DC Director Runs From The Flash Movie And Aquaman Director Might Torpedo Away As Well

Seth Grahame-Smith has officially stepped away from directing The Flash movie that is scheduled to be released on March 16, 2018. The official reason is "creative differences." Surprisingly, this is not the first DC movie that has lost its director early in the development stage. Michelle MacLaren left as director of Wonder Woman in April of 2015. Wonder Woman was able to find a replacement director in Patty Jenkins a few days later and was able to keep its release schedule of June of 2017.

With The Flash still being two years away, there is time to find a placement director. However, usually when a new director steps onto a project there are script rewrites and other pre-production shifts. So even though there is plenty of time, a new director will need to be hired soon in order to account for these changes.

I wish this was the only bad news to report about the DC Extended Universe, but there is another rumor currently brewing. It is rumored that director James Wan may be leaving the Aquaman movie that is also set to release in 2018.

When James Wan was announced to direct the movie featuring DC's King of Atlantis, it was believed that Warner Bros traded directing Aquaman for him developing and directing a sequel to the 2013 horror hit The Conjuring. With the sequel The Conjuring 2 entering theaters in June of 2016 he has apparently fulfilled his end of the bargain. Even with this though, James Wan can choose to leave the project if he feels that the movie he wants to make doesn't align with WB's vision.

So why the sudden departure of Seth Grahame-Smith and possibly James Wan? Well, Seth Grahame-Smith has historically been known for script writing and has yet to direct a feature length movie. So it is very possible that he simply wasn't up to the task and was asked or decided to step down. James Wan has directed multiple horror films such as Saw, Insidious, and The Conjuring, but he has also shown his skills in directing with 2015's Furious 7. So his departure is a little more puzzling.

The answer may lie in the aftermath of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. Although the movie had considerable support and did fairly well at the box office (depending who you ask) there are still many fans and critics that are asking for Warner Bros to fire Zack Snyder and move in a different direction for future films. However, since Justice League started shooting a mere week after BvS released, Zack Snyder could not possibly be taken off of Justice League: Part 1. However, it is possible that the current round of directors exiting projects is a result of the reaction to BvS.

I still stand by the fact that I'm excited for the DC movies to come, as you can read here, but these increasing rumors of creative teams dissolving is certainly putting a damper on my expectations.

What do you think of Seth Grahame-Smith leaving The Flash? How would you react if the rumor of James Wan leaving proves to be true? Comment below to let me know of your unpopped comments.

How Hollywood Should Use Zack Snyder

Zack Snyder has made good films in the past, but has been failing to please critics lately. So how should Hollywood use Zack Snyder to optimize his skill set?

Dawn of the Dead (2004) is "certified fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes with 75%. Since then, Snyder's movies have been in a steady decline. Snyder bottomed out with Sucker Punch (2010) with a abysmal 24% and his latest movie, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) has 29%. The average of the 7 movies he has directed gives his movies a 51%. That is a very respectable score. Especially for a Director that has only been at it for 12 years. Unfortunately, at this rate his bad movies will soon outweigh his good.

My biggest problem with Zack Snyder is that he doesn't have the ability to take a script and depict it on the screen in a way that makes sense and is interesting. However, he does have a lot of talent in other areas. He has an uncanny ability to frame fabulous shots, cast characters perfectly and choreograph quick action scenes that are not only entertaining to watch, but also are easy to follow. These talents are vital for a successful action movie.

These skills still give Zack Snyder a place behind the camera, but he does need a way to hone his storytelling skills. I think that can be accomplished by co-directing. Projects from Phil Lord and Chris Miller, for example, or the Russo Brothers, do very well being co-directed. This allows the load to be split and each other's skills to be utilized. In a co-directing situation Snyder could handle action scenes while the co-director would oversee the script and story details.

I have thought about what type of director Zack Snyder would be a perfect pair with, and I have decided that Zack Snyder co-directing with Joss Whedon could be magical. Now... hear me out. I love Joss Whedon and would hate to tarnish his near perfect career. He has an uncanny ability to build characters and put together great scripts. He has a good eye for action, but nothing compared to Zack Snyder. So imagine Joss Whedon's quick, witty characters with Zack Snyder's hard, fast action. I think it could truly be a match made in heaven.

I'm not saying that Zack Snyder doesn't have the ability to direct a movie by himself someday, but I believe he needs someone to help structure the story while he handles the action. Just a little more oversight on the process could really help shape Zack Snyder into the director that he deserves to be.

Pee Wee's Big Holiday (Video)

Paul Reubens returns as the child trapped inside a man's body that we all love

The Punisher series officially ordered by Netflix

One batch, two batch, penny and dime

The Punisher featuring Jon Bernthal from Netflix's Daredevil season 2 has officially been ordered as a Netflix original series. The teaser trailer can be seen below.

The Punisher is back. Locked and loaded.https://t.co/nGKCa2taEV

— Netflix US (@netflix) April 29, 2016

Daredevil season 2 had it's ups and down, but was able to receive generally positive reviews. The most common talking point was from reviewers praising Jon Bernthal's portrayal as Frank Castle aka The Punisher.

Even before season 2 was released, there were reports of The Punisher getting his very own Netflix series. Jon Bernthal has even expressed his personal interest in continuing with the character in whatever capacity Marvel seemed fit. However, Netflix continually spoke out against their plans to make a Punisher series. All speculation can now end. It is now officially a reality, and my little nerd brain couldn't be any happier.

The question currently on my mind is what direction the series will take. They very likely won't go origin story since Daredevil kind of tackled that. They could go prequel showing how Frank Castle learned his skills from his military career. That could be interesting, but fans would rather see The Punisher in his current iteration than have to see how he became who he is today.

Instead, I think it is going to be a direct sequel to Daredevil season 2. Frank Castle, after having discovered himself as a brutal vigilante, leaves NY on the run from the law, only to find even more criminals that deserve punishing. In 2014 Marvel comics had a Punisher series written by Nathan Edmondson and drawn by Mitchell Gerads. It featured a weathered Punisher in Los Angeles taking on the cartels as he is being hunted by a navy seal-like organization ordered to kill him. With drug cartels being on everyone's mind, I think this would be a very appropriate direction to take the series. It will also allow the Punisher to separate himself from all of the other heroes that crowd NYC.

Honstely, I don't care what direction the Punisher goes because I'm sure that Netflix and Marvel will be able to build a great team to handle the series.

There is currently no set release schedule for the Punisher series, but I'm assuming there will be some sort of announcement around the release of Luke Cage this fall.

Are you excited for The Punisher solo series? What direction do you think it should or could take? Let me know in the comments.

How Superhero Movies Can Go On Forever (Video)

Superhero Movies are only beginning to ramp up. What can studios do to keep them relevant in our ever changing society?

The Jungle Book (Video)

The Jungle Book is a remake of Disney's 1967 classic based on Rudyard Kipling's book of the same name. Does it have what it takes to stand on its own two legs?

Apologies for the quality of the video. While editing the quality seemed to deteriorate. Hopefully future videos will improve.

Hardcore Henry

Hardcore Henry is much more than a proof of concept for a first person film, it is a nonstop, high octane journey with the you, the viewer, in the drivers seat.

Hardcore Henry starts off with Henry waking up after some sort of accident, he has lost his memory and just wants to regain who he was. That is until all hell breaks loose and he is thrown into a nonstop journey through the streets of Russia.

Sounds like a video game. Good, because that is exactly what you get. Let me guess, now you're probably thinking, "I love doing nothing while watching my friend play that first person shooter game." Well, me neither. Hardcore Henry does definitely feel like watching someone else play a video game, but it is probably the best game I've ever watched. Hardcore Henry does many things right and somehow only fails in a few small forgettable aspects.

The Good:

The first thing you'll notice is the violence and action. The camera literally front and center of everything that is going on. Henry uses his hands to do everything from shoot people in the head to strangle someone with his bare hands, and you see every bloody, gruesome second of it. To go along with the violence is the action. From falling, running, riding in a car, it is all fantastic. The trailer shows a gun fight on a highway. It is truly nothing short of amazing. It is a don't blink moment as you are taken on an amazing action-packed journey.

Next, the music. I am admittedly not very much into music. I often don't feel that music does much to elevate or lower the quality of a movie. Hardcore Henry uses almost every genre of music from punk rock and metal to disco and classical. There are also moments when the music will cut to silence with the purpose to draw attention to something else. It is done perfectly and often comically.

Speaking of comedy, Hardcore Henry is surprisingly funny. I wouldn't say it is laugh out loud funny, but there are definite quick throw away gags that constantly would bring a smile to my face.

Sharlto Copley (District 9, Elysium) is also pretty terrific. Just like in District 9, he carries this movie as Henry's chauffeur through the story. Almost every word he says is captivating and entertaining.

The Ehh:

All of these things elevate the movie to a level that is truly enjoyable. However, there are a few things that do hurt the movie.

Firstly, the editing. The thing about life or a video game is there a very few moments where time skips. Occasionally Hardcore Henry will get knocked out or have his vision flicker, but sometimes there are just straight cuts in time without any physical purpose. This is done to shorten up travel time to different locations, but it kind of looses a little emphasis when the film is shot in first person and is supposed to mimic a persons viewpoint.

The next subpar moments in the film are when the movie tries to develop exposition. Sharlto Copley is good at many things, but giving numerous lines of dialog isn't one of them in this movie. Luckily these scenes are relatively short and the action picks up quickly afterwards.

The last is the dizziness and confusion. The camera is so close to the action and moves so quickly that I sometimes found myself becoming slightly dizzy or not understanding everything that was going on. Usually when these moments happened there was so much else going on that I quickly moved on and forgot about what was confusing me. So although I give this down point a pass, it could be a bigger deterrent for others.

The Ugh-ly:

There was nothing in this movie that I would consider ugh-ly. The only thing that might move people to not seeing it is the R rating. And it is a hard R, so if that is a concern, definitely don't see Hardcore Henry.

Overview:

Although I did enjoy this movie very much, the hard R rating is not for everyone. Therefore, there are two types of people that I would recommend to see Hardcore Henry:

1) The action enthusiast. It is truly almost completely nonstop. The few moments when there is boring exposition it is usually soon interrupted with another fight seen. If you love action. Definitely see it.

2) The movie enthusiast. It is truly a spectacle to see an entire movie from the perspective of Henry. The few times it has been attempted, like during the climax of Doom (2005), it failed miserably and was just a cheesy gimmick. Hardcore Henry is anything but a gimmick. It is a true masterpiece to behold.

Grade: See in Theaters

Why I'm Still Excited for the DC Extended Universe

Although I wasn't a huge fan of Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, as can be read in my non-spoiler review here or my spoiler filled review here, I am still very excited for DC movies to come.

Spoilers for Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice!

If BvS did anything well, it was set up future DC movies. There were a number of Easter Eggs and moments that made my inner nerd sequel with joy. So let's break down some of the upcoming movies to see what we know so far to get excited about.

First of all Suicide Squad (August 2016). DC not only has the best superheroes, they also have the best super villains. And seeing David Ayer's vision with iconic DC villains has a lot of promise. Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn and Jared Leto as the Joker: there is little to be disappointed about. Hopefully the newly announced reshoots will enhance the film rather than chop it up.

Wonder Woman (June 2017) also has a lot of promise. Having her origin in WWI with Chris Pine as Steve Trevor already gets me excited. I was one of the few who really, really enjoyed the WWII setting of Captain America and the angle they went with it, so changing Wonder Woman's origin to center around WWI is great. The real excitement comes from Dawn of Justice. Gal Gadot was somehow able to steal every scene away from Ben Affleck. We were also able to see many of Wonder Woman's iconic weapons. Even the way she reacted to battle with a huge smile was perfect to her character. The foundation for a great Wonder Woman movie is there, now we just have to wait.

The Flash (March 2018). The jury is still out on Ezra Miller's Flash. Especially against the amazing job Grant Gustin is doing on the CW. However, of all the video clips sent to Wonder Woman in BvS, The Flash was one of the coolest. The way the speed force affected power and the smirk he did afterwards was a real nice touch. Also his connection to the time travel scene might first be revealed in The Flash if not in The Justice League.

Aquaman (July 2018). The most exciting point to me is James Wan. He has proved that he can handle horror in directing Saw (2004) and The Conjuring (2013). He also showed he has the ability to shoot action with Furious 7 (2015). Combining those two genres is perfect for the under the sea world of Aquaman.

Batman (Release unknown). Batfleck! Batman was amazing in BvS. Combine that with Ben Affleck's ability to write a script and direct a movie, and the solo Batman movie will be AMAZING! Of course we don't know if Ben Affleck's script will eventually be the solo film or even if he will be given the ability to direct, but simply having this Batman appear in a solo film is something everyone can be excited about.

The other films of Shazam (April 2019), Cyborg (April 2020), and Green Lantern Corps (June 2020) all have positive prospects, but right now it is just too far out to really know if I should be excited or not. Although Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as Shazam antagonist Black Adam will probably be fantastic.

WB has hired a lot of amazing directors and actors to help build their DC Extended Universe. Hopefully they can react to some of the negative feedback from Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in order to change coarse slightly. All with the purpose to build a universe that both critics and fans can rally around.

Batman v Superman Tumbles 81% in Second Friday

As I discussed in my editorial about Critic v Fan reviews, the first week is filled with often opposing opinions by two very distinct groups. During the second week fans tend to trickle out of the theater and it is then up to the average moviegoer to determine if a blockbuster has sustainability or not.

Well, the reports are starting to come in. Forbes reports that BvS only made $15.35 million in the domestic box office on its second Friday. Compared to $81.5m on opening day, this shows an 81.2% decrease. That is in spite of only going up against God's Not Dead 2 and Meet the Blacks that opened this weekend, two films that shouldn't jeopardize BvS's sustainability. Even other critically panned films Fantastic Four and Green Lantern only dropped 78.7% and 78.4% respectively.

On Thursday The Wrap reported that Batman v Superman was receiving higher than average repeat ticket purchases. It was reportedly 30% higher than average. Even with the repeat business, BvS may see a difficult journey ahead.

This doesn't necessarily mean that audiences are mad or disappointed in the film, simply that they are indifferent and are choosing not to see it. Batman v Superman will have one more weekend to see if it can increase it box office results before Disney's The Jungle Book opens on April 15th which will most likely win that weekend.

Currently Batman v Superman has a worldwide box office of $587.8m making the film still a box office success. However, at this time, it seems doubtful that BvS will surpass the coveted $1 billion worldwide box office that many ensemble comic book movies are receiving.

2001: A Space Odyssey (Netflix)

15 years ago 2001 has come and gone. There are no space stations on the moon, no manned missions to Jupiter, but artificial intelligence could be right around the corner. 2001: A Space Odyssey was recently added to Netflix. Does Stanley Kubrick's '68 classic stand up to more modern space epics?

Having been born in the 80's I am one of many people alive today that did not have the opportunity to see 2001 in the theaters. I also never put aside the time to actually sit down and watch it... until now. Having never seen 2001 before, my hope is to bring a unique and modern look at whether the film holds up to today's standards.

The Good:

+ The visuals are the first thing anyone should notice in the 2001. And let me say... they hold up perfectly. I love modern technology and they way that it allows us to create anything with computers. Allowing us to literally see anything we can imagine. But there is something to say about the earlier movies and the way that had to create techniques and tricks just to get close to what they were imagining.

+ The sets. Rotating space stations that simulate gravity is one thing, but then to utilize those sets to find unique angles for shooting the film is remarkable. Almost every angle is slightly angles to give the illusion that directionality is all relative in space.

+ The silence. "In space no one can hear you scream." Modern movies feel that there always has to be something going on. A character talking, singing, or dancing. Maybe some traffic in the background. Or in Michael Bay's case, maybe a few explosions. However, in 2001 the suspense get to build, not with sound tracks or action, but with visuals. It is truly a perfect way to depict space.

+ HAL 9000. "I'm sorry Dave. I'm afraid I can't do that." The monotone robot voice is the perfect creepy antagonist needed for any good sci-fi movie. And 2001 was the perfecter of it.

+ The Ending. I loved Interstellar even though there were many people out there that didn't. If you didn't like Interstellar's ending then you probably won't like this. It is just as weird and confusing which I personally love.

The Ehhh:

~ Evil AI. I only give this an ehhh, because today it is a very common theme. Every other  movie depicts some kind of Artificial Intelligence that is out to destroy humanity.

~ The pacing. I'm going to preface this that much like the silence i mentioned before, I actually do like the pacing. However, I can see that many modern audiences might see this movie and be turned off by it's slow pacing. Just know that the silence and the pacing is done to building the story and represent the isolation of space travel. So put the phone down, sit back and just relax as you take in the stunning visuals.

The Ugh-ly:

- The characters. Ok... I'm cheating with this one a little. The small cast does a remarkable job acting their parts. However, all I saw was generic guy #1 and generic guy #2. I never remember their names, or even have any idea what there personalities were. The only defining mark was their hair style, but even that made it difficult for me to tell who was who.

Overview:

2001: A Space Odyssey, even with its forgetful characters and slow pacing, truly shows how a great director can sculpt a masterpiece of a film. If I ever see it come into a local theater, I will definitely have to make time to see it on the big screen.

Grade: See in Theaters (if possible)

Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (Spoilers)

On paper the movie seems like it would be amazing, but unfortunately some of the directors choices and possibly the studio intervention hold it back from being the Batman vs Superman movie we all deserve.

Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! 
Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! Spoiler Alert! 
You've Been Warned!

Grade: Matinee Showing

My spoiler reviews are a little scattered toward specific details of the movie. There honestly is very little structure. If you desire to better understand why I gave the movie the grade I did, please read the No Spoilers Review. If you feel I am nitpicking in this Spoiler review, yo're right, just deal with it.

The Awesome:

+ Batman! BATMAN! FREAKING BATMAN! That one time when Batman was driving the Batmobile grapples a car, swings it to hit an object and launches it onto another enemy vehicle. OH MY GOODNESS! Or... or the time when he's saving Martha Kent... ahhhhh! Taking out bad guys. Grappling a wood box into a guys face. AHHHH! Amazing!

+ Wonder Woman! Lasso of truth! Bracelets of Submission! Standing toe to toe with Doomsday! I honestly can't wait for the Wonder Woman movie because she is officially amazing!

The Ehhh:

~ Mopey Superman... again. Superman is a beacon of hope. I understand that some people find that boring, but when you have brooding Batman, Superman acts as a  foil to help push the story along and give the Justice League a moral compass much like Captain America in the Avengers (I may have just committed DC movie review Taboo, bring it on). Not only that, why the heck was he standing on a mountain talking to Johnathan Kent?

~ So... what was Lex Luthor's plan and motivation? I was able to deduce that he wanted Batman and Superman to fight... and that's about as far as I've gotten. Please someone fill me in. And don't use deleted scenes, there were no deleted scenes in the movie (Ergo "deleted") so you can't use those to justify motivation.

~ The Senator. I don't even remember or care to look up who played her. It was a completely forgettable plot point that could have been so much more interesting if they didn't freaking blow up the capital. Speaking of the Capital being blown up, could you hear the price is right losing horn when Superman is shown surrounded by fire... I think I heard it.

~ Lois Lane... what happened to you? You use to be such a bad a**. Even in Man of Steel you were able to take on Zod's men in the space ship or shoot down the kryptonian terraformer machine from a plane. Why are you getting captured in Africa now? You seem to serve no purpose other than given Superman a reason to return from his moping.

~ Superman's death. I honestly didn't care. He already "died" once after the atom bomb blew up. He then came back to life after feeling the warm sun on his face. Why wouldn't I think he can't come back again? Honestly, I still would have killed him, but this is how I would have done it... 1) Bomb blows up Superman and Doomsday. 2) They both fall to earth. 3) Bodies roll away from each other with Superman on left and Doomsday on right. 4) Doomsday gets up... charges/becomes more rocky. 5) Superman strains to move. 6) Doomsday sees that Superman survived and pounds on Superman till he's dead. 7) Batman and Wonder Woman have to use the spear to kill Doomsday and of course they succeed. I realize that is only a slight change, but by having Superman already "die" and come back 5 seconds later makes death feel useless.

The Ugh-ly:

- Don't throw away the spear! Lois you're an idot! Granted... hindsight is 20-20 and she didn't know she would need the spear again. But why throw it into... a well... maybe. If she was truly worried about it hurting Superman in the future, you think she would have hid it away so that someone else won't find it. Then you freaking almost drowned! Ugh... you are absolutely completely pointless to the plot.

- The first hour and 45 minutes. What was even going on? Who cared? There was no character development, just moping around and searching for some Portuguese guy. The movie honestly could have started with Batman turning on the Batsignal and it still would have made the same amount of sense.

- Terrible editing. Within about 20 minutes of actual time (from when Batman and Superman fight to Wonder Woman's reveal) this is what happened in Wonder Woman's story line. 1) Wonder Woman is out on the town wearing a white gown and sees the electricity coming off of the spaceship. 2) She is sitting at home in a robe looking at meta-human files. 3) She is now walking into a plane (for some reason) and sees that Doomsday has appeared. 4) She lands in front of Batman right before he become Bat-b-cued. Now... I know she's super and all and can do amazing things. By why the change of location and wardrobe between every scene. Couldn't she have just been at home... What was the point. Sometimes I give movies leniency because movie time is different than real time, but since we were literally seeing them fight inter-cut with those scenes, we know about how long it was.

- More terrible editing. 1) Superman's funeral. Bruce is talking to Diana about building the Justice League while Lois scoops up soil in her hand. 2) Cut to Lex in prison. Lights flicker. Batman is seen behind him.. that scene happens. 3) Shot of painting in Daddy Luthor's office. 4) Cut to Lois dropping sand on Clark's coffin. Now... this is the nitpicking I mentioned. I realize that these events aren't chronological. But it is just bad editing to jump around timelines like that. When it is done in other movies, let say Pulp Fiction, it is to strategically reveal character traits, plot points or motivations. In BvS it is just lazy.

- Martha! You mean the only reason why we had to sit through Batman's origin again? So that they could stop fighting when Batman realized that their mom's share the same name? It just doesn't make sense.

Overview:

I really hope that the 3 hour extended cut. I'm hoping that plot points are fleshed out more so that motivations can be realized as I think the movie intended.