THE FORBIDDEN KINGDOM... I saw the film with a few friends yesterday, and it was entertaining. Actually, it was really entertaining! The movie had some cheesy/campy moments in it, but all in all, it was pretty cool to see Jackie Chan and Jet Li finally team up in this action adventure flick. Not only did he conduct his usual kick-ass stunts, but Jackie Chan as Lu Yan was friggin’ hilarious! He had some funny lines in The Forbidden Kingdom, and there was one REALLY funny scene where he was trying to use his immortal powers to summon rain in a desert. Needless to say, Chan summoned something...but it sure as hell wasn’t water! You’d have to watch the movie to know what I’m talking about.



Jet Li was his usual silent but cool self...hence is why he is called The Silent Monk in Kingdom. Only when (SPOILER Ahead) he was dressed as the Monkey King (End SPOILER) did Li act all goofy and mischievous. But that’s how the Monkey King is in Chinese folklore. I think. Michael Angarano, who plays the main character Jason Tripitikas, is a poor man’s Shia LaBeouf in this flick. I’m pretty sure this movie would make a ton more money if LaBeouf was cast in this film instead. But then again, how quickly could Sam Witwicky learn the art of stick-fighting? Haha. Seriously though, Angarano did a decent job in Kingdom.



Now... Onto the FEMALES in this film. Crystal Liu Yifei as the Golden Sparrow was really cool. She has a cute face, but the main hottie in this movie is Li Bingbing, who plays Ni Chang, a.k.a. the White-Haired Witch. Holy cow, did she look so good with white hair! Calm yourself down, McParno... The only other thing I’m gonna say about Ms. Bingbing is that I wouldn’t be surprised if a lot of hot young Asian girls in real life start to dye their hair white to look like Ni Chang. What an interesting fad that would be. Not to name names or anything (yea right), but I suggested to Sue a while back that she dress like Chang for this Halloween. I could picture her in long white hair. Wow. One can only dream... I would totally be screwed if Sue read this journal entry, hahaha.



One more thing: Another highlight of this film—other than the awesome cinematography since much of the movie was actually shot in China—was when Lu Yan and The Silent Monk were both unwittingly beating the crap out of Jason Tripitikas as they attempted to teach him martial arts. I was laughing hysterically during that scene! No BSing.



All images courtesy of Lionsgate Films

STREET KINGS... I saw the film yesterday, and it was about as good as I expected (which isn’t a criticism). Keanu Reeves didn’t stop bullets in midair by raising a hand, but his character did kick ass as much as Neo did in The Matrix flicks (oh, and Constantine). Forrest Whitaker gave an animated performance as the head of an LAPD special detectives unit, and it was amusing to hear Hugh Laurie (who plays the title character in the hit FOX TV show House) cuss in this movie. Performance-wise, he wasn’t as sarcastic in Street Kings as he is on House, but Laurie still made the kind of snide remarks that his small-screen character is known for. The twist at the end was unexpected, though I already knew that (SPOILERS ahead) Reeves was gonna shoot Whitaker’s character (End SPOILERS)...since one of my co-workers told me the ending last week. We conducted test screenings for Street Kings several times at my work. Its original title was The Night Watchman. Yea, Street Kings sounds better.


FOX Searchlight

TF2 Fan Art... Thanks to the Transformers Live Action Movie Blog for posting these awesome drawings made by fans of characters they want to see in the sequel, which has been confirmed to be one of many films that will be shot in Philadelphia this summer. Hmm- Looks like Transformers 2 will be incomplete if it doesn't show Sam and Mikaela sharing a cheesesteak together.

IF JUNE 2 CAN’T COME SOON ENOUGH... Much as how Barricade (or the prop cars that portray him) was reportedly seen in Culver City recently, more photos have turned up on the Net showing additional Transformers vehicles being moved around Southern California. This time it’s Optimus Prime on the 405 Freeway (which would take you towards Culver City), and Ratchet and Ironhide on Lankershim Boulevard (located in North Hollywood, which you can also get to via the 405).


SuperHeroHype.com

There are reports that Transformers 2 will film in Sedona, Arizona (along with Philadelphia, and um, Egypt?), and IESB.Net has posted a possible cast breakdown for the sequel. Oh, and the CONSTRUCTICONS are rumored to make an appearance in the movie!! Woohoo! Of course, keep in mind Michael Bay said that he’s gonna leak fake info on TF2 to throw the fanbase off during production (of course, he's still in pre-production). Oh well. Start of filming for next year's blockbuster is still on track for June 2.


Fan art courtesy of Rise Studio

BARRICADE ON THE MOVE... The pics above have been making rounds around the Web last week, with speculation that Michael Bay might be starting some form of filming on Transformers 2 soon despite the fact principal photography isn’t officially set to commence till June 2. These Saleen Mustang prop cars of Barricade—who can safely be presumed to have survived in the first film, since he completely disappeared following Optimus Prime’s defeat of Bonecrusher on that freeway—were seen on a trailer truck in Culver City (where Sony Studios is located, and is around 40 miles from where I live). Of course, the pics above could've been taken during the first film's production back in 2006, but whatever. When was the iPhone (which supposedly was used to take these pics) released?



Bay starting filming sooner than expected would be understandable, since I read in today’s Los Angeles Times newspaper that there is a significant chance the Screen Actors Guild might go forward with a labor strike in June. Freakin’ unions. So it may be a while till we see leaked photos of Megan Fox looking hot once again for the sequel. Wait— She’s returning, right? I hope so.

G.I. JOE... SuperheroHype.com posted two new images from next year’s action-adventure film, which is being directed by The Mummy's Stephen Sommers. It will be one of two movies based on Hasbro toys to come out in 2009, along with (hopefully) Transformers 2. That’s assuming a strike by the Screen Actors Guild doesn’t take place this June...when filming for the Michael Bay sequel is scheduled to commence. The photo below is of the mercenary ninja Snake Eyes...who is being played by Ray Park, of Darth Maul fame in The Phantom Menace. Looks cool.


Paramount Pictures

THE BANK JOB... I saw the film yesterday, and it’s pretty amusing in that it reminded me of the whole Eliot Spitzer fiasco more than a week ago. Perhaps the former New York governor should’ve done research on the true story this flick is based on (It's about a group of robbers who pull off a heist in Britain, and end up having to save their own asses by blackmailing a group of politicians and other shady folks who kept evidence of their sleazy affairs in safe deposit boxes at the bank the robbers broke into. I typed this run-on sentence in case you never saw the trailer, haha) , and maybe then he wouldn’t have gotten it on with Kristen. Probably not. Also, I don’t think the guy Jason Statham portrayed in The Bank Job actually beat the crap out of those guys at the end of the movie. Or maybe he did. I should look it up on Wikipedia.

(Of course I know Terry Leather is a fictional character! Hahaha.)

TRANSFORMERS 2... Here are some things that we know of the sequel so far...

- There will be NO Dinobots in the second film.

- Starscream will have more English lines.

- Director Michael Bay completed a 60-page treatment (during the WGA strike) by which his screenwriting team of Ehren Kruger, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are using to write the script.

- The script is currently at 75 pages long, according to Orci on this thread March 11. His screenwriting team is aiming for the standard feature film script length of 120 pages.

- According to Orci, "(Michael Bay) never says he loves anything (in regards to the screenplay), even when he loves it. But to know him is to love him." Hahaha.

- Principal photography, a.k.a. filming, is set to begin for Transformers 2 on June 2nd of this year. Theatrical release is still aimed for June 26, 2009.

- Bay is planning to leak out fake info for the sequel once shooting commences, to throw fans off after the amount of spoilers that leaked out for the first Transformers film during its production in 2006.

- Bay is rumored to be scouting locations in Egypt.

- Filming is also rumored to take place in Philadelphia.

- Actor Shia LaBeouf ("Sam Witwicky") mentioned that he has already seen pre-visualization work (pre-vis) for the sequel, and that the film will be "massive".

- According to this thread page, Orci says that the pre-vis looks "AWESOME!"

- Bay stated that a "geriatric robot" (Kup?) will be part of the robotic cast.

- The tone of the sequel will be similar to last year’s film. There will be some humor but Transformers will more closely be in tuned with fan expectations. But this could change.

For more info, go to this Transformers Movie Blog.


Fan art courtesy of Transformers 2 dot net

The New INDIANA JONES IV Poster...


Paramount Pictures / Lucasfilm Ltd. / Drew Struzan

And in case you missed this about a month ago, the official teaser trailer:

IRON MAN... You can check out the newest theatrical trailer below. As more new footage gets released, this movie looks cooler and cooler. Of course, even if the visual effects in Iron Man are so completely awesome (I gotta check online to see which effects houses—ILM, anyone?—worked on this film) that it gets nominated for a Best Visual FX Oscar next year, chances are the award will go to another friggin’ fantasy flick. Chronicles of Narnia 2, I reckon. Sorry... I’m still peeved that Transformers got totally snubbed at this year’s Academy Awards.



Screenshots from the new trailer are featured below.






Images courtesy of Marvel Characters, Inc. / Paramount