Posted by Sinden Lee - Friday, November 21, 2008 4:22 PM
Hollywood always mirrors our national sentiment via sci-fi flicks, as meticulously outlined by Daniel Terdiman's piece, The Evolution of the Benevolent Alien.
Say what you will about Ronald Reagan, but the old Gipper ended the Cold War and Americans felt a renewed calming sense of détente due to a decrease in Soviet nuclear arsenals.
During Reagan's time, they gave us The Terminator, Aliens, Blade Runner, and the Abyss to name a few..All the protagonists in these films kept us feeling safe from evil sentient beings. And always, the better form--the human form--triumphs.
Today, as Russian President Medvedev defiantly thrusts his chin against the U.S. and stands firm with our government's Latin American adversaries like Peru and Valenzuela, we smell a renewed Cold War in the horizon.
This, ladened with global issues such as the environment, wars, doomed economy--you can see why Hollywood is remaking the 1951 film of the same name, The Day the Earth Stood Still.
Check out Mr. Terdiman's breakdown of the evolution of compassionate, tender aliens. It's pretty intense.
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Tags: Movies, TV
Posted by Brian Leahy - Friday, November 21, 2008 2:54 PM
You know how movies based off of video games usually fall into two camps... there's the "uses the game as inspiration" side, which gives us movies like Silent Hill and so forth. Then there's the "tries to copy the game exactly" angle, which gives you movies like this:
We really don't know what to think... on the one hand, it's an authentic representation of Mega Man, sure. Other the other hand, it's completely ridiculous. Oh, and this isn't a major Hollywood production, if that wasn't obvious.
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Tags: Movies, Videogames, Videos
Posted by Joseph Baxter - Friday, November 21, 2008 1:38 PM
It seems that Tim Blake Nelson is pretty stoked about the possibility of reprising his role in a sequel to this year's The Incredible Hulk. As you may know, Nelson played Bruce Banner's anonymous friend with whom he corresponded online about his "condition." Of course, he turned out to be Dr. Samuel Sterns, a very important name in the Hulk lore, as he would become the hero's most deadly nemesis, The Leader. (A transformation that we began to see in the first film.)
Nelson, also a writer and director, is currently spending his days in the cutting room working on a film called Leaves of Grass, which happens to star his Hulk co-star Edward Norton. In a recent interview, Nelson addresses rumors of Norton's falling-out with Marvel Studios, and his own eagerness to return, regardless of its outcome. Additionally, with producer Gale Anne Hurd's recent revelation that a proper Hulk sequel was in the works, his wish is likely to come true with or without Norton on board.
We talked about [Hulk] a little bit, yeah; we made some jokes about it. It’s all good, and I really do hope [the sequel] happens, for all sorts of reasons. But yeah, we did, we had a great time on ‘Hulk’ together. I’m eager to do ‘Hulk 2’ if they make it.
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Tags: Comics, Movies
Posted by Joseph Baxter - Friday, November 21, 2008 12:47 PM
 Panic-ridden purists worried about what Steven Spielberg and Will Smith were planning to do with their beloved cult Korean film, Oldboy, can rest easy. In a recent interview, Will Smith elaborates on exactly what will be done:
We're looking at [Oldboy] right now. Not the film though, it's the original source material. There's the original comics of Oldboy that they made the first film from. And that's what we're working from, not an adaptation of the film.
So it may be comforting for film buffs to know that it may only be the original manga itself, which stands in danger of “being pinned to the pinball machine.” However, if it does happen, will there be a brave, sexy D.A. who will come forward and prosecute "the ones who clapped and cheered?"
The adaptation, in which Will Smith is all but certain to star, is roughly set for 2010.
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Tags: Comics, Movies
Posted by Joseph Baxter - Friday, November 21, 2008 12:20 PM
 It seems that “The Big Red Cheese” himself, Captain Marvel, will be the latest classic superhero to get his own film. A piece from Variety reports that Warner Bros. has signed Peter Segal (Get Smart, Tommy Boy, Nutty Professor II) to helm the film along with Michael Ewing (both men head Callahan Filmworks.)
There is definitely going to be some issues that will need to be resolved before this one takes off. Firstly, do they dare risk confusion by referring the character as “Captain Marvel?” Besides an agonizing series of copyright battles involving him that spanned decades, the substituted title name “Shazam” has become just as well known as his actual name. There are generations of casual comic followers who often refer to him AS “Shazam.” Also, perhaps Marvel films might want to start some legal trouble over names, not to mention making sure doors stay open for a film adaptation of their own Captain Marvel (Mar-Vell.)
Secondly, one can’t help but look over the named directors’ resumes to notice that these are people who specialize in “dumb comedies.” It’s not exactly difficult to connect the dots and assume that this potential film adaptation will be some kind of parody of the superhero genre. If indeed this is the case, then you risk turning this iconic character into a complete joke (although the “Captain Marvel/Isis Saturday Morning Block” from the 70’s didn’t do him any favors, either.)
Holy Schumacher, Shazam!
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Tags: Comics, Movies, TV
Posted by Sinden Lee - Friday, November 21, 2008 10:49 AM
 The very popular Fox TV sitcom Arrested Development, may well be on its way to the big screen..finally.
Show creator, Mitchell Hurwitz and executive producer, Ron Howard, have closed a deal to make a feature adaptation about America's favorite dysfunctional family.
Mr. Hurwitz is to write the film and will co-direct it with Mr. Howard. Fox Searchlight is set to produce and distribute the release.
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Tags: Movies, TV
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Posted by Sinden Lee - Thursday, November 20, 2008 5:44 PM
Apple now has a restrictive copyright protection mechanism on its new Macbooks that prevents its users from watching movies on external displays.
It has surreptitiously included a copy protection scheme called High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) in their external display ports which are in the latest MacBook models that came out in October 2008.
Apple never acknowledged this new anti-copying mechanism as many new customers have discovered they can't play movies purchased from the iTunes online stores on external monitors, TVs or projectors.
HDCP, which was released by Intel in 2001, is designed to prevent digital pirates from outputting movies to copying devices, like digital video recorders.
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Tags: Apple, Movies, Tech
Posted by Sinden Lee - Thursday, November 20, 2008 5:09 PM
 Looks like more onslaught is to be had for the likes of John Connor and his resistance against Skynet and its army of Terminators..
Terminator Salvation - The Videogame will be released by Warner Brother Interactive Entertainment, Equity Games Production and Halcyon Games.
The game will be a third-person shooter and will be rele
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