Lexi Alexander Talks Punisher: War Zone’s Exploding Heads, Color Scheme, Trailer, Tom Jane Fan Club
When I posted the teaser trailer for Punisher: War Zone last Thursday, the 70 comments from you guys were impressively heated and divisive. Until then, the R-rated Lionsgate/Marvel actioner from director Lexi Alexander (Green Street Hooligans, karate) had flown under the radar, with many pegging the movie as a star-less runt in Marvel’s newly consolidated, unpredecented game plan. And many fans still do, even after the teaser, but Alexander appreciates the early attention and welcomes the hate. She was surprised, albeit pleasantly, by the teaser’s release, and once again, she’s emphasizing her flick’s generous helpings of violence and mayhem. Not to be sexist, but it’s pretty strange and cool to hear the rare female director who’s more excited about a comic book film filled with carnage than most geeks. From her blog…
“I’m not sure what kind of impression I would get from this trailer if I didn’t actually know the film. I am utterly impressed, though, they managed to find that much PG rated action footage at all. It had to be a challenge to cut a trailer from our action stuff without showing any gore and blood.
I’ve been told that you can’t even show heads blowing up in red-band trailers. I hope that’s not true because that would suck. It’s weird to see Castle shoot all those bullets and not see the thugs who are catching them. That’s the best fucking part about it!!!”
Of course, many fanboys would respond, “Big whup. AVP: Requiem had a lot of gore, an R-rating, a lot of hype and it still sucked ass. Takes more than that to make a good genre movie.” Thankfully, Alexander has clarified a few of the questions/criticisms brought up in our comments section. Many fans have taken issue with the film’s heavily stylized scorched neon color palette, comparing it to Joel Schumacher’s Batman Nipples and Robin Nipples. Personally, I dig the retro ’80s look so far. It looks like the poster for Cobra meets laser tag. And yes, that is cool. But Alexander is all, “Wait a second, I’m lifting the look directly from the comics. You guys read Punisher comics, right?” She includes various stills from Punisher: MAX (part of Marvel’s adult imprint) like the one seen here for reference.
“I’m very happy that the hardcore Punisher fans recognized the lines taken directly from the comic books (all credit goes to Ray Stevenson for that), and that MAX fans appreciated the color theme that was also directly copied from the books.”
Another gripe, which probably started with outspoken screenwriter, Kurt Sutter, is that the criminal element in Punisher: War Zone is not stapled to reality a la Scorsese’s Goodfellas or Taxi Driver or David Chase’s The Sopranos.
“Every director has to make a call on the vision and style of a film and putting The Punisher in a realistic and gritty setting would be like having Det. Vic Mackey of THE SHIELD run around with a big ass skull on his chest, or Ray Liotta’s character in NARC suddenly go: “Hey, I think I just saw a guy whose face looks like a Jigsaw puzzle.” Ha, ha.”
What surprised me most about the reaction to the teaser was the number of readers that expressed fond memories for 2004’s The Punisher with Tom Jane (who fit the part, yes) and John Travolta (I’m still not sure what the hell was up with that). The movie plays on insomniac cable quite a bit, and maybe when bunched in with guilty pleasures like Executive Decision and other Die Hard knockoffs, it grows on some. I dunno. Alexander says she doesn’t aspire to ”become a member of the Dolph Lundgren or Thomas Jane fan club. This film is about the mythology of FRANK CASTLE, it is ultra violent…”
She compares her movie’s trajectory to The Incredible Hulk, which she thought rocked. But unlike that late-blooming film, her’s has months ahead of it (opens in December), and I’m already optimistic (though I don’t think Peter is).
Witch Mountain Details Revealed
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson revealed some new details for the upcoming re-imagining of Escape to Witch Mountain. Titled Witch Mountain, The Rock reteams with The Game Plan director Andy Fickman.
“It’s going to be a great badass action comedy. That’s why they call it a re-imagining and not a remake because they are going to completely amp things up in a major way,” The Rock revealed to during the Southland Tales Junket. “It will be set in Vegas, and I’ll be a cab driver and for me, you always think of movies like that, action comedies… It’s all about the collision of two worlds. My world, I play an Ex Con and my relationships or lack there of only lasts my fares. So you get in and need to be taken down to the end of the strip, you get out $8 later, that’s the extent of every relationship I have.
Johnson promises that the action ramps up pretty early on.
“Now these children get in my cab, and they are on the run immediately, and the chase happens within the first 15 minutes, and we’re off to the races. And that collision is these children who are being chased by your area 51 police, if you will, and then the Vegas police. And it turns into huge chase. It’s great.”
Johnson also said that: “David Bomba handed in an outstanding script. We’re all very excited about it.”
It should be noted that David Bomba was the production designer on The Game Plan and many other films in the last 20 years, but he is not a screenwriter. I’m curious to see if The Rock just said the wrong name, or if Andy Flickman has hired his production designer to pen the script. And would Disney allow that? Perhaps with a writers guild strike upon us, the company needed to hire outside the box (I kid, I kid). Matt Lopez is the screenwriter that has been attached to the project. I’m sure we’ll clear this up in the coming days.
Production on Witch Mountain is scheduled to begin the first week of March 2008.
Saturday Box Office: Tyler Perry’s Married targets $23M 3-day; Game Plan, Michael Clayton, We Own the Night
Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) got a solid 21% upturn from its excellent opening day, and, although the movie won’t reach $25M for the weekend, its expected $23.07M haul will be more than enough to win the 3-day. It also marks the 2nd-best opening of Perry’s filmmaking career, trailing only 2006’s Madea’s Family Reunion ($30M opening).
Amazingly, Tyler Perry’s poorly-reviewed relationship comedy will more than double the estimated 3-day performances for George Clooney in Michael Clayton (Warner Bros) and Mark Wahlberg and Joaquin Phoenix in We Own the Night (Sony), and Married will more than triple the business of Universal’s Elizabeth: The Golden Age starring Oscar winner Cate Blanchett.
As I fisrt reported Friday night (see below), Disney holdover The Game Plan will finish #2 for the weekend. After delivering another $5.13M on Saturday, the family comedy starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson will finish the frame with about $11.59M putting the pic just shy of $60M domestic. After outperforming Michael Clayton on Friday, the younger-skewing We Own the Night got just a 14% Saturday bump. I’m projecting that Michael Clayton will finish 3rd for the weekend with an estimated $11.13M followed by the gritty James Gray-directed crime thriller with a likely $10.7M.
Universal cannot be happy with its Elizabeth: The Golden Age, which, despite solid reviews, managed only an 18% Friday-to-Saturday increase for $2.41M. This period biopic will require steady Oscar buzz in order to survive its estimated opening weekend of $6.37M.
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY SATURDAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) - $9.31M - $4,633 PTA - $17M cume
2. The Game Plan (Buena Vista) - $5.13M - $1,641 PTA - $56M cume
3. Michael Clayton (Warner Bros) - $4.58M- $1,825 PTA - $8.9M cume
4. NEW – We Own the Night (Sony) - $4.27M - $1,810 PTA - $8M cume
5. The Heartbreak Kid (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $3.04M - $943 PTA - $23.8M cume
6. NEW – Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Universal) - $2.41M - $1,206 PTA - $4.5M cume
7. The Kingdom (Universal) - $1.99M - $703 PTA - $38.7M cume
8. Across the Universe (Sony) - $1.51M - $1,592 PTA - $11.6M cume
9. Resident Evil: Extinction (Sony) – $1.11M - $497 PTA - $47.2M cume
10. The Seeker: The Dark is Rising (Fox) - $954,000 - $301 PTA - $6.4M
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS REVISED 3-DAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) - $23.07M -
$11,473 PTA - $25.3M cume
2. The Game Plan (Buena Vista) - $11.59M - $3,706 PTA - $59.5M cume
3. Michael Clayton (Warner Bros) - $11.13M - $4,433 PTA - $12.2M cume
4. NEW – We Own the Night (Sony) - $10.7M - $4,556 PTA - $10.7M cume
5. The Heartbreak Kid (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $7.15M - $2,212 PTA - $25.7M cume
6. NEW – Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Universal) - $6.37M - $3,186 PTA - $6.37M cume
7. The Kingdom (Universal) - $4.82M - $1,701 PTA - $40.2M cume
8. Across the Universe (Sony) - $3.68M - $3,863 PTA - $12.5M cume
9. Resident Evil: Extinction (Sony) – $2.63M - $1,171 PTA - $48M cume
10. The Seeker: The Dark is Rising (Fox) - $2.2M - $696 PTA - $7.1M
Read more at FantasyMoguls.com
Friday Box Office: Tyler Perry’s Married headed for $25M ; Clayton & We Own the Night battle for 3rd
Tyler Perry has returned to the top of the box office and, on a very competitive weekend, he’s won in very easy fashion. Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) has rocked Hollywood with an $8.65M Friday, and it’s headed for an outstanding $25.3M 3-day opening.
The 38-year-old actor/writer/director established himself as an auteur and a box office sensation back in 1995 with Diary of a Mad Black Woman, which opened with a $21.9M weekend and went on to generate $50.6M domestic. Then came the even more successful Madea’s Family Reunion with a $30M opening and a $63.2M cume. Earlier this year, Perry tested his clout with Daddy’s Little Girls, a movie that he wrote and directed but didn’t appear in. Little Girls opened on the Wednesday prior to President’s Day, and the result was a dramatically softer 6-day opening of $18.7M (the 4-day was $13M and the 3-day was $11.2M).
Now, the New Orleans-born African American entertainer is back on sure footing. His huge following has overcome mixed-to-negative reviews, and Why Did I Get Married? Will likely become the 2nd-best opening of his filmmaking career, trailing only Madea’s Family Reunion. In the process, Perry has beaten back some Hollywood heavyweights like Clooney, Wahlberg, Phoenix and Blanchett.
The Game Plan (Buena Vista), in its 3rd weekend, will finish an impressive #2 for the weekend. The family comedy added $3.2M on Friday (#4 for the day), but Saturday and Sunday matinees will power Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson to a 3-day of $12.3M or so. The modestly budgeted Game Plan will rush past the $60M mark by Monday morning.
It will be very close for 3rd place for the weekend, but I anticipate that Michael Clayton (Warner Bros), produced by and starring Oscar winner George Clooney, will finish in the show position. James Gray’s We Own the Night (Sony), starring Mark Wahlberg and Joaquin Phoenix, grabbed $3.75M on Friday compared to Michael Clayton’s $3.7M, but the older-skewing legal thriller from first-time director Tony Gilroy win the 3-day by a whisker - $11.4M to $11.2M.
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY FRIDAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) - $8.65M - $4,301 PTA - $8.65M cume
2. NEW – We Own the Night (Sony) - $3.75M - $1,588 PTA - $3.75M cume
3. Michael Clayton (Warner Bros) - $3.7M - $1,474 PTA - $4.7M cume
4. The Game Plan (Buena Vista) - $3.2M - $1,023 PTA - $51.1M cume
5. The Heartbreak Kid (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $2.3M - $711 PTA - $20.8M cume
6. NEW – Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Universal) - $2.2M - $1,099 PTA - $2.2M cume
7. The Kingdom (Universal) - $1.29M - $458 PTA - $36.6M cume
8. Across the Universe (Sony) - $1.12M - $1,175 PTA - $10M cume
9. Resident Evil: Extinction (Sony) – $710,000 - $316 PTA - $46.1M cume
10. Good Luck Chuck (Lionsgate) - $586,000 - $301 PTA - $31.3M cume
*Darjeeling Limited (Fox Searchlight) - $282,000 - $2,972 PTA - $1.35M cume
*Into the Wild (Paramount Vantage) - $240,000 - $1,569 PTA - $3.2M cume
*NEW - The Final Season (Yari Film Group) - $200,000 - $198 PTA - $200,000 cume
*Lust, Caution (Focus Features) - $135,500 - $1,760 PTA - $785,000 cume
*The Assassination of Jesse James… (Warner Bros) - $101,420 - $622 PTA - $1M cume
*In the Valley of Elah (Warner Independent) - $101,000 - $139 PTA - $6M cume
*NEW - Lars & the Real Girl (MGM) - $25,760 - $3,680 PTA - $25,760 cume
*NEW – Sleuth (Sony Classics) - $11,169 - $1,241 PTA - $11,169 cume
*NEW – King Corn (Balcony Releasing) - $3,086 - $3,086 PTA - $3,086 cume
EXCLUSIVE FANTASY MOGULS EARLY 3-DAY ESTIMATES
1. NEW - Tyler Perry’s Why Did I Get Married? (Lionsgate) - $25.3M - $12,581 PTA - $25.3M cume
2. The Game Plan (Buena Vista) - $12.3M - $3,932 PTA - $60.2M cume
3. Michael Clayton (Warner Bros) - $11.4M - $4,540 PTA - $12.4M cume
4. NEW – We Own the Night (Sony) - $11.2M - $4,742 PTA - $11.2M cume
5. The Heartbreak Kid (Dreamworks/Paramount) - $7.3M - $2,258 PTA - $25.8M cume
6. NEW – Elizabeth: The Golden Age (Universal) - $7M - $3,498 PTA - $7M cume
7. The Kingdom (Universal) - $4.36M - $1,539 PTA - $39.7M cume
8. Across the Universe (Sony) - $3.47M - $3,642 PTA - $12.3M cume
9. Resident Evil: Extinction (Sony) – $2.59M - $1,152 PTA - $48M cume
10. The Seeker: The Dark is Rising (Fox) - $1.99M - $630 PTA - $6.9M
*Darjeeling Limited (Fox Searchlight) - $940,000 - $9,896 PTA - $2M cume
*Into the Wild (Paramount Vantage) - $864,000 - $5,647 PTA - $3.8M cume
*NEW - The Final Season (Yari Film Group) - $540,000 - $534 PTA - $540,000 cume
*Lust, Caution (Focus Features) - $475,000 - $6,169 PTA - $1.1M cume
*In the Valley of Elah (Warner Independent) - $359,000 - $495 PTA - $6.2M cume
*The Assassination of Jesse James… (Warner Bros) - $355,000 - $2,178 PTA - $1.3M cume
*NEW - Lars & the Real Girl (MGM) - $93,000 - $13,286 PTA - $93,000 cume
*NEW – Sleuth (Sony Classics) - $41,000 - $4,556 PTA - $41,000 cume
*NEW – King Corn (Balcony Releasing) - $10,801 - $10,801 PTA - $10,801 cume
Read more at FantasyMoguls.com.