Friday Flyer: Volume 1

FlashForward gets full season, Toy Story 3 trailer and ID4 2?

BY COLIN ENQUIST

-ABC picks up several shows for a full first season. FlashForward is the most prominent of the shows but Modern Family, The Middle and Cougar Town were also picked up. FlashForward has performed very well in the competitive Thursday night time slot. The show has also been very well liked by critics.

-The Box is Richard Kelly’s newest film. Based off of the 1970 short story Button, Button by author Richard Matheson. The film stars Cameron Diaz, James Marsden and Frank Langella. The website just launched. Click the picture poster below to check it out. If you were a fan of Richard Kelly’s film Donnie Darko and got a chance to see the fantastic site for that film, check this one out for sure.


-Mel Gibson is returning to acting, his first film since The Singing Detective in 2003, and is starring in Edge of Darkness, based off a 1985 BBC mini-series of the same name. As homicide detective Thomas Craven (Mel Gibson) investigates the death of his activist daughter (Bojana Novakovic), he uncovers not only her secret life, but a corporate cover-up and government collusion that attracts an agent tasked with cleaning up the evidence.

-Joe Hill has put out some fantastic stories. I am a big fan of his short story collection 20th Century Ghosts and his comic book series, Locke & Key. Heart-Shaped Box was his first novel (which has gotten rave reviews) but I have not gotten around to reading it. His next book, Horns, is set to be released this coming February but the books is already optioned by Mandalay. It is a story about a man who wakes up after a drunken blackout, only to find horns growing out of his head.

-Independence Day was a surprise blockbuster back in 1996, making an absurd $817.4 million at the worldwide box office. The director, Roland Emmerich, has a new film debuting this year (2012) and Fox wants to bring the director back for a sequel to the Will Smith’s first blockbuster. Emmerich wants to bring Smith back but negotiations between him and Fox have seemed to hit a standstill. Would you watch an ID4 sequel without him?

-The Cleveland Show will now have 22 episodes for the second season. Fox just announced that they ordered a full season. The series premiere of The Cleveland Show was Fox’s highest rated Sunday comedy series debut in over six years. Follow Cleveland’s adventures Sunday evenings (8:30 ET).

-It looks like Bryan Singer may be returning to the X-Men film franchise. According to The Associated Press, Singer and Fox are discussing the possibility of his return. “I’m still looking to possibly returning to the X-Men franchise. I’ve been talking to Fox about it,” the X-Men and X2: X-Men United director said at South Korea’s Pusan International Film Festival. “I love Hugh Jackman. I love the cast.” With the train wreck that was X3 a big disappointment I do hope he returns.

-October 13th we saw the release of Nine Dragons by Michael Connelly. Connelly created his lead character of this series, Harry Bosch, back in 1992. Nine Dragons will be the 15th novel featuring Bosch.

-CBS has given a pilot commitment to Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci (both co-wrote: Star Trek, Fringe, and Mission: Impossible III to name a few). They will update the classic cop series which chronicled the workings of the fictional Hawaiian state police department led by Steve McGarrett (Jack Lord). Originally the series ran from 1968-1980. Not many details have been given on what direction the new show will take.

-Toy Story 1 and 2 were just released in theatres again, this time in glorious 3D! The double feature has a nice trailer before it for the third film…here it is below.

Uncanny X-Men Receives the Axe

And I gave it a good chance to stick around

BY COLIN ENQUIST

The X-Men have always been one of my favourite titles. When I really started getting into comics the two big X-titles were the first to be thrown onto my pull list. Not only were Uncanny X-Men and X-Men good at the time but it looked like they were not slowing down.

I got a lot of enjoyment out of the two X-titles. Uncanny X-Men was always the better of the two books in my opinion, even with the Alan Davis art on X-Men. Suddenly the fortunes of each book changed, along with the dynamics of the teams. Grant Morrison came aboard X-Men (changing the title to New X-Men) and started a legendary run that has shaped the X-universe still to this day.

Soon after Morrison left the book, it reverted back to its original title, X-Men. Not entirely sure how long I stuck around but it was not very long. The book got terrible quickly, so I stopped picking X-Men up.

A coupe of months later, I realized that Uncanny X-Men was just as brutal. So now I am picking up comics without my usual X-titles. And these were the two books that helped get me into comics.

I still checked out solicits to see if it looked like either series was getting any better. Even reading a few reviews online, these only helped cement my decision of dropping the books though. It sounded like the books were a complete train wreck.

Then issue #500 of Uncanny X-Men was going to be released. A new creative team was promising a bold new direction. Sure I hated the art by Greg Land and Terry Dodson but I really enjoy Matt Fraction’s writing. So picking up a couple issues was worth a shot.

16 issues later and I’m back in the same boat as before! Fraction just finished tying up his big crossover with the Dark Avengers, leaving the team headed in a “bold new direction” again. Yes I disliked the start of the Exodus crossover bit it did end really strong.

Sadly the next issue lost my faith in Fraction. Most of the issue was devoted to Cyclops telling us that he has no plan; he was just rolling with the punches. At this point it seems like Fraction is doing just that, rolling with the punches, having no idea what to do with the characters or the series.

*insert sound of an axe falling*

That was the sound of Uncanny X-Men getting chopped from my pull list. Yes out of those 16 issues I bought over the last year or so, 6 might have been really good. That just is not enough to keep me buying the book..

Wolverine II Already Underway?!

A sequel to the hit X-Men film has no director, writer yet

BY EMIL TIEDEMANN

Shortly after X-Men Origins: Wolverine topped the box office with an $85 million take, 20th Century Fox and Seed Productions have announced their joint venture in preparing a sequel for the soon-to-be-franchise.

Wolverine, itself a spin-off of the X-Men feature film series, earned more than $158 million internationally during its opening weekend (May 1-3), the biggest start for any film so far this year. Despite that impressive debut, it wasn't enough to top the $103 million that the last X-Men flick (2006's The Last Stand) brought in for its domestic weekend premiere.

Hugh Jackman, who stars as the Marvel Comic superhero, has already begun planning the follow-up with his Seed Productions partner John Palermo. According to Variety, the sequel will stay true to the best-selling comic series by directing its focus on a samurai plot, which was breifly foreseen during an after-credit in the current film, which has Logan drinking at a Japanese pub.

No director is slated for the project, but Slumdog Millionaire writer Simon Beaufoy has been mentioned to pen a script. In related news, the FX Network has aquired the TV rights to the Wolverine film, a deal that may be worth upwards of $80 million.

Jackman will clearly return as Logan/ Wolverine, but no word on who else will come back. X-Men Origins also features Ryan Reynolds, Liev Schreiber, Danny Huston, and will.i.am, and was directed by Oscar winner Gavin Hood.

Is Hollywood Running Out of Ideas?

Fresh ideas for movies seem to have gone stale

BY EMIL TIEDEMANN

It was not much more than two months ago that I spent $12.50 ($43.50 if you include popcorn!) to see Jason Voohries brought back from the grave (again!) in Friday the 13th, the remake of a 1980 cult classic. It wasn't long after that that I checked out the first movie stills of the sequel to the remake of another horror staple, Halloween. And just days ago I read that the Child's Play and Nightmare on Elm Street franchises will receive their own reboots, just as we are about to see new efforts in the Star Trek, X-Men, and Harry Potter series as well.

Is tinsletown tapped out, or just plain lazy?! Whatever the reasoning behind this trend of remakes, adaptations, sequels, prequels (and even an interquel {see Fast & Furious}), it doesn't seem to be hurting the numbers at the box office, as one of the few industries seemingly unaffected by the current recession.

Let's take a look at the top 20 movies in theatres right now, and it's full of stories we've already heard, or characters we already know. I'm not necessarily complaining here, but these people--the actors, directors, producers, writers, executives--make millions, have the world's most talented peers, and many others begging at their doorsteps, so why is it that the movie industry is starting to sound like a broken record?

The No.2 film in North America, State of Play, is a political thriller born out of a 6-year-old British mini-series of the same name. At No.4 is Hannah Montana: The Movie, Miley Cyrus' feature film debut that is based on her hit TV series, titled...you guessed it, Hannah Montana. As unoriginal as the title of the Montana movie is, it's still not as bad as the No.5 movie, Fast & Furious. All it did was drop a couple of "the's" from the 2001 original, which inspired this new film and two others prior.

Right behind that, at No.6, is Jason Stathem's Crank: High Voltage, a sequel to a film that really had nothing more to say. Moving down the list we run into Observe and Report (No.7), which is set to an original screenplay, but instantly reminds us of another comedy flick that is actually still in the top 20, Paul Blart Mall Cop, at No.17. Rounding out the top 10 is the ghost feature The Haunting in Connecticut, which isn't a remake or a sequel, but is based on a true story (like currently-playing Che and Hunger), dramatized to tie it into every one of the other 'Haunting' movies we've seen of late.

Moving out of the better half of the charts and we come to No.11, Dragonball Evolution, which borrowed its plot from the 25-year-old series of Japanese comics. The live action adaptation was a bust, most likely rushed through the red tape to cash in on a classic children's franchise. Four spots below is Race to Witch Mountain, a "re-imagining" of the 1975 adventure movie Escape to Witch Mountain, it in itself based on a 1968 sci-fi novel by Alexander Key.

No.18 belongs to The Last House on the Left, a re-telling of Wes Craven's infamous horror flick from 1972. They didn't even bother coming up with a new name for this one. Outside of the top 20 are many other examples of movie producers and studio executives who are slowly ridding original stories and ideas more and more, to cut corners perhaps, but at the expense of quality. There are comic book adaptations (Watchmen), video game adaptations (Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li), semi-autobiographical takes (The Class), thrasher reboots (Friday the 13th), short story conversions (Two Lovers), and even a movie adapted from a best-selling relationship book (He's Just Not That Into You)!

But it's not just the movies currently in theatres....it's also the anticipated ones coming up that bare familiar tales, including Angels & Demons (the sequel to The Da Vinci Code and an adaptation of a Dan Brown novel), Harry Potter & the Half-Blood Prince (the sixth installment of a film series based on a 6-part book series by J.K. Rowling), Star Trek (another "re-imagining" of a classic film, based on a classic TV series), X-Men Origins: Wolverwine (a spin-off of a film trilogy based on a comic book chain), and even Where the Wild Things Are, a live action film version of a 46-year-old children's picture book!

What happened to the Matt Damon's and Ben Affleck's of the late-'90s? Where are all the Project Greenlight's? Where's the originality? Hollywood seems to have misplaced all of that (especially Ben Affleck!), relying on motion pictures that resemble graphic novels, television sitcoms, and other motion pictures that got to the punchline years ago.

So, to sum things up, these head honcho's simply need to stop cutting corners in their cheque books, satisfying their bosses, sacrificing our patience, or at least my patience. This is a shout out to all the layman literates and struggling scripters to spread the word, put pencil to paper (or more likely, fingertips to the keyboard), and break the cycle, before some la la land big shot turns this here editorial into a movie!

Wolverine Leaked!

Fox's, X-Men Origins: Wolverine has leaked onto the internet. It may just be a rough cut, but is basically the final cut of the film. Not the first time this has happened, as Spider-Man 3 was available in China on DVD a week before it was released theatrically. The Hugh Jackman flick may not have as much to worry about though.

Aint It Cool News is refusing to post any reviews of the film or comments from users who have seen it. And with most fanboys (and girls) agreeing with AICN, it has come to a suprise of Fox Studios who said: "We are encouraged by the support of fansites condemning this illegal posting and pointing out that such theft undermines the enormous efforts of the filmmakers and actors, and above all, hurts the fans of the film."

Marvel Searches for Next Big Thing

Comic book conglomerate is looking for writers to script ideas for lesser-known characters

BY EMIL TIEDEMANN

Comic book nerds everywhere are excited over the recent news that Marvel Entertainment is searching for talent to step forward with script ideas for film adaptations of some of the more than 5,000 heroes and villains the company owns rights to.

Scriptwriters are encouraged to come forward with any concepts for Marvel's library of comic book characters, many of which are extremely obscure. Some of the lesser known characters that Marvel are contemplating for a feature film include Doctor Strange, Vision, Black Panther, Cable, Nighthawk, and Iron Fist.

Whatever hero/ villain is chosen as the next big screen blockbuster, it will join an elite list of A-class Marvel franchises, including Spider-Man, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk, and their latest recruit, last year's Iron Man.

Some of the other comic series that have been adapted to film have seen less enthusiastic box office numbers and critical praise, including Daredevil (2003), The Fantastic Four (2005), and Ghost Rider (2007). Marvel is currently in the production phase for several upcoming comic flicks, such as The First Avenger: Captain America, Thor, The Avengers, and sequels to Iron Man and Spider-Man, though these films are not part of the script search.

Iron Man was one of the reasons why Marvel sparked a look back at its dusty catalogue of characters, grossing almost $582 million in worldwide ticket sales, despite being a less popular persona.

Marvel is asking potential writers to take on specific pitches for either future character developments or franchises already produced, and is offering as much as $100,000 for a one-year salary. Some of the writers who penned Marvel material prior are not eligible to submit work, including Christopher Markus, Stephen McFeely, Zak Penn, and Justin Theroux.

Marvel's Spider-Man and X-Men trilogies have earned more than $3.63 billion combined in worldwide box office ticket sales alone.

Upcoming movies that could knock our socks off in the first half of 2009

While a few of these movies won’t be big box office hits. These are the movies I am most looking forward to watching coming up this New Year. It looks like May will be the busiest month with a movie every week. Guess I should go get my popcorn ready! I would also like to thank Trailer Addicts for making the movie trailers easy to place for your viewing pleasure. Check back shortly after the movies come out as there more than likely will be a review for it.

The Unborn – Jan 2 – David S. Goyer hasn’t succeeded as a director as he has a screenwriter, but the trailer looks good enough that I will check it out.

The Plot: Haunted by strange dreams and recurring ghostly visions, Casey Beldon (Odette Yustman) turns to a spiritual advisor (Gary Oldman) for help. Together, they learn that Casey had a twin brother who never made it to term, and that her intended sibling is tied to a curse that requires Casey's death in order to manifest itself in our world.

Notorious - Jan 16 – A bio pic of the West Coast rapper looks good from the strong cast and with newcomer Jamal Woolard playing a young Notorious B.I.G. looking to make a name for himself. Derek Luke plays Sean “Puffy” Combs who I was surprised didn’t play the role himself.

The Plot: A chronicle of Christopher Wallace's (Woolard) rise from the streets of Brooklyn to become Notorious B.I.G., one of biggest and best rappers of the 1990s, under the tutelage of mentor/producer Sean Combs (Luke)



Watchmen – Mar 6 – Another comic book based film that looks like it could be really good given the director loves the material and didn’t want to do a disservice to it. But with a lawsuit between WB and Fox on who owns the rights the movie has a possibility of the release being pushed back.

The Plot: Set in an alternate vision of the year 1985, the murder of an ex-superhero causes a vigilante named Rorshach (Haley) to look into the matter, an investigation that reunites him with his surviving old colleagues -- all of them former superheroes themselves -- and gradually unveils a conspiracy with links to their shared past and catastrophic consequences for the future.



X-Men Origins: Wolverine – May 1 – With Hugh Jackman returning as the character who made him a household name and his arch nemesis Sabertooth (Liev Schreiber) returning in this prequel we could be looking at another great X-related film. Although the first trailer didn’t make it look fantastic, it definitely looked better than X3.

The Plot: An origins story that follows the early life of James Howlett (Jackman), also known as Logan, and best known as Wolverine. The chronicle of his younger years as a mutant connects to his relationship and eventual falling out with Victor Creed/Sabretooth (Schreiber), and his fateful entry into the Weapons X project, the governmental program that turns willing and unwilling beings into living weapons.



Star Trek – May 8 – I have never been a huge Star Trek fan but after hearing JJ Abrams was going to be taking the helm I was intrigued. And after seeing the first trailer I will be going to see this one in the theatres.

The Plot: The origin story of Captain James T. Kirk, Spock and the crew of the USS Enterprise before they had boldly gone where no man had gone before.



Angels and Demons – May 15 – May will be a busy month already without the sequel to The Da Vinci Code being released. I enjoyed Angels and Demons the book over The Da Vinci Code so I have high hopes for this movie.

The Plot: Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon (Tom Hanks) finds himself in Rome, where he has to race against time to prevent the Illuminati, a secret society, from putting in motion a terrorist act that could destroy the Vatican. He's aided in his quest by the beautiful Italian scientist Vittoria Vetri (Ayelet Zurer).



Terminator Salvation – May 22 – Christian Bale looks like he is more than ready to step into John Conner’s shoes, with McG at the helm and a solid supporting cast of Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin and others. Another movie franchise I was never fond of looks like it could draw me in for a look see.

The Plot: John Connor (Bale) is joined in his attempt to defeat Skynet and its army of Terminators by Marcus Wright (Worthington), a man who apparently has been rescued from the past, though Connor wonders if instead he's been sent from the future as a foil to his plan. As Connor and Wright push deep into the heart of Skynet, they get closer and closer to learning the secret behind the organization's mission to wipe humankind off the planet.



Up – May 29 – Another Pixar movie taking to the skies, this one literally. Until Pixar makes a bad film I don’t think you can go wrong walking into the theatre to see this movie.

The Plot: By tying thousands of balloon to his home, 78-year-old Carl Fredricksen sets out to fulfill his lifelong dream to see the wilds of South America. Right after lifting off, however, he learns he isn't alone on his journey, since Russell, a wilderness explorer 70 years his junior, has inadvertently become a stowaway on the trip.



Public Enemies – Jul 1 – Johnny Depp and Christian Bale star in this Micheal Mann film base of the real life gangsters of the 1930s. Also has a fantastic supporting cast.

The Plot: The incredible and true story of legendary Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger (Depp)the charismatic bank robber whose lightning raids made him the number one target of J. Edgar Hoovers fledgling FBI and its top agent, Melvin Purvis (Bale), and a folk hero to much of the downtrodden public. No one could stop Dillinger. No jail could hold him.

Transformers Revenge of the Fallen – Jul 3 – Not much is known about the plot yet and no trailer or poster has even been released at this point. But with everyone from the original reprising there roles I don’t think you can not go see this unless the trailer looks god awful.

The Plot: Decepticon forces return to Earth on a mission to take Sam Witwicky prisoner, after the young hero learns the truth about the ancient origins of the Transformers. Joining the mission to protect humankind is Optimus Prime, who forms an alliance with international armies for a second epic battle.

Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince – Jul 17 – I have liked each movie more and more in this franchise so my hopes are rather high for this movie. After being pushed back from a summer 08 release it will finally see the light of day.

The Plot: In his sixth year at Hogwarts, Harry Potter discovers even more about the evil Lord Voldemort's past, thanks to his mentor Dumbledore and mysterious textbook marked "This book is the property of the Half-Blood Prince." By the end of the year, nothing will ever be the same.



Colin Enquist