The Official MovieSet Blog
Posts Tagged ‘iron man’
The box office from 2008 was just a bit better than ‘07
Monday, January 05, 2009
Now that the holidays are over, the post-mortem for 2008’s box office is also being offered. The clear winner last year was Warner Bros. who had the runaway success of The Dark Knight behind them. With global ticket sales of $997 million dollars, Dark Knight didn’t just prove to be the biggest superhero movie of all-time, it also became the second highest-grossing film ever. Thanks to the Batman movie as well as Sex in the City and Four Christmases, WB enjoyed revenue of $1.77 billion dollars, the biggest haul of cash ever for a movie studio. Continue reading…
Posted at 11:13AM by Patrick
Was Terrence Howard kicked out of Iron Man 2?
Monday, October 20, 2008
The way that Hollywood works is confusing not just to all of us on the outside looking in but apparently it’s pretty weird to the people working in the biz too. Case in point: poor Terrence Howard, star of last summer’s $300 million dollar hit movie Iron Man. Howard played Robert Downey Jr.’s best friend, military man James Rhodes, and in the Marvel comics his character gets to wear his own set of black-and-silver Iron Man armor. During the press build-up for Iron Man Howard and the film’s director talked about how Rhodey was going to be wearing the War Machine armor in Iron Man 2. Suddenly the news breaks last week that Don Cheadle would be taking over the part in the sequel and that discussions with Howard broke down over money and other issues. However, that’s not the story that the actor is telling the media.
Howard gave an interview with NPR this past weekend and went on the record about the Iron Man 2 recasting. stating that the news came as just as much of a shock as it did to everyone else that assumed he was a done deal for IM2. Guess again Terrence!
“It was the surprise of a lifetime, you know? It really was,” Howard told NPR. “I was like, ‘Wait a minute, How did this take place?’ There was no explanation, but it was gone. It was gone like life; it up and vanished. Then I read something in the trades that implicated it was about money or something. But apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren’t worth the paper that they’re printed on. [...] And now the challenge is not to be angry, but you just keep moving forward. You keep moving forward. Like a lot of Americans, I lost my 401(k), basically, because that was a very promising thing. But to have to keep working, that’s even more promising.“
To be fair to Marvel, CEO Kevin Feige has given a no comment to the Cheadle story (which was originally first reported by The Hollywood Reporter) so perhaps things are still up in the air. That said, the way that Howard said what he did, it sure sounded like he wasn’t expecting a phone call from Marvel Studios anytime soon.
Posted at 9:11PM by admin
Iron Man loses a buddy, gains a new buddy
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Terrence, what happened? You were all primed and set to reprise the role of Colonel James “Rhodey” Rhodes in Iron Man 2. Dude, you were all set to not only get a larger role in the sequel, you were going to be wearing the silver-and-black War Machine armor! You were gonna be a superhero!
The Hollywood Reporter told me the news that you were let go from starring in Iron Man 2. Now they’ve got Don Cheadle to play Rhodey in the sequel. THR says that the reasons why you’re not coming back are due to salary negotiations and other matters. I can understand the salary talks; the first Iron Man made like a gazillion bucks and you (and your agent) want to capitalize on the success. That’s cool, I get it, but what are the other reasons? What were your demands? More screen time? A guaranteed spinoff movie starring you as the War Machine? A larger trailer? More wet wipes? Tell me Terrence, where did it all go wrong?
I think Don is an awesome actor and all but I can’t help but feel sad that you’re not coming back to party again on the Stark private jet. When you looked at the Mark II armor and said “Next time,” I thought that it meant something. It’s not fair. I thought that we had something special.
Posted at 4:36PM by admin
Poster design by branding
Thursday, October 09, 2008
You’ve noticed it in nearly every mainstream movie, the moment when our hero/heroine pulls out a cell phone and the name of the company is prominently displayed, or they’re sitting down watching TV and the company name of the TV manufacturer is front and center, or…you get the idea. Branding is everywhere in movies these days. So what would it look like if a movie poster showed you how many companies were represented in the film? I’m guessing that those kinds of posters look a lot like these babies.
Created by Antrepo Design Industry as “alternative movie posters about brand integration,” these one-sheets dispense with the movie logo and showing us who’s in the film and go for an ultra-minimalist look. What the designers of these posters wanted on display were the names of the companies that are seen or represented in the film and that’s precisely the message that is communicated when you look at them. I was kind of surprised to see that there were only 12 brands displayed in all three Matrix movies but there’s a whopping 51 listed in just The Bourne Ultimatum.
See what the posters for Ocean’s Eleven, The Dark Knight, Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Iron Man look like. Collect all 6!
Posted at 6:42PM by admin
The top 13 hottest female characters from the summer of 2008
Thursday, August 28, 2008
With the end of the summer movie season swiftly falling upon us this weekend let us reexamine what’s come our way these past four months — and really, what better way to pass judgment on the worthiness of a film than imposing one’s subjective perspective on who were the hottest female characters?
Now before my female readers go all Gloria Steinem and call me a pig-headed creep, let me offer this reasoning in my defense: beauty is entirely subjective. What you may find attractive may not what I consider attractive, and someone’s charisma may be amplified (or taken away) by other traits like their personality, clothing or the number of guns that they own. The bottom line is that when you read this list you should bear it in mind that none of these characters are real and so any offense you might take is also imaginary.
13. Asajj Ventress (from Star Wars: The Clone Wars)
So what if she’s evil? She’s also bald, can command the Force, has two red lightsabers and also happens to be a better character than any of the bad guys George Lucas showed us in Attack of the Clones and Revenge of the Sith (I’ll give George the upper-hand for the creation of Darth Maul in Phantom Menace.) You know what they say about bad girls being interesting, so if killing a few Jedi makes Asajj such a terrible love connection then I don’t want to be right. Plus, I was never into that whole slave Leia costume thing so let’s hope some female cosplayers get inspired to dress up as Asajj at the next Comic Con.
12. Agent Dana Scully (from The X-Files: I Want to Believe)
Six years after the TV show ended Gillian Anderson reprised her role as Special Agent Dana Scully in the second X-Files movie — and no one cared enough to go see the movie. Hell, I didn’t go see it…but that doesn’t mean that I don’t want to believe Scully is still a hottie. Anderson proved that while no one cares about the X-Files anymore, that conservative business suit look still works for guys like me.
11. The women from Sex and the City
Look, I don’t even like Sex and the City but I’m not dumb enough to dismiss the power and appeal of it. While you couldn’t get me close enough to Sarah Jessica Parker, Kim Cattral and that chick that plays Charlotte can go shopping with me for a new pair of Manolo Blaniks anytime. But what the Sex and the City movie did that I love is show stuffy Hollywood movie moguls that a large number of people will pay to see a movie with 40 and 50-something women dolled up and cougar prowling the Big Apple. If Helen Mirren were in a movie this summer she’d beat SJP but all we got were these spy photos of her in a bikini.
10. Betty Ross (The Incredible Hulk)
Ten years after Liv Tyler left her impression as Ben Affleck’s love interest in Armageddon we find Steven Tyler’s little girl still playing the doe-eyed girlfriend to a CG character. However, the cool thing about Betty Ross is that she stands by her man even though he turns into a rampaging green monster. Could you say that about any of the chicks from Sex in the City?
9. Trixie (Speed Racer)
Speed Racer proved to be one of the summer’s bombs but it did give us Christina Ricci’s performance as Speed’s rock solid girlfriend. She’s into cars, she loves Speed completely and she’s cool with his folks. How many of you would settle for just two outta those three? Plus she’s got her own pink helicopter to come pick you up in. That’s a win-win-win-win in my book of love.
8. The Joker as a nurse (The Dark Knight)
Don’t look at me that way. Go on, tell me that you never got a funny feeling as a kid when you saw Bugs Bunny dresssed up as a woman.
7. Donna Sheridan (Mamma Mia!)
Donna may be a mom and she may be played by Meryl Streep but damn if she doesn’t have the energy and spirit of a 20-year-old club chick. It doesn’t matter if Donna is having a fun moment with her two gal pals or feeling down in the dumps thinking about life as a single woman, she’s got a song in her heart for every situation and chances are you want to sing along too. Get Donna out of those denim dungarees and into a nice sundress, maybe get a bit of a tan and she’s suddenly she’s spending time with Carrie Bradshaw and her troop of Manhattan fashionistas.
6. Irena Spalko (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
The first female bad guy for Doctor Jones to face off against and she’s played by Oscar-winner Cate Blanchett. The movie may have sucked but for all those guys out there that dig their femme fatales in army clothing, Irena was their pin-up woman of the year. Give her Indy’s whip and let’s see how far we can go with this.
5. EVE - (Wall*E)
For the guys that love their iPhones or iPods more than their significant others there was Disney/Pixar’s EVE. She’s got the curves, the commanding voice and those arms that can atomize anything so to me she’s ’08’s version of Ripley from Aliens. She may have a tough exterior but as anyone that saw the movie will know, once EVE finds out how much of a softie Wall*E is she fell in love with the beat-up little robot — which only goes to prove that even robot nerds can hook up with robot hotties if they play their cards right.
4. Rachel Dawes (The Dark Knight)
As played by Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rachel’s got it all: looks, gusto, an important job as a lawyer, a boyfriend who’s star is rising and she knows the secret identity of who Batman is. I thought that Gyllenhaal improved on Katie Holmes’ performance of the character so I’m excited to see where she takes Rachel in the inevitable sequel to The Dark Knight. Oh. That’s right, I forgot about that…thing that happened. Oh. Well…uhm…hey, wasn’t that redhaired wig on The Joker kind of sexy?
3. Agent 99 (Get Smart)
She’s the brains behind Maxwell Smart and she’s also better with a gun than the hero. Anne Hathaway did an awesome job stepping into the boots of Barbara Feldon and was able to be the straight man opposite Steve Carell. Plus, she’s hot. What’s with all of these actresses and their brunette bobbed hairdos this summer? Did Trixie, Spalko and Agent 99 have the same hairstylist?
2. Fox (Wanted)
She’s a trained assassin who wants to give private lessons to the film’s hero. She has scores of tattoos all over her back and arms. She can curve a bullet. She has a gun that can shoot around corners. And she’s played by the present supermom of the planet, Angelina Jolie. Fox (gee, I wonder why she was named that?) is the best action babe of the summer and Brad Pitt agrees with me 100%.
1. Pepper Potts (Iron Man)
I’ve never been that much of a fan of Gwyneth Paltrow except when she played a head in a box in Seven, but in Iron Man the mother of Apple does a first-rate job of playing this summer’s hottest female character. Pepper’s got nearly the full package: she’s got brains, she’s got talent, she’s got a killer sense of business attire, she keeps the schedule of her boss (billionaire Tony Stark) and it was her gift to him that saved Iron Man’s ass when it seemed he was down for the count. The only thing that Pepper lacks that some other ladies on the list have is armament; even Scully has a gun. But here’s the thing: Pepper’s boss is friggin’ Iron Man himself. Stark makes IM suits in less than 12 hours, so why can’t Pepper get to be Iron Woman in sequel #2 or #3? See, that’s where my mind is headed, hombre.
Plus, I think that Pepper and that SHIELD guy would make a cute couple.
So do you agree with my placement of the ladies in the list or think that I’m mentally unstable, sexist or downright creepy for placing The Joker on it? Sound off and tell me what you think in our comment section below. The more comments, the greater the chance that I may be fed by my corporate masters!
Posted at 10:53PM by admin
