Thompson on Hollywood

Amazing Spider-Man Comic-Con Thunder Stolen by Ifans Arrest

The big reveal at Sony's Friday The Amazing Spider-Man panel at Comic-Con was the villain of Marc Webb's superhero reboot, The Lizard, played by gifted Welsh actor Rhys Ifans, who is pixellated when in giant Lizard mode. In Hall H the studio screened a clip of Lizard terrorizing two school girls in a school lavatory, breaking up through a toilet. (The LAT made a fuss about Ifans here).

By Anne Thompson
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July 23, 2011 6:30 AM
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The Amazing Spider-Man Trailer Hits on Eve of Comic-Con; Not So Amazing

The Amazing Spider-Man trailer has leaked all over the web just in time for Sony's presentation at Comic-Con and a full year before its July 3, 2012 release. Rather than show us something new, the official version below shows us what's already been done before, but this time with Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone and 3-D. (500) Days of Summer director Marc Webb weaves a seemingly familiar story with new faces. Check out Sam Raimi's 2002 Spider-Man trailer, also below.

By Sophia Savage
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July 20, 2011 12:33 PM
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Marvel Plays Captain America Too Straight, Early Reviews UPDATED

So far so good for Marvel Entertainment, which has churned out more blockbusters than stumbles. This year, both Thor and X-Men: First Class delivered, and Sony's 2012 reboot of Spider-Man will be previewed at Comic-Con, along with a full screening of Captain America: First Avenger, which always presented a challenge. How do you dust off a patriotic World War II Nazi-fighting hero--battling larger-than-life the Red Skull--and make ten-year-old boys believe in him again? Marvel bravely took on the task, starting out the movie with the discovery of a buried fighter plane in the Arctic, and reaching back in time to resurrect the origin story of Steve Rogers, a 90-pound weakling-turned-super-strong-war-hero.

By Anne Thompson
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July 20, 2011 8:05 AM
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Comic-Con Preview: The New (Amazing) Spider-Man, Twilight: Breaking Dawn, Masters of the Web UPDATE

As we gird our loins for this week's San Diego schlep to Comic-Con--which is not my idea of a good time, just getting into everything is an enormous chore--the revelations are coming fast and furious. Yes, we will see Cowboys and Aliens and Captain America there, and Steven Spielberg is making his first appearance with The Adventures of Tintin--as is another veteran filmmaker, Francis Ford Coppola, with his indie horror film TWIXT. DreamWorks/Disney is promoting Fright Night, with Colin Farrell on hand. Universal is presenting a panel on Snow White and the Huntsman, which hasn't even started shooting yet, but why miss an opportunity to highlight star Kristen Stewart, who's there anyway for Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn?

By Anne Thompson
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July 14, 2011 5:13 AM
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Captain America Changes Title Abroad, HBO to Skinny Dip, Spike Lee Might Remake Oldboy

To bridge the translation gap, changing a movie's title abroad is standard studio practice. In the case of Captain America, the reasons are more diplomatic.

By Maggie Lange
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July 6, 2011 3:26 AM
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Weekend Box Office: Green Lantern Opens Soft, Will Lose Money

The trick with any studio launch of a $200-million would-be franchise--especially one freighted by $100 million in marketing--is to open well enough to make your money back, and then some. At an estimated $52.7 million, Green Lantern opened soft: Anthony D'Alessandro explains why.The box-office strength of Warner Bros. $200-million tentpole Green Lantern dimmed from green to yellow as the DC comic book adaptation finally beamed in $52.7 million -- about 9% below the studio’s conservative projection. The frame’s second wide entry, Fox’s Jim Carrey family vehicle Mr. Popper’s Penguins, bested its $12-$15 million estimate with $18.2 million, a figure that’s in sync with the comedic actor’s last studio live-action debut Yes Man, which ultimately totaled nearly $100 million. (Indie grosses are here.)

By Anthony D'Alessandro
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June 19, 2011 4:31 AM
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Green Lantern and Mr. Popper's Penguins Could Disappoint, Buck, Page One, Art of Getting By

No one expected Warners' DC movie Green Lantern to score with critics (it managed a mere 22% Tomatometer score), as opposed to well-reviewed Super 8 and X-Men: First Class, which are still going strong at the box office. But Warners is putting $100 million of marketing muscle behind the $200 million movie. An entire franchise is at stake. They're so confident that they introduce a new villain at the end. (Anyone who's read the comics already knows he's a bad guy.) Box office prognosticators are upbeat, predicting a $50 to 60 million weekend; so far the movie is off to a strong start on 3816 screens, 2711 of them 3-D.

By Anne Thompson and Sophia Savage
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June 17, 2011 5:22 AM
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Hamm & McCarthy for Feig/Apatow Comedy, Thornton Casts Jayne Mansfield's Car, Casting Misfires

- With Universal's Bridesmaids sitting at $126.8 million worldwide, the studio is wasting little time inking their next project with director Paul Feig and producer Judd Apatow. While the story is yet to be named, reportedly the film will follow a man who is obsessed with a woman. The leads would be Bridesmaids' comedic standouts Jon Hamm and Melissa McCarthy. While their respective TV shows, Mad Men and Mike & Molly, couldn't be more tonally different, their opposing senses of humor could be a recipe for success.

By Sophia Savage
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June 16, 2011 7:15 AM
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Brando vs. Crowe as Superman Franchise's Jor-El

I find disturbing the idea of Russell Crowe playing the role originated by Marlon Brando at age 54 in 1978's Superman. Crowe, 47, is in talks to play opposite Superman Henry Cavill as his beloved father Jor-El in Man of Steel, reports Variety. Of course this will give Crowe a handsome payday. Maybe it's the similarities between the troubled Brando and Crowe that worry me. Both are fine actors with inflated egos and a weight problem who have walked dangerously close to identifying with their leading roles. Keeping track of who you are as a human being and who you are as a movie star is half the battle in maintaining career longevity.

By Anne Thompson
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June 15, 2011 9:18 AM
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Green Lantern Reviews: "Inert, Underwhelming," Reynolds "Little More than a Torso and a Smirk"

Warner/DC's Green Lantern wants to blow your mind, starting June 17, one day after its premiere at the Los Angeles Film Festival. Even the more generous reviews below suggest that we shouldn't expect a mind-blowing quality film. (We see it Wednesday.) Best case scenario: the comics fanbase will jump into the bizarre universe they know so well. Worst case is topliner Ryan Reynolds, co-stars Blake Lively, Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Strong and Angela Bassett and director Martin Campbell will wish they hadn't gone green, and the movie's prohibitive estimated $300-million cost won't yield big enough returns. Tentpoles, after all, are supposed to deliver profits to support the studio.