spider-man-film &laquo; WordPress.com Tag Feed http://en.wordpress.com/tag/spider-man-film/ Feed of posts on WordPress.com tagged "spider-man-film" Tue, 21 May 2013 11:42:17 +0000 http://en.wordpress.com/tags/ en <![CDATA['The Fault In Our Stars' Casting Updates!]]> http://celebritycelebration.wordpress.com/2013/05/16/the-fault-in-our-stars-casting-updates/ Fri, 17 May 2013 06:35:07 +0000 eleanorandjill http://celebritycelebration.wordpress.com/2013/05/16/the-fault-in-our-stars-casting-updates/ It has been public knowledge for a while now that ‘Divergent’ star, Shailene Woodley has snagged the role of Hazel. Woodley is having a heck of a year with her casting as Tris in ‘Divergent’ and her upcoming role in the new Spiderman movie! Woodley is off to an amazing start with her career following the end of ABC Family’s ‘The Secret Life of the American Teenager.’

Joining Woodley, is her ‘Divergent’ co-star Ansel Elgort. Elgort, who portrays Woodley’s brother in ‘Divergent’, has snagged the role of the romantic male lead, Augustus ‘Gus’ Waters in the film adaptation of John Greenes book.

]]> <![CDATA[M's Spot - The RANTMAN Rises!]]> http://inveteratemediajunkies.com/2013/04/27/ms-spot-the-rantman-rises/ Sat, 27 Apr 2013 06:02:16 +0000 Insideman http://inveteratemediajunkies.com/2013/04/27/ms-spot-the-rantman-rises/ M Spot MSpot 2012 Logo
The Rantman Rises Banner

LM ULTRA THIN BOX BREAKBefore I jump into this month’s rant, let me start by apologizing to Ian, Jose, and my fellow members of the IMJ Nation™. This was not how I expected to start 2013. From nursing a back injury, to an email hack, to the major snowstorm weathercasters inexplicably dubbed with the harmless sounding name Nemo– it’s been a helluva year already. Those are just the highlights I’m willing to share without continually typing the word “redacted”. Setbacks finally put aside, I have awoken from an alcohol induced stupor to say this: Mainstream American Superhero Comics never fail… To disappoint.

Let the Ranting Begin BannerLM ULTRA THIN BOX BREAKI’ve finally finished digesting what’s come from the Big Two (DC & Marvel) in the last few months… And I’ve begun to look at their future 2013 offerings– and all I can see is more mediocre rehashes of a rehash of a rehash that are not only diluting the original concepts of their Universes, but turning them to shit. How many times can a publisher go back to the well and offer an “Earth-Shattering” reboot… Or retcon parts of a beloved character’s backstory? It doesn’t matter how it’s done– softly or stealthily– both rebooting and retconning have gotten so out of hand (and unbelievably constrictive), many creators have caught a glimpse of their future and started running away from their Corporate Overlords as fast as they can.

And I’m not talking about those people who jumped from DC’s New 52 to join Marvel’s NOW initiative– or vice versa. That’s just normal creator musical chairs… And those idiots did nothing but shoot themselves in the feet by switching out one editorial mandate for another. No, I’m talking about talented comic book creators like Grant Morrison and Ed Brubaker– who’ve seen what’s happening at their respective publishers, taken a good look around the industry… And decided to make a go of it on their own.

The best example of this welcome phenomenon has to be Greg Rucka, who got burned out by DC Editorial– left to write the Punisher comic for Marvel, then abandoned that title when Editorial shoved the Punisher into Marvel NOW’s Thunderbolts… And now says he will not write for either publisher for the forseeable future– possibly forever. (There goes my dream of Rucka and J.H. Williams III reteaming on Batwoman.) Rucka’s parting comments on the Big Two– how editorial decisions are now based on “grotesque Hollywoodisation”– are unfortunately true. It’s a sad ramification of working for publishers that are subsidiaries of multibillion dollar Film/TV conglomerates.

Selling PointsLM ULTRA THIN BOX BREAKSo that’s what the major players have devolved into. Instead of true creativity and ingenuity, comic book fans are left with half-wit hacks and editors trying to sell them on lame ideas. Case in point: Superior Spider-Man. I know everyone with an internet connection has talked CRAP Superior Spider-Manad nauseam about this comic… With most of them willing to see where writer Dan Slott goes with this idea. I don’t need to. I know exactly where Slott’s going with Superior Spider-Man– NOWHERE!

That’s the short answer, at least.

It’s more than likely Doctor Octopus’ arrogance will get the best of him and ultimately lead to his downfall… And we’ll have good ol’ Petey Parker back in his body just in time for the currently filming Amazing Spider-Man 2′s release date. Slott isn’t much for subtext or subtle storytelling. Hell, he isn’t much for subplots either… So he’s the perfect mook to serve as a placeholder until the movie arrives.

Think about it, if you haven’t already jumped on this useless, derivative crazy train– I just saved you a shit-ton of time and money. Superior Spider-Man is filler, a way of taking Peter Parker/Spider-Man off the table without REALLY taking Peter Parker/Spider-Man out of the equation. So when they do bring the genuine hero back, his reappearance will drive sales up… What? 3% for the quarter? We’ve seen the core of this story before in Spidey’s own comic and, quite frankly, is was way better. The plot of, “I must assume the identify of my foe as a last-ditch effort to show I’m better than him!” was called Kraven’s Last Hunt.

The current “creative” direction for Spider-Man is not original enough for me– and it’s laughable reading other comic sites advocating the greatness of Peter Parker’s body being invaded by the consciousness of a pervy, overweight forty-year old. I wonder if this a reflection on the writer or the readership? Is this really what Marvel wants one of their marquee titles to be? The silly conceit doesn’t move the character forward… And is only going to hurt Spider-Man in the long run– much like the Clone Saga once did. Plus, how is this idea new reader friendly? (Isn’t that what Marvel NOW is all about?… To entice consumers who saw the most recent movie or animated television show into reading the source material?)

Superior Spider-Man is not the new beginning for Spider-Man it should have been. The comic reads more like a final story arc that will inevitably lead to another reboot– where the next creative team will be left holding the bag desperately trying to fix the previous creators’ missteps.

But it’s not just Superior Spider-Man. I could have just as easily used the latest Captain America comic as an example of the Big Two’s creative decline. Maybe I should, since I couldn’t get past the the first four pages of Rick Remender’s Captain America #1 before CRAP Captain AmericaI threw that piece of shit in the trash.

I HATED his retcon of Steve Rogers’ youth. It’s so disheartening– but it’s also the perfect example for me (as a fan) being sold on an idea and then buying/reading a shit story. I was attracted to the pulp/sci-fi/adventure aspects of the tale– all things I’ve enjoyed from the writer in the past. (Remender’s Fear Agent Library Edition Vol 1 made my year-end comic graphic novel Top Ten Gift List.)

And I was totally on board with a change of pace for Captain America… As I thought I was getting John Carter of Mars– just with Steve Rogers instead.

But what I received for my time, trouble and money was something completely different. I got a wife-beating deadbeat father, bad dialogue and the use of bullshit Bendis Logic™ to get Cap to Arnim Zola’s Dimension Z. Garbage– almost every single panel of it. (Or just another Marvel title I’m assiduously avoiding for the time being.)

If you want to read a good tale of Rogers’ early life– with a great balance between art and story– then buy the one-and-done book that inspired the look of the first Captain America movie, Paul Jenkins and Paolo Rivera’s Mythos: Captain America. Otherwise, I look forward to Jason Latour eventually taking over Cap’s Marvel NOW comic, as his characterization of Rogers in A+X #4 was nicely done.

The only Marvel title I’m currently reading is Daredevil. I’m considering picking up Hawkeye, but then again– it’s about Hawkeye. I’m trade-waiting other titles like Winter Soldier and Venom. See Trolls? There are some Marvel titles I actually do like.

Now Onto DC's New 52LM ULTRA THIN BOX BREAKThere’s nothing I dislike more in modern comics than story decompression… And there’s nothing more uninteresting to me than “event” crossovers. Brian Michael Bendis is a true “master” of both. (Faint praise, I know.) Someone who’s quickly earning his black belt in these miserable techniques is Scott Snyder– the writer of DC’s New 52 Batman comic. He’s taken two years to tell only two Batman stories– both of which were turned into “event” crossovers. I wish I could say more about his work, but I stopped reading this shit at Issue Six. (I also wish those six comics told a complete story with a satisfying ending… But you know what they say about shit and wishes, don’t you?) I just don’t get the attraction to the man’s writing. How is The Court of Owls any different from The League of Assassins… Or even The League of Shadows from Christopher Nolan’s Batman films?

And the upcoming Batman: Year Zero? Snyder taking eleven issues to tell one of the most universally known origin stories in the history of comics? That’s damn ridiculous. I really didn’t think DC would have the stupidity to force ANOTHER retelling of Batman’s origins with Batman: Earth One already on sale… But since that book doesn’t feature New 52 CRAP Batmancontinuity, I guess DC just couldn’t stop themselves from cashing in. And mark my words, DC will clean up with the release of Snyder’s unnecessary tree-killer. Other sites will hand out glowing reviews like Halloween Candy and fanboys will eat it all up… While DC uses the acclaim to their advantage.

DC is selling you familiarity of things by using tropes from various sources, like Nolan’s Dark Knight films. They are not offering creativity or innovation.

Whatever happened to the concept Snyder was knocking about in his Detective Comics run– about there being something strange about Gotham itself? That was a cool concept I always felt was understood, but no writer has ever really explored. Nope, instead I get one uneventful “event” crossover after another… And my patience is tapped out. I’ll be skipping Snyder’s take on the Batman origin, but I’ll continue to support Morrison’s opus– while also taking a look at John Layman’s Detective Comics when it’s finally collected.

Since DC’s New 52 started, the only titles I’ve continued to buy in single issue form are Batwoman and Wonder Woman. That’s about it. Anything else I’ll trade-wait or won’t purchase at all… Because I simply don’t care.

I’d say I don’t know where DC and Marvel’s nostalgia for the 90s is coming from, but I do. They’re in love with the almighty dollar… And creating ingenious new ideas is hard. So they’re looking for big sales by using big gimmicks. This has led to the supremely underwhelming repackaging machinations known as the DC New 52 and Marvel NOW.

And that’s something I simply can’t put my money behind much longer. Sure, I’ll read an issue here or there (possibly for review purposes), but as a whole– the Big Two lack the creative and innovative drive I know I can find elsewhere.

These are my thoughts and opinions, IMJ Nation™!
What do you think?
Please comment and discuss!

]]> <![CDATA[Unconfirmed: Student Bowe Cleveland shot in Taft High School shooting; Teacher may have been injured; Update: Friends rally Stan Lee, #PrayForBowe; Update: MSM (finally) reports Bowe's name]]> http://twitchy.com/2013/01/10/unconfirmed-student-bowe-cleveland-shot-in-taft-high-school-shooting-teacher-may-have-been-injured/ Thu, 10 Jan 2013 20:22:34 +0000 Lori Ziganto http://twitchy.com/2013/01/10/unconfirmed-student-bowe-cleveland-shot-in-taft-high-school-shooting-teacher-may-have-been-injured/ As Twitchy reported, a shooting occurred at Taft High School in Calif. Students are tweeting information and rumors, including rumors of a hit list made by the alleged shooter. They are also tweeting the names of two people reportedly injured in the shooting.

More students tweet that student Cleveland Bowes was shot. Many spread the rumor that a teacher, Mr. Heber, was also injured. There is some indication that his name is Ryan Heber and that he is a science teacher at Taft.

Others try to dispel the rumor that the teacher, Mr. Heber, was shot, although he may have been injured.

The rumors persist that Bowe Cleveland was injured, however. This is allegedly Bowe’s Twitter feed and this was his last tweet prior to the shooting.

Prayers go out to Bowe from the Twitter community.

This Twitter user is allegedly at the hospital with Bowe, and tweets updates on Bowe’s condition.

Students also continue to tweet that the alleged shooter is Brian Oliver.

Twitchy will continue to monitor this story, and the rumors, and will update with further development and confirmation.

Update:

Bowe’s friends reach out to Stan Lee, who tweeted about the shooting earlier.

Bowe is a huge Spiderman fan.

bowe-twitter-bio

He retweeted this earlier this month.

And tweeted these.

Update:

#PrayForBowe begins and the rallying of Stan Lee continues.

Update:

Update:

USA Today has reported Bowe’s name in connection with the shooting.

]]> <![CDATA[Buy the Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified PS Vita Bundle at GAME, Get FIFA and Need for Speed Free]]> http://afterdarkgaming.wordpress.com/2012/11/06/buy-the-call-of-duty-black-ops-declassified-ps-vita-bundle-at-game-get-fifa-and-need-for-speed-free/ Tue, 06 Nov 2012 20:26:58 +0000 afterdarkgaming http://afterdarkgaming.wordpress.com/2012/11/06/buy-the-call-of-duty-black-ops-declassified-ps-vita-bundle-at-game-get-fifa-and-need-for-speed-free/

Starting next week at GAME in the UK, there will be a great deal waiting for anyone who decides that they want to pick up the Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified PlayStation Vita System Bundle for £229.99.

On top of a download voucher for Call of Duty: Black Ops Declassified,you’ll receive brand new copies of FIFA 13, Need For Speed: Most Wanted, The Amazing Spider-Man film, a 4GB memory card and a carrying case.

If you want to know just how good of a deal this is, the Black Ops Declassified bundle on its own sells for £249.99!

Don’t want this bundle but still want a Vita? GAME also has an Assassin’s Creed III: Liberation and Uncharted Golden Abyss one for £239.99. Or, there’s a LittleBigPlanet PS Vita, FIFA 13, and Uncharted: Golden Abyssbundle for £229.00

There is also going to be a Need For Speed: Most Wanted PlayStation Vita Bundle releasing on November 23rd, but it is currently priced at £247.99 on Amazon and doesn’t include any free stuff other than a 4GB memory stick.

Source: Playstationlifestyle.net

]]> <![CDATA[Kraven the Hunter as Amazing Spider-Man's Next Big Bad]]> http://whatwouldspideydo.wordpress.com/2012/08/09/kraven-the-hunter-as-amazing-spider-mans-next-big-bad/ Thu, 09 Aug 2012 15:33:58 +0000 Thomas Mets http://whatwouldspideydo.wordpress.com/2012/08/09/kraven-the-hunter-as-amazing-spider-mans-next-big-bad/ Kraven the Hunter has become a top-tier Spider-Man villain due primarily to the strength of one story in the comics. But his arc could easily be incorporated into 2-3 films, along with a few other villains.

This would be a possible follow-up trilogy to the current origin saga. For branding purposes, I think it’s useful to have an overriding arc for subsequent sagas just to make it easier to package a group of films. There’s also an epic sensibility to a story that lasts for several films. A Kraven trilogy could also be done at much later point, especially if Sony plans to continue making Spider-Man movies without rebooting even after they get new cast members. But it seems to fit the needs of The Amazing Spider-Man 4-6 pretty well.

Mysterio & Kraven’s First Hunt

Mysterio is ideal for any story in which Spider-Man is framed or questions his sanity. Kraven can always come to New York City, as a hunter explicitly drawn by Spider-Man’s presence. The two villains could work pretty well together, similar to the dynamic Kraven had with Chameleon in Amazing Spider-Man #15. Kraven might hire Mysterio to frame Spider-Man, and then be upset when Mysterio decides to hog the glory himself as a new superhero.

A story in which Spider-Man is framed can also be a good fit after the death of Gwen Stacy, when Spider-Man may be less popular than ever. If Peter Parker is poisoned or exposed to hallucinogenics, that experience can be even more painful in the immediate aftermath of the hero’s greatest tragedy.

The Gauntlet

This could be the middle film of a Kraven trilogy, although it also be ignored or combined with Kraven’s Last Hunt if Sony decides that another trilogy would be pushing it, and that two films would be satisfactory. The basic narrative would borrow elements of the Gauntlet mega-arc from the Spider-Man comics and the mini-series Spider-Man: Blue (which already influenced the first Amazing Spider-Man film) as Kraven manipulates several of Spider-Man’s enemies to weaken the hero.

The Rhino is an obvious match for this tale, as a big dumb guy who would happily quit being a supervillain. The battle for his soul could be the A-plot of a film, or it could be combined with several other narratives. The Sandman might have a similar arc to the Rhino, so this would be an ideal way to introduce the new film version of one of the bad guys from Spider-Man 3. And Harry Osborn’s struggles in the aftermath of The Amazing Spider-Man 3 could also tie into this storyline.

It could also introduce Ana Kraven, daughter of the Hunter, as the villain’s sidekick. She might have elements of JM Dematteis’s Chameleon, a subordinate who just wants Kraven’s acknowledgement, and is willing to fight Spider-Man to make that happen.

Kraven’s Last Hunt

Kraven final battle is one of the highlights of the Spider-Man books, and works rather well with some set-up. It has a fantastic hook: one of Spider-Man’s enemies buries him alive, and tries to impersonate the hero, to prove that he’s the better man. This leads him to battle against Vermin, a monster Spider-Man had never been able to defeat. And then a pissed off Spider-Man crawls out of the grave.

Kraven’s desperation and insanity actually works better if he had fought Spider-Man before. One approach would be to use the Lizard in Vermin’s role, allowing for a rematch between Spider-Man and the villain of The Amazing Spider-Man. Though Kraven could also try to use Venom, or one of the Goblins to prove that he is the superior Spider-Man. This could be combined with a Sinister Six storyline, as Kraven decides to prove that he’s better than Spider-Man by fighting an assortment of Spider-Man’s enemies.

Spider-Man would spend much of the film buried alive, which allows for horrific dream sequences, as well as the reactions of Mary Jane, and the rest of Peter’s supporting cast to his disappearance. The buried alive sequence could be the cliffhanger of The Amazing Spider-Man 5. And when Spidey crawls out, he discovers that he has to fight the Sinister Six.

The Sinister Six

When Raimi was in charge of the Spider-Man films, one popular suggestion was to pit Spider-Man against the Sinister Six for a hypothetical Spider-Man 6. Raimi didn’t quite play along, considering his propensity for killing off the major villains. Still, it’s entirely possible to feature the villainous supergroup in the current Spider-Man saga. It would be one way to cap off Garfield’s run on the series. If there’s a Venom spinoff series, there would be even more villains to choose from. This could mean that individual villains won’t have a chance to shine, and it’s a burden on the special effects and casting budgets. But there are ways to male it work.

If Kraven breaks the Sinister Six out of jail to see how effective he is at hunting them, there are several ways his arc might come to an end. They might just kill him. Or it could be the indignity of being rescued by Spider-Man that results in his decision to commit suicide.

Soul of the Hunter

JM Dematteis later had Spider-Man essentially suffer PTSD from the trauma of being buried alive for several weeks. So another way to turn Kraven’s story into a trilogy is to feature the first hunt, the Gauntlet and Kraven’s Last Hunt as two films, and use the next film to show the ramifications of the storyline on Spider-Man. This provides the filmmakers much more flexibility for the A-plot.

After two films in which Spider-Man fought several villains, it would also be an opportunity to feature a solo villain. The legendary wreckage scene from the Master Planner saga could be effective in a story in which Spider-Man’s shell-shocked after being buried alive, so this would be an opportunity to reintroduce Doctor Octopus. Or perhaps the mystery of the Hobgoblin.

Or it could feature relatives of Kraven seeking revenge. Either way is fine.

]]> <![CDATA[MOVIES // REVIEW // THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN]]> http://layoutmagazine.net/2012/07/14/movies-review-the-amazing-spiderman/ Sat, 14 Jul 2012 17:04:00 +0000 layoutmagazinebristol http://layoutmagazine.net/2012/07/14/movies-review-the-amazing-spiderman/

image courtesy of filmofilia.com

You can’t really avoid mentioning the short time between the 2002 Spider-Man film and this reboot.  Ten years just isn’t that long between Sam Raimi’s version and this latest one from Marc Webb (I reckon his surname got him the directing gig a little bit – maybe even 1% of the reason, but it counted, just so people like me could make jokes about it.)

 

You also can’t help but compare the two, as the decade old version is still fairly fresh in our minds, and the last of the sequels was only five years ago.   So which one is better?  The new one.  Slightly.

 

What you won’t find here is Spider-Man doing a Batman and ‘going dark’.  This is still a pretty breezy film, but it has cut down on the cartoony nature of the previous installments.  It isn’t really a film for kids, the 12A rating is justified if only because I suspect anyone under that age would be fairly bored for most of the 136 minute running time – which felt like a lot longer.  It really takes a good hour before anything gets going in the action stakes or he even puts on the famous costume.

 

The main problem with the film is that it’s an interpretation of a story we already know too well.  There’s no messing with the basic mythology here, adding new story arcs or characters or settings.  Peter Parker – orphaned nerdy type, raised by aunt and uncle, gets bitten by a spider, uncle gets murdered, Peter becomes Spider-Man.   You know how it’s going to go, so the journey there is crucial and it has to be kept interesting.  But I did find myself getting a bit restless during the first 45 minutes, wanting to point a giant remote control at the cinema screen in order to fast forward a bit, because I didn’t really feel like anything new was happening.

 

There’s a definite aim for the Twilight generation here with much focus on the burgeoning relationship between Parker and Gwen Stacey.   There is definite chemistry between Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone and they were extremely well cast – in terms of both likeability and acting ability, they spray Maguire and Dunst with a large can of Raid.  Garfield (you say Garfield, you think big orange cat) starts out with more of a balance of inner rage and calm than Tobey Maguire ever did and thankfully spends far less time doing the dopey wide-eyed wonder look as he comes to terms with his new abilities – which are presented as a pain in the arse as much as they are wonderful.

 

Now we have a hero, we need a villain.  This time it takes the form of Dr Curt Connors (really have to be careful when typing that, it could be Jeremy Hunt all over again) a relatively sane scientist who has a bit of a breakdown rather than going the full way to mad.  Wanting to grow back his missing arm he has been struggling to find the formula to merge human and reptilian genes in order to allow the regeneration of human tissue just like reptiles are able to do with their own missing parts.   Luckily Peter has the formula, discovered in the basement of his house in a fairly fashionable man-bag left behind by his father.  And the formula works!  Apart from making you into a giant lizard thing.  Whoops.  Now the action can start.

 

The special effects don’t really feel like they have moved on since the last instalment.  The Lizard looks like a big CGI lizard man.  The Hulk in Avengers Assemble looked better than this.  The web-shooting, city-flying scenes are done well although move so fast it becomes a little headache inducing (I’m glad I didn’t see it in 3D or I’d be laying down with an ice pack on my head right now rather than writing this).   Again, you know how the basic hero versus villain story is going to play out, so it’s the way they’ve done it which matters.  It’s good – it’s not great, but it’s good.

 

As for the rest of the cast, Martin Sheen and Sally Field are great as Peter’s aunt and uncle, Rhys Ifans does a serviceable job as Dr Curt Connors, but Dennis Leary looks out of place as the city police captain who also happens to be Gwen’s father.  He’s also doing very well at vying for a place on the list of “men who look like old lesbians” (Google it).   It’s a nice change in a blockbuster like this to only really have six main actors in the whole thing with no-one vying for attention or chewing the scenery in order to stand out.

 

Overall this reboot feels modern and up to date and the tone of it is right.  It’s not super serious but nor is it constantly playing for laughs.  Inside my local cinema they have it listed as  “Spider-Man 4” on the screening time boards (I’m wondering if The Hobbit will be listed as Lord Of The Rings 4 in December) and if you took out the origin aspect of the story, it’s easy to see how it could be mistaken for that.

 

Unnecessary reboot?  Yes.  Worthwhile reboot?  Yes.  It’ll be interesting to see if when the sequels come along they’ll be able to do more than just “villain of the week” scenarios, otherwise we’ll end up with another reboot in 2022.   Oh, and don’t leave when the end credits roll…give it a few minutes.

- Chris Broughton

]]> <![CDATA[The Amazing Spider-Man Video Game Review]]> http://thisiskmitv.com/2012/07/11/spider-man-video-game-review/ Wed, 11 Jul 2012 15:34:32 +0000 Mike P-S http://thisiskmitv.com/2012/07/11/spider-man-video-game-review/ If you liked Batman: Arkham City, it will be hard for you not to at least like The Amazing Spider-Man game a little.

After Beenox produced a pair of more linear Spidey games with Shattered Dimensions and Edge of Time, they put the wall crawler back into an open world with the the movie tie-in to The Amazing Spider-Man (which you can read more about here). The game picks up right where the movie left off, and considering that it came out before the movie did, it was quite spoiler filled.

Essentially Oscorp is trying to recover after all of the bad press they got with Curt Connors turning into a Lizard, and they are eliminating all of his research and moving on to nano technology. Then wouldn’t you know it, all hell breaks loose and the city is running rampant with mixed species monsters and psycho robots out to hunt the monsters, and both parties have it in for our red and blue hero. It’s not Shakespeare, but it is enough to keep you going through the game.

Like I said before, this game goes back to what people loved most about the older Spider-Man movie games, specifically Spider-Man 2, and that’s open world web slinging through Manhattan. Like the games before it, this is where the most fun is to be had. Physics kind of take a back seat as you can throw a web in the air and latch on to something no matter how high you are, and soar through the city. There are plenty of side missions and mini games to do, and while they can get repetitive after a while, it’s still fun to just get to all the points on the map via jumping and swinging through the city. There are also collectables to find throughout the game, but for me the best by far are comic book pages. Scattered around the game are pages of comic books. 500 in all. For every 20 or so pages you collect you get access to an old Spider-Man comic. The full issue. They range from Spidey’s first appearance to the first time he encountered Rhyno and so on. I find myself completely ignoring the missions and just looking for more pages.

The game works best when the action is kept outside

Speaking of the missions, this is probably where the game suffers most. They are very straight forward, and also very easy. Half of the stages turn into beat ‘em up sessions while the others are stealth based. Sound familiar? Both tactics are almost identical to Arkham City. There are stealth take downs from above and enemies that are equally aloof. The combat system is exactly the same. Hit the attack button to build combos, web shooters act as batarangs to stun enemies, and your spidey-sense kicks in for dodging much like the caped crusader (although I think we can all agree RockSteady took that from Spider-Man first). That’s all fine and still fun, but it is just too easy. First off the game really spoon feeds you everything. It will tell you when to use your web, when to attack, when to stop, everything. There are bosses that I beat using just the attack button. I didn’t realize he was the final boss of the level until the end. In a word, it’s anticlimactic. I recommend using the hardest difficulty setting if you want any challenge at all. The other problem with most of these levels is that it sticks Spider-Man inside, away from where the game is at it’s best. Not enough of the game is in the open world, which is a shame.

The Amazing Spider-Man game also lifts Arkham City’s navigation and upgrade system among other things. You have physical and tech upgrades that you earn points toward individually. The map is in the same style, with locations marked off to continue the story, then side missions marked in other areas. There are random muggings to stop as well. Snipers on the rooftops. Audio logs to find through out the game. I can go on and on. I know Arkham City didn’t invent any of these ideas, and they are all used in some fashion in most games, but it looks so similar and works in such a way that it has to be mentioned.

Graphically the game is a mixed bag. Spider-Man looks great, and when you are running around the city does too. The major New York land marks are there, with comic spots like the Daily Bugle and Oscorp tower thrown in as well. However when you look too closely you see how it is a little dated. Again, this is a movie tie-in so I can’t expect too much, but it is just one more thing that holds this title back.

Despite it’s shortcomings, The Amazing Spider-Man is a fun game to play. Much like the movie, this game brings Spider-Man back to his roots and mostly succeeds in spite of it’s flaws. If you aren’t a comic book fan it’s worth at least a rental. If are a comic book nerd like myself, it’s worth your money just for the comic books you can collect. You’ll spend more than enough time after finishing the main story looking for all of the comic pages in New York City.

]]> <![CDATA[Raw Edges: "The Amazing Spider-Man?"]]> http://closetconfessions.musecloset.com/2012/07/06/raw-edges-the-amazing-spider-man/ Sat, 07 Jul 2012 03:55:30 +0000 Muse Closet http://closetconfessions.musecloset.com/2012/07/06/raw-edges-the-amazing-spider-man/ Epic Movie

Jumping into my seat, I was so excited to see The Amazing Spider-Man. Question: is it amazing? I don’t really blog about movies unless an AMAZING fashion collection hits the screen, or fashion is a topic in the plot, yet I felt compelled to write about Spider-Man.

“The Amazing Spider Man”

“The Amazing Spider Man”

“The Amazing Spider Man”

When I heard that Emma Stone, from “The Help,” and Andrew Garfield were going to be staring in the new Spider-Man film, I couldn’t wait to see what would happen. After Stone’s red carpet moment at the Academy Awards, 2012, I felt she was going to bring fire to the role. Garfield, I felt would bring that slender clean look that Spider-Man needed–he did. At the movie première, both bought golden looks to the red carpet, so how did it all fall flat.

84th-annual-academy-awards-arrivals-emma-stone

emma_stone_the_help_still

“The Amazing Spider Man”

Hollywood loves to make epic movies, and The Amazing Spiderman is part of the formula. Shuffle the deck, minus cartoonish rhetoric, and boom you have a new story. The movie swings, as spiderman does from building to building, but touching new nerves along the way. You already know what’s going to happen, you just don’t know when it will swing into action. Why make something that reeks of the original, to only obtain no new traction–money?! The new film did break box-office records.

“The Amazing Spider Man”

“The Amazing Spider Man”

andrew-garfield-spiderman-costume

After an amazing performance in the Academy Award nominated film, “The Help,” Stone had no lines of memorial, and no performance moment to capture movie magic. A slender more refined, Garfield fills out the Spider-Man costume  like fine wine–delicious. However, the only new idea that The Amazing Spider-Man delivers is pain. The human element is really all that has changed, Spider-Man gets hurt with bumps and bruises–a man behind a mask. I see a page from “Batman Begins” really helped turn the page–just not enough.

‘The Amazing Spider Man’ – Paris Premiere

“The Amazing Spider Man”

Andrew-Garfield-In-Balenciaga-The-Amazing-Spider-Paris-Premiere

For die-hard fans I am sure this movie will still be a hit. The only memorable moment is Stan Lee’s cameo, entirely worth the price of admission. This is only my lonely opinion, and I hope for most, this new film will not disappoint. Still watchable like every epic film, I just wish amazing was left out of the title.

“The Amazing Spider Man”

“The Amazing Spider Man”

“The Amazing Spider Man”

What did hold me inside the film was no more Mary Jane. An actress playing a wannabe–that’s new!? I am glad we have someone with a brain to help Spider-Man this time. I am not a blockbuster movie guy, and I have never been into comics, but I do like comic book genre films. When Spider-Man hit broadway, Vogue showcased its costume design, and I lined up for my ticket. Fashion is created by rebels; outcasts who live on the edge, who create in the shadows of reality. Like fashion, comic books create fantasy for those who want to add color to our reality.

-spider-man-vogue-

-spider-man-vogue-

-spider-man-vogue-

What originally drew me to these movies was the element of wonderment. A movie is a dream come to life highlighted with romanticism. That maybe the film student in me talking, but stylistic graphics dance fluidly across the screen to capture audience members. Spiderman is built on a wealth of history. Therefore, I think a departure from the original storyline would have added greater depth with stylish movie magic. Just like, Bruce Wayne learning to become a man, and IronMan taking grip of his testosterone, The Amazing Spider-Man needed to find heart.

MC

]]> <![CDATA["The Amazing Spider-Man" Review]]> http://thisiskmitv.com/2012/07/03/the-amazing-spider-man-review/ Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:57:03 +0000 Mike P-S http://thisiskmitv.com/2012/07/03/the-amazing-spider-man-review/ Be prepared true believers, The Amazing Spider-Man is the best Spider-Man film to date, and might even be better than The Avengers. Yeah, you read that right.

Not everyone was exactly anticipating it like the Marvel string of movies or especially The Dark Knight Rises, but the reboot of the Spider-Man movie franchise is here and it is superior to the old model in virtually every way. You just have to kind of forget the old model exists to fully appreciate it.

I would normally say something about spoilers here, but if you saw any of the Sam Raimi movies or read any Spider-Man comics in the last 50 years, you pretty much know exactly what to expect here. Peter Parker is a dork who gets bit by a radioactive spider, gets powers, learns responsibility and everything else you know. The early stages of the movie can almost be swapped frame for frame with the previous series. Parker gets denied by women, Flash Thompson is a jerk, Peter embarrasses Flash in school, Ben Parker teaches life lessons about responsibility just before dying in a way that Peter could have inadvertently prevented (c’mon you had to know that was coming, right?). On the surface there is very little new. This is inevitable considering we know the characters and the story so well. However when looking closer, you’ll realize that the reboot handles all of these things a lot better.

Flash Thompson has more depth than just being a one note bully. Uncle Ben and Aunt may are much more detailed that before. Ben doesn’t just spew out one liners about being a good person. It comes out more organically. When Peter starts to develop his costume you see the transition from ski mask to the full suit. It makes it become almost believable that it could exist.

Then there is the new. Where we all scoffed at the tagline about “the untold story,” The Amazing Spider-Man does look deeper into Peter’s parent’s, who are scientists who knew too much about whatever it is they knew. The science background lends itself to make Peter the genius that we know from the comics, providing another difference from the trilogy. This reboot is much more faithful to the comics than anything before it. Peter is able to develop the web-shooters on his own, just like in the comics. The background of his father combined with some good timing make it seems much less impossible when he figures out all of the things he pulls off. The photography is there, but just as a hobby instead of going straight to the Daily Bugle. Why doesn’t he go there? Because he’s in high school! Where he belongs!

The other two main differences in the reboot are that he is in high school for the entire film, and Mary Jane Watson is nowhere to be seen. Again staying true to the comics, the love interest in this film is Gwen Stacey. Peter’s first love. This is important as to have one less thing to directly compare to the original films. The other thing it does is let the characters have some fun. Where things got awfully dramatic for Spider-Man the first time around, this time he is a lot more fun loving, and a lot of it has to do with Andrew Garfield.

Where Maguire looked like Peter Parker right off the page of the comics, Andrew Garfield shows much more of Parker’s personality, while still maintaining that look. Not that it was all his fault, but Maguire’s Parker was more of a nerdy man. He wasn’t specifically clever, just corny. Garfield is legitimately funny and interesting as Peter, and is pretty noble and cool well before he ever gets bitten by a spider. Being a high school student definitely helps as it let’s Peter just be an awkward teenager. The only critique I have is that Peter comes off as a bit of a horn-dog. Like I’m talking creepy at times. I can give him a bit of a pass though since he’s supposed to be a teenager, and he’s creeping on a Gwen Stacy being played by Emma Stone. Even Uncle Ben agrees she’s a looker. Stone plays a solid Stacy. Her and Garfield have good chemistry together and work the high school relationship tension as well as they can. I think we are at the end of the rope though for Emma Stone playing a 17 year old girl. I don’t care how good of an actress you are, you can’t make me believe you’re not legal with those stockings young lady. Martin Sheen and Sally Field due Uncle Ben and Aunt May justice as well. As I said before, both characters have more depth than they previously did. May is much less fragile this time around, and Ben can handle himself too. Someone finally realized that they are Peter’s aunt and uncle, not his grandparents.

Of course what superhero movie is complete without a villain. To keep things fresh we have the Lizard, who had been teased throughout the Sam Raimi movies. He, more than any other character, follows the same path as the previous movies. Like every Spider-Man movie villain before him, Lizard is a sympathetic character who chooses the wrong path in pursuit of success. There isn’t much to the Lizard, who isn’t exactly at the top of Spidey’s rogues gallery, but he also doesn’t overshadow Spider-Man, who is the real star here. His alter-ego, Dr. Curt Connors, is played by Rhys Ifans. Ifans essentially takes the place of Norman Osborn in the first film (for now). Connors becomes a father figure to Peter, which creates drama on both sides when they have to fight each other. There isn’t much too him, but he does enough to move everything along and give Spider-Man someone to fight.

That is where The Amazing Spider-Man separates itself from movies like Iron Man. Tony Stark had a very engaging introduction to his character, but he never really had a challenge on his hands. Here, Spider-Man has some great fight scenes with the Lizard, and the action comes off looking really well in 3D. Overall, The Amazing Spider-Man spends a little too much time retelling a story we have already seen several times before, but they have enough additions and revisions to put this among the best movies (not just superhero movies) of the summer.

]]> <![CDATA[Spider-Man: A Review with Some Advice]]> http://letsbefrankie.wordpress.com/2012/07/03/spider-man-a-review-with-some-advice/ Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:44:32 +0000 Frankie http://letsbefrankie.wordpress.com/2012/07/03/spider-man-a-review-with-some-advice/ In what I suppose you could call a spontaneous decision, I decided to see the new Spider-Man reboot film at midnight with a friend. I have never been the biggest Spider-Man fan to begin with and Spider-Man 3 left such a sour taste in my mouth that despite my love for all things Marvel, I was not excited about seeing this movie. In fact, I had told my friends repeatedly that I was setting the bar so low that my philosophy became “just don’t be terrible.” That’s asking for very little, especially if you’re familiar with my fondness for the Marvel franchise. That being said, I have to give credit where credit is due and state that this Spider-Man reboot far exceeded my expectations. Before we continue, a little disclaimer for what’s to come in this post: If you’re worried about spoilers, fear not as this is solely what I thought of the movie with no plot details whatsoever.

The movie was good, really good, actually. The fight scenes were fast-paced and took advantage of the fact that this was technically the fourth Spider-Man film they’ve made. What I mean by that is that they clearly showed they had done this before and were trying to build and improve on what was already produced in terms of action. Most of the cheesy nonsense that was present in the ludicrous third movie was eliminated as the film focused more on telling a story. Speaking of the story, I’m not going to give anything away but if you know anything about Spider-Man or have simply seen the three previous movies then you probably know what to expect, maybe not in terms of specific events but at least thematically. It’s a tested formula but it works. This point is actually really important to remember if you plan on seeing the movie. Don’t forget that it IS a reboot. It is not a sequel. This seems like really simple advice but I can’t say much else without spoiling the movie. Hopefully you’ll know exactly what I mean if and when you do see it.

The reboot film also brought one brand new aspect to the Spider-Man franchise with the use of 3D. Everyone has an opinion about movies in 3D. Some people love it, some people hate that it has become so commercial. Some people don’t care about it at all and are just plain frugal and don’t want to spend the extra money. That’s all fine and dandy but to those people I say stay the hell home and rent a DVD if you just want to “get your money’s worth.” If you’re part of that philosophy then don’t approach the 3D in this movie or any other for that matter as a cinematic element but rather a financial hindrance. Personally, I come from a bit of a different school of thought in that I don’t mind movies being in 3D as long as it is done right. I’m okay with seeing a 3D movie every once in a while but I get more annoyed when a 3D movie wastes my time more than my money. I enjoyed the third Transformers film because of the 3D action scenes. I hated that Toy Story 3 was in 3D because I didn’t even notice it. It didn’t need 3D to be good the way Transformers did. Spider-Man kind of meets you in the middle with an appropriate balance. If you enjoy 3D as a whole then I would definitely recommend seeing it in that format. If you don’t particularly care for it, then don’t bother. Just don’t come crying to me if you didn’t think the fights and web slinging were as cool as the rest of us did.

There is one glaring aspect of the movie that I wasn’t particularly fond of. It didn’t NEED to be a reboot. Sure certain aspects of the plotline worked because you were seeing the transition of Peter Parker to Spider-Man, but I would have rather they tweaked the story a bit and continued where the third film left off. Despite hating Spider-Man 3, I would have at least appreciated an attempt to salvage it with a direct sequel. We know how Peter Parker becomes Spider-Man by now. We didn’t need to see that again. The only major thing the reboot accomplished was that we saw Gwen Stacy instead of Mary Jane. (With a way more talented and attractive actress, I might add.) They’re different characters entirely so that was at least refreshing but even that could have been done in a sequel. I would go as far to say that if you took a survey of only people who didn’t like this movie, more than half of them would describe the reboot factor in some fashion. Which brings me to my final point with some direct advice to the powers that be…

Don’t screw this up. Seriously, don’t miss one single step from here on out because if you do, Marvel fans and moviegoers alike will destroy you for wasting our time. We should never end up with anything even remotely close to that atrocious Spider-Man 3 film. If you absolutely had to give us this reboot, you better take complete advantage of it. Don’t make the same mistakes you made before by cramming in as many villains as you can just to make it sound more attractive. If you plan on repeating previous characters, use ONLY the Green Goblin & Venom. They’re the only two that are essential to the Spider-Man saga and the only two people will actually care about seeing again, assuming they are done right of course. (Right means better than the first time around.) Just because we have seen Spidey in a trilogy before doesn’t mean we want all the same elements we are used to. Deviate from the plan a little. Surprise us. You know why people love the Dark Knight? Because Heath Ledger’s Joker shattered the image everyone already had of the character in the most positive way possible. That can be done with Spider-Man and his villains. Osbourne can be the homicidal maniac who terrorizes Peter Parker, the person. Venom can be Spider-Man’s evil equal on the streets of New York. It doesn’t need to be all dark and gritty like Batman but the sequel (of course there’s at least one sequel) shouldn’t be just another Spider-Man movie. Make the reboot mean something. Batman has been rebooted three times. Yes, three in case you didn’t know. You know what all three different versions of Batman have in common? Absolutely nothing.

]]> <![CDATA[Fan Film - Spider-Man (1969)]]> http://thebrandrackley.wordpress.com/2012/06/21/fan-film-spider-man-1969/ Thu, 21 Jun 2012 16:30:59 +0000 brandrackley http://thebrandrackley.wordpress.com/2012/06/21/fan-film-spider-man-1969/ Here is a 1969 fan film that is the first ever documented Spider-Man fan film and may very well be the first live action Spider-Man film ever made. Sadly, I’d be willing to bet that it’s a helluva lot better than the web slingers newest film, The Amazing Spider-Man. Enjoy.

Spider-Man – 1969 Fan Film:

The first ever documented Spider-Man fan film, and the first (unofficial) live action appearance of Spider-Man from 1969! This was produced by Donald F. Glut and was his last amateur film (he had produced many other Marvel fan films before this) before moving on to write for classic cartoons like Transformers and Spider-Man and His Amazing Friends.

 

 

]]> <![CDATA[Ottawa Comiccon Trailer]]> http://bywardofmouth.ca/2012/05/17/ottawa-comiccon-trailer/ Thu, 17 May 2012 16:26:33 +0000 Byward of Mouth http://bywardofmouth.ca/2012/05/17/ottawa-comiccon-trailer/

For the first time in the history of the event, Comiccon came to the Nation’s Capital this past weekend, setting up shop at the CE Centre. The response was almost overwhelming and all positive. With sold out crowds Saturday and an almost equal followup on Sunday there is now talk of the event returning again, even being extended to three days. All speculation aside, the event was a major hit and the organizers should be very proud as they pulled off a great con!

In the weeks to come keep checking in to see our full coverage of the event and the costumed characters we encountered there, as well as a couple interviews with some local talent we met on location. Featured among these will be interviews with Steampunk Costume Expert and Seamstress, or “Steamstress” Edith Chartier and the founders of a new local clothing line Robot Punch. All this and more to come from Ottawa Comiccon 2012 & bywardofmouth.ca!

More Footage after the jump.

]]> <![CDATA[The Best Comic Book Movie Castings?]]> http://themovieuniverse.wordpress.com/2012/03/13/the-best-comic-book-movie-castings/ Tue, 13 Mar 2012 13:21:27 +0000 themovieuniverse http://themovieuniverse.wordpress.com/2012/03/13/the-best-comic-book-movie-castings/ Casting is a vital part of the film; if you get the wrong actor to play a character it can go horribly wrong and the whole movie could fail because of it. Never is this more true than in the world of comic book movies. Millions of fans all over the world are already in love with the characters before they are brought to the big screen and if you cast someone that the fans are not happy about they will not hold back, you shall know about it! But when casting goes right, it brings out some of the best performances and best characters in the world. Here are my top eight perfectly cast comic book movie characters.

8. Chris Evans as The Human Torch

Known to many comic book fans now as Captain America, Evans made his first appearance in comic book movies in the awful Fantastic Four films. Despite both films being criticised heavily by almost everyone, fans and critics alike, nobody could criticise Chris Evans as Johnny Storm, the Human Torch. He outperformed the rest of the cast by a country mile and bought a much needed charm and sense of humour to the role.

7. Ed Norton as Bruce Banner

When it was announced that Ed Norton would not return for The Avengers as Bruce Banner fans were outraged and with good reason. Norton’s performance as the troubled scientist who turns into the Incredible Hulk was brilliant. Norton had a lot of hard work to do because of the negative fan reaction to Ang Lee’s 2003 interpretation of the character but the casting of Norton and his incredible performance won the hearts of many Hulk fans.

6. J.K. Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson

The original Spider-man trilogy, directed by Sam Raimi, may not have been the most perfectly cast Spider-man film in the world but J.K Simmons as J. Jonah Jameson was a masterpiece. He looked identical to the comic book portrayal of the character and fans loved his performance. A highlight of the, soon to be rebooted, Spider-man franchise.

5. Christopher Reeve as Superman

Does this really need explaining? The man IS Superman. There has never been a better Superman before or since on neither the big screen or small screen. Reeve was an excellent casting as the Man of Steel and is still celebrated among comic book fans.

4. Heath Ledger as The Joker

Ledger won a posthumous Oscar for his appearance as the Joker and rightfully so. Ledger managed to bring this psychotic vision of The Dark Knight’s arch nemesis to the screen and make him genuinely scary. It was a sad loss when he passed away but he will always be remembered as the Joker and one of comic book movie’s finest castings.

3. Chloe Moretz as Hit Girl

Many people don’t think of Kick-Ass when they think of comic book adaptations but this is where the origins of the story lie. Chloe Moretz is great as the ‘hero’ Hit Girl. She is a small girl who packs a powerful performance and is the star of Kick Ass without a doubt. She has a huge career ahead of her built on this performance.

2. Patrick Stewart as Professor X

Straight off, Patrick Stewart looks the part, down to a tee. But his performance further proves why he was the perfect choice to play the mentor to the X-men, Professor X. His calm and cool demeanour brought a lot of character to the role and then in the second instalment, X2 (one of the best comic book movies ever made) he was able to show off the emotional side to his character even more. And as well as that, his chemistry with Ian McKellen’s Magneto was a joy to behold. A fine casting decision.

And finally…

1. Robert Downey Jnr. as Tony Stark

Perfection!

The perfect casting of a comic book character if ever there was one. Downey Jnr doesn’t just play the character, he actually is Tony Stark. He has the look sorted; he has the charm, the wit, the charisma and you believe his intelligence. Iron Man was the beginning of the whole Marvel Universe which comes together this summer with The Avengers so a lot was riding on this first film and Robert Downey Jnr drew the plaudits right from the offset. Tony Stark came to life in the Iron Man films and made Downey Jnr a household name again; his performance was a joy to behold and I sincerely hope he is Tony Stark for a long time to come.

Honourable mentions

Ian McKellen – Magneto

Kelsey Grammer – Beast

Ron Perlman – Hellboy

Jackie Earl Haley – Rorschach

Anthony Hopkins – Odin

]]> <![CDATA[Origin stories: enough is enough]]> http://bizzammovienews.com/2012/02/29/origin-stories-enough-is-enough/ Wed, 29 Feb 2012 11:57:40 +0000 Chris http://bizzammovienews.com/2012/02/29/origin-stories-enough-is-enough/ Note:  This post may be updated if I think of more to gripe about.  And I’m sure I will . . .

As a fan of comic book films, and having grown up collecting comics, I find myself starting to be bored with most of the comic genre films being released.  The reason being that a huge number of them are the origin stories of the characters.  How much is too much?

The Crow

Image via Wikipedia

When ‘The Crow‘ was released in 1994, it was an origin story, but it was a one off.  The character was only destined to be in one film, though I’m sure that had Brandon Lee survived the filming that the studio would have figured out a way to make a sequel.

Jump to 2002 and we get ‘Spider-man’, another origin story.  At this point, the origin story was still fresh, and not only did we get the origin of Spider-man, but also The Green Goblin.  After 2 successful sequels, we are getting another Spider-man film, ‘The Amazing Spider-man’ , this summer.  As a reboot of the franchise we get a new Peter Parker and, not so shockingly, another origin story.

In the years since ‘Spider-man’  we have seen 2 “Iron Man films, 2 separate ‘Hulk’ films, 2 separate ‘Punisher’ films, ‘Captain America: The First Avenger‘, ‘Thor’, 2 ‘Batman’ films 2 ‘Fantastic Four’ films, and countless graphic novel adaptations.  Most of these have been origin films.

In the pipeline for this year alone, we are looking at ‘The Dark Knight Rises‘, ‘The Amazing Spider-man’, and ‘The Avengers’.  Luckily, it seems that only ‘The Amazing Spider-man’ will be the only origin story.  But when is enough is enough?  I personally am tired of origin stories.  I would rather the studios just throw us into the movie and not treat us like we are morons.  We are smart enough to figure out what is going on without all the hand holding that an origin story provides.  I would rather be thrust into the world and learn the world as the story progresses.  ’V for Vendetta’, ‘Watchmen’, and even ‘Constantine’ do this well.  Those films do not treat you like a fool.  They allow you to understand the world through the eyes of the characters.

Logos for MCU films. From top to bottom: Iron ...

Image via Wikipedia

In short, quit treating us like children.  I don’t need or want another origin story or reboot.  I liked ‘Superman Returns’ and wanted to see the conclusion to that story.  Instead, next year we get a reboot.  And I am sure it will be ANOTHER origin story.  How many times do we need to see Superman become Superman?  We already know who he is and how he got that way.  So, please stop.  Please?

]]> <![CDATA[The Amazing Spider-Man: Trailer #2]]> http://cinemadeviant.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/the-amazing-spider-man-trailer-2/ Tue, 07 Feb 2012 17:25:45 +0000 davebot5k http://cinemadeviant.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/the-amazing-spider-man-trailer-2/ ]]> <![CDATA[Thor (2011)]]> http://decompresshere.wordpress.com/2011/05/24/thor-2011/ Tue, 24 May 2011 14:36:39 +0000 joshpietrowski http://decompresshere.wordpress.com/2011/05/24/thor-2011/

I’m going to be honest with you. Anytime I hear a line like “Do me a favor and don’t be dead, k?” within the first five minutes of a film, i can almost guarantee you i’m going to spend the next 100 minutes making fun of it. A great conversation last night with a few friends brought up the topic of accountability when it comes to “Comic Book Movies”.  Should they be held to the same high standard as other movies? Should they be allowed to be written off because the stories themselves got their start in 1942 and were originally written for prepubescent baseball card collectors?

I say NO.

A good argument against my position here is that most comic book movies aren’t going to satisfy me if i am looking for Oscar Worthy performances and down to earth, touching story lines. But in reality, all I’m looking for is sound Dialog. And to those of you who say that Comic Character based filmdom is not capable of producing a well written script and that I should just get over it, i give you this:

And this, in fact, was my beef with Thor. You truly wont find a bigger comic book movie fan than me. I don’t care how bad Ghost Rider was, or how terrible Spiderman 2 and 3 were. I will still get excited for every comic book movie that is even rumored about on some 13 year old’s filmblog. I am stoked for Xmen, Captain America and Green Lantern this summer. I am pumped for Batman, The Avengers, and yes…even the new Spiderman next year. However, i fully expect my enthusiasm to be met with a decent product. Thor, in and of itself, was decent. But one thing i won’t do is sit around and act like each film was incredible just because it was a comic book film, much like some of my friends decide their favorite bands new album is the greatest thing on earth, halfway through track four.

Thor was slow, and followed the stereotypical arch of Good version of unfamiliar type of character fights Bad version(s) of unfamiliar type of character (see: Iron Man, Iron man 2, Xmen, Spiderman 3, Incredible Hulk) but at the end of the day wasn’t the worst film ever. I’d go see it again. What Thor was, however, was just another film in the catalog of projects that proves Marvel’s commitment to editing a film for quality sound, special effects, character likeness…but i don’t think they take the time to sit and listen to the lines they’ve paid people to write…to listen to their own products speaking, and say “Wow, that was f*%&ing stupid.”

MY GRADE: 78% C+

]]> <![CDATA[The Amazing Spider-Man Teaser Poster]]> http://geeksyndicate.co.uk/2011/05/22/the-amazing-spider-man-teaser-poster/ Sun, 22 May 2011 20:13:58 +0000 montoc1701 http://geeksyndicate.co.uk/2011/05/22/the-amazing-spider-man-teaser-poster/ <![CDATA[(SHORT NOTES) Really Happy Stuff: NPR Pop Culture Hour, James Franco, and more!]]> http://jonathanhurwitz.wordpress.com/2010/11/25/short-notes-really-happy-stuff-npr-pop-culture-hour-james-franco-and-more/ Thu, 25 Nov 2010 20:42:43 +0000 jonathanhurwitz http://jonathanhurwitz.wordpress.com/2010/11/25/short-notes-really-happy-stuff-npr-pop-culture-hour-james-franco-and-more/ Sunday means one thing: NPR Pop Culture Happy Hour.

I’ve combated the all-work-no-play epidemic by reserving time every Sunday for my friends at PCHH. And for the little jingle from Mike Katzif’s band Hello Come In that ushers in each new podcast and consistently puts a little smile on my face.

De dum. De dum dum dum.

 

(I’m wondering if my use of the word “friends” is premature. Whenever you share an interest with a friend or acquaintance there’s that initial, “Well. You must me OK if you like (insert pop culture reference here),” so this makes me think they’d at least like me a little. Upon first meeting, Stephen and I would most likely talk about the magic that is “Kung Fu Panda,” Linda and I would relive our favorite moments from the brilliance that is “Community,” Trey and I would cry over “The Big C” finale because none of my friends watch it and I really want to talk about Adam crying in the garage of gifts, and Glen and I would wrap up via reminiscences about our separate albeit similar experiences at swim-up bars with happy, smiling people in exotic locales. That was a long sentence, but it was worth it.)

Anyways, through an ongoing process of trial and error, I’m finally twiddling down the online sources on which I rely for all things news, and NPR’s coverage of the arts via podcasts like PCHH remains at the top of the list. So, thanks to NPR hosts Linda Holmes, Stephen Thompson, Trey Graham, and Glen Weldon, I’d like to use one of my favorite NPR podcasts as inspiration for a little weekly section on my blog. (Follow the gang here: http://www.npr.org/blogs/monkeysee/) The podcast often closes with a section called “Things Making Me Happy,” during which the hosts talk about what’s made them happy that week. So, I’d like to do the same thing here.

However, as discussed a few weeks ago on PCHH, it’s important to recognize online lists and recommendations as very, very subjective. If you don’t like me, then you probably won’t be interested in hearing what I have to say about James Franco’s new book. But if you’re reading this, you’re most likely Claire (or another one of my close friends who actually reads these posts), which means you’ll hold my opinion a little higher than said person who hates me.

So, this week in Happy, with a capital H:

1. It Gets Better Project

Last September, author Dan Savage created a YouTube video with his partner to give hope and inspiration for young people dealing with harassment. As the website explains, the “It Gets Better Project” has since been created “to show young LGBT people the levels of happiness, potential, and positivity their lives will reach–if they can just get through their teen years. The It Gets Better Project wants to remind teenagers in the LGBT community that they are not alone—and it WILL get better.” Thousands of viewers including celebrities and activists have joined the cause, and you should, too. Click here to learn more and watch the videos: http://www.itgetsbetter.org/

 

2. James Franco

This guy fascinates me. He shares my desire to know a lot about everything, so I try to live through him vicariously as he hops around from university to university, impressively soaking up all the knowledge he can and then moving on to the next one, like a vampire sucking blood from a human. (Is this simile too graphic? I have a funny visual while writing this of Franco literally hopping on land from NYU to UCLA, thirsty for knowledge.)

Most people know him as James Franco the Actor, but he’s recently dabbled in performance art and has also just published his first book, a collection of short stories called Palo Alto.

Our time at NYU coincided by one semester so I had the unique privilege of being taught by him in a small classroom one evening. He brought in Yugoslavian/Serbian/Montenegrin performance artist Marina Abramović to speak to us, and they both left me just as confused as I was when the lecture began as to what performance art really is. Something about communication between the artist and the audience without a script. Nevertheless James (Is this too informal? Should I call him Franco?) was quite engaging while speaking. It must be the acting.

In the past two weeks I’ve also read Palo Alto and seen both “Howl” and “127 Hours,” his latest acting vehicles. His book is a light and innocuous read, comprised of short stories about troubled misfits in his hometown of Palo Alto. A few of the stories feature a female narrator and recurring characters, which ultimately create the most engaging narrative. I understand why reviews have intimated Franco should stick with acting, but if you ignore the Bret Easton Ellis parallels and at least try to separate the actor from his words, I think you can find Alto to be a quick and enjoyable read.

While he may not write with the poetic brilliance of Ginsberg, he embodies the famed Beat poet perfectly in the biopic “Howl. Scenes with Franco reading the 1955 controversial poem are joined onscreen by beautiful animated sequences that bring the poem to life, footage from the obscenity trial surrounding the actual reading of the poem in the 50s, and interviews with dialogue taken straight from a Playboy magazine interview in which Ginsberg was asked about his struggles with his homosexuality.

But if you prefer a one-armed Franco (his left, to be exact), perhaps “127 Hours” should be your Franco flick of choice this holiday season. Unless your stomach can’t handle a human game of Operation, that is. The movie is based on the true story of Aron Ralston, the twenty-eight-year-old who got stuck in a Utah canyon and was ultimately forced to amputate his lower right arm. While it’s easy to get lost in the anticipation of this final extraordinary event, I most enjoyed when the film slowed down and we just got to see Franco reacting to his surroundings. The footage from the camcorder Ralston used to record his experience was released to Boyle and Franco during the making of the movie, and it was these recreated moments that felt most personal and engaging. Boyle drives the story in a fast-paced “Slumdog” tradition via split screens, quick cuts, and pumping music, but it’s these slower scenes that really let you in on the pain and torture Ralston endured. And then there’s always a good ol’ cameo from a life-size Scooby Doo blowup to pump up the action.

Kudos James, kudos. I look forward to seeing what you do next. I recommend a one-man Off Broadway show during which you read Kerouac’s On The Road cover to cover.

 

 

3. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Go into any bookstore and you’ll most likely find this book, cover facing proudly forward, in any one of the main displays. And rightfully so. The premise really speaks for itself: Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen lives in a dystopian future where one girl and one boy between the ages of twelve and eighteen must participate in the annual Hunger Games, a televised fight-to- the-death battle. The reader joins Katniss on her high-stake journey as she volunteers to take her sister’s spot in the Games.

I’m fascinated by the idea of humans as conditional beings, those whom could do the unexpected given the right time and place. And this is exactly what the book explores through Katniss’s fight for survival. You’ll be asking questions throughout: Why would she risk her own life? How can the Capitol create such a cruel event? More important, how can they then publicize it for all to see?

The more interesting questions, however, arise when thinking about what you do if you lived in the fictional country of Panem. Would you be able to watch this on TV? Would you be able to kill another human being if it meant you could survive and bring glory to your town? The answers will keep you busy, and the book will most likely be over before you know it.

But don’t fret. There are two more books in the trilogy, and the movie adaptation obviously has a tentative start date next year. (I use the word “obvious” because making movies from books is the thing to do these days.)

I’m thinking Saoirse Ronan would make the perfect Katniss.

 

 

4. “The Simpsons” opening credit sequences

Since most opening credits stay the same week after week, I appreciate “The Simpsons” for switching it up and using FOX and Banksy references, among many others. Click here and watch the opening credits of “The Fool Monty” and “MoneyBART”: http://www.hulu.com/the-simpsons

‘Nuff said.

 

 

5. “Community”

This season Trey and Abed built a blanket fort, which quickly became the site of Jeff and Annie’s pursuit of Professor Professorson, a Turkish district, a Latvian parade, and a Civil Rights Museum.

What other show could pull off consistently wacky but brilliant A- and B-plots each week?

‘Nuff said.

]]> <![CDATA[The Evil Dead]]> http://monsterscifishow.wordpress.com/2010/10/02/the-evil-dead/ Sat, 02 Oct 2010 04:00:24 +0000 Staff http://monsterscifishow.wordpress.com/2010/10/02/the-evil-dead/ <![CDATA[The Evil Dead Limited Edition]]> http://whiteglossyundergroundboard.com/2010/08/25/the-evil-dead-limited-edition/ Wed, 25 Aug 2010 21:30:36 +0000 eggshellwhite http://whiteglossyundergroundboard.com/2010/08/25/the-evil-dead-limited-edition/