Space Invaders

SPACE INVADERS Will Probably Be A Movie Whether You Like It or Not

by Jason Barr    Posted: July 7th, 2011 at 11:07 pm

Whether you have fond memories of button-mashing Taito and Midway’s classic arcade game Space Invaders or are simply familiar with it in the same way you’ve heard about dinosaurs and landlines, there is a solid chance you’ll be seeing a film adaptation of the property in the not so distant future. Heat Vision reports that producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Gigi Pritzker have optioned film rights to the game and are currently in search of a writer to help bring the project to fruition. Although other rumored tries to adapt Space Invaders have ultimately proved barren, I wouldn’t put it past di Bonaventura to make this one stick as he is also a producer on the Transformers and G.I. Joe adaptations respectively and is currently developing a filmic take on another classic arcade game: Asteroids.

Before you say to yourself “How are they going to adapt a property that literally has no backstory outside of a pixelated ship shooting pixelated, otherworldly invaders?,” remember that the film adaptation of Hasbro’s Battleship hits theaters on May 18th, 2012. I know, it’s hard for me to believe too. But, now that you’ve accepted the fact that most likely any ol’ story will do for these sorts of undertakings, you can start preparing yourself accordingly for Space Invaders: The Movie by clicking here to play the classic arcade game for free. After playing, you’ll see why I hope di Bonaventura and Pritzker keep the original score intact. It truly is gripping stuff.

Exclusive: Screenwriter Justin Theroux Talks IRON MAN 2, ZOOLANDER 2, YOUR HIGHNESS, Easter Eggs, IRON MAN 3, and More

by Steve 'Frosty' Weintraub    Posted: May 4th, 2010 at 11:38 pm

While Justin Theroux has been acting in movie and TV shows for the last fifteen years, he’s recently started a new career in Hollywood: screenwriting.  Due to being one of the screenwriters on Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder, Theroux met Robert Downey Jr., and since they got along so well, Downey pitched Theroux to Marvel for Iron Man 2.  Cut to a few meetings later and he’s writing one of the most anticipated sequels of the last decade.

With Iron Man 2 set to debut in North America this Friday (it’s debuted overseas last weekend and raked in over $100 million), I recently spoke with Theroux about not only the highly-anticipated superhero film, but his other projects, which include Zoolander 2, Space Invaders, Chief Ron, and Your Highness (although he’s only acting in this one).  I also asked if he or anyone else was working on Iron Man 3.

Trust me, if you want to know how Iron Man 2 was made and what’s up with the other films I just mentioned, you want to hit the jump:

Short Film PIXELS Has an 8-Bit Hate for New York City

by Matt Goldberg    Posted: April 8th, 2010 at 1:12 pm

Mark my words: the best video game movie is going to be one that comes from a retro property.  Trying to make movies out of games that are trying to be movies will most likely never work because all you’re doing is taking the interactivity out of a video game.  But because 8-bit video games are silly and didn’t really try to tell a story, there’s so much room for imagination.

You can see that imagination on display with a short film by Patrick Jean called Pixels.  In the film, 8-bit favorites Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Frogger, and others decide to destroy New York City by turning everything they touch into 3D pixels.  When I saw the Space Invaders, I couldn’t help but think of the Futurama episode where Fry wonders what the world would be like if life were more like a video game.

Hit the jump to check out two versions of the films.  One has music and the other doesn’t. I like the one without music because you can hear the great sound effects and with music the flick come off like an advertisement. [via Edgar Wright]

Justin Theroux and Will Arnett Speed Up and Reverse Direction for Non-Videogame Adaptation SPACE INVADERS

by Michael Sullivan    Posted: November 17th, 2009 at 9:36 pm

Iron Man 2 and Tropic Thunder writer Justin Theroux is penning a new draft of Space Invaders–not based on the video game. The original spec by Mike Lisbe and Nate Reger is about an astronaut who goes into space to catch his girlfriend in the act of cheating on him with a fellow astronaut. Even better: Will Arnett is attached to star!  Get some of the space madness along with more details about the project after the jump.

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