Thursday, June 30, 2011

The Mighty Returns...

By Odin's beard...


Marvel Studios has announced the release of the next adventures of a temperamental Asgardian...

Well, they've made the general time they're going to be releasing it, not the actual date. "Thor 2" will be released in summer 2013. This will also see the debut of Shane Black's "Iron Man 3," which I am anxiously awaiting. Now, since Shellhead's third outing is coming May 3, it's very likely that the Nordic sequel will come out in June or July, but the studio is going to wait until they see what other films start to line up around that time.

This makes one wonder if that is all that will be released in 2013? Perhaps there will be a spring release? Or more likely, a Christmas release? Can we say "The Runaways" or another property in that large catalog? S.H.I.E.L.D. 2014!!!

Time will tell...

Wednesday, June 29, 2011

ROCKETEER$...

The More, the better...





No sooner had I mentioned that I'd like to see a sequel/reboot than a jewel was found...

Joe Johnston did an interview with Film Journal and mentioned that he'd love to do a sequel to "The Rocketeer." Now, he didn't mention a reboot so I take it he's talking about a continuation and not a reinterpretation. If you've seen some of the Q&A from the 20th Anniversary screening of the film at the El Capitan, then you saw Billy Campbell still looks pretty good. I don't know if I'd buy him being only a few years older though.

I wouldn't want to see a film with this character set in the 50's. That's a little too far from the material, but maybe they could get away with early 40's? Have Cliff Secord on some secret mission in the waning days of World War 2. It could/would be an interesting thing to see. Maybe they can get Christopher Markus and Stephen McFeely to write the script based on their work on "Captain America" and then get Joss Whedon to do a polish on the dialog. Maybe? That would be oh, so cool.

And then, if I could just get Disney to adapt "Crimson Skies" too…

Monday, June 27, 2011

Brave Trailer...

We know it's brave, let's hope it's good...


Those of you that saw "Cars 2" this weekend got to see this in all its glory...

The teaser trailer for Pixar's "Brave" has now been released on the web. It looks lovely, and has a scale of an epic adventure. I can't wait to actually see it. Until then, you'll just have to live with this teaser.

Now, if the marketing department would promote "John Carter of Mars" as well as this film...

Sunday, June 26, 2011

APPsolutely Beautiful...


If you visit this site often, you know of my crush on Tokyo DisneySEA...

Alain, over at Disney and More knows the feelings I have and shares them as well. He's offered you guys a tremendous deal. His website has always had a great amount of detailed artwork and great photography. Now, he's created something that will give you instant access to it. Yes. there's an App for that.

Disney and More has released an App that you can get from iTunes that features some photos of the jaw dropping visuals this park offers. For a mere 99 cents and the click of a button, it can be yours. That drab desktop of yours needs a new background, don't you think?

Take a look for yourself...

Saturday, June 25, 2011

Selling/Buying Nostalgia...

Biiiiig gopher...










Joe Johnston has gotten a lot of ink on this website lately...

With the 20th anniversary of "The Rocketeer" and his take on "Captain America" coming out next month, we've had more than normal to say about him. I mentioned in my earlier post about how it's be nice to see a sequel/reboot. Even an animated series would be nice. Apparently I'm not the only one thinking this. So I thought you might enjoy this bit of Rocketeer love from French animator John Banana.

Maybe a smart Suit could get an idea watching this...

Hat Tip to Cartoon Brew.

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Out Of The Past, Into The Future...

Red, white and blue turning into green...







So Marvel Studios has released the new poster and trailer for the First Avenger...

Actually, that's the only think I can say negative about this. The reliance on using that tag line is all I don't like about this. The poster is great, although I would like to see one with him wearing his mask. But the poster with its washed out color is a throw back to those propaganda posters you would have seen during World War 2.




And that trailer? Don't get me started. This only validates my reasons for this being my number one movie to see this summer. It looks great, authentic and is getting great reviews from those that have screened it.

Counting down the days...

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Brave Poster...

Brave look...






Pixar Animation Studios new film "Brave" finally has a poster...

I can't wait to see the new trailer next week, because I've heard great things about it. It will be interesting to see the Lamp's take on the princess story.

I'm sure it'll be unique like almost everything else that comes from Emeryville...

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

Journey Twenty Years In The Past To Journey Into The Past...




Twenty years ago today Walt Disney Pictures released what they hoped would be their answer to "Raiders of the Lost Ark" franchise...

Well, it didn't turn out the way they expected. "The Rocketeer" has slowly developed a cult following over the years and if you are one of the lucky members of D23 at the El Capitan today, then you'll get a screening and panel afterwards. I was a big fan of the comic when it came out and like Jeffrey Katzenberg, hoped that it would inspire a string of movies featuring the character in a series of adventures.

Audiences decided to see other things that weekend and the film became a disappointment. Not a failure, but not what was expected and making too little to justify a sequel. I had great fun watching it (four times at the El Capitan), but felt that it need more action and a greater sense of jeopardy for the hero. I hoped that a sequel would deliver on the promise of this character. But a sequel never came. It would be great if somehow Disney tried to do a sequel or reboot of the film, but that is not likely. An animated series for Disney XD perhaps?

One can dream, since all it cost is time...

Monday, June 20, 2011

The Pixar Plan...

Calling Docter Pete, calling Docter Pete...



The Lamp has scheduled it's next animated film...

And for all those out there that are screaming about too many sequels, it's an original story. As per their Modus Operandi, the gang up in Emeryville have been very cryptic. No plot details and no information on who is directing or writing it, only the release date: November 27, 2013.

From what I've heard, it's likely the next animated feature from Pete Docter since he's not helming the sequel/prequel to his "Monsters Inc." film. It probably won't be too long before we'll be hearing about the next release of the Mouse's other animation house in Burbank. The one that's coming in 2014.

It'll be interesting to see when that happens...

Saturday, June 18, 2011

Chabon Designing Favreau's Kingdom...

Be good, know where the material is coming from...




Michael Chabon
, famed novelist and sometimes screenwriter has now become the official scribe on Disney's big, new high concept film...

Let's hope it turns out to be closer to "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" for Disney than "Space Jam" turned out for Warner Bros. I certainly don't want it to turn into that film; nothing would be sadder than seeing a huge waste of animators, film makers and actors on a project that turns out being so big, and yet storywise is only made of cardboard.

Chabon is a really good writer and I hope he pounds the keyboard constructing a great story that is befitting of some of the Mouse's most classic characters. That said, I'll hold my breath until I actually hear more about it. Favreau has went from making films for young boys, to making a film he wants for the entire family. Let us wish him well and cross our fingers that this doesn't turn into a fiasco of waisted talent, time and dreams.

I'm watching you Mr. Favreau...

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Teasing Mars...

Put Mars back in John Carter...








Walt Disney Pictures has released the first teaser poster for its spring 2012 tent pole feature...

"John Carter" (formerly "of Mars") will be Andrew Stanton's first live-action film will be out on March 9, 2012. I hope that Stanton's talent and love of the material create a modern classic, but I still hate the title change. John Carter of Mars sounds like a great, pulpy adventure. John Carter sounds like a bio-pic that George Clooney is staring in that follows a downsized, corporate suit as he learns to reconnect with the wife and child he neglected. Sigh.

Does it mean that the film is doomed? Not at all. Andrew Stanton is a very talented director that knows a lot about story. I expect all that he's learned in the Brain Trust at the Lamp to be instilled into the very fiber of this adaptation. It's just the lack of enthusiasm about selling a film that has such an uninspired title. Let's see if our fears our calmed when the teaser is released later this summer.

Time will tell...

Monday, June 13, 2011

From Reboot To Wreck-It...

Make sure you're not a wreck at the box office...


Just don't be a wreck at the box office..


After "Tangled," Walt Disney Animation Studios is looking to prove that lighting will strike again...

Originally 2012 was going to be a hole in the production schedule for the Mouse's animation division, but with Pixar's "Monster University" being pushed out to 2013, we got a little bonus. "Reboot Ralph" got bumped up to November 2 2012 to fill that void.

Now, Disney has announced a name change as well. No longer will it be Reboot, but instead "Wreck-It Ralph." I don't know about the name, but all the buzz I've been hearing about the story sounds good. Walt Disney Pictures has even provided a synopsis of the film:

WALT DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS INTRODUCES WILDLY FUNNY NEW CG COMEDY ADVENTURE “WRECK-IT RALPH”

Directed by Emmy® Winner Rich Moore, Hilarious and Wildly Imaginative Animated Movie to Feature the Voices of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch

BURBANK, Calif. (June 13, 2011) – Some of us are born to be bad, but that doesn’t mean we have to like it. Walt Disney Animation Studios and Emmy®-winning director Rich Moore (TV’s “The Simpsons,” “Futurama”) take moviegoers on a hilarious, video-game-hopping journey in “Wreck-It Ralph,” the story of an arcade game Bad Guy determined to prove he can be a Good Guy. Produced by Clark Spencer (“Lilo & Stitch,” “Bolt”) and featuring the voices of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch, the CG comedy adventure will hit theaters on Nov. 2, 2012, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ in select theaters.

Says Moore, “I love the idea of a very simple 8-bit video game character struggling with the complex question: ‘isn't there more to life than the role I've been assigned?’ In his quest for the answer, we journey with our hero through three visually distinct video game worlds. It's unlike anything anyone's seen before, and I'm thrilled to be to creating it here at Walt Disney Animation Studios.”

Wreck-It Ralph (voice of Reilly) longs to be as beloved as his game’s perfect Good Guy, Fix-It Felix (voice of McBrayer). Problem is, nobody loves a Bad Guy. But they do love heroes… so when a modern, first-person shooter game arrives featuring tough-as-nails Sergeant Calhoun (voice of Lynch), Ralph sees it as his ticket to heroism and happiness. He sneaks into the game with a simple plan—win a medal—but soon wrecks everything, and accidently unleashes a deadly enemy that threatens every game in the arcade. Ralph’s only hope? Vanellope von Schweetz (voice of Silverman), a young troublemaking “glitch” from a candy-coated cart racing game who might just be the one to teach Ralph what it means to be a Good Guy. But will he realize he is good enough to become a hero before it’s “Game Over” for the entire arcade?


From all I've been told, this is a very different film for Disney, both in tone and character. I can't wait to see where they go with it...

Sunday, June 12, 2011

Thirty Years After The Greatest Adventure...

I hate snakes...





Thirty years ago today the world changed for me...

George Lucas and Steven Spielberg opened up a film that would define action for decades. It introduced one of the most iconic characters in the history of cinema: Indiana Jones.

"Raiders of the Lost Ark" was a film that I had no idea what to expect, or what it was about. I actually saw it earlier than opening night. Paramount Studios actually had test screening of it all across small town America a couple of weeks before it came out. My small town was one of those places where an advance screening took place. And I went. Not really knowing what to expect, I when as a little kid that loved the movies these two guys made and went in on that blind faith alone.

I came out blown away.

I actually stayed through the entire credit run; something I had never done before, but do quite often now. I left feeling as though Spielberg and Lucas had taking something from my mind and pulled it out and thrown it upon the screen. I can remember watching all that fun, all that action and saying to myself: "Wow, this is intense." After each one of the films action set pieces went on, I'd think that this must be it, the last one, no more action, no more story. This must be the end. But the story and action continued. It was a delightful roller coaster ride. I loved it. I went home and looked up the Ark of the Covenant, because I thought it was such a marvelous device. And I was surprised to find that it was real. So as well as entertaining me, it taught my ignorant mind a little unknown history.

Growing up in the lazy little suburbs of my quaint little city, there was little to do. I was a book reader, a comic reader and a movie-goer. I watched an ample amount of television consisting of a lot of escapist testosterone driven episodes of late 70's/early 80's cheese. One Sunday afternoon, I also happened to stumble on to a little PBS show entitled: "Super Serial Showcase." I watched it and marveled at the delight of these continuing adventures. How everything was fun and filled with action, great heroes and really nasty villains. I wondered to myself why Hollywood didn't make a movie like this. And then one day as I entered adolescence they did. They DID. For all their faults, for all the ranting I do here on Lucas or Spielberg, I have to give them my deepest respect and gratitude on this day.

For they opened another world to me...

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

One Ring To Rule Them All...

A perfect fruit...








The Mouse's biggest shareholder announced a new building for his company yesterday...

Steve Jobs, Apple's visionary leader has revealed his EPCOT (thanks to Alain over at Disney and More for the inspiration of that statement). The CEO presented his plans for the company's new headquarters in Cupertino to the city council.

Over the past decade, Apple has had a growth rate that is unheard of, and with it has come the need to find a place to house those employees. Scattered all around the city and its outskirts, numerous buildings hold some 13,ooo employees. Jobs wants them all working together, in the same space. This is the project that has been known for months as "Apple City."

So this unnamed building, in the form of a ring will house 12,000 employees. The Fruit Company will keep its 1 Infinite Loop headquarters that sits a mile down the road, but the majority of employees will reside in this massive, futuristic, spaceship-shaped building.

It'll be blasting off in 2012 and landing in 2015...

UPDATE: Several others have commented on the design and impact of this building that warrant another look.

Tuesday, June 7, 2011

Building Better Grids...

Tron in 2015 in theaters and Shanghai...


We haven't gotten a green light for TR3N just yet...

But we have gotten clues that they are moving forward with it. First there is the animated series which debuts next year on Disney XD, then there are other projects being worked at in non-film related divisions of the company. Ahem. Now comes word that Walt Disney Studios has hired David DiGilio to pen a new version of the script.

This doesn't mean the film is going to start shooting anytime soon, but it does mean that the fire hasn't gone out yet on this property. It appears that a lot will wrest on how successful "Tron Uprising" is on television. If it is a hit and creates a loyal following, then you're like to see another film on the grid.

If not, you'll always have Blu-Ray...

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Transformations...

Designacons...





Hopefully you remember that article Blue Sky wrote about the new Harry Potter attraction at IOA...

Well, starting later this year in Singapore and next year in Hollywood, a continuation of that experience might be happening. I like competition and Universal Creative has been giving WDI a run for its money. Especially with "Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey." Which is a fantastic experience as a mini-park/attraction. It's the perfect example of how someone other than Disney can create a Disney type of experience. And it succeeded beyond Universal's dreams. It's a Disney attraction that's not a Disney attraction. The quality of the rides, shops and merchandise, well, everything really, is phenomenal. And as I said in that old article, if they keep it up then the Mouse had better start to move quicker because they've got serious competition.





The next test of that will happen when "Transformers: The Ride" opens at Universal Studios Singapore in 2011 and Universal Studios Hollywood in 2012. If that attraction winds up being of the same quality as the Potter attraction then you can bet that Imagineers will be looking in the rear-view mirror. Not that I feel that it's a bad thing. Having WDI have to bring their best game is a good thing for them and us. We will both benefit from the challenges they each face trying to pry those dollars from our hands.





Well, recently some artwork for the queue/loading area was leaked and it shows a great deal of attention to design. Universal has already mentioned that thirty minutes of story is built into the queue, so guest will be immersed in the world of the Autobots and Decepticons for a good part of the wait. Details like this will create an experience that could rival the Harry Potter ride.

And make sure Imagineers don't rest on their laurels...

Hat Tip to /Film via Theme Park Insider.

ALL THINGS Disney...

Working on the Mouse of the future...





If you're a techno-geek like myself then you follow the conference "All Things D" that is held by Walt Mossberg up in Silicon Valley every year...

Bob Iger spoke there seven years ago before taking the reigns of the Mouse and this year he returned. It's interesting to see his perspective of the changing landscape, not only for Disney, but the entertainment industry. Click here if you'd like to see part of the exchange.

Now, we'll have to wait for D23 to get more details on Shanghai Disneyland...