Caddickisms » batman

TIDBABSH 2: Part 2: Return of The Australian

Jeff — Tue, 03 May 2011 17:37:41 +0000

If you thought he was gone, you weren’t paying attention.

He’s back! He’s opinionated! He’s Australian! He’s spent more time thinking about pop culture than is probably healthy!

And that last bit actually pays off in this, the second half of our conversation, as Lee Sargent and I concentrate on pop culture and movie/TV news and rumors, including a run down of why Wonder Woman’s shorts are annoying, which Pixar films shouldn’t get sequels (but are), and two super-hero showdowns! (listen to part 1 for the beginning of the exciting discussion).

To be specific, we get into these items (and of course, ramble about other related things):

Costner in Superman: Man of Steel
Superman will be a ‘wild ride’
Is Justice League film coming?
Superhero fight gets nasty
Pixar Prequels (Monsters Inc)
Bill and Ted 3
Wonder Woman wears short-shorts
Warner Bros. apologizes for original Green Lantern trailer
Trailers:

You might want to take a look at any of those trailers you haven’t seen yet for some context before you listen. There’s some good stuff there!

Done yet? No? That’s okay, we’ll wait.

…

No, seriously… take your time.

…

Alright then, just click play. You know you want to! Leave your thoughts in the comments! And don’t forget to visit Lee at Quit Your Day Job and Lee and Dan’s Midnight Movie Club podcast.

Firefly is back, Singing Batman, and Cyborg Rats

Jeff — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:44:20 +0000

Seriously, where else are you going to get a combination like that?

I’ve got three video clips for you today, and one of them is not fiction. See if you can figure out which one.

Firefly is back!

That’s right, Nathan Fillion has suited up one more time as Mal Reynolds. Unfortunately, it’s only a reference to his Firefly character on his new show, Castle, but it’s pretty cool, with a couple of good lines and music cues.

Singing Batman!

Okay, Batman doesn’t sing in this clip, but he does in this musical episode of Batman: The Brave and The Bold. To get a segue from the above clip, though, Nathan Fillion had a role in Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog with Neil Patrick Harris. See if you can guess which one of them is singing in this clip.

Yeah, okay, you probably read the opening credits and know it’s NPH singing. Love the always-underappreciated Aquaman and Green Arrow bit. Also very fun to see the music played out on the utility lines. Favorite line: “His utility belt holds everything… can’t get that at the mall!”

Cyborg Rats!

What do you do if you’re a scientist with unfettered access to rats and robots? You build a cyborg, of course!

This is actually pretty cool.

I did some further reading on this, and it turns out that they went through a lot of groups of rats for this. Each group was given a letter designation (A, B, C, etc.). On some of the rats they used a serum to enhance brain activity. This was the enhanced group (as opposed to the “normal” group). It took 28 groups before they got a rat brain that was successful in controlling the robot. However, they never tested the Enhanced group because the successful rat (from the AB-Normal group) saw an active bunson burner and went on a rampage, terrorizing the Enhanced group before escaping. It’s said that he was lured back by the sound of a violin before being put down. The lead scientist, Dr. Franklin Stein, was annoyed but promised to press on with further research.

Review: Green Lantern: First Flight

Jeff — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 11:54:12 +0000

Green Lantern - First Flight

With characters that have as huge of an existing storyline as Green Lantern, it’d be easy for a movie like Green Lantern: First Flight to get lost in trying to add in all the cool stuff and cameos that could be covered. That isn’t the case here. This is a lean movie. At 70 minutes, you could actually argue that it’s too lean. But I still liked it.

Everything I know about Green Lantern and Hal Jordan in particular could fit on a half-sheet of paper. I’m no expert. I know the broad strokes. I’ve always loved the character and concept of Green Lantern, though. Intergalactic cops with the ability to temporarily create tangible objects by sheer will (thanks to their rings). Pretty cool stuff. Most of what I know I’ve gleaned from Justice League cartoons and comics, and a few crossover events.

Not being an expert, I have no ideas what true Lantern fans will think of this movie, but I loved it. Was it perfect? No. But I had a good time watching it and it was true enough to the backstory I knew to satisfy me.

The things I didn’t like were mostly just a lack of character definition. I don’t think enough time was spent defining Hal before he got the ring (which he does before the opening credits, as we’ve seen). It would have been nice to see him exhibiting some ingenuity and willingness to accept new ideas before throwing him into a situation filled with aliens and conspiracies. That was probably the biggest flaw with this movie, as far as I was concerned. They just jumped in a little too quick, and had him completely comfortable almost immediately. Five or ten more minutes at the beginning setting him up (in a way that played in to the story later, preferably) would have been well spent.

Aside from that, though, it was a fun ride. There wasn’t a whole lot of subtlety on display here. It’s pretty much a straight line plot, and you gotta roll with it. The final battle is really great. I especially liked the simple shots where the Guardians and other Lanterns are watching the mano-a-mano battle unfold in the sky. That gave the battle a bigger perspective, to me.

It should be said that I wasn’t expecting much from this movie aside from a fun ride. And that’s what I got. My expectations for the live action film will be much higher. It will need that character development and tighter writing to be successful. Compared to the other DC Comics animated movies I’ve seen, though, this is on par with most. Well worth a rental and an hour or so of your time. I’d even be interested in a sequel.

As for the DVD Extras… there was absolutely nothing about behind the scenes on this movie. There weren’t even Scene Selections available, which was pretty annoying. There were some behind the scenes featurettes on other DC movies/events, though. The Wonder Woman movie was plugged, and looks pretty good. But the one I’m really interested to see is Superman/Batman: Public Enemies. That one just looks like a good picture – plus they got the original actors back from the animated series (Tim Daly as Superman, Kevin Conroy as Batman, and Clancy Brown as Luthor). It really looks good. Looking forward to that one in a few months.

Superman Returns, but not as expected

Jeff — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 01:17:50 +0000

Warner will follow Marvel model to develop new superhero films : Slice of SciFi

Superman Returns darker

Ever since Superman Returns was released, rumors were flying about the sequel. Would it happen? Would Bryan Singer return to helm it? Would anybody watch it?

Not long ago (May 7th, in fact), we were hearing that Bryan Singer would be getting Superman: The Man of Steel to theaters in 2009 with wall-to-wall action in a sequel to Returns. Personally, I was pretty happy with that news. I really think Singer knows how to pull off a movie that’s both intelligent and action-packed, and respects the source material.

But now we hear that in the wake of the success of The Dark Knight, Warner Bros. will be putting a darker focus on all its superhero properties.

For fans, this means that the sequel to “Superman Returns” won’t be happening. Instead, the studio will look to take a page from this year’s “Incredible Hulk” and reboot the franchise. Part of this is a need to freshen the franchise, but part of this can also be attributed to the fact that “Returns” struggled to make back the investment Warner Brothers put into the movie.

[...]

Mr. Robinov wants his next pack of superhero movies to be bathed in the same brooding tone as “The Dark Knight.” Creatively, he sees exploring the evil side to characters as the key to unlocking some of Warner Bros.’ DC properties. “We’re going to try to go dark to the extent that the characters allow it,” he says. That goes for the company’s Superman franchise as well.

That’s disappointing. While I get treating superhero movies as real world and serious is important in creating believability, forcing a dark tone on everything is, I think, a mistake. It’s completely appropriate for Batman, but Superman’s main character traits are hope and optimism, and a bit of naiveté (at least on the surface). It is possible to go darker with him temporarily – and I think it could be done really well – but I really think it has to be in a sequel to be good. The character has to be developed as an incorruptible, “thank God he’s here” kind of character.

Plus, I gotta imagine this new direction means a significant delay before the Boy Scout graces the screen again. So that annoys me, too.

On a side note, the linked article also mentions the other properties under development: Green Lantern, Flash, Green Arrow, and Wonder Woman. I’m excited about each of them. All could translate very well to the big screen.

Pseudo-Review: The Dark Knight

Jeff — Tue, 22 Jul 2008 03:23:31 +0000

I don’t have it in me to write everything I think about this movie right now, but I wanted to get something down.

Just like Spider-man 2, this sequel takes an amazingly good predecessor and improves on it.

And just like in the Spider-man franchise, the key is focusing on the character’s development. Bruce/Batman learns a lot about himself and his chosen line of work – the limits, the responsibilities, and the consequences.

Heath Ledger, for anyone wondering, actually deserves the praise he’s getting for this role. It’s not a posthumous sympathy vote. I wouldn’t call myself a Heath Ledger fan, generally, but I simply can’t imagine anyone else playing this role this well.

In my last post I counted Wall-E out of Best Picture contention, despite rumors to the contrary. The Dark Knight, however, is a serious contender – if the Academy can get past the whole blind spot it has for Sci-Fi/Fantasy films.

I may come back to this later for a more thorough review.

Quick Notes on Entertainment News

Jeff — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 23:00:09 +0000

I’ve fallen really behind on posting lately. Given the upcoming holiday there probably won’t be much for the next few days either. But I wanted to quickly throw a few things out there in Sci-Fi and Entertainment news.

Hobbit films (report stolen from Slice of Sci-Fi):

Director Guillermo del Toro told reporters during a Hellboy press junket that his first “The Hobbit” movie will stick strictly to J.R.R. Tolkien’s original “The Hobbit” material, however, the second film will take in a wide range of materials from the Tolkien universe inlcluding many of Tolkien’s own notes.

It will be interesting to see what happens with that second movie. Do we have a screenwriter who can take those notes and other materials and make a script that feels Tolkien-ish?

Doctor Who: Parts 1 and 2 of the season finale were extremely good. Like everyone else, I’m waiting with very little patience for the final installment (I hope the Sci-Fi channel runs it in its entirety when it’s their turn – it’s a super-sized episode at 65 commercial-free minutes). Then I intend to be very annoyed next year when we only get a few specials. I’ll do another review of the season after it’s over.

Batman Begins: Heath Ledger continues to get rave reviews on his Joker portrayal. I hope the movie lives up to the buzz.

Starship Troopers 3: Three? Really? Do we need three of these things? Wasn’t one painful enough? If you really want to see the trailer, it’s out there.

Hancock: Apparently this has a pretty short running time. And it’s getting middling reviews. Apparently the first half is pretty good, but then it falls apart. This is really driving me nuts. The more I see of clips and trailers for this, the more I want to see it, but then I find out it’s short and may not live up to expectations? I don’t know if I can throw my money and time at that. I really want to see it, though… blah.

Star Wars: Clone Wars – The new trailer is out there! It’s a bit moodier than the others. I think I liked Trailer #1 better. Still on the must see list, though.

The Prisoner: AMC is remaking 60′s TV show “The Prisoner” in a 6-part miniseries with Jim Caviezel and Ian McKellan. Top notch actors, ground-breaking original… I hope it turns out well!

Dr. Horrible’s Sing-along Blog: Joss Whedon, the creator of Buffy, Angel, and Firefly, has got himself a nice little humorous project with some familiar faces. Looks intriguing.

And finally…

Bruce Campbell, who “starred” in all three Spider-man movies and my favorite western-sci-fi TV show (The Adventures of Brisco County Jr.) – and a few well known cult classics – is coming out with a new film in which he plays himself. Sort of. Looks really good to me…

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/QZLv3Z7L5lY" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

In case I’m too lazy to blog again before the weekend, have a great Independence Day (unless you happen to live in a non-US location, in which case, have a nice normal weekend.)

Movie news roundup – Sci-Fi and comics lovers, rejoice!

Jeff — Thu, 08 May 2008 02:47:09 +0000

Lots of news and some rumors hitting the net lately… here are the best of the bunch for Sci-Fi and comics lovers:

The next Stargate SG-1 film titled Stargate: Continuum now has a July 29 DVD release date.

Marvel has announced that Iron Man 2 has been confirmed for release in 2010, in addition to a movie about Thor. Also reported: the Avengers and Captain America (with Matthew McConaughey as the lead?) in 2011.

Also announced by Marvel: an Ant Man movie, though the timeline for the film is unknown. (This is where they start to lose me… Ant Man? Seriously? I think they’re stretching to reach a mainstream audience with that one. My guess is his popularity in the Avengers movie will determine if this one really gets made.)

Iron Man, Tony Stark, will make a cameo in The Incredible Hulk.

Superman: Man of Steel will now not be delayed due to the “Justice League of America” film but is geared up for a 2009 release with Brandon Routh back as Superman.

Both Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and The Dark Knight will run over 140 minutes. In fact, The Dark Knight may run close to three hours.

Speaking of The Dark Knight, director Christopher Nolan has signed on for a third Batman feature, and Christian Bale has expressed interest as well. Details of plot are even starting to circulate – apparently the film will focus on Two-Face and may introduce Robin, following the plot of the graphic novels “The Long Halloween” and “Dark Victory” for a rough outline.

Review: Iron Man

Jeff — Mon, 05 May 2008 05:01:52 +0000

Robert Downey Jr. has been touted as the perfect choice to play Tony Stark. When I first saw the trailer I was doubtful about that choice. I always pictured Stark as taller, and with a deeper voice. Now that I’ve seen the movie, I’m over that. He did a great job, and I really can’t think of any better choice. Excellent casting.

I’ve heard a lot of people saying this was the best superhero movie ever. Before I saw the movie, I doubted that would be true, though I figured it would make a good shot at the title. Turns out I was right on that one. This took a heck of a shot, but it doesn’t, in my opinion, take down the reigning king, Spiderman. Here’s why: I left both of the first two Spiderman films elated and breathless; Iron Man had me happy and pumped. Great reactions to both franchises, but it’s a matter of degrees — Spidey gave me the extra effort.

To be fair, going in to it I prefer Spidey over Iron Man. I’ve always been intrigued by Iron Man, but never captivated. So I guess I’m not impartial. I do think it’s possible to make an argument that the Spidey films are objectively superior, primarily on the strength of the story coming through on a more personal, rather than global level. But let’s get back to concentrating on the current movie for itself.

First of all, the eye-candy level is impressive. Lots and lots of nice shots. The suit looks and works great. But that’s not the focus of the movie. As with all the best special effects movies, the effects are there merely to support the story. It’s a very good story, too. The uncaring head of the world’s leading weapons manufacturer comes face-to-face with the reality of his own inventions and realizes that he has to undo the damage he has done. It’s a big task, on a global level. The movie keeps it manageable and the bad guys are terrorists, not governments, which ensures we’re rooting for the hero without damaging the movie’s marketability.

There are a lot of nods in there for comic fans, too, which is nice. Supporting character Rhodey gets to telegraph his eventual role as Iron Man’s partner, War Machine. S.H.I.E.L.D gets a huge nod (though I won’t comment on the rumored presence or absence of Samuel L. Jackson as Nick Fury). There is a definite setup for an Avengers flick, and an obvious potential for a whole series of Iron Man movies.

My vote for best moment in the entire movie – the moment that made me actually loudly exclaim “Oh, Yeah!!” before the rest of the audience reacted, was actually a moment that was partially played for subtle comic effect, as well as dramatic. The way he took out the terrorists holding hostages in the town was just too cool, and I didn’t see it coming. Absolutely perfect.

But now I have to come back to something that didn’t work as well for me. And the problem I have is that I don’t know who to pin it on. This could be the way the character is in the comics (I really haven’t read much Iron Man), or it could be the way he is written for the movie, or it could be the director’s choices, or it could be on Downey Jr.’s shoulders: aside from early on, about midway through the cave sequence in the beginning, I don’t ever get much in the way of emotion or conflict – there were opportunities for that to come through, I think, but it didn’t – unless you count innuendo. Very little in the way of vulnerability. I do recognize that that was a conscious choice, I just think it could have been loosened up a bit – at least for a scene or two. It kept me from being as emotionally invested in the character as I could have been.

Maybe that’s always been present in the character. That could explain why I never got fully caught up in the series. I just don’t relate to him as well as to some other superhero characters (specifically, Spiderman, Superman, and Batman come to mind).

Anyway… despite the flaws I’ve seen, I still think this is easily in the top five best superhero/comic movies ever. It should prove to be a strong franchise, and is probably positioned better than any other comic book movie to spawn spin-offs and cross-overs. In the comics, Tony’s worked with just about everybody in the Marvel Universe at one time or another. I anticipate at least one sequel, probably more, and an Avengers spin-off, and I eagerly look forward to them.

And DO NOT LEAVE until after the credits. You’ll be glad you stayed.

So… 4 stars.

(1 down, 12 to go.)

Batman Gotham Knight

Jeff — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 01:58:43 +0000

The Dark Knight is coming out on July 18th. Everyone has heard of that. And I can’t wait.

But did you know about Batman Gotham Knight, the animated DVD (also downloadable) coming out on July 8th? Oh, yeah….. Batman gets the “Animatrix” treatment (well, sort of).

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/9I5744WCaxA" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

Yes, Kevin Conroy will once again put a voice to Gotham’s caped crusader:

Conroy set the standard for modern day Batman voices with his performance in “Batman: The Animated Series,” “The New Adventures of Batman and Robin” and “The New Batman Superman Adventures.” He reprised the role as an aging Bruce Wayne playing mentor to a new Caped Crusader in “Batman Beyond.” Animation legend and “Batman Gotham Knight” producer Bruce Timm said Conroy was the obvious choice for both widespread fan approval and to provide an overriding sense of continuity within a film in which Batman appears in so many new, visual variations.

For more on Conroy and the Gotham Knight project, read this Slice Of Sci-Fi entry.

The six anime-style stories will delve deeply into Bruce Wayne’s transition to becoming Batman. It’s not clear if the Batman Begins storyline will play any role, though I doubt it.

So July 8th, we get ahold of some great Bat-animation, just in time to stoke the flames for The Dark Knight. Until then, here’s the trailer…

[kml_flashembed movie="http://youtube.com/v/WaIR9dAZRR0" width="425" height="350" wmode="transparent" /]

Batman = cool.

Blue Skin, and movie trailers

Jeff — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 22:15:14 +0000

How could anyone be stupid enough to let his skin turn blue?

Slice of Sci-Fi has a two lists of movie trailers. Here are my favorites from their lists.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian

Batman: The Dark Knight

[tags]movie trailers, odd people[/tags]