Remakes

All he wanted to do was dance....
So I just heard that Footloose is getting re-made starring none other than Mr. High School Musical himself Zac Efron. Yes that's right - One kid. One town. One chance -- One more time. Kenny Ortega, who directed pretty-boy Zac in HSM3 is set to direct along with Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist director Peter Sollett, who will rewrite the script. Word is they are fast-tracking the production to start in the spring to capitalize off of the success of HSM3 of course.

Now I have to admit, I have not seen any of the High School Musicals (shocking, I know) but I have seen the paparazzi pics so I think I have a good baseline for the Kevin vs Zac comparison.
Let's see: Too-styled hair? Check. Cheesy grin? Check. Girls love him? Check. Check. "Bad-Ass" attitude? hmmm...not that Kevin Bacon was really Bad-Ass, but I think Zac may need to work on this over his Christmas Break. What do you think?

However some of my fears were quelled when I saw that Kenny Ortega was the director of one of my all-time favorite cheesy Disney musicals - Newsies, staring none other than Mr. Future Batman himself - Christian Bale. (Yup, Batman can sing and dance. It's good times, you should check it out.) So I think it's in good hands.

Anyway, back to Footloose- hot teen star + dancing will likely be a hit. But I am sure I am not the only one thinking - will there be a new soundtrack? Well apparently they are working on new songs, but some of the old ones will make an appearance. Wise decision movie peeps, as I think a Footloose without "Let's Hear it for the Boy" may cause a revolt (or is that just me?)

Zac of course has a lot to live up to - I mean the emotional high of Kevin Bacon in the warehouse dance scene is going to be just so hard to beat. It's cheesy 80's fun at it's best. For those of you who need a reminder, here's the clip for you to re-live the moment. And Zac - we'll be waiting for you. -- Lisanne

What it is: In a remake of the classic 1960s spy-spoof series, Steve Carrell is Maxwell Smart, super-savvy desk jockey of the crime-fighting organization CONTROL.  He can only dream abuot the exploits of Agent 23 (Dwayne "the Rock" Johnson), until unexpected circumstances throw Max into the field, partnered by supertough Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway). Naturally, high-flying hijinx and hilarity ensue.

Why it's Significant: Honestly, I expected going into the theater that Get Smart would be one of those juvenile-humor vehicles that make me groan  But it was laugh-out-loud funny, with some good stunts as well.  Silly?  Sure, but in a good way.  The cast is great, including the quite-stunning Hathaway, and there are a lot of inside jokes for fans of the classic series. One of my surprise favorites of the year.  --David

I'm a Trekkie from way back, with the Starfleet Technical Manual I got 30 years ago still on my bookshelf. I nearly wept more than a year ago when Leonard Nimoy took the Comic-Con stage with Zachary Quinto, giving his blessing the man who will take over the role of Spock (and who looks like he could be his son!). So after months of geeky anticipation, I'm starting to feel my first pangs of worry about the new Star Trek film. And it's because J.J. Abrams said this in Entertainment Weekly:

At heart, Abrams is still more of a Star Wars guy. “All my smart friends liked Star Trek,” he says. “I preferred a more visceral experience.” Which is exactly why he accepted Paramount’s offer in 2005 to develop a new Trek flick; creative­ly, he was engaged by the possibility of a Star Trek movie “that grabbed me the way Star Wars did.”

I'm going to give J.J. the benefit of the doubt, and trust that he gets that Star Trek can never be Star Wars. Sure, both have space. And aliens. And battles. Some robots. But they couldn't be more different at their core. Star Wars is the hero's journey. A backwater country boy discovers not only that there's a powerful force in the world, but that he has a special ability to harness it. And he gets to save a princess and acquire a pirate-cool best friend in the process. He also has some daddy issues, but did I mention that lightsabers are cool??? Star Trek, on the other hand, is about grownups working together to bring some order to a chaotic universe (and it worked best when they were allowed a little chaos of their own, which is why Deep Space Nine holds up better than the chilly Next Generation). Classic Trek also had a brand of humor and outright sexiness that sets it apart. Sure, Han Solo seemed like he didn't spend Friday nights alone, but when Leia was done up in slave girl garb, no one touched her (with intent) except Jabba the slug dude! Let's put it this way: Kirk kissed a lot of ladies, and none of them were his sister. And he never let a woman in a gravity-defying dress escape his grasp. Yeah, it's easy to make fun of some of the '60s stylings and Shatner-isms, but Kirk is the sci-fi alpha male.

I think Chris Pine has potential to carry forward that tradition proudly, with J.J. at the helm. In fact, as I write this, I keep peeking over at a large poster of Pine and smiling at his smolder. Don't let me down, guys! -- Stephanie Reid-Simons, Trekkie 4 Life

Entertainment Weekly has released the first photos from the Star Trek movie reboot:

 
Zachary Quinto as Spock and Eric Bana as Nero

 
Karl Urban as McCoy and John Cho as Sulu


Anton Yelchin as Chekov, Chris Pine as Kirk, Simon Pegg as Scotty; Urban, Cho, and Zoe Saldana as Uhura

--Ellen

(Blu Monday is our roundup of what's new in Blu-ray...)

I'll admit that I was interested in watching Speed Racer on Blu-ray in sort of the same way that I can't turn away from a highway accident.  Like almost everyone else in the world, I missed it in theaters, but it seemed tailor-made for home-theater viewing.  And sure enough, the movie looks fantastic.  My beef, though, is with the audio.  Dolby Digital 5.1 is great for DVD, but not for Blu-ray: where's the lossless sound to go with the high-definition picture?  Speed Racer should have been an audiovisual spectacle, but this disc is more like a visual spectacle with OK sound.  The use of DD5.1 has come up on a number of pretty major BD releases, a trend I hope doesn't continue. The movie itself?  Well, it was OK, but no way it should have gone on for 135 minutes.  (I also thought the voice of the mysterious Racer X was too familiar for us TV watchers.)  Also on the three (!)-disc set are some minor featurettes, a game (disc 2), and a Digital Copy of the movie (disc 3). --David

New Blu-ray pre-orders that have recently hit the catalog:

• The Dark Knight
• Wanted
• Dexter: The Complete First Season
• The Boondock Saints
• Unfaithful
• Zodiac
• The Pink Panther (original)
• Stargate: The Ark of Truth

Continuing Entertainment Weekly's 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Numbers 50-26 are below.

50. THE PIANO (1993)
49. CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000)
48. SCARFACE (1983)
47. MEN IN BLACK (1997)
<------46. CHILDREN OF MEN (2006)
45. RAIN MAN (1988)
44. THE PLAYER (1992)
43. GLADIATOR (2000)
42. CLUELESS (1995)
41. DAZED AND CONFUSED (1993)
40. SPEED (1994)
39. THE SIXTH SENSE (1999)
38. ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (2004)
37. PRETTY WOMAN (1990)----->
36. SPIDER-MAN 2 (2004)
35. THE INCREDIBLES (2004)
34. FARGO (1996)
33. THE BREAKFAST CLUB (1985)
32. FIGHT CLUB (1999)
31. BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (2005)
30. WHEN HARRY MET SALLY... (1989)
29. THE BOURNE SUPREMACY (2004)
28. WINGS OF DESIRE (1988)
27. ALIENS (1986)
26. HOOP DREAMS (1994)
 

More to be revealed tomorrow... —Ellen

Continuing Entertainment Weekly's 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Numbers 75-51 are below.

75. OUT OF AFRICA (1985)
74. DRUGSTORE COWBOY (1989)
73. OFFICE SPACE (1999)
72. THELMA & LOUISE (1991)
<------71. UNFORGIVEN (1992)
70. BROADCAST NEWS (1987)
69. ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER (1999)
68. WITNESS (1985)
67. DONNIE BRASCO (1997)
66. NATURAL BORN KILLERS (1994)
65. DIRTY DANCING (1987)
64. NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN (2007)
63. BIG (1988)
62. SEX, LIES AND VIDEOTAPE (1989)----->
61. BEVERLY HILLS COP (1984)
60. SCREAM (1996)
59. L.A. CONFIDENTIAL (1997)
58. GHOSTBUSTERS (1984)
57. THERE'S SOMETHING ABOUT MARY (1998)
56. THE LIVES OF OTHERS (2007)
55. RISKY BUSINESS (1983)
54. FATAL ATTRACTION (1987)
53. THE TRUMAN SHOW (1998)
52. THE NAKED GUN (1988)
51. THERE WILL BE BLOOD (2007)

More to be revealed tomorrow... —Ellen

Another fun list from Entertainment Weekly: They're counting down the 100 films from the past 25 years that will stand with the all-time greats over time. Nos. 100-76 are revealed today, with the rest coming over the next few days. (It's also fun to see a list that doesn't include the same stuff over and over again.)

100. SOUTH PARK: BIGGER LONGER & UNCUT (1999)
99. THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT (1999)
98. THE TALENTED MR. RIPLEY (1999)
97. GLORY (1989)
<------96. FAR FROM HEAVEN (2002)
95. IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (2001)
94. FULL METAL JACKET (1987)
93. ED WOOD (1994)
92. MENACE II SOCIETY (1993)
91. BACK TO THE FUTURE (1985)
90. NAPOLEON DYNAMITE (2004)
89. BREAKING THE WAVES (1996)
88. AUSTIN POWERS: INTERNATIONAL MAN OF MYSTERY (1997)
87. SWINGERS (1996)
86. Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN (2002)
85. THE 40 YEAR-OLD VIRGIN (2005)------->
84. SIDEWAYS (2004)
83. EVIL DEAD 2 (1987)
82. LOST IN TRANSLATION (2003)
81. MOONSTRUCK (1987)
80. MICHAEL CLAYTON (2007)
79. WAITING FOR GUFFMAN (1996)
78. TERMINATOR 2: JUDGMENT DAY (1991)
77. SID AND NANCY (1986)
76. THE DEPARTED (2006)

don't see your favorite on this list? Don't worry, there are still 75 left to go. -- Ellen

When the Boston Celtics eliminated the Detroit Pistons on Friday, they fulfilled the dreams of basketball fans and network executives by setting up an NBA Finals with the Los Angeles Lakers, their longtime rivals from the Bird-Magic days of the 1980s.  The two