Marvel Studios Planning Venom Spin-Off Movie
A random news symbiote has infested the Nets today and, as Ned Ryerson would squeal, “it’s a doozy.” IESB reports that Marvel Studios is prepping a Venom spin-off and has already met with “several A-list writers.” Before you fire off the sirens to alert the strikers, you may recall that a bit ago Marvel cut a deal with the WGA. Apparently the superhero studio has retained the rights to the character, as he/it previously appeared last summer in Sony’s wobbly webbing cake that was Spider-Man 3, in the human form of Eddie Brock, played by actor Topher Grace. No word if Grace is still attached, and no word about Sam Raimi’s involvement, but I’d guess he wouldn’t direct the flick as he has admitted in the past that Venom is not his type.
Obviously, this project comes as a surprise since Venom, when full-blown, is a villain with less social skills than a pet rock; and for many fanboys it’s a surprise as hotly anticipated as Critters Gone Wild, since Venom is cited as the largest flaw in Sam Raimi’s second Spidey sequel. Personally, all of Raimi’s Spider-Man movies are as pleasurable to me as staring at the sun, though the second one has its moments. I just don’t dig their aesthetic and the “darkness”-arch and newfound maturity of the third one made the fourth Harry Potter look like Tropic of Cancer.
However, I’m not opposed to this film. Making a movie about an outer space ooze that turns a person into Spidey’s hulking Id is kinda chill. There is the potential to do a visually stunning and madcap movie with Venom, especially if Carnage is involved. Drop Grace for the sake of a fresh take, and hire, I dunno, a director-duo like Crank’s Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor or even the Hughes Brothers to think outside the box while gunning for profitability and it’s a winner.
Scarlett Johansson to Direct New York, I Love You aka New York, je t’aime
The severe void of female directors in Hollywood needs to cease, so maybe actresses with the urge like Drew Barrymore and now Scarlett Johansson can be a catalyst. Johansson, a New Yorker, is attached to direct one of the twelve short films that will make up New York, I Love You, a bookend to the recent swooning hit Paris, je t’aime. Like dirty pigeons flocking together to form a feathery heart, the shorts will take a look at “the universal theme of encountering love within the five boroughs of New York City.” And if you haven’t yet confessed your love to a semi-stranger in one of the city’s many dark rooms while under the influence, you’ve got a fun homework assignment for Monday.
While Woody Allen won’t direct a segment, he’s Woody Allen and can help where he wants. I was surprised to see that some of New York’s finest like Spike Lee, Martin Scorsese, and Jim Jarmusch won’t be contributing, nor will wildman Abel Ferrara. But it makes sense that a guy nicknamed The Rat will direct aka Brett Ratner. And Zach Braff is there to lend some [chortle] indie cred. Williamsburg calls, Zach. And where’s that mumblecore dude? Interesting choices include the Hughes Brothers, Old Boy’s Chan-wook Park and The English Patient’s Anthony Minghella.
In other news, Page Six reports that Johansson’s still up for the part of Courtney Love in the Kurt Cobain biopic Heavier Than Heaven. I forgot my sunglasses today, so I’m not in the mood to discuss that.
Movie Trailer: Francis Ford Coppola’s Youth Without Youth
The movie trailer for Youth Without Youth, Francis Ford Coppola’s first new film in 10-years, is now online. Coppola adapted, produced and directed the movie based on the 1976 novel by Romanian-born religious historian Mircea Eliade.
The short teaser trailer looks interesting, but doesn’t really show much, or at least it doesn’t show much in terms of narrative story. And that worries me quite a bit since I have heard that it is somewhat personal and experimental. It has been widely reported that the film was inspired by his daughter Sofia, and shot with a low $5 million budget film last winter in Romania using a Sony High Definition camera. The movie has been screened in front of friends and fellow directors including: Martin Scorsese, Dennis Hopper, Andy Garcia, Matt Dillon, Danny DeVito, Rhea Perlman, Spike Jonze, John Singleton, the Hughes Brothers, Alfonso Cuarón, and Gus Van Sant attended the screening. It has been said that overall the film is “Good, but very difficult.”
The movie stars Tim Roth as a 70-year-old who is struck by lightning and suddenly gets younger and more brilliant. The film co-stars Alexandra Maria Lara and Bruno Ganz, and Matt Damon makes a cameo appearance. Coppola’s last time behind the camera was 1997’s Rainmaker which also starred Damon.