To Be Continued ...

The latest in sequel news ...

- Indiana Jones and Just Name the Damn Thing Already.
- Cinematical gives their advice on what to do ... and what not to do ... to the makers of the next James Bond movie.
- The latest Star Trek rumors: Russell Crowe is the villain, Shat is back - or is he? And James McAvoy, an actual Scot, will play Scotty.
- Orlando Bloom to join Tom Hanks in Angels & Demons, the sequel to The Da Vinci Code.
- Does anyone really want to see a prequel to a prequel of a sequel of a remake?
- Don't hold your breath for Porno, a.k.a. Trainspotting 2.
- First there was Eating Out. Then there was Eating Out 2: Sloppy Seconds. Lord knows what they'll call Eating Out 3. And what do you know, the first gay trilogy since La Cage aux Folles.
- And finally: Channing Tatum is not in the Step Up sequel, Step Up 2 the Streets, but that's not going to stop me from posting his picture here.

Links via Cinematical.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, SundayMirror.co.uk, CinemaBlend.com, InsideSoCal.com and MySpace.com.

Comic-Con '07: That's a Wrap!

This year's Comic-Con is history and let me tell you, if all the geeks who dressed up looked like this Spartan 300 dude, then the joint would have been even more crowded. (No offense to geeks, of course ... the whole pot/kettle/black thing.)

To wrap things up, some odds and ends from around the web:
- For a lot of blood, a little skin and a few choice four-letter words, check out the R-rated trailers for 30 Days of Night, Beowulf and Shoot 'Em Up. That last one looks like a hoot and a half, with a badass Clive Owen, a homicidally wacky Paul Giamatti, a baby and a carrot.

- On the G-rated front, WALL·E was not the only Pixar-related news: a collection of their award-winning shorts will hit DVDthis November 6 (which will reportedly also see the release of Ratatouille). In addition to such favorites as Geri's Game, For the Birds and Boundin', a documentary on the creation of the animation powerhouse, The Pixar Story, will also be included on the disc, which will be released both in standard and Blu-Ray formats.

I expect there will also be some kind of sneak preview of WALL·E as well; in the meantime, take a look-see at the collectable WALL·E postcards that were handed out at the Con.

- As for the superhero franchises (this was Comic-Con, after all): Check out the super-cool Hellboy 2 poster; Sam Raimi talks Spider-Man 4 (you knew that was coming); Seth Green talks Green Hornet (not a comedy); and get this - Edward Norton wrote the script for The Incredible Hulk.

Hope you caught that Iron Man footage on YouTube earlier this week, 'cause it ain't there no more. In addition, Jon Favreau discusses the possibility of a whole mess of heroes hitting the big screen in a Marvel Universe movie ... and that sound you heard was millions of fanboys' heads exploding in anticipation.

And sure, Tony Stark may have an awesome ride, but he uses the john just like the rest of us.

- My sources say that J.J. Abrams' mystery project (a.ka. 01.18.08 and/or Cloverfield) will be titled ... Monstrous. Or it could be Furious or Overnight depending on who you talk to ...

- Bond 22 does not have a title yet either, but it may have a new Bond girl.

- And finally, in all things Indiana Jones: Frank Darabont talks about his script (that wasn't used); co-star John Hurt doesn't say much about his secret role; and take a look at the Con exclusive poster ... and a plot synopsis. Turns out Marion is not the only aspect of the Raiders of the Lost Ark to return for the fourth film after all.

Links via Cinematical.com, ComingSoon.net, ObsessedWithFilm.com, UpcomingPixar.blogspot.com, Amazon.com, Variety.com, KungFuRodeo.com, MoviesBlog.MTV.com and IGN.com.

Comic-Con '07: Continuing Adventures

Further news from this weekend's Comic-Con and elsewhere, focusing on sequels and other continuing series.

- The big news this past week was the confirmation that Zachary Quinto (Heroes' nasty Sylar) has been cast as the younger Spock in J.J. Abrams' Star Trek reboot. More surprising is that Leonard Nimoy has been coaxed out of retirement to don once more his famous Vulcan ears for the new film (likely in some form of framing device). The film's first poster art (above), charmingly retro, was also revealed.

- We, like Cinamatical and The Guardian, like our Bond "more gritty, less quippy". Eon Productions, please take note. In related news, Daniel Craig is now the highest paid actor in England. And he still won't return my calls.

- Rachel Weisz (who nabbed her Oscar and ran) is out; Maria Bello is in as Brendan Fraser's ladylove for the third Mummy movie, rather clumsily titled The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor. Here's some more casting news for the flick, courtesy Obsessed With Film.

- Per our sources, The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian looks like "more of the same". And from this peek at the concept art, we would have to agree. This second chapter, which is currently filming in Prague, will be released next May, with subsequent chapters to follow suit.

- Cars 2, any one? Can't say that I blame them; the merchandise is doing alarmingly well.

- More from the Mouse House: To wet your appetite (or possibly quench it) for another Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Disney may turn to TV for the next adventure of Captain Jack Sparrow.

- From the "Nope, Nothing to See Here" file: Borat 2. As one of the few people who loathed the first movie, I say "thank goodness".

- From the "Don't Count on it Anytime Soon" file, Robert Rodriguez sub-file: Sin City 2 and Grindhouse 2. Hey Robert, maybe the following quote has something to do with the delays "due to issues apparently involving the Weinsteins": "we [would] kill Harvey Weinstein in the movie". Ya think?

- And from the "Who Asked for That?" file: Meatballs 5. I had no idea there was more then two ...

Links via HollywoodReporter.com, Cinematical.com, Guardian.co.uk, UltimateJamesBond.wordpress.com, StarPulse.com, ObsessedWithFilm.com, NarniaWeb.com, ComingSoon.net, JVPixarNews.blogspot.com, Hollywood.com, SuperHeroHype.com and FilmWad.com.

My Top 100 ... For Now

To give you a taste for my tastes in movies, I have listed the 100 films that I voted for in the American Film Institute's most recent poll. You can find it in the sidebar under the heading "My Ballot: AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies - 10th Anniversary Edition".

As is my prerogative, this list is certainly subject to change. For example, in the six months since I voted I have seen Elia Kazan's A Face in the Crowd, an awesome movie that certainly would be included if I were making the list today. Oh well, at least they will be re-polling members once more in another ten years.

For the record, 64 of my choices made the final cut, announced about a month ago. They are indicated on the chronological list in the sidebar with a *, and the links will take you to their respective IMDB pages.

What is most fun about these things (for me anyway) is figuring out the statistics of it all. You know, the most this or the least that. I have compiled facts and figures for each of the AFI lists, which will appear in this section eventually. To give you an idea of what I am talking about, here is some interesting data for the 100 movies on my ballot:

• The oldest film is Harold Lloyd's Safety Last; the newest is Brokeback Mountain.
• The most represented decade is the 1950's, with 18 films.
• The most represented year is (naturally) 1939, with 5 films.
• There are 3 silents on the list (I know, I need to see more).
• Dramas account for 45 entries, the most represented genre. Musicals, one of my favorite genres (go figure), comes in second with 17.
• Steven Spielberg is the most represented director (5 times), followed by Alfred Hitchcock (4 times).
• The actors who appear the most are Humphrey Bogart, Dustin Hoffman and James Stewart, with 4 films each, while the actresses are Faye Dunaway (purely coincidental) and Judy Garland, with 3 films each.
• The Godfather Part II is the only sequel (isn't that always the case?).
• There are 6 animated films, 7 if you count Mary Poppins.
• There are only 4 films with overt gay themes: Midnight Cowboy, Cabaret, Dog Day Afternoon and Brokeback. This is a case where foreign fare does infinitely better.
• 24 films were Oscar-winning Best Pictures. 43 more were nominated for that prize as well. (For the record, Safety Last was released prior to the Academy's existence.)
• The film with the longest title is The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (49 letters, symbols and spaces); the shortest is Jaws (4 letters).
• 37 1/4 * films are in glorious black and white.

* This figure includes the Kansas sections of The Wizard of Oz.

UPDATE: The list has been removed from the sidebar and can now be found in the comments section below.

Links via Imdb.com and AFI.com.

Cinematic Crush: Daniel Craig

When, in Casino Royale, Daniel Craig emerged from the ocean wearing just a baby blue pair of swim trunks, women and gay men around the world gasped. Finally, after 44 years, this was our Ursula Andress moment.

Craig's Bond (... James Bond) made him a star, but viewers with an eye for talent had spotted him before. His smoldering good looks and pitbull demeanor were put to good use in such films as Road to Perdition, Layer Cake and Munich.

And he isn't afraid to play gay either (those Brits never are), as he did in Infamous and Love is the Devil, where he also did it full frontal (and no, it won't take much for you to find those pix on the net, trust me).

Craig will appear later this year in two eagerly awaited new films, The Invasion and The Golden Compass, both co-starring Nicole Kidman (lucky bitch). And yes, he will return as everyone's favorite super spy in the next Bond flick, which will no doubt leave all his fans shaken and stirred.

Link via Imdb.com.