By George Robbins
Since the beginning of this whole pandemic back in the middle of March, it has been an uphill battle for many to try and come up with solutions for various new situations. For instance, how do businesses adjust to the distancing policy which is currently in place and how many people should be allowed to be together at one time. These have answers, but they vary, sometimes wildly, depending on the location of these places and how well they are handling the current crisis. Hollywood is no exception to this and many studios at this point have had almost no choice but to delay movies and shut down productions. Even if they started up productions again, there would be rules in place which force new work standards to prevent possible viral spread. Now that standards are in place, production crews can actually get back to work again.
One of the first productions to start up production again was James Cameron’s ‘Avatar 2’ because a number of different scenarios lined up perfectly for him. Some other productions have not been so lucky because, for Cameron, he was going to be filming in the country that announced that it had completely defeated the virus. On top of that, he was able to start filming with no issue after the initial 2-week quarantine upon arrival in New Zealand. This means that no one was infected and he was able to immediately get to work and started his production again with no hassle. However, he still had a lot of work to do after starting up again and has devoted all of his time recently to making sure that the film ends up finished in the proper amount of time.
Many productions currently have the issue that they have not managed to get much work done at all because they need the whole production crew to get work done. There is at least one production that has been lucky in this regard and as such has managed to actually get some work done. The upcoming final entry to the ‘Jurassic World’ trilogy, ‘Jurassic World: Dominion’ has somehow been lucky during this whole pandemic and apparently so has the crew. They are even starting to resume production now after having to wait so many months, but they have at least managed to get some work done over the hiatus they were forced to take. According to director Colin Trevorrow this ended up being a great thing for all of them because it gave them a chance to take care of things without a looming deadline.
Apparently, the reason for why everything worked out so well for them is because the few weeks of filming that they had gotten in before the pandemic was footage that included the dinosaurs. This means that, unlike most productions, work could be done from home because what they needed done at that point was VFX work to get the dinosaurs in place. Trevorrow went on to state that being able to do this kind of work from home has not only helped the production, but also the crew because it means they didn’t have a deadline they had to make. So now that they are resuming work on the film, it shouldn’t be much of hassle to get right back into things.
By George Robbins
There are a number of reasons as to why theaters have had it rough nowadays and over the course if the last few months. Theaters were among one of the first types of business to shut down when the pandemic first started in an attempt to keep the number of new cases down. As a part of the effort theater chains decided to keep their doors closed until the summer in an effort to both keep the number of cases down, and also save money by staying closed until new movies become available. This is what ends up leading to the next major problem which is the fact that even though some theaters are allowed to open now, there is almost no point in doing so and will only end up causing more trouble. Without the new movies to show, it is only a matter of time before they have to shut down due to low attendance.
The theater chains are having an issue as of now due to the fact that they have to maneuver their theater reopenings around movie releases and as of late the number of cases has spiked and movies have longer delays. Originally, the plan was for most theater chains to reopen some time in early-to-mid July in order to be opened when the summer movies were supposed to hit. The two big summer movies that were meant to release were ‘Tenet,’ Christopher Nolan’s newest film, and the live-action version of ‘Mulan,’ which had already been delayed from March due to the pandemic. However, as the weeks go on, it seems as though they are just getting pushed back more and more with their releases now being in mid-to late August respectively.
AMC took note of when they were pushed back and moved their reopening date to the end of July. Cinemark was originally set to reopen their theaters some time in June, but decided not to; the reason for which being backlash from a time where they said customers would not be required to wear masks as well as chasing movie releases. The last of the chains, Regal, was meant to open in the beginning of July, but they have since changed their plans, like the other companies, to reopening at the end of July instead. As stated already, the spikes in cases has resulted in movies being delayed more and more and if it keeps up, the reopening dates for those theater chains will also keep getting pushed back. On top of this, it is also up to the government of each state to allow them to reopen in the first place which many places are still not allowing.
Every state’s phased reopening plan is different and this means that some types of businesses are allowed to reopen sooner than other ones because the government feels the risk is lower for them. In New Jersey, this has resulted in the movie theater companies suing the state for forcing them to stay shut down. Even though they aren’t open anywhere else in the country, they feel that when they do reopen all of their other locations, they should be able to do so unabated by the government of New Jersey and that they have the right to be open in the state. This stems from the fact that Phase 2 reopenings recently took place in the state and among those places are shopping malls, retail stores, and places of worship. They feel that these places are just as high risk as the theaters themselves and they should be allowed to be opened when they feel the time is right. Theaters, like these other businesses, have restrictions in place following reopening and thus have a point when it comes to the risk factor in play.
Fandango has made it possible to see what the restrictions for theaters will be with new services they launched.
By George Robbins
These past few months have been a sort of hell for movie studios and the productions they were working on before this pandemic hit and it just doesn’t seem to end. Movie productions have started to slowly restart amid a climate where the number of virus cases hasn’t gone away and has instead spiked in some cases. This has resulted in a large number of rules being put in place for the pandemic which must be followed in order to allow productions the opportunity to start at all. This has created nothing but issues in regards to actually getting films done in a proper amount of time because new ways of filming must be looked at to adhere to the rules. On top of that, there is the situation involving when films with big production crews will even be able to properly get back to work because they need all hands on deck in order to get their movies done.
Theaters are fairing much worse due to the pandemic because they can’t even really open their doors right now lest they risk the high chance that they will just be throwing money away. Without any new films to show audiences, and with severely reduced capacity, theaters have to stay closed until they have sufficient reason to believe that they will make money if they open up. Many movies have been delayed to either late this year or some time next year and it has forced theaters to re-think their plans as to when they will actually open up their doors. Thus it appears that it will be awhile before they can make their announcement of a grand reopening and with films only just starting to go back into development, they might be seeing a period in the future with less releases.
Of the films that are just starting to resume production, the ones that had literally just started before the pandemic hit have a lot of work ahead of them as time goes on. Some movies are so big that it is difficult for studios to even start back up right away due to the amount of crew and equipment needed. There are films that are doing their best in response to being able to go back to work, but it may be awhile before we see them make their move. One of those films might just end up being the ‘Uncharted’ film which is supposed to star Tom Holland as a young Nathan Drake. The production of the film, which is based on the video game of the same name, was delayed indefinitely due to the pandemic because they were just about to begin when everything kicked off.
Although the film might be delayed for an unspecified amount of time, there is still hope that they will soon be working on getting the film done because it has not been canceled. This gives hope to those wishing for the movie to become a reality, but it is also a cause of worry for some. For instance, there has (almost) never been a good movie based on a video game and this is because it isn’t adapted well and doesn’t tell a proper story. The best way to describe why they never usually work out is because games are a medium that people spend countless hours interacting with directly while a movie is something we have no direct interaction with. The one thing that could make a difference with this movie is that the games themselves play out like action movies. This is something Nolan North, the voice of the main protagonist, has made a point of by saying that they shouldn’t rip directly from the games and should instead stick with what they are doing with a wholly original tale.
By George Robbins
The past few months have been an interesting period of time for the DCEU as a whole and it seems as though that will not be stopping any time soon. Especially in regards to things that will be happening in the future and how Warner Bros. priorities have had to change in order to adapt to the new climate. For them, they have had no choice but to delay their film releases in order to adapt to the fact that theaters will not be opened properly for a long time. On top of this, all of their current film productions have had to be temporarily halted and there is no telling when they will be able to properly resume filming. On the lighter side of the news though, there has been a lot going on in the streaming service side of things and many DC related titles are gaining renewed vigor.
Outside of the newly launched HBO Max, there has been a lot more news recently about future titles that Warner Bros. will be working on in order to expand the DCEU. Among those things that have been announced, one of the more unique things is the reprisal by Michael Keaton in regards to his role as Batman for the upcoming movie ‘The Flash.’ On top of this, there is also news in regards to the upcoming movie ‘The Batman.’ Although the movie is still stuck in production with a lot of issues moving forward due to it being such a big production, it has been getting a spotlight due to what the actors have been saying about the film. After what has been said about the upcoming solo film it would be interesting if it actually turned as well as they say it will and we get an exceptional film for the DCEU.
Moving back into the streaming side of things, there is a lot going on in regards to the upcoming releases that we will be seeing on Warner’s HBO Max service. The biggest recent announcement that many people have heard at this point already is that the Snyder Cut of ‘Justice League’ will finally see the light of day some time in 2021 on the service. This is the version of the film that Snyder wanted to make before unfortunately having to step away from the director’s chair due to a personal family issue. Thus we will end up getting the film that was intended for audiences when the time comes and it might just be what many waited for. In order to help get people hyped for the upcoming release, Snyder also released information which confirms that the Ultimate Edition of ‘Batman v Superman’ is what will soon end up on HBO Max.
With all of this being said, the ‘Justice League’ film was generally well received, but there were still many issues that people saw with the film that could have changed the entire thing. Instead of being generally well received, it could have been very well received and it could have renewed interest in the films. There are some that liked the theatrical cut that are worried about the upcoming film not being similar to what they liked in the movie that they saw. Actor J.K. Simmons, who played Commissioner Gordon in the film, thinks that people who saw the theatrical cut will actually like the new cut of the film as well. He believes that anyone who liked the film will be very interested in seeing Snyder’s vision for the film and what the movie was originally going to look like. All we can do is wait until next year to see if his statement holds true when the movie drops on HBO Max.
By George Robbins
The DCEU, or DC Extended Universe, may be newer in terms of what movies have been made over the past decade or so that are a part of it, but DC movies are nothing new. Movies that are based on DC characters have been a thing for years even if many people haven’t exactly realized that those movies were actually based on those characters. One such character that casual fans of the comics may not realize is actually from the DC universe is the character John Constantine whose entire existence revolves around hunting demons. Like the Marvel universe, the DC universe contains demons that come from those universes’ versions of Hell and they try and interfere with the lives of those living on Earth. In the DC universe Constantine is the one who fights back against those demons, but it never really started off as anything other than necessity to try and redeem his soul.
There is a reason that the character is not really a hero in the true sense of the word and he is instead labeled an anti-hero. He only ever does things for his own self interest and if he happens to save someone’s life, then good, but he really isn’t trying to save anyone other than himself most of the time. Constantine has been nothing but unlucky from a young age due to the magic that he had learned that would go on to ruin whatever attempts he would try to make at a better life. This is what is seen in the comic book version of the character and he maintains his work as a hero-for-hire just to get by and make a living. Though, this is not the only version of the character and we see this with the movie that was aptly named ‘Constantine.’
In the movie, the titular character is played by Keanu Reeves and the plot of the film plays out differently than the comic book character he is based upon, but this doesn’t mean the root character isn’t there. In the movie he doesn’t use magic the way that the comic book version does, but he is a very skilled exorcist that knows how to send demons back to Hell. However, his motivations for doing so are much more aligned to how his character is truly portrayed when they show the reason why he wants to help people and fight demons. He believes that by fighting demons he will be able to redeem his soul which is bound to Hell when he took his own life when he was younger. Constantine was saved and brought back, but the experience had left him marked to always return.
More recent iterations have kept more in-line with how the character really is in the comics and gave him his ability to use magic as well as showed his interactions with other hero and villain characters. With this in mind, it seems to make a lot of sense that in order to show people what the character is really about, a movie could end up being made in this era based more on the comic version of the character. As of now he has had portrayals in the ArrowVerse and in the ‘Justice League Dark’ animated films, but his comic character hasn’t really been seen on the big screen. It seems that this may be destined to change as, reportedly, there is a new ‘Constantine’ movie in the works over at Warner Bros. with J.J. Abrams as the possible producer for the film. They may reboot the original film, but maybe we will get the true version of John Constantine after all.
By George Robbins
As of now, it is entirely within the realm of possibility for movies to be worked on when it comes to production, but it is much more difficult for films to actually be released at all. The biggest way that many companies have been dealing with this issue is to delay the theatrical releases of their films until it is a safer climate for them to release the films. This has been the case for many of the films that have yet to release this year, but for a select few films, there has been another method of release that has been used. Companies have been using PVOD, or premium video on demand, release strategies for some films in order to get their movies out there and possibly make back some kind of money on their films. The biggest problem is the fact that this has landed companies like Universal in a lot of trouble with theater companies and has resulted in them(AMC) saying they would no longer show their films.
This ends up becoming a problem for not only the studios, but also for the theaters some time down the line because it just ends up being a reduction in possible profits. It is becoming a longer and longer wait for theaters due to a spike in virus cases and they have had to push back their openings multiple times already. Those that have opened already have nothing to show the public that is new and must show only older films that they have available for the time being. Unless someone is just desperate to leave the house, there is really no reason for people to go out to the movies as of now and this is causing very low numbers at the box office, though it is better than the nothing they were getting.
Among the movies that will not see a theatrical release is ‘Greyhound’ starring Tom Hanks which made the switch over to a streaming VOD format a little while back to get it out to the public. With the film’s new release format, one would expect it to be easy to watch the film, but this is not the case. Unlike other films that have had VOD releases thus far, this movie is only available on Apple TV+ amd wasn’t even given the chance to be shown in theaters with other films that will kick off theaters reopening. Tom Hanks is disappointed in the straight-to-streaming release because it means that the film will not be able to be watched in the way that it was intended. He wanted the film to have a theatrical release so that the sound and quality of the film itself would be at peak condition, giving a better experience overall. It is just another disappointment that is to be added to the list these days.
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