Well hello readers. It has been a while since our last news post, and there have been several interesting developments in the world of feature-length film so this is going to be an extra-long one. Here are some brief updates, links and the indispensable RA perspective on each and every one.
Hugh Jackman and a giant robot
Lets start things off with some local flavor. Over the last three years Michigan, thanks to a generous tax credit for film producers, has become a popular filming location for all manner of movies, ranging from the low-budget indie, to major Hollywood blockbusters (if you'd like to learn more about the tax credit, this is a good site to do it). The tax credit passed the Michigan legislature in 2008. As a result, 32 feature-length films wrapped in that year alone. For some perspective, that is as many as the previous six years combined. More importantly, these are not small fish. Since January 2008 several major studio pictures have come through Michigan including Jack Black's Gulliver's Travels, 2009 Best Picture nominee Up in the Air, the Clint Eastwood picture Gran Turino, and upcoming films like Machine Gun Preacher,and the Hugh Jackman star vehicle Real Steel. Currently the Elmore Leonard novel Freaky Deaky is being adapted for the big screen with the intention of shooting in Detroit. Michael Bay is a particular fan of the Michigan scenery having made three different films here.
I realize I am being long winded here, but I'm getting to the point, I promise. The reason I bring up all of this is. The Michigan film industry just landed a major coup with Christopher Nolan opting to shoot the third installment of his Dark Night trilogy in Detroit. This was something of a surprise as Chicago was used very distinctively in the box-office smash The Dark Night. Regardless, this will bring a lot of money into the D and could be very good for both the city and the state.
Tom Hardy in Inception
Keeping with the Batman theme of the previous news tidbit. The cast for the new movie, tentatively titled The Dark Night Rises, has been clarified and all but finalized. Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Gary Oldman, and Morgan Freeman are all reprising roles from the first two films. The two new cast additions are Tom Hardy (who rose to fame in Nolan's 2010 hit Inception) as the villain Bane, and Anne Hathaway as Selina Kyle (AKA Catwoman). It sounds like Hathaway is working out well, at least according to this interview. Speaking as someone who thinks Nolan is the best big budget director currently working in Hollywood, this is super exciting.
Alright, enough with the caped crusader. We are moving on to a very different sort of superhero. A man who united a nation, who fought for equality regardless of race, a man who was the 16th President of the United States. Yes, thats right. I'm talking about Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter. Now those of you who are fans of the Starz show Party Down will be saying, "wait, that's real?" And those of you who aren't will be saying, "wait, that's real?" And the answer to both questions is yes. It is based off a graphic novel and has been discussed as a possible feature length film for a while. Timur Bekmambetov and Tim Burton (who previously collaborated on the animated film 9) are joining forces again to bring it to the big screen. While it appears the role of Lincoln is still up for grabs, Joaquin Phoenix (fresh of the mockumentary I'm Still Here) seems to be the front runner for the role of Henry, Lincoln's ageless, vampire-killing mentor. Despite being thoroughly sick of vampires, I must say this sounds awesome. Burton and Bekmambetov have more than enough imagination between them to make this as wild as it should be, and Phoenix seems like he could fit right into place. Color me interested.
On to the next bit of news. It appears, contrary to previous RA news reports, that the latest James Bond installment is still a go and Sam Mendes is still in line to direct. On top of this already great news, Collider.com is reporting that Javier Bardem is being seriously considered as the next Bond villain. And as if it couldn't get any better than that, Bardem claims that the new film is going to take the franchise in an entirely new direction. I have actually been less than thrilled about the direction the last two Bond films have taken the franchise, so something fresh sounds great to me. Plus we already know Bardem can do evil.
Our final piece of news for today hits a bit closer to home, at least artistically. Arguably my favorite movie of all time is the Coen brothers' 1998 comedy, The Big Lebowski. The Jeff Bridges character of the Dude, is essentially a personal hero of mine. All of this is why this little rumor I heard only today has me both nervous and potentially overjoyed. Tara Reid, or Bunny from the film, has let slip that there has been some talk of a sequel. In all likelihood this is just another in a long line of false alarms as the Coens and Bridges have all denied any involvement. The absolute only way I could ever be ok with the making of a sequel is if those three were on board, and they are not known for being especially coy. However, with all the original pieces back, it could be a blast to spend another two hours with the Dude, Walter, Jesus and all of the other unique characters that made the first so wonderful. So basically, RA is adopting a wait and see approach.
Well, that is all we've got. Until next time, the dude abides.
Just saw this additional bit of news. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is joining the cast of The Dark Night Rises. While his role is unknown, it is speculated that he could be taking on the part of the Riddler. This also makes Gordon-Levitt the second actor to work with Nolan on Inception to also be cast in the new Batman movie. He joins Tom Hardy who I discuss above.
Someone please let me know if I'm wrong, as I'm only going on hearsay, but I've heard our new governor would like to repeal the film tax credit that has brought all this income (and great publicity) to our state. A grave mistake, IMHO.
He has mentioned it a few times. He's never expressly said he wants to eliminate the credit in its entirety, but Snyder's opponents claim that some of the reforms he has mentioned would do exactly that.
Well, the fact of the matter is that right now the film incentive is not making any money for Michigan, it's actually costing money, and naturally that's not making it very popular. Film companies are coming in with their own people, taking advantage of it, and leaving. The program has long term benefits for Michigan - we're going to hopefully have a new industry and lots of new jobs once our own workers are trained for it. But that's going to take investment in the short term and people get impatient. I for one hope that Snyder gives it the fighting chance it needs.
As for the rumor mill about a possible Lebowski sequel, I have to say, I would mind. The dude minds, man. Not only do I not think the Coens could be brought around to it, even if they could I would be against it. Not because it necessarily would be a bad movie, in fact it would probably be pretty fun. But sometimes there's a film... sometimes there's a film that's just so perfect, it doesn't make sense to not leave it alone just as it is. Some movies don't need sequels. The Big Lebowksi is one hilarious and exciting chapter in the lives of two men leading fairly dull lives. And all the loose ends are tied up at the end of the film. I mean, you wouldn't make a sequel to Fargo, right? It has a wonderful, compelling protagonist, but the movie works because it is such a bizarre set of incidents that happen to her. If there was a sequel, that would imply that these sort of things happen to her all the time, and that I think would sort of lessen the value of the original ... I don't want the Dude to be the stoner version of Sherlock Holmes, he's just the Dude, man. But that's just, like, my opinion, man. Anyway it's probably just a rumor.
First of all, the film incentive is not necessarily a short-term loss for the state as a whole. It largely depends on what indicators and measurements you are using. The amount of money a major film production spends on things like hotels, food, and transportation is calculated differently depending on the political bent of the calculator. Its also important to remember that the state is not actually giving money to these productions. Nothing flows out of the states coffers. It is all tax credits. And I will agree that the primary benefit is aimed at the long term. One of the huge forces behind keeping the initiative is the tourism industry, which sees the possibility for significant long term gains coming out of it.
And its becoming pretty clear that the rumor has no real substance. And while I treasure that movie above nearly all others, and I would revolt against the possibility of someone other than the Coens and Jeff Bridges taking the undertaking on, I've never been one who feels that the value of the original is damaged by a sequel (barring planned sequels and trilogies like LotR, or Star Wars). So if the Coens feel they have something worth making, I would trust em. This is all academic anyway though.
Just saw this additional bit of news. Joseph Gordon-Levitt is joining the cast of The Dark Night Rises. While his role is unknown, it is speculated that he could be taking on the part of the Riddler. This also makes Gordon-Levitt the second actor to work with Nolan on Inception to also be cast in the new Batman movie. He joins Tom Hardy who I discuss above.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.totalfilm.com/news/joseph-gordon-levitt-will-appear-in-the-dark-knight-rises
Someone please let me know if I'm wrong, as I'm only going on hearsay, but I've heard our new governor would like to repeal the film tax credit that has brought all this income (and great publicity) to our state. A grave mistake, IMHO.
ReplyDeleteHe has mentioned it a few times. He's never expressly said he wants to eliminate the credit in its entirety, but Snyder's opponents claim that some of the reforms he has mentioned would do exactly that.
ReplyDeleteWell, the fact of the matter is that right now the film incentive is not making any money for Michigan, it's actually costing money, and naturally that's not making it very popular. Film companies are coming in with their own people, taking advantage of it, and leaving. The program has long term benefits for Michigan - we're going to hopefully have a new industry and lots of new jobs once our own workers are trained for it. But that's going to take investment in the short term and people get impatient. I for one hope that Snyder gives it the fighting chance it needs.
ReplyDeleteAs for the rumor mill about a possible Lebowski sequel, I have to say, I would mind. The dude minds, man. Not only do I not think the Coens could be brought around to it, even if they could I would be against it. Not because it necessarily would be a bad movie, in fact it would probably be pretty fun. But sometimes there's a film... sometimes there's a film that's just so perfect, it doesn't make sense to not leave it alone just as it is. Some movies don't need sequels. The Big Lebowksi is one hilarious and exciting chapter in the lives of two men leading fairly dull lives. And all the loose ends are tied up at the end of the film. I mean, you wouldn't make a sequel to Fargo, right? It has a wonderful, compelling protagonist, but the movie works because it is such a bizarre set of incidents that happen to her. If there was a sequel, that would imply that these sort of things happen to her all the time, and that I think would sort of lessen the value of the original ... I don't want the Dude to be the stoner version of Sherlock Holmes, he's just the Dude, man. But that's just, like, my opinion, man. Anyway it's probably just a rumor.
First of all, the film incentive is not necessarily a short-term loss for the state as a whole. It largely depends on what indicators and measurements you are using. The amount of money a major film production spends on things like hotels, food, and transportation is calculated differently depending on the political bent of the calculator. Its also important to remember that the state is not actually giving money to these productions. Nothing flows out of the states coffers. It is all tax credits. And I will agree that the primary benefit is aimed at the long term. One of the huge forces behind keeping the initiative is the tourism industry, which sees the possibility for significant long term gains coming out of it.
ReplyDeleteAnd its becoming pretty clear that the rumor has no real substance. And while I treasure that movie above nearly all others, and I would revolt against the possibility of someone other than the Coens and Jeff Bridges taking the undertaking on, I've never been one who feels that the value of the original is damaged by a sequel (barring planned sequels and trilogies like LotR, or Star Wars). So if the Coens feel they have something worth making, I would trust em. This is all academic anyway though.