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IDW to Adapt ‘Astro Boy’

  • News
  • November 13, 2008

astroboy-cgi-1-5644041IDW Comics has announced it has obtained the license for comics based on the Astro Boy movie. They intend to publish two comic miniseries tied to the film, according to IDW Editor in Chief Chris Ryall.  The CGI-animated movie will be opening next October in a release said to be planned for 3000 screens and the comics are currently envisioned as a four-part prequel and a four-part adaptation of the film.  The first issue of the prequel would be out in May, so a collection could be released with the film in the fall.

Imagi Studios also announced that Jazwares will be the master toy licensee for the film, along with licensees American Greetings for greeting cards, stationery, gift wrap, and party goods; Penguin for books; and D3Publisher for game software.  Mass market products will focus on six to 14-year-olds.

Dark Horse will continue to offer the classic Manga and Right Stuf has the classic anime on home video.

The new film, directed by David Bowers (Flushed Away) from a screenplay by Timothy Harris (Places), features Freddie Highmore (Finding Neverland) as the voice of Astro Boy, along with Kristin Bell, Nathan Lane, Bill Nighy, Eugene Levy, Nicolas Cage, and Donald Sutherland.
 

Kim ‘Howard’ Johnson Shows ‘Monty Python’ Slides

  • News
  • November 13, 2008

Kim “Howard” Johnson, author of the just-released memoir Monty Python’s Tunisian Holiday: My Life with Brian, will appear live at Chicago’s i.O. Theatre, 3541 N. Clark Street (phone 773-880-0199), at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, November 18, to present, for the first time ever, his 30-year-old vacation slide show as he reveals secrets behind the filming of Monty Python’s Life of Brian. The event is free and open to the public.

Monty Python’s Tunisian Holiday: My Life with Brian Live! will incorporate many of the photos presented in the new book, and many more never before seen, Johnson will discuss the filming of the comedy classic and his life, times, and strange adventures with the six members of Monty Python.

“I’ve always enjoyed subjecting small groups of friends and relatives to my slides of Yellowstone Park and the Wisconsin Dells,” says Johnson. “So you can imagine how thrilled I am to be able to subject an entire audience to every minute detail of the Stoning Scene, the fate of George Harrison’s money, and the long-censored secrets of King Otto and Mrs. Pontius Pilate.

In addition to writing five books on Monty Python, Johnson is also co-author (with Del Close and Charna Halpern) of the improvisation manual Truth in Comedy and the author of the acclaimed biography of improvisational guru Del Close, titled The Funniest One in the Room.

A limited quantity of books will be available for purchase at the event.
 

Guillermo del Toro Updates ‘Hobbit’, ‘Frankenstein’

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

Director Guillermo del Toro spoke with reporters in Los Angeles to promote this week’s release of Hellboy II: The Golden Army on DVD.

Of course, the question about the third film in the series came up and del Toro replied, “You know, I think that they will not green-light it or not or they will not talk about it until the last Euro hits the piggy bank. The fact is the movie, even though it was dually sodomized by Hancock and The Dark Knight, still did theatrically better than the first movie, internationally is doing exceedingly better than the first movie. It really is in some cases doing 300 percent more business, and depending on the territory and globally I think is doing about 100 percent more business than the first one. Let’s see what happens with the DVD, and the people that make the decisions do it based on the calculator function of the iPod, not on the other one.

“I would beg them and amputate myself in order for them to wait for me, but I don’t control it. If they say, ‘No, no, no, we’re going to do it,’ I personally think this incarnation of the trilogy, I would love to finish because it’s not arbitrary that we went into a different direction on the second one. I really think when and if you see the three movies, you’re going to have a comedic one, a tragic one and you’re going to see three movies that are incredibly apart in registration one from another. It’s really exploring Hellboy in very different ways.”

When queried about casting for The Hobbit and bringing back actors from Lords of the Rings, he said, “Not yet. Just the ones that have been announced [Ian McKellen as Gandalf and Andy Serkis as Gollum]. There’s not lack of information. It’s not withholding. We really don’t have more information, because we’re writing. And literally, like every week, what you discover writing the two movies, writing the two stories, it changes. So every week there’s a discovery, and anything we say this week would be contradicted next week. Certainly that would be true in casting. Why create hopes or why create expectations if down the line you’re going to go, ‘You know what? That was not a good idea.’ So we won’t cast it until we finish writing.” (more…)

Djimon Hounsou to Voice Black Panther

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

BET Networks and Marvel Animation announced that Djimon Hounsou will be the voice of the Black Panther on the animated series coming in February.

The Oscar-nominated actor Hounsou.joins a production that largely adapts the first six issues of the Reginald Hudlin-written Black Panther series, “Who is the Black Panther?”

"BET is thrilled to have Djimon Hounsou join us as the voice of The Black Panther," said Denys Cowan, Senior Vice President, Animation for BET Networks. "He is a talented, compelling actor who will be the perfect voice for such an important super-hero in the Marvel universe and such a moment in this historic environment."

"Having Djimon Hounsou voice the lead character in this new series speaks to the power of the character and the partnership between BET and Marvel Animation," adds Eric Rollman, President of Marvel Animation. "The Black Panther animated series is Marvel’s entree into prime-time animation and Djimon raises the bar for all involved as we bring the best in the animation business together to execute on that vision."

"It’s a blessing for African Americans and minorities to have a super-hero they can identify with," said Hounsou. "While the Black Panther is a powerful force for good, he is also a respected world leader who takes pride in his African heritage. He embodies the past and future of his culture, demonstrating the endless possibilities of an Africa that is truly free."

The series comes at a time when Marvel is changing Panthers, seemingly killing off T’Challa and replacing him with an unidentified woman according to a story in the Washington Post.
 

HBO Orders ‘Game of Thrones’ Pilot

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

The trades are reporting that HBO has finally given a pilot order to A Game of Thrones, the first in George R.R. Martin’s bestselling A Song of Fire & Ice series. The television version will be executive produced by David Benioff (X-Men Origins: Wolverine) and D.B. Weiss (Halo).

HBO picked up the rights on January 17, 2007 with Variety describing the series as "an epic struggle for power set in a vast and violent fantasy kingdom." Which is putting things mildly. Martin, called by Time as an American Tolkien, has created a sprawling saga with dozens of characters currently projected to be seven volumes long and is a modern day epic fantasy which would be challenging for even premium cable to adapt.

 “Fantasy is the most successful genre in terms of feature films given the incredible popularity of Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter movies,” Benioff told The Hollywood Reporter. “High fantasy has never been done on TV before and if anybody can do it, it’s HBO. They’ve taken tired genres and reinvented them — mobsters in The Sopranos and Westerns with Deadwood.

“It’s not a story with a million Orcs charging across the plains,” Weiss said. “The most expensive effects are creature effects and there’s not much of that.”

Ever since the option was announced, the producers have insisted that each season would adapt just one of the thick novels.  Martin was also committed to writing at least one episode per season.  He began working on the pilot in 2007, completing a first draft in August.  A second draft was announced as being completed in June 2008. HBO exercised their option on the series in September before yesterday’s announcement.

A Game of Thrones was released in 1996 and won critical acclaim, earning the Locus Award for Best Novel (Fantasy) while earning nominations at the World Fantasy and Nebula Awards.

The other books in the series are A Clash of Kings (1998), A Storm of Swords (2000), and A Feast for Crows (2005). Announced but not yet delivered, written or scheduled are A Dance with Dragons, The Winds of Winter, and A Dream of Spring.  The saga has also led to three novella and act as prequels to the first novel.

Martin actually was at work on Dragons when he realized things were not working and he tossed out much of the work and announced at the Millennium Philcon in 2001 that he was writing a different book to continue the story before resuming Dragons. That became Crows which tightened its focus on a handful of characters while the next book would shift the spotlight to others. An anticipated 2008 publication date came and went and Bantam is hopeful it will receive the manuscript in time for a spring 2009 release.

The one obstacle left is being better than the ten other projects in development at the cable network. Although six are expected to get the series go-ahead, HBO can be choosy under its new regime which jettisoned several other projects already, including Preacher.

Martin plans seven books in the series. The producers intend for each season to span one novel.

THR notes, “Combined with True Blood, this also suggests an interesting, AintItCoolNews-targeted direction for the network. Less edgy-PBS, more R-rated Comic Con.”
 

Review: ‘Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, Vol. 3: Wolves at the Gate’ by various

  • Uncategorized
  • November 12, 2008

buffy-wolves-at-the-gate-5624145

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight, Vol. 3: Wolves at the Gate
Written by Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard; Illustrated by Georges Jeanty
Dark Horse, October 2008, $15.95

I have to admit something right up front, by quoting myself:

Not only have I never read any [[[Buffy the Vampire Slayer]]] comics, I’ve never seen the TV show – or the movie it spawned from, or the [[[Angel]]] spin-off show. Nor have I played any Buffy card games, fondled the increasing number of muppet-y creatures, written BtVS fan-fiction, or attended Buffy-centric conventions.

So I came to [[[Wolves at the Gate]]] a complete innocent. Sure, I have a vague sense of who Buffy and the rest of the Scooby gang are – see? I even know the term “Scooby gang” – but not much more than that. I was surprised to see the guy named Xander has only one eye, for example, and I imagine most of the people reading this have had entire conversations about whatever episode it was when he lost the other one.

I didn’t think that would be a big problem, but one of the first things I realized after opening Wolves at the Gate was that it wasn’t aimed at people like me. When the plot synopsis on the inside front cover says things like “these Slayers must prepare for an impending war with humans and a mysterious new Big Bad, Twilight” and “Also, Dawn: still large-ish,” it’s clear that this series is to let those who are already fans revel in their knowledge and have some more stories about characters they already love.

And that’s cool for them, it’s just that, y’know, I have to figure out how to review this thing. (My apologies: the aggressively colloquial, post-Mamet cross-talk is infectious.)

(more…)

First Look at ‘Star Trek”s U.S.S. Enterprise Plus Footage Reviewed

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

In what is becoming a new industry trend, British journalists were treated to a look at about 20 minutes of footage from JJ Abrams’ Star Trek coming May 8, 2009.

Additionally, Paramount Pictures provided Entertainment Weekly with the first good look at the revamped U.S.S. Enterprise.

In providing the image, Abrams spoke about watching Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979. "The coolest thing about it — maybe the coolest thing in the movie — was when you flew around the ship, you could see all the different panels that made up the ship," he told the magazine. "It was the first time I had ever seen that level of attention, that love of detail, given to the tangible, practical reality of the ship."

Abrams went on to say, "If you’re going to do Star Trek there are many things you cannot change. The Enterprise is a visual touchstone for so many people. So if you’re going to do the Enterprise, it better look like the Enterprise, because otherwise, what are you doing?"

Meantime, Den of Geek and Empire Magazine both provided extensive descriptions of the footage along with commentary.

“A very disarming Abrams himself was there, as was Simon Pegg, the new Scotty; both were on-form but clearly very nervous, and both addressed the gathering, Abrams at length,’ Geek wrote. “ He may be right: the viewing started with the new trailer, which will be in cinemas Friday, followed by four scenes from the movie itself, all complete with polished SFX and scoring.

“And it all looks absolutely amazing.”

Empire wrote “any reservations we may have harbored over JJ Abrams’ reimagining of the franchise have been well and truly beamed away. What we saw was a medley of action, excitement, humor and a true reverence for the franchise that should both appease fans and suck in newcomers.” (more…)

Revised ‘Magneto’ Plot Revealed

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

Production Weekly printed a revised plot synopsis for David Goyer’s X-Men Origins: Magneto film. Goyer is slated to write and direct the project for 20th Century Fox.

“The original X-Men film began with a prologue that showed the character as a child being led to a concentration camp by Nazis and that is the period in which the Magneto film will take place. This setup will allow a future villain to at least flirt with the designation of protagonist since the character will be seen almost exclusively in his formative years. The storyline will heavily involve Professor X, the wheelchair-using X-Men leader. That character was a soldier in the allied force that liberated the concentration camps. The professor meets Magneto after the war and while they bond over the realization that they are alike in their special powers, their differences soon turn them into enemies.”

While Sir Ian McKellen has indicated a desire to participate in the film, the light has yet to go green so there’s no casting, production or release date as yet. While the plot involves Xavier, there’s been no word either about Patrick Stewart’s participation.

McKellen and Stewart, though, will reunite in March for a British production of Waiting for Godot.

Ridley Scott May Direct ‘Monopoly’

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

Ridley Scott is going to Boardwalk in style.  He is in talks with Universal to direct a movie based on the Parker Brothers’ classic Monopoly according to The Hollywood Reporter. Scott first announced his interest in the project on June 19, 2007.

Pamela Pettler (Corpse Bride) is already at work on a screenplay for the Hasbro-Universal collaboration. She is also writing another animated project, 9, to be produced by Bride’s director Tim Burton and Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted).

Hasbro has several other games in development around Hollywood including Ouija Board with Platinum Dunes, Battleship, and course, Paramount has G.I. Joe coming next August.

The game was first developed in 1904 as a way to explain economics and then was revised and modified until Charles Darrow presented a finished version to Parker Brothers, which released it in 1935. It has since spawned countless variations and international editions,having been played by more than 750 million people according to the Guinness Book of World Records.
 

An Early Look at ‘Coraline’

  • News
  • November 12, 2008

If you were to ask ten people who directed Nightmare Before Christmas, it’s almost a guarantee that nine of them will come back with “Tim Burton” and those nine people would all be wrong. The film was actually directed by Henry Selick, who’s other works include James and the Giant Peach and Monkeybone. In Laika Entertainment’s Coraline, Selick is stepping in both the shoes of Director and Screenwriter as he adapts Neil Gaiman’s creepy-but-heartfelt 2002 novella.

The film is still in it’s final stages of production, currently working on scoring and sound mixing for a February 2009 release, but Selick, alongside producer Bill Mechanic, lead animator Travis Knight and costar Ian McShane were in New York with footage of the film and a brief Q&A.

The story is of a young girl (Dakota Fanning) who unlocks a mysterious door in her new home, and enters into an adventure in a parallel reality. On the surface, this other world eerily mimics her own life—though much more fantastical. In it, Coraline encounters such oddball counterparts of her real friends and family as the morbidly funny Miss Forcible (Jennifer Saunders) and Miss Spink (Dawn French), and a counterfeit mother (Teri Hatcher)—who attempts to keep her. Ultimately, Coraline must count on her resourcefulness, determination, and bravery to get back home.

The footage ran about 30 minutes and looked amazing. This is one of the first films to be shot in RealD, an innovative new 3D viewing technology. Other films have utilized this method, but only in postproduction like the yearly rerelease of Nightmare Before Christmas in 3D. Coraline, being a stop-motion animated film, was able to shoot with a new form of depth never used in animated films to give audience members a “true 3D experience”. Those who were never a fan of the red and blue plastic glasses can finally enjoy a real 3D film as the only tool needed are a pair of slick black glasses which won’t give you a headache.

The film looks like it will certainly draw in any fans of Selick’s Nightmare Before Christmas, as it gives the same warm feeling. This film, being a Gaiman book, does become very dark in the second act, which doesn’t get balanced out by some Broadway-style music like in Nightmare. Selick’s method to animating and now screenwriting brings a whole new dimension to animated film and certainly comes through in Coraline.

After the footage, a brief Q&A took place where Selick mentioned how well he and Gaiman communicated often and positively on the project, which is refreshing knowing that Gaiman is almost as belligerent as Alan Moore when it comes to adapting his books. Gaiman was on the set often and all of his notes were “easy to fix and completely justifiable” according to Selick. Producer Bill Mechanic also went on about how the film has been in production since 2001, when the duo originally planned to shoot the film as live-action with computer-generated counterparts. They ultimately decided to go with stop-motion, and the cast and crew seem to be happier for it. Overall, the film looked amazing and will do great things for animated films and certainly for 3D, which was thought to be a dying trend for decades.

 

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