The Targ Returns!

And we're back!  After taking August off, I have returned with all-new episodes of U62: The Targ!

We kick off series 4 with Episode 4.01:  Expanded and Improved.  I'm trying quite a few new things this  year.  I've doubled the length, it's back in stereo, and I've introduced some new regular features.

Have a listen, and let me know what you think of the new format!

Click here to go download it!

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Retro Heroes!

If there's one quirk of the superhero genre I love, it's period superheroes.  Two of my guilty pleasures are the Shadow and the Rocketeer, and a lot of that has to do with their late-1930s settings.  The Watchmen movie tried hard to be set in the 1980s, but it's 80s-ness never really came through for me.

So it's kind of neat that we have two Marvel Comics movies in production right now that will be set in times past.

First up, Captain America.  We've been promised that it's a full-blown, World War II epic, with Cap fighting Nazis and the Red Skull in the European theatre.

And we got our first picture of Captain America in action today!  I love these spy photos from the set...we don't get enough of these anymore.

Now that we see these pictures, I can see that it really is influenced by the Ultimate Captain America costume.

Oh, and the spy was quick to point out that this is NOT Chris Evans, who's playing Steve Rogers, but his stunt double.

We have another spy photo from Captain America, too.  Here's Cap being pursued by two HYDRA agents. 

In case I haven't said it yet, Captain America is being directed by Joe Johnston, who did Jurassic Park 3, October Sky, and...The Rocketeer!  His most recent film was that remake of The Wolfman. 

It's due to come out next July.

And as I said, that's not the only retro superhero film that Marvel's working on.  Also filming right now is the X-Men prequel tale, X-Men: First Class, which details the founding of Charles Xavier's School for the Gifted, and Xaiver's falling out with Magneto. 

In order to keep with prequel aspects, the entire thing is set in the 1960s!

The villains in this particular tale are the secret society known as the Hellfire Club, and here's our first look at January Jones as Emma Frost.

Looks like a very 1960s-appropriate costume for Ms. Frost.

Rounding out the cast are James McAvoy plays the young Professor X, Michael Fassbender plays the young Magneto, and Kevin Bacon plays Sebastian Shaw, the leader of the Hellfire Club.  Matthew Vaughn (Stardust, Kick-Ass) is directing, and Bryan Singer, director of the first two X-Men films, is back on board as a producer.

It's due out next June. 

Pretty Pictures of Newt

As you know, I'm a huge fan of Pixar.  A few years ago, Pixar announced that they were working on an animated film called Newt.  It was to follow the adventures of a blue-toed newt, living alone in a cage in a laboratory, fearing that he is the last one in existence.  However, when he hears news that a lone female blue-toed newt is discovered in the wild, he breaks out and heads off to find her in order to save the species.  However, when they meet, they take an instant disliking to each other.

Earlier this year, it was learned that Newt had been shut down.  No word on why...it's hardly the first animated film to get shut down in pre-production.  But still, given how high-profile its announcement was, it was a bit of a surprise.

Anyway, because they know they have such a rabid fanbase, Pixar went ahead and released 30 pieces of concept art from Newt.  I'm sharing my favouites with you.  Because Pixar is awesome.

And these are beautiful.

Movie Review -- Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Turtles Forever

Well, I have a proud tradition at this here blog that I always review the latest straight-to-DVD animated films that I pick up.  I picked up one while I was in the city today, so why am I wasting time?  Let's get to my review of....

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles:  Turtles Forever

Directed by Roy Burdine and Lloyd Goldfine

Starring the voices of Michael Sinternaklaas, Wayne Grayson, Sam Riegel, Frank Frankson, Veronica Taylor, Scottie Ray, Johny Castro, Tony Salerno, Sebastian Arcelus, and Dan Green.

Backstory:  2009 marked the 25th anniversary of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles franchise.  As such, there was lots of celebrating in the comic book world.  The makers of the current Ninja Turtles cartoon (henceforth called the "03 cartoon," because that's the year it premiered) came up with a great way to celebrate.  They decided to do a crossover with the original Ninja Turtles cartoon (the 87 cartoon).  2009 was also when Nickelodeon bought the Ninja Turtles franchise lock, stock, and barrel, and decided to reboot the franchise with their own 'toon.  So, the '03 cartoon's 25th anniversary celebration also served as the final episode of the '03 cartoon.  I knew it was going to be released as a direct-to-video film, but it wound up not coming out until a year after it was televised.  Oh, well.  It's out now!

Plot:  The '03 Turtles are stunned when news reports start popping up, of 4 large turtles fighting crime on the streets of New York.  When they investigate, they soon come across...the '87 Turtles!  Turns out their latest battle with the '87 Shredder and Krang caused the Technodrome's trans-dimensional portal to malfunction, sending them all to the '03 Dimension.  The '87 Shredder decides to seize this opportunity, and enlists the '03 Shredder for help.  However, this discovery of alternate dimensions and more Turtles does not sit well with the '03 Shredder.  The '03 Shredder surmizes that all of their universes branched off from a prime universe..."Turtle Prime."  The '03 Shredder figures that the only way to be finally rid of the Turtles is to destroy "Turtle Prime," and thus destroy all of reality.  It's up to theses Turtles of two worlds to join forces, defeat the '03 Shredder, and save all of existence! 

What I Liked:  Man o man, when the '03 Shredder gets his hands on the Technodrome, he turns it into the WMD we were always told it was.  He turns the robotic Foot Soldiers into an evil machine army that would make SkyNet proud, and with his hands on mutagen, he promptly creates an unstoppable army of mutant warriors.  You know...everything we wished the '87 Shredder would do, back in the day.  The scenes on Turtle Prime are also amazing.  SPOILER ALERT:  Turtle Prime is the world of the original Eastman and Laird comics from 1984, and are rendered completely in black and white.  And be sure to hit pause when the '03 Shredder starts skimming through other dimensions.  It's Easter egg-irifc, as just about every other known incarnation of the Turtles is represented. 

What I Didn't Like:  The plot does seem somewhat reminiscient of the DC universe animated film Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths.  I'm sure there are only so many ways to do multiple-Earths stories in comics, so I'll give them a pass.  And I don't remember the '87 Turtles being so...jokey. 

Final Verdict:  A more than enjoyable outing that Turtles fans will find quite satisfying. 

3 Nibs

Bonus Features:  Nothing.  Zip.  Zilch.  Nada. 

Scott Pilgrim Review

My Scott Pilgrim vs. the World review is online!

Head on over to my movie review site to check it out! 

Neither Smoke, Nor Rain, Nor Coughing Fits

So, if you watch the news, you know we're in rough states here in Alberta right now.  We've got smoke blowing in from the BC forest fires, making our air quality the worst it's been in years.  On top of that, there was rain in the forecast for this Saturday.  And, on top of that still, I'm feeling quite under the weather right now.  Lived in Athabasca for 4.5 years now, and finally got sick enough where I felt I had to see a doctor.

Naturally, with all this going on, I jumped out of bed and said, "I'm going to the city today!"

I had to go to the city.  I had a very important reason to go to the city.  I had to see Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.  Because it opened in #5 last week, I knew that my chances to see it in the theatre would be running out fast.

You've probably seen the commercials for it.  Scott Pilgrim is a young 20-something in Toronto who plays in a band, and he meets the girl of his dreams, the bewitching and enigmatic Ramona Flowers.  But Ramona's got some serious baggage following her around...seven evil exes, and if Scott and Ramona want to live happily ever after, he must defeat all of them in combat!  Which is where the film gets its visual flair.  All the fights take the form of super hyperactive video games.

This film makes me wish I played more video games in my youth, because it's so full of references to the 8-bit era of video games that most of the jokes were over my head.

Other than that, I enjoyed the hell out of this film.  It's all about that period you go through in your early-20s, when you're finally casting off the last vestiges of your youth and learning to be a grown-up.  Needless to say, it brought back happy flashbacks to my college days, as I saw elements of people I knew in pretty much every character on screen.  It's all about discovering that yes, she has a past, and if you're a man, and if you love her, you'll get the f--k over it and work things out.

This has been a lean summer for films.  Iron Man 2, Toy Story 3, and now Scott Pilgrim vs. the World are the only films that had me walking out of the theatre 100% satisfied.

Then I stopped in at HMV.  There were lots of DVDs in the discount bin that caught my eye, but I was craving new music.  A lot of those digitally remastered Beatles albums that made such a big splash a year ago are now starting to pop up in discount bins, so I snatched up Magical Mystery Tour.  This one has more of my favourite Beatles tunes on it.  I am the Walrus...Penny Lane...All You Need is Love...Strawberry Fields Forever...so why the heck not?  Hmmm...it just occurred that I seem to be limiting myself to the Beatles' soundtracks.  First A Hard Day's Night, and now Magical Mystery Tour.  I guess that means Help! and Yellow Submarine will be next.

And then, that led to one of the more embarrassing moments in my life.  Since HMV's discount bin CDs are usually marked "2/$30" and all that, of course I was buying a second album.  A grabbed my second choice, and walked up to the counter.  The clerk was this attractive young blond.  She rang up the Beatles, and then my second album.  She looked at the album cover, looked up at me, and said, "Really?  You like Selena Gomez?"

At least I was able to hold my head high and answer her truthfully:  "I tend to put the Disney Channel on for background noise, and she gets stuck in my head."  Heck, the only reason why I ever sat down and watched a whole episode of the Selena Gomez show is because I discovered her TV mom is Hawkgirl.

So yeah.  Selena Gomez.  It's unremarkable, bubblegum pop, but it gets stuck in your head.



All in all, worth getting out of the house. 

Sunday Morning at the Movies

While flipping around the channels on this Sunday night, I managed to catch the final episode of At the Movies.  The majority of the online film community has been shedding a tear for the end of this 35-year franchise and what it did for film.  Let me bring you up to speed.

At the Movies started way back in 1975 when Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert started meeting on Chicago's PBS station to review movies.  It was such a hit, that in the early -1980s, it went into syndication, first by Tribune Entertianment, and then by Disney.  During this era, it was most commonly known as Siskel and Ebert, and brought the world of movies into people's homes.

But, the past decade was not kind to At the Movies.  It all began in 1999, when Gene Siskel passed away.  Roger Ebert then had a rotating panel of co-hosts until Y2K, when he settled on his fellow Chicago Sun-Times columnist Richard Roeper, and it became Ebert and Roeper At the Movies.  It was like that until 2006, when Roger Ebert had to step down due to his failing health.  So, it was Roeper and rotating co-hosts until 2008, when Disney decided to take the show in "a new direction."  That new direction was critics Ben Lyons and Ben Mankewicz.  I never caught it during this era, but reviews were not kind.  Last year, they were replaced with critics A.O. Scott and Michael Phillips, but it was too little too late. 


Watching that final episode, I was a little sadder than I thought I'd be.  I have fond memories of Siskel and Ebert.  In the early-1990s, my parents were good church-going folk, but I didn't want to go, finding church to be too boring.  Being old enough to be left at home on my own, my family would leave me at home on Sunday morning while they went to church.  And I stayed at home and watched Siskel and Ebert. 

The early 90s was the perfect time to be watching Siskel and Ebert.  I mean, growing up in small-town Alberta, where you rented movies from the local gas station and the closest movie theatres were an hour away, where else was a kid going to be exposed to the entire world of movies out there?  And with the rise of independent film in the 1990s, Siskel and Ebert was where I was first exposed to Kevin Smith, Quentin Tarintino, Hayao Miyazaki, and many other fantastic filmmakers.

Hell, my first exposure to Clerks was when the special edition laserdisc came out, and Siskel and Ebert showed the original ending to Clerks on the show and debated whether Kevin Smith was right to cut it or not.  (Consensus:  he was.)  My first exposure to Hayao Miyazaki was their review of My Neighbor Totoro.  Ebert loved that film so much.  That show gave a lot of films exposure that wouldn't have gotten any. 

And now, it's done.  Great films will still get exposure, though.  My favourite film, The Iron Giant, was brought to my attention, not because of a TV show, but because of all the reviews I read online.  Great films still have a way of getting out there.  Part of the problem, though, is on the Internet, there's just so many voices to weed through.  Not like the old days, when it was just two guys talking about films, and you were eavesdropping through the TV. 

Grindhouse Finally on DVD

Good news, all my fellow fans of Quentin Tarintino and Robert Rodriguez!

Grindhouse is finally coming to DVD in its original, complete, theatrical presentation!  Actually, it's only coming to Blu-Ray.

Grindhouse: 2-Disc Collector's Edition will contain ALL of the bonus material on the DVD and Blu-Ray releases of Planet Terror and Death Proof, along with some all-new bonus materials.  The new stuff:

• Rodriguez offers up another installment of his "10 Minute Cooking Schools," which has become a popular staple on all his DVDs.
• All of the intermission cards
• ALL of the fake trailers, including Hobo With a Shotgun, which was only shown in select theatres.
• Brand new extended versions of the fake trailers Don't and Werewolf Women of the SS, complete with running commentaries by their respective directors Edgar Wright and Rob Zombie.  (It's long been rumored that Zombie shot an hour's worth of footage for his 3-minute Werewolf Women trailer.)
• "Making of" featurettes for the fake trailers Don't, Werewolf Women of the SS, and Thanksgiving.
• The storyboards and fake movie posters for Don't. 

Be advised that this set will include the ORIGINAL THEATRICAL VERSIONS of Death Proof and Planet Terror.  You might remember that when they were shown in theatres, the two films occasionally had cards pop up saying "scene missing" to replicate the grindhouse experience.  When the two films were released individually on DVD, they were "extended versions," with all thsoe missing scenes put back in.  Well, on this super deluxe special edition, those cards saying "scene missing" will be put back in, and the scenes will once again be cut out.

In a way, I'm kind of disappointed that this is being released on Blu-Ray.  I always thought it was a great way to create a purely theatrical experience, without the need for gimmicks like 3D. 

It drops on October 5. 

Oh, and some other DVD news, regarding Family Guy's forthcoming scene-for-scene spoof of Return of the Jedi.

As I've blogged previously, they seemed to have trouble coming up with a title.  Originally, as a slam towards the Ewoks and all the animatronic characters in Return of the Jedi, they were going to call it Episode VI: The Great Muppet Caper, but they ran into copywrite trouble with the Muppet folks.  Then they were going to call it We Have a Bad Feeling About This, after the famous line uttered in ever Star Wars film. 

Well, the artwork for the DVD cover has been released, and we've discovered that they've decided to name it after Admiral Akbar's most famous line, which has become quite the Internet catchphrase.

That's right, it's called It's a Trap!.

Don't forget, it hits DVD and Blu-Ray on Dec. 21. 

DC Showcase on DVD

So, because I've been geeking out about the direct-to-DVD DC comics animated movies, you might have also read me geek out about DC Showcase, their series of animated short films focusing on some of DC`s B- and C-list heroes.  To recap, we`ve had:

The Spectre - Focusing on the supernatural spirit of vengeance.  Released on Justice League: Crisis on Two Earths. 

Jonah Hex - The legendary gunslinger.  Released on the recent Batman: Under the Red Hood. 

Green Arrow - The emerald archer takes down his evil counterpart.  Will be released on the upcoming Superman/Batman: Apocolypse.  

Well, it was just announced that Warner Brothers will be compiling all these animated shorts into their own DVD release, The DC Showcase Original Shorts Collection, coming out on November 9!

But that's not all!  In order to tempt you to buy all these shorts again, they're including a new short, Superman/Shazam!: The Return of Black Adam.  This short will be 22 minutes long -- twice as long as all the other shorts produced to date! 

This short features Black Adam, arch-enemy of Captain Marvel, returning from beyond the stars, and it's up to the combined might of Superman and Captain Marvel to take him down! 

For the celebrity voices, we've got:

George Newburn as Superman.  Of course, Newburn voiced Superman on Justice League and Justice League Unlimited.  Nice to see him back in the role!

Jerry O'Connell as Captain Marvel.  O'Connell of course was one of the kids in Stand By Me, and was most recently seen on the police procedural Crossing Jordan.  He also voiced Captain Marvel on an episode of Justice League Unlimited. 

Arnold Vosloo as Black Adam.  Vosloo played Imhotep the Mummy in the Mummy movies, and was most recently seen as Zartan in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra.

James Garner as the Wizard Shazam.  Garner is an acting legend, and if you don`t know who he is, I weep for you. 

It`ll be available in a single-disc DVD version and a single-disc Blu-Ray special edition.  For bonus materials on the single-disc DVD, you get 4 bonus episodes of Justice League.  On the Blu-Ray, you get those 4 episodes of Justice League, and each short has a running commentary by its writer. 

Movie Review -- DC Showcase: Jonah Hex

So, with the DC Comics DTV animated films, they've begun this new thing that I really like.  The series is called DC Showcase, and it's a series of animated short films focusing on some B- and C-list heroes from the DCU.  The latest one is on the DVD for Batman: Under the Red Hood, which I reviewed yesterday, so let's take a look at it.

DC Showcase: Jonah Hex

Directed by Joaquim Dos Santos

Starring the voices of Thomas Jane, Linda Hamilton, Jason Marsden, Michael Rooker, and Michelle Trachtenberg.  

Backstory:  Of course, Jonah Hex was chosen to be the next subject of the DC Showcase films.  He's a much-beloved character in the DCU, one of the few Western characters who has stood the test of time...and it ties in with big-screen version of Jonah Hex that hits theatres this summer.  What, you didn't see it?  Of course you didn't.  It sucked and was in theatres for barely two weeks.  Does this animated short clear Hex's good name?

Plot:  Jonah Hex rides into town, on the trail of an outlaw named Red.  Following a lead, he's brought to an unscrupulous prostitute named Madame Lorraine.  Will Hex be able to defeat Lorraine, find Red, and collect the bounty?

What I Liked:  Again, I am amazed at the big names DC is rounding up to voice these things.  We've got the Punisher and Sarah Conner doing voices in a 10-minute short film!  Crazy.  It's also got a nice sepia-tone look to make it feel more like the old west.  It's short, and it's action packed.

What I Didn't Like:  Too short!

Final Verdict:  I'm really liking this series, guys.  Keep it up!

4 Nibs

Movie Review -- Batman: Under the Red Hood

Does it seem somewhat biased that I review direct-to-video movies in blog entries, and not in big-fancy, coded-in-HTML-from-scratch webpages that I do over at my main site for theatrical films?  Just wondering.

Anyway, longtime followers of the blog know I've been a big fan of all the DC Comics DTV animated films that have been coming for a couple of years now.  The latest one came out this past week, and I made a special trip into Edmonton just to pick it up.  It's time to take a look at....

Batman: Under the Red Hood

Directed by Brandon Vietti

Starring the voices of Bruce Greenwood, Jensen Ackles, John DiMaggio, Neil Patrick Harris, Jason Isaacs, Wade Williams, Gary Cole, and Kelly Hu.

Just a little warning, I'm going to get somewhat spoileriffic in this review, but if  you've been following the Batman comics for the past five years or so, it's nothing you don't know already.

Backstory:  So, a few years back, they ran a storyline in the Batman comics called Under the Hood, which resurrected Jason Todd from the dead.  Jason Todd, for those uninitiated, is the Robin that was infamously killed off back in the 1980s.  As many a comic book critic said at the time, with the revolving door to the afterworld that exists in comics, it's amazing it took this long to resurrect him.  Anyway, the folks in charge of these animated DTV movies thought it would make a good one, so here it is.  Fun trivia fact:  this is Jason Todd's first appearance in a Batman adaptation!

Plot:  Five years after Jason Todd was brutally murdered at the hands of the Joker, a new masked vigilante calling himself the Red Hood makes his appearance known in Gotham City.  He's muscling in on the drug lords, taking control of Gotham's underworld, angering Gotham's current drug kingpin, the Black Mask.  Of course, this soon catches Batman's attention, and the Black Mask gets desperate enough to go the Joker for help.  Batman soon uncovers that the Red Hood is Jason Todd.  How is he back from the dead?  What is his master plan?  And can Batman bring him back from this dark path he's taken?  

What I Liked:  As always, I love how Warner Brothers is bringing in  A-list talent to do the voices.  When I first heard that Bruce Greenwood would be voicing Batman (Capt. Pike in the last Star Trek film), I thought, "Dude, that's perfect!"  He does have the right gravely growl.  Neil Patrick Harris is also very funny as Nightwing.  The animation, as always, is perfect.  And the mystery really isn't much of a mystery, but it's good enough to keep you guessing.

What I Didn't Like:  I have the same problem with this that I had with the last Batman-centred DTV film, Gotham Knight.  When it comes to these Batman animated tales, there really is a whole "been there, done that" feeling starting to hang over the entire proceedings.  As a friend of mine once commented about Batman, "How many times do we need to see the pearls in slow motion?"  

Final Verdict:  It's a fairly entertaining Batman yarn, but come on DC.  Give us the Flash.  Give us another Wonder Woman.  Give Batman a break.  

3 Nibs

Bonus Features:  Ooo, this was my first DC DTV animated film on Blu-Ray!  For bonus features, you get a featurette on this history of the first Robin, Dick Grayson, a featurette on the history of the second Robin, Jason Todd, a preview of the next film, Superman/Batman: Apocalypse, 4 bonus episodes of Batman: The Animated Series, and the latest in their series of DC Showcase animated shorts, this one focusing on Jonah Hex.  I'll review that short...in my next blog entry! 

Latest Targ's Up!

It's that time of year again! It's the season finale of U62: The Targ.

Something I started a few years ago that I decided to stick with, and that is every summer, usually the month of August, I take some time off from doing U62: The Targ. This gives me time to collect my thoughts, decided whether I want to take it in a new direction, or just give it up all together.

So, I've got for you Episode 3.40: The End...?, in which I ponder most of what I just outlined above, and give my thoughts on what just may be the next big social networking trend.

Enjoy the show, and I'll see you in September!

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Inception Review and the Latest Social Network

First, the housekeeping.  My latest movie review is up!  Saw Inception last week, and finally jotted down my review.

Click here to read it.

And now, the latest social networking trend.  If the media hype is to believed, the next big social networking trend is Empire Avenue.  And by "the media hype," I mean this one story I saw on the news last night.  Anyway, I thought I would sign up for it today, because if it truly is going to be the next big thing, I wanted to be sure to nab my "chaosinabox" handle before someone else beat me to it. 

What it is is a social networking site based on the stock market.  Every time you do something, you earn money.  You don't "make friends," you "buy shares" in other people.  The more stuff you do online, and more shares people buy in you, the greater your "influence." 

I've only been on for a few hours, and I instantly dislike it.  The stock market gimmick is a little too complicated.  Essentially, what they've done is find a way to track your online activity, and assign a worth to it.  This network seems completely geared to advertisers, and showing off how many eyeballs the site attracts through "influence." 

Actually, the whole thing reminds me of that recent South Park episode, where Cartman did a whole video podcast on how to get more friends on Facebook and which friends will increase your popularity on Facebook.  Playing around on Empire Avenue, I've already seen a few video podcasts like that.  "Buy this person to increase your worth!" 

I don't know.  It's the same reaction I've had to Facebook and Twitter when I first started.  I'll play with it for a few months, and if I like it, I'll stick around.

So, I guess I should encourage all of you to buy Chaos in a Box!

Oh, and I have to blog this verification code so my blog entries start adding to my worth:

EAVB_RWQVAKICGK

Smarter Than the Average Bear

Today's pointless remake, a live-action movie version of Yogi Bear.
 

Why did the world need a live-action Yogi Bear?  Why, I ask?

For our voice cast, we've got the legendary Dan Aykroyd as Yogi, pop icon Justin Timberlake as Boo Boo, and "I'm not aware of her work" Christine Taylor as Cindy Bear. 

For the live-action cast, we've got the star of my Dad's favourite TV show, Ed, Tom Cavanaugh as Ranger Smith, and, "Sh!  Don't tell anyone I have a crush on her" Anna Ferris as a wildlife documentary filmmaker who's come to Jellystone to film Yogi.

The plot apparently has something to do with evil industrialists wanting to close down Jellystone Park, so Yogi, Boo Boo and Ranger Smith band together to save the Park.

Computer animator Eric Brevig is the director.  It comes out this Christmas.

Oh, look.  A trailer. 

Yeah, the character of Yogi was based on Art Carney, but Aykroyd seems to be going more for Rodney Dangerfield. Here's a thought: why didn't Aykroyd do Aykroyd?

Remember when Aykroyd was cool? Yeah, those days are gone.

Latest Targ's Up!

It's Sunday!  That means it's time for a new episode of U62: The Targ!

I'm just a seething bundle of anger this week, and I show it in Episode 3.39: Angry Rant #642.  I go off on the current Edmonton Oilers new arena debate, I return to the bane of my 12-year old self, and I really, really hope that Pixar doesn't take a dark turn.

Click here to go download it!

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NEW TRON LEGACY TRAILER!!!

The only movie I'm excited about this year, and I can't frakkin' WAIT!!





No longer content with just light cycles...is that a light jet at the end?  SO AWESOME!!

In other Disney news today, it was announced that Guillermo del Toro, directed of the Hellboy films and the critically acclaimed Pan's Labrynth, will be directed a reboot of The Haunted Mansion, based upon the classic Disneyland ride.  Del Toro says that his version will not be a comedy like the first film, and play up more of the horror aspects of the ride.  Oh, and it'll be filmed in 3D. 

When I told my friends of this they said, "Reboot?  First film?  Disney already did a Haunted Mansion film?"  Yes, they did.  2003.  Starring Eddie Murphy.  It was a comedy.  It flopped, and wasn't loved by the critics. 

Latest Targ's Up!

Time to hit you with an all-new episode of U62: The Targ!

Whenever I'm unsure as to what to do in an episode, my first instinct is to name it after nonsense words.  Hence, Episode 3.38: Snoozle Woozle.  I'm spending my money and playing the lotto, I mourn the end of James Bond, and I even tell you my ratings.  Yes, I do keep track of who actually listens to this, and I find the numbers startling.

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More Robot Chicken and Family Guy Star Wars Spoofs

Well, Family Guy and Robot Chicken have announced the latest installments in their series of Star Wars spoofs.

First up, we have Robot Chicken Star Wars: Episode III, coming on December 12.  Robot Chicken creators Seth Green and Matthew Senreich say that this one will have more of a linear storyline than their other specials, and that it'll tell the entire Star Wars saga from the villains' point of view.

New celebrity voices include Community star Donald Glover, Family Guy and Cleveland Show writer/voice actor Mike Henry, current teen heartthrob Zak Efron as Anakin Skywalker, and Anthony Daniels returning to the role that made him famous, C-3P0. 

Returning celebrity voices include Billy Dee Williams as Lando Calrissian, Ahmed Best as Jar Jar Binks, Breckin Meyer, Rachael Leigh Cook, and Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane as Emperor Palpatine.

It airs on December 12.


And speaking of Seth MacFarlane and Family Guy, Family Guy's scene-for-scene spoof of Return of the Jedi will be hitting DVD and Blu-Ray on December 21.

For celebrity guest voices in this one, we've got Family Guy regular Adam West, original Star Wars star Carrie Fisher (she's become a regular on the Family Guy cast and they've been trying to get her in one of these Star Wars specials since the first one), Rush Limbaugh will be voicing the Sarlaac, and, apparently, they wind up doing some kind of crossover with Star Trek: The Next Generation and Patrick Stewart and Michael Dorn will be back as Capt. Picard and Worf.

No word on the title of this one.  They were going to call it We Have a Bad Feeling About This, but the articles today announcing the special guest voices say that it's "currently untitled."  Originally, because of all the animatronic characters that pop up in ROTJ, they wanted to call it Episode VI: The Great Muppet Caper, but they actually got into trouble from the Muppet folks over that.  I guess will know the title when they show their 10-minute sneak peak at the San Diego ComicCon in two weeks. 

DVD Review -- G.I. Joe: Resolute

Well, I've always enjoyed reviewing the straight-to-DVD movies I pick up right here on my blog.  I finally got my hands on one I've been keeping my eyes open for, and I just finished watching it.  So, it's time for my thoughts on....

G.I. Joe: Resolute


Directed by Joaquim Dos Santos

Starring the voices of Charles Adler, Steve Blum, Grey DeLisle, and Eric Bauza.

Backstory:  Last year, Hasbro decided to launch an all-new G.I. Joe cartoon to tie in with the new live-action movies.  But, to produce it, they decided to follow the model of the original Star Wars: The Clone Wars cartoon:  episodes would be just 5 minutes long, telling an over-reaching story arc, and the episodes would be shown on the Cartoon Network's Adult Swim.  Comic book legend Warren Ellis was hired to write it.  It premiered on Adult Swim in the spring of 2009, and was edited together into a DTV movie and released just in time for Christmas last year.  Yesterday, I finally found a copy!


Plot:  In their most coordinated strike ever, COBRA cripples G.I. Joe HQ, takes command of several instillations all around the world, and destroys Moscow in a show of their might.  Cobra Commander issues his ultimatum:  turn control of the entire world over to him in 24 hours, or he'll use his new weapon to start wiping countries off the face of the Earth.  G.I. Joe has 24 hours to unlock the secrets of COBRA's new WMD, free the instillations that our powering it, and apprehend Cobra Commander...with extreme prejudice.

What I Liked:  There is blood.  This is real war.  Joes are killed, Cobra Vipers are mercilessly gunned down, and Cobra Commander kills all who oppose him.  The stakes are high, and it moves along at a rather quick pace.

What I Didn't Like:  The character development does take a back seat to the action, so we really don't get to know these new incarnations of the Joes.  And with such a small voice cast, there is some overlap in the voices and the characters, which does get a tad annoying. 

Final Verdict:  A wonderful continuation of the original, 5-part mini-series that launched the original cartoons, if only it being for more grown-up tastes. 

3 Nibs

Bonus Features:  For DVD bonus features, you get a Q&A with the film's creators, the file cards for the Joes in the film, the teaser episode "Now You Know," and storyboards for the production.

Remake Reviews!

Well, recently, I was blogging about my birthday movies. This year, I did my first ever birthday movie double-features. I saw BOTH The Karate Kid and The A-Team!

Click here to read my reviews!