Some days it feels like 90% of my posts are smarmy quips about stupid movies that should never get made, and yet their production is inevitable. A while back there was talk of a movie based on the Castlevania video game franchise to be directed by Paul W.S. Anderson (Mortal Kombat, Soldier, Alien vs Predator). Although I probably wouldn’t have had high hopes for a Castlevania movie no matter who was directing, I certainly didn’t see Anderson’s involvement as being a good thing. Alas, I had come to terms with the fact that I would probably go see this movie when it was released, and then complain afterward about how it was terrible and a waste of my time.

Well this week there comes a ray of hope for the Castlevania movie… if you can consider the fact that it has now fallen back into development hell a good thing. Which I do, relatively speaking. It seems that Paul W.S. Anderson has left the project after Dimension Films couldn’t come to terms with his vision of the movie. Anderson reportedly wanted the story to span multiple time periods, with the majority of the action set in 15th century Transylvania. As much as I hate to admit it, I don’t see the problem with Anderson’s idea and I have to wonder if there was something else Dimension didn’t like. Perhaps they had actually consulted the internet watercooler and realized that Anderson is not the most respected filmmaker around. Either way, I am pleased with the news, although it seems pretty clear that without a director attached, Castlevania will follow the same path as the Halo feature film and will probably be shelved for the immediate future. Someone call up Neill Blomkamp!