Worlds of wonder abound in the trailer bin today, including our first real look at Terry Gilliam’s The Brothers Grimm (looks a bit Munchausen-y…and I hope I can get used to Matt Damon’s accent) and this trippy voyage into Neil Gaiman’s Mirrormask. And, speaking of Gaiman, his and Robert Zemeckis’ forthcoming version of Beowulf has a cast: Ray Winstone, Anthony Hopkins, Brendan Gleeson, and Robin Wright Penn.
Category: Directors
America Begins.
So that’s how Bruce Wayne made his money…Christian Bale shows up as John Rolfe in the new trailer for Terence Malick’s The New World, also starring Colin Farrell (as John Smith), newcomer Q’Orianka Kilcher (as Pocahontas), Christopher Plummer, Wes Studi, Noah Taylor, and David Thewlis.
Broken Watch / Darth Empathy.
As feared, Paramount axes the Watchmen movie. My reaction is very similar to Megg‘s concerning Ratner on X3…Fortunately, the Dark Lord of the Sith can empathize.
Escape from Das Boot.
Wolfgang Petersen begins casting yet another boat movie, a remake of The Poseidon Adventure, with Kurt Russell, Emily Rossum, Richard Dreyfuss, Mike Vogel, and possibly Andre Braugher. I assume Russell is playing the Hackman Role.
Mutant Massacre.
With Matthew Vaughn gone, is Marvel really going to put X3 in the hands of Brett Hackner? Oh, lordy, that’s terrible. Apparently, the film will include three surprising deaths and a sex scene to boot. Well, shucks, I hope they find a way to fit some car chases in there too. I always thought X-Men needed more car chases. Update: It seems official…Ratner’s in.
Cloudy, Chance of Weirdness.
Thinking of having a picnic or a bizarre and unexplained transmogrification this afternoon in LA? On his website, filmmaker David Lynch offers a daily weather report in Quicktime. (Via Incoming Signals.)
Fall of the Mutants.
Layer Cake director Matthew Vaughn is off X-3, citing the hectic production schedule. That’s too bad…I was looking forward to seeing what he did with the franchise.
V for Vitiated?
As creator Alan Moore removes his name from the forthcoming V for Vendetta film, word leaks back that the Wachowskis’ shooting script substitutes Moore’s characters for Matrix 2/3-style ponderousness. Hmm. Well, perhaps they’ll tighten it up on set (and at least there’s still the possibility of Watchmen, if Paramount will get their act together.)
One More Crusade.
Moving a long-awaited project closer out of development hell, George Lucas approves the new Indy IV script. If Harrison Ford also approves, Indy IV could get a 2006 start, after Spielberg finishes both Vengeance, his Munich Olympics film with Eric Bana and Daniel Craig, and his Liam Neeson Lincoln biopic, based on a forthcoming book by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
On War, Violence, and other Grimm Matters.
In this weekend’s movie bin, yet another new look at Stephen Spielberg’s War of the Worlds and a higher quality version of the trailer for David Cronenberg’s A History of Violence that premiered at Cannes last week. And, further into the future, the one-sheet for Terry Gilliam’s return, The Brothers Grimm, makes it online. Along with Heath Ledger, Matt Damon, and the lovely Monica Bellucci, Grimm also includes Peter Stormare and Jonathan Pryce. Seeing Sam Lowry back in the Gilliam-verse should be worth the price of admission by itself.