en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/503165 Comments by Rick Gershman http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/the-stepfather-remake-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664746 See the original, my friend. It's really a very well-done film, IMHO, an overlooked classic of the psychological thriller genre. It's wonderfully patient in a way few (if any) genre films still are these days. Thu, 18 Jun 2009 06:08:40 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/the-stepfather-remake-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664746 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/the-stepfather-remake-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664597 You hit it right on the head, Brendon. This is a thankless task, and likely a pointless movie. The original was a real winner, with an awesome quiet menace from O'Quinn, and the great reveal with the telephone gag--a scene I consider iconic in the psychological thriller genre. Even though I suggested (only yesterday) that ratings really don't matter, I'm going back on that: FUCK all these lame-ass PG-13 "thrillers." Even if you're not going to give me some violent kills--really, I usually prefer creepy to gory anyway--at least give me some gratuitous booby shots. Thu, 18 Jun 2009 06:05:58 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/the-stepfather-remake-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664597 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/16/whiteout-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664248 Sena's got real talent as a visual stylist -- he's just not a real "artist" as a director. Which means, to me at least, he'll be about as bad (or as good) as the material he's given. Swordfish was out-and-out idiotic, but it looked damn good (Halle Berry in particular, of course). So this might be OK. At least in the "ooooh, pretty" way. Thu, 18 Jun 2009 05:59:14 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/16/whiteout-movie-trailer/#IDComment24664248 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/judd-apatows-funny-people-the-films-of-george-simmons/#IDComment24664006 They... RAPED... Indiana Jones! And we just let it happen! We just ran away! :-) Thu, 18 Jun 2009 05:55:04 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/judd-apatows-funny-people-the-films-of-george-simmons/#IDComment24664006 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/producer-frank-marshall-says-dont-spend-your-money-on-imax-digital/#IDComment24633136 IMAX deserves EVERY BIT of the bad press it's getting over this -- these guys were smart enough to know that if they advertised "IMAX Digital" as the very different experience it is, people would never pay the same kind of money they would for "true" IMAX. This company had every intention of defrauding the public by doing this. It is utterly indefensible. And its response following the recent brouhaha shows just how clueless its CEO is. I'd like to see the threat of a class-action lawsuit force IMAX to clean up its act and properly disclose which theaters are true IMAX and which are not. I don't want to lose true IMAX, mind you , but I don't think that's a concern: if IMAX had to sell rights to its technology to another (and better, and more honest) company in order to, say, pay off an enormous lawsuit, it would do just that. Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:27:53 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/producer-frank-marshall-says-dont-spend-your-money-on-imax-digital/#IDComment24633136 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/new-gi-joe-posters-and-tv-trailer/#IDComment24615141 Van Helsing turned me off all of this guy's films forever. I don't want to see the film, don't want to see the posters, don't want to see the damn commercials. Total fail. Wed, 17 Jun 2009 18:10:17 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/17/new-gi-joe-posters-and-tv-trailer/#IDComment24615141 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/15/robert-rodriguez-to-start-machete-in-five-weeks/#IDComment24353808 I'm in, man. I like Planet Terror more every time I see it, especially the "extended version" (though the Grindhouse version is crazy fun as well). This is exactly what RR does well -- fast and fun and gritty. I enjoyed the trailer in Grindhouse and I'm curious to see how much RR tries to match the actual film up with it. I'm guessing not TOO much, but who knows? Just hope Machete still hooks up with the mother-daughter combo and we get some kickass Jeff Fahey action. Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:18:22 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/15/robert-rodriguez-to-start-machete-in-five-weeks/#IDComment24353808 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/15/platinum-dunes-says-friday-the-13th-sequel-is-snowbound-3d-admit-to-disappointing-first-entry/#IDComment24352959 I dug the new Friday the 13th a lot in the first act--basically everything that happened with the first set of characters--but man, did it ever start to slowly fall apart from there. Some of the kills weren't bad, but they weren't exceptional. Some of the characters were a little more interesting than those in previous films, but not enough to be memorable. And basically the last act was god awful, especially that insanely stupid ending. That just really left a bad taste in my mouth about the whole project. Still, I have a special place in my heart for the Friday the 13th films, and I liked how this one, at least at first, tried to be fair to the mythology of the series. If the producers really did learn their lessons from the first reboot, a sequel might be very entertaining. Mon, 15 Jun 2009 21:13:42 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/15/platinum-dunes-says-friday-the-13th-sequel-is-snowbound-3d-admit-to-disappointing-first-entry/#IDComment24352959 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/13/pulitzer-prize-winning-author-michael-cunningham-writes-slasher-screenplay/#IDComment24156671 I love this! It's great to have a thoughtful, intelligent writer pen a slasher film. The best scary movies have interesting characters who you like and care about before they get hacked to pieces. That's why they're so suspenseful. I'm with you on this one, Brendon: I'm dying to check out Beautiful Girl now. It could be awesome or awful, but at the very least, it's damn intriguing. Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:05:33 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/13/pulitzer-prize-winning-author-michael-cunningham-writes-slasher-screenplay/#IDComment24156671 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/13/tony-scott-talks-future-projects-including-the-warriors-and-alien-prequel/#IDComment24156478 Oh, good lord, keep Tony away from the Alien series, and especially the camera. The last thing we need right now is music video Aliens shot so close you can see their Alien pores. (If they have pores. I really don't want to know.) I'm glad the studio is insisting on Ridley. I'm insisting on Ridley too. Do it, Ridley. Do it. Do it. Sat, 13 Jun 2009 19:01:47 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/13/tony-scott-talks-future-projects-including-the-warriors-and-alien-prequel/#IDComment24156478 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/question-which-videogames-are-the-most-cinematic/#IDComment24090433 Agree 100 percent on Half Life 2, and I'd even give a shout out to the original Half Life, which really took the whole first person shooter to a whole other level, expanding and improving upon the shocks and scares of the Doom series and giving it a really in-depth cinematic experience. I've always though a Half Life movie--incorporating some of the best parts from HL 1 and 2, and the two HL2 "episodes" to date--would make for a hell of a good movie, as long as the writers behind the games actually write the screenplay. (Or at least write it in concert with a good, solid, smart, experienced screenwriter. ) Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:55:01 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/question-which-videogames-are-the-most-cinematic/#IDComment24090433 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/comparing-the-takings-of-pelham-123/#IDComment24089934 Ever seen "Domino," Sergemeister? I needed an entire bottle of Excedrin after that one. Maybe every Tony Scott movie should come with one. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:46:57 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/comparing-the-takings-of-pelham-123/#IDComment24089934 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/comparing-the-takings-of-pelham-123/#IDComment24089814 David, the one thing I wondered about: Was the whole thing shot in super-extra-tight closeup, just like virtually every other film Tony Scott has shot, regardless of the DP? I'd like to see the new Pelham, but I simply can't stand the fact that Scott needs to shoot everything so tight. It wasn't so annoying because he didn't do quite as constantly back in the True Romance/Crimson Tide days, though he sure did it a lot (his "look" was totally wrong, for example, in Beverly Hills Cop II, which had plenty of problems anyway). Anyway, I swore I'd never watch another Tony Scott film after Domino, which I had to catch in a theater (I was reviewing it for a newspaper) and the super-kinetic style and super-closeups and super-frenetic soundtrack made all of my orifices bleed profusely. (Not literally, but... almost literally.) But I gave in and watched Deja Vu on DVD, and it was a lot more palatable. Also, the extreme closeups aren't so bad when they're focused on Paula Patton. Still, I'm leery of Pelham 123. Fri, 12 Jun 2009 22:45:08 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/12/comparing-the-takings-of-pelham-123/#IDComment24089814 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/10/martin-scorseses-shutter-island-movie-trailer/#IDComment23852922 Dude, I respect your willingness to stand by your convictions, no matter how unpopular. And I'll (sorta) agree with one thing: it's a little odd how often Scorsese is using DiCaprio these days. However, you're full of shit on the rest. I'm guessing you weren't bitching when Scorsese was using De Niro in damn near all of his films--and these days. DiCaprio's work beats De Niro's times 10, easy. I didn't much care for Leo before either, but he's really proved himself in recent years. He wasn't quite my "dream choice" for the Mystic River lead, but I'm confident he can make it work. Also, the source material is a lot stronger than you're making it out to be. And, the trailer didn't give away too much--there are a ton of developments it doesn't spoil at all. BTW, Scorsese is "nothing" without Paul Schrader's writing? Yeah, that's just silly. Schrader's did some fine work in the day, but over the past TWO DECADES the best work he's produced has been adaptations. Meanwhile, even if you somehow find a way to discount The Departed, After Hours and Casino, much less all of Scorsese's other fine efforts sans Schrader, I only have one word to point out how crackheaded you are: Goodfellas. Game, set, match, bitch. Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:44:26 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/10/martin-scorseses-shutter-island-movie-trailer/#IDComment23852922 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/10/martin-scorseses-shutter-island-movie-trailer/#IDComment23851377 I really loved the novel, and the one thing I really like about the trailer--and everything else I've heard so far--is that this looks really, really faithful to Lehane's original. If you haven't read the novel, it's extremely cinematic in the first place: a nice, tight, limited set of full realized characters, some awesome set pieces, great twists and turns, and so on. It's basically screaming "make me into a kick-ass movie." So with Scorsese at the helm, I feel pretty confident. One odd thing: I'm a little surprised they didn't include a "from the author of Mystic River" notation in the trailer. Sure, that's a little less impressive (to the masses, at least) than Scorsese/DiCaprio, but it might help add a little gravity to what would appear to most to be more of a popcorn psychological thriller. Thu, 11 Jun 2009 03:23:31 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/10/martin-scorseses-shutter-island-movie-trailer/#IDComment23851377 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/the-possibly-true-story-behind-the-hangover/#IDComment23786834 It doesn't sound like you've really considered what "sleeper hit" really means. Because there's a pretty easy argument you could make each way for this one. It's definitely doesn't meet the criteria of an "obvious" sleeper hit. Sleeper hit simply means something that turns out to be very successful even though, previously, it seemed to few traits to suggest a high level of success. Some sleeper hits take a while to become successful, while other blow up right out of the gate. They're both still considered sleepers. Sure, there's a pretty good argument for calling Hangover a sleeper, such as the fact that there's no "big name" at all in the leads (though that could change soon for Helms, Cooper and Galifianakis) and the (credited, at least) screenwriters have previously produced, um, crap. But one could also buy the argument that it's not really a sleeper, since the reviews and screening scores have been great, it's coming from a major studio, it was directed by the Old School helmer AND it's had a ton of publicity the past month, especially in TV ad time. Those elements are not typical of something most would consider a sleeper. Wed, 10 Jun 2009 08:52:08 +0000 http://www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/the-possibly-true-story-behind-the-hangover/#IDComment23786834 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/james-toback-and-brett-ratner-move-forward-with-delorean-biopic/#IDComment23768310 I don't come to SlashFilm to read anything about Brett Ratner other than that he was hit by a truck. Or a piano fell on his head. Or a truck carrying a piano fell on his head, and then he was hit by another truck. And another piano. And then R Kelly peed on him. Until you have such news re Ratner, can we please keep SlashFilm rodent-free? :-) Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:25:24 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/james-toback-and-brett-ratner-move-forward-with-delorean-biopic/#IDComment23768310 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/comedy-central-orders-26-new-episodes-of-futurama/#IDComment23767875 That's some of the best news I've heard in weeks--maybe months. Futurama had some of the best writing of any comedy in the past decade (animated or otherwise). Bender kicks ass! Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:17:47 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/comedy-central-orders-26-new-episodes-of-futurama/#IDComment23767875 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/first-look-mickey-rourke-as-whiplash-in-iron-man-2/#IDComment23767738 Hard to make a call, not knowing where this falls in the film, but I like it. I agree, it's probably not the character's "final" outfit, which likely is not so, um, "exposed." I'll give it a conditional thumbs up. Wed, 10 Jun 2009 02:14:25 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/first-look-mickey-rourke-as-whiplash-in-iron-man-2/#IDComment23767738 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/is-harvey-weinstein-asking-tarantino-to-cut-40-minutes-from-inglourious-basterds/#IDComment23733587 ... Actually, after the long rant, I let the notion of "40 minutes" sink in with me a bit. That is a hell of a lot of movie to cut from a film that's currently at 160 minutes -- 25 percent, to be exact. Given that, I guess I'm leaning toward QT's side a bit more. Maybe they're asking for 40 because they want him to cut 20, and knowing QT, and the fact that he's been working on this dream project for something like 150 years, there's likely 20 minutes in there that would fit better in deleted scenes. Tue, 9 Jun 2009 18:59:41 +0000 http:/www.slashfilm.com/2009/06/09/is-harvey-weinstein-asking-tarantino-to-cut-40-minutes-from-inglourious-basterds/#IDComment23733587