Midnight Movies

Any fan of old westerns would probably say that the 1976 movie, The Shootist, was John Wayne’s last film.

They’d be mistaken, according to Dave Burleson.

Burleson, who played minor parts in more than 70 westerns and was friends with Wayne, is releasing an independently produced film that contains Duke’s final unseen performance.

The film, a science-fiction western entitled Thunder Riders of the Golden West, was produced by Burleson in 1984, and includes footage that Wayne filmed before his death in 1979.

“It’s not the last movie he acted in, but it’s the last performance to be released,” said Burleson, who now resides in Barksdale, about two hours Southwest of Kerrville.

If science fiction western seems like an unusual genre, that’s because it is. Thunder Riders of the Golden West, is a movie set in modern times and tells the story of cowboy truckers who hit the trail in search of $3 million worth of gold in the middle of an atomic bomb test.

Burleson, who stunt doubled for Dean Martin in his westerns, stars in the movie, and with the exception of Wayne’s performance, the cast is rounded out mostly by friends and family.

Being the star was a change for Burleson. Born and raised in the Hill Country, Burleson moved out to New Mexico to make movies. His first movie was Last Command in 1955, in which he acted alongside Ernest Borgnine. He was more than happy to play bit parts alongside stars like Borgnine, Wayne, Kirk Douglas, Slim Pickens and others.

“They were the big stars, nobody wants to write about me and that is just fine by me,” Burleson said.

“Thunder Riders” never saw a theatrical release, but thanks to technology, Burleson is finally able to produce and distribute the film himself on DVD.

“After all these years, it’s great to finally get my film out there,” Burleson said. “But it’s really something for people to see one last John Wayne performance.”

Source - www.chron.com

 By COLIN COVERT - Star Tribune (Minneapolis) The outer-space indie “Moon” puts the alien in alienation.

Ever-interesting Sam Rockwell stars as Sam Bell, a contractor running a one-man mining operation. His employer is LUNAR Corp., a benign enterprise that supplies Earth’s energy needs with Helium-3, a precious gas extracted from the moon’s surface. Nearing the end of his three-year term, he’s eager to be reunited with his wife and young daughter. He talks to the moon base’s resident computer, GERTY, as if it was human, but otherwise he seems unaffected by his long solitude.

Alert viewers will suspect that something more worrisome is afoot. The video communications from Sam’s Earthbound bosses are condescending and unconvincingly supportive. The seemingly friendly computer is voiced by Kevin Spacey, an actor who couldn’t tell you the time of day without seeing duplicitous. Sam’s quarters are unkempt, and Rockwell is renowned for playing wackjobs. He gives hints of psychological wear and tear. When he takes a rare drive in a lunar rover, he crashes and loses consciousness. Waking up in the base’s medical facility, he’s confused, and comes to believe he’s not alone up there.

It’s difficult to do the film’s clever script justice without revealing facts you should have the pleasure of discovering for yourself. Ostensibly, he encounters a younger version of himself; the two Sams strike up a resentful relationship that gradually evolves into a brotherly bond. The film keeps you guessing about what Sam is really experiencing; for a while viewers are as uncertain as Sam himself whether he is hallucinating another presence on the base.

Gradually, cleverly, the issue resolves itself and Sam begins to grapple with the very notion of identity and human nature. Is he a free agent or a replaceable, standardized cog in LUNAR’s machinery? The answer suggests that future generations will not be any more charitable toward working men than our own.

In what is essentially a one-man show, Rockwell delivers a bravura performance that paraphrases the cycles of the human lifespan. He brings a hardscrabble realism to the character of a blue-collar repairman isolated on a cold, pitiless space rock. His cabin fever spikes and subsides, his mentoring relationship with his hotheaded younger “self” is humanly warm and persuasive. He may be wearing astronaut gear, but he is as emotionally truthful as a Cassavettes character.

Fans of “dirty future” science fiction will thrill to the film’s painstaking production design. The sets and vehicles look entirely realistic, dinged and dingy from use. The moon-surface sequences incorporate lens flares for an added touch of you-are-there realism.

Directed with a sure hand by Duncan Jones, “Moon” is the anti-”Transformers,” a science fiction tale that owes as much to fiction as to science. At a time when the genre is given over to big stars and bigger explosions, here is a film that uses the form to create speculative philosophy in the form of fantastic fiction. It tells the truth, even though it is about things that never have been and, hopefully, never will be.

Source - www.kansascity.com

Terry Gilliam’s next project, the twisted Zero Theorem, is officially on the scrapheap. Which means it could be years and years until we see more original science fiction coming from the warped Gilliam mind.

In an interview with fansite Dreams, Gilliam explained how his next big science fiction project, about a cubicle zombie, with Billy Bob Thorton attached, is now dead in the water. The delay in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus along with the prep work needed for his next project The Man Who Killed Don Quixote seems to be the culprit:

I thought I could do it quite quickly and cheaply, and that would be a nice one, rather than getting caught in more expensive, more complicated or hard-to-finance things. But the year just got swallowed up by Parnassus and publicity, and preparation for Don Quixote. I just didn’t think it would be viable and I pulled the plug earlier this year.

This makes us sad, because more people should be giving Gilliam time and money to make tripped out mind blowing scifi, plus we hate to see original work get pushed aside for endless remakes.

Here is the long synopsis of Zero Theorem from Voltage Pictures:

Qohen Leth, a socially maladjusted “cubicle zombie” with a genius for computer work, is waiting for a phone call. His entire life has been consumed with the wait for this call. He doesn’t know the nature and origin of the call, but he knows it will provide him with the purpose that he has long lived without.

Qohen is given a special project by his corporate managers. His task is to solve a mysterious theorem that has stumped, and mentally broken, the long list of computer geniuses that were previously assigned the job.

Living in an Orwellian corporate world where “mancams” serve as the eyes of a shadowy figure known as Management, Qohen works on a solution to the strange theorem while living in isolation in his home-the shattered interior of a fire-damaged chapel.

His isolation and work are interrupted by a gorgeous, sexy woman who has recently befriended him named Bainsley. They communicate and make love via a tight, translucent, red virtual reality suit. An unlikely torrid romance develops, in which Bainsley has gotten Qohen to open up and come out of his shell like never before.

Qohen is occasionally visited by Bob, the rebellious whiz-kid teenage son of Management. These visits seem to be orchestrated by Management to keep control of Qohen’s progress on the project. But Qohen and Bob become friends, and start to dig deeper into the meaning of the Zero Theorem. Bob lets it slip that Bainsley has been hired by Management to help control him, and, as a result, when Bainsley earnestly tells Qohen she’s going to run away and pleads with him to come with her, he coldly rejects her.

As work on the project reaches a critical point, it becomes clear that the key to both the theorem’s final solution and the source of a much-awaited phone call actually reside within Qohen himself. He holds the answer to the theorem and his own long-awaited epiphany. Bob modifies the virtual reality suit and creates a program that will carry Qohen on an inward voyage, a close encounter with the hidden dimensions and truth of his own soul, wherein lie the answers both he and Management are seeking. The suit and supporting computer technology will perform a sort of inventory of Qohen’s soul, either proving or disproving the Zero Theorem.

But the program doesn’t work and Qohen must find the answer within himself, as no machine can truly search the human soul. Qohen is now able to solve the Zero Theorem and find the meaning of his life. He burns the church and takes off with Bob on a search for Bainsley, the one person who has given his life true meaning.

Is it the freshest idea in the world? No, but with Gilliam’s eye who knows what it could have looked like.

Source - http://io9.com

A sneak peek of ‘Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen’ has been shown at BotCon 2009 and its detailed description has come out.

Beside debuting a new clip of “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” at 2009 MTV Movie Awards, director Michael Bay had also treated fans at the annual Transformers Convention, BotCon 2009, with a special preview to the action fantasy movie. While no footage of the sneak peek has been found yet, Seibertron has got a description of the preview.

SPOILER ALERT! The sneak preview kicked off with a scene wherein John Turturro’s character and Sam Witwicky’s roomate are in the middle of a construction zone looking on to a group of construction vehicles around them. Then, the Constructicons were revealed when Mixmasters Decepticon symbol is shown and Scavenger begins to transform. At the same time, the other Constructicons move closer to form Devastator.

The footage then shows Scavenger forcing all the other Constructicons into “the gestalt ala Scorpion in Mortal Kombat”, before displaying the two humans running away. The scene moreover cuts to Sam and Mikaela running from Rampage. It is then seen that Rampage begins chasing Sam’s father. Protecting his old man, Sam jumps in front of him and says “Wait, it’s not them you want. It’s this, the MATRIX!”

Sam then holds up an item and continues to carefully persuade Rampage when Bumblebee arrives. The two robots quickly are involved in a ferocious battle. Rampage blasts Bumblebee using his hip cannons before jumping on his back. In turn, Bumblebee forces Rampage to the ground when Rampage lunges for Sam. He then rips Rampages arm off and decapitates him.

“Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” is set a year after the end of the hit 2007 “Transformers”. It will see many of the original actors, including Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel and Tyrese Gibson, returning to reprise their roles. New cast members, such as Isabel Lucas and Rainn Wilson, will also contribute. This action fantasy movie has been pushed forward to see a U.S. release on June 24.

Source - www.aceshowbiz.com

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s 1990 sci-fi thriller Total Recall is being remade, according to reports.

Trade newspaper The Hollywood Reporter said Kurt Wimmer, who penned the 1999 version of The Thomas Crown Affair, is currently working on a script.

Film studio Columbia Pictures, which secured the film’s rights in February, has said the remake will be a “contemporised adaptation”.

It has not been announced who is being considered for the lead role.

The original film was based on the Philip K Dick story We Can Remember It for You Wholesale.

It follows a man who is haunted by a recurring dream of travelling to Mars - where he has never been - and a woman he has never met.

The ultra-violent film, from the creators of Alien, has since become a cult classic.

Sharon Stone and Rachel Ticotin also starred in the movie.

Source - http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8080966.stm

Excel Home Videos has released two scifi films like X-Files - I Want To Believe and Babylon AD on DVD. The films based on science fiction and sci-fi action promises to be a treat for lovers of the genre.Both the DVDs will be available in all leading stores for Rs 399.

Incidentally, The X- Files: I Want To Believe is the second feature film based on Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning American cult television series The X- Files.

The X-Files had become the longest-running science fiction series ever on US broadcast television by its final airing and was rated as one of the greatest cult television show by TV Guide. In 2007, Time magazine included it on a list of the ‘100 best TV shows of all time’.

Directed by series creator Chris Carter from a story he penned with executive producer Frank Spotnitz, The X-Files: I Want To Believe is a standalone story described as a “skillful thriller” (Roger Ebert; Chicago Sun-Times) that picks up six years after the series ended.

Bonus features included in the DVD are: audio commentary by director Chris Carter and producer Frank Spotnitz, deleted scenes, gag reel, featurettes and ‘Dying to live’ by Xzibit.

In Babylon AD Vin Diesel is back at his best on a mission to save the future of mankind. Based on the critically-acclaimed French novel Babylon Babies by Maurice.G.Dantec, Babylon AD is directed by Mathieu Kassovitz (of Gothika and Assassins fame) and stars Vin Diesel (of Saving Private Ryan, The Chronicles of Riddick fame) as Toorop, French actress Mélanie Thierry and martial arts star Michelle Yeoh (of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon fame).

The DVD is loaded with action packed bonus features that include an extended unrated cut, multiple featurettes and picture-in-picture behind-the-scenes footage.

Bonus features found in the DVD are Babylon Babies, Artic Escape, Featurettes, deleted scenes, prequel to Babylon AD and still gallery.

Source - www.indiantelevision.com

Last Friday night, weary from pondering the mysteries of the MPAA movie-rating system (why is the wonderful “Adventureland” rated an audience-shriveling R? “Hostel” was rated R!), I found refreshment at a screening of “Moon,” a wonderful movie itself, in a very different, dark, brain-knotting way.In fact, “Moon” is a terrific sci-fi space film, one that moves the venerable genre forward with a one-of-a-kind story and a striking visual design that in no way suggests its modest budget or its brisk production schedule (it was shot in about a month). The picture has one star: Sam Rockwell. He plays Sam Bell, a space worker nearing the end of a three-year corporate contract overseeing mining operations on the dark side of the moon. The lunar surface has been discovered to contain abundant amounts of Helium-3, an (actual) isotope that, in the movie, has revolutionized energy production back on Earth. The mining is done by machines; Sam is there to keep the operation humming.

It’s tough duty. Sam is the only human being in the cavernous base facility. He spends his time monitoring computers, exercising, and watching occasional video-recorded communications (there’s no live link with his home planet) from his wife and daughter and his oddly jolly corporate employers. His only companion is Gerty, a boxlike and highly mobile robotic attendant on hand to look after Sam’s well-being and provide conversational relief (in the unmistakable syrupy cadences of Kevin Spacey). Sam is desperately lonely, but rotation back to Earth is only a few weeks away – a company ship is already en route to collect him.

But then one day Sam wakes up to find he’s not alone anymore. Another man has appeared inside the base, a guy who looks a lot like Sam. In fact, it is Sam – Sam 2. What, he and we wonder, is going on?

A lot, it turns out, as the serpentine plot unfolds. But let us say no more. The movie’s publicity material gives away more about the story than a potential viewer might want to know. (Avoid early reviews, if possible.) First-time director Duncan Jones (son of David Bowie, a former starman himself) has given the film’s outside sequences on the craggy moonscape a dismal, desolate atmosphere that looks like it cost a lot to fabricate, which it didn’t. (It recalls the godforsaken exteriors of “Alien,” an acknowledged influence on this picture.) And the superb Sam Rockwell, who’s in every scene (many of them twice, you might say), gives a virtuoso performance as the increasingly fearful and ultimately horrified rocket man. He’s a wonder to watch.

“Moon” is an indie knockout. It’ll be screening at the Tribeca Film Festival in a few weeks, but Sony already bought it at Sundance, and will be releasing the film in June. Sci-fi fans aren’t the only people who should be pumped.

Source - http://moviesblog.mtv.com