Sci-Fi Storm

I finally got the time today to check out John Carter, and see if it was deserving of the critics who lambasted it – or the so-called “fanboys” who praised it. My verdict: good movie, not superb, but it had the potential to be a great epic. I do have to say that I’m not sure where it actually missed. It was just something of an overall feeling.
(continue reading…)

Despite Warner Bros putting Arthur and Lancelot on the extreme fast track last summer with Kit Harington (Game of Thrones) set to play King Arthur with Joel Kinnaman (The Killing) as his champion Lancelot, it came to a screeching halt two months ago when WB felt the budget was too high.

Now it appears that WB may be talking to hot star Colin Farrell to provide some star power to the David Dobkin-directed film, although for which role is uncertain (I’m heading it could be Lancelot though). The lack of an A-list star is possibly another reason WB got cold feet on the budget – and is also cited as a reason that Disney’s even-bigger-budgeted John Carter wasn’t getting much heat either.

If you remember, Disney made a big announcement in September that it was going to build an Avatar-themed land at the Animal Kingdom park in Walt Disney World in Florida. But since then there has been little said, and no visible work has been done.

If you follow Disney fan boards, there has been a large uptick in speculation that Disney put the plan on hold or even outright canceled it, and given how long it might be before we see the next movie, the costs, etc. it seemed that could have been the case.

Well, at today’s shareholder meeting for the corporation, Disney President/CEO Bob Iger and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts chairman Tom Staggs talked about some upcoming things, and Avatar was specifically mentioned. They are still working on the plans, and the “land” themed for Pandora will likely not open until 2015, which could put it around the time of the sequels.

During a Q&A period, Iger was asked about how John Carter would affect the financials of the corporation, but Iger said it was too early to tell.

Here is the latest trailer for Universal’s Battleship!

Peter Berg (Hancock) produces and directs Battleship, an epic-scaled action-adventure that unfolds across the seas, in the skies and over land as our planet fights for survival against a superior force. Inspired by Hasbro’s classic naval combat game, Battleship stars Taylor Kitsch as Lt. Alex Hopper, a Naval officer assigned to the USS John Paul Jones; Brooklyn Decker as Sam Shane, a physical therapist and Hopper’s fiancée; Alexander Skarsgård as Hopper’s older brother, Stone, Commanding Officer of the USS Sampson; Rihanna as Petty Officer Raikes, Hopper’s crewmate and a weapons specialist on the USS John Paul Jones; and international superstar Liam Neeson as Hopper and Stone’s superior (and Sam’s father), Admiral Shane.

The key word is “survive” – after the weekend where all eyes were on Disney and the predicted major flop of John Carter, the $250 million budget movie opened to a $30.6 million domestic weekend (and word was is that Disney brass hoped to see that 3), but perhaps amazingly it took in $70.6 million in overseas markets. But still, the performance is still poor, and some analysts believe it needs needs about $600 million globally to break even.

Reviews are fairly polarized – it’s still 50% on Rotten Tomatoes, but with 72% of the audience liking it. And among the fan community, I’m hearing from various places that some believe some negative reviewers may not have even watched the movie.

I’m going to try and check the movie out myself later this week, with a hopefully open mind.

Despite the fact that some members of the media seem to want to see John Carter crash and burn terribly, and the early returns aren’t great (it is looking at a ~$10 million Friday and $30+ million weekend, for a solid #2 behind The Lorax), I’ve been hearing a lot of good comments. Here is a review from Inside the Magic on why it’s worth seeing. And it appears that the movie struck big in Russia, where it took in $6.5 million – and is the country’s biggest ever opening day. Rating are mixed on Rotten Tomatoes where it is currently 51%.

Did Disney’s lack of understanding how to market the film doom it, or has the last-minute effort had some effect to save it?

I’m not sure when I’ll get the chance to see it, but I’ll let you know when I do.

Illustrator Ralph McQuarrie, best known for the artist who rendered images of Darth Vader (including giving him his iconic helmet) and other scenes in pre-production for the original Star Wars films, passed away Saturday at the age of 82.

He also provided the artwork for other major films like Raiders of the Lost Ark, E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, and Cocoon.

The official Star Wars Facebook page put up a gallery of some of his images.

After 10 years, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones return as agents J and K in their black suits and sunglasses for Men in Black 3, and below we’ve got the full trailer released today. In addition, Yahoo! Movies has a Q&A with Will Smith where he answers fan questions.

Peter Jackson is still at work, and he’s still letting us tag along for the ride! The locations are beautiful, and you can also see several of the actors in makeup. And I find humor that they film near a city named Dunedin (the Dúnedain were the descendants of the Men of Numenor, including Aragorn…)

100 more days of shooting!

The man with the hat is back! Paramount announced today that [asin=B000NQRE9Q]The Complete Indiana Jones Blu-ray Collection[/asin] will be release sometime this Fall.

The world’s favorite globe-trotting archaeologist is, at long last, embarking on his greatest adventure – when The Complete Indiana Jones Blu-ray Collection comes to Blu-ray Disc from Lucasfilm Ltd. and Paramount Home Media Distribution. The Complete Indiana Jones Blu-ray Collection will be excavated in the fall of 2012 and will include all four of Indy’s thrilling adventures, using the highest possible high definition picture and audio presentation – along with a “best of” collection of documentaries, interviews, featurettes and a few new surprises.