Tuesday, October 10, 2006

"Iron Man" taking shape

The buzz about Jon Favreau's "Iron Man" flick just keeps getting better and better.

After the news that Robert Downey Jr. would don the "Iron Man" suit as Tony Stark, now comes news that Terrence Howard, aka the new hardest working man in show business, will play Stark's best friend, military pilot Jim Rhodes.

I suppose there's still a way Favreau could still screw this up, but the odds are certainly piling up now in his favor.

As for Howard, his next two flicks will be the upcoming "The Brave One," a Neil Jordan movie with Jodie Foster, and "Spring Break in Bosnia" with Richard Gere. The latter, about journalists hunting for a major war crimal in Bosnia, should be fantastic. And of course he's reteaming with "Hustle and Flow" director Craig Brewer for a biopic about Charley Pride.

Whew! Now that's what I call a workin' man.

A new Bionic Woman?

Is there a master list somewhere of crazy '70s and '80s TV shows that are crying out to be brought back to life? First Joss Whedon sets his sights on "Wonder Woman," then they hatch a "Knight Rider" movie, and now "The Bionic Woman"? Sheesh.

It seems "Battlestar Galactica" executive producer David Eick is teaming with feature screenwriter Laeta Kalogridis to reinvent "The Bionic Woman" for NBC.

According to Variety, "instead of focusing on terrorism and militarism, the new "Bionic" will explore the role of professional women in contemporary society and how they juggle their various roles."

Ha. Who needs an Equal Rights Amendment when you've got the Bionic Woman fighting for respect for women? Sounds fairly ludicrous, but "Battlestar," which recently returned to Sci Fi on Friday nights, is still perfect, so maybe something good will come out of this after all.

Second City back to TV

The Chicago improv troupe that brought Saturday Night Live many of its funniest performers is headed back to TV, this time with NBC.

A two-year pact will give the studio access to all Second City shows and talent as well as the company's library for the development of comedy content for television and different digital platforms.

I'm not sure anything can save the suffering American sitcom, but a return of actual comedians to the format could only be a good thing.

DVD pick of the week

It's hard to believe Warren Beatty's "Reds" hasn't gotten the full DVD treatment it deserves before this. Out today is a "25th Anniversary Edition" that will remind all of us how ambitious directors once were when allowed to take real chances.

In the 1981 flick, Beatty played John Reed, reporter and author of "10 Days That Shook the World." You also get Diane Keaton as Louise Bryant, the housewife who follows Reed to the front lines of the Russian Revolution, and Jack Nicholson as Eugene O'Neill. It's well worth a second look, and easily my DVD pick of the week.

Also out today is the first season of "Everybody Hates Chris," the only good sitcom on the CW. It's funny and often insightful, and can now be seen in its second season Mondays at 8 on the new network.

11 comments:

DesLily said...

I have a question, I don't know if you will have an answer or not..

about dvd's, and older television shows...
how do they choose what television shows will be released on dvd's? There's one show that when researching the possibility of going to dvd always shows as not available. I also know that many who used to go to conventions for this show have written letters and done whatever they can to get it released (there was even talk once of a movie).. it was the television show Beauty and the Beast, starring Ron Perlman and Linda Hamilton. Can you find out any information either on why this show won't go to dvd OR what could be done by "fans" to push the issue so it is?

Reel Fanatic said...

That's a very good question, deslily, but after a few minutes of research, I don't have any kind of solid research .. as far as I can find, you're right ... Disney's Beauty and the Beast and Cocteau's tale are both out on DVD, but I see no signs of the TV show coming anytime soon ... as a side note, the great Linda Hamilton is the most famous actress from my hometown of Salisbury, Md.

jeremy said...

Des - One thing that I'm always told helps out is to put your name on the interested list at amazon.
You can do that here. Best of luck with it! I've been waiting on Twin Peaks Season 2 forEVER (just ordered it from Australia). Speaking of Cocteau's B&B, it is seriously one of the greatest films ever made. If you haven't seen it, make it a point to.

Now, Reel - How do you feel about Rachel Bilson as Wonder Woman? I was hoping for someone older--say a certain Gilmore Girl . . .

Reel Fanatic said...

I'm not terribly high on Rachel Bilson, Jeremy, though she is certainly Mr. Whedon's type ... As for Lauren Graham, who I can only assume you were referring to, she would definitely have been my first choice!

Anonymous said...

Wow. The new Iron Man really is shaping up. Having read a ton of Iron Man comic books as a kid, I am really looking forward to it.

Reel Fanatic said...

I'm definitely with you on that, Mercurie .. the only thing that worries me a bit is Favreau himself as a director, but with so many good decisions made already, I'm getting more and more psyched for this one

Anonymous said...

I'm not sure I like the idea of a new Bionic Woman. That premise just doesn't sound appealing to me...

Reel Fanatic said...

I'm with you, Marina .. I'm more ready to accept a new Wonder Woman, if only because the great Joss Whedon is in charge of that one

Lori said...

So Bionic Woman's about to get tossed in the remake grinder too...ICK! And while I do have some faith in Whedon to do decent stuff, I really wish Wonder Woman could be left alone...as with most of the cool shows from the 70's & 80's. Nine times out of ten the remakes are pure crap.

DesLily said...

Thanks for all the input on my question re: Beauty and the Beast (tv version) I already have my name on that amazon list, along with hundreds of others, and I taped that show so I do have it on vhs (not the best quality and commercials)
Also, I've seen Cocteau's B&B, (eons ago) but it stuck with me and for tv, I really think Perlman and Hamilton (and Roy Dotrice/ Father) did a wonderful job telling the story and "extending" it as they did. I think any release has to do with the fact Republic Pictures put it out and the company has gone under.. what happened to the rights after that I have no idea, ... guess I will do what granny always told me to do.. "wish in one hand and sh*t in the other and see which gets filled first!" duh.. guessing it just isn't going to happen in my lifetime..sigh.

Reel Fanatic said...

Even when a company folds, deslily, there's still a chance the show can survive .. take the movie company Shooting Gallery .. they put out one of my favorite movies, "Croupier," then shut down .. it too a few years, but the movie eventually still showed up on DVD