You'll Believe a Man Can Fly (While Wearing a Suit Made of Iron)

With Comic-Con '07 all wrapped up there wasn't really a ton of big news in terms of what we can expect from geek cinema in 2008. From what I've read there was very little info on THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS, but to be honest I've sort of tuned out any Batman-related news. Until there's actual footage I just don't care.

Easily the big winner of the "creating buzz" award goes to IRON MAN. The film based on the Marvel character was already gaining steam by landing a cast of good actors including Jeff Bridges, Terrence Howard, and Robert Downey Jr. in the title role. Now thanks to director Jon Favreau we have footage from the film, and thanks to some guy who sneaked a camera into the convention that footage can be seen by everyone. There's really no other way to put it. This movie looks like a blast. So far it appears the film won't be as moody as DAREDEVIL or HULK and it won't be too prone to cheesy humor ala FANTASTIC FOUR.

IRON MAN is due to kickoff next year's Summer movie season on May 8th, 2008. Check out the Comic-Con footage here.

Roman Castle?

According to a reliable source for Latino Review, Lionsgate has found their new Punisher. His name is Ray Stevenson and so far his biggest claim to fame is as playing Titus Pullo on the HBO series “Rome.” It was a few months back that former-Frank Castle Thomas Jane announced he was leaving a proposed sequel because of script problems. A lot of writers have been taking shots at the script and hopefully the casting of a new Punisher means those issues are done.

I’ve never seen “Rome.” I’ve heard it’s a good show but it’s just one of those programs I’ve never found the time to get into. Judging by a few photos I’ve seen of Stevenson he definitely seems to have the type of physical qualifications you’d want out of a Punisher. Though this news isn’t confirmed, it makes sense that this rumor would pop up now since the gigantic nerdfest Comic-Con (don’t take offense nerds, I’d probably go if I lived near San Diego) takes place this weekend. That’s a prime time for studios to unleash big news about comic-related films.

If you want a taste of what kind of damage Stevenson can do on screen check out this rather brutal clip from “Rome” here. Them Romans didn’t fuck around.

Justice for Bacon

I have no doubt that getting a movie greenlit in Hollywood is extremely difficult. There's a lot to think about in terms of how much money it will make, what will the critics think, and what type of message will the film send. With that said I do believe DEATH SENTENCE was a slam dunk from the first pitch meeting. What studio in its right mind would say no to a film about Kevin Bacon slaughtering skinheads. The answer as I see it: None.

In DEATH SENTENCE Bacon plays a typical loving husband and father whose life is suddenly thrown for a loop after a senseless act of violence. This puts him on a course to both protect what's left of his family and seek vengeance for what he has already lost. Along the way he'll run into an arms dealer played by John Goodman and by the looks of the trailer he'll send many Aryan punks straight to hell.

Hopefully Bacon will do enough ass kicking in this one to make up for the fact that he appeared opposite Queen Latifah in BEAUTY SHOP.

DEATH SENTENCE has seemingly come out of nowhere and is set for release on August 31st. Check out the trailer here.

Barely a Review: TRANSFORMERS

The summer movie season hit its apex last week with the release of TRANSFORMERS. Much like the last film I barely reviewed, LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD, TRANSFORMERS is fine for what it is but is completely disposable once the end credits start rolling.

Technically TRANSFORMERS has a plot. It involves some busted eyeglasses and the fate of mankind but all anyone cares about is seeing robots destroy shit. On that level the movie works. Michael Bay is definitely in his element here and does a fine job blending computer effects with real environments. For a film that is CGI-heavy it doesn't have that distracting video game feel to it.

There are humans in the film. Most of these humans are recognizable actors who you have seen in other films and TV shows. But there's nobody to really give a snot about. They say their lines, they look in amazement at the robots, and most of them pull that off adequately enough. Though in the end the cast of INDEPENDENCE DAY looks like the The Royal Shakespeare Company in contrast.

So if you like pretty colors and loud noises, which we all do by the way, then check out TRANSFORMERS. I can't imagine wanting to view it more than once, but as a one-shot exercise of empty thrills it goes down fairly smooth.