Sam Worthington Gives Clash of the Titans Sequel Update

Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures are pretty intent for that Clash of the Titans sequel. Like it or lump it, we’re getting a follow-up in cinema-houses by spring 2012. Does it matter that most people walked out not digging the finished product or that the 3D was ass?

From the sounds of star Sam Worthington, they’re making an effort to listen. Speaking to Coming Soon, the actor (who will reprise his role of Perseus early next year) had this to say:

"[It} will be 3D this time," said Worthington, making it clear that he himself wasn't happy with the post-conversion process of the first film, "Shot in 3D. Do put that in and make them f--king aware... When I read Clash 2, they came to me the other day. I said, 'I kinda dig where it's going, but can we make the character more of this? Can we make it more of that? Can I get to play a lot more and get involved and have a lot more f--king fun than just being a young man who has to stand there and look pretty?' I'm sick of doing that, so it's kind of a case of, 'How do we make Perseus a lot more fun?' So we're sort of shaping it down that track. And Warner Bros. has been nice enough to give us a bit on input."

That’s all well and good. But again I know very-few folks who liked Clash of the Titans, and I happen to be one of them. Will the general public show up in droves like they did when the Louis Leterrier-directed remake opened? I doubt it.

Will Bruce Banner Walk the Line?

While Marvel and Ed Norton persist in their public war of words (via HitFix), there’s still one issue to be resolved. Who will be the third actor to portray mild-mannered anger-management scientist Bruce Banner in The Avengers?

CHUD reports an offer has been sent out to Joaquin Phoenix, of all people. The Oscar-nominated actor-turned-public nut job is taking his sweet ass time considering the offer. If he gives the thumbs up, there's a legit chance the studio could officially announce him at Comic Con next Saturday along with director Joss Whedon and the other members of Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.  

If the studio (rather wisely) opted against working with the notoriously difficult Norton again, how is going for the "Is he or isn’t he bat-shit crazy" Phoenix an up-grade? In a way, it's irrelevant who plays Banner. We'll mostly be seeing the angry green giant and Marvel has made it clear the role is interchangeable having gone through three actors in under ten years.

But getting an actor like Phoenix suggests the House of Ideas (and, of course, the Mouse) are eyeing for a third go-around at a solo franchise. Considering the previous two Hulk films were both pricey under-performers, the general public has let it be known. Nobody cares about the character besides fandom.

Weekend Box Office: July 9-11

Courtesy of Box Office Mojo:

1. Despicable Me - $60.1 million

2. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse - $33.4 million

3. Predators - $25.3 million

4. Toy Story 3 - $22 million

5. The Last Airbender - $17.1 million

6. Grownups - $16.4 million

7. Knight & Day - $7.8 million

8. The Karate Kid - $5.7 million

9. The A-Team - $1.8 million

10. Cyrus - $1.3 million

Wow, this was a great weekend at the box office.  Despicable Me had a fantastic opening with $60.1 million.  While that's below the opening weekends of this summer's other animated films Shrek Forever After and Toy Story 3, it's still a terrific opening for an original animated film (read:  not a sequel) that didn't have an existing fanbase going into the weekend. 

Even The Twilight Saga: Eclipse had a great second weekend, dropping only 49%, which is a much better dropoff than the previous films in the series.  I'm told this film was the best in the series, but for now I'll just take their word for it.

This weekend's other new release, Predators, also opened well with $25.3 million, although with their weak summer box office, I'm thinking Fox is wishing it had done better.  So far that's the third action movie release this summer (The A-Team and Knight & Day being the first two) that have opened below $30 million. 

Toy Story 3 didn't have a problem fending off Despicable Me's audience this weekend, earning a solid $22 million.  Its domestic total now stands at $340 million, which just squeaks it by Finding Nemo's $339 million to become Pixar's highest grossing film.  It also currently 2010's highest grossing film, having passed Alice in Wonderland's $334 million this weekend.

The Last Airbender dropped 58% in its second week, but it is expected to cross the $100 million mark this weekend.  Adam Sandler's Grownups continues to do well, having also passed $100 million this weekend.

I think we can officially declare Knight & Day as a disappointment, landing in 7th place this weekend and totalling only $61 million.  The same can be said for The A-Team, which is still limping along with a $73 million total after a month in release (and dammit, I liked that movie!).

However, The Karate Kid continues to be one of the most successful films of the summer with a $164 million domestic total - keep in mind, this was a $40 million movie.  The comedy Cyrus is also doing great business in just 200 theaters, staying in 10th place again this weekend with another $1.3 million.

Check back this weekend when Mitch updates with the actuals!

Crashing Hollywood vs Movie Moan

Sunday! Sunday! Sunday!

Sunday marks the return of the Movie Moan Podcast back to it's home on TMT. You can enjoy Jamie, Phil, Lou, and Ed in all their audio glory once again.

What does this mean for Mitch, Matt, and Jay? They'll still be Crashing Hollywood with their own audio podcast in what can only be described as an all out podcast war with Movie Moan.

To celebrate the occasion TMT resident artist Mac McCoy has created two new logos that capture the essence of both podcasts which you can view below.

Who will you stand with?

Presenting the new Crashing Hollywood logo:

Presenting the new Movie Moan logo:

Dream Specs - Superman: The Motion Picture Anthology (1978-2006)

I am an optimist ladies and gentlemen. While some passionate film fans may stare at their theatrical poster of David Lynch's 'Dune' and lament the fact that a true director's cut of that film will never happen, I remain convinced that it lies just beyond the horizon and will be sprung upon us when we least expect it. 

Just last week, my good friend Jamie Williams and I were chatting about the legendary Eric Stoltz footage from 'Back To The Future' that was almost certainly just lying in some heavily secured film vault at Universal. Jamie said that there was no way we would be seeing that footage on any future release of the film. Literally a day later, producer Bob Gale told us we would.

We may have a fair few reservations in relation to double dipping, only putting special features on Blu-Ray releases of new movies, terrible looking restorations on archive films, the politics which can keep us from getting the supplemental material we really want etc. But we also have to admit that we have never had it so good. Even films which require us to cling to our big box VHS copies due to lack of a DVD release eventually get one (such as Joe Dante's 'Matine'). Classic films which make us wait an age for a proper special edition release often blow even its most ardent fans completely away with the results (such as Ridley Scott's 'Blade Runner'). And beloved film franchises like 'Back To The Future', which were somewhat lacking excellence on their initial special edition release, have the real deal waiting just around the corner.

To that end, my new series of articles 'Dream Specs' is designed to pitch exactly that; the definitive compendium of supplemental material that we would wish to see on a future Blu-Ray/DVD release of a beloved series of films filled to the brim with fascinating production histories, legendary lost footage and juicy studio/filmmaker clashes.

I certainly cannot think of a better one to tackle than the Superman motion picture series, starting from Richard Donner's 'Superman: The Movie' in 1978, three sequels, the spin-off 'Supergirl', and the agonizing journey through development hell to bring the character back for a fifth outing, culminating in Bryan Singer's requel 'Superman Returns' in 2006. Right now you are saying to me that you bought a Superman DVD boxset that same year and it was pretty stuffed with extras (including the long awaited 'Superman II: Richard Donner Cut') thank you very much. It was certainly a fantastic effort on the part of Warner Bros. but any die-hard fan of the films will tell you that there is still so much further to go.

So join me if you will as we conjure up the definitive twenty disc Superman film boxset that, if dreams come true, we would get to pluck from store shelves around Christmas 2012 to coincide with the release of the much anticipated Christopher Nolan produced reboot; 'Superman: The Motion Picture Anthology (1978-2006)':-

Disc 1 - 'Superman: The Movie' Theatrical Cut

When the beloved theatrical version of my favourite film made its DVD debut in 2006, it was actually greeted with derision by some of its die-hard fans. The reason for this being that, despite initially announcing it, the film's original sound mix was not included, only a chopped down version of the remastered soundtrack from the 2000 special edition by its producer Micheal Thau. To the less discriminating, the sound mix is suitably bold and epic. To those who grew up with the film on television and VHS, it contains badly misjudged moments, most notably during the opening credits. As each cast and crew name whooshes through the screen in a powerful blue blur, the original sound mix offers a restrained rush of air which allows John Williams theme to be heard in all its glory. The remastered mix replaces this restraint with a violent "boosh" every time a credit appears, almost drowning out the theme. 'Superman' is an important American film which deserves proper restoration and preservation. Please re-release it with its original soundtrack.

Disc 2 - 'Superman: The Movie' The Final Cut

I will admit right now that this is just anal retentiveness on my part being that it is my favourite film and I will never be completely satisfied. You know how there are fans of 'Blade Runner' who can carefully explain the pros and cons of all five released versions? Well that's me with 'Superman: The Movie'. My dream final cut of the film would extend it to its epic three hour length, as seen on television in the eighties, giving us as much of Richard Donner's world as possible. Most importantly, it would be able to restore John Williams complete score back into the film. For whatever reason, Williams wrote his score to a longer cut of the film and restoring it turns a great comic book movie into a mini operetta.

Disc 3 - 'Superman: The Movie' Supplemental Material

WB have done us fans proud with the treatment they have given to the first film. We have been given two all-encompassing documentaries (three if you count the section on 'Look Up In the Sky'), behind the scene footage and screen tests. I cannot ask for more.

Disc 4 - 'Superman II' The Richard Lester Cut

Smoke Richard Lester out of hiding, plant a big bag of money and get him to record audio commentary for the film. Better yet, have Richard Donner co-host it with him. Even people who don't listen to commentaries will crank that one up.

Disc 5 - 'Superman II' The Richard Donner Cut 

Oh boy, it wasn't exactly up to scratch was it? I'm not exactly sure how to feel about the alternate 'Superman II' that we ended up with. On the one hand, one of the great fan wet dreams of all time was finally realised. On the other hand, unless you have an actual budget at your disposal, you cannot make a complete film with unfinished footage. Donner never shot the villains conquering the world and he never figured out the ending he was going to use all the way back in 1980. Neither of those can just be conjured out of thin air. Passionate fans continue to try and finish the film to this day. The work of one particular editor by the name of Seultron (which you can check out right here) has proven to be so impressive and inspiring that even us exhausted fans have gotten excited again at the prospect of an improved, final cut of Donner's work. If you can go back and edit the film properly, create a sound mix which doesn't re-use the same cue five times in the space of thirty minutes and use organic special effects to show General Zod actually taking over the world as opposed to a dinky little middle American town then we can finally put Superman II behind us as a 'finished film'.

Disc 6 - 'Superman II' Supplemental Material

The journey of 'Superman II' to the screen is surely worthy of a two hour documentary all by itself. Shooting even higher, I would love an on-screen reunion of the actors who played the three Kryptonian criminals as well as a face to face interview between Donner and Lester........or a caged death-match. I'm flexible about it.

Disc 7 - 'Superman III' Theatrical Cut

Richard Pryor's super computer finally in the glory of Blu-Ray.

Disc 8 - 'Superman III ' Extended Cut

The most unnecessary extended cut of the series as all of the deleted material can be seen on the most recent DVD release and it adds nothing but further out of kilter comedy to the film. The extended cut is actually a 140 minute version of the film which was produced by the Salkinds for television and contains one vital ingredient missing from the theatrical version; an actual opening credits sequence set against a star field, matching the continuity of the rest of the series and actually starting out with the pretense of being a Superman movie (you can see it here). That alone makes it my preferred version of the film.

Disc 9 - 'Superman III' Supplemental Material

I want to see an in-depth featurette examining the abandoned early versions of 'Superman III' as written by Ilya Salkind and featuring Supergirl and Brainiac. I'd also love to see that legendary appearance by Richard Pryor on 'The Tonight Show' which started the ball rolling on the film we got, not to mention the downhill spiral of the series.

Disc 10 - 'Supergirl' Theatrical Cut

Anchor Bay initially produced a fantastic DVD of 'Supergirl' containing both the international version of the film and the never before seen director's cut. But during its initial release, the film was actually distributed in the US by Tristar Pictures who cut the film down to below two hours, almost rendering it incomprehensible and certainly eliminating a great deal of the title character's screentime. I don't think that particular version of the film has ever been released on DVD and, in the interest of giving the viewer an appreciation of just why it was received so badly upon release, it should be.

Disc 11 - 'Supergirl' Director's Cut

The 138 minute director's cut (get through the thing in one sitting if you dare) as released by Anchor Bay a few years ago.

Disc 12 - 'Supergirl' Supplemental Material

When WB actually re-released 'Supergirl' on DVD themselves in 2006, they included the international version with its audio commentary track as produced by Anchor Bay but didn't release any of the other supplemental features. We need the hour long 1984 TV documentary, a new retrospective (as opposed to five seconds mention on the 2006 boxset) and a look at writer David Odell's initial script which featured both Brainiac and the legendary Christopher Reeve cameo where he welcomes Supergirl to Earth.

Disc 13 - 'Superman IV: The Quest For Peace' Theatrical Cut

Oh the pain, the pain of it all!

Disc 14 - 'Superman IV: The Quest For Peace' Extended Cut

This is quite a tricky topic because, after reading about the huge chunk of footage which was removed from the film, as well as being one of the few people on the planet to believe that 'Superman IV' is a better film than the third one, I was adamant that an extended cut should be produced. Then I saw the deleted footage and I realised that the material was cut most likely because it was so cheap and badly shot as to be un-releasable in the opinion of the studio. Then 'Film Score Monthly' released Alexander Courage's superb score, a piece of work that is so strong it actually elevates the quality of that horrible footage. I have finally resumed my opinion that cutting the deleted scenes back in and restoring Courage's score with a proper sound mix would, at the very least, make the film comprehensible. As the last performance of Christopher Reeve as Superman, I feel very strongly that the film should be repaired as best it can.

Disc 15 - 'Superman IV: The Quest For Peace' Supplemental Material

Featuring 'Memoirs Of A Nuclear Man: The Mark Pillow Story'.

Disc 16 - 'Superman Lives'

This is the big one. This is the disc film fans will spend two hundred dollars on an entire boxset just to own. I am talking about an all-encompassing, no-holds barred documentary detailing the entire development period of the 'Superman V' project and all its various incarnations. This would include the Salkinds planned fifth film in the series possibly spinning off from their 'Superboy' television series, the infamous 'Superman Reborn' which opened with Supes visiting a shrink and had his son being born through immaculate conception, Kevin Smith's 'Superman Lives', Tim Burton's 'Superman Lives' (something quite different), the Oliver Stone/William Wisher version, the planned seven film saga by unknown Alex Ford, 'Batman vs. Superman' directed by Wolfgang Peterson and 'Flyby' by JJ Abrams. As well as interviews with all the major players in the story, the documentary would show us the pre-viz sequences created by McG when he was attached to the project, screen tests of actors auditioning for the man of steel (including some punk called Brandon Routh), secret video diary footage of Jon Peters dancing around the production offices with a copy of National Geographic as shot by one of the lowly concept artists and the holy grail of test footage; the Nicholas Cage costume test.

Disc 17 - 'Superman Returns' Theatrical Cut

With audio commentary by Singer and with an isolated score track so people can appreciate just how amazing John Ottman's work on the film really is.

Disc 18 - 'Superman Returns ' Extended Cut

'Superman Returns' is clearly a three hour epic squeezed into a two and a half hour running time. An extended cut offers the opportunity to restore the much demanded 'return to Krypton' sequence, provide more meat to the otherwise rushed Smallville section and add the vital missing plot point that Luthor was responsible for setting up the idea that Superman's home world was still out there for him to find. When Luthor creates 'New Krypton' on Earth, the shots of its landscape are practically identical to the ones we see in that opening sequence. When Superman calls Luthor's plan "an old man's sick joke", that is what he is referring to. That wonderful subtext is lost without those moments being restored to the film.

Disc 19 - 'Superman Returns' Supplemental Material

No improvements necessary here as the documentary created for the initial release was fantastic. One cool addition would be a glimpse at whatever vague story ideas Singer had conjured up for his planned sequel before it got the axe.

Disc 20 - 'The Fortress Of Solitude Archive'

Finally, for the sake of completion, absurdity and the fact that twenty is such a lovely round figure, the final disc (inspired by the 'Zion Archive' disc from the Ultimate Matrix boxset) would contain all of the trailers, TV spots, concept art, storyboards, production and publicity photographs, concepts and released theatrical posters from the entire series. It would also be a fantastic opportunity to include material created by the fans themselves. Over the last few years, the Superman movies have inspired so many people to create their own artwork, posters and fan videos, some of them quite splendid. It would be a great way to generate interest in the boxset from fans, if nothing else, to offer them the chance to have their work included in on the DVD. It isn't without precedent either. The band Guyz-Nite created their own independently produced music video based on the 'Die Hard' trilogy. The video became such a success on Youtube that Fox included it as part of the 'Live Free Or Die Hard' DVD. The disc would also be a wonderful opportunity to digitally recreate the Fortress of Solitude for Superman fans at home. Imagine having the option on the disc to turn the menus off so the fortress can act as a TV/desktop screensaver, with the John Williams/John Ottman soothing you to sleep, right before a Marlon Brando a-like voice yells at you to pick a special feature.

So there you are. If you feel the urge to label me insane after reading some of these ideas then feel free to do so. The word 'dream' in the title of the series is meant to be taken literally. I have a pragmatic side like everyone else and know that there is slim hope that any of the above will come to be. I just know that come this Winter when I see Eric Stoltz as Matry McFly, I'll be reminding myself that anything is possible. I hope you will too.

If you have any suggestions for future title that you would like to see in this series then please email me or leave a comment below.

Special thanks to Jay/Mac for the boxset image.  You have great powers, my son.

Surprise! Ed Norton Not In "The Avengers"

In what should be no surprise to anybody who wasn't drunk while thinking about the Hulk in "The Avengers", Marvel is casting an unknown in the role and passing on Edward Norton. According to HitFix Norton wants the role and even kept his schedule clear just in case but Marvel isn't interested.

I always thought they wouldn't even show Hulk's alter ego Bruce Banner at all in "The Avengers". I assumed it would be a story involving the big green box office under performer on the run and causing havok with Iron-Man and company chasing him down.

Maybe they will just hire Terrence Howard to take on the role of Bruce Banner so him and Don Cheadle can have a scene where they look at each other in a very menacing manner destroying the space - time continuum in the process.

Kevin Bacon Versus the X-Men

No one should be surprised. X-Men: First Class is said to be about the friendship of Charles Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr (Michael Fassbender), their formation of the School for Gifted Youngsters and their eventual drawing a line in the sand over their ideology. So we couldn't expect Magneto to be the film’s primary heavy. We had to be on his side through a decent chunk of the prequel.

"TOLDJA" reports the antagonist role is expected to be filled by none other than Kevin Bacon. Just who he's playing exactly is up in the air.

We all make our "Six degrees of..." jokes. But he’s quite the chameleon truth be told. Check him out in The Woodsman for no further proof.  I'm just curious as to the identity of his baddie.

Marveling At The Past - Fantastic Four (2005)

"Johnny it's dangerous for you to be out in public."

"You've been saying that for years."

I was having an interesting conversation with Jamie Williams the other week on the subject of how Thor's cape will look and move in his upcoming big screen debut. From the one photograph we have seen of the costume, the cape gives the appearance of almost hovering above Thor's shoulders with regal dramaticness and one thing suddenly occurred to me. Why can't Thor's cape be completely impractical and magical?

Why do seemingly all comic book movies feel the need to ground themselves in reality?

I suppose the positive response to Singer's X-Men and Nolan's Batman films have swung the pendulum in that particular direction and many, if not all, have benefited from that grounding. It is not something I am complaining about except to say that some comic book properties are inherently outlandish in concept and scope and by trying to remove those larger elements for film adaptation, you lose something in the translation; you lose the very essence of why that property works. Case in point - 'Fantastic Four'.

I find myself in a bit of a difficult position talking about this one again since I covered quite a lot of my problems with the film in my 'memo to the executives' piece but some are worth repeating. 'The Fantastic Four' is, by its very definition, grandiose. 'Spider-man' has always been the intimate life story of a boy becoming a man. 'X-Men' is an allegory for prejudice. 'Daredevil' is a gritty crime drama. 'The Fantastic Four' is a cosmic family comedy/action adventure about a team of heroes who, though based in the real life metropolis of New York, come face to face with super-powered dictators, alien invaders, beings from alternate dimensions, and mole people from under the Earth on a daily basis. I sympathise that this makes the comic a pretty tricky bugger to bring to the silver screen but if you don't make it on that cosmic scale, you don't have a Fantastic Four movie.

That is exactly what we have with the 2005 film. Thanks solely to the fact that the actors playing the fab four are doing their very best to make it work, coupled with some pretty good special effects, we have the elements to comprise half of a Fantastic Four movie. The other half, represented by the small scale of the film, complete lack of plot and its horrendously written villain, bring it down in quality to just above the likes of........well, its sequel, which got everything wrong.

'Fantastic Four' is also one of those films where I can pinpoint the moment where things go completely off the rails. The film's first action sequence where the F4 first use their powers in public to save a hundred or so people getting creamed on the Brooklyn Bridge effectively introduces our heroes to the world, setting them on the whirlwind career of press scrutiny, celebrity appearances and world problem solving. Then the film cuts straight to the Baxter Building where a huge crowd of adoring fans are already waiting to embrace them. A little later on we get a scene of Sue Storm opening fan mail from all over the world asking the team of heroes to come and solve all their problems despite the fact that, from the audience perspective, we have only seem them perform one heroic deed. In fact the next action sequence, if it can ever be called such, takes place well into the second act when Johnny Storm takes place in a dirt bike stunt show thing. Again, everyone in the crowd knows who he is. We are not even told about crimes they may have prevented or lives they may have saved that occurred off-screen. No comic book ever needed a montage more than this one.

The film version of the Fantastic Four never earn their fame and success and as such, it just does not work properly. It would be akin to watching a definitive movie on the career of 'The Beatles' and seeing the film go from their first live performance at 'The Cavern' in Liverpool and cutting straight to the release of 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'. It just doesn't work. You have not been on the journey you should have taken with these characters.

To add insult to injury, there is no momentum to the film's second act. There is literally nothing happening and nothing is at stake. Reed Richards is scrambling to find a cure for the team's powers. Johnny is enjoying the celebrity lifestyle. Sue tries to get Reed's attention and affection. Ben Grimm just mopes around. Meanwhile, our villain, one of comics most beloved supervillains arrives at the Baxter Building, not to destroy our heroes or take over the world, but to feel jealous and bitter when he sees that Sue is back with Reed.

I do not need to remind you of just how important and revered Victor Von Doom is in the Marvel Universe. He is the archetypal super-villain. He is everything we think of when the term comes to mind. He is everything lesser villains aspire to be. He is monstrously powerful but always craves more. He has a rich backstory yet still retains a certain mystique. While other villains hide out in crummy warehouse lairs, Doom is the ruler of his own country. He has an undying vendetta against his enemy. He has a killer outfit. The filmmakers themselves say on the DVD supplementals that the character is the definitive inspiration for Darth Vader.

So why do we get the Doctor Doom as presented in the film? The initial angle of having Doom go on Richards' space mission was an interesting one. If the F4 are 'The Beatles' then Doom is the fifth one; the unrecognised, unloved character who is denied the glory and power of his team mates. I can accept that. I can take Doom as the millionaire sponsor of Richards' space expedition. I can take the love triangle between him, Reed and Sue. I can even take the idea of Doom growing organic metallic skin (though that gives me flashbacks to Christopher Eccleston in 'G.I.Joe'). What I cannot take is the idea of Doom as a suit; as a sly businessman. And I certainly cannot take scenes of that businessman being chided by members of his executive board who want to sell his company, which are direct lifts from 'Spider-man'. It seems not enough to rob Doctor Doom of his greatness. They need to steal crap from other Marvel movies to fill in the gaps.

There is the argument of course that Doom, as we all know and love him, is too silly to work on screen. A supervillain with armour, mask and cape is one thing. A supervillain who lives in a castle with robot servants is something else. I think the key to making Doom work is to make him the crux of the story. Showing the initial relationship between Reed and Victor as students in college as well as the subsequent accident which scars the latter's face is crucial to achieve this. Though some versions of the story have made that accident completely Doom's fault, the film should have placed the responsibility on Richards' shoulders. Regardless of the action and the effects, the first Fantastic Four film should have been a simple but relatable story about a smart man who makes one mistake and spends the rest of his life paying for it.

You have to wonder why Reed Richards is so single minded and focused on his work. I have always felt that Doom is the reason why. Being the greatest scientific mind on Earth is something Richards feels the pressure of every day. He pushes himself to always succeed. Victor's accident, the one small failure in a lifetime of otherwise flawless creative genius, creates a domino effect and leads the world's deadliest supervillain on a collision course to destroy him and everything he loves. Doom is the opposite side of the same coin. He is equally single minded and driven by that one failure he cannot let go of, his own uncalcuable arrogance refusing to believe it can be anything but Richards' fault. But during the course of the film, only Reed learns to accept his own imperfections and embraces being part of a family while simply tumbles further into the abyss.

Of course the film we got is not about anything. 'Fantastic Four' believes that just telling the origin of the characters is sufficient to create a satisfying movie. I mentioned in particular during my 'memo' piece, but it bears repeating here, that I have always wanted to see a Marvel movie tackle, in a light and almost satirical way, the idea of superheroes being so good at their job that they do actually eliminate the need for any other stable form of law enforcement or emergency services. I would have loved to have seen a story where the F4 wipe crime, death and destruction clean away from New York, regardless of the toil it puts on their personal lives, only to leave it completely vulnerable to an enemy who knows exactly how Richards thinks and how to deal with him.

Perhaps with the series being rebooted, I can finally see that film. I cannot see how you can make a worse film. All Fox needs to do is put one good idea in there, as opposed to none. Join us next week though for the big one folks; the one we have been building up to, the one which had too many ideas and not enough room for any of them. It is time to discuss 'X-Men: The Last Stand'.

Green Lantern On Set Video!

New Orleans ABC 26 News was lucky enough to visit the set for next summers Green Lantern. They spoke to a PR rep for the film, and caught a glimpse of wait for it... a group of extras cheering for a scene at the airport, yay! Unfortunately nothing new was actually revealed in the video, but you do get a look at the sets they're using at the New Orleans Lakefront airport.

For a better look at the Ferris Aircraft headquarters set at the airport you can go HERE.

Green Lantern Opens June 17, 2011

batman 3 shooting in April!

It looks like Batman 3 starts shooting next April, not March like previously reported. Same difference if you ask me, but meh.

Michael Caine the man who always seems to inadvertently blab information in his interviews, revealed to digital spy in a brief interview on the red carpet for Inception, that Batman 3 would in fact start shooting in April. No one should be surprised by this, but for the diehards its something for now.

here's the video: