Screen Rant » the mechanic

DVD/Blu-ray Breakdown: May 17, 2011

Mike Eisenberg — Wed, 18 May 2011 02:23:07 +0000

Jason Statham, Anthony Hopkins, Leighton Meester, Eddie Murphy and Paul Newman would make for one intriguing cast. While they’ll never join the screen together, they all hit shelves on DVD and Blu-ray in their respective titles this week.

The Mechanic gives action fans something to drool over, while The Rite and The Roommate try to entertain horror fans. but if you really want something to spend your money on this week, it is the Blu-ray re-releases found below. Two very different classics earn the Blu-ray treatment this week.

Natalie Portman hits shelves again in the dramatic The Other Woman. The movie didn’t get much press, but if you want further proof that Natalie Portman Cries A Lot, just give this title a ...

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: February 6, 2011

Niall Browne — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 01:14:31 +0000

This week:

The box office finds a Roommate while James Cameron gets that sinking feeling with Sanctum; Brad Fuller talks horror sequels and Ninja Turtles, Hugh Jackman and Shawn Levy reunite after getting Lost with Carlton Cuse; Mike Newell has Great Expectations; get ready for the Unexpected and Jesse McCartney is under Locke & Key.Box Office

Thriller The Roommate topped a weak box office over the weekend with an estimated gross of $15.6 million. The low budget Screen Gems film should be profitable once it finishes its run – which shouldn’t be too far in the future.

The James Cameron produced Sanctum (read our review) opened in second place with a weekend take of $9.2 million. The weak gross for the 3D adventure shows that the third dimension and Cameron’s name will only go so far at the box office.

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: January 30, 2011

Niall Browne — Sun, 30 Jan 2011 17:13:33 +0000

This week:

The Rite scares away the competition at the box office; Streisand and Rogen suffer My Mother’s Curse; The Beatles Get Back; three more join New Year’s Eve; Firelight gets a writer; Travolta eyes Gotti and Jackman and Pine are Guardians.Box Office

This week Anthony Hopkins’ latest fright fest The Rite (read our review) topped the box office with an estimated $15 million.

The exorcism drama opened in the middle of analyst expectations. If it goes the route of most horror films then it will likely see a heavy drop next weekend.

Last weekend’s champion No Strings Attached dropped to number two. The Natalie Portman comedy grossed $13.7 million for a $39.7 million total gross.

The Green Hornet was fourth after taking in another $11.5 million. The superhero film has now upped its cume ...

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Interview: Director Simon West Talks ‘The Mechanic’

Roth Cornet — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 23:47:56 +0000

Director Simon West’s remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson opus to the hardened assassin, The Mechanic, opened this weekend to a mixed critical response. We had the chance to sit down with the director and talk about his approach to adapting a the 70s era film for a modern audience. The original film birthed a new sub-genre in action — the hit-mans tale; and the style and tone of the film was in line a time when far more ambiguous stories and characters were common.

We asked the director about some of the new directions that this incarnation of the story took, as well as which elements that he felt were essential to maintain.

Screen Rant: This felt sort of like a more methodical action movie than what people might expect from you; Con Air was very ...

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‘The Mechanic’ Review

Vic Holtreman — Fri, 28 Jan 2011 15:51:47 +0000

Screen Rant’s Vic Holtreman reviews The Mechanic

Following on the heels of the most excellent updated version of True Grit we have a remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson-starring film The Mechanic (click for info about the original). While True Grit was quite excellent mainly due to the performance of its young star, sadly, this new version of The Mechanic is nothing to write home about.

It opens promisingly enough with a silent introduction to the head of a South American drug cartel. Within minutes we get a sense of not only his power and brutality, but of his enormous wealth. Statham appear on the scene to assassinate the guy in a pretty slick way (“the best jobs are the ones where they never ...

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Red Band Trailer For ‘The Mechanic’

Roth Cornet — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 04:38:41 +0000

A new red band trailer for director Simon West’s remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson action-thriller The Mechanic has been released.

Jason Statham stars as Arthur Bishop, a specialized and elite assassin known as a “mechanic” who can be trusted to seamlessly “eliminate targets” with precision, speed, and machine-like detachment. Yet, when his mentor Harry McKenna (Donald Sutherland), the only man he is attached to, is murdered, he becomes personally invested in seeing vengeance done.

Harry’s son Steve (Ben Foster) comes to him for the training necessary to take part in the epic unleashing of retribution that Bishop has planed. The hit-man’s life quickly becomes both more dangerous, and more complex, when their mission and lives are threatened by his ex-employer, Dean Sanderson (played by the go-to “evil yuppie” character actor Tony Goldwyn).

Take ...

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‘The Mechanic’ Trailer #2 Is Explosion Friendly

Sandy Schaefer — Tue, 16 Nov 2010 21:20:41 +0000

While we’re eagerly awaiting the day that Jason Statham decides to branch out a little and play a sensitive flower shop owner in a Nora Ephron rom-com, the former Olympic diver certainly knows how to play an intimidating action star onscreen, and will do it again in The Mechanic.

Statham plays the role of professional killer Arthur Bishop in the action flick, which was originally a Charles Bronson vehicle back in 1972. If the second trailer is any indication, the Mechanic remake is as explosion friendly as Statham’s last cinematic outing, The Expendables.

Check out the official synopsis for The Mechanic below:

Arthur Bishop (Statham) is a ‘mechanic’ – an elite assassin with a strict code and unique talent for cleanly eliminating targets. It’s a job that requires professional perfection and total detachment, and ...

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CBS Films Picks Up ‘The Mechanic’ With Jason Statham

Rob Frappier — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 11:16:04 +0000

CBS Films has acquired the US distribution rights to The Mechanic, a remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson action film about a hitman training his young protege in the fine art of killing. The film stars Jason Statham, who can be seen next in the testosterone-fueled The Expendables, Ben Foster (X3), and Donald Sutherland. Simon West (Con Air) directed the film.

Irwin Winkler and Robert Chartoff (the Academy Award-winning team behind Rocky and Goodfellas) and their sons David Winkler and William Chartoff produced the movie.

Check below for an image of Statham and Foster in action. Click the image for a high-res version.

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Remaking films from the 1970s and 1980s ...

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‘The Mechanic’ Trailer

Ross Miller — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:03:22 +0000

Jason Statham is adding yet another “many British action-hero” role to his resume, with a remake of The Mechanic. Stepping into the shoes of the legendary Charles Bronson, Statham plays a veteran hitman who decides to take on an apprentice so he can retire knowing his “good work” is still being carried out.

Joining Statham is Ben Foster (playing said apprentice) and Donald Sutherland (playing Foster’s father and Statham’s handler). The film is being directed by Simon West, whose films will probably be familiar to fans of brainless action flicks (Con Air, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider).

Today we have the first ever trailer for The Mechanic. The movie is still in the filming stages but this is an early teaser to wet our appetites. Take a look, thanks to Trailer Addict (it could be considered to be ...

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Screen Rant’s 2010 Movie Preview

Kofi Outlaw — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:46:40 +0000

As 2010 approaches, it’s time to bid farewell to the cinematic happenings of 2K9 – but what does the near-future hold for movie lovers? Luckily for you guys, we here at Screen Rant are dusting off our crystal ball and looking ahead… all the way to the year 2010.

Be sure to read through our entire 2010 movie preview (of over 70 movies!) to get the scoop on when you’ll be able to catch big flicks like Iron Man 2, Christopher Nolan’s Inception, Martin Scorsese’s adaptation of Shutter Island, Freddy Krueger’s return to Elm Street, a comic book adaptation that’s sure to Kick-Ass, an animated showdown between Dreamworks’ Shrek Forever After and Pixar’s Toy Story 3 – and for the ladies, a second helping of Sex In The City and an obscure little film called ...

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Sutherland & Foster Join Statham In ‘Mechanic’ Remake

Ross Miller — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 17:53:33 +0000

About six months ago, we reported on Jason Statham being cast in the remake of the 1972 action crime-thriller, The Mechanic, about a hitman who takes on an apprentice. At the time there was word that the remake would be a remake in name only, and the story would be changed to a modern-day spy thriller. However, with the latest casting news, it appears the story will be pretty similar if not the same as the original.

Promising news, I say.

Variety is reporting that Donald Sutherland and Ben Foster (Pandorum, X-Men: The Last Stand) are set to co-star with Statham in The Mechanic remake, which is set to be directed by Simon West (Con Air – one of my favorites, FYI ) from ...

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Poster Friday: New Moon, Caprica, The Crazies & More!

Rob Keyes — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 07:07:42 +0000

Happy Friday everyone! For our first Friday of October 2009, we’ve again gathered the latest posters to come out for this week’s poster round-up.

Screen Rant’s wall this week now includes new one-sheets for The Princess and the Frog, Caprica, The Crazies, The Mechanic, Stone, Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans, Saw VI, The Twilight Saga’s New Moon and Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant.

In addition to that we have two bonus posters from two major upcoming films that you need to check out! Also, there’s some very creative road sign parody posters of classic films, as well as some older and strange looking posters from Ghana.

Let’s get to it.

To start, here’s another new poster for The Princess and the Frog that looks nearly ...

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Jason Statham Updating Charles Bronson Hitman Role

Ross Miller — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 20:31:43 +0000

I don’t think it will be too much longer until we can look at the back catalog of every movie ever made and check the box next to every one that says “Remade?” It seems that a single day can’t go by without news of a remake being announced, this time it is the 1972 action/crime-thriller The Mechanic which starred The Coolest Actor Of All Time (fact, not opinion…) Charles Bronson.

Bronson himself sadly passed away back in 2003, so needless to say it’ll have to be a fresh face who portrays the character of Arthur Bishop. So which modern day tough guy is it going to be?

Well none other than the Transporter and the (apparently) immortal Chev Chelios (from Crank) himself, Mr Jason Statham.

The project hasn’t been in the works for that long so not many details have been released yet, other than ...

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