Ben-Hur (2016) – Hollywood, Why Does This Version Exist?

The classic Hollywood epic, Ben-Hur, was remade (again) and released this weekend. Starring Jack Huston and produced with a $100 million budget, this latest version was predicted to score a box office return of at least $12 million for its opening weekend. Up to the minute, actual returns are closer to $4 million.

Quick History Lesson

The original tale, titled Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ was written by Lew Wallace and published way back in 1880 (that’s CE, if you’re into history like me). One film version was made in 1925 (CE, again) and was itself a huge undertaking at the time. The more well-known version starring Charlton Heston was released in 1959 (I think you know which suffix to add here by now).

The story is a work of fiction but with a biblical setting as the backdrop. Christian elements dominate the story, with Ben-Hur’s life closely following that of Jesus. Underneath it all, themes like betrayal, revenge, and love drive the plot.

The Bad News

MGM was the studio in charge of the 1959 version and is responsible for 80% of this new version. Given their success with the 1959 version (considered by many to be one of the greatest movies ever made) and the public’s love for a good revenge story, you’d think all MGM had to do was tweak the original script a bit, update the special effects, find some decent actors, and then start cashing checks.

Keep it simple, stick with what works, right? Of course not.

Somehow, MGM has managed to take the original movie’s success and turn it around to create a career killer for everyone involved in this new version (except Morgan Freeman, because he’s God himself).

Despite having a great story with classic themes AND despite the recent success of many Christian based movies, the public still has not responded well.

MGM and Paramount have spent millions of marketing and advertising dollars pitching this the Christian community, who viewed the previews and clips on social media in large numbers. However, those viewers decided not to head to the box office.

As for the quality of the movie itself, the producers and film runners decided to focus more on the Jesus Christ aspect of the story than the 1959 version did. They chose to end it on a somewhat brighter note than the 1959 version, focusing more on forgiveness than vengeance.

Also, with this latest version running almost 90 minutes shorter, character development and aspects of the plot had to be sacrificed.

The Verdict

The only definitive thing about Ben-Hur (2016) is this: it exists.

MGM and Paramount can try to spin it as a Christian movie. They can say it’s an update for a modern audience. They can TRY to say that it can’t be compared to the 1959 version. But, the fact of the matter is this, it was made. No one knows why. No one cares. This is clearly being shown at the box office.

If you’ve seen this version or plan on seeing it, let me know.

Incidentally, this is the cleaned-up review of what I actually think about this movie. Leave a comment if you’re interested in a “no-holds-barred” discussion on Ben-Hur (2016), the current state of Hollywood, and the movie biz itself.

Is Joss Whedon To Direct The Musical Crossover Of The Flash and Supergirl?

Rumor has it that non other than Joss Whedon might direct the musical crossover between The Flash and Supergirl later this TV season.

I for one would be thrilled if Joss Whedon were to direct these episodes. He has some experience from previous projects like Buffy the Vampire Slayer “Once more with feeling” and Dr Horrible’s Sing Along Blog.

In the last few days it has been said that there will be a dance sequence in the musical crossover. With both the leads of the show being skilled in both dancing and singing I think we will see some crazy stuff. And if Joss Whedon were to direct these episodes, nothing is confirmed yet by the network, it is save to say we are in for a treat (as you might agree after seeing the YouTube clip). And people are all ready speculating who the villain might be and who will be cast. One of the names that has come up is Neil Patrick Harris. As always time will tell so stay tuned for more information is surely to come.

I may be a little biased I am aware a that. But Joss Whedon is a great director and a man with a vision. And I think he would take this crossover to something epic. So I am looking forward to the musical crossover with a bit of caution and excitement. Because either it will be epic or a fail in my opinion. There is no in between. So we have to wait and see what it will be.

‘Tom Cruise’ Brings Production For ‘MI:6’ To A Halt

Production for the forthcoming Mission Impossible 6 has halted due to a pay dispute regarding franchise mainstay Tom Cruise.

Sources close to Deadline have reported that a small team of Visual Effects Technicians, currently on location in London, have been told to down tools for pre-production until the dispute has been resolved.

It is thought that Cruise looks to renegotiate his rate to match his current deal with Universal where he fronts the studios Mummy reboot. But this directly conflicts with Paramount’s cost-cutting initiative wherein JJ Abrams Production company Bad Robot and collaborators Skydance have been asked to lower their own rates.

Although this is bad news for MI fans it is unlikely that the franchise sixth sequel will be cancelled considering Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation was a huge hit, giving Paramount its second biggest Box Office opening for the spy franchise behind MI:2.

Rogue Nation Director Christopher McQuarrie is currently writing the script with production still scheduled for January next year, so any delay that these pay disputes may cause will be minor at best.

Also returning alongside McQuarrie and Cruises’ Ethan Hunt will be Rebecca Ferguson, whose suspicious Ilsa Faust proved a hit with cinema goers and critics alike.

For all your Movie News & Reviews, stick with @mitchrated only on Skatronixxx

Holy Nostalgia, Batman! Adam West And Burt Ward Return In An Animated Adventure!

If you grew up on the campy 1960’s Batman show starring Adam West and Burt Ward like I did, you’re going to love this! The caped crusader and his faithful ward are returning to their roots in a new animated feature film Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, featuring the voices of Adam West, Burt Ward and Julie Newmar; that’s Catwoman if you didn’t know.

In the trailer, Batman and Robin are on their way to having their collective goose cooked when the news that a new animated feature (starring them) is on the way sparks a brilliant escape plan the likes of which only Batman would conceive. The trailer also teases the film’s villains, including the Joker, Riddler, Penguin and Catwoman.

Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders will be released on Oct. 11 and Blu-Ray on Nov. 1. Would you grab this up just satisfy your inner child? (I know I am!) Sound off in the comments below!

Scream Sn2 Ep12 Season Finale – ‘When A Stranger Calls’

WARNING **SPOILERS AHEAD**

Well I was dead wrong, pardon the pun, on who was behind the killings in Lakewood this season. Although the connection to the first season seemed a little thin, it did make it a more personal betrayal than even the first season reveal of Piper being the half-sister of Emma and the killer. So let’s do the reveal first and then go over the details of how we got here.

And the killer this season is… excuse me a moment, these envelopes are a little tricky to open sometimes. Ok, the killer is, drum roll please. Kieran Wilcox. How you may ask? Simple answer is daddy issues. Kieran and Piper came together over their mutual parental abandonment. Piper was abandoned by Maggie and Kieran was abandoned by his dad, the departed Sheriff Wilcox. And Kieran even admits that these issues could be solved with some good ole therapy but he says that Piper showed him that killing is way more fun than therapy. So the master plan for last season was to destroy the people that abandoned them. Piper and Kieran were going to ruin the lives of Maggie, Emma and Sheriff Wilcox and then kill them. But the fly in the ointment turned out to be Audrey. Because of her involvement Piper ended up dying which in turn led Kieran to seek revenge for Piper because he was in love with her.

So let’s dissect this reveal and what it means for the rest of the characters. First this clears Audrey as the legitimate accomplice of Piper. She wasn’t the actual accomplice because she didn’t contribute in the murders last season she was only the middle woman that brought Piper and Kieran to Lakewood. Kieran was framing her as a murderous accomplice from last season as punishment for killing Piper.

Emma gets one more hit from Piper from beyond the grave. In this sense Piper’s long game was really good. Her plan to destroy Emma’s life was very thorough. She not only broke Emma’s mind leaving her with a serious case of PTSD but she also broke her heart. Emma lost Will and she fell in love with Kieran who ended up being a psychotic killer who was partnered up with her murderous half-sister. So Piper’s plan partially worked because even though she never got to kill Emma she did leave her life in tatters again. Score one for Piper from beyond the grave.

The rest of the Lakewood gang came out with the same wounds as last season so it should be a walk in the park for them at this point. Noah lost his girlfriend again but he continues his crusade for justice. Brooke got stabbed again but pulled through like last season but this time around I believe she suffered the most, not only did she lose Jake but she lost her dad as well and like Brooke herself says even though he wasn’t father of the year at least he was around. But she does get her own pseudo happy ending. She’s last seen having dinner with Stavo and Sheriff Acosta. It’s not clear though if that means Sheriff Acosta has taken her in or she’s just welcome to stay there whenever she wants.

Which brings us to the new characters of the series, Stavo and Eli, my main suspects that weren’t. The ending of their story arcs seems like a wasted opportunity unless they’re going to be used for the next season, which so far there has been no word yet on whether the series has been renewed for a third season. We’ll start with Stavo. His relationship with Brooke became serious real fast in these final episodes. In the middle of the episode a final showdown is setup by Emma and Audrey at the old theatre where Audrey works at. The gang rallies around them and they arm themselves to confront the killer. Noah and Brooke are in charge of covering the entrance. While on guard Stavo shows up claiming he got a text from Brooke to meet at the theatre. At this point I thought Stavo was going to get a knife in the gut but nothing happens. Stavo just storms off after Brooke doesn’t let him because she suspects him for a hot minute that he could be involved because how else would he know she was at the theatre. Once he leaves Noah and Brooke hear a commotion from inside one of the theatre rooms and when they go to investigate they find a video playing that shows the death of their friends from last season and this season. The killer somehow got in even though the gang was covering all the exits and here is where Brooke gets attacked. We see Stavo again at the hospital looking very distraught because of Brooke. Noah tries to reassure him that she’s a fighter and she was stabbed and locked in a freezer last time and she survived. When Sheriff Acosta arrives they share a touching moment where Acosta comforts Stavo. It turns the creepy artist does have feelings. His story arc ends with the aforementioned dinner with Brooke and his dad. When they sit down to eat we get a glimpse at his iPad one last time and instead of a gory death portrait its a nice drawing of the surviving Lakewood gang on the pier at the lake with the sun shining. So it seems all his creepiness was just for the sake of being creepy and to double as a red herring it seems. Again, seems like wasted potential for his character unless he’s going to be used as a Kieran double agent for next season, which I’ll address in full in my season review of Scream coming soon.

Now on to Eli. Poor Eli. The short of it with Eli is that he dies during the reveal of the killer. The real final showdown happens at the Sacred Hearts orphanage, the genesis of Piper. The way Emma figures out Kieran is the killer is by a typical horror movie slip up. The killer is impeccable throughout the story, having mapped out every step and having back up plans and back up plans for his back up plans, only to have one key piece of information slip out just when he’s on the cusp of ultimate victory. When Emma is in the orphanage she has one final killer call and during this conversation the killer tells her that she’ll never feel safe again. When Kieran shows up out of nowhere he says that Noah pinged the cellphone Emma has and thats how he knew her location. Eli shows up out nowhere too but he’s stabbed and holding the Brandon James knife. Eli starts telling Emma that the reason he had a restraining order in Florida was because Kieran had framed him to look like he was obsessed with the girl when in fact it was Kieran who was after her. Kieran starts saying that Eli is the one behind everything and that he twists things around. Emma ends up shooting Eli and he goes down. Kieran then gets ahold of the gun and in his attempt to stay in the clear mentions that he’s going to make sure that Emma feels safe again. This is what triggers Emma to put two and two together. Why would Kieran say that specific expression unless he was the killer. That’s when Kieran turns from concerned boyfriend to serial killer mode and I have to say his turn was pretty good. While Kieran is doing his villain monologue Eli comes to and attempts to rush him but Kieran pretty much empties the gun into Eli’s chest. Farewell Eli, it was nice knowing you. But again, why the buildup of his character and emphasizing his creepiness just so that he dies at the final stage without any indication that he was involved in the killings.

Which brings us to the closing of the episode and the wrap up of the season. The surviving members get their relative happy ending. Brooke is with Stavo and Sheriff Acosta. Noah is continuing his The Morgue podcast. Audrey and Emma are now moving on from Piper and Kieran is in jail. Ms. Lang makes a brief reappearance and is seen starting to write a book about Piper and Emma. The threads that are left hanging to make us come back for more are Maggie going back to the Brandon James tree and finding her note pinned to the tree with a knife. And the last scene is Kieran being called to the phone to speak to his lawyer. When he picks up the receiver the trademark killer voice comes over the line and tells Kieran, “Who told you you could wear my mask.” Dun dun dun. That last scene did make me excited for what they will do for the next season.

The season finale finally gave us answers and left doors open for the story to continue next season. The final scene is what salvaged this season but didn’t quite validate it. The last episode went through stereotypical horror movie tropes but not all seemed like the send ups that the series was founded on in the first season. Seems like the writers just gave in and instead of poking fun at the horror movie genre they fully embraced it and went head first into the same cliches we’ve seen before. The final scene was a good payoff for sticking with the series to the end and makes the possibilities intriguing for next season if they don’t waste it like they did with some characters in this season.

[BREAKING NEWS] American Horror Story Releases New Teasers

American Horror Story have ramped and have released teasers #15, #16,#17 and #18 today (Aug. 20). Take a look below at the latest teasers released…… Shit’s starting to get real people!!

Watch at your own risk…. If you dare! 

AHS6

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American Horror Story will air on 14th September 2016 

[CAST NEWS] Charisma Carpenter Former Buffy Star Joins Lucifer Season 2

Charisma Carpenter

EW reports that former Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Angel star Charisma Carpenter has a guest star role in season 2 of Lucifer. Carpenter is set to appear in episode 5 “The Weaponizer” as Jamie Lee Adrienne, an aging, but still beautiful former Playboy Playmate. Jamie is trapped in a seemingly loveless marriage to a former action movie star, her outward appearance suggests genuine feelings of misery, but that may only be a front.

Did you know that Carpenter herself was former Playboy Playmate, perhaps the role was written specifically for her?

Lucifer Season 2 will air on  Monday 19th September 2016

Tom Ellis & Charisma Carpenter

Daredevil SN1 EP13 – ‘Daredevil’

No, that title is not a typo or a redundancy. This is the episode where Matt Murdock sheds himself of the cheap black costume and the cheap black costume and officially becomes the man in the red costume, Daredevil. With plans do a full overview of season 1, I plan on talking about this in greater detail in there, but I will say the reveal is great. We see a few scenes of Matt in action as the Devil of Hell’s Kitchen for the last time. Seeing these really hammers home that this is more than just a change of threads for the hero.

As the season finale, the best way to describe this episode is the final chapter. Everything comes to a head as Foggy & Murdock, Karen and the police finally crack down on Fisk and corner him. Daredevil meets Fisk and the two finally have a fair one-on-one battle. Even before the encounter, Fisk shows he’s still got his viscous side, murdering Owlsley after finding out he was in on the plot to poison Vanessa. Plus he has a great dramatic moment when he escapes the police in a great monologue that once again shows how terrifyingly he can change on a dime.

The fight between Daredevil and Fisk is spectacular – the first one-on-one encounter between these two had Kingpin wailing on Daredevil after he had a tough battle with someone else. This time, they’re on equal footing, and Fisk is STILL a tough customer for Daredevil. This episode may sound like all action, but there are serious moments, and they still work. There are two scenes with minimal dialogue – the opening scene is Urich’s funeral where the characters’ facial expressions and the somber music. Midway through the episode features an excellent montage where the cops on Fisk’s payroll are busted, set to opera music. Even some of the smaller scenes feel important. We see Foggy and Nelson restore their friendship to align against the bigger enemy. These scenes help build tension as we know action can go down at a moments notice.

The season ends on a bittersweet note. The heroes are triumphant, but must lament their fallen comrades. The final note sees Fisk behind bars but not fully stopped – especially since we’ve already seen what kind of power this man has – and Daredevil monitoring over the city. This is just about what anyone would want from a season finale – Perfectly wrapping up the story of the season while getting the viewer pumped for the next season.

Tune in next time when I give a summary of the season overall.

The Expanse SN1 EP5- ‘Back To The Butcher’

The action is again slowed down for Episode 5 but the tension and mystery grow exponentially. “Back to the Butcher” focuses on the interpersonal relationships between some of the main characters. It also delves into a bit of history and background in The Expanse universe.

Ceres Station

Though he’s pissed off, Detective Miller is visiting his wounded partner in the hospital. He’s mad that Havelock went into a dangerous area of Ceres Station without him. To top it all off, Gia, the prostitute from EP. 1 is at the hospital, too.

Havelock attempts to explain that Gia is teaching him the language, but Miller doesn’t care. After a huge argument, Miller storms out of the hospital room.

Miller takes the rapid transit from the hospital. While in close quarters with other Belters, he becomes very aware of the tension on Ceres Station. The Belters are still angered by the destruction of the Cant. 

Meanwhile, at the Star Helix Security station, the Captain is showing footage of the attack on Havelock and inciting the security team to go after Havelock’s attackers. Octavia notices Miller isn’t there, so heads to his apartment. When she arrives, she’s disappointed to find Miller has become even more obsessed with the Julie Mao case.  She doesn’t know about Miller’s and Havelock’s argument earlier that day.

Miller details what he’s found so far. He thinks there’s a connection between Julie Mao and all of the ships that have been attacked, he just can’t put his finger on the connection. He’s stumbled across the name of a ship called the Anubis, but can’t find anything else out about it.

Octavia feels Miller is getting too deep into the investigation and advises him to take what he’s found so far to his superiors.

Miller doesn’t want to take her advice. After Octavia leaves, he continues researching. He revisits footage of the fight Mao had in the shipyard where the Scopuli was docked. He figures she must have known the man she was fighting. Meanwhile, Dawes finds Miller and admits he does, in fact, know Mao. He also admits that she was important to the OPA and that the OPA is in control of more of Ceres than Miller originally suspected.

Dawes wants information on the Julie Mao investigation. In return, he offers up Havelock’s attacker. Dawes is pretending to keep him in a safe-house.

Still needing more clues, Miller finds the man Julie Mao beat up in the video. It turns out he, too is affiliated with the OPA. He’s also Julie Mao’s ex-lover. He corroborates that Mao was involved with Dawes and the OPA and is shocked when Miller explains her disappearance. In the end, he tells Miller the name of the bar where he can find the man who’s ID was really embedded in the corpse.

At the bar, Miller utters the password given to him and he’s taken to a secret room. Random pieces of tech are scattered throughout. Miller searches but doesn’t find much in the clutter. Then, he notices the parts to a mechanical hamster similar to the one he saw at Julie Mao’s apartment.

Ceres Station: Back at Mao’s apt. Miller finds the hamster and takes it apart. He finds the data chip he’s been looking for and hides it in a secret compartment in his hat. As he leaves the apt, he’s kidnapped.

He heads back and inspects the hamster. Inside it, he finds a data drive. Luckily, he hides the drive in his hat because as he’s leaving the apartment a sack is thrown over his head and he’s kidnapped.

MCRN TACHI

The Tachi is the name of the ship that Holden, Naomi, Alex, Amos, and the now deceased Lopez escaped the Donnager on. They’re floating somewhere between Jupiter and The Belt trying to figure out what to do next. Currently, no one knows they survived the attack. As they begin to discuss what to do next, they’re alerted to an incoming message.

The message is from Fred Johnson. Somehow, he knows they’re alive and need a place to go. He’s suspicious but offers to help. Holden and crew are suspicious of Johnson, too. They know his past and that he worked with the OPA.

Holden and Alex decide they want to take up Johnson on his offer. Naomi doesn’t trust Johnson. Of course, Amos sides with Naomi. With no one in agreement, they decide to just wait where they are.

As they wait, they all explore the Tachi. They also receive news of the protests and riots on Ceres Station. They’re surprised to find that one reason for the rioting was anger over the destruction of the Cant, and the Holden has become a hero of the movement. Amos also talks Naomi into agreeing to accept Johnson’s offer to head to Tycho Station.

Johnson sends them instructions on how to get to Tycho without being detected. As a part of the process, they have to rename the Tachi. They choose the name, Rocinante (Spanish for “workhorse”). No doubt this will have significance later.

The four finally have a feeling of hops. It seems their ordeal may be over.

Anderson Station

Throughout the episode, we’ve been given small flashbacks to events that took place on Anderson Station, an ore refinery located in the belt.

Anderson Station was the site of a peaceful protest where the workers refused to continue working until they were given better conditions to work under. They were kept in low gravity and low oxygen levels constantly and this was causing disease among their children.

Apparently, there were some accidental casualties on the station during the protest, but the UN (Earth’s Government) refused to accept them as accidental. The UN labels the protesters as terrorists and proceeds end the protest violently.

We find out that it was Fred Johnson who was in charge of ending the protest. At the time, he was a Colonel in the UN Marine Corps. History remembers him as “The Butcher of Anderson Station.”

Stay tuned for S1: Ep. 6 coming soon.

New Scream Queens Promo Teases ‘Hannibal Hester’

“Season Two of SCREAM QUEENS graduates from the college campus and into an all-new location, as a terrifyingly funny murder mystery will begin once again. This time, the show will be set in a hospital, where some of the most fascinating and bizarre medical cases are under observation.”

Jamie Lee Curtis and Lea Michelle in Scream Queens Season 2 Teaser Trailer.

 

Scream Queens Season 2 is set to be gorier and even more ridiculous than last season, and the tease of ‘Hannibal Hester’ suggests they intend to up the scare factor too. The image above shows Hester (Lea Michelle) wearing the mask from Silence of the Lambs. Check out the new teaser trailer below:

 

The horror-comedy returns with Season 2 on Tuesday September 20^th on Fox(US). Returning cast include Emma Roberts, Jamie Lee Curtis, Lea Michelle, Abigail Breslin, Keke Palmer, Billie Lourd, Niecy Nash and Glenn Powell, alongside newbies John Stamos, Taylor Lautner and James Earl, and recently announced guest stars Colton Haynes (Arrow, Teen Wolf) and Celcily Strong (SNL). It’s sure to be a bloody good season! Literally! 😉

Feel free to share your thoughts on the upcoming season. What are you most excited to see? Comment and let us know.