Kevin Smith asks fans for funding
I’ve long thought about the idea of a people-funded film. Spread over sufficient numbers the costs could be tiny per person, but Kevin Smith is asking fans for funding for his next film Red State.
Female Up Front
The Guardian asks interesting question about whether we will ever see a female-led film franchise.
I guess you’d argue the Alien films are a female-led franchise, certainly Charlie’s Angels, Terminator has a strong female presence, but not really a lead.
Looking at the convenient Wikipedia page listing film series with three entries there are a couple more (of those with fairly mahjor entries, a lot have a big first film and straight-to-DVD follow-ups):
- Legally Blonde
- Resident Evil
- Underworld
Chance to Fix the Broken Spider
After Spider-Man 3 I can’t say I was excited when they announced another, so the news that Tobey Maguire and Sam Raimi are walking away didn’t stir much, but I have to agree with Stuart Heritage’s summation of the wrongs of Spider-Man 3:
The most convincing argument for the Spider-Man reboot, though, must be Spider-Man 3. Wrong in just about every way imaginable – too long, too many baddies, too many queasy lurches in tone, too many musical numbers, too many emotions signposted by the protagonist’s ever-changing haircut, too many scenes of Kirsten Dunst frying eggs and dancing the twist – Spider-Man 3 has become shorthand for unfocused studio bloat. It was one set of rubber nipples away from being Batman and Robin – and look at what an overhaul did for Batman’s fortunes.
Were they trying to see how far they could go?
io9’s 20 SF Movies We’re Most Excited To See In 2010
It seems everyone has a list of movies to look out for in 2010 and io9 is no different, except the SF twist, see their list of the ‘20 SF Movies We’re Most Excited To See In 2010′ here.
Frequently Asked Questions About Time Travel
I do vaguely remember hearing about this, but it passed under my radar until a recent visit to the rental store and now I can’t imagine why, it’s a great movie.
OK, so the title sucks. I suspect this is part of why it didn’t do as well as Shaun of the Dead (it’s described as ‘Doctor Who meets Shaun of the Dead’), that and it’s aimed at a much more niche market.
OK, so it’s a bit geeky. It is, largely, set in a pub (much like SotD). The average episode of Doctor Who has a larger effects budget by the looks of it though.
Considering the limitations of the budget (this is a joint BBC and HBO films production) they have to fall back on character and story and for any sci-fi fans out there it’s sure to please.
The plot revolves around the three main leads: Ray (nerd, played by the IT Crowd’s Chris O’Dowd), Toby (nerd, Marc Wootton) and Pete (cynic, Dean Lennox Kelly) who go to the pub (after Ray gets fired from his job at a theme park). They’re happily writing a letter to let Hollywood know how to make films after seeing a bad one before the pub when Ray bumps into Cassie on his way back from the bar.
Cassie (Anna Faris bringing some Hollywood glamour) is a time traveller whose job involves fixing time leaks, is a big fan of Ray’s. When he gets back he tells the guys, who don’t believe him until Pete stumbles onto the time leak in the gents and comes back to a pub full of dead bodies (including his). Several visits to the toilets and near misses with their past and future selves ensue before they discover their one good idea (written on the back of the letter to Hollywood) is the cause of the problems and threatens their lives.
It’s very British in its outlook, geeky and funny, with Faris (who is fairly unknown, despite staring in some big movies, and is a Hollywood star in waiting) bringing some geek love appeal and raising the star power. Needless to say it’s packed with nods to sci-fi films (although Ray insists it is called Science Fiction or SF). DVD is probably a better medium for it (it’s not really cinematic), although the lack of any extras seems criminal considering the fanbase.
If you’re a fan of Hitchhikers then you should definitely take a look. It’s got cult hit written all over it.
Should you be interested, I stumbled across a small interview with some of the cast here.
You can check out the full trailer on YouTube or on the official site, which has some other information about the film and cast.
Check out the archives for more entries.
