Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers Movie Reboot Announced

[Frontier]

http://www.lionsgate.com/corporate/press-releases/1578/

The new film franchise will re-envision the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, a group of high school kids who are infused with unique and cool super powers but must harness and use those powers as a team if they have any hope of saving the world.

So yeah, how did this not have a thread yet?

They're re-booting MMPR. Not just making a new incarnation of the Rangers as a film. They specifically say "Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers" and "re-envison" in the press release.

Jason David Frank (Tommy, the Green/White/Red/Red/Black) ranger is already chomping at the bit for a part.

If this is done right and make this film for a contemporary audience, like they've been doing with superhero films from DC and Marvel for a while now, I can see something perhaps cool. They can't stay in the aimed-at-8-year-olds realm though. This has to be gritty and grown up. It has to appeal to adults who grew up with the shows, rather than only appealing to people in grade school. It's got to be PG-13 and earn that, like so many other superhero films.

 

[RoJoHen]

Is it bad that I want Michael Bay to direct this? I would love to see his Megazord fighting some giant monster.

Also, they need to bring back Amy Jo Johnson, even if it's just some small cameo.

 

[Frontier]

What I Want From the New Power Rangers Reboot Movie

• A True PG-13 Superhero Film with a Serious Tone, on par with Comicbook movies of the last decade-plus. We’ve got 20+ seasons and 2 other movies with the tame grade school tone. Enough is enough.
• No Rita as bad-guy, Go Straight to Lord Zed. Dude was so bad-ass he had parents complaining. Let him be bad-ass. Keep this look, his sound, and just let him be the evil SOB he is.
• Bad-ass Goldar as Zed’s right-hand lieutenant.
• Conflict between the Rangers. Totally different social circles at School, not friends at first. They’ve got to learn to work together and overcome their differences at first.
• Evil Green Ranger that is saved/turned good in first movie. Loses powers heroically in the second movie. Is reborn as the white ranger in the third to save the day.
• Jason David Frank in some capacity. TBH I’d be fine with him as the Green Ranger/White Ranger. Who cares if he’s 40? Have him be Jason’s martial arts instructor, add a whole mentor/student thing to it. Dude’s the Spock of the MMPR verse.
• Cameos from all the original rangers at various points. Have them play teachers, parents, I don’t care what to the new Rangers. Just get them in there for a minute or so each.

 

[Frontier]

Is it bad that I want Michael Bay to direct this? I would love to see his Megazord fighting some giant monster.

Also, they need to bring back Amy Jo Johnson, even if it's just some small cameo.

Yes. Yes it is bad. Michael Bay should never be allowed to make movies ever again.

 

[RoJoHen]

Is it bad that I want Michael Bay to direct this? I would love to see his Megazord fighting some giant monster.

Also, they need to bring back Amy Jo Johnson, even if it's just some small cameo.

Yes. Yes it is bad. Michael Bay should never be allowed to make movies ever again.

*shrug* He fulfills my summer need to see hot people running away from explosions.

 

[Frontier]

Is it bad that I want Michael Bay to direct this? I would love to see his Megazord fighting some giant monster.

Also, they need to bring back Amy Jo Johnson, even if it's just some small cameo.

Yes. Yes it is bad. Michael Bay should never be allowed to make movies ever again.

*shrug* He fulfills my summer need to see hot people running away from explosions.

Light off a fire-cracker in your trash-can while you watch a track-team themed porn. Same thing, only likely turn out better quality, better acted, and better scripted.

 

[Agent Richard07]

I'd love to see a Power Rangers movie directed by Quentin Tarantino or Robert Rodriguez. They're good at respecting and playing up imports like that. Just imagine it.

I'll take your suggestions though, Frontier. A big budget movie does sound good as long as Saban doesn't have too much creative control. The franchise actually was getting better and becoming more "grown up" until he took it back from Disney a few years ago and dumbed it down significantly.

 

[The Wormhole]

Conflict between the Rangers. Totally different social circles at School, not friends at first. They’ve got to learn to work together and overcome their differences at first

I could do without that one. Too much of an uninteresting cliché.

 

[urbandefault]

Maybe they could work in some of this. It's Morphin' Time!

[yt]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT0kCLaGlrw[/yt]

 

[Gaith]

But will they faithfully depict Zordon's blatant racism?

 

[Kelthaz]

This has to be gritty and grown up.

No.

 

[Thestral]

Also, they need to bring back Amy Jo Johnson, even if it's just some small cameo.

Truth.

 

[Aldo]

This has to be gritty and grown up.

No.

I thought the same thing when I read that post

 

[Agent Richard07]

It was pretty much there in 2009 with Power Rangers RPM, the last of the Disney seasons. Spoilers ahead... We had humanity confined to a domed city while the rest of the planet was devastated. We had a smooth-talking con artist who accidentally became a ranger when he used a morpher. There was a drifter who became a ranger and found out that the enemy they've been fighting was led by his kidnapped sister. And we had a child prodigy who was used to start the war that obliterated mankind, then kept this to herself and then created the Power Rangers to make up for it all. It got pretty dark, by Power Rangers standards anyway.

It wasn't without the usual fun though, and the show even made fun of itself from time to time...

Dillon: ...nothing says "covert" like bright red, yellow, and blue, spandex.
Dr. K: THAT IS NOT SPANDEX!

Ziggy: Sometimes when I morph, I can't help but notice this gigantic explosion right behind me for no apparent reason.
Dr. K: I assume you're referring to the residual energy run off that is sometimes necessary to clear the suit's biofield channels during the morph.
Ziggy: I'm referring to the six-story high fireballs, like that one right there! [points at the screen of the explosion]
Ziggy: Now, could that happen to me in the kitchen or something?

Flynn: When we morph, is it absolutely 100% necessary that we scream "RPM, get in gear" from the top of our lungs?
Ziggy: Uh, that's a very good point. Uh, some of us out there are trying impress chicks. Uh, it's definitely not helping.

Flynn: [While talking about a zord] It's not normal, okay? It's a giant flying chicken that's shooting laser beams at people, really?
Summer: Okay, I'm with Flynn. This thing is so weird.
Ziggy: Weird? Okay, you cruise around in a giant yellow teddy bear, okay? I drive a big green fish. Look in the mirror, people. We're in no position to be sitting in judgment of anything weird.
Dillon: Man's got a point.

Scott: [After asking about the eyes on the zords] What do you mean, "What eyes"? Right there, on the front of our Zords.
Dr. K: They are not eyes. They are optical field scanning sensors for your cockpit's A2D display.
Scott: Well, they look like, well...
Dillon: They look like eyes.
Ziggy: Big googly anime eyes

 

[M.A.C.O.]

What I Want From the New Power Rangers Reboot Movie

• A True PG-13 Superhero Film with a Serious Tone, on par with Comicbook movies of the last decade-plus. We’ve got 20+ seasons and 2 other movies with the tame grade school tone. Enough is enough.
• No Rita as bad-guy, Go Straight to Lord Zed. Dude was so bad-ass he had parents complaining. Let him be bad-ass. Keep this look, his sound, and just let him be the evil SOB he is.
• Bad-ass Goldar as Zed’s right-hand lieutenant.
• Conflict between the Rangers. Totally different social circles at School, not friends at first. They’ve got to learn to work together and overcome their differences at first.
• Evil Green Ranger that is saved/turned good in first movie. Loses powers heroically in the second movie. Is reborn as the white ranger in the third to save the day.
• Jason David Frank in some capacity. TBH I’d be fine with him as the Green Ranger/White Ranger. Who cares if he’s 40? Have him be Jason’s martial arts instructor, add a whole mentor/student thing to it. Dude’s the Spock of the MMPR verse.
• Cameos from all the original rangers at various points. Have them play teachers, parents, I don’t care what to the new Rangers. Just get them in there for a minute or so each.

I agree with all except Zedd. Rita was a way better villain than Zeddy. Zedd was all hot air and yelling and never came as close to beating the rangers like Rita did in season 1.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

I agree that it has to be Rita. The reboot should evoke as much of the original run as possible.

 

[Cyke101]

I know this is a highly unlikely for any number of reasons, but I'll be one happy camper if they recreate this battle as, say, the climax of a trilogy.

 

[Chris3123]

I know this is a highly unlikely for any number of reasons, but I'll be one happy camper if they recreate this battle as, say, the climax of a trilogy.

The PR version of that battle is actually being done for the last episode of the current season.

 

[Frontier]

This has to be gritty and grown up.

No.

I thought the same thing when I read that post

Because...?

Perhaps it's a difference of definitions. I'm not saying we need modern BSG gritty, or even Dark Knight trilogy gritty. But certainly on the level of the Marvel films, at least, could be done.

Just because something has origins in light-hearted and campy, doesn't mean it can't be brought up to snuff. Apparently even the later seasons of the shows before Saban bought it back where doing so to degrees.

If they make this film with a tilt towards Marvel's Avengers, instead of a tilt towards what the bulk of Power Rangers has been, it could open so many new doors. Especially because of that all-powerful nostalgia factor that so many reboots capitalize on.

You make an MMPR film like the one in 96 or the shows, aiming it squarely at a PG rating and 12 and under crowd, you're not going to make any money. That stuff might work for TV, but not for movies. A kids movie can make a boat-load, but Rangers have always straddled the uncomfortable and unprofitable (for films; they're plenty profitable in TV) fence of aiming at a 8-12 year old range. For TV it's good money, for movies its not.

You make this film for the same audience as Avengers, Spider-Man, X-Men, Man of Steel, Thor, so on and so forth? You're going to get those 5 and 6 year olds, those 8 and 9 year olds, and most important those 15 and 20 and 30 and 40 year olds.

You target this film at the same level the Rangers have been at for 20 years? You're going to get the 8-12 year olds and some die hard fans; not much else.

 

[Toxteth O´Grady]

I would love to see this movie. The original recipe Mighty Morphin' rangers were a big part of my childhood. And as much as I loved the show, having a non-cheesy, bigger budget version would be awesome!

I agree, Frontier, that the Green Ranger should be involved in a major way in the plot line. In my opinion, his introduction is what really made the show take off and get to where it is today.