Tag Archives: Andrew Garfield

New ‘Amazing Spider-Man’ trailer leaks

20 Jul

While we’re still confused an agitated that there’s already a Spider-Man reboot (less than 5 years after Tobey Maguire’s ‘Spidey’ ended), we can’t ignore that another big screen incarnation is hitting theaters soon, starring Andrew Garfield as the web-slinger, and Rhys Ifans as nemesis ‘Lizardman’. And on the eve of Comic-Con, a teaser trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man has leaked online, to get all the nerds primed and salivating (present company included).

Check it out and give us your take. We say it’s a darker take than Sam Raimi‘s ‘original’, and yet we can’t help but feel we’ve seen this movie before…

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Akira Closer to Casting

22 Mar
by brian
The manga that opened the West to the wonders of animated ultra-violence and hard-to-follow plot lines is being made into a Hollywood live-action movie.  The blogo-sphere is about to E-X-P-L-O-D-E.
Akira

Orange County Choppers will have a hell of a time re-creating this gem

Now comes the hard to swallow part for all who revelled in this mind opening/melting anime.  Deadline.com  is reporting that there is a short list of actors who will read for the two main characters, Tetsuo and Kaneda.  In a questionable move, Warner Bros. is considering Robert Pattinson, Andrew Garfield and James McAvoy for the role of tortured science experiment, Tetsuo.  Our laser rifle toting hero Kaneda could be played by Garrett Hedlund, Michael Fassbender, Chris Pine, Justin Timberlake or Joaquin Phoenix.  This news is sure to set any fan of the genre defining film to line up to smack some sense into Hollywood execs.

Hollywood’s most recent foul up came at the expense of devoted AVATAR fans.  Of course, I’m not talking about James Cameron’s ripoff of Ferngully, but The Last Airbender.  So many crimes were committed that the movie died between its East and West Coast premiers.  The fanboy crowd is a powerful one and they single-handedly forced M. Night Shaymalan into hiding.  The makers of this one better be real careful not to screw up too bad.  Director Albert Hughes (Menace II Society, From Hell, Book of Eli) is attached and screenwriter Steve Kloves (The Harry Potter Series and The Amazing Spiderman) has reportedly submitted a PG-13 version. 

Alright.  Let’s count the potential pitfalls.  First, American actors?  At the very least could we get English-speaking Asians to take on the roles?  This move seems very geocentric and arrogant.  Thus is the American way, I suppose.  Hell, the studio would do well to grab YouTube sensation Freddie Wong and his brother Jimmy to take on the roles…maybe they can do the special effects too.  Masi Oka could be a good candidate too.  Next, what about the cool bike?  Is Joaquin Phoenix going to don the leather pill jacket and hit the “green line” on a tricked out, feet forward, lay down street missile?  Doubt it.  Even if they do, what’s to say it’s not going to come off like 2004′s Tourque. 

Okay, let’s talk about the not-so-bad stuff.  Kloves has made a good living creating atmosphere in other-worldly settings.  Even folks who don’t consider themselves honorary members of the Gryffindor Quidditch team like the wizard’s world.  I’m still concerned a PG-13 script could kill this movie before one frame is shot.  The other thing that’s right is Albert Hughes.  He’s made some great movies (with the help of his brother).  It will be interesting to see how the man who made The Book of Eli traverse the dangers of being a boring movie and actually making it really good, takes on a live-action world that begs for CGI.  It could end up looking like Speed Racer.  I shudder to think.  But as our old friend Lavar used to say, “Don’t take my word for it.”  Tell us what you think in the comment section.

And lastly, time for one final look at the magical Akira before Hollywood either lets us down or blows us away.  Remember it for what it was and not the monster it became…kinda like Tetsuo.

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Super-cute Zooey Deschanel in the new ‘Spider-Man’ reboot?

11 Nov

As casting continues to come together, we get new word that the new Spider-Man redux might add a major player to its list. Showbiz Spy is reporting that Zooey Deschanel just might be reuniting with her 500 Days of Summer director Marc Webb for the web-slinger reboot that already has locked down The Social Network’s Andrew Garfield in the title role, Emma Stone, and Sally Field.

Deschanel would reportedly play ‘Betty Brant’, the right-hand-“man” to Daily Bugle editor J. Jonah Jameson, a character that was played in a bit part by Elizabeth Banks in Sam Raimi’s original Spider-Man trilogy. Webb says he has “big plans” for the character and wants a strong actress to take on the role, which could include a love interest for Spidey. Nothing official yet, but look for word coming soon.

Now, let us be clear, we are not onboard for this reboot. It’s only been a couple of years since Raimi wrapped up his version with Tobey Maguire, and the studio has already launched plans to not only continue on with the franchise, but to completely restart it with another origin story? Come on!! And if not for previously working with Webb on Summer, we cannot see the multi-talented Deschanel taking on such a mainstream superhero-movie role. Aside from the bit roles in date-night dredge Failure to Launch and Yes Man, she’s been pretty independent, starring in roles that accentuate her eccentric personality, and fronting the indie-rockabilly band She & Him. But let’s not forget that Garfield is now a serious Oscar contender after The Social Network, and buzz for the new Spider-Man just shot up ten-fold as his Hollywood clout is rising. It might just be the right time for Zooey to ride that wave to A-List leading lady status.

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From ‘Superbad’ to Super Hero: Emma Stone joins the cast of ‘Spider-Man’ reboot

6 Oct

It was just announced that Emma Stone will be joining the cast as leading lady in the new Spider-Man reboot. The Easy A actress will star alongside The Social Network’s Andrew Garfield, in the Marc Webb directed reincarnation. But, if you’re thinking the crimson haired Stone would make for a great Mary Jane, you’re out of luck; she’ll be taking on the role of Gwen Stacy, Peter Parker’s first love (and natural blonde). Bryce Dallas Howard portrayed her in a small role in Spider-Man 3, but this go-around, Gwen’s getting big time treatment as the main squeeze.  

Now, try to refrain from asking again why in the world they’re restarting the web slinger’s franchise just three years after the last Sam Raimi-Tobey Maguire film came out, and now that the cast and director are being cobbled together, let’s take a serious look at the new would-be franchise. Garfield, who was named the new Spidey back in July, is a fresh face in Hollywood and was stellar as the only likable character in the Facebook  movie. Webb is a young director who cut his teeth making music videos, and made his big screen debut with last year’s excellent 500 Days of Summer. And now with Stone on board, the new “Queen of teen,” it’s safe to say we’re getting a younger, hipper Spider-Man movie. Expect a hyper-intellectual neurotic Peter Parker with an indie rock soundtrack when this film comes out in July of 2012. That being said, you may now resume talking about why this new reboot is a money-grabbing attempt to squeeze blood from the already tired Spider-Man franchise stone….

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Let Me In/Social Network (Post Mortem)

6 Oct

By josh

This past weekend two films squared off against each other. One (obviously) beat the other in box office sales, but was it the best film to hit theaters? Did we get it right? Let’s find out…first, here’s what we said about Let Me In…

Will it suck? – No. It’s hard to say that any remake is not going to suck, but even if this movie hits half as good as the original, it’s going to be leaps and bounds above any of the vampire movies that have come out in the past 10 years…… however I have hopes that Moretz and Reeves can carry through with only minor bumps and scrapes. Read my lips: the studio will speed the pacing up for American audiences, and there will definitely be a couple of the more conventional “Hollywood scares” conspicuously added in, but on a marquee of American vampire movies, Let Me In will stand out amongst the jumble of teenage schlock that they’ve been shamelessly handing us lately.

Yes, we were right that Hollywood added a couple “shock” moments, and the pacing was left mostly intact, but without giving away too much, there was something lost in translation. The original Swedish film was creepy because, with subtitles, you had to read the dialogue rather than hear some of the wooden words spoken, but it all came down to the last scene, and it’s all about the lighting – show us what happens, rather than keep it in the shadows. The original did just that, and the Americanized version left us fumbling in the dark.

The Social Network – here’s what we said….

Will it suck? – No. We’ve seen every Fincher film and we are convinced that the man can do no wrong….Working on a script by Aaron Sorkin, the pedigree on this film is rich, but that only takes care of the behind the camera action. The only question mark is the acting, and based on what we’ve seen from Timberlake in the past, with the supporting cast appearing strong here, our only concern is Eisenberg, who has had minimal experience leading a film, especially one of this caliber. But again, Fincher is the top draw here, and we have no doubt we’ll leave The Social Network on opening night already planning on adding the DVD to our library.

It not only won the box office, but it won our hearts as well. Fincher was rock solid, and Sorkin’s script (the actual script, not just cutting and pasting depositions), was provocative, if not entirely factual. Timberlake was perfect as the antagonist, and Eisenberg was annoying, but with purpose. However, the standout performance was from your next “Spider-Man” Andrew Garfield. Playing the sap left holding the bag, Garfield was the real focal point of the movie, and we believed him as the émigré blue-blood who was the ethical heart of the movie. If Mark Zuckerberg was really this cut-throat, we feel awful for maintaining our Facebook pages, but we feel too guilty cancelling our account because we know someone, somewhere, had good intentions. The best movie of the year so far (sorry, Inception), we head into Oscar season liking its chances to take home the gold.

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