News

Paul Maslansky, a producer behind films such as “Police Academy” and “Return to Oz,” died on Monday of natural causes at a hospital in Los Robles, Calif. He was 91.

Maslansky collaborated frequently with Oscar winner Alan Ladd Jr. Together they worked on “The Russia House,” “Death Line,” “Race With the Devil” and “Damnation Alley.” He also produced “Love Child” in 1982 as well as the 1979 comedy film “Scavenger Hunt” and the 1995 fantasy feature “Fluke,” starring Matthew Modine.

Following the production of “Love Child,” Ladd requested that Maslansky advise on The Ladd Co.’s upcoming movie “The Right Stuff.” After watching the parade scene in the film, Maslansky wrote a short story about a group of police cadets. This would go on to become “Police Academy,” which grossed $82 million in 1984 and led to six film sequels, an animated television show and a live-action series.

Prior to the film’s theatrical release, Maslansky...

Producer Paul Maslansky, who came up with the premise for the first Police Academy movie and got help from three world-class directors to push the troubled cult classic Return to Oz past the finish line, has died. He was 91.

Maslansky died Monday of natural causes at a hospital in Los Robles, California, his partner of 16 years, Sally Emr, told The Hollywood Reporter.

The New Yorker made his producing debut in Italy on The Castle of the Living Dead (1964), starring Christopher Lee, and he filmed George Cukor’s penultimate feature, the Elizabeth Taylor-starring The Blue Bird (1976), and Fred Schepisi’s The Russia House (1990), starring Sean Connery and Michelle Pfeiffer, in the Soviet Union.

Maslansky, who collaborated often with Oscar winner Alan Ladd Jr., also produced Larry Peerce’s Love Child (1982), starring Amy Madigan in the true story of a woman who is impregnated by a guard in prison and has...

Paul Maslansky, the acclaimed film producer behind the popular Police Academy comedy series, died on Friday at 91. Pat Proft, the writer of the first Police Academy film, acknowledged his death, ending his famous Hollywood career.

Maslansky, born on November 23, 1933, in New York City, had a diverse career spanning decades and cinematic genres. While he is most known for the Police Academy series, which premiered in 1984, his career demonstrates a wide range of talent.

Maslansky made several significant films, including cult favourites like The Castle of the Living Dead (1964), Race with the Devil (1975), Damnation Alley (1977), and Return to Oz (1985). His later works were The Russia House (1990), Cop & 1/2 (1993), and Fluke (1995).

Before his success with the Police Academy films, Maslansky received critical recognition for his 1978 limited series King, which centred on Martin Luther King Jr. and earned him an Emmy nomination. However, the Police Academy franchise cemented his place in popular culture.

Paul Maslansky, the producer behind the Police Academy franchise, died December 2. He was 91.

The Emmy nominee’s death was announced by Police Academy (1984) writer Pat Proft in a heartfelt statement on Friday, recounting their work together on Proft’s first film, which launched six sequels and two series, one animated and one live-action.

“Thankful for meeting Paul Maslansky,” wrote Proft on Facebook. “He hired me and Neal Israel to research and write Police Academy. First film I ever wrote. Paul has passed away. Sally and his son.. sorry for your loss. He left behind a trail of comedies. Good life.”

Born Nov. 23, 1933, in New York City, Maslansky produced such films as The Castle of the Living Dead (1964), Race with the Devil (1975), Damnation Alley (1977), Return to Oz (1985), The Russia House (1990), Cop & 1/2 (1993) and Fluke (1995).

After his 1978 Martin Luther King Jr. limited series King was nominated for an Emmy, Maslansky found success with 1984’s Police Academy.

The ’90s – a time when Bruce Willis was ‘the guy’ for Hollywood. Fresh off Die Hard and coasting through a streak of hits, hits like The Fifth Element, Armageddon, and The Sixth Sense, he was Hollywood’s everyman hero with just the right amount of smirk. If a movie needed someone to crack wise (sometimes for the heck of it) while saving the day, Willis was first in line. But even when you’re on top, it’s easy to misread the room.

The Sixth Sense is a Bruce Willis classic | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

Over the years, Willis passed on roles that turned out to be major hits—or gave others their defining moment. Some decisions were understandable, while others…well, even Bruce has admitted he’d love a do-over. Here are ten roles Bruce Willis turned down and (probably) regretted instantly.

10. Broadway Brawler (1997)

This one requires a caveat,...

It is exceedingly rare in today's IP-dominated movie marketplace to see an original film spawn a long-running franchise. Granted, these motion pictures aren't always wholly original. But while they tend to be derivative of narrative formulas that have worked in the past, they are at least written from scratch with no significant assistance from a novel or a comic book or a video game or, nowadays, the origin story of a popular brand.

So, kudos to Gregory Widen and Paul Maslansky for possessing the creative chutzpah to launch two very successful franchises in, respectively, "Highlander" and "Police Academy." The former gave fans four feature installments over a 14-year-span, while the latter rattled off six entries once a year between 1984 and 1989 (and a late-in-the-day seventh with much of the same cast in 1994).

"Police Academy" was especially zeitgeisty, trafficking in the zany spoof gags made popular by the Zaz team of David Zucker,...

Featuring: Peter Serafinowicz, Peter Jackson, Joe Dante, John Landis, Caroline Munro, Paul Maslansky, Jonathan Rigby, Harriet Walter, Juan Rodriguez | Written and Directed by Jon Spira

The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee, written and directed by Jon Spira, is a look at one of the most iconic, versatile and conversely underrated actors in the genre.

Narrated by a marionette of the late actor, voiced quite convincingly by Peter Serafinowicz the film starts with a quick overview of Lee’s heritage and formative years that included he and his mother being abandoned by both his father and stepfather. Interviews with his niece, an award-winning actress in her own right, talk about how this influenced both his personality and the direction his life would take.

The part he played in World War II is covered as well. Although there are no new revelations of his still-classified work tracking down war criminals. Work...

Stars: Barbara Steele, Ian Ogilvy, John Karlsen, Mel Welles, Joe ‘Flash’ Riley, Richard Watson, Lucretia Love, Peter Grippe | Written and Directed by Michael Reeves

Revenge of the Blood Beast, also known as The She-Beast, is a 1966 horror film directed by Michael Reeves. This movie is a unique blend of Gothic horror and campy humour, which offers a curious mix of eerie atmosphere and unintentional comedy.

The story revolves around a newlywed couple, Philip and Veronica, who are honeymooning in Transylvania. They encounter an eccentric innkeeper and a deranged scientist, Count von Helsing. An ancient witch, executed centuries ago, is resurrected and possesses Veronica, leading to a series of supernatural events. Barbara Steele, known for her roles in Gothic horror films, stars as Veronica. Her performance is captivating and adds a layer of authenticity to the supernatural elements of the film. Ian Ogilvy, as Philip, delivers a solid performance, balancing the...

Betty Anne Rees, who portrayed tough women who weren’t very nice in The Unholy Rollers and Sugar Hill, two 1970s offerings from the B-movie factory American International Pictures, has died. She was 81.

Rees died Monday at her home in Hemet, California, after a series of falls and a possible stroke, her niece, Kathleen Loucks, told The Hollywood Reporter. She also was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in the early 1990s.

The Ohio native played Janet Ingram, the secretary for Fred MacMurray’s Steve Douglas, on the last of My Three Sons’ 12 seasons in 1971-72. (Abby Dalton was Janet on an episode three years earlier.)

In The Unholy Rollers (1972), directed by Vernon Zimmerman, Rees portrayed Mickey Martinez, a star of the Los Angeles Avengers roller derby team who does not get along with popular new player Karen Walker (1970 Playboy Playmate of the Year Claudia Jennings).

The film, executive produced by Roger Corman...

T​he 80s was a fun time for moviegoers. For a successful comedy, sometimes all you needed was a group of employees at a specific job, they butt up against whatever authority is in place, and get into hijinks. There is no better example of this than the recruits at the Police Academy. A group of misfits that are thrown together and given guns. The making of the film had its ups and downs but the whole thing ended up with a whole of laughs and creating a franchise that would spawn seven films, a TV series, and a Saturday morning cartoon. Let’s find out exactly what happened to Police Academy here on Wtf Happened To This Movie?

P​roducer Paul Maslansky was in the middle of production on the film The Right Stuff. They were about to film a scene on the street and had called into the...

No two ways about it: April’s a great month for the Criterion Channel, which (among other things; more in a second) adds two recent favorites. We’re thrilled at the SVOD premiere of Hamaguchi’s entrancing Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy, our #3 of 2021, and Bruno Dumont’s lacerating France, featuring Léa Seydoux’s finest performance yet.

Ethan Hawke’s Adventures in Moviegoing runs the gamut from Eagle Pennell’s Last Night at the Alamo to 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days, while a 14-film John Ford retro (mostly) skips westerns altogether. And no notes on the Delphine Seyrig retro—multiple by Akerman, Ulrike Ottinger, Duras, a smattering of Buñuel, and Seyrig’s own film Be Pretty and Shut Up! That of all things might be the crown jewl.

See the full list of April titles below and more on the Criterion Channel.

—

3 Bad Men, John Ford, 1926

Aar paar, Guru Dutt,...

The stars of the excellent new comedy doc Joy Ride discuss some of their favorite two handers with hosts Josh Olson and Joe Dante.

Show Notes: Movies Referenced In This Episode

The Graduate (1967) – Neil Labute’s trailer commentary, Glenn Erickson’s Criterion Blu-ray review

Cocoon (1985)

Mission: Impossible III (2006)

Santa Claus Conquers The Martians (1964)

Police Academy 3: Back In Training (1986)

Crooklyn (1994)

Call Me Lucky (2015)

Shakes The Clown (1991)

A History Of Violence (2005)

You Only Live Twice (1967)

Artists And Models (1955) – Tfh’s global trailer search

Joy Ride (2021)

Joy Ride (2001)

Stay (2005)

Sleeping Dogs Lie (2006)

Capturing The Friedmans (2003)

Bela Lugosi Meets A Brooklyn Gorilla (1952) – Joe Dante’s trailer commentary, Charlie Largent’s review

Sleepless In Seattle (1993)

The Producers (1967) – Charlie Largent’s Blu-ray review

My Friend Irma Goes West (1950)

Delicate Delinquent (1957)

Keyholes Are For Peeping (1972)

The Brain That Wouldn’t Die (1962) – John Landis’s trailer commentary

Abbott And Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) – John Landis’s trailer commentary, Charlie...

Jason Kothari, Hong Kong-born entrepreneur and film producer who was an executive producer on Vin Diesel-starring “Bloodshot,” has acquired all rights to The Silent Flute, the spiritual martial arts project co-written by martial arts icon Bruce Lee in 1970. The project is to be set up as a limited series with John Fusco (“Marco Polo”) as screenwriter and executive producer.

The story of “Silent Flute” is set in a dystopian future after mankind has suffered from pandemics, fires and civil wars, and where all weapons and combat arts are banned. It follows a raw fighter who overcomes grave obstacles and loss to reach enlightenment and become the best fighter in the world.

“The Silent Flute” film script was a five-year collaboration between Lee and his friends and martial arts students, Oscar-winning writer Stirling Silliphant and Oscar-winning actor James Coburn. It encapsulated Lee’s vision for the true essence of martial...

Severin continues to impress with their incredible box set releases and their latest announcement was an instant pre-order for me: a collection of five remastered Christopher Lee movies and a rarely seen, Christopher Lee-hosted, anthology horror TV series:

(Los Angeles, CA) On May 25th, Severin Films is releasing a box set of buried gems from one of cinema’s most seminal figures - Sir Christopher Lee. He remains one of the most beloved horror/fantasy icons in US/UK pop culture history, but Christopher Lee delivered several of the most compelling, acclaimed and bizarre performances of his entire career in 1960s Europe. The Eurocrypt Of Christopher Lee brings together five of these Lee classics - the 1964 gothic shocker Crypt Of The Vampire; the 1964 cult hit Castle Of The Living Dead co-starring an unknown Donald Sutherland; 1962's celebrated Sherlock Holmes And The Deadly Necklace; 1967's lurid favorite The Torture Chamber Of Dr.

Blaxploitation Horror was a hot item in the ‘70s; in the aftermath of the initial wave of the Civil Rights Movement and a desperate lack of exploitation films portraying the Black experience, horror turned its lens towards an untapped audience. Black people wanted (and deserved) to see themselves up on the Saturday night screens and drive-ins across North America. Hollywood and independent studios began to look for ways to bring a new perspective to the screen, all while ensuring that the staples of the time - sex and violence - were firmly in place. Sugar Hill (1974) offers up none of the former and a muted stab at the latter, yet is still a very effective blend of ‘40s zombiedom with modern sensibilities.

Released by American International Pictures in a several month spring rollout, Sugar Hill did well with audiences, but as expected was a miss from mainstream critics, who dismissed...

There have been reports of a Police Academy reboot happening for years. The last thing we heard about it was that Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele were brought in to produce the film. That was back in 2014 and a lot has happened since then, especially with Peele's success after Get Out became a huge hit.

Well, according to Police Academy actor Steve Guttenberg, there is a new film coming. He doesn't offer any details and we don't know if Key and Peele are still involved, but I hope they are. I always enjoyed their style of comedy. Here's the Tweet Guttenberg posted:

Adam , the next Police Academy is coming, no details yet, but it is in a gift bag being readied! https://t.co/HxzdmqS6WP

— Steve Guttenberg (@SteveGuttbuck) September 3, 2018

The franchise's original producer Paul Maslansky has been attached to the project from the very beginning and I imagine that hasn't changed because,...

One of the most successful comedy franchises of the 1980s-90s — Police Academy — is, according to actor Steve Guttenberg, ready to make a comeback. Launched in 1984, the original was an admittedly dopey series of films that spanned 10 years and seven adventures. The premise was a simple one: a newly-elected mayor passes a law that the police department must accept all willing recruits. The result? The motliest group of cops you've ever seen, one more dysfunctional than the next. The only true voice of sanity there was Steve's Cary Mahoney, who, over the course of the series, found himself promoted from cadet to officer and, finally, sergeant. Well, according to a recent Twitter posting, we've got a new entry coming. When fan Adam Hirschovitz wrote to him, "Please tell me you're making a new Police Academy film," Steve tweeted back, "Adam, the next Police Academy is coming, no details yet, but...

Simon Brew Jan 18, 2018

The director of Police Academy and The First Wives Club, Hugh Wilson, has died.

In a 1995 episode of The Simpsons, Homer Simpson is trying to teach his son, Bart, a lesson. Thus, when he hears of him stealing, Homer tries to get across the importance of law and order, with the classic line “why do you think I took you to see all those "Police Academy" movies, for fun? I didn't hear anyone laughing, did you?”.

It’s a sign of how the Police Academy films became a subject of ridicule themselves, which in turn overlooks just what a hit-out-of-nowhere the original movie was. Much of that was down to the work of Hugh Wilson, who died today at the age of 74.

Wilson’s background was in writing, albeit harbouring ambitions to direct. After earning his stripes with the hit sitcom Wkrp – that he created and wrote...

This early gore-horror picture has a remarkable emphasis on human values, believe it or not, with a ‘monster’ that nevertheless is a paragon of loving gentleness. Add Donald Pleasance as a surly, posh-hating police inspector, and the shock value makes the Hammer films of the early ’70s taste like weak tea.

Death Line

Blu-ray + DVD

Blue Underground

1972 / Color / 1:85 widescreen / 87 min. / aka Raw Meat / Street Date June 27, 2017 / 39.98

Starring: Donald Pleasence, Norman Rossington, David Ladd, Sharon Gurney, Hugh Armstrong, June Turner, Christopher Lee.

Cinematography: Alex Thomson

Art Direction: Dennis Gordon-Orr

Film Editor: Geoffrey Foot

Original Music: Jeremy Rose, Malone Wil

Written by Ceri Jones from a story by Gary Sherman

Produced by Paul Maslansky

Directed by Gary Sherman

In 1972, making a horror film was a safe way to start a career: almost anything screen-able could get a release, and if your show had enough shock value, it might even get positive critical attention.

Next stop, cannibalism! The subway tunnels below London are home to flesh-eating horrors in Death Line, aka Raw Meat. With their Collector's Edition Blu-ray of the 1972 movie hitting shelves on June 27th, Blue Underground is taking the cult horror film on the road this summer to screen the 2K restoration in select theaters.

The Death Line 2K restoration is currently scheduled to screen in five locations this summer, with four of the screenings including a live Q&A with director Gary Sherman. We have the official theatrical tour dates that have been announced thus far, and you can get a tease of what to expect from the Collector's Edition Blu-ray / DVD combo pack in the new promo video below.

Scheduled theatrical screenings for the Death Line 2K restoration:

"6/02: Coolidge Corner Theatre w/Director Gary Sherman Q&A (Brookline, Ma)

6/20: Nitehawk Cinema w/Director Gary Sherman Q&A (Brooklyn,...

Simon Brew Jun 20, 2017

Steve Guttenberg headlines what's supposed to be a reunion of the Police Academy cast. Life doesn't always work out as promised, though...

To the nearest $1m, the final Police Academy movie – Police Academy: Mission To Moscow – took a tidy $1m at the box office. It brought to a tragic end a movie franchise that had delighted surely a few people in its latter years, and certain given the office photocopiers a workout, as jokes were religiously recycled en masse. The Hangover series would put a better gloss on the recycling jokes schtick, and repeat the trick across its sequels many years later, to better commercial return.

See related Dunkirk: where you can see the IMAX preview in the UK Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk: filming started, cast confirmed Dunkirk: set video shows scale of Christopher Nolan’s new film

See also: What went wrong with Police Academy: Mission To Moscow.

Police Academy producer Paul Maslansky – who also tried to turn Ski Patrol into a series, foiled by the fact that barely anyone went to see the first and only one – has talked about rebooting Police Academy since. Most of the original cast are still with us, too, save for the brilliant David Graf (Tackleberry), Bubba Smith (Hightower), and George Gaynes (Commandant Lassard). Basically, a chunk of the core ensemble are available, and have been waiting for the call to return for a fresh Police Academy adventure. But the call, unfortunately, never came.

Hence, Lavalantula.

This is a film that centres on Steve Guttenberg, a washed-up movie star of the 90s who’s taken on a bug movie for $10,000. Going by the name of Colton West, we learn that he’s been the star of such movie franchises as Crazy Cops and Red Robot, and I know even typing this that nobody really cares. Instead, you’ve been drawn to this film for the same reason I was: it’s the cast of the Police Academy movies, just in a sort-of-horror film. Asda – and other supermarkets selling DVDs are available – had this next to Star Wars: Rogue One in my local store. One coin toss later, and Rogue One could wait.

It turns out, of course, that it’s a dose of trash that’s been doing the rounds for a little while. Spun out of the Sharknado series, Lavalantula was first shown on Syfy in the Us back in 2015, and I’ve barely found mention of it since. That notwithstanding, I armed myself with some of those new strawberry and vanilla Calippos (6/10 from me for them), and settled in.

Purveyors of The Asylum and Syfy attempts to recreate the feel of B-movies will know what they’re getting here. A perfunctory bit of plot, to get to some special effects that have been produced with second hand computers bought off Ilm. That’s less snooty than it sounds, mind. Lavalantula, a word that only seven of the 49 human beings who have ever tried managed to pronounce correctly the first time, is a solid audit as to what $20,000 or so’s worth of effects can buy you. Some lava and half-decent spiders is the answer. Given that London Has Fallen, for one, cost $105m to make and had effects that looked like Call Of Duty a generation back, Lavathingy does offer a decent recent in that sense. Don’t get carried away and start giving it awards or anything, though.

Thing is, it’s easy to look down on micro budget stuff like this. Yet who knows where the next big filmmaker is going to come from? Jennifer Yuh Nelson cut her teeth on the basic animated movies that used to go straight to bargain stores, and now she’s one of the highest grossing female directors of all time, courtesy of the Kung Fu Panda series. The late Jonathan Demme was one of many schooled by the low budget ways of Roger Corman – a model that Jason Blum has expanded on for his Blumhouse outfit, offering filmmakers low budgets in exchange for final cut – and whilst The Asylum has lower ambitions, everyone needs a break, right?

In this case, it’s director Mike Mendez, who worked on the likes of NCIS and CSI before giving the world Big Ass Spider! Here, he knows the trade off is he has to shoot lots of explanatory conversation scenes to stretch the budget (he does throw in a Raiders Of The Lost Ark boulder-rip-off at one moment, though, as well as a just on the right side of legal Pirates Of The Caribbean homage), reckoning he has but 10 minutes out of 80 that he can spend on effects. At one stage, he decides to have a man dressed as a spider fight a spider. Sadly, it’s less fun that it sounds.

The other concession to budget is you don’t actually get the cast of Police Academy for very long. This is less forgivable. Sure, you get shirtless Guttenberg stealing a bus, and in his own way giving us his own spin on Last Action Hero. His character also needs to reconnect with his son for reasons that are of no human interest. But everyone else? They’re shuttled in for quick cameos. You get them at the start, and then Winslow and Ramsey finally return an hour later. But by then, they’re plotting how to beat the big spiders, and – presumably fearing legal interest – the references to glories old are all but gone.

I can’t be the only person who put the DVD in to hear Michael Winslow recreate his collection of noises. But we get, what, five minutes with him in all? It’s like a Police Academy reunion where everyone but Steve Guttenberg got given the wrong time. There’s the odd concession and acknowledgement of the series elsewhere in the film - “they took out the Blue Oyster. I loved that place,” says pretend Captain Jack Sparrow (really) at one stage – but for Ramsey, Leslie Easterbrook and Winslow, the DVD packaging may as well provide you with a spotter book, so you can at least tick ‘em off once you see them.

Still, Ralph Garman is good fun here as the aforementioned Jack Sparrow knock-off, and 24 fans who wonder just what happened to that fella who played Tony Almeida Isn’t Dead Really will get their answer, as Carlos Bernard duly picks up his cheque. 24: Legacy couldn’t come along quickly enough, though.

On the plus side too, there’s little question that everyone’s in on the gag.

But when you yearn for the film to at least have an equitable number of laughs as a Police Academy sequel, it’d be fair to say a little alarm has long been going off. By the time the film is directly mirroring and quoting a moment from Jurassic Park, that old adage of invoke the memory of other, better films at your peril has long been proved.

The cheapest moment, incidentally, and this is a competitive contest, is the Basil Exposition-type Doctor/Professor/scientist character, clambering into a helicopter with the full chopper sound effect going. Only for the camera to leave the fact that the rotors aren’t turning fully in shot.

Yet I think I still want that horror movie with the Police Academy cast that I was sold. In fact, what I think what I’d like to see now is a big screen version of the PlayStation 4 game Until Dawn, but with Police Academy characters, to bring a bit of a choose your own adventure element to the fun. Plus, then you get to replay it, changing just a few plot elements next time you play, accurately reflecting one of the core components of the Police Academy business plan.

Guttenberg has since followed this up with a sequel, 2 Lava 2 Tarantula, where only two Police Academy alumni joined him. Another film is coming. But Lavalantula: Tokyo Drift is surely just a meeting and a beermat’s worth of plot away, where all of his co-stars will have deserted him, ready to rejoin him for the fourth film in the series. That’s how this stuff work, right? And then Statham will turn up two films later? Right?

Right?...

Next stop, cannibalism! The subway tunnels below London are home to flesh-eating horrors in Death Line, aka Raw Meat, and Blue Underground has revealed the release date and special features for their Blu-ray / DVD 2K Collector's Edition restoration of the 1972 horror film starring Donald Pleasence.

Blue Underground will release their Collector's Edition Blu-ray / DVD of Death Line on June 27th with an audio commentary, interviews, and a collectable booklet.

From Blue Underground: "When a prominent politician and a beautiful young woman vanish inside a London subway station, Scotland Yard’s Inspector Calhoun (Donald Pleasence of Halloween) investigates and makes a horrifying discovery. Not only did a group of 19th century tunnel workers survive a cave-in, but they lived for years in a secret underground enclave by consuming the flesh of their own dead. Now the lone descendant of this grisly tribe has surfaced, prowling the streets for fresh victims…...

Revenge of the Blood Beast

Blu-ray

Rarovideo

1966 / Color / 2:35 widescreen / 79 min. / Il lago di Satana, La sorella di Satana, The She-Beast / Street Date January 17, 2017 / 29.95

Starring: Barbara Steele, John Karlsen, Ian Ogilvy, Mel Welles, Lucretia Love

Cinematography: Gioacchino Gengarelli

Film Editor: Nira Omri

Original Music: Paul Ferris

Produced by: Paul Maslansky, Michael Reeves

Written and Directed by Michael Reeves

It’s back into the genre argument pits with the interesting director Michael Reeves. Reeves has persisted as a cult figure far longer than most directors with only three credited feature films. The movies are uneven but promising, and certainly the artistic equal (or better) than most of the work being turned out at the time by American-International and the majority of the Euro-horror crowd. The second half of the 1960s saw a general depression in the horror field, with Hammer losing touch with its audience and continental fare turning to sex content to generate interest.

From The Craft and The Birds to The Fugitive and She's All That, the many film reboots and remakes currently in the works...

Over the years that Den Of Geek has been going, we've regularly been charting the assortment of reboots and remakes that are making their way through the Hollywood system. This, then, is the current state of play. We've removed a bunch of projects that seem utterly dead - the once mooted remakes of Videodrome and Timecrimes, for instance - but we'll keep this list up to date as and when we hear of more.

Without further ado, here's what's coming up...

Akira

One of Hollywood's most on and off projects, the current state of the live action Akira remake is that it's back in the works. Marco J Ramirez, the showrunner for season 2 of Netflix's Daredevil show, has been hired to pen a screenplay. Warner Bros is still backing the film,...

Early this month, we told you that Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele were producing a remake of Police Academy. The sketch-comedy duo will collaborate on the project with Paul Maslansky, producer of past Police Academy installments. Vulture talked to the Key & Peele stars at Saturday's American Comedy Awards about how they’ll update the 30-year-old, seven-film franchise. “It's one of these things that everybody knows, everyone has this sort of passionate relationship to the thing, and we want to completely update the tone,” said Peele. “Make it feel nice and real and grounded and bring some of what we do with Key & Peele to that franchise.” “We’re holding that baby very gingerly, and we hope not to drop it,” adds Key, who actually saw the second Police Academy first, because his parents wouldn't take him to see its predecessor. “It’s still iconic. I can't believe the amount of...

Comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele -- known for their Comedy Central sketch show "Key & Peele" -- are teaming up again for a big screen project: a reboot of the "Police Academy" series.

The Hollywood Reporter writes that the duo are joining original "Police Academy" producer Paul Maslansky in reviving the franchise, which spawned seven films and two TV series from 1984 to 1994. Maslansky has been attached to the reboot for several years, and while the film has seen collaborators come and go -- including onetime director Scott Zabielski -- the producer told THR in 2010 that he was determined to populate the project with emerging comedic talent, something the addition of Key and Peele confirms.

"It's going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV," Maslansky told THR at the time. "It's going to be a new class. We hope to...

We've seen comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele get hilariously excited about A Good Day to Die Hard and Liam Neeson in Non-Stop, and their work on the hit Comedy Central sketch series has led to the duo writing a feature film comedy with Judd Apatow. Now they've got another feature film project in the works as THR reports Key & Peele have signed on to produced the gestating remake of the comedy franchise Police Academy. The project has been gestating since 2010, and "Tosh.0" director Scott Zabielski was once attached to be at the helm, but has since vacated the project, leaving the position open. In addition, Paul Maslansky, producer of the original franchise that contains a total of seven films that ran for 10 years from 1984 to 1994 and even had a couple of TV series. As of now, Key & Peele are just producing, but we hope that they'll end up having...

The last time we checked in on the progress of a new Police Academy film, it was 2012, with The Break-Up’s Jeremy Garelick hired to take a new crack at the script. Since then, director Scott Zabielski has come and gone and New Line now believes that comedians Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele are the men best suited to help guide the recruits back to our screens.In 2010, New Line and franchise producer Paul Maslansky announced that the new movie would take the reboot route, retaining the concept of a group of raw cop recruits who must help save their city but without the original cast, which included veteran Steve Guttenberg. "It's going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV," Maslansky told The Hollywood Reporter at the time. "It's going to be a new class. We hope to discover...

New Line has been looking to reboot the Police Academy franchise for a few years now. Back in 2012 Tosh. O director Scott Zabielski was attached to direct the film, but he has since left the project. The production company has now brought in Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, best known for sketch comedy show Key & Peele, to produce the project. 

The franchise's original producer Paul Maslansky is also back to help resurrect the comedy film series. The first film was released in 1984 and starred Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney, the leader of a ragtag group of police recruits who are called upon to protect the city. It was previously revealed that the new film will most likely be completely recast, and there no word on if Key and Peele will also start in the film. I don't see why they wouldn't want to be a part of it, they would be...

Good news for the many Police Academy fans who grew up to be Key & Peele fans: The Hollywood Reporter reports that Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele have signed on to produce New Line Cinema's reboot of the beloved seven-movie comedy. There's no word on whether they will act in the project, but the sketch comedy duo would likely fit in at the Academy. Either way, they will join original producer Paul Maslansky, who promised THR that the film is "going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV." While New Line announced its intention to do a new Police Academy four years ago, it has been on hold for a while, with director Scott Zabielski no longer attached and original franchise star Steve Guttenberg's willingness to participate still unclear. Here's hoping, recruits!

Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, who are best known for their comedy show "Key and Peele," have signed on to produce New Line Cinema's upcoming "Police Academy" reboot. Original producer Paul Maslansky is set to return for the new film, which will once again focus on a ragtag group of police recruits who are repeatedly called to help save the city. The first movie was released in 1984 and starred Steve Guttenberg. It went on to get six sequels and a pair of TV series. "It's going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV," said Maslansky. "It's going to be a new class. We hope to discover new talent and season it with great comedians. It'll be anything but another movie with a numeral next to it. And we'll most probably retain the wonderful musical theme." A reboot of...

MOS2 The highly anticipated sequel to Zack Snyder's Man of Steel, commonly referred to as Batman vs. Superman, has added three more actors to the cast, each in roles created specifically for the movie: Callan Mulvey (300: Rise of an Empire, Tao Okamoto and Academy Award-winner Holly Hunter (The Piano). In a statement released by Warner Bros., Snyder said:

Holly has always been one of my favorite actresses; she has immense talent and is always captivating on screen. I had an opportunity to meet her a while back and knew instantly that I had to work with her, so as we began writing the script I made sure to create a role specifically for her. ... [Callan is] a fantastic actor and I’m looking forward to having the chance to work with him again. And, quite simply, Tao is a striking presence whose beauty is aptly rivaled by her amazing abilities as an actress.

Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele have signed on to produce the new Police Academy movie.

The duo were previously cast members of MADtv. They went on to write and star in sketch show Key & Peele, which premiered its third series on Comedy Central in September and was recently renewed for a fourth.

It is unclear if the comedy pairing will also appear in the rebooted franchise.

Scott Zabielski was originally set to make his directorial debut with the project, but has since left. Original producer Paul Maslansky is also back for the remake.

The original series, which made its debut in 1984, starred Steve Guttenberg and Kim Cattrall. It focused on a group of incompetent misfits who join the Police Academy.

The series wrapped up in 1994 in Police Academy: Mission to Moscow.

Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele have signed on to produce the reboot of the "Police Academy" comedy franchise for New Line.

The original seven film series followed a group of quirky, unexceptional police recruits tasked with bringing law and order to the mean city streets.

Scott Zabielski was previously attached to direct but that's no longer the case. Paul Maslansky, who produced the original 1984 film, is also back to produce the reboot.

The new film is expected to retain the iconic theme music but will otherwise reboot the series with various fresh-faced comedians as a new batch of recruits.

The news of Key and Peele's involvement comes as the pair are set to branch out beyond their Comedy Central sketch show with roles as FBI members in four episodes of FX's upcoming "Fargo" TV series.

Source: THR...

Having established themselves as a formidable comedy brand with their hit sketch series “Key & Peele,” Keegan Michael Key and Jordan Peele are making a deal to produce the “Police Academy” reboot for New Line, TheWrap has learned. Scott Zabielski (“Tosh.0”) is no longer attached to direct the film, which Key and Peele are in talks to produce with Paul Maslansky. While the duo have not agreed to star in the reboot yet, it's conceivable that they could appear in front of the camera depending on the strength of the script, which is currently being rewritten by Jeremy Garelick. David Diamond.

Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele, best known for sketch comedy show Key & Peele, have signed on to produce New Line Cinema's Police Academy reboot. Original producer Paul Maslansky is back for the new iteration, which aims to remake the seven-film comedy series about a ragtag group of police recruits who repeatedly are called to help save the city. Sam Brown is overseeing for New Line. Story: Key and Peele: 'Lorne Michaels Has a History of Relating to White Men' (Q&A) The first film, released in 1984 by Warner Bros., starred Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney, the group's leader. The

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If you live in the Los Angeles area, the New Beverly Cinema is presenting a Ray Harryhausen Sinbad tribute on Friday, December 20th and Saturday, December 21, 2013. First up is the 40th anniversary showing of The Golden Voyage of Sinbad which was released in the States in April 1974. Directed by Gordon Hessler, the film co-stars John Phillip Law as Sinbad, Caroline Munro as Margiana, and Tom Baker as Koura. Note: Mr. Hessler is scheduled to appear personally at the Friday showing, as is Paul Maslansky who was a unit manager on 1963’s Jason and the Argonauts.

Kerwin Matthews stars as the titular hero in The 7th Voyage of Sinbad, released here in December 1958. Along for the ride are Kathryn Grant as Princess Parisa, Richard Eyer as The Genie, and Torin Thatcher as Sokurah the Magician.

The New Beverly Cinema is located at 7165 Beverly Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036.

Click here for showtimes and ticket info.

WhatCulture! recently sat down for an exclusive interview with renowned film composer Robert Folk. Best known for his work on ‘Beastmaster 2’, ‘The Neverending Story 2’, ‘Toy Soldiers’, ‘Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls’ and of course, ‘Police Academy’, the 63-year-old L.A based musician is spritely and charming. Folk, who was born in New York, has an East Coast accent with a soft warm roll in it; something which one comes to associate with the cultured and educated members of American society. Sporting a healthy glow, he sits in an office decorated with posters of the films he has previously scored – a customary sight amongst film professionals.

During our one-to-one in depth chat Folk talks about IMAX ballet, the ‘Police Academy’ reboot and his work as replacement composer on Roland Joffe’s soon to be released, re-cut, re-mixed, re-packaged historical epic ‘There Be Dragons’ entitled ‘There Be Dragons: Secrets of Passion’.

WhatCulture!

The trend of unwanted remakes continues, and the latest victim is a well-known ‘80s comedy. Deadline reports that screenwriter Jeremy Garelick (The Break-Up) has joined the effort to reboot Police Academy, the wacky franchise that spanned seven films and a TV series over the course of a decade — a very long, mostly Steve Guttenberg–less decade.

In the time since New Line announced the remake of the bumbling cop romp back in 2010, a screenplay was penned by David Diamond and David Weissman, but Garelick was –as happened on a little movie called The Hangover — hired for rewrites. In addition, Paul Maslansky, who produced the original series, will oversee the film, which is being helmed by first-time feature director Scott Zabielski; he was hired in January.

Despite the success of other recycling efforts, like 21 Jump Street, I don’t have much faith in this project. There’s not much more for...

Exclusive: The Break-Up scribe Jeremy Garelick has come aboard New Line’s reboot of the Police Academy franchise that launched in the 1980s and spanned seven films through the mid-’90s. The comedy, once again produced by Paul Maslansky, picks up the tale of a group of bumbling police recruits. David Diamond and David Weissman wrote the most recent draft. Garelick, who did extensive rewrites on The Hangover, is separately rewriting Sick Day for Universal and Imagine. He’s attached to direct that film. Police Academy will be directed by Scott Zabielski, who’s making his feature debut after helming TV episodes that include Tosh.O. Garelick’s repped by UTA and Principato-Young, while Zabielski is repped by UTA and Underground.

Scott Zabielski will direct New Line's reboot of the "Police Academy" franchise. According to Variety, this will be Zabielski's feature directorial debut after having directed several episodes of Comedy Central's "Tosh.0."Zabielski also has real police training as he is a reserve police officer in West Hollywood. Original "Police Academy" producer Paul Maslansky is returning to produce the reboot.David Diamond and David Weissman wrote the script.Production is expected to start this year once the film has been cast."Academy" was a seven-film comedy series from Warner Bros. that revolved around the premise of a new mayor announcing a policy requiring the police department to accept all willing recruits. The series followed a group of misfit recruits in their attempts to prove themselves...

New Line is set to give Police Academy the remake treatment. Variety reports that Tosh.0's Scott Zabielski is making his feature film directorial debut. He won the coveted gig over more experienced directors, after completing actual police academy training as a reserve officer in West Hollywood. The script was co-written by David Diamond and David Weissman. The film's original producer, Paul Maslansky, is returning to produce the remake. Production is expected to begin next year, after casting is completed.

The original was a box office success when it was released in 1984. It stayed atop the box office for three weeks and then dropped down a slot. It regained the top spot for it's fifth and sixth weekends and continued doing well throughout the summer. The film grossed more than $81 million domestically, even though it never showed on more than 1,587 screens.

I fell in love with the characters in this...

New Line are pushing forward with their reboot of the Police Academy franchise with the hiring of rookie filmmaker Scott Zabielski to direct a remake. Zabielski is best known for his work producing and directing episodes of the Comedy Central show “Tosh.0,” but will be making his feature film debut with the remake.

Released by Warner Bros (who now own New Line) in 1984, Police Academy was an outrageous comedy about a bunch of well to do but incompetent and unqualified misfits who are recruited due to a police shortage in an unnamed American city. The film starred Steve Guttenberg, G.W. Bailey, Bobcat Goldthwait, Bubba Smith, David Graf, Marion Ramsey, Michael Winslow, Kim Cattrall and Sharon Stone.

Grossing $146 million worldwide, the success of the film spawned a seven film franchise. Warner Bros have been looking at cheap to produce films that can ignite franchises in the wake of the highly lucrative...

Police Academy

New Line Cinema has hired first-time director Scott Zabielski ("Tosh.0") to direct a reboot of the "Police Academy" franchise which Paul Maslansky will produce from a script by David Diamond and David Weissman ("When In Rome").

Like the original series, this will follows a ragtag group of police recruits who repeatedly are called to help save the city. Zabielski is also a reserve police officer in West Hollywood. [Source: The Hollywood Reporter]

The Vatican

William Brent Bell ("The Devil Inside") is set to direct the conspiracy-driven thriller "The Vatican" for Warner Bros. Pictures.

David Cohen penned the script which is said to utilise some "found-footage techniques" like 'Devil' does. Roy Lee, Lawrence Grey, John Middleton and Matt Peterman will produce. [Source: Deadline]

The Better Woman

"Bridesmaids" director Paul Feig is set to direct the romantic comedy "The Better Woman" for Universal Pictures. "Gilmore Girls" creator Amy Sherman-Palladino penned the screenplay

The story follows an...

Studio New Line confirms Scott Zabielski is to take charge of the 8th instalment of the love-it-or-hate-it rookie cops franchise

You might think that seven Police Academy films were more than enough, but somebody in Hollywood disagrees with you. Studio New Line has hired first-time director Scott Zabielski, a part-time reserve police officer in west Hollywood, to take charge of a new film which will aim to reboot the long-running and much-maligned comedy series.

There has been speculation for some time that a new Police Academy film – the first since 1994's ill-fated Police Academy 7: Mission to Moscow – was in the works. The series made a total of $242m at the worldwide box office and also spawned two TV series. Original producer Paul Maslansky, who is on board for the new iteration, said in 2010 that he hoped to return the series to the big screen with an entirely new cast.

Rookie director and police reserve officer, Scott Zabielski has found himself entrusted with the upcoming reboot of the Police Academy franchise.

Zabielski, who has helmed close to 51 episodes of Comedy Central's Tosh.0, will direct a new version of the 80s Steve Guttenberg-starring cult comedy that spawned six sequels.

Speaking to THR, original producer Paul Maslansky stated, "it's going to be very worthwhile to the people who remember it and to those who saw it on TV”.

And far from being another cash grab attempt at a time when Hollywood is rife with remakes and reboots, Maslansky assures fans that this undertaking stands for much more than that.

"It's going to be a new class. We hope to discover new talent and season it with great comedians. It'll be anything but another movie with a numeral next to it. And we'll most probably retain the wonderful musical theme", he added.

New Line Cinema is entrusting its Police Academy franchise to first-time director Scott Zabielski. Zabielski has helmed episodes of Comedy Central's Tosh.0 and is a reserve police officer in West Hollywood. Original producer Paul Maslansky is back for the new iteration, which aims to reboot the seven-film comedy series about a ragtag group of police recruits who repeatedly are called to help save the city.  The first film, released in 1984 by Warner Bros., starred Steve Guttenberg as Mahoney, the group's leader. The last film in the series was 1994's Mission to Moscow. The series grossed

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The Movie Pool is down with some funky zombies in Sugar Hill, on DVD for the first time!

This DVD is offered as part of MGM's "Limited Edition Collection," which is available from select online retailers and manufactured only when the DVD is ordered. The DVD features a simple menu with no menu for chapters or scenes. Manufacture-On-Demand (Mod) DVDs are made to play in DVD playback units only and may not play in DVD recorders or PC drives. This DVD did not play in our laptop DVD drive but did play in our Toshiba DVD recorder.

DVD Specs

Release Date: October 12, 2011

Running Time: 91 minutes

Rating: PG

Aspect Ratio: 1.85:1

Audio: Dolby Digital 2.0

Subtitles: None

Special Features: Theatrical trailer

The Set-up

A woman turns to a voodoo priestess and an army of zombies for revenge after her boyfriend is murdered.

Directed by: Paul Maslansky

The Delivery

Originally released in 1974, Sugar...

Fans of classic horror and cheesy Eighties movies have just received the green light to shit their pants with joy! Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment’s Mod (Manufacturing on Demand) initiative is once again unleashing MGM's vaults with a stellar collection of long gone classics!

In September be prepared to break your banks as we have your first look at some of the upcoming hard to find titles that lay in the not too distant future!

The Living Ghost (1942) - James Dunn stars as Nick Trayne, a retired detective, hired to look for missing banker Walter Craig. During the investigation Craig shows up in a zombie-like state and murders his brother-in-law. But is the banker the killer or is someone controlling him? The trail leads Nick to the real culprit, a mad scientist, who has been conducting experiments on Craig. Stars James Dunn; Joan Woodbury; Paul McVey. Directed by William Beaudine.

Your Weekly Source for the Newest Releases to Blu-Ray

Tuesday, July 12th, 2011

Battle Beyond The Stars: 30th Anniversary Special Edition (1980)

Synopsis: Shad must scour the cosmos to recruit mercenaries from different planets and cultures, in order to save his peaceful home planet from the threat of the evil tyrant Sador, bent on dominating and enslaving the entire universe. Joining this “magnificent seven” of mercenaries are the deadly Gelt, carefree Cowboy, and the sexy Valkyrie Saint-Exmin. (courtesy of Blu-Ray.com)

Special Features: Audio commentary with producer Roger Corman and writer John Sayles; Audio commentary from production manager Gale Anne Hurd; The Man Who Would Be Shad featurette; Space Opera on a Shoestring featurette; Still gallery; Poster gallery; Theatrical trailer; Radio spot.

Brazil (1985)

Synopsis: In the future, a clerk at the all-powerful Ministry of Information sticks to his ideals and ends up crushed by the system in this half comedy, half...