Should “The Neverending Story” be put to bed?  Should we collectively dance in hopes of quickly ending “The Season of the Witch”?  Should we just let the aliens blow up LA in “Battle: Los Angeles”?  Are our childhood Atari wet dreams coming to life in a live-action Missile Command movie?  Also, Bond, Trent Reznor, and the Bible are all in movie news!  This and much, much more in this episode of COL Movies!!

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News:

• Missile Command Movie?
• Bond 23 on again! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/11/james-bond-23-new-007-film-announced_n_807556.html
• Trent scores another movie http://www.slashfilm.com/trent-reznor-scoring-david-finchers-version-the-girl-dragon-tattoo/
• Turning the Bible into soft core gay porn? http://www.cinemablend.com/new/New-David-And-Goliath-Movie-Will-Basically-Turn-The-Bible-Into-300-22506.html

The Past: The Neverending Story (1984)

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Director: Wolfgang Peterson

Starring: Noah Hathaway, Barret Oliver and Tami Stronach

Trivia:

• Author Michael Ende decided that he was unhappy with the film’s version of his story, and refused to have his name placed in the opening credits. A small credit appears at the end with his name.
• The nighthob says a profanity in the opening scene where the rockbiter appears running down all in its path. This profanity is often dubbed over by the grumble of the rockbiter’s scooter, so that it can be shown as a children’s film.
• Most of the film was shot in Germany in the summer of 1983. It was Germany’s hottest summer in 25 years.
• The original Auryn for this film now hangs in an enclosed glass display in Steven Spielberg’s office.
• Was the most expensive film ever produced in Germany at the time it was made.
• Noah Hathaway was hurt twice during the making of the movie. During his horse riding training he was thrown off a horse which then stepped on him. Then during the shooting of the drowning sequence in the “swamp of sadness” his leg got caught on the elevator and he was pulled under water. He was unconscious by the time he was brought to the surface.
• “The Childlike Empress” wasn’t just child-“like”. She was portrayed by Iranian born dancer Tami Stronach who was only 11 years old when the production started.
• The film itself actually “ends” about halfway through the book.
• The name of the mystical land in (the English translation of) the original novel was Fantastica, not Fantasia, but the original German name Phantásien translates more accurately into English as Fantasia.
• The theme song was sang by Limahl, who was the lead singer of the pop band Kajagoogoo.
• The makeup team on the movie tried to paint Noah Hathaway green, just as Atreyu is in the book. “It wasn’t believable. I looked like fungi!” Hathaway said.
• Noah Hathaway almost lost an eye during the fight-scene versus Gmork. One of the claws on his giant paws poked him in the face. The robot was also so heavy that he lost his breath as well when he was hit to the ground by it. They only made one shot due to the risk that he would get seriously wounded.
• You can “ride” on Falcor’s back on location at the Bavaria Filmplatz Munich, Germany.
• The name that Bastian screams almost indecipherable into the night is “Moonchild”.
• During filming in Germany, because it was an unusually hot summer one of the statues of the Ivory Tower actually melted. On other days, the crew were forced to shut down production because the blue backgrounds for the matte work refused to operate properly.
• Falkor is actually a 43-foot long motorized creature with 6,000 plastic scales and pink feather-fur. His head his three feet tall and long, and has a long tongue in the mouth.
• Tami Stronach was attending theatre classes in San Francisco when she got the audition to be The Childlike Empress. Her acting teacher was friends with the production executive and talent scout Anna Gross. Tami initially believed she was auditioning for a little play and had no idea it was to be for a major motion picture.
• Noah Hathaway was due to appear in the Broadway show “Chaplin” alongside Gene Kelly and Ann Margaret, but opted to do “The Neverending Story” instead. He had been cast in the film, then the original director was fired, and when Wolfgang Petersen was hired, Noah was immediately re-hired.
• Only the scenes in the city and at Bastian’s home were not shot in the Bavaria Studios in Munich, Germany, but in Vancouver, Canada.
• Noah Hathaway (Atreyu) now owns and operates a tattoo parlor in Los Angeles, California with his wife.
• Tami lost both front teeth shortly before filming and they made her fake teeth which caused her to lisp until she learned to compensate for them.

Talking Points:

• Could you consider this the “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” of the 1980s?
• Is this a depressing movie for kids or what?
• Which character left you with the biggest impression – and why?

What We’ve Learned:

• It’s ok to steal books! (as long as you leave a note that you’ll return it)
• Schools in the 80s didn’t take attendance
• Oompa Loompa’s ride racing snails
• Limestone Rocks have a delicious bouquet
• Ancient Turtles are pretty Emo.. and allergic to youth
• People who have no hope are easy to control.
• Who wouldn’t want a luck dragon?

Trailer:

Recommendations:
Jeff: Always a classic. Childhood flashback movie that is good for anyone of any age.
Ray: Its a favorite movie of mine, but can be a bit dark.. use your discretion before showing it to your kids
Steve: Definitely one of the most memorable movies from my childhood. It’s great to revisit as an adult, but you get a whole new perspective with adult eyes.

Intermission: Jeff’s Brief BearCity Review

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The Present: Season of The Witch

Director: Dominic Sena

Starring: Nicolas Cage, Ron Perlman and Claire Foy

Trivia:

• Development on the film began in 2000 when the spec script by screenwriter Bragi F. Schut was purchased by MGM.
• The film had a budget of approximately US$40 million, and much of the budget was covered by Relativity with pre-sales to distributors outside the United States.
• Filming took place in Austria, Hungary, and Croatia. Most of the principal photography took place in practical locations, with several days committed to filming on greenscreen.
• Principal photography was completed by April 2009, but the cast and crew re-gathered a few months later to film additional battle sequences, filming on greenscreen to save on travel.
• The art directors researched woodcuts and other artwork for classic demonic appearances. The filmmakers requested an entity “lithe and feminine”, and the visual effects crew designed a demon that had “cloven feet, a dog ankle and a fawn leg”. Designing visual effects for the demon’s wings was the biggest challenge since wings tend to get in the way or do not move convincingly. The filmmakers also requested holes in the demon’s wings, so the crew designed holes that appeared worn instead of ripped since ripped holes would require an added billowing effect.
• The crew’s final visual effects shot was the death of the demon, and they researched previous films and terminology for how demons’ deaths have been designed.
• Lionsgate scheduled Season of the Witch to be released on March 19, 2010, but five weeks before the date, the studio decided to pull the film from release. Lionsgate originally had an output deal with Relativity Media, but Relativity formed its own marketing and distribution arm in 2010. Relativity chose to release the film itself and in October 2010 set the film’s new release date for January 7, 2011. Season of the Witch will be Relativity’s first in-house production.

Talking Points:

• Did it deserve the 5% on Rotten Tomatoes?
• Odd acting – did it seem like the leads were present day Americans in period clothes, while the supporting cast was in actually performing in period?
• Was this movie intended to be a farce or serious?

What We Learned:

• Ron Perlman sports a pretty epic moustache
• It doesn’t matter if your movie is set in the 14th century, and one of your actors speaks with a new york accent
• If you’re going to be holding a giant rope to support the weight of anything, wear gloves!

Trailer:

Recommendations:
Jeff: Not a bad movie, not great either, but not half bad.
Ray: Not Shakespeare but not as bad as airbender!
Steve: Enjoyed the visuals of the movie, but the writing and acting was “off”. Liked the concept, just didn’t come together well.

The Future: Battle : Los Angeles

Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez and Bridget Moynahan

Trivia:

• The film is inspired by the real life incident known as the Battle of Los Angeles, during World War II. On the night of 24-25 February 1942, unidentified aircraft were allegedly spotted in the airspace above Los Angeles. Suspecting it to be the Japanese, a blackout of the city was ordered and over 1,440 rounds of anti-aircraft ammunition was fired. Upon finding no evidence of the existence of any enemy aircraft, the incident was declared to be a “false alarm”. The event has since been chalked up to as being a result of “war nerves”, likely triggered by a lost weather balloon and exacerbated by stray flares and shell bursts from adjoining anti-aircraft batteries.
• Very little of the film was actually shot in Los Angeles. Tax incentives brought the production to Louisiana where sets of Los Angeles streets were constructed.
• The movie will be released on 03/11/11. 0311 is the Marine Corps Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) for Infantry Riflemen.
• Don’t be fooled by the direct to DVD release “mockbuster”: Battle of Los Angeles – it’s not the same movie!

Talking Points:

• Better than Skyline?
• Is this just “V” in the movie theater? Original concept?
• Use of Music in trailer

Summary:
A Marine platoon faces off against an alien invasion in Los Angeles.

Trailer 1:

Trailer 2:

Trailer 3:

Excitement:
Jeff: Yawn
Ray: Excited! Excited! Excited! Especially after seeing the newest trailer.
Steve: I really like how the trailer feeds on our fears. The music is great. I just really hope it holds up. I will see it, but don’t have any expectations.

Coming Attractions
The Past

The Present

The Future

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