Friday, May 31, 2013

Blade Running...







I'm conflicted about this news...

"Blade Runner" is an amazing film.  It's my second favorite film of all time.  So this little press release could be viewed with trepidation or sacrilegious feelings.  A sequel to the classic sci-fi noir film has been in development for decades.  And years ago Ridley Scott agreed to make one, even hiring Hampton Fancher to create the screenplay.  I always believed it was a money grab; a pay or play scheme to get money to tide him over while he worked on other projects.  I thought that he was thinking: "Hey, if they want to give me money to play with concepts, I'll take it."  But I never really believed that it would ever happen.  Ever.

And then the Alien prequel went forward and actually happened.

And for all the grief people gave that film I actually liked it.  It had so many concepts within it that I found fascinating.  It had plot holes, yes, but it also was an incredible vision from a man that is a sci-fi master.  I mean, Ridley Scott created the future we all envision.  At least on film he did.  Alien was a "monster in the house" film turned on its head, twisted into a space ship plot line and brilliantly brought to life by the director. Blade Runner is for good or bad, the most copied film in cinema when a studio makes a futuristic film.  Almost every film pays homage, or literally rips it off.  That's why when I see a film that goes in the opposite direction I have to give the film makers a certain amount of respect.  Even if their film fails, at least they didn't try to make a clone of this film.

And now Ridley is actually moving forward with this sequel.

I was totally against a sequel to Alien, as it wasn't necessary, and then I saw "Aliens" and was blown away.  So then I welcomed more vacations to this strange world.  Unfortunately we got "Alien 3" which was bad, and "Alien Resurrection" which was worse.  It couldn't get any worse, could it?  Then the "Alien Vs. Predator" films just so they wouldn't waste time and could destroy two franchises in one film.  So when it came to Blade Runner, I didn't want a sequel.  It wasn't a film that was designed to have another chapter.  That ending was perfect.  I didn't want to find out what happened to Decker and Rachel.  I wanted to have my own thoughts about what their lives would be like.  And for two decades I have.

Now we know that they've hired Michael Green to rewrite Fancher's draft, so they're determined to make the film, I guess.  Word is that Harrison Ford is in talks about possibly playing the character again (first Solo, now this?).  So it looks like we'll find out what happened after he fled with her from the apartment.  We'll have a conclusion we didn't need.  An exclamation on the end of a sentence not wanted.  But then again, I didn't need "Prometheus" and I got it.  And I actually enjoyed it.  So I'll just keep quiet until I see this on the big screen in the future.  Perhaps it'll come out in 2019 when the film takes place?  That would be a happy coincidence?

Here's the press release from Alcon:



ALCON ENTERTAINMENT IN NEGOTIATIONS WITH MICHAEL GREEN TO PEN ‘BLADE RUNNER’ SEQUEL REWRITE FOR DIRECTOR RIDLEY SCOTT
 
LOS ANGELES, CA, MAY 31, 2013—Writer Michael Green is in negotiations to do a rewrite of Alcon Entertainment’s “Blade Runner” sequel penned by Hampton Fancher (“Blade Runner,” “The Minus Man,” “The Mighty Quinn”) and to be directed by Ridley Scott. Fancher’s original story/screenplay is set some years after the first film concluded. 
Alcon co-founders and co-Chief Executive Officers Broderick Johnson and Andrew Kosove will produce with Bud Yorkin and Cynthia Sikes Yorkin, along with Ridley Scott. Frank Giustra and Tim Gamble, CEO’s of Thunderbird Films, will serve as executive producers. 
Green recently completed rewrites on “Robopocalypse” and Warners Bros “Gods and Kings.” 
Alcon and Yorkin previously announced that they are partnering to produce “Blade Runner” theatrical sequels and prequels, in addition to all television and interactive productions. 
The original film, which has been singled out as the greatest science-fiction film of all time by a majority of genre publications, was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant.” The film was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry in 1993 and is frequently taught in university courses. In 2007, it was named the 2nd most visually influential film of all time by the  Visual Effects Society. 
Released by Warner Bros. almost 30 years ago, “Blade Runner” was adapted by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples from Philip K. Dick‘s groundbreaking novel “Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?” and directed by Scott following his landmark “Alien.” The film was nominated for two Academy Awards (Best Visual Effects, and Best Art Direction). Following the filming of “Blade Runner,” the first of Philip K. Dick’s works to be adapted into a film, many other of Dick’s works were likewise adapted, including “Total Recall,” “A Scanner Darkly,” “Minority Report,” “Paycheck,” and the recent “The Adjustment Bureau,” among others.



Now we may find out if he really did dream of electric sheep...

All Things Disney...








The "All Things D" is an amazing place for dialing into what's relevant in geek techno...

They've had some extremely interesting, in depth discussions with people connected to the information age that is here, and the one just ahead.  If you want to see where things are going, for good or bad, then their talks are a must.  I've really enjoyed Walt Mossberg's interviews of Steve Jobs, and his talk with Bob Iger was subtly revealing as well.

Well, this year the Mouse came again in the form of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Tom Staggs.  One of a few people that are in line for the big job, Staggs is approachable, intelligent and focused in his back and forth with the hosts.  Take a look at the interview and see what he and the company have planned for the next few years in the parks and elsewhere.

If nothing else, watch Tom for a preview of who might be running the place in a couple of years...

Thursday, May 30, 2013

First The Muppets, Now Alice Too...









Well, we now know who might be the director of the Burtonless Alice sequel...

It looks like the suits in Burbank really like the dailies that they're seeing of the new Muppet sequel because they want to give the director a much bigger film.  James Bobin is in negotiations to helm the sequel to "Alice in Wonderland" according to the trades.

Unless Johnny Depp has a bad meeting with Bobin, it's likely he will return since his presence was a large part of the film.  While I wasn't that big a fan of the film, a billion dollars is a lot of money to turn away from and the studio wants to turn this into another franchise.

As of now the title to the film is "Into The Looking Glass", but that could be tentative.  Alice Into the Looking Glass sounds more in line with where they might want to go I would think.  Mia Wasikowska is expected to return for the title role.  Currently, Linda Woolverton is still writing the screenplay, but you can expect they'd like production to begin as quickly as possible.

Better hurry, mustn't be late...


Enrolling Soon...







The final trailer for the Lamp's prequel to "Monsters Inc." is out...

Pixar's "Monster University" will be out June 21 and the word from people who've seen it is that it's good.  It's remarkably fresh and entertaining, with a surprising amount of heart.  Now, is it really surprising that a Pixar film has heart?

The great thing about the Emeryville Campus of Disney North, is that John Lasseter and his Brain Trust run it.  They are the heart surgeons that created this little bit of animated Nirvana.  And thankfully, he's well on his way to making the Hat Building a place filled with heart as well.  Animationally speaking, of course.

Monster University should be a lot of fun, not to mention the trailer in front of it...

Short From Krypton...







Zach Snyder is teaming with the incredibly talented Bruce Timm to honor Kal-El's beginning...

Superman's Seventy-fifth anniversary is marked by the new "Man of Steel" film, and Warner Bros. has teamed the director of that film with the producer of "Superman: The Animated Series" for a short that will pay tribute to the character and his history in film and comics.

The Hollywood Reporter's Heat Vision reports that Snyder envisions the short as one continuous take that explores the character's history and impact on comics.  Snyder and Timm will be joined on the project by Jay Oliva (storyboard artist on MOS), Geoff Johns (DC creative head), Mike Carlin (DC writer), and Peter Girardi (WB Animation).  The finished product is supposed to debut at Comic-Con this year.

The short is one of many events that will coincide the anniversary of the first superhero...

From Yesterday, Today...





Another trailer for another remake coming to television this fall...

I don't know why the CW doesn't just change its name to The YA or The Twilight Channel.  Everything it does is directed toward this demographic.  But the CW Suits have taken "The Tomorrow People", a fun, British series from the 70's and have adapted it to the times where it'll fit right in between "The Vampire Diaries" and "Arrow" or several other shows.  It's going to be scheduled with "Arrow" this fall to maximize the success of that show, and hopefully the popularity of that show will transfer over to this one.  Suits think so at least.

For those of you that don't know, "The Tomorrow People" is based on a series about a genetically evolved group of people, hence "Tomorrow", that have jumped the strain of humanity and are ahead of their times.  They have powers and abilities that would classify them as superheroes or mutants.  And some might say that they're ripping off the current popularity of these shows and films, I'd have to disagree.  They might be taking advantage of those shows, but they're not ripping them off.

The British show was a great deal of fun.  With intriguing plot lines and very Doctor Who type of stories (with the quality of 70's Doctor Who effects, unfortunately).  I used to enjoy watching reruns of it on Nickelodeon in the early days of that network and my youth.  If the stories are as good as the original series, and the effects are better then the original series has a lot of promise.

If it's not, then it'll be no worse than some of the other shows on the CW...

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Norwegian Pirates...






Walt Disney Pictures has finally chosen the director(s) for the fifth pirate adventure...

The trades are reporting that the Mouse has chosen the directing duo behind "Kon-Tiki" to take the franchise into the fifth film.  Joachim Ronning and Espen Sandberg will make their English language debut with this outing of the Johnny Depp franchise.

The script written by Terry Rossio, since taken over by Jeff Nathanson in the latest drafts.  Rob Marshall had expressed interest in directing, but instead chose "Into the Woods" (we should be relieved).  Jerry Bruckheimer is still producing the film which is scheduled to be released in summer 2015.

The directing duo have made a small film on water look big, now they'll have a chance to make a big film look bigger...

An Untitled Slate...






Walt Disney Pictures has announced the line up for its major animation studios...

The studio has given a list of the release dates of both the Mouse and the Lamp.  The five year plan for Walt Disney Animation Studios and Pixar Animation Studios was put out to lay claim to those weekends.  Now, only the dates were published, not the titles.  That will only come as we get closer to the release date, and those dates are subject to change.  Nothing is chiseled in stone:



2016

Untitled Walt Disney animated film 3/4/16 in 3D.

Untitled Pixar animated film 6/17/16 in 3 D.

Untitled Walt Disney animated film 11/23/16 in 3D.


2017

Untitled Pixar animated film 6/6/17 in 3D.

Untitled Pixar animated film 11/22/17 in 3D.


2018

Untitled Walt Disney animated film 3/9/18 in 3D.

Untitled Pixar animated film 6/15/18 in 3D.

Untitled Walt Disney animated film 11/21/18 in 3D.



Now all we have to do is let the stories unfold...

Pulp From The Vine...




Blue Sky isn't the only one that sees a resurgence in pulp influences on pop-culture...

The guys over at Comic Vine have posted an article entitled: "The Resurgence of Pulp in Comics" that could be a companion piece to our very own "The Geek Codex" article.  Check it out for a thoughtful look at the gravitation toward the archetype characters that helped build what became comic books.

And then influence radio, film and television...

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

Man Of U.N.C.L.E...












Well, now we know who might be taking the Solo role Tom parachuted out on...

So instead of just having the man that played secret agent Ethan Hunt taking on the part of secret agent Napoleon Solo, we'll have Kal-El play him?  That sounds interesting.  Word is the buzz surrounding "Man of Steel" is so positive among the Bunny Suits that Warner feels Henry Cavill can lead another iconic franchise.

So if this rings true then Cavil will be Solo to Armie Hammer's Russian spy Illya Kuryakin.  That will be a comely duo for Guy Ritchie to have some fun with.  Will "The Man From U.N.C.L.E." be a present day adventure, or a period-centric 60's spy pic?

We may need a secret agent to find that out...

Air Buds...






The trailer for "Planes" has finally been released...

The teaser released a few weeks ago was more of a montage of the scenes with some nice music laid down to give it some ambiance.  It didn't try to tell any of the story.  The animation itself is quite impressive, but the story looks like a flight we've been on before.  In a car.

It looks like a rehash of the basic "Cars" story, except with planes instead of automobiles.  Instead of the racing car "Lightning McQueen" we have the racing plane "Dusty."  Instead of Mater, we have the lovable Gee Bee plane to guide him.  It sounds like they're going back to the well with this one, but I do know that the Bothans that have seen it say it's impressive enough that John Lasseter felt it worthy of a limited theatrical release.  And the male demographic will love it.

And if this flies we can look forward to trains...

Monday, May 27, 2013

Telling Tails...






























If you're a fan of classic fantasy stories then this is for you...

That poster you see is the teaser for the upcoming animated film adaptation of Tad Willaims' "Tailchaser's Song".  It's an epic fantasy that is told through the eyes of a society of cats.  If you're rolling your eyes, please don't.  It's an enchanting tail, um tale about a particular cat that has to go on a quest to find out the who is killing cats.  It's sweet and haunting, involving cat gods, strange worlds and bizarre adventures.  Crazy, beautiful stuff.  It's been described as "Watership Down with cats", but that doesn't do the story justice.

Animetropolis Productions along with IDA and EFG-Renascence are in the process of animating it right now, so it'll probably be out around 2015, although there's no official release date yet.  But if the animation is good then this film could be a great film.  They already have great source material that is epic.

Not every animated film can start off with a great story, but this one does/can...

Hat Tip to Ain't It Cool.

Honoring The Brave And The Fallen...











Thank you for all that you have did to protect our great country...

Today, Memorial Day, we honor and pay our respects to those that put on the uniform and place themselves in harm's way so as to protect the freedoms we take for granted.

Thank you from Blue Sky Disney,

Honor

Made. In Japan...








The special issue of Empire magazine is out...

It's got a swanky cool picture of Hugh Jackman in character from the film "The Wolverine" for the cover.  Pretty nice pose.  I really want this film to be good, but the trailers so far haven't given a great vibe.  Despite the fact that it has a great screenwriter in Christopher MacQuarrie, terrific source material in the Frank Miller/Chris Claremont mini-series, and a top level director in James Mangold, the trailer so far don't convey the classic tale of Logan in the Land of the Rising Sun.

Maybe Fox hired the people that marketed "John Carter" for Disney...

Sunday, May 26, 2013

A Very Joss Whedon Commencement...








Joss Whedon is known for his words...

So when he agrees to give a commencement to a graduating class, you know it'll be inciteful and fill with words of wisdom and pearls of humor.  The takeaway from this talk to the leaders of tomorrow that were leaving Wesleyan University with diploma in hand:

"You are all going to die"

It's funny, and pure Whedon.  Give a look to the entire commencement here.  Unfortunately, it looks as no one filmed it, as no video has been found yet.  Thanks, YouTube.

Sadly, no Avengers secrets were revealed during his time behind the podium...

Hat Tip to io9.

UPDATE:  We finally have video of the commencement, it's a little windy, but now you can see the words spoken by the bard himself.

Saturday, May 25, 2013

ReTurning Thirty...












Thirty years ago today we were introduced to Ewoks...

And although it's the most flawed of the bunch, "Episode VI: Return of the Jedi" is still part of the Original Trilogy.  And it's far better than the Prequels.  There are moments of greatness in the film (The arrival of the Emperor, the duel with Vader.), but there are scenes of unnecessary repetitiveness (Another Death Star, really?  Ewok, instead of Wookies, really!? A final battle on the Moon of Endor instead of a full scale assault on Coruscant, really!!?).

But it also marked a closing.  There was no way of knowing if George Lucas would ever get around to making the original films he had told us about.  And sadly, when he did get around to them they never quite lived up to what we expected.  "Revenge of the Sith" almost rises to the quality of the original, but falls just short.  If they'd started out like that particular film and got better then most of of us wouldn't be complaining I'd like to think.

There have been a lot of changes to the film since then.  Most were done for the wrong reasons and we've been over those arguments before.  George could do with them what he wanted.  And now he's wanted to move beyond his creation, letting it live past him into a new future.

I'll still remember sitting in that darkened theater as a kid watching the opening scrawl come up and just felling giddy about the prospect of seeing another Star Wars film.  And then the sadness that it was all over when the credits starting rolling.  So even with all its bumps and warts Jedi still retains that innocence of the thosel films we watched as innocents.

You know, before the dark times...

Netflix's New Season...








For fans of the "Arrested Development" series tomorrow is the day you've waited for...

The Fourth Season of the show premieres on Netflix.  And by season, we mean season.  The entire run of episodes will be available all at once.  You'll be able to have a marathon if you want.  And some will.  Of course, if you watch all of them at once, what will you do then?

Cross your fingers that enough viewers see it and then hope that Netflix announces a Season Five?  Or a movie?  I personally think a movie couldn't contain enough of the antics of the show to make it as enjoyable.  So, if it's a hit we can only hope that Netflix comes to a deal with Mitchell Hurwitz, and he can bring back to cast for another season.  Then you'll have to wait for them to write, film, edit and then stream that one.

But it wouldn't/can't be as much time as the amount between 3 and 4, right...


Friday, May 24, 2013

Marvel Yokes...







It's safe to say that "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." is my most anticipated show of the fall...

But if you're thinking that the series will turn into a who's who/guest star of the week, then you'll be disappointed according to show creator/executive producer Joss Whedon.  IGN spoke with the creator of Buffy, Firefly, etc. about the possibility of cross-overs or guest stars appearing during the show's run.

IGN: Fans can’t resist asking, “What superheroes will show up from the comics?” I’ve seen you say you want to be careful though, to somewhat divvy that out and not load up the show with that sort of thing, right?  
Whedon: It’s not what the show is about. The show is about the six people who are in the show. And {every} week we’ll meet somebody that they have to deal with. Some of those people will be very sympathetic, some of them will be evil, some will be from the Marvel canon, some will reference it -- but it’s not an Easter egg hunt.. It really is just about the lives of these people as they’re dealing with this super-world. 

Which is no big loss, really.  It's not like they're going to have trouble coming up with ideas for the show.  Whedon is an extremely talented writer and we shouldn't fear seeing a Hellmouth or a spaceship named Serenity showing up.  He did eight years of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", several more on "Angel" and many more.  I think the show will be original enough to draw us in, and have enough relevance to the Marvel universe to keep viewers around.

In fact, I'll bet he creates an entirely original part of this world.  AOS will open up areas of the super agency that we've never seen.  It'll allow the tapestry of the world we saw last summer to grow into an amazing experience.  If he can have us interested in Sunnydale for seven seasons, I'm sure the entire world will offer an even more intriguing adventure.

If only for an hour, once every Tuesday...

Impossible Mission: Man From Uncle...








Well, it appears Tom Cruise won't be starting a new spy franchise anytime soon...

The star has dropped out of the lead for Guy Ritchie's "The Man From Uncle" adaptation.  It appears that the scheduling conflict for filming this would have interfered with Cruise being actively involved in producing M:I 5 and he had to withdraw from the role.

So Warner Bros. and Ritchie are now on the hunt for another actor to play the role.  The film has had various actors in and out of the role (George Clooney, Bradley Cooper, etc.) since Steven Soderbergh was attached to make a retro-60's spy film for the Bunny.

Apparently the script is ready for production and the film was scheduled to film in late 2013, which is the reason it was a conflict for Cruise.  The fifth M:I film is currently being written by Drew Pearce, and is expected to be directed by Christopher MacQuarrie although he's not yet signed.  So who will get cast as Napoleon Solo?  Who will want it?  Robert Downey Jr. said something about wanting to create another non-Marvel franchise.

And he has worked with Guy Ritchie on another franchise...

The Geek Codex...













It's amazing how the past can sometimes take control of the present...

Or predict the future.  Because that's what happened between the 1930's to the 1950's.  Much of the literature or films of these decades greatly influenced what we go to the theaters to see, or what we turn on the television to watch.  Now, I'm talking specifically about a certain type of literature (pulp magazines & comics) and a certain kind of film (serials).

Don't think so?  Think again.

Imagine some of the biggest hits in the last two decades, or even three decades and what do you come up with?  Star Wars?  It's a Saturday morning serial, especially "The Empire Strikes Back", as it's a pure matinee picture.  Raiders of the Lost Ark?  It's cut from the mold of old serials like "Spy Smasher" or "Zorro's Black Whip" among others.  Even it has imitators like "The Mummy" that play into the serial/pulp vein of pictures.  What is Disney's big tent pole picture this summer?  "The Lone Ranger" which is based on pulp stories that turned into serials like "The Lone Ranger" and "The Lone Ranger Rides Again" to the classic television series.

And then there are the pulp stories like "Doc Savage" that is walking right out of a tattered, old pulp magazine.  There have been some abortive attempts like "The Shadow" which has the correct look, but the wrong feel for the character.  And there have been efforts to bring him back, specifically, Sam Raimi a few years back before he got "Spider-Man" off the ground.  Disney's own "John Carter of Mars", which sadly didn't connect properly with audiences, comes from the Edgar Rice Burroughs stories printed in these old pulps.  Most people like to make fun of this that have never read the novels, or they simply forget because of Burroughs more famous pulp creation: Tarzan.

And comic books seem to be the biggest beneficiary of this resurgence.  There have been bad attempts at this over the decades, but around the end of the last century we started getting films that tapped the right fan artery.  Part of this was because Suit in charge were beginning to be the generation that read these comics so the stories were more authentic, and second, the introduction of computer graphics made it possible to create believable worlds; something that wasn't achievable a decade earlier.  A film of the Justice League or Avengers a couple of decades ago would have looked horrible, but with the help of CG and a script by Joss Whedon, look at what can be achieved?  A Justice League picture right now sounds like a monster waiting to be unleashed, not a film to be humiliatingly tucked away in a vault.

But a great deal of what you see on the silver screen today has been born from the DNA of these mediums.  And we're beginning o see more and more of them.  Expect if Doc Savage succeeds for The Shadow to be quickly green lit into production.  Studio Suits will go mining the pages of dingy pulps looking for the next character that they can exploit.  Something like The Spider could be the next one to go, or a less known pulp hero like Operator 5 or Secret Agent X.  If Warner Bros. wants to get on the band wagon, all they have to do is look through their DC Comics characters for "Spy Smasher", a little character they bought from Whiz Comics years ago.  He's the star of an incredibly entertaining serial by the same name that is utterly dear to me.

Not everything will be a hit.  For every Star Wars, there is a "Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow" that doesn't perform.  Or a "Rocketeer" that disappoints.  But even that film has developed a growing following as it's gotten older.  It's aged like wine to the point where the Mouse is thinking of rebooting it for the next generation.  Everything old is new again, or can be.  If you were a fan of "The Clone Wars" then you might not know that you were watching a serial.  Everything about that show flows back to the old Flash Gordon serials, from the action to the opening exposition setting up what's to come.

Yes, pulp/serials/comics changed the world.  At least the one we pay money for a ticket to see.  They take us away from the boring, drab world we live in to take us to a world where good will win, and it will do so with style and presence.  It's a place where danger lurks around every corner, but fun pervades every bit of atmosphere.  Within this world we can escape the lives we live, to experience something missing from our day to day journeys.

Now sit back in your chair at that theater and watch these old tales live again...

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Frozen In Time...










Just a little less than a month from now and "Monsters University" will be out...

But what many people will be happy about is getting their first real look at Walt Disney Animation Studios' next feature: "Frozen".  The first teaser will be in front of the Lamp's animated prequel.  Now, it's a teaser, not a full trailer.  It's meant to give you the flavor of the film.  It'll be a sweet little scene (not of the main characters) that shows off the humor.  One that gets you ready for what's to come.

A frozen treat, if you will...

The Thirtieth Return...




























It's hard to believe that it's been three decades since Luke destroyed a second Death Star...

Kyle Newman (Fanboys) got together with Entertainment Weekly to create a short featurette about the anniversary of "Return of the Jedi".  My only complaint is it's just a list of celebrities looking back at the film.  Do we have to judge everything through the lens of stars?  After all, millions of fans are all around the world for the asking.  How about interviewing a man in Idaho and a woman in the countryside of England?  Or Japan?  Or Italy?  While it was entertaining, the world of Star Wars is bigger than just the movie stars that happened to of seen it.

The Star in Star Wars doesn't stand for movie stars...

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

A Spider's Web...






























About that possibility of Marvel getting the film rights to "Spider-Man" back...

Will the Arachnid be joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe anytime soon?  If you'd have asked me that this morning, I'd have said "No".  But now comes a report that Sony has been in a bit of a financial bind of late and is looking to an investor group to help shore up its balance sheet.  The group led by investor David Loeb (no relation to Jeph Loeb) has proposed selling off particular entertainment franchises (in music and studio divisions) to make it more attractive to investment.  Two of the entertainment franchises listed are "Resident Evil" and "Spider-Man".  As for RS, I have no opinion on the sale because the films are so utterly lifeless and devoid of anything that makes the games fun and interesting. Spidey on the other hand is a whole other ballgame.

Would the Mouse be interested in purchasing the rights back?  Yes, they would were this to be true.  Would the price be right is the more appropriate question.  The Walt Disney Company paid a sizable amount versus a projected box office take to buy out the remaining rights to Paramount Pictures deal with Marvel a couple years ago.  That deal included the "Avengers" film and "Iron Man 3".  Paramount made a nice little fee for the release, but Web Head is clearly worth a great deal more than Shell Head, and Sony, if they decide to sell them will be asking for a much better deal than Paramount got.  But don't hold your breath.

If this does happen, the last hold out would be Fox.  And they're clearly moving ahead with their reboot of the "Fantastic Four" property and the expansion of the mutant franchises.  They have no desire or inclination to give up such money making machines, but Disney will be watchful and holding them to the letter of the contracts.  It's doubtful they'll give 20th Century Fox any wiggle room in any adaptation of Marvel characters.  Over time, the characters will find their way back into the company fold, but unless some extremely pricey deal is made, it'll have to wait until they lose interesting in the properties.  That will likely not happen until the box office for the films becomes at least a disappointment, or an outright financial dud.

But in the meantime, the Mouse's lawyers are ready to pounce...

Hat Tip to Comic Book Movie via Comic Book Therapy.

UPDATE:  Harry over at Ain't It Cool News has been in touch with Sony Pictures Entertainment Co-Chair Amy Pascal.  And this is something that isn't going to happen.  So, until the films become unprofitable, or they miss a deadline for making one of the films, Marvel fans will have to wait for Spider-Man to debut in the MCU.

The Drift...





































In addition to a cowboy and an alien, this summer also has giant robots...

Any film that Guillermo del Toro makes is something of note (which is why I want to see his reboot of "The Haunted Mansion").  He's a geek-made-good, and any project the director works on is going to peak the interest of pop-culture aficionados the world over.  If you've ever watched the behind the scene videos then you know he's great at explaining the creation/reasoning behind the universes he builds.

Here is a little featurette that focuses on how the humans of "Pacific Rim" control the giant robots they use to battle the monsters that have been unleashed from the depths of the oceans.  It's an in-depth deconstruction of how the functions work; and why they work.  That's one of the things that's great about del Toro's films.  There's a layered approach to his stories.  He doesn't just say, wouldn't this be cool?

He wants to have a reason for it being cool...

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

You Are Not Alone...

























A new trailer for "Man of Steel" is out...

Warner Bros. has delivered an action packed trailer filled with the kind of action we'd expect from a man that can fly, has super human strength and can shoot lasers out of his eyes.  Take a look and buy that ticket right now.  It really does present a much better looking film than what Bryan Singer gave us.  Really excited to see this.  Hopefully, they'll tease the much bigger DC Cinematic Universe in this.

A reference to Brainiac conquering worlds during the final scenes of this would be the icing on the cake...

Last American Hero...








So the Mouse released the final trailer for their new summer film...

The fourth trailer for Walt Disney Pictures "The Lone Ranger" has come out.  More action, more comedy, more "splosions" and a really wild, Wild West.  The folks in Burbank are betting 200+ million on a genre that has been hit or miss over the past few decades.

Gone are the days when Hollywood studios would crank out Westerns on a weekly basis, because it was printing money.  People would go to see them no matter if they were good, or bad, or the cowboy was singing.  It was a distinctly American genre that defined this nation during the latter part of the Nineteenth century.  It was the emergence of this nation on the world as a place of opportunity, adventure and hope.

Maybe that hope is personified in the adventures of this tale of a masked man out for justice.  He doesn't wear a cape, or fly, or throw a car at someone to smash them.  He fires a bullet, rides a white horse, and wears a white hat.  He's the symbol of a dying breed of film and men.  Cowboys are a part of the film industry and the American past.  We'll see if it rides again this summer.

Remember they said pirate movies were dead a while ago too...

One Against 4...











So Micro$oft introduced their successor to the XBox 360...

And it's not called the XBox 720 like so many gaming geeks expected.  It's called the XBox One.  One?  Really, didn't they already have a one?  That means the fourth version of this will be called, what?  The XBox Two?  Confusing.  I guess they're going back to square one and starting fresh.  So now we know the competition that the PS4 will have.  But could they have made it look better than a late 70's VCR?

But it appears that the guys up in Redmond want to also become like Netflix.  Hulu has tried to be a Netflix competitor.  Amazon has started their own streaming service, HBO has hinted that HBO GO might eventually be a Netflix like service and now, it appears that the XBox Live service plans to have original content as well.  And they've lined up the Babe Ruth of film to start it off.

Steven Spielberg.

And not only him, but the television series that he'll produce for the XBox Live: Halo.  That's right, Halo is finally going to be seen in live-action.  Just as a television show, not a film.  Spielberg will be executive producing the series.  Not much information is available about the show other than the fact that it'll be exclusive to XBox Live.

There are a lot of competing platforms out there competing for your eyeballs.  It's creating an incredible amount of fragmentation in the marketplace.  The result is many more markets with smaller audiences.  Long gone is the night when a network would have fifty percent of the viewing audience.  Today, if you get ten to twenty it's huge.  And it's only going to get more fragmented.  But that means more choice, and choice is good.  And now with XBox One, you have another choice.

And with the Halo series, you'll have another...

Son Of Solo...









































Yes, I know we've had Star Wars casting rumors since last yesterday...

But has anyone thought to try and think of who Jonathan Rhys Meyers would be playing?  The most logical choice would be the offspring of Han and Leia.  So what we might have here is the son of the roguish space pirate.   Could this really be Chewie's godson?

It strange because I remember when "Mission: Impossible 3" came out reading an interview with Meyers where they asked him if there was any type of role he'd not like to play.  And he said science fiction, and then used a pejorative word regarding using the rest room to describe it.  I can't remember what article it was, but I clearly remember him saying it.

If this rumor is true, things have certainly changed.  Being offered a role in what could be the most widely anticipated film in a decade can have that effect on you.  Plus there is the prospect of working for his former director, J.J. Abrams.  Times change, taste change, people change.

Now we just have to find out if he's solo...

Steel More Posters...










Whoever is working in the Bunny's marketing dept. is burning the midnight oil...





















No sooner had we published that really cool poster of Jor-El than they let loose with another really swank Kal-El poster, and an incredibly upset General Zod one as well.

Not much longer before the Alien arrives on Earth...

Monday, May 20, 2013

No Assembly Required...



















Everybody loves free stuff...

I was a big fan of the Marvel animated series: "Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes" before they cancelled it.  I still feel that it was ill conceived to end it just to connect the animated series closer to the "Avengers" film.  That show was on its way to becoming the Marvel version of what DC's "Batman: The Animated Series" has become.  But then they ended it to create another animated series.

Well, if you'd like to see what the new "Avengers Assemble" is going to look like before the May 26 broadcast on Disney XD, here's your chance.  The Mouse has released the first half of the pilot (22 minutes) on iTunes for free.  Take a look and see if it measures up to what came before it.

You'll have to wait a week to see the conclusion though...

Giving Tomorrow A Past...






There's been a great deal of mystery surrounding Brad Bird's next film...

It was untitled, then it was called "1954" or "Tesla" depending on who you talked to.  Finally it was announced that it would be known as "Tomorrowland" to the confused looks of film and Disney fans alike.

The guys over at Grantland have released a very entensive interview with Damon Lindelof (I urge you to read the entire interview because it's a facinating look inside the mind and process of a writer.) where he talks about several projects that he's been connected to, but he unpacks the origins of his script which Brad Bird is now getting ready to start directing:



I’ve always been fascinated by Disneyland and Disney World, and my favorite part of the park was always Tomorrowland. But there’s no story there. Like, if you go into Fantasyland, there’s just story happening all around you everywhere, whether it’s sort of a direct kind of connection to a movie that you know or a fairy tale that you know, and the same with, like, Frontierland, or when you go in the Haunted Mansion. My son, who’s 6, when he went on Pirates of the Caribbean for the first time, Jack Sparrow is a part of that ride. He’s going to see the movies in two years, when he’s old enough, and he’s going to think that the movies were the inspiration for the ride, versus the other way around. I would love to do that for Tomorrowland, you know? I would love to give Tomorrowland a story, because right now, Tomorrowland is kind of being taken over by Star Wars — which is great, but it’s called Tomorrowland. Star Wars is a galaxy a long time ago, far, far away. Star Wars is not about our future. 
And there’s this Neil deGrasse Tyson speech — you can YouTube it — and he gave an eloquent and beautiful talk about how the abandonment of the space program after we landed on the moon is responsible for the fact that we no longer have an optimistic view of our future. I just said, “There’s a movie in there somewhere.” And that was the beginning of me curating this rather fascinating “is it or isn’t it?” Disney history in this kind of Dan Brown, Da Vinci Code way. Like, all these things that I didn’t know about, the history of Tomorrowland in the park, and could that be the basis of something? Even though the movie is not about the park — I will say this exclusively to you, that none of the movie takes place in a Disneyland park. It doesn’t, but that history became the inspiration for this amazing story. I brought Jeff Jensen in, who had come up with all these amazing theories about Lost while it was on, some of which were just so much better than what we were coming up with in the room. I said, “Come in and look at this stuff and talk to me about it,” and then we started coming up with the germs of a really cool story, and then at the same time, I was hanging out with Bird, because we were both in the Bad Robot universe; he was posting Ghost Protocol as we were working on Into Darkness. I kind of got my hooks in him because I started asking him all these questions about Disney, because he worked there for a number of years and was basically trained by a couple of the original Imagineers, and he was like, “Why are you asking me these questions?” and I said, “I’m working on this project regarding Tomorrowland,” and then he was in. And then we went and picked up George Clooney, and we were off to the races.



It's a fascinating walk through the process for coming up with the story that became so interesting that it made Bird turn down an offer to direct "Episode VII".

Now that has to be a powerful story...

 Hat Tip to /Film.