FilmCrave Movie Blog 05/2010

Del Toro Moves on to Greener Pastures

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/31/10 at 11:47 AM CT

Just days after announcing The Hobbit was going on indefinite hiatus, now the film is losing its director. Guillermo del Toro, behind Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy series, has left the director's chair for The Hobbit.

I always thought del Toro would be a good fit for the fantasty. He has a darker vision that would balance out the more childish aspect to book. When compared to the Lord of …

Ride on Easy Rider: Dennis Hopper Dies at 74

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/29/10 at 02:21 PM CT

A true cinematic icon, Dennis Hopper died today at 74 after a long battle with prostrate cancer. Lately appearing in the Starz television series Crash, Hopper is best known for roles in Easy Rider and Blue Velvet. Hopper had many other memorable film roles including a photojournalist in Apocalypse Now and the leader of post-apocalyptic society in Land of the Dead.

Hopper's final roles include …

Hobbit Come Home!

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/29/10 at 10:33 AM CT

You know what I could do with having never been invented? Red Ink. It always seems to get in the way of things: highways, universal health care, movies I really want to see.

Case in point: The Hobbit. Guillermo del Toro's The Hobbit was announced not too long after Return of the King wrapped up in '03... it's seven years later and now, once again, there is no word on when The Hobbit will see …

Will 3D Eliminate the Need for New Films?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/28/10 at 12:19 PM CT

So I just learned that one of my favorite cult films, Battle Royale, is being re-released in 3D. If you don't know about this film, it revolves around a middle school class in dystopian future Japan who get chosen for the "Battle Royale" program. Essentially they're dropped off in a remote location (an island in this case) and are forced to kill each other until only one remains (the "winner"). …

The Whitest Actors You Know

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/27/10 at 11:26 AM CT

Although it's nothing new, people still find time to complain about questionable casting by Hollywood in ethnic roles.

The biggest debate now is Prince of Persia and The Last Airbender. Seems like the cast for both films is too white for some people. I can see why some people would be upset, especially the fan base for The Last Airbender, but sometimes I think people get mad just for the sake …

How Many Poor Men Must Be Dragged to Sex and the City 2?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/26/10 at 01:26 PM CT

The real secret of Sex and the City 2? Why it was decided it deserved a sequel. If the budget for wardrobe is any indication, they spent more on clothes than some indie movies make in theaters. But, you know what they say, you can put lipstick on a pig, but it's still a pig.

It's clear this is being marketed to a largely female audience, which, despite ending half-a-decade ago, seems to …

Can Fincher Turn International Sensation Into American Sensation?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/25/10 at 10:06 AM CT

For the most part, I've enjoyed David Fincher's work. Also, I know he's good at adapting books into film - Fight Club anyone?

So if there was one person that was in charge of turning best-selling book, and currently acclaimed Swedish film, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, into an American remake, Fincher would be a great choice.

Remakes are tricky, but if Fincher always seems to favor …

Get Yer Weinsteins Out of My Miramax

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/24/10 at 12:23 PM CT

Looks like the fate of Miramax is once more firmly in the "mostly-dead" category again after brothers Bob and Harvey Weinstein's efforts to buy back the film division from Disney.

However, both camps are claiming early reports have been exaggerated and the deal is still forthcoming, just not as quickly as some people would like. Whatever the case, it doesn't seem that money is the deciding …

One Last Time for Lost

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/23/10 at 11:48 AM CT

So what if it's not about a movie? I've been a serious Lost fan since that wicked pilot with polar bears and French transmissions and Charlie asking "Guys, where are we?"

I was hooked and I've stayed hooked these past six years - with all flash backs, flash forwards, a smoke monster, hatches, time travel, alternate worlds - some people got discouraged, some got angry, some just got confused - …

Shocking News About One of Our FilmCrave Co-Founders

Nick - wrote on 05/22/10 at 01:53 PM CT

It has come to our attention, that one of our FilmCrave co-founders, Alex Olson, owns and watches movies on a 32 inch, 4:3 tube TV. Really? Yes, it is true. You'd think about everyone out there by now has found a good deal on an LCD TV. But not our co-founder, who owns and runs a movie website. Why is this? Are the FilmCrave co-founders poor basterds that simply can't afford a new TV? …

Will SNL Finally Learn Its Lesson?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/22/10 at 08:43 AM CT

You would think after It's Pat, Superstar, Ladies Man, Stuart Saves His Family, A Night at the Roxbury, Blues Brothers 2000 and The Coneheads that Lorne Michaels and SNL would get the message.

MacGruber seemed an odd choice for a film adaptation. I mean, the guy blows up every time - how do to even stretch that to over 5 minutes, let alone over an hour? Yet they tried - and if box office …

Twi-Hard With a Vengeance

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/21/10 at 09:24 AM CT

While I'm not screaming in delight, it looks like the dawn will still break on the Twilight Saga. Hold-outs Ashley Greene and Kellan Lutz - who play Alice and Emmett Cullen respectively - have signed on to continue their roles after wrangling with Summit Entertainment over money (of course).

It's not clear if they got a pay raise, or were threatened with cheaper replacements, but the core …

The Hotness Has Left the Building

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/20/10 at 11:42 AM CT

At least Shia LaBeouf took the blame himself for the problems with Transformers 2. But Megan Fox wasn't shy about comparing Michael Bay to Hitler and Napoleon, then the crew came out complaining about Fox being hard to work with... and now she's out.

That's right, Fox is out of Transformer's 3. But let's face it, aside from looking hot and being someone to save on a regular basis, she served …

Can Chesty Jake Reverse the Curse?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/19/10 at 08:50 AM CT

With a little over a week before Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time hits theaters, the question remains: will we finally get a decent video game adaption on the big screen?

The only thing I get out of the trailer is that it looks like a quintessential summer film: plenty of effects, probably short on plot and characters. Still, it will probably have a decent opening weekend then fade fast. …

Looks Like Someone Brought a Machete to a Race War

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/18/10 at 08:51 AM CT

In news that unbelievable yet sadly true, it seems after Robert Rodriguez introduced the Machete trailer on Cinco de Mayo, and added in an extra Arizona message, some (unhinged? over-reactive?) people are scared that Machete may spark a race war.

Now, just to be clear, Machete is another homage to the grind-house movies of the 70s. In this case, Danny Trejo (Machete) goes on a revenge / …

Shia LaBeouf Wants You to Know He is a Very Sorry Actor

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/17/10 at 08:43 AM CT

Hot on the heels of admitting that he "wasn't impressed" with Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen , and apologizing for his performance and promising to bring back the heart to the third in the series, he felt bad enough to also apologize for Indiana Jones 4.

Saying he dropped the ball in the 4th entry, he felt he tarnished the legacy of the film series. “The actor’s job is to make it …

Here There Be Lawsuits

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/16/10 at 10:51 AM CT

Voltage Pictures, the financier behind the critically-acclaimed Oscar winner The Hurt Locker, is taking the copyright fight to the next level. Over 50,000 people who illegally downloaded the film are being sued, with more likely to follow.

Although lawsuits have been brought up in the past, they've been for films like Uwe Boll's Far Cry or Uncross the Stars - Nothing on the level of Hurt …

Human Centipede: This... Just Got Real

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/15/10 at 12:55 PM CT

I always say there's no limit to human depravity. I say to myself "What can I find that will shock and or disgust me today?"

Have I become so desensitized and jaded that I am beyond help? Are there limits even for me? If you look at my movies I own list (it's long, but alphabetical!) you'll see my tastes are all over the map, but certain films - Ichi the Killer, Cannibal Holocaust, Salo, …

If You Sell It, They Will Come

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/14/10 at 08:51 AM CT

Want to own a really big piece of movie memorabilia? Then head on over to Dyersville, Iowa and make sure to bring your checkbook, credit cards and maybe your first born.

The "Field of Dreams" is up for sale for $5.4 million. Current owners Don and Becky Lansing are willing to part with the land, which has been in the family for over a century, and retire. The field currently attracts about …

Hollywood Video Shuttered for Good - What's Next?

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/11/10 at 11:02 AM CT

The age of brick and mortar video stores edges closer to an end as Hollywood Video announced that all its locations will be closed - including all Movie Gallery stores.

I remember the days of local video stores, renting VHS tapes, mostly bad and or cheesy horror films, or the latest releases. Of course mom and pop stores were cut out of business by places like Hollywood Video and Blockbuster. …

Super 8 Now More Than a Motel

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/05/10 at 10:50 PM CT

Looks like J.J. Abrams - the man behind Lost, the New Star Trek and Fringe, has created another monster.

The Super 8 trailer, which will run before Iron Man 2, is another hand-held trailer, albeit of an old-school version, which fueled speculation to a Cloverfield sequel / prequel. But Abrams himself has debunked rumors that it is related to Cloverfield in any way after Internet speculation …

Clash & Dragon Sequels Already Planned

Chris Kavan - wrote on 05/01/10 at 02:16 PM CT

Looks like the 3D phenomenon has given the green light to Clash of the Titans and How to Train Your Dragon.

With both movies earning right around the $400 million mark, it wasn't that tough of a decision. While Dragon wasn't such a surprise, I'm interested to see where Titans is going to go next. There is no shortage of mythology to tackle - there are plenty of monsters and men to choose from …



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