It’s nearly here. The conclusion of the Harry Potter film franchise: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. It’s been a long road, with seven previous movies having already been released since 2001, and the books still coming out during those theater releases.
I started to like the movies more and more as they progressed, except the hiccup that was Goblet of Fire after the amazing Prisoner of Azkaban. I’m probably the only Harry Potter fan in the world who just watched Deathly Hallows Part 1 a week ago. I wanted to try to hold out so I could watch the two parts together just as the second was coming out. Alas, I failed, but I was happy that I did because to me, Deathly Hallows Part 1 was just behind Prisoner of Azkaban for my favorite. It raised the stakes incredibly by having our heroes on the run and looking over their shoulders at every turn. The world of Harry Potter had never been more grim and dangerous.
Besides seeing glimpses of Part 2 in the trailer before Part One, the newest trailer shows so much more. Even a little bit of a spoiler for those who haven’t read the books. Check it out below:
Yes, I peed my pants too if you’re curious. It looks spectacular and I’m sure everything remaining from the book will be included. That means goblins at Gringotts, a dragon, The Battle of Hogwarts and a final confrontation between Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort.
So get ready on July 15th for the Harry Potter grand finale. It’s going to be magical. (Damn it I didn’t want to use that pun.)
-Harry: “Oh my God!” -Hermione: “Oh no!” -Ron: “I like pancakes…”
Any thoughts on the trailer, or did everyone’s head explode from awesome overload? If you’re still with us please feel free to comment below!
I am one of those who actually likedTerminator: Salvation. It was taking us into the territory of the Terminator franchise that so many of us wanted – a whole movie based on The Resistance war against Skynet and the machines. I thought it was done very well, with all new terminators, a decent grouping of actors and a not too shabby storyline, given the fact that the writer’s strike was happening at the time. I just wanted a movie finally taking place after Judgement Day with the war already in its beginnings and Salvation gave that to me.
Although it didn’t perform as well as the studio had predicted, they were still supposed to go on with making two more sequels, but after money woes and auctioning off the rights to Terminator, chances of that were slim. It was like taking a couple licks off your blue moon ice cream cone and the rest gets knocked out of your hand by a psychotic Easter Bunny.
Now comes news via Deadline that the franchise is not only on track to be revived and continued, but it will involve one of the two men who made Terminator and Terminator 2 such a success: Arnold Schwarzenegger. Yes I know James Cameron’s vision made the first two movies so spectacular, but Arnold was the other major reason for the movies’ success. Here’s a little from the article:
Arnold Schwarzenegger is attached to star in a rights package that CAA is shopping today that will revive The Terminator, one of Hollywood’s most iconic scifi franchises. The agency is dropping the package on studios this afternoon. I’m told that already, Universal, Sony and Lionsgate, and CBS Films are looking hard at the package. There is no screenwriter attached at this point, and Robert Cort is producing. This is the first real activity on The Terminator project since February 2010, when the property emerged from a bankruptcy auction and into the possession of Pacificor.
Not only is this awesome news that the Terminator story will continue, but I’m also glad to see Arnold returning to a project that will put him back in the main spotlight. I’m sorry, but the Governator just ain’t gonna do it for me. I want Terminator! True Lies 2! Jingle All The Way 2! Well, scratch the Jingle All the Way bit… you get the point.
What does everyone think of this? Is Arnold “too old for this shit”, or are you ready to see him back as a T-800 breaking faces? I say hell yeah to the second part of that question. Comment below or Skynet will find you…
I’m a big Transformers fan. Loved the 80’s cartoons, the animated movie, the comic books, and the first Movie. The second movie was a terrible monstrosity, and I was confident the third movie Dark of the Moon wasn’t going to suck, but after seeing the first trailer I’m not so sure. It kind of reminded me of the alien invasion from the movie Skyline… and that’s not good because that movie sucked six cans of shark shit.
The only glimmer of hope I now have is that Shockwave is one of the main villains of this movie. He was always entertaining in the cartoon and comics; he was the Decepticon in charge on Cybertron while the others fought the Autobots on Earth.
Even more good news is that there is finally a picture of him in the form of a promotional banner for Dark of the Moon. He looks pretty true to the animated version, but being slightly Bay-ified too. Check out the banner below:
This banner is just a teaser before the next trailer premieres on April 28th – next week. Let’s hope the trailer doesn’t disappoint too much. Then again the Revenge of the Fallen trailer didn’t and look what happened with that movie.
Rubber wont be to everyone’s taste. Words like ‘weird’ and ‘stupid’ will be used against it. Understandable really, considering it is a film about a psychic killer tire, but not an assessment I would necessary agree with. Weird without a doubt – although absurd is better – but definitely not stupid. It’s just that you have to look a little deeper.
This isn’t really a horror film as such, it’s more of a black comedy. Sure there are no belly laughs, and there is definitely violence, death and gore, but it is the absurdness of it all that is more noticeable.
The basic plot is not extraordinary, in fact – if the central protagonist was a human instead of a tire it could be a fairly standard slasher/loner psycho film. The fact that it is a tire is one of the things that raises it above the ordinary. There is something else that helps it too, but I’ll come to that later.
The name of the tire is Robert – a name that is only on screen in the end credits – and he is a confused and angry individual, pushed into a world he does not understand. This truth actually comes across surprisingly well. Robert – who does not talk or make any sound, and has not a face – is the deepest character in the film. You can actually feel the emotion coming off him, although you probably wont sympathize with him too much.
The other characters, whilst not flat, are not quite as rounded (no pun intended, but I like it). This is not really surprising as it is Roberts ‘birth’ in the dessert, through his wild killing spree, to the, inevitable, final confrontation that drives the film, leaving little place for character development.
This film is, however, deeper than just a confused outsider trying to find his place in the world. This is just the central reality in the movie.
Just outside of Robert’s reality is another one where spectators watch. This film has it’s own built in audience, which some of the characters in the internal film are aware of. This adds another layer of absurdness to it all, resulting in some truly surreal moments. For instance the opening scene – which is quite beautiful in it’s surrealism – that includes a monologue about the amount of ‘no reason’ in films and real life. It’s this ‘no reason’ that drives the film along.
As well as all this the film looks gorgeous. The California dessert setting is used well, and gives the proceedings another worldliness. Some of the cinematography is stunning. The special effects – all of which are analogue, no digital – are quite impressive as well. The acting is of a high standard and played straight. The music is also good and doesn’t overpower the images. Plus it has a plot that goes somewhere.
Some people will still claim it’s weird rubbish. I, on the other hand, think it is a brilliant film.
If you only see one ‘psychic killer tire’ film this year make it this one.
So there’s a lot going on right now with Gotham’s greatest protector. A new movie, a new video game, and an animated feature – all in production as we speak. The game and the movie have both been talked about plenty, so let’s focus on the animated feature.
Heat Vision is reporting that the long-awaited adaptation of Frank Miller’s Batman: Year One, which is one of my favorite comics ever (not to be confused with Mike W. Barr and Todd McFarlane‘s terrible sequel – Batman: Year Two) is really coming along. For those of you unfamiliar with the comic, I can tell you it was a major influence on the Nolan Bat-Films, and helped solidify Frank Miller as a legend within the industry.
Year One chronicles Gordon’s transfer from the Chicago PD to Gotham City just as the Batman is starting to appear. It deals largely with Bruce’s early failures and Gordon’s struggles within the most corrupt Police Department in the country.
Warner Brother’s Animation is making a PG-13 animated adaptation of the story that is said to be very true to the book. Animation great Bruce Timm (Batman the Animated Series) says that the book was even used to storyboard a large chunk of the film. And today, they have just announced the 5 principle voice actors…
Bruce Wayne/Batman – Ben McKenzie: McKenzie was on The O.C., but more importantly is one of the leads on TNT’s Southland. This story revolves around Bruce’s return to Gotham and his transformation into a very young Batman.
Lt. Jim Gordon – Bryan Cranston: This is a great pick. The principal character on one of television’s best shows (Breaking Bad), Cranston has come a long way since Malcolm in the Middle and proved his worth. As soon as I read this I loved the choice. Cranston himself wasn’t sure so quickly though as he initially turned down the chance to work on Year One, but eventually changed his mind after seeing the script – “I wasn’t aware of this level of storytelling in animation. I confess that freely, they didn’t give the characters the short shrift. I was stunned.”
Selina Kyle/Catwoman – Eliza Dushku: While the average girl recognizes Dushku from Bring it On, most in the geek community recognize her work with Joss Whedon (Buffy, Angel, Dollhouse) and as Arnold’s daughter in the 90’s Action classic True Lies. So it’s not like she needed more geek-cred than that to deserve a role in a comic movie, especially an animated one. But she should be a pretty much perfect fit for Catwoman…
Detective Sarah Essen – Katee Sackhoff: Sarah Essen is a name that you might not know if you don’t read the comics, but she was a major part of Gotham City for a long time. You know, eventually marrying Jim Gordon, surviving the Earthquake in Gotham, and finally being murdered by the Joker while saving some babies, she was an important part of the comics, but really hasn’t popped up in the other mediums till now. As far as the choice, after runs on Battlestar Galactica, Nip/Tuck, and 24 I am a fan of Katee Sackhoff. And her inclusion in Halloween: Resurrection didn’t hurt either. I know a lot of my fellow Bauer fans didn’t care for her in the final season of the show, but I actually like this pick.
Carmine Falcone – Alex Rocco: The guy played Moe Green in The Godfather. What more can you ask for, especially since Falcone is obviously modeled after Vito Corleone…
All around great casting. DC has really outdone Marvel on the animated front thus far, and it looks to be continuing. They have also released a couple of animation stills…
The straight to DVD release of Batman: Year One is scheduled for sometime this fall.
The have also been rumors that another Frank Miller classic – The Dark Knight Returns – could be in the works as well. How about them apples?
Anyone who read my Scream Retrospective earlier this week will know I greatly respected the original Scream and was looking forward to this installment. When I arrived at the theater, the teenage girl behind the counter told me that the new one was really awesome, but that she had never watched any of the first three movies, because they looked ‘stupid’ and ‘lame’. For some reason, her ringing endorsement did not instill me with confidence, even though she was clearly an expert on the franchise.
Once inside, I was surprised that a 7:45 show, on opening night wasn’t more full. The theater was probably less than half-capacity, and of the kids there, probably most were still in diapers when the original was released. The movie started in the expected way, a phone call and a discussion about horror movies. This time, however, it didn’t seem so fresh. Now you’re probably thinking: “Of course it’s not fresh, it’s the fourth movie,” but I guess I was expecting something new.
Never have I watched a movie so self-aware of how cool its predecessor was, but it’s a new day. Scream 4 largely revolves around talking about how great the Stab franchise is. Stab being the movie within Scream 2, based on the events of first movie. So here you have a script written by Kevin Williamson(who wrote the first movie) that never stops stroking Kevin Williamson’s ego.
Our three returning Scream Staples – Sidney, Gale, and Dewey – seem to be nothing more than caricatures of themselves. Sidney has written a book about her exploits and is on tour. Her last stop is Woodsboro. Gale has settled down and married Dewey, who is now the sheriff of Woodsboro, and employees a star-studded police force that made me feel more like I was watching Scary Movie 6 than an actual canon chapter of the franchise.
Adam Brody and Anthony Anderson are deputies that define a new level of ineptitude within the genre. Sure, cops regularly wind up dead in horror movies, but they usually at least seem somewhat competent beforehand. There is never a point in the movie where you are made to believe these guys could even remotely protect anyone. The sad part, they are the most believable cops in the movie. Sin City‘s Marley Shelton plays another Deputy that is openly crushing on Sheriff Dewey, and either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care that his wife is in the room. Her character is so strange you wonder how she could ever be allowed to carry a gun. No police force in film history has ever instilled less confidence. That fact is cemented by Dewey’s shooting ability, and later his hand to hand combat scene with the killer. I won’t ruin anything, but Dirty Harry he is not.
The teens in this movie are so irritating (which may be a sign of my age), that I found myself actually rooting for the killer to end them. They are headlined by Hayden Panettiere (Heroes), who is in actuality only 20, but looks about 30 in here, and was at no point believable as a high schooler.
Kirby (Hayden Panettiere) and Jill (Emma Roberts)
Then we have the entire ‘Gale’ storyline. Starting with her fall from grace since becoming a cop’s wife, which is so epic that she basically has to beg the High School Cinema Club to hang out with her and help solve the murders! And could you find a couple of less likable film geeks than the kid with the web-cam on his head and Macaulay Culkin’s little brother? I doubt it. Randy is probably rolling in his grave.
The cast though is one thing that the franchise has always counted as a strength. The number of name actors in this movie certainly helped add to the buzz. Aside from those already mentioned, we see a whole plethora of recognizable faces, including local Detroit News 4 anchor – Devin Scillian, Friday Night Lights star Aimee Teegarden and the incredible Allison Brie.
Anyhow, no surprise, this movie was totally style over substance. To be fair, there were a couple of parts I liked. The Kristen Bell scene was good, and there is a fight where someone gets smashed into a picture on the wall, that was hilarious. But there was no point where they had set up a scare well enough for it to pay off.
In the end the movie came off obnoxiously pretentious and so self-aware that you can’t help but think that between this and Scream 3, the franchise has hurt the genre just as much as helped it.
Overall Score: Scream 4 – 2/5 Bears – 1 out of respect for the original movie. – 1 for putting Kristen Bell and Allison Brie in the same movie.
Besides seeing glimpses of Part 2 in the trailer before Part One, the newest trailer shows so much more. Even a little bit of a spoiler for those who haven’t read the books. Check it out below:
Grizzly Bomb 