With Inception out of the way, Christopher Nolan can return to his babysitting duties for the Man of Steel. Charged with overseeing the restart of the Superman series, Nolan (along with producing other half Emma Thomas) has put together a shortlist of directors for the project. At the top of that list? Duncan Jones and Matt Reeves.
Nolan's already met with most of the men, but he's keeping a wide range of names open - the list also includes Tony Scott, Zach Snyder and Jonathan Liebesman. But some of the helmers have already got a packed slate, for example Battle: Los Angeles director Liebesman, who has already signed with Warner Bros for their Clash of the Titans sequel.
While the big names keep circling David Goyer's script, ComingSoon.net scoped out some quotes from a couple of the candidates. They reported that Reeves (who would be a great pick for the job) was "surprised" by the news. He told JoBlo: "I really have no idea if any of that is true. It's certainly an amazing project, but I would be surprised..."
Jones, meanwhile, apparently tweeted his thoughts: "About Superman... I'm going to say something really cheesy; Can't talk about it, but an honor to be on the list. Interesting times!" As for Snyder, he spoke to USA Today a couple of years back after Warners offered him Superman then. He turned them down, commenting: "He's a tricky one nowadays, isn't he? He's the king daddy of all comic-book heroes, but I'm just not sure how you sell that kind of earnestness to a sophisticated audience anymore."
With Christopher Nolan at the helm, Warner Bros clearly think they can sell Clark Kent's earnest superhero back to the cinema-going public. And with the Moon director's enigmatic tweets on the subject, it looks like they might have a director to do it.
Have you heard of Inception? You probably have. Well, now you can read it as well as watch it, with a prequel comic that's turned up over on Yahoo! Movies. The Cobol Job takes place before Inception's main plot, with the events leading neatly up to the beginning of the film - it's not exactly spoiler-free in some regards, but it won't ruin the movie before you've seen it.
Written by Jordan Goldberg, it's features some lovely artwork from Long Vo, Joe Ng, and Crystal Reid, nicely capturing the likeness of Leonardo DiCaprio and Joseph Gordon Levitt. Under 20 pages long, it takes you throw one of Cobb's standard dream heists, inspired by Christopher Nolan's film. And you know what? It's rather good. And the online reader for it ain't half bad either - much like the viewing style of the iPhone's Comics app.
You can read it online over at Yahoo! Movies, or download it as a PDF. Well worth a look. Even if you do wait until after you've seen the film. Oh, Inception comes out on Friday by the way. And it's pretty much the film of the year.
Ok, so we fobbed you off with that "Exclusive Interview" Twitter thing from the other day - although the answers really were revelatory for many - so here's an actual Q&A sesh for you to enjoy. What's it like working with Christopher Nolan on such a crazy project like Inception? Who better to ask than young stars Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Ellen Page? Let's face it, they're two of Nolan's sexiest cast members.
"It felt like my 10 year old boy fantasies had come true" - Gordon-Levitt went the distance for the set pieces, shooting guns, throwing punches, running around a revolving corridor. As for the uber-talented Ellen Page? Well, she designed the dreams that dazzled your eyeballs. Yeah, she designed them. And then folded Paris in half. On top of itself. We haven't done that, so we decided to go with their accounts of filming Inception, seeing as they were actually there and everything.
Here's what they both had to say about working on the movie (hint: it was awesome). Enjoy watching their excited and happy faces. Then go read our 5 star review. Then go see the film. Preferably in that order. Simples.
Director: Christopher Nolan Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Ken Watanabe, Cillian Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Ellen Page, Tom Hardy, Marion Cotillard, Michael Caine Certificate: 12A Trailers/Clips
So it's a masterpiece. Right? Right. Ok, that's the hype dealt with - the director easily meets it. It's hard to think of many film-makers who could pull off a twisting tale of dreams-within-dreams. It's even harder to name people who would think to do it in the first place. Inception is a bold concept, deftly woven into a thrilling tale, and cleverly wrapped up as a summer blockbuster. It succeeds on every one of those levels.
Warner Bros. is still pumping away at that Superman franchise, desperate to relaunch the Man of Steel into cinemas. The latest man to join that scheme? Well, it might be Chris Columbus.
The word on the web is that Columbus is Warner's favourite choice to direct the project, no doubt thanks to the box office clout currently swung about by Harry Potter. But would Christopher Nolan - supposedly the godfather of the scheme - really allow such a thing to happen?
Nolan's fellow geek David Goyer is also putting himself forward as the man to make the movie. And while he gave the world The Unborn and Blade Trinity, he's also responsible for the new-look Batman, the original Blade, and Dark City, not to mention the now-cancelled FlashForward.
Put that up against the man who directed I Love You, Beth Cooper and Bicentennial Man and it's obvious who wins. Chris Columbus all the way! Right...?
Yes, you're in with a chance to win tickets to the World Premiere of Inception in London. All you have to do is track down The Extractor (your average shady man-with-a-briefcase type) as he travels around the UK looking suspicious and Inceptiony. Yes, that's a word.
Head over the Inception page on Facebook and follow the clues for his location and you can win a pair of tickets, plus travel and accommodation. Ooo, fancy. The nationwide hunt started last Wednesday, with clues appearing online. Can you hunt him down? If you do, just tell him the code and you'll bag the prize. Simply say the words "My mind is the scene of the crime" - it's as easy as being a Russian spy!
The clues get posted on Facebook as The Extractor visits the following places:
Saturday 3rd July Manchester
Monday 5th July Liverpool
Tuesday 6th July Birmingham
Wednesday 7th July Bristol
Thursday 8th July London
Terms and conditions are over here, but for something more interesting, read on for a shiny new video featurette. Or check out the trailers and other video goodness over here.
Stop. Wait. Hold the press. Christopher Nolan has answered another Batman question while doing the rounds for Inception. Jonathan Nolan has been beavering away at it for a while now, using Christopher and David Goyer's ideas for a story, but (via HeyUGuys) MTV asked him for more details. Here's what he said:
"We know we're aiming for 2012 [as a release date], but we're just working on the script ... I'm focused on Inception now, but I'll surface in a couple of weeks and work out how to approach it."
Yes, that's right - a whole two sentences on the long-awaited Batman 3. Breaking news right there, filled with brand new information. But let's be honest: really, the only reason to even mention this is so I can put up the link to the Inception trailer again. It's over here. And it really is looking like the best movie of the year. If not the greatest thing Nolan's done so far.
"Mr Cobb has a job offer he would like to discuss with you..."
It sounds innocent enough, especially when Michael Caine says it in the third (and presumably final) Inception trailer. But this is no ordinary occupation - Mr Cobb is a guy who steals secrets. From other people's minds. Using his magic dream machine briefcase, he gets inside your dreams and nicks information from your brain.
It's a pretty damn nifty concept for a post-Matrix world, where buildings can collapse in on themselves, people can hover all over the place, and corridors twist and turn at a brain-melting speed. Cobb (Di Caprio) may have a tragic wife-related past to deal with, but Christopher Nolan's latest is not short of spectacle.
And the latest trailer is clear proof of that. Dazzling visuals and an impressive-looking cast are all on display here, with the first real public plot outline from Nolan's team - if you think I just spoiled the plot, go watch the video. If you already read our previous Inception updates, go watch the video. And if you've never heard of The Dark Knight's director, go watch the flipping video.
It was online over at the Inception viral site, Mind Crime, hidden inside the stage 2 game (walk around, find a movie theatre, walk in and hit space bar). But now, for the lazy fans, you can read on for the full high quality video.
Hold onto your briefcases, people. This is most likely the movie of the summer. If not the whole year.
If you didn't want to see Inception at an IMAX cinema, you do now.
Yes, this is the latest IMAX-ified poster for Christopher Nolan's mind-bending thriller thing, which appeared over at Yahoo! Movies. You can tell how crazy it's going to be by the number of people standing on the ceiling - that is, all of them. They're also all carrying briefcases or guns. Or briefcases with guns. Or briefcases with guns in them. Or -- you get the idea.
More interestingly, we also get what might be our first glimpse of Marion Cotillard in full-on Inception mode, showcasing balance skillz that rival those of Leo, Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Ellen Page (she's running upside down!).
Inception will twist your brain into tiny pieces in July. Excited? I couldn't possible comment. Mainly because I'm too busy sticking this poster to the outside of my house.
And there you were thinking we'd never understand the plot for Christopher Nolan's next project. And you were right. The new trailer's online, but it's still confusing as hell.
The original teaser was perhaps less baffling - at least we didn't have to worry about working out Leonard DiCaprio's cryptic comments. But still, a thriller in the architecture of the mind, which stars Ellen Page, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Cillian Murphy and Michael Caine is still seriously exciting. Let alone the fact that the visuals look incredible.
It's only another 6 months or so until it hits cinemas and turns all our brains into pulp. To get a head start on the mind-melting, head over to Apple, or read on for the full video in HD.
