By Jason Apuzzo. • All of the big news today is on the Sci-Fi/Alien Invasion Front. Apparently the screenwriter on Ridley Scott’s Alien prequel turned in his script to Fox, and the Suits were pleased; and, what’s more, the Suits supposedly want Natalie Portman to play the lead role, a character described as “a female Colonial Marine general.” Uugh. Portman’s shrill, abrasive performance in the Star Wars prequels was easily their biggest problem – not Jar Jar Binks. Mercifully, we also learn today that someone else – Noomi Rapace, star of the Swedish version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo – is similarly in the running for the lead. My prediction is that Scott would go with Rapace, as she seems edgier – and would probably be less expensive than Portman for this 3D-native film that Fox apparently wants to keep in the $150-$160 million range. Also: supposedly the script reads more PG-13 than R-rated, which also made the Suits happy – albeit perhaps not Scott. We’ll see. This whole thing could still blow up and go nowhere.
• Are you aware that there are three competing Snow White projects in Hollywood right now? The latest apparently involves director Tarsem Singh (of Jennifer Lopez’ dreadful The Cell), who’s just been offered what is described as “an ‘edgy’ and comedic look at the original Brothers Grimm story.” This would be the one to put Natalie Portman in; I suggest having her whine about having to clean up after the Seven Dwarves.
• In other Alien Invasion news, Luc Besson is apparently returning to the sci-fi genre, with a large-scale project that “he’s planning on shooting in 2012 and 2013 for a release in 2013 or 2014.” Supposedly he’s already at work designing creatures for this project, and he’s also saying that James Cameron’s recent innovations (one assumes 3D here) were a large part of his motivation to return to sci-fi. Very interesting. Also: actor Morgan Freeman is saying that he and David Fincher still very much want to adapt Arthur C. Clarke’s sci-fi ‘alien encounter’ masterpiece Rendezvous with Rama – and that they want to do it in 3D. I think that’s a marvelous idea – and long overdue, frankly. It would be an absolutely perfect project for 3D. Also: there’s a new featurette out on I Am Number 4 (a forthcoming teen alien invasion flick) that pretty much gives away the whole movie, which I’d actually already lost interest in due to the trailer. And finally: there’s a very interesting, semi-spoilerific interview out with the Strause brothers of Skyline, in which they detail how they’ve managed to create a large-scale alien invasion movie on an ultra-low indie budget – and how the freedom associated with indie filmmaking has made them even less eager to work though the studio system. They’re also already planning a sequel! Good for them. This is really amazing stuff – and gives you a little glimpse at filmmaking’s future, I suspect. There are also some interesting new pics out from the film, and I’ve put one below. Remember that this film was made for under $10 million; Peter Jackson, take note.
• In related Sci-Fi news, the Tron marketing bonanza has begun. Disney already has a theme park attraction in the works, the new Daft Punk Tron album is coming, and a teaser for the new Pirates of the Caribbean film (which will similarly unspool in 3D and in IMAX) will apparently be attached to the Tron prints when the film debuts in December. I certainly hope the film is good, with all this happening … and in other sci-fi news: Steven Spielberg’s huge Terra Nova TV series is apparently running into major cost overruns; NBC’s Obamaphillic The Event is slipping in the ratings (while Hawaii Five-O soars); and Aint It Cool News is running a glowing review of J.W. Rinzler’s new book, The Making of The Empire Strikes Back. I’m very eager to read that book.
• In Classic Movie News, Paramount is about to debut a new, digitally restored ‘roadshow’ version of Cecil B. DeMille’s 1956 masterpiece, The Ten Commandments – a longer version that apparently hasn’t been seen since the film’s debut! This is fantastic news, although the LA Times article on the subject is frustratingly short on details. What are the new/extended scenes?! I hope this reaches DVD/Blu-ray soon. We showed what was then the best existing print of The Ten Commandments at the 2005 Liberty Film Festival. [I still remember that print sitting in my living room – I think I hugged it.] Cast member Lisa Mitchell introduced the film that night, and what a thrill that was. I can’t wait to see this ‘new’ version of a great classic. In other classic movie news: there’s a new book out that delves into the romance on- and off-screen between Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland, probably the best romantic pair the movies have ever produced.
• On the Political Front, Aaron Sorkin recently addressed concerns over The Social Network’s misogynistic depiction of women. His excuse basically boils down to: they’re geeks, so what do you expect? The explanation doesn’t fly. Sorkin’s film doesn’t critique misogyny so much as revel in it. Tacking on a female lawyer with a brain at the end of the film hardly makes up for that. Elsewhere, Obama recently met with the kids from Waiting for Superman, and also with Clooney (re: Darfur). He should’ve met with both of them at the same time – I think Clooney dropped out of Northern Kentucky. Elsewhere: Clint Eastwood says that Joaquin Phoenix will not be appearing in his J. Edgar Hoover biopic (although DiCaprio will be); Paul Giamatti will be playing Ben Bernanke, Billy Crudup will be playing Timothy Geithner and Ed Asner will be playing Warren Buffett (?!) in Libertas reader Curtis Hanson’s Too Big to Fail for HBO; and, finally, Clint Howard – brother of Ron, and star of some of my favorite Roger Corman flicks – advises young Hollywood conservatives to exercise caution when speaking their minds. I respect Clint’s opinion on this, but it’s for exactly this reason that so many of us choose to avoid the Hollywood system altogether and work independently – so that we can exercise our free speech rights. No Hollywood career is worth sacrificing those for.
• In franchise news, George Miller says that heavy seasonal rains in the Australian Outback were actually the cause of the Mad Max: Fury Road delays. Elsewhere, the projected $500 million budget for the two Hobbit films will apparently be the largest movie budgets ever (in unadjusted dollars), assuming those films are greenlit. Is this really a good idea for MGM, which is presumably trying to exit from bankruptcy? Anybody remember how Peter Jackson’s King Kong turned out? Hint: it underperformed. Elsewhere, the more recent Harry Potter films will apparently be getting the 3D treatment after all, once those films hit Blu-ray; and Inception’s Tom Hardy will apparently be joining the cast of Christopher Nolan’s new Batman film.
• The Playboy Mansion recently hosted a charity event to benefit our wounded warriors. The event featured motorcycles and Playmates, as well as a live auction of limited edition Playboy centerfolds and a prop gun once used by John Wayne. Honestly, I can’t think of a more patriotic way to spend one’s weekend outside of hunting Taliban.
• AND IN TODAY’S MOST IMPORTANT NEWS … in a sign of how bad Obama’s economy is, Kim Kardashian recently posed nude for W Magazine covered only in silver. In a better economy she clearly would have been covered in gold …
And that’s what’s happening today in the wonderful world of Hollywood.
Posted on October 13th, 2010 at 6:52pm.
