Amalgamated Zen

Pride & Prejudice & ZOMBIES (Oh My).....

"It is a truth universally acknowledged that a zombie in possession of brains must be in want of more brains."

Everyone is familiar with Jane Austen's classic "Pride and Prejudice". Most of you are aware that a parody was written by Seth Grahame-Smith called "Pride and Prejudice and Zombies". What you may not know is that the book became a "New York Times Best Seller". What you don't know is that they are turning the book into a feature film! (Quirk Classics is also releasing a prequel in 2010) Natalie Portman has been cast (and will apparently produce) as the latest Elizabeth Bennet due out in 2011, distributed by Lionsgate - except this time, her goal is to wipe out the zombie menace. Complete with romance, heartbreak, swordfights, cannibalism, and thousands of zombies - I am officially beyond stoked for this movie!

Jessica Biel, "Professional Stripper"

Calm down, calm down! It's not entirely true... well at least not now. Biel, who had to learn how to work the pole for her part in Powder Blue, is apparently so convincing, that her dance coach has suggested that if Biel's career in Hollywood dries up, she has an alternate career path. For now, we'll just have to settle for watching her part in Powder Blue (due out in limited theaters on 08MAY09 and DVD release on 09JUNE09) and we'll be the judges of her talent. For now, here are some stills to whet your whistle.

Who Ya Gonna Call...GhostBusters 3

In a conversation with MTV news Harold Ramis has confirmed a new Ghostbusters movie is in the works. The Original cast is expected to reprise their roles with their characters becoming "sage mentors" to new a new team, in a passing of the proton packs to a new generation of Ghostbusters.
Though the first draft of the script is apparently still in the works, Judd Apatow is signed on as at least a producer so thus far the casting rumors have been hovering around members of the "Apatowverse" Paul Rudd and Seth Rogen being tapped to take up the fight.
Taking into consideration the track records of the parties involved, I believe this will be a worthy sequel/reboot of the franchise and I'm actually enthused about this project coming together.
What do you think?

Simon Pegg's a weasel

Don't worry... this isn't a slanderous attack on Simon. Quite the contrary. British actor Simon Pegg has confirmed that he is part of the cast for Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs which is due out in July of this year. Pegg, who joins original actors Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, and Ray Romano along with Queen Latifah, Seann William Scott and Josh Peck from the second installation, will be voicing the character Buck. As Pegg describes him, "Buck is a one-eyed, swashbuckling weasel who's personality is reminiscent of Captain Ahab". Most of Pegg's movies are oriented towards the older audience, but the funny-man wants to do something a little more family friendly so his child (due in June) along with his nieces can see what exactly he does. And if that means being a weasel, it's a good start.

Sean Penn a Stooge?

Sean Penn will be following up his Oscar winning turn as Harvey Milk with a role that can be literally considered a slap in the face. Variety magazine reports that Penn has reportedly signed on to portray Larry in the Farrelly Brothers new Three Stooges flick which is to begin production in the fall for release in 2010.
In addition to Penn, the Farrelly's are in negotiations with Jim Carrey to portray Curly and are attempting to snag Benicio Del Toro for Moe. Carrey is apparently planning to gain 40 pounds for the role instead of going with a fat suit, but no mention has been made as to weather he'll be shaving his head.
The film is supposed to be an actual Three Stooges movie and not a behind the scenes biopic about the lives of the legendary funny men.

Moon Bloodgood to get "Burned"

With Tricia Helfer's departure at the season 2 finale of Burn Notice (pause for a moment of silence), Jeffery Donovan's character Michael Westen is going to need a new antagonist. Enter Moon Bloodgood. The Terminator: Salvation starlet is stepping in to replace Jennifer Esposito who was cast as a Miami Detective trying to discover the real Michael Westen - Esposito is said to have dropped out for health concerns, though the exact nature wasn't given. Production for the third season of Burn Notice started last week.

Star Wars Live-Action TV Series Casting Underway

Good news or bad news for Star Wars fans. Depending on how you feel about the three previously released live action prequels, Episodes 1-3 and the current animated Clone Wars series, casting has now officially begun for the live action sequel/prequel Star Wars tv series.
The series is to be set between Episode 3 "Revenge of the Sith and Episode 4 "A New Hope". The series will serve as a bridge between the two series featuring secondary characters and focusing on the Rebel Alliance. So while we can expect to see Storm Troopers, No Jedi, new or old will be on hand, including Darth Vader...for now...and depending on story arcs and and of course the almighty ratings.
Personally the series concept appeals to me for this type of project. I enjoyed the prequel films overall, especially the birth of the empire aspect so I fairly stoked to witness the birth of the Alliance. I've also watched and enjoyed most of the animated Clone Wars episodes, which feature the Clone Troopers as much as the Jedi. This to me bodes well for the series.
What do you think?  
Follow the link below to the MTV moviesblog post.

EXCLUSIVE: ‘Star Wars’ Live-Action TV Series Casting Underway

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Questionable Movie Decisions

With the upcoming release of Street Fighter: The Legend of Chun-Li, one begins to wonder at what point did this script seem like a good idea. The new Street Fighter film will focus on Kristin Kreuk's version of Chun-Li... but don't worry, Jean-Claude Van Damme won't be in it. However, like the first movie, the directors instead choose to focus on the wrong character. For those that ever played the video game or remember the old anime cartoon, Street Fighter was about Ryu - who had a minor role in the first film and doesn't appear in this new one. Following Street Fighter will be the release of Dragonball Evolution this spring. Now while this movie looks a little more promising than Street Fighter, it honestly looks questionable, in particular, Justin Chatwin's casting as Goku (Canadian/Asian... same difference). And finally we come to this summers release of G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra which looks rough because it's been largely modernized. G.I. Joe is more of a period piece and may very well be over done with the overly modernized technology. While the cast list in all three movies features some rather impressive names in the major roles, it seems as though the filmmakers thought the names would be enough to carry these films while leaving the story on the shaky side. If everyone's lucky, they won't be complete flops like Super Mario Bros. (Bob Hoskins, John Leguizamo, Dennis Hopper), Double Dragon (Mark Dacascos, Scott Wolf, Robert Patrick) or Street Fighter (Jean-Claude Van Damme, Raul Julia).... it might be a stretch, but one can hope.

Stars defend Bale

Hollywood stars Terry Crews and Whoopi Goldberg are among the few defending Christian Bale after a tape was released recently in which Bale lets loose an angry tirade against Director of Photography Shane Hurlbut. Hurlbut apparently walked on set twice, while Bale was in the middle of filming different scenes for his new movie Terminator: Salvation distracting the actor. An angered Bale flipped out and tore into the DP and even asked Director "McG" to fire him. Maybe it's just me, but even if you are DP on a film, if you want to make changes you either wait to the scene is finished or you address it with the director. Seeing as this isn't Bale's first film, it's apparent he expects the same thing.

What If Casting: Star Trek

Star Trek Casting That Almost Happened
It's fun to learn what actors might have taken certain roles, but didn't. Here are some of the biggest Hollywood stars who were almost cast in Star Trek.
http://www.associatedcontent.comarticle/506199/star_trek_casting_that_almost_happened.html