After a small hiatus, the geek talk series is back with a vengeance!
This week, hosts Alan Kistler and Carrie Wright talk with Halloween director Rob Zombie, Battlestar Galactica and Blade Runner actor Edward James Olmos and novelist David Mack, talking about remakes, reboots and sequels:
And if you want to see what else is in store for the series, check our cool trailer!
Every week, “Crazy Sexy Geeks: The Series” will discuss topics such as super-hero fashion, the best time travel stories, movie monsters, mythology in comics, gay characters in media, and what makes a good adaptation. You can find new episodes right here and on the YouTube channel “CrazySexyGeeksSeries.”
X-Men Origins: Wolverine kicked off the summer season and much of the film review that follows originally appeared on my blog. This past week, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released the movie on DVD and Blu-ray, both containing a digital copy as has become standard these days. Since his introduction in 1974 through 2000, people were fascinated by Wolverine. He was a feral, edgy character at a time few other costumed crime fighters were. There was a tragic element to him since he could not recall his past. Through the years, writers teased us with bits and pieces about him, letting us know he was long-lived and had gotten around. But, just where did this Canadian come from?
After the success of [[[X-Men]]] in 2000, it became apparent there would be other mutant movies and the issue of Logan’s origin was no doubt going to be addressed. In 2001, Bill Jemas said the time had come to tell the origin. Better Marvel control the origin elements rather than some unfamiliar screenwriter so in many ways, his miniseries, [[[Origin]]], was a pre-emptive strike. And maybe it was just time.
The Paul Jenkins version beat out several others and became the one Andy Kubert drew in his gorgeous style. This is now the origin, like it or not, that every licensee is obligated to follow. All of this sets the stage for X-Men Origins: Wolverine, a solo project that invited movie audiences to see where Logan came from and how he had his skeleton covered in adamantium.
Good thing there was a roadmap to follow because the changes from the comic showed that in other hands, telling his origin could be disastrous. Far too little is spent setting up James Howlett’s life in Canada before his claws first popped out. The family dynamic is given such short shrift that it felt sketched rather than written. I was particularly bothered by the decision to make Howlett and Victor Creed brothers, an unnecessary and overused Hollywood trope. Yes, Sabretooth is Wolverine’s great comic book nemesis but he had nothing to do with the origins and shoe-horning him here doesn’t fit.
We know they’re both mutants, both feral in nature, something not well explored by the script. The title sequence successfully shows us how they stayed together, reached adulthood and seemingly stopped aging, but continued to sate their natures by going from war to war. Why they left Canada for America is unexplained nor are we properly shown how they began drifting apart and why Victor relished fighting while James had more of a conscience. Had the movie taken the opening montage and really delved into his origin, we would have had a more dramatic character-driven origin rather than this testosterone-fueled film overstuffed with extraneous mutants.
James and Victor wound up as part of mutant military brigade under the command of William Stryker. We get to see some mostly familiar mutants including Wade Wilson, whose jabbering was perfect. Anyway, James reached his limit with the squad’s brutality and walked on them, and his brother. In the intervening six years, he found a quiet job as a lumberjack along with the love of a good woman, Kayla Silverfox, until his past came back to haunt him.
Stryker has manipulated James so he agrees to undergo the transformation into a living weapon. A military reason for the Weapon X program as opposed to the evil scientific cabal is another Hollywood cliché that was irritating and Stryker as the mastermind never seemed smart enough or motivated enough to be a real threat.
Bonded to adamantium, James Howlett has now rejected his past, adopting the name Logan and the codename Wolverine (the animal name came from that other Hollywood touch, a story told by his lover in the scene before she is killed). Now seeking Creed, who killed Kayla under Stryker’s command, the second half of the film becomes a revenge tale. (more…)
If you’ve ever craved cupcakes while watching your favorite movie or set out a themed feast for an afternoon with friends, or just happen to be in Brooklyn for today’s Brooklyn Book Festival, you should meet Daniellan Louie. She got her start baking confections for her friends and family and, in 2006, she opened Ivy Bakery. Now she has a menu with over 300 items, which she makes from scratch herself, specializes in custom orders, and has a list of many impressive clients including Marvel Comics, Columbia Pictures, and the Tribeca Film Festival.
I first ran across mention of Ivy Bakery on Twitter when some friends were tweeting about Princess Bride-themed cupcakes. Since then, I have been following the bakery on Twitter for daily updates on what she is baking ( today’s offerings include: “Red Velvet Cake with Vanilla Buttercream shaped like Kingdom of Hearts Key” ). I know that many people in fandom have dietary restrictions, and may be lamenting the lack of cupcakes in their lives, but Ivy Bakery also has many gluten-free, dairy free, vegan, and sugar free items as well as the traditional ones. I recently had a chance to ask Daniellan Louie a few questions about Ivy Bakery, and especially about her awesome movie-themed cupcakes – which she decorates by hand!
What movie-themed cupcakes have you made in the past? I
just started making the movie-themed cupcakes this summer, but have
made many cakes related to movie/tv characters. The movie cupcake
collection currently consists of The Breakfast Club, Twilight, and The
Princess Bride, the next set coming in the fall will be The Little
Mermaid. I put a pause on the work because it’s been a very slow and
rough summer. I’ve also done characters like Yoda from Star Wars and
would definitely like to do several sets on popular Sci-Fi movies like
Back To The Future, Ghostbusters, Harry Potter.
If you were to make movie themed cupcakes just for yourself, what movie would you choose? Hmmm,
one of them would be The Princess Bride, but I already made that. For
myself I’d actually be more interested in doing Mario Brothers theme or
classic video games from the past.
If you haven’t yet, would you ever do a Lord of the Rings trilogy triple batch of themed cupcakes? Definitely,
I haven’t made them yet, but it’s on the to do list, along with Star
Wars, Twilight Series & the Harry Potter Series
Of all the themed items you have made, what was your favorite? It
would probably be the first Twilight movie. I think the cupcakes came
out very well, I did a double batch with 24 cupcakes since there were
so many characters. I saw on your site that you had a Pac-Man themed cake. Do you get a lot of 80’s pop-culture nostalgia orders? I
do, the Pac-Man cake was one of my favorites to make. I’ve also done
Mario Brothers, Sesame Street and a few others that I can’t quite
remember off the top of my head.
Anime and Manga are very big right now. Have you ever made a cake based on one? I
haven’t yet, but it’s only a matter of time. I have a friend who
actually draws a lot of Anime and I’m always saying how we should get
together and do cupcakes or cake designs. It would be fun to do a
Sailor Moon cupcake set, I’m not sure if that’s cool or in, but I
remember watching that when I was younger.
Your client list
is impressive! I’m sure our readers are most interested in the fact
that you have baked for Marvel. Can you tell us what you made for them? Ahh,
Marvel, I’ve never done any custom designs for them, it was all just
corporate orders, cupcakes, cookies, brownies for the office. But if I
was ever approached to do something I would love to. My friend who used
to work at Marvel suggested I do a set of Marvel/DC Logos for the
different heros and villians.
Have you ever catered for a Science Fiction convention? No, I haven’t, but I would love to, it would be a lot of fun I bet.
I love following your Twitter feed of what you are baking throughout
the day! Most bakeries don’t seem to be online. Has your internet
presence made a difference for your business?
Definitely, I like
to keep up to date with what’s going on with pop culture in terms of
technology and the net. If everyone is on Facebook, Ivy Bakery has to
be on Facebook, same with Twitter and all the other networking sites.
Twitter has gotten me a number of new customers and exposure throughout
the country. I have so many people asking about my sweets from other
states and wishing that I was closer to them that I would love to go on
a baking tour and bake for anyone who wanted me to. All I need now is a
sponsor.
He’s an accomplished comedy writer, the movie’s favorite sidekick (and then there was that Roseanne thing). Tom Arnold is known for a number of things and now he’s taking his funny back on stage and he tells us why. Plus Saul Rubinek gives us a WAREHOUSE 13 exclusive, LOBO goes PG 13 and guess what is the Number One Most Downloaded Comic! It’s a three day weekend and we put out the Pop Culture spread early.
Meanwhile be SURE to join us on Monday for our EXCLUSIVE talk with JAMES CAMERON on what we can expect from AVATAR!
Don’t forget that you can now enjoy THE POINT 24/7. Updates on all parts of pop culture, special programming by some of your favorite personalities and the biggest variety of contemporary music on the net.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN LIVEFOR FREE or go to GetThePointRadio for more including a connection for mobile phones including iPhone & Blackberrys
Disney just picked up Marvel, and already owns the assets from CrossGen.
AOL Time Warner, through Warner Bros., owns DC Comics and subsidiary imprints Wildstorm, Vertigo, and CMX; and has a distribution and publishing arrangement with Archie for some characters.
IDW is 50% owned by Starz.
Dark Horse has a first look deal with NBC/Universal.
Who’s left on the table?
On the movie studio side: Viacom/Paramount, Fox/NewsCorp, and Sony/Columbia. MGM and United Artists are a bit small to go shopping for their own comics company, although they could set up first look deals.
On the comics side: BOOM! must be looking very tempting. Dark Horse could still be bought. Image– who would you deal with? Top Cow, possibly. Dynamic Forces licenses stuff from movie studios, not the other way around. Avatar is mostly writiers who probably control their sub rights, so there’s little to be gained in an acquisition. Who after that? Slave Labor? Archaia? Aspen? Archie? Radical? Top Shelf?
My guess for a sleeper acquistion? Oni probably looks tempting to somebody.
But that’s just my take on it. What about you? What do you think the next big move is going to be?
We’ve got moreon USA Network’s PSYCH including series stars James Roady and Duke Hill on how they get into their characters. Plus SHAZAM gets another movie treatment, this time from Geoff Johns, do we really want a new version of YELLOW SUBMARINE and CBS promotes their Monday night line-up in ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY with a way you’ve never seen before!
Don’t forget that you can now enjoy THE POINT 24/7. Updates on all parts of pop culture, special programming by some of your favorite personalities and the biggest variety of contemporary music on the net.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN LIVEFOR FREE or go to GetThePointRadio for more including a connection for mobile phones including iPhone & Blackberrys
Are you looking to round out your Summer with a campy “horror” movie? Look no further than [[[I Sell the Dead]]]. This amusing film, written and directed by Glenn McQuaid, follows the recollections of a young grave robber named Arthur Blake (Dominic Monaghan) on the eve of his execution.
Set in 18th century England (some of our group thought Ireland), the general campy tone of the movie is hinted to early on when Father Duffy (Ron Perlman) is on his way to hear Blake’s confessions and passes what appears to be the skeletal remains of a chihuahua in the dungeon. In recounting how he became a grave robber, we are treated to humorous flashbacks of how Blake became a grave robber and, later, a “ghoul” – one who acquired and sells the undead. We soon discover that Blake and his grave robbing partner, Willie Grimes (Larry Fessenden) are up against a rival gang of brutal ghouls who are happy to use any means necessary to get their hands on the undead.
The film is chock-full of vibrant (and often drunk) characters. It is also well-stocked with monsters and over-abundant artificial fog somewhat reminiscent of classic campy horror films. I Sell the Dead does not fail to deliver the laughs they seem to be aiming for. The film also uses a very stylized method for changing scenes, wherein the end of a scene goes still and is then inked over to have the look of a scene from an old pulp comic. If you are looking for a modern, action-packed horror movie with a lot of shock and gore, this is not the film for you. Fans of Dominic Monaghan will enjoy getting to see him on screen again, and his comic timing is excellent as always. Those who prefer classic horror films or who want a break from the ordinary will find I Sell the Dead clever and amusing. If you are planning to see a fun and different flick with a group of friends, check this one out!
Imagi Studios apologizes for any misunderstanding or inconvenience caused by the legal letter of July 29 regarding the image posted with your story about Astro Boy. This letter, which truly resulted from a miscommunication, was sent in error, and is hereby retracted. We thank you in advance for your understanding.
We would only like to point out that the image which appeared on your site is not from the movie as it is early concept art, and therefore we would greatly appreciate it if you could replace this image with one of the new stills from the Astro Boy movie, which are attached herewith.
Imagi Studios prides itself on being collaborative with the media by providing images as well as access to filmmakers and executives, and we hope to further our relationship with you in this way as well. We would also like to express our warm appreciation of your support and that of ComicMix.com to date, and we look forward to sharing updates on Astro Boy and future projects with you and the ComicMix community.
Erin, your apology is accepted. We’ve restored the articles to the site, and while we won’t replace the image, lest we be accused of histroical revisionism, we’re happy to make an annotation to the article indicating it’s early art and share the newer images with the rest of the world– starting with the one above, which I think is one we haven’t seen before.
A new CG-animated version of the classic manga and anime, “Astro Boy,” created by the “god of manga,” Osamu Tezuka in the 1950’s, debuted clips at Comic-Con 2009. This seminal work about a heroic boy robot was a generation’s first exposure to the Japanese art form when it aired in the U.S. in the 60’s, and is set to hopefully gain a whole new audience.
Director David Bowers, producer Maryann Garger, and stars Freddie
Highmore (Astro) and Kristen Bell (Cora) were there to answer audience questions.
After months of speculation and jerking around, Warner Bros. announced the casting of Ryan Reynolds as Green Lantern in their forthcoming movie of the same name.
No stranger to the world of super-characters, Reynolds most recently played Deadpool in X-Men Origins: Wolverine. He will be reprising that character in the forthcoming solo movie. He also played Hannibal King in the third Blade movie and, at one time, was alleged to play The Flash in the movie project that disappeared in a wink.
The husband of Scarlett Johansson, Reynolds beat out Bradley Cooper,Jared Leto, andJustin Timberlake. He’ll be playing Hal Jordan, the off-again/on-again GL who dominated the continuity over the past half-century.
Green Lantern is produced by Donald De Line and Greg Berlanti and written by Berlanti, Michael Green and Marc Guggenheim. It will be directed by Martin Campbell for a 2011 release.
After a small hiatus, the geek talk series is back with a vengeance!
kicked off the summer season and much of the film review that follows originally appeared on my blog. This past week, 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment released the movie on DVD and Blu-ray, both containing a digital copy as has become standard these days. Since his introduction in 1974 through 2000, people were fascinated by Wolverine. He was a feral, edgy character at a time few other costumed crime fighters were. There was a tragic element to him since he could not recall his past. Through the years, writers teased us with bits and pieces about him, letting us know he was long-lived and had gotten around. But, just where did this Canadian come from?
, 
Let’s review the scorecard:
, 
Are you looking to round out your Summer with a campy “horror” movie? Look no further than [[[I Sell the Dead]]]. This amusing film, written and directed by Glenn McQuaid, follows the recollections of a young grave robber named Arthur Blake (Dominic Monaghan) on the eve of his execution.
With regards to 
A new CG-animated version of the classic manga and anime, “Astro Boy,” created by the “god of manga,” Osamu Tezuka in the 1950’s, debuted clips at Comic-Con 2009. This seminal work about a heroic boy robot was a generation’s first exposure to the Japanese art form when it aired in the U.S. in the 60’s, and is set to hopefully gain a whole new audience. 
