May 2008 is beginning to get very crowded, in terms of movies that are springing up to entice viewers. On the slate for the month are Iron Man (May 2, 2008), Speed Racer (May 23, 2008) and The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (May 16, 2008). Recently another film has been added to an already crowded month: Indiana Jones 4.
Iron Man is going to be a live action superhero film featuring Robert Downey Jr. in the title role of Tony Stark/Iron Man. It is being directed by Jon Favreau (Elf, Zathura). This is a Marvel Comics character that is inflicted with very real problems. If done well, it could be the next Spider-Man.
Speed Racer is being written and directed by visionary directors The Wachowski Brothers. Now much is known about the film, but rumor has it that they’re going to use new technology to bring the cars to life, and new filming techniques that we’ve not yet seen (perhaps more advanced than the Bullet Time seen in the Matrix Trilogy). Based on the anime, it has the potential to be visually stunning.
Indiana Jones 4 is the long in development fourth film from legendary filmmakers Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Featuring Harrison Ford returning to the title role, it looks like this winning team is actually going to come back together in 2007 to finally create the next and final chapter in the Indiana Jones saga. This project has had many writers attached over the years, including a favorite of mine: Frank Darabont (The Shawshank Redemption, The Green Mile); but the only recently finalized the script that they’re going to use.
Iron Man and Speed Racer aren’t really threats to Prince Caspian’s potential box office take (they’re all pretty spread out, and Speed Racer has a different audience, and even that is currently an unknown quantity). But Indiana Jones could pose a direct threat. The audience for Indiana Jones has grown up, and now has children about the same age that they were when the originals were released, if not a bit younger. If the filming plans go as they were saying a few years ago, Spielberg is going to capture this one in the same way that the first three were filmed: no digital computer effects. That would make this a breath of fresh air, and it’s one that holds quite a history of adventure.
However, Prince Caspian is following up one of the largest grossing films of 2005. It is also the next in a seven book series that is widely known throughout the world. However, it’s not the most well known of the Narnia books. It does have the promotional might of Disney again, plus another film leading into it, it is sure to hit the box office hard. But will it be enough? Only time will tell, and 2007 is bringing us the filming of Prince Caspian, as well as a teaser or so for the film. We’ll know soon enough.