It’s Asian and violent, so it should be no surprise that RZA is involved. The tyrant’s story will be told through his son and grandson, which sounds pretty damn intriguing, and will probably be of such a scale that will make or break RZA’s status as a blockbuster director.

Further, he’ll be doing all of this in the shadows of Bill and Ted‘s depiction of Khan. Big shoes to fill, RZA.

Let’s weigh the facts.

• Both are legitimately crazy. But Tracy Morgan is a more accessible crazy.
• Eddie Griffin has the cracked out look down pat. Tracy Morgan has the fat gut down pat.
• There’s only one Dirt McGirt. Either actor will be distracting in the role.
• Tracy Morgan won’t make me want to huck a shoe at the screen.

I hadn’t realized it before but Ol’ Dirty Bastard is the perfect composite of what would happen if Eddie Griffin and Tracy Morgan were blended together, but sadly, Eddie is given the edge in facial resemblance. Maybe Tracy can play Raekwon or something. (via CinemaBlend)

What is it about mass-market rap, metal, and rap-metal stars that grants them the talent to direct a feature better than those indie darlings? Perhaps it’s the fact that mass-marketed media exists to span platforms. While The Shins or Yo La Tengo are all about the music, the MTV video stars are decidedly NOT all about the music. They’re about the videos, short films, webisodes, and co-branding, all of which puts them around cameras a lot more than those shaggy kids from Williamsburg, Austin, and Silver Lake.

Here are the lonely, lonely examples of musicians making the trip from behind the mike to behind the camera.

6. David Byrne

David Byrne has made a musical career, both fronting the Talking Heads and in other projects, blending styles as disparate as punk, new wave, Afro-pop, and jazz. So it should be little surprise that this geek-chic icon branched out into film writing and directing with 1986’s True Stories, a collection of interwoven vignettes about a fictional Texas town on the cusp of its anniversary celebration.

True Stories is certainly not your standard theater fare, but it serves as a refreshing exercise in absurd, snarky, and charm for those willing to take it for what it is. Unfortunately, in 1986, its wide release by Warner Bros. demonstrated that there were very few of those people around, so it came and went without much fanfare, relegating Byrne back to his day job of making awesome, awesome music.

5. Ice Cube

 
That crazy motherf#cker named Ice Cube may have squandered much of his Boyz in the Hood and N.W.A. credibility with his turns in a recent streak of family fare and mindless action films, but 1998’s The Players Club, while a bit of a mess, at least served as one of his last connections to the world from which he came. The film followed Diana and Ebony, two cousins that get involved in the seedy world of strip clubs, only to find their way out on the other side.

It came and went with little fanfare despite grossing $24 million bucks domestically.

12 years later, Ice Cube stepped back behind the camera for a project that was quintessentially Ice Cube. He directed the “Straight Outta Los Angeles” entry in ESPN’s acclaimed 30 for 30 canon. The doc discussed the Oakland/L.A. Raiders ties to both the LA sports and gang communities. He goes so far as to tie the birth of gangster rap to the Raiders’ Los Angeles arrival in 1982.

Not that it makes up for Are We Done Yet? but it’s a step in the right direction.

In other G.I. Joe news, the participation of The Rock has gone from being a foregone conclusion to just a conclusion. He will be playing Roadblock. All you really need to know about Roadblock is that he is enormous and carries a .50 caliber machine gun. Works for me.

The series has essentially gotten a reboot for the sequel after the original didn’t seem to pass muster with fans nor critics. Jon Chu will be taking over helming duties and Channing Tatum will be returning, but the rest of the cast will be new to the franchise.

While it’s not exactly poised for critical acclaim, the sequel certainly sounds more interesting with these recent additions. (THR, Variety)

Anyway, the plot synopsis is that Crowe and RZA are playing a couple of guys in feudal China who have to defend themselves using kung-fu and stuff. Too bad it isn’t set in a more modern era — Russell Crowe won’t have any telephones to throw. Wonder if he can deadlift a rickshaw.

Wu-Tang Clan’s The RZA is moving into film directing with an idea that would make The Sha Brothers proud. The Man with the Iron Fist will star Russell Crowe in RZA’s ultimate concept for martial arts. There’s been a little speculation so far about RZA’s ultimate vision. Durin Fantastic Fest, after he presented master Yuen Wu-Ping with a lifetime achievement award, RZA told me his idea for Iron Fist fights.

More from RZA after the jump…

“I think something that’s missing in some of these film, that lose tension is sometimes these guys’ll get his three or four, five or six times and get back up and try to kee fighting,” RZA said. “Bruce Lee once said that he likes his movies where he hits you one time and you’re down. That’s because what’s the use on knowing kung fu if it’s going to take you 20 punches to kill a man? Anybody could do that then. So I’m looking at trying to bring back the exciting impact of a martial art blow. It’s easier said than done of course but that’s my aim, to look at it like ooh, ooh, get a lot of oohs and not a lot of ha ha, ahh.”

If it only takes one hit to take a guy out, those fight scenes will end up pretty short. Don’t worry, RZA has a way to keep the action moving.

“I think there’s a way to do it. I think without revealing my technique, take [the example of] horror movies, like Jason. It’s one stab and that motherfucker’s dead. It’s a buildup to that death but you watch it and that’s your fear. When he does it, you’re like ugh. I think it’s that. I think it’s the impact of the one thing that makes an audience feel that kind of jolt you get when you’re watching these kinds of films.”

Now imagine Russell Crowe doing it.

At Nerdeoke tonight at The Highball during Fantastic Fest, RZA, Elijah Wood, and friends gathered on stage to sing "I Gotta Feeling" by The Black Eyed Peas. Will.i.am was nowhere to be found, but somewhere his ears were ringing as part of the Wu Tang spit his flow.

Hold the phone! Longtime fan of hitting things, Russell Crowe has signed on to do BFF the RZA a solid by slumming it in the rapper’s shoddily-directed kung fu flick, The Man With The Iron Fist. The only thing we know about Crowe’s character is that he’ll be playing "the baddest man alive." Shouldn’t be a stretch. He’s already regarded as one of the baddest musicians alive.

Crowe is more than likely doing this as a favor to his friend and oft co-star, so it’s unlikely his labor will take that big of a bite out of the movie’s $20 million budget. The craft service budget on the other hand… (E!)

Lionsgate has dropped the new trailer for Paul Haggis’s The Next Three Days. Elizabeth Banks is married to Russell Crowe. She gets wrongly accused of murder. Crowe asks Liam Neeson how he can bust her out of jail. He then finds out how to put bullets in a gun because he must have never seen a movie or TV show before. The couple make a run for it. Overall lesson: Liam Neeson is a bad-ass.

The Next Three Days hits theaters November 19, 2010.

Check out the trailer after the jump…

The Next Three Days Trailer – Watch more Movie Trailers

With the runaway success of The Karate Kid, I can understand the push to get more rappers and rapper’s progeny in kung fu-based situations, but don’t sacrifice the quality of cinema to do so. The grainy footage you’ll see below the jump of karate guys jumping around is two trailers for Wu-Tang Vs. The Golden Pheonix, a ten year passion project from The Wu-Tang Clan’s chief producer RZA.

I know he was going for a certain aesthetic (not spending much money) but I’m afraid RZA’s setting himself up for a fall. I’d hate to be there when he’s informed that the create-your-own-Grindhouse trailer contest ended years ago and the top prize went to Hobo With A Shotgun. He’ll be so upset he’ll probably his the messenger with a bo staff before shooting him with lightning fingers.

WATCH SOME GUYS TIRE OUT THEIR ARMS AFTER THE JUMP…

RZAs Wu-Tang Vs The Golden Phoenix Official Movie Trailer – Watch more Funny Videos
RZAs Wu-Tang Vs The Golden ¨Phoenix Movie Trailer – Watch more Funny Videos