Completely the opposite to my expectation of Iron Man being the best superhero movie since Batman Begins, is my feeling that The Incredible Hulk is going to suck just as much as Ang Lee’s attempt at the character in 2003.

The film is just two months away and if it wasn’t for the fact that I was a fan of the original comic character or that I enjoyed the various t.v. show incarnations over the years - then I don’t think I would see this. Nothing they have shown me so far gets me excited, including this poster…

source - coming soon

Thanks for visiting us at Obsessed With Film, we update several times a day, so if you haven't done so yet you may want to subscribe to our RSS feed. You can also sign up to receive updates via e-mail.

In a movie industry climate where studio’s are going to be spending more and more money on trying to find the next Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings franchise, this kind of situation I can forsee happening again - where a studio pumps way too much cash into a project which either isn’t distributed correctly or has the wrong talent on board. Or both.

It happened with The Golden Compass late last year, the deciding factor in New Line’s demise and eventual take-over from Warner Bros. And I’m sure it will happen again.

It’s a bad day for those employee’s of New Line but they must have seen this coming after the WB buyout. This comes from Reuters…

Time Warner Inc (TWX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) will cut 450 jobs from New Line Cinema in a highly anticipated move following an earlier decision to fold the movie studio under the wing of Warner Bros Entertainment.

About 40 of New Line’s employees will be offered new jobs at Warner Bros in positions that will not displace existing Warner Bros jobs, a Time Warner spokesman said.

Less than five years ago, the Lord of the Rings franchise ended and made New Line well over a billion dollars but frequent mis-management and the belief that they could turn any property into a similar hit has cost many people their jobs.

source - coming soon

Variety say that a trailer titled Satan’s Alley will mark Tobey Maguire’s cameo in the upcoming comedy Tropic Thunder. In Grindhouse style, it’s a fake trailer that will depict a non-existing movie and will actually co-star Robert Downey Jr.

At this point it’s unclear as to whether the trailer will play before prints of Tropic Thunder or during the movie… my guess would be during as the film revolves around several of the most outrageous fictional Hollywood actors who are brought together to film an ensemble war movie under the direction of Steve Coogan. So these trailers will probably play as Coogan is picking his cast - as the REAL trailer for the film suggested.

You will notice in said trailer for Tropic Thunder there was a moment when Ben Stiller delivers the line “Who left the fridge open?” in Hot Fuzz style dialogue and holding two massive guns on each hand.

This could also have been from a similar fake trailer.

However the trades do mention something really interesting. They say that the Fox Searchlight logo played before the trailers… which is strange because Tropic Thunder is made by a collaboration of Dreamworks and Paramount and would suggest that they would play before the real film as to not get us confused over who made Tropic Thunder.

We also have to wonder if this is how Tom Cruise, Matthew McConaughey and ton of mystery actors make their cameo’s for the film?

Guess we will have to wait and see. For once, I’m actually hoping they play within the film as I think it’s a much clever idea for us to be introduced to these characters by the characters they would usually play in other movies. Does that make sense? And I do think that’s the way it will go down… it just seems to fit and it easily allows for those much talked about cameo’s.

source - /film

A ton of Iron Man reviews have hit the web over the last 24 hours as we are getting real close to that May 2nd release date. You can read a load of them (probably spoiler filled) at AICN.

I’ve avoided them most for the fear of spoilers but there was one posted at Thompson on Hollywood which I spotted posted on /Film which I thought was interesting and free of spoilerific facts to post…

“It is a thinking person’s superhero film with more character development than special effects and action scenes (though there are plenty of those which are nicely balanced so we get involved in the story rather than bored by non-stop effects.). Downey is terrific…funny, smart and charming…and very buff. Paltrow seems right out of 60’s superhero comics or Money Penny from early Bond: proper and subservient assistant who is smart below the surface and more than a little enamored of her boss. It should be a hit but 200 million is a long way to go when it is undercut in subsequent weeks by more blockbusters.”

Sounds perfect!

So if we look at the track record of films made from Marvel properties, I have it pinned down like this…

AWESOME

Spider-Man

Spider-Man 2

X-Men 2

GOOD

X-Men (extremely important to the superhero franchise and saved Marvel - a failing company at the time)

X-Men 3: The Last Stand (it’s MEGA flawed but it’s still really fun).

Blade

Blade II

HIDEOUS

Spider-Man 3

Fantastic Four

Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer

Blade: Trinity

Ghost Rider

Elektra

The Punisher

I have the score 3 awesome, 4 good and 7 hideous. That’s 7 I enjoyed… 7 I didn’t.

How do you score up and where do you think Iron Man will finish?

Guillmero del Toro posted this neat little update on his messageboards a few weeks back which has just today been noticed by the worldwide Internet press.

It’s nothing major, just a nice quick and painless update on The Hobbit. It’s real nice to know things are still going smoothly because this is the furthest we have been in a long while for this prequel to actually happen and with the genius that is del Toro behind the lens and the actors from the LOTR not getting any younger - I don’t think they will get an opportunity as good as this ever again.

…there has been a lot of movement. And for the last few weeks there has been a lot of creative / cast / crew / visual talks and agreements and we have witnessed great progress in areas that I cannot disclose or that have already leaked from other sources.

I am dying to share news but I have to be patient and wait until the papers are done and my attachment is real. Nevertheless- a LOT of progress in defining the films, their cast and crew. And, may I add, we are all happily in synch about all creative aspects so far and all willing and eager to move forth.

I cannot say more but if all’s well the time will come To talk of many things: Of shoes — and ships — and sealing wax — Of cabbages — and kings –

May Luck be with us

GDT

PD my silnece means nothing more than the fact that we are RUNNING against an impossible deadline on the HBII film, poster, campaign, ADR, VFX, etc I am SWAMPED.

BUT- Expect good things in the next 2 weeks and a nice item at COMICON. See you there-

Comic Con presumably being the New York one this weekend. So then, is he hinting that we will see Hellboy II stuff or news on The Hobbit? Either way, it should be pretty exciting.

source - coming soon

Screen Gem’s ABSOLUTELY HIDEOUS looking remake of the 1980’s horror movie Prom Night won the audiences cash this weekend with a huge $22.7 million opening and is the 12th highest April opening ever.

The movie has blown out of the water the final gross of the original Jamie Lee Curtis star vehicle and has grossed twice the amount in it’s opening weekend than the Jessica Alba horror vehicle The Eye.

It’s bad news for those wanting R-Rated horror films to return. Prom Night was a squeaky clean PG-13 and there’s little doubt that high school females were attracted to this picture. The movie also had no stars and could be bad news for the Alba’s, The Gellar’s and the like who can’t find an audience these days. Studio’s may in the future go cheaper.

Director Nelson McCormick’s next film will be a remake of the 80’s horror The Stepfather due out in September 09.

So in second place was the heavily promoted Street Kings with the mega star Keanu Reeves and was actually the first Post-Academy Award project (yes he was in The Great Debaters but he signed up to this one first) for Forest Whitaker. The movie also co-starred hot young actor Chris Evans, the lead of the popular t.v. show House in Hugh Laurie and popular rapper/actor Common.

So why did the movie flop? Well re-watching the trailer there ain’t a shot in the film that doesn’t involve a gun and once again after Training Day and Harsh Times - David Ayer has a wanna Grand Theft Auto movie. Maybe Rockstar should just give him the rights to go wild on that series because he has been desperate to do so for a while now.

For Keanu Reeves it’s a similar opening to the 2006 romantic movie The Lake House (which would go on to be successful from word of mouth) but it is actually his lowest opening wide release film in seven years. His next film, the remake of The Day The Earth Stood Still is possibly his riskest movie in years and it’s going to be real interesting to see how that performs this Christmas.

Elsewhere 21 continues to find an audience, that movie only dropped 28% for the weekend and is now totalling $65 million on a $35 million budget. Leatherheads is REALLY struggling with $21.9 million from a budget of $58 million and is sinking really fast now.

source - coming soon

The Oni Press graphic novel The Damned by Cullen Bunn and Brian Hurtt has been picked up at Dreamworks with David DiGilio (Eight Below) to adapt.

The novel is described as a horror-noir and it follows a L.A. detective who discovers a new gang with links to the supernatural have infiltrated the city…

Caught in the middle of a sinister web of murder, kidnapping, betrayal, and damnation, Eddie – cursed and unable to rest- can’t escape the city’s most ruthless warring demon gangs. This action-packed prohibition-era thriller combines the supernatural sensibilities of Joss Whedon with the stark reality of MILLER’S CROSSING and THE GODFATHER.

Now doesn’t that sound cool?

We talk an awful lot about graphic novels being translated to film but this one sounds like it may have something. Reminds me a little of Constantine but set in a more ruthless gangster world.

Would love to see Joss Whedon take this project on.

source - bloody disgusting

I do love my Egyptian mummy movies and I will admit to feeling a little bummed out that The Mummy franchise has shipped itself off to China.

So I’m delighted to see this new project take shape.

Variety say Fox Animation have optioned the kids book The Anubis Tapestry: Between Twilights which hits the usual genre fare but also thankfully has a detailed mythology…

Fox plans a loose adaptation of the novel, which kicks off when a mummy’s curse condemns Dr. George Henry’s spirit to the Egyptian Underworld. While trying to free him, Henry’s son Chance plumbs the depths of the Underworld and encounters a variety of monsters.

The series is written by Bruce Zick who has worked on a ton of movies in the animated department including Finding Nemo, The Lion King and Pocahontas and will probably work on this film in some capacity.

Love it!

Monster House laid the groundwork of what a kids animated horror movie could do. I think there’s some untapped potential in this genre. And I do love Mummy movies!

Zack Snyder has attached his name to many projects in the last 12 months but from the sound of todays Variety he has finally found one that he can call his next feature.

The director has signed up for the animated film Guardians of a Ga’Hoole, based on the extensive series of children’s books by Kathryn Lasky.

Pic is set in the Forest of Tyto, where Barn Owls live in peace until their kingdom is threatened by an evil that could destroy their home.

According to it’s WIKI page - most of the main characters are owls and the tone is something between Watership Down and an epic fantasy. There are currently 14 books with more on the way… it’s not known which book the film will be adapted from but by the sounds of the title and plot - it may be a little bit taken from here and there.

And if you are wondering because I know I was - Ga’Hoole, in the owl language, means “Great Spirit of Hoole”.

John Orloff (A Mighty Heart) and John Collee (Master & Commander) have collaborated on the script together which is in the hands of Village Roadshow and Warner Bros.

The plan is to make the feature out in Australia with the same guys who worked on the animated Happy Feet and for it to be ready next year or 2010.

Chain-smoker Shia LaBeouf has agreed to star in the drug thriller Dark Fields, an adaptation of Alan Gynn’s 2002 novel which is in the hands of Universal.

The story centers on a guy who gets a hold of the ultimate smart pill - which would allow you to do things such as learn another language in one night, see patterns in the stock market with no experience and gives you the confidence to pickup anyone women you like in a room full of strangers. Of course like any drug, there are side effects - blackouts, tiredness and even murder!

Neil Burger who directed the interestingly made but totally flawed thriller The Illusionist will helm from a script by Leslie Dixon (Hairspray, Pay it Forward). Dixon has taken a less cash incentive on the movie because she believes in the potential of it and will have more say during it’s production than a usual writer would have, presumably she had a hand in this casting too.

Project sounds pretty cool and I really did like the atmospheric tone that Burger brought to The Illusionist. If he is working with a better script there could be something very cool brewing here and I know LaBeouf gets a lot of stick but I think he’s a fine young actor. Looking forward to this.