Archive for Prequels & Sequels

The New Classics…

01/27/2012 Prequels & Sequels, Sci-Fi Classics, Summer Blockbusters No comments

…………..’The Search For Our Beginning Could Lead To Our End’…………..

Every now and again, a Studio advertising one-sheet comes along that successfully knocks ones socks off…well, suffice it to say, my piggly-wiglys are now a tad chilly! The new PROMETHEUS one-sheet, released yesterday, successfully delivers the goods with all the veiled, brooding undertones that this ‘Alien’ prequel-of-sorts promises to be. With its dark & looming monolithic head imagery, ‘man’ looks like a mere insect by comparison. But, maybe that’s the suggestive point. This highly-anticipated Summer feature is directed by Ridley Scott & written by Jon Spaihts & Damon Lindelof. ‘Prometheus’ stars Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender, Guy Pearce, Idris Elba, Logan Marshall-Green & Charlize Theron.

Conceived as a prequel to Scott’s 1979 science fiction horror classic ‘ALIEN,’ script rewrites developed the film into a separate story unconnected to the films of the ‘Alien franchise.’ According to Scott, though the film shares “strands of Alien’s DNA, so to speak”, ‘Prometheus’ will explore its own mythology & universe and is not directly linked to ‘Alien.’ Filming began in March 2011, with ‘Prometheus’ scheduled for release in the States on June 8, 2012 through 20th Century Fox.

The Studio’s original, official synopsis reads as follows: Visionary filmmaker Ridley Scott returns to the genre he helped define, creating an original science fiction epic set in the most dangerous corners of the universe. The film takes a team of scientists and explorers on a thrilling journey that will test their physical and mental limits and strand them on a distant world, where they will discover the answers to our most profound questions and to life’s ultimate mystery.

While the upgraded, fine-tuned Synopsis from last month explicates: “Ridley Scott, director of ‘Alien’ and Blade Runner, returns to the genre he helped define. With ‘Prometheus,’ he creates a groundbreaking mythology, in which a team of explorers discover a clue to the origins of mankind on Earth, leading them on a thrilling journey to the darkest corners of the universe. There, they must fight a terrifying battle to save the future of the human race.”

Notice mention of a terrifying ‘battle’ in this second rundown. And even with all this, ‘Prometheus’ seems more cloak-and-dagger than ever. Now, that’s effective with regard to Box Office, for coercing fanboy anticipation to the brink near-guarantees a staggering Opening Weekend indeed.

JUNE CAN’T COME SOON ENOUGH!

JPabes X

Why ‘EMPIRE’ Is The Fanboy’s Episode Of Choice…

01/21/2012 Epic Space Opera, Prequels & Sequels, Sci-Fi Classics 5 comments

“Luke, I am your father…” And with that, CINEMATIC HISTORY was made.

THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK, the second Star Wars feature to be released & the fifth in terms of internal chronology, premiered on May 21, 1980, kicking off the Summer movie slate that year. Like its predecessor, ‘Empire’ draws elements from several mythological stories & Old World religions. It also borrows ingredients from 1930′s film serials such as Flash Gordon, a childhood favorite of Lucas’, that similarly featured a city afloat in the sky. Set three years after Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope, this film is bolder, brasher & more exacting in design & scale.

Frankly speaking, it’s sweeping story-arc does laps around A New Hope; puts it to bed, really. The opening sequence alone, assault on Hoth by Imperial Walkers, still triggers my draw to drop each & every time I have a viewing party. The sheer spectacle of it all…just brilliant; doesn’t get better than this.

Directed by Irvin Kershner, the screenplay, based on a story by George Lucas, was written by Leigh Brackett and Lawrence Kasdan. Of the six main Star Wars films, Episode V is considered to be the most morally and emotionally ambiguous and the darkest episode of the Star Wars Trilogy.

Its rich & complex plot is as follows: The Galactic Empire, under the leadership of the villainous Lord Vader, is in obsessive pursuit of Luke Skywalker & the rest of the Rebel Alliance. While Vader hunts a small band of Skywalker’s posse across the galaxy, namely unlikely hero Han Solo, Princess Leia Organa, the Wookie copilot Chewbacca & two loyal Droids, young Skywalker studies the ‘Force’ under the tutelage of banished Jedi Master Yoda. But when Vader seizes Luke’s friends, the Rebel hero must decide whether to complete his training, becoming a full JEDI KNIGHT or confront Vader head-on, alongside the brutal truth hidden from him since birth.

Following a difficult production schedule & extreme on-location conditions, the completed Episode V became the most popular chapter in the Star Wars Saga & one of the most highly-rated films in history; and with good reason; it truly does have everything a fickle audience demands: grand adventure & spectacle with a cast that inhabits each role with fervor, a rousing love story & a climax that has every filmmaker out there trembling in their boots, thinking, how can I possibly top this? An EPIC TWIST, that not even the light-sabber dueling actors knew about until the final moment leading up to “roll camera” sounded. ‘Empire’ quite simply, is THE mythology of our time. A filmic heritage that will be passed down from generation to generation. A tale of Father & Son, entrapped by a star-scape of sheer chaos, each on a journey of redemption & hope.

It’s been said a film is only as good as the ANTAGONIST it employs, and boy do we get one here; with his towering stature, booming voice & twisted, mechanical inner-workings; Darth Vader is deservedly ranked as the third-greatest movie villain of all time in the American Film Institute’s list of the 100 greatest heroes & villains. Furthermore, Wizard magazine selected the ending of The Empire Strikes Back as the greatest cliffhanger of all time.

The blockbuster’s ‘prize’ booty is staggering: At the 1981 Academy Awards, Empire won the Oscar for Best Sound, in addition to the Special Achievement Academy Award for Visual Effects; Oscar nominations for Best Art Direction, Set Decoration. The maestro, John Williams was also nominated for the Academy Award for Best Music, Original Score. In addition, he was also awarded the BAFTA Film Award for his compositions: the Anthony Asquith Award for Film Music. This Epic Space Opera also received nominations for the BAFTA Awards for Best Sound and Best Production Design. Williams’ film score also received the Grammy Award and the Golden Globe Award for best original soundtrack; received four Saturn Awards, including those for Mark Hamill as Best Actor, Irvin Kershner for Best Director, Brian Johnson and Richard Edlund for Best Special Effects, & the film was also presented with the Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film; Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation & nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award for Best Adapted Screenplay.

When all is said & done, George Lucas took a number of risks with Empire, namely centering the story around a pint-sized, pea-green ‘Muppet’ that SHOULD have looked & sounded ridiculous; a disaster in the making; and yet was pulled off brilliantly by Frank Oz & Henson with regal elegance & a pinch of gravitas to boot, cementing Yoda as a cinema ICON for the ages.

On a final note, while revisiting the ill-executed Prequel Trilogy back-to-back late last week (the first 5 hours of which, were NEAR-CRINGE-WORTHY), I couldn’t help but think, what with a modest budget & puerile optical effects, such MAGIC Lucas & Co. administered, then gave to us on a silver platter more than thirty years ago. And for that, I thank he & his team of chimera-wizards for making my childhood, along with so many of ours, such a phenominal & wondrous time; a TIME that sadly, will never come again.

“Try not! Do, or do not, there is no try.” – Yoda’s pointed statement to young Skywalker. —-> Words to live by ;-) WORD.

JPabes X

After months of speculation, TREK 2 is finally a go! Principal Photography begins…

01/16/2012 Prequels & Sequels, Sci-Fi Classics, Trek News No comments

Following is a brilliant article from The L.A. Times (Hero Complex’s contributing editor Geoff Boucher). I must say, I haven’t been this excited for a feature in a very long time! J.J. is fast becoming one of my favorite Film Directors; and his writing team isn’t too shabby either. 2009′s Trek was BEYOND satisfying & SUPER 8 was one of my favorite movies last year…In Abrams & Co. we have trust!

‘STAR TREK’ SEQUEL: A COSMIC CAST REUNION ON THE SONY LOT – Jan. 13, 2012 | 5:37 p.m.

The “Star Trek” sequel is still way off in deep space – it won’t reach theaters until May 2013 — but there was a cosmic cast reunion Monday on the stretch of sidewalk in front of the Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf over at the Sony lot in Culver City.
Throughout the morning, the crew members of the Starship Enterprise were scheduled for fittings with the wardrobe department and the atmosphere was a bit like the first day of school with big grins, backslaps, hugs and handshakes. There was Simon Pegg (Scotty) and John Cho (Mr. Sulu) ducking into the coffee shop just before lunchtime and, on the patio out front, Bruce Greenwood (Capt. Christopher Pike) and cast newcomer Peter Weller discussing their golf swings and the enduring allure of John Le Carre novels. Pegg, with a toothy grin, stopped by Greenwood’s table to pay his respects: “Nice to see you!” Greenwood responded with a “My man!”
Sipping Red Bull and waiting for a lunchtime session with the cast and director J.J. Abrams, Greenwood said the “Trek” experience has been a true highlight in his career and he quickly added that he wasn’t referring to the box office receipts or strong reviews. He pointed instead to the friendships he has now with people such as Chris Pine (Capt. James T. Kirk) and Anton Yelchin (Mr. Chekov). Zachary Quinto as Spock, left, and Chris Pine as James T. Kirk in “Star Trek.” (Paramount Pictures)
“The family deal that happened was just amazing,” Greenwood said. “I loved the first one and I loved making it too. Usually when you work on a job and you love the experience, it’s rare that the film matches the experience. You get one or the other but this was one of the few where it was all there. It was just great. I was talking to Anton the other day and he was saying that they all got together on the bridge a few weeks ago and it was just like no time had passed at all. None. I had dinner with Chris a few months ago and he said he couldn’t wait to get back with the gang of people that makes this work. The same with me. They’re wonderful people and the show is like the icing. What’s great is the family. I know it’s an overused term and people roll their eyes but it really feels that way to me.”
The “Trek” sequel was aimed for a 2012 release at one point but Abrams became caught up in ”Super 8,” a passion project that was relatively small in its budget and shooting schedule but loomed large in the writer-director’s personal history. Screenwriters Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Damon Lindelof were in a sort of holding pattern waiting for Abrams to return to Federation space.
Greenwood said it’s clear already that the project has been worth the wait: “Everybody’s got their script – all printed on red paper with every actor’s name stamped across every page — and their brown bag and we’ve all signed these releases that are as long as your leg. The script is good, as you would expect. You won’t be given anything by anybody when it comes to the movie. It’s easier to push the building than get anything out of anyone. We have a huge stage here, I haven’t seen it. It’s exciting.”
About half an hour later, it was as if the entire coffee shop had been transported to Federation space; there was Pine, Zoë Saldana (Lt. Uhura), Karl Urban (Dr. “Bones” McCoy), Yelchin and Cho all parading by out front. “Hey man, you’re back!” Pine said to Greenwood, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Saldana chimed in with a “Welcome back!” A moment later Greenwood came back to the seat on the patio with a big smile. “Who wouldn’t want to be part of that?”
A few days earlier, on Saturday night, J.J. Abrams hosted a party on the rooftop of Bad Robot, his production offices on Olympic Boulevard in Santa Monica, and at one end of the chilly patio there was an orchestra in scarves and winter coats sitting shoulder-to-shoulder. The reason? The event was a salute to composer Michael Giacchino with a special emphasis on his work on “Super 8.”
The starry sky party was attended by some of the top filmmakers in the Comic-Con sector of Hollywood (Jon Favreau, Brad Bird, Joss Whedon, Frank Darabont and Kevin Smith) and actors with Abrams connections (Urban, Jennifer Garner and Elle Fanning among them) and when the orchestra played the themes of “Lost” and “Super 8″ there were plenty of smiles. When Giacchino conducted the musicians during the soaring theme from “Star Trek,” though, there were even more grins and Abrams bobbed his chin with a faraway expression. Another cosmic moment…
Principal photography started on the “Trek” sequel on Thursday. That day, by email, Lindelof answered a question I had asked him about the pressure and possibilities of this next voyage. His response was funny and revealing: “I have had the good fortune to once again step upon the Enterprise bridge, surrounded by the primary colors worn by, in my humble opinion, one of the greatest casts ever assembled. Every single person involved with this movie has the same ambition — to do everything they can to justify the long wait … to live up to the lofty expectations of 40-year ‘Trek’ fans and those who are coming to the party for the first time. The energy is crackling. The warp core is primed. And we are, at long last, ready to boldly go once again. I hope to God we don’t screw it up.”

— Geoff Boucher

Beyond STOKED! The family has reassembled, and prepped to kick some serious Klingon butt!

JPabes X

 
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