Brian Helgeland was one of the writers working on a Game of Thrones spinoff that George R.R. Martin signed off on but one that HBO did not pick up.
In a new interview, Helgeland discusses why the tentatively titled 10,000 Ships series didn’t happen despite his saying his script “came out great.”
“I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original. That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead,” Helgeland said in an interview with Inverse.
The Man on Fire and L.A Confidential writer says his script, “was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia. Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria. Her country gets ruined and her people are forced to live on the water, which...
In a new interview, Helgeland discusses why the tentatively titled 10,000 Ships series didn’t happen despite his saying his script “came out great.”
“I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original. That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead,” Helgeland said in an interview with Inverse.
The Man on Fire and L.A Confidential writer says his script, “was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia. Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria. Her country gets ruined and her people are forced to live on the water, which...
- 4/24/2024
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Brian Helgeland is a popular name in the industry for his works in films like Mystic River and L.A. Confidential. The latter even blessed him with an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. The renowned screenwriter and producer was near to having his Game of Thrones spin-off series. However, the Ten Thousand Ships series never got a green light from HBO.
A scene from Game Of Thrones
The idea of Brian Helgeland’s Ten Thousand Ships was planned to be based on the mythological story of Moses. The structure and tonality of the story would have been very different from the main Game of Thrones series. Although Helgeland has stated that his script is still there and HBO can pick it if they want, it is highly unlikely due to the present political milieu of the world.
What was Brian Helgeland’s planned Game of Thrones spin-off series about?...
A scene from Game Of Thrones
The idea of Brian Helgeland’s Ten Thousand Ships was planned to be based on the mythological story of Moses. The structure and tonality of the story would have been very different from the main Game of Thrones series. Although Helgeland has stated that his script is still there and HBO can pick it if they want, it is highly unlikely due to the present political milieu of the world.
What was Brian Helgeland’s planned Game of Thrones spin-off series about?...
- 4/24/2024
- by Subham Mandal
- FandomWire
Despite the disappointment of its finale, Game of Thrones undeniably had a successful run, leading many to consider the possibility of spin-offs due to its immense popularity. Brian Helgeland, an Oscar-winning screenplay writer also entertained one such idea and recently discussed why his spinoff script failed to be chosen and the challenges it encountered in a recent interview.
Game of Thrones Brian Helgeland’s Game of Thrones Spinoff Idea was Based on Queen Nymeria!
Brian Helgeland elaborated on his involvement with a certain Game of Thrones spin-off which focused on expanding the world of Westeros. Based on Queen Nymeria, who is a legendary figure in the history of Westeros, Queen of Rhoynar, who later founded the kingdom of Nymeria. Although not a lot is known about her, she is known for her strength and leadership.
Suggested“In no way should it be compared to Got”: Bold Claim Of Shōgun...
Game of Thrones Brian Helgeland’s Game of Thrones Spinoff Idea was Based on Queen Nymeria!
Brian Helgeland elaborated on his involvement with a certain Game of Thrones spin-off which focused on expanding the world of Westeros. Based on Queen Nymeria, who is a legendary figure in the history of Westeros, Queen of Rhoynar, who later founded the kingdom of Nymeria. Although not a lot is known about her, she is known for her strength and leadership.
Suggested“In no way should it be compared to Got”: Bold Claim Of Shōgun...
- 4/24/2024
- by Sampurna Banerjee
- FandomWire
All "Game of Thrones" fans know the words Valar Morghulis, a Valyrian saying for "All men must die." That phrase almost proved prophetic when it came to HBO's attempts to whittle down the many spin-off shows at various stages in development over the years. Although "House of the Dragon" survived the culling to earn a second season, several others -- the Jon Snow-centric series, an untitled prequel starring Naomi Watts (which actually filmed a full pilot episode before being scrapped), and even a show set in the slums of King's Landing, Flea Bottom -- were doomed to the chopping block.
One of the more fascinating concepts, however, involved a famous figure from Westerosi history known as Nymeria. Titled "Ten Thousand Ships", this, too, never coalesced and we've never known why. Luckily, the folks over at Inverse recently had the chance to sit down with writer Brian Helgeland, known for "A Knight's Tale,...
One of the more fascinating concepts, however, involved a famous figure from Westerosi history known as Nymeria. Titled "Ten Thousand Ships", this, too, never coalesced and we've never known why. Luckily, the folks over at Inverse recently had the chance to sit down with writer Brian Helgeland, known for "A Knight's Tale,...
- 4/23/2024
- by Jeremy Mathai
- Slash Film
Brian Helgeland’s Game of Thrones spinoff, Ten Thousand Ships, is getting docked as HBO shelves the project before it can set sail. Helgeland, the director behind films like L.A. Confidential and A Knight’s Tale and screenwriter for the Tony Scott-directed crime drama Man on Fire, spoke with Inverse about the defunct project, saying it would have focused on Queen Nymeria, the warrior-queen who led the Rhoynar refugees to Dorne.
Helgeland speaks with Inverse and makes Ten Thousand Ships sound biblical in scope and story. He likens Queen Nymeria’s tale to the story of Moses, with survivors from a ravaged country setting sail for a new home.
“It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original,” Helgeland explained to Inverse about his spinoff. “That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet,...
Helgeland speaks with Inverse and makes Ten Thousand Ships sound biblical in scope and story. He likens Queen Nymeria’s tale to the story of Moses, with survivors from a ravaged country setting sail for a new home.
“It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original,” Helgeland explained to Inverse about his spinoff. “That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet,...
- 4/23/2024
- by Steve Seigh
- JoBlo.com
Brian Helgeland’s illustrious Hollywood career includes winning an Oscar for writing “L.A Confidential,” directing Heath Ledger’s beloved 2001 comedy “A Knight’s Tale” and scripting films such as “Man on Fire” and “Mystic River.” It also could’ve included a “Game of Thrones” spinoff series had HBO moved forward on his pitch, which was titled “Ten Thousand Ships” and centered on Queen Nymeria.
“It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original,” Helgeland recently told Inverse about his spinoff. “That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead. My script was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia.”
“Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria,” he continued. “Her country gets ruined and her people...
“It came out great, but I think they felt the period of my show was too far removed from the pillars of the original,” Helgeland recently told Inverse about his spinoff. “That’s why it hasn’t been picked up yet, but nothing is ever dead. My script was based on Queen Nymeria and this little blurb about her that was in a Westeros encyclopedia.”
“Essentially, it was the story of Moses but swapping him out for Nymeria,” he continued. “Her country gets ruined and her people...
- 4/23/2024
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Roger Dicken, the Oscar-nominated British special effects artist, sculptor and model maker known for his work on Alien and When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth, has died. He was 84.
Dicken died Feb. 18 at his home in North Wales, Mick Cooper, a friend of more than five decades, told The Hollywood Reporter.
On his first film, Dicken was a member of the effects team for Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); later, he created and operated the dinosaur puppets seen in The Land That Time Forgot (1974).
Dicken sculpted several prehistoric creatures — plus a pair of full-sized pterodactyl feet — for the stop-motion adventure tale When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970), written and directed by Val Guest for Hammer Films. He and American animator Jim Danforth shared the Oscar nomination for visual effects.
For Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979), Dicken constructed and controlled the terrifying chest-bursting creature that kills Executive Officer Kane (John Hurt) in...
Dicken died Feb. 18 at his home in North Wales, Mick Cooper, a friend of more than five decades, told The Hollywood Reporter.
On his first film, Dicken was a member of the effects team for Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968); later, he created and operated the dinosaur puppets seen in The Land That Time Forgot (1974).
Dicken sculpted several prehistoric creatures — plus a pair of full-sized pterodactyl feet — for the stop-motion adventure tale When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth (1970), written and directed by Val Guest for Hammer Films. He and American animator Jim Danforth shared the Oscar nomination for visual effects.
For Ridley Scott’s Alien (1979), Dicken constructed and controlled the terrifying chest-bursting creature that kills Executive Officer Kane (John Hurt) in...
- 4/18/2024
- by Mike Barnes and Rhett Bartlett
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
The USC School of Cinematic Arts has announced that Miky Lee will deliver the 20024 Commencement address.
James Gray, director, writer, and Sca alumnus, will receive the Mary Pickford Alumni Award at the graduation ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium on Friday, May 10, 2024.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, Dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement. “Miky works across borders, cultures, and genres, and champions the kinds of projects our students aspire to creating. We are so pleased she agreed to be this year’s graduation speaker.”
Sca alumnus Jon M. Chu, who graduated in 2003 with a Bfa in film & television production, will speak at this year’s main, university-wide commencement ceremony at 8:30 a.m. at Alumni Park.
As Commencement Speaker,...
James Gray, director, writer, and Sca alumnus, will receive the Mary Pickford Alumni Award at the graduation ceremony at the Shrine Auditorium on Friday, May 10, 2024.
“Miky Lee is a true pioneer and ambassador of collaborative global filmmaking, and we are so happy to have her share her insight and expertise with our graduating students,” Elizabeth M. Daley, Dean of the USC School of Cinematic Arts, said in a statement. “Miky works across borders, cultures, and genres, and champions the kinds of projects our students aspire to creating. We are so pleased she agreed to be this year’s graduation speaker.”
Sca alumnus Jon M. Chu, who graduated in 2003 with a Bfa in film & television production, will speak at this year’s main, university-wide commencement ceremony at 8:30 a.m. at Alumni Park.
As Commencement Speaker,...
- 4/17/2024
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Dan Goozee, the acclaimed artist who created posters for such films as Clash of the Titans, Superman IV and the James Bond movies Moonraker, Octopussy and A View to a Kill, has died. He was 80.
Goozee died April 7 at West Hills Hospital & Medical Center of an age-related condition he had battled for two years, his son, Rob, told The Hollywood Reporter.
The unassuming Goozee spent years as a Walt Disney Imagineering theme park consultant, crafting conceptual artwork for Disneyland Paris and Tokyo DisneySea, for Splash Mountain and Big Thunder rides, for the Imagination Pavilion and Seas Pavilion at Epcot and for the Tree of Life attraction at Animal Kingdom.
He also handled effects work for Battlestar Galactica (1978) and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979).
Born in 1943 in Astoria, Oregon, Daniel Goozee worked on weekends at movie theaters that his father and uncle owned and operated in nearby Seaside, then graduated...
Goozee died April 7 at West Hills Hospital & Medical Center of an age-related condition he had battled for two years, his son, Rob, told The Hollywood Reporter.
The unassuming Goozee spent years as a Walt Disney Imagineering theme park consultant, crafting conceptual artwork for Disneyland Paris and Tokyo DisneySea, for Splash Mountain and Big Thunder rides, for the Imagination Pavilion and Seas Pavilion at Epcot and for the Tree of Life attraction at Animal Kingdom.
He also handled effects work for Battlestar Galactica (1978) and Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979).
Born in 1943 in Astoria, Oregon, Daniel Goozee worked on weekends at movie theaters that his father and uncle owned and operated in nearby Seaside, then graduated...
- 4/16/2024
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
James Cameron has hailed 'Dune: Part Two' as "pure cinema".The 'Titanic' filmmaker was very impressed by Denis Villeneuve's sequel - the highest-grossing film of 2024 so far - and he believes that the 'Sicario' director has been far more faithful to Frank Herbert's 1965 novel with his movies than David Lynch was in his "disappointing" 1984 picture.Speaking to the French publication Le Figaro, James said: "David Lynch's adaptation was disappointing. It was missing the power of Herbert's novel."Villeneuve's films are much more convincing. The characters are sketched out, they are very identifiable. It's pure cinema. I speak regularly to Denis, filmmaker to filmmaker. We record our conversations, like (Francois) Truffaut and (Alfred) Hitchcock."Cameron, 69, is the latest esteemed director to laud 'Dune: Part Two' after Steven Spielberg recently described the epic as one of the best sci-fi films he has ever seen.
- 4/7/2024
- by Joe Graber
- Bang Showbiz
Guillermo del Toro's "Pacific Rim" remains one of the very best live-action films inspired by anime that wasn't actually based on anime (though it eventually became one). The 2013 movie is essentially about giant robots fighting kaiju. Its influences are many, from kaiju movies like "Godzilla" and the work of Ray Harryhausen, but also clearly tokusatsu like del Toro's beloved "Ultraman" and even mecha anime like "Gunbuster," "Getter Robo," and "Mazinger Z."
"Pacific Rim," arguably more so than "The Matrix," feels like the biggest American movie inspired by anime, a movie made by someone who loves the medium, at a time when anime was starting to enter the mainstream. But if you asked Guillermo del Toro that question shortly before the release of the film, it seems he would have been a nervous wreck.
David S. Cohen's book "Pacific Rim: Man, Machines & Monsters — The Inner Workings of an Epic...
"Pacific Rim," arguably more so than "The Matrix," feels like the biggest American movie inspired by anime, a movie made by someone who loves the medium, at a time when anime was starting to enter the mainstream. But if you asked Guillermo del Toro that question shortly before the release of the film, it seems he would have been a nervous wreck.
David S. Cohen's book "Pacific Rim: Man, Machines & Monsters — The Inner Workings of an Epic...
- 4/7/2024
- by Rafael Motamayor
- Slash Film
Garraka, the creepy demon in “Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire” who gives New York a “Death Chill,” was animated by Sony Pictures Imageworks with an eye toward Ray Harryhausen’s legendary stop-motion creatures from “Jason and the Argonauts.” In fact, the team paid particular attention to the skeleton army and Medusa for performance reference. That’s because director Gil Kenan (“Monster House”), who voiced Garraka, wanted to combine puppetry, stop motion, animatronics, and CG to evoke the handcrafted charm of the original “Ghostbusters” from 1984.
In this sequel to “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” the once powerful Garraka, who’s imprisoned in a brass orb by ancient Fire Masters, is inadvertently set free by the Ghostbusters and unleashed on New York. His “Death Chill” breath can freeze his victims and cause them to shatter like tiny crystals. What’s more, Garraka can deep freeze the entire planet, and his plan is to take over by resurrecting an army of the undead.
In this sequel to “Ghostbusters: Afterlife,” the once powerful Garraka, who’s imprisoned in a brass orb by ancient Fire Masters, is inadvertently set free by the Ghostbusters and unleashed on New York. His “Death Chill” breath can freeze his victims and cause them to shatter like tiny crystals. What’s more, Garraka can deep freeze the entire planet, and his plan is to take over by resurrecting an army of the undead.
- 4/6/2024
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Steven Spielberg can’t stop thinking about Timothée Chalamet atop a sandworm in Denis Villeneuve’s “Dune: Part Two.”
The director praised Villeneuve during an installment of the DGA’s “Director’s Cut” podcast, where Spielberg welcomed Villeneuve to the club of filmmakers who are the “builders of worlds” onscreen.
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you. Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are,” Spielberg said. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen, I include in that list. [Frederico] Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it’s not that long of a list, and I deeply, fervently believe that...
The director praised Villeneuve during an installment of the DGA’s “Director’s Cut” podcast, where Spielberg welcomed Villeneuve to the club of filmmakers who are the “builders of worlds” onscreen.
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you. Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are,” Spielberg said. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen, I include in that list. [Frederico] Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it’s not that long of a list, and I deeply, fervently believe that...
- 3/28/2024
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
If the $579 million at the box office and 93% Rotten Tomatoes score weren’t enough, Quebecois director Denis Villeneuve got one of the greatest boosts one can receive in his field. None other than Steven Spielberg, who knows a thing or two about science fiction, interviewed the “Dune: Part Two” director for the DGA’s “Director’s Cut” podcast, and told him “you have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I’ve ever seen.”
The creator of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” continued by extolling Villeneuve’s “world-building” prowess, by placing him on a Mount Olympus with several other greats. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen, I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it...
The creator of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial” continued by extolling Villeneuve’s “world-building” prowess, by placing him on a Mount Olympus with several other greats. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen, I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it...
- 3/28/2024
- by Jordan Hoffman
- Gold Derby
Steven Spielberg has heaped praise on the "brilliant" 'Dune: Part Two'.The legendary director – who has helmed classics including 'E.T. The Extra Terrestrial' – has described Denis Villeneuve's epic as one of the best sci-fi movies that he has ever seen.During an appearance on DGA's 'Director's Cut' podcast alongside Villeneuve, Spielberg said: "It's an honour for me to sit here and talk to you."This is truly a visual epic, and it’s also filled with deeply, deeply drawn characters."Yet the dialogue is very sparse when you look at it proportionately to the running time of the film. It’s such cinema. The shots are so painterly, yet there’s not an angle or single setup that’s pretentious … you have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I have ever seen."Spielberg reserved acclaim for the special effects in the desert-set flick,...
- 3/28/2024
- by Alex Getting
- Bang Showbiz
"Dune: Part Two" has officially become a commercial success, passing huge box office milestones and creeping towards the $600 million mark worldwide. Director Denis Villeneuve has thus proven wrong those who said Frank Herbert's celebrated "Dune" novel was "unfilmable," especially when you consider the critical response in conjunction with those box office numbers. "Dune: Part Two" might be a bleak blockbuster, but it's so far managed a 93% rating on Rotten Tomatoes and a similarly impressive 95% audience score.
It's safe to say, then, that Villeneuve's epic sci-fi sequel is not only a critical and commercial success but perhaps even a box office savior. Back in February, prior to the film's March debut, /Film's Ryan Scott noted that movie ticket sales were down 15% compared to the same point in 2023, and there's not a movie fan out there who isn't aware of the industry's post-pandemic struggles. As such, "Dune: Part Two" represents a real cinematic triumph,...
It's safe to say, then, that Villeneuve's epic sci-fi sequel is not only a critical and commercial success but perhaps even a box office savior. Back in February, prior to the film's March debut, /Film's Ryan Scott noted that movie ticket sales were down 15% compared to the same point in 2023, and there's not a movie fan out there who isn't aware of the industry's post-pandemic struggles. As such, "Dune: Part Two" represents a real cinematic triumph,...
- 3/28/2024
- by Joe Roberts
- Slash Film
“You have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I’ve ever seen,” Steven Spielberg says to Denis Villeneuve. It’s fair to say he quite liked Dune: Part Two.
Steven Spielberg really liked Dune: Part Two. So much so that, in a podcast for the Directors Guild of America – simply called Director’s Cut – Spielberg said to its maker, Denis Villeneuve, “It’s an honour for me to sit here and talk to you.”
Spielberg – no slouch when it comes to making sci-fi films himself – then said, “You have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I have ever seen.”
Comparing Villeneuve favourably to other filmmakers who are “builders of worlds,” including Ray Harryhausen, Stanley Kubrick and Ridley Scott, to name a few, Spielberg then went on to talk about Dune: Part Two’s sandworm taming sequence.
“This is a desert-loving story, but for such...
Steven Spielberg really liked Dune: Part Two. So much so that, in a podcast for the Directors Guild of America – simply called Director’s Cut – Spielberg said to its maker, Denis Villeneuve, “It’s an honour for me to sit here and talk to you.”
Spielberg – no slouch when it comes to making sci-fi films himself – then said, “You have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I have ever seen.”
Comparing Villeneuve favourably to other filmmakers who are “builders of worlds,” including Ray Harryhausen, Stanley Kubrick and Ridley Scott, to name a few, Spielberg then went on to talk about Dune: Part Two’s sandworm taming sequence.
“This is a desert-loving story, but for such...
- 3/28/2024
- by Ryan Lambie
- Film Stories
Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two debuted in theaters earlier this month, receiving praise from critics and movie-goers alike. Now, joining the ranks of its fans, is none other than Steven Spielberg, who called the movie “one of the most brilliant science-fiction films [he’s] ever seen.”
The comments came in a conversation between Spielberg and Villeneuve at the DGA theater in Los Angeles, which has since been published as an episode of The Directors Guild of America’s podcast, The Director’s Cut. Speaking about the sequel — which follows-up 2021’s Dune — Spileberg commended Villeneuve’s eye for world-building.
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you,” Spielberg began. “There are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are. Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas.” Spielberg then went on to list a number of directors,...
The comments came in a conversation between Spielberg and Villeneuve at the DGA theater in Los Angeles, which has since been published as an episode of The Directors Guild of America’s podcast, The Director’s Cut. Speaking about the sequel — which follows-up 2021’s Dune — Spileberg commended Villeneuve’s eye for world-building.
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you,” Spielberg began. “There are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are. Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas.” Spielberg then went on to list a number of directors,...
- 3/27/2024
- by Jo Vito
- Consequence - Film News
Being appreciated by your hero or someone who inspired you is something everyone looks up to but unfortunately, not everyone is lucky enough to have that honor. This is true even for most A-listers in the industry.
Denis Villeneuve | Source: Wikimedia Commons
However, Denis Villeneuve recently became a member of an elite club as he was praised by one of the greatest filmmakers the world has ever seen and his own personal hero, Steven Spielberg.
Steven Spielberg praises Denis Villeneuve after the massive success of Dune 2
Denis Villeneuve is one of the most established filmmakers in the industry at the moment. The Canadian filmmaker has been making a lot of headlines recently after he released the movie Dune: Part Two which was a massive critical and commercial success at the box office.
Suggested“The biggest robberies I’ve seen in a long time”: Fans Still Have Not Forgiven...
Denis Villeneuve | Source: Wikimedia Commons
However, Denis Villeneuve recently became a member of an elite club as he was praised by one of the greatest filmmakers the world has ever seen and his own personal hero, Steven Spielberg.
Steven Spielberg praises Denis Villeneuve after the massive success of Dune 2
Denis Villeneuve is one of the most established filmmakers in the industry at the moment. The Canadian filmmaker has been making a lot of headlines recently after he released the movie Dune: Part Two which was a massive critical and commercial success at the box office.
Suggested“The biggest robberies I’ve seen in a long time”: Fans Still Have Not Forgiven...
- 3/27/2024
- by Shikhar Tiwari
- FandomWire
Denis Villeneuve’s Dune: Part Two is getting Steven Spielberg’s seal of approval. The Oscar-winning director is praising not only the film, but the Canadian filmmakers vision and creativity.
Speaking to Villeneuve for DGA’s The Director’s Cut podcast, Spielberg started by putting him in a list of directors he calls “builders of worlds.”
“Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are,” Spielberg said. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it’s not that long of a list, and I deeply, fervently believe that you are one of its newest members.
Speaking to Villeneuve for DGA’s The Director’s Cut podcast, Spielberg started by putting him in a list of directors he calls “builders of worlds.”
“Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are,” Spielberg said. “Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson, James Cameron, Christopher Nolan, Ridley Scott, Guillermo del Toro. The list goes on but it’s not that long of a list, and I deeply, fervently believe that you are one of its newest members.
- 3/27/2024
- by Armando Tinoco
- Deadline Film + TV
Steven Spielberg has weighed in on Dune: Part Two, and the iconic filmmaker had some strong praise for director Denis Villeneuve’s sequel — and for one scene in particular.
The duo appeared together on DGA’s Director’s Cut podcast, where the filmmaker behind sci-fi classics Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. The Extra Terrestrial heaped praise on the Dune and Arrival director.
“This is truly a visual epic, and it’s also filled with deeply, deeply drawn characters,” Spielberg said. “Yet the dialogue is very sparse when you look at it proportionately to the running time of the film. It’s such cinema. The shots are so painterly, yet there’s not an angle or single setup that’s pretentious … you have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I have ever seen.”
Spielberg also got detailed in his praise for the blockbuster film. “There...
The duo appeared together on DGA’s Director’s Cut podcast, where the filmmaker behind sci-fi classics Close Encounters of the Third Kind and E.T. The Extra Terrestrial heaped praise on the Dune and Arrival director.
“This is truly a visual epic, and it’s also filled with deeply, deeply drawn characters,” Spielberg said. “Yet the dialogue is very sparse when you look at it proportionately to the running time of the film. It’s such cinema. The shots are so painterly, yet there’s not an angle or single setup that’s pretentious … you have made one of the most brilliant science fiction films I have ever seen.”
Spielberg also got detailed in his praise for the blockbuster film. “There...
- 3/27/2024
- by James Hibberd
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
Steven Spielberg had nothing but praise for “Dune: Part Two” while interviewing Denis Villeneuve on the latest episode of the DGA’s “Director’s Cut” podcast. The Oscar winner told Villeneuve that “you have made one of the most brilliant science-fiction films I’ve ever seen,” which is high praise coming from the mastermind behind “E.T: Extra Terrestrial” and “Close Encounters of the Third Kind.” And that wasn’t the only praise Spielberg bestowed upon the “Dune” director.
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you,” Spielberg said. “Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are. Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson,...
“It’s an honor for me to sit here and talk to you,” Spielberg said. “Let me start by saying there are filmmakers who are the builders of worlds. It’s not a long list and we know who a lot of them are. Starting with [Georges] Méliès and Disney and Kubrick, George Lucas. Ray Harryhausen I include in that list. Fellini built his own worlds. Tim Burton. Obviously Wes Anderson, Peter Jackson,...
- 3/27/2024
- by Zack Sharf
- Variety Film + TV
Mythology offers some of the most enduring and rich stories when it comes to epic storytelling. And at the top of the pantheon of mythical figures sits Zeus, the king of the gods in Greek mythology. Throughout Hollywood history, many stars have tried their hands at playing this powerful deity, with varying degrees of success.
Having said that, it makes sense that we should honor the actors who gorgeously portrayed Zeus on screen. Since he is the undisputed leader of Mount Olympus, it is about time he had his own list. Those who have portrayed Zeus on screen have done so with a certain stoicism that is more in line with ancient Greek depictions.
Russell Crowe as Zeus in a still from Thor: Love and Thunder
Here are six actors who have truly nailed it as Zeus on the big screen.
1. Luke Evans in Immortals (2011)
Greek mythology is adapted in...
Having said that, it makes sense that we should honor the actors who gorgeously portrayed Zeus on screen. Since he is the undisputed leader of Mount Olympus, it is about time he had his own list. Those who have portrayed Zeus on screen have done so with a certain stoicism that is more in line with ancient Greek depictions.
Russell Crowe as Zeus in a still from Thor: Love and Thunder
Here are six actors who have truly nailed it as Zeus on the big screen.
1. Luke Evans in Immortals (2011)
Greek mythology is adapted in...
- 3/20/2024
- by Siddhika Prajapati
- FandomWire
The classic Kaiju movie formula may have been invented in America with flicks like King Kong and The Beast From 20,000 Fathoms, but at this point everyone’s aware that Japan is the one that perfected the genre. From Godzilla to Gamera, Japanese filmmakers have made these giant creature features part of their national identity, so it stands to reason that the west can’t quite keep up when it comes to traditional Kaiju movies.
Sure, we’re lucky enough to be living through a Kaiju renaissance with Legendary’s Monsterverse and the occasional dark horse like Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim, but it’s really difficult for western cinema to capture the cheesy chaos of giant monsters wreaking havoc in densely populated urban environments. Thankfully, there are exceptions to this rule, and I’d argue that there’s one recent blockbuster that actually managed to reach the heights of...
Sure, we’re lucky enough to be living through a Kaiju renaissance with Legendary’s Monsterverse and the occasional dark horse like Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim, but it’s really difficult for western cinema to capture the cheesy chaos of giant monsters wreaking havoc in densely populated urban environments. Thankfully, there are exceptions to this rule, and I’d argue that there’s one recent blockbuster that actually managed to reach the heights of...
- 2/8/2024
- by Luiz H. C.
- bloody-disgusting.com
Dr. Viktor Frankenstein is the fictional keystone for generations of horror artists. Monster makers bring dreams and nightmares to life, realizing a filmmaker's vision for the impossible things we need to see and shudder at. While movie monsters existed long before Bela Lugosi put on Dracula's cape in 1931, the birth of the classic Universal Monsters franchise is hard to ignore as a watershed moment for things that go bump in the night. Since then, artists like Ray Harryhausen, Phil Tippett, Stan Winston, and countless more have grown with the technology used to evolve an idea from the drawing board to the cinema screen.
However, making these critters isn't always a clear-cut process. Growing an idea into something we can shudder at can take a few attempts to get terrifying right. Sometimes, even the things that go bump in the night had their awkward teenage years. Below, find out about some...
However, making these critters isn't always a clear-cut process. Growing an idea into something we can shudder at can take a few attempts to get terrifying right. Sometimes, even the things that go bump in the night had their awkward teenage years. Below, find out about some...
- 1/29/2024
- by Margaret David
- Slash Film
Here at Empire, we have a tradition of sharing one article from our year at Christmas — consider it a digital stocking-filler. As 2023 rolls out, let us bring you some bonus cheer with a feature that’s close to our hearts: our visit to the Portland headquarters of stop-motion animation legends Laika. We got up close and personal with the puppets, sat down for a lengthy chat with studio boss Travis Knight, and even got an extended set visit for Laika’s next big-screen epic, Wildwood. That won’t be out until 2025 (stop-motion takes time), so in the meantime, please enjoy the next best thing…
The dogfight was going to look awesome. The boy was sure of it. Buzzing from the movies he had sat through, enthralled, on Saturday-morning TV or at cinema matinées in his farm town outside of Portland, Oregon — stop-motion classics such as the Ray Harryhausen-enhanced The...
The dogfight was going to look awesome. The boy was sure of it. Buzzing from the movies he had sat through, enthralled, on Saturday-morning TV or at cinema matinées in his farm town outside of Portland, Oregon — stop-motion classics such as the Ray Harryhausen-enhanced The...
- 12/21/2023
- by Nick De Semlyen
- Empire - Movies
Zack Snyder is a pop-fantasy filmmaker who now has a fanboy cult around him. In the two decades since Snyder made his feature directorial debut with the grainy unsettling 2004 reboot of “Dawn of the Dead,” his flamboyant fusion of visual wizardry, technological fixation, and kick-ass spirit has made him, at least in some quarters (read: the Comic-Con and video-game demo), a creative hero for the Age of Escapism. Fans who grew up feasting on such Snyder extravaganzas as “300,” “Watchmen,” and “Sucker Punch” then saw his much-ballyhooed entrée into the DC comic-book sphere marked by ambitious but maligned misfires. Yet in 2021, the release of “Zack Snyder’s Justice League” — his uncut and quite extraordinary version of the movie that Warner Bros. had tapped Joss Whedon to mangle into an “audience-friendly” product — was a vindication that also marked a new peak of reverence for the Snyder cult.
Despite cries for other “Snyder cuts,...
Despite cries for other “Snyder cuts,...
- 12/15/2023
- by Owen Gleiberman
- Variety Film + TV
From the earliest days in his career, James Wan has constantly managed to reinvent the horror genre. First, he changed the game alongside Leigh Whannell with the original :a[Saw]{href='https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/saw-review/' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}. Then they did it all over again with :a[Insidious]{href='https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/insidious-review/' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}. From the expansive Conjuring universe, to the wild excesses of :a[Malignant]{href='https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/malignant/' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'}, Wan’s impact on the horror genre has continued to shape the genre for two decades now. It even comes through when he’s not operating in The Further, or palling it up with Gabriel. :a[Aquaman]{href='https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/aquaman-review/' target='_blank' rel='noreferrer noopener'} featured a full-on creature-feature...
- 10/21/2023
- by Ben Travis
- Empire - Movies
The future looks more purgatorial than paradisiacal in “Divinity,” Eddie Alcazar’s second feature as writer-director. Like the first, 2018’s “Perfect,” this is a cryptic sci-fi body horror allegory where undeniably arresting aesthetics are nonetheless more a symptom of shallow lookism-based values than the intended critique. Stephen Dorff plays a wealthy recluse peddling the titular mystery serum, which promises eternal youth — though, naturally, there may be drawbacks. This invention attracts attention not just from consumers, but from apparent space aliens who arrive to halt its disturbance of the natural order.
Those looking for midnight-movie eccentricity will find much to enjoy in the black-and-white film’s mix of the trippy, queasy and erotic. But as before, the effortfully quirky elements don’t really add up to a cogent whole, resulting in something a mite too reflective of its creator’s background in commercials and game design — a rarefied, stimulating surface without depth.
Those looking for midnight-movie eccentricity will find much to enjoy in the black-and-white film’s mix of the trippy, queasy and erotic. But as before, the effortfully quirky elements don’t really add up to a cogent whole, resulting in something a mite too reflective of its creator’s background in commercials and game design — a rarefied, stimulating surface without depth.
- 10/9/2023
- by Dennis Harvey
- Variety Film + TV
Plot: When the children of the world’s greatest secret agents unwittingly help a powerful Game Developer unleash a computer virus that gives him control of all technology, they must become spies themselves to save their parents and the world.
Review: Robert Rodriguez has always had two distinct film output: mature genre offerings aimed at adult audiences and family-friendly action flicks aimed at the youngest viewers. While Rodriguez’s Troublemaker Studios has used in-house special effects work to deliver pulpy flicks like Machete and the recent Hypnotic, the full-blown CGI worlds of the Spy Kids films have given the indie filmmaker a playground to make every childhood fantasy come to life. After four films centered on the Cortez family of spies, Rodriguez and his son Racer Max have written a franchise reboot centered on two new pint-sized agents as they use their knowledge of video games to save their parents and the world.
Review: Robert Rodriguez has always had two distinct film output: mature genre offerings aimed at adult audiences and family-friendly action flicks aimed at the youngest viewers. While Rodriguez’s Troublemaker Studios has used in-house special effects work to deliver pulpy flicks like Machete and the recent Hypnotic, the full-blown CGI worlds of the Spy Kids films have given the indie filmmaker a playground to make every childhood fantasy come to life. After four films centered on the Cortez family of spies, Rodriguez and his son Racer Max have written a franchise reboot centered on two new pint-sized agents as they use their knowledge of video games to save their parents and the world.
- 9/22/2023
- by Alex Maidy
- JoBlo.com
Pete Kozachik, the Oscar-nominated visual effects artist who contributed his stop-motion expertise to such films as The Nightmare Before Christmas, James and the Giant Peach, Corpse Bride and Coraline, has died. He was 72.
Kozachik died peacefully Tuesday in hospice care in his Northern California home of complications from primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of Alzheimer’s, his wife, Katy Moore-Kozachik, told The Hollywood Reporter.
Kozachik also operated a stop-motion camera on Ghostbusters II (1989) and served as director of miniature photography on Starship Troopers (1997) and as a visual effects cameraman on Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002).
At Industrial Light & Magic, he worked on films including Howard the Duck (1986), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Innerspace (1987) and Willow (1988) before rejoining frequent collaborator Phil Tippett on the RoboCop sequels released in 1990 and ’93.
For director Henry Selick, Kozachik was director of photography on The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), James and the Giant Peach...
Kozachik died peacefully Tuesday in hospice care in his Northern California home of complications from primary progressive aphasia, a rare form of Alzheimer’s, his wife, Katy Moore-Kozachik, told The Hollywood Reporter.
Kozachik also operated a stop-motion camera on Ghostbusters II (1989) and served as director of miniature photography on Starship Troopers (1997) and as a visual effects cameraman on Star Wars: Episode II — Attack of the Clones (2002).
At Industrial Light & Magic, he worked on films including Howard the Duck (1986), Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), Innerspace (1987) and Willow (1988) before rejoining frequent collaborator Phil Tippett on the RoboCop sequels released in 1990 and ’93.
For director Henry Selick, Kozachik was director of photography on The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993), James and the Giant Peach...
- 9/18/2023
- by Mike Barnes
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
In an era when many superhero films have adapted an unflattering, desaturated visual style in the name of realism, "Aquaman" is a balm for the eyes. The James Wan-directed DC Comics flick is full of eye-popping colors and imagery reminiscent of the splash pages you find in actual comic books. There are also nods aplenty to classic sci-fi and adventure stories, from the globe-trotting tomb-raiding of the Indiana Jones films to the fantastical prehistoric setting of Arthur Conan Doyle's "The Lost World." So it should come as no surprise that Wan has taken a similar approach to crafting a unique look for his sequel, "Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom."
Speaking at a reveal event for the "Lost Kingdom" trailer attended by /Film's own Jenna Busch-Henderson, Wan talked about the importance of world-building to the "Aquaman" films. "We enjoy all the different worlds that really no superhero movies go into,...
Speaking at a reveal event for the "Lost Kingdom" trailer attended by /Film's own Jenna Busch-Henderson, Wan talked about the importance of world-building to the "Aquaman" films. "We enjoy all the different worlds that really no superhero movies go into,...
- 9/14/2023
- by Sandy Schaefer
- Slash Film
Clockwise from left: Tim Burton (Wikipedia), Batman Returns (Warner Bros.), The Nightmare Before Christmas (Buena Vista Pictures), Edward Scissorhands (20th Century Fox), Frankenweenie (Walt Disney Studios)Image: The A.V. Club (Fair Use)
Director-animator-artist Tim Burton is known for creating memorable on-screen characters that appeal to outsiders, loners, misfits, goths, and...
Director-animator-artist Tim Burton is known for creating memorable on-screen characters that appeal to outsiders, loners, misfits, goths, and...
- 8/26/2023
- by Robert DeSalvo
- avclub.com
Prosthetics designer Barrie Gower is nominated not once but twice this Emmy season for his work on The Last of Us and House of the Dragon. It’s a big accomplishment for the previous Emmy winner — three times for Game of Thrones and once for Stranger Things — but it’s all part of a lifelong passion. “I’m one of those annoying people who knew very early on what I wanted to do for a career, in my early teens, really,” he explains.
Gower grew up in the north of England, where his father managed a cinema. “He’d take me to press screenings and showings of films … I got to meet [animator] Ray Harryhausen when I was 4 or 5 years old. I was a big fan of the Sinbad movies, the visible stop-motion characters.”
As he became a teenager, Gower was heavily involved in art — mostly drawings and sculpture. “I came across a magazine called Fangoria,...
Gower grew up in the north of England, where his father managed a cinema. “He’d take me to press screenings and showings of films … I got to meet [animator] Ray Harryhausen when I was 4 or 5 years old. I was a big fan of the Sinbad movies, the visible stop-motion characters.”
As he became a teenager, Gower was heavily involved in art — mostly drawings and sculpture. “I came across a magazine called Fangoria,...
- 8/5/2023
- by Hilton Dresden
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
It's heartbreaking to think of all the movies that never made it to the screen. We keep hearing stories of projects collecting dust, incomplete due to unexpected tragedy, or a lack of funds, or a greedy studio executive cutting corners for tax purposes. But every now and then, a long-dead film is exhumed from the grave and is given new life to be enjoyed by a new generation of fans. Case in point: The Primevals, a fantasy adventure more than 50 years in the making that finally got to celebrate its world premiere at this year's Fantasia Film Festival.
The Primevals was first conceived in 1967 by stop motion animator David Allen, whose credits include the adult parody Flesh Gordon, Larry Cohen's Q – the Winged Serpent, and Alex Winter's Freaked. For more than a decade, an early draft of the script was shopped around to various studios, until 1978 when...
The Primevals was first conceived in 1967 by stop motion animator David Allen, whose credits include the adult parody Flesh Gordon, Larry Cohen's Q – the Winged Serpent, and Alex Winter's Freaked. For more than a decade, an early draft of the script was shopped around to various studios, until 1978 when...
- 7/30/2023
- by Chris Aitkens
Plot: After the frozen body of Yeti is discovered, confirming their existence, a group from the University studying it heads to the Nepal wilderness and uncovers the findings of a lifetime.
Review: My heart will always have a special place for the ingenuity and cleverness of Charles Band’s Full Moon Features. Famous for being one of the first independent companies to enter the home video market, focusing on creating weird cult B-movies with shoestring budgets and charm. Full Moon has a particular vibe that we all love, focusing on the horror and sci-fi genre through the lens of a dignified yet schlocky level of adventure. Band’s movies have a light sense of optimism and humor, even in his darkest tales, but The Primevals is a perfect example of the whimsical exploration flicks he was producing in the early to mid-’90s.
Created by the late great David Allen,...
Review: My heart will always have a special place for the ingenuity and cleverness of Charles Band’s Full Moon Features. Famous for being one of the first independent companies to enter the home video market, focusing on creating weird cult B-movies with shoestring budgets and charm. Full Moon has a particular vibe that we all love, focusing on the horror and sci-fi genre through the lens of a dignified yet schlocky level of adventure. Band’s movies have a light sense of optimism and humor, even in his darkest tales, but The Primevals is a perfect example of the whimsical exploration flicks he was producing in the early to mid-’90s.
Created by the late great David Allen,...
- 7/25/2023
- by Lance Vlcek
- JoBlo.com
Full Moon Features will world premiere The Primevals at Fantasia Film Festival – in a screening that represents the culmination of a longtime dream harboured by visual effects wizard David Allen, whose career stretched from 1970’s Equinox through Oscar-nominated work on Young Sherlock Holmes and beyond.
Allen first conceived The Primevals as a vehicle for his stop-motion talents in the 1970s. He finally began directing the movie, which he scripted with fellow effects artist Randy Cook (The Gate), in the 1990s under producer Charles Band, CEO and Founder of Full Moon Features, for whom he’d brought all manner of beasties to life in Laserblast, Puppet Master and many others. Sadly, the film’s completion was scuttled by Allen’s death from cancer in 1999 at just 54 years old.
Now, at last, Band and longtime Allen associate Chris Endicott have seen the film to completion, and it emerges as a glorious tribute...
Allen first conceived The Primevals as a vehicle for his stop-motion talents in the 1970s. He finally began directing the movie, which he scripted with fellow effects artist Randy Cook (The Gate), in the 1990s under producer Charles Band, CEO and Founder of Full Moon Features, for whom he’d brought all manner of beasties to life in Laserblast, Puppet Master and many others. Sadly, the film’s completion was scuttled by Allen’s death from cancer in 1999 at just 54 years old.
Now, at last, Band and longtime Allen associate Chris Endicott have seen the film to completion, and it emerges as a glorious tribute...
- 7/13/2023
- by Phil Wheat
- Nerdly
If you’ve sought out any of Mark Polonia‘s previous microbudget (at best) horror releases, you know what quality ceiling to expect from Cocaine Shark. The movie costs as much as the animation to manipulate Cocaine Bear’s left paw for thirty seconds, maybe even less. Polonia’s signature is churning out poster-perfect titles like Amityville in Space or Sharkula with table-scrap resources, which only sometimes deliver as advertised. Cocaine Shark artwork features a ferocious Great White surrounded by bricks of floating white powder but narratively follows a story that aligns more with Joe Dante’s blink-and-miss laboratory creation in Piranha. It’s “Cocaine Shark” in name and marketing alone, undeniably zany with a less-financially-endowed Troma aroma, but ultimately uninteresting as dull dialogue dominates the seventy-minute duration.
Bando Glutz‘s screenplay blends Deep Blue Sea and Synchronic as an East Coast drug kingpin unleashes a “highly addictive stimulant,” HT...
Bando Glutz‘s screenplay blends Deep Blue Sea and Synchronic as an East Coast drug kingpin unleashes a “highly addictive stimulant,” HT...
- 7/7/2023
- by Matt Donato
- bloody-disgusting.com
Speaking for nearly an hour at his master class, one of the key highlights of the Annecy Animation Festival this week, maestro filmmaker Guillermo del Toro kept his packed-to-the rafters audience enthralled – and in stitches – as he extolled the virtues of stop-motion animation and of embracing flaws.
Having just won a best animated feature film Oscar for his long-gestating stop-motion version of the classic tale “Pinocchio” gave his talk even more heft.
“Stop-motion is, in my opinion, the most beautiful of all the forms of animation because it’s the most intimate, and is quite literally a connection between the animator and a physical model,” he said, adding: “It’s the closest thing to playing with your toys.”
“We are the weird motherfuckers in this room,” he told the stop-motion animation filmmakers in the audience. “Your family thinks you’re useless and that’s good,” he added, prompting a burst of laughter.
Having just won a best animated feature film Oscar for his long-gestating stop-motion version of the classic tale “Pinocchio” gave his talk even more heft.
“Stop-motion is, in my opinion, the most beautiful of all the forms of animation because it’s the most intimate, and is quite literally a connection between the animator and a physical model,” he said, adding: “It’s the closest thing to playing with your toys.”
“We are the weird motherfuckers in this room,” he told the stop-motion animation filmmakers in the audience. “Your family thinks you’re useless and that’s good,” he added, prompting a burst of laughter.
- 6/15/2023
- by Anna Marie de la Fuente
- Variety Film + TV
Canada’s Fantasia International Film Festival has announced the opening film of its 27th edition: Pascal Plante’s “Red Rooms,” about a high-profile case of a serial killer and the woman (Juliette Gariépy) obsessed with him.
“It’s a film of enormous emotional force, unbelievably controlled and smart, with a staggering performance from Gariépy. Pascal is one of the greatest talents of his generation in Quebec cinema and among the strongest filmmakers in the country right now,” says festival’s artistic director Mitch Davis.
“In a sense, it’s an unconventionally grim note to open a festival on. It’s a profoundly disturbing film. But I know the audience is going to be left completely breathless by it.”
“As a Montrealer, I have been a regular festival goer of Fantasia for years now, but it’s the first time one of my features will be screened in their lineup. I...
“It’s a film of enormous emotional force, unbelievably controlled and smart, with a staggering performance from Gariépy. Pascal is one of the greatest talents of his generation in Quebec cinema and among the strongest filmmakers in the country right now,” says festival’s artistic director Mitch Davis.
“In a sense, it’s an unconventionally grim note to open a festival on. It’s a profoundly disturbing film. But I know the audience is going to be left completely breathless by it.”
“As a Montrealer, I have been a regular festival goer of Fantasia for years now, but it’s the first time one of my features will be screened in their lineup. I...
- 6/8/2023
- by Marta Balaga
- Variety Film + TV
The idea of the “movie star” is usually reserved for the uber-famous; Margot Robbie, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson. The occasional director like Jordan Peele or Christopher Nolan, filmmakers so well established they have their own font. But in the genre world, it’s different. As much as you might see a crowd turn out in force for the game-changing work of a John Carpenter, or a Michelle Yeoh, you’re just as likely to see lines around the block for Dick Smith, Rick Baker, Rob Bottin, Greg Nicotero, Phil Tippett or Tom Savini – Hollywood’s most lauded special effects and make-up artists. The physical creators of some of the most iconic characters in cinema history: our movie monsters.
Which explains Forbidden Worlds Film Festival’s entire strand devoted to ‘Creature Creators’; a series of films shining a spotlight on these visual effects ‘stars’. Charting a course from Willis O’Brien’s...
Which explains Forbidden Worlds Film Festival’s entire strand devoted to ‘Creature Creators’; a series of films shining a spotlight on these visual effects ‘stars’. Charting a course from Willis O’Brien’s...
- 5/21/2023
- by Ben Robins
- HeyUGuys.co.uk
Wooden puppet stop-motion samurai awesomeness! A must watch! Hidari is a stop-motion animated film currently in development in Japan under the direction of Masashi Kawamura. The film recently finished a massive funding round on Kickstarter, and they've released a 5-minute pilot short to show everyone how this will look. It Rules!! I've always been a fan of stop-motion, but I've never seen anything like this. The film tells the story of "Jingoro Hidari," a legendary Edo-era craftsman. All characters are made by wood & animated frame-by-frame, just like how Jingoro's wooden sculptures came to life in his stories. This short mixes dynamic action as seen in Japanimation, and the rich analog expressions of stop-motion. "As a kid who was raised watching films by Ray Harryhausen, Kihachiro Kawamoto, and Phil Tippett, I always dreamt about one day creating a long length stop-motion animation film." I'm 100% in. Can't wait to see it finished.
- 4/27/2023
- by Alex Billington
- firstshowing.net
This post contains light spoilers for Evil Dead Rise.
Since the late 1980s, one of the key characteristics of a budding cinephile was the ability to explain the relationship between 1981’s The Evil Dead and 1987’s Evil Dead II. Where the first movie introduced the world to director Sam Raimi‘s dynamic style, as well as star Bruce Campbell‘s unique charisma, its independent production meant that it only rose to the level of a cult hit. To expand the audience, Evil Dead II opens not by picking up where the first left off, with Campbell’s beleaguered Ash Williams potentially possessed, but by remaking the first movie, at least in its opening act.
Whatever explanation fans gave to smooth over the transition between the first two movies, it set a precedent for everything that followed. Evil Dead would be about gore and Three Stooges gags, not strict continuity. 1992’s...
Since the late 1980s, one of the key characteristics of a budding cinephile was the ability to explain the relationship between 1981’s The Evil Dead and 1987’s Evil Dead II. Where the first movie introduced the world to director Sam Raimi‘s dynamic style, as well as star Bruce Campbell‘s unique charisma, its independent production meant that it only rose to the level of a cult hit. To expand the audience, Evil Dead II opens not by picking up where the first left off, with Campbell’s beleaguered Ash Williams potentially possessed, but by remaking the first movie, at least in its opening act.
Whatever explanation fans gave to smooth over the transition between the first two movies, it set a precedent for everything that followed. Evil Dead would be about gore and Three Stooges gags, not strict continuity. 1992’s...
- 4/21/2023
- by Joe George
- Den of Geek
You know when you’re watching a Sam Raimi and beyond, Raimi’s impact on modern cinema can’t be understated.
Now, as Evil Dead Rise hits the big screen – with Raimi as producer, bringing director Lee Cronin into the undead fold – Empire presents a ranking of Raimi’s ten best films. Make way for killer carnage, heartfelt heroes, doomed protagonists, and Deadites galore.
10) Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness
Bigger, bolder, and barmier than the first instalment officially exists in the MCU now. Groovy.
Read the Empire review
9) The Evil Dead
When Sam Raimi started work on The Evil Dead, he was a 19-year-old Michigan State dropout with one mission: get $100,000 together, and make a movie with his childhood friend Bruce Campbell. Nearly everyone he spoke to said his script wouldn’t work: you couldn’t just dive into the blood and guts without setting it up, they said.
Now, as Evil Dead Rise hits the big screen – with Raimi as producer, bringing director Lee Cronin into the undead fold – Empire presents a ranking of Raimi’s ten best films. Make way for killer carnage, heartfelt heroes, doomed protagonists, and Deadites galore.
10) Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness
Bigger, bolder, and barmier than the first instalment officially exists in the MCU now. Groovy.
Read the Empire review
9) The Evil Dead
When Sam Raimi started work on The Evil Dead, he was a 19-year-old Michigan State dropout with one mission: get $100,000 together, and make a movie with his childhood friend Bruce Campbell. Nearly everyone he spoke to said his script wouldn’t work: you couldn’t just dive into the blood and guts without setting it up, they said.
- 4/21/2023
- by Ben Travis, Tom Nicholson
- Empire - Movies
In the fall of 1979, Sam Raimi, Bruce Campbell, and the rest of the cast and crew arrived on location in the woods of Tennessee to make a movie called "The Evil Dead." It wasn't always called that; its original title was "The Book of the Dead," and there were more suggested titles along the way. Thankfully Raimi went for economy, and the title we know today matches the film: Concise, scary, and in-your-face.
It also wasn't the first time that Raimi and friends had embarked on such a project. A year earlier, the young filmmaker rustled up $1600 to make a 30-minute proof-of-concept called "Within the Woods" to showcase his team's talent and raise money for their first feature-length movie. It is only just about watchable, but it is fascinating to see some ideas and techniques that Raimi would later use taking shape in the trial run.
"Within the Woods" helped...
It also wasn't the first time that Raimi and friends had embarked on such a project. A year earlier, the young filmmaker rustled up $1600 to make a 30-minute proof-of-concept called "Within the Woods" to showcase his team's talent and raise money for their first feature-length movie. It is only just about watchable, but it is fascinating to see some ideas and techniques that Raimi would later use taking shape in the trial run.
"Within the Woods" helped...
- 4/18/2023
- by Lee Adams
- Slash Film
If someone asked you to name a Hollywood legend, there are certain people that just cannot be excluded. One of these is director Steven Spielberg. When you're responsible for films like "Jaws," "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," "Raiders of the Lost Ark," "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," "Schindler's List," "West Side Story," and "Jurassic Park," it's pretty hard to argue against. The man is probably running out of space for all of his accolades.
Hollywood legend Spielberg may be, but he's taken inspiration from earlier legends of the silver screen. In fact, with "Jurassic Park," Spielberg paid homage to legendary animator/special effects creator/stop-motion animation innovator Ray Harryhausen.
Harryhausen, who died in 2013 at the age of 92, was responsible for the creature work in films like "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad," "Jason and the Argonauts," "One Million Years B.C.," and "Clash of the Titans." Harryhausen inspired many filmmakers with his work,...
Hollywood legend Spielberg may be, but he's taken inspiration from earlier legends of the silver screen. In fact, with "Jurassic Park," Spielberg paid homage to legendary animator/special effects creator/stop-motion animation innovator Ray Harryhausen.
Harryhausen, who died in 2013 at the age of 92, was responsible for the creature work in films like "The 7th Voyage of Sinbad," "Jason and the Argonauts," "One Million Years B.C.," and "Clash of the Titans." Harryhausen inspired many filmmakers with his work,...
- 3/31/2023
- by Jenna Busch
- Slash Film
A strong argument could be made for King Kong being the most influential movie ever made. Kong’s progeny includes Mighty Joe Young, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Godzilla, Ray Harryhausen films, Star Wars, Jurassic Park, Lord of the Rings, Avatar, many of the character-driven stop motion creations of the past ninety years, and dozens of authorized and unauthorized spin-offs, sequels, remakes, and rip-offs. The film inspired dozens, if not hundreds of directors, special effects artists, sound effects creators, composers, and film creators of all kinds, who have in turn inspired the next generation of filmmakers, and they the next. It is the first special-effects driven blockbuster of the sound era; a genre-crossing spectacular that introduced the world to some of cinema’s most iconic imagery and sound, the screen’s first true Scream Queen, and one of the all-time great gods and monsters of film history.
King Kong...
King Kong...
- 3/24/2023
- by Brian Keiper
- bloody-disgusting.com
If there's one thing we can take away from modern blockbusters it's that, with rare exceptions, special effects just don't feel "special" anymore.
That's not to say that there aren't beautiful and convincing visual effects being produced in the world of cinema. "Top Gun: Maverick" seamlessly blends real aerial footage with CG recreations, to the extent that it's nearly impossible to tell what was really in front of the camera. "Avatar: The Way of Water," whatever its other flaws may be, is a sumptuous spectacle for the eyes, at once vibrant and colorful and creative.
But what so very many modern visual effects films have in common is that they take imagery that should be astounding for granted, treating the most incredible and impossible things the human mind could devise, and acting like it's just something everyone deals with every day. And the new superhero film "Shazam! Fury of the Gods...
That's not to say that there aren't beautiful and convincing visual effects being produced in the world of cinema. "Top Gun: Maverick" seamlessly blends real aerial footage with CG recreations, to the extent that it's nearly impossible to tell what was really in front of the camera. "Avatar: The Way of Water," whatever its other flaws may be, is a sumptuous spectacle for the eyes, at once vibrant and colorful and creative.
But what so very many modern visual effects films have in common is that they take imagery that should be astounding for granted, treating the most incredible and impossible things the human mind could devise, and acting like it's just something everyone deals with every day. And the new superhero film "Shazam! Fury of the Gods...
- 3/17/2023
- by William Bibbiani
- Slash Film
Poor Shazam. Its production and release hampered by Covid and now seemingly lame-ducked by the arrival of a new regime to run DC Studios, the big red-suited lug’s second movie, Shazam! Fury of the Gods, finally makes its lonely stand in an effort to tap into the good will generated by his 2019 big-screen debut and, perhaps, plead its case to keep this off-brand DC franchise going.
We say off-brand because when the first Shazam! came out, it was a fun, funny, family-oriented, brightly-colored antidote to the ponderous, dark, heavy-handed edgelord theatrics of the Snyderverse that dominated DC for nearly a decade. It had heart, its stakes were relatively small, and its hero was much more relatably human than the brooding bro-dudes and psychotics we had gotten used to from the Dceu.
So on one hand, we’re pleased to say that Shazam! Fury of the Gods has more of the same — humor,...
We say off-brand because when the first Shazam! came out, it was a fun, funny, family-oriented, brightly-colored antidote to the ponderous, dark, heavy-handed edgelord theatrics of the Snyderverse that dominated DC for nearly a decade. It had heart, its stakes were relatively small, and its hero was much more relatably human than the brooding bro-dudes and psychotics we had gotten used to from the Dceu.
So on one hand, we’re pleased to say that Shazam! Fury of the Gods has more of the same — humor,...
- 3/16/2023
- by Don Kaye
- Den of Geek
2019’s Shazam! delivered a charming origin story of the DC Comics character Billy Batson, a teenage boy who meets a wizard who bestows on him the ability to become a grown-up superhero upon uttering the magic word. Now, Billy is back, along with his foster siblings, who have similar superhuman alter-egos, in the sequel Shazam! Fury of the Gods. But like some children who aren’t so cute anymore after they’ve grown up a little, this follow-up lacks much of the appeal of its predecessor. While the film provides the elaborate action set pieces, colorful villains and save-the-world plot mechanics expected of the comic book movie genre, some of the magic is missing.
The story’s villains are the Daughters of Atlas, a trio of ancient goddesses who have come to Earth to reclaim the magical powers that the wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou) took from them. (Why they need them,...
The story’s villains are the Daughters of Atlas, a trio of ancient goddesses who have come to Earth to reclaim the magical powers that the wizard Shazam (Djimon Hounsou) took from them. (Why they need them,...
- 3/15/2023
- by Frank Scheck
- The Hollywood Reporter - Movie News
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