47 Ronin

[doug maverick]

lol. well considering that bullets represent fire and iron chi gung is metal, and fire melts metal i still dont see that happening.

[SimonM]

Ok, so it is agreed. Tom Cruise sucks big hairy bag.

[GeneChing]

Now it's not just about Keanu anymore.

Four Japanese actors join '47 Ronin'
Universal actioner, based on Japanese legend, stars Keanu Reeves
By Justin Kroll

Rinko Kikuchi, Tadanobu Asano, Hiroyuki Sanada, Keanu Reeves, Kou Shibasaki, Carl Rinsch
Four Japanese actors have joined Universal's Keanu Reeves actioner "47 Ronin," about a group of warriors on a vengeance quest.

Hiroyuki Sanada, Kou Shibasaki, Tadanobu Asano and Rinko Kikuchi join the cast for the pic directed by Carl Rinsch. Story is inspired by the Japanese legend of the 47 Ronin, who seek vengeance against an overlord who banished them.

Pic's set to be released in 3D on Nov. 11, 2012.

Chris Morgan and Hossein Amini penned the script with Scott Stuber, Pamela Abdy and Eric McLeod producing through Stuber Prods.

U sees "47 Ronin" as one of its big 2012 tentpoles and was particular about its cast. Sources tell Variety that Universal sought actors of Japanese descent to be true to the story even if they weren't as recognizable to domestic auds.

Some of the project's new faces should look familiar. Sanada was seen in "The Last Samurai" and "Sunshine" and most recently played Dogen in the final season of "Lost." Kikuchi is best known for her Oscar-nominated role in "Babel," and Asano has Paramount's "Thor" and U's "Battleship" coming up. Shibasaki has appeared in some of Japan's biggest B.O. hits, including "Battle Royale" and "Go."

Asano and Kikuchi are repped by CAA and Anore, Sanada by the Libra Intl.

[GeneChing]

This is an indie that Keanu just put out. In an interview on it, they discussed 47 Ronin at the end.

'Henry's Crime' is Keanu Reeves' labor of love
Walter Addiego, Chronicle Staff Writer
San Francisco Chronicle April 8, 2011 04:00 AM
Sunday, April 10, 2011

...

Q: You've just filmed "47 Ronin" in Budapest. It's a major undertaking, right?

A: It's a famous story from Japan, based on something that happened in 1703. We're doing a reinterpretation or reinvention of the story. It's a fantastical, real (pause) Western, in a way. These samurai who become ronin (samurai without masters) seek to get revenge for their fallen lord. There are some celebrated versions of it, (particularly) "Chushingura" (the 1962 movie by Hiroshi Inagaki).

Q: A story in Variety said it's going to have "Lord of the Rings"-style fantasy elements. Is that right?

A: No, it's creating a world, but not as "Dungeons and Dragons" as that. And I don't mean that in a pejorative sense. "47 Ronin" is fantastical - we have a witch, we have giants, mythical creatures. But the emotion and the drama are not fantastical.

Q: It's a pretty heavy story.

A: Yeah, I mean, we all commit suicide in the end.

[Lucas]

omg he just gave the end away

[GeneChing]

There are two more pix if you follow the link.

First Look: Keanu Reeves on the Set of ’47 Ronin’
Posted on Friday, November 25th, 2011 by Russ Fischer

Pretty minor stuff here, but here’s the first look at Keanu Reeves in costume for the Carl Erik Rinsch film 47 Ronin. The movie is a remake, in name at least, of a Japanese film from 1947, but what we’ve heard about the film so far suggests that Rinch is going for something a bit more his own than just a straight remake. The story has been around far longer than sixty-some years, so Rinsch has many previous versions to draw on, but also the leeway to give his own spin on the tale. (Which includes shooting this version in 3D.)

Rinsch is noted for being a Ridley Scott protege, and he was once attached to direct a film related to Alien way before that movie evolved into Prometheus, with Scott taking directorial duties. Rinsch was also set to direct Logan’s Run before dropping off that project (making room for Nicolas Winding Refn) and to make 47 Ronin.

We don’t have actual stills from the film yet, but after the break you’ll find a shot of Reeves in character, and images of a couple other players in their film garb.



Earlier this year Reeves explained his vision of the film,

It’s in 3D. It’s kind of a western. I call it a story of revenge and impossible love. The samurai become ronin, outcast, and decide to enact revenge on the person who is responsible for the death of their lord. And I play an outsider, a kind of half-breed with a mysterious past named Kai, who’s in love with the princess and she’s in love with me, but we can’t be together. But during this journey and revenge, things change.

Chris Morgan (Wanted) scripted, and this is how he described the script when Rinsch was set to direct:

It’s a time in Japanese culture when it was all about [the] bushido [code] and honor, and putting internal things over external things -- swords that were made to be functional instead of ornamental, that kind of stuff," Morgan previously told MTV. "this turning point in the culture when that started to shift. Society started to be more about external kind of things. The story is about these samurai whose lord is killed in an unfair way.

And we've got this from an official press release about the movie.

Inspired by styles as diverse as Miyazaki and Hokusai, Rinsch will bring to life the stunning landscapes and enormous battles that will display the timeless Ronin story to global audiences in a way that’s never been seen before.

47 Ronin also features Hiroyuki Sanada, Kô Shibasaki, Tadanobu Asano, Rinko Kikuchi, and Jin Akanishi. It is set for release on November 21, 2012.

[GeneChing]

Atticus Ross to Score ’47 Ronin’
Posted: April 6, 2012 by filmmusicreporter in Film Scoring Assignments

Atticus Ross has been hired to score Universal’s upcoming epic 3D martial arts fantasy adventure 47 Ronin. The film marks the feature directorial debut of commercial/music video director Carl Erik Rinsch and stars Keanu Reeves, as well as Japanese actors Hiroyuki Sanada, Tadanobu Asano, Rinko Kikuchi, and Kou Shibasaki. The movie tells the fact-based story of the 47 Ronin, a band of samurai swordsmen who avenge the death of their master in 18th century Japan. Chris Morgan (Wanted, Fast Five) and Hossein Amini (Drive) have written the screenplay and Scott Stuber (Battleship, Role Models), Eric McLeod (Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Tropic Thunder) and Pamela Abdy (Garden State) are producing the film. The tentpole production marks Ross’ highest profile scoring assignment to date as a solo composer. He is best known for his collaborations with Trent Reznor on David Fincher’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and The Social Network (for which he won an Academy Award), as well as his music for the Hughes Brother’s The Book of Eli, on which he shared credit with Leopold Ross and Claudia Sarne. Ross has previously worked with Rinsch on the Mercedes-Benz interactive short film Escape the Map. 47 Ronin has been scheduled for a release on November 21, 2012 by Universal Pictures.

Anyone else catch Hiroyuki Sanada in Revenge? He's the heroine's ninja master. Seriously.

[enoajnin]

It looks like they are pushing the release date for 47 Ronin.

Originally Posted by Los Angeles Times

Originally scheduled to come out Nov. 21, "47 Ronin," which stars Keanu Reeves, will instead come out Feb. 8, 2013, according to two people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to speak about it publicly.

Universal executives were concerned they would not have a trailer ready to show this summer, when theaters are packed with audiences watching similar event movies.

Originally budgeted at about $175 million, the cost of "47 Ronin" may rise as additional footage is shot and other changes are made, according to a person close to the production who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. While rumors are swirling in Hollywood that the movie's budget has risen to more than $200 million, the person close to the production denied that.

In a year full of enormous risks for Universal including "Battleship" and "Snow White and the Huntsman," "47 Ronin" has stood out as one of the biggest gambles. Shot in 3-D by Carl Rinsch, an accomplished music video and commercial director who had never made a studio feature film, it features an entirely Japanese cast surrounding Reeves, who has not starred in a blockbuster hit since the "Matrix" trilogy nearly a decade ago.

"47 Ronin" is a new version of a Japanese legend about a group of samurai who avenge the death of their master and then commit ritual suicide.

It was to be Universal's biggest release of the holiday season. Instead, the studio now will have no movies opening in theaters between "The Bourne Legacy" on Aug. 3 and "Les Miserables" on Dec. 14.

The only other picture scheduled to debut against "Ronin" next February is Relativity Media's "Safe Haven," an adaptation of the Nicholas Sparks novel. The second weekend of February was a huge one for Hollywood this year, with "The Vow," "Safe House," "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" and the 3-D version of "Star Wars: Episode 1 -- The Phantom Menace" all opening successfully.

[GeneChing]

Almost posted this on the MoTC thread but figured this needed more of a ttt

We're Artists: Keanu Reeves on Side By Side and Man of Tai Chi

The debate between celluloid vs. digital filmmaking, why Bill and Ted wouldn't like Dogstar and how he shot his kung fu directorial debut.
By Fred Topel
August 21, 2012

So we got our own private interview (get it?) with Keanu Reeves, one of the biggest stars in the world. Normally his exclusive time is reserved for the Lenos and Lettermans of the world, but this time he had a subject that was better suited to the hardcore movie geeks, if you will. Reeves produced the documentary Side by Side, narrates it and conducts interviews with filmmakers discussing film versus digital production. It premieres on VOD August 22 where anyone can see why Steven Soderbergh, Christopher Nolan and others stand by their formats of choice, and novices can learn what the difference is in the first place. Christopher Kenneally wrote and directed.

CraveOnline: Why is there a debate about film vs digital? Why can’t a director just use whatever format he wants?

Keanu Reeves: He can, or she can, but it’s going to become more and more difficult because of I think financial pressures. I think from the financing/producing side, you’ll have pressures to shoot digitally as opposed to photochemically simply because of the cost. Then I think in the short term, right now there’s becoming less and less of a need for a film print. Digital projection, DCP has become the industry standard in America so you’ll need less and less prints. Film will become just a capture medium and I think you’ll run against the financier saying, “Well, we can’t afford it.” That’s not to say that it won’t be an option though. Wes Anderson just did Super 16 film. I did a Super 16. Hunger Games was shot on film, Batman was shot on film. So you’re seeing independent films and mainstream films still being shot on film.

But some of those are directors fighting to get to use film.

Yeah, you’ve still got to fight.

Could it be dangerous for a new generation of filmmakers to lose the foundation of celluloid and how images were originally made?

I don't know if it’s dangerous. I don't know who it’ll hurt, but I think certainly it’s something to be considered in the sense of what have we lost? Martin Scorsese speaks a little bit about that in the documentary and the beauty of that image, the discipline of what it takes to work with it, to work with film, to light it, to develop it, to color it. Not so much to cut it anymore, but the disciplines of working with that would be a lost art or a lost craft, but a new one is here to take its place. Christopher Nolan in the time when we were interviewing him spoke about that filmmakers of his level were even being asked to shoot digitally, but why are we being forced with something that’s technologically not at the standard of photochemical film. That definitely was true back then. It’s becoming less and less true. It’s not the same. It’s different.

If an artist loves the craft of film, would it be vital to understand how it originated, not just how we do it now?

Well, if you’re going to work with film, you’d have to. You’d be entering that dark room, wouldn’t you? This is how you light it. Depending on the speed of your film stock and the conditions and the environment that you’re lighting in, if you’re shooting with a camera, well this is how you turn it on. These are the lenses. So you would be entering into the past. If you want to go into film history or start watching movies, I don't know if you have to go to school for that, but there’s the cinema language. But photochemically, there are differences than shooting digitally definitely.

Did you ever explore how digital and film are transferred onto Blu-ray? Would you have liked to include that component of the discussion?

We didn’t go specifically into Blu-ray. In the documentary, we didn’t go into videotape or DVD or the end of DVD, going into streaming. Blu-ray is a form of DVD. It’s also not the best way, right? The limitations of the blue ray is actually not the best image you can have actually, but that became the industry standard. That’s a whole other conversation. It’s funny when you get into 24 frames per second photochemically was basically the bottom line. That’s how you could use the least amount of film and not have image flicker. If you filmed at 22, if you were filming a light bulb, you would see a pulse of light. So 24 was picked because for monetary reason, you could have a successful flow of a moving image without any flicker, but you didn’t have to use as much film.

48 frames per second is a very new thing. Was that even an issue when you were doing these interviews?

Yeah, it was coming up. The new new was 48 frames at 4K and that was basically talking about grain or pixels digitally, horizontally across in terms of image. What do you think is interesting about Blu-ray?

I’ve noticed when celluloid films and digital movies are transferred they each look different, so in what format something is shot is a factor in how it’s reproduced on home video.

Right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It also comes down to the monitor that you’re watching. What are the black settings on your monitor, right? Did you remember to put the aspect ratio right or does it just automatically do it? We speak about it in a way through the cinematographer having to follow the image, from capturing it, from filming to following. You do change your lights and darks and densities when you’re going to make a Blu-ray. You used to at least. In different formats you used to have to scan it differently to show it in Europe. There’s all sorts of ways where you have to follow the image for quality control and just like if a projector is not set up right, your Blu-ray will look different on three different monitors.

You keep the debate very civil in the film. Did anyone get contentious?

I don't know about contentious. No, not in that sense. Michael Chapman was like, “Who cares?” Christopher Nolan was, “This is very important.” But as artists, we kind of come down to the bigger picture of if you do something with your heart and your passion, it doesn’t matter what you’re using. We didn’t really have any, “F*** digital” or “F*** film” or anything like that. We didn’t have that. We’re artists. [Laughs]

It seemed the part that got the most heated was the 3D issue. That was much more divisive among filmmakers than digital vs. film.

Yeah, that sounds right.

Why do you think that was?

It would depend on who was speaking about it. I think because it’s newish. I think there’s been so much good 3D and bad 3D. At the time it was going through this fad phase. It just brought a lot of opinions. It’s also, for how long it’s been around, imagistically, it’s kind of in its infancy in the sense of the sophistication of how to use it. Other than that gag, other than something coming out of the screen. Certainly Avatar, creating that world was another way as a new thing. Hugo with Scorsese, the framing and the journey, the entering into this world are examples of really successful 3D. There are other 3D that were dark, looked sh*tty, no reason to exist. So when you’re having something like that that has success and people are being asked to use it and the audience is, and you have good and bad, I think it creates really strong opinion.

As an actor, do you prefer the speed of digital on the set with no down time?

Yeah, at times it’s nice. Sometimes it’s nice that you don’t have that clock running. It’s running but it’s not as short. The typical 35mm film role is over nine minutes but under 10 minutes. New digital cameras, depending on what rate you’re recording at, you can have 40 minutes, an hour and a half. You can just roll, so those bring freedoms to it and possibilities. Sometimes you have to say, “Stop.”

You just directed The Man of Tai Chi. Did you use film or digital?

Yeah, I just got back. We filmed in China, in Beijing and Hong Kong and we shot digitally on the Arri Studio Camera which is a full chip camera.

Was that your artistic choice or out of necessity?

I went into it going in going, “Okay, I’d like to shoot this photochemically.” I did some motion blur tests just to see how digital would deal with motion blur because it’s a Kung Fu movie. I wanted to see those artifacts. Then it was like, “Okay, we’re shooting in China. What is developing in Beijing like? Okay, we don’t know. How much does film cost? Where are we going to get it?” So I started to go into it from a production side of it to look at digital, because film had some issues there to me. So then I tested cameras and looks and ended up with the Arri which is awesome.

With Tai Chi and 47 Ronin are you using your old Matrix skills or all new ones?

[Laughs] I had some wonderful training in the Matrix films so that gives me a bit of a foundation, but you know I’m older. I got older knees, so my older knees are standing on that foundation. But I have a good Kung Fu fight in Man of Tai Chi and in Ronin I get to do some things.

continued on next post

[GeneChing]

Now the interview gets a little silly.

Some of my colleagues already asked you about Bill and Ted 3 earlier today.

Uh-huh.

Is now a good time for that?

I have no idea if it’s a good time or a bad time. It’s certainly a surreal time. I don't know what it would be like to play that role right now. Hopefully it wouldn’t be too harmful to my health. Those films are filled with such love and joy. We have a script and it’s funny, so we’ll see.

How long ago was the script finished?

A while ago. It’s a first draft.

Would Bill and Ted be LMFAO fans now?

I don’t know.

They’d be classic metal snobs, right?

I don't know. I don't know.

Would they have liked Dogstar?

Probably not. I don't think we rocked in quite the right way for them.

That might be too meta too.

Yeah, maybe.

Were the film clips and behind the scenes footage in Side by Side easy to license?

Our approach was if anyone spoke about anything specifically, then we would try to illustrate it in a movie. So that was our approach.

Did you have to call in any favors?

Yeah, sometimes. We did some fair use so it was really just trying to do it like that.

Are there some extended interviews that could be on a DVD? Who was good in a longer form session?

They were all good in a longer form. Yeah, hopefully if it ever has that life of extras and stuff, we’d like to make that available. We interviewed over 140 people and I think really are a part of capturing this evolution/revolution from so many people involved in the industry of moviemaking, of this art form. So I’d like to have that archived or made available as: okay, here’s a film university or here’s a film school or here’s an academy. Here they are. Make these available to whoever is here to be able to watch all of these full-length interviews. We’re cutting some of them now but yeah, I’d like to make them available.

We’d love to hear more from Nolan, Fincher, Soderbergh…

Yeah, that’s up to Tribeca [Film] too for a while because they own the movie, they have rights to the movie for a while.

How much time do you actually have to watch movies these days?

I’ve been pretty busy. I was filming over the past, with prep, like nine months but I was watching a lot of Kung Fu movies. So I was making time, just to look how Kung Fu movies have been shot. What are the different ways, styles, camera angles, lenses and stuff, and editing styles. Then working with the cinematographer, Elliot Davis, we would watch movies together and just look at things. As a civilian, maybe I won’t watch a movie for a month and then maybe I’ll watch like 12 of them.

Luckily it’s my job, so I can always say I have to watch this for work.

Isn’t that great? I mean, I love it and I love going to the cinema.

But I still feel like I don’t watch enough.

Yeah.

Do you have any cool obscure Kung Fu movie recommendations?

I don’t have any that an aficionado would not know.

Were you watching any of those movies during The Matrix also?

During the Matrix time we looked at Yuen Woo-Ping films, so it was Fist of Legend, Tai Chi Master, Iron Monkey. I got to work with him on Man of Tai Chi so that was really an honor. He did the choreography.

Well, it’s great to have a discussion about hardcore film and how it’s done.

Yeah, it was extraordinary. We worked on it for about a year and a half. It was really great to sit down with people and speak about their passion of movies.

And to document it so anyone who doesn’t know the specifics and digest it, and the techies can get into it too.

Yeah, Chris and my ambition was to make something that would be interesting to the specialist through people’s opinions and perspectives, and for anybody who likes movies just to be able to go behind the scenes and to see how it’s made, how it’s done. To hopefully deepen the appreciation for what we watch and how we watch it. That was our hope.

[GeneChing]

There's interview vid if you follow the link.

Keanu Reeves knows kung fu – shows us with 47 Ronin" and "Man of Tai Chi
STV 31 August 2012 10:30 BST

The 47-year-old actor has 47 Ronin and Man of Tai Chi under his belt – and is making his feature film directorial debut with the latter.

47 Ronin is a big-budget retelling of a classic Japanese tale – with Reeves playing an outsider alongside a mostly Japanese cast. Directed by first-timer Carl Rinsch, it tells of 47 samurai in 18th century Japan who avenge the murder of their master.

Shot in 3D, the film's release has been repeatedly delayed. It was initially set for release late this year but Universal has now scheduled it for winter 2013. Reeves said he was doing additional shooting on the movie in the fall.

Reeves said in an interview: "It's an ambitious film. It's an ambitious film in theme and it was ambitious in its scale.

"I think it's something special. It's really historical, fantastical. It's a big story, you know – it's like Revenge, Love, Honor, Outsider. Those take time and care."

Meanwhile, while Reeves was producing and hosting a documentary about digital cinema – Side By Side – he also directed his first movie.

It's called Man of Tai Chi and features Tiger Chen Hu and Iko Uwais, known for his role in The Raid: Redemption. In post-production, the film doesn’t have a release date as yet.

Reeves explained: "I love kung fu movies. I love the genre. And I was working with a gentleman named Chen Hu, Tiger Chen, who helped train me in The Matrix, for the first Matrix film.

"We stayed friends and he started to do some acting. So I started to work with him, developing a story for him. It turned into Man of Tai Chi and we worked on it for about like I said five, six years."

The film shot mostly in China and is based loosely on the life of Hu and his teacher.

"Tiger is a great martial artist," Reeves said. "He's got this really traditional background. And he's also a modern man. And so the story is based around his character in a way."

Reeves says there are 14 fights in his movie, and he joined in one. While he hasn't formally studied martial arts since he was a kid, he remains fascinated by how it plays on-screen.

"I did some studying when I was a little kid, you know. Took some akido and did some jumping around stuff. But I don't have any belts," he said. "I know movie kung fu. And I had one fight in the film, a super fight."

[GeneChing]

Following the code of the samurai

Art Gallery of Greater Victoria curator of Asian art Barry Till spent the last few years hunting down century-old Japanese woodblock prints related to the famed story of the 47 ronin.
By Edward Hill - Victoria News
Published: December 11, 2012 11:00 AM
Updated: December 11, 2012 11:56 AM

A venerated, blood-soaked 300-year-old tale of revenge and loyalty that still resonates through Japan today, is being played out on the walls of the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria.

The gallery has launched Virtuous Vendetta: The story of the 47 Ronin in Prints, a collection of 69 meticulous woodblock images produced by Japan’s finest artists in the 1700 and 1800s. The individual scenes follow the oft-repeated true story of the 47 ronin, while demonstrating the striking detail in what 150 years ago was considered disposable, mass produced art.

“It is a tragedy. Like the Greeks, the Japanese like their tragic stories,” said Barry Till, curator of Asian art for the AGGV for 31 years. Till pulled the collection together over the past several decades. “The story has become the ultimate symbol of the spirit of loyalty to one’s master, no matter what.”

The story unfolds in 1701, with feudal lords Asano Naganori and the elder Kira Yoshinaka, a greedy man who demanded large bribes for advice on official etiquette. Enraged, Asano drew his sword and nicked Kira in the forehead, although unsheathing his weapon within the shogun’s grounds was a serious offence.

On the shogun’s order, Asano committed seppuku – ritual suicide – setting in motion a plot for revenge by Asano’s samurai warriors against Lord Kira. Forty-six masterless samurai called ronin (the 47th is rumoured to be a warrior who wasn’t quite a samurai) bided their time before launching an attack. The lead ronin Ôishi Kuranosuke even made himself appear as a drunk and a womanizer to lull Kira’s men into complacency.

“After a year-and-a-half they assaulted Kira’s mansion. They killed many bodyguards, found Kira and presented him with the sword of their master to commit suicide. Kira refused so they cut off his head,” Till said moving from print to print.

Villagers hailed the ronin as heroes as they travelled to Tokyo to present Kira’s head to their master’s grave. “These samurai showed the ultimate loyalty,” Till said, “and they knew because of it, they had to kill themselves.”

Again on the shogun’s orders and without question, the 46 committed seppuku. Within weeks of their deaths in 1703, people began telling the story of revenge of the ronin through kabuki theater. Millions of ornate woodblock prints soon followed as the story struck a chord with Japanese society and gained widespread popularity.

“The prints are art of the masses, often posted in houses until they fell apart and were thrown out,” said Till, who wrote a book on the prints of the 47 ronin. “Some prints were put into storage. Often you find ones that are 150 to 200 years old in pristine condition. New ones are found all the time.”

Till collected approximately 25 new ronin prints over the past two years through online auctions. Recently depressed prices also brought many Japanese woodblock prints out of the woodwork.

Auctioned prints can fetch up to $400, but $150 is an average price. “Ten years ago it would have been double or triple. It’s a good time to buy,” Till said.

The prints add to the 4000-plus pieces of Japanese art owned by the AGGV. “We have arguably the best collection of Japanese art in Canada – samurai suits, ceramics, paintings,” he said.

Till had planned the exhibition to coincide with the release of the movie 47 Ronin which stars Keanu Reeves, although that film’s release date is now December 2013.

“The scenes are so expressive. The outfits are so strong and powerful,” Till said. “I wanted to show how popular the story is in Japan.”

Virtuous Vendetta prints are on display at AGGV until March 31, 2013. Barry Till is offering a curator’s tour on Jan. 16, 2013 at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. See aggv.ca for more.

At least now we know why we didn't see this film open last month.

[GeneChing]

Wait...giants and sorcerers?

And the Great Wall? Must make new thread.

Most troubled movie productions
By Jim Slotek ,QMI Agency

First posted: Monday, November 19, 2012 12:42 PM EST | Updated: Monday, November 19, 2012 12:49 PM EST

In a parallel universe, the blockbuster 47 Ronin is opening this week.

But on this planet, the 18th century samurai revenge story starring Keanu Reeves is a financial sinkhole that has been pushed ahead like the U.S. debt. Once skedded to open Nov. 21, it's bounced all the way to Christmas 2013.

There aren't many casinos that take nine-figure bets. But Hollywood does.

Here are some of those "iffy" bets/troubled productions.

World War Z

Based on the zombie apocalypse novel by Max Brooks.

The stars: Brad Pitt, Brad Pitt and Brad Pitt. Also Bryan Cranston, Matthew Fox.

The budget: $125 million -- reportedly long blown.

What went wrong?: Weirdest setback -- in Budapest, when Hungarian anti-terrorist authorities confiscated the production's guns (which turned out to be fully functional -- for "method" shoot-outs maybe?). The studio soured on original writer J. Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5) and hired Lost co-creators Damon Lindelof and Drew Goddard to write re-shoots. Originally for Christmas 2012, WWZ is now due next summer.

Can it be saved?: Maybe. Pitt's last "troubled production," Moneyball, was a hit. On the other hand, the trailers have not knocked people's socks off.

47 Ronin

The backstory: Based on a true story, the project was announced in 2008, with the addition of Lord Of The Rings-esque elements of giants and sorcerers.

The stars: Keanu Reeves as the outcast Kai, and a cast of Japanese actors, including Hiroyuki Sanada as the samurai leader and Tadanobu Asano as evil Lord Kira.

The budget: Originally $175 mil -- now $225 mil.

What went wrong?: The studio "yoinked" the film from first-time director Carl Rinsch, and ordered re-shoots with "more Keanu!" (kind of like "more cowbell!")

Can it be saved?: Unlikely. Keanu hasn't had much success in movies where he doesn't say "Whoa." It'll do well in Japan, though.

The Great Wall

The backstory: Horror film about the "real" reason they built the Great Wall Of China (monsters). Based on an idea by World War Z author Brooks. Snakebit much, Max?

The stars: Henry Cavill (soon to be Superman), Benjamin Walker (Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter), Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)

The budget: $100 mil-plus

What went wrong?: Fall filming in China was scrapped due to "bad weather." Shaky financing was rumoured. New start date is spring, but director Ed Zwick quit.

Can it be saved?: A billion Chinese moviegoers say, "Yes!"

Fury Road, a.k.a. Mad Max 4

The Backstory: After decades, original series editor George Miller got a green light to start filming in Namibia this summer.

The stars: Tom Hardy (as the new Max Rockatansky), Charlize Theron

The budget: $100 million

What went wrong?: They're still there, and with the budget ballooning, the studio sent a rep to kick Miller's butt.

Can it be saved? Probably. The curiosity factor will be strong for the first Mad Max movie in nearly 30 years.

Paradise Lost

The Backstory: Bradley Cooper's pet project, an epic treatment of Milton's saga of the war between Heaven and Hell, with Alex Proyas (The Crow) as director.

The stars: Cooper as Lucifer, Casey Affleck, Benjamin Walker, Djimon Hounsou, Rufus Sewell

The budget: $120 mil

What went wrong: Somebody actually crunched the FX cost of a war between Heaven and Hell. The word Avatar got bandied about. It'd be filming now, but the axe fell in September.

Can it be saved?: When Hell freezes over.

[GeneChing]

Xmas this year? Seriously?

Film: Japanese legend gets Hollywood remake starring Keanu Reeves
Posted by Sam Bouchat on Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 5:14 pm.

The Akō Vendetta, a hugely well-known historical event in Japan, occurred in 1703 (during the Edo period). A group of samurai planned out and exacted revenge for their dead master, who had been forced to commit suicide about a year earlier after attacking another high-ranking individual. Immediately after the event, it was written into plays, stories and puppet shows, and told through word-of-mouth as a symbol of the true level of loyalty samurai should hold to their master — even after their master dies and the samurai become ronin, or masterless samurai, the most commendable samurai maintain their loyalty.

Since then, hundreds of versions of this event have found their way into older and contemporary culture, inside and outside Japan. The most recent example is a film currently in the works, “47 Ronin,” starring Keanu Reeves (“The Matrix” trilogy) as Kai, a half Japanese, half British ronin. His character was created especially for this film, and has not been in past versions of the story. Reeves is the only non-Japanese member of the main cast, though the film will be released in English.

The film, already postponed several times from its original released date in November 2012 to its current released date on Dec. 25, 2013, is struggling to come to fruition. Director Carl Rinsch (who has only directed short films up to this point) was reportedly removed from the editing process of the film for straying from Universal Studios’ desires for the product. The film has gone severely over budget (from $175 million to $225 million) and Rinsch apparently struggled to make Reeves the focus of the production.

Despite an impressive Japanese cast, such as Hiroyuki Sanada (“The Last Samurai”), Tadanobu Asano (“Thor”) and Rinko Kikuchi (“Babel”), the shaky status of “47 Ronin” may leave fans of this centuries-old Japanese legend worried about the outcome of the film (if there is one).