By all rights, a movie based on a line of toys wherein the toys THEMSELVES not only star, but star alongside toy versions of other mass-market branded characters should be THE symbol for the final victory of creeping-corporatism in film.
And yet... "The Lego Movie" looks kind of incredible.
Animation buffs take note: What you're seeing is (apparently) all CGI, but animated in such a way (other than the facial-features) so as to imitate the look of stop-motion made using Lego people. I'm not 100% sure what this technique is called, but I think it's roughly similar to the way the Nicelanders were animated in "Wreck-It Ralph."
Tuesday, June 18, 2013
Monday, June 17, 2013
"The Wolf of Wall Street" Trailer
Hard to believe, but in a few short months "Awards-Worthy (Studio) Movie Season" will be upon us. One of the incoming expected-biggies is Martin Scorsese's "The Wolf of Wall Street," in which Leonardo DiCaprio continues his quest to shame his peers by winning an Oscar while he still looks about 19 years old.
Pic is another "rise and fall of hard-partying late-90s capitalist douchebags" saga, this time based on the memoirs of Jordan Belfort, who got busted in '98 running athe crooked brokerage firm that also served as the inspiration for "Boiler Room," one of the brighter spots from that strange "Vin Diesel is going to be a serious actor - no, for real" phase the industry was going through at the time.
Anyway, here's a trailer:
Pic is another "rise and fall of hard-partying late-90s capitalist douchebags" saga, this time based on the memoirs of Jordan Belfort, who got busted in '98 running athe crooked brokerage firm that also served as the inspiration for "Boiler Room," one of the brighter spots from that strange "Vin Diesel is going to be a serious actor - no, for real" phase the industry was going through at the time.
Anyway, here's a trailer:
Friday, June 14, 2013
The Book Is Imminent!
The book will be available for sale online likely sometime in the coming week (exact date TBD) exclusively through Fangamer.net (there will be an e-book version as well) although I will be bringing a limited number of physical copies to SGC next weekend to be sold in person (and signed, if that be your bag) pretty-much whenever I've got a free moment to do so and also during/after my designated panel/autograph times.
At this time, those are the only two ways to purchase the book currently slated, and unfortunately I am not able to ship/sell copies over the web myself. However, I'm also working on putting together some local sales-events here in the Boston area and will make the dates/locations of those available as I get them. If you happen to BE the proprietor of a Boston area gaming/book/etc establishment and are interested in discussing hosting a selling/signing event please hit me up in the comments below.
Escape to The Movies: "Man of Steel"
And here we go...
Also: What will probably end up being one of the year's best comedies is playing right now.
Also: What will probably end up being one of the year's best comedies is playing right now.
Thursday, June 13, 2013
Fuck Yes, "Elysium" Looks Even More Awesome
There are two Great Hopes for original Hollywood genre-movies this Summer. One is "Pacific Rim" (hey Warner Bros? Now that "Man of Steel" is out can we get a hundred trailers and constant TV-exposure for that?) and the other is Neil Blomkamp's "District 9" follow-up "Elysium;" which now has a full(er) trailer.
Premise: It's the future, and class has stratified to the point that a wealthy few live lives of disease, crime and pollution free bliss on an orbital space-station called Elysium while the working-class toils on an increasingly-blighted Earth below - kept from breaching into Elysium's borders (MESSAGE!!!) by ruthless space-defenses, a robot army and bionically-augmented human soldiers. Matt Damon is a worker bee from Earth who, after being mortally-injured in an industrial accident, gets outfitted with a strength-enhancing mechanical exoskeleton so he can fight his way into Elysium to snatch medical supplies for himself and his fellow-afflicted.
Premise: It's the future, and class has stratified to the point that a wealthy few live lives of disease, crime and pollution free bliss on an orbital space-station called Elysium while the working-class toils on an increasingly-blighted Earth below - kept from breaching into Elysium's borders (MESSAGE!!!) by ruthless space-defenses, a robot army and bionically-augmented human soldiers. Matt Damon is a worker bee from Earth who, after being mortally-injured in an industrial accident, gets outfitted with a strength-enhancing mechanical exoskeleton so he can fight his way into Elysium to snatch medical supplies for himself and his fellow-afflicted.
So They Bothered To Finish The "300" Sequel
"300" is one of them "phenom" movies that was absolutely huge for a moment in time and now feels like kind of a weird "why exactly were we all so hot for this?" footnote, so I'm not sure what kind of audience is waiting for a sequel. But they went and made one anyway, and now it has a trailer.
The actual plot of this one hasn't been widely disseminated (largely because, again, nobody really seems to care) but from what has been said and from what this trailer reveals (new additions include boats and the color blue) it's likely that they're attempting a larger focus than the tightly-contained original; likely focusing both on the battles of Artemesium and Salamis (naval engagements taking place during and after Thermopylae from the first movie) and apparently also the Battle of Marathon.
Rodrigo Santoro is back as Xerxes (the film will also feature extended flashbacks to the God-King's origin story) as are Lena Heady, David Wenham and Andrew Tiernan as Ephialtes. Our principal New Hotness is Eva Green as Queen Artemisia, commander of the Persian-allied naval forces.
The actual plot of this one hasn't been widely disseminated (largely because, again, nobody really seems to care) but from what has been said and from what this trailer reveals (new additions include boats and the color blue) it's likely that they're attempting a larger focus than the tightly-contained original; likely focusing both on the battles of Artemesium and Salamis (naval engagements taking place during and after Thermopylae from the first movie) and apparently also the Battle of Marathon.
Rodrigo Santoro is back as Xerxes (the film will also feature extended flashbacks to the God-King's origin story) as are Lena Heady, David Wenham and Andrew Tiernan as Ephialtes. Our principal New Hotness is Eva Green as Queen Artemisia, commander of the Persian-allied naval forces.
Wednesday, June 12, 2013
CONFIRMED: This Is Captain America's (Shitty) New Uniform
Well. So much for that, then.
It's basically the "Steve Rogers: Super Soldier" outfit from the brief overlap between "Bucky is Cap now" and "Steve is alive again" from a few years ago (which was in tern an in-joke homage to Jack Kirby's Cap-parody "The Fighting American") but with a cowl and shield added. And yes - it's the lack of stripes that does it. It's not like dropping the yellow oval from the Bat-symbol; the stripes (or at the very least a healthy amount of red and white to go with all the blue) are effectively Cap's "trademark," the only thing that keeps him from just looking like a Power Ranger who's missing a bunch of his mask. This is taking Superman's "S" shield away.
These things aren't really "all important" when you get right down to it (as I've said many times before, Batman has never once had a good-looking outfit in live-action and it didn't stop his movies/TV shows from averaging out pretty decently) but it's a bummer all the same. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've seen a character-design from a Marvel Studios project and just completely hated it top-to-bottom, and it stings doubly-much given just how excellent Cap looked in both appearances so far. Doesn't really mean anything regarding "The Winter Soldier's" overall quality, again... but still disappointing (and I bet Phil isn't a fan, either...)
It's basically the "Steve Rogers: Super Soldier" outfit from the brief overlap between "Bucky is Cap now" and "Steve is alive again" from a few years ago (which was in tern an in-joke homage to Jack Kirby's Cap-parody "The Fighting American") but with a cowl and shield added. And yes - it's the lack of stripes that does it. It's not like dropping the yellow oval from the Bat-symbol; the stripes (or at the very least a healthy amount of red and white to go with all the blue) are effectively Cap's "trademark," the only thing that keeps him from just looking like a Power Ranger who's missing a bunch of his mask. This is taking Superman's "S" shield away.These things aren't really "all important" when you get right down to it (as I've said many times before, Batman has never once had a good-looking outfit in live-action and it didn't stop his movies/TV shows from averaging out pretty decently) but it's a bummer all the same. I'm pretty sure this is the first time I've seen a character-design from a Marvel Studios project and just completely hated it top-to-bottom, and it stings doubly-much given just how excellent Cap looked in both appearances so far. Doesn't really mean anything regarding "The Winter Soldier's" overall quality, again... but still disappointing (and I bet Phil isn't a fan, either...)
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
"Hobbit 2" Features Legolas, Smaug, Barrel-Riding
It is going to be so weird if Orlando Bloom and Other Orlando Bloom Luke Evans have any scenes together...
Yes, there are Czech subtitles. It's the first version I found. Welcome to a global economy.
Memo to all would-be humorists: "Calling" that The Barrel Scene would be turned into a big, elaborate action-sequence in this doesn't qualify as especially prescient. Dial back the snark and enjoy your big-ass dragon.
Yes, there are Czech subtitles. It's the first version I found. Welcome to a global economy.
Memo to all would-be humorists: "Calling" that The Barrel Scene would be turned into a big, elaborate action-sequence in this doesn't qualify as especially prescient. Dial back the snark and enjoy your big-ass dragon.
Friday, June 07, 2013
Bad Lieutenant: Scotland Edition
Below, the trailer for "Filth," featuring James McAvoy as a super-corrupt police detective doing the debauched mutually-destructive sex/drugs/violence thing all over Edinburgh. Looks amazing (I'm told the Irvine Welsh novel it's based on is similarly excellent.)
Wednesday, June 05, 2013
Cetaceans Are Jerks
You know I'm a big fan of the classic Killer Whale Murder Spree flick "Orca," and you ought to be as well. Now, here's a trailer for "Blackfish," a documentary about Tilikum, whom you may or may not remember as the captive Orca blamed for the killings of three Sea World employees - the most recent of which was the attack/drowning of a trainer that happened in front of spectators. The trailer is cut like a Shocking! Expose! thing about a serial-killer cover-up, and I kind of hope that sort of sleazy/sordid "True Crime Stories" energy informs the film itself.
The Hills Are Alive
That "Lifetime" is allowed to still go around billing itself as "Television For Women" when it's output is almost-exclusively Hallmark treacle, reality TV flotsam and tabloid sleaze is something that someone should really organize a march against. Until then, let's all "enjoy" this trailer for their next big celebrity biopic, "The Anna Nicole Story;" with Agnes Bruckner in the title role and a torch-song version of "Fame" lilting over the soundtrack.
Tuesday, June 04, 2013
Origin Story
The clock keeps ticking down to the release of "Man of Steel." I'm not slated to see it until the week it comes out (at least so far,) but it's been shown to the NY/LA junket press and there are supposedly sneaks happening around starting this week. So far, nobody I know or trust has given me a solid reaction one way or another, so... the waiting game continues.
While we wait, Warners has released this 13 minute "making of" piece to the web. Nothing in the way of new footage or plot details, but always interesting all the same. It doesn't do much to change the overall impression I've held since this ball got rolling: Looks really good, will almost-definitely do the job of making Superman "cool" in the eyes of the popular-culture again... but there's this omnipresent "moodiness" hanging over everything they've shown that can't help but make me worried that they somehow still. Managed. To. Not. GET. It.
While we wait, Warners has released this 13 minute "making of" piece to the web. Nothing in the way of new footage or plot details, but always interesting all the same. It doesn't do much to change the overall impression I've held since this ball got rolling: Looks really good, will almost-definitely do the job of making Superman "cool" in the eyes of the popular-culture again... but there's this omnipresent "moodiness" hanging over everything they've shown that can't help but make me worried that they somehow still. Managed. To. Not. GET. It.
Sunday, June 02, 2013
Yikes, Bikes!
When the Wall Street Journal - one of America's worst non-mimeographed and/or locally Church-published newspapers - isn't running obnoxious, stiflingly-ignorant clickbait pieces "taking down" film criticism (oh, I'll get to that one, be patient;) it's apparently giving platforms to the shambling, somehow still-animated Old Money ghouls of New York Past. Because someone has to.
One of these frightening yet pathetic creatures, Dorothy Rabinowitz, has taken some time from what one must assume is a strict regimen of draining life-sustaining essence via eye-contact with unlucky errant Central Park dogs to offer a hilariously tone-deaf (in the "do these people HEAR themselves!?") screed against NYC's new Bike Sharing installations.Whatever she was hoping to accomplish here, it's effect on me is sudden desperate hope for a sequel to "Premium Rush" with somebody fun (is Mary Woronov still working?) as an extra-villainous version of this lady.
One of these frightening yet pathetic creatures, Dorothy Rabinowitz, has taken some time from what one must assume is a strict regimen of draining life-sustaining essence via eye-contact with unlucky errant Central Park dogs to offer a hilariously tone-deaf (in the "do these people HEAR themselves!?") screed against NYC's new Bike Sharing installations.Whatever she was hoping to accomplish here, it's effect on me is sudden desperate hope for a sequel to "Premium Rush" with somebody fun (is Mary Woronov still working?) as an extra-villainous version of this lady.
This.
Snapped and tweeted by LaMovieBuff at a convention in Puerto Rico is a photo that, if I were the head of marketing for Warner Bros, would be purchased and readied to be slapped on every "Man of Steel" puff-piece set to hit Time-Warner's various magazine and news outlets over the next two weeks.This. This image right here. This is the real, pure, true, good thing underneath all the obscene corporate/commercial bloat surrounding a movie like this (or "Avengers," or "Pacific Rim," or whatever.) And it's also the literalization of my central question regarding "Man of Steel" and WB's still shakily-uncertain DC Universe plans in general: Will they be worthy of the awe this kid is investing in just the poster? And if not, then why are they bothering to make these at all?
I hope I like this movie, but I really hope this kid likes this movie.
Friday, May 31, 2013
First Image From The Live-Action "Kiki's Delivery Service"
Courtesy excite (note: site is in Japanese), here's your first publicity-still from the live-action version of "Kiki's Delivery Service;" which evidently is a thing that is happening.
Thursday, May 30, 2013
"Machete Kills"
The key to the original "Machete" - for me, at least - was that it was the first instance in a long while of a Robert Rodriguez movie actually being about something beyond the surface-level faux-grindhouse jokefest. I have no idea what Rodriguez politics are and thus no idea how strongly he "really" feels about the U.S. immigration debate; but whether authentic or just part of the winking 70s-exploitation pastiche it was the ferocity with which "Machete" engaged the subject that made it stand out: The wildly-applauding, predominantly Latino audiences at my screening(s) certainly didn't think it was a joke.
So I wonder if "Machete Kills," which Rodriguez may or may not have put together partially by having the castmembers of "Sin City 2" put on different costumes for pickups during their greenscreen shoots, is going to keep that going or let Part 1 be "the political one" and just focus on the spectacle of improbable action-lead Danny Trejo hacking up a succession of stunt-cast cameos and Latin-cinema mainstays.
The first full trailer for the film (it's a Yahoo, sorry) doesn't let much out in the way of story beyond what we already know: Machete is called in for a mission by the U.S. President (Charlie Sheen, here using his real name "Carlos Estevez" for the first time in a film) involving a supervillain played by Mel Gibson; whose scheme may or may not involve a "Moonraker"-style outer space component. Rodriguez has "joked" in the past that the third film "Machete Kills Again" will be a Space Opera, possibly incorporating leftovers from his scuttled John Carter project.
So I wonder if "Machete Kills," which Rodriguez may or may not have put together partially by having the castmembers of "Sin City 2" put on different costumes for pickups during their greenscreen shoots, is going to keep that going or let Part 1 be "the political one" and just focus on the spectacle of improbable action-lead Danny Trejo hacking up a succession of stunt-cast cameos and Latin-cinema mainstays.
The first full trailer for the film (it's a Yahoo, sorry) doesn't let much out in the way of story beyond what we already know: Machete is called in for a mission by the U.S. President (Charlie Sheen, here using his real name "Carlos Estevez" for the first time in a film) involving a supervillain played by Mel Gibson; whose scheme may or may not involve a "Moonraker"-style outer space component. Rodriguez has "joked" in the past that the third film "Machete Kills Again" will be a Space Opera, possibly incorporating leftovers from his scuttled John Carter project.
Introducing The BOFCA YouTube Channel
The Boston Online Film Critics Association, of which I am a member, now has their very own YouTube Channel. Bookmark it now, because fun stuff will be incoming.
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
"Planes"
Here's all you need to know about Disney's "Cars" spinoff, "Planes." Pixar - which had no problem signing it's name to both of the wholly-disposable "Cars" movies, is letting Disney take sole credit for this one.Dane Cook stars as a cropduster who dreams of competing in an airplane race against an elite gathering of broad ethnic stereotypes.
Tuesday, May 28, 2013
Ma vie en rose
Huh. Well, this will be interesting.
The Hub, which is still looking for an original kids' series that people will watch other than "Friendship is Magic," thinks it's found a winner in an Australian animated series called "Shezow." I hadn't heard of it until the (week old) trailer for it's U.S. premier started making the rounds, but the premise is interesting: The (magical) mantle of a female superhero with decidedly female-gendered accoutremants (sparkly miniskirted costume, Barbie-esque pink car, etc) is accidentally passed to a teenaged boy.
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