Category: News (Page 235 of 401)

Guests: Writer/director Kevin Smith, producer Scott Mosier, and stars Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks, Justin Long, Jason Mewes, Traci Lords and Katie Morgan

It probably goes without saying that Kevin Smith is a major draw at Comic-Con. Most fanboys relate to the filmmaker’s innate geekiness, and as a result, they’re treated to a very special episode of “A Night with Kevin Smith” each and every year. The dude’s pretty much given free reign to talk about whatever he wants, and this time around, he actually had a film to promote. Bringing along most of the cast of “Zack and Miri Make a Porno,” Smith also treated those in attendance with an extended clip from the film in which Miri (Elizabeth Banks) attempts to hit on an old crush (Brandon Routh, AKA Superman) at a high school reunion, while Zack (Seth Rogen) gets to know said crush’s gay porn star boyfriend (Justin Long) in another part of the room.

Now, I wouldn’t say that the clip reminded be of classic Smith fare (his writing doesn’t sound as clever coming out of Seth Rogen’s mouth), but it does look like he’s trying to take his career in a slightly different direction. For starters, the visuals themselves look sharper (something even Smith admitted to being interested in getting better at), while the basic structure of the story looks to be more inspired by Judd Apatow’s recent work than his own. As for the rating, well, it has already been slapped with an NC-17 (twice), and now Smith is in the process of appealing the decision before its October 31st release. He went on to add that he’s contractually obligated to deliver an R-rated film, so if the appeal doesn’t overturn the original decision, he’ll have to go in and make some cuts – particularly with a scene that Smith claims the MPAA simply does not want in the film.

The rest of the night was filled with plenty of banter between the guests on stage, and though Smith and Rogen had their share of funny comments, it was porn star Katie Morgan who ultimately stole the show. Traci Lords, on the other hand, couldn’t have looked any more serious, and though it seemed like she might cry when an audience member brought up her past as an underage performer in the porn business, Smith brought down the house when he replied, “You’re like the Miley Cyrus of porn!”

Click here for more from Kevin Smith, courtesy of NBC.

Guests: Director Frank Miller and stars Gabriel Macht, Samuel L. Jackson and Jaime King)

When the first trailer for “The Spirit” was leaked online a few weeks ago, the overall response probably wasn’t what director Frank Miller was hoping for. Some called him out for not knowing what he was doing behind the camera, while others just didn’t like the film’s similarities to “Sin City.” Personally, I didn’t hate it as much (nor did I see any similarities aside from the red-on-black scenes of The Spirit running across the skyscape), but after being treated to three additional clips during Lionsgate’s panel for the film, I’m beginning to lean more towards that camp.

The footage shown included an underwater sequence that, well, wasn’t actually shot underwater (and thus looked absolutely ridiculous), a comedic scene between Gabriel Macht and Sarah Paulson that played like an old Cary Grant film, and a Looney Toons-esque battle sequence between Macht’s Spirit and Samuel L. Jackson’s villainous Octopus that is so over-the-top it was actually entertaining. In fact, if there’s one thing that is going to save this film, it’s Jackson, who, oddly enough, also saved the panel from total suckage. When asked what his favorite action figure of himself was, Jackson suggested Mace Windu, but when a fan yelled out “Nick Fury” in reference to his cameo in “Iron Man,” Jackson quipped, “When I was a kid, Nick Fury was a white man.”

Guests: Director Zack Snyder, co-creator Dave Gibbons, and stars Matthew Goode, Malin Akerman, Patrick Wilson, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Billy Crudup, Carla Gugino and Jackie Earle Haley

If last year’s big event was Paramount’s worldwide trailer debut of “Iron Man,” then this year’s must-see presentation was surely Warner Bros.’ big-screen adaptation of “Watchmen,” the supposedly unfilmable graphic novel by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons. Joining director Zack Snyder on stage for a lengthy Q&A was his entire principal cast, and they spoke quite intelligently on the making of the film like a bunch of fanboys desperate to “get it right.” That didn’t come as much of a surprise to Snyder, since that was the very reason he agreed to direct the film as well. After all, whether the movie turned out bad because of him, or because of another director, he would always be the one responsible. Below, you’ll find some other highlights from the panel:

* The actors were so insistent on staying faithful to the source material that they often requested the dialogue be changed to reflect what had been written in the novel.

* Jackie Earle Haley received a lot of help from fans on how to play the character of Rorschach, right down to his trademark grumble.

* The only green screen used throughout the entire shoot were Malin and Billy’s scenes on Mars. According to Billy Crudup, it was far too expensive to shoot on the red planet, even with the backing of a major studio.

* Matthew Goode’s preparation for playing Ozymandis resulted in the actor giving his character a half-American, half-German accent – something that he’s not entirely certain will fly over well with the fans.

Of course, the real highlight of the hour was an exclusive sneak peek at the film’s extended trailer, and from what we saw – including everything from Rorschach’s constantly morphing mask to the beautifully-shot opening featuring the Comedian’s death – the film looks like everything it ought to be. We didn’t actually get to hear any dialogue, but the characters (as well as most of the scenes) appear to have been ripped straight from the pages of the novel. After seeing it twice, I can only say one thing: this movie is going to be a fucking masterpiece. Forget about “The Dark Knight,” because if “Watchmen” turns out even remotely as good as this newest trailer indicates it will be, Snyder is going to have a helluva hard time outdoing himself the next time around. I mean, what other challenges are left short of adapting “The Bible” for the big screen?

If there’s one studio that might have been better off following Paramount’s footsteps and sitting out this year, it’s Lionsgate. The studio best known for the “Saw” series doesn’t exactly put out the kind of material that the Comic-Con crowd eats up, and though they did dial it back a bit by moving to a smaller venue, none of their upcoming films really grabbed my attention. I expected as much from the new “Punisher” and “Saw” films, but I was really disappointed to discover that Darren Lynn Bousman’s “Repo: The Genetic Opera” might not be as cool as I was initially hoping it would be.

Punisher: War Zone (guests: producer Gale Anne Hurd and stars Ray Stevenson and Julie Benz)

For many, Thomas Jane was the perfect Punisher. He had the look, the talent, and most importantly, the love of the source material. So why isn’t the actor returning for the second film? Quite simply, because the script sucked. Or so says Tom Jane. This prompted Lionsgate to switch things up a bit, and instead of following up the first film with a sequel, “Punisher: War Zone” is now being referred to as a reboot in the same vein as “Batman Begins” and “The Incredible Hulk.” Producer Gale Anne Hurd describes this latest version of the Punisher as “ruthless, violent, vigilante justice,” and while that may be true, it doesn’t exactly make it good. From the footage that was shown, “War Zone” is definitely ruthless and violent, but it also looks a little campy. Ray Stevenson may physically embody the Punisher from artist Tim Bradstreet’s covers, but he also looks like a giant tool that deserves to get punched in the face just as much as the guys he’s brutally killing. Furthermore, Dominic West’s Jigsaw was also prominently featured in the new trailer, and all I can say is: Schumacher Two-Face. Yes, it’s that bad, so here’s hoping that West (who was phenomenal in HBO’s “The Wire”) delivers a good enough performance to detract from his silly appearance. Stevenson may be God in the eyes of “Rome” fans, but he’s got a lot more work to do before he convinces me that he‘s even half the Punisher that Jane was.

Saw V (guests: director David Hackl and stars Tobin Bell, Julie Benz, Costas Mandylor and Scott Patterson)

When all is said and done, this might just be the most pointless panel of the entire weekend. Seriously, does anyone even care about these movies anymore? I sure as hell don’t, especially now that the franchise has become so saturated with D-list actors that it’s impossible to take seriously. Add to that the fact that none of the cast members would dare say a thing for fear of incurring the wrath of the studio, and you have yourself one boring panel. Some people might be okay with watching the same movie over and over again, but I’m not one of them.

Repo: The Genetic Opera (guests: director Darren Lynn Bousman and stars Alexa Vega, Paris Hilton, Bill Moseley and Ogre)

“Repo” is one of those films that I’ve been dying to hear more about ever since director Darren Lynn Bousman briefly discussed it during the panel for “Saw IV” at last year’s Comic-Con. I’m not a particularly big fan of musicals, but I have a few favorites, and “Repo” looked like it might easily fit into that group. The fact that Anthony Steward Head was playing one of the lead roles also helped, but with his absence from the panel on Thursday night, all attention was turned to Paris Hilton, who not only crushed most preconceptions of herself in the media with a genuine and dare I say humble presence, but also showed that her existence in the film was more than just stunt casting. Of the three musical sequences shown to the audience, Paris’ bit with co-writer Terrance Zdunich was by far the best of the bunch. She isn’t a better singer than Head, or even Ogre from Skinny Puppy, but she definitely holds her own in a performance that may surprise more than a few people. She also earned the biggest laugh of the night when she responded to a reporter inquiring about her visit to San Diego with the following comment: “I love Comic-Con. It’s hot.”

Among other things discussed were the film’s runtime (which was cut from 145 minutes to a more economic 95 minutes) and Bousman’s eventual plans for the discarded segments, which he claims should show up on the DVD release. Though my impressions of “Repo” weren’t quite what I’d hoped, I’m still weary of passing judgment on a film that can’t properly be criticized without seeing it in its entirety. And with that, I’ll say this: “Repo: The Genetic Opera” is definitely different, but whether or not it’s any good remains unclear. I’m really hoping that seeing the film in its finished form will change my mind, because this is exactly the kind of film that Hollywood needs.