You will not agree with me here

Christopher Nolan, whose Prestige I caught the end of as I was about to go to bed last night (God that's a good movie...even if the logic behind the final reveal caused me to have to explain it to my wife using props), is the Don Corleone of superheroes at DC right now. As such, he has supposedly made a list of potential capos to step in and direct Superman, the least interesting, most famous superhero of all. The clock is ticking, as there are legal constraints regarding ownership of the character reverting back to Shuster and Segal, so things will move quickly or not at all. Deadline got their hands on Nolan's short list, and it looks like this:

• Tony Scott (Unstoppable, The Taking of Pelham 123)
• Matt Reeves (Let Me In, Cloverfield)
• Jonathan Liebesman (Battle: Los Angeles, Clash of the Titans 2 [upcoming])
• Duncan Jones (Moon, Source Code)
• Zack Snyder (300, Watchmen, Sucker Punch)

Let's take a look at these potential candidates in order of my suggestion for who to hire for this exciting relaunch...and by exciting, I mean I hope it's this:
Tony Scott - No. Just. No. He does the same thing over and over again, and that thing is cause epilepsy and nausea. No. This is clearly just a studio suggestion. Right? I mean, we're not going to get Tony Scott's vomitorium version of the man of steel...right?

Jonathon Liebesman - What's a Liebesman? I would say that while the jury is still out on the man's career and talent, he doesn't have the experience that a project like this demands. Also, you really can't have Clash of the Titans 2 listed in your resume and have me take you seriously. You saw the first one and were all "I want in on that!" Nope.

Matt Reeves - And here's where things get interesting. I loved Cloverfield, which wasn't a big movie but was an effects movie. I have heard just great things about Let Me In, which was all set to be hated by those who loved the original and ignored by those who had never dared listen to Swede talk. There's a chance that this guy is really as talented as I think he is, and he may be perfect for the gig. But...we're talking about a pretty huge jump for him. I like that he's on this list, I may even love it. But I don't recommend him as my first pick.

Duncan Jones - Oooooh, doggie. Now we're cooking with napalm. Moon was a damn revelation, and Source Code is a bigger budgeted, star-heavy (Jake Gyllenhaal) flick. Jones can nail the character, Moon taught us that. And he made that flick look like it had 10 times the budget. Again, we have the experience issue, but the confidence and style in that first effort of Jones suggests the fearlessness needed here. This is probably who I want to get it most. It's just not who should.

Zack Snyder - Okay, hold on a minute. Before you start barking about the slow-mo style he uses ad nauseum, bitching about what happened with Watchmen, or whining about the baggage that comes from hiring him, consider three things. (1) - Have you seen the trailer for Sucker Punch? Just the trailer assures me he's the guy for this gig. (2) - Watchmen was brilliant. It was. Watch it again. He's going to faithfully adapt the character in a visually exciting way. (3) - His best quality is that he understands kinetic action and frenzied pacing. Uh, that's kind of what Superman needs. I like Snyder. I like him a lot. I think he'd respect the material, wouldn't try to slather his way of doing things all over it so much as he would remedy the biggest problem: Superman is effing boring. I know that this is the least appealing of the three sexy choices (nobody wants Liebesman or Tony Scott), but it's the right one. I think after Sucker Punch does what I know it's going to do, we'll have a whole lot of converts to this way of thinking.

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If you buy the Farmiga, you get the Monaghan free

I have to tell you that the following combination of names of actors, actresses, director, and musician makes me so happy that I can only present the information to you in verse. Sorry.

I woke up this morning and got of bed,
hadn't even jump started, with coffee, my head,
when what do I see on the great interwebs?
An awesome director joined by two great celebs.
Duncan Jones, who you know as the director of Moon,
joined up with two ladies who make me hella swoon.
Vera Farmiga, who's known from The Departed,
has the looks and the chops to get my heart started.
She'll be joined by a lass who has both traits, as well.
I'm speaking, of course, of Monaghan (Michelle).
Watching just those two, I'd have quite a ball,
but they'll also be joined by Jake Gyllenhaal.
The movie's sci-fi and is called Source Code,
and the actors now gathered are a huge mother lode.
The film follows a soldier investigating terror crimes,
and with those ladies along, I'm sure he won't mind.
His character projects into another man's body,
but not like that sounds because that would be naughty.
He lives in this surrogate, this "avatar" if you will,
so he kind find out who's responsible for the kill.
Jones made such a great film his first time out,
that in this new project, I do have no doubt.
As if they needed more components to sell,
the score may be done by the great Clint Mansell!
This project excites me more than many before,
But until 2011, I'll have to endure,
so to bide my time as the clock slowly ticks,
I guess I'll console myself with these lovely pics.
And ladies, don't worry, I won't leave you blue,
if you look down below, you'll find young Jake, too.

How much do you love me? My Moon Review

What a weird review to write. I mean, I don't want to spoil ANYTHING and yet so much of what you just want to talk about in a review like this is totally spoiler heavy. I may revisit this film in a blog down the road and give the review I would if people had seen it. Anyway, enjoy, this is the film I'm recommending to you this week. Go see Moon!

Moon Rocks
But I can't tell you why

Beloved Reader reader, do you trust me? Because if you don’t, this is going to be a tough sell. See, I want you to go see Moon; I’m just not going to be able to tell you why.

Oh, I’m not trying to be difficult, honest; it’s just that director Duncan Jones has made an original, spirited film that reaches into the core of what makes science-fiction a transcendent and inspired genre and has somehow managed to keep the major elements of the plot a virtual secret. Unbelievably, in an age when the third acts of most movies expose their best parts and leave them flapping in the wind in the second minute of the trailer, Jones has hush-hushed his way to something truly extraordinary.

This much I can tell you: The film, which is based on a story by Jones and was turned into a screenplay by Nathan Parker, is set in the near future. An enterprising energy company discovered that they could solve our carbon crisis by harvesting something called helium-3 from a place made famous by a Pink Floyd album title. Sam Bell (Sam Rockwell), an American astronaut, agreed to sit up on the dark side of the moon by his lonesome and make any necessary repairs and adjustments for three years. His only companion is a kind-hearted computer named GERTY (Kevin Spacey), who is like Hal from 2001 on mood stabilizers.

Then, with less than a quarter of the film’s length elapsed, something happens that transforms the film from a solitary thinkpiece to an unnerving exploration of humanity, human progress and morality. For the purposes of fully developing this review, how I would love to tell you what it is, dear Reader reader, but, there ain’t no way I’m takin’ this treat from you.

Jones, who had previously best been known as the product of David Bowie’s procreation, has announced himself as a major force on the playground of sci-fi; he may be the new kid, but he’ll be a bully before it’s all said and done. Without stooping to cliché, Jones and Parker subtly unravel a nuanced and complicated tale that manages to touch on human rights, simultaneously speaking of our capacity for pure love and calculated hatred. Moreover, the film’s effects, which were practical model shots (the kind used in Star Wars before George Lucas married his computer processor), are realistic and understated enough to turn Michael Bay’s head into one of his beloved explosions.

Still, it would have all been for naught if it wasn’t for Rockwell, who once more displays his diverse ability to play extra-skeevy and irresistibly charismatic. As can be inferred from the lack of other actors mentioned above, Rockwell doesn’t just do the heavy lifting, he does all of the lifting. More than up to the challenge, Rockwell oxygenates the uniquely cinematic space experience with the breath of an off-Broadyway one-man show. If Moon finds the audience it deserves, the ubiquitous actor will find himself on a golden short list.

For the film to succeed, sweet Reader reader, it’s going to need people like you to take a leap of faith, ignoring message boards, poo-pooing cavalier reviewers who care not for protecting audiences from spoilers and sticking fingers in ears when discussions crop up. If you can, if you allow yourself to be surprised and permit yourself to be intrigued by the unknown, this little gem of a film will be a sweet surprise. Jones may remain “David Bowie’s son” for now, but a few more of these, and Bowie may find himself called “Duncan Jones’s father.”

Grade - A