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Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 27, 2013 in Cinema, Fandom 
Sigh. We’d all like to forget the Star Wars Christmas Special, wouldn’t we? What if other beloved movies had gotten something just as terrible? Well, Nerdist decided to subject us all to the hilarious pain of imagining what a Blade Runner Christmas Special might look like. Yes, it’s as silly and terrifying as you might guess. Santa, Jesus, and elves that “just do toys” are involved… although I’m not sure what the point was of the random Chuck Norris joke? Maybe I’m missing a deeper level of meta-commentary. Check out the video below. Don’t say I didn’t warn you! Read more…
Tags: Blade Runner
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 23, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Well this is a weird story to write. Apparently Vin Diesel, despite saying publicly that he was playing Groot, was not “officially” announced as part of the project. Disney and Marvel never denied it, and Vin Diesel was talking about it, so everyone assumed it was a done deal. But now, Disney has sent out a press release along with a new promotional image officially telling us all about this super-cool new actor in Guardians of the Galaxy. Thanks guys! Hey, if anything, at least we’re getting a better look at how Groot will look in the film, although James Gunn says that his appearance has changed slightly in the final version. Neat stuff! So, Disney, when are we going to get that first real trailer? Soon I’d hope? Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 22, 2013 in Cinema 
Here’s the first trailer for Wally Pfister’s directorial debut, Transcendence. Christopher Nolan’s dedicated director of photography is stepping out on his own to make his own films, and he’s got quite the cast for his first: Johnny Depp, Morgan Freeman, Rebecca Hall, Paul Bettany, and Cillian Murphy just to name a few. It looks like working on the Dark Knight trilogy paid off, eh? It features Depp as a scientist who promises a world of super-intelligent computers and the eventual merging of man and machine. But once he’s killed by anti-technology radicals, his wife uploads his consciousness into a superpowered computer and things get a bit crazy from there. It seems like an interesting idea, but I’m not sure where Depp is getting those supernatural powers from? I suppose we’ll understand more when the film comes out on April 18th, next year. Read more…
Tags: Johnny Depp, Wally Pfister
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 20, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Get excited, Ant-Man fans! Variety is reporting that the rumors that have been swirling for months are true: Paul Rudd will star in Ant-Man, Edgar Wright’s adaptation of the Marvel comic book. Paul Rudd is a great actor, and given the more comedic angle Wright will be taking (presumably) I think it’s a great fit. I really hope they still integrate it with the other Marvel films too. In the end, I’d love to see Ant-Man join up with the Avengers in their third film, but who knows how Marvel will handle that right now. Below the jump I’ve embedded the FIRST footage of the film, which is TOTALLY LEGIT. I’m serious! Read more…
Tags: edgar wright, Marvel, paul rudd
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 18, 2013 in Cinema 
“You shall not pass” is a great line from The Fellowship of the Ring that’s perhaps been used a bit too much over the years. It’s still not too old yet, though. Some Norwegians decided to stop a tram, complete with a fully-dressed Gandalf. But what’s cooler is what happens afterwards, as some other people are told to “fly, you fools.” If I was on that tram, I’d be laughing my ass off, no matter how late I was to work. I’d be slightly less enthused if I saw a Gollum cosplayer run across the tracks shortly after. That’s just creepy. Read more…
Tags: Lord of the Rings
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 16, 2013 in Animation, Cinema 
Frozen just came out, and Disney’s next animated film is Big Hero 6 in November 2014. But what everyone really wants to know is what’s planned for 2018? For those who are interested, Disney has announced what the movie is going to be: Moana. Disney is returning to the Pacific area they last explored in Lilo & Stich, though this time they’re venturing away from Hawaii and straight to Polynesia. But what will the film be about? Read more…
Tags: Disney
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 15, 2013 in Cinema 
If you’re a geek, chances are you’ve seen Leonard Nimoy singing “The Ballad of Bilbo Baggins.” Feeling that it needed an update, IGN has persuaded the cast of The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug to perform a dramatic reading of those silly lyrics. Everyone seems to take it with a good sense of humor, though as usual, Benedict Cumberbatch’s voice steals the show. It’s always good to see modern adaptations embrace the silliness of past adaptations. Read more…
Tags: The Hobbit
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 15, 2013 in Cinema 
Director Christopher Nolan is known for keeping details of his movies private, so we still don’t know a lot about Interstellar, his sci-fi film set for release November 7, 2014. Going by this first teaser trailer, we at least know something of the film’s tone. The teaser focuses on the great advancements humanity has made over the past century in terms of space travel, then hints at where we can go from here. Essentially, the teaser is reestablishing that space is the final frontier, and there’s a refreshing sense of optimism about exploring it. I think we’ve had enough grim realism in our sci-fi films and could use more optimism now that NASA is struggling to still inspire wonder about our universe. Read more…
Tags: Christopher Nolan, Interstellar
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 14, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Keen eyes may have noted two interesting hints in the recent trailer for The Amazing Spider-Man 2. At one point, you can see suits in the background that look like they might be intended for Vulture and Doctor Octopus. And with Electro being one of the main villains in the next movie, it’s easy to imagine a scenario where some other villains join these three to form the Sinister Six, perhaps even the Green Goblin/Hobgoblin and Rhino that are appearing in next May’s movie. Well, Sony just confirmed that they’ll be producing two spin-off movies: The Sinister Six and Venom, the latter of which has been rumored for years. Read more…
Tags: Sony, The Amazing Spider-Man
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 11, 2013 in Cinema 
I always thought Godzilla was big, but going by the posters for Warner Brothers and Legendary Pictures’ Godzilla reboot, he’s gotten an even bigger makeover. The teaser sells it even more, and suddenly I’m very interested in the movie. Obviously the giant lizard is all CG, but at least going by this trailer, it’s only possible to catch glimpses of it. Godzilla is shrouded in clouds, mist, and dust for the most part. I have no doubt that the movie will probably show the whole model at some point, but if they’re wise, they’ll go the Cloverfield route and avoid direct shots of it for most of the movie, not only to avoid showing too much of the CG, but also to build the mysterious force-of-nature elements of the monster. But admittedly, I’ve never seen a Godzilla film. All I’d want out of a Godzilla reboot is that Blue Oyster Cult’s “Godzilla” loudly plays every time Godzilla appears. Meanwhile, the actors and actresses have to shout over the song, and they’re frankly more annoyed at how loud it is than whatever Godzilla is up to. This is all played straight, and this is why I wouldn’t be allowed to produce any Godzilla movies. Read more…
Tags: Godzilla, Warner Brothers
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 10, 2013 in Cinema 
I said my peace about how awesome Cookie Monster skits are, even as an adult, a few weeks ago with this Catching Fire parody. Now that we’re on the same page, here’s Cookie Monster as “Gobble” in The Lord of the Crumbs. While I might wonder why they don’t feel like parodying The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug, it doesn’t really matter. Watch as Cookie Monster argues with himself, tries to get past a wizard, and comments on the special effects. Part of me is looking forward to having kids down the road just to watch these sort of things with them. Read more…
Tags: Lord of the Rings, Muppets, parody
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 10, 2013 in Cinema 
If there’s a really good adaptation of something, it’s often hard to do any other adaptations because of the way the earlier adaptation sticks in the public mind. Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining may have made notable changes in his adaptation of Stephen King’s original book, but regardless of how much King prefers the TV miniseries, it’s unlikely that people will think of that version over Kubrick’s. Thus, this trailer for a live-action adaptation of Kiki’s Delivery Service is already facing an uphill battle, despite purporting to be closer to the original Japanese novels. Studio Ghibli’s adaptation, directed by Hayao Miyazaki, is an absolute classic, after all. But this trailer makes me not want to even bother seeing the live-action film. Besides the lackluster art direction, everything looks cheap, like it was a low-budget made-for-TV movie. And the weak flying effects pale in comparison to those in Miyazaki’s film; Miyazaki is known for his love of flight, and this version just doesn’t capture that joy. It could still be a good film, but I’m fairly skeptical that anyone will be watching this years down the road. Read more…
Tags: Kiki's Delivery Service
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 8, 2013 in Cinema 
All hail the mighty corporate conglomerate, Disney! On their way to own everything, Disney took a quick stop and snatched up Indiana Jones yesterday. Now, they already technically got ownership rights when it bought Lucasfilm, but now with their agreement with Paramount they’ve gained distribution and marketing rights for all future films. Paramount will continue to handle distribution of the previous four films, so Disney won’t be involved there. The thing is, this news basically means Disney is saying “we want to make another one of these.” So brace yourselves for the inevitable! The biggest thing I’m wondering is how they’ll handle Jones himself. Will Harrison Ford really come back? Or will we have a James Bond situation in which different actors could take on the role? Read more…
Tags: Disney, Indiana Jones
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 7, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
The upcoming film X-Men: Days of Future Past isn’t even out yet and already Bryan Singer is announcing the next one: X-Men: Apocalypse! In fact, it has gotten a release date too: May 27th, 2016. Guys, I get that you need to make an X-Men film every few years to keep the rights, but calm down. At least wait to find out if we all hate or love Days of Future Past first! I have high hopes for it like most, but let’s not jump to conclusions here. Oh well, at least fans will be happy to hear that Apocalypse will finally be showing up and wreaking havoc. I expect next week we’ll hear the announcement of the NEXT X-Men film, scheduled for release in 2018. Read more…
Tags: X-Men
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 6, 2013 in Cinema 
Looks like the next 300 film, Rise of an Empire, will have a lot of action taking place on the sea! Eva Green and Lena Headey are leading around more Greeks as they head for revenge against King Xerxes — who is still abnormally large and likes to slowly rise out of golden pools. I’ll be honest, this film just looks completely forgettable on the surface. I suppose there’s always a chance it could be good, but you won’t be seeing me at the theater either way. Another thing I noticed: the poor director, Noam Murro, doesn’t even get his name in the trailer until the credits splash at the end (which you can barely read)! It must suck to be overshadowed by Zack Snyder. Read more…
Tags: 300
Posted by Ben Huber on Dec 6, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
After teasing fans with posters of the villains and even releasing a teaser trailer for a trailer, the actual honest-to-god Amazing Spider-Man 2 trailer is out. It features lots of footage of the Green Goblin, and a surprisingly tame amount of Electro. I thought he was supposed to be the main villain, but apparently we really are getting three baddies in the film. I hope they’re thought this through, as the last Spider-Man film with three villains didn’t really go so well. It definitely feels a bit cheesier to me, oozing a bit more “comic bookyness” that the first one. Spider-Man is one of my favorite superheroes, so I’d really like for this to be good… although I’m not counting on it. Read more…
Tags: Marvel, The Amazing Spider-Man
Posted by Bob Muir on Dec 4, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
There are blurry posters and trailers out there for The Amazing Spider-Man 2, so it makes sense that Sony is putting out the official posters and trailers this week. That image up above is all three posters, showing off Rhino, the Green Goblin, and Electro; click the image to check it out full-res, because they do look great. The trailer is coming out Thursday, so that’s something for fans to look forward to. In the meantime, Sony also released four stills of the movie. Check them out below while you wait for the trailer. Still, I doubt this movie will be as good as the original Spider-Man 2. Read more…
Tags: Sony, The Amazing Spider-Man
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 30, 2013 in Cinema, Comic Books 
We’ve known about Electro being in Amazing Spider-Man 2 for a while now, and we’ve seen set photos of The Rhino, but one other certain villain that might show up in the film has popped up on a new poster. If you’ve been paying attention to various reports, leaks, and set photos it’s not too big of a surprise, but I wasn’t sure they’d really bring a third villain into the film. Hopefully it can avoid the mess that was Spider-Man 3! If you don’t want the third villain spoiled for you, don’t click through. Otherwise, bombs away! Read more…
Tags: The Amazing Spider-Man
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 29, 2013 in Cinema 
Not just ANY celebrities though: Sir Patrick Stewart and Sir Ian McKellen, two of the the coolest buddies ever, are the ones wishing you a happy Thanksgiving. Yeah, yeah, it’s Friday now. I don’t care. You need to see this picture, because it’s adorable. Also, Gary Oldman also wants to wish you a happy Thanksgiving, but he’s a bit more profane… and violent about it. He seems a bit frustrated over the whole thing anyway, so I’m sure once he gets it out of his system he’ll be fine. Check out his rampage below the jump. Read more…
Tags: Gary Oldman, Sir Ian McKellen, Sir Patrick Stewart
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 28, 2013 in Animation, Cinema 
Everyone knows Tarzan, Edgar Rice Burroughs’s story of a boy who was raised by apes. As usual, Hollywood is running out of things to remake and reboot, so Constantin Films is dipping even further back for another Tarzan movie. It’s a CGI motion-capture animated film, and god do the faces look creepy. But more importantly is the new subplot of why modern man is going into the jungle and meeting Tarzan. Instead of hunting for gorillas, they’re hunting for a mysterious power source left behind by aliens many years ago. As if that wasn’t enough, you can also see Tarzan fighting some sort of tentacle monster in the film. Read more…
Tags: Aliens, Tarzan
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 26, 2013 in Cinema, Videogames 
Normally, I’d approve of more Lego videogames. It’s practically impossible to keep up with them all, but Traveller’s Tales makes solid games that aren’t just for kids. But the latest announcement out of Warner Brothers seems like one step too far because of the franchise it’s adapting. Lego The Hobbit will be out in Spring 2014 for (deep breath) PS4, Xbox One, PC/Mac, Wii U, PS3, Xbox 360, Vita, and 3DS. That all sounds good, but the problem is what’s actually in the game. Because it’s coming out before the third installment of Peter Jackson’s Hobbit film trilogy, it will only include 2/3 of the story from the book. As if the book wasn’t being milked enough by being split into three movies, even the game can’t cover everything. Is Warner Brothers concerned about spoilers for a 75-year-old book? Read more…
Tags: Lego, The Hobbit, Warner Brothers
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 23, 2013 in Cinema 
Perhaps coming off the wave of The Hobbit’s refreshed popularity, someone finally decided to tackle a story that hadn’t been done yet. Fox Searchlight has begun working on a J.R.R. Tolkien biopic. Fox has put David Gleeson on the case to write a script and Peter Chernin will produce. It seems odd that we haven’t gotten one yet, but I’d be interested in the direction they take it. It sounds like it will focus a lot on Tolkien’s experiences in World War I, which has the potential for some really exciting stuff. Though, the real question is: who should play the author? I’m trying to think of good actors that resemble Tolkien, but none are coming to mind. I wonder! Read more…
Tags: J.R.R. Tolkien
Posted by Ben Huber on Nov 22, 2013 in Cinema 
Here’s something I hadn’t been closely paying attention to: the new Mad Max movie. I’ve been so out of the loop I didn’t even realize they were making one. It will feature Tom Hardy now in the titular role, and the original director George Miller has returned as well. They’re apparently doing some reshoots right now, but the film itself won’t be out until May 15, 2015. Now, that’s a pretty crowded summer already, so I’m not sure this is the wisest decision. Summer 2015 already has Avengers 2, Tomorrowland, Batman vs. Superman, the Terminator reboot, and so much more lined up. Will Mad Max be able to battle against that? Read more…
Tags: mad max
Posted by Bob Muir on Nov 21, 2013 in Cinema 
Even after Disney successfully made a good Muppets movie in 2011, it’s hard for me to not still be skeptical of a sequel in the same way that I was before the previous movie. Hollywood is drowning in sequels, remakes, and reboots, and it’s rare that any are anything more than merely competent. It doesn’t help that Jason Segel was a major creative force behind The Muppets, but is not involved with the sequel at all. But you know what? Let’s think positively, because based on this trailer, Muppets Most Wanted is probably going to be allllllright. Read more…
Tags: Disney, The Muppets
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