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Friday, September 25, 2009 at 8:19PM | By Franck Tabouring 
Here's the brand-new feature trailer for Allen and Albert Hughes' upcoming post-apocalyptic action flick "The Book of Eli," and it's quite an action-packed, intriguing preview, so check it out after the jump. The first teaser already boasted a solid look, and this one certainly delivers as well.
Saturday, August 1, 2009 at 11:31PM | By Franck Tabouring 
Here's a brief entry with short descriptions and links to film news we either missed or quite honestly didn't have time to add. Here's what you need to know on August 2, 2009:
• Star producer Jerry Bruckheimer has acquired the big-screen rights to the graphic novel "World War Robot," chronicling the battle between humans and robots on Earth, Mars and the moon. More on this @ Variety.
• Jason Reitman ("Juno") will show his next film "Up in the Air" as a world premiere at the Toronto Film Festival in September. The flick follows George Clooney as a frequent-flyer counselor who helps large companies fire their executives. (Variety)
• According to the Risky Biz Blog, Universal is chasing after Jesus, prepping what will be a remake of "Jesus Christ Superstar." Apparently, Uni has also been talking to "(500) Days of Summer" director Marc Webb, who could end up helming "Jesus." More here.
Thursday, July 23, 2009 at 8:01PM | By Franck Tabouring 
To be honest, I wasn't quite sure what to think about Allen and Albert Hughes' upcoming drama "The Book of Eli," a sort of post-apocalyptic western starring Denzel Washington in the lead. Now that I saw the film's teaser trailer, however, I admit I'm quite excited about this project.
The story follows Washington as Eli, a badass hero who travels across America to pass on the knowledge of what could be society’s only way to redemption. Protecting this knowledge, however, seems to be quite a challenge, but Eli will stop at nothing to complete his mission.
The trailer below looks quite stunning, and even though it only shows Washington strolling across plenty of wasteland and showing viewers he's not someone to be messed with, the footage managed to grab my attention. I am indeed intrigued by "The Book of Eli," which opens Jan. 15, 2010.
Also part of the cast are Gary Oldman, who's a small-town despot willing to do anything to get a hold of Eli’s book; Mila Kunis, who plays a woman who first tries to betray but later joins Eli on his quest; and Ray Stevenson, Jennifer Beals and Michael Gambon.
Thursday, July 23, 2009 at 3:30AM | By Franck Tabouring 
Wow, some movies really have to overcome several hurdles before even launching into pre-production. One such project is Tony Scott's action thriller "Unstoppable," which was set to start, then suddenly derailed, and is now apparently back on track.
To recap, the film was set to head toward principal photography with Denzel Washington in the lead role when all of a sudden 20th Century Fox halted production because of budget concerns. Yes, this baby simply cost too much.
Well, the studio asked Washington to take a pay cut, but the actor declined and dropped out. According to Variety, however, he's now back in. Apparently he sealed a deal with Fox, and "Unstoppable" is gearing up for a fall shoot.
Wow, what a painful process. "Unstoppable" follows an engineer who boards a locomotive with a young conductor and attempts to chase a runaway train loaded with a bunch of toxic chemicals. Let's wait and see if this one ever makes it to its final destination.
Monday, July 13, 2009 at 5:35PM | By Franck Tabouring 
Denzel Washington is no longer part of Tony Scott's action thriller "Unstoppable," which was recently put on hold because of budget concerns.
The actor formally exited the project after waiting around for 20th Century Fox to work out the financial problems. A solution has not been found at this stage.
"Unstoppable" follows an engineer who boards a locomotive with a young conductor and attempts to chase a runaway train loaded with a bunch of toxic chemicals.
With money being used more sparingly by some studios, Fox decided the film's budget was simply to high. The studio apparently asked Washington to take a smaller salary for the job, but he refused.
At this stage, nobody really knows what will eventually happen with the film. Scott still seems to be attached, but who knows how long it will take to figure things out. Scott's recent flick, "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," didn't do that well at the box office.
Source: Variety
Share Article | Post a Comment | Email Article | Print Article tagged Denzel Washington, Tony Scott, Unstoppable in Casting, News Wednesday, July 1, 2009 at 2:46AM | By Franck Tabouring 
The title may suggest otherwise, but it looks like Fox may slow down Tony Scott's upcoming action thriller "Unstoppable." The reason? A budget problem.
The Hollywood Reporter says Fox is taking a closer look at the flick, which obviously needs a rather heavy budget. Scott's most recent flick, "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," delivered a disappointing performance at the box office.
"Unstoppable" follows an engineer who boards a locomotive with a young conductor and attempts to chase a runaway train loaded with a bunch of toxic chemicals. Denzel Washington and Chris Pine were in talks to star in the project.
At this stage, it's not sure what Fox will decide to do, but the trades say the studio may not go as far as stopping the film completely.
Saturday, June 13, 2009 at 2:51PM | By Franck Tabouring 
Todd Phillips' comedy "The Hangover" topped the North American box office Friday for the second consecutive week with an estimated $10.4 million in ticket sales.
Playing at 3,355 locations, the R-rated film lifted its domestic total to $82.4 million after just one week in release. Bradley Cooper, Ed Helm and Zach Galifianakis star as three guys who lose their best friend on a night out in Vegas.
At No. 2, Pixar's "Up" collected another $8.8 million, bringing its total haul to $165.5 million. New entry "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3" debuted with $8.2 million in third place, playing currently at 3,074 locations.
Things didn't go so well for Eddie Murphy's new comedy "Imagine That," which finished sixth with a daily gross of $1.8 million from 3,008 locations. In the film, Murphy plays a financial executive who finds the key to success in his daughter's imaginary world.
Meanwhile, "Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian" picked up $2.9 million at No. 4, lifting its cumulative gross to $136.8 million. At No. 5, "Land of the Lost" pulled in $2.9 million also, reaching a total gross of $28.7 million.
Source: Box Office Mojo (www.boxofficemojo.com)
Friday, June 12, 2009 at 6:04PM | By Franck Tabouring 
Seen on: June 12, 2009
The players: Director: Tony Scott, Writer: Brian Helgeland, Cast: Denzel Washington, John Travolta, James Gandolfini, Gbenga Akinnagbe, Brian Haley
Facts of interest: Remake of Joseph Sargent's 1974 flick of the same title.
The plot: A New York City subway dispatcher is thrust into the middle of a hostage situation on-board a subway train.
Our thoughts: I didn’t exactly love Tony Scott’s “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” remake, but much to the film’s credit, it sure did entertain me for most of its running time. “Pelham” has its flaws, and the central plot could have been a tad more intriguing, but all in all, it qualifies as a decent summer thriller that mostly works.
Friday, June 12, 2009 at 10:32AM | By Franck Tabouring 
Tony Scott returns to the big screen with a remake of "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3," starring Denzel Washington and John Travolta. Let's find out what some of the Web's critics have to say about the thriller:
• Josh Tyler at CinemaBlend: "Solid performances from Washington and Travolta are wasted on a script that probably wasn’t worth making and a movie that’s definitely not worth seeing."
• Matt Goldberg at Collider: "Of course, Scott does what he always does: hyperactive editing regardless of the appropriate tonality as dictated by the narrative."
• Ron Henriques at LatinoReview: "There are so many directions the story could have taken, all of them better than the final result."
• Cole Abaius at FilmSchoolRejects: "What works about 'Pelham' is that, despite being high concept, there’s a solid focus on the characters that gives us shades of who they are without getting too preachy or attempting to get deeper than it needs to."
Monday, June 8, 2009 at 10:46PM | By Franck Tabouring This week, we're only looking at two wide releases: Tony Scott's remake "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3" with Denzel Washington and John Travolta; and Karey Kirkpatrick's family film "Imagine That" with Eddie Murphy:
THE TAKING OF PELHAM 1 2 3
Synopsis: Denzel Washington stars as New York City subway dispatcher Walter Garber, whose ordinary day is thrown into chaos by an audacious crime: the hijacking of a subway train. John Travolta stars as Ryder, the criminal mastermind who, as leader of a highly-armed gang of four, threatens to execute the train's passengers unless a large ransom is paid within one hour.
