“Peter Jackson is eyeing his next fantasy series. The filmmaker has dipped into his discretionary fund to option “Temeraire,” a historical fantasy series by first-time novelist Naomi Novik, as he puts the pieces together for his career post-“King Kong.”
The “Temeraire” saga reimagines the world of the Napoleonic Wars with the addition of an air force of dragons and valiant aviators. It centers on British naval Capt. Will Laurence, who captures a French ship, where he discovers an unhatched dragon egg in the hold — a gift from the Emperor of China intended for Napoleon. When the egg hatches, he is forced to give up his naval career to become captain of the dragon he names Temeraire.”
Also check out this fan website for the book series:
“In a Variety article talking about MGM’s move back into the tentpole business, the trade mentions a few highly-anticipated projects that are in the works:
Over the next few years, MGM is planning to release half a dozen films, some in the $150 million to $200 million-plus range. Studio is ready to unveil such high-profile projects as “Terminator 4”; one or two installments of “The Hobbit,” which Sloan hopes will be directed by Peter Jackson.”
Care to play a game? After over twenty years it looks there may be a bad direct-to-DVD sequel in the works to one of my favorite early 80s geek hacker movies:
“Devoid of all originality like most hollywood studios nowadays, MGM is planning on launching a sequel aptly named “War Games 2, a thriller involving high-level computer operations, which begins filming in November.”
…now what would be cool is if the sequel was set in 1984 and they had a classic new wave soundtrack and had guest star spots for Matthew Broderick and Ally Sheedy. And if they could work the “brand new Apple Macintosh” that would even be cooler. But nooooo! I bet they’ll do a lame job of it.
“Short films by Stephen Frears, the late John Schlesinger and brothers Tony and Ridley Scott can now be downloaded from the British Film Institute’s website. The initiative allows users to watch rarely shown early works from some of Britain’s leading film-makers. Six features are also available, among them 1974’s Pressure – regarded as one of Britain’s first black feature films. There are 230,000 films and 675,000 TV programmes in the BFI archive. Download costs range from £5 to £12.50.”
…sadly it seems downloading the films is off limits to Americans! But it’s still neat to see them taking steps in this direction,
“CHINESE government officials are planning a Bruce Lee theme park, complete with a rollercoaster that emits the martial arts actor’s signature grunts and screams on high-speed bends. According to local reports, the park will be patrolled by Bruce Lee “mannequin robots”, radio-controlled from within a giant statue of the late star. The £10m theme park will be built at Shunde, a picturesque town of canals and bamboo gardens northwest of Hong Kong, which Lee’s grandfather left in the late 19th century to start a new life in America. ”
But there is still a chance that this may not happen yet:
“However, all this may be brought to a halt by Shannon Lee, the actor’s only surviving child, who plans to visit Shunde for the first time later this year “to find out what else they are dreaming up over there”. The 37-year-old Californian entrepreneur has her own plans including a television series that will use computer graphics to re-create Lee. “The technology is nearly here to make it look as if he is back,” she said last week. She has authorised a Broadway musical as well and hopes to work with the Chinese government, which is also discussing with the BBC a documentary about Lee’s life and his death at 32, following an allergic reaction to a headache pill.”
…I hope if they do a computer game they don’t do anything too cheesy!
“The BIG news has finally hit. A Ringer Spy who was recently in the New York offices of New Line Cinema has reported that they clearly saw ‘The Hobbit’ on the film schedule for 2007. Here’s what the spy had to say: “Please leave my email anonymous as I have some very exciting news to report. I was in New Line’s NY offices to discuss upcoming projects when I clearly saw something very intriguing on a year planner. ‘The Hobbit’ was clearly marked on what looked like July 2007. I couldn’t exactly take a moment to investigate the calendar with my audience in the room, but it definitely said ‘The Hobbit’. Lets hope this is a PJ project”!”
“The “Terminator” franchise is rising again, this time as a Fox TV series. Andy Vajna and Mario Kassar’s C2 Pictures, which produced the most recent “Terminator” feature, has pacted with Warner Bros. TV and scribe Josh Friedman (“War of the Worlds”) for the tentatively titled “The Sarah Connor Chronicles.” Skein will focus on robo-warrior Sarah Connor and her savior son John Connor.”
At long last the digital film making revolution is allowing indy film makers to go after subject matter like space opera on a low budget! A digital film company based in Scotland has just released a new film called “The Planet”. What’s cool is that this film looks pretty neat, but was done on on small budget of £8000 (that $16,000 American with the exchange rate). The film which took two years to make follows a group of shipwrecked mercenaries and their struggle for survival on an alien world.
One of the best under rated TV series of all time is the original Outer Limits, it always is viewed as a runner up to the Twilight Zone, but there were a number of episodes that were A+ and stand up as true science fiction classics. Joseph Stefano who produced the show has sadly just passed away:
“Joseph Stefano, producer of the classic televison series, “The Outer Limits” and script writer for the the film based on Robert Bloch’s novel, “Psycho,” has passed away at the age of 84.
In 1959, Mr. Stefano got a contract writing at 20 Century Fox and his work caught the attention of Alfred Hitchcock who had him adapt the book “Psycho” to the screen. Mr. Stefano created the whole back story of Marion Crane stealing the $40,000 from her boss and being murdered in the now immortal, shower scene.
Of course, there was the classic, “The Outer Limits” television series which was some of the best television ever created. A pilot Mr. Stefano created, “The Unknown,” was a spin-off of the series but, sadly, it never interested the networks. Instead, it was incorporated as an episode to the “Outer Limits” entitled, “The Forms Of Things Unknown” with David McCallum and Barbara Rush.”
“Since Hong Kong Twins member Gillian Chung was secretly photographed half nude while changing her bra in a backstage room during her recent concert in Malaysia in Genting Highlands last week, the whole Hong Kong entertainment world has gone berserk. Celebrities rallied together and protested the paparazzi’s immoral behaviour on the street. Hundreds of Hong Kong stars together with some Chinese artists lined up in front of a backdrop that said ‘Privacy and Dignity, Hong Kong People’s Business”, condemning the culprit’s nasty deeds, calling for a boycott on the tabloid magazine ‘Easyfinder (一本便利） that published those indecent photos.”
Peluca is a short film by director Jared Hess, made for under $500, and was shot in two days. It was later discovered at the Sundance Film Festival and allowed Jared to create Napoleon Dynamite:
Jared Hess is now in talks to direct Captain America, which if it becomes reality will be released in 2009.
This is a smart marketing move, and some of the t-shirts are pretty clever too:
“Creating a unique program in the true ‘citizen’ spirit of Snakes on a Plane, New Line and CafePress have partnered to permit fans of the movie to become official licensees of Snakes on a Plane merchandise.”
http://www.cafepress.com/buy/snakes+on+a+plane
I think I’m already over this film and I haven’t even seen it yet (maybe one doesn’t have to see it, perhaps just knowing enough the correct catch-phrases is all that is required for proper water cooler conversation on the topic). But here’s some of the latest hype from the Daily Show, because you don’t want to be left behind:
“DreamWorks Studios confirmed plans for the upcoming Tim Burton film version of Stephen Sondheim’s musical Sweeney Todd starring his constant collaborator Johnny Depp in the title role. John Logan (“The Aviator,” “Gladiator”) penned the screenplay adaptation planned to begin work early in 2007 for a “late 2007 release,” according to the announcement.”
…I can’t wait to see whatthey do with Depp’s hair for the role, even if the film is bad you know it’s going to be fun!
“Aarti Chabria may not be much visible on the Bollywood circuit but down south she is quite a rage. Having already wowed the Telugu audiences with her previous 2 films, she has now added another substantial role to her kitty with Janardhan Maharishi’s untitled venture. In her next Telugu film, she plays the role of a terrorist having a split personality. Inspired by the western action saga Kill Bill, Aarti is also handling all the action scenes on her own! Her team members have started calling her ‘ Matrix’, after seeing her perform action sequences. Apart from doing special training for the action sequences, Aarti has also colored her hair jet black to suit the roles. Says a seemingly excited Aarti, “After a long time I have got a chance to show my talent in portraying some different roles and I’m sure my fans will appreciate my new avatars”.”
