Why is it that Hollywood, whenever it begins to run low on ideas, feels the need to plunder my dreams?
Perhaps I shouldn’t take such things so personally, but after the upcoming (?) reboot of “Space: 1999,” and now “The Tomorrow People,” I am beginning to wonder.
The second trailer for Fede Alvarez’s reboot of Sam Raimi’s the “Evil Dead” came out a few days ago, and it goes without saying that it’s not exactly safe for work. Or children. Or anyone bothered by violence bordering on sadism.
That being said, it’s hard to tell from the trailer if the reboot offers more than more interesting ways to kill people.
I don’t mind a bit of the red stuff, but if I am given a choice I will always take the film with not only innovative gore, but some degree of character development.
Though there are advantages to this new production, the most important of which is that it’s approved not only by Sam Raimi (the director of the original) but Bruce Campbell and Robert Tapert (the lead actor and producer of the first film).
What is most amazing is that this is the first film that Alvarez has done (he was chosen on the strength of a short he directed in 2009 called “Panic Attack!”).
For me the benchmark that such films should be judged by is Carter Smith’s “The Ruins.” Remarkably gory, with acting that isn’t treated as an afterthought, it’s worth catching if you haven’t seen it.
I was drifting around the Internet, when I found this YouTube post from Jace Hall (the guy who’s spearheading the upcoming (?) “Space: 2099”). The recording isn’t the best, and Landau (Commander Koenig from the original series) doesn’t say all that anything that most fans of the original series don’t already know, but it’s good to see him not only still in command of his faculties, but he actually brings up the upcoming series to his questioner.
Which I thought was really cool.
And I have to give credit to Hall because, while what little I know of the news concept doesn’t exactly inspire me, at least he appears to care about the original.
Like most people, it disturbs me to read about some of the terrible things that we do to each other, though what grows old fast is the way that we always seem to find something to blame our problems on–as opposed to ourselves, that is. For instance, things like video games, movies, music and television have all been linked to violence at one time or another.
I mean, there are some terrible television shows and films out there, but they don’t tend to compel me to go off and hurt someone or another (and I have seen “Alone In The Dark.”).
I mean, I enjoy AMC’s “The Walking Dead” myself, but at no time shooting someone who didn’t was ever an option. Gurman must have had a much more significant reason for shooting Jessica Gelderman than that (or at least I like to thing so).
The news story makes him seem particularly unstable. Was that a new trend? Has anyone asked? Has he acted in a strangely unstable fashion before?
If you’re like me, this story is more interesting for what it doesn’t say, than what it does.
If you have not seen “American Horror Story,” or “The Sentinel” but want to with an open mind–or just hate spoilers–read no further.
I have been watching the first season of Ryan Murphy’s and Brad Falchuk’s “American Horror Story” recently, and while I have been enjoying it–despite its tendency to be very emotionally overwrought–I have come to notice how (at least up the the sixth episode, which is all that I have seen so far) AHS is not only unoriginal but in many was a copy of Michael Winner’s superior 1977 film “The Sentinel.”
In “American Horror Story” we have a house that is treated as if it were alive (though other than characters referring to it this way, there has been no manifestation of this, unlike in a film like “Burnt Offerings,” where the house was–literally–alive, and fed on the deaths of its inhabitants) and the people that lived there having a tendency to die in generally unpleasant ways, and eventually made their way back.
“The Sentinel,” uses a similar concept, though the house itself is less important than the fact that it happens to be where the place where the entrance to Hell lies (I hate when that happens).
It’s seems different when it’s spelled out, though if you have seen both it and “American Horror Story,” not so much.
In both AHS and “The Sentinel” the residences in question are filled with the dead (as I mentioned earlier) but with a difference: They are individuals that have committed certain crimes (generally of a violent nature) that puts them on their path to the fiery gates.
After Shane (Jon Bernthal) left AMC’s zombie serial “The Walking Dead,” I assumed that the desire for other members of the cast to leave was over.
It appears that I may have been wrong, because Sarah Wayne Callies (Lori) may be the next to depart. She doesn’t actually say that she is, but it’s relatively apparent that she doesn’t like what happened to Frank Darabont, and that she feels that her character has run its course.
Some may consider Lori a bit irritating–she’d definitely had her moments–but I think that overall her character was strong, supportive, and a welcome member of the cast.
Besides, if her character dies, it would add an element of randomness to the series that has been, for the most part, missing. I mean, as much as I want to deny it, part of me knew that they were going to kill off Dale (Jeffrey DeMunn), my favorite character, at some point.
Which reminds me: Why do I have a sneaking suspicion that Callies may turn up on “L.A. Noir” (if it goes to series) sometime in the near future?
image courtesy of IMDb
Guillermo Del Toro seems so concerned about Ridley Scott’s “Prometheus” being similar to his (aborted?) version of H.P. Lovecraft’s “At The Mountains Of Madness,” that he appears to be considering abandoning what would be his passion project, a film that he has literally worked years to bring to the screen.
What I have to say is: DO NOT DO IT!
I haven’t seen “Prometheus” yet (a deficit I intend to remedy this Saturday), but I have read Lovecraft’s short, and the role that alien beings play in the development of humanity is a relatively minor point, though that’s not to say that the screenplay written by Del Toro and Matthew Robbins may not have played up those particular elements.
So, let’s say that now “At The Mountains Of Madness” is somewhat similar to “Prometheus.”
If that happens to be the case: So what, especially if Prometheus is as profitable as it appears that it might be.
Hollywood is notorious for capitalizing on successful films with imitators–which “At The Mountains Of Madness” isn’t since it has probably been some stage of development long before “Prometheus” was a glimmer in Scott’s eye–but I am sure that some will consider ‘Madness’ somewhat an also-ran.
Here’s the second in my “Films That Need Remakes,” series, something that I started because no film has to be a bad one, yet way too many are exactly that.
But, I don’t only want to point out what makes a film mediocre–it’s too easy to do, and fairly obvious–but also offer some advice could, potentially, improve the film markedly if it were going to be remade.
Today I am writing about Mike Marvin’s “The Wraith,” a film that, underneath its extreme mediocreness, hides a taut horror film just waiting to get out. The plot of the film–someone seemingly comes back from the dead to seek revenge upon those that did them wrong–is a common one, and has been the engine that’s powered many successful films, like “The Crow,” for instance.
“The Wraith” stars Charlie Sheen, Randy Quaid and Nick Cassavetes, son of John Cassavetes.
You would think that with such a basic and well-tested premise that you could just sit back and let the film direct itself. While it’s never that simple, director Mike Marvin for some reason felt the need to write as well, and his awful execution snatches defeat from the jaws of what could have been an intense, glorious victory. It should have played like a version of John Carpenter’s “Christine,” but instead ended up a dumber version of “The Dukes of Hazzard.”
Here’s the trailer for Chris Kentis and Laura Lau‘s “Silent House.” It’s a film of the ‘Paranormal Activity’ variety, based upon a film from Uraguay, “The Silent House.”
The original film was shot in one take, while the remake looks like it was, it wasn’t.
Sometimes When There’s Smoke, (There’s Someone Making Much Ado Out Of Nothing)
This morning, I decided to see how much Peter Jackson’s “The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey” cost to produce. Box Office Mojo didn’t list its production costs, but with a modicum of searching I learned that the budget was probably around $250 million (most of which you can see on screen).
Now, my whining comes in after I read a story from Business Insider, a site I normally like quite a bit, which implies that Jackson’s film isn’t tracking on par with his ‘Rings’ films. The article also implies that all is gloom and door as far as the two sequels are concerned (‘The Hobbit’ is the first in a trilogy).
This is beyond nonsense. If only because it has already earned, worldwide, over $622 million dollars, and will probably be going strong well into the new year. Now keep in mind, we’re talking a production budget of only (!) $250 million, so I fully expect that it will earn at least $700 million (and I am probably being conservative) before its theater run ends.
And that’s not including profits from DVD sales, streaming deals, and venues like iTunes.
Though admittedly an important part of this equation is that the each of the ‘Lord Of The Rings’ films squeaked in for under $200 million, which means that for the costs of almost the ENTIRE first three films you get–almost–one ‘Hobbit.”
Looking at the finished product, I think that it’s a bargain. This latest film seems better assembled, more accomplished and significantly more fun than any of the prior three films.
And that has to count for something.
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