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Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams Reunite for 'Mission Impossible 4'
Filed under: Action, Casting, Deals, Paramount, Tom Cruise
Looks like we have some good (and possibly bad) news for fans of the Mission Impossible franchise. Mike Fleming at Deadline Hollywood is reporting that Paramount and Tom Cruise have indeed put away their past squabbles in order to pave the way for a fourth Mission Impossible film starring Cruise as Impossible Mission Force agent Ethan Hunt. The possibly bad news? MI3 director J.J. Abrams will not be captaining the ship this time out.
Deadline reports that Abrams will be producing alongside the leading man, but that the studio is actively looking for a director to hire. I suppose that means Abrams hasn't been ruled completely out - who knows, he may fall in love with the project and hop back into the directors chair - but it's not likely he'll return in that capacity. We do have two more names confirmed for the project though: writing duo Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec. The pair may not be all that well known on the cinema front, but fans of the small screen should recognize both as writer/producers on a number of television shows, including the Abrams-produced, spy-loving Alias.
There's no confirmation at this stage as to whether or not any previous cast members will be returning, but if they're keeping the streak going by bringing back Cruise they may as well bring back Ving Rhames for him to play off. Beyond that, however, the only other major bit of news is that Paramount will be shooting this summer for a Memorial Day 2011 release.
But what say you? Are you glad to see Tom Cruise reentering the IMF fold? Or would you rather see a franchise return follow the current Hollywood trend of flat-out reboot with a new cast?
'Days of Thunder' Isn't Being Remade
Filed under: Action, Drama, Romance, Paramount, Tom Cruise, Nicole Kidman
It wasn't a huge hit. It didn't receive good reviews. And it's not really considered a classic by any measure. But Days of Thunder has its fans, and those people would be really pissed if Paramount decided to remake their beloved NASCAR movie. That's why it's surprising that the studio is not following with the traditional Hollywood procedure of redoing, rebooting or otherwise diminishing the original. Instead, according to Variety, Paramount is celebrating Days of Thunder on its 20th anniversary.No, it's not getting a special theatrical re-release nor is it likely that Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman will be reunited for a big occasion. Simply, the studio has made a number of licensing deals related to the film's anniversary. Kohls will be selling men's t-shirts with the tagline "You Can't Outrun the Thunder" and Robert Duvall's signature line, "Rubbin' is Racin.'" Also, there's reportedly a downloadable videogame on the way this summer!
It may not sound like much, but there's something to be said for Paramount's idea to spotlight a 20-year-old property. Are they interested in giving back to the small, loyal fanbase? Or, do they hope to acquire new fans -- a new generation of racing fans, for instance -- by promoting the heck out of an archive title with a continued niche audience? The reasoning from the studio is officially thus: "Days of Thunder is a timeless racing film that has maintained a strong following 20 years after its theatrical release."
The World's Largest Private Collection of 'Jerry Maguire' VHS Tapes
Filed under: Fandom, Tom Cruise, Home Entertainment
Some folks collect stamps. The mad geniuses at Everything Is Terrible collect Jerry Maguire videocassettes. It's a joke amongst found footage aficionados that the 1996 Cameron Crowe film dominates the video shelves of second-hand shops, and EIT wants all of them -- every single copy.
Their plea: "For over a year, we've been chronicling wild packs of Maguires in their native thrift store habitat with our patented Maguirewatches, and during that time, we decided to start a Jerry Maguire sanctuary to preserve these great artifacts. Our goal is to have the largest private collection of Jerry Maguire VHS tapes in the history of mankind and we need your help."
I'm not sure what they plan on doing with that many tapes, but I love the idea, as absurd as it is. I'm hoping they open some kind of museum. You can send your unwanted VHS copies of Jerry Maguire to:
Everything is Terrible!
P.O. Box 47924
Chicago, IL 60647 USA
Taylor Lautner and Tom Cruise in 'Top Gun' Sequel?
Filed under: Action, Romance, Casting, Paramount, RumorMonger, Tom Cruise, Remakes and Sequels
When you consider that a little over a year ago there was talk that Taylor Lautner wasn't 'hot enough' to continue playing second fiddle to a certain sparkling vampire, it's pretty impressive that the previously unheard of actor made his way into the hearts (and onto the bedroom walls) of girls everywhere (but to be fair, the 8-pack probably had a little something to do with it). Well, like his Twilight co-stars, Lautner's been looking to branch out -- but unlike his co-stars who went on to 'darker' indie type films, according to Nikki Finke, Lautner is headed straight for the land of blockbusters to star alongside Tom Cruise in the aeronautic romance, Northern Lights. According to Finke, the story centers on, "a gifted, young, aerobatics pilot who faces off with his controlling, billionaire father and falls in love with a gifted, female pilot."
Now you might notice that the plot for Lights sounds pretty similar to some of the details that had been rumored for a follow up to Cruise's 80's classic, Top Gun, except without the whole younger son and billionaire father angle. So while it certainly sounds like a sequel and the logical role for Cruise being a reprisal of Maverick (Cruise) as the mentor to the plucky pilot -- so far, no one has even uttered the words Viper, Goose, or made the call to Kenny Loggins for a Danger Zone remix. Max Payne director John Moore has already been hired to direct and according to Finke, Lautner will earn himself a $7.5 million payday for the film, making him the highest paid Hollywood teen actor around -- take that Team Edward!
Northern Lights is expected to start production this April.
Trailer Park: Knights, Warlords and Repo Cops
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Trailer Trash, Tom Cruise, Trailers and Clips
Knight and Day
Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz star in an action flick so silly and over the top it just might work. He's some kind of super spy and she's caught in the middle. The trailer is fun and hopefully the movie will be too. Watch for this one on July 2.
Warlords
This historical action drama set during the Taiping Rebellion of the 1860s tells the tale of three men who swear allegiance and brotherhood to one another after their shared experiences in combat. Lush historical settings and some eye-popping action suggest this may be one to watch for. No U.S. release info yet.
Repo Men
Forest Whitaker and Jude Law are repossessors of artificial organs in this red band trailer. If you don't make the payments on these miraculous futuristic devices they will track you down and rip them from your body. Wait a minute, didn't this already come out and wasn't it an opera with Paris Hilton and that guy from Buffy the Vampire Slayer? No, this is a different film entirely and looks like it might be a good one. We'll find out for sure on April 2.
David Cronenberg Revives 'The Talking Cure' With Keira Knightley
Filed under: Drama, Independent, Casting, RumorMonger, DIY/Filmmaking, Newsstand, Tom Cruise
Nearly three long years ago, David Cronenberg had optioned Christopher Hampton's play The Talking Cure, and was preparing it as his next project. Late last year, he became attached to The Matarese Circle, the spy thriller that boasted Denzel Washington and Tom Cruise. While Cronenberg fans wondered if their favorite body horrormeister had gone soft on popcorn thrillers, Cruise dropped out, the project apparently died, and Cronenberg was left to reboot The Fly. But if The Playlist and Hopscotch Films' Facebook page are accurate, Cronenberg may be doubling back to the psychiatrist's couch for The Talking Cure.Reportedly, Keira Knightley, Christoph Waltz and Michael Fassbender are attached to star in Cure. The play centers on a young Carl Jung, who uses Sigmund Freud's "talking cure" on a young and troubled Russian woman. In the process of psychoanalyzing her, he falls in love with her. Freud comes along, marvels at his success, and anoints him his psychiatric successor. When Jung starts to develop his own ideas about therapy, Freud isn't too happy, and their professional relationship sours.
Obviously, Knightley will be playing the troubled girl, Fassbender will undoubtedly be Jung, and Waltz will be Freud. Beyond that there's no start date for the project. Will it fall apart as easily as The Matarese Circle did? I hope not. For those who have been dismayed over Cronenberg going "mainstream," this could be a project that puts him back on the disquieting mental map.
Tom Cruise Returns to Action in 'Knight and Day' Trailer
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Romance, Thrillers, 20th Century Fox, Tom Cruise, Movie Marketing, Trailers and Clips
For those of you disappointed that Tom Cruise bailed on the upcoming action film Salt (Angelina Jolie took his place), we've got the trailer for the equally ridiculous-looking spy thriller Knight & Day (formerly Wichita), courtesy of E! Online. The movie reunites Cruise with his Vanilla Sky costar Cameron Diaz in a plot about a lovelorn woman romanced by a secret agent. And against her wishes, she ends up involved in his latest mission. On paper it sounds like 27 Dresses meets Mission: Impossible (with a little Bourne Identity mixed in), and unfortunately there's not much shown in this spot to make it look any better than that. Given that it's directed by James Mangold (Walk the Line; 3:10 to Yuma) and features the always appealing Peter Sarsgaard, I'm trying to overlook the sitcom-friendly title, contrived premise and, most of all, Cruise's smiley performance, which seems to combine Ethan Hunt with Jerry Maguire. Seriously, I hope this is more True Lies and Mr. and Mrs. Smith than it appears.
Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt Competing for Zhang Yimou's Next Film?
Filed under: Drama, Foreign Language, Casting, Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Cinematical Indie, War
While I eagerly await for Sony Pictures Classics to release Zhang Yimou's The First Gun in the U.S. (despite the negative response it's apparently received at home in China), I can't help but leapfrog that movie in order to excitedly bring news of the filmmaker's next film: The Thirteen Women of Jinling (also known as The 13 Women of Nanjing). According to a Chinese website, Jingling will apparently take priority over Yimou's other in-the-works project, Romance Under a Hawthorn Tree, and it will feature a Hollywood A-list actor in some capacity.Producer Zhang Weiping mentions only the biggest and best as potentials, with Tom Hanks, Tom Cruise and Brad Pitt allegedly all showing interest. One of these actors could fill the role of a pastor in the film, which will be set in a Nanjing church during the Japanese invasion of 1937. As for the titular women, all prostitutes who sought shelter in church, Weiping says they're looking for unknown actresses with "good foreign language skills" (likely meaning they can speak enough English to act opposite a big Hollywood movie star).
The Best of the Decade: Action Flicks
Filed under: Action, Foreign Language, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Thrillers, Disney, Lionsgate Films, Magnolia, New Line, Paramount, Sony, Sony Classics, Universal, Warner Brothers, Focus Features, 20th Century Fox, Dreamworks, Tom Cruise, Steven Spielberg, Quentin Tarantino, Johnny Depp, Peter Jackson, James Bond, Lists, Miramax, Best/Worst, War, Daniel Craig
Cinematical is about to launch into our best-of-the-'00s series, with a different writer tackling a different genre over these last few weeks of the aughts (or whatever it was we decided to call this decade). Yours truly has been tasked with sifting out the most exciting action flicks these years have had to offer, and in the list-making equivalent of flinching, I've decided to divide them up by superlative instead of ranking them in order of awesomeness.
Oh, and before you comment away about what's missing (which we do want), I have left off The Dark Knight, Spider-Man 2, X2: X-Men United and The Incredibles, so they may be included in any superhero or animated list to come. If those movies are left off those lists, then by all means, give them hell. I might even join you.
Watch: The 5 Worst Homemade 'Risky Business' Dance Videos
Filed under: Fandom, Tom Cruise, Trailers and Clips
One of the most iconic movie images of the 1980s is that of Tom Cruise, clad only in socks, underwear, dress shirt, and sunglasses, dancing to the strains of Bob Seger's "Old Time Rock 'n' Roll" in Risky Business. Guitar Hero recreated the scene for a series of commercials last year, which apparently put it into the heads of quite a few young people that they should do the same thing in their own homes. As the video evidence shows, this was approximately as bad an idea as it sounds like it would be. We've chosen five of the worst ones and posted them after the jump. The first is courtesy of BuzzFeed, and it's the best reminder that the film was called Risky Business for a reason. I love that even though the girl seems to be legitimately injured, they still posted it on YouTube. Why let a simple thing like a concussion keep you from Internet fame?
That one, and four other bad ones, after the jump.
Tom Cruise and J.J. Abrams Reunite for 'Mission Impossible 4'
'Big Top Pee-Wee': The Original Benicio Del Toro Wolfman
Spin-ematical: New on DVD and Blu-ray for 2/9
Watch This: Brilliant Oscar-Nominated Short 'Logorama'
Chris Nolan to Lead 'Superman' Reboot!?
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