Twelve days later he’s made over a million dollars and he’s giving a quarter of that to charities and another quarter to his employees as a bonus.  Amazing.

I bought a copy for $5 and, after watching it, I can say it’s excellent and worth much more than that.

This is just the first half of the story so we get more Gollum but have to wait another year (until December 2013) for a dragon.

I saw this in 3D last night before Captain America and got super excited.  The first person shots were excellent eye candy in 3D (and a direct homage to Mirror’s Edge which I enjoyed).

I sure do love me some Spider-Man!

Valve means to fix the low billing of the song in the game with the Portal 2 Music Video Contest.

I don’t know how to fix the problem of not enough people playing amazing games that represent some of the most creative work I’ve seen in years.

In any case, the point of this post was that it’s awesome when things you love come together.

David Fincher directing and a soundtrack from Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross should intense at least…

Check out the trailer and catch it in theaters if you have a chance.

Hesher – 4 out of 5

From the few shots we get in the trailer it looks like they’re staying pretty close to the source material, which is great news.  I loved these books as a kid and read them all several times.  They’re all worth checking out if you’re still a kid at heart.

It seems the script is mostly based on The Secret of the Unicorn but apparently they’re also throwing in elements of The Crab with the Golden Claws and Red Rackham’s Treasure (which is actually a direct continuation of Unicorn’s story) to fill in the story.  Spielberg is directing the first one, while Peter Jackson is producing and on the hook for directing a sequel. Wikipedia has the details, of course.

PS: Andy Serkis as Captain Haddock is particularly inspired casting but the other cast is great too.

So that doesn’t mean much to everyone, but it means a lot to nerds like me. If you’re unfamiliar with Felicia Day go watch Dr. Horrible or The Guild and get back to me.

Here’s a couple stills of and an interview with Felicia Day on location and rocking a great costume.

Update (Feb 18th): Here’s the first trailer.

Thanks to Kottke for the LOLs.

Will First Class scratch my itch? The trailer certainly does; let’s hope the movie proves just as awesome!

Jack Wall did excelent work on the first two Mass Effect games, but Mass Effect and Mansell is like peanut butter and jelly!

For the details, check out Mansell’s recent interview with The Quietus where he also muses on composing the score for Black Swan and working with Aronofsky.

In Casino Royale, James Bond is the Bond girl. Look at the way they even show him emerging from the ocean like Ursula Andress. Sexual torture, too, if less creepy-glam than being stripped and painted gold. Vesper Lynd is Bond: never not in control, never without a plan, seducing to further her goals. She has to die so Bond can become her.

I think I need to re-watch it now!

Also worth mentioning is this quote from my friend Scott after reading the above: “Too bad there isn’t a take on Quantum of Solace that makes it not suck.”

Too true.

(Via Kottke)

The first, ‘Monsters’ (Trailer, IMDb, Netflix, Amazon), a shows the everyday human side to an alien occupation. It’s a beautiful movie that was made for a shoestring budget (it looks much better than its cost would normally indicate).

Second is ‘Never Let Me Go’ (Trailer, IMDB, Netflix, Amazon), which explores the side effects of an alternate history where human life can be extended to average lifespans well over 100 years.  It has an amazing cast and is based on the award-winning book of the same name by Kazuo Ishiguro.

Do yourself a favor and rent/buy/borrow/beg your way to see these films as soon as you can.

Ratings:
Monsters – 5 out of 5
Never Let Me Go – 5 out of 5

Sold.

Trailer/IMDb

You can download the first single, ‘Down by the Water’, in exchange for your email address on their site right now. It’s kind of country and folksy but with that unique Decemberists quality.

The story for Machine Man, which began as an online serial (read the beginnings for free on Max’s site), will be published in full some time next year.

This is like PB & jelly coming together the first time (replace jelly with chocolate if you prefer).  Sweet.

I wish the trailer showed Barry Pepper too.

…or maybe it’s just me? Have a listen yourself on Amazon or iTunes.

Also, do yourself a favor and go see them live.

Underneath the surface of the love interest story, ‘Scott Pilgrim’ is really a movie about two intertwined things. One, as Ars mentions, is the story about a boy who’s lost his filter separating reality from the reality of video games. Second, the film, and of course the comic before it, are an investigation of that twist: what if your life was a video game? What would be your challenges, goals, achievements, points, levels?

The film also weaves together a fanatic music pallet designed by Nigel Godrich. I was extremely impressed by the degree to which the filmmakers used music, which is a large part of the story since Scott is in a band (wonderfully named ‘The Sex Bomb-ombs‘), as an expository device and integral part of the film. They could have taken the easy way out and simply alluded to most of the music but instead they harnessed the opportunity to really expand on the comic in the audio space.

It’s often said that adapted works aren’t as good as the original book/comic/video game/whatever. I haven’t read the original Scott Pilgrim comic, but if more movies were adapted with this kind of creative yet reverent approach, that would be a thing of the past.

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World – 5 out of 5

4 out of 5

PS: Sam Rockwell is perhaps one of the handful of guys who could ever steal a scene from Robert Downey Jr.; he certainly does here. I was cracking up when he danced on stage. Here’s to more Justin Hammer in The Avengers and Iron Man 3.

All this criticism makes it sound like the movie is bad, but that’s not the case at all.  Like you would expect from any blockbuster from Scott, the entire film shines from the quality of the acting, cinematography, and everything else.  The many beautiful shots of rustic landscapes, towns, & castles were all quite memorable and the frenzied battle sequences were appropriately mayhem filled and epic.

What the film lacks is the outlaw element.  The whole movie feels like a prequel to the real Robin Hood outlaw movie (which you’d think you were going to see when you buy tickets for a movie called ‘Robin Hood’), and I left the theater wanting more.

3 out of 5 (which could easily be bumped up to a 4 if they release an extended cut.)

Update (5/13/10): Cinematical mentions there will be about 17 minutes added to the DVD/BD version. Hopefully this addresses some of the movie’s shortcomings.

5 out of 5

There will be those of you who need a moment to sit down and absorb just how crazy, and yet, awesome, that sounds…  This post is for you. It comes out June 2nd; mark your calendars.

To everyone else reading this and scratching their head, please watch/listen to the following items immediately: Firefly, Serenity, Werewolves & Lollipops, and My Weakness is Strong.

I love the Tobey Maguire trilogy (I even like the last one despite its flaws), so I was disappointed to see a fourth movie fall apart. However, I think Webb has some great potential to make a Spider-Man film that can resonate emotionally, rather than just another special effects film.

Here’s my list of suggestions for the Spider-Man reboot:

1. Take liberties with the story: While I initially disliked the decision to incorporate Parker’s web slinging abilities to his spider powers (in the comics he makes his own web-shooting bracelets), it was ultimately the right decision for simplicity in a film. In any case, Spider-Man has a long twisted history to pull from and it would be a shame not to tap the best parts.
2. Don’t take too many liberties: the Mary Jane & Gwen Stacy crisscrosses in the previous trilogy eroded one of the strongest elements of Spider-Man’s backstory. Have Gwen in there, have her die when the time is right (maybe not the first movie), have Peter take this hard. Maybe then, in the followup movie, you can have a little Mary Jane.
3. Service the fans: Raimi did a great job of seeding Peter’s world with people the fans knew and tantalizing them with villains like Dr. Curt Connors, but the followup to the wink was infrequently realized. (It’s too bad we’ll never get to see the Lizard.) Webb’s got a whole new start so I’d love to see some off-hand references to Eddie Brock and Norman Osborn even if they don’t show up at first, just make sure they show up eventually. Marvel is doing a great job at this with their own Avenger properties, for example: SHIELD references in Iron Man or Stark showing up The Incredible Hulk (with more to come). Steal this page from their playbook.
4. Venom: for fuck sake, get him in there. Perhaps only as Eddie Brock in the first movie, but don’t wait until the last bit of the third movie. I’d ask for a Carnage but it really couldn’t be done right with a PG-13 rating that Sony would want.

For all the attention put into the action, Holmes doesn’t loose his exceptional powers of inductive reasoning, which he uses throughout the film. To the critics and naysayers complaining that this isn’t Holmes like they’ve read in the books or seen Jeremy Brett portray, isn’t that the core of the character? Remember how Batman Begins broke down Bruce Wayne to his fundamentals and pieced him together as something different and yet familiar? That’s what Guy Ritchie and co were trying to do, and, in my opinion, they have succeeded.

Verdict: 4.0 out of 5.0

PS: Once scene which played prominently in the trailer seemed to be missing from the movie. In it, Irene Adler, wearing a corset and stockings, attempts to stab Holmes with her hair pin. He defects the blow, they struggle, and then she knees him in the testicles instead. At least, that’s how I pieced together bits from this trailer.

Why don’t we see this in the film? It looks like a fun scene, I mean, look at his face! I guess we have some BD extras to look forward to.

BTW, Giovanni Ribisi is such a douche in this film that I can’t help loving him.

Verdict: 4.5 out of 5.0

I’m personally not watching it to avoid spoiling any exciting bits it might reveal. Hopefully, I won’t have to walk out of the theater for Avatar or some other big movie this holiday.

Also, I like the trailer page design. It seems like they’re trying to duplicate the iTunes store pages. Right now the only movies that have it are the aforementioned IM2 and the new Shrek film. Hopefully it will roll out for more trailers soon.

Say what you will about Russell Crowe being a stereotypical Hollywood celebrity; he’s still a great actor. On top of that, no one does historical action/drama quite like Scott.

Sign me up.

If you’re a fan of painful comedy, like ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm‘ or the British ‘Office‘ you’ll appreciate this film, which slipped under under the radar in its theatrical release.

3.5 Stars out of 5

I’d also like to pull a nice quote from an interview with the author of the original book and producer of the movie Maurice Sendak:

Reporter: “What do you say to parents who think the Wild Things film may be too scary?”
Sendak: “I would tell them to go to hell. That’s a question I will not tolerate.”
Reporter: “Because kids can handle it?”
Sendak: “If they can’t handle it, go home. Or wet your pants. Do whatever you like. But it’s not a question that can be answered.”

4 Stars out of 5

Update (December 21st, 2009):
Since the studio is dumping this one in February after many delays they evidently don’t have much confidence in the film. I still love the cast and makeup, but the movie itself might turn out to be a bomb.