Before I even start, I just want to say that at no point am I going to take any cheap shots at Michelle Rodriguez about her driving habits -- and believe me, it isn't easy. Instead, lets just focus on what she does best, playing bad a** chicks. Coming Soon.net reports (via Rodriguez's web site) that she will be returning for the latest installment of The Fast and The Furious franchise.

For those of you out there who don't know your cheesy car flicks, Rodriguez starred in the first film back in 2001as Letty, the girlfriend to street racer Vin Diesel. Like most of the original cast, she was nowhere to be seen in the later sequels. But this time around, it looks like director Justin Lin is going back to the beginning and reuniting Diesel, Paul Walker, and Rodriguez.

The story will focus on Brian (Walker) and Dominic (Diesel) teaming up to stop a drug kingpin known as Braga. So where do the cars come in, you might ask? I mean, this is a Fast and Furious movie after all. Well, our two heroes vie for a spot on the criminal's team, in a snazzy Nissan, with a plan to catch the man red-handed. (Just a couple of weeks ago, we got our first look at Diesel and Walker on set.) Rodriguez is also still doing some post-production work on James Cameron's Avatar, so I would guess that it won't take long to wrap up her part as Letty before she heads back to finish up the sci-fi blockbuster. The Fast and the Furious 4 is scheduled for release summer, 2009.

Not long ago, a friend of mine was auditioning for a role in Fast and the Furious 4. I never found out how that went, but we had fun running through the script pages he had; showing him how to get into character. (As if I know what I'm talking about -- heck, he probably lost the role based on what we told him to do.) Anyway, there's been lots of buzz surrounding part four, seeing as both Vin Diesel and Paul Walker are reprising their roles from the earlier films. Well, JFX Online (those folks who stake out film sets and snap photos) have posted a few photos and a video from the set of Fast and the Furious 4. We get our first look at Vin Diesel (above), as well as Paul Walker (after the jump) and a bunch of the vehicles being used in the flick (see video). Fast cars. Fast women. AND Vin Diesel. Is your mouth watering yet?

In addition to the Fast and the Furious photos, JFX Online was also stalking the set of Adam Sandler's new film Bedtime Stories, and managed to get the first pic of Sandler holding an umbrella for a scene that features ... gumballs falling from the sky? We've included that photo after the jump for you to check out; Bedtime Stories follows a dude (Sandler) who realizes that, after reading bedtime stories to his nephews, the characters suddenly come to life. It's due out this Christmas.

We've heard rumors for quite some time now, but it seems there is truth behind them: Vin Diesel and Paul Walker have officially bottomed out. Well, their careers cars have, that is. According to The Hollywood Reporter, both actors are in negotiations to reunite on the big screen for a fourth installment in the popular Fast and the Furious franchise. But wait, it gets better -- check out HR's description of the premise: "The story line is being kept under wraps, but fast cars are involved." Gee, ya think? Justin Lin, who directed Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift will once again step behind the camera for part four, while Chris Morgan returns to write the script. Neil Moritz and Diesel will produce.

All we know at this time is that shooting will take place this spring in Los Angeles, Mexico and the Dominican Republic. Folks should remember how Diesel showed up for a cameo at the end of Tokyo Drift, and since fans went apesh*t over his appearance, the actor was convinced he had at least one more race in him. Walker, on the other hand, showed up in 2 Fast 2 Furious, but did not return for part three. And since I barely even remember the first film, I'm not exactly sure where each character is at (story-wise) heading into this fourth flick. But I trust fans of the series will be pretty stoked to hear this news. Currently, there's no word on a release date or further additions to the cast.

While doing press for Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer down under, Jessica Alba came into contact with a wiseguy reporter for The Age who decided to bring up the subject of Into the Blue, one of her biggest flops. Released in 2005, the ocean adventure movie, that also starred Paul Walker and Josh Brolin, pulled in only $18 million at the box-office and, some say, cast a bit of a pall over Alba's bankability. When asked about her "dud" by the paper, Alba immediately dives into a lengthy response. "Here's the thing, though. Into the Blue was made before I made Fantastic Four or Sin City, and MGM, who made Into the Blue, was bought by Sony. So Sony had to distribute all of the movies it had slated for the year as well as all of MGM's movies. So they just threw it away. There was no press, no anything." Seems like she's put a lot of thought into the subject, no? And she's not finished.

"And I wasn't the star of the movie," she continues. "I was barely in it! It was Paul Walker's movie. He was the lead and I thought it was unfair that anybody thought I should have been the only one to carry that movie, because frankly it wasn't mine." The article also brings up the subject of Alba's infamous no-nudity clause, although they don't really ask her to speak to that directly. Instead, she's asked a general question about sex and pop culture, and launches into a monologue about sexuality and violence. "You know, sexuality doesn't scare me as much as violence," she says. "We put kids through a month of training, give them automatic weapons and send them into the desert and expect them to go kill people and survive in an environment that's completely foreign to them, and when they come home they can't order a f**king beer. I think that's bullshit. I think that is much more destructive than nudity or sexuality or any of that." So ... the no-nudity clause is still in place?

These days, it seems Paul Walker cannot be in a film unless there's drugs, sex, violence ... or a group of adorable sled dogs. Variety reports the actor (who was once positioned to be the next Brad Pitt) has signed on to star in The Heaven Project, which -- and here's where you Walker fans can breathe a sigh of relief -- does not mean his career has died and gone to heaven. Instead, it's an independently financed thriller written by John Glenn -- who will also make his directorial debut.

Along with Variety's odd description of "a love story set in the framework of a psychological thriller" comes an equally odd plot synopsis; apparently, Walker will play a man who loses everything he loves and must piece his life back together by overcoming great obstacles. Um, can we be a little bit more vague? Glenn (as well as his ex-writing partner Travis Wright) recently wrote drafts for a bunch of remakes, including Clash of the Titans (Warner Bros.), Journey to the Center of the Earth (Fox) and The Warriors (Paramount). Pic also marks the first company credit for Walker's new production shingle Be Good (as in, "I just signed on to another edgy drama, please let it be good"). Walker can next be seen impersonating a deceased drug lord in The Death and Life of Bobby Z due out later this year.

When we last checked in with He-Man, the blonde 80's superhero was hanging on by a thread -- no longer a master of the universe -- but more like a master of development hell. Fox 2000 had assigned screenwriter Adam Rifkin to pen a new draft, John Woo was still attached as a producer and Cinematical's resident geek Mark Beall couldn't care less. Here's a site tip for all you fanboys out there -- if Mark doesn't get excited about a film (and, trust me, 99% of the time this dude is ecstatic about everything and anything, except maybe Ghost Rider), then it's pretty safe to say the project is a dud.

Recently, Moviehole managed to sneak in a phone call with Fox 2000's Rodney Ferrell and -- He-Man fans might want to close their eyes for this one -- he told them the studio had abandoned the film, giving the project back to Mattel. Wait, so does this mean we don't get to see a shirtless Paul Walker or Triple H battle a horrific looking CGI-created version of Skeletor? Would it be wrong for me to call up Mr. Ferrell and tell him his next drink is on me? However (and please note that a gigantic question mark should be wrapped around the following sentence), there's a chance Mattel may still be interested in a He-Man film, and that John Woo could still be involved in some capacity -- but they will have to find someone else stupid enough to help produce and distribute. Man, where's Dolph Lundgren -- I think I need to be hugged.

I've said it before and I'll say it again: It always amazes me where some movie news comes from and how fast said news travels around the internet. According to CanMag.com via a tip from a guy named "Black Belt Hopeful," two of director John Woo's upcoming projects have been shelved ... for now.

Supposedly the tipster was working out alongside a casting agent in his karate class when he was told Woo's He-Man and the Masters of the Universe and Spy Hunter: Nowhere to Run projects are no longer moving ahead as planned. Now, we're not sure if one led to the other or if both happened at the same time but, apparently, the studio got cold feet and John Woo decided to pursue other projects (see: The Battle of Red Cliff and The Red Circle).

Not long after the story broke, Spy Hunter producer Adrian Askarieh popped in to Coming Soon and let folks know the film was indeed alive and well, saying Woo had been off the project for more than a year. Askarieh also noted they're real close to attaching a new writer/director, with an announcement expected soon. Right now, Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson is still signed on to play the lead role in the film.

As far as He-Man goes, well, that one is up in the air. Everyone from Paul Walker to professional wrestler Triple H were reported to have been up for the role of 80's superhero. Personally, I could do without another He-Man flick. Besides the fact that it does not, at all, seem like John Woo material, the last He-Man film was, well, bad. Real bad. As bad as they come. On the other hand, a Spy Hunter movie sounds cool, so I'm happy to hear its still got legs. 

[via AICN]

• Firewall - Like Rip Van Winkle with a $25 million per picture deal, nap-addled gruff boy Harrison Ford has seen his career hibernate for more than a decade now, scoring hit upon forgettable hit. Ford's latest variation on a theme is, like the bulk of his post-Indiana Jones filmography, predictable formula fare, and therein lies its broad appeal. In what ultimately feels like a diluted remake of Ron Howard's 1996 thriller, Ransom, he plays a bank security expert whose family is held captive in exchange for his aid in electronically liberating $100 million. Bad guy Paul Bettany sneers and jeers so much that we know from the moment he turns up that Ford is going to heroically beat him and his dirty, dirty bastards, and our belief that goodness triumphing over ee-vil will be renewed. Able British stalwart Richard Loncraine, who directed Bettany in Wimbledon, paints this one by-the-numbers, and anyone looking for what might be their last Harrison Ford fix before Indy 4 (and presumed retirement) will get what they paid for, though very little more.

• Running Scared: Despite New Line's clever attempted to distract the public via a porntastic promotion, most critics still noticed that Running Scared is pretty bad. In the negative reviews, there's a lot of talk about self-consciousness, and the pallid aping of Tarantino - oddly, the same things show up the handful of good reviews, except there those things are praise-worthy. It's confusing, and leads one to the inescapable conclusion that, even more than usual, your reaction to this one is going to depend almost entirely on your point of view.
  
  
• Tsotsi: Because it's currently playing in just six theaters, reviews of Tsotsi are few and far between. Critics who have seen it, however, found themselves vaguely disappointed, particularly given the film's lofty status as an Oscar nominee. Though most agree that the movie looks gorgeous, it's hard to find anyone who will grant that sort of praise to its storytelling - even those who like it are forced to admit that the film's story of redemption is disappointingly "conventional."