• Empire Strikes Back Preserved in US Library of Congress

    Timothy

    Each year the National Film Preservation Board and the public suggest films to preserve, and 25 are selected as culturally significant to be preserved in the US Library of Congress.

    The reason for this?

    “The National Film Registry is a reminder to the nation that the preservation of our cinematic creativity must be a priority because about half of the films produced before 1950 and as much as 90% of those made before 1920 have been lost to future generations.”

    — Librarian of Congress James H. Billington

    I entirely agree with the sentiment. Films serve a cultural importance and mirror certain times in history that makes them relevant.

    One of the films selected this year for the US Library of Congress? Star Wars sequel Empire Strikes Back. I’m surprised it took this long for the film to be preserved, but I’m glad the movie made its way there. The only question now is which version of Empire Strikes Back is entering the Library.

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  • Steven Spielberg’s TV Series Falling Skies

    Timothy

    Steven Spielberg teams with Dreamworks Television to bring the new post-apocalyptic action TV series Falling Skies. Noah Wyle of ER stars.

    The official synopsis you ask?

    Falling Skies is an exciting new series from DreamWorks Television and executive producer Steven Spielberg. Noah Wyle (ER, TNT’s The Librarian movies) stars as a former college professor who becomes the leader of a group of soldiers and civilians struggling against an occupying alien force. Moon Bloodgood (Terminator Salvation) co-stars as Anne Glass, a therapist who works with the surviving children to help them cope with the traumatic situation. The series also stars Drew Roy (Lincoln Heights) as Hal and Maxim Knight (Brothers & Sisters) as Matt, Tom’s two sons; and Seychelle Gabriel (Weeds) as Lourdes, an orphaned teenager who helps run the group’s commissary. Will Patton (Armageddon, TNT’s Into the West) will play a recurring role as a fierce resistance fighter.

    Falling Skies will be on TNT in June.

  • Tron: Uprising Animated Series Update

    Timothy

    Disney pushes forward with its animated series Tron: Uprising. The show begins in the summer of 2012, with a voice cast comprising of Bruce Boxleitner, Elijah Wood, Mandy Moore, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Paul Reubens, Lance Henriksen and Nate Corddry.

    Wood stars as the character named Beck, who leads an uprising in the Grid. Joining him will be Boxleitner reprising his role as Tron.

    The series will take place between the time CLU takes over the Grid to when Sam enters to look for his father.

    At first the timeline is surprising; with the thought that time between the original Tron and the second film would make sense for a series, but time in the Grid is different than the real world. There’s a lot to cover between CLU’s take over and Sam’s entry into the Grid.

    Adam Horowitz, the co-screenwriter of Tron: Legacy and consulting producer for the series had this to say:

    “Our intention is to try and make something that is more than just, let’s go get something. We treat TRON very, very seriously and as writers we try to have a reason and a world for everything and not all of it gets to be shown because in this particular movie, we only had two hours. [fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”][So] hopefully it fills in the blanks in and in a fun way and an intriguing way.”

    There’s massive potential in Tron: Uprising in its stellar cast and crew. After all, even Charlie Bean of Powerpuff Girls and Samurai Jack is involved.

    [Slash Film][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]

  • Supernatural: The Animation Trailer Online

    Timothy

    An extended trailer for Supernatural: The Animation released online. Animation studio MADHOUSE produces.

    It’s really odd hearing “Carry on Wayword Son” by Kansas while the language throughout the trailer is in Japanese. Nevertheless, the anime looks to capture the feel the first two seasons of Supernatural and without suddenly making the Winchester brothers into powerful beings. Thank God.

    Supernatural: The Animation releases in Japan on February 23, 2011; which means you’ll have to import it if you want the DVDs.

  • Sam Worthington on Wrath of the Titans

    Timothy

    It’s true, the Clash of the Titans remake was boring. The film felt pedestrian. Overall, there was no concern for the characters. They were simply going through the motions. Sam Wothington’s Perseus was ultimately unremarkable. So it’s a little of a surprise that a sequel is underway entitled Wrath of the Titans.

    I was pessimistic about a sequel, but Sam Worthington had some choice words about the prior film and what he sets out to do with this one that caught my eye.

    “I think the first one, we kind of let down some people. And yeah, I totally agree. The only point of doing a sequel is either the audience demands it or you believe you can better the first one. What we’re setting out to do with this one — the writers and the director and myself — is improve. I think I can act f***ing better, to be honest … Just take all the notes from people that I have been reading about on the ‘net and give them a movie they f***ing want. This one I want to kind of try to satisfy a lot more people.”

    — Sam Worthington to Moviefone.

    The fact that an actor is taking online criticism to heart and intends to use it to improve his craft is admirable. Worthington’s intentions piqued my interest in Wrath of the Titans.

    “I’ve always said you make movies for an audience, that’s who you make movies for. If the audience is speaking, it’s like the old gladiator thing, they give us the thumbs up/thumbs down, you want to stay alive in that coliseum as long as you can.”

    — Sam Worthington to Moviefone.

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  • Second Assistant Camera Video

    Timothy

    A second assistant camera (clapper loader) gives a humorous look into his job:

  • Geeking About Tron: Legacy

    Timothy

    If you asked me what is the earliest memory I have about a film, my answer would be Tron. I apparently drove my parents crazy wanting to rent and watch it constantly. So it was a given that I went to see Tron: Legacy on opening night.

    Another given is that Jeff Bridges is the man. His character progression for Kevin Flynn from the slacker/techie video gamer from the original to the techie slacker pretending to be Obi-Wan in Legacy felt natural.

    Bridges’ portrayal of the antagonist CLU was cold, precise, driven, and focused on his goals. Though, CLU, like his creator Kevin, found joy in the games.

    Garrett Hedlund’s Sam Flynn is an adrenaline junkie who inherited his father’s techie slacker tendencies. He was an effective protagonist. And his scene reuniting with his father was very well done; it was touching; it felt real.

    Olivia Wilde’s Quorra was a really fun character. She was tough, but full of awe and curious about everything. She’s an optimistic A.I., whose random and awkward bursts of laughter can be described as adorable.

    Daft Punk? They were a perfect fit for Tron: Legacy. And any fan of both Daft Punk and Tron knew this right off the bat. Their score for the film was brilliant and really did “alter the mood” accordingly.

    Director Joe Kosinski had a recent interview with Discover Magazine, which you can read HERE.

    Tron: Legacy lives up to its predecessor, and it’s an entirely fun movie. Watch it. You know you want to.

  • Trailer for Family Guy: It’s a Trap! and Pre-Order

    Timothy

    Family Guy brings its third Star Wars spoof entitled It’s a Trap!

    The synopsis?

    In this spectacular and offensively uproarious final chapter, Luke Skywalker (Chris) and Princess Leia (Lois) must travel to Tatooine to free Han Solo (Peter) by infiltrating the wretched stronghold of Jabba the Hutt (Joe), the galaxy’s most loathsome and dreadful gangster. Reunited, the Rebels team up with a tribe of Ewoks to combat the Imperial forces on the forest moon of Endor. Meanwhile the Emperor (Carter Pewterschmidt) and Darth Vader (Stewie) conspire to turn Luke to the dark side, and young Skywalker is determined to rekindle the spirit of the Jedi within his father. The Galactic Civil War has never been more outrageous, as the Rebel forces gather to attack the seemingly defenseless and incomplete second Death Star in the battle that will determine the fate of the galaxy.

    Family Guy: It’s a Trap! releases on DVD and Blu-ray on December 21, 2010. You can pre-order the DVD HERE and the Blu-ray HERE.