inmate profile: Thunder Levin

With the World Premiere of American Warships occurring this Saturday night at 9 p.m. on SyFy (DVD to follow the next Tuesday), for the last few days we here at Committed have been spotlighting the talent behind this upcoming Naval/Alien clash of the titans. Already we've profiled the film's incredible stars, Mario Van Peebles and Carl Weathers, and now we turn to the talent behind the camera, the man responsible for American Warships, writer/director Thunder Levin.

Levin with star Mario Van Peebles

Though he's been in the industry for more than 20 years, Levin didn't come to The Asylum until just last year, when he penned the script for the street-racing actioner 200MPH. Before his work with The Asylum, Levin also wrote and directed the film Mutant Vampire Zombies From the 'Hood, a horror-comedy (obviously) starring 5-time Asylum-alum C. Thomas Howell (War of the Worlds, War of the Worlds 2, The Da Vinci Treasure, The Day the Earth Stopped, The Land That Time Forgot). Levin has also worked as an editor and a still photographer.

American Warships marks Levin's first trip behind the camera for The Asylum, but I'd be willing to bet it won't be his last. Check out Levin's masterpiece-to-date, American Warships, this Saturday, May 19th on SyFy at 9 p.m., then on DVD and Blu-Ray the Tuesday after that, May 22nd.

inmate profile: Mario Van Peebles

With a mere ten days before American Warships premieres on the SyFy channel, it's time to turn the Committed spotlight on the film's talent, starting with one of the biggest stars to ever grace an Asylum film, the one and only Mario Van Peebles. 

Van Peebles was born into movies, being the son of famed director/writer Melvin Van Peebles, and as such, there isn't much he hasn't done in the industry: dude can not only act, but write, direct, produce and even pen some of the soundtrack. As an actor, Van Peebles' first role was in his father's landmark film Sweet Sweetback's Baadasssss Song, when he was only 14. Taking a decade to mature and hone his craft, MVP emerged again in the early 80's with notable roles in Coppola's The Cotton Club, Clint Eastwood's Heartbreak Ridge and, of course, Jaws 4: The Revenge. 

It was the 1990's, however, in which MVP started really kicking ass, beginning with my personal favorite of his films, New Jack City in 1991, which also marked his big-screen directorial debut. I love this movie, always have; shit, I had the poster in my room as a teenager, it's probably still rolled up in a closet somewhere at my folks' house. If you haven't seen New Jack City since the early 90's, check it out again stat, that movie holds up in a major way, all Color Me Badd aside.

From New Jack City, it was on: the action-packed western Posse, which he also directed, historical drama Panther, which he also directed, Highlander: The Final Dimension, in which he had awesome hair (to the left), Solo, in which he had no hair (to the right), Michael Mann's Ali, in which he played Malcolm X, Baadasssss! which he also wrote and directed, based on the making of his father's blaxploitation classic, and about a trillion other projects, including 43 episodes of All My Children and this year, We The Party, his latest directorial effort. Then, of course, there's American Warships, in which he plays Captain Winston, commander of an American battleship. Warship, sorry, Warship.

Needless to say, and all pun intended, Mario Van Peebles is a badass. Watch him doing what he does best - kickin' ass - next Saturday, May 19th, at 9 p.m. on the SyFy Channel when The Asylum's American Warships makes its World Premiere.

American Battleship is now American Warships

As you may or may not have heard, a week or so ago Universal decided to sue The Asylum based on their upcoming mockbuster American Battleship, saying it was infringing on the publicity they shelled out for their upcoming disastrous disaster debacle, Battleship. You know, the one based on the board game. Yeah. 

Well, now those cry-babies can mop up their tears with their precious money, because The Asylum has switched the title of their film to American Warships. They even changed the poster as well. 

Bottom line, Universal seems to be projecting their anger at The Asylum, because initial reviews of their $200-million-film are that it's utter and complete shite. But who cares? As The Asylum themselves pointed out, the whole thing has been AWESOME publicity for the film: mainstream outlets internet-wide have been abuzz and The Asylum was the number 1 most-visited Company Page on IMDB - as opposed to Universal's 14 ranking.

The Asylum film - starring the truly dynamic duo of Carl Weathers and Mario Van Peebles, and written and directed by Thunder Levin (writer 200MPH) - hits DVD on May 22nd, following a World Television premiere on SyFy the Saturday before, May 19th.

Trailer for AMERICAN BATTLESHIP Now on You Tube

The Asylum's next sci-fi outing, American Battleship, at last has a trailer posted on You Tube. Behold:

The film - written and directed by 200MPH scripter Thunder Levin - stars powerhouses Mario Van Peebles and Carl Weathers, hits DVD, Blu-Ray and VOD on May 22nd. Enjoy!

First Stills and Poster From American Battleship! Van Peebles! Weathers! Really Big Guns!!!

Today, The Asylum released the poster, and on their Flickr page the first production stills, from their upcoming alien-naval skirmish/Battleship tie-in, American Battleship. From the look of things, we've got ourselves a full-blown action epic on our hands.

The film - written and directed by Thunder Levin, who penned last year's awesome 200MPH - boasts a powerhouse cast including Mario Van Peebles (New Jack City, Full Eclipse, BAADASSSSS) and Carl Weathers (Rocky, Predator, Happy Gilmore), as well as the lovely and surely talented Johanna Watts. Furthermore, the announcement gives us a little more details as to the film's plot: "Johanna Watts (left) plays Navy Lieutenant Caroline Bradley, who along with Mario Van Peebles and Carl Weathers, must use the United States last remaining battleship to fight an elusive and powerful enemy that threatens the entire planet."

Pretty rad, if you ask me. Especially since they used a real battleship, the U.S.S. North Carolina, and filmed in that same state, Wilmington, to be precise, which also happens to be the state I was born and raised in. So, count me doubly excited: a new Asylum flick, and bringing more entertainment jobs to the Old North State.  

American Battleship hits DVD and Blu-Ray on May 15th.

First Details on BATTLESHIPS...Now AMERICAN BATTLESHIP!

Big day today, not only do we get Nazis at the Center of the Earth stills, now we have cast, crew and plot details for American Battleship!

We already knew the film was being directed by Thunder Levin, the writer behind this year's 200MPH, but now we know the story he's working with:

"When a fleet of mysterious ships wage war against the Earth, only the crew of the USS Iowa, the last American battleship, can prevent global armageddon."

Pretty cool plot, loosely tied in to the Peter Berg Battleship out this summer. The real cool stuff here is the casting; dig: Mario Van Peebles (New Jack City, bitches) and Carl Weathers (don't make me tell you), as well as JoHanna Watts, best know for Mutant Vampire Zombies From the 'Hood, also written and directed by Thunder Levin.

Side note, this one was filmed way across the country off the coast of my home state, North Carolina. I don't really have a point here - we have good battleship water? - I just wanted to shout out NC. Hold 'em, Heels.


Back to the matter at hand, all in all, this makes for a pretty rad action/sci-fi flick. Now all we have to do is wait until May 15th, 2012 to see it...