Posts Tagged ‘Star Trek’
Posted by Harris Lentz in OBITS by Harris Lentz, III on June 22nd, 2010
Robert Gary worked in films and television as a script supervisor from the 1950s onward. He worked on most of the Star Trek television series during his career, including the original series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager.
Gary was born in Illinois in 1920. He was an aspiring actor before taking a job as a script supervisor on John Ford’s 1956 western classic The Searchers. He also served as script supervisor for the films The Magic Sword (1962), What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962), The Strangler (1964), Hush… Hush… Sweet Charlotte (1964), and The Flight of the Phoenix (1965). He also worked frequently in television on such shows as Perry Mason, The Outer Limits, and Highway to Heaven.
Gary died in Los Angeles on May 3, 2010 at age 90.
Posted by Harris Lentz in OBITS by Harris Lentz, III on June 21st, 2010
Actress Phyllis Douglas began her career in films as a child, making her screen debut as the young Bonnie Blue Butler, daughter of Rhett and Scarlett, in the classic Gone with the Wind in 1939. She was featured onscreen atop a horse in a scene with Clark Gable. She returned to the screen as an adult, appearing as Yeoman Mears in the 1967 Star Trek episode The Galileo Seven. She also appeared in a small role on the 1969 episode The Way to Eden.
She was born Phyllis Callow in Hollywood on July 24, 1936, the daughter of leading second unit director Ridgeway Callow and Ziegfeld showgirl Margaret Watts.
She was featured in a small role in the 1961 film Atlantis, the Lost Continent, and was Josie Miller in a 1967 episode of Batman with Cesar Romero as the Joker.
Douglas died in Palm Springs, California on May 12, 2010 at age 73.
Posted by Jesse in Events, Latest News, Movies on April 16th, 2010
The rest of this month has some exciting genre output on display at the wonderful Egyptian and Aero Theatres, hosted by the American Cinematheque.
Currently running, the Egyptian’s Lust and Larceny: Noir City, the 12th Annual Festival of Film Noir will wrap up on April 18. Friday, April 16 beginning at 7:30pm will be a double feature of 1955’s thriller Crashout, followed by 1954’s brutal revenge melodrama Cry Vengeance. Neither of these films are currently available on DVD. Saturday will see a double feature of horror director Lew Landers’ The Power of the Whistler from 1945 and starring Richard Dix (Val Lewton’s The Ghost Ship), as well as its follow up of the same year, Voice of the Whistler, directed by horror legend William Castle! In attendence will be Robert Dix, son of star Richard Dix.
Running from April 29 through May 2, the Egyptian presents A Wrinkle in Time: The Best of Time Travel Films. This crash course in the time-tested sci-fi subgenre will feature some of the greats, with themes ranging from post-apocalyptic dystopia, to threats to our future utopia.
First up on April 29th is a Planet of the Apes double feature, beginning with the original 1968 Planet of the Apes, starring Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowell, Kim Hunter and Maurice Evans. Heston’s astronaut Taylor crashlands on a seemingly alien world, where the laws of evolution are reversed, and a bigoted society of intelligent, yet hypocritical apes rule over a mute, savage population of wild humans. The presence of Taylor, a thinking, speaking man, threatens to turn this “upside down civilization” inside out. Mixing insightful social commentary, quirky humor and truly nightmarish spectacles, this film was a landmark of its genre, spawning four sequels, both live action and animated television series, a legion of merchandising, a muddled 2001 remake directed by Tim Burton and still another franchise reboot coming from Fox in 2012, Planet of the Apes was in many respects the proto-Star Wars and one of the first science fiction films to find truly mainstream success and recognition.
Following this will be 1971’s Escape from the Planet of the Apes, the third film in the series and what many consider to be the best of the four sequels. In a clever reversal of the original film, future apes Cornelius (McDowell), wife Zira (Hunter), and scientist Milo (Sal Mineo), crash land on then-present day Earth, where they struggle to survive the threats of a society terrified by what the existence of these apes says about the future of mankind. Filled with gentle humor, mind-bending temporal implications and examples of both tragic and terrifying fate, Escape is perhaps the most family friendly in the series, but not without a great deal of punch (can anyone imagine a big studio picture these days ending like this one does?).
Friday, April 30th offers a double feature of Star Trek: First Contact and James Cameron’s blockbuster sequel Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
1996’s First Contact – the eighth film in the venerable Star Trek franchise and the second of four Next Generation outings – is a harrowing action/adventure pitting traumatized Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) against dreaded foes The Borg, whose diabolical plot involves traveling back in time to the stop the “first contact” between mankind and benevolent aliens that will lead to the formation of the Federation. Featuring wondeful supporting turns by James Cromwell (Babe, RKO 281) and Alfre Woodard (True Blood), and directed by series regular Jonathan Frakes and co-written by Ronald D. Moore (Battlestar Galactica, Virtuality), First Contact is considered by most to be the best of the films featuring the cast of the Next Generation.
1991’s Judment Day is Cameron’s first, and so far only, sequel to one of his own films, bringing Arnold Schwarzenegger’s unstopable cyborg back to defend John Connor (Edward Furlong), the foretold savior of mankind from a coming robot apocalypse. Co-starring Linda Hamilton in her immortal role as the very definition of female strength, as well as Robert Patrick in his signature role as the deadly, liquid-metal assassin T-1000, everything about Terminator 2 is bigger and bolder than its predecessor, featuring ground-breaking visual effects and deftly combining action with themes of destiny, free will and surprising heart.
Saturday May 1st will play host to a triple feature, the entire Back to the Future trilogy! This series helped define a generation of moviegoing, mixing witty humor with stunning visuals and complex storytelling. Starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd in the roles that would make them immortal, the series finds ’80’s “slacker” teen Marty McFly (Fox) thrown backward in time by way of a time machine in the shape of a Delorean built by daffy genius Dr. Emmett Brown (Lloyd). Marty finds himself stranded first in 1955, before his adventures take him to the future of 2015, a parallel dimension version of 1985, and finally back to the Old West of 1885 — all along struggling to right the injustices of the past and get back home before getting killed or, even worse, managing to erase his own existence.
Finally, Sunday May 2 will wrap up the festival with a double feature of two of the time travel genre’s greats, produced and directed by some science fiction cinema’s best and brightest: 1960’s classic The Time Machine and Beyond the Time Barrier.
Based on the seminal novel by H.G. Welles, The Time Machine follows explorer George (Rod Taylor) into the distant future of the year 802,701, where humanity has diverged into two races: the peaceful, intellectual-deficient Eloi, who live on the surface of a lush, verdent, post-civilization paradise, and the shaggy, carnivorous Morlocks, who dwell in an underground, industrial labirynth and who prey upon the helpless Eloi like cattle. Produced and directed by legendary fantasy filmmaker George Pal (Destination Moon, War of the Worlds), The Time Machine is a slick, MGM production with class, fantastic visuals and a true sense of wonder, a film that inspired generations of kids that thrilled to its warm spectacle.
Edgar G. Ulmer is a genre filmmaker known mostly for his wonderfully perverse The Black Cat (featuring the first teaming of Boris Karloff and Bela Lugosi), as well as what is considered to be the first true science fiction film of the 1950’s, The Man From Planet X, as well as for his notable film noir output. Relagated to B-budgets for almost his entire career, Ulmer none-the-less crafted atmospheric, thought-provoking genre cinema, and his career has gained serious academic attention in recent years. 1960’s Beyond the Time Barrier was produced in Texas in just 10 days (!), starring Planet X alum Robert Clarke as an Air Force Test pilot who finds himself thrust in a future filled with babes and mutants, who eventually rise up against their oppressors. With make-up by the legendary Universal monster creator Jack Pierce, and rushed out into theatres by American International to precede MGM’s big budget The Time Machine, Beyond the Time Barrier is a gem of this low-budget style Cold War sci-fi thriller, and a lot of fun.
Visit the official website of the American Cinematheque for a master calendar of events, as well as ticket information and more!
Posted by Bryan in Latest News, Movies on March 30th, 2010
Simon Pegg largely built his comedy career on lampooning genre film and television, with uproarious spoofs like Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. Amusingly enough, Pegg has now proven capable of parlaying that goodwill into roles in actual genre films, such as last year’s Star Trek, and an upcoming John Landis 19th century Gothic, Burke and Hare.
In a recent interview with Empire, the British actor provided some info about that project, as well as the status of the Star Trek sequel.
Burke and Hare features Pegg and Andy Serkis as Edinburgh corpse-peddlers William Burke and William Hare. “It’s about two guys who murder for money but you’re encouraged to like them and be on their side,” Pegg said. “It’s interesting morally because it challenges the audience’s perception of who they are. It’s light-hearted but there’s a very dark, unsettling truth at the heart of it.”
When asked about the level of gore on display in the pic, Pegg revealed that it “comes more from the medical side, when they hand over the bodies, but yeah, you see some pretty gruesome stuff.”
Pegg performing in a seemingly dramatic film is rife with potential, as he’s sure to inject his trademark sharp wit into the proceedings.
Oh, and about that aforementioned Star Trek sequel…
“I bug J.J. [Abrams] on a regular basis and he just fobs me off,” said Pegg. “But I saw Zoe Saldana recently and she reckons that it’s going to be soon. I would imagine it’ll be toward the end of the year, but I can’t guarantee it.”
So there you have it, we probably shouldn’t expect the sequel until mid-2011 at the very earliest, but luckily Pegg is keeping himself busy with other interesting and different roles until then. We’ll be watching.
Posted by Jesse in Events, Latest News, Movies on February 2nd, 2010
The nominations are in, monster fans.
The Oscar’s are, and always have been, all about prestige. Normally, genre films and filmmakers are marginalized or, even more often, ignored. But as the industry continues its decades long shift towards making science fiction, fantasy, and other genres at ever bigger and more advanced levels, what was once considered a B movie ghetto by ’serious’ filmmakers is become more and more recognized.
This is another breakthrough year for genre cinema, as far as the Academy Awards are concerned. Rare is it for such films to be nominated outside of technical categories.
This year however, there are notable exceptions in almost every category.
This year, ten slots were open for Best Picture nominees, a controversial move by the Academy, in that its been 67 years since that many films were considered for the nod. With that many slots open, some films that may have otherwise been out of the running are now up for Hollywood’s biggest prize.
It’s no surprise that James Cameron’s mega-blockbuster Avatar has a shot at Best Picture. The Academy, even with five Picture nominees, tends to tip its hat to a popular favorite at the nomination phase. The Exorcist, Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T., The Sixth Sense, and The Lord of the Rings films have all occupied this slot in the past, but very few (one in fact), have taken home the prize. With its Golden Globe win, and Cameron’s sway, it’s certainly possible that Avatar could upset the competition.
But a genuine, and very pleasant, surprise is that Neill Blomkamp’s sensational District 9 has earned a spot among that honored ten. A taut, surprising and above all moving film, District 9 is among the best science fiction of the decade, and this is a truly progressive nom.
I wonder if anyone will question nominating Up for Best Picture as well as Best Animated Feature? It’s such a great film I certainly won’t gripe.
No one should be surprised that Inglorious Basterds is up there, and yes, it absolutely deserves to be. And speaking of, Christoph Waltz owns Supporting Actor.
Cameron’s up for Directing for Avatar, of course. He’s certainly a master craftsman; every one of his films is him, all the way through, can’t fault him on that, and on a purely technical and visually artistic level, Avatar is an incredible achievement. On a visceral, storytelling level, Cameron is a very precise technician, very, very aware of how to get the audience right where he wants them. These might not be terribly original, deep, or meaningful places to put them, but he herds them there better than Lassie.
Tarantino gets a nod for Basterds, as it should be. Will he win? Can’t say, but it might be his most confident film, and that’s really saying something.
God bless the animation category, as we’re rolling in stop motion bounty. Both Fantastic Mr. Fox and Coraline told lovely stories and looked absolutely beautiful. Up’s a shoe-in for this one, and, again, it’s such a spectacular picture no one can complain. (Unless you consider the fact that it’s also nominated in the mainstream picture category a spoiler, which you shouldn’t.)
District 9 lovingly gets a nomination for Adapted Screenplay, and who can’t be all over that?
Science fiction and fantasy always cleans up in the Art Direction category. 
To wit, Avatar and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. Avatar has a big ‘ol chance of taking this prize, and it is hard to argue that – creating a whole world in a computer (or hundreds of ‘em) from the ground up is a startling achievement. It’s good to see Parnassus get a nod here, since, as always, a Gilliam film is breathtaking to look at. Parassus also gets a similarly justified Costume Design nom.
As far as Cinematography goes, Mauro Fiore’s work for Avatar is up there, but does anyone find it odd to think that a film that’s so dominated by entirely computer generated characters, locations and whole scenes is up for a cinematography award? Where’s the camera most of the time?
Meanwhile, here comes Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince out of nowhere, it did look quite lovely. Robert Richardson’s luminous work on Inglorious Basterds couldn’t earn this more.
Now we hit the technical awards, where these films tend to live – and this year they’re surely well represented.
Avatar, Star Trek and Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen all pull Sound Mixing noms. No surprise on the first two, but Transformers? Avatar and Star Trek return for Sound Editing, plus Up. Both Avatar and Up have incredible soundwork, again, both for worlds that don’t physically exist. Star Trek’s sound design was one of the best parts of a wonderful, fun flick, so kudos.
The biggie here is Visual Effects, with Avatar, District 9 and Star Trek. District 9′s Prawns, robot-suits and looming space ships were incredible, tactile and all for $40 million. Trek’s effects were the best the franchise has yet seen. But we all know where this is going, and, yes, Avatar’s effects are it’s entire reason to exist.
Star Trek’s got a Make-Up nom, and why not? Who doesn’t love pointed ears?
Avatar, Fantastic Mr. Fox and Up all ahem, score, Best Original Music nods. Michael Giacchino’s score for Up is just one more great piece of work by one of the medium’s greats.
And, finally, in the Best Film Editing category, Avatar, District 9 and Inglorious Basterds are present. Avatar is a huge one, and it’s been called either “slow” or “deliberately paced.” The action beats are rolicking enough. Every scene in Basterds is a rollercoaster of rising tension, punctuated by delirious frenzy. District 9′s complex mockumentary-to-narrative-to-capture-footage structure is not only effective, but seamless.
The 82nd Annual Academy Awards, hosted by Alec Baldwin and Steve Martin, will be broadcast Sunday March 7th on ABC.
Posted by Jesse in Arts, Events, Latest News, Movies on January 12th, 2010
Of note to genre fans, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today the seven films currently in contention to be nominated for their Make-Up category.
The films – listed in alphabetical order – are:
District 9
Il Divo
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (pictured)
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
The Road
Star Trek
The Young Victoria
From the Academy’s website:
“On Saturday, January 23, all members of the Academy’s Makeup Branch will be invited to view 10-minute excerpts from each of the seven shortlisted films. Following the screenings, members will vote to nominate three films for final Oscar consideration.”
The nominations will be announced on Tuesday, February 2, 1010.
The 82nd Annual Academy Awards telecast will follow on Sunday, March 7, 2010 on ABC.
Posted by Jesse in Comics, Latest News on January 7th, 2010
IDW January Newsletter
Happy New Year and welcome to the IDW newsletter, offering your monthly dose of news and not-to-be-missed books!
Arriving at inboxes the beginning of each month, the IDW newsletter brings highlights of the coming month, including books to look for at your local store, plus top stories from “Ryall Time” and the IDW website. Enjoy!
IDW Digital
IDW is ringing in the New Year with awesome new digital comics on more platforms! In addition to expanded offerings for the iPhone and iPod touch, you can now enjoy IDW comics on your PSP.
Take a break from gaming to read TRANSFORMERS or
Wormwood on your PSP. Plus, Wormwood is the very first digital comic to offer audio commentary, meaning you can enjoy both the art and insights (plus the cool Australian accent) of Ben Templesmith!
Click here to download comics to your PSP.
For your iPhone or iPod touch, check out our four-issue prequel to the upcoming movie, “Legion,” featuring an all out war between Heaven and Earth! Legion: Prophets introduces the “prophets,” ordinary people who have yet to understand the powers they possess and their very special role in the apocalyptic events that are about to sweep across the globe.
Click here to get Legion: Prophets on your iPhone or iPod touch.
January Firsts!
The first month of 2010 features some amazing #1 issues, starting January 13th! Check out the very first issue from EA Comics, Army of Two #1!
Then take a ride on the bizarre side with Weekly World News #1, written by lifeong Bat Boy fan and IDW Publisher/Editor in Chief, Chris Ryall.
Also on January 13th, IDW launches a new Star Trek series, Captain’s Log, starting with Captain Hikaru Sulu. Each installment of the series will feature a different captain from The Original Series.
On January 27th, the acclaimed G.I. JOE: COBRA series continues with COBRA II #1. Get ready for another action-packed series, plus characters never before seen in IDW comics! And if you haven’t done so yet, pick up the COBRA I series, which io9.com called “the latest smart, inventive reboot.”
And don’t miss the final leg of IDW’s TRANSFORMERS trifecta with Last Stand of the Wreckers #1, as this special AUTOBOT crew goes on a mission to investigate the prison planet under the rule of the DECEPTICONS.
New This Month
First issues aren’t the only thing happening in January! We’ve got some great books to offer throughout the month, like Wizard’s Tale hardcover, Bill Willingham’s Angel #29 and the conclusion of the G.I. JOE: Snakes Eyes series! Here’s a quick look at some of our January highlights, and the complete list of January releases is below.
Angel #29
Bill Willingham, Bill Williams (w) • Brian Denham, David Messina (a) • Jenny Frison, David Messina (c)
Where has the “hero of L.A.” gone? While Team Angel Investigations try to figure out how to handle the everyday demons, danger, and evil-doing on their own, Angel’s whereabouts turn out to be part of a seriously sinister conspiracy. Plus: chapter two of the Eddie Hope back-up by Williams and Messina.
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Vol. 9
Chester Gould (w & a & c)
Chester Gould’s fertile imagination continues at a breakneck pace, as he introduces The Brow, Flattop, Shaky, Breathless Mahoney, Measles, Gravel Gertie, B.O. Plenty, and the Summer Sisters! With an introduction by Max Allan Collins, and a special feature by Jeff Kersten of the Dick Tracy Museum about the famous radio program, “Dick Tracy in B-Flat,” starring Bing Crosby, Dinah Shore, Frank Sinatra, Jimmy Durante, and Bob Hope! Edited and designed by Eisner Award-winner Dean Mullaney, and containing all daily and Sunday comic strips from March 23, 1944 through September 19, 1945.
HC • PC • $39.99 • 264 Pages • 11” x 8.5” • ISBN: 978-1-60010-532-6
G.I. JOE: Snake Eyes #4
Ray Park, Kevin VanHook (w) • Lee Ferguson (a & c)
Having returned to the village where he trained with the Arashikage Clan, SNAKE EYES uncovers the true identity of the murderer who had stolen his identity! Now Snake Eyes must take the battle to holy ground as he confronts a demon from his past—and watches the world around him go up in flames!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
The Ghoul #2
Steve Niles (w) • Bernie Wrightson (a & c)
The Ghoul arrives in Los Angeles and quickly learns that there’s more to Hollywood than glitz and glamour—there are also demons invading Griffith Park and a cop named Klimpt, who is convinced an aging starlet is a blood-sucking freak of her own creation. It’s the Ghoul versus Demons in this knockdown, drag-out melee of monstrous behemoths!
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Little Adventures in Oz Book 1
Eric Shanower (w & a & c)
In the marvelous Land of Oz, magic is always around the next corner. Dorothy, the Scarecrow and their many friends can’t stop plunging into one adventure after another. Wonder and magic abound in this collection of “The Enchanted Apple of Oz” and “The Ice King of Oz” by award-winning cartoonist Eric Shanower.
TPB • FC • $9.99 • 136 Pages • 6” x 9” • ISBN: 978-1-60010-589-0
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: Fool’s Gold #2
Scott & David Tipton (w) • Fabio Mantovani (a) • Sharp Brothers, David Messina (c)
Deep Space Nine teeters on the brink of anarchy as swarms of treasure-hunters and mercenaries continue to flood the station. Major Kira and Constable Odo are on the case, and the investigation leads to a not-unexpected destination: Quark’s Bar!
*2 regular covers will be shipped in a 1-to-1 ratio.
FC • 32 pages • $3.99
Wizard’s Tale
Kurt Busiek (w) • David Wenzel (a & c)
A magical story of redemption! The Wizard’s Tale is the story of the aged Bafflerog Rumplewhisker and his young companion, Muddle, the woodcutter’s son, as they embark on a quest to retrieve the magical Book of Worse—a tome that will ensure the land of Ever-Night remains as it is, a dark and gloomy realm of evil. But old Rumplewhisker’s heart slowly warms on their journey, and a chance to restore a semblance of goodness to Ever-Night is possible—if he and his young charge can dare face the challenges ahead.
HC • FC • $24.99 • 144 Pages • ISBN: 978-1-60010-595-1
© 2010 Kurt Busiek and David Wenzel
Monthly Giveaway
Each month, one lucky newsletter subscriber will be our raffle winner and will receive free IDW releases from that month. Our January winner will receive a copy of The Veil TPB.
Congratulations to our December winner: [Name], who won a copy of each of the three new Angel comics: #28, which begins a new story arc by acclaimed writer Bill Willingham, Annual and A Hole in the World #1!
Inner Monologue
Each month the newsletter features thoughts from different members of the IDW team. Our January “inner monologue” brings thoughts from IDW’s Shipping Manager, Alonzo Simon:
I hope everybody’s holiday season went well. As the new year begins, our weekly publication schedule ramps up again. In the three and a half years that I have worked at IDW, our weekly output has at least doubled, which means we are publishing a lot of comics and trades these days. As I personally inventory all of our office copies, believe me when I say it’s a lot of books. For example, in the first week of January, ten separate titles are coming out. By the time a finished product gets into my hands to ship to a reviewer or a customer, a lot of people have helped get it there. From the creator’s writing and drawing, to the editor’s red pen, to our production staff’s lettering and design, and finally to our printer, many people contribute to the process of making these books. As a fan of comics, and books in general, it certainly opened my eyes as to the amount of work it takes to get just one book published. But it is definitely worth it to see something that everyone worked so hard to produce become final and to get it into the hands of the fans. Anyway, I think I hear a delivery truck pulling up so it’s back to the heavy lifting. Happy New Year’s everybody.
Complete List of January Releases
January 6th
Angel: A Hole in the World #2
GrimJack: The Manx Cat #6
Jennifer Love Hewitt’s Music Box #2
Jon Sable Freelance #4
Little Adventures in Oz 1
Star Trek: Spock Reflections TPB
Starstruck #5
TRANSFORMERS: Tales of the Fallen #6
January 13th
Angel #29
Army of Two #1
Complete Chester Gould’s Dick Tracy, Vol. 9
Doctor Who #7
Fallen Angel: Reborn TPB
G.I. JOE: Snake Eyes #4
The Ghoul #2
Star Trek: Captain’s Log: Sulu
TRANSFORMERS #3
TRANSFORMERS: All Hail Megatron, Vol. 4
TPB
Torpedo, Vol. 1 HC
Weekly World News #1
January 20th
Beyond the Wall #3
G.I. JOE #14
G.I. JOE: Best of Baroness TPB
G.I. JOE: Origins #11
Robot Galaxy Vol. 3
Robot Galaxy Vol. 4
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine #2
TRANSFORMERS: Best of the UK: Bumblebee #2
The Veil TPB
January 27th
Complete World War Robot HC
G.I. JOE: COBRA II #1
Star Trek: Ghosts #3
TRANSFORMERS: Last Stand of the Wreckers #1
Wizard’s Tale Vol. 1 HC
Posted by Jesse in Latest News, Movies on January 6th, 2010
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today the seven films currently in contention for the Best Visual Effects at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.
They are:
Avatar (pictured)
District 9
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Star Trek
Terminator Salvation
Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen
2012
Three of these will be announced as the nominees during a broadcast on Tuesday, February 2nd at 5:30 am (PT). The Awards broadcast will follow on Sunday, March 7.
Posted by Barrett in DVD & Blu-Ray, Latest News on November 10th, 2009
Up, the Pixar animated feature that made audiences laugh and cry at the same time, is one step closer to your home DVD collection as it hits the store shelves today.
Heading to the legendary Paradise Falls to pay homage to his deceased beloved, Carl Fredericksen (Edward Asner) and Russell (Jordan Nagai), a young Wilderness Explorer find themselves on the adventure of a lifetime. Joined by Dug the talking dog (Bob Peterson) and Kevin a rare species of bird, they battle against Charles Muntz, Carl’s one time idol, to save a world that others could only dream of.
If you haven’t seen the animated adventure of the year, or if you saw it and enjoyed it, head over to the movie’s website for more information or go out and pick up a copy of the DVD or Blu Ray!
The Ugly Truth, the Gerard Butler/Katherine Heigl R-rated romantic comedy, is also ready to come home with you today. The film was rather successful in the box office, despite the fact that it follows the generic romantic comedy plotlines. Katherine Heigl and Gerard Butler’s characters will have their differences, but in the end will ultimately wind up together. But hey, there aren’t that many movies nowadays that we have all seen before and know how they will end, so if you want to get that warm, fuzzy, romantic feeling inside then you should grab the DVD.
Another new release is that of Spread, starring Ashton Kutche with a new haircut and a deeper voice, and don’t forget that next week the “Star Trek” reboot hits DVD and Blu-ray after its great success at the box office!
Posted by Dominic in Movies on June 29th, 2009
We all knew Transformers: Revenge of the Fallenwas going to be a huge hit regardless of the quality of the film. This type of event film is the essence of summer movie madness and it didn’t disappoint, debuting with a smashing $112 million over the weekend with a five day total of $201.2 million. RVOTF had the second highest five day opening ever, right behind another spectacular sequel The Dark Knight which reached $203.8 million its first five days.
The Proposal fell 45.1% in its second week of release grossing $18.4 million, raising its two week gross to $69 million.
The Hangover continues to nurse the box office sunshine with $17.2 million. Down 35.7% the ”little” hit of the summer has raked in $183.2 million in Vegas chips in a month. (more…)
Posted by Dominic in Movies on June 22nd, 2009
I work at a hotel, and every morning I pick up a USA Today and check the Life section for any possible cool movie related news. Very rarely are toys of any kind covered-excluding Christmas of course-but this morning I was stoked to see a spread on the upcoming toys for the much anticipated J.J. Abrams-directed Star Trek film, opening May 8th.
Now I must admit I’m more of a Star Wars toy collector, and one of the main reasons for that is the scale. In recent years Star Trek figures have been produced in the 6 inch scale, were as I am more a fan of the 3 ¾ scale of action-figure when (1/6th scale excluded of course).
Looks like Playmates has found a way to tempt my wallet with their upcoming 3 ¾ scale line, featuring articulated figures as well as playsets, such as the bridge of the Enterprise and the transporter room.
There will be more collector focused lines of course, and look for many toy and collectable companies to try their hand at merchandise relating to the upcoming film.
For now head over to USA Today and check out a few pictures of these awesome toys. With the New York Toy Fair just around the corner look for more details to surface on all the upcoming products for Star Trek and many other properties.
Posted by Dominic in Movies on June 22nd, 2009
Apparently The Proposal was just what romantic comedy lovers needed. In a summer filled with big budget flops and low budget money makers the Buena Vista release starring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock opened at the top with $34.1 million.
The Hangover continues to stack the chips dropping a spot, but falling only 18.1% with a weekend total of $26.8 million. The film has grossed $152.9 million in three weeks.
Pixars Up grossed $21.3 million, and has flown into $224.1 million in four weeks of release.
Opening in a week fourth was the Jack Black/Michael Cera Old Testament comedy Year One. The Sony picture nabbed $20.2 million.
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 continues its rapid decline with $11.3 million. The $100 million budgeted film was down 51.7% and has grossed a week $43.3 million to date.
Night at the Museum 2 hit $7.3 million and finally passed it’s budget of $150 million.
Star Trek held in the seventh spot with $4.7 million. The Paramount reboot was down a mere 13.8% and has a seven week take of $239.4 million.
Land of the Lost has misplaced the audience it never found and took in $3.9 million. Insert flop here.
Speaking of flops, Eddie Murphy seems to have become the king of the genre. Imagine That took in $3.1 millionand has managed a measly $11.3 million. Please Eddie get back to some crude, adult orientated movie making, we hurt for you.
And on its way out of the top ten-and it pains me to say this-is Terminator Salvation. The movie just never found an audience. With $3 million this weekend the film has grossed $119 million in five weeks, nowhere near its $200 million budget. Insert the sound of Taps playing here.
Head over to Box Office Mojo for all the detailed box office stats, and make sure to check out Transformers Revenge of the Fallen this week. I know I will.
Robert Gary worked in films and television as a script supervisor from the 1950s onward. He worked on most of the Star Trek television series during his career, including the original series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, and Star Trek: Voyager.
