Stefen Fangmeier�New Movie---Eragon：A legend by a Dragon�s Egg

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(Free-Press-Release.com) December 16, 2006 -- Director: Stefen Fangmeier
Date of birth (location)
9 December 1960
El Paso, Texas, USA
Trivia
Named among Fade In Magazine's "100 People in Hollywood You Need to Know"... (show more)
Sometimes Credited As:
Stefen M. Fangmeier

Stars: Edward Speleers, Sienna Guillory, Jeremy Irons (Full Cast)

Studio: Fox 2000 Pictures

The Plot: In his homeland of Alagaesia, a farm boy happens upon a dragon's egg -- a discovery that leads him on a predestined journey where he realized he's the one person who can defend his home against an evil king.

THE BUZZ: The moment we saw Edward Speleers take the stage at Comic-Con, we knew the world would soon be yawning his name. No offense to the young man, but this is what a worldwide casting search yields? And we swear Jeremy Irons would have learned a lesson or two about lame fantasies after Dungeons & Dragons.

As a 15-year-old boy, Christopher Paolini started working on a novel, fueled by his love of all things Tolkein. Eragon was published when Paolini was 17, and was a worldwide best-seller (Eldest, the second volume of his Inheritance Triology, was published in 2005, though we doubt it will be optioned as a sequel). The novel was adapted by Lawrence Konner (Mighty Joe Young) and Peter Buchman (Jurassic Park III) and Stefen Fangmeier makes his directorial debut after serving as visual effects supervisor on such films as Saving Private Ryan, Twister, and Lemony Snicket.

I'm not sure why many have cited this to be yet another epic fantasy movie in the mould of Lord of the Rings, or even Harry Potter. Perhaps it's the release date, given that all make it to the silver screen toward the end of the year. However, given that the story is based on a novel written by a sixteen year old at the time, the shades of familiarity stem from something on a grander scale. And to me, it's Star Wars: A New Hope.

The similarities are obvious. Eragon (Edward Speleers), the farmboy, raised not by his parents, but by his relatives. He learns how to use mystical power bestowed upon him, and has a mentor, Brom (Jeremy Irons), teach him the ways too. The villains wield same capabilities, and they all wear black, seeking to destroy hope. Midway, there's a quest to save Princess Arya (Sienna Guillory), and it all culminates in a huge battle, except that the villains launch the initiative, like the Battle of Hoth rather than Yavin.

If that doesn't sound like A New Hope to you, then you'd probably come to enjoy Eragon, the first part of the Inheritance trilogy. However, if you make the connection, then I'd say you'll be pretty much bored as the movie has neither many moments to whip up your adrenaline, and is filled with a number of dialogue that will make you cringe. Perhaps the finale battle is the only saving grace of this movie, but even that has shades of LOTR's attack at Helm's Deep, only that it's on a much smaller scale, and lacking in detail.

The cast is quite spectacular, though I'm a bit surprised that Jeremy Irons is in the movie. Some of you would have known he starred in the grand daddy of fantasy realms - Dungeons and Dragons, but unfortunately, that movie bombed. I suppose he's back here to make amends, but unfortunately, he doesn't get much opportunity to do so. Robert Carlyle as chief villain in this installment is your typical over the top overconfident bad guy, and he's the one with the inappropriate funny lines, which seem to repeat themselves over and over again. John Malkovich is a complete waste as the evil King, and as villains, repeat themselves ad nauseam. Perhaps as a hint, the filmmakers have reigned him in to unleash more mayhem in the sequels.

Saphira the dragon is designed beautifully enough though, given the last celebrity voiced dragon we saw was in Dragonheart, provided by Sean Connery. But I suspect that the baby dragon will win a lot more hearts than a fully grown one. You can hear those gasps amongst the audience, that should some marketing folk start making the plush toy, it'll sell like hotcakes this Christmas.

Source: http://www.yahoo.com
posted by Stefan S

edward speleers     sienna guillory     stefen fangmeier