Friday | April 20
Tarantino in competition at Cannes
Quentin Tarantino leads the US challenge at the Cannes Film Festival this year, taking his movie Death Proof into the main competition where he will face heavyweight compatriots the Coen Brothers and Gus Van Sant. Organisers unveiling the selection for the 60th edition of the world's biggest film festival on Thursday also announced that Michael Moore, controversial winner of the Palme d'Or prize in 2004, will be back on the southern French coast. His documentary Sicko, about the US health care system, is not in the main competition but Moore's presence in Cannes will generate valuable publicity. The opening film in Cannes will be Chinese film maker Wong Kar Wai's My Blueberry Nights, starring Jude Law, Ed Harris, Natalie Portman and jazz singer Norah Jones in a story about a woman travelling across America. — James Mackenzie, Reuters
In other news
• Eric Bana to take on Time Traveller role: BBC.co.uk
• Matthew Fox joins Speed Racer: Hollywood Reporter
• All things to all men — Natalie Portman interview: The Guardian
Sunday | April 8
Zombie takes on Michael Myers
This strange remake virus continues to infect Hollywood. Now comes Rob Zombie's remake (or "reimagining", as they're calling it) of the John Carpenter classic — the film that created the slasher genre — Halloween. Have a look at the teaser trailer here and you'll see it doesn't look too bad — at least they've kept the William Shatner mask and the spooky theme music. But I've said it before and I'll say it again: do we REALLY need all these remakes?
— Stuart O'Connor
In other news
• The 20 coolest film cameos: Premiere
• Rose & Rosario fire up the Grindhouse: Rolling Stone
• Roger Ebert celebrates 40 years of film critique: Rogerebert.com
Thursday | April 5
The truth is out — X-Files 2 confirmed
Actor David Duchovny has confirmed a sequel to the X-Files movie is in the works — with himself and Gillian Anderson reprising the characters that made them famous. The actor, who played Agent Fox Mulder in both the cult TV series and 1998 movie, reveals X-Files creator Chris Carter and writer Frank Spotnitz are busy working on a script for the new film. The news comes after weeks of speculation surrounding Anderson's involvement in the project. Duchovny says: "This week, they're starting some kind of road towards doing it. Gillian and I both want to be in it now. We're happy to do it. At this point all of the kind of fatigue and anxiety that we had towards the end of a nine-year run is gone. We've forgotten why we hate one another and can only remember why we love one another and we're very happy to go back. Chris and Frank are going over the story. It's a story they've had for a few years but we haven't all settled on the fact that we wanted to do it, so now they're hammering it out." — Hollywood.com
In other news
• Bumbling Bean tops UK box office: The BBC
• Spidey 3 to get New York premiere: Newsday
• Porky's director & son killed in LA car crash: Reuters
• Aardman Animation gets into bed with Sony Pictures: Digital Spy
Sunday | March 25
Will Hogwarts be a Hermione-free zone?
There were rumours last week that Emma Watson, who has starred as Hermione Granger in the first five Harry Potter films, would not play the character for the final two. She wanted to move on to other projects, it was reported — even though Warner Bros was offering her a cool $2m per movie. Well it seems she's changed her mind and will do the flicks after all. "I could never let Hermione go — she is my hero!," Watson said in a statement released by the studio. "I love her too much and love what playing her has meant to me." In the meantime, our own Neil Davey has been pondering who could take over as Hermione if Watson really did pull out... — Stuart O'Connor
In other news
• Cultures clash in cinema history: The BBC
• Tarantino slams Bond bosses: Hollywood.com
• A lovely PG version of 300: StupidVideos.com
• Who will replace Tobey Maguire as Spidey? Filmwad
• Titanic stars to reunite for DreamWorks project Entertainment Weekly
Wednesday | March 14
Norbit hits No.1 at UK box office. Critics officially give up
So filmgoers have now stopped taking any notice of reviews whatsoever. That's the only explanation I can think of for the shocking news that, in its first week of release, the new Eddie Murphy stinker Norbit has shot to the top of the UK box office charts. It took almost £2m in its first 3 days, and knocked the much-more-worthy Hot Fuzz into second place. So the fact that the general concensus among critics is that Norbit is crude, vulgar, unfunny, mean-spirited, gross, peurile — and they're its god points — had absolutely zero impact on the poor mugs who actually forked over money to see this drivel in the cinema. All I can do is shake my head. — Stuart O'Connor
In other news
• Escape From New York to be remade? Moviehole.net
• Depp takes a break to care for daughter: EntertainmentWise
• Depardieu to star in French gangster film: Reuters
• Iran throws a tanty over 300: The BBC | The Guardian
• WIll Superman kneel before Zod again? Empire
Saturday | March 10
Is Mr Bean red faced? No, just Red Nosed...
Mr Bean’s Holiday is the official film for Comic Relief's Red Nose Day 2007, with previews on March 24 and 25 and a UK-wide opening on March 30. Ten years after Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie, Rowan Atkinson returns with one of Britain’s best loved characters. Directed by Steve Bendelack from a screenplay by Robin Driscoll and Hamish McColl, Mr Bean’s Holiday sees the titular character heading to the south of France for a holiday. But his voyage from London to the Riviera soon transcends into one of mischief and mayhem as he inadvertently creates havoc wherever he goes. The character of Bean, created by Rowan Atkinson and Richard Curtis, was first launched on British television in 1990. It gained such popularity and success the shows were sold in over 200 countries and in 1997 the film Bean was released, grossing over $240 million worldwide. Now, 15 years later, Mr Bean remains one of the most recognised and popular characters ever created.
• Watch the trailer
• Official site: www.beansholiday.co.uk
Springfield to host Simpsons movie premiere ... but which Springfield?
The Simpsons movie is set for its world premiere on July 27. But it won't be in Los Angeles or New York, as you would expect. No, Fox have decided to hold the film's red-carpet debut in Springfield. The problem is that Springfield is the second-most common town name in the US (after Fairview), which is why Simpsons creator Matt Groening chose the name for the place where his fictional family of misfits resides. So Fox has decided to hold a competition, and get 16 Springfields — including Oregon, Colorado, Florida, Ohio, Illinois, Vermont, Maine and Georgia — to each submit a short film to sing the praises of their town and link it to the TV show. Of course, with Groening hailing from Oregon, that state is considered a front-runner. This should be interesting — keep an eye on YouTube for the results. — Stuart O'Connor
Thursday | March 1
Coming soon: Sunshine
Fox Searchlight has announced release dates for Danny Boyle's new sci-fi thriller, Sunshine. It's out in the UK and Ireland on April 5, Australia April 12 and in the US in the autumn. Sunshine reteams Boyle with his 28 Days Later cohorts, Alex Garland and Andrew Macdonald. According to the press release: "It is the year 2057, the sun is dying and mankind faces extinction. Earth's last hope lies with the Icarus II, a spacecraft with a crew of eight men and women. Their mission: to deliver a nuclear device designed to reignite our fading sun. Deep into their voyage, out of radio contact with Earth, the crew hear a distress beacon from the Icarus I, which disappeared on the same mission seven years earlier. A terrible accident throws their mission into jeopardy and soon the crew find themselves fighting not only for their lives and their sanity, but for the future of us all..." Sunshine stars Rose Byrne (Troy), Cliff Curtis (Whale Rider), Chris Evans (Fantastic Four), Troy Garity (After the Sunset), Cillian Murphy (28 Days Later), Hiroyuki Sanada (The Last Samurai), Benedict Wong (Dirty Pretty Things) and Michelle Yeoh (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).
• Watch clips at the DNA FIlms website
• Watch the trailer at the Fox Searchlight website
Star Trek XI in pre-launch
Paramount Pictures has officially announced the return of Star Trek on Christmas Day 2008, and confirmed that JJ Abrams will sit in the director's chair. "If there’s something I’m dying to see, it’s the brilliance and optimism of Roddenberry’s world brought back to the big screen," Abrams was quoted as saying in a Paramount press release. "Our goal is to make a picture for everyone — life-long fans and the uninitiated. Needless to say, I am honored and excited to be part of this next chapter of Star Trek." Casting rumours have also surfaced for the film, which is said to be set at Starfleet Academy and involve the first meeting of a young James Kirk and a certain Vulcan named Spock.
Casting rumours: Matt Damon as Kirk, Adrien Brody as Spock, Gary Sinise as Bones, Daniel Dae Kim as Sulu and James McAvoy as Scotty. — Stuart O'Connor
Park your car sir?
As the buzz grows about the Transformers movie that's due out this July, there's a rather cute little viral that's doing the rounds. Enjoy. And don't blink, or you'll miss it — it's more than meets the eye...
• Watch it HERE
Sunday | January 28
The best Bond ever?
Since the release of Casino Royale, everybody who's seen it agrees that Daniel Craig makes a damned good James Bond. But if anyone has the right to come out and say, "No, sorry, Danny's crap" it would be the bloke he replaced in the role, Pierce Brosnan. The bloke who went a long way to reviving the Bond franchise after things went a bit wrong when Tim Dalton did it. The bloke who was appallingly treated by Babs Brocolli and Eon Productions when they wanted to get rid of him. Ever the gentleman, though, Brosnan has come out and hailed Craig as the best Bond ever, saying he fuly deserved his BAFTA nomination. "Daniel Craig is the greatest Bond ever and deservedly so," he said. "He was a great choice. But I'm still proud to be part of that legacy." Fair enough then. But let's get real here ... the matter won't be settled until we hear from the original (and, for our money, the best), Sean Connery. — From Hollywood.com