It’s very exciting to have J.J. aboard leading the charge as we set off to make a new Star Wars movie,” said Lucasfilm president Kathleen Kennedy in a press release Jan. 25. “J.J. is the perfect director to helm this. Beyond having such great instincts as a filmmaker, he has an intuitive understanding of this franchise. He understands the essence of the Star Wars experience, and will bring that talent to create an unforgettable motion picture.”
Star Wars creator George Lucas also gave his blessing to the selection of Abrams. “I’ve consistently been impressed with J.J. as a filmmaker and storyteller,” said Lucas. “He’s an ideal choice to direct the new Star Wars film and the legacy couldn’t be in better hands.
NERDS REJOICE: The largest media conglomerate in the world (Disney) bought Lucasfilm last week and immediately announced that a fresh new trilogy of Star Wars films WILL BE HAPPENING starting with an Episode VII in 2015. Yesterday it was confirmed that Oscar winning screenwriter Michael Arndt (Little Miss Sunshine, Toy Story 3) has been hired to pen Episode VII as the film begins pre-production. No word yet on who will direct or be cast in the films but personally I am optimistic, as Hayden Christensen already ruined one trilogy and will not be allowed to ruin another.
The new triumvirate of films will reportedly focus on the rebuilding of the Republic, with an aged Luke Skywalker becoming the premier Jedi and training a new order of Jedi Knights. The series will reportedly culminate in a finalconfrontation between Skywalker and the Emperor. Obviously many of the overarching plotlines have yet to be imagined:
Another epic storyline with four main characters? NO WAY! You must be saying. Let’s take a look.
A Justice League of America film will now officially compete directly with The Avenger’s 2 in the summer of 2015. Warner Bros. green lit the project and will reportedly ramp up development on it following a decisive legal victory involving the rights to Superman. Opening the door for competing super squads of epic proportion. A CLASH OF TITANS if you will. Okay. Maybe I got a little excited there. It is looking pretty legit though as DC/Warner Bros. has made it clear they want a high caliber director at the helm. As for the cast, let’s hope they go for a little more depth than Megan Fox. Why does WB want a super-squad of it’s own? Perhaps a better question is: Why WOULDN’T they want a super-squad of their own.
Can Batman go toe-to-toe with The Hulk? Could Superman beat up Captain America? I don’t know. I’m not a rocket scientist. The two superhero teams will indeed clash at the box office in the summer of 2015, as Warner Bros. looks to sign a director and all star cast within the near future. Having had talks with The Wachowski Brothers and Ben Affleck about directing, it seems they are willing to spend a pretty penny on bringing a Hall of Justice to the big screen in top class fashion. Why are all the cool kids making movies about superhero teams these days? Because effective team synergy is a powerful thing. Let’s take a look.
Walt always got in hot water with his dealings with business partners. He wasn’t really a businessman. In fact, he had left Kansas City, Missouri, with his first business, Laugh-O-Gram, bankrupt. Walt had headed for California, to start again.
Many individuals and companies came to Hollywood, California in the 1920’s because of cheap land and open opportunities.
On the heels of Lion King 3D‘s dazzlingbox office success (over $90 million), our dear and beloved friends at Walt Disney Studios have announced limited theatrical 3Dreleases for four more Disney Classics starting with Beauty and the Beast 3Dwhich opens today (Friday). While $90 million wouldn’t usually be a box office success, it makes for a very reasonable profit margin considering the studio’s minimal investment. The extra cash in-hand has helped greenlight at least three other films including Finding Nemo (Sept. 14, 2012), Monsters, Inc. (Jan. 18, 2013) and The Little Mermaid (Sept. 13, 2013). Given such wonderfully delightful news let’s take a look at this timeless story about theIdealists’ quest for true love.
Belle is a young, beautiful, and sweet-hearted girl with a vivid imagination and a fondnessfor romance novels that is ‘not like the rest of us’. Indeed the opening song of Beauty and the Beast emphasizes the uniqueness of our heroineBelle, “a girl that’s strange but special” who’s “head is in the clouds”. Belle spends most of her time reading fairy tales, and especially loves those with a Prince Charming. Belleyearns for romance and adventure, pleading that “there must be more than this provincial life”. Imaginative, idealistic, insightful and sympatheticBelle is a classic Idealist. Indeed Belle‘s initial frustrations with the harsh reality of “real-life” romance are something all too familiar to many Idealists.
Gaston is a rude, conceited, small-minded, and narcissistic young lad who spends his time fighting, drinking, and hunting. He is considered the “hero of the town” as “no man in town is as admired as him”, and all the local townswomen adore him. Gaston relentlessly pursues Belle solely because of her beauty, Belle however is not as shallow as Gaston and refuses his every advance. Gaston tells Belle “it’s about time you get your head out of those books and start paying attention to more important things: like ME”. This strapping and arrogant young frenchman of course represents the Idealists‘ commonly experienced frustrations with dating down-to-earth literal-minded Artisans and Guardians. Ultimately these Artisans and Guardians simply don’t understand the Idealists‘ tendency to dream and fantasize, and see such “day-dreaming” as a waste of time.
The Beast is a “mean and course and unrefined” creature who lives in an enchanted castle who has been cursed because “there was no love in his heart”. Indeed The Beast must learn to love another, and earn her love in return in order to break the curse. The Beast then concealed himself inside his castle and despaired, “for who could learn to love a Beast”. Complex, impersonal, skeptical, and pragmaticThe Beast makes for a great example of a Rational, especially in the realm of romance. Indeed many Rationalsdraw parallels to The Beastin their romantic lives, but as Belle finds out, The Beast (and Rationals) can in fact be turned into a Prince Charming given the right circumstances. Indeed once BellecracksThe Beast‘s icy shell, he shows her the castle library, a metaphor for a Rationalsvast store of knowledge. Ultimately of course the couple falls deeply in love, and The Beast‘s curse is lifted to reveal a charming and beautiful prince. What Beauty and the Beast tells us of course is that the Idealists’never-ending quest for true love may be a long and arduous one but there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.
“No matter what kind of persons Idealists marry, however, it is not too much to say that they are the best of all temperaments at creating successful and fulfilling marriages. Developing harmonious personal relations is their joy and their area of expertise, and they bring all their finest qualities to the enterprise. Their sensitivity, their spirit of cooperation, their ability to communicate their feelings , their passion for their mates, their desire for deep bonding, their personal warmth and enthusiasm—all these traits work their magic in the NF’s relationships, and more than compensate for their tendency to start up Pygmalion Projects. Indeed, if we can assume that Pygmalion Projects are an inevitable part of any marriage, that at best such intimate coercion can be kept loving and sympathetic, then Idealists offer their mates the possibility to exceptional happiness.” Please Understand Me II, p. 240
[singing] I want adventure in the great wide somewhere. / I want it more than I can tell. / And for once it might be grand / To have someone understand / I want so much more than they’ve got planned…
Disney/Pixar’s 2012 project Brave released a full trailer recently and looks to have in droves the charmingly delightful delightfulness that Pixar seems to achieve so well. Disney/Pixar will be looking for cinematic redemption after its 2011 release Cars 2flopped hard both at the box-office and with critics. Brave is centered around a Scottish Princess named Merida, and will be Pixar’s first ‘fairytale’, and it’s first film with a female protagonist. A brief synopsis tells us that Merida ‘confronts tradition, destiny, and the fiercest of beasts’. Let’s jump right in and take a look at our red-haired heroine Merida who is voiced by actress Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire).
Merida is described as the impetuous daughter of King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (voice of Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (voice of Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (voice of Robbie Coltrane). “Searching for the meaning of existence,” and believing in a “world pregnant with possibilities,” Merida indeed seems quite optimistic. Extremely courageous, highly independent, deeply mystical, and on a search for life’s truthsMerida is a classic Idealist. Indeed Merida turns to an “eccentric old Wise Woman (voice of Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish.” In order to find out what happens I suppose we’ll have to just watch the film! Brave is slated for a June 22, 2012 release date.
If you had the chance to change your fate…… would you?
