The Official Matthew Reilly Homepage

Thought I'd keep you informed of some of the movies I've seen in the last few weeks. Now, I've always said I see everything, even the bad movies, because I firmly believe that it's cheaper to learn from other people's mistakes! Okay, here we go:

THE WEDDING PLANNER
As bland a movie as I have ever seen.

FINDING FORRESTER
Kind of like GOOD WILL HUNTING with all the good bits taken out.

DUDE, WHERE'S MY CAR
Kind of like BILL AND TED'S EXCELLENT ADVENTURE with all the good bits taken out. No, that's harsh. This one wasn't bad. Sean W Scott (the guy who played Stiffler in AMERICAN PIE) has real screen presence.

CROCODILE DUNDEE IN LA
Okay. I had to see it for myself, because I like Hoges and I wanted to make up my own mind. Let's just say, Croc III is not quite up to the standard of the other two. It ain't bad, but it isn't exactly memorable either. It actually reminded me of BEVERLY HILLS COP III: a sequel that didn't have to be made.

EXIT WOUNDS
I saw this because I'd heard good things about it, like how it had resurrected Steven Seagal's career and had a fast-paced plot. For the record, I thought Seagal was excellent, as was DMX. The plot, however, was far from fast-paced. In fact, it was garbage. Best part: the very cool stunt where Seagal "hurdles" a roofless car speeding toward him. Wish I'd thought of that one!

MEMENTO
I once wrote a short film script in reverse, it was called REWIND (I'll put it up on the site, actually, since it was the basis for my 'Fate of Flight 700' ultra-short story - it would be a good comparison). The gag of telling a story backwards works for a while, but then it just starts to grate. Brilliant idea, and Guy Pearce's acting was incredible.

ANTITRUST
And then today I saw ANTITRUST and it almost restored my faith in the movies. It's not great, but at least it had some ambition. In any case, the reason I saw it was to watch the actress Rachael Leigh Cook (I think she is awesome and in a couple of years will be a huge movie star) and Ryan Phillippe (been watching him since his brilliant turn in I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER; he wasn't bad in CRUEL INTENTIONS either).

And I am refusing to see THE MEXICAN.

1. It's funny for me to see the AREA 7 rumours on the site, especially since a few of them went up before the book had even been delivered to my publisher! In any case, I thought that today I would dispel some of the rumours:

(a) Andrew Trent does not appear in the new book;
(b) Mother and Gant do, alongside Schofield and a few brand-new Marine characters;
(c) This is a biggie: yes, Schofield, now a captain, is on duty aboard Marine One, the President of the United States' helicopter, and in the story he is accompanying the President on an inspection tour of a mysterious US base called Area 7.
(d) As for Mother dying in the new book. Well, I can't say, you'll just have to read it to find out…

2. Have been talking with some Hollywood types recently. They're a strange bunch. All of them can say "No" but only a handful can say "Yes" and actually get a movie made. That being the case, I am seriously thinking of making a movie on my own, with my own money (and a few called-in favours). Am tossing up between THE LAST LINE OF DEFENCE, my Sydney Olympics thriller, or a movie version of my short story, THE MINE. Will get back to you when I've made a decision.

3. On that topic, I've been getting lots of emails lately from aspiring actors and actresses asking me to keep them in mind for casting calls on movies that I might be making in the future. I'm more than happy to keep names on file for this purpose. Hey, if you've got the guts and the determination to ask me, then I'm thrilled to give you a look when the time comes. Everyone needs a break, and if I can do that, then cool. Just remember me when you're famous!

Anyhow, that's it for this week. Next week: my views on Popstars. Till then, take care and keep reading!

P.S. The winning streak continues! After the Easter break, my indoor cricket team, the mighty Full Tossers, had yet another nail-biting win - a corker reminiscent of the titanic Australia-South Africa semi-final at the last World Cup. Yours truly had to bat out the last two deliveries and not get out. We won by one run, 94 to 93.