Gary Whitta (Rogue One) announced on Twitter that he and co-writer Jonathan Betuel are working on a reboot of the 1984 sci-fi movie The Last Starfighter (a personal favorite of mine). Which was originally about a young man who beat a video game and was recruited to fight in an interstellar war. It was a bit ahead of its time then, and is fairly dated now. But it did feature the wonderful Robert Preston (The Music Man) in his last film before he died in 1987. Personally, this is a good property to revive since it could be updated to modern times in such innovative ways. It could also fall over with a big giant thud if they lose what made the original so wondrous, a sense of wild-eyed optimism and a somewhat cheesy look at what humanity can offer the universe if we're given the chance.
Did you know we're actually getting an Indiana Jones 5, really, with Steven Spielberg and Harrison Ford coming back for a film set for a July, 2020 release date. While this going to be the last one with Harrison Ford, Spielberg has gone on record saying that he doesn't think this will be the last in the series. Whether that means continuing with a spin-off or even rebooting with a female version of Jones, it looks like this series is never going to end.
The new Marvel's Spider-Man game which is hotly anticipated and from the release trailers looks fantastic, is coming on September 7 to the PS4 exclusively (at least for a while). This game is not attached in any way to the current run of movies, which frankly is a great thing and could provide a real creative boost since they are no longer hampered by strict release dates tied to a movie schedule.
Y: The Last Man, a strange post-apocalyptic science fiction comic book series that actually won a Hugo award, has just been ordered to pilot for FX. No word yet on casting or even a potential release date.
Karl Urban has been cast in the upcoming comic book TV series called The Boys about a superpowered CIA team that watches the superheroes in case they ever get out of line and compromise the world they say they are sworn to protect. Urban will play Billy Butcher, the leader of the team. The series will be debuting sometime in 2019 for an eight-episode run developed by Eric Kripke (Supernatural), Seth Rogan and Evan Goldberg.
The Terminator is coming back, but a little later than expected. The film is being pushed back four months from July to November 22, 2019. This is still being developed to be a new start to the series, and the beginning of yet another new trilogy. After three fairly iffy sequels, they need this one to be good.
I've had a Movie Pass for a couple months now, and I think I get how they make their money. You spend $9.95 a month, and you can go to see a movie a day, every day for every month you're subscribed. Except, no one does that. Who has the time? I love movies, and I've gone just enough to make it worth the money (I got a ticket the other day worth $10.95 saving me $2.00 this month). I imagine most people go months without going, writing off $10 is easy when it's convenient and often cheaper to have Movie Pass. Well, the subscription service just lifted the ban they had with AMC theaters, now making it easier than ever to use them. Plus they also just acquired the web-service Moviefone which gets millions of hits a month.
One of my personal favorite films The Crow is finally emerging from development hell with a new lead (Jason Momoa) and some new character details, including a gender swapped version of the main character's cop friend Detective Albrecht and the original film's main villain Top Dollar. No release date has been set, and start of filming has yet to be announced. Could be interesting, but if the sequels are any indicator of what to expect, I'll probably skip this one.
So way back in 1982, Steven Spielberg optioned one of Stephen King's books called The Talisman, a fantasy novel about a twelve-year-old boy going on a quest across the country to save his dying mother. Although not committing to directing, Spielberg really wants this to finally be made, and is looking to get it produced in the very near future. I would expect more news about his story in the next several months.
The BBC is starting production on a three-part adaptation of the H.G. Wells' seminal science fiction book The War of the Worlds. The big difference for this adaptation is it isn't going to be modernized, instead working with the original Victorian-era setting and keeping the horror vibe from the original story. Honestly, that sounds like it might be a nice change of pace from the more recent adaptations.
I won't go into exact details, but it may come as no surprise that digital media sales have surpassed physical media sales by nearly 2 to 1, with many people shifting away from collecting the space-consuming plastic discs. Regardless of my own personal feelings on the subject, this is a growing trend which will continue to favor digital until (I fear) physical media will be for reference material only.
On that note, here's a trailer for the upcoming HBO adaptation of Ray Bradbury's classic novel Fahrenheit 451:
Movies Released March 6, 2018
Blockers - R rated comedy starting pro wrestler John Cena and Leslie Man about three sets of parents trying to stop their daughters from having sex on Prom night.
The Miracle Season - Based on the real life tragedy of volleyball star Caroline Found and events that followed surrounding her team coming together in an attempt to win the state championship. Staring Erin Moriarty, Helen Hunt and William Hurt.
A Quiet Place - Horror/thriller about a family forced into hiding from creatures that hunt by sound, starring Emily Blunt (Edge of Tomorrow) and John Krasinski (who also directed). This one is what I would recommend for the week. It has the highest ratings and is getting the most positive buzz.
Until we meet again... next week.
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Samantha M. Quinn spends most of her time in front of a computer typing away at one thing or another; when she has free time, she enjoys pretty much anything science fiction or fantasy-related.
Wolf! I love the Talisman! Such a great story. I loved Murphy Brown, too. It just worries me that the old magic is gone, however, Candice Bergen is so talented, she might pull it off.
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