It was over two years ago that we got the first installment of Hoodwinked! It did well enough in its first weekend, making $17 million dollars ($3 mil short of its cost), that #2 was put into the works. Now writer and voice Cory Edwards has been blogging about the second installment, and has listed the cast that Weinstein Co. has put together. Some voices remain, like Glenn Close, David Ogden Stiers, and Andy Dick. Oh, and we can't forget Patrick Warburton -- but it's not like anyone, ever, could replace him.

But there are also some new names to the mix. Red, who was voiced by Anne Hathaway, will now get the invincible hero Hayden Panettiere -- which Edwards says is a good fit because Red becomes "more of a 'caped crusader'" in the film. Meanwhile, James Belushi's The Woodsman will now be voiced by the unstoppable Jack Putter -- Martin Short. You can't really complain about a Short replacement, unless well, he was taking over for a rippling, glistening superhero -- then it would be weird.

But there's also some tasty new vocal talent coming along for the ride. Edwards says Joan Cusack will play a "villainous witch," Brad Garrett is The Giant (of the beanstalk variety), Wayne Newton of all people will be Jimmy Ten Strings -- the Giant's singing harp, David Alan Grier will play a troll, and to top it all off, Amy Poehler and Bill Hader will voice Hansel & Gretel. How's that for an all-star cast?

[via Ace Showbiz]

There is just something about a 'best of' list, isn't there? We can't help ourselves I guess; I mean, how many AFI specials are we up to now, anyway? The Independent has compiled the best and worst film lines of all time, so automatically I started to think about my favorites and not so favorites. I have to admit, they've got a pretty good list: The usual candidates are there, but there are also a few surprises. I wholeheartedly agree that "As far back as I can remember, I've always wanted to be a gangster. ... " from Goodfellas, is possibly one of the great movie intros of all time.

Now, the ones on my list? I'm a sucker for a one liner so, some of my favorites would be Glenn Close in Dangerous Liaisons; "Like most intellectuals he's intensely stupid." And George Sanders in All About Eve :"You're maudlin and full of self pity, you're magnificent." And my worst list would be pretty much any line from Showgirls -- do I have to pick just one? So now it's your turn ...what would you're best and worst list look like?

[via Independent ]

Odds and ends from Friday and the weekend:

• After she finishes directing Things We Lost in the Fire, Danish filmmaker Susanne Bier will tackle an adaptation of Amanda Foreman's novel, Georgiana: Duchess of Devonshire. Simply called The Duchess, pic tells a story of "politics, wealth, and intrigue of late-eighteenth-century aristocracy through the intimate story of a woman who was its leader." Bier also directed the Danish film Open Hearts, which Zach Braff is supposed to direct at some point in the very late future.
• The cast for Lajos Koltai's Evening just got a whole more interesting. Hopping onboard the project are Meryl Streep and Mammie Gummer. Mother and daughter in real life, the two will play the same character at different phases in her life. Also joining this list of amazing female actresses (which already included Vanessa Redgrave, Toni Collette and Claire Danes) are Glenn Close and Eileen Atkins.
• While there's no direct quote from the man, according to a few different sources Steven Spielberg may be interested in directing the next Jurassic Park flick himself. Though Joe Johnston (who directed part three) is Spielberg's first choice to helm, if for some reason he cannot do it then Stevie will take on the task. What does this mean for Indiana Jones 4? Hell if I know, but it can't be good.

• The Call Of Cthulhu - The H.P. Lovecraft Preservation Society, a group of dauntless fans that created the brilliant, Cthulhu-themed musical, A Shoggoth On The Roof, have created the ultimate fan film, an incredible tribute to the writer whose work seeded modern horror favorites like Re-Animator and From Beyond. Shot like a 1920's era silent film, the 47-minute feature is technically amazing, shot (in black-and-white), lit and performed like an authentic film of the period would have been (although it would have horrified people of the time right into Arkham Sanitarium.) Considered Lovecraft's most famous story, the story of a man who inherits a collection of documents detailing the ghastly Cthulhu Cult, it is very faithfully adapted, not to mention super-efficient. The title cards are in the viewer's choice of an astonishing 24 different languages, and the lush, symphonic score can be played in hi-fi and the kitschy-fun, lo-fi "Mythoscope". A skillful build and an extremely satisfying payoff (think creature design King Kong '33 style) add up to one of the smartest horror films of recent memory.

I am generally suspicious of "star-studded" casts; that five, ten, or even twenty actors would all agree to participate in an independent film speaks not so much to the quality of the project but the current vogue of Hollywood actors wanting to create for themselves "indie" cred. And TV cred. And stage cred. So on and so forth like little Mexican jumping beans they go, from one acting platform to the next, building the versatile resume of an A-grade 21st century star. But perhaps the star-studded cast is less for resume building and more for rubbing elbows between the established and the new, the young and the old, the Hollywood icon and the crossover hit. Or maybe everyone's just feeling sentimental.

Some combination of the above theories might explain the strange amalgamation that is Nine Lives, with tearjerker experts Glenn Close, Kathy Baker, Lisa Gay Hamilton, Holly Hunter, Robin Wright Penn, Amy Brennerman, and Dakota Fanning reading dutifully from a script that seems to have been drafted during an Oprah post-show party.

After watching Hoodwinked, the Weinstein Company’s first foray into animation, one is not surprised to learn that the film has three directors (brothers Cory and Todd Edwards, and Tony Leech). In fact, the news is somewhat reassuring, because it potentially offers some explanation for the wildly schizophrenic work they have produced. Lurking beneath the surface of this (relatively) low-budget, modern retelling of Little Red Riding Hood are at least three distinct films. First is the traditional sweet animated story, complete with a bicycling, singing heroine who is briefly beset by an easily-resolved family conflict. Second comes the edgy, sarcastic 21st century cartoon, where all of the characters make knowing jokes, and people say things like “fo shizzle.” And, third, there’s the wildly unhinged, new style of animated film which stars a conniving, insane villain and his singing, action figure sidekicks. While all three would be fine on their own - the third, in fact, is fantastic - thrown together they result in an unfortunately uneven mess.