When I was a kid, I wished for a sequel to Barry Levinson’s not-so-loved yet respectable-for-its-groundbreaking-effects film Young Sherlock Holmes. I was simply all about young detectives at the time. I wasn’t about to read any of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s actual books, but I loved Encyclopedia Brown and the Three Investigators (the kids who were friends with Hitchock) and was curious about Nancy Drew (I never dared read her stories because they were for girls).

Anyway, that bit of backstory is hardly important to the news that Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes already has a sequel in development, but I wanted to mention it simply because I’m ecstatic that my wish for a Sherlock Holmes 2, even if not directly a follow up to the teenaged adventure, have been finally granted. At the same time, the news also allows a great deal of movie geeks to play Nikki Finke and shout “toldja!” regarding the rumor that Brad Pitt is playing Holmes’ nemesis, Moriarty, in the second installment — and likely also appears in the end of the first film (out this Christmas).

The sequel is being written by Kieran and Michele Mulroney, neither of whom worked on the original installment, and I have a suggestion for them before they begin: let this franchise be a trilogy, and make Sherlock Holmes 2 end on an Empire Strikes Back-level downer. Contrary to what some people might think, Holmes had been known to lose a case here and there (Rachel McAdams’ character in the film is actually one of the most famous to outwit him), so it won’t be too unsettling to see him fail big time. Perhaps he’ll even go into a dark period involving lots and lots of cocaine, and he won’t snap back into action until the third film.

Anyway, that’s my idea. Unlike others, I haven’t read the script for the first Holmes nor have I read all of Doyle’s tales of the detective, so maybe it’s not a likely scenario. Still, if Pitt’s the villain, it’ll be fun to see him win — maybe in a re-imagining of “The Final Problem,” only Holmes is sent to his supposed death at the bottom of Reichenbach Falls while Moriarty gets away?

Feel free to correct me or provide your own plot ideas in the comments below. First, check out what the other film blogs are saying about this news after the jump:

…Read more

I really hope that the new trailer for I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell is playing ahead of prints of Julie & Julia this weekend. After all, they’re both about bloggers-turned-authors-turned movie characters. The one problem might be that the audience for a foodie chick flick has less than 1% crossover with the audience for a lewd and misogynistic dude comedy. Of course, the only other appropriate placement for this spot is ahead of the similarly themed The Hangover, but that would surely just make this thing look even worse than it is.

Based on Tucker Max’s book of the same name, or at least one story from it, I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell will without a doubt be to Julie & Julia what How to Lose Friends and Alienate People was to The Devil Wears Prada. But at least How to Lose Friends featured Megan Fox, and it still couldn’t draw a crowd. So is there any hope for this? Considering how popular the trailer is on the web today, there may actually be some interest. Though we’re going to guess that after everyone has actually seen the trailer they’re not going to want to see the movie, even if they’re fans of Max’s “gonzo” tales of debauchery.

Check out other film blog responses after the jump:
…Read more

Warner Bros. has narrowed down the choices for the star of its Green Lantern movie, and considering the three candidates have been publicly named, courtesy of The Hollywood Reporter, I’m thinking the studio should let the fans decide. Put the screen tests up online, allow us to ask a few questions of each of the eligible bachelors actors and then permit us to pick our favorite as though it were some kind of movie-casting version of The Dating Game.

In a way, we, the moviegoers, will end up entering a long relationship with the person put in the role of Hal Jordan, aka Green Lantern, and we don’t want this to be the old-fashioned arranged-courtship sort of ritual we typically get from Hollywood. It didn’t work for the last Superman movie, and many of us aren’t even that happy with the current Batman. Warner Bros. needs to learn from its mistakes and embrace democracy.

So, who should it be? The runners-up are: Bradley Cooper; Ryan Reynolds; and Justin Timberlake.

If you need help making up your mind, check out what the film bloggers have to say after the jump. I’m sitting this one out due to my unfamiliarity with the superhero, but I’d be curious to see how Timberlake would do in such a role.

…Read more

Even though no readers bothered to guess the answer to the question asked in yesterday’s Bloggery post, I’m going two-for-two this week with another hot mystery: who will Fox get to fill the role of “B.A. Baracus,” originally played by Mr. T, in the A-Team movie? Regarding the trades’ confirmation that Bradley Cooper will likely play “Face” in the Joe Carnahan-directed TV adaptation, along with the disappointing news that Liam Neeson may be cast as “Hannibal,” many film blogs have reacted mostly with indifference. These aren’t the casting announcement we’re looking for, after all. We just want to know who the hell is going to try to take the place of someone as iconic as Mr. T.

I actually pity the poor fool whose job it is to make the casting choice. I also pity the person who has to decide if the new B.A. will sport Mr. T’s signature hairstyle and jewelry. And of course I pity the fool who has to play the part. He (Common, probably) is going to have to endure a lot of scrutiny long before he’s able to show audiences if he’s actually worthy.

While we’re waiting for the official announcement, though, bloggers are already on a roll with jokes about who should get the gig. Check out their ideas after the jump:

…Read more

The Hangover, Todd Phillips’ return to fratastic form after the disappointing School for Scoundrels, marks itself as an aesthetic step up for the Old School director right from the get go. With moody, pensive music playing on the soundtrack, the opening credits play out over a montage of Las Vegas By Day — giant cranes breaking the skyline of dull towers, Godzilla-size advertisements for “talent” like Marie Osmond baking in the sun — fading into the more palatable, glittery, and familiar images of Vegas By Night. This tells us right away that The Hangover means to say something about the contradictions of the city in which its set, and particularly the contrast between the Vegas myth of endless nights of full-on debauchery, and days spent nursing head-splitting regret at all-you-can-eat buffets. But Sin City presents Donnie and Marie is only the half of it: more importantly for The Hangover’s purposes, Vegas is a city constantly in construction, creating and erasing its own totally manufactured history,  a vacation spot paradoxically designed to provide inspiration for amateur photographers, which simultaneously boasts of its ability to send the same tourists home without memories that they could relate in mixed company.

In other words: the whole goal of the contemporary trip to Vegas is to come home with a digital camera full of evidence that you had a bunch of fun that you can’t recollect and certainly are not going to talk about. So when Phil (Bradley Cooper) Stu (Ed Helms) and Alan (Zack Galifinakis) wake up in their suite at Caesar’s the morning after Doug’s (Justin Bartha) bachelor party to find that their room is trashed and they’ve been left to care for a wandering chicken, a live tiger and a mysterious baby, the initial assumption is that this detritus is Vegas business as usual. Why can’t they remember anything that happened the night before? As Phil puts it, “Because we obviously had a great fucking time.” So great that the groom has gone missing.

…Read more