting, and making sequels to properties they own. As a huge fan of Alien, I just sigh. The picture, by the way, is from the Polish poster for the original.

For what it's worth, BD's tipster claims that Ridley Scott, Tony Scott, and Michael Costigan are on board for the next movie in the Alien series, and that Carl Rinsch has been hired to direct. (Here are four commercials he did for a car company.) Rinsch has worked for the Scotts since 2000. (Here's an article about how he originally got hired by the company.) Keep in mind that these rumors haven't been confirmed by the principals. Feel free to express your disgust and / or delight in the comments. In the meantime, enjoy once again the terrific original Alien trailer, as presented by our own Scott Weinberg.

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Not-So-Terrific Trailers: Aliens in the Attic

William Goss — Sun, 24 May 2009 18:03:00 EST

Filed under: Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, 20th Century Fox, Family Films, Trailers and Clips

So after Scott busted out with the classic trailer for the classic Alien, I thought it might be high time for something a little more low-brow and modern. Enter Aliens in the Attic (formerly They Came From Upstairs), a positively shrill-looking summer comedy in which a handful of kids must prevent a handful of extraterrestrials from dominating the world beyond their homestead...

Okay, so there's a premise there worthy of an '80s-family-adventure throwback, but clearly, priority one for the co-producer of Daddy Day Camp and the director of The Honeymooners here was having a break-dancing Hollister hand-me-down take on a kung-fu-fighting Doris Roberts.

Now I've got your attention, huh?

I'm not sure what else to say about that scene until you watch it for yourself, and even then, I'm not sure that words can do it justice. I mean, thank goodness they bothered to make it Just Like A Video Game for the characters and audience to connect with, but that doesn't quite excuse the goofiness of it. Maybe that means I should just be grateful above all else that on July 31st, everyone can hear you scream.

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