Variety’s article about Karen Allen’s return to “Indiana Jones” franchise by David S. Cohen is quite charming, warm and entertaining. It’s hard to believe that 19 years has gone by since the last “Indiana Jones” movie.  Karen Allen was in the first, “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” creating a Tracy-Hepburn feel to the serial genre of Lucas and Spielberg.  At the time, no one was aware of the huge impact of the film, looking back, its quite magical.

With the May 22nd opening of “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” I recommend reading this article to reflect on the formative years of “Indiana” and the new and more wise renewal of “Indiana” today.

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According to Hollywood Reporter, Ron Perlman is set to play the bad guy in a hybrid martial arts movie “Bunraku,” which Guy Moshe is directing from his own script.

Japanese actors Gackt and Shun Sugata also have been cast in the international-flavored movie, which features Josh Hartnett, Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson, Scottish actor Kevin McKidd and Spanish actor Jordi Molla. Now, that is a mixure!

The film is set in a hyperstylized universe a la “Sin City” and draws from a mixed bag of genres, including puppets, origami, comic books, video games and German expressionism. It follows a drifter (Hartnett) who teams with a samurai (Gackt) to take on an Eastern European gang lord, played by Perlman (”Hellboy”).

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It looks like Tom Cruise and Sumner Redstone are in agreement for the next installment of the “Mission: Impossible” franchise, which Cruise will star in the fourth movie.

According to Variety, Redstone said, “I consider Tom Cruise a great actor and a good friend. And if Paramount decides to move ahead with him, I will not object.” He added that the decision was “up to Brad Grey, who runs Paramount.” Redstone was seen dining with Cruise in Beverly Hills in March.Tom Cruise just celebrated 25 years since starring in his first movie, “Risky Business.”  He also was on the Oprah Winfrey show discussing everything and has a, first time ever, official web site at Tom Cruise. 

The web site is awesome and very much Cruise’s persona.

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With Marvel’s Iron Man already in theaters it’s no surprise that the company is already looking towards future endeavors. Generating a hefty $201 million dollars globally to day and securing titles such as ’second-best non-sequel film debut ever’, Iron Man’s launch was a successful one to say the least.

Well, to capitalize on the first movies success, Marvel has announced that there will in fact be a ‘Iron Man 2‘ and it is currently planned to hit the big screen on April 30th, 2010. Also having said that the success ‘firmly establishes Iron Man as a major new film franchise’, which means that we are likely to see an Iron Man 3, 4 , 5 etc etc a la Spiderman.

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Ain’t it Cool News posted the above pic of Harvey Dent, the second villain to feature in the upcoming Batman sequel, The Dark Knight. Directed by Christopher Nolan, who revamped the franchise with Batman Begins, I knew the film was going to be dark. But this goes beyond dark, it’s downright scary!

Now, I don’t know whether this is real or not. Last year Slashfilm posted some pics of Two-Face which they revealed were fake. And there’s also rumours that Two-Face, played by Aaron Eckhart, will only briefly appear in The Dark Knight, instead being set up for the next inevitable sequel. I really hope this pic isn’t fake, it would really add to the intensity of a film that is already disturbing (check out the trailer)- and that’s even before you realise that the Joker is essentially Heath Ledger’s last role.

The Dark Knight is released from July 18th.

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A few months back there were plenty of doubts about Iron Man. The comic book character, a rich industrialist who designed a supersuit to fight crime, is not one of Marvel’s most defining characters. And many doubted the talents of director Jon Favreau, who has only directed kid-oriented fluff such as Elf and Zathura, and lead actor Robert Downey Jnr, who has had more relapses than hit movies. Yet slowly but surely, the film began to pick up momentum, and this weekend, its first, has seen it earning $200 million worldwide. Reviews have been kind, so is Iron Man a worthy first blockbuster of 2008?

The film traces the origins of Iron Man. Tony Stark, designer of advanced weapons of mass destruction, is kidnapped in Afghanistan by terrorists, and forced to build weapons for them. Instead, he invents a clunky suit to escape, after a fellow prisoner, Yinsen, manages to show him the consequences of his missile designs. After escaping, Stark decides to work for peace instead, but faces resistance by his business partner Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges), who has plans to steal Downey’s iron man design.

There are two reasons why Iron Man works as a film. Read on »

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Take a look at Hollywood Reporter’s review of “Iron Man” by Kirk Honeycutt. The movie is looking even better. 

“Iron Man,” the first self-financed production from Marvel Studios, should catch boxoffice lightning in a bottle, thanks to hiring longtime Marvel Comics reader Jon Favreau as director and the supersmart casting of Robert Downey Jr. as the conflicted protagonist.

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Here is an awesome review of the highly-anticipated movie “Iron Man.”  I have seen the trailer, the movie is an ideal summer hit.

“Finally, someone’s found a sure-fire way to make money with a modern Middle East war movie: Just send a Marvel superhero into the fray to kick some insurgent butt. The powerhouse comicbook-inspired actioner “Iron Man” isn’t principally about this fantasy, but it won’t hurt at least American audiences’ enjoyment of this expansively entertaining special effects extravaganza. Having an actor as supercharged as Robert Downey Jr. at the center of such a tech-oriented enterprise reps a huge plus, and Paramount should reap big B.O. rewards by getting out ahead of the summer tentpole pack with such a classy refitting of an overworked format.”

Here is the rest of the review at Variety!

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Karin you won!!! Congratulations!!!

Karin this is what you won: A DVD collection of 33 episodesof the series by J. Michael Straczynski, creator of Babylon 5. The series is based upon the popular Mattel Toys. When solar flare wreaks havoc on Jayce’s father’s botanical experiments, they flee from his accidental creations: Saw Boss and his band of ruthless mutated plant life called the Monster Minds. Now it is up to Jayce, joined by the valiant Lightning League, to reunite with his father and combine the two halves of the magic Root amulet—the only object capable of purging the universe of Saw Boss and his army forever.

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    Variety.com reports that Brian De Palma’s “The Fury” is in the remake mode to the big screen.New version will center on a young man with heightened kinetic powers who is abducted by the government in order to take advantage of his special gifts.

Original, starring Kirk Douglas, Amy Irving and John Cassavetes and released in 1978 and was based on John Farris’ 1976 novel of the same name.

I don’t know if you remember the original film, but I thought it was quite good.  I hope the remake takes a different name because I am sure it will be a different film.

This photo is of Amy Irving in the 1978 version of “The Fury.”  I haven’t seen Irving in awhile, and I’d love to see her on the big screen again soon.

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