Screen Rant » the surrogates

Surrogates Review

Vic Holtreman — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 00:37:26 +0000

Short Version: While not as smart as it could be, Surrogates is thought provoking and mildly entertaining.

Screen Rant reviews Surrogates

Bruce Willis’ latest (semi-)action movie is Surrogates, a thought provoking look at the idea of taking our virtual/avatar online selves to a whole other level. In the film, it has been 14 years since Lionel Canter (James Cromwell) developed the first generation of a technology that allowed robots to be controlled completely via thought. We are briefly shown the stages of the development and integration of the technology over ensuing years, leading to present day (some time in the near future in the film).

The “Surrogate” (or “Surrey”) technology became so advanced and its use so widespread that eventually almost everyone now has their own personal robotic duplicate. What’s the point, you ask? Well these duplicates (which of course are idealized versions of the real person, or perhaps a completely different “fantasy” personage) go out into the world and interact with other people via their surrogates. In the film, due to 98% of the worlds population using surrogates, crime has plummeted and people are able to lead more supposedly satisfying lives – able to engage in all sorts of dangerous and risky behavior with no fear of getting hurt.

Bruce Willis plays Tom Greer, an FBI agent brought in to investigate the destruction of two surrogates. With the ultra-low crime rate this is an unusual event – moreso due to the effects of the destruction: Burnt out “eyes” on the units. Things get more complicated when it’s discovered that the human operators of these surrogates died from as a result of the “death” of their robots. This is a very big deal as one of the main selling points of the robots is the fact that there is no chance of injury whatsoever to the operator.

The main plot of the film is Greer attempting to find out who is behind the weapon because it could bring mass chaos to a world that has become completely dependent on the technology.

Greer is married but has suffered a great loss not long ago – the result of this is that his wife Maggie (Rosamund Pike) will not leave her room, but will only eveer be “seen” in the guise of her perfect, surrogate self. Greer is weary of living life virtually, hooked up to the equipment in his room and never leaving his home. That is how everyone lives now – interacting with each other only via their perfect-looking surrogates, while in reality sequestering themselves alone at home.

There are groups of people in every major city living in self-restricted compounds called human reservations. They think that this “virtual life” via surrogates is an abomination and want humanity to return living as we were intended. These people are led by a “messiah” called The Prophet – played by Ving Rhames, who is not who he appears to be.

The movie is based on a comic book miniseries written by Robert Venditti which I haven’t read – so how faithful it is to the source material overall, I don’t know (other than the ending deviates from the comic in a typical movie “happy ending” sort of way). It’s an intriguing concept – extrapolating from people’s growing dependence today on sites like Facebook and Twitter as well as virtual communities where you only exist to others via your online avatar (I read recently that now every one out of five minutes online are spend on social networking sites).

Unfortunately it’s very difficult to connect with the film in any way since most of the time the characters on screen are the CGI-enhanced, overly perfect surrogate versions of the actors. I did like the slightly artificial look and sheen of the surrogates, but the flip side is that as these characters they were stiff and could not emote very well. As a counterpoint to this uber-perfection it seemed like the film over compensated in the “real person” department, making the people in the film (too not put too fine a point on it) really ugly. Then again I suppose if you never had any reason to EVER leave your home, you wouldn’t worry so much about such niceties as shaving, showering every day, putting on makeup if you’re a woman, etc.

So in the end, it was an interesting concept but the execution left me a bit cold – while it could have been a film that sticks with you for a while, instead it was kind of forgettable. I’d say it’s worth a rental when it comes out on DVD.

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Three New ‘Surrogates’ Clips

Rob Frappier — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:09:59 +0000

Do you want to see Bruce Willis get hit by a truck? Well, we’ve got a treat for you.

Disney recently released three new clips from Willis’ upcoming action/sci-fi film Surrogates and we have them here for you. In case you haven’t been keeping up with our coverage of Surrogates, the film takes place in a world where humans live their lives via remote-controlled robots. Willis plays Agent Greer, a detective investigating a Surrogate-related death that rapidly leads to a larger conspiracy.

These new clips don’t show much that we haven’t already seen from the trailers and TV spots (nor do they make much sense out of context), but they’re still worth checking out. In the first two clips, Bruce Willis is in full Surrogate mode, sporting a dashing blond toupee. In the last clip, he’s just good old Bruce Willis, something that doesn’t fare too well for him when an SUV slams into his car. Thanks to Collider for slapping all three clips together into one video.

Expectations of Surrogates have ranged from “meh” to “hey that doesn’t look too bad.” As a huge Bruce Willis fan and sci-fi nerd, I’m hoping the movie does well. Of course, 2009 hasn’t been known for its crop of quality films, so I won’t hold my breath. What do you think? Do these clips make you more or less excited to see Surrogates?

Surrogates, directed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines), opens September 25th, 2009.

Source: Collider

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Explosive New Surrogates Trailer

Ross Miller — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 18:01:21 +0000

A new trailer has appeared online exclusively over at Empire for the new Bruce Willis sci-fi/action-thriller, Surrogates. Based on the graphic novel, The Surrogates, and directed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3), the film is set in a world where humans live their lives through robot surrogates. Willis plays Agent Greer, a homicide detective who has to leave his home for the first time in years in order investigate murders of other surrogates and their users.

Empire’s exclusive Surrogates trailer isn’t drastically different to the first trailer in terms of giving away much more about the plot, but we do get a new opening section that’s reminiscent to the viral marketing materials, as well as it showcasing some of better action scenes – complete with explosions galore. For now, you can view the trailer over at Empire, but be sure to keep an eye out around these parts for when it becomes available as we’ll put it up here.

We’ve been seeing quite a bit of stuff from Surrogates over the last few months – including posters, TV spots and behind-the-scenes stuff – and although it hasn’t looked like anything earth shattering or life changing, I still like enough of what I’ve seen to see it when it opens in theaters. Added to a cool premise and some nifty looking special effects and action sequences, we also have quite a cast: Starring alongside Bruce Willis, we have James Cromwell, Radha Mitchell, Ving Rhames and Rosamund Pike.

Does anyone else think that the film looks like Avatar meets I, Robot? For some reason I can’t get that combo-comparison out of my mind whenever I see anything from it. Time will tell if it actually turns out to be anything like those two movies.

What do you think of the latest trailer for Surrogates? Will you be there opening day to see this one?

Surrogates opens two weeks from today, on September 25th, 2009.

Source: Empire

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Screen Rant’s 2009 Fall Movie Preview

Mike Wilkerson — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 03:01:23 +0000

As the days become shorter, and the nights become cooler, there is one thing on the horizon that all of us are quickly becoming aware of – the arrival of a slew of exciting 2009 Fall Movies. What’s always been great about this time of year is that it’s not just about “horror films” or movies that are made to touch the holiday hearts that burgeon each year as turkey, Santa and New Year’s Eve stretch into the new year and beyond.

The menu is varied, wide open and we hope – satisfying. While we couldn’t list them all, please join us as we quickly chronicle what lies ahead in Screen Rant’s 2009 Fall Movie Preview!

SEPTEMBER – 2009

Whiteout
September 11th, 2009
The Scoop: Pretty little starlet Kate Beckinsale takes on this graphic novel turned killer-thriller. Beckinsale plays a U.S. Marshall investigating Antarctica’s first homicide as the sun sets for six entire months. Will she find the killer in the cold dark before he finds her?

SR Says: The trailer paints this movie as more X-Files than detective story, which could confuse some on the premise. However, cold weather and hot Beckinsale = worth the ticket price?

See it? Maybe.

The Informant!
September 18, 2009
The Scoop: Director Steven Soderbergh helms an all-star cast providing you “a mix of A Beautiful Mind and The Insider.” Damon plays the exec of a agri-business giant who goes overboard working as a snitch for the Feds. It’s bi-polar, whistle-blowing storytelling at it’s best!

SR Says: It’s going to be amazing to see what this cast can pull off under Soderbergh’s direction with such an involved script.

See it? Yes.

Jennifer’s Body
September 18, 2009
The Scoop: Megan Fox plays a possessed cheerleader, with a fetish for feasting on boys (and girls). Hot sexy teens, girl on girl kissing/rubbing and more social satire from Juno writer Diablo Cody.

SR Says: Depends on how you feel about Megan Fox looking both sexy and grotesque in one film.

See it? If you like teen horror flicks, or are a devotee of Cody.

Pandorum
September 25, 2009
The Scoop: Ben Foster and Dennis Quaid star as two astronauts who wake up on an abandoned future spacecraft and have no idea what’s happened. As with all things in movies, time unveils the “truth” of what they face – a ship full of crazy space monsters.

SR Says: Dennis Quaid has had some woofers lately, but Ben Foster always offers something unique. MMA fans may recognize cast member Cung Le as the current Strikeforce Middleweight Champion, which guarantees at least two raucous fights in this thriller.

See it? Yes.

Surrogates
September 25th, 2009
The Scoop: In a future where people live life through robotic surrogates, Bruce Willis plays a cop who must venture back into the real world to investigate a string of crimes involving people dying while connected to their Surrogates.

SR Says: Jonathan Mostow is an underrated director, and seeing Bruce “alive” again, with great f/x and a bit of gravitas sounds like a great combination.

See it? Absolutely.

(Continue to page 2 for October’s Movie Preview)

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Three New ‘Surrogates’ TV Spots

Rob Keyes — Fri, 04 Sep 2009 01:09:21 +0000

Screen Rant has three new videos for you today to help get you ready for one of this month’s big releases: The Surrogates. The upcoming sci-fi action thriller stars none other than Bruce Willis along with Rosamund Pike, James Cromwell and Ving Rhames.

The film is based on the 2005-06 comic series of the same name where in the future, people live their lives through remote-controlled robots (the Surrogates). The story follows Agent Greer, played by Willis, who must leave his home to investigate the murders of other Surrogates.

Check out the latest after the jump…

The first official trailer for Surrogates, debuted back in May to mixed reaction. While the promotional material and viral marketing showed off some neat stuff, nothing has really grabbed my interest.

The film is directed by Jonathon Mostow of Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines fame. I really disliked that film and unfortunately, a lot of what I see reminds of that -- watch for yourself and see what you think of the latest three TV spots:

These spots don’t reveal too much knew but there are tidbits of scenes we’ve not yet encountered.

I like Bruce Willis but I’m still not overly impressed by what we’ve seen of this movie. Not good, considering they’re seemingly showing way too much in the trailers and commercials. That being said, some parts intrigue me and I’ll definitely check it out on opening weekend.

If this movie interests you, be sure to check out the Behind-the-scenes Surrogates featurette we posted on Screen Rant two weeks back.

What do you think of the TV spots? Will you be seeing this on the big screen?

Surrogates hits theaters September 25, 2009.

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‘Surrogates’ Behind-The-Scenes Featurette

Ross Miller — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 16:55:43 +0000

Today we have a new behind-the-scenes look at the upcoming sci-fi/thriller, Surrogates. Based on the graphic novel, the film stars Bruce Willis and is set in a world where humans live their lives through Avatar surrogate machine versions of themselves, all the while in the safety of their own home. Willis plays a man who if forced to once again live in “the real world” in order to investigate the murders of other Surrogates and their users.

The Surrogates featurette we have for you today is relatively short (about the length of an average trailer), but nonetheless gives us a good look at some of the technical stuff, as well as providing further insight into the world that the movie is set in. Check it out below:

I really like the idea of Surrogates, not only because it has potential for some really cool sci-fi action scenes, but also because it plays off of the very real and relevant (ingredients of good sci-fi!) issue of technology ruling our lives. There’s some really cool details in there -- for example, the humans can live their lives as machines, not feeling the pain that’s inflicted if their surrogates get shot or hit by a car. Pretty wild.

The movie really reminds me (and a lot of other people, apparently) of the Ridley Scott classic Blade Runner, although obviously a lot sleeker (in an I-Robot kind of way) as opposed to the “down and dirty” feeling of BR. I just hope Surrogates lives up to its potential.

What do you think of the featurette? Are you looking forward to this movie?

Surrogates hit theaters on September 25th, 2009.

Source: IGN via YouTube

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New Posters: Zombieland, Dorian Gray, Surrogates & Many More!

Rob Keyes — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 13:27:16 +0000

Today we’ve collected a pile of new posters that have debuted over the course of this week for you. They include new one-sheets for Zombieland, Amelia, The Private Lives of Pippa Lee, Dorian Gray and Sorority Row. In addition to those, we also have a foreign poster for Surrogates, a fan-made poster for Tron Legacy and an artwork sheet for The Descent: Part 2.

Check them out after the jump.

Coming Soon has exclusive look at the new Zombieland poster. I think it’d be a little better if they kept more of the color in the image but it’s cool nonetheless and I’ll definitely be seeing this the day it comes out.

Click the image to see their high-res version.

Zombieland is directed by Ruben Fleischer and stars Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Emma Stone and Abigail Breslin. It hits theaters October 9, 2009.

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New Posters: Surrogates, Pandorum, The Informant!

Ross Miller — Sat, 01 Aug 2009 16:37:33 +0000

Today we have a batch of new posters from three movies that are set to hit theaters before the end of the year. These include the new Bruce Willis action-sci-fi/thriller film Surrogates, the Dennis Quaid/Ben Foster sci-fi/horror-thriller, Pandorum, and the Matt Damon political comedy, The Informant!.

I’m looking forward to all three of these movies: Surrogates looks like a lot of fun, Pandorum looks creepy and atmospheric as hell and The Informant! looks hilarious. Check out the new posters for the three movies below:

For Surrogates, we have a bunch of new posters, all employing the same style of having the human bodies revealed as machines. They’re cool and all but don’t they remind you of something? They’re shockingly similar to the ones for The Sarah Connor Chronicles. Take a look and see for yourself:

For the rest of the Surrogates posters you can head over to IGN.

Do you see the comparisons to The Sarah Connor Chronicles posters I was talking about? The text style, the blank background, the sleek-ness, the general human-machine idea – all strikingly similar. I do like the tagline for Surrogates, though. And I find it interesting that apart from his name, star Bruce Willis is nowhere to be seen.

Next up, we have the final one-sheet for Pandorum, starring Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster, courtesy of Bloody-Disgusting. I’ve been looking forward to this movie ever since I saw the first poster and trailer, and this latest (and final) one-sheet just ups my anticipation even more. Check it out:

What… the…

The final poster we have today is for the upcoming political comedy/thriller, The Informant!. It reunites Matt Damon with director Steven Soderbergh for the fifth time, and it looks bloody brilliant in my eyes. Damon looks to be playing one of his most diverse characters, at least as far as his appearance goes. The first poster for the film was unusual, cheerful and goofy, and the latest follows suit. Take a look:

The poster is very much in the style of the work of Saul Bass who’s best known for his title sequence and poster work with the late-great Alfred Hitchcock (Vertigo being one their most notable collaborations – check out the poster and legendary title sequence). The Informant! poster certainly stands out amongst a lot of others, and you might have to look close but I love the tagline: “Based on a tattle-tale.”

Clever.

What do you think of these latest movie posters? Which of the three movies are you looking forward to most?

Surrogates opens on September 25th; Pandorum opens on September 11th in the UK and on September 18th in the US; and The Informant! opens on October 3rd in the US and on November 20th in the UK, all in 2009.

Sources: IGN, Bloody-Digusting and Yahoo

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Bruce Willis’ Surrogates Trailer Finally Arrives!

Rob Keyes — Fri, 22 May 2009 02:08:15 +0000

Today we finally have the official trailer for Surrogates!

Bruce Willis’ upcoming action sci-fi thriller is based on the 2005-06 comic series of the same name (but with “the” in front) where in the future, people live their lives through remote-controlled robots (the Surrogates). The story follows Agent Greer, played by Willis, who must leave his home to investigate the murders of other Surrogates and their respective users.

Watch the trailer and see what you think:

[See post to watch Flash video]

If you saw the footage that was revealed online the other week, most of what was shown there between the interviews shows up in this trailer. The trailer looks cool but isn’t very exciting. I get a strong sense of the style we saw in Minority Report (loved that movie!) and I, Robot while watching this and it therefore doesn’t come off as something unique or special.

What really worries me is that this movie looks alright from the trailer but I think the final full product may be very underwhelming (the same way I felt about Terminator 3 which was directed by the same guy, Jonathan Mostow). Most of the effects look polished but everything else (from the story, drama and excitement to the action) is a little bland.

It certainly has potential and I hope it’s good as I’ll definitely be seeing it.

What do you think of the trailer?

Surrogates opens September 25, 2009.

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New Footage Of Prince Of Persia & The Surrogates

Rob Keyes — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:21:57 +0000

Over the weekend, video interviews for Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time and The Surrogates found their way online and both reveal scenes from their respective movies.

The first interview, with producer Jerry Bruckheimer, talks about the Prince of Persia movie and its lead actor Jake Gyllenhaal. Interlaced throughout the short video, we see some footage of training sessions and scenes from the movie.

Take a look and see what you think:

It sure looks like a big budget action epic. I really hope this movie is good; the genre really needs it to be, to give hope to the other forty or so video game movie adaptations in development.

Next up is an interview for The Surrogates with director Jonathan Mostow. Similar to the Prince of Persia video, we get to see quite a few little pieces of footage from the movie including many of Bruce Willis with hair (well, his surrogate avatar) and some creepy robot stuff.

Most of what we see is pretty action-oriented and it looks very cool. A lot of the video plays like a trailer for the movie so I’d expect the official full trailer and more marketing for Surrogates to debut soon. We did get a cool viral poster for the movie two weeks back, so the marketing should soon gear up with the movie releasing later this summer.

I’m interesting in seeing both films although I don’t expect much from Prince of Persia. While the video game it is based on is great, the movie added lots of stuff not in the game, and that usually doesn’t bode well for any video game movie. Oh, and it’s a video game movie…

What do you think of our first video glimpses of these two movies?

Surrogates hits theaters September 25, 2009 and Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time opens May 28, 2010.

Source: WorstPreviews

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Bruce Willis Is Still A Man Of Action

Niall Browne — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:38:51 +0000

Bruce Willis is an iconic man of action to males (and females) of a certain age. John McClane from the Die Hard films is probably his trademark role (although some might say it’s David Addison from TV’s Moonlighting) and throughout the last twenty years he has been synonymous with the action genre. That isn’t about to change anytime soon.

Willis has been in discussions to star in no less than three new action films – three new editions to a pending slate that already includes A Couple of Dicks (set to be directed by Kevin Smith) and Kane and Lynch.

The three latest films are serial killer flick Inventory, mobster movie Scarpa and CIA pic Red .

According to The Hollywood Reporter:

“In Inventory, Willis, who is in negotiations for the role, would play a detective on the trail of a murderer.

In Red, Willis would portray a former black-ops agent who has gone into retirement but is forced back into action when a high-tech assassin comes a-callin’ to threaten him and his girlfriend (The film is based on a WildStorm/DC Comic).

Willis has also been weighing an offer from Morgan Creek to play the title character in Scarpa, a mob biopic directed by Tears of the Sun helmer Antoine Fuqua about Greg Scarpa, an FBI informant who worked deeply undercover in New York’s Columbo family, though the odds are growing that Willis won’t do that pic.”

With regards to Red it’s believed that Willis’ 16 Blocks director Richard Donner will helm the film. Donner is still sprightly and knows how to knock an action sequence together even though he’s now 79 years old.

Willis has often tried to distance himself from the action genre – even though it has given him most of his biggest successes (The Sixth Sense being the biggest exception). He spent many years refusing to return to the Die Hard series before being lured back for 2007’s rather good Live Free or Die Hard (Die Hard 4.0). He spent a large part of the 90’s and early 00’s making a variety of films in multiple genres, from comedies (The Whole Nine Yards) to drama (Nobody’s Fool opposite the late Paul Newman).

However, now at the ripe old age of 54, Bruce appears to be at ease with his tough guy image and seems willing to stand and kick ass next to the likes of Sylvester Stallone and Harrison Ford.

Bruce Willis will next be seen in Jonathan Mostow’s comic book adaptation The Surrogates which opens in September.

More on Inventory, Scarpa and Red as we get it.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

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New Viral Teaser Poster for ‘Surrogates’

Kofi Outlaw — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 22:43:06 +0000

Since its announcement, Screen Rant has been keeping a small fire burning for Disney’s adaptation of sci-fi comic book Surrogates, starring Bruce Willis.

So far we’ve seen some early concept pics from the film; a pic or two of Mr. Willis in character; even a viral marketing website where you can design your own “surrogate,” the robotic avatars which live peoples’ lives for them in the future society where Surrogates is set.

Today we’ve got an early teaser poster for Surrogates to show you, one that seems to continue the film’s viral campaign of promoting the surrogate avatars, rather than the film itself. The end result is pretty weird.

So you know what you’re looking at, here’s a quick synopsis of the film:

Set in a futuristic world where humans live in isolation and interact through surrogate robots, a cop (Willis) is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others’ surrogates.

Here’s the viral teaser poster:

This poster reminds me of the viral teaser banners they had for I, Robot back in 2003 – the posters that advertised the film’s domestic robots as real merchandise. The first time I ever saw those banners, I totally believed them. That’s right viral marketing, you got me!

What’s funny about this poster for Surrogates, however, is that we’ve got this advertisement for what is supposed to be this ultra-futuristic advanced technology, and how are they trying to (faux) market it? According to the same old credence of “sex sells.”

[SIDE NOTE: One thing I won't EVER need is a robotic avatar to get laid in my place. That aspect of life I think I'll always be able to handle on my own.]

Seriously though, I’m sure the marketing team behind Surrogates is trying to establish the psychology of a very different future society – a society where relationships between human beings have become quite estranged. It’s an admirable effort (and a crucial step if audiences are going to dig the concept), I’m just not sure this was the best way to execute it (unless sex ends up selling, of course).

Surrogates is slated for a September 25, 2009 release (uh-oh… September = dumping ground for crap movies). It is being helmed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3, double uh-oh).

What do you think of this viral teaser poster for Surrogates?

Source: First Showing

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Make Your Own Surrogate

Niall Browne — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 22:14:57 +0000

Hollywood loves Viral Marketing. The phenomenon took off a decade ago when the makers of The Blair Witch Project used several “real sites” to market their movie. Since then films as diverse as AI, The Dark Knight and Cloverfield have all used the technique to get film fans curious about their forthcoming release.

The newest film to use this marketing technique is the Bruce Willis starrer The Surrogates. What does it entail? Well you can choose your own surrogate!

If you visit Virtual Self Industries you can choose different attributes for your personal surrogate. Play with the models they give you (not as kinky as it sounds) or upload your own image and tweak it – it’s your call. The site is pretty fun – but in all honesty it‘s nothing more than 21^st Century dress up

The Surrogates based on a graphic novel by Robert Venditti and Brett Weldelle is set in the future where human beings stay at home and live life through “surrogates” better looking (robotic) versions of themselves. However, Willis’ character decides to leave his home for the first time in years in order to solve a crime that puts “surrogate life” in the balance. The film is directed by Jonathan Mostow, the man behind Terminator 3, U571 and Breakdown.

The Surrogates opens 25 September, 2009.

Source: Joblo

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First Image Of Bruce Willis In ‘Surrogates’

Rob Keyes — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 05:41:41 +0000

Walt Disney has released their 2009 feature film lineup which included some tidbits of information for most of those films. Included among these was Surrogates, the action sci-fi thriller starring Bruce Willis.

Back in May, Screen Rant wrote about the first images released for the film. Now, we have a new image featuring Bruce Willis taken directly from a scene in the movie.

I’ve not read the book but the basic premise sounds like it will make for an interesting film – It’s like a real life Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing (MMORPG) game. Plus, I’m always up for a Bruce Willis action flick.

Here is the official image released for the upcoming Disney film:

Click here to see the high-res image at Coming Soon.

What do you think? Does this grab your interest?

Surrogates is directed by Jonathon Mostow (Terminator 3, U-571) and is due out September 25, 2009.

Source: Coming Soon

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First Images From Bruce Willis’ The Surrogates

Vic Holtreman — Wed, 28 May 2008 05:06:07 +0000

Click for more exclusive pics from The Surrogates

Io9.com has scored the first images from the upcoming Bruce Willis sci-fi pic The Surrogates. There hasn’t been much news about this film, here on Screen Rant we’ve only mentioned it a couple of times in Weekend Movie News Wrap Ups.

According to our own Niall Browne:

“In the film humans live their lives through robots (The Surrogates), while they view the outside world from home. Willis stars as a cop who must leave the house for the first time in years in order to solve a crime.”

In the film, Willis plays a cop who is forced to leave his home for the first time in years in order to investigate the murders of others’ surrogates.

At the link above there is lots more detail about the construction of the robots as well as more plot details. The robots are supposed to be indistinguishable from humans.

The opening of The Surrogates is quite a ways away: November 20th, 2009.

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Weekend Movie News Wrap Up: Mar 30, 2008

Niall Browne — Sun, 30 Mar 2008 18:21:53 +0000

Another weekend, another Weekend Movie News Wrap Up.

This week:

Legion starring Dennis Quaid and Paul Bettany, Tom Hanks quits Fahrenheit 451, Nic Cage hunts for more National Treasure, Battlestar Galactica producer plans to make a television adaptation of Children of Men, Surrogates with Bruce Willis and Radha Mitchell and news on when we can expect to see a trailer for Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

For details on the above items, read on.

1. Dennis Quaid and Paul Bettany have joined the cast of Legion. According to Variety Paul Bettany stars as the archangel Michael:

“The only one standing between mankind and an apocalypse, after God loses faith in humanity. Man’s lone hope rests with a group of strangers who must deliver a baby they realize is Christ in his second coming.”

The film starts shooting soon and it will be directed by former FX guru Scott Stewart. Sounds like it should be good, and with Quaid on-board – I’m there.

2. Tom Hanks has pulled out of Frank Darabont’s adaptation of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.

Darabont cites scheduling conflicts for Hanks’ departure. It’s another blow to the film that has been in development for about 15 years. Originally Mel Gibson planned to direct the project before passing it on to Darabont.

Fahrenheit 451 is one of my favorite books so I’d like to see this get made. Hanks probably wasn’t the best choice for the film, so it’s no great loss.

3. Nicolas Cage will get to hunt for more National Treasure.

Jon Turteltaub says that we should expect the third film in about three years:

“I’m guessing that we’re a few years away. By the time we come up with a decent idea and develop it into a complicated and intelligent puzzle it’s going to be at least 2009. Then to prep it and cast it… it should be three years away.”

I quite like these films, so National Treasure 3 shouldn’t be all bad.

4. Battlestar Galactica and Bionic Woman producer David Eick intends to make a television series based on Children of Men – the science fiction novel by P.D. James. The book also inspired the film directed by Alfonso Cuaron. Eick says that:

“It’s really taking root more in the origins of the novels in that it will focus on the cultural movement in which young people become the society’s utter focus.”

5. Radha Mitchell will join Bruce Willis in Jonathan Mostow’s Surrogates.

The film is based on a graphic novel which tells the story of a future where humans live their lives in isolation with surrogate robots interacting with others. Willis plays a cop who must leave the house for the first time in years in order to solve a crime. The film begins shooting on April 28th and it is due to open on November 20, 2009.

Sounds like it could be a pretty good film. Willis is always good value and Mostow knows how to put a good film together.

6. The trailer for Star Wars: The Clone Wars will be attached to Speed Racer when it is released on May 9th. The Warner Brothers release is the first Star Wars film not to have the famous Fox Fanfare before it.

The animated film will open on August 15.

That’s the Weekend Movie News Wrap Up for now, have a good week!

Sources: Variety , MTV , Cinemablend , Scifi.com , Comingsoon

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