Evil Dead 4 a Strong Possibility for Raimi

Okay, so I know I just got on the Terminator geeks about looking forward to a franchise that hasn’t had much going for it in the last few years. Now it’s my turn to geek out. (Just a little bit). Apparently, Sam Raimi, at the Drag Me Down to Hell panel at Comic Con, revealed that he’s been thinking about and planning on doing another Evil Dead movie, and expressed an interest in having Bruce Cambell reprise his role as Ash, our chainsaw-cum-steel-handed hero (he’s probably better know to the kiddies as the fussy usher from Spiderman 2 or the French waiter from Spiderman 3).

I have to admit, Army of Darkness (Evil Dead 3 for the uninitiated) came out when I was about 15 and I thought it was one of the coolest movies ever made. Granted, I watched it more recently and I realized that it was one of those movies that is gloriously bad but you love it anyway.

But let's get down to brass tacks: Army of Darkness had two endings, one for an American audience and one for a European audience, that are very different and would spawn two very different follow-ups to the Evil Dead franchise. The American version ends with Ash waking up in the present day and shooting a demon with his “boom stick” in S-Mart (“Shop smart, shop S-Mart”). The other version has Ash taking too much of the sleeping potion and waking up in a post-apocalyptic London, laughing manically. So the question is, should Ash fight demons in a modern day discount store or in a post-apocalyptic wasteland? Either way, I’m game.

Remakes and Sequels Galore!

Darren Aronofsky Confirmed for new RoboCop
This is slightly odd news considering that Aronofsky's previous films (Requiem for a Dream, Pi, and The Fountain) have not only been inde films but very deep and contemplative about subjects like death, addiction, and the meaning of life. I would imagine that a new RoboCop movie (which is rumored to be a sequel, not a remake) would be a big-budget, blow-em-up type film, very different from Aronofsky's other work. But, heck Nolan did it with Batman. Maybe Aronofsky can bring some death, addiction, and life to a new RoboCop.

Tr2n
That would be "Tron 2" for those of you who can't tell that the 2 is supposed to be an O. Yeah, I didn't get it at first either. Apparently, ComicCon attendees were completely caught off guard by a teaser trailer for an upcoming Tron sequel--with Jeff Bridges! You can read a complete description of the footage shown at ComicCon here. There have been rumors of a Tron sequel for years, but no one (at least I didn't) give it much credence. Apparently, it's happening and set for release in 2010.

The Wolfman
Yes, folks, the old Wolfman think Del T is being remade with Benicio Del Toro in the lead role. Personally, Ioro kind of looks like a wolf, so this should be perfect for him. You can visit the site for the new movie here. It doesn't offer much but a teaser, so I'll hold off on speculation until we see a trailer.

Other Bits
In other news, The Hollywood Reporter is reporting that Warner Bros. is looking to remake classic Twilight Zone episodes into feature length movies and Tim Burton has found his leading lady for a new Alice in Wonderland adaptaion.

I know everybody always complains that Hollywood can't come up with new ideas anymore and all they do is rehash what they've already done, and sometimes I agree. But, at the same time, sometimes the remakes, reboots, and far-off sequels actually turn out better than the originals. Who knows? Maybe there is something to be said for updating stories that touched us in the past so that they may wow us again and make us think about them in new ways.

Geeks Geek-out Over New Terminator Movie

Why is there so much excitement over the new Terminator movie, Terminator: Salvation? Sure, the first one was arguably awesome. It had a great concept, great script, and great special effects that had never been seen before. It also gave a huge career boost to the now governor of California. T2? Yeah it was great . . . when I was twelve years old. And did anyone actually see T3?

Okay, even if you still think that T2 was one of the greatest movies ever made (say, next to Lawrence of Arabia), the new movie is still being brought to you by McG (which is like Kevin Smith making a sequel to Lawrence of Arabia—it would give you pause). And if his name doesn’t make you want to take him seriously, neither will his movies. This is the man who brought us both vapid Charlie’s Angels movies, the wonderfully bad We Are Marshall, and don’t forget The Offspring Complete Music Video Collection.

I would like to give this new addition to the franchise the benefit of the doubt. I want it to succeed. I would like to see this movie legend revived much the same way Batman Begins (not to mention TDK) and Iron Man have breathed new life into superhero movies. It’s just hard to take it seriously.

Hopefully, Terminator: Salvation can give the franchise a much needed shot in the arm. Since it’s been 16 years since T2 came out, the franchise needs one heck of an adrenaline shot to get its blood pumping again.

Megan Fox Puts on Weight for Transformers 2

Multiple sources are reporting that Megan Fox was asked to gain (yes, I said gain) weight for Transformers 2 (at least 10 pounds). Naturally, there is some speculation as to why she was asked to gain weight. I have heard the theory that director Michael Bay likes bigger girls, but this seems ridiculous—even if Fox gained 10 pounds, she would still border on anorexic. Although, she did say (at people.com) that Bay “doesn’t like skinny girls,” giving this theory some credence.

Mostly, the weight gain is attributed to the fact that Fox just finished shooting the Diablo Cody penned Jennifer’s Body, where she lost some weight and—she says—she got “scrawny.” And, I suppose, in order to play a high-school-cheerleader-turned-serial-killer you might lose some weight. Doesn’t everyone know that cheerleader serial killers don’t have a lot of time to eat healthy between all the rigorous cheerleading workouts and the dismemberment?

Remember when Carrie Fisher was told to lose ten pounds before shooting Star Wars? I suppose actresses are still regularly asked to lose weight, but there are still quite a few actresses that probably need to be tied up and have Crisco forced down their throats. (I’m looking at you Olsen twins.)

TDK, BIggest Opening Day EVER!

So, if you haven’t heard the news, The Dark Knight has officially had the the biggest opening day EVER. With $66 million on Friday alone, The Dark Knight beat out the last winner Spiderman 3 ($59 million). Of course, a good chunk of that came from midnight showings (about $17 million). But not only is there good news for the big wigs at Warner Bros.; all the early reviews—and all the word of mouth I have heard—places TDK at the top of a very short list of the best reviewed movies of the year. It’s currently at 94% at RottenTomatoes.com and not likely to take a dive at this point.

To reiterate my last post: I hope $66 million on opening day makes Warner Bros. sit up and take notice, so that they will give other talented directors like Christopher Nolan the money and creative space to explore their other DC properties and turn them into both critical and financial successes.

You Can't Outrun Yourself: Studios Finally Discover That Superheroes Are More Than Cartoons

Over at slashfilm.com I just read some rather non-news about the upcoming Flash movie in development. The non-news is this: The Flash is in development. A while ago I heard this from another movie site, which also posted a tag line for the upcoming movie: “you can’t outrun yourself.” How friggin’ sweet is that?

I’m glad that superhero movies are taking a turn for the better. Finally mass audiences (and the movie industry) are cluing into something that comic book lovers have known all along: comic books are not about the flashy costumes, big explosions, and cool gadgetry; they’re about the characters. As much as I loved the Tim Burton Batman movies. The subsequent movies quickly devolved into flashy action movies with no heart and no character progression. Carey’s Riddler and Jones’ Two Face were just second-rate reincarnations of the campy Batman TV series of the 60s (not to mention Schwarzenegger’s Mr. Freeze). Thank goodness for Christopher Nolan, who took Batman and actually made him a real person, not a caricature.

Apparently, after the success of the new Iron Man movie and the fantastic Hulk reboot, Warner Bros. is taking another look at its DC properties, namely The Flash and The Green Lantern, as well as Green Arrow and others, which may mean potential fast-tracking and better stars/directors than the lame attempt they were trying to make earlier this year with a Justice League movie, sans Superman and Batman, with a league of B, C, and D list talent. All I can say is that if the advance buzz for the The Dark Knight lives up to the hype, Warner Bros. better treat their other DC properties like the royalty.