Sean Bean has kind of been the go-to stock big-budget British-sounding supporting actor for a while now, especially in genre films. He’s practically made a career out of double-crossing the main character of any given film he’s in. Of course, that also means he dies in pretty much every movie he’s in (after getting his comeuppance from the hero, of course), so naturally, someone was kind enough to assemble this video montage of nearly every time Sean Bean has died on film. It’s pretty extensive! Dude needs to learn how to dodge bullets or something. I bet he could, if he only had the Ring of Power. Nice job, Frodo. Read more…
It’s been a while since we’ve seen any promotional photos from the upcoming Spider-Man film reboot, The Amazing Spider-Man, so it’s only fitting that Sony gave Entertainment Weekly a cover story about the film, treating us to a number of glorious, high-res shots. We finally get a clear look at Spidey’s suit from virtually all possible angles, confirmation that the web-shooters are mechanical instead of organic (like in Raimi’s trilogy), a shot of Martin Sheen and Sally Field as Uncle Ben and Aunt May, and of course the lovely Emma Stone as an eerily-accurate Gwen Stacy. For his part, Andrew Garfield does look the part, especially if your favorite Spidey is the lithe, lanky version. Read more…
We recently got a glimpse of Dori, Nori, and Ori, three of Frodo’s dwarf companions in the upcoming Hobbit films. Today, we get to see two more, in the form of Oin and Gloin, cousins of Thorin Oakenshield. The name Gloin should sound familiar to those who’ve seen the original Lord of the Rings trilogy — he’s Gimli’s dad! There’s definitely some family resemblance there. I’m pretty happy with the dwarves we’ve been shown thus far; all of them have a unique look, thankfully giving us an ensemble filled with something more than just a dozen Gimlis. Read more…
Normally, when two powerful forces meet, you only need to worry about which of them wins. But as we’ve learned with the Alien vs. Predator films, whoever wins, we lose. But could you survive a clash of these extraterrestrial titans? This handy infographic from Stephen Taubman helps you figure out your chances. It also gives helpful advice if you end up running into either side, like curling into the fetal position and peeing all over yourself if you meet a Predator. Good advice! Unfortunately, given the rest of the infographic, your odds aren’t so good even if you follow all proper protocol. Game over, man! Game over! Read more…
There are many, many reasons why we’re glad that the planned Akira live-action remake reportedly isn’t happening, but we can now confirm an entirely new one. Chris Weston, a British artist who was working as a production artist for the film, talked with Cinema Blend about what some of his tasks were. One of them stands out as possibly horrific: he was charged with redesigning Kaneda’s prized motorcycle. You know, the iconic one? The perfect one? Weston said the very thought of it terrified him, since “the fanboys” (hey, that’ us!) would be at his throat if it came out wrong. Hell, they even discussed turning the bike black. There are just some things you don’t do, man. Read more…
Well, it does, in Russia, the Ukraine, and South Korea, apparently. Captain America is nearing its release date here in the US under its proper title, but for its international release, Marvel gave overseas distributors the option to title the film “The First Avenger” rather than referencing America at all in its title for fear of anti-American sentiment. Surprisingly, all but three countries opted to use the original title. Of course, Cap represents more than just America — he also represents heroism and selflessness, which is something to which any audience can relate. At least, that’s what overseas distributors are banking on. Thor did very well internationally, so hopefully Cap can pull similar numbers to make it a profitable summer for Marvel. Granted, as we saw with Green Lantern, actually being a good movie probably helps with sales figures too. Read more…
I’m having trouble imagining a plot device convoluted enough to produce the image above, but then again, Star Wars non-film media has definitely erred on the side of “x character goes to the Dark Side for some reason,” so I’m sure this has happened in print at some point. Credit goes to Phil Noto for this great image. At least he had the courtesy not to give her the cinnamon-bun haircut. That probably would have reduced the badassedness a bit. Read more…
Marvel’s done pretty well for itself bringing its A-list heroes to the big screen — Iron Man, Thor, (hopefully) Captain America — but what about some tried-and-true second-stringers? What about the Dr. Stranges and Iron Fists of the world? When do they get their time in the sun? Apparently soon, according to Film School Rejects. Marvel has reportedly filmed two shorts for the Thor and Captain America DVD/Blu-Ray releases starring some B-list heroes and S.H.I.E.L.D.’s Agent Coulson, with more to come. If the shorts were filmed and star heroes with at least a little name recognition, I’m really surprised that the casting didn’t get out into the wild already. Now I’m excited for those video releases! Give me Dr. Strange, Marvel! Read more…
Mark Bongo from Major League Mods has created a bunch of really neat Xbox 360 case mods, like the R2-D2 360/projector combo we featured in the past. But this latest project looks so cool, you’d think Tony Stark himself built it in a cave! With a box of scraps! In this case (ha), Mark teamed up with Nub Grafix from Orange County Choppers to give this Iron Man-themed Xbox a sleek, metallic paint job. The miniature arc reactor that mimics the 360’s trademark ring of lights, though, is all Mark. Put the whole package in a Stark Industries locked case, and you have the c0olest Xbox this side of S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ. Read more…
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 30, 2011 in Cinema, Fandom
Well, it’s certainly not the worst fan-film I’ve ever seen —Dark Betrayalcomes to mind — but I suppose we can’t really expect much after the hot mess that was John Carpenter’s Escape from L.A. I have a soft-spot in my heart for that film, but even I have to admit that it was terrible. Rather than attempting to follow Carpenter’s ridiculous sequel, director Chris Notarile decided to pen one of his own with his fan-film Escape from New Jersey. I imagine that trying to recreate the feel of Carpenter’s original film would be difficult on a shoe-string budget. Though it’s slow-paced, and lacks polish, the script itself isn’t half bad. While I can’t overlook every issue, I feel the film is a decent attempt worth mentioning. It’s enough to make me wonder if Snake Plisskin will ever make his return. Until then, this might have to do.
Posted by Tim Sheehy on Jun 28, 2011 in Cinema, Design
The other week I stumbled across the works of Damon Bard. While many of you might not recognize his name, you’ll definitely recognize his work. Damon’s been involved with a number of Hollywood productions over the course of his career, with his sculptures and character designs having graced such films Revenge of the Sith, How to Train Your Dragon, Shrek 2, and more. While his website might seem a tad unassuming, his online portfolio is filled with a plethora of beautiful sculptures, Marquettes and models he’s crafted over the years. While he might not be responsible for bringing these models to life on the big screen, Bards creations have likely fueled the creativity of animators who have. To find out more about Damon and his craft, check out his official website, portfolio and blog.
This one took me by surprise. About a year ago, there were some rumors floating around the net regarding a potential live-action adaptation of the classic manga, Rurouni Kenshin. Well, it turns out it’s not just some rumor after all. Warner Brothers will be producing the film, starring Sato Takeru as Kenshin. Some of you might recognize him from last year’s live-action adaptation of Beck (the manga, not the musician.) While I enjoyed the Rurouni Kenshin‘s manga and OVAs, the animated series that aired in the late-90s seemed a bit too juvenile in comparison. Of course, that didn’t stop it from being wildly popular. Still, I’m looking forward to seeing how the film shapes up over the next few months. The rest of the cast for the upcoming film have yet to be unveiled, and it won’t hit theaters until sometime in 2012.
You may not recognize the name Chris Meloni, but I guarantee you’ll recognize his face, seeing as for the past 12 years he’s been one of the two primary faces on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (the other being the talented Mariska Hargitay). Word on ComingSoon.net is that Meloni, who is departing SVU for greener pastures (or at least less “blue” ones…get it? Cop uniforms? No? Okay then!), will play “a general” in Zack Snyder’s upcoming Superman flick, Man of Steel. So no, everyone who thought he’d play Lex Luthor is (sadly) wrong. But… Read more…
For Chris Pine, taking up the role of Captain Kirk for the Star Trek film reboot was tough — not only because of the decades of fan love that William Shatner’s Kirk had amassed, but also because Shatner is a wily old coot who’s rumored to kill and eat any challengers for his Kirk throne. Thankfully, Pine survived the filming process without becoming Shatner food, and even got some critical acclaim to go along with his Captain title. Shatner had one final plan to defeat Pine, though — stage a fake documentary titled “The Captains,” wherein he’d pretend to interview all of the other Trek captains (like Patrick Stewart and Kate Mulgrew), then surprise him with an arm-wrestling contest … to the death. Okay, that’s actually not the circumstance for the above photo at all, but the documentary part is real, at least. Read about it on /Film. Read more…
It’s almost hard to believe that The Fellowship of the Ring was released ten years ago, and even harder to believe that we’re actually getting two more films with Peter Jackson’s masterful take on Tolkien’s universe. We saw a video journal of the first day of filming for The Hobbit a while back, but all we’ve heard since then is casting news (a veritable who’s-who of BBC drama stars). Today, though, we received the first big payoff of the very long wait for The Hobbit — still photos from the set showing Martin Freeman in full Bilbo getup, Gandalf looking stoned, and Freeman and Jackson talking at a table. It all looks pretty much perfect, and totally in-universe for the original trilogy. Who else is excited to go back to Middle-Earth? Read more…
While it didn’t take much to sell me on Peter Jackson & Steven Spielberg’s upcoming 3D animated feature, The Adventures of Tintin, I’m sure some of you might still be on the fence. Several fans of the series have been complaining about Jackson’s liberal take on many of the characters after viewing recent trailers for the film. Personally, I don’t really mind the changes. Clearly several changes are to be expected when taking a classic comic and re-imagining it for 3D animation. To illustrate that, Weta & HarperCollins will be publishing the upcoming book The Art of The Adventures of Tintin. The book apparently covers early illustrations, the final shots, and everything in-between, along with forewards from both Jackson and Spielberg. On top of that, the initial run being sold directly by Weta will feature a special gift — the special prop wallet, along with the passages used to locate the boat from the original story. That’s subject to change, but it sounds pretty amazing. The book will retail for $40, and will be ship this October. Pre-order yours while gift supplies last.
If you love Japanese cinema and happen to live in NYC, DC or Tulsa the Akira Kurosawa film High and Low (天国と地獄) will be playing over the next few days. In this 1963 classic Kurosawa teams up with actor Toshirō Mifune for a nice tense kidnapping drama: Read more…
We found out about this a little late, but if you’re looking forward to Peter Jackson’s upcoming film The Hobbit, you might want a chance to catch the extended editions of Peter Jackson’s original Lord of the Rings trilogy on the big screen. Fathom Events has decided to host a special three night screening of the films at theaters around the nation. While we missed our chance to catch The Fellowship of the Ring on the 14th, you can still catch The Two Towers and The Return of the King on June 21st and 28 respectively at participating locations. Personally, I don’t recall ever catching the extended editions in the theater, but I can’t imagine spending 5 hours — at least, I seem to recall The Return of the King‘s extended cut being about that long — in a theater packed with fellow hobbit enthusiasts. In fact, I don’t think I’d be able to do that for any film, let alone that one. Still, it’s probably something I won’t get another chance to see in theaters anytime soon. For the full list of participating locations, or for more information, head over to Fathom’s event site.
Posted by Gia Manry on Jun 13, 2011 in Cinema, Fandom
Okay, it’s not really a full film, just a trailer — but seriously, can we please start up a Kickstarter project to fund a full-length feature? I love the joking conspiracy theory that the George Lucas from the original Star Wars prequels and Indiana Jones was kidnapped and replaced with a pod!George who released the prequels and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. What’s not to love? Read more…
With all the exciting announcements from this week’s E3 press conferences, it’s nice to finally be able to take a break from gaming news. Thankfully, Paramount has released it’s latest TV spot for the upcoming film Captain America: The First Avenger. Like the other trailers, this TV spot features quite a bit of action shots, and includes a brief confrontation between Steve Rodgers and Red Skull. The film looks fantastic, but I’m not sure if it’ll be able to top X-Men Origins or Thor in terms of box office performance. Then again, I should note that both of those films were better than I expected going in. Anyone else looking forward to it?
I’m going to give you a rough review of X-Men: First Class, but before I do that I’m going to give you the highlights:
1. It’s better than it looks.
2. That’s mostly not due to special effects.
3. Michael Fassbender completely works as Erik.
4. January Jones completely works as Emma Frost…as written in this film.
5. Xavier is kind of a dick Read more…
Nerds love the Muppets, nerds love Firefly; it was only a matter of time before someone took those two great tastes and made them taste great together. Artist James Hance is creating an entire series of Muppet-fied Firefly images (with some Fraggles to round out the cast) on his website, with proceeds from his upcoming prints to be donated to the Can’t Stop the Serenity charity. Read more…
A few weeks back, Columbia Pictures released the first trailer for Steven Spielberg and Peter Jackson’s upcoming theatrical adaptation of Georges Rémi’s classic comic, The Adventures of Tintin. The film will boast some jaw-dropping 3d, using some of the latest in motion capture technology. Indeed, the visuals can be quite stunning, but I’ve seen more than a few complaints from fans who feel the new visuals aren’t faithful enough. Still, with both Spielberg and Jackson on board, how can we go wrong? Read more…
