Dan Owen reviews

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MOVIE NEWS

INDIANA JONES 4
Virginia Madsen (Sideways) (right) so impressed co-star Harrison Ford in new thriller Firewall that she's now the frontrunner to play his love interest in the fourth Indiana Jones adventure. Madsen plays Ford's wife in the new movie and admits they both found an unusual chemistry on set - after the ageing action man handpicked her for the role.
Ford: "She was an absolute delight - professional, very talented and simply, very sweet. She also took what could have been a fairly one-dimensional damsel in distress role and added so many layers to it - there isn't many who could do that. I'd work with her again in a heartbeat. I'm actually hoping she'll come over for Indiana Jones. We've talked about it."

HARRY POTTER & THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
The 'BBC' have announced casting news on the upcoming Harry Potter & The Order Of The Phoenix. Luna Lovegood will be played by unknown child actress Evanna Lynch (who beat 15,000 girls to nab the part), Nymphadora Tonks, the shape-shifting witch, will be played by Natalia Ten, Professor Umbridge, the incredibly evil Ministry teacher, will be played by Imelda Staunton (as rumoured), Bellatrix Lestrange, one of Voldemort's Death Eaters, will be played by Helen McCrory. Finally, the role of Mrs. Figg, Harry's next door neighbor, has been given to Kathryn Hunter.

THE WATER HORSE
'Walden Media', 'Beacon Pictures' and 'Revolution Studios' are teaming to produce a Narnia-scale film based on children's fantasy novel The Water Horse, by British author Dick King-Smith. 'Variety' says Robert Nelson Jacobs will write the live-action/CGI movie and Jay Russell will direct. Production is expected to begin in May in New Zealand.
The Water Horse tells the story of a lonely boy in Scotland who finds a mysterious egg from which hatches a "water horse" - a mythical sea monster of Scottish legend.
Russell, who has been pursuing this project for five years, said that the tone and look of the film will be more realistic than fantastical. The special effects will be done by 'Weta Digital' and 'Weta Workshop', which most recently created the visual effects in King Kong.

TRAILERS

Basic Instinct II - Risk Addiction - Trailer 1 (click here for trailer)

Will Sharon Stone be uncrossing her legs again?
One can hope.

This has the smell of last-ditch career resuscitation attempt to me.
Me, too. Sharon Stone was an iconic femme fatale in the early-90's, but could never get past THAT scene in Paul Verhoeven's original thriller. However, let's not forget she was very good in Casino, the best thing in the recent Catwoman, and also very watchable in Broken Flowers.

So why, Sharon - WHY?
Money? Who knows? Anyway, Stone is back as serial-killer/serial-humper Catherine Tremmel. The ice-pick wielding dangerous blonde.

Does this look any good?
Um, not really. The title has "straight to video" plastered all over it, and without Stone in the title role I'm guessing this is where this movie would have been headed. Still, it's set in the UK and finds Tremmel up to her old tricks. Cue lots of shagging and blood.

PG?
No, no. The trailer is incredibly naff, but quite daring in the amount of sex and nudity it shows.

That's obviously the ONLY selling point.
Probably. Still, the trailer's worth downloading for the gratuitous shots of Stone, if nothing else. Oh, and David Morrissey's in it.

The bloke of BBC drama Blackpool?
I know. Bizarre casting of the year. He's obviously hoping to raise his worldwide profile.

Let's hope, for his sake, it doesn't scupper his entire career then. Last thoughts...
1992 didn't have freeze-framable Quicktime like we have now. Just how DID we get by back then?

Cover Nacho Libre - Internet Exclusive Trailer (click here for trailer)

What-the-what?
Nacho Libre. It's a sports comedy from Jack Black.

And the sport being?
Mexican wrestling!

Ah, of course. Who's responsible.
Jared Hess.

Uh?
The bloke who directed Napoleon Dynamite.

Does he like strange titles?
Must do. Anyway, this looks like a pretty amusing movie. Nothing laugh-out-loud in here, but there are some nice sequences and Black looks to be on good form with his bizarre Mexican accent. Very similar to Dynamite in style, and definitely fairly unique. Could be one to watch as a surprise hit.

Or one just destined for DVD greatness later in the year.
Perhaps....