Sure we’ve got a whole summer season of films to look forward to, but there’s a ton of good material in the works that’ll undoubtedly make for exciting fare further down the line. The Black List’s Cut Bank just picked up Armie Hammer, Sir Ben Kingsley, John Malkovich, Michael Sheen and Teresa Palmer to star while the feature version of the short film Pioneer got Casey Affleck, Ben Foster and Rooney Mara.
Iron Man 3 looks to be adding Andy Lau and Jessica Chastain to its roster while the Carrie remake recruited Julianne Moore. Kristen Stewart is making moves as well, taking on the gritty thriller Cali to both star in and produce. Meanwhile, Sam Raimi joins the Poltergeist remake team, not as a director, but as the film’s producer.
We’ve also tracked down a ton of juicy stories from CinemaCon and have our own wrap-up report from the Tribeca Film Festival. It’s all coming your way in the weekly Movie News Cheat Sheet.
1. The Tribeca Film Festival: As the Tribeca Film Festival comes to a close, the festival winners were announced and sadly, I didn’t get the chance to catch a single one of them. War Witch snatched up the Best Narrative Feature honor while its star, Rachel Mwanza, was named Best Actress. Best New Narrative Director went to Una Noche’s Lucy Mulloy and the film was also honored with the Best Cinematography and the Best Actor titles. You can click here to see the full list of winners, but for now, how about my favorite? As far as sheer entertainment goes, Struck By Lightning was a downright blast, but Caroline and Jackie was easily the most striking of the week thanks to incredibly honest performances from stars Marguerite Moreau and Bitsie Tulloch. Death of a Superhero is officially the first film to make me cry in quite some time and Deadfall was downright chilling. You can find some of my Tribeca coverage right here at Shockya.com and see the lot over at LittleMissCritical.com. Until next year, Tribeca!
2. Sam Raimi to Bring Back Poltergeist: Looks like Carol Anne’s got her eye on that damn light again. As reported by THR, Sam Raimi just joined MGM’s Poltergeist remake as a producer. Raimi isn’t getting behind the lens for this one, but will assist in the search for a director. Raimi’s Oz: The Great and Powerful collaborator, David Lindsay-Abaire is currently working on the script, which, like the 1982 original, will tell the story of a family who moves into a new home that happens to be built on ancient burial grounds.
3. CinemaCon: And that’s a wrap on CinemaCon 2012. A ton of big news poured out of the Las Vegas based movie convention and of the assortment, The Hobbit might have made the most waves courtesy of this whole 48 frames per second debacle. Badass Digest described the footage as “drenched in a TV-like – specifically 70s era BBC – video look.” On the other hand, Ang Lee’s Life of Pi wowed crowds. ComingSoon does its best to provide a play-by-play of the footage, but notes, “It’s doubtful we can do justice to the fantastic imagery and cinematography.” Collider gives a thumbs up to Disney’s Wreck-it-Ralph, stating, “I was in love from the first frame. It’s like they made this movie just for me,” while the first 30 minutes of Brave finally got First Showing psyched for the film’s summer release. According to The Wrap, The Dark Knight Rises offered up a series of shots in which “Planes crash, football fields explode and heroes brood, all to great effect.” And this is only scratching the surface of CinemaCon 2012. There’s tons of great coverage floating around out there, so Google CinemaCon 2012 and get reading!
4. Cut Bank Gets Five: As if being on the Black List doesn’t raise intrigue enough; the Roberto Patino-penned Cut Bank just secured five big stars. As reported by Deadline, Armie Hammer, Sir Ben Kingsley, John Malkovich, Michael Sheen and Teresa Palmer are all on board to step in front of the lens for director Matt Shakman, a TV veteran making his feature directorial debut. The film is set in Cut Bank, Montana where Dwayne McLaren, a former high school football star, now works as an auto mechanic. Out of desperation to finally get out of his small hometown, Dwayne winds up kicking off a series of events that’ll change him and the town forever. Production is due to begin in the fall of this year.
5. Two More Scientists for Iron Man 3?: We know Ben Kingsley’s villain has plans to spread a virus via nanobots, we know Guy Pearce is on board as the geneticist Aldrich Killian and now it looks like we might be adding two more scientists into the mix. Twitch Film is reporting that Chinese megastar Andy Lau is in the final stages of negotiations to play a scientist – and a good one! Apparently Lau’s character will help Tony Stark by giving him the new technology he needs to go to battle with Kingsley’s character. Meanwhile, Deadline is reporting that Jessica Chastain is also a potential Iron Man 3 star, possibly taking on the role of “a sexy scientist.” Apparently Marvel lined up Diane Kruger, Gemma Arterton and Isla Fisher for this same role, but since Chastain’s schedule freed up, it looks like she’s the one that’ll book the gig.
6. Kristen Stewart Takes Cali: Get ready for even more Kristen Stewart. With both Snow White and the Huntsman and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 shot and on the way, Stewart’s lined up her next endeavor, the gritty action film Cali. Stewart will star as Mya, a young woman who stars in and sells a fake snuff film then runs off to enjoy the cash with her boyfriend. Years later, Mya is forced to “return from the dead” to help her little sister back in Cali and go to battle with “angry former business partners, homicidal porn stars, stoner vet techs,” and “an unstoppable killing machine in a cowboy hat.” Not only is Stewart headlining Cali, but the project will also mark her first go at producing, too. (via Variety)
7. Carrie Opts for Julianne Moore: There had been talk of both Julianne Moore and Jodie Foster being up for the role of Carrie’s mother in Kimberly Perice’s Carrie remake, but, according to Deadline, it’s Moore who’s confirmed to play mommy to a girl with some vicious telekinetic powers. While Moore assumes the role Piper Laurie originated in the 1976 original, it’s Chloe Moretz that’ll take on Sissy Spacek’s part of the film’s titular character.
8. Affleck, Foster and Mara for Ain’t The Bodies Saints: Say hello to yet another powerhouse cast. David Lowery is turning his short film, Pioneers, into a feature and, according to Deadline, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster and Rooney Mara will help him do it. Pioneers tells the story of a 1970s outlaw who busts out of prison and treks across Texas to get home to his wife and daughter. The short made its debut at Sundance and then won the Grand Jury Award at SXSW. From there, Lowery developed the feature version, Ain’t Them Bodies Saints, at the January 2011 Sundance Writers Lab.
9. Trailers: Lawless, The Impossible, Hick: Just before heading to the Cannes Film Festival, Lawless delivers its very first trailer, featuring a charming Shia LaBeouf, but with a naughty trade. While the new trailer for The Impossible is entirely in Spanish, the piece will undoubtedly give you chills courtesy of the intense and painfully recent subject matter as well as director Juan Antonio Bayona’s incredible visuals. Last up is Chloe Mortez in the first trailer for Hick. Moretz plays a foul-mouthed, violent young lady yet again, but this time she’s merely armed with a sassy attitude and single pistol.
10. Box Office: It’s a sad weekend for our quartet of newcomers. Think Like a Man had no trouble holding onto that top spot, even with a 46.5% loss. Its $18 million haul blew away The Pirates! Band of Misfits, which only posted $11.4 million on a $3,395 per theater average. The Lucky One took a tough hit, dropping nearly 50% and only taking in another $11.3 million after its big opening. In case you haven’t noticed, The Hunger Games is the real deal. Not only did the film demolish records its opening weekend, but it’s held on very strong since, earning another $11.3 million in its sixth weekend, bringing its domestic grand total to just over $372 million. Sadly, The Five-Year Engagement underperformed, only earning $3,800 per theater and taking a total of $11.2 million its first weekend out. But at least it made it into the top five. The Raven and Safe didn’t come close. Safe barely edged out The Raven with $7.7 million as compared to the latter’s $7.25 million. Chimpanzee lost half of its opening weekend earnings as expected, leaving it with about $5.5 million for weekend two, while The Three Stooges continues its moderately slow decline and brings another $5.4 million to the bank. Rounding out the top five is The Cabin in the Woods, which makes its final showing on the top ten with $4.5 million.
(via Box Office Mojo)
