Category: Comic

  • Cowboys & Aliens Adaptation and Comic-Con Notes

    Actress Zoe Kazan told listeners on a radio show that her boyfriend, actor Paul Dano is having a great time on set for Cowboys & Aliens. Jon Favreau directs the adaptation starring Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig, with Sam Rockwell and Olivia Wilde.

    At Comic-Con, Jon Favreau shared days old footage with the audience to give a feel for what they’re going for — not to mention finally bringing Harrison Ford to Comic-Con — and in handcuffs nonetheless. It felt like a western aside from the futuristic technology wrapped around Daniel Craig’s wrist, but eventually a small, alien spacecraft attacks the town. The thing around Craig’s wrist turns out to be a weapon he uses to shoot down the spacecraft; with onlookers bewildered; one of them being Harrison Ford’s character who wants Craig’s dead.

    Luckily the technology we saw in the footage wasn’t steampunk like Will Smith’s Wild Wild West. It would’ve made it hard for the film to stand on its own. The effects leaned heavily towards practical rather then CG, which the audience ate up.

    From what we saw at Comic-Con, Cowboys & Aliens is shaping up nicely, and hearing cast members talking about what a blast it is on set shows that Favreau truly is growing as a director. It’s gonna be a fun ride.

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  • Last Man Standing Adapted into a Film

    Daniel LuVisi’s sci-fi art book Last Man Standing: Killbook of a Bounty Hunter has been picked up by Paramount to adapt into a film. Despite it being an art book, it has a story that can easily be adapted to film — and a graphic novel which is also being planned.

    The premise deals with a bounty hunter named Gabriel who was genetically altered by a weapons contractor. He’s eventually framed and sent to prison, but he’s quick to escape and explore New Amerika.

    It made sense, especially since it was well received this year at Comic-Con. The story has a lot of potential, and Paramount intends to realize it. Stephan Lokotsch and Peter Levin Russell are set as the executive producers.

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  • New Judge Dredd Film Update

    I wrote about the new Judge Dredd film in the works, and the news making rounds is that actor Karl Urban (Star Trek) has been casted in the title role.

    Producer Andrew Macdonald said that their idea is to make a gritty, realistic, hard R-rated film that will do the comic book justice. Macdonald along with other producers are insistent on getting the tone right, which they felt the prior Judge Dredd movie didn’t do. And, unlike the prior film, this one will feature Judge Dredd with his helmet — which won’t be taken off.

    The film will be shot in Johannesburg with the same crew who filmed District 9, with Pete Travis directing. John Wagner — who is the main writer for the comic books — will be involved in every decision for the movie.

    The news for this second try at a Judge Dredd film adaptation has been increasingly good for fans of the comic books. As much as I enjoyed the original adaptation, this one has a lot of potential to become an excellent comic book film.

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  • Ryan Reynolds Demanded a Rewrite on Green Lantern

    Upon going through the screenplay, Ryan Reynolds noticed that the Green Lantern Corps. oath was written differently. He didn’t hesitate to bring it to attention, saying, “‘You cannot get the oath wrong! We had a meeting about this . . . this is where (the fans) will murder you.”

    I was hesitant on a Green Lantern film until the Comic-Con panel, and then this incident showing how much Ryan Reynolds wants to make sure the movie is done right for the fans has me stoked for it. He really has become an actor that every woman and geek loves.

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  • Comic-Con: The Avengers

    After the panel for Thor came to a close, Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige told us that he knows it’s getting late, but there’s a quick surprise he wants the audience to see. The lights dimmed and a video began to play with a voice over by Samuel L. Jackson.

    “And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Earth’s mightiest heroes and heroines found themselves united against a common threat. On that day, the Avengers were born.”

    Samuel L. Jackson then hit the stage much to the audience’s delight. He approached the podium and said that there’s a group he wants to introduce us to — he began his role call: Clark Gregg as Agent Coulson, Scarlett Johansson as Black Widow, Chris Hemsworth as Thor, Chris Evans as Captain America, and Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man.

    With all of them on stage, Robert Downey Jr. took over the podium and introduced the audience to Jeremy Renner as Hawkeye and Mark Ruffalo as the Hulk. He went on to introduce Joss Whedon as the director.

    The crowd went completely nuts for the cast and director of the Avengers. Downey was barely able to contain himself, giggling and saying that he can’t help himself. He was too excited. Joss Whedon went on to say that he had a dream his whole life, but it wasn’t this good. He told the audience that he’s afraid he’ll blow it and needs our support. Whedon and the cast were given a standing ovation.

    Marvel Studios really wanted to bring something special for Comic-Con, and they brought something very memorable. Days ago I said that the panel for Captain America: The First Avenger was one of the landmarks for Comic-Con this year, but the surprise role call for the Avengers is the landmark for Comic-Con.

  • Comic-Con: Thor

    Director Kenneth Branagh went on stage and immediately geeked out about seeing references to Thor in the footage we saw earlier in Captain America: The First Avenger. He then told the audience that Thor is his favorite American comic book character and went after the project the moment it became available. He said he feels comfortable directing Thor since it deals with a lot of the same issues as his film Henry V; mainly family issues, war, and politics.

    Joining Branagh for the panel were cast members Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Kat Dennings, and Clark Gregg.

    To prepare for the role of Thor, Chris Hemsworth read Norse mythology and Thor comics to gain an understanding of the character and the world he’s immersed in. Joking, he said he gained muscle by lifting Thor’s hammer . . . a lot.

    When asked about Asgard as opposed to the real world, Branagh and Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige decided to show instead of tell — presenting footage much to the audience’s overwhelming approval. Asgard had a very ethereal feel with rich environments. It looks like it does the comic justice. The footage was immersing and is shot in 3D, and it really works well with the feel of the film. The crowd loved every minute of the footage we were shown.

    Reprising his role as Agent Coulson, Clark Gregg told a story about delivering the line in Iron Man 2 about going to New Mexico, but at first didn’t know what the significance was until Feige told him that it’s the location where Thor is. He went on to tell the audience that he loves that he’s practically “the glue of the Marvel Universe”. Suffice to say, the audience cheered during the footage when the Destroyer is on screen followed by an agent of SHIELD asking Agent Coulson, “One of Stark’s?” and his nonchalant reply, “I don’t know — that guy never tells me anything.”

    Branagh decided to go with the classic hammer for Thor and promises that there will be surprises for Thor fans, alluding to Donald Blake. One surprise we were treated to was seeing both Thor and Loki in their helmets from the comic books, which is a nice touch no one was expecting. Thor is turning out to be a very fun film, and the panel was a success getting the audience pumped for it.

  • Comic-Con: Captain America

    The panel for Captain America: The First Avenger brought out director Joe Johnston, and actors Chris Evans and Hugo Weaving. Johnston went on to explain that they only began filming five days ago, but they really wanted to share footage with us. He cued the clip and World War II propaganda footage played superimposed on Captain America’s shield. As it ended, it showed Chris Evans in the costume turning towards the camera — the audience went crazy. The title showed, then we suddenly see Captain America throwing his shield at the camera — thunderous applause from the crowd.

    What we saw was a costume test, but from our reactions, they’re very much on track with its direction.

    Chris Evans wasn’t shy about talking about some people’s apprehension about him portraying Captain America, but he believes that if the movie is good, people will be accepting of him. Evans feels the pressure, but he’s trying not to think about how big the scope is due to the character being one of the biggest names in Marvel Comics — saying he might have a panic attack if he thinks about it too much. He went on to say that he really likes the costume and hopes to do the character justice.

    Hugo Weaving refused to do his German accent, but did inform the audience that he’s been working with the Red Skull mask. It’s a series of lightweight pieces on his face, enabling him to convey emotions — though in V for Vendetta he’s proven that he doesn’t need his facial expressions to emote.

    The president of Marvel Studios Kevin Feige wanted to show us rough footage despite it still having the time-stamp on it. It begins with Hugo Weaving as Johann Schmidt (before he becomes Red Skull) leading a group of Nazi soldiers to open a sarcophagus, looking for something that belonged to Odin. The jewel in the sarcophagus ends up being a fake, but it doesn’t affect Schmidt who quickly finds it in a secret compartment on a wall.

    The feel of the footage felt a lot like Indiana Jones, which is exciting to me. After all, the movie does entirely take place during World War II, and it’s a perfect fit. Hugo Weaving is very effective as the antagonist with a demanding screen presence. And the footage we were shown was already tying in with Thor, furthering the universe Marvel Studios is creating with their films. The audience went crazy for it. It’s a highly anticipated film and one of the landmarks for Comic-Con this year.

  • Comic-Con: Green Lantern

    Warner Bros.’ Green Lantern panel kicked off with director Martin Campbell who went on to bring out stars Ryan Reynolds, Mark Strong, Blake Lively, and Peter Sarsgaard. Reynolds was wearing a Green Lantern ring which many in the audience were quick to notice.

    Campbell referred to the EW cover of Green Lantern while describing the costume. It’s done entirely in CG, and he informed the audience that it’s still a work in progress and it’ll look really cool in the finished product.

    The teaser of the movie had a cosmic feel, traveling to the home planet of the Green Lantern Corps. and showed glimpses of them. A scene was shown of Reynolds brandishing the ring and conjuring a giant, green fist knocking out a bunch of guys. We didn’t see Reynolds in the costume — most likely because it’s still being worked on.

    During the Q&A a boy asked Reynolds to recite the Green Lantern oath, who was more than willing and got into character gravely performing the monologue. The boy was in awe and reacted by making a fist up at Reynolds displaying his Green Lantern ring. Reynolds in return made a fist back and pretended that their rings were at odds. He then proclaimed that the child is so cute and he wants to give him an autograph. The audience cheered for the kid — I’m sure it’ll be a very cherished memory for him.

    At the close for the panel, Ryan Reynolds told the attendees that he had kept the ring during production and hasn’t parted with it, but he felt that Comic-Con was the perfect place to pass it down. He had us reach under our chairs, and a lady who found the paper Reynolds described earned the ring from the man himself. It was a successful panel and got all of us stoked for the film.