Monday, July 30, 2007

Comic-Con San Diego 2007

So I have returned from San Diego as penniless or more than when I arrived. At last estimate I had heard that there were over 100, 000 screaming fans on Saturday and Sunday and quite possibly even Thursday and Friday. The trip this year was a bit shorter for me because of well—life. I was far busier this year than last so I was not able to take an extra day to settle in at the Con on Wed and enjoy preview night. I instead had to push the limit and arrive late Thursday afternoon just in time to make the Lost Season 4 panel. Unfortunately I missed the Paramount panel which covered many things like Iron Man, Beowulf, The Spiderwick Chronicles, Stardust, Hot Rod, Star Trek and Indiana Jones, but I at least got to see the re-cap on Saturday for Iron Man and let me tell you that trailer was sick.

So let’s start with Thursday where I ran from my cab threw my stuff in the room and ran up to the Con. I was able to get a pretty good seat but it was definitely packed in there. They had the same obnoxious woman on the loudspeaker from last year attempting to be funny, she still wasn’t. After a little while and a few phone calls the show started and Damon Lindeloff and Carleton Cuse stepped onto the stage. If you don’t know who these guys are they are the head writers/producers of the best show on TV period. They started off letting everyone know they had a new system for revealing top secret info about the show. Last year they both felt that they had spilled too much so this year they brought little hand bells to stop each other when they felt they were revealing spoilers. So the crowd started asking questions and we learned that Dharma will be explored further in this season. There will also be more flash forwards and less and less flash-backs. We learned that the tragic Libby, who was killed at the end of season 2, will finally have her story arc explained. They hinted that she may or may not have worked for Dharma sometime in her past. They also showed a clip from the upcoming Lost video game. So up to this point the questions were boring/mild to mildly interesting, until someone asked about a controversial character on the show that has not been seen last season, Michael. As soon as the question was asked a bell from off stage starts to ring and the actor who plays Michael, Harold Perrineau stepped onto the stage to thunderous applause. So we now learn that Michael will be back on the show this coming season and that’s pretty much all they would reveal. Nothing about his son Walt or exactly when he was coming back, but it was good to know anyway. Lindloff and Cuse expressed how excited they were that Michael was coming back and that ABC, because they listened to us the fans, have allowed the creators of Lost to officially plot out the end of the show in just three years. It will be 16 episodes per year. It’s great, so now the pressure is off somewhat allowing these very talented guys to focus on each episode as they build toward the finale. The bad news is that the show doesn’t start again until February of 2008. So the panel ends with a snippet of another Dharma training video with the same Doctor they use in all of the videos. The new station is called the Orchid and apparently it is not for Botanical research—but it does look like they are doing research on bunnies when something weird happens—So check it out and see for yourself. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iaWJt8ur7A&mode=related&search=

Unfortunately because I got to the Con so late I missed most of the Exhibit hall but I did get to walk around once before they closed for the night. I swear it’s starting to look more and more like Disney World with these flashy exhibits. http://video.yahoo.com/video/play?vid=1117796813&fr=yfp-t-501

On Friday some of my comic books guys and I decided to blow off the busy and overly crowded Con, rent a car and drive down to LA to check out the Paramount lot. Since I got my job with the mountain I’ve been trying to figure how I was going to cash in on my V.I.P status on the lot. Apparently I can wander around the lot aimlessly as long as I have my Paramount I.D. So I thought what the hell let’s go and check it out. I got to see the Vantage offices, very nice I might add, and we took in the sights. We got to see the Nip/Tuck sets, Everybody Hates Chris and the new series on USA called Dirty Sexy starring that guy from Six Feet Under. It was fun being Mr. All-Access for a day and we got to see some cool things. Although we did realize we missed quite a few cool things at the Con as well. Like the Warner Brothers Panel which discussed and had guests from upcoming movies like The Invasion, Get Smart and most importantly The Watchman directed by Zack “300” Snyder. A panel on uber-producer Joel Silver, not to mention they had a Q&A panel for the upcoming season of 24. Guests were Jon Cassar, Evan Katz, Manny Coto and David Fury. They also had panels for Neil Gaiman and for New Line Cinemas upcoming film Shoot’Em Up. Yeah we missed quite a bit.

Saturday was extremely nuts. I started off in the morning hitting the Con at 10 and I attempted to find Thomas Jane and RAW entertainment. The set-up for the exhibition hall was completely ludicrous. I wanted to give a script idea to the actor Thomas Jane and his film/comic book company but the numbers were skewed. My friend Zacholl and I criss-crossed from one side of the Con to the other for at least an hour before we were able to locate the Brigadoon like table at the front of the Con. To give you some context on how large the Exhibition hall was, the isle ways were numbered from 100 to 5600. It was like two football fields long. Anyway so, we get there and of course Mr. Jane isn’t there and the guy who looked kind of like Stone Cold Steve Austin wouldn’t accept it. He said I had to give it to Jane personally. So I said, okay, we’ll be back. The problem was that an hour later I would be sitting in Hall H waiting for the Marvel panel to begin, and I would be there all damn day cause I wanted to see the Disney panel as well. Luckily I snuck out in between and checked back and caught him there. He was really cool as I passed my Log-line and sketches over to him. He was also selling his new comic book called Bad Planet. I bought the first two issues and I have to say that they are very well done. He has some great talent involved with him, horror writer Steve Niles and Punisher cover artist Tim Bradstreet. So if you end up at your local comic store check out this new series. Jane said that the third issue will be out in September.

I made it back into Hall H right before the Disney panel, whew! They showed some digital stuff from the upcoming Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian, which looked interesting. They were in the middle of filming so there is no way of knowing how this was going to turn out. They brought out the Weta guys and introduced the director Adam Adamson and Ben Barnes (Prince Caspian) via satellite. There was a bit of a delay which made for some humorous responses, but it was an interesting panel. As anyone knows the Weta guys are nuts about making accurate hand crafted swords and armor and showed off both before the panel was over. It looked like this sequel will have more action and hopefully will be better than the first. I liked the Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe but I expected better, so hopefully we will get that with Caspian. The next segment was one of the coolest. They brought out the Pixar guys to talk about their upcoming film Wall-E. It’s about an industrial robot that was left on an abandoned earth for so long that he was able to evolve into a sentient creature. They brought out the director Andrew Stanton and the sound guy for all of the Star Wars movies, Ben Burtt. He demonstrated all of the different quirks about Wall-E with sound effects rather than dialogue. The effects were intriguing and very cool.

Now at this point we had been in the room for at least three hours and we still had another panel to go through. The Marvel panel started with the director Louis Leterrier, Ed Norton, Liv Tyler and Avi Arad to talk about the upcoming Hulk movie. Unfortunately because they haven’t officially started shooting yet they had nothing to show at all, so it kind of sucked. I thought that Ed Norton had some great insights on what he was going to bring to the character of Bruce Banner/Hulk, but he didn’t seem very comfortable up there and it started to show. I’m really looking forward to the film but I just wish they would have brought some visuals to present to really get a sense for what they are going to do different from the last Hulk film. They mentioned that they were taking inspiration from the Bill Bixby Hulk TV show and from various Hulk comics. He has also taken over writing the script from Zak Penn which could be a good thing. I remember when he took creative control over the out of control production American History X and made it better. He said he will also be doubling as the Hulk in the same way that Andy Serkis performed as Gollum in the Lord of the Rings. Now we move onto the crème de la crème Iron Man. They had director Jon Favreau, actors Robert Downey Jr., Terrence Howard and Gwyneth Paltrow. Robert Downey was funny and entertaining and he looked like he was enjoying eating up all of the attention. They showed a kick ass trailer which unfortunately they pulled down from the internets. They mentioned that they wanted to show this spoiled rich guy, Tony Stark, who doesn’t give a shit about anybody until he is kidnapped by undesirables and forced to do bad things. Thus a hero is born, they all said that to tell a true Iron Man story is to have some great villains but the greatest villain of all is Tony himself. They seem to get the comics pretty well and again that trailer says it all.

Sunday was a breeze through the exhibit hall one more time before I get on the plane kind of day. I was probably in the exhibit hall about two maybe three hours over the entire weekend. This may be my last Con for a while but I did get to meet a few celebs and we did a little business for the book. I passed a copy of Cycle’s End to a couple of web comic sites that you can actually go to if you check the Comic’s links on the side of this blog, Komicwerks and Unshelved. If you get a chance keep checking back with Komicwerks you may see some familiar pirates floating around on their site in the next few months, so please take a look at both sites and enjoy.

Sunday, July 22, 2007

Live Free or Die Hard

So I saw another sequel last night this time-- Die Hard. This is the fourth in the series and I personally think it should be the last. Now it wasn't a bad movie, it had its points and it was very fun. It was great seeing Bruce Willis push himself to be the hero we all know and love, but in the end this really wasn't a Die Hard movie.McClane (Bruce Willis) is tasked to bring a computer hacker to the F.B.I in Washington for questioning. The hacker, Matt Farrell (Justin Long), is a target from a group of psycho’s hell bent on creating electronic chaos in the U.S. Unfortunately for the psychos they picked the wrong day to try and kill the kid. The action starts out strong as McClane does his job but as it goes on the action sequences get more and more Looney Toonish. Now don't get me wrong I thought that the story was intriguing. You have a group of hard core computer hackers enacting what is called a Fire Sale on the infrastructure of the United States. They screw with the power; they screw with the stock market, etc. etc.Anyway, I liked the idea of an old-school cop taking on a techno-terrorist. That being said it would have been nicer to have a director that truly understood this series and the type of action we expect. This might sound a little anal but I just thought that the action was too smooth and clean. There was no grit in most of the sequences, no blood and sweat. It was slick with McClane leaping on stealth fighters and avoiding the domino effect of a collapsing freeway. It was all just too much. Not to mention some really bad inconsistencies with the plot. Supposedly the power was out everywhere and the satellites had been taken over or dismantled. Yet somehow the satellite operated On-Star system worked perfectly. There was also a sequence where one of the bad guys is taken out by an SUV and rammed through at least 6 walls and an elevator door yet somehow this same villain was still able to jump, kick and punch John McClane. Someone needed to explain to director Len Wiseman that he was working on Die Hard not Tom and Jerry.I really liked Justin Long as the hacker side kick. He wasn't annoying or obnoxious and he was very funny and entertaining and really became a high note to this very so-so action film. The daughter was cute and funny, and Maggie Q was hot and kicked ass. I really like Timothy Olyphant, especially as the heavy, but they just didn't give him enough to do or a truly credible reason to do what he was doing. He could've been a Hans Gruber but he ended up being a frustrated 2 dimensional computer tech that was too stiff to be really taken seriously. It's a shame really that John McTiernan got caught up in that Pellicano crap; he really could have knocked this film out of the ballpark. Plus I can't imagine he would have sat idly by while Fox ripped the guts out of the film in order to make it a PC PG-13. Yes they have McClane say Yippie Ki Yay but the Mother Fucker is drowned out like any other Die Hard shown on basic cable. Hopefully this will be the last in the series and if it is at least it will end with a meh instead of a whimper and a what the Fuck was that? Take that mere compliment Len Wiseman and never attempt this type of action movie again.





Grade: 3 Buckets

Friday, July 20, 2007

DAILY CELEBRITY ADVICE (7/21/07):


Steve Jobs says:

"The iphone. The multimedia phone so small & compact, it makes even your dick look huge & adequate."

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Leaked Teaser Poster for "Untitled J.J. Abrams Project" aka "Cloverfield"

If you're not a film geek, like all of us here at The Bucket, you may not be aware that a mysterious new movie trailer is leaving U.S. cinema audiences and internet fanboys desperately anxious for more information.

The strange promo, which is being shown across the country before screenings of Transformers, features a bunch of New Yorkers enjoying a dinner party before the lights go out and fireballs drop all over the city. The trailer contains no title, but reveals a release date of January 18, 2008 and that the movie is produced by Lost co-creator and Mission: Impossible III director JJ Abrams. The film is tentatively known as "Cloverfield", although Paramount Pictures insists that will not be the movie's title.


Film Geekdom is abuzz with possible theories and debates as to what exactly the hush-hush project might be. Some say it's the long talked about revamping of the Godzilla franchise. Or a live action version of the popular 80's cartoons Voltron or Thundercats. Yet others insist it's an American remake of the popular Korean creature feature The Host. The more biblical minded have even argued it may be a cinematic interpretation of The Book of Revelations.



The day after Transformers opened, copies of the trailer, apparently shot with a camcorder, began appearing on YouTube. They were soon replaced by a notice saying "This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by Paramount Pictures Corp.", as Paramount has filed a $1-billion copyright-infringement lawsuit against YouTube.

However, late last night, my inside sources forwarded me this TOP SECRET pic of the new teaser poster for "Cloverfield". In order to cover my tracks as much as possible, I've posted the pic on a dummy website and have pasted the link below. PLEASE - AS A FAN OF THE BUCKET, I AM ASKING YOU, DO NOT REDISTRIBUTE THIS FILE. IF YOU DO, YOU RISK COMPROMISING THIS WEBSITE, IT'S CONTENT, AND IT'S CONTRIBUTORS.


Click below at your on risk:

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix - Alternate Review

Cody it seems got the jump on me with his review of the newest Harry Potter film and of course has nothing good to say except that it looked pretty. I of course disagree with his assessment of this fifth installment, of course.So you would think that we are in Police Academy 5: Mission to Miami territory here. Usually when you get to 4 or 5 in almost any film series they begin to either jump the shark in a silly and pointless way or become completely un-watchable. Just like Star Trek 5 where the crew supposedly meets God. Or Superman 4 with that dumb Nuclear Man. How about Jaws 4 where the shark gets revenge? Come on! You want to talk about literally jumping the shark. Rocky 5, I won't go into details here but trust me it was just bad! American Pie 5: The Naked Mile was so bad it couldn't even be released in theatres. AVP that Aliens and Predator spin-off, it doesn't get much worse than that. Thankfully this curse of 5 does not occur in the newest and 5th sequel of Harry Potter. Thank God.

Now I have read the books and out of all of them The Order of the Phoenix is the weakest and worst of the bunch. You have a dumb prophecy, Sirius Black is annoying and Harry himself is at his most, whiny. Luckily for us all Director David Yates has spared us almost all of the bad storytelling that Mrs. Rowling subjected us to in her book. The problem for those who have not read the books or this book in particular they don't fully explain some of the new characters in this film, as Cody so eloquently put in his post. They also don't give Ron or Hermoine enough to do either which I agree is unfortunate. Perhaps they should have made it longer but, then you would have more of that ignorant prophecy that honestly has no real pay off in the movies or in the books. So in the end I think it was for the best that they snipped it. I do want to mention to Cody that I did have other friends who have not read any of the books and really enjoyed this film, and were able to follow it without any problems. Anyway, the issues that Cody had with this film I could understand to some degree, as mentioned before there were some glaring writing errors in the source material. The most important of these is that after all of the crap that happens to him over five books Harry still punks out in the end of this book as he has in the previous books until someone like Dumbledore or Sirius saves his four eyed ass once again. The movie, thankfully, gave the kid a little more stride in his step, a little less whiney and a little more angry, allowing us to see a glimpse of that bad ass wizard we probably won't see until the 7th and final book.I also enjoyed Harry training his fellow students in secret showing us and them just how much he has learned over the years and how truly good he has become. Harry gets a little tongue action just to remind us that he is not a little kid anymore and that he is, after all of this magic stuff, a horny friggin teenager that wants to get his snog on. The second best part to the film other than the stunning Wizard's duel at the end of the film was the development of Sirius Black. I always found it funny that Rowling would proclaim that one of her favorite creations was Sirius Black. I found it funny, because of all of the characters in the books; his was the most under utilized and 2 dimensional. This is credit to the wonderful talents of Gary Oldman, and what he has brought to the role. I don't want to give the ending away but, when what happens--um, happens I was truly affected by it, even when I knew the ending. Everything made much more sense and it raised the stakes much more than the book allowed.I still have yet to see the IMAX version and I would like to see it soon. Maybe I can get Cody to see it with me again and after some explanations maybe then he would find he actually enjoyed it more than he originally thought.


Grade: 3 1/2 Buckets

Harry Potter & The Order of The Phoenix - An Alternative Perspective

Books are for losers and reading is dumb. That is why I've never read a single word on a single page of a single book in the Harry Potter anthology. I intend to keep it that way. If God wanted us to read books, why did he invent movies?? Case closed.

That being said, I'm here to give my alternative review of Harry Potter & The Order of the Phoenix, from the perspective of someone who has not read the source material. This time around, British TV director David Yates has a go in the canvas chair, taking over for HP:4 director Mike Newell. On paper, Yates seems an odd choice to be handed the WB's most lucrative crown jewel, making the precarious leap from Channel 4 mini-series SEX TRAFFIC to a fantasy epic based on a popular kid's book.


In this latest installment, Harry finds himself in all sorts if trouble. First, he's put to trial for using magic outside of Hogwarts. Then there is his incessant night terrors which seem to be forewarning the young wizard of impending tragedies set to befall those closest to him. But Harry's biggest problem this year is the appointment of Dolores Umbridge to the continually revolving post of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Umbridge, constantly cloaked in some arrangement of pink twill, is played with passive aggressive precision by Imelda Staunton; with a kind of Hitler meets Bree Van De Kamp vibe.


+=

Umbridge has quietly been tasked by the Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge (played by Robert Hardy) to spearhead a coup de taut at Hogwarts, eventually leading to the firing of several staff members, the removal of Albus Dumbledore (reprised by Michael Gambon) as Head Master, and eventually the institution of a fascistic set of rules and regulations that each student must obediently abide by or face the dire consequences. It's this subplot which is the real driving force within the movie, underlying a subtle political commentary which may perhaps whisper to certain shifts that have taken place in this country over the last six years.

The problem is Yates and screenwriter Michael Goldenberg (also a newbie to the HP franchise), compliment the Umbridge storyline with bits and pieces of plot matter, seemingly excavated from the novel, but not infused with any real connective tissue. The result is a disjointed story arc that meanders about and finally builds to an unsatisfying climax. A choppy edit job does little to service the problem, as well. The casual viewer is left with a veritable stew of plot-point flotsam, including something about a prophetical snow globe and conversations having to do with the disappearance of unnamed and unseen citizens from the wizarding community (the reasons behind or the consequences of, never made quite clear - at least from where I sat).

An additional side effect of adapting a 870 page children's book into a 2 hour film is the complete marginalization of every other character who's first name isn't Harry. Ron and Hermione are left with very little to do in this fifth film. I would hope and assume they served a greater purpose in the novel than to throw an obligatory concerned look in Harry's direction while he tantrums on about this or that. Their biggest moment of character development comes during a montage of meaningful moments the three friends have shared in the prior 4 films!

I did get to see the film in IMAX, in which the last twenty minutes of the film are featured in 3-D. And I will say that it was the best 3-D I've ever seen. Yes, even better than Jaws 3-D! I will give credit to Yates (that is, if he was even aware during principal photography that they were releasing a 3-D IMAX version of the film) for avoiding the stereotypical, cheesy 3-D "tricks". The shots never feel out of place or distracting, a la the classic scene in the aforementioned Jaws 3-D of the paper shark floating into the underwater window and then stopping on a dime. I would definitely recommend, if you can get to an IMAX screen, you spend the extra five bucks to check it out. It truly does take 3-D to a new level.

Overall, much like HP 3 and 4, the film is visually well manufactured. However, Order of the Phoenix is, without a doubt, the weakest of the five films thematically.

GRADE:
The Film: 2 Buckets

The 3-D: 5 Buckets

DAILY CELEBRITY ADVICE (7/17/07):


Jack Nicholson says:
"That guy Jared is full of shit, man."

Thursday, July 12, 2007

The A-Team

Hey folks now that Transformers has come out and has become a gigantic hit some of us at the Bucket were wondering about other popular 80's shows and when they are gonna get their due. Hasbro, and I think Paramount, is gearing up for a GI Joe movie very soon. I keep hearing about a Magnum P.I. movie, but there is one show when I was a kid that always stood out for me, the A-Team. You have that great opening before the credits:

Ten years ago / In 1972, a crack commando unit was sent to prison by a military court for a crime they didn't commit. These men promptly escaped from a maximum security stockade to the Los Angeles underground. Today, still wanted by the government, they survive as soldiers of fortune. If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them, maybe you can hire... The A-Team.

Then the awesome score kicks in and you're hooked. Now there have been rumors for years about an A-Team movie so I thought that I would take a crack at choosing the ultimate cast for a new movie. Hopefully if they ever do an A-Team movie they'll keep the general premise make it a PG-13 film and allow the guys, when they fire their weapons, to actually hit the people they are shooting at not just trucks and oil canisters etc. etc.

Col. John "Hannibal" Smith
Originally played by George Peppard, Hannibal is the leader of the A-Team so he has to be bad ass and he has to have a sense of humor, but most importantly he has to be cool under pressure. There are a few older gentlemen that could pull this off very well. George Clooney would obviously be a great candidate and I think Harrison Ford could be fun in this role. Maybe Mel Gibson but with all of his crap he'd have better luck trying out for Murdock. The one I'm going with in this case has gotta be Bruce Willis. Bruce can still bust ass and he does it in a cool slick style. If you'll remember from his Die Hard days he could be pretty funny too.

Lt. Templeton "Faceman" Peck

The Faceman, played by Dirk Benedict, played a smart ass con-man who, when he wasn't in some kind of Mission Impossible like disguise, was cruising for primo tail. This is the guy on the show that got all of the ladies, and what kind of female could resist the man, the fucking original, Starbuck of Battlestar Galactica, that's right no one. This one for me was easy. Sure you got your Ashton Kutcher, Leo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt. I'm not saying Faceman shouldn't be a pretty face but in my mind you want a smart ass with style. That's why my money is on Ryan Reynolds. This guy can obviously get any girl he wants and he's funny as shit. Not to mention he's got the wit and humor of Bill Murray. Check out Van Wilder, Just Friends and my friend Cody Dee says that he is hilarious in the film Waiting.



SGT. Bosco Albert "B.A." Baracus
B.A. in my mind does not exist unless it is Mr. T, and seeing that Mr. T still looks and acts the same I'd say why not. He's the original "Bad Attitude."Although if you were not inclined to use the gruff talking bad ass I think actors like Ving Rhames and Michael Clarke Duncan obviously could pull off a likeness of Mr. T but it would only become a caricature. I think the Producer's of this film should be bold go with a wild card and that's why I think it should be The Rock. AKA Dwayne Johnson, he is a great action stud and it pains me that they can't find another great action vehicle for this guy to be in. If you've seen the Rundown then you know what I mean. He can obviously kick ass but I think he'd bring something a little different to the character and of course I think he could fill a few seats in theatre. He's smart and he can be funny and he could pull of lines like "I pity the fool" and "You goin' down sucka'!"

Capt. H.M. "Howling Mad" Murdock
Dwight Schultz played the epitome of lunacy in the show and he did it so well that it'll be tough to fill those crazy shoes. There was a controversial suggestions my good friend Cody Dee Williams suggested, the manic Jack Black, and while I thought Jack Black would be great for the nutso scenes, I don't know if I would buy him as an ex-military pilot. The guy is a little out of shape. If he lost some pounds looked a little leaner I'd say maybe. Also Murdock just works better as a rail thin guy. My other friend Ori suggested Sam Rockwell and I gotta say that was an inspired choice. If you've seen Confessions of a Dangerous Mind or when he really flips out in The Green Mile and Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, you can see why he would be a perfect choice as the crazy pilot we all know and love.Now for the supporting characters you have to have a beautiful woman who starts out as a reporter, decides that the guys are really aces and she joins up with them. The show has had numerous hotties including, near the end, a very young Tia Carrere (Wayne's World). Now when I say young and hot it doesn't mean dumb and vapid. Don't just run to Jessica Simpson or Paris Hilton or some crap like that. You should go middle of the road and pick up Jessica Biel she can hook up with Faceman throughout the film or something. Plus Jessica Biel is smoking hot and she can act--at least better than friggin Jessica Simpson.You obviously have to have the victim and the villain but you also have to have a Colonel or a General that is trying to track the team down. Over the course of the show you had six Generals, Colonels and Captains trying to track the boys down. So you have to get somebody who won't overshadow the A-Team but still has a commanding presence. There are two that come to mind that would be perfect in this role and give the character some real heart and soul. David Morse and Will Patton. Both can handle a big budget film and still retain a little character development. Plus usually these General's or Colonels are always mis-understood or have the wrong impression of the A-Team.

















The last and most vital part of the casting is the head villain. Of Course The A-Team is hired to kick someone's ass for some poor helpless private citizen that just couldn't find the balls to do it themselves. For some reason when I try to recall the villains they were always in Mexico or some impoverished town in Texas where they have to fight some local gangs or something. Of course they would find themselves trapped in some kind of warehouse or barn and the Team would have to whip up a tank or something using pliers and a blowtorch to defeat the evil gang and restore order in the land. So would it be politically incorrect to suggest Luis Guzman as the heavy? He's played in serious roles before although he is usually comic relief but I think he could surprise some people here. Maybe we should have a second one--oooh, I know Luis Guzman will be the baddie sidekick and Alfred Molina will be the heavy. Yes that's it.




















I love it when a plan comes together.