Category Archives: MOVIES

Movie News & Opinions

Kasdan/Kinberg Join New Star Wars Films, Vader Returns, & Other Lucasfilm News

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If you haven’t been keeping up with all the news about the upcoming Star Wars films, we’re not sure where you’ve been the last few weeks, but we have you covered.  Quite a bit has been leaked about the films since Disney bought Lucasfilm, enough to possibly fill the hidden cargo holds on the Millenium Falcon.

Matthew Vaughn to direct Star Wars VII

For one, rumors started going around that X-Men: First Class director Matthew Vaughn would be hired to direct the upcoming Star Wars VII, and shortly thereafter the fan base exploded in excitement when Harrison Ford said he was open to the idea of reprising his role as the iconic Han Solo, despite his continual avoidance of the franchise and surrounding events.  Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher had already been informed of the new films, and both have also expressed interest in reprising their respective roles as Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia.

Does Vader return for Star Wars VII?

Now one rumor in particular that has surfaced is causing the fan base to explode in pseudo-excitement again: several media companies are claiming that the infamous Darth Vader will appear in Star Wars VII.  How, no one really seems to know yet, and details are limited if not entirely fictitious.  The unidentified source involved in the film’s production merely said that the creative team considers Vader “integral” and that “the plan is for [Darth Vader] to return and play a significant role in the new films” [Screenrant].

Vader returning like a Jedi (or Sith, technically) worries many fans, who over the past few weeks have claimed that if Disney tries to physically resurrect the asthmatic villain through some sort of technological cloning process, they will lose faith in Disney’s ability to properly stay true to the Star Wars universe.  Others have said that it’s only logical that Vader should reappear as long as he is shown in flashbacks and memories.  No further news has been reported on this issue as of now.

Michael Arndt to write Star Wars VII

The newest information about the upcoming Star Wars films has been predominantly focused around the writing and producing.  The Hollywood Reporter said that Michael Arndt, screenwriter for Little Miss Sunshine and Toy Story 3, was brought on board to write the script for Star Wars VII even before the Disney buyout of Lucasfilm.  StarWars.com confirmed this is still the plan for the 2015 movie. Considering Arndt recently penned the script to the upcoming The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, his script for Star Wars VII should hopefully have good balance of drama, comedy, and action.

Simon Kinberg and Lawrence Kasdan will produce & possibly write Star Wars VIII & IV.

Finally, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi writer Lawrence Kasdan has come on the scene in addition to the writer of the new X-Men movie, Simon Kinberg.  Though it’s been confirmed that the two will help produce Star Wars VIII and IX, their exact writing roles are not yet decided.  The news of Kasdan returning is positive indeed; having a veteran to the Star Wars franchise should help keep it true to its roots, and Kinberg’s credentials are nothing to balk at, either.

Star Wars news is sure to keep spilling over the next few months and years.  The Grizzly Bomb will do our best to act like Bothan spies and get the information out to you as quickly as possible, so keep watching for updates!

Movie Trailers

‘Silent Night’ is Coming to Town

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“Garbage day!”  It’s time for the holidays, and along with them are some new cinematic releases.  Since the first time I saw Gremlins, I loved the holiday horror genre.  Combining slasher flicks with seasonal joy is the Captain in my eggnog.  When I first laid eyes on the new trailer for Silent Night, I felt literal Christmas joy.

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Movie News & Opinions

Trekking Before An Unexpected Journey: 9 Minutes of Footage from New Star Trek before the Hobbit

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Our friends at Geek Exchange report that before moviegoers return to the Shire in the upcoming The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, they’ll get a glimpse into darkness, as in a 9 minute preview of Star Trek: Into Darkness. This is only available, however, during the IMAX viewing of The Hobbit releasing December 14th. The rest of the world will have to wait the official release, or for someone to bootleg it onto YouTube later that day. If you’re not springing for the IMAX show (which, based on preliminary speculation, will probably be amazing) you can still catch a glimpse of Kirk, Spock and crew in the trailer attached to the movie.

As a fan of nearly all things Trek (except for IV, that was really bad…and Voyager was hit or miss at best) and virtually everything JJ Abrams touches, I’m extremely excited to see his latest foray into the Trek-verse. Let’s just hope he cuts down on the lens flares a bit this time around.

Personally, I liked Abrams treatment of the reboot and the tweaks on the original storyline. Though there were clearly some divergences from the Trek that many of us know and love, it was a refreshing take on the saga. Spock and Uhura hooking up were an especially unexpected (but pleasant) surprise, as it was nice to see Kirk out of sorts when it came to the ladies. I’m hoping that  the relationship, as well as the rivalry/camaraderie between Kirk and Spock will be explored in greater detail, giving us some insight into how they became such incredible friends over the years.

Also, let’s hope that the villains this time are more calculating and conniving, as Nero seemed to be a bit less of a formidable foe than I would have hoped. Will we see Klingons? Or maybe a young Khan Noonien Singh in this version? Rumors abound, but nothing is set in stone. Keep your eyes on the G-Bomb and we’ll update as we learn more.

CLICK TO ENLARGE KLINGON

Are you excited for the new “Trek”? What do you want to see in the next iteration of Trek? Sound off in the comments below!

Movie News & Opinions

‘Amazing Spider-Man 2’ Is Testing For The Role Of Harry Osborn.

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Despite my protest, violent anger, seething rage and fairly open contempt towards The Amazing Spider-Man, and this ludicrously shallow movie franchise Sony is trying to build, the editors here at Grizzly Bomb seem to find some sick perverted joy in making me cover Spider-Man movie news. [Ed. Note – This is true.] I tell them, why not get someone who likes this movie? Or the series of previous movies? Or even the character for that matter? But they shun those words, and laugh as my tears are like some salty opiate nectar to them. [Also true.]

Because the last one inexplicably made so much damn money, despite being complete and total trash, they’ve moved forward with carrying out the development of the sequel. As we all know, that was the whole point to begin with, and certainly there was never any intention to tell an interesting, new, captivating, well acted, funny, engaging, non-boring story to begin with. Since we’ve established Gwen Stacy as Spider-Man’s totally hot, awesome babe of a girlfriend, we’re next gonna bring in Harry Osborn, to set up the foundation of what will presumably be the second sequel’s story, which is the introduction of the Green Goblin. Again.

They’ve currently auditioned four different actors for the role of Harry Osborn, and they’re the same type of namby pamby, limp wristed sissy boys that our current Peter Parker is. I’m positive they’ll all have multiple layers of coats and undershirts, and constantly mope about how awful their lives are while being incredibly rich, handsome, famous and generally leading amazing lives.

via [SpinoffOnline]

Douglas Booth, Sam Claflin, Boyd Holbrook and Eddie Redmayne, in order from left to right. All sissies.

[quote]According to The Hollywood Reporter, studio insiders say four young actors tested for the role on Monday: Sam Claflin (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Snow White & the Huntsman); Eddie Redmayne (The Good Shepherd, My Week with Marilyn); Douglas Booth (Noah, Christopher and His Kind); and Boyd Holbrook (Hatfields & McCoys, The Host).[/quote]

Because the current sequel is rumored to have Jamie Foxx as Electro, we can probably expect Green Goblin to show up in the third movie, which will tie in to explain something or other about Peter Parker’s parents, and people will blow their gaskets over it and laud it and oh my god the whole thing already makes me sick. Jamie Foxx as Electro already sounds stupid enough, so I can only hope these movies go full-retard into something that can actually entertain me. Until then, I’m stuck covering the news of this movie, in some sort of Sisyphean torment put upon me until the end of time, or whenever these movies stop being made. By the likes of things, they’re probably one and the same.

Movie News & Opinions

Grizzly Top Ten: Best Thanksgiving Movies

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For me Thanksgiving has always been about Detroit Lions Football, good food, and family. Probably in that order too. But that’s not to say that there aren’t some fond memories of the occasion watching something other than Football. The following list of films are those that are, at least in part, dedicated to the 3rd Thursday of each November. Now being sandwiched in between Halloween and Christmas, the 2 days that have inspired the most movies doesn’t leave us with the widest selection, but there is no shortage of quality.

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Movie News & Opinions

Tom Hardy to Play Sam Fisher in the Upcoming ‘Splinter Cell’ Movie

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Tom Clancy games were some of the most popular shooters in the early days of this console generation, back before Call of Duty stormed in and beat everything else from the genre into non-existence. Among the Clancy-approved series were Rainbow Six, Ghost Recon and, of course, Splinter Cell. As Sam Fisher, an elite agent of the fictional Third Echelon branch of the NSA, players infiltrated terrorist cells using only stealth tactics and a small kit of advanced gadgetry. In its heyday Splinter Cell was beloved and one of the best-selling franchises out there. The games are still around, but the popularity and quality of Sam Fisher’s more recent missions have waned considerably.

But hat’s not to say that interest has completely dropped off. There’s still enough gas in the tank that Ubisoft Studios is in the process of starting up a Splinter Cell movie, and according to Geek Exchange Ubi has now successfully wrangled The Dark Knight Rises co-star Tom Hardy to play the part of Agent Fisher. This is a huge get for Ubisoft, who also recently announced that Michael Fassbender will star in their Assassin’s Creed adaptation. With both films featuring high-caliber stars they’ll likely draw an audience, but hopefully the show of talent on camera is reflective of the talent behind it; despite the fact that studios have been converting video game properties to the silver screen for over thirty years, there has yet to be one worth watching. Ubisoft’s own Prince of Persia has arguably been the best of them so far, but it wasn’t exactly a critical success either.

Tom Hardy has been one of my favorite actors to watch since I stumbled upon Bronson a year or two ago. Following his somewhat minor role as Eames in Inception his career has taken off (Rubbing shoulders with Christopher Nolan should have that effect), and the English actor has found himself among Hollywood’s elite ever since. The guy just can’t act badly, and he rarely picks a wrong movie. He also grows a fantastic beard.

I wonder about his casting in this though. The last Splinter Cell game I played was 2005’s Chaos Theory, and at least to that point, Sam Fisher was not a particularly nuanced character. He’s a rough and tumble proficient killer which fits Tom Hardy’s repertoire for sure, but Fisher is a middle-aged man with greying hair and a two-years-past-retirement attitude. It will be interesting to see how much of that is retained in the movie, as well as the rest of the series canon. I always prefer a more distant approach – retain the characters and the setting but create a brand new plot. Video games are lacking in those as a rule, and the only thing less exciting than a fetch quest in a video game is a fetch quest on a movie screen. But this is all speculation. As production nears and more details come to light we’ll stay on top of it.