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Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 22, 2014 in Cinema 
Here’s something that just popped up on my radar: a new film from writer and director Jake Paltrow, titled Young Ones. It’s described as a futuristic western, mixed with Greek tragedy, told in three chapters. Sounds unique! This first trailer sets up the plot — mainly, that water is scarce in this rough future. Access to water means literal life and death. I also see BigDog, the neat transportation robot (it’s pretty well-known online for its impressive stability awkward-looking gait), making an appearance. Apparently it’s not the actual BigDog on-screen though, which is a shame. Still, this movie looks pretty impressive so far, so I’ll be keeping it an eye on it from here on out. Read more…
Tags: Young Ones
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 22, 2014 in Cinema 
Warner Bros. has been hunting for the perfect director for the Harry Potter spinoff, Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, and they seem to have, well… found him. In the most obvious place. David Yates, four-time Harry Potter director is in talks to direct the film (which will reportedly be the first of several. Of course). It’s a shame they didn’t take a chance on someone else with a more unique style, but I suppose “safe” is exactly what this whole project is. Yates is currently in production on his adaption of Tarzan, and will then more onto this next. Fantastic Beasts is currently scheduled for November 18th, 2016. Read more…
Tags: harry potter
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 20, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Following a long period of hinting, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson has confirmed that he will be starring in DC and WB’s Shazam movie. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s playing Shazam, previously known as Captain Marvel before copyright issues screwed things up. Apparently, though he’s signed on for the movie, he has yet to decide whether he wants to play the hero Shazam or the villain Black Adam. While I bet WB would like him to play Shazam and build a franchise around the star, The Rock says he’s always liked anti-heroes, with Black Adam being one of his favorite DC characters. While I’m sure he’d make a good Shazam, I have a feeling he’d make a better Black Adam, since he’s got the looks to match the character. Read more…
Tags: DC Comics, Shazam, Warner Brothers
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 19, 2014 in Animation, Cinema 
The future of Studio Ghibli is still in question, with the studio considering shifting from animation to simply managing its library. But until then, there are still two films that have been released after Hayao Miyazaki’s final film The Wind Rises but still haven’t made their way outside of Japan. The first is a movie from director Isao Takahata (Grave of the Fireflies), The Tale of Princess Kaguya. Gkids is releasing the English dub of the movie theatrically on October 17, featuring the voices of James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, and Chloë Grace Moretz. Though there’s no dialogue in this first trailer, it does give a good example of how different the animation is from the usual Ghibli style, though it’s still unmistakably their work. Read more…
Tags: Studio Ghibli
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 19, 2014 in Animation, Cinema, Fandom 
Up is well known for tugging at your emotional heartstrings, especially in that bittersweet opening sequence that sort of overshadows the rest of the film. So what if Michael “Explosions” Bay, known for cinematic fast food like the Transformers franchise, directed Up instead of Pete Docter? The result would be something like this fan trailer by YouTube user MrStratman7, which makes Up seem much more epic and action-focused than it actually is. And naturally, there are explosions — tons and tons of endless explosions. In fact, keep watching after the title appears for one final explosion. Read more…
Tags: Michael Bay, Pixar, Up
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 18, 2014 in Cinema, Star Wars 
More Star Wars news for your week! ComicBook is reporting that they’ve heard from several sources that Disney is working hard on re-releasing the original Star Wars trilogy on Blu-ray in their unaltered form. Now, this makes a lot of sense, both because a) it’s free money, and b) it builds goodwill with hardcore Star Wars fans before Episode VII arrives. 20th Century Fox still has distribution rights, though, so a deal would need to occur between them and Disney, but I think that’d be a pretty simple stepping stone at this point. Read more…
Tags: Blu-Ray, Disney
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 17, 2014 in Cinema 
Quentin Tarantino has been going back and forth on The Hateful Eight a lot, but it’s now scheduled to shoot at the start of next year, last we heard. Which is what makes this news so odd: a teaser trailer for the film appears to be attached to Sin City: A Dame to Kill For. Hardly any production has been done on the film, and a teaser trailer is already on the way? Well, reportedly, it’s all title cards — which, you know, makes sense. It seems to be just a nice bonus for his buddy Robert Rodriguez, as it won’t even be available online (hah! I doubt it’ll stay that way. “Life finds a way.” Or a leak). Still, it’s nice to know that Tarantino is still on track and will be starting on the film soon. And maybe a few more folks will see Sin City 2, now. Read more…
Tags: Quentin Tarantino, Sin City, The Hateful Eight
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 16, 2014 in Cinema 
In good news: Edge of Tomorrow is coming out on Blu-ray and DVD soon: October 17th. The weird news? Warner Bros. is basically hiding the actual title of the film. The box art for the film now proudly proclaims “LIVE. DIE. REPEAT.” and down near the bottom in small type is “Edge of Tomorrow.” Huh. Did they think it was the title that hurt its box office performance? I guess it’s possible, because Edge of Tomorrow is a very generic title, and definitely no where near as unique as the original “All You Need is Kill.” They should’ve gone back to that one! Oddly enough, while this isn’t an official title change, they are listing it as Live Die Repeat: Edge of Tomorrow on most VOD services. Weird! Read more…
Tags: Edge of Tomorrow
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 15, 2014 in Cinema 
When will you be able to get some more Godzilla goodness? Well, I’ve got the exact date for you: June 8th, 2018. No news on which classic monster Godzilla will get to wreck this time around, but they have plenty of time to choose one or more. Why all the way in 2018? Well, as you might recall, Godzilla director Gareth Edwards got snatched up to do a little indie film spinoff called Star Wars… So he’ll be finishing that up first. And in case you’re wondering, no, there are no new details on any of the Star Wars spinoff films either. Still, I’m glad Gareth Edwards is getting to play around in some awesome worlds, both on Earth and far, far away. Read more…
Tags: Godzilla
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 14, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Almost two weeks after the premiere, and I’ve still got Guardians of the Galaxy on my mind. (That’s partly because I’ve only seen it once, unlike most people I know, but if I could barely justify the cost of an LA movie ticket, then seeing it more than once was definitely out.) What’s not entirely surprising but still impressive is that the Guardians of the Galaxy soundtrack (not original score), a.k.a. Awesome Mix Vol. 1, has hit #1 on the Billboard charts, making it currently the most popular album in America. This is more impressive when you realize this is the first time an album made entirely of previously-released songs (all those hits 60s and 70s) has ever topped the charts. Congrats! But an unrelated Guardians tease is even more tantalizing. Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel, Music
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 12, 2014 in Cinema 
I always thought that many internet denizens get too worked up when celebrities die, even though they didn’t know them personally. But while most of us may never have met Robin Williams, I’m sure we all have a favorite movie of his that we love to death. That’s why I was surprised to become so bummed out learning that Williams has just passed away. Though details are still coming in, it appears he committed suicide via asphyxiation following a recent resurgence of depression and drug rehab. Read more…
Tags: Robin Williams
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 9, 2014 in Cinema 
In a radio show on CBS Detroit, Zack Snyder took some time to defend Aquaman. By calling in. Yes, according to SlashFilm, this is really Snyder and not some impostor calling into the radio show. He doesn’t confirm Aquaman in in Batman v Superman (“Anyway, not to say he’s in my movie or anything like that […]”), but it’s the worst-kept secret in the industry right now. He goes on to say, “The cool thing with Aquaman is he’s Triton so you have to realize that could cut the flesh of Superman if they came in contact. That’s a thing that’s in the canon.” I believe you, dude! I mean, you have Jason Momoa playing him, so by default he’s already the best Aquaman yet. The full quote is below or listen to the call here.
Read more…
Tags: Aquaman, Batman v. Superman, Zack Snyder
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 9, 2014 in Cinema 
Everyone knows Drew Struzan, right? His work on movie posters is pretty well-known, but just as influential (if not more so) was John Alvin. His poster design work for E.T., Blade Runner, Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, The Lion King, Gremlins, and more have shaped people’s first impressions of films for decades. A new hardcover book is coming out August 26th, featuring a wide collection of Alvin’s work and original sketches. To promote the book, the publisher has released a cavalcade of unused Jurassic Park posters and sketches, giving us an insight into the process of poster design. Check them out below! Read more…
Tags: John Alvin, Jurassic Park
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 8, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Warner Bros. saw that massive list of Marvel films and said, “Hey! We can totally do that too! Yeah!” and released a bunch of dates for their upcoming slate of DC Comics films. Yes, they have announced nine new films and dates, but no titles. It’s kind of close to Nikki Finke’s supposed leaked list from a few months earlier, but with a few more items. Also of note, Warner moved up Batman v Superman from May 6 to… March 25, 2016! Yes, they moved it up to an unusual March date to avoid directly competing with Captain America 3. Crazy! Check out all the unknown film dates below! Read more…
Tags: Batman v. Superman, DC Comics, Warner Brothers
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 8, 2014 in Animation, Cinema 
I’m really impressed by the visual stylings of The Book of Life! This new trailer has a better overview of the art on display, but you’ll have to wade through the stereotypical trailer announcer and hamfisted cameos. I have hope for the final film, as Jorge Gutierrez and Guillermo del Toro are talented folks. I’ve already seen some “Tim Burton” jokes though, so if you make any… I’m coming for you. The cast features Diego Luna, Zoe Saldana, Channing Tatum, Ron Perlman (of course), and more. The film comes out October 17th. Check out the trailer below! Read more…
Tags: guillermo del toro, Jorge R. Gutierrez, The Book of Life
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 7, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
In the original plan for Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy movie, Ronan the Accuser was assisted by the Badoon race. Obviously, that’s not the version of the film we got. Since Fox somehow got the rights to the Badoon when they licensed the X-Men and Fantastic Four properties, Marvel couldn’t use them in their official films. (Never mind the fact that Fox hasn’t used the Badoon and in all likelihood won’t ever use them.) Instead, Marvel used the Sakaarans. But apparently the Badoon were on the table at some point, as concept artist Goran Bukvic created this piece above that shows what the Badoon might have looked like using a Badoon Bazooka. There’s also some additional concept art here, including an unused environment piece for Spartoi, a planet — to avoid anything too spoiler-y — tied to Star-Lord’s past. I’m with most fans that wish Fox and Sony would stop putting out their middling, uneven films and sell back all their Marvel rights to Marvel. But until then, here’s glimpses of things that almost were. Read more…
Tags: Guardians of the Galaxy, Marvel
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 6, 2014 in Cinema 
Not content with the 2003 TV movie version, Disney is planning a big screen adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s A Wrinkle in Time, a science fantasy novel that’s the first of the Time Quartet (now the Time Quintet, I suppose). Though a director has not been confirmed, Variety has announced that Frozen co-director Jennifer Lee will write the screenplay. Lee in particular will be well-experienced when it comes to writing strong female leads, having written the screenplay to Frozen as well. While it could be argued that Frozen‘s feminism isn’t necessarily that progressive as it appeared to be, it was still a strong step in the right direction, dismantling many tropes used in earlier Disney princess movies. Tasking Lee to adapt a book whose lead is a female science nerd seems like a safe bet. I have fond memories of reading the book, so I’m looking forward to the adaptation! Read more…
Tags: A Wrinkle in Time, Disney
Posted by Bob Muir on Aug 5, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Birdman is the story of a washed up actor once known for his comic book role who tries to make a comeback. While real-life Michael Keaton is doing okay, I’d like to imagine that Birdman is the true story of where his life went after playing Batman in Tim Burton’s films. Keaton’s character looks slightly psychotic, hearing the gravely voice (a la Batman) of his character telling him to do things. Seriously, can this movie be real-life? If not, I guess I’ll settle for the movie’s release on October 17, 2014. Read more…
Tags: Batman, Birdman
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 4, 2014 in Cinema 
Someone in Hollywood is taking note of the recent success of female-led films: Ghostbusters 3 is getting some significant changes. While I still wonder if the film will happen at all, some recent strides have made it more likely. Sony is reportedly refocusing the movie on a team of female Ghostbusters, and Paul Feig (Bridesmaids) is being eyed to direct. While Bill Murray has refused to commit to the film, Dan Aykroyd has said he’ll return. I think setting up a new team in this film is a smart idea, as you’ll never replicate the original crew, plus having it be all women is a cool twist. I’d be okay with this version of Ghostbusters 3 actually getting made… but it still remains to be seen if that’ll actually happen. Read more…
Tags: Ghostbusters
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 3, 2014 in Cinema 
And no, it will not have aliens in it. The Martin has been scheduled as Ridley Scott’s next film, arriving November 15th, 2015. The tale is based off of Andy Weir’s 2012 novel of the same name, which follows an astronaut stranded on Mars when his crew leaves him behind. Believed dead and with very few resources to survive, the astronaut Mark Watney struggles to live in the harsh Martian environment until help can arrive… if it ever does! (Insert typical dramatic trailer music here.) This seems like a good fit for Scott (Apollo 13 meets Castaway, essentially), but I’m sure some fans will be upset he’s not doing Prometheus 2. Or that supposed Blade Runner sequel. I think this could turn out well, though — it’s definitely more appealing to me than Exodus! Read more…
Tags: Ridley Scott, The Martian
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 3, 2014 in Cinema 
Jon Favreau has been hard at work on a Jungle Book live-action and CGI hybrid film for Disney. To be honest, I wasn’t really keeping an eye on it, but the cast has steadily been increasing in both size and talent, so now I’m starting to pay attention. Bill Murray has been the most recent addition to the cast, playing Baloo. There’s some power casting! Along with Murray will be Idris Elba as Shere Khan, Christopher Walken as King Louie, Giancarlo Esposito as Akela, Ben Kingsley as Bagheera, Lupita Nyong’o as Raksha, Scarlett Johansson as Kaa, and as Mowgli, newcomer Neel Sethi. Wow! Talk about a star-studded cast. I really hope that the complete package turns out well, because otherwise it would be a shame to squander so many talented folks! Read more…
Tags: Jungle Book
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 2, 2014 in Cinema, Comic Books 
Thanos plays only a small part in Guardians of the Galaxy, but the parts are slowly falling into place for the third phase of the Marvel movie universe. At San Diego Comic-Con, Marvel showed a video featurette that recapped the last two phases of the universe that will culminate in Avengers: Age of Ultron. It’s an impressive feat to see everything side by side, as one cohesive world. They’ve also released an official image of Thanos, so you can start to imagine what Avengers 3 might be like. Check it out! Read more…
Tags: Marvel, San Diego Comic-Con 2014
Posted by Ben Huber on Aug 1, 2014 in Cinema 
It’s not long now until Christopher Nolan’s next film arrives. Interstellar will show up in November, but until then you’ll have to make due with this new trailer. It features all the hallmarks of a Nolan production: interesting visuals, overly cheesy dialogue, and a solid cast. I’m really loving the cinematography and stellar imagery here, and I hope the alien worlds are as interesting as the glimpses in the trailer. McConaughey seems to be doing a good job too (but he’s been on a roll recently anyway). Check out the trailer and then begin your waiting! Read more…
Tags: Christopher Nolan, Interstellar
Posted by Bob Muir on Jul 30, 2014 in Animation, Cinema, Comic Books 
Pretty much no one liked the version of Deadpool that appeared in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. Since having their hopes dashed with that film, fans have wished for a Deadpool movie that is accurate to the fourth-wall breaking comic book. Fox was experimenting with the idea, but with not much happening recently, the project seems to be dead. But wait: director Tim Miller’s fabled test footage (animated in CG by Blur Studio) has surfaced, and it’s surprisingly great. Ryan Reynolds returns as Deadpool, but he’s much more fun to watch, cracking jokes and illustrating his enemy’s upcoming death. Can we please have a movie like this? I don’t care if it’s tied into X-Men, I just think it would be fun to watch. Maybe the renewed interest in this test footage will give the project a boost? Read more…
Tags: Deadpool, Fox, X-Men
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