News Xmen3!!(spoilers)

Je préfère le poster américain, je sais pas pourquoi, je trouve qu'Angel... mmm, rend mieux...

Ca y est, on sait !!!

Nous savons enfin le temps que durera X-Men: The Last Stand !

Source: Cannes Film Festival April 20, 2006

Ce n'est pas encore une confirmation mais selon le Festival du film de Cannes ou X-men : The Last Stand sera projetté hos compétition,

le troisième volet de la saga sera de 1 Heure et 43 minutes

En comparaison, X-men durait 104 minutes et X2 : United 133 minutes.


This isn't confirmed yet, but according to the Cannes Film Festival, where X-Men: The Last Stand is screening out of competition, the third film is 1 hour and 43 minutes long, or 103 minutes.

X-Men was 104 minutes and X2: X-Men United ran 133 minutes

Merci Dark Phoenix.
Plusieurs médias ont déja relégués cette info, donc si ça se trouve....
J'étais partisan d'un film inférieur à 2h, mais après reflection, j'aurais préféré un truc de 1h55 avec 5 minutes de générique. Mais suis-je producteur? NON

je trouve que c'est pas assez long 1h43 pour une histoire comme ça!j'aurais préféré 2h minimum...

c'est clair que ça aurait été beaucoup mieux un film plus long....
d'ailleurs c'est pas du tout logique de réduire la durée alors que y'a plus d'éléments que dans les précédents films

enfin... c'est vrai qu'on est pas producteurs donc on a pas notre mot à dire
reste plus qu'à éspérer que ce soit pas la bonne durée ou que le film soit bon tout en étant court! sinon on aura plus qu'à pleurer


ps: pour angel sur l'affiche américaine, c'est encore du marketting....
ils mettent des abdos bien musclés juste en premier plan pour attirer plus de spectateurs. Y'a des membres de la gente féminine qui vont peut être aller voir le film juste à cause de ça!
Mrs Lebeau en est la preuve

J'aurais préféré Magnéto torse nu moua

Sinon, la durée du film n'est pas officielle. Comme on m'a dit "t'as pas vu le film, si ça se trouve, 1h43 c'est largement suffisant!" Je vous jure, les gens qui n'y connaissent rien...

Disons qu'il y a au programme beaucoup de scenes d'action ou très dramatique.
Alors bon perso j'ai peur de l'overdose drama/action hollywoodienne.
Et les petites scenes sympa, les moments où on peut respirer et approfondir les persos risquent de passer un peu à la trappe ou etre déballée de manière tout sauf subtile.

C'est un peu ca mes craintes par rapport à la longueur.
Mais après un X3 de 1h43 où la durée est réellement justifie je suis pas contre long ne rime pas forcément avec bon (oué ya un G donc si on le pronnonce..)

En même temps, x3 a eu autant de jours de tournage que x2. mais le dernier volet a de nombreuses scènes d'action qui nécéssite pas mal de temps de tournage de pré-prod etc. Exploser des murs à la manière du fléau, se balancer d'une fenêtre comme un ange, ou se battre dans la salle des dangers doit prendre du temps à filmer mais pour finalement que peu de minutes à l'écran. Donc il est presque logique qu'il soit moins long...

Vouep mais ca regle pas ma crainte quand meme.
Si le film n'est qu'une succession de morceaux de bravoure ou de scenes sponsorisées par Kleenex on passera certes un bon moment en salle mais ca en fera pas je pense le meilleur des 3, il manquera le côté humain.
Là a la vue de ce qu'on a ca risque d'être le film apocalyptique genre armageddon, independance day (bon j'adore independace day après hein ^^ mais bon c pas pareil quoi)

Les acteurs n'arrêtent pas de dire que le film est très psychologique etc... Bon je sais qu'il ne faut pas prendre ça comme des paroles d'évangiles, ils sont là pour vendre, mais quand même.

perso j'ai bcp de doutes a prendre au serieux ce que dit Hugh Jackman.

déja il a prouvé par le passé , que niveau choix c t pas trs ca et il se répandait déja dessus (Van Helsing ) et en plus il est quand meme prod.

bon aprés , que un Ian Mc Kellen s'y met , ca me rassure tout de suite plus ..mais bon.

ho ho..

Mrs lebeau , Tok, ne lisez pas ca:retroman vient de découvrir que Scott madej avait bien auditionné pour X3:


Bon aprés , ca se justifie vu que Donner a bien dit qu'il avait audionné pour Gambit , et que Arad avait dit aussi que ils cherchait un acteur connu ( Holloway donc) ...mais bon pk l'aurait t'il coupé puisqu'ils ont essayé aussi des acteurs inconnu?

C juste une théorie , mais la durée du film peut etre.

Citation :

He Audtioned for Gambit! (Finally it is revealed)


POSTED Saturday, April 22, 2006 04:47:29 PM

Ok so i e-mailed Scott Madej recently and asked him well as it was nearer the time the movie will be released could you give us a hint on who you audition for. Not expecting a response... he replyed back.

It was gambit he auditioned for. But looks like they recast wonder if it was Josh Holloway?

Anyone want to see my e-mail - just e-mail me on _____________________


His e-mail did quote the following.

Hi James

Yes, I read and did screen testing around this time last year. The role was
Gambit. I believe it was recast, and eventually cut from the script. I'm
currently attached to a few other projects at the moment, so look out for those.

Thanks for writing )

Scott

Y'a pas trop de photos de scoot madej, mais je le trouve un brin trop jeune.
La rumeur date du 16 mai 2005. Donc en Mai, Gambit était encore dans le film. Ratner a du l'enlever (heureusement!) ou alors, Donner voulait un inconnu et Avid (d'argent) voulait l'autre zigoto de Lost... Du coup on se paye Quills et Arclight!lol

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How much involvement did you and Zak have in the information on the official X-Men website, such as the character profiles that details the name and powers of each mutant? Can I suggest that those character profiles are part of the publicity material sent to the media....

*We did not have any involvement in the website.

When you were considering cameos, how did you do this. Did you just pick your favourites?

*Really three criteria: 1) our favorites, 2) the characters who best service the story, 3) mutants with powers that are unique and visual, and distinct from one another.

-What kind of scripts are you hoping to write in the future.

*More cool, character-driven genre films like X3 and Mr and Mrs Smith. I grew up loving action, superhero, sci-fi flicks, and I want to do more of those movies. Ideally, I could work with great filmmakers like Fincher, Soderbergh, Michael Mann, Bryan Singer, Danny Boyle, etc…


Simon, im hoping you can help clear this up for us UK fans. It says on the official website that X3 is released in the UK on May 27th which is a day later than for the rest of the world, yet on the new posters released to UK cinemas it says that X3 will be released on May 25th. Magazines such as Total Film say that its released here on May 26th! As you can see, we are a tad bit confused on the actual release date so can you possibly confirm for us the real release date?

*I really don’t know. I would guess May 26th, since they won’t release on a Saturday. They might do midnight screenings on the 25th.

Hi Simon will juggernaut have the same strenght as HULK in x-men 3

*Not the exact same. Their strength comes from different places.

One of the things I'm kind of worried about is that in X3, you guys might try and turn Logan and Jeans relationship into a more romantic one. Hugh Jackman states in Total Film that Logan and Jeans relationship will go to the next level. What I'm wondering is, is the Logan/Jean relationship in this film a deep bond, or a romantic one?

*Next level emotionally. But it WAS romantic in the first two movies. I mean, they have a very romantic scene in X2. And a big subplot in that film is whether they will get together (resolved at the end with that final epilogue scene between Logan and Scott in the hallway). Their relationship in X3 is an extremely complicated one. More emotionally charged than anything you’ve seen in these films. And more impossible than anything they’ve ever faced.


What in your opinion is THE "Nightcrawler/whitehouse " scene of X3? .....meaning the scene you think fans will be talking about the most as soon as the movie is over

*Hmmm, good question. Maybe the Golden Gate Bridge. Or the Phoenix Effect at the end. In general, the Phoenix power is pretty awesome.

Do you know when the movie will be locked down, and shown to the press?

*Not sure. Long-lead (magazine) press will see it soon, but with unfinished effects and unfinished music/sound, I believe.

Simon, you mention how you prefered Spidey 2 to X2 because it had more emotion. Would you say, and speak truthfully please, that X3 has more emotion than both X2 and Spidey 2 or just X2 etc?

*It’s really hard for me to judge, because I’m so close to X3. I know that people who have seen the film find it very emotional. And there are definitely a lot of intensely emotional scenes. But I’m not objective enough to judge fairly.


will jean and cyclops have a phycic rapport in this movie?

*Spoiler.


1. From the looks of the first few trailers, i though Collossus and Iceman would be in the movie A LOT, but now, by the looks of posters and previously answers and things, it seems they have small parts. I LOVE collossus and think that Bobby is a real asset to these X movies. I would hate to see there parts go to wastes, mainly because you could do so much with them and they are fan favorites. I would love to see them have more than a little screen time. Since they are not on the posters, i am thinking i can assume they wont be in the movie that much. Can you address my concern?

*Iceman is a very substantial part of the film. He has a bigger role in this movie than the previous two. The same is true for Colossus – in terms of him having a bigger part in this movie than the previous two (but he’s not as big a factor in the film as Bobby).

2. Do you know if the video game is supposed to be any good?

*I don’t know. Zak worked on it. You should ask him.

are you going to Cannes? when is the American premiere for X3? Will you attend all the premieres?

*I don’t know if there is going to be an American premiere. They haven’t scheduled one yet. I don’t know about Cannes. I may go. It's a long way to go for one night. I will definitely be at the domestic premiere, if they have one.

Citation :

My question is, wouldn't you love to have those X-men-themed Ice Cream specials again? I think it was Baskin Robin that put that on. Either way, the Storm one was pretty tasty. Haha

*I would LOVE it! I’m a big Baskin Robbins fan. In fact, the cake at my wedding was an ice cream cake from B&R!

1) A new debate arose today concerning the new posters. Personally, while perhaps they could've done something different with the text, I like the new posters; I like how each one has contradicting descriptives related to each character. I still like the 'Take a Stand' posters better. But I like these too. What do you think?

*I like the “Take a Stand” posters better too. But I like these because they're really about character. They’re not just headshots like the posters for the first two films. They are trying to explore the duality of these characters, which I think is pretty novel and ambitious. I just like the imagery more in the first posters (though it’s nice to see the title on this poster!).


2) Do you know everything that's going to be in the 7-minute clip, or just bits and pieces? Can you say if it's going to be one continuous scene, or several scenes put together? Can you at least say if anything's going to spoil us (even more than we already are)?

*Several scenes. But I’m not sure what made it into the final clip.


Serious question Simon.
Ninjas or pirates?

*Pirates in films. Ninjas in videogames. Seriously.


Would you say that X3 has more action or dialouge?

*Dialogue. I think the dialogue scenes outnumber the action sequences significantly.

Can you smuggle me a DVD after the movie comes out in theatres? Come on, I know it's possible to get a print of the movie on DVD or something! I just don't wanna wait until December

*Sure. I’ll get Halle Berry to deliver it to your door.

My question is is what great things will make juggernaut.Every one knows from the trailer that he smshes walls .I heard that he will fight with wolverine also with colossus will he beat them .AND ITS TIME FOR THE BIGGEST question will the unstoppable juggernaut will be really unstoppable in the movie

*He will fight pretty much everyone in this film. His fight with Wolverine is pretty badass, and his chase with Kitty is very cool. His powers make him unstoppable, yes. If he gains momentum, then nothing can stop him.


#1 Is their any rule of thumb you go by when writing them maybe a certain amount of pages I should aim for? Should I be read the pages back out loud and see how long it takes?

*You should aim for between 115-120 pages for a feature script. Don’t worry about the running time. That’s not your problem. The industry standard for scripts is 115-120.

#2 I have noticed their are a few different writing programs out their to use, do you use anything special or simply something simply like word processor?

*I use FinalDraft, which I think is the absolute best software. It makes the writing process a lot easier. It's the program used by most studios now. All of our scripts for X3 were on FinalDraft, and we emailed drafts to production via the software.


But one about the run-time, 90% of the comic book movies released that have been the poorer ones are less than 110 minutes. And then i foind out that X3 is significantly less than this. This has me extremely worried for X3 in terms of quality, is there anything you can say to put me at ease.

*I don’t think running time equals quality. I’m sorry. If you look at classic Hollywood films from the golden era (1940s), most of the movies were around 90 minutes long. For whatever reason, films have become bloated over the years. But I can name just as many great films under two hours as over two hours. The problem with Elektra or FF was not running time, trust me.


While X1 with more characters took less time to introduce them. And why is Batman Begins so better, yes, because it's bigger, because Nolan, who knew what it takes, took his time.
So, many means in superhero flick running time, it makes quality, can amplify it or take the quality of the movie down. Imagine Batman Begins with 35 minutes less, the movie wouldn't be so good.

*I enjoyed Batman Begins, and I agree that Nolan is a brilliant filmmaker, but I was bored by the third act. I loved the first 45 minutes, but I thought it lost steam with too many villains in the finale. I can easily imagine BB with 35 minutes less, and I don’t think the movie would have suffered. In fact, I think it may have been better. The epic nature of the film was not about the running time, but the sophistication of the scenes and the themes.


Also Spider-Man, with generally less complicated story than X1, took more time. Although Spider-Man doesn't come close to Batman Begins. For X1, the time could have been longer, and with that, characters and the movie overall could be so much stronger.

*I have seen the longer X1. And I don’t think it's necessarily better than the released cut. And I think Spiderman 2 is better than BB. Also, remember that BB has 45 minutes of character set-up. He doesn’t put on the suit till about 45 minutes into the movie. In X3, they’re wearing their suits from the start.


So did you think with ''Sentinels are not a big part of the movie'', did you say that, only because we will see only foot. Don't tell me, we will see only that foot?

*You will see more than the foot.

Citation :

Hey all,

Well, I’m happy to see that there’s finally something more controversial than the fate of Cyclops. Honestly, I understand your concern about the running time of the film. I always knew it would be shorter than X2, and I assumed it would be closer to X1 in length. I’m not entirely sure of the final FINAL running time, but it will indeed be around the announced time.

There are a few things you should probably keep in mind, in terms of the film. One, we didn’t need to do as much character set-up as X1. We made this movie primarily for the established fans, so we didn’t spend a lot of time introducing core characters. As you’ll see, we just dive right into the film, thus saving a lot of time in Act One. Also, we really have a lot of character/dialogue scenes in the movie, which run faster than action (in terms of page-count-to-screen-time ratio).
What Brett said was right – he did not cut any substantial scenes (I think he only cut one transitional scene). He edited the movie for a particular pace and energy, which he felt was right for this story. He wanted this war to feel like it was escalating and accelerating right into the final battle. As far as I know, he was not encouraged by the studio to cut down the film. I know Fox made FF and Elektra, but they also made Master and Commander (138 minutes), Kingdom of Heaven (145) and TITANIC (194). Revenge of the Sith was shorter than Attack of the Clones, and I think ROTS was significantly better.
Anyway, at the end of the day, you’ll be the judge of whether or not X3 is an epic enough climax to the trilogy. As writers, Zak and I had no control over the running time. That was entirely up to Brett and his editor Mark Helfrich. They paced the scenes the way they wanted, and all I hope is that it’s the best hour 45 you spend all summer…

Now, onto the questions (some old, some new):


As for that Magneto pic, Im bumed cause I cant believe they released it! Point taken you cant go into it BUT just cuase the guys down dont mean he's out does it?

*No, it doesn’t mean that he’s out. That picture is taken way out of context.


if nightcraweler was in this film, do you think he would consider taking the cure? in X2 it shows that he still feel like an outsider among other mutants, and especially in the scene where he's with mystique he asks here why doesnt she change her appearance.

*Good question. I think he would consider it, though part of his arc in X2 is learning to be proud of his mutation.

First, many people involved with the movie have said that this is the best of the three. But we as fans hear a lot of talk like this about what turn out to be poor movies. Do you genuinely think you have made the best movie of the three or is it a bit of bias. Sorry if this question comes accross in a wrong way, i mean no offence by it.

*I’m obviously way too biased. And I also haven’t seen the final cut with the final effects and final music. So it’s hard to judge our film against the other two, until I see the final print. I will say, I am very proud of this movie, and proud of the fact that it fits into the trilogy, honoring Bryan’s tone, and deepening the relationships between the characters. I also think this film has the most direct references to the comics.


Also, i am a big fan of Firefly and Serenity, and i have heard that Summer Glau auditioned for the role of Kitty Pryde, but was turned down. I'm just wondering if this is true as i think Summer is a fantastic actress.

*I don’t know. A lot of great actresses auditioned for Kitty. But I think we ended up with one of the greatest young actresses around. If you haven’t seen Hard Candy, you gotta go check it out. I think Ellen’s performance in that movie is on par with Jodie Foster in “Taxi Driver.”

1) Will there be any Homosexual characters presented in the film, or hinted at - being gay myself, I would love to see an 'Ultimate' Colussus on the screen.

*I would love to see that too. But no, there are no openly gay characters in X3. There are definitely some characters with ambiguous sexuality (both male and female), and the metaphor of the cure is obviously loaded in terms of sexuality-politics. In fact, Zak and I were just doing an interview with the Advocate, which is running a story about homosexuality and the “mutant cure.”


2) I loved the rapport between Rogue and Logan in X1, however, in X2, the relationship between the two seemed to be somewhat watered down, despite the characters staying together longer in this sequel. Will X3 see Rogue's feelings for Logan revert back to their more intense crush on him, or will it be further watered down?

*We definitely tried to service this rapport in the film. As I’ve said before, one of my favorite scenes in the film is between Logan and Rogue in the hallway, and it is a very loaded exchange.


Quick question though - one of the officially released Fox images is of Beast, Wolverine and Storm on the X jet and Beast still has a very noticeable collar line(it looks like he's wearing a jumper); in the post production process have little things like this been touched up/fixed?? I know there's been a lot of FX work done probably on bigger FX scenes but I hope smaller details aren't overlooked. I know Brett has been described as a perfectionist so I hope he/someone spots smaller problems like this and they don't slip through to the final print.

*Lots of FX across the board. You are still seeing some temp images. I will take a look at the collar when I see the print.

Yo Simon, zak said that you raided barry manelows wardrobe is that true?

*Well, Zak would know. He has Barry posters all over his office. I started dressing like Barry when we were working together, because it seemed to inspire Zak.

But how would you describe Multiple Mans personality? or Callistor or Quill or Arclight????

*Multiple Man is a swaggering, mischievous badass. Callisto is hardcore, militant (and a serious fighter). Quills is frighteningly calm and quietly lethal.

1. On the new website, when you click on mutants and you could see all the various animations of the characters. Why do they show Cyclops in the X suit but he is shooting a beam from his protective glasses rather than his visor which is literally impossible and looks a little strange?

*I have no idea.

2. Secondly, I was just very curious Simon if you are proud of the way you were able to incorporate Cyclops into the movie considering the confines you were given?

*I am proud with what we did, given those confines. We were handed very specific parameters, and we did everything we could within those parameters. I know Jimmy is very proud of his performance, which means a lot to me.

Moi qui croyais que tu allais faire des commentaires sur sur qu'a dis Zac lol.
+ de dialogues que d'actions----} Je pense vraiment qu'on peut faire de bonnes et courtes scènes d'actions. L'affrontement final à Alcatraz sera plus long mais les scènes d'actions qui seront ici et là dans le film ne risque pas de durer aussi longtemps que dans Matrix (), et persos, dans Kill Bill la 1ère scène de fight entre black mamba et vernita green est plus tripante que celle contre les 88 fous.

Une sentinelle dans la salle des danger (et probalement pas ailleurs-------} cooooooool

J'ai hate de voir le phoenix pas contente!

A ca je te dirais que dans Begins les scenes d'actions sont pas trés longues , et on a moins de persos.

Je veux bien me dire que le film peut etre sympa , mais serieusemement pas plus.

ps: et c un foutage de gueule raaAAAAHHHHHHHH GGGRRRRRRRRRRRR !!!!!! blblablablaaa

Ps: c Simonn , pas Zach

Ps2: pour mes commentaire sur Simon et la durée du film , je ferais des copiers collés de Allo

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p.s. about that running time...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

...i'm really not sure if that's with or without credits. so could be longer. honestly, i never clocked it...

more Q&A:

Do you feel that the casting list for Poland is of importance to the story or just because. Hugh and Halle are the headliners, (Why is that!? Just most well known or something?) and then Ian and Famake, Anna, Kelsey and James follow (I can't make out the rest)... So whats up do you agree with the way they credited or would you have done it different? Will it be different in America? If you would have list them please. As always thank you for your time.

*I have no idea how it will be in America. The cast list has nothing to do with the size of the part, and everything to do with the level of the actor’s celebrity. The studio believes Hugh and Halle are the biggest stars, so that’s how they advertise it. Hugh and Halle got paid the most, so they should be headlining. But Storm is not the second-biggest character in the film.


On the new official website, Callisto is listed as leader of the 'Omega Muties' instead of the Morlocks, why did you choose to make this decision and is their anything more you can tell us about this group?

*Callisto’s crew consists of more than Morlocks. The Muties are a radical crew of militant mutants.


1. Storm Powers work with the weather (They are limited on the INSIDE), how come lightning can come out of her body? And how come she then can't create other powers from her body? (I don't like that her power(s) comes from her body!!!)

*She can harness bolts of lightning (like in the comic). She doesn’t generate the bolts from inside her body. She harnesses them out of the air. Have you ever seen her shotgun-blasts of lightning in the comics?


2. Will Professor X astral project?

*Spoiler.

4. Will we see some of the X-Kids (Syrin,Jubilee,Flea,Jones,Artie) from earlier movies use there powers again?

*Yes.

5. Will we see more than one Danger Room sequence?

*Spoiler.

-Is it safe to assume, based on the article in Premiere magazine, that there won't be more than one Sentinel-like robot featured anywhere within the film?

*Spoiler. But I will say that Sentinels are not a big part of the movie.

hey simon, can you say how many pages the script ended up at?

*Hard to say, because when you get into production, you lock the script and start using half-pages and additional pages (A and B pages). I think it was ultimately around 125 pages.


It was basically congratulating you on your new project w/Nicole Kidman, followed by asking something to the effect of "Can't you just picture Ms. Kidman as a telepath donned in all white leather?"

*Thanks for the congrats. I’ve been wanting to work with Nicole ever since she had to step off Mr&Mrs Smith. I can definitely imagine her as Emma, though the project we’re working on isn’t mutant-related. For my money, she's one of the greatest actresses in the world. So it will be great fun to put a gun in this Oscar-winner's hand.


The other one concerns the fact you felt Spiderman 2 was better than X2 as far as sequels go. Could you elaborate on that? I agree that Spiderman 2 was one of those rare cases where the sequel was as good, if not better, than the original (X2 being another). What do you think could've/should've been done to make X2 better than S2, in your mind? More action? More money put into the production? I understand if it's difficult to answer something like that. Thanks in advance.

*I think X2 and Spidey2 are neck-and-neck, but ultimately I felt the action was better executed in Spidey 2 (for instance, the subway car sequence is just more technically accomplished than anything in X2, even including the Nightcrawler/White House sequence). More importantly, I found Spidey2 a little more emotional. The death of Jean definitely got me teary, but that final scene with Spidey and MJ in his apartment had me crying like a little baby. At the end of the day, it’s not money, but heart that makes movies classic. In my opinion, both X2 and Spidey2 are in classic territory, but Spidey2 just hit me harder.


In the earlier drafts when Nightcrawler was still a part of the script - maybe a small part, but a part nonetheless - what sort of future was possibly planned for him in X3? Would he have joined the team officially, or would he still have been as a sort of tag-along... can you shed any light whatsoever?

*He was never a substantial part of the script. All our early conversations had him essentially as a cameo.

you and Zak previously stated that X-3 would at least be longer than X-1, while a representive from Fox has confirmed that the running time is 103 minutes(shorter than X-1). What has changed about the film since your initial estimates of the running time?

*We believed it would be longer than X1, but we never really clocked the running time (as I’ve said before). We’re talking about a couple of minutes here.

- I know the DVD release is many, many months away, but have you, Brett, and/or Zak already recorded some behind-the-scenes material for the X3 DVD release? (Video diaries, interviews, etc.)

*They shot behind-the-scenes footage throughout production. There are hundreds and hundreds of hours of material. Video diaries, interviews, production footage.

What is next on your plate (screenwriting-wise)?

*I am writing and producing Doug Liman’s next film “Jumper,” which is about a teenage teleporter. The first draft was actually written by David Goyer (Batman, Blades, Crow). After that, I will be writing the “Mr and Mrs Smith” TV show, then the spy thriller for Nicole Kidman.

Are you and Zak do a writers' commentary for the X3 DVD?

*I’m sure we will do one together. And all questions will finally be answered about the mysterious Mike Chamoy....

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Are you also contracted to write and direct your own X-Men spinoff, like Zak is?

*No. I think I’m going to take a break from comic-book movies for a little while. I want to write a couple original scripts, then I’ll come back to the superheroes. Also, writing an X-Men movie was the pinnacle for me, so it would be hard to write a spinoff or secondary character.


Fantastic Four was a perfect example of this. While a good movie, its script was amazing and ruins the movie once read in comparison. The script was marred by bad editing. 15 minutes is 15 pages of script roughly -- that's alot of stuff not maximized on. It also puts a harder burden on critics and fans b/c the inevitable response for anything feeling rushed, or unexplained will be...you had an additional fifteen minutes.

*The one-page-equals-one-minute ratio is never entirely true. I have never worked on a movie (or even heard of a movie) where the running time was the exact same as the page count. On Mr and Mrs Smith, the final shooting script was 138 pages long, and the movie was 120. As for FF, I appreciate you saying that we had an “amazing” script, but I don’t think we ever truly hit "amazing" territory. I think we had a good, and in some spots great, script. But I don’t think the problem with the movie was running time. In fact, the studio and director went back to film extra scenes a few months before the release, making it at least 5 minutes longer.


So the question is...was the script rushed? I'm sorry Simon but I just find it hard to believe that this big of a story and this many characters can all fit into just over an hour and a half without some things getting sacrificed. While there are some brilliant movies out there that are fairly short, history has taught us, as far as superhero flicks go, that under 2 hours can be damaging. X1 is the exception, but I place that success firmly on Singer's shoulders. And the thing about X1, yes it was short and still a good movie, but it could have been so much better had it been longer and included more character development (like the deleted scenes). X1's length is its main flaw.

*I don’t think the script was rushed. Brett and his editor had a particular vision for the film, which was more intense and kinetic than the first two movies.

In the defense of the film makers, everything that was filmed will be in the final cut. So the legnth wasn't a studio decision so far as cutting down the movie for a certain length, nor to be able to release special edition DVD's later on with extra deleted scenes.

*This is mostly true. There was one transitional scene that was replaced, but otherwise the scenes we shot are in the film.

Fox has a track record for editing down their movies over the past few years.

*Based on what? As I said above, Fox made Master and Commander, Kingdom of Heaven, plus Day After Tomorrow was over two hours, and even In Her Shoes was 130 minutes.

Now it seems it's simply to release the real version on DVD to rack in even more money. Fox is the studio, they can mandate a many things if they want. They own the film.

*They can mandate things. But they didn’t demand anything from Brett in terms of running time. As you know, X2 is a long film, and it did very well for Fox. The running time was really the filmmaker’s decision with his editor.

Will kitty have more screen time than rogue?

*I would say they have about equal amounts of screentime. But Rogue is a bigger emotional piece of the film.

How goes the Phoenix?

*Effects are looking good. They’re still working, down to the wire. But it looks pretty incredible.

Can we expect to see any Phoenix related images before release date? (im kinda hoping u guys dont, so i have something to really look forward to)

*I don’t know. I’m sure they will keep the most shocking images for the film experience.

Lastly, do you feel that the Phoenix Effect has potential to be the #1 rated visual effect we see all summer long? An image that audiences will be talking about when they walk out of the theaters

*I sure hope so. I think it’s pretty mind-blowing. The effect of her power is stunning. In terms of being the #1 effect, I have no idea, because I haven’t seen footage from the other big effects-driven tentpoles like Superman, Poseidon, and POTC.


Its rumoured that the movie will have a special cameo character set up for x-men 4... Now what i want to know is, is this a most wanted character like gambit who has been passed down like three times, Polaris, Quicksilver and scarlet witch. Or is it going to be a bigger character as in Mr Sinister for Legact virus, Or Apocaylpse for Age of apocaylpse, Hellfire club for Dark Phoenix? Just wanted to know how big the cameo is

*Uh…spoiler..?

3. And so, the end is near, and so i reach, my final curtan... So what i want to know for the third questions is 2 movies in and the third soon to be on big screen. Is there a particulare scene in the movie that you worked on that you are particulare proud of. something you can said to your family "They did it my way"

*I love the scene with Wolverine and Jean/Phoenix in the infirmary. And I love the scene between Wolverine and Rogue. Those two scenes are my favorites in the film.

Citation :

1. Since Storm can shoot lightning from her body, can she Project other things from her body?

*She can harness lightning, and project it. She could conceivably do this with any weather.

2. I never know that all of Wolverine's Senses were heightened. I just thought it was Hearing and Smelling?

*We only really deal with his heightened hearing and smelling.

3. Did you Guy's Change Callisto's powers a little?

*Yes.

4. Are there still alot of Cameos we have not seen, yet?

*Some, yes.

Did you or Zak ever pump James Marsden for Superman spoilers?

*I tried. He gave me nothing. He just kept doing the Famke walk over and over and over...

Regarding the novelization by Chris Claremont: did you and Zak keep him abreast of any major script changes while he was penning the book, or did that issue ever really come up?

*Yes. We were in contact, by email. And Chris visited the set.

Hey Simon, Does Phat have a role in X-men 3?

*That's a big phat spoiler.

-The next X3 trailer is slated to debut in theaters with Mission Impossible III in 2 weeks. Have you seen it? What can we expect (not in detail anyway)? Or can you give us anything, like, in terms of the last two trailers? Will it be more of the same?

*I haven’t seen the new trailer. I hope to get a glimpse this week, and I’ll let you guys know.


can you tell me more about kitty pryde role please!

*She has a substantial role in the film. She is an essential part of the biggest action sequences, and she uses her phasing powers in ways you’ve never seen on film. Also, she is part of an emotional subplot in the movie. She’s a smart, wise-cracking, pretty fearless girl. Just like the comics.

Do you feel that you, Ratner, and the whole "x-crew" did the film justice?

*Hope so! You will tell me in a month!

I'm sure we, the fans, would be better to answer this, but was your honest opinion of what has been produced?

*I am proud of the film. As with everything I’ve ever worked on, I see the imperfections. But I think we made a fitting conclusion to this trilogy. I’m especially proud of the level of emotion and character development. All of my favorite scenes are big, emotional dialogue scenes. And I'm so incredibly proud of the performances. The actors really connected to the script, and brought our scenes to life.

Citation :

X3: The New X-Jet
An exclusive look at Last Stand's slightly revised X-Jet.
by Steve Head

April 25, 2006 - For director Brett Ratner, one of the key creative objectives for X-Men: The Last Stand is the movie's tone. "It's been very important for me to stick to the tone," says Ratner. "I feel so reverential to the first two [movies], I'm not reinventing anything that's already been done." That being the case, Ratner didn't reinvent the vehicle the X-Men use to get where they need to go (and quickly). However, that marvel of aeronautic engineering, the X-Jet, will have some slight modifications.



To make the jet appear a bit more realistic, visual effects supervisor John Bruno and his team will create various digital extensions and minor enhancements. "We've streamlined [the jet] a bit, visually added a couple of bells and whistles, but it's essentially still the same vehicle you all know from the prior two movies."

"Fans won't be disappointed with the X-Jet," Bruno tells IGN FilmForce. "We have various versions of it for filming purposes. There's some large set pieces, and then there's half set pieces, and [the visual effects team] will fill it in digitally. So, sometimes it's half real and half digital." The "real" X-Jet is predominantly comprised of the same set that was built for the first two movies. "They pulled it out of storage and put together portions of the original jet for specific scenes."


20th Century Fox


Click this exclusive pic for a larger version.



One scene in which the X-Jet is featured has Storm, Wolverine and their fellow X-Men looking for Magneto's underground lair. The production filmed the first half of the scene on a large soundstage at Mammoth Studios in Vancouver. "They've landed in the forest and it's very foggy," says production designer Ed Verreaux. "They really can't see." As the scene continues, the X-Gang descends the ramp (which will be partially CG animated). "They walk in the forest a little bit," he says, "[and] Storm does one of her things and she clears the fog." And then, when the fog clears, they're "on a location which is at a lake an hour east [of the studio]."

For the scene, the underside of the jet and a portion of the central cabin was re-assembled and suspended from wires. Showing IGN FilmForce the set, Verreaux says, "This is the bottom of the X-Jet fuselage. The ramp, the fins and all that, everything else will be added digitally. You'll notice that the ramp is longer than the opening. For some reason the way it was designed in X2, they did the interior of the set with a shorter ramp bay than the exterior. To have the ramp come down and not be real steep like a ship's ladder, they had to have the ramp be longer." In X2, you'll see that "they cut away from it. You never see the ramp actually go up and nest in the fuselage."

Verreaux again points out the jet's ramp. "You'll see the treads rotate about 45 degrees. That's visual effects. They don't actually do that. [In X2] There wasn't actually time to mechanically build this to do that. It became a post thing."

As for the rest of the jet, "the nose, cockpit and all that are on another stage all wrapped up," says Verreaux. "We did shoot X-Jet interior stuff earlier here on the stage before the forest was here. We had this aft section and the front section connected, but we don't need that for this scene."

Now, you might ask, for which scene was the aft section required? (Those of you wary of spoilers, don't worry, we'll play it safe here.) We don't have all the information, so we can't confirm this - although, on a side note, we can confirm the Sentinels will appear - but from observing production art, the following may be surmised: the X-Jet has been refitted to include seating for Colossus, Iceman, and Kitty Pryde. And, it appears they'll take part in an airborne offensive on Magneto's Alcatraz; a team assault by (as far as we know) Storm, Colossus, Iceman, and Kitty Pryde (dangling from Iceman). This could be one big jump from the X-Jet. And an ultra-cool attack (or rescue?) by the X-Men.

Stay tuned to IGN FilmForce for the latest!

http://filmforce.ign.com/articles/702/702966p1.html

Qui pourrait faire un rapide résumé de "'Days of Future Past". Non parce que Kindberg a dit qu'il adorait cet arc, et je suis en train de lire une nouvelle interview de la productrice qui dit:
With over 40 years of "X-Men" comics to plow through, how do they decide on what material to bring to the screen next? "You know, we're a good group -- Marvel, Fox, myself and Ralph Winter. We're a team that's done it three times now and we sit down and talk about those stories that we want to pursue. There are separate stories like one called 'Days of Future Past,' which were written many, many years ago, that we all love and one day want to make. So we try as a group to toss out ideas.

L'intégralité de l'interview de la plus chanceuse des productrices.

'X-Men' should give summer a hot start

By Martin A. Grove

"X-Men" Xcitement: Although the early weeks of May have evolved into a pre-summer season with good grossing potential, it's Memorial Day weekend when the boxoffice really heats up and establishes the tone for the summer ahead.

Last year, a soft Memorial Day weekend with key films down 6% from 2004 sparked valid concerns about Hollywood's health. The four-day holiday weekend's top grossing film was Fox and Lucasfilm's "Star Wars: Episode III" with $70 million for its second weekend in theaters. It was followed by DreamWorks' opening of its computer-animated "Madagascar" with $61 million and Paramount's launch of its action-comedy remake "The Longest Yard" with $58.6 million. The bad news was that key films grossed $226 million for the four days versus $239.2 million a year earlier.

This summer looks like it should get off to a hot start May 26 thanks to 20th Century Fox and Marvel Enterprises' "X-Men: The Last Stand," the third episode in the blockbuster franchise based on the hit Marvel comic book series created over 40 years ago. It's a tribute to the film's strong boxoffice potential, by the way, that it isn't facing any competition from other wide openings over the four-day Memorial Day weekend (May 26-29).

Directed by Brett Ratner, the new "X-Men" -- let's just call it "X3" for short here even though "3" is not actually part of its title -- is produced by Lauren Shuler Donner and Ralph Winter, producers of the first two episodes, and written by Simon Kinberg ("Mr. and Mrs. Smith") and Zak Penn ("X2: X-Men United"). It was executive produced by Marvel Studios chairman and CEO Avi Arad, Marvel Comics chairman emeritus Stan Lee, Marvel Studios production president Kevin Feige and John Palmero, who's partnered with "X-Men" star Hugh Jackman in Seed Productions.

The franchise stems from Fox's mid-summer release of the first "X-Men" on July 14, 2000. Opening to $54.5 million, it went on to gross over $157 million domestically and nearly $139 million internationally or about $296 million worldwide. "X2" arrived in theaters three years later to kick off the pre-summer season May 2, 2003. It opened to $85.6 million and wound up doing nearly $215 million domestically and about $191.5 million abroad or nearly $406.5 million worldwide.

"X3" reunites the stars of the first two episodes -- Hugh Jackman (Wolverine), Halle Berry (Storm), Ian McKellen (Magneto), Patrick Stewart (Xavier), Famke Janssen (Jean Grey), Anna Paquin (Rogue), Rebecca Romijn (Mystique), James Marsden (Cyclops) and Shawn Ashmore (Iceman). Returning from "X2" are Aaron Stanford (Pyro) and Daniel Cudmore (Colossus). Joining them now for "X3" is Kelsey Grammer as Dr. Henry McCoy, also known as Beast, a mutant geneticist who after conducting experiments on himself sprouts blue, bestial fur.

For some insights into why the "X-Men" franchise has enjoyed such great success, I was happy to catch up recently with Shuler Donner, who explained, "Going way back, I think Marvel created really complex psychologically well drawn characters. I think one part of (the franchise's success) is that we had some wonderful existing heroes and anti-heroes and tragic heroes to deal with. Then I think there's a whole thing about just being a mutant and being an outsider. I think people can identify with that. I think we all feel that way. So right away we're empathetic. And then I think there's also wish fulfillment in having powers. I think that also makes the audience like us and want to be entertained by us."

The pressure, she acknowledged, is intense to deliver to fans of the franchise with this new episode something that's just as good or better than what they've applauded previously. "It was intense (pressure) in the second one, but our goal with the second one was obviously to make it better and more enjoyable and not repeat ourselves," she told me. "That was the thing. We didn't want (to repeat ourselves) because sometimes you see sequels and you feel like you've been there before. So on the third one, yes, the pressure was even more intense. We had to be even bigger, even better, even more exciting and even more original.

"We have the trilogy aspect in our favor in that we had set up in the first two movies a few storylines that were paid off in the third. So that worked in our favor. Plus, there were a couple characters that we always wanted to do that were too expensive to do -- and the storylines were never woven intrinsically into the movie -- that we decided we would do in 'X-Men 3.' For example, the character of Beast that Kelsey Grammer plays."

Shuler Donner is particularly happy about having added new characters like Grammer's Beast to the franchise with "X3." "It infuses new blood into the series when you don't use just your cast, but are bringing in new characters with new storylines," she said. "I think that made it fun for all of us, who had journeyed down this (path) before. To conceive (Grammer's) look was a whole new challenge. We have Vinnie Jones, who plays Juggernaut and his look and his creature and his music was another challenge. So that was a lot of fun. And then we have Ellen Page, who's a fantastic actress (playing Shadowcat), and we have a young actor named Ben Foster, who plays Angel. Angel has wings so we had to figure out how do we build his wings both practically and also digitally. That's sort of the good and the bad news. The good news is that it's fun to create it. The bad news is how the heck are we going to do this?"

It also helps that all the principal stars of the first two "X-Men" films are back for the third episode. "We have the best cast," Shuler Donner observed. "These are not easy movies to make -- and nobody complains. We have a wonderful cast. We love each other. We film together. We work together. And then we play together on the weekends. Outside of the movies, I'm friends with them. I enjoy them. I hope personally to continue to make movies with them because they are a delight, a joy and each one of them's more challenging than the next."

I recalled speaking to Shuler Donner just before the first "X-Men" came out and learning from her how in 1998 she'd discovered Hugh Jackman, who wasn't well known then, and cast him in the original film. "He was in 'Oklahoma' in London playing Curly (on the stage) in Trevor Nunn's production and he couldn't leave," she said. "So he taped an audition and sent it over. And when I saw that audition I flipped. I thought he was so charismatic. Then I rented (a) movie he did in Australia called 'Paperback Hero' (a 1999 romantic comedy directed by Antony Bowman). And, again, he was charismatic, funny, physical, comedic, real, everything. So we brought him in. "Bryan was already up in Toronto starting to prepare. I met with him with (casting director) Donna Isaacson. We loved him so much we took him right over to (Fox co-chairman) Tom Rothman's office and introduced him to Tom. And Tom also responded and liked him a lot. So I called Bryan and said, 'I'm going to send him up. Audition him. Put him on film and tell me what you think.' So he went up there. We had Anna Paquin there and they had a scene together. Bryan brought the crew together and filmed him and I think both he and the crew by the time the audition was done agreed (that Jackman was perfect to play Wolverine)."

Asked about developing "X3's" story revolving around a "cure" for mutancy that would let mutants give up their powers so as to fit into society, Shuler Donner replied, "There was a comic and a Saturday morning show that both centered on the idea of a cure. We thought that a cure would be very controversial and would affect each character in a different way. Of course, the whole concept of it is the antithesis of what the X-Men are about. So we decided to recast the center of our new story universe. Plus, in the other two 'X-Men' we had set up the idea of Dark Phoenix, which is Jean Grey (Famke Janssen's telekinetic character). She 'died' at the end of 'X2,' but we gave her a sort of golden form over the water to allude to the fans that, hey, we know she's going to come back. She's also our plot in 'X3' (reborn and transformed into the ultimate weapon and a threat not only to the X-Men but to the entire world) along with the cure."

While the first two "X-Men" installments were directed by Bryan Singer, "X3" is directed by Brett Ratner, whose credits include such hits as "Rush Hour," "Rush Hour 2" and "Red Dragon." In the often Byzantine world of A-List directors, Singer was originally going to direct "X3" but dropped out and signed on in July 2004 to direct "Superman Returns" for Warner Bros. (opening June 30), replacing McG ("Charlie's Angels"), who doesn't like to fly and, therefore, wasn't happy about having to go to Australia to shoot that film. At an earlier point, Ratner was going to direct Warner's long in development "Superman" project, but back in March 2003 he pulled out of it. When Ratner came aboard to do "X3" he only had about a month and a half in which to prepare for shooting. On a movie as big as "X3" that's something many directors just wouldn't be able to handle.

La suite


"Brian took 'Superman' and Brett had been involved in another movie and left that movie and it was perfect timing," Shuler Donner explained. "We felt that Brett is a terrific director, had the energy and the enthusiasm and the vision and we felt it was a perfect match. I can tell you it was not very easy because he came in about six weeks before we started filming. We did not have enough time for his prep, but you know Brett -- he's so enthusiastic and he's so energetic. He just jumped right into the fray and had a great idea about the script. He changed the third act of the script much to the benefit of the movie. And we just hit the ground running."

How does Shuler Donner, whose films since 1983 have grossed over $2 billion worldwide and who's a real working producer not just a dealmaker, work with directors? "I'm very hands on," she replied. "I feel like I'm a creative producer. I work with them very much in pre-production, particularly in casting. That's my favorite area. You know, the 'X-Men' movies are different than other movies. An 'X-Men' movie is a lot about creature conception and that sort of thing. But I'm very involved in prepping a movie with a director and on-set I'm there. I like to obviously allow a director their vision and try to solve problems if I see another idea. You know, maybe a scene needs more energy or we've got it (shot but now) let's try it with a little bit more humor. I will make a suggestion with great reverence. I like to (have it so) that I'm the director's partner."

Making a movie on the scale of "X3" is clearly akin to marshalling an army of troops. Looking back at the rigors of production -- shooting began Aug. 2, 2005 and ended Dec. 23 -- Shuler Donner told me, "Oh, my God. We had a thousand people (working) at one point. It was very difficult because it seems as though there's never enough prep time for these movies. We built the Golden Gate Bridge, for example. We built the bridge and then had green screen behind it. It was enormous -- like a football field. We built it in Vancouver out in a field, fairly close to where our base was, which was the Vancouver Film Studios. It was huge. You could see it for miles. So we had the Golden Gate Bridge and all the cars on it. And then green screen. And then next to it -- but, of course, you had to get in your car to drive next to it -- we also built the exterior of Alcatraz. You're right, it's like marshalling an army.

"Also, you have to be extremely prepared because that means that half of the shots are visual effects. So you have to know what is going to be done in order to film what's in front of you knowing what it's going to match later on. So you have to have everything (story) boarded out. We have a wonderful First A. D. -- his name is Lee Cleary -- and we have all the boards. Of course, the director, Brett, has worked with storyboard artists and with visual effects and with special effects and has boarded out the sequences. Then Lee brings those boards on to set and everybody can see what we're filming. The way Lee does it is after each shot is done he'll cross it off and we know we're going on to the next one. It's a tool to communicate to this very large group."

On top of the built-in demands of making such a film, it didn't help any that the weatherman wasn't very cooperative. "It rained for the past six weeks," she pointed out. "I mean, we have done six weeks of exterior night freezing cold filming. It was freezing. If you look closely you'll see people's breath during the fight. And they're working hard and their breath is frozen."

As for the greatest challenges she faced in making the picture, Shuler Donner observed, "That was the most challenging -- standing out there in the rain. And figuring out the dynamics of the last 20 minutes of the movie -- without giving anything away. That was the most challenging sequence that any of us have ever been involved with."

Fans of the "X-Men" franchise will certainly be happy to know there's lots more material that can be developed for future episodes: "I hope there's a fourth and an eighth and a tenth. I mean, look, there's 40 years of 'X-Men' comics, so why not? There's a huge world (of back issues and the comic book is still ongoing). There's so smart (at Marvel). Not only do they have comic book artists and writers, but they've now drafted filmmakers. Joss Whedon (who wrote and directed episodes of 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' and is now writing and will direct the feature film 'Wonder Woman' for Warner Bros. and Silver Pictures) wrote an entire series of 'X-Men' comics as did Bryan Singer. They're very smart (because) they've also involved a lot of filmmakers in their ongoing comic books."

With over 40 years of "X-Men" comics to plow through, how do they decide on what material to bring to the screen next? "You know, we're a good group -- Marvel, Fox, myself and Ralph Winter. We're a team that's done it three times now and we sit down and talk about those stories that we want to pursue. There are separate stories like one called 'Days of Future Past,' which were written many, many years ago, that we all love and one day want to make. So we try as a group to toss out ideas.

"Also, Marvel does a lot of research online with their website and they get a lot of feedback from the fans. And I go online a lot -- sometimes under a fake name -- also to get feedback because they're our fan base and we want to make sure that we are catering to them. We listen to what they want to do and we combine that with what we want to do. Often they're the same (and) that's a great feeling."

On the marketing front, Shuler Donner applauds the team at Fox for its work on "X3" as well as the two previous blockbusters in the franchise. "They're fantastic," she said. "One of the greatest advantages of working with Fox besides their wonderful production team of (co-chairman) Tom Rothman and (president) Hutch Parker is their marketing (team headed by domestic marketing co-presidents) Tony Sella and Pam Levine and (executive vice president) Jeff Godsick. They're amazing. They've always astounded us (with things like) their conception (of campaigns). Their ideas for posters (and) their trailers are, I think, absolutely the best in the business."

And speaking of "the business," I reminded Shuler Donner that last summer many media people were ready to bury Hollywood given the weak grosses we were seeing at the time. Now with ticket sales up nearly 7% and admissions ahead by nearly 3.5% for the year to date versus last year thanks to some strong spring product, things are looking a lot brighter. "I think it's very complicated," she said, emphasizing that Hollywood still faces big problems. "I will tell you I think piracy is seriously affecting the business beyond what people talk about. I mean it's really taking globally a big bite out of profits and I think it has to be curbed. I don't know how, but I know it has to be dealt with.

"I do think, in general, the business is down (because of competition from new entertainment media for people's time and money). I believe gamers want to game and people go online and they buy DVDs and rent DVDs. The business is not as (simple as) it was years ago. But we can only hope that if we keep making exciting movies they will come and see them. I think this is going to be a good summer. I mean, certainly, between (such films as) 'Da Vinci Code' and 'Mission: Impossible III' and us, hopefully, it's going to start off well. I think we'll have a good summer and, hopefully, that'll give the whole business a boost."

Je l'ai toujours aimé cette dame. Elle est très attentive à faire un bon film et faire un film qui rapporte de l'argent.