Neil Moritz

BIG MAN JAPAN to Get a US Remake

by Max Lichtig    Posted: June 6th, 2011 at 11:03 am

It’s true. Original film ideas in Hollywood are as numerous as good sequels, and remakes/reboots/reshuffles are everywhere you look. But that doesn’t mean that we don’t deserve to take awesomely original ideas and try to make it our own. Transferring a foreign film idea into an American translation, if done correctly, can make a great story more accessible to a larger audience. Also, any future remakes that don’t borrow from Sweden are welcome in my book. This brings us to the Hitoshi Matsumoto’s crazy ass 2007 feature Dai Nippon Jin (Big Man Japan), which is set to have the Hollywood treatment. Matsumoto, who not only directed the film but was its star as well, is an experienced TV comedian in Japan. This makes a lot of sense, being that the film focuses on a giant half-naked man who electrocutes himself to grow stronger and carries around an oversized baton as an instrument of whoop ass. Oh, there’s also a scene where he squares off against a monster with a killer comb-over. Yeah, it’s awesomely weird, and I can’t wait to see what will become of it. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Colombia Pictures snagged the rights to the film and Prison Break’s Neil H. Moritz is on board to produce.

Hit the jump to check out one of the strangest, most hilarious scenes of the film. [We've updated the article with the press release, which you can also check out after the jump.]

Another BATTLE: LOS ANGELES Trailer. Sort of.

by Jayson Crittenden    Posted: December 4th, 2010 at 7:52 am

You don’t have to be a sci/fi filmgoer to have Battle: Los Angeles on your radar of must see films.  But if for some odd reason the first teaser trailer with it’s haunting music, dazzling visuals and overall coolness didn’t make you crave more facts about this motion picture, this new trailer certainly will.  And while what you’ll see is a slightly beefed up version of the international trailer, you will not be sorry to feast your eyes on what is almost certain to be both a critical and commercial hit.

Hit the jump to check out the trailer, learn much more about the movie itself, and be sure to give us your thoughts on all that you see, read and hear.

Columbia Pictures Picks Up Shane Black’s DOC SAVAGE

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: February 22nd, 2010 at 10:23 pm

Columbia Pictures will bring pulp hero Doc Savage back to the big screen with Shane Black co-writing and directing.  For those unfamiliar with the character, Doc Savage was a 1930s and 40s pulp fiction hero who was described by writer Lester Dent as “a mix of Sherlock Holmes’ deductive abilities, Tarzan’s outstanding physical abilities, Craig Kennedy’s scientific education, and Abraham Lincoln’s goodness.”

As we reported back in October, Neil Moritz and Ori Marmur would produce and while Shane Black was confirmed to write the film, it would only rumored he would direct.  Now, Variety confirms that Black will be getting in the director’s chair and make Doc Savage his first film since 2005′s brilliant Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang.  Black is co-writing the script with Anthony Bagarozzi and Chuck Mondry.  Presumably, they’ll still be setting the film in the 1930s rather than attempt to “modernize” the character, as tempting as that may be after the success of Sherlock Holmes.

Hit the jump to read what Columbia co-president Matt Tolmach had to say about jumping on board the Doc Savage bandwagon.

Exclusive: Producing Duo Alex Kurtzman & Roberto Orci NOT Producing DOC SAVAGE

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: October 26th, 2009 at 12:32 pm

This past Saturday, Ain’t It Cool News reported that the amazing Shane Black (he used to be Shane Black the Great but now he’s amazing) will be writing and possibly directing the adaptation of the pulp fiction hero “Doc Savage”.  AintItCool also noted that power producers/screenwriters Alex Kurtzman and Robert Orci would be producing the film.  Contrary to popular opinion, Kurtzman & Orci do not produce every upcoming genre property passing through Hollywood.  It’s an honest mistake on AICN’s part but we know the film’s real producers.  Hit the jump to find out.

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