Skyfall – The Latest James Bond

I’ve wanted to write about James Bond for a while. A few weeks ago, the internet was blessed with the release of Adele’s Skyfall for the new James Bond. Before I knew Adele was attached to the theme song, there was song called “Rumor Has It,” she did from her 21 album. When I listened to it, I knew she had great potential for a Bond song ala Shirley Bassey (and that’s a tough act to follow). At the 2:21 mark of Rumor Has It, the music and tempo switches to a slower beat and then she utters the line, “All these words whispered…”, this harkened me the days of Carly Simon and her song “Nobody Does it Better,” from The Spy Who Loved Me. And then, oddly enough Adele gets her own James Bond song.

After watching the video several times, I’m okay with it and I was glad to hear the little James Bond theme riff in the music. Having said this, the last two Bond songs, “You Know My Name,” by Chris Cornell and “Another Way to Die” By Alicia Keys and Jack White where interesting to listen to but for some reason, when a James Bond song does not include the name of the movie in the song itself, I’m somewhat missing it. Hell, A-ha managed to sing The Living Daylights in their song and in A-ha fashion made this one of my all time favorites. Now, I’m not saying that this trend has to continue but I just feel that there’s a stronger connection between the song and movie which binds them both good and bad.

Going back to Adele, the opening line is, “This is the end,” which I’m hoping is code for Daniel Craig‘s last outing as James Bond. If you have read my blog before on this subject, you’ll know my dislike for Craig’s Bond. For some unknown reason both Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace justified another Bond movie with Craig. While I was sad to see Pierce Brosnan no longer with the Bond franchise, I was very happy with the replacement after I saw Layer Cake. If you have not seen it, I highly recommend it as I saw Daniel Craig as James Bond which I thought I would see in the movies when Daniel took over. For example, just like when I saw the original The Saint, (not the Val Kilmer crap) with Roger Moore I could see the 007 role. There wasn’t much of a change with Moore from The Saint to James Bond. An yet, Daniel performance was totally lackluster from Layer Cake to Casino Royale. Except for one or two scenes of action, which I admit were great, I enjoyed him more getting hit in the balls in Quantum of Solace. Payback sucks, Craig. Where’s my Bond?!? Skyfall on the surface appears to be another slick bond production and I am willing to see it in the theaters but if this fails to deliver to my expectations, I will start a campaign to get rid of Craig as Bond. I am all for different actors to bring something unique and new to the role but Craig has gone through the motion and not delivered the goods.

Whedon Shares What His Wonder Woman Could Have Been — Slice of SciFi

NOVEMBER 9, 2011 BY MICHAEL HICKERSON

File this one under a missed opportunity.

During a conversation about his new Much Ado About Nothing, director Joss Whedon shared a bit about what his vision of Wonder Woman would have looked like.

“She was a little bit like Angelina Jolie,” Whedon said with a laugh. “She sort of traveled the world. She was very powerful and very naïve about people, and the fact that she was a goddess was how I eventually found my in to her humanity and vulnerability, because she would look at us and the way we kill each other and the way we let people starve and the way the world is run and she’d just be like, None of this makes sense to me. I can’t cope with it, I can’t understand, people are insane. And ultimately her romance with Steve was about him getting her to see what it’s like not to be a goddess, what it’s like when you are weak, when you do have all these forces controlling you and there’s nothing you can do about it. That was the sort of central concept of the thing. Him teaching her humanity and her saying, OK, great, but we can still do better.”

via Whedon Shares What His Wonder Woman Could Have Been — Slice of SciFi.

While I have downloaded the pilot from David E. Kelley‘s Wonder Woman, I have yet to watch it past the opening teaser. There is just something that I can not figure out. I am still not clear why adapting a Wonder Woman to the big or small screen has become nearly impossible to do. Granted, Lynda Carter‘s WW has had lots of flaws but it has at the very least set a standard which all other tv comic book adaptation should follow. Hell, they were able to do a World War II setting for one season and then it was picked up by another network, WW was brought to present day; that is back in the 70′s.

I am still sadden by the loss of Whedon’s take over WW just because I know his track record on strong female characters throughout his writing and directing career. Whatever happens to the future, I do not want to see a “No Tights, No Flights” direction like Smallville. Don’t get me wrong, Smallville works for itself on its own terms. WW needs a mythology that works for today’s audience, a costume that pay homage to the history but it is more functional, and an actress who can pull it off. Doing some research, I came across this little tidbit below. Do you agree, if it is true???

Phoenix Jones Fired, Banned From His Job Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors

Having followed this story, I am reminded of another so called vigilante and no it’s not Batman. Way, way back there was a movie from 1980 called Hero At Large. The late and great John Ritter plays an actor who happened to stop a robbery while wearing a superhero costume. He would later be known as Captain Avenger as he increased his crime fighting antics. This is just another case of life imitating art.

Submitted by Rich Johnston on November 2, 2011

We reported last week how Seattle’s self-styled superhero, Phoenix Jones had been arrested by police, and then publicly outed his identity as one mixed martial artist, Ben Fodor.

There has been much criticism of the police’s actions, and video footage does appear to back up Jones’ case that he was attempting to prevent a violent assault.

But according to Publicola, he has now been fired from his job of five years, working with a number of disabled autistic children in their homes and state facilities, teaching them life skills, from shipping to balancing cheque books.

And since then, he’s received a letter from the State Department of Social and Health Services, saying that he’s also been banned from working with children or vulnerable adults because of the situation.

So to pay his bills, it looks like he may be having to take Phoenix Jones professional, with offers from the Strikeforce mixed martial arts organization for fights.

He may also take Phoenix Jones to the streets in the daytime as well as the night, now he has the time to fill.

via Phoenix Jones Fired, Banned From His Job Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors.

It’s the Hair Part. Huh?!? The Hair Part.

Every once in a while I come across one of those driveway moments where I am listening to NPR. Those who are familiar with term will understand the meaning but let me explain away. You are in your car, either driving home or doing an errand and you’re listening to the radio. Just when you pull up to the driveway, your favorite song or piece of news comes on that makes you just sit in your car in your driveway just for a couple of minutes – hence the driveway moment. For my moment, it came to me when I had to pick up my daughter from summer camp. Just as I was pulling up in the parking space, there was a segment on Radio Lab called Desperately Seeking Symmetry in which there was discussion about “The Hair Part.” So, what’s the deal with Superman?

When you look in a mirror, you are looking at reverse image of yourself. If you have hair parted on one side, the mirror image would have the same hair part but on the opposite side. If you look closer at the Superman movie with Christopher Reeve you will quickly notice the hair part. As Clark, Kal-El has his hair part on the right side and as Superman, the hair part is moved to the left. Yes, we know they are the same person but there is when you look at them they look like two completely different people.

Doing a little research, I came across this study which discusses the hair part issue which delves into their meaning.

A left hair part draws unconscious attention to the activities that are controlled by the left hemisphere of the brain, i.e. activities traditionally attributed to masculinity. A right hair part draws unconscious attention to the activities that are controlled by the right hemisphere of the brain, i.e. activities traditionally attributed to femininity.

A man who parts his hair on the right, and who is striving for positive assessment in a traditionally male role is at risk for having difficulties in interpersonal relationships, since he is sending a mixed, subconscious message by emphasizing the activities of the brain traditionally attributed to femininity.

Source: True Mirror

Now, having all this and listened to the podcast, I really believe in this theory but there is a flaw. What happens if you have no hair and happened to be bald like Lex and me? The theory doesn’t apply to men like me or does it? Lucky for me there is an attribute for baldness.

*No part, center part or bald: Perceived as balanced, trustworthy and wise. Downside: Can lack flair associated with other types.

Source: True Mirror

What do you think about the hair part theory? Does it stand up in real life or is it just a load of a malarkey?

New Avengers Character Posters « THE FIRE WIRE

Marvel Studios has released four character posters that were designed for this year’s Comic-Con. The interlocking posters, which were created by Marvel’s co-visual development supervisors Ryan Meinerding and Charlie Wen feature Captain America, Iron Man, Black Widow, Hawkeye, Thor and the agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.

via New Avengers Character Posters « THE FIRE WIRE.

See Conan Not Move In The Conan The Barbarian Motion Poster Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors

Submitted by Brendon Connelly on March 3, 2011 – 4:18 am (0) comments

Lionsgate have released this “motion poster” for their imminent, converted-to-3D Conan movie. Just look at that big hunk of Cimmerian beef. He doesn’t even twitch (unless his face is spasming under all that hair).

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via See Conan Not Move In The Conan The Barbarian Motion Poster Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors.

I saw the non moving motion poster and thought is was kinda cool. Now, if you have not heard about the new Conan movie, you are not alone. I love the original with Ar-Nold but I’m not sure about the remake. In any case, it will be here in the summer. As a bonus, I interviewed comic book illustrator Ralph Cabrera who work on the Conan books. Take a listen to this podcast and get his take on the new Conan.

Is The Sequel To Monsters Going To Be A TV Series Or A Movie? Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors

One of the complaints I had with this movie is the slow pacing and the lack of action as the poster hinted at. However, I did enjoy this movie immensely with incredible cgi work. As for the notion to make this into a tv series, there could be some incredible concepts to be played with ala Alien Nation for example.

Alien Nation the movie was a great popcorn flick with lots of humor and scifi action. On the bigger picture, there were issues of prejudice and xenophobia that reflected on how we still treat each other today but in a future setting. The Alien Nation tv series really expand the roles of Sikes and Francisco and pushed other issues to the forefront like what is being a man really mean when Francisco was with child.

With Monsters, there was a sense that these creatures were not here to take over the world but rather adapt to a new way of life and with other creatures of their kind. In this context, I’m sure animal activists would have issues with military being used to kill off these creatures. Or look at the issue of whale hunting still going on today, we could have the monsters being hunted for some properties and then killed like collecting fur. Political issues could also give rise to some interesting drama as the creatures were not being contained. Other countries would threaten the U.S. and Mexico that is the aliens are not destroyed, there could be a potential of war with other nations.

In a few minutes, I came up with some plot points that could work in a tv format. If the sequel of Monsters will be another feature film, there needs to be a great deal more action like Aliens was to Alien. As for Edwards, he is going to be busy with the new Godzilla which I can’t wait to see.

Have you seen Monsters? What are your thoughts?

Submitted by Brendon Connelly on February 4, 2011 – 6:24 am (0) comments

I’ll use a couple of interviews from the same outlet to illustrate this story. First of all, an interview from last August, in which Gareth Edwards tells Dread Central that his low-budget movie Monsters might get a spin-off TV show:

“I just don’t know if Monsters in the future would involve me or not, but I do think there have been discussions about looking into a television series based on what we created with Monsters. I know I’d like to try something different for my next project and then maybe see what happens from there”

via Is The Sequel To Monsters Going To Be A TV Series Or A Movie? Bleeding Cool Comic Book, Movies and TV News and Rumors.

Proposed ‘Wonder Woman’ TV Series Meets More Rejection | Geeks of Doom

We start off in 2005, Joss Whedon was signed on to write and direct Wonder Woman. While this sat well with me since Joss knows who to write and direct strong female leads, the studio on the other hand had other ideas and kicked Joss off the protect. I did find some interesting illustrations of what the new Wonder Woman would have looked like.

In 2007, director George Miller was undertaking a JLA movie before the writer’s strike.  Click here to check out this early blog I did in 2007 about some casting news and a pick I thought who would work well as the new Wonder Woman and there was talk about Jessica Biel. A few days later, the news I discovered was the Theresa Palmer was the new Wonder Woman in the JLA movie. Click here to read more. And then, there was a recasting with Theresa in so much that she would be playing another character in the DC universe but in the end the writer’s strike killed the plan.

Last year, we had news about Wonder Woman not on the big screen but on the original tv screen which the great Linda Carter heralded many years ago. Word today, the news is not good as even the David E. Kelly could not get this project off the ground either. So, this begs the question, would want to see this Amazon on the big or small screen? And, who would be worthy to fill the boots of Wonder Woman?

Proposed ‘Wonder Woman’ TV Series Meets More Rejection

Posted by The Movie God  |  January 9th, 2011 at 3:17 pm  |  Trackback

This past October we were informed that after many failed attempts to turn Wonder Woman into a popular movie franchise, DC Comics would be teaming up with Warner Brothers TV and top-tier showrunner, David E. Kelley, in hopes of developing a new TV series based on the popular comic book heroine.

Sadly, for fans of the superhero who have been itching to see her in some form of modern live-action entertainment, this day will not come any time soon.

After writing a spec script for the pilot episode, Kelley and friends set off to make their pitch to the various networks. Fox turned them down, as did ABC, who are owned by Disney, the company that purchased Marvel for $4 billion. You can see where that might be an issue.

via Proposed ‘Wonder Woman’ TV Series Meets More Rejection | Geeks of Doom.

Top Ten 70′s Horror Movie (7-6)

7. Omen

This may be one of the reasons why it took me so long to have children myself. Child and Antichrist; synonymous don’t you think? Who would have thunk that the devil had the face of an angel? In any case, this is not quite the scare that The Exorcist had on me but there were enough scares for me to like it at a very early age. Question, what if the child was called something other than Damien like maybe Chuck or Bob? AKA read Good Omens by Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett. Would he have been the same problem child?

6. Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Oh, Leatherface. How I love you! You are creepy on so many level from the shoes on your feet to your blood stained apron to the mask of human flesh on your face. Seriously, you are the true American Psycho. When you compare Leatherface to another famous mass killer like Jason Vorhees, Friday the 13th, there is a real grounded sense of a killer out in the woods. With Jason, you could kill or maim or just piss him off but he will just keep after you.  With Leatherface, he has the upper hand because the teens are playing on his terms and on his turf plus he has a chainsaw. That is totally cool.

George A. Romero Speaks / Horror legend shares the 10 lessons he’s learned over 40 years behind the camera | MovieMaker Magazine

George A. Romero Speaks

Horror legend shares the 10 lessons he’s learned over 40 years behind the camera

by George A. Romero | Published May 26, 2010

A legend of the horror genre, George A. Romero has been scaring audiences for more than 40 years with his unique brand of socially-conscious fright films. His latest, the zombie epic Survival of the Dead (the sixth feature in Romero’s “Dead” series), was released by Magnolia Pictures via video on demand on April 30th, before hitting theaters on May 28th. Here, Romero shares 10 lessons he’s learned during his career.

1. Show, don’t tell. First drafts of my earliest screenplays always came in at 300-plus pages. I used to think that a thought unwritten was a thought lost. I learned that new and better thoughts come once you’ve had a chance to think about what you’ve written and then—rewrite. My producing partner, a wonderful editor, taught me that thoughts on the page should be precise and well-contemplated, or they wind up wasting time and money.

2. Time is money. So be prepared when you walk on to the set.

3. Know as much as you can about every crew member’s specialty. You will better appreciate a good job, and you won’t be ripped off by a DP who requisitions an outrageously expensive equipment package.

4. Computer graphics should be thought of as tools. Use them to save time and money, rather than just because you can.

via George A. Romero Speaks / Horror legend shares the 10 lessons he’s learned over 40 years behind the camera | MovieMaker Magazine.