Tagged: film

REVIEW: Hitchcock

hitchcock-blu-ray-Hitchcock_Combo_Ori-8C60008_rgbThe great innovators and popular entertainers of previous generations often fade from sight from they retire or die. A new generation discovers them afresh, either on their own, or someone has done some digging. In the case of the famed director Alfred Hitchcock, he has spawned a cottage industry with recent biographies and films. Hitchcock, with Anthony Hopkins nearly unrecognizable under the latex, is based on Stephen Rebello’s Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho, and portrays a particular point of view about the Englishman.

Psycho is currently his best known work, especially with this week’s debut of Bates Motel on cable but critics tend to pick his other, earlier works as among his best. Sure, this thriller is terrifying and exciting and surprising thanks to the Robert Bloch story, direction, and performances. And the making of the film is worthy of exploration. Director Sacha Gervasi has a rich source of material and some fascinating players to explore but the end result is surprisingly slight. Rebello shone a much-needed spotlight on Hitch’s wife Alma (Helen Mirren), the secret engine behind his successes and Gervasi tries to milk tension out of the largely fictitious tension between spouses. When Universal refused to allow access to the source material, Gervasi needed something to hang the film on but clearly chose poorly.

The story picks up in 1959, with Hitch riding the success of North by Northwest and his popular television anthology series that made his silhouette the most recognizable in the country. Seeking his next project, he assigned the research to Peggy Robertson (Toni Colette), his assistant. She came up with Bloch’s novel, loosely based on the famed Ed Gein murders. It had just the right amount of lurid tension that would let him explore something different, something he did throughout his storied career.

Not everyone agreed with the choice with agent (Michael Stuhlbarg), Paramount president Barney Balaban (Richard Portnow), and Alma all thinking it beneath the director, who insisted he wanted the change of pace. When Paramount balked, he moved the film to Universal Studios which welcomed him with open arms. Hitch cast  Anthony Perkins (James D’Arcy) as Norman, Janet Leigh (Scarlett Johansson) as Marion Crane and Vera Miles (Jessica Biel) as sister Lila. There’s plenty of behind the scenes intrigue, saving only the original film’s most famous moments for on camera action where we discover the tyrannical Hitchcock is as prurient as Norman himself.  He later bullies Hays Office censor Geoffrey Shurlock (Kurtwood Smith) into approving the shower scene since more is implied than ever shown.

HITCHCOCKThe movie’s more interesting dynamic is between husband and wife and here the film should sing but lacks spark which is odd considering how strong the performers are so the fault clearly lies in the script. There are other missteps along the way including Gein’s ghost, but by then, the film has lost its audience rather than gripped them.

The digital film is well-transferred to Blu-ray and sounds just fine. The combo edition comes complete with Audio Commentary from Gervasi and Rebello, and I wish the film was as interesting as their conversation. There is also a single Deleted Scene (1:41); Becoming the Master: From Hopkins to Hitchcock (12:28) all about Hopkins’ makeup and performance; Obsessed with Hitchcock (29:09), the usual making of documentary; Sacha Gervasi’s Behind-the-Scenes Cell Phone Footage (13:31) which is far more entertaining and informative than you imagine and gets credit for being a unique bonus; Hitchcock Cell Phone PSA (:41); The Story  (3:54); The Cast (4:25) which features with interviews with the director, Mirren, Hopkins, and others; Danny Elfman Maestro (2:16) which is an all-too-brief piece on the evocative score;  Hitch and Alma (3:15), which honestly needed to be more expansive and in-depth; Remembering Hitchcock (4:44): Hitchcock’s former cast and crew members trip down memory lane; Theatrical Trailer (2:33); and, Sneak Peek (14:31).

Overall, the extras bolster a weak production and makes it worth a look. Or, you might be better off reading the bios and watching the actual films from the great master. Hitchcock was terrific at building suspense, adjusting to new technologies and exploring the human psyche in ways his peers at the time avoided, giving him freedom to explore and entertain.

REVIEW: The Hobbit

HBBT_BDComboJ.R.R. Tolkien was fascinated with language and mythology, scratching only the surface when he sat down in 1937 to pen The Hobbit. When his publisher asked for a sequel, the professor really dug deep and built on the foundations established in his children’s novel. As a result, he took over a decade to write what became Lord of the Rings and along the way, crafted new languages, cultures, and myths, creating Middle Earth from the essence of English and European folklore.

Tolkien mistrusted Hollywood, which certainly explains why it wasn’t until the 1970s before any adaptation of his works made it to the screen. There’s the somewhat cute Rankin-Bass take from the era, but really, the studios and technology weren’t up to the demands of the source material. Within the last two decades, though, that all changed. Once Peter Jackson struck gold with his trilogy of films, it was inevitable that the public would cry for the first book in the cycle to be adapted. Of course, there were the usual legal entanglements followed by MGM’s financial free-fall which cost the production the talents of Guillermo Del Toro. Jackson stepped behind the camera once more, helming an adaptation that was more in keeping with his interpretation of Middle Earth than del Toro apparently had in mind. Now, having seen The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey in the theater and on disc, the fresh eye may have been warranted.

Not that there’s anything wrong with the film —  being released on home video in a variety of packages from Warner Home Video on Tuesday – but the familiarity with it all robs the story of its magic. Wisely, the opening is a frame, setting up the novel itself; using Ian Holm’s aged Bilbo Baggins with Elijah Wood once more as his nephew Frodo. Seeing them brought a smile to my heart but once the dwarves began to arrive, and the journey get underway, we’d seen the vistas, the mountains, and roads. As a result, the journey felt beleaguered and longer than necessary.

What did work, though, was really making this Thorin Oakenshield’s (Richard Armitage) story, aided by the dwarves and guided by Gandalf the Gray (Ian McKellan). The tension and suspicions the handsome dwarf had towards Baggins (Martin Freeman) is a nice undercurrent until it reaches a climax.

In watching the story unfold, it’s very much like a saga from days gone by and it’s interesting to note how many of the dwarf names were taken straight from Norse mythology. It’s a pretty straightforward tale with nice sets pieces such as the meeting with Gollum (Andy Serkis) and the forthcoming battles with Smaug. Expanding this initially to two films raised some eyebrows and then he came out with word that two had morphed into three. Suddenly, the single novel was being given the same weight at the trilogy and most howled. In watching the movie, it’s safe to say about 60 percent of it was the novel and the remainder was drawn from the appendices and notes Tolkien left behind. To be fair to the producer/writer/director, there’s tremendous material worthy of adapting and exploring cinematically. It worked with the emphasis on Arwen in the trilogy so he earns the benefit of the doubt for now.

Hobbit_Infographic_Hobbit101He did take a throwaway line about Gandalf needing to speak with others and the book skipped that while the film uses that moment to being us to a council where familiar friends Galadriel (Cate Blanchet), Elrond (Hugo Weaving), and Saruman the White (Christopher Lee) provide wisdom and foreshadowing. It was fun seeing them as all one big happy family, knowing that even sixty years before LOTR, the dark shadows were already creeping from Mordor.

We also get to see some other wizards for the first time, including Necromancer (Benedict Cumberbatch) in the stronghold of Dul Guldur and the amusing Radagast the Brown (Sylvester McCoy).

Fran Walsh, Philippa Boyens, and Jackson used some magic to find ways to give each of the thirteen dwarves some personality and the cast and costumers ran with it. While you couldn’t necessarily name them on sight, you could tell one from another. Character reigns supreme once more for which we fans should be thankful. As fanciful as Tolkien was, he remained far more interested in lore and language than he did in interesting characterization.

Jackson is an old hand at the setting and pacing, which may be why he was more interested in the technical aspects, notably the 48-frames-per-second experiment that too few people got to witness as theaters, already paying the bills for 3-D and digital projectors, were reluctant to support. The film, therefore, is lush and rich in color, sight, and sound.

An extended edition with extra footage, which was anticipated before the film hit theaters, is now expected in time for the holiday season, following the previous pattern. So, be cautioned when getting this. So, what do you get with this edition? Well, the video transfer is most excellent, rich in color so Hobbiton to Lothlorien to the mines are sharp and clear. The visuals are equally matched by the amazing DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track.

While there some two and a half hours of bonus material, diehard fans have seen most of it online during the film’s production and release. Clearly, the most interesting stuff is being held back for the extended version. The specials are voluminous to merit its own disc, which is nice.

Early purchasers can use The Desolation of Smaug Sneak Peek Access Code: to watch the exclusive online sneak peek at The Desolation of Smaug, hosted live by Peter Jackson on March 24th at 3pm EST/12pm PST.

There’s another look at New Zealand: Home of Middle-Earth (7 minutes) demonstrating the challenge facing Jackson and his team as they had to find new countryside to show off new portions of Middle Earth.

The bulk of the extras are the ten Video Blogs (127 minutes):

Start of Production (April 14, 2011)

Location Scouting (July 9, 2011)

Shooting Block One (July 21, 2011)

Filming in 3D (November 4, 2011)

Locations Part I (December 24, 2011)

Locations Part II (March 2, 2012)

Stone St. Studios Tour (June 6, 2012)

Wrap of Principal Photography (July 24, 2012)

Post-Production Overview (November 24, 2012)

Wellington World Premiere (December 14, 2012)

And, of course, a handful of trailers.

Sunday Cinema: Wonder Woman fan video making the rounds

http://www.comicmix.com//wp-content/uploads/2013/03/wonder-woman-nina-bergman-1a3.jpg

Jesse V. Johnson, the director behind Anchor Bay‘s The Package and the recently announced Kill ‘Em All, John (both vehicles for former wrestler “Stone Cold” Steve Austin) used $3500 and a bunch of favors to make a fan film to demonstrate his chops beyond direct-to-video action fare. He cast Danish singer Nina Bergman as Wonder Woman and got Peter Stormare and Sons Of Anarchy‘s Timothy V. Murphy to play oily Nazis. The resulting video, produced by Hugh Daly and Faz Brahimi and aided by Johnson’s Station 3 manager and producing partner Kailey Marsh, can be seen here…

John Ostrander: Impetuous! Homeric!

Ostrander Art 130317Today is Saint Patrick’s Day, a day to celebrate all things Irish, a day when real Irishmen and women hide in their homes while Amateur Irishmen take to the streets and the pubs. It’s a day when the city of Chicago – no lie – dyes the mouth of the Chicago River green… or even greener than usual. Given that this year Saint Paddy’s day occurs on a Sunday, I suspect that the celebration has been going on since at least Friday and may well last into next Thursday what with the whiskey and the beer and the general all around vomiting. Ah, glorious!

Since we’re celebrating things that are Irish, I’ll be mentioning some of me own favorite Irish films. You may have different ones and I’ll drink to those as well (it’s a day for it) but these are my particular favorites.

[[[The Quiet Man]]]

Classic. John Ford directed, John Wayne and Maureen O’Sullivan star, Victor McLaughlin, Ward Bond and Barry Fitzgerald co-star with a spectacular cast in this 1952 film about a retired American boxer who returns to the wee Irish village where he was born, finds love with a tempestuous redhead and a feud with her ill-tempered bully of a brother.

If there is one Irish themed film that most Americans know, I bet it would be this one. I love it, too, but there are things that bother me about it. First – I can’t really determine when it happens. Given what the characters say in the movie, I’m assuming it’s set before the establishment of the Republic of Ireland but I’ve never been sure. Secondly – there’s a casual and accepted treatment of women (“Here, sir – a stick with which to beat the lovely lady.”) that is a little hard to take. Lastly, the characters are all colorful but they’re stereotypes.

For all that, I love the film. John Wayne gives a fine performance and there are really romantic moments where he’s very tender. Barry Fitzgerald was never more of an Irish leprechaun than here and says one of my favorite lines; on looking at the wreckage of Wayne and O’Sullivan’s wedding bed the day following the wedding night, he murmurs, “Impetuous! Homeric!” Makes me laugh every time.

[[[The Commitments]]]

Alan Parker’s 1991 film about the formation of a Dublin-based soul band features largely a cast of unknowns taken from the Irish music scene. Why soul? The band’s organizer, Jimmy Rabbitte (played memorably by Robert Arkins) puts it this way: “The Irish are the blacks of Europe. And Dubliners are the blacks of Ireland. And the Northside Dubliners are the blacks of Dublin. So say it once, say it loud: I’m black and I’m proud.” Hard to argue with logic like that.

You get the feel that this is far more the real Ireland than with The Quiet Man. It also has an incredible score; the soundtrack of new versions of classic soul and R&B is itself now classic. Andrew Strong who plays the band’s lead singer, Deco Cuffe, could give Joe Cocker a run for his money. Funny, revealing, and you can dance to it. What more do you want from a movie?

Rat

This is a weird damn movie from the year 2000 filled with the very best of black Irish humor. I don’t think I can improve on IMDB’s pithy description: “A woman becomes furious when her husband arrives home from the local pub and turns into a rat.” It stars Imelda Staunton and Pete Postlethwaite and focuses on the family, none of whom seem all that surprised that the man of the house has turned into a rat. One of the taglines for the movie is “He might eat maggots and live in a cage but he’s still our Dad.”

Staunton, who some may recognize as Dolores Umbridge from some of the Harry Potter films, is simply superb. The Irish accents are a bit thick and may take some getting used to but there are moments of jaw dropping comedy in this. For all its surreal premise, this also seems to capture something very real in the Ireland in which its set. Not for everyone, I think, but I loved it.

[[[Waking Ned Devine]]]

Not only my favorite Irish film but one of my favorite films of all time – period. The 1998 film, written and directed by Kirk Jones, stars Ian Bannen, David Kelly, and Fionnula Flanagan and is set in the small town of Tullymore. Someone there has won the Lotto; Jackie O’Shea (Bannen) and Michael O’Sullivan (Kelly) are determined to find the winner before anyone else knows and help them spend their winnings. The winner, they discover, is Ned Devine of the title and the shock of learning he’s won has killed him. Jackie, after a dream – a “premonition” – decides that Ned’s spirit wants Jackie to claim the prize by pretending to be Ned so it doesn’t go to waste.

It doesn’t go quite as planned.

To be honest, after first seeing the trailer I wasn’t sure I wanted to see the film. For reasons I won’t try to explain here, there were glimpses of a naked David Kelly on a motorbike rushing around. Aged male backsides are not an inducement to me. However, My Mary really wanted to see it so we went.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnIDRm7OLdo[/youtube]

There are some impeccably timed moments in the film and none greater than the climax. All I’ll tell you is that it is a very dark Irish joke and the first time I saw it in a movie theater, I literally nearly fell out of my seat, laughing hysterically. The row of seats we were in shook because I was laughing so hard. I tried to smother my laughter but people were turning to look at me. I couldn’t help myself. I have it on DVD and I laugh just as hard every time I see that climax. I know its coming, I know it by heart, and it shouldn’t affect me like that but it does.

Over repeated viewings I’ve become aware of story flaws and inconsistencies here and there but I just don’t care. I adore this film. It also has one the best movie soundtracks that I know and I play it often by itself.

So, this Saint Patrick’s day, you can go out and drink yourself into oblivion or until you see all the snakes St. Patrick drove out of Ireland but I’m going to stay in and watch one or all four of these films. Just be sure to get home safely so you can be around for St. Patrick’s Day next year and watch ‘em yourself.

Beannachtam na Feile Padraig!

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

MONDAY MORNING: Mindy Newell

TUESDAY MORNING: Emily S. Whitten

 

Scaling Hobbits, Dwarves and Elves

Hobbit_Infographic-UniqueFeaturesWarner Home Video has provided us with a nifty infographic in advance of next week’s release of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey. Here are the official details.

From Academy Award-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson comes The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, the first of three films adapting the enduringly popular masterpiece The Hobbit, by J.R.R. Tolkien. The second film will be The Hobbit: There and Back Again.

Both films are set in Middle-earth 60 years before The Lord of the Rings, which Jackson and his filmmaking team brought to the big screen in the blockbuster trilogy that culminated with the Oscar®-winning The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

The adventure follows the journey of title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor from the fearsome dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior, Thorin Oakenshield. Their journey will take them into the Wild; through treacherous lands swarming with Goblins and Orcs, deadly Wargs and Giant Spiders, Shapeshifters and Sorcerers.

Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo meets the creature that will change his life forever…Gollum. Here, alone with Gollum, on the shores of an underground lake, the unassuming Bilbo Baggins not only discovers depths of guile and courage that surprise even him, he also gains possession of Gollum’s “precious” ring that holds unexpected and useful qualities … A simple, gold ring that is tied to the fate of all Middle-earth in ways Bilbo cannot begin to know.

Ian McKellen returns as Gandalf the Grey, the character he played in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and Martin Freeman in the central role of Bilbo Baggins. Also reprising their roles from The Lord of the Rings movies are: Cate Blanchett as Galadriel; Ian Holm as the elder Bilbo; Christopher Lee as Saruman; Hugo Weaving as Elrond; Elijah Wood as Frodo; Orlando Bloom as Legolas; and Andy Serkis as Gollum.

Extras Include

New Zealand: Home of Middle Earth

Video Blogs

  • Start of Production
  • Location Scouting
  • Shooting Block One
  • Filming in 3D
  • Locations Part 1
  • Locations Part 2
  • Stone St. Studios Tour
  • Wrap of Principal Photography
  • Post-production Overview
  • Wellington World Premiere

Theatrical Trailers

  • Dwarves
  • Letter Opener
  • Bilbo Contract
  • Gandalf Wagers
  • Gollum Paths

Game Trailer

  • The Hobbit: Kingdoms of Middle-Earth
  • Guardians of Middle-Earth
  • Lego The Lord of the Rings

Feature Comments: UltraViolet lets you build a digital collection so you can instantly stream and download your movies to compatible devices, including computers, tablets, smartphones, game consoles and IP-connected TVs and Blu-ray players. This UltraViolet copy is a standard definition digital copy of the main feature. UltraViolet service providers may charge for continued cloud access, but no additional charge for continued access to content once downloaded. Consumer must reside in the U.S. and register for a retailer account and an UltraViolet account. Must be 18 years or older to create UltraViolet account.

Hugh Jackman Talks Being a Guardian

Hugh Jackman Talks Being a Guardian

Paramount Home Video’s release of Rise of the Guardians arrives in stores on Tuesday, in time for the Easter Basket season. Here’s a clip of Hugh Jackman talking about his character and a behind-the-scenes look at how The Easter Bunny was developed for the film.

For those unfamiliar with the animated feature, which posits a world where icons are real, here’s a clip of Jackman’s Easter Bunny and the trailer.

Win a Copy of Willow on Blu-ray

  • News
  • March 9, 2013

Willow Domestic BD+DVDJourney to the far corners of your imagination with Willow, for the first time ever on stunning Blu-ray!  Written and produced by George Lucas and directed by Ron Howard, the film tells a timeless fantasy tale in which heroes come in all sizes…and adventure is the greatest magic of all.  In celebration of its 25th anniversary, the unforgettable classic has been fully digitally restored and debuts on Blu-ray and DVD Combo Pack March 12, 2013 from Lucasfilm Ltd. and Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment.

The Willow Blu-ray and DVD include a dazzling array of extras with never-before-seen exclusive content such as deleted scenes with remarks from Ron Howard, a personal video diary of Warwick Davis, matte paintings and much more. In addition, look out for Ron Howard’s new introduction for the original 1988 featurette “The Making of an Adventure,” as well as special effect legend Dennis Muren’s new intro to his piece, “From Morf to Morphing: The Dawn of Digital Filmmaking.”

Special Features include:

  • NEW – Willow: Deleted Scenes with Ron Howard
  • NEW – Willow: An Unlikely Hero – Personal Video Diary of Warwick Davis
  • The Making of an Adventure with an all new introduction from Ron Howard
  • From Morf to Morphing with an all new introduction from Dennis Muren
  • Matte Paintings
  • Easter Egg

Our friends at Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment have given us two copies to giveaway. Entries must be received no later than 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, March  13. The decision of ComicMix is final. In order to win your very own copy of Willow on Blu-ray Combo Pack, simply answer the following question:

What did Ron Howard direct immediately after Willow?

  • Gung Ho
  • Parenthood
  • Apollo 13
  • Grand Theft Auto
  • A Beautiful Mind

 

Christopher Nolan’s Interstellar Now a Paramount/Warner Co-Production

Paramount100Warner Bros Film Group Finalizing New PR Job For News Corp Publicist Jack HornerWhile we await confirmation that Christopher Nolan will be the new DC Film Universe guru and what that will actually mean, he is hard at work on his next film. Today, Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. issued the following joint press release:

HOLLYWOOD, CA (March 8, 2013) – Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros. Pictures jointly announced today that writer/director Christopher Nolan’s INTERSTELLAR will be co-produced and distributed by the two studios, with Paramount Pictures handling Domestic distribution and Warner Bros. Pictures distributing the film Internationally.  INTERSTELLAR will be released beginning November 7, 2014, in theaters and IMAX®.

Directed and written by Academy Award-nominee Nolan (INCEPTION, THE DARK KNIGHT RISES), INTERSTELLAR is based on a script by Jonathan Nolan. The film will be produced by Emma Thomas and Christopher Nolan of Syncopy Films and Obst of Lynda Obst Productions. Kip Thorne will executive produce. The film will depict a heroic interstellar voyage to the furthest reaches of our scientific understanding.

Brad Grey, Chairman and CEO of Paramount Pictures said, “As a filmmaker and storyteller, Chris has continuously entertained the world with his extraordinary and unparalleled talents. I am pleased beyond measure to welcome him to the Paramount Pictures family. Partnering with Chris, Emma, Lynda and Warner Bros. to release this original idea next November is the perfect way to start the Thanksgiving and holiday movie season for audiences around the world.”

Jeff Robinov, President, Warner Bros. Pictures Group, said, “Christopher Nolan is truly one of the great auteurs working in film today, and we’re extremely proud of our successful and ongoing collaboration with him and Emma Thomas.  We are excited to be teaming with Paramount, and look forward to working with the Nolans, and producer Lynda Obst, on this extraordinary new project.”

Dennis O’Neil: A Comic Book Convention… About Comic Books?

O'Neil Art 130307…wind down through the labyrinthine passage to the farthest depth of the cavern and there find a wire, and from the wire will come a spark, and from the spark a flame and from the flame a light that will illuminate the truth…

Well, sometime, maybe. But not today. Today is for blobbing – or, if you prefer a slightly classier and more contemporary work that I learned just this afternoon, chillaxing. Yesterday was the ordeal of being pulled for hours through a tube that’s a teeny bit narrower than I am while breathing sulfur or, as some would call it, airline travel.

I’ve been doing it pretty regularly for almost half-a-century and so you’d think I’d be used to it by now. Okay, I’m resigned to it, but that’s not exactly the same as being used to it.

The occasion, this brisk and, in some areas, snowy March, was a visit to a comics convention in a city I have fond memories of, Seattle. Now, some of you who are my age and have retained the ability to read and thus are reading this, may recall the early fanzines: generally produced on mimeograph machines on cheapish paper; these were not slick and often not very professional, but they had the charm of work done for the love of it, with no hope of gain other than the satisfaction of indulging in a cherished hobby. These publications often featured “convention reports,” accounts of visits to science fiction or comic book gatherings, written by the zine’s publisher or one of that person’s friends. About those conventions: some fans, a professional or two, maybe a movie, maybe – a real treat! – a reel of outtakes from film or television. And maybe…even the appearance of an actor from film or tv. (The first con I attended featured Buster Crabbe.)

Them days is gone forever, Clem. Any convention report would have to be quite lengthy to do justice to its subject. There were, give or take, 75,000 attendees in Seattle and a whole roster of show biz celebrities topped by Patrick Stewart or, as those of you adverse to reading credits might know him, Jean Luc Picard, captain of the starship Enterprise. This mammoth gathering is not the biggest convention – the ones held in New York City and San Diego are bigger – but its still pretty awesome and, I was told, has doubled in size since last year, so…watch your backs, New York and San Diego!

What can I bitch about? Not much. The accommodations bordered on luxurious and everyone we encountered – I’m talking everyone – was friendly and courteous.

What did I like? Well, let’s skip the women – hordes of lovely human beings in costumes, many with interesting tattoos and didn’t my dirty old man merit badge almost burn a hole through my vest! Let’s skip them and remark on how the idea of a convocation devoted to good ol’ comic books didn’t seem to be lost among all the show biz glitter and bling.

Yeah, I’d go back, even if I had to be pulled through a tube while breathing sulfur.

FRIDAY: Martha Thomases

SATURDAY: Marc Alan Fishman

 

Enter Our “Tai Chi Zero” Blu-ray and DVD Giveaway!

  • News
  • March 6, 2013

To celebrate the release of the steampunk kung fu epic Tai Chi Zero, being released  on Blu-ray and DVD, Comicmix. will be giving away two DVDs and two Blu-Rays of this fantastic film.

About the film:

“From the creators of IP MAN and DETECTIVE DEE, featuring Martial Arts choreography by the legendary Sammo Hung, TAI CHI 0 is the first of a planned Steampunk Martial Arts trilogy. TAI CHI 0 tells the story of Yang Luchan, a young genius who, tired of being picked on, travels to Chen Village to learn the art of Tai Chi. Luchan finds out the hard way that it is forbidden for a villager to teach an outsider. But when a frightening army of steampunk soliders bearing strange machines shows up, the villagers must trust this strange outsider with the knowledge of Tai Chi.“

If you want your chance to win a copy of Tai Chi Zero, entering is simple: you must comment on this post. We will announce the winners picked at random from those who comment!

Now on to the rules…

  • There will be only four winners.
  • You must comment on this post to win.
  • One comment per user.
  • Contest is over at midnight (EST) on March 10th
  • Winners will be announced the following day and have 5 days to contact us with shipping info.

We would like to thank Variance Films for letting us give our readers this opportunity to pick up this wonderful film.

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