However I think where it will struggle, and this is where is addition of Shia LaBeouf helps, is the younger audience I have done a bunch of coverage on the film and I am shocked at how many kids younger than me have never seen the Indy movies or heard of Indiana Jones I just wanna slap the taste out of their mouths are you kidding? It’s blasphemous in a lot of ways.
I think by adding Shia and the whole ‘I love Shia in Transformers I love Shia in Disturbia blah blah blah’ that will get a lot of younger people more excited about the film. But if you are young kid and you have grown up playing X-Box and watching movies like Speed Racer and Iron Man with their visuals then you see this old guy on a sound stage swinging around on a whip you are like ‘what is this?’ so I think it will struggle with a younger audience.
But everyone’s parents are going to go and see this movie, it’s weird because most action event movies appeal to a much younger audience but this one is going to get the younger folks to come out for sure.
And how big an issue is Harrison Ford’s age?
I think you will have some fun with it but I don’t think you can ignore it, obviously, I think there will be a couple of one liners that say (adopting a Harrison Fordish accent) ‘I’m getting too old for this’ and ‘it used to be easier back in the day’.
But the guy fit into his original costume his original jacket and original pants, which he was very proud of, and I still thinks he looks great, he is a classic movie star, but he looked old in the first couple of films so why not.
we touched on this earlier but what do you think has suddenly enticed actor like Norton, Bale, Downey Jr and ledger, who are all known for their off beat role, into these blockbusters?
Well one is the nice pay cheque, let’s not forget that this is show business, it’s nice nice pay cheque. But these character are very well rounded if you go back to the original comic books there’s love, there’s hope, there’s dismay, there’s death, there’s anguish they are full rounded characters, and they are pairing up with some really talented directors Christopher Nolan, Jon Faverau and people like that.
So I think as an actor it’s the ultimate playground you get to be physical, romantic, heroic and weak sometimes and vulnerable, you get to show a whole range of emotion.
But then it really raises you star power around the world, Robert Downey Jr was down in Australia promoting this movie he was in London, Korea, Japan and when you are involved in a film like this it puts you on the cover of every magazine it sends you around the world so when you go back to the studio and say ‘hey I want to make a five million dollar little indie movie about a guy who invented the windshield wiper’ they go ok you’re Iron Man you can do your crazy passion project or your bio-pic.
And compared to last summer when only Bourne and Transformers lived up to the hype how does this summer compare?
I think we are having films that have been revered for a long time however they are part of already existing franchises, yes Iron Man is new and Speed Racer, but the Hulk and Indy and Batman already have a little bit of a following from the previous films, Transformers was brand new and yes Bourne was part of a franchise, but it will be interesting to see how the new films like Iron Man and Speed Racer hold up against the movies like Narnia and Indiana Jones that are part of an already existing franchise.
Last summer was great in terms comedies with the likes of Knocked Up and Superbad but I think we are going to have even more comedies that will be huge hits, especially in August, with Tropic Thunder, which is directed by Ben Stiller, and you are already laughing even when I said the name of the film you know about Robert Downey Jr in that movie? I mean that is absolutely ridiculous but if anyone can pull it off he can.
Then you gave got Pineapple Express, another Judd Apatow produced movie with Seth Rogan, that movie should play really well.
Then, I have to get a shameless plug on for a second, there’s a movie coming out at the end of August called The House Bunny, it’s with Anna Faris, who plays a playmate at the playboy mansion who get kicked out and has to go and live with a bunch of misfit sorority girls. And toward the middle of the film there is a cameo from your favourite film critic I have to plug my first movie.
Plus there is also another movie from Adam Sandler, who is always a bankable name at the box office, with You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, which is the most ridiculous premise for a movie ever, and he is the most bankable comic actor in Hollywood his movies always but up huge numbers at the box office so Don’t Mess with the Zohan for sure.
This time next year we are going to have G.I. Joe, Star Trek and a very funny film, that I went to the set of in New Mexico, called Year One, directed by Harold Ramis, it’s with Jack Black and Michael Cera and they play guys who are walking round in the year one A.D. So next summer G.I Joe will be the big event movie of the summer.
Catch Ben on E!’s Hot Summer 25, on Friday 23rd May at 6pm only on E! Entertainment Television (Sky: 152/ Virgin Media: 173)
FemaleFirst Helen Earnshaw