The footage from a certain Mark Millar and John Romita Jr. film from Marvel has been in the works for a while now. Infact more work has been done on the film than the comic that inspired it. Footage was shown at Comic-Con and has now been leaked on-line. It’s graphic, with profanity and blood aplenty. Go here to see a few clips plus the trailer. The sound and picture quality aren’t the best to be sure, but you’ll get the picture. This film was made without a distributor attached, but now they’re lining up for it after seeing the response at Comic-Con. It looks like it could be the next Sin City -a real in your face film that crosses over to non-fanboys. The costumes are slightly different, but the over the top violence and black humour is certainly the same, and the use of the excellent Superman: The Movie theme music is strangely fitting. And if you’re wondering why I haven’t mentioned the film yet, well, it’s called Kick-A**. There I said it. Almost. The film opens sometime next year and is directed by Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake).
Watch This Space
G.I. Joe Toons
For those of you that have been disappointed by the new live action G.I. Joe film, you have other options. You can check out Resolute, the multi-part series penned by Warren Ellis with a great anime look, or you can watch the short videos below. The two part G.I. Joe: The Invasion of Cobra Island uses the original action figures, vehicles and playsets to great effect. It has a host of characters appearing, bad guys screaming like girls, and shows the difficulties of navigating a self-destruct system. It’s somewhat amusing and does remind me of my youth playing with my toys in the backyard. Ah, good times.
Resistance Trailer
I saw these guys at Comic-Con where they debuted this impressive trailer for their upcoming film, Resistance, which garnered a lot of well-deserved attention. Watch it from about 1:42 and be even more impressed.
A Few Good Films
And a few bad ones too. It’s been a while since I’ve done a film review, so here’s some I’ve seen recently that are worth watching, or worth avoiding.
JCVD. Jean Claude Van Damme was always one of the best action stars back in the day; the day being the ’90s. It always amused me how he somehow managed to do the splits in every flick. A few expensive divorces and bad films later and he’s not the star he once was. I can’t even remember the last time he was in a cinematically released film. Anyway, JCVD is his comeback of sorts. He plays himself as a fading star, with fans everywhere he goes, and gets caught up in a robbery at a post office. Let me just say that he’s brilliant in this. Yes, brilliant. He gives an Oscar worthy performance and shows the audience that he’s more than just the guy with the fancy footwork. If you don’t mind subtitles, give this a go. It’s more of a drama than an actioner, but hopefully it allows Van Damme more meatier roles in the future.
Punisher: War Zone. I liked The Punisher with Thomas Jane and John Travolta, back in 2004. It stayed close to the dark comics, and despite the low budget and speed with which it was shot, it worked. The sequel, of sorts, doesn’t have as much – character, and Ray Stevenson does have a hardness that Jane didn’t bother with. The fight scenes are more brutal and gory and the plot is thin. Classic characters such as Microchip and Jigsaw aren’t really explored at all. It’s – okay as an action film, but Frank Castle deserves better.
Paul Blart: Mall Cop starring hefty Kevin James is somewhat funny. James is great in it, as a naive and loveable security guard in a shopping centre. It’s a little too Disney, but at least it’s safe for family viewing. The bad guys aren’t really so evil and the physical comedy mostly works.
Fighting. If you’ve seen last year’s Never Back Down, which was a cross between Fight Club and The O.C, there’s no need to see this film. It stars Channing Tatum as a young, homeless ex-wrestler who doesn’t mind a fight. Terrence Howard is in this film for some reason as a hustler who guides Tatum in his fights for cash. It’s a simple film and there’s no real substance to it.
12 Rounds. The best of the WWE Studios films so far, but that’s not saying a lot. Wrestler John Cena does his best to become actor John Cena and doesn’t too badly. He’s a New Orleans cop who accidentally kills the girlfriend of a bad guy who then kidnaps Cena’s woman a year later and forces him to run around the city completing 12 tasks in order to save her. Yes, it’s a little too similar to Die Hard: With a Vengeance (Die Hard 2, Cliffhanger) but director Renny Harlin stamps a visual flair on it that makes it better than average.
Green Lantern: First Flight Review
Green Lantern: First Flight is the best looking DC animated film yet and should easily convince anyone that the live action film is well deserved. Writer Alan Burnett, who has been working with Superman and Batman in comics as well as animated form over the last few years, does a tremendous job of offering a streamlined version of this much loved space opera.
At the moment Green Lantern is one of the hottest characters around, thanks to Geoff Johns and his epic building Blackest Night event. The focus in this animated adventure is not about such complexities, as one film wouldn’t be enough, but it does a great job of providing all the information needed for the Lantern curious.
It’s essentially Hal Jordan: Year One but there’s no Rocky-style training montage. Less than 10 minutes after the film begins Jordan has received his ring from the dying alien Abin Sur and is off to Oa, where he’s partnered with veteran Lantern, Sinestro. It’s been described elsewhere as Training Day in space, and that’s a tidy fit. Hal is the first earthman to receive a power ring, which enables its wearer to make constructs of whatever they can imagine. The Green Lantern Corps (an intergalactic peace keeping force) have been around for aeons, thanks to the Guardians, a race of little blue creatures who fashioned the rings and oversee the Corps. Jordan’s not a popular new recruit, and the myriad of aliens know Earth doesn’t have a good track record. However Sinestro offers to show Jordan the ropes. This is when Jordan grasps what the ring is capable of, and its weakness to the colour yellow, as well discovering that Sinestro is sick of the system and has secretly been trying to take over the Guardians’ job as rulers of the universe.
The problem with this film is the same thing that makes it so enjoyable for fanboys. It is a non-stop ride. Viewers will get more from it if they’re already somewhat familiar with the GL concept. The basics are offered, but with no real explanations. The bonus features offer more answers to the mythos though, with Geoff Johns chiming in about Blackest Night, and summaries of the Guardians and Sinestro. There’s also an excellent look at September’s Superman/Batman: Public Enemies film, which looks rocking. It re-unites the original animated voices of Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor and sticks closely to the first few issues of the Jeph Loeb and Ed McGuiness series. With its ramped up action and guest stars galore, this could possibly be the best of these movies. Also included are previous looks at the earlier films, Justice League: New Frontier, Batman: Gotham Knight and Wonder Woman, the latter of which GL director Lauren Montgomery also directed. Trailers for Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Ban 10: Alien Force, Bakugan and Batman: Gotham Knight round out the extras on the first disc.
Disc 2 has the best extras, with more Geoff Johns, but this time he reveals his history on the character and how he sees Hal and co. This feature also includes heaps of eye candy, with art from Ivan Reis, Dave Gibbons and others. It’s an interesting, though brief, look at Johns, as he mentions the doubts many had on Hal’s future, his research at Edwards Air Force Base, and how he got his internship with Superman director Richard Donner. The classic Green Loontern episode from the Duck Dodgers in the 24 ½ th Century TV toon from a few years ago is here too. Duck Dodgers accidentally receives a Lantern suit and ring from the drycleaners and must rescue the Corps from the clutches of Sinestro. It features many light hearted cameos, including Kevin Smith as Jordan! What is becoming a regular extra is Bruce Timm Presents, where the veteran animation producer and character designer chooses two fave episodes from the DC animated banks. Here it’s the Once and Future Thing Part One and Two from Justice League Unlimited. This is a welcome extra, but an introduction by Timm on who he is and why he chose these episodes would make sense.
Each Lantern suit is slightly different not only from its comic book counterpart, but also from each other. Carol Ferris, Tomar Re, Ch’p, Arisia, Kilowog and The Guradians appear the same in both appearance and personality, but other familiar characters are strangely different, such as the Weaponers of Qward, Abin Sur, Kanjar Ro and Boodikka, voiced by Tricia Helfer.
I can see this film being one which separates audiences. It’s perhaps too much for DC novices, but it looks splendid, and is filled with action and many (off-screen) deaths. 77 minutes isn’t long enough for an introduction into the sprawling GL mythos, though the extras help reveal more. The music by Robert Kral is the best of these movies, and I’m glad to see Sinestro eventually get his fancy yellow suit.
The voice acting is great too. Christopher Meloni (Law and Order: SVU) handles Jordan well, as does Michael Madsen with Kilowog, and Victor Garber (Alias) is pitch perfect as Sinestro, with menace and arrogance in equal measure. Garber’s role is the largest one in the film and he steps up with relish.
First Flight won’t be for everyone, but it’s close to the comics for the most part and its mix of space faring adventure, cop show and dazzling visuals should be enough for fans of DC and good animation. Considering this is the second direct-to-DVD release from DC this year, with one more to come in 2009, its pretty impressive. They keep churning them out with no loss of quality.
Green Lantern: First Flight is available on DVD, Blu-Ray and On Demand now.
Green Lantern: First Flight Preview
DC’s latest animated film debuts on July 28 on DVD, Blu-Ray and On Demand, and below is a sneak peek at the film, starring Hal Jordan and Sinestro. Looks good.
Watchmen Director’s Cut DVD Review
I remember seeing Nite Owl’s ship, and the excellent repeating trailer, on display at last year’s Comic-Con and here we are a year later. The film adaptation of DC’s classic 12 issue maxi-series has come and gone and has excited and perplexed many. I loved the film on the big screen. It was everything I hoped it would be and more. Sure, it wasn’t exactly a precisely faithful take but like Sin City before it, it showed the world that comics can be deep and mature. Hollywood had been trying to make the landmark story into a cinematic epic for the last twenty years, but it wasn’t until director Zack Snyder made 300 and proved himself worthy of the Watchmen helm.
Snyder’s brave choices are immediately obvious. The 1985 setting, the profanity, the brutal violence. It’s all there and it works and there’s even more swearing, lewdness and blood splattering in this Director’s Cut. There’s always an undercurrent of menace in this dark world where superheroes, or “masks” are outlawed, and the casting is almost perfect, particularly Jackie Earle Haley as Rorshach. His gruff narration and moving ink blot mask are exactly what I’d imagined when reading the comic. Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) is the only one with actual superpowers, though the other members of The Watchmen (The Comedian, Silk Spectre, Ozymandias) fight like superhumans. His glowing blue naughty bits may unsurprisingly be too much for some but it fits with Snyder’s overall vision. It ain’t always a subtle film. The sound and special effects are suitably fantastic, though the song choices don’t always work. Watchmen doesn’t look kindly on America and it believes heroes can kill villains. It’s not the typical superhero tale, and that’s what has made Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons’ masterpiece stand the test of time and be lauded as the best that comics has to offer.
The Director’s Cut includes an extra 24 minutes, meaning the film is now just over 3 hours long. Obviously if you didn’t like the film at the cinema a few more scenes won’t change your mind, but those scenes, and primarily the extra content will serve to cement fans’ love of the film. The additional scenes are enjoyable, but not necessary to the film’s narrative. They include a brief look at the kid reading the Tales of the Black Freighter comic that runs in the original series (and was made into an excellent animated film), Silk Spectre II being interrogated by government agents about Dr. Manhattan’s whereabouts and President Nixon and his advisers discussing the possibility of nuclear war. A gang’s attempted home invasion of Hollis Mason’s (the original Nite Owl) home is by far the best new scene.
On the second disc there’s a music video for Desolation Row by My Chemical Romance, 11 short video journals chronicling the film’s production and a very impressive doco on the power of the source material and why it was such a wake up call to the sequential art medium. This doco includes great art from Gibbons as well as interviews with the cast and other creators, including former DC President Jenette Kahn, colourist John Higgins, editor writer Len Wein, and singer Gerard Way. It shows the visual history of the project and is a must for those who don’t understand what all the fuss about this book is. Curiously there’s no sign of the rumoured Black Freighter segments being integrated into the film, but I think it’s better enjoyed alone anyway.
There’s simply no denying the power of this film and it is one I enjoyed watching or rather, experiencing, again. It’s available on DVD, Blu-Ray and on iTunes now.
Iron Man 2 Pics
Thanks to Entertainment Weekly’s Comic-Con special, we have two new pics of Iron Man 2. The sequel stars Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark/Iron Man, Mickey Rourke as the Russian bad guy Whiplash and Scarlett Johansson as the sleek spy Black Widow. The film opens on May 7 next year.
The Surrogates: Flesh and Bone Review
Now up at Broken Frontier is my review of the excellent second volume set in The Surrogates universe. This Top Shelf OGN is by the same creative team of writer Robert Venditti and artist Brett Weldele, and it’s awesome. A world where the populace is largely dependent on robotic avatars while they laze around at home is a great premise and the creators weave in issues of class and culture with great skill. Highly recommended. Here’s an excerpt of my review:
Publishing this as a complete 144 page OGN was a good move from Top Shelf. From interrogation rooms, to boardrooms, it appears as a seamless narrative. Whereas the precursor to this volume was focused more on themes of living vicariously through surrogates, Flesh and Bone focuses more on the divide between the haves and the have-nots. It’s almost like a sci-fi Spike Lee film.
You can read the rest here.
Also released recently was the new poster for the film adaptation of the first volume, that hits cinema screens on September 25. It stars Bruce Willis and is directed by Jonathan Mostow (U-571, Terminator 3).
Green Lantern: First Flight Comp
I’ll get to see this when it debuts at Comic-Con next month. Yay for me! The Green Lantern animated movie, is the fifth direct-to-DVD film from Warner Bros. and DC, and stars everyone’s favourite ring slinger Hal Jordan as he learns to become an interstellar peacekeeper and meets Sinestro, Kilowog, Boodikka, the Guardians and the rest of the gang. It looks like quite the space faring adventure. You can enter the Sweepstakes here (if you’re a U.S resident) for the chance to win a host of goodies, including a Playstation 3, a 40″ LCD HDTV and a bunch of other cool goodies. The Facebook page also has news updates, interviews, and more. The film debuts on single and double disc DVD and Blu-ray on July 28.
Superman/Batman In September
Up next from DC’s awesome animated movies is Green Lantern: First Flight, which comes out next month. Then only a few weeks after that we get the previously announced Superman/Batman: Public Enemies DVD, based on Jeph Loeb’s and Ed McGuiness’ first 6 issues of the ongoing series. There’s also an interesting behind-the-scenes feature about the film here.
SUPERMAN/BATMAN: PUBLIC ENEMIES FROM WARNER HOME VIDEO ON SEPT. 29, 2009
The World’s Greatest Super Heroes become America’s most wanted criminals – and are hunted by friends and foes alike – in Superman/Batman: Public Enemies, the sixth entry in the popular DVD series of DC Universe Animated Original PG-13 Movies. A co-production of Warner Premiere, DC Comics and Warner Bros. Animation, the full-length animated film will be distributed by Warner Home Video on September 29, 2009.Superman/Batman: Public Enemies will be available as a Special Edition 2-disc version on DVD and Blu-Ray Hi-Def for US$24.98 (SRP) and US$29.99 (SRP), respectively, as well as single disc DVD for US$19.98 (SRP) and On Demand. Order due date for all versions is August 25, 2009.
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is based on the popular Jeph Loeb/Ed McGuinness comic series/graphic novel. Animation legend Bruce Timm (Superman Doomsday, Green Lantern) is executive producer. Michael Goguen (Justice League: The New Frontier) is supervising producer. Sam Liu (The Batman) is directing a script written by Stan Berkowitz (Justice League: The New Frontier).
In the film, United States President Lex Luthor uses the oncoming trajectory of a Kryptonite asteroid to frame Superman and declare a $1 billion bounty on the heads of the Man of Steel and his “partner in crime,” Batman. Heroes and villains alike launch a relentless pursuit of Superman and Batman, who must unite – and recruit help – to stave off the action-packed onslaught, stop the asteroid, and uncover Luthor’s devious plot to take command of far more than North America.
The movie reunites the lead voices of Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor from the landmark Superman: The Animated Series and Batman: The Animated Series. Tim Daly (Private Practice), Kevin Conroy (Batman: The Animated Series, Justice League) and Clancy Brown (The Shawshank Redemption) reprise their roles as Superman, Batman and Lex Luthor, respectively.
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies – 2 Disc Special Edition version will have more than three hours of incredible bonus features, including:
Featurettes:
The Blackest Night: Inside the DC Comics Event: Behind-the-scenes of BLACKEST NIGHT, the epic DC Super Hero event in which the dead shall rise.
A Test of Minds: Superman and Batman featurette with Jeph Loeb, giving viewers a fresh and revitalized look at the team-up of Superman and Batman working together despite their often competitive and challenging relationship.
“Dinner with DC: With Special Guest Kevin Conroy”: Reprising his role from Batman: The Animated Series, Kevin Conroy joins the crew for dinner to discuss their creative approach and what the Superman/Batman team-up means. The evening will be hosted by Voice Director Andrea Romano, Producer Bruce Timm and DC’s Gregory Noveck.
Extended Sneak Peak at Next DCU Film.
Digital Copy Download.
Widescreen (1.78:1)
Two Episodes of Justice League Unlimited hand-picked by animation legend Bruce Timm.
Superman/Batman: Public Enemies Blu-Ray versions will have more than three-and-a-half hours of bonus materials, including all the great extras from the 2-disc Special Edition as well as two additional episodes of Justice League Unlimited and two episodes from Justice League, both personally selected by fan-favorite Bruce Timm.
Blood: The Last Vampire Trailer
This live action film, based on the anime released in 2000, has already been seen in Japan and the UK and will be released in North American cinemas on July 10. It doesn’t look like it’s getting an Aussie theatrical release. Oh well.
Underworld Transporter The Third
Well, we don’t get Kate Beckinsale, but it’s more than made up for with the presence of Rhona Mitra. That should make any viewer happy. Filmed in New Zealand this 3rd entry in the Underworld franchise is surprisingly good. Len Wiseman (and Beckinsale’s husband) is in the producer’s, rather than the director’s chair. However, Patrick Tatpolous fills in without missing a beat. Tatopolus was the main man responsible for the gothic look of the first two films and his style matches what Wiseman set up rather well. The story is old-school, literally. There’s typical medieval elements such as a nasty king, a princess in love with the enemy, slaves and two warring races. The goodie werewolves (or lycans) and the baddie vampires are the difference though, and there’s a lot more lycans in this film, as the title, Rise of the Lycans suggests. As a prequel, it sets up up things nicely. Mitra plays Sonya, the daughter of vamp elder Viktor (the always delightfully oily Bill Nighy), and her love for Viktor’s fave lycan slave Lucian, played by Michael Sheen (from the excellent Frost/Nixon) is the film’s driving force.Viktor keeps lycans as his oppressed guard, rather than killing them. There is a Romeo and Juliet factor to the film, complete with a depressing ending and it looks very – blue. It’s great to see the blend of CGI and creature effects of the many lycans that show up. I was impressed and touches like Beckinsale’s bookend narration, and the greater inclusion of hulking actor/comic book writer Kevin Grevioux (who helped create the Underworld mythos) as recently turned lycan, Raze is also neato. The Underworld trilogy has been remarkably consistent.
Sadly, I can’t say the same about the Transporter series. Transporter 3 is directed by a man who sounds like a French Transformer – Olivier Megaton. Every Transporter film has the same plot. Frank Martin, played by buffness personified, Jason Statham agrees to deliver a package and against his better judgement opens it, the ruthless men who gave it to him chase him down and over the top fighting ensues. This film’s predecessor was a letdown, whereas the first film was a breath of fresh air. Of course, there’s some unique action scenes, in the vein of Jackie Chan, thanks to fight choreographer Corey Yuen, but the whole film just lacks sparkle. First time actress Natalya Rudakova appears as the damsel in distress and at first her freckley face is somewhat distracting, but you get used to it. It’s a poor man’s Bond with far less glitz, but a little more playfulness. Robert Knepper (Prison Break) and his wrist bomb explosive tech makes for a good enemy, but when it’s all put together it’s just not enough. I am happy to see the French (writer/director Luc Besson is the co-creator of the series) give Hollywood a run for it’s box office dollars however.
Prototype Gamer
I bought Prototype this week. I rarely play my XBOX, let alone buy new games, yet this drew me in. It’s been much hyped, as has it’s PS3 competitor, inFamous, but deservedly so. Almost as soon as I put the disc in I was right in the thick of action, dispatching well armed military men with my lobster-like mutant claws. It serves splendidly as a tutorial and thankfully it’s pretty simple. The first problem I noticed however, is the rather annoying tendency for modern games to make the instructional text on the screen squint inducing. It’s tiny! Is the games industry trying to sell us all big screens perhaps? The game itself is made up of swift levels, with a lot of replay potential. I’ve only played it for less than an hour so far, and it’s tale of Alex Mercer (mutated man on the run attacking the government and searching for answers) isn’t exactly original, but it makes up for it with grin worthy tactics. Bowling over pedestrians while you run and jump down the city streets is fun. There’s elements of the parkour and freedom of movement found in the few good Spidey games, plus Mirror’s Edge, and the environment smashing/vehicle throwing, etc shenanigans of the excellent Hulk: Ultimate Destruction from a few years ago. Even the NPCs in the bustling metropolis seem unique. I had to run around for a while before I saw any duplicates. As I play more, hopefully I’ll enjoy it more. So far, it appears to be a game tailor made for fanboys.
On that note; Gamer. It’s a September releasing film starring 300’s Gerard Butler. Think Death Race, but with gaming avatars replacing mean machines. The plot seems to take pieces from every action blockbuster from the last 10 years. Trailer below.
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