cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/15201387

> James Wan is finally done with ‘Aquaman’ and already has a couple of projects lined up. It’s already been announced that he is adapting “The Call of Cthulhu,” based on the 1928 H.P. Lovecraft short story of the same name. However, Wan has seemingly lined up another film as his potential next project. > >Daniel Richtman is reporting that Wan is set to direct “Creature From the Black Lagoon” for Universal. This is a remake of the 1954 classic which tackled a strange prehistoric beast lurking in the depths of the Amazonian jungle and the group of scientists who try to capture the animal to bring it back to civilization for study. > >Will Beall, who penned Wan’s ‘Aquaman,’ is writing the screenplay. The film will most likely be part of Universal’s “Monsterverse” which already includes “The Invisible Man” and the upcoming “Wolfman.”

> With two months to go before the release of “Megalopolis,” things are about to get awkward. > >Video has surfaced of director Francis Ford Coppola that shows the legendary director trying to kiss young female extras on the set of his ambitious sci-fi epic. Variety has obtained two videos (posted below) that were taken by a crewmember last year during the filming of a bacchanalian nightclub scene. > >Two sources told Variety that Coppola appeared to act with impunity on set. And unlike traditional movies, Coppola financed the entire $120 million budget himself, so there were none of the traditional checks and balances in place. The videos would appear to corroborate a bombshell report in the Guardian that claimed the 85-year-old director “tried to kiss some of the topless and scantily clad female extras” and told them “he was ‘trying to get them in the mood.’” The Guardian story broke right before “Megalopolis” made its world premiere in Competition in Cannes. > > The scene in question, which features actress Nathalie Emmanuel, was shot on Feb. 14, 2023, at the Tabernacle, a concert hall in Atlanta. The call sheet, which Variety has reviewed, says the actresses playing female party goers had been “cleared for topless nudity” while others in the scene had been “cleared for scantily clad.” > >The sources claim that Coppola’s behavior was unprofessional. One source who was on the set during the nightclub scene estimated that between 150 to 200 people were assembled, including background actors and crew as Coppola started directing the scene. The filmmaker kept leaping up to hug and kiss several women, often inadvertently inserting himself into the shot and ruining it, which the source said was unusual. > >“I’ve worked with really important directors and that behavior is uncommon — the most I’ve ever seen any director do is say something like, ‘high energy, guys,'” the source adds. “I’ve never seen anyone on set, and this extends to a camera operator, so much as touch an actor.” > >The source said that after multiple takes, Coppola got on a microphone and announced in earshot of everyone in the room, “Sorry, if I come up to you and kiss you. Just know it’s solely for my pleasure.”

> In a recent interview with BlackTree TV, Feige hinted that the forthcoming Blade movie, which is currently dated for 2025, could be rated R. > >“There were some great Blade movies years ago — they were all rated R. So I think that’s, like Deadpool, inherent with the character of Blade,” he said at the time. “For the last two years, as we’ve been trying to crack that movie, the most important thing for us is not rushing it and making sure we are making the right Blade movie.” > > ... > > When asked for an update regarding the film, Feige said, “[We’re] taking the amount of time that it needs. And right now, I don’t think there’s a scoop. If there is, it’s all yours. But Eric Pearson, who’s a great, great writer, is working on a draft right now. That is very exciting. Yeah. so, but we won’t get too excited until it’s really all there because Blade’s a very, very important character. Mahershala [Ali] is an amazing actor who walked in one day and said, ‘I think I wanna be Blade.’ And we wanna find the right way to do that.”

> IMAX confirms that Denis Villeneuve's Dune 3 is to release in 2026, though there might be a question mark over its Dune: Messiah title...

If you download this PDF report from the Q2 2024 IMAX Investor Presentation, there are charts showing which films are being produced with IMAX in mind all the way through to the end of 2026.

They are:

1. The Terminator (1984)
2. Conan the Barbarian (1982)
3. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
4. Total Recall (1990)
5. Predator (1987)
6. Commando (1985)
7. The Running Man (1987)
8. Pumping Iron (1977)
9. Stay Hungry (1976)
10. The Last Stand (2013)
11. The Expendables 2 (2012)
12. Sabotage (2014)
13. Raw Deal (1986)
14. True Lies (1994)
15. Last Action Hero (1993)
16. Eraser (1996)
17. Maggie (2015)
18. Escape Plan (2013)
19. End of Days (1999)
20. Twins (1988)

> A “terrifying” new horror movie has released in the US to nearly unanimous praise from critics. > >Oddity, an independent film focusing on a blind medium who is grieving the death of their twin sister, was released in the US on Friday (19 June). > >The Irish film, which viewers have enthusiastically recommended on social media, currently has a rating of 98 per cent positive on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes.

> Apple Original Films has won a spirited auction to land The Corsair Code, an original feature film set to star Chris Hemsworth. The film is based on a short story by Jonathan Tropper, which he brought to Hemsworth and his producing partner Ben Grayson. > >Hemsworth and Grayson will produce through their Wild State shingle, and Apple Studios will serve as the studio. Tropper will write the screenplay and produce through his shingle Tropper Ink. > >The Corsair Code is described as a high-octane, sci-fi mystery adventure, but they are keeping plot specifics under wraps. > > Tropper already is in business with an overall TV deal at Apple TV+, where he created and is the showrunner of Your Friends and Neighbors, which is in production, with Mad Men’s Jon Hamm the EP and star of the series. Tropper has two films heading into production this fall: The Wrecking Crew with Angel Manuel Soto directing Jason Momoa and Dave Bautista, and he rewrote Matchbox for Mattel Films with Extraction helmer Sam Hargrave directing. And, oh yeah, Tropper is going to write the Star Wars film that Deadpool & Wolverine’s Shawn Levy will direct. Novelist-screenwriter Tropper scripted the Levy-directed Ryan Reynolds starrer The Adam Project and the Levy-directed This Is Where I Leave You with Jason Bateman and Tina Fey. He also wrote Kodachrome, which starred Ed Harris, Jason Sudeikis and Elizabeth Olsen, and was EP and showrunner for the second and third seasons of Apple TV+’s See, which starred Momoa. Tropper also was co-creator and EP of Banshee.

I stopped after ten seconds, I don't want to spoil any more of the film. However, that transforming finger joke has sold it to me! 😆

Very technical explanation but interesting that no one has done a proper job until now.

In a previous thread @[email protected] said:

> If you download this PDF report from the Q2 2024 IMAX Investor Presentation, there are charts showing which films are being produced with IMAX in mind all the way through to the end of 2026.

And I thought it worth extracting the relevant images (I've kept them high resolution):

2024:

!

2025:

!

2026:

!

I wasn't expecting that. Now I'm even more curious...

Looks like it hasn't been delayed after all.

https://www.filmratings.com/search?filmTitle=watchmen

A one minute clip and a look at the SDCC exclusive poster.

> The latest film from Swedish director Levan Akin (And Then We Danced), Crossing is terrific: a rich and rewarding tapestry of characters and cultures flung together and flourishing.

> A group of friends gets together for a weekend in the country to celebrate one of their forthcoming nuptials. > >It's a bucks party in the bush with booze, drugs and a blow-up doll — what could go wrong? > >Well, plenty, as shown in the new Australian horror flick, Birdeater. > > It's the debut feature film from Sydney-based friends Jack Clark and Jim Weir, who told ABC RN's The Screen Show that many of the film's details were inspired by real life. > >Clark, who attended a Sydney private school, says: "There are definitely parts of it that are … fragments of stories or often moments of parties that we wanted to re-create. There were never whole images of people, but we definitely stole wholesale from people in our social circles."

> When Christian and Mads Tafdrup's Danish horror Gæsterne — aka Speak No Evil — landed on Shudder back in 2022, it left even the hardiest of genre lovers, well, speechless honestly. Amongst those beguiled by the duo's darker than dark tale about a Danish family whose charming Dutch hosts for a weekend getaway aren't quite all they seem was Blumhouse head honcho Jason Blum, who quickly snapped up the rights to an English-language remake. Relocated to the UK, written and helmed by Eden Lake's James Watkins, and starring Mackenzie Davis (Station Eleven) and Scoot McNairy (A Quiet Place Part II) as an American couple invited to Brits James McAvoy and Aisling Franciosi's (Game Of Thrones) idyllic country estate, the Speak No Evil remake already looks set to get tongues wagging once again. Just check out the new trailer for the holidaying horror below:

Trailer

The Terminator returns to theaters with 4K transfer...Will AI ruin another James Cameron film? ==============================================================================================

Mathew Plale

James Cameron's The Terminator returns to theaters this week but some are rightfully concerned it will be another 4K disaster.

!Terminator

He wasn't kidding when he said he'll be back. To mark the sci-fi classic's 40th anniversary, The Terminator will be returning to theaters this summer courtesy of Park Circus, complete with a 4K restoration. And while any theatrical release of a fan favorite is certainly something to get excited for, those who have been following James Cameron's other 4K releases might have reason to be cautious...

As we have reported on throughout the various releases of some of James Cameron's best films, there has been quite a bit of controversy over the transfers of said movies. The main problem here is the use of AI to clean up the images, doing so to such an extreme degree that the films not only lose grain structure but authenticity. When viewing these films on their 4K home video releases, it's so obvious that the image has been touched up to the point that they're hard to enjoy. Sure, the action and storytelling isn't changed but the distracting touch-ups throughout can easily pull you out of the experience. So, yes, it's reasonable to be concerned about the upcoming 4K of The Terminator, which was approved by Cameron himself.

James Cameron certainly sees the benefits of AI, once saying, "As you go down levels of magnitude you see more and more patterns, and you realise that greater pattern, the grand pattern, is made up of all these kinds of fractal details that need to be there. And this is where I think AI can be helpful because it can fill in some of the some of those detail levels and allow us as artists to stay at a higher level." But that right there is a perfect demonstration of just how AI can be misused when it comes to transfers, as relying on it for these minute details can easily serve as a shortcut that gets out of hand. And that's how you end up with the horrendous transfers of great films like True Lies and Aliens, giving us pause on getting too excited for The Terminator.

But others have defended all of these. Film preservationist Robert Harris was kind enough to reach out to JoBlo about these issues, writing, in part: "There should be no problems with the original elements. The work performed was a re-visualization. An entirely new digital product, which (to varying degrees of success) appears to have achieved Mr. Cameron's goals. If these were attempts at restoration, they would fail in all regards." You can read his entire thorough defense here.

The Terminator returns to theaters on July 25th.

Comprising entirely of new footage, here is a trailer for Snyder's Director's Cut of the Rebel Moon franchise.

Wow. Some of these moments make sense, as I knew stuff had been removed from the initial releases.

I'm quite excited about these all over again!

> Having already played a blinder with their cryptic marketing for one noodle-twisting psychological horror this year, Osgood Perkins' Nic Cage x Maika Monroe joint Longlegs, American indie label Neon look set to make it two for two in 2024 with Tilman Singer's Cuckoo. Following a curiosity grabbing, The Shining evocative first trailer back in April, the latest look at the Luz filmmaker's Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens starring scarer continues to only hint at the horrors that Singer has in store here — but those hints have us hooked.

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/14993868

> > Given the character's enduring success, movie adaptations invariably surfaced, the first being 1995's Sylvester Stallone vehicle Judge Dredd. Unfortunately for fans, the movie was a commercial and critical flop, universally panned for marring the character. Following years of development hell, it wasn't until 2012 that an unrelated adaptation in the form of Dredd—starring Karl Urban—surfaced. Though still a financial flop, Dredd was far better received by fans and critics alike for its greater adherence to the source material. However, this movie still garnered criticism in some sectors for its depiction of Mega-City One and lack of 2000 AD's signature satire, leading to another uneven adaptation. As such, fans are still clamoring for a movie that encapsulates everything that makes Judge Dredd so special. > > > > ... > > > > Ultimately, filmmakers should learn from past mistakes in any future Judge Dredd adaptation by combining the successes of Judge Dredd and Dredd. Indeed, if Judge Dredd's depiction of Mega-City One were fused with Dredd's characterization of the titular lawman, fans would no doubt be deeply satisfied. Furthermore, Dredd could have benefitted from including the iconic antagonists of Judge Dredd rendered in a comic-accurate manner. Importantly, both adaptations lack 2000 AD's characteristic playful yet biting humor and satire, and this should undoubtedly be addressed to ensure the financial and critical success of any future effort. > > > > Moreover, it is important to note that none of Judge Dredd's quintessential storylines beyond The Return of Rico have ever been adapted for the big screen despite now boasting two adaptations. The Day the Law Died, Judge Death, The Judge Child, Oz, and Judge Death Lives! are all iconic tales that are yet to see any semblance of adaptation, meaning there is still a wealth of source material to mine. In particular, having never seen Judge Dredd's arch-nemesis Judge Death grace the big screen seems incredibly perverse—imagine if no Batman movie had yet featured the Joker. By learning from the mistakes and successes of the past, filmmakers will hopefully one day grace fans with the Judge Dredd movie they deserve.

> A rodeo crowd waves cowboy hats as a man rides a bucking horse. Then comes a shower of leaves, a chorus of mobile phone rings and a wail of klaxons. Horses run wild and cars collide. One vehicle is whipped into the air by what a weatherman calls a once-in-a-generation tornado outbreak. > >This is a scene from Twisters, starring Glen Powell and Daisy Edgar-Jones, in which rivals come together to try to predict and possibly tame ferocious storms in central Oklahoma. A sequel to the hit disaster movie Twister from 1996, it is a Hollywood summer blockbuster designed to entertain – but also a lost opportunity to raise awareness of the climate crisis. > > “I just wanted to make sure that with the movie, we don’t ever feel like [it] is putting forward any message,” director Lee Isaac Chung, who grew up in Oklahoma’s tornado belt, told CNN. “I just don’t feel like films are meant to be message-oriented.” > > That may not come as a surprise to scientists and climate activists. Despite global heating’s existential threat to humanity, and despite Hollywood’s left-leaning tendencies, the subject rarely makes it to the big screen. > >A study published by the nonprofit consultancy Good Energy and Colby College’s Buck Lab for Climate and Environment analysed whether the climate crisis was present in 250 of the top-grossing fictional films between 2013 and 2022. In only 32 of the films (12.8%) was it clear that climate change exists, and in only 24 of them (9.6%) was it clear that a character knows it.

A two and a half minute trailer done right. No idea what the film involves, seemingly no spoilers, and I'm looking forward to it.

> Salvadoran-Mexican director Tatiana Huezo is a documentary film-maker who received great acclaim for her non-fiction work before pivoting triumphantly to drama in 2021 with Prayers for the Stolen – a heart-wrenching film, with something docu-realist in its gentleness and urgency, about children caught up in Mexican cartel violence. Now Huezo has returned to documentary with a film set in the remote village of El Eco in the central Mexican highlands. While Prayers for the Stolen was fiction with the texture of documentary, this – fascinatingly – is documentary with the look of fiction. > >After a shooting period of a year and a half, Huezo and co-editor Lucrecia Gutierrez have shaped a family story so that it looks like exactly like realist drama, perhaps even drama adapted from a novel. In fact, if I didn’t know that it was a documentary, I would assume that it was a drama, devised through improvisation.

> Once again, Venice film festival director Alberto Barbera presents a mouthwateringly calorific menu of awards-bait movies, and a pageant of Hollywood stars about to arrive at the Palazzo del Cinema, kicking off with Tim Burton’s sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. > > The debate about festival gender parity among directors, never a huge priority in Venice, does seem to have receded still further in the memory – but there are brilliant women directors and it’s another festival of alpha-list auteurs and bankable names either side of the camera, both in competition and out – 86-year-old French icon Claude Lelouch is incidentally in the latter list, poignantly giving us his swan song Finalement … Ou La Folie Des Sentiments.

> While many American directors drew inspiration from Kurosawa’s vision of cinematic poetry as well as his unique choreography of action, the Japanese director was himself influenced by American cinema when he was starting out in the industry. On multiple occasions, Kurosawa cited John Ford as a source of constant amazement, alongside some of Ford’s compatriots. > >It was Ford who helped Kurosawa properly understand the concept of the cinematic image, learning from the way in which the Stagecoach director composed his signature panoramas. Unfortunately, Kurosawa did not hold the same opinion when it came to Ford’s successors who tried to fit into a different mould as times changed along with the sensibilities of modern audiences. > > During a conversation from the 1990s with Maani Petgar that was published on Cinephilia & Beyond, Kurosawa revealed the heavy disappointment he felt when he watched contemporary American movies that failed to do anything meaningful with the genre frameworks of action and sci-fi. > >Kurosawa explained: “Regarding American cinema, I could say that much better films were made in the past. Today’s American cinema provides the wrong service to the audience. Violence and car crashes are often seen. What pleasure is there in watching such scenes? Old American films expressed human problems quite well, but these days, the American cinema has problems.” > >Drawing a comparison with Hollywood classics that had a different approach, he added: “There is no doubt that a film like Jurassic Park is interesting, but there used to be more impressive films in the past. In contrast, films like those of [Abbas] Kiarostami touch the heart and are very beautiful. These new sci-fi, action films, are good but they are not cinema.”

cross-posted from: https://feddit.uk/post/14970496

> "Dredge, developed by Black Salt Games and published by Team17, turned out to be one of the best games of 2023. The indie fishing-horror game landed to superb critic and player reviews, sold over one million copies in the first handful of months after its release, and the revenue was even put back into the game to create some expansions. > > When the many awards ceremonies came around, Dredge was a regular nominee, even being put up for four accolades at the BAFTA awards, including for its narrative and game design. So, with Hollywood constantly on the hunt for known IPs to reboot or adapt for the big screen, it only makes sense that Dredge would get a film. > > Dredge looks to have the makings of a possibly intense horror movie on the water. Importantly, the production company bringing Dredge to live-action, Salt Kitchen, will be bringing in developer Black Salt Games to further adapt the story and world for the big screen. > > In the recent past, Story Kitchen’s co-founder has helped to appease gaming and movie fans with the Sonic the Hedgehog movies. Notably, after a poor response to Sonic’s initial design, the team pushed back the film and adjusted Sonic’s eyes to better fit the iconic character’s in-game design. > > The co-founder, Dmitri M. Johnson, has been on a streak of video game adaptations which also includes the upcoming Tomb Raider animated series, Streets of Rage, Sifu, and Vampire Survivors. In theory, this means that Story Kitchen knows how to adapt video games in a way that creates a coherent movie and sticks to the rules and established lore of the IP. > > While a window for the release of the Dredge movie hasn’t been announced, a mini synopsis has been revealed. As relayed in this IGN report, it’ll be along the lines of “The Sixth Sense on the water,” utilising the blend of influences from Ernest Hemingway and HP Lovecraft to create a grounded, atmospheric cosmic horror story..."