Filmonic » Marc Forster

Another draft of World War Z due in a few weeks

Liam — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 14:08:40 +0000

We haven’t heard anything on World War Z for a few months, and the last thing we did hear was from director Marc Forster who said the film’s script still needed a lot of development and is “still far from realization”. Now we have an update from author Max Brooks who commented on the scripting process and expects a new draft in a few weeks time:

From MTV:

The initial script, the first draft from Straczynski, left the book’s author very impressed. “I read Straczynski’s first draft, and it was f—ing brilliant. As the book writer i know that’s sacrilege to say, but it really was good,” Brooks said. “I turned to my wife and said ‘Honey, this is as good as the book. This is gonna be an amazing movie.’”
First drafts being what they are, you can expect that the script has changed some since Brooks first read it. “You know… the studio comes in and gives their notes and Forster came in and gave his notes,” he explained. “Carnahan was brought in for reasons unbeknownst to me. Maybe he’s doing a polish, maybe he’s doing a top-down rewrite. I know that his draft is supposed to come in in the next few weeks.”

World War Z takes place ten years after the human victory over a world wide Zombie epidemic, and above you can see some concept art for the film.

Marc Forster’s World War Z “still far from realization”

Liam — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:52:08 +0000

After Marc Forster finished work on Quantum of Solace he revealed that his next project would be World War Z, a film which takes place ten years after a human victory over a world wide Zombie epidemic (you can see some concept art above). Well Dark Horizons got some quotes from the director who said that we will have to wait a little bit longer before we see it on the big screen.

Forster says the film’s script still needs a lot of development and is “still far from realization”. As a result he’s likely moving forward with another project entitled “Disconnect” which is ‘ready to go’.
“Disconnect” is said to be about how humans deal with new technologies and the changes it causes to interpersonal relationships.
“World War Z”, based on the novel by Max Brooks, is a series of interviews conducted with various people about the events that transpired when a zombie pandemic swept the globe.

I’m sure everyone would rather see a world wide Zombie epidemic rather than stuff about technology relationships, but I suppose that’s how things go. I’m still waiting for his take on historical epic Nerfititi with Halle Berry which has been in development hell for years.

Marc Forster declines offer to direct Bond 23. Suggests they add more women and sex.

Liam — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 18:41:08 +0000

Quantum of Solace director Marc Forster told MTV that he has declined an offer to return to direct Bond 23. However, he did have some suggestions for what he would like to see on Bond’s next outing.

“They asked me if I wanted to,” Forster told MTV News. “I’ll never say never again, but at this point I would say no.”
“It really depends on what direction they want to take it,” the “Kite Runner” and “Monster’s Ball” director explained. “For me, I wanted to take it to a harder and darker place, but now that that journey I’ve gone on has succeeded, I feel like the next one can take it to a bit more humorous place again.”
“I feel like next time you should take it in a lighter and more humorous way, maybe add a few more girls and a bit more sex – all that kind of stuff,” he said. “I think that would be interesting.”

While I wouldn’t be opposed to this (who would be?) I don’t want the next film to be a romantic comedy. They can add the sex and women as long as it is before, during or after a high speed car chase, explosive mini-bus shoot-out, or an adrenaline filled Go-Kart battle. Lets keep Bond the action master that he is!

World War Z Concept Art

Liam — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 18:00:18 +0000

Quantum of Solace director Marc Forester’s next project will be World War Z, a film which takes place ten years after the human victory over a world wide Zombie epidemic. io9 got their hands on some rather cool concept art from the film which was drawn by artist Dan LuVisis. Check it out below!

If you have extremely good eyesight you will be able to see a poster for Quantum of Solace in the top right corner. The detail in this image is amazing.

To see a larger version and more concept art click here!

Marc Foster Goin’ Gangsta

Liam — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 01:08:13 +0000

After filming in exotic places such as Panama, Lake Garda in Italy and…err…Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, Quantum of Solace director Marc Foster will be brought back down to reality in his next film, as he is heading to ‘the streets’.

According to Variety:

Universal is in negotiations to remake the Korean film “Die Bad,” developing the drama as a potential directing vehicle for “Quantum of Solace” helmer Marc Forster. Brad Ingelsby will write the script.
Written and directed by Seung-wan Ryoo, the 2000 original consisted of four short films that told the story of the rise and fall of a gangster. The components are being combined for the English-language remake that will be set in Philadelphia.
“It’s an epic story of friendship, and how a single incident can change one’s life,” said Ingelsby.

I am expecting this will be a deep, character driven film with 100% less product placement.

Aston Martin Lake Accident Nothing To Do With Solace

Liam — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 01:41:38 +0000

Back in April an Aston Martin DBS crashed into Lake Garda in Italy, and many thought it was a Quantum of Solace stunt gone wrong. Well it turns out the accident had nothing to do with the film, as director Marc Foster told wenn.

“The car wasn’t owned by the film company or related to us. It was an engineer from Aston Martin driving the car to a press conference. He was on his way to breakfast in the morning and drove the car into the lake.
“We were shooting across the lake and, because the car was an Aston Martin, it was linked to us – but it had nothing to do with us.”
He adds, “There was an accident during a car chase sequence and the stuntman was immediately taken to the hospital. He is now almost recovered.
“Apart from that, there was a tiny little thing in the last week of shooting where Daniel (Craig) cut a very deep cut on his finger during a fight sequence. He lost a little bit of skin.”

Guillermo del Toro And Alfonso Cuaron Cast In Quantum of Solace

Liam — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 23:41:09 +0000

Director of The Hobbit Guillermo del Toro and Children of Men director Alfonso Cuaron will be surprise additions to the Quantum of Solace cast list, according to AP.

“Quantum” director Marc Foster tells the newspaper El Universal in an interview published Wednesday that he knows both directors and asked them to portray members of a fictional Bolivian army.
Del Toro, whose films include the “Hellboy” movies and “Pan’s Labyrinth,” does several voices. “Children of Men” director Cuaron will perform the speaking part of a helicopter pilot.

I wonder if del Toro will let Marc Foster do a voice in The Hobbit. A dwarf with a German accent perhaps?

One Bond Is Enough For Marc Foster

Liam — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 17:09:52 +0000

Quantum of Solace director Marc Foster spoke to FirstShowing yesterday and revealed that he is not considering returning to direct the next Bond movie.

“They offered me the next one, but at this point the pressure is so intense — it’s a year of not having a life. And I don’t know if I want to do that again. It’s literally not having a life, and I mean that, it’s not exaggerated. I feel like life is short, you have to find a balance.”

I guess this means that after Quantum of Solace has been released the hunt will be on for another director. Considering how good Casino Royale was I would happily have Martin Campbell back. However, i’m sure the producers will have a list of names down already.

Quantum Of Solace Reviews

Liam — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 15:53:06 +0000

The reviews are pouring in for Quantum of Solace, and here is a run-down of what most of them are saying:

BBC

It’s a film that feels like the second part of a trilogy, with this being the bleaker second act.
For a lot of the movie Bond is a particularly unsympathetic character, and often it’s only Craig’s performance along with the shifting morality of Bond’s legion of enemies that forces the audience to root for him.

Empire 4/5 Stars

A pacy, visually imaginative follow-up. If it doesn’t even try to be bigger than Casino Royale, that’s perhaps a smart move in that there’s still a sense at the end that Bond’s mission has barely begun and he’ll need a few more movies to work his way up to destroying the apparently undefeatable Quantum organisation. The only real caveat is that while it’s exciting, it’s not exactly anyone’s idea of fun. To keep in the game, perhaps the next movie could let the hero enjoy himself a bit more.

Totalfilm 3/5 stars

The action is loud and proud, but the story feels disjointed and muddled, with some uneven flecks of comedy. Still, Craig’s presence keeps the edges from fraying too far and Forster just about nails the extra levels or artsiness and melancholy.

Times Online 4/5 Stars

The director, Marc Forster, has absorbed the lucrative lessons discovered in Martin Campbell’s Casino Royale. He has also managed to pace his sequel much better. Royale felt slightly wheel-clamped by one too many longeurs. If anything, the crunching chase sequences in Quantum of Solace are even more magnificently dangerous. And the daredevil leaps and tumbles through glass roofs are just as sensational as the splintering high-speed pyrotechnics.
But it’s the amount of heartache and punishment that Craig’s new Bond absorbs that makes him look so right for our times.
Bond is no longer a work in progress. He is now the cruel, finished article.

The Independent 3/5 stars

Quantum Of Solace doesn’t seem like a major entry in the Bond canon. Well under two hours long, it’s shorter and more frenetic than most of its predecessors, and an often-jolting experience to watch. Loose ends about. What it does have, though, above all, is vigour. The franchise hasn’t run out of juice quite yet.

The Guardian 3/5 stars

Quantum of Solace isn’t as good as Casino Royale: the smart elegance of Craig’s Bond debut has been toned down in favour of conventional action. But the man himself powers this movie; he carries the film: it’s an indefinably difficult task for an actor. Craig measures up.

And while were all ‘Bonded up’ here is an 1 minute long TV spot that is currently being shown on UK TV.

Marc Foster Talks Quantum Of Solace

Liam — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 15:23:39 +0000

With the release of big summer movies like The Dark Knight, Iron Man and Indiana Jones, it is all to easy to forget that there are still cool movies still to be released this year. One of these is the return of James Bond in Quantum of Solace. Daniel Craig and Judi Dench will return with new bond girls Gemma Arterton and Olga Kurylenko, in the first ever Bond sequel.

Casino Royal was a huge success back in 2006, so there is huge pressure on director Marc Foster to make a Bond film better than Royal. Not only is there pressure from people’s expectations, there is also the pressure of finishing the movie on time, as Foster revealed to TimeOut London:

‘I have way too little time to edit,’ he says calmly and frankly. ‘We wrapped the movie just a few weeks ago and I’m basically editing right now for another week or so. Then I show it to Michael and Barbara at a little preview screening and then I have another week to cut. So I have, like, five or six weeks to edit the whole movie. Normally, I’ve had 14 weeks for any of my films so far. Six weeks for this film is crazy.’

Foster is known for his character-driven dramas such as Finding Neverland and Monsters Ball, yet he was brought on board to direct the latest chapter in the Bond franchise, which is known for it’s action, car chases and stunts.

‘I think they wanted to bring more of an emotional component to the movie,’ he says. ‘And they wanted to have the franchise go in a different direction. Last time, they took a risk with having Daniel Craig in the film. That was a success, so this time they felt they could take it another step and see how it goes with another filmmaker.’ Time’s up, and Forster returns to his particular vision of what a Bond movie should be about: girls, cars and a healthy dose of angst.

Quantum of Solace will be released on October 31st in the UK, and Novemeber 7th in the US.