Mike Myers Penning Austin Powers Musical
Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. Just because you've created a successful franchise doesn't mean you have to run it into the bowels of the earth until you've scraped every last dollar from a gracefully fading name. Especially if you're Mike Myers and you actually have a few shreds of actorly chops left in you. You're allowed to move forward, to drop the puerile sex humor and maybe try your hand at a few new dramas. You were pretty good in Inglorious Basterds, Mike. You don't have to work the Austin Powers groove for all eternity. And you especially don't have to do it on Broadway.Bad Movies: Alien Armageddon
Over the course of the last few days I rented a few movies to catch up on films I’ve missed. One of the movies was called Alien Armageddon (2011) written and directed by Neil Johnson (no relation). The cast was unknown but the cover sounded decent. I enjoy the occasional Indy flick from time to time so this wasn’t too far out of the venue for me.
First Look at Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters
We're seeing a lot of fairy tale reboots around these parts. And not just animated bedtime stories, either. Full-scale, adult, gritty fairy tales. It's like The Brothers Grimm sparked a delayed chain reaction, and now all of our childhood classics are seeing the blockbuster treatment. Little Red Riding Hood just made it onscreen a while back, and I've seen trailers for at least two takes on Snow White. So far, everything looks like a rather safe affair, with celebrities and sparkly costumes and CGI. But Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters--this might be something special.
Mini Games Hit the Big Screen
It must be getting harder and harder to convince studios to greenlight completely original projects. There are so many untapped brands out there, so many potential reboots and adaptations with guaranteed profits attached. Starting from scratch is a big risk; you don't always know if you can get an audience to buy into a story that's never been told before in any way, shape, or form. So we see a lot of corporate regurgitation on the big screen. Maybe it's an inevitable course the industry must take at this point. But do we really need to see a FarmVille movie?
True Trivia: Westerns
My father raised me on westerns with actors such as John Wayne, Clint Eastwood, and Alan Ladd. I still have an appreciation for a good western and have added countless titles to my personal collection. My knowledge of movie quotes sometimes borders on the “have no life” edge but I thought I would challenge one and all to a test their knowledge against mine.
Natalie Wood
Once upon a time the world had fallen in love with Natalie Wood. The starlet was known for her roles in Rebel Without a Cause, Splendor in the Grass, and West Side Story. Despite her beauty and talent she was probably more famous for her marriage to Robert Wagner and her subsequent death while in his company.
At the age of 43 Natalie Wood was found floating in a Santa Catalina cove on November 29, 1981.
Read more about Natalie WoodKristen Stewart Offered Role in Akira
I've written before about why the remake of the classic anime film Akira is a terrifically gross artistic and political move on the part of its creators. Taking an iconic Japanese cold war story and mutating it into a flimsy post-9/11 blockbuster is just a huge bucket of nope. I had some hope that this project might collapse under the weight of its own pointlessness somewhere in pre-production, but that hasn't happened yet. The movie keeps blindly chugging along. Roles have been offered. To the wrong actors.
Twilight's lip-gnawing heroine may just star in Akira if it does eventually open in 2013. Kristen Stewart has just been offered the role of Kei. This should make you angry not just because Stewart can't muster more than two and a half facial expressions to save her life, but because of what it probably means for the character she's set to play.
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Where's Waldo? Movie in the Works
It looks like Carmen Sandiego isn't the only hard-to-find cartoon with a penchant for red set to have her very own film soon. MGM and Classic Media have just announced that they are currently planning a live-action adaptation of Where's Waldo?
Cary Grant as James Bond
It has been rumored for decades that Ian Fleming used Cary Grant as an inspiration for his character James Bond. Though grant and Fleming were acquainted, neither ever confirmed or denied the rumor. The fact that Fleming was responsible for inviting Grant into William Stephenson’s Hollywood celebrity spy ring during World War II does lend some credence to the speculation.
Read more about Cary Grant as James BondJennifer Lopez to Produce Live Action Carmen Sandiego Film
We never did find Carmen Sandiego, did we? That fedora-rocking anti-heroine hid throughout the entire world and then throughout all of time and space (remember that bizarre, Doctor Who-esque knockoff? With the dude in the shiny jumpsuit? What on earth were the '90s doing with themselves?) and yet we still never quite got her behind bars for very long. She's a slippery one, that eternal menace to worldly monuments. And while her television days might be over, she might soon be seeing her debut on the big screen.