Category: Movies (Page 383 of 498)

As the final major movie panel of the weekend, Sony really disappointed, which was a bit of a letdown, since it would have been nice to end Comic-Con with a bang. Instead, the studio limped its way through a presentation of the “Cloverfield”-inspired horror film, “Quarantine,” by just showing the trailer, while panels for “Underworld 3” and “Pineapple Express” seemed to come and go without anyone really taking notice.

“Underworld 3: Rise of the Lycans” (guests: director Patrick Tatopoulos and stars Rhona Mitra and Bill Nighy)

The idea of making the “Underworld” series into a trilogy has been around since before the first film was even released, but after the disastrous sequel that was “Underworld: Evolution,” it’s hard to believe that they’re actually going through with another movie. To be fair, director Patrick Tatopoulos is mixing it up a bit by telling the tale from the werewolves point of view (not to mention setting the story in ancient times), but this prequel sounds about as interesting as another “Scooby Doo” movie. The fact that Bill Nighy is returning is encouraging, and he definitely sounded excited about coming back for another round. During the film’s panel, he proudly proclaimed “I’m a vampire, I’m a zombie, and I’m a squid” in reference to his roles in “Shaun of the Dead” and the “Pirates of the Caribbean” and “Underworld” films. Rhona Mitra, on the other hand, was just a little too snooty for my liking (can’t movie stars do a better job of pretending that they enjoy promoting their films?), but she did promise that while her character won’t be wearing the popular PVC leather from the first two films, her outfit is still very “saucy.”

“Pineapple Express” (guests: director David Gordon Green, co-writer Evan Goldberg and stars Seth Rogen, James Franco, Danny McBride and Amber Heard)

After two lackluster lead-ins, I really hoped that the guys behind “Pineapple Express” would be able to lighten the mood, but the panel was quickly ruined by a series of awful questions from the crowd that led to Seth Rogen ripping on most of them – namely Bob Stencil, a Comic-Con favorite who Rogen called out for acting like a dumbass. A few minor details were also spilled along the way (like how everyone did their own stunts because of the film’s restrictive budget, or that the two stars weren’t really smoking weed during production), but there wasn’t anything particularly groundbreaking. Apatow did disclose that he has no plans for a new TV series in the immediate future (mostly out of fear of being cancelled again), but anyone that’s been paying attention to his career over the last few years could have told you that.

The one shining moment during the Q&A session was the random appearance of Human Giant. Paul Scheer asked who would win in a fight between Frank Miller’s Elektra and James Franco; Rob Huebel inquired whether the film was based on a Frank Miller graphic novel; and Aziz Ansari tried to give Judd Apatow the script he co-wrote with McG called “Superbad 2: Full Throttle.” It was a nice distraction for the crowd, but it didn’t really help with promoting “Pineapple Express.” Not that it mattered, because even though the four clips that were shown were all funny, this isn’t the kind of movie that people need convincing to see. Either you want to see it or you don’t, and you probably already made up your mind shortly after seeing the first trailer.

If there’s one panel that totally took me by surprise this weekend, it was Universal. Most of the films represented probably didn’t deserve to be featured at a place like Comic-Con, but the studio had the fans eating right out of their hand thanks to their decision to bring just about every major cast member from all four of their films. They also debuted some great footage from two of the summer’s biggest remaining movies, as well as reconfirmed that Sam Raimi is still a master of horror.

“The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor” (guests: stars Brendan Fraser, Jet Li, Maria Bello, Michelle Yeoh, John Hannah and Luke Ford)

The movie may be opening in less than week, but that didn’t stop the cast of “The Mummy 3” from including San Diego in their international publicity tour. After showing an extended clip from the film involving a pack of Yetis that are called upon to help the O’Connell family escape from their latest misadventure, the cast spoke a little about the challenges of making a third installment after so much time had passed after “The Mummy Returns.” Brendan Fraser insisted that he was just sitting around waiting for the call for years, but the fact of the matter is, I don’t think Universal ever really thought about moving the franchise to a different part of the world until director Rob Cohen was brought on to the project. Michelle Yeoh agreed that Cohen is very much Chinese in the inside, and that one of the reasons the film was being made was because it featured “the fight that all of Asia had been waiting for,” referring, of course, to her onscreen duel with longtime pal Jet Li.

I’m not exactly sure I agree with that comment (wasn’t the battle between Li and Jackie Chan in “The Forbidden Kingdom” far more anticipated?), but Li didn’t say otherwise. In fact, the martial arts star was mostly tightlipped throughout the course of the panel, but he did lighten up later one, especially after an audience member asked Fraser who was more intimidating: Jet Li or The Rock? Fraser danced around the question, insisting that Li was such a professional that he could perform a roundhouse kick that only touched your shirt, but he eventually admitted that he didn’t know, since he never actually met The Rock on the set of “The Mummy Returns.” He went on to criticize just how unintimidating the Scorpion King actually looked in the film, stating that it was “no better than an avatar” and earning the collective applause of the audience for saying so.

“Death Race” (guests: director Paul W.S. Anderson, creator Roger Corman and stars Jason Statham, Tyrese Gibson, Joan Allen and Ian McShane)

It’s pretty funny just how different Paul W.S. Anderson and Paul Thomas Anderson are from one another as directors, but despite their distinct career paths, both have experienced equal success behind the camera. The former is best known for making the king of mindless entertainment that is often criticized in the industry for glamorizing violence, and if the clip we were shown is any indication, Anderson has done it again. Anderson and cast spoke briefly about filming the 2008 update to Roger Corman’s beloved cult classic, and though Ian McShane seemed convinced that none of the actors did any of the driving in the film, both Jason Statham and Tyrese Gibson confirmed that they did in fact do most of the basic stunts (180 degree turns and such), while Anderson went on to include that the movie was shot entirely with practical stunts. When the question of whether the film would be using the points system from the original film was poised during the Q&A session, Anderson stated that his “Death Race” is actually a prequel to Corman’s movie and will help explain the origins of Death Race’s existence. Sounds cool – as long as Anderson’s version isn’t so bad that the original is actually looked at as the better of the two.

“Drag Me to Hell” (guests: director/co-writer Sam Raimi and stars Alison Lohman and Justin Long)

Let me begin by saying that I am a huge fan of Sam Raimi. I loved all three “Evil Dead” movies, all three “Spider-Man” movies (yep, even the third one), and I fully credit him for making Bruce Campbell the cult movie star that he is today. When news broke that Raimi would be returning to the horror genre with Ellen Page as his female lead, I was ecstatic. Then, Page had to drop out due to scheduling conflicts, and shortly after, the film’s first photo was released, lowering my expectations drastically. Thank God for Comic-Con, then, for giving Raimi the means of proving me wrong. “Drag Me To Hell” may not be “Evil Dead 4,” but it certainly feels like it. We were shown a trailer for the film, as well as two clips, and all I have to say is that it looks fucking awesome. Blending horror with his trademark slapstick humor (lets just say a stapler is used as a weapon in one scene), the only way this movie won’t succeed is if the studio sticks to its May 29th release date. This is a movie that shouldn’t have to fight for recognition, but if it remains a part of the summer season, it will have to do just that.

“Land of the Lost” (guests: director Brad Silberling, Will Ferrell, Danny McBride, Anna Friel, Jorma Taccone and Sid & Marty Krofft)

Of all the films on the panel, this one was probably the biggest waste of time. Most people were hoping that Will Ferrell would make an appearance, and though he did send in a funny clip meant to fake people into thinking it was a live satellite feed of him trapped in his room in San Diego, it was mostly just a fun little bit meant to fill up their obligatory block of time. The cast and crew really didn’t talk about the film a whole lot (other than director Brad Silberling’s confirmation that just about everything you loved about the original series would appear in the filmic version, except Uncle Jack), but when Sid & Marty Krofft were asked about the possibility of any of their other creations being adapted for the big screen, they said that movies for “H.R. Pufnstuf” and “Sigmund and the Sea Monsters” were in very early development stages.

Much like last year, the Disney panel wasn’t even remotely as entertaining as some of the others, but that’s mostly because they tend to look more at the technical side of the production process. Big names draw big crowds, and though the panel itself delivered plenty of first-look footage, it didn’t exactly do much in terms of wowing the crowd.

“Bolt” (guests: directors Chris Williams and Byron Howard)

When I first saw the poster for “Bolt,” I promptly rolled my eyes and thought, “John Travolta is voicing a dog in a Disney movie? Yep, this is going to be shit,” but after seeing about 20 minutes of footage from the film, I’m happy to say that it actually looks much, much better. Now, it isn’t quite Pixar-standard, or even Dreamworks-standard for that matter, but it does look like an entertaining kid’s movie with a nice blend of action and comedy. Most of that comedy comes from the basic concept of the film (about a canine TV star who believes he has superpowers just like the character he plays), but it also comes from the fine cast of voice talent they’ve wrangled up, including Susie Essman, Malcolm McDowell, James Lipton, Diedrich Bader and Nick Swardson.

“Up” (guest: director Peter Doctor)

The second part of Disney’s presentation was dedicated to Pixar’s new film, “Up,” a “coming of old age” story about a curmudgeonly widow who transforms his home into a makeshift air balloon and travels the world. If that description scares you a little bit, well, you’re not alone. Pixar movies are notorious for sounding so simplistic that they couldn’t possibly work as full length features, but as both “Ratatouille” and “Wall*E” have proven, it’s just not worth doubting these guys any more. Does “Up” scare me? You bet, but director Pete Doctor’s latest will probably be just as good as the others. Aside from the two clips shown, the only other nuggets revealed were the cast (which includes Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer and, of course, John Ratzenberger) and the fact that the movie will be jam-packed with plenty of Pixar Easter eggs.