The Dark Knight Rises villain... Bane!

Click on the image to enlarge

Did you ever doubt Christopher Nolan for a minute?  Did you doubt that he would find a creative and original way to bring Bane to life?  Don't, don't ever doubt this man.  The image above is an official release from Warner Brothers of the new villain The Dark Knight Rises; which is of course the sequel to 2008's The Dark Knight. 

There was so much talk about how Nolan would make the character fit into the realistic world he's created for this Batman trilogy.  The picture shows Inception actor, Tom Hardy, ripped as can be.  I love the mask, it's dark, creepy and mysterious.  Nolan has been masterful at giving just enough to wet the appetite without giving anything away.  The way Bane is turned and looking back to the camera out of the corner of his eye is a little unsettling.

This is the first official glimpse into the third and final film, can you image what's still to come?  This is going to be an film of epic proportions, watch.

A more recent version of Bane

The Dark Knight Rises next year, what about Batman after that?

The news is out about a Justice League film is in the works, but there's more.  We're about a year away from the release of The Dark Knight Rises; Christopher Nolan's third and final film in his Batman trilogy. That hasn't stopped Warner Brothers from planning ahead.  With news of the JL movie, came news of more Batman films. 

According to new president, Jeff Robinov, Warner Brothers has more Batman films to follow Nolan's version.  Robinov says that Nolan and his wife, Emma Thomas, will remain produces on the next set of Batman films.  Why this news scares me:  Look what happened with Batman Forever and Batman & Robin.  Tim Burton remained on as producer after his two Batman films, but Joel Schumacher found a way to butcher the Dark Knight.

I guess the same thing could be said about Nolan producing Zack Snyder's Superman film; but it's still something to worry about.  Is this a way for WB to keep Nolan in-house?  He has been a cash cow for years now, and I'm sure they want a long-term relationship with the director.  But what route do they take with the next incarnation of Batman?

Do they go Batman Beyond like the animated series?  Campy like the Schumacher variety?  How about more serious, reality based films like Nolan?  The character is so versatile, so complex, there's a million ways to do it.  How about a true Batman and Robin film?  One that features the Red Hood?  That would be amazing!  And, interestingly enough, could tie into Nolan's interpretation of Ra's al Ghul. 

With all this talk about the NEXT Batman franchise, do you think the CURRENT one will be neglected?  Let's hope not, because Nolan has his work cut out for him if he's planning on topping The Dark Knight.  What would you do with the next Batman franchise?

Shane Black to direct Iron Man 3

This is pretty interesting news.  Marvel has chosen Jon Favreau's successor to the Iron Man franchise.  Shane Black will be in charge of the third installment of the Robert Downey Jr. starring franchise.  Black has only directed one film, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang.  But here's where the information gets interesting, he may write the movie as well.  As far as writing credits, Black has a ton.  Those films include the Lethal Weapon films, The Last Boy Scout, and The Long Kiss Goodnight.  Funny thing about those films is, they're all action films.  This is work really well for Black when it comes to Iron Man. 

I think he's a good choice for the script, I don't think he's the man to direct.  I think it will be nearly impossible for anyone to fill Favreau's shoes.  This is his baby, as much as Marvel doesn't think so.  He created the world that Iron Man inhabits and he got the Avengers movement going.  We'll see how long Black works with Marvel before they too ruin that relationship. 

"Batman 3" Officially Named, To Be Shot Entirely in IMAX?

Who's read this blog before? Who knows how die-hard we are about The Dark Knight? All of you should have your arms up. Tonedog and FattMatt saw Batman Begins together, and were hooked. We called Heath Ledger's Oscar the day of watching The Dark Knight, and now the third film in the Christopher Nolan trilogy has been revealed. The Dark Knight Rises.

Remember the 6 action sequences shot in IMAX on The Dark Knight? Collider is reporting that Nolan was so impressed with what was filmed, he is filming The Dark Knight Rises entirely in IMAX. Whoa! No one knows who the villains will be, but there is plenty of talk about it. Most people are leaning towards Talia al Ghul, daughter of Ra's al Ghul. People are guessing she will be after Batman to avenger her father's death. She and Batman have a storied past in the DC Universe and she would be a nice change from all the other villains we've seen on screen.

No matter the villain, It will surely be a fitting end to a trilogy that will define the character for generations to come. Much like Richard Donner and Christopher Reeve to Superman; Christopher Nolan and Christian Bale have changed the perception of a character in Batman.

Picture above brought to you by "Worst Part's Almost Over" on the discussion boards at AICN.

"With great power, comes great CASTING" Andrew Garfield IS Spider-Man

Tiny Update:  Here's what Webb had to say after I posted:
"Though his name may be new to many, those who know this young actor's work understand his extraordinary talents.  He has a rare combination of intelligence, wit, and humanity. Mark my words, you will love Andrew Garfield as Peter Parker."

Marc Webb and Sony Pictures have been hard at work trying to find the right man for the new Spider-Man job.  It's a tough task if you ask me.  Casting the lead in a superhero franchise film is much harder than we could ever imagine.  Looks, acting chops, bankability, all the above must be taken into consideration.  So who will play Spider-Man in the new 3D version?  Andrew Garfield.

Bet you've never heard of him huh?  Well I have and I love his work.  He was fantastic in Boy, A and he was great in The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.  Apparently he's been turning heads at Sony for awhile now.  His work in the upcoming The Social Network has Sony giddy in their boots, according to an article in the LA Times. 

I approve of the casting decision, because I believe Garfield will capture Peter Parker's sensibilities and vulnerabilities of being a high schooler with such great power.  The argument all day today is that he's too old (26) to play a high school kid.  I disagree.  I think he looks the part, and will bring out the emotion that Toby Maguire was so good at doing in the first trilogy.  Kudos to director Marc Webb and Sony for getting this one right!

"Little Fockers" Trailer

The latest trailer for Little Fockers, the second sequel to Meet the Parents is out on iTunes.

The film stars Robert DeNiro, Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Blythe Danner, Teri Polo, Harvey Keitel and Barbara Streisand with Paul Weitz directing.

Click here to watch the trailer on Apple's site.

"Toy Story 3" Review

If you're a Toy Story fan at all, if you're a MOVIE fan at all, skip this review and go see Toy Story 3 immediately. Yes, it's good, it's really really good. I have a lot of "likes" on this one, so I want to get started already.

What I liked about the movie:
Story
Here's a little known fact about Toy Story 3, the story took 2 and a half years to perfect. And perfect is the correct word to use. I never talk plot in my reviews, I'm not going to start now. But I will say the trailer gives you a general idea as to what happens to the toys. But overall, the story is terrific. There is a solid beginning, middle and end. The end of this movie is very fitting to arguably one of the best trilogies in history, animated or not. I Tweeted after I left the theater, that the world would be a better place if Pixar wrote every movie in Hollywood. Online petition anyone?



The Characters

We all know them, we all love them, and they're all back. Woody, Buzz, Jesse, Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head, Rex, and more, are all in top form in this one. The voice acting is superb, as it has been throughout the trilogy. All the big names are back, i.e. Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack. New comer Michael Keaton is awesome as the annoying, yet hilarious, Ken. Ned Betty plays one of the new major characters, Lotso the bear, also perfectly cast. Not everyone gets their fair share of screen time, but I felt that I got enough of all the major characters after an 11 year break from the previous Toy Story film. Great Job in this department.

The Animation
The animation just keeps getting better and better from Pixar. In our second installment of "You know what's a good movie?" we showcased the first Toy Story. And in that article I talked about how Pixar's techniques have improved with every movie they've released. TS3 is no exception. There are so many details that it's impossible to appreciate them all with just one viewing. I can't wait to see the movie again just to catch more that I may have missed the first time.

The Action
The action in TS3 is phenomenal. There are new things we've never seen in the previous 2 films. There's a planned escape scene that has so much to it, only Pixar could have kept track and executed it as well as they did. No spoiler here, but the last half hour of the movie involves a lot of action that was awesome. Again, it's only because the animators have gotten so good at what they do, that the action is this good.

The Themes

There haven't been too many movies that will tug at your emotional strings like this one will. In fact, I'll say this is the best movie of the year so far. There are several themes expressed throughout the movie. A child's coming of age. There is a fantastic scene in the movie where Andy is saying bye to his old room before he heads off to college. It's just Andy comforting his mom before he leaves, but it stays true to anyone who has experienced that situation. The emotion projected through the characters is nothing short of amazing.


MINOR SPOILER ALERT, not really giving anything away though:
Friendship is the other theme. Woody and Buzz' friendship. The friendship between Andy and Woody. The most talked about/ most Tweeted about/ most written about scene, will definitely have you in tears. I'm a man close to 30 years old. I haven't cried since the day of my wedding more than two years ago, and was crying like a high school girl on the night of a breakup. I can't express this enough, it comes down to Pixar's mastering of the art form. Without their amazing animators, none of the emotion would have came out of that particular scene where there is literally no dialogue, just emotion channeled through the characters.
END SPOILER ALERT.

The Ending
Some trilogies leave you disappointed, and this movie did not do that. Everything is wrapped up very nicely. Every problem resolved and we, as the audience leave the theater very satisfied with the toy's fates. There is a great scene with Andy and Woody that will stay with me for a long time. Amazing.


What I didn't like about the movie:
Rehash
I bet when you started reading this review, you didn't expect any negative feedback did you? Well 2 things, same category of negative. The first, too many plot points were similar in one way or another to Toy Story 2. I was reading this online before the movie came out and just sort of ignored it. But it's very obvious. By no means did it take away from experience though. In fact, I think they improved on all the material I felt they rehashed. Second was the latin Buzz, shown in multiple versions of the trailer. It worked, trust me, it's funny. But again, rehash. I can't really explain in detail about the Buzz scene without giving something away, so let me know what you think after you see the movie.

In conclusion, the movie is spectacular. I can't really do the movie justice with my review. The movie is so good on so many levels, to write about it in a blog format is not fair. Pixar is the best in the world at what they do, period. They knew to deliver this caliber a movie, it was going to take a long time. Like I said earlier, over 2 years writing and story boarding the movie. And it paid off. Unlike the rubbish that DreamWorks is banging out with their Shrek sequels, TS3 progressed the story and the characters.

One thing is for sure, I am going to miss these little computer generated toys a lot more than I thought I would before seeing the movie. To Disney, Pixar, the cast and crew... thank you for one of the BEST trilogies in movie history.

X-Men First Class get's a director and a release date

Matthew Vaughn director of Kick-Ass, has been tapped to take on the X-Men. In a prequel of sorts, X-Men First Class will focus on the first class at Professor Xavier's school for the gifted.

Based on the first 8 issues of the 2006 comic books, the line up of mutants include the following: Angel, Beast, Cyclops, Iceman, Jean Grey and Professor X.

I think Fox is planning on creating a totally new franchise independent of the first trilogy of X-Men films. I say this because the studio is already planning a fourth film in the 2000-2006 franchise.

I've already told you how much I enjoyed Vaughn's Kick-Ass; so I love this move by Fox. I can't wait to see Vaughn's take on the X-Men. I don't think it will take itself as seriously as the Hugh Jackman starring franchise, and I don't think it should. This is a younger group of heroes who haven't come into their own yet.

The studio also announced the movie would be released next year! That's right, June 2011 is the tentative release date. What do you guys think about the news?

The picture above was provided by Deviant Art, and created by "Apollorising". Check out the artist's other work here.

Spiderman 4, no more. No more.

From the lips of Tobey Maguire in the first 3 Spiderman films: "I'm Spider-Man... no more. No more." That's right folks... Tobey Maguire (actor), Kristin Dunst (actress), Sam Raimi (director), horrible movie (part 3)... are alllllll gone! Sony Pictures scrapped the plans for Spiderman 4, instead they want a complete reboot.

All the heavy hitters have put out bs letters of appreciation for being a part of the first trilogy, but I'm not buying it. I think the combination of countless delays on part 4, an unfinished script and a horrible part 3 film, and Thor taking the release date of Spiderman 4 have all helped Sony make up its mind.

The studio instead wants a grittier, darker Spiderman. Funny, all the studios with Superhero properties are starting to use those terms when describing reboots. Fantastic Four is getting a "grittier" reboot. Superman will some day fly again in a "darker" version of himself. Ya right!

I wish studios would just speak the truth... "your movie sucked, we didn't think it was going to suck, and now we are giving someone else a chance to make a movie that doesn't suck". That same sentiment goes to Fantastic Four and Superman btw.

Either way, this is a good thing for Maguire and Raimi. I really think they are better away from the franchise. The best days of the franchise are behind us. Part one brought a character to the big screen in a way very few Superhero movies had before it. Part 2 showed us the power of CGI with unforgettable battle atop a train. And sadly, part 3 showed us that very few, if any franchises have a part 3 worth a damn.

A script is in place for the "new" Spiderman trilogy and Sony expects the movie to be in theaters around 2012. But for now... see ya later Spidey... you will be missed... just not by this blogger.