Re: The Wolverine - IN Production **SPOILERS**

[jo]

He's looking quite lean, too lean for Wolverine, given his height.

I wonder if they are thinking of a new build for Wolverine when he goes to Japan?

Or maybe it is just a bit of an optical illusion?

Jo

[nevaeh777]

Aug 23, 2012 20:30:49 GMT -5 jo said:

He adds --

Quote:

Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

But 1 thing I've learnt on this wolverine -dont be afraid of "good" fats: avocados, hummus, almonds. Am adding 2 meals& am leaner than ever.

Hey Jo, I thought EXACTLY the same thing when I saw these photos! He does look leaner. Must be all that hummus!!! ;D
As he quoted, he's added 2 meals to his diet and is leaner than ever.

[jo]

www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/nailbiter111/news/?a=66541

Quote:

THE WOLVERINE First Set Photos From Japan

James Mangold's The Wolverine has begun filming on location in Japan, and today Hugh Jackman was seen filming scenes at the Zojoji Temple in Tokyo, Japan. Hit the jump to check it out.


Eyewitnesses observed Hugh Jackman on set, but no clear shots of the star have surfaced just yet. Filming will continue til September 2 and the Buddhist temple. Most of the scenes in Japan will be filmed at locations in Tokyo and Hiroshima. Also, a fun little tidbit, the local title of the film will be, "Wolverine Vs. Samurai." To coincide withe Japanese title, Fox has registered the domain, "wolverine-samurai.jp."











Jo

[jo]

In April 2009, my niece and her husband ( who were both Tokyo expats then for Ernst & Young) invited her Mom ( my sister) and another aunt ( also my sister) and I to Tokyo for cherry blossom time. I was a little disappointed to see such a modern metropolis -- where is the exotic Japan that beguiles in travel posters? Where is the iconic architecture? Bring us to a temple! I practically demanded to my niece. She took off from work and took us to a temple shrine that was what I had thought would greet us when we set foot in Japan.

My niece and her family resided in Minato, in the Roppongi Hills area.

According to my niece, this was the only major temple shrine that was fairly close.

Guess what --

I did some googling and came up with this data about Zojoji Temple where The Wolverine is filming :

Zojoji temple is a Buddhist temple located in Shiba just south east of Roppongi.

and this is the address :

Address
4-7-35 Shiba Koen, Minato-ku, Tokyo


Guess what --

It looks like I might have visited the Zojoji temple long before Wolverine did ;D

The reason why I was not sure initially was because the temple shrine covered such a sprawling area and was mainly wooded. It took us about half an hour to reach the temple from the impressive main gate - no cars are allowed inside. It was serene and so beautiful!

We were also lucky to see a wedding procession happening as we neared the temple itself - very exotic and solemn.

Such memories of Japan ( cherry blossoms everywhere you look!) and now I can think of some of them when I get to see The Wolverine!


Here's another photo- an overhead one which shows how sprawling and wooded the shrine is!




Jo

[mamaleh]

Gorgeous shots, all.

I also think Hugh looks surprisingly lean for a supposedly bulked-up Wolvie. Perhaps it's the angle. The photo appears to have been taken from a level above them, which could add to that tapered look: broader on top and narrower toward the bottom.

Ellen

[jo]

More details and new photos of Tokyo filming --

blogs.coventrytelegraph.net/thegeekfiles/2012/09/hugh-jackmans-the-wolverine-shoots-funeral-scene-at-tokyos-historic-zojoji-temple-next-moving-to-hir.html


Quote:

>>>
Hugh Jackman's The Wolverine shoots funeral scene at Tokyo's historic Zojoji temple, next moving to Hiroshima

By David Bentley on September 2, 2012 12:29 AM|


HUGH JACKMAN'S next solo mutant adventure The Wolverine has unsheathed its claws in the land of the rising sun.

Set pictures from the movie - known locally as Wolverine vs Samurai - have emerged from Tokyo's Zojoji temple, with local people gathering to meet the star as a 'grand funeral' was being filmed there.

Reports say director James Mangold is finishing work at the centuries-old grand Buddhist temple today and will move to Hiroshima next week.

Messages posted on Togetter (via Latino Review) say that scenes there involved Logan/Wolverine (Jackman), Mariko Yashida (Tao Okamoto), Kenuichio Harada/Silver Samurai (Will Yun Lee), Shingen Yashida (Hiroyuki Sanada) and Viper (Svetlana Khodchenkova, who replaced Jessica Biel).

One worshipper posted online that they couldn't pray in the main hall because they had been told it was being used by film crews for a 'grand funeral.'...<<<



Not sure if this has already been adopted as an official promo poster, but several film sites are now using it. Artistically beautiful and evoking a Japanese saga for Wolverine's adventures, but it can create an image that could be considered offensive to the Japanese people --



The rumor was it was seen at a production office, but not officially released.


Jo

[nevaeh777]

Do you think there will be scenes like this in the new Wolverine movie? ;

[jo]

To find out --

You'll have to check out the graphic novel ( aka comic book series) that brought out the Japan saga of Wolverine




But this is an interesting review of the graphic novel series itself, written in April 2009!

www.ign.com/articles/2009/04/09/wolverine-by-claremont-miller-review

Wolverine by Claremont & Miller Review

It made Wolverine who he is today, but does it stand the test of time?

by Jesse Schedeen
April 9, 2009

It seems almost impossible to imagine a time when Wolverine wasn't one of the dominant forces in the Marvel Universe. At present he enjoys three ongoing solo books to his name, as well as starring roles in many more team books. He's the reason countless readers got into comics back in the '90s. But it wasn't always so. Following his introduction to the Uncanny X-Men lineup in 1975, Wolverine remained a true x-factor. Readers knew next to nothing about his past, or at first even such basic details as the fact that his claws were part of his body and not attached to his gloves.

Wolverine lurked in the shadows for the first seven or eight years of his life in the comic book industry. It wasn't until 1982 that Uncanny scribe Chris Claremont finally sat down to explore Wolverine's back story in real depth. The result was a four-issue mini-series simply titled Wolverine. This humble little project was the start of what would prove to be an insanely successful shelf life for the ol' Canucklehead.

Whereas Wolverine was formerly a bruiser and a roughhouse, Wolverine Vol. 1 took a different tack. Together with his artist, a young man named Frank Miller, Claremont decided that Wolverine was, at heart, a ronin – a masterless, failed samurai who hid a deep-seated code of honor underneath all that rage. In this mini-series, Wolverine journeys to Japan to confront the woman he loves and the man that would keep them apart. It was a surprisingly unique look at an already popular character back then. But does that effect still carry over 25 years later?

Claremont's reputation with the X-Men is a funny thing. For decades he was the first and last word when it came to the franchise. He's widely regarded as the single writer who molded the characters into what they are today (with all deference to artists like John Byrne and Dave Cockrum, of course). But these days, whenever Claremont touches an X-book, the results are far less pretty. Claremont's writing style, though revolutionary in its time, comes across as horribly dated in the context of modern storytelling. Characters soliloquize at great length about their thoughts and feelings. Nary an issue goes by without multiple characters providing a long-winded thought balloon that explains the nature of their powers. As painful as this can be in a 21st Century comic, it doesn't exactly hold up well in Claremont's classic material either. Claremont opens just about every issue in this trade with some variation on the familiar line, "I'm Wolverine, and I'm the best there is at what I do." Cue chatter about unbreakable adamantium skeletons. Rinse and repeat.

And yet, it's important to remember that this was unique in 1982. Back then, no one had been granted the opportunity to expose themselves to Wolverine to the extent that these lines became grating and annoying. We've all probably read the "I'm the best there is" line in 100 different comics, but they were all paying homage to this one project. So it's not necessarily proper to knock Claremont for something other writers have taken and run with for too long. At the same time, there is really no excuse for the rampant overuse of dialogue and narration in this story. Particularly considering the pedigree of the man illustrating it. Frank Miller owns this story. Whereas Claremont's writing can't help but come across as stilted today, Miller's work holds up every bit as well as it did in 1982. Miller freed up the page from familiar panel structure. His work is dynamic - his choreography in each of Wolverine's many battles breathtaking. It's been a disappointment to me to watch Miller's style evolve over the years into something far more loose and surreal. Miller's artwork hit is peak in the '80s with books like Daredevil and Wolverine.

And at times Claremont does pipe down and allow his partner to tell the story. When the narration drops out of the equation and the book is nothing but bloody, moving imagery, it becomes almost poetic. At these times, it's easy to remember why this story made such an impression on readers. Claremont and Miller did many things right in these four issues. Claremont crafted an intriguing villain in Shingen Yashida. This crime lord is not only Wolverine's physical better, he possesses the rare ability to destroy the confidence that makes Logan such an unassailable opponent. As Wolverine is forced to pick himself out of the gutter and reclaim his honor, readers can sympathize with the man in a way they hadn't previously and rarely have since. Hackneyed narration aside, the core of this story remains relevant.

And the story isn't quite finished either. Wolverine Vol. 1 ended with a cliffhanger of sorts. His current foes defeated, Wolverine was prepared to settle down into wedded bliss with Lady Mariko. This story spun directly into the pages of Uncanny X-Men, where the team traveled to Japan to attend the wedding. As with any social function in superhero comics, the presence of new villains threatened to derail everything. In many ways these two issues comprise parts five and six of the story, and no reading is truly complete without them. Unfortunately, the absence of Miller means these final chapters immediately fall short of the mark. Paul Smith's great strength was in replicating the look and feel set forth by John Byrne. As a follow-up to Miller, his work proves disappointing by comparison. The issues revert to a more traditional page layout and lose much of the dynamism of Miller's issues. The climactic battle between Wolverine and Silver Samurai contain nowhere near the level of visceral impact as the Wolverine/Shingen fight.

Claremont's writing, at least carries over naturally enough. The same strengths and flaws remain. Claremont continued to use the story to explore Wolverine's samurai nature, though these issues don't offer quite the same level of insight. Unfortunately, the addition of the greater X-Men cast means numerous other plot threads intrude into Wolverine's story. Rogue arrives, fresh from her ordeal with Ms. Marvel and not enjoying the favor of her teammates. Likewise, Cyclops is struggling to deal with the emergence of Madelyne Pryor, a woman who looks all-too similar to the deceased Jean Grey. In some cases Claremont was able to integrate the other X-Men into the story nicely. Storm cultivates a friendship with the carefree Yukio in these pages, spawning a new look and attitude that would carry her through much of the '80s. Kitty Pryde and Nightcrawler are also put to good use, perhaps even too sparingly. Unfortunately, the worst element of these issues comes at the very end, when Claremont resorts to a last-minute character appearance to cap off the story. Many readers will likely feel unsatisfied with the conclusion. The only recommendation I can offer is to keep reading Uncanny from this point on. Claremont was always one to tackle his plot threads bit by bit over a long period of time, making singular trades a somewhat incomplete experience.

For however dated and stilted the writing could be in these issues, they offer some of the greatest trials and tribulations the X-Men have ever faced. Whether you consider yourself a hardcore Wolverine fan or just enjoy a nice claw fight every now and again, your collection is incomplete without the mini-series that started it all.

This seems to have captured the essence of Wolverine ( maybe the reason why Hugh Jackman has attached himself to such a film role portrayal) - it is quite a romantic image of a warrior --

"Together with his artist, a young man named Frank Miller, Claremont decided that Wolverine was, at heart, a ronin – a masterless, failed samurai who hid a deep-seated code of honor underneath all that rage."



Jo

[jo]

First look at Wolverine-san!!

www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/nailbiter111/news/?a=66694

According to reports that I have translated, the scene being filmed at the Buddhist temple, was a funeral. A grand funeral no less. Today was the last day of filming at the temple, and the crew is expected to head to Hiroshima next.

Jo

[jo]

Riding the Tokyo subway --



Quote:

>>>Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

Had my first subway ride In Tokyo the other day.....spotless!! pic.twitter.com/FuuF7z8G<<<

[jo]

>>>Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

Just found notes from Lottie my asst on Les Mis who was tracking my water intake - it takes a village & a lot of H2O! pic.twitter.com/RLMF1THL<<<

Please check the link for the image.

If that was a standard cup ( with 225 ML), that would be 3600 ML ( 3.6 liters of water) :o


Jo

[nevaeh777]

So am I to understand here that Jean Valjean spent plenty of time in the water closet? And will Wolverine-san do the same? ;D
We definitely don't need another "Gaston" episode! LOL!

[jo]

It looks like the whole family are with Hugh in Tokyo --

Quote:

>>>Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

Had to take deb!! Jiro and his son gave us another meal of a lifetime!!!!! pic.twitter.com/WYEVFyJL<<<

[jo]

Still filming in Tokyo -- in the electronic-oriented district of Akihabara.

Quote:

>>>Professorþ@MC_Professor

Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman spotted filming on location in Akihabara today, reports multiple sources. Wolverine 2? - ow.ly/dq797<<<

If you open the link, you can spot director James Mangold in the middle, wearing light t-shirt and dark shorts. Wolverine nowhere to be seen ;D

Jo

[njr]

Sept 2, 2012 18:30:44 GMT -5 jo said:

>>>Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

Just found notes from Lottie my asst on Les Mis who was tracking my water intake - it takes a village & a lot of H2O! pic.twitter.com/RLMF1THL<<<

Please check the link for the image.

If that was a standard cup ( with 225 ML), that would be 3600 ML ( 3.6 liters of water) :o


Jo

A cup is 8 ounces (an ounce is 30 ml) so 240 ml per cup. He drank 120 ounces which is still 3600 ml. An insane amount of water! It would kill me (literally!) :o

P.S. I hate the way his hair looks as Wolverine! Too short on top!

[jo]

The lady with the red hair is supposed to be Yukio.

Jo

[jo]

On the famous bullet train of Japan. Maybe on the way to Hiroshima where the second phase of filming takes place??



Quote:

>>>Hugh Jackmanþ@RealHughJackman

On the bullet train. Amazing!! Japan is subarashi !!!!! pic.twitter.com/QsmPUHVY<<<

[rmtndew]

He reminds me of a kid how excited he is for Japanese subways and bullet trains. It's really sweet.

And I agree with you Nancy; I'm not sure how much I like his hair for Wolverine. It's too short. Maybe they're going more realistic? His hair in X3 was pretty sculpted, so maybe they're trying to stay away from that. My favorite hair and body type was X2.

- Alicia

[jo]

More filming photos -- this time with the actress who plays Mariko ( Wolverine's lady love).

www.comicbookmovie.com/fansites/MarvelFreshman/news/?a=66766








*There is something about Hugh Jackman/Wolverine being all in black -- he looks even more handsome and more manly in bearing. LOL - is that the Wolverine image?

*Also, the Japanese locale makes the movie seem more exotic - almost like the patina of a James Bond movie.

Jo

[jo]

A fanboy posted this separate photo of the Japanese actress who plays Mariko --

[jo]

Someone found this Japanese language site, which seems to be posting a running commentary. Trust the fanboys to find it ;D

translate.google.com/translate?sl=auto&tl=en&u=http%3A%2F%2Ftogetter.com%2Fli%2F364072%3Ff

Check out the photos, if the Japanese calligraphy is not available for translation












Jo

[njr]

Sept 4, 2012 16:51:37 GMT -5 jo said:

Jo

How much does she get paid to fan Hugh? LOL!

Nancy

[rmtndew]

Sept 4, 2012 17:19:53 GMT -5 jo said:

A fanboy posted this separate photo of the Japanese actress who plays Mariko --

I like her as Mariko, look wise. I didn't care for Lynn Collins as Silverfox and I thought Famke Janssen was okay as Jean Gray, but I wasn't a big fan. This actress, though, she looks as I imagined the character to look in real life. Very pretty and exotic. All the photos of the sets are giving me high hopes for the movie. It's so different than the other one.

- Alicia

[jo]

Er...fanning Hugh must be such a difficult occupation -- maybe we will all volunteer to do it for free ;D

Although the fanning is probably to keep the face makeup from melting down

Kidding aside, this must be the end of summer in Japan - and coming from wintry Sydney ( although coming into spring now), the cast and crew ( I think I also spotted Irving in a green t-shirt in the shot with Redhead Yukio) must find it a little difficult to adjust, weather-wise. And especially if the actors have to do some action scenes.

Hugh has been working practically non-stop now --

*Promotion for Real Steel
*Tests for Les Miserables ( he went to London for a few days to help in testing the new technology for the live singing)
*Back on Broadway
*Rehearsals ( 7 weeks) and filming ( March 8 to June 23) for Les Miserables
*CineEurope to promote Rise of the Guardians in Barcelona
*Fly back to NYC for the TONYs
*Tropfest after wrapping LesMiserables only a few hours earlier.
*Pre-production for The Wolverine
*Sydney location filming for The Wolverine
*Now Japan location-filming for The Wolverine

In the last 12 months or so!

Jo

[ocjackie]

He really has been busy and it doesn't look like it's going to stop. Funny thing Jo, the first thing I thought about with her "fanning" was, "I'll do it for free". I guess I'm not the only one. Great minds think alike