Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Before I Go...

Hey kids...

I thought writing this final post would be a piece of cake once I announced that I am bringing the blog to a close. Indeed it is the exact opposite...And it's all your fault.



Your loyal readership over the past 9 years and 9 months has been nothing short of amazing. There are a lot movie sites on the Net where you could go--The fact that you came here...and then stayed here is incredibly gratifying. In that sense I see TLR as nothing but a success.

THANK YOU

This is not a decision I made lightly believe me. The injury to my right hand played into the move--My protracted condition means that my ability to do right by you my loyal readers--has been nixed.  Therefore even as I explore all of my options going forward I can't do the blog justice-having always maintained that  if I couldn't satisfy my perfectionism it would be time to pull the plug. My original thought was to stick around long enough to mark the 50th anniversary of Star Trek but the film gods had other plans......The good news is that the blog will live on through Twitter You can follow me @TheLastReel. I am hoping that we will be able to interact there before too long...

In the absence of TLR please visit my good friend Brittani Burnham at Rambling Film---you will have fun.

I credit Richard Donner's Superman--The Movie with a lot...and say goodbye with this....



This blog is lovingly dedicated to the memory of my Mom, my niece Kayla and my lovely "B" I miss you every day...and I love you...

Live life Happy and all the best.

T

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

Director Elias Will Miss TLR

One of the best things about doing TLR has been getting to know filmmakers from all over the world--I took a lot of folks by surprise when I announced that I am bringing the blog to a close this month. Among those saddened by the decision was Gut helmer Elias.


He took time out of his busy schedule to pen a wonderful short essay about the blog. The big E even suggests where my online career should go next. Here it is:

"We came across Tom and his blog back in 2012 when I was promoting my first feature film "Gut". We had been querying and sending out screeners for review to any and all of the movie blogs we could find in an effort to get the word out about the film. We received our fair share of praise and critique for the film and Tom's review fell somewhere in the middle, managing to be both critical and complimentary, but unquestionable fair -- qualities in film reviews that are often lacking in my humble opinion. Still it was a mixed review ultimately, and you might think we would have all left it there, but Tom very graciously followed his review with a written interview of yours truly where I was able to expand more on my intentions with the movie, my experiences making it, and working in independent film overall. It was a kind and generous gesture for Tom to continue the conversation about Gut on his blog, and one that he didn't have to make, but that reflects his dedication and love for movies and respect for those that make them, which this filmmaker and movie buff deeply appreciates. The Last Reel will be missed, Tom, but our friendship will remain, and I'm grateful for that. Perhaps a podcast is in the future? I know someone who would be glad to come on and banter about movies and filmmaking anytime " ~Elias

Thanks for your very kind words--They mean more to me than you know....Our Round 2 chat was even more fun.

I am working on my exit post to be published soon....Stay Close.

Saturday, July 11, 2015

SDCC 2015: Batman v Superman-DOJ Sizzle Reel

Even with its very bleak tone I must admit that my inner fanboy loved the San Diego Comic-Con International peek for Zack Snyder's "Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice"


 DOJ will see the return of Henry Cavill as Superman/Clark Kent, Ben Affleck will play Bruce Wayne/Batman amid lots of fallout--while Amy Adams, Laurence Fishburne and Diane Lane are set to reprise their roles as Lois Lane, Perry White and Martha Kent. "Fast Five" star Gal Gadot's playing Wonder Woman. Jason Momoa has been cast as Aquaman,

The death of Thomas and Martha Wayne will be part of the narrative with "Watchmen" actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan said to be playing Thomas.

 Ray Fisher is playing the role of Cyborg in the film. Jeremy Irons has been cast as Wayne's butler Alfred Pennyworth. Jesse Eisenberg is playing Lex Luthor

There were reports that suggested that the chatter about former "Breaking Bad" star Bryan Cranston was playing Lex in the upcoming movie were true were denied by the actor. In fact he and fellow early frontrunner Mark Strong were never offered the role. Tom Hanks was internally discussed but an offer was never made.

Instead, they stuck with a next generation' mandate. We were told that Joaquin Phoenix came up as a contender for Lex. The trade says that he passed.

Speaking of Lex--JoBlo posted a rumor suggesting that Luthor's iconic purple and green battle suit from the comics will make it to the big screen.

Latino Review reports that four secondary villains are making an appearance in DOJ: Victor Zsasz Morgan Edge Amanda Waller and David Cain.

According to their sources, the serial killer Zsasz will fight with Affleck's Batman in an early Gotham City-set scene. Edge will be the slimy public relations head of LexCorp who goes toe to toe with Lois Lane on a TV talk show. Cain will meet with Luthor's bodyguard Mercy to set up an assassination. There's also another baddie  that is yet to be cast . In this incarnation Waller's a stern, intimidating senator who sees Superman as a threat and comes up with a counter measure to stop him.

Latino Review reports that a flashback scene was recently added to Batman v Superman which will see Oscar winner Jared Leto's Joker from the film version of  the "Suicide Squad" comic book beating Batman's sidekick Jason Todd (the second Robin) to death.

Holly Hunter, Callan Mulvey and Tao Okamoto ("The Wolverine") have joined the cast. Specifics about their new characters are being kept under wraps. Although the trailer reveals Hunter plays a politico Australian actor Mulvey (Zero Dark Thirty ," "Captain America: The Winter Soldier") has  been rumored for the role of an (unnamed) villain in the film for quite some time now....TMZ said that he is playing Batman's greatest foe --The Joker.....Scoot McNairy ("Argo," "The Rover") has joined the film. Nobody at the studio will confirm the news or reveal what the role is.

 Spanish site El Multicine which claims that "Looper"and "Edge Of Tomorrow" actress Emily Blunt inked a deal for an unspecified role.

Batman on Film also suggests that the character of Commissioner Jim Gordon is in the film, however there's no word on potential casting or confirmation at this time. The character is front and center in Fox Broadcasting's fantastic new Fall TV Series prequel Gotham starring  , , and

More rumors ran that Girls co-star Adam Driver was the frontrunner to play the character of Dick Grayson, the post-Robin Nightwing incarnation in the film. The original story mentioned that two other actors are in the mix for the role. Less than 24 hours later "Gossip Girl" and "Easy A" star Penn Badgley and "The Perks of Being A Wallflower" and "We Need To Talk About Kevin" star Ezra Miller were said to be in mix for the part. Driver denied any such talk...With good reason since he was really up for Lex. He turned it down due to scheduling conflicts. Denzel Washington was also among a list potentials for Lex generated by Thinkmcflythink as were Idris Elba and.

Last August Superhero Report posted a photo of actress Jena Malone meeting her "Sucker Punch" director on the set. This led to speculation that she may make a cameo in the film. At the time Malone denied that talk, saying her set visit was just a visit. Channel 10 WILX in Michigan claims to have an anonymous film extra as a source who says that Malone is in the film and she's playing a female Robin aka Carrie Kelley

El Mayimbe from the Shanlian on Batman podcast has apparently confirmed rumors that Doomsday from the famed Death of Superman comics storyline will indeed appear in the film  The design is said to be very faithful to the comic and looks "incredible".

Singer Justin Bieber uploaded a photo on his Instagram account showing him holding up what appeared to be a personalized script for the film with the hashtag "#Robin" but it turned out to be a prop for a Funny or Die skit.

The speedster The Flash is said to be in the script.

Meantime: The star of The CW's popular Arrow TV series Stephen Amell posted a "Justice League" comic image on his official Facebook page.  We already know that Flash (Grant Gustin) showed up there for a few eps before getting his own show (Watch an extended trailer). Could more of DC Entertainment's "Justice League" be coming to "Arrow"? The answer is yes...For now the DC Cinematic Universe will NOT co-exist with the TV heroics...There are rumors about where the films might go as well as the  TV side of things...

"Man Of Steel" writer David S. Goyer was back on the keyboard but now--THR reports that  Chris Terrio, who won an Oscar for writing Affleck's “Argo,” has been hired to write the latest draft of the MOS 2 script. 

Goyer is in the midst of developing several projects including an adaptation of author Neil Gaiman's  popular comic book series Sandman, which he’ll produce with Joseph Gordon-Levitt.

Christopher Nolan and Charles Roven return to executive produce the multi-hero film. 

Sources say the new movie is going for the tone of the relationship and fight seen in Frank Miller’s 1980s ground-breaking mini-series The Dark Knight Returns.

The DOJ release was delayed a full 10 months for a number of reasons. As a result, the original release date of July 17th 2015 was no longer. The studio then targeted a May 6th 2016 release. They quickly inserted the fantasy Pan into that original slot. The sequel was to go head to head with "Captain America 3" ...Nobody thought that the comic book pics would ultimately share the date--Sure enough DOJ blinked--and will now open on March 25th 2016.

Once DOJ is completed  Snyder will helm DC Entertainment's long planned Justice League movie The Justice League Part One--penned by "Argo" scribe Terrio

Monday, July 06, 2015

The End Is Near....

After much thought and consideration I have decided to end publication of this blog later this month.


This is not a decision I make lightly believe me. The injury to my right hand played into the move--My protracted condition means that my ability to do right by you my loyal readers--has been nixed.  Therefore even as I explore all of my options going forward I can't do the blog justice-having always maintained that  if I couldn't satisfy my perfectionism it would be time to pull the plug. My original thought was to stick around long enough to mark the 50th anniversary of Star Trek but the film gods had other plans...

Late July will see me shift gears using my non computer/typing skills interacting with young folks of tomorrow You should know that I tried to save TLR with voice interactive software==My noisy environment precluded that. I even tried several times to find a writer willing to come on board to help with no success.

I hope my loyal readers understand--and will stick around till the end-Got some things cooking to mark the end...The blog will live on through Twitter You can follow me @TheLastReel

 Thanks for your loyalty and understanding It means so much...Any questions? Tweet me

Live life Happy and all the best.

T