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First images from Danny Boyle’s Trance

December 27, 2012, 11:20 am
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Fresh from his directing gig at the 2012 London Olympics, Danny Boyle (Trainspotting) is back to his day job and courtesy of USA Today we have a glimpse of his forthcoming feature film Trance:






Trance centres on an art heist that goes wrong and stars James McAvoy (X-Men: First Class), Vincent Cassel (Black Swan) and Rosario Dawson (Sin City: A Dame to Kill For). The official synopsis reads:

"Fine art auctioneer Simon (McAvoy), in league with a gang led by underworld boss Franck (Cassel), plots the audacious theft of a masterpiece by Goya from a major public auction. When Simon double-crosses the gang during the robbery, Franck retaliates violently and knocks him unconscious. In the aftermath of the heist, Simon sticks stubbornly - and perhaps shrewdly - to his claim that the violent trauma has left him with no memory of where he stashed the artwork. Unable to coerce the painting's location from Simon, Franck and his associates reluctantly join forces with a charismatic hypnotherapist (Dawson) in a bid to get him to talk. But as they journey deeper into Simon's jumbled psyche the boundaries between reality and hypnotic suggestion begin to blur and the stakes rise faster and far more dangerously than any of the players could have anticipated."

Trance certainly looks like an intriguing film and with visionary director Danny Boyle at the helm, expect it to be much more than a simple heist film. Certainly one to watch for in 2013.
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Christopher Nolan on Zack Snyder and Man of Steel

December 27, 2012, 2:56 pm
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Having successfully reinvented the Batman movie franchise - and redefined the entire superhero genre - with his Dark Knight trilogy, Christopher Nolan is now busy helping to bring another DC icon to the screen as producer on Zack Snyder's forthcoming Superman reboot Man of Steel. During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Nolan has spoken of his admiration for Snyder's work on the film, as well as touching upon the challenges facing the Watchmen director as he attempts to realise the world of the Man of Tomorrow and make us believe Henry Cavill (Immortals) can fly.

"Zack was the perfect man to take this on; he is unbelievably skilled at creating a coherent, cohesive world. Whether it’s a very stylized world, like 300, or something that’s more challenging, more varied, like he did with Watchmen. In my honest appraisal, taking on Superman and creating that world is far more difficult than creating the world of the Dark Knight. He has a lot of finishing to do on the movie -- it has a very long postproduction schedule because, unlike Batman, Superman flies. I actually feel guilty talking about it because I’m sitting here having nothing to do to it. I try to be as supportive as I can, and I’m just amazed by what he is doing. It’s not something I would know how to do."

Man of Steel is set to arrive on June 14th, 2013, with Henry Cavill joined in the cast by Amy Adams (The Fighter) as Lois Lane, Russell Crowe (Les Miserables) as Jor-El, Michael Shannon (Boardwalk Empire) as General Zod, Kevin Costner (Hatfields & McCoys) as Jonathan Kent, Diane Lane (Secretariat) as Martha Kent, Laurence Fishburne (Contagion) as Perry White, Ayelet Zurer (Angels & Demons) as Lara Lor-Van, Antje Traue (Pandorum) as Faora, Christopher Meloni (True Blood) as Colonel Hardy and Tahmoh Penikett (Battlestar Galactica) as Henry Ackerdson.

Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen - Available now via Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.

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Special Features - America's Rape of Scandinavian Crime Drama

December 28, 2012, 1:14 am
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Paul Risker on America's 'rape' of the Scandinavian crime drama...

The American remake of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011), adapted from Steig Larsson’s first novel of his Millennium Trilogy, follows on the heels of Sweden’s 2009 adaptation and forms part of a trend that has seen a number of Scandinavian crime dramas adapted into the English language.

This year saw the release of Contraband, directed by Baltasar Kormákur, the star of the original Icelandic Reykjavík-Rotterdam, and rumors circulate of a remake of Headhunters (2012), adapted from Norwegian crime writer Jo Nesbø’s book of the same name. Meanwhile, the acclaimed Danish television phenomenon The Killing, remade for American television, is preparing for its third season, whilst the second two installments of Larsson’s Millennium Trilogy, The Girl Who Played With Fire, and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet’s Nest, have been announced.

Prior to the international interest in Scandinavian film and television crime dramas, a number of crime writers had been making important contributions to Scandinavian crime literature. 1991 witnessed the debut of disgruntled Swedish detective Kurt Wallander in Henning Mankell’s Faceless Killers, since which time three actors have portrayed the detective, including Kenneth Branagh for the BBC television series.

Since Mankell’s arrival on the scene, writers such as Håkan Nesser, Camilla Läckberg and Jo Nesbø have become bright beacons on the crime literature landscape. The adaptations of works by Mankell, Larsson and Nesbø have further placed Scandinavian crime fiction in the international spotlight, with Martin Scorsese rumored to be directing the American adaptation of Jo Nesbø’s 2010 novel The Snowman.

Not too dissimilar to a group of Roman Senators, we have in our white togas stood and hollered our objections to what we assume in our superior position of foresight will inevitably be inferior remakes, perceiving this recent trend as the rape of Scandinavian crime fiction. Such thinking however naively fails to observe the fact that American remakes of foreign films is not a new phenomenon, and American producers have been geographically centred in the past, with a particular focus on Asian cinema.

Kurosawa and the American Western

As far back as the 1960s, it was the Western, considered alongside the gangster film an American genre, that remade two of Akira Kurosawa’s samurai films.

The Magnificent Seven (1960) was an official remake of Kurosawa’s Seven Samurai (1954), whilst four years later Italian director Sergio Leone directed A Fistful of Dollars (1964), the unofficial remake of Yojimbo (1961). Kurosawa’s samurai films provided the template for two of the genre’s iconic westerns, the latter signaling the birth of the cynical Spaghetti western, at what was to be the expense of the classic western.

The Magnificent Seven conformed to the traditions of the traditional western, distinguished by its romanticism of the American West and the idealized hero, or in this case heroes. Sergio Leone’s A Fistful of Dollars would subvert this romantic sentiment in a way that he believed only a foreign director could, just as Italian directors were bound to romanticise ancient Rome.

It was Akira Kurosawa’s Yojimbo that provided Leone with the plot for his first Spaghetti western, and it was Toshirô Mifune’s ronin samurai that supplied the anti-hero archetype that then television star Clint Eastwood as ‘The Man with No Name’ would come to embody.

To assert that Kurosawa and Mifune were responsible for planting the seeds that would transform the western genre in the 1960s is naïve. Both Kurosawa and Leone were inspired by the westerns of John Ford. In fact the plot of Yojimbo which sees the lone samurai enter a small town whose inhabitants are positioned between two warring families is reminiscent of the generic construction of many westerns: the lone gunfighter arriving in a small town where he defends the townsfolk associated with good wholesome family values.

Kurosawa inspired by the American western transposed its generic plot to feudal Japan, and reimagined the western in a very eastern way through the setting and the customs of his native Japanese ancestors; subverting the heroic through the actions of Toshiro Mifune’s anti-hero.

Three years after Yojimbo’s release, Sergio Leone then transposed the film from feudal Japan to the American West, and in so doing introduced to the western genre the archetype that would be prevalent in American westerns for the coming decades. From a certain perspective, Leone returned the anti-hero to the American west from where he had originally been part inspired.

The events of the 1960s depict a mutually beneficial relationship between American, Japanese and Italian directors, sourcing from one another inspiration, emphasised by Kurosawa’s fondness of the American western and his admiration for Sturges’ The Magnificent Seven. If only Leone and the producers of A Fistful of Dollars had acquired the rights as had Sturges and his producers, this relationship would have been reinforced. Rather Yojimbo’s producers successfully filed a lawsuit and Kurosawa with a touch of irony wrote to Leone, "It is a very fine film, but it is my film."

Kurosawa was correct in so far as A Fistful of Dollars was his film. What served Sturges and Leone so well was the American west as iconography. The act of transposing these samurai films from feudal Japan to the American west, whilst the narratives are similar, the settings are so distinctly eastern and western that both original and remake creates a sense of feeling quite distinct from the other. Without this they would have been simple remakes, the only distinction an alternative cast and English dialogue.

Unlike in the four films of the 1960s in which distinct settings could be manipulated by the filmmakers, this has not been available to American remakes of either Asian horror or more recently Scandinavian crime drama. Transposing the Asian and now the Scandinavian urban to the American urban does not provide such a striking distinction. The risk of these remakes as underwhelming copies, offering no significant contribution to American cinema when compared to the two iconic westerns of the 1960s is a genuine concern.

Asian Horror

The nineties and noughties witnessed the emergence of Asian horror with films including Ringu (1998), Dark Water (2002), The Grudge (2002), The Eye (2002), One Missed Call (2003) and Shutter (2004). These films drew the attention of the international audience as terrifying entries in the horror repertoire, and a number of these films were thus remade.  

Whilst the 1960s saw two remakes that were important contributions to an American genre, the remakes of a selection of Asian horror films have struggled to leave an impression on American cinema. These films have almost certainly been overshadowed by torture porn and the found footage film, two sub-genres that have defined recent American horror cinema. Without the aid of setting to help these directors create a striking distinction in contrast to the Asian originals, they were frequently perceived as underwhelming remakes, only an alternative cast and English dialogue to create any distinction.

A fair assessment would be that they were a set of business decisions, motivated by the idea of taking a successful foreign film with template in hand, recast with American actors with English dialogue, and then marketed to the audience dissuaded from seeing the subtitled originals; using the critical praise the foreign originals garnered to entice the target audience.

Closer to Home

In hindsight, foreign films remade for the English speaking audience is a common practice, and any controversy regarding the volume of remakes of Scandinavian crime fiction should not conveniently misplace or forget the geographical focus of Asian cinema by American producers.

The recent remakes of Scandinavian crime drama are suggestive of the fact that American producers will continue to look beyond its own borders for American adaptations. The east has not been forgotten, with Spike Lee directing the remake of Chan-wook Park’s Oldboy, the second film in his ‘Vengeance trilogy.’ Nor should the tendency of American producers to remake American films be forgotten, of which a number of notable horror films including Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), Halloween (2007) and Friday the 13th (2009) are all remakes of what general consensus considers were superior originals. Of course more can be added to the charge sheet, not limited to the horror genre.
  
Final Thoughts

The impact of the Scandinavian remakes will however be of particular interest. Whilst The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and Let Me In (2010) received critical praise, the almost identical plots were keenly noted in reviews, and this led to critics urging readers to seek out the originals.

What is confirmed therefore is that these films are not remade for fans of the originals, with the opportunity to see an alternative approach to the source material, but to produce an English language version.  If this is the case, how much of a contribution can they offer to American cinema?

Any reinterpretation of the original source material and the creative choices made by the director, writers and producers of the original would transform the remake, and make it distinct. Aside from The Magnificent Seven and A Fistful of Dollars, John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982) reintroduced into his remake of The Thing from Another World (1951) ideas from the short story Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell Jr, on which both films are based. This suggests that a remake is not wholly negative, and can be an important contribution to cinema, as evidenced by both the 1960s westerns and the two versions of Who Goes There? both considered classic science-fiction movies in their own right. The various adaptations of Bram Stoker’s iconic novel Dracula (1897) are further examples of this truth. Collectively the German Expressionist Nosferatu (1922), Bela Lugosi’s turn in Dracula (1931), Werner Herzog’s Nosferatu (1979) and Hammer Horror’s Dracula (1958) played by Christopher Lee, to the most faithful adaptation by Francis Ford Coppola, are all are distinct from one another, manipulating the source material and concept of vampires to create an individual retelling of the Dracula story.

Paul Risker is a freelance writer and contributor to Flickering Myth, Scream The Horror Magazine and The London Film Review.
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The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey spends Christmas atop the UK box office chart

December 28, 2012, 1:47 am
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UK box office top ten and analysis for the weekend of Friday 21st to Sunday 23rd December 2012...

Peter Jackson's The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Journey retained the UK box office crown, pulling in just under £6 million in its second weekend to spend the Christmas period proudly sitting at the top of the chart. The biggest challenge to The Hobbit's dominance came from Ang Lee's acclaimed fantasy adventure Life of Pi, which debuted in second place with £3,610,604 (including an extra day of preview screenings) to knock festive offerings Rise of the Guardians and Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger down one place apiece to third and fourth.

Musical comedy Pitch Perfect banked a decent £952,107 from its opening weekend to debut in fifth place, while Skyfall slips out of the top half of the chart for the first time in its 9 week run, banking £554k to edge ever-closer to the magical £100 million mark here in the UK. Disney animation Tinker Bell and the Secret of the Wings fell two spots to seventh ahead of the newly-released Bollywood action sequel Dabangg 2, which amassed an opening weekend of £341,619, with The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 and Seven Psychopaths dropping three places each to fill out the chart in ninth and tenth respectively.

Number one this time last year: Arthur Christmas

1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - £5,979,241 (2 weeks)
2. Life of Pi - £3,610,604 (New)
3. Rise of the Guardians - £1,221,504 (4 weeks)
4. Nativity 2: Danger in the Manger - £1,188,380 (5 weeks)
5. Pitch Perfect - £952,107 (New)
6. Skyfall - £554,958 (9 weeks)
7. Tinker Bell and the Secret of the Wings - £469,630 (2 weeks)
8. Dabangg 2 - £341,619 (New)
9. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 - £167,952 (6 weeks)
10. Seven Psychopaths - £167,952 (3 weeks)

Incoming...

Boxing Day saw several new films entering the UK marketplace, including the Tom Cruise action thriller Jack Reacher (cert. 12A) [read our review here], Colin Trevorrow's sci-fi comedy Safety Not Guaranteed (cert.15) [read our review here] and family comedy Parental Guidance (cert. U, strangely enough), along with limited releases for Grabbers (cert. 15), Midnight's Children (cert. 12A) [read our review here] and Zaytoun (cert. 15) [read our review here]. And if none of those takes your fancy, then New Year's Day sees the arrival of The Impossible (cert. 12A), Playing for Keeps (cert. 12A) and Quartet (cert. 12A).
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New image from Pacific Rim

December 28, 2012, 1:58 am
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The recently released trailer for Guillermo del Toro’s forthcoming film Pacific Rim has created a great deal of excitement for the new monsters vs. robots sci-fi adventure. Now courtesy of the Lebanese Movie Guide, we have a brand new image from the film showing British star Idris Elba (Luther, Thor) and Rinko Kikuchi (The Brothers Bloom, 47 Ronin):


When legions of monstrous creatures, known as Kaiju, started rising from the sea, a war began that would take millions of lives and consume humanity’s resources for years on end. To combat the giant Kaiju, a special type of weapon was devised: massive robots, called Jaegers, which are controlled simultaneously by two pilots whose minds are locked in a neural bridge. But even the Jaegers are proving nearly defenseless in the face of the relentless Kaiju. On the verge of defeat, the forces defending mankind have no choice but to turn to two unlikely heroes—a washed up former pilot (Charlie Hunnam) and an untested trainee (Rinko Kikuchi)—who are teamed to drive a legendary but seemingly obsolete Jaeger from the past. Together, they stand as mankind’s last hope against the mounting apocalypse.

Pacific Rim also stars Charlie Hunnam (Sons of Anarchy), Charlie Day (Horrible Bosses), and Ron Perlman (Hellboy) and is due for release on July 12th, 2013 in 2D, 3D and also IMAX.
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How The Avengers' incredible 'tie-in' shot was made

December 28, 2012, 5:15 am
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Industrial Light and Magic (ILM) have uploaded a new 'behind the magic' feature as a belated Christmas present for us nerds. In the video, the special effects team detail how they accomplished the lengthy single-take shot in The Avengers' climactic battle sequence, where the Avengers superhero team, well, assemble.


As a mixture of live-action, motion-capture and complete CGI, the process sounds as complex as Crisis on Infinite Earths who Spider-Man actually is in the current continuity.


Props to ComicBookMovie for the link. But we still have a Hulk.
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Test footage from Hong Kong Phooey and Marvin the Martian

December 28, 2012, 7:46 am
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Director Alex Zamm (Beverly Hills Chihuahua 2) has released some test footage from Alcon Entertainment and Warner Bros.' proposed live-action / CG hybrid adaptations of Hong Kong Phooey and Marvin the Martian.

Last August, it was revealed that Eddie Murphy (Doctor Dolittle) had signed on to lend his voice to Hanna-Barbera's kung-fu canine in Hong Kong Phooey, although with the test footage now making its way online, it would seem that the big screen adaptation may have fallen apart, much like Zamm's earlier Marvin the Martian project, which is of course based upon Chuck Jones' classic Looney Tunes character.

In the case of Hong Kong Phooey that's probably a good thing, although the Marvin the Martian footage - which takes the form of a short entitled 'Yule Be Sorry' - certainly looked a little more promising...


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The Twilight Zone Podcast with Flickering Myth co-editor Luke Owen

December 28, 2012, 9:10 am
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For the last couple of years, The Twilight Zone Podcast host Tom Elliot has been taking his listeners through the fifth dimension episode by episode. But for this year's Christmas special, he was joined by The Night Gallery Podcast host Chris Brown and Flickering Myth co-editor Luke Owen to discuss the 1983 big screen adaptation.

Bringing together the directorial skills of Steven Spielberg, George Miller, John Landis and Joe Dante, Twilight Zone: The Movie was an interesting experiment that has been met with mixed feelings in terms of critical reception but will forever be tainted by the tragic on-set death of Vic Morrow and child actors Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen.

In the podcast, Tom, Chris and Luke discuss the movie segment by segment as well as the possibilities of a new film and the announcement of Bryan Singer's new Twilight Zone TV show.

The episode can be heard here or via iTunes. You can also hear Chris' The Night Gallery Podcast by going here.
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'Creating The World' of Dredd 3D behind-the-scenes Blu-ray clip

December 28, 2012, 10:49 am
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Despite failing to set the box office alight during its theatrical run earlier this year, director Pete Travis and screenwriter Alex Garland's comic book adaptation Dredd proved to be a real hit with fans of the Lawman of the Future, banishing the ghost of Sylvester Stallone's appalling 1995 Hollywood effort to finally do justice to the iconic 2000 AD character on the big screen.

Now, with next month's home-entertainment release fast approaching, IGN has posted a behind-the-scenes clip from the Blu-ray special features, which gives us a brief insight into how the filmmakers went about designing Mega-City One...


The future America is an irradiated waste land. On its East Coast, running from Boston to Washington DC, lies Mega City One--a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets. The only force of order lies with the urban cops called “Judges” who possess the combined powers of judge, jury and instant executioner. Known and feared throughout the city, Dredd (Karl Urban, The Lord of the Rings, Star Trek) is the ultimate Judge, challenged with ridding the city of its latest scourge--a dangerous drug epidemic that has users of “Slo-Mo” experiencing reality at a fraction of its normal speed.

During a routine day on the job, Dredd is assigned to train and evaluate Cassandra Anderson (Olivia Thirlby, Juno), a rookie with powerful psychic abilities thanks to a genetic mutation. A heinous crime calls them to a neighbourhood where fellow Judges rarely dare to venture--a 200 story vertical slum controlled by prostitute turned drug lord Ma-Ma (Lena Headey, Game of Thrones, 300) and her ruthless clan. When they capture one of the clan’s inner circle, Ma-Ma overtakes the compound’s control centre and wages a dirty, vicious war against the Judges that proves she will stop at nothing to protect her empire. With the body count climbing and no way out, Dredd and Anderson must confront the odds and engage in the relentless battle for their survival.

Pre-order Dredd 3D via Amazon. 

Dredd is released on Blu-ray and DVD on January 8th in North America and January 14th in the UK.
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The Week in Spandex - The Dark Knight Rises, Man of Steel, Iron Man 3, The Avengers, The Wolverine, Fantastic Four and more

December 29, 2012, 3:44 am
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Our weekly round up of the latest news stories from the world of screen superheroes, including The Dark Knight Rises, Man of Steel,  Iron Man 3, The Avengers 2, S.H.I.E.L.D., The Wolverine, X-Men: Days of Future Past, Fantastic Four, Arrow and more...

...As 2013 approaches, Warner Bros. has made one final Academy Awards push for The Dark Knight Rises, releasing a 'For Your Consideration' iBook which collects together all of the film's campaign posters, as well as a behind-the-scenes trailer and selection of TV spots. The studio is lobbying hard in a number of the top categories, including Best Picture, Best Director (Christopher Nolan), Best Actor (Christian Bale), Best Actress (Anne Hathaway), Best Supporting Actor (Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Morgan Freeman), Best Supporting Actress (Marion Cotillard), Best Adapted Screenplay (Christopher Nolan, Jonathan Nolan) - and will be hoping to avoid a repeat of this month's Golden Globes shut out when the Academy announces the Oscar nominations on January 10th...

...The Dark Knight Rises might not have managed to top The Avengers at the box office this year but it did prove marginally more popular with pirates, with statistics showing that TDKR was illegally downloaded from torrent sites 8.23 million times as opposed to 8.11 million downloads for The Avengers. This placed the two movies third and fourth in the list of the most-pirated movies of 2012, which was surprisingly topped by the found footage comedy Project X...

...Having rejuvenated and redefined the Batman character on the big screen with his Dark Knight trilogy, Christopher Nolan has now turned his attention to Superman as producer on Man of Steel, and the filmmaker took a moment this week to speak of his admiration for director Zack Snyder, who is busy putting the finishing touches to the forthcoming reboot: "Zack was the perfect man to take this on; he is unbelievably skilled at creating a coherent, cohesive world. Whether it’s a very stylized world, like 300, or something that’s more challenging, more varied, like he did with Watchmen. In my honest appraisal, taking on Superman and creating that world is far more difficult than creating the world of the Dark Knight. He has a lot of finishing to do on the movie -- it has a very long post-production schedule because, unlike Batman, Superman flies. I actually feel guilty talking about it because I’m sitting here having nothing to do to it. I try to be as supportive as I can, and I’m just amazed by what he is doing. It’s not something I would know how to do..."

...Before Henry Cavill's Superman flies into cinemas, Robert Downey Jr. will kick off the 2013 Superhero Season in April as he returns for another outing as the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist Tony Stark in Iron Man 3; as well as popping up in a new still to wish fans a Happy Holidays, the actor spoke to UK lads mag Nuts (via First Showing) about director Shane Black's approach on the sequel, along with Ben Kingsley's "terrifying" take on The Mandarin: "I think Shane’s gone for a dark feel in this movie. It’s a lot grittier and goes back to its comic-book roots. It’s shaped into a really special movie - and Shane as been instrumental in that... I always think there's something more terrifying about a villain who's a genius, as opposed to just relying on strength or ability. We all know what a fantastic actor Ben Kingsley is, and he pulls off the evil genius with real terrifying results..."

...During an interview with The Playlist about his upcoming Shakespeare adaptation Much Ado About Nothing, Joss Whedon spoke briefly about his upcoming Marvel commitments - namely The Avengers 2 and Marvel's S.H.I.E.L.D.: "There's been enormous progress. We are trundling along, I can't share much. And by much I mean anything. I can say that S.H.I.E.L.D. came together in a very organic way. And part of my taking Avengers 2 was that I'd have the opportunity to work in the Marvel universe. I didn't exactly know I'd be running a TV show five minutes later. But it's something I really believe in. Although Avengers is the top of my list of exciting new things, S.H.I.E.L.D. is really talking to me..."

...And speaking of The Avengers, Industrial Light & Magic posted a fascinating 'Anatomy of a Shot' video giving us a look 'behind the magic' of the impressive single-take shot from the climactic battle sequence of this summer's blockbuster ensemble as Earth's Mightiest Heroes work together to fend off the invading Chitauri forces in the streets of New York City. Check it out here...

...It's been rumoured for a couple of months that Famke Janssen will reprise the role of Jean Grey for a cameo in The Wolverine, and now Hugh Jackman has confirmed that he will be joined by a familiar face from the X-Men universe when Logan heads to Japan for next year's solo sequel, although he stopped short of identifying which character will make a return: "[The Wolverine] takes place after X-Men: The Last Stand. My character is at his lowest. He is supposed to be able to heal himself, but he may encounter someone who has worked out a way to really hurt him. And there is a cameo from one of the past X-Men in it..."

...Of course, Jackman will be part of an even bigger X-Men reunion in 2014 as Bryan Singer brings together Fox's two timelines for X-Men: Days of Future Past, and both Patrick Stewart and James McAvoy have been speaking about returning to the role of Professor X this past week, with McAvoy revealing that the sequel will address the whole 'Xavier isn't bald' issue: "[Screenwriter] Simon Kinberg and I had a chat about it and we came up with a whole bunch of idea about how, why and where he might go bald. It’s got to be linked to the plot though. In the comics, he lost his hair as soon as his powers awakened, and we clearly didn’t follow the source material. It can’t just be that he looks in the mirror at the end of the film and goes 'Oh f**k, I’m losing my hair'. Although that could be quite funny with all this shit going on... he goes 'Arge, I’m really stressed...'"

...As Chronicle director Josh Trank prepares to reboot Marvel's First Family in 2015, screenwriter Mark Frost (Twin Peaks) has reflected on Fox's first two Fantastic Four movies, which he penned for director Tim Story: "The first movie was a lot fun because I’d collected Fantastic Four as a kid and had a lot of affections for, so they were stories I was very familiar with. The studio had tried to develop the thing for about ten years and it had fallen flat and gone in all sorts of different directions. I kind of steered them back to the original conceptions, the original ideas, the point. In a way it was like working with old friends, these were characters I’d known for 40 years. It was a little different than working with an adaptation that was brand new to me, with characters I didn’t know. [Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer] never really had much of a chance, it had kind of an ass-backwards development where they had named a release date but they didn’t have a movie to go out on that day. The second movie is a bit less effective than the first one, but that was a little different than a straight adaptation. These characters have been around for so long that they’re almost in our collective unconscious of pop culture, so it wasn’t that difficult." Actually writing a decent movie, on the other hand...

...During an interview with Collider, actor Seth Gabel (Fringe) has discussed his upcoming guest role on The CW's Arrow, where he will portray a reimagined version of the DC supervillain Count Vertigo: "I play The Count, who’s based on Count Vertigo of the comic book series. Instead of having superpowers, the powers are manifested in a drug called Vertigo, that I sell on the street. I’m essentially this street thug/drug kingpin, taking over the streets of Starling City. The way I justified being a super-villain, if you will, is that the character cares so much about money and power that he’s willing to do whatever it takes to acquire those things. In being totally consumed by money and power, I can completely ignore any questionable ethics, along that process, and just completely throw myself into doing whatever acts will achieve the acquisition of those things, whether it’s evil, wrong or whatever... [Arrow] was a really exciting thing to be a part of, and I had so much fun doing it. It’s very possible that I’ll make future appearances, and it’s something that I would absolutely love doing..."


...And so we come to the end of the final Week in Spandex of 2012, which has certainly been a defining year for the superhero movie. Christopher Nolan brought the curtain down on his epic Batman saga with The Dark Knight Rises, Marvel Studios shattered box-office records with Joss Whedon's The Avengers, and Sony relaunched Marvel's wall-crawler with The Amazing Spider-Man, as well as reminding us just how bad superhero movies can be with Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance. Barring this last misstep, it's been a great twelve months for the genre and 2013 is shaping up to deliver a superhero explosion, with Iron Man 3, Man of Steel, Kick-Ass 2, The Wolverine and Thor: The Dark World all set to arrive in cinemas, Arrow and Marvel's S.H.I.E.L.D. battling it out on the small screen alongside cartoons such as Beware the Batman, Teen Titans Go!, Ultimate Spider-Man, Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H. and Avengers Assemble, and several direct-to-video animated features incoming, including Batman: The Dark Knight Returns, Part 2, Superman: Unbound, Iron Man & Hulk: Heroes United and Iron Man: Rise of Technovore. Exciting times indeed... roll on 2013, and a Happy New Year to one and all!

Holy Franchise, Batman! Bringing the Caped Crusader to the Screen - Available now via Amazon.co.uk and Amazon.com.

Gary Collinson

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Special Features - The Future of Guillermo del Toro

December 29, 2012, 7:19 am
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David Bishop sorts through the multitude of projects on Guillermo del Toro's upcoming slate to see which ones have a shot at reaching the screen...

Visionary director/producer/writer/filmmaking machine Guillermo del Toro has about a million projects on the go. It seems his name is never far away when a major new franchise rears its head, on top of the ridiculous amount of self-starting projects he seems to announce on an almost daily basis. So, with the recent release of the (mind-blowing) Pacific Rim trailer, it seems a good time to get things straight and find out what’s concrete, what’s a possibility and what’s just wishful thinking...


The Hobbit– “But he’s no longer involved you complete moron.” I hear you cry. Well indeed, but such was his involvement that he still got a co-writer credit for his troubles. Whether his influence will be felt in the finished project is another matter but it’s good to see that his months of effort are still being recognised by Jackson.

Likelihood of release - Ummmm, it’s already out. Duh.

How excited are we? Some of us are and some of us couldn’t give a monkey’s. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has got a bit of a mixed response.


Pacific Rim– The poster is amazing, the trailer is even more awe-inspiring and it appears we’ve already got the film quote of 2013. This mash-up of giant robots (Jaegers) and giant monsters from another dimension (Kaiju) is a mouth-watering prospect, but in the hands of a lesser filmmaker, could be little more than another Transformers. However, with del Toro’s love of fantasy and monsters, we’re almost guaranteed something special. While not a highly original concept, it’s something that hasn’t been seen in American cinema all that often. Combine that with a lack of previous source material and Warner Bros. are putting a lot of faith in this. Good on ‘em.

Likelihood of release– Guaranteed; pencil July 12th 2013 into your diaries.

How excited are we? Before the trailer – very. After the trailer – off the charts.


Crimson Peak– A fairly recent development this one with not much info to go on, except that it’s a haunted house story in the fashion of The Haunting or The Innocents (both very enticing reference points). Del Toro explains - “a very set-oriented, classical but at the same time modern take on the ghost story. It will allow me to play with the conventions of the genre I know and love, and at the same time subvert the old rules.” All very exciting stuff and his first all-out horror movie for quite a while (not including films he’s produced).

Likelihood of release– Very high. Looks set to be his next project, even before Pacific Rim 2.

How excited are we? A full blown horror going back to the genre which made del Toro’s name? Count us in.


Pacific Rim 2– Apparently Warner Bros.’ is so confident in the success of del Toro’s monster-mash that they’ve commissioned a script for a sequel by original writer Travis Beacham already.

Likelihood of release– Depends on the success of the first film. It’s certainly a risky prospect, with no previous source material for audiences to draw upon and a lack of big name stars. Hopefully the first one won’t end up being the John Carter of 2013 and we’ll actually get to see the sequel. Even if it is a success there’s no guarantee of del Toro’s involvement.

How excited are we? We haven’t even seen the first one yet. Give us a chance.


Mama– Del Toro’s producing credits have been a mixed bag. On the plus side we’ve had the beautifully told The Orphanage and the shocking and unexpected Julia’s Eyes. On the downside Splice was an average Cronenberg knock-off and Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark was fairly unremarkable. Still, Mama has a suitably terrifying trailer which should pull in the hard-core horror crowd.

Likelihood of release– Again, it’s guaranteed. Run to your local cinema on February 22nd.

How excited are we? While its director is fairly unknown (this is Andres Muschietti’s debut feature length film), the trailer and cast alone make this a tantalising prospect. One to watch out for.


The Incredible Hulk (TV Series)– This one has been on the cards for what seems like ages now but it’s unclear how close it is to actual completion. Also unknown is how this will tie into the current Marvel Universe. Originally it was going to be unconnected to the films but with the colossal success of The Avengers, and more specifically the Hulk character, Marvel may want to go in a different direction. Del Toro is set to write and direct the pilot.

Likelihood of release – Seems quite strong. The Hulk has a lot more pulling power after The Avengers and the character has always enjoyed more success on TV than in the cinema. Whether that still remains true today is unclear and it’s slightly worrying that word has gone quite quiet on this one.

How excited are we? After Louis Leterrier and Ed Norton’s failed attempt at the character, it seemed like the Hulk was desperate for a radical interpretation from a visionary director. However after Joss Whedon and Mark Ruffalo nailed the characterisation of both Bruce Banner and ‘the other guy’, it seems a tad unnecessary to see yet another interpretation (the fourth in ten years). Wait and see on this one.


Pinocchio– The 1940 adaptation is probably Disney’s scariest film and therefore seems ideal material for del Toro to draw from. Coupled with the news that this will be stop motion and we have something very intriguing.

Likelihood of release– Who knows? It’s been on the plate for the while and before Crimson Peak was announced it was rumoured to begin filming next summer. This seems unlikely now.

How excited are we? Imagine the opening to Hellboy 2 across a whole movie. Need we say more?


At the Mountains of Madness– Little of H.P. Lovecraft’s work has found its way to the big screen and it’s not difficult to see why. Mountains especially doesn’t really lend itself to the cinematic treatment, with a barebones plot and strange atmosphere. However while the plot would certainly have to be expanded, if anyone was going to pull it off it would be del Toro. The final third will be especially intriguing, with plenty of scope for terrifying monstrosities.

Likelihood of release– While things seemed to be going along smoothly, with Tom Cruise to star and James Cameron to produce, Universal bulked at the budget and pulled the plug. While that appeared to be the end, del Toro has been getting along so well with Legendary that they might be reviving the project.

How excited are we? Trying not to get our hopes up as this may not happen but if del Toro makes only one more project, it really should be this one.


Frankenstein– News has been quiet on this one lately (probably because of everything above) but there was talk of this while del Toro was still attached to The Hobbit. Whether we need another version of this is another matter however the director did let slip that this wouldn’t be an adaptation of the novel, instead, he’s creating an entirely new story involving Shelley’s most famous creation. It worked for Bride of Frankenstein so this could be a real treat.

Likelihood of release– No idea. This just seems like another project del Toro won’t have time for at present, which is a shame because if he is telling an original story then this would be right up his street.

How excited are we? The character suits the director’s sensibilities perfectly but it may be a case of being too perfect and could end up being another Tim Burton / Alice in Wonderland effort. It’s unlikely we’ll ever find out though.


Star War Episode VII- It seems that with every new franchise entry, del Toro’s name is branded about. However, this time the director has been in actual talks with the producers. How far those talks actually went is unclear, but we can’t imagine he’s all that serious about directing.

Likelihood of release– Guaranteed. However, it is very unlikely to be in del Toro’s hands.

How excited are we? Most will be very excited by a new Star Wars film but the Lucas universe doesn’t seem like a great fit for del Toro. It will almost certainly go to a less arty pair of hands.


The Strain (TV series) - Based on the trilogy of novels written by del Toro and Chuck Hogan, The Strain is about a virus turning the human population into vampires. Plans are afoot for FX to adapt this into a TV series. While the books aren’t brilliant (the two author’s styles don’t really mesh), it is structured around the style of a TV series making it ripe for adaptation. Del Toro will write and direct the pilot with Carlton Cuse (Lost) acting as show runner.

Likelihood of release– Very high as FX has already green lit the pilot. Hopefully it will make it to air with at least one full season.

How excited are we? There’s no shortage of brilliant TV drama at the moment but one more would certainly be welcome. Also, with the books already complete, there’s no chance of a Lost ‘making-it-up-as-we-go-along’ approach being at work here. This may actually work.


Book of Life (formally Day of the Dead) - A sensible title change to avoid confusion with George A. Romero’s zombie classic (actually, it’s to avoid confusion with a Pixar film in development with the same name). This animated film is not about zombies attacking a military outpost, but is set against the backdrop of the famous Mexican festival. Del Toro will produce with Jorge R. Gutierrez directing.

Likelihood of release– Fox animation has announced a release date of 10th October 2014 so a while to wait.

How excited are we? Without much plot info and no previous source material to go with, there’s not much to get excited about at the moment.


Alma- Another DreamWorks animated film with the producing guidance of del Toro. This one appears a bit more unique though, telling the story of a toy shop which turns children into dolls for its collection. Based on a short film.

Likelihood of release – Seems quite strong with nothing to indicate it won’t happen, and currently due in  2015 according to IMDb.

How excited are we? DreamWorks' animation has usually been a step behind the competition with endless sequels and films full of pop-culture references and little else. However this sounds a lot more exciting, especially with the horror angle, and can hopefully follow the form the studio found with How to Train Your Dragon.


Hellboy 3- No plot details and not much of anything else to be honest. It would be amazing to see another entry but we could be waiting a while.

Likelihood of release– This is more wishful thinking than anything else, but both del Toro and Mike Mignola have talked about its possibility. Hellboy 2 made money though, so all that stands in its way is del Toro getting round to writing the thing. We shouldn’t have too long to wait then.

How excited are we? Hellboy 2 was one of the greatest comic book adaptations ever made and improved ten-fold on the first film. If the next one can follow that trend then we’ll be in for a treat.


There’s probably a million and one projects going round the director’s head but the above should keep him busy for at least a decade or two. Expect this list to be out of date in a week...

David Bishop
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In Every Cloud There's Always a Silver Linings Playbook

December 30, 2012, 7:48 am
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Commenting on the Critics with Simon Columb...

Dorothy Pomerantz writes her interview with Silver Linings Playbook author Matthew Quick:

"The thing that’s a little frustrating for me is people who aren’t artists look at it like winning the lottery. For me, that’s not what it’s about. There’s an old Vince Lombardi quote, ‘When you get in the end zone, act like you’ve been there before.’ I want to do this for the rest of my life. I’m off to a great start but I’m at the beginning not, the end. That’s the way you have to look at it."

Read the full interview here.

It’s really tricky when you compare yourself to others. I can vividly recall my own father telling me that comparing yourself to others is a misstep – and, of course, he is right. But it truly is fascinating when you read stories from those who have managed to break free from the rat-race to do something they love – and, you consider how it can relate or compare to you and your own goals.

At a time whereby the New Year is approaching, it is always a time to reflect – and set goals and aspirations for the future. I have a list in my own mind and, though I may not reach my goals in 2013, I will reach them in the future.

Matthew Quick wrote for three years before his book was picked up. He was originally a trained teacher. He quit his job to work in the basement of his in-laws to follow his dream. Ricky Gervais was in his late 30s before his career began to move. Michael Morpugo (author of War Horse) and Sting were both qualified teachers before becoming an author and musician respectively. Frank Skinner was unemployed for three years before becoming a lecturer. Alan Rickman of Die Hard and Harry Potter didn’t start acting until he was 28 – and only broke into theatre when he was in his 40s. The Guard star Brendan Gleeson (also a trained teacher) was 34 when he first acted; Stallone was 30 when he wrote and starred in Best Picture Oscar-winner Rocky... The list goes on.

But when you consider the choices we have – as aspiring directors, actors and authors – we have to imagine the tough times. For three years, Matthew Quick had doubters. Three years is the length of an undergraduate degree!  I can only imagine the desire to create, to write, that Matthew Quick had to make such a decision – and defend his passion and choice for the future.

I remember reading a book titled Is There Life After Film School? by Julie MacLuskey, whereby she interviewed young men and women in the film industry. One of the fascinating insights one man explained was how everyone dreams of the “pitch in a lift” scenario where you are sharing an elevator with Steven Spielberg and he asks about your script. The interviewee noted how, if (and when) such an opportunity happens, you need a script. You need a good script – in fact, you need the best script. The point being that you needed to have the skills in the first instance.

Matthew Quick is a testament to that, and alongside the many other actors, filmmakers and screenwriters, he should inspire everyone to aspire to work in a profession they love. That old saying about overnight successes taking years to materialise, once again, is touched upon as Quick explains his frustration with people who believe that to be successful is like winning the lottery.  Rightly so - he has worked hard for his achievements and only a small part of it is luck. And even then, he took advantage of any opportunity that came his way. When he shared a lift, he had a story ready to go.

Simon Columb
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Skyfall tops $1 billion at the global box office; £100 million in the UK

December 30, 2012, 11:44 am
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Having overtaken James Cameron's Avatar earlier this month to become the UK's highest-grossing release of all-time, Skyfall has now capped a fantastic 50th anniversary for the James Bond movie franchise by becoming the first film to surpass the £100 million mark on home soil, as well as only the fourteenth movie in history to break $1 billion at the global box office - the third film to do so this year after The Avengers and The Dark Knight Rises.

With $289.6 million from North America and $710.6 million in international receipts, Skyfall is now sitting on a worldwide haul of $1,000,200,000 to date. The spy thriller is yet to open in the potentially lucrative market of China, so Daniel Craig's third outing as 007 looks to have a real chance of cracking the all-time top ten, with Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' $1,043.9m certainly in reach. Skyfall could even go on to overtake the $1.081 billion gross of The Dark Knight Rises, which would make it the second-biggest earner of 2012 (although The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey might yet have something to say about that).

Skyfall is directed by Sam Mendes and sees Daniel Craig once again joined in the cast by Judi Dench as M, while Bond newcomers include Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men), Ralph Fiennes (Great Expectations), Ben Wishaw (Cloud Atlas), Naomie Harris (28 Days Later), Albert Finney (The Bourne Legacy), Bérénice Marlohe (R.I.S. Police scientifique) and Ola Rapace (Wallander).
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The Hobbit leads a packed Holiday week at the North American box office

December 30, 2012, 1:11 pm
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It was a stellar week at the US box office with a number of new releases debuting to impressive numbers.  But it was a Hobbit holdover that brought in the biggest audience this weekend with $32 million over the three day weekend.  Add to that a Christmas week holiday haul of an additional $25 million for an impressive $221 million grand total to date.  The film is playing well across all demographics.  $300 million is well within reach and bodes well for the next two installments.  In spite of critical ambivalence and a technological gaffe with 48fps, audiences still seem very interested in Middle-earth with Jackson at the helm.

Quentin Tarantino's insane spaghetti western Django Unchanined opened big.  Since Christmas Day it has brought in $64 million, including $31 million dollars for the weekend, which was good enough for the number two spot.  The word of mouth is strong in spite of some controversies being bandied about in the press.  Expect Django to hold strong in coming weeks as the award season kicks in.

Speaking of award season, one of the projected Best Picture nominee front runners Les Miserables debuted on Christmas Day to strong numbers and has brought in $66 million since its opening, with a weekend take of $27 million for third place.  Les Miserables has been a polarizing film.  Some critics are declaring it the best of the year while others are calling it an unmitigated, laughable disaster.  Audience reaction has been overwhelmingly positive and the ticket sales have been healthy.  Both Django Unchained and Les Miserables will easily cross the $100 million mark which bodes well for the forthcoming Academy Award nominations.

The family friendly comedy Parental Guidance starring Billy Crystal debuted at number four with a $14.4 million weekend and nearly $30 million since its release on Christmas Day.  The film seems to fill the 'inoffensive comedy' category for audiences who found The Hobbit too challenging.

Jack Reacher rounds out the top five with $14 million.  The latest Tom Cruise action film isn't a disaster, but it's failed to click with audiences. I'm not sure whether you can blame the marketing or the amount of competition in the marketplace.  Just about everyone agrees the film is an effective and entertaining thriller, though the interest level is just not there.

Next weekend is pretty low key with one new release and one expansion.  The new release is the latest take on the classic Texas Chain Saw Massacre with Texas Chainsaw 3D.  I'm betting a third dimension will really help flesh things out.  Also, the Gus Van Sant directed drama Promised Land goes from limited to wide release.  I don't expect either to do much.  I think it's going to be a three way punch 'em up between Hobbit, Les Mis, and Django for the number one spot next week.

Here's your top films for North America...

1. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Weekend Estimate: $32 million; $221 million total

2. Django Unchained
Weekend Estimate: $31 million; $64 million total

3. Les Miserables
Weekend Estimate: $27 million; $66 million total

4. Parental Guidance
Weekend Estimate: $27 million; $66 million total

5. Jack Reacher
Weekend Estimate: $14 million; $44 million total

Anghus Houvouras
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DVD Review - Berberian Sound Studio (2012)

December 31, 2012, 1:42 am
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Berberian Sound Studio, 2012.

Written and Directed by Peter Strickland.
Starring Toby Jones, Cosimo Fusco, Tonia Sotiropoulou, Susanna Cappaellaro, Layla Amir, Eugenia Caruso and Antonio Mancino.



SYNOPSIS:

Gilderoy (Toby Jones), a sound engineer for a UK television and film industry, is mysteriously hired to work on a psychological thriller in Italy. There in the Berberian Sound Studio Gilderoy’s mind starts to slip and he becomes more involved in the production.


The effect of sound in a horror film is, quite often, the determining factor in the movie’s ability to frighten you. The experience of Berberian Sound Studio is electrifying in its manipulation of sound and the resulting psychological outcome. It does not play on the tried conventions of violin shrieks or symbols clashing to have you jumping out of your seat. Instead, director Peter Strickland takes the audience through a very introspective analysis of sound effects and the jarring nature of their engineering.

Toby Jones’ Gilderoy, a mild-mannered, quiet sound-mixer, is the perfect figure to magnify the horror that emerges around him. Having a reserved protagonist secures empathy with a wide audience whilst making the events around the “average Joe” appear distressingly chaotic. As Gilderoy becomes an intrinsic part of the diegetic film’s creation, it is understandable to see how his daily intake of what we imagine to be distressing content haunts him to no end. Strickland never shows the audience the “Equestrian Vortex” film that Gilderoy is working on but one can gather that from the sounds and descriptions we hear, it is very traumatic. Jones does a terrific job at playing the various levels of distress that Gilderoy undergoes. The perky, slightly confused employee at the start soon evolves into a tired, jittery wreck – all masterfully expressed by the British character actor.

As Jones has mostly been seen in bit-parts and numerous supporting roles it is refreshing to see him at the forefront of a film (also note Infamous and the Hitchcock film The Girl for Jones in the lead). His supporting cast are relatively unknown though all provide Gilderoy with enough foils, love interests and collaborators to make his experience in the Berberian Sound Studio all the more interesting.

As Gilderoy first walks through the bland-coloured corridors of the studio, echoes of a woman’s screams fill the ether – it is the beginning of wanting to find out more about this place as well as providing the film with an immediate omen of dread. Out of all the film’s triumphs it is the sound that is most impressive. Now on DVD/Blu-ray, the purchase or renting of Berberian Sound Studio deserves a surround sound system to enhance all the nuances of the film’s glorious noise. As much as the story itself stays with after the film ends, it is the notion of sound and volume that keeps Berberian Sound Studio in your mind long after you’ve finished watching it.

Strickland’s clear knowledge of the genre, along with particular muses (Lynch and Argento), gives the film a perfect pace, well-crafted characters and a captivating narrative. Harking back to the analogue engineering of sound effects, the 70s movie enterprise is lovingly recreated by Strickland and his set design team, adding to the feel of authenticity in the film. It is not the average slasher/paranormal/exorcism horror that regularly litters the cinemas, but a brilliant psychological voyage into sound and stress. 

Flickering Myth Rating - Film: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★  / Movie: ★ ★ ★ ★

Piers McCarthy - Follow me on Twitter.
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A few new Justice League movie rumours surface online

December 31, 2012, 6:36 am
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Considering that Warner Bros. is yet to officially announce the movie, never mind appoint a director, it would seem that there's still a long way to go before DC Comics' team of superheroes line up together for the studio's proposed Justice League feature. Still, with Will Beall (Gangster Squad) busy developing a script, and recent comments from Man of Steel director Zack Snyder suggesting that his upcoming Superman reboot will tie in to Justice League, it's clear that Warner Bros.' plans for the movie are starting to take shape and now the folks at CosmicBookNews claim to have the inside scoop on which characters we'll be seeing when the ensemble finally arrives on screen.

Now, bearing in mind that CosmicBookNews posts a tonne of "exclusive" rumours, many of which go nowhere, I'd advise taking these with a hefty pinch of salt for the time being:

• Superman is essentially the same character from Man of Steel, and Zack Snyder is consulting regarding the writing of the character.
• Batman: The strategist of the group. Batman doesn't really want to be involved with these super powered beings he considers too powerful. Easily the most complex written.
• Wonder Woman: She has only been in man's world a few short months. The Wonder Woman script Michael Goldenberg is developing will be set before the Justice League movie.
• Green Lantern: Will be Ryan Reynold's character from the Green Lantern movie, but will be freshly written with a more serious tone.
• Flash: The most popular hero in civilian eyes who loves media attention, but when called upon is very serious.
• Martian Manhunter: Alien who has lived on Earth in secret for over a hundred years who has knowledge of Darkseid and his reign.
• Aquaman: Will be the King of Atlantis who has a key role in the film.
• There will also be a heavy military presence in the film which in future rewrites could include characters featured in Man of Steel or even Amanda Waller (Angela Bassett) of which neither are included in the first draft.
• Alfred Pennyworth is in the film in a minor appearance.
• Lois Lane is also in the film in a cameo.
• Darkseid's Elite will be featured who go up against the Justice League early on in the film.

Warner Bros. is said to be looking at a 2015 release for Justice League, so expect to hear plenty of news about the hotly-anticipated comic book adaptation over the coming months...
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Flickering Myth's Top Ten Movies of 2012

December 31, 2012, 7:51 am
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As 2012 draws to a close, we're already casting our eye towards next year's cinematic offerings, but before 2013 gets underway it's time to reflect on the past twelve months as we present our selection of the very best films to arrive on screens over the past year.

Like previous years, the team here at Flickering Myth have put together individual lists of our personal favourites, which we’ve used to produce an overall selection of our Top Ten Movies of 2012. The list is compiled by UK release dates, so with several of 2012's big hitters yet to arrive on these shores there was no chance for the likes of Cloud Atlas, Django Unchained, Hitchcock, Les Miserables, Lincoln, Wreck It-Ralph and Zero Dark Thirty to make the cut (this year, at least), while Ang Lee's Life of Pi probably arrived just a little too late to make a real splash.

Without further ado, here are our choices for the top ten movies of 2012:


10. Argo (dir. Ben Affleck)

Ben Affleck is certainly building himself a fine reputation as a director, with his third feature Argo demonstrating his ever-increasing maturity as a filmmaker. Based upon an audacious CIA operation to rescue six American diplomats from Tehran by posing as a Hollywood movie crew scouting locations for a possible shoot, Argo has already been nominated for five Golden Globes and has a real chance at securing Affleck his first Best Director and Best Picture nominations when the Academy Awards announce the Oscar contenders next month.


You can read our thoughts on Argo here, here, here and here, as well as our interview with VFX supervisor Matt Dessero here.



9. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (dir. Peter Jackson)

For a time, it looked as if MGM's financial troubles would prevent a cinematic return to Middle-earth, but after taking over the reigns from Guillermo del Toro, 2012 saw Peter Jackson deliver the first of his now-three-part prequel to The Lord of the Rings with The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. While the movie itself may have become overshadowed by the debate over HFR - not to mention Jackson's decision to stretch J.R.R. Tolkien's book across three films - this shouldn't detract from the fact that An Unexpected Journey is the best fantasy film to hit screens since... well, The Return of the King.

You can read our thoughts on The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey here.



8. Chronicle (dir. Josh Trank)

Weaving together the popular superhero and found footage genres to superb effect, first-time director Josh Trankand screenwriter Max (son of John) Landis delivered one of the most entertaining movies of the year with their debut feature Chronicle. A refreshing spin on the superhero origin story, Chronicle was one of the surprise hits of the year, banking $126m from a budget of just $15m; a sequel has already been announced (although Fox are apparently unhappy with Max Landis' script), and its success has paved the way for Josh Trank to try his hand at a big budget superhero blockbuster with Fox's Fantastic Four reboot.

You can read our thoughts on Chronicle here, here and here.




7. The Master (dir. Paul Thomas Anderson)

2012 saw Paul Thomas Anderson make a welcome return to cinemas after a five year absence with the controversial drama The Master, which stars Joaquin Phoenix as a young World War II veteran who gets involved with a philosophical movement led by PTA regular Philip Seymour Hoffman's L. Ron Hubbard-esque Lancaster Dodd. The recipient of the Silver Lion at the Venice International Film Festival (and the jury's original choice for the Golden Lion), The Master has secured a trio of Golden Globe nominations for Phoenix, Hoffman and Amy Adams and should go on to feature prominently in the acting categories at the Academy Awards.

You can read our thoughts on The Master here and here, as well as our interview with production designer Jack Fisk here.


6. The Raid (dir. Gareth Evans)

While 2012 saw Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Jean-Claude Van Damme and Chuck Norris lining up together in The Expendables 2, these old school action icons found themselves overshadowed by the relentless all-out action offered up by Welsh filmmaker Gareth Evans' The Raid. From such a simple set-up - a SWAT team raiding an Indonesians apartment block packed with bad guys - The Raid delivers a non-stop action tour de force as fists fly, bones break and blood splatters from start until finish. The Raid is the only foreign language film to make our top ten this year - see it now, before the inevitably-inferior Hollywood remake.

You can read our thoughts on The Raid here, here and here.



5. Shame (dir. Steve McQueen)

Following on from his acclaimed 2008 feature film debut Hunger, British writer-director Steve McQueen reunited with leading man Michael Fassbender for Shame. A powerful and unflinching portrayal of sex addiction, Shame fell afoul of the MPAA due to its sexually explicit content and was slapped with a NC-17 rating, while it was shamefully (sorry) overlooked by the major industry awards, presumably due to its controversial subject matter. Still, a UK release date of January 13th meant that Shame was eligible for inclusion in our top ten of 2012, where it takes fifth place.

You can read our thoughts on Shame here.




4. Skyfall (dir. Sam Mendes)

It's fitting that in its 50th anniversary, the James Bond movie franchise produced one of the best instalments in the series, and one of the finest films of the year, as Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes teamed up with Daniel Craig's 007 for the super spy's 23rd official adventure, Skyfall. Backed by acting heavyweights such as Judi Dench, Ralph Fiennes and Javier Bardem, Skyfall received near-universal acclaim from critics and moviegoers alike and has gone on to become the third-biggest release of 2012, not to mention the highest-grossing UK release of all-time. While the Bourne series faltered with the Bourne-less The Bourne Legacy, Skyfall put Bond back on top in a big way.

You can read our thoughts on Skyfall here, here, here and here.


3. Looper (dir. Rian Johnson)

Brick and The Brothers Bloom writer-director Rian Johnson enjoyed his first bona fide box office hit this year as he reunited with Joseph Gordon-Levitt for the ambitious sci-fi action thriller Looper. The film sees JGL as a hitman contracted by the mob as a 'looper' - an assassin who eliminates targets sent back in time from thirty years into the future, and eventually has to 'close the loop' by eliminating his future self, who is portrayed by Bruce Willis. A smart, intelligent and thoroughly engrossing sci-fi offering, Looper narrowly edged out Skyfall to claim third place in our list of the year's best.

You can read our thoughts on Looper here, here and here, as well as our interview with writer-director Rian Johnson here, and our coverage of the TIFF press conference featuring Johnson, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Bruce Willis here.


2. The Avengers (dir. Joss Whedon)

Arguably the most ambitious project of the year, The Avengers (or Avengers Assemble as it's known here in the UK) saw Joss Whedon and Marvel Studios assembling Earth's Mightiest Heroes on the big screen as they brought together Marvel's four big movie franchises to fulfill every fanboy and fangirl's dream. Shattering box office records to become the highest-grossing film of 2012, The Avengers was a near-perfect summer blockbuster, offering up a superb blend of action, humour, excitement and spectacle. The Avengers is without doubt one of the greatest comic book movies ever made, but it's not our favourite movie of the year. It's not our favourite comic book movie of the year either...

You can read our thoughts on The Avengers here, here, here and here, as well as our exclusive 'making of' article Fully Assembled here.


1. The Dark Knight Rises (dir. Christopher Nolan)

Well, you didn't think it would be The Amazing Spider-Man, did you?! Yes, our pick for the best movie of 2012 is of course The Dark Knight Rises - the epic conclusion to Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy, which sees Christian Bale's Batman saving Gotham City from destruction at the hands of Tom Hardy's brutal terrorist leader Bane. Despite a gallant effort from Earth's Mightiest Heroes, The Dark Knight Rises was a clear favourite among the team here at Flickering Myth, topping no less than six our of writers' individual lists, as Nolan delivered a stunning finale to his Batman saga, and rounded out one of the finest trilogies ever put to film in the process. 

You can read our thoughts on The Dark Knight Rises here, here, here and here, as well as our interview with film editor Lee Smith here.


Just missing out on a place in the top ten were…

Silver Linings Playbook (dir. David O. Russell)
Seven Psychopaths (dir. Martin McDonagh)
The Muppets(dir. James Bobin)
Dredd 3D(dir. Pete Travis) - Execution: The Making of Dredd 3D
Ted (dir. Seth MacFarlane)
The Woman in Black(dir. James Watkins)
The Descendants(dir. Alexander Payne)
The Cabin in the Woods(dir. Drew Goddard)
Moonrise Kingdom(dir. Wes Anderson)
The Grey(dir. Joe Carnahan)


Our individual favourites…

Gary Collinson - The Avengers
Oliver Davis - Shame
Trevor Hogg - The Master
Luke Owen - The Avengers
Liam Trim - Shame
David Bishop - The Raid
Kirsty Capes - Looper
Simon Columb - The Dark Knight Rises
Chris Cooper - The Dark Knight Rises
Scott Davis- The Dark Knight Rises
Martin Deer - Life of Pi
Luke Graham - The Master
Piers McCarthy - The Intouchables
Robert W Monk - Amour
Simon Moore - Moonrise Kingdom
Rohan Morbey - The Master
Helen Murdoch - The Dark Knight Rises
Jake Peffer - Silver Linings Playbook
Matt Smith - The Dark Knight Rises
Jake Wardle - The Dark Knight Rises


And our previous Top Tens...

2011 - Drive
2010 - Inception


What are your choices for the best movies of 2012? We’d love to hear your thoughts…
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Movie Review - 20 Something (2011)

January 1, 2013, 3:01 am
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20 Something, 2011.

Written and Directed by Lanze Spears.


SYNOPSIS:

A series of vignettes documenting the lives of five 20 somethings with aspirations to succeed in life.


Lanze Spears' debut documentary  20 Something centres around five twenty-somethings living in cities in the United States. Each of them aspire to something and the documentary revolves around their individual aspirations. As a documentary, it fails on multiple levels. However as a piece of artistic filmmaking, it achieves a resonance and profundity that the information side of it lacks.

My main issue with Spears' interviews with his subjects is the lack informative and interesting content they produce. It seems that whilst the audience's expectations are set up to hear insights into these hopeless individuals' lives, Spears essentially just lets them ramble and puts it in his movie as an interview. Extremely shaky camera work and amateurish effects don't help for concentration either. Here Spears has five genuinely engaging characters as subjects and he fails to exploit them to their full potential. His portrayal of at least four of them demonstrates them, unfortunately, to be spoiled middle-class kids. Meanwhile, all of his subjects want to be either models, actors or artists. The film is not about models, actors and artists (or so I thought), it's about kids in their twenties trying to find work. The narrow spectrum provided means that we are presented with interviewees who are essentially acting, and not well either.

Having already mentioned poor effects, I have to draw attention further to the number of still images of these "actors'" headshots and modelling photographs. It's like Spears couldn't pick one or two so he shoved all of them in there, one appearing on-screen at a deafeningly slow pace (I also noticed that way much more attention was given to the ladies' modelling shots than the guy's - and absolutely zero images of the two other guys' artwork were shown). The same goes for title cards - the city, the characters... flashing up multiple times and taking us away from the action and story of the subjects. Artistically, it has its merits, but again, as a documentary, there is barely any informative content at all. There are far too many "filler" shots of the interviewees at parties and in clubs with their friends. I'm not sure how Spears expects his audience to believe his characters are struggling to find work and on the brink of poverty when he insists on filming them at nightclubs and bars. It's not entirely convincing.

Spears says that his purpose in making 20 Something was to inspire young people not to give up their dreams. It may be because I'm British and not entirely familiar with American youth culture, but all this film inspired me to do was not be an actor. All these kids do (with the exception of one of them, Sean, who was the only one out of all of them that talked any sense) is do the least amount of work possible for the most amount of money, then whinge about how their dreams haven't come true. Sorry if I don't find that inspiring. Spears has failed what he set out to do with this "documentary", which can more easily be called self-absorbed pat-on-the-back flattery.

Flickering Myth Rating - Film ★ ★ / Movie ★ ★

Kirsty Capes
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Concept art for Sam Raimi's version of The Lizard

January 1, 2013, 8:22 am
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Last year's The Amazing Spider-Man had certainly had its fair share of critics, but if there was one aspect of the Andrew Garfield-headlined reboot that came under particular fire, it was director Marc Webb's choice of design for Spidey's nemesis, The Lizard (Rhys Ifans).

Well, thanks to concept artist Constantine Sekeris (via ComicBookMovie), we now have an insight into the direction that Sam Raimi would have gone with the character, with Sekeris releasing two images of The Lizard as he could have appeared alongside Tobey Maguire's wall-crawler.

The images in question were produced for Spider-Man 2, back when Raimi was planning to have Spider-Man go up against Dylan Baker's Dr. Curt Connors, Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus and James Franco's Harry Osborn. Fortunately, he was convinced otherwise...



Be sure to head on over to Constantine Sekeris' site for more concept art from the likes of Spider-Man 3, The Incredible Hulk, Fantastic 4: Rise of the Silver Surfer, Thor, X-Men: First Class, Blade II, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Green Lantern, The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, The Cabin in the Woods and A Nightmare on Elm Street.
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Two Deaths in Three Days for This Hour Has Seven Days

January 1, 2013, 8:29 am
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Laurier LaPierre, Dinah Christie and Patrick Watson
In a strange turn of events two key figures from a landmark CBC public affairs show have died within days of each other.  On December 17, Laurier LaPierre who served as a co-host with Patrick Watson and Dinah Christie for This Hour Has Seven Days died and two days later the co-founder of the program with Watson, Douglas Leiterman suffered the same fate.

Douglas Leiterman
Originally aired on October 4, 1964, the one hour program was a hybrid of satire and hard news which courted controversy by ambushing politicians whether at home or work while also profiling cultural figures such as Leonard Cohen.  LaPierre was criticized for unprofessional behaviour for wiping away tears on the air after an interview with mother of Steven Truscott, a 14 year old boy who was later discovered to have been wrongfully sentenced to death for murder.  Other polarizing television moments included an interview with Ku Klux Klan members which resulted in an unannounced black civil rights activist being brought in to join the discussion and coverage of the Munsinger Affair that led to documentary filmmaker Larry Zolf being hit in the head with a cane by former Minister of Defence Pierre Sévigny who was embroiled in a sex scandal at the time.  The forerunner for 60 Minutes and The Daily Show, This Hour Has Seven Days was cancelled on May 8, 1966.

Laurier LaPierre openly declared himself to be gay at a public rally during the 1980s and was appointed to the Canadian Senate in 2001 while Douglas Leiterman formed Hobel-Leiterman Productions where he continued to make documentaries. LaPierre is survived by his long-time partner Harvey Slack.  As for Leiterman, he leaves behind his wife of 50 years, Beryl Fox, his daughters Lachlan, Catherine, Julia and Barbara, and sister Phyllis King.

          
      
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