Nov 10 2009 Winona Ryder Is a Dancer, Joins Aronofsky's Next

Good news, Winona Ryder's agent! Winona Ryder is going to be in another movie!

Winona Ryder is in talks to co-star in Darren Aronofsky's supernatural thriller "Black Swan" opposite Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis.

Set in the New York ballet world, the story centers on a veteran dancer (Portman) and a rival (Kunis) who are tangled in a manipulative relationship, but it's unclear whether the rival is real or a figment of the ballet dancer's imagination. Ryder will play a fellow dancer.

I get it: lure out-of-touch Gen-Xers in with the promise of Winona Ryder, then reveal to them the new, younger models of hip, dark-haired thin babes we now have to fawn over. Clever, Aronofsky. You'll acculturate them yet.

Nov 21 2008 'The Wrestler' Trailer Flying Elbows Onto I-Net

Man, Mickey Rourke is hard to look at. In this trailer, when he says he's "a broken down piece of meat," he is not kidding. I recommend only looking at his face by poking a pinhole in a box and letting his shadow form on a paper plate (instructions). Despite that, this looks really good, even though the combination of sad images/dialogue and depressing Bruce Springsteen song make you want to kill yourself (or let Mickey Rourke kill himself). The best part is when he emerges from the back of a van, and the group of children attack him like the monster he is:

Continue Reading " 'The Wrestler' Trailer Flying Elbows Onto I-Net "

Sep 8 2008 'The Wrestler' Looks Good, Mickey Rourke Does Not

Here are some short clips from The Wrestler intermixed with brief interviews with director Darren Aronofsky and star Mickey Rourke. Even if you don't care about The Wrestler (but you should), you need to see what Rourke looks like in the interview portion. He's become a pre-humanoid Johnny Depp, and it's awful.

Continue Reading " 'The Wrestler' Looks Good, Mickey Rourke Does Not "

Sep 2 2008 'The Wrestler' Just Got Bossier

Bruce Springsteen has written a new song for The Wrestler soundtrack, and it will make you cry. From director Darren Aronofsky's blog:

off to venice on wednesday. but i wanted to just share with you all the other music news i talked about in the past post. bruce springsteen wrote a beautiful original song for the closing the film. called THE WRESTLER it is a wonderful acoustic piece. makes me choke up every time i hear it. he really captured the spirit of the film and mickey's character in the piece.

Hey, this sounds like the best Bruce Springsteen movie soundtrack song that also has the title of the movie in the song since Dead Man Walking's "Dead Man Walking" and Philadelphia's "Streets of Philadelphia"! Then again, I can't remember any Springsteen songs less than a decade old, so maybe it won't be that good. But at least it will speak to the blue collar American worker,* and that's what's important.

*Assuming their blue collar work consists of wrestling.

Aug 12 2008 'The Wrestler' Photos Are the Second Saddest Wrestler Photos I've Seen Today

Bad Taste has some new shots from The Wrestler, Darren Aronofsky's film about a retired pro wrestler who returns to the ring despite the risks to his health. Star Mickey Rourke's wretched mug is one of the most depressing things I've ever seen, but I still get the sense the face of an old wrestler could be more pathetic. For example, let me present Ultimate Warrior's website. See, Mickey? Undying sincerity is so, so much sadder, particularly when paired with a triumphant score juxtaposing all the lost dignity in the visuals. It's almost enough to make you cry, until you find out the Ultimate Warrior legally changed his name to Warrior, giving his kids the Warrior surname. Then you laugh.

Jul 25 2008 Holy Crap, Aronofsky is Directing 'RoboCop'

Any of the (few) times a nearly-anonymous girl has asked me if I want to go back to her place, I've had basically the same internal reaction every time: "Wait, really? I mean, I guess it makes some sense, but wow, I didn't think it was actually going to happen. Man, this is great. Who would have thought?" I bring this up because that's approximately the same conversation that when through my head when I heard the news today that Darren Aronofsky is doing a Robocop movie. From Variety:

Darren Aronofsky has signed on to direct and David Self is penning a new installment about the hero whose tagline is "part man, part machine and all cop."

"RoboCop," which is being fast-tracked for a 2010 release, becomes the first potential tentpole to come together since Mary Parent took the reins of MGM in March. Aronofsky's involvement has been one of the worst kept secrets, with rumors rampant in the blogosphere that "The Fountain" helmer was eyeing the project.

"Now don't screw this up, me!" (Me being Darren Aronofsky, in this case.)

(Wayne sent this in. So thanks, Wayne.)

Feb 12 2008 Marisa Tomei Stripping for 'The Wrestler'

Variety reports Marisa Tomei has signed on to star opposite Mickey Rourke in Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler. In the film, Rourke plays a retired, over-the-hill wrestler who moves in with a stripper (Tomei) and her son. Yet another serious role as a stripper pried from the lacquered nails of Pamela Anderson. Don't worry, baby; you'll get your chance one day. Maybe in a direct-to-video sequel with Hulk Hogan, or is that too appropriate?

Tomei joins Aronofsky's 'Wrestler' [Variety]

Feb 8 2008 Mickey Rourke Looking Healthy as 'The Wrestler'

My first thought was, "Man, Kim Basinger is looking busted," then, "Oh, it's just Bret Michaels wrestling for something VH1 must be sponsoring, and he's on meth." As it turns out, both instincts were wrong; it's just Mickey Rourke playing the down-and-out titular character on the set of Darren Aronofsky's The Wrestler. Knowing that, he actually looks pretty good for Mickey Rourke.

Thanks, Kevin.

WXW Show for Darren Aronofsky's 'The Wrestler' [WXW Wrestling]

Nov 12 2007 Mickey Rourke Deemed Superior 'Wrestler'

Variety has announced that Mickey Rourke will be starring in Darren Aronofsky's indie drama The Wrestler, a project previously planned for Nicolas Cage. No explanation was given for the change, but I imagine it went something like this...

Nicolas Cage has just emerged from Darren Aronofsky's bathroom wearing a professional wrestling outfit and his typical bewildered yet concerned expression.

Nicolas Cage: So how do I look?

Darren Aronofsky: You know, now that I see you, here in the light, dressed in a full leonard, I realize you look absolutely nothing like a wrestler.

Nicolas Cage: Hm. I'm not sure what you mean.

Darren Aronofsky: Well, it's just that a wrestler--and I'm just saying typically--is a large, imposing, menace of a man.

Nicolas Cage: Right... So you're worried I'm not that much like that?

Darren Aronofsky: You're nothing like that. You're just a wide-eyed balding guy who frequently looks confused.

Nicolas Cage: I see.

Darren Aronofsky: Yeah, sorry. Jeez, I don't know what I was thinking offering you this role. I clearly need someone more like... Jesus, who's that giant freak?

(At this point, Aronofsky turns to his television and sees the above image of a crazy, bare-chested Mickey Rourke strutting out of a courthouse. Aronofsky's eyes turn into dollar signs, or maybe wrestling rings, if that could be clearly conveyed in the area of a pupil.)

Mickey Rourke wires 'Wrestler' [Variety]

Oct 15 2007 Nicolas Cage to Wear Wrestling Hairpiece

There are always those times when an actor takes a role that you know is wrong for them, will likely soil their reputation and career, and you're left wondering what their agent was possibly thinking. Then there are other times when an actor who is constantly taking terrible roles picks a part that makes you think, "You know, I think I would like to see Nicolas Cage as a fallen-from-grace professional wrestler." Such is the case today:

The film, now in development at Darren Aronofsky's Protozoa Pictures, centers on Randy "The Ram" Robinson, a 1980s-era star pro wrestler who has become a burnt-out shell of his former self. After he has a heart attack during a small-time match, a doctor tells him he could die if he fights again.

In an effort to build a new life, Robinson takes a job at a deli, moves in with an aging stripper and tries to build a relationship with her son. But the prospect of a rematch with his old nemesis the Ayatollah proves too tempting to resist, even if it means risking his life.

I think this would be good as an extended series, where Cage plays a different and more pathetic failure each time, culminating with a scene from Wicker Man (or Ghost Rider or several other films), when the viewer realizes the crushing saga was analogous to Cage's own career. To soften the blow to his ego, he's given a lush, full head of hair during shooting. How about it?

Cage makes some moves on 'Wrestler' [Hollywood Reporter]

Jul 9 2007 Marky Mark, Darren Aronofsky, and Matt Damon

Wahlberg on the set of "Guy Hard"

Marky Mark Wahlberg, rappin' underwear model/actor sextroardinaire, recently seemed to confirm that Darren Aronofsky will be directing his latest project, Fighter.

“The Fighter” tells the true story of underdog boxing champ “Irish” Micky Ward (Wahlberg) and his trainer/brother Dick Eklund (Damon), following their lives from the rough-and-tumble streets of Lowell, Massachusetts to an internationally-herald [sic] bout at the world championships.

Says Wahlberg: “The whole thing is to make it look real,” he said. “I want to do these guys justice. We don’t want to do any over-the-top, unrealistic fight scenes.”

You want nothing over-the-top, so you got... Darren Aronofsky? The guy whose drug movie included amputated arms, cracked out grandma's, and chicks going butt to butt at a party? Whose love story included both knights and spacemen? Personally, I blame the Massachusetts public school system.

Source

Apr 30 2007 Aronofsky Writing Noah Movie That Probably Won't be Super Pretentious

I put this chick's vagina in a movie once, I told her it would be arty. And by "arty" I meant "awesome."

In an interview with The Guardian, Darren Aronofsky (Pi, Requiem for a Dream, The Fountain) said his next project will be a story about Noah, that dude from the bible.

"Noah was the first person to plant vineyards and drink wine and get drunk," he says admiringly. "It's there in the Bible - it was one of the first things he did when he reached land. There was some real survivor's guilt going on there. He's a dark, complicated character."

So basically, expect Noah to drink wine until one of his arms falls off and he ends up going butt to butt with some animals or something. And we'll all learn a valuable lesson about the dangers of alcohol.

And btw? They're already making this movie, Darren, it's called Evan Almighty.

Continue Reading " Aronofsky Writing Noah Movie That Probably Won't be Super Pretentious "