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NASCAR Driver Earnhardt's Widow Talks About Upcoming Film

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Feb 1st 2007 7:08AM
Filed under: Documentary, Sports, Fandom, Movie Marketing, Religious, Movie News, Cinematical
When you grow up in farm country, you find yourself surrounded by people who simultaneously worship two individuals -- Jesus Christ and Dale Earnhardt. Jesus Christ, of course, is the Son of God and Savior of mankind who famously allowed Himself to be brutally tortured and hung by nails from a wooden cross to save us all from eternal damnation; while Dale Earnhardt was a dude who drove fast cars until he crashed one of them. So really, you can see why they're both so revered.

Okay, so I'm not a NASCAR fan, even though I grew up in the right area for it. I grew up as the comic book geek, remember? But even I have to admit Dale Earnhardt was a pretty fantastic dude. He was, by most accounts, a very nice, humorous, and exceptionally talented individual who really helped vault the sport he loved onto a much larger stage. He was one of those guys you just felt compelled to like any time you saw him -- unless, I suppose, you were a fan of a different driver, in which case you probably disliked him every time he was outracing your guy. So well liked was Dale, he's got an archival-footage film called Dale this year; and ThatsRacin.com has an interview with his widow Teresa about the film.

Teresa, naturally, said the film was hard to make in many respects, because it involved so many memories of her late husband and the career which took his life -- but at the same time it was a joy to create for many of the same reasons. She said the film allowed her to share more of the personal, private Dale with people who mostly only got to see the professional-racer Dale. It will also help illustrate just how Dale Earnhardt helped move NASCAR from something of a fringe sport to the mainstream.

So ... racing fans ... how does Teresa's heavy involvement with this flick play into the currently popular rumors of her entire lack of interest and attendance in Jr's racing? Read

Based on 300, Zack Snyder Gets First Look Deal With Warners

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 31st 2007 4:04PM
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Deals, Fandom, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Movie News, Cinematical

You and I may not have seen anything beyond the carefully chosen-for-release production photos and teaser trailers, but the people at Warner Bros. have surely seen it all, and are apparently exceptionally impressed with the storytelling and directorial talents of just-emerging director Zach Snyder and his 300 flick. Granted, Snyder is off to a great storytelling start simply by choosing Frank Miller's 300 as his source material, but we've seen more than enough good comics go terribly awry when the movie world gets ahold of them, so credit must of course go to Snyder if this film turns out to be as impressive as all early indicators lead us to think.

So impressed, in fact, are the people at Warner Bros. who have hooked Snyder and his brand-new Cruel and Unusual Films into a two year first-look deal. And, of course, Warners is behind Snyder's next major comic book project as well -- that is, if you actually believe people anymore when they tell you they're turning Alan Moore's Watchmen into a movie.

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Sources Say Katie Holmes Out Of The Dark Knight

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 26th 2007 10:02AM
Filed under: Action, Casting, RumorMonger, Fandom, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Cinematical

How many of you out there hate it when studios go and switch around the actors/actresses playing main characters in a good TV or movie series? I think it is something nearly all fans can agree on. I understand sometimes that it is necessary for one reason or another, but most of the time, I'd rather they just write the character out of the plot, if at all possible.

Enter Rachel Dawes, the love interest from Batman Begins. Despite general knowledge telling us she'd return, there have long been whispered concerns about the increasingly inscrutable Katie Holmes. And now, LatinoReview adds some fuel to those whispers by indicating Katie Holmes will not return for the long-awaited sequel to the film, but the part of Rachel Dawes will be a part of the story. So we can go ahead and crank up the rumor mill in regards to who will take her place. In the meantime, LatinoReview also says Matt Damon has passed on Harvey Dent, but Ed Norton and Josh Lucas are still being considered (among others, of course), while Oswald Cobblepot has disappeared from the script.

In related Holmes news, she's just signed on to star opposite Queen Latifah and Diane Keaton in Mad Money, the "Ocean's 11 ... but with females" flick we told you about the other day. Yup, she's gone from Batman to Latifah. And are we happy about this?

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Wait...Now It Might Be Rose McGowan in Sin City 2?

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 18th 2007 9:02AM
Filed under: Action, RumorMonger, Fandom, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Cinematical
Earlier, Erik Davis told you the Sin City team was tired of waiting on Angelina Jolie and was moving on to make Rachel Weisz the "Dame to Kill For." This is generally a good move in my opinion, because I'm tired of waiting for Sin City 2, although Erik did make an interesting point when he said "However, Weisz -- um -- she's cute and all, but I wouldn't kill for her." So replacing Jolie for time considerations is fine, but we're not sure what we think of Weisz as the replacement. Okay, I hear ya. How about we instead suggest a different name for the part?

Film Ick says they were given a different name for the role -- although they admit up front they have nothing solid to substantiate what they were told. Thus far, that puts them in the same general camp as the Rachel Weisz rumors, though, so hey, why not entertain them? So ... how do you feel about one Rose McGowan? You probably know her from Charmed, but the actress does have at least some minor connection with the Sin City team -- she's appearing in Rodriguez and Tarantino's Grindhouse flick. What do you think? Would you be willing to kill for Rose McGowan? Read

MGM Greenlights Two New Stargate Movies

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 15th 2007 2:03PM
Filed under: Action, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Fandom, Distribution, Remakes and Sequels, Movie News, Cinematical

Sometime around Columbus Day we talked about potential Stargate SG-1 movies as a swansong for the long-running television series. Then last month, my buddy Chris Ullrich gave you a great update courtesy of Beau Bridges, who confirmed talks of the films, but indicated nothing was official yet. Well, here we are in mid-January, and we now have official confirmation. Fans, you may officially start your (likely to be bittersweet, due to the impending end of the series) rejoicing now -- two movies are indeed coming your way.

Today, MGM officially announced the production plans for two Stargate SG-1 movies titled Stargate: Arc of Truth and Stargate: Continuum. As we suspected back in October, the first film will close the big storyline from the final two seasons, while the second will have an independent plot with new time travel adventures. Expect both to be TV and DVD marketed, with no major big screen releases. With continued rumors of yet another Stargate series, the success of these movies will likely play a major role in the studio's internal debate about the potential for future Stargate properties.

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Is That A Ghostbusters Game Demo Floating Around Online?

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 15th 2007 12:02PM
Filed under: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, RumorMonger, Fandom, Home Entertainment, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Games and Game Movies, Features, Cinematical
Yours truly is, and always will be, an unabashed Ghostbusters fanatic. Movies, cartoons, action figures, insanely difficult video games from the 1980s -- it doesn't matter. If it has the Ghostbusters stamp on it, I'll buy it and thoroughly love it. One of my proudest possessions as a youth was the Ectomobile (Ecto-1) toy. Rumors of a new Ghostbusters film swirled in and out of popularity for a long time, before Harold Ramis finally revealed that Bill Murray has decided never to fork over his share of the rights -- meaning no film will happen. But for diehard fans, there is something new on the horizon -- some fairly sophisticated video has popped up on YouTube lately (nicely collected over at AICN) showing what would appear to be presentation-ready clips from a new Ghostbusters video game.

So what are we looking at with these? Some have suggested it is likely to be nothing more than a clever, fan-made mod -- Gears of Ghostbusters -- but as the AICN guys point out, there is a lot of material there for a fan hoax. Whatever it is, it is certainly awesome looking, and it fans the flames of love in my heart for the fantastic Ghostbusters franchise. I certainly hope something new happens with this property. Do you suppose this video is what it appears to be, or is it just fan fun? Read

Hellboy 2 Jumps Into Action

By Mark Beall (Subscribe to Mark Beall's posts), Posted Jan 10th 2007 11:31AM
Filed under: Action, RumorMonger, Fandom, DIY/Filmmaking, Comic/Superhero/Geek, Remakes and Sequels, Movie News, Cinematical
Well readers, the time of the great return may finally be upon us. No, not Jesus (although I suppose I can't guarantee that one) -- Hellboy. After a scary time in limbo when Guillermo del Toro and his team had to seek out a new studio to pick up the franchise, the stars are finally aligned for Hellboy 2. According to M&C, the power players behind the film are headed off to Budapest to begin some serious pre-production, stage one in bringing us a sequel.

Honestly, I don't worry a bit about the integrity of this film -- unlike other flicks which I nervously obsess over and feel the need to hunt for any tiny detail which might suggest hope. I've seen what this team does with the source material, and frankly, it is brilliant. What I do worry about with the Hellboy franchise is box office returns, because the reason del Toro was hunting for a new studio was the lackluster receipts from the first flick. It didn't tank, but it didn't rake in the cash studios hope for from comic book titles; which is a shame, because it is among the best of the current comic book movie blitz. Let's hope the impressive first offering will encourage a higher turnout for the second try. Read
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