One of the most common criticisms of Netflix's Death Note movie is that it tries to cram too much into a fairly short running time. According to director Adam Wingard and producer Masi Oka, however, the intention wasn't to adapt the original manga as much as tell the story of Light before he gets to the place the manga shows him in.
Choosing Willem Dafoe to voice shinigami Ryuk -- basically a spirit of death -- was applauded as one of the better casting decisions in Netflix's Death Note. Director Adam Wingard told us that, while Dafoe was his first pick among actors, he originally wanted to go with a glamorous singer for the part.
You've seen Godzilla. You've seen Kong: Skull Island. Godzilla is coming back next year for sequel King of the Monsters, and then, finally, the two will fight. Now, a director for that epic clash has been chosen.
We've all fantasised about making sequels to our favourite movies. That's why when they actually happen, they're usually a letdown. Nothing can live up to our expectations. However, for Adam Wingard, he actually got to make his teenage dream happen. He got to make Blair Witch.
The internet hates just about everything, but it especially hates movie reboots and remakes. But the new Blair Witch movie has cleverly managed to use that venom in a positive way, and it began with keeping the movie a secret for years.
Video: We were already looking forward to the new movie from Adam Wingard (The Guest, You're Next) when it was called The Woods, and we had no idea it would be a sequel to The Blair Witch Project. Now we can barely contain ourselves waiting for its release, especially since each new trailer looks scarier than the last.
On one hand, casting Willem Dafoe as the voice of Ryuk the shinigami (probably best translated as "death spirit") in Death Note is great. On the other hand, Netflix's live-action US adaptation of the hit manga and anime is missing out on big savings by not just using Dafoe's actual, terrifying face in the film.
Last week at San Diego Comic-Con, I was privileged to be in the one audience ever that thought they were seeing a movie called The Woods, but ended up seeing the third Blair Witch film. It was a shocking, awesome reveal that was long planned by the studio. And the best part was that the movie is good -- and very, very scary.
Netflix's adaptation of the manga Death Note has pretty much solidified its cast, adding Keith Stanfield (Straight Out of Compton).
The Woods is a new, found-footage horror film with a stellar pedigree. It's from the team behind You're Next, one of the best horror movies to come out in recent memory, as well as The Guest, an equally awesome action film drenched in style. The first trailer is now here, and it's very unsettling.
Director Adam Wingard has been one to watch for years, with works like cult horror You're Next and thriller The Guest, which boldly cast Downton Abbey heartthrob Dan Stevens way against type as a psychopath. His next film may reach an even bigger audience, now that it's likely headed to Netflix instead of theatres.
