Screenhead

And it’s not the early print, either.

Seriously, I’ve heard of some doomed productions in my day, but The Green Hornet could well make a movie about their own doomed production.  They’ve been stuck in development hell, played musical actors with their Kato,  and then the low blow came when a car crash happened on set.

At least, until today…when someone found a bomb on the set.

Now, I’ve heard of movies being CALLED bombs before, but actually finding one?  That wasn’t supposed to be there?  Now I’ve heard everything!  So on top of all this, the Los Angeles bomb squad comes out and blows the thing up with their bomb disposal robot.

While I’m shocked that someone would put a bomb on a film set, I have to wonder, offhandedly, if maybe they got some stock footage out of the deal.  Either way, though, this is the strangest production shoot I’ve heard of in quite some time.

Variety reports that Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman, Bill Hader, Jane Lynch and Kristen Wiig have joined the cast of Paul, an upcoming comedy in the works at Universal.

Written by Nick Frost and Simon Pegg, it follows two sci-fi lovers who find their “conspiracy dreams” becoming true when they visit an escaped alien at Area 51. Seth Rogen is set to provide the alien’s voice.

Greg Mottola, known for Superbad, will direct the film, which is scheduled for release later this year.

I think I may well have had the best moment at the movies in a long time when I went to see Observe And Report.  But more on that jolly time later–let’s take a rundown of the plot.

When an anonymous flasher exposes himself to shoppers at the Forest Ridge Mall, it sends head of mall security Ronnie Barnhardt off on a whirlwind adventure of violence, carnage and alcoholism.  He must fend off the outside influences of a local detective, pursue his dream of becoming a police officer, further pursue his dream girl Brandi (she works at the makeup counter), once again pursue the thief that’s been preying on the mall, and attempt to overcome his own numerous handicaps in order to achieve his dreams.

Whoever said that Observe And Report was just going to be a darker version of Paul Blart: Mall Cop was absolutely right, but they weren’t COMPLETELY right.  What they said was spot-on, but they didn’t say ENOUGH.  See, not only is Observe And Report a darker version of Paul Blart: Mall Cop, it’s also a vastly more over-the-top version of Paul Blart: Mall Cop.  You could already tell from the above that there’ll be plenty of similarities between the two; each features a handicapped mall cop in pursuit of a co-worker, each features over-the-top heroism on the part of said handicapped mall cop, each features a mall cop who desperately longs to be a “real” police officer.  Plus, both Ronnie and Paul live with their mother.  Both Ronnie and Paul will have to face corruption within their own departments.

Like I said, lots of similarities here.  But there are differences, and it’s these differences that will distinguish Observe and Report from Paul Blart: Mall Cop.  Observe and Report features Seth Rogen, who is much, MUCH more painful to watch than Kevin James.  Where Paul Blart was a fat hypoglycemic, Ronnie Barnhardt is merely a slightly chubby medicated bipolar who’s recently gone off his meds.  There may also be a touch of sociopathic tendency in Ronnie Barnhardt, which you’ll discover as you watch this guy lay an ASTONISHING number of beatings down on most everyone he comes in contact with.

I will NOT spoiler, but I tell you this, I truly do not believe the thought of Seth Rogen taking on a dozen cops with nightsticks armed only with a Mag-Lite.  It just doesn’t work for me.

Better yet, there will be lots of gunplay going on in Observe and Report, and mostly by people who should actually not be allowed to own firearms.  Oh, and there will also be full frontal nudity.  Full frontal MALE nudity. I haven’t seen this much sausage in a theatre since I saw Beerfest, and that’s LITERAL sausage, not the metaphorical kind in Observe and Report.  And that great movie moment I mentioned earlier?  Observe and Report has an entire arsenal of F-bombs, and it will not hesitate to drop them even at the most inappropriate times.  In fact, so many were flung around one particularly awesome scene that the only other guy in the theatre when I was watching walked out.  And he did not come back.

Gunplay, male nudity, alcoholism, profanity in extremis…this is what separates the funny and relatively inoffensive Paul Blart: Mall Cop from the funny but wildly over the top Observe And Report.  So if you’re of a sensitive constitution,  or didn’t laugh once during Paul Blart: Mall Cop, then you’re definitely not going to like Observe and Report.  But if you’re the forgiving sort who can take a whole lot of adult content, then you might get a few laughs out of this.  I got quite a few, myself, so I can recommend it, but with so much objectionable about it, I must recommend only with several reservations.  If you’re willing to take the risk, then chances are you’ll like this just fine.

Seth Rogen attended the SXSW Film Festival to premiere his new comedy Observe and Report, but more importantly he confirmed that “we have no 100% official Kato at this point.”

Up until now, Chinese filmmaker Stephen Chow (Kung-fu Hustle) had been pretty much locked for the role of Green Hornet’s sidekick, despite his stepping aside as the film’s director a few months back. Michael Gondry had taken on the reigns of the project.

Rogen’s statement does leave the door open for Chow to still play the part, which I hope he will.

Michel Gondry is in place to direct The Green Hornet with Columbia committed to a June 25, 2010 release date.

If you have been following the film’s development process, then you know that Seth Rogen is set to play the title character, and Stephen Chow will play his sidekick, Kato.

Gondry work includes Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Science of Sleep, Human Nature and soon to be released on March 6, Tokyo!  A commercial film like Green Hornet is not his forte, but I am interested in seeing how he’ll pull it off.  

As far as Variety reports, Gondry nailed the gig after presenting a vision that astounded the production presidents. They had been looking for a director since late last year, when Chow (Kung Fu Hustle) resigned over creative differences. Yet, Chow decided at that time to remain in the picture playing the Kato role.

Seth Rogen’s latest film is way over the top and makes Paul Blart Mall Cop look like a walk in the park compared to Rogen’s Observe and Report.  The movie opens April 10, 2009.

Despite earlier reports that the project was dying, it appears that The Green Hornet is alive and kicking.

Dispelling rumors about the film’s premature death, Seth Rogen got in contact with Hitflix, saying: “[The studio heads] have every intention on making it, and assuming we’re able to hire a new director in the upcoming weeks, which seems like a distinct possibility, it should still hit the release date.”

Meanwhile, the LA Times says that they have heard that Adam Sandler has a brief, but key role in the movie as a surprise superhero.

The film remains on target for release on June 25, 2010.

Guess what – Sony does not like Seth Rogen! The actor’s new film based on the Green Hornet radio and ‘60s television property looks to be on the verge of collapse again, as Sony Pictures is nervous about developing it. Apparently, this stems from the fact that actor/director Stephen Chow has not shown much interest in the project.

HitFix’s Drew McWeeny has more on the story: “At Sundance, I heard several people say that the film was off completely. I spoke this afternoon with a source close to the film, and while they didn’t call it completely dead, they did say it is “highly unlikely” that the film will shoot in 2009 at all.”

Ah well… maybe we’ll see Rogen prancing around as the Hornet some day, but not that soon.

Alexandre Aja, best known for The Hills Have Eyes and Mirrors, is considering moving away from the genre and hopes to adapt Didier van Cauwelaert’s satirical novel The Gospel According to Jimmy.

“You have to imagine, a few years from now, the Republicans want to get back in the White House, and the only thing that they find is like an old cloning project… to clone Jesus from a blood cell on the Shroud of Turin,” he said, revealing details of the plot. “And one subject had survived, and he’s fixing pools in L.A., named Jimmy. And they’re going to find him and ask him to come back and help them to get back to power.”

As for the actor who would play Jesus: Aja thinks Seth Rogen would be perfect for the role. Unfortunately, the project is only being set up at the moment and writers are being sought to adapt the property, so you won’t be seeing it anytime soon.

When California girl Susan Murphy is unexpectedly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk, she mysteriously grows to 49-feet-11-inches tall and is instantly labeled a “monster” named Ginormica. The military jumps into action, and she is captured and held in a secret government compound. The world learns that the military has been quietly rounding up other monsters over the years. This ragtag group consists of the brilliant but insect-headed Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D.; the macho half-ape, half-fish The Missing Link; the gelatinous and indestructible B.O.B.; and the 350-foot grub called Insectosaurus. Their confinement time is cut short however, when a mysterious alien robot lands on Earth and begins storming the country.