The Golden Compass, the film version of the first book in the His Dark Materials trilogy by Phillip Pullman, had a very mixed reception when it was released at the end of last year. Not only was there the whole religious conflict, with many Christians criticising the anti-religious nature of the storyline, but the film itself seemed to polarise opinion.

I’m a big fan of the books, but was slightly disappointed with the film version. Although it was enjoyable as a family film, there were changes made to the storyline, and ordering which I think ruined the experience to a certain degree. The box office takings reflected these concerns, being disappointing both in the US and abroad.

This has left the future of the film series in question. Author of the books, Phillip Pullman, has now had his say on the matter, and given his views that a movie version of the second book, The Subtle Knife, is in no way guaranteed. According to Digital Spy, he said:

“I think people were hoping it would be out then but without the film actually having a production start date there can’t be a due date. People are talking about [The Subtle Knife]. I think there might be a script. People are very busy. When there’s a development I will hear about it.”

I really hope the other two books are made in to films, as His Dark Materials is one of my favourite set of books ever written. Yes, the subject matter is controversial, but there have been many controversial subject matters covered in films since the industry began, so why should religion be any different?

The new Batman movie, The Dark Knight, has been one of the most talked about films ever. Through a combination of Heath Ledger’s brilliant performance as The Joker, Christian Bale’s mastery of the part of Batman, and the hopes for a brilliant sequel to the already great Batman Begins, the film has been anticipated by film fans all around the world.

It opened at Midnight on Thursday night/Friday morning in America, a session that was sold out in many areas across the US. And that has translated in to an excellent showing at the box office, with the film being declared as having set a new record for biggest opening day ever.

According to Dark Horizons, The Dark Knight took between $63-$65 million in its first day of business. This beats the former record holder, Spider-Man 3, which managed to take $59.8 million on its opening day. The midnight showings managed to take $18.2 million, beating Star Wars Episode III: The Revenge of the Sith, which took $16.9 million.

The critics and fans also seem to be agreed on the brilliance of the film, with The Dark Knight securing high ratings on all the movie ranking sites. It currently has a 94% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and a 9.5/10 user score on Metacritic.

Without thinking, name the two best animated shows on television… let me guess, you answered The Simpsons and Family Guy right? If you didn’t, then what is wrong with you? The Simpsons is probably the best sitcom to have emerged from America in the past 30 years, and beats most real-life comedies for laughs per minute by quite a margin. Family Guy is anarchic, and is probably the most out-and-out funny show currently on TV.

The Simpsons has already had a big screen version made, cleverly titled The Simpsons Movie, which came out last year. And Matt Groening, the show’s creator has promised a sequel is being planned, though it could be some time away. According to Digital Spy, he said:

“It will happen at some point, but I have no idea when. The first one took us four years - mainly because we don’t like to work any harder than we usually do. We’ll get to it, I’m sure.”

The first movie was okay, but left me feeling slightly disappointed purely because it was merely like a full-length episode. Though I don’t know what else I expected. Still, it’s good to hear a sequel is on the way, especially as the first one was such a huge box-office hit.

Meanwhile, Seth MacFarlane, the man behind Family Guy, has stated that a movie version of the show is definitely on the way, but again, it could take quite a while to appear. According to Digital Spy, he told TV Week:

“We do want to do it and we will do it at some point. It’s just time. We in the past six months started talking seriously about it. So my hope is that we’ll get it going within the next year.”

“Doing the show is a seven day a week process and finding the time to squeeze in a movie is… I don’t know how we’re going to do it but we’ll figure it out.”

“I have an idea of what it’s going to be. It’s definitely something that you could not do on the show, which to me is the only reason to do a movie.”

That’s a good policy to have, as what is the point of doing a movie if it follows a storyline that could just be done as an episode anyway? After seeing the Family Guy version of Star Wars, I’d love to see a movie full of movie references and spoofs. But I’m sure MacFarlane will have his own ideas… much better than mine. My only concern is how big Stewie’s head would look on a cinema screen.

Kung Fu Panda, for those not in the know, is an animated film from Dreamworks, that shows an overweight panda turned chef called Po, who gets trained up to be a kung fu master. Which might not be the greatest plot in the world, but it does make for a very funny, and family-friendly animated movie.

Unfortunately, not everyone sees it as such, and a Chinese performance artist called Zhao Bandi has taken exception to a couple of elements of the film. Bandi uses pandas in his art to great effect, using images of pandas, and even designing clothes for panda prostitutes. He is now suing Dreamworks in the Beijing Chaoyang District People’s Court, and calling for the film to be boycotted.

According to Variety, the reason for Bandi’s outrage is over the way pandas are represented, particularly as they are China’s national symbol. He said:

“Designing the panda with green eyes is a conspiracy. A panda with green eyes has the feeling of evil. I have studied oil painting, and we would never use green eyes to describe a kind-hearted figure. So I ask them to open their creative meeting records of this film and explain why the green eyes?”

“Next, why is the panda’s father is a duck? Many foreigners think the giant panda is not just China’s symbol, but also the Chinese people’s symbol. Drawing the father of the giant panda as a duck is an insult to the Chinese people. In a few years time, I’m worried some young Chinese people will think their ancestor is Donald Duck.”

Bandi is seeking an apology, but no money. The film is actually doing very well in China, despite its release being delayed by the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television due to it possibly upsetting victims of the Sichuan earthquake.

This seems a bit stupid, as it’s an animated film… not real life. No-one is going to be stupid enough to think that a duck could actually father a panda, and what’s the fuss about green eyes? This is one of the most ludicrous lawsuits I have ever heard of, and I’d love to hear what Chinese people think about it.

The Monster Squad is a cult movie that I have never actually heard of. Yes, so shoot me, but that’s surely the point of a cult classic, that not everyone knows about it, but those who do love it to bits. If everyone knew about the film, and had seen it, it would stop being cult, and become just another mainstream hit.

Now, this cult classic is getting a remake, with Rob Cohen producing it. According to Dark Horizons, the original, directed by Fred Dekker and co-penned by Shane Black, “followed a group of kids hunting down Dracula and his minions who are attempting to take over the world.” Sounds good to me so far.

Cohen said of the project:

“I am talking with Paramount about the ownership rights, we just found out that because of all the different companies being bought and sold, (it was so hard to do) but we believe all the rights are back at Paramount. I have been waiting to finish this (third Mummy) film, to really start the talks about remaking it.”

“Maybe I would direct, maybe someone else with me producing. I really think highly of that that film…I mean, how great is it with The Mummy, the Wolfman, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, Dracula, Frankenstein they all were in it! It would be a prime remake!”

Whether it’s a prime remake or not really depends on how well it is done. This could either end up as one of the greatest horror/slasher movies ever made, or a great big steaming pile of manure. For people like me, who have never even seen the original, this won’t really matter: if it’s crap, we just won’t go and see it. But for the fans, who have grown up loving the movie, a bad remake is going to really, really annoy.

Cohen has made some good films so far, but on this one, as with any remake of a much-loved film, rather him than me.

The Dark Knight has arrived, with the new Batman movie set to open around the US at Midnight on the 17/18th July. And ticket sales for the movie, the sequel to Batman Begins, are already through the roof, due to many people’s eagerness to see the film, starring Christian Bale, and Heath Ledger, getting the better of them.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, hundreds of Midnight showing for the film have sold out, with fans snapping up tickets online for the screenings. The movie has also set an industry record for the number of US cinemas showing it over the opening weekend, with the movie on in 4,366 theaters.

Online ticket seller Fandango has reported 94% of its recent ticket sales were for The Dark Knight, with Fandango spokesman Harry Medved saying “We expect Friday to be our biggest ticket-selling day in company history.”

It seems that even those holding on until the weekend to see it may have trouble getting a ticket, as many websites are reporting sell-outs across the country, including the 94 Imax sites screening the movie.

The Dark Knight was always going to be huge, and I haven’t seen this much anticipation for a film’s release since Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace came out. It’s definitely been helped by the death of Heath Ledger, and the fact that his performance is being talked up as a modern classic.

Being a Brit, I have to wait another whole week before I can see it. This is the first time I have ever wished I was American… no offence.

The Fun Bunch. 

On the MTV Movie Blog, there’s a debate about who should be the villain in a third Batman film. I think it seems clear that Two-Face would be the star bad guy in the next film, so the question would be who, if anyone, they might want to add to that storyline (and, yes, I think most people would agree that recasting the Joker would be a bad idea, so he’s out).

The Riddler and Catwoman are popular choices with cast members, and comic book writer suggests a double team of Poison Ivy and Catwoman (though his casting suggestions, Angelina Jolie, and of all things, Gwyneth Paltrow, aren’t much to get excited about). The readers in the comments section have lots of good ideas, including Talia, Bane, the Penguin, and the Mad Hatter. One person suggested Paul Dano as the Mad Hatter, and I find that idea kind of interesting (I also likes someone’s suggestion of Helena Bonham Carter as Harley Quinn.

Here’s a partial list of Batman villains–see any good ones?  

Bane • Black Mask • Blaze • Catwoman • Clayface / Ethan Bennett • Clayface / Basil Karlo • Cluemaster • Count Vertigo • D.A.V.E. • Dracula • Everywhere Man • Firefly/Phosphorus • Francis Grey • Gearhead • Harley Quinn • Hideto Katsu • Hugo Strange • The Joining • Joker • Joker 2.0 • Kabuki Twins • Killer Croc • Killer Moth • Lex Luthor • Man-Bat • Marty • Mercy Graves • Maxie Zeus • Metallo • Mirror Master • Mr. Freeze • Number One • Penguin • Poison Ivy • Prank • Punch and Judy • Ragdoll • Rhino & Mugsy • Riddlemen • Riddler • Rumor • Rupert Thorne • Shadow Thief • Sinestro • Smoke • Solomon Grundy • Spellbinder • Temblor • Terrible Trio • Tony Zucco • Toymaker • Ventriloquist & Scarface • Wrath and Scorn

Seriously, you’d rather have an umbrella right now more than a charmed gun.

Comic Book Adaptation of the Week (so far).

Variety reports that action director John Woo will direct Caliber, a title from Radical Comics. Radical is a studio working on projects with a number of writers, artists, and companies, including Johnny Depp’s Infinite Nihil. Depp’s company will produce the film along with Barry Levine of Radical and Woo and partner Terence Chang’s company Lion Rock.

Here’s how the oh so reliable Wikipedia describes Caliber:

“The Arthurian legend as retold in the American Old West, with all of its great symbolism, magic and spirit of adventure. The Knights of the Round Table are all gunslingers bound by the code of honor to protect the weak and defend the innocent until they are undone from within by their own moral corruption. In this tale, Caliber itself is tattooed six-gun given to Arthur by the Indians and imbued with supernatural power. The secret of the gun is that it is never loaded with bullets, but when a man with justice on his side is holding it, it can fire. When it does, it fires thunder itself and never misses.”

So are you getting the title? Caliber…Excalibur…huh? Huh? Get it? Yes, very clever.

The project is supposed to be introduced at Comic-Con next week, but there’s a lot of questions about when this is actually going to happen. Woo is one busy guy. He’s working on editing part two of his epic Red Cliff. He’s also been announce as the director of 1949, another historical epic, this time about the Chinese Civil War. In the US he’s booked for The Sicilian Clan, a remake of a 1969 French crime drama (the original starred the ridiculously hot Alain Delon) and The Divide, a story about a Chinese immigrant who’s working on the construction of the transcontinental railroad in 19th century America. You would have to think that production on Caliber is an absolute minimum of two years away. By the time this gets started, even the incredibly youthful Depp might have to look for a Merlin type part. Depp at about age 200 might finally outgrow his babyface looks.

I’ve spoken before about my displeasure at seeing brilliant video games turned into (at best) average movies, and (at worst) absolutely dire movies, but I have higher hopes than usual for the latest games announced as having a film made of it.

The game in question in Lost Planet, which has sold over 2 million units around the world since being released last year on the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles. According to Variety, the movie is set to be a joint venture between Warner Bros., and he game’s publisher, Capcom.

David Hayter, who has just completed work on Zack Snyder’s Watchmen, is set to write the screenplay. Gamers may already know Hayter for being the voice of Solid Snake in the Metal Gear Solid games, but his writing work is now in the ascendancy over his acting work.

The game’s storyline seems a good one for a movie, with a quite involving plot that revolves around an expedition to an ice planet to find an energy source with the potential to save mankind.

Capcom is rapidly becoming the games publisher most involved with the movie industry. As well as Lost Planet, there are already movies in the works based on both the Street Fighter, and Onimusha series of games. So long as none of them are complete duds which sully the name of the games they were inspired by, then I’ll be happy… but I can’t see it happening.

The X-Files: I Want To Believe, is out next weekend in the US, and a week today sees the world première taking place at Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles. To mark the occasion, the cast and crew of the long-running franchise are going to get the loyal fans, otherwise known as X-Philes involved.

The X-Files has been dead for a good few years now, after being a huge success on television before spawning a movie. Despite the long absence away from our screens, the show’s fans have remained loyal, and are now set to be rewarded with a special event.

According to Dark Horizons, the first 500 fans to turn up to the première will get to sit in special seats with a view of the red carpet. They will then be able to participate in a special conference involving the four people most associated with the show: Lead actors David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson, writer-producer-director Chris Carter and writer-producer Frank Spotnitz.

The event will also reach a wider audience of X-Philes, as it will be broadcast live on a website set up specially for the occasion. Fans on the Internet will be able to ask questions and interact in real time with the stars and minds behind the show, and new film.

The film’s plot has thus far failed to leak, with very little known about the stand alone story. What is clear from the trailers is that Billy Connolly plays the weirdo, and the always-complicated relationship between Mulder and Scully reaches new heights of confusion… sounds good.