News Chat - by Rodney - November 7, 2009 - 08:40 America/Montreal - 16 Comments
Jem was a big hit in the 80s, and while she disappeared like the overly decorated gimmick bands of her time. And the show was every girl’s dream to be a successful record label owner by day and totally outrageous pink haired popstar by night!
JoBlo shares:
The truly, truly, truly outrageous rock star is making a big comeback at Hasbro that will include a new toy line and the possibility of a live-action movie. Why now? Well first, Hasbro is flush with cash after the successes of both TRANSFORMERS and GI JOE. Second, it turns out the rights to the property were tied up in legal red tape until 2008 and now that they belong solely to Hasbro, they’re moving forward with a revival.
And that’s all the world needs is a scantilly clad pop singer with too much makeup!
And without the sarcasm, I can seriously see Hasbro rebuilding this franchise. Even the boys used to like Jem back in the day. We wouldnt admit it, but she was made of hawt.
Granted in todays market this will solely be a girly toy, and if the feature film gets off the ground they will likely get some cute popstar to take on the mantle of Jem and churn out some albums until that artist decides she wants to be taken seriously.
It wont be a toy that my wife will have to stop me from collecting, but for loosely nostalgic reasons (the show was on right before Bigfoot and Robotix! honest!!!) I will be interested in finding out what they do with it.
They had a hot Keytar player man!!!
News Chat - by Rodney - November 7, 2009 - 06:58 America/Montreal - 6 Comments
I am conflicted by the new take on Sherlock Holmes, I want to like it, and I think they are distracting me away from the bad parts with Rachel McAdams in a corset.
Wait.. what was I talking about? Sorry… got lost there. Here’s the new trailer for Sherlock Holmes:
Maybe its just me, but I get the feeling that Watson and Holmes are a little closer than a Bromance. Even with Rachel McAdams there, it seems that those two are … very close. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
I like the dirtier grittier Holmes instead of this direct spoken calm stress free Holmes that is often depicted. This one is not so “together” and is a step futher eccentric than his reputation suggests.
I think this trailer won me over completely and I really want to see this now. Oh, and McAdams NOT in a corset was distracting too.
News Chat, Reviews - by Rodney - November 6, 2009 - 13:30 America/Montreal - 6 Comments
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Thanks for checking out our Forgotten Fridays feature. This is a feature to review some older films that maybe you have forgotten about or maybe never got around to seeing that we just want to share. They may not be old, maybe not forgotten, but they are not new. Just fun to share.
Today’s review is Zapped!
THE GENERAL IDEA
Barney is a student/science lab nerd who obtains telekinetic powers after a lab accident. Along with his best friend Peyton Nichols (Willie Aames), a wealthy playboy with a dirty mind, Barney uses his new powers for no better reasons than beating up bullies, cheating at sports and stripping girls, particularly co-star Heather Thomas.
THE GOOD
This is 80s sexploitation at its most modest. For the most part we seen teens in lingerie (because all girls had fashionable matching undergarments in the 80s) and a few quick boob shots, but the whole movie is basically just a “what would you do” exploration and there really is no point to it. But its a fun ride, and you get to see the nerdy science geek get some revenge, and the inner teased school kid in you cheers (unless you were that bully – you jerks)
This film is also what started the relationship that got Baio and Willie Aames to work together again in TV’s Charles in Charge.
THE BAD
When Baio gets these superpowers the first thing he obviously thinks to do is strip women publicly. That’s pretty much the plot of the movie. Shirts popping open, dresses flying off in the air, skirts hiking up. Oh, he also uses his powers to freak out some priests and make the bully kick his own ass. So its basically just a free for all of “what would you do with telekenisis”
OVERALL
This is a brain off fun film that is more nostalgia than quality. I remember watching the crap out of this on VHS as a kid but then I was 11, so of course it was cinema gold for me. Boobies! It gets all its ratings for the cheap thrills it inspires, but worth the laugh to see just how pointless the story is.
I am going to introduce a new rating system for my Forgotten Fridays picks.
Since all of these Forgotten Friday reviews are going to be what I would already give a high rating to, I had a Tv, Rent or Buy scale going on, but it would seem that an overwhelming majority of my picks get a BUY rating.
So with every Forgotten Friday you see from now on, you get to rate your anticipation for yourself!
TV – If you are at least a little curious, catch it if it comes on TV.
Rent – If it is something you have heard of and forgotten, or just remember enjoying this as much as I did once upon a time, go rent it.
Buy – But if you are like me, and you agree with my review you should go buy it. If its featured here, I already have.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 12:47 America/Montreal - 21 Comments
So it seems that all along Ronald Emmerich has been planning his 2012 disaster flick to be somewhat of a cornerstone from which to build a TV Series?
Get the Big Picture shares:
While on the red carpet for his new flick, Emmerich told Entertainment Weekly, “The plan is that it is 2013 and it’s about what happens after the disaster; it is about the resettling of Earth. That is very, very fascinating.”
“We said to Mark, ‘Why don’t you do a TV show that picks up where the movie leaves off and call it 2013?’ I think it will focus on a group of people who survived but not on the boats … maybe they were on a piece of land that was spared or one that became an island in the process of the crust moving. There are so many possibilities of what they could do and I’d be excited to watch it.”
With Lost trying to go out while the fire is still hot, there will be a void in the schedule for a good survival setting drama.
It seems so far that there is nothing supernatural about 2012 and I would be willing to give an episodic drama series about people surviving in the left over world.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 12:33 America/Montreal - 14 Comments
Conan will be getting a remake by Marcus Nispel, a former music video director turned to feature films. And the plot and poster have shown up online.
I found it interesting that they credit him for the Texas Chainsaw Massacre and Friday the 13th films in the poster. Unless they are trying to show that he is good with remakes (Chainsaw was ok, Friday the 13th was weak) but for a physical action flick like this, you think they might have mentioned Pathfinder. Maybe that sucked too.
Dread Central also has the plot (not synopsis – the plot) that illustrates the whole of the film, so if you do not want to be spoiled, you may want to skip that part.
Dread does give away that fanboys will be pissed. But aren’t they always crying over remakes?
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 12:15 America/Montreal - 16 Comments
I actually am looking forward to the third Twilight film a lot more than the second. While New Moon does deal a lot more with the Wolf Pack and Jacob’s story, the real throwdown takes place in Eclipse as Bella really has to decide between Edward and Jacob while Victoria assembles a small vampire army to come help her kill Bella.
And the poster used to promote the June 2010 release has made its way to the intarweb and it looks pretty cool. Its just the letterset, but I like it.
Eclipse has a lot more action and a lot more conflict. For such an emo love story it seems to tease me a fair bit with the promise of Vampire vs Werewolf action. I like the variations of the vamp and werewolf mythos so its not some tired Underworld ripoff.
But I secretly hope that they end the series with Eclipse. I am over half way through Breaking Dawn and so far its the longest Epilogue to Eclipse spelling out in enduring detail what happens next. Nothing momentous at all and no action yet. Don’t spoil it for me, just sayin that right now I don’t need a Breaking Dawn movie.
Via
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 06:07 America/Montreal - 18 Comments
Angelina Jolie is a pleasure to watch in action films. She is not only distracting to the eye, but she is convincing as a female combatant.
Considering this role was originally up for Tom Cruise, and the script was altered ever so slightly to replace the main character with a female, Jolie was one of the few who I think could keep up with the role. Check out the teaser Trailer to see why.
Seeing this kind of action in a “rogue agent” storyline makes me happy Tom Cruise isn’t attached as Salt. (aside from the fact that I like looking at Jolie more) The comparisons to this and Mission Impossible are close enough with the borderline over the top action scenes and well choreographed spy hunter themes.
I like how they don’t spell it out for you. We get the plot, but is she being set up? Is she a brainwashed superspy? You will have to see the film to find out.
I hope the full trailer doesn’t spoil that for us.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 05:55 America/Montreal - 29 Comments
There is little sexier in sci-fi than Slave Leia, and this archive shot from the set of Return of the Jedi is like a flashback to the Doublemint Twins commercials. Carrie Fisher and her stunt double sunbathing on Jabba’s skiff. Feast your eyes and your inner 13 year old’s hormones on this:
Geek Tyrant says it better than I could:
Girls looking to drive geeks bonkers know, that the best outfit to wear in order to sneak into our hearts is: the Leia slave outfit Carrie Fisher wore in Return of The Jedi. It’s a classic, and homemade variations are just as effective as the real thing(it’s the thought that counts).
So that being said, if I dare creep into the dirty side of your minds…
What is your “Fantasy Girl” (or guy) from films that would make for a sexy costume to get your inner geek all hot and bothered?
Six from BSG ranks pretty high for me. That red dress is killer and Helfer is amazing. But there will always be a special spot in my …er .. heart for Slave Leia.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 05:43 America/Montreal - 14 Comments
An overly uninspiring teaser poster for Scream 4 could have been for any of the scream movies, and half of the Scary Movie franchise that spoofed the Ghostface costume.
The last scream movie was in 2000, so there will be a decade between this and the last chapter. So the tagline makes sense. I still say that bringing Sidney back has to mean she will be the killer. That girl is damaged goods and I want to see her break down and become Ghostface for her own twisted view of justice.
Other than that, its a teaser. So there wouldnt be much to it.
Via
News Chat - by Rodney - November 5, 2009 - 05:32 America/Montreal - 3 Comments
Once again a popular product will be attached to a film purely for the purpose of brand recognition. This will join Monopoly, viewmaster and Battleship as the plotless toy making the leap to the big screen.
Sony has bought the rights to a Risk film.
WorstPreviews shares:
Sony Pictures has acquired the film rights to the classic board game “Risk,” which was invented in 1957 by French filmmaker Albert Lamorisse as “La Conquete du Monde” (Conquest of the World). Two years later, in 1959, Parker Brothers (now a division of Hasbro) published the game we all came to know as “Risk.”
Now that is interesting indeed. I had no idea that Risk was originally invented by a film maker. Perhaps this will be more about the story of how Risk got made, but its likely to be loosely tied to the premise of the game and giving us a war strategy film.
Maybe it will be like War Games meets Jumanji where some kids are playing the game unwittingly controlling a real war.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 4, 2009 - 07:38 America/Montreal - 18 Comments
The International Trailer for Prince of Persia has been released online and I think that if it came out first I might have been more encouraged. The first trailer was a mess.
It’s an improvement, and it really does remind me of the look and feel of the Pirates movies (with obvious reasons) but I am still a little hesitant. Those other parts that made the film look bad are still in the movie, just not this trailer.
I don’t mind that everyone in Persia speaks with a British accent. I can accept that. And I dont even mind Gyllenhaal in the lead even though people are too busy complaining that there are no Persians in the Prince of Persia movie. I am hardly taking this as an accurate depiction of Persian history, so I can deal with that, however they could have cast Naveen Andrews in the lead and I would have been just as happy.
Some deliberate nods to the acrobatics of the game, and some interesting effects to deal with the sands that turn back time.
I haven’t written it off yet.
Via
News Chat - by Rodney - November 4, 2009 - 07:26 America/Montreal - 7 Comments
I was tipped off to the first Teaser Trailer for Dreamworks’ How to Train Your Dragon by The NerdyBird and I share her sentiments that this dragon is utterly cute.
The Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third book series was written with a very silly sarcastic tone and I think this trailer captures it. The trailer has a lot more in it than I would expect considering its labeled as a teaser, so I only look forward to seeing the full theatrical trailer!
News Chat - by Rodney - November 4, 2009 - 06:26 America/Montreal - 41 Comments
Joss Whedon has decided to put an end to the upcoming bidding war for the Terminator Franchise and issued an open letter to Halycon!
Whedonesque shares:
Dear Sirs/Ma’ams,
I am Joss Whedon, the mastermind behind Titan A.E., Parenthood (not the movie) (or the new series) (or the one where ‘hood’ was capitalized ’cause it was a pun), and myriad other legendary tales. I have heard through the ‘grapevine’ that the Terminator franchise is for sale, and I am prepared to make a pre-emptive bid RIGHT NOW to wrap this dealio up. This is not a joke, this is not a scam, this is not available on TV. I will write a check TODAY for $10,000, and viola! Terminator off your hands.
No, you didn’t miscount. That’s four — FOUR! — zeroes after that one. That’s to show you I mean business. And I mean show business. Nikki Finke says the Terminator concept is played. Well, here’s what I have to say to Nikki Finke: you are a fine journalist and please don’t ever notice me. The Terminator story is as formative and important in our culture — and my pretend play — as any I can think of. It’s far from over. And before you Terminator-Owners (I have trouble remembering names) rush to cash that sweet cheque, let me give you a taste of what I could do with that franchise:
1) Terminator… of the Rings! Yeah, what if he time-travelled TOO far… back to when there was dragons and wizards? (I think it was the Dark Ages.) Hasta La Vista, Boramir! Cool, huh? “Now you gonna be Gandalf the Red!” RRRRIP! But then he totally helps, because he’s a cyborg and he doesn’t give a s#&% about the ring — it has no power over him! And he can carry it AND Frodo AND Sam AND f@%& up some orcs while he’s doing it. This stuff just comes to me. I mean it. (I will also offer $10,000 for the Lord of the Rings franchise).
2) More Glau. Hey. There’s a reason they’re called “Summer” movies.
3) Can you say… musical? Well don’t. Even I know that’s an awful idea.
4) Christian Bale’s John Connor will get a throat lozenge. This will also help his Batwork (ten grand for that franchise too, btw.)
5) More porn. John Connor never told Kyle Reese this, but his main objective in going to the past was to get some. What if there’s a lot of future-babies that have to be made? Cue wah-wah pedal guitar — and dollar signs!
6) The movies will stop getting less cool.
Okay. There’s more — this brain don’t quit! (though it has occasionally been fired) — but I think you get my drift. I really believe the Terminator franchise has only begun to plumb the depths of questioning the human condition during awesome stunts, and I’d like to shepherd it through the next phase. The money is there, but more importantly, the heart is there. But more importantly, money. Think about it. End this bloody bidding war before it begins, and put the Terminator in the hands of someone who watched the first one more than any other movie in college, including “Song of Norway” (no current franchise offer).
Sincerely, Joss Whedon.
Oh the beauty of the snark! Clearly Whedon is of the mind that Terminator has run its course and his impressive offer speaks volumes of where he sees value in the property that once ruled scifi geekdom.
He gets his jabs in but even pokes fun at other things to make sure no one will confuse this with a serious offer.
I would be surprised to see any studio dropping a massive chunk of change on these rights. Most of the big ticket speculation actually came from Halycon themselves who felt that the recent $60million sale of TMNT was a sign that Terminator would be worth much more.
How much do you think Terminator will go for?
News Chat - by Rodney - November 4, 2009 - 05:57 America/Montreal - 11 Comments
Christopher Lee has made over 250 films in his 61 year career, and now the 87 year old thespian is now being recognized for his occupation with a British Knighthood.
I like io9.com saying “That’s SIR Christopher Wonka Dracula Saruman Dooku Lee to you!”
The honour of being Knighted for contribution to the arts is not a status taken lightly. There are an elite number of entertainers from a number of industries who have recieved the title, and they have all contributed significantly to their craft.
Since only UK Citizens can be knighted, my dreams of making everyone call me Sir Rodney might be as valid as an internet diploma or mail-order ordainment into priesthood.
Do you think the honour still has value and recognition?
Or is it an old tradition that is slowly losing its glamour?
News Chat - by Rodney - November 3, 2009 - 14:15 America/Montreal - 9 Comments
In a world where we are planning a movie based on Viewmaster are we really surprised that they are adapting a single panel syndicated newspaper comic strip into a full length feature film?
Well Owen Wilson has signed on to give voice to the classic mischievious great dane Marmaduke.
Dark Horizons says:
Tim Rasmussen and Vince Di Meglio’s script has Marmaduke navigating a volatile Mutts vs. Pedigrees turf war, wooing the purebred of his dreams and overcoming a fall from grace.
Judy Greer, Lee Pace and William H. Macy play the humans. Wilson joins Fergie, Emma Stone, George Lopez, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Steve Coogan, Damon Wayans, Marlon Wayans who supply the voices to the film’s various critters.
This will fall nicely in that category of the live action Garfield and Chipmunks movies on my shelf as my kids are likely to just fall in love with this and I will be forced to endure its repeat viewings.
A turf war of Mutts and Pedigrees? Can’t be worse than Beverly Hills Chihuaua right?
Right???
News Chat - by Rodney - November 3, 2009 - 13:52 America/Montreal - 6 Comments
There is a quirky comedy coming out with George Clooney called Men who Stare at Goats. This is really Clooney’s strong point and these oddball comedies really let him shine.
A new poster is out that made me smile and I thought I would share it with you.
I love the headliner revealing the stars of the film and having the Goat right there with them sharing top billing.
Similar posters are out with the rest of the main cast alongside Goat at Get the Big Picture
News Chat - by Rodney - November 3, 2009 - 13:32 America/Montreal - 14 Comments
Michael Jackson’s concert tour turned feature concert film had its release this past weekend and we have the official numbers of the international boxoffice take.
MoviesOnline says:
Sony Pictures Releasing today announced that since its release on Wednesday, October 28, Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT has stormed straight to the top of the UK box office taking an incredible £4.9 million.
With the UK figure contributing to a worldwide total of $101 million and counting, it makes motion picture history as the highest-grossing concert film of all time.
Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT is the 5th biggest international opening of 2009. In addition to the UK, top grossing territories include: Japan $10.4 m (3rd biggest opening of the year in Japan), Germany $6.3 m, France $5.8 m, Australia $3.6 m, China $3.2 m, Italy $2.9 m, and Spain $2.6 m, among others.
Michael Jackson’s THIS IS IT opened to #1 in North America with $21.3 million for the 3-day weekend, averaging an estimated $6,119 per screen.
The title of highest-grossing concert film of all time is a limited accolade as I haven’t seen too many feature film releases of concerts. Its a limited feild of competitors. However no matter what people think of those two artists, you cannot deny that Michael Jackson has a bigger career, and top that off with his untimely death, I am not surprised that its getting as much attention as it is.
I am waiting for the DVD release, but I still want to see this.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 3, 2009 - 13:17 America/Montreal - 35 Comments
Its trendy to bash on the Transformers movie, but I for one really liked them. Yeah they are littered with faults, but overall I find them to be insanely entertaining and I am looking forward to the next.
It’s no secret that the money trucks are not done backing up to the Bay mansion, and they are just going to keep going until they do. And in a hidden clip on the BluRay of Transformers 2, Bay talks about his vision for a third film.
Cinematical shares:
But judging from this candid DVD extra, even Bay thinks Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen veered on excessive, and he’s promising to scale back when he tackles #3. As we speak, Bay is combing through the Transformers lore that Hasbro has sent him and pondering who or what will be smashing crap up in another installment. Just the way he says “Transformers lore” makes me want a story centered on Bay exploring ancient catacombs to uncover the missing Transformers arcana with Megan Fox as his sidekick. (She’ll be packing a Ph.D in Hasbro lore because she’s not afraid to be smart and sexy.)
As Bay ponders how to go sideways from Revenge (his words, not mine), he does have a few ideas in mind. He wants more Bumblebee, and to explore the powerful relationship he has with Sam. He wants more characters, and more emotion. He wants it to be “more undercover” and “less exposed” which might be difficult for our transforming pals when they destroyed the Great Pyramid of Giza.
Check out Bay chatting up his ideas for TF3 as an unlockable content on the BluRay:
Despite all its faults, one thing you can count on with Michael Bay is that he is listening to the fans. After the first one they said, less humans more bots. And we got it. The fans cried out for Devastator, and we got it. The fans wanted more action and we got it.
We also got “The Twins” and Leo. Well nothing’s perfect. I still liked the movie for the most part and I have faith that Bay has the best intentions even if they don’t pan out.
I like the idea of Bay reeling it in. It will be hard to keep the Robots in Disguise angle as the Decepticons are not shy about showing up in full force and now we have two films of Bots making a mess of planet earth with their conflict.
Tone it down, let us learn their names before chopping them in half. And THEN have a big fight.
I just hope they don’t do Unicron, as that would be the opposite of reeling it in and I can’t see it working. And no dinobots unless they are cars or some vehicles that turn into dinos.
News Chat - by Rodney - November 3, 2009 - 12:57 America/Montreal - 9 Comments
Must be a great time to be a young adult novel writer as it seems to be the new gold mine for films. Get your book series on the New York Times Bestseller list and it also gets on the radar for studios to make a movie out of it.
The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare is next up.
Screen Rant says:
For those unfamiliar with The Mortal Instruments, here’s a quick blurb from the Variety article: “Story revolves around teenager Clary Fray’s search for her missing mother, which leads her to a city filled with mysterious fairies, raucous warlocks, vampires and other demons.” Collectively, The Mortal Instruments series of books have spent 28 weeks on the New York Times Best Sellers List.
Of course this is not the first time a book has been made into a movie, but ever since Harry Potter and Twilight after that, the books that target the young adult and teens are being taken a lot more seriously.
The first three books of Clare’s book series will be the source of the film which is a modern take on a fairy tale world existing in paralell with our own.
It sounds like an interesting concept, and I look forward to seeing what they do with it. Will be interesting to see if the fourth book is enough to justify a sequel since the first three are making up the first planned film.
