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Dan Owen reviews
I s s u e # 1 1 71 5 D e c e m b e r 2 0 0 4
MAGNETO’20th Century Fox’ have asked screenwriter Sheldon Turner (The Longest Yard)to write Magneto, an action-thriller based on the villainous characterplayed in the first two X-Men films by Ian McKellen, reports ‘Variety’.
The studio is developing two spin-offs – the other being Wolverine -separately to X-Men 3, being written currently by Simon Kinberg.
Turner: “I pitched a film that is almost The Pianist meets X-Men, about aguy who, after watching his family slaughtered, has an awakening of hispowers and seeks revenge.”
The storyline will heavily involve Professor X (Patrick Stewart in the X-Menfilms), a soldier in the Allied forces that liberated the concentrationcamps. The professor meets Magneto after the war, and while they bond overthe realization that they are alike in their special powers, theirdifferences soon turn them into enemies.
CHRONICLES OF NARNIABrian Cox (The Ring) has signed to bring his vocal talents to Aslan, themighty lion from the upcoming Chronicles Of Narnia movie.
THE MAN FROM U.N.C.L.EMatthew Vaughan (Layer Cake) is in talks to direct the big-screen adaptationof The Man From U.N.C.L.E TV series, that starred Robert Vaughan. EXORCIST – THE BEGINNINGPaul Schrader’s aborted movie is due to hit cinemas next year. It wassuspected that soon after the release of Renny Harlin’s fast-tracked”remake”, a DVD of Schrader’s original prequel would be released, but thishas not come to pass.
A spokesman confirmed that the omission was due to the fact “Paul iscurrently in post-production on the movie, as we’re anticipating a limitedtheatrical release here in the United States sometime in 2005.”
TRAILERSConstantine – Trailer 2(weblink)
Sounds serious.
Not really! This is Keanu Reeves post-Matrix movie, based on the comic-bookHellblazer about a British working-class detective of the paranormal.
So Reeves will be dusting off his Dracula accent again?
No, thank God. To the condemnation of comic nerds, Constantine has beengiven a US spin.
Right. Probably for the best! So does it look good?
It looks very good, actually. Despite changing some key heritage of theoriginal comic, the film looks to have retained the grim tone and has plentyof Hellish special-effects that seem to work well. There are perhaps more”stand out” scenes in this trailer than most recently.
Hmm, sounds good. Reeves is a good actor in these stoic roles.
Agreed. Anyway, Constantine is out next year and looks to be MUCH betterthan End Of Days and Stigmata combined – not that that’s saying much!
War Of The Worlds (2005)(weblink)
Not ANOTHER remake!
Yes, but this comes courtesy of Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise.
Hmmm, okay, I’m interested. But hasn’t this remake been done already asIndependence Day back in 1996?
In a sense, yeah, although I’m sure Spielberg’s contemporary update on theclassic “Martians invade Victorian England” novel will be much better.
Does the trailer confirm this?
The trailer features very little “in-movie” footage, but has a style andpolish that makes you very hopeful for the finished product.
What stands out?
Mmmmm, just the general ambience, really. A nice sense of paranoia aboutMars is quickly developed and the final shot of suburban people beingawakened and watching the Martians attack (in the form of distant lights andnoise) is eerie and perfect.
So will they be focusing on normal people in this?
Yes. No Presidents flying F-18’s for Spielberg! This will be told from OURperspective. Imagine a cross between ID4 and Signs.
Okay, I’m psyched. When is it out?
Summer 2005!
Batman Begins – Trailer 1(weblink)
Adam West! Michael Keaton! Er, Val Kilmer! Hmmm, George Clooney…
Yes, steadily the Batman pedigree has been declining recently, but nowdirector Christopher Nolan brings us a Batman Redux with Christian Bale(American Psycho) as the caped crusader.
Okay, cool, but what does redux mean?
Basically, this is a prequel to the Bat franchise that sort of rewrites theflashbacks seen throughout the other films. So, really, it’s officially thefifth Batman movie, but it’s hitting the erase button.
Does the trailer look as bad as Batman & Robin?
On the contrary. The Dark Knight is now a more sophisticated and seriousmovie with a definite dark mood and some cool new ideas floating around.
When is it out?
17 June 2005 in the US!
Charlie & The Chocolate Factory – Trailer 1(weblink)
Wow, I’m a big fan of Roald Dahl’s book and loved the Gene Wilder musicalfrom the ’70s! What’s the word on this?
Well, Tim Burton (long associated with the proposed remake since theearly-’90s) is in charge of the movie, which loses its songs but gains allthe scope the book deserves.
Excellent! So who’s playing Willy Wonka?
The ever-excellent Johnny Depp, long-time stalwart of Burton, and heresporting some rather bizarre false teeth.
Hmmm. So who’s Charlie Bucket?
It’s pronounced bouquet… er, no actually you’re right. Freddy Highmorehas landed the role – the talented kid from Depp’s recent movie FindingNeverland.
Brilliant! So what does the trailer look like?
It looks like a blast! Burton has brought a suitably warped view toeverything, and the big-budget makes the ’70s version look like a schoolplay! There is also a brilliantly demented musical tune playing over theentire thing, and the sight of Depp in truly bizarre get-up. If Wilder Wonkawas an eccentric Uncle, Depp’s is the unhinged nephew! Truly weird stuff!
Ah, I’m so glad! Dahl would have approved. Any closing thoughts?
Looks like a winner, but could scare younger kids! Strangely, after alittle insider hype, the Oompa-Loompah’s don’t seem to be CGI pygmies. Maybethis is a good thing.
US TOP 10 (CINEMA)All figures are weekend box-office gross.
- 1. Ocean’s Twelve ($39.2m)
- 2. Blade: Trinity ($16.1m)
- 3. National Treasure ($9.83m) (total to date: $124m)
- 4. The Polar Express ($9.59m) (total to date: $110m)
- 5. Christmas with the Kranks ($7.61m)
- 6. The Incredibles ($5.04m) (total to date: $233m)
- 7. The Spongebob Squarepants Movie ($4.36m)
- 8. Closer ($3.74m)
- 9. Finding Neverland ($1.69m)
- 10. Alexander ($1.48m)
UK TOP 10 (CINEMA)
- 1. Blade: Trinity (£2.63m)
- 2. The Incredibles (£2.32m)
- 3. The Polar Express (£2.13m)
- 4. The Phantom of the Opera (£1.21m)
- 5. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason (£0.86m)
- 6. Christmas with the Kranks (£0.68m)
- 7. The Forgotten (£0.18m)
- 8. Garden State (£0.12m)
- 9. The Merchant of Venice (£0.075m)
- 10. Veer Zaara (£0.071m)
** IN THE PIPELINE **All dates are U.K release dates, and are subject to change.
Email Dan Owen
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.