Day: July 2, 2008

WARNING!! This article contains SPOILERS for the movie “Wanted”!!

Borys Kit at The Risky Biz Blog wrote in a recent posting that what you see at the end of Universal’s “Wanted” is not the ending that was in the intitial “final” cut. 

“Wanted” is a significant departure from its source material; the villains in the original comic-books were running the show a lot more than they did in the film.

The ending thats being seen has Sloan (Morgan Freeman) turning up to Wesley’s office, standing on the X, with a bullet from Wesley, who’s in his house (as he was at the beginning of the movie), whizzing by Wesley’s ex-girlfriend and ex-boss.

It is kind of a nice, low-key way to exit the story, referring back to what happened at the beginning of the film but it is actually a reshoot. In the original ending, Wesley (James McAvoy) ends up in the room with the loom, weaving and threading, and then gets into a protracted shoot-out with Sloan.  It was your typical Hollywood ending, as bullets shred everything to pieces and Wesley comes out on top.

When it screened back in February, higher-ups didn’t like it because it was another shootout ending. No one, it seemed, did. Too boring. Too been there, shot that. So everyone —  the director, writers, the producers, the execs, the comic creators — got together and came up with the ending that played on the screen.  

In other words, a studio actually opted to scrap the conventional ending for the smarter and fresher one, an ending that cost a lot less but offered a lot more. Judging by the $51 million opening, maybe they should do it more often.

Sources:
The Risky Biz Blog
IMDB

Tuesday, July 1

Hancock: PG-13. John Hancock (Will Smith) is an unhappy and reluctant superhero who is living in his own world. For some unknown reason, Hancock is depressed and has started drinking very heavily. He has saved many lives in Los Angles over the years, but in doing so, he has no regards for damaging buildings, trains, roads, cars, or anything that gets in his way to get the job done. The public has had enough of Hancock, and they want him to stop or go to another city. Then one day, Hancock saves the life of Ray Embrey (Jason Bateman), a Public Relations executive. from being run over by a train. Ray makes it his mission to change Hancock’s image and have the public cheering him. Ray’s wife, Mary (Charlize Theron), believes Hancock can not be fixed, and she doesnt want Ray to be hurt. Columbia Pictures

Thursday July 3

The Wackness: R. It’s the summer of 1994, and the newly- inaugurated mayor, Rudy Giuliani, is beginning to implement his initiatives against “crimes” like noisy portable radios, graffiti and public drunkenness. Set against this backdrop, Luke Shapiro (Josh Peck) spends his last summer before college selling dope throughout New York City, trading it with his shrink (Ben Kingsley) for therapy, while wooing his step-daughter (Olivia Thirlby). Famke Janssen, Mary Kate Olsen,and Method Man round out the cast in this edgy, bittersweet, and funny coming of age story. Occupant Films

Friday, July 4

Gonzo: The Life and Work of Dr. Hunter S. Thompson: R From Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side) and producer Graydon Carter comes a probing look into the uncanny life of gonzo journalism inventor Dr. Hunter S. Thompson. A fast moving, wildly entertaining documentary with an iconic soundtrack, the film addresses the major touchstones in Thompson’s life, his intense and ill fated relationship with the Hell’s Angels, his near-successful bid for the office of sheriff in Aspen in 1970, the notorious story behind the landmark Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, his deep involvement in Senator George McGovern’s 1972 presidential campaign, and much more. Narrated by Johnny Depp. Magnolia Pictures

Diminished Capacity: UNRATED. Alan Alda is Rollie Zerb, a small-town Missouri old-timer with Alzheimer’s, who lives with his sister and guy named Wendell. They are visited by Cooper (Matthew Broderick), who arrives at his mother’s request to help talk Uncle Rollie into a nursing home. Cooper has mental problems of his own, due to a recent concussion. While back in town, he runs into Charlotte (Virginia Madsen), his high school sweetheart who is recently divorced from the town mayor. And somehow Rollie, Cooper, Charlotte and her son wind up heading to Chicago, where they are going to try to sell Uncle Rollie’s rare baseball card of Frank Schulte, from the 1908 Chicago Cubs. IFC Films

Holding Trevor: UNRATED. A funny and scathing evaluation of a group of friends and lovers, “Holding Trevor” offers a biting analysis of young men and women struggling to make sense of their lives and relationships. Regent Releasing, Here! Films

Sources:
IMDB
MovieWeb