Commercial director and Ridley Scott protege Carl Erik Rinsch will become better known when his feature debut, the ambitious Keanu Reeves samurai epic 47 Ronin, hits theaters in 2012. But in the meantime, another another of his eye-catching shorts has hit the web that showcases what could be the introduction of a memorable new talent to the film world. In Escape the Map, commissioned by Mercedes-Benz, Rinsch offers an interactive behind-the-wheel adventure set entirely in a pixelated, digital world of intrigue and femme fatales caught in the matrix of Google Streetview. Watch it and weigh in; is Rinsch the visionary filmmaker of the future?
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Spoiler alert: James Franco's character wasn't always supposed to survive the Rise of the Planet of the Apes chaos. According to an early script, Franco's Will Rodman was supposed to die in the arms of his primate pal Caesar after being hit with a bullet during the dramatic forest showdown. At the last minute, the filmmakers decided to change the ending and flew the actor cross-country to film an alternative goodbye scene with Caesar (Andy Serkis). The casualty-free climax made the final cut, Rise of the Planet of the Apes grossed over $400 million worldwide and Will Rodman lives to film a potential sequel. [THR]
Eight years after Aron Ralston cut off his own arm to free himself from a boulder in Utah's Little Blue John Canyon, a 64-year-old North Carolina man faced a similar survival nightmare while hiking in the same Utah desert earlier this month. Even though Amos Wayne Richards had seen 127 Hours -- the Danny Boyle film starring James Franco that chronicled Ralston's hiking disaster -- he still set out for a solo hike without telling anyone of his plans. Richards broke a leg, dislocated his shoulder and was forced to survive four days on rain water and a pair of protein bars before attracting the attention of a helicopter pilot overhead with the flash on his camera. Lesson learned this time? [EW via AP]
While discussing the presidential biopic that he is gearing up to shoot in Richmond this fall, Steven Spielberg described what he does not want Lincoln to be. The 2012 title will "not [be] a battlefield movie. There are battles in it, and being in Virginia, we have access to those historic battlefields." Additionally, "the movie will be purposely coming out after next year's election. I didn't want it to become political fodder." On the other hand, Lincoln will chronicle "the great work Abraham Lincoln did in the last months of his life." The drama stars Daniel Day-Lewis as the 16th president of the United States alongside Sally Field, Tommy Lee Jones, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and John Hawkes. [Orlando Sentinel]
Bret Easton Ellis, who uses Twitter to air opinions like, "[Glee makes me feel] like I've stepped into a puddle of HIV," is coming face to face with the puddle itself: Glee's Darren Criss has apparently signed on for a supporting role in Downers Grove, costarring Lucy Hale and Hayden Panettiere, which Ellis is adapting. Said Ellis on Twitter, "Whatever my problems with Glee have nothing to do with the incredibly talented cast itself. Have tastelessly bashed the show not the actors." Still, a minor LOL is in order. [Twitter]
Donald Sutherland -- the film legend (and, weirdly, zero-time Oscar nominee) who starred in M*A*S*H* and Klute among many others -- is slated to play President Snow in The Hunger Games, the movie based on Suzanne Collins' blockbuster book series. Snow uses the violent games to maintain control as an autocratic ruler. Mr. Sutherland's white, wintry mane -- like angelfood cake in the wind -- makes him a shoo-in for the part. To me, anyway. For the full Hunger Games cast list, click on over to our comprehensive gallery. [Deadline]
