Author: Christopher Marc

Posted on in Film News

TRAILER: Chloë Grace Moretz Fights Airborne Creatures In WWII Horror Flick ‘Shadow In The Cloud’ – Produced By David Leitch

SHADOW IN THE CLOUD: During World War II, pilots of the Allies’ various air force women’s auxiliaries were called upon to ferry planes from factories to airfields — sometimes through enemy territory, often without proper navigational tools or ammunition. Writer-director Roseanne Liang pays pulpy tribute to these veterans with Shadow In The Cloud, a rip-roaring action/horror hybrid that finds one such airwoman, WAAF officer Maude Garrett (Chloë Grace Moretz), assigned under mysterious circumstances to a rickety B-17 Flying Fortress, where she is custodian of a strictly classified piece of cargo. Forcibly sequestered by the all-male crew to a ball turret hanging from the belly of the bomber, Garrett’s dizzying new-found perspective brings to light yet another unexpected passenger — one whose stealthily sinister presence may jeopardize the lives of all aboard. Moretz is dynamite as the young aviator, a Greatest Generation “Ellen Ripley” whose warnings to her deaf-eared chauvinist comrades are validated when bizarre mechanical failures manifest throughout the vessel, and enemy forces suddenly mount a surprise aerial ambush. As the put-upon Garrett’s personal motivations come into sharper focus with each perilous predicament, the action expands from the claustrophobic confines of the turret into a death- (and gravity-) defying spectacle that encompasses the plane’s rapidly disintegrating fuselage. Yet Liang never loses sight of her remarkable lead actor. The audience remains with Moretz through every white-knuckled minute, with the rat-tat-tat radio chatter of obstinate and panicky men playing partial soundtrack to wicked suspense and freaky mayhem. With resolute verve similar to that of Shadow In The Cloud’s protagonist, Liang has radically remixed wartime superstitions and a beloved pulp-fiction premise (you’ll know it when you see it) into an exhilarating vehicle of personal empowerment — one not to be marred by any surplus of unchecked and toxic testosterone.

Shadow In The Cloud will be in select theaters, VOD, and digital on January 1, 2021.

SOURCE: VERTICAL ENTERTAINMENT

Posted on in Film News

TRAILER: Bob Odenkirk Channels Keanu Reeves To Become A Full-On Badass In ‘Nobody’ – From The Architect of The ‘John Wick’ Franchise

NOBODY – Sometimes the man you don’t notice is the most dangerous of all. Emmy winner Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul, The Post, Nebraska) stars as Hutch Mansell, an underestimated and overlooked dad and husband, taking life’s indignities on the chin and never pushing back. A nobody. When two thieves break into his suburban home one night, Hutch declines to defend himself or his family, hoping to prevent serious violence. His teenage son, Blake (Gage Munroe, The Shack), is disappointed in him and his wife, Becca (Connie Nielsen, Wonder Woman), seems to pull only further away. The aftermath of the incident strikes a match to Hutch’s long-simmering rage, triggering dormant instincts and propelling him on a brutal path that will surface dark secrets and lethal skills. In a barrage of fists, gunfire and squealing tires, Hutch must save his family from a dangerous adversary (famed Russian actor Aleksey Serebryakov, Amazon’s McMafia)—and ensure that he will never be underestimated as a nobody again. Nobody is directed by acclaimed filmmaker Ilya Naishuller (Hardcore Henry), from a script by Derek Kolstad, the narrative architect of the John Wick franchise, and co-stars legendary Emmy winner Christopher Lloyd as Hutch’s father and multi-hyphenate musician-actor RZA as Hutch’s brother, whose own hidden talents aid Hutch in his quest for vengeance.

Universal had planned on releasing the film on February 19th, 202 but have pushed to February 26th.

SOURCE: IGN

Posted on in Film News

‘Indiana Jones 5’: Producer Frank Marshall Confirms That Director James Mangold Is Still Writing A New Script

While we’re bound to get some sort of update concerning Indiana Jones 5 later today from Disney, producer Frank Marshall has spoken with Den of Geek and provided an early update on the fifth installment of the Indiana Jones franchise. Frank reiterates that Harrison Ford is indeed reprising the role something that Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy said last year that the sequel would be a continuation, not a reboot or prequel which had been reported at one point.

He also confirmed that director James Mangold (Logan, The Wolverine, Ford v Ferrari) is still working on a new script for the film and hasn’t even seen/read the thing. This could suggest that development isn’t as far along as imagined when it was announced that Mangold would be directing.

MARSHALL: “Yeah, we are working on the script. There will only be one Indiana Jones and that’s Harrison Ford. What I’m excited about with Jim is a great story. I think you see that in his movies like Ford Vs Ferrari. It’s all about characters and telling a good story. So I’m excited to see what he comes up with. I haven’t seen (the script) yet so I don’t know what to tell you.”

James Mangold took over directing duties after Steven Spielberg dropped-out after headaches trying to get the script in a good place. Previous drafts had been penned by David Koepp (Jurassic Park, Mission: Impossible, Spider-Man) and Jonathan Kasdan (Solo: A Star Wars Story, Willow) before this new version from James. Lucasfilm is in a tricky spot with the franchise as Harrison Ford is pushing 80 years old and the last film Indiana Jones & The Kingdom of The Crystal Skulls was sort of ridiculed by audiences/critics. They’re really going to have to be very very careful not to repeat the mistakes of the last film part of this would be making sure the script is as strong as it possibly could be.

Mangold’s writing credits include Logan, Walk The Line, and his underrated cop drama Cop Land. Notably all character driven stories that run the gauntlet of genres.

I’m a little curious if this means they might not be able to hit the film’s targeted release date of July 29, 2022 or even begin shooting when they’re expected to later this year. Disney has changed the release date so many times I don’t think it even matters anymore.

SOURCE: DEN OF GEEK

Posted on in Film News

‘Black Widow’: Disney Reportedly Still Not Interested In Dumping The Marvel Flick On Disney+

In the wake of WarnerMedia’s shocking announcement that 17 films in 2021 will be heading to HBO Max with a new day-and-date model, there had been continued fan speculation that Disney would announce something similar to that with their own 2021 lineup of films. However, multiple outlets have repeatedly suggested otherwise and another tidbit from the New York Times is claiming that despite what WarnerMedia is planning to do, Disney will not be throwing the Marvel Studios film Black Widow on the streaming service.

And some of Disney’s biggest movies will continue to receive exclusive runs in theaters before arriving on the company’s streaming services. For instance, contrary to widespread speculation, Black Widow, a much-anticipated Marvel spectacle, will remain on Disney’s theatrical release calendar for May 7, the people with knowledge of the presentation said.

This would likely mean that films such as Shang-Chi & The Legend of The Ten Rings and Eternals will be spared from Disney+ dumps as well. We’ll ultimately know more later today thanks to the Disney Investor Day event which should shed some light on the roll-out of Marvel films in 2021 and beyond.

Fans have been feverishly trying to convince Disney to place Black Widow on Disney+ since the film’s original delays earlier in the year due to COVID-19, however, the company seems to be realistic after their experiment with Mulan on Premier Access (asking subscribers to pay $30 while the film is now free this month) turned out to be more of a let down.

It was recently confirmed that Florence Pugh will be reprising her Black Widow role of Yelena Belova in the Hawkeye series that is currently in production. The show will focus on Jeremy Renner’s Clint Barton working alongside his new protege Kate Bishop played by Oscar nominated actress Hailee Steinfeld (True Grit, Bumblebee).

BLACK WIDOW – In Marvel Studios’ action-packed spy thriller Black Widow, Natasha Romanoff aka Black Widow confronts the darker parts of her ledger when a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past arises. Pursued by a force that will stop at nothing to bring her down, Natasha must deal with her history as a spy and the broken relationships left in her wake long before she became an Avenger.

SOURCE: NEW YORK TIMES

Posted on in News

Report Claims “Significant Expansion” of ‘Star Wars’ Franchise Will Be Announced At Disney Investor Day Tomorrow

We’ve already heard from Deadline that Disney’s Investor Day 2020 event tomorrow will reveal a wave of new film/television projects from Marvel Studios, Lucasfilm, and Pixar.

The New York Times is echoing this sentiment and adds the following concerning potential Star Wars announcements.

A significant expansion of the Star Wars universe. 

Neither outlet are ready to give out specifics on what the announcements will be but there are plenty of candidates are known and unknown. We have a better idea what the Marvel Studios announcements will look like as a bunch of the films haven’t been announced officially.

Earlier in the week I did a rundown of upcoming live-action Star Wars projects that had been previously reported on that could highlight some potential contenders.

The main thing I’m expecting is Lucasfilm to announce the next wave of Star Wars shows for Disney+ which should include the Boba Fett series that Deadline reported is already filming. I’m sure fans are keeping their fingers-crossed that Ahsoka Tano and Bo-Katan will get their own spinoffs.

We still have two more episodes of The Mandalorian left and Jon Favreau confirmed they’re trying to get production started on Season 3 as soon as possible.

SOURCE: NEW YORK TIMES

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‘The Tender Bar’: George Clooney-Directed Long Island Drama Adding Ben Affleck In Lead Role

Deadline is reporting that director George Clooney is looking to cast Ben Affleck (The Way Back, Gone Girl) is his next film as the actor is currently in negotiations to join the Amazon drama titled The Tender Bar. It’s unclear if Clooney will also take a role but the outlet suggests it’s a possibility.

Based on the J.R. Moehringer memoir about growing up in Long Island seeking out father figures among the patrons at his uncle’s bar, the film originally was set up Sony with Ted Melfi directing. When Melfi fell off, Sony put the film into turnaround, allowing Amazon to grab it.

Clooney latest directorial effort is the Netflix sci-fi film The Midnight Sky.

Affleck’s other recent projects include the erotic thriller Deep Water, Ridley Scott’s The Last Duel, and leading Robert Rodriguez’s crime thriller Hypnotic. The latter will see Affleck playing a detective that becomes entangled in a mystery involving his missing daughter and a secret government program, while investigating a string of impossible high-end heists.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘Young Woman & The Sea’: Disney+ Drama From ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales’ Director May Star Daisy Ridley

Deadline reports that Star Wars actress Daisy Ridley is negotiations with Disney+ to play Trudy Ederle in an upcoming drama from director Joaquim Ronning, who previously worked with Disney for Pirates of The Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.

Disney+ is negotiating for Daisy Ridley to star and Joaquim Ronning to direct Young Woman And The Sea, a Jeff Nathanson-scripted drama based on the book by Glenn Stout that chronicles the daring journey of the first woman to ever swim across the English Channel. Gertrude “Trudy” Ederle made the 21 mile swim in 1926.

The daughter of a German butcher from Manhattan, Ederle was a competitive swimmer, who won gold in the 1924 Olympics when she decided to attempt crossing the channel. She undertook the feat after first swimming 22 miles from Battery Park in New York to Sandy Hook, NJ, setting a record that stood for 81 years. She contracted with two newspapers and sold her story, thereby financing her quest. There was actually a race among women who would be first to cross as only five men had done so before.

Daisy Ridley is coming off making three massive Star Wars movies for Disney, she also has a Lionsgate film titled Chaos Walking co-starring Tom Holland. Disney+ is expected to have many more original films developed for the streaming service and picking-up more dramatic features might be an attempt to attract an older demographic.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘Three Thousand Years of Longing’: George Miller’s Follow-Up To ‘Mad Max: Fury Road’ Finally Shooting – Adds ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’ Production Designer

After actor Idris Elba caught COVID-19 earlier this year while getting ready to shoot the George Miller film Three Thousand Years of Longing, production on the film halted and Elba returned to the United States to film another project while the project was given time to pause.

According to Deadline, filming has resumed on the secretive project in Sydney, New South Wales Australia and they plan of having the film ready for release by September 2021. The production team for the film budgeted at $60 million includes cinematographer John Seale (Mad Max: Fury Road), production designer Roger Ford (Peter Pan, The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion The Witch and The Wardrobe, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian), and composer Tom Holkenborg aka Junkie XL (Deadpool, Mad Max: Fury Road).

Ford previously working with Miller on the two Babe movies.

The Sydney-based production, which is observing numerous on-set Covid safety protocols, is in fact 20 days into its 62-day shoot. The team will break up over Christmas and reconvene early next year before wrapping in the early spring for a planned September 2021 delivery. Tilda Swinton and Idris Elba are starring in Miller’s latest, whose plot details are being kept under wraps. The visionary filmmaker previously described the project to us as an “anti-Mad Max” with plenty of interiors and dialogue but also punctuated with action scenes.

George Miller is also prepping a prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road focusing on a younger version of Charlize Theron’s Furiosa with a cast that is said to include Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Hemsworth, and Yahya Abdul-Mateen II. The Mad Max sequel likely won’t begin until either the fall of 2021 or sometime in 2022.

SOURCE: DEADLINE

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‘Star Trek’: Screenwriter Mark L. Smith Talks Quentin Tarantino Project and Seemingly Confirms Captain Kirk’s Involvement

When news hit that Paramount Pictures would be rethinking the Star Trek franchise placing Noah Hawley’s Star Trek 4 on pause it was revealed by Deadline that the Quentin Tarantino project penned by Mark L. Smith (The Revenant, Overlord, The Midnight Sky) may have been influenced by a classic Star Trek episode titled “A Piece of The Action” that featured a 1930s gangster setting.

Tarantino dropped out as director, but the project is still viable based on an episode of the classic Star Trek series that takes place largely earthbound in a 30s gangster setting — might serve the franchise best as Logan-like spinoffs when the core franchise has been revitalized. 

SFX Magazine (via Games Radar) spoke with Mark L. Smith and he certainly indicated that Captain Kirk would have been part of it. We have to assume they would have wanted Chris Pine back in that role given Tarantino’s previous supportive comments on Pine.

SMITH: “I wrote a Star Trek with Tarantino, and that was a sci-fi script on which I could have fun and lean into some bigger, broader things. Kirk is always just so fun. Tarantino and I had so much fun with him, because Kirk is just William Shatner, y’know? It’s like: you’re not sure who is who, so you can kinda lean into that. Because you watch Chris Pine and he’s playing Kirk, but he’s also playing William Shatner a touch.”

How Paramount moves forward with the franchise is a little unclear as Star Trek 4 isn’t happening anytime soon and the studio seems to be more keen to grind-out various television shows for it’s streaming service. Tarantino also has been public that he is going to be working on books and is prepping a television series of Bounty Law as well.

SOURCE: SFX MAGAZINE

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Ben Affleck’s ‘Batman’ Movie Would Have Been Similar To David Fincher’s ‘The Game’ According To Joe Manganiello – “Deathstroke Was Like A Shark or Horror Movie Villain”

Before Matt Reeves and Robert Pattinson’s The Batman, there had been plans for Ben Affleck to co-write, star, and direct a solo Batman film. Creative differences and Affleck’s apparent frustration eventually led to him first exiting the project as director then later leaving the Bruce Wayne/Batman role altogether.

We don’t know a lot of about the unmade project but there had been confirmation from cinematographer Robert Richardson (Live By Night, Kill Bill, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood, Inglourious Basterds), who had been once attached to the Affleck film, that the film would involved the infamous Arkham Asylum.

RICHARDSON: “I wanted to shoot Batman with Ben [Affleck] cause that was the next film we had. There was a script, but not a loved script. There was a lot of work he was doing to it to change it. Well, he was going into the more insanity aspects. He was entering more into the Arkham, he’s going into where everyone was bad.“

Deathstroke actor Joe Manganiello had been expected to reprise the Slade Wilson part for Ben’s Batman solo project allowing him to later get a meatier role than his small cameo in Justice League. While speaking with Yahoo Entertainment, Joe compared the purposed Affleck project to David Fincher’s underrated Michael Douglas thriller The Game and gave some details about the tone they were attempting to go for.

MANGANIELLO: “There were similarities to The Game…It was a really dark story in which Deathstroke was like a shark or a horror movie villain that was dismantling Bruce’s life from the inside out. It was this systemic thing: He killed everyone close to Bruce and destroyed his life to try and make him suffer because he felt that Bruce was responsible for something that happened to him…It was really cool, really dark and really hard. I was very excited for it.”

Joe confirmed his return to the Deathstroke role in Zack Snyder’s extended version of Justice League for HBO Max on social media, but remains to be seen if he’ll ever play the role again.

THE GAME (1997) – Nicholas Van Orton (Michael Douglas) is a successful banker who keeps mostly to himself. When his estranged brother Conrad (Sean Penn) returns on his birthday with an odd gift — participation in a personalized, real-life game — Nicholas reluctantly accepts. Initially harmless, the game grows increasingly personal, and Orton begins to fear for his life as he eludes agents from the mysterious game’s organizers. With no one left to trust and his money gone, Orton must find answers for himself.

The David Fincher connection isn’t shocking given that Ben Affleck had recently worked with the director on the thriller Gone Girl and Matt Reeves incarnation is essentially taking cues from Fincher’s entire movie library. I’ve spotted multiple homages or nods to Zodaic, Seven, The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, Panic Room, and even the aforementioned film The Game in the teaser trailer.

Matt’s movie seems to be taking a similar dark tone and might be picking up on what Affleck wanted to do.

SOURCE: YAHOO ENTERTAINMENT