movies Tagged Articles at Cinematical

One year ago, the MPAA's film ratings system was exposed for being unfair and inconsistent. This was thanks primarily to the documentary This Film is Not Yet Rated, which screened at Sundance. Now, without acknowledging that film's possible influence on the decision, the MPAA is announcing a change in the ratings process and procedures. A campaign is set to begin at Sundance on Monday, when Dan Glickman will be joined with Classifications & Ratings Administration head Joan Graves to officially go over the revisions.

Variety has the list of changes, which includes the decision to publicly post the standards that must be met to receive a particular rating. Also added to the appeals process is an allowance for a filmmaker to compare his film's content with another lower-rated film's content in order to make a consistency argument. Other parts of the revision include a description of the still-anonymous ratings board members and new rules for the eligibility of those members.

Yes, it's big, explosive rumor day here on Cinematical -- we've already told you about some McConaughey P.I. coolness, and now Cinema Blend is reporting (via some anonymous inside source) that Rachel Weisz is replacing Angelina Jolie as the "Dame to Kill For" in Sin City 2. Granted, Jolie was never officially attached to the role, but based on what we've heard from cast members and the like, she was very interested in hopping onboard the highly-anticipated sequel to Robert Rodriguez's Sin City -- which, of course, was based off Frank Miller's graphic novels.

For those not aware, Sin City 2 will follow the storylines of A Dame to Kill For with Weisz (or Jolie) playing, well, the kind of dame a man would kill for. But here's my question: Is Weisz a better fit than Jolie for a role like this? Hardcore fans of the graphic novels could probably answer that best -- the way I see it, Jolie was perfect for the part. However, Weisz -- um -- she's cute and all, but I wouldn't kill for her ... that's for sure. It's important to stress that this is just a rumor right now -- production isn't set to begin until 2008 (supposedly) -- and so please don't write off the entire film based on what you've read here. Heck, perhaps you'd rather see Weisz take over since Jolie is just too damn Hollywood-ized right now -- gossip, gossip, Brad Pitt, gossip, gossip -- it's kind of hard to take her seriously anymore. Hey, but you be the judge.

With only a week away from announcing the Oscar nominations, and with no apparent need to do so, the Academy has pared down its list of eligible foreign-language films from 61 to nine. This is the first time the Academy has shortlisted the category, but the decision to do so falls in line with a number of other changes pertaining to the category.

Those changes, which I told you about last summer, are a good thing for at least two of the nine films. Water and Black Book each would have been disqualified in previous years, but now their language issues are in full compliance with the rules. Of course, had they not made the cut, there might have been some happier countries in Asia or Australia, the two continents not represented (Antarctica may get some love from Happy Feet's animation nomination). It is too bad that Japan couldn't claim Golden Globe winner Letters From Iwo Jima and also too bad for Oz that Ten Canoes wasn't chosen.

Okay, where in the world did this one come from? Well, we know where the rumor came from (Teletext UK) and who picked it up (our friends from FilmRot), but if it is indeed true then how come there hasn't been an explosion yet here in the States? Wait, let me back up for a minute: According to a story in Teletext UK, it appears as if folks finally found their Magnum P.I. Not only that, but a director is attached, a cast is set and a release date of Summer 2008 has been slapped on to seal the deal!

Um, perhaps I should back up even more: See, Hollywood has been attempting to bring the TV show Magnum P.I. to the big screen for quite awhile now, with folks like Ben Affleck, George Clooney and Vince Vaughn circling the project at one point. Needless to say, none of you liked those choices -- in fact, the Clooney rumor really pissed people off. Shut it down. Turn it off. Months go by ... and, now, here comes Matthew McConaughey to save the day. America's number one stud and the perfect (in my opinion) choice to take over a role owned and originated by the ultra cool Tom Selleck.

Teletext UK also informs us that Rawson Marshall Thurber (Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story) has been tapped to direct (off his own re-write of the script) with Steve Zahn and William H. Macy returning for a little Sahara reunion to play Rick and Higgins respectively. If that's not enough to whet your Magnum appetite, then I should also tell you that (apparently) Tyrese Gibson has signed on to play the role of T.C. All I can say about that is ... wow. For now, we'll officially chalk this one up as a rumor, but it's the best news I've heard about this project yet. What do you think?

I'm trying not to get too excited about this latest -- let's call it a rumor -- that Edgar Rice Burroughs' other famous character, John Carter of Mars, is finally going to get the big-screen treatment he so richly deserves. As this has almost happened a few times before -- the latest being in 2005 when Iron Man director Jon Favreau was attached -- I'm not going to get my hopes up. Even though, as a huge fan of these works, I would really love to see them make it to the big screen. Various producers, directors and studios have been trying (unsuccessfully) to transform the eleven-book series into a film (or films) for a long time -- heck, the first book of the series, A Princess of Mars, was published in 1917.

So, Hollywood has had quite a few years to work on adapting this fantastic series. But, for whatever reason -- story, budget, casting, bad mojo -- it just never happened. So, fans of the series (including your humble writer) were left to wonder if it would ever happen at all. It didn't look like it, but at least we always had the books to go back to and enjoy, an un-official website for the film and some great paintings by artist Frank Frazetta to keep us inspired. But now, at least according to an article over at TMZ, it looks like some people are going to try to get this project going yet again. This time, according to the article, its the folks at Disney's Buena Vista Pictures.

I sincerely hope they get their collective stuff together and actually make something happen this time around. These venerable novels about civil war vet John Carter and his quest to bring order to the ruling clans of Mars are timeless adventure stories that can appeal to most any age. That's probably why Disney is interested -- I mean, you can only get so much mileage out of the Pirate's franchise. Eventually, you need a new one to hang your studio on. Perhaps Disney is hoping John Carter can fill the void left by Jack Sparrow when he finally sails into oblivion? If so, that's one way to make sure these movies finally get made.

When making movies like the Highlander, filmmakers are faced with immortality's pesky limitations. There is only so long we can suspend disbelief as an actor plays an immortal character and ages. Christopher Lambert spent a whopping 14 years as the immortal ass-kicker Connor MacLeod. Luckily, the powers behind the story brought on a new MacLeod rather than recasting Lambert in 2000's Highlander: Endgame, even if it wasn't met with the best reviews. Bad reviews be damned, Adrian Paul's Duncan MacLeod, the star of the 90's television series (and of the new Highlander: The Source)has got a following.

JAM! Showbiz has reported that there is a trailer on The Source's official website ... and indeed, there is. However, it's not some super-polished, or even semi-polished trailer created to cook up curiosity. Instead, in all of its embedded YouTube glory, it just looks like the beginning of the film, pirated and posted by some fan. I can only assume that the creator's can't be bothered to come up with a flashy version themselves, or at least one that shows more than what seems to be the opening scene equipped with French text. It shows up as even more shoddy surrounded by flashy buzz words like "tremendous," "maverick" and "milestone." Lionsgate -- if you really feel this way, please give fans a real trailer that describes the film and is shown in hi-res, or adequate-res glory! Otherwise, I'm just going to ignore it and sing along with Freddie Mercury.

Note: The actual YouTube link has the trailer a bit larger.

There's nothing like having a highly-anticipated film ruined for you long before the pic is even set to hit theaters. With that said, I must warn you that the following information contains monumental Spider-Man 3 spoilers. And when I say monumental, I'm talking about who will live, who will die -- to put it plainly -- how the film will end. If you're the type of person who doesn't want to know those things ahead of time, then by all means do not continue reading ... or click on the link that I'm about to share with you. Understand? Spoilers. Lots of them. You've been warned.

So, Brendon over at Film Ick says he's been provided with "lots of information" with regards to the super duper finale in Spider-Man 3. I won't go into too much detail here, but let's just say a major fight takes place at a construction site (I imagine because there are plenty of metal things to swing off of) and a number of different characters are involved: Spidey, Sandman, Eddie Brock as Venom, Mary Jane, Sandman's daughter and Harry Osborn. Brendon shovels out as many details as he can regarding the battle (some of it is speculation since his source only provided him with so much information), but all of it makes sense.

And, based on what goes down at that construction site, it certainly raises a lot of questions -- mainly, would a Spider-Man 4 even be worth it?

Just when you thought the IMDb was the greatest asset to movie lovers, the site has gone and revealed itself to be less a service to the cinematic community and more of a privilege from another corporate power worried about its public image. It isn't clear when the site instituted this, but as of today the IMDb has a search filter that makes it difficult to locate some titles, specifically pornographic or otherwise sexually explicit titles. These titles include the usual XXX fare, but also include more mainstream films like John Cameron Mitchell's Shortbus and Caligula, which stars Golden Globe winner Helen Mirren.

They aren't gone from the database, though. Shortbus can be found by way of Mitchell, who shows up when searched. The same goes for Caligula, which can be found in a roundabout way via its stars. But the IMDb isn't only filtering out the titles, it is also filtering out some performers who appear in adult titles. At least that's how it seems. The Rabbi Report experimented with the IMDb search and discovered that while most of the Shortbus cast doesn't show up, some large profile porn stars do show up. As further examples, I tested out the names Jenna Jameson, John Holmes and Ron Jeremy -- all were easily searched. Then I looked up The Brown Bunny and the documentary Inside Deep Throat -- neither was easily located.

Douglas Coupland is obsessed with pop culture. It inspires everything he creates. Beyond popularizing the term Generation X, the Canadian novelist has used his unique characters -- from a one-handed astronaut to a teen, Christian ghost -- to explore, delight and document the crazy pop world we live in. His passion transcends the written word -- Souvenir of Canada was not only a popular book about his views of Canadian life, but it was also turned into a surprisingly funny documentary about his scheme to transform a run-of-the-mill house into a piece of historic art. The author followed that up by penning the script for Everything's Gone Green, a comedy about a money laundering slacker, and a novel, jPod.

His latest work, which is also his longest, has now been turned into a short film that can be found in its entirety on Showcase.ca, a website for one of Canada's more arty and provacative channels. While it is no short cinematic feat, it is a tolerable diversion that could also win you a copy of the book, if you sign up for Showcase's newsletter. How did the filmmakers turn the long book into a short film? Basically, they took out all of the plot and left a small sliver of romance. The novel is Coupland's fluff, which he admitted to last year at a book signing: "It was written to be nothing more than a fun book;" so, take away the Chinese mafia, happy heroin addicts and ballroom dancers and the point is really lost. That being said, some quirk still remains -- such as the ways Ethan and his co-worker slide into their jPod workspace. I wonder what Dougie thinks about the adaptation ...

[via Twitch]

Upon surfing over to Variety this morning, I noticed an article titled "U Orders up Burger Pitch." Right away, I was under the assumption that Universal had snatched up a comedy pitch that revolved around burgers (like, the kind you eat), but immediately realized (after reading the first few lines) that they were talking about The Illusionist director Neil Burger. Still, those brief thoughts lingered around, thus prompting me to pick up a tasty burger for lunch. Thanks Variety! Perhaps I shall sue you for inadvertently making me gain weight. But anyway ...

Universal Pictures has picked up an untitled pitch, not for a comedy, but a contemporary drama to be co-written (along with Dirk Wittenborn) and directed by Neil Burger. Oh, but there will be no magicians in this tale -- we're looking at a film about bad guys fighting bad guys for the chance to do bad things without law enforcement getting in the way. Sounds good, eh? Set in New York, concerns over an imminent terror threat (what else is new?) have the cops on high alert, which has subsequently shut down crime and forced the regular old friendly criminals out of work. Hell-bent on being able to still make money off their illegal activities, the criminals band together to track down the terrorists ... and, well, the whole thing sounds a bit cheesy on paper. It's supposed to be a drama, but for some reason I can't get snapshots from My Blue Heaven out of my mind. Why is that?