invasion Tagged Articles at Cinematical

I wasn't surprised to hear that Superbad performed better than expected in theaters this weekend: an estimated $31.2 million at the box office. Everyone I talked with late last week was excited about the movie. My husband and I hadn't liked the trailer much, maybe because we'd seen it at least a dozen times before movies this summer .... and yet, even my husband asked me on Friday, "You think we should give Superbad a chance? I'm changing my mind. Looks like it might be pretty funny."

What did surprise me were the feeble ticket sales for The Invasion, although the warning signs were obvious. When a big-budget Hollywood movie starring Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig is released during the dog days of August, you wonder if something is amiss. As Nick Schager points out in his review, the film required studio rework after its director submitted an "unacceptable" first cut, and that never bodes well. I also realized I hadn't noticed much advertising for the film -- I never did see a trailer before a film or on TV. Still, I thought a movie with these A-list stars would do better than $6 million on its opening weekend.

The Invasion is currently hovering at a pitiful 22 percent on Rotten Tomatoes, compared with 86 percent for Superbad. Is that the reason why no one wanted to see the sci-fi remake, because it was poorly reviewed? I can't believe that, since Rush Hour 3 has 20 percent, and we could probably name a half-dozen high-grossing films from earlier this summer that many critics panned. Was everyone just in the mood for raunchy laughs this weekend, instead of a science-fiction thriller, or is it a case of Nicole Kidman-itis? Personally, I like Kidman and Craig, but I can't get very interested in yet another remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers. Ryan Stewart calling it a "borderline-unreleasable mess" in his review didn't motivate me, either.

So let me ask you this: Were you motivated you see The Invasion this weekend, and if so, what did you think? If not, why do you think everyone else stayed away, too?

I'm ensconced back in the press section in the massive Hall H, giving us flashbacks to yesterday's Paramount panel. However, today I have the benefit of a few hours of sleep, a cinnamon roll, and half a banana. The Comic-Con breakfast of champions.

I'll be doing my best to bring you all the hot Warner Bros. deets as they come out. Will we see anything from The Dark Knight? Speed Racer? Watchmen? Goonies II? (Hey, I can dream). They gave us more swag bags on the way in, which included a t-shirt for The Invasion, a pretty swell Get Smart Control/KAOS shirt, and a bunch of other little things, including a very timely Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix pin. Woot!

It appears that Daniel Craig is holding Bond typecasting at bay by keeping busy on a variety of different projects. But, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that Craig has officially dropped out of Blindness, a dark drama from the Brazilian director Fernando Meirelles. The film will tell the story of a doctor in a village where everyone has been struck blind, and Craig was to play the doctor. Meirelles is known for his somewhat "harrowing" subject matter as the director of City of God and The Constant Gardener, and doesn't seem fazed by the loss of his lead -- he is already in the process of re-casting. Considering his reputation as director, I doubt he will have much trouble in finding his new leading man.

Craig has attached himself to several films recently, including Ed Zwick's war film Defiance, and Flashbacks of a Fool for music video director Baillie Walsh, where Craig will play a washed-up actor dealing with the death of a friend. We'll also get a chance to see Craig with his "Blond Bond" look again soon, with his obvious commitment of Bond 22 about to come into play when the film gears up for a shooting start at the end of this year, but first, he has the sci-fi thriller The Invasion with Nicole Kidman on the way this fall, and the highly anticipated fantasy film The Golden Compass (also with Kidman) which will have a big release this Christmas. There was no word given by HR on exactly why Craig left Blindness, but judging by his schedule lately it's no surprise that something had to give.

A few days ago, Slither-maker James Gunn mentioned on his MySpace page that his adorably splattery sci-fi horror rom-com was the receipient of four Fangoria Chainsaw Award nominations. My response was "Hey, cool. Where are the rest of the nominations?!?!?" And now, a few days later, here they are. Neat-o.

Although Fangoria has been doing their annual Chainsaw awards for over a decade now, 2006 marks the very first time the event will be televised, much to the delight of zombie freaks and slasher geeks all over North America. The event will be held in L.A. on October 15th, although the Fuse Network won't be airing it until the 22nd. (Which means if you want to watch the event "un-spoiled," I wish you luck.) Want to throw your own votes into the tally? Fine. You can vote right here, but only between September 1st and 13th (which is a Friday, mwaahaaa!)

After the jump you'll find a complete list of all the 2006 Chainsaw nominees, plus my own predictions on which flicks would win if the event were called Amazing Geek Weinberg's Horror Awards instead of The Chainsaws.

Wanna be in a movie? Now's your big chance! Nicole Kidman's alien flick is filming in your very city, and they're in need of extras - about 3000 extras, to be precise. If you've got a "good face" (which, probably on purpose, means NOTHING), show up tomorrow morning at the Holiday Inn in Timonium with a headshot, resume and - this is the most important part - a pen. Don't forget the pen. While there's a special line for people who can flash SAG or Radio Artists union cards, they're not required. Basically, as long as you're willing to work a 12 hour day for nothing and spend a lot of time sitting around waiting, this gig might be for you. Plus, the cast list says some extras will play "snatchers" - how cool would that be to have on your resume?