Latest news with #filmAdaptation
Forbes
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Forbes
Alex Garland Is A Great Choice To Direct The ‘Elden Ring' Movie
The 'Elden Ring' film is to be directed by Alex Garland The A24 film adaptation of Elden Ring is officially moving forward with Alex Garland as writer/director, and the announcement was met with mixed responses on the internet. For some, the prospect of an Elden Ring film doesn't make sense in the first place, while others expressed doubt that Garland was the right man for the job. Elden Ring, the gargantuan, open-world entry in the FromSoft game catalog, is famous for invoking a mood rather than telling a coherent story. That's not to say there is no story in the game—there is, but the game isn't particularly concerned with communicating it clearly to the player. Elden Ring (and the Dark Souls trilogy) are more about vibes—themes of decay, insatiable greed and the terrible, destructive efforts of maintaining an empire in the face of entropy, but the exact details of how these civilizations turned to ruin are often hiding in the shadows. These games do contain strong characters, rich settings, and detailed lore within item descriptions, as well as contextual clues in the landscape. While game franchises such as Grand Theft Auto and The Last Of Us use cinematic cutscenes to tell their stories, Elden Ring uses the strength of the medium, trusting that players will understand something about the story from their experiences. However, players will never really see the full picture, and that's by design. The general online reaction to Garland writing and directing the Elden Ring movie was mixed, but FromSoft fans are likely judging him too harshly. Many film buffs turned on Garland after his misogyny-themed horror film Men proved something of a misfire, while reactions to his most recent film, Civil War, were mixed. Garland may have stumbled here and there, but the man is a gifted storyteller—Garland's first novel was The Beach, a compelling book, remarkable for a first novel. Notably, The Beach tells the story of a failed attempt to build a utopia, a concept that Elden Ring also explores. In fact, several of Garland's films show thematic similarities to FromSoft games. Garland wrote (but did not direct) 28 Days Later and Sunshine, the former depicting an undead apocalypse, and the latter a space crew that flies too close to the sun, leading to madness, delusion and violence. Ex Machina warns against playing God, depicting the dehumanization of a conscious machine by a Silicon Valley sociopath, ending with bloody rebellion. Annihilation tells the story of an alien life that melds itself into the surroundings, tainting everything it touches and merging the boundaries between human, plant, animal and alien entity. Thematically and visually, Annihilation resembles the strange atmosphere of Elden Ring, which contains many hostile landscapes, grotesque human-animal hybrids and otherworldly gods that drive the hapless inhabitants of The Lands Between insane. Garland has talked about how much he loves the Dark Souls games (which are very similar to Elden Ring), and seems to understand why players find them so compelling. However, many FromSoft fans fear that Elden Ring just can't be adapted into a film without losing the elements that make it such a unique experience. There's probably truth to that—these games aren't about protagonists, but Elden Ring is more of a hero's journey than Dark Souls is. It should be noted that legendary game director Hidetaka Miyazaki, who is credited with the success of Dark Souls and Elden Ring, has spoken positively about a potential film adaptation in the past. 'I don't see any reason to deny another interpretation or adaptation of Elden Ring, a movie for example,' Miyazaki told The Guardian. 'But I don't think myself, or FromSoftware, have the knowledge or ability to produce something in a different medium. So that's where a very strong partner would come into play.'
Gizmodo
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Gizmodo
‘Superman' Just Confirmed One of Its Big Villains
Jurassic World Rebirth teases its giant dinos. There's band news for Kevin Bacon's supernatural bounty hunting in The Bondsman. Plus, get a look at The Last of Us' season finale, and what's to come on Doctor Who. Spoilers away! Hellhound Variety reports Marisa Tomei, Sam Rockwell, Chris Messina and Ivan Martin are attached to star in Hellhound, a 'zombie comedy' from director Zach Golden. In the story, 'a zombie outbreak hits small-town NY' forcing 'a washed-up veterinarian [to] team up with his ex-wife and her new cop boyfriend to stop President William White and his right-hand man General Graves from destroying NYC. It's a battle of zombies, power, and unresolved feelings — and the fate of millions rests in the hands of a guy who's already given up.' Incidents Around the House Deadline has word Jay Duplass will star alongside Jessica Chastain in Incidents Around the House, the upcoming film adaptation of the Josh Malerman novel about a young girl haunted by a mysterious entity during the breakdown of her parents' marriage, from director Rob Savage. The Block Meanwhile, Bloody-Disgusting reports Catherine Cocoran, Jackie Early Haley, Jack Falahee, Chris Noth and Saphira Morgan will star in Craig Singer's The Block, a film in which the former 'golden boy of horror fiction' suffers 'an unshakable writer's block. Years later, with his career in ruins, Mitch stumbles into a dark and inexplicable event, after which, the words begin to flow again.' Victorian Psycho Deadline also has word Jason Isaacs has joined the cast of Victorian Psycho as Mr. Pounds, 'the owner of the estate who employs the young, eccentric governess Winifred Notty.' Superman A tie-in action figure confirms the purple-suited character seen in the Superman trailer is indeed Ultraman, the evil alternate universe counterpart of Superman. A great look at the ULTRAMAN figure for 'SUPERMAN' — DCU Updates (@DCU_Updates) May 15, 2025 John Wick 5 During a recent interview with /Film, Chad Stahleski stated he hopes U.S. 'relations will improve' with China before John Wick 5 goes behind cameras. I will tell you as much as I know, which isn't much. Look, we have an inkling to it … I can't tell you what John Wick 5 is about because we haven't quite got it all down. We have thoughts, I have a thematic…you can tell I love '70s movies. We've done a lot of rock and roll fable stuff from number two, we've done the mythical David Lean of number three and four, and the Samurai and Leone and the Bertolucci in number two, and the Tarkovsky in number three. You can see all my influences. I'm a huge fan of Wong Kar-Wai, Zhang Yimou, Tsui Hark, John Woo, of course. So, I think no matter what, I think there's going to be an influence of Chinese cinema. We did so much of Kurosawa, and all the other Japanese directors, and what we love to do with the Samurai films of Zatoichi and Kurosawa and all that. So, I'd like to explore that kind of realm. Now that the world is changing a little bit, I think hopefully, relations will improve and continue to improve between us and China, which will allow us the opportunity to explore locations over there, but I'd like to bring that kind of storytelling in, its my tribute back to the Matrixes and all my, early Jet Li, Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yeun Biao, Tsui Hark, and all the other great ones. And then I'd still like to — I really love the Middle East, I love David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia, I love all that. So, I think there's more storytelling to be…I like old cultural stuff, and I think China, Africa, and the Middle East holds some of the best history, human history. So, I'd like to explore all those areas as well. Killing Faith Bloody-Disgusting also reports Killing Faith, the upcoming 'supernatural western' starring Guy Pearce, DeWanda Wise, Bill Pullman and Joanna Cassidy has been rated R for 'strong violent content, grisly images, drug use, sexual assault and some language.' Jurassic World Rebirth Here's a quick teaser for the new Jurassic Word Rebirth trailer coming tomorrow. The Sound A group of rock climbers 'come face to face with a malevolent force that quickly turns their expedition into a harrowing battle for survival' in the first teaser for The Sound. The Bondsman According to Deadline, Amazon has canceled Kevin Bacon's The Bondsman after one season. The Last of Us HBO has released a trailer for 'Every Last One Of Them,' next week's second season finale of The Last of Us. Doctor Who Finally, the Rani releases a PSA about her history with the Doctor while an intangible, skeletal beast stalks Notting Hill in a brief clip from 'Wish World,' this week's episode of Doctor Who.
Forbes
11-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Forbes
How Did Sally Field React To Son's Horror Film ‘Clown In A Cornfield'?
Clown in a Cornfield director Eli Craig — the son of iconic actor Sally Field — is sharing his mom's reaction to his new horror comedy. Clown in a Cornfield, which opened in theaters nationwide on Friday, is an adaptation of author Adam Cesare's Bram Stoker Award-winning young adult novel from 2020. Adapted for the big screen by Craig and Carter Blanchard, Clown in a Cornfield follows teenager Quinn Maybrook (Katie Douglas) and her doctor fatherm Glenn (Aaron Abrams), who move to the farming community of Kettle Springs, Mo., to get a fresh start following the death of Quinn's mother. But, as Quinn soon discovers, Kettle Springs has been a depressed town since its main business, the Baypen Corn Syrup Factory, burned to the ground. In a demented way to alleviate the burden on the shoulders of Kettle Springs, someone is dressing up as Baypen's mascot — Frendo the Clown — and taking out his frustrations by slaughtering its teen residents in a grisly manner, which is not quite the welcome to the town Quinn was expecting. Rated R, the blood-splattered humor and horror fest also stars Kevin Durand, Carson MacCormack and Will Sasso. In a recent Zoom conversation, Eli Craig — who along with his brother, Peter, are the sons of Field and her ex-husband Steven Craig — said he gravitated to a decidedly different film genre than the one his mother is famous as a kid. 'I've always felt a little bit like the black sheep of the family,' Eli Craig said with a huge laugh. 'She's a dramatic actor who treats her work very, very seriously. And some of my work is a little farcical, right? I have a penchant for a bit of farce and humor.' Essentially, Craig — who directed and co-wrote the 2010 horror comedy cult classic Tucker and Dave vs. Evil — said he wants to make movies that don't take themselves too seriously, but his mom likes to stick to her dramatic storytelling convictions. 'Sometimes when I show her my work, she's like, 'I think you should take it more seriously,' and I go, 'But that's not the point, mom. The point is, this is fun first and serious second,' Craig said. Sally Field, of course, is one of Hollywood's most treasured performers. In addition to winning Best Actress Oscars for Norma Rae and Places in the Heart, she's starred in dozens of classic films in her six decades in showbiz, from two Smokey and the Bandit films, Murphy's Romance and Mrs. Doubtfire to Forrest Gump, Lincoln and The Amazing Spider-Man movies. On top of that, Field has had an amazing run on television, starring in such acclaimed series as Gidget, The Flying Nun, ER, Brothers & Sisters and Winning Time: The Rise of The Lakers Dynasty, as well as the legendary miniseries Sybil. Eli Craig said he's paid attention to the inner workings of showbiz throughout his mom's career and it has no doubt influenced his work as a filmmaker — but not in the way you'd expect. 'She's taught me so much about this business, but growing up as her son, it has given me a bit of the freedom to be disestablishment,' Craig said. 'I like to fight against the establishment and be somewhat sardonic and sarcastic about the business. 'Because I grew up in it, I just feel like making fun of everything and film gives me a way to satirize the business and also satirize the human condition in America, specifically right now,' Craig added. "So, I think mom gets a kick out of my films, even if she doesn't fully understand my style.' And what was Field's specific reaction to Clown in a Cornfield? 'She saw a rough cut of it and she said, 'I think you should cut the humor out,'" Craig said, laughing. 'I said, 'Mom, I can't cut the humor out. That's the whole point. I want the humor and horror.' But she said, 'This is the most suspenseful thing you've ever done' and 'Go fully go with the suspense.' I find life to be both humorous and horrific at the same time, so I like to add those elements.' Clown in a Cornfield is playing in theaters nationwide.
Times
09-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Times
Pride and Prejudice review — Knightley and Macfadyen are perfect
★★★★★The best of the 17 official Pride and Prejudice adaptations, including the Laurence Olivier version from 1940, this four-time Oscar-nominated melodrama is the perfect package. Deliberately engineered 'for the kids' by the production company Working Title, it's a film that took the populist romantic energy of the homegrown hits Bridget Jones and Love Actually and returned it to the source: Jane Austen. The cast of Bennet sisters are young and credible (Carey Mulligan was making her screen debut as Kitty), their group scenes are filmed with hip Altmanesque overlapping dialogue, while the director Joe Wright's roaming camera gives every exchange an unexpected urgency. The secret weapon, though, is the chemistry between the Pirates of the Caribbean actress Keira Knightley (at the zenith of her
