Archive for the ‘Comics’ Category
Posted by Natasia in Arts, Comics, Latest News, Movies on March 18th, 2010
From Alice to Addams.
Tim Burton, fresh from the success of his 3D adaptation of the beloved tale Alice in Wonderland, is now set to direct a 3D stop-motion film based on The Addams Family.
According to Deadline Hollywood, the animated film will be based on the original cartoon drawings by Charles Addams, and be completely unrelated to current incarnations of the iconic family.
The Addams Family was originally a single panel cartoon strip published in The New Yorker magazine between 1938 and 1988. They have since been adapted into other media, including a 60’s era TV program, two feature films in the 90’s directed by Barry Sonnefeld, and a musical currently playing on Broadway.
This new 3D project will be another jewel in Burton’s crown of stop-motion animation films. He is famous for writing and producing the cult classic The Nightmare Before Christmas, and co-directing The Corpse Bride. He also produced the last year’s computer animated film 9.
Illumination Entertainment, a family film unit owned by Universal and headed by Chris Meledandri, will produce The Addams Family. Burton will also act as an art director while the studio searches for a writer to develop the story.
Burton is also set to direct a remake of his 1984 short film Frankenweenie. The film – legend has it - lead to him fired from Walt Disney Pictures, after the studio claimed it was too scary for children. Ironically, Disney will be producing the new Frankenweenie remake, set for release November 2011.
The new 3D Addams Family flick is reportedly scheduled for release sometime in 2012. Expect Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter to be cast as lead characters in the next few months.
Posted by Bryan in Books, Comics, Home Page Top Story, Latest News on March 9th, 2010
Legendary fantasy artist Frank Frazetta and acclaimed publisher Vanguard Productions have announced a new publishing relationship.
Frazetta said, “We’ve known Vanguard publisher J. David Spurlock for many years. Vanguard publishes the very best! I’ve enjoyed their books on Hal Foster, Al Williamson, Jeffrey Jones, Neal Adams, Jim Steranko, Basil Gogos, Carmine Infantino and more. David helped on our Painting with Fire documentary and we helped him on Vanguard’s Roy G. Krenkel, Wally Wood, and J. Allen St.John books. It’s natural that we should work together. I’m looking forward to seeing the quality job they do on the new Frazetta books.”
Frank Frazetta is considered by many to be the greatest heroic-fantasy artist of all time. His work has influenced generations of artists, fans, designers, and movie directors. From his 1950s comics; to his breathtaking book covers featuring Tarzan, King Kong, and John Carter of Mars; to his 1960s monster magazines Creepy, Eerie, and Vampirella; to his major movie posters, including After the Fox, The Night They Raided Minsky’s and What’s New Pussycat?; and, of course, his revolutionary Conan paintings.
Active since October 1990, Vanguard has published pop culture books, graphic novels, mystery, science fiction, and more. Vanguard is best known as the world’s leading producer of art book biographies on illustrators and cartoonists and has garnered acclaim from The New York Times, The Village Voice, Time Out New York, The IPPY Awards, Starlog, National Public Radio, Video Watchdog, The Eisner Awards, Entertainment Weekly, Fangoria, Publishers Weekly, The Society of Illustrators, Variety, The Hugo Awards, Library Journal, The Rondo Awards, Locus Science Fiction Awards, and more.
Vanguard’s publications have been distributed through Diamond Distributors since 1993 with expanded trade distribution since 2000, through nearly every major distributor including Ingram, Baker & Taylor, and Continental Sales Inc. Vanguard’s presence at tradeshows include San Diego Comic-Con International (2010 marks Vanguard’s 17th consecutive year at Comic-Con), Book Expo America (often with their longtime associates, Watson-Guptill), New York Comic-Con, Wizard World, etc. Vanguard represents many top creators. Numerous Vanguard-related talents including Neal Adams, Carmine Infantino, Jim Steranko, and Vanguard publisher, J. David Spurlock are featured on the recent STARZ network documentary, Comic Books Unbound.
Vanguard founder J. David Spurlock said, “We are very excited about launching a line of Frazetta books under the new Vanguard Frazetta Classics brand. The line will include a series of volumes collecting Frazetta’s comics work in top quality book format. Other Vanguard Frazetta Classics will include a new edition of the 2008 hit, Frazetta – The Definitive Reference, a richly illustrated index of every Frazetta work ever published; a Frank Frazetta Sketchbook; and more—all in library-quality collections fully authorized by Frank Frazetta.”
For more Vanguard news, check out their Facebook page at: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Vanguard-Productions/127661820833
Posted by Dominic in Comics, Reviews on March 2nd, 2010
Emily Scott is haunted by the man known as Soulless Sam, a psychopathic killer who murdered her husband and lays waste to anything that crosses his path. The latest issue of Vincent Price Presents opens with a nightmare and ends in retribution, but the pages between are vague at best. Writer Nick Lyons has taken a good idea and failed to fully deliver on the details of the plot.
Though the VPP series is a collection of one-shots, I feel this particular issue would have read better as a two issue mini. The pacing seemed rushed and the characters unfulfilled, with far too many questions left unanswered. Perhaps a few more pages would have been enough to fully complete this particular story about facing one’s fears, but as it stands I was left wanting more.
What saved this issue was Juan Tomajok’s stylish artwork, enhanced with awesome colors by Kamui Oscuro. Beginning with the spectacular cover of a mysterious gunslinger vaguely resembling Vincent Price, the reader is drawn in, panel by panel, by Mr. Tomajok’s portrayal of the old west. Here we have a visual story more on par with westerns from the 1940’s and 50’s (albeit with a tad more bloodshed), creating a surreal western fantasy setting.
Overall, Bluewater Productions VPP #17 was a visual success for me. Remove the story and I would still keep a place for this book in my collection. Sure, I would have preferred a stronger narrative, but in all honesty I’m a sucker for westerns so I was able to overlook the missteps of this issue and enjoy it for what it is.
On a side note, look for an Easter Egg in the name of the Emily’s son Peter’s school; if you’re a fan of the western genre, you just might get the reference.
Vincent Price Presents #17 hits stores in late March.
Posted by Ashleigh in Books, Comics on February 24th, 2010
If you’ve been counting down the days until the release of the first issue of Stephen King and Scott Snyder’s American Vampire — well, you’ll still have to wait until March 17. But hey! Look! DC/Vertigo has released images of Vampire’s variant cover as designed by the legendary Jim Lee.
Horror fiction powerhouse King was pleased with the design, saying, “That’s one of the best comic mag covers I’ve seen since the days of my misspent youth, when I haunted the newsstands in Brunswick, Maine each month for the new Creepy or Eerie. Kudos to Mr. Lee.”
Some background on the upcoming release: The new ongoing series, AMERICAN VAMPIRE, will introduce readers to a new breed of vampire – a more muscular and vicious species of vampire with distinctly American characteristics. The series’ first story arc, to be told over the course of five issues, will feature two different stories, one written by Snyder, the other by King.
Snyder’s story will be set during the Roaring Twenties and follows wannabe starlet Pearl as she searches for her first big break in Hollywood. Her quest for fame soon turns into a nightmare after she encounters something far more frightening than a motion picture contract.
King will tell the story of Skinner Sweet: murderer, bank robber, cowboy and the first-ever American vampire. I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that he doesn’t sparkle in the sun.
Future installments of the series will follow Sweet’s descendants through the decades as they blaze a bloodstained trail through American history.
Check out the variant cover below.
Posted by Bryan in Comics, Latest News, Movies on February 23rd, 2010
According to the latest issue of Rue Morgue, Vampire Hunter D creator Hideyuki Kikuchi plans to resurrect the popular story as both an anime series and a live-action feature. Kikuchi began the story in 1983, and to date 21 novels have been published.
The story itself follows D, a knight-errant of sorts who traverses the post-apocalyptic Earth, warding off vampires and his own possessed hand with the help of a sword and a faithful horse.
The series has previously been adapted into an anime movie released in 1985, and a second anime motion picture in 2000. The rights for a live-action movie were at one point optioned by Spawn producer Mark Dippe, but the film itself was never produced.
Kikuchi is teaming up with the producers of the Resident Evil video games to produce the live-action film. We assume that the film will be produced in Japan, as the mishmash of genre stylings found in the story — western, horror, science fiction, fantasy — don’t particularly lend themselves to a neat Hollywood rendition. American audiences have been getting a taste for the story though; since 2005 the novels have started being translated into English, and to date the first 13 are available in the US, with the 14th set for release in early March.
Posted by Bryan in Books, Comics, Latest News, Movies on February 23rd, 2010
It’s been rumored for a while, and has now been confirmed that the popular ’30s pulp series, Doc Savage, is headed back to the big screen with Columbia Pictures, according to Variety. Shane Black (Lethal Weapon series, Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang) has signed on to direct the film from a script by Chuck Mondry & Anthony Bagarozzi.
Doc was one of the most popular heroes in the pulp serials of the ’30s and ’40s, and his story has been adapted several times to various media. Known for his MacGyver-like proficiency at all trades, Clark “Doc” Savage, Jr. trotted around the globe investigating scientific mysteries and helping people in distress with the aid of multiple sidekicks. First created in March 1933 by Street and Smith Publications publisher Henry W. Ralston and editor John L. Nanovic, Savage was fully fleshed out by head writer Lester Dent, writing under the pen name of Kenneth Robeson.
The popularity of the magazine serial led to the birth of a comic book series from Street & Smith and two short-lived radio series. Although the original pulp series ceased publishing in 1949, it was reprinted in paperback editions beginning in the 1960s and running all the way into the 1990s.
The hero’s popularity also spawned a 1975 film from producer George Pal, starring Ron Ely, which disappointed many fans with its light and campy tone. Doc has also appeared in several new adventures produced by DC Comics, Marvel Comics, Dark Horse, and Millennium in the last forty years, and is currently part of DC’s First Wave, a series built around a so-called “pulp universe,” featuring appearances by the Spirit, the Avenger, the Blackhawks and yet another iteration of Batman in addition to Doc.
Black seems like a good choice to capture the spirit of adventure in the comics without resorting to camp. His 2005 directorial debut, Kiss, Kiss, Bang, Bang adeptly balanced humor and action, which is precisely what Doc calls for. It doesn’t hurt that Black is known for his vast collection of antique detective books and pulp fiction.
The project is produced by Neal Moritz, who also has his name behind the upcoming Green Hornet update. Columbia co-president Matt Tolmach has faith in Moritz to bring both series to fruition.
“Doc Savage is an icon, a character with limitless possibilities,” said Tolmach of the character. “We have had a great experience working with Neal to bring another classic character of the era, the Green Hornet, to a new generation of fans, and we think he and Shane make the ideal team to bring Doc Savage back to the bigscreen.”
He’ll be nearly eighty years old by the time the film makes it into theaters, but we have a feeling this Doc Savage will feel as fresh as ever.
Read the original story over at Variety.
Posted by Bryan in Comics, Latest News, Movies on February 19th, 2010
In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, director Steven Spielberg talks about bringing The Adventures of Tintin: Secret of the Unicorn to the big screen through the same motion-capture process as James Cameron’s Avatar.
The adaptation of the popular Hergé graphic novel series stars Jamie Bell, Daniel Craig, Andy Serkis, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Gad Elmaleh, Toby Jones, and Mackenzie Crook.
Spielberg’s describes his motivation for following in Cameron’s as not being purely financial.
“It was based on my respect for the art of Hergé and wanting to get as close to that art as I could,” he said.
The international blockbuster graphic novel series follows the young but resourceful reporter Tintin and his loyal dog Snowy as they become embroiled in nefarious pre-WWII crime plots.
“Hergé wrote about fictional people in a real world, not in a fantasy universe,” Spielberg said. “It was the real universe he was working with, and he used National Geographic to research his adventure stories. It just seemed that live action would be too stylized for an audience to relate to. You’d have to have costumes that are a little outrageous when you see actors wearing them. The costumes seem to fit better when the medium chosen is a digital one.”
He goes on to talk about the digital process for shooting the picture, incorporating the physical stage (called the volume) that allowed Spielberg to watch the actors on a screen within the universe in real time while they acted.
“When Captain Haddock runs across the volume, the cameras capture all the information of his physical and emotional moves,” the director said. “So as Andy Serkis runs across the stage, there’s Captain Haddock on the monitor, in full anime, running along the streets of Belgium. Not only are the actors represented in real time, they enter into a three-dimensional world.”
The sudden embrace of these digital landscapes is a bit surprising coming from Spielberg, a staunch film stock advocate even in the digital age. As recently as two years ago he decided to shoot and project the latest Indiana Jones flick on film only. In a Q&A with Entertainment Weekly, he talked some about his methodology.
“It was all 35-millimeter, chemically processed film…I like cutting the images on film,” he said. “I’m the only person left cutting on film.”
But even then, Spielberg seemed cognizant of the pressing reality.
“Eventually I’ll have to shoot [and edit] movies digitally, when there is no more film — and I’m willing to accept that,” he said.
The sudden shift may be surprising, but if you’re going to go digital, going this big is probably the only way Spielberg could do it. Provided the film is a success (and with the purported budget and quality of the source material it better be), it will be the first in a trilogy he is co-producing with Peter Jackson. Jackson would then direct the sequel, which would likely be based on the events of the Tintin novel, Red Rackham’s Treasure.
The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn is set to hit theaters December 23, 2011.
Read the entire interview over at the Los Angeles Times.
Posted by Bryan in Comics, Latest News, Movies on February 13th, 2010
Hot off their middling post-apocalyptic drama The Book of Eli, filmmaking duo the Hughes Brothers are looking to jump back into the future with an adaptation of the popular Japanese manga, Akira, reports New York Magazine.
The report says Warner Brothers is in the negotiation stage with Albert and Allen Hughes to helm a live-action two-part film, from a script by Iron Man and Children of Men scribes Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby. And if that’s not an impressive enough pedigree, Leonardo DiCaprio is already attached…but not to star. His company, Appian Way, is producing.
Purists may cry foul at this new interpretation, which allegedly elects to relocate the action from Neo-Tokyo to a Neo-Manhattan. But there’s something to be said for a new take on the project; the Manga wasn’t fully completed at the time of the original anime film’s release in 1988, so the new two-part film would expand on the story found in the first.
There’s a lot to be optimistic about. Two films with a reportedly over $300 million budget, probably presented in 3-D, could offer this story the perfect venue to awe huge audiences, just as the print version has its devoted following.
Posted by Dominic in Comics, Latest News, Reviews on February 9th, 2010
A phantom admirer sits in a field with the object of his desires, his affections. He listens to her stories. He feels her anguish and pain, the torment of an artistic soul beaten by an abusive relationship. There is nothing Ethan’s love for Theresa can do to save her from Oscar, Theresa’s no good, abusive, slob of a boyfriend. Like Ethan, you want to yell out to her to get away from this pathetic excuse for a man. Like Ethan’s wordless pleas, she cannot hear you.
Thus is the driving story behind issue 15 of Bluewater Comics’ Vincent Price Presents, written by Paul J. Salamoff, with art by Manoel Moreira and color by Osmarco Vallado. I don’t like to give away too much of a plot when reviewing a comic, and I can’t say I’m very familiar with Vincent Price Presents as a series; however, I enjoyed this issue. Though the plot was fairly basic and universal, the overall message was powerful and blunt in a fashion I very much appreciated.
Life and death are often times exaggerated and heartbreaking and don’t necessarily end happily, but in the end one must always resign themselves to hope. There was one line that particularly jumped out at me while reading. When Ethan is describing Oscar he refers to him as “the anchor of her sorrow.” For me that line summed up the story; this is not a happy story, but it is one of redemption and learning. The ending reveals that though we may love someone, we don’t always know what would be best for that person’s happiness.
As for Mr. Moreira’s artwork on this issue, I was impressed with its subtle detail. This is a world very much like the one we live in. The characters aren’t exaggerated in any way. That detail lends itself heavily to the overall story and completes, what I feel to be, the author’s intention. Mr. Vallado’s colors do nothing but enhance the subtlety of the art, at the same time enhancing the paranormal aspects to the comic. Look for Vincent Price’s cameo — it was perfectly placed.
My only complaint is the cover by Alex Meyer. I enjoyed the layout, but the portrait of Vincent is way off. It looks more like Vincent’s stunt double sitting out on the ledge of a building, rather than the master of horror himself. Even as a comic rendition the cover is not good. If not for Vincent Price Presents as the title I would not be drawn to the comic on the cover alone.
Bad cover or not, the story and artwork inside are what count. Whether you are an avid collector of Vincent Price Presents or merely a curious reader, pick up issue number 15, you won’t be disappointed.
Vincent Price Presents #15 hits stores Wednesday, February 10.
Posted by Dominic in Comics, Latest News, Reviews on February 2nd, 2010
I have a love-hate relationship with novels. Though I love reading, often times I feel novels can be long winded and monotonous in some parts. At the same time, movies adapted from novels oftentimes omit a lot and or tweak the story so much that you walk out of the theatre wondering how the heck the film-makers came up with such rubbish when the source material was so good. As for comic-book adaptations they offer a whole different problem all together. Usually limited to a four, five or six issue run, how does one cram a novels worth of story into the limited space provided by a comic book? That was the question I had when reading the first issue of Bluewater Comic’s adaptation of the sci-fi classic Logan’s Run by William F. Nolan and George Clayton Johnson.
First off let me say that writer Paul J. Salamoff has done a wonderful job incorporating the world of Logan’s Run into comic book form, and though this isn’t the first time the novel has been drafted into a comic, fans will greet this new vision as the best representation of the novel and its two sequels. Penciler Daniel Gete and colorist Joseph Baker do a fantastic job of bringing the visual world of Logan to life.
The story opens with Logan 6 and his partner chasing down a Runner. For those of you unfamiliar with the plot of Logan’s Run, Logan is a Deep Sleep Operative or “Sandman.” Sandmen are charged with enforcing the rule that no human shall live past the age of 21. Runner’s are those people who when nearing their 21st birthday, or Last Day, choose to flee for the safe ground known as Sanctuary rather than face the “Deep Sleep”. After Logan acquires and terminates his quarry, the story delves into Logan’s past, beginning with his birth and designation as a Sandman and the training that follows. Seeming to be a perfect killing agent for the Almighty Thinker, we come to find out that Logan may soon be “running” himself.
The only complaint I did have with the book, and it’s not even a true complaint, is that there are four variant covers. Don’t get me wrong, the covers by Mr. Gete, Matt Bellisle, Erich Owen and Michael Shelfer are awesome. It’s just that tracking down every alternate cover of a comic can be tedious at times and expensive. However, if you’re okay with owning just one cover, it is cool to be able to choose from four different versions.
Overall, I really enjoyed the first issue of Logan’s Run: Last Day. The action is well paced and the story develops just enough to leave me wanting more. As I’ve said before I was very impressed with the artwork, an area that sometimes concerned me with some of Bluewaters earlier comics. I am curious to see how Mr. Salamoff, along with Jason Brock and William Nolan, are able to update the story to fit into comic-book form. Let the chase for Logan’s redemption begin.
To find out more about Logan’s Run: Last Day check out an interview I conducted with Paul a few months back.
Issue One of Logan’s Run: Last Day hits stores tomorrow, February 3rd.
Posted by Jesse in Comics, Latest News, Movies on February 2nd, 2010
From The Hollywood Reporter’s Heat Vision blog, it’s being reported that Lakeshore, the production company behind the Underworld films, has picked up the rights to the horror comic I, Frankenstein, from Death Ray Films.
Created by Kevin Grevioux (who also created Underworld), I, Frankenstein finds Frankenstein’s immortal creation fighting the forces of darkness in the gritty modern day city of Dark Haven, shared with other monsters of classic literature, like the Invisible Man and of course, Dracula.
Patrick Tatopoulos, famed designer and director of the third Underworld film, Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, is set to helm the film.
Shooting is scheduled to start in July.
Posted by Debra in Books, Comics, Latest News, Reviews on February 1st, 2010
Robert Kirkman has created another, if somewhat unrecognized, masterpiece. With the popularity of zombies rising (but did it really ever go away?) of course his Walking Dead series has gained much critical acclaim and popularity. There is even a mini series in the works. However, while much deserved, Walking Dead’s success has overshadowed Kirkman’s Invincible, which solidified his prowess with me.
Invincible is set in a world were superheroes are relatively common-place. It follows Mark Grayson, the half-human son of extra-terrestrial Omni-man and Debbie Grayson. He (Mark) lives kind of an average life in the suburbs: His father plays the part of loving attentive father and husband in addition to being the world’s most called upon and powerful superhero, he is just about to graduate high school and go off to college, he’s working at a burger joint—which he hates—and he has a crush on someone who is totally out of his league—which his snarky best friend never fails to point out. He is also, how-shall-we-say, a late bloomer as far as powers go. Of course, he does eventually come into his powers and dons the nom de guerre Invincible and discovers a plot that calls for earth and humanity’s exploitation and enslavement. A plot that may involve his own father. Torn between his ties to earth and his ties to his father, Mark has to make a decision that will change the fate of the earth itself.
A lot of Invincible is told in an almost tongue-in-cheek way. Some of the most amusing parts are when the set up is clearly (but lovingly) ripping on mainstream and generic superhero characters and story structure, especially of the Golden and Silver Ages of comics. This is especially true in the art by Cory Walker and Ryan Ottley. They use bright colors and simple lines which makes it hard to notice, at first, the dark undertones and violence. And, boy, does it get violent. In the words of one fan: “I mean, my God.”
Nevertheless, Invincible is a must read for anyone who considers themselves any sort of a comic nerd and volume 12 is set for release March 1st.
