Real Steel trailer #2, meh

Quick and simple... check out the trailer below for the Hugh Jackman starring Real Steel, my comments after the trailer.

I don't think I want to see this movie any more.  When the first trailer hit, I mentioned I'll wait for the second trailer before I decide whether or not I'll watch it, and here it is.  I'm not impressed to be completely honest.  The child in the film is new, and does nothing for me.  The special effects look as good as the first trailer, but feel very kid friendly.  The premise had me, but the trailers have lost me.  Anyone else feel the same way?

Darren Aronofsky leaving The Wolverine

I remember it like yesterday.  First the director was just a rumor.  Then it was confirmed.  Then the title of the film was official... The Wolverine!  And now?  Well, now that same director is jumping ship.  Darren Aronofsky has left the sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine.  Here is the quote Aronofsky gave about leaving the project:

As I talked more about the film with my collaborators at Fox, it became clear that the production of ‘The Wolverine’ would keep me out of the country for almost a year. I was not comfortable being away from my family for that length of time. I am sad that I won't be able to see the project through, as it is a terrific script and I was very much looking forward to working with my friend, Hugh Jackman, again.

Click the jump for more...
I don't buy that ish for ONE minute!  He didn't know an action picture of this size and scope was going to take a year of his life?  Really?  He's a rookie director?  He must not know how these things work huh?  Get the uh out of uh.  C'mon.  Maybe the studio didn't like the direction he was heading with one of their tent pole films?  Wouldn't be the first Wolverine featured films that that happens with.  The studio fought director Gavin Hood repeatedly about the direction of the first 'Origins' film.  Maybe I'm upset at the news, but I don't think so.

Here's what the studio, Fox, had to say about it:

While we are of course disappointed that Darren can’t do ‘The Wolverine’, we also understand and respect his reasons. Having done both ‘The Wrestler’ and ‘Black Swan’ with Darren, we know he is an extraordinary talent and we look forward to working with him on other projects in the future. Hugh Jackman and Fox both remain fully committed to making ‘The Wolverine’. We will regroup and move forward aggressively.

Interesting.  

I've always been a fan of Aronofsky's visual style... until Black Swan. I don't really want to get into that film because that's neither here nor there.  I don't care that Aronofsky is leaving even though his vision would have been an interesting one.  So who directs it now?  Your thoughts?

Hugh Jackman in "Real Steel" Trailer

I haven't had time to post this, but I enjoyed it enough to share. Check out the trailer for the Hugh Jackman starring, Real Steel. I'll tell you my thoughts after the jump.

Well, they did it. They took the kids game and turned it into a big budget Hollywood movie. More than can be said for some other toys turned movies. I still love the premise of the film. Humans aren't allowed to box anymore; so to quench people's thurst for blood (or oil in this case), robots go at it in the ring. The special effects are nice, as well they should be in 2010. The premise is there and so too is the action star. Should we hold off even more to say it's going to be good? I think we should. Let's wait for trailer 2 and the film itself to make any other conclusions.

Darren Aronofsky's "Wolverine" Sequel Now Has a Title

So, yes, it has been confirmed that Darren Aronofsky will re-team with Hugh Jackman for the Wolverine sequel. We already know the director and lead actor, as well as the plot. It will follow the Frank Miller, Japan Saga. Where Logan (aka Wolverine) falls in love with a married woman, the wife of a samurai. Logan must battle the villagers in hopes of ending up with the woman he loves.

The title has been revealed by Aronofsky himself. The movie will be called; The Wolverine. Back to basics, I like it! I never really liked the whole "X-Men Origins" part of the title anyway. It doesn't make sense to even use that if 'Wolverine' was going to be the only entry in the franchise; now that X-Men Origins: Magneto has been canceled. Aronofsky has an interesting visual style as well as the ability to tell a love story. He will do well and I will see this movie. That is all.

Hugh Jackman Confirms Aronofsky to Direct "Wolverine 2"

In a recent quick interview with Hugh Jackman, Vulture found out that Darren Aronofsky will indeed be directing the sequel to X-Men Origins: Wolverine, confirming Tonedog's earlier rumor post.
I hope it'll be worth it and make up for the terrible first film.

Here's what Jackman had to say:

"This is, hopefully for me, going to be out of the box. It’s going to be the best one, I hope…Well, I would say that, but I really do feel that, and I feel this is going to be very different.
"This is Wolverine. This is not Popeye. He’s kind of dark… But, you know, this is a change of pace. Chris McQuarrie, who wrote The Usual Suspects, has written the script, so that’ll give you a good clue. [Aronofsky’s] going to make it fantastic. There’s going to be some meat on the bones. There will be something to think about as you leave the theater, for sure."

UPDATE: Darren Aronofsky Confirmed to Direct "Wolverine 2"

Yes it was only a rumor at first, but now Hugh Jackman has confirmed. Via various websites, here's a quote from Jackman himself:

This is Wolverine. This is not Popeye. He’s kind of dark… But, you know, this is a change of pace. Chris McQuarrie, who wrote The Usual Suspects, has written the script, so that’ll give you a good clue. [Aronofsky’s] going to make it fantastic. There’s going to be some meat on the bones. There will be something to think about as you leave the theater, for sure.

Could it be Darren Aronofsky is directing Wolverine 2? Ok, so he directed Hugh Jackman in The Fountain. Like 6 people saw the damn thing. Well, maybe it's because Zack Snyder got the Superman job and Darren Aronofsky didn't. Even though he was rumored to be in the running? I don't know, that's speculation on my part. /Slashfilm via Vulture are reporting the news.

I couldn't see Aronofsky making Superman and I don't see him doing Wolverine 2 either. Don't get me wring, I think he's a great director. Maybe Fox sees something in him that will improve upon the awful X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Improving the first film wont be very difficult. Director Gavin Hood butchered that film. There was so much wrong with the movie, it's not even funny. Check out my original review here.

Aronofsky is a dramatic director, but so was Gavin Hood. I believe that directors with a dramatic background are going to continue having difficulties in a genre such as superhero films. I wouldn't mind seeing an Aronofsky-directed Wolverine, but he wouldn't be my first pick. What do you think?

First look at Real Steel!

I've read about it, I've posted about it, and now I'm looking at the first photo. Real Steel is the "board game" adaptation starring Hugh Jackman. I remember posting that Shawn Levy (Night at the Museum) was set to direct; and not being too excited about it. I warmed up a little bit when Jackman was cast, but I'm still hesitant. I will not get overly excited about this movie, but I like the premise:

Human boxing is no longer allowed, so people are letting the big bad robots do the fighting. Hugh Jackman would play a an ex-boxer now looking to train a robot to fight.

USAToday.com posted the above picture and Facebook the bottom. It shows Jackman in a robot's corner of what appears to be a boxing ring. Again, not going to get too excited, but with this picture and a solid trailer, Levy and company can change my mind. We'll see.

And the Oscar goes to...

The show we wait all year to see is now over. Was it good? Were there any surprises? What movie won big? Umm... let's go through those questions one at a time shall we?

Was it good (the show)? Not really. I was a big fan of Hugh Jackman hosting the show last year. His Broadway style numbers were so fun and entertaining. I also enjoyed the style in which they announced the acting winners last year, by bringing out five previous winners. This year Steve Martin and Alec Baldwin hosted the show and it was sub-par to say the least. All the problems that plagued shows past, showed their ugly heads this year. There were unfunny jokes, clips and long boring video montages. Overall it failed to keep me entertained, and I'M A MOVIE LOVER!

Were there any surprises? Yes! The one and only big surprise came at "Best Supporting Actress"... Mo'Nique. Are you serious? The same woman that acted in Soul Plane and Phat Girlz just won an Oscar? Yes! And it sounds like deserving so. I did not watch it, so I can't criticize. And I will say this, she accepted her award with respect, class and grace. Very happy for the woman that has always been able to make me laugh.

What movie won big? The Hurt Locker. "Best Director" and "Best Picture" ahead of Avatar is a huge victory for the movie about the troops in Iraq. I loved the movie, and knew it had the lead over Avatar, I just knew it. The Academy loved Drama, and as great as Avatar was, The Hurt Locker was far better story telling by Katherine Bigelow.

Bigelow became the first women EVER to win the Oscar for "Best Directing", wow. Truly an amazing feat that was the icing on the cake for one of the best war movies ever made. Bigelow accepted, shaking at times, and found it difficult to find her words, but she did. Staying backstage for only a few moments while Tom Hanks announced The Hurt Locker for "Best Picture"; Bigelow returned onstage, as she is one of the producers on the film as well.

A few notables are Sandra Bullock, Jeff Bridges and Christoph Waltz. Sandra Bullock was humble, thankful and comedic while accepting her award. It's her first nomination and really solidified her as more than just a comedic actress in Hollywood. Way to go Ms. Bullock, my wife and I were rooting for you the entire way!

Jeff Bridges has delivered great work, year after year, in his illustrious career. He has stood the test of time, accepting great roles, one after the other. His Oscar win for "Crazy Hearts" capped a 4 nomination loosing streak. He thanked his parents, both actors, both deceased, for inspiring him to be an actor. Great work!

And lastly, Christoph Waltz who was so amazing in Inglourious Basterds. He won for "Best Supporting Actor" and thanked Quentin Tarantino for guiding him through the journey of movie making, as unorthodox as his style is.

Again, great movies, great characters, great performances, very poor show. Hopefully they take a few notes from what worked so well last year and apply it to next. They SHOULD look at last year, as it was a year when viewership went up from 2008 when the Oscars had it's lowest watched show ever. Come on Producers, make the show as fun as it is to go to the movies! Minus the 3D of course.

It's late, I'm tired, it's my Birthday tomorrow (today), goodnight!

Hugh Jackman in talks for Real Steel

Hugh Jackman is on quite the roll this year. A hit in X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a Broadway hit with Daniel Craig, and now a possible role in a Toy adaptation. I know, that third one didn't quite live up to the first two. But it's true, Jackman is in talks to play the lead in the Real Steel, the robot boxing movie.

The movie is set to be directed by Shawn Levy and has a pretty cool premise. Human boxing is no longer allowed, so people are letting the big bad robots do the fighting. Hugh Jackman would play a an ex-boxer now looking to train a robot to fight. Let's give it a chance; it cant be as bad as the OTHER robot fighting movie this year. Wink wink.

Writer found for X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2

Every few days to a week we are getting more details about the 'Wolverine' sequel. Last week, Hugh Jackman revealed that the film would follow the Japan saga made popular in the 1980's comic. This week a writer has been hired, a good one! Christopher McQuarrie has written movies like Valkyrie, The Way of the Gun, and won an Oscar for The Usual Suspects in 1996 for Best Original Screenplay. Not a bad resume.

The next rumor/ order of business is, who will direct? Neither the studio or Jackman are saying if Gavin Hood would return. The greatest rumor of all is Bryan Singer. A few months ago we told you that producers wanted him for a Gambit spin-off. Now we're hearing he may do the Wolverine sequel. He has a great relationship with Jackman, whom he discovered. So it looks like a good fit considering Singer has worked with McQuarrie on three films now. We'll see what happens in the upcoming weeks. But I am very pleased with McQuarrie as writer of Wolverine 2, hope the studio doesn't mess this one up.

Quickie: Wolverine 2 to take place in Japan

Hey folks, it looks like X-Men Origins: Wolverine 2 will indeed take place in Japan. MTV interviewed Hugh Jackman about the upcoming film and he said, "I think the fans love that saga. It's my favorite saga of the Wolverine stories."

I am a fan of the comics and have indeed read the saga. In other media, X-Men The Animated Series covered it and touched on the feud between Wolverine and Lady Deathstrike, which started in Japan. Wolverine has a rich history and there's a lot of things they could do with the Japan saga.

Here is something I'm worried about: how are they going to introduce new mutants we haven't seen in previous X-Men films? I mean, there are mutants in the Japan saga, but none that the general public are going to go goo goo ga ga over. So it will be interesting to see who they weave into the story. Either way I like the direction they're headed and hopefully it is better than the first Wolverine movie. We'll see!

Here is the Hugh Jackman interview with MTV:

The Academy Awards to have 10 Best Picture nominees next year

Last year's Academy Awards was probably the most entertaining of the award show's history, in a long time. Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway doing a mini Broadway show of the nominees was pretty creative. The format for presenting the major acting awards was also very creative. Next year, the Academy will do something they haven't done since the 1940's... have 10 Best Picture nominees.

The move will hopefully create more interest and also give fan favorites a better chance of being nominated. Movies like The Dark Knight and Iron Man missed out last year for more dramatic movies like Milk and Frost/Nixon. The Associated Press reported President of the Academy, Sid Ganis, had this to say:

Having 10 Best Picture nominees is going allow Academy voters to recognize and include some of the fantastic movies that often show up in the other Oscar categories, but have been squeezed out of the race for the top prize. I can’t wait to see what that list of ten looks like when the nominees are announced in February.

I personally think it's stupid, and a waste of time, just trying to get people to somehow tune in for the show. Let's say for example a movie like Defiance was in the running last year for Best Picture, would it really have affected Slumdog Millionaire's chance of winning the prize? My answer is NO. But! But! If it is a year with a close race, a movie third on the list of favorites could screw up the votes and a surprise fourth or fifth place movie wins Best Picture.

Either way, let us know what you think... whether you agree or disagree, the decision has been made.

Possible Gambit Spin-Off

Ok, so this isn't the latest news, but it is still relatively recent. It seems Fox was so impressed with the Wolverine movie that they're giving Deadpool (confimed) a spin-off, but Gambit as well. Donner, a producer on Wolverine, says there are "internal converstions" going on about a Gambit spin-off. Ready for the best part? She wants to pursue Bryan Singer to come back and direct. For those who don't know, Bryan Singer directed the first two (best of the franchise) X-Men movies. He's a genius behind the camera (minus Superman Returns) and I would love to see this movie. The actor playing Gambit in the Wolverine Movie is Taylor Kitsch. He has his own ideas about where the movie should go with the story, and I agree with him. Kitsch suggests the story arc of the Guild of Theives. That's where Gambit became the character we know and love (I do anyway). Hopefully it takes place in New Orleans and they stay faithful to the comics. Either way, we'll keep you posted.

'Wolverine' Gambit Spotlight @ Yahoo! Video

Matt: X-Men Origins: Wolverine Review

I'm going to agree with you on this one.

I really had high hopes for this movie. The trailer blew me away (I
should learn by now not to trust those darn things) and I thought the
casting was just right. I heard a negative review from you going into
it, so I wasn't really expecting much in the first place.

…Which explains why I enjoyed the first 1/3 of the movie so much. It
was well done, original, interesting and captured your attention. It
showed a young Wolverine and Sabertooth, growing up as children and
how they treated each other. It was a side of these beloved X-MEN
characters that we had never seen before. I started to think you had
it all wrong, Tony.

Until Wolverine grew up and had to become badass enough to blow up a
bunch of things and attract male viewers ages 15-35.

The multi-talented Hugh Jackman always was the best casted of all the
X-MEN in the first 3 outings of this beloved superhero franchise and
it's no surprise that he does a fine job playing the title character
here. Liev Schreiber in the supporting role was also a wise decision,
and I'm glad superhero flicks are stable enough to draw some better
actors. (Remember Sabertooth in the original X-MEN movie? Neither does
anyone else.)
You mentioned Gambit. I'm sure everyone was disappointed with Gambit.
I didn't have that much of a problem with Kitsch; it's the dull,
cliché dialogue and repetitive moves he performed that annoyed me.
Ryan Reynolds does a pretty good job making the best lemonade he could
from the rotten lemons he was handed. Being a Ryan Reynolds fan
myself, I enjoyed his role in this picture. I'm looking forward to his
spin-off. I just hope it's a completely different crew that works on
that movie.

The special effects in "Wolverine" were downright laughable. There is
a scene when Wolverine is in a bathroom admiring his newly made
adamantium blades, and I swear to everyone reading this that I could
have done a better job making those things look real. I don't know who
was in charge of that, but they should be fired. Immediately.
All the effects in this movie were overdone and looked horrible. I'm
really disappointed by that, too, because I thought that I'd at least
enjoy some eye-candy if everything else was bad, and I couldn't.

And I'm disagreeing with you on the writing. I didn't like where the
story went at all. I thought showing us the other X-MEN characters for
just a few seconds was unnecessary, not a fan pleaser. All the other
dialogue was just tried too hard to be serious while coming off as,
well, comic book like; over exaggerated and overdone.

Overall, the movie didn't know whether it wanted to be serious and
gritty like "The Dark Knight," or more graphic novel-like, a la "300"
and ended up failing at both. Let's hope for the next "Origins" they
take a lesson from last year's excellent "Iron Man."

Do not spend 12 bucks on this movie.
Heck, don't even rent it unless you're a die-hard X-MEN fan. You will
be disappointed.


-Matt

Tony: X-Men Origins: Wolverine Review

Yes, the long awaited prequel to the X-Men movies has finally been released. And what a release its been; to the tune of 90 million dollars! That's all fine and dandy, but was it deserving of such an opening? I'm afraid the answer is no boys and girls.

Hugh Jackman plays the title character of Wolverine and does a great job. The rest of the characters were cast very well. Liev Schreiber as Sabertooth is a menacing mutant that has the same regenerative abilities as Wolverine, and without really spoiling anything, it may be because they're brothers. Ryan Reynolds (one of my favorites) plays Deadpool (one of my favorites), and does a fantastic job. He does what he can with what little face time he gets. But its been confirmed he's getting his own spin off, so stay tuned for that one.


Now for what was the most exciting and somewhat disappointment part of this movie; Gambit. My personal favorite super hero and a fan favorite amongst those who follow the genre, was just a sidekick. The casting was wrong on this one, Taylor Kitsch is too young for the role, Gambit was a Cajun thief in his late 20's, Kitsch is just too young for that. Gambit's weapon of choice are playing cards which he charges with kinetic energy, yeah... It was shown for 10 seconds in the movie. He truly is just a sidekick to Wolverine.

Ready for the worst part of the film? The special effects. For a genre film of this kind, you need to spend the money for special effects. The audience shouldn't know where reality ends and cgi (computer generated images) begins. What made The Dark Knight so great was its on-location filming and the reality it presented. The last 30 minutes of this movie were so obviously filmed in front of a green screen that my wife noticed all of it; and she's not that into these movies. Not to mention the infamous "jump into a moving helicopter" scene (you'll all see for yourselves).

I do have to compliment the writers. The script was clever in weaving together characters and filing in plot holes we'd never seen as an audience. There are a couple of "wink wink" moments for the audience that reference the X-Men movies, especially when showing us characters in their younger years. I did like the explanation of where the name Wolverine came from, it was very well done. But the clever writing wasn't enough to save this film.

Overall, I'd save the 12 bucks (that's right, 12 dollars a ticket in Valencia, CA) and wait for the DVD. And if you're a hardcore fan (which I would like to think I am), don't anticipate much and you'll be fine. Go in thinking they were under budgeted for the special effects and you'll appreciate the movie. But for me, I think I'm going to disapprove of this one folks. Either way, we can all agree to disagree!