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Too early, you say? Ha! It's never too early! Remember when the ads for 'Godzilla' showed up a YEAR before the movie premiered? ... ok, that wasn't a great example. Anyway, you get the idea; it's never too early to start thinking about the Next Great Popcorn Film. So what's the big deal? Oh, you poor soul, soooooo many possibilities. These aren't in any particular order, by the way, and this certainly isn't EVERYTHING. Just a few things that pop into mind as 2004 winds down... and 2005 is juuuuuuuust around the corner...
'Constantine'. The film is the tale of an occultist/detective trying to track down a murder. All right, so this isn't the same as 'Hellblazer', where Constantine just... well, bad things just seem to follow the poor guy around, and he manages to keep Hell from breaking loose. And enough whining about Keanu Reeves. It's DONE, the movies in the can. Besides, as much complaining as people have made about Reeves playing John Constantine, at least the buzz isn't as rancid as 'Catwoman'. Whew!
'Star Wars; Revenge of the Sith'. Oh my god, do you think Anakin will give in to the Dark Side? Do you think Palpatine is really a bad guy? ... ok, so we already know this stuff, the question is GETTING THERE. Good news is the teaser looks promising; wonderful 'saber battles, starfighters galore, and WOOKIES!
'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'. And all of the Gen-Xers start to sing 'Oompa, loompa...' Ok, time to get this out in the open; I never read the books. Fine. However a LOT of us remember the amazing film with Gene Wilder playing Willy Wonka, the eccentric... no, border-line CRAZY owner of a giant candy factory. Charlie, his Grandfather, and a host of really annoying brats getting a tour of the factory... and a lesson in human frailty. Yeah, heavy stuff, and very true. And now Tim Burton gets to cut loose with Johnny Depp as Willy Wonka. Yeah, be afraid... hehehehehehehehehehehehe!
'War of the Worlds'. This was a HUGE surprise. Sorry Jim Cameron, but you are NOT the King of the World. Until you can get a movie green-lit, filmed, and in the can in about 8 months the way Spielberg is doing, you aren't quite the king yet. Apparently 'War of the Worlds' just HAPPENED to fit into Spielbergs and Cruise's schedule. 'Tom, you busy this fall?' 'Nah.' 'Wanna make a movie?' 'Sure.' So they're now in central New York filming a remake of the sci-fi classic. So far no bad news, although I think everyone is still a bit shocked that they're actually getting this done for 2005.
'Fantastic Four'. Remember the first try? Ah, talk to your buddies who are into bootlegs. There was a feature version done ages ago, which fortunately didn't see the light of day, not even Direct to Video. Yes, it was apparently THAT bad. Flash forward and with better SFX technology, and one of the great super-hero teams is back.
'Sin City'. Frank Miller's seminal, noir piece has an all-star cast with the likes of Mickey Rourke, Jessica Alba, and Bruce Willis, and the directing talents of Robert Rodriguez and... Frank Miller?!?!?!?!!! Hey, comic writers seem to want to be film directors. Here's your chance.
'Batman Begins'. Yeah, saved it for last. Yeah, I'm biased. Yeah, it's my page. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha! David Goyer, the man who wrote the 'Blade' trilogy, working with Chris Nolan, the director who brought us 'Memento' and 'Insomnia'. And I haven't mentioned Morgan Freeman, Ken Watanabe, and Christian Bale as the Dark Knight. Tim, Michael, your version of Batman was fun... but I do believe we've found THE version of the Dark Knight. Woohoo!