No, Frank Miller isn’t remaking the 1998 Robert Deniro film. He’s bringing his 1980’s original comic series to the big screen ala Sin City and 300. The six-issue series followed a disgraced samarai warrior from the 13th Century who is reborn in the 21st Century to battle a demon from his past. Ronin came after Miller’s run with Daredevil and Wolverine but before his ground-breaking Batman: The Dark Knight Returns. Though not as popular as Miller’s other work, it is no surprise that Warner Bros. Pictures has greenlit the project after the huge success of 300 and Sin City. The highly anticipated Sin City 2 is ready to begin production in June with the original cast and crew returning. Ronin wil be shot in the same green-screen style of his other films at a budget around $65 million. A script is currently being written.

Read more about the project here.
Read more about the original comic series here.

On July 24th, The Monster Squad is finally being released by Lionsgate in a 2-Disc 20th Anniversary Edition. It hit movie theaters way back in 1987, but has only been available on DVD through bootleg copies. The story centers on Dracula and his cronies coming to a small town with evil plans leading to a group of boys, called The Monster Squad, to try and stop them.

This movie, The Goonies, and The Lost Boys were some of my favorites of the time. The FX for Dracula, Wolfman, Frankenstein’s Monster, The Gill Man, and The Mummy were done by Stan Winston of Terminator, Aliens, Jurassic Park fame. The screenplay was co-written by Shane Black, the creator/screenwriter of the Lethal Weapon series. DVD EXTRAS: Feature Commentary, Deleted and Extended Scenes, a Cast Reunion and other Featurettes.

Read more about the release at DVD Empire, Shock Till You Drop, and Joblo.com.
Check out the original trailer here.

The Hollywood Reporter announced that Brad Pitt is joining George Clooney and Francis McDormand for the Coen brother’s film Burn After Reading. The black comedy focuses on a CIA agent who loses the disc of a book that he is writing. All other information about the film is being kept hush-hush including the rest of the storyline and what role Pitt will play. As usual with the Coen brothers’ films, both Joel and Ethan Coen wrote the screenplay with Joel directing and Ethan producing. I’m hoping the Coens’ get their film groove back after the disappointing Intolerable Cruelty and The Ladykillers. Check out the article here.

Deadline Hollywood Daily is reporting that the Quentin Tarantino and Robert Rodriguez double-feature Grindhouse has disappointment written all over it’s first weekend numbers. The movie’s opening is on track to come in far below the $25 million touted just a few days ago. Currently Grindhouse is looking at a take of around $13 million. This isn’t just bad news for fans of Tarantino/Rodriguez, but it’s also bad news for movie fans who want to support movies made without studio pressure and test audience reaction. Harvey and Bob Weinstein left Disney to form a company that trusts it’s directors and writers. I’m planning on seeing Grindhouse next weekend and I’ll post my impressions here. If other reviews I’ve read are correct, Grindhouse is a good film that stands up to the best both Tarantino and Rodriguez have produced in the past. Do we want to continue getting this glut of high budget crap that studios churn out, or do we want more oringial and innovative filmmaking? For god’s sake, folks, stop seeing crap like Wild Hogs, Ghost Rider, and Norbit.

Daily Variety reports that Coca-Cola company lawyers have objected to a scene in the Italian film 7 Km da Gerusalemme (Seven Kilometers From Jerusalem) that depicts an actor giving Jesus a ride in his Jeep and handing the Son of God a Coke. Originally scheduled for an April 6th (Good Friday) release, producers fear a late April release if Coca-Cola refuses to relent its demands. While it’s not unusual for companies, particularly those with a large U.S. presence, to avoid religious associations like the plague, what’s interesting about this story is that the film was well-received by the Vatican. The recent Busto Arsizio Film Fest lead by Polish film professor Krzysztof Zanussi, who has close ties to the Vatican, gave the film its top prize. 7 Km da Gerusalemme, based on the Italian book Seven Kilometers, follows the story of an advertising executive who travels to the Holy Land after suffering a midlife crisis. Included in the cast is Rosalinda Celentano who was last seen by American film goers in another controversial religious film, The Passion of the Christ. She played the role of Satan.

You can read the Daily Variety story here.

Guardian Unlimited has reported a claim by stunt man Bruce Law that he has performed as a stunt double for several Hong Kong action stars including Jackie Chan. Why is this story news worthy? Jackie has claimed for years that he has always performed his own stunts. He has said the only time he resorts to stunt doubles is in his American films where insurance regulations prevent him from performing the stunts himself. The Guardian reports in it’s article that both Jackie’s spokesman and Bruce Law have stood by their respective claims when contacted for comment. You can read the entire article here.

If you were a big fan of Shaun of the Dead, you may want to mark your calender for Tuesday April 10th. From 2:30 to 3:30pm (EST) JoBlo.com will host a live chat with the creative team behind both projects; director Edgar Wright and writers Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost. Head over to JoBlo and register for JoBlo’s forums if you not already a member. In the forums you can begin posting your questions which the guys will answer next Tuesday.

Images from the set of Iron Man, the latest comic book inspired production, have made it to the web. You can check the pictures out here on justjared.buzznet.com. Don’t get too excited. The pictures don’t show much - you’ll get a view of Robert Downey Jr. (Tony Stark/Iron Man) and Gwyneth Paltrow (Virginia ‘Pepper’ Potts) in evening wear at the Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles. Iron Man is directed by Jon Favreau (best known as the writer/star of ‘Swingers’) and is sheduled for a May 2008 release. Interesting choice by casting to choose Robert Downey Jr. I can’t think of another star who has played the hero during the comic cross-over craze we’re in right now who has more of a ’serious actor’ reputation. We’ll see what he brings to the role.