At the Con - Transformers panel

Well this should be a shortish post. I went to the Transformers panel at comic con, but it was really so that I could get the scoop on the new Transformers Animated series that we've been discussing here a bit. The Transformers panel on the whole was a bit boring to tell you the truth. They went into a ton of detail on the toy line, and didn't talk really at all about the movie. Oh and sure there are some great looking toys on the horizon. Just check out this Night Watch Optimus and tell me that doesn't kick all sorts of butt. However the info I came for was slow coming.

When they did get to the animated series though I was able to glean a few nuggets of info. Apparently the show originated from the Hasbro US people had approaching the Hasbro Japan people to talk about a new series to roughly coincide with the movie sometime last year, but after looking at the market in Japan the Hasbro people there said that they really didn't need a new tv series, although if the Hasbro US team wanted to put one together specifically for the US market they could go right ahead with it. And so this is what we've got. Hasbro US joined forces with Cartoon Network, who had already been broadcasting the past three Transformers series, and redesigned the Transformers concept from the ground up for a kid friendly US audience.

Needless to say, this is not ...er my, Transformers. This is a series aimed squarely at 6-11 year olds. It is slick and fast and organic. Edges are soft, and the curves are cool. The producer is coming at the show from a background running Teen Titans and Ben 10, so if you know those shows, particularly Teen Titans I think you could equate this kind of an update to something like that. The idea is to be more fun, more human, less blocky and more organic. They want to create a familiar but new feel that kids will be able to relate to.

So is it for me? no, its not. But then I saw the promo reel for the show. and wow. I was impressed. It was so totally different than any Transformers I'd ever seen before. Bumblebee, who appears to be one of those little smart cars or something is actually doing some crazy kung fu style moves in it! I mean seriously! IS this a good change? a needed update? I honestly don't know. Maybe. I'll say that I am definitely not one for sticking to the way things were. The one way to ensure stagnation is to not even allow people to try something new. So I'll try to be open to this. I mean why not? the trailer was pretty fun, and even gave a sneak glimpse of some of the more varied characters like Grimlock, Wreck-Gar, and Arcee.

I'm more interested, and at the same time trepidations than ever about this show. Have too keep an eye out for more... well, seek and ye shall find. Here is a video of the trailer I saw at comic con. Hope you enjoy it and let me know what you think.

At the Con - Bionic Woman

On Saturday morning I had a nice break from the standard panel and walkabout sessions at the con and managed to find time to sit down for an advanced screening of the pilot episode of the new Bionic Woman tv series. It was pretty packed attendance and although I didn't stick around for the Q&A afterwards they had the cast and creators of the show in attendance, which was kinda cool.

The show is obviously an updating of the 70s Bionic Woman series and for the most part, as far as I know, remains true to form. As I mentioned before, it follows Jamie Sommers who is an unsuspecting civilian who gets caught up in the governments super secret cyborg program and is turned into a partly inorganic super spy counter terrorist chick who has some kick ass superhuman abilities. Oh also when she runs, she makes a cha sha sha sha shaa... kind of noise and goes in slow motion, which signifies actually running super fast ;)

Ok, I'm just kidding they've dropped the slow motion effects, but in a nod to the original series, the did incorporate the noise. In the new show Jamie, played very well by the British soap star Michelle Ryan, is the guardian of her moody, deaf teenage sister, after their parents death. In the pilot episode she also gets herself locked into a bionic rivalry with Katee Sackhoff who plays... someone I probably shouldn't give away.

I will say I enjoyed the show for the most part. All except for Katee Sackhoff's role, which is sad because she does such a fantastic job on Battlestar Galactica, I was surprised to see how cartoonish her villainy was written here. Hopefully they'll make that a bit more believable as the series progresses.

I think the show is worth a shot. The effects were pretty cool, and the fact that it was mostly practical stuff was nice. Overall it's all pretty well played for a tv show. Maybe not as moody as the fist season of Dark Angel, but it's still going for something of that kick ass female empowerment kind of vibe.

Funnily enough, I just read on wikipedia that they actually recast the role of Jamie's sister. What we saw was the old version of the pilot. Apparently the sister will no longer be moody or hearing impaired. She will now be a young budding hacker played by hottie Lucy Hale. Oh, and their parents aren't dead anymore. Maybe I should've stuck around for the Q&A after the screening, then I would've heard this I guess... oh well.

The show is set to air premiere on September 26th on NBC.

At the Con - Henson panel

One of my most anticipated panels of comic con had to be the Henson panel. I am a huge fan of the Henson company for really a whole lot of reasons that I don't need to go into now, but aside from any politics, the most important thing is that they simply make good product. I am an old school fan of Fraggle Rock, and the muppets, and a die hard Farscape fanboy. So especially with the recent announcements of Farscape's surprising return I was eager to hear the scoop on that and any other upcoming Henson projects.

Henson came to the con mostly to present two new ventures of theirs, The Skrumps, and Puppet Up! but first they went through a few smaller developments.

Farscape. They started by mentioning the news about the webisodes. This produced a roaring cheer from the audience but that was about all they really gave us. Brian Henson and the president of SciFi.com were able to confirm that there will be a minimum of 10 webisodes of 3 - 6 minutes long each. They were spurned by the success of the Battlestar Galactica webisodes last year and hope that this can be a new beginning for the show. Henson is taking the stance that this web series could act as a bridge between two separate Farscape series. Brian Henson referenced the example of Star Trek: TNG as his aspiration a number of times, and is obviously as passionate about the franchise and its possibilities.

The panel then mentioned briefly the Fraggle Rock and new Dark Crystal films in the works, but didn't give any updates on them. They did announce a special edition Labyrinth dvd though, and mention their two new manga series being made with Tokyopop, Return to Laybrinth and the prequel Legends of the Dark Crystal.

We then were treated to a new series that they are developing called Tinseltown. It's another muppet show starring a pig and a bull. They are a gay couple living in West Hollywood. The pig is an actor, the bull an agent and it was utterly hilarious. I mean really REALLY funny. They showed us video of a 5 minute sketch that they used to sell the show, and wilkl probably act as the pilot. While you can't see the show online anywhere right now, it will make its debut on the LOGO network this fall.

Onto the really main event for the panel though, we we're quickly introduced to The Skrumps. The Skrumps are new characters/creatures that live in Skrumpland, love to rock out, and have adventures. It is a series of books, a series of really neat toys, and now is a new animated television series as well. It stars Whisbone (the blue one) and his best buddy Skrumpy (the red one) they are in an awesome band called the Grumblebellys (while i think they really are supposed to be totally awesome it reminds me a bit of Wyld Stallions, mixed with Tenacious D). Their friend Raisins is the green one and she is kind of the level headed groupie of the bunch. She is also like in love with Skrumpy. Together these friends plan to take the rock world by storm. or at least thats the basic gist of the stroy. :)

The panel session was cool though. They made a really big deal about their animation process, and the Henson Digital Performance Studio. Its really an interesting process, I'd encourage you to check out this production video of how they do it. Basically they animate much the same way they puppeteer, which gives the characters a kind of more organic feel, and a kind of less fluid feel. It really moves quite different than any animation I've ever seen though. After showing us the video linked there, they actually did a live demo in full get up of creating and bringing the character to life. And then we had Raisins do a live Q&A with us. from a video monitor. It was pretty fascinating.

I liked the idea for the Skrumps, and I love the design but I'm not thrilled about the style or content of the show. I also don't know how funny it will be. I mean its aimed squarely at kids, so maybe they'll be more interested in it. And maybe it will grow on me, there are a couple of pretty funny elements to the dynamic between the characters, and I like that the world has really been expansively fleshed out by the creator in his book and toy series. Check out the Skrumps on Yahoo Kids! if you'd like to see more of them, including a bunch of videos. For now the Skrumps are being shopped around to various networks, although I'm sure it will land somewhere soon.

Finally, they move onto the big finale for the panel: Puppet Up! This is an adult improv stage show that the Henson people have been putting on for a year or so now. It is basically a solid acting troop doing uncensored improv live on stage, only they are doing it all through puppets. So simple, yet so effective. I think the puppets let people release their zaniness.

What we saw was very funny at least. Although unfortunately everyone on stage had to censor themselves as there were a number of kids in attendance. But one of the best things about Puppet Up! is that they get people from the audience to participate. For the comic con panel though they had a special guest come in to join them on stage for a live demonstration. And who was that special guest? None other than Ben Browder, of Farscape and Stargate SG-1 fame!!! Awesome! He walked out on stage and assured us that while he had a passing familiarity with puppets he had never operated one before. And then Ben Browder, Brian Henson and a third puppeteer (the same girl who operates and voices Raisins) performed a sketch for us which was needless to say totally hilarious.

Puppet Up! has been on stage in New York, Vegas, and Edinborough, but from now on it will be held monthly at the Avalon theater in Hollywood. If you, like me though probably won't be making it down to LA anytime soon, you can go watch sketches that people have performed with the puppet up crew at TBS.com just select the Featured videos section, then Puppet Up! Uncensored. There are like 25 sketches online right now, and I believe they add a new one every week. Its pretty damn funny stuff, and I'd recommend you check it out. Although keep in mind that its really not all super safe for work. I mean nothing too bad, but if you're looking for puppets making sexual innuendo and swearing, this is definitely the show for you. The latest episode of the Henson Company podcast features audio from the stage show at comic con.

And that finally brought us to the end of the Henson panel at comic con. It was a pretty awesome panel I thought. There was a bunch of fun stuff in the works for the company. And I'm looking forward to even more in the future.

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Sunshine review

Sunshine is an interesting movie. Interesting in the choices it makes. The director for one: Danny Boyle, comes from a very eclectic background, and yet in most ways this film, this genre even, is totally new for him. The cast is also interesting. Cillian Murphy is a mesmerizing actor. And in this film he shines, sorry for the pun but it was just too obvious. Chris Evans as well has finally made a movie where I really not only like him, but was impressed with his acting. I mean good acting. From Chris Evans... Interesting and surprising.

For most of Sunshine it does not feel like we're playing into the typical genre sci fi horror film. The first 2/3 of the film star a small crew on a pretty insane mission: to deliver a bomb and reignite our dying sun. Along the way they have to deal with not just the ever mounting physical pressures, the heat of the sun versus the coldness of space, and the reliance on technology, but also the isolation, and mental impact of this probable suicide mission.

The film works best in the many really beautiful character moments, the inner reflections, landscaped by the amazing visuals of the sun and space. And this is a movie where the effects play a critical role, and the sun becomes a character unto itself; as both a giver of life and harbinger of death. This movie is fantastic at creating an atmosphere and tone. The plausibility can be ignored simply because the writing, direction and acting are so solid. The themes of isolation, and sacrifice work very well as the situation is so dire.

Where this film slips from great to mediocre occurs in the final act. Sunshine jumps from one cliched sci fi horror moment to another. I don't want to give anything away, but I've seen this movie before. We all have. It's nothing new; and that's a real shame. Oh I still think the final act was executed with style, and it was somewhat satisfying to see everything play out. But if this movie had the balls to do something different, to try to break the mold of conventionalism at the end, it could have gone from interesting, to fantastic.

Sunshine has a lot going for it, and ultimately I really enjoyed it. I'm just disappointed that I could feel this film edging into classic, or at least cult classic, territory and then have it just not quite reach it. That said, I do think people should definitely see this film; it is smart, and driven, and well executed. I hope you'll enjoy it.

4 / 5

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For more reviews please visit and friend me on Flixter :)

Nice shirt

So as I've already mentioned a number of times, I missed the Thursday events from comic con. Well, now a little piece of Thursday is mine, care of Ebay :)

Probably my single biggest miss was the Paramount panel. I was hoping for some big Cloverfield news from JJ Abrams. Also he was going to talk about the new Star Trek movie he's making. Well while he did talk about Star Trek, and confirmed the casting of Zachary Quinto as Spock, he did not mention much at all about Cloverfield.

All he said is that the film is NOT called Monstrous as was being reported last week, and he unveiled the new poster for the film. There was no new footage, and no more information given. Oh I suppose hew did say that they had just finished production a few weeks ago and were moving into post. But really other than that, there was nothing.

So for fans interested in the film at least they got some consolation in the freebie giveaway t-shirt that Paramount had for them at the entrance to the conference hall. Free Slusho t-shirts for everyone in attendance! Now thats pretty cool. I mean I got free t-shirts, but do i really care about an Invasion t-shirt; no of course not.

So I have gone onto ebay and purchased myself a Slusho tee. I won the auction and for a mere $10.50 it has become mine!!! Check out the picture. Hooray for me!

At the Con - Spectacular Spider-Man panel

So as I mentioned briefly after Wonder Con Kids WB has announced that they are putting together a brand new animated Spider-Man series, this one called The Spectacular Spider-Man. It's set for a March '08 launch and I went to the Comic Con panel that gave a first look at the animation as well as answered a few questions about the new series. Bear in mind, I'm not a hardcore animated series guy. Sure I try, and I really enjoy them, but I'm not the guy who remembers names or voice actors etc etc. So this is just from a moderately educated fan perspective really.

I do know that the head writer and show runner is one of the guys behind The Batman. So you can already imagine what kind of style they're going for, in terms of the art and storytelling. Just look at that poster.

Anyhow, there are a few hard details we now know. The show puts the characters back into the high school setting. Peter is 16, as are all his friends, including Mary Jane AND Gwen Stacy. The show will start approximately 4 months after the death of Uncle Ben. Peters parents died when he was very young, 4 years old in fact; so their influence will not come into play much at all. Peter will NOT have organic webshooters; they will be the old fashioned kind. And there will be only 13 episodes in season 1.

As for the more intangibles, apparently the theme of the show is "the education of Peter Parker" stylistically it is inspired by things like Hellboy, and as such has definitely not been dumbed down for the kids. This is a show that will be fun, and not at all 'dark' or 'weird' like the MTV series. They may be contemporizing the setting to modern day high school but there has not been a lot of character revamping or invention. Their goal is to make everyone on screen a real character from the comic book history. Literally they said that they did not want to invent anyone new at all. Maybe just, as someone asked, concede to update a few things like Electro's costume. Sounds kind of like the Ultimate universe to me...

They made a point of saying that in theis first season they were going to be cramming it full of villians in 3 or 4 episode story blocks. The villains they said they've explored for the show include: Doc Ock, Lizard, Green Goblin, Sandman, Electro, Venom, Vulture, Black Cat, a guest spot by The Punisher, and at the end of the season an all out brawl with the Sinister Six...

Sounds really good to me, I'm hoping that the show does well and we get to see Kraven the Hunter, and Rhino in season 2! Here are some pics I took of the character designs, sorry they're a bit dark, if you click to enlarge its easier to see.

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At the end of the session they showed us the 'sizzle' reel for the show. Basically it was a pretty sweet commercial. The nice thing was getting to see the movements of the characters in action. Spider-man himself really poped off the screen as he bounced around a lot. There really is a very strong element of fun and youthfullness to the show, that I'm happy to see. Overall I'm thinking this is really a good looking show and I'll be stoked when it finally comes on the air. If Marvel can finally really start making animated cartoons as well as DC does I will be a very satisfied fan.

UPDATE - check out most of the trailer that I saw right here.

At the Con - Warner Bros panel

So I'm not sure I've really done my trip to Comic Con the justice it deserves here. I had a great time. There was tons of cool stuff I saw, and while you should definitely all go check out my Flickr photos, there was really alot of other neat stuff that I didn't capture on film. The panels were fun, the convention floor was fun and a bit crazy, and I had a blast. I thought I'd share a few more thoughts on my time overalll. and some specific things from a few of the panels I attended.

Since there was so much stuff happening though I think I'll break up my thoughts on everything a bit. The Con really kicked off for me on Friday morning when I stated out directly by going into the Warnber Brothers panel. I didn't even hit the convention floor, just right into the panel session. And since it was by far the biggest panel I went to I thought I'd share some thoughts on it.

First up at the panel was was Get Smart. They showed a really funny and long extended trailer for the film. While that actual extended trailer isn't online, you can see the regular trailer here. I enjoyed the footage, and was surprised at how much action it contained. After the trailer we had a good panel session with Steve Carell, the director and a bunch of other people including Masi Oka (of Heroes fame) who has a bit prt in the flick. I wasn't that interested in the film before not being overly into the old tv series, but I think I will check it out now, although it still might be a drental, so I guess for the most part mission accomplished for them.

Then they showed The Invasion trailer (watch here), and a 'special message' from Nicole Kidman. meh, this might be a rental i suppose. They did give us all Invasion t-shirts. I think I might sell mine on ebay though.

Next up was a horror/thriller called One Missed Call which is a remake of a Japanese horror film by Takashi Mike. After the fine but nothing special trailer, they brought out Ed Burns and Shannyn Sossamon for what I have to say was one of the most awkward Q&A panel sessions ever. These people were so wooden it was pretty embarrassing. I think this ones probably a pass.The only really nice thing was they gave out like 5 or 6 iphones to people in the audience.

They showed us the 10 000 BC trailer then, which looked even aw4esomer on the big screen s they had set up all over the convention hall.

After that they went right into Whiteout. This was one of the main reasons I wanted to attend this panel session. Whiteout is an upcoming film based on a fantastic graphic novel. I've talked about it here before in fact, and was very interested to see what they'd done with the film. Well, I was definitely very impressed with what I saw. They showed us a great trailer, and then launched the Q&A panel with the director, Dominic Sena, the writer of the Eisner award winning comic Greg Rucka, one of the most talented producers ever Joel Silver, and eventually Kate Beckinsale. They were really great too. Kate and Joel got most of the questions and they were fantastic. Kate especially was really really charming and funny, but kinda dirty too. So it was good. The film looks great and I know it will be a fantastic thriller.

Then we got the first look at a trailer for a horror film called Trick r Treat. Its not a film I'm interested in but you can watch the trailer here.

Finally after all that came the big guns: Watchmen. Director Zack Snyder came out and talked about the film for quite a while, answering questions and I think really allaying people's fears that he might not be as on top of things as we'd hoped. So that's really good news. He spoke at length about his reverence for the material, and how his process was going to stay true to the book. He was also really practical about things too. His feeling is that when Watchmen came out in '85 and how it spoke to the comic book fans, it was really one of the biggest catalysts for comic books to grow up; and us along with it. He feels that now the rest of the world, especially middle America is now saturated to a point where they are in the same place comic fans were at then, now. This film is obviously for fans, but it should also be able to reach middle America, who yes, now honestly knows something about spider-man, yes they know about the Hulk, they've seen Batman, and they understand the concept Superhero in a way that they never did before. Now they can see the greatest story of superhero deconstruction ever told. And they will be in a place to actually get it.

That said, this isn't a film that he's going to actively go out to market very hard. It is a film he thinks that people will find if and when they need it. The film will almost definitely be an R. Its not being 'changed' to suit us. It's also not being updated. The film still takes place in the alternate reality 80s. Well really, from the 50s all the way up to the 80s. Anyhow, he confirmed the cast, which he had planned to surprise announce at Comic Con only to be scooped by a number of websites. He noted his plans for attention to detail especially now as they're getting into some of the production design stages. He claimed that Dr Manhattan was going to be CG in the same vein of Pirates of the Carribean, which is much better than slapping some blue paint on someone. And finally someone did ask him about the "pirate story" section of the book, and he said he really REALLY wants it in, but its still a bit up in the air.

He left it I thought by really emphasizing his reverence and respect for the source material. And ultimately that was the moist important thing for me to hear. I was glad I got a chance to hear the discussion. I honestly think that Watchmen is in good hands now. Oh, and since this weekend the official Watchmen site is now live. Click on the smiley face for some stuff :)

That was the end for the Warner panel. I'll would've put a few pictures in this post but unfortunately Erica had the camera while I was at the Warner panel. But I got it back in the afternoon so I have pics of most everything else. All that aside though, I was very satisfied with everything I saw and heard at the panel. And yet there was so much more to go. I'll be back later.

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New Iron Man footage

This is the footage I saw at the Iron Man panel on Saturday. I definitely did not record it myself, but since its out there on the net, why not enjoy it. Who knows how long this will last online though so watch it now or you might miss out.

UPDATE - Easy come easy go...

At The Con - Day 2 (with pictures)

ok, so its even later now than it was last night when I was doing this same post. So I'll be brief here. If you're interested please check out some of the awesome photos I caught today in this Flickr set!

I spent most of the day in panels today. Saw the Bionic Woman pilot, went to the Transformers panel, and then a bunch of film panels including Disney (Prince Caspian, WALL-E), Marvel (Incredible Hulk, Iron Man) and Columbia (Resident Evil: Extinction, 30 Days of Night, and Superbad). I also finally met up with my friend here Joey, and we spent the evening watching the Comic Con masquerade ball, which was very fun.

Anyhow, I'm off to bed. Tomorrow isn't as big a day at the con, but I hope to pick up a few of the things I'd been planning on buying. And yes, there are a couple of panels as well :)

Have a good one everyone. Later.

Once again this badge set is only a sample. I've uploaded like 50 photos from today.

www.flickr.com More of -Chappy-'s photos tagged with day2

At The Con - Day 1 (with pictures)

Wow.

I'm really not sure what else to say but wow. I had a busy and very fun day here in San Diego. And its already too late for me to go into a super load of detail, but suffice it to say Comic Con has overall be fantastic. Oh sure there were a few setbacks today. Like how I ripped my jeans (in the crotch no less), and how I missed more than one panel I had intended on attending because I was either caught in a line somewhere, or on the other side of the convention center; but for the most part I saw what I wanted to see and I did what I wanted to do. I had a chance to wander the floor and see the sights. I went to only 3 panels, as opposed to the 6 I'd planned. But I did go to the two that were most important to me and I got to see some great exclusive stuff.

Maybe the best way for you to experience some of what I saw id by checking out this Flickr photo set I've just uploaded. Its not a complete look at what I saw, or even took pictures of, today but it does definitely give you a sense of what its like here. If I had to sum it up in a word it would have to be just FUN.

I had fun today, the people around me were having fun. That's what this whole convention is about :)

Here is a random selection of 5 pics from the Flickr set, eiter press refresh for new ones or just go check out my Flickr page for more. I posted like 55 pics from today.

www.flickr.com More of -Chappy-'s photos tagged with Day1

Indy 4 Update

Check it out. G4 has posted the video from yesterdays Indiana Jones 4 panel where Speilberg and co sent a special greeting to all the fans. I am so happy to see this. Finally I'm actually starting to believe that this film is really REALLY being made! Just great stuff, enjoy it :)



AND you can actually seen even more good stuff over at the official Indiana Jones site. Sweetness...

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Golden Compass Update

I have to say the more I see of this film the more I see of His Dark Materials: The Golden Compass, the more I enjoy it. The look is fantastic and after watching the extended preview that dropped onto the web today, I am definitely going to go see it in the theater. I urge you to watch this extended preview clip, as it is just fantastic.

Every time I see that shot of the polar bear running across the ice with the girl riding his back I get chills. What a beautiful image. And honestly, who wouldn't want to be there doing that? That image alone will make kids want to come out to see this film. But from what I hear rumbling around the internet, this film is just stellar all around. I as you might have guessed know next to nothing about the story or the books, but I am very impressed with everything I've seen so far from the film. Great stuff :)

Dark Knight update

"Some men just want to watch the world BURN..."

The new 'official' site (i'm pretty sure it's official at least) for the upcoming Dark Knight film called whysoserious.com has launched with the teaser trailer for one of next summer's most anticipated films. Although it's honestly just a teaser and doesn't show anything, man its still pretty damn cool. You should definitely go check it out. Oh and check this page for the police report on our good friend The Joker...

And if you're looking for some of the goods right here, then check out this great new pic that's surfaced on the web care comingsoon.net. Pretty sweet eh?



Finally, just as a public service announcement, please everyone, don't forget to vote.

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At The Con - the beginning

Ok people,

I've made it to San Diego. In a few minutes I'll be off to explore the big wide world of Comic Con. Wish me luck! I'll be back hopefully tonight with a few updates for you and maybe even a picture or two. A few things (obviously) happened at the co yesterday that I didn't get a chance to mention here, and MUCH more will be going on today and Saturday. Rest assured I will get everything sorted out for you by the time this is over. For now, I would recommend checking out Comingsoon.net for a good swath of the latest updates from the con.

I know on my twitter sidebar yesterday I mentioned that Karen Allen is returning to the Indiana Jones franchise, well they also showed some stuff from the set of the new movie. I think Spielberg ad Ford did a message from the set played onto a video screen, and the crowd went wild. The other big 'footage' shown yesterday was for Iron Man at the Paramount panel. Hopefully they'll show that again at the Marvel Panel on Saturday so I can see it then. Tidbit to enjoy - The offical Hulk website is online now. And the Indy site has been updated too!

Ok, I really have to take off now everyone, but have a great day! I know I will. Later kids :)

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Cloverfield poster

Check out this crazy awesome new poster for Cloverfield / 1-18-08 / Slusho. and no the film is NOT called Monsterous as was being rumored earlier this week. JJ has said that there will be no new trailer, and really no other info except this poster. He also has said that they are almost done filming so I hope that means we can get a bit more info eventually. Sadly though, we will have to keep speculating on what exactly the monster is... Very cool poster though.

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Beowulf Trailer

while it hasn't quite hit YouTube yet, there is a new pretty kickass trailer out for the upcoming Robert Zemeckis film Beowulf. Honestly, this film has only been marginally on my radar, and I was taken quite by surprise with the trailer.

The sheer pedigree of talent involved in the film though is interesting and I think the trailer just wraps it up into a great looking film. Set to come out November 16th, I've never read the story of Beowulf before and frankly while it sounds really pretty interesting, I'm getting on a plane for San Diego in like 3 hours and don't have time to learn it. This is a mighty sexy poster for the film though, the trailer is great, and I'm definitely interested in learning more...

If you're interested in more, you can check out the official site too :)

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Quinto is Spock

It's official! Just now fresh from the lips of JJ Abrams at Comic Con, the excellent actor Zachary Quinto who as we all know plays Sylar on Heroes has been cast as Spock in the new Star Trek film. Sweet news!

Leonard Nimoy is also set to appear in the film as the older version of Spock we all know and love :) This is shaping up very interestingly...

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Watchmen cast is confirmed

Care of a Hollywood Reporter story the Watchmen cast has been confirmed. Most of the rumors circling around the web last week were true too. As I posted here a few days ago, the main cast members are mostly from the television world or haven't broken really big yet onto the movie scene. However they are all noteworthy as being acclaimed for excellent performances in past roles and I for one am extremely happy with the cast. Frankly I'm glad Brad Pitt, or Jude Law are not in this film. I'd rather see a cast of basically unknowns dazzle me. I feel that this film, this story is bigger than any "star" and I'm glad I won't be watching this thinking about the starpower behind it.

As mentioned before.

Billy Crudup will be playing Dr Manhattan who is especially noteworthy as the ONLY character in the Watchmen worl who has real "super powers".
Malin Akerman is confirmed to be playing the Silk Spectre (II),
and Matthew Goode has been cast as Adrian Veidt aka Ozymandias

Additionally

Jackie Earle Haley of Little Children fame has been cast as the tortured 'narrator' of sorts Rorschach.
Patrick Wilson who was also in Little Children will play Night Owl, probably the most stable of all the "heroes" his investigations provide a more centered backbone for the story than Rorschach.
and Jeffrey Dean Morgan who played Denny Duquete on Grey's Anatomy has been cast as the very violent vigilante The Comedian.

So, I'd say its pretty good news all around. Hopefully I'll get a bit more info at the Watchmen panel at comic con on Saturday. I'd also be interested in finding out exactly what Gerard Butler will be doing for Watchmen, as director Zack Snyder has confirmed that he wants the Spartan in his film. We'll see what becomes of it though. Until next time, later.

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new Wall-E pic

Check out this beautiful new photo from Disney's film WALL-E. I'm planning on attending the Disney panel at Comic Con on Sunday, so I might have more updates on this film as we go forward :) Anyhow, the pic is care of USA Today.

Dragon Wars trailer

Honestly I'd never even heard of Dragon Wars until like two days ago when I was starting to plan out my comic con panels. And even then the only reason it caught my eye was because it stars Jason Behr, and I was quite a big fan of Roswell. That said, after watching this trailer I'm really not sure this is going to be a very gooid film. I think it might make a great television series for sure, and while yes there are some great effects shots in the trailer, there are also a number of really bad ones. Have a look below. To me it seems only slightly better than a SciFi original movie. hehe... ok maybe that's mean, but is this movie really going to be good?! Is it really going to be a big theatrical film? Check out the trailer and decide for yourself. And since the panel session for the film is on Sunday morning when nothing else is happening I should be able to check it out. Maybe get a bit more info...