There will be some changes with the seventh (I never would’ve imagined there would be 7 Fast films) film in the Fast & Furious film series. First, Justin Lin will no longer be directing after directed the previous 4 films. Instead, James Wan of Saw will be directing. Now, it has been confirmed that Jason Statham will be in the seventh film. What role he will play has not been disclosed. In an interview with DesdeHollywood, Michelle Rodriguez, who has played Letty Ortiz in three of the films, more or less confirms Statham’s involvement.
“Jason Statham, Vin Diesel, Dwayne Johnson, when you see these guys in a room you know they belong together [...] You can see in their eyes that they have gone through a lot [...] I applaud Universal for getting him on-board!”
Having Jason Statham on board will hopefully mean more hand to hand combat. It will be interesting to see who he will ultimately play and once that information becomes available, we will let you know.
It’s been known for a while that a third entry in the Expendables franchise (because let’s face it, this is going to be around for a while) was coming out after the expected success of the second film. We did tell you news that Mel Gibson’s name had been floating around to be a possible candidate to direct The Expendables 3 and even John Woo’s name had been mentioned (Stallone himself even tweeted about it recently saying that he loves Woo but he’s working in China) but now we have the news that Stallone has chosen the new director for the third entry.
Up and coming Aussie director Patrick Hughes has been chosen by Stallone to take the director’s chair which Hughes, I’m sure, must be ecstatic with this decision. It’s not every day that you get to direct such big names in the world of action films like Sylvester Stallone, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Dolph Lundgren and confirmed new (new?) comer Jackie Chan with the huge possibility of directing Clint Eastwood, Wesley Snipes, Harrison Ford and Jean Claude Van Damme as well. Wow, such a big cast of names especially for a new director.
Stallone tweeted with a guessing game to see if anyone could guess who the new director was and you can see below some of the tweets concerning this story.
Stallone sounds like a big fan of Patrick Hughes and obviously believes he can bring in fresh ideas and a new touch to the Expendables franchise. As you can see in one of Stallone’s tweets, he says that you “…should go look at Patrick Hughes short film…called SIGNS…” so, go check out the short film for yourself below.
It’s nice to see Stallone bring in a new face to direct the film and while Hughes’ will definitely have his hands full, I believe if Stallone has his faith in the guy, Hughes will do just fine. So, are you excited for The Expendables 3? Are you looking forward to seeing how Hughes can bring in some fresh air into the series? Let us know in the comments below!
Lot of good stuff this week. I’m worried about the Police Story 2013 poster, but Universal Soldier looks pretty solid. What are your thoughts on the Man with the Iron Fists clip?
New Jackie Chan Project Announced
New Posters for Tai Chi Hero
Police Story 2013 Filming in November
New Universal Soldier Trailer, Man with Iron Fists Fight, and Police Story 2013 Poster
New Trailer and Stills for the Last Tycoon (UPDATED)
It looks like it’s going to be another crazy week, especially since news is being announced like crazy. Let’s get started with a fresh, new trailer for Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning
There seems to be an interesting blend of story and action for this film, and I’ve heard some good things about it. The fights look like they will be solid, even though I’m a little weary of Adkins and Van Damme pairing up again. That being said, I think that this movie will be a very creative attempt at offering something new.
Next up is a sequence of fight clips from Man with the Iron Fists. This is the first time I’ve seen anything “new” from the film, and I’ll let you see it for yourself. (Clips are courtesy of Collider)
I’ll go ahead and say what my gut feeling is…the fights are slow. The one with the RZA isn’t as bad, but that fight between Cung Le and Lucy Liu felt really slow-paced. I’m sure it’s a creative decision, but is that what we really want to see? I know that some of you are excited for the film, and I’m curious what the response will be to those fights.
Lastly, a really strange poster has been released for Police Story 2013. It’s the one right above this text, but it just seems wrong to me. Jackie’s face looks way too young, and Twitch has pointed out that Jackie’s head has been posted on Jason Statham’s body from the poster for the Mechanic. So, is this on official poster or just a rushed fanpic? Right now, it could be either, but I’m really hoping this isn’t an official poster for the film.
Feel free to sound off on anything you want. I’m actually surprised that I’m most excited for Universal Soldier out of the three, to be honest.
Once again, sorry for the bad camerawork. I did better last week, but this one is right on the edge. I’m thinking about trying something new next week (if I get the time)
Boaz Yakin wrote and directed Safe, an action/thriller featuring Jason Statham. The film also stars Catherine Chan, a relative newcomer to the industry. Would Statham be able to impress everyone with a new, fresh, action film, or would this fall into the “generic” category?
The story to Safe is something rather straightforward. Luke Wright ends up coming to the aid of a young girl, Mei, only to discover she’s part of a much bigger scheme. There aren’t any real mysteries, per se, except for what the code actually means. Even though the plot is simple, it has enough going on to keep things interesting.
The characters of Luke and Mei have their own dark pasts, and they play well off of each other. Luke is a man who’s lost it all, and Mei is a girl who needs to be protected. At the most basic level, they need each other because of what they lack; purpose and a sense of belonging. All of the supporting characters are pretty standard, but that’s fine since most of your time will be spent with Mei and Luke.
Action/Choreography
Surprisingly, Safe delivers as a solid action film. There are far more shootouts than fights in this movie, but Statham is able to showcase his talents in a variety of ways. Some of the actions will make you cringe (for both good and bad reasons) but the “shaky cam” effect really isn’t too bad for this film. Nothing is really groundbreaking, but people looking for a good fight will be impressed with how Safe handles everything.
Own it, Watch it, or Skip it?
Safe is a good action film that has a strong plot with solid action and decent fights. I don’t want to say it’s good “for a Statham movie,” but that’s exactly what it is. If you are interested in the concept or want to see a good film with Statham in it, Safe will deliver. It’s not a “must see,” but there are other films that are far worse than this.
It looks like the Transporter is coming to the small screen, though maybe not exactly as you may imagine. The show will be airing on Cinemax and will revolve around Frank Martin, the protagonist from the original films. That being said, don’t expect to see Statham anywhere in this series, Martin has been recast with Chris Vance.
I’m a bit skeptical as to how well this series will do, but it appears that a lot of riding on the success of this show. The Transporter is one of the few series that is planned to be filmed and produces outside the US, potentially opening a gateway for other potential shows. That being said, here have been several headaches in regards to production. The main issue has been the lack of a showrunner, leaving the direction of the series in question.
The action has been choreographed by Cyril Raffaelli, so I’m hoping that the action will be solid. While I’m not completely sold on the idea of making the Transporter a TV show, I’ll probably give it a look to see how it all fits together. Hopefully it follows the path of the first one and not the sequels.
I want to go ahead an apologize for the camerawork on this one. I was trying to make a conscious decision to lift the camera up higher to stay in frame, but I guess I was tilting it up too much. I don’t have a front facing scree, so I apologize for the bad framework. I’ll be better next time!
The original Expendables was a big hit that brought back a lot of action stars that had been out of the spotlight as well as some new faces. A sequel was planned before post-production finished on the first, so numerous veteran action stars were contacted. Would having an even bigger cast lead to a more explosive hit?
The story to the Expendables 2 is much weaker overall when compared to the original. This is a tale of revenge, and that’s about it. The story tries to make you care about certain events more than you really do, and it feels pretty forced. That’s not to say that the film is worse for it, the simple story makes it easier to follow what’s going on and gives you more time to know the characters….if there was any depth to them.
One thing I liked about the original Expendables was the chemistry between the characters. While you’ll still get the fun banter between the guys (and girl) you won’t have any more info on what each character went through. One of my favorite moments in the original was the talk between Rourke and Stallone, it gave the characters a sense of history and remorse. Here, all you get is a group of angry guys that want some payback.
While I’m taking about characters, let me go ahead and address what’s probably one of my bigger issues with the film. This is the movie where you finally get to see Norris, Van-Damme, Stallone, Willis, and Schwarzenegger in one film. While I should have been screaming like a 12 year-old girl at a Bieber concert, I ended up feeling this weird conflict inside me. Most of these characters are simple caricatures of what they used to be or are today. They’re not there for any reason than fan service, and it really sucks. You’ll get what you want, but you’ll be left wanting something deeper after it’s all said and done.
Action/Choreography
Stallone decided to step away from the director’s chair this time, and the action benefits from it tremendously. There is no shaky-cam this time around, letting you see exactly what’s going on. The fights are much easier to follow, and some sequences (like Jet’s) really shine. There are some fights that are a little too dark for my tastes, and one fight that loses lighting for no logical reason. Scott Adkins fans can rest assured as he has a good run, and the other fights are done pretty well also. You can tell that these guys are getting up there in age, but that doesn’t mean they don’t have a little fight left in them, either.
Own it, Watch it, or Skip it?
The Expendables 2 gives you everything you want, but that’s it. It doesn’t push the envelope in any way, and the characters are very thinly spread out. The sense of humor is still there, and the action is solid, but don’t go into this thinking you’ll be blown away. While the film will leave most people happy as they exit the theater, a select few will be left with the desire to see their idols be more than just one-sided characters. It’s still a fun film and worth a watch, but I just can’t really justify a purchase.
