The Wolfman trailer was incredible. Gory, gothic, very old school. It was a bit evocative of From Hell, but in a good way, mostly due to the bloody scenes involving a mental asylum. There wasn't much dialogue, just lots of running, gutting, mist, and horrified looks. But we did get to see the actual scene from which the first photos of Benicio del Toro, bloodstained and shirt-shredded, came from. He apparently comes to right in front of his father, Anthony Hopkins, who says "You've done terrible things." Understatement of the 19th century. The final scene is of the incomparable Hugo Weaving. "God help us all."
The Q&A was pretty lackluster, if only because Hall H seemed mystified as to what to make of the appearance of such a panel. Interestingly, the director Joe Johnston was absent, but frankly, it seems like the movie was del Toro and Baker's show to run.
-- Rick Baker went to Universal for the job as soon as he heard there was a Wolfman remake in the works.
-- Not all that different from the original makeup technique, and of course he was delighted they had used old school make-up and not CGI. The transformation will be in CGI, though he's hoping they'll work in some physical makeup like An American Werewolf in London used.
-- Del Toro said putting on the make-up was exciting, taking it off was the worst as the fun was over, and everyone had gone home.
-- Baker says "the whole movie is a nod to the original."
-- Though nothing is official, based on the trailer the film looks to be a hard 'R'.
-- When asked what old Universal Wolfman movies had inspired him, del Toro said "For me, it was all those movies." Both he and Baker have been dressing up as the Wolfman since childhood.
The Q&A was pretty lackluster, if only because Hall H seemed mystified as to what to make of the appearance of such a panel. Interestingly, the director Joe Johnston was absent, but frankly, it seems like the movie was del Toro and Baker's show to run.
-- Rick Baker went to Universal for the job as soon as he heard there was a Wolfman remake in the works.
-- Not all that different from the original makeup technique, and of course he was delighted they had used old school make-up and not CGI. The transformation will be in CGI, though he's hoping they'll work in some physical makeup like An American Werewolf in London used.
-- Del Toro said putting on the make-up was exciting, taking it off was the worst as the fun was over, and everyone had gone home.
-- Baker says "the whole movie is a nod to the original."
-- Though nothing is official, based on the trailer the film looks to be a hard 'R'.
-- When asked what old Universal Wolfman movies had inspired him, del Toro said "For me, it was all those movies." Both he and Baker have been dressing up as the Wolfman since childhood.
-- The biggest chance is that they took it back to being a period piece, rather than the vague timeframe of the original.
-- Emily Blunt took the part because she wanted to be a damsel in distress, and she liked that it was a vintage horror movie. She had no trouble getting into character because del Toro's makeup was so horrifying, as were the noises he would make. "I really was running. Fast. In a corset." To which del Toro grinned and said. "And I would chase her."
-- Baker isn't interested in directing, because it's too much hard work and one doesn't get to really make their own vision.
1. Elisabeth: Your comic con coverage has been great. I appreciate all the detail and events you've covered.
It's great to see Universal revisiting their horror movie cannon and respecting it. They still might be able to atone for the mess that was Van Hellsing.
Posted at 5:05PM on Jul 26th 2008 by Sergio