Who Dresses the Watchmen?

A quick peek at the costumes of 2009's upcoming Watchmen film.

Speed Thrills

Speed Racer ~ Forget the Matrix films, and even forget Bound, this –at least so far- is the crowning achievement of the Wachowski brothers.

Folks have said that it’s too bright, too busy and too fast to watch and that it causes headaches, but my advice is to get used to it. But if memory serves, those are the same complaints made to Toni Basil about her "Mickey" music video waaay back in 1982, and so she toned it down. Now, not only are fast cuts commonplace but that particular video is considered extremely tame. Media will change, and the audiences will get acclimated. With Speed Racer, the Wachowskis have come very close to creating a completely new style of film. Twenty years from now, they will be praised as visionaries. I would bet on it. This is an experience rather than a film.

Speed Racer is busy, and I’m sure multiple viewings will be required to catch every nuance. For this reason I predict its box office as well as DVD rentals and sales will be huge. There are superior performances from Matthew Fox, Susan Sarandon, Christina Ricci and Rain, and especially all the cars, real CGI or green screen. If I were pressed to find something wrong with the flick I would say at times the Wachowskis make the same mistake NBC made with "Knight Rider." When in doubt, always remember, the car is the star.

Speed Racer is an incredible film. As a kid who grew up watching the original "Speed Racer" cartoon, and then, like all my friends, replaying out what I’d seen with my Hot Wheels and Matchboxes, this is a dream come true. See it, see it twice, and as they say in lacrosse – you’ll pay for the whole seat, but you’ll only need the edge.

The All Things Fun! Podcast - Episode Eight: Road Trip

The All Things Fun! Podcast is back. Here's Episode Eight, "Road Trip," part one of the NY Comic Con highlights...

Host Ed Evans and the gang head out to the 2008 New York Comic-Con for this special "live" episode.

Glenn Walker interviews legendary Batman artist Neil Adams and Wonder Woman scribe Gail Simone.

Allison Eckel talks to Mattel about their new "Super Friends" line of toys.

We also hear from Upper Deck about their new World of Warcraft Miniatures Game and we get the scoop on the forthcoming games from Fantasy Flight.

We also meet Peter Fernandez AKA Speed Racer!

And we wrap up this extra long episode with Wes Hitchins reviewing the forthcoming game, Mutant Chronicles.

Check it out here:

http://www.allthingsfun.libsyn.com/

Eurovision 2008

Eurovision Song Contest - Belgrade 2008 Preview Player

The Miracle of Iron Man

The simple truth of the matter is that no matter how huge the hype and anticipation for any comic book movie is, it will invariably tank and/or suck. Yeah, some comic fans will love it but for the most part, they will tear it apart piece by piece. That's just the way it goes. There's something about the comic book enthusiast that is kissing kin with the obsessive/compulsive. Continuity and source material are prime objectives when bringing a superhero to the big screen.

And then comes Iron Man...



If anyone had told me, and they did, people whose opinions I trust, that Iron Man was the one of, if not the, best superhero movies ever made - I just would have flat out laughed. These things always go awry. Those idiots in Hollywood will mess something up - the history, the character, the costume, something - it always happens. But it doesn't happen here.

The story is near perfect and Robert Downey Jr.'s performance as Tony Stark is dead on, as well as being possibly one of the best of his career. The special effects are beautiful, and the movie is not only accessible to the mainstream audience but contains enough Easter eggs to keep the fanboys giggling with glee for months.

See it, see it now, and see it on the big screen. This is one of those movies that must be seen on the big screen. And a heads up for all the comic book fans out there - wait through the four and half minutes of credits for the last scene or you'll kick yourselves. Hard.

Free Comic Book Day 2008

Free Comic Book Day this year is on May 3rd, this coming Saturday, so don't forget to swing by your local comics shop for your free goodies. For more details, click here. To find your local comic book shop, click here. And if you're in the South Jersey/Philadelphia area, the place to be is All Things Fun!.

Grand Theft Auto IV

It's that time again.

Yesterday RockStar Games' "Grand Theft Auto IV" was released, and is estimated to make almost six million dollars by the end of this week - far more than any theatrical film in history. Above is IGN's top-rated review of the game as well as several minutes of scenes.

But as I said, it's that time again. It's time for the typical media sandblast by 'journalists' who will do no research, be purposefully judgmental, and show how truly unprofessional they are. It's also time for dozens of parents groups to protest and whine and bitch even though they haven't played a videogame since "Space Invaders" and will never ever even take a look at the "GTA IV" game.

These same people can't seem to understand that the game is not for kids, was not designed for kids and was never intended for kids. The game is rated, per the law, M for Mature - that means 'not for kids' for all the brain-dead folks out there.

Just because you don't like it, or can't understand it, doesn't mean other folks can't have fun and enjoy it. Go back to your Atari 2600 and play "Pong," hopefully it won't offend too much.

Get a clue, people.

Ollie Johnston 1912-2008

The last of Disney's "Nine Old Men," Ollie Johnston has passed away.

He and his longtime partner Frank Thomas were responsible for some of the most memorable scenes in the classic animated Disney films over the years.

Truly we have seen the end of an era in animation greatness. He will be missed but his work will live forever...

New Avengers #39 Reviewed

"Echoes" - my comic book review of New Avengers #39, by Brian Michael Bendis and David Mack, is now online at Avengers Forever.

Echo vs. Echo, David Mack art and cover, Daredevil, Wolverine and the Secret Invasion begins! - all this and more - check out my review here:

http://www.avengersforever.org/reviews/default.asp?RID=596

Enjoy!

If you want to discuss this review, this issue or anything Avengers, please check out the Avengers Forever Forum.

And if you'd like to make a donation to help keep the Avengers Forever website as mighty as ever, click here.

Thanks!

South Park Cliff's Notes

The new season of "South Park," or what passes for a new season - whenever creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone cobble up enough new material for about six episodes, needs Cliff's Notes in my opinion, or at least footnotes of some kind.



I've found that this new season has been very heavy on obscure pop culture references, so obscure that when I talk with friends about them they don't know what I'm talking about. It's pretty sad when my usually intelligent friends come off like Beavis and Butthead, "Heh heh, he said butt."

Parker and Stone have been going pretty deep this season with episodes that reference - and sometimes only in subtext - Anne Frank, Chris Crocker, Tay Zonday, Samwell, Heavy Metal, drug abuse, urban legends, paparazzi, genetics and the WGA strike. It's too bad this new 'season' is over. I just hope the next is just as good, and deep.

Mighty Avengers #11 Reviewed

"Big Win" - my comic book review of the Mighty Avengers #11, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, is now online at Avengers Forever.

Time travel, double crosses, hidden powers, insane heroes, subtle Skrulliness and dumb Doom dialogue – all this and more - check out my review here:

http://www.avengersforever.org/reviews/default.asp?RID=593

Enjoy!

If you want to discuss this review, this issue or anything Avengers, please check out the Avengers Forever Forum.

And if you'd like to make a donation to help keep the Avengers Forever website as mighty as ever, click here.

Thanks!

Silent Fury

Throughout April Philadelphia is host to the, duh, Philadelphia Film Festival. As always the event is spotlighted (and continues to be throughout the month, check them out) by many terrific new films and features. One of the best this year, in my opinion at least, was the presentation of the 1920 silent version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde at the Prince Music Theater. Now if seeing this classic on the big screen wasn't enough, it was scored live by local band, Golden Ball. This was a unique experience as this is how it was done back in the day -with an organ or piano granted, but still - this was still way cool. It took a few minutes to get used to Golden Ball as unfortunately the band was too loud for the room, but once we were settled in, and used to the groove, everything was cool. And John Barrymore's performance was as terrific now as it was nearly ninety years ago. A terrific evening all around.

Mighty Avengers #10 Reviewed at Avengers Forever

"Retro Sentry" - my comic book review of the Mighty Avengers #10, by Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Bagley, is now online at Avengers Forever.

Iron Man, Doctor Doom and the Sentry are blown back to the 1980s in a time travel accident, can they work together enough to get back home or will they just destroy one another? – but as usual, it’s never as good as it sounds - check out my review here:

http://www.avengersforever.org/reviews/default.asp?RID=595

Enjoy!

If you want to discuss this review, this issue or anything Avengers, please check out the Avengers Forever Forum.

And if you'd like to make a donation to help keep the Avengers Forever website as mighty as ever, click here.

Thanks!

OMG, When Can I Get in Line?

Charlton Heston 1924-2008

Whether you know him from his many brilliant roles in classic Hollywood or his many Biblical epics or his resurgence in 1970s scifi and disaster flicks or his fierce political leanings both liberal and conservative, Charlton Heston is a man who can never be forgotten.

If you’ve ever heard powerful narration, it’s probably him or someone who wishes they were him. Even if you’ve never seen his films, Heston leaves his mark on early television playing such parts as the leads in “Macbeth” and “Wuthering Heights,” and even in contemporary TV on “Saturday Night Live” and “Dynasty.” He always made his mark no matter where he performed.

From the classic Ben-Hur to the original (and the best) Planet of the Apes to The Greatest Show on Earth to El Cid to his own personal favorite Will Penny to the much-parodied Soylent Green to perhaps both his greatest role and the best Biblical epic ever filmed, The Ten Commandments, Heston was a man among men and an actor among actors. He will be missed.

Fallen and Others

Fallen ~ I’ve never gotten around to seeing this until recently and was surprised at how good it was. Denzel Washington is not just one of our finest actors, but he also has tremendous skill in choosing roles. Even when he stars in action flicks, or like here, borderline horror, he maintains his integrity by playing thinking protagonists as opposed to those who shoot or punch first and thinks later. Fallen also features some great locations in and around Philadelphia, excellent sidekick work from John Goodman and a very chilling performance from Elias Koteas. It’s also interesting to see “Sopranos” brother and sister James Gandolfini and Aida Turturro together pre-“Sopranos.” Definitely recommended.

3:10 to Yuma (2007) ~ I really wanted to like this, especially because folks whose opinions I respect loved this version, but it just couldn’t overcome the original Glenn Ford/Van Heflin flick. In my opinion, while the performances are first class, the story was only made unnecessarily violent and complicated. Just not as good as it could been – this one was a missed opportunity.

Domino ~ Director Tony Scott brings us this sharp and clever bounty hunter flick starring Keira Knightley very against type. Think Quentin Tarantino meets Shoot ‘Em Up meets reality TV. Great fun.

Vanilla Sky ~ This remake of the Spanish Open Your Eyes was a surprise, not just because I never expect much from Tom Cruise flicks, but because folks told me that this was the Cameron Crowe film that Cameron Crowe fans hate. Honestly, as a CC fan, I don’t see his touch, but considering he didn’t write this one I didn’t need to. I liked the twists and turns in the story, although I figured it out early. If I hadn’t this would have been a lot better. Acting-wise, no one is bad but no one stands out either – Cameron Diaz is suitably creepy though.