Marc Forster Tagged Articles at Cinematical
Gerard Butler is a 'Machine Gun Preacher'
Filed under: Action », Drama », Independent », Casting », Deals », DIY/Filmmaking », Newsstand », War »
Given the rumors that occasionally dog Gerard Butler, I love when the meaty film related ones actually prove true. According to Deadline Hollywood Daily, Butler will be starring in Machine Gun Preacher, a big screen version of the life and work of Reverend Sam Childers. He has attracted director Marc Forster who is happily taking the helming job.Childers' life story is detailed in his book, Another Man's War. A biker attracted to drugs and violence, he experienced a religious awakening at an Assembly of God church, and actually received a prophecy that he would work in Africa. Whether it was destiny or not, Childers made his first trip to Sudan, and took up what has become his life's work -- protecting children from Joseph Kony's Lord's Resistance Army. In addition to forming an orphange, he has put together a militia to protect Sudan's children -- hence the Machine Gun Preacher nickname. He even has an official website where you can learn more about his work in Sundan.
Forster developed the screenplay with screenwriter Jason Keller, and Butler will play Childers. He was photographed with the real Sam Childers just recently which gave rise to the speculation he was interested in playing him onscreen. Preproduction is set to start later this year, and if it comes together as well as it looks on paper, it'll make up for the fluffy rom-coms.
The Best of the Decade: Breakthroughs
Filed under: Fandom », Lists », Best/Worst »
After a month of Cinematical expertly digging through one genre after another and nailing down the best entries in each one during the last decade, it seemed like there was an important cache of contributions that might not get the recognition they deserved: breakthrough performances or films. Such a designation crosses the boundaries of genre, sometimes happens in a film less deserving of praise, or otherwise finds itself overlooked. But after poring over the list of so many thousands of movies made in the last ten years, I've put together a svelte collection of superlative contributions which I believe qualify as the breakthroughs of the decade.
(It should be noted that we aren't pretending that these actors and filmmakers never made movies before the ones we're celebrating here. Rather, these are the moments in their career that they crossed over and introduced themselves in a way that audiences could no longer ignore.)
Credits Report: Quantum of Solace
Filed under: Action », Music & Musicals », Fandom », James Bond », Daniel Craig », Trailers and Clips »
I've been a bit of a lapsed Bond-ophile as the series has evolved over the years. I grew up with Roger Moore's slightly more campy Bond, and as an adult I worked my way through the Connery years for a little historical perspective...and yes, I even gave Timothy Dalton a try. But by the time Pierce Brosnan had stepped in I had tuned out. The arrival of Daniel Craig as our new Bond was the chance to reignite a franchise, and say what you will about Casino Royale, (and there is plenty to complain about, which for the purposes of time and brevity, I won't get into here) Craig proved that he could hold his ground as 007. But no matter what I may have thought about Royale, by the time the credits rolled on Quantum of Solace, all was forgiven.
So today's Credits Report might be a bit of a cheat because really, it's about two scenes: the opening car chase, and the iconic Bond theme by Alica Keys and Jack White. So first let's get to that car chase. Well, you can't have Bond without a little vehicular mayhem and Forster delivers with expert uses of sound and stunts. We even get Bond delivering a rare moment of cheekiness before those opening chords of Solace's theme.
After the jump; a few words about Keys and White's 'Bond Song' and two worthy additions to Bond's canon of car chases and snazzy credit sequences...
From Page to Screen: 'World War Z'
Filed under: Horror », From Page to Screen »
This column is so often steeped in skepticism that it's a relief to declare unequivocally: I cannot freakin' wait for this movie. Just as I was starting to think that the zombie sub-genre was becoming played – the recent trend toward athletic, lightning-quick zombies hasn't really cured the zombie movie's fundamental repetitiveness – World War Z threatens to revitalize (your gratitude for not writing "resurrect" or "reanimate") the genre by hauling it, straight-faced and dead serious, into the real world.
The first thing Brooks does is set ground rules. Once infected and undead, zombies are essentially monomaniacal brains unmoored from brains' normal contingencies – e.g. a pumping heart, a digestive system, oxygen. Until the brain itself is destroyed, it will stupidly, relentlessly pursue human flesh, using whatever parts of the original body remain at its disposal. Zombies move slowly, with arms – if available – raised toward their target. If a zombie finds prey, it will moan; if a nearby zombie hears a moan, it will move toward the source and let out a moan itself. You see how this could escalate.
The Rocchi Review -- BondCast with Kevin Kelly of Spout and Joystiq
Filed under: Action », MGM », Sony », Podcasts », Interviews », James Bond », Remakes and Sequels », Daniel Craig », The Rocchi Review: Online Film Community Podcast »
What does Daniel Craig get right in his new outing as James Bond? What does Quantum of Solace get wrong? Can Marc Forster really direct action? Is Olga Kurylenko really the "hottest Bond girl ever?" Which directors could and should take on Bond's 23rd outing? And above and beyond all these topics, what does this week's guest Kevin Kelly, of Joystiq and Spout, think needs to happen to save Bond from both his corporate overlords and world-destroying villains? You can listen to the podcast here at Cinematical by clicking below:
As ever, you can download the entire podcast right here -- and those of you with RSS Podcast readers can find all of Cinematical's podcast content at this link.
Bond Director Turns to 'World War Z'
Filed under: Horror »
If you're a fan of horror and/or books, and you haven't checked out Max Brooks' World War Z yet, then here's another good excuse to go out and get a copy: The movie version seems to be moving full-steam ahead, and Variety informs us that Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster has been signed to head up WWZ. (The unpredictable director also helmed Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland, Stay, Stranger Than Fiction, and The Kite Runner.)The ever-busy J. Michael Straczynski is on adaptation duty, and the project will arrive by way of Plan B and Paramount Pictures. Forster says "the genre always fascinated me, and when they pitched it to me, it reminded me of the paranoid conspiracy films of the '70s like 'All the President's Men." Sounds goo to me. Ah yes, the plot: It's a historical document about the zombie apocalypse, ten years after the fact. Pretty cool, eh?
That's all wehave on this project so far, but the article does inform us that A) Forster is unlikely to return to the Bond franchise and B) Max Brooks is also the son of Mel Brooks and Anne Bancroft. Which somehow makes his book even cooler. More on the World War Z movie as it comes in. Bet on it.
Why 'Die Hard' When You Can 'Die BAD'?
Filed under: Deals », Scripts »
When talking Will Ferrell, some might say that Old School is their favorite, or Elf, or Anchorman. But for me, it's Stranger than Fiction -- one of the films in director Marc Forster's varied career. He's brought us the drama of Monster's Ball, the fantasy of Finding Neverland, and the flight of The Kite Runner, and now Bond wonder with Quantum of Solace. Not one to swim around in a rut, The Hollywood Reporter posts that he's now whipping up a remake with Universal of the 2000 Korean crime drama Die Bad.Not quite the land of terrorist takeovers and one-man crime-fighting machines, the original Die Bad covers four interlocking stories focusing on the cause and affect of male aggression and gangster life, where the characters and stories intersect into each other's vignettes. Brad Ingelsby, who is currently writing The Low Dweller, is writing the script.
I'm pretty eager to see how this will play out -- will it be completely Americanized with Soprano-like gangsters, or martial arts in the English speaking world? As for the craft of it all -- the latest Bond is said to be quite action-heavy, so will Forster amp up the action again for this one, or mellow it out like his previous work?
Cinematical's James Bond Adventure: For Your Eyes Only
Filed under: Fandom », Exhibition », James Bond »
Pictured: Ian Fleming in his study with a copy of For Your Eyes Only (April 1960). (Photo by Evening Standard / Getty Images)
Last month, Cinematical was lucky enough to join a few other select outlets on a trip to London for something called The James Bond Experience. One of the cooler activities we took part in (aside from driving an Aston Martin at 150mph and chatting with both Daniel Craig and Marc Forster) was our field trip to the Imperial War Museum London where, to celebrate Ian Fleming's 100th birthday, they're currently housing an exhibit dedicated to the man called For Your Eyes Only.
If you're a James Bond fan or an Ian Fleming fan or both, then I seriously recommend boarding a plane to London in order to check out this exhibit because you'll see so much -- some of which is on display for the very first time. I'm talking a slew of original manuscripts (from Casino Royale to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang), props from some of your favorite James Bond films, personal letters, photographs, notes -- essentially Fleming's entire life right there before your eyes.
While there's no photography allowed inside the exhibit, Cinematical managed to snag a bunch of photos showing only a fraction of what's on display across the pond. So, instead of writing a thousand words describing what I saw, I present these two packed galleries full of images from the Imperial War Museum and the For Your Eyes Only exhibit. Show, don't tell ... right?
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For a little more info on the exhibit (which runs through March 1, 2009), head after the jump. Quantum of Solace hits theaters on November 14.
Cinematical's James Bond Adventure: Driving the Aston Martin
Filed under: Action », Fandom », James Bond », Remakes and Sequels », Images », Daniel Craig »
Click Erik Davis' beautiful face above to head straight to our Aston Martin hi-res gallery
"Now this is a fun one -- when you get to 100mph, just slowly take your hands off the wheel and watch what the car does ..." -- Aston Martin Instructor #1
You may remember how last month Cinematical was invited to travel to London for something called "The James Bond Experience." Part of this "experience" included a chat with Bond himself, Daniel Craig, and Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster. (You can read all about that over here.) Now, however, we're finally allowed to tell you about some of the activities that took place during our four days across the pond -- and how do I not start with the awesomeness that was driving an Aston Martin -- a car, mind you, that's worth more than my life -- at well over 100mph. But let me back up.
Never sit at the back of a bus for more than an hour and a half. By the time our small group of online writers arrived at the Millbrook test track, I felt like I was ready to puke. Millbrook is literally in the middle of the English countryside -- an hour or so out of London, in Bedfordshire, England -- and it's the sort of place that calls for an escort to be with you at all times. See, Millbrook is where they test all sorts of cars and military vehicles before they're called into action. Thus, cameras are everywhere, the public is not allowed in and security is tighter than a seat belt around Santa.
Discuss: Should They Keep the Line "Bond, James Bond"?
Filed under: Action », Fandom », Newsstand », James Bond », Remakes and Sequels », Daniel Craig »
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It pains me that I can't go into every little fantastic detail when it comes to my recent Bond-related trip across the pond, but trust me when I say Quantum of Solace will definitely be one film you won't want to miss this fall. And if I go any further, the studio might just serve my head on a platter during the flick's premiere after party. But would I taste like chicken? Anyway, as we shared with you yesterday, Daniel Craig and Marc Forster were making the international rounds over in London late last week (where we sat down for a chat) and the Independent learned from Forster that a couple classic Bond one-liners will not be included in the upcoming Quantum of Solace.
Missing from the film will be the lines, "Bond, James Bond" and "Shaken ... not stirred." Forster says, "There was a 'Bond, James Bond' in the script. There are several places where we shot it as well, but it never worked as we hoped. I just felt we should cut it out, and Barbara Broccoli and Michael Wilson [the film's producers] agreed, and Daniel [Craig, who plays Bond] agreed, too. It's nice to be open-minded about the Bond formula. You can always go back to them later on." Some would argue it isn't a James Bond film unless the secret agent utters at least one of those lines at some point during his adventure. Me? I don't mind as much.
What do you Bond fanatics think? Are these two lines really that important in a Bond film? Does it bother you to know they won't be included this time around?
Quantum of Solace hits theaters on November 14.
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