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Thread: The Old Guard

  1. #1
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    The Old Guard

    Gene Ching
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    Theron v Seagal - put my money on Charlize


    Charlize Theron Says ‘Overweight’ Steven Seagal ‘Can Barely Fight’: ‘He’s Not Very Nice to Women’

    Charlize Theron, who has done her own stunts in several action movies, called Steven Seagal’s martial arts skills into question
    By Ally Mauch June 26, 2020 03:05 PM


    JOHN LAMPARSKI/GETTY; JEFF BOTTARI/ZUFFA LLC/GETTY

    Charlize Theron has criticized fellow actor Steven Seagal, calling into question his martial arts skills and sharing that “he’s not very nice to women.”

    While promoting her latest action film, The Old Guard on Howard Stern’s radio show, the 44-year-old actress said that she prepares for her action projects by watching old fighting videos, and has often come across one of Seagal, who has said he has a black belt in karate.

    “At night I’ll go online to watch fighters or watch people fight and you always come across that odd Seagal video of him ‘fighting’ in Japan, but he really isn’t,” she said.

    She continued, “He’s just incredibly overweight and pushing people. He’s overweight and can barely fight … look it up, it’s ridiculous. He’s shoving people by the face. It’s a whole setup.”

    The Mad Max: Fury Road star then justified her criticism of Seagal, 68, noting, “I have no problem talking s--- about him because he’s not very nice to women so f--- you!”

    A rep for Seagal did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

    This is not the first time that Seagal’s conduct towards women has come into question.

    The actor has been accused of sexual harassment and other misconduct by several women, including Portia de Rossi, Julianna Margulies, Jenny McCarthy and Inside Edition correspondent Lisa Guerrero.

    In 2018, he was also accused of rape by an extra who appeared in his 1994 film On Deadly Ground, Regina Simons. She told TheWrap that she was 18 at the time of the alleged rape, which she claimed happened after Seagal invited her to a wrap party for the movie at his Beverly Hills home in 1993.

    Around the same time, Dutch model Faviola Dadis took to Instagram to accuse the actor of sexually assaulting her at an audition in 2002 after being inspired by de Rossi coming forward with her own accusations.

    Seagal has denied all accusations against him.
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    Gene Ching
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    First forum review

    Well that was a bit of alright. Based on a comic that I never read, Charlize leads a crew of immortal do-gooders. There's an evil pharma lab trying to catch them and use their dna to make bazillions. There's also a nooB immortal who needs to learn the ropes of immortality. Mostly, there's Charlize, who looks smokin hot as ever and delivers the best action sequences of the lot (no stunt double credited for her but all the others had one). Sure, we've seen the immortal warrior tale replayed since Highlander. Oh what a bummer it is to live for centuries and watch your lovers, family and friends die while you do not, wah, wah, wah. This takes the cliche a few fresh places, although not mind blowingly so. The choreo is okay. Lots of gunplay and swordplay combos. Charlize is into axes and pulls off the most complex moves, although this is nowhere near Atomic. Sanguineous. Amusing. Nice production. A creation tale of sorts as it's primed for a sequel with the final scene.

    Yes to sword fights, although not sword vs. sword, mostly sword vs. gun (it kinda works).
    Gene Ching
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    The Old Guard | Combat Training | Netflix

    Gene Ching
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    #1 on Netflix

    Charlize Theron's ‘The Old Guard’ Becomes Top 10 Netflix Popular Movie
    BY SANA KHAN

    Charlize Theron's The Old Guard is trending on Netflix as it spots a position in Top 10 list of the most popular movies. In the first four weeks of its premiere, the movie has reached over 72 million viewers.


    PHOTO: Charlize Theron arrives at the British Academy of Film and Television Awards (BAFTA) at the Royal Albert Hall in London, Britain, February 2, 2020. REUTERS/TOBY MELVILLE

    The Old Guard ranks at number six on the top 10 list. However, Extraction remains to be number one on the list. Netflix's announcement on Twitter mentioned that Gina Prince-Bythewood becomes the "first Black female director" to mark her spot on the list. The milestone of the movie was provided on July 17.

    While the biggest online streamer shared 72 million households as a figure, it is worth noting that the numbers are provided based on selected programs and they can't be confirmed individually. The Old Guard premiered on Netflix since July 10 which stars Chiwetel Ejiofor, KiKi Layne, Marwan Kenzari, Matthias Schoenaerts, Harry Melling, Luca Marinelli, and Van Veronica Ngo.

    The movie is based on a comic book written by Greg Rucka with the same title, The Old Guard. The story revolves around a team of mercenaries who are immortals and on their way to take revenge. Netflix partnered up with Skydance Media in terms of financing the movie while it itself purchased the worldwide rights.

    Theron is not only playing the title role but also producing the movie with Marc Evans, Beth Kono, and A.J. Dix along with Skydance’s Don Granger, Dana Goldberg, and David Ellison. The shooting of the movie began last year in May and filmed in England's Shepperton Studios, the United Kingdom, and Morocco.

    Layne portrays Marine in the United States named Nile Freeman. She went through a fatal attack with a knife, however, she manages to survive and realize that she is immortal. Layne was seen in a romantic drama called If Beale Street Could Talk, which was a James Baldwin's adaptation and directed by Barry Jenkins.

    It is interesting that the 28-year-old actress was selected to play a part in The Old Guard was after Jenkins convinced Prince-Bythewood by showing a clip from the movie If Beale Street Could Talk. Prince-Bythewood loved her cut and eventually, she was hired for a prominent character in the movie.

    The Old Guard is unique in many ways. Such as a female lead character performing an action, helmed by a Black lady director, and the representation of the LGBTQ community in the movie. The Italian actor Marinelli and the Dutch actor Kenzari portrays Nicky and Joe, respectively.
    Glad this is doing so well.
    Gene Ching
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    Summer movies 2020

    ENTERTAINMENT MOVIES
    FAREWELL FOR NOW, TENET. HERE’S WHAT WE LEARNED FROM THE SUMMER MOVIE SEASON THAT NEVER WAS
    Farewell for Now, Tenet. Here’s What We Learned From the Summer Movie Season That Never Was
    BY ELIANA DOCKTERMAN
    JULY 20, 2020 11:08 PM EDT

    Summer movie season is canceled for the first time since Jaws became the first warm-weather blockbuster in 1975.

    On Monday, after months of delays and uncertainty, Warner Bros. officially postponed Tenet, Christopher Nolan’s highly anticipated spy movie starring John David Washington, indefinitely. Since the coronavirus pandemic first caused movie theaters to shutter in March, the film industry, theater owners and fans had all looked to Tenet as the must-see-on-the-big-screen popcorn movie that might save the summer of 2020. If anything could lure audiences back to theaters after months of lockdown, it would be a spectacle from the filmmaker behind The Dark Knight, Inception and Dunkirk, a longtime champion of the value of the theatrical experience.

    But as COVID-19 case numbers continued to rise across the U.S., it became abundantly clear that reopening movie theaters would not be safe. Tenet’s release date shifted from mid-July to late July and then to mid-August. As recently as last week, Nolan himself staunchly insisted that Tenet would release this summer. Now, those who had held out hope are facing the reality that one movie could never have borne that much responsibility, much less in the face of a public health crisis far beyond its control.

    It remains to be seen whether other movies currently slated for theatrical release this summer, like Disney’s live-action Mulan, will follow in Tenet’s footsteps. Either way, it will take a lot of time, some box office gambles and perhaps even a vaccine before enough fans are comfortable sitting in a darkened room alongside hundreds of strangers to laugh and gasp in unison—or even just breathe the same air.


    In the meantime, as fans continue to get their movie fix largely on the small screen, here’s what the blockbuster season that never was has taught us about what the future of movies may have in store.

    There was never going to be one film that saved the moviegoing experience


    John David Washington and Robert Pattinson in Tenet Warner Bros.

    The narrative that played out around Tenet, and Nolan’s insistence that it be released in theaters this summer, felt like a Hollywood fantasy itself. The trades positioned Nolan as if he were the hero in one of his own films, the man who would swoop in and save the day.

    The obsession with a Nolan movie, specifically, was not arbitrary: Nolan is one of the few—if not the only—directors left in Hollywood who can conjure superhero-level box office numbers with a totally original film that’s not tied to a franchise, comic book or cinematic universe. His movies are big, expensive, immersive experiences best seen in IMAX the weekend of release, lest someone spoil the big plot twist in your social media feed.

    Even before the pandemic, Tenet represented the last hopes of a Hollywood largely lost to the franchise era, a remnant of the days when original dramas could vie for Oscars and break the box office at once. If, against all odds, Tenet succeeded during the pandemic, Hollywood could declare victory over the existential threat the virus poses, over the streaming services competing for audience attention, over the notion that screenwriters had run out of new ideas.

    If all this sounds rather farfetched, let’s cut ourselves a break. It is tempting in these dreary times to pin our hopes on a single solution to an intractable problem: one leader who might save us; one vaccine that might inoculate us; one day when suddenly everything will be back to normal. In reality, the return to normalcy will be slow and halting. Even once a vaccine becomes available, not everyone will receive it at once; we will return to our offices, our friends’ homes and, yes, movie theaters in small groups, then larger ones. Appealing as it was to cling to a symbol of resilience and the shared, communal experiences we yearn for, it was never that simple.

    Movie theaters need ongoing systemic support, not a miracle


    The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema on June 26, 2018 in Denver, Colorado Amy Brothers—The Denver Post via Getty Images

    Movie theaters are in dire straits. Even the biggest chains may possibly go bankrupt. They were struggling even before the pandemic: Why spend money on movie tickets, snacks and parking when you can just fire up Netflix from the comfort of your couch for around the cost of a single movie ticket?

    It’s going to take more than a movie like Tenet to help the industry survive and thrive. Movie theaters, like many other types of businesses, are in a desperate situation. The major chains have laid off tens of thousands of employees. Groups of theaters have sued the New Jersey Governor and the Michigan Governor for the right to reopen. Meanwhile, it is looking unlikely that theaters will be able to reopen in two of America’s biggest markets, New York and Los Angeles, in August, as originally planned. Movie theaters will continue to need government aid and local support during the pandemic—they have benefitted from the $2 trillion stimulus package passed in March. And indie theaters will need even more to make it through this unprecedented time.
    continued next post
    Gene Ching
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    continued from previous post

    Nobody wins in the standoff between studios and Netflix


    Charlize Theron in The Old Guard Aimee Spinks—NETFLIX

    If you feel like the content released during the pandemic has been subpar, you’re not imagining things.

    The pandemic has only accelerated the ascendance of streamers in Hollywood. Studios are worried that even after the pandemic ends, audiences will have gotten so used to having decent, new content served up to them at home that they won’t bother heading to the movie theater. As a result, studios have been hoarding their biggest films rather than releasing them on Hulu, Netflix or video-on-demand services. Why would they charge a family of four $20 to rent a movie on Apple now when they can charge that family of four $20 per person to see that same movie in IMAX at a later date?

    We as consumers are left with a mixed bag of streaming content and too few of the kinds of water-cooler movies that kickstart shared cultural conversations. Netflix has invested heavily in action movies like The Old Guard (released in July) and Spenser Confidential (released back in March), but they spend less money making those movies than Warner Bros and Disney do on the biggest blockbusters of the year, and it often shows. That is not to say that spending more money on a movie guarantees quality—just look at box office bombs like Dark Phoenix or Dolittle—but many critics have observed that the most-watched Netflix movies feel thin, and not quite like replacements for the big summer blockbusters. Fans agree: A 2018 study from Barclays found that audiences reported the quality of Netflix movies “meaningfully worse” than most studio releases.

    Of course, these studios’ strategy is contingent upon the idea that Hollywood will be able to release the movies they’re holding back in theaters sometime this year or early next year. And the truth is, we have no idea when we’ll be able to return to public spaces like theaters. Polls conducted in the spring suggested that many consumers won’t be willing to risk leaving theaters for awhile, even if it means waiting a long time to see splashy releases like Mulan.

    Hollywood may be too dependent on big blockbuster movies


    Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow/Natasha Romanoff in Captain America: Civil War Zade Rosenthal—Marvel Studios

    While I would never suggest that Tenet be released straight to streaming—that is a film intended to be enjoyed with a large audience—maybe this is the moment for Hollywood to reconsider its priorities.

    Right now, studios tend to focus onn big-budget superhero films or horror films with tiny budgets that can turn a nice profit. Comparatively few mid-budget comedies or dramas even get greenlit. But those are exactly the types of films suited to streaming. Even if streaming movies on the whole still don’t measure up to theatrical releases, services like Netflix and Hulu have found niches in specific genres that big, older Hollywood studios have abandoned, like rom-coms and serious, mid-budget dramas.

    Maybe if traditional studios had invested in more movies like Hulu’s Palm Springs or Netflix’s Da 5 Bloods, they could be competing with Netflix by releasing them to the streaming market instead of sitting on the Black Widows and Top Gun 2s until the world changes.

    The moviegoing experience is not going to become obsolete


    Death-defying: Cruise in Mission: Impossible—Fallout Paramount

    There is some good news buried in this rather depressing update. The hype around Tenet suggests that people do desperately miss the summer blockbuster experience, and it will not disappear.

    Lately, I have been thinking a lot about some of the best memories I have in movie theaters—the moment when an IMAX audience lost its collective minds when a certain character in Mission Impossible: Fallout got struck by lightning; or the guy who just kept repeatedly screaming “hell yes” as Vin Diesel and his crew dragged a massive safe through the streets of Rio de Janeiro in Fast Five; or how the audience I saw Get Out with were on their feet cheering during the finale of that film.

    We will have that experience again—even if Tom Cruise has to personally build an isolated town for an entire film crew to do so. It may be when Daniel Craig’s final James Bond movie No Time to Die drops in November. It may be when Fast & Furious 9 premieres next spring. It may be even later than that. Theaters will be implementing a lot of changes to try to stay afloat in the interim, like reducing capacity or not allowing moviegoers to order food during a film. But—assuming enough is done to keep them afloat before that time—pent-up demand for a fun night at the movies will buoy struggling theaters when things finally do begin to change for the better.
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    Gene Ching
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    My latest review

    Gene Ching
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    The Old Guard 2

    Might as well start an Old Guard 2 thread off the original one now.

    Aug 26, 2021 10:18am PT
    Victoria Mahoney to Direct Charlize Theron in ‘The Old Guard’ Sequel


    By Rebecca Rubin

    Netflix has tapped Victoria Mahoney to direct its sequel to “The Old Guard,” the superhero action-adventure led by Charlize Theron.

    “The Old Guard” premiered on Netflix in July 2020 and, by the streaming service’s vague metrics, appears to have been a hit, garnering 78 million views in its first four weeks. Along with Theron, the returning cast will include KiKi Layne, Matthias Schoenaerts, Marwan Kenzari, Luca Marinelli, Veronica Ngo and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

    Gina Prince-Bythewood directed the first film, based on the comic book by Greg Rucka, but opted not to return for the follow-up because she’s busy working on several projects, including Sony’s “The Woman King” starring Viola Davis. Prince-Bythewood was eager to pass the reins to Mahoney, who recently served as second unit director on the J.J. Abrams-directed “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.”

    “I love ‘The Old Guard’ and the story and characters I was honored to put into the world,” Prince-Bythewood said in a statement. “It was exciting to disrupt the genre. I have decided not to direct the sequel, but will stay on as a producer. I leave our franchise in good hands as my girl Vic Mahoney takes on this next chapter.”

    Since “Star Wars,” Mahoney has become an in-demand director and is currently in talks to helm the graphic novel adaptation “Kill Them All” for Paramount. Her credits include the semi-autobiographical drama “Yelling to the Sky,” starring Zoe Kravitz, and several episodes of television, such as “The Morning Show,” “Grey’s Anatomy” and “Queen Sugar.”

    “Genuinely blown backwards by the collective levels of talent, skill and savvy that went into carving ‘The Old Guard,'” Mahoney said in a statement. “I must’ve watched it over a hundred times, and as such, cannot communicate the true measure of my excitement — being invited on ‘The Old Guard’ journey alongside ferocious badasses.”

    Prince-Bythewood will remain on the film as a producer, along with Theron, David Ellison, Dana Goldberg and Don Granger for Skydance; Beth Kono and AJ Dix for Denver and Delilah; and Marc Evans for Marc Evans Productions.

    In a joint statement, the film’s producers said, “We are beyond thrilled that Vic is joining ‘The Old Guard’ team. Her passion for these characters and her ambitious vision for the movie overwhelmed us all. We are grateful for the opportunity to work with her.”

    Deadline first reported the news of Mahoney’s hire.
    Gene Ching
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