Frank Marshall confirms "Jurassic Park 4" on the way

The good folks over at Collider have an exclusive interview with mega-producer Frank Marshall. He talks about a wide range of subjects during the interview including the the 3D retrofitting of the original "Jurassic Park", his feeling that 'Indy 5' is probably not going to happen and the long rumored "Jurassic Park 4, which he confirms is winding its way through pre-production.

Here's a part of that interview where he's discussing JP4.

Mr. Spielberg has talked about another Jurassic Park. It is a huge franchise for Universal that has dormant for a while [sic], how close do you think that one is? Obviously, the 3d re-release is to engage young movie goers, get people excited again. So how is the sequel coming along?
MARSHALL: I would say it will be on the screen within two years.
So you guys have a story that’s really coming along?
MARSHALL: Yes.
Will you be shooting in 3D?
MARSHALL: That I don’t know. We haven’t gotten to that stage yet where we talk about production. There’s definitely a story in the works.
Is it an actual sequel, or is it a reboot?
MARSHALL: Yes, it’s a sequel.
Do you have a filmmaker on this? Or have you announced it yet?
MARSHALL: No. No.
So it’s just story. This is a big one. I can’t believe it’s taken this long to make another one, especially with the technology these days.
MARSHALL: That’s what’s going to be great about it. The technology has taken a leap and we can really do some great things.

In response to the first question here Marshall seems to state that the sequel will be on the screen within two years though he then states that they don't even have a director lined up yet and haven't begun to think about actual production. Because of that I'm inclined to think he misunderstood the question and that when he said "within 2 years" he was referring to Jurassic Park 3D.

Though I suppose anything is possible it seems incredibly unlikely to me that you could finish the script, line up the talent, schedule the shoot and do all the shooting and do all the post-production on a major tentpole film in well under 2 years. (Remember, he says "it will be on the screen within 2 years".)

Read the entire interview here.

You can't keep a good dinosaur down. Frank Marshall confirms JP4 is a go.

The top 10 movies for the weekend of August 3 - August 5, 2012

1) The Dark Knight Rises	$35.7 Million
2) Total Recall	$25.5 Million
3) Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days	$14.6 Million
4) Ice Age: Continental Drift	$8.6 Million
5) The Watch	$6.5 Million
6) Step Up Revolution	$5.9 Million
7) Ted	$5.6 Million
8) The Amazing SpiderMan	$4.4 Million
9) Brave	$2.9 Million
10) Magic Mike	$1.4 Million

The number one movie a year ago this week was Fox's "Rise of the Planet of the Apes" which debuted in the top spot with $54.8 million.

"Zero Dark Thirty" - teaser trailer

Kathryn Bigelow's film chronicling the tracking down and killing of Osama bin Laden has been a hot button project from the get go and chances are the actual film will probably do nothing to temper conversation about what actually happened that night in May 2011 in Abbottabad Pakistan. The first teaser trailer is here though and it's a highly stylized piece of work with much of the copy blacked out ala a classified document.

Regarding any possible political aspect to the film writer Mark Boal emphasizes the movie is primarily about the people who actually hunted bin Laden down and the Navy SEAL team that brought the hard rain. Says Boal: "There’s no political agenda in the film. Full stop. Period... A lot of people are going to be surprised when they see the film. For example, the president is not depicted in the movie. He’s just not in the movie.” Some people will undoubtedly appreciate that, others will not.


"Zero Dark Thirty" is due in theaters December 19th and will be up against some stiff competition from Peter Jackson's "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" which opens just 5 days earlier.

"Cockneys vs Zombies" - trailer

While Chris may down on the whole zombie thing I still think there's some gold to mine in them thar hills. Sure "Cockneys vs Zombies" might as well be called "Shaun of the Dead II" but personally I can't get enough of those adorably accented Londoners slicing, dicing, mincing and generally aerating the crap out of the undead.

They're calling this a 'red-band' trailer but if you've seen any of the thousands of contemporary zombie pics there's nothing here that'll exactly shock you. The 'red-band' designation is due mostly to the language, which is not exactly genteel.



"Cockneys vs Zombies" opens in the UK August 31st. No date has been set as of this writing for a stateside release.

Stallone gets all blasphemous in new "Expendables 2" poster

The posters for the upcoming "Expendables 2" have been all about former action star Stallone with the space around him in the posters taken up by a bunch of other guys and this one is no exception. The reference here to life-changing events about to unfold is pretty clever but I've begun to wonder what guys like Bruce Willis and especially Jason Statham - who actually has a viable action career currently in progress - think about constantly being portrayed as also-rans living in the shadow of the Italian stallion. Just wondering. Here's the poster.

2nd trailer for "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey"

It would be a stretch to call this a 'new' trailer since 95% of it has been seen before. Still there is that 5% to justify its existence and the trailer itself serves to remind all who feel that the year's big releases have already come and gone that there's at least one more blockbuster working its way down the pike toward a theater near you.


"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" opens wide December 14th.

"Killing Them Softly" - trailer

Boasting an outstanding cast that includes Brad Pitt, James Gandolfini, Sam Shepard, Ray Liotta, Richard Jenkins and others "Killing Them Softly" tells the tale of a couple of small time hoods who unwisely hold up a mob sanctioned poker game.



"Killing Them Softly" is due in theaters October 19th.

New tv spot for "The Expendables 2"

The manly manliness of this manlier than manly manfest is manifest in this latest (and manliest) tv spot which depicts the manly exploits of the manliest man-crew ever assembled. Manly hijinx and mainly manly dialogue abound while manly men do manly things in extremely manly ways. The man-scapades are seasoned with manly humor and man-splosions of manly proportions.



"The Expendables 2" opens August 17th.

Fox confirms "Prometheus 2" in on while Lindelof is out

For me "Prometheus" was like going on a date with that hot chick you've been lusting after only to find out she doesn't believe in sex before marriage. Doh!

I laid most of the blame for this at the feet of Damon Lindelof who, in my opinion, gave "Prometheus" the "Lost" treatment. That is, he took an idea with a ton of potential and a great cast and, after a promising start, decided to play make believe in the backyard ("Wouldn't it be super cool if Joey had like a mohawk and some tats like my big brother, and, and, and what if Nancy like cuts herself wide open, pulls an alien outa her gut then, like, does wind sprints and rock climbing?! That'd be so cool!"). The whole production was wrapped in the cheeziest tv serial muzak theme to hit the big screen since, well, I can't personally remember another that felt so out of place. Every time the Prometheus theme drifted over the proceedings I felt like I was back on the couch and "Lost" had just returned from commercial.

To be sure, Ridley Scott deserves his share of the blame because after all the buck stops with him and he should have seen that the script was bogged down by nonsensical characters and inexplicable action (the engineer - who after all is supposed to be a member of the species that we're descended from - manages to go all the way from the downed alien ship to the crashed escape pod without the need for oxygen) and that the music sucked. Still, like that incredibly hot chick, Prometheus was redeemed by its visuals and had just enough going for it to keep me thinking long after I left the theater.

Well now THR is reporting that Fox has confirmed that they're moving ahead with a Prometheus sequel and that Damon (backyard writer of the year) Lindelof will likely have no role in the proceedings. Can I get an amen? Of course with Lindelof gone the sequel may reveal that the real culprit behind Prometheus's problems was one Sir Ridley Scott who will, after all, be nearly 80 by the time P2 hits the screen. But it's a risk I'm willing to take because if the franchise is going to go down I'd rather it went down in the hands of it's originator rather than some wet behind the ears writer/producer du jour.

Both Noomi Rapace and Michael Fassbender are under contract to return for the sequel which will likely hit theaters in 2015.

Noomi Rapace in "Prometheus"

New full-length American and International trailers for "Skyfall"

These new trailers are wall to wall action and include our first look at Javier Bardem as 007's nemesis. Apparently M (Judi Dench) has made a serious error and, after ordering Bond hit, must turn to him for help.

American trailer.



International trailer.



"Skyfall" stars Daniel Craig, Javier Bardem, Naomie Harris, Ralph Fiennes, Berenice Marlohe,  Albert Finney, and Ben Whishaw as the new Q. It opens November 9th.