Film Gecko » TV on the Big Screen

‘Veronica Mars’ movie still not happening

Jane Boursaw — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 00:52:40 +0000

It’s never looked great for a “Veronica Mars” movie, and it’s still not looking good.

Creator Rob Thomas was at the Television Critics Association Winter Press Tour, as part of Starz’s promotion for the second season of “Party Down.” He told The Futon Critic that he’d write the script if anyone would finance it.

“If anyone’s interested in making that movie I am available, Kristen’s [Bell] available. I would love to do it. I think the closest we came was Joel [Silver] pushing it at Warner Bros. and they didn’t bite. It has sort of gone away."

Thomas said he gets Google Alerts on “Veronica Mars” and sees messages about it all the time. “And I’ve heard things, like I read an interview where I think Kristen’s telling people I have written the script. I have a treatment, I don’t have a script. So she shouldn’t have jumped the gun on that, but I am ready to write a script.”

Well, if they don’t do it soon, they’ll have to jump the story ahead to Veronica Mars solving mysteries while taking her kids to soccer practice. Come to think of it, that might not be such a bad storyline. They could just keep the franchise going until it’s like Jessica Fletcher in “Murder, She Wrote.”

Buy “Veronica Mars”: Season One, Season Two, Season Three

Image: Amazon.com

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Wahlberg: ‘Entourage’ movie a possibility

Jane Boursaw — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 04:31:18 +0000

I never would have thought that Mark Wahlberg would become such a diverse celebrity, but the former Calvin Klein underwear model is not only a talented actor, but also a kick-ass executive producer for HBO’s “Entourage.”

At the “Lovely Bones” premiere last night in New York, Wahlberg told Showbiz 411 that the show has two seasons left, but don’t look for it to end after that. “We’ll see,” said Wahlberg. “There could be more. But then, a movie.”

Wahlberg is currently filming “The Other Guys,” a comedy with Will Ferrell. “I don’t really get to do comedy,” he said. “We waited for just the right thing. It’s a buddy movie.”

411’s Roger Friedman also had an interesting little chat with Wahlberg, in which he asked whether any of the people at the premiere party were friends from Boston.

“All my friends from Boston are either dead or in jail,” said Wahlberg.

“They can’t still be in jail after all this time?” asked Friedman.

“The stuff they did, you don’t get out of jail,” said Wahlberg.

Image: INF

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Jessica Biel, Sharlto Copley join A-Team remake

Jane Boursaw — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:00:00 +0000

Most people had probably never heard of Sharlto Copley until “District 9” became a smash hit. But now the 35-year-old actor has joined the cast of “The A-Team” remake as the goofy oddball H.M. “Howling Mad” Murdoch.

Jessica Biel (pictured) will portray an ex-flame of Faceman’s, and Patrick Wilson of “Watchmen” will play a CIA operative. Also in the cast: Liam Neeson (Col. John “Hannibal” Smith), Bradley Cooper (Lt. Templeton “Face” Peck), and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (B.A. Baracas).

While the premise of director Joe Carnahan’s “A-Team” will still center on four war vets wrongly convicted of a crime they didn’t commit, the tone will be slicker and less silly than the TV series (which, frankly, won’t be too difficult).

Production has already begun in Vancouver, with a release date of June 2010. I’m trying to decide whether I’m excited about this movie or not. The TV show was so cheesy, it’s hard to imagine a feature film coming out of it.

Image: Pacific Coast News

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Our Gang – All 52 MGM shorts on DVD

Jane Boursaw — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 03:37:21 +0000

Warner Bros. has released the “Our Gang Collection,” which includes all 52 MGM shorts from the Little Rascals gang. I watched it the other day with my family, and wow, those kids were tough back then. I know they were being portrayed as grown-ups (sort of), but the whole era was just rough and tumble. It’s like watching old “Three Stooges” films and going, wow, they did their own stunts?

But this is a great collection to own if you’re a fan of the Little Rascals and that era. The five DVD set includes all 52 shorts from 1938 through 1942. You can buy it here for $34.95. Here’s a little clip:

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Freddie Highmore as Astro Boy – watch the trailer!

Jane Boursaw — Wed, 02 Sep 2009 03:59:00 +0000

Here’s the trailer for Summit Entertainment’s “Astro Boy,” due in theaters Oct. 23, 2009. Sometimes these animated movies don’t quite reach the “summit” of what they could be (sorry, couldn’t resist), but this one looks like a winner.

The movie is set in futuristic Metro City, where Astro Boy (voiced by Freddie Highmore) is a young robot created by a brilliant scientist named Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive “blue” energy, Astro Boy has super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed, and the ability to fly.

The young robot goes on a search which eventually leads him back to Metro City to save everything he cares about. Kristen Bell, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane, and Eugene Levy are also featured in the movie. Check out the trailer and see what you think. The animation looks fantastic.

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Video on Demand: $5 Season Deals on Amazon – Battlestar Galactica, Heroes, and lots more

Jane Boursaw — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 17:55:32 +0000

If you’re expanding or getting caught up on your TV seasons, now would be a good time to invest in some of these. Amazon is running a deal right now offering a slew of Video on Demand seasons for just $5! Here’s a few of them:

And lots more! Check them all out here: $5 Season Specials on Amazon

Image: Amazon.com

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Free tickets online for … the Avatar trailer?

Jane Boursaw — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 20:06:43 +0000

Remember when movie trailers used to be free? Remember when we saw them in theaters before other movies that we paid for? Whatever happened to those days? And is this the new trend?

Free tickets are being distributed online for special IMAX showings of a 16-minute trailer for Fox’s upcoming 3D sci-fi flick "Avatar."

Ok, admittedly, this is more than just any old trailer. It’s an extended trailer with an intro by director James Cameron.

Still, I’m sure it’s someone’s way of trying to build buzz for a movie that’s not getting a lot of great pre-press. But who knows…

Anyway, free tickets will be distributed online starting Monday, Aug. 17, and the trailer will hit 101 IMAX venues in the U.S. and Canada starting Aug. 21. Visit the official "Avatar" site for theater info and other tidbits.

And if you’d just as soon see the trailer for free … well, the more conventional 2D and 3D "Avatar" trailers will also hit theaters on Aug. 21.

The movie arrives in theaters Dec. 18, 2009. Directed by James Cameron, it stars Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, and Zoe Saldana.

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Watchmen, Coraline, Stargate SG-1 on DVD / Blu-ray This Week

Jane Boursaw — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 01:25:26 +0000

Most excellent DVDs and Blu-ray discs are hitting store and cyber-shelves this week. Here’s the rundown of my faves:

Watchmen (Director’s Cut): Someone’s killing former superheroes! Read my review of this dark and gritty comic noir film starring Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Malin Akerman, and Billy Crudup. [Buy DVD] [Buy Blu-ray]

Coraline. Dakota Fanning voices the main character in this animated story about a little girl who finds an alternative reality right in her own home. It’s a little scary for young ones, but ok for kids 12 and older. Read my review here. [Buy DVD] [Buy Blu-ray]

Stargate SG-1: Children of the Gods – Final Cut. This isn’t a movie per se; it’s the feature-length pilot episode of "Stargate SG-1" that’s been remastered and re-cut by series Executive Producer Brad Wright. [Buy DVD]

The pilot stars Richard Dean Anderson as Jack O’Neill, leading a team on a mission to Abydos to defeat fierce warriors led by the vicious Ra. With the threat of the brutal Goa’uld hanging over the galaxy, the team must succeed, or General Hammond (Don S. Davis) will unleash an apocalyptic solution!

Product Features:

New Edit with Never-Viewed Scenes
New and Enhanced Visual Effects
Revoiced Performance by Christopher Judge
Original Score by Joel Goldsmith
Special Features includes: Commentary by Co-Creator Brad Wright and Actor Richard Dean Anderson and "Back to the Beginning" Featurette

After the jump, check out three clips…

Making the Pyramid:

Creating the Puddles:

Entering the Stargate:

Image: Amazon.com

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Two Images from Astro Boy, in Theaters Oct. 23, 2009

Jane Boursaw — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 02:05:35 +0000

I really don’t have much history with Astro Boy, but the movie looks like a lot of fun! It’s a CGI-animated movie coming to theaters Oct. 23, 2009.

“Astro Boy” began as a Japanese manga series and TV show first broadcast in Japan from 1963 to 1966. The story follows the adventures of a fictional robot named Astro Boy and lots of other fun characters, too.

The movie is set in futuristic Metro City, where Astro Boy (voiced by Freddie Highmore) is a young robot created by a brilliant scientist named Tenma (Nicolas Cage). Powered by positive “blue” energy, Astro Boy has super strength, x-ray vision, unbelievable speed, and the ability to fly.

The young robot goes on a search which eventually leads him back to Metro City to save everything he cares about.

“Astro Boy” also features the voices of Kristen Bell, Bill Nighy, Donald Sutherland, Nathan Lane, and Eugene Levy.

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The A-Team moves forward with Liam Neeson, Bradley Cooper

Jane Boursaw — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 04:35:27 +0000

Must every cheesy 1980s show be made into a movie? Apparently, so. Now “The A-Team” is jumping on the feature film bandwagon. The story will follow the original plot about a group of framed, on-the-run war vets who pull capers while evading the military.

Bradley Cooper has been rumored for a while to play Lt. Templeton "Faceman" Peck, originally played by Dirk Benedict in the NBC series helmed by Stephen J. Cannell.

Liam Neeson is in talks to take on the role of Col. John “Hannibal” Smith, played by George Peppard in the TV series. The roles of "Howling Mad" Murdock (originally Dwight Schultz) and "B.A." Baracus (Mr. T) are yet to be cast. Original writer Stephen Cannell is on board for the script, with Ridley Scott and Tony Scott producing.

Directed by Joe Carnahan (”Smokin’ Aces”) from a screenplay by Derek Haas and Michael Brandt (”Wanted”), the big-budget flick already has a June 11, 2010, release date.

I dunno … I guess I can see it, but they’re going to have to pull out all the stops on stunts and special effects to get my interest. We’ll see who they get for the remaining roles. That’s pretty cool that Stephen J. Cannell is onboard, though!

Image: Amazon.com

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