The Black Cat in Spidey 4?

Recently director Sam Raimi revealed that casting for Spider-man 4 would be commencing before the end of the year. Since then the rumor mill has been churning as to what characters will be in the new film, and who will play them. Tobey Maguire and Kirsten Dunst have already confirmed their return, along with pretty much the rest of the supporting cast from the first three films. The rumors are flying about, from Bruce Campbell as Mysterio to Dylan Barker portraying the Lizard, but this latest rumor seems to have a little bit more truth at its core.

It's been reported that various actresses have recently been auditioning for a role in Spider-man 4 to play the iconic anti-hero, Black Cat/Felicia Hardy. For those not in the know, Black Cat is a cat burglar who very often helps Spider-man, and is also a love interest for both Spidey and his alter ego from time-to-time. The reports are that actresses Rachel McAdams (The Notebook) and Romola Garai (Atonement) are both up for the role, with McAdams as the frontrunner. Neither of these actresses would be poor choices, personally I would like to see McAdams in the part more so than Garai, but as I mentioned both are fine choices.

If this is all true, this really intrigues me as to what the story in this new film will be. Will Peter and Mary Jane still be together at the beginning of this film, or are they on rocky terms, thus allowing Black Cat to step in and sweep Peter off his feet? I don't know, but I really don't see them bringing in Black Cat if they aren't intending to try some sort of love triangle here, which I am perfectly happy with.

As of now this is still just a rumor, but if something is officially announced, I will post it when I can.

The Franchise Decade

This past decade of film, unlike any other, was all about the franchise. Film studios were no longer wanting one shot films, but rather films that could spawn sequels upon sequels. Part of this is due to the rise of the comic book film, but even still there were many other all-star franchises that had no connection to the realm of comic books. I've decided to celebrate the end of the franchise decade to count down what I think to be the 10 Best Franchises from this Past Decade. Let's get started:

10. The Chronicles of Narnia- While not as high grossing as The Lord of the Rings films, these fantasy epics were told in truth to their book counterparts. The Chronicles of Narnia films still managed to make an impact and succeeded in bringing these richly tapestried children's stories to the big screen.

9. James Bond - 007 returned big time this past decade, thanks entirely to his 2006 outing, Casino Royale, the finest Bond film ever produced in my opinion. Actor Daniel Craig assumed the classic role of Bond, James Bond, and proved once more why we all loved this character to begin with, being only second best to Sir Sean Connery himself.

8. The Bourne Series - These high octane action films influenced nearly every action movie made since. The crazy smash cuts, the documentary-styled action sequences, there is no denying these film's impact, as well they were all very well made films.

7. X-Men - The X-Men finally made it the big screen this past decade and have spawned four films. While the second X-Men film is still the best in the series, they were all solid action films that made tons of money at the box office.

6. Pirates of the Caribbean - Whether you liked the sequels or not, the first Pirates was one of the better action/adventure films of the past decade and the trilogy made enough money at the bank to probably build its own Pirate-themed amusement park. Wait?

5. Star Wars - It doesn't matter if you like the Star Wars prequels or not, there is no denying that they were some of the biggest films of the past decade (personally I enjoyed them, but I still find the original trilogy slightly better). They brought back Star Wars in a big way, the impact still being felt with the animated series on Cartoon Network.

4. Batman - This one only holds two films in its current franchise, but I think it would be ridiculous not to include the highest grossing film of the decade, The Dark Knight. Both Batman Begins and its sequel, The Dark Knight, were superb pieces of filmmaking, and Heath Ledger's Joker became a pop culture phenomenon, driving this film franchise to the top of the box office.

3. Spider-man - Say what you want about the third Spidey film, but the first two are still two of the finer superhero films ever produced. Spidey's impact was immense on this decade of film. After its success, countless other superhero films were put into production, but none were ever truly as successful as Spider-man.

2. The Lord of the Rings - Was there any doubt that this one wouldn't make the list? The Lord of the Rings films were the seminal films of the decade. It started the craze of the epic fantasy film. After this we got The Chronicles of Narnia, Eragon, and even more recently, Avatar. There is no denying the impact of The Lord of the Rings trilogy, not to mention they were some of the finer films of the decade anyways.

1. Harry Potter - I don't think there is any other franchise that has lasted as long as this one and managed to maintain the quality of the original throughout. While there are certain films in the franchise that I like more than others, there is no denying that the Harry Potter franchise is one of those rarities much like Star Wars or James Bond before it. This is one film franchise that will be remembered for years to come.

That does it. What do you think?

TV Review: Bored to Death - Season 1

HBO's Bored to Death just finished its first season, and I must say the season as a whole was a joy to watch from beginning to end.

The show tells the story of novelist Jonathan Ames (who coincidentally is the real-life creator of the show, but the fictional version of him is played by Jason Schwartzman). Jonathan is struggling to write his follow-up novel to his first real success. In Jonathan's boredom he lists himself as an unliscesned private detective on Craig's list, claiming to his friend Ray (played by Zach Galifinakis) that he's read enough detective books that he feels he can solve mysteries.

Bored to Death is a widely successful comedy, riffing off of many classic film noirs. In particular the direction and writing highlight this aspect. Creator Jonathan Ames, who also wrote practically every show, managed to make a noir that isn't really about a mystery, but about Jonathan's incompetence at being a detective.

The season started off a touch slow, the first episode had probably the fewest laughs of the entire season, but it set up the show nicely and made me want to come back and see what happened next. Every episode after that was chock full of laughs as we watched Jonathan embark on each new detective case while trying to work freelance for his editor's magazine, played by Ted Danson. Danson's character actually had many of the funnier moments of the season, but none were funnier than when Danson and Galifinakis's characters join Jonathan on one of his cases, and while waiting in the car for Jonathan, they get high together. "You don't high dial your daughter!" Finally, the show reached a climactic finale where Jonathan boxed a book critic who despised his first novel (played by the PC Guy from the I'm a Mac, I'm a PC commercials).

HBO is known for their edgier programming, and other than some drug use the show was actually quite tame compared to other HBO programs, which I admired a great deal.

All of the actors were spot on, Schwartzman worked his usual charm as Ames, and when Galifinakis was given the material, he supplied the laughs. Like many other HBO shows, they managed to nab a great deal of celebrity guest stars, from arthouse film director Jim Jarmusch to Kristen Wiig but my personal favorite was Parker Posey as the mother of a skateboard kid whose skartboard was stolen and Jonathan must find it.

Overall Bored to Death is a terrific show, and I'm extremely excited that it is coming back for a second season.

I give Bored to Death - Season 1 an A!

Aronofsky's Next, Black Swan

It seems like The Wrestler director, Darren Aronofsky's next has been solidified. It was announced today that actors Vincent Cassel, Winona Ryder, and Barbara Hershey are joining Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis in Aronofsky's Black Swan.

Natalie Portman will play a ballerina who engages in a rivalry with another dancer, played by Kunis. Their rivalry intensifies as they near a big show, but it starts to become questionable as to whether the rival dancer is a supernatural apparition or a delusion.

Personally, this sounds like an intriguing movie. A psychological thriller told in a world in which we aren't accustomed to seeing these kinds of stories. I think Aronofsky could really make a strong artistic statement with this film, take the fantastical images of the ballet and make the film visually appealing and fascinating to watch unfold. Not to mention the film's cast is pretty solid, while I've never been too impressed with Natalie Portman as an actress, I've never found her to be bad by any means.

As of right now there is no official release date. I'll try to keep everyone up to date when more information becomes available.

Favorite Obi-Wan'isms

I think there is no denying that I'm a huge Star Wars fan. The original Star Wars trilogy are my three favorite movies of all-time, and have been for as long as I can remember. There are many memorable lines from these films. When it comes to the famous Jedi masters, Yoda tends to have the most repeated lines, and while I am a huge fan of the ancient sage, I love the wise yearnings of old Ben Kenobi, or better yet, what I like to call Obi-Wan'isms.

I've decided to sit down and try to figure out my top 5 favorite lines from wise old Ben, and oddly enough all of them, except one hail from the original Star Wars. Let's get going:

5. "Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths that we cling to depend greatly on our own point of view." - Episode VI: Return of the Jedi

4. "The Sandpeople are easily startled but they will soon be back, and in greater numbers." - Episode IV: A New Hope

3. "You must do what you feel is right, of course." - Episode IV: A New Hope

2. "In my experience, there's no such thing as luck." - Episode IV: A New Hope

1. "Who's the more foolish? The fool, or the fool who follows him?" - Episode IV: A New Hope

Hope you had fun, cause I know I did; and, "Remember, the force will be with you, always." Just threw another one in there, didn't I.