(Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images)
Filmmaker Nikyatu Jusu has had a wild year traversing the festival circuit with her Sundance Jury Award-winning debut feature Nanny, a showcase for her love of horror and drama that comes after helming numerous genre-bending short films, including the Sundance award-nominated Suicide by Sunlight.
In Prime Video’s Nanny, a Senegalese woman named Aisha (Anna Diop) spends her day working as a nanny to a high-class white couple (Michelle Monaghan and Morgan Spector) in Tribeca, New York City, but she longs for the day when she can reunite with her young son, who she left behind in Senegal. Amid her day-to-day work navigating life and patiently tending to the couple’s demanding needs, supernatural occurrences begin to surround her and test her patience.
Ahead of the film’s theatrical release, Jusu spoke to Rotten Tomatoes about her Five Favorite Films, taking care to note that on any given day, any of the films can change: “This is like having five kids and saying which one is your favorite child.” That said, all of her choices are already banger features that encapsulate Jusu’s ability as a filmmaker and writer to move past the binary of abiding by a singular genre. “All the filmmakers I’m going to mention are going to be cross-genre filmmakers, meaning that maybe their film is identified as one thing, but it’s so many things more than that one thing that speaks to the ways that I like to work.”
Eve's Bayou (1997)
83%
This was pivotal for me in terms of seeing the ways that a Black girl protagonist in a coming-of-age film could still maneuver, the intersection of cross-genre elements of culturally specific folklore, horror elements, thriller elements. You know, there are just so many themes, and they ease by you. And seeing it ensconced in the Southern Gothic conduit was interesting to me.
Oldboy (2003)
82%
Park Chan-Wook is a really brave, innovative, smart filmmaker, with a cross-genre piece that has so much heart and so much strong character. No matter how stylized art is, I’m never disappointed by his work. He does so much with his runtime. He uses all the tools in his arsenal, in terms of soundscape, in terms of set design, in terms of texture, color palette.
Ganja & Hess (1973)
93%
Digging into the archives, the filmmakers like Bill Gunn, I think about ways that he navigated Black vampires and how cerebral Ganja and & Hess was. The reception that he got at the time, where he was misunderstood and was trying to be innovative and they couldn’t pigeonhole him or compare him to anyone — that speaks to my work. Then just having this love story again, at the heart of this Black vampire film, is navigating all these big existential ideas in the film at the time. Context is important. It was just such an innovative film at the time and I don’t think audiences at the time, when blaxploitation was a thing, understood what made this intellectual, abstract vampire piece so brave. It’s stylized, it’s gorgeous, the leads are beautiful, and they have real chemistry that flies off the screen.
Morvern Callar (2002)
85%
This was my entry point to Lynne Ramsay’s work. Her ability to make soundscape a character was really inspiring. It’s something that she thinks about deeply in the writing process as a writer and director. Much like everyone I mentioned, she gives her all to every facet of her filmmaking.
Train to Busan (2016)
95%
The zombie genre is an allegory for so many human navigations of what it means to be human in this world. It’s always just a poignant commentary on the ways that we don’t value community. We’re conditioned to perceive ourselves as individuals, and to me, the best zombie films, in the end, show who is truly the monster that we’ve been. We’ve become monsters ourselves, navigating the societies that we’re navigating. Again, everything I’ve mentioned is hyper-stylized. I love filmmakers who have a poignant sense of style.
Rendy Jones for Rotten Tomatoes: Were there any influences behind tackling the cross-genre themes that you mentioned through Nanny?
Nikyatu Jusu: You know, the process has been such an amalgamation of influences. When Rena Yang, my brilliant DP came on, we were swapping all kinds of references that were not film-centric. We were swapping references that were like Boscoe Holder, the queer, Trinidadian painter — his paintings are rich in color. And then photographer Roy DeCarava, the way he plays with shadow work. I had a list of films for my entire team. Once my whole team came on, I had a list of references for them. And it was like, I have a list of less literal tonal elements, like, for instance, the Netflix series Dark was a reference, The Handmaiden, In the Mood for Love. The list is long. Then I had a whole separate list of supernatural references like St. Maud, La Llorona (2020), A Tale of Two Sisters, The Babadook. And then I had cultural references, like Ousmane Sembène’s Black Girl, Claire Denis’s Chocolat, Andrew Dosunmu’s Mother of George and Restless City. I had these different film lists that spoke to different facets of Nanny because I was well aware that it was kind of this confluence of things.
RT: What was it like to represent Little Senegal? Because if you put this movie on a geographical map of NYC in film, this might be the second movie to display the neighborhood.
Jusu: I always wanted it to be authentic. I’m not Senegalese, but I’m Sierra Leonean-American. And I was born and raised in Atlanta, which is very different from New York. I wanted to lean into what it meant to be the primary African demographic in New York. Harlem is Little Senegal, and there’s a huge Nigerian population also in places like Brooklyn and the Bronx. Living in New York, as first gen, you still gravitate to the other first gen who are African, so I was able to do that research and understand what it meant to be Senegalese in New York. And we shot on location in Senegal, in Harlem, which was really important, because at some point, budget-wise, we were talking about shooting in Toronto. A lot of films at the time we shot, which was the peak of COVID, were scared to shoot in New York on location, so they were cheating Toronto for New York. And we thought about it; like, we had started the process of budgeting Toronto, but as someone who’s lived in New York for 13 years, you can tell. You can see on the screen that is not New York. So I’m glad that we were able to do that.
RT: What are some movies that serve as an influence to bring the aspect of African Mythology into your feature?
Jusu: Well, you know what? I’ll say I grew up on, like, really bad, but good, “so bad that it’s good” like Bollywood and Nollywood and Ghanaian films, Gollywood.
They’ve become more mainstream on Netflix, but the old ones… Like in the hair-braiding salon, I referenced this film called Ciara and Beyonce. It’s African blaxploitation, and I grew up with my parents watching these really terrible, bad VFX, really terrible sound designs. But it was just so fulfilling to see black people being imagined in these ways. Like, you’re able to ignore the execution because you know that people don’t have the resources, but they’re trying. The ambition is encouraging. And so I would say that those films continue to be fun for me to escape into for permission to just keep doing this differently.
Nanny opened in limited theatrical release on November 23, 2022 and debuts on Amazon Prime Video on December 16, 2022.
Thumbnail images by: ©Trimark Pictures courtesy Everett Collection, ©Tartan Films courtesy Everett Collection, Everett Collection, ©Well Go USA Entertainment
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We have been busy at Rotten Tomatoes these last two months recommending tons of movies and TV series to watch during quarantine (you can find a ton of lists here). But sometimes you’re not in a position, or mood, to plonk yourself down in front of a screen. Perhaps you’re working, or gardening, or cooking, or exercising, or hiding in a closet for a few minutes of peace and quiet away from your kids/pupils/audience. Either way: tough to follow the twists and turns of Ozark as you do that. To help in these moments – and to generally keep you sane and healthy as we endure our collective cabin fever – the RT staff curated a list of 15 scores to pair with different parts of your quarantine life. Looking for something to push you through that last set of burpees? We have an orchestral doozy for you. Got a swoony Zoom date? Try something with French flavors. Want a new soundtrack to your Animal Crossing hours? Daft Punk is here to help.
What movie music are you listening to at home? Let us know in the comments.
(Photo by © Columbia/courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Michael Nyman
There are moments in Gattaca where nothing much is happening on-screen, but the rich Michael Nyman score is going in hard. In my early Gattaca-watching career (I’ve seen the movie eight or nine times now), I thought this was faulty, like the music was overcompensating. Plainly, this was a bad take. The music is devastatingly romantic. And not just how it informs the relationship between Jerome and Irene (Ethan Hawke, Uma Thurman), but also Jerome’s love for himself, to believe he is capable of something far beyond his cursed birthright. These times ask us to search for this kind of inner strength, to navigate daily life’s new chaos, and carry a torch of hope for the not-too-distant-future. Gattaca‘s soundtrack, culminating in the impossible beauty of “The Arrival,” is the music of that guiding light.
Listen when: Working from home – this s–t is motivating! – but only if you like your job, and you’re not on a call. – Alex Vo, Editor
(Photo by Courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Nino Rota
Italian composer Nino Rota has quite the résumé: La Dolce Vita, 8 1/2, and, of course, the first two Godfather films, both of which earned him Oscar nominations, and the second of which got him a win. My personal favorite, though, is his score for Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 version of Romeo and Juliet, starring Leonard Whiting and Olivia Hussey. Maybe it takes me back to the high school English class in which I first saw the film, but there’s something about Rota’s love theme – a little trepidatious at first before a rousing strings-led swell, all laced with a certain feeling it’s not going to turn out well – that helps me focus when editing or reading. Be warned though: The score’s final tracks, which accompany the tragic finale on screen, are intense. Skip those, re-start from the beginning, and pretend the young lovers had a dagger-less ending.
Listen when: You’ve carved out some time in your day to read (and have got your “looking interested” photo programmed to your Zoom feed). – Joel Meares, Editor-in-Chief
(Photo by Courtesy the Everett Collection)
Composers: Duke Ellington, Billy Strayhorn
There are several reasons why Otto Preminger’s Anatomy of a Murder is one of the greatest courtroom dramas ever, but it’s arguably best remembered for its striking opening title sequence by Saul Bass and its incredible soundtrack, composed by none other than jazz legend Duke Ellington and his longtime collaborator Billy Strayhorn. Together, Ellington and Strayhorn put together a complete musical package that was alternately sultry (“Flirtibird”), playful (“Happy Anatomy”), melancholic (“Almost Cried”), and mysterious (“Midnight Indigo”), and it all still feels fresh and alive today. Of course, the most memorable song is probably the “Main Title” theme that accompanies Bass’ opening credits, but the whole score just drips with style. It’s also worth noting that it was not only one of the first soundtracks entirely scored by jazz musicians, but also the first one for a major Hollywood film that was created by an African-American composer. Movie soundtrack or not, it’s a masterpiece.
Listen when: You’re feeling fancy and having a glass of wine in a bubble bath. – Ryan Fujitani, Snr. Editor
(Photo by © Amazon Studios /Courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Jo Yeong-wook
The Handmaiden, like so many others, is the type of film that Bong Joon-ho spoke of when he urged English-speaking audiences to hurdle over the “one-inch barrier of subtitles” during one of his acceptance speeches last year for Parasite. The Korean- and Japanese-language film, which was not selected for Best International Film in 2016, sadly never reached a wide audience and was instead relegated to join other underrated/unknown non-English gems (most of which are available to stream – so get busy). Due to its under-the-radar status, many not only missed the seductive romance-thriller director Park Chan-wook weaved, but also the humorous and erotic score that plays throughout most of the film. The music, like the film it plays beneath, is surprising and genre-defying, mixing dark themes employing strings, clarinets, and harps with romantic melodies.
Listen when: You’re scrolling through exotic locales, dreaming of the day you can travel to distant lands once again. – Jacqueline Coley, Editor
(Photo by Richard Foreman Jr/©FilmDistric/Courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Cliff Martinez
You can split Drive‘s original Cliff Martinez soundtrack into three categories: Pensive, ethereal, and fittingly, driving. “Kick Your Teeth” and “Skull Crushing” are among the pensive songs, and they suggest a shadow looming high over your shoulders, like a clockwork beast wound up to strike. The ethereal songs make you feel like you’re drifting through a hazy dream, and have incongruous names like “They Broke His Pelvis” and “Wrong Floor.” These two moods converge in the driving songs (“Rubber Head,” “Where’s the Deluxe Version?,” “Hammer”) that speak to those luxuriating in their delusional power fantasies and modern fairy tales. And, in this world, who can blame them?
Listen when: You’re out for a sanctioned late-night drive, on the route with the most lights. – Vo
(Photo by © Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, © Pixar)
Composer: Randy Newman
Over four films, the themes and movements of Randy Newman’s Toy Story scores have become as familiar to many ’90s kids as “The Imperial March” – though the effect of Newman’s sometimes jazzy, sometimes rousing music is far less hair-raising. In fact, the music of Toy Story is total comfort food during these trying times, particularly the first Toy Story’s opening flourish, “Andy’s Birthday,” which will shoot you straight back to a buttery-smelling movie theater circa 1995, to the first time you saw this computer-animated marvel. (“Sid” on the other hand may give you those Darth Vader vibes; skip it.) The sung songs on these soundtracks are a treat – “You’ve Got a Friend In Me” will keep you smiling, while you can turn to Toy Story 2’s “When She Loved Me,” performed by Sarah McLachlan, if you just feel like having a good cry. You know, the kind you have when you’re watching a Pixar movie.
Listen when: It’s 3pm, you have a few hours of work left, and you need a solo pick-me-up. – Meares
(Photo by ©Walt Disney Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection)
Composers: Daft Punk
Director Joseph Kosinski already had a daunting task before him when he agreed to helm a sequel to a beloved cult classic, but he made things just a bit easier on himself by recruiting possibly the most fitting composers for the film: Daft Punk. The legendary French electronic duo – who, unsurprisingly, admitted the original Tron was a big influence on them – relied on a mix of traditional orchestral compositions and some that blended strings and horns with synthesized elements and their trademark arpeggios to create a propulsive, otherworldly sound. Their work goes a long way toward establishing the mood and tone of the film, and considering they started working on the score even before the film entered production, it’s incredible how well it fits the dark cyberpunk aesthetic. Daft Punk being who they are, the Tron Legacy soundtrack got a lot of attention, and while audiences may argue about the quality of the film itself, the music remains one of its undisputed high points.
Listen when: You need some epic music while you fish in Animal Crossing. – Fujitani
(Photo by Courtesy the Everett Collection)
Composer: Yann Teirsen
The accordion-heavy music that playfully scored Jean-Pierre Jeunet’s Oscar-nominated film Amélie has, in the almost 20 years since the movie’s release, become synonymous with Paris and particularly Montmartre, the cobblestoned neighborhood where most of the story takes place. French musician Yann Tiersen earned wide international acclaim for his work – and a César Award, and a BAFTA nomination – but would go on to later say that the fame Amelie gave him was something he resented; he would be forever linked to the quirky French hit. His score, despite his feelings, is iconic for a reason, providing a sonic fantasy land that, back in 2001, allowed a pixie-like waitress to find her happy ending, but today can take the listener anywhere they want to go. Perhaps you will take a moment in these times to fantasize about slow walks on the Seine with your one true love.
Listen when: Noshing on something French – crepes and Nutella are easy enough – on a Zoom date with your boo. – Coley
(Photo by Tartan Films/courtesy Everett Collection)
Composers: Choi Seung-hyun, Lee Ji-soo, Shim Hyeon-jeong
South Korean director Park Chan-wook’s twisty and twisted revenge thriller is rightly revered as a genre standout that helped put the country’s contemporary cinema on the world map. Its pulpy narrative, stylish direction, and one-take hallway fight sequence get all the attention, but the film wouldn’t have had the same impact if it weren’t for the score, composed by Choi Seung-hyun, Lee Ji-soo, and Shim Hyeon-jeong. While the more propulsive, electronic pieces may sound a little dated, the moody orchestral numbers feel like they’ve been ripped from some elegant, forgotten film noir; listen to “Kiss Me Deadly,” “It’s Alive!”, “The Big Sleep,” or any of the score’s melancholy waltzes for starters. Oh, and in case those titles didn’t clue you in, most of the original compositions are named after other movies, many of them film noirs themselves, which is a nice extra detail for movie buffs.
Listen when: You need to blow off some steam after a long day working from home – or you’re trying to solve the mystery of those undelivered Amazon packages you ordered. – Fujitani
(Photo by Casi Moss, courtesy of A24)
Composer: Alex Weston
The score for Lulu Wang’s incredibly moving The Farewell is an aspect of the movie that I think gets too often overlooked; recall some of the film’s most memorable moments – the family slo-mo walk, the driving away in the cab at the end – and you’ll see how important the musical choices were for making them stand out. Alex Weston’s compositions feel unapologetically classical, even operatic – the wordless vocals throughout come courtesy of tenor Mykal Kilgore – and yet they also feel inherently Eastern, an apt sonic effect given the themes of the film. A departure from most of the music, and a standout track, is soul singer Elayna Boynton’s cover of Leonard Cohen’s “Come Healing.”
Listen when: The crushing anxiety of all that is happening starts seriously stressing you out. Or when rearranging the bookshelf. – Meares
(Photo by ©Superlative Films/courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Hammock
Hammock is a Nashville post-rock band that composes long, unhurried ambient songs without vocals or drums. Columbus is a quiet movie about two lost strangers (John Cho, Haley Lu Richardson) who meet in the Ohio town and bond over its surprising modernist architecture. By any measure, the band and movie are far from mainstream in their respective mediums, but the two coming together for the original soundtrack is a thing of niche beauty. Across Columbus director Kogonada’s pristine, meticulous shots and the building intimacy between the characters, Hammock’s music is used very sparingly, so listening to the 16-song soundtrack is a true act of discovery for Hammock fans. The songs, per usual, are compact galaxies of swelling sound. They suggest stillness, composure, and reflection – the kinds of moods one might feel when studying architecture. Or observing the world around you. As long as you’re looking up.
Listen when: Dusk starts to settle in in and your work for the day is all done, or you’re doing a spot of gardening. – Vo
(Photo by Wilson Webb/©Weinstein Company/Courtesy Everett Collection)
Composer: Carter Burwell
The Oscar-nominated score for Todd Haynes’ haunting love story, Carol, is considered by many to be one of the best film compositions from the 21st century. The ’40s-inspired score also provides the perfect soundtrack for quiet meditation in the age of COVID-19. For Carol, Carter Burwell composed delicate and teasing melodies with woodwinds, strings, and xylophones that will instantly help you get Zen-y. Like the fated lovers at the center of the drama (masterfully brought to life by Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett), Burwell’s chord progressions delay their resolution but find their home triumphantly in the end.
Listen when: You need a moment of relief from your “Baby Shark”-induced headache (and the kids that instigated it). – Coley
(Photo by Annapurna Pictures)
Composer: Nicholas Britell
Two-time Oscar nominee Nicholas Britell’s most recognizable music might be his theme for HBO’s Succession, and while we certainly pay our respects to that antsy ditty – and the memes it inspired – it’s a little anxiety-inducing for our current moment. For something more soothing and just knock-your-socks-off gorgeous, Britell’s score for Barry Jenkins’ If Beale Street Could Talk is a wonderful blend of euphoria and melancholy that feels perfectly of its place and setting (Harlem, 1970s). It’s a lush strings-heavy score that follows the beats of the doomed love story the movie tells; listen to bonus track “Harlem Aria” to see what the score might have sounded like had Britell stuck with horns as the dominant instrument.
Listen when: You’re out on a socially distanced walk and really soaking in your surrounds. – Meares
(Photo by 20th Century Fox Film Corp.)
Composers: Trevor Jones, Randy Edelman, Dougie MacLean
The story behind the score of Michael Mann’s epic rendition of James Fenimore Cooper’s 1826 novel is fraught with strife, which makes it all the more impressive that it turned out as incredible as it did. Mann initially asked composer Trevor Jones for an electronic score, but switched things up quite far into the production when they realized orchestral music would be more appropriate. Jones had to scramble not only to deliver an entirely new score, but also to keep up with the film’s last-minute editing, and Randy Edelman was brought on board to help finish it on time. The end result, of course, is a dramatic, sweeping array of compositions that evoke the film’s most emotional scenes. The film’s main theme, “Promontory,” a reworking of Scottish singer-songwriter Dougie MacLean’s “The Gael,” is instantly recognizable, but the star of it all is arguably the main title score. It’s an ominous procession of drums, strings, and horns that erupts into an iconic refrain that’s somehow heartbreaking and triumphant at the same time, and if it doesn’t inspire you to fight for something – anything – then you might need to get your pulse checked.
Listen when: You need extra motivation during your stay-at-home workout. –Fujitani
(Photo by Next Entertainment World/ courtesy Everett Collection)
With Parasite‘s historic Best Picture win at the 2020 Oscars, South Korea has now become an intractable contender in the argument for which countries are producing the best movies today. Whether Parasite is your gateway into an international film scene or you’re a seasoned viewer looking to tick off every last classic, we present 30 Certified Fresh South Korean movies to watch now!
Parasite is a great introduction to the South Korean aesthetic, as director Bong Joon-ho has been playing with tone since the early 2000s. His spectacular crime thrillers Mother and Memories of Murder and his acclaimed monster movie The Host helped establish him as one of the country’s most promising filmmakers. Parasite‘s Song Kang-ho, one of Korea’s most versatile and prolific leading men, also starred in the latter two films and serves as the connective tissue between Bong and many of his celebrated colleagues. He’s worked with Oldboy director Park Chan-wook (Thirst, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance), Kim Jee-woon (The Age of Shadows, The Good, the Bad, the Weird), and Poetry and Burning director Lee Chang-dong multiple times.
Once you’ve devoured all of those films, there’s also the quiet, subdued work of Hong Sang-soo (Hotel by the River, On the Beach at Night Alone, Right Now, Wrong Then), whose frequent leading lady Kim Min-hee also starred in Park Chan-wook’s endlessly talked-about 2016 romantic mystery The Handmaiden. And if you’re looking for genre thrills, recent hits Train to Busan and The Wailing, as well as Kim Jee-woon’s A Tale of Two Sisters and I Saw the Devil, will help scratch that horror itch.
Since the turn of the century, South Korea has been a rising force in critic-applauded and genre-friendly moviemaking, with no signs of slowing down after Parasite‘s big wins. Take a look back with 30 Certified Fresh South Korean movies to watch now! —Alex Vo
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(Photo by Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images)
It’s a shame Song Kang-ho isn’t better known to international audiences, because he has been quietly dominating South Korean cinema for the past couple decades and change. Though he never underwent any professional training as an actor, he clearly possessed the kind of singular talent required to move seamlessly between genres, and he found willing partners in some of the most gifted directors to come out of Korea. This led to fruitful partnerships with people like Lee Chang-dong (Green Fish, Secret Sunshine), Park Chan-wook (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Joint Security Area, Thirst), and Kim Jee-woon (The Foul King; The Good, the Bad, the Weird; Age of Shadows), but his work with one Bong Joon-ho may be his best known and most significant.
It was Bong’s 2007 creature feature The Host that propelled both him and Song into the international spotlight, and when they later reunited for Bong’s English-language debut, 2014’s Snowpiercer, the film was widely hailed as a brilliant, ambitious dystopian vision — this is nothing to say of their very first film together, 2003’s serial killer mystery Memories of Murder, which is a decidedly smaller film, but an equally compelling and masterfully told story. To be clear, all three of those movies are Certified Fresh at 90% on the Tomatometer or higher, but it’s their latest collaboration that has people talking about the Oscars.
In Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, Song Kang-ho plays the patriarch of a family of con artists who bamboozle their way into a wealthy household by providing needed services; everything goes according to plan until, of course, it doesn’t. To say the film has earned rave reviews is an understatement, as it earned the Cannes Film Festival’s coveted Palme d’Or by a unanimous vote, and many predict the darkly comedic social satire will win a host of other awards en route to the Oscars. We chatted with Song Kang-ho ahead of Parasite‘s release, and speaking through a translator, Song gave us his Five Favorite Films, revealing a dry sense of humor in the process: “I didn’t really have time to think about what my favorite movies are. I guess I’ve been busy.”
If you ask me about my cinematic preferences, a few years ago, there was a Hungarian film called Son of Saul. It’s a bit of a dark story, but I remember being impressed by that film. I think the filming technique expresses the message of the film very accurately and very effectively.
Since I picked a movie that’s not one of mine, let me pick one of mine for my second choice. There’s this movie called Parasite. [laughs] A lot of people seem to like that movie; I think I agree with them.
I’ll pick another one of my movies. It’s directed by Lee Chang-dong and it’s called Secret Sunshine. The matter of saving humanity — human salvation — that narrative was not told from a religious perspective. It was shown through humanity, the world where we live currently, through other humans. So I think the movie showed how we as people can truly be saved.
I didn’t appear in the movie, but Oldboy, directed by Park Chan-wook. That’s one of my favorites. The movie’s narrative talks about human desires that are taboo — you’re not supposed to talk about them. You think about them, but you’re not supposed to think about them. The movie tells these forbidden stories with daring, experimentally and artistically, and it tells them very well.
This is an old movie, and though he’s not with us any more, I really love the actor Steve McQueen. This movie, Papillon, I would call it his signature movie. The reason it’s one of my favorites is simple: it’s a Steve McQueen movie. He appears in it. I don’t think I need to say any more than that. [laughs] Of course, I like Bullitt, I like them all, but if I have to pick one, Papillon is my favorite Steve McQueen movie.
Ryan Fujitani for Rotten Tomatoes: You’ve been able to work with some incredible directors even from the very beginning of your film career. How have you been so good at choosing who to work with?
Song Kang-ho: To be more accurate, it’s not that I’m choosing to work with them. They chose me. They have chosen me.
Does working with each of them — from Lee Chang-dong to Park Chan-wook to Bong Joon-ho — bring something different out of you?
They’re all different. Everyone’s different. I find all the differences among them exciting, and I respect that. I respect all their differences.
What is it that Bong Joon-ho specifically brings out of you?
Something weird! [laughs]
Thumbnail image: ©Sony Pictures Classics, NEON, ©Cinema Service, Tartan Films
Parasite is currently playing in select theaters.
The 2010 Best Foreign Language Film winner The Secret in Their Eyes is being remade…as Secret in Their Eyes, a murder mystery starring Nicole Kidman, Julia Roberts, and Chiwetel Ejiofor. As Americans, we don’t need definite articles in our movie titles, but we do occasionally need help thinking up stories to shoot, prompting this week’s 24 Frames gallery of foreign thrillers versus their Hollywood counterparts.
Back for its fifth season, the newly branded American Horror Story: Hotel takes place at the fictional and haunted Cortez in Los Angeles, a place where the guests check in but they don’t check out. But at least Lady Gaga’s here! Anyways, it’s inspiring this week’s 24 Frames gallery, a look at some of the bloodiest and crappiest hotels from movie and TV history.
Comic book movies are all the rage these days, and every year we see more of them hitting theaters than before. Whether you’re into quirky indie comics (Ghost World, American Splendor), superhero action titles (The Dark Knight, The Avengers), graphic novels (300, Persepolis), or even manga (Oldboy), there’s probably a big screen adaptation on this list for you. Read on to find out what’s available to watch online (whether through full purchase, rental, or streaming subscriptions) right now.
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In the origin story of Christopher Nolan’s Dark Knight Trilogy, Christian Bale stars as Bruce Wayne, orphaned billionaire who dons the cape and cowl to uncover a conspiracy to poison Gotham City’s water supply.
94%
Batman faces a treacherous new villain in The Joker (Heath Ledger), who terrorizes Gotham City and forces Batman to make tough decisions to keep the peace.
87%
Gotham City has enjoyed eight years of peace following the events of The Dark Knight, but a broken Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale) must become the Batman once again when Bane (Tom Hardy) takes the entire city hostage.
72%
Now known to the world as Iron Man, Tony Stark must deal with a rival arms manufacturer and becomes the target of a vengeful man with ties to his past.
77%
In the distant realm of Asgard, a powerful warrior named Thor (Chris Hemsworth) breaks a centuries-old truce, earning him exile to Earth. Once among humans, Thor must protect his new friends from an evil adversary who has followed him from Asgard.
Available now on: Amazon, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Vudu
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Scrawny Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) volunteers for a super-soldier program prior to WWII and leads American forces against Nazi collaborator Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) and his nefarious HYDRA army.
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After a military experiment gone wrong leaves his biology drastically altered, scientist Bruce Banner (Edward Norton) flees the US to search for a cure and fights to keep his blood out of military hands.
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When a mystical object is stolen from a remote research facility, the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. assemble Iron Man, Thor, Captain America, and the Hulk to retrieve it and prevent a large-scale alien invasion.
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Marjane Satrapi’s autobiographical tale recounts the childhood of an outspoken Iranian girl growing up during the Islamic revolution.
94%
A stylish indie biopic that blends live action and animated elements in an adaptation of underground comic writer Harvey Pekar’s autobiographical comics of the same name.
88%
When small town man Tom Small (Viggo Mortensen) commits an act of heroism that gets him on the local news, a mysterious stranger (Ed Harris) recognizes him and shows up, daring to reveal secrets from a past Tom claims never existed.
82%
Tom Hanks plays Depression-era hitman Michael Sullivan, whose son witnesses an execution at the hands of his father. When Connor (Daniel Craig), the son of his employer, kills his wife and younger son in an attempt to keep the family quiet, Sullivan sets out on a path of revenge.
Available now on: Amazon
83%
Young slacker Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) falls for his dream girl, Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead), but if he wants to be with her, he’ll have to defeat her seven evil exes in battle first.
90%
In the first of Sam Raimi’s three Spider-Man films, Peter Parker (Tobey Maguire) is bitten by a radioactive spider and inherits superhuman powers, which he uses to stop Norman Osborn, the megalomaniacal Green Goblin.
93%
Peter Parker is now a college student and dating Mary Jane Watson (Kirsten Dunst), but he finds adversaries in the disturbed Dr. Octopus (Alfred Molina) and Harry Osborn (James Franco) — Peter’s best friend and the son of Green Goblin.
63%
This time out, Spider-Man squares off against Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and the alien symbiote Venom (Topher Grace), the latter of which presents a particularly personal struggle for Peter.
71%
Marc Webb’s reboot of the franchise stars Andrew Garfield as a wisecracking Peter Parker, who is bitten by a radioactive spider and discovers secrets about his past that lead to the birth of his first adversary, the Lizard (Rhys Ifans).
86%
Ron Perlman reprises his title role in this sequel, which finds Hellboy fighting to keep an otherworldy tyrant from wiping out humanity.
85%
As Professor Xavier (Patrick Stewart) and his X-Men continuing to fight for the mutant cause, Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) sets out to uncover secrets about his dark past.
56%
As Magneto (Ian McKellen) prepares for an all out assault on humankind, Professor X (Patrick Stewart) rallies his troops to meet their forces head-on in a massive mutant battle.
86%
Director Matthew Vaughn takes us back to the 1960s, when a young Professor Xavier (James McAvoy) and Erik Lehnsherr/Magneto (Michael Fassbender) first meet, begin to gather mutants to their respective cause, and discover they hold very different ideas about the future.
Click to Page 2 to see the availability of Kick-Ass, Dredd, 300, and the Superman, early Batman and Men in Black franchises, plus more!
88%
As Planet Krypton verges on annihilation, a lone infant escapes into space, only to land on Earth and live out his dual life as both Clark Kent (Christopher Reeve) and the powerful Superman.
Available now on: Amazon
88%
Superman saves Paris from a nuclear attack, but he simultaneously awakens a trio of powerful Kryptonian criminals in Earth’s orbit who then attempt to take over Earth.
Available now on: Amazon
72%
This 2006 film picks up where Superman II left off, as Clark Kent/Superman (Brandon Routh) returns after years of absence only to find that the world is getting along fine without him… and his former enemy Lex Luthor (Kevin Spacey) is up to his old tricks.
Available now on: Amazon
93%
Based on the Daniel Clowes graphic novel, this coming-of-age comedy focuses on recent high school grads Enid and Rebeca (Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson), who spend their summer navigating relationships and trying to figure out what to do with their lives.
Available now on: Amazon
91%
New York cop James Edwards (Will Smith) is recruited for a top secret government agency tasked with policing earth’s resident aliens; with his partner Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones), the two help stop a “Bug” (Vincent D’Onofrio) bent on the destruction of a hidden universe.
38%
Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) has retired and had his memory wiped, but when a shapeshifting villain (Lara Flynn Boyle) takes control of the MIB offices, Agent J (Will Smith) must team up with him again to bring her to justice.
67%
After an unexplained anomaly wipes all traces of Agent K (Tommy Lee Jones) from the present, Agent J (Will Smith) travels back in time to partner up with a young K (Josh Brolin) and set things right.
78%
Dave Lizewski (Aaron Johnson) wonders why there aren’t any real superheroes in the world, so he buys a goofy outfit and tries his hand at vigilante justice. When he inadvertently upsets a crime boss (Mark Strong), he teams up with a few fellow heroes to take him down.
80%
In a dystopic near future, “judges” dispense justice at their discretion. Dredd (Karl Urban) and a rookie partner (Olivia Thirlby) get their first assignment: take down a highrise populated by gangsters and ruled by a ruthless drug lord named Ma-Ma (Lena Headey).
73%
This adaptation of the Alan Moore graphic novel, set in an alternate England, stars Natalie Portman as a young woman who joins with a mysterious masked man, skilled in speech and combat, who seeks to overthrow the totalitarian government.
80%
Adam West and Burt Ward star in this campy classic, which finds the Caped Crusader (West) and Robin (Ward) chasing down a gang of their most famous adversaries after they’ve dehydrated the UN.
77%
Tim Burton’s take on Batman stars Michael Keaton in the title role as he attempts to thwart the Joker’s (Jack Nicholson) plan to poison consumer products used by the citizens of Gotham City.
Available now on: Amazon
82%
Tim Burton follows up the 1989 hit with a much darker film, in which Batman (Michael Keaton) must deal with Catwoman (Michelle Pfeiffer) and the Penguin (Danny DeVito).
Available now on: Amazon
41%
Val Kilmer takes up the cape and cowl for Joel Schumacher’s decidedly campier sequel; Robin (Chris O’Donnell) enters the picture to lend Batman a hand against the Riddler (Jim Carrey) and Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones).
Available now on: Amazon
83%
A companion to the 1990s animated series, Mask of the Phantasm pits Batman against the Phantom, who frames Batman for the murder of a crime lord and uncovers a dangerous link to someone from his past.
65%
Jane Fonda stars as the title heroine in this sci-fi cult favorite about a government rep from Earth who searches the galaxy for a missing scientist and explores her sexuality with a number of intergalactic suitors.
66%
Based on stories from the eponymous sci-fi comic magazine, Heavy Metal tells a handful of loosely connected stories through eye-popping animation.
Available now on: Amazon
46%
Four turtles exposed to radiation grow up learning martial arts from a mutated rat sensei and do battle with a ruthless crime lord known as Shredder.
36%
The Turtles are back to take down Shredder, who has obtained some of the same radioactive ooze that transformed the Turtles and uses it to create new warriors to do his bidding.
David Duchovny became a bona fide pop culture star in the ’90s with his wry, oddball performance as alien-chasing Special Agent Fox Mulder on TV’s The X-Files — though some may remember his even more eccentric FBI turn on Twin Peaks — a role he reprized over several award-winning seasons and two big-screen films. Duchovny parlayed the success into his current starring role on the hit Californication, while on occasion finding time to appear in films like this week’s Goats, in which he plays a bearded, stoned Arizona goat herder — and quite convincingly, it should come as little surprise to learn. With the film opening in limited release this week we got a chance to sit down and chat with Duchovny, where we talked about his five favorite films.
The Godfather (Francis Ford Coppola, 1972; 100% Tomatometer)
The Godfather. That’s two. One and two. Oh, it’s just epic, you know. It’s the best soap opera. It’s all those — you know, it’s the human drama and it’s exciting. And if it was done badly it’s like a soap opera in the afternoon, and you just realize that there are only so many stories that can be told, but when they’re told in the right way they’re beautiful and effective. So much of it is good, you know: The acting is good, the directing is subtle, withheld — so much of it in wide shots, with very few close ups. It takes balls to do that. I mean, it’s a different world now; close ups are the way people tell stories now. I don’t mind close-ups, I like them, but they’re kind of forceful — you see a lot, you get a lot of information in a close-up. There’s less mystery.
The Godfather has more of a studied frame.
Yeah. I mean, I’m not a guy that loves a painterly composed frame; I’m talking more about just, “Okay, we’re not seeing exactly what this guy feels.” We’re getting a sense of it, but we’re not being spoon-fed .
You’re interacting with the film.
Right, right .
Nobody ever mentions poor old number three.
No, number three is not as good. I don’t think it’s nearly as bad as [its reputation], it’s just that it’s compared to one and two. I think it’s got — I don’t know it as well, so I probably shouldn’t talk about it — but I do remember an amazing scene with Pacino and the priest, where the priest just guides him into confessing; it’s amazing. You think it’s just a conversation — it’s a long scene — and then the priest, he’s a good priest, he just leads him into telling all of the horrible things he’s done. It’s just an amazing scene.
It’s interesting that your director on this film, Christopher Neil, worked with the Coppolas on some of their stuff as an acting coach. Did you talk to him about that?
To Chris? No. I wasn’t interested in that part of Chris. I was interesting in him directing this movie. I don’t think his connection to those people had anything to do with him doing this movie. I’m sure it had a lot to do with him being interested in making movies.
He would be good with actors as a result of that experience, though.
He is. He’s gentle with actors. He’s generous in that he gives. For me personally it was great. I think it was his stepfather who was like a goat man to him, and his conception of the character was informed by that — even though that wasn’t mine, ’cause I had to come up with my own, he had a lot of pictures and stories and things like that that were really helpful to me.
I’ll say Annie Hall, even though I’ve probably seen it too many times. [Laughs] To me, Annie Hall, Manhattan are the Woody Allen films… but then Crimes and Misdemeanors, that’s… I might put Crimes and Misdemeanors ahead of the other ones, because it’s not just funny and sweet and sad, it’s also kind of brutal — and maybe more mature. I just think he’s so unique, his voice. There’s been nobody that’s been able to quite claim that area.
I’m gonna say Chinatown. That’s just great storytelling, acting, directing. I think Polanski’s an amazing director. It’s opera, you know. It’s the biggest issues. You can’t tell an epic without a big problem, and Chinatown is brilliant in the sense of Los Angeles history — the whole creation of the Valley, and the diversion of water to make the Valley. [Screenwriter] Robert Towne was able to take a very interesting historical fact — what’d he call it, Mulwray instead of Mulholland? — and tell this amazing personal story about it. I like that very much. I guess The Godfather is similar to that in many ways; obviously based on certain facts. I like that historical aspect to Chinatown as well.
I’m gonna throw a new one in there, just so I don’t seem like an old fogey. [Laughs] I’m gonna say a movie that I recently rewatched — I saw it for the first time last year — a Korean film called Oldboy. I love it. I think [Chan-wook Park’s] an amazing storyteller. And I thought the actor was great.
Pretty tough performance, considering the octopus and all.
[Laughs] Just the whole thing. How about that one shot in the hallway when he’s fighting everybody? It’s one shot. How did — you know, to choreograph that? Days. And there are some hokey punches thrown, you can see — it’s not perfect — but it’s just fun. You start to laugh. I started to laugh, I’m like, “Oh god, he’s doing it. He’s gonna do it. He’s gonna go through the whole f–king hallway — and he’s not gonna cut.” And then the elevator door opens, and there’s all those guys — and the cut is the elevator door opening again, and they’re all dead.
It’s kind of crazy, yeah. There’s an emotional kick to the end of the movie, too.
It’s like Chinatown. [Laughs]
Goats is in select theaters this week.
This Week’s Ketchup features news stories about new entries in the Godzilla, Evil Dead, G.I. Joe and Bourne franchises, as well as new roles for Johnny Depp, Edward Norton, Jennifer Lopez and Arnold Schwarzenegger.
As this writer compiles the Weekly Ketchup each Friday, sometimes it seems like many movie websites overlook some of the biggest stories. This one is definitely in that category. While many sites continued to cover last week’s news about Spike Lee’s involvement with the English language remake of South Korean thriller Oldboy, a potentially much bigger story didn’t even always get a mention. Spike Lee has started filming an independent movie called Red Hook Summer in Brooklyn, NY and in addition to directing, he’s also acting… as Mookie from Do the Right Thing. That’s right, Red Hook Summer appears to be a de facto sequel to the film that many consider to be not just Spike Lee’s best film, but arguably one of the best films of the 1980s. Red Hook Summer is described as a story about an Atlanta man spending the summer in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, which is also home to the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood (AKA Bed-Stuy) depicted in Lee’s controversial 1989 drama. Spike Lee directed, wrote, produced and starred in Do the Right Thing as Mookie, a young pizza delivery man caught in the middle of a racial incident at Sal’s Pizzaria (where he works). That’s one way to describe Do the Right Thing, but the reason it’s considered a modern classic is that the film succeeds even without the socio-political elements. So, the question now is whether Red Hook Summer has what it takes to live up to the promise of being an implied Do the Right Thing sequel/spin off/whatever-it-is? There’s also no word yet as to whether other Do the Right Thing costars will also be returning (such as, say, Samuel L. Jackson, John Turturro, Rosie Perez or Martin Lawrence).
Walt Disney Pictures is looking to keep their Jack Sparrow in-house by aligning with Johnny Depp’s Infinitum Nihil production company on two ambitious movie projects that Depp is likely to star in. The two projects are a big screen adaptation of the classic (but short lived) 1970s supernatural thriller TV series Kolchak: The Night Stalker and a historical drama about Paul Revere’s Midnight Ride. The Night Stalker project is described as an adaptation of the original 1972 TV movie that led to the reporter character of Carl Kolchak (as played by Darren McGavin) getting his own TV show. Kolchak: The Night Stalker featured a different supernatural-themed investigation every week, but that TV movie’s story was all about a serial killer that Kolchak suspects might actually be a real vampire. If Depp’s Night Stalker sticks with that story, it can be seen as something of a follow up to the Dark Shadows movie (also based on an early 1970s cult hit TV show) in which Depp is playing the vampire Barnabas Collins (directed by Tim Burton… of course). As for the Paul Revere project, the movie is expected to focus on the 24 hour period in April, 1775, during which Boston silversmith Paul Revere made his ride from Charlestown to Lexington to warn the provincial congress (and all other Revolutionary forces he met along the way) of the incoming British advance. Johnny Depp and his coproducer are currently looking for screenwriters to work on both projects.
It’s been known for a while that Jeremy Renner will be following up his role as Hawkeye in The Avengers with yet another franchise entry: The Bourne Legacy. Rather than playing Matt Damon’s role of Jason Bourne, Jeremy Renner will be playing another government assassin trained by a department even more nefarious and dangerous than Bourne’s. It?s been known for a while that Rachel Weisz will be playing the new agent’s love interest. This week, however, brought news of who is in talks for the role of the film’s villain, and it’s Edward Norton. If Norton signs, The Bourne Legacy will potentially be the answer to a future trivia contest. Before Jeremy Renner signed on to play Hawkeye in The Avengers, Edward Norton was at one time expected to reprise the role of Dr. Bruce Banner from The Incredible Hulk. The Hulk production was the focus of many media stories involving the script, which Edward Norton reportedly rewrote (although he wasn?t credited by the WGA in the end). We may never know the exact answer to how it happened, but Mark Ruffalo was eventually cast as Banner/Hulk instead of Edward Norton. Anyway, back to The Bourne Legacy, Tony Gilroy (Duplicity, Michael Clayton), who also cowrote the first three Bourne movies, will be directing the fourth movie this fall for Universal Pictures, from a script he cowrote with his brother Dan Gilroy (Two for the Money; cowriter of The Fall).
For horror fans, there may have been really only one news item worth even mentioning this week. It started with a tweet from actor Bruce Campbell, “Believe in the remake, dawg!” The remake Campbell was talking about is the movie that has sometimes been called Evil Dead 4. The news that pre-production is starting in Detroit ends an 18 year wait that began the day after Army of Darkness came out in 1993. Sam Raimi is handing the directing job off to young Uruguayan filmmaker Fede Alvarez, for whom Evil Dead 4 (or whatever it’s eventually called) will be his feature debut, following a couple of shorts including one called Panic Attack!. Fede Alvarez also cowrote the remake script with his Panic Attack! cowriter Rodo Sayagues. However, their script is now getting another rewrite from a surprise source: Academy Award winner Diablo Cody (Juno, Jennifer’s Body). Although no plot details are known yet, as a remake, we can guess that it will probably be about someone finding a book called the Necronomicon Ex-Mortis in a remote cabin, which then leads to the unleashing of “deadites,” which are reanimated body parts and corpses possessed by evil spirits. The original Evil Dead producing team of Sam Raimi, Rob Tapert and Bruce Campbell are all shepherding the project through Ghost House Pictures, and Lionsgate is handling international sales for the film’s eventual release. There’s also a strong chance that Bruce Campbell will appear in the remake in some form, although it’s not yet known if he will be playing Ash, or some other character. Finally, you can click here to see the short film Panic Attack! that inspired Raimi, Tapert and Campbell to entrust Alvarez with their most cherished horror franchise. There’s no animated deer heads, but it’s still pretty cool.
Screenwriter David Goyer may have started with movies like Kickboxer 2: The Road Back, Demonic Toys and the TV movie Nick Fury: Agent of Shield, but he really did work his way up to the big time. Later on, he worked on movies like Dark City and the three Blade movies, and today he is working with director and producer Christopher Nolan on The Dark Knight Rises and Zack Snyder’s Man of Steel. Batman and Superman are obviously larger-than-life characters, but Goyer’s next movie has them beat, handily. He has signed with Legendary Pictures (the studio also behind those superhero franchises) and Warner Bros to do a rewrite of the reboot of Godzilla. Screenwriter David Callaham (cowriter of Doom, The Expendables) wrote the first draft, which David Goyer will now rewrite. Movie fans understandably may have bad vibes about Godzilla, following the critically-panned disaster of a movie that was the 1998 Godzilla. However, this new Godzilla relaunch project is expected to have nothing in common with that film except a title and a coproduction credit with Toho, the Japanese company behind the classic monster franchise. Normally, this might be the part where I explain what Godzilla is about, but really, if I have to do that… you’re reading the wrong column. Legendary Pictures and Warner Bros hope to have Godzilla ready to stomp back into theaters possibly as soon as 2013.
Parker is the name of the latest movie based upon the criminal anti-hero character created by author Donald E. Westlake in a series of novels. Previous movies based on the character (but frequently with a different name) include Point Blank, The Outfit and Payback. It has been known for a while that Parker will be directed by Taylor Hackford (Ray, An Officer and a Gentleman, The Devil’s Advocate). However, enough casting news has happened since Parker was last mentioned in this column that it’s definitely time for an update. First off, the role of Parker himself will be played by Jason Statham, star of the Transporter and Crank franchises. Jennifer Lopez recently started negotiations to play Parker’s love interest. And this week, Michael Chiklis, AKA Vic Mackey from The Shield, signed on to play Parker’s nemesis. Although the nature of Chiklis’ character isn’t precisely known yet, many online fans this week have expressed hope that this will be an opportunity for Chiklis to flex his tougher, meaner acting muscles. Filming of Parker starts in New Orleans next month.
Some actors have a niche, and they just stick with what gets them steady work. It’s such an obvious fact that it’s probably not even worth mentioning. Consider Alexander Skarsgard, who plays Eric Northman, the former Viking vampire in HBO’s True Blood, for example. When Thor was casting up, there was a good while when Skarsgard was in the running, and was considered by many fans to be the obvious choice, because, really, who else could Marvel possibly cast? When the guy who played Kirk’s dad in Star Trek got the role instead, many people were frankly dumbfounded. People thought “Norse” and “blonde” and “tall,” and Alexander Skarsgard seemed like almost the only choice (sorry, Tyler Mane!). That notion stuck around when his dad was cast in Thor, and he wasn’t. Well, Alexander Skarsgard’s big screen Viking ship came in this week with the news that he is attached to star in and produce a Warner Bros “epic” with the working title of The Vanguard. Skarsgard will play one of two Viking brothers who are banished to North America, and so they must spend the rest of the movie attempting to get back home to Sweden (Skarsgard is himself Swedish). Screenwriter Chris Boal, who doesn’t yet have any produced movies to his credit, is working on the script. This was a big week for Chris Boal, because he also signed another deal with Warner Bros to work on an untitled ancient war epic about Roman general Gaius Julius Caesar, who went on to become Rome’s first, you know… Caesar. Warner Bros is seeing the project as a two movie franchise with the first movie ending with Caesar taking control of Rome, and the second movie would address the rest of his life (Cleopatra, “Et Tu, Brutus?”, etc). Jonathan Liebesman (Battle: Los Angeles, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning), who is also directing the Clash of the Titans sequel for Warner Bros, is attached to direct the first Julius Caesar movie.
The year 2011 has seen Arnold Schwarzenegger at the center of a rollercoaster ride revolving around the question of how he will make his return to movies after several years as the Governor of California. The year started with several different projects being mentioned, including a possible movie based upon a planned animated TV series called The Governator (in which he would have played a superhero who fights crime alongside Maria Shriver and their four kids). However, that was all before Schwarzenegger’s extramarital misadventures were made public in May, which very quickly led to Schwarzenegger announcing that he was putting his acting career on hold. Just two months was apparently long enough for Schwarzenegger to recover, because this week Lionsgate announced that the Austrian Oak will indeed make his return in The Last Stand. Schwarzenegger will play ex-LAPD officer Sheriff Owens, whose sleepy border town surprisingly becomes the last line of defense against a fugitive drug kingpin who is speeding towards Mexico with a car full of hostages and violent gang members. The Last Stand will also mark the English language debut of Korean thriller director Kim Jee-Woon (I Saw the Devil, A Tale of Two Sisters). This story is Rotten for other reasons, too, but the clincher was a comment from Kim Jee-Woon, which seems to be trying a bit too hard to draw a connection to one of the best action films of all time. Here’s what he had to say, “[It’s] kind of a combination of Die Hard and High Noon where (the latter) was about protecting something very important that needs to be protected, while Die Hard is a very drawn-out, long process that almost kills someone in the process. So my film will be something that has to be very well protected and, in the process, we almost die protecting it in a way.”
Ray Stevenson is one of those fan favorite actors who unfortunately also frequently signs on for movies that he seems too good for. Stevenson arguably made his reputation playing Titus Pullo on the HBO series Rome, and his filmography also includes roles in King Arthur, The Book of Eli, The Other Guys, The Vampire’s Assistant, Thor (as Volstagg) and of course, as the third Punisher star in Punisher: War Zone. His next movie role will be Porthos in this fall’s The Three Musketeers, directed by Paul W.S. Anderson (the Resident Evil guy, not the Boogie Nights guy). This week, Stevenson added yet another potentially disappointing movie to his filmography by signing with Paramount to play the villain Firefly in G.I. Joe 2: Cobra Strikes. Like returning characters Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow, Firefly is described as a “ninja master,” as well as an expert saboteur. Channing Tatum (Duke), Ray Park (Snake Eyes) and Lee Byung-hun (Storm Shadow) are the only cast members expected to return. In addition to Ray Stevenson, the other new cast members revealed thus far include D.J. Cotrona (Flint), Dwayne Johnson (Roadblock), Adrianne Palicki (Lady Jaye), RZA (Blind Master) and Elodie Yung (Jinx). Director Jon M. Chu (Justin Bieber: Never Say Never, Step Up 2: The Streets, Step Up 3D) will start filming G.I. Joe 2: Cobra Strikes later this summer, from a script by the Zombieland team of Rhett Reese and Paul Wernick. Paramount Pictures has scheduled G.I. Joe 2: Cobra Strikes for release in August, 2012.
Back in May, Albert Hughes, codirector of The Book of Eli, From Hell and Menace II Society with his brother Allen, dropped out of Warner Bros’ planned live-action adaptation of the manga series Akira. Now, Warner Bros is in talks with director Jaume Collet-Serra (Unknown, Orphan) to take on the adaptation instead. Movie fans probably best know Akira as the basis for the 1988 anime film of the same title, which regularly tops critics’ lists as either the best, or one of the best, anime films of all time. Akira tells the story of two teenage motorcycle gang members who become involved with a secret government experiment that causes one of them to become a super-powered mutant with catastrophic mental abilities. The project has been the subject of much fan outrage for a variety of reasons. One issue is the idea of adult actors like Keanu Reeves, Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio and Ryan Gosling being considered. Besides age, there’s also the question of Akira being Anglicized, with the setting changed from Neo Tokyo to Neo Manhattan. Besides all that, there’s the very idea of doing a de facto live action remake of Akira at all. Specific to this news, there’s also Jaume Collet-Serra’s Tomatometer record to consider, which is entirely rated “Rotten,” with his best reviewed film (Unknown) only getting a Tomatometer score of 56%. For so many reasons, Warner Bros’ continued efforts for a live action Akira movie is the week’s most Rotten Idea.
For more Weekly Ketchup columns by Greg Dean Schmitz, check out the WK archive, and you can contact GDS via Facebook or a RT forum message.
