One of the reasons why Rush Hour 3 couldn’t match its predecessors on a comedic level, is because a lot of the jokes seemed like they were rehashed, dated, or just pulled from the bin of unused Rush Hour jokes. So Arthur Sarkissian would like to alleviate that problem by making Rush Hour 4.

According to him, the fourth Rush Hour will be “more gritty.” Yes, the one word that almost everyone dreads when they hear filmmakers say it, has been brought up, and it’s for a Rush Hour sequel.

Shaolin
Netflix Streaming
DVD | Blu-Ray
Produced and Directed by Benny Chan
Starring Andy Lau, Nicholas Tse, Jackie Chan, Wu Jing, Fan Bingbing, Xiaoliuna, Hung Yan-yan
Emperor Motion Pictures
Originally Released: January 19, 2011

Shaolin is an epic tale, made by Chinese and Hong Kong filmmakers – directed by Benny Chan – emphasizing both the peaceful path and jaw-dropping martial defense skills of the legendary Shaolin Monks. Featuring a supporting role from Jackie Chan, the film is a captivating ride from beginning to its conclusion – laced with numerous lessons and morals to make even the hardened of us reflect our own inner ethics.

One of the greatest aspects of Netflix Streaming is the instant accessibility users have to films made outside of the United States. I have had the pleasure of watching a wide range of films from around the world there, and while I understand some people have an aversion to subtitles, once you get past that hurdle, you open up a whole new world of experiences.

I guess we can file this news under the “No Duh” department, but after the new The Karate Kid movie decimated all other box office competition with a $56 million opening weekend, Sony Pictures has now begun taking meetings with writers concerning a second installment.

I believe it is a simple case of dollars and cents. When a movie that costs $40 million makes $56 million the first weekend, you have a success. Of course, we haven’t even considered the overseas profits or the money that they will make from DVD sales. Love it or hate it, Sony has rebooted a successful franchise and will make even more money from this concept in the future.

The Karate Kid (2010)
Directed by Harald Zwart
Starring Jaden Smith, Jackie Chan, Taraji P. Henson
Rated PG
Release date: June 11, 2010

The number one stupid complaint people give in the midst of this sequel/remake craze, besides the fact that they shouldn’t do them, is that too many movies from our childhood are being ruined. I never understood that logic. You like the movies you like, for whatever reason it may be. No matter how bad it is, nothing that comes after it is enough to take away whatever it was that made you like it in the first place. The franchise may be tainted, but the movies within that canon that you loved aren’t impacted. For example, if this Ghostbusters 3 movie ever gets off the ground and sucks, the first one will still be a classic.

I’ve reexamined a lot of my favorite movies from my youth lately and realized that a lot of them really aren’t that good. I liked them at the time and that has carried over to me still liking them, but usually for nostalgic reasons. I am unapologetic about it, but truth be told, they are what they are. That said, comparing a current remake to one we hold dear from back in the day doesn’t usually have a fighting chance for that very reason.

Then there’s the new The Karate Kid.

It would be difficult for anyone to find an odder pairing than screenwriter Charlie Kaufman and the bumbling hero in Kung Fu Panda, but according to reports, that’s a match that has occurred recently.

Apparently Kaufman was brought in by DreamWorks to pen some touch-ups to the existing script for Kung Fu Panda: The Kaboom of Doom, the sequel to the surprise animated hit of 2008. Kaufman’s spit-shine of the script, written by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, is completely out of the realms that he usually works within.

Kaufman is best known as the writer of two of my own personal favorite movies, Adaptation and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. He also wrote Being John Malkovich, Human Nature, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and Synecdoche, New York, which he also directed.