Good Wednesday Morning!
good
Good morning earth people!
It's cold and raining in New York City today; the stock market's in the red, as is my portfolio.
Bleh...
But as Gloria Gaynor once sang, "I will survive!" Although I'm neither afraid nor petrified... just bleh!
She also did sing, "Anybody want to party?" That's one sure way to lift one's spirits during days like this.
Maybe this'll cheer you up:
The image above shows the 8 actors recently enlisted to star in Sylvester Stallone's next epic titled, The Expendables (although the spelling on the image is incorrect - I didn't create it).
Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Mickey Rourke (his next after his award-winning performance in The Wrestler), Dolph Freaking Lundgren (where the hell has he been? Recall he fought Stallone in Rocky IV, as the imposing Russian boxer Ivan Drago - ha-ha; now they meet again, except this time, they're both playing for the same team), former UFC heavy-weight champion Randy Couture, my man Forest Whitaker, whose been in a few films lately, but none that's packed much of a whallop (I hear he's a bad-ass in this film), and last but not least, Sir Ben Kingsley who's usually reliable, regardless of the role!
Interesting, eclectic cast, don't you think? A mixture of what we could term genuine actors in Rourke, Whitaker and Kingsley, and real life martial artists in Jet Li, Randy Couture and Dolph Lundgren, a 3rd Degree Black Belt. Although Rourke was a professional boxer 20 or so years ago, and still hangs around the gym with other fighters. Also both Stallone and Statham certainly aren't slouches when it comes to throwing punches and kicks.
Needless to say, this is likely going to be one rump of a movie!
The film is about an “expendable” team (the men above), hired to do jobs that no one else can or will. The team is sent to infiltrate a South American country to overthrow its ruthless dictator and liberate the country.
Hmmm... just once, I'd like to see a film about a team sent INTO the US of A to overthrow its ruthless dictator and liberate the country :o)
Although, I wonder what South American country will be in focus, or whether the country's name simply won't be spoken. I'm no South American scholar, but I'm certainly not aware of any South American countries with "ruthless dictators" that need American jackals to intercept and liberate them.
The most likely would be Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, given how vocal the man has been, and continues to be about American imperialism - especially over the last 8 years, under Bush's reign; but I wouldn't consider him a "ruthless dictator," nor say that the people in Venezuela need to be liberated... far from it actually.
So, Stallone and company need to tread carefully about the message they might be sending with The Expendables. I know it's "only a movie," as some might be quick to state, but American movies have long vilified groups of people, notably Arabs, which I think we can all agree has contributed (whether intentionally or not) to the ignorance and xenophobia that plagues much of our society. The moving image is probably the most powerful educational tool there is!
So, if one is going to make a film about an American-lead force invading another country to "liberate its people from their ruthless dictator," something that some Americans would like to believe is their raison d'etre, then the story had better have some real factual information to support it. Now isn't the time to help engender even more fear and ignorance... even if it's "only a movie."
Or, maybe there's a plot twist within the film's second act... maybe the "expendable" team goes south, enters whatever make-believe country they intend to liberate, only to learn that the information given to them about this "ruthless dictator" and his/her people, is all false and intentionally fabricated, and, in the process, they uncover some American government conspiracy to assassinate this make-believe South American country's supposed "ruthless dictator," who they learn is actually a Marxist in the mold of a few real-life South American leaders, both historically and currently, intent on keeping his country free of American-like materialism, consumerism, and greed - and the "expendable" team sides with the South Americans in a battle against the North American conspirators, which unfolds in the film's 3rd act!
Now that would be true-to-life! After all, how many South American leftist leaders from yesteryear were assassinated by American-backed insurgencies?
Principal photography for The Expendables is set to begin in Brazil and Louisiana in March, aiming for a summer 2010 release.
Good morning earth people!
It's cold and raining in New York City today; the stock market's in the red, as is my portfolio.
Bleh...
But as Gloria Gaynor once sang, "I will survive!" Although I'm neither afraid nor petrified... just bleh!
She also did sing, "Anybody want to party?" That's one sure way to lift one's spirits during days like this.
Maybe this'll cheer you up:
The image above shows the 8 actors recently enlisted to star in Sylvester Stallone's next epic titled, The Expendables (although the spelling on the image is incorrect - I didn't create it).
Sylvester Stallone, Jet Li, Jason Statham, Mickey Rourke (his next after his award-winning performance in The Wrestler), Dolph Freaking Lundgren (where the hell has he been? Recall he fought Stallone in Rocky IV, as the imposing Russian boxer Ivan Drago - ha-ha; now they meet again, except this time, they're both playing for the same team), former UFC heavy-weight champion Randy Couture, my man Forest Whitaker, whose been in a few films lately, but none that's packed much of a whallop (I hear he's a bad-ass in this film), and last but not least, Sir Ben Kingsley who's usually reliable, regardless of the role!
Interesting, eclectic cast, don't you think? A mixture of what we could term genuine actors in Rourke, Whitaker and Kingsley, and real life martial artists in Jet Li, Randy Couture and Dolph Lundgren, a 3rd Degree Black Belt. Although Rourke was a professional boxer 20 or so years ago, and still hangs around the gym with other fighters. Also both Stallone and Statham certainly aren't slouches when it comes to throwing punches and kicks.
Needless to say, this is likely going to be one rump of a movie!
The film is about an “expendable” team (the men above), hired to do jobs that no one else can or will. The team is sent to infiltrate a South American country to overthrow its ruthless dictator and liberate the country.
Hmmm... just once, I'd like to see a film about a team sent INTO the US of A to overthrow its ruthless dictator and liberate the country :o)
Although, I wonder what South American country will be in focus, or whether the country's name simply won't be spoken. I'm no South American scholar, but I'm certainly not aware of any South American countries with "ruthless dictators" that need American jackals to intercept and liberate them.
The most likely would be Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, given how vocal the man has been, and continues to be about American imperialism - especially over the last 8 years, under Bush's reign; but I wouldn't consider him a "ruthless dictator," nor say that the people in Venezuela need to be liberated... far from it actually.
So, Stallone and company need to tread carefully about the message they might be sending with The Expendables. I know it's "only a movie," as some might be quick to state, but American movies have long vilified groups of people, notably Arabs, which I think we can all agree has contributed (whether intentionally or not) to the ignorance and xenophobia that plagues much of our society. The moving image is probably the most powerful educational tool there is!
So, if one is going to make a film about an American-lead force invading another country to "liberate its people from their ruthless dictator," something that some Americans would like to believe is their raison d'etre, then the story had better have some real factual information to support it. Now isn't the time to help engender even more fear and ignorance... even if it's "only a movie."
Or, maybe there's a plot twist within the film's second act... maybe the "expendable" team goes south, enters whatever make-believe country they intend to liberate, only to learn that the information given to them about this "ruthless dictator" and his/her people, is all false and intentionally fabricated, and, in the process, they uncover some American government conspiracy to assassinate this make-believe South American country's supposed "ruthless dictator," who they learn is actually a Marxist in the mold of a few real-life South American leaders, both historically and currently, intent on keeping his country free of American-like materialism, consumerism, and greed - and the "expendable" team sides with the South Americans in a battle against the North American conspirators, which unfolds in the film's 3rd act!
Now that would be true-to-life! After all, how many South American leftist leaders from yesteryear were assassinated by American-backed insurgencies?
Principal photography for The Expendables is set to begin in Brazil and Louisiana in March, aiming for a summer 2010 release.
Get a remake of the Tempestt Bledsoe film.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0244505/
I think the politics of the film will swing toward Stallone politics. It sounds cool. Maybe Tarnintino will have a run for his money in the manly ww2 film department.
Tambini, you don't need to be an American scholar to know that ANY country (it's name and location is usually irrelevant) America decides has "ruthless dictators" is in need of American jackals to intercept and liberate them it's mineral resources... Um, I mean it's people.
Of course, if these supposed ruthless (or even real) dictators play ball the American way...
But hey, I'll lighten up - this is only a film after all and, with the likes of Ben Kingsley in it, it might just be worth a look.