The Buzz: News in Media

I got the chance to see The Dark Knight today and let me tell you, this film is bloody brilliant!

Okay, I cant give much of a review cause I have to go too bed but I figured, what the hell? Anything is worth it for Batman!

The Dark Knight really is A-M-A-Z-I-N-G and does not at all feel like a comic book movie. In fact, I applaud Chris Nolan for making a film with guys that dress up like Bats and Clowns seem serious enough to be on the same level as Michael Mann's Heat and Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas.

I also beleive Heath Ledger is the DEFINITIVE Joker, thats right, im looking at you Jack Nicholson! I really do hope that Heath Ledger receives a posthumous oscar for The Joker, or at least is nominated.

But the only thing I did not like about the film was that they killed Two-Face off within the last thirty minutes! Now of course, I understand that these Batman movies are meant to be more realistic and a guy that is half-dead would NEVER fit into society like he does in the comics but come on, did they have to finish him off?

I am puzzled by that because Christopher Nolan said himself that characters that are not dead in the comic books will not die in these films. So basically he turned on his word, BUT for the thirty minutes of seeing Two-Face, I really felt they redeemed him after Tommy Lee Jones horrible interpretation of the character in 1995's Batman Forever so I am not turning on Nolan.

All in all, this film is one of the best movie going experience's I have ever had in my life and I am proud to say that. Also, this is the only film that has ever lived up too the hype so you wont be dissapointed leaving the theater. I give the film 5/5 stars.

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Entertainment Weekly is reporting that this upcoming season's 10th episode of "CSI" will be the last for William Petersen as a full-time series regular.

"Billy is leaving," confirmed executive producer, Carol Mendelsohn. "But he will remain throughout the run of the series an executive producer. And he will, whenever CBS asks, come back. I don't think you've seen the last of Gil Grissom."

"I'm in a great place in terms of knowing that I'll be more free to make choices. And I'm responsible enough to not do it in a way that would hurt [the show]," added Petersen. "I want it to work for the writers, I want it to work for the cast, and, most importantly, I want it to work for the audience. I don't want them to abandon the show."

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EcranLarge sat down with director Louis Leterrier (The Incredible Hulk) to talk about the upcoming "Clash of the Titans" remake. Leterrier is taking over for Stephen Norrington (League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) and is more than happy to discuss some of his early ideas and how he got the gig.

For those that don't know, "Clash of the Titans" is about the myth of Perseus and his quest to battle both Medusa and the Kraken monster in order to save the Princess Andromeda.

Here is what Leterrier had to say about his new version. "There will be the Kraken! But a different Kraken. There will be much more. In the original film, there were no clash and no titans. Now, you will see the "Clash" of the "Titans." The only thing I can tell right now: people say that it will be filmed like "300," it's not true. It will be photo realistic with a big budget. I want to do an homage to Ray Harryhausen (director of the original). He's still alive and will be part of the film."

He went on to talk about how he was able to take the helm from Norrington. "In the beginning, Stephen Norrington was the director of this project. I called him. He had a problem finding an new trick for this remake. He didn't grow up watching "Clash of the Titans." So I called him, we share the same agent, and I asked him: 'do you really want to do it?' He didn't want to make a new "League of Extraordinary Gentlemen." So I told him: 'can I do it?' And he said yes. So I told Warner: If I do it, it will be different. It's still Perseus myth, but maybe to begin a franchise of greek mythology."

Regarding the current status of the project: "I'm just beginning to work on the script. You know, it's Lawrence Kasdan (Raiders of the Lost Ark) who wrote it. It's quite great!"

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Besides "The Dark Knight," "Transformers" and "Spider-Man 3," I cannot remember too many movies where fans were so interested in every bit of marketing for a film, which is only weeks away from release. Posts about "Hellboy 2" and "The Mummy 3" are barely getting noticed, while the smallest pieces of news about "The Dark Knight" are being read by an astounding amount of people. So to keep up with demand, we bring you the latest on the "Batman Begins" sequel.

The upcoming issue of Entertainment Weekly has a cover which features the faces of Batman (Christian Bale) and The Joker (Heath Ledger). When looking inside, readers will find an article about Ledger's great performance and the tragedy that followed. Here are a few clips from the article:

"Robin Williams, Sean Penn, and even Mark Hamill were rumored to be on Nolan's short list (at least Hamill had practice, having voiced the Joker in various superhero cartoons). What nobody knew at the time, though, was just how short the director's list was. 'Heath was the only one on it,' Nolan insists. 'I knew he was it from the start.'"

"'I know there are these rumors out there that playing the Joker drove him to his grave,' [Gary Oldman] says. 'But I never saw anything of that. He was always on time. He knew his part backwards and forwards. I just thought he was a really sweet kid.'"

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Haley Scott DeMaria knows that hope can be sorely tested.

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In its first full day of screenings Wednesday, Sony's "Hancock," starring Will Smith as a reprobate superhero, grossed $17.4 million in its 3,965 locations.

Having collected an additional $6.8 million from Tuesday night previews in 3,680 theaters, the movie's total from its first 1 1/2 days adds up to $24.2 million.

Those numbers suggest the movie could settle into the $90 million-$100 million range by the end of the holiday weekend -- easily dominating the frame though not necessarily setting any records.

By contrast, "Transformers," last year's big Fourth of July hit, opened on a Monday night with preview screenings that attracted $8.8 million and picked up $27.9 million on Tuesday, July 3. Its 1 1/2-day take amounted to $36.7 million. "Transformers," which unlike "Hancock" enjoyed the benefit of an established brand name, went on to gross $155.4 million in its first 6 1/2 days.

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Perth, Australia, the hometown of the late actor Heath Ledger, named a theatre in his honour yesterday: the $87 million, 575-seat Heath Ledger Theatre. Ledger died in January at 28 of an accidental prescription drug overdose.

Boy George has officially cancelled his summer tour after U.S. authorities denied him a visa to enter the country. The Culture Club singer, 47, had planned to kick off his 25-city tour in Aspen, Colo., next Thursday. He plans to reschedule the tour for next winter.

Booker T. and the MGs, the Memphis Horns and the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section, producers Al Kooper and Billy Sherrill, and Buddy Holly's band the Crickets will become the newest members of the Musicians Hall of Fame this year.

Jazz vocalist Ernestine Anderson's home has been saved from foreclosure thanks in part to music legend Quincy Jones and jazz artist Diane Schuur, who contributed to $43,000 in donations on news of the Seattle jazz legend's financial woes.

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Columbia Pictures has set an untitled comedy that will star Sacha Baron Cohen as master detective Sherlock Holmes and Will Ferrell as Watson, his crime-solving partner. Etan Cohen is writing the script, and Judd Apatow and Jimmy Miller will produce.

The comedy is inspired by Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes tales. Though the thrust is different, the Baron Cohen-Ferrell pairing is the second major studio project featuring the detectives, as Warner Bros is prepping the Anthony Peckham-scripted drama "Sherlock Holmes" with director Guy Ritchie.

The Columbia project re-teams Baron Cohen and Ferrell, who played rival racecar drivers in the 2006 hit comedy "Talladega Nights," which Apatow and Miller also produced.

"Just the idea of Sacha and Will as Sherlock Holmes and Watson makes us laugh," said Colombia co-prexy Matt Tolmach. "Sacha and Will are two of the funniest and most talented guys on the planet, and having them take on these two iconic characters is frankly hilarious."

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Val Kilmer, Fairuza Balk, Jennifer Coolidge, Vondie Curtis Hall, Shawn Hatosy, Denzel Whitaker and Xzibit are set to join Nicolas Cage and Eva Mendez in Werner Herzog's cop drama "Bad Lieutenant." Shea Wigham, Katie Chonacas (Righteous Kill) and Brad Dourif also are among those who will appear in the update of Abel Ferrara's cult classic.

The original followed the depraved adventures of a corrupt policeman (Harvey Keitel) investigating the rape of a nun. The new film will feature Cage as the titular crooked cop and capture the spirit of the original, with the protagonist's drug intake, accepting sexual favors as bribes and other elements that endeared so many to the 1992 version.

The new film will feature Kilmer as Cage's partner, while Xzibit will play a villain.

Filming is set to begin later in the summer.

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A new poster for the upcoming spoof comedy "Disaster Movie" has been released, featuring a group photo of characters from just about every popular movie that has been released within the last year. There is the Hulk, Iron Man, Juno, Indy, Hellboy, Po Panda, Hancock and many more. The tagline states: "Your favorite movies are going to be destroyed."

Since there is almost never a plot in these spoof comedies, the only thing released by Lionsgate to describe the story is the following: The movie follows the comic misadventures of a group of ridiculously attractive twenty-somethings during one fateful night as they try to make their way to safety while every known natural disaster and catastrophic event - asteroids, twisters, earthquakes, the works – hits the city and their path as they try to solve a series of mysteries to end the rampant destruction.

"Disaster Movie" is directed by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, the duo behind the terrible "Date Movie," "Epic Movie" and "Meet the Spartans." It is scheduled to hit theaters on August 29.

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